15 January 8:08pm
It was his 3rd shower of the day? Maybe 4th. He couldn't really keep track. He didn't have anything to do and he didn't want to interact with people so he did what he could to stay distracted. His mind was empty. The nightmares that once used to haunt his subconscious were finally gone and it was so...quiet. The water hitting the floor of the shower turned into white noise and his wet hair started falling again, covering his eyes. But his mind… nothing. He should be happy, shouldn't he? Anything was better than the tormented thoughts he went through because of Mundus' enslavement. He clenched his fist and leaned it against the wall of the shower, trying to force out his doubt.
The water was finally getting cold which felt good on his muscles, he had to admit. Fighting with Dante for as much as they did got exhausting. He's a better swordsman than ever, but that fatigue was setting in. He hummed as his muscles felt numb from the cold water, soon turning into a shiver.
Getting out of the shower, he changed back into the clothes he was given. A long sleeved navy shirt and pants similar to what he was wearing before. Soft, impractical clothing. It felt odd, but humans always preferred comfort he supposed. As long as they didn't belong to Dante. He pushed his wet hair back and stepped outside of the bathroom, hearing noises coming from what he assumed was the basement, a location he has yet to explore. He ventured downstairs expecting to see Dante, but was greeted with the woman he briefly met yesterday, forgetting her name. She had a punching bag in front of her, doing various moves to practice with. Free weights and a pull up bar where thrown around the place as well. Perhaps he's found another distraction, but too bad he had to share. He eyed her for a second too long because she noticed him when he turned to leave.
Cyra froze. Fear set in, unsure if she should say something or just pretend she didn't see him. What could she even possibly talk to him about? Hey, Vergil, how's the parasite treating you? What did he even do aside from fighting Dante? She wondered what happened after they tore down the Qliphoth tree. Dante finally got to see his brother alive and neither of them killed each other. Were they on good terms now? Considering they were in the underworld for 7 months, she assumed they were. Who knows what else they were up to. The underworld wasn't exactly something she was familiar with. Not like they had bars, she thought. She decided she was done working out, but then the dread set in. Was she alone with Vergil? Maybe she could escape through the front door before he even noticed her. Cyra grabbed her hoodie and zipped it up, getting ready to make the big escape.
Once at the top of the stairs, she scanned the kitchen, relieved to see him not there. Time for the B-line through the exit door, she thought. She walked around the corner only to bump into Vergil himself. How cliche, she thought, "S-Sorry," She spat out, face turning red.
"You're in a hurry," He drawled out.
"Y-yeah, got some samples I forgot about. Comparing every 4 hours, you know," Cyra said, "Well, I guess you wouldn't, but anyway, I'll leave you to it-" She said and walked out.
Vergil watched her leave through the front door without another word to her. He smirked and let out a quick chuckle. Was she afraid of him? What a great feeling, even if it was just a human. The brothers asked Cyra at one point about Vergil going on demon extermination jobs with Dante, which Cyra said it was better not to. Vergil couldn't help but remember how timid she always looked when attempting to speak to him.
Dante came in through the same door moments later, looking back before walking in, "The hell did you say to her?" Dante laughed.
"I didn't say anything. Your stories of me must have scared her," Vergil said.
Dante scoffed, "Psssh, you think I talked about you? All I said was that you've always been a major pain in my ass."
"Wait until I tell her stories about you," Vergil said.
"If you can even get her to be in the same room as you for more than 5 seconds," Dante challenged.
"Challenge accepted," Vergil said.
"Oh god, what are you planning?" Dante asked.
"Oh, I'm not planning anything," Vergil said finally walking into the kitchen for water.
"Vergil, I don't have to ask you to play nice with my friends, do I? Did you forget the part where she's saving your life?" Dante said, trying to sound light about it, but meaning it.
"Precisely why I'd like to get to know her more," Vergil said already annoyed at the convo, "Now are you going to clean up or do you like smelling like eviscerated demons in your own home?"
Dante sighed and rolled his eyes, "Not you, too…" He said and dragged his feet to the shower,
"Look, I'm serious. Cyra has her own issues, so take it easy on her," Dante said dismissively.
"Hm," Vergil said. So that was her name, he finally let it register. Well, looks like uncovering her mysteries was going to be his other new hobby.
Dante turned on the shower only to shriek due to the cold water coming out of the shower, "Vergil! Did you use all the hot water!?"
Vergil was waiting for that. Now he could finally go to the basement and enjoy his new distraction. He was told to rest. Rest would only weaken his body and his mind, as if the parasite wasn't doing enough of that. Still, he had to worry about going overboard and having to ration the demon blood that the apothecary woman gave to him. So her name was Cyra? Unusual for a human, he thought. He did find her amusing. She was smart enough to work with medicine, but couldn't even make eye contact with him, or be in the same room together, it seemed. He wondered about her fighting skills. Perhaps they'd have to spar one day to test her out.
Cyra sat in front of her microscope, staring blankly at nothing. What a fool she must look like to him. She wasn't even this nervous around Dante when they first met. She managed to ask him to let her move in and her voice didn't even falter. Saying that she was scared of Vergil was partially an understatement. Dante wouldn't leave her alone with a murderous psycho, even if it was his brother. No, she had no real reason to be afraid of him. She was just nervous. His face, his voice, the way he carries himself… She slapped herself, literally. She's known the man for a total of 10 minutes over 3 days and she's developing a school girl crush on him. Dante's brother at that. The evil demon! No, not evil anymore… Okay, she was just thinking in circles now.
19 January 5:46pm
4 days went by with no word from Cyra. Dante assumed she was busy working with samples or sleeping. He hoped she was sleeping. Girl gets a little too overzealous with her work. She spent her whole time making Unholy Waters and now she was forced with the extra task of finding a cure for his brother's illness. Vergil found a new hobby of exercising in the basement, even though he wasn't supposed to. Although the last two days, he was nowhere to be seen. Dante sure hoped he wouldn't have to save his ass again. Maybe he was off meeting women and making more little Neros. Dante let out a laugh at the ridiculous thought. Can't he just have a normal life with a brother for more than ten seconds?
Dante finally decided to call up Cyra hoping to catch up. He was eager to tell her what happened, but more importantly just to have her around. Having business partners like Trish and Lady around all the time got exhausting; it was nice to have someone who wasn't a devil hunter in his life; someone normal.
"... I had a feeling something was off about him, but turns out he was just one half of Vergil," Dante said talking about V.
Cyra has spent much of her life around demons and the supernatural. Not much managed to shock her except for when it affected herself or someone she knew, like Dante. Trish already told her that Vergil purged his humanity to heal himself, which turned him into the demon king. Cyra brushed it off then, but now that Dante was back and she even met the former demon king, she felt sad for them. Vergil must have been in so much pain and torment to want to sacrifice one half of himself… Maybe one day she'd get his point of view on things… If she could talk to him. He still made her nervous. It was partially his history, sure, but she couldn't ignore how handsome he was. Okay, Cyra, calm down.
Regardless, his demon half is still in him. What's stopping him from doing the same thing once she removes the poison from his blood? His human half was returned to him, but that couldn't mean he was suddenly a nice guy. Could it?
"You know, I never really said this before. During the Temen-ni-gru incident, I think Vergil tried to save me. He threw himself to the underworld and made sure I couldn't go with him. Well, he wasn't going to stop me this time," Dante said.
"That makes sense. Can't let another Mundus get his hands on him," Cyra realized.
Dante nodded, "Exactly. Just some parasite instead."
Cyra chuckled, "Well, he more so did that to himself. Or.. Urizen did, I guess." It felt weird to refer to Vergil as three different names. She was curious how this V persona was. If V was his humanity, she wondered what he was like. Probably not a good thing to bring up. She'd learn who current Vergil was and that's all that should matter, just like the rest of his past.
"I'm not sure what's going to happen after Vergil's problem gets taken care of. Really, I should go back and seal the demon world myself, but Vergil would come after me and kill me if I took Yamato."
"Doesn't he already try to kill you?" Cyra asked coyly.
"That he does. So I want you to keep in mind that it's me he wants to kill, not you, so you don't have to be nervous around him or anything," Dante said.
"W-wh-what do you mean nervous?" Cyra asked. If only he knew it's because of a crush… mostly.
Dante laughed, "That! You keep acting like that around him, he's only going to take advantage of it for fun. I would know, because… Well, nevermind," Dante almost admitted that he felt the same sometimes.
Cyra blushed at the thought of Vergil teasing her, "I'm not scared of him," Cyra said confidently, her blush deceiving her.
"You're not scared of the guy who summoned that big tree in Red Grave city?" Dante asked and Cyra shook her head, "You know about the Qliphoth and what it does. You're telling me the guy using human blood-"
"Okayokayokay, I get it," Cyra cut him off, scrunching her eyes together, "What, do you want me to be afraid of him?"
"You know your shit, but you're kind of a baby deer when it comes to talking to humans, let alone demons," Dante said.
"I talk to you just fine," Cyra defended.
"I'm just that charming," Dante winked.
Cyra rolled her eyes, "Well, it doesn't matter. He's not Urizen anymore and you seem to like having him around, so why would I be scared?"
"You can tell yourself that all you want, but you'll have to convince him," Dante said still chuckling.
"Does he think I'm scared of him?" Cyra asked.
Dante grinned, "Maaaaybe."
"Dante… what did you tell him?" She asked accusingly.
"Nothing! He noticed how much you stutter around him, he took a guess!" Dante defended, still grinning.
Cyra glared and the door opened, interrupting what she was going to say. Vergil walked in, eyes slightly furrowed. That seemed to be his neutral expression. Cyra froze but tried to remain calm as to not give Dante the satisfaction. Damn you, Dante, she thought, maintaining her glare.
"There you are, brother! Was worried you got into some trouble and needed me to save you again," Dante said.
"I was busy admiring this hellhole you call a town," Vergil said on the way to the kitchen.
Dante sighed, "Great, isn't it?" And he winked at Cyra, feeling the fear and tension in the air.
"It's no worse than your home, I can assure you," Vergil called out from the kitchen.
"Yeah, sorry it's not as "homely" as the underworld is," Dante said back.
Vergil walked back out and leaned slightly against the doorframe, "Dante, with genuine sincerity, I can tell you this is the most homely place I've ever been in."
Dante glared. Was Vergil making fun of him? Was there something he was missing, "Sarcasm is so strong…" He muttered, staring at Vergil.
"He means ugly, Dante," Cyra said.
"What!? I meant it was cozy! Comfortable!" Dante said sitting forward, "And you're living here for free!"
Cyra couldn't help but smile at their bickering, but when her eyes settled on Vergil, she couldn't tear them away. He looked so normal when he was arguing with Dante. No, his demon past didn't matter, she decided. This was the restored Vergil, both a defeated demon, and an awakened human.
"Hey, Vergil?" Cyra couldn't stop herself from talking. She interrupted whatever Dante was saying. Shit, she cursed, what got into her.
Both brothers attention went to her, "Yes?" He asked, looking at her. It took Cyra everything to maintain her current attitude. She wouldn't let herself waiver or tear her attention away. She had to prove she's not afraid of him.
Only she didn't think this far ahead. She had to come up with something, "D-do you mind coming to my lab with me? I have to take some more blood samples, and it's easier to do it where all my supplies are," She managed to lie casually and mostly confidently. Dante wouldn't have guessed she was a puddle on the inside.
"Whenever you're ready," Vergil said. He was eager to do more than just wander around aimlessly or have to be around Dante at the moment. It was true that their relationship was better than ever. After everything they've been through, they finally felt like brothers again, but that was exactly the current problem. Constant bickering over little things was just going to stress Vergil out.
What has Cyra done? She started panicking internally. She actually invited him to be alone with her, "Well alright then," She said and turned to Dante, "Dante," She said bidding her farewell.
Vergil went to follow her, only to throw a smirk back. Dante sat there shocked. He didn't think Cyra would have the guts to talk to him, let alone invite him to be alone with her. Now Vergil was gonna tease Cyra. He was kind of sad to miss it. Nervous Nelly Cyra was one of his favorites as long as he was the one causing it. He wasn't so sure about someone else... At least it was only his brother. He wouldn't do anything to her...right? Although… Vergil has a history of knocking people up- "Okaaayyy time for a drink," Dante said to himself, interrupting his own thoughts.
Cyra led Vergil to the bookstore down the street, she turned to him to avoid an awkward silence, "You really think this town is a hellhole?" She asked.
"I've been to hell and it's uncanny," Vergil said.
Cyra wasn't expecting him to have a sense of humor, unless he wasn't trying to be funny, which would have scared her, "Surely there's some place you find nice in the human world."
Vergil didn't even have to think about, "I haven't had many pleasant experiences here."
Cyra didn't want to pry. Maybe it's something she would ask about later if he didn't hate her, "Well I do hope you make some good memories…" She trailed off and walked to her door, opening it, Vergil holding the door as he walked in last.
"Your lab is in a bookstore?" He asked in a flat tone.
"Bought the place for really cheap since it was going out of business. Guess no one in this part of town likes to read," She shrugged. Cyra turned to notice Vergil looking through the spines of the books, skimming through the shelves, his fingers lightly brushing against the spines. Cyra couldn't help but stare at how gently his fingers moved along the edges, wondering how it'd feel on her skin. Whooaaaaa, she wished she could slap herself without looking like a freak. What was with her and this stranger? Vergil's face scrunched a bit and he shut his eyes, "What's wrong?" She asked reflexively.
"Nothing," Vergil said after a moment to regain his composure. The nightmares were gone but the PTSD from his childhood still managed to bother him. Dante told him what happened when they were children and how he got it all wrong. Their mother died trying to save Vergil and he wanted to believe it, so why couldn't he?
"You like to read?" She asked him softly, worried that her voice would falter if it was too loud.
It appeared Vergil was in his own trance. He quickly turned his head at her question and retrieved his hand from the bookshelf, "I used to… I suppose. Haven't had much time to read lately," He answered.
"Oh… I'm sorry, stupid question. Dante mentioned… i-it doesn't matter," Cyra said trying to remain calm.
So Dante had talked about him. Vergil took a step toward her, "Has what he said make you fear me?" He asked in a low voice.
Cyra took a step back, "No," She said.
But Vergil could sense her fear. Oh, she was going to be fun, "Then why are you backing away?" He asked in that low voice that sent shivers through Cyra.
"Maybe I just like my personal space," She said confidently, surprised at herself. She had to feign being strong, remembering her conversation with Dante, "Now are you going to let me take your blood, or keep trying to intimidate me?"
Vergil just smirked, Cyra not ready for how wonderful it looked on his face. She had to force herself to keep eye contact. "So it's working?" Vergil asked. So she could stand up for herself, he thought. She wasn't fooling him though; he could practically hear her heartbeat racing.
"Not at all," Cyra lied and turned to walk back further in the library, Vergil following behind her. She quietly let out a breath of air she didn't realize she was holding. Boy, did he make her nervous. Making her way to her desk, she pulled out her own chair and a spare. Vergil took the extra seat and she got her syringes out. She sat down and held out her hand, "Arm," She demanded.
Vergil obliged. She grabbed his arm roughly and lifted a sleeve up, earning an annoyed glanced from him before he looked away to avoid seeing himself get pricked. Cyra noticed his discomfort and felt good about being the one with the power here. A demon afraid of needles? She wanted to get back at him, but being a professional doctor, she wouldn't harm her patients on purpose, "Try to relax," She muttered soothingly.
"Just get it over with," He said back through gritted teeth.
As a doctor, she knew that the easiest way of getting patients through the annoying procedures was to keep them distracted, "Any more pain in the last few days?" She asked.
"I used two vials," He said, "You warned me to stay relaxed, but not doing anything was driving me insane."
Cyra bit back her urge to scoff. Drive him insane? Hasn't he already been insane with power a few times? "Well, I guess as long as you don't devil trigger, you should be right on pace with the vials," Cyra said not wanting to be too confrontational.
This caused Vergil to look back to her. She knew all about devil trigger, and he guessed she was aware of his presumed death or enslavement, judging from her earlier response about the books, "Just how much has Dante told you about us?" He asked, eyes narrow.
Cyra didn't even notice he was looking at her. She continued with her needles and vials, "Not everything, I'd imagine, but a lot. A few stories from when you were kids, Temen-ni-gru, seeing you again on… what was it called, Mallet Island? Then just a few stories here and there. But I already knew he, and by extension you, are half demons." Vergil didn't say anything and she had to make him talk, "Trish told me about the recent events. How have you been since?"
"Since what?" He asked sharply.
"Being restored, I suppose…" Cyra clarified.
"I don't care to discuss it," Vergil said.
"Oh," Cyra said feeling guilty, "I'm sorry for bringing it up."
Vergil realized she must have been around demons in her past. She seemed very comfortable talking about the subject, "So if demons don't scare you, what does?"
Cyra let out a laugh, "Oh, demons scare me. That's why I made solutions to help humans fend them off. Dante doesn't scare me because he hunts demons so we're clearly on the same side. And you don't scare me, because, well, I'm saving your life, so you have to be nice to me," She winked.
Vergil appreciated her honesty, but was wondering where this sudden bravery came from. She goes from nervous to confident in a matter of seconds and it bothered him that he couldn't get a rise out of her, "I can find someone else who does the same thing you do."
"If you find another doctor who will willingly help a demon, you let me know," She retorted.
"Have you known my brother long?" He asked, changing the subject back. Vergil's voice had this soothing magic to it where he sounded calm and bored no matter what he said, but he was genuine.
"Not really. About a month before he disappeared in the Qliphoth," Cyra said.
"That's all? You act much closer," He said.
"Yeah, well when you live with someone, it tends to happen, I guess," Cyra said.
"I didn't realize you lived with him," Vergil said.
"Wow, he really didn't talk about me at all, did he?" She chuckled a bit, "But yeah, I lived there. I had to move after he was gone for so long. Living without him felt sad and lonely," Cyra said filling up another vial. She didn't mean to get too personal.
"I understand," Vergil said assuming she meant they were in a relationship or something. Dante really left her behind to stay in the underworld with him?
Cyra was confused by what he meant. She looked up to see him staring at her. Eyes widened a bit wondering how long he's been looking at her. It dawned on her how her words must have sounded, "Oh, wait, it's not what it sounds like. I hired him to protect me so I could focus on my work. Demons didn't like what I was working on. We just became good friends from it," She explained, not fully understanding why she felt the need to do so, "Living with him some days though…" She muttered at the end. She finally removed the needle and pressed her thumb on the puncture wound to stop the blood flow, forgetting that demons heal quickly.
"Try living with him for 8 years as a child," Vergil chuckled.
Cyra laughed with him, "I've heard stories," She said coyly.
"That I'm sure weren't fabricated to make him look good," He said sarcastically, but still with a grin, "I assure you he was just as difficult as he has been for you, maybe worse," Vergil said.
Cyra smiled. Vergil seemed to at least have some fond memories, even if he wouldn't admit. She looked down and realized she still had Vergil's arm in her lap, her hand slightly over his wrist, "All done here," She said releasing it back to him.
"That wasn't entirely unpleasant," Vergil said, rolling his wrist a bit to stretch out his stiff arm. He had to stab himself with needles twice in the last few days, which were terrible experiences.
"The good doctors know to keep the patient talking," She said with a smirk.
"Clever," Vergil said, "Do all good doctors work from the back of abandoned bookstores?" She was going to have a hard time deciding if he was sarcastic just to tease her, or actually condescending. Maybe he's not as serious as he appeared, at least she hoped.
"The free ones do!" She said, "And it's not abandoned, I bought it!" She defended, moving the vials next to her microscope.
"If you work for free, how did you even afford this place?" Vergil asked.
"We all got secrets," Cyra answered. She placed a drop of blood from a vial onto a slide, preparing to view it under her microscope.
"Fair enough. Do you need me for anything else?" Vergil asked standing up to stretch.
Truth was, Cyra was glad she could finally feel somewhat comfortable around him. Maybe he was just in a good mood, but she didn't want this interaction to go away. Maybe the next time they'd see each other, she'd just be nervous again, "No, but… do you want to look at your blood?" She asked awkwardly, realizing how weird it must have sounded, "In case you're curious to see what's going on."
"Seeing demonic parasite cells in my own blood probably wouldn't help your request of staying relaxed," Vergil admitted.
Cyra smirked, "Yeah probably not... I mean you were so bothered by needles, imagine looking at your own blood. You might faint."
"Are you ignoring your own advice to Dante about provoking me?" Vergil asked.
"So it's working?" Cyra mocked him from earlier.
Vergil sighed, "Show me the slides," He said.
Cyra mentally cheered as she rolled her seat back to her other blood vials. She pulled out the first slide and adjusted it properly in the microscope, "So this is how the Nidhogg responds to my blood," She said and rolled slightly out of the way for Vergil to peek into the microscope. He opted not to sit in a chair, but leaned over so that one arm was leaning against the desk bracing his weight, and his other arm was on the back of Cyra's chair. He was very close, but after a few moments he leaned back, "It's not doing anything, keep that in mind," Cyra said.
"The Qliphoth was meant to absorb human blood," Vergil said. Human blood to power his demon form.
"Yes, but without the Qliphoth, the nidhogg parasites don't really have to do that. Like I said, they just don't want to die out so they want to take over their hosts. Anyway, if I mix half of Dante's blood with the nidhogg's, you can see the starting process of what it's doing to you," Cyra explained getting it ready.
Vergil leaned in again, almost more eager to see just what was going on. He was even closer to her this time. Cyra stared at the side of his face as he was looking into the microscope. His face looked so smooth, unlike Dante's who sported stubble almost every time she saw him. They were supposed to be twins, fraternal sure, but he also looked a lot younger than Dante. Was it from technically being dead for so long?
His face scrunched a bit looking at the blood being slowly taken over by the nidhogg parasite. The fact that it was going on inside of him infuriated him. He's been through so much worse, yet this wasn't something he could fight through. Even worse that he had to rely on a human woman to "fix" him. How ironic that this parasite is only targeting his demon blood. He purged his own humanity in order to strengthen himself, but what was the point if this was what was next for him?
He gripped Cyra's chair harder until he pushed himself away from the microscope, startling Cyra in the process. She noticed his tension, and quickly stood up, "I'm sorry, I really shouldn't have made you look at it."
"It's fine," He drawled out, angry yet calm.
"No, it's not, I didn't think about how-"
"Cyra!" Vergil kept his tone similar to before, but raised it slightly to shut her up, and it worked, but not for the reason he went for. That was the first she could recall him saying her name. She liked the way her name sounded with his voice and wanted to hear it again, albeit less angry, "Can you tell me how long that's been in me?" He asked, voice yet again calm.
Cyra forced herself to regain her composure. She grabbed a notebook and flipped through pages, "My recent math estimates that it started mid June, when the tree was cut down. I'm going to compare your blood from today…" She said fighting her shaky voice.
Vergil needed a distraction. There wasn't anything he could do about it but wait. Was it wise to use Cyra as a distraction? His eyes were on her, who was avoiding eye contact with him, "You really are afraid of me," He said.
"I-I'm not," She persisted, feeling annoyed.
"You can't even stand to look at me," Vergil said, eyebrows furrowed.
"Like I said, we all have secrets. Not ready to share mine," Cyra said.
"You already know plenty about me even when I'd consider it a secret. It'd only be fair," Vergil said.
"Blame Dante for that. I didn't ask…" Cyra said crossing her arms.
"So if Dante told me something about you, then it'd be okay?" Vergil asked.
Cyra finally snapped her eyes to him and glared. He just let a slight grin appear on his face. Was he messing with her? "I can't tell what game you're playing, Vergil," She said in a hushed tone.
Hmm, he liked her saying his name, he briefly thought, "Perceptive. Perhaps you're not as fun as I thought you'd be," Vergil said.
"Seriously?" Cyra huffed, "You're doing this on purpose? Maybe you will have to find a new doctor," Cyra glared.
"Not much else to do," Vergil admitted.
"So you use me as a punching bag? I feel so used. Have you always been like this?" Cyra asked.
"What did Dante tell you?" Vergil asked sarcastically.
Cyra shrugged, "Thought I'd be nice and let you tell me. But in case you were wondering, he said you were a pain in his ass," She grinned, feeling much more relaxed again.
"Then you haven't heard the correct side of the story," Vergil said.
"I'd like to hear it sometime," Cyra said genuinely, worried that it may have come across as too forward. Before Vergil could say anything in response, Cyra added to her statement, "But, for now, I should get to examining blood samples before much changes."
"I'll leave you to it," Vergil said turning to leave, but stopped, "Thank you for the distraction," He said and continued walking.
"Hey, you can still stay… uhm, if you wanted to read or something," Cyra said before Vergil got too far away, "Or if you wanted to take a book with you to read. Not like I'll make you pay for it," Cyra said trying to keep it light.
Vergil felt a strange satisfaction from her offering to let him stay, even if it confused him. Sometimes she couldn't even look him in the eye, which is still something he wanted to know why. Other times she acted normally around him - well, what he assumed was normal for a human. His human interactions have been limited. It was pleasant to know she enjoyed his company enough. As much as he'd rather stay in silence with her than deal with his idiot brother, he wasn't done playing with her and had to make their interactions scarce, "Perhaps I'll take something with me and read it tonight," He said and walked over to the shelves, scanning something in the fiction section, "Plus, I've been gone for two days, should probably heed your advice and rest," He finished, saying the last part facetiously. He's spent most of his life unable to relax; how was he going to start?
19 January 6:23pm
Vergil left Cyra's store and headed back down the street to Devil May Cry. He was thinking what he was going to say to Dante, knowing he'd ask how it went. He could be quiet and let Dante jump to conclusions. He could lie… or he could tell the truth in a way to make Dante think he was lying. The thought of it being a childish game didn't even occur to him; more like a brotherly instinct.
The door to Devil May Cry opened as Vergil was walking up the front steps, "There you are!" Dante said, "Beginning to worry she killed ya."
"Hmm," Vergil grinned and walked past him into Devil May Cry. Guess he was going to stay quiet.
"Uhh, you didn't kill her did you?" Dante said following, "And take a book as a trophy." Vergil didn't respond, "Vergil?"
"Relax, Dante. She's perfectly fine," Vergil said with a hint of a suggestive tone and made his way to the shower.
Dante stood there for a second not believing what he heard. Vergil had to have been messing with him, he thought, but he didn't remember Vergil being so playful the last time they met. Probably because he wanted to kill him. Who knew his brother would actually become another kind of pain in his ass? Dante left to Cyra's bookstore, completely oblivious that he's doing just what Vergil wanted him to do.
Cyra heard the door to her shop open. Maybe Vergil came back, she thought with a heart flutter that she wanted to curse away. She peaked over her shoulder around a bookshelf to see Dante walking in, "You know, you should really make it a habit to lock that door," He said.
"Like how you lock yours?" Cyra said sarcastically.
"Difference is I got two guns and a sword on me at all times, among other things," Dante said finally strolled up next to Cyra, leaning against a bookcase.
"I have a gun," Cyra said.
"Oh yeah? Where is it?" He challenged.
Cyra looked around a bit, "Uhhh, in that drawer," She said pointing at one.
"This drawer?" He asked going to the one she was pointing at. Cyra nodded. Dante pulled the drawer open, seeing it only had some folders in it. He heard a click of a gun from behind his head. He smirked. Dante raised his hands up and turned around, "Alright, alright, you got me. But you know that's not always gonna happen."
"If it works on you, it can work on anybody," Cyra said, lowering her gun and putting it back under her workstation where it normally is.
"Even Vergil?" Dante asked.
Cyra dropped a microscope slide, luckily it was only in her lap so she could hopefully recover, "W-what do you mean?" She asked trying to act casual, despite the stutter.
Dante's eyes narrowed and a small grin was threatening to spread on his face, "Did something happen?" He asked in a sing songy voice.
"No! We just talked a bit. Why? Did he say something?" Cyra asked.
"Nah, but he seemed to be in a good mood coming back. Wasn't sure if it was because he killed you, or… you know," Dante said with a wink.
Cyra's face turned red, "Well, I'm sure you can see neither of those things happened!"
"Yeah, I figured. He was only here for like, a half hour. Either you two worked fast or got it over with pretty quick. Though he's been dead for like 15 years - can probably only last so long," Dante rambled.
"Oh my god, will you stop it?!" Cyra laughed, throwing her notebook at him.
Dante caught it, laughing back, "Points a gun to my head, now she's throwing things. I see how it is," He said handing her the notebook, but pulled it back when she tried to reach for it. She faltered forward when she missed, and stood up to pull the notebook back with full force.
"Hmph," She said when she got it back, not intending to be standing as close to him as she was. It's been a long time since they've been that close. The last time was probably when he was saying goodbye to go to the Qliphoth, when he hugged her, "I really have to get back to work… Time sensitive stuff," She said quietly.
"Okay," He said just as quietly but didn't move nor break eye contact.
For once, Cyra couldn't tear her eyes away. Looking into his eyes, it finally dawned on her that the man she respected the most in the world was right in front of her. The back of her eyes started to sting and she was worried that tears would start to shed. Unable to control it, she dropped her notebook and wrapped her arms around Dante's waist, hugging him much tighter than she did when he left. She was shaking, "I'm so glad you're back," She said into his chest and then pushed herself back just as quickly.
Dante chuckled, "Yeah, I kinda missed the human world."
"I was pretty mad at you at first for leaving me if I'm being honest... but I realized it was selfish. I'm truly, truly proud of you for going with him," Cyra said with a wide smile, referring to Vergil.
"Someone had to keep an eye on him," Dante said trying to make it sound light but they both know how seriously he meant it.
Cyra chuckled, knowing he would try to be macho about it, "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, um…." She said putting her hands behind her back and pointed her body toward her work station, "See ya tomorrow?"
Dante nodded, "I like your new place," He said as he walked out. He was relieved she wasn't angry with him. It felt kind of nice to have someone worry about him, but it made him feel guilty that she had to move to a new location entirely in order for her to move on. But life for Dante was good, he thought. His friends didn't hate him for disappearing for so long, and he had his brother back, sickness aside. This was all out of his hands. For once, it was dependent on something else, and he was worried it might be too much for Cyra to cure his brother. He told her plenty of stories about the evil Vergil and their differences, but he just hoped that she knew this Vergil wasn't quite the same man. He was reborn, for lack of better words.