A/N: Alright, here we go… more coffee, more work getting done, I'm hoping that doing some writing will make me feel productive enough to then move on to homework and studying. I'm both excited and horribly nervous to be done in a few weeks…

Disclaimer: I'm not even old enough to have had a shot at owning this…

Warm Welcome

Vergil had to physically stop his eyes from rolling back at the taste of the pot roast, it had been so long since he'd had a home cooked meal. When he'd been in the human realm to fuse it, he'd just been purchasing cheap food to get himself by but he'd nearly forgotten how good a meal made by caring hands could be. His mind flashed once more to his mother and he shook his head, he couldn't go thinking of her… he had to focus, she'd been human, weak, there was no other word to depict humans properly… The half devil looked up to see warm green eyes looking at him.

"Well, how is it? I haven't had to cook for guests in a while, I'm worried my skills have gone downhill." Vergil looked off to the side, feeling his cheeks heat slightly, unwilling to answer, to admit that it was one of the most delicious things he'd tasted in quite some time. Amelia laughed then. It was a warm sound, one that brought back memories that the half devil wished that it didn't, of his first home, and his second, of the people who'd been kind enough to take care of him when in the end it had cost them their lives…

"Why did you take me in?" Vergil asked then, looking up at the woman, he needed an answer, she just smiled.

"I'm a nurse in training, it's what I do. I was going to call the Order when you'd woken up but now… well now they might finish the job for your brother so I guess I'll just keep it as my little secret." She smiled again, holding the fork to her lips in a 'shh' gesture. The half devil was baffled by all of this.

"But why? You know I'm a half devil, yet you continue to care for me I don't understand." Amelia looked up to the ceiling.

"I thought you were dead when I saw you in that field, when I found out that you were still alive I thanked the Savior, then you tried to refuse help and I thought you were just stubborn. When you woke and had nearly healed I wondered what you might be, you said you were half devil and yet, I believe that you are half human too, you deserve a second chance just as much as anyone else."

"I…" Vergil could see that his confusion would continue to go unanswered, he still wondered why some people had such compassion for others, even when it put themselves at risk. He'd seen it when his mother had shoved himself and Dante into a closet and stood her ground, guns blazing; he'd seen it when Madeline had taken him in when it did nothing for her, when the people turned on her and blamed her for the demon that had attacked, looking for him. He'd even seen such traits in his brother, it was just baffling to him, all it did was get you hurt… Vergil sighed and looked back to the food on the plate, she groaned and he looked up at her in surprise.

"It's terrible isn't it? You should've told me! This is why I asked!" the melodrama was such an unexpected surprise that it pulled a small chuckle from the half devil's throat. It seemed that she was going to push this compassion on him whether he wanted it or not, he might as well play along.

She blinked at him in surprise, the laugh was rough, like he hadn't done it in a while but it suited him well. He looked back to her

"It tastes fine. I was just wondering about the world, lost in my thoughts." He seemed genuine with his words and turned back to the food a moment later and she was internally relieved. Melodramatics aside, she had been worried that the pot roast wasn't going to turn out. It was one thing if an experimental recipe was bad and she was the only one eating it, it was something else entirely if there was another person in her home.

-Rise-

Evening came on fairly quickly, as Vergil had been unconscious for several more hours once she got him back to her home. The time passed in silence as she cleaned up the makings from dinner and prepared for bed. She paused before stepping out in her pajamas and night robe. She'd seen movies and such, and heard her friends gossip about breaking rules and bedding men before marriage but it just felt… strange to step out in little more than her sleepwear. She took a deep breath and walked into the connected kitchen and living room.

"There's a shower if you would like to use it." She said softly. He looked at her, and then at his semi-upright position on the couch.

"I would like to but I don't think I can get up at the moment." He said "I will wait until morning, if it's all the same. Unless you'd be willing to assist me." There was a glint of mischief in his eyes and she felt her cheeks heat

"O-of course, morning is fine." She managed, wondering why she was suddenly a stammering idiot. It had been a joke, he'd made that clear, so why on earth did she feel even more awkward?

"Um… can I get you anything else? Pillows? Blankets?" she asked when she'd managed to reign in her hormones.

"No, I am quite comfortable." He said

"Good, I'll just… be going to bed now, goodnight, I'm in the other room if you need anything."

"Of course, goodnight."

Till next time,

-Winged Element