Dante's House, Limbo City, Sunday

[spin_kick_snap]

Last night after finally exiting the tower, they had made their way back to Dante's place in Limbo City. Kathy had been half-tempted to get a portal back to the island, worried about Eliot, wanting to be home, but she'd been too sore and exhausted to do much more than look at her phone before letting it fall back to pocket.

At least her texts to Raven had gone through, even if she probably seemed like a madwomen in them.

Exhausted as she was, she didn't manage to sleep much past sunrise. Too many thoughts, too many memories, too many feelings crowding close to keep her asleep. She got up, limping a little unevenly downstairs, scrounging to see what kind of breakfast she could make from the remains in the kitchen.

The answer was apparently coffee, so she set that to perking and went to sit in front of the big window, staring out at the street, eyes blank and seeing very little.

[For them who are in Limbo City with her! SP for forever because BDE and also brain.]

Comments

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante ignored him. For a while.

Maybe if he ignored Anders long enough he'd stop feeling like crying.

Except he didn't.

He plucked the magazine from his face and finally sat up, abruptly. "I need a walk," he said.

It wasn't quite an invitation. But he was looking at Anders while doing it.

[not_every_mage]

"Funny coincidence," Anders said, with a sidelong, guilty glance to Kathy. He'd need to talk to her more later. "So do I."

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante shrugged, like he didn't care. "Hey, do what you have to, man," he said, walking to the door.

He pushed it open.

He totally didn't glance over his shoulder, except for where he did.

[not_every_mage]

Anders' mouth quirked, though it would be a stretch to call it a smile. He followed Dante out the door.

"So," he said, and bumped his hand against Dante's.

He wasn't sure where to go from that so.

[rebelseekspizza]

"At least the weather's clearing up," Dante said casually. "Less of a chance of demon in the evening too."

He kept walking, but he kept his speed slow, and his hand kept bumping right back against Anders'.

[not_every_mage]

"If you squint, we could be back in Fandom," Anders said, then kicked an empty pizza box out of his way. "... Fandom after a biker gang went through it, anyhow."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Fandom like one of the usual disasters happened," Dante agreed.

Finally he stuck his hands into his pockets.

"But at least Vergil's not gonna be a problem anymore."

Casual.

[not_every_mage]

Anders started for a moment, pausing in his step. "He's dead again?"

He had a good idea, but he hadn't been able to sense enough to be sure. A nd certainly Dante hadn't been in any mood to announce it.

[rebelseekspizza]

"He had a choice up there," Dante said, ever so light. "Walk out with me, or go hang out in the demon world."

[not_every_mage]

"And he picked the demons," Anders sighed. "How ... typical of him."

[rebelseekspizza]

"I guess stupid is as stupid does, right?" Dante said, his thumb running idly over the large gash in his glove.

It was a good thing he'd left the house. His emotional defenses were failing.

[not_every_mage]

"And your brother," Anders said firmly, "is plenty stupid."

He sighed and reached to touch the glove Dante was playing with. "How'd that happen, anyhow?"

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante glanced down at his hand, instinctively. Bad idea - a wave of something tried to force its way up his throat.

"It was a goodbye present," he said, trying to get his voice to stay light and failing miserably. "He was falling..."

[not_every_mage]

"You tried to catch him," Anders guessed. "And he ... oh, Dante."

He didn't even need to know if he was right. The whole miserable scenario merited an oh, Dante.

"I was so glad you came back."

[rebelseekspizza]

"You know me," Dante said. His attempts at casual were getting less convincing by the second. "I'm always comin' back and in style."

Shit. The wave had made its way up and now the corners of his eyes were itching in a way he really couldn't hide.

[not_every_mage]

"Like a bad penny, or a cat on its seventh life, or something," Anders agreed, and he squeezed Dante's hand. "We're stuck with each other."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Yeah, we are."

Dante squeezed Anders' hand back.

They were stuck together, him and Anders. Anders, who'd never left him of his own free will.

... and shit, now the tears came rolling in.

[not_every_mage]

"Darling," Anders said, and then stopped because he didn't have words.

What he did have was an embrace too close to be called a hug, arms wrapped around Dante firm as he could. He badly wanted to hurt Vergil somehow for wrecking Dante again.

[rebelseekspizza]

"I'm fine," Dante mumbled into his shoulder. "I'm fine. 's just raining."

[not_every_mage]

"I know," Anders agreed firmly, hand drawing circles on Dante's back. "Rain and an allergy attack. That's it. And I'd fight anyone who said differently."

[rebelseekspizza]

Dante laughed softly against Anders' jacket. It sounded wet and snottery.

"See, you get me."

They were standing in a fucking alley in Limbo City and he had this deep pit of something inside of him that felt like it was never going to be okay.

(And he wasn't alone. And Anders made it be okay that he wasn't alone.)

[not_every_mage]

"I try to," Anders said simply, swaying the both of them side to side. "Sometimes my imagination fails, but I try."

[rebelseekspizza]

So Dante stayed there, and let him, in further silence. Just until all the fucking treacherous water had left his eyes.

Why the fuck was he crying over Vergil? Vergil, who'd rather fucking pall around with demons in hell than stay here, with him, and act like a normal fucking person--

(Vergil, who'd once been this kid who always needed protection, the fragile brains of an operation Dante had kept safe with his fists. Vergil, who'd saved him from a life on the run from demons, only to kick him into the dirt for not serving his purposes.)

"Fuck," Dante muttered, strangled.

And pulled away, taking a few steps back to lean against a wall.

[not_every_mage]

Anders watched him with keen, moist eyes. A sudden fierce wish for revenge moved through him like a dagger of heat.

If he could have killed Vergil where he stood, entirely for making Dante cry, he would have.

"You didn't do anything wrong, you know," he said. "Don't blame yourself for any of it."

[rebelseekspizza]

"Wasn't gonna," Dante promised.

(That was a lie.)

(What was it about him that made people he cared about choose horrible shit over him?)