Well I'll Be Damned
Chapter 7: Portal-Opening Days
Nero tried his best to control himself, to process the situation before acting.
"You seem to have dropped your sword, brother," was Vergil's line upon stabbing Dante with the Rebellion. The glint in his pale eyes and the smile he wore looked very villainous, and Nero's worries about Urizen taking over Vergil didn't help convince the lad otherwise.
"That's so nice of you to return it!" Dante's response and smirk, on the other hand, told Nero that this isn't what he was fearing. Upon getting impaled, Dante kicked Vergil, which the latter blocked with the sheathed Yamato. That, however, caused Vergil to slide a few feet away from him.
Having been used to getting stabbed and jabbed, Dante casually pulled the Rebellion out of him while saying "Don't be mad now. I know my sword hurts like a bitch more than yours." His left hand gestured as if measuring the width of the Rebellion. "But that's just something we have to accept."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that. Why don't you compare it." In one swift move, Vergil stabbed Dante with the Yamato. Nero couldn't help but be amazed at this guy's speed. "Just like old times," Vergil remarked before pulling out his sword, flicking the blood out of it and sheathing it with finesse.
This moment of sheathing the katana, however, was seized by Dante as a chance to bounce back and stab Vergil with the Rebellion too. "Jackpot," he said before both of them lost their balance and partially knelt on the floor. Yes, they were still inside their old house, actually on their childhood brawling spot, while all of this stabbing was happening.
"Told you that habit of yours will get you killed someday, but you're stubborn as hell," Dante said, chuckling, as he pulled himself up. "Does it give you a power boost of some sort?"
And in no time, they were at it again. Hits and parries, the clang of metals, crashing onto old furniture, taunts and grunts... Nero came to understand why Dante chose to do this here and not in his office. He was starting to worry about the house, though. At this rate, their childhood home would be no more.
Sighing, Nero called forth his spectral claws and grabbed the two idiots by the face before hitting their heads together like coconuts. Somehow, he was getting the feeling that he would often have to be the adult when he's with these two. He couldn't help but smile, though, at the fuzzy feeling in his chest.
"You had me worried there for a second," he scolded them, and then faced Vergil. "And I thought you went demon king again."
This made Dante laugh. "Two minutes in and your son is already lecturing you."
Vergil just made a "hmph" sound as he straightened himself, but the way his eyes strayed from the two gave away his awkwardness.
Then Dante's childish switch was turned on again. "Why don't you welcome him with a hug!" he said as he pushed Nero towards Vergil. This caught the kid off guard, causing him to trip on his own foot and fall onto Vergil's chest. Good thing his old man's reflex was faster than his fall; Vergil caught him by the arms.
The two were in sync when they exclaimed, "Dante!" to which the other just laughed.
Nero might have gotten a bit flustered as he stood up. He knew V, he has gotten fairly comfortable around him, but Vergil? Vergil had the aura of a strict master swordsman that would make you swing your sword a hundred times till you do the proper form he taught. He had the look of a stern father you wouldn't want to show your report card to. But at the same time, Nero could sense something akin to warmth from him especially when his facial expression shifts ever so slightly like in this instance. It's like he's the same person as V but is still very different. This will take some getting used to.
"I'm hungry," Dante then declared. "Let's go home and order pizza."
Vergil shook his head with a smile, "You haven't changed a bit."
Dante merely grinned at him before suggesting, "Hey, let's use your portal-thingy to get home fast! I heard it from Nero. Would've been nice if you could do that when we were kids! Imagine where it could take us, then we can get back before mom calls us for dinner." Dante stepped on a lot of traumatic pasts there, but this must be his way of telling them to view not only the bad things about the past.
Surprisingly, Vergil complied and drew his sword. Nero could almost imagine them in their childhood, with Dante being the younger one with a lot of whims and Vergil unintentionally spoiling him despite looking reluctant.
Holding V's cane and the family portrait, Nero stepped into the portal right after the two. Simply put, it felt like riding a rollercoaster in an instant. You could somehow feel a rush of wind towards you, as if you traveled that much distance in that little time. It was a cool experience for him, but for Dante...
Nero didn't know if Dante was still being playful or if it was real. "Ugh, that got me dizzy," he said before fake-retching on Vergil's shoulder. Of course, the older twin pushed Dante's face away, looking as repulsed as expected. It had just been a few minutes watching them but Nero was now understanding why the two would always fight. Dante, indeed, find it enjoyable to annoy his brother.
They were all startled, however, upon noticing that there were other people in the Devil May Cry office when they arrived. It was Trish and an older yet business-savvy-looking woman.
"Manager?" Vergil muttered in surprise before realizing that he shouldn't have.
"Next time use the door, boys," Trish mocked as she went out.
The other woman approached Vergil and eyed him intently, even holding her eyeglasses as she did so. "V?"
But he remained silent, and it was Dante who threw him under the bus, saying, "He's Vergil now, ma'am!" before snickering and busying himself with the pizza call.
"Vergil?" the lady repeated. "I knew it was your own story!" She didn't seem surprised though. "So this is your true form, huh?" She went around him, analyzing his physique.
"Dante..." Vergil's tone was irritated but his body was frozen in place. Anyone watching them could easily figure out their dynamic. It was as if Vergil was caught by his mother going out past the curfew or something – the older woman had a motherly power over him. So that's why V had that many photos even if he said he wasn't into it.
Nero tried his best not to laugh when Manager started taking note of Vergil's body measurements. She even made him take off his coat in the process. If Dante wasn't ordering pizza right now, he would've laughed harder than what he was doing.
"So, is this for good or you're planning to go back to your skinny version anytime soon?" Manager asked. "Because I like this one better. I can already imagine the clothing lines coming to us."
"Whooo! Way to go, Manager!" Dante must've hurried the phone call. "Give us some nudes too! He's got a smokin-" but he couldn't finish his sentence because a spectral sword hit him in the chest and he choked with some blood.
"How did you even find this place?" Vergil asked Manager as he reclaimed his coat.
"I have my ways." She winked at him before adding, "So don't you ever leave in the middle of a photoshoot like that again."
Vergil sighed in defeat before stating in a more serious tone, "There is something that I must do first." He still looked like he was asking permission from his mother, though. "It might take a while." His grip on the Yamato tightened, and Manager must have understood that he was referring to demonic business.
"Very well. Just give me a call when you're back." And with this, Manager prepared to leave.
Vergil was chivalrous enough to escort her to the door. Dante, on the other hand, looked like he wanted another summoned sword on him when he yelled "He can also play the violin, Manager! Try to set him a reci-" and he immediately got it.
Nero merely chuckled and shook his head at his uncle. But since V was mentioned, he got curious and asked Vergil, "Hey, are uh, V and his familiars okay? I mean, this turned out well for them, right?" He couldn't help but still consider V and Vergil to be two different persons, and yet he considers them both his father, hence the concern.
"I have his memories so I assume he successfully merged back." Nero noticed that his father purposely didn't mention his demon half.
"Can you still summon the little chicken?" his next question was purely out of curiosity. "Because you don't have those tattoos anymore." He noticed that when Manager took Vergil's coat earlier.
"Hm, allow me to try something." Vergil seemed equally curious.
But what he did next made Nero anxious.
Vergil unsheathed the Yamato and then stabbed himself right then and there. Before Nero and Dante could curse, they heard V's melodic voice, "I'm taking my time."
Immediately following him was Griffon's mocking one, "Did you miss me?"
V appeared like a full-colored ghost leaving Vergil's body. Vergil, on the other hand, was frozen half-kneeling on the floor, still impaled by his sword and was glowing blue.
Dante rushed towards them. It turned out that the goof just wanted to confirm if this was just an apparition or if this was really a tangible V. Shadow was quick to block Dante's hand, though.
"I cannot summon Nightmare for I fear that this office might collapse, but rest assured that he is also fine," V told Nero. "It pleases me that you still wondered about us. You really are a good lad, Nero."
Nero smiled sheepishly, before getting worried. "Wait, is he going to be okay?" He pointed at Vergil's body.
"He is," V replied. "However, we cannot stay out for too long. This whole move depends heavily on Vergil's concentration; he is doing his best to bring us forth while suppressing the other half."
"Well you better get going then," Nero bid. "At least we can still see you around somehow."
"Say hi to the garbage god for me, okay?" Dante grinned and waved at V before Nero elbowed him.
V then returned to Vergil's body and the latter stood up as if on reflex, pulled the Yamato out of him and sheathed it.
"You alright, old man?" Nero asked.
Vergil took a few seconds before answering, "Somehow, I feel refreshed."
Realizing that there was nothing to worry about, Nero took this chance to scold them, "You two are stressing me out with all the stabbing."
Dante just laughed and put a hand on Nero's head before turning to Vergil. "What was that thing that you said you need to do?"
"I must destroy the remaining Qliphoth roots in the Underworld."
"Then I'm coming with you."
"I see I haven't earned your trust that you still have the need to keep an eye on me."
"It's not that. I just don't want to lose you to hell again, that's all." Dante smirked. "And besides, after we take care of your little plant, we can stretch out a little."
"Fair enough. We can finally settle our score then."
"You know I'm still up one, right?"
Vergil just smirked and shook his head.
Nero was starting to feel a little left out when Vergil suddenly called him, "Are you not coming with us, Nero?" His next words made the young man smile even wider, "I have been looking forward to a duel with you."
Nero responded with a taunt, "You sure about that? I kicked your demon ass you know."
"What you defeated was merely half of me." Vergil repeated to emphasize, "The two of you defeated the half of me."
"Oh, you're so on!" Nero and Dante were indeed provoked.
When they were about to enter the newly-made portal, Dante clung onto his brother's shoulder muttering "Dizzy..." and Vergil kept pushing his face away.
Nero laughed at them. He half-expected the twins to go stabbing each other again the moment they step into the Underworld, so he braced himself to be the referee once more.
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End
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Notes:
The portal-opening days are far from over!
Thank you for joining me in this what-if adventure. I hope you enjoyed it. ^_^
