A/N: Whew, I'm on a roll! I decided to go ahead and strike while the iron was hot, and work on this chapter xD There's going to be a few page breaks during the meat of this chapter, just so it's a little less cluttered and more focused on each person. So yeah, onto the MEETING!
Vergil's eyes snapped open and he sat up in the bed, breathing a bit heavily as he returned to consciousness from the nightmare he was having. It was just a dream about this time in the demon realm, nothing new for him really, so he shook it off and ran both of his hands through his hair and over his face to try and clear his thoughts. His attempts to regain his wits backfired slightly as he recalled exactly why he was still in the bedroom avoiding the world: his child.
The devil sighed heavily and leaned back into the pillows, his gaze drifting over toward the window. Even with the curtains and blinds drawn, Vergil could tell quite a bit of time had passed- it looked like it might be closer to sunset now. Dante had said he would return shortly… perhaps his brother could sense his distress and exhaustion and had just decided to let him sleep. Vergil could pick up his presence nearby, probably downstairs, so he wasn't too concerned. Rather than trying to rush to his doom, the devil decided to just lay back and collect his thoughts for a little while. Eventually Dante would come and collect him and he would have to face the boy downstairs.
Nero had to say, despite the situation looming ahead of him, he had actually been enjoying the day thus far. After they'd stuff their faces, he'd returned with Dante and spent a little time sparring with him before Kyrie woke up. After that he'd mostly spent his time lounging around, taking a cat nap, snacking, and just hanging out. Dante had suggested cooking out in the backyard since the weather wasn't terrible and he was tired of hearing complaints about all of the pizza they were eating, so Nero found himself outside with everyone else in the backyard.
"Are you sure you're not burning them?" Nero called out as he swung Red Queen around on the far side of the yard. Dante had insisted he was a master of the grill and could whip up burgers and hot dogs in no time, but so far no one was believing him.
"Yeah, it smells like a Hell Gate," Lady snorted from the picnic table where she was cleaning her guns.
"Don't tease him or you might make him burn it even worse," Trish scolded them playfully from the kitchen door. "I'm already concerned about it being edible as it is…" she added, earning herself a small giggle from Kyrie who was helping her make some side dishes to go with the meal.
"Yeah, well, I don't see you two doing anything useful," Dante shot back at both Lady and Nero, waving his spatula in a threatening manner. "Freeloaders don't get to complain."
Nero was about to reply when a somewhat faint crash sounded from inside the shop. He glanced up in the direction of the bedroom window for a moment before his gaze flickered over to Dante and was met with one of the hunter's rare serious looks. The teen supposed the hour of truth was upon them now.
"Hey Lady, take over the grill for me. I gotta go grab the guest of honor," Dante called out as he tore his gaze from Nero's. He tossed the huntress the spatula as she approached and hurried inside through the kitchen and disappeared from sight.
Nero bit his lip slightly but turned back to continue practicing with Red Queen to distract himself.
'Here we go…'
Vergil grumbled to himself as he braced himself on the bed and dragged his body up from the floor. He'd thought maybe he could get up and hunt for some clean clothes, but he'd had a small dizzy spell and promptly fallen over, taking out the lamp on the bedside table when we went down. He was frustrated; he'd been feeling so much better, but the devil just supposed it was part of getting all of his energy back. Vergil did feel a lot stronger than he had since waking up in the shop the first time, so he figured a little dizziness here and there was tolerable- at least it beat staying in bed all day.
"I think I'm gonna start charging you for all the shit you break around here," a familiar voice called out from the doorway a short while later.
Vergil growled slightly and flipped off his brother. Leave it to Dante to show up just in time to annoy him.
"I was looking for clothes. The lamp was in my way," the elder twin huffed, trying to retain a little dignity.
"Sure it was, bro. How about you just sit there and look pretty, and I'll find you something to wear," Dante replied with a snort as he entered the room and headed for his dresser. "Let's see what we've got…"
Vergil huffed quietly and folded his arms over his chest; there was no use arguing about it, not that he enjoyed being treated like an invalid.
"Here, it's not exactly up to your standards, but it's the only thing I've got right now besides red leather," the younger twin snickered and tossed over a pair of black sweatpants and a plain white button down shirt.
Vergil caught the offered clothes, only to be smacked in the face with a pair of fresh boxers. He growled quietly but accepted them nonetheless, though he had to smack Dante away when the other tried to help undress him. He was not going through that again if he could help it. It took a few minutes of struggling by himself, but he managed to get everything off and kicked aside so he could change clothes without any assistance.
"Hn… I suppose this is acceptable," Vergil muttered once he was fully dressed. He rolled the sleeves of the shirt up to his elbows and looked himself over. Definitely better than red leather.
"Yeah, now we just need to do something about your hair," Dante teased. "You look like a child cut it with a butterknife."
"Yes, well, I missed my last spa appointment before I decided to drop by for this lovely visit," Vergil snapped. He'd caught his reflection in the bathroom a couple of times, so he couldn't exactly deny he looked a little rough.
"Come on, let's clean you up a bit and I'll take you outside. We're cooking out, food's almost done. I'll help you shower before you go to bed tonight," Dante offered as he moved over to help him to the bathroom. "And yes, I'm sure you can do this all alone, but just let me help," he added before his brother could protest.
Vergil pursed his lips but nodded his agreement; he hadn't been able to shower as much as he'd normally like, and sitting in bed so much was making him feel sticky and sweaty and just over all gross and useless. The elder devil allowed his twin to gently support him, though Vergil managed to keep himself upright and moving mostly of his own accord.
Once inside the bathroom, Vergil was made to sit down on the closed lid of the toilet with a towel wrapped around his shoulders so he could get a much needed haircut. He was a little apprehensive about trusting Dante with the scissors, but he figured even his brother wasn't cruel enough to kick him while he was down, so he closed his eyes and let the other work his magic. The trim didn't take long, and Vergil was given a damp rag to wipe his face and neck down while Dante cleaned up the mess.
"Okay, lookin' good, bro. You ready to go outside?" Dante asked, leaving the question of, 'are you ready to meet your son,' unspoken but obvious.
Vergil bit his lip for a moment and stared at the floor. Was he ready? Not at all, but he couldn't keep hiding in the bedroom and refusing to face the facts. The worst that could happen would be that they didn't get along, at least, as far as he could figure. If that was the case then Vergil would just keep to himself and leave as soon as he was able.
"I believe I am," the elder twin replied after a while and allowed Dante to help him to his feet. The pair made their way slowly but steadily down the stairs and headed into the kitchen. The room was empty now, everyone else having moved outside to the backyard, and Vergil was grateful. It bought him a few extra seconds without the staring.
"It's bright…" Vergil murmured, shielding his eyes slightly. The clouds had come out, but the sun still had a good hour or so before it set.
"Oh shit, I forgot. One sec," Dante replied and left him leaning against the kitchen table as he hurried back into the shop. The younger devil returned just a minute later and handed Vergil a pair of sunglasses.
"I know it's not really your style… but unless you wanna stand here until the sun goes down, it'll have to do," Dante shrugged as he waited for his brother to put them on.
Vergil nodded and slipped on the glasses. He felt slightly ridiculous, but the relief was instant. He was about to respond when his stomach gurgled loudly and interrupted him.
"Heh, guess it's a good thing the food's almost done. I hope Lady didn't burn it," Dante snickered, conveniently leaving out that he was the one burning it.
"Why do I suspect she's a much better cook than you?" Vergil retorted as he allowed Dante to take his elbow for support again. "Let's just… get this over with."
Dante nodded and helped his twin out of the back door. The first pair of eyes he met belonged to Trish, who took the silent message and sat herself at the far end of the right side of the picnic table, farthest away from where Dante was going to put Vergil down. He had a feeling she wouldn't be welcomed as a seating buddy. The next pair belonged to Lady, who took the seat opposite of Trish on the left. The plan was to sandwich Vergil between her and Dante, just in case. Kyrie took the seat next to Trish on the right, leaving the very end open for Nero, whenever he was ready to sit. Speaking of the kid, Nero hadn't yet turned to face them, though Dante knew that he was aware of their presence.
Vergil's eyes roamed around the backyard, though he didn't comment on the seating arrangements. His gaze flickered over each face he saw, eyes narrowing just a bit as they passed over Trish. He didn't care what anyone said, he still didn't like her. The devil instead moved his attention over to Lady; he still hadn't had the chance to speak to her like he'd wanted to before she'd run off to get Dante. Vergil decided to save it for a more… private situation. The young woman he'd not met before, Kyrie he believed Dante had called her, looked a bit nervous but she was giving him a rather pleasant smile. Maybe she was tougher than she looked, especially to be hanging around this lot.
Vergil looked past the table and over to the boy by himself a bit away from the group. He could sense the tension rolling off of him from here, not that Vergil could say he was doing much better. It wasn't until they'd passed by the table that the elder twin realized that Dante was taking him over to Nero first. So, a slightly more secluded meeting it was then- Vergil supposed he was grateful for the tidbit of privacy for the moment. Sure, everyone else would probably see and hear everything, but with the bit of space between them and the table, the ladies could just pretend they didn't.
It seemed like in no time at all the pair arrived in front of Nero. Vergil took advantage of the fact that the glasses hid his eyes to look him over rather thoroughly, even though the boy wasn't facing them yet. White hair, similar build to when they were teens, and that arm… what was with that arm? From a distance before, Vergil had thought it was some sort of weapon, but up close it clearly wasn't. Maybe some sort of mutation?
"Okay, well… here we go," Dante spoke up after about two full minutes of awkward silence. "Kid, uh, Nero… This is Vergil, my brother, and your, uh… dad."
Vergil pressed his lips together in a thin line as Dante introduced him, and quickly took his sunglasses off. The fading light stung his eyes, but he'd rather deal with the pain than meet his son wearing those gaudy things. He hooked the glasses into the chest pocket of his shirt and tilted his head just slightly against the light as he watched the teenager in front of him slowly turn around to meet them.
Nero was terrified. He'd faced countless demons, the man who'd helped raised him, nearly lost Kyrie… but this was different. He knew he was hiding by pretending not to notice the pair while they were on their way over, but he couldn't help it. How did one prepare to meet the father they never knew, the father that was supposed to be dead? It would seem that he didn't have much time to figure it out, since Dante was introducing them right now.
Nero took a deep breath and slowly pivoted around to face them, feeling like someone was sitting on his chest as he came face to face with Vergil. The first thing he noticed were the older man's eyes. They looked the same as his, the same as Dante's even, but they were also different. He could tell Vergil was having a hard time not squinting in the light, but he still managed to pick up the differences. It wasn't so much the appearance, but more what he saw inside. They looked like tired eyes, eyes that had seen truly horrible things. But the expression they currently held was surprisingly firm and powerful- exactly like Dante had described.
The next thing he noticed was Vergil's hair. The standard "Sparda white" would probably be a fitting description. It looked like it'd been trimmed more to Dante's style than when he'd seen him last night. Nero could see the resemblance a little better now that the twins were side by side. In fact, if Vergil hadn't looked so gaunt and pale beside his brother, it might have been nearly impossible to tell them apart.
Ignoring how awkward it might be, Nero took the time to just silently observe the man before him for a little longer. Vergil was leaning slightly on Dante, allowing the other man to help support him, but it wasn't hard to tell that he didn't like it. Proud, too proud for his own good, it seemed, once again just how he'd heard the man was. Despite his slightly haggard state, it was impossible to deny the power that he held. Vergil reminded Nero a bit of a cat, crouched and poised to spring at any moment. He had no doubt that if he really wanted to, Vergil could probably find a way to take even Dante down right now if the situation arose. He seemed dangerous and mysterious, but Nero thought perhaps he sensed a little apprehension from him as well.
'At least I'm not alone in that,' the teen snorted inwardly.
Mustering more courage than he felt, Nero extended his hand in front of him. He wasn't going to ask for a hug-too awkward and not really his personality. Vergil didn't seem like the touchy-feely type either, thankfully.
"...Nice to finally meet you," the teen managed out as he waited for Vergil to shake his hand.
Vergil eyed the hand extended to him for just a moment before he reached up and grasped it in his own. The strange, slightly scaly skin felt a bit odd, but he decided to save his questions about it for later; no sense in offending the boy at their first official meeting.
"Likewise," Vergil replied as they shook hands for a brief moment. "I'm afraid I haven't heard much about you, besides your name," he admitted as he surveyed the teen a little more. Those eyes were all-too familiar to him- definitely related, and definitely putting a close to any suspicions that maybe Dante was wrong. "I take it you're a demon hunter as well?" Vergil continued.
He received a somewhat awkward looking nod from the boy and sighed. This was going splendidly. Either Nero was too afraid or to weirded out to really want to talk to him. It could be worse, he supposed.
Seeming to sense the tension, Dante let out an obviously forced laugh and rubbed his own stomach.
"Hey, how about we go ahead and eat? I'm sure the ladies are starving, and you guys can shoot the shit all night. Don't want Vergil to get sick now that he's finally up and about, he needs to keep his strength up and eat," Dante suggested.
Vergil nodded slowly, secretly grateful for the escape. This might have actually been easier if it was just him and the boy, but situations couldn't be helped.
The devil allowed himself to be helped by his brother over to the table, sensing Nero following behind. Dante steered him over to the young woman with the copper hair first so he could introduce them properly before they ate.
"Hey, Kyrie, meet my brother Vergil. Vergil, Kyrie. Be nice, she'll probably be your daughter-in-law one day," Dante announced with a grin, causing the girl to blush profusely.
"N-Nice to meet you, sir," Kyrie spoke up as she met Vergil's gaze despite her embarrassment.
"It's a pleasure, and I would be honored," Vergil replied, taking her hand and gently kissing the back of it for good measure. He earned himself an eye-roll from Lady for that and a snort from his brother, but he didn't care. The girl seemed like she was genuine enough, and it was nice to meet someone who seemed to have manners and class around here.
"Alright, stop showing off and sit the hell down," Dante chuckled and helped his brother to the other side of the table next to Lady.
Vergil slid into the seat easily, brushing his arm a bit against Lady's as he sat. Their gazes locked for a moment after the contact, and the devil quirked an eyebrow at her, giving her the slightest of smirks. Lady had never hid her distaste for devils, and he found he enjoyed watching the slightly confused expression morph into one of annoyance at his antics. It was a nice distraction from current events. Vergil slid his sunglasses back on as his brother slid in next to him and Nero took his seat across from Dante. He snuck another glance over at Lady, only to find her making a slicing motion across her neck as a warning if he tried anything. The motion made him snicker slightly, though he was soon distracted by the food being served.
The meal passed by relatively uneventfully, Dante seemed to make it his mission to be loud and distracting enough to keep things from being awkward. No one asked Vergil any personal questions, for which he was thankful, and the conversation was mostly kept light. His brother seemed to take pleasure in telling a few embarrassing stories about mishaps Nero had endured while hunting with him, and Vergil had to admit it was a bit entertaining. It seemed the boy wasn't quite as careful and collected as he was, but then again, the stories weren't half as bad as some of the stupid things Dante had done.
Vergil was a bit surprised to admit it to himself, but he was actually somewhat enjoying the night thus far. Even Trish's presence wasn't as grating as he'd been expecting, but then again, Dante had probably asked her to leave him alone. Occasionally he would glance over to Nero, catching the boy watching him a few times. He even attempted to ask a few questions, mostly just about things that Dante said about the boy, nothing too substantial. It wasn't until everyone was done eating and Kyrie and Trish had volunteered to clean up that Vergil was reminded of how awkward this situation truly was. Kyrie had pecked Nero on the cheek and murmured something to him before she disappeared with her arms full of dishes. Lady had excused herself not to help, but to grab some more drinks from inside, leaving him with just Dante and Nero.
"Hey, kid. Why don't you show Vergil some of your moves?" Dante suggested to Nero, drawing the elder twin's attention.
Vergil couldn't help but to think that the boy looked a little uncomfortable, but nodded his agreement anyways. He watched as the pair got up and headed over to where they'd been talking earlier, content to just observe from where he was for the time being.
Nero cursed silently to himself as he made his way over to his unofficial 'practice' spot. He had a feeling Dante was asking him to show off a little so maybe Vergil would be impressed or something and change his mind about Yamato, but it just didn't sound plausible to him. The man had been… civil enough, but that didn't mean Vergil was suddenly going to turn into father of the year and just let him keep something so important. They were still strangers as far as Nero was concerned.
The teenaged hunter shrugged off his apprehension as best he could and drew on the power of Yamato within him. The ethereal form that always manifested when he used the blade flashed briefly behind him as he triggered, and Nero inhaled sharply. It always jolted him when he did that. He wasn't really sure what to do, so Nero just decided to go through a few of the attacks he'd come up with after gaining Yamato's abilities. He concentrated his power, channeling it through Red Queen as he flung the blast outward. The X-shaped energy blast flew out in front of him, smashing into the scraggly trees at the end of the yard.
"Eh… whoops," Nero mumbled, awkwardly scratching the back of his head as he surveyed the destruction. The teen decided it was probably best not to do that again, so instead he channeled the power into a series of strikes that pulsed with the energy of Yamato, hitting nothing but thin air. It felt good to let the power flow through him, and Nero felt himself smile a little as he attacked imaginary monsters for a few minutes.
After a while, Nero stopped his attacks and put Red Queen on his back so he could draw his gun. He leveled Blue Rose in front of himself and fired a few shots, slinging the energy blades called 'Summoned Swords' towards the trees. It was the only real move he had that he knew of that resembled something of Vergil's, and he couldn't help but to feel slightly self-conscious as he glanced over his shoulder towards the man to see his reaction.
Vergil had been watching with interest as Nero went through a few of the attacks he knew. It was hard to look away, the power of Yamato was calling to him every time the boy drew on it. It made the devil clench his fists tightly, trying to keep himself grounded. He couldn't freak out like last night, he had to stay calm.
The odd rendition of his Summoned Swords attack was probably the most interesting, though Vergil noticed the boy did it using his gun. He wondered if it was something he had been taught, or if Nero just managed it by accident and kept doing it that way. The devil decided he'd had enough watching and rose from his seat, though as he did so he had a slightly devious thought. It might be fun to try and see how much his own power had regenerated and have a little fun at the same time.
Vergil took a breath as he began to concentrate his power, feeling it surge through him a little stronger than he expected. With a dark smirk the devil used his ability to basically teleport from his place by the table over to where Nero and Dante were. It felt like the wind had been sucked out of him when he stopped by the pair, but the marginally horrified look on the boy's face was worth it. Nero had made some sort of choking sound and stumbled back a couple of steps- the icing on the cake.
"Show off," Dante snorted as he shook his head. "I hope that makes you throw up."
Vergil smiled thinly at his brother, and sent a Summoned Sword at him for good measure. The blade was weak and slow, however, so Dante was easily able to dodge it and give him the finger at the same time. Definitely worth the effort.
"Eh, that was kinda cool…" a quiet voice spoke up, drawing Vergil's attention. Nero was looking at him slightly less scared and more intrigued- that was a start, at least.
"Hn, thank you," Vergil replied, somewhat stiffly. "I'm afraid I don't have the energy for a repeat performance right now though."
The teen shook his head at Vergil and seemed to fiddle with his gun for a moment.
"No worries," Nero mumbled and looked down to the ground. "So um, I suppose I should… give this back now," he added as his arm began to glow brighter.
Vergil watched, intrigued as the glow became hard for him to look at and then suddenly it was there: Yamato. Nero held the sheathed blade in his hands, and it had never looked more pristine. He couldn't even see any trace of the former damage the sword had suffered. It was a miracle.
The devil held his breath as he reached out, accepting the blade as it was offered to him slowly. He lifted it from Nero's hands as if it was made of glass, turning it over carefully to inspect it from all sides.
"Perfect…" he murmured, mostly to himself.
Vergil twisted the sword around a bit more, staring at it with such reverence that he knew he must look totally insane right now, but he didn't care. Yamato was the one constant in his life that had always been there for him until he'd foolishly let her be destroyed. That was never going to happen again as far as he was concerned; it would never leave his sight again.
The devil felt the familiar dark power of the sword surge through him, and almost as if following some primal instinct he grasped the sheath tightly in his left hand and hunched forward slightly. Vergil bared his teeth and drew the blade with lightning speed. He resheathed Yamato as he stood up straight and watched as the trees in front of them were obliterated in a series of slashes and dark energy that followed a second later.
Vergil grunted lightly and collapsed onto one knee, knowing now that he'd overdone it for sure. It didn't matter though, he had Yamato back in his hands.
Nero watched with wide eyes as Vergil all but destroyed the backyard. He had seen Dante do a similar move before with Yamato, but nothing that impressive, and Vergil could barely walk!
"Whoa…" he muttered, glancing down at Vergil. The man was hunched over, but he had a distinct smirk on his face. The teen assumed he must have been enjoying himself for the first time in a long time.
"Um, that was pretty sick," Nero admitted as he watched Vergil being helped up by Dante. His stomach twisted painfully as he caught sight of the white-knuckle grip the elder man had on Yamato. He knew he shouldn't be so disappointed, but he'd really grown to like the sword, and the almost comforting sense of power if provided him. Maybe they had that in common.
"Yeah, sick enough to keep this moron from being able to stand," Dante grunted as he supported his brother with Vergil's free arm draped around his shoulder. "I think maybe that's enough fun for tonight... " he continued and started dragging Vergil back towards the house. "I'll be back in a while, try not to break anything else," Dante called out over his shoulder. Nero just flipped him off and trekked back over to the table.
'I'm not the one who just broke all that shit anyways…' he groused to himself.
Vergil grunted quietly as he was helped inside, ignoring the stares of the women when they passed by. He had no doubt they had been watching from inside and just pretending to give them some privacy, but he didn't care. He might not be able to walk very well, couldn't really stand even, but he had all that he needed.
"Alright, how about we get you that shower?" Dante offered as he carted Vergil into the bathroom.
There was a bit of a struggled as Dante tried to make Vergil leave the sword, but eventually the younger twin relented. Vergil ignored the eye-rolling as he propped his sword up in the corner of the shower, still within arm's reach as he stripped and allowed Dante to help him in. He wasn't ashamed as his twin helped him wash, after all, they looked exactly the same and he wasn't about to hurt himself by slipping and falling- his regeneration wasn't up to speed yet. Luckily Dante seemed just as eager as he was to hurry up and get the shower done with, so Vergil was able to finish quickly and hobble back to the bedroom. He tugged on the fresh boxers and pajama pants that Dante had offered him, using one hand the entire time since the other held Yamato constantly. Once he was dressed, Vergil curled up in the bed, Yamato clutched tightly to his chest as he got comfortable.
"You're going to slice your own head off if you sleep like that," Dante scolded him, the look of disapproval not lost on his twin.
"Shut up," Vergil hissed and closed his eyes. He had slept so long earlier, but he was completely drained again from showing off outside.
"Hey Verge…" Dante started as he bent down to clean up the broken lamp from earlier.
"Don't," Vergil replied, already knowing he was going to say something about giving the sword back.
"...Tch, whatever," Dante replied with a snort. "Hey, thanks for not being a total dick tonight, I know the whole thing was probably really weird for you," he added as he scooped the majority of the mess up and tossed it into the small trash can by the bed.
"Hn… it wasn't all that unpleasant, I suppose," Vergil replied. He cracked his eyes open after a moment and rolled over to face his brother. "Do you think… well, what do you think he thinks? Of me?"
"The kid? Uh, well, I honestly don't' know. I was expecting to have to break up some kind of fight, so I wasn't really paying attention I guess," Dante admitted. "I didn't think you'd really be worried about it, how cute," he teased lightly as he stood up and dusted his hands off.
"Shut up, you curr. I'm not a totally heartless monster, you know," Vergil growled back.
"Coulda fooled me before," Dante snorted in response. "But I dunno, he seemed pretty… interested, in you. Maybe you guys can just hang out and talk or something later. In private, without all the pressure of everyone eavesdropping on you," he suggested with a shrug. "Don't stress over it too much. I think maybe tonight was enough overstimulation for the two of you. I'll prob take the kid out on a mission or something tomorrow so you can both relax without trying to play nice."
Vergil nodded his agreement, silently thankful for his twin's foresight. Tonight hadn't been terrible… but it had been highly stressful and Vergil didn't think he was ready for round two quite yet.
"Very well," he replied softly and closed his eyes.
" Okay, well, 'night Verge," Dante called out and headed out, closing the door quietly behind him.
"Goodnight…" Vergil murmured, snorting at his own domestic behavior. He never in a million years he'd be being tucked in and wished goodnight by his twin.
'Then again, I never imagined I'd be a father either,' he thought to himself.
The devil sighed heavily and tightened his grip on Yamato, the sword safely in its sheath and pressed against his chest as he felt himself falling asleep. He would try for Nero's sake to forge some sort of relationship with him, but he just couldn't, he wouldn't, give up the only possession he had left that meant anything to him.
