Shadow stalemated with a loud, high-pitched whimper after Dante's sword pierced through her skin, her body nothing but a magenta sphere floating on the ground above a sea of black crystal-like particles. The devil hunter grimaced, and a flick of his wrist had been enough to make Devil Sword Dante disappear from his grasp. He rubbed the fragile sphere with one of his hands in reassurance, not quite sure if Kitty could feel anything at all when she was like that.

Vergil had finally realized that he'd been coddling Shadow a little too much these last couple of months and decided he had to teach her how to fight properly. Turns out he couldn't do it. Big, bad Vergil backed off when one of his summoned swords pierced Shadow, making her wince in pain. And now Dante was doing the dirty work.

The red-clad devil couldn't say he didn't agree with what Verge was doing –took him long enough, actually. She barely knew how to tackle things that were bigger than her because Vergil never let her try. Of course she was going to stalemate, and they would have to stop every couple of minutes before it was too late, but it was a learning process, one that Dante didn't know why he agreed to take part in anymore. It was nerve wracking to know that every move had to be carefully calculated because, if he got a bit too carried away and hit her core when it was exposed like that, she could die.

"Yeah, I'm done. Don't wanna hurt her." Dante finally said after the pregnant pause that had fallen between them. "And she's just learning my pattern." Shadow's core popped under his hand and out came the demonic cat as if nothing had happened. Still, she batted Dante's knee for the sake of it, grumbling in protest like she always did.

"Yes, you are."

Her ears flickered at Vergil's comment, and she had the nerve to be offended by it, walking away from them with her head held high as she made her way towards the door. She pawed it, testing to see if it would open. The door gave in a little under the weight, but one quick glance back at Vergil's approaching form made her turn into a putty and slide under it before the devil had a chance to grab her.


Nero sighed, burying his head deeper into the pillow. He could hear the commotion outside, the clash of a sword against…something, and the muffled voices of his father and uncle in the backyard.

He turned his head, eyes squinting at the ray of light that seeped in from a slight opening in the curtains. Nero had fallen asleep in Dante's room after Vergil mentioned the old man wouldn't be home that night, and his uncle's messy bed proved to be infinitely better than the couch's cold, hard leather. He heard Shadow yelp, and after a grunt escaped his lips, he tore the blankets away from his body, determined to stop whatever those two idiots were doing.

"What the hell's going on?" Nero looked groggy still, bringing one hand up to shield his sleep-ridden eyes from the blazing sun. Dante had his signature grin on his face as Vergil held Shadow close to his chest, making sure to grab her front paws with one of his hands to prevent her from slapping him in the face.

"We're training Shadow." Dante mentioned, giving the black demon one last funny look before he brushed past Nero. "It's your turn."


"Don't think she's ready for weapons yet."

Shadow had stalemated again in front of Nero, black crystals under her core trickling upwards like a backwards hourglass. He wasn't hitting her that hard. Hell, he was making sure that only the tip of Red Queen would grace her, and his bullets didn't have a speck of demonic power in them, but he had a hunch she wasn't taking it seriously.

Vergil scoffed at the thought, the icy expression on his face hardening as he approached Shadow. "She is more than capable of handling them." One of his hands reached out to hover over her core, and Nero could see its murky contents swirling a tad faster before she popped out again, her tail twitching with annoyance. He turned towards the demon who, in turn, looked up to stare at him, red eyes blinking slowly. "You are rushing in blind." Shadow huffed, a small roar leaving her throat in retort.

She seemed uninterested by the fight, taking it all as a mere joke. No matter how many times both hybrids tried to tell her they were being serious, she knew they wouldn't hurt her. Still, there was something Vergil could try, even if he doubted Nero would be willing to try. Yamato was carefully placed on top of the seldom-used garden table Dante kept outside, prompting Nero to raise an eyebrow as Vergil approached him with dedicated steps, his expression nothing but carefully-displayed neutrality. Shadow lingered at the same spot Vergil had been only a couple of seconds before, eyeing them wearily and feeling the tension quickly thickening the air around them.

"What?"

The answer came in the form of a summoned sword that appeared above Vergil, glistening in blue before it was shot straight at Nero's chest. He managed to roll out of the way, his eyes hardening as Vergil wordlessly summoned another sword above him.

"What the hell, Vergil?"

The old man was really starting to piss him off. Nero'd dragged himself out of bed come morning, thinking the twins were at each other's throats yet again and barely had the time to swallow a dubious yogurt he found in the kitchen before he agreed to help Vergil train his cat, and this is what he was getting? A fucking fight because Vergil'd gotten huffy when things didn't go his way?

The sound of a bullet echoed in the air as he fired Blue Rose, shattering the summoned sword that, this time, was aimed at his head. It buzzed right past Vergil's head after the initial impact, and the older man's jaw tightened when the bullet graced his cheekbone, leaving a dark trace of charred skin and blood on its path. Shadow let out a fiery roar, morphing her body into almost a liquid form in order to quickly stand between them, making Nero halt abruptly. Her eyes were glazed over, blazing with latent anger as she crouched low, ready to pounce on Nero. She'd never been so…aggressive with him, but she seemed feral now that Vergil had gotten 'hurt'.

"Slice him."

The words coming out of Vergil's mouth were far too familiar for Nero's comfort. He'd said it so naturally it was almost startling, and, when their eyes met, he saw the traces of a smirk on Vergil's lips. The young hunter could feel his shoulder's slump when he realized what Vergil was doing, and he shot the older man an annoyed look that was quickly replaced by yet another frown as he hissed in pain. Shadow had used that light diversion to mull over Vergil's words and transform one of her front legs into a three-clawed cleaver of sorts that managed to hit Nero straight in the hip, making yet another ripping hole in the fabric of his sweater. "Could've told me we were doing this." He dodged the attack that came from Shadow's other leg, missing it only by a couple of inches.

"She would have noticed." Vergil paced to the side a couple of feet behind Shadow, watching intently as she continued the barrage of blows. Vergil was certain she would complain about this exchange once she'd calmed down, but, for now, anger seemed to cloud her judgment.

Red Queen got in the way of one of her attacks, and the high-pitched sound that ringed in the air as the metal clashed with the hardened tissue of her morphed leg mid-attack made both demon and hybrid recoil. It took Shadow longer to come back from the stagger, and, by the time her head had cleared, Nero was already on his way to attack his father. His sword burned with a red blaze, spewing specks of fire as he swung it in Vergil's direction only for it to hit the traces of a spectral blue that Vergil left as he dodged the blow.

"Pin him to the wall."


Shadow's tail twitched with annoyance as she lied on the couch, hitting the cushions hard as she kept her gaze fixated on the eldest hybrid. She allowed Dante to pet her, only letting out a small huff when his calloused hand reached out to brush the top of her head as he made his way towards the jukebox.

Vergil took a seat on the other end on the couch, ignoring the sounds that the demon's tail made when it began to twitch and trash around even harder until their eyes met, prompting her to let out a venomous hiss, ears flat against her head.

"Stop being dramatic."

She pawed the hybrid in the face in a swift motion, making him snort before she hopped off the couch and made her way up the stairs, deeming it far too exasperating to let Vergil be near her. She stopped at the top as Nero emerged from the bathroom, and took the opportunity to swat his knee with rage before she head butted the door that lead to Dante's room in order to open it.

"Guess someone's sleeping alone tonight."


I'm so sorry for the lack of updates.

I got a little sidetracked with a fic I wrote for Spardaverse Week (it's a Witcher AU featuring Dante, Vergil, Nero, and V that's still in the works. You can find it on AO3 under the name 'Stranger in a Strange Land' by In_Pieces, in case you want to check it out).

On another note, I have a Tumblr now! You can find me over there as 'wordborne'. Feel free to send me a message or an ask!

Thank you for your patience! And thank you for reading! ❤️