Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

They had found him in the forest. He fought tooth and nail to keep them from taking him away from the cave that he hid away in for days and days. For how long, he wasn’t sure. He just knew the sun passed over his head multiple times. Days passed, and the boy felt his hunger grow, but at least, he had a supply of water from the nearby lake. His thirst was sated. His clothes soon became tattered after repeated demon attacks. That was when he decided that the demons would make for an excellent source of food. 

The scarecrow demons didn’t have much meat on them, but he couldn’t say no to food after what he believed was the fourth day without nourishment. His canines had grown considerably longer and sharper since the flesh on his arm transformed. What would his adopted family think of him right now? Would they look upon him like the monster he was? Would they be disgusted with him eating these barebone demons? He felt disgusted with himself, but his hunger overpowered the disgust. 

One of the creatures that attacked him slashed through his shirt and caused blood to spray out. The red liquid scared the hell out of him, and he let out a loud noise of pain before his wings burst out from his back. The wings were a new addition to his body. They were much easier to hide than the transformed arm. He liked them. The claws on them made real quick work of the demons, leaving considerably large claw marks on them. 

He had left the bodies that he didn’t eat, and maybe that’s how the men found him. He should have been more careful. Now he was walking behind the men, his hands cuffed with a chain that the man in front of him held. He let out a loud sniffle and whimper as he looked around. 

“I-I-I wanna go home.” He begged the men, and his answer was the chain to be jerked forward. He landed face down on the cold, hard ground. Nero let out a cry, and tears started to roll down his cheeks.

“You don’t have a home, you vile demon!” The man behind him cried out and then slammed his foot into Nero’s side. 

The four-year-old just wanted to go home. Why couldn’t he just go home now? Was he a demon? Nero cried as he was hit again before he was yanked to his feet again. Who were these men? And why did they have to hurt him? 

“Shut up, demon!” The man in front of him scolded as they walked. 

He started to sob quietly as they forced him to walk to wherever it was that he was being led. He wanted Mr. and Mrs. Eleison, he wanted his big brother Credo, and Kyrie. Would he ever get to see them again? Nero flinches when the man behind him yells at him to quit crying and hit the back of his head. That only makes him want to cry more. 

He wanted his family. He wanted his birth parents. Who were they? Where were they? Did they know that his arm transformed and grew wings? Why did he have a weird arm and beautiful blue wings? Did they come from Momma or Papa? Or was he just born strange? Born a demon? Born a monster? Nero continued to cry, but he made no noise. He didn’t want to get hit again.

The small boy continued to quietly walk along with the vile men until they reached a strange building. He lifted his head to look up and saw the stone building that wasn’t home. Then again, the men probably thought this was going to be his home from now on. Nero wanted to run, but he was too scared. His legs shook as he walked with the horrible men inside, and there, he sniffed the air. There was…a familiar scent in the stone building. 

He wiped his eyes with his strange arm as he was guided in. The man behind him shoved Nero forward once more, and the boy whimpered. 

“This one’s only a runt. I wonder if the older one will eat him, whenever he wakes up, that is.” One of the men spoke up. 

Nero gulped when he heard that and started to fidget. An older one? Eat him? Nero is certain he wouldn’t taste good after eating the demons for the past few days. 

The second man huffed. “Hmp. I hope not. We’re selling them both, though the runt goes for a higher price. The older one is too sickly. We’ll barely get a dime out of selling him…unless we sell him to some mad scientist. They’ll probably get a lot of information from dissecting his body.”  

Selling him? Selling him to whom? Nero whimpered again, and he earned a whack to the back of his head for that. He was told to shut up again. Not only that, but they wanted to sell the older one, too, whoever he was. Then they stopped in front of a cell, a very dark one. Nero couldn’t see anyone inside it. They were putting him together with an older person, but where was he? Then the man in front of him turned around and unlocked the cuffs while the second man opened the cell. 

Nero took that opportunity to try and run. He started to bolt, but the second man caught him before he could go anywhere. 

“Where are you going, you little shit?! Into your cell you go!” The man snarled and then tossed him into the cell. Nero expected to hit the ground right away, but he just fell . 

Nero screamed out as he fell into the void of the cell, but sensing his danger, his wings appeared. He felt himself stop in the air, and he gasped out. He then looked at his wings as he spoke softly. “Th-Thank you.” 

As he descended, he felt a burning sensation coming from his arm. Nero looked to see the blue veins of his arm beginning to glow brightly. He had learned that the glowing meant that there was a demon around. The wings helped him land safely in the deep cell. Nero sniffled as he looked around in the darkness, with only his wings and arms to light his way. He knows there’s a demon nearby, but where? Nero looked up and heard the cell down creak, then slam shut. 

He felt the tears build up again, and he hugged himself. Nero had no one right now, just his wings and a strange arm. No one could protect him. He didn’t want to get eaten! He didn’t want to get sold to someone for them to do whatever they wanted with him! Nero wanted to go home! As he sat there, he cried quietly. 

“I-I-I wa-wa-want my-my Momma an-and Papa.” Nero stuttered as he cried. 

There was only the sound of his crying in the air, but Nero did smell that someone else was in the room. Nero reached up and wiped his face as he concentrated on his sense of hearing. Soon, he picked up the sound of someone’s breathing, slow and steady. Someone was here, and Nero’s certain this person was sleeping. He stood up and then sniffled, walking to the source of the breathing. 

“He-He-Hello…?” Nero called out quietly. Tears were still streaming down his face as he walked along, guided by his glowing arm. 

No one answered, but still, he could hear the person breathing. Who was this person? The men mentioned that he was sick, but how sick was he? Nero had gotten sick with a cold before. He looked around. This place was not a good place to have a cold in. The white-haired boy continued to walk until he spotted the silhouette of a figure barely feet away from him. Nero saw that he was lying on his side. 

Nero heard the man breathing in and out. The boy moved closer, and he saw a hood over his head. The man was wearing a ragged cloak, but Nero could not see whether the man wore a light blue shirt or a coat. He sat down and then moved to get a better look at the man’s face. He was older, bigger than Credo, but not older than Mr. Eleison. Nero reached out and touched his cheek. Then he saw a flash of white hair on his head, and the little boy gasped in shock. This man had white hair, like Nero! Then he saw that the man’s face was covered in purple veins, all the way down to his neck. That didn’t look like a cold. 

Suddenly, he felt this strange sensation from his…chest? He wasn’t sure, but it was a pull toward the unconscious man. Nero wanted to hug the man and make him feel better. Then he heard that mysterious voice in his head. It sounded like him, but weird. It chirped in his head. “Sire! Sire! Our sire is here!”  

Sire? What was a sire? Nero was confused; the voice in his head confused him a lot. The child watched the man as he slept on. Then he heard him making a noise, a growl. Nero gasped and jumped back. The man growled! The pull in his chest grew stronger, and he let out a soft whine as he started to move closer to the sleeping man. He wanted to be near the man, to be in his arms. The man growled once more, but it doesn’t sound…that aggressive. It was more like…a call for him. 

“Sire!” The voice called out again. 

Sire…Nero looked thoughtful as he approached and then moved to lie down next to the man, placing his forehead against his. The boy felt the pull in his chest calm, and he felt a strange warmth invade his body. The man growled softly, and Nero answered with a chirp. He gasped and then watched the man as his lips twitched into a smile. 

“Papa.” Nero decided. He smiled back and then took hold of one of his arms, wrapping it around himself. 

The little boy then kissed the man’s cheek. “Papa, how come you’re sick? That doesn’t look like a cold. Is it chicken pox?” 

Then he touched his face and then brushed his fingers against the man’s cheek. “But I don’t see any red bumps, so that’s not it.”

The man doesn’t respond as he leans in to nuzzle Nero’s little cheek. Nero giggled and then chirped. “Papa!” 

Of course, Papa didn’t respond with words; instead just pressed his face to Nero’s cheek. The boy watched with interest, and he asked. “Papa? How come you don't talk? Did you forget how to? Or are you just so sleepy?” 

Nero heard him growl softly again and nuzzled his cheek again. His grip around Nero tightened, and the little boy wrapped his small arms around him. Nero let out a soft yawn and then closed his eyes against his newly-found Papa. Papa was warm, and Nero felt the warmth in his body. Papa was warm and safe. Papa would protect him. He hears a strange noise coming from his Papa’s chest. Nero blinked in surprise. 

“Papa…are you part cat?” Nero asked him when he heard the purring. “You purr like one of the stray cats outside of the Eleison house. One of them had black and white fur. The kitty liked Kyrie.” 

Nero yawned again as he heard the purring and felt drowsier. He smiled softly against his Papa. “Kyrie…she’s like my big sister, but she…she’s very pretty. She’s so nice too…Kyrie doesn’t look at me the same way everyone else…does.” 

He kissed his Papa’s cheek and hoped that would help him feel better. Mrs. Eleison kissed Kyrie on the forehead when Kyrie felt ill, and she had told him that it always made her feel better. Nero closed his eyes again and started to drift off to sleep.

“Nighty-night, Papa…”

His arm and wings continued to glow in the darkness as he slept, and when he woke up next. It was their only source of light. Nero woke up what he assumed was the next morning, feeling hungry. The little boy found himself with his head tucked against the sleeping man’s chest, and he still heard the purring. Nero loved the purring, but he also knew his stomach was grumbling. He then removed his head from his sleeping Papa’s chest and whined. 

“Papa…I’m hungry.” Nero whined against him and then let out an anxious chirp. The response was a growl, and the little boy whined again.   

Nero began to look around the darkened room. There had to be some food around here, right? He started to move away from Papa, but he felt the man’s grip on him tighten, and Papa growled forcefully. Papa did not want to let him go. The boy whined and then shook his head. 

“Please, Papa, I’m hungry.” He begged the sleeping man. Where would they get food? 

Suddenly, he heard creaking, and the cell door that Nero had been tossed through the day previous swung open. Then he heard the men and quickly hid in Vergil’s arms. 

“We gotta make sure to keep them fed, even the sick one!” The second one exclaimed, and then Nero heard something falling. 

The first man scoffed in response.“If the sick one even responds! That demon’s been asleep the whole time. If anything, the runt needs to build up some fat. He’s as skinny as a tree. We need all the money we can get from him.” 

“Think we’ll get a lot for him? The Order from Fortuna has placed the highest bid so far. I wonder what those freaks want with him.” 

Nero froze. The Order? From home? Were they trying to pay a ransom? Or was it something else entirely? Suddenly, he heard Vergil’s purring turned into a loud growl. Had Papa heard the men? Then again, Nero could hear really, really well now. So Papa must be able to hear good too! That’s why Papa tightened his grip around him. Papa wanted to protect him. 

“Think they’ll take the sick one too? We could sell him to them as well at a reduced price. They could experiment on him and do whatever with the runt.” The first man asked the other, and he heard something else being tossed into the cell. 

“Maybe…oh! Look at that! Another bid for the runt. Looks like the Order is being outbid by that Uroboros company! Wonder what they’ll do with him.”

“Who cares? Uroboros and the Order can continue to outbid each other until one of them gives.” 

Nero heard the second thing fall to the ground, and he perked up. He sniffed the air, and a smile brightened his face. There was food! Maybe they dropped some water down to them, too? Nero began to wiggle around in his Papa’s stronger arms, wanting to grab the food. 

“Please, Papa? Let me go. I want to get the food. Please.” Nero pleaded with his overly protective Papa. 

The sleeping man growled in response, and suddenly, he felt some movement from his Papa. Nero looked up and saw that his father’s eyes were open. Instead of blue, he was met with a blood-red gaze. Nero saw no white or black in his eyes, no, just red. Nero blinked in surprise as he saw the man look down at him. He growled softly and then leaned down to press a tender kiss to the top of his head. 

“Mine.” Papa finally spoke, his voice sounding just as strange as the voice in Nero’s head. Nero gasped. 

“Papa! You spoke!” Nero exclaimed happily and then raised his arms, wrapping them around his Papa’s neck. His wings moved to gently wrap around the man’s head. 

The man blinked in surprise and then reached up to touch the boy’s cheek. “Mine.”  

Then his other hand reached up to touch the translucent wings. Nero could feel Papa brushing his fingers against the blue feathers. Nero sometimes picked up the feathers after they fell out and examined them with excitement. His wings were like angel wings! Did Papa like them too? He seemed to enjoy touching them as he stroked them. Then he feels Papa’s hand on his scaly arm, brushing his fingers against the bright vein that ran down his arm, his whole arm.

“Papa? Do you like my arm and wings? The wings are really pretty, but I don’t know about my arm.” Nero started to talk as his father examined his arm. “It feels…really warm and rough to touch, but it can tell me that there are demons around by glowing!”

Papa growls softly and then takes his blue clawed hand into his pale hand. Then Papa leaned in to nuzzle his cheek before slowly sitting up. Nero felt his Papa move around and then crawl over to where the food was. He hears his father breathing heavily, and Nero kisses his cheek. Papa paused and looked down at him in confusion. 

“Mrs. Eleison says that kisses make people feel better. You’re sick, Papa, and you need all the kisses in the world to feel better!” Nero exclaimed and then nuzzled his cheek. 

Red eyes looked back at him with interest before nodding. Then he sat down on the ground, setting Nero in his lap. The four-year-old smiled up at him and then looked over to see him pick up the food. The food was in a bag, and Papa pulled it out. There were sandwiches wrapped up in plastic, some water bottles, two oranges, and a large bar of chocolate, but it's in pieces by the looks of things. 

Nero gasped when he saw the chocolate bar and reached for it. He loved chocolate! Then Papa growled, as if to scold him, and then picked up the oranges. Was that Papa’s way of saying that he wanted him to eat healthy first? Nero puffed up his cheeks and pouted a little. Papa saw the pout and raised an eyebrow before he started to peel it. Nero watched him with interest. 

Then he reached for one of the sandwiches. He could see that it was a store-bought ham and cheese sandwich. Nero opened it hungrily and then started to devour his sandwich ravenously.  He hears another growl, and he looks at his Papa, who is looking at him in disapproval. Nero blinked in surprise and then looked sheepish. 

“Did I…do something wrong, Papa?” 

Papa let out a hum and sighed softly. Well, at least Papa wasn’t growling so much to communicate with him. He patted Nero’s cheek and then started to slowly eat his orange pieces before giving Nero some. The boy nodded slowly. 

“You want me to eat…slower?” Papa nodded and then kissed his head. He gestured to his throat and made choking noises. Nero gasped and nodded. “Papa doesn’t want me to choke! Okay, Papa!”

He nodded, and then Nero started to eat his orange, his wings started to flap a little before settling his claws onto his shoulders. Papa ate his orange quietly and then started to stroke Nero’s long white hair. Nero looked up at him and smiled before looking down at his half-eaten sandwich. 

“These aren’t as good as Mrs. Eleison’s sandwiches…” He then gave him a look of confusion. “Right…she’s my adopted Mom, but…I have never called her that before. I didn’t call Mr. Eleison Papa either, cause…well, they weren’t you or my birth Momma.”

Papa perked up then and frowned. He then looked down at the ground, deep in thought. Nero frowned as his Papa started to open his mouth. 

“Cr…Cri…Cristina…?”

Nero looked up in surprise. Cristina? Was that…Was that his Momma’s name? The little boy looked up at him in excitement. Was he finally getting to learn something about his birth Momma? Now, he knew her name! He just wished he knew what she looked like. Nero has Papa’s white hair, and Nero thinks he looks like Papa, too. 

“Momma’s name was Cristina?! Really?” Papa nodded slowly and then reached over to touch Nero’s nose. Nero blinked and then touched his nose with his clawed finger.

“Cristina.” The white-haired man stated, gesturing to his son’s nose once more. 

Nero smiled happily and then touched his nose again. Was Papa saying that…he had his Momma’s nose? The little boy giggled and announced. “I have Momma’s nose!”

Papa smiled at that and then leaned down to kiss Nero’s forehead. They ate some of their food until Nero felt full. His Papa set the food aside, which made Nero think they had to keep it for later today. Did they feed Papa only once a day? Nero looked up at the only light shining in the room, worriedly, other than from himself. The little boy was quick to cling to his Papa again, resting his head on Papa’s warm, strong chest. 

The man soon lay down on the floor once more with Nero in his arms. He made sure that Nero’s head was resting on his chest, where he started to purr once more. Papa’s fingers were continuing to stroke his hair, feeling relaxed.

“Papa, those men said that I was a vile demon. Is that true? Is that why I have wings and a weird arm?” Nero asked the nearly mute man. He felt Papa shift underneath him, and Nero felt himself shifted so he could be looking right at his Papa. 

“Devil. Sparda.” Papa manages to say before he starts to cough into his arm. Nero frowned at that. 

“Sparda…? Like the Savior?” Nero tilted his head to the side. Papa frowned, but nodded. “Am…Am I a devil like Sparda?” 

“Quarter…devil.” 

Then he started to cough more, and Nero panicked. He was quick to move off the half-devil and picked up a water bottle. Papa continued to cough as Nero brought him the water bottle. Papa leaned up and then started to drink from the bottle, slowly. The little boy watched him with worry as his Papa drank the water. Papa looked like he wasn’t getting any better. Nero sniffled a little, and he was upset. Papa was sick and he didn’t know how to help him. 

Papa finished drinking, and he set the bottle down before lying down on the ground once more. Nero could hear him panting quietly, and he climbed up his papa’s body to get a better look at his face. He could see that Papa’s eyes were getting heavy and now looking right at him. He growled softly at Nero. 

“N…N…Name…?” Papa asked quietly. That gave the boy pause. Right! He hadn’t told his Papa his name yet! He blushed in embarrassment. How could he forget that?

“My name's Nero!”

“N…Nero.” Papa then smiled at him and continued to stroke his hair. “Nero…Nero rest…with me…”

Nero wiggled around a little and watched Papa fall asleep. He grew sad then. Nero wanted to play, but…he looked around sadly. There were no toys here. There were no books either. All he could do was sleep. Nero soon fell asleep as well. 

This became the pattern for what Nero thought was a few days. Sleep, eat, talk to Papa, and sleep again. By the third round of this, Nero grew restless. He wanted to play! Papa noticed this and allowed him to run around in their cell. It wasn’t as if Papa couldn't see him, since parts of his body glowed. Nero would run around, looking at the walls, wondering how the men would take them out of here. Or would that be the job of someone else?

After a while, he forgot that question and ran over to Papa, who waited patiently for him. Papa would growl when the men got near the cell and quickly pull Nero close. He did not like them. Maybe Papa was afraid they'd be separated? Nero could tell Papa was different from Mr. Eleison in many ways. He's pretty sure he got his quarter devil blood from him, but Nero had never seen him transform. 

He does notice Papa gradually saving some of their food every day. Papa ate one of the fruits, some of the chocolate, and drank the water every day. He saved the sandwiches and the rest. Nero asked about it, and his answer was.

“For later.”

Then one day, Nero hears the men talking right before they drop them more food and water. Of course, he was listening from his Papa's arms. Papa did not growl yet as he too listened intently to the men. 

“Well, well, well, would you look at that!” The second man exclaimed. “Looks like the runt is going to the Order! And hey look, for an additional five thousand, they'll take the sick one too!”

Nerp whimpered when he heard that. The Order bought him? Are he and Papa gonna go home? Or somewhere else like this cell? Papa's grip on him increased significantly, and he growled then. Nero froze. It was louder and more vicious. His hand started to stroke Nero's hair, and soon, he felt his Papa rocking him.

“Hell yeah! That's a good deal! When are they coming?” Nero then heard the bag tossed into the cell. 

“Tomorrow. They're sending their men to come and get them. After tomorrow, we'll be filthy rich!” 

“Pa-Pa-Papa, I'm scared. I-I-I don't want to be sold.” Nero whimpered against him, patting his chest. Tears started to gather in his eyes. “I-I want to play and have a bath and be with you.”

The sound of Papa cooing and growling softly comforts him. Tears spill down his cheeks, and Papa is there to nuzzle his cheek as he rocks him. Papa then turns to the new bag and grabs the old one. The old one is in poor shape, but the new one looks better. Papa transferred the old food into the new bag. Nero sniffled as Papa pulled out two of the three new, albeit bruised oranges, and peeled them. He then kissed Nero's forehead. 

“Eat and rest.” Papa had started to form sentences better. Then his voice dropped as he whispered to Nero. “Tonight…we leave.” 

The little boy gasped and then nodded. But…how? Papa sees the look on his face and then hands him his orange. “Leave it to me. Eat, little one.”

Nero nodded and accepted his orange, beginning to eat it. Papa ate his too, and Nero noticed him grab one of the old sandwiches. The boy ate his orange and watched Papa take bites of the sandwich as well. They settled into their quiet pattern of eating and resting. Papa didn’t let him run around today, but did keep an eye on the light shining from above them. Nero slept for most of the day, and he thinks Papa did too. 

However, Nero woke up suddenly when he felt his father's body shift, and it became…warmer. He opened his eyes to find that his Papa's body was scaly and Papa was standing up. Nero looked over and saw the food bag in his arms, too. The boy nuzzled his chest as he felt them now floating, no, flying up. Nero gasped softly as he made out the outline of wings on Papa's back. Papa had wings, too! He looked up at his now devil-looking Papa as they reached the cell door. 

He feels Papa shift, and Nero sees his leg rise. Papa's toes look like lizard toes!  The foot hits the bars and easily breaks them with a loud noise. Papa growled, but he quickly hit it again, and the cell door fell to the ground. Nero whimpered when he heard the men in the distance. They were going to be caught!

Papa quickly dove through the new entrance and then flew out of what appeared to be a window. Nero gasped as he felt the cool night air hit him. He looked around and saw the forest he had seen days ago vanish as Papa flew upward. The little boy gasped as he saw the ocean in the distance and stared out at it. The last time he saw the ocean was when the Eleisons took him on a beach day. He remembered the sand on his feet, and he had found a shell that day! The water was warm and salty when he played in it.

Nero looked up at Papa, who seemed focused on flying right now. 

“Papa? Where are we going?”

“Home, little one. Home.” Papa's voice was still distorted, but Nero did not mind. He raised an eyebrow then.

“To Fortuna?”

Papa shook his head. “No…home is…” 

He went quiet, and Nero wondered if he was struggling to talk again or if he was thinking. Nero patted his chest and then nuzzled his rough, scaly skin on his strangely-shaped face. Papa looked like a lizard. Would Nero look like a lizard, too?

“Redgrave. Our home is there.” 

Home turned out to be a bit broken, though. Nero held the bag of food as he was set down in front of the place Papa called home. Then again, their family was broken, wasn't it? After all, Momma was gone, and Papa did not speak well. He heard Papa panting quietly, and he took Nero's right scaly hand into his. Nero looked at the house again before Papa guided him inside. Once inside, Papa had to fly them onto the second floor, but he could tell Papa was tired. He was walking slowly, and he was starting to cough again. 

“Papa? Will you be okay?” Nero asked. Panting was his answer, and Nero grew worried then. 

Soon, they found a bedroom, one fit for a child. There were broken and burned toys on the ground, the shelves had books that looked burned, and the walls had lost their colors. Nero thought they might have been blue at one point. Papa walked them over to the bed, wiping off white particles from it, then pulled the blanket and pillow off. Then, he returned to his human form. He set the blanket and pillow down, then lay down on the bed.

Nero watched as he curled up into a ball to fit on the bed. This bed was a bit big for him, but Nero spotted something before he went onto the bed. On a dresser, he spotted a book with a golden “V” on it. It looked untouched by the fire and dust in the room! Nero ran over and picked it up, finding it rather light. 

“Ne…Nero.” Papa's voice was weak, and Nero felt that familiar pull. 

“Coming!” Nero held onto the book and followed the pull back to his sire. He then went right into the man's arms, which were quick to wrap around him. Nero felt Papa shift him so they could touch foreheads. Nero stared into his Papa's weary eyes. 

“Papa…? Will you be okay? Do you need another kiss on the cheek?”

Papa did not answer verbally; instead, he responded with a grunt and touched his chest. Nero looked down and saw that his Papa’s chest was glowing. Something was wrong. Nero sniffled, and tears started to roll down his cheeks. Papa was not getting better; had Papa gotten worse? Had their escape made his sickness worse? Nero sniffled and then pressed his face to his Papa’s cheek. 

“Papa…? Are you…Are you gonna die?” Nero asked and then started to sob. 

Suddenly, Papa panicked, and he reached over to touch Nero’s face. He cupped his cheek with his hand and cooed gently. Then he kissed Nero’s cheek before brushing away the tears rolling down his son’s cheeks. Nero didn’t want to lose Papa! He wanted Papa to stay! He just got Papa back! Nero sobbed quietly, shaking in his Papa’s arms. 

“D-D-Don’t die, Papa. I-I-I love you.” 

Papa inhaled sharply when he heard that, and then whispered. “Nero…I do not want to die either…”

That was another whole sentence! Nero sniffled and looked at him, then kissed his cheek. “You ha-have to g-g-get better, Papa. Ple-Please, I-I don’t want to b-be alone again.”

“You will not be alone again.” That caught Nero’s attention. Nero patted his face then and pressed his little face against his father. He was starting to get sleepy again. “I will be with you, Nero…just…not like this. Not in this form.” 

“Not in this form?” Nero whispered in surprise. His eyes went wide, and he wiped his nose. Papa nodded and then kissed his forehead. 

“My body…it cannot hold…but they will be with you…they will take care of you. They’ll be me.” Papa explained gently and then started to cough. Nero froze, but then he cooed gently. Nero’s hair was being stroked gently, and Nero let out a soft yawn, holding the “V” book to his chest. 

Papa paused and then reached down to touch the book gently. “This book…keep it safe for me, alright? This is…Papa’s. One of them can read it to you.” 

Nero nodded slowly and then opened the book. He looked at the words and recognized a couple of them. The white-haired boy tried this poem. “Sweet dreams…f-f-f…”

Papa smiled softly at that, then pointed his finger at the words as he spoke weakly. “...form a shade, o'er my lovely infant’s head. Sweet dreams of pleasant streams, by happy, silent, moony beams.”

Papa’s fingers moved along with the words he spoke, and Nero listened quietly. He started to nod off, and his eyes closed. Papa’s voice began to fade away as Nero drifted off to sleep, but he felt so comforted by his beloved Papa. 

Who were the two people who were coming to take care of him? That they would be Papa still? Nero wondered what they would be like. Would they look like Papa? Or would they not look like Papa? How did Papa know that they would be there for him? Nero fell into deep sleep, right into his dreams. 

He dreams of a tall, skinny young man with white hair, styled like his own, smiling down at him and covered in strange black ink. The young man reached out for him, and Nero saw his eyes, not red nor blue, but green. Those eyes shone with happiness as they landed on Nero. He wore strangely revealing black clothes, and in one hand, he wielded a silver cane.  He knelt on the ground and opened his arms. 

“Nero, come here, little one.” His voice was different from Papa’s, softer. Nero felt his heart quicken, and he smiled back. 

“Papa!”

Chapter Text

The day that Nero was dropped down into the hellhole of a cell was the day that Vergil changed. Was it for the better? If you asked him a few years ago, before he leapt into hell, he would have thought that Nero was merely in the way, a distraction. He would have left the child somewhere safe, yes, but he could not afford to have the boy on his mind as he went to kill Mundus. Then he would return and think about what to do with him. However, after the boy appeared in front of him, already walking, talking, and crying, it hit him. 

What hit him was the pull, the pull for him to be near and protect his nestling. Father had explained to him what the pull was when he was a child. Both the devil parent and child felt this strange tug at their soul that drew them together. The parent had a strong desire to protect the nestling. Vergil Sparda indeed felt that urge to hold and protect his son. 

If you asked Vergil Sparda now, he would do anything for the boy. 

This child, this adorable child who liked to talk a lot, was his, and Vergil, the eldest Son of Sparda, would do anything for his nestling. 

Nero was not like Vergil or his younger twin as a child. He’s certain neither of them was that sweet, even with their mother and father. They were too aggressive with each other and argued a lot. However, he knows there were memories of tenderness, but he struggles to remember all those times. Mundus had scrambled his brain during the years of torture. There were a lot of memories that Vergil had that were scrambled or just entirely forgotten about. 

Thankfully, he remembered Cristina, Nero’s mother. Yes, some of the memories around her were blurry, but he remembers her sweet face. Nero had her nose. He recalled she loved flowers, but the details were again a blur. Maybe one day, he would recover his memories. 

Yet, with Nero, he was creating new memories with him. The feeling of having his nestling wiggling around or sleeping in his arms made the half-devil feel something he had never felt before. Whenever the men were around, Vergil had to keep Nero close, a protectiveness he thought was foreign to him in the past returned. Vergil knows he was once protective of his younger twin. After a nightmare, Dante would often sneak into his room to seek comfort and cuddle up to him. Vergil would accept his twin without complaint. If Nero had a nightmare, Vergil would comfort him. 

On the second day, the boy had a nightmare that woke Vergil up. He panicked when he heard the child crying out for someone named Credo. If he had to guess, Credo was one of the Eleisons that Nero had mentioned, but not the father. He was probably the oldest child, as the boy called out for this Credo to protect him. The next nightmare, Nero called out for him, and Vergil wished he could enter his dreams and fight off the nightmare. 

Once Vergil heard their two vile kidnappers say that they had found buyers for both him and Nero, he knew it was time for them to make their escape. Sure, the same people, the Order of the Sword, were going to take them both, but Vergil knew they would be separated. No, he would not allow that to happen. Nero was his son. If necessary, he would sacrifice the rest of his energy to make sure Nero was free. 

Sweet little Nero thought that giving him kisses would help him feel better. However, he’s pretty sure the boy was aware that Vergil was beginning to die. Nero is a smart boy, and he 

“You ha-have to g-g-get better, Papa. Ple-Please, I-I don’t want to b-be alone again.”

At the same time…he did not want to die. He did not want to leave his little nestling alone. Nero was important to him now. Vergil does not want his nestling to cry. He promised that someone would take care of him. Two halves of himself. 

This was what Mundus had wanted. Mundus wanted to separate his human half from his demonic half, but Vergil had fought him. Vergil didn’t want to lose himself. Now, he was going to have to split apart to stay alive. But now, Nero would have two people to take care of him, two pieces of himself. Maybe one day, he could become Vergil Sparda again, but how or when, he wasn’t sure. 

Then he saw that the boy was holding his poetry book, the one he had not seen in a very long time. Nero began to read some of it to him, struggling with some of the words. So, he helped the boy and started to read to the boy.  

“...form a shade, o'er my lovely infant’s head. Sweet dreams of pleasant streams, by happy, silent, moony beams.”

Nero fell asleep while Vergil read the poem, which was fitting as he was reading him the “Cradle Song” by William Blake. A poem that he could repeatedly read to Nero, as it was meant for him. The child’s slow and steady breathing brought him comfort. Vergil continued to read the poem to his sleeping child until he, too, started to nod off. He set the book down on the nightstand next to his childhood bed and kept Nero close to his chest.  

Vergil did not feel the separation. He wondered if there was pain as he split into two, but he would never know. No, the next thing that Vergil knew, he woke to the sounds of his sweet little son crying. His eyes opened wide, and he let out a gasp as he sat up in his childhood bed. Vergil felt…lighter. He held up his hand to his eyes and saw that it was…much skinnier than his normal body. He shifted his hand and arm around in amazement, his blue jacket hanging off his arm loosely. 

This was…him. Vergil tried to channel his demonic energy and found that there was not much demonic energy left in his body. Where was his devil half? 

Nero’s sobs brought him back to reality, and he turned to see the little boy shaking next to him on the bed. Vergil blinked in surprise and then started to panic when he realized his son was upset. Why was he crying?! Did he have a nightmare? Was he hungry?! Nero was rubbing his cheeks and then started to sob. 

“Papa! Papa!” Nero cried out, and Vergil felt himself relax a little. Did Nero wake up and freak out because his original body was gone? Or did…he see the devil half of him and freak out? 

“Nero, little one.” Vergil paused and then touched his throat. His voice. It sounded so different. How much of his body had changed since the separation? 

He cleared his throat and tried again, reaching out for the little boy. His voice softened, and he smiled down at his child. “Nero, little one. It’s okay, Papa is here.” 

The four-year-old, at least that’s what he assumed was Nero’s age, sniffled, and he looked up at Vergil then. Nero then stood up and ran into his arms, which made Vergil’s human heart flutter, and he wrapped his arms around the little boy. Had Nero remembered what he had told him last night?

“Papa! Th-Th-There’s a big talking bird behind you!” Nero cried out against his chest.

A what? 

“Ahh, c’mon little pipsqueak! I’m not gonna hurt ya! I’m friendly, I promise!” Vergil jumped, and his grip on Nero tightened before he spun around. Indeed, sitting at the end of his bed was a large, blue, furred bird. 

It did talk. Vergil frowned at the creature, and he snarled at the bird. He then tried to shoo the bird away by slapping at it. What was this thing?! The bird squawked at him and then flew off the bed.

“Whatever you are, away with you! You are scaring my son.” V growled at the creature. Nero was still shaking in his arms. 

“Hey, hey, hey! I ain’t going anywhere. Not when we need each other, Vergil Sparda.” The bird squawked and then landed on the nightstand instead. Vergil quickly grabbed his V book before the bird could land on it and ruin it. 

Then Vergil froze, and he narrowed his eyes on the bird. He set his beloved book down on the mattress near Nero, knowing they were both safe now. How did the bird know his name? Where did it come from? What did it want? Nero sniffled against him, and soon, Vergil felt him shift and peek out from his chest. He could tell his son was scowling at the bird. It made him chuckle in his mind. Still, Vergil was suspicious of the bird. 

“Need each other? Who are you, and what do you want with me?” 

“What? Ya can’t tell what I am? C’mon, Vergil.” The bird huffed as it sat there and stared right at him. Vergil frowned in return as he stroked Nero’s hair while the bird huffed. “Guess not. Anyway, we should get yer nestling a bath. He’s startin’ to stink to high heavens!”

Vergil huffed quietly at that and looked down at Nero. Yes, he knew Nero required a bath…then again, so did he. Nero then turned and scowled at the bird once more.

“You need a bath too, you stupid bird! You have too many feathers!” Nero exclaimed and then huffed. 

The now-human Vergil let out a snort of amusement, and the bird leaned toward Nero to squawk at him. “Why I outta?! Ya are a little punk, aren’t you?! Yer lucky that yer V-man’s nestling or I’d electrify ya.”

Nero then stuck his tongue out at the bird. “I’d like to see you try, big chicken!”

The bird squawked loudly at Nero and flapped its wings at the boy. V laughed at that and then stroked Nero’s hair. “Our new bird visitor might have a point, little one. I think it's time we have a bath.” 

“Although…perhaps our new bird visitor could help us out here.” Vergil hummed and then looked at the bird. The bird tilted its head to the side and peered at him with interest. “If he does help, then…I will be willing to hear him out.” 

The large bird huffed and then ruffled his feathers. “Ahh, I see now. Alright, fine. I’ll getcha both the stuff. Whaddya need?”

“Shampoo, conditioner, body soap, a hair brush, and bubble bath.” Vergil figured that Nero would like a little bit of luxury. The boy must like the idea because his face lit up. “After you return with that … I’ll consider talking to you. Although…I suppose you and I need to go together.”

Nero blinked in surprise, and he looked at his Papa in surprise. Vergil did look around before his eyes fell to the ground. Ah, that’s where he went. His demonic half. 

“But Papa…do-don’t leave me alone,” Nero whined as he looked up at him. The boy started to crawl up the human man’s loose cloak and tattered clothes. “I-I’m scared. I don’t want to be left alone.”

Vergil smiled gently and then kissed his forehead. “There, there, little one. You will not be alone. Remember what I said, there are two who will take care of and protect you. The other is just…a little shy.” 

“Shy…?”

“Yes, if I were to hazard a guess, he just doesn’t want to scare you. His name is…” Vergil looked thoughtful. It would be odd to call him Vergil as well. No, his demonic half needed a name for Nero’s sake, so as not to confuse him. 

Vergil’s eyes fell to his beloved “V” book, and one came to mind. He smiled gently. “Urizen. He is…a demon. I think your inner devil will recognize him pretty quickly.”

“Well…” Nero looked thoughtful. “Is that what’s chirping in my head and saying 'sire' around you all the time, Papa? What’s a sire?”

Vergil smiled gently. “Sire is another word for parent. I am one of your sires, your mother was…the other half, but yes, that voice in your head is your devil. It’s just as happy as you are to be with Urizen and I.” 

Nero nodded and then looked around. “And Papa Urizen is…?”

“Under the bed. Again, he is a little shy right now.” 

Nero moved out of his Papa’s arms and hung upside down to look under the bed. He gasped, and then Vergil saw him wave. “Hello, Papa Urizen!” 

The sound of a growl made Vergil hum, and the little boy suddenly fell off the bed. He panicked and reached down for Nero to catch him, but his wings appeared to save him from hitting his head. Nero let out a grunt, and then Vergil saw him crawl underneath the bed. Then he heard another growl, and then Nero giggling as he backed out from under the bed with someone in his hands. Nero let out a chirp as he held a tiny blue demon in his arms. Urizen had golden eyes, actually many eyes along his entire body, which were all looking up at Nero curiously. Vergil doubted that his demonic half could resist the cuteness that was their nestling like he couldn’t.  

“Nestling. This is our nestling.” Urizen spoke as he beheld Nero in amazement. Vergil smiled softly at the demon and nodded.

“Yes, he is,” Vergil responded as he stared at the demon who was now looking at him. “Right now, I need to go get things for our nestling. Watch over him and make sure no one comes here.”

The demon nodded and then reached up to hug Nero’s face. Nero giggled and then chirped happily. Vergil chuckled softly when he saw that, and then turned to the bird. He stood up and saw that his clothes were pretty loose on him. The human was certain that he should find more…fitting clothes while he and the large bird were out. The whole Vergil was bulkier than he was. Giving a gentle kiss to his son’s hair, Vergil began to walk out of the room. 

The bird cawed and then flew over to sit on Vergil’s shoulder. “Alright, V. Let’s go shopping…but wait…do ya have any money?”

“Money? No…we will have to procure it ourselves.” Vergil responded quietly. “I am certain there is a lowlife out there that does not earn the money in the most…legal ways.” 

The bird cawed in surprise and then laughed. “Ah! Knew ya still had a bit of that bad boy in ya V! Anything for the kid, huh?”

“Nero deserves the best. I must make it up to him for all the time that I missed.” Vergil had missed the first four years of his son's life. He missed the boy's first steps, first words, and his first smile. He didn’t get to hold his hands as Nero walked, nor did he read to him until last night. 

Nero needed him, and frankly, Vergil needed him too. “I must make sure he has clothes and…a toy, even if it's a single toy. He needs to be able to play with something.”

“Toys, huh? Well, then we'll find something extra special for the pipsqueak.” Griffon decided as they walked into the main town. Vergil stuck to the shadows, weaving through the alleyways. 

He searched for someone to ambush. There were some humans out in the world who did some vile things to gain money. Vergil despised these particular humans as he had some…experience with them. Drug addicts had attacked him many times to steal anything from him. Of course, they were punished swiftly with the use of Yamato. Not to mention, drug dealers tried to recruit him to deliver the drugs to the addicts. Vergil looked up at them with disgust. He would rather eat the demons he came across than earn money in such a way. 

Vergil had no qualms about stealing money from them. It was all for his Nero. He would look at clothes, mostly blues and purples. The color red did come to mind…Vergil found himself frowning. Red. The color suited his twin so well. Vergil hummed quietly, and he closed his eyes.

How to deal with the question of his younger twin? The last glimpse he had of Dante was his fall into hell. Now, he would be facing Dante with a different face. Would his brother even recognize him? How would Dante react to him showing up with a small child and a giant talking bird? Would Dante even take them in? No, that last question was a stupid one. Dante was well-connected to his humanity; he had empathy, something Vergil lacked as a whole. He would take them in with only a minimal amount of annoying questions. Dante could help keep a roof over their head and provide safety.

Nero would likely charm his uncle, and they both would shower him with affection. Vergil smiled to himself at that. 

“Hey, whatcha thinkin’ about there, V? The pipsqueak?”

“Yes and no. I am also considering my options…on what our next move should be.”

“OH? Then I'm involved in that next move, then? How generous.”

“If I were to guess, you have a reason to insist on being with me. What is it that you want? You still have not told me your name.”

The bird let out a caw and then spread its wings out behind its back. “I am the great Griffon! I am the former minion of Mundus, and I’m going to be yer familiar when we make our contract.”

Former minion of Mundus. Vergil froze in place, and he bit his lip. What…What the hell kind of a joke was this? To come out and just declare that. The white-haired man frowned and then looked thoughtful. But the bird, Griffon, claimed that he was a familiar. A familiar. 

“A contract…with me.” Vergil mused aloud and then walked forward once more. “And how does this contract benefit me exactly?”

“Well, for starters, it’ll keep ya alive so ya can raise yer pipsqueak!” Vergil froze once more and then raised his hand to look at it. Keep him…alive? “Ya feel rather weak, doncha, V? Your devil blood got transferred to Urizen except a small fragment. That much can only take ya so far. What you need are contracts to protect ya and yer nestling, but also to sustain ya.”

Vergil frowned. Contracts? Multiple? Griffon must have sensed his confusion. “See, ya were bonded to multiple familiars before they scurried away. Ya actually already got one, thanks to yer demon half scarin’ her back to ya.”

“Her…?” Then Vergil heard a roar in his head, and he jumped. What the hell was that?!

“That there is Shadow,” Griffon explained that as if it had read Vergil’s mind. “She’s also a former minion of Mundus. She’s here to help ya like me.”

Vergil frowned at that and raised an eyebrow as he felt her roar coming from his chest area. “I see…and she does not mind being bound to a weak human like me?”

“Nah, so far, ya treat others better than the Prince of Darkness. Well, she’s mostly seen ya with the pipsqueak, but that’s gotta count for something.”  

Vergil hummed at that and then heard the cat rumble in his mind. She seemed…accepting of him. What would even cause these familiars to rebel against him anyway? No, he could not allow that. They could hurt Nero. Soon, they did stumble upon someone who looked seedy. Vergil hid behind a wall and observed the man as he started to count the money he held. Well, well, so he just got some money then. Vergil smirked at that and then went to reach for the Yamato…wait. He frowned then. Right…no Yamato. He had no blade.

The white-haired man sighed softly and then looked at Griffon. It looks like he might have to utilize Griffon in this case. If the bird proved as useful as it claimed to be, then Vergil would consider the contract with it. Then again, he’s not certain the bird has any choice in the matter. Vergil looked at the bird then. 

“Distract him…” Vergil commanded quietly. “I may not have the Yamato, but I believe I can take him down with ease after that.”

“Distraction, got it!” The bird whispered before it took off, heading straight for the man. Vergil smirked and then heard Shadow in his mind. 

 “Ahh, you wish to have a little fun too? Well, I suppose you deserve a little taste. Just don’t kill him, alright? I cannot start my time with Nero with more bloodshed.” Vergil thought of the large cat. It let out a rumble then. Vergil smiled in approval. “I’ll introduce you to Nero when we return.” 

The cat let out another noise of joy before Vergil heard the man cry out. Griffon was flying around the man, who was reaching for the bird. Narrowing his eyes, he noticed that Griffon had grabbed the wad of cash in his talons. Vergil smirked, and then the bird started to taunt the man.

“OOoh! Look at all this money! What’s a chump like ya gonna do with all of it exactly? Look at ya, ya skinny bastard!” Griffon snarked and then started to fly up into the sky.

Now that Vergil got a look at the man, he was certain that he was his size. The clothes he was wearing were interesting, to say the least. The sandals were not to his taste, but Vergil does like the looks of the corset and the black vest. He looked down at his outfit and looked thoughtful. He’d keep his whole self’s clothes; it was the right thing to do. However, there was something about the outfit the drug dealer wore that…appealed to him. Him, not necessarily Vergil.

The white-haired man blinked in surprise. No, he was Vergil. Where did that thought come from? He was Vergil Sparda. Still…he liked the clothes. Those clothes would be his. Vergil then stepped out of the shadows and held his hand out to summon Shadow. A large, black jaguar appeared out of his hand and launched itself at the man, who let out a scream as he was pinned to the ground. Vergil smirked as he approached the man, holding his loose clothing. 

“Well, well…I’m sorry about my feline friend here. She thought about biting your head off, but I told her that would be unseemly.” Vergil hummed as he looked down at the man. The man’s face twisted with fear as he stared up at the white-haired man. “After all, I suppose you are attempting to…make a living off of other people’s misery.”

“Please! Please! I don’t want to die!” The man cried out, and Shadow roared in his face. 

Vergil hmped and then started to pace around. He started to rub his chin thoughtfully. “Perhaps you do not have to. No, just give me what you want and…I will spare your life.”

Then he hummed and frowned. “You see, I despise your kind. Feeding the vile habits of people who require aid is unbecoming. One of your kind tried to recruit me once, but I denied him the satisfaction.” 

“I-I-I just wanted to-to make some extra cash on the side!” The man exclaimed, and Shadow bared her teeth. 

“I am certain that was his excuse, too. Still, you have other avenues, more than I.” Vergil Sparda didn’t technically exist. The twins’ birth certificates were gone, destroyed in the fire. 

“I-I-I’ll do anything! Wh-What do you want?!” Vergil smirked down at him. 

He hummed. “I will be taking your clothes and all your cash. Do not worry. I will take care of the clothes.”

Suddenly, the air around them grew warm, and Vergil heard a crackling sound. Shadow quickly jumped off the man, moving to stand beside Vergil. The bird known as Griffon released an electrical pulse into the man, and Vergil heard him cry out before he went slack. The man passed out, and he sighed softly, looking over at the bird, who let out a cry of joy.

“There we go!” Griffon cawed and then landed on Vergil’s shoulder. “Well, now we can grab all the cash and clothes. What do ya say, V?”

The white-haired man leaned over to check the man’s heartbeat. It was beating. Vergil looked up, feeling impressed by the bird demon’s work. “Impressive. He is not dead.”

Shadow let out a growl and then reached out to rub her face against Vergil’s arm. He chuckled softly and then began to pet Shadow. “Yes, you did wonderful, too, Shadow. Thank you for your help.”

He heard the jaguar begin to purr, and he hummed in amusement. What a cute demonic cat he had. Vergil petted the cat before looking down at the man’s unconscious body. Well, it was time for a change. He undressed the man and then moved to hide behind the wall, Shadow and Griffon waiting nearby, to change. It seems that his instincts were correct because the clothes fit like a glove. Vergil smiled in amusement, glad he was correct in his assumption. He folded his real self’s clothes and tucked them underneath his arm.

Of course, he made sure to check the pockets. He huffed when he discovered the drugs the man had not sold yet. The white-haired man chucked it into the nearest garbage and heard Griffon behind him. 

"Doncha worry, V, I'll only tell pipsqueak when he's older that his Papa is a criminal." 

Vergil turned his head and then looked at the bird. "I only hope he will appreciate what we have done here today. Now, you have the cash, yes?"

“Oh yeah, yeah! Big ol’ wad of cash if I say so myself!” Griffon exclaimed and then flew up, depositing it into Vergil’s hand. The man removed the rubber band around the cash and began to count it. 

His eyes lit up in surprise. “I see…these are all hundreds. There is plenty here.” 

“Enough for clothes, bath supplies, and a toy?”

Vergil smirked at that. “Oh, and much, much more. I think that we will be able to find a room at a motel for a few nights and food as well.”

The bird cawed in surprise. “Daaamn! Guess that means we should go find one and bring the kid there for his bath?”

“Indeed, but first…shopping.” Urizen would be fine with Nero for a little while longer.

“Uh, V? About that other thing?” Griffon asked, moving to hover in front of him. Vergil blinked and then nodded. 

Then he turned to look at the bird, reaching his hand out. “Yes…our contract. You have helped me gain money to help Nero. So, yes, I accept you as my familiar, Griffon.” 

Suddenly, he feels a strange sensation along his arms and chest. Griffon blew up into black ink, which startled Vergil a little. Then the ink hit his skin, and Vergil let out a gasp as he felt Griffon's power overwhelm him. His heart raced, and he inhaled and exhaled softly. He smiled and then noticed that Shadow had disappeared too. Vergil felt that sensation again, and he hummed happily. 

“Wonderful…I feel much better, much stronger.” Vergil mumbled and then quickly pocketed the cash. “Now, to the store.”

“Off we go, V! Time to spoil the pipsqueak.” Griffon cawed in his head. Then Vergil took a step, and suddenly, he started to stumble around. The white-haired man quickly grabbed onto something and tightened his grip. 

Oh. Well…it seems he was feeling a bit unsteady on his feet. Vergil frowned and then pulled himself back up to his feet. Suddenly, a bright light appeared before him, and he winced. The human half of Vergil blinked and saw that a silver cane appeared before him. Griffon cawed in his head. 

“Here ya go, V! That'll help you with yer balance.” Griffon offered the cane, and Vergil quickly grabbed it.

“Thank you. This will be useful.” Vergil responded and then tried out the cane. He indeed did not stumble the whole time he walked. Finding a department store was easy enough, even if he got some stares. He wasn't certain if it was because of his hair or the clothes. 

Upon arriving, Vergil was able to find the products for bathing and food fairly quickly. He grabbed bottles of water, carrots, fruits, and other things he hoped Nero would enjoy. Of course, he slipped a few chocolate bars into the cart. However, clothes were harder. He had to ask a woman about clothing sizes for four-year-old boys. She was happy to help, pointing out the sizes, and Vergil managed to find several pairs of clothes, but also pajamas. The pajamas had black cats on them. Vergil did splurge a bit as he found some pajamas for himself, too. Finally, he arrived at the toy section. 

Griffon cawed in his head. “What does a four-year-old human like to play with anyway?”

Vergil hummed as he scanned the shelves. “Dante and I had toy swords…I might wait on that for now. Perhaps he should have a stuffed animal. He does need comfort at night.”

“Oh? Maybe ya should get the kid ones that look like us. Like Shadow and I?” 

“Hmm. Tempting. Shadow would be easier to find than you thought. You do not exactly resemble a normal bird.” Vergil pointed out with a hum as he spotted a black cat plush. He hears Griffon huff as he picks up the plush. “Perhaps we could find someone to make one of you, though. Do not fret, Griffon.”

With the plush in hand, Vergil checked out. Two hundred dollars later, he found he had four hundred left. That likely meant they had to find a motel that was…not the best.  Then again, the motel would not be permanent. Dante lived in Redgrave. If he could just talk to him…then they'd save a bit of money. However, he's not certain he's ready to face his twin yet. He inhaled softly as he stuffed his old clothes into one of the bags. Four nights in a room with running water and a bed should be enough time for him to talk to Nero about his Uncle and make up his mind. 

He doesn't want to solely rely on Dante, but…they were brothers. They were family. Family meant safety. Family meant love. And love…love was a complicated thing for him.

Holding both bags, he manages to find a motel in a decent-looking area. He's certain Dante's business is just a few blocks away. After paying for the room, Vergil entered and hid the bags under the bed before venturing out to get Nero. He hobbled along the road until he reached his childhood home. A home that had seen better days. 

Vergil sighed sadly and closed his eyes, concentrating. It took a minute, but he sensed his demonic half and son inside. He smiled gently, relieved that they were still there. He entered and, with the help of Griffon, who grumbled as he lifted him off the ground to the second floor, he entered his room.

By the looks of the fallen wrappers, Nero had eaten a sandwich and a piece of chocolate. He was asleep, holding Urizen. Urizen looked over at him.

“It is done?” The demon half asked as Vergil walked over and picked them up. 

Vergil stiffly meets the gaze of the demon. He nodded slowly. “Yes. I have a room for the five of us…Griffon tells me you kept Shadow here last night.”

“The other two were strong. I recognize them. Phantom and Nightmare. ” Vergil shuddered when he heard that. Two more generals of Mundus. “ The cat was easier to keep near. The chatty bird refused to leave you.”

Vergil heard Griffon caw in his mind, and he nodded. “I see. Thank you, my demonic half. How was Nero?”

The devil half looked thoughtfully up at Nero. Nestling talks a lot. He is curious. He ate, and we played a game until he fell asleep. He has slept for some time.

Vergil hummed and picked up their food bag. He gave Nero a kiss to the forehead, which made the boy smile in his sleep. “Good. When he wakes up, it'll be bath time.”

The walk to the hotel was quick, as he held his son and the devil half. So far, they hadn't encountered a demon. Vergil hoped that would continue. He hoped that Nero would love his new clothes and new plush. Once he arrived, he set Nero down in a nearby chair and put all the food away in the fridge. He pulled out the pair of pajamas and the cat plush for his little one, ready for him when they were finished with the bath. He glanced back at Nero's current clothes. Unfortunately, those would have to be tossed out. They were ruined beyond belief. 

Vergil summoned both Shadow and Griffon. Griffon settled on the bed while Shadow approached their sleeping charge. He glanced over and saw the cat examining the boy thoroughly, even sniffing him. She recoiled a bit, and Vergil chuckled weakly. 

“I promise, he will not always smell like that forever.” He reached out and patted Shadow’s head. The jaguar let out a noise, and she nudged his hand before trotting over to the door to the room. It seemed she deemed herself the guard of the door.

“Nero, time to wake up, little one. Bath time.” Vergil announced as he walked over to his son. 

Chapter Text

Nero opened his eyes to find Papa standing before him. He yawned and rubbed his eyes before looking around. This was not the home Papa had brought him to. The little boy looked around and sat up, realizing he was in a chair. He then smiled at Papa and reached for him.

“Papa? Where are we? Is it really bath time?” The boy asked as he was picked up. Then he looked down at Papa's clothes. Oh! Those were like the clothes from his dreams!

“I found a motel room. We will be staying here for three nights.” Papa explained as he took him to the bathroom. “Nero, there is something we must discuss, and I want both of us to think a lot about this.”

“Oh?” Nero perked up as he was set down on the ground. That was his signal to undress, and Papa helped him with his torn shirt. 

“You see, little one…Papa has been thinking about where we will live next. This is temporary.”

“Tem-Tem…po…?” Nero struggled with the word and frowned. Papa smiled gently as Nero asked. “What does that mean, Papa?”

“Temporary. It means we won't stay here long. In fact, there is…someone out there that can help us.” Papa turned on the water then. “But…Papa is not sure about him.”

“How come? Is this person mean?” Nero questioned with a frown. 

“Well…” Papa's expression turned sad then. He looked like the Papa who was lying on the ground in the darkness. “It is difficult to explain. His name is Dante and he…is my twin brother.”

Nero perked up and then walked over to the tub. He watched as the water began to fill up the tub and stared at Papa's reflection. Strange, he looked like the Papa in the cell without the veins. Nero saw how sad his expression was.

“I have an uncle…? But…you sound so sad about that, Papa. I love my big brother Credo!” Nero exclaimed happily, and that made Papa smile. 

“It would…take time to explain, little one. But the short story is that your Uncle and I have not gotten along in the past. I…” Papa paused and then let out a shaky sigh. “Papa made some mistakes, and it hurt your Uncle. I am worried that…I destroyed our relationship forever.”

Nero blinked in surprise. Papa was really hurt about hurting Uncle Dante. If they went to see Uncle Dante, couldn't Papa just apologize? Then again, Papa said he might have destroyed their relationship forever. 

“Not to mention…I do not look exactly like his twin anymore.” Papa looked down at his hand. “I worry he will not recognize me.”

“He'll remember you, Papa! He's your brother!” Nero declared, as Papa poured a bottle of bubble bath into the water. Uncle Dante had to be nice like Papa, right? 

Papa smiled gently at that before he set the bottle down. Nero gasped as the bubbles began to appear. “Oh my little one, I wish I had your confidence. Still, we have a few days to think about it. In the meantime, let us enjoy our time together.”

“Yay!” Nero cried out, and Papa helped him into the bath. Papa set him in the tub, and his eyes widened. The water was nice and warm! Then he started to splash around in the water with a loud giggle. 

“Nero, careful! Let’s not get the floor all wet!” Papa called out, but he could hear Papa’s amusement in his voice. The little boy paused and nodded before starting to pop some of the bubbles. Papa leaned over the tub and watched him as he played in the water. 

“...Nero? Will you tell me more about the family that adopted you? You said your big brother’s name was Credo.” Nero smiled happily at the questions and nodded.

“Credo’s my big brother, and Kyrie’s my sister too. She’s five! Credo is older, I think he’s almost a teenager!” Nero responded and tilted his head to the side. “Mr. Eleison is the General, THE General of Fortuna. Mrs. Eleison works at a flower shop. They’re really nice, but umm…” 

The white-haired boy looked down at his scaly arm. “The Order doesn’t like demons…and I’m a demon, but…”

Nero frowned suddenly as he reached out with his clawed finger to a bubble. It popped instantly. Papa was watching him intently. “But the Savior was named Sparda. You said, devil. Sparda. Does that mean Sparda was a devil?”

Papa nodded with a smile. “Yes, Sparda was a devil. He was also your grandfather. He married your grandmother Eva, who was human. That is why I’m part-devil.” 

He nodded and then let out a chirp. His grandpa was the Savior! It was a shock. Nero then looked down. “But Papa, that makes no sense! Grandpa was a devil, but everyone at home hates demons! It makes no sense!”

Papa smiled gently and then patted his head. “You are correct, my little one. It does make little sense, but unfortunately, Fortuna is rather…stuck in its ways. I would like to think that the Eleisons would’ve accepted you.”

Nero’s expression fell, and he dunked his head into the water. Papa was looking at him in surprise and then started to get some shampoo ready. Nero then surfaced and looked at his Papa sadly. “I ran away from home because of my arm and wings, Papa.”

The white-haired man nodded slowly and then started to wash Nero’s white hair. “How did they manifest? Err…how did they appear, Nero?”

He froze then. 

Kyrie’s cries pierced his ears as the two of them ran down the street. He held her hand tightly as he heard the cries of a giant bug-like creature. The clicking noise buzzed in his ears as Nero glanced over his shoulder. The thing was flying after them! As if it noticed that Nero was looking at it, it made a laughing noise. Nero’s heart was racing as he ran with Kyrie. She was trembling, and he’s pretty sure she’s crying. He doesn’t blame her; he wants to cry. What was this thing?! What did it want?!

“Co-Co-Come here, boy! Ru-Ru-Running away is only denying the inevitable!” The weird bug creature called out as it chased after him.

Nero gulped as fear consumed him. He wants to freeze in place, but his brain knows better. It knew how to run. To seek safety. To seek home. To protect Kyrie. He didn’t want her or the other members of the Eleison household to be hurt. They took him in. Gave him a home. Gave him protection. 

The creature laughed again. “S-S-Such speed you have, child. You truly ar-ar-are a te-te-testament to your bloodline!” 

What was he talking about? Nero’s bloodline? He had no idea who his parents were.  What did the creature know about him that he didn’t?! Kyrie let out a cry, and before Nero could do anything, he felt himself fall to the ground with a loud thud. He’s certain he hears something crack in his body, and Nero cried out as pain shot through his right arm. Kyrie screamed out, and he let out a quiet sob. It hurts! 

It hurts!

It HURTS! 

“Nero!” Kyrie cried out as she went to his side. She was trying to help him up, but Nero whimpered in pain. This was no time to be in pain. They had to run. They had to get home. Mr. Eleison and the knights could fight off the creature. 

Suddenly, there’s a tug on his leg, and Nero screams as the creature grabs him. Kyrie gasped and then scowled. “LEAVE HIM ALONE! NERO!” 

She started to toss rocks at him with one hand while holding onto his left arm. Nero cried out in pain as his body was stretched out more than normal. Help. They needed help! Where were the knights?! Where was the rest of the city?! Nero turned to try and kick at the creature with his free leg, slamming it right into the creature’s face. It stumbled back and held its face. 

“F-F-Foolish boy! I did n-n-not want to re-re-resort to violence! Bu-Bu-But it seems I must!” The creature cried out, and suddenly, a giant broadsword appeared in his hand. 

Nero froze in shock and then screamed out. “KYRIE! RUN!” 

“I’m not leaving you!” She cried out and froze when she saw the sword pointed at her. Tears began to roll down her cheeks. The creature laughed sinisterly. 

“Come with m-m-me, boy, or the girl dies.” 

Nero inhaled sharply, and his heart felt like it was going to burst from his chest. His stomach sank, and he heard Kyrie whimper. She was so scared. He never wanted Kyrie to be so scared. She stood up to the bullies for him. Her family was wonderful to him. Nero couldn’t let them down, couldn’t let them lose Kyrie. But he…he was expendable, right? This creature wanted him. Why? For what purpose? He didn’t know. Only the bug creature knew. His intentions couldn’t be good. Nero gulped in fear and looked at Kyrie. She was sobbing as her eyes met his. 

Power. 

Nero froze at those words. Who was that? Where did that come from? Nero sobbed, and he shoved Kyrie’s hand out of his. “KYRIE! GO! SAVE YOURSELF! GET YOUR DAD!”

“N-N-Nero…No-No!” She did not want to leave him. Part of him didn’t want her to leave either. Suddenly, he sees out of the corner of his eye the sword flying directly at Kyrie. 

Nero screamed, and he moved his broken right arm in the way to intercept the blow. No one hurts Kyrie!

POWER! 

The sword hit, and Nero expected his arm to start hurting again. Instead, the sword…bounced off his skin. Nero began to breathe heavily as he saw his skin had been penetrated, but…it was soon shining. Kyrie gasped in shock, and Nero gritted his teeth before he saw another sword coming at them. He held up his right hand, using it to deflect the sword, revealing more red skin underneath. 

Nero soon let out a growl as a strange presence began to consume his body, making his blood sing. What was this…? Why did that voice keep saying power? It was mumbling it now in his head, and Nero let out a soft sob. What was going on?

POWER! GIVE ME MORE POWER!

“Power…” Nero mumbled, and he noticed his voice started to sound a little different as he stood up. The pain in his right arm started to fade; in fact, he heard a crack. He looked down at his arm and started to move it normally. It…didn’t hurt. There was…something red underneath it. Not skin. It didn’t look right. It looked strange. 

The creature soon let out a cry of joy as he observed Nero. “Yes! YES! This is it! The Blood of Sparda!” 

The white-haired boy turned to look at the creature with amazement. Blood of…Sparda? Nero then glared at the creature. “You…You tr ied to-to hurt Kyrie…”

“And lo-lo-look what it has given birth to!” The creature was smiling, and it made the boy sick. Nero gritted his teeth. 

He wanted to hurt Kyrie.

He wants to take me from my family. 

I hate this thing. 

I hate it. I hate it. I hate it. I HATE IT!

POWER! GIVE ME MORE POWER!

Nero let out a roar. It was something that was beyond human. His blood sang with the desire to crush the creature before him. The voice in his mind desired power. What that power was, Nero didn’t know nor understand. On his back, he feels something building up. Nero let out another roar, and the creature let out a cry of fear, stumbling back. Behind him, he barely comprehends a soft gasp from Kyrie. Then he heard the sound of something cracking from his back, and Nero let out a cry of pain. 

He fell to his knees as he heard more cracking, and he grabbed at his chest. He whimpered in pain as he heard the voice once again call out for power. Kyrie’s cry of shock and the creature’s joy were muffled as Nero hunched over. 

Something…Something was…in his back. What was it? Whatever it was, it was moving around. No, not just one thing, two things. Nero feels something coppery in his mouth as he cries out in pain. Nero whimpered as he felt a burning sensation rushing down his back.

Someone help me.

It hurts.

What is wrong with me?! 

HELP ME! 

He lets out a scream of pain as something emerges from his back, ripping his clothes in the process. The pain was great as whatever was that emerged felt heavy. Nero heard something splash onto the ground. However, that was not the end. The second something was still moving around in his back, and Nero whimpered. He didn’t like this. He wanted it to stop. Then, the same wave of pain washed over him as he felt the second something rip out from his back. Blue eyes went wide as another scream of pain came from his mouth. In his mind, he heard a roar.

The agony in his back was so great, and the weight was heavy, he tried to stand, but fell back down to the ground. No, he had to try again. Couldn’t give up. Whatever came out of his back couldn’t stop him. Nero pushed himself up, only to fall once more. 

Can’t give up.

Must kill the creature.

He was going to hurt Kyrie.

Hurt him too.

Nero growled and forced himself off his feet. He stumbled a bit this time, but then planted his feet down. The weight seemed to almost vanish as he felt the things on his back spread out. 

Nero was panting; the palm of his hand felt sticky, wet. Blood. His fingernails had stabbed into his hand to deal with the pain. Nero looked down and saw a puddle of water. It had rained earlier in the day. Above his head, he saw a pair of bright blue wings that had emerged from his back. Wings. The wings were no bird's wings, though. Nero saw long, sharp talons on the end. 

What am I…?

Kyrie must have seen them by now. They were hard to miss. He can’t recall her reaction. It was blurry. He only had one thing on his mind.

The creature began to praise him. “Ma-Ma-Ma-Magnificent! Simply stunning! Y-Y-You are truly mo-more powerful than you appear, blood of Sparda!” 

Nero soon turned to the creature and let out a growl, baring his teeth. He raised his head and let out a roar once more. A challenge. He must defeat this creature. Kill it. Keep her safe. The wings then shot out and grabbed the bug creature. It squealed in shock as the talons slashed its face. Nero growled at him as the talon dug into its face for good measure, causing the creature to scream in pain. 

“SCUM!” Nero wasn’t sure what compelled him to say that word, but it felt right to. The other wing lashed out, grabbing the bug and suspending it from the air. 

The talon in the creature’s face began to create a deep, slash mark, starting at its nose, then right into the eye.  Nero roared with rage. “DIE SCUM!”

Suddenly, Nero was pulled back to reality with his Papa’s arms around him. Papa was trembling as he held onto him, and Nero felt tears rolling down his cheeks. Had Nero told him? He couldn’t recall, but Papa must have realized what had happened. He feels Papa touching the area where his wings popped out. Nero knew that there were reddened scars there. He remembers seeing them in the reflection of water in the forest. They had not disappeared. They were a permanent part of his body. 

“...That’s why I ran away, Papa.” He heard himself say, and Papa only tightened his grip on him. 

The bug creature has haunted his nightmares since. Although recently, Papa, all three of Papa appeared in the dreams to defend him. They made sure to keep the bug away from him and even slayed it to protect him. 

Papa was starting to shake as he held onto Nero and then moved to kiss his head. “Oh, Nero…I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry you had to deal with that. You should not have needed to devil trigger that way.”

“Devil…trigger…?” Nero asked curiously. As Papa rubbed his back, along the scarring, suddenly, his wings sprang out of his back. Papa did not freak out; rather, he reached out to tenderly touch the feathers. 

“Yes. It is how we unleash our power. When I could trigger, I turned into my demonic half; it looked like a reptile. Your Uncle's is the same way.” Papa explained and then touched his devil arm. He brushed his fingers against the scales. “I had to guess, yours will resemble mine, but you have not fully achieved it.”

Nero blinked in surprise and looked at his glowing arm. He had not…Papa called it “achieving” his devil trigger. The white-haired man smiled gently at him and brushed some of his long hair back. 

“I think you have partially triggered, Nero. You are so much younger than…your Uncle and I when we triggered ours.” Papa sighed softly then, and he was quick to look to the side. Papa's expression turned sad once more. 

Nero bit his lip and then reached up for a hug. Papa shouldn't be sad. He was already sad and worried about meeting his Uncle Dante. Nero wished he knew why things were not easy between his Papa and Uncle, so he could help fix it. The boy smiled at him, which made Papa turn back to look at him. Papa seemed to relax then. 

“Oh, Nero…” The white-haired man whispered, and then he leaned in to hug him again. “You know how to make me feel better. Thank you, little one.”

“Always, Papa! You'll always come find me if you need a hug, right?” Nero asked. 

“Always, little one.” 

The next day, Nero was sad when Papa announced that he, Griffon, and Shadow had to go out. Papa made sure he had breakfast and got him dressed in his new clothes. Nero held his new plush Shadow, named after the jaguar familiar. Urizen was sitting on the bed nearby and watching as Papa readied himself for the day. Nero followed after Papa as he brushed his hair, and then grabbed his cane. Nero hugged Shadow close as Papa looked down at him, kneeling in front of him.

“Do you really have to go out, Papa? Will you be back soon? Will we play when you get back?” Nero bombarded his Papa with questions as he stared at him with wide blue eyes.

“I do, little one. Remember what I told you about my familiars? I am missing two, and we will be seeking one out today. Tomorrow, I will stay with you and play, I promise.” Papa promised gently. “We can play whatever you want.” 

Nero’s face lit up, and he nodded happily. Griffon had told him that Papa needed all of his familiars to be able to defend him. He wondered what Papa's missing familiars were like. Did they talk like Griffon? Or were they like Shadow and just made animal sounds? Nero hoped to find out soon. Would they be friendly? Would the familiar want to play with him, too? 

“Okay, Papa! I can’t wait to meet your new familiar!” Nero exclaimed happily. He jumped up and down. “I wanna play with them!”

Griffon appeared and landed on Papa's shoulder. “Eh, don't get yer hopes up too much, pipsqueak. Phantom's a big ol’ spider and he's not known to be that friendly.”

Nero deflated at that and then huffed. A big spider? Papa smiled weakly and patted his head. “Do not worry, little one. You will always have Shadow and Griffon. Although…in the future, I hope you will get along with human children.”

Nero frowned. His experience he had with human children was not great. Only Credo and Kyrie were nice to him. The others…made fun of him for being an orphan. For being the son of a foreigner who abandoned him. They also called his Mom a not very nice word. A word that Mrs. Eleison told him not to repeat. She hugged him when he said that word and told him not to believe the other children. 

Of course, there was the time that the boy, whose name was Leo, taunted him and taunted him. 

“At least I know my mom! Who knows what kinda diseases you got from yours?”

“Aww, look at little Nero, crying again! Bet that's why your father left!” 

“The Eleisons were crazy to adopt a freak like you!”

Leo was three years older than him, and Nero, barely four at the time, managed to break his nose and jaw. Sure, the big bully fought back, but Nero had barely a scratch on him. Looking back on it now, Nero knew it was his devil blood that made him strong.

The Eleisons were shocked by the brutality of it all, and Nero was forced to apologize. They scolded him for beating the boy so badly. Leo and his friends did leave him alone, though. He overheard them at one point mumbling to each other.

“What a freak.”

“He destroyed your nose, Leo! Le-Let's stay away from him!”

“Remember that look on his face? It was like he was enjoying beating you up! That was a smirk!”

That beating was a blur to Nero, but to know he was enjoying it? So weird.

“He deserved it.”  His inner devil whispered in his mind. Nero couldn’t help but agree, though he wouldn’t say it out loud. 

Papa did not know about the incident with Leo. Would Papa be angry like the Eleisons if he told him? Nero looked at his Papa, who was stroking his hair. He didn't know, but Nero would forget about it for now. Nero wanted to be good for Papa so that he would get to stay with him forever and ever. 

“...Nero? Did I say something wrong?” Papa asked, his face showing worry.

Nero was quick to shake his head. “No…just…will kids be nice to me?”

The question is innocent enough, but he notices his Papa's expression change to one of concern. Then he leaned in and kissed Nero's forehead. 

“Well, only if you are nice to them in return.” Papa offered gently. “Be kind to them and they'll be kind to you.”

Nero nodded with a smile. Kindness. That's what Kyrie and Credo showed him before. “Okay, Papa.”

“Now, behave for Urizen. Do what he tells you to do.” Papa reminded him as he stood up. “I will be back as soon as possible.”

Papa Urizen was looking in his direction, and soon, Nero heard him make soft growling noises. That usually meant that Papa Urizen wanted him close by. Papa Urizen loved him so much that he felt like he needed Nero nearby always. Nero smiled softly and climbed up onto the bed, picking up the small demon. Papa Urizen made happy noises before settling down on Nero’s chest. 

Meanwhile, human Papa smiled and then waved. “Goodbye, my precious boy. I’ll be back soon.”

“Bye-bye, Papa!” Nero cried out, and he heard the door shut. He then kissed Papa Urizen’s head, who let out a soft coo.

“Nestling. Something is bothering Nestling.” Papa Urizen spoke bluntly. Nero blinked in surprise and looked at him. How did he know? Was he watching him? Seeing his reactions?

Nero bit his lip and then found himself locking eyes with the tiny demonic half of his father. His eyes were narrowed as they stared at each other. 

“...You won’t tell Papa?”

The demon looked thoughtful and then tilted his head to the side. “My human half does not know what I know. Only I can see what he sees. Your secret is safe with me…unless it compromises your safety.”

Compromises his…safety? Nero stares at him, confused. Compromise was a big word for a four-year-old. Maybe the demon meant that it put him in danger? He thinks for a moment. Would the incident with Leo make Papa Urizen worry? 

 “I don’t think I’ll be in danger, Papa,” Nero told him. “Before that bug demon attacked…I had beaten up an older boy. He was not nice to me. He called me a freak, and…made fun of you and mom. I broke his nose and jaw. I heard his friends say that I…was “smirking” while I was beating him up. I don’t remember that, though. I just remember…”

Nero looked down sadly. “There was a lot of blood. I think something cracked. It was the same sound that I heard from my arm when it broke. He didn’t hurt me, though.”

Papa Urizen remained silent, except for a few grunts. Then the demon scooted closer and pressed its face against Nero’s cheek. 

“You defended your mother’s honor. Why would we be angry at that? Your rage fueled your strength. Perhaps you went…overboard, but human flesh breaks easily.” Papa Urizen’s words were gentle, but firm. “If you think my human half will be phased by this, you are mistaken. We are of the same mind.”

Papa wouldn’t be unhappy with this past incident? Then again, based on Papa Urizen’s reaction, he wouldn’t be happy about it either. Nero nodded and hugged the demon close. 

“Thank you, Papa Urizen.” He smiled and then sat up. He looked over at the TV. Maybe he would find someone to watch while waiting for Papa to return. The boy picked up the remote control and turned on the TV, searching for a show to put on. He held both Urizen and his Shadow plush as he watched the TV, but the boy drifted off to sleep after all. Urizen was purring away in his arms, happy to be with his nestling. 

When Nero wakes up, he hears the sound of breathing and he turns to see that Papa is back, but…asleep. The little boy sat up and rubbed his eyes before he saw a large burn on his Papa’s arm. He gasped and crawled over to his Papa, looking at the wound. It looked like it was disappearing, though. Papa was panting in his sleep, clutching onto a pillow, and as Nero got closer to him, he noticed some cuts and burns on his chest and face. He gasped quietly and then bit his lip. 

Papa was hurt! Had the new familiar hurt Papa?! The boy could see the wounds slowly healing, and then heard a familiar caw behind him.

“It’ll be alright, Pipsqueak. Daddy just needs some rest. Phantom was a bit rough on him. Don’t worry, though, he’ll heal.” The bird cawed and then landed on the bed next to Nero.

The boy turned to look at the bird. Near the door, he spots Shadow lying on the ground, guarding the door. 

“Phantom wasn’t being very nice?” 

“Nah, but that was expected. Don’t worry, Phantom’s on your Papa’s skin now, too. We’re just missing Nightmare.” Griffon said before it started to clean its feathers. 

“Nightmare…” Nero whispered before nodding. Urizen huffed when Nero moved to stand up and then sat him down. “Then Papa will feel better?” 

The bird stated. “Yep.”

Nero sighed in relief, and he smiled at his Papa. He then kissed his Papa’s cheek, hoping that would make him feel better. He set the Shadow plush in Papa’s arms, who smiled in his sleep. Then he got off the bed, noticing Papa Urizen went over to Papa, resting against him. Papa mumbled quietly in his sleep and hugged the plush. Hopefully, Papa could have some nice dreams while he was healing. 

The little boy walked over to the actual familiar, Shadow. He was curious about her the moment he laid eyes on her. The jaguar had her head resting on her paws as the boy approached. Shadow didn’t look like the kitty that he and Kyrie used to play with. Shadow was so big, like the big cats in the picture books! Nero stares at her and knows she’s not a tiger. Tigers looked huge with black stripes with orange fur! Nero stared at her curiously. If not a tiger…not a leopard, they had spots! 

He thought back more on the picture book as he eyed Shadow. Above his head, he hears Griffon flapping his wings and laughing. Nero squeaked when the bird landed on his head. Griffon was so big! Honestly, he thought that Griffon could squash him! 

“Whacha thinking about there, Pipsqueak? Ya look like yer thinking too much about something!”

Nero scowled when he heard that. “Be-Be quiet, giant chicken! I wanna know what kinda kitty Shadow is!”

At the sound of her name, the big cat looked up, and her red eyes focused on Nero. He squeaked again and then grinned at her. He waved at her. “He-Hello Shadow!”

Then Griffon huffed and then pecked his head. “Hey! Play nice, ya Pipsqueak! Hmp, so sweet and innocent with V, but with me, yer a little punk.”

Nero pouted then and secretly stuck his tongue out at the bird. Shadow must have seen that as he heard her make a noise that was akin to laughter. Griffon squawked at that. “What’re ya laughin’ at, kitty?! Why I outta-?!” 

The little boy snickered. Messing with the bird was fun, especially the bird’s reaction. If Papa were awake, would he be laughing too? Nero then looked at Shadow once more and stepped closer, reaching out with his hand. The kitty on the street liked to sniff his hand before giving his hand a lick. Maybe that was the cat’s way of making sure he was alright? That he wouldn’t hurt the cat? An act of preservation.  

Would Shadow act the same way? Nero would find out rather quickly. 

“Hello, Shadow. I’m Nero.” The boy introduced himself to the big cat. Of course, the cat knew who he was. The cat had heard its Master talk with the boy, care for him, like a cub. No, a nestling. 

Red eyes went to his hand, and then the cat leaned in to sniff the boy’s hand. Griffon remained on his head, likely waiting for the moment that Shadow swiped at the boy and was ready to pull him back, even if it was by the hair. The familiars knew not to harm their Master and his nestling. Still, Nero could tell that Griffon wanted to be careful. Shadow sniffed his hand and then began to lick it. Nero gasped and smiled at Shadow. Shadow was just like that kitty then! The boy began to giggle as the cat leaned over and licked at his face. 

“Aww! Thank you, Shadow! You’re so nice!” Nero giggled and then hugged the jaguar around her neck. He heard her make a rumbling noise and then begin to purr. On his head, Griffon sighed in relief. 

The little boy held onto the big cat and then giggled. An idea hit him. “I wanna ride on your back, Shadow! Please? Please?”

Griffon cawed. “Ride on her back? Ehh…what do ya think, Shadow?”

The cat let out a rumbling noise before she nuzzled Nero's shoulder. She then knelt, and Nero's eyes widened in shock. Shadow was going to let him ride on her back! He giggled and then climbed on top of the jaguar familiar. Griffon cawed and rested on Nero's head as Nero held onto the jaguar. 

“Yay! I'm on Shadow!” Nero declared, and he heard Shadow purring. 

The little boy waved his hands around and giggled as Shadow began to move around in the hotel room. There was not a lot of room, but Nero was happy to be riding on her back. Griffon made a laughing noise. 

“Glad yer having fun, pipsqueak. V would love to see this.” The bird said as Nero held onto Shadow. 

“Maybe we can show Papa when he wakes up? When do you think he'll wake up?” Nero asked quietly and looked at Papa. He was still asleep. 

“Hmm, give him some time, pipsqueak. The battle for Phantom’s contract was a pain.” Griffon reminded him gently, and Nero nodded. Shadow hummed and then started to run around the room. The little boy let out a happy cry as Shadow entertained him. 

—

Vergil held up his end of the bargain, and today, they would spend the whole day together. He was the first one up, and he stretched his arms. There was a buildup of sweat on his forehead, and he reached up to wipe it off before looking at his little bundle of joy. Nero was sleeping on his side, wrapped up in Griffon’s wings. He heard Shadow snoring quietly at the foot of the bed. In his arms, Vergil held the Shadow plush and Urizen. The said demon was awake and looking at him quietly. He smiled gently and patted his head before looking at Nero. When did Nero give this to him?

The plush had helped with his nightmares as he did not remember them. That was a relief to him as he patted Griffon’s head. The bird stirred and lifted its head to look up at Vergil. “Mornin’ V, ya feelin’ better? I don’t see any more burns on ya.”

The white-haired man reached up to touch his face, then his chest. “Yes, it seems that I have healed up. How long was I out for?”

“Eh, for twelve hours. I think the wounds and burns healed up somewhere in there. Not sure, Shadow and I were playing with the kid. Urizen was with yathe the whole time.” 

Vergil looked down at said demon, who nodded. “It took a long time for the wounds and burns to heal. I merely helped speed up the process.” 

Vergil nodded. “We should talk more, but first, I must shower.”

The human half and demonic half of Vergil were not exactly close. In fact, the human half would argue that the whole of Vergil tended to favor Urizen over them. The human half didn’t want to hold that against the small demon, but he couldn’t help but have a festering resentment toward the demon. Of course, he didn’t show that, especially in front of Nero. Then again, he kept that deep down inside, to the point that Vergil wasn’t sure if Urizen knew. No, he tried to keep it under wraps. 

He reached out and brushed his fingers through Nero’s hair, which made him smile in his sleep, then nuzzled Griffon. The bird huffed a little and nuzzled the boy back. Vergil departed for the bathroom and undressed. He moved to turn his back to the mirror, and he looked over his shoulder to stare at the red ink that covered his back. The  

Vergil feels the water rush down his body as he senses Urizen enter the room. He closed his eyes and expelled a sigh. The unspoken tension between them was there as he heard Urizen jump and sit on the edge of the sink. Does his demonic half want to speak to him? V considers his options before he finally speaks. 

"Why are you still here, Urizen?" His question is answered with silence. Then Vergil continued. "I am...baffled by the fact that you shower attention on Nero. I figured you wouldn't..."

"Care?" The demon finished for him.

“Yes,” Vergil said as he grabbed the bar of soap. He started to scrub his skin as he heard the demonic half. 

“You expected me to abandon our nestling? Do you…consider me thoughtless?” Urizen questioned, and Vergil imagined he was frowning. 

Vergil stared at the wall as he scrubbed his neck and chest. “Yes.”

The demon huffed quietly at that. “You have a low opinion of me. Which…I suppose that means you suffer from a low opinion of yourself.”

Vergil scoffed at that and frowned. Low opinion of himself? Then again, he was one half of one person. He paused and then sighed heavily. 

“A low opinion formed from the low opinion of the body we shared of my existence.”

The demon huffed quietly. “You are bitter that he determined you were too weak to aid us. Perhaps there is truth in that. You rely on these familiars in order to sustain your existence, and still, we are in need of one more. Without them, you would easily fall into the hands of a lesser demon.” 

“Yet, you remain so small that lesser demons could easily crush you under their foot.” Vergil snapped back with his huff. 

Urizen laughed at that, his laughter filled with amusement. Suddenly, he leapt off the sink, and Vergil saw his silhouette grow to the size of their whole self. Vergil stared at it through the curtain with barely restrained anger. Of course.

“You think I am not capable of growing to the height of our whole self? Please, I merely hold back to not frighten our nestling.” Urizen was smirking. 

Vergil snarled and then looked away, scrubbing at his back the best he could. Oh, he would always be inferior to the damn demon. No wonder their whole self preferred him. Urizen could do better than he ever could. Vergil loved his demonic half and then discarded him. 

V was left behind, left with nothing but familiars that all didn't like to cooperate. Phantom's burns left him reeling, and Griffon told him he was lucky to be alive. Yet, he was too determined to die. V faced the volcanic spider head-on, butting his head into the creature's eye and demanded his contract, burns and open wounds be damned. He gained Phantom without Vergil's and Urizen's help. 

“Although…you were able to tame Phantom, that one I knew would fight back. He does not suffer humans.” Urizen hummed. “That and you are good with our nestling. You have provided for him better than I, even if your methods were not to human standards.”

V snorted at that. He would do anything to survive. 

“If it were me, I would have fed him demons, and our shelter would be a cave. If our nestling were full devil, it would be…acceptable, but he might not like demon meat.” Urizen stated and shrugged his shoulders. “You wish to make sure he is healthy.”

The thought of Nero living in a cave and feasting on demons unnerved him. V did not want his son to have to live like that. Urizen continued. 

“You can raise him better than I can. You can tend to his needs. I can merely protect him and offer him comfort when I can. His chirps are…adorable.” Urizen was smiling, and V swore it was almost…fond. 

V couldn't help but smile at that. “They are adorable. They make my heart…”

“...feel so light.” The two sides of Vergil blinked in surprise as they spoke in unison. Both stood in silence as V reached out and grabbed the shampoo to start washing his hair.

“Nero is…

“...the only thing we can agree on.” 

That had to be something…right? V dunked his head under the water and let out a soft sigh. They could agree that Nero was the one thing that they had in common that they cared about. This boy captured their heart. 

“We must try to get along then.” V declared quietly. He hears the demon shift around in the bathroom and then looks over at the shower curtain. “For Nero’s sake. He is our child, and our resentments shouldn’t threaten our child.” 

Urizen hummed, and V could see him scratching his chin. “You speak wisely. We shall try to get along then.”

Then it was settled. A truce between the divided parts of a half-devil. V washed the shampoo from his hair while Urizen reverted to his small form. It would have been better if Nero saw him small, but then again, their son was brave enough to approach them as Vergil. The devil half hummed and then spoke up. 

“Our nestling is awake. I shall make sure he has food. Do you have a plan for today? You promised to spend the day with him.” 

“And I intend to keep that promise. You're coming too, are you not?” V asked as he grabbed the conditioner. 

“I will. Though I shall hide. ” It was a wise decision. V did not want to admit it, but he preferred his devil half nearby. He did feel better around him, more…whole. 

He heard the devil leave the bathroom, and V continued to clean himself. The conversation had gone better than expected. Although V wished he had more time to ask what Urizen thought about the Dante issue. This was their last night in this room. V and Urizen needed to take Nero somewhere safe. Home was not an option. Broken. Burnt. They had no money to fix it. 

Dante was their only answer, their only salvation right now. Family meant protection, meant a nest to raise a nestling in. 

Chapter Text

V finished washing his hair, and he stood under the hot water for a few moments longer. He pressed his hand against the wall and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. The steam rushed up his nose, clearing out his sinuses. The feeling of the hot water on his scalp, the silence in the bathroom. A smile crossed his face. 

He did not hear the sounds of the outside like he once did, pounding at his brain as he was forced to figure out what sound belonged to what animal, what object, and much, much more. His sense of smell was still strong. He smelled the juicy apple that Urizen pulled out for Nero. 

This was what it felt like to be human. 

V stopped the shower and dried himself off before getting dressed. He brushed his hair, finding it to be thick and full of dangles. V huffed at this and slowly brushed through the dangles. He had to be gentle with Nero's hair, too. The one time he brushed too hard, Nero nearly cried. He apologized profusely before trying again. V's brushing was gentle and slow, which made Nero happier. 

He opens the door briefly and listens in. Nero was indeed awake, and V could hear him chewing on his breakfast. He smiled and finished brushing his hair. The man put on the bracelet and glove before heading out to the main room.

“Papa! Good morning!” V smiled at the greeting as he joined Nero, Urizen, and Griffon on the bed.

“Good morning, my little one.” 

Urizen turned to look at him and then, to V's surprise, handed him an apple to eat. He blinked and then looked it over before taking a bite. 

“Thank you, Urizen.” Things could be amicable between them if they tried. The devil half-nodded and started to eat his apple. Nero is done with his and he begins to eat his carrots.

“Papa?” Nero asked with his mouth full. V looked at him and finished swallowing a piece of his apple.

He gently scolds him. “Nero, chew and swallow before you speak. I don’t want you to choke.”

The little boy blinked and did so before speaking. “You said not to eat fast either, or I'll choke too.”

V nodded and ruffled his hair. He smiled softly. “That I did. I do not want you to get hurt, little one. There are so many ways you could get hurt.”

Urizen hummed. “Humans are fragile, nestling, including you. We only wish for you to be safe.”

Nero nodded and then giggled. “The other Papa was right! You both are here to take care of me.”

Both sides of Vergil Sparda smiled at that. So, Nero remembered their whole self and how caring he was. Vergil finally started to rely on V, on his humanity, with Nero. Then their son looked between the two of them with a curious look on his face. 

“Papas? When will that Papa come back?” Both sides of Vergil Sparda paused at the question. V started to scratch his head, and Urizen glanced away thoughtfully.

That question hadn't occurred to the two of them. How would they unite once more and recreate Vergil? They did not have Yamato. They had nothing that could help them reunite. V and Urizen then shared a look. How do they answer this question? They could feel Nero looking between the two of them, waiting for an answer. Both sides of Vergil scratch their heads, and then V is the first to say something. 

“Well…” Urizen raised an eyebrow. He was curious as to what V would say. “Nero, that Papa, you remember that he was sick, right?”

Nero nodded and then looked down sadly. “Yeah…I tried to give him kisses to make him feel better. I don’t know if it helped, though.”

“It did help.” Urizen was quick to answer. V shot him a look of surprise. So, his demonic half appreciated their little one’s attempts to cure them. 

Nero blinked in surprise and then smiled happily. V then hummed and then started to stroke Nero’s hair. “That Papa is resting for a little while, that’s why Urizen and I are here. We’re here to take care of you.” 

The little boy stared at him, likely trying to process their words. V wondered what was going through their son’s head. Then Nero frowned and wrinkled his nose. “But…you and Papa Urizen smell like the other Papa.”

V and Urizen froze then, and their eyes met once more. Nero’s sense of smell had progressed that much? How do they explain the split? How do they explain what torture his father had been put through? He managed to escape?  Nero was too young to understand what had happened to Vergil. Then again, when would they explain why Vergil missed the first four years of his life? V began to panic internally while Urizen just looked so baffled, he didn’t know what to say.

“...Papas?”

“Well…we…” V’s voice trailed off, and he bit his lip. He looked at Urizen then. What do they say?! 

“We are the parts of Vergil Sparda, your sire.” V was about to facepalm. How could his demonic half just come out and say it?! 

“Parts…?” Nero looked between the two of them in confusion. V sighed heavily and then shook his head. 

“That is…one way to put it. Your Papa… to stay with you, Nero, he had to split in half. That is how Urizen and I came to be. He didn’t want to be taken away from you. From the moment he sensed you, I know that he loved you so much.” V explained gently. He had a better idea of how Vergil felt about Nero. He could handle the subject with tact. “He wanted to stay with you, even if it was in the form of us.” 

Nero looked between the two and then picked up Urizen, pulling him into his arms. “So…then I got my devil blood from you? My arm and wings came from you, Papa Urizen?”

He nodded and then touched his devil arm. “Yes. It is half of my blood, but it is mine. You will be a strong nestling one day.” 

The little boy nodded and hugged the demon, who looked content. Then Nero looked up at V with a smile. “But I got your hair, Papa! But where did your green eyes come from?”

V smiled in return and then leaned down to kiss his forehead. “Your grandmother Eva had green eyes. Normally, the whole Papa has blue eyes like you, but when I took on this form, I now resemble her more.” 

“But Uncle Dante looks like Grandpa Sparda? And the other papa does too?” Nero asked, wanting clarification. V nodded. 

“Yes. Your grandfather’s blood is strong within all of us, little one. We are his legacy. You are the legacy of us and your mother.” V smiled happily and then stroked their son’s hair. Nero smiled happily when he heard that.  

Nero hugged Urizen and then giggled before taking V’s hand. “You and Papa Urizen are my Papas, then. That means today is our first family trip, right?”

“Yes, yes, it is. I hope you will have fun today.” V smiled softly, and then he paused, looking thoughtful. “Hmm…we might make a stop at the store before we go. We need to get something to help commemorate this special day.” 

Nero blinked in surprise and then nodded. V made sure that their son was dressed, face washed, and hair brushed. Nero was practically bouncing with excitement the entire time. Urizen had to growl softly to calm him down, which worked. V hummed softly as he finished getting Nero ready and then checked outside. It was a sunny day, so they wouldn’t need to go and buy Nero a coat either. But that meant it was the perfect day for the special gift he wanted to buy for their day. Shadow stood up from the door and then moved to rub against V’s leg, which made him start petting her. 

“Oh, I hope that it’ll be a wonderful day, too, Shadow.” V smiled down at her as he petted her. She made a purring noise and then rubbed against his leg again. She then returned to his skin along with the other two familiars. 

He still needed Nightmare, but that was a worry for another day. Right now, he had their little family to worry about. Nero ran over with Urizen in his arms. “Papa! Papa! Papa Urizen says he wants to ride on your shoulder.” 

V raised his eyebrow at that and looked over at his demon half. The demon’s expression was difficult to read, but he could see that he was looking at him expectantly. So, Urizen wished to stay near him? Interesting. V nodded and then took the demon, setting him on his shoulder. 

“I am surprised that you wished to be this close,” V whispered to the demon half before checking his pockets for the money. It was all there. They still had a decent amount left, enough for a fun day. 

“I…wish to stay near. Some demons are bound to be too much for you, and I do not wish for our nestling to be hurt.” The excuse was half-baked at best, and V held in a snort. Still, there was some truth to it.

“You could just admit you like being near me.” V hummed as he tucked the money back into his pocket. The demon scoffed at that. 

“Foolishness.” 

“Papa? What are you and Papa Urizen talking about?” The boy asked as he approached, reaching for V’s hand. Of course, V took it and smiled softly. 

“Oh, nothing to worry about, little one. Urizen and I are making small talk.” V answered smoothly before continuing. “Are you ready to go, little one?”

Nero nodded happily. With all his familiars on his body, Nero in hand, and Urizen on his shoulder, they exited the motel room, locking it before they left. V knew the store was the first stop on their itinerary today. He wasn’t certain how much a decent camera would cost, but he wanted to make sure that he had enough for some lunch and ice cream later. Dinner would be back at the motel from their food storage. V wished he had the supplies to make Nero a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but that would have to wait until they went to Dante. 

Dante. 

V glanced at Urizen as they walked, one hand in Nero’s and the other on his cane. Urizen was looking his way now, curious about his thoughts. Dante’s shop was not far. 

“Thinkin’ we should go make our presence known to Dante?” Griffon’s voice echoed in his head, and V closed his eyes. 

“Yes…and no.” Even after everything, V was being indecisive. He let out an exasperated breath in his mind. “Griffon, tell me the truth. Should we approach my twin? Would he accept us into his home?”

The bird was quiet in his head before it answered. “Look, yer brother is more connected to his humanity than Vergil ever was. I think that yer little brother would let you and pipsqueak stay. He ain’t heartless, a bit dimwitted, but not heartless. The bastard would be giving us a roof over our heads, and hell, you’d probably be able to help out and accept jobs or even find one out in the real world. What matters is that the kid is safe, right?”

It was true. Dante was not heartless. His humanity was what drew people to Dante. If V asked, probably after profusely apologizing for what happened with the tower, he would gladly accept him, Urizen, and Nero. Hells, Dante would readily embrace his nephew. V ventured a guess that Nero would be spoiled. Vergil had abandoned not only his humanity but his younger brother as well. Dante had been desperate not to let him fall into hell. Time had passed since then. 

V only hoped that Dante wouldn’t dismiss them. 

They approached the store, and V led them inside, heading directly for the electronics area. Nero gasped as V examined the various cameras that were in stock. Nero wiggled around in his hand and smiled. “A camera, Papa? We’re getting a camera?!” 

V nodded. “I have no pictures of you…nor do we have pictures of me and Urizen. I thought we should remedy that. What do you think?”

Nero nodded excitedly and then looked at all the cameras. “There’s a lot to choose from, Papa.” 

“Indeed. Although we do not need something so expensive.” V noted as he turned away from the price tags that went above a hundred. “No, we just need something simple and effective.” 

There, he spotted a camera within his price range and then smiled softly. “This is it. Anything we take a picture of, we can bring it back here and have the photos printed out.”

“Are we gonna make a photo album, Papa? Mrs and Mr. Eleison started to make one with pictures of me in it.” Nero revealed himself as he looked at the camera. He smiled. “The album had my baby pictures!” 

Baby pictures of Nero. V’s heart fluttered, and a warm feeling flooded his chest. There were baby pictures of his son out there. V smiled softly at the thought of having pictures of Nero as a baby in his hands. On his shoulder, Urizen was staring at their son curiously. The little boy ran ahead of them to the cash register. 

“I want to steal that photo album.” The demon declared quietly. V almost snorted out loud and quickly covered it up with a cough. Oh, that was completely unexpected. 

“The feeling is mutual.” V agreed. The problem was, they would have to go to Fortuna and find a way to infiltrate the Eleison house. Neither of them knew where the house was, so that operation was bound to fail. Yet again, they did agree on something. “But that might be difficult as we do not know where they live.”

Urizen let out a huff. “We ask nestling and find out that way.”

V smirked in amusement. “We could, but let’s pocket that thought for a moment. Right now, we will buy this camera. We’ll have pictures with him, together.”

The demon perked up curiously. He saw Urizen look down at the camera, narrowing his eyes. “It will…take photos of us? Photos that Nero can look at every day?” 

V noticed that ‘every day’ portion, and he frowned. Was Urizen…worried that they would no longer be together? That Vergil would return and the two of them would vanish? V had never stopped to think about what the demonic half felt. The human half of Vergil approached the counter and then responded. 

“Yes…he will be able to look at them any time. He will be able to see us whenever he desires.” V responded quietly, and the demon looked at Nero with a sigh. 

“One day, Vergil will have to be remade. We cannot stay like this forever.” Urizen whispered to him. There was a hint of sadness in his tone. 

V closed his eyes and whispered. “I know.” 

Then he opened his eyes and approached the counter, Nero waiting by the register. The little boy smiled with excitement as V paid for the camera and placed it in a bag. Nero clapped happily and then peeked into the bag as they walked out of the store. V smiled down at him.

“Papa! Papa! I want to take a picture of you and Papa Urizen! That should be the first picture on the camera!” Nero exclaimed happily.

V and Urizen blinked in surprise at that. They shared a look, and V felt his heart clench at that. Nero wanted a photo of them. Urizen nodded in agreement while V smiled softly. “Alright, why not? Urizen and I will pose. Let me help you get the camera ready, Nero.”

Nero nodded excitedly, and V led them over to the closest park. V wanted the picture to be perfect. He sat down on a bench with Urizen still on his shoulder. He readied the camera and showed Nero how to hold it, how to make sure he got them both in the frame, and how to take the picture. Nero giggled excitedly and then pointed the camera at them.

“Okay, Papas! Say cheese!” Nero cried out, and V smiled brightly. In the corner of his eye, Urizen did indeed smile, well, as much as he could. 

“Cheese!” 

V heard the camera click and then heard another click. So, two pictures? V and Urizen were both fine with that. They wanted Nero to have something to remember them by. Vergil would return eventually. They would unite and disappear from existence. Nero rushed forward with the camera and sat in V's lap to hold it up to him. 

“Look, Papa! I took two pictures! They came out great!”

V nodded and took the camera. He checked the last two photos and instantly smiled. It showed…him. He and Urizen. His white hair was partially in his face, and he wore the clothes that he stole from the drug dealer. His tattoos were visible, and his cane was beside him. They were there. Urizen was there too. He was smiling as best as he could. His eyes were open, all of them. They existed. V looked over at Nero then.

Nero had pictures of them now. His memories of them might not hold, but the pictures could help him remember. V pulled Nero into his arms and embraced him. 

“The pictures are perfect,” V whispered to Nero. “And they're for you, Nero. For you to hold onto.”

“For me?” Nero asked quietly. V kissed his forehead and nodded. Urizen then was watching, and he soon leaned over to press a kiss to Nero's forehead, too. 

“Yes, for you. When we can, I'll make sure you have a photo album with photos of us in it.” V promised as he stroked Nero’s hair. The small child nodded excitedly and then kissed V's cheek. 

“Thank you, Papa!” Then Nero glanced over his shoulder, and V could tell that he was staring at the playground. Many children were playing already, with their parents watching over them. V and Urizen would watch over Nero. 

V poked his nose with a smile. “Go play, Nero. Urizen and I aren't going anywhere.” 

“Play. Do not fall off the toys. Do not talk to any stranger. I will destroy them if they try.” Urizen threatened. That didn’t seem to faze Nero as he nodded and then kissed both of their cheeks.

“Okay! I love you, Papas!” Nero cried out before he took off running to the playground. V watched the boy fondly and took a picture of Nero rubbing up the steps to the slide.

Urizen made a noise, and V noticed him smiling more. The demon then leaned its head against his neck. “Dante…are we planning to approach him today?”

V frowned and tapped his fingers against his knees. Ahh, the Dante question. “I was…contemplating it. We would approach him closer to the end of the day. I want Nero to have fun today before we…possibly ruin it.”

“You believe the conversation will go badly, so quickly?” 

V sighed heavily and touched his cane. He tapped it against the floor. “Call me a pessimist, but…I suppose it doesn't hurt to try. Besides, can our brother deny Nero? If anything, he would take Nero in.”

“Separating us from him would be…unwise,” Urizen growled quietly. V nodded in agreement. 

“True, but Dante was always a little unwise.” V hummed and then started to stare into the distance. “Kicking the fence father just installed and making a hole…”

“Only to get his foot stuck.” Urizen finished, and both started to laugh then. 

Their little brother was a foolish one. The two did watch Nero as he found the monkey bars. He tried to reach up to grab one, and he glanced around before using his spectral arm to grab onto a bar. V hummed softly at that as Nero started to swing himself forward again. V wondered what shenanigans his son would try to get into as he grew older.

V then closed his eyes and sighed softly. “I wonder…how our brother has changed since the tower. If he matured a bit.”

Urizen hummed. “If we assume it has been four years…something must have changed in our younger brother.”

The white-haired man nodded and then looked down at his hand. They were twenty-three years old, them and Dante. Did Dante remember their birthday? V's memory was vague on that. 

“We…We should have taken Dante's hand.” V stated quietly, and he felt Urizen nod. That was another thing that they agreed on. 

"Papas! Look!" Nero's cry made the two sides of Vergil turn, and they saw Nero had climbed right on top of the monkey bars. V and Urizen did not respond right away. Urizen grabbed the camera and took a photo before V began to panic. 

Urizen held the camera as V stood up and ran onto the playground. The demon half was not as phased by this as V, who was now reaching for their son. 

"Nero! You shouldn't be that high up. You're going to fall!" V scolded him gently. He swore he heard some of the parents around him whispering to each other.  Nero blinked and then shifted, letting himself fall so he could hang upside down. 

"But Papa, look! You're upside down!"

“Our nestling is very daring,” Urizen responded with pride and then took a photo of Nero like that. V groaned at that, shooting him a look, and then shook his head. 

V then reached out to grab Nero, making sure to turn Nero back over. The little boy let out a huff before he looked up at his Papa. V sighed in relief. Nero had not hurt himself. He set him down on the ground and then kissed his head. "Don't scare me like that, Nero. Do not climb so high up like that again, alright?"

The boy pouted and then looked down. "Yes, Papa..." 

He knows the other parents are watching him, and he sighed heavily again. Was he being overprotective? Possibly. Then again, he knows Vergil and Dante had gotten into situations like this, only to be scolded by their parents for taking risks like this. When they did do things like climb trees, inevitably, one of them fell and got hurt. The last time was Vergil himself, and he ended up with scraps on his cheek. V then looked around and spotted the swings. Maybe Nero would like the swings? They could bond more that way.

V smiled weakly and held out his hand. "Nero...how about we go to the swings? I'll push you."

Nero looked up in surprise, and the pout vanished instantly. The boy looked over at the swings and then looked right back at his Papa, reaching for his hand. V smiled softly and guided him over to the swings. Urizen held the camera, and V noticed that some were looking at the creature on his shoulder. The demon was oblivious as he was focused on Nero, watching him as they walked to the swings. V was pretty sure that his demon half didn’t care about the opinions of humans…minus possibly his own. Maybe. 

They got to the swings, and Nero hopped onto the first empty swing happily, with V coming up behind him. Nero then paused and looked up at them. V blinked in surprise when Nero locked eyes with him. 

“Nero…?”

“Is…This is real, right, Papa? This isn’t a dream?” Nero asked innocently. 

He wanted to know if this was a dream. V blinked in surprise at the question, and he smiled gently. Nero must have been worried that all of this was just a dream that he was having, that he and Urizen weren’t real. V leaned down to kiss his head. 

“I assure you that this isn’t a dream, little one. This is real. You are on the swings and I’m going to give you some pushes.” V reassured him, ruffling his white hair. 

Nero smiled happily and then nodded before turning to look forward. “I…I always dreamed that my Papa would take me to the park and push me on the swings. I always went so high up on the swings, and we were laughing.”

V inhaled sharply when he heard that. Nero had always wanted to be pushed on the swings by his father. So, today, he was fulfilling his son’s dream. He smiled gently at the boy, and then he looked at Urizen, who was baffled but curious. V then took hold of the chains of the swing and helped Nero get a head start on his swinging.  Nero was giggling happily, and he swung his legs around before V let go, allowing the child to start swinging. 

“Yay!” Nero cheered as he started to swing high up. V smiled at that and continued to give his back a gentle push. 

This simple domestic act of pushing his son on the swing made the warmth in his heart grow. To know that Nero was happy and excited to swing, it made V just as happy. Happiness. V looked down at his chest as he touched it with one hand. The last time that Vergil felt happiness was with Cristina in their three months together. Now, he felt it with their son. V smiled and then pushed Nero, watching him as he swung his legs up to the sky. His cries were like music to his ears. Urizen rested his head against V’s neck again as he watched the boy swing. 

The two halves of Vergil were content to be with their son.

Soon enough, Nero told them that he was starting to get hungry. V was certain that it was getting close to lunch time as other parents were walking off with their kids or sitting the kids down to eat something from a picnic basket. V looked thoughtful at the basket and wondered, once they settled down in Dante’s home, if they could put together a basket of food and eat together as a family. He smiled to himself in amusement. What a very domestic thought he had. 

Had Nero ever had a picnic with the Eleison family? If they did, did he have fun? Nero had not noticed the baskets yet as he was trying to slow himself down by dragging his feet into the gravel. V helped him by grabbing the swing’s chains, and then the boy hopped off the swing. 

“What do you want to eat, my little one?”

“Hmm…” Nero looked thoughtful before declaring. “A hamburger, please!” 

V hummed happily and took his hand. “A hamburger? Alright, I think we can do that. I was also thinking that we could get ice cream as well. What kind of ice cream do you like, Nero?”

“Chocolate!” 

Urizen smirked when he heard that. “Interesting…we like chocolate as well.” 

It took a bit, but the little family did find a place that sold burgers, a sit-down restaurant that was modeled after an ice cream parlor. Urizen sat in the booth next to him, mostly out of the view of others. Vergil, well, any part of Vergil really, had not eaten a hamburger in a very long time. V was eager to have his first one, and he's certain that Urizen is curious about it too. V was reading from the menu and noticed the creature looking at the menu too, curious about the various foods on it. 

Nero had a children's menu and was given paper and colored crayons. V smiled gently as Nero colored the pictures, and he looked down at Urizen, who was staring at the ice cream section. He chuckled softly and patted the creature's head, then they ordered some burgers. V handed the menus over to the waitress and found the woman blushing as she looked at him. He blinked at that as she walked away, and then he rubbed his nose. How strange. Then again, he supposed he had seen many of the mothers at the park stare at him curiously. 

“HAHAHA! V, you should see yer face! The ladies like the looks of ya.” Griffon laughed in his head. 

V found himself blushing, and he shook his head at the bird before looking at Nero's coloring page. His little one was all smiles as he colored in animals of various kinds. V hummed. 

“Perhaps I should get Nero some color crayons and a couple of coloring books. He looks enthralled right now.” V thought to Griffon. 

“Pipsqueak looks like he's havin’ fun. Kids should have some creativity.” Griffon cawed happily. V hummed and wondered if Nero liked drawing too. 

Nero finishes the coloring and then turns the paper over to start drawing. V hummed with interest and then turned his head to spot someone familiar sitting at the counter, and his eyes widened. A familiar white haired figure in red had his back turned with his head down. V's eyes stayed glued to his younger brother. He can't tell what his brother was eating, but if he had to guess, a strawberry sundae. 

His eyes glance at Nero, and he sees that the little boy hasn't noticed Dante. V bit his lip as he stared at his brother's back. Beside him, V notices a guitar case standing beside his younger brother. If he had to guess, the Rebellion was in there. V thought of his sword, Yamato. He inhaled sharply. He's certain she will be furious with him when they meet again. She was…in pieces. V sighed heavily and then shook his head, propping his elbow on the table then rested his head on his palm. 

Dante was quiet as he ate his sundae and didn't take notice of them. V didn't know what he would do if they spoke here. No, he intended to bring Nero over to his shop later so he could introduce them. V turned his gaze back to Nero, but did overhear another waitress speaking to Dante. 

“Oh, Dante! Well, how's it taste?” 

“As good as ever, Nancy. Sorry, I have a lot on my mind right now.”

“Oh? Your last job went all right? You look a little down.”

He noticed Dante shaking his head. “Nah, my last job went fine. Just…Just thinking about someone, that's all.”

Thinking about someone? 

The waitress winked at him then. “Someone special?”

Dante laughed at that and waved her off. “Nah, never had much luck in that department. Don’t worry about me.”

“Papa?” V looked back at Nero then. Nero was looking up from his drawing, and he noticed Nero had drawn some stick figures. One of them had black clothes, one looked dark blue, one was shorter, and then one had no clothes.

“What color does my Uncle like?” He asked innocently. V smiled softly. Nero was excited to meet his Uncle that he took to drawing him. 

“Red, little one. It was always his favorite color.” V paused. “How would you…feel about possibly meeting him today?”

Nero blinked and looked up with interest. He glanced down at his picture and then looked at him once more. “Will you…Be okay to see him, Papa?” 

V smiled gently and reached over to pat his head. Nero was so empathic, even at this age. “I wish to try. I only hope he will…hear us out.” 

“Then…yes! I wanna meet him!”

“Then we shall try,” V responded as their food was brought to them. The waitress skillfully set the plates down on the table, setting down silverware along with the plates. They would have their ice cream later. 

Urizen peeked up at V’s plate and then moved to crawl into his lap. V chuckled softly as his demonic half peered over the burger and fries curiously. Nero instantly started eating his fries and giggled when he saw Urizen. Urizen reached for a French fry too and started to eat it. V rolled his eyes in amusement at that. He should have known he would have to share with the creature. V chewed on his fry as he glanced at his brother once more. It seemed like he was visiting with a few other patrons of the parlor. V heard him laugh occasionally, but it sounded like it was always half-hearted. 

Nero took a bite of his burger, and his eyes lit up happily. The boy spoke up. “This tastes better than what they make back at Fortuna!” 

Urizen took a bite of V’s burger and chewed before he snorted. Fortuna. V inhaled sharply, wondering about the island he had called home briefly. Cristina had called it home as well, but now? If she had learned that the Order tried to buy them both to use as potential experiment subjects, she would be pissed off. V inhaled sharply at the thought of what those people wished to do to their son. 

As if reading his mind, Urizen whispered to him. “I wish to annihilate the Order.” 

V chewed on his burger and swallowed it. He couldn’t help but scowl and then mumbled back. “I wish to do the same to that scum.” 

Suddenly, he heard the sound of a spoon dropping, and V froze. Wait, did he just say “scum”? Out loud? Near his brother? V feels someone watching him now, but he knows a certain someone’s eyes are peering at him. His heart started to beat faster and faster as he slowly turned his head to meet the gaze of the man in red. Blue eyes pierced his green eyes, and V stopped breathing at that point. He clenched his fist, and in his lap, Urizen seemed to freeze too. 

They were caught. 

Dante was staring right at him. His expression held disbelief. How could he not be shocked? V did not hide his or Nero’s white hair, which was an extremely rare hair color, but Dante had heard a word that his brother, Vergil, would say. Perhaps his green eyes would save him from this turning into a disaster. Then V paused, wait, no. The moment V had peered into a mirror and saw his eyes, their mother’s eyes. V was certain he resembled their mother, while Dante looked like their father. 

V quickly hid Urizen from view with his arm, but he could feel Urizen ducking down under the table, holding a piece of burger with him. He was munching on a piece of a burger while V had eye contact with his younger brother. V felt a sense of panic set in, and he tried to think of what to do. Dante remained baffled, staring back at him. His jaw had dropped. 

What was Dante thinking about? That he find his long-lost older brother? Or was he shocked to find someone with hair like his own? Was he thinking about coming over to them? He noticed his brother's hand shaking, the same one that Vergil had slashed at. V gulped, and he clenched his fist. What should V do? 

“Papa?” Nero was his salvation. V broke eye contact with Dante, but he's certain his brother is looking at Nero now. Nero tilted his head to the side, confused. “Papa? Is something wrong? All of the color in your face went away.”

“I-It did? I see.” V responded and then reached out to ruffle his hair. “Forgive me, Nero. Papa got distracted by something. Are you enjoying your burger?”

“Yep! I love it! What does Papa Urizen think of his pieces?” Nero asked, and V could indeed see Dante looking at Nero in shock.  

“Delicious.” Urizen peeked up to address Nero before going back down to hide. V patted the creature's head.

“He's seen us, all three of us,” V mumbled to the demon. The demon nodded against him and let out a soft growl. 

Nero asked him. “Do you like yours too, Papa? You have barely touched it.” 

V paused, and he smiled weakly. “I am a slow eater, little one. I will get to it, I promise.”

He started to munch on his burger and looked at Dante again. They made eye contact again. His little brother inhaled sharply, and before he started to drink some water. V bit his lip and then wondered if he should pull his brother off to the side to speak privately. Yet, neither Son of Sparda moved. V quickly looked away again and started to devour his burger, occasionally passing food to Urizen. Urizen ate the burger pieces happily and then glanced at Dante, too.

V finished his burger and noticed Nero was drawing again after he finished eating. He smiled gently and then brushed hair from his face so he could see better. Nero grinned happily at him and showed him the picture. “Look, Papa! I finished our family picture!”

The white-haired man laughed softly as he examined the photo. He spoke loud enough for Dante to hear. “It looks wonderful, Nero. You did a good job drawing your uncle.” 

“I hope he likes it. Maybe we can put it on his fridge!” Nero suggested with a giggle.

‘Do you see Dante? You have a nephew.’ V wanted to tell his brother. “We'll have to ask him when we see him. Maybe you can give it to him as a gift?”

“Yeah! That's a great idea, Papa!” 

V smiled and then saw Dante in the corner of his eye get up, grabbing the guitar case. He left money on the counter with his empty water glass and strawberry sundae dish. He swung the case over his shoulder and then stuffed his hands into his pockets as he started to walk. It was like time slowed as Dante brushed right past him. V's heart was beating quickly. 

“Vergil…?” He hears him whisper, and V touches his chest.

“Dante…” V answered in a whisper. That caused the taller white-haired man to freeze at the door. His hand was holding onto the door. 

“How…? You look…so different.” Dante whispered, astonished. 

V smiled weakly at that. “You have changed, too, little brother.” 

Dante was silent for a moment. V looked up when the chocolate ice cream arrived for him and Nero. He let Urizen have a taste of the ice cream before he heard Dante again.

“The door will be open.” 

V let out a breath as he heard the door open and shut. His heart began to calm, and he allowed himself to smile. 

“Little brother…”

Chapter Text

The encounter with Dante left V feeling energized. Their first conversation in many years did not end in violence. It was a genuine one. Dante had practically invited them in. The door would be open. Then…Then they could go tonight. V would have made sure to pack up their things and leave the key to the room on one of the beds. He couldn't help but smile with relief. His fears had been unfounded. 

V held Nero's hand as they exited the parlor and headed back toward the park. Nero had put his present for Dante away in his pocket for safekeeping. V and Urizen weren’t certain what they should do next with Nero, so they decided to take a little walk around. Nero had a lot of energy, and they wanted to make sure Nero got a lot of his energy out. The tiny boy was looking around with wide eyes as they walked along the sidewalk. Then the thought occurred to V: had Nero never left Fortuna before? Then again, he was far too young to travel so much.

The man hummed quietly as he watched Nero look around and spot some fountains. Nero stared at the fish-shaped sculpture that shot water out from its mouth, and V stopped to let him stare at it. Then he looked around and spotted a sign advertising a flower garden. Flowers. V hummed and then looked at Nero, who was watching the fountain. 

“Nero? Come with me.” V gestured to the sign. “Do you want to help me find your Momma’s favorite flower? I think it could be in there.”

Nero turned, and he perked up. V could tell that Nero wanted to know more and more about his mother. Vergil had managed to tell the boy her name and the thought that he had her nose, but not much else. Nero ran back to him and took his hand. “Will you tell me more about Momma, Papas?”

Urizen smiled at that. He recalled their wife just as much as V did. V remembered her reaction when Vergil first triggered, how her eyes widened, and how she covered her mouth with her hands. Yet, not a trace of fear. No, she was fascinated with the other part of him. Cristina had approached him and took his reptilian hand into her own, unafraid to lace her fingers together with his. She gave him a big smile, and he recalled how his heart skipped a beat. 

“Your Momma was almost without fear.” V chuckled softly, and Urizen hummed in agreement. “She would turn to face a demon and yell at it to come after her. She even threw rocks at them. Of course, we protected her from actually getting hurt.”  

Urizen laughed. “Our Cristina could scare off any human who dared to disobey the rules in her library. We even felt intimidated by her.”

Nero burst into giggles when he heard that and then pointed at them. “Did Momma scare you away from the library, too, Papas?”  

V soon blushed in embarrassment. Vergil had stayed in the library past closing time, but he thought he had hidden out well in the area reserved for the citizens of Fortuna. That section was meant for them to research the history of the island, and Vergil naturally assumed there was information in there that they were hiding from foreigners. Somehow, though, Cristina was able to sniff him out and…proceeded to kick him out. 

“Hey, Snowy! We closed twenty minutes ago, and I want to go home. Get out. Now.” 

“Yes, yes, she did. She was eager to get home and read her newest romance novel.” V hummed as he picked up Nero with one arm, before trudging over to the garden. 

“Momma read romance novels?! Eww, those are the kissing books that Mrs. Eleison likes to read!” Nero stuck out his tongue, and Urizen couldn’t help but laugh loudly. 

“If your mother heard you now, she would probably ground you for all eternity. Saying “eww” would be blasphemous to her.” The demon reached out to touch their son’s hair.  

Nero tried to say the big word and frowned as V entered the garden. “B-B-Bla…? I think that priest in the church said that word a few times. So, Momma would be unhappy with me?” 

V hummed as they entered the garden and started to look at the flowers. “Oh, not for long, I’m sure. I think your Momma would never be unhappy with you for long. She did talk about wanting to marry and have a child…” 

At first, he didn’t realize that when she talked about getting married and having children, she was talking about with him. Vergil was a bit clueless…

Looking back on it now, she was referring to him. Of course, they did end up getting married. It was a rushed one, but still loving nonetheless. Children had not…strayed into their minds too much. No, if anything, Vergil had avoided that subject. Yet…Vergil did promise to return after defeating Mundus. So, it's possible the thought did cross his mind. No part of Vergil realized, though, that Cristina had indeed become pregnant, not until they met their sweet child in that dark cell. V scowled. he wished he hadn’t met Nero in such a cruel way, but they had met nonetheless. A smile returned to V’s face as he looked down at the flowers.

“Let’s see…do you recognize any of the flowers, Nero?” 

Nero nodded and then pointed to the rose bushes that were off to the left side. “Those are roses! There’s red, pink, and oh! I see some with yellow and pink, Papa!” 

Roses, rather basic, but V was glad that Nero knew some flowers. Then Nero looked around more before pointing to a white flower. “Those are daisies! Mrs. Eleison likes those.”

“Correct. Those are daisies.” V nodded and then looked around curiously. 

Then Nero pointed to the tall, yellow flowers. “Sunflowers! Kyrie loves those!”

“Ahh, yes, I know you mentioned her before,” V smirked. He remembers Vergil hearing Nero call Kyrie pretty. Perhaps that meant nothing, but V was certain there might be something there. 

If only he could remember the flowers Cristina loved. They were not roses, but a flower that was just as beautiful as the roses. V walked with his demon half and son to take a look at every flower. Nero then pointed to some flowers, not as tall as the sunflowers, and very fragrant. 

“Oh! Lilies! Mrs. Eleison says the white ones mean rebirth and innocence!” He cried out and reached out to touch the petals. “Did Momma love lilies?”

V frowned and looked thoughtfully at the tall flowers. Urizen made a humming noise and then reached out to sniff the flowers. He then shook his head. “No. These do not smell right. The flowers were smaller…”

The white-haired man couldn’t help but agree, even if he thought the flowers looked lovely. She might like the ones if they were red or the lilies with pink and white. V brushed his fingers against the petals while Nero frowned. “Hmm…not lilies or daisies or roses or sunflowers… There are so many flowers out there, Papa!”

V smiled weakly. “That is true. I wish we could remember more about them, Nero.”

“Red.” That made V look at Urizen puzzled. “I remember…a bouquet our whole self bought. They also… smelled lovely.”

  “There are a lot of red flowers out there…” Nero mumbled as his eyes swept across the garden. It was true. V could spot many kinds of red flowers in the garden, some they had already observed. Still, they had not seen all the flowers. Nero was correct that there were many kinds of flowers.

“Merry, merry sparrow! Under leaves so green. A happy blossom sees you, swift as an arrow, seek your cradle narrow, near my bosom…” V uttered as they walked along the garden. 

Nero patted his cheek then. “Is that from your book, Papa? How come you remember all that?”

“Ahh, I read a lot as a child, and it was mostly from my books. You see, I committed almost every poem to memory. Though this did not please your Uncle Dante. He desired to spend more time with me to play...or fight.” V clarified with a fond smile. “Your Uncle and I are twins, and though we shared much, there were things…I wanted to myself.”

His son tilted his head to the side then. “And you wanted your book to yourself?”

“Precisely. I did write my initial on it. Dante could not say it was his after that.” V responded with a triumphant smirk.  

Nero then wiggled around in his arms, shifting to press his face to V's cheek, and then said. “Credo let me have his toys, and I didn’t have to fight him for them.  Then again, he's older than me!” 

Credo was a normal human child. It likely came naturally to him to share his toys with Nero. Nothing came naturally to two half-devil children, though. There was a lot of fighting. A lot of scrapes and scratches. A lot of Mother breaking up fights and forcing the twins apart for an extended period of time. Yet, there was still tenderness. There was still a younger twin crawling into the bed of the elder when he had a nightmare. Some twins helped their mother make dinner and dessert. There was a father who smiled with pride down at his twins as they sat in his lap and heard the stories of his travels. It was not all violence.

From the sounds of things, Nero likely had only experienced violence around his adopted siblings. The attack from that bug demon interrupted their peaceful existence. A violence that V shuddered to think about. What agony did his son experience from the emergence of his wings? Did his blood sing for the violence that Sons of Sparda, or hell, really any devil, inherently craved for? V looked at his son’s devil arm. Would this arm remain the same for the rest of his life? Or could they change it back to its human state?  Not to mention the girl Kyrie was a witness to Nero’s transformation and subsequent scarring of the bug demon. It was difficult to tell what she thought of Nero’s true nature. 

She must have told her parents. After all, he had warned her to run. V imagines her heart was pounding against her chest like a sledgehammer, too frightened to move until the bug was gone. Nero didn’t tell him about what happened after he scarred the demon. Could he have forgotten? Could his blood lust have overpowered his little body and done more damage than he realized? Nero had the sense to run away, though. He knew the knights of the Order would attack him at first sight. What of the girl, though? V wondered what she had told her parents. Had they mounted a search party for him?

V pondered on the question of the girl named Kyrie as he stared at the sunflowers. Nero said she loved the sunflowers. But he knows they were not Cristina’s favorite. Still, he cannot help but be curious about the girl his son described as “pretty”. She was a girl who didn’t want to lose her playmate, as Nero had said, so she threw rocks at the demon who assaulted them. It made V snort internally as Cristina would have done the same thing. A brave girl had captured the heart of his little prince. 

Like father, like son. 

“Papa? What about that one?” Nero’s voice crashed through his thoughts, and he saw his little one pointing over at some shrubs. Indeed, there were red flowers that had bloomed, displaying the gold stamens that attracted many bees to them. The petals seemed to be layered on top of each other as they displayed themselves to the world.

V tilted his head curiously as he stared at the flowers. Urizen’s attention was on the flowers, too, and they noticed a couple of the flowers had not bloomed yet. There’s a tug from his chest as V hummed and then approached the red flowers with interest. Then V reached out to brush his fingers gently against the ones that had not bloomed yet. 

“Hmm…why have you not bloomed yet, little flower?” V asked aloud with a tenderness he did not expect. 

Suddenly, the scenery around him changes, and he sees a bouquet of these same flowers sitting in a glass vase. There was a purple ribbon tied around the glass vase as he inspected it carefully. A rumble from his demonic half in his mind told him that it looked perfect. Of course, it had to be perfect! It was for her . Vergil gritted his teeth before he searched around the flower shop for something else to add to it. 

What else could one add to a flower vase for the perfect woman? He stared at the vase, hoping that the answer would come to him in that moment. Perhaps a card? What could he write down on it? To Cristina? Foolishness, there had to be more on the card than that. He drummed his fingers on the table. 

Then he reached up to rub his forehead, a tiny headache beginning to form against his brain. Perhaps he was thinking too hard about this. Cristina enjoyed some luxury, but she might tease him for going overboard. He blushed at the thought of her teasing and telling him that he thinks too much. She enjoyed her work and her romance novels. Her life felt rather complete in that way. 

“Sir? Are you ready to check out?” The auburn-haired woman at the register asked. He turned to look at her, eyeing the name on her nametag: Marcella. 

Marcella burst into giggles, likely noticing how red his face was. “My goodness, you have the same look on your face as my husband when he tries to pick out flowers for me.”

Her words brought him a sense of comfort. He raised an eyebrow. “...Ah, so, others have had my conundrum then?”

“Of course! Especially when the husbands did something wrong.” Marcella laughed heartily.  “What did you do? Forget to turn off the lights? Came home late?” 

Oh. Vergil was quick to avert his gaze. “...I burnt dinner.”

Marcella smiled gently at that. “Ahh, so you’re making it up with some flowers?”

“Yes, and food as well. I…it would be better to grovel with both.” 

She nodded and then examined the flowers he had chosen. “Oh! Peonies! What a lovely flower. She is a lucky lady then.” 

“Peonies,” V whispered as his finger stayed connected to the bud. He then smiles as his heart skipped a beat. “Red peonies.”

“Purple ribbon. Glass vase. She loved the bouquet.” Urizen supplied as he too stared at the buds. He reached out to touch it as well, and suddenly, the flower blossomed. Both pulled away in shock as the other buds suddenly bloomed. 

“Whoa!” Nero cried out as the peonies that were buds blossomed, revealing more of the bright gold stamen. V stared at the flower that he and Urizen were now touching. He heard his demonic half sniffing at it, likely trying to figure out the reason why they bloomed so quickly. 

“Demonic…influence?” V whispered his question. He held his cane tightly, ready for a fight from some sort of demonic plant. They existed, but most of the demons they encountered descended from the fire hells. 

It took a moment, and V noticed that his demonic half was…frowning. The frown was replaced by a puzzled look. That was a look V wasn't expecting. What was going through his mind right now? Urizen leaned up and sniffed the air again. Still, he looked incredibly confused as he looked back at his human half.

“Uncertain.” Urizen retorted, narrowing his eyes. “I…I do not know.”

He didn't know? How did he not know? V gazed upon his demonic self, utterly baffled, before looking at the peonies once more. Then he swore he heard the sound of laughter, and the white-haired man looked around in surprise. As far as he could tell, there was no one else in the garden with them. V's gaze swept the area, his heart beginning to race in his head. Urizen growled suddenly, and the white-haired man felt Nero jump out of his arms. 

“Nero?” V called out, and he stopped touching the peony. Urizen growled again, as if to call their child back. Nero did not listen, running out of the garden. 

“Nestling!” Urizen snarled, trying to call him back, and V saw him narrow his eyes. Was he attempting to use the tug to force him to turn around and return to them? 

Yet, he heard the boy running out of the garden, and V started to walk quickly. He held onto his cane and forced himself to go faster. What was wrong with Nero?! Why was he ignoring them?! He glanced at Urizen, who hissed in frustration. Somehow, their boy was ignoring the sire-nestling tug. V gritted his teeth. Did something happen? 

“Nero! Nero, come back!” V called out as he ran out of the garden. When he tried to call out for Nero, his chest grew heavy. V gasped and grabbed his chest as he started to cough. 

His lungs screamed for air as he continued to cough and crumbled to the ground. Urizen growled softly, concern rolling off of him. Griffon let out a caw in his mind. “V?! Whoa whoa whoa! Ya shouldn't force yerself to run so much! Yer still healing from yesterday.” 

The burns and the slashes from the volcano spider had healed. He recalls the pain he felt as his minuscule healing factor burned the wounds away, but the exhaustion from yesterday was hitting him again. The exhaustion was still there. V gritted his teeth and coughed again. “FOOLISH HUMAN. STILL SO WEAK. HOW YOU DEFEATED ME IS BEYOND ME.” The voice of the huge spider echoed in his mind. Ah, there he was. V smirked at the insult and then reached up to wipe his mouth. 

“Then you must be just as weak as well if a weak, foolish human like me was able to defeat you, Phantom.” V retorted with a smirk. The spider-scorpion let out a growl, but seemed to have clammed up. The white-haired man stood up as Urizen huffed quietly. 

“Our nestling did not stray far. He is in that tree.” Urizen pointed to a tree, and V caught a glimpse of blue wings peeking out of a tree. V hummed as he held onto his cane before he felt the presence of demons nearby. 

He was not the only one, as Nero was quick to peek out from the leaves, his nostrils flaring. V caught a quick look at his son and noticed that his eyes were glowing bright gold. Had Nero sensed the demons before he did? Was that why he ran? Was he seeking shelter from the demons? V bit his lip and then turned to look in the direction of the demons. Urizen snarled on his shoulder, his own eyes flashing brightly. So, what demons had come to trouble them today?

They came clawing out of the ground mere feet away from the tree Nero hid in. Their nestling was quick to disappear back into the tree, and V caught the faint sound of a whimper. V picked up the cane and strolled over to stand in front of the tree. Stay there, Nero, he wanted to will his thoughts to his little one. Nero seemed to understand as he didn’t move from the tree. 

The creatures that emerged from the ground revealed themselves to be the Scarecrow demons. V huffed in annoyance. Something was not adding up. Why would Nero be frightened by these mere lessers beings? No, there had to be something else here that frightened his nestling so. What that was, he did not know. Urizen growled at the demons and then looked at V. V then pointed his cane at the Scarecrow and summoned both Griffon and Shadow. Shadow burst out of the cane while Griffon emerged from his chest.

“Alright, alright! Another fight! Let’s do this, Shakespeare!” Griffon cried out before he dove right at the Scarecrows. Shadow let out a roar before she lunged at the first Scarecrow, piercing it with her hedgehog ability. 

V was quick to pull out his precious ‘V’ book and started to walk around while reciting some poetry. His familiars did the attacking after all. Urizen growled and then started to stand, but V patted his head. 

“Save your strength. I have a bad feeling. These Scarecrows aren't the real threat.” V advised his demonic half as he swept his gaze across the battlefield. “Nero is afraid of something else.”

“Something we cannot sense?” Urizen frowned as he glanced over to the tree. V hears the whimper again, and faintly, he sees a glow coming from the tree.

“I'm afraid so. Perhaps Nero’s arm is more perspective than we realize. It grew into protecting Nero and his friend and adapted to alert him to danger.” V reasoned as he saw one of the Scarecrows turn light purple. He smirked and closed his book. 

He threw his cane at the creature and warped over to it. The cane impaled into its head, and V grabbed hold of the cane, shoving it further into its head before pulling it right back out. The demon exploded as V mumbled. “Rest in peace.”

Urizen held onto his shoulder as he turned to look at the familiars. Griffon raised his wings and the air hummed with electricity,  before he directed bolts of lightning at a nearby Scarecrow.  V directed Shadow to this Scarecrow with his cane. “Pierce ‘em through.”

Shadow slashed at the creature before her tentacles emerged to slash at the creature before impaling it through the burlap sack body. V felt his hair stand up as he got too close to Griffon's electrical abilities, and he stepped back a bit. He knows there's another foe here. Something much stronger than these lessers. Where was it? Was it dwelling in the darkness until the lessers beings were defeated? Was it planning an ambush? V chewed his lip as his eyes found his next prey. 

He was close enough to the creature to merely stab it multiple times with his staff as he quoted. "But the following Contraries to these are True."

With each stab to the demon, V felt a rush of blood lust, and his blood began to sing. It was only natural. Urizen and Nero would experience that feeling too in the heat of battle. Then again, they'd experience the full force of it because they held more demon blood in them currently. Still, V smirked and then looked at the two remaining demons. A chill ran through his body, and he expelled an invigorated breath. 

The thrill of battle felt wonderful.  

V saw one of the bladed demons lunging in his direction. He growled, and then Griffon appeared above him, seizing his wrist and dragging him out of the way. “Be careful there, V! Yer still fragile!”

The white-haired man scoffed at that. He was not that fragile. 

V sighed as he was set back down several feet from the Scarecrow. Urizen snarled at the creatures from his shoulder, and V patted his head before scanning the battlefield once more. Still nothing. Then suddenly, the hairs on his arms stood up. V’s eyes widened as a cold chill brushed against his arms. Nero’s whimper grew louder from the tree until Urizen hissed, telling their little one to quiet down. They did not want this new foe to sense Nero. Nestlings were vulnerable devils or demons, easy to kill and easy to devour. No. V gritted his teeth. No, that was not going to happen to his child.

Shadow must have sensed the presence, too, as she turned to roar, and soon, a portal appeared before them. Griffon squawked as he flapped his wings above V’s head. “Oh damn! I haven’t sensed one of these things in forever!” 

The two remaining Scarecrows must have sensed the portal and the presence within because they let out a loud cry before starting to flee. Shadow quickly ran to V, standing in front of him, and growling. He could see her claws were out, ready to strike when the new presence arrived.

“Do tell us, Griffon.” V insisted as he frowned at the bird. “Do not keep us hanging in suspense.”

“Aww, c’mon V! I thought ya bookworms love suspense!” 

“Cliffhangers and I do not mix, Griffon. They only serve to create frustration, especially at the end of the book.” V snarled and then saw a figure emerge from the portal, but briefly.

It disappeared abruptly, before V could get a proper glimpse of it. He gritted his teeth and observed the battlefield. Where would it appear? Urizen tensed up on his shoulder and let out a snarl. Suddenly, the cries of the remaining Scarecrows intensified, and V turned to see two large, bladed arms stabbing right into the burlap sack creatures, ending their existences. It did not roar, but the creature did turn to look at the group. It narrowed its eyes on them. 

Aside from the blade's arms, V noticed that the new demon had crystals embedded in its shoulders and piercing red eyes. It stood tall, possibly just as tall as Vergil or Dante. 

“That’s a Hellripper. It’s a demon from the ice hell. From what I hear, he’s pretty damn fast and can teleport around the battlefield.” The bird explained, and V groaned inwardly. An ice-based demon, great.

He turned his head to look at Urizen. Their eyes met in that moment. “Now.”

Urizen snarled and then jumped off of V’s shoulder, growing to the size of Vergil, and landed with a loud thud. V then pointed Griffon and Shadow in the direction of their new enemy. “Pin it down.”

Shadow lunged at the creature, turning into a spinning blade, and started to carve at the ice demon. It let out a cry, but then knocked Shadow away. V cringed as Shadow was sent flying into a bush, and he ran to her side. “Shadow! Griffon, help Urizen!”

Urizen let out a roar to challenge the ice demon himself as Griffon flew over to join the demon half of Vergil. V moved to check on his jaguar familiar and noticed she was already an orb. He stilled in fear, his heart hammering in his chest. The demon had sent Shadow straight into a stalemate? How strong was this thing?! V reached out to touch her orb, feeling the warmth, and the familiar roar of his jaguar roared in his mind. 

“I know. I got you, Shadow.” V reassured the big cat, stroking the orb gently. He then looked over as he heard Griffon let out a cry. He saw that the bird had been electrified by an ice demon, sending it to the ground. Urizen let out a roar and slammed his foot into the creature’s side. 

He then picked up the demon by the blade arm before slamming it down to the ground. V had not seen the demon fight before, so he’s not certain what to expect. Shadow reconstructed herself next to him and then pressed her head against V’s arm. He smiled gently and then patted her head. “Come, let’s rejoin the battle.”

The ground underneath started to shake, and V jumped in surprise. Urizen was slamming his fists downwards into the demon, reminiscent of when they wielded Beowulf. V wondered if Dante still had their signature gauntlets and greaves. It has been many years, and he wouldn’t be shocked if his younger brother got rid of the devil arm. Then again, he hoped that Dante didn’t because he wanted to reclaim what was his. Then again, V didn’t know if Beowulf, much like Yamato, would accept him in this state.

The demon warped out of the way of the next blow, and V noticed that it was starting to turn red. It appeared behind Urizen, slashing at his back, but before he could retaliate, the ice demon warped away. Griffon squawked and then scanned the area. “Greeeaaatt. No wonder that thing is considered dangerous.” 

Urizen snarled at that. “We must find a way to lure it out into the open. To get the foul thing’s guard down.” 

Griffon huffed and then felt a chill in the air behind it. V cried out, and Griffon quickly moved out of the way as a blade slashed through the air where the bird was flying. “Hey! Watch it, ya icy bastard!” 

The bird started to shoot balls of lightning at the creature in retaliation, and the familiar managed to land a few shots on the ice demon before it warped away. Urizen snarled as Griffon landed on his shoulder. “Ya got a plan, Urizen? Cause anything would be helpful right now.”

“Overwhelm him.” 

Griffon scoffed at that. “Not much of a plan. If we had more fighters, maybe that plan would work.” 

V glided back onto the battlefield with Shadow, but kept their distance for now. The human and demon halves of Vergil locked eyes briefly. There had to be a way to end this creature. Suddenly, V shivers, and he turns to look over his shoulder to see the creature slashing at him. Shadow pounced on the creature just as the demon’s blade slashed briefly against his cheek. V jumped back with a growl, grabbing at his cheek. 

“Damn!” V hissed and then heard Shadow cry out in pain. The white-haired man reached out to call Shadow back to his skin. He snarled as the ice demon soon turned its gaze on him. 

V blocked an incoming attack with his cane and tried to push against the demon. “NOW!”

Griffon cawed and dove at the demon, firing lightning balls at it. The demon was shoved back and let out a cry of pain. Urizen moved quickly, grabbing at the demon and then pinning it down to the ground with a growl. 

“You are not going anywhere, ice demon.”  Urizen declared before he punched the demon in the face. 

V held his bleeding cheek as he summoned Shadow once more. “Pin him down to the ground, Shadow!”

The jaguar appeared again and then used her body to pin the ice demon down so Urizen could continue to punch it. Griffon stayed on Urizen. V began to wabble over to the others as Urizen continued to wail on the demon. Then, he sniffed the air and felt the air around him start to freeze. Suddenly, he felt something wrap around his ankle, and V let out a cry as he was pulled backwards. He heard Griffon cry out for him and then took flight. He landed on the ground, and pain shot through his head. Damnit! Another blow to his body. 

He then heard a growl as he saw several ice demons surround him. A blast of ice was fired off, and V rolled out of the way of the attacks before he was yanked back. He groaned, reaching to touch the back of his head. Suddenly, V heard the crackling of electricity, and Griffon cried out in annoyance as his body slammed into one of the ice demons. V growled and then reached over to pull the hook off his ankle. 

Another icy demon began to pounce on him, and V held up his cane to defend himself. An ice demon. Ice demons were the natural enemies of fire demons. Vergil, Dante, Nero, and Sparda were of the fire hell, even if the majority of their family were technically partially human. V hissed at the demon, and suddenly, he heard the familiar sound of a growl, then the icy demon was seized by a clawed hand. A blue translucent clawed hand. V’s eyes widened in horror when he saw his son, out of the tree, his wing had grabbed the back of the creature’s head. Nero’s lips pulled back, and he snarled before he pulled the wing back, along with the demon. 

“SCUM!” Nero snarled, and V felt his heart skip a beat then. 

Oh. Oh dear. Had Nero heard him whisper that word back in the parlor? 

While holding onto the demon, Nero slammed the frosty demon's face first onto the ground. The demon let out a roar of pain as Nero’s claws closed around its head and squeezed it. V inhaled sharply when he heard the demon screeching in pain. Pain. So much pain. He was quick to get the damned hook from around his ankle and looked at his son’s face. 

A smirk. 

His eyes lit up a bright gold with blood lust swirling around in them as the quarter devil squeezed the life out of the frost demon and then let its dead body drop to the ground. Nero snarled at it and then kicked the body before it disintegrated into the red orbs. V was panting as he stared at his little one, as he turned to look at the other frosty demons, his claws at the ready. Nero growled at the remaining members of the pack. 

V frowned and his eyes narrowed before he quickly stood up. “Nero! Nero, get back!” 

He quickly ran over, picking Nero up, and then snapped his fingers. A burst of energy came from his back as he summoned the dread, volcanic, spider-like familiar. Nero snarled in his arms and started to wiggle around, trying to break free. Summoning what little demonic blood he had left, V growled gently, baring his canines to try to calm his nestling. The ground shook, causing V to fall to his knees, as the spider slammed down onto the remaining Frosts. 

The volcanic spider roared as he crushed them, but V could see the demons still moving around underneath Phantom. V was panting, and he chuckled darkly. “Phantom…burn them to hell.” 

The ground erupted into fire as the spider did as he bid him to, which made V smile. He must have let his grasp loosen because Nero jumped out of his arms. V scowled and then called out. “Nero! Nero Barone-Sparda! Get back here!” 

Griffon cawed and then reached for one of Nero’s wings, only to be swatted at by said wings.  “GAH! Pipsqueak! Get back here!”

Nero landed on the ground in front of Phantom, gazing at him curiously before looking at the fallen demons. He growled at the frost demons, who were consumed by the volcanic flames and turned to dust. The smirk on his son’s face remained as he met the gaze of the giant spider-like demon. Worry began to bubble up inside of V as the spider-like demon spoke. 

“A QUARTER DEVIL. YET SO STRONG. WHAT SHALL YOU DO, LITTLE NESTLING?” Phantom asked Nero. 

Nero’s smirk died down, and V noticed that his face brightened up then. Now, he looked more like a child. Not a devil child. A human child. One who loved playing. One who loved chocolate ice cream. One who drew pictures for the uncle he wished to meet. The devil part of his child was violent. It enjoyed taking a life. While V knew the demon side had maintained a demon, he did not think it could easily take another demon's life. Like his own. Urizen had extinguished life plenty of times for survival. Had Nero done the same thing after he ran off? V exhaled a shaky breath. Nero had not told him everything from before he was captured.

“New friend!” Nero let out a cry before he pounced onto the volcanic spider. He giggled as he landed on Phantom’s tail. V’s eyes widened in shock, and his heart was about to burst from his chest in panic. 

Oh no. No. No. No. NO! 

Phantom let out a noise of confusion and then swung his tail around, Nero clutching onto it with a bright smile on his face. The little boy crawled up the stinger before the tail moved, so the boy was holding onto him upside down. Nero looked at the demon with a bright smile. “Hello Phantom! You’re my new friend!”

The spider let out a roar and tried to fling the boy off with another swing of its tail. Unbothered, Nero laughed as his wings held onto the tail. The spider stared back at the laughing boy before letting out another roar, swinging the boy around. The air was filled with Nero’s giggles, and V frowned at the spider. His thoughts reached out to the volcanic spider in the form of a hiss.

“Do not harm my nestling.”

The demon snarled in his head. “YOUR NESTLING IS STRANGE. WHY DOES HE CALL ME A FRIEND? HE CLINGS TO ME. I AM NOTHING LIKE THE OTHER TWO.”

V sighed in their shared headspace. “I do not know.”  

Nero was a mystery to him still. Perhaps his nestling did not scare easily? Maybe the boy knew that the demon would never hurt him? Griffon burst into laughter as he flew over and landed on his shoulder. “Well, well, would ya look at that? The pipsqueak wants to play with ya, Phantom!” 

“SILENCE, GRIFFON.” The demon snarled and then watched the tiny child with interest. 

V sighed again and then brushed his hand through his hair before touching his cheek. There was blood still trailing down his cheek, and he wiped his face. Blood coated his fingers, and he looked over to see Urizen approaching with Shadow. The demon half frowned as he spotted Nero on Phantom's tail. The two halves shared another look, and Urizen shrank himself once more. He climbed up V's legs, heading straight for his shoulder. Shadow nuzzled V's leg, and the white-haired man leaned against the cat. 

His body was aching, and he exhaled through his nose while Urizen pressed his face to V's cheek. He hummed softly and gently pressed his skin against the demon's in return. Urizen remained unscathed, thankfully, but V had that cut on his face, and his bones ached. He pressed his weight against his silver cane before approaching the pinned demons underneath Phantom. The sounds of pain ground against his ears, and V took a moment to eliminate each demon with a stab from his cane. 

V then looked at Phantom and held his arm out. “Phantom, I need to speak with Nero.”

The Spider-scorpion growled softly, and then Nero blinked in surprise. The tail moved and then wiggled the tail around, which dislodged the boy from its body. V grunted as he caught Nero, stumbling back a bit. Phantom disintegrated into the red ink, and he let out a slow breath as the ink spread across his back once more. V looked down and noticed his son was avoiding his gaze now.  

V let out a heavy sigh, and he pressed his face to Nero's head. Nero could tell that he was in trouble, meaning he knew what he had done. Still, V and Urizen needed to speak with him about his recklessness. Shadow and Griffon helped to support V as they walked back to the hotel. V winced as he felt the cut on his cheek slowly stitching itself up; it seemed to be going faster with Urizen around. V knows that they will not stay in the hotel that long, though. He would pack their stuff up and take their little family to Dante.

They entered the room, Shadow and Griffon disappearing into his skin once more. V settles on the bed with Nero on his lap and Urizen remaining on his shoulder. 

“Nero…” The little one kept his head down, and he noticed the boy fidgeting. V sighed softly, and then he started to speak before Urizen spoke up first. 

“That was foolish of you to run from us and then jump into the fight, nestling. Were you thinking when you decided to run from us?” Urizen demanded harshly. V winced at that and then turned to glare at the demon. Subtle.

The tiny boy started to sniffle, and he wrapped his arms around his knees. Nero was starting to tremble. “I-I-I’m so sorry, Papas…” 

Alright, Urizen was very direct, but now, their son was upset. That was not how he would have handled that. How to handle this situation now? The white-haired man reached up to rub his forehead before shaking his head. He then reaches out and takes hold of both of Nero’s hands. He noticed that the blue veins on his devil arm started to glow gold. V smiled weakly. Did that mean the boy was comfortable enough with him? The man gently squeezed his hand. 

“Nero, Urizen is right. It was reckless what you did. You scared me when you ran off.” V admitted, brushing his thumb against the boy’s knuckles. Nero sniffled and looked up at him, then with tears in his eyes. “Then you scared me again when you came down and…crushed that demon’s head.”

“Th-That demon was going to-to hurt you more. I-I didn’t want you to get hurt more, Papa.” Nero reasoned as he looked up at him. “Gri-Griffon said you’re…fragile. Mo-More than Papa Urizen. I had to be like my Dad! The one from Fortuna!”

V wanted to glare at the demon half of Vergil, but he restrained himself. The mention of the boy’s adopted father did give him pause. Who was this man? Was he one of the Order knights? “While that may be true, Nero, I do have protectors of my own. You have met them. I would have been alright.” 

Then he sighed shakily and looked at Nero’s devil hand. “You’re still so young…if you got hurt, I do not know what I would…do.” 

Admittedly, he might lose control of himself. V was still adjusting to his human emotions after being so suppressed for so long. What would Vergil be like if he were unable to control his human soul? V sighed shakily and then kissed Nero’s forehead. 

“Once upon a time…Papa, the whole Papa, was reckless.” Nero looked up at him in surprise. “Whole Papa thought he could gain the same power as your grandfather Sparda, but he was reckless and trusted the wrong person. This person took advantage of him and your uncle Dante’s sibling rivalry. Not only that…but your whole Papa decided to jump into the Underworld to fight an impossible foe.”

Nero sniffled quietly. “Is that how whole Papa got sick…?”

V nodded and then reached up to brush hair from in front of Nero’s eyes. “Yes…his recklessness brought him much pain. Do you see why we do not want you to take such risks, Nero?” 

The tiny boy listened intently to what his Papa was saying, and he looked down sadly. Indeed, the fall and subsequent torture of Vergil Sparda were a tragic thing. 

You fool, if only you had listened to me and taken Dante’s hand.

That thought again. It was filled with bitterness that V did his best to bury deep down inside his very soul. Urizen would not hear this bitterness. Even his familairs was unaware of this bitterness ingrained into his soul. V could see the face of Vergil Sparda in his mind’s eye, staring at him with a disgruntled look. Only Vergil Sparda could feel the resentment that V felt for him. V did ask himself sometimes how long it would take for that festering emotion to burst to the surface and rear its ugly head. V closed his eyes. 

You cannot deny your human soul anymore, Vergil Sparda, not when you have a son who is mostly human.

“I understand, Papa.” Nero’s words broke him from his thoughts, and soon, the boy’s arms wrapped around his chest. “I will think next time before running away from you…and getting into a fight with anyone, demons or humans.” 

V sighed in relief at his words and stroked his scruffy white hair. “I’m glad to hear that, little one. Right now, I think it’s time for a little nap. We’re leaving to see your Uncle later.” 

“Really?” Nero perked up and then smiled with excitement. V nodded and then grabbed the bag they’d been using to carry their stuff in. 

“Yes. You take a nap. Urizen and I will get our things packed.” V told him and then set Nero down on the bed. “I’ll wake you up when it's time to go, alright?”

Nero nodded excitedly, and then V moved to tuck him in underneath the bed covers. The little boy let out a soft yawn before asking. “Uncle Dante will like me, right?”

Urizen let out a chuckle softly. “ Brother is rather easy going; he could get along with anyone.” 

“Indeed. He is friendly, and because you’re his nephew, I’m fairly certain you don’t have to worry about him liking you, Nero.” V added and then patted the boy’s head. 

The boy nodded and then soon turned on his side. V watched as the boy fell asleep before looking at Urizen. “Will you gather the bathroom products? I’ll pack up our clothes and other items.”

Urizen nodded and, without a word, hopped down and headed to the bathroom. V gathered up their things, folding the clothes neatly into the bag along with the Shadow plush, camera, and their remaining food. He glanced at Nero and heard him drifting off to sleep on the bed, soon smiling again. Hopefully, their little talk would help Nero to understand how to be reckless, but he’s certain that won’t be the last time they have this conversation. V brushed his hair from his face and sighed softly. 

Fatherhood was not easy. 

Sparda came to mind then. V sat back against the headboard as his mind wandered to the father that he…lost. Lost at such a young age. Not Nero’s age. No, Nero had likely thought he was long-abandoned, until that cell. Still, the thought of what his life would’ve been like if Sparda hadn’t left. The question of where he went still hung heavily on his mind as well. V closed his eyes. Mother would be alive. V and Urizen wouldn’t be there; they’d be Vergil. Dante would be a happy-go-lucky young man, not the one with such a serious face, like in the diner. 

Would his Nero even exist? V bit his lip. He had to believe Nero would. Hell, he wanted to believe that their beloved Cristina would still be alive and would greet her in-laws happily. Sparda and Eva would have greeted her with open arms and loved Nero immediately. 

Urizen set the bottles of the hair products on the bed, and V sat up then. He took the bottles and placed them in the bag while the demon rejoined them on the bed. Once everything was in the bag, V set it on the other side of Nero and reached for the demon half. 

“Everything is packed up then? We can abandon this place and seek out Dante?” Urizen asked as he crawled over and lay on V’s chest.

“Yes. Once Nero is awake. I…” V reached up and started to rub his eyes. Admittedly, his body was still aching, and he was growing tired. His hand dropped down to his side, almost going slack. 

“You are exhausted.” Urizen frowned. “You pushed yourself too far.” 

V laughed quietly and then yawned, slowly moving down to place his hand onto the pillow next to Nero’s. “Growing worried about me, Urizen?”

Urizen made a snorting noise, and V felt the creature lie down on his chest. “Do not be ridiculous. I only want to make sure you do not drag us down as we go to brother.”

This time, V snorted in amusement as his eyes fluttered shut. He yawned again and then shifted his head against the pillow, trying to get comfortable. “Then…I shall rest for a little while. We still have a lot of light out. We’ll go in the evening.” 

The demon hummed, and he felt his other half beginning to relax against his chest. V yawned and soon succumbed to sleep. 

Peaceful sleep would not last long, though. The nightmares were quick to overtake him, nightmares of Vergil hung up with chains, armor pressed to his skin, burning his skin. The corruption of Mundus forced down his throat. He was gagging on the corruption, puking out the majority of it. The Prince of Hell dislikes this, and Vergil receives a punishment of lashes to his back and chest. The tentacles of an unknown demon were wrapping around his head and plunging straight into his mind. The screams of the half-devil filled his ears as the tentacles sought out the happy memories. Memories he had to bury. Memories that had to be kept away from Mundus. 

Leave them alone. Leave them alone. LEAVE THEM ALONE!

Cristina. Mother. Dante. Father. 

Bury the light. I must bury the light deep within. 

Bury my weak human heart. 

Then the sound of Nero’s piercing screams jolted him from his nightmares. Screams. V felt that his son’s presence had vanished from his side. The sound of Urizen’s panicked growls soon filled his ears, and he noticed that the demon was beside him on the bed, not…moving. V’s eyes widened, and soon, he inhaled a strange, foul smell. The air around him was a different color, green. He started to cough and quickly grabbed at his chest. 

Nero. Where was Nero?!

“LET ME GO! PAPAS!” Nero’s voice was full of fear, and V saw them. 

Four men, two of them trying to hold Nero down. A third man had a chain and shackles, ready to put them on his son. V narrowed his eyes and let out a growl. The fourth man turned to look at him and scowled. 

“Damnit! That one didn’t get knocked out!” He sneered and then drew a weapon, a baton by the looks of things. 

“Bastards! Let my son go!” V snarled, and he lunged at the man with the baton. He called upon Griffon to help him, but there was no reaction from his tattoos.

“GRIFFON! I NEED YOU!” V screamed in his mind.

“V-V-V! Fuck, I-I can’t leave yer body! Something’s wrong! I can’t get off to help ya!” Griffon cried out, panicking as well. V’s heart began to race, but he continued his assault on the man with the baton. 

“How could this be happening?! Is that why Urizen is withering away on the bed?! ” V wondered at the bird as he glanced at his demonic self. These men had poisoned them somehow. It affected his familiars, but also his demonic half. Was Nero affected then, too? 

He did not get an answer as the man hit him right in the face. The white-haired man cried out in pain, but blocked the next baton attack with his arm, then head butted the man. Vergil, or V for that matter, was not as skilled in hand-to-hand combat, but V would make do. He knows his head is aching too, but it didn’t matter. Nero was in danger! The boy let out a whimper then, and V inhaled sharply.

“Nero!” V cried out as he moved to grab his precious son. However, he receives a blow to his face with the baton, and he collapses to the floor.

Air is expelled from his lungs in the form of a gasp as he falls to the floor. His head was pulsing, and he swore his ear was ringing. V groaned in pain as Nero's cries made his heart race in panic. V gasped out, and he reached out for his son, who was now shaking and trying to reach for him. His wings were out and trying to fight against the men, trying to fly into his arms. V hears the cries of one of the men before he hears the sound of a fist hitting Nero's body. 

"N-N-No!" V wheezed in pain and crawled toward his son. The cries of Shadow sounded in his head, and he tried to summon her. There was a burning in his body, and he cried out. 

From the bed, Urizen let out a weak roar.

Urizen was not in good shape. What poison did they use on him? On himself, V could not summon his familiars? V shook as he crawled toward his son, reaching out for him. Then a foot slammed down on his back, and V screamed out in pain.

"Pa-Papa!" Nero cried out. He must have heard him. V tasted something coppery in his mouth, and he felt another hit to his back.

His head falls to the ground, and he's panting heavily. V starts to wheeze, his fists starting to clench. No, he cannot fall like this. Nero needed him. He needed to get up. The foot that slammed onto him moved past him. V growled softly, and he heard the clicking noise of chains. Nero screamed, and he swore he heard the flap of his son’s wings.  

"Silence, boy!" The man holding Nero snarled, and V heard the sound of a slap. He growled again as he heard a whimper, which made his chest clench.

"I...I...I will kill...all of you." Urizen threatens with a wheeze. V starts to push himself up from the ground. His arms are shaking as he hears the whimper turn into a cry. 

"Le-Le-Let me go!" Nero cried out. V manages to crawl around the bed and sees one of the men holding a needle. 

"Silence, Subject 1. You're going home now." The man with a needle growled. Then V's eyes widened as he jammed the needle into Nero's neck vein.

Nero instantly went slack against the man holding him. V could hear the shackles rattle as they were clamped onto Nero's legs and arms. V's heart nearly stops then.

A screech that he had never heard before emerged from his lips. The white-haired man didn't know where the sudden burst of energy came from. He tackled the man with the needle to the ground, starting to beat him violently. V knows there's blood splattering onto him as he hits the man over and over again. This man deserved it. He deserved all the pain coming to him and more. They all would pay. He let out a roar before he was grabbed by his hair and tossed into the nearby wall.

V let out a cry of pain as he slid to the floor, falling to his side. Then he felt a sharp pain in his chest as he landed on his side. His eyes widened as he violently coughed up some liquid. It dripped out of his mouth, and he saw a black liquid. His eyes widened as he let out a panicked wheeze. 

No. No. NO!  The corruption. 

Nightmare. He needed Nightmare. Hell, he needed all of his familiars right now. Those men were stealing from Nero. In his mind’s eye, he can see Vergil shaking with anger. His eyes are wide, and he’s ready to burst. V knows the feeling is mutual. 

He hears the sound of footsteps rushing out the door, and V let out a whine. His eyes searched the room as his vision began to blur. They were gone. They were gone with Nero. From the bed, he heard a panicked roar, and he could see some movement on the sheets. Panic. So much panic in his own body. V whined softly as he pressed his arms and hands against the ground. The white-haired man pushed, struggling with what little strength he had to push himself up. 

"Ur-Ur-Urizen." V called out weakly.

The demon half growled as V grunted and a whine of pain spilled from his lips as he finally pushed himself up from the ground. So much pain. He knows the last time he felt so much pain was when he was a child. The feeling of blades and claws stabbing into his small body, the smell of blood in the air.  But now, it is not just the physical pain he is experiencing, no, it's the emotional and mental pain. 

There's a wetness rolling down his cheeks, and he squeezes his eyes shut. A sob escaped from his lips as he turned to look at his demonic half. Urizen was freaking out, trying to move, trying to do anything. They were both feeling useless in the situation. V feels more tears building up and cascading down his cheeks as he limps over to the bed. His heart is hammering away at his chest as he grabs onto the bed. Beside the demon was their bag with all of their belongings. Nero's belongings.

V gathered the demon into his arms, cradling him to his chest. On his back, he felt a stab, and he let out a cry, reaching out to grab onto the bed tightly. His fingers clench the sheets tightly as he forces himself to stand up. V was biting his lip, and as he managed to stand up once more. 

"Those...Those damned humans. They used poison. Poison on me! On you!" Urizen growled as he rested in V's arms. V tasted blood from his canines penetrating his weak human flesh. "I could not...protect our nestling. I hate this. If only we were whole!"

V did not respond as he grabbed their bag. He turned his head to look at the wall, spotting his cane. He was going to need that. They needed help. Only one person could help them. V's lip was trembling as he limped over to the cane. 

"I had to rely on you, my weak half, and even then, you cannot not fight them off." Urizen sneered, trying to move his limbs again.

What had the demon expected?! One human without access to his familiars versus 4 humans?! The bitterness began to rise to the surface. V wanted to roar at him, but he did not have the energy for it. No, he had to concentrate on getting them out of this room. To the safest place in the city for them. V closed his eyes and let out a shaky breath as he suppressed another sob. The tears continued as he grabbed the cane and started to hobble to the door.

Perhaps when they were out of the room, V could use his familiars again. He was panting as he approached the open door. Above him, he could hear the rumbling of thunder, and suddenly, a downpour of rain started. V was panting as Urizen snarled.

"You...You are injured. You still have the energy to get us out of here?" Urizen inquired, puzzled. 

V let out a weak chuckle that turned into a sob. Urizen and Vergil forgot that humans were strong...in their way. They had a determination that demons lacked. But he knows he’s very upset. The human half of Vergil gritted his teeth as he seethed on the inside. Someone, no, not just someone, stole his son. The damned Order of the Sword stole his son. His little one. His little Prince. They had tried to pay a high price for Nero, but only a small sum for Vergil. 

Subject 1. They called him a subject. 

It did not take a genius to figure out what they wanted Nero for.  

“His cold…horrors silent, dark Urizen prepar'd: his ten thousands of thunders…”V managed to speak through the pain. He let out another sob as he took steps into the rain. The rain would cover the tears up and wash the blood off his body and clothes.

He let out another sob, and in his arms, Urizen tenses up. “...Rang'd in gloom'd array stretch out across the dread world, & the rolling of wheels as of swelling seas, sound in his clouds…” 

The rain would not wash away the pain and the rage inside of him.

“…In his hills of stor'd snows, in his mountains of hail and ice; voices of terror are heard, like thunders of autumn, when the cloud blazes over the harvests.”

Chapter Text

Day turned to evening, and he was beginning to wonder if the man he saw at the dinner was indeed his brother. The white hair was a dead giveaway for the younger twin. The boy in the booth across from the white-haired man looked exactly like his older brother when he was little, except his hair was not as long. The boy sounded genuinely excited to meet him. Dante had seen how his eyes sparkled as he showed his Papa the picture he had drawn. 

Then the man uttered the word “scum,” and Dante felt that tug in his soul violently pull him toward the skinny man. His eyes were no longer blue, but green, a familiar green that had looked down at him before she closed the doors to the closet and took off running. Those green eyes had haunted him since then.

No one said that word with more contempt than his older brother, Vergil. 

Yet the young man who had uttered that word didn’t look like his twin brother. Vergil was tall, sturdy, and exuded arrogance. He flaunted his mastery over his demonic half and its powers. No, this person was almost skin and bone. Dante could feel some demonic presence from him, but not as much as Vergil. There was some arrogance, but it was muted. The man exuded care as he watched the little boy coloring. He had spotted the demon in his lap, one of with multiple eyes and spiky features, that felt like Vergil, and yet, something was missing even from him. Dante had spotted a cane next to the young man with white hair. 

This was not Vergil, and yet…it was Vergil.

Dante couldn’t help but tune everything and everyone else in the parlor and just stare at the three in the booth. A little family. A family that he had not had in so long. Dante couldn’t help but listen in as he sipped from his glass of water and caught the boy’s name: Nero. His older brother had a son. A son. Dante couldn’t help but let a smile creep onto his face. He was an uncle. Lady would freak the hell out when she heard the news. Dante had a nephew, and from what he saw, he was adorable. 

He listened in as Vergil spoke to his demonic half, telling him that Dante had found them out. How did Vergil end up like this? Did he…split in half? That was the best way Dante could justify the presence of two Vergils, one more human than demon and one more demon than human. The man in red did finish his water and stood up, grabbing the case that held Rebellion. He needed to get back home. Dante needed time to think, to prepare. 

The kid was no more than five, right? Maybe even four. There was no way he was leaving his brother and his nephew alone on the streets. The kid had likely been through enough, and Dante didn’t want to leave him to rot. His nephew, Vergil’s son, deserved better than what the two of them had dealt with. 

As for Vergil himself…Dante would have a discussion with him about…well, everything. Dante didn’t know how that conversation would go. Civility and his older brother did not mix well. The demon hunter started for the door, deliberately walking right past Vergil, who looked shocked. 

“Vergil…?” Dante called out in a whisper. It did not take long for his older brother to hear him and touch his chest. Dante’s own heart fluttered. He had heard him.

“Dante…” Vergil whispered back, and Dante froze at the door. His hand was on the handle. Even Vergil’s voice sounded so different. 

“How…? You look…so different.” Dante whispered, astonished. Sounded so different. Acted so differently.

“You have changed, too, little brother.” 

Dante was silent for a moment. Changed too? Well, he supposed that was subjective, wasn’t it? He knew that his brother was right, though. The man in red had indeed changed in the past four years. The happy-go-lucky nineteen-year-old was buried, not dead, but buried. Perhaps he had just matured, but Dante knows the loss of his brother to the Underworld hit him harder than most thought, and he did his best not to show it. Not even Lady understood what he put himself through mentally and emotionally. 

“The door will be open.” An open invitation. A plea for his older brother to come home, damnit.

The moment he arrived home, Dante made a beeline for the kitchen to grab cleaning supplies and garbage bags. He would convert one of his guest rooms, the one right across from his own, into a bedroom for his brother and nephew. It took the entire rest of the afternoon to clean up the room. Dante folded his arms over his chest as he looked over the room and then to the bed. The bed needed some new sheets and blankets, ones that his brother and nephew would appreciate. Not to mention…his new nephew needed stuff to do.

Dante went downstairs and looked at his bookcase. Admittedly, most of his books were for adults; thrillers or mystery novels. If Vergil saw his choice of books, he’d likely snort in disdain. Well, maybe the old Vergil might. This new Vergil was unknown to him. Still, he should get Nero some picture books…and maybe a coloring book too. 

Okay, a bag of new sheets, a pillow, blankets, and books for the kid.   

Dante walked over to his desk and felt around underneath the desk. Soon, he smirked when he found his hidden panel. He pressed against it, and the panel opened, grabbing some money he had hidden away. Lady didn’t know about his hidden money. He kept it tucked away for special occasions. Spoiling his nephew and brother was a special occasion. Not only that, but they needed food. Food for themselves and Nero. Taking three hundred bills, he put the rest back in their secret area before heading to the door.

To keep his promise, he did leave the door unlocked. Hopefully, his brother and nephew came while he was gone or after he returned. 

The mall was the first stop. He found four picture books, two coloring books, and a big box of crayons. Dante did find books that he thought Vergil might appreciate, including a complete works of William Blake and Lord Byron. He vaguely recalled his brother clutching his book with the golden ‘V’. Then he found a store with a variety of bedsheets. He settled on dark blue sheets, a heavy black blanket, and a pillow. Dante anxiously glanced over at the clock, noticing it was getting close to early evening.

Was Vergil waiting for him by now?   

The grocery store was the last stop. He found healthy food, though he paused. Dante didn’t know how to cook, or at least, not much anyway. He groaned. 

“Okay, Dante, think. There’s gotta be a cookbook around here…” He searched the magazine aisle, finding a couple of them. He grinned as he searched them. Recipes with easy-to-follow directions. Jackpot.”

Dante was left with at least fifty dollars by the time he exited the store. His hands were full, but it was worth it. He was smiling, feeling a strange giddiness in him as he returned home. No one was there yet when he entered, but that was fine. He had time to put the food away and then finish setting up the room. Thirty minutes later, the books were put up and the bed was made up. Still, there was no one at the door. 

The man in red frowned and then scratched his head. “Okay…maybe…I’ll clean up the bathroom and my room in the meantime.”

Over two hours passed, and both rooms were spotless. The garbage outside was filled with everything he had tossed, and Dante sank onto his newly made bed with a soft groan. It was night outside, and still, no Vergil. He groaned and then shook his head. He had been conned. He had to be.

“...Damnit,” Dante growled and then laid his arm over his face. His heart was racing in his chest as he lay there. 

Vergil hated him. 

That's it.

He had changed his mind. 

His inner demon growled at him, chastising him for giving up so easily.  Perhaps his brother was trying to pack up what they had and got lost. Lost. No, no, he had to know where the shop was. Dante rubbed his forehead with a heavy sigh before he sat up. Soon, he heard the sound of raindrops hitting the window.

PLOP…PLOP…PLOP.

Soon, those plops turned into almost the sound of rocks hitting against the window. Dante closed his eyes and then whispered. “Verge…c’mon…you can’t stay mad at me forever…we gotta talk about Mom.”

About mom. About that day. About how she died. About who was on her mind when she perished in the crumbling fire that consumed their home. Dante buried his face in his hands. 

“Vergil! Vergil! VERGIL, WHERE ARE YOU?!”

Dante let out a soft sob, and he shook his head. No, now was not the time to fall apart. He glanced out the bedroom door. Nor was it a good idea…to fall into the bottle again. 

Then he heard it. The sound was faint, but it was enough to draw his attention to his front door. Someone had slipped, and he heard the sound of someone’s face colliding with the ground. Even from upstairs, he could smell copper, blood. A familiar scent of blood. Dante inhaled sharply, and he took off downstairs. Just as he passed his desk, he heard the banging on his door. 

“Dante…Dante…!” The voice. His heart stopped. Vergil. The one who was Vergil, but didn’t look like him. His voice, something was wrong. 

There was another bang on the door, a slightly weaker one. Dante stopped in front of the door when he finally heard the sobbing. His brother…his brother was crying. 

“Please…Please, let me in, little brother…” Vergil begged, and he heard the skinny man press against the door. Dante inhaled sharply.

Vergil was begging.

Vergil didn’t beg. That was completely against his nature. 

The man in red stared at the door in shock. He bit his lip as he listened to his brother’s heartbeat. It was racing, at a rate that he’s sure isn’t healthy. Then he heard the sobs. Dante pressed his hand against the door.

“Please…Please…they took him. They took my Nero.” 

His nephew was taken. 

Dante quickly pulled the door open, and he was quick to catch his bleeding and sobbing older brother. His demon could sense the smaller demon in his arms, who let out a whine at the familiar presence of his nestmate. Vergil was soon against his chest and sobbing in his arms, but also bleeding. There was a lot of blood on him, all his. He saw the demon half twitching, and he started to move his limbs. Had he been paralyzed with something?  Vergil was soaking wet, holding onto the demon and a bag. Gently, Dante reaches out to take the bag from his brother, setting it inside before scooping up his brother. 

Vergil’s free hand was now clutching onto his jacket as Dante pulled him into the shop. The man in red closed the door and brought his sobbing and now shivering older brother inside. Dante quietly brought him over to the couch, and he felt the demon half starting to move. He saw the multi-eyed creature start to crawl up his chest and then flop down on his shoulder. The man in red smiled weakly and patted his head before focusing on Vergil.

“Th-They took him, Dante. They took him. Th-They chained him up…th-they’re going to-to hurt him.” His brother curled up against him as he sobbed against his younger brother.

He remembers the smiling face of his newly new-discovered nephew. He made him a picture of their family. Dante gritted his teeth as he pulled his sobbing brother close, and a growl bubbled up from his throat. So, someone was going to try to destroy that smile. 

“Whose they, big brother? Who stole our nestling?” The nephew he hadn’t even met yet was already his nestling, too. Dante and Vergil came from the same nest, and they would raise Nero in their shared nest. 

“Th-The Order. The Order of the Sword from Fortuna.” Vergil snarled through his sobs. His fists clenched onto the red coat. “They stole him from me…I-I will make them pay.”

Dante reached up to stroke his older brother’s white hair, and he growled in agreement. “ We will make them pay, big brother.” 

Vergil chuckled darkly at that, which made Dante pause. “They shall know more than my devil’s power then…but the power of two Sons of Sparda.”

There’s the Vergil he knew. His appearance may be different, but the bloodthirsty nature of the eldest Son of Sparda had not disappeared. Dante stroked his hair and then rested his head on top of his twin’s head. In his chest, he started to purr. He was…happy that his big brother was here again. In his arms. Not pulling away. Vergil did pause this time before he chuckled softly while the demon on his shoulder started to purr. 

“I cannot purr like you can anymore, little brother…well, at least for now.”

“Because…you are two people now?” Dante asked quietly.

“Two…” Vergil glanced away at that. 

The demon half spoke up then. Dante knew he sounded nothing like his brother as well. “A demon and a human. We are the two halves of Vergil Sparda that had to split to stay with our nestling. Vergil Sparda was dying.” 

Dying. Dante inhaled sharply at that and frowned at the human half. “Dying…then…”

Vergil looked away at that, and he could see the bruises and cuts on his brother’s face more clearly now. “We lost to Mundus.” 

“Badly.” The demon supplied. Both halves of Vergil were exhausted.

Dante was afraid of that. It was the worst-case scenario. Although his brother was back in the human world. Even though he came back in pieces, Vergil was still here . That had to be something, right? 

“...I’m so sorry, Verge,” Dante whispered and held his big brother. The human half shook his head. 

“No…we should be the ones to apologize. After…much reflection and the discovery of our Nero, it was clear that we should have taken your hand and stayed in the human world.” Vergil whispered and closed his eyes. Dante sees his brother wipe his cheeks, then cringes. 

Dante narrowed his eyes and growled. “They hurt you.”

Vergil chuckled darkly at that and then smirked. “Do not worry, brother…I did manage to hurt one of them rather badly. I am not as fragile as I look.”

The demon scoffed quietly, and Vergil sent a glare at the demon. “No matter what a certain someone says.” 

Dante laughed quietly at that and then set his brother down on the couch. Then he removed his coat and placed it over his shivering brother. Vergil blinked in surprise and hugged the coat close. “Well, let me get something that’ll help you heal faster, big brother. I got some spare green orbs around here.”

“You? Thinking ahead?” Vergil quipped quietly, and that got another laugh out of the man in red. 

“Hahaha, there’s my big brother’s wit that I’ve missed so much,” Dante responded with a grin as he reached his desk. “If we’re gonna go to Fortuna, you need to be as healthy as possible. If you’re still a fighter, then you need to be in top shape.”

“Top shape…” His brother mused aloud as his demon half held onto Dante’s shoulder. The man in red dug through his desk and found the green orb. He turned and returned to his shivering brother, noticing a strange look on his face.

Dante sat down next to him and then moved to pressed the orb against his brother’s arm. That strange look was still on his face, and soon, it turned into a frown. Vergil flinched as he felt the pressure against his arm before expelling a shaky breath. Dante saw the orb disappear into his body and smiled gently as the bruises and cuts began to fade away. “Looking better already, big brother.”

“...Yet…I am not done yet.” Vergil stated, turning to meet Dante’s gaze. “I am not at…my full power yet.”

Dante raised an eyebrow at that. What did that mean? He heard the demon grunt quietly and then spoke up. “ You wish to attain Nightmare, then? Your final familiar…”

“Yes, Urizen. I must find Nightmare. If I have a Nightmare, then I will be able to exist without too many issues.” Vergil directed his answer to the demon. Urizen. Of course, Vergil would name his demonic self something incredibly odd. 

Dante frowned at the two halves of his brother. “Okay…Nightmare. That name doesn’t make you a bit nervous, Verge?”

Suddenly, a giant blue bird appeared out of nowhere and made Dante jump. The bird landed on Vergil’s shoulder and cried out. “For once, yer brother has a point, V! Nightmare is not like Phantom! Nightmare’s gonna be a tough cookie to beat.” 

The man in red stared at the bird in shock. “Okay…a talking bird demon. Vergil, where the hell did this thing come from?”

“Thing?! This again…” The bird grumbled before spreading his wings out. “I am the great and powerful Griffon! I am V’s favorite familiar.”

Vergil, or possibly V now, snorted and gave the bird an exhausted smile. V reached up to scratch Griffon’s face. “I do not know about favorite, but Griffon has been making sure I do not get carried away. He translates for Shadow, one of my other familiars. That and he has knowledge of the Underworld that I can only hope to know.” 

“Yeah, yeah! Don’t worry about me, Dante. I got V’s back too!” Griffon exclaimed, his wings returning to his side. 

Dante scratched the back of his neck as he eyed the bird warily before asking. “Alright…what do you know about this Nightmare familiar? What’s my big brother up against?”

Griffon looked at V, who then nodded, scratching under the bird’s chin. “Well, Nightmare was created by Mundus. Mundus wanted to create an all-powerful weapon, but little did he know that he created a creature that was capable of destroying the demon world! It looks like a slime made up of demons that Mundus tossed into a pot and mixed. The demon became too much for Mundus, and the Prince had to seal it away.”

Instantly, Dante turned his head to his older brother with an astonished look. “I’m going with you, and I won’t hear any bitching, Vergil. This thing sounds way too dangerous for you to face.” 

V sighed heavily when he heard that and hugged the red coat to his body. “I had a feeling you would say that, little brother.” 

Then he chuckled softly and shook his head. “What has this world come to? I was lectured by my little brother about my safety. How strange.”

Urizen scoffed at that, and then Dante felt the demon press his face into his neck. The man in red smiled and hummed at the small demon. Then he decided to trigger, and Urizen was surprised to find his nestmate picking him up and holding him against his chest. 

“C’mon, Urizen, don’t be so negative. He is you, after all.” Dante assured the demonic half of his brother. He pressed his cheek against Urizen’s head. “Getting Nightmare will help us get Nero back, don’t you think?”

“...Yes. This familiar will help us recover Nero. I wish to kill all of the humans who hurt our nestling.” Urizen stated bluntly. He then looked over at V, and the two halves of Vergil’s eyes met. 

V smirked in response. “Indeed…I wish to end their lives too, Urizen.”

Dante sighed and shook his head before pulling V into his arms. “I’ll discuss that more in the morning, you two. We’ll head out to get Nightmare and then head to Fortuna.” 

In response to that, he feels V start to tremble against him. Dante is certain his brother is still upset. The red demon moved his brother’s head to lie against his chest. V let out a quiet sob and clutched the red coat close. 

“H-H-He’s all alone. I haven’t read to-to him tonight.” His older brother whispered, his voice shaky as he spoke. One hand let go of the coat and covered his head, but Dante could see the tears rolling down his face again. “Oh, N-Nero…”

Dante purred as he held his brother and then took hold of his other hand, squeezing it. “We’ll get him back, Verge. I promise.”

V nodded and then started to sob again. Dante is certain that if they did not get Nero back, his brother might break. His body was fragile, but so was his older brother’s mind. It was fairly obvious to Dante as V cried himself to sleep against him.  

-

xx/xx/xxxx
Journal of Dr. Agnus
Entry #12

The blood of Sparda still runs strong in the hybrid known as Nero Eleison. Of course, this name is irrelevant as his true name is Nero Augustus Barone-Sparda. His birth certificate is missing the Sparda surname, but I added it for good measure.

This is the same little runt that I lost my eye to. I vaguely recall the night, as I know I was not in the right mind. The one thing that I recall was that the boy revealed his powers. A demonic arm with red and blue scales, with a large blue vein running along his arm and hand, but also a pair of blue transparent wings. The wings were like those of an angel! Well, at first. 

The loss of my eye was due to the deadly talons on the ends of those beautiful wings. The wings not only caught my eye, but also left a large scar on my face, around my nose and ear area. There was a witness to the fight that night, but who that was is a blur to me. The boy must have cared for this person enough to activate his demonic blood. I narrowed my focus on the Eleison family itself, but I could never get close enough to figure out which family member it was. Since the loss of their adopted child, the family withdrew from society. The mother put up posters, hoping for information on him.

Moving on.

I have received news. The boy has been found! I cannot contain my glee because this will be the first time we can experiment on someone with the blood of the Savior! I confess that my demonic half wants to take some vengeance on the boy. The boy has permanently disfigured both me and it. Yet, I am intrigued by his powers, so I shall hold his bloodlust back.

Today, they brought the boy in. He was struggling against the chains that the men had placed him in and was snarling. One of the men told me that he had sedated him, but from what I could see, the dosage was not enough! I reprimanded them for not increasing the dosage. The boy and I locked eyes then. Although I am in my human form, it was clear that he recognized me, and it was amusing to see all the fight drain from him. 

He was shaking, and I approached him. I welcomed him back to Fortuna, and then he screamed that his “Papa was going to come and get him back.”

I couldn’t help but laugh and tell him that Vergil Sparda was no more. The man had disappeared into hell years ago. The boy denied it and said his Papa was alive and would come to kill me. I laughed again before knocking the boy out. I ordered the assistants to grab medicine and ordered them to give the boy a high dosage. His demonic blood was stronger than anticipated. 

Day 1 

The boy, we’ll dub him Subject 1 for now, was placed in his cell last night without issue. His legs were chained to the bed provided for him. Subject 1 will be able to move around his cell with ease, but he cannot leave his cell unless one of us comes to get him. The boy has awoken, but is groggy. The drugs have not fully left his system. That was only after the boy received three times the dosage. So, we should not exceed that amount from now on.

Subject 1 complied when an assistant retrieved him and brought him to the medical table. The boy did struggle a bit, complaining about being hungry, but he was ignored and strapped down to the table. First things first, collecting parts of the specimen. Hair, toenails, and fingernails from his human hand were easy enough to collect. The demonic finger was harder, and the boy screamed in pain when we used the pincers to cut off a piece of his finger. He must have become more aware then.

He was sobbing and tried to fight as the assistant stuck a needle into his arm to draw blood. Subject 1 was begging for them to stop. The movement caused the assistant to miss the vein, and he slapped the boy for making him mess up. Subject 1 whimpered and tried to bite the man’s hand in response. Once again, he was smacked. 

“We’ll take one of his canines and one of his human teeth. I want to see the difference in their structure. There must be a difference between his human and demon teeth.” 

After cleaning off the pincers, we yanked the demon tooth. The boy screamed in pain, and there was a lot of blood. He was quick to pass out from this, and it was easy to extract the human tooth, so we decided to take one of his front teeth. As we went to stop the bleeding, we realized both gums had stopped bleeding and seemed to have stitched themselves up. Amazing! 

Perhaps we shall test how well the boy can heal from various kinds of wounds. Burns from ice and fire, electrical burns, slashes, and stabbings.  The possibilities are endless! 

We used pliers to take off multiple pieces of scales from his arm, one from around his shoulder, and one from his arm. He wept in his sleep from the pain, but there was no fight. Feathers from his wings would be harder to get. Subject 1 will have to be awake for that process.

On a different note, I am told that there was a reaction from Subject 0 around the time we were pulling out Subject 1’s teeth. Her vitals had spiked during that time, and the others showed me the footage. It appears her hands were twitching as well. Twitching! This is the first time she has made any kind of response to outside stimuli. 

How she was about to hear the boy’s distress is a mystery. The walls in the room where we’re holding the boy are soundproof. 

Then again, perhaps the answer is staring us right in the face. Subject 0 is the one who gave birth to Subject 1. Perhaps the connection between mother and son goes deeper than we imagined.