Beneath The Shadows
Chapter 5
The train behind the shop was making its morning run, painfully tearing Dante from his pleasant slumber. Upon sitting up, he fell right back, letting his head smack off of the pillow.
"Nobody should be awake at 7:45 in the morning." He thought to himself.
Then he looked over to see that the clock read 2:41; it was the afternoon train.
"... Shit."
The hybrid reluctantly pulled himself from the warmth of his sheets into the stabbing cold of his room. Now stiff due to the sudden change in climate, he raced into the bathroom and quickly turned on the shower, the seconds it took to warm up dragging on like hours while he froze where he stood. While waiting, he gazed at himself in the mirror and decided that Patty and Rick were right; his facial hair was already getting out of control. He did hate how it made him look like an old man, and decided to get rid of it. As the water came to a respectable temperature, he grabbed the razor out of his drawer, and hopped in the wonderful warmth of the shower. He stood there in a trance for nearly ten minutes as the water woke up his tired muscles, almost dropping the razor in his relaxation. The water heated up more as he began running the razor along his face. Dante was never crazy about shaving cream, too much mess. He kept going until his face was smooth, and after a quick once over, exited the shower back into the bitterness of the bathroom.
"Ahhhhh, fucking cold!" He quickly grabbed two towels, wrapping himself with one and letting the other hang around his neck. "Ah, better."
He loaded up his toothbrush and began scraping whatever leftover remnants of pizza and beer breath from the night before away.
Upon finishing his morning routine, the hybrid dressed for the day and made his way down the stairs. Opening the door once at the bottom, he looked out to see Lady moving, almost dancing, about the room, cleaning up everything she could, headphones in her ears.
Dante smiled as he watched with intent, being somewhat of a music aficionado himself. But what he was really appreciating was how great Lady looked while she moved. Every smooth curve, every sexy square inch of her toned body... again, this was all it took to get him going. The most perverted of thoughts would make their way into his head just by watching her move. Oh, the things he would do to her...
He snapped himself out of it and began taking in how wonderful a start to this day was. First and foremost, it was nice just to not hear, "Dante! Wake your ass up and clean up this mess!" which was what he'd been dealing with every morning since she'd been there.
Lady turned and stopped like a deer in headlights when she saw Dante. She let out a long huff and took out her headphones.
"Go ahead, take your best shot numb-nuts."
"Well, normally I would, but since you've done your chores like a good little girl, I'll let you slide."
"Why thanks, ass-hole."
"Wasn't exactly hard on the eyes either."
He got a smile out of her with that.
"Yeah, well if I catch you staring too long-"
"Yeah, yeah, you'll shoot me in the head, heard it and went through it before."
"I was gonna' say I'll slap you senseless, but I guess I could shoot you."
"Anywhere but the area below the waist and above the knees." He motioned with his hands.
"Oh, don't worry, I wouldn't dream of shooting you in what you think with."
"Ouch! That one actually wasn't too bad. When did you get so good at talking shit?"
"I've always been this good."
"... Guess you're right." He laughed.
"Hey…" She said softly.
"Yeah?" He looked up from his magazine.
"I just wanted to say... I appreciate everything you did yesterday. I know it's not much to you, but it means a lot to me. So thanks, Dante. I really mean it."
"What are partners for?"
They stared at each other for a few seconds, matching smiles.
"Alright, how many eggs do you want?" She went over to the refrigerator.
"Five."
"Five? Fatty. Want five pieces of toast to go with that?" She joked.
"Actually, yeah... Do we have any bacon?"
He shot up and began tearing through the freezer in the back.
"Were you smoking a joint up there or something?" She said, her hands on her hips as she watched him dig and dig for his pork, perplexed all the while.
"No, I'm just hungry."
"Apparently. I don't think I've ever seen you eat anything other than pizza and strawberry sundaes."
"Ah-ha!" He victoriously held up the freezer burnt pack of slab bacon.
"... How old is that?"
"Who the fuck cares, it's bacon."
"Well, I guess you would eat anything that could be thrown on a pizza."
"'Cept olives."
"Yes, Dante, I know. You tell them every single time you order one."
Dante threw the bacon in his sink and turned on the hot water. He turned around to see Lady staring at him like he was the biggest idiot.
"… Can I help you?"
"You seriously haven't invested in a microwave yet?"
"Who needs a microwave when the pizza's hot and fresh when it gets here!"
"Ugh, you're unbelievable. How do you manage to get through life everyday?"
"Beer, sleep, pizza, the occasional game of pool, looking at your ass, a card ga-"
"What!"
"Huh?"
She whipped out her pistol. One flirtatious comment was fine, but she wasn't about to let him get carried away with it.
"Don't get any ideas just because I let you give me a massage, Dante."
"Whoa, who's saying anything about any ideas? All I did was admit I enjoy ogling your nice, firm, bubble bum, what ideas did you think I was getting?"
She fired a shot past him, but he didn't even blink.
"And why are you bringing up the massage?" He slowly approached her.
She lifted her gun to him, but he quickly grabbed it and put it down to the side and grabbed her other wrist.
"Let me go, Dante.
"Was it that good, Lady?" He seductively purred, and ran his hands up her arms. This subtle movement was enough to relax her completely. She wasn't sure why, but she couldn't react. Kicking him in the boys should have been the first thing that entered her mind, but she didn't. For some reason, it felt too good.
"Well?" He grinned and looked deeply into her eyes.
As annoyed with his arrogance as she was, she knew he was kind of right. He hadn't really brought up anything about getting any ideas, nor the massage. Did she want him to get any ideas? A chill went through her as she thought of this, but she may have uncovered some sort of truth.
Lady would admit to being extremely attracted to Dante, but what had kept her from thinking about hooking up with him was his attitude and immaturity.
His maturity had improved, but his arrogance didn't leave; he only toned it down a bit. Then again, his attitude did some what attract her to him as well, and this new, moderated arrogance was actually proving to be to her liking. If there was one thing she wanted in a man it was confidence, and she couldn't think anyone on the planet more confident than Dante, which made him turn her on more than anything.
Not to mention the fact that Lady had never been with a man before, in any way. She'd never even been on a date. And at age twenty-one, perhaps her womanly needs were catching up with her.
So was she finally falling for him? After all this time, was he finally getting to her?
"It was that good." She stepped closer to him. "Is my ass that nice?"
His temperature rose at the sultry tone with which she asked the question. He placed his hand on her thigh and began running it up to her firm buttocks, but he was stopped by hers.
"That wasn't an opening, Devil Boy, that was a question."
"And this is my answer." He squeezed her thigh.
Her heart jumped the same way it had the night before when he'd done the same thing. Only this time, he was squeezing much harder, and his hand was moving closer and closer to her butt.
"You wanna' know a secret?"
"Do tell, darling."
"You have a nice ass, too." She whispered in his ear.
And with that, Dante did something that no woman had ever made him do; blush.
Lady inwardly had a mile wide smile. If she was in fact going to fall for him, she was going to torture and have as much fun with him as possible.
She smiled and looked up into his eyes.
"You're sweating..." She brushed his wet bangs away from his forehead.
He had to keep himself from shuttering. Lady had never touched him like that before.
"It's not hot in here... And your face is all red..." She pushed her knee in between his legs. "Am I getting you bothered, Dante?"
He let out a low moan that broadened her seductive smile.
"I am... but only because I'm catching a very lovely fragrance." He teased.
She stopped for a second just to realize how wet she was. No wonder he was so horny.
"You like that?" She slyly asked.
"Give me a second." He took a sharp breath in through his nose, taking in her wonderful scent. "Mmmmmmm, oh yeah."
Lady's face turned a crimson red as she began sweating herself.
"You shaved." She started rubbing his face, trying to distract him from her flushed cheeks.
"You noticed." He took the opportunity to catch her again. She wanted to kick herself once she realized that's what he was doing by the tone of his voice, but she couldn't deny what she was feeling.
They were inching their way closer to each other when the splitting sound of Dante's phone interrupted the moment of intimacy between the two.
"...Fuck." An irritated Dante said.
"Don't worry, you weren't getting any further than that anyway." She shot him a wink.
"No?" He leaned into her ear. "Well, I guess I'll have to do better next time." He whispered, and licked his lips.
He backed away with a smirk to answer the phone.
"Devil May Cry."
"Devil May Cry, my name's Dante and I love wieners."
Dante tossed the phone back down, hanging up simply because he was in no mood to deal with Enzo or his prank calls.
The phone started up again. Dante huffed, and picked it back up.
"What the fuck do you want?" He barked once picking up.
"So, that's how you're answering people now?"
"Heh... only when annoying degos call. Haven't heard from you in a few days. I trust you know about what's been going on?"
"Not only do I know what's going on, I've got information." Trish replied.
"Talk."
"Not on the phone. Meet me at Sharky's"
"Alright." Dante hung up.
"Was that Trish?"
"Yeah. Apparently she's got some dirt."
"You want me to come with you?"
"Actually, I need you to go on ahead to Rick's, see if he's heard anything else."
Dante knew that Lady and Trish weren't the biggest fans of one another, and he did need to get in touch with Ricky that day.
"Okay. Plan on doing anything with that bacon?"
"Nah, I'll get a pizza at Sharky's."
"Ugh, really, Dante?"
"...It's a wing pizza."
She laughed.
"Unhealthy topped with even more unhealthy."
"Would I eat anything else?"
"I guess not." She smiled.
He grabbed up his things and headed out the door.
"See ya' in a bit."
Lady stood there, a smile on her face a mile wide. Many thoughts stirred in her head as she went over the last five minutes. That was the closest she and Dante had ever been, and the adrenaline coursing through her body was validation of her feelings for him.
Yet, in the midst of that, she still felt guilty for getting close with him. At first, she thought she it was because she was getting close with a half demon. But she had gotten over that, no matter how much she tried to cling to it as a reason for not hooking up with him. She had eventually come to the conclusion that he was definitely more human than devil; his tears for Vergil at the Temin Ni Gru clearly indicated that.
The reality was that she had become attached to him over the past few years. Despite the fact that they never officially considered themselves partners, they had still done the majority of their jobs together, and spent plenty of time together. Her attitude toward him had gone from the stubbornness of a mule to the intrigue of a scholar, but more so, the interest of a woman.
Perhaps her guilt stemmed from the fear of losing the unique friendship that they had developed by moving too fast. Maybe it was because she was afraid of getting close with anyone after what had happened with her parents. Maybe it was both...
"I need to get going to Ricky's." She interrupted her own train of thought.
Dante walked through the door of the always-busy Sharky's. Hustle and bustle at 2:30 in the afternoon on a Tuesday. Then again, it was shopping season and people needed to eat. He looked around once and saw Trish sitting in a corner booth, and carefully maneuvered his way through the full tables of people and sat down across from her.
"Alright, what do you have?"
"It's nice to see you, too."
"I'm certain you're lying."
She laughed.
"Take a look at your seven."
He turned to his left.
"The drunk idiot in the booth two to the right of the corner is one of those trappers."
"Well, good thing I don't stick out like a sore fucking thumb." He said in angry sarcasm.
"Don't worry, he didn't see you. Been knocking back shots for almost an hour."
"Guess he's on break."
"I've been trailing his ass for a while now, and I've been able to follow some of his moves and where he goes, but I haven't traced them back to their headquarters yet."
"Find out anything good?"
"The entire group was a former squad of Green Barres."
"Access to military weapons..." Dante said. "What else?"
"This idiot goes to the Alriolto Building downtown every night at six, but I've never seen him leave afterwards."
"How long do you wait?"
"Half hour, hour maybe."
"The Alriolto Building... Isn't that a printing company?"
"Yeah, but it's hard to find someone in this city who doesn't think it's a front."
He laughed.
The man staggered up from his booth.
"Well, time to continue the trail."
"If he goes back there tonight, stay a little longer. Another hour or so."
"I will."
She got up.
"Be careful." He said as she walked away.
The hybrid sat there pondering a lot of things.
"Hey, waitress, one Korean-Wing pizza."
"Gotchya', hun."
Dante leaned back in his seat, watching the multitude of sports channels displayed on the seven or eight TVs in the restaurant. A few more minutes rolled by before someone else joined him
"Hey, fancy seeing you here, jackass."
"Enzo, what are you doing here during lunch? No good specials at the Olive Garden?"
"Wing Tuesday."
"Hmm, maybe they'll discount my pizza then."
"Of course you'd wonder that. Cheap bastard."
"I have to. It's not like your lazy ass is getting me any work."
"Hey, I try, but you always ask Morrison first. Why him all the time, huh?"
"Because he's my agent."
"I thought I was."
"No, he is. You're just my creepy Italian confidant."
"Look paisan, you wanna' hear about this job I got for you over at Maplewood or not?"
"Not if it's today."
"Well of course it's today. What the hell, do you think people fucking reserve your openings or something?"
"No, I just have important things to do. And watch your tone before I slap the taste out of your mouth."
"One Korean Wing pizza!" The waitress delivered his order.
"Thanks." Dante said before tearing off a piece.
"So you're not taking the job, then?"
Dante took a massive bight. "... Does it look like I am?" He mumbled.
"I don't know, I'm unable to determine whether or not you will by watching you eat pizza."
"Well, how do you say 'No' in Italian?"
"No, you jackass."
"Then, 'No, you jackass'. Did I say it right?"
"Va fangu, Dante."
"Yeah, 'Jarred Ragu' to you too, Enzo."
The Italian confidant got up to leave.
"And one more thing. Stop fucking prank calling me."
He grinned and walked out the door.
Dante usually wouldn't refuse a paycheck, but he had more important things to tend to. Gathering what information he could about the trappers was top priority. The job could wait. Besides, he knew Enzo's jobs didn't pay for shit.
The hybrid continued to wolf down his pizza rather quickly, more quickly than usual. Within three minutes, he had the entire thing gone.
"Damn, I'm still hungry."
He wanted to order more, but knew he needed to get going. He threw a twenty on the table and headed back out into the cold.
"So you think they're in on it?" Lady asked.
"They have to be!"
"Kirk, stop yelling before I punch you in the face." An irritated Ricky said.
"It must have happened right after we left." Lady continued.
"Hey," Dante came through the door. "What's the word?"
"We have a problem." Ricky said. "Kifer got smoked by the cops last night."
"What?"
"Kicked down his door after that little scuffle yesterday to 'question' him, he reacted like a crack head reacts and shot' at 'em. Got shot up with shotgun rounds."
"Then we did a shot of Jim Beam, then shot some hoops, then shot some pool,"
"Hey Chambers, do us all a favor and take a SHOT of antifreeze."
"Only if I can have Saturday off."
"Sure, go nuts."
"Why would they kick down his door though? They have to have a warrant and they have to make him aware!" Kirk said.
"It was probably a drug bust." Dante laughed.
"You think it's funny!" Kirk got up.
"Shut up, Kirk. If you have any sentimental attachments to your face, you'll sit your ass down before he knocks you the fuck out." Ricky said.
"What are you, anyway, his dealer?" Dante laughed again.
Kirk charged Dante, but the hybrid sidestepped and he went tumbling into a table, knocking over and shattering one of Ricky's bongs, who immediately got up and planted five perfect shots from his 9mm right in Kirk's chest, sending him stumbling right past Lady out the door into a bloody heap.
"That was weird." Lady chuckled.
"Jesus Christ, Rick!" One of his men said.
"You fuck with my glass and that's what happens." He returned his gun to its holster.
"That was his bong, man."
"Oh... well whatever, I was sick of his speed-freak-cocaine-havin-ass anyways, always yellin' and shit." He walked over to the cooler to grab a beer. "Well, what the hell are you fucking staring at? Get off your ass and haul him over to the dump. Then clean up that bong water when you're done. Smells like shit."
The man groaned, and got up to dispose of the corpse.
"You're in a wonderful mood." Dante said as Rick tossed him a beer.
"Because this means that they're in cahoots with those fucks."
"The cops?"
"Yeah. Chance said he wants to go after some of them for payback."
Demetrius Chance was the leader of Kifer's crew, and one with a very short temper.
"Chance is a fucking idiot." Lady rolled her eyes.
"Really. He's gonna' get his entire crew smoked." Dante said.
"That's what I told him when I talked to him, but he seems pretty intent on hitting some officers." Rick said.
"Then that's his decision and he can live with it. I'm not getting involved with the cops. Besides, we don't even know if they're in with the trappers for sure."
"Why else would they kill Kifer, though?" Ricky asked.
"He's cost the city thousands of dollars in damages with his bounty hunting. That's that entire crew's problem; they're all drug addicts, so they do whatever's necessary without thought. Bounty hunters like them are the reason we have a bad rep in the first place." Lady said.
"They probably have just been waiting for an opportunity to get rid of him." Dante insisted.
"Maybe..." Rick said. "And hey, I'm a drug addict." He said as he lit up a blunt.
"Yeah, but at least the shit you do doesn't cause you to go out and level an entire bridge to kill three demons." Dante was referring to the incident where Chance engaged in the demolition of the south side bridge in order to kill, as he said, only three demons.
"I remember that." He laughed. "People were pissed the fuck off over that."
"Maybe because that's the only direct route into the next city." Lady laughed.
"Took a damn year to repair. Hey!" Rick shouted at one of his men. "What the hell are you doing?"
The man was fiddling with a large bag on the corner table.
"I was just grabbin' a couple buds."
"You put that shit back right now. That isn't the community quap. Get your own weed, fuckin' mooch."
"Stingy prick."
"Alright guys, I gotta' go. Your little Italian buddy called me with a job over in Maplewood."
"Wow, what a little bitch." Dante thought to himself, referring to Enzo. "He would."
"When you're done, tell him I said to kiss my ass." Dante said.
Rick chuckled.
"Funny, he said you'd say that. Told me to relay, 'Don't be pissed just because you're too lazy to take a simple job.'" Rick laughed and exited the garage, his men following.
"I'm strongly considering punching Enzo in the face next time I see him." Dante said to Lady.
"Now let's not do anything to limit your employment options any further." Lady smirked.
"No shit." Dante agreed.
"Race home?" Lady suddenly suggested.
Dante smirked. "Heh, didn't get enough last time?"
"Yeah, well this time you have to beat me in your car, not a bike twice as fast as mine."
Dante laughed.
"I'll beat you on a scooter, Lady."
The huntress stormed past Dante out to her bike. He knew just how to push her buttons. Her bike was already revved up by the time he even got in his car, and as soon as he turned the ignition she took off.
"Hey, that's no fair!"
He peeled out of the driveway and began chasing after her down the road.
Lady was well on her way while Dante wasn't even close. As he continued to rail her for miles, he groaned at the thought of her bragging and boasting once they got back. With this, he floored it, and began catching up to her. Thankfully traffic wasn't heavy.
The closer they got to Devil May Cry, the closer he got to her. He shifted into another gear and started to creep up on her quickly. Through a few more sharp twists and turns that involved Dante nearly t-boning multiple trash cans, they came to the final main drag with Dante trailing Lady just a bit. They floored it and cranked it, and went screaming down the final lane. Just as Dante was about to pass Lady, she swerved over into his lane. He slammed on the breaks, and Lady sped off to the front of Devil May Cry.
"That was some bullshit." He said as he got out of the car once pulling up.
"I don't even wanna' hear your excuses."
"You're a cheater and you know it."
"Bitch, bitch, bitch, that's all you do when I win."
"Whatever, Lady."
They went back inside and Dante threw off his coat.
"Now," He looked at her and started getting closer. "Where were we?" He grabbed her above her hips.
"Dante," She said as he started rubbing her. "Mmm, I think we should take this slow."
"Don't worry, babe..." He inched his way closer to her." ... I won't go fast..." He leaned into her ear. "... At first."
She could almost feel the smirk form on his face as her cheeks nearly burst into flames. The hybrid began softly pushing his forehead against her crimson face, the smooth, hot skin stiffening him up in more ways than one. Lady couldn't deny that she loved this, but she still wasn't ready to go this far.
"Dante..." She had to stop when his eager hands started at her hips and began working their way up her smooth, slender physique. "Ohh... I'm serious..."
"I'm serious, too." He breathed out while his hands moved to her back.
Lady began feeling like she was losing herself to him, and had to put a stop to it.
"Dante!" She said sternly.
Dante stopped what he was doing and backed away. He knew that she wasn't kidding, and wasn't about to blow it just because of his excitement.
"Sorry." Dante managed through heavy breaths. "I just..." He couldn't think of anything.
"It's okay."
Lady didn't want Dante to think that she was angry with him. In truth, she was quite pleased with his restraint. Had this have happened two years ago, he wouldn't have stopped until he had gotten what he wanted.
As time went on, and as Dante showed more of these signs of maturity, the guilt that she was under for having feelings for him was gradually lifting.
Why was she just now letting him in? Because he had made some of the right changes, and she had finally realized it.
Then again, after the ten thousandth time she screamed, "Grow up, Dante!" it probably started to sink in.
She knew full well that he still wasn't perfect, but that wasn't what she wanted him to be.
She just wanted to give it a little more time.
"I'm pretty tired." She said.
"Alright, I understand." Although it was early, he knew the last couple of days had been exhausting. "I have to go meet up with Trish about one of the trappers she's been following."
"Find out something good."
Dante laughed. "I'll try."
They stood there for a few seconds, locked in each other's gaze again. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence so much as it was a confirmation between the two that things had in fact changed. Dante knew it wasn't going to be rushed, but he was still having a hard time not taking it now. He would wait, though. For her.
"Have a good nap."
She smiled. "Thanks."
Dante pulled up alongside Trish atop the parking garage where she was staked out.
"Anything happen yet?" He said as he exited the car.
"No, and I've been sitting here for two hours."
"Damn. Anyone else go in or out?"
"A few, but I didn't see him."
"Probably passed out after all that drinkin'."
"Probably." Trish laughed.
Both turned their attention to the lot of the Alrioloto Building. The place was heavily suspected for being a coke front, but it hadn't had so much as one police raid in the six years since it had been built.
Dante was staring straight ahead, not saying a word, his mind still on Lady. After a few more minutes of silence, Trish decided to inquire about it.
"What's on your mind?" She said quickly, staring him right in the face.
"Huh? Nothing. Why?"
"Dante, you think I don't know when you're lying, or when you're thinking about something?"
"I'm thinking about getting these pricks. That's where my focus is."
Trish studied him as he turned back to staring at the building.
"... It's Lady, isn't it?" She smirked.
"What? No! Why would I be thinking about her?"
"Because you wanna' fuck her."
His heart jumped.
"Heh..." He tried to muster a fake laugh. "And exactly what indicates that?"
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe that myself, Morrison, and Enzo have all caught you staring at her ass like a zombie on multiple occasions. Actually, no. It's that you take every single job she brings you despite the fact that they all suck."
Dante's heart began racing because he knew she was right.
"You know what, this is actually it. It's that she's living with you rent free."
"I'm just trying to help her out."
"And since do you help out anyone who isn't paying you or sucking you off?"
"Shut the fuck up, Trish!" He glared at her with clenched fists, his hands shaking in anger. His head was spinning about Lady enough, and he really didn't need Trish poking at him.
Trish smiled again. She wasn't putting Dante through this because she was jealous; if he and Lady hooked up she could have given two shits. She just hated it when Dante tried to hide the obvious. And for what? So he could maintain his badass macho man persona? No, she was going to get it out of him.
"You know, I never told you this..." Dante calmed down with her words. "... But about a year and a few months, I was having this talk with Lady about you."
"Yeah, right." Dante scoffed.
"Only she came to me about it."
This caught Dante's interest as he looked to her intently for more information.
"It was over the summer. I guess the heat in conjunction with her hormones made you her ultimate object of desire."
Dante was flabbergasted. "Really?"
"Oh, yeah. She said things to me like, "Every time I see him sitting there in his office shirtless, I just wanna' rip his pants off and ride him til' dusk."
Dante's never knew Lady had feelings for him like that before.
"Why the hell did I never notice this?" Dante half smiled and half yelled.
"Because you're stupid, hun." She lightly slapped his cheek, making him let out a dejected sigh.
"She never will, though. Because I'm a devil."
"Dante," She huffed. "Lady's over that. She knows who you are is who you are, not what you are. You wanna' know what it is?"
He looked at her.
"She doesn't wanna' ruin what you two have. You can both deny it all you want, but you two have gotten pretty close these last few years. That's why she doesn't wanna' rush into this with you right away. You two are friends, and she doesn't wanna' lose that by complicating things."
Dante couldn't speak. He was in deep thought about this.
"Just be patient, hun. Trust me."
Dante nodded, his mind now racing in a thousand different directions.
"I need to take a drive." He brushed his hair back. "Let me know if anything happens."
"Don't worry, it's not looking like anything will."
He started getting back in his car.
"Hey," He looked at her. "Thanks."
"Anytime, hun."
Dante cruised down the freeway accompanied only by the sound of the open window. No matter how cold it was, he never drove with his window up. It could have been -50 with hail and he'd still have his window down.
The hybrid was well over the speed limit, but no matter how fast he went, he still wasn't able to stop thinking about Lady.
"God is she gorgeous." Lady had the most beautiful, captivating face Dante'd ever seen. Smooth skin, great facial structure from top to bottom, those lips... how he fantasized about those lips... and the wicked smile they formed when she knew she had him, whatever that happened to mean at the time, and those eyes... they had to have been given to her from an angel. Heterochromatic, and truly breathtaking to gaze into, like a perfectly starlit sky on a cool mountain night... and all under a perfect mess of raven hair, her bangs the perfect length.
Then, after he got over just how beautiful she truly was, his attention shifted to her perfect body. Smooth, slender legs, thick toned thighs and ass, perfectly shaped hips, flat stomach, toned as her back, small, slender arms, smooth shoulders... her breasts... those big, firm, wonderful breasts that he wanted nothing more than to bury his face in...
"Man, I need some tunes."
He turned the dial, hoping to get rid of these thoughts. As much as he did want all of the above, he still respected Lady as a partner, a friend, and as a woman. He wanted these thoughts gone so they didn't lead to him doing something to her that he would regret.
Through a few scrambled stations, he eventually caught a decently steady stream of audible songs.
"Baby, let's... let's stay together... lovin' you whether... whether... times are good, or bad, either happy or sad."
*Scramble*
"Maybe I'm amazed at the way you love me all the time... Maybe I'm afraid of the way I love you."
*Scramble*
"Ooo, I can't help myself. I love you and nobody else."
"Fuck!" He completely smashed his radio with a single jab.
"I need a drink."
Dante passed a few nightclubs once along the strip. Some were packed, some not so much. He parked alongside one that looked busy, but not impossible to get into.
The brisk air hit him as he stepped out into the busy streets. He walked down the sidewalk an imposing force, everyone knowing who he was, looking at him with respect and doing everything they could not to get in his way. His reputation preceded him so much so that he received zero resistance from the bouncer at the door of the club he went into.
"Club High… Heh, don't make it too obvious what they're doing in here." He thought to himself.
A very live setting was what Dante walked into, a large crowd of dancers in the center, music blasting from the speakers, the DJ spinning and mixing non-stop, people off to the sides taking shots, lines, and hits of whatever they could to feel good. It was times like this that Dante almost wished he were a drug addict. At least then, especially in this time period of complete lust, he'd have something else to fall back on.
At least the bar was just at the end of the room.
The large crowd parted for Dante as he walked right through the middle to the bar, old school K-Dee playing in the background.
"What are ya' havin', my man?" The bartender asked as he sat down.
Dante wondered for a second. Maybe beer, but hell, he drank two cases a day. He needed something that would really get his mind off of things.
"Double shot of Everclear."
The bartender gave him a strange look, but nevertheless leaned down to retrieve the bottle.
"What the hell's this shit?" Dante snapped once the bottle was on the counter. "No 151. 190."
"... You fuckin' serious?"
Dante responded by pointing his two fingers down on the bar. The bartender gave another odd look before replacing the bottle with the right one, then poured Dante his shot.
"You want me to call poison control now?"
The hybrid downed the near toxic drink. It burned like hell, but he yielded not so much as a small cough. The bartender almost fell over in astonishment.
"Let's get through half a bottle first, then we'll see." He said before tearing into the basket of pretzels sitting on the bar. "Since when do clubs have snacks on the bar?" He laughed.
"Hey, you're enjoying them, aren't you?"
Dante simply raised his eyebrows and nodded, continuing to put away the salty snack.
A woman who was sitting a few seats down scooted over.
"Wow," She said in an almost idiotic tone. "I've never seen someone take that down before." She was now sitting next to him. "You must have an expert tongue."
"Oh, this would happen." Dante thought to himself.
"It is skilled." He boasted, feeling a bit woozy from the shot.
"Yeah?" She moved closer to him. "Why don't you show me how skilled it is..."
There was nothing more that Dante wanted to do than take this girl. It would relieve his burning lust, at east for the time being. But he didn't. It didn't matter if this was an easy out for him. He was still thinking about Lady. His skin was starting to heat up again.
"Maybe some other time." He got up and made his way to the bathroom.
A few guys were exiting as he walked in, most likely getting done with a drug deal. He turned on the cold water and splashed his face as he looked into the mirror.
"Damn, that was a good shot."
The door flung open and that girl made her way in.
"What's wrong, big boy?" She pushed herself on him. "Don't you want this?"
Dante let out a painful breath. There was nothing more he needed than this right now, and he wanted to take it so badly.
Yet... he couldn't. When he looked at the girl, he still saw her. He still saw Lady.
"Come on. I'll make it quick." She pushed up against his crotch.
"Ughhh..." He moaned. "... I can't." He slipped out from under her and began walking back outside.
"I wasn't asking you, half breed!"
Dante turned to see the girl transform into a gruesome demon, and he wasted no time in withdrawing Ebony and Ivory to unload on her. The demon didn't take two steps forward before the hybrid had dropped it.
Screams echoed from the main room of the club as Dante caught the scent.
Another one of his rules; where there's one, there's more.
He exited the bathroom and quickly dashed out the back exit. Sure enough, there stood a group of demons, none of them large in size.
Dante put his guns away, and grew a rather sadistic smile. He began hopping in place as if he were getting jacked up for a football game, and extended his hand to the demons. Staring right at them, he motioned, "Bring it."
He stood statuesque as they charged at him. The first one that got near him was greeted with a back kick to the face, little particulates of demon skull flying all over the nearby walls. Another rose up its claw to strike the hybrid, but as it brought it down, Dante caught its wrist, grabbed it, and swung the demon into the edge of a brick wall, breaking it in half.
With ease, Dante landed blow after blow up the remaining demons while not getting a scratch the whole time. He'd forgotten how much better he was while in season.
The last remaining demon was on its knees, Dante right behind it. He placed his left hand on its right temple, and right hand on its left jaw. Then, with one single motion, he ripped the demons head off of its shoulders as if it were paper Mache.
The hybrid took in a deep inhale, and let out a demonic groan in satisfaction, smiling up at the sky.
His moment of relief was short lived when he heard the sirens. He quickly made his way through the alley back to his car, and took off, mixing in with the rest of the scattering crowd.
"Dodged a bullet with that bitch." Dante thought to himself as he flew down the highway. He was surprised he didn't realize she was a demon to begin with. But his mind was elsewhere. It was on Lady.
Dante softly pushed the door of his office open so as not to wake Lady. The whole ride home, he still couldn't stop thinking about her.
He walked over to see her skirt slipped up once again, but this time, there were no booty shorts, but only a skimpy black thong.
The hybrid dropped his car keys where he stood, and began staring at the bare skin of her wonderful ass like a horny teenager.
"... God. Damn." It was the most beautiful piece of ass he'd ever seen, and the sudden discomfort in his pants indicated that.
He just stared at it for an eternity before a thought crept into his head.
Moving closer to her, he leaned over the bed, and his hand started moving towards that gorgeous piece of flesh. He finally placed in on her right butt cheek, and squeezed. His heart started to race as he groped the muscular, yet soft flesh of her ass. She turned over and he nearly fainted, praying that she didn't wake up. He stood there frozen, not breathing. After a few moments, he decided she was still asleep, and made his way up the stairs.
Once in his room, he noticed the rigid erection in his pants and his temperature rising at an excessive rate. Just to get comfortable, he removed his shirt and pants, and made his way into the bathroom to splash more cold water on his face.
"Jesus, what the hell is she doing to me?" He laughed as he looked in the mirror.
The image and now the feeling of Lady replayed in his mind, which was doing nothing to undo his stiffness.
"Fuck it."
He pushed his boxers down, placed a hand on the sink, he began working himself. He couldn't think of anything else other than Lady. He pictured her completely bare, spread out on his bed. He imagined running his hands all over, parting her thighs, and diving into her sweetness. He began feeling better as he continued, but just as his luck with women would have it, the bathroom door swung open, and Lady came in, simply wanting to use the bathroom, and of course, right as he breathed out, "Oh, Lady."
The hybrid looked over to see her frozen, eyes wide as saucers, and nearly jumped.
"Lady!"
The huntress covered her mouth to hide her enormous smile and quickly exited the bathroom and slammed the door. She stood outside the door, still covering the smile on her face.
Dante wanted to punch a hole through his wall.
"Why couldn't she have just stayed the fuck asleep!" He thought to himself as he upped his boxers.
"Lady..." He said in the guiltiest tone. "I'm so-"
"Dante, don't be." Lady reassured him from the other side of the door. "I should have knocked."
He smiled and almost laughed. The fact that she didn't give him all the grief in the world made him feel much better about the situation.
"Guess you've seen me do everything now, huh?" He said.
"Guess so." She laughed.
Lady made her way back down the stairs to her bed. She'd forgotten she even had to use the bathroom in all the excitement. She lay back down on her bed, thinking about Dante. She knew that he was thinking of her, but not to the point where he'd do that. She smiled again, realizing how crazy he was about her. The image of Dante she had just gotten was now on repeat in her mind, and before she could doze back off into sleep...
... She had to rub herself a few times.
OK, I know I tell you every time it'll be here soon, but it never is. You wanna' know why?... Cause' it's FOUR TIMES THE STEEEEEAAAAAAK!
In all seriousness, an overabundance of schoolwork has really put a damper on then whole writing process (If I have to come up with one more God damn target audience, I'm burning that mother fucker to the ground.)
Favorites, alerts, and hits have still been pouring in, the majority over ABN. It's probably gonna' be awhile until I update that story again, my focus being on this for now. One of the songs used in this chapter is now the basis for the rest of ABN (I thought for awhile that that story had reached the end of its rope, but after a bong hit and a good listen, the ideas for finishing it came to me.) I've also been working on a DantexOC Parody (MarinaEverlasting, you beat me to it, and that story was pretty funny) inspired by Henry Rollins, because Henry Rollins inspires us all everyday.
Credit to Al Green, Paul McCartney and Wings, and The Four Tops for the lyrics used. Also K-Dee for the mention.
"They're gonna' kill her, Walter. And then they're gonna' kill me."
"Dude... That's... That's just the stress talkin', man."
