Tainted Blood

"That was the first time I've gone out in years, and this time I did it for the right reasons." Deanna lowered the visor and reapplied her lipstick in the mirror. "I guess you think about these things after you've been dead." She lifted the visor and hit the skip button on the CD player. Evanescence began singing about love and being taken over.

Lilith sighed in the backseat. Deanna turned in her seat. "Are you upset about something?"

Lilith eyed her mother cautiously. "What makes you think that?"

"A better question," Dante interjected, "is what you were doing at that club?"

Lilith raised an eyebrow. "I'm grown."

"We know, dear," Deanna said with a smirk, "but you weren't there to have fun. If you were, then seeing your father and me wouldn't have warranted your unprofessional response. It's not everyday I get pushed and yelled at just for wanting to have fun, especiallly by my own daughter."

"Sorry." Lilith shrugged. "I was just worried about the baby."

Deanna turned forward and rolled her eyes. "Vergil is fine."

"You named him Vergil!"

"Lilith!" Dante called. "Just answer the question."

"What question?"

"What caused you to act the way you did. You were pissed at something, and it wasn't at us."

"How do you know?" she asked snobbishly. She saw Dante glare at her through the rear view mirror. "Jeremy was there."

"Jeremy?" Deanna thought for a moment. "I remember him. Are you two still dating?"

"No. I dumped him ten minutes ago."

"So, he's the one who pissed you off. What did he do?"

"A friend tipped me off. I went there to see for myself. I caught him with another woman."

Dante and Deanna gasped at the same time. "Don't kill him," Deanna said. "He's not worth it. He doesn't know what kind of whipping you're capable of giving him."

"Please. He doesn't even know what I do for a living."

"Good. Speaking of jobs, I wonder if I can become a model again."

"No. They all think you're dead."

"Damn."

(X)

He opened the door and stared at the clothes that hung there. They all appeared to be his size, which had changed dramatically within the last hour, much to the surprise of the redhead who was babysitting him. He reached for a black shirt and held it against himself to estimate the fit.
He spoke for the first time. "Perfect."

(X)

Lilith reached the door first. It was unlikely she wouldn't; Dante and Deanna were lagging behind for a chance to talk in private. Lilith unlocked it and flung the door open. The person she saw inside made her stop, drop her keys, and stare in both horror and awe.

The man before her smiled. She recognized his face somehow. She recognized his clothes and the large flaming red sword on his back. Lilith remained perfectly still as he raised his hands to gently touch her face. His familiar eyes blinked several times before he spoke. His voice was inviting but dark, as if it were hiding something. "Hello, sister."

Lilith opened her mouth, but the scream was never released. His gentle touch was suddenly painful as he began to squeeze her head. With her head still in his hands, he pivoted and pushed her against the wall. "Hold your tongue if you wish to keep it in your mouth."

"What are you?" she whispered.

"You know," he said calmly. "I am all that you see before you, sister." He ran one hand carefully across her face. He ran his fingers through her hair and rested his palm against her forehead. Lilith felt something push into her mind. She lost all ability to resist as she suddenly saw memories flash. Each memory was older than the one before. She saw the first time she transformed under the influence of Sparda's Sorrow, the last time she played on her father's drum set, her father lowering her dying body into the frozen lake, and several more as they rewound into her childhood. The memories pushed further back until she began to see those she didn't know were still there. Finally, she saw a memory that changed the man's manner again.

(X)

Lilith lay quietly in her crib. She yawned and stuck her fist into her mouth. Her knuckles seemed somewhat juicy, especially since her first tooth was already poking through her gum. She yawned again and closed her eyes. Before she could fall asleep, she was alerted by the sound of the nursery door opening. She gazed up to see her father standing over her.

"This is a first," he whispered as he slid his gloves off. "You're awake for once." He picked her up and held her against his shoulder. She took a deep whiff of his hair and yawned again. He opened the curtains to let in the first rays of the sunrise. "Look at that," he said as he turned her around. She squinted against the sunlight until her eyes adjusted. She gawked and reached up to touch the purples, oranges, reds, and yellows in the sky.

(X)

"Stop!" Lilith managed to scream. The man pulled his hand away. The memories disappeared. Lilith slouched slightly against the wall.

He stared at her. His eyes betrayed his bewilderment. "He, he loves you, doesn't he? Does he love me, too?"

Lilith shook her head to clear her thoughts. She didn't truly understand the question. The previous seconds left her dazed. "No," she said without realizing the question she was answering.

"Why would he?"

The man was silent as if to contemplate her response. He placed his hands around her throat, but he never got the chance to do what he intended.

"Lilith!" Dante called at the door. "What are you . . ." The words died as he saw the stranger. The man released Lilith and let her fall to the floor. "What the hell are you doing!"

The man turned slowly. His head was tilted down, but his eyes were looking straight at Dante and Deanna. "Don't you know me?"

Dante recognized the man was wearing his clothes. He was more disturbed by the fact that this person had his father's sword. He deliberately ignored that this man bore a striking resemblance to him. "No, I don't. Should I?"

The man lifted his head. He glanced at Deanna before speaking. "Mom. Dad. Don't you recognize your own son?"

Deanna shook her head. "No. No. No. It's not. It can't be."

Dante was more straightforward. "Vergil?"

"Yes."

"No," Dante responded. "Give me that sword. Now."

Vergil narrowed his eyes. "Why should I? I have every right to it. It's my grandfather's sword."

"It's my father's sword!" Dante fought the urge to yell. "You have no right to it. Give it to me."

Vergil placed a hand on the hilt. "Lilith has used the sword. What makes her more worthy of it?"

"Lilith is infused with Sparda's essence. You are not."

Vergil pulled the sword around and rushed forward as if to impale Dante. He stopped right before the tip of the sword could pierce his throat. Dante didn't even blink. Vergil scowled with defiance. "If you want this sword, you'll have to pry from my dead hands."

Dante's response was a single word. "Easy."

"No!" Deanna seized Dante's arm as if she feared he'd lash out. "You mustn't."

"Who are you to speak!" Vergil demanded as he pointed Sparda towards her. "It's your fault that I was denied!"

"No, that's not true!"

Vergil lowered the sword and threw himself at her. Just as his hands reached her, he was engulfed in ice. In an instant, his skin turned light blue. He dropped the sword and screamed. He recovered in time to grab the sword again and fell backwards through the door. Dante pushed Deanna aside and stepped outside. Vergil stood and shook off the last of the ice crystals.

"Do we have to do this the hard way?" Dante asked.

"Don't patronize me," Vergil spat. He lifted the sword again. "You won't keep me from fulfilling my destiny."

"You won't fulfill it like this."

"That's your own ignorant opinion." Vergil stabbed the sword into the ground. A flaming spark shot out from the sword hilt and up Vergil's arm. "If you won't give me what I want, then I will have to take it." Dante watched in silence as the flame enveloped Vergil from head to toe. Vergil pulled Sparda from the ground, and the flame died, taking Vergil and the sword with it. Dante stared at the spot Vergil stood for a few seconds before turning back to the house.

He slammed the door behind him. "What the hell just happened!"

The qustion was obviously directed at Deanna. "Don't blame this on me. I don't know any more than you do."

"Why do I find that difficult to believe?" The sound of something falling caught their attention. Lilith had fallen against the wall again. Her hand was still covered in the ice she shot Vergil with. Deanna and Dante each took an arm and hoisted her over to the couch.

Lilith massaged her hand as the ice quickly melted. "Mom, was that the same baby you were just putting a diaper on just a few hours ago?"

"I don't know. Who else could it be?"

"Matier will have our heads."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh no," Dante suddenly realized. "The babysitter."
Lilith was distracted by the sound of whining and scratching. "I bet I know where to find her." She followed the whining to the nearest closet and opened the door. Guess ran out past her and curled up next to the couch. Lilith didn't notice. She saw a redhead swinging from closet ceiling. "I found her!"

She moved aside to let Dante grab Lucia and pull her down. He stretched her across the couch and searched for a pulse. Without indicating whether or not he found a heartbeat, he stared up at Deanna and scowled. "What did you do?"

"What?" Deanna folded her arms and returned the scowl. "Don't you dare try to place this on me. What is wrong with you?"

Dante stood straight. "You birthed that creature. What happened to him to make him like that?"

"I don't know."

"You're lying."

"Well, in case you forgot, I didn't have him by myself."

"Will you two shut the hell up?" Lilith didn't look up to see their expressions. She leaned forward to touch Lucia's face. A green slime oozed from the side of her mouth. Lilith let some of it touch her finger. A burning agony shot from her finger up through her arm. She pulled her arm back and slung the ooze across the carpet. She held her hand to massage the pain away. "There is no way she would have survived that." She ran into the kitchen and ran cold water over her hand.
Deanna followed her into the kitchen. "Let me see that." She grabbed Lilith's hand. "There's no wound on it. What happened?"

"Something came out of her mouth."

"What was it?"

Lilith pulled her hand away. "Don't worry about it. I'm more concerned about the mess in the living room."

"Mess is definitely the right word."

"What happened to him?"

Deanna turned towards the door as if to leave. "What do you mean?"

"How did he jump from newborn to adult in only a few hours?"

"I know no more about it than you do. I swear." Before Lilith could say anything, Deanna left the kitchen. "We'll talk no more of this."

As she watched her mother leave, Lilith suddenly remembered the dream she had the night before. "Maybe it wasn't me having that baby after all."