Chapter Text
Nero had a pretty exhausting week. Vergil, Dante, and he had back to back contracts on demon sightings, and every contract underestimated how difficult they would all be. The three of them got through each of the contracts fine in the end, but they definitely could use a break as Nero hoped no new emergency would pop up on them. Nero himself went to bed feeling both agitated on adrenaline while also sluggish with fatigue. It was a confusing mix of unhelpful feelings, but Nero assumed it would get better once he went to bed. He fell asleep almost immediately after he settled down in bed, after all.
When Nero woke up, though, he frowned lightly to himself. He slowly opened his eyes, taking a second to look around his room, but quickly decided to keep them closed as he felt a fuzzy sensation throughout his body. He felt lightheaded and weak.
That. . . couldn’t be good. He usually didn’t get sick easily. Or at all most of the time.
When he opened his eyes earlier, he could tell from the light in his room that it was past morning when he usually woke up. That was another sign something unusual was going on. Nero took another chance at opening his eyes and blinked a few times to try to focus on his hand lying in front of himself on the bed. The fuzzy feeling persisted even though he stayed still and tried to stay relaxed.
Nero groaned, primarily out of frustration at the situation, and slowly sat up in bed. If he focused, he could hear voices downstairs. A part of Nero was pulling at himself to go downstairs as well. He didn’t want to be by himself. Maybe it would be better for him to be around others if there was something going on with him. Someone would notice if it got worse.
Nero got out of bed and stood still for a second as he tried to see if he could figure out what was wrong. Nothing about it felt familiar, though. Was it still leftover exhaustion from last week catching up to Nero’s body? Was he running on adrenaline all this time and it’s finally worn off? If that was it, then taking it easy today should be all that he needs.
He still wanted to go downstairs where the others were, though, so he slowly made his way to the hallway and over towards the stairs. As he got closer, he could better make out Dante and Vergil talking to one another. Dante was sitting at his desk, as usual, and Vergil was seated at the end of the couch closest to him. Nero paused at the bottom of the steps as he looked over at them. Vergil was holding a few pieces of paper in his hand while others were set spread across the desk. Nero recognized some of them as papers on their contracts, while others were bills.
Nero could sit at the other end of the couch and doze off there. He certainly didn’t need to be awake for their conversation, nor would it be interesting to listen in on as he heard his father already going over their budgeting again. That part of him that wanted him to go downstairs to be around his family wanted him to sit closer, though.
Instincts were bugging him once again.
It makes sense, though, that his instincts would want the reassurance of safety nearby, especially if he wasn’t feeling well. It has done it before when he wanted to take a nap and his instincts wanted someone to keep an eye out for him.
Nero held back a sigh. He should be getting used to stuff like this by now. The only way to do so would be to keep following through with listening to his instincts, though.
Silently, Nero took the final step off the stairs and walked over towards the couch. He heard Dante say something to him, probably a greeting, and he hummed lightly in response. Vergil was shifting through the papers in his hands when Nero sat down against his side. Vergil didn’t look away from whatever paperwork currently had his attention either when Nero tucked in his legs and leaned his head over on his father’s shoulder. Nero closed his eyes as he listened to the conversation still going on between the other two.
“We are still missing payments on three of the contracts we took last week.” Vergil said.
“Should only be one and they said they’d pay us when they got the money after their business started back up again from the demonic inconvenience we took care of.” Dante corrected.
“It’s three. Two of them haven’t paid at all and one underpaid for the type of contract it was.”
Nero heard shuffling and the slow gradual creak of a chair getting tilted sideways. He guessed Dante was leaning over to peer at the papers Vergil was holding and heard when his father huffed and seemingly turned the papers around for Dante to see.
“No, no, that one there, she paid by giving us dinner, don’t you remember?” Dante said with a playful huff, then there was the thud of chair legs landing back on the floor.
“Dinner doesn’t pay the bills, Dante.” Vergil said, tone cold and not playing along.
“That’s what the other contracts are for.”
“Ah, yes, the ones we’re being underpaid for. I should be correcting all of these contracts, as they all pay less than I would advise at all. They take advantage of you, brother.”
“You’re too harsh on them. It’s not like they know how to handle demons and what they’re worth; that’s our job.” Dante said and Nero heard the thud of his uncle putting his feet up on the desk. There was also a trace of amusement in the tone of his voice, and Nero caught it both from his uncle and father. Vergil had called Dante his brother and wasn’t being condescending with it. A casual acknowledgement that Vergil was still getting used to and Dante was still getting surprised by. As if Dante sometimes still can’t quite believe they’re all here together, on good terms, living under the same roof. Spending nights under the same blanket canopy of the den, sometimes, too.
“Yes, it’s our job, and we should be charging for precisely how difficult these jobs are.” Vergil said.
“Difficult?” Dante said with a single loud laugh. “Were you struggling with these ones? Losing your touch?”
“No, they are not difficult for us, but they would be difficult for any regular human, and as such, they should be paying for the quality of work we provide.”
The conversation continued on like that, and at some point Nero stopped focusing on the words. He appreciated that they continued on with their talk as Nero zoned out against his father’s side. He let the sound of their voices calm himself down and didn’t feel pressured to explain himself. He was just listening to his instincts and neither of the others seemed phased by it. It made him feel better about it.
Nero thought he must have dozed off for a few minutes, but eventually he felt something cool press against his forehead. It took him a second to realize it was his father’s hand. There was murmuring and the shuffling of paper, then Nero felt his body get pulled downwards. He squinted his eyes open at that and found that Vergil was resting further back against the couch now and pulled Nero along with him, one arm wrapped around his side to keep him steady. Dante said something about drinks, and Nero watched him step out of the room towards the kitchen before he finally closed his eyes again. That’s when he realized his father was checking the bond with him as well. There was mainly concentration, though a bit of concern was mixed in as well coming through from his father’s side.
“What do you need?” Vergil asked quietly. Nero hummed but shook his head slightly.
“Nothing.” Nero answered. His instincts weren’t asking for anything either, other than feeling safer with proximity. “This is fine.” He decided to add. He heard his father hum at the answer.
“What are your symptoms?”
Ah. Vergil figured he wasn’t feeling well.
“Lightheaded.” Nero huffed out. “Things just feel drifty and a little weak. ‘s probably just from the week we had. Nothin’ a nap can’t fix, as Dante would say.”
“You can’t sleep off everything.” Vergil sighed, but Nero could tell it was not an honest admonishment. Nero hummed, then the conversation seemed to pause as Nero dozed off a little more. Dante returned and there was more murmuring, though Nero didn’t refocus on the words again.
Eventually he felt another hand on his forehead, this one being a little warmer than before, and Nero peeked his eyes open. It was Dante this time, and Nero felt when his uncle checked their bond as well. From his uncle he also picked up concentration, slight confusion, a little worry. Dante gave Nero a small frown as he stepped away afterwards and set the glass of water he got earlier on the desk beside him. He moved to lean back against the edge of the desk, then, and crossed his arms in front of himself.
“’m fine, Dante.” Nero muttered.
“Just not used to seeing you up late and tired, kid.” Dante replied.
“Busy week.”
Dante pursed his lips at that. Nero felt a bit of shuffling as his father adjusted him a bit, then stilled.
“You sense it, do you not?” Vergil said, directed at Dante. Dante closed his eyes for a moment as he focused on something, then shook his head.
“No, I’m not getting much from him, actually.” Dante huffed.
“That is precisely the problem. The presence of his energy is weakened, and not from intentionally trying to hide it.”
“Ah, that would make sense.” Dante let out a sigh and uncrossed his arms, placing his hands on the edge of the desk and leaning on them. “Do I need to go get the cup?”
“I do not think Nero would appreciate the offer.”
“Huh?” Nero finally spoke up. “What’s going on?”
“Offering the ol’ tried and usually true blood method.” Dante answered.
“Huh. . . but you said that’s for injuries. When you pour blood on cuts ‘n stuff.”
“Oh, you have an injury.” Dante agreed with a nod. “Just not so much an external one this time.”
Nero paused to think about what that meant. If it wasn’t an external injury. . . and Dante just offered to do something with a cup. . . and revolved around the blood method. . .
“Ugh.” Nero said, scrunching his face up at the thought. “I thought you said drinking blood wasn’t a thing.”
“When you asked about it that time, it was your legs that were injured, it wasn’t an energy problem.” Dante corrected.
“And I still say that’s gross.”
“And I’ll still say it’s not the worst solution to fixing some things. I’m telling you, kid, in the underworld they lack a lot of the decorum you’d be used to here.”
“Would that even work for. . . whatever is going on right now?” Nero groaned.
“Yes.” Vergil answered this time. “But we will not make you do something you do not assent to. Only if your life were dependent on it, but you are at no risk right now.”
“Ugh.” Nero grumbled out again. The thought was still gross but. . . he guessed the sentiment was fair enough. “So, what, do I just sleep it off like I had guessed before?”
“That would be the natural way of restoring your diminished energy.” Vergil nodded. “But tell me, are you aware of how demonic energy functions? Its importance?”
“Mmm.” Nero tried to think back on anything that was explained to him before. He didn’t think there was anything special about it, though, beyond common sense. “I remember Dante mentioning it was needed for the bonds to form and maintaining them. And there’s the obvious things like our triggers, my wings, your guys’ phantom swords.” Nero paused. “Your entire doppelganger.” He added plainly. Seeing the doppelganger still caught him off guard sometimes. Vergil could just make. . . a whole entire entity like that.
“Yes, those are actions we can take using energy.” Vergil agreed. “But that is not the base responsibility.”
“Summoning extra swords is pretty nifty, though.” Dante chimed in.
“Yes, it can be helpful.” Vergil said, and Nero could hear the hint of impatience in the tone. “But it functions to keep you alive. It is your power. Your strength, just as is your blood. You know if you lose too much blood, you will lose consciousness. The same thing happens if you overexert yourself and use up more energy than you have to support yourself. And you,” Vergil paused as his head turned to look Nero in the eyes, which Nero reluctantly met as he twisted to look over at him, “were flaunting a lot of your abilities this week.”
“Hey, I was just following Dante. He was the one telling me to try out new stuff to see how far we could take it.”
“I stand by what I said.” Dante nodded. “The best way to learn new skills is testing it out right on the field.”
“Yes, as I too have recommended on numerous occasions.” Vergil sighed. “But not on back to back contracts, and as careless as you were no less. You should have been paying more attention.”
“You were also with us.” Dante protested, shoulders slumping slightly inwards.
“Yes, but you were the one engaging with him with that experimentation of yours.”
Dante turned his head to the side with a dramatic sigh, though he did glance over at Nero with a flash of sympathy in his eyes.
“And I’m the only one who’s feeling out of it from this whole thing?” Nero grumbled.
“You are younger and more human than us. It stands to reason that your energy reserves are lower than what we are used to.” Vergil answered.
“Of course it is.” Nero sighed.
“With time and training, it can be expanded, but for now, you need to rest.”
“And any guesses on how long it will take?” Nero asked.
“The best way to visualize it is to think of a cup under a dripping faucet.” Vergil started. It got a single laugh out of Dante, and Nero felt himself quirk his lips upwards at his father explaining it like this as well. Vergil did appreciate his poetry, so using metaphors made sense to him.
“Am I the cup?” Nero asked, smiling more when he caught Dante’s eye as his uncle made a teasing face at him.
“Yes.” Vergil said, and didn’t let their behavior deter his explanation. “You are the cup, and your energy is the water inside. Naturally, it will fill as the faucet drips above it, and you have your limits on both how much water you have to use and how much you are capable of storing. As you use your energy throughout the day, it will empty, but generally not enough for the faucet to be unable to keep up. However, with repeated overextension of your abilities without giving it a chance to rest. . .” Vergil said, giving Nero a moment to think on it and answer.
“Now I’m an empty cup and I have to wait for the slow drip of the water to return to normal?” Nero said.
“Bingo. I’d say that’s an A plus on this creative writing exam.” Dante nodded with a teasing laugh.
“You speak in jest, but did the analogy not do its purpose of explaining it?” Vergil said pointedly.
“It did.” Nero said. “Thank you, Dad.” He then added on with an exaggerated drawl. He heard Vergil let out a sigh and he chuckled when his father nudged his side in retaliation to the comment. “So, are the only two options really to either wait it out or. . . Dante’s tried and usually true method.”
“Waiting lets your body naturally restore its energy, and with blood you can speed up the process. However. . .” Vergil started, then he readjusted their positions on the couch once more. Nero was turned slightly more towards his father, though his head remained resting against his father’s shoulder, not that he wanted to move anyway. He felt when Vergil brought up his other hand not holding his side and held it against the back of his neck. The protective gesture, Nero remembered, but soon the hand moved a little lower to rest closer to his shoulder blades.
Then, Nero felt something odd against his back, almost like there was something trickling through him. He didn’t really physically feel anything, but something in the back of his mind nudged at him that it was somehow familiar. Although he didn’t quite recognize what was going on, his instincts seemed to urge him to relax. Nero closed his eyes and focused on the odd feeling, trying to identify what it was. It was strongest from where Vergil had his hand pressed against him, and it felt a bit like something was flowing through him. A bit like. . . water.
Water. Like the cup analogy.
“Are you. . .” Nero started. He didn’t know what quite to ask.
“It is not the most effective method.” Vergil answered for him. “It is better for your body to replenish its own energy than to try to utilize and integrate foreign energy from someone else. But as I said, we are not pressed for time.”
So Nero was right. Vergil was lending some of his own demonic energy to him. It comforted the instinctual side of him as well. Maybe that’s why it wanted Nero to be around the others. It recognized all along that he was low on energy and he wouldn’t be able to defend himself as well as he normally would. And if something went wrong and he got worse, they would be able to help him as his father was doing now.
That’s why it felt familiar as well. It was energy that belonged to his father. It felt. . . a little unusual for sure. The odd trickling water feeling, or rather the trickling energy feeling, was not something he was used to, but it also wasn’t bad. It reminded him a bit of the bond when Vergil or Dante would comfort him with their presence and let him know they were there. The bond’s little mental hug. Whereas the bond was more mental and comforted his instincts more than anything else, this was more. . . of a supernatural physical comfort. Not really tangible, but still there, lending him strength.
Now that he knew what it was, Nero let himself relax into the feeling. It felt safe and comforting. His father’s energy slowly surrounded him in a protective manner, supporting him where it could. It was sharing its power with Nero as his body slowly regenerated its own. And though Vergil was keeping the trickling slow and gentle, likely to not overwhelm Nero with too much of a flood of energy at once, Nero could still feel the bright force and intensity of it. Even at such a small quantity, there was no mistaking the power Vergil had. Power that Vergil had spent a lifetime coveting. And now it was power he was extending to his son without a second thought.
Nero felt a light, barely-there rumble build up from his chest as his instincts brought him into a quiet purr. He felt safe and content, which were two of the big prerequisites to get his instincts to start up a purr without his input on it. Nero then felt the mental nudge of when Vergil checked on him through the bond again. There was more concentration from his father, curious and trying to determine how Nero was fairing now. Nero guessed his comfort should be sign enough that he was doing alright.
“But while I will assist you this time, do not think I will indulge such reckless behavior in the future. If you wish to become stronger, then it is important to learn how to manage your energy and know what your limits are.” Vergil added.
“I said earlier the best way to learn is out on the field. And hey, we got a lot of useful information out of this. We learned where his limits are just now!” Dante perked up.
“There is a difference between supervised training and recklessly endangering yourself in combat to the point of feeling faint.” Vergil said sternly. The arm around Nero’s side tensed for a moment as well.
“Aww, but he’s your nestling. Does that mean you’re not going to help him out if he gets out of sorts like this again?”
Vergil gave his brother a hard glare, eyes narrowing at the other. Even Nero, who was still learning about demonic customs and terminology, knew that “playing the nestling card”, as he’s sure Dante would call it, was bold to say in front of his father.
“His life will not be at risk.” Vergil said coldly and Nero felt as his father’s body tensed up further from where he was leaning against it. It was a statement. Any endangerment to Nero’s life would be handled. And yeah, that’s a bit of what Nero had expected the reaction to be. The implication that Vergil wouldn’t look after his nestling did get under his skin. Dante always did know how to provoke his brother, though thankfully this was lighthearted. Vergil lightened up after the moment as well. “But as his father, it is my duty to make sure he is prepared for whatever eventuality may arise, and suffering the consequences of his actions is a great tutor. I would be doing him a disservice if I were to shelter him.”
“So you agree having him test the extent of his strength is a good idea.” Dante repeated.
“That is not what I said.”
“I don’t know, that’s what it sounded like to me.”
“If that’s the case, then I think there may be something wrong with your hearing, or perhaps your entire head. That would be dangerous to be left untreated, so why don’t we look into that.” Vergil said, and Nero heard a thud of something hitting the cushion of the couch. Nero turned his head to look behind himself and, oh, that was the Yamato Vergil was holding in the hand not between his shoulders.
“No fighting.” Nero groaned and dropped his head back down on his father’s shoulder. “You two can do that later, outside, where I’m not in the crossfire.
“Don’t want to join us?” Dante asked, mirth in his voice.
“I’m too tired for your quarreling.”
“He is in no state for combat.” Vergil added. Nero would normally protest. He was tired, though. Apparently running low on demonic energy was quite stressful on his body.
“Ah, so you owe us a few rounds when you’re feeling less like you belong in a grave, then.” Dante hummed. “We could work on training your control. Who knows, maybe that you’re better aware of it now, you’ll be able to notice if you’re using too much energy on something.”
“You would know plenty well what that feels like, I’m sure.” Vergil huffed.
“I like adding style to my moves, and it’s certainly not a waste.” Dante shot back.
“You are a lost cause, but do not spread your bad habits onto Nero.”
“I’m a great influence.” Dante said, throwing his arms out to the side. “I have a mug that says I’m the world’s greatest uncle to prove it!”
That got a laugh out of Nero, making him jostle his father’s arm against his back. Vergil glanced over at him, then gently pat his back before removing the hand entirely. Nero realized, then, that Vergil had stopped lending his energy. Nero took the moment to focus on himself once more, checking how he felt. He was still tired and things still felt sluggish, but he was no longer worried that his body might quit on him or pass out. That made sense from what Vergil explained earlier as well. Vergil said this wasn’t the most effective method as his body hadn’t generated its own energy, but borrowed someone else’s. Nero thought he might be able to sense the difference. Or maybe he was just too hyperaware of himself right now.
Regardless, he was feeling better than he was when he woke up.
“We can assist him in his training efforts after he has recovered. To do so any earlier would be foolhardy.” Vergil concluded.
“Yeah, yeah, I can agree to that.” Dante nodded. He then let out a sigh and looked over at his desk, still covered in papers from their earlier conversation. “I suppose that means you want to get back to the boring part of our jobs.”
“I am glad you had not forgotten that is our goal for today. One way or another, we will settle this.”
“Hey, remember what the kid said, no fighting.” Dante said waving his hand at his brother. He then reluctantly moved around his desk to sit back at his chair and picked up one of the loose pieces of paper. “Although, on second thought. . .”
“No, Dante, you cannot divert my attention.” Vergil huffed.
“I think I would know how. . .” Dante muttered under his breath. When he glanced over at the others, he saw the glare Vergil was giving him. “I know, I got it, we’ll get this done. Eventually.”
“Today.” Vergil said sternly.
“Maybe.”
“Today.”
“I’m just saying if an emergency popped up, with Nero out of commission, we’d have to handle it ourselves.” Dante shrugged playfully.
“If some unforeseen event did require someone’s attention, you will call upon those friends of yours to handle it. They are more than capable, as per your own words, unless you are to tell me they are actually inadequate.”
“Hey, don’t disrespect the ladies. They know how to handle anything.” Dante shot back, getting slightly defensive in his tone.
“Then my point stands.” Vergil said.
“If you two are just going to be here bickering, I think I’m just going to take a nap.” Nero cut in and closed his eyes yet again. He felt an arm warp around his shoulders once more, then felt his father check on him through the bond yet again. Careful and examining. Wanting to be certain of Nero’s current condition.
“I wish I could sleep through this too.” Dante muttered.
“If you desire a debilitating injury to prevent you from doing your duties, I can assist you with that.” Vergil responded.
“But you said-“ Dante was cut off and Nero heard the telltale signs of Vergil summoning one of his blue spectral swords.
“I will pin you here to the desk so you have nothing else to think about but your work.” Vergil stated.
“Just leave me out of it.” Nero huffed and tried to get comfortable enough to fall asleep. It’s a shame he didn’t think to bring a blanket down here.
“Alright, kid, I’ll stay focused. Just for you.” Dante replied. Nero muttered something incomprehensible in response. He felt a mental nudge and realized it was Dante now, checking on him again too. It was a playful mental brush against his mind, as Dante had primarily been messing around with him the whole time. However, underneath it all, Nero could detect a trace of concern. He nudged his uncle back through the bond, letting him know he was doing alright. No harm done and he didn’t mind the jokes. He smiled when he felt his uncle respond with his own warm nudge back.
The two brothers started up their conversation about contracts and bills once more, and Nero let his mind drift. Sleeping would probably help him feel better, restoring energy and all that, though he appreciated his father helping him all the same.
Before he let himself succumb to sleep, he focused on the bond with Vergil once more and gave his father an appreciative mental poke. The response back was almost immediate as Vergil gave his own gentle acknowledgement of it, letting Nero know he was there.
“Don’t let me sleep in too late.” Nero murmured under his breath. He felt the arm around his shoulders give him a gentle squeeze for a moment.
“Very well.” Vergil murmured back to him in between his conversation with Dante. “Rest now. You will be safe.”
“Mhmm.” Nero agreed.
It was always a little funny to him when Vergil stated things like that. Of course Nero would be safe. Vergil and Dante were here. His instincts sought them out specifically because he knew he would be safe with them around. And even so, Nero was a force to be reckoned with himself. He could stand his ground just as well as the others could. Perhaps he was at a bit of a disadvantage in his current state, but that didn’t make him defenseless.
Although. . . Nero still appreciated the gesture all the same. And hearing the verbal confirmation that he was going to be okay did soothe a part of his mind anyway.
The ringing of the phone startled Nero enough to open his eyes and refocus on what was happening around him as he lifted his head up. Dante picked up the phone from his desk and leaned on his elbow.
“Devil May Cry!” He said cheerily into the phone. Whoever was on the other end sounded a bit frantic, loud enough for the tone to be heard by the others on the couch. Dante gave a few hums of acknowledgement as he nodded his head along.
“Uh-huh, sounds pretty bad for sure, but you’re in luck! We can head over there right-“ Dante was cut off by a low growling sound. He looked over with wide eyes at Vergil, whose growling was steadily rising in volume the longer Dante stared without saying anything. Nero could feel the rumbling against his side and glanced up at his father, watching as Vergil’s frown slowly grew as well, eyes narrowing at his brother. It was a little amusing. By the tone of how Dante was responding to the caller, too, they could tell whatever problem the person had, it wasn’t as serious as the caller was probably making it out to be. “Ah. That is to say. . .” Dante started again, cautiously speaking into the phone. “I’ll send someone to take care of it. Not to worry.” Dante pulled out a pen, scribbling something down on one of the pieces of paper on the desk, occasionally glancing over at the others on the couch as well. “Uh-huh, yep, high priority, got it. Yep. You’ll see someone soon.”
Dante hung up then and leaned back in his chair with a sigh. Vergil had stopped growling, but his face remained stern, waiting to hear what Dante had to say. Dante just raised his hands in surrender.
“I’ll let Lady and Trish know.” Dante relented. Vergil only huffed in response, but eased up his tense posture.
Nero looked between the two of them, but when neither said anything else, he sighed and dropped his head back down against his father.
“Thank you, Dante.” Nero said, drawing it out just as he did earlier when he jokingly thanked his father.
“Well, well, you’re welcome!” Dante said brightly. “See, somebody here knows how to show their appreciation for my thoughtfulness.”
“You were about to abandon your responsibilities.” Vergil scoffed. “You will receive no words of recognition from me until you follow through on your earlier commitment to get this done.”
“And I’m actually going to go to sleep now, so keep the arguing to a minimum.” Nero chimed in before closing his eyes yet again.
“Well, you were the one who came down here while we were in the middle of-“ Dante got cut off again as he heard a low rumbling starting up from Vergil once more. There was a pause. “And we are both very happy that you did because we both care about your wellbeing.” The tone was phony, obvious that he was being coerced by Vergil to change his sentence. Nero felt the mental brush of his uncle poking at him through the bond, though, showing that he did actually care. Nero understood. He halfheartedly raised his hand and waved over towards Dante’s direction.
“Yeah, yeah, just get this paperwork sorted, then I’ll help you make food when I wake up.”
“You got it, kid.” Dante replied, and Nero could hear the smile in his voice.
Nero felt himself smile lightly in response.