Blessed And Cursed

Disclaimer: Devil May Cry and its characters = © Capcom. I don't make any profit from this story.

A/N: Oh god, I'm nervous as hell about publishing this x.X It's the first M/M lemon I have ever written so I hope it turned out okay. Also, I drew a cover for this fic. You can view it in its full glory (pfff) on my deviantart which is IAmInsaneNoImNot :)

Replies:

Alexandria Volturi – Mating time! Haha, I like that expression x'D Thanks for the review! :)

MailxJeevasxFTW – Yaaaaaaays, I'm glad you liked it and thanks a lot for reviewing! :D

SirenaLoreley – That's right, the sequel and will explain more of the whole background story with Verroth and Pheolae and so on... Thanks for reviewing C:

Blue-Moons169 – Heh, the last chapter was kinda overly sweet and extremely fluffy... oh well. I'm glad to hear that you're excited for the sequel though and thanks for the review :D

Warning: YAOI (do I need to say more?)

Chapter 12 – Blessed And Cursed

We barely made it back inside Devil May Cry where Dante slammed me into the nearest wall and meshed our lips together. Our weapons fell to the floor with a loud clatter but neither of us cared, lost in the kiss we were sharing. Somehow we managed to climb upstairs in our haze, shedding clothes the entire way upside. Dante roughly yanked off my coat and opened the zipper of my hoodie. I shrugged it off and felt his fingers slide down my torso to the hem of my shirt. He tugged on it and I obediently raised my arms, letting him discard it and worked on getting his clothes off... which was easier said than done.

"Too many buckles", I grumbled, pondering whether I should just cut them with my bringer but Dante took my hand and directed it over his chest, showing me how to get them open. After what felt like an eternity, he shed his leather shirt and I greedily ran my hands over his chest. There were still some healing bruises on his skin – only faint traces of the battle some hours before.

Dante pulled off his leather gloves with his teeth and let his fingers dance over my naked torso. I leaned against him, memorizing the sensation. The pads of his fingers were slightly calloused, feeling strangely hard yet soft at the same time, and I felt his blunt fingernails lightly scraping over my skin as he touched me.

Dante led me to the bathroom – we were still drenched in both demon blood and poison. There, he turned on the tabs and while we waited for the water to warm up, he continued to strip me. Nimble fingers unzipped my pants and inched the denim off my hips. Dante's hand slid to the front of my boxers, palming the forming bulge there and I clawed at his shoulders, gasping breathlessly. He hooked his fingers into the waistband and sharply tugged them off. Then, he slipped out of his own leather trousers and underwear, leaving us completely naked against each other.

We both slowed our ministrations now, determined to enjoy our first time together instead of rushing it. Dante gestured to me to get into the shower and I shuddered when the warm water hit my skin and his hands traced all over my body. Our lips connected again in a slow and intense kiss while he pushed me up against the tiled wall, rubbing our hips together. I moaned into his mouth at the delicious friction and felt his hands slide lower. He boldly groped my backside and I arched into his touch, breaking our kiss to groan out loudly. His lips and teeth attacked my neck instead, sucking up marks and leaving love bites behind. I heard him chuckle against my neck and pulled away.

"What's so funny?"

"I fantasized so much about this", Dante replied and reached out for the shampoo bottle, "About touching you, kissing you."

I blushed at that, averting his gaze. "Yeah, me too...", I mumbled quietly.

His hands ran through my hair, rubbing in the soap, and he slowly worked his way down my shoulders and chest. The voice in the back of my head started purring again and I realized that Dante was purring as well. I ground my hips against his, silently telling him to hurry things up, earning a gasp from him.

Shortly after, we left the shower and Dante wrapped a huge towel around both of us, playfully ruffling my hair and kissing me on both cheeks. I laughed softly, placing a kiss on his lips in response.

He grabbed me by the waist then and we rushed to the bedroom where Dante practically threw me onto the bed and pounced on me afterwards. We locked lips once again, Dante's tongue rubbing against mine sensually. My hands slid down his back, feeling every ridge of his body. He moaned into my mouth and I used the opportunity to dominate the kiss, tracing his lower lip with my tongue before our lips molded together again. Dante worried my bottom lip between his teeth, tugging on it gently before he bit down hard, drawing a little blood and causing me to groan silently. A smirk graced his features when he looked down on me and hummed approvingly.

"See something you like?", I asked but flushed nonetheless under his hungry gaze. His hand slid down my neck to my chest and lower to my stomach, caressing my skin, lazily tracing the contours of my abs.

"Oh yes, I do", he replied huskily and dove down for another kiss, softly nibbling on my bottom lip and licking the wound he inflicted minutes before as if to apologize for the bite. Every part of our skin was touching intimately as we continued to kiss and touch each other, taking our time to explore the other's body.

God, it felt heavenly – the feeling of his lips against mine, of his arms around me. His body heat felt comforting, made me feel safe. I experimentally licked his lips, pushing my tongue into his mouth, feeling the sensation of his sharp teeth against my tongue. He met me halfway, responding to the kiss, and buried his hand in my hair when I tried to pull away, yanking me back, directing the kiss. My devil side purred at the display of dominance and I let Dante take charge, simply reveling in the situation, the intimacy we shared.

"We don't have to go all the way tonight, love", Dante whispered quietly, kissing my temple.

My heart fluttered at the new nickname and I melted against him. Damn, there were butterflies in my stomach. I wasn't dreaming now, was I?

"I want to go all the way", I said insistently.

"Are you sure? You've been through a lot today..."

"I'm sure."

There was no way I was going to back off now. I gazed up at him, memorizing every curve of his muscles and leaned close to kiss and lick his collarbone, descending further down to the scar that crossed his chest. I traced it with my finger, fascinated by the contrast between the marred flesh and the silky feeling of the otherwise immaculate skin. Curiously, I dipped down, running my tongue over it, hearing how Dante's breath caught in his throat. I slid down further and fondled his nipples with my mouth, smiling softly at the moan I got in response. Encouraged by that, I continued my exploration of his body, trying to find erogenous zones.

Dante shuddered when I kissed the junction between his neck and jaw, and I abused the spot mercilessly, fascinated by the noises he made – silent moans, heavy breaths, soft gasps. His body felt hard as marble, yet his skin was so soft and creamy at the same time, feeling like silk stretched over metal. The claws of my bringer slid down his abs, causing his muscles to twitch. My smirk grew wider and I leaned down and traced his muscles with my tongue, intrigued by the way they contracted and how Dante arched into my touch, biting his lip to stifle the moans that threatened to escape his mouth. Time to break his restrictions.

I flipped us both over, my lips still attached to his stomach while I started to feel him up with my hands, hearing his his breath hitch again. My hands drew patterns on his skin and I squeezed his firm pecs, rubbed his nipples. Our lips connected in a languid kiss and my devil bringer slid downwards. I wrapped my hand around his erection, stroking him lazily, breaking the kiss to listen to the moans that spilled out of his mouth now. "Hah... Nero..."

My devil side purred at the sound of his voice that sounded so shaky with desire and I ran my lips over his neck, sucked and nibbled on his pulse until a hickey graced the pale column of flesh. Dante tilted his head to the side, giving me more access. The voice in the back of my head demanded that I claimed him, marked him, bit him – and so I did. I bit down, drawing blood and swallowed, moaning at the coppery yet sweet taste. Slowly, I licked up the blood, cleaning the wound, contented when I saw the imprints of my teeth on his neck.

Dante sighed quietly and nudged my chin to the side, tracing the contours of my lips with his fingertips. His eyes were dark with want and I smiled wickedly at the needy look on his face.

"What do you want me to do, baby?", I asked with a knowing grin.

His finger still traced my lips, indicating what he wanted – I wanted to hear it from him though. He sported the same grin now, letting go of my face and spread his legs. "Suck me."

I complied quickly and slid lower, tracing his erection with my lips before I opened my mouth and ran my tongue against it. I gently sucked on the head, lapping up the pre-cum that had formed there, dipping my tongue into the slit. Dante tried to lift his hips but I pushed him down with my bringer, hearing him growl in frustration at being restricted.

Smirking lightly, I gave his length another lick from base to tip, briefly wrapping my lips around the head before sliding down to the base again. The tip of my tongue traced the sensitive vein on the underside of his erection and again, Dante rumbled lowly in his throat. I wrapped my lips around the smooth crown then, sucking on it lazily. My hand trailed to the base of his length and I let my fingers dance around the hot flesh, stroking him while I slowly took him in deeper.

Dante groaned loudly, once again trying to lift his hips but my bringer was still pinning him down. I swallowed his whole length then, swirled my tongue around it while my hand massaged and fondled his balls. His fingers tangled into my hair, playing with it, pulling on it slightly which made me moan in pleasure, sending vibrations up his shaft.

I looked up and was greeted with an erotic sight – Dante was leaned back onto the pillows, his hair a mess, eyes closed, mouth agape and the look on his face was one of pure bliss. The bite marks and hickeys I made minutes before and a lovely pink flush adorned his skin. Hell, I wanted that image to be etched into my memories forever.

Dante's eyes opened and we stared at each other for a moment. I let my teeth carefully graze the surface of his erection, feeling him throb in response.

"Oh my fucking god, Nero..."

My mouth slid back to the tip, and I licked the small ridge where the foreskin met the head, seeing him shiver beneath me, feeling his erection pulse in my mouth, more pre-cum leaking out. Dante's grip on my hair tightened and he moaned again, long and drawn-out – a sound of pure desire, a plea for release.

I took him in deeper, his length hitting the back of my throat and he gasped in surprise, his legs quivering. I quickened the pace, bobbing my head back and forth, watching his abs push in and out before his stomach tightened completely.

Hot liquid filled my throat and I sat up, giving Dante a mischievous look before swallowing his release. I wiped the rest off my chin with the back of my hand, running my finger across my lips and taking the digit into my mouth, sucking on it, making sure to give him a show. Slowly, I stretched, flexed my muscles, and arched my back, rubbed my hips against his.

Dante grabbed me and meshed our lips together, moaning when he tasted himself on my tongue. He pushed himself up then, flipping our positions. His hands roamed over my body, stopping at my nipples, pinching and rubbing them roughly and playing with the piercings there. Then, he leaned down and took the right nipple in his mouth while his hand worried the other.

My breath hitched in my throat and my head fell back against the pillows. A moment later, Dante switched sides, looking up at me with half-lidded eyes. His tongue glided out slowly and he smiled evilly, his teeth grazing the sensitive skin. Suddenly he bit down, making me cry out quietly.

His hands never left my body, tracing my sides, my stomach and my hips but he purposefully avoided the part that needed his attention the most.

"Dante…", I half-moaned, half-growled, crying out again when he bit my other nipple.

He simply continued to smirk and toyed with the pebbled buds, sucking and nipping on them, only satisfied when they turned a brilliant red. Pleasure washed through me, made me tremble. I was not used to receive pleasure or to be treated so gently. It felt great to be worshiped like this and I was glad that Dante was gentle with me – I didn't need any more pain after all the torture I've been through today. Rough sex could wait.

Dante peppered kisses all over my torso, kissing and biting my skin, thoroughly tasting it, marking me with love bites. His hands wandered to my hips, his thumbs gliding over my hipbones, while his tongue leisurely traced my abs. I was a squirming mess beneath him but he ignored my demands and just kept on doing as he pleased. He kissed me above my navel, nibbling at the skin there before dipping his tongue into the small indent and swirling it around a couple of times, sliding lower and lower at a tortuously slow pace.

Dante lightly massaged my hips and planted kisses onto the two blue roses tattooed on them before tracing each thorny vine and the barbed wire that was painted onto my skin with the tip of his tongue. I tried to urge him lower – to my erection that was standing proudly between my legs, begging to be touched – but he caught my hands and pinned them above my head.

His mouth slid lower again, dangerously close to my groin but he started to kiss and lick at my inner thigh, making me tremble in excitement. His stubble slightly scratched my skin, tickling me. When I started giggling, he looked up at me, raising an eyebrow in question.

"Tickles", I replied and he quickly pecked me on the lips before letting go of my pinned hands and suddenly turning me around.

I let out a yelp of surprise that turned into a moan when I felt his breath on my neck and his hands on my backside. Slowly, he slid down to my lower back and I felt him apply pressure on either side of my spine with his thumbs. He rubbed the spots for a while and I bucked back impatiently. What was he doing?

Dante let out a breathy laugh and placed a kiss on my neck. Then, his tongue glided down my spine, lower and lower, teasingly close to the cleft of my ass before it returned to my nape and went down again.

Sweat broke out on my body, warmth spread through me. All the time, Dante was simply massaging my butt, brushing over my entrance every now and then with his thumb, teasing me until I thought I was going crazy. I whimpered and ground my teeth. I am not going to beg.

"God, Nero", Dante whispered and splayed the cheeks of my ass apart, rubbing my puckered entrance. "You're sexy as hell, love."

He was teasing me on purpose and I knew it. Dante wanted me to beg but I wouldn't let him win. His lips continued their journey on my body and he nipped on every inch of exposed skin, claiming it, littering it with kisses and bites.

My body was overstimulated from all the feathery light touches, my skin was tingling, my hips ground into the mattress, desperate for any kind of friction – all of my senses were heightened and all I wanted was some form of release.

Dante's tongue slid up and down on my back and I felt him blow at the wet trail, making goose bumps erupt. He alternated between slow licks and teasing open-mouth kisses on my spine, making my breath come out in short gasps. Without warning, Dante sank his teeth into my neck again – not deep enough to draw blood but deep enough to successfully break my pride.

"Ah, Dante, please –" I groaned heatedly, unable to take it any longer.

"Please what?", he purred back and sucked on an erogenous spot behind my ear, making me moan and tilt my neck to the side to give him more access.

"Stop teasing me", I replied and arched into his touch.

Dante lifted my hips off the bed, giving my ass a firm squeeze and making my breath hitch. His tongue slid down once again, lower this time and finally I felt it on my entrance. Slowly, he parted my buttocks further, and licked the ring of muscle. He still kept his tortuously slow pace while I writhed and moaned shamelessly beneath him. Dante wriggled his tongue around my entrance, taking his sweet time to taste me before he thrust the slick muscle into the tight passage, making me think I was losing my mind, the talons of my bringer ripping the sheets. I felt warmth spread through me, felt unbearably hot.

"Mmmh, you like that, don't you?", he said huskily and stilled his movements, his hands massaging my bottom.

I was panting heavily, my breath ragged. "Y-Yes...", I managed to answer, "Dante, p-please..."

Dante grabbed my chin and forced it to the side. I craned my neck to kiss him. My skin felt like it was on fire, lightning struck through me and burned my insides. Our lips were pressed together in a sensual kiss, the hand holding my chin slowly stroked my jaw and automatically, I parted my lips, letting Dante explore my mouth. His tongue caressed mine, toying with my piercing as our tongues swirled around each other.

Then, he pulled away, leaning to the side and rummaging through the drawer of his nightstand, searching for the lube most likely. I heard a silent "pop" and in the next moment, his now wet index finger was on my entrance again, circling it lazily. I hissed when he applied pressure and wriggled the first digit inside. He nuzzled my neck with his nose.

"Are you okay?", he asked, his voice deep and husky.

"Yeah", I replied and pushed back onto his finger. Carefully, he inserted the next one, scissoring his fingers, stretching me gently. His other hand traced my side, rubbing small circles onto my ribs while he kept sucking on my neck and ear. Dante licked the outer cartilage of my ear, nibbled on my earlobe before his tongue glided lower to my jugular. He bit down hard, sinking his fangs into my neck, drawing blood this time. I groaned at the small spark of pain and Dante lapped up the blood, licking the wound clean.

Another finger was inserted and it felt a little uncomfortable. Dante let me adjust before pulling his fingers in and out, working me open. Suddenly, pleasure shot through me, making me see white for a moment and I threw my head back, moaning loudly. My heart rate sped up, my head was spinning... This was such a different level of pleasure, this wasn't the same thing I had felt all those nights during the last year when I whored myself out. It felt so much better. I didn't find words for all the sensations I was assaulted with, felt strangely disconnected from my brain although my senses were completely in sync with my body.

Dante hit my prostate with his fingers, brushing against the bundle of nerves within me. My breath was coming out in short pants, white flashing across my vision.

Then, he urged me to turn around so that I was on my back and settled between my legs. His fingers still prodded my entrance and suddenly I felt a wet heat enveloping the tip of my erection, making me gasp in surprise. My eyes rolled back in my head from the overwhelming pleasure and my moans became louder and louder. Dante continued his assault on my prostate, making the heat spread through my whole body and I felt myself reaching my peak, throatily groaning out a warning. "I-I'm – "

I came with a whimper of his name and felt him squeeze my balls, milking my release. Dante kissed me languidly, giving me a taste of myself just as I had done before to him and I blushed despite myself.

We laid there together for a moment, limbs entangled, hips touching and tried to calm our ragged breaths. Dante nuzzled the already healing bite mark he had left on my neck, kissing the spot gently while his fingers and lips never ceased to move across my skin. From my neck, he wandered to my jawline, kissing and nibbling my skin. We kissed each other for a while, rolling around in the bed. Dante pulled me on top of him, grabbed my hand and laid it on his chest. I was about to ask him why he was doing that when I felt it – I could feel his heartbeat beneath the palm of my bringer. His heart was beating rapidly, the heart rate quick.

He smiled softly and reached out for me, putting his hand on my chest as well. I leaned down and our lips ghosted against each other. For a moment, everything was silent as we felt the other's heart beat, our lips so close that we breathed the other's air. The silence only added to the anticipation as we looked at each other, tried to feel the other with every of our senses.

Closeness, affection... things that I have never really experienced. When I was young, Kyrie was the only one who had ever shown me any affection. Whatever we had shared was more on a mental level. Back then, it was love between two siblings and the things I was experiencing now with Dante were something much deeper – something that went further than purely physical or mental connection. We both were able to let ourselves go when we were together – I didn't need to hide my true nature, didn't need to doubt myself, felt accepted.

Finally, Dante tilted his head upwards, licking the seam of my lips before we kissed – slowly, without any hesitation, none of us bothering to dominate the kiss. When we broke apart, Dante rubbed his nose against mine, making me laugh quietly. He pulled me down then, peppering more kisses on my face – on my forehead, brows, and eyelids to the bridge of my nose and lower, over my cheeks to the corner of my lips. Then, he rested his forehead against mine, humming softly. I gave him an inquiring look.

"I just remembered the night we left that Halloween party and you asked me to stay in your bed", Dante said and laughed silently. "You've really tested my self-control."

I stared at him. It had been real? I thought it had only been a dream...

"Do you remember that night?", Dante asked curiously.

"How can I forget something like that?"

He chuckled softly. "You called me beautiful."

I blushed yet again. "Guess I did."

Dante nipped on my pulse, again kissing the bite mark he had left on my neck minutes before. His fingers combed through my hair and massaged the nape of my neck. "I can only return the compliment", he said, now sucking on my collarbone. "You're beautiful, Nero. Every part of you."

My blush darkened even more. I wasn't used to being complimented. Usually, people didn't trust me and used me to their advantage.

Fingers glided over flushed skin, hands squeezed firm flesh and the atmosphere changed from playful to passionate. I felt Dante's reawakened erection poking my inner thigh and he braced himself over me, slowly rubbing our hips together, working us both back to full hardness. I rocked back against him and we both sighed. On a particularly hard thrust, I moaned loudly. I wrapped my legs around his hips, pulling him closer to me, feeling his length pressing onto my entrance. I bucked my hips and he got the hint and pushed inside.

"Relax, love", Dante whispered softly, pecking me on the lips.

It was a little painful but he kept sliding into me nonetheless, soothingly rubbing my thighs. Dante closed his eyes for a moment, moaning quietly while he waited for me to adjust once he was buried to the hilt. A shiver went down my spine at the low sound and he gazed into my eyes.

"You alright?", he asked silently and I whispered a 'yes', tangling my fingers into his silvery hair and pulling him down into a passionate liplock. It felt incredible – being joined with him in this way, feeling him inside me. I've had sex before but have never felt like this. It just felt so... intense.

We both were panting when we parted for air and I wriggled my hips impatiently. "Move."

Dante's arms went around me, locking me in a tight embrace. He pulled out and thrust back in, first thrusting shallowly inside me, going deeper each time and adjusting his angle. After a few thrusts he hit my prostate which made me see stars again.

"Th-there", I moaned and met each snap of his pelvis with a buck of my hips. Not once did he break eye contact, he was giving me this gentle and warm look – the same way he had looked at me many months ago in that tavern on the outskirts of Fortuna when he asked me to move in with him... But this time, it was a lot more intense and made me quiver all over. It was only now that I finally understood that it was love.

No words needed to be spoken as we communicated with our bodies only. The only noises in the room were our harsh breathing, the sound of skin slapping against skin and our moans in unison as we were connected in this intimate way. The heat returned and coursed through my body from the spot where we were joined. The pace was slow and steady and we both savored every second of our coupling.

This wasn't the demonic mating the women at Verroth's harem had talked about – this was not about primal urges, about control or dominance and submission – this was simply about Dante and me.

"More...", I breathed and he quickened the pace, slamming harder into me. Dante snaked his arm between our bodies, stroking me in time with his thrusts. Our lips found each other again and we shared a deep and passionate kiss.

My hands roamed across Dante's back, pressing him closer to me, the claws of my bringer scratching his skin and leaving thin rivulets of blood in their wake but it seemed to enhance the pleasure for him. He groaned into my mouth, the strength and speed of his thrusts increasing again, and he broke our kiss to moan my name out loudly. I arched my back and cried out in pleasure, Dante's name falling off my lips over and over.

"Nero…", I heard him moan and felt the coil beneath my stomach tighten at the look on his face. His usual icy blue eyes slowly bled to an intense red. We were both close.

Dante brushed back a strand of hair in front of my eye and leaned down for another kiss. His pace quickened once again, hitting my prostate dead on with each thrust and my moans turned into cries and pleas, raising in pitch. Coherent thought left me. All of my nerve endings were on fire, my skin oversensitized; each thrust, every touch, every single caress drove me closer and closer to the edge. I arched my back and felt my toes curl, the fire inside me flared up, lights exploded in front of my eyes. I came hard between our bodies, trying to scream out Dante's name but my breath caught in my throat. I felt Dante twitch and swell inside me, his thrusts becoming erratic, his breathing faster, his body tensing up. Some thrusts later, his essence filled me as he tumbled over the edge as well, a sound of satisfaction leaving his lips.

Dante slumped down onto me and I bore his weight, reveling in his warmth and closeness. He kissed me on the forehead, then on the nose and finally on the lips. The kiss was slow, tender and short since we both had problems catching our breath.

I softly smiled at him. "I love you", I said and watched his lips curled into a smile. He kissed me intensely and wrapped his arms around my waist, drawing me closer.

"I love you too, Nero", Dante whispered quietly and I felt my heart pounding against my ribcage like crazy.

My head rested on his chest and I listened to the beat of his heart while I was basking in the afterglow of our love-making for another minute. Dante's fingers brushed over the the spot where he had bitten me and I blushed a little when a pleasurable tingle rippled down my spine.

"So this means claiming a mate...", I heard Dante mumble and raised a brow in question. He chuckled lightly and rubbed the bite mark with his fingertips, spreading the pleasurable warmth and I sighed softly, leaning into his touch.

"My father didn't have the chance to explain this part of demonic nature to me", he said, "He told me that when demons mate, they would mark each other. I didn't really know what he meant by that up to now."

"I marked you too...", I mumbled, reaching out to touch the bite. He let out a satisfied sigh at the touch and gently smiled at me. I tilted my head upwards so that we could kiss but we both paused and broke apart slowly. There was a low purring sound in the back of my head... but it didn't seem to come from myself. It felt a little strange and foreign to me.

"Do you hear that?", I asked confused, frowning lightly. It wasn't a bad sensation – it was just strange.

"The purring?", Dante said, "Yeah, I hear that." He pulled me into another kiss but the sound made me a little restless. Where was it coming from?

"I think these are our devil sides", Dante chuckled, nuzzling the mark with his nose, "Demonic mating creates a special bond between both of the mates – it's like finding your other half."

"Does that mean I hear you purring in my head?", I asked, still a little confused.

"Exactly." He disentangled himself from me and peeled off my arms when I tried to press him close to me again.

"What are you doing?", I pouted.

"I'll be right back", he replied, laughing lightly and pecked me on the lips.

I couldn't help but stare at his ass when he left the room, apparently heading into the bathroom. I had imagined many times how he looked like naked during the last year and he looked so much better in reality than in my fantasy...

A clatter from the bath cut off my train of thoughts and Dante returned to the bedroom, carrying a bowl of water and a washcloth. He settled between my legs and only now I realized I was still coated in mine and his seed. Again, my cheeks lit up and Dante simply smirked, placing a kiss onto my temple and ran the wet cloth over my stomach, his fingers tracing the fading bruises they made just minutes before. When he was finished, he set the things aside, laying next to me again and pulling me close. Our lips connected in a slow, tender kiss and our inner devils purred at each other. We broke apart and Dante nuzzled the mark on my neck again and pressed me close to his chest.

It was quiet for a while and I realized that Dante had dozed off, his breath regular and smooth.

I carefully lifted my head and simply looked at him. Dante Sparda, the man I owed so much. He pulled me out of my misery, saved my life. He gave me the ability to trust people again. He showed me what loving and being loved in return means, even if it sounds corny.

I traced the contours of his face, taking in his beauty and how peaceful he looked when he was asleep.

Dante had said to me that being a half-demon means having to keep an equilibrium. I always thought that I had been cursed with my demonic descent but now I knew that I had been wrong. Everything in this world has two sides, every creature, every being that exists. The ability to feel happiness or pain or love was a blessing. There were two complete opposites within me, things that needed to be balanced constantly – the instinctive demonic side and the softer human side.

I always knew that life wouldn't be easy on me because of this battle deep within me. And now I knew that no matter what happened in life, I would always be able to find a solution. I wasn't alone anymore, had finally found what had been missing in my life. I realized that my life would always be worth living. I knew that as much as I was blessed, I was cursed.

/ The End.

Thanks to everyone who read and/or reviewed this fic! I never expected to get such a positive response and it just makes me so ridiculously happy, hehe.

So yeah... that's it. Der Letzte macht's Licht aus...? I don't know what to say... :O