Note: Thanks tuly, TigerDragon, and YYY – domo arigato! Ah, really sorry for the long wait ; I hope that… well – this chapter isn't too bad. Wow – 'FM's almost finished! Yay! Lol - -coughs- sorry…

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On his third day of searching, Dante was ready to massacre any living thing that moved, which of course posed a threat to him. So much so the dark auras of frustration that rolled from him like destructive waves made even the most hardiest of fiends retreat in his presence. All he wanted to do was find her again, coming upon a sturdy looking stone wall with a stretched godhead upon it, he decided to vent his anger – only to find himself being sucked into a 'room that's concealed to the naked eye' with a slight gasp of astonishment.

Ever faithful, there she was, smiling warmly now as he entered. "You're just like the small riddle for the fifth letter of my name, the second from last, which is 'N', as in 'never give up' – doesn't that describe you perfectly?" she smiled softly as she straightened and sauntered over to him. "So… what's your question?" Dante sighed.

"Why are you doing this?" he asked.

"I said before, because of a promise to a close friend, a cousin."

"No, I mean this game… this little 'kiss chase'," he explained.

"Uh… because…" her cheeks flushed an unfamiliar crimson as she turned away, but evaded his touch with a back step. "Everything – I'll tell you everything in our last meeting, I'm sorry, I – I have to go," she moved to sidestep him, but Dante caught her wrist and instinctively she turned to face him and he was taken aback by the tears that he found at the brink of pouring. "Please – I'll… tell you… then, ok?" she pleaded quietly, when suddenly monsters appeared. "Wh-what! I thought I took care of these guys!"

"Monsters regenerate after a time," Dante told her, poised to fight, one-handed; he didn't really want to relinquish her wrist, but 'Arcan' just shook her head, and smiled up at him, fighting back her tears. She really wasn't feeling herself anymore… but… she could still fight.

"Don't worry about me – I don't give up remember?" she laughed with forced airiness. "I won't go anywhere, don't worry, I won't leave you," than quickly she added, "To take care of these creatures alone," the heat in her cheeks almost overwhelming, but Dante couldn't help but smile.

"Ok," and with that small assurance that she was fine, he let her wrist go; but he couldn't deny the warmth that had sprung within him when she had said that she wouldn't leave him. "Let's kick some demon ass," and with that he expertly cocked his beloved pistols and blew through three on coming fiery beings while Arcan took to the air and with her own brand of graceful expertise, slicing through the four enemies that were moving behind Dante, while Dante shot down the shadow monster that was clambering along the wall in the hopes of taking the aerial demon in surprise. It didn't matter whether one was airborne or not, their relative positions never changed, they were always somewhat back-to-back.

They made an effective team for in less than two minutes flat all the twenty monsters the room had to throw at them were gone, leaving only plentiful demon blood to be collected.

"There, my parting gift to you – as an apology for my strange behaviour, but don't worry, it's a promise, I will tell you everything… when we next meet, ok? And I'll give you what I vowed to Lucia I would. Just… wait until then, I'll be there by the end of this week. Don't look for me, I'll come to you… there's just – one more thing I have to do," and with that she bowed her head low before quickly exiting, leaving Dante no room to say anything to prolong her stay.

"Just four more days," he sighed heavily. "Four more days… but I'm not willing to say goodbye that easily," he warned her faintly, knowing that she couldn't hear him, but he said it despite that. "Four more days… than everything will be revealed. Four days worth of thinking," he smiled. "I'll need all the thinking time I can get."

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Ah… that was… terrible… sorry.