summonere | noctium inbox

[ She doesn’t fight him, knowing physically it would be futile. But Roxana is aware that this isn’t a threat. Not when he so willingly offered a whole day for the few hours she would have only required. What kind of things was he imagining, she wondered. ]

Twenty four hours it is.

[ This firmer side of his wasn’t so bad either. ]

It seems only fair to ask then, what you would like for a reward should you win.

You'll tell me a secret.

[ He answers without any hesitation. He knows what he wants, from anyone. The Castle changed him, gave him needs and compulsions that he know must bend to. ]

[ Her hand tenses in his hold, the playfulness in her eyes darkening for a moment. That was a rather heavy price where she was from, her whole life built upon secret after secret.

But this wasn’t the world of her novel, something she had to remind herself. Still, the prospect of showing such vulnerability was almost repulsive to her, against everything she’d worked to become.

The smile remains on her face, though they don’t reach her eyes. Her secrets couldn’t hurt her here, not really. ]

Alright. Though I’m curious as to how you’d benefit from that.

Irrelevant, isn't it, if you successfully fool me.

[ The scales are balanced then, everyone is a little uncertain about what they might lose. ]

[ Touche. She scoffs lightly, gaze falling to hand still wrapped around her wrist.

The tingle of manna was there, despite the seemingly confrontational moment. That he hadn’t felt weak from touching her was quite surprising as well.

She holds up one finger after the other as she speaks. ]

I have 15 siblings.
I’ve faked someone’s death.[ A second finger.]
This is my second chance at life. [ And a third. ]
One of these is a lie.

Can you guess what I lied about?

[ It was a trick question, sneaky even, insinuating three options when there were secretly four. ]

[ His many eyes narrow slightly and the pair of ferrets rustle their tails in warning again. He lets go, straightening out his shirt fussily as he listens to her challenge. ]

Isn't this everyone's second chance?

[ He asks with airy disinterest. He looks around them quietly, observing a path off among the trees that he motions to in suggestion. ]

[ A smile knowing smile spreads on her face as she turns, continuing down the path. The night air was pleasantly cool against the ruby’s skin, a gentle breeze blowing through golden hair. ]

That depends on your definition of it.

We can all be whoever we like here, to a certain extent.

[ He follows along with his hands folded neatly at the small of his back. ]

Or have you kept to your ways?

There was no reason to change.

[ Her voice was softer, heavier just a touch. Roxana knew no other way to survive. Sure, she’s toned it down, but she wasn’t sure how much of it was an act to begin with. ]

Are you the version of yourself that you desire?

Are you asking if I enjoy being a spider?

[ A wryness to his tone, he's joking. This version of himself that she can see isn't the truth, an illusion of shapeshifting. He true body is even more arachnid, a great black body with great black legs. ]

As it turns out, it seems to suit me.

Edited 2021-11-13 07:17 (UTC)

[ It was hard to say without a comparison, admittedly curious to how he must really look. ]

I’d say your eyes are starting to grow on me.

[ An honest comment finished with a chuckle at the end . She cared little for the spiders they raised in the basement, eyes lacking any sanity in them. His though, she found to be pleasantlt bright. ]

But does this life suit you? Mundane with the occasional forced make over and random dates with strangers?

They used to be green, like my mother's.

[ He looks more like Eva than any other member of the Sparda family. He has her strong nose and brows, her full lips. The prettiness of him is not a mistake, but an encapsulation of something that Vergil no longer wished to remember. ]

To live suits me. I was created with the intention that I would die where I was spit out.

[ He says this without the weight or bitterness it deserves. ]

[ Her wyes flick towards his face, bright and intrigued as she studies him. Green would pop nicely against his dark hair. ]

Why the change?

[ Was he forced into it? To live, as he said? It brings to question his own background, although she’d wondered about it from the start. Unlike those in her world, she didn’t have a novel to reference. ]

[ He can hear it in his mind, a crass voice telling him that he needed to decide to live with more conviction... but he has traded much of that savior for magic. He doesn't entirely remember. There is a black shape like some great bird and it snatches him from the jaws of death. ]

I made peace with my nightmares... and chose defiance.

[ He says this in a dreamy sort of way, not quite all there. He's reaching into a part of his memory that is incomplete and the things he tells her now are simply bone deep facts that he can pull up from the breakage. ]

I would not be cast aside so easily.

Edited 2021-11-13 08:00 (UTC)

[ There’s something off in his speech, but Roxana is unsure if it’s just him holding back in front of a stranger or if his mind has started to wander. Her fingers touch the sleeve of his arm lightly, trying to get his attention back. ]

You are right to not let them.

[ A glance sideways at her, surprised by the gesture. It's a short lived look, one of his ferrets also comes scurrying up his arm to glom onto the side of his face, chittering consolingly. He doesn't wince much, he's used to their abundance of enthusiasm and affection for him. It is suitably distracting, at least, and he falls back into the moment. He barely seems to remember that line of questioning because he moves on, ]

Which of your siblings is your favorite?

[ With his question, her hand withdraws. Ashil I would be her automatic answer, should be even. But did it still count now that he’s been gone for so long? ]

…Dead or alive?

[ He tilts his head, considers apologizing, but decides on a different tact, ]

Both.

My older brother, Ashil.

[ She’s not offended by his question, her tone steady. The question itself was superficial. ]

Right now, it would be my younger brother, Jeremy. He’s… the complete opposite of Ashil, but, he tries to look after me in his own way.

[ This might be the first time she’s missed something or someone from her world since coming here, a somewhat sad smile now on her face. ]

Do you have siblings?

That is a deceptively complicated question.

[ He quirks a sideways smile that is a disguise for his uncertainty. ]

Wouldn't you rather tell me about your favorite brothers?

[ His way of evading her questing has her raising a brow, but, they still were in the middle of a challenge and she agreed to answering his questions . ]

Ashil was a good person. Soft hearted. Which is why he’s no longer around.

[ That wasn’t the problem, of course. She knows exactly who to blame, her end game. But that was not something she could act on right now. ]

Jeremy is obedient, cute.

[ As much as one of the top 3 children of the Agrece could be. ]

Was there something specific you wanted to know?

[ He isn't lying, his relationship to what is his twin is complicated by the actions of his original self. Made more complicated when people like Gwen prefer to refer to Vergil as his brother, rather than his original self. Perhaps that is nearing accurate though, V has changed a great deal since was first excised. It's complicated. ]

What happened to Ashil?

[ Leaves crunch beneath her heels with each step, made louder by the silence around then. They’d made it quite far from the rest of the crowd. Her eyes stay forward, a practiced straight face whenever this topic came about. ]

He failed a test, so my other older brother killed him on our father’s orders.

[ Looking back at him again, she smiles emptily. ]

A delightful bunch we are, don’t you think?

Challenging, certainly.

[ Considering how often Dante and Vergil have been at each other's throats over the true meaning of Sparda's legacy... He doesn't find it too strange. Then again, he's spent his life playing by the rules of demons and fairies. Both sets of creatures are terribly prone to petty pointless killings. ]

Is that why you have so many siblings? Is the assumption that many more of you will die over time?

My father loves children, can’t you tell?

[ A shrug, as if it was the most obvious thing. And in a way, he did, but just the ones he benefited the most from.

V’s accepting reaction does make her wonder though, if his own complicated history had anything to do with that. ]

It’s probably his way of ensuring that the only the strongest will maintain the family line. We’re rather competitive.

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