I stepped across the threshold of the back alley shop. I expected little, but was surprised to see its interior was reminiscent of a rundown bar, complete with pool table and busted-up vintage jukebox. The walls and floor appeared grungy, but it seemed like the result of the building's age, rather than negligence, even though the atmosphere gave the impression that negligence wasn't out of the question either.

Despite the fact that the door was unlocked, there was no one in the lobby area, and I didn't hear any sounds from deeper within the building. I stood silently for a few moments, debating if I should just come back later. There was no way I could find what I was looking for on my own, but with no sign of the owner…

Just as I turned my back, I heard the back door swing open.

I opened my mouth with a start, but when my eyes settled on the man who entered the room, he wasn't quite what I was expecting. He was really tall, and not just because I'm on the short side of average, but he had a nonchalant posture and an air about him that seemed to say that there was nothing he took seriously. It lined up with the personality of the room around me, but I was looking for someone who could finish a job for me.

"Are you Dante?" I asked, trying not to look disappointed.

"Who's asking?" he asked, shaking long hair out of his face. I wondered if I had disturbed him, but technically it was during his business hours.

"Um, my name is Medea," I started, putting a hand on my hip. "I was hoping I could hire you to find something for me. I get that you usually take on bigger targets, but I don't think anyone else can do the job."

"Check the lost and found already?" he scoffed, flopping back into his desk chair as if I had insulted him. "I don't know what you've heard about me, but I only take jobs that interest me."

I stood my ground, squaring my stance up as I took a step towards him again. "I know. That's why I came here in person instead of making a call. The person who referred me to you told me that you almost never take jobs over the phone, if you even answer it."

An expression like he'd been caught crossed his face for a moment, and he snorted, then sat forward, paying attention to me again. "It sounds like you've done your homework. If I were to take this job, what makes you think that I'm the only one who can find whatever it is you've lost?"

My face felt warm as I tried to come up with an answer. "I didn't lose it, it was taken from me-"

"Ah, so you should have tried the police then."

"-By demons."

"Oh."

He went quiet for a few seconds, I could tell he expected me to continue speaking, but I doubted I had caught his interest even after that. After all, if demons weren't involved somewhere, then I wouldn't be here. I could tell he knew what his service was worth, but his attitude told me he didn't really want my business.

I sighed.

"I'm looking for a dagger. It belongs to me, but it's a dangerous thing for a human to just be carrying around, so every so often I run into trouble with the demonic realm. Usually from weaker devils, but even stronger ones I can normally handle if they come in smaller numbers." My arms were folded, I tried not to appear too annoyed as I spoke, because my frustration was really only with myself. "The thing is, the other night, I got attacked by a whole mob of them and couldn't do anything about it. They took the sword with them to the demon realm, and obviously I can't get there by myself."

Dante tipped back in his chair, crossing his legs comfortably on his desk while he thought. "Yeah, I guess you can't, normally. What is this dagger, anyway? You sound like you know a thing or two about devils already."

"I know a little," I admitted. "The dagger is called Celaeno's Gale, it's… kind of a relic. Definitely demonic. It's not so powerful that it would attract the attention of anything really dangerous, but the little ones will take power where they can get it. I'm sure they have some kind of hoard somewhere, so if you want, you can keep anything you find besides the dagger, in addition to your payment."

"No thanks, stuff like that doesn't interest me," said Dante, shaking his head. "Like I said, I kill demons. I'm not a courier. Besides, if you're dealing with things like demon relics, that's more up my brother's alley anyway."

I paused. "Your brother?"

He seemed a little smug for just a second. "Bet you didn't know I had any family, did you? It sounds like your intel might be a little stale. But yeah, my brother handles stuff like that all the time, and I recently dragged him into running my little business with me. He kinda owes me that much. If you wait a little while, he might come back to take on your job."

I frowned. "How much longer are we talking?" As if I had any choice but to wait.

"Who knows. He comes and goes as he pleases, I only ask that he comes in a few times a month to knock something out of my to-do list. Call it community service," he said, chuckling. "Word of advice though, he hates humans and isn't much for conversation."

Oh, good.

"I see…"

I didn't see at all. I felt like I was missing something. He kept dropping hints about some family drama, which I definitely didn't want to know about, but on top of that I wasn't sure whether his advice should be taken as such or as a threat.

That said, it confirmed the other rumors I had heard about his family.

I took a seat on his couch, because I had nowhere else to be while I waited and I figured it would bother him.

"So… you're really Sparda's son?" I asked, turning my eyes away from him. "I mean… that's what I've heard, anyway. I know some people don't believe he ever existed, but if you can have an outside opinion on humans, you have to at least really be part devil, aren't you?"

"I don't know what gossip column is out there spreading rumors about me, and I don't want to," said Dante, leaning back in his chair again. "You can stay here until closing or until my brother gets back, but you're going to have to be quiet."

I guessed if he wasn't going to ask me any personal questions, or question my interest in the dagger, then I wouldn't keep probing him either. I still wasn't happy with his response, though, so I just sat there frowning and folding my arms.

But it sounded like his brother wasn't the kind of person to clock in on time, and I had gotten the idea that he didn't have a particular clock-in time to begin with. I wondered if he would even show up at all. I figured I should start getting comfortable.

I passed the time at first by looking around the room, counting objects, tracing the pattern in the ceiling. Counting the panes of glass in the window.

After a couple of hours, Dante offered me a magazine, but when I saw the risque cover, I declined. It wasn't that I was interested, it was just a bizarre gesture. I wondered if the offer had been an honest one or if he was getting tired of me sitting around in his lobby.

"You feel like taking home leftovers? I'm about to order pizza," he said, glancing up at me.

"Um…"

"I'll take requests if you want any extra toppings, but if you ask for olives I'll just kick you out now."

I started to answer, but before I could speak, there was a flash of light from the doorway.

Without saying anything at all, I turned my head slowly to see what had just happened. Even after looking, it wasn't immediately apparent just where the light had come from. Regardless, where there was nothing before, there was now another very tall man, wielding a very large sword. He looked like his fashion sense stopped aging out of middle school, which actually just about covered both of them.

I got to my feet. "...You must be the brother."

Well, I mean, I certainly hoped so, since the assumption was based mostly on hair color. I felt like the fact that he was armed was a good clue too though.

In an overly flashy gesture, he sheathed his sword and cut his eyes at me with distaste. "Is this a client?"

Dante shrugged then waved his hand at me, apparently putting his dinner plans to the side for the time being. "Sounds like it- Don't get excited though, she just needs someone to play fetch with the demonic sword she carelessly let fall into the devil realm."

"I-" Mm. "Yeah, it was pretty careless, actually. But like I said it's not especially powerful, it just has... sentimental value."

The other man raised his eyebrows as he considered this for a moment. "This sword has sentimental value?"

"It's a dagger," I said quickly. "It's important to me, anyway. I know you're saying it like that to make it sound silly, but just trust me, I really need it back."

"Does it have a name?" he asked, looking to Dante.

"What, the dagger, or me?" I shook my head, throwing my hands up. "It's called Celaeno's Gale, it was pretty much pried from my hands when I got dogpiled by a bunch of demons in the middle of a bookstore. They left right after that, so that's obviously all they were after."

He seemed to relax his shoulders slightly. "It's a more interesting offer than just another target, I'll admit."

"Right? No targets, just the dagger. I bet you're wondering where the catch is, aren't you?" grinned Dante. "You'll have to take her with you to figure out where you should be looking."

I thought I should feel more insulted than I did, knowing that he probably just didn't want to be anywhere near me because both of them had demonic blood and I didn't. But I got the idea they weren't particularly close to begin with. Then again, this new stranger seemed the kind to keep his guard up pretty high with everyone.

"My name is Medea," I said. "I can take you to the bookstore where they entered, and I can fend for myself. I don't need babysitting, I just need someone to get me into the demon realm."

"Oh, even better. Sounds like you're an escort, Verge."

'Verge' rolled his eyes slowly, craning his neck away from Dante as he turned to the door. "Let me remind you that I'm not actually obligated to do your job for you, Dante. I'm only doing this as a show of good faith. If your wish is to keep tabs on me, I suggest you don't push your luck."

I stomped my foot indignantly. "I'm going to start walking. I've got the money to cover whatever fees I need to pay for you, but when I go out that door, someone had better follow me, and I don't care which one of you it is."

Dante's brother shook his head slowly. I could tell he had a lot of thoughts about what I'd just said, but he motioned me to the door. "By all means."

Hopefully, that meant he planned on following me. I exited the demon hunter's shop, slightly frustrated. I couldn't afford to be picky, but evidently both brothers were infuriating to deal with. After all the time I'd spent sitting in Dante's lobby, I wasn't crazy about the way either of them spoke about me.

I started down the street. "It's on the other side of town. We can take my car, so you don't have to worry about gas money."

I heard him scoff, but he didn't say anything until we were buckled into my old grey sedan, nearly ten minutes down the road.

"Celaeno's Gale, was it?" he asked. "The Living Armor, Celaeno?"

I paused mentally as I slowed for a red light. I laughed, unprepared for him to press me on the matter. "What?"

"That's the artifact you're looking for, right? I doubt Dante knows very much about it, or he might have taken more consideration before accepting a job to retrieve a devil arm of any kind. You're right that it's nothing to be worried about in the hands of lesser creatures, but I know why you need it back so urgently."

I drew my lips into a line. "Why?"

"You're contracted to Celaeno," he said, pointing at his neck, though he was indicating my own. "You're hiding the seal under that necklace."

"There's nothing under my choker," I laughed, shaking my head just a little.

"But you're not a normal human," he said shortly.

It wasn't untrue. The dagger belonged to the demon, Celaeno. Her power could only be channeled through it, and I'd lost both in that scrap the other night. I was contracted to her, and as a result, had access to magicks unavailable to a regular human. Apart from that, though, part of my contract stipulated that I was to never tell anyone the nature of my contract. If I had to, I would lie. Compulsively. Which made explaining what I needed to the demon hunter very difficult.

"There's nothing strange about me," I said, clenching my jaw as I lied. "Sometimes a demonic dagger is just a demonic dagger. Either way, if it makes you feel any better, I don't have any ulterior motive."

I very much doubted anything short of me disappearing completely out of thin air would make him feel better.