Love & Remembrance Ch 2

Chapter Two
         “Dante can come back now,” Andorra said, turning away from Vergil, still on his knees. “He has some questions to answer.”
         Vergil stood to his feet, the warmth from her spell fading completely now. He reached for his phone, dialing Dante’s number as he did so.
         “Yes, you can come back now. No, I don’t think they should be here just yet; have them stay in town at the hotel. See you in a few.
         As he flipped the phone closed, he looked over at Andorra, whose back was turned to him as she observed the frozen landscape from the window. He noted how the white streaks in her hair made her seem more powerful than before, or that could be because now she was royalty in the demon world now. She stood straight and tall, her long hair reaching to her waist. Her hands rested on the mahogany wood of the windowsill, her nails unpainted and long. He also noticed how the cloak she had been wearing had disappeared.
         The black pants she wore hugged her hips, and then flared out along her thighs and calves before fitting over her combat boots. Holstered at her hips were a pair of Sais and a custom-made semi-auto pistol of deepest onyx aptly named Black Death. Though he did not care for guns, he had to admit that it had always fit Andorra nicely as a weapon. Along her back he saw an addition to her arsenal, a 17th century Bushido samurai sword in a blue-black scabbard that tied in several locations along her waist.
         “The sword is new, isn’t it?” He asked.
         She turned to look at him, her amethyst eyes soft as they met his blue ones.
         “Yes. When I was made Queen, the council said I needed a proper weapon as a symbol of my power. I have always loved the Bushido, and so I commissioned this one re-stored to its former glory, and it has been a constant companion since.” She replied
         “Have you given it a name yet?”
         “No, I still have not found a suitable title for it yet. My Sais are still unnamed as well, I do believe that I will leave my weapons nameless, save for Black Death, being as it was named when it was passed to me.” She ran a gloved hand along the pistol, the memory of the family she had lost years ago apparent in her eyes.
         Vergil gently placed a hand on her shoulder, but she shied away involuntarily.
         “Sorry.” She replied. “It’s a reflex I seem to have picked up over the years.”
         “Understandable.” Vergil replied, letting his hand fall to his side.
         She didn’t need to say it, but she still feared him from what he’d done to her. She had every reason to mistrust him; after all, he did almost kill her, and the unborn baby…
         What had happened to the child? Had it survived, or did he take another innocent life that night? He had never asked Dante, because he had forgotten until this moment.
         “Andorra.”
         The female turned to face him, and he saw no trace of the sadness she had displayed not long ago. The expression in her features told him that she wanted him to touch her, to make sure she wasn’t dreaming, but also, her fear held her tongue from saying so. Vergil could see the dilemma pass through her mind, almost as if he were experiencing it as well.
         He slowly reached a hand to her cheek, hesitating to see if she would back away.
         She did not.
         Andorra placed her cheek into the gloved palm and closed her eyes, a single tear spilling from beneath her long eyelashes.
         “I should be angry with you.” Her words were a whisper in the silence. “Livid, enraged.”
         “I would deserve it for what I’ve done to you.” He replied just as quietly. “But I’ve made a promise to never hurt you again, and I am greatly sorry for what happened that night. I was…not- I was not myself.”
         She flinched at the mention of the incident.
         “I’d rather not talk about it now.” She said, turning back to the window. “Looks like Dante’s back; good, I need some target practice.”
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         “Dammit! Stop shooting me!” Dante yelled as another heated slug slammed into his belly. Andorra held her still smoking pistol at arm’s length, but removed her finger from the trigger.
         “You have one minute to start explaining.” She growled, her hair flowing from the power she was radiating. “Why did you lie to me? Do you know that you put me in unneces-sary danger, and had anything happened to me, you would be in extremely deep shit? You can’t just lie to royalty and lead them on a wild goose chase! the council would force me to make you an outlaw, hunting you for sport, is that what you want?!”
         The red-clad devil smirked as he pulled the last bullet from his ribcage, then cringed as the wound began to burn slightly. “Like they have a chance against me.” He said sarcas-tically. “Jeez, what the hell is in those bullets?”
         “Blessed silver with Holy Water tips. You’ll burn for a while before you start to heal, go clean it out with some alcohol, the last thing we need is you with an infection for me to tend to.”
         “Fuck. You’re crazy, y’know?” Dante said before turning towards the stairs.”
         “I have to deal with you, you expect me to keep my sanity?” She retorted. “Go before I shoot you again.” 
         Vergil gave a small smile as he watched his twin hobble away to find some alcohol. “I thought you were tougher than that ‘Te?”
         “Shut up!” Dante called down.
         Andorra fired a warning shot at Dante’s back, missing him by a hair. “My patience is thin Dante, and we are not done with our discussion.” She warned.
         “You seem more trigger happy nowadays.” Vergil remarked.
         “Feeling left out?” She asked, putting the pistol in the holster.
         “No. I’m just saying you used to not use Dante as target practice, did he finally get to you?” The elder twin replied.
         “For this stunt he pulled, that’s just a warning. I wasn’t kidding what I said about the council. If they find out I was pulled out on a bogus mission…” She trailed off.
         “They won’t, there is a meeting tomorrow, just as he said. You are still on a legitimate mission.” Vergil said.
         “Good, that’s one worry off my mind.”
         Andorra sat down on the couch nearest the fire, her purple orbs staring into the orange and yellow flames. Her mind began to wander, trying to pull her back into the past, to all those painful memories, but she stopped it. Right now she didn’t want to hurt, she just wanted to try and understand things.
         Six years had passed since the last council meeting had been called, and now she wondered what kind of demon had warranted so much attention. Usually, if the offender had to be brought before the council, they almost always died. Sometimes she would show mercy and let them live, only to serve her in the Underworld for eternity. For many, this was a fate worse than death.
         “Babe, it still burns.” Dante said as he appeared at the top of the stairs.
         “They should be healing pretty soon, since you washed any trace of the water off with alcohol, although you may still have a little bit of silver embedded. Did you bandage it up?” Andorra asked.
         “No.” He replied. “You were always best at that.”
         Andorra smiled slightly. “Vergil, would you find me a first aid kit please?”
         The blue-clad demon left the room, and Andorra motioned Dante to the couch. “Shirt off.” She directed.
         “Anything to see me shirtless, huh?” The demon smirked at her, removing his trademark red jacket and black buckled shirt. The wound in his side wasn’t large, but it did go pretty deep.
         “You did get all the bullets out right?” She asked.
         “No, I left them in because I love pain, what do you think?”
         Andorra glared at Dante as he stood before her.
         “Damn I’d forgotten how tall you are.” She said, having to look up at him. “Both of you.”
         “Hey, you’re no midget yourself.” He replied.
         “Compared to you, I feel like one. You definitely do not help a girl’s self-esteem.”
         “Not part of the job, even if you are the Queen.”
         “Ha ha.” She laughed dryly as Vergil strode back into the room with a first-aid kit in tow. “Ah, thank you.”
         She took the box from him, trying not to touch his outstretched fingers in the process. She failed, and a jolt of electricity hummed through her blood as she opened the box. Inside she found a devil star, some antiseptic, and a large roll of medical gauze.
         “Perfect. Here.” She handed Dante the devil star. “Don’t drink it; put a few drops on the wound, it won’t heal completely just yet though.”
         “Damn you and your bullets woman.” He muttered as he cracked the star open and did as she directed.
         Vergil merely stood back and watched as Andorra sprayed the antiseptic into his brother’s skin.
         “Fuck! Would it kill you to warn me before you do that?!”
         Vergil chuckled to himself as Dante fixed an angry glare in his direction. “Shut up, Ver-gil.”          
         “Stop moving!” Andorra said. “More of the devil star on it, now.”
         “Y’know, I’m beginning to debate your medical skills Andorra. By the way, do I have to keep calling you that, or can I call you by your old name?”
         “You can call me what you like, as long as in front of the council-“
         “Yeah, yeah. Your Majesty, My Liege…all the royal crap. Good, it’ll be easier to re-member Ailie instead of Andorra.” Dante replied.
         “I’ve always preferred her birth name.” Vergil piped in.
         “And you’re the only one.” Ailie/Andorra said as she unrolled the gauze. “The only rea-son I use it now is because that’s the way the demons know me, and they refuse to accept Ailie because it was not my birth name. Arms up Dante.”
         She began to wrap the gauze around Dante’s torso, quickly finishing as she taped and pinned it into place. “There you go, all done. Should be healed up by afternoon.”
         “Oh shit!” Dante said. “You have a council meeting in a few hours, we need to go, we can take the motorbikes. Shit, can you ride one or still no?”
         “Dante, calm down.” Vergil said. “We will make it in time.”
         “I know how to drive Dante, I just never liked to, is all. Now, let’s just hurry up.”
         “Slight problem, only got two, so you gonna have to double with one of us.” Dante said.
         “I don’t see that it matters at the moment,” Ailie said, grabbing her cloak from the back of an armchair before looking at the Sparda twins. “Nor do I care which of you drives me, fight it amongst yourselves, I will be outside.”
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         She was unsurprised to see Vergil strolling towards her. She was already seated on one bike, waiting patiently as he stood beside her. She scooted back so he could sit, and tried not to think as she wrapped her arms around him. The bike roared to life and they shot off across the snow at breakneck speed. Ailie kept her head bent behind Vergil’s back, her hair whipping violently behind her. She closed her eyes to keep them from freezing, and fell asleep almost instantly.
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         Ailie could feel the bike slowing down, and lifted her head. They were entering a town and had to obey the speed limit. She realized they were within the borders of Delta City, and that meant the area would be crawling with royal guards to protect not only her safety, but the other council members as well.
          She craned her neck to see shadows stalking along the rooftops, following the direc-tion of the motorbike as they passed.          
         “Great, the royal babysitters are here.” She murmured to herself.
         “They are there for your protection.” Vergil replied.
         Yes. They should also know that I survived for years on my own without their help or protection. A little less coverage is all I ask sometimes. It feels as if I cannot go into the human world without their presence being felt. I know they are there all the time, I just don’t want to sense it, you know?” She clarified.
         “Understandable. Maybe they look after you so thoroughly because you are alone most of the time. Perhaps is you had a companion around who could look after you if trouble arises, then they may leave you alone.”
         “Applying for the job are you?” She asked sarcastically. “Sorry, my sarcasm gets the better of me sometimes. I’m not trying to sound like a total bitch.”
         Vergil merely nodded his head, the silvery locks catching the early afternoon sun.
         “I wonder time it is…” she thought aloud, knowing her would tell her anyways.
         “Around 2:30.”
         “Council meeting doesn’t start until 5:30, we have some time to kill.” Ailie said, her eyes scanning the buildings they passed. “Should be enough time to find a hotel room for after the meeting is over.”
         “They allow such a thing?” Vergil asked, slightly shocked.
         “What?”
         “You staying in a common hotel room instead of-“
         “One, no one knows what I look like until I get there, my council appearance is different than the one I’m in now. One of the powers that manifested when I accepted my royal bloodline was to be a Changeling. I can alter my appearance at will, and I always do so at every council meeting, although the last one was fifteen years ago. And two, no one ever challenges what I do or say, except for Dante, he’s a pain in the ass.”
         “Yes, but are you unafraid of someone finding you’re location and attempting to as-sassinate you while you sleep?” Vergil sounded genuinely worried.
         “No, especially since you will accompany me.” Her words hung in the air as they stopped at a red light. “Isn’t it what you wanted, after all? For things to go back the way they were, or at least something along those lines?”
         She noticed as Vergil’s hand tightened on the handle bar of the bike before loosening again. “You still seem neutral about the whole thing. I am following your lead.” He replied slowly. “I will not force myself back into your life, nor in any other way. I would like to be a part of it again, but you are still in pain from-“
         “Stop.” She said her voice low and commanding. Vergil wanted to say something else, but found her could not. His mouth would not move, and he felt a strange tingling surround him. “I have told you, I do not want to discuss that right now, or ever for that matter.”
         Vergil felt the hold on him lessen, but said nothing.
         “Up ahead, there’s a hotel,” she directed, pointing a little to the west of them. “Pull in there, and I’ll register for the night.”
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         “Ok, ma’am that will be one room for the night, full-size bed, no mini-bar. Total will be $98.98.” The hotel clerk said gruffly.
         Ailie handed the rather portly man behind the desk her credit card. He looked at it a moment too long before looking at her again. “I’ll need to see your I.D. ma’am.”
         Ailie sighed. “Right, I keep forgetting to change that.” She produced her driver’s license, showing the man what he needed to see.
         “Thank you. Credit or debit?”
         “Credit please.” She replied.
         She waited patiently as the man typed in the information, frowning slightly as her card was approved.
         “Here you go.” He said, handing her back the plastic card. “Have a nice stay, here is your room key.”
         “Thank you. I will need a safe place for my friend to park his motorbike, he’s rather fond of it. “ She answered, gesturing to Vergil, who stood in the hall a few feet behind her.
         “Yes, ma’am, I will have someone escort him to the rear lot.” The clerk said before picking up the desk phone.
         Ailie turned to Vergil, who shifted as she approached.
         “Room 212, I’ll be there when you park the bike. I will be getting ready for the meeting tonight. But first, a long shower is in order.” She said in passing.
         “Alone, I’m sure.” Vergil called to her retreating back.
         “That depends, I haven’t decided yet. Maybe is you are rather quick in parking…” He could not hear the rest as she trailed off around a corner.
         That woman is even more baffling than she used to be. One minute she is happy, the next she is not. Maybe I should just avoid bringing up that night until-
         A voice interrupted his thoughts.
         “I’m here to escort you to the rear lot. You are the man with the bike yes?”
         Vergil turned to see an adolescent teenager with a small complexion issue looking up at him.
         “Yes.”
         “My name is Jack,” The boy said, extending his hand. Vergil took it and shook it. “If you’ll just follow me, please.”
         Meanwhile, in the fairly spacious room, Ailie looked out from the window, smiling slightly as she watched Vergil follow a rather thin boy to the rear lot with the motorbike in tow. He parked it, and then thanked the boy, who turned and left with a smile and a wave. Vergil looked up and caught her eye before teleporting directly behind her.
         “Lazy.” She accused
         “Efficient.” He countered and she smiled.
         Ailie backed away from the window, drawing the shades. “Ah, all that snow and sun is hell on the eyes.” She said, gently rubbing the amethyst orbs with her hands. Just then her cell phone rang. She opened it to answer and a cloud of purple-black smoke enveloped the room.
         “My dearest Queen Andorra,” a disembodied voice called from within the smoke. “It is a pleasure to hear you have arrived safely; I assume your contact last night was helpful?”
         “Yes, and I have a request on his behalf, I would like him, or anyone affiliated with him, to be my contact from now on.” She replied, a regal note in her voice.
         “We will discuss that at the meeting. That is why I am calling, we regrettably had to re-schedule, and the council will not be tonight.” The voice continued. “Instead it has been set for tomorrow at midnight.”
         “I understand, the snow is probably stalling our usual means of transportation, therefore some of our members will not arrive in time for tonight.” She replied.
         “Yes.” The smoky voice replied. “I must leave now.”
         “’Til the ‘morrow good sir.” She said, bowing her head in respect.
         “’Til the ‘morrow my Queen.” And with that, the smoke and the voice were gone.
         “I should have seen that coming.” She sighed, and closed her phone. “Well, at least I get a chance to rest, since last night was rather eventful.”
         Vergil smiled at the memory of her chucking a chair at him. He knew that has she suc-ceeded in hitting him, she would have felt satisfied, but also, she would have felt sorry for do-ing so. She would never admit it though, she was always like that.
         She did not want to cause him any kind of pain, even after what he had put her through.
         “Hey.” Her voice broke into his thoughts.
         “Yes?”
         “I’m going take a shower, get hold of Dante, let him know the change in plans, he can bring the whole gang if he wants, I’ll handle the fees. He owes me no debt.” Not anymore.”
         Vergil nodded before doing as his Queen asked.