Author's Note: So I have figured out this story is going to be eight chapters including an epilogue. Why I didn't just make it its own story is beyond me at this point xD. The goal is to have it done by the end of the week because I have plans for Christmas and would hate to break it all up!

Enjoy!

Chapter Five
Blooming Hearts

The drive to Turtle Cove was more awkward than Dante thought it would be, especially considering that four of his five passengers were passed out in the back. Though he supposed whether or not Ashira was sleeping was debatable. But her weird "staring off into space with blank eyes" look creeped him out too much to worry about it. Vergil hadn't come back, and Ashira had curtly told Dante that he wouldn't. And he might have worried about it, but they had all agreed it was better off this way.

Vergil could take care of himself. At least, that's what Dante kept telling himself.

For now, however, he was more concerned about the fifth passenger, who was currently staring at the window. Lucia hadn't said a word to him that wasn't mission-related, and Dante wasn't sure what to say himself. The last time they met had been to take down Balrog, a demon-arm which still resided somewhere in his mind. Surprisingly, since the demon had proclaimed to the heavens that he would battle Dante again when he was stronger. Or maybe it wasn't so surprising after Dante had absorbed the Sparda. But Dante didn't know, nor did he care. Lucia had been… happier then, right?

It's been almost a decade.

He'd been gone ten years last time as well and she had seemed okay with that then. Though, admittedly, he hadn't asked her about it either. Dante rarely did ask about that type of stuff. He was (somewhat) aware of his own oblivious nature, but he'd also never been good at reading "emotions" and "feelings". Usually, he just "faked it 'til he made it", a trick that his brother had not picked up on over the years.

But even he knew something was off. She was too quiet. Too distant. Too… unlike herself. And it was really bothering him.

Why was it bothering him?

"So…" He said in the most charming voice he could manage. "How have you been?"

She didn't look at him. "Surviving. Taking jobs here and there. Though once you came back, there wasn't much for me to take."

Dante chuckled. He hated how strained it sounded. "Sorry about that." He said. "We may have overdone it."

She shrugged. "I've kept myself busy."

Silence fell between them again, but his mouth went dry when he tried to break it. She sounded miserable, but what could he say? Hey, sorry I forgot about you. Things have been so complicated with Vergil and Reavers and the Phoe-

"Did you know about reavers?" He said. "You know, back then?"

This time, she turned to him. "I had heard rumors over the years, but nothing concrete. I'm not really surprised. Some of them have been in hiding for generations." She glanced at the sleeping Lir and Alice in the backseat. "Their parents were 500 years old and had been living underground since they were born. Who knows how far back it actually went?"

"Probably when Mundus took over."

"Maybe longer." She said. "Did you know that some of them can read people's minds through their souls? What potential ruler wouldn't want that on their side?"

"Someone who doesn't want their mind read."

She smiled ever so slightly at that. "That does sound… maddening."

"Verge and Ashira can hear each other," Dante said. He often wondered if Vergil liked that part of their relationship, or had resigned to simply accept it. Dante couldn't imagine what it was like knowing everything his partner was thinking. Or the knowledge that said partner knew everything he was thinking, which sounded like the worst part of the whole deal. "Cal here sees souls like she does, but with everything she's been through, I can't imagine what she sees now."

"So she is a reaver."

"Yep." He said. "One of the best!"

Lucia raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

The words were out before he could stop them. "She's the Phoenix."

Lucia blinked as her jaw set, likely trying to hide her shock. "She's the Phoenix?"

"The one and only!" Dante said. "Or the most recent of like thirteen. I don't know all the details."

If Dante didn't know any better, he'd think that Lucia stopped breathing entirely. "What are the odds?" She murmured.

"What?"

"The few reavers I've met talk of two potential saviors of their kind," She said. "The Demon King and the Phoenix. None of them mentioned that they were together." She shook her head. "I don't think any of the Princes know that either."

"Wouldn't surprise me," Dante said with a shrug. "They keep to themselves for the most part. Hell, I probably wouldn't even know if we weren't family. "

She chuckled softly at that, and Dante couldn't help but smile. I can still manage that at least. "You've always been rather oblivious."

He glanced at her for a moment until he realized he was slowly drifting off the road and snapped his gaze forward to correct it. She'd said that before, hadn't she? At least, he thought she had. His memory was a bit fuzzy on the details. He didn't think he'd known what she meant back then either. "I guess so."

Her frown returned and she returned to staring out the window. "You should be more careful who you tell these things to."

"I trust ya," He said. "Always have."

"Maybe." She said. "But you never know who's listening."

By the time they reached Turtle Cove, the sun had come up. And while the small town was lively and the weather was beautiful, Ashira was more miserable than she had been in a long time. But she had a job to do, and the last thing she wanted was to get caught up in her emotions. The tether was still there. Vergil was still alive. She'd left on horrible terms, but they'd survived worse.

In theory. She thought. They'd had their arguments, but never like that. Ever since Nero had told Vergil to "never go to bed angry" (which was quite silly considering that they could stay up for weeks if they wanted to) Vergil had taken it to heart. Disputes between them were usually solved within the hour and they both moved on. Life, in their case, was too long to stay mad at each other. Eight hours of unresolved conflict was new territory, and Ashira wished she could fix it. But if Vergil heard her thoughts anymore, he didn't come, and Ashira knew she wouldn't be able to find him. The tether might still be there, but it vanished only a few feet away. She didn't know when he had learned to hide it from her, but she wasn't surprised.

Stop it. She chastised herself. You have a goal. Focus on that.

But finding Pythagoras in a remote location seemed almost as difficult as finding a reason for him to speak to her.

And Lir, who she was slowly coming to loathe, was not helping.

"You are not taking my sister with you." He said.

"We need information." She said trying to channel her inner Vergil. Unfortunately, she was incapable of glaring people into submission and had a feeling that Lir would only get angrier if she tried. "Pythagoras is harmless, and she will be safe with me."

"She isn't safe with anyone."

"Lir…" Alice said. Ashira had a feeling this is how things always were between them. She'd come to learn, with V's help, that Lir was nearly a decade older than Alice, and firmly believed that he was the only thing keeping his sister alive. And, if Ashira really thought about it, she couldn't blame him. He was as much of a survivor as Alice was, but his "protectiveness" was becoming a detriment.

"You're not going," Lir said. "And that's final."

"But I want to go," Alice whispered. "I want to help."

Lir hesitated. But before Ashira could respond, it was Nico, of all people, who stepped in. "I can go too if ya like. I ain't afraid of some demon."

His eyes widened. "You would willingly go to the Underworld for this?"

"You mean to stop a crazy Demon Prince for killing us all?" Nico said with a snort. "Heck yeah."

"I can do it," Alice said. "And I'll be back before you know it."

Finally, Lir relented with a sigh. "Then I'll go with you."

"Good idea," Ashira said. What a lie that was. She'd rather he stay with Dante and the others. So they can watch him. V said, repeating what she wasn't quite willing to stay. But she was more relieved that Lir had stopped arguing about it. What did surprise her, however, was when Alice pulled away from him and took Ashira's hand instead. She might have relished the surprise on his face, but was too distracted by the latent fear on the girl's soul. "We're going to be alright," Ashira said. "Pythy's mean on the outside, but he would never hurt you." When she squeezed Alice's hand, the girl nodded with newfound determination.

Words could not express how proud Ashira was of her. But they also couldn't explain what else she needed from Alice; information that Lir likely wouldn't let her have.

One thing at a time. V said.

"Meet at the hotel?" Dante asked. "We'll figure things out on our end."

Ashira nodded. "Good luck."

The first place they went to was the library. Two hours later, it also became the first time Ashira had ever been frustrated in a library.

"Nothing." She muttered. Because of course there wouldn't be anything. While she had known her idea for finding him had been optimistic at best, she was still disappointed. Maybe it was the hope that something in this mess would be simple. But expecting Pythagoras to be "simple" was the equivalent of expecting a penguin to fly.

At least Lir had cooled off since leaving the others. While he hadn't said much while tracking the place down, she had sensed his anger turn into something akin to resigned reluctance. Though she started to understand that he was simply distrustful. He'd trailed a few feet behind her the entire trip, likely to run if she showed any hostility. It didn't help that Alice seemed to favor Ashira's company over his, as Alice had only let go of her hand once they reached the library, and only because Lir had found her some books to read. Neither of them had said anything to Ashira since, but she didn't mind. If that's what they needed to handle their grief, then let them have it.

To Lir's credit, he had tried to help. But considering he'd only heard of Pythagoras in passing (and hadn't believed he was real), there wasn't much he could do beyond pulling random books and searching for clues. But Ashira hadn't been able to tell him what those clues might be, so he had eventually wandered to a safe corner on the balcony to survey the entire library, including Alice that had settled beside a window.

Ashira had heard her sniffles once or twice, but had resisted the urge to go to her. Instead, she crawled upstairs, miserable and wishing she had better news.

"Nothing I assume?" Lir said, not looking at her. Ashira resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She recognized that kind of bravado, though Vergil had the confidence to pull it off, whereas Lir was clearly faking it. A part of her wished she knew if he was trying to be strong for Alice, or if something else was going on. But all she saw on his soul was a thin streak of grief.

"No," She said. "I've tried everything I can think of."

He looked back at his sister. "What did you expect?"

I don't know. She thought. A magical doorway hiding in the walls? "It was worth a shot."

He leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. The hilt of his greatsword made a quiet thud, but he didn't seem to notice. Ashira took a chance. "Inheritance?"

While he tried to hide his surprise, the way his eyes snapped to her ruined his attempt. "My grandfather's," he said after a moment. "Father had his own weapon. A pair of daggers I never quite got the hang of." His head tilted slightly. "You're a reaver, yes?"

Odd question. Her soul should have given that away already. "Yes."

"Must be nice," he said. "protected by the Demon King. Bet nothing bothers you."

"I fight my own battles," She said. That wasn't completely the truth. There were plenty of times that she and Vergil would fight together, but he would inevitably kill more demons than her. It wasn't for lack of trying on her part. He was just faster, stronger, and required significantly less power to access his demon form than she did. Though that did bring into question if using his familiars was the same as "fighting her own battles", but she controlled them so... "And it clearly isn't helping now."

"Why didn't you convince him to come back?" Lir said.

"He knows himself better than…"

"Back to the Underworld," Lir corrected. "He could have helped the reavers. Taken our side in this stupid war. Then families like mine wouldn't have had to run. Wouldn't have had to..." He hesitated before ending with a clipped, "die."

Ashira hoped to hide her own pain. "I was unaware of how bad it was."

Lir lurched off the wall. "How could you not know?"

"I was isolated for most of my life." She said. "I only escaped when I found him a few years ago, and haven't returned since."

Lir's eyes narrowed. "You should have known."

"I didn't."

After a long moment, in which she refused to break his gaze, he looked away. "My parents and their grandparents came over a few centuries before I was born. Father used to tell me they were freed by the Phoenix, but I never knew if he was telling the truth." Ashira's breath almost caught, but she held it together. "I was born in the human world, nineteen years ago. My grandfather taught me how to use this when I was young, but when Alice was born, we have to keep moving." He shook his head with a quiet sigh. "When the Qliphoth rose, my grandfather hoped the new king could be swayed to our side. But we never found him. And when the Qliphoth fell we just… kept moving. And everything seemed fine until..." He paused, and Ashira swore she saw the hint of tears in his eyes. He looked away "Until two weeks ago."

"All of your family…"

"Yes," He said. "Except for Alice and myself."

Flashes of Vergil's memories slipped through her mind. Her losses always felt minuscule compared to others. Maybe it was the two decades in isolation. Maybe it was the fact that she had been responsible for Leo's death… or maybe it was because she rarely thought about the past anymore. "I'm sorry." Ashira said.

He scoffed at that. "For what? You didn't kill them."

Ashira said nothing, as admitting the truth would jeopardize much more than this conversation. But her guilt didn't go away. She should have been there. That's what the Phoenix was meant to do. Bridge the gap between words, give humans, demons, and especially reavers – people like her – hope that no one else could. The other Phoenixes had done so until it was no longer safe to try. Until Mundus took control and sought them out. And even then they have risked their lives to save who they could, some fighting right under Mundus' nose. It was the reason Kai was still alive; because his mother had managed to show Sparda what humans needed the most. Ashira had assumed that Mundus' death would fix things, and that reavers could come out of hiding and make their own way in whatever world they chose.

Clearly, she'd been wrong.

"Ms. Ashira?"

Both of their eyes snapped to Alice who had somehow climbed up the stairs without either of them noticing. "I see something." She said hesitantly. "A weird soul. It's not… It's not a flower. I've never seen one like it."

"Show me," Lir said, pushing past Ashira with that same faux confidence he'd shown before. Ashira held back a retort as all three of them rushed down the stairs. Outside, Ashira caught sight of the soul Alice spoke of; an artificial soul. One she had only seen once before.

She took off in a rush, not glancing back once she heard Lir's footsteps thudding behind her. The soul kept running, turning around buildings just as Ashira reached a spot she might have seen who it was. She charged through people, holding her flames back. Eventually, the soul led her out of town, but vanished by the time she reached the beach. Ashira bit back a swear as Lir stopped beside her, Alice latched onto his back.

"This is beautiful," Alice whispered.

Ashira took a deep breath as she stared out over the water. It was quiet here – how far did we run? – aside from the rolling of the waves. There wasn't a soul in sight aside from her companions. Nothing else to look at but the glistening water under the uninhibited sun. Ashira thought she should be excited. She'd seen pictures of the ocean, but nothing like this. But all it did was add to her sadness, as the one person she wanted to be here wasn't speaking with her.

"Mistress Ashira?"

Ashira whirled around and her sadness melted into pure relief. The puppet women with golden, yarn-like hair and a spring dress said bowed at the waist. "My master wishes to speak to you and the girl." She said as she turned toward the cave. "But the boy is to stay out here."

Lir bristled at that. "I will not…"

"It's okay," Alice said. "You can stay out here and keep the demons away."

Lir's eyes softened in a way Ashira hadn't seen yet as he let his sister go. "Promise me you'll come back if you think you're in danger."

Alice nodded, taking Ashira's hand again. The puppet bowed as she pressed her hand to the wall, and both walked through the door that opened. As she entered the library, a low grumble greeted her. "I shouldn't have let you in," Pythagoras said, back in his egregious red cape and gaudy, purple robe. "But this is a… special occasion." He snapped his fingers and a second puppet appeared, this time with a strange, green Teddy Bear with spiky ears and way too many fabric teeth. But Alice, mesmerized, took it before following the puppet to the couches by the fire. Ashira moved toward her, but Pythagoras cut her off.

"The bear is made to soothe younger demons." He said, his voice low. "You'll have more luck speaking to her once this is over." Ashira stared at him, but the demon merely huffed and said, "Come with me."

Dante forgot what pure frustration felt like. It was rare that an informant (or in this case a lack of one, as their informant was completely useless) bothered him so. But it was also rare for his brother's life to be on the line. Or for Demon Princes to wander around in the human world. Or for really any of this shit that was going down at the moment. He'd resolved to forgive his own irritation.

Lucia, however, was strangely optimistic. "If they haven't heard anything useful, then maybe the Prince isn't here."

"Maybe," Dante said trying to hide his disappointment. He felt Calcifer curl up in his pocket, as the dragon's frustration had simply made him tired. Dante wished he could do the same. "But if he's not here, then where else would he be?" Nero's face crossed his mind, but Vergil had assured him that everyone in Nero's household - Lady and Trish included - were on high alert and would call if anything came up. Dante hadn't heard anything, and he couldn't exactly divide his worry between Vergil, Ashira, and the rest of their family all at once.

"Hey," Lucia said as she pressed gently on his arm. Dante almost jumped at the touch, but managed to pull himself together.

"I'm fine," He said with a wide grin and a thumbs up. "Just a lot on my mind." They'd already checked into the hotel, but without Ashira or the kids, there wasn't any reason to stay. Nico promised to watch out for them, as she had other things to investigate, but Dante figured she'd be taking a nap by now.

"Well," Lucia said. "Have you been here before?"

"Can't say I have," Dante said. "Why?"

"There's a beach nearby," Lucia said. "It's a public one, but still fun to walk along."

"Ooooh," Dante said. "I didn't know you were the master of Turtle Cove."

"I'll have you know," Lucia said. "That I have been here once five years ago. So clearly I know everything there is to know."

"Is that so?" Dante said. "Well then, Miss Expert. Where could a guy get some good food?"

"The Lighthouse," Lucia said. "Fine dining restaurant looking over the ocean. If we get lucky, we might get a seat in the next hour."

Dante held his arm out to her. "Lead the way."

She watched him for a moment with an expression he couldn't identify. Then, she wrapped her arm with his. Even with his coat in the way, Dante found himself blushing ever so slightly. How long had it been since he'd been this close to someone? Lady and Trish were friends, and while Lady and he bickered often - usually leading to her slapping him in some capacity - they'd never done anything like this. She was a sister to him. Trish was a good friend. But Lucia…

"Dante?"

He blinked. "Yeah?"

Lucia chuckled. "I must be a pretty boring tour guide if you're that distracted."

"Of course not!" Dante said. "I was just enjoying the sights."

She raised an eyebrow. "You were staring at me."

"Exactly!" He said. Lucia stared at him, before shaking her head with a quiet laugh as they continued along. Dante, however, couldn't help but glance toward her ever few steps. He'd always thought Lucia attractive, but Dante didn't really do commitments. Not because he couldn't, though considering the state of his overdue bills, that alone might be wishful thinking, but because he'd never… tried it. When he was younger, he hated the idea of passing on his father's bloodline. Over time, he'd realized that he actually hated himself. His demon half was a monster he hadn't wanted, but one his brother had forced to accept. Eventually, he had come to appreciate it to some extent, but he had always been wary of actual relationships. Why bother if he'd outlive everyone? Why force a child to suffer the same way he had?

Meeting Nero had shown him how illogical that fear was, but it hadn't changed much else. Dante was wacky. Unreliable. More of a hindrance than a reliable mate.

But then Vergil of all people had not only fallen in love with someone, but willingly married her for everyone to see. Even after everything they'd been through, and seeing everything that had changed, Vergil was the last person Dante thought would end up in a long-lasting relationship. In hindsight, it made perfect sense. When Vergil wanted something, he committed to it without hesitation. And while that had been a bit of a detriment in his younger years (to say the least), it was one of his best qualities now.

But Dante wasn't the same. He failed at things. He failed people. He was better off…

His mind went blank as they stepped onto the beach. The sun was high in the sky. The ocean was like diamonds beneath it. There were less people lounging around than he thought there would be, so their idle chatter was nothing compared to the roll of the waves. Lucia slipped her arm from his and took a step forward. The sun made her skin glisten, and Dante couldn't help but stare. For the first time since they'd met again, she looked relaxed. Happy even, as she held her hands out as if trying to catch the light itself. "It isn't the best beach in the area," she said as she looked to him. "But it's nice all the same."

He chuckled. "You could say that again."

This time, she grinned with an unusually mischievous glint in her eyes. "It isn't the best beach in the area, but…"

Dante rolled his eyes. "Got ourselves a comedian,:

She laughed, but shrugged the comment off as she pointed to a red-bricked lighthouse in the distance. Dante only looked at it for a moment." Best seafood in the area is right up there."

"You know," Dante said as he put his hands on the back of his head. "There are much better things to do than eating."

"Would you like some more ocean facts?" Lucia said as she took a few steps backward. "Maybe we could track down some turtles."

"Sounds like fun," He said. "Where should we look?"

"They usually come out of the ocean around this time of year," She said as she reached down to undo her boots. When she looked back up, Dante ripped his eyes away, certain she'd caught him anyway. So instead of risking meeting her gaze again, he kicked his own boots off with a flourish. "Not too long," He said. "Wouldn't want to worry the others."

"Yes, Dante," She said. "I'm sure they'll be worried sick about you." She stopped at the edge of the water, and Dante watched the water roll over her toes at least twice before moving forward himself.

"How has it really been?" Dante asked. Odd how much of a challenge that was. He rarely hesitated over anything, especially not a conversation. But apparently, a lot of things were going all wrong at the moment. This was probably the least of his problems.

She was quiet for a long time, looking up at the sky. He stepped closer to her, uncertain if he should stand next to her or stay back. Neither option felt right, so he stood somewhere in the middle. "I won't lie," She said quietly. "It's been lonely since you left." She turned toward him, and Dante's breath caught in his throat.

She really was beautiful.

How did he not see it?

"I'm…" He trailed off. "I'm sorry… for not being there."

"It's okay." She said. "Honestly. You're not the kind of guy to settle down. I know that."

"But I…"

"And I'm sure you have someone else in your life by now."

"I really…"

"And I hope that she…"

"I'm single, actually," Dante said.

Lucia stared at him for a moment, before bursting into laughter. For some reason, that was infectious enough that he cracked up to. Within seconds both were clutching their stomachs, with Dante nearly doubled over. At some point, they'd wandered further toward the water, and the waves splashed up to his knees. The leather clung to his skin, but he didn't care. This is what they had come for, hadn't they? Though he had imagined Vergil and Ashira out here, enjoying each other's company, while he was off sleeping away in the hotel, mission completed hours ago.

That stopped him in his tracks. What was he doing? His family needed him. They needed…

"Dante," Lucia said. Her hand moved toward his, but she hesitated. "It's going to be okay. We'll figure this out."

He said nothing for a while, just stared out over the ocean. Then, with all of the confidence he could manage, he reached out and took her hand. "Absolutely," He said with a wide grin and a wink. "There hasn't been a mission I've failed yet."

A scream in the distance yanked them both away. Dante took off without hesitation, and Lucia was by his side almost as fast. The few on the beach ran in the opposite direction in a panic. Dante dodged them all, forgetting to apologize to the one that crashed into him.

He stopped short when he found the bodies. Two humans, he assumed. One male, one female, both in swimsuits and both with holes in their chests. "No hearts," Dante mumbled feeling suddenly lightheaded. How recent was this? Had he missed it? He didn't recognize either of them, so...

"Dante," Lucia said quietly, her eyes drifting down the sand. And if Dante hadn't dealt with demons his entire life, he might have lost whatever was left in his stomach the second he saw the third body. It was mangled, almost beyond recognition. A massive gash crossed across its chest, so deep that it was missing some of his organs. His clothes were torn completely to shreds, much more than the other two. His face was cut in all directions, and Dante swore there were small flower buds growing within the wounds themselves. In fact, when he looked closer, there were plants growing throughout all of the wounds, but he suspected that wouldn't last long.

Most notably, the body wasn't missing a heart. On the contrary, the heart had vines growing from it, attaching to the skin in seemingly random patches, as if trying to pull it back together.

"It's still beating," Lucia whispered.

Impossible. Is what Dante wanted to say. But he could hear it too, and every beat spread more blood along the vines. "Hey, Cal…"

The dragon pulled himself out of Dante's pocket and moved quickly to the bodies. While Dante knew the dragon wasn't squeamish, he was surprised at how serious Calcifer was. Not only was he silent, but he was being very thorough, crawling around the first two bodies as if he were an investigation dog, before gliding over to the third one. On that one, he paused, and Dante could almost imagine Calcifer frowning. "Their souls are still here, red-man."

That didn't make sense. Hadn't Vergil said the others had been stolen? He might understand if the third soul had been left behind, but the other two? Why take the hearts and not the souls? Or maybe they had the first one all wrong…

"Anything else?"

Calcifer paused for a moment, glancing between the second and third bodies. "Those two are reavers." He said. "But this one," he looked back to the third. "This one is human."

"How horrible." Lucia murmured as she moved closer. Dante followed and crouched beside Calcifer before Lucia could. A part of him wished she didn't have to see this, but his brain was quick to remind him that she had seen much, much worse.

"What's the point?" Dante said.

"Experimentation."

Dante whirled around, meeting the glowing, silver eyes of his brother. Though he was still in human form, all Dante could feel was his demon. Memories of that night on the Temen-ni-gru flooded him. A time when his brother had cared only for his power. When he only listened to the demon in his head who thought the Underworld was where he belonged. But Dante swallowed his weariness. Vergil had come to him. Not to fight. Just to talk. The idea that he had been hovering close by was almost endearing, except Dante didn't know how long Vergil could hold himself together. "As Calcifer said," Vergil continued. "These are all different from the ones Ashira and I found."

"You mean other than the creepy plants?" Dante said finally.

"That one isn't as important at the moment," He said. Cold, calculative Vergil. How much he had changed, and how much he had to lose if they didn't fix this. "He's right. The souls are still here." Vergil walked up to the first two, unsheathing Yamato. For a second, Dante thought he was going to slice them in two. Instead, he summoned a hint of Ashira's flames and sliced through the air over the top of them, murmuring something in their personal language before resheathing it.

"He sent them away," Cal said as he moved back to Dante's side and hopped into his hand.

"Where is Ashira?"

"Went after Pythy as far as I know. But haven't heard anything yet."

"And you haven't seen the boy or Alice since?"

"No, but we haven't really looked."

Vergil shook his head. "I've circled the area numerous times, and have yet to sense anything that would qualify as a demon prince."

"I'm certain one left the Underworld," Lucia said.

"I don't doubt that," Vergil said. "It is likely he is hiding his soul. Maybe even moving between worlds, given the state of the barrier."

"It's gotten worse?" Dante said.

"Much worse," Vergil said. "You could jump between them if you wanted to. Though I wouldn't recommend it."

"Have you?"

If Vergil heard his question, of which Dante had no doubt, he continued on as if he hadn't. "If this killer and the last one are the same, then they were likely in a hurry." His head tilted just slightly. "I have yet to figure out how they kill these victims so cleanly. Cutting the hearts out alone should leave an egregious amount of blood."

"You've found others?"

"Reavers?" He said. "No. But humans," He glanced at the third body. Nothing else needed to be said.

"Lir mentioned plants when talking about his parent's deaths," Lucia said. "But I only heard of flowers, not vines like this."

"Azalea," Vergil muttered.

Dante blinked. Vergil hadn't mentioned that word before. "Is that supposed to mean something?"

He was quiet for a moment, staring down at the plant infested body. "I don't know," He said. "But I will find out."

When he turned to leave, Dante grabbed his wrist. Vergil flinched, but didn't tear himself away. "Come back," Dante said. "You don't have to fight this alone."

When Vergil did pull away, it was less aggressive than Dante expected. "Watch the kid. I will remain nearby. And…" He paused. "Protect her, Dante."

"Protect her yourself," Dante said. "You're clearly…"

But Vergil was already gone, as if he hadn't existed at all.