So, Not Bugs?

Sparda smirked at the question and his eyes sparkled. She didn't know what she said that he found so amusing but she was glad the tone was lighter than the day before.

"Pest. I exterminate pests."

####

Eva groaned as she shot at a pest of her own. Turning on her heels to take aim as it dodged, another 3 shots were fired as it bared its teeth and lunged.

It would seem her father had taken to sending her on missions again. Eva could probably count that as a good thing but with the intensity of each devil she shot down it seemed like a harsh form of punishment. These were creatures she had never seen before and they didn't go down easily.

"Shit!" She cursed as it scratched her arm, tearing the fabric of her own coat and skin in the process.

Fucking shadowy cat things.

Hissing in frustration, Eva aimed her twin pistols at the beast and let loose, shooting repetitive bullets even after it fell limp. It was the last one and it had pissed her off the most.

Slowly, cautiously, she made sure it was dead before kicking it for good measure. Her coat, her precious coat was torn again. Shit, what was with these stupid creatures and the lure to tear her favorite jackets? The only reason she had opted to wear this was because her favorite leather was being mended from the last mission she had gone on.

Looking around to make sure none of the creatures were getting back up, Eva sighed in relief as they stayed still. There were only five of them but she felt like she had fought off a heard.

"Son of a fucking bitch." Clipping her guns at her sides, she dropped down onto the grassy fields floor and took off her trench. Her arm was oozing but the pain was manageable. The only problem was she didn't have any medical supplies to mend the wound or stop the bleeding.

Praying to the gods that she didn't think existed, she prayed that someone would be able to mend her coat as she ripped the sleeve into a long cloth and tied it around her arm. She didn't know if it had stopped the bleeding for good but at least it had halted it.

She was drained. This was already her third mission today and she wasn't having any of the fun that she would normally have in killing these things. They were harder to kill and it was starting to irk her nerves.

To make matters worse she hadn't had much time for a break in between. After going home from her daily visit with Sparda, her father had sent her to kill a heard within 3 minutes of her stepping foot through the door. After that, it was a continuous string. Once she finished with one her father called or texted with another.

Her phone vibrated in her boot.

Speak of the devil. Grabbing her phone, she flipped it open and held back another curse.

Father:

Another mission, down Central Ave.

Eva wanted to throw her phone after telling her father to fuck off but she couldn't do that. Only a few more weeks and she wouldn't have to go on another mission for the rest of her life. Retiring at the age 18 sounded like a marvelous plan. She could find a simple job, meet a simple man, and settle down with a simple family. It was her dream at the moment.

Her phone vibrating in her hand broke her idle thoughts.

Father:

Now.

Sighing in irritation, Eva rose to her feet and headed on her way.

#######

It was deserted, completely void of human life. She could hear the growls of the devils as she slowly crept down the alleyway onto her destination and her pulse picked up in anticipation.

Eva had learned from her last mission, she needed to know how many she was dealing with before jumping in head first. Not being cautious had caused the deep cut that was sure to scar on her leg.

Standing by the edge of the alleyway, hidden by the corner of the building she was leaning against, she froze as she heard the yells of the devils.

They cried and they shrieked and she listened with intent. What was causing their distress and was she really up for finding out?

Pulling her twin guns out their hold, she said a silent prayer to a God she didn't believe in and held them out, turning from the corner onto Central Avenue and taking aim at whatever was tormenting the devils she was expected to kill.

The sight left her stunned and her guns lowered in shock. A familiar man was moving with accuracy and a grace she had never seen as he cut through the wave of demons attacking him.

7, she had counted, 7 devils that looked like the grim reaper lying limp on the floor. 8 after the one he had just cut in half. 3 more attacked from behind.

Eva could only watch in awe as he moved. The sword seemed like an extension of himself, she wasn't really trained in swordplay. She was envious.

A can being kicked from behind her broke her idle thoughts and she turned to see a devil, the same type Sparda was fighting. Quickly aiming her pistol, she shot round after round and shot her last one only after it fell.

"What the hell is going on?" The devils on Central looked different from the ones she had killed on the field. She had never seen these before either. These devils had scythe-like weapons, the ones on the field looked like shadowy cats.

She watched as it started turning to sand before turning back and making her way the man who was surely done.

"Eva."

She nearly jumped out of her shoes as the met the eyes of the man she was just turning to talk to.

"Sparda, what the hell are you doing here?" She hadn't meant for her voice to come out as a shriek but she really couldn't help it. He had scared the piss out of her.

He turned to look down the now empty avenue of Central, the sand of the devils had blown away, and trained his eyes back on his company. Eva was hardly patient as she concealed her gun and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Exterminating pest."

"Exterminating pest?" She mimicked.

"Yes," She held back a shiver as the an took in her appearance. She was a mess, her hair was probably frizzy, her pants were ripped to reveal cut legs, and she her jacket was missing a sleeve. His gaze was intense as it lingered a little longer on the gash on her leg before rising to meet hers again. "You're injured."

"No shit. I just took on 5 shadowy cats that refused to die and before that, I had to take on these ice devil lizard things that shot ice shards at me. Casualties are a given." At least that's what her father was going to tell her once she finally got home.

"You killed the Shadows that were in the field and the Frosts? I was heading there next." Sparda raised a brow, he looked impressed with what she had accomplished.

"They have names?" It was news to her. Her father had never really educated her on what she was fighting other than how to kill them but obviously, he hadn't taught her enough. She had seen 3 devils that she had never seen before and she was lucky she was able to kill them with her bullets. She was horribly unprepared and that was really the only reason she had such casualties. "And don't change the subject! I thought you were a bug exterminator!"

"I never said I exterminated bugs. I said pest, you assumed." His amused look was back.

Eva huffed, trying to calm the irritation that seriously wanted her to yell at him for making her look like a fool. It wasn't worth the effort, really. She was tired, drained, exhausted, and he looked like he had just stepped out of a photoshoot for some high fashion magazine. Not that that was relevant.

"Why are you not as surprised to see me as I am to see you?"

Sparda tilted his head, his gaze lowering back to her leg before looking back into her eyes. Was he concerned about her wound?

"You broke into my house, a house presumed to be abandoned. Not even petty thieves do that."

"I could have been a kid causing mischief."

"You stare at my medallion everytime you see it and there are only two kinds of person who look as though they have found a grand prize when they notice it. Devils, and those who know of them."

So he did know what she was after and he had known what she was. "That makes no sense."

"To you, I would assume not."

Eva bristled at the insult and readied a snide remark but she bit her tongue as Sparda dropped into a squat. His eyes were glued to her leg and she nearly fell back as he grabbed the injured leg and pulled it closer for inspection. She held down a blush as his hand cupped the back of her leg to hold her still.

"What cut you?"

"The frosts," note to memorize all of their names. "And do they all have names? What are the grim reapers called?"

Sparda focused on the gash on her upper thigh and she flinched as he touched the bare skin next to it. What was it about the wound that held his attention?

"Yes." He was distracted. " Hell Pride. I can teach you about them if you wish."

She was going to take him up on that offer. She was tired of sitting around doing nothing when she visited. Maybe she could talk him into teaching her swordplay as well. He looked like a pro.

"We need to mend this wound, it's freezing over."

Evas attention snapped to the gash on her leg before Sparda turned to walk away. "Wait, what do you mean by freezing over?"

"You were cut by a frost. Some frost have the ability to freeze those they cut."

"But it's dead."

"Even after death."

Eva felt her phone vibrate in her pocket but she ignored it. She had more important things to worry about than what her father wanted.

"Can this kill me?" Eva felt her body numb at the thought. She was only 17, too young to die. It was too soon, she hadn't lived her own life. She had promised her mom she would, she didn't want to break that promise.

"Yes, but we will stop it. Follow me."

Eva hesitated. Sparda was... How did he know so much? Shaking her head of the doubt, Eva followed, hiding her limp every time he turned to check on her. At this moment, he was the only one she could trust.

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Can we all just take a moment of silence in honor of my deceased Laptop. My baby has officially met a regretful end. It snapped, right in half. My MacBook pro of 7 years has finally left my side. I case you were wondering that's why it's been so long since I've updated. I'm using my aunts' laptop at the moment and I had to completely rewrite this chapter. Also, sorry for the errors. I haven't really been doing a good job with grammar checking...

Thank you for the kind reviews and the clarification:

Mona394- You left the best review and writer can receive. It made me want to sit and write the rest of the story in a day, to be completely honest. Every time I had writer's block while writing this chapter I thought of your review. You've helped me a lot. I don't think you guys realize how much a good review can inspire a writer.

DmCAgelessAngel- Sorry, I don't write crossover fics. I wouldn't even know how to begin.

Roseimagine- I'm having a positive outlook! I have confidence in my story! (Somewhat) Thank you for always staying with me 3

Skadarken- Sparda in any fast food restaurant would be interesting. I really can't imagine him eating greasy food. Thank you for clarifying. The story will pick up now.