((What Comes After A Storm?))

Chapter IV

Dice sat back as the boys gathered up around him. He couldn't help but sigh. He began remembering things he wanted to forget for a long time.

13 Years Ago: Dice (POV)

I lived in the mainlands in a smallcottage at the edge of the city. I lived with my mom and sister. We were a poor family but we managed to face every challenge the world threw at us. That is of course until the incident happened.

It was an autum night, the rain was pouring in on tge house. Mom was making dinner, me and my sister helping out with the chores around the house. Mom poured us each a bowl of soup and sat us down at our crooked table. It was a silent meal, the sounds of mom's coughs filling in and breaking the silence of the room. I asked her what was wrong but she didn't respond. That's when she suddenly fell on the floor, coughing blood and holding he stomach. My sister and me rushed over to pick her up, walking her to the bedroom and laying her down. My sister called the doctor while i stayed with her, giving her a bucket for when she needed to puke, and a damp towel to place on her burning forhead.

The doctor came over and told us to leave the room while he checked our mom. I'll never forget the sad look in his eyes when he came out of that room. The black plauge.

We did everything we could. My sister stayed on the streets, begging for money while i worked a part time job at a bar. Being 14 really didn't help out but every little coin counted. We bought medicine and supplies, we helped clean the house, we made food and we took turn watching over her. But our efforts seemed to not lift her spirits at all. That's when... he came.

I was sitting in the living room, sweing a hole in one of the pants that my sister wore, when i heard a knock on the door. It was late at night too, so it seemed a little strange to me that someone would come knocking at our door at this hour. I placed the pair of pants on the couch and went to answer the door, a dark figure standing in the doorway. A figure with horns and a tail, a toothy grin and a pair of golden eyes.

"My boy. You seemed to be trouble. I heard about your mother's missfortune, and i think i can be of help."

"Wha... But my mom has the black plague. You can't possibly-"

"I don't think you realise who you're speaking to. Why, I'm the devil himself. And I am more than sure i can cure your mother of somethimg as simple as the black plague. But with a price of course."

"I-i don't have money-"

"Who said i wanted money? I will cure your mother and make jer as good as new if you give me... your soul"

"My soul?..."

"Yes. I'm sure i made myself pretty clear. After all, she is your mother. It would be selfish of you to not want to help her. So what do you say boy? Do we have a deal?"

He made a contract appear out of thin air, holding in one hand while holding a quill in the other. I took the quill from the devil's hand and without hesitation signed the dotted line.

He kept his word. Mom was alive and well. But now I was taken away from her to serve the devil and never be seen again.

Present Day: Third Person

The brothers looked at each other and frowned. Cuphead was angry. Angry at the fact that the devil took advantage of Dice's good soul and took him away from the people he loved most. Mugman was sad because he knew how painful it must've been to be taken away from your own mother. Dice just shrugged it off as an old story and that it was all in the past. He took the boys inside and made them dinner, answering their questions about the past.

This was going to be a long night....

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A/N: Heyyy I kinda changed up the story a bit on this one just because i wanted to make things a little bit more interesting. Also this chapter is very short because i just couldn't find the best way to make it longer. Sorry if you liked the original better but i felt this is more apropiate.