Helloo~

It took a while, but I finally pulled myself together and continued rewriting this fanfiction. xD So there it is: chapter 2! I wanna thank everybody for your support, especially my beta reader Blood of Dusk. Thank you guys. =) *heart*

Chapter 2

A few hours later, Nero came downstairs to fetch something to eat and drink. He also hoped to meet the older devil hunter; that way he could apologize for just having run away. He knew Dante was right; there was indeed no point in whining about his current situation as it wasn't going to suddenly change back to how it used to be before. If he wanted something to change, he had to work on it. And accepting the fact that he wasn't a half demon anymore was probably the first step in the right direction…

Nero spotted Dante sitting at his desk, feet resting on top of it and a magazine of some kind covering his face. He supposed he was sleeping since he often did it that way. The teen went quietly into the rather unused kitchen, checked the refrigerator for something to eat, but there was nothing but old, bad-looking pizza. He sighed and just grabbed a can of beer. He mused how many of those he'd have to drink to apologize to Dante without feeling like the biggest dumbass ever and decided to start right away, opening the can which emitted a soft hiss. After having gulped down the half of it without even really tasting it, he let his gaze wander over to the other devil hunter and hesitantly approached him.

He was bored out of his mind and with Dante asleep there wasn't very much he could do. The teen studied his posture and wondered how the hell a person could sleep in a chair – leaning back so that only two of the four legs were connected to the ground – without falling off it. And seriously, how could he sleep in that position altogether? Didn't he have back pains when he woke up? Nero took another sip of his beer, this time savoring the slightly bitter taste on his tongue, and his eyes fell onto the magazine covering the man's face. It had some hot chick leaning over a motorcycle on its cover. He slowly raised his free hand and reached out to pull it away. When Dante's face was revealed, the younger hunter recoiled with a startled grunt. Dante's piercing blue eyes met his and the man smirked.

"Are you done with the voyeurism?" he asked, jokingly, then added "You know, you don't have to wait 'til I'm asleep to admire my absolute gorgeousness."

Nero was taken aback for some seconds, his mouth ajar, ready to debate with smug words; though they, sadly, just wouldn't come to mind. So, he clenched his jaw, blushing, and dropped the magazine not too gently onto the desk.

"You dumbass! I wasn't staring, I was just wondering if you actually sleep in that back-killing position!"

"Yeah, yeah – I'll just act as if I believe it." Dante mockingly said, waving it off with his hand, and stretched a little in his seat. Believe it or not, but his back did indeed crack. Nero brushed the tip of his nose with the back of his hand and avoided the other male's gaze by looking around the messy lobby. He finished the last bit of remaining beer in one go and crumpled the can in his hand.

"I came downstairs to tell you that I'm sorry for being an ass to you lately, but guess what – I changed my mind! It's just fine the way it is!"

The older devil hunter was a little surprised by Nero's hinted apology, but it made a warm feeling swell up in his chest. It was kinda cute, especially because Nero was rubbing his face like some kind of hysteric, little squirrel while trying to hide the rosy tint on his cheeks.

Well, it would be cute if he was a girl. Since he's a guy... it's funny or something like that.

Dante smiled at him, accepting the subtle apology in the most gentle way he could muster. He knew it probably had taken Nero a lot of overcoming and he appreciated it.

"Sometimes I can be a little more sensitive, too." he admitted and then immediately changed topic. "You hungry? Because I sure as Hell am!"

Nero, still feeling a little awkward over their weird exchange of apologies, grimaced and shook his head.

"There's nothing, but old pizza in the fridge… And sorry, but I'm starting to feel sick at the thought of pizza!"

"No problem" The older man stood up, picked Ebony and Ivory off the desk and holstered them. "Let's go out, eat something in a nice place. Whatcha say?"

"Really? You want to get out of this shit hole for something other than a mission?"

"If you're not ashamed to hang out with an old man, that is." Dante joked and winked.

Nero grinned, back to his usual cocky self.

"If you're not afraid of being arrested for hanging out with a 'kid' like me. Right, pedophile?"

"Hah! Afraid of the cops you say. They need to get me first."

The older devil hunter smiled lightly and walked pass Nero, petting his head in a passive manner. He opened the front door and theatrically turned around, gesturing for the other male to follow.

"Let's go!"

Nero was panting and groaning as he desperately looked for a bench to sit on. He whined, frustrated since he couldn't find any and clutched his stomach harder.

"Daaamn~ I don't think I've ever eaten so much. Shit! I almost can't breathe."

Dante chuckled. He wanted to point out that the issue probably wasn't the food… but he decided against it. It was funny and made him happy in a wicked way he couldn't explain to see the teen carefree again, talking about his full belly instead of the metamorphosis his body had gone through in the last couple of weeks. Nero chuckled, as well, the great amount of red wine and booze they had drunk during and after dinner showing its effect on him. He stumbled slightly, but managed to keep his stance. He gave Dante a not-so-impressive glare for having sprung at his side, ready to support him in case he really had fallen.

"You know, I'm perfectly fine. I don't need your help."

Dante eyed him worriedly, but distanced himself from the younger devil hunter. Just a little, in case something like that happened again. He then continued to walk slowly and bit his bottom lip to restrain the laugh he had been holding back ever since the teen almost planted his ass in a bed of flowers.

"Hey, look! A bench! You wanna sit over there?" the older man suddenly exclaimed, pointing at said bench. The place was a little isolated, kind of like a little park, in the height though, with the view of the city in its nocturnal beauty.

Nero just nodded and dragged himself with some difficulty over to the bench. Dante followed him and took a seat beside him, wondering if maybe, only maybe, he shouldn't have let the kid drink so much.

Naah, it's fine this way. Look how happy he is; it's doing miracles to his mind! Booze never fails to help a miserable soul out… even if he'll have a nasty hangover in the morning.

"… Dante?" the teen called for him, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Yeah?" the man turned to gaze directly at his younger fellow. Nero was staring at him like he was actually staring right through him, a drunken blush covering his otherwise always so pale cheeks. He was swaying lightly, but also trembling a little.

"You cold?" Dante asked him. The teen didn't reply. The older devil hunter shrugged and just took his coat off, letting it fall around Nero's smaller frame.

"Nooo~ I'm not cold!" that answer was a little behind time. But he still didn't try to take the coat off, Dante noticed with a smirk. The kid was rather silly when drunk.

"Dante, you really think I'm going to have my Devil Bringer back someday?" he slurred unhappily and shifted a little in his seat to face the other male better.

"Yeah, I think so. Don't worry about that all the time. I promise we'll find a way to get your powers back, alright?"

Nero hummed softly in reply and lowered his head. He was looking all sad-faced down at his arm, which Dante noticed; so he nudged him with his elbow to draw Nero's attention back to himself.

"Are you feeling better? Wanna go home now?"

Nero anxiously shook his head, swaying dangerously and almost falling off the bench in the process.

"I think it's really nice up here!"

"Alright. We can stay for a little while longer, if you really want to."

Dante sighed softly and leaned back against the backrest of the bench, crossing his arms. At his right, Nero was slowly hunching over and breathing heavily through his mouth.

"Kid, you sure you're feeling alright?" the older man asked, this time sincerely worried. Nero groaned, annoyed and snatched Dante's bicep, yanking at it weakly. The older devil hunter frowned, trying to figure out what the hell the other male was trying to do and in the end just loosened his crossed arms to lend him one of them for whatever he needed it.

"I'm fucking fine; stop being a pain in the ass! I can't stand it when you act like I can't take care of myself! And stop being better than me in everything we do, it pisses me off! Can't you just pretend to lose once in a while? It depresses me, dammit! Why do you have to be like this? So frigging – so frigging… annoying..." His complaining tone became softer, quieter. He leaned into that muscular arm he was holding, burying his face in the fabric of Dante's three-quarter-sleeved shirt. "It's infuriating. Why do I care about you so much?"

Dante had visibly stiffened and was looking down at the boy clinging to his arm like he had turned into a poisonous, giant spider. This was Nero, he reminded himself. A very cocky and arrogant teenager with whom he had to fight his moodswings with every single day, from the first day he had moved into the Devil May Cry office. No, scratch that. Since the very first day he met him in that little, fucked-up town, Fortuna. Having another guy clinging and cuddling with his arm was rather awkward. He didn't feel comfortable about it and he knew, Nero wouldn't either, if he weren't out of his senses.

"What did you say?" he asked him anyway, just to make sure. He could feel the younger one's warm breath through his black shirt and the weak hands slowly slipping off his arm as Nero's cheek pressed harder against his shoulder.

"I like you. You're the only person besides Kyrie I really feel comfortable with." the boy's reply came out muffled, but he sounded cheerful and sincere. "And you're always here for me when something bad happens."

Nero giggled – yes, giggled – and nuzzled Dante's arm with his face. The older man stirred a little, wanting to stand up and detach himself from the weird-acting teenager, but stayed there on the bench, nervously biting his bottom lip instead.

After a while, he noticed that the younger devil hunter wasn't moving anymore. He carefully lifted his arm to get a look at Nero's face and saw that the boy was slumbering peacefully. He let out a sigh of relief and decided to never mention to the boy what had happened this evening. Never. Dante pushed him off himself and stood up; then he picked him up and hoisted him over his shoulder.

"I'll kick your scrawny ass if you decide to puke while I'm carrying you around like this, kid." he mumbled, more to himself than to the unconscious male, and started to walk down, all the way back to his car.

The next day, Nero woke up, groaning loudly. His head felt like somebody had used it as a football and his eyes were swollen and stung because of the sunlight coming in through his window.

What the Hell…? What time is it?

He crawled out of bed like he was dying and managed to stand up after a few attacks of dizziness and nausea. He noticed that he was wearing a t-shirt and shorts; he couldn't remember changing his clothes though. Ah, well. He couldn't remember nearly anything at all, now that he thought about it. He tiredly walked into the bathroom and stripped down to nothing, then stepped into the shower. The warm water relaxed his muscles and nerves and calmed down his troubled mind. Had he really drunk that much yesterday? Had he done something embarrassing? He wasn't one to get wasted often… it's not like something like that was tolerated in Fortuna. And the few times he had were bad enough that he could have swore to himself not to do it again. Had Dante taken him back home and put him to bed? Wow, that was embarrassing. He tried to remember but had only pictures of himself and Dante sitting on a bench in some kind of park floating through his head. And then? … Oh. He blushed lightly. He remembered Dante pulling his coat off for him because he thought he was cold. What a cheesy thing to do! And wait, he remembered something else. How muscular Dante's arm had felt and how good he had smelled as he had buried his face in his sleeve. His scent had been… manly. Manly and intoxicating. And actually, it was weird that he had liked it so much… maybe he should just ask him if he could borrow his cologne or something…

So, uhm… let's turn off the cold stream, riiight.

The cold water met his burning body and he flinched, displeased. How could he talk and act normally around the older man after what he had said and done the previous night? Fuck the red wine! Fuck the booze! Fuck going out with Dante! Fuck it!

Some hours later, the teen was sitting on the couch, sipping at a warm tea to soothe his upset stomach, and waiting for Dante to come home. He obviously had gone out for another mission and Nero was a little… disappointed that he still couldn't join him. Well, after yesterday evening, it was better this way, maybe…

Suddenly, the door opened and the older devil hunter stepped inside the shop, looking rather worn out if the slightly tousled hair and circles under his eyes weren't reference enough. He routinely leaned Rebellion against the wall and dropped Ebony and Ivory onto the desk. Then he let himself fall into his chair.
Nero blushed, thinking about the night before, but decided to behave like nothing had happened. He slowly stood up and plodded around the room, avoiding some pizza boxes, some cans of beer, bottles of booze, magazines and other shit lying around on the floor. Damn, they really needed to clean up once in a while. He reached Dante's desk and his gaze lowered. He stared into his cup of tea and mused that he actually did not even like tea. But whatever. It looked interesting though. Brown-greenish. What was this flavor again?

"Hey kid," the older man greeted him nicely. "You feeling better?"

Screw the tea and its stupid flavor. He felt heat crawl onto his cheeks and hoped he didn't look as dumb as he felt. He nodded, without looking up, and took another sip of the warm beverage – just for the sake of doing something.

"Had a hard mission?" he asked nonchalantly, but forgot that fiddling around with the hem of his shirt probably didn't look too cool. When Dante didn't reply, Nero finally dared to look up. With big, shiny eyes, he met his gaze and immediately averted his own again, scratching his nose.

"I wasn't on a mission." the man softly admitted after a while. "I've been looking for an explanation to your case, but nobody has ever heard about a half demon losing his devilish side. So I went to the library, but I just found something about a weird spell to make demons become tame like pets. The cursed demon seems to lose its power too, but it kind of doesn't sound like something that, well, could have happened to you."

Nero blinked a few times, trying to imagine Dante in a library, looking through books… and that alone was a reason to laugh his ass off. It also explained why he looked so drained… And the thing with the pet-demons… he couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"'To make demons become tame like pets?' Seriously? Who the Hell would want a demon as a pet? What a stupid spell."

Dante smirked slyly and leaned comfortably back against the backrest of his chair. He let his fingers glide along his stubbly chin and studied Nero with pensive, blue eyes.

"I wouldn't mind. And you know, it's not that impossible if I think about it with you in front of me. First the demon begins to weaken and then to lose its powers. Fangs and claws begin to crumble and the only thing left are cute unsharp teeth and cute soft paws. Just like a small little puppy you can cuddle with all day long. Sounds familiar to me, what about you?"

The boy's grin faltered. Had Dante just compared him to a dog, of all things? Or was he misunderstanding something? Yes. He was misunderstanding something. Because there was no way something as stupid as that could be happening to him. Even if it sounded kind of reasonable.

"And you know what happens after the 'physical' metamorphosis?"

Nero swallowed another gulp of his tea and tried to look like he didn't really care. He glanced at Dante's jerk-face and waited for the revelation he was sure he wasn't going to like. The older devil hunter chuckled evilly and moved his arms behind his head, using them as a pillow.

"The 'pet' demon begins to have strong submission feelings towards its master. It begins to crave for praise, for any attention at all. It is ready to do everything to please its master. And in the end, it becomes pretty much the perfect little pet every child wishes for their birthday!"

The teen roughly dropped the cup of tea onto the desk, splashing the warm liquid everywhere. He glared at Dante.

"Doesn't sound like my case at all, you idiot!"

"Yeah, with that attitude, I doubt it too. Or do you yearn for praise and attention from my side?"

Dante winked mockingly and grabbed a magazine which was lying on the table, starting to go through it without really reading it.

"Shut up! Even if it was true, why the Hell would I choose you as my 'master'?"

"Because I'd make you choose me. Believe me, kid."

Nero was shocked. His eyes widened, his mouth open in disbelief. At that sight the older devil hunter couldn't help but crack up with laughter, pointing a finger at him and slamming his hand on the desk. How old was this guy again? Something around thirty? No way man. No way.

"Yeah, whatever you say, old man… Ha ha ha."

He turned around and went upstairs. What a nice conversation. The events of the night before were already forgotten; who the Hell cared if he had gotten a little sentimental and clingy? Look at this sick "pet-curse"- theory; this was something he could worry about. He didn't want to admit it, but the stuff Dante had told him did indeed sound pretty much like what was happening to him. Well, at least the first part of it. But seriously! Who the hell would practice such a spell on him! And why? It didn't make any sense at all. Nero reached his room and let himself fall onto the soft mattress which had become so acquainted to him. He wrapped the thick blanket around his body and massaged his temples and eyelids. And what if it was true? What if he… no. Just no.

Dante… I would never allow myself to submit to you!

Thanks for reading! Tell me what you think, feedback is very appreciated. =) Hope it won't take me that long again to rewrite the next part. See ya!