Title:
Maybe In Another Life
Fandom:
Devil May Cry
Character:
Lady
Theme
Set: Zeta
Disclaimer:
Capcom owns Lady and Dante and Vergil and Devil May Cry. I am
practicing run on sentences now, since I suspect I'll be abusing
them for the challenge.
Author's Notes: One of the nifty one sentence challenges from LJ. I might do more of the theme sets for Lady, 'cause I like writing for her a lot.
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01. Swords
She never used a sword, not once – she couldn't afford the time it would take to train in its use, she didn't have the upper body strength to wield it effectively, and she had no intentions of being second best at something else.
02. Sorcery
Lady wanted to believe it was magic that turned her father evil, that he'd been seduced by the dark arts; in the end she had to accept that it was just him, and he'd been there all along.
03. Rogue
He'd offered to work as her partner, and though she'd hated to do it she'd had no choice but to turn him down – Dante didn't and never would need her, and she worked alone.
04. Parti-colored
If she could change anything about herself she wouldn't erase the scars, she'd change her eyes; they were the last thing that tied her to him, and ensured she would never be able to blend into a crowd.
05. Divination
Lady asked the fortune teller for a palm reading and the old woman stared at her hand with a puzzled face; the lines spoke of no family, no grand adventures, no lovers, no children – and even when pressed, the woman refused to say what she saw in Lady's future.
06. Pillory
"Kinky," Dante said when he found her, tied up and chained down in the lowest dungeon, and she shouted him to shove it and get her down – she was only supposed to be the bait here, but she was eager to get her hands on Kalina Ann and start kicking some demon ass.
07. Chant
Every morning she woke up with her new name on her lips – a reminder that she'd left her old life behind, even if she'd spent the night seeing it in her nightmares.
08. Castle
There weren't any demons in this castle, there weren't even any ghosts; it was Lady's idea to set off the grenades and holy waters anyway, and bill the owner in full.
09. Brocade
An elaborate tapestry in the hallway had caught her eyes, and she'd stood staring at it while the demons snuck up on her from behind; after saving her life, Dante cheerfully informed her that she had gotten caught in a glamour spell, and that he was, of course, immune.
10. Priestess
She was descended from a legend in a fairy tale, and her blood had the power to release the demon world – try as she might to save humanity from evil, she knew that the best favor she could do for the world was to end her bloodline and die.
11. Dark Knight
Way back when, she'd seen him around her house – Vergil was a cold man with haunting eyes, and Mary was a little girl he hadn't even noticed – and if only she'd known what he was, if she'd had any warning at all, then none of this might have happened.
12. Evocation
She'd heard some terrible sounds in her life, she'd had to listen to demons scream and humans die, but nothing had ever chilled her as much as the voice of her father: "Let's welcome chaos."
13. Market
Lady spent the morning lecturing Dante about the disorder of his home, the piles of laundry on his floor, the papers on his desk, and the fact that he had nothing to eat except old pizza; she was shocked to find herself doing his shopping for him that afternoon.
14. Ordeal by Fire
The nitro for her bike had been a smart purchase, it gave her an explosive weapon and the bursts of speeds had saved her life more than once; all of that was forgotten, however, the one time she'd accidentally set her skirt on fire.
15. Ordeal by Water
She'd nearly drowned with a lesser demon caught her by the leg and dragged her under the surface, and Dante had watched the scene without even bothering to conceal his laughter; until that moment she'd forgotten he was only half human, and he'd forgotten the water could actually kill her.
16. Dragon
Lady didn't care much for material things but she guarded Kalina Ann like a dragon; it meant more to her than most could understand, because it wasn't just a weapon, it was her mother.
17. Giant
The demon looked massive, intimidating, monstrous, and she was clearly out of her league – but it'd only taken one rocket from Kalina Ann to bring it to its knees.
18. Trickster
After all the years of training and all the blood shed, it'd taken only cheap theatrics and a lie and a name to turn her around – she couldn't believe she'd been tricked again.
19. Dungeon
Lady was far from stupid, but the complexity of this dungeon was turning her in circles; she gave up and knelt down on the ground, and after making sure no one was looking, she drew a map in the dirt with her fingers.
20. Scroll
The scroll she found was quite a find, the ancient text was filled with arcane symbols and promises of great power at greater prices; Lady felt no remorse as she watched it burn.
21. Elemental
First the dragon shot fire and her, and then ice, and then fire, looking for her weakness – Lady crouched behind the boulder she'd turned into a shield and wondered when this creature would figure out she was human, and therefore weak against everything.
22. Ale
Lady couldn't hold her liquor and she knew it, and it wasn't because she was a woman and it wasn't because of her small frame – she just didn't get any practice, because she didn't see the appeal in drinking alone.
23. Stew
She could cook exactly three meals: spaghetti and meatballs, macaroni and cheese, and a thick meat stew – and if Dante didn't like it, he could find someone else to mooch off of.
24. Staff
Demon hunting didn't always pay well, and occasionally Lady had to find other work to pay the bills; she got fired every time, but in her world any man who grabbed her ass deserved hot coffee in his lap.
25. Lore
She'd heard the story so many times but until she met Dante she'd been sure Sparda was a myth; if a legend could be truth, then maybe putting her faith in a hero wasn't so stupid after all.
26. Artifact
It was an antique, an ancient cruiser and she knew she was nuts to trust it – but once she'd paid for the modifications and paint and seen the final result, Lady told herself it would take an army to separate her from her motorcycle.
27. Guild
The invite didn't come in the mail, it was written in blood and it had been slid under her door; how many rejections would it take before these guys realized she had no intentions of joining any kind of "crew?"
28. Lantern
She cursed when her lantern smashed, and then she fell completely silent – now she couldn't see her enemies, but the demons could still hear and smell her.
29. Chest
Her new work outfit was primarily practical, the tight body suit gave her freedom of movement and it didn't get in her way – and yes, she knew how good she looked in it, thank you very much.
30. Alchemy
No one ever suspected Lady had a knack for things mechanical; she'd done all the work on her bike and her rocket launcher herself, because these things meant her life and she couldn't trust anyone else.
31. Potion
She hesitated before she drank it; they'd told her it would make her stronger and faster, but how many steps was it from this to turning into her father?
32. Doppelganger
She hadn't noticed the similarities until Vergil stared right at her and called her a fool; on reflection she had to wonder why the eyes of the elder twin had seemed so young, and why the younger's eyes looked so old.
33. Arrow
It was an arrow to her thigh, of course it hurt, but the job wasn't done yet, so she had no choice but to snap off the shaft and bandage it up; she could only run with a limp, but that was still running.
34. Map
She'd been lost for hours, so either the crudely hand drawn map was dead wrong, or the true directions were obscured by the pizza sauce stains; either way, if she ever managed to find this shop, Dante was going to wish she hadn't.
35. Coin
She finished the job in record time, by herself and the only property damage had been a busted window; but when it came time to collect her paycheck she just didn't have the heart to charge the old widow a single cent.
36. Crusade
Kill all demons, that was her reason for living – and sometimes, late at night, she had to wonder how long it would be before she didn't have anything left except a mission.
37. Witch
She didn't know a single magic spell and they still called her witch; Lady had no idea why they didn't just go all the way and call her a bitch.
38. Duel
She was fighting him with everything she had, she was pulling out every trick she knew – and one glance at his smirking face told her that this was just a game, and she was not a challenge.
39. Boots
She tried tennis shoes once – the leaping and falling was starting to get to her knees and ankles – but one slip in a puddle of blood, and she was back to her faithful boots.
40. Chalice
Once she figured out the puzzle of this room she grimaced, but she rolled up her sleeve without complaint – demons were always thirsty for her blood, but filling a chalice with the stuff brought back some painful memories.
41. Offering
She'd asked him, once, why on Earth he would try and kiss her; a shrug was the only answer he offered.
42. Sacrifice
She'd given him her most prized possession when she didn't even think he was coming back; it wasn't really a sacrifice, because if he didn't succeed, did any of this matter?
43. Stained Glass
She didn't know what had happened, she remembered she'd gone flying – it wasn't until she looked around and saw the blood and broken glass that she realized she was bleeding to death.
44. Diadem
She'd found the delicate silver crown in a hoard and kept it in her apartment for years; keeping it had been a crime and it was probably cursed anyway, but putting it on her head was the only thing that made her actually feel pretty.
45. Epic
Her life was one adventure after another, one mission after the next, and every decision she made had the potential to change her life or end it; sometimes, Lady wished she could just be normal.
46. King
He wanted to be king of all the world and everyone in it; though her heard ached for Dante, she was glad Vergil was dead.
47. Servant
She was spitting blood when she heard his offer, and if she wasn't in so much pain she would have laughed – Lady was no one's servant, not even when the price was her life.
48. Fae
The people in this village called them faeries but Lady could tell a demon when she saw it – maybe the tiny wings threw everyone else off, but these creatures had little horns on the tops of their heads and were armed with canine teeth.
49. Prophesy
After her father's death she found translations of the Demon Sword Document hidden in his things; on the third page it spoke of needing the blood of the vengeful maiden, and she knew she was reading about herself.
50. Destiny
It'd been such a routine mission, and it seemed so stupid, but as she watched the blood flow from the deep wound in her side Lady had no regrets; this had been her life, she'd known what she was doing, and it wasn't like she had a home to return to, anyway.
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