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Chapter Text

“There is nothing you can do that I have not already done to myself."

It's your motto for the last month. This emotional roller coaster is starting to annoy you. From the very beginning V exerts his dominance and tries to act like the real leader. Which he isn’t. With the absence of Dante, you are the more experienced and the oldest Devil Hunter. But when you try to pull the team together, he ignores you. When you plan your next move, he always disagrees with you.

And what’s worse, he keeps nudging you with his metal cane.

You have enough. It’s time to talk it off. Or to fight, this time in open. However, with little strength you have left after another quarrel, you decide to keep it private.

***

“V.” You simply said, gaining the attention of the poet that one boring and uneventful morning. “We need to talk.”

The man was about to make a believable excuse when he noticed your narrowed eyes. Heck, he was about to say something but, you quickly cut him off.

“Now.” You dropped the word onto his face with enough emphasis to make him oblige. You, then, turned away, expecting him to follow you.

“Should we,…?” Nero whispered to Lady.

The Walking Arsenal only shook her head in response. The Bewitching Devil, on the other hand, made things clear for the young Devil Hunter.

“Let them talk this out.” Trish quietly said, knowing the tense situation that has been brewing up between you and V during the last few days.

Meanwhile, the poet only sighed, leaving him with no other choice but to follow you. He was aware of your strength and capabilities as a Devil Hunter, he just preferred to do things his own way. Like you, he was aware of his own power, and he honestly only wanted to make things easier for him by executing wiser, much more efficient plans.

But, it seemed that you were really not meant to be partners, at all - two dominant and headstrong beings clashing with each other at any given time.

He kept all those things in mind as he followed you outside the building towards an empty alleyway nearby.

And when you finally faced him, he was not really surprised at what happened next.

With your left hand, you pointed your gun at him, and with your right hand, you pointed your rapier at him.

However, the poet only grinned at you as he tapped his metal cane on the ground, at the same time summoning his demonic feline familiar - Shadow.

“We do not want bloodshed here.” V calmly stated with that silky voice of his, seemingly unfazed with the situation or your eagerness to battle your differences off. “I suggest you bring down your weapon now. Or else.”

“Or else, what?” You spat back at the man. Yes, you’re a girl. Yes, you’re kind of vulnerable right now.

But, no!

In any way or form, you refused to melt with that voice of his like those women he rescued due to the Qliphoth infestation. You refused to bow down in front of him just because you don’t have powers like his.

And, most importantly, you refused to bring down your weapon because you simply would never let him say that you’re inferior to him.

You both knew this would happen sooner or later. And there’s no other reason to hide this any longer.

“Or else, what?!” You repeated your question.

V only tilted his head to the side, his dark locks covering a jade eye in the process.

“Beating you in your current state,… has no meaning.” He responded monotonously.

This only made your blood boil even more! You wanted to beat him, to have him cowering in front of you,…

… to make him accept who you are as a Hunter!

Without so much as another counter - argument that might make you seem weak and whiny in front of him, you started shooting at him as you took little steps forward, letting your bullets do the talking for you.

And the man’s answer to your “speech” was very predictable. He commanded Shadow to deflect your bullets, morphing into blades and dropping them one by one on the ground like crushed pebbles.

Of course, you knew this would happen. He doesn’t want to fight, and now, it seemed that he was getting bored of your attacks! He’s not even summoning that mouthy familiar!

However, you were prepared for this. You stopped shooting at him, switched your hold on your rapier, back - hand style, and charged towards him with unbelievable speed.

V, not fully expecting this, merely avoided your blade as it clashed against his metal cane.

That metal cane of his! You hated its very existence! Of those times he nudged you with it like you were some misbehaving child!

And now, it looked like he was slowly realizing it as his hold on that accursed thing started to waver. He was actually trembling beneath you!

V noticed your hostile look on his cane and immediately learned something. Although, he wasn’t sure by then. He must confirm it but, first, he must defeat you.

But, what if - ?

“I need you!” V commanded Shadow, struggling against your strength as his familiar rose between you, morphing into a set of sentient blades that clashed against yours.

The poet jumped away from you as you fought with Shadow, making himself safe for the meantime.

However, Shadow was only a shapeshifting Demon, which was nothing compared to you, a Swordmaster, who trained for years with the Legendary Devil Hunter, Dante.

To V’s utter horror, and, he must admit, awe, he witnessed your top - notch skill firsthand as you fought against Shadow using your rapier, expertly wielding it in your unique back - hand style. Your graceful footwork enabled you to dodge and deflect the demonic feline’s attacks as they landed brutally on you, and your jumps and flips successfully pushed the familiar back as you made your way towards him for another clash.

You pointed your gun against Shadow and shot her multiple times before plunging your rapier deep into her heart, defeating her and putting her into actual stalemate!

But, V was not done, yet. With his left hand, he finally summoned Griffon, the demonic avian familiar.

“Hey, shorty!” The bird taunted you as he flew towards you with the intent to kill. “Hate to break this to ya but, you are just one annoying insect who always gets in our way! So, FUCK YEAH!”

The bird shot at you multiple times, his electric attacks actually breaking the asphalt beneath you.

V was getting even more interested. You were actually able to dodge Griffon’s attacks but, he could see that your movements were slowly getting sluggish. How long would it take until you finally admit that you’re getting tired and that you’re truly weak against him?

But, you would never admit that to him! Not now when you’ve come this far!

With an ounce of your strength left, you dodged another electric attack and shot at Griffon, your bullets actually working on him. The bird, who was unaware that your weapons were actually infused with a holy power to counter all demonic attacks, looked at his disintegrating body as you continuously shot at him.

“What in the - ?” Griffon mumbled as he realized that his body was crumbling. “YOU, BITCH!”

The demonic bird made one last effort as he summoned all his powers for one last electric attack. He spread his wings wide and brought down a streak of powerful lightning towards you, which you easily dodged as you made a huge jump. You switched your rapier back to normal hold, holding it up above your head, and plunging it to the bird’s chest.

V’s eyes widened in fear as Griffon fell and entered his stalemate state. His eyes grew even wider as he saw you angrily charging towards him. He held up his metal cane and defended himself from your attacks, your rapier actually making scratches on his weapon. You switched once more to back - hand and with one last swing, you managed to throw the metal cane away from him.

With gritted teeth, the poet tried to hold you back but, his physical strength was nothing compared to yours. You tackled him, pushed him, and managed to bring him down on the ground with one powerful kick.

V collapsed, his back hitting the hard ground. He was about to retaliate when he felt your body above his, pinning him to the ground with the hilt of your rapier pressed closed to his hand and your gun to his other hand.

“Go on! Summon the golem, I dare you! If you move even a single finger, I swear I’m gonna blow your head off!” You threatened.

V had no intention of summoning Nightmare in the first place. He ever only wanted to calm you down and talk to you. But, you just had to fight against him.

So, he let you.

And now, you’re on the top while he’s at the bottom.

He let his guard down, and you’re already pinning him helplessy to the ground!

What,… an interesting woman,…

“I,… have no intention of doing that,…” V told you in a somewhat sincere tone.

Somehow, his words made you feel even more inferior to him. And it hurt your pride like hell!

“WHY?!” You screamed at him, letting all the emotions and frustrations flow out of you. “IS IT BECAUSE I’M WEAK?! IS IT BECAUSE I’M NOT WORTHY TO BE A LEADER?! OR IS IT BECAUSE I’M USELESS?! TELL ME, V!”

“I,…never considered you as weak.” V spoke calmly, trying to get past your hard shell by humbling himself in front of you. “You are strong. I know that now.”

“Why do you always disagree with me? Why do you always treat me like a child? WHY DO YOU KEEP NUDGING ME WITH THAT FUCKING CANE?! I’M THE LEADER HERE WHILE DANTE IS AWAY, AND NOT YOU!”

Aha,…

“Forgive me.”

“What?”

You were taken aback by the man’s words that your hold on him started to loosen a bit.

But, still, V didn’t take this opportunity to escape. As strong as you were, he knew he still hurt your feelings. Of course, you only wanted what’s best for the group, and he should have listened to your suggestions.

“Forgive me.” He repeated. “For not listening to you and for always disagreeing with you. But, know this: I never treated you,… like a child.”

“You’re lying! You’re - !”

Your tears started falling unto his face. It was actually the first time he has ever made a woman cry because of his callousness and pride.

And it honestly unnerved him.

Because, like you, he only wanted what’s best for the group.

“I could never lie. Not in front of a strong and reliable woman such as yourself.” V told you, carefully sitting up and wrapping his arms around you. “Again, you must,… forgive this fool and his selfish ways.”

You felt the sincerity in his tone, and as much as you want to inflict further harm on him, your traitorous heart just couldn’t contain itself as your emotions flooded out of you in the form of tears, making the poet’s chest wet.

A few hours later, you were actually smiling, feeling stupid for what just happened. Nero and the others were happily having a drink while you chose to isolate yourself to ponder over the things that just occurred.

“You look like you could use some company.” V told you as he joined you outside. “Do you feel better?”

You couldn’t help but smile at the man as you remembered how you bawled your eyes out at him like a, well, a child.

“Never better.” You said to him, feeling all the frustrations leave your system for good.

The poet smiled at you as he tilted his head, pointing his cane towards the dark streets of Red Grave.

“Since it is quite clear that you do not want to indulge yourself with liquour,…” V began in a much friendlier voice - a tone which suited him the best. “… would you like to join me for a Devil Hunting or two? You sure are an interesting fighter.”

“Sounds good to me.” You answered, glad that your misunderstanding was finally cleared up.

“And while we’re at it, you must teach me how to use my cane in that unique style of yours.”

Did you just feel yourself blush? “Oh, it’s actually quite easy,…”

The two of you soon found out that it was the first of your many nights together as partners in Devil Hunting,…

…and as a powerhouse couple.

Chapter Text

It took you almost five months to convince the Legendary Devil Hunter to go to the carnival with you. You knew something was bothering him. He came home from his mission that one evening looking glum, and ever since that, you rarely saw him smile. Being a very cheerful and positive person, you tried everything you could think of to make him smile once more, from ordering pizza, making strawberry sundae, to even making him stay for movie nights.

Everything you did, it didn’t seem to do anything, at all.

Then, you decided to make the biggest move, yet: invite him to a carnival at the next town.

At first, the man was hesitant to come, saying it was cheesy and childish to go to such place but, then, he couldn’t resist you, especially when you pouted at him.

Finally relenting, Dante was dragged to the merry - go - round, the carousel, the shooting games, heck, even the horror house, even though you screamed a lot at the employees in cheap, cartoonish monster and ghost outfits.

After all the games and attractions, you finally felt your rebelling tummy as it shamefully made its feelings known to your companion.

“Hey, your treat, remember?” Dante teased you, reminding you that he would not spend a single dime on anything. And also of his penniless Devil Hunter state.

“Fine.”

Rolling your eyes in defeat, you went to the food stalls, wanting so much to order the typical carnival staples, when a single stall away from the rest of the noisy caravans caught your attention. You looked at it once more and smiled, finally deciding on your snacks.

A few moments later, you went back to Dante with nothing but two plastic packs of what looked like grapes.

Well, normal - looking grapes. Until Dante saw the label - “Cotton Candy Grapes”.

“I’m pretty sure your stomach demands more than that.” Dante teased once more.

“Yes, I know.” You answered. “But, still, I want you to try this.”

As Dante took one pack from you, he didn’t fail to notice its awfully sweet smell. With confusion taking over at the weird fruit, the man shook his head with an apologetic smile. He appreciated your efforts but, he really wasn’t a fan of grapes. You took notice of this and held his hand firmly, preventing him from giving the treat back to you.

“Trust me, you’ll love it. And, come on, have a break from strawberry for now, please.”

Dante couldn’t do anything but try it. He didn’t want to hurt your feelings by denying you anything. So, with one brave look, he opened the package, took one fruit and managed a bite,…

“You know, when I was a kid, my parents used to take me to carnivals such as this.” You began, strangely feeling embarrassed at the tale you’re sharing with the man. “We play as much games as we can, ride as much rides as we can. And when I get really tired, they would buy me cotton candy. But, the only flavor I get is grape, because all the other kids get the more delicious ones. It’s not much but, it’s one of the most precious memories I have with them,… hey, Dante?”

You stopped recalling your tale as you saw the tears running down from the man’s eyes.

You, being so unaccustomed to seeing him this weak and vulnerable, stuttered, your words incomprehensible, your hands flailing like crazy in front of him like you don’t want to break him any more further.

“It’s really bad, isn’t it?” You finally managed to say. “I should’ve bought the hotdog, after all,… ”

“Thank you, (Y/N).” Dante told you as he wiped his tears with the sleeves of his leather jacket. “Yes, it is bad. And so sweet, I might get diabetes.”

“Pff,…”

You were startled as the man suddenly pulled you into a bear hug, making all the children around you tease and point at you, making all sorts of annoying noises.

“Dante, you’re embarrassing us!”

“Don’t care.” The man answered, only wanting to hold you right at that moment. He may have been distant for the past five months but, that didn’t mean that he didn’t appreciate all your efforts for cheering him up. From ordering pizza, making strawberry sundae, to even making him stay for movie nights,…

… and now, the carnival and the cotton candy - flavored grapes,…

It made him love you ten times more.

“I’m so sorry for making you worry about me.” He whispered to your ear.

You smiled, feeling your tears slowly come out of your tired eyes. “Anything for you, my love.”

Dante finally let you go but, he never took his eyes off you. “Now, I owe you some explanation,… ”

“Yes, you do, my dear.”

“But, before that, let’s take home a cotton candy - flavored cherry first.” He said with a devilish smile and a mischievous wink.

“Cherry? Not sure if there’s - ”

“Oh, there is!” Dante answered with that boyish laugh you yearned and ached to hear for five painful months,…

Chapter Text

That one peaceful evening, you were sitting on the sofa with V, your head on his shoulder, your eyes glued to the screen, his left arm around your body. Griffon ( who was also watching the movie ) was perched on top of V’s right arm, which was on the sofa’s arm rest, and Shadow ( who never really cared about movies, at all ) was sleeping peacefully on the floor next to your feet, her tail keeping them warm.

You were on that part when the children from the Losers Club were watching something on a garage. They were hoping to find more clues regarding Pennywise’s true nature.

As the scene began to get more frightening, you instinctively squeezed closer to V, who seemed unfazed by the dreadful scene.

The projector slowly zooms in on one of the kids’ mom, whose long, red hair was down. Then, it went out. And when it came on again, the face of the mother was slowly getting revealed, showing not her but, of a frighteningly familiar face.

You gasped and held V’s left arm. Griffon laughed from the other side, thinking it was funny that you found this scene very frightening when it was clearly nothing compared to the Demons they’ve faced before. But, then, V rubbed your left arm, reassuring you that everything would be just fine.

The kids of the Losers Club drew back in terror as Pennywise’s face slowly became bigger. The projector went out for the last time, and when it came on again,…

… the clown was there in front of them! And about ten times bigger than his actual size!

You shrieked in terror because of the jumpscare, startling Griffon and poor Shadow in the process.

Then, after your childish scream, you heard it.

At first, you thought it was only your imagination. Surely, imaginations do run wild whenever the mind absorbs something as creepy as a horror movie.

But, then, you smelled,…

… something a bit funky!

There’s no doubt about it! Someone farted!

Then, you felt V froze!

You slowly turned your head towards the poet close to you, whose green eyes was still glued to the screen.

And so, you carefully asked him. “V, was that,… you?”

V only gave you a slight glance, his expression unchanging. “… no,… ” he simply uttered while slowly turning the other way.

“WHOA, WHOA, WHOA!” The demonic bird shrieked as he flapped his wings. “SHAKESPEARE! YA STINK!” Griffon began teasing. “EEEWWW!”

“… stop, please,…” V simply pleaded, his cheeks turning red.

“HA! THAT’S WHAT YA GET FOR EATIN TOO MUCH CAKE!”

“I,… didn’t!”

“AND, WHAT WERE THOSE AGAIN?” The bird went on teasing the poor poet. “CHOCOLATE? STRAWBERRY? BLUEBERRY? MATCHA? CHEESE?”

“And french vanilla,…” you added shyly, which only made the bird tease even more.

However, you noticed that the poet was starting to get annoyed by the bird’s teasing. So, it was a total surprise to V when he felt a delicate pair of arms wrapping him from behind. He turned and looked down at you as you stared up at him with eyes full of adoration.

“You can have all the sweets, and cakes, you want.” You told him, your voice soft and gentle. Well, he completely adored that sweet voice of yours - one of the many things that made him fall in love with you in the first place. And more. “And you can fart all you want.”

“(Y/N), that’s - ”

“And I would not care, because I would still love and adore you, no matter what, my humble poet.” You whispered to him.

The poet’s eyes widened at a fraction of a second, and when they returned to their normal size, the side of his lips went up in that signature smirk of his - one of the many things that made you fall head over heels for him. And more.

“I love you, V.”

“I know.”

There was a brief moment of silence when you just stared at each other’s eyes. Your faces instantly inched closer,…

“Guys, the movie,…” The bird, who was not quite done with his teasing yet, interrupted the inevitable kiss.

You smiled at V, gave him a chaste peck on the cheek, and turned your eyes back on the screen and on the Losers Club. The poet, then, smiled as he pulled you closer to him than ever before and planted a gentle kiss on top of your head.

“Let’s watch Star Wars next.” V suggested.

“Episode 4, please.” You answered.

“Of course.”

After your movie marathon four hours later, you gave a “subtle” threat to the demonic bird to not let the secret of Vs flatulence out. And, with a nervous nod, Griffon agreed.

Chapter Text

It was the gang’s first day at Hogwarts, and all of them were excited to get sorted into their own houses - Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw, or Hufflepuff.

Just the other night, little Dante was bugging his parents nonstop, saying he wanted to be in Gryffindor. Vergil, being a kid who wanted to be different compared to his twin, wanted to be anywhere else other than Gryffindor. V, the sweet, innocent kid, just wanted to read his book of poems in peace, and didn’t care which House he would end up in.

And so, that fateful day finally arrived. They all experienced all the thrills that Hogwarts has to offer for firsties just like them. They took that big, pretty, scarlet train towards the school ( Dante almost depleted his, and almost Vergil’s, budget, buying too much treats for his own good ), got on boats and traversed the lake ( V, due to him not paying too much attention, fell off the boat and almost drowned, when a suspicious looking tentacle from the dark water brought him back up to safety ), and crossed the threshold that led towards the Great Hall ( one girl by the name of Nico wondered how Hogwarts made the ceiling reflect the night sky and thought how she would incorporate it into her latest invention ).

At last, the moment they’ve all been waiting for. All of them were made to gather in front of a stool with a very old and tattered looking hat on top of it. The old Professor took a look at a scroll, cleared her throat, and called Dante first.

Nero, his ever supportive cousin that lived on the city next to Redgrave, cheered while chanting, “Gryffindor!” with him at least several times that it made the hat give them a suspicious look.

Now, this kid, the hat sensed, had a clearly strong aura that he definitely inherited from strong parents. He is obnoxious, one can tell. He gets what he wants, whether people around him like it or not. But, he is not entirely that bad. The hat can predict a particularly good fortune of him where he would become capable of saving others in times of great need using the strength his parents had bestowed upon him. One can only wonder, but he might become the greatest among his batch with the proper guidance so he would not stumble into darkness. The hat knew.

And so, before the hat was even placed on top of Dante’s head, it screamed, “Gryffindor!” Nero and all of the students that belonged to the house of the brave lion all cheered.

As Dante took his place among them, the Professor once again cleared her throat and called a girl named Kyrie. Nero went quiet immediately. Kyrie smiled at him, giving him reassurance that whatever happens, she would still stay with him. They’re childhood sweethearts, after all.

And so, the hat was placed on her head. The hat saw great things inside her head. Of kindness, loyalty, strength in the midst of despair. It can clearly see her tending to those who are weaker than her, giving them food, offering them shelter, protecting them at all cost.

The hat gave what almost looked like a smirk and shouted, “Hufflepuff!” The students of the house of the loyal badger all cheered and clapped and Nero breathed a sigh of relief, as she didn’t get sorted into Slytherin, where most of the snobs are. Well, she is a muggle born, so she would definitely not get sorted into that house, right?

But, unto the next one. Who would’ve guessed it was Nero’s turn? The boy gulped and went towards the platform to take his place on the stool. The hat was placed on his head and it immediately picked up Nero’s uncertainty. It can clearly see that the boy wanted to be in Gryffindor where his cousin is right now. But, it could also sense his longing to be with the girl who just got sorted into a different house. Just like his cousin, the boy emitted a strong aura. Clearly, strong blood runs in their gene pool. He can see the boy do wonderful things just like Dante, of defending the weak and saving then from evil. But, as strong as the boy’s aura of clear bravery, the hat could also sense something else. Of a bond that would never get severed no matter how things and time, itself, meddle with him. He will fight for others’ sake, but he would definitely fight the most for the people he truly loved - family.

Nero glanced at Dante, who grinned and nodded at him. He looked at Kyrie, who smiled sweetly at him. Oh, man, he thought.

“Hufflepuff!”

Nero’s eyes widened in surprise. It was a close hatstall between Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, after all. The Professor took the hat away from his head and was almost escorted into the Hufflepuff table, being dumbfounded and all. He looked at his cousin, somehow looking for forgiveness for not being sorted into Gryffindor, but Dante just smiled at him, showing no grudge, whatsoever. Kyrie, on the other hand, was beyond pleased. She grabbed Nero, made him take a seat beside her, and almost peppered him with kisses, if it weren’t for the older students who started to watch them.

Nico was called next. She cheerfully hopped on the platform, grabbed the hat and wore it herself, eager to find out where she would get sorted. Instantly, the hat sensed great intelligence within that frizzy head of hers. And resourcefulness to boot. But, then, it sensed something else. Something she lacked, and that was wisdom. The hat could tell that Nico often takes chances whenever she gets them. She makes rash and irrational decisions most of the time in pursuit of her dream. The hat could also sense a bit of,… hate? But, that could dissipate in the future. Hogwarts would definitely teach her to be one of the greatest Witches when it comes to the world of innovation, all the while helping her to reign in that overflowingly dangerous curiosity, and a smudge of hate, within her. The hat knew the perfect place for her.

“Slytherin!”

Nico slapped her hip happily and practically ran towards the cunning snake’s table, ignoring the snobby students who gave her strange looks. It was nothing to her. She would surpass them soon enough, she could feel.

The Professor called another person, and this time, it’s a girl by the name of Patty.

The hat took one look at the girl’s mind and it instantly sensed a deep longing for something the girl knew she couldn’t reach - friends to cherish, a family she could come to for comfort, a hero who would sweep her off her feet. Well, she was a muggle born who got abandoned by her parents a long time ago or an unknown reason. This girl’s dreams revolved around meeting them. The hat sensed her hunger for attention, as well, being a child who grew up in the orphanage. But, that hero who would sweep her off her feet part? The hat considered it as,… interesting. It could predict a future wherein she took great lengths to protect this very person she cherishes the most. She knew deep within her heart that she’s weak, and doesn’t stand a chance against all of her enemies. But, the hat knew that she’ll cross hellfire just to be with this person. Heck, she will be the one who will save him, and not the other way around.

Patty closed her eyes. It was taking too long. Maybe the hat deemed her unworthy to study at Hogwarts? But, then, the moment finally came.

“Gryffindor!”

The girl’s face brightened with delight. She excitedly basked in the applause of her fellow brave lions as she took a seat near Dante.

“Hey, congrats!” Dante said to her with that devilish grin of his. Patty blushed. She had no idea at that time that her world would revolve around him from that point on.

Next, a girl with the most curious looking pair of eyes was called. Her name was Mary, but she prefered others to call her Lady, and just that.

The hat wondered about that as it searched through the deepest, darkest corners of her mind. And, sure enough, it found the answer right there. She was scarred and bruised. And the pain she was feeling up to this point was caused by a person she once loved and trusted. This particular person deceived and hurt her to her very core, that she wanted him to be dead.

The hat’s face crumpled. It was taking a long time sorting Lady. Longer than Patty or Nero. It knew that Lady achieved her goal, but it only scarred her. But, one thing’s for certain - she was here with a positive attitude and to start things fresh. She wanted to erase those hurtful memories and replace them with happier ones. Her daring would someday take her to awesome lengths. The hat instantly saw the Auror capability in her. It has finally decided.

“Gryffindor!”

Lady happily took her place across Dante.

“Three points to Gryffindor!” Dante said to her good - naturedly. He was actually interested in her.

Lady smirked at him and raised an eyebrow - a look of inevitable challenge. “Yeah? How about a race between the two of us? The one who gets the most Gryffindor points gets treated into the Pizza house?”

Dante grinned as his blood boiled in perfect anticipation. “You’re on! Prepare your wallet.”

“You wish.” Lady answered back.

Next, a mysterious girl was called. Her name was Trish.

Now, the hat met its, well, most curious hatstall, yet. This girl just screams redemption all over. She knew she has done something terrible in the past. Terrible enough to hurt others in the process. But, the hat knew she changed. She has strength, alright. And wisdom, as well. It would actually be appropriate to put her in Gryffindor, given her courage, wit, and strength. A complete package that is close to perfection. But the hat knew that her talents would not be given the chance to be maximized or improved. Ravenclaw may also not be right House for her, the ravens would be overwhelmed. And so would the badgers.

“It’s okay.” The hat heard Trish’s thoughts. “You can put me in Slytherin.”

The girl was absolutely right! Slytherin would definitely help her on the way to greatness. And there’s no doubt about that! Then again, Nico might prove to be too much for Trish, as the eccentric girl began barraging her with questions as soon as she took her seat beside the serpents.

While Nico bugged Trish, the Professor called the next student, which was Vergil.

The hat, just like with Dante, got curious once more. He had the same powerful aura just like his twin. Well, they were twins, after all. But, this boy,… The hat felt some conflicting thoughts about him that it made it contemplate for a few minutes. A hatstall. For one, he knew from the start what he wanted to accomplish. He wanted to travel a different path from his brother. He wanted to be different in any way possible. He longs for knowledge, power,… He was ambitious, like his father Sparda, who was sorted into Slytherin during his Hogwarts days.

But, and it was a big but, the hat sensed conflicting feelings within Vergil. He may have gotten his thirst for power and ambition from his father, but he definitely obtained some meek attributes from his mother Eva, a muggle born who was sorted into Ravenclaw. Despite his clear motivation to be like his father, Vergil actually wants to be cherished by his loved ones. His wisdom helped him to see through most difficult situations, a very postive trait he got from his mother. His intellect was also astounding that it would be hard not to sort him into Ravenclaw.

“Hey, what’s taking the hat so long?” Lady asked Dante twenty minutes later.

Vergil’s twin just shrugged. “Dunno. Maybe he’s fighting with the hat to not let him into Gryffindor.”

“How did you know that?”

“Just a hunch.”

Sure enough, it was one of the things that Vergil would not want - to be in the same House as his brother.

“I want to be in my father’s House.” Vergil clearly said.

The hat finally gave in.

“Slytherin!”

“Told you.” Dante said to Lady.

As Nico welcomed Vergil to sit down beside her ( to which he declined ), the Professor called the very last student to be sorted.

Timid, shy, and very humble, the kid who was called V took his place and let the old Professor put the hat on him, which slightly slid down his forehead to his nose. He was so little and skinny that it made the Slytherins laugh ( of course, they immediately stopped after receiving a threatening look from his brother Vergil ).

V was so nervous, he didn’t know if he’s worthy to be here. But, the hat thought, otherwise. Despite his diminutive figure, he saw massive potential in the kid. Just like his brother Vergil, V possessed wisdom that is far greater from kids of their age. But, in V’s case, it was more than what the hat could imagine. It instantly sensed the kid’s tenacity to survive and think of multiple ways to conquer his many weaknesses. His love for poetry and knowledge in general would surely put him in the Wizarding World’s history books of the most accomplished Wizards of all time when it comes to sorcery. His on point intuition helped him analyze things that was beyond him or his strength. His longing for protection and love extended to the people, and most creatures, around him. His willingness to lead would surely make him a very dependable Wizard in the near future.

As much as the hat would like to sort V into Slytherin, it knew just the perfect House for him.

“Ravenclaw!”

The boy’s face lit up with happiness as he joined his fellow wise ravens. He met Vergil’s eyes and saw pride in them. He looked at Dante and saw him boasting to his fellow brave lions.

“That’s my brother right there!” He proudly told his classmates. “Smart as my mom. Could never trick him, not in a million years!”

Chapter Text

Everything was ruined the moment you decided to confess to him.

Well, yeah, at first you thought he was intimidating and all, considering the fact that he kept to himself most of the time and actually gave no shits to others around him. And during those times when he did bother to join the team, he would always assert dominance over everyone, including you, and that would make things a bit harder, albeit more organized, since any of you no longer had to formulate proper strategies, since he already made some.

But, you had to admit that, during those times when you do get to go with him during missions, you learned his gestures, his distinct mannerisms, heck, even his habit of quoting poetry. And then, you realized that he was actually not the person you thought he was when you first saw him.

The cleverness of his every action, the tenacity to stay alive, the authority he exudes, the kindness he radiates, the sheer strength of his willpower,…

… his love for poetry, his deep voice, his emerald - colored eyes, his smile,…

… and yes, that smile,…

Ah, yes. It was safe to say that, after a month of being with the tattooed poet, you fell head over heels for him.

And that, alone, was a vast understatement.

And it came to the point where keeping your feelings all to yourself was no longer bearable that you just had to confess ( with a little urging from the others, especially Griffon, who kind of sensed your feelings from the very beginning ).

So, one day, that one fateful day, you mustered up all the courage you could, walked up to him and called his attention.

Then, you said it, the dreaded three words, matched and laced by other jumbled phrases and sentences that you could barely remember.

And, just like that, he told you, flat out, that the feelings aren’t mutual, and that he could not, would not, reciprocate through any means.

Of course, you two came to a point where a sort of friendship was established between the two of you.

But,…

Everything was ruined the moment you decided to confess to him.

No.

More like fucked up.

And that was three whole months ago since that summer month.

Despite the embarrassing situation you two were in because of that failed attempt at an honest - to - goodness confession, you still went on missions together because no other Demon Hunter in your team could match his unique skills than you ( the others are just too brash and unrefined ). Of course, the first few weeks were very awkward. The two of you found it hard to look into each other’s eyes and you barely talked to each other. The atmosphere around you the two of you felt heavy and stiffling that you honestly regretted your decision to confess and ruin your decent friendship.

But, soon enough, after a few more days, you learned to move casually around him like before. You managed to maintain eye contact with him for a few minutes and regained your confidence to speak with him without feeling uncomfortable.

A few days after those torturous weeks, you learned to be yourself once more, despite the fact that you cried yourself to sleep for nights on end after his rejection.

Despite the fact that you tried to hide the bags under your eyes with heavy foundation,…

Despite the fact that you stopped listening to music entirely because every song, every lyric, every story, reminded you of him,…

Despite the fact that you were losing your appetite and that the others were beginning to notice your weight loss,…

Despite the fact the you hid all the hurt behind a smile while telling everyone that you’re okay,…

Despite the fact that it hurt you even more to see him on a daily basis, reluctantly reminding yourself that you two were just not meant for each other and that you should move on.

…

And move on, you shall.

You were still in this one - sided painful loop of emotions that one cold and dreary day out in an unknown town with V for a mission when something truly unexpected happened.

You and V made your way to the only phone booth in town ( which was located in the middle of an almost empty road a few kilometers away from the next distinguishable establishment or building ) to call Nico and let her know that you successfully finished your mission.

As usual, V was the one who entered the booth to use the phone while you patiently waited outside.

Your back was turned against him all this time but, you suddenly felt an urge to look back at him like something, like an unknown force, pushed you to do it.

And there he was, actually staring at you as he talked to Nico on the phone. He had this strange look in his eyes and his eyebrows were furrowed as if he was deep in thought.

Your own eyebrows furrowed as well.

Was there something wrong?

However, you were not given the chance to muse about this any longer as rain started falling from the sky. You gasped and flinched with the sudden coldness, instinctively trying to cover your head with your hands as you made your way inside the booth. And as you entered, the cramped space did nothing but heighten the tension that V seemed to sense around you, and it actually made you very, very uncomfortable.

Well, there’s no other way, right? He has to put up with the lack of space. After all, it would be for the last time -

“Who is Leon?”

At the sound of utter confusion and shock in his deep voice, you glanced up at the man who was only mere inches away from you.

“Oh, he’s,…” you began, uncertain how he found out about Leon Kennedy. But, of course! Nico had to mention him to V. “ … my new partner. A high profile client from Europe has commissioned us to take on a top secret mission the day after tomorrow.”

To those simple words you just uttered, V’s eyes widened even more.

“So, you’re,…” V began, his face getting darker by the second. “… you’re coming back, right?”

Damn you for being such a big mouth, Nico!

You bit your lip, thinking it was no use to hide the secret from V any longer.

“V, I’m staying there. For good.”

Silence. At first, you thought his stricken reaction would only be momentary, since he really didn’t have any sort of connection to you to begin with, so there’s actually no use in him even reacting, at all.

Until,…

“You’re leaving and you never once told me while the others already know.” He pressed on, his voice suspiciously getting darker and darker. Like he actually cared about you leaving him. “Why?”

You laughed nervously at his question, actually feeling kind of cornered that V was interrogating you this way like some kind of a criminal.

But, why even bother? You are nothing to him, and you knew that! You learned the hard way,…

“Aren’t you happy that I’m finally getting a much better career opportunity?” You attempted to answer in a light - hearted, even jesting, tone, hoping, praying, for the gravity of your words to reach V. “I mean, me! The second rate Demon Hunter me finally getting a once in a lifetime chance to work at a better place! How cool is that?”

“You did not,… answer,… my question.”

You slightly drew back at what you just witnessed. Somehow, V looked conflicted in some way. His eyes, which was giving you intense stares since that moment he talked to Nico on the phone, never left yours, and his posture looked more intimidating than ever before.

And he looked mad, and,… possibly hurt,… at the same time for some reason,…

You only sighed. “V, I see no reason to let you know. I mean, hey, at least you won’t have to deal with my shit any longer.”

“I never,… said,… you were shit.”

Once again, you flinched at his words. “Don’t make this any harder for the both of us. We both know this would happen any time, and you know this is inevitable.”

To your utter shock and total fear, the man slammed a hand against the glass door of the booth mere inches away from the side of your face. Your shoulders tensed, your eyes closed, you were so confused as to what was going on between the two of you.

And so, so scared.

Why, V? Why?

“I’ am making this harder for the both of us?!” You never heard V talk in such a way, and it honestly frightened you to the core. This is not the V you were used to. He was kind, and gentle, he was soft, and above all, understanding,…

But, all of those things were absent from him, and you honestly don’t know anymore who you were talking with.

“Please, V, stop this - ”

“Are you just escaping me, then?”

Your eyes snapped open, and when you finally looked at his eyes, you saw the hurt, the anguish, the torment in them.

There was no mistaking it.

He didn’t want you to leave. At all.

“Maybe.”

You flinched as another hand slammed on the door, this time on the opposite side. That’s it, you were hopelessly trapped by the man.

By the man you still adored above all else.

“Why?!”

“I want to move on, V!” The words came out of your mouth ripped your heart apart, the gravity and truth in them hurting you and torturing you from the inside. “Every time I see you, my eyes sting. Every time I hear your voice, my chest hurts. Every time I see your face, my body goes weak. I thought I cried enough for you but, I was wrong! How stupid of me to think I was finally learning to move on but, no! As always, I’m wrong!”

“(Y/N),…”

“You listen: I want to go away from here, away from you, as far as possible! So I could learn to be myself again! So I could learn to enjoy the things I once loved! So I could learn to smile without getting hurt again!

”I love you so much, V. But, I know I mean nothing to you! I know you never cared! I know I’ll never be good enough for you! I’m not worthy! And I don’t want to impose my feelings for you any longer because then I know you would only drift away from me further until I could no longer reach you!

“So, please, let me go! Set the both of us free!”

“No.”

“WHY?!”

The man’s eyes finally started to glisten with the unshed tears that tortured him for weeks since that moment you confessed to him.

Of course he noticed how your eyes were always red and how they have huge bags under them. Of course he noticed how you stopped listening to music - the thing you adored so, so much. Of course he noticed how you were losing your vitality and not only your weight and appetite. Of course he knew that smile of yours was only a facade to hide your sadness.

Of course he knew you wanted to move on.

But, who could blame him for acting this way?

During the course of those three months since that infamous confession, a strange kind of emotion has awoken inside V. At first, he simply ignored this, since he assumed that what you were feeling for him was merely some kind of infatuation of some sort and nothing too deep.

However, as days passed, he began seeing more and more of you in a different light. For the first time in many days, he saw the the gracefulness in your movements. He saw how you selflessly cared about others around you. He saw how you unconditionally showed kindness even to the lowest of beings that others might consider trash.

And, above all, he missed your little talks about yourself. He missed the sweet voice that greets his ears each morning whenever you sing to your favorite songs on the radio. He missed how you doted on him and him alone and how you ignored Dante’s childish demands for attention, despite his twin brother being the clearly better man than him.

And he missed how you said you loved him and him alone.

And he damn wanted to hear you say those words to him once more.

But, you were leaving him. For good.

You would drift far away from him like a long lost childhood memory.

Then, you would learn to love another.

And this inevitability hurt him. Tore his heart apart.

And the pain was so fucking unbearable.

“Stay. Please.” He pleaded, begged, you, his voice lowered and anguished.

To this, you simply shook your head.

“I have made my decision, and you have no choice but to understand and respect it.”

“No!”

“Please, V! I beg you - ”

And the sadness crept even closer to you as the man took hold of the back of your head and crashed his soft lips against yours, moving in a rushed and certain way that successfully conveyed the untold emotions he had for you.

You tried to push him away, to wake up from this wishful thinking that he’s doing everything he can to not let you leave him. But, the gentle strokes of his hands against your back, those whispers of his that begged you to stay, those lips which were locked against yours in heated passion and deep longing that betrayed and conveyed his true feelings to you,…

… that warmth of his and those forbidden sensations it caused your body to have that slowly breached and destroyed the high defenses you put up for your poor and hurt little heart,…

Oh, God! Why?! Why are you falling all over again?!

“I love you,…” the man whispered as his lips softly brushed againts your now tear - stained cheeks. “I love you. I love you so,… so much.”

“V,…”

The man cupped your cheeks and laid his forehead against yours, his eyes melting yours, finally making you cave in with his pleas.

“I know this is too selfish of me to ask, but,… I beg you,…” he whispered, his hot breath mixing against yours. “Please, do not,… leave me. Stay.”

You closed your eyes, the action making you shed even more tears.

For how you could you refuse him now?

For all the things that happened between the of you for the last months,…

For all the things that unfolded between the two of you in that cramped and hot phone booth,…

Of course, you love him.

And you definitely couldn’t leave him alone now.

Nico, who arrived a few moments ago with your luggage inside her van, witnessed everything. With a smug and proud smile on her lips for her two team mates, she dialled a number and waited.

“Hello?”

“Leon, it’s me.”

“Hey. What time will she arrive on the airport? I want to personally escort her, myself.”

“I think that won’t be necessary.”

“Why is that?”

“Umm, I guess she found another,… a new,… leash on life. She’s not going. I’m sorry.”

“Oh. That’s too bad. Then, I would let the President know. I guess I’ll be going to Spain alone.”

“Ah, yeah. Thanks, Leon.”

“No problem.”

“Don’t let those zombies bite. And get the girl out.”

“Will do.”

Chapter Text

There it was again: a deep red rose petal on the floor.

You looked down at the thing with a raised eyebrow. You were sure that you just rid the floor of Nico’s otherwise messy van of these curious and yet fragrant things.

But, there it was again: a deep red rose petal on the floor.

You carefully picked the fragile petal with your dainty fingers and looked at it, utterly confused as to its origins. Well, there were wild flowers outside but, none of them resembled the beauty of the thing in your hand. It looked like it came from a rare type of red rose, and you were absolutely sure you have never seen it before.

You do like the thing, however, since deep red is your favorite color, and the rose is your favorite flower.

But, to actually have numerous petals scattered about the floor really bewildered, amused and frightened you to the core all at the same time.

And the phenomenon has been going on for almost two months. Yeah, you were the one assigned to clean the van but, you don’t have the heart to throw the pretty things away, so you just put them in a sack and hid them underneath the sofa you’ve been sleeping on. Heck, you can decorate a whole room full of these petals you’ve collected! Not to mention a cup of sweet, steamy tea rose or two.

Your musings were interrupted when you suddenly heard a coughing sound coming from the sofa. You looked down at poet as he covered his mouth with a gloved hand.

You immediately went closer to him and rubbed his back to somehow soothe him, if that could help, at all.

“Ahem, sweet pea,…” the demonic bird, which was perched on top of Nico’s broken jukebox, called your attention, at the same time V let out another batch of coughing fits. “That won’t help him.”

“Ah, I know! Ah,… ” you mumbled as you went to the back of the van to prepare him a cup of tea or something warm to ease his symptoms. “Nico and Nero will be back in a bit with the medicine. Don’t worry, V.” You, then, said to the poet.

V’s symptoms persisted for almost two months, the same time as the phenomenon of the rose petals, come to think of it, and it honestly unnerved you. Yes, V was a capable fighter just like Nero or Dante but, still, he’s human, and clearly weaker than the two of them, as much as you hated to admit it.

However, despite this weakness, you liked him. A lot, actually. You’re not the type of person who falls for muscles, pick up lines, or manly winks, no.

It’s the cleverness, the gentleness, the mysterious aura, the deep voice,…

… the alluring smile,…

And V has all of that. And more.

And that’s just scratching the surface -

“I told ya! That won’t help him!” Griffon squawked as he helplessly watched you turn on the stove to boil water with Nico’s old teapot.

“And what will?!” You angrily questioned the bird. He really was not helping with the situation, at all.

“Ah,… maybe a smooch to the Shakespeare will help? And a good make out session?”

You balled your hands into fists, controlling the strong urge to throw something at the bird or just put him in a steel pot and boil him to inflict pain. Oh, you really wanted to! V was freaking suffering! And his familiar was not doing anything to help! Instead, he chose to make crude jokes in front of you like it was nothing!

“NO!” You growled back at the bird,…

… which made V cough even harder.

“Oh, my God,…” you muttered under your breath as you made your way back to the poet. “V, do you need something? Ah, we should definitely take you to a hospital now. This is getting worse,…”

“Look what you’ve done to Shakespeare, woman!” The demonic bird shrieked as he flapped his wings and made his way towards his master.

“What?! I’m not doing anything to him!”

“Enough. P - please,…” V begged, his voice weak and his throat hoarse and painful. “Do not worry about my,… needs. I,… j - just needed some,… rest - !” His words were broken as he had another fit of coughs but, this time, he wasn’t able to cover his mouth in time.

And then, you saw it. It was unmistakable despite the lack of proper lighting inside the vehicle.

It was blood. His lips became slightly stained with the crimson liquid that most probably came from his already wounded throat.

And it made you even more frightened for his health.

“No, no, no, no,…” You helplessly mumbled as you took out your handkerchief from your pocket to wipe the blood off his lips. The poet tried to stop you but, he was too weak to do so. And you were very stubborn. “Hang in there, V. They’re coming back,…”

“Sweet pea, just give him a kiss. Just one in the lips is okay.” The bird persisted with his joke.

“Griffon, I’m begging you. Stop with your nonsense already!”

With those words, V suddenly and forcefully took hold of your arms and bowed down low, seemingly throwing up on your lap or something, all the while continuously coughing.

Tears streamed down your face as you helplessly rubbed your hands up and down V’s back, trying your very best to ease his discomfort.

“I’m so sorry,…” you cried. It just,… hurt,… seeing him like that. And you couldn’t do anything but watch. “I’m so, so, sorry,…”

All of a sudden, something came out of the poet’s mouth. It was not vomit or any kind of icky bodily fluid, no.

It was,… a fresh batch of deep red rose petals. It came cascading down like a beautiful crimson waterfall from his mouth down to your lap.

“Hanahaki disease,…” Griffon began calmly as he observed how the poet “lavish” you with the pretty petals. “Pretty nasty illness to have, if ye ask me.”

“The,… what?!”

“Hanahaki disease!” The bird repeated as the two of you watched V release some more petals. And you were completely baffled, if not apologetically fascinated, by the strange display of weird human or demonic affliction.

“I - is this some kind of a demonic disease or something? Or a curse?”

“Eh, no. Not really.”

“Then, what caused this? How did V get this illness?”

“Unrequited,… love,…” the poet weakly answered for you as he finally managed to inhale after the onslaught of petal showers. By that time, your lap was overflowing with the fragrant things, and it was safe to say that you have to clean the floor all over again.

But, his answer!

“Wait, did you just say unrequited love?”

“Ya heard it right!” Griffon answered, his beak high up in the air like he was feeling proud, or something. But, why? “That’s why I told you to smooch and make out already! Come on, do it while the others are away.”

“That again?! I don’t understand! I - ”

You felt absolutely dumb for not realizing this a bit sooner.

Unrequited love? Smooching? Making out?

Then, that means,…

“You have got to be kidding me,…”

“Ohohoho! Who’s joking now?” The bird mocked.

With wide, confused eyes, you looked down at the poet, who started coughing again but, this time, he did not throw up petals. He threw up a full stem, instead. And a thorny one at that. And this made V cough up blood once more.

“Nasty.” Griffon told you in such a tone that purposefully made you guilty. “Of all the flowers in the whole fuckin’ world, why is rose your favorite one?”

“Stop, please.” V pleaded despite his condition. “Don’t make it harder for (Y/N).”

“Ya want me to stop? Do ya want me to watch ye die in front of her then, huh?! Won’t let that happen! No shit!”

“Stop this, Griffon, please!” You begged as you held the poet closer as if to protect him.

“Oh, ye want me to stop? THEN FUCKIN’ SHAG ALREADY! SHAKESPEARE’S DYIN’! AND IF THAT HAPPENS, IT’S ALL ON YA!”

“I still don’t understand!” You screamed at the demonic bird in panic as V started coughing up petals, and full rose stems, again. “V, why me? What did I do to make you,… love,… me? I mean, I’m just a plain old,… me!”

The poet looked up at you, his beautiful eyes full of unspoken adoration towards you. He held up both his hands and cupped your soft cheeks. He, then, gently laid his forehead against yours, the contact making your face heat up.

And, damn! It’s making you fall for him harder than ever before.

“I could sing praises for you all day,… my beautiful sparrow.” The poet confessed, his voice soft, and yet hoarse due to the onslaught of roses, and probably thorns, as well. “However, no amount of words could describe,… how I truly feel about you. You don’t have to,… do,… anything for me. Just you by my side,… is heaven enough,… for me,…”

You sighed and gently laid your hands against his. “V, I don’t want you to die but, I’m,… ah,… inexperienced. If you know what I mean. But, I’ll do my best. I will do everything I can to save you. I,… love you, V. Truly, I do. If I’m gonna do it with someone, then I want it to be you, and only you.”

The man’s eyes widened at what he just heard. And as he was about to shed tears of delight, he inhaled deeply and smiled.

“Is that true? That our feelings are mutual?”

You giggled at his silly little question and gave him a chaste peck on his nose. “Of course it is, you silly poet.”

“Then, forgive,… this fool’s,… selfishness,…” he whispered, then wrapped his arms around you. “For I just can’t help myself.”

Griffon’s eyes widened with amusement. He began chuckling as he witnessed how the poet shower you with kisses on the cheeks, and on the nose, then finally capturing your lips in a heated and passionate kiss. Your hands automatically went around his neck and this made him pull you even closer, lifting you a bit and properly positioning your legs so you’re now sitting on his lap.

“Ohohoho, and the boy’s all grown up now,…” the forgotten bird chuckled to himself as he witnessed every caress, every movement, and every kiss that you and V shared.

And just when things started to really heat up, the teapot started whistling and ruining the moment.

“Shit! The water!” You shrieked as you wriggled off V’s lap. You were about to run towards the stove when the poet took one of your hands and gave it a sweet and gentle kiss.

“I love you so much.”

Your arms went around him once more as you peppered his forehead with kisses.

“I love you more.”

Later that night, Nico and Nero were so baffled upon seeing the two of you so close and doing alright like nothing happened. It was safe to say that V was not able to take the medicine they provided for him, since he was already somewhat, and mysteriously, fully healed.

But, what confused them the most was how you two began vanishing each night from that day forward, only returning the next morning with mismatched clothes, flushed cheeks, and silly expressions on your faces,…

Chapter Text

"I QUIT!" The band's lead vocalist raged as she slammed the door closed on the way out, startling the other contestants.

"YEAH! FUCK YOU!" The band's lead guitar screamed back, making the other people shook their heads.

But, who could really blame him? Nero and Lady just couldn't get along well from the start.

"YA MESSED UP BIG TIME, PSYCHO!" Nico, the band's bassist shrieked hysterically at him as she pointed her cigar stick at him.

"WHO NEEDS A VOCALIST LIKE THAT, ANYWAY? SHE JUST STRUTS ON THE STAGE AND SHOW OFF!"

"Guys, we really need a vocalist now,or we're gonna get disqualified." Lucia, the timid drummer nervously spoke from the corner of the room, not wanting to be shout at by the ever grumpy Nero.

"The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water,... and breeds reptiles of the mind." V, the ever calm keyboardist, quoted, not once taking his eyes off his William Blake illustrated collection.

Nero face palmed.

Ever since that incident involving Lady erupted, of her planning to leave the band for a much more popular one to become famous, Nero has been on a rampage, picking unnecessary fights with her and, therefore, almost ruining the band.

And who could just put them together but him? Not Nico, who just messes around ( one time, she almost set the old and smelly studio they were practicing in on fire with the cigar butt she carelessly threw away ), not Lucia, who was just too timid and shy to ever lead any kind of group ( she almost depleted the band's funds by having no guts to refuse the cute little scouts that always come knocking in to sell them all sorts and flavors of cookies ), and definitely not V, who was either busy reading, or busy being a regular member of the National Orchestra as a Concertmaster ( who was so talented as heck, he rejected the last twenty or so who auditioned as vocalist, only accepting Lady because he wasn't there to see or hear her sing due to one of his asthma attacks ).

So, simply put, they're all doomed.

No.

More like fucked up.

All of a sudden, Nero's phone vibrated. He took it out from his pocket and saw that his dad was calling him.

"Ugh, him again?" Nero muttered, not really wanting to answer the call.

"Answer that call, ya don't want him to come in here and drag ya away from him like a brat." Nico suggested calmly.

And so, with a deep sigh, he answered the call -

"What are you doing right now,... scum?"

"Fuck off, Vergil!"

"Don't you disrespect me in front of your so - called peers. If I hear that you get beaten by Dante's band once more, I will have no choice but to take away that wailing and foul - smelling instrument of yours, drag you out of there, myself, and send you to boarding school in Berlin."

"D- DAD! PLEASE! NOT MY ELECTRIC GUITAR!"

"Don't you ever dare lose,... scum."

And with that last threat, Nero's father hung up. The place was almost filled with loud applause and cheers a few seconds later as the last band just finished performing. The door opened, and in came the dynamic guitar and singing duo of Dante and Trish.

The sight of Nero's ( and Vergil's ) rival Dante looking so proud and confident that he'll win this battle of the bands made his stomach churn. And before he could even turn away to not be noticed by the man, his father's younger brother saw him and immediately went towards him.

"Hey, nephew! How's it going?" Dante greeted as he put a heavy arm around Nero.

"Piss off, Dante!" Nero growled.

"Ooh! What's with the little puppy growl? Oh! Let me guess: Lady left you, didn't she?"

"FUCK. OFF!" Nero pushed Dante away in anger, his uncle's taunt proving that his statement was, indeed, real.

But, Dante just smiled and chuckled at him as he shook his head helplessly. "Oh, well, I wonder how Vergil would react to this news?!"

"Stop."

"Maybe he'll come down here and take away your second hand guitar! Or! Maybe," Dante taunted once more as he stalked closer to Nero like a predator. " ...he'll send you to that military boarding school in Berlin!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Nero finally exploded as he grabbed Dante's collar.

"No! You shut up, DEAD WEIGHT!"

"Okay, okay! Guys, stop!" Nico intervened, successfully drawing Nero out before he could make a nasty scene in front of the people.

"What do we have here?" One of the organizers who saw the argument came in and asked.

"Oh, nothin'! Nothin' to worry 'bout!" Nico lied as she laughed hysterically.

The organizer only shook his head and left. After that, the door opened and a head popped out from it.

"SWEET SURRENDER?!" The person called the name of their band.

"Yeah! We're here!" Nero answered unwillingly, flinching at his own words.

"YOU'RE UP! AND MAKE IT FAST!"

"Good luck, kid! Adios!" Dante mocked once more as he saluted on his way out.

"I'll send you my autograph." Trish said as she blew all of them a good bye kiss and gave V a very sultry look, to which the poet only ignored.

All of four of Sweet Surrender's members looked at each other.

"What do we do now?" Lucia, who was already in panic mode from the start, stuttered as she clutched her drum sticks.

"We perform as usual." Nero replied.

"What if we fail? Yer dad's gonna send ya to boardin' school fer real!" Nico added as she pushed the rim of her glasses up the bridge of her freckled nose.

"Stop saying that, will you? I will sing in place of that bitch."

"But, Nero! That song is meant to be sung as a duet! This will not work! This will be a disaster!"

"Whoa, Lucia! Calm down! Trust me. We'll get through this!"

After those words, Nero, Nico, and Lucia turned to V, expecting him to say some words of encouragement.

And to this, the poetic musician only answered, "A man can't soar too high,... when he flies with his own wings."

"Okay, V. You're an interesting guy but, you're right." Nero responded as all of them faced the door that led to the stage. "Let's get this show on the road!"

However, no matter how hard V tried to give them enough words of motivation, courtesy of William Blake, they just couldn't shake the foreboding feeling.

That something bad was going to happen.

Nico, Lucia, and V may have done their best to perform their parts, but Nero's song, which was supposedly a duet, just couldn't, would not, work out. It just felt wrong.

And not even a few minutes in and they were already being booed by their audience. This made Lucia even more nervous and stopped playing altogether. Nico tried to pitch in for her but failed miserably because she lacked proper practice. V, on the other hand, remained calm as he multi - tasked, playing both Lucia and Nico's part on his keyboard.

"LOSER!" A girl from the crowd shrieked as she threw her candy wrappers at Nero. Some people took this as an opportunity to throw things at them.

"Look at them! They look so pathetic!" Dante laughed from the back of the crowd, enjoying Sweet Surrender's downfall. "I guess it's boarding school for Nero now - "

"HEY, GUYS! So sorry I'm late!"

Everyone in the room went dead silent as one unknown girl wearing a floral dress came up the stage and joined Nero.

"I'm sorry. Who are you?" Nero questioned as he watched the girl take hold of one of the microphones.

The girl just winked at him and gave him a confident smile. "We're gonna do this, right?"

"ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR!" Lucia bravely screamed at the top of her lungs as she tapped her sticks together for their cue. And with the wailing of Nero's guitar, they played their song once more.

"Oh, oh! Oh, oh, oh! So jet lagged!" Nero started singing. "What time is it where you are?"

"I miss you more than anything." The mysterious girl sang, her beautiful voice surprising Nero, and the rest of the band.

"And back at home you feel so far."

"Waitin' for the phone to ring."

"It's gettin' lonely livin' upside down. I don't even wanna be in this town. Tryin' to figure out the time zone's makin' me crazy!"

"You say good morning when it's midnight. Going out of my head, alone in this bed. I wake up to your sunset. And it's driving me mad, I miss you so bad. And my heart, heart, heart is so jet - lagged! Heart, heart, heart is so jet - lagged! Heart, heart, heart is so jet - lagged, is so jet - lagged!"

"Oh, oh!" Nico, Lucia, and V sang at the same time the people stopped booing them and started bobbing their heads along with the song, actually enjoying the performance. And by the time the unknown girl started singing, the crowd started to finally cheer for them.

"What time is it where you are?" She candidly sang as she winked once more at Nero, who really enjoying their performance.

"Five more days and I'll be home."

"I keep your picture in my car."

"I hate the thought of you alone."

The girl took the mic out from the stand and pointed at the crowd. "I've been keepin' busy all the time just to try to keep you off my mind. Tryin' to figure out the time zones makin' me crazy!"

She, then, went over to Nero's side and by the time they're singing on the same mic, the crowd just went wild cheers.

"You say good morning when it's midnight. Going out of my head, alone in this bed. I wake up to your sunset, And it's drivin' me mad, I miss you so bad. And my heart, heart, heart is so jet - lagged! Heart, heart, heart is so jet - lagged! Heart, heart, heart is so jet - lagged, is so jet lagged!"

"Oh, oh! Oh, oh, oh!"

"I miss you so bad."

"I miss you so bad."

"I miss you so bad."

"I miss you so bad."

"I wanna share your horizon."

"I miss you so bad."

"And see the same sun rising."

"I miss you so bad."

"And turn the hour hand back to when you were holding me."

"You say good morning, when it's midnight. Going out of my head, alone in this bed. I wake up to your sunset. And it's drivin' me mad, I miss when you say good morning, but it's midnight. Going out of my head. Alone in this bed. I wake up to your sunset. And it's drivin' me mad, I miss you so bad. And my heart, heart, heart is so jet - lagged! Heart, heart, heart is so jet - lagged! Heart, heart, heart is so jet-lagged, is so jet-lagged, is so jet - lagged!"

"Oh, oh!"

"So jet - lagged!"

Nero and his friends, so was Dante, who was still watching, couldn't believe the amount of love they received from the audience.

All thanks to this mysterious girl.

"That was crazy!" Nero told her the moment they went back to the room. "You're really awesome!"

"Thanks!" The girl answered with that charming smile of hers.

The smile that made Nero's heart skip a beat. She's just,... so beautiful, and charming, and,...

"What's your name?" Nero asked her.

"Oh, you can call me (Y/N)."

"Heya, (Y/N)! I'm Nico." Nico introduced herself even before Nero could shake her hand.

"Hello, Nico!"

"I'm Lucia, the,... drummer,... at the back. You know,..." Sweet Lucia shyly introduced herself.

"You were awesome back there, Lucia!"

"Really?!" The girl's face lit up in excitement.

"Yes!"

"And I'm Nero. Nice to meet you." He said as he was finally able to touch her smooth hands.

"Same here, Nero." And she gave him that charming smile with that cherry colored lips again.

"Hey, where's V?" Nico asked, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"At the back, hiding from Trish." Lucia answered.

"Poor tattooed Shakespeare,..." Nico shook her head in disbelief.

"They're gonna announce the winner!" Lucia excitedly said as she pulled her friends back to the stage,...

... only for them to get disappointed when the host announced Dante and Trish's name.

(Y/N) noticed Nero's sadness and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulders. The boy smiled at him and shook his head.

"Thank you, (Y/N)."

"No, Nero. Thank YOU."

They were about to make way for Dante and Trish to perform their encore when the people started yelling their name!

"SWEET SU - RREN - DER! SWEET SU - RREN - DER! SWEET SU - RREN - DER! SWEET SU - RREN - DER!"

"OH, MY GAWD! THEY WANT US BACK!" Nico shrieked as she happily jumped up and down.

"Then, we're gonna give 'em what they want. Isn't that right, Nero?!" (Y/N) confidently announced as she nudged the boy's arm, who still couldn't believe what just happened.

"Okay! We're gonna do this!" Nero took his guitar and positioned himself in front of the mic once more. "Where's V?!"

"Right here." The poet calmly said as he reappeared and faced his keyboard once more.

"ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR!" Lucia gave the cue, finally confident for their sweet, sweet encore.

After that, it was safe to say that nobody's instrument, foul - odored, second - hand, or no, got taken away by an angry parent. There were no more old, combustible and smelly practice rooms because they were invited by a talent manager named Morrison to perform to much better and popular places. There were no more girl scouts selling one particularly shy drummer some cookies because they were now being offered M&Ms and more backstage and for free. One skinny poet has to run and hide more often from crazed fangirls because someone released his photos and videos on Instagram, which quickly became viral. And no one got sent to a boarding school in any part of Europe.

And (Y/N) and Nero?

Let's just say that their first duet was the start of a truly sweet and meaningful romance.

Chapter Text

It all started with Kyrie’s project to create a garden to surprise Nero on his birthday. The girls, including Trish, Lady, heck, even Nico, Patty, and of course, you, just kind of agreed into helping the sweet girl turn this cute and romantic fantasy into reality. And so, one day, you and the girls met up and did some brainstorming. And after a few hours of discussion, all of you have come up with a bright idea to raise some money together ( including Patty, who can’t kill Demons ) without breaking a sweat. And that is,…

… a Maid Café.

It sounded a bit too girly for your taste but, oh well! It’s for your friend Kyrie, and you’ll do anything to help a friend in need, even if it means you’ll wear a French maid uniform for a full day and call your customers, Master.

With a lot of careful preparation, that means sewing your dresses, planning for the menu, actually cooking the meals, and attracting customers with cute fliers, your little Maid Café finally launched a week later. Your team even managed to rent the Devil May Cry shop for the one - day only event.

And it’s already jam - packed with a lot of customers on the first hour, both male and female, young and old, and hungry and, well, not that hungry.

Each girl looked great in their roles, of Patty in the role of The Little Sister ( it just fits her perfectly with the big blue eyes, blonde hair, and all ), Trish in the role of The Big Sister ( although your team preferred her to be The Dominant One ), Lady as The Tsundere ( no other girl fits the role perfectly than her ), Kyrie as The Pop Idol ( of course ), and Nico as The Manager. Even Shadow the Demonic feline got her own role as The Café Mascot.

And poor you?

You were stuck wearing that pair of huge glasses for the role of The Sexy Nerd.

“Hey, Ms. Sexy Glasses, come over here!” Dante called you for the third time that day.

Shut up, Dante. You thought. You can’t pay, after all.

As you dodged the Devil Hunter’s sultry looks, and those from the weird guys who went to the place just to stare at you and the rest of the lovely maids, you noticed a pair of pale, tattooed hands holding up the menu in search of something to eat.

V came! He actually came! And you thought he’s not gonna make it since he has a mission from a wealthy client.

With a big smile and a deep sigh of relief, knowing that there was, at least, one male in the room who would not try to catcall you or lift your extremely short and frilly skirt, you went over to his side, ready to serve him.

You stopped right in front of him and cleared your throat to get his attention. And when he didn’t look up, you began speaking to him with the nerdiest spiel you could think of.

“I bid you welcome to The Bewitching Café.” You proudly announced. “How may I serve you today, Master?”

You waited for him to finish reading the menu, and when he finally put it down on the table to look at you, he,…

…

… did his eyes widen just now? And those plump lips,…

… did it just crack into a wide smile?

A few awkward moments later when you were starting to get really uncomfortable with the heavy stare he was giving you, not to mention feeling a bit hot all of a sudden, he finally spoke.

“Ah, yes. I came here for something to eat. I’ am so famished, as you might have already guessed.” The poet admitted, his voice ever so low and seductive.

Ahk! Of all the times you have to fantasize about him, why does it have to be today when you’re supposed to serve him as a customer?!

“Alright.” You answered quite calmly as you produced a pen and memopad from your pocket. “Have you made up your mind, Master?”

“Actually, I have. Yes.”

“Okay, what do want?”

V smiled even wider than before but, this time, it looked kind of,… different.

Was it,… predatory?

No. It must be your ima -

“You.” He simply uttered, making you blush really hard.

***

~ It’s up to you what happens next! 🙈🙈🙈

Chapter Text

The Legendary Devil Hunter has been working non stop since the last week.

Of course, you know it's a good thing. For once, you knew that Dante was beginning to have a sense of responsibility. All of his bills were getting paid in time, his debts were diminishing little by little, even Morrison was speechless as to his change of attitude towards his professional working behavior.

It's a good thing, yes. You wanted to believe that.

But, why did you feel even more empty deep inside? His sporadic appearances were not helping with your situation, as it was. Yes, you were happy that he was doing his best for the both of you but,...

... you need him. You needed your beloved so, so much.

But, then again, the Legendary Devil Hunter has been working non stop since the last week.

With your heart feeling even heavier than ever before and your eyes feeling so tired and swollen after all that crying, you climbed on the huge, cold, and empty bed, and turned to the side away from the spot that used to fill your lover. You took the clean white sheets and covered your trembling body with it, imagining it was his warm and strong body that covered and protected yours from the blithering cold instead of the soft fabric. You raised your legs, hugged your knees, and imagined your arms around his body instead of your shaking legs. You closed your eyes, letting all the crippling emotions consume you once more.

Then, you felt it: fresh, hot tears coming out of your eyes, reminding you that no matter how much one cried, the human function will definitely find a way to release the pent up emotion that was keeping one from being completely happy.

However, you knew deep down inside that it was impossible for you to be happy now.

Oh, why does it hurt, so, so much?

You were still deep within your highly protected shell of emotions when the door slowly and quietly opened. Your body was still trembling with the silent tears that won't stop falling when the mattress dipped around you. You were still thinking of the man you needed the most right then when the same man in your thoughts smiled at you and gently pulled down the sheets that covered your face.

And then, you realized, he was there.

"Aww, trying to sleep, already?" Dante's voice tried to penetrate through your mind as he gently ruffled your hair. "Come on! Get dressed. We're going somewhere."

"But, isn't it late already?" You asked, turning away from him to wipe away the tears with your sleeve.

"Late? Nah! Late is never in our vocabulary, right? We used to stay up so late to binge watch your favorite shows, don't you remember?" The man said as he got off you and offered you a hand to help you stand.

"You,... remembered?" You asked, finally taking his hand.

"Of course! Now, let's go."

A few moments later, you found yourself being dragged by this tall and handsome devil towards one shop just across the Devil May Cry shop where you lived with him.

And, apparently, you were right about the time being totally late: almost all of the shops were closed in the immediate vicinity, save for the one he was leading you to.

And it somehow looked,... like an old diner, or something.

Not letting go of your hand, the man opened the door of the diner and you were greeted by a very warm light that slightly blinded you. However, the moment you opened your eyes once again, you saw your lover's friends surrounding you with such warm and happy smiles. And they were all wearing the same pastel pink uniform with matching pairs of roller blades. Now, where have you seen that uniform before? 

Oh! Was it from,... ?

"Hello, (Y/N)!" Patty greeted as she took your arm and led you to one of the tables in the middle of the empty shop. "We have something special for you for tonight. Come with me!"

"Eyy, don't forget about me!" Your lover complained with a boyish and mischievous smirk as he followed the two of you towards the table.

Morrison at the other end of the room took this as his cue and started to play something on the jukebox.

One, two,... one, two, three, four!

Your eyes widened at the pleasantly familiar sound that effectively brought life to the empty diner. And you were sure that the song was from,...

Give me more lovin' than I've ever had.
Make it all better when I'm feelin' sad.
Tell me that I'm special even when I know I'm not.
Make me feel good when I hurt so bad.
Barely gettin' mad,
I'm so glad I found you.
I love being around you.
You make it easy,
It's easy as one, two, one, two, three, four!

"So, what are we having for tonight?" Lady, who was dressed in the same pink uniform asked you as she readied her pen and her little notebook, as if to take your order, asked with a wink and a bright smile that also made you smile, even for a bit.

"Ahh, what are you offering?" You asked, feeling the anticipation and excitement that you haven't felt in ages in your system right then.

"We're gonna have,... a mix of everything!" The man, who was sitting across from you, confidently declared as he raised one finger.

"A mix of everything?!" You asked, surprised at how he was willing to splurge like this. "Are you sure that - ?"

"A mix of everything! Got it!" Lady repeated your lover's order with another charming smile and a wink as she hid her notebook and went to the kitchen.

There's only one thing, two do, three words four you.
( I love you ) I love you!
There's only one way, two say, those three words, and that's what I'll do.
( I love you ) I love you!

Not even a moment, or a minute has passed when Trish came out of the kitchen bearing a really huge box of pizza in one hand. She skated towards you and brought the box down on the table, opening it and letting its delicious smell waft to your nostrils. Making you really hungry.

"One mix of everything, served with a smile." Trish announced as she curtsied and skated away.

You took a good look at your pizza, and to your surprise, you found out it was, indeed, a mix of every flavor you could think of! From Hawaiian to Anchovy - filled, to 4 - cheese,...

It really was a mix of everything!

Just like that time when - !

Give me more lovin' from the very start.
Piece me back together when I fall apart.
Tell me things you never even tell your closest friends.
Make me feel good when I hurt so bad.
Best that I've had.
I'm so glad that I found you.
I love being around you.
You make it easy,
It's easy as one, two, one, two, three, four!

"This is going to be so bad for my diet, I can tell."

"Diet?! What's that word again?" The man asked, making you giggle as he cupped the side of his right earlobe, pretending he couldn't hear you quite well. "Oh! Do you mean Pepperoni? Well, why didn't you say so? Here!"

You laughed as you received a huge slice of Pepperoni pizza from him. You took a bite, and you swore you've had this pizza before!

Why are you doing this?

There's only one thing, two do, three words four you.
( I love you ) I love you!
There's only one way, two say, those three words, and that's what I'll do.
( I love you ) I love you!
( I love you ) I love you!

"This is,... just like that time," You said as you stared at the huge pizza box before you, emotions flooding your chest once more, but not of sorrow. It was different. It felt,... lighter. "Just like - "

"Sshh, it's okay." The man told you as he took one of your hands in his and squeezed it. "Enjoy the moment."

"Wait! If this is really like that time, then there's - !"

The man smiled and winked at you. "How could I forget?" He turned to the left, and when you followed the direction of his sight, you saw both Lady and Patty coming out of the kitchen bearing a huge glass of ice cream.

And not just ice cream,...

... it has every possible flavor in it!

Again, a mix of everything!

Indeed! Just like that time!

The two ladies brought the huge glass down on another table next to you, and you swore you could no longer hold the tears of happiness back.

And this made your lover smile warmly.

You make it easy,
It's easy as one, two, one, two, three, four.
There's only one thing, two do, three words four you.
( I love you ) I love you!
There's only one way, two say, those three words, and that's what I'll do.
( I love you ) I love you!

"D - didn't you like it?" Patty asked with knitted eyebrows, worried when you suddenly burst out crying.

"I like it! I really do! It's just,..." You looked up and glanced at all of your friends before you. The very same people you helped in your own, little way. The same faces who smiled because you made them happy in your own, unique way. The very same friends who are now here for you to make you smile, and make you happy this time.

And it was all because of this man, this Legendary Devil Hunter, who worked non stop for a week to put up this really awesome surprise just for you.

Everything,... was all for you.

You stood and threw yourself at the man before you, who held you as close and as tight as he can.

"You remembered our very first date!" You cried, never wanting to let go of him ever again. "You,... remembered the song! The pizza with everything in it! And the ice cream! Thank you so much! Thank you!"

"Anything for the woman I love." The man whispered close to your ear, making you feel really warm deep inside. "Anything for her, to see her lovely smile once again."

You faced your lover and gave him a kiss that made Morrison and the rest of your friends all giddy inside. "I love you so much, Dante Sparda!"

"I love you, too, dear (Y/N) (L/N). And happy anniversary!"

You reluctantly let Dante go for a while and faced your friends. You just wanted to celebrate this very special day surrounded by all of the people who loved you.

And the loving with your man, Dante? You're afraid it has to wait for now.

"What are you standing there for?" You asked them with a huge and genuine smile on your face. "Let's eat this massive pizza and that monster ice cream together!"

One, two, three, four
One, two, three, four I love you.
( I love you ) I love you!
I love you!

Chapter Text

There, you felt it once more. His little, butterfly kisses on your neck down to your arms, then to your hand. You felt your lover's touch as he softly took your hand in his, cupped them with his huge hands, and pressed more kisses in it, his warm and supple lips finally and successfully summoning you back to this world from the land of dreams where you honestly wanted to stay for a bit longer.

Your eyelids fluttered open, your dainty head turned towards him. Even in the darkness, you could feel the weight and gravity of his silver - eyed stare, as if that alone could see through your soul, and see through every bit of emotion you've been trying so hard to hide from him.

But, of course, he knew every bit of you. He knew the rhythm of your breathing, both awake and asleep. He memorized the way you walked, the bounce in it, and the way you would accidentally trip sometimes. He remembered the way you smiled at him and the people around you and how this made them cheer up, even a little. And most importantly, he loved the way you sounded in his overly - sensitive ear.

Oh, how he missed that lovely voice of yours, how it captivated him when you laugh, how it captured him when you talk to him,...

... how it hypnotized him when you moan his name whenever he made love to you.

He missed you, his dear beloved angel, so, so much.

Everything was silent, and the only thing that you could hear was the soft rustle of the sheets beneath the two of you.

That, and the sound of his breathing.

However, he could hear more. Your soft movements as you laid on your back to face him, your little gasp as he positioned himself on top of you, and your heartbeat. Yes, your heartbeat,...

... and how it's rhythm changed when he finally showed you the thing he has been holding onto and hiding from you behind his back.

Your eyes widened, your breathing hitched. On one of his hands, he held a single stem of a white rose, illuminated by the moonlight outside the window.

It was oh, so quiet,...

However, he could hear everything.

How your sweet, surprised voice sounded when he gently laid the fragrant flower on top of your little nose. How your breathing sounded at the way the rose glided from your nose, to your tear - stained cheeks, and down to your soft lips, its petals against your skin making the softest noise that a normal human would never hear. How you tried to stifle a moan when he slowly dragged the flower down to your chin and to your chest. How angelic you sounded when his lips finally descended upon yours in a very passionate, yet gentle, kiss as the flower remained on your nipple.

Yes, he could hear it. Every sweet and sensual sound of you. He could hear it.

And oh! How it hypnotized him! How it drugged his senses! How your voice alone magnetized his whole body to yours as he closed the distance between the two of you, not letting even a little space to keep you apart.

Despite that, he still couldn't completely erase the sound of your sobs from his mind. How it broke his heart, how it bothered him.

How it disturbed him to know that something was destroying you from deep within.

He wanted to banish this agonizing feeling! He wanted to destroy this thing that's silently crushing you.

He will bring back the happiness you lost, at all cost.

And he will start with this rose he held in his hand.

The whole world remain silent, save for the woman he loved and the sounds she made.

Oh, how he cherished the ahhs as the rose glided against your smooth skin. How he treasured the ohhs as the flower travelled between your legs.

How he loved the sound of his name on your lips when he placed the single stem of rose on your palm, keeping it locked there between his hand and yours as he claimed you once more as his!

The sound of your voice, as always, was too much for him. He couldn't believe that an angel such as yourself would fall in love with someone like him, tainted, dark, and full of sin. But, knowing that he made you feel like this, made you forget your troubles, even for a short while, and made you say his name like that once more,...

It was simply,… too much for him.

And as he heard the sweet sounds of his beloved once more, he couldn't help but tear up a little as his own emotions started to flood his chest.

The sound of clashing flesh, the feeling of your warm skin against his,...

... the angelic sounds of his beloved that penetrated, not only the silence of the room, but the darkness of his whole existence, as well.

You're,... everything to him. And he would not let anything destroy you like that ever again. He will keep you safe from all these painful emotions, he will shield you from all the sadness, he will protect you from all of your demons,...

... he will do all these for you for as long as he lived,...

... until the end of time.

Chests heaving, bodies sated, two hands still holding onto the rose of the early dawn,...

He saw how your eyes glanced up at his, how they were damp with those tears, not of sadness, but of pure bliss, how you smiled oh so sweetly at him.

And then, right then and there, he was blessed with the sweetest and holiest sound he has ever heard.

"Thank you,... my beloved Vergil. Thank you."

Chapter Text

To your utter confusion, Nico was quiet all day. In fact, not a sound could be heard inside the house that one bright and sunny morning.

Sure, Nero taught her to do useful things. He even taught her how to behave properly in front of his friends and guests. Not to mention the many, many hours he spent with her in order to teach her what he proudly called, some "world - class skills".

Despite all that upbringing, Nico sure had a big mouth to show, and that boundless energy to boot. She's still as rambunctious as the rest of her kind. And most importantly, she's still trying her very best, on a daily basis, to bully that poor newspaper boy who was always dropping by your house.

Needless to say, you've been so accustomed to living with these two, and you're so used to their noises and their quirks.

However, to your utter confusion, Nico was quiet all day. In fact, not a sound could be heard inside the house that one bright and sunny morning.

Even her tiny traces could not be seen.

For a small and energetic dog such as Nico, she sure tried her very best to not slather you with her saliva that same morning. And that, nonetheless, bothered you.

"Nico!" You called for the third time that morning as you got out of bed. "Come here, girl!"

You've waited for, at least, three more minutes, and when she still didn't come to you on your fourth call, you instantly felt the stab of loneliness come back to haunt you. Nero, who typically doesn't start his day - to - day routine without having a hearty and healthy breakfast with you first, was nowhere to be found. As soon as your hand felt the emptiness of the side of the bed where he used to lie on, you felt the negative emotions come crashing down upon you once more. It hurt, feeling so heavy deep down inside. It hurt when you tried to hide it from your boyfriend and from your small group of friends. It hurt when you insisted to smile for them to show that you're okay.

It hurt even more to wake up without Nero beside you.

He's,... your everything. His funny antics in and out of the battlefield made you laugh out loud. His boyish smile and his mannerisms made you smile a lot. His sweetness and his caring attitude always made your day, heck, even your whole week.

And with him gone, it hurt. It hurt so,... so much,...

"WOOF!"

Your eyes widened and your mood perked up a bit when you heard the familiar bark, and when you turned around to face the dog, you were so surprised to see her.

Well, seeing her sitting and wagging her tail like that was normal for you.

What you did find surprising about her was the (F/C) - colored balloon tied on her yellow leash.

Wait a second,...

"WOOF!" Nico barked at you once more, as if trying to tell you to come to her, and when you did, she hastily stood up and went outside the room. You tried to chase her but, before you could even grab her leash, you noticed a piece of paper lying on the floor next to your feet. And on the paper were some words written using some crayons.

Good morning, beautiful! The words read. And the only name that came up on your head was his.

It was Nero, and he was clearly up to something.

You heard Nico's bark once more. You looked up just in time to see her disappear around the corner.

Then, you found another piece of paper on the ground where the dog went.

Have I told you that, the message read. You picked up the paper and looked in front of you.

There it is again, you thought. Another note.

You are amazing?

Have I told you that,

Your smile can cure cancer?

Did they know that,

Your eyes shine like a million diamonds in the sky?

You giggled at the messages. "Oh, come on, Nero! How cheesy can you get?"

Despite the overwhelming cheesiness, you went on picking up the notes that were left on the ground on your way outside the house.

Did they know that,

Your laugh sounds like church bells?

Have they told you,

That you are the best friend anyone could ask or?

Have they told you,

That you are the best girlfriend in the whole wide world?

Did you know,

That this is not the only surprise I have for you?

You read the words, then you read them again. You looked up, and saw none other than Nero standing not far from the old tree where the orphans used to play hide and seek on. Except that the children were nowhere to be found. Instead, Nico was there standing next to Nero, still barking excitedly.

And Nero? He was holding his uncle Dante's old acoustic guitar.

"Good job for bringing her here, Nico!" Nero said as he scratched the dog behind her ears and gave her some treats. "Here you go!"

You shook your head and smiled as you made your way towards him.

"Is it Valentine's already?" You joked, fully anticipating the surprise he has for you. "And I thought you'd never use - "

But, you were not given the chance to finish your sentence as your boyfriend cleared his throat and positioned his fingers on the strings of the old guitar. He started plucking on the strings for a few minutes, opened his mouth, and started singing.

"With every - hey!"

"What?"

"You are supposed to sit down, (Y/N)."

Nero gestured something with his pouty lips and noticed that he was pointing at the swing right in front of him. He wanted you to sit there as he played the guitar.

Feeling satisfied when you finally did what he wanted you to do, he shrugged his shoulders and breathed through his nose.

Then, he finally began singing.

With every appearance by you, blinding my eyes,
I can hardly remember the last time I felt like I do.
You're an angel disguised.
And you're lying real still,
But your heart beat is fast just like mine.
And the movie's long over,
That's three that have passed, one more's fine.

You admitted to yourself that Nero doesn't have the best singing voice in the world but, you, sitting on the swing as he serenaded you with one of your favorite songs as a couple,...

... it really felt like,...

Will you stay awake for me?
I don't wanna miss anything,
I don't wanna miss anything.
I will share the air I breathe.
I'll give you my heart on a string.
I just don't wanna miss anything.

Your hand automatically went to your chest, clutching it as your heart twitched with the emotions that you tried really hard to hide from him, of all people. You wanted so much to throw yourself at him. How you wanted to cry your heart out and shout at the top of your lungs until you have no more tears left to cry. You wanted so badly to just let your emotions take over your system as Nero sang the song for you.

But, then again, you can't. You don't want to.

And how could you? Not when Nero clearly tried his best to surprise you like this?

Of course, he noticed everything! From your tired, bloodshot eyes, to the huge, dark bags under them. To your ever declining appetite, to the way you must've trembled when you tried to suppress the sobs every night.

He,... noticed everything.

You don't want to give in to your emotions but, then again, how could you not?

I'm trying real hard not to shake, I'm biting my tongue.
But I'm feeling alive and with every breathe that I take,
I feel like I've won, you're my key to survival.
And if it's a hero you want I can save you, just stay here.
Your whispers are priceless,
Your presence is too so please stay here.

Nero's smile did not vanish and his voice did not waver as you finally allowed your shoulders to slump, and your emotions to take over you.

With one hand on your mouth, and your eyes slightly closed, the tears,... finally came flowing out,...

Will you stay awake for me?
I don't wanna miss anything,
I don't wanna miss anything.
I will share the air I breathe.
I'll give you my heart on a string.
I just don't wanna miss anything.

Say my name. I just want to hear you.
Say my name. So I know it's true.
You're changing me. You're changing me.
You showed me how to live.
So just say. So just say,...

That you'll stay awake for me.
I don't wanna miss anything,
I don't wanna miss anything.
I will share the air I breathe.
I'll give you my heart on a string.
I just don't wanna miss anything.

With a few more skillful plucks of the guitar strings, the song finally ended.

And you? You're still crying, yes.

But, at the same time, you were giggling like crazy.

The tears were still falling, yes.

But, at the same time, somehow,...

... you no longer felt sad.

And this made Nero chuckle as he scratched the back of his head.

"That good you cried?" He asked.

"What,... did I just see?" You playfully questioned with a smile as you wiped your tears with the sleeves of your knitted sweater.

"Ah, I was practicing for the Red Grave Charity Concert." He told you. But, of course, you knew that was a lie. "So, what do you think?"

You sat up straight, inhaled through your nose and exaggeratedly breathed out. "I think it's too cheesy."

"Cheesy?!"

"Yes!" You declared at the top of your lungs. Then, you stood up, went towards him and placed your arms around his neck. "And I love it so much."

And before Nero could even complain, you peppered his face and his soft lips with little kisses that made him laugh. He pulled you closer and wrapped you in his arms, not wanting to let you go.

"I should really put up a band next time." He said as he smiled beneath your kisses.

"I won't allow it."

"Why not?!"

"Because you'll get too many fangirls!"

"Aren't you just being jealous?"

"So, what if I' am?"

"HEY, ASSHOLE!"

The two of you looked just in time to see the all - too familiar Devil May Cry Fortuna branch van screeching and careening towards you and only stopping when it was only mere inches away from you, effectively scaring the dog away.

"Hey! Have you still not learned how to drive? You're gonna get us killed!" Nero screamed as the Artisan's head popped out of the window. "And you scared Nico away!"

"If I hear the name of that mongrel again, I swear I'd cook her in a steel pot together with that electric chicken!" The real, human Nico scolded, and when she saw how close you and Nero were, her face contorted in utter disgust. "And, eww! Flirtin' so early on in the morning? Get in the car already! We're so damn late for the Charity concert!"

"Alright! Shut up already! And don't talk about my Nico like that! She's still smarter than you!"

Chapter Text

You wanted so much to complain for being left out of the battle. But, then again, he chose to be left out with you, and you didn't even know why.

It all started when you were attacked by a nasty horde the last time you were commissioned for an extermination. The task was simple: take out some species of Empusa that were roaming about a certain location in Red Grave.

Yes, a simple task. And with a high paycheck to boot.

So, naturally, Vergil allowed you to take the mission on your own.

See, he believed in you and your capabilities as a Devil Hunter. You just didn't expect, heck, any of you didn't, that the nasty, low - ranked Demons would come at you as a horde.

Slices after slices of your dual blades, you hacked at the disgusting things that came at you non stop. You were able to take down as many as you could, until their Queen lunged at you and almost killed you. It was a good thing that Vergil came along just in the nick of time to finish it off.

Yes, he believed in you and your capabilities as a Devil Hunter. Things,... just didn't flow according to plan. Yes, you were able to finish the mission but, it was Vergil who ultimately ended it. Yes, you were able to take the majority of the horde down but, it was Vergil who slayed the Queen.

Yes, you survived what was supposedly a very easy mission for a strong and very competent Devil Hunter such as yourself but, it was all because of Vergil.

Once again, you were reminded of how weak you were as a human compared to the others, to Dante, to Trish, to Lady, to Nero,...

... especially him.

You were so weak compared to him. And now, after the dreadful mission, you felt the self - loathing eat at your senses. You wanted to prove to him so much that you're worthy of standing on the same ground as him. You longed to show him that you're capable of fighting these creatures of the Underworld on your own.

You needed, so much, to prove to him,...

... that his decision of choosing you as his partner and lover was not wrong. You needed to show him that you were not a mistake.

But, now, you felt so terrible. You couldn't even look him in the eye as he escorted you silently back home. You couldn't find the strength to turn him away when he cleaned and dressed your wounds. You didn't dare to utter a single word when he helped you ease your discomfort by thoughtfully giving you ample time to just lay around in bed.

You couldn't say no to him when he told you to relax and take it easy for the rest of the following days.

That was until, three days later, all of you were commissioned to take out another horde. This time, of magic - wielding Demons who were terrorizing a remote village in the south.

Naturally, Dante, and the others were raring to go.

Naturally, you, despite all of your injuries, wanted to go. Yes, you really did.

However, Vergil,... said, no. Just like that. He said, no.

You wanted so much to complain for being left out of the battle. But, then again, he chose to be left out with you, and you didn't even know why.

And it made you lose your temper.

"Vergil, why?" You quietly asked him as he closed the door of your shared bedroom.

As expected, he didn't answer your question.

And this,... finally made you infuriated.

"It's because I'm weak, isn't it?"

You caught the stoic man's attention with those words. His head snapped up, his cold eyes staring at you with all the intensity you haven't felt in him ever before.

"Tell me, Vergil! It's because I'm weak, isn't it?!"

"I didn't say,... you're weak,..." The man answered through gritted teeth, his voice dangerously low.

This side of Vergil would normally send anyone either panicking, or going pale in nervousness. But, you couldn't care less.

You wanted to show to him that you're strong! You wanted to prove to him that you're worthy of fighting alongside him!

You wanted to show to him that you're not a weakling who needed protection!

"I can fight!" You pushed on. "These wounds are nothing! I' am strong enough to handle those things!"

"You are not,..." Vergil quietly argued. He did look like he was about to burst any time sooner.

"I'm not?!" You screamed, stood from the edge of the bed, and looked up at the man who was looking at you like you were some child who needed to be disciplined. "Then, tell me: I'm weak and pathetic, am I?"

"No."

"I'm useless, am I?"

"(Y/N), listen to me - "

"AND YOU HATE ME FOR IT, DON'T YOU?!"

The man grabbed your shoulders, the sheer intensity in his hold finally frightening the wits out of you. Still, you stood your ground and tried to remove his hands but, to no avail. He gently led you back towards the bed and made you sit.

Did he honestly expect that this would calm you down?! This - !

All of a sudden, your rage vanished in an instant, only to be replaced by confusion when Vergil kneeled before you.

"Vergil?"

Again, he didn't answer. Instead, he reached out a hand towards you,...

... and softly laid his open palm against your abdomen.

His huge hand stayed there for a few good minutes until his other palm followed.

The man remained silent as he forlornly looked at your abdomen beneath his strong, yet gentle, palms until he moved them, running them on your waist until they reached the small of your back. He went even closer towards you and laid his lips against the part where his palms were.

And this made you realize something.

The discomfort you've been feeling,...

And he realized it,...

... even before you did.

And you were so caught up in your desire to hide your pain just to prove something to him.

Something,...

... that shouldn't be proven in the first place.

He knew, and he never spoke about it.

Touching his cheeks with both hands and making him look at you, you said, "Vergil, I'm - "

"Sshh, no need." He replied as he stood up once more, lifted you from the edge of the bed bridal style, and sat on the bed, himself, positioning you on his lap without even a hint of difficulty.

Damn, this man really is strong,...

Not taking his arms off you, he kissed the top of your head and spoke, "I know, (Y/N). I know you're strong. I know you're capable. I believed in you. You know that, didn't you?"

"Y - yes,..." You stuttered, emotions now taking over your chest at his gentle words and caresses.

"And, please, don't say you're weak, and pathetic, and useless. And don't ever say I hate you. You could be the opposite of strong and reliable, and I would still love you. I just," Vergil kissed your forehead once more as his hand travelled back to your abdomen. " ... don't want to lose my family."

You nodded as you placed your palm on top of Vergil's. "I'm sorry,..."

"It's alright. Nothing to apologize for."

"I love you, Vergil."

And with another kiss, this time, on your lips, he answered,

"I love you more."

Chapter Text

~ 1st May, 1884 ~

Sous le dome epais ou le blanc jasmin,
A la rose s'assemble,
Sur la rive en fleurs riant au matin,
Doucement glissons De son flot charmant,
Suivons le courant fuyant,
Dans l'onde fremissante,
D'une main nonchalante,
Viens, gagnons le bord,
Ou la source dort et,
L'oiseau, l'oiseau chante.

So, this was the song that everyone was talking about. The Flower Duet from Lakme. It does sound enchanting. It calmed your mind and filled your head with happy thoughts. And everyone seemed to think so, as well. You could clearly see the elated expressions on their faces from one of the upper boxes you and your companions were watching the play from. Act One in and you're fully taken in! The grandeur, the bright lights, and the flowers! Yes, the flowers! Everything was so enchantingly beautiful,...

Apparently, focusing hard on Lakme was the only thing you could do that one evening in May. Why?

You carefully peeled your (E/C) eyes off the flowery stage without putting down your Galilean binoculars and gave a sideways glance to the man sitting right next to you on your left. And, surely, for the third time that evening, you caught the man gazing at you, his cold eyes seemingly giving your senses the opposite effect and making your head spin.

You suppressed your little cough, shrugged your shoulders a bit, and pretended to sit up straight as you focused your sight back to the stage. And still, you could feel the man's gaze boring into you.

There was,... something truly different about the Duke and you noticed it the moment he arrived from London to visit you here in Paris. It's as if an intimidating kind of aura surrounded him with the way he carried himself. You swore you even felt smaller than ever before when you stood next to him to greet him. Or maybe it was just your imagination playing tricks on you? After all, you haven't seen the man in ten years. You remembered him telling you that he had some urgent matters to attend to with regards to the land ( far too massive ) and the titles ( far too great ) that his father has left him ( his younger brother inherited the lesser title of Earl from their late uncle, as customary ) and that he needed to go to London for them. 

Of course, your friendship thrived despite the long distance. The two of you continued to exchange letters, lengthy, in fact, about your daily lives, your etiquette lessons, his thriving businesses, your passion in the arts, the expansion of his father's land, your fondness of your family's little garden, and his hobby in music. And in these letters, he promised to bring you to London one day, to see his humble home, to attend both the Season and the Little Season with him, to bask in the rustic countryside, and to wander about the garden he claimed he has built just for you.

Oh, how your heart fluttered when you read those words from the man! And from that point onward, you waited for the day of his return. Everyday, you hoped to see him in your doorstep, smiling at you and sweetly calling your name,...

And after ten long years of waiting, he has finally arrived! But, there was something truly different about him. It seemed that London has morphed him into a different kind of person.

Gone was the boy who always skipped his Latin lessons just to play pirates with you. Gone was the little trouble maker who often has to dress up like his younger twin to escape his duties as the eldest son. Gone was the little man who always read William Blake's poems for you.

For, standing before you that one sunny morning, was none other than the man, himself. The intimidating, the tall one,...

... The Duke of Red Grave, himself.

Vergil Sparda.

As your sight jumped back and forth from Lakme to Millika, your mind went over everything that occurred the moment Vergil returned. During the last fortnight of his stay, he has graciously sent you gifts, taken you to Balls, has sent you flowers every morning, and has sent you poetry every evening.

However, despite all this attention you were receiving from him, you could not help but wonder why he still felt somehow absent. Yes, he has given you gifts. Yes, he has sent you letters. Yes, he has engaged with you but, somehow, it felt as if the Vergil you have known has disappeared. It's as if, suddenly, there was this man who barely actually spent time with you. To actually talk with you, to laugh with you, to exchange stories like how you used to. Simply put, he was always very busy. And now he seemed,... cold. Distant.

The Vergil you came to know,... was gone. That even though he was around, you felt empty.

You were still thinking deeply about it when you came out of the Grecian house of the theatre arts that you barely noticed it when the man took your hand and led you towards his own lacquered carriage bearing his symbol. And when you finally came to your senses, you found yourself sitting comfortably across the long - legged Duke, feeling your bottom sink deliciously amidst the deep blue velvet cushions of his luxurious vehicle.

"Y - your Grace?" You mumbled in confusion as you looked into his unfathomable eyes. "Where are the others?"

The Duke didn't even smile. Instead, he gave you a curt nod and gestured at the window to his left. "Dante and his lady are on their way to Morrison's. It's,... getting quite late. I must keep my word to your father that I would bring you home as early as I could."

"Oh."

Vergil didn't say anything else. Instead, he looked away from you and gazed at the streets of Paris outside the window as the carriage started to move.

As if those same, stoic eyes didn't stare at you for the whole duration of the play.

The thirty - minute ride back home was spent as unimaginably quiet as possible. Not that either of you don't want to speak to the other, no. It just felt like starting a conversation somehow felt awkward between the two of you. The silence even went so far that you could already feel your neck aching with the way you're forcefully focusing on the window to your left.

And, just then, when the carriage finally entered your family's estate, you heard the man clear his throat, making you turn towards him.

"Did you enjoy the play, my lady?" He asked all of a sudden.

Surprised at the question, you answered, "Why, yes! Yes, of course, Your Grace."

Vergil cleared his throat once more as he looked back outside. "Good."

When the Duke's vehicle came to a halt just in front of your house, the man swiftly opened the door, went outside, and opened the door for you. He took your hand and gently helped you step out of the carriage. By this time, the household has already settled down for the evening, with only the Head Butler left awake to open the door for you.

Then, as you were expecting him to lead you straight to the door, he turned to the right, forcing you to quicken your pace due to his wide strides.

Your dainty hand still on the crook of his left arm and the other lifting your long, (F/C) chiffon skirt to prevent yourself from tripping, you looked up at the man and saw,... something strange in his eyes.

Strange, and yet,...

... it felt really familiar, somehow. And exciting.

"Your Grace? I - is there something wrong?"

The man's eyes widened. He looked down at you and gave you a slightly awkward smile.

"Nothing! Nothing, dearest."

"Where are we - ?"

"Do you still remember? I used to escape my Latin tutor to spend time with you on your little garden."

Wha - ? "Y - your Grace?"

"Then we pretended we were pirates. I let you be the Captain for one day and we played and played, until the sun went down and my mother came looking for me."

"I,... ah,... well, yes! Of course. How could I forget?"

"Then, father gave me an earful. And Dante was so jealous when he found out I spent the whole day with you! I remember he sulked all day and didn't talk to me for a week. Did you know he has such a huge crush on you back then?"

You gave out a little laugh at the reminder. "Yes, I remember that huge crush but, I didn't know he ignored you like that for a week!"

Vergil chuckled. What's,... going on? "Then, when I heard you were sick, I borrowed Dante's clothes and knocked on your window."

"Yes, and nobody noticed it was you and not your brother. But, I did."

"My lady, how did you recognize me again?"

"You were carrying around your book of poems. Dante would never do that."

"Why, yes. Indeed, you are right." The man nodded.

"And I let you in because I was scared that someone would see you outside my window." You added. "It was,... such a huge breach of etiquette. Inviting a boy inside a girl’s room."

"It was such an experience."

"Yes. And it was,... actually quite nice. Being read poetry to you when you're sick."

"And I did that a couple of times. Even when you're not sick. The Garden Of Love was your most absolute favorite.”

“Why, yes, it still is.”

“Hmm.”

"You were such a naughty boy, Your Grace."

Vergil's eyes lit up, and when he looked at you, despite his facial features staying a little bit stoic and awkward, you felt something really warm within them.

Could it be,... ?

But, no. You decided to not let your hopes up.

Then again, the way he talked to you just now. It's as if the old Vergil you knew slipped through the very small kink of his intimidating armor and said hello to you once more.

It's as if somehow, deep within the shell of this cold man, lie still the soul of an old friend that you spent most of your childhood with.

And the way he looked at you,...

... it felt as if this old Vergil really wanted to be set free.

"Vergil."

Huh? "Your Grace?"

"I'm just Vergil." The man quietly said when you two finally arrived at the garden. "Please, call me Vergil." He spoke, not taking his eyes off you as he led you towards that old stone bench.

"Isn't it wrong to call you just by your name?" You asked him, the sweet scent of the white roses before you drifting to your nostrils.

The man raised an eyebrow. "Is it?"

"Yes,..." You answered uncertainly, helplessly watching as the man settled next to you and took both of your hands.

"Not in my book, my dearest." He said, raising both of your hands and giving each one a chaste peck.

Just now,...

Did you feel your heart skip a beat just now?

The way he's gazing at you, his eyes not leaving yours. The way he held your hands, his own, big ones gently rubbing them. The way he sat next to you, his closeness giving you more warmth than you could handle on a summer evening,...

What,... is going on?!

"Your Grace - "

"Vergil."

"Vergil." You repeated. "Is there something wrong? Something you wanted to say?"

"Is it wrong to stay like this for a while?"

God! This is getting really uncomfortable,... "W - what I mean is - "

"Come with me to London, (Y/N)."

All of a sudden, your tongue decided not to cooperate with you. Yes, you were excited when the man promised you in those long letters that he would bring you to London one day.

But, now that he's asking you, why did it feel so,... different?

"I'm sorry but - "

"So, you will not go with me?"

"I will! I mean,..."

"Yes, (Y/N)?" The Duke asked, not a hint of amusement in his tone. "I told you in my letters. I promised to take you there with me. You said, yes. And, here I' am, fulfilling that promise to you. So, I will ask once more: will you go to London with me?"

You felt your heart doing flips, and you even had an urge to pry your trembling hands from him but, his grasp was just too tight.

"Is it just - ?" You nervously asked, fearing you might be wrong in your assumption. "Just the two of us?"

"Yes."

Oh, my God,... "T - then, I should tell my parents that - "

"Let me make this clear for the both of us." The man interrupted you. "Marry me, (Y/N)."

Were your ears deceiving you,... ? Just now, did he just ask you,... ? "Y - yes? I mean - !"

"What is it? What's the matter, my dearest?" Vergil asked, closing the gap between the two of you and leaving you no choice but to face him head on. "I couldn't help it. I have loved you ever since I've known you. And my feelings for you only became deeper when I went to London. When I was separated from you. You don’t have a single idea how much I’ve dreamed of this very moment. I want to be with you. Always.”

"Your Grace, I - "

Were your senses deceiving you? Or did he just press his incredibly soft lips against yours? Did your eyeballs just roll up your eyelids at the incredible sensation of his mouth moving gently and yet firmly against yours, urging you to reciprocate? Did that same mouth, which rarely blessed anyone with a smile, render you totally useless right before him? Did those same hands, that held yours a moment ago, and which started to move up and down your back in a soothing rhythm, hypnotize you? Did that deep voice of his, which softly moaned your name, just make you forget everything else as you finally held onto him for dear life? Did the way he uttered those three words finally move you to the point of surrender?

You never knew, and you never wished to find out. For there was only one thing in your mind at that moment,...

You awfully missed this man. This fiercely loving, unbelievably caring, and absolutely adoring man, who was mysteriously hiding behind his cold, cynic, and intimidating shell for some reason you wish to find out. You missed him too much for your own good.

And now that he's holding you, and loving you, and caressing you this way, you wished this sweet moment would last longer. You fervently wished for this contact to not end. Your heart longed for this man to stay with you forevermore.

However, as the popular belief went, all good things must come to an end, for just when the rhythm of his caresses started to change, he decided to stop. And this earned him a little, almost unnoticeable whine from you.

The corner of the man's lips went up in an unmistakable smirk, and just when you felt the heat creep up to your ears, he tipped your chin up to make you look straight into his darkened eyes and said, "I'll take that as a yes."

Once again, your own words failed you as you tried to let out a comprehensible argument. After what happened, how could anyone just say no to this handsome devil, anyway?!

"And now, I must make my preparations." The man said as he gave you a chaste peck on the forehead. "I will go back to London this instant."

"Wait! I thought you said - ?"

"I know." The man interrupted as he cupped your cheeks. "And I will be back before you even know it. As a matter of fact, you will never notice me coming towards you."

You helplessly shook your head as laid your hands on his, feeling the joy and mirth go back to your system after such a long time of this man's absence. "That's so Vergil of you, I guess. You creeping up on me and surprising me like that."

"For your information, my dearest, I don't creep." The man answered, clearly frowning at what you just labeled him as, but still not letting you go. "You should leave the creeping up to Dante, for I would only sweep you off your feet. Ouch! That hurt!"

And how could you not pinch him?! How could any stoic man such as him stay calm and serious and collected as he tell jokes?! It was so,... Vergil of him!

Oh, God! How you missed this side of him!

"You're so unfair, Vergil." You told him as you shamelessly wrapped your arms around his neck. "Leaving me for ten years, then going back just to propose to me out of the blue like that? You know you could've done that before going to London in the first place, and I would say yes. I would always say yes to you, Vergil."

"Forgive this fool for not doing it earlier, then." He answered as he held you, wrapping you in his embrace and pressing your body closer to his.

You hummed in satisfaction as you basked in his embrace. Burying your face in his fragrant shirt, you said, "You're so unfair. And mesmerizing."

"Well! We'll see about that."

"About what?" You asked as you looked up at him. "About you being unfair, or you being mesmerizing?"

Vergil smirked and inched closer to your ear. And with a voice that sent your senses to oblivion, he whispered, "Both. But I'm afraid we'll both have to wait until our wedding night to find out."

Even before his meaning sank, the man swiftly stood up and offered you his hand. "It is really getting late. You must go to bed now, my dearest. I insist."

"And you, My Lord?" You asked in a playful voice, matching the same degree of mischief that he has a while ago.

Vergil gave out a theatrical sigh. A very rare sight, indeed. "I'm your Lord now?" He asked, his eyebrow raised skeptically once more. "Anyway, to answer your question, as I've said, I would immediately go back to London. Probably to wake up the whole household with the good news. And make my preparations."

The little walk back to your house was enjoyable but, the parting proved to be really difficult. The man bid you good night and sweet dreams, and you bade him farewell for now with a forlorn wave of the hand. You don't know how long you'd wait for him this time around, however, he has assured you that he would be back before you even know it. And you trusted him, for he never broke his promises.

Until then, you would eagerly wait for his return. But, right now, you must go to sleep,...

... and dream of this one evening in May,...

... when the man of your dreams, your childhood love, the man you adored and waited for for ten years,...

... has finally declared his love for you.

Chapter Text

"You really sure you don't wanna come?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Thanks for inviting me, anyway."

"Alright, then! See ya!"

You waved goodbye at your new colleagues, wishing them well, and watching them with a slight smile as they went, in groups, to the theatres to see the latest Marvel movie.

What was it again? Oh. Doctor Strange, The Multiverse of Madness.

"Would you like that movie?" You asked yourself in a low voice as you turned around and walked straight to the opposite direction. "Huh,... V?"

As a matter of fact, you would never know the answer to that question. Or maybe you could, if you invite him over to see it with him. The man has an undeniably great taste in the arts, you couldn't help but wonder what his reaction would be upon seeing it.

If he would come, that is.

For one thing, he's always busy with his work as a Devil Hunter. Second, said job ate most of his free time.

Third, he lived far away from you.

You sighed as you noticed the young couple sweet talking with each other inside your favorite coffee house to your left. Clicking your tongue and cursing yourself with your luck, you decided not to torture yourself and skipped your favorite frappe for the day.

How could anyone blame you, though? It's not as if you wanted to move away from him in the first place, no.

It's this job. This job you've been dreaming of for years. Well, you loved your previous job, yes. But, the moment this great opportunity came knocking on your door, you just couldn't help but accept. However, it required you to move away from your boyfriend.

Well, the distance would mean nothing to you if the new job was only a few blocks away from home but, no. It required you to move three districts away from Red Grave. Past rustic Swan Lane and rural Gaol Town to a bustling district called Wifmann.

Your heart twitched in pain the moment you remembered V's face when he found out. Of course, the man was beyond sad, and because of that, you were willing to refuse the offer. Hell, you just can't choose career over the person you loved, no!

However, he made a selfless decision and told you it's alright to grab this once in a lifetime opportunity. He was well aware of your dreams, and he wanted you to succeed in your chosen career. And in life. 

And so, here you were, living your daily life without the man you love, waking up each morning without him by your side, going to work without him to kiss you, going back home without him to hug you, and going to sleep without him to whisper sweet nothings to your ear and lull you to sleep with his soothing voice as he read to you your favorite poems.

Sometimes, you were wondering: was it really a good idea to live like this? Sure, you were getting the best things in life, your dream job, an amazingly generous pay check, the most friendly and competitive colleagues, decent bosses ( at least ), a wonderful urban neighborhood that was so different from what you were used to in Red Grave, and, very soon, a house you would call as your very own.

But, all these wonderful things,... in exchange for your one true happiness in the world.

It was very easy to say that, with each passing day, you were steadily getting bored of your monotonous, successful career woman schedule. With each passing day, you found yourself getting closer, and closer, to the inevitable. All that glitters is not gold, indeed. For once, you were lured by this shimmering bait, and now, you felt nothing. You were no longer happy with this empty existence.

And exactly eleven months later, you've had enough. You have made your decision, and you would definitely see this through.

Tomorrow, you would pass the resignation letter you made the other night. You would pass it and go home to V. You couldn't care less that you're turning your back on this so - called wonderful dream life. You're going back to your real home, and that's it.

Back to where your true happiness is.

Suppressing the tears that was brought upon by mere thoughts of your beloved, his deep, calm voice, his ever - charming smile, and his gentle green eyes, you entered the quiet suburban neighborhood and walked straight to the right where your little house was. You opened your hand bag, and took the key from it. You were about to open the door when you heard an achingly familiar sound coming from the living room inside. It was the sound of a violin, and a piano accompanying it. Someone entered your home! And,… not just someone!

The music,…

Was it,... Elgar?

Wait, if it is Elgar, then that only means - !

You grabbed the brass door knob, yelped when the door, itself, fell off its hinges, as if something forced it to open, and bolted inside, not bothering to take off your coat and bonnet,...

And there, standing in the, once, tidy kitchen and making a complete mess of it, was the man, himself, and his two familiars, who were most probably the suspects to blame for your damaged door, standing ( or flying ) right next to him, watching whatever he was making.

"I think you should put in the egg yolks, first, Shakespeare." The demonic bird instructed, as if he knew everything about baking.

"I,... don't think that's what the,... manual,... states." Came his deep voice.

"We should have watched a tutorial on the internet like what that noisy mechanic says,..." The bird answered, and as if something burned his back, he looked behind him and realized you were standing there, eyes blurry with tears and lips trembling with mirth. "Hey! Hey, V! She's here!"

The man called V turned around, green eyes wide with surprise, and pale face and jet - black hair a bit messy with flour and bits of some mysterious gooey – like red substance. And when he saw how,... emotional,... you were upon finally seeing him after such a long time, he couldn't help but tear up a little, as well.

"I,... ah,... " V stuttered, a hint of pink coloring his once pale cheeks. "Oh, my,... I,... please forgive me about the mess! I - "

"And the door," You cut him off. "And the sink. And the floor."

"Forgive me, I could clean afterwards - "

"And the music. And the surprise."

"Oh, dear! I hope you don't mind Elgar, my love,..."

"And the speaker." You sighed and smiled, finally letting your tears fall freely from your tired eyes. "Oh, V,..."

"Well, I - "

Everything happened in a matter of seconds. You running towards him and throwing yourself at him, wrapping your arms around his neck and pulling him close to you without even a single care for your pristine clothes. And him reciprocating the warm hello you gave him as his arms went around your waist, holding you close, and burying his face in your fragrant hair.

Then, giving your head a tiny kiss, he whispered to your ear, his emotions overflowing in his voice, "Salut,... d'amour."

"Hello to you, too, my love." You answered, kissing him on his flour - powdered cheek. Then, looking up at him with a raised eyebrow, you asked, your curiosity getting the better of you, "What are you making?"

V gulped nervously. Letting you go for a while, he looked back at the mess that he and his familiars have created on the kitchen counter, and said, "I was,... going to make you a pie. Do you,... perhaps,... love cherry, my love?"

"Cherry pie, huh?" You said, and with a smug look on your proud face, you removed your bonnet, threw it carelessly aside along with your signature handbag, rolled up your sleeves, and tied your hair up in a ponytail. "I'll gladly help." Giving a sly look to the demonic bird on V's arm, you added, "What could a Demon bird possibly know about baking?"

"HEY! AT LEAST, I'M HELPING HERE!" Griffon squawked. Then, pointing with his wing at the feline familiar who elected to rest on the floor next to the table, he said, "LOOK AT THAT KITTY! SHE'S USELESS!"

You gave out an over exaggerated sigh as you placed your hands on your hips and hummed, wondering how to patch up your beloved's mistake. Somehow, he has already messed up the whole process of making the dough, and the cherry filling he has prepared and set aside for later looked suspiciously like Slimer's middle - aged elder sister.

"But, you're tired, my love." V said as he hugged you from behind, the thing he always does to distract you whenever you're busy doing something in the kitchen. Either to tease you or do something else entirely. Either way, it always worked in the past. But, not today. "I'm sure you want to take a rest."

"Yeah, let Romeo and I handle the rest, Juliet." Griffon agreed.

"No can do, Iago." You answered with a smile as you took a clean bowl and some of the eggs from the carton. "Let me help. I insist. You've come all this way to visit me, so I want to feed you a proper meal." Turning to V and giving him a sweet smile, you added, "And I think it's about time I teach you how to bake, V."

"Would it,... take long? You must be famished by now." The man asked, tightening his hold on you as if he doesn't want to let you go anymore.

Ah, how you missed his touch, his voice, his warmth,...

... his smile and his caress,...

You missed V so, so much,...

"It doesn't matter." You simply answered as you focused on the task ahead. "We have time. We would have all the time in the world, I promise."

It took him a few moments before he realized what you just said, and when he did, his eyes widened and burned at the same time.

Did you just - ?

But, what about - ?!

"I missed you, V." You told the man, your face away from him, your eyes starting to blur once more with tears of happiness.

V smiled, feeling the same emotions as you did, and pressed his lips against your left cheek. "I missed you too, my sweet, little lady."

"I love you, V."

"I love you more, (Y/N)."

Chapter Text

It has exactly been a week since Nero left. 

He told you it was for an undercover mission and that the one who commissioned him was someone from a neighboring city. Other than that, you knew nothing else about his mystery task. Well, you tried asking Nico but you never had an opportunity.

Of course, you trusted your boyfriend wholeheartedly. Nero's just the sweetest person you've ever met. Despite your not - so - good first impression of him ( you first met him during the concert of your favorite band and he seemed so cocky back then ), you two actually got along well with each other. He's kind, caring, protective,... he's everything you could ask for in a friend. In fact, you two were so close that, a month later, you became more than just friends. It was, like, one of the best things that happened to your life.

But, he's not home, yet. And it's almost that one day. A few minutes left, actually. You kept wondering what's taking him so long.

Was he hiding something from you? Something he's not telling you?

You sighed as you collapsed on your bed. You tried to keep those negative thoughts off your head but, you just couldn't take it. You put your trust in Nero, and you wanted to keep on trusting him. He doesn't deserve your doubt, no!

After being such a nice lover to you, doubt was the last thing he deserved!

Your heart almost leapt out of your chest the moment you heard a noise coming from downstairs. It was almost twelve midnight, you're alone, and someone seemed to have entered your house!

Feeling your legs trembling with fright, you got off the bed, grabbed the hardest thing you could reach ( the stool next to your vanity table ), and cautiously went downstairs to see the source of that noise, which was totally not the best idea in the world.

Taking your cellphone from your pocket, ready to dial the emergency number, you turned around the corner and saw, in the darkness of the living room, two shadows moving about, arranging some things, and whispering to each other frantically.

"She would totally kill me for this, Nico!"

"She won't! Won't you trust what I say just for once, psycho?!"

The corner of your lips went up in a grin as soon as you realized who entered your home. Putting your phone back to your pocket and relaxing your shoulders in utter relief, you leaned against the wall and waited for them to finish whatever they're doing. You shook your head and stifled your laughter. It's a shame they haven't even noticed you.

"Ready!"

"I'm gonna open the lights now."

Click!

"AAAHHH!"

"HAHAHA!" You couldn't contain your laughter anymore as you saw Nero and Nico's shocked faces upon seeing you standing motionless there.

"SURPRISE!" You exclaimed. "Is what you wanna say, right?"

"(Y/N)?" Nero said, scratching the back of his head as his face and ears became red with embarrassment. "How did you - ?"

"You were making so much noise, for your information!" You told him as you showed him the stool you were carrying. "I almost hit you with this, you know?"

Nero chuckled. "You got me."

"So, can we properly do this thing now, or what?!" Nico yelled, annoyed that her plan was foiled.

"Okay! Okay! Sheesh!" Nero answered as he waved a dismissing hand at her. 

The two walked back to the middle of the room, standing in front of something ( it looked like a box with holes ) they were preparing earlier and concealed it from her view. Both clearing their throats and both looking so hilarious with such goofy expressions on their faces, they began singing. In all their tone - deaf glory.

"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, happy birthday,... happy birthday to,... YOU!"

The two stepped aside and finally showed her the box they were concealing before. It did have holes in it. And what's more, it seemed to move on its own!

Which means - !

"You're kidding me!" You ran towards the box, and when you opened the lid, the brightest, cutest little thing greeted you with a small, yet energetic bark, and an excited wagging of a tail!

It was a puppy! The one you've been eyeing at in a pet store for the last month!

And he's all yours now!

"I can't believe it!" You happily exclaimed as you took the puppy from the box and carried it into your arms. "Nero, how did you know?!"

"I just know things." Came in your boyfriend's smug reply. Of course he has been carefully observing you! How else could he know?

"Hehe! See? Told ya she's gonna love it!" Nico grinned as she nudged Nero's arm with an elbow.

"Yes, I love him!" You answered as the puppy began licking your face. And with a huge smile on your face, you went towards your boyfriend and gave him a hug with your other arm. "Thank you so much!"

"Anything for my girl's special day." Nero answered as he held you close to him and kissed your forehead. He really missed you so much, and he's so happy you loved his surprise.

"Oh, but don't think your sins are absolved because of this!" You teased him as you pointed an accusing finger at him. "You still have some explaining to do! And you will tell me everything!"

"Okay! I will!"

"Are we gonna eat, or what?!" Nico questioned as she pointed at the foods she and Nero prepared on the table nearby. Your favorite foods.” I’m starving!"

Turned out the puppy was not the only surprise they had for you. And you were definitely surprised.

Chapter Text

Your classmates have already begun flocking the glamorous dance floor. Your two best friends, Nico and Kyrie, who promised to stay with you for the whole night, were asked by two Seniors for a dance and left you sitting there ( such traitors! ). Even your date from the Junior class, a tall and skinny boy they called V, who has awkwardly danced the mandatory Waltz with you, has already left the vicinity and was nowhere to be found.

The atmosphere was getting wilder, your blue dress getting more and more uncomfortable on your skin. You honestly swore this was the worst night, ever. Unlike your classmates, you found Prom to be a huge bore. You want to stay at home, draw stuff, read books, watch movies, play video games, chill,…

Unfortunately, your parents believed this event was some sort of a rite of passage for high school girls. And you’re not an exception.

Well, for one thing, you did agree to attend. After all, how bad could it be?

Really bad, you thought as a helpless sigh escaped your lips. You’ve been watching them dance for almost an hour, you seriously thought they would never stop.

“Hey,” Came a familiar voice just behind you. You turned around and saw,…

“Hey, Nero.” You greeted your classmate from the Senior class with a smile as you waved a hand at him.

“Come with me.”

Huh? “Sorry, what - ?”

“I said, come with me!” Nero said with a loud voice because he simply thought you couldn’t hear him with all the noise and loud music.

And come with him, you really did, as the boy took your hand and led you to the dance floor.

Wait a second here,… ! You complained in your head as he faced you, took your right hand with his left one, and gently grabbed your waist. I’m not ready for this!

However, your silent complains were drowned and forgotten as the wild music slowly changed into a much sweeter one and Nero started leading. You looked to your left and saw a couple leaning onto each other as they danced. You looked to your right and saw another couple doing the same. You nervously looked up and saw Nero’s almost mellow eyes, and his somewhat unreadable facial expression.

You want to ask why. Of all people, why you? You, who doesn’t even have the tiniest bit of dancing talent in your system. You, a shy and awkward girl, who always messed things up. You, who somehow always flunked P.E. and got hit on the head multiple times by a volleyball. You, who always got paired with this talented boy many times, either in ballroom lessons or in recitations.

You know your faults and misgivings, and your lack of initiative to know the people around you more. And because of that, you have unintentionally dragged Nero down with you. That time when the terror P.E. teacher has already started the music for the Tango and you were still practicing on your own, you, along with him, were scolded by the said teacher and told to go to the back of the formation. That time when you were, again, partnered with him for a dance exam, you failed to do the last Foxtrot maneuver and you both received a low rating. Hell, dance lessons aside, one time there was someone bullying you, and Nero stood up for you, yet you failed to thank him because you’re just too damn awkward and cranky!

So many more things to mention regarding your misgivings towards Nero but, there’s only one thing on your mind that exact moment when he decided to drag you to the dance floor. Well, he didn’t exactly drag you because he asked you quite nicely.

The thing was: Nero decided to ask you of all people. And you knew you didn’t deserve such kindness, or such treatment.

And as he gently danced with you, you remembered those times when he tried to teach you some stuff to help you improve. You remembered those times when he told you nice things about him, which somehow got past you because you were busy thinking of other things. You remembered those countless times he showed you kindness despite you acting indifferent towards him. You even smiled a bit as you remembered that one time when you accidentally hit him during one of your school plays where you played the female lead and he played the villain.

You saw the edge of Nero’s lips curl up into a smug smirk, and you realized he must’ve noticed the change in your mood. You decided you quite liked it, this one sweet dance with Nero, and you thought this night wasn’t the worst, after all.

Unfortunately, the sweet dance was just too short.

When the song was finished, he led you back to where you were sitting and smiled at you, his charming looks putting a genuine smile on your face.

“There, I was finally able to dance with you.” He said with that charming smile of his and simply left, not allowing you to say another word, or make a cranky remark, like you sometimes do when he talked to you.

You shook your head and smiled, leaning comfortably on your chair as you watched your classmates get wild again when the beat of the music changed once more.

After this night, you will surely thank Nero, and you want to do it properly. You will let go of your awkward and cranky self for a while and you will do it for him, just this once. You will thank Nero for everything and that’s it.

Hey, no guts, no glory, right?

Chapter Text

Morrison told them that the former owner of the painting went missing over a month ago.

Now, the incident was, or can be considered, purely coincidental had it not happened to the five people who pre - owned La Pintura De San Gregorio. Even the people who knew those unfortunate souls said that the painting seemed to change with each passing month. Like it was somehow alive. They were even convinced that these poor people would never be found again.

And so, the others forlornly watched Dante bring the very same painting inside the shop. This may, very well, be only a coincidence. Of a regular case involving missing persons. However, in this world they live in, anything could be possible.

It might be the work of Demons, and it was Devil May Cry's duty to get to the bottom of this mystery and find those poor innocent people once and for all.

At first glance, no one would be able to tell what's wrong with the wonderful work of art. The painting, itself, was a marvel to look at. Taking up most of the wall facing the main room of the shop, the painting depicted a calm and very soothing scenery of a lush garden in the dawn, or twilight. The many flowers in the garden that were, rather, realistically made, with bright and vibrant hues of red, blue, green, and yellow, were a complete contrast to how the sky was depicted. With soft pastel colors of pink, purple, and powder blue, and with clouds and birds dotted here and there, the sky could make anyone stare at it for hours on end with its dream - like atmosphere. A simple country house, softly lighted with candles, could also be seen in the painting, and within it, a family of six happily gathered together for a sumptuous feast. On a white, rustic gazebo covered almost entirely by rose vines, there was a beautiful black - haired woman in white looking at the distance, a letter, probably from a lover who was away, in her hand, pressed to her chest. And lastly, a man in black, who may or may not be San Gregorio, himself, could be seen staring at the beautiful woman from a distance, his cold and stoic facial expression the only damper in the, otherwise, gorgeously made painting.

However, should one take a good long look at it for an extended period of time, they would notice the trance - like vibe the painting was giving off. Like they were being seduced by its dream - like scenery. Like they were being pulled inside it.

The first few days and nights of them taking turns in watching over the painting was quite normal. In fact, none of them could feel anything weird or paranormal in it, whatsoever. 

It was on the third week of the month where things began to change.

The owner of the Devil hunting agency, a man in his forties named Dante Sparda, has just returned from his investigation of the missing persons when he noticed,... something odd in the painting. It could be easily missed but, if one has a sharp eye, they would immediately notice the change in it.

At first, Dante thought it was a trick of the light, or his tired eyes taking a toll on his equally tired body. But, when he took a closer look, his eyes suspiciously narrowed, he finally saw it:

The family of six inside the house,...

... became only four.

And what's even stranger about it was how the locations of these four seemed to change. For once, they were gathered around the table, and now, only two of them remained, with the other two standing next to a fireplace, seemingly having a hearty conversation.

But, where were the other two people?

Dante looked closer and inspected the art, and, at last, he found the other two. They were now sitting next to each other beneath the shade of an oak tree at the farthest corner of the scenery.

Naturally, he alerted the others regarding what he witnessed. And the moment they noticed the changes, they knew.

The painting really was demonic in nature.

Over the next few days, Dante and his friends observed the painting even closer, formulating theories as to how it became demonic. They also tried asking the friends and relatives of the missing persons but, they only got the same old answers from them: that the painting was alive, and that it was the main cause of the disappearance of those people. They even traced the painting back to its first owner, however, none of his friends or relatives were willing to speak about the incident. Some even refused to let Dante and his friends inside their home, resorting to threats and violence just to keep them out and prevent them from intruding on their privacy.

They did everything they could, until the last option left for them was to find the artist, himself. With no other information about the painting except for the name, San Gregorio, which was etched at the lower left corner at the back of the canvass, they searched and searched until one of Dante's friends, a woman named Nico, found out about something that seemed to shake her.

But, the night the friends were to meet her back in the shop to discuss what she found out, she never came. They waited and waited for hours. They even called her grandmother to check whether she's at home. And it was then that their fears and suspicions were finally realized.

Nico,... has vanished without a trace.

Or,... was she?

For, when the friends looked at the painting, they saw her there,... 

... standing next to the two gentlemen by the fire, listening in on their conversation.

The painting,... has taken Nico.

And those six people, not counting the man and the woman in the garden?

Upon closer inspection, those six people in the painting eerily resembled the six missing persons.

They were all,... taken by San Gregorio's Painting.

Desperate for answers and fearing for the worst, they thought of ways to get the people out from the painting. Half of the group retraced Nico's steps and went on with her studies about this man called Gregorio, hoping to find out some more clues that could solve this mystery, and half of them took down the painting from the wall and thought of various ways to investigate the artwork without destroying it in fear of killing the people inside. 

They tried almost everything they could think of, from scratching the surface of the canvass to wiping parts of the painting with a wet cloth. But, the more they disturbed the painting, the more it became somewhat aggressive.

The next disappearance proved it.

That one late evening, the young couple Nero and Kyrie were reading some documents about a Spanish artist who has a striking resemblance to the man in Nico's papers. Who they believed to be Gregorio, himself.

All of sudden, they noticed some movement coming from the painting, itself. And when the pair looked at it, in their utter horror, they found out that the man who was looking at the beautiful woman was nowhere to be found.

He has moved. But, where?

The next day, the pair has also gone missing.

And the painting? It now showed both Nero and Kyrie tending to the garden. It also showed Nico inside the house holding a butter knife and looking outside the window with a horrified expression in her face.

And the man who they suspected was Gregorio? He seemed to have moved closer to the woman in the gazebo, his hand reaching out.

But now, his facial expression turned from stoic,... to sadistic.

With no other options left, Dante and his older brother, a man named V, turned to violence as a last resort.

The next evening, the brothers took out their weapons and faced the painting. They must take out the Demon who lived in the cursed art and destroy it. Only then can they save their friends and those six other victims.

Dante made the first move. He raised his sword and swiftly brought it down to the painting. However, the mere second before the blade touched the canvass, Gregorio's eyes moved and landed on them. And when it happened, the blade bounced off the canvass and broke, throwing Dante across the room, and the once hard metal splitting into two pieces.

With determination in his eyes to bring everyone back, V raised his hands and summoned his two demonic familiars, a bird called Griffon, and a panther called Shadow. Together, they assaulted the cursed painting, their strong attacks landing a direct hit on it one after the other. V raised his cane and ran towards the painting, the tip of his metallic weapon pointed at the heart of the art, itself: the woman in the gazebo.

But, something deterred V and made him halt his attacks. The woman turned her eyes on him and gave him a pleading look.

Her looking at the distance, with that letter close to her heart, and Gregorio seemingly advancing towards her without her knowledge,...

Gregorio wanted to have her.

This woman,... needed help.

And the moment V realized this, a vision appeared right before him: the same woman weeping in the garden, that letter clutched tightly to her chest. Gregorio, all dressed in black and that sadistic expression present on his old and distorted face, coming towards her. The woman looking up at the man, her eyes widened with utter fear. And the man lunging towards her,...

V snapped back to reality. Right then and there, he knew what must be done.

They must free the woman in the painting. Free her from Gregorio's grasp and lustful intent. And only then can those innocent souls be freed from their still and dream - like prison.

With a single nod to his brother, who morphed to his demonic form and conjured a new and powerful sword, V pointed at the man in the painting, who was now taking hold of the poor woman's arm.

The brothers raised their weapons once more as Gregorio's fingers covered her smooth and graceful neck. They lunged forward with every intent of dealing one last killing blow to the source of all this evil, while Gregorio raised a knife and pointed it to the woman's chest.

V and Dante brought down their weapons on Gregorio as his knife went swiftly down her chest.

The fiend's bloodshot eyes widened, his teeth gritting in anger as he saw how his body collapse into pieces under Dante's blade and V's cane, the many colorful pigments flowing out of him like a fountain of blood. Their friends, Nico, Kyrie, and Nero's eyes all focused on them, fear and worry etched onto their faces.

The woman closed her eyes, a single tear rolling down her face as she smiled at them with gratitude,...

She,... was finally free.

A flash of blinding light emanated from the cursed artwork, blocking the brothers' view. Then, after that, a state of calm, peace, and silence overtook their senses and tired bodies.

And the next moment V opened his eyes, he found himself together with his friends, who were gathered around the table for a sumptuous feast. He saw Nero and Kyrie laughing at whatever Nico was doing, and he saw Dante sitting across from him on the other side of the table, waving at him with a proud smile on his face.

V closed his eyes and sighed. That nightmare,... felt all too realistic. And he was glad that it was finally over.

With a content smile on his face, he stood up and went towards the window, where he saw the beautiful garden outside.

Oh, how peaceful this was. How nice everything was,...

V turned around upon hearing someone entering the house. He didn't know his friends were expecting some visitors,...

His heart seemed to stop beating as his eyes landed on the visitors: six people who looked awfully familiar to him.

Six people who,...

With gradually escalating heartbeat, V rushed outside the house and looked at the scenery all over him.

The simple country house. The lush garden with vibrant hues of red, blue, green, and yellow. The soft, pastel - colored sky of pink, purple, and powder blue.

That rustic gazebo covered almost entirely with rose vines.

V turned back to the house and saw his friends dining happily with their new guests, as if they have no worries. His eyes cautiously travelled to that spot on the right side where a man in black used to lurk, except that he was no longer there. Then, with trembling body and cold sweat breaking out of his forehead, his eyes wandered to that gazebo, where he saw the dark - haired woman. Her back was turned away from him, and she was humming a familiar tune, her voice soothing, and yet ominous at the same time.

He turned back to the house and saw his friends and those six people all looking at him from the window, their eye sockets white, and their facial expressions seemingly empty.

And when V turned to look at the woman in the gazebo once more, he finally figured everything out.

He finally realized what Gregorio was trying to do.

With a sweet smile on her face, that same letter clutched to her chest, she spoke to V,...

"Now, I have you back, my dearest."

Chapter Text

Vergil was never fond of bloodshed despite what everyone around him expected. The man thought it's just too messy. Unsophisticated. More of a task than a walk in the park.

Well, his job required him, like his brother, to take down these ghastly things. These,... utterly destructive monstrosities. For a price, that is. It required him to slash flesh after demonic flesh, to gut more than one thick and scaly necks, to break all their bones and hear their otherworldly screams. To see all that thick and foul - smelling crimson liquid splattered on the asphalt beneath his feet. For Vergil, it's not a job well done if he doesn't see those things right before his very own eyes.

Those nights spent slaying his enemies would always end up with him storming towards the bathroom, locking the door to make sure his younger brother wouldn't budge in, accidentally or not, taking every article of clothing off his filthy and sweaty body, and dipping in the tub full of warm scented water to relax his tired and aching muscles. He always made sure to scrub every part, every nook and cranny of his body that made contact with Demon blood and guts. He would not leave the bathroom until he is thoroughly cleansed of all that Demon filth. Then, he would spend the rest of the evening hand washing his soiled and smelly clothes and scrubbing his boots to perfection, and he would not stop until he is satisfied. Only then can the man finally retire after such a long day and relax for the next few hours before bed, and he usually spends this time reading those new and second hand books he bought with some of the money he earned from Demon slaying while sipping his favorite tea that he learned to brew, himself.

Oh, but we're not here to talk about Vergil Sparda's daily schedule and utter dislike of Demons, no.

For Vergil was never fond of bloodshed despite what everyone around him expected. The man thought it's just too messy. Unsophisticated. More of a task than a walk in the park.

We are here to talk about why the man came to enjoy slaying those very things he despised that one time he went out on a mission.

And it started with a very disturbing scream he heard from a distance that evening. The way that little voice screamed pierced through the calm and quiet atmosphere and made his body react instantly. He knew it was beyond his discretion to act, especially now that he's done with his task but, he just couldn't ignore those pleas for help. It,... somehow tugged at something inside him.

Vergil went as fast as he could to the source of those screams, his teeth gritting, his eyes narrowing as the awful noises grew louder, his hand gripping his sheathed weapon with such intensity.

And when he finally reached that place, his eyes widened.

Not with fear but, with shock.

There, under the light of the lone street lamp, was a little boy crying and calling out for help. And just behind him was a massive and dark being crouched low on the ground, its back turned against them. And even before the Devil Hunter could take a single step forward, a foul odor assaulted his nostrils, one that was foreign yet, he knew so well.

No,... no,... no,...

Came Vergil's helpless thoughts, image after shocking image of what was happening cascading over and over again into his already tired mind.

He knew that smell. He knew,... that - !

He took a step forward, then another, and another.

And when he saw what that thing was doing, Vergil was at a complete loss for words. He should've expected it due to the nature of these fiends. He has seen these things kill before, and he knew he should be used to it by then.

However, this time, it's different.

It's more than what Vergil could handle as of the moment. Mentally.

And as he laid eyes on the Demon, and the poor victim beneath its monstrous form, some old memories came into his mind.

He suddenly remembered how his sweet mother used to sing to him one of her favorite songs. One of the few he could remember so well.

Tiptoe to the window, by the window, that is where I'll be. Come tiptoe through the tulips with me.

Without a word, Vergil unsheathed the Yamato but, just before his blade reached the monster's neck, the fiend was able to jump away in time. Its eyes glowing red, its teeth sharp and bloody, its long, forked tongue licking the liquid substance all over its horrifying face, it only made Vergil's eyes black with rage.

Come on honey, and tiptoe from your pillow to the shadow of a willow tree. And tiptoe through the tulips with me.

Came his mother's sweet singing voice in his head. Without daring to check the state of the victim, he pursued the enemy.

Knee deep, in flowers we'll stray. We'll keep the showers away. And if you kiss me in the garden, in the moonlight, I will pardon you. Come tiptoe through the tulips with me.

The enemy was huge, fast, and destructive. And it was nothing for Vergil.

For he was faster, and stronger.

He was more destructive than many of these fiends combined.

It didn't even take him a minute before his blade finally reached one of the fiend's legs. And as the monster's pained screams pierced through his sensitive eardrums, his mother's voice went on singing in his head, his mind still conjuring her face full of life and happiness, overlapping with the image of his enemy's severed and bloody limb, still twitching, lying on the ground before him.

Tiptoe through the window, by the window, that's where we'll be. Come there with me. Tiptoe through the tulips with me.

Vergil did not waste any time. The monster could still move despite loss of limb. But, the Devil Hunter was relentless. No matter how agile the Demon was, it was nothing for him. Not even a moment has passed when the other leg followed suit. Along with some of its curled and sharp claws. All the work of his trusty weapon.

More howls and screams. Of the Demon who was now lying on the ground, cowering with fear, and the child who was still screaming as the events unfolded right before his own eyes.

His eyes focused on the hideous form of the Demon, he raised the Yamato and swiftly brought it down.

Tiptoe from your pillow, from your pillow to the shadow, to the shadow of the willow tree, that's where I'll be. Tiptoe through the tulips with me.

He slashed through the Demon's scales, his blade slicing through its thick flesh, the scent of its blood reaching his nose and making him nauseous. He could've ended it right then and there. He could've driven the Yamato deep into its heart and ended its life. But, right then and there, the face of his loving mother vanished from his mind. The gentle atmosphere he mentally conjured for the sake of his own sanity was replaced with the awful visions of that day,...

Still, her song went on like it was nothing,...

Knee deep, your hand in mine, in flowers we'll stray. We'll keep any old sign of showers away.

Vergil raised the Yamato once more, and with a vengeful and sadistic smirk, he brought it down, not onto the Demon's heart but onto its arm, then the other. He felt the flesh tearing, the bones cracking under his blade. He could hear the anguished cries of the enemy beneath him. Still, he did not stop. Stepping onto the horrifying face that soiled its victim's dignity, he pointed the blade onto its neck, and slowly drove it down, down, down, its blood spurting from the wound, its howls getting weaker and weaker, until the tip of the Yamato reached the spine.

Stop. Enough.

Came Vergil's sanity.

More. More!

Came his sadistic urge to avenge the woman who was still singing in his head. The woman who now lay on the ground before him, lifeless,...

His clothes soiled with Demon guts, his hands and face getting filthier by the second with the blood that came out from the enemy, he raged on, and on, and on,... until he could no longer see the face of his mother.

Until the very last line of her sweet, little song.

And if you kiss me in the garden, in the moonlight, I will pardon you. Come tiptoe through the tulips with me,...

Vergil could feel the life slipping out of the monster beneath him, and only then did he finally take the blade out of its neck. He raised his weapon once more and swiftly brought it down to the enemy's chest, piercing its heart and ending it once and for all. And with one last move, he raised the blade once more and slashed the enemy's neck. With ugly thuds against the ground, its head bounced and rolled a few feet away from his feet, its eyes still opened, staring into nothingness and twitching slightly. Then, it slowly started to vanish into thin air.

Now, I won't be able to stare at your hideous face again.

Taking a step back, he sheathed the Yamato and turned towards the victim: a woman, who was most probably the child's mother.

Vergil looked away, taking a sharp breath as he saw the pitiful state of the victim.

The disturbing image of the woman was still in Vergil's mind a few hours later when he sat down on his chair and took Poe from the pile of old books he bought the other day.

Without so much as a bat of an eye, he wore his reading glasses, opened the book, and began reading.

It was then when his brother took a peek at him from the raunchy magazine he's reading.

"You seem awfully quiet tonight, Verge." His brother remarked.

"I'm always quiet." Came Vergil's stoic answer.

The younger brother raised an eyebrow. "So, how did the mission go?"

"Not bad."

"Huh." The younger brother shrugged his shoulders. Something on the television suddenly caught his attention and it made him bring down his magazine. "Hey, take a look at this, Verge! A boy was found by the police not far from here. And his mother was,... ugh, that's awful!" He grabbed the remote from his desk, turned the television off, and went on reading his magazine. "Hope the kid's fine."

"He will be." The brother was a bit startled to hear the unmistakable concern in Vergil's monotonous tone.

Once again, the younger brother shrugged his shoulders and decided not to pry.

Little did he know, the victim's last words were still fresh from Vergil's mind, and he doubted whether he could easily bury it deep within the recesses of his mind and forget it anytime soon.

"K - kill me," She asked Vergil, her tears flowing down her face, her heavily wounded and desecrated body trembling in fear. Her eyes were void of hope. He knew it all too well. " ... please,..."

Chapter Text

"Ten years, Dante! Ten years! And you still suck at Poker?!"

Dante winced and waved his opponent off, unable to withstand Patty's presence in his office.

Yes, the girl has just turned eighteen. Despite that, it didn't stop her from going back to Devil May Cry from time to time to annoy Dante. Well, mostly she would just watch her favorite shows on his little television. Sometimes, she would offer to clean his office for a price like how she used to. However, on rather special occasions where the teenager finds out about Dante's gigs, she would rile him up to no end to make him play Poker with her. And, by Jove, she always wins the game.

The girl was definitely right. Ten years of their unusual friendly relationship and Dante has yet to beat her in that card game. It might be because the girl has become even smarter than ever before due to Lady and Trish's influence, or Dante has just lost his fire with games such as this.

"Now, you owe me - "

"Whatever! Ugh,... " Dante went to his chair and collapsed on it, putting his feet up on the table and snatching the magazine before him.

"You sound like a sore loser." Patty answered as she went towards the little television and turned it to her favorite channel.

"Why don't you just go out with your buddies or boyfriend, huh?" Dante added as he grumpily turned another page of his magazine.

"Oh, jeez, Dante! Who are you? My dad?" Patty laughed as she comfortably settled on the floor. "For your information, I don't have a boyfriend. Don't need one because I can perfectly protect myself!"

"Sure."

"Oh, and now you have to take me out shopping! That's your punishment for losing, Dante."

The man brought his magazine down and threw deadly stares at the teenager who was always invading his personal space. "Is this your revenge for ditching you on that birthday party of yours?"

"Whoa, you can't be serious!" Patty turned away from the screen to raise an eyebrow at the Devil Hunter. "For that one, you'll have to give me a year's worth of your strawberry sundae!"

"I shouldn't have asked." Dante said and clicked his tongue, picking up his magazine once more and putting his focus back to it.

Patty snickered. She just enjoyed annoying Dante like that. The man was never really angry with her, and she honestly thought that he was the better company compared to most people her age, who knew nothing else other than sex and partying. She enjoyed hanging out with the Devil Hunter, and she couldn't imagine her life without her old friend, who always made her smile and laugh.

"Wow. Look at Ripley,... " Patty whispered in awe, her eyes entranced at the horror film being shown on the silver screen. "She's so badass, I wish I could be like her someday." She peeled her eyes off of Ripley and looked at her companion once more. "Hey, Dante!"

"What now?!"

"Take me on a mission some time."

Dante raised an eyebrow at her. "Absolutely not!"

"Aww, come on! I wanna see you become like Ripley!"

"Ripley?"

"Yeah! Wouldn't it be cool if you could say her most popular line from Alien?"

"And what is that line?"

"Get away from her, you bitch!" Patty recited the popular line with the most rugged tone of voice she could muster.

"Haha!" Dante laughed and brought his old magazine down, taking one slice of pizza from the box on his table and gobbling on it. "I have better lines than that!"

With furrowed eyebrows, Patty stood up, went towards Dante and took a slice of pepperoni special for herself. Taking a bite, she asked, "Like what?"

Dante chuckled and answered, "Jackpot!"

"That line again?!"

"That is loads better than Ripley's line! And I bet other cheap rip offs of Alien already had that line, it's gotten too old."

"Really?" Patty answered with much sarcasm.

Before Dante could even answer, the door violently opened, and a few moments later, a very sweaty and nervous - looking Morrison entered the shop.

"You could've at least knocked, Morrison!"

"Hey, what's wrong with Mr. Morrison?" Patty mused as she finished her pizza and went towards the man.

However, before Patty could even come close, Morrison stopped her in her tracks, holding up a trembling arm with his palm up.

"Don't - !" Morrison wheezed, clearly struggling with something. "Go near - !"

"You okay there, Morrison?" Dante, who just got off his chair, asked a moment later. And as a tasteless joke, he added, "Did an alien enter your body, or something - ?”

"It's,... CRAWLING!" All of a sudden, the poor broker yelled in agony as he collapsed on the floor, his hands taking hold of his left leg as if he was in deep, excruciating pain.

"Oh, my God!" Patty mumbled and was about to help the man when Dante stopped her from going closer to Morrison.

"Let me handle this." Dante said, kneeling next to Morrison. "Let me take a look at that, Morrison."

"It's,... CRAWLING! IT'S CRAWLING UNDER MY SKIN! I CAN FEEL IT!" Morrison howled, his sweat almost flooding his face.

"Shh! Shh! Relax,... " The Devil Hunter uttered the little words of encouragement that served as Morrison's only warning before his left pant was completely torn off from him, revealing a golf - ball sized thing underneath the part of the broker's skin where his pulsating purple veins became blaringly visible.

And he was right. The thing really was crawling.

And it was creeping up towards Morrison's upper thigh!

"It's like from Alien!" Patty shrieked in shock, stepping further away from the broker in fear of contact with whatever's inside Morrison.

"Patty, I need a string! Anything to tie Morrison's leg and stop this thing from moving!" Dante commanded like a general barking orders to a private officer.

"You mean a tourniquet?"

"Whatever! JUST MAKE IT QUICK!"

“Right!” Patty obliged as she ran to look for the thing.

"Okay, Morrison, I want you to relax. Breathe,... " Dante spoke as he took hold of the broker's leg, his left hand on his upper thigh, and his right hand near the ugly moving bulge. And he could definitely feel the thing struggling to get to the poor man's upper body. It's rather strong.

"HOW COULD I FUCKING RELAX?! THERE'S A THING IN MY BODY! I COULD FEEL IT CRAWLING - !"

"I know, I know. PATTY!"

"Here!" Patty handed Dante what looked like his telephone cord and he received this without any complain or hesitation, seeing the poor broker twitch and tremble with pain and fear. And with the cord, he proceeded to tie Morrison's upper thigh as tightly as he could, earning him a wide - eyed and terrified look from the broker.

"What are you doing?" Morrison nervously asked as he watched Dante secure the cord tied around his thigh. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"

"I'm trying to help you!" Dante howled in answer, trying his best to not get annoyed with Morrison. "Patty, get my knife on my drawer. And my whiskey bottle. Quick!"

The moment Morrison heard the words knife and whiskey, he felt a heavy weight on his chest. He lost his consciousness. However, despite that, the thing still tried to get past the cord tied by Dante.

"Here." Patty handed the knife and Dante wasted no time in pointing the blade at the thing. And the moment it felt the blade on the broker's skin, its movements became much more erratic, as if it knew that it's going to die. And as soon as the blade started cutting through the poor broker's flesh, the man's eyes snapped open and he let out an agonizing scream of pain that pierced through Dante and Patty's eardrums.

"Patty, give him the whiskey!"

"R - right!" The girl nervously answered as she opened the bottle with trembling hands and proceeded to make Morrison drink its contents. The liquor burned a path down his throat, making him a little numb. And yet he still felt it when Dante went on cutting his flesh.

"Morrison, you have to help us here!" Dante howled as his eardrums were, once again, assaulted by the broker's screams and curses of pain. "Do you want this thing out or NOT?!"

The man winced, almost crying in pain. "I DIDN'T SIGN UP FOR THIS!" He, then, snatched the bottle of whiskey from Patty's hands and downed all of its contents in one gulp. Throwing the bottle away, he screamed, "DO IT!"

"Don't cry now, Morrison!" Dante answered with a grin, and with one swift movement, he was able to make a clean and straight cut of his flesh. One painful stab with the blade mere seconds later and the thing was finally out. It landed on the carpet next to Dante's television just in time when the baby alien burst out from one of the characters’ chest.

Its bloody body pink, fleshy, and pulsing, with little hairs protruding from it, and its numerous little arachnid - like feet still moving and twitching, it almost looked like a Nidhogg, but much longer.

And even more disgusting.

And the moment the little alien howled from the man's chest in the screen, the unknown creature stood up, raising its nasty looking little mandibles in the air, and screeched with such unearthly sound, its yellow saliva coming out of its mouth.

"OH, GOD!" Patty let out in disgust at the creature that came out from Morrison's leg, making the broker faint.

"You're not welcome here, little fella!" Dante taunted as he took out his Ebony and Ivory, pointing them at the creature. "I'm afraid to say it's adios!"

Everything happened so fast. The creature launched itself in midair towards Dante, its mouth slicing and opening up the size of an unfurled umbrella, its pair of mandibles growing a few inches, ready to devour the Devil Hunter's head.

But, the man in red was much faster, and much more agile. With a few Ebony and Ivory rounds shot at the creature's mouth, the thing went down, dead and still somehow twitching like a swatted insect.

And the moment the creature stopped twitching, Patty and Dante heard a louder screech coming outside the building. The unknown noise went on for almost a minute, and when it finally stopped, they felt tremors on the ground as if something huge just moved and ran away.

"It's the Alien Queen!" Patty announced, amazed and frightened at the same time.

Dante hid the pair of guns and took out his most powerful weapon, the Rebellion. "Alright, kid, stay here and don't leave Morrison behind!"

"I told you! I'm no longer a kid!" The teen retorted behind Dante's back as the man went out to hunt the Alien Queen.

And, sure enough, the Devil Hunter found the much larger creature outside, towering like an Empusa Queen, looking twice as ugly as her,...

... and looking just as pissed as the Xenomorph alien Ripley has to defeat.

"You, uhh, got a thing for the broker or something?" Dante quipped with a smile, the thrill of a good fight starting to excite every fiber of his being. And with a swish and flair of the Rebellion, he beckoned the monster towards him with his finger. "Hate to say this but,...

... get away from Morrison, you bitch!"

***

The news about Morrison's near death experience at the hands of a new class of Demon they now call, "Xenomorph" ( named after the alien in the movie ), reached the others as soon as daybreak hit. With investigations conducted by Trish, Lady, Nero, V, and Vergil, they found out that the Xenomorph stalks its prey, and using its minions, the smaller versions of itself in the form and size of a small spider, it enters the prey by penetrating the skin, mostly from the lower torso, and staying there for at least a few more hours until the creature inside grows enough for it to be able to travel to the victim's brain. Further investigations also revealed that when the creature takes over the victim's brain, it would be able to control the person, bringing the unfortunate prey towards the Xenomorph's nest against their own free will, ready to be devoured by the Demon Queen, herself. More studies showed that the Xenomorph had other uses for the prey's body aside from her nourishment. It was said that she would also use the body as a "breeding ground", laying her eggs there and waiting for them to hatch. Then, these little Xenomorphs would consume the body from the inside, organs, fluid, and all, little by little, until such time when they are big enough and ready to come out.

But, of course, Dante and the rest prevented Morrison from knowing all this until he was well enough to handle any information of the thing that entered his body and almost killed him that one night.

And Patty? Let's just say she stopped watching sci - fi movies with aliens in it and went back to her old favorites, which were romcoms that Dante found utterly cheesy and corny.

Chapter Text

How many times have we fought?

Hard to say. It's the only memory I have since we were kids.

Vergil's words rang through Dante's mind that evening as he pondered about everything he's been through for the past three months.

Safe and back from the Underworld where they faced legions upon legions of Demons, the Devil Hunter looked back on everything, including that one memory, that one moment, that led him and his brother to such tragedies.

Yes, it's true. He lost count of how many times they've fought. He has forgotten how many times the Rebellion clashed with the Yamato. He lost count of how many times he was punched in the face, and he has forgotten how many times they fell.

To the brothers, their world has always been their battleground, the sound of their weapons the only music they danced to.

If that day didn't happen, would they still end up like the failures that they were? Would they still be fighting in their endless sibling rivalry? Would they even have the chance to prove to themselves that they won't have to fight in order to prove who's the better Sparda?

Dante chuckled as he shook his head, his mind conjuring up some images that made him lose focus for a while.

Drifting into his own reverie, he went back to the day when they were playing outside their house.

And in his head, Vergil didn't run away from him and their mother. The Demons didn't come, and their mother was still alive.

He imagined himself beating his older brother and laughing at him, feeling proud of his little achievement.

"Now, would you leave me alone with my book?" He could hear Vergil say, seeing him stand up as he wiped the blood off his nose.

"Uhh, sure!" He saw his younger self beaming  with pride as he picked up the brown leather - bound book and handed it back to his brother.

"Oh, I know! Tomorrow, let's play - "

"Leave me alone, Dante." Vergil cut him off mid - sentence, walking away from him, without another word, back to their house.

The image swiftly changed and all of a sudden, he could see Vergil sitting on a bench in their garden, reading that same book.

Carrying around the pair of wooden swords, Dante walked up to his brother and said, "Hey, Vergil! I just thought that we - "

His brother looked up from his book, and without a hint of reluctance, he stood up and faced him. Placing the book carefully on the bench, Vergil said, "Well?"

"Uhh, here!" Dante answered, throwing a wooden weapon to his brother, who flawlessly caught it and hastily attacked him without warning.

"Whoa, easy there!" Dante quipped as he countered the attacks. The wooden swords clashed and clashed, until Dante's broke into two. Then, Vergil launched one fast kick, and a few seconds later, the younger brother found himself lying on the ground, beaten and with no other way to fight back.

"Hehe! That was an awesome fight, Ver - !"

But, Dante wasn't able to finish his sentence when his brother turned away, grabbed his book, and went back to the house.

The next vision quite took his breath away. And not in a good way. He was standing in the doorway that led to the living room, in the middle of the night, watching his mother, his brother, and another person talking.

And not just any other person.

It was their father. In the flesh.

Dante was startled, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets when he suddenly heard his mother pleading. Almost crying even.

"He's just a boy! You can't do this to him,... "

"I'm afraid there's no time left." The father answered, his heavy voice making Dante tremble in fear. "The boy has no other choice but to do it, or else,... "

"Or else, what?!"

Dante couldn't take it anymore. He pushed the heavy wooden doors open, startling the three people inside.

"What are you talking about? Mom?"

The father gave his wife one last pleading look as he took out his Devil Sword. "There's no time! Take the boy!"

The mother winced and closed her eyes, whimpering with those tears she refused to show her children. Then, she kneeled before Vergil and hugged him so tight, whispering words that Dante couldn't hear. She stood up, then ran towards Dante, lifting him off the ground and running away from her husband and child.

Dante was helpless. He was powerless. He couldn't do anything when those Demons suddenly broke through the room where his father and brother were. He could do nothing but call Vergil's name as he saw him looking forlornly at him.

He couldn't do anything but watch when his older brother drew that familiar weapon that was given to him by their father. The Yamato.

Dante closed his eyes and covered his ears with his little palms, trying to shut the screams of the enemies and the sound of tearing flesh. He couldn't believe it. He was separated with his brother, who couldn't do anything but follow their father's will.

To fight Demons alongside him.

And Dante, on the other hand, couldn't do anything but allow his mother to take him away to safety. His mother, whose heart probably ached after being separated with her husband and one of her beloved children. He was weak. Powerless. He couldn't even fight alongside his father and brother. And now, he has no other choice but to escape with her.

He has no other choice but to watch Vergil fight from a safe distance.

"Dante, are you alright?"

His eyes snapped open, and he saw himself sitting in a class room. He looked up and saw the concerned face of his classmate.

He rubbed his eyes and nodded at her. "Yeah, I'm fine,... "

"Don't mess with him, Mary!" Came the voice of one of his classmates, who looked at him with scorn and pity. "He probably stayed awake again to take care of his mommy!"

"What did you say?!" With teeth gritting in anger, he walked towards the bully and looked down at him.

"I said," The bully spoke and stood. " ... you stayed awake to take care of your sick mommy!"

"Take that back!" Dante grabbed the collar of his smug classmate but, it didn't seem to frighten him, even a bit. "TAKE THAT BACK!"

"Aww, and what will you do? Tell your daddy? Tell your brother?"

"What did you say - ?!"

"I SAID, YOU'RE WEAK!" The bully threw a punch at Dante's face, the sheer force of it throwing him to the floor. "YOU CAN'T DO ANYTHING! YOU'RE PATHETIC!"

His other classmates took this as a cue and a few moments later, they all joined together in bullying him, kicking him and telling him words that tore his heart and reminded him of what happened that night.

Weak. Pathetic. Good for nothing.

Dante closed his eyes once more and tried to endure the kicks, the insults,...

He tried to endure the feelings of longing. A deep longing to be with his father, and brother, once again.

"I'm sorry, Dante."

He opened his eyes and saw the same girl from his class, Mary, now grown into a gorgeous lady, looking at him like he,...

Dante tore his eyes from her for a while and saw, in utter disbelief, his mother's name,...

... etched in a gravestone next to his feet.

He turned back as he felt a gentle hand on his shoulder and saw Mary's tears falling from her eyes. He took it and simply nodded, trying to reassure her that he would be fine.

"I pronounce you man and wife."

The sad and depressing image before him blurred like a mixture of paint on canvass being erased with turpentine, and all of a sudden, he saw visions after visions of him marrying the same girl, building a family with her, raising children of their own,...

He saw himself living the normal and quiet life he desired so much. Away from harm, away from fights.

Away from those Demons.

The images went on and on in his head, until it came to a point where he was standing in his own house. It was empty, and yet something in its austere atmosphere made his skin crawl.

Then, he heard strange noises coming from the room to his left.

The children's room.

With escalating heartbeat, he ran towards it, opened the door, and nearly collapsed at the gloomy sight that greeted him.

Laying on the floor and swimming in her own blood was his wife, Mary, her arms around their two children, who, unfortunately, were no longer breathing.

And standing before them was a Demon so monstrous and horrifying, it reminded him of that day when his mother took him away from their old house.

They were murdered by this fiend.

Collapsing on the floor next to his family, Dante's mind tried to conjure happy images. Anything that could make him forget about his weakness and his miserable life. Again and again, he envisioned himself living lives better than this. But, all of those visions somehow led to this very moment, of him kneeling down next to his murdered family, of the Demon's claws rapidly going to his head,...

... of him suddenly remembering the face of his older brother as he faced those enemies with his father,...

But, those claws never reached his head. As a matter of fact, he saw those same claws on the floor next to his wife and children, as if something sliced them. He looked up and saw a tall, white haired warrior, wielding a familiar - looking weapon, standing between him and the Demon. The warrior raised his weapon, and in an instant, the enemy was on the floor, dead and slashed into multiple pieces.

The warrior sheathed his own weapon and looked down at him with such pity in those cold eyes of his.

He knew those eyes. He knew that look,...

"Vergil,... " Dante whispered as he tried to reach for his long lost older brother. His whole body trembled as his fingers grazed the fabric of his brother's coat, as if the mere touch of it awed and humbled him.

However, his brother ignored him and walked past him.

"Vergil!" Dante called helplessly. "Wait for me! Vergil!"

"I don't know you." The warrior answered.

"What?" The younger brother mumbled in confusion. "Vergil, what are you talking about? I'm your brother! I'm - "

"You're a disgrace. An embarrassment to Sparda's name." Vergil answered, his voice as cold as those eyes of his. "You shouldn't have been born." And with one last look at his weak sibling, he said, "The Dante I know would never succumb to his own weaknesses,... "

And with those painful words, Vergil left his brother. Dante stood and tried to catch up to him but, every time he was about to touch him, his brother seemed to slip further and further away from him, until he could no longer reach him.

Until the very thing left by him was his own shadow,...

... the shadow,...

... that plunged him into the deep and dark abyss of the Underworld,...

Dante's eyes finally snapped open, startled by the shrill ring of his old telephone. He looked at his surroundings and realized that he was back to his old and messy shop he called, Devil May Cry.

Then, as sudden as when his eyes snapped open from that very vivid nightmare of his, his brother's head popped up from behind the door of the room to his right, looking very stressed and disturbed.

"Are you going to pick that thing up, or not?" His irritated older brother asked.

"Well, I,... " Dante stuttered, still unable to believe that Vergil was now living with him under the same roof since their return from the Underworld.

He still couldn't believe it but, after long years of them fighting and trying to kill each other, of their weapons clashing and wounding their bodies,...

...of their pride always getting the better of them and blinding them, preventing them from seeing what really matters to them as brothers,...

... he now felt he's confident to say that he's glad to have his brother, Vergil, back.

And he very much preferred it than any other way.

An irritated growl escaped Vergil's throat as he grumpily made his way towards Dante's desk, blue pajamas, pair of blue bunny slippers and all, and answered the call, himself.

"Devil May Cry." The Devil Hunter in pajamas growled, and a few moments later, he threw the handset to Dante, who caught it and raised an eyebrow. Walking away, slouched and tired, Vergil said, "Your girlfriend."

"Wha - ? I don't have a girlfriend!" Dante mumbled in confusion. He raised the handset to his ear and spoke, "Yes?"

"Dante! Do you have any idea how many times I've tried to call? Like, a gazillion!" Came Patty's shrill voice.

"What do you want now?! It's the middle of the night!" Dante barked at the handset, getting annoyed with how Vergil chuckled at his sorry, stressed middle - aged man state.

"Don't forget! You lost to me at Poker! You have to take me out shopping tomorrow! Oh, my God! I'm so thrilled!"

"Go to sleep!"

"Hey! I still haven't told you what to wear for - "

And even before Patty could finish her sentence, Dante hung up the phone. A few seconds later, it rang again, and Dante had no other choice but to pull the cord to forcefully turn it off. Then, Dante heard Vergil's low laughter. He looked up at his brother and saw him watching the entire scene with such amusement in his eyes.

"What do you want?" The annoyed Devil Hunter questioned.

"You're a disgrace. An embarrassment to Sparda's name." Vergil simply answered with a sadistic grin and entered his room, closing it so he wouldn't hear his younger brother's reply.

Dante couldn't do anything but helplessly shake his head. "Yeah, maybe." He leaned on his chair and put his feet back up on top of the table. And before opening his magazine, he whispered, "Glad to have you back, Verge."

Chapter Text

It all started when his father passed away.

Of course, being a child of only six, Nero didn't know what it meant when his mother gently told him that his father has gone to a bigger, much better place. After all, to the child, it only looked like his father was sleeping, and that he'll wake up in a few minutes. He didn't know why all the people were wearing black that day, and he never asked his mother why she was crying.

What he did ask was why they were taking his father away, locking him in a box, and putting him deep, deep, down into a hole he can't reach.

Where are you taking him? Stop it! Open the box! He can't breathe!

He could still remember those words he screamed at the people who took his pa away. He could still remember how he kicked the man who closed the lid of the casket, and he could still clearly remember how his mother took him and held him as tightly as she could as she cried.

A few days has passed and he began to notice how his classmates regarded and looked at him. They also treated him as if he was a malnourished and abandoned puppy who needed care and attention. He also noticed how his mother became more and more distant. She rarely smiled, rarely talked. Nero noticed she no longer sings, and he knew perfectly well that it was her most favorite thing to do. She was an opera singer, after all. And his father, a violinist in the orchestra who played for her concerts.

Nonetheless, Nero waited for the day when his father would return. He couldn't wait to see him play the violin once more.

But, that was twenty years ago. And the child within Nero's heart has vanished into nothingness, along with all those happy memories he spent with his beloved father.

That night when he was just coming home from one of his gigs in that old, Fortuna club where indie bands perform for exposure rather than money, Nero heard a,... rather strange tune. Small, almost drowning in all the other noises of the city, but a familiar sound, nevertheless. And it actually piqued Nero's interest. He followed the source of the sound, its familiar feeling getting stronger and stronger as it got louder by the second. And the moment he reached the origin of that sound, he saw a lone, dark haired man playing the violin in the middle of the plaza.

A skinny dark - haired man with black, smoke – like swirling tattoos all over his upper body whose only company was his pet bird perched next to an open suitcase, containing a few coins and two dollars.

Nero snickered. The way that man played his old violin,... he would never attract a large crowd looking like that! His worn - out leather goth outfit would never turn heads, at least with the younger generation, and his music was just out of style! Paganini? That's so old school! No wonder only old people cared enough to drop money into his suitcase while the majority of the people just passed him by without even a simple glance.

But, that sound,...

For a moment there, Nero thought something tugged at his heartstrings, something fleeting and evasive like a small butterfly, which was almost impossible because nothing in the world could ever make Nero soft. Not with everything he's been through since he was a child. Nothing could make Nero cry, not now and never.

But, there, just now,...

The man's accurate and yet fluid bowing technique, his melancholic expression, his stance,...

His,... music,...

All of a sudden, a face materialized in Nero's mind. A face that never haunted him, not even once. It was only for a few seconds but, it made the youth's knees wobbly. He suddenly felt weak, like his energy was sapped by an unknown creature, and he felt his sweat run cold.

No, it couldn't be. Impossible,...

Pushing his inconvenient thoughts to the back of his mind, Nero turned away and went straight back home.

The next night, the man was still there, still playing his old violin but, with a different tune. Elgar, this time.

And the moment he heard the soft melody of Elgar's music, Nero saw that face again. The face he didn't know he would see again.

Who,... is this man?

"Hey," Nero said as he walked closer towards the mysterious violinist. " ... your talent is wasted here. Go to Europe. You'd earn more there performing in concerts than here." He nodded towards the open suitcase, now only containing a few cents, which was not enough to even buy himself a proper dinner. "Or, if you want, you can join the band. You know how to use an effects rack, right?"

The man, despite stopping mid performance just to listen to Nero, didn't say any word. His green eyes glistening, his lips slightly parted, the man only smiled a bit, as if in understanding, simply nodded, and continued where he left off with his music.

Nero shook his head. "You're weird." He spoke, turned away, and chuckled as he walked away. "Suit yourself."

For the next few nights, Nero made sure to visit that same spot in the plaza to see the same mysterious man with his violin. He started to observe the man for longer periods of time, and during those moments, he found out that the man actually never left that place.

Just behind him next to the fountain were pieces of filthy cardboard boxes joined together and flattened as a makeshift bed. There was a metal cane lying in it, and a worn out black stuffed cat that was probably not black before. The man was, indeed, utterly broke and homeless, and yet, there was something in the way he moved, the way he smiled when he played the violin, and the way he finished those rather difficult pieces with such flourish, and, well, a style of his own. It's as if the man was content with his very humble way of living, even more content than Nero ever was with his own, who actually lived a wealthy life with his mother and step dad.

He realized this the next evening when he went back to that same spot and saw the man playing his instrument once more.

He,... actually looked like he wanted nothing else but to share his music with everyone. And he sure was dedicated to his talent despite those people ignoring him day by day.

It reminded Nero of him,...

You can't enjoy music if you only play for yourself, that man used to say. And the moment Nero allowed this tiny, fleeting emotional weakness, those memories of him went back to his head, one after the other, flooding his entire mind until he could see nothing but him.

Of him teaching Nero how to read basic musical notes. Of him teaching him the basics of the violin. Of him telling him amazing stories of his European travels.

Of him performing his most favorite piece in front of him and his mother,...

Of him collapsing one day and telling Nero it was nothing. Of him having difficulty getting up from his bed the next day. Of him calling him to his room that one night and telling him that he would always be his Brilliant Fantasy, and that he would live on in everyone's music,...

Of him leaving Nero alone in the world, with false hopes that he would still return...

Just then, Nero snapped from his reverie back to reality and saw the mysterious man sitting dejectedly on his makeshift bed of old cardboard boxes. He could literally feel his tears threatening to come out of his eyes at the pitiable sight and those memories combined but, he refused to let them fall. Not yet.

Instead, he went to the nearest bakery, bought a cake and a loaf of French bread, and went back to the mysterious man's spot. He knelt down, took the food from his bag, and handed it to the violinist, who looked at him with such awe, confusion, and wonder.

Nero smiled sheepishly. "Ahh, thought you might be hungry. First time I've seen you stop in the middle of a performance and slump like that."

At first, the man hesitated but, Nero's kindness and insistence on feeding him, combined with the sweet and delicious aroma of fresh bread straight out of the oven of a bake shop, has proven to be too irresistible. The man took, almost snatched, the bread from Nero's hands and started devouring it like he hasn't eaten for three days. And as he ate, Nero noticed the tears in the man's gentle green eyes.

Nero chuckled and took a water bottle from his duffel bag. He offered it to the man, who was actually on the verge of choking. He carefully placed the box of cake next to the metal cane and the filthy stuffed cat, and asked, "What's your name?"

The man voraciously gulped down the water, wiped his lips with his tattooed arm, and gestured towards his suitcase. It actually has a huge letter, "V", embossed on it, he just didn't notice it before because he only looked at its contents.

"So, you're V, huh?" Nero asked and offered his hand, which the man took a bit awkwardly. "I'm Nero. I live just two blocks away from here." The man nodded and took his hand back a bit hastily. "You, uhh, how should I say this,... "

Nero wanted to say the words but, he suddenly felt weird and awkward. He must've looked like a complete weirdo in the eyes of the passersby to suddenly start a conversation with a complete stranger but, he just couldn't contain himself.

Yes, he felt really uncomfortable, but Nero also felt the urge to just say whatever's in his mind. Like he has to unload something that’s been pushing him down for a very, very long time.

"Don't get this the wrong way but," Nero began. " ... you, ahh, reminded me of my,... father,... a lot."

There! He said the words.

And V? He only seemed interested in what Nero has to say.

"I don't know and I can't express the feeling but, the way you played the violin, it was unlike anything I've seen." Nero added, ignoring V's pet bird who started pecking away at the box of cake. "It, you, made me remember him. He left. I mean, he passed away a long time ago. And I never even got the chance to properly say goodbye." Nero whispered as he scratched the back of his head, feeling the unshed tears threatening to spill. "But, I was a kid back then, and I never even realized he's gone for good until the next few years. So, I gave up the violin, flunked my classes, assembled my own band, made my mom furious, you know the stuff. And the rest is history, I guess." Nero sighed and smiled at V as the violinist took another bite off his bread. "And I guess I was such a bitch to not admit my feelings but, I do miss him. A lot, actually. But, you made me see him. Again."

For a moment, V stared at Nero with such confusion, until the youth lightly bumped his fist against his bony arm. "So, uhh, thanks. I guess."

And with those words, Nero stood, gave a nasty glance at the bird who was happily pecking at the strawberry cake he bought for its master, and turned away. Chuckling, he confessed, "Old man even called me his Brilliant Fantasy. Don't know what the hell that means but I sure wanna hear him play the violin again." Nero turned back to V and waved. "So, I guess I'll be seeing you, then, V!"

However, before Nero could walk away, he saw this man called V standing up, holding the violin, and looking at him with such an unreadable facial expression.

And with utter determination, he moved his bow against the strings of the violin and started playing,...

... his father's most favorite piece.

That piece,...

Of course!

"You, Nero, are my Brilliant Fantasy. Remember that always, and I shall live on in people's music."

I shall live on in people's music

Nero laughed and swore under his breath, wiping away at the fresh bout of tears that finally broke through him the moment V played Hubay's masterpiece. And in that moment of musical majesty, he saw himself back again at their old living room.

And right before him stood his father instead of V, his facial features ever so gentle, his music ever so enlightening to hear.

This piece, both romantic, and passionate, and soft, and fiery at the same time, described his father so well. He was a very passionate musician, his love for the violin giving him enough strength to make his music transcend to everyone's hearts. And yet, in that strength of sheer talent, he was soft and gentle. He guided Nero with love and patience, and taught him everything he knew.

And his father called him his Brilliant Fantasy.

I shall live on in people's music.

Were the words Nero heard until the last notes of the piece.

Until he saw his father waving at him from a distance.

V,... made the impossible happen.

He saw his father again. And now,...

... he was able to properly say goodbye.

Finally.

He couldn't find V the next day, and the day after that, and the next. In fact, it's as if the man, his violin, his suitcase with the V in it, his greedy pet bird, his metal cane, his black stuffed cat, and his cardboard boxes all vanished without a trace. Maybe he started travelling on his own. Maybe he's in Europe now and doing his own concerts like what Nero suggested. Or in an emo or goth band who rocks the effects rack, or even better, the electric violin. Who knows?

All he knew was that he owed V a lot, and that he hoped to see him play the violin once more.

Chapter Text

Nero saw her right there, sitting alone on a wooden bench that one evening.

She looked so sad, so lonely. She was literally the most depressed looking person he's ever seen.

And he wanted to talk to her.

He sat next to her without a word, placed his left leg over his right knee, and nodded at her.

"Hey." Nero simply greeted her. The girl didn't even turn around in acknowledgement. He scratched the back of his head, feeling a little awkward with the situation. "Ahh, can I,... help you with anything?"

"Why should you care?" She simply answered, her very negative answer sending chills down Nero's spine.

"Because, I,... do?"

"No one did."

"But, I'm here now."

The girl turned to look at Nero. Her eyes and facial expression still painted with utter doubt, she opened her mouth and finally began talking.

"Prove it." She said. "Prove to me that you care."

Once again, Nero scratched the back of his head. With a little sheepish smile, the Devil Hunter answered, "They say don't talk to strangers but here I ‘am. Just for you."

"You're flattering me."

"I'm not!" Nero fired back. "Look, if I don't, I wouldn't even be here in the first place. But, I chose to because I need to talk to you."

The girl looked at Nero's eyes as if she's searching through his soul and testing whether he's saying the truth or not. And after what seemed like an eternity, she finally nodded.

"Very well." She said, looking back to that far distance she's been staring at before Nero arrived. "You do seem honorable."

This little remark of hers made the youth smile a bit. "So, wanna tell me what you're doing here outside?"

"I ran away."

"Why?"

"Because they told me so."

"Who?"

The girl looked at Nero once more. "Them."

Nero nodded, wanting to ask who she was talking about but chose not to. Better to be safe than sorry later on.

"Why did they tell you to leave?" Nero asked.

"They said I'm worthless."

Aha! "Wait, wait, wait a second here. Why would anyone tell you you're worthless?"

"No matter how much I try to be good at what I do, they still end up ignoring me. They always tell me that I need to be better. That or be nothing at all. And, you know what? I guess they’re right. No one bothered to even look at my work. No one appreciates my work because people prefer someone who’s better. And I’m just a simple person who wanted nothing else but to share my talent. But, in the end, I got nothing in return. I only got hurt. I was there for those people when they needed me, and when I needed them, they weren’t there for me. They grew, and they left me hanging off a cliff. They forgot I even existed. My work means nothing to them.” The girl's voice was beginning to crack when her tears began to glisten in those melancholic eyes of hers. "I worked so hard, I swear. But, I guess my efforts were all for nothing."

A small groan escaped Nero's throat. "What were you working on, anyway?"

It took the girl a few more minutes, clearly considering whether to tell Nero or not. And after a moments, she sighed, took out a piece of crumpled paper from her pocket and gave it to Nero.

And when the youth took the paper from her hand, he couldn't help but shudder.

The paper was wet.

Nero carefully unfurled the piece of paper so it wouldn't tear, and saw the neatest handwriting in it, telling what was probably a part of a story that this girl was trying to write.

Before all this occurred.

The ink was a bit smudged due to the water, not too much so he could still somehow read it, fortunately.

And when Nero finished reading the story, he looked up, eyes wide with wonder, and turned back to the girl.

"What happens next?" The question was burning Nero from the inside.

"What? I wasn't able to finish that tale - !"

"I mean, look!" Nero interrupted as he showed her the paper. "V is gonna love this! Kyrie, too! She loves romance. If you want, I can show this to them and I'm sure they're gonna want to read the rest of your story."

The girl gave a little dejected smile. "That story is a piece of trash. It might bore your friends to death."

Nero sighed. He leaned, crossed his arms, and looked up at the clear night sky. "You know, my uncle called me dead weight once." The girl didn't say anything, so he went on with his story. "And I'm not even kidding when I tell you I believed it. I believed I was useless, and powerless, and that I can't save my loved ones. It frustrated me so much, and I was always angry with myself for being so weak. You know what I'm saying?"

Nero narrowed his eyes a bit and looked at the girl through his peripheral vision. Great, she looks like she's listening intently.

"But, you know, I realized that I was looking for strength in the wrong places. After all this time, I thought some kind of weapon or power would give me the strength to keep my loved ones safe. But, I was wrong." Nero leaned a bit closer towards the girl, and looking straight into her eyes, he said, "That power was within me, all along. I just didn’t realize I have it for so long.”

The girl's eyes widened for a fraction of a second, as if Nero's words were starting to sink in. And he took this as an opportunity to press on.

"You know, you're really good at this. So I can't believe why anyone would tell you you're worthless, or that your work is nothing."

"But, they did."

"And we're both here, yeah." Nero added and chuckled as he shook his head in disbelief. "Well, that really sucks. They sure weren't a good company to keep." He smiled and tried to bump his fist against the girl's right arm.

Damn, that's cold!

"You know, I think you and V would get along. He loves reading. A lot. And Kyrie? She's a sucker for love stories! I'm sure she'd love to have you in the house." Nero told her. "And you know what they would tell you? They'd tell you that your efforts weren't all for nothing. They'd cheer you on and support you. They'd gladly read everything you write. They would always be there for you, no matter what. They would help you unleash your Devil Trigger, true story!"

The girl cracked a smile and shook her head. "I don't know what Devil Trigger means but that sure sounds lovely."

"And badass! Oh, you have not seen my cool, kickass wings! And claws! And how I kick those Demon asses to kingdom come! But, ehh, you're not gonna turn into a Demon, are you?"

As an answer, the girl giggled. And it made Nero breathe a sigh of relief.

"No, don't worry." She answered.

"That's a relief." Nero said. "You're better off sharing those wonderful ideas of yours through your tales than slashing Demons."

The girl looked away and smiled. "I have never heard those words before. It made me feel so,... warm." She looked up at Nero and leaned a bit closer towards him. "Would they really read my stories? Do you think they'd love them?"

Nero nodded and winked at her. "Absolutely."

The girl turned away once more, this time with a sheepish smile. "But, it's too late now, isn't it?"

"Nah." Nero answered.

"Then, could you please show them my work? And tell them how it ended?" The girl asked. "Tell them that the hunter was able to bring the girl back from the Underworld. That her lover still refused to change his ways despite everything that happened. That he never learned his lesson."

"Hmm. Then, what happened after that?"

"The girl decided to leave him once and for all, and decided to live for her own sake from then on. She thanked the hunter for rescuing her, and for opening her eyes to the blindness of her former lover who only thinks of himself. After that, she worked hard, followed her dreams, and became an accomplished musician. She was able to spread her wings. And she met a man who truly treasures her. She was so happy."

“Pulled her Devil Trigger, eh?”

“Haha, yeah. Kind of.”

"What happened to her ex?"

"He spent the rest of his life drowning in grief and regret. He took back everything he said, but he was too late. Now, he couldn't do anything but watch the woman he loved from a distance, living the happiest life with her family."

"And the hunter?"

"He still drowned in his own debts, but he went on helping others who truly needed him. He was a beacon of hope to those who were lost. Just like the girl in the story.”

"Ha. That sounds like Dante, alright."

"I'm sorry?"

"Nothing!" Nero burst out with a nervous laugh. "It was nothing. Don't worry about it, sweetie."

The girl nodded and smiled, a visible tear falling down her pale and yet delicate face. "What's your name?"

"Oh. You can call me Nero."

"Nero, I see." The girl answered. And with a gracious bow and the most peaceful smile he has ever seen, she said, "Thank you so much, Nero."

"No worries." Nero answered with a charming wink. "You can rest easy now."

The girl wiped her tears and nodded as she clutched her chest.

And a few moments later, she slowly vanished into thin air. Probably she's in a better place now.

"Rest easy." Nero quietly uttered. He looked at his surroundings, still unable to believe he was able to help a wandering spirit to rest.

He was able to help her heal her own wounds, and he somehow made her happy.

After all that hurt and misery, she's finally free and at peace.

He would make sure to tell V and Kyrie everything. He would make sure her story would be known.

He would make sure her legacy would live on through her wonderful story of love, grief, and acceptance. That he swore with his own name.

Nero shuddered, his spine tingling and his hairs standing on end. "Man, that was creepy!" He trembled, but with a fond smile for that truly unique experience.

Chapter Text

***

I can't see anything. My body hurts. I feel like I'm being torn to pieces.

Where is my master? I could no longer hear his voice.

Only yesterday, he told us not to worry. He said everything will turn out fine.

He let me lie next to his feet. I allowed him to scratch me behind my ears.

I let him lie on my body, and my fur provided him with warmth.

I helped him cook food and fight Demons. I protected him and I know he's happy and pleased with what I've done.

I've been a good familiar but, I know I'll disappear soon.

How could I protect him now? How could I get close to him now to warm him with my fur? Master always gets cold. How could he eat now without my help? I don't want him to eat raw meat.

Is anyone there? Anyone who could protect my master? Who could lend him their fur for his warmth? Who could help him cook his meals? Please, help,...

Master's voice.

I want to hear master's voice again.

I,... wanna hear,...

***

For a moment, I saw the light.

It was dark where I came from. But, I know someone freed me from the heavy chains that bound me and helped me see the light.

But, everything went so fast like lightning.

I'm sure I felt him once, or twice. I could clearly remember how I felt his pride through my thoughts, as if his heart spoke directly towards me.

But, that voice in my thoughts. It vanished. Now, I could hear someone else. Someone stronger.

Is it him? I don't know. I want to go to him but, I can't.

I could no longer see the light,...

***

They say I'm too noisy. Hehe, yeah. They can eat Demon shit for all I care!

I don't care what people tell me, that I'm annoying, or too loud, or rude. Except when you call me chicken! I'm gonna fry your brains out if you ever tell me that, you maggot! So, don't you ever mess with me!

Now, you see what I mean? I'm annoying and rude, right?

Well, you're not alone in that. V thinks so, too, you know? Hehe, yeah, I can read Shakespeare's mind, no shit, Shirley! If anyone's getting tired of me, it's V!

But, honestly? I don't blame the skinny stick. Even I hate myself sometimes. I'm a nightmare, Vergil's fucking nightmare! I'm supposed to be fearsome, and evil, and unpleasant! The stuff of your, ahh, well,... nightmares! Yeah, nightmares,...

I don't know about you but there was something in V that I couldn't explain. Like, these past few days he looks at me like I'm a pet bird.

A pet bird, yeah. How mighty and dashing that pet bird would be.

But, ehh! What I mean is: day after day, V is starting to look at me like I'm not a nightmare! Or a Demon!

Like I'm actually his friend! A part of his freakish family of peculiar circus animals!

When we fight and I lose, I could hear V's thoughts as sharp as a knife and as clear as daylight.

Shit!

Griffon, no!

You'll pay for what you've done to my friend.

Yeah, that! He said I'm his friend, and I bet you my ass feathers he forgot I could hear his thoughts!

Shakespeare would fight on and summon the big guy, and I could literally hear his sigh of relief when I rise from my stalemate state.

Heh, I think he also forgot I'm bound to him, and that I would not vanish as long as he lives. As long as his human flesh is intact.

And honestly? I find it,... quite sweet of him.

At first, he only considers me as a tool to bring his goals to fruition. Well, who could blame the guy? I'd do the same and use poor me's powers to achieve my diabolic goals! Hahaha!

Ahh, yeah, you get my point.

Am I happy? Oh, I bet you I' am! Who wouldn't want to be a part of a family? Who wouldn't want to be considered as a best pal by someone you look up to? Who wouldn't be sort of happy if they find out that the people they care about gets sad when they go?

I do. I do care. Just like how V cared for me when he's still around.

I did my part. I fought for him. I protected him at all costs. Hell, I warned him about that Demon meat but he never listened! So, he deserved that awful diarrhea right after! Ha!

Most of all, I took care of him like what a real bird would do for her brood.

I spread my wings, offered them to him, and helped him soar high and mighty.

And now, he finally achieved his goal.

He gained true power.

And I'm only glad to say I've been considered as a vital part of that painful, yet funny journey.

As for me? This is my last flight.

Wakey, wakey, little Vergie,...

***

Chapter Text

Dearest V,

First off, hehe, look at me! Finally writing letters instead of texting. Aren't you proud of me? After all, you're the one who made me appreciate written letters more than "virtual messaging", like what you've said when you saw me chatting. I think I know why you like it more than chatting, though. Not gonna lie.

Anyways! How have you been doing these past few days? You haven't visited for almost a month and I miss you already. We haven't even finished that Blake story we started reading. I won't finish reading it, I swear. I'd wait for you to come back so we could finish it together.

How are your familiars? I hope Griffon is not bothering you too much. If he does, tell him I would turn him into fried chicken the next time I see him. See if he doesn't stop acting all rude and mighty! Haha, but that's a joke. I miss Griffon, too. Sometimes, I look at the window when I hear flapping of wings and get disappointed if it wasn't Griffon. I like him so much but, don't tell him. And Shadow is just the sweetest. I would love to see Nightmare again but I know there's a lot of risk if you just summon him without a reason to fight. So, I won't ask you to snap your fingers to call him for me.

But, enough about the familiars. How are you? Please write to me soon. I'm dying to know if you're safe. I want to know if you're eating well. I hope you're getting enough sleep and taking care of yourself. I hope you're not too harsh with your body when you fight against Demons. I don't like to see you getting hurt. That time when you saved me, I saw how you got yourself injured. I don't ever want to see you like that again.

Come back soon, V. And when you do, we'll have a big feast! I'll cook lots of food, and prepare the house. I've remembered all your favorites when you're still staying with me. And you said you want to actually taste fried chicken, right? Well, I won't cook Griffon, that's for sure. But, I found a good recipe online that I'm sure you're gonna love! Oh! And also, I've been going to some bookstores and bought you a lot of classics that I'm sure you'll love! Montgomery, Bronte, Alcott, Austen, Orczy, Stoker. I even started to read that one called, "Scarlet Pimpernel", and I think you'll find the main hero as very admirable.

Come home, V. I swear I would not get mad if you go through my window at night again. We have a lot of catching up to do. And I have so, so much to tell you. Important things. Also something that I'm sure will interest you.

I'll see you soon, V.

As always, your "Little Wanderer",

(Y/N)

***

There was a post script message written at the bottom of the letter but, it was erased at the last moment. The letter successfully reached Devil May Cry but, V was not able to read it.

The letter was dated June 16.

***

Chapter Text

There. He saw her sitting on her own again on that old bench next to that tree.

And this time, she's reading something. Seemed like an old book.

She never noticed or suspected anything. Or maybe he was just too careful not to be noticed. But, whatever the case was, V would always see her sitting there, alone, and minding her own business. And she would never notice anything else while she's preoccupied in that tiny, private bubble of hers.

Normally, V would be minding his own business, as well. Either going to his next class alone while streaming Paganini or Debussy on his phone for his ears only, or listening to his best friends, Nero and Nico, talk about their favorite games and movies on their way back to their dorms. V has always been preoccupied with something else to notice anything.

Until this freshman, that is.

It began just a little over a week ago. And it was during one of those rare occasions where some seniors would get the opportunity to observe the junior literary classes. Or sometimes, take over as "assistant professors" for these underclassmen for a while.

During that time, the poor professor had to go to the clinic due to a very unsavory reason he opted not to disclose, and kindly asked V to take over for the meantime. He was teaching the comedic works of William Shakespeare.

While most of the students were clearly bored out of their own wits ( some were extremely interested for reasons V chose not to overthink about ), he noticed one person who looked genuinely interested in the topic.

That girl from the last row.

V noticed how she listened to every explanation and every word he said. Every so often, he would see her nod as she took some notes. And one time even, she tried to raise a hand to ask him something but, she somehow withdrew at the last moment. V honestly wondered why, because he would've gladly answered any questions she would ask.

The next day, V noticed her sitting on that bench with her headphones on while doodling something on her tablet. He tried to get her attention but, he chose not to since he didn't want to bother her, or anything. And the day after that, on that very same spot he saw her writing something on a journal, still with her headphones on. Either way, ever since that impromptu Shakespeare lecture, V found himself somehow a bit drawn to her and her sunny, and yet curious vibes. He would be lying if he told himself that was not the case.

It all began just a little over a week ago, and she didn't even notice him looking at her, not even once.

However this time, V noticed there was something off about her. Like something changed in that light - hearted disposition of hers that always drew him in. He tried to pinpoint what exactly, and after a short while, he noticed her intense facial expression as she poured all of her focus on that old book she most probably borrowed from the library. There was something a bit tense in the way she flipped those pages, the little trembling of those fingers as they moved, and the way she curled her lips as they slightly opened and closed when she read.

And most importantly, it looked like she needed some help. An urgent one.

Excusing himself from his two best friends, he composed himself and went towards her. Brushing an almost invisible crumb off his crisp white shirt, he cleared his throat and thanked the Gods above that he somehow remembered her name.

"Miss (L/N)?" He awkwardly began. Then, seeing that she didn't hear him, he spoke once more. "Miss (L/N)?"

Oh, the way her eyes widened when she finally noticed! The way that mouth of hers dropped and the way she almost lost her composure the moment their eyes met.

It's as if the girl didn't really expect that he would casually approach her like this.

And honestly? It kind of made V's heart jump. But only a little bit. He really wanted to help her, so he tried his very best not to get swept off by his own emotions and focused on the problem ahead.

"Mr. Sparda!" She stuttered, scrambling on her feet. "I d - didn't expect you to - "

"Please, no need to worry." V reassured her as calmly as he could. The girl remembered his name as well, and his traitorous heart did more than just jump this time around.

Relax, V. Relax. He thought. You're here to help an underclassman.

"You seem to be,... ahh,... having a little difficulty on that,... book of yours." V went on, in a voice he hoped was calm enough. "Would you indulge this fool and let him help you with whatever you need?"

There. He said it. Did he sound too strange? Was he too forward? Did he sound creepy? She did look like a meteor has just crash landed in front of her.

But, whatever the case was, there's no turning back now.

"Umm," She began as she handed V the old book.

And by Jove! V almost flipped when he realized what it was! It was none other than Blake, himself! His favorite poet!

"I quite don't understand William Blake." The girl went on. "His words are simple and yet, when I try to explain them, or make sense of them, ahh,... I don't know! The words just avoid me." She collapsed on the bench and sighed as she massaged her temples. The works of Blake seemed to give her such headaches.

Sitting right next to her, he asked, "What do you find difficult about Blake's work?"

"You see, about this rose thing." She said, leaning slightly closer to him as she pointed at some words on the book on his hands.

Her hair smelled nice,...

No, V! Focus!

"I don't know if it's talking about an actual plant, or something that is actually sick,... "

"Love."

"I'm sorry?"

"Oh! I mean,... " And for a moment there, V felt his sweat run cold the moment he uttered that word.

And the girl? She seemed to tense when she heard the very word.

Like he somehow hit a deep chord within her.

"The Sick Rose is about love."

"Love?" She repeated. "You mean, a sick kind of love?"

"Well, yes." V said with a knowing smile on his face. "You know the saying love is blind? Most of the times, love prevents you from seeing the whole truth. Thus, the invisible worm."

"And the crimson joy?" There. Those glistening eyes of hers as she hang onto his every word,...

"The crimson joy means deep, dark love. The kind of love that destroys the purity and innocence of the rose."

"I,... see,... " The girl uttered, more to herself than to V.

Seeing that she's still not somehow convinced, he explained further. "You know when you love someone too much to the point of blindness, it destroys not only the person but yourself, as well. The true meaning of your feelings would be replaced with that of obsession, of selfishness. Of destruction and corruption. Of wanting this person only to yourself and no one else's. You keep this person enclosed deeply inside your own affections until the purity and innocence of their own feelings towards you die. And sometimes, this sickness grows too large, it affects other people as well. And that is the death of true love, as we know it."

The girl pondered for a while, thinking about everything V has just told her. Then, after a while, she shook her head as she grinned and chuckled to herself. And V found this quite amusing.

"Yeah, like," She said in a low voice, like a penitent confessing her sins before a priest. "You're loving someone too much, you fail to notice how destructive it has become to them and to yourself. The invisible worm. I get it now." She faced V once more, and with a bright smile, she said, "I guess I don't want to write an analysis on The Sick Rose, after all!"

This made V's eyes wide with both shock and surprise. "Oh, that's,... I see! Well, you - "

"But, thank you so much for your help, Mr. Sparda. It truly feels like you've taken a peek inside my deepest and darkest secrets."

"Pardon - ?"

"Can you help me choose a different Blake poem, instead? Something that feels lighter and brighter?" And just like that, after having a small glimpse of her own precious thoughts, V felt that she closed her doors on his face once more. Of course, there was something more about this girl, something that made him see a different color about her. Something,... intense for a change, that clashed with that sunny vibe she often showed to most people. And to him.

And it made her even more interesting to V.

This mysterious girl,...

... he has to know more about her.

"What about The Cradle Song?" V offered as he gestured towards her headphones that he saw peeking from her school bag. "We can listen to the actual song instead of me explaining it."

The girl smiled and she nodded, accepting the offer. "Sounds good to me."

It was safe to say that V and the girl has established some sort of solid connection between the two of them after listening to that song. Afterwards, she even recommended him one of her favorites, a song called Honesty by someone who wears pink and sweats a lot. At least in V's understanding of that particular band's name. Nevertheless, V enjoyed that one, and more other songs she recommended whenever they get the chance to see each other, whether to study, read books, or to just hang out.

As friends? Maybe yes. Maybe not. Who could say?

All V knew was that he was glad he approached her that day when she needed help with that Blake poem analysis. And those conflicting feelings she chose not to reveal at first.

Chapter Text

He knew this feeling all too well. After all, he did experience something like this a long, long time ago.

However, this time around, Vergil felt it was even more difficult than ever before.

It was one of those days when he just couldn't control his temper. The simplest things would easily annoy him, and the deadliest words would just spill out of his mouth uncontrollably, regardless of who was present.

Maybe it's just old age or frustration getting the better of him, or maybe it's his brother's incompetence in many things that pulls the two of them down as Devil Hunters but, whatever the case, he just couldn't explain why he explodes like that at times. Yes, that's the word. He just explodes.

Sadly, the last time he did that was when (Y/N) was around.

Actually, the girl didn't do anything wrong. She didn't step out of the line. However, the way his brother lingered to her, the way he touched her, the way he looked at her, it just,... sets him off. Normally, Vergil could withstand his brother's suspicious behavior towards (Y/N) but, this time, he felt,... different.

After all, he knew this feeling all too well. He experienced something like this a long, long time ago.

However, this time around, Vergil felt it was even more difficult than ever before.

Needless to say, the moment Vergil let out those poisonous words that threatened to burn his throat like acid, he felt as if someone just poured hot water right on top of his head. He felt so hot all over, he could feel his anger coursing through each and every part of his body beginning from his veins to the tips of his fingers and toes. He felt so close to exploding, to triggering, and yet, the moment he saw the tears dangerously coming out of her (E/C) - colored eyes, he instantly felt his heart dropping to the darkest pit of his stomach. The moment she ran away, scared of what he has become right before her and Dante, Vergil felt this deathly coldness seeping through those same veins that brought the heat of wrath all over his body. And when she ran away from him in fear like that, he felt a precious part of his being leaving him forever.

Precious,...

Was (Y/N) that precious to him? He didn't know.

All he knew was whenever she's with him, he feels very calm. When she's around, he feels this warm sensation glowing deep within his core. All those negative thoughts that constantly plague his head, of darkness, and evil, and danger, would instantly leave his body, to be filled with warmth, and something very soft and tender that he couldn't quite explain. In a very short time, (Y/N) has become a very bright beacon for Vergil. The beacon that calms his mind, and gives him a feeling of reassurance that everything would be fine despite the chaotic state of his being.

In all honesty, Vergil wanted to surprise her. He wanted to give her a little something for Christmas. After all, she has done so much for him during the past few months, even when he was still not the man he is now. After acquiring those memories from V, he realized how much she has cared for him. How she took care of him when he's wounded. How she fed him when he's starving and how she clothed him when he felt cold. How she stayed with him despite all difficulties and how she remained by his side during all those trials. And even when she first met the real Vergil, she did her best to understand the situation. Despite her confusion, she did her best to learn about his kin and the truth, and darkness, behind his family name.

And even when she found out the things he has done in the past, she chose to remain by his side. She chose to believe in him.

She chose to always be there for him.

However, Vergil knew he's becoming such a burden towards her.

More so, he's becoming more and more volatile towards her when Dante's around.

Dropping the Yamato on the ground next to his feet, he collapsed and went down on his knees, his chest hurting as the image of her crying popped into his head.

Just earlier after his outburst, Dante tried to reason with him. His brother tried to calm him. As a matter of fact, Dante received a few slashes from him before his senses finally resurfaced. Through his hyper sensitive eyes, he noticed his brother helpless on the ground, refusing to fight, and still trying to reason with him.

And through his hazy mind, he saw her anguished face once again. Begging him to stop. Begging him to listen to her.

Right then and there, Vergil morphed back to his human form, drew the Yamato, and made a portal to this isolated place where no one dared to follow him.

It was the place where he separated his human self from his demonic self all those months ago.

And as he knelt there, regretting all the actions he has done, he thought of nothing but (Y/N).

Of how much he wanted to see her smiling again. Of how much he wanted to spend the rest of the day with her. Of how much he wanted to feel her frail body against him. Of how much he wanted to feel protected and loved.

Protected and loved,... by her.

But he has messed up. His jealousy,... has driven her away,...

Yes, jealousy, that's the word.

Jealousy has driven Vergil Sparda mad.

How would he get her back? How could he explain everything to her? Would she even believe him? Would she even listen to him?

"Vergil?"

There. Just now, he heard her soft and tender voice. Oh, how he missed that sweet, sweet voice of hers.

"Vergil, are you alright?"

And even his mind was playing tricks on him. How could she know where he was? Unless,...

The man scrambled to his feet, turned around, and saw none other than her, (Y/N) herself, in the flesh.

But,... how?

She gave him a little smile as she made small steps towards him, probably still wary of him and how he would possibly react.

This made Vergil wince. Has he really fallen low enough to make her frightened of him like that?

"I don't understand." Vergil began as he watched her get closer and closer towards him. "You didn't have to follow me here,... "

Her nose bridge wrinkled ever so slightly at what he just said.

Oh, how adorable she looked doing that,...

"But, I'm here for you." She said as she looked up at him, her eyes ever so gentle and her voice ever so soft.

"I don't even deserve you." Vergil answered. "Do I,... even deserve you?"

(Y/N) sighed as she shook her head. Fishing something from her pocket, she said, "I thought I would wait until midnight to give you this but," From her pocket, she produced a small gift he reckoned she wrapped herself and gingerly handed it to him. Placing her hands behind her back, she nodded at the little present in his hands. And with that adorable little smile of hers, she went on, " ... I guess there's no better time than tonight, right?"

A series of words came out as mere mumbles from Vergil's mouth as he looked at the gift then at her, then back at the gift once more, and this made her chuckle.

"Go on! Open it." She invited.

With a deep breath, Vergil placed his fingers on the little bow and carefully pulled it loose, letting the soft fabric wrapper fall flat on his palm.

What he saw confused him at first. It was nothing more than a small bundle of handmade bookmarks of all shapes and sizes.

How - ?

Then, he finally remembered. He finally remembered, and it actually made his eyes sting.

"Do you remember this?" (Y/N) began as she pointed at one particular bookmark that looked like a bird. "We both made this one to look like Griffon. I remember he was so annoyed by this, he actually tried to rip it apart!"

"(Y/N), I,... " You,… you kept these bookmarks,… all this time?

"Oh! And this one." She went on, now pointing at a gun shaped bookmark made from colorful pages of old magazines. "I remember there was a storm. We couldn't go out so we borrowed some of Nico's old Artisan magazines, and we were inspired to make our very own weapon. But, we're not Artisans, so, instead, we made this to pass the time! Do you remember, Vergil?"

"I - "

"And this one." She said, pointing at a Christmas tree shaped bookmark. "Do you remember this?"

Vergil closed his eyes, still trying to contain the emotions that were flooding out. He nodded, simply because he couldn't trust his voice.

"It was my idea." Vergil said, his voice hoarse and low. "I told you I'd buy as much books as I can with my own earnings as a Devil Hunter and spend the holidays reading them with you."

Vergil waited for her answer, and a few moments later, a smile creeped up on the corner of her lips. "Well, the books are ready, if you still want to come home with me."

"W - what do you mean? What is - ?"

"Umm, I mean, there's comedy, and tragedy, romance, poetry, of course, and those comics you saw at the local book shop once. The Far Side series. I got all your requests."

"I had no idea back then if I would live long enough to experience this day with you." Vergil added, his emotions betraying him.

"Hmm? You're here with me, right now."

"I knew I was at death's door, and I didn't want you to worry."

"But, you came back."

"And I was a terrible, terrible man." Vergil went on, trying to ignore the pain in his chest. The pain of bottling up all of his emotions.

The girl tilted her head to the side. "Why would you say that?"

"I,... hurt you! Despite everything you did for me, I still made you cry. I don't,... deserve someone as good as you!" Finally letting the painful truth go, Vergil sighed and gave her a pleading look. "I want you to have a happy life together with the man you love. I don't ever want you to experience pain, or suffering, or sadness. I want the best for you.

"(Y/N),... it's the best I could do for you for everything you've done for a,... shameful,... and tainted man,... such as myself."

There. The words were out, and honestly, Vergil felt so stupid for saying those.

And (Y/N)?

Well, the girl seemed to agree with him on that!

"W - what's so funny?" Vergil mumbled in embarrassment as he watched the girl control her mirth. "D - do I have s - something on my face?"

"Oh, you are a terrible, terrible liar, Vergil!" She spoke through her laughter.

Ah, it seems I have lost to her yet again,... "And what do you want me to say?! (Y/N), be with Dante because you deserve each other? Go out, spread the happy news, and,... multiply?!"

"Who told you I like Dante?!" The girl went on as if she's mocking Vergil's words.

Ah, so much for letting out those crushing and painful feelings,...

"Well, do you?!"

"Oh, dear, of course, I do! But, only as a friend." The girl informed him, then rolled her eyes. "And who said anything about," she stepped closer, dangerously closer, towards him and pressed an accusing finger against his forehead. Which looked very cute, considering the gap in their heights. " ... MULTIPLYING WITH YOUR BROTHER?!"

"Y - you mean, y - you're not in love with Dante?" And once again, Vergil felt he was back in middle - school, confessing to his very first crush.

Once again, Vergil heard her laughter. And her loveable snort. Oh, how he missed the sound and the sight,...

Then, without warning, Vergil felt something very soft and sweet, the taste of cherries, and,... chocolate? Against his lips. Then, the flowery scent of her hair assaulted his nostrils. Her smooth arms went around his neck, and he slightly felt her weight when she clung to him. He closed his eyes, wrapped his muscular arms around her shapely waist, held her oh so close to his chest, and finally,... finally! Moved his lips against hers.

Heaven. It felt as if he has died and gone straight to Heaven. He, a sinful man who has committed grave mistakes in the past, was being showered with love and affection by the loveliest Angel he has ever met.

With the rhythm of their lips and the soft moans of the girl he loved, Vergil felt that a great blessing has just entered his life.

Yes, he may have lied to her about him wanting her to be happy with someone else. Yes, he told her that he didn't deserve someone as good as her. But, deep inside, he wanted to be hers, and hers alone. He wanted to hold her like this for the rest of his life. He wanted to do more than read those books with her. He wanted the two of them to make their own stories, together. And,... more.

Vergil opened his eyes and saw her pouty lips as he broke the kiss that seemed to go on forever in their heads.

"I,... have a little surprise for you, as well." He revealed, his voice sounding as satisfied as it can be.

"Really? What is it?"

The corner of Vergil's lips curled up in a mischievous smirk, and this sent delicious shivers down (Y/N)'s spine.

"Oh, my love, you can keep guessing until we get back home." Vergil teased as he carried (Y/N) like a Princess.

"My love, stop being a tease and at least, give me a hint." The girl teased back with a mischievous smile of her own.

My love.

Those,... were the sweetest words he has ever heard in his entire, miserable life.

"You want a hint!" Vergil exclaimed theatrically, planting a chaste kiss on her forehead. "Let's say it's something you'll be mesmerized with for the rest of the evening,... "

***