Kante

Kante is the het ship between Dante and Kat from the Devil May Cry fandom.

The Chronicles of Vergil
Vergil, Dante’s twin brother, and Kat successfully locate Dante. While Vergil stays back at The Order’s home base, he sends Kat to go and retrieve Dante. Dante and Kat first meet at the very ending, which is the very beginning of DmC Devil May Cry. She informs him that he’s been found out again by the demons and that he’s “got to come meet him” and “the survival of the human race depends on it”. Dante questions who’s found him, with Kat simply telling him the demons.

DmC Devil May Cry
Dante is hungover and just waking up from a wild night. Moments after waking a girl bangs on his trailer’s door, yelling, ''“Dante! Get out of there! You’re in danger!”'' Dante opens the door, asking who she is. She informs him that the Hunter demon has found him. Realizing it’s too late, Dante is pulled into Limbo, a dimension that exists parallel to the human world. Throughout his fight with demons the girl guides him.

Once the fighting has ceased for the moment, the girl comes up to Dante, with him pulling his guns on her. She throws her hands up, introducing herself, ''“Don’t shoot! My name is Kat — I’m not a demon.”'' Kat explains to him she’s a medium, and that’s why she can communicate with him while he’s in Limbo. She then tells him to follow her. Trying to lead Dante to a portal – a rift – back into the real-world, the Hunter demon traps him in. Kat assists Dante by throwing a molotov at its face, weakening it a bit so Dante can kill it. Once back in the real-world, Kat pulls up to Dante in a car saying how she helped him back there and that her boss, the leader of The Order, wants to meet him. As police cars drive by with their sirens blaring, Dante reluctantly gets into the car.

After meeting Kat’s boss, Vergil, the three of them travel to Dante and Vergil’s old childhood home — the place where Vergil learned who and what he was. Now it being Dante’s turn. Kat works at opening a rift from the real-world to Limbo on the ground. As she does, Dante crouches down to her level and questions what she’s doing. Kat explains how she’s opening a gateway from their and the demon’s dimension, using her spray can of spells. Dante takes a whiff of her homemade recipe from his fingers, before shoving his hand back in disgust. As Kat explains what’s inside her recipe, Dante stands back up, not before wiping his hand on her shoulder. With the rift ready, Vergil makes a comment about it being “rough” in there and just before entering Limbo again, Dante turns to Kat saying, “I like it rough.”

Dante arrives back into the real-world with the knowledge of now knowing who and what he is. A short time later, Dante and Vergil are walking in a park where Vergil explains more of what’s going on. Dante is spotted by a demon collaborator, where he is dragged back into Limbo. As Vergil runs, he tells Dante that he’ll go find Kat, as she’s the one who can get him out without having to fight too many demons. Kat soon creates a rift for him, though before Dante can reach her, Limbo morphs, making a large cavern that Dante cannot cross. He turns back around in order to find another path to take. Upon defeating the demons in his way, Dante goes back for Kat, landing on her rift, reentering into the real-world.

With Dante now knowing what’s happening, he wants to help Vergil and Kat in their mission of freeing mankind of the demons by hurting Mundus, the Demon King, where it’s most affected without a face-to-face confrontation just yet. It is explained how they are going to defeat Mundus – by making him leave the vicinity of the Hell Gate, the gate that gives him his power within the real-world. A plan is conceived that Dante is going to kill Mundus’ succubus, far down in the city’s Virility factory.

With Dante’s first mission with The Order underway he and Kat head for the factory. Dante is however spotted by a demon surveillance camera, pulling him into Limbo. Kat knows she’s not safe if she stays, which she voices to Dante. In return, Dante tells her to go. With the demons down for the time being, Kat comes back with the locations of the other cameras, telling him to follow her.

Once fighting off another horde of demons, Dante runs for Kat who’s waiting for him. Dante comments how he’s never seen a witch use a spray can before. Kat explains how spells can take hours if not days to prepare, so she cans them for instant use later. Dante quips how that’s also done with cheese, making Kat genuinely laugh a little for the first time. He asks her where she learned all this, Kat disclosing that Vergil taught her, saying it would help her focus on something besides her nightmares. Hearing Kat mention nightmares, Dante goes quiet and decides not to pray. Kat finishes her work, before leaving Dante to continue to destroy any remaining cameras. They meet back up as Dante is running from a collapsing church, Kat yelling for him to go to the rift she marked. Dante follows her directions; crashing out of Limbo and meeting back up with Kat in the real-world.

Inside the Virility factory, Dante and Kat share a small heart-to-heart about their pasts, how those around them tried to make them out as “crazy” for seeing demons when they were younger. They soon sneak in through a side-door and make their way through the factory. As they’re heading for the rift Dante needs to take in order to get back into Limbo, Kat mentions her nightmares again, leading to Dante asking what they are. Kat in turn simply tells him “they’re in the past” now. Dante questions what she was doing in Limbo in the first place, leading Kat to answer she was “escaping her nightmares”. Dante is puzzled by this, repeating what she had said. Kat confirms bluntly and walks off, leaving Dante to mouth, “Fuck me…”

They reach the rift, and with Dante back in Limbo, he handles any demons as Kat guilds him while in the real-world. They come to the point where Kat can’t; to get Dante down to the Succubus, Kat tells Dante to trust her, saying, ''“You jump. I twist.” Dante looks at her for a moment, asking if she’s serious, before repeating, “I jump, you twist.”'' She wishes him good luck as he then falls over the edge. True to her word, Limbo changes and the massive pipe Dante falls down flattens out under his feet enough for him to latch onto another latch to follow and find the Succubus.

With the Succubus defeated, Dante and Kat regroup and drive back for The Order’s base. While driving, Dante asks how Kat and Vergil met, with Kat reluctant to answer. Dante tells her, ''“Listen, I never asked for your help, but you gave it and I appreciate it. I trust you. You can trust me too.”'' After a minute, Kat opens up to Dante about her past. As Kat talks, Dante seems to regret bringing it up, now knowing why Kat didn’t want to discuss it before. Kat assures him it’s okay and continues. Upon telling her story, Kat asks Dante if he’s going to stick with her and Vergil until the end, to which Dante responds, “Count on it.”

The following day is the next mission of killing Bob Barbas, Mundus’ media demon. As Kat prepares the rift Dante will be taking back into Limbo, Vergil informs him that he has to go alone, as Kat can’t follow where he’s headed. Dante is okay with this, telling him in a soft voice, ''“Alone is fine. She’s done enough.”'' Before Dante leaves, Kat warns him the demon he’ll be facing. He tells her he’s sure “it’ll be lovely” before winking a goodbye as he goes through the rift.

During Dante’s fight with Bob, Bob uses his position as a TV news anchor to relay the news of The Order being under siege. The broadcast shows mugshots of Vergil and Kat; zooming in on Kat’s photo to show how concerned Dante is for her. Dante rushes to The Order seeing police and S.W.A.T, relived that they’re not inside yet. Using an alleyway, Dante finds his own way in. Once in and still in Limbo, Dante yells for Kat. Dante sees demons attempting to break in, though are unable to do so because of Kat’s wards of graffiti. Upon seeing this, Dante says to himself, “Nice work, Kat.”

In the real-world, S.W.A.T is now inside the building and Dante hopes Kat can hear him. He yells for her to stay out of sight, saying to himself, “I gotta get to her first.” The deeper he goes into the building, the more infested it becomes. He voices more concern to himself, saying, “I hope Kat’s okay.”

Dante finally locates Kat crouching behind a desk. When he gets her attention she runs up to him, panic stricken. Knowing they have to find Vergil now, they work together again. Kat is still in immense danger, so she guides Dante through the building, allowing him to protect her. Kat is soon spotted by a S.W.A.T member, and Dante tells her to hide. The man gets so close to Kat in her hiding spot that once he’s gone Dante asks Kat if she’s okay.

Kat guilds Dante to the server room where she believes Vergil is. Upon finding him, Dante is adamant that the three of them get out immediately. Vergil refuses however, wanting to protect the highly sensitive data of The Order. Vergil tells Kat to arm the self-destruct system, which she does, shaking a bit. Dante begins to get frustrated, telling his brother, ''“Vergil, I can keep the demons off your back for as long as you need, but I can’t protect Kat from the feds! Step on it!” As more times goes over, Dante grows even more frustrated with Vergil, telling him, “You’re putting her in danger!”'' Kat tries to reassure Dante by telling him what they’re doing is important.

Once the data is secure and self-destruct is imminent Vergil tells Dante it’s time to leave, leaving Kat behind. Dante fires at Vergil about Kat, with Kat explaining that there’s no way out in the real-word; Vergil agrees telling Dante they can’t help her. Dante yells, “We can’t just leave her!” Dante and Vergil go back and forth, with Dante refusing to give up on Kat. The S.W.A.T. team is now right outside the door and Dante instructs Kat to get on her knees, put her hands up and to not fight back. Kat voices her concern, telling him she’s scared. Dante tells her all she needs to do is hold out for as long as she can and that he will come back for her. Seconds later, S.W.A.T blows through the doors and immediately shoot Kat in the shoulder. Kat falls to the floor and Dante screams, “No!” Knowing there’s nothing he can do while he’s in Limbo; Dante is forced to watch Kat get beaten. Dante makes a solemn attempt to hold Kat’s hand, only for his hand to phase through hers from being in different realms. Moments later, Kat is ripped from him and dragged away by her ankles. The self-destruct kicks in and Dante runs to Vergil, with the two of them making it out via a portal. As the building breaks, Dante watches on with a heartbroken expression before following Vergil.

At Vergil’s safe house, Dante and Vergil watch a video sent by the demon king, Mundus. Kat is barely conscious, but nevertheless alive. Dante gets close to the screen and says, “She must have been strong to hold out.” Vergil listens and sees where Dante is going with this. Dante argues saving Kat, while Vergil argues against it. The entire time they’re arguing, Dante is pacing around the room and cocks one of his guns. Dante argues they should use Mundus’ mistress, Lilith, as a trade for Kat (as she’s pregnant with Mundus’ child, something Dante learned back during his mission of Bob). When Vergil argues back, Dante shouts, ''“No! We use this to save Kat!”'' Slamming his gun down in frustration. He continues by saying Kat put herself through hell to protect them. Vergil disagrees again. Dante stares Vergil down, calmly walks up to him and says, “I am not abandoning her.” Realizing Dante is serious, Vergil gives in.

Vergil tracks down Lilith and Dante infiltrates her night club. Dante defeats her and lets her and her unborn child live. He takes her back to their safe house and records a video message for Mundus: “the life of Kat for the life of your child.” A trade goes forth. As Kat and Lilith pass each other, Vergil is unable to allow Lilith a chance to get away; he shoots her in the abdomen, then in the head. Kat is frozen in shock as bullets fly by. Dante stares at Virgil with disbelieve and shock, before he sprints to Kat, lifting her in his arms bridal-style and runs her back to the car where Vergil is, taking a few bullets to his back. Dante hurriedly gets Kat into the car and yells at Vergil, ''“Get her out of here! Go!”'' Mundus, undoubtedly furious, breaks the city. Dante protects Vergil and Kat while they’re in the car. Once out of immediate danger the three head for their safe house. Kat is resting with Dante sitting close to her. As Kat is slowly coming to, Dante tells Vergil, “Kat is in no state to do anything.” Kat weakly protests that she is and Dante looks to her with concern. Kat mentions how she was able to endure for so long being tortured; at this Dante hangs his head.

The team makes a plan to overthrow Mundus, and as Kat kneels on the floor drawing the plan on a chalkboard leaning against boxes, Dante crouches right behind her, affectedly shielding her. As Kat is still recovering from her time with Mundus, she does not accompany Dante and Vergil to Mundus’ tower. She does what she can to guide the brothers through their mission. Once Dante and Vergil rendezvous, Vergil says, “Seems we underestimated Kat.” Without hesitation Dante responds, “I didn’t.” Vergil tells Dante, ''“You really care about her — about all of this. You once said you didn’t give a shit.”''

After the defeat of Mundus, the three are walking and overlooking the now destroyed city in the wake of the battle. Dante helps Kat walk, lending her his arm as a crutch, while gently touching her hand with his other free one in a comforting hold. Vergil soon reveals his plot how all along he wanted to rule over the humans with Dante. Vergil argues how frail humans are and how he and Dante had saved them. Hearing this, Dante turns to Vergil questioning how he and Vergil saved them. Vergil is puzzled by this, and in an answer, Dante makes a gesture to Kat — a human. Dante defense Kat even more by saying, ''“Kat saved my life! Kat held out under torture to keep your existence a secret! Kat lead us through the tower to Mundus’ lair! We would have failed twenty-times over if it weren’t for her!”''

Dante and Vergil are soon engaged in a fight to kill. Dante gets the upper hand by activating his Devil’s Trigger, where he stabs Vergil through the chest and plunges Rebellion, his sword, deeper into Vergil, going straight through him. Moments away from killing his twin brother, Dante hears Kat plead for Vergil’s life. Dante turns his head to Kat, her words reach him and he releases Vergil, sparing him. The brothers speak shortly; Dante proclaims “the world is under his protection now.” As Vergil limps away, Kat moves closer to Dante and Dante raises an arm to shield her — in the off chance Vergil strikes again. Once Vergil leaves, Dante and Kat are left alone together. Dante is left broken, questioning who he is, saying, “I don’t know who I am anymore.” Without hesitation, Kat caresses Dante’s cheek, reassuring him, responding, “I know exactly who you are— you are Dante, nothing more, and nothing less.” She places that same hand over his heart. As Dante and Kat walk away, Dante slowly slides his hand down Kat’s back to her butt, showing Kat that he’s still himself. In response, Kat elbows him in the abdomen and the two walk off together as the game ends.

Vergil’s Downfall
Dante and Kat themselves don’t appear in Vergil’s Downfall, but rather the “hollow” versions of them that Vergil conjures up. The hollow versions of them however have no interaction.

Quotes
"I like it rough."

- Dante to Kat, making an innuendo, DmC Devil May Cry.

"Listen, I never asked for your help, but you gave it and I appreciate it. I trust you. You can trust me too."

- Dante trusts Kat, DmC Devil May Cry.

"Nice work, Kat."

- Dante says to himself upon seeing Kat’s wards of graffiti, DmC Devil May Cry.

"I hope Kat’s okay."

- Dante, upon seeing how The Order’s building is infected with demons in Limbo and police in the real-world, DmC Devil May Cry.

"Vergil, I can keep the demons off your back for as long as you need, but I can’t protect Kat from the feds! Step on it!"

- Dante to Vergil, growing increasingly frustrated not being able to help Kat the way he would like to, DmC Devil May Cry.

"You’re putting her in danger!"

- Dante to Vergil, growing increasingly frustrated at not being able to help Kat the way he would like to, DmC Devil May Cry.

"We can’t just leave her!"

- Dante to Vergil, not wanting to leave Kat behind, DmC Devil May Cry.

"All you need to do is hold on for as long as you can. I will come back for you."

- Dante’s promise to Kat before she’s taken, DmC Devil May Cry.

Fanon
Dante starts off the game as a rather unlikable character, but as the game goes on he shows major character development, which is all due to his bond/friendship with Kat. As his relationship with Kat grew people began really shipping them, seeing their relationship as a possible romance following with the pattern of the classic Devil May Cry games — introducing a new possible love interest but not definitively hooking them up.

Fandom
FAN FICTION
 * Dante/Kat tag on FanFiction.net
 * Dante/Kat tag on FanFiction.net

FORUMS

DEVIANT ART

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Variations

 * Kerte refers to the ship between Vergil, Dante and Kat