Mornings ain't my thing, slogging out of bed hoping that no one is around to see ya in your jammies. Unless coffee is brewing. Not even ol' Devil May Cry van can wake me up at times. The strong toasty scent of dark roast hits me over the head. And that's all I really need to wake up. I carefully went down the steps, trying to not miss a step. Glaring at the clock, the hour hand jerked itself to the number 7 spot, as the minute clicked into place. I scoffed at it. Who the hell wakes up at 7 am for a gun shop? Putting my grudge aside, I unlocked the door gates, scrunching them up to the left side of the wall. The metal gates rattled, barely scrapping across the wood floors. Once they were folded, I pulled out a rusty key to unlock the entrance. As per usual, the key refused to go into the lock. Jamming it in, it finally slips into the keyhole and I'm able to turn it. After a click, I take the key out, only for it to stay. Of course when it does work, it doesn't want to leave. Yanking the key out for the 32nd time, it finally gets out of the stupid hole. Jumping over the counter, I waited for the first customer. The door chimed throughout the store after an hour, waking me up from my 1 second nap. To my dismay, it wasn't Nero. It was the same devil hunting couple, always come in to check out the latest wares. They slowly made their way through the store, carefully examining every gun. This will be a while… Under the cabinet was my latest project: a rocket launcher similar to Punchline but shoots tiny missiles. Didn't have a name yet, but it'll be a nice pretty Devil Breaker for Nero. If he ever comes back…

"Ooo what does that one do?!" a child-like voice gleefully spoke. At the corner of my eye, I saw the kid reaching out to a fully loaded rifle.

"Hey no touching the wares!" I barked, halting the kid from putting a smudge on it. He stopped and snatched his hand back to his side. "Can't afford another complaint!"

"I'm so sorry, Julio is a bit curious" A brunette girl hurriedly stated. She looked up to me and had a realization. "Nico?"

"Nero's gi—I mean Kyrie? The hell you're doing here?" I exclaimed, smiling a bit. All four went up to the counter. At a closer look, they were dressed in nice outfits, with Kyrie wearing a long dress that covered her from neck to ankle. They all looked like they just got out of church or went out to eat someplace nice, which at this early in the morning it's unlikely.

"I was hoping to ask you about something," Kyrie replied, webbing her fingers together. Off to the corner of my eye, Kyle was about to touch another gun's trigger. Before I could stop him, Kyrie glared and corrected him. "Kyle don't touch that! You don't know if that's loaded!"

"But it looks cool though…" he muttered, retracting his hand. While I wouldn't really mind showing the kid how to shoot, Rock and the police will kill me. These kids will be hard to manage unless if something can keep them from poking things. Tapping my foot, I came up with an idea.

I walked over to the three boys, lookin' like they're ready for another scolding. I bent down to them and said "Why don't you kiddos go upstairs and find Mr. Rock? He has a lot of candy to share," There's no candy up there. But there might be considering Rock is a junkie, it's still possible. With sparkles in their eyes, they stampeded up the stairs to the apartment. She tried to say something, but the moment she opened her mouth they were gone. Easily the best way to get rid of kids. Plus it'll get Rock off his lazy ass.

"Will they be okay?" Kyrie worriedly asked.

"Rock's handled kids before, they'll be fine" I reassured her, waving off her worry. She bite her lip as she looked around the shop. More people were coming in, windowshopping as per usual. "Why don't we go into the back, it can be a bit noisy 'round here once the day kicks into gear."

"Oh, okay," she hesitated, then followed me to the back room. The workshop area was pretty clean, thanks to Rock not chickening out. No nails on the ground, grease on the table, or tools not in the toolbox. Everything was packed up tight, even though it's a chaotic organized mess. At least it ain't a mess like Nero's, that asshole will have things everywhere. Kyrie tried avoiding any area that had weapons nearby, constantly checking to see if her dress got dirtied. Considering she lives with Nero, I don't blame her being paranoid. Once she situated herself in a corner, she relaxed her shoulders. "It's been a while since I've last seen you" Kyrie opened up, trying to restart the conversation.

"Yeah, still miss your pancakes" I smiled back, crossing my arms. "What brings you to Heppin?"

"It's about Nero… I haven't seen him since he left to see you," she worriedly stated, her smile quickly fading. I knew what she was going to say, but I dreaded hearing it. "I thought maybe he went back to Red Grave, but Trish hasn't seen him."

That bastard… He really went didn't he? Looking at Kyrie's worried face, I bite my lip. Three orphans and a boyfriend who goes on a trip to Hell. She can do so much better, hell I might even set her up with one. Man a smoke would be extremely nice right about now. With a sigh, I pushed through the dread and said "He went to look for Dante and Vergil."

Her eyes widened, cupping her hands to her mouth. Even under the dim lighting in the room, her face drained of all color. My stomach rolled itself over several times, irritating me even more. Once things are over, I will personally take him to Hell. Taking a deep breath, she asked "But why? I thought he wasn't going to go?"

"He had some stupid dream about V telling him that Dante and Vergil were going to die," I huffed, shaking my head. "I get nightmares but following through with it is stupid."

"So that's why he wouldn't tell me…" she frowned, resting her hand underneath her chin.

"You know about the dream?"

"Not entirely" She shifted her shoulders, rubbing her arms. "I tried to ask him but he refused to talk about it. Do you think this bee or vee person is related to Nero in anyway? Did they run the Devil May Cry shop when Dante was gone?"

I bursted into laughter, trying to imagine that kid run a shop. He could do it. Probably set it on fire by accident or let his cat and chicken make a bigger mess. I would do anything to see that right now. Kyrie gave me a confused expression as I nearly fell over imagining the thought. Recollecting myself, I calmed down and explained "Kinda related to Nero, it's a long story. Not exactly by blood, rather someone who helped during the Qliphoth incident. He ain't around anymore, but he was kind of close to Nero during that time. Not sure if pals or anything but it was something."

"Oh…" You think he'd tell her about V, considering he's half of his dad. Wonder what else he didn't tell her. Kyrie leaned back onto the coated wood shaving table. I came close to suggesting a chair but it was too late. Hopefully there wasn't any epoxy or stainable things that could ruin her dress. "Can Rock can watch the kids for a while?"

"Uhh, I guess?" I say taken aback by her question. Out of all the things she could say, I was not expecting that. A small mischievous smile grew across her face. It looked almost exactly like what Nero would do when he was about to do something stupid. Oh god… he infected her. "If you think you're going to drag me down to Hell, you gotta another thing comin'."

"I have something else in mind" she smirked. "It'll take a few more people to do it though."

Just when I get out of one hellishly stupid plan, I'm thrown into another. There's really no way of going down to Hell right now huh?

—

Stupid Nero. Foolish Dante. The scum can go burn a slow death. No, they can't even be scum of the earth. At least scum have a brain cell left to not mess with me. I'm only here for one thing. Destroy the tree. Not deal with this tainted bloodline that's ruined. Once it's done, I can finally be done with this horrendous family. The base of the Qliphoth tree stood tall before me. Enormous violet roots weaved through the burgundy ground, thin pink membranes decorated around the roots, pulsating. To my surprise, very few demons are around here. This could mean one of two things. One, the trunk is warding them off like the top of the Qliphoth tree; or two there's someone or something else that's around wiping them out. Regardless I'm ready to finish them off. Stepping up onto a lower root, I began climbing to the center. It didn't take long until a force pushed me off of the root and onto the ground. The fiend pinned me down to the ground but I still managed to react accordingly. Instinctively, I pulled my Devil Trigger and summoned my blades to point at the victim.

"You will perish for touching me!" I snarled at them, fire blazing out of my horns and scorching the ground.

"Don't do it!" a familiar voice yelped. A scruffy silver haired man with a dark red coat stood on top of me. I should've figured it was him. Dante, kneeling on my stomach, threw his hands in the air in surrender. "I was looking for you! Plus if I didn't tackle hug you, you would've scurried off!"

That is true, I would've avoided him at all costs. Calming down, I released the pressure off of his neck. Comically, he took great big gasping breaths as if I was actually choking him. With a roll of my eyes, I reverted back to my human form and shoved the fool off. "What important thing do you have to say to tackle me?" I irritatedly say, wiping down the filth that he put on my coat. Dante's rancid stench tainted the coat even more, not to mention the amount of demon blood spilt. "Now I really got to wash this coat, it has your smell on it."

"Before I can answer your question" Dante started to explain. "First, that's mean" Is it really though? "Secondly, you shan't be going without me" He pointed his finger at me. I raised an eyebrow, dissolving the swords out of the air. I'm pretty sure I can leave anytime but with the tackle it still stings to get up fully at the moment. Dante began to pace around me with his hands behind his back, looking like a detective who just solved a case and is explaining everything.

"Shan't is not a word," I corrected him.

"Doesn't matter!" he proclaimed, pointing to the sky. How he owns a shop is beyond me still. "You are trying to protect me!"

Without hesitation, I threw a holographic sword into Dante's chest. He staggered back, before acting like it was nothing. I wish he didn't have regenerative powers. "Oh I'm sorry, you said something completely idiotic. I couldn't stop myself," I dryly spoke. Dante glared at me, pulling out the blade from his chest. It dissolves into thin air once it comes out.

Shrugging it off, he continued his speech. "I finally figured out why you did everything; from the power search, accidentally— or intentionally making Nero, it all makes sense! You're basically trying to be Sparda 2.0! Well slightly worse since you are failing miserably at it."

My mind blanked out of a response other than "What the hell are you getting at."

"You can never be strong enough. You can fight all of Hell but you will never be strong that you wish to be."

"So you wish for death?" I sneered, clutching the hilt of the Yamato. "Cause if this is a matter of who is the stronger one—"

"Ahm!" Dante cut me off with an obvious fake cough. "I'm not finished!" He wagged his finger at me, then continued his grandios speech. I'll let him have this speech but once he's done I'm killing him for sure. "As I was saying, you can't achieve your goals, if anything every time you do this you wind up weaker than—"

In a blink of an eye, I snapped my wings open and tackled Dante. He blocked the attack with his sword, pushing me away. His hands slowly formed into claws, but then retracted to his human form. To think he's able to hold back is a bit impressive quite honestly, considering his temper.

"Every time, you gain this artificial power to be stronger!" he shouted as I slashed down at him again. Blocking the attack, our swords shot sparks off as it scraps against each other. "Then you lose it all again after I stop your killing spree!" I launched a flurry of attacks, each one being deflected off of his blade. Dante's movements slowed, but he still managed to dodge most of the attacks. Pulling out Ebony and Ivory, he shot at me several times, stunning me in the process.

"You forgot what real strength comes from" he continued, almost out of breath. Dante walked over to me and put his hands on my shoulders. "It comes from within, like in your heart and stuff."

"You speak of blasphemy. Strength comes from those who seek it. Not some petty heart crap." I bluntly said in a distorted voice.

"Then how come you never won when it came to taking over Hell or the world?" Dante countered, pushing off of me. "I could care less about humans until I met one. Demons were just dumb monsters until one became my friend and became almost human. Well they're still mindless human eaters but some have a heart like Trish. Nero stopped us mid-fight and punched the both of us almost out cold. How did that happen? It can't just because he trained, I've told him to stay out and look at what he did. Explain that to me!"

My anger faded, along with my powers. A pathetic, half of a human. Powerless just like before several weeks ago… I slipped onto the ground in a crouched position. The Yamato fell out of my grip, falling onto the ground. All of my fury was extinguished. Staring at the ground, I took notice of the crevices made by the fight. If I tried to smooth it over, it wouldn't be enough to fix it since it's too deep and burnt. No matter what I do, it can never be the same. "What can I do now then…" I muttered, in defeat. Dante looked at me puzzled by my inquiry. "Couldn't save mother, couldn't find father, can't be strong, can't have anyone, can't even be the damn demon that I should be!" I screamed at him. "I AM NOTHING. Everything has been taken away from me. I'm a pathetic human who has nothing else to go for. What else do you assholes want?! My pride? Why the hell not, I mean it doesn't matter." I glanced to the Yamato, and sighed "I try to be like father, but only wind up as an embarrassment of an offspring of him."

A chorus of chants swarmed my head, repeating my sins without stop. What's the point in trying to fight back when doesn't matter anymore. You lost your pride, your worth of living. Humans are weak, exposing that you are half of one shows you are even more worthless. How can you gain when all you do is lose to those inferior to you.

"That's not entirely true." Dante spoke softly. A pair of hands rested on my shoulders once more. I looked up to see Dante kneeling down, face to face with me. "If anything I'm worse than you. I'm banned from 21 pizza stores, forged a couple of bills, and occasionally commit tax fraud. Most of them happening after our fight at the Temen Ni Gru." I'm quite not surprised, though it's curious of how he got banned from 21. Maybe 5 but not over 10. Even though hearing Dante degrade himself was pleasant, it didn't rid of the hellish thoughts. Dante sighed, then tried a different approach. "You got some people worth fighting for… Yourself, obviously yours truly, Nero… umm that lady friend you met to make Nero?"

"I never knew her name…" I interrupted, shifting around to give my knees a break. "I used her to get information about the whole Fortuna situation before it exploded. Can't lie that there was something between us. Not sure if she's alive or not, most likely won't recognize me since it's been a long time." If she told me about Nero, maybe he wouldn't be alone. Then again, I was preoccupied with Mundus controlling me.

"She might be single still" he smirked, nudging me on the shoulder. I rolled my eyes. It's been over 20 years, it'd be an awkward reunion. Dante sat down next to me, leaning back with his arms supporting him. "I know what it is feels to be alone. Hell I haven't gotten a date since January," he continued. "But… that doesn't mean there's no one to be with."

"What, you?" I scoffed, turning away.

"Well," he scratched the back of his head. "You got Nero, not too late to stop being a deadbeat. Plus it isn't that bad living in the human realm, as long as you don't try to kill everything in sight."

"Hmph, as long as it doesn't try to provoke me."

"See you would do fine living up there!" Dante patted me on the back, chuckling a bit. "We got space to spare, still got a couple of books laying around the shop. Trish and Lady are pretty cool ladies, Nico can be a bit crazy but she's typically off with Nero."

"Mm" I grunted, a thin smile came across my face. "It would be nice to have some sort of place to stay, after living in hell for nearly 10 odd years."

"See! Told ya that it ain't too bad!" he slapped my back eagerly. Dante hopped to his feet, cracking a few joints in the process, then proceeded to stick his hand toward me. I don't understand. Why still treat me like I'm still his brother? After everything, I've said, done and more to kill him or get rid of him, he wants me to be with him. Grabbing his hand, he pulled me up off the ground. "Let's get rid of this weed problem" Dante smirked, cracking his knuckles.

"Hmph," I grinned, picking up the Yamato. Proudly clipping it onto my side again, I fixed my coat and began to walk side by side with him. Although I wish to be strong, it's not to survive anymore. When this abomination is gone, maybe I can finally live a more peaceful life.