HI! I'm Baaaaaack! So here's a new fic... a lil' something to chew on. As per all fics I write... In no way, shape or form do I own the canon characters from DMC.

PS... if you happen to see any mistakes, please let me know about it.

Chapter 1: Manhunt

Dante sat on the railings of the fire escape just outside of his bedroom window. He titled his head towards the pale moon light that bathed his skin of equal pallor. He then peered out over the cityscape in deep contemplation, thinking of many things and then nothing, all at once. His mind swam in a sea of scenarios and strategies, assessing...

"Dante," the sound of his name cut into his thoughts, "You okay?" He didn't answer and the voice tried again, "The pizza just came, would you like some?" He looked just over his shoulder to see Lady with a very concerned expression on her face. He faked a smile for her and answered, "No, you go on ahead. I'm gonna sit out here a little while longer." Lady had known Dante long enough to know that there were few things that he'd pass up and he had never refused pizza. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

"You're still not thinking about what that guy said, are you?"

"Huh? No," he lied.

Lady stepped closer, through the window and onto the fire escape. "Dante, you have always been a terrible liar." He only shrugged in response. "What that man– that devil said, it can't be trusted. It was probably the desperate ramblings of the weak, begging not to be killed. What makes you think that he's even alive?"

"I spent a huge chunk of my life beginning to accept that my brother was probably dead and then a random demon came along and threw a monkey wrench in all of that. Now I want to know for sure, excuse me for wanting a little closure," Dante's attention went back to moon and he continued, this time a little softer, "I have to go and see for myself."

"What if it is a trap?"

"What if it is? I'll have to find out when I get there," Dante swung both of his legs over to the other side of the railing that faced the street and said, "For the record, I never really stopped believing that he was alive... I didn't feel it, in here." He placed a hand over his heart. "I don't know," he finally said after a pause, "Maybe it's a twin thing." With that, he leapt off the second floor fire escape without a major issue. His trademark red coat flapped upwards in the wind as if he had flew down to street blow. Once he had landed on the pavement, Dante walked off into the night.

Lady crept back into the window and shut it behind her. "What was all that about," a voice called from the doorway behind her. Lady turned to see Trish leaning against the doorjamb seductively licking the tomato sauce from her fingers. It always boggled Lady's mind that Trish continued to do that even outside of Dante's presence, but she decided to give the blonde devil the benefit of a doubt that it was being done unconsciously.

"It was something a demon said to him the other day. He was called out on a job and a demon spilled his guts about Vergil's whereabouts. Now he's hopping on the bandwagon, hoping to find him." Lady's description of the scenario was so simply put, as if it wasn't a big deal that Trish had to pause to piece it all together.

"Sooo... Dante ran off to find the brother that's probably already dead?" Trish always had a gift for frankness.

"Yeah and he's been holding out on hope for such a long time. I just don't want to see him hurt by false hope. I don't want him chasing pipe dreams," Lady sighed.

Dante bounded to his local haunts, stopping off at Love Planet first. He made his way to the bar area, glancing at the stage every so often. He planted himself on a stool and began picking his poison, just loud enough over the sound system, "Whisk—"

The bartender cut in with an already finished drink, "Whiskey Sour? Compliments of the gentleman at the booths." "Thanks," Dante said, tipping the bartender. He scanned the sunken-in area where the leather booths resided, just below the main stage. His eyes trailed a buxom brunette from her rather interesting, upside down position on the pole and down onto one booth in particular. In fact, this booth was surrounded by Love Planet's very own A Squad. He had an idea who tonight's "sugar daddy" was.

Dante downed his drink and sauntered over to the booth. As he got closer, he could hear a loud voice with a thick Brooklyn accent regaling the girls with his false tales of demon hunting. The familiar voice let out a hearty laugh. Dante could hear, but could not see the speaker in the sea of women.

"...And then I socked it with a powerful left and the demon fell to the ground, dead. That's when I rescued the woman who made the call."

"Oooh, tell me more," one dancer said in a sultry voice, hoping for a bigger tip.

"Well, let's see," the New Yorker began, "There was that one time I exorcised a demon from a little girl."

"Was that before or after you saved her from a burning building," Dante cut in. The group fell silent and looked into Dante's direction. "Dante," the women screamed as they ran to hug their long lost patron. "Long time, no see, Dante," a blonde said. "Where have you been," a red head asked as she wrapped her arms around his waist without any intention of letting go.

"Dante, you little rascal," the owner of the Brooklyn accent stepped out from the crowd. It was a short, swarthy Italian-American man, dressed in a blue suit with a matching cap, to hide his bald spot. "Enzo," Dante said, "It's been a while." The two men began play punching for a moment, almost like it was an ancient greeting custom. "Hey, Girls," Enzo exclaimed to the crowd that was doting on the silver-haired man, "I knew this guy, back when he was still wet behind the ears!"

"Hey, hey! I may have been young, but I wasn't as naïve as you seem to think I was. I remember that I was the one who saved you from Vergil and that ordeal at Bobby's Cellar."

"OH! Low blow," Enzo declared, "I'm down for the count!"

"So, tell me about your friends," Dante said, "How come you're so popular tonight?" As he began to scope the room, he could see that the other patrons were rather upset that Enzo was monopolizing the dancers' time. "Well," Enzo said stretching the first word as he debated telling his old friend, "I helped the local boys in blue crack a major case and earned a major retainer fee."

"Oh, so you are still an informant," Dante whispered, as he began to notice the red head eyeing his lap.

"How come I ain't seen you around these parts? You ain't married or nothin'?" Dante froze at Enzo's comment and so did the dancers. Dante put on a grin and began his damage control, downplaying the conversation, "No. No! Noooo." He shook his head and soon after holding out his forefinger and thumb, indicating "just a little." Enzo let out another one of his hearty laughs saying, "That explains it all. I knew a fellow as good looking as you couldn't stay unattached for long."

"That is when I actually do get around to proposing to her," Dante said holding up a blue velvet box.

"Awww," the girls cooed. "I'm jealous," one voice blurted out.

"Who's the lucky lil' lady?"

"Wouldn't you like to know. I didn't come here for all that... I need a little information."

"I could tell you... if the price is right," Enzo said slyly.

"What ever happened to us going way back," Dante pouted.

"Awww," the Girls collectively swooned as Dante was adding more to his refined features.

"Okay, fine," Enzo threw his hands up, "You win. What do you need to know?"

"Thought you'd never ask," Dante grinned, "What do you know about this guy?" He passed a photo to Enzo. He looked at the picture and signaled for the girls to disperse. They left, but not before the red head planted a kiss on Dante's lips. "You see," Dante whined, "That's why I can't come here anymore. These girls are gonna get me into trouble." Enzo only chuckled.

His face became serious as he studied the picture more closely. "I know him. His name's Frankie. He's the head of occult shop. The word on the street is that he's under Mafia protection."

"Where can I find his shop?"

"Why? What do you have planned, Dante," Enzo's face began exhibiting deep worry lines, "This guy's got connections that could make even you disappear."

"I'm not worried about all of that, and neither should you be. Just tell me where I can find him." Enzo couldn't help but to fall for Dante's carefree attitude. Whenever he put on that façade, most people felt at ease.

"I just don't want to see you killed."

"In case you haven't noticed Enzo, it's very hard to kill me."

"I know, I know, with you being a devil and all, but this guy deals in the occult. Has it ever occurred to you that he can whip up some kind of potion that could have you drop dead?" Enzo made a very valid point, but Dante wasn't that concerned about it. Vergil's life was on the line and he needed to find this man, even if it was the last thing he did.

"Okay," the Italian-American, admitted defeat again, "Don't say I didn't warn you." He scrawled down an address and a small map on a cocktail napkin. "Please, be careful, kiddo." "Will do," Dante said, passing Enzo a hundred dollar bill, "For your trouble." Dante was already steps from the door when Enzo shouted, "Just come back alive so that you can propose to that lil' lady of yours!" Dante didn't bother to turn around. He only did a small wave in response.

Dante left the seedy little gentleman's club and made his way down the street. With any god willing, he'd find this man tonight. He made a stop at Devil May Cry and changed his clothes. He took off his beloved leather and began dressing in plain clothes (yes folks, Dante owns regular clothes). Dante pulled a plain black tee shirt down over his well-defined abs and just over his dark blue jeans. He finished his look with a hoodie and a pair of black and white low-topped Chuck Taylor Converses with red shoe strings.

"Where are you going," Lady's voice came from just behind him.

"Out." Lady gave him The Look; that look that would instantly get a spouse to tell the truth.

"Just Out... I'll be back in a few hours."

"I'm going with you," Lady said as a matter-of-factly.

"No, you're not," Dante's voice making his resolve seem a little half-hearted, maybe distracted? Dante turned around and faced the woman and Lady took in the sight before her. In those clothes, he looked just like a regular young man, as if he was a senior in high school. "I'm working on a short timeline. Don't wait up tonight, babe," he gave her an endearing kiss on the cheek. "Dante I'd feel a little more comfortable going with you tonight."

She gave him the puppy dog eyes and he just about melted. "Fine," he sighed, "What are you wearing?"

"This," Lady said referring to her current look. His eyes immediately fell to her armored skirt and then back up to her eyes. "Too much," she asked. He nodded. "Want me to change," Lady asked. He nodded again.

"I was going for subtle, but we can work this out." Dante left the room and reappeared with some black boots, a black mini-skirt and some fishnet stockings. He also presented some black lip stick. "So I take it that our cover is a goth/emo couple." Dante only nodded. She changed into the outfit that Dante provided and they headed out the door.

They walked down the street like young lovers, holding hands with fingers intertwined. It wasn't hard to act the part. Dante followed his map to the address that Enzo wrote down. "So what's the plan," Lady whispered. "We'll play it by ear and see," Dante answered. They walked into the little non-descript shop to the sound of a slightly rusted bell ringing. An elderly, dark haired man with glasses, who matched the photo, greeted the couple, "Shops closing in about twenty minutes, guys."

"Hey, I got a question. We got this old Ouija board at home and its not working as well as it used to. What are we doing wrong?"

"They mostly work well when you're near a spiritual nexus."

"How do you find them?"

"It's a little complicated, because they move around a lot. It's important to get as close them as possible because it's the exactly point where the planes cross. There spirits can come and go freely. That oughta boost your calls to the other side. "

"To find one, you need to—" The old man was interrupted by a phone ringing. "I'm sorry," he said, "I have to take this."

Lady and Dante met in the center aisle. "What does a Ouija board have to do with opening a gate to Hell," Lady whispered. "It's only a cover story," Dante whispered his reply, "The important thing is to get him to talk about locating a nexus."

"Sorry about that, son," the elderly shopkeeper said, "It was a rather important call. So, you said that you wanted to find out how to find a nexus, right? The quickest way I can think of is to use a scrying crystal."

"A scrying crystal?"

"Well, these crystals are used by many different Wiccan orders to locate power sources."

"Ah," Dante gave a understanding reply. The phone rung again and the man picked up.

He and Lady split up and traveled down separate aisles, browsing the shelves. By the time Dante made his way to the middle of aisle where the 'potions' were located, the old man ended his call. "How much is this," Dante asked the shopkeeper as he held up a brown vial labeled 'Love Spell'.

"Normally, fifteen dollars, but for you two," the old man smiled, "it'll be five dollars."

"I'm sold," Dante said, "Just don't tell her." He whispered the latter. Dante brought the bottle and a crinkled five dollar bill to the old man so that he could ring it up. As the man tinkered with antique cash register, Dante spied a glowing blue stone on the glass counter. He brought a hand to it. Once his fingers were within inches of it, it electrified the air around him, sparked and gave him a shock that rivaled Trish's when she was angry. The current flowed through his body and he dropped to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

Dante let out a low groan as he blinked his eyes open, trying to steady his doubled vision. Lady was standing over him with a concerned look on her face, as was the shopkeeper. "Kid? Kid," he exclaimed as he patted Dante's cheeks to wake him. When Dante's azure eyes met his hazel ones, he breathed a sigh of relief. "You gave us quite a scare there, kid," he helped Dante to sit up. He adjusted his spectacles and chuckled, "You must have some sort of supernatural background. I have never seen the stone react to anyone before. You sure you're not the son of some angel or devil?"

Dante righted himself to his feet and attempted to steady his swimming head, "I wouldn't know... I was adopted."

The man handed Dante his bag, and chuckled again saying, "Ya'll take care now." Dante and Lady left the shop and she was the one to speak up, "What the hell was that?!"

"If I had to guess, it was some kind of demon ward."

"So that means that your cover was blown?"

"Not necessarily, it just means that he's just an old man with a demon ward. It's still possible that he doesn't know what he has."

"What next? Do we come back and stake the place out tomorrow to find what you're looking for?"

"Well, you half right," Dante grinned, "We'll come back later tonight."

The old shopkeeper had an old fashioned phone up to his ear as he watched the couple from his shop window. "We had a visitor today," he said.

"Was it a demon," a raspy voice came from the other side of the call.

"No... The stone tells me that he maybe a half-demon or less. He would have died if he was anymore than that."

"Is he a threat?"

"No. He seems like a kid who's completely unaware of his lineage. I'll keep you posted if anything changes. Goodbye."

Some thirty minutes later Lady and Dante were at the shop's door again. It was completely dark inside save for the glowing stone. The old man was long gone. Dante pulled two skinny, metallic tools from his pocket. "Dante?! Where did you get those," Lady gasped. She was completely appalled as to what he was about to do. Lady was no stranger to lock picking. There had been many of jobs that required the skill. But Dante was about to break into a shop of a kindly old man. "Either, I break down the door and he will know that I was here or I pick the lock and he'll never notice."

"What about security systems? And just where did you learn how to pick locks?"

"Well," Dante began, keeping the bulk of his brain power trained on the lock, "When we were inside, there were no cameras or even an alarm keypad... And..." With the skillful flick of a wrist he had the door open. "...You should already know the answer to your second question."

"What?"

"I was raised on the streets, duh!" She gave him a playful punch to the arm and followed him inside.

"Lady, keep an eye out for anything that can locate a spiritual nexus."

"How about the scrying crystals? They can locate any power source."

"Or... How 'bout something I can touch without getting electrocuted?"

"Monkey's paw," Lady questioned as she held up a mummified hand.

"Eww! Well, at least you're thinking."

"Look Dante... We're running out of time and we can't be picky about what we use. You are not alone in this! I could find the location with the crystal and you can open the portal."

"Well now! That sounds like a plan," Dante grinned as he kissed her full on the lips. "Grab the crystal and let's get out of here." Lady obeyed and Dante reset the lock. They left the shop mainly undisturbed. However, once the pair stepped outside, demons had materialized around them. The two stood back to back to each other. "Damn," Dante interjected, "Never a night off!"

He pulled Ebony and Ivory from the back of his jeans and tossed Ebony to Lady. He kissed Ivory and said, "Never leave home with out 'em." The couple fired at will, spraying bullets into the circling demons. Dante handed Lady his gun and scooped up the woman into her arms. He proceeded to spin; somehow giving the bullets she fired a wider rage. Before she could get motion sickness, He air hiked out the spin. She let out a raucous, "Wahoo!" She was having fun. That was one word that she'd never equated to devil-hunting before.

They were back on the ground continuing melee attacks against the remaining demons. Lady was holding her own well as Dante deftly yanked a dagger from the claws of a nearby demon. He sent the demon flying into a wall and threw the dagger into the forehead of another that dared to sneak up behind Lady.

The two breathed a short breath of victory. That is, until another demon managed to slink up behind Dante. It grabbed him and stabbed a sword through the palm of his right hand, his back, before exiting his through his chest in one swift motion. Blood spilled out of the half-devil's mouth. Lady could clearly see the tip of the sword jutting out from Dante's chest with his blood still shimmering in the moonlight. She had seen him injured before in battle, but it still made her cringe to watch it happen. She kept telling herself that he'll survive it, but on some level, she believed that any vital hit could do him in.

"Die... Son of Sparda," the demon let out a guttural roar. "No thanks;" Dante said cockily despite choking on his own blood, "I'd rather not." The demon yanked Dante's left arm back, breaking it in two places. He let out a heart-wrenching scream in pain. Oh, Dante, Lady thought. Sure, he was practically immortal, but he could still feel pain. It must be awful to be able to live for so long and still feel all of the unpleasantries that go along with it.

"Lady," he managed through the pain, "Shoot the gun!"

"I can't. I don't want to hurt you!"

"Do it! Take the shot."

"I can't!"

"Do it, now! ... I trust you."

Lady took in a breath, cocked back the hammer and squeezed the trigger. The bullet slid from the clip into the chamber and out of the barrel. With a muzzle flash, the bullet sprang forth to its intended target; past Dante's left side barely missing his heart and into the quivering organ of the beast behind him. The demon fell backwards, taking Dante with him. She instinctively dropped the gun and ran to Dante's side. The demon that had momentarily captured Dante had disappeared into the ether as did his sword.

"Dante. Dante?" He let out a small groan at the sound of his name. She moved to help him up, but he blocked the advance by putting up his hand. He was seething in pain.

"See," he wheezed, "I had faith that you'd do it."

"Oh, Dante," she said sweetly as she wiped up his bloodied mouth with her sleeve. Only when his wounds began to heal and breathing evened out, did he get up. "We got what we need... Let's head home," he said.

Love it or Burn it?