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You awoke to the soft delicate scent of roses, and knew your ‘secret’ admirer had made yet another appearance. ‘Secret’ was definitely a bit of an exaggeration, but still, you enjoyed these clandestine little gifts you had received, and were willing to wait as long as it took for the man responsible to reveal himself.
That man, of course, was the stoic, stony, yet surprisingly sensitive Elder son of Sparda, Vergil. As a demon hunter yourself, you had come into contact with the Legendary Devil Hunter, Dante quite a while ago, but only recently, had you met the twin brother he’d never spoken to you about. You never asked, but you sensed some tension, albeit rather gentle tension between the brothers, but you had decided ‘any friend and/or relative of Dante, is a friend of mine’. And so, you attempted to befriend the aloof man, and though it took a while, it actually wasn’t as hard as you had expected.
You had proven yourself an adept fighter, a voracious reader, and a perceptive listener, to the man, and cautiously, (and much to Dante’s surprise), you’d formed a friendship with him, a silent understanding that you had each other’s back, that he’d be at your side when fighting off the denizens of Hell, and you’d be there when he tried to figure out how to navigate a (frankly terrifying) world he hadn’t been a part of for over two decades.
It HAD been nice, enjoying his silent presence, until your friendship had blossomed into something more serious...at least on your end. Even a blind man could tell he was attractive, and behind his stony mask, there was a man who was deep down, courteous and kind. A man you could imagine spending the rest of your life with. But there was a teensy weensy fly in the ointment: You had no idea if Vergil would ever reciprocate your feelings. It had taken so much time and patience to form a platonic relationship with him, and you didn’t want to destroy what was a perfectly good friendship over something as trivial as unrequited feelings.
But then, a box of chocolates had appeared on your desk one day. Your favourite, the ones with the silky smooth French Vanilla filling, straight from the little chocolatier from across town. Dante also had been hovering around, just out of sight, and just happened to walk in as you opened the box, making you suspect he had gotten them for you. But seeing as he was more interested in ‘helping’ you eat the contents, as opposed to your reaction, you chalked it up to a thankful client. Strange, it didn’t have a note accompanying it.
Then, a few weeks later… something appeared on your dresser in the small room you ‘rented’ (AKA, helped Dante keep the lights on) from the devil in red. It was a beautiful green leather planner, with a matching enamel pen, all wrapped simply with a sky blue silk ribbon. It had been your first clue that the box of chocolates were not just a gift from an anonymous client.
Because you had seen this exact planner in the window of a little out-of-the way boutique while you were out running errands, and had stopped to admire the fine craftsmanship, but winced at the price tag. You had planned to buy it later on, when you got paid from your latest job, but by then, it was gone, purchased by another customer.
The fact that this was the exact same handcrafted book that had been on display, and was now your possession, was no coincidence. And...who was with you to run errands on that very day, who watched your eyes lit up as you peered at it through the glass? Vergil. There could be no doubt, the man was leaving gifts for you. A token of friendship? Both gifts could be seen as purely platonic, but there was always the chance…
And yet, when you came down the stairs that morning, to see Vergil sipping on his morning tea, trying to figure out the new fangled ‘cell-phone’ his son had given him, he barely gave you anything but a perfunctory nod, which made you question if he really was the gifter. After all, even someone so emotionally guarded as Vergil would give some sort of clue, a slight inquisitiveness at why you couldn’t get that darn smile off your face. But nothing. Perhaps the poor man was too shy to admit his feelings, or even quite understand his feelings for you...romantic or not. And so, you would not mention the gift to him or anyone else.
A week later was the thing that really made up your mind. Not only were you awoken by the scent, you could have sworn as you opened your eyes, a flash of bright blue, and what sounded like someone hurriedly leaving your room in a tremendous hurry. (Like Dante when you caught him eating the last of your chocolates)
There, placed delicately on the pillow beside your head, was a single blue rose, its soft velvet petals unfurling in the morning light. It had been freshly picked, and had no blemish. You sat up, and cautiously picked it up, as if you weren’t quite sure it was a figment of a rapidly fading dream, and inhaled its scent. This was no dream, the sweet scent was too real, too vibrant.
This sealed it. The gift was from Vergil, and the meaning was clear. One did not leave secret flower gifts to people they considered as ‘just friends’. You spun the stem between your fingers, admiring its beauty from every angle. You’d have to find a way to thank Vergil for such a thoughtful gift, to admit you had feelings for him too...but first, you’d need something to place the rose in, to preserve its beauty. And Dante must have a vase in his kitchen somewhere….
🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹
It turns out, Dante did NOT have a vase in his kitchen. Still, there had been a champagne glass, with the words “HAPPY NEW YEAR! 2007!” written on it, so it would have to do. It didn’t dampen your happiness as you hummed and spritzed the flower with water, as you placed it in the newly cleaned glass.
You were so happy, that you hadn’t noticed that someone also had entered the kitchen, and was silently watching you. Only when you spun around, finally deciding on a perfect place to place it, did you come face to face with Vergil.
He seemed pale, even more than usual as he stood there, still in his pajamas, not looking at you, but at the flower in your hand. After a few moments of awkward silence, he spoke.
“Where.” a pause, as if he was having trouble voicing his thoughts, “where did you get that?”
You were taken aback. Why would he ask such a question? Surely he had given you the gift!
You decided to answer as truthfully as you could.
“It was on my pillow this morning. I thought maybe you had given it to me…” you trailed off dumbly as he just stared at you. “Along with the chocolates and the notebook…” Now Vergil looked alarmed, and you realized you had just misjudged the situation. It was obvious that he hadn’t given you anything. But even now, you searched his face, hoping against hope that he was just joking, that he was playing dumb, even though it would be totally out of character for him.
And without warning, he spun around, left the kitchen with footsteps that were quiet to a normal person, but for you, they sounded like the angry stomps of an elephant. Out of sight, you heard him ascend the stairs, and then...his bedroom door slammed.
You stood there, confused and upset, the blue rose petals trembling in their makeshift vase. You felt like something had changed between yourself and Vergil, and you were pretty sure it could never be restored.
💙💙💙💙💙💙
To say Vergil was angry was an understatement. He was absolutely livid, as he stalked up the stairs and into his room. Not at you, that was absurd. You were innocent in all of this, an unfortunate victim. His anger was directed at one person...himself.
He yanked open the nightstand drawer, and to his fury, the chocolates he had placed there a month and a half ago were gone. He had heard you and Dante speaking about sweet tooths, and you had admitted that there was a little shop that sold dark chocolates with gooey french vanilla filling that you could die for.
And so, without really thinking, he had gone there, and purchased a box for you. Why? As a token of friendship? A way of saying ‘thank you’ for being patient and understanding with him? In the end, he couldn’t really decide WHY he wanted to give them to you, and so he placed them in the bottom of the drawer, away from prying eyes, (or his brother’s sensitive nose). Maybe he could give it to you when he had a plausible excuse, such as your birthday. But now...it had vanished.
Beginning to panic, he ran over to his wardrobe, and began pushing things aside on the top shelf. The planner, which he was certain he had hidden under several of his sweaters, was also nowhere to be seen.
What you’d been doing that day, he couldn’t quite recall, only that he felt some compulsion to come with you. To protect you? No...it was just to run some errands...then why had he felt better by your side?
As you and him chatted about plans for his son and grandchildren to visit, you had suddenly stopped at a storefront window, your eyes locked on something in the display. A beautiful, handbound planner, with a matching pen as a mate.
“My old one is nearly used up...I’ve been looking for one to replace it, but something a bit more durable than what you get in a big box store, you know?”
Why had his chest hurt when he saw your crestfallen look at the price tag, and how you reluctantly walked away?
Only a day later, when he went back to purchase the book, did the clerk help him realize why he was feeling the way he did.
“Ah a gift for someone special?” they asked as they tied a decorative bow around it.
“Yes...It’s for…” a friend? No...that wasn’t it. It was something more, at least for him. He honestly didn’t know what you felt about him, and frankly, he was terrified to find out.
“It’s for someone very special to me”
And yet, when he had come home, instead of handing it to you, taking secret delight in the joy on your face… he had hidden it, out of sight, out of mind. Because what if he was overstepping? What if you saw him as just a friend, and nothing more? Could he ever face you again, after destroying something he and you had worked so hard to build?
And now...he looked at his dresser, to find nothing but a glass of water. The night before, he had, on a whim, stopped at a florist and purchased one, perfect blue rose. This time, unlike the chocolates and the planner, who had a much longer lifespan, the rose would lose its lustre in a day, forcing him to give it to you, to confess his feelings for you.
And yet, as you smiled at him as he walked in that evening, telling him that supper was almost ready, did he change his mind. He’d just place it on the dresser, and let it bloom for him, and him alone, a reminder of his cowardice.
How you had gotten a hold of all three things, made no sense to him.
Wait...three?
You had mentioned the book and chocolates, and he had seen the rose in your hands, but you hadn’t said anything about the fourth intended gift.
He had been contracted to kill a demon that had been summoned by some robbers trying to break into a jewelry shop, (a creative way to destroy the security systems, but it had backfired immensely, as demon summoning usually did.) The elderly owner, in gratitude, had offered him the pick of anything in his collection.
Vergil was going to pass on the offer, as there was only one piece he had worn, and it was long gone, but then his eye fell upon a delicate silver chain, with a pendant of sapphire and tiny diamonds. You would certainly love it, he had decided, and so the grateful owner had placed it in a black velvet case and given it to him. But as a gift, it was far too forward on its own...it was best given after he had confessed his feelings to you… and so it had laid, under his bed, waiting for him to work up the courage to do something.
He quickly got on his hands and knees, frantically searching for the box...but nothing… Just a dust free spot outline where it had been. Where did it go? You didn’t have it, or you would have mentioned it. It wasn’t in his room… The only person who could have access to his room would be...Dante…
He grabbed Yamato, intending to wake up his no doubt still slumbering brother with an impalement. It was so like his little brother, taking things that didn’t belong to him. And the implications troubled him. Was DANTE trying to court you? You and him had known each other far longer, but he’d never expected his idiot brother to try to undercut Vergil’s attempts for your affection…
Ah, but you never did anything in the first place to court them, he reminded himself, you were never even in the running…
Still, by the time he was done… There would be nothing left of Dante to court you-
He stopped in his tracks. There, standing in the doorway, was an ethereal blue figure. His doppelganger, its face unreadable as it stared at him intensely.
“Out of way,” he ordered, but all he got was an amused huff.
Vergil was not amused and tried to barge past it, tried to summon it back to him, but he met both as if they were a solid brick wall. This was odd, in battle his companion would always follow his directions, why not now? Whatever it had in mind, it wasn’t going to let him through.
“My brother has stolen things from me, don’t you understand why I am angry?”
He’d never seen his familiar show any emotion, but now… he was certain it was laughing...
Laughing at him…
“What,” he said between gritted teeth, “do you think is so amusing?” But all he got was the creature striding past him, and opensx the drawer of his nightstand, mimed taking something out, and then going to the wardrobe, and pretending to retrieve something from the top shelf. And then, claws clicking the hardwood, it walked to the dresser, and plucked an invisible rose out of the glass, before turning back to him, a look of pride on its face.
And now the pieces were falling into place.
His Doppelganger had given you the chocolates
His Doppelganger, an extension of himself, had given you the planner
His Doppelganger, himself without his stony emotional wall, had given you the rose.
He stood there, unable to think. Betrayed, by all things....himself. And yet, he felt a wave of relief. As he watched you humming, and cleaning the glass to place the rose in, he saw the delight and happiness in your eyes. And you seemed to already guess it was him that was giving you the gift. Perhaps, his fear of ruining his friendship with you was unfounded. But his reaction to the scene in the kitchen a mere few minutes ago threatened to ruin everything, and he had no idea of how to fix it. Vergil was never fond of apologizing, nor very good at it.
And then, with a flourish, his doppelganger’s tail flicked around, and the tip hovered before him, wrapped around a familiar narrow black velvet box. It seemed his companion hadn’t given away everything just yet.
Sighing in defeat, he took the box, and only then, did the ghostly apparition allow him passage, and followed him down the hall, until, after a moment’s hesitation he paused by your door. It had been open when he had first come down the stairs, but now it was closed, indicating you had holed yourself in there after his confrontation with you. Looking down at the box in his hands, he realized he had one chance to make things right. He took one last glance at the doppelganger, who merely stood a distance away (blocking the stairway, he noticed)
💕💕💕💕💕💕
You sat on your bed, unable to take your eyes off the rose on your dresser, looking a bit less vibrant than before. Where had you gone so wrong? You had let your feelings colour your assumptions, let your blossoming affection for the man made you think that he must obviously felt the same for you. But obviously you had misjudged, and now the carefully laid relationship was on the verge of crumbling, never to be rebuilt again. Hopefully you two could still work together.
A soft knock came from your door, and hesitantly, you approached, knowing exactly who would be on the other side, but unable to figure out what to say. Apologise? Act like nothing happened? Pretend it was all a joke?You took a deep breath, and hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst, you opened the door.
There stood Vergil, stiffly, with his hands behind his back, looking like a boy forced by his mother to apologise for egging his neighbor's house. For an awkward few moments, both of you first stared at each other, then looked at the floor, as if suddenly interested in the pattern of the hardwood. Finally, when you could take it no more, you spoke first.
“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have assumed that you had gotten me those things...I guess I had just,” you paused, desperate to not cross this rubicon, but seeing little other choice, “I guess I had just hoped that they were coming from you. That they meant something I had hoped was true…”
Vergil pursed his lips, opened his mouth to say something, closed it again, and looked like he was about to turn away, before a threatening rumbling grumble down the hallway, just out of sight, rooted him to the spot. You saw his adam’s apple bob up and down as he attempted to form his words.
“No…” he began hesitantly, “I did not give you those gifts, although I wish I had.”
You blinked at that last part, about to ask him exactly what he meant before deciding not to interrupt him, as it seemed he was working so hard to muster up what he wished to say.
“The chocolates, the planners and...the rose, were given to you, not by me, but by it…” he motioned to the side, and you peeked out your door to see Vergil’s doppelganger, tail practically wagging, waving to you like an eager schoolchild. You barely caught in the corner of your eye, Vergil sighing in embarrassment.
“But wait,” you were connecting things together, “isn’t...your doppelganger basically...you?” Vergil bit his lip, then nodded.
“Yes, it’s an extension of me, but a version unshackled by doubts and fears…” he admitted, looking more and more uncomfortable by the minute.
“So...you and it have the same feelings, same thoughts...just that it is able to act on them...which means…” The sudden realization made your mouth very dry.
“That I had...every… intention to give you those things, but my own weakness, my own fears of how you would react prevented me from following through with my plan. Apparently,” he nodded back, almost in a gesture of thanks towards the ethereal creature, “Even I was getting sick of my own procrastination, and so...IT took matters into its own hands...or claws, as that is a more apt description.”
You did your best to suppress your giggles as the doppelganger smugly stuck out its chest, no doubt being quite pleased at itself.
“But…” Vergil’s voice yanked you back, “It also gave me one final chance to make things right, to take that step I have long feared to tread.” From behind his back, he pulled out a long black velvet case, and gently, under your widening eyes, undid the clasp of the box, revealing a beautiful, delicate silver necklace, with an amulet that was a deep blue, and glittered like the entire Milky Way had been shoved inside of it.
“Will you forgive this hapless fool?” he asked as he offered it to you. “I may not be as skilled with my emotions as I am with the blade, nor do I truly understand this whole ‘courting’ business but-”
He never finished, because you grabbed his arm, and pulled him in for a deep long kiss. The necklace was beautiful, there was no denying that, but it wasn’t the gifts, nor even the way they had been ‘given’ to you that had attracted you. It was the man, the frustratingly complex handsome, adorably awkward Vergil, that you had fallen in love with. And silently, you pulled him inside your room, and silently shut the door, giving you both the privacy you both deserved. No doubt it wouldn’t take Dante long to figure out what was going on, but that was a problem for the future you. The future BOTH of you…
But as the door shut, you swore that down the hallway, you heard a very pleased, very demonic, rumble of a chuckle…..