Chapter Text
Celestine threw a spring harvest celebration the next week. As a princess, even though I was reluctant, I was asked and agreed to attend. Vergil was basically back to normal, and Dante was acting strange. He seemed distant, keeping away from me and acting more snippy and sarcastic instead of the gentleness I was accustomed to.
Vergil spent most of his time in the archives. He wasn’t in attendance at the party when I walked in, led in on Father’s arm. I wore a long, heavy eggshell and peach ballgown with–you guessed it–a low swooping back that almost showed the top of my asscrack. It felt safe to dress as I did. My makeup was done up to add a sharper effect to my features.
The party was lively. As Father drifted off to mingle, I found myself standing off to the side, watching the crowd awkwardly. Parties weren’t really my style. When Darkcom sent me on missions, it never included anything like this. A flaw in their training, or perhaps even on purpose, to keep me isolated.
I spotted a familiar red trenchcoat against the opposite wall. Dante stood out like a bloodstain on snow. I weaved my way through the crowd and over to him. He tipped his glass, full of glittering gold angel wine.
“You doing okay?” I pressed myself against the wall next to him.
“All this divinity is giving a guy heartburn, ya know?” He stared solemnly at his glass. He downed it in one go and swapped the empty glass for a full one from the tray of a passing server.
I laughed, but something felt off about him. His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes, and his shoulders seemed tense under his coat. “You seem… not yourself.”
“I noticed something, princess.” He swallowed another mouthful of wine. “And normally I don’t give a shit what Vergil’s into. Power, pointy things, poetry, nerdy shit.” His voice softened. “But him being into you? That hit somewhere else.” He stepped closer to me, his arm draping around my shoulders. “Listen, I’m not good with feelings or whatever, but remember how I asked about what a crush was?”
“I do. Is that what Vergil has on me?” I asked.
“Yeah, but like, I do too. And I don’t want to make things more messy.” Dante sighed, taking his arm off me. “But when I see you… when I hear you… hell, when you just walk into a room, something in me notices. Every damn time.” His voice cracked a little, softened by angel wine and buried fear. “Guess that’s the drink talking. Makes honesty leak out.”
“Dante, I don’t…” I groaned and crossed my arms. “You should’ve told me earlier.”
“I was kind of busy pointing a gun in your face.” He laughed boyishly. “Did Vergil already kind of tell you how he felt about you?”
“He did, but luckily for us, we can figure that out later. I don’t know how to feel in this moment, but being next to you feels right.” I lay my head against his shoulder. “Angels can have multiple partners. Maybe we could work something out.”
“I haven’t seen Vergil laugh like that since before Mom died.” Dante ran his fingers through his hair. “I think she would’ve liked you. You’re so fierce and smart and strong.”
“Even with the wings?” I chuckled.
“I mean, my dad was a demon.” He nudged me with his shoulder. “Liking mythical monsters runs in the family.”
I spent the rest of the night in Dante’s company, drinking and talking. Celestine’s piercing gaze tracked me the entirety of the party. I thought I saw her say something to my father, but I couldn’t tell. Hopefully, no more conniving from her.
X
I awoke the next morning to arguing. I scurried out of bed and to the source, the next room over, where Dante was staying. To my horror, both men had their weapons drawn and were trading blows back and forth by the time I made it in.
“I can’t have anything to myself, can I, Dante?” Vergil shouted, drawing his sword up to block Dante’s next strike.
“She’s not a fuckin’ art piece, dude! She’s a person!” Dante yelled back, going forward with the strike.
Their swords made an ungodly clang against one another. I froze in the doorway, unable to move. Blood pounded in my ears. I had to act, or they’d kill each other.
I was about to do something really stupid.
I regained my movement and charged in between them, breaking up the two. They still circled me like dueling big cats, waiting for the next chance to attack. I spun around them as they circled, making sure to keep them in both my sights.
“Stay out of this, Ariel!” Vergil growled, swinging his non-sword arm out for emphasis. “I have to settle something with my little brother.”
“I’ll go where I damn well please.” I retorted, my wings fluffing out to make me look bigger. “Keep in mind, you’re a guest here.”
“Vergil, dude, you can’t just talk to her like that,” Dante warned, his voice tight with worry.
They tossed out insults again, drawing closer and closer ever so slowly. “Boys,” I snarled, feeling my fingers tingle. “Sit down and talk about this instead of trying to kill each other.”
“Are you genuinely trying to win her over like this?” Dante sheathed his sword. “Or are you just after her for the potential power gain?”
Vergil stiffened like a statue, his gaze burning holes into his brother and me. “I… I admit that was my original intention. But my humanity had other ideas.” He sighed before stowing his sword as well. “I am not afraid to fight for what is mine.”
“I’m not even sure I’m going to stay here or go back with you two.” I sucked in a steadying breath. “I don’t even know how to control this ‘angel trigger’ I have now. And there’s still more work to be done with rescuing the other two angels from Bates and…”
“Ariel, hey, take a breath.” Dante grabbed my wrist. “You’re going to–”
Fire erupted over my skin, and suddenly my vision went segmented. The entire room felt like looking through a shattered mirror. My ears rang, and I gripped my head. I crashed into a kneel, groaning.
“What the fuck?” Dante staggered back.
It felt like knives sprouted from my back, and I felt something hovering around my head. The agony faded just as quickly as it came, and I stumbled back to standing. I swayed where I stood, finding my balance.
“This is…” Vergil breathed softly, his voice barely a whisper. “You are magnificent.”
“Mirror,” I stated, and it sounded like a thousand voices overlapped over my own.
“I don’t know if you want to look, Ari.” Dante pulled out his phone and swapped the camera to front-facing. “Don’t freak out, though.”
He shoved the phone into my hands, and I studied my reflection. Two new sets of wings protruded from my back, translucent in the morning light in a light summery pink shade. Two rings orbited my head, and a thousand eyes looked back at me.
“I’m… I’m a monster.” I whined softly.
“Not a monster.” Dante rubbed my back. “Just… something we have to live with now.”
“You are the most beautiful thing I have ever laid eyes on.” Vergil approached and leaned down to my level. “Ariel, this is a wonderful new advancement. We just have to show you how to harness this power–”
“I don’t want it.” I interrupted.
Vergil glanced between Dante and me, shaking his head. “It doesn’t matter. This ability is something you have to learn to control. It can’t be limited to emotional outbursts.”
“Let me ask you both something.” I pulled away from Dante and walked a few feet away, my back to them. “Were you both fighting over me?”
“We were,” Dante answered after a heartbeat of silence.
“Why?”
“My brother and I have feelings for you at the same time. It is not common for humans—or demons for that matter—to share. Both of us are channeling feelings of jealousy.” Vergil answered.
I whipped around to face them. “Either both of you will have me, or neither.” I outstretched my wings, the two new pairs aching as they finally reached their full wingspan. “I will not be a bargaining chip or a pawn. I am my own person, and I will not be used or manipulated. I also will not have my friends try to kill each other over me. You both risked your lives for me. That is something I take great solace in. I will give my life and my heart to both of you, but only if we can figure this out ethically and reasonably. Am I clear?”
Vergil and Dante exchanged glances, eyeing one another up like they’re about to leap into fighting again. “We…” Dante began.
“...Accept those terms.” Vergil finished. “We cannot face the consequences of Darkcom alone.”
“We cannot.” I felt my form weakening. “And I wouldn’t want my friends to do it alone either. Side note, I think I’m gonna pass out from this again.” I swayed where I stood. “But before I do, I just wanted to thank you both for hearing me out.”
“Not gonna lie, this is pretty weird. But I’ve seen weirder shit.” Dante slid to my side, supporting me. “Let’s get you somewhere soft, Ari. Don’t need you cracking your head on the marble tile.”
“Let me take her.” Vergil swooped me off my feet and held me. “Dante, make sure her wings don’t drag.”
My body drained of almost all of its energy, and I barely sat up in bed. My extra features faded as time went on. The boys arranged pillows around me to support me. They managed to find a servant to get me something to eat.
“So how is this gonna work exactly?” Dante asked, feeding me a spoonful of soup.
“I don’t know.” I sighed. “I’m not experienced in this. All I know is that Celestine pulls it off.”
“Not to discourage you, but she is a queen. She’s bound to have many consorts.” Vergil said from an armchair, looking up from his book.
“Damn. She must have an insatiable sex drive.” Dante dabbed my mouth with a cloth napkin. “Do you even know what sex is, Ariel?”
I narrowed my gaze at him. “Really? How do you think I got here?” I rolled my eyes. “Baines was planning on putting me in a breeding program until I was decommissioned.”
“He what?” Vergil’s grip tightened on his book audibly.
“He wanted some of his angelic army to have his own seed.” I shivered, thinking about it. “Obviously, being female and of child-bearing age, he wanted to use me for that.”
“Ew, what a creep.” Dante offered me another spoonful of soup. “Thank God you got out when you did.”
“Baines is a disgusting person. And I’d love nothing more than to rip off his head and use it as a volleyball.” I smirked, taking the offered soup.
“And Mother thought I was violent,” Vergil commented.
I turned to him. “You weren’t just faking that sweet, sappy shit, were you?”
He lowered his book. “No, not exactly.”
I shrugged. “All I needed to know. I was allowed to watch some television, and I was taught the art of courting to get some information out of potential targets.”
Dante winced before we dropped the topic fully. After I finished eating, Dante nestled in close to me, with permission, enveloping me in his arms. Vergil saw this and joined me on my other side, wrapping his arm around my shoulder, still reading his book.
“What are you reading?” I asked, straining to look at the pages.
Vergil smirked. “Angelic polyamory theory.” He angled the book to show me its contents. “It seems the practice developed because males often die in combat, leaving the females lonely. It makes it so that there’s always a mate to produce offspring. Two mates are fairly common, often being fraternal.”
“Oh damn. Such a stereotype.” Dante chuckled. “I didn’t think Paradiso would rub off on you so quickly, Ari.”
“Childbirth is rarely fatal for female angels.” Vergil flipped the page. “Their hips are wider to allow for winged offspring to leave without issue. And they’re quick to bounce back and get pregnant again.”
“Fascinating.” I leaned my head against his shoulder. “So much I don’t know about myself.”
“We can figure it out.” Dante nudged my cheek with his nose. “We’ve got time.”
The all too familiar sound of gunshots pierced the air, disrupting our silent moment of peace.