HBC: Well, heres chapter two! Thank you to those who reviewed, favorited, and subscribed. I probably won't be updating this for awhile because I'm going on a music trip, so I made it extra long (for me that is)!

Tell me if I've gotten something wrong with Nero, Kyrie, or Dante; or tell me if I've gotten something right with their characters! I NEED TO KNOW PEOPLE! I'm introducing two more characters in this chapter! More mystery as well! As always READ & REVIEW, please.

Chapter Two: Clocks

As we sleep, we walk

-VersaEmerge, Clocks

Nero quietly slipped out of bed, making sure not to awaken Kyrie. Slowly he padded down the hallway, downstairs, and into the kitchen. Grabbing a glass from the cupboard, he filled it with water.

He drowned it quickly. Setting the empty glass on the counter, Nero leaned against it. Even in the darkness he could see the shaking outline of his human hand.

His dream unsettled him. Okay, deep breath, Nero. He told himself. Think what the dream was about. Maybe if he took it apart piece by piece, it wouldn't scare him.

It started out simple enough. A mysterious woman was walking through the streets of Fortuna. It was dark, rainy, and foggy. She was looking for her children, which were taken away from her.

Nero took another breath and sunk to the floor, and put his knees up to his chest.

She started ranting about their father. Her husband, maybe? Then she sensed a demon. Not too uncommon in Fortuna now a days. The demon attacked, and she beat it, and, and…

Oh, god.

He couldn't think of the rest. Sure Nero had seen some pretty gory soft in his days, but now this once human woman eating a demon.

It was too much to digest. Pardon the pun.

"Nero?" The light turned on. Startled, Nero looked up to see Kyrie standing at the doorway.

"Yeah," He answered. Nero didn't like the way that Kyrie looked at him. Was that fear, or worry?

"Are you okay?" She sat down beside him and leaned her head on his shoulder.

Nero gratefully put his head on hers. "It's nothing just a bad dream." It was just a dream, nothing but a dream. It couldn't be true, just a way for his mind to scare him. "I'm sorry if I worried you."

Kyrie didn't respond, but snuggled closer to him. Comforting him in what little ways she can.

"I really don't have time for this, old man." She mocked, storming into the apartment building. "I'm not her babysitter, and frankly I just don't care."

The man, who walked surprisingly fast for someone his age, sighed and trailed behind the girl as she took the stairs. "Lea, I know that you and Aria aren't on good terms-"

She spun around mid-step. "Good terms," she laughed, "In case you've forgotten, she tried to kill me! Me, her own daughter," She growled before turning around.

"I understand that, but do you want someone to suffer as you did." Lord knows, that he suffered for all his mistakes.

Her hand paused on the railing. "I'm sure, she won't go after them. Aria's probably looking for him." She didn't look back at him.

This child just won't listen. "Lea, what's going to happen, when she doesn't find him? Your mother's sick." He followed her up two more flights of stairs.

"And who made her that way? Surly not I. Who told her that turning into a demon was the only way to get her children back? It defiantly, wasn't me. Who took away her -" Damn child and her smart mouth, he cursed silently. She was never going to listen.

It was time to play dirty.

"What's going to happen when your brother finds out everything? What you really are? Who his father and mother are? He'd be crushed." She turned to face him on the landing to the sixth floor.

Ah, how fast the time flies when you're arguing.

Lea sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "I'm expecting to be compensated for my time."

"I wouldn't have expected anything less of you."

Dante was bored.

He was very bored.

He was so bored that if somebody walked in, and told him they'd pay him in strawberry sundaes, and root beer floats, if he cleaned out their gutters, he'd take it.

Okay, maybe not that bored, but it was close enough.

He hadn't seen Trish or Lady in two weeks.

TWO WEEKS!

He hadn't heard from the kid in twice as long.

The elder slayer needed some amusement, and fast.

Just on cue the heavy mistreated doors opened, "How can I help you? Need the bathroom?" He asked studying the two that just walked in. He gestured with his hand behind him. "It's in the back."

The girl, a little younger than the kid, covered her mouth with her hand to hide her giggles. The older man right besides her looked at him with annoyance. "We're here to request a mission."

Dante perked up with interest. He placed his feet on the floor and sat up straight, well, straighter than usual. Finally, some amusement, He thought happily.

"Well you came to the right guy." He grinned.

"Of course," the old man stepped forward, and placed a metal briefcase on the desk. "I'm prepared to pay you handsomely."

Dante liked the sound of this already. "So, how much are we talking?"

The latches clicked open. The slayer let out a low whistle. "And that's only half of the down payment. You'll get the rest when you complete you're mission."

A small alarm went off in Dante's head. He had some pretty sweet gigs back in the day, but this…It was too much, way too much. Even Lady didn't get paid this much, and her services are pretty costly.

The down payment alone was enough to cover all his dept to Lady and then some.

He picked up a bundle of crisp new hundred dollar bills. "What are you asking me to do?"

The girl leaned on Dante's desk and slid a picture in front of him. "I want you to kill this woman." Dante looked down at the photo. The teen's manicured finger tapped above a scowling, but beautiful woman; however Dante's eyes were drawn to the man in photo. Vergil…

Take a deep breath.

Count backwards slowly.

Ten,

Nine,

Eight,

Seven,

Six,

Five,

Four,

Three,

Two,

One,

Zero

Nero was horrified. On a whim, he had explored the downtown area of his dream.

Just a whim.

But when he came to the alley, where Mo-the woman had eaten that demon.

He had found blood and a demonic carcass torn open.

The carcass was completely empty. No blood, organs, or meat inside or out. The slayer shook his head.

This can't be happening. It just can't. It was getting harder to breath.

My son, it's time to wake up! Mama has some fun things for us to play today! Hurry, get up and dressed! The woman in Nero's head smiled, sweetly.

Nero, Nero, it's time to wake up…

HBC: As always, thanks for reading! And please, I'm begging you! Please review. I don't know what I'm doing wrong...or right if you don't tell me!