Sorry guys, been banned from the pcon account of the fact that I still had summer work to do, and school started today….Anyway, this also means that I just found your reviews…which makes things slightly awkward this chapter as it is too late to change the script or anyhting. So...
Rin, Anonyous.Don't worry. Dante's confused too.And where did Vance come from? No idea.
"Yes, I understand completely. You can come down whenever you like. Ok, bye-bye." Trish hung up the phone. "That was Vance's parents." Trish informed Dante who was standing outside, taking a better estimate of the damage done. It was the next morning. Vance had been driven home (by Trish of course) the previous night, with a promise that he could return today.
"They were just apologizing for all the "hassle" he had put us through. They had said that he needed to find a hobby, or a job, and of course he already knew what he wanted to do…." Trish said shrugging.
Dante's eyebrows were raised when he locked Trish in his sights. "Hassle? Hassle? He knocked down an entire wall!" Dante said, throwing his arms into the air. "You know, maybe I should train a Nesfasturris or something to come and guard over my shop." He said, mostly to himself. "I wonder how that would work out….If I could find a really young one, I could just bring it here and let it model its building frame from the shop…but I'd probably have to go back into Hell just to find one. Damn."
Trish placed her hands on her hips. "You weren't seriously just considering that were you? No one in their right mind would get one of those things as a body guard. They attack everything. And besides. What do they eat?" Trish asked, shooting holes in Dante's theory. "You don't even know do you?"
Dante grinned at her. "Hey Trish, here's a thought for you. Maybe you should ask if someone cares before you start rambling off. I'm trying to think of protection for my life."
"Your life?" Trish asked with a skeptic tone.
"Duh Trish." Dante said, shaking his head. "See, not only do I work here, but I live here too. My whole world revolves around this here building. Its my life. And I just can't let it get run-over. At least not repeatedly. And why Trish? Because that would be life-threatening. And I don't want my life threatened in any way shape or form."
Trish had sudden flash-backs of a large spider with magma for blood. "Uh huh. Right." Trish said. "You are so perfectly safe here."
"It really is a shame I killed Cerberus he'd be perfect…well, technically he's not dead, but what good does a three-pronged nunchuck do for me while I'm away?" Dante said, going back to guard possibilities.
"Let's say that you didn't kill the huge teething three-headed dog. Where would you keep it?" Trish asked.
"Look, babe. I'm more of a big-picture person. I'm not into all the little details." Dante said shrugging. There was a moment or two of silence. "Hey Trish, did you know the average person's attention span is only a few minutes long? Learned that nifty little fact from Lucia. And on that note…." Dante said, sifting through rock and debris. "How the hell did Lucia become a psychologist anyway!"
"What do you mean?"
"She has all those issues herself! Me, me, me. Oh dear! I was created by Arius! Oh send me into the pit of hell where I'll surely die! I'm expendable! Just weird. She constantly contradicts herself, andIs that a piece of my bike?" Dante said, having unearthed a shiny metal with his foot. He kneeled down and picked it up. "Yep."
"Which piece is it?" Trish asked with mild interest.
"One of the exhaust pipes. Damn that kid." Dante said, shaking his head. He still had not worked up the courage to call about an estimate on the repairs for the building. And now, his bike had to go right back to the shop too. If it wasn't wrecked.
"Well anyway I think Lucia is a very good doctor." Trish said, putting in a good word for her red-headed friend.
"Huh?" Dante stood up and scratched his head. "Are you still talking about that?" Trish rolled her eyes and fixed her gaze on a approaching vehicle down the street. "That's Vance and his parents coming." Trish informed. "Now remember, they think that he has applied for a job here."
Dante's head snapped up. "What! I have to pay this little urchin too?" Trish didn't feel the need to respond. Dante slammed his foot down, cracking the side-walk. "This is such a load of bull…."
"Anyway," Trish continued, ignoring him, "the point is, do you have a plan?" Dante gave a sarcastic laugh in response. "Do I ever?"
Vance's parents had arrived. Trish mentally checked her posture, but Dante was slouched and looked bored as always.
Dante could tell Vance's parent's were not poor. And also believed in class and presentation. They arrived in a black Cadillac that shined in the sun's light. Dante could even see his own reflection as the car drove closer. Dante highly doubted that they had recently washed this car. It was more like, it had never gotten dirty.
Mr. Vance stepped out first after parking. He looked much like a taller version of his son. He wore khaki slacks, and a green golfing sweater. He was slightly less pale than his son, but the same thick glasses and jet-black hair.
Mrs. Vance stepped out next from the passenger side. Shorter than her husband by several inches, she matched Vance's height. She had naturally curly brown hair. Unlike her son and spouse, she was very tanned. Almost to the point of being scary. Dante had to fight hard not to step back and draw his guns.
Finally the last people out of the car was Vance himself and apparently his younger sister. This one had a punkskater look to her and was obnoxiously chewing pink bubble-gum.
As Mr. And Mrs'. noses wrinkled at the sight, but it was the sister that voiced what they were thinking. "This is where you're going to work?" she asked her brother snottily. "It's a dump!" she said, striding forward without bothering to even give the slightest attention to Dante or Trish.
"We're remodeling" Trish said, with a smile and holding out a hand. "My name is Trish."
"Oh! You're the young lady we spoke to on the phone earlier!" Mrs. Vance said taking her hand.
"And you must be the owner of the shop?" Mr. Vance said, striding forward himself with his hand outstretched toward Dante. Dante looked at the hand for a moment, then modeled it into a fist and pounded it with his own. "The name's Dante."
Mr. Vance looked at his fist for a moment then put it in his pocket. "Er…yes. I'm Vance's father, John Rosewood."
"Sup'!" Dante said simply. Trish's smile was getting more and more strained by the second.
"So…Dante…What exactly do you do here? Your ad in the Yellow Book isn't exactly clear." Mr. Rosewood told him. Trish's real smile returned and her eyes sent a vicious I-told-you-so to Dante.
"Well, we do pretty much whatever we're called in to do. We only take certain jobs, but none of them are too dangerous, mostly heavy lifting or cleaning out places and what not."
"Then what are all these swords and stuff back here on the wall?" Sister asked. Dante shrugged. "What can I say. My best friends are the owners of a Halloween store."
"And what are the wages paid?" Rosewood asked. Dante shrugged again. "It's based on the number of jobs, you get your cut from them, and they are all compiled together at the end of two weeks."
Rosewood raised his eyebrows. "That doesn't seem too stable." He said sternly.
"The work does require a little bit of faith." Trish said.
Rosewood nodded, and asked for some time alone with his son, while the Mrs. and the sister took a tour of what remained of the Agency. Vance and his father soon returned.
"When does he start?" Rosewood asked. Dante smiled at Vance. "Oh you can leave him here today so we can test him out and all. The 'remodeling' is done by us ourselves. We do it a lot."
Rosewood seemed about to protest but Vance had already left his side and begun picking up bricks. "I guess we'll be back in a few hours." Rosewood said, as sister and Mrs. got back into the car.
"See you around" Dante said. The Rosewoods drove off. "Vance" Dante called. Vance was immediately at attention. "Who was that girl with you?"
"My sister sir. Her name's Sarah. She's 14."
"That explains the attitude. And don't call me 'sir'." Dante said, walking to his room.
"Wait! Sir!" Vance called. "When does my training begin?"
"When the remodeling is done." Dante answered.
"When will that be?"
"However long it takes you to finish." Dante told him before disappearing into his room. Vance looked defeated, but Trish placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. We'll get him to work too."
Vance smiled.
Review. Slightly more slow than the last chapter...sorry.