Summary: His family shattered before his eyes, the first time he ever took a life. The events that would steal Dante's innocence, making him the hunter he is today...

Disclaimer: I do not own squat. I know the twins, but I cannot claim ownership over them. Only the almighty Capcom can dare to do that, which is reasonable. They own the games, after all.

A Nice Surprise

Dante lay tired and sleepless for a long time before finally drifting off. His dreams were visions of his father this night. Strange, because he never dreamed of Sparda. Ever.

Dante had both loved and hated his father. It was his mother whom he adored. But this night he had a dream of learning sword-craft from his father. At the end of the dream, he managed to disarm his father, then was swept into Sparda's arms for a hug.

"Dante? Hey, Dante!"

Vergil's voice broke him out of the dream. He raised his head out of the pillow and waved his arm over the side of the mattress to let his brother know he'd heard him. "Yeah?"

"It's morning. We're twelve, now."

"Oh, yeah. Awesome." He dropped his face back into the pillow, still tired.

There was a sudden jolt as Vergil kicked the bottom of the upper bunk.

More awake, and also a little irritated, Dante raised himself up enough to hang over the side of the bunk and look at his twin. "What?"

"I thought you said you were going to wake up Mom this morning."

"In a little bit. I'm still tired." He yawned, for emphasis.

"She's going to get up before you, brother."

"All right, all right. I'll get her up. You coming?" Dante asked, beginning to climb out of bed and down the back of the bunk.

Vergil hesitated. "No, I don't think so. She might decide to keep our presents if we piss her off too much." Dante heard him squirming around in his bunk. "I think I'll stay here until she gets up."

"So you actually get your present if she holds mine back for waking her up. You need to start doing your own dirty work, Vergil." Dante tugged on a pair of boxers and ran a hand through his unruly hair. He and Vergil both had a habit of sleeping naked in the spring and summer, but their mother insisted that they at least put on some briefs or boxers before waking her up in the morning. Dante found the rule vaguely annoying, but enjoyed his early-morning snuggles with his mother too much to disobey.

He left the room and crept down the long hallway to the master bedroom, three doors away. This house was an older one, and Dante had to take care to avoid the noisier floorboards, lest they creak and give him away. At last, he reached the door and gently turned the silver knob, cracking the door enough to stick his head in.

Eva lay on her stomach with her head resting on one hand on the pillow, still asleep. Dante thought she looked like a sleeping angel. He slipped inside, and hesitated. It seemed a shame to disturb her….

And yet….

He took a running start, and leapt onto the bed. As usual, he stayed atop the covers and snuggled close to his mother, singing that it was time for her to get up.

Eva lifted her head from the pillow and groaned softly when she saw him. She had found sleep elusive last night, and was not entirely happy to see her younger son that morning. Still, she couldn't blame him for being excited; it was his birthday, after all.

"Mommy, it's time to get up!" he sang, relaxing on the covers between her and Sparda's long-empty side of the bed.

"But I don't want to get up," Eva protested, sitting up and raising her arms above her head in a luxurious stretch.

"You will. You have to make us breakfast," he replied matter-of-factly.

"Oh, I do, do I?" Eva tickled her son's belly, making him laugh. "And why, pray tell, can you not get a bowl down from the cupboard and make yourself some cereal?"

Dante shook his head. "Not on my birthday, Mom. I dunno about Vergil, but I want pancakes."

His mother smiled, and reached out to tousle his white locks. "Fine. I'll make you pancakes for breakfast. But first let me get some more sleep. Your mommy is still very tired, and doesn't need to be nodding off in the batter or over a hot stove."

"Okay, Mom." She lay back down on the pillows, and Dante snuggled up against her again, pulling an afghan over himself and closing his eyes for sleep he likewise wanted more of. Eva laid her arm on his back, thankful that at least one of her sons didn't think it was strange or childish to crawl in with her and sleep or talk with his mother at their age. Vergil had stopped doing that about six months ago.

About fifteen minutes after she dropped off to sleep, the door opened again. Vergil peeked in, and hesitated when he saw that his mother and younger twin were asleep. The door squeaked as he leaned on it a little too far, and Eva opened her eyes. She smiled tiredly when she saw her elder son in the doorway and, turning onto her back, patted the vacant space between her and the edge of the bed, inviting him to join them.

Vergil hesitated. Normally he would turn down the invitation, believing it somehow beneath him. But this time a feeling of profound, unexplainable need for his mother's loving presence overwhelmed him, and he crawled in atop the sheets but beneath the comforter beside her.

Eva ran her fingers through his hair so it stood on end, spiky like a punk hairdo, and lay back down between her sons for some much-needed sleep, turned towards Vergil this time so he wouldn't feel left out.

LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

Nalasmil had found them.

She had used her occult abilities to scry for the sons of Sparda for hours, scouring every inch of the city, and only now had she picked up their scent. Raksh writhed in delight inside her as the human woman and her twin sons appeared in the enchanted mirror.

You have done well, Nalasmil, he purred inside her mind. Now that we have them, put a tracer on the woman. We cannot lose her, or her sons, again if our purpose is to be accomplished.

"Yes, Master." Nalasmil centered herself, and began to whisper words of dark power, calling upon the dread lords of Hell to give her the means to pursue her prey, the sacrifice she would offer them in exchange for even more dark favors.

Three sacrifices of the original four, each long-anticipated by Raksh and his masters.

Sparda had escaped their net, but his woman, his precious sons, would not.

The power of the blackest hearts spilled into her, and Nalasmil arched back, gasped with the intense pleasure-pain of the demons' touch. She whispered a short string of harsh syllables, a dark spell that made the air seem to curdle around her, and pressed a single finger against the female in the mirror. She traced a rune upon the glass, and the character burned with yellow-green flames, drew itself upon the woman's back beneath the thin nightdress she wore. She shifted uneasily, but didn't awaken.

Nalasmil smoothed her hand cross the demonic character on the mirror, and the rune on the woman's back vanished from sight. But it was still there. Nalasmil could feel the marking tugging at her senses, telling her in which direction the human woman lay.

"How long will it take to gather your allies?" she asked.

Today and tomorrow, Raksh whispered. Mundus, Prince of Darkness, will rise from the depths to take on mortal shape, and his servants will accompany him. His lesser servants, that is. You and I shall act as the hounds, leading him to the slaughter before he returns to the Pit. Nalasmil felt the deep rumbling, the vaguely ticklish feeling that meant he was laughing. He will kill the woman himself. Sparda defeated him two thousand years ago; her death at the hands of Mundus would greatly wound the traitor.

"And the sons?"

That is what the petty demons are for. They will hunt them down and slay them, because while they are indeed the sons of Sparda, they are weak, and beneath the notice of the Prince of Darkness. The fact that his sons were killed by the least of the demons would also be of great torment to that cursed Sparda.

"So the attack will commence tomorrow, after dark." Nalasmil smiled wickedly. "At the stroke of midnight, the bloodline of Sparda will exist no more."

Within her, the demon laughed, and Nalasmil joined him, first a cruel chuckle, then she threw back her head and laughed aloud, a maniacal cackling known only to the insane, the most wicked of human beings.

All would fall into place soon.

Very soon.

LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

Eva finished rinsing her long blonde hair and turned off the water, reaching for a waiting towel. She had already fixed the boys' breakfast, and they were feasting on fresh pancakes with real maple syrup. They had been good this morning, with no arguments at all. Vergil had even volunteered to help Dante with the dishes after breakfast.

She smiled; they simply didn't want her to refuse them their presents. She had done that when they were seven, and they had never forgotten it.

After toweling off and blowing her hair dry, she dressed in a knee-length skirt and a sleeveless white top. A pair of boots finished off the outfit, and she brushed her hair out, making sure that her bangs fell as they should, across her right eye. Satisfied, she opened her dresser and, after lifting aside some clothes, pulled out two boxes.

These had been given to her by Sparda when first she had slept with him, on what turned out to be the twin's conception. Eva had kept them ever since, knowing that any children she bore would treasure them.

She opened the boxes. Two blood-red jewels, each glowing with a soft inner light, glittered up at her. The gems, in their respective gold and silver chain settings, were each as big as her hands. Eva had never worn them herself, but she was willing to bet that her sons would.

She lifted them out of their boxes and went downstairs. Vergil and Dante were still eating, still being nice to one another. It gladdened her to see that, because she really did hate it when they fought. They looked up expectantly as she came through the swinging kitchen door.

Eva fought to hide her grin, to keep it toned down to a tiny smile. They knew that whatever she had behind her back was for them.

She stood there for a few minutes, until both of them were fidgeting in their seats. This was a game they played on each other's birthdays, seeing how long the birthday-person could hold out before demanding their gifts. "So, what do you want to do today, boys?" she asked, drawing out the suspense even more.

"Mom!" they both yelled, their patience at the breaking point.

She couldn't hide her grin. "Oh, did you want something?"

"C'mon, already!" Dante groaned.

"Give us our presents!" his brother demanded.

"If you insist…." Eva sighed, mock-disappointment, then her face brightened into a smile. "Vergil, Dante…" She brought the amulets out from behind her back and offered them to the twins. "Happy birthday!"

Their eyes widened when they saw the amulets. "Oh wow!" Dante nearly fell out of his chair trying to get out of it.

"I want the dark one!" Vergil reached her first, and grabbed the gold one from her left hand. Dante reached her a minute later, to claim the amulet with the silver chain.

Eva seated herself and poured a glass of orange juice, sipping it while her sons slipped the chains over their heads and argued over who looked best.

"Where did you find these, Mom?" Vergil asked. He and Dante were now closely inspecting the other's new neckwear.

Eva got up and put some bread in the toaster. "Your father gave them to me. Don't lose them; they can't be replaced."

"We won't, Mom."

"We'll take good care of them." Dante hopped back into his chair, ready to finish breakfast. Vergil went to his mother and tapped her on the shoulder. When she leaned down, he kissed her cheek.

"Thanks, Mom."

"You are welcome. Just take care of it, okay?" She raked her fingers through his hair again, and he scowled at her before smoothing it back down.

Secretly, Eva was glad he had. When she had looked at her sons just then, one with his hair flopping across his eyes, the other with it standing straight up in uneven spikes, she had felt as if she was receiving a glimpse of the future. A future that, for some unknown reason, filled her with dread.

Vergil went to watch T.V while she and Dante finished breakfast. They could hear him watching cartoons through the door. When Dante had put his plate in the sink, he went to his mother, who still sat nibbling her toast and reading the paper, which he had brought in when she had gone upstairs for her shower.

"Thanks, Mom." He hugged her tightly, and Eva twisted in her seat to return the gesture.

"You're welcome."

LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

Queen: In case you're wondering where Vergil is today, he is currently tied down to his bed as punishment for locking us up yesterday. Do not fear for his welfare; Dante has been sufficiently bribed into keeping as far away from his brother as he can get.

(turns computer so readers can see Dante laying sprawled on the couch, surrounded by pizza boxes and empty beer bottles. He is staring at the tv, his eyes glazed over)

Dante (obviously drunker than a skunk): But if it was orange, how could they put wheels on it?

(he is watching "Late Night with David Letterman.")

Queen: He'll be out of it for a day or so. Pizza and beer-induced coma, you see. Now, I must go and feed Vergil. He'd better not have broken those chains again. Hundred bucks says he's going to be furious when I get in there. Man never did like being at the mercy of someone else.

Dante: The cow killed the bottle of Oreos. How did the Oreos give the naked statue the flu?

Queen: I could let you listen to his babbling for a while, but I think that it might be better for your sanity if I just ended this now. Review please!

(transmission ended, leaving the readers staring at their blank screens in wonder)