Emotional Support Demons
Disclaimer: Devil May Cry belongs to people who are not me. I am making £0.00 out of this fic; it is written purely because I had some Dante angst.
Rating: PG-13
Part: One of Two, maybe Three
Set: Post DMC5 - Several months after my fic Broken and Kinsukuroi.
Authoress note Vergil gets an emotional support demon or three.
Also references to the succubus is from my fic What Dreams May Come. It's not officially part of this series but meh, I like a little tie in now and then.
This was meant to be light-hearted I swear, but for some reason this series always ends up depressing and chatty.
For all my reviewers, who without I would have surely given up a long time ago.
Chapter Four
Nero's ears were ringing, and his vision was full of black spots.
As he regained his equilibrium, he felt the blood running down his face and spotted the blood-stained rubble at his feet. Typically, he had to get hit on the head with rocks.
As the ringing in his ears subsided, he could hear blades. Glancing up, he saw the back end of an enormous creature as it fled from Shadows' spinning form. Griffon flew after it, sending lightning ahead of him and screeching blue murder and glee.
"Up you get." Dante hoisted Nero to his feet and grinned.
"Aww, did baby boy get a bump on the noggin?" Griffon crowed as he circled back.
"Quiet bird," Nero snapped, wiping the blood off. "Before I look up casserole recipes."
"What was that? The guardian?" Dante looked to Vergil.
"Either way, it's in the way."
"Guardian?" Nero frowned. "As in tomb guardian or parental guardian?"
"I call the bounty." Dante grinned, pulling out his blade.
"There is no bounty, Dante." Vergil pinched his nose. "I'm here for the egg."
"Parental guardian then," Nero said.
"Egg?" Griffon said at the same time.
"Yes," Vergil's voice was tight. "I am taking the egg, if I'd have been able to come alone." He glared at everyone. "I could have come in, taken the egg unnoticed and returned here for another in a few months."
"But mama aint going to let you. So," Dante clapped his hands together. "I'm going to get the egg."
"The hell you are," Vergil snapped. "It's mine."
"I deserve it, it's my egg."
"You don't even know what it's for."
"It's for selling." Dante looked very proud of himself. "Sell it to your client, get the money, buy pizza."
"You are not buying pizza with my egg," Vergil snarled, but his anger felt forced. He was fighting not to smirk. Dante was making no effort to hide his amusement.
"Hey if the egg can be exchanged for money," Griffon said. "Then I can get more burritos!" Shadow yowled in agreement and stood facing the wrecked tunnel the creature had disappeared down. The cat's body language clearly signifying a desire to hunt.
"No way are you getting the egg," Dante said to both Griffon and Shadow.
"The egg is mine!" Griffon screeched.
All combatants turned to face Nero and stared.
"What the hell?" Nero shrugged. "The egg is mine."
"1,2,3…GO!" Dante shouted, and everyone erupted down the tunnel after the fleeing demon.
Nero had always been aware of the twin's tendency for competition, but what he had witnessed before had always had an unpleasant edge to it. This felt entirely different.
He held back and let them take the lead, watching as Dante tried constantly to trip his brother, at one point attempting to rugby tackle him, only to fail when Vergil teleported out of harm's way. Yet, Nero noticed Vergil did not teleport particularly far away. Instead, the older of the two moved only a little way ahead of his brother, slashed a cut into the air, opened a rip in space, and dodged to the left. Dante, who was right on Vergil's tail, had to put his breaks on hard enough that he went arse over tit but did not fall into the portal Vergil had tried to trap him in.
Nero stumbled when Shadow attempted to get under his feet and trip him.
"You cheating shit," Nero snapped, kicking out at the feline. Shadow took a moment to look far too pleased with itself before continuing the chase, turning itself into literal shadows to slip past the two high order demons in front of her.
Griffon was in the lead, Dante and Vergil being far too focused on tripping each other to notice they had lost the lead. Nero realised their distraction and used their it to get passed them when Vergil tackled Dante, sending them both spinning off to the side of the tunnel.
"Later losers," he hollered when he felt he was a safe distance away from the now warring brothers. However, his lead was short-lived when two devil triggered demons flew over his head. "Assholes!"
The two brothers dropped out of Devil Trigger and Dante turned while still running to hoot gleefully at Nero. Vergil used this opportunity to grab his brother's coat collar and fling him away. Nero watched as Dante sailed majestically over his head. He learned from Dante's error and did not stop to gloat. He concentrated on moving forward, not quite daring to overtake his father for fear of ending up inside a portal. He figured he could grab the egg once he reached whatever nest this thing had made.
The nest was housed inside a great cavern, the demon in question curled around it protectively. The demon was reptilian in the sense it had scales and its four legs were out to the sides of its body rather than beneath. Its face was feline, however, and it put Nero in mind of a lion when it roared at them and frills erupted around its neck, like a mane, only formed from kin rather than hair.
"Eat shit!" Griffon screamed at the demon and fired lightning. but either his aim was off or he wasn't aiming at the demon at all. His lightning came towards the opening they were all coming through. Shadow darted out of the way, Vergil teleported and Nero got a face full of red lightning.
The demon guarding its nest looked confused.
"You flying freak," Nero hissed, his hair gently smoking. "I'm going to pluck every single feather, one at a time, until you're bald!" he leapt towards Griffon only to fall to the side when Shadow hit him. He landed with the oversized cat on top of him. Shadow looked disoriented, as if it had been thrown rather than leapt at him intentionally.
"You bunch of butt grapes!" Nero heard Dante yell and figured he must have caught up with them.
Shadow stood and leap-t off of Nero and went for Griffon, pulling the bird out of the sky as it tried to squeeze itself under the lion-lizard demon to get to the egg.
Nero got to his feet and watched his father and uncle for a moment. Neither had drawn a sword. Instead, they seemed to be playing tag. occasionally bursting into a lower or higher demon form to flee or give chase.
Nero glanced at the lion-lizard demon that was watching him. It looked very confused. Nero shrugged and drew his blade.
"Guess I'm getting the egg," he muttered to himself and launched upwards, swinging his blade at the demon's eyes.
The demon wasn't difficult to defeat, though the fact it breathed fire caught Nero by surprise. He spent most of his fight with it trying to get Griffon to leave him alone long enough that he could get in a few easy hits.
By the time the demon fell, Nero's coat was singed, and he was breathing heavy. Griffon was lying in an exhausted heap on the floor and shadow was slinking round behind the demon's body nuzzling at the egg, trying to roll it away.
"Aww no you don't," Nero stepped forward and claiming his prize. "I killed the demon; I get the stupid egg." Shadow slumped down and stared up at him, eyes wide and brightly coloured. "That shit aint going to work, pussy cat. I still remember you biting me."
Nero turned and spotted Griffon, still just a bundle of feathers panting the phrase "time out" repeatedly.
Dante and Vergil were still fighting.
Nero sat down on the edge of the nest to watch. Shadow shuffled over and put its oversized maw in his lap. Nero absently started rubbing the cat's ears. Griffon looked up the moment Shadow started purring. The bird made a song and dance out of pulling itself to its feet and awkwardly walking over to Nero. it sat next to him and coughed. Nero snorted but put the egg between his feet to free up his hand to scratch at Griffon's head feathers.
"You two suck," Nero said.
"Don't forget to buy burritos," Griffon said. "You owe us. If we hadn't distracted the demon, it would have eaten you alive."
"Uhh huh." Nero laughed. "Sure, it would have."
"Do they know the fight's over?" Griffon said when a ruckus laugh from Dante reached them. Nero glanced at his uncle, who had somehow trapped his father beneath him and pin his arms. The pin lasted all of two moments while Vergil wriggled and got his legs between him and Dante and then used them to launch Dante away.
"I don't think so," Nero said.
Vergil got to his feet, grinning, and went for his brother again. Nero snickered at the two. It was like watching kids play. If the kids were actually overpowered, demon lords who had literal fire erupting from their skin.
"It's cute," Griffon said quietly.
"They're trying to kill each other," Nero said.
"Nah, you know aint true. This is a game." Griffon pushed his head harder under Nero's fingers. "It's nice to see them play." he glanced at Nero. "V had a weird sense of humour. He tried to play with us a bit, but he was way too fragile."
"He told me you stole his cane once."
"Yeah." Griffon chuckled. "Did you see Vergil chase me when I took the sword?"
"I did. You're lucky he didn't put you in a portal."
"I tried to get V to chase me once. But he couldn't. I think he wanted to, though." Shadow rumbled in agreement. "Yeah, he tried to be all serious and whatnot, but I think he's just as much a goofball as Dante is, maybe a different kind of goofball."
"He's a nerd," Nero said. A small rock flew over and hit him in the face. Barely a pebble, it didn't hurt.
"I heard that," Dante yelled. "No one says that but me."
"You just called me a haemorrhoid," Vergil panted, winded by the impromptu game.
"Like I said, only me," Dante grinned. "You have to throw rocks at him if he calls me names, though."
"I agree with Nero when he calls you name. They are accurate names," Vergil darted forwards, knocking his brother into a wall and following to pin him.
"So, mean," Dante said. Vergil muttered something a little too quiet for Nero to make out, but Dante laughed and grinned when Vergil let him go, so Nero figured it wasn't his business.
"Where's the egg?" Vergil walked over to Nero. He was a mess, his hair sticking up every which way, his entire body covered in cave dust and grime. But no blood. Dante came up behind him, throwing an arm over Vergil's shoulder. He was in much the same condition. Dirty but unharmed.
"What happened to mama?" Dante glanced at the demon corpse behind Nero.
"I won." Nero held up the egg.
"We helped!" Griffon said. "Nero agreed he couldn't have done it without us, and we're splitting the money." Shadow yowled in agreement.
"That sounds like bullshit," Dante said.
"Falsehood," Vergil said at the same time. Nero smiled and held the egg out to Vergil.
"Payment for letting us tag along. This was fun," he smiled. Vergil took the egg. Pulling the Yamato free, he cut a portal into the air, revealing Dante's shop. He placed the egg carefully through the portal and let it close.
"Uhh," Dante said. "You closed it before we could go through."
"You can walk home," Vergil turned and heading towards the exit.
"Hey wait, no way!" Dante chased his brother. Suddenly, he had a horrendous limp. "I'm terribly injured. I can't walk home."
"Walk Dante," Vergil called. Nero sighed and got to his feet.
"Come on, you two, we need to keep an eye on them."
By the time the group reached the stone circle and emerged back onto the moors of Bodmin, Dante had clambered onto Vergil's back and was being carried, due to entirely made up horrendous injuries. Griffon had landed on Nero's head and refused to get off. Only Shadow seemed happy to walk unaided. The oversized beast bounding out across the moor to chase sheep again.
"Please tell me you're going to portal from here?" Nero said.
"I think so, yes," Vergil sighed. Dante was snoring loudly and drooling onto his brother's shoulder. "This torment seems to have backfired."
"I won't tell him," Nero promised. Vergil nodded and awkwardly pulled the Yamato free before handing her to Nero. "Uh."
"Focus," Vergil said.
"I've never cut a portal."
"You had Yamato," Vergil raised an eyebrow. "She accepted you."
"Yeah, but I didn't know it cut portals!" Nero tried to give the sword back. Vergil shook his head and hoisted his brother more comfortably.
"Concentrate and picture where you want to go. She will resonate with you."
Nero took a deep breath and tried to picture Dante's shop. He remembered how it smelled, how his feet stuck to the floor in the kitchen. How comfortable the bar stools were, the way the pool table felt when he leaned on it. He felt the Yamato respond, the power in the sword almost vibrating.
"Cut," Vergil said.
Nero lifted the blade and slashed the air.
Then he threw up.
The entire world around him spun sickeningly, and his head erupted in pain and dizziness. his stomach cramped and for one horrifying second, he thought his bowels were going to move. He felt a hand gab his collar and suddenly he was weightless for a long moment before landing with a crash on the wooden floor of Dante's living room/office.
"Oh god," he moaned.
"Not bad." Vergil dropped his brother gently onto the sofa. Dante mumbled something and rolled onto his side, facing the back of the sofa. Griffon, who had detached himself from Nero at some point, flew over and settled himself on Dante's head instead. Shadow padded over and leapt onto Dante, squeezing itself onto the sofa with the demon hunter.
"Heavy," Dante grumbled.
"You did well," Vergil said. Nero felt a hand on his forehead but when he tried to open his eyes, his brain felt like someone was pushing big rusty pins into it, so he closed them. "You got a portal to the shop open long enough for us to get through, and you seem to still have your mind intact."
Nero really hoped Vergil was joking. Hadn't Griffon said V had a weird sense of humour?
Nero opened his eyes. And the shop was dark. He sat up abruptly and winced at the pain in his head, stomach, and back. However, the pain was nothing compared to what he remembered opening the portal. That was awful. He was never, ever, ever doing that again. How the hell did Vergil do that and make it look effortless?
Looking around, he noted the darkness. It was pitch black outside. Getting to his feet, everything trembled and attempting the stairs seemed impossible for just a moment. But Nero was determined, and one step at a time he got up to the first floor.
"And now beside thee, bleating lamb, I can lie down and sleep, or think on Him who bore thy name, graze after thee, and weep. For, washed in life's river, my bright mane for ever, shall shine like the gold, as I guard o'er the fold."
Vergil's voice was measured and calm as he read and Nero found himself getting lost in the words, for a moment losing focus on the residual pain he felt.
"Today was really fun." Dante cut in, ruining the peace. Though his voice was slow, like he'd been asleep. "I missed playing with you."
"Is that what you were doing?" Vergil said. "I was trying to kill you."
"I missed you trying to kill me. Dante's voice was muffled, as if he was talking into a pillow.
"We should do it more often," Griffon said.
"I agree," Vergil said. Nero pushed open the door.
They were sitting in Dante's king-sized bed. Well, Vergil was sitting up, pillows bunched up behind him, blanket pulled up to his waist and a book open in his lap. Dante was lying down, one arm thrown over Vergil's waist under the book. His face was buried in his brother's side. Shadow was longing across the foot of the bed. Griffon sat on the headboard.
"You all are having a party?" Nero said.
"I went to bed," Vergil said.
"We followed," Griffon crowed. Shadow flick its tail hitting the book.
"Very well," Vergil turned the page, then looked up at Nero. "Join us?" Nero frowned at the bed. Vergil elbowed Dante, who was breathing soft and heavy with sleep. Dante snorted awake and, blinking, shuffled over. Vergil followed suit, creating space for Nero.
"I still feel like shit," Nero mutter clambering into the bed with his family, forcing his feet under Shadow and leaning back onto the headboard, feeling Griffon pulling at his hair for a moment.
"Cutting portals is draining and required focus and talent," Vergil said. "You'll get better."
"I don't want to try again," Nero said. "At least for a little while." Vergil stared at him for a long moment before giving a small shrug and turning back to the book.
"I have no name; I am but two days old. What shall I call thee? I happy am,
Joy is my name…"
End Fic
Thank you for reading, please review, I'd love to hear what you think of the chapter.
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