Chapter Eleven: Departure

Note: I considered skipping this train ride section for pacing reasons, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to make Vergil and V more uncomfortable than they already were. This is a quick intermission chapter because once this train arrives, it's beach time! Thanks again for the comments! This is going to be a fun few chapters!

(-~-)

It had been a relatively short time since the train had arrived, but it was now time for it to depart and head for greener pastures. With a final toot of it's horn, the heavy metal locomotive's wheels began to turn and it pulled away from the station, slowly gaining speed as it lumbered towards the tunnel at the far end of the tracks. It entered the pitch black space and barreled towards the far end, outward bound. Within the next few minutes they would be in the outskirts of town, cutting through the wooded plains that surrounded the county with a lovely view of the bay and the nearby mountains on either side of them. The oceanfront was only a few hours away, so they would be arriving just after daybreak. But before any of that happened, they needed to pass through the tunnel.

As the children peered out of the blackened windows in fascination, everyone made themselves comfortable. Lady and Trish retired to the far end of the car towards the entrance, still wrestling with their bags. Nico plopped down a few feet away from them, stretching out and relaxing. She didn't really have anything to do to pass the time, so a nap would suffice for the time being. Maybe she'd check out the snack car later on. Kyrie and Nero made sure that the children understood the limitations of what they were allowed to do on the train and then sat down, Kyrie opting to join Nico while Nero headed over to sit down next to Patty and Dante. The young blond woman was in the process of divulging some sort of complicated plot she wanted to enact once she got to the beach. Something about shopping and sunbathing. Nero couldn't be sure. He and Dante had both tuned out almost instantly.

During the on-boarding, V had made the decision that he would follow Vergil to his seat and sit with him. Setting aside the fact that basically every seat was available, aside from the ones that were currently being used to store luggage bags, Vergil had opted to sit as far away from everyone else as he could. His social battery was extremely low, second only to his eldest son. And even that was up for debate. The darkslayer needed to take a moment to collect his thoughts and compose himself. Stabbing someone to death the second the train pulled off wasn't the best way to kick off the trip, and he had the feeling that this was going to be a long day.

For now, all they could do was wait until they were able to see again and find something to do to pass the time until they reached their destination.

(-~-)

The countryside of Capulet City was a beautiful local filled with small cottages that sat in the middle of rolling green hills. The trees that bordered the crop fields on either side were lush and green, providing a perfect contrast to the snow capped mountains in the distance. They were only about an hour and a half from their destination, and not many other passengers had boarded during the quick stops that the train had made. Those that did had made their way to other cars, seemingly keying into the fact that everyone present was traveling as a group and that they'd be intruding in they came and sat in the middle of them. There were so many empty seats on the other train cars that it didn't make a difference one way or another.

Dante had long since dozed off again, leaving Nero alone with Patty. The two had met previously, but this was the first time they had actually gotten the chance to have a decent conversation. Kyrie had since joined them, sitting quietly and enjoying the beautiful view out the window next to her as she flipped through the pages of a random magazine she'd found in the food car. The children had finally run out of energy and fallen asleep, freeing up all the adults to do as they pleased as long as it was relatively quiet. It was a rare moment of relaxation and peace, and Kyrie was going to capitalize on it. After all, even when Nico and Nero were watching the children, there was always noise. It hadn't been silent like this since they'd taken them in, but she still adored the little ones and was proud of their decision to take them in. She just missed the peace and quiet they'd once had from time to time.

"So you guys grew up together and then started going out and now you have kids and stuff?! That's so cute!" Patty tried to keep her voice down, but she found the story of how Nero and Kyrie had met too cute whisper," I had so many boys at school ask me out that it's insane. Maybe I should have Dante pay them a visit sometime. Might not be worth it now, though. I graduated a couple of weeks ago. Dang it! Missed my chance at revenge!"

Kyrie smiled, glancing up from her magazine. She'd been so engrossed in it that she'd barely been paying attention, but she couldn't help but notice the last little bit of what the teen blond had said to her. She was a talkative girl, but she was very friendly.

"Oh, you're too kind, Patty! It's so nice to finally get to meet you. We've been so busy for a while now. Dealing with what happened in our home a few years ago has been rough, but I think everything is looking up now." Kyrie beamed, her face flushed from excitement and happiness," You should come by sometime for dinner! We could show you all the pretty new things they've built. I think you'd like it!"

Nero nodded in agreement, semi awake. His attention was drawn towards the back of the car where the other half of his family currently resided. V wasn't one for conversation, and neither was their father. What was he hoping to achieve by sitting with the older demon slayer? "Yea, you should totally come over sometime. Don't be surprised if the locals look at you funny, though. They aren't used to outsiders yet, but they're getting there. It's just taking a while."

Patty shook her head, folding her arms across her chest. She had an indignant but somehow silly look on her face. It was hard to tell how she actually felt about the proposition.

"No, I don't think I'd like it, you guys," She said firmly, driving home her point. At the last second she cracked a toothy grin, holding back mischievous laughter," I'd LOVE it! I've always wanted to go to an island! I'll totally come over when we get back from this trip. It's gonna be AMAZING!"

Nero shook his head, sighing internally. Yea, Patty had definitely been around Dante for too long. She was nuts, but in a fun sort of way. And watching the way she handled his uncle honestly cracked him up. She was a wildfire in a tiny woman's body, and he couldn't help but find her thoroughly enjoyable to be around. In a way, she reminded him of Nico. She just had better manners, wore a lot more pink, and cursed a lot less. But she reminded him of Kyrie, too. She was so well put together and, well, girly. In a way, she was like a perfect middle ground between Kyrie and Nico. And anyone that could boss Dante around got bonus points in his book. Well, just about anyone.

Kyrie giggled, clearly delighted by the young blond's response. "Wonderful! I look forward to it."

As if in response to their conversation, Dante slumped over and smacked his face against the table between them, promptly shaking himself awake. It didn't really hurt the youngest Son of Sparda so much as it annoyed him, but he was awake now either way.

"Ug, fell asleep. What did I miss?"

The three of them laughed, sharing their heads at the spectacle that had unfolded in front of them as Kyrie double checked to make sure that the devil hunter was alright. She knew he'd faced worse things before, but she still couldn't help but worry. "Oh, you two are just terrible. He could have hurt himself! Have you no shame?"

Nero, Patty, and Dante exchanged silent, blank glances before bursting into hysterical laughter. They were all suddenly very glad that they'd brought Kyrie along for the ride. That had to be the funniest damn thing they'd heard in a long time.

On the far side of the room, the sudden uptake in activity had caught V's attention. The young summoner craned his neck in an effort to get a better view of the excitement, his keen hearing catching the faintest glimmer of what they were going on about. For a moment, a small smirk ghosted his lips, humor lifting the boredom he felt. He'd been sitting there for a while, silently looking out of the window. He was battling the desire to enjoy his surroundings white also wanting to take a nap. But there was a time and a place for rest, and he'd have plenty of opportunities to do so later.

As V watched them continue to laugh and enjoy themselves, Vergil watched him in a manner so stealthy that V had yet to clue into it. The eldest of the twins sat with his back to the commotion, V sitting on the other side of the table from him. While he knew that he could sit basically wherever he wanted, their tickets had actually specified these seats. Vergil hadn't realized that he wasn't required to sit in the exact spot marked on his stub, and the last thing he was going to do was give Dante something to make fun of him about. So, at least for now, he was going to make it look like he'd picked this spot on purpose and was only sitting her because he wanted to, not because the ticket had picked the spot for him.

Knowing that, part of him wondered why V insisted on sticking around.

After they'd reached their respective seats, Vergil had returned his son's bag to him, taking the opportunity afforded by their swift departure and subsequent lack of light from the tunnel to slip something out of his own bag without V noticing. The eldest Son of Sparda was relatively sure he had a foolproof way of breaking the ice with his decidedly silent offspring. He'd just didn't think he'd have to utilize it so early in the trip.

With V's attention slowly drifting back towards the window and away from the events unfolding inside of the train, Vergil slowly sat up straight and leaned over the table. V glanced over at him quietly, carefully concealing how perturbed he was by his father's sudden closeness. Without speaking a word or breaking the hard won fleeting eye contact that he'd managed to garner from his child, Vergil reached down onto the seat next to himself and procured a familiar bound tome. He placed it face down on the table, a soft thud sounding off as the cover made contact with the table's laminate top. Vergil slid it half way across the table but didn't remove his hand. Judging by the slow blink and accompanying barely audible exhale that V released from his lungs, he was ecstatic to see his treasured book again. And it couldn't have happened at a better time considering how little there was to do on the ride to the oceanfront.

"... I believe you dropped this…" Vergil didn't follow up on his statement. He instead waited quietly for V to respond in some way. Considering the part that the book had played in his resurrection, and the fact that he'd carried it around with him during the events of the Redgrave City calamity, Vergil had rightfully ended up concluding that his oldest son held a great deal of love for the tome. If only he knew…

V reached towards the book and then slowly withdrew his hand, instead choosing to place his hand down on the table next to it. A part of him simply couldn't believe that it had survived yet again. The last time he'd seen his favorite collection of poems, it had been tucked away on his person where it belonged. He'd recalled a few choice words just before his untimely demise, reciting a choice fraze that he'd saved for just such an occasion.

"While thy branches mix with mine, and our roots together join."

"...I thought I'd lost this forever…" V stopped for a moment, suddenly overcome with a level of emotion he didn't really understand how to process. While some might think it foolish to place such a high amount of importance on such a small, ordinary item, the book had been a great comfort and an unwavering friend during some of the most difficult parts of his young life. To have it returned to him was… liberating. "I... don't think I have a way of properly thanking you for returning this to me..."

Vergil leaned back in his seat, shifting slightly. Now they were getting somewhere. Vergil glanced out of the window for a moment. him brain taking a second to process what he wished to communicate. To say that it was difficult for him to say things in a manner that didn't make him come off as completely unapproachable was an understatement. But in the case of his two sons, he was trying to improve that aspect of his personality. Even if only a little.

"You can start by explaining how it came to be in your possession in the first place. After all, the book was originally mine," Vergil said cooly, giving V an almost inquisitive look. The young white haired summoner balanced slightly, letting out a long sigh that spoke volumes. Vergil already knew the answer, but his reaction spoke volumes.

V slouched slightly, glancing around him as if he were uncomfortable divulging his secrets with the rest of the train in earshot. He leaned in slightly, trying to get closer but not come off as suspicious.

"I have a feeling you already know what I'm going to say," He said almost breathlessly. He suddenly looked almost physically ill, the ideal of talking about such a sensitive subject twisting his stomach into knots. He could practically feel his blood pressure rise just contemplating the conversation ahead of them. "But if you wish to discuss that then privacy is paramount. Could this wait until we reach the station?"

Vergil nodded, now feeling much the same way that V did. He knew that they were going to have to have this conversation sooner or later, but that didn't make things any less uncomfortable. These sorts of conversations were always tense and fraught with painful baggage. As much as Vergil would've loved to dodge this topic for the rest of his life, he had to own up to his mistakes at some point, and the gravity of that fact was slowly starting to weigh on him. There was nothing he could do about it. He'd avoided it as long as he could, but it had caught up with him nonetheless. The day had finally come.

Like it or not, it was time they talked about V's mother.

And he didn't like it. Not one tiny little bit.

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OH BOY THE BEACH ARC IS GONNA BE WILD. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! Take care out there, stay safe, and I can't wait to see you all again very soon! See you in the comment section!