Jaune quietly sipped his glass of Gin Fizz, enjoying the atmosphere of the bar he was at, a soft track of jazz playing in the background. Just a little place where people could gather to talk, drink, and even sing if the kareoke machine in the corner was anything to come by.
The blond placed down his empty glass and called out the bartender, who's also the owner. "Hey, Bacchus, I need another glass."
A man with light-brown hair and red eyes, wearing the typical outfit of a bartender, walked up to Jaune with a slightly raised brow and spoke with a baritone voice. "I'm surprised you're still here, Nero. Don't you have somewhere to be?"
The blond hummed in slight confusion. He brought out his Scroll and the time flashed in his face, which quickly contorted into shock and horror.
"Crap, I'm late!" Jaune grabbed his jacket that was on the table and rushed out of the bar. "Thanks for the drink, Bacchus! Just put it on my tab!"
The devil hunter growled in annoyance at himself for somehow forgetting the time. He weaved through the wave of people as he threw on his jacket, and hopped onto his motorcycle. He cranked up the engine and sped off. He hoped that he would be able to watch at least the latter half of the match.
Pyrrha composed herself mid-air, retrieving her weapons. Her opponent, Arslan, glared heatedly right at her with an intense fire. The dark-skinned blonde returned to her stance, awaiting Pyrrha's next move.
The Hoplite smirked and flung her shield at Arslan. The Golden Lioness simply grunted and kicked it into the air, before spinning and sending it right back at Pyrrha. The redhead caught it and tossed it again, using the momentum earlier to do it even harder.
Arslan rolled out of the way and charged at Pyrrha. Pyrrha fended her off with her javelin, yet the blonde evaded her every jab and strike, before surprising her with a parry, pulling her in for a series of hit to the body, ending it with a palm strike that pushed her back considerably. Arslan attempted a follow up attack, but Pyrrha was ready and evaded it in time.
The Spartan twirled around her javelin, shifting it into its xiphos form. She dashed forward and slashed at her opponent chipping at her Aura. Pyrrha flipped back, dodging Arslan's punch, before blocking her strike with Milo.
She pulled back and rolled out of another attack from Arslan. She noticed her shield just a couple of feet away from her, and went to grab it. The blonde scoffed and unfurled her rope dart, tossing it at Pyrrha's legs to trip her.
The attempt failed, as the redhead managed to sense it coming and jumped out of the way. Arslan caught her weapon and started building up some momentum for another attack. Pyrrha retrieved Akouo and charged at her fellow Mistralian.
The Golden Lioness grunted and simply kicked the dart right at Pyrrha, constantly sending out attack after attack at some spots that she saw were exposed. Unfortunately, Pyrrha managed to read them all, deflecting her shots.
Arslan frowned, wrapping her weapon to her arm and went back to unarmed. She clenched her fists and readied for a faint. She roared and cocked back her arm, but had thrown a kick instead. Pyrrha managed to evade at the last second, sliding under the blonde.
The Hoplite took this to her advantage and struck Arslan off her feet, bashing her with her shield and sending her back. Before she could recover, Pyrrha tossed Akouo, before having Milo follow suit. The blonde pushed herself up and struck down the shield, before quickly catching the javelin in between the palm of her hands. Unfortunately, she didn't anticipate Pyrrha to run up to her and straight up drop kicked her off the stage.
The crowd went wild as the young redhead stood up, picking up her weapons while she was announced the victor. Pyrrha bowed to the audience before facing Arslan, stretching out her hand to help her up.
The dark-skinned lady smirked and accepted it, pulling herself up. "I'm gonna beat you someday, Nikos. Count on it!"
"I look forward to a rematch from you, Arslan." she responded, smiling at her.
The two shook hands, with Arslan then raising up Pyrrha's, making the crowd go even more nuts.
Pyrrha released a deep sigh, her shoulders sagging in relief as she reached the private locker rooms.
"You did great out there, sis."
Pyrrha smiled and walked up to Kyrie to give her a hug. No words were needed. The action spoke for it. The two broke away, a smile still on their faces. Before the older sister could say something, a voice cut in, bringing joy to them both.
"Yeah. You really killed it out there, Pyr."
The Nikos sisters turned around to see Jaune leaning on one of the lockers, a fond smirk on his lips. Pyrrha launched herself into his arms, nuzzling into his chest. The white-haired teen chuckled, pulling in the redhead for a tighter embrace.
"Jaune! You came."
"Of course I did. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't attend my girlfriend's last tournament?"
Pyrrha didn't respond and merely smiled even wider as she nuzzled even further into his chest. In the background, Kyrie watched with a small frown, her eyes glinted with jealousy. She quickly wiped it away as soon as the two turned to face her, replacing it with a smile as Jaune approached her for a one-armed hug.
"Hey, Kyrie. How have you been doing?"
The younger Nikos internally cheered, secretly enjoying the Arc's warmth. "I've been doing fine. Don't worry about me, how about you? What have you been up to?"
Jaune broke away and stepped back, allowing him to look at his two friends at full-body. The both of them had grown quite well, but Pyrrha was a bit taller and more muscular. Kyrie had her tail done in a ponytail with a circlet, while Pyrrha had her hair down. Then, well, of course, there was their curves. The sisters had become even more womanly, and drop dead gorgeous. Anyone who said otherwise was a liar.
Before he could say anything, the door opened up and a tall male strode in. He had golden blond hair and azure blue eyes. He had a tall and muscular stature, befitting of a fighter. He wore a classy, red tuxedo, his coattails reaching up to his legs, with black fingerless gloves. The man had a smile on his face as he approached Pyrrha.
"Quite the display you showed us, Ms. Nikos. Thanks to you, many children now aspire to become Huntsmen and Huntresses when they grow up. Once again, congratulation on your victory."
"It was nothing, Mr. Bernstein. It was my pleasure to fight, and I'm glad I'm setting up a good example for the children."
Mr. Bernstein saw Jaune and stepped up to him, stretching out his right hand for a shake. "Ah, so you must be the infamous Jaune Arc that Ms. Nikos has been talking about? A pleasure to meet you, I'm-"
"Rouge Bernstein. I've heard about you, sir. The amount of donations you give out to help the people is staggering. You've been named Richest Man in Remnant too. Not only that, you've got quite the resume in the fighting circuits, having participated in quite the number of tournaments. The Combat Philanthropist, they call you. I'm quite the fan, sir."
The teen clasped the man's hand for a handshake. Jaune was impressed at the strong grip that the philanthropist had, and couldn't help but challenge it with his own.
The blond man smiled, pulling back. "Thank you. Unfortunately, my time for fighting has come to an end. It's time for the new generation to step up."
He checked his watch and claimed that he had a meeting to attend to. Rouge then bowed to the three and promptly left. Pyrrha smiled and intertwined her hand with her boyfriend's, smiling.
"So, are you ready to-"
The older redhead was cut off as the ringtone from Jaune's Scroll was set off. The white-haired teen pulled out said device and read the message he had received. A frown crossed his lips as he sighed, placing away his Scroll.
"Sorry. Gonna have to take a rain check. Morrison lined me up for a mission with Dante." He turned to face Pyrrha and gave her a chaste peck on the lips. "I'll make it up to you next time, alright? How about you and Kyrie have a day all to yourselves. With your academic work in Sanctum, and her helping out at the local orphanage, I'm sure you two haven't gotten the time to hang out."
"Well," Kyrie smiled and slung her arms around her sister's neck. "I think that can be arranged. There's a spa salon just a couple of blocks from here. I think the champion deserves a day of relaxation."
Pyrrha laughed, ruffling her sister's hair. "I wouldn't say no to that."
Jaune waved goodbye to the two and disappeared in a blink of blue light. He dropped down at where he parked his motorcycle, a smile on his face as he remembered how he got it.
A cruiser, having been gifted to him by his uncle, which was what he had been owed during their job at Fortuna. It was primarily colored blue and black, with some streaks of red. He had to wait until he was sixteen to get it.
He brushed his palm across it, before jumping onto its seat and pressed the ignition. Revving it up, he made sure to take it out of stun before riding off. As he travelled to his uncle's shop, he couldn't help but contemplate at what had happen years ago.
Three years had passed since the incident at Fortuna. The Mistralian government happily accepted the Fortuna populace, and most of them had gained a home, though there were still some that didn't. Kyrie had been taken in by Pyrrha's family, and it felt like she was already a part of it for so long. And, she had also been trained just enough on how to fight and use her aura, courtesy of Caelum and Pyrrha.
About two years ago, Pyrrha and Jaune started dating, to figure out if their feelings stretched beyond being best friends. The kiss had made them question their relationship. Things worked out and they became a couple. Everyone was happy for them. Well, almost everyone.
Noir had risen through the ranks and was now a Captain with her own squad, and was currently off-tour, using the time to spend at home and help out Jeanne. Sol and Luna were now full-fledged Huntresses and had gained the moniker of "Eclipsing Beauties". Although, there were times when Sol would struck out on her own as a freelancer, while Luna had decided to help out in the devil hunting business. Saphron moved out and got married to her partner, Terra Cotta, and had become an accomplished writer of her own right.
Jeanne was happy that Yamato had been recovered, and decided to properly teach Jaune on how to wield the katana, since no one else could, besides Noir and probably Dante. This helped him perfect his father's techniques imparted from the sword and gained a style of his own as to not keep on imitating Vergil's. That day also marked the time he learned that his mother was an absolute slave driver.
Nora had fully recovered from her trauma, and had lent her aid in demon hunting, while Ren stuck to the sidelines. Speaking of demons, they had become much more apparent than the last time, and business was booming for Devil May Cry. Dante had made the decision of adding more to the shop's repertoire: exorcism, detective agency, body guarding, treasuring hunting, and even Grimm excursions.
"Never thought that in a million years that this would be my life."
Pressing the breaks, Jaune drifted the bike and skidded to a halt, stopping right in front of the Devil May Cry shop. He parked it up at the side and pushed open the doors. He spotted Dante st his desk, reading some sort of gun magazine with his feet propped up.
Jaune made himself comfortable on the couch and brought out his headphones to listen to some of his tunes. He put it on shuffle, and it immediately played 'Holding Out For A Hero'.
A few minutes later, the door opened up, revealing Morrison, followed by a young girl with blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing some baggy clothing and a big pink hat. The kid immediately got curious at everything in the shop and started looking around. Morrison took off his coat and jacket, hanging them up.
"Ah, good. You two are here. Listen, I got a job for ya."
Dante looked up from his magazine for a split second and made a decision. He slammed down his foot onto his desk, sending his telephone into the air. He caught it and dialed his favorite pizza place.
"Hey, it's me. I'll have the usual. Yeah. No olives, and make it an extra large, would ya? That's all, I'll drop by to pick it up later."
He hung up, giving Morrison the opportunity to speak.
"Are you listening to me, Dante?"
"Sure, the business has expanded in terms of service, but I don't have time to babysit some brat."
The little girl looked at the hunter, offended. "Brat?"
Dante placed down his magazine and started walking up to his pool table. Jaune sighed from his position and slowly sat up, taking off his headphones.
"Don't mind him. He probably woke up on the wrong side of the bed. So, what's with the little girl, Morrison?"
The Info Broker sat down next to him, a can of beer in hand, taken directly from Dante's fridge. "She's not just any little girl, kid. She's Patty Lowell, a Cinderella girl who's heiress to the Lowell family fortune."
"Sure doesn't look like it." commented Dante from the pool table as he struck the cue ball.
"Well, that's because she's been living as an orphan just downtown from here." Morrison responded, taking a sip of the beer.
Jaune looked intrigued, and turned to Patty. From what he could see, she seemed carefree, not at all bothered by her lack of parents... And at such a young age? He could have probably taken a few notes from her, considering he was still a bit hung up on Vergil's disappearance.
At this point, Patty noticed his staring and walked up in front of him in curiosity. "Is there something wrong?"
This snapped Jaune out of his musing, making him look down and hide his thoughts with a smirk.
"Nah, it's nothing. Anyways, carry on, Morrison."
The dapper man took another sip from his beer and gave them the details of the job.
"The head of the Lowell family passed away about a week ago. When his will was read, the existence of an illegitimate child came to life. And the lucky one, is standing right with us. Anyways, it's been requested that you two escort Ms. Patty to the Lowell mansion by 6PM tomorrow. Think you can handle that?"
Dante hummed as he shot another ball into the hole. "That's it?"
"Well, there is the off-chance that some resentful family members would hire unwanted party crashers to make sure she doesn't arrive. But who can say?"
Dante hummed in thought, weighing his options before settling on having his nephew decide. "Your call, kid. You wanna do it or not?"
Jaune smirked as he stood up, cracking his knuckles. "Do you even need to ask?"
"Figured you'd say that."
Dante grabbed his coat and put it on the most dramatic way possible. He walked up to the door, Patty following suit. As the three of them were about to exit, Morrison stopped them, holding two guitar cases, with two different insignia.
"Hey, you two. You forgot something. The both of you have a show to play, right?"
"A show?" parroted Jaune.
Dante nodded, getting the implication, and took the guitar cases, handing the other to Jaune. With his business done, Morrison made his exit. "Just remember, I'm counting on you."
The three of them watched as he got into his car and drove off into the distance. Patty looked at the two and asked a question. "So, how are we gonna get there?"
Dante smirked. He pulled out a keychain and pressed the button. In a matter of seconds, a crimson sports car came halting to a stop in front of them. With his debt cleared, and him being forced to clean up his act, Dante actually managed to get some money to spend on solely for himself. And the first thing he bought was said car.
Patty looked at the vehicle in awe and walked up to it. "Woah. It's so cool." But then she realized something. "Wait. There's three of us, and only two seats in the car. So, how are we-" Patty's head shot up, hearing the sound of an engine revving. She turned around and saw Jaune on his motorcycle, having put on a pair of goggles and a helmet.
"Don't worry. I'll follow you guys on my bike."
Dante opened up the door and gestured towards the seat, speaking in a faux servient tone. "Your chariot awaits, milady."
Patty smiled and entered the car, Dante following. He ignited its engine and immediately took off. Jaune shook his head and quickly followed his uncle.
On the road, Dante nibbled on a slice of pizza, while expertly maneuvering the car with just one hand. Patty idly watched the beautiful scenery they passed by, eating some pizza as well. Trailing behind them, Jaune made sure not to go full throttle, or else he'd zoom pass them.
"I could come and see your guy's show. I mean, there must not be that much people who'd see you, right? Well, maybe your nephew. He is pretty cute."
"Sorry, Patty!" shouted Jaune, riding right beside them. "Our shows are for adults only."
Dante nodded in confirmation. He grabbed a slice of pizza and smirked at his nephew. "Hey, kid. Catch!"
The devil hunter tossed the pizza into the air. Jaune lightly pressed the breaks, slowing himself down to align himself with the descending slice. He bit into it, just as it fell, making him smirk in victory. Dante laughed in amusement, and continued driving. He idly listened to Patty ramble on more about their supposed show, until he felt something talk to him from afar.
"Dante… This girl's life is ours. Leave her to us."
The Son of Sparda saw his nephew send a quick glance to him, confirming that he just received the same message. Patty took notice that he wasn't listening and asked him what was wrong, only for Dante to pull her hat down, covering her eyes. Jaune took that as a signal and went ahead of them, seeing a truck approach them.
On the side of the container, a demon crawled out, hissing menacingly. Jaune revved up to full throttle and went to the side of the truck. The Son of Vergil swung his arm around, as it glowed brightly. The demon tried to attack him, only to find itself sliced up to pieces, falling down onto the road.
By now, Patty had managed to pull off her hat, glaring heatedly at Dante. "What the heck was that all about?!"
The half-devil remained silent, instead sending a discrete nod at Jaune. The Unholy Hybrid caught the message and zoomed off, leaving the two in the dust.
Unfortunately for Dante, they had to travel the rest of the way via train, due to the road being blocked because of an accident. He promptly got himself and Patty some train tickets and quickly boarded one. They sat at one of the less crowded cabins, which Dante had suggested.
The cambion lounged on his side, eyes closed. He glanced at Patty, who was looking at her locket. Seeing the opportunity to tease her, he seized it.
"You've been staring at that picture for a long time. Who is it, your boyfriend?"
Naturally, the young girl was offended and showed him the locket, which had a woman who looked like her, yet more older and mature.
"No, it's my mom, you half-wit! And she's a lot prettier than that woman on your desk!" Her mood then grew somber, looking back at the picture sadly. "But, I don't remember anything about her. She got sick and died when I was just a baby. At least, that's what hospital director said. So, I never even got the chance to meet her. The only thing I have, is this picture of her…"
Dante looked guilty for his earlier teasing and avoided from making eye contact. He found it strange. She and Jaune had that in common. Never actually meeting a parent of theirs. He sat up, his eyes narrowing. A demon was nearby. A man in a suit walked up to them, holding a large suitcase.
"Hey, you don't mind if I seat here, do you?"
Dante was about to retort how there were many open seats, but found his guitar case thrown at his stomach, courtesy of Patty. The young girl gestured to the now empty space, allowing for the man to sit down. He took off his hat, thanking her.
"Hope I'm not bothering you two."
The half-blood grunted, closing his eyes. "You're not bothering me, but I can't promise that you'll live long."
The man looked a bit horrified at that statement, while Patty reacted more verbally, as they passed through the tunnel. "And what is that supposed to mean? I mean, really? Why would anyone need some promise like that, just because they sa-"
Patty opened her eyes, watching as the man fell down with wide eyes, blood gushing out of his mouth. Dante sighed, shaking his head.
"You should have heeded my warning, pal."
Patty screamed in terror, pulling down her hat to cover her eyes. Dante picked her up gently and placed her at one of the empty seats, away from the man's corpse. He patted her on the back, silently telling her that it was alright. Meanwhile, the rest of the passengers walked up to the body. The woman ran up to one of the cabins in hopes of finding a conductor.
With Patty pacified, Dante went back to his original seat. The woman came back with the conductor, showing him the dead body.
"Geez. The hell happened?" He looked at Dante, demanding some answers from him.
The devil hunter shrugged, obliging the man. "Sure. I can give you the rundown. For the ten seconds or so that this train was in the tunnel, there were six people in this car - the old man, that couple, me and the little girl, and our dead friend here. The old man didn't do it. And those two were making out in the dark, so that rules them out. As for the kid, be honest. What makes you think she can do it?"
"So, that only leaves you then?"
Dante shook his head. "Nope. There's one more person… Or to be more precise, one more thing."
As if sensing it, the others turned around to where Patty was and saw a large, grotesque face staring down on the little girl. Patty looked up in surprise, but couldn't further react as the train went through another tunnel. Gunshots rang across the entire car, shooting the side then the ceiling.
When the train got back to the light, Patty blinked, noticing that there was nothing at the window anymore. The others turned back to the dead man, and saw that it was no longer human, and that it had something sticking out of its body and out into the window. The thing twitched and growled, but was promptly silenced with a shot to the head.
With the demon dealt with, Dante picked up his guitar case and motioned for Patty to follow him as the train stopped to their destination. Dante stopped for a second and turned to back to the other occupants.
"By the way, I'd recommend not reporting this to the authorities. This goes way pass their pay grade. If any of you ever encounter something like this again, gives us a call."
He tossed a calling card to the crowd and went back to walking. Patty was silent, clearly disturbed by what had just transpired. She stuck close to Dante, as the two of them left the station.
"That man… He was killed by a demon, wasn't he? C-could a demon be hunting me too?! But why? I did nothing wrong!"
Dante looked down on her, and flashed her an assuring smile. "Why do you think I'm here, Patty? Don't worry over it too much." He looked up, taking notice of the darkening sky. "It's getting late. We should probably check in at a motel, or something."
"But, what about Jaune?"
"Don't worry about him. He'll be fine."
"Welcome."
The two of them were greeted by a man hunched over with disfigured teeth and elfish ears. Dante crossed his arms and requested a room. The receptionist nodded, giving them the key. As Dante was about to drag Patty off to their room, a poster got her attention. It was of some sort of performance tonight that featured a blonde woman…who looked eerily like her mother.
"Mister! The woman in the poster, where can I go and meet her?"
Before the receptionist could respond, Dante picked her up and dragged her off. "Don't be ridiculous. I thought your mother died? Whoever that was, it's probably just a coincidence. Come on, let's get to sleep."
Dante opened up their room, and sighed. He plopped down onto the couch, giving Patty the bed.
"I didn't tell you the truth…"
Dante quirked an eyebrow, wondering what Patty was on about.
"My mom didn't actually die. She disappeared. I happened to overhear the hospital director talking about it. They said that something was chasing her down, and she didn't want me, a baby to be in danger so she placed me in the orphanage. So maybe, just maybe, that woman is actually my mother! I don't care about the fortune, or about my inheritance… I just want to be with my mother."
The Son of Sparda processed her words. He couldn't fault her for trying to be optimistic. But if the implications of what she heard were true, then she was in for a letdown.
"I wouldn't get my hopes, kid. I hate to say it, but your mom is probably gone by now. Come on, let's get some shut eye."
Shutting off the lamp, he went back to the couch and plopped down, falling into slumber. Patty frowned and placed her hat over the bed post, going into the covers.
Dante's eyes shot open. His gaze fell onto the bed and immediately took notice that Patty was missing. He got off the couch and ran to the reception area to interrogate the man behind the counter.
"Hey, where the hell's my daughter?"
The receptionist looked up, confusion written all over his face. "Daughter? I don't know what you're talking about, sir."
Turning to the poster, Dante unloaded all over it. Both as an intimidation tactic, and to actually kill it. The poster shifted into a large, butterfly, which promptly fell down, dead. The Legendary Devil Hunter grunted in annoyance. He quirked an eyebrow, feeling a gun being pointed at his back.
The receptionist chuckled, looking smug. "You should know that I know all about you."
"Yeah? Then you know that thing won't be enough to even hurt me. So, where's Patty?" He turned around, giving the man a scathing glare that made him piss his pants.
Jaune roamed the seemingly ghost town, looking around for somewhere to rest. He had went ahead and dealt with the demons that were on their way towards Dante and Patty, giving them some time to make it to their destination without any hassle.
He blinked in confusion, seeing his uncle being led by a ghoul-looking man into the opera house.
"Huh? What's Dante doing here? Shouldn't he and Patty be sleeping right now." And then he realized. "Wait, where's Patty?"
Inside of the opera house, Patty was wandering around, until she managed to find the main stage. There, she saw the woman in the poster, performing with a spotlight under her. The young girl lit up, happy that she was right.
"Mommy!" Patty ran down the stairs in a hurry, desperate to really see her mother. She jumped up the stage and into her mother's arms. "Oh, mommy! I wanted to see you so badly for so long!"
That's when she noticed something was off. Patty looked up and saw the face of a twisted demon instead of her mother. One of the stage's backdrop dropped down, containing numerous demons that had been lying in wait. The young girl shrieked in fear and closed her eyes, as the demons went in for the kill.
However, before they could even touch her, bullets flew across and shot them, causing another of the backdrops to fall down. She looked up and smiled in relief to see Dante walk down the stairs, the spotlight now shining on him.
"Hey, you don't really delay an opera like that, right? Doesn't really matter. It looks like we're gonna have to wait for that touching finale."
From behind, the demons had recovered from the attack and lunged at the little girl. Dante quickly jumped into the action and kicked them all away from Patty. Spinning around, he shot at the curtain, causing it to fall down.
"Sorry, Patty. But this show isn't for kids."
It completely covered Dante, only showing his shadow, allowing him to deal with the demons at his pleasure, without having to further traumatize Patty. She could only watch in awe as the demons cried in agony, being easily dispatched by the devil hunter. The receptionist from earlier crept out of the shadows, clasping Patty by the shoulders.
"I'm so sorry, Miss. But I'm afraid it is now time for you to die, because I was promised I'd be greatly rewarded by my masters if I killed you if the others failed to do so."
Laughing maniacally, he prepared to deal with the little girl. However, he did not anticipate a burning blade to pierce his chest. The demon gaped in horror, as he felt his life fade. Before Patty could look, her eyes were covered, courtesy of a gloved hand.
"You heard, Dante. Can't show this to you, Pats."
Jaune threw off his coat and covered it over Patty to prevent her from seeing what he was about to do. The Son of Vergil grunted and tossed the demon up into the air. Revving up Red Queen, he sliced the receptionist in two, the Exceed burning away his halves. He screamed in complete pain as he slowly turned to ash. By the time Patty had gotten off the teen's coat, all of the demons were dead.
The next day, at the Lowell family mansion, the brothers of the rich tycoon patiently waited for Patty to arrive. However, the clock had struck six, making one of them smirk and exhale his cigarette smoke.
"Time's up."
"Brother, we did it! The fortune is ours!" cheered out one of the brothers, moving to tear the letter. "This letter was nothing but a bunch of nonsense."
But before he could do so, the family butler announced that they had a guest. In came a young, mature woman that had blonde hair, green eyes and quite the figure. The brother at the window didn't bother to turn and instead asked who she was.
"Oh my, that's not funny. Nice to meet you, I'm Patty Lowell."
The reactions of the brothers ranged from shouts of disbelief, calm skepticism, and outright trying to call her out on her claims.
"But she's just a child!"
The older Patty shook her head. "I'm sorry, but that child is nothing more than a fake. I took every situation into account. Luckily for me, I managed to find a girl with the same name quite quickly. I had it arranged so that all of the media attention would be directed at her, so that my trip here would go so smoothly."
Two of the brothers angrily growled, pissed that they had been tricked. While the other remained calm.
"Now then, why don't we hurry and deal with the formalities?"
The brother at the window laughed, scrunching up his cigarette. "I'm sorry, but your claims have become void, Ms. Patty Lowell. Your rights to the inheritance have been renounced since you've missed the deadline. 6 PM. Even if it's just by a millisecond, you are aware you missed it, right?"
"Funny you should mention that. In his will, it said within one week of his death. And I'm quite sure my dad died at 6:27 PM. So, my rights are still valid. Will a driver's license suffice for identification?"
"No." assured the brother. "That'll be no longer necessary." He took off his glasses and turned to the woman, his face contorting into that of a demon. "Because Patty Lowell's existence will never be confirmed. And neither will the rest of you!"
"Brother! What's happened to you?!" exclaimed one of them in complete fear and worry.
The demon fully manifested, easily towering the humans inside of the room. He roared at the brothers and smacked them into the fireplace, heavily injuring them. Then, he set his sights on Patty and lunged. The actual heir closed her eyes at her imminent death, but it never came. She opened them and saw Jaune standing over her, holding back the demon with one arm.
"So," the teen started. "you're the one who hired us to look over Patty. I gotta say, you're pretty… Pretty detestable, that is."
The Son of Vergil tightly gripped the horned demon's head and threw it back, causing it to stumble. He glanced at his uncle, who leaned against the door, with Patty trying to watch at what was happening.
"Sorry, Uncle D. But this guy's mine!"
Jaune jumped back, dodging the monster's swings. He curled his fingers before throwing out a punch that pushed back the demon, surprising everyone, apart from Dante. Jaune dashed forward and struck the demon twice, before rearing back his hand for a devastating straight.
"Y-You! You will pay for this!"
The horned demon roared and tried to lunge at Jaune, but instead found his head torn off with a swift uppercut. Finishing things off, Jaune launched him into the air with his spectral arm, slamming him into the ceiling. As the corpse began to fall down, the Son of Vergil drew out Red Queen and cranked up its Exceed to the max. He jumped and sliced it in half, proceeding to burn the corpse.
With their business done, the two devil hunters walked away, with Patty trailing behind them.
"I saw it all - the adult only part!"
"Wait!"
The three of them turned around to see the older Patty, looking quite overcome with guilt and remorse.
"Please, wait. That child, please let me take care of her. I want to make amends for the things that I did."
Dante and Jaune glanced at each other, before looking at Patty, silently asking her what would be her response.
The next day, Jaune was on his way back home on his motorcycle. Dante had opted to go back to the train station to pick up his car. However, the white-haired Arc was not alone. Sitting on the back, her arms wrapped around his chest tightly, was Patty.
"You really sure about this, Pats? The lady looked like she was really sorry."
"It doesn't really matter! Sure, it'd be nice to live in a mansion like that, but I'm pretty sure that that she'd only treat me like an obligation. And I don't want that. All I ever want is family… And besides, you offered!"
Jaune chuckled. He pulled the brakes, and parked it right up front. Patty got off, staring at the Arc Family house in awe. Jaune smiled at her reaction and urged her to come inside. The Arc Devil flipped open the lights and placed his coat on the hanger. Before he could say anything else, Fenrir rushed down the steps and launched himself into Jaune's arms, barraging him with numerous licks to the face.
The Son of Vergil laughed at this, trying to calm down his pet. "Okay okay, calm down, boy. Calm down. Sit."
The wolf got off of his master and sat down, showing just much he grew. From the little pup he was, he grew about the size of a dire wolf, but he barely changed at all in terms of personality. Fenrir then noticed Patty, and titled his head cutely in curiosity.
"Fenrir, this is Patty. Why don't you go say hi, Pats? Don't worry, he won't bite."
The young girl tentatively approached the Arc Family's pet with a shaky hand. The black wolf didn't react, until he took the initiative and licked her palm, which made her giggle. Patty smiled and rubbed Fenrir's head, who showed his appreciation by nuzzling her.
Jaune smiled, happy that they were getting along. As he was about to call out to his mother, Jeanne stepped out of the kitchen.
"Ah! Jaune, welcome home."
The Arc Matriarch's gaze fell onto Patty, who hid behind Jaune, feeling shy all of a sudden. A gentle smile crossed the nephilim's lips as a comforting aura exuded out of her. She knelt down, looking at the young girl eye-to-eye.
"You must be Patty."
Instead of responding verbally, a meek nod was all she could muster, making Jeanne lightly laugh in amusement.
"There's nothing to worry about, dear. I already talked it over with the orphanage. You can stay with us for as long as you'd like. If you want, we can be your family."
This time, Patty had stopped hiding behind Jaune and all of a sudden, jumped into the mother's arms, sobbing as she repeatedly thanked her. Jeanne merely patted her head and picked her up, to carry her to her new room. As Jaune was about to go to the kitchen for a snack, his eyes glanced over to his mother, gently rubbing Patty's back, who had fallen asleep with a peaceful smile on her face. Jaune couldn't help but smile as well, happy to have granted the little girl her wish. He whistled out to Fenrir, who quickly followed his master, to give him a treat.
Back at the Lowell Mansion
Patty had quickly hired some professionals to completely clean up her new home, making sure that no traces of the demon remained. Her uncles had been allowed to stay, just as long as they made no plans to kill her and take her inherited fortune.
The young woman sighed, slumping into her recliner. Today was such a hectic day. And she hoped that things would get better.
Unbeknownst to her, one of the members of the clean up crew picked up the dismembered horn of the demon from earlier and stashed it away while no one was looking. Making sure that he got out clean, he kept up his act until he escaped with the horn in tow.
Things have changed, obviously. Rugal has been renamed to be Rouge. Bacchus is...well, you'll know in the future chapters. And I added a small fight between Pyrrha and Arslan.
Now, I'm sure you noticed in the earlier chapters that Beowulf was no longer present. Yes, in this fic, Dante doesn't have that Devil Arm, so it would be impossible for JauNero to use it, so, it's still where it belongs.
...I tried. I really tried. I did my best to take my own interpretation of the TAS but let's all be honest, most of it is just filler aside from episode 1, 4, 10, 11 and 12. Which is why, I'm gonna try to still make it sort of like the TAS with my own blend, but also, add in RWBY stuff to make transition later much better.
I hope you understand. By the way, I'm going to be updating the Chronicles side story as well. It'll mostly be "filler" to explain and expand on some stuff in the main story. I've got some planned, but if you have a suggestion, feel free to let me know.
As always, stay safe and sanitary.