Devil in My Mind

An Approaching Storm

Raven awakes. So much sleeping. It'd probably be wise to get up, maybe to eat something or see what everyone's been doing for however long it's been.

Quietly, she exits her room, goes into the bathroom and makes herself presentable. When she's done, Starfire is waiting for her in the hall with her hands clasped.

"Raven, you are awake! Far too much time has passed since we last spoke. Tell me, how are you feeling today?"

"Starfire. To be honest, I'm starting to wonder, if I go to sleep for too long, will I stay asleep forever?"

"I sure hope not! There is a visitor here with us today, who very much wants to speak with you."

"There is? Who?"

"Here, I shall take you to him."

She shrugs and follows Starfire to the roof. It's especially windy, due to an approaching storm. Waiting for her, her friends... and Vergil. She loses her breath at the sight of the other Sparda Twin. He makes her long for Dante. Eagerly, she jumps right into it.

"Vergil?"

"Raven."

"Yes, this is her," Robin answers. "Vergil is Dante's brother. We've told him all that we know but I know there's more. First things first, Slade is gone."

Raven sighs with relief.

"Good. We thought a demon probably got him. Was that demon you?"

"I found him in that Trigonic library. He's gone now, went straight to hell. I made it so. Robin tells me you saved Dante's life. The angel in the Underworld, the statue in the library, they were you?"

"Y-yes?" Raven replies, feeling small, not yet comprehending the depth of her own magic. "Yes, I've placed him somewhere safe, somewhere between my mind and the Underworld. I don't, I don't exactly know how to return him though."

"I'm not expecting you to do such a thing. I can't imagine he'd want to leave that protective dome you created. I need to understand what you saw, what happened. I need to know if it was anything like what I experienced."

"Why do you need to know what she went through, how come?" Beast Boy asks protectively.

"I understand," Raven assures. "It was very upsetting. There was a lot of, a lot of blood. And he was... in... in a lot of pain. And it was... very hard to watch. And... it made me feel..."

"Helpless?" Vergil finishes.

"Yes. Yes, but I did what I could and, and I'm not sure how to undo it."

"Stop with that. You don't need to undo anything. I have to explain that Dante is in Limbo to those who know him. Do you have any words of advice?"

She lowers her head, feeling awfully selfish.

"No, no don't do that. I'll find a way to bring him back to you and everyone else that misses him."

"That may not be possible. Even if you revived him, it didn't happen on this plain of existence. I saw with my own eyes in the Demon World."

"Yes but it's not Limbo! I wouldn't do that to him!"

"Your reaction suggests to me that you've never actually been there before. I found great comfort in his presence there. We mourned one another together. It was beautiful and heartbreaking. I might have gone mad without him there to console me. Raven, tell me, if you're not an usher of some sort, then where does your investment in my brother come from?"

Raven looks over at her friends, who clearly didn't tell Vergil about the birthday wish, for the sake of her privacy. Cyborg steps up, doing his best to clarify.