"I can see Nero not wanting to stay in London and for everyone to think you're the reason he got into one of the universities, but does he really need to leave the country?"

Nero wondered if Sam even cared he could hear her. She was just down the hall with his mother, who was taking this with the grace he'd always expected of her. He slung the last bag over his shoulder, it was filled with the carry-on items he'd be taking with him on the flight. Everything else was being shipped to his dorm in Toronto - he was pretty sure it should be arriving there by now unless it got held up in customs.

Something gripped him tight in his chest as he stared at his room. The only thing left was the bed, everything else he'd taken down to bring with him. He stared at the space where the photos of him and his family used to sit, and how those pictures were likely going to be the first thing he set up once he got settled in.

"Already too late now," Nero said, forcing himself to leave his room, "tuition's been paid and I'm not giving up the dorm I got - it's the only place which has parking spots big enough for a van."

"While I can't believe the first car you bought when you got your license was a van, what I find even more baffling is why you're taking Nico along with you." Lara said with a raised brow.

Nero ducked his head, shrugging one shoulder. "I figured this would be a real way to pay her back for getting Red Queen and Blue Rose functioning well as they do."

And Nico had agreed to be his devil hunting support whenever Nero got wind of demons causing trouble. Canada might have a stereotype for politeness, but he doubted their demons worked the same way.

"You do have a single bedroom dorm, right?" Sam asked, brows knitted together.

Nero blushed, glowering at her. "For the last time, Nico and I are not a couple! She'd kick my ass for even bringing it up."

"Just remember, you're not allowed to date until you're twenty-five." Sam said.

Nero rolled his eyes, but smiled a little despite himself. He doubted he was going to be having much of a social life anyway. "So I guess me taking your cousin on a date is just something we're gonna let slip by?"

Sam huffed, crossing her arms. "Hey, I already told you; I had no idea that's why she wanted to come see me and only found out after the sneak texted me about it."

"If it's any consolation, I didn't have a very good time." Nero said placatingly. Honestly though, Sam's cousin was more tolerable to him than Dante's tagalong. He smiled a bit wider when Sam beamed back at him.

"Just try to call whenever you get the time." Lara said, and wrapped her arms around him.

Nero hugged her back. If he were a petty newly turned adult, he might have brought up that it was usually him who always said that, of how reversed this whole thing was. "I'll try, but not sure with how much homework and assignments I'll probably get."

"Oh, I'm sure it'll take up quite a good deal of your time." Lara replied dryly.

Nero snorted, but his grip tightened just a little bit more. A heavy weight settled in his chest. This was really happening. He let the bag slip from his shoulder, and brought Sam into the hug as well. She hung onto him with the grip of a vice. "I'm gonna miss you both, but I'll try to make it home for the holidays."

"You'd better." Sam said, her voice cracking with emotion. "An ocean isn't going to stop me from dragging you back to see us."

Nero laughed, just because he wasn't sure if Sam was actually serious about that or not. "Alright, I promise I'll really try then." he said, and Sam snorted, punching his shoulder lightly.

Lara sniffed, her eyes glistening as she pulled back and cupped his cheek. "Don't be afraid to use that credit card, okay? I want you to have enough food and supplies to last, I remember how late nights can get."

Nero leaned into the touch, closing his eyes for a moment. "I will." his hand came to clutch the pendant around his neck, the jade trinket his mother had give him. It still amazed him she would give him something so valuable to him. "I...I better get going," he said, reluctantly pulling away, "Nico's probably going to start honking at me to hurry up." Not a moment later, a sharp blare echoed outside. "See?"

Lara laughed softly, and leaned up to kiss his forehead. She smiled when Nero grimaced and looked away embarrassed. "Have a safe flight."

"And call us when you get there, no matter what time it is." Sam added.

Nero nodded, and they followed him down to the lobby. He hesitated once he reached for the door handle, glancing back at Lara and Sam, then at everything else. This was home, he'd grown up here and now he was really leaving. 'I can't believe I'm doing this.' he thought, a bit dazed from the reality settling in.

Nero breathed in deeply, managing to smile as he walked out. He waved behind him until he climbed into the passenger seat of his van, Nico behind the wheel. He kept the window down, because she already lit up a cigarette. "Tell me you're not going to smoke all the way to the airport."

"Can't smoke on the plane, gettin' it all done now." Nico said, and blew out a waft of smoke. "Especially since you won't let us take your fancy private jet."

"For the last time, that's my mom's jet and I wouldn't let you smoke there either." Nero grumbled, waving his hand to clear the air.

"Not even to go on a little joyride?"

"Let's just go." Nero leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms. He caught sight of his mother and Sam at the doorway of the manor, and he returned their wave before he was slammed back against the seat as Nico sharply turned the van and peeled out of the estate. "Where did you learn to drive?!"

"Through practice!" Nico shouted.

Nero grabbed a hold of the door, gazing out as cars honked at them. "Slow down, we're not gonna miss the plane. Besides," he paused, and sighed warily, "we got one last stop to make."

"What are you doing here?" Nero asked opening the door to the agency. He narrowed his eyes at the teenage girl cleaning up.

Patty huffed, her arms full of pizza boxes. "I should be asking you the same question."

Nico glanced around the messy interior, her excitement barely contained once she realized where Nero wanted to go. "Where's Dante?"

Patty blinked, furrowing her brow before glancing at Nero. "Is this your girlfriend?"

"No!" Nero visibly recoiled while Nico snorted, "As if!"

"Good, you could do so much better." Patty said to Nico, while Nero rolled his eyes.

"She just asked you where the old man was, that was not an excuse to rag on me." he said.

"Well he's not here. He left for a job." Patty said, tossing the boxes into a garbage bag. She jerked her thumb to the desk. "Said if you came by that was for you."

Nero raised a brow, and almost dreaded whatever it was his uncle left for him. It was a large item wrapped in paper, with the note attached and in hasty handwriting it said, 'If normal's too boring for ya after all.'

"What it is? Come on, open it!"

Nero batted away the hand Nico was using to shake his shoulder. "I'm hurrying, alright?" he shook his head, and knelt down in front of the object. Deciding to get it over with, Nero grabbed a handful of paper and tore it off. His brows rose until they reached his hairline when the whole thing was revealed to him.

An unlit neon sign in the shape of the words 'Devil May Cry'.

Nero stared at the thing, not knowing whether to do either what the sign said or laugh incredulously. Instead, he shook his head with a half-irritated, half-fond smirk. "The old man probably just didn't want to give this to me in person. Have to admit he likes me hanging around or something."

"We are so putting this up on the van, it's gonna look real good on the side." Nico said.

Nero scoffed. "We're not putting anything anywhere until we get to Toronto." he still lifted the sign under his arm though, but a thought came to him and he smirked as he turned the note over.

Finding a pen, Nero wrote down, 'Better watch out, or I'll be taking the shop next than just the name, old man.'

"Alright, now we can go."

A/N: This series has been fun to write, but I think at this time a natural progression has been reached. I'm not saying this is done, just this series is for the time being. I was going to get into the DMC5 stuff, but I decided to leave this series off on something really sweet, than bittersweet. I may do something for what that game provides, maybe in another short story.

*shifty eyes* Or who knows, maybe down the line someone else may try out the same idea and give it a go. That would actually be pretty awesome. Until next time!