A/N: My first crossover! Yaay! Hope I did okay – let me know what you guys think!
"Damn it!" Dante growled, hurling Rebellion into the fray and pulling Ebony and Ivory out of their holsters, firing a blitz of bullets into the surrounding enemies. Still, the Heartless streamed forth, an endless, seething mass of darkness. "There's too many Heartless! I need back-up over here!" Sora, hearing his plea, edged closer to the older male, desperately struggling to keep the Heartless from overcoming him. As one launched itself at his head, he ducked and struck upwards, the Keyblade spearing its gut as it disintegrated in a small cloud of smoke. Angered by the defeat of another comrade, the remaining Heartless in the vicinity surrounded him, antennae quivering with fear and hatred. Body moving automatically, Sora dropped to the ground and spun, eliminating the ring of Heartless. Without losing momentum, he hurtled to his feet and ran to aid his new friend. "Are you okay?" The man chuckled in a gruff voice, making Sora flinch. "Takes a lot more than this to take me out!" Replacing his guns, the white-haired man pulled Alastor out of thin air, shifting his feet as he moved his body, a battle dance too fast to be seen suddenly revealing itself as all the remaining Heartless from the army vanished around them. Boyish blue eyes widened as the man retrieved and sheathed his sword, bouncing up to him in nervous admiration. "Whoa! That was incredible! What did you need my help for, anyways?" Dante shrugged, clapping a hand on another red-clad shoulder in a comradely gesture. "Just wanted to see what this place had to offer. See, I'm a mercenary, but I'm so good at my job even the money's not enough. Get's a bit tedious, so I figured I'd try my luck at finding a decent fight over here. Then you showed up and I was curious as to what you were capable of. For a boy your age, you have surprisingly little darkness in your heart." Spiky brown hair flopped as Sora cocked his head. "Huh? What's that supposed to mean?" As dim as he is bright… Dante thought, shaking his head, changing the topic instead. "So, why don't the demons of this universe bleed?" The brunette stared at him quizzically. "Huh? What do you mean?" Dante looked shocked for a moment, before his face hardened again. Pulling a dagger from his belt, he slid the blade over his fingertip, leaving a thin line of red in its wake. Sora stared at it incredulously. "Don't tell me you lot don't bleed either?" At that moment, Cloud walked up, arms folded and his usual miserable look on his face. "Oh, we bleed. We just don't get cut up, usually. Heartless don't have bodies, which is why they don't bleed, while we only bleed if it's a near-mortal injury. Besides, we have… different methods in this universe." Grey eyes flashed as Dante took in this information, quickly licking his lips before putting his finger in his mouth, savouring the taste of blood as he sheathed his dagger. "How so?"
Sora was looking nervously between them, sensing a confrontation. Luckily for him, Cloud stopped advancing and turned away, dark eyes staring at the horizon. "I suppose you could call it magic. We get hurt, any of our mages use a quick spell, there's a green flash and we're fully healed. We get them to whip up potions, too; in case we're in a jam." Dante nodded, still curious as to what he meant, but accepting it nonetheless. "My thanks. Guess I should keep lookin-"
"Nobodies!" Sora shouted unexpectedly. "Huh?" Cloud turned, and his blue eyes locked onto the boy's determined ones. "Nobodies…" he repeated, barely above a whisper. "A nobody? What's that?" Sora growled, glaring at the white-haired man. "Not a "nobody". A Nobody. With a capital "N"! They're bad people. They… They hurt my friends!" Dante could do nothing more than stare at him, a lopsided grin on his face. "These 'Nobodies'… They bleed, then?" Cloud shrugged as Sora nodded vigorously. "I never met one, but it's what brought Sora here originally. Nobodies are the products, along with Heartless, of losing one's heart. This creates two incomplete beings, but there are many more Heartless than Nobodies as the original person needs to have a strong will to reform as a Nobody after creating a Heartless. A heart can be lost if someone falls to the darkness, or if a Heartless rips it out. Only the strong survive here." Pale lips changed from a grin to a smirk. Sounds like my kind of place. "So, where's the party?" Spiky blond hair shook as its owner walked off, calling back "Stick with the kid – he'll lead ya straight to 'em!" before he vanished over a blue hill, matching the rest of the landscape. Dante nodded his approval. "Good kid; smart and to the point. So, what's your name, anyway?" He extended a gloved hand as the boy stared, blinking a few times before realising what happening. "I'm Sora!" Gripping the hand in both of his, the brunette shook it vigorously, grinning from ear to ear. "And you are?" Well, he's got guts, I'll give him that. "Dante. Demon hunter extraordinaire, mercenary for hire… treasure hunter. Give me a job and pay me well enough, I'll get it done." Retracting his arms, Sora folded them before him, a thoughtful look on his face. Does this kid do anything that's not remotely annoying? "I've got it!" He slammed his fist into his palm, his previous grin returning. "We can travel for a bit! I'm not sure I'll be able to pay you, but if you're up for it, you'd be doing me a favour by taking out Nobodies. I'm not sure how you got into this world, but I'm one of the few people who can travel between them. Anyway, I figured you could use a tour guide." Dante nodded, straightening his coat as he crossed his arms. "Lead the way." Sora nodded once, gesturing for the man to stay close as he turned towards a wall and aimed the tip of his Keyblade at it, a steady beam of bright blue light streaming from it, the white-haired man shielding his eyes as the whole surface gleamed golden, before fading to reveal a small door. "Come on!" yelled Sora, grabbing his sleeve and dragging him through the door before he could react. What a fascinating little goofball…