Spoilers/Warning: This fic contains spoilers about the game and its ending so consider yourself warned. And also there's some swearing in here, due to the Sparda brothers' potty mouths.

Dedication: To all my reviewers: Meirelle, Kerrianne Harrington (thanks to both of you for your continued support!), Ri2, Anonymous, yodel, Yasmine, ATH/Warrior Nun, and animegirl10. You people made this chapter come about. Seriously, I needed that push or else this story would never have gotten done. :D

Disclaimer: I don't own the Devil May Cry series, but soon I will own a copy of the manga. Oh yes, it's peanut butter jelly time!

A/N: Chapter five has finally arrived! (Whee that rhymed!) I have absolutely no excuse other than I am lazy and am easily distra- Oooh a butterfly! (Goes off to chase it. ) Umm, what? I mean, to make up for my tardiness here's an extra long chapter for you folks. :P

Chapter 05: Q&A

A bell jingled as soon as the door closed behind Dante and Lady. It was just one more noise amongst a cacophony of ticks and tocks as they dumbly stared at the shop's interior.

Wall clocks of different styles, shapes, and sizes covered the white walls in a dizzying display. No two were the same, and there seemed to be no order to the madness as classical-style clocks hung with more contemporary pieces. Just looking at them all made one slightly nauseous.

Tearing his eyes away, Dante saw that there were glass cases/counters along three walls of the room. Resting on plastic stands or velvet cushions was a variety of wrist and pocket watches. Like their brethren on the walls they weren't arranged in any particular order. It was as if the owner had just placed them wherever he felt like.

Vergil stood in the middle of the room, his eyes adjusting to the sight. It had been a while since he'd been here and he'd forgotten how disorienting this place could be. The dissonant ticking of the clocks could make someone go mad, given enough time. He never understood how the owners could work, much less live, in this place.

"Ah, welcome to my shop! Can I help you?" a voice said, snatching the three's attention immediately. The small group looked to the far wall and saw an elderly man emerging from a swinging door.

He was more than a head shorter than the twins, and his stooped back made him even more diminutive. Gray hair was carefully combed over his bald crown but there was still hair on the back and sides of his head. His skin was dry, wrinkled, and spotted with brown. Coffee brown tweed pants, a white dress shirt, and a darker brown vest hung off his slim, almost twig-thin body.

"Mr. Chu," Vergil said formally.

"Vergil!" the older man suddenly grinned. "I haven't heard your voice in ages."

Frowning at the odd wording, Lady leaned forward to take a closer look. Upon her inspection she was surprised to see that Mr. Chu's eyes were uniformly white.

"Since you're here I assume you're investigating the recent demon activity?"

"Something like that," Vergil smirked, thinking that 'demon activity' hardly justified the rising of the Temen-Ni-Gru. "But this isn't the place to talk of such things. Can we go to the back of the store to discuss this further?"

"Of course, right this way," Mr. Chu motioned for Vergil to follow him. "I assume your brother and companion would also like to join us?"

Dante and Lady started.

"How did you know I'm his brother?" Dante asked warily.

"I am blind, but I have my ways," Mr. Chu grinned, showing off yellowed teeth. "Right this way."

He shuffled through the door again, Vergil right behind him. Exchanging wary glances the two remaining people followed.

'I knew I should have brought my guns,' Dante complained to himself as they descended through a straight, and steep, flight of stairs. He'd done stupider things than going into a basement unarmed, but this entire place had him on edge.

Glancing behind him he saw that Lady had a frown on her face as well. It looked like he wasn't the only one who was uncomfortable with this situation.

Flashing her a winning smile, which she rolled her eyes at, he continued down to the bottom. They were in a narrow hallway that was made of dark coloured stone. It seemed odd since the hall had the feeling of age to it, not at all what a modern building's basement should be. The air was musty, cool, and slightly … electric. There was something about it that made Dante's skin faintly tingle.

Lady instantly recognized the sensation.

'Magic,' she thought as she flexed her hands. She remembered how the atmosphere felt exactly the same when 'that man' had performed a ritual or opened an ancient artifact at home. It made her skin crawl and her stomach drop to her feet. The feeling was completely unwelcome, but like before, she could do nothing to stop it.

Gritting her teeth she roughly shoved Dante in the back to make him resume his trek. The sooner they talked with this Mr. Chu the sooner they could leave this place.

"Hey!" Dante said at his rough treatment but all he got was another shove. Grumbling under his breath he petulantly started walking again, wondering what Lady's problem was.

'I swear that woman has constant PMS!' he groused to himself.

They quickly caught up with Vergil who was still following the slowly walking/shuffling Mr. Chu. They passed by several closed doors; they were made of thick wood reinforced with metal bands, something that looked more at home in a castle than a basement; before stopping at the end of the hallway.

Mr. Chu grabbed the iron door handle and pushed the door open.

"Please come in," he said as he trundled inside.

Dante and Lady were treated to the sight of a mammoth room filled top to bottom with ancient books. Floor-to-ceiling shelves took up all the walls, even the one that held the door. More bookshelves covered the floor space so that it was kind of claustrophobic being in there.

"We have visitors, my dear."

"Visitors!" another voice said in a gentle voice. "Ah, and such handsome ones too! Vergil, it is good to see you again. And I see you've brought your brother this time."

A shushing noise drew closer to them and from the shadows emerged an elderly woman in a wheel chair. She seemed as old as Mr. Chu and just as frail. Her back was also hunched, which made her lean precariously forward in her seat. A pastel blue dress covered her body, as well as a thick crocheted shawl. Snow-white hair was gathered in a bun at the nape of her neck, and a pair of wire-framed glasses was perched on her nose. But her eyes were sharp with intelligence as she carefully regarded first Vergil, and then Dante.

"Come here," she said and held out her hand to the younger twin.

Glancing at Vergil, Dante received a brief nod of the head before he sauntered over to who he assumed was Mrs. Chu. He took her hand in his and cocked an eyebrow when she let out a long breath.

"You have good blood in you," she smiled after a moment of closing her eyes. "The sons of Sparda are always welcomed here." She squeezed his hand with surprising strength before letting him go.

Dante smiled, not quite comfortable that she knew of his heritage but not quite surprised that she did either.

"And who are you?" the elderly woman expertly turned her wheelchair to face Lady. "One of the brothers' girlfriend?"

Lady immediately scowled while Dante smothered a disbelieving laugh and Vergil internally rolled his eyes.

'I'd feel sorry for whatever sap has to date her!' was their identical thoughts.

"No!" she said forcefully. "I'm just-"

"She's Arkham's daughter," Vergil interrupted. "Look, we have other matters to discuss. I assume you two know of the rising of the Temen-Ni-Gru?"

"Naturally," Mr. Chu said, not missing a beat. "Its re-emergence, and consequent fall, sent a wave of disorder throughout the city. I'm sure people with the talent could feel the Demon Tower's influence even in other parts of the country."

"Wave of disorder," Vergil said musingly. "What kind of disorder are we talking about here?"

"Most likely there will be an increase in the appearance of lesser demons," Mr. Chu shrugged as he began to walk through an aisle. "Perhaps a few demonic artifacts could also be activated if they were close enough to the Temen-Ni-Gru."

The group wordlessly trailed after him, and he led them to a corner nook where a table and several chairs waited for them. They seemed like an afterthought and no piece matched another.

Mr. Chu slowly seated himself on an office swivel chair and his wife wheeled herself beside him. Vergil claimed a padded stool while Lady grudgingly sat near him in a beanbag chair. Dante took a dinning chair and turned it around so he could lean his arms on the backrest.

"When you say lesser demons, what do you mean?" Dante picked up where they left off.

"Oh, I'm sure you've encountered some before," Mrs. Chu smiled. "But it seems to me you have something specific in mind."

Silently Dante took off the backpack and set it on the floor. Unzipping the main compartment, a grateful Cerberus clambered out. The three heads barked in seeming irritation at Dante before spotting Lady and making a beeline for her.

She scooped him up in her arms and patted all his heads. Lady made sure to set him down on her kilt since his cold body would chill her skin pretty quickly. Both either didn't notice or ignored the annoyed look Vergil was shooting at them. Vergil was betting on the latter.

"This is Cerberus," Dante introduced for the benefit of the Chu couple. They were staring at the hellhound with complete curiosity instead of fear. Then again it was kind of hard to be scared of Cerberus in this form. The middle head was happily getting his chin scratched while the left was nibbling on his tail. As for the right head it was looking right back at the elderly people with a mixed look of interest and cautiousness.

"Do you mean Cerberus, the guard dog to the Underworld that was feared in the ancient days?" Mr. Chu asked, though by his tone of voice it was apparent he already knew the answer.

"That's the one," Dante nodded. "I take it my father sealed him up in the Demon Tower to guard the gateway into Hell?"

"Of course," Mrs. Chu nodded and made a soothing sound. The dog's ears perked up and Cerberus scampered over to her. He stood on his hind legs and placed his front paws on her knees. Smiling down at him she petted all three heads one at a time.

"As you can see we have a … problem," Vergil spoke once more. "Dante said he defeated Cerberus, who then turned into a weapon. Later on he was put inside a Statue of Time. How could he have escaped and turned back into his demon form?"

"When dealing with gods and demons, it is often a question of why then of how," Mrs. Chu replied.

Vergil, Dante, and Lady shared confused looks.

"I suppose it doesn't matter how he came back," Lady finally said after a pregnant pause. "The question is how do we get him back to where he belongs?"

"Indeed. It would be dangerous for Cerberus to remain here, both for him and the human world," Mr. Chu agreed. "You will have to return him to the Demon World where his powers will not endanger any innocent lives."

"How do we do that?" Dante pressed.

"To be honest with you," Mrs. Chu said amiably, "We have no idea."

All three youths would have fallen in shock if they hadn't been sitting down already.

"What!" Dante said before rounding on his brother. "You said they could help!"

"I said perhaps they might know the answers to our questions. I never offered a guarantee!" Vergil shot back.

"Shush now, children," Mrs. Chu reprimanded them gently. "Most things are revealed in time. I think for this matter, patience is all you'll need."

"Patience! But didn't you say Cerberus was dangerous to humans?" Lady demanded.

"As he is right now, he does pose a risk but it is minimal," Mr. Chu answered. "In fact it looks like he's taken quite a liking to you. However if he gets close enough to a substantial source of demon energy, well, there's no telling how much of his original form he'll revert to. In the legends they said he could easily swallow a full grown man."

"Yeah, he could," Dante nodded in agreement.

"So all we can do now is wait and hope the answer just falls into our lap sometime soon?" Lady asked in disbelief.

"Basically, yes," Mrs. Chu smiled. She chuckled at their crestfallen expressions. Even the usually stoic Vergil looked disappointed.

"At least do you know why it's taking me so long to heal my injuries?" Vergil asked. "My demon powers should have taken care of them a long time ago."

"Change into a demon for me," Mrs. Chu said.

"What?"

"Change into your demon form," she repeated patiently.

Vergil was on the verge of denying he could, but one stern look from her stopped him. Sometimes her eerie knowledge was a blessing but at other instances it was a curse.

Sighing resignedly he rose from his seat and took a few steps forward. He felt all eyes on him but he didn't show any indication of apprehension. Being the center of attention was nothing new to him.

Closing his eyes he stood in that small space, forcing himself to relax his body but focusing his mind into clarity. He called up the feeling of excitement, of bloodlust, that he used to trigger his transformation. The eldest Sparda son remembered battles he'd taken part in, the wounds he'd dealt and the wounds he'd received. His pain, his enemy's pain, they all served to make his blood hum and his heart to fill with power that would built in intensity till it exploded outwards and encompass his entire body.

The watchers saw blue electricity dance around his legs and arms, and for the briefest of moments the outline of Vergil's demon form emerged. But in the next instant it was lost and a completely human looking man still stood before them.

Slowly opening his eyes Vergil was met with shock. Since the Temen-Ni-Gru he had never failed to summon his demon form on call! But he had done just that, and fear lanced down his spine in a cold rush. His knees buckled and it was only Dante's rushed help that kept him from falling down.

Wildly looking around the room, Vergil's ice blue eyes met Lady's bi-coloured irises. He saw astonishment there, and something else, something that made his stomach clench painfully.

What he saw in her eyes was revulsion.

Tearing his gaze away from hers he looked at the Chu couple instead. Both looked as calm and knowing as ever.

"What the Hell happened?" Vergil ground out angrily as he pushed away Dante's supporting arms. "Why couldn't I change?"

"It seems that you've used up your reserves of demon energy," Mr. Chu explained calmly as if a dangerous, increasingly upset and scared (though Vergil would never admit it) half-demon wasn't glaring daggers at him.

"I take it you've been part of a situation where you've extensively used your demon form?" Mrs. Chu inquired.

"Yeah," Dante said slowly as Vergil just nodded dumbly. "We were in the Demon Tower … doing stuff."

Dante had ended his sentence lamely but he hardly wanted to admit that they had been basically trying to kill each other. Perhaps he didn't have to though; the Chus seemed to have a way of knowing these things, and it made him highly uncomfortable.

"We used it several times in the Temen-Ni-Gru, but we were always able to return to our demon forms after a short period of time," Vergil continued, completely composed again, at least on the outside.

"That was easily done since the Demon Tower was a conduit for demon energies, yes?" Mrs. Chu said. "It was easy for you to 're-charge' as it were. However with the downfall of the Tower it is not so easy for you to regain your powers. It will take time and patience."

'There's that damned word again!' Dante scowled. He was never one for patience; that was Vergil's gig. But judging by the look in his brother's eyes right now, Dante didn't think Vergil was in a very patient mood either.

"There is a way to speed up the process," Mr. Chu answered in anticipation of their next question. "Defeating other demons would make them release their own energies, and your bodies could absorb that. However, as you've already stated, there are risks. The lack of your own demon powers make you more vulnerable than you normally would be."

"I can take on any demon," Vergil all but growled.

Dante and Lady looked at him sharply. His tone was low and dangerous as if he was challenging Mr. Chu for what he said. To his credit the blind shop owner remained unruffled.

"Here," Mrs. Chu wheeled herself forward. From her dress' pocket she took out something.

"What is it?" Dante asked politely, trying to cover up for his brother's increasing agitation.

"These are special rings that glow when they are near demon energies," she explained as she handed Dante one. "They won't glow in reaction to your own powers though; you're not that powerful yet to make it shine. You can use it to track down loci of demon energies and thus renew your own depleted stores. But be careful; other demons in the area might also be attracted to the locus."

"Thanks," Dante smiled and looked at the ring on the palm of his hand. It was simple in design, just a plain silver band with a small red garnet stone set in the center.

Looking over at Vergil he saw that his twin had received the same ring as him except his stone was a light blue aquamarine. Their eyes met for a moment before both slipped their rings on their right middle fingers.

"And one for the lady as well," Mrs. Chu said as she stopped by Lady's seat.

"Oh, I don't need it. I'm fully human," she said, holding her palms up in refusal.

"Nonetheless, it is a useful tool for a demon hunter, eh?" Mrs. Chu chuckled as she pressed the remaining ring in the younger woman's hands.

"Ah, thank you," Lady said, momentarily lost in Mrs. Chu's depthless dark brown eyes.

"You are quite welcome, dear," she said as she returned by her husband's side.

As she was wheeling herself across the floor, Lady looked at her ring. Unlike the Sparda twin's her band was made of gold. It had a braided design to it, and her centerpiece was a deep green peridot.

She put on her ring, and looking up, she saw that she had placed it on the same finger as the two men. An uneasy feeling made her want to switch fingers, but after a moment of thought, decided to leave it for now. She could always change its position later.

"Now, who's up for some lunch?"

All three looked at Mr. Chu as if he'd offered far more than food.

"It's almost noon," he said in explanation, and didn't wait for their answer as he began to putter away.

"Come now," Mrs. Chu grinned at their expressions, ranging from disbelieving to flat out distrustful. "I'd like to hear what it was like inside the Temen-Ni-Gru. It isn't every day a portal to the Demon World pops up in the city, does it?"

There was a general murmur of consensus before they followed their hosts back into the narrow hallway, Cerberus happily tagging behind. Walking in single file they went along after Mr. Chu who was only a few steps ahead of them.

"Hey," a thought suddenly struck Dante. "Some magic artifacts have demon energies in them, right?"

"Correct," Mrs. Chu nodded.

"Well how about some demon weapons?" Dante grinned. "Cerberus wasn't the only one who lent me their powers!"

"Oh?" Vergil stopped and turned back to face his brother.

"Yeah, I have a few more demon weapons," Dante said happily. "Maybe if we carry them around we'd regain our powers faster."

"And where are they?" Vergil asked, hoping against hope they were easily reachable.

"In the Statue of Time."

"You mean the same statue Cerberus came from?" Lady pointed out behind Dante.

"Umm, yeah."

"The same statue that needs supernatural energies in order to be accessed?" Vergil immediately bit out.

"Yeah," Dante visibly deflated.

"The same statues that are buried under tonnes of rubble-"

"OK, I get the picture! It was a bad idea! Sheesh!" Dante cut Lady off. "I guess I shouldn't have put all my extra weapons inside it."

When the words were out of his mouth he winced. Lady caught the expression, as well as the guilty look in his eyes. Something snapped in her mind, and she suddenly knew where her precious bazooka was.

"Dante," she said in a very threatening voice. "Please don't tell me you left Kalina Ann inside the Statue of Time."

"Uuh," he said, backing up from the smaller woman's advancing form. His escape was curtailed by Vergil's immovable presence.

Halting before he ran into his brother, Dante was open to Lady's outstretched hands. She wrapped her gloved fingers around his throat and began to throttle him.

"You left Kalina Ann in there! How in Hell am I gonna get it now, huh? What are you going to do to get it back? I only loaned it to you, you numbskull! Ooh you better get it back Dante, come Hell or high water, or else I'll – I'll –"

She sputtered for a few moments, unable to come out with a reasonable threat. There was only so much you could do to harm a half-demon, weakened state or not. He'd probably recover from any gunshot wounds she inflicted on him. Probably.

"Hey, of course I will! No problem!" Dante said in between short gasps of air. He looked like the proverbial fish out of water, but she didn't notice. Looking past his shoulder she saw Vergil smirking. At her. It was that irritating 'you're such an imbecile' smirk that grated on her nerves just so. She'd only known him for a few days but he had pissing her off down to a tee.

Her cheeks flushing with anger she snapped, "and where do you think your sword is?"

To her great satisfaction, and to Dante's immense trepidation, Vergil's expression immediately darkened. His piercing eyes re-directed themselves to his twin.

"Don't tell me you put Yamato inside the Statue of Time," Vergil said in a low and dangerous voice.

"Uuh …"

Vergil's hands were instantly added to Lady's own, and Vergil began to squeeze. Hard.

"Hey!" Lady yelped as she felt his powerful fingers crushing her own. Vergil loosened his grip just enough to let her take her hands back, and then began to strangle his younger brother.

"Dante," he said in a perfectly flat voice. "I expect you to get Yamato back for me. Or else I will kill you in such an excruciating and terrifying manner that you will wish you had left me back there in the Demon World. Am I understood?"

"Grhk!" was all Dante managed to say past his constricted throat.

"Good."

Without warning Vergil released his brother who promptly fell to his knees. Lady instinctively crouched down in front of him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. Cerberus squirmed around her legs and the middle head nudged the coughing Dante with his frosty nose.

Glaring over Dante's bent head she stared into Vergil's eyes. They were cold and emotionless, just like his face.

Turning around, he started stalking after the Chus who had disappeared through an open door.

"You okay?" Lady asked as she brushed Dante's hair away from his eyes. His face had returned to its normal colouration though his cheeks were still a little red.

"Peachy," Dante said in a slightly raspy voice. He absent-mindedly patted Cerberus on the head to stop him from whining. In one smooth motion he suddenly rose to his feet.

Looking down he saw Lady giving him a contemplative stare.

"And that was him being easy on me," he said jovially.

"I imagine so," she said as she stood up as well. His cheery tone of voice didn't fool her, but there were some things you didn't say aloud. "Still up for lunch?"

"Always," he nodded as he gallantly swept his arms towards the open door. "After you, Lady."

"Thank you, good sir," she smiled and did a little bob/curtsey.

"And I can be up for bedtime too," he winked at her suggestively.

"Ugh," she rolled her eyes at him. Sometimes she thought she wasted her pity on him. But she let him walk close behind her till they reached the open door.

A/N: Oh mama, this chapter is finally out of the way! (Does a happy dance.) Ah, the mood is still serious but it can't be helped. Just in case if anyone is wondering, I chose the gemstones for their colours only. There's no astrological, spiritual, etc. significance to them. I think. :P As always reviews are desired and appreciated. :)