Everything had been quiet in the Resident District of Red Grave City.

Well, as quiet as the city could ever be. Especially near a rather small shop in a not-so small building. Outside with glowing red neon lights labeled the shop as "Devil May Cry." Sitting inside Of the building was a man named Dante, owner of said shop, reclining on the back legs of his chair, his feet on the desk, while in his hands was a magazine.

The man was clearly bored, not having had a job in a fairly long time. So the only way that he could occupy his time was with his magazines. Not even the pool table interested him, or any of the books on the shelf in the back. After all, most of those books weren't his, but instead one of his partners. So to him they were even more boring. The weapons mantled on the wall behind him weren't interesting either. The only thing really worthwhile was the music playing from his jukebox, but he was beginning to think he needed to buy some new songs, too, as even they were becoming a bore.

So for now, the magazine with the pretty ladies inside will have to do. As he was flipping the page he heard a knock on his door, only for it to swing open before he even said a word. Peeking up from behind his magazine was a familiar face. The man strolled in, greeting Dante as he was already suited for business, accompanied with a cigar in hand. Dante couldn't help but smile, quickly placing his magazine down as he was practically begging for something better to do. As much as the man enjoyed being lazy and having free time, he's been dying for something to do.

"Greetings, Dante," exclaimed the man as he walked in rather quickly. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Morrison, my man!" Dante exclaimed back, his legs folding off of the desk as he sat on all legs of his chair, resting an arm forward on the desk. "You know, I was just about to call you to see if you had any jobs for me."

"Yeah, right," Morrison gave Dante a look, knowing just how the man worked. He gave his cigar a puff before pulling it away from his lips, smoking coming out along with his speech. "But, I do have a job for you. And I think you should really pay attention to this one."

"Really, now?" Dante raised a brow, his grin not faltering as he stared up at the man before him.

"I stumbled upon this client on the streets," Morrison explained rather quickly. "Was in the middle of a match with demons before coming up to me and asking about the place. They explained to me the job, and well, I really do think you should have a listen yourself…"

Dante couldn't help but furrow his brow together. As straightforward as Morrison was, he also had a talent for being vague all the same. Dante put his hands out in a sign of a shrug. After all, it's been a while since he's had a decent job, and from how Morrison was talking, it might just be worth his while.

"Alright," Dante said before leaning forwards again, "Who's this client, then?"

Morrison stepped to the side, silently gesturing his hand out towards the door.

Needless to say, Dante's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

Standing in the doorway was a very unfamiliar woman. She was leaning her back against the door, arms crossed, as she had her own brow quirked at Dante. A sly smile was on her dark red lips, her head tilted down as she was looking back at Dante through her own eyelashes. She practically radiated a sort of miscuous aura, seeming ready to play in any and all ways. Immediately noticing her attire, the white haired man couldn't help but wonder what her occupation was. She wore a rather tight fitting black suit, the top of it seeming to have drapes from her shoulders that had a golden trim at the ends.

Dante couldn't help but notice the shine of a red jewel on her chest, right above the slit open window of her chest. It was a large contrast to the dark clothing that she wore, which seemed to grab his attention. Dante genuinely couldn't help but wonder if this woman was from the strip joint near his place, but he's never seen this woman before, and a jewel like that on her chest seemed to suggest otherwise.

"Meet your client," Morrison spoke up, snapping Dante's attention away from the woman's figure.

"You may call me Cecelia," spoke the woman, finally pushing herself away from the door as she walked forwards, accompanied by the clicking of the heels she wore. "I've heard much about you, legendary demon hunter, Dante."

"Oh really now?" Dante couldn't help but lean towards her over his desk, his own smirk gracing his lips. "Are you sure you're here for a job, or for a night of pleasure?"

The woman, Cecelia, huffed out a laugh as she glanced to the side. She gazed around the place as she spoke. "My apologies, but I'm not exactly here for pleasantries. I have more pressing matters, and I believe you're the man to help me with it."

"And what's that?" Dante asked with a quirk of his brow, resting his chin against his left hand.

"You see, my circumstances are rather… strange," Cecelia said as she brushed back her long raven hair, which Dante couldn't help but let his eyes follow as it flowed through her hands and off of her shoulders. "But it shouldn't be a problem for you. To make a looong story short, there are demons being sent after me by a rather secret, but not exactly unknown, organization called "The Charmer Sanction." Ever heard of it before?"

Dante's smile finally faltered, the man leaning back in his seat as he kept a hand on his desk. He's heard of this organization before. Hell, they've interfered in small jobs he's had in the past. Needless to say, not every encounter he's had with them was pleasant. So hearing about this woman before him being chased by this organization with demons definitely peaked his confusion.

"Yeah, I've heard of it," Dante finally answered her question. "They've interrupted plenty of my jobs in the past. I still got my pay, but I can't say we're on "friendly" terms, to be exact."

"Perfect!" Sang the woman as she firmly placed her hands on her hips. "Neither am I. Now, here's where things get tricky." The smile she had on before fell as her tone turned serious. "You see, I don't exactly know why they're after me. But the demons they keep sending after me keep getting harder, and harder to battle. I can hardly walk around in the cities anymore with those vermin on my tail! Not to mention that they don't really care for the casualties in their wake."

"Hold it right there," Dante raised a hand up to her to signal for her to pause her story. "So, you're being chased by demons sent by an organization full of magical beings, and you've got no idea why that is?" He couldn't hold in a rather dry bark of laughter. "Haha! I feel like I've read this in a comic somewhere."

"She's being serious, Dante," Morrison spoke up, flicking the ashes off of his cigar into an ashtray on Dante's desk. "I was walking down the street and saw her fighting those things. She saved my life before I could be cut down by one of those bastards. Those demons don't care about who's around, and I was almost one of those casualties…"

"I don't wish to be the fault of lives ending just because I decided to walk the streets," Cecelia said, her voice rather somber unlike the aura she had been carrying before. "I need help, whether I like it or not. It was mere coincidence that I saved your employer, but I'm rather glad I did."

"And I thank you kindly for saving my life again, Miss Cecelia," Morrison with a genuine tone of gratitude in his voice.

"So that's why you brought her here," Dante sighed as he gazed at Morrison from the corner of his eye. "Look, you seem like a sweet woman and all, but I've got no influence on this "Charmer Sanction." I can't exactly stop them from sending demons after you."

"No, perhaps not," softly spoke Cecelia as a smirk curled upon her lips again. "But your aid would be very much appreciated. Think of it as more of an escort mission. I just need your help in killing demons, nothing more. After all the rumors that I've heard, you're quite the man when fighting against demons…"

Dante had a smirk curled on his lips, but he couldn't help but have a brow raised at her. He could see that she definitely was trying to rub up his ego, if not trying to borderline flirt with the man. It was rather hard for him to hold his tongue, remembering that Morrison was standing right next to him. But something just felt off about the woman before him. Something's telling him that she's not somebody to really be messed with.

"It's good to know that my reputation precedes me," Dante exclaimed as he pulled his legs back up into his chair, folding each ankle over the other. "But I got to wonder, what in the hell did you do to make such a powerful branch of power come after you."

Cecelia sighed, her arms crossing again as she tilted her head to the floor. It was clear that she expected the question, but seemed to also be dreading it.

"That's a bit of where the catch is," Morrison spoke up for the lady as the cigar smoke left his nose. "You see, Miss Cecelia here has lost her memories, apparently. Says that she's got no idea what she did, but all she really knows in her name."

"You lost your memories?" Dante questioned, officially not sure how he feels about this job now. "How the hell did that happen?"

"What a funny question!" Cecelia said in jest, her voice dripping with a cheerful sound of sarcasm. "I would love to know myself, but you wouldn't happen to know where my memories have gone, have you?"

"Alright, alright. I'll admit, not my best question," Dante said with his hands raised towards her as if to show surrender. "But how the hell am I supposed to help you when you don't even have your own memories together?"

"That's the thing," Cecelia said as she moved her left hand as she spoke. "I wish I could say this was a recent incident, but I've lost my memories for almost five years now. During that time I was able to regain bits of it, but I've never been able to fully recover from my memory loss. All that I truly know is that I once was a part of The Charmer Sanction, but now they wish for my blood on their hands. As for why, I can't say. The only thing I can make of it from my encounters with that is that I somehow broke their rules…"

Dante exhaled heavily, pulling his legs back off of his desk as he leaned away from the woman. "Yeah, uh, now that's a bit of a problem. You see, I've seen what these guys do to "rule breakers," and it ain't pretty. No offense, sweetheart, but I don't exactly want to be a part of that. I'm already on bad terms with them, and I don't feel like having demons going after my head. I already have to deal with that."

"Please! I promise that I'll pay you a large sum of money!" Cecelia exclaimed, her hands hitting his desk as she leaned towards him. Her flirty demeanor was completely gone and replaced with desperation. "All that I ask is that you help me fend off these creatures so they don't kill innocent civilians. I can only do so much with my powers, and even now I feel my powers waning from how much I've been fighting. I'll pay in any way that you want me to. I just need your skill and your blade, that's all I ask!"

Dante sighed again, now feeling rather annoyed by her insistence. The story he was being told felt a little far fetched, and it wouldn't be the first time that somebody tried to use sob stories to get him into a job. There was also a bit of risk for him as well if he did accept this job. His eyes darted all over her expression to see just how genuine that whole story was.

Her blue eyes bored into his, her brows furrowed as she stared intensely at him. Not only was her desperation clear in her voice, but even her eyes conveyed the emotion. Now that he was looking at her, she did seem a bit wary. She was rather good at holding her composure, but even he could notice the slightest bouncing of her shoulders as her nose flared slightly from her heavy exhales. Dante couldn't help but sigh, wondering how much he was going to regret this job.

"Tell me," he said and he decided to humor her a bit, "what exactly is your plan here, and what are you trying to do?"

The woman became quiet for a moment. She recomposed herself and pushed off of his desk, standing up straighter as she gazed back at him. She took in a deep breath before speaking.

"I just wish to have my memories back," Cecelia spoke quietly, but was loud enough for Dante to hear. "...To be truthful, I don't wish to drag anybody into my burden. I want to figure out what I did to have The Charmer Sanction to be after me. I want to fix those wrongs, and… I don't want to die before I recover what I lost… All that I ask is for an extra blade to help me along the way. I promise to pay you in any way you want afterwards. I just need help..."

Dante couldn't help but pick up on the sincerity in her voice, seeing just how her shoulders were sagging as her hand was clutched against the open window of her chest. The smile was completely gone from Dante's face as he stared at hers. She truly did seem desperate, and almost ashamed for even announcing her need for help. The white haired man sighed yet again, a small smirk returning on his face as he looked back up at her.

"Alright," Dante grunted as he stood from his chair. "I was getting bored anyway. Tell me, just where do you plan on going?"

Cecelia seemed to be taken aback, not expecting him to finally say yes. Nonetheless, she finally spoke up. "...I was going to go to The Charmer Sanction's city, Néma. I can only assume that my old home was there, so perhaps I can gain something from it."

"Sounds good," Dante said as he turned behind him, gripping his favored sword and strapping it to his back. "Morrison, I'll be taking the job."

"I knew you'd agree," Morrison said with a bit of a chuckle. "Now, miss Cecelia, care to explain to my associate of how and where you can get to Néma city?"

"Of course," Cecelia said as she recovered from her surprise. "Once we leave Red Grave City we—"

Before the mysterious woman could say another word, the sound of glass shattering rang in the air along with the door slamming open. Bursting into the Devil May Cry shop was dark, lanky demons as they seemed dead set on attacking what was inside. Their skin was a dark red, reminding Dante of flesh, as he picked up on the strange strands of what almost seemed like a black and whte collar wrapped around their necks.

Cecelia seemed to be still, her back still towards the mess as there seemed to be a smile on her face. Morrison exclaimed in shock and began gripping onto Dante's desk, one hand clutching his hat while the other dropped his cigar so he could grab the desk.

"Not this shit again…!" Morrison exclaimed, already breaking into a nervous sweat.

Dante was in the middle of pulling out his sword, moving around his desk quickly. "Hey, princess, get out of the—"

BANG! BANG! BANG!

A distinct sound of gunshots cut Dante off, causing him to halt in his steps. Cecelia had pulled her hand behind her, her body still facing Dante's desk, as she fired a gun right over her shoulder. How and where the gun came from, Dante had no idea, but he did notice that each shot hit right into the three targets that busted into his shop.

Each demon fell and disappeared into a familiar glow of dust, only to which did Cecelia finally turn, but only to face Dante. He could now see the smirk on her face with narrowed eyes accompanying them. At first Dante assumed it was smugness, but only when he locked eyes with her did he realize that it radiated malice.

"Frankly, I'm not a fan of being so rudely interrupted," Cecelia stated calmly to him. "And furthermore, I do not appreciate the nickname, "Princess." You may call me Cecelia, or something along those lines, because I won't hesitate to shoot you myself if you get upon my nerves."

Dante couldn't help but chuckle at her, feeling almost a mix between being impressed or feeling almost insulted by her words. Then again, with his luck with women, she probably wasn't kidding. He's had his full share of being shot at by women, he'll say that much. He knew when to lay off.

"Alright then," Dante said as he gazed at the disappearing bodies on his floor. "I thank you for responding so quickly to an attack on my shop. Frankly I'm not very happy about the broken windows and doors, but I can't say that it's the first time it's happened. Honestly, I'm feeling more pumped to kick some demon ass!"

"I'm glad that we're in agreement," Cecelia said as she put her gun down. With a flick of her wrist the gun was enveloped into a bluish flame, disappeared right out of her hands and out of sight. "As I was saying, as soon as we exit Red Grave City we head east. After a bit of travel, we should easily get there within two to three days. But that all depends on how we travel, and how often the demons find us."

"Sounds good," Dante said and looked at the shaken broker, who was still clutching his desk in shock. "I'll catch you around, Morrison. Think you can get a repairman for the windows and doors?"

"U-uh, yeah, sure," Stuttered the man as he slowly began to collect himself, his eyes still on the placement of where the demons had been. "Just don't expect me to sleep the night…"

"The only people I expect sleeping here are Trish and Lady, and even then that's asking for too much," Dante said as he began making his way to his broken door, Cecelia trailing right behind him. "By the way, Morrison, mind putting out that cigar? I'd rather not find out that my shop burned down while I was gone."

"Ah, shit…!" Hissed Morrison as he began stopping out the cigar he had dropped.

Dante chuckled slightly as he exited his shop, Cecelia following right after him. They both started making their way down the streets, knowing that the nearest bus stop wasn't exactly close to his working space. At first it was quiet between them, but not for long as Dante wasn't one to really keep his mouth quiet.

"That's a nice trick you did with that gun back there," Dante said and he gazed down at the woman now beside him. "Tell me, something tells me you aren't exactly as human as you look to be."

Cecelia smirked in his direction, as if mirroring his expression, as she gazed at him with the slight tilt of her head. "How observant you are. But I'm sorry to say that I am, indeed, fully human. Being a part of The Charmer Sanction has a bit of a benefit of powers. I don't precisely know just the full extent of my powers, but I know enough to have survived this long. Magic is quite handy, wouldn't you agree?"

"Seems a bit suspicious to me," Dante said as he eyed the woman strutting beside him. "Something tells me that there's more to it than what you're telling me."

"What, do you expect every magician to tell their secrets?" Cecelia countered as she simply shrugged at him. "Sorry, but you'll have to try harder to get the answer out of me. After all, I've got memory problems."

"Uh-huh," Dante eyed her as he nodded. "Playing hard to get, I see. Gotta say, I love that in a woman."

Cecelia spun around, facing Dante as she walked backwards, one hand on her hip as her attention was on him. "Oh, I'm sure you do, Mr. Demon Slayer. I enjoy a good chase every now and then…"

With a brief wink at the taller man, the woman spun around again, facing forwards as they were nearing a bus stop sign. Dante couldn't help but keep his eyes on the new companion next to him, watching how she strut as she seemed to hold an air of confidence. Or was it pride? Either way, even from their interactions he could tell she wasn't like his other companions, Lady and Trish.

Although sometimes the women would tease Dante a bit, they never tried to flirt with him. But Cecelia was a completely different story. Flirting just seemed to be in her nature, and it was obvious that she knew she had a charm over men like Dante. It really made the man wonder if she had been a sort of escort in the past, or some sort of job like that. Perhaps he was getting his hopes up? Probably. Either way, he couldn't help but wonder about her situation instead of the way her clothes seemed a little too tight on her body.

Soon enough the two reached the bus stop, only having to wait for a short bit of time before the bus came. They both hopped on, each paying for their seat, as they both sat across from each other towards the back. Thankfully since it was late, not many people were on the bus. But that doesn't mean that Dante was willing to sit with this client. After all, if she could summon a gun out of thin air, he had no doubt she could summon other things.

The bus ride was quiet for a while, nobody really seemed willing to talk, and thankfully anybody else on the bus didn't seem too excited to make much noise. After all it was a bit late, which meant a quicker drive and less stops, hopefully. As they traveled Dante would look to Cecelia every now and then, just to see if she was doing anything. She sat as close as she could to the window, her legs crossed and her chin in the palm of her left hand. She was gazing out the window, her face stoic as she watched the scenery pass by them. Dante couldn't deny the mysterious beauty she had, but he still couldn't help but feel like something was off.

Unable to really put his finger on it, he decided to let it slide. Taking up two seats, leaning against the window with his hands intertwined behind his head, not really caring that part of him was taking up half the lane. After all this ride was going to be long, and Dante prefered to get as much shut eye as he could on missions like these. He glanced at Cecelia one last time, wondering just exactly who she was before he closed his eyes shut. He began to think of peaceful things, as much as he could, as it was the only way to coax himself to sleep.

But that sleep was interrupted by the loud sound of shattering glass.

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