Devil May Cry © Capcom

That It May Go Well with You

Jason M. Lee

Nero barely kept his scowl from showing as his classmates eagerly went about working on their own projects or talked about their plans for the particular upcoming holiday over the weekend. Ever since he started attending school and had learned about it, he's never liked that holiday, as it tended to bring about taunting from some of the other students, reminding him that the normalcy they took for granted was something he's never experienced. The other holiday wasn't so bad, given Uncle Dante, but this one had still grated him.

As he shoved his books into his backpack at the final bell, he slowly walked down the hallway, thinking about what excuse he could use this year or if he should even bother to. He knew there were other kids like him who didn't had fathers or mothers and were raised by their other relatives, but his white hair made him a far easier target compared to them.

Stormy blue eyes widened upon remembering the changes at the shop over the past few months.

He didn't had to use any excuses any more, because there wasn't any need to this time.

Smiling, Nero all but grinned upon seeing Aunt Lady waving at him from the convertible.

This year was definitely going to be different.

-3-1-2-4-5-

Lady blinked blearily, shifting slightly underneath Dante's arm that was wrapped protectively over her round middle. She thought she had heard their bedroom door open, as both of them kept forgetting to oil the hinges. (On the one hand, it was annoying even though neither of them were really light sleepers, especially given Dante's senses, but on the other it made for a warning system for her.)

Fluffly white hair over bright blue eyes peeked in, an almost sheepish expression on his face upon seeing her blinking sleepily. "Sorry, did I wake you?"

"Not particularly." Cracking a yawn, Lady tried to shift to sit up before rolling her eyes when the arm didn't move much. Not that she was complaining about the cuddling, she rather enjoyed it, especially on weekends like these. "Dante, off."

Nero stifled a snicker at the grumbling that came from the older part-devil. "Five mo' minutes, Lady..."

"Morrison, meeting, big name client you do NOT want to mess with."

An exaggerated sigh before he reluctantly removed his arm.

Seeing that both of them were more or less awake, Nero came in with a tray ladened with several breakfast foods and what looked like a white paper-folded lily. Lady raised an eyebrow as Dante helped her sit up against the headboard, also feeling his curiosity.

Pink dusted his cheeks as he set the tray on the bedside table. "Wanted to save you some trouble today..." he mumbled, rubbing the side of his nose, what little confidence he had built up after waking early starting to wilt a bit.

Exchanging a look with Dante, Lady couldn't help but smile wistfully as the few happy memories of her doing something similar for her mother drifted in. Dante remembered how he and Vergil would always try to be on their better behavior, toning down the more wild antics like letting Eva sleep in a bit or bringing breakfast to her in bed (even though it meant Sparda having to clean up the kitchen after them, not that he had ever minded). Warmed at Nero's gesture, she patted the spot on the bed next to her, and pulled Nero close when he climbed in. The young quarter-devil never quite shared it, Dante not speaking to obviously respect his nephew's privacy, but Lady had a very good idea regarding his slight frustrations from school whenever she used to visit the shop around this time of the year before her permanently moving in.

"Thank you, Nero," she whispered, smiling as she felt purring coming from both part-devils.

Monday found many wide-eyed classmates and an eyebrow-twitching teacher as Nero rather cheerfully described how Lady spent the day teaching him on proper firearm maintenance.

A/N: Yeah, title is partially from Deuteronomy 5:16, New International Version. Follows "Nibble, Nibble", after "Waraizome" in "Bouquet of Calendula".