#but vergil will get *that look* if you try to pet him when he did not initiate

[elder-dragon-93]

Legit some of the best characterizations I've seen are when a character is basically a human (or half-human) shaped cat.

Cloud, Sephiroth, and Genesis

Ardyn and Noctis

The Sparda Boys

The Elric Brothers

Most of the cast of Katekyo Hitman Reborn

Sasuke... when he's not being a total cunt

I'm sure there are plenty of others floating around in my head but DMC and FFs VII and XV have eaten my brain recently so these are the examples that have managed to stay stuck in my head.

Honorable Mention goes to Toothless, who while not human, is definitely cat-coded.

[icycoldninja]

Just for shits and giggles:

Headcanons for the Sparda boys and V as host club hosts? Platonic/sfw business only.

Sure here ya go--this one was a lot of fun to write.

Sparda boys + V x Reader as club hosts headcannons

¤ Dante ¤

-Dante is a terrible host.

-He completely forgets that he had customers in the first place and just runs off to a back room with all the alcohol and nearly all the food.

-If you manage to catch him in the act, confiscate any stolen items and get him to return to his duties, he will do so, reluctantly.

-Then he proceeds to get all the customers drunk as hell and challenges every last one of them to a dance off.

-Those who are not as inebriated as he is (or happen to have a few shreds of common sense left) will either pay their tab and leave, or will take advantage of the commotion and just leave without paying anything.

-The night ends with a destroyed club, several passed out guests draped over the furniture, and a pantsless Dante asleep in a closet wearing a drink stained Dr. Faust all while cuddling a bottle of whiskey.

■ Vergil ■

-Vergil is more like a strict grandpa than a welcoming host.

-He greets customers very dryly and glares at them the entire time, making them feel extremely uncomfortable.

-He presents the menu like an emotionally dead professor gives a presentation. Everything is perfect, clean, precise, and well-explained, except the whole thing lacks any cheer or friendliness. The customers begin to wonder if they're even wanted here.

-While customers eat, Vergil patrols the club; he is supposed to be providing guests with attention, and accomplishes this task, albeit differently.

-He keeps his eyes on the customers at almost all times, staring at them so intensely, they can feel his gaze pierce their souls.

-The guests eventually pay their tab and leave quietly, but they did not enjoy this experience. It was terrifying.

□ Nero □

-Nero is best host in the entire clan of Sparda.

-He's funny, greets the guests with gusto, and is great at scaring away creeps who prey on the other waiters/waitresses.

-He's not the best at giving presentations so he kinda fumbles the menu, but people don't mind, they're just enjoying the vibrant atmosphere of the club.

-Eventually, Nero's social battery runs out (he's an introvert, remember?) And he goes to recharge in the break room.

-People don't really notice his absence and carry on, enjoying the food and company of the other staff.

-The night ends with pleased guests who will most certainly be returning for more.

● V ●

-V is a very awkward host.

-It's not that he's incapable of eloquent speech, no, it's because he can't maintain eye contact for very long and gets nervous when people look at him.

-That, and his whispery, barely audiable voice makes it very hard for guests to understand him, much less feel comfortable around him.

-After a few moments of anxiously avoiding everyone's gaze while trying to explain the menus, V retreats to the break room and begs Griffon for help.

-Griffon agrees to help him by whispering guides into his ear, and it works!

-The night ends with happy customers who can't wait to come back and see their favorite awkward waiter with the cute pet birdie.

[rodeoxqueen]

Hiya! I was wondering if you could possibly write a piece (hc or fic, you choose!) where the reader confesses her feelings for Dante, only to get rejected...BUT Dante does like her but says no because she’s only a human and doesn’t want to see her getting hurt with all of his demon hunting business. Could have a happy or sad ending, up to you! Thanks so much for taking time out of your daily life to do this! I’m a writer myself and it can be quite tedious, so kudos to you!

Somebody Else’s; Nobody’s

Dante/Reader

I hope you liked this. I’ll lend you a handkerchief once you’re done crying. 

Yee-Haw, I’m Evil. 

-Rodeo 

Tags/Warnings: Angst, Unrequited But Actually Requited Love, AFAB Reader, Minors Allowed, SFW, Bittersweet Ending, References to 1975′s Somebody Else and Mitski’s Nobody

You were so hopeful, looking at Dante with those starry eyes. He always knew you gazed at him like that when he wasn’t looking. 

He knew you liked him, hands brushing against his, your heart beating faster when he approached. 

You were nice to him and you laughed at his jokes. Maybe a little bit too much. Maybe he was that funny. 

But the day you walked up to him and asked him to talk privately, he already knew what it was about. 

Your heart was pounding faster than he could even count your beats and your form gave off scents of fear and anticipation. 

“Yeah sure, let’s talk.” He said casually, trying to bring down your pacing heart. 

And when you told him how you felt about him, he already knew what he had to say. 

“Dante, I genuinely like you as more than friends. I like you a lot and I was wondering if you felt the same.” His face, he didn’t mean to look so stone-faced when he heard what you said. 

“Yeah (Y/N). I’m sorry. I just don’t feel the same way.” And with that, he swore he could hear your heart shatter to pieces and your face tried so hard not to give away the tears in your eyes. 

God. He was the worst. 

“We can still be friends though?” He offered, patting you on the shoulder, ice blue eyes gazing into yours. 

“Yeah, yeah. Of course, Dante,” You said, voice quieter than before. 

It was awkward, you turned and went away. With your back facing him, he dropped his facade as you left the shop, leaving into the night. 

Grin put aside, he sighed. Did you know what you did to him? Did you look both ways before you crossed his mind every waking moment. 

“I like you a lot too.” He mumbled, his poor human heart panging with your own. But he deserved it. He deserved what he put the two of you through with his answer. 

With his lie. 

He almost wants to call you back, his hand almost reaching out as a reaction. He clenches his fist and hits the table, a resounding echo of his grave choice ringing through the rafters. 

But he knew that was what he had to do. You were human, he was subhuman, half a man but all the demon. 

What if you did stay with him? Demons and all the like would hunt you down, and he’d fall apart. 

He couldn’t do that to you. You deserved safety and someone who could provide for you. Not him, this half-demon with a falling apart shop and all the issues. 

You stopped coming around as often. Why would you? After a brief period of pretending things were fine, Dante watched as you decided to give the two of you space. 

Dante tried not to care, knowing how hurt you must have been. You deserved peace from him. 

You walked away for your own peace, but you also walked into somebody else’s heart. 

Dante should have known when he smelled another human while near your presence. He already knew with the look in your eyes as you smiled at your phone whenever a text message showed up. He already knew with the look you gave him. He knew that there was somebody else. 

And when you showed up to his office to talk, somebody else’s sweater on your form, he bit back his hackles, his inner demon screaming. 

You deserved this. Somebody else who wouldn’t loop you into his problems, his danger. 

The tides had changed. Where you once barely kept your head above the waters, keeping your yearning to yourself, Dante had now let his own waves consume him. 

The ring on your finger was the anchor to his sinking ship. You tried not to make it obvious, but Dante knew as soon as you walked in. 

“Cute ring. It a promise ring or something?” He joked. You shook your head. 

“I’m getting married, Dante. That’s what I came to tell you.” You softly said. Your eyes widened as he hugged you. 

“Look at you! Gettin’ hitched.” He joked, watching as you hit him lightly on the shoulder with that pink flush on your face. 

But it wasn’t there because of him, it was there at the thought of somebody else.

“There better be pizza there.” He chuckled emptily, taking the RVSP from your hand. 

“Thank you, Dante.” You said. Those same ice-blue eyes you used to gaze at all day met yours with this intensity he hid from you for all this time. 

“Anything for you.” He stated. The two of you looked at each other, a split second of recognition that Dante wished would bring back those feelings you felt for him, and the feelings he felt since then. 

You patted his shoulder with a smile. 

“You’re a good friend, Dante.”

You would never know how he felt, and he let himself sink under. 

And he drowned all until the wedding. 

On that day, Vergil adjusted Dante’s tie for him before he left the door. 

“Of course you know how to tie a tie, you ascot wearing geezer.” Dante jeered, his grin not meeting his eyes. Vergil spared him a glance. 

“It is not wise to lose yourself in this facade.” His brother muttered. 

Dante nodded and sighed. 

“I know.” 

Dante was fine for the most part. But when he realized how beautiful you were, just from where he sat, he began to break as you made your way to your engaged. 

He couldn’t stop looking at you. 

Oh god. When your vows were done being exchanged, his last chance of telling you appeared before him. 

“If anyone can show just cause why this couple cannot lawfully be joined together in matrimony, let them speak now or forever hold their peace.”

This crouching demon, under his flesh, began to writhe after ages of festered emotion.

Tell her you love her, don’t let her go. Object you stupid bastard! She is ours. It is not too late!

His demon roars and thrashes in his human heart and shakes his ribs like the bars in a jail cell. 

You Coward! Don’t you love her?!

Dante winced and closed his eyes. His nails dig crescents into his palms. 

I love her, yeah, I fucking love her. 

I love her so much I would do anything to go back and say that I love her. That I love her and it’s at the right time. 

I’ll love her and I’ll mean it, and I’ll never lie again. 

He grits his teeth and sits in his turmoil at the pews. 

God! I love her.  I love her laugh. I love when she puts her hand on mine. 

I love when she smiles. I love when I make her smile.

I love that when I’m with her, I don’t hate myself. I love that she is home to me, that Devil May Cry is warmer with her there. 

I love her so much that I want to fucking burn myself alive for rejecting her. 

God, she looks so beautiful right now. 

I love her. 

I Love Her. 

I love her…..

The crescendo of the organ piano strikes a grave note as he makes his final decision.

His eyes open and he watches her embrace her human lover, her white veil framing the look of adoration in her gaze. 

And now I have to let her go. 

She kisses somebody else and she is dipped in somebody else’s loving arms. Dante feels his own heart fall as he rises to stand and clap for her. 

He has no choice but to rejoice. 

And he claps and he cheers and he whistles in joy. 

He has lost himself in celebrating for her. 

She will have a honeymoon that she always ranted to him about having, she will move into a nicer place, she will be loved, and she will be warm. She will have children and pets in her home. She will be safe. 

She will have a family and be embraced-

In somebody else’s arms. 

He is a selfless man, and in this time of heartbreak, he has lost himself completely in the killing euphoria that she is no longer his. 

She is somebody else, and she is somebody else’s. And he is nobody’s once again. 

A devil may cry, and yet he smiles through his tears, alone in a crowd of people. 

[alighieri-sparda]

I’m keeping your promise | Vergil x Reader

Summary: Vergil promised he would see you soon. But you got tired of waiting for him.

Kindly requested by @blackenedskykai​ ♡ | Masterlist | Rules | Read on AO3! 

Hello, Kai! I missed writing your requests, my dear. They are always so nice to write down the first ideas and complete it, so thanks a lot! Hope to see you here again. ♡ This prompt didn’t exist on the original list, but I wrote it anyway because your idea is amazing (and very cute!).  And... I’m sorry for the delay, again. xD 

By the way, I made some changes to my posting pattern. Let me know if you liked it or if you have any suggestions.

- - - - - - 

These warm sheets were no longer effective in keeping you comfortable. You tried to relax your body and mind once you decided to rest your back in some pillows and read a book, but it was all in vain. Your mind quickly diverted your attention out from those old written words in your book, of which you couldn’t understand any of the meaning they were trying to convey, no mattered how many times you read the same sentences.

To make that situation even worse, your kitty Shadow suddenly showed up, crawling her little claws on the mattress and meowing to get your attention. That little black cat was probably wanting something from you.

You sighed, taking that chance to finally give up on your attempt to read that book. Shadow kept her constant meow until you got that little feline body in your hands, gently carrying her in your arms to pet her in the bed.

“You’ve been so noisy those days, Shadow.” You softly baby-talked to her. Your heart melted in love when Shadow started to purr, slowly blinking that little green eyes to enjoy your coziness. “What do you want, hm? Tell me.”

But she suddenly started to gradually shake her body in your arms in a silent ask to break free from your touch. You frowned in confusion, but you quickly understood what was going on with her once you noticed what she did when she left your arms.

She arranged herself on Vergil’s side of your shared bed, resting her little body on his pillow.

“Oh… Yeah, Shadow, I miss him too.” You murmured, petting her head again.

This situation made you remember the promise Vergil made to you before he went to his office two days ago: “Don’t worry, I’ll see you again soon.” Having Vergil with you every day, living and sleeping together at the same apartment became part of your routine already; so, you were pretty used to see Vergil constantly busy. But you never got accustomed to dealing with the lack of his presence when he needed to go to his office at Devil May Cry.

It all started because of research that Vergil needed to do for a job that Dante recently accepted. You held back your complaints when you first heard Dante asking for his brother’s help, but Vergil knew that you were bothered about that. Therefore, before he left, he kissed your forehead and promised those words in a soft tone.

But you got tired of waiting for him.

Before doing anything, you checked the time. It was still early at night — it wouldn’t be awkward if you showed up at the shop at six, right? — and Dante wasn’t accepting any customers after 5 PM anyway. The shop wasn’t that far from your house though, so it wouldn’t take you more than ten minutes to be there safely.

And once you were sure that you wouldn’t bother anyone going there now and that the time was safe enough for you to walk the streets alone, you quickly got out of your bed and started looking for some clothes to deal with the cold outside.

Shadow seemed to guess that you were about to see Vergil and went behind you, following your steps with her little fleet-footed paws. She was meowing again, but this time, she sounded almost happy to you.

“Don’t worry, little one.” You smiled at the kitty right behind your feet as she meowed back. “I’ll let him know that you miss him too.”

 […]

 Just like you expected, you arrived at Devil May Cry in ten minutes. Along the way, you became more and more anxious as you were getting closer to the shop; and once you knocked twice on the front door, your heart raced at full speed. You knew that Vergil wouldn’t answer the door, and it made you feel even more impatient to see him.

You felt your body even colder than before, and an intense shiver ran down your spine to remember your condition. Not only because you were feeling anxious, but also due to the cold weather. Although you were wearing a comfortable coat and jeans, a scarf, gloves, and boots, they didn’t seem to be enough to keep you warm.

“We’re closed!” You heard Dante’s voice shouting from inside the shop.

“It’s me, Dante!” You answered his warning in a happy tone. When you finished your sentence, you immediately heard quick footsteps coming from the inside and getting closer to the door.

“[Name]?” He asked when he opened one of the doors, only wearing sweatpants — you knew Dante didn’t feel cold due to his demonic blood, but you couldn’t help being surprised. He clearly wasn’t expecting anyone to visit him. You also noticed Dante was happy to see you but seemed sort of confused as well. “Good evening, pretty human. Lost your way back home?” He grinned at you, resting his weight on the door.

You laughed back. “Good evening, Dante. I… came here to see someone, actually. Hope you don’t mind me.”

“Nah, don’t worry. It’s always good to see you here.” Dante moved aside, silently asking you to enter the shop. “Come inside. You’ll freeze out there.”

You stepped inside the main hall and took a deep breath when you felt a sudden warmth embrace your cold body. The room was quite dark, the only intense light was coming from Vergil’s office, passing through the door openings. Dante closed the front door behind you and started making his way back to his bedroom.

“His office is unlocked; I just spoke to him.” Dante yawned, lazily stretching his body. “That nerd is damn focused on his books so take care not to scare him.”

He winked at you before locking himself in his room again. “Or maybe not.”

And then Dante closed his bedroom door, leaving you alone in the hall.

Spending no more time, you took some quiet steps towards Vergil’s office door. You even raised your hand to knock on the door once you got in front of it and announce that you were about to join him, but you abruptly prevented yourself from knocking on it.

It would be way more fun if you just surprise him, right?

To be sure you wouldn’t get caught before the right time, you gently held the door handle and moved it down as carefully as you could, pressing the door with your weight to open it gradually. When your gaze caught the sight of Vergil, you realized that Dante couldn’t be more certain about what he said: Vergil he was standing in front of a bookshelf, his back to the door, clearly interested in what he was reading.

You closed the door behind you with your feet as your body quietly slid into the room. When you noticed that Vergil didn’t move anything but his fingers to go to the next page of his book, a content smile crossed your face. He was probably going to be sort of annoyed because you went there alone, but you needed to keep the promise he made to you.

After some steps, you were finally close enough to Vergil. You thought of hugging him from beside and try to support your head on his shoulder at first — and you were going to need to stand on tiptoe to do so —, but you were just a few steps from his face. And when you realized that, a better idea crossed your mind.

This time, you didn’t even worry about not making any noise. You placed a hand over his arm, and before he could react to it, you finally faced him, cupping his face with your other hand and finally kissing his lips. You needed to stand on tiptoe anyway since Vergil usually curves his body a bit to kiss you, but you didn’t mind it at all.  

Although you could feel a little surprised gasp coming from him, Vergil just replaced the book back on the shelf whilst he joined your kiss properly, holding his arms around your waist to bring you closer to him. The cold sensation of anxiety started to leave your body, relaxing your muscles as you enjoyed the taste of Vergil’s lips again.

It was only an extended peck, but the sensation of his soft and warm lips over yours was pleasant enough for a ‘hello’ kiss.

Vergil was the one who separated the kiss. He looked at you with a soft smile on his lips, yet he frowned his eyebrows.

“What are you doing here, [Name]?” He asked softly, brushing his fingers through your hair.

“I’m keeping your promise, Vergil.” You touched his lips with yours again, but quickly this time.

“Excuse me?” He seemed genuinely confused.

“You promised me you’d see me soon, but I got a little impatient and decided to keep this for you.”

He chuckled.

“I see. I was expecting to finish the research tomorrow morning, but I think I’m finishing it tonight… With your help, of course.” Vergil winked at you, and couldn’t help but giggle when you grumbled at his words.

He left your hair and started to caress your cheek with his thumb, knitting a brow as he felt your skin colder than normal compared to the temperature of the place.

“Why are you that cold? Are you sure you were wearing this scarf since you left home?” His tone was concerned, even though it sounded almost like a complaint.

“I took ten minutes to get here, and it’s really cold outside. But it wouldn’t stop me from seeing you.” You sighed. A sudden wave of desire sprawled through your body, and you couldn’t help hugging the man in front of you, missing his embrace. He quickly realized that and held you tightly. His lovely warmth comforting your body made you sigh cheerfully. “I missed you.”

“I’m sorry to keep you waiting, love.” He kissed your head, leaving his lips barely over your hair. “But don’t expose yourself like that again, okay? I wouldn’t like to see you in danger just because I took too long to come back home.”

This sentence of his proved that you were right about his discomfort about you going there all alone, but you didn’t expect him talking about that in a so gentle tone.

“I will always keep that promise to you, [Name]. No matter how long it takes, I will always come back. Don’t worry.” His whisper sounded like he was speaking from the bottom of his heart. He spoke to you sincerely a few times during your relationship, and you could tell that was another one of them.

You stepped back only to kiss him again. You knew that you were going to read a lot of old books to help him with his research, so you wanted to enjoy that moment as much as you could. This kiss wasn’t different from the previous one, but this time, Vergil held you even closer, with one hand holding your waist and the other touching the backside of your neck.

You took a bit longer to separate this kiss. Both you and Vergil could stay like that for hours, but he still had some work to be finished.

“Guess it’s time to read some books.” You giggled.

“Precisely.” Vergil grinned at you, finally breaking the embrace completely to go back to the book he was reading. “I’m not far from finishing it though, so I think we’re coming back home in one hour.”

“I hope so, because Shadow is missing you as much as I was.” You quickly checked out the content of his book by looking at its cover and then started to look for some similar ones. “She has been such a noisy kitten since you left. Probably calling for you.”

You heard a heartened hum coming from Vergil. That little black kitty was a weak spot of Vergil as much as you were, and you knew that pretty well.

“Dante needs some help with old demonic rituals. Better check that another bookshelf, because I want to see Shadow tonight.” He explained, pointing to the shelf beside which he was standing.

While you were searching for the right books on the shelf Vergil pointed, you couldn’t stop thinking about what Vergil said to you. Well, now you were sure that he would keep his promise at any cost.

You smiled unconsciously. Although you couldn’t see it, Vergil was doing the same.

[dmcimaginess]

Hello :3 Can you write headcanons about Vergil, Dante and V after losing s/o (killed by demons)?

Ohh i love me some good ol’ angst. You know what? I’m going to write it with the s/o dying in front of them.

While writing this, i’m listening to The Guardian, by Shawn James, if you want to get into the mood(?

TW for death and some gore i guess?

-------------------------------

Vergil:

It was a half-a-second slip of the finger. He was too foolish, too confident in your abilities to think that such thing could happen. But his eyes flash towards you immediately after he hears yoru cry and sees blood flowing from a very obvious fatal wound on your torso. Instantly activating his Sin Devil Trigger, he demolishes the demons surrounding you, making the one that killed you suffer a bit before ending his life. He just falls on his knees after, by your side, his Devil Trigger deactivating. He looks at you and is hesitant to take your hand. If he couldn’t already tell by your emotionless expression, he confirmed your death when he felt no pulse. He dissociates right then. He doesn’t hear or see anything other than the recent memory of your scream and your corpse. He didn’t have a chance to save you, or a chance to say goodbye. He is cursed by his weakness.

After losing you, he becomes one 100% colder, and his pursue for power begins to ache on his heart once again. He was so close of starting to get through his traumas, and this is basically going back to square 1. You haunt his dreams, right beside his mother.

Dante:

You were one of the thoughest people he knew, even if you didn’t think so of yourself. So seeing a your chest being pierced through and through by a Proto Angelo’s blade is the last thing he tought he would see. He rushes to you immediately, activating his Sin Devil Trigger like his borther, killing all of the demons as fast as he can. He deactivates his Devil Trigger and kneels by your side, shushing you and trying to press on the wound, as you cry and try to say words that only come out as gurgles of blood. ‘It’s ok babe, you are going to be fine, don’t speak.’ But he knew you weren’t going to make it. He then gives up trying to fix the unfixable, and softly holds you in his arms as he soothes you, seeing the life drain from your body slowly. Even after you are long gone, he just stays there, kneeling with your body in his arms.

He tries to keep up the facade, being ‘normal Dante’. But there was something everyone noticed. The tone on his voice. The acid and sarcastic replies and comments. The way he fought every demon as if he held a personal grudge against them. And he did. First his mother, then you. The world is a cruel place, isn’t it?

V:

His eyes open wide as plates as he rushes towards you, not making it in time to avoid a demon cutting you right in half. He feels like time slows down, has he sees your upper body falling after your limp lower body. ‘Go ahead, we got this!’ says Griffon to V, as Shadow, him and Nightmare fight off the enemies while V approaches you shakily, not knowing what you do as he sees your expression full of despair and pain , tears and blood on your face. He caresses your cheek with a trembly hand, and pets your hair, trying to make your passing as less painful as possible, despite the circumstances. You don’t take much time to pass, and he just is left kneeling beside your divided body, staring at nothing, feeling numb and dissociating on another level. ‘V!’ He hears as from far away. ‘V!’ This time Griffon’s feet shakes him off of his stupor, ‘We need you to finish them off, we can’t hold them any longer!’ And he does so. He does so with such an unrelenting fury that he wishes he could make every demon suffer for all eternity.

He is obviously more gloomy after your death, he won’t care to hide it. He is colder and even more quiet. He feels even more powerless. Maybe if he was in his full prime, he would have been able to...no. He can’t afford the time to think about such things. He has a duty to fulfill, but your death is now a heavy chained-ball in his ankle, making it harder and harder to take every step, and every breath.

-------------------------------------

-Lettuce

[spoiler1001]

Nightmares and Reunions Pt.1

V knew he fucked up. He had no substantial demonic power, besides the power he siphoned from the Nightmare. He had his honor code. Apparently, that was a part of his humanity. All of his monstrous traits were congealed and currently digging a portal to hell. And not for the first time. V knew that to learn from their mistakes was to be human, apparently to repeat and to make mistakes worse was not. He was digging a rock bottom from a palace far below what his ego was once convinced was rock bottom. It was exhausting. V could feel the fatigue building in his bones. It was emotionally difficult to hunt down Vergil’s nightmares to gather strength to fix his mistakes. Those same mistakes lead Dante to go missing.

It’s been days since Dante first went missing. He obviously lost. The all-consuming lust for power that Vergil carried was too much for Dante’s heroic way of being. If Dante was truly lost, then so was the rest of the world, provided Nero also failed or lost the will to come back.

If Nero actually managed to come back it would impress V, but Nero didn’t seem like the type to back down to V.

Nero was too identical to V and Dante when they were younger when the tower grew. Dante looked so different now. He could have been Nero’s father. Even in V’s withered state, V could sense the blood of Sparda in Nero’s Veins.

V swallowed down regret for hurting family he didn’t even know he had. If he had waited and recovered there would have been a later time to challenge Dante. Hindsight was a curse that burned at V like an acid. This push for power cost V something far more precious, over and over again.

“My, My V. Normally I’ll catch you moping about Mommy dearest; but this time you’ve had your mind on a pretty lady.” Griffin made himself apparent. V had forgotten that they were. V felt his jaw clench. It was true. He lost a trusted friend because of his own actions. The memory surrounding their goodbye was bitter and angry. He regretted his words to her. He insulted her, and then she was gone.

“Oooh, a touchy subject. I do love those.” The bird ducked his head and flapped his wings to shift the feathers. V hated the fact that the creatures of dreams were connected to his mind. Griffin hissed out some laughter at that passing thought.

“Let’s… try not to awaken all of my ghosts. Some deserve some rest.” V whispered, running his fingers over the spine of this book. He could still taste the bitter words of condescension before she vanished. Shadow bumped his head under V’s hand, trying to comfort him.

It was late. The moon was in the sky and he was still very exhausted. It was weighing under his skin.

V came to a stark realization that was true for a long time. Maybe since his mother had died. V was lonely. Maybe sleep brought clarity to his mind. Or maybe the nightmares stripped him to his bare essentials and loneliness was the front and center. Maybe his emotions were twisted like the armor, which formed the very demons he fought with. It quelled V’s helplessness for a time being or at least weaponized it. V knew that his facsimile of magic imbued others with the sense of fear and panic that he woke up with. That transfer seemed to help him deal.

Sleep was hard to come by. V was not used to being so vulnerable that it affected him being able to get rest. The nightmares that melted onto him didn’t help matters.

It was a new personal tragedy every time he closed his eyes. This time it was of clowns and distant laughter.

“You’ve taken a trouncing, haven’t you Vergil?” a mocking voice rang out from his mind. A thought rushed through his mind: was this the same voice that-

V woke to a face appearing above him. The light and his own eyes coming into focus prevented him from seeing the face in its entirety. He could make out blonde hair, blue eyes,and freckles across the nose. Something was covering her mouth and chin. Her eyes were boring into him.

V recognized her immediately. “Either I’ve lost my mind or in my final moments the divine has sent me beautiful memories as I take my last breath.” V whispered and gave her a shy smile.

The woman gave a deep breath through her nose.

“Both are debatable.” She said on the exhale. V reached up to her face, the back of his hand brushed gently against her cheek. She flinched for half a moment before her eyes softened.

“YOu look terrible.” She said painly. She pulled herself out of his reach. V felt panic build up in his chest, but he swallowed it down. He pushed himself into a sitting position, allowing him to see her more clearly. His muscles were sore and it shocked him awake, meaning she was really here, unless dying was more painful than he had been led to believe. She was wearing a black scarf over the bottom of her mouth, but she still looked just as young as she did last time he saw her.

“I thought you were dead.” V stated. It was surely an icebreaker if he heard one.

“Wipe that guilt off of your face; we can’t change the past.” Her voice was not as harsh as the words she used would suggest. Alice ran her fingers through her hair, it was shorter than it was last time he saw her and tied up in a practical ponytail.

It was difficult to discern her figure, despite her skintight jeans with dark sneakers. It was probably because she was wearing a men’s suit coat, green in color. It was worn not by the sleeves, but by a silver chain on the top of the lapels. She wore it like a cape and it was almost down to her mid-thigh. It made the blue in her eyes pop.

Vergil could see bits of Nero in her face. The boy had her eyes and his face had her round cheeks. The anger in both of their eyes mirrored each other.

“How did you find me?” V tore his eyes away from her.

“Word tends to spread about a fucking talking bird, Vergil.”

That answered that. Honestly V hadn’t considered that the bird would catch someone’s attention. Plenty of people’s pet birds talked. He took a breath and rephrased his question. “Why did you come looking for me?”

“Because Dante told me you died and you popped up fine and dandy.” She pinched the bridge of her nose.

“It appears we were staring down the same abyss.” V found himself back to watching her face. Griffin was still external, but was yelling at him inside V’s mind. Both human and demon knew that she was angry.

“No. I grieved; I moved on. I Just want to know why you ripped off Nero’s arm.” Her voice dropped an octave and almost growled at him.

“It was not my finest moment,” V admitted.

“It might actually be your stupidest and think about how high that bar is.”

“I wasn’t thinking.”

“Obviously.” She scoffed.

“I didn’t know he was your son.”

The air was sucked out of V’s makeshift shelter. She froze and got quiet.

[ps-i-dont-even-know]

Devil may cry headcanons

You know I wasn't expecting you put a lot of Kyrie stuff in this one but I couldn't help it. Also there's dadgil in here because I really love it, sorry for no young Dante and Vergil I'm running out of ideas since I can't remember most of my childhood. Also for those who are interested, I’m thinking of starting taking request/ask for headcanons and writing, possibly drawing but their not the best, but I need to work stuff out at the moment.

Sometimes when Vergil has a mission near Nero and Kyrie, he stops by their house

The first time he did this was shocking to Nero, not only was Vergil there, but V and Urizen was there too, and it was going to be extremely ridiculous to explain this to Kyrie

And he knew how this was go and how she is protective over Nero since losing her brother and nearly losing Nero.

"Nero, who's at the... door", " Oh, um Kyrie I would like to introduce you to my dad, er … Dads?", "Your, Dads?", "Look its complicated and a long story, anyway this is my main Dad, Vergil, he's kind of nice but doesn't really talk that much. This is my dad's human half, V, he's nice, likes poems and has animals, strange one that is. And lastly is my dads demon half, um I'm not sure if he's nice or not since he raised the demon tree", "Oh that's nice, by the way which one was the one that hurt you", "Wait, Kyrie, No!"

Nero has to hold Kyrie back from trying to attack Vergil, mostly for her safety. Of course she doesn't forgive Vergil at first, because of what he has done and while she gives off a nice demeanor, her glares and scowls are anything buy warm and welcoming. Which Vergil approves of Kyrie dating Nero, having someone who will fight for you instead of turning tail when something bad happens

After a while Kyrie finally forgives Vergil, because she shouldn't hold grudges that are already in the past, and to move on. But she does tell him that if he were to do something like this again she would not hesitate to hurt him, and Vergil knowing that it would be impossible for her to hurt him agrees. And the tension is finally gone and she is more welcoming to him. Which is great for Nero's case since he felt like he was being smothered in between all their glaring and the tension.

Kyrie also makes apple pie when Vergil visits, since apples are one of his favorite fruits and because the one time he visit she made some for the orphans and she asked if he would like a slice and at first he said no, but soon gave in and had a slice, well maybe two or three but he wont admit to it.

He will also go grocery shopping with her when he has free time and Nero is busy, only to help find ingredients for new food Kyrie wants to try, and to get to know each other better.

On holidays when Vergil and Nero will help Kyrie cook some of the food. Sometimes Dante will try to sneak some sweets only for his hand to be hit by a spatula as Kyrie tells him, he needs to wait or he'll spoil his dinner. In which Dante's pouting, Nero and Nico are giggling, and Vergil is smirking.

Nero has Kyrie fix his jackets when he comes back from missions sometimes, normally he will tell her he doesn't want to put work on her, but she wants to do something nice for him. She also teachers Nero how to sew and stitch so when there are days she can't fix he can do it himself, which took a while but he got it down and not only does he fox his jacket but also helps make clothing for some of the kids, sure his stitching or sewing not the best but they love it nonetheless. Kyrie has also has sewn cat like ears on one of Nero jackets without him knowing until Dante was laughing at him, he chewed him out but still kept the ears on his hoodie because he likes it.

Kyrie got Nero into cooking and remodeling house shows, sometimes he’ll turn it on just to see how the house changed and kind of debated on doing it with their house. What surprised him was the time he came into the living room where the tv was and saw Kyrie watching crime investigator shows, saying she finds its interesting about how they solve the problems, which Nero also got into, along with most of the kids.

The kids will dog pile both Dante and Vergil, Dante loves it, play fighting with the kids and stuff. Vergil on the other hand he doesn’t expect it and isn’t used to the contact, so he gets stiff and weirded out.

Dadgil

He got a school suspension, because well doing his first judgement cut on an apple sitting on a desk while cutting the apple but also the desk was something he wasn't supposed to do, and also because there not supposed to bring weapons to school

Nero had brought the Yamato, Cerberus, Nevan, and Agni & Rudra to his school show and tell, because he want to knock the socks off the kids who brought in pets, toys, or food from a different country

Vergil was frustrated that he had gotten a call from the school that his son brought weapons to school and was being suspended because of it and was mad that Dante let the Nero bring the weapons to school in the first place because it was Dante’s day to take the kid to school and he was busy

He was proud that Nero had done a judgment cut for the first time even if it was tiny and told him not to do this again.

Nero technically has two dads. Vergil and V, he loves when V visits him because of his strange pets, and the way he acts, he's mysterious but kind and loves his poems

Nero will not sleep unless V or Vergil reads him something be it a poem or story, and will try to stay up when Vergil is out on a mission. Being read to helps Nero sleep

On that subject of sleeping, Nero has frequent nightmares. It might be something he has gotten from Vergil, but there will be times where Nero leaves his bed and walks to his dad's room asking if he can sleep in bed with him, and half awake Vergil will agree. Sometimes Vergil will softly sing to Nero because after his nightmares it takes him a while to get back to sleep, and god forbid if Dante heard him singing he knows that he will not let him live this down.

Nero wanted to learn an instrument because his dad knows how to play a violin, and his uncle knows how to play both the drums and guitar. Though the problem was he didn't know which one to go with, there was many to choose from, he kind of stuck with a trombone since it slides a lot and the style is kind of it is great, also he can get away with spitting on Dante.

Nero has only two fears, spirits/ghost and frogs. Its mostly Dante's fault for letting Nero watch paranormal horror movies at night. And Nero doesn't know why he is afraid of frogs, maybe its the way they look or something he doesn't know nor care.

When he was at the park with Nico and Kyrie, did his fear of frogs really show. They were over by the pond and Nico comes over to Nero with the frog in her hand, only for him to scream and start running, while Nico chase after him giggling. Kyrie was also giggling watching Nero run from Nico was too funny.

Nero also begged his dad and uncle for a pet, he didn't care what it was as long as its not a frog. Dante was close to getting Nero a hellhound or Cerberus, but Vergil literally had to stab smack some sense in his brother. They decided on ferret, they didn't want a cat or bird because V has one and they weren't sure if its territorial or not. Hamster and Guinea pigs are tiny and live I cates not much fun there same with Lizards. Dogs are a hassle and no one wants to clean up after it, so a Ferret is what they decided on.

Nero absolutely loves it and its a noddle he can wrap it around his neck and wiggle the creature. He decided on naming it Furret cause it looked like the Pokémon and he couldn't think of anything else

Every year for fathers day Nero will try and make Vergil something, he's make weird cup looking thing that you cant drink out of it because of holes, macaroni art, drawings, cards filled with glitter galore, paper hats, the list goes on and on. But he tried making those flower thing Dante makes, he asked him how he did it and Dante responds it comes to him naturally which doesn't help at all. So he tries only for nothing to appear to his disappointment, he tries and tries until he gets the tiniest and wimpy looking thing. But happily gives it to his dad who really appreciates it.

Vergil's refrigerator is covered with child like drawings given to him from Nero, he loves them and encourages Nero to do more and that he will be the greatest artist.

When Nero first met Patty was the same day Dante was given the mission to babysit her. She was kind of bratty and annoying at first and he didn't like that she would take all of Dante's attention. They argued a lot and Dante would yell at them to stop because it was giving him a headache and they should try to get along. After having to take Patty to retrieve her family money he did start to get along with her and they started to both annoy Dante together.

Nero absolutely loves dinosaurs and has loads of toys of them, and when he was going to the Zoo with Vergil he told him he was excited to see Dinosaurs there. Only for Vergil to tell them that there aren't any dinosaurs at the zoo. (This happened to a friend of mine).

Trish and Lady likes to take Nero out shopping, normally he doesn’t mind going with them, as long as he gets something out of it. Poor Dante and his debt when he finds out how much stuff they bough for Nero

Dante watching Nero while Vergil out can lead to many, many, different ways, and Vergil dreads all of them. Dante could feed Nero only sweets and junk food instead normal healthy food, Dante could probably lose Nero somewhere be it the park or his own damn shop, Dante could probably get Nero in danger because of the demons that show up to his shop and destroys it.

Nero does get into a lot of fights at school, half of them are kids making fun of him others are he’s a hard head and doesn’t let go of grudges. The school is very frustrated in how Nero always gets into these fights, but are nervous of his dad, because of his stubbornness and how he knows that half the time its not Nero’s fault. Like one time a teacher and Nero argued about how Demons do exist and how his dad, uncle, and two aunts go out and defeat. It resulted Nero getting embarrassed in front of the class and being sent to the office and a very angry Vergil that nearly killed the teacher.

[xalmasyx]

So I haven't really been that active here in a really long time so I suppose I should post an update of sorts.

I mainly bailed on Tumblr because of the p0rn purge and went over to Twitter instead where I could still relatively be horny on main, but I'd come back here every so often to read fics and reblog gif sets and what-have-you. In fact I was still actively writing in 2019, I had good juju and all that and at the end of the year I was accepted to write a piece for a DMC zine.

2020 started and shit pretty much hit the fan in my life.

On the 22nd of January I had to say goodbye to my best friend of 12 and a half years. My heart, my soul, and one of my many reasons for living.

His health started going downhill in October, but Vergil was still in very high spirits and fought his hardest to get better. Episodes of geriatric vestibular disease can come on randomly and can range from just a mild dizziness to the point where they need assistance in walking. Vergil had the dizziness, his eyes would continually flicker and I just had to loudly telegraph my moves before he followed but we was quite happy to receive all the love and attention in the world from his mummy.

The second episode, not so much. The episode began mildly so we went off to the emergency vet to get the correct medication, but he was looking confused and even more out of sorts, didn't eat his dinner and so I slept with him that night and took the next day off of work. The next day his wellbeing just plummeted and he couldn't even stand. I would try to help so he could go to the toilet but he would just collapse and look at me sadly. There was no flicker of hope in his eyes at all and I probably spent about 20 minutes in my parents' backyard with him just sobbing until my mum found me.

Dad rang the local vet and organised for us to take him and I just sat in the back of dad's car cuddling Vergil all the way, telling him he was going to be okay and facetimed Tim so he could say goodbye.

I can feel the tears just coming relentlessly as I write this, it still feels so raw like it happened just yesterday even though over a year has already passed...

My dad and my brother were with me in the vet clinic to say goodbye. He lied there looking me in the eyes until his very last breath as I pet him and reassured him that everything was going to be okay and that I love him so so much and that everyone he ever met love him just as much as I do. He brought light to so many people and I'm just so proud of the dog he was.

Ever since then nothing has been the same. While I did finish the piece for the DMC zine I don't feel any motivation to write even though the ideas are there in my head, I've pretty much shut myself away from all the Discords I was active on and I just don't feel right with being able to keep continuing on without him when he was such a major part of my life.

Tim has been incredibly supportive throughout all this and I can't thank him enough for being by my side when all I did was go to work, come home, binge video games and sleep. It's still sort of a routine now even outside of covid lockdowns but I'm trying to get myself out there again.

Especially when in October my family and Tim conspired to get me this little gremlin.

Meet V, my currently 8 month old Jack Russel Terrier.

As I get to this point of my post he is currently lying on my chest and trying to give me as many kisses as he possibly can, I swear I was trying to hide my sobs! He has definitely helped fill some of that void in my heart that Vergil left, and perhaps some day I wont feel such immense guilt about having to say goodbye.

I don't know if this big post will mean that I will be active on here or on Discord again any time soon, but I am quite active on Twitter probably because posts are limited to 120 characters and I don't feel any pressure in having to post anything long winded. My username on the Twitter is the same as on here, that's one thing that will never change.

I'll leave it at that I suppose.

[etlunainmorte]

***

~ Mentions of animal poaching and brief mentions of animal cruelty ahead. Please, be warned.

NO GRIFFON OR SHADOW WAS HARMED DURING THE WRITING OF THIS CHAPTER. THIS WORK IS PURELY FICTIONAL. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

***

***

Day 11 - Familiars

***

That. It was that house.

Just the other day at the pet grooming shop, Alex saw a man with two very exotic - looking animals. One of them was a huge bird with many beaks, a glowing pair of wings that seemed to glow when hit by light, strange red markings on its chest, and golden eyes. One of them looked like a regular adult black panther, except that also had red markings all over its body, and those curious red lines seemed to crawl all over its fur like ripples of water.

Alex couldn't sleep that night. He, in fact, was an exotic animal smuggler, and the fact that he couldn't identify those animals irked him a lot. He googled, checked many books about exotic animals, and even asked his friends about this glowing blue bird and this black panther with moving red lines. And at the end of the night, he only got sneers and laughs from his friends who don't believe him, and dark bags under his eyes.

He couldn't help it. Alex has to know. Alex has to get his hands on them.

He knew he would get a huge amount of money if he sold them to the highest bidder.

Over time, it has become Alex's biggest obsession. He waited and waited for days, not knowing when he'll see that tattooed pet owner again. And after a week, he did see him again. He saw him at the grocery store where he was talking to the guard. It seemed he was trying to convince the guard that his pet bird and cat ( yes, he said the words as if his companions were just normal house pets ) would not hurt anyone inside the store, and he was actually successful! It even looked as if the guard was entranced, or something.

Alex waited for the man to come out of the store, and when he did, he followed him where he lived.

That. It was that house.

It's where that tattooed man with the exotic pets lived.

Alex planned well for his grand scheme. He would quietly sneak in the house in the middle of the night, and with his state - of - the - art equipment for catching animals in the wild, illegal, of course, he would steal those pets, put them in the cages, and load them in his car. And if they struggle, well, they would realize that Alex is not to be messed with!

Later that evening, the animal poacher went into the house as planned, noticed that the door wasn't even locked, and went in. Sneaking into the living room, he saw the pets, sleeping, snoring softly, even.

Watching them as they slept, Alex got even more mesmerized. In the darkness of the room, he saw how the bird's wings glowed, and how the panther's red markings come to life as if by magic.

It excited Alex even more! He wondered how much he would earn selling them. Thousands? Millions?

However, just as he was about to tranquilize them for good measure, the strange pets stirred in their sleep and finally woke up. The bird made a strange yawning sound just like a human, and the cat stretched.

Alex pointed his gun at one of them and,...

"Oh! We have been expectin’ ya!" The bird suddenly spoke up.

Huh? What the - ?

"Oh! We let V sleep 'cause he's so tired! He's quite the busy boy, ya know?! But he knew ye’re comin'! So he allowed us to give ya a proper greetin'!"

Alex dropped his weapon to the floor and felt himself peeing in his pants in fear.

How?! How could - ?!

Spreading his wings and soaring into the air, the bird swooped in and faced him excitedly, his golden eyes glowing with such mirth and mischief. And as the bird flapped its wings, the panther stalked dangerously closer towards him as if it found its next meal.

"So, what do ya want, huh? Muffins? Tea? Oh! Ya must like coffee! Or pizza! Oh! That tastes heavenly! What do ya say, eh?" The bird went on yapping as the panther began growling, baring its sharp teeth and threatening the poor poacher. "Or burgers! V hate those but, he bought some, anyway. Says it's for Vergil when he visits. Shakespeare is such a prankster, huh? He knows Vergil doesn't like burgers, too, just like him! Oh! What about pancakes? V taught me to make those! And while ya eat, I'll sing ya a song! Shake It Off, Call Me Maybe, Last Friday Night. Name it, I'll sing it! So, what do ya say, huh? Huh? Huh? What do ya say? Huh?"

"DEMONS! DEMONS!" Alex howled as he scrambled to his feet and made his way towards the door.

"HEY! WAIT UP! I'M NOT DONE TALKIN'!" The bird squawked.

"DEMONS! DEMONS!" Alex cried and finally went out of the house, leaving Griffon and Shadow behind and running for his sorry life, never to return ever again.

"Such a rude guy." Griffon said, his feelings hurt. Turning to Shadow, he asked, "Was it somethin' I said?"

"I think it's your song choice." The demonic panther answered telepathically.

"MY SONG CHOICE?! BUT I SING THE BEST SONGS! First, the Amazon guy, the newspaper guy, and now this. Man,... people here sure has bad taste in music,..." Griffon landed on the panther's back and ruffled his feathers. Seeing the equipment the poacher left behind, he said, "Oh, look! The guy left his things! Must be really important. Should we give those back to him?”

"Well, yeah. Master told us to treat the guest right, anyway. But don't mention the songs again."

"Oh? Oh,... okay. ALRIGHT! LET'S GET BUSY! Oh, but let me just mention Party In The USA,… “

***

[shianhygge-imagines]

Silver Rose [Vergil/Reader] [V/Reader]{Devil May Cry} Splitting Fool

AN: This chapter is another long one. The point of view shifts quite a bit in this chapter. Each time there’s a break and a time stamp, I’ve shifted the POV. The purpose for this is to allow me to convey all the details in the scene that should be addressed.

|Masterlist Link|    |First Chapter|    |Prev. Ch.| --- |Next Ch.|

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May 3rd, 11:40pm

Try as you might, you weren’t able to hide your red rimmed eyes when Dante called you downstairs for the second time that night. Something akin to sympathy settled in your brother-in-law’s eyes as he addressed you, “Y/N, V doesn’t have a place to stay. Is it alright for him to take the guest bedroom?”

You paused on the small bottom stair landing, staring down Dante before shifting your gaze to your new client.

V, the mysterious client, wouldn’t directly meet your gaze at first, head bowed and posture hunched over the walking cane that supported his weight. There seemed to be an air of guilt that surrounded the younger man beyond that of chastisement from Dante’s earlier ‘talk’. But what could he be feeling guilty about? You wondered, observing V as he slowly raised his head, dark green eyes meeting your own. “It’s really not necessary,” V reassured with a half hearted smirk, “I really must be on my way.”

The posture… the manner in which he held himself… it was one you saw many times before. Slouched… raven locks limp and unwashed… slight shadows under the eyes… He’s fatigued… Tired… when was the last time he allowed himself to rest? It brought back memories… some happy, some painful. Like Dante… Like Nero… Like Vergil… Like me…

“At least stay the night, V.” You suggested impulsively, stepping down the last few steps to stand in front of the younger man. “You look like you need the rest.” Like you need a safe place to rest your head. Like you need someone to help you shoulder your burdens.

“I don’t believe that I should overstay my welcome. I should-”

“I insist.” You interrupt, a gentle smile on your lips.

V hesitates as he stares into your eyes, which peer up at him empathetically. He knows that he should leave this place. That he needed to go get Nero. But when have I been able to say no when she looks at me with those eyes? Dark green eyes shut as a heavy sigh escapes his lips. The man knew exactly when he was able to deny her. He knew that he’d done it many times before. “…Then I thank you for your hospitality.”

As your smile brightens, chiming that you would go prepare the guest bedroom, V finds himself staring after you, wondering… lamenting why it was that he had ever been able to bring himself to cause you pain.

My Spectre around me night and day,

Like a wild beast guards my way;

My Emanation far within

Weeps incessantly for my sin.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

1am

He could sense your restlessness from down the hallway, and he knew that it was because of the sudden reminder of a painful past. He could hear the quiet whimpers coming from you as you suffered in silence and in the dark, not wanting to bother anyone with problems that you believed should have been resolved with time. Your voice, your suffering called to him, and though he knew that he was what plagued you, he found himself following your voice until he stood outside your door, listening to you cry.

Slipping through the door, he found himself in a position that seemed very familiar. The rain pattered upon the window pane as he stood in the middle of your dark room, watching you sleep, haunted by nightmares of him.

“No… don’t…. Please…. Vergil.” You begged for a phantom to stay within your nightmare, tossing your head back and forth in denial with your arms outstretched to catch someone that had abandoned you so many years ago.

He found himself growing angry at the phantom within your nightmares, gritting teeth and pacing to and fro the length of your room. All around were reminders of the phantom, but he could make out how you’d displayed his gifts to you from years ago. The Silver Rose rested on your bedside table, and he could see that the sapphire necklace that he’d given you rested on a vanity display. He allowed a pleased hum to escape his lips before making a discussion, wanting to comfort you the best he could.

Unlike when he’d been Nelo Angelo, he decided not to stand and watch, and joined you in bed, making sure you were comfortable before settling in. He brought his head close towards your own before allowing his own eyes to close in sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

3am

V slept restlessly from his place in the guest room down the hall. The bed and pillows were comfortable and clean, a luxury that he hadn’t been able to experience in a very long time, but he still found himself troubled. Every time V would close his eyes, anxiety and urgency seemed to wage a war on his mind. The mortal man knew that he didn’t have the time to be resting. That he should have gone back to Red Grave City to keep an eye on Urizen’s progress, but when you’d offered V a place to stay despite how he’d callously brought back past memories, he couldn’t help himself.

It was something that V had to constantly remind himself about now that he was around you. That while V the mortal man had the memories and emotions of Vergil, he was not the older Sparda twin. And yet, the guilt remained, a constant nagging pull to make amends. The fragmented man would close his eyes, begging for a dreamless rest, and wake an hour later from nightmarish memories.

A family home in flames.

Fleeing from the enemies of Sparda.

Watching in horror as his best friend was stabbed by a pair of absurdly large scissors

Helpless as he watch the woman he loved most be hurt by the venom that spewed from his own mouth.

“What am I to you that you could just toss me aside?”

V tried to halt his tongue, knowing what would spill from his traitorous lips.

“A burden.” He closed his eyes as your tears fell, not wanting to see the heartbroken expression on your face. But even when he closed his eyes, he couldn’t escape what he knew would come next.

V could see your face, still shedding tears, morph with the darkness, until you were hunched over, blood dripping from your lips… the Yamato buried to the hilt in your abdomen. The horror that appeared on your face mirrored V’s as he scrambled to support your body, only to once more be unable to move. And then, all at once, it was like he was detached from his body, watching as Vergil violently yanked the Yamato free of your abdomen… his wife’s abdomen before leaving her bleeding out on the apex of Temen Ni Gru.

A tortured sob left V’s mouth as he forced himself to wake from the nightmare… from the memories. Shaking… Shivering… On the verge of tears, V sat up from the guest bed and extended his hand towards the nightstand where he’d left his volume of William Blake poems. Tracing the golden etchings on the cover, the mysterious young man closed his eyes and forced himself to breathe deeply, counting the seconds that passed with each breath. Once satisfied with the stability of his breathing and the calm rhythm of his heart, V shifted to turn on the small lamp beside the bed, bringing just the slightest of illumination to the previously dark room. Flipping to a random page in the book, V read the first line aloud.

“Wept for me, for thee, for all,

When he was an infant small.

Thou his image ever see.

Heavenly face that smiles on thee,”

He chuckled at the coincidental poem before closing the book, throwing his legs over the side of the bed to stand. How strange… V thought, his eyes scanning the guest bedroom for his feline companion. Shadow usually would have appeared by now. Glancing down at the ink that decorated his body, the man hummed in surprise when he found that his tattoos for Shadow were missing. Dark green eyes darted over to the bedroom door in confusion, “Where did you head off to now?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

3:10am

You awoke to the pleasant sound of a deep rumble under your head. It was soothing and seemed to intensify when you burrowed further into your pillow. A purr… Blinking your tired eyes open, you first noticed that your pillow was a different color than it had been before you fell asleep. Instantly alert, you raised your head to stare at what you were snuggling up with. The lights from the street signs outside illuminate your room enough to see that it was indeed a large panther that you had cuddled up to. That’s a… big cat. You observed sleepily, sitting up cautiously so as not to disturb the slumbering feline.

Your efforts to be sneaky are futile when you notice the two glowing red eyes staring up at you. The cat stares up at you for a few moments as you freeze in place before its tail twitches and it rises to sit on its hind legs, its size easily allowing it to match your sitting height. Eyes wide, you want to scream in alarm at having such a strange predator in your bed, but can only gulp nervously as it leans forward, maw dropping open. You close your eyes, hoping that you won’t be mawled by the panther. Out of everything I’ve faced in my life, don’t tell me the thing that gets to kill me is an overgrown cat…

Something rough and wet licks your face before something warm and fuzzy nuzzles into the space under your chin. You open your eyes when the cat starts to purr in contentment as it nuzzles its head into you. Shocked, you hesitantly raise a hand to pet the panther, and its purring grows in volume. “This is so weird.” You mutter, befuddled, but enjoying the affection from the panther.

A knock at the door, interrupts the peaceful moment, and while you don’t stop petting the large cat, you open your mouth to answer the knock. “Come in.”

The door cracks open slowly, and it is V that steps through the door, posture slightly straighter, but even in the dark, you could tell that he hadn’t rested peacefully. His gaze is cast to the ground as he enters your room, closing the door behind him. “Pardon my intrusion, Y/N. I was looking for one of my companions.” His gaze raises to look in your direction, but not at you. “Shadow… it’s not nice to sneak into a woman’s bed.”

The cat, Shadow, pauses in its activities, its back suddenly ramrod straight as it stares at V, judging and silent as it flickers its tail. It doesn’t seem interested in leaving your side despite V’s chastisement.

V’s lips thin in disapproval, “My apologies for disturbing your rest, Y/N. We should be departing now.” The younger man turns to leave the room, one hand raised to open the door, but pauses when Shadow growls at him. Turning to look back at his companion, your mysterious client levels a stern glare at Shadow, “Let’s go, Shadow. We should leave her alone.”

“I don’t mind.” You voiced your opinion, voice hoarse from sleep. And in all honesty, you didn’t mind the affection that the large feline had shown you. It was a nice comfort, and you wondered why you had never thought to get a pet before.

When you voiced your thought, Shadow immediately rose to position itself curled around you, its red eyes somehow smug as it stared at V, as if saying, “See? She doesn’t want me to leave.”

“Don’t be childish, Shadow. You know that we have work to do.” V argued with the cat after shooting an apologetic expression your way. “We need to go.” Huffing in exasperation, the feline’s form seemed to melt away, and V immediately tensed up, “Shadow. Stop it.”

The command did little to stop the demon (at this point, you were sure that Shadow was a demon...) from shift into a very familiar form, causing your eyes to widen in pain and confusion. Now armored, Shadow threw its arms to embrace you, pulling you into its body possessively. Nelo Angelo… You remembered the name that Dante had given you for the armored visitor… “Vergil…” You muttered in confusion before turning your head to look at V, who looked more tired than ever, “V… what is going on? Why did your companion turn into Nelo Angelo?”

“I… cannot explain now.” V gasps, backing towards the bedroom door. “There is no time to-”

“Bullshit.” You scowl, moving out of Shadow’s arms to stalk swiftly towards V, extending your arms past his body to pin him against the door. “First you appear with a job, telling Dante that Urizen was his reason for fighting. You cite quotes from William Blake’s anthology as if it’s your favorite thing in the entire literary world. You called me the ‘fabled Y/N,’ as if I were as well known as Dante, Trish, or Lady. Which is bullshit because I know for a fact that people don’t know shit about what I do or who I am. Then, the entire time you’re here, I keep getting weird looks and a strange feeling in my gut. And now… now your companion has taken a form that is eerily reminiscent of my late husband.” Peering up at him, you practically growl out your demand. “Explain. Now.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

3:20am

With bated breath, V stares down at your fierce expression as you pin him against the wall. He knows that if he wanted to, he could physically force you to back down. But as soon as the though appears in his mind, he immediately dismisses the idea. No… he’d hurt you enough already, and he refuses to hurt you again. Besides, V is quite sure that if he tried to hurt you, he’d get mawled by Shadow. Dry swallowing, V could only bring himself to do one thing…

“Your husband didn’t die, Y/N.” He watches as the fire in your eyes temper before steeling himself to continue. “He was weakened considerably, but he managed to escape Mundus’ control.” When V noticed that you had begun to calm down, he continued to explain, “But suffering such defeat at the hands of Dante and being enslaved by Mundus, Vergil resolve for power only increased.” Dark green eyes peered down at you in the dark, “He took back the Yamato from Nero.” He could see your jaw clench in outrage on behalf of Nero, but continued to speak regardless. “And with the Yamato, he severed everything that he considered a weakness… memories… nightmares… until what remained was he demon half.”

“And what became of each part of him after?” You whispered, arms falling from his sides, “How do you know all this?”

V sighed and closed his eyes before opening them again. “I suspect that Dante already realized it. And I think that deep down… you know it, too.”

“Urizen…” You uttered the name, but a part of you didn’t want to believe it, “What remained became Urizen, and the parts of him that he cut away…” your eyes shifted from V to Shadow, “Became you two.”

V offered a hesitant smile before shaking his head, “Close. I merely stumbled upon the parts that he’d severed, and forged a contract with them to keep them alive.” He gestured to tattoos all over his body, “These are your husband’s memories. I was just a convenient vessel.”

“And your interest in William Blake?”

The man smirked, gaze almost pitying. “Just a coincidence, I’m afraid.”

Tired and overwhelmed, V could see the gears shifting in your head. A frown appeared on your face before you frowned and shook your head, “Fine. I’ll believe what you’re saying for now. But if you’re lying…” Your eyes narrowed as the threat left your lips, and V couldn’t help the smirk that appeared when you turned away to shower Shadow with affection now that he’d turned back into a panther.

You always were too smart for such lies. V mused, already regretting the lies that spilled from his lips. Hopefully, you won’t piece the truth together before we confront my other half.

“Goodnight, Y/N.” V turned to leave the room without another word, trusting Shadow to behave himself despite the glare that the panther sent his way.

Pausing, you nodded towards the younger man, “Goodnight, V.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed my work, please consider buying me a Ko-fi!

[zenithlux]

Tendrils of Regret - Part 5

Read the story on AO3 here!

The next week and a half went by awkwardly. You and Vergil still went on missions together, mostly because Dante was ecstatic that you’d managed it and you really didn’t want to let him down. But you barely talked to each other more than the occasional quip or piece of needed information. Vergil seemed less willing to compete with you, killing everything quickly and leaving the bodies for you to choose between. You barely got to use your powers when he was around, something that even the vine seemed to be upset about. The pinpricks against your heart had gotten worse, and the only way to deal with it so far had been heading back out to the greenhouses. The owners called you a miracle worker, but you made sure they were never around when you worked your magic. 

You’d also slowly removed yourself from the denial phase, and now fully believed that the V you knew was never coming back. It was a tough thing to accept, especially when you continued to dream about him almost every night. But after Lady and Trish finally came clean as to what actually happened around the Qliphoth Tree, you believed them. Vergil was V. A much harsher, less compassionate V. And you had to accept that. 

It didn’t stop the grief though, as much as you thought it might. 

So when you woke up feeling particularly down on a dreary Saturday, you weren’t surprised. 

Early on, you decided just to stay in your room. You figured Vergil wouldn’t care. In fact, you assumed he’d be relieved when you didn’t show up at your usual leaving time and just head out on his own. You did try to do something with your time, whether it be reading or writing or just… anything else. But you kept finding yourself right back in bed, staring either at the ceiling or the back of your eyelids for hours on end. And you supposed it was about time for something like this. You’d been in denial for so long that it was inevitable, really. And now that the nightmares had returned, you wondered if you’d ever get another good night of sleep again. 

At one point, you glanced at the bracelets still adorning your wrists. You hadn’t had the heart to remove them, nor did you know what to do with them. You promised to hold onto them until he returned. Technically, he had. But you had a feeling Vergil wouldn’t want one. He’d never want it. Of that you were certain.

When 2pm hit, you were surprised by another quiet knock at the door. 

You stared at the wilting blue roses in front of you. The rest of the plants were in an equal state of disarray, fueled by your terrible mood. You’d be able to fix them once you felt better, but there was nothing you could do about it now. You had yet to take a shower, nor had you changed out of the pajamas you’d been wearing for the last day and a half. You really didn’t even want to answer the door, but you didn’t think you’d be able to pretend you weren’t there either. The brothers alone could probably sense you, even if Trish wasn’t home. And the only person you’d heard leave this morning was Dante. There was a chance it was Trish or Lady, but you just had a feeling. You’d been around Vergil long enough that you could practically sense him now. You didn’t know if it had something to do with him being your vine’s “master” or not. It really didn’t matter. 

Finally, you sighed and forced yourself up right. You flicked your hand and one of the vines wrapped around the knob and jerked it open. In stepped Vergil, dressed as immaculate as ever. Not a hair was out of place, and you wondered what he’d been doing all morning. Probably reading. You were convinced that was all he ever did when not killing demons or arguing with his brother. “Are you going to lie around all day?” He said. 

You glared at him as you reached for a pillow. “If you have nothing good to say I suggest you leave.” 

You heard him sigh as you rolled away, wrapping yourself up stubbornly in the blankets. “Your plants are dying.” 

You felt like crying, but held it back. “Thanks. I hadn’t noticed.”

“Which means you aren’t feeling well, yes?”

“Why do you care?” You said, refusing to look at him. “I thought you’d be happy without someone to pester you.”

You heard another sigh, followed by the door closing. What was his plan? Drag you out of bed and force you on a mission? Sit in the room until he intimidated you out of bed? What was the point in all of this? You wished he would just leave and so you could wallow the day away and hope you felt better tomorrow. But then, just as the silence was about to get unbearable, you felt something drop on top of the blankets. “Get dressed,” Vergil said. “We leave in 15 minutes.”

You flinched at the command, swallowing in an attempt to ignore it. “I’m not interested, Vergil.”

“I’m not asking.”

“Just go on your own,” You muttered. “You’ve proven time and time again you don’t need my help.”

“There aren’t any tasks today,” he said. 

“I’m not scouting either.”

“Get dressed,” he repeated. 

The vine twisted tighter in your chest, begging you to respond. You stubbornly ignored the pain. Instead, you lurched upright, awkwardly unwrapping yourself from the blankets enough to glare at him. “You don’t get it do you?”

“If I don’t intervene then you will waste the rest of the day away.”

“And maybe that’s what I need to do.” 

“But is it what you want to do?”

“Of course not,” you snap. “But sometimes life doesn’t give you much of a choice.”

“I’m giving you a choice,” He said as calm as ever. 

“Last time I checked,” You said. “You weren’t life.”

“I’m not asking again,” Vergil said, clicking Yamato. “You can either get dressed and come with me or sit there and waste the rest of your day away.” He left before you could respond, quite nearly slamming the door behind him. You glared at it for far too long but groaned when some of your plants bloomed back to life. Of course they would respond to anger. At least you knew you had the energy to fuel them. Maybe you could find the strength to get out of bed today. Or you could just ignore him and go back to sleep. 

But you found yourself… conflicted. Where could Vergil possibly take you that would make your day better that didn’t involve demons? Now you were curious, and you had a feeling he knew it. 

Curse that nosy, infuriating blue-devil. 

Finally, you got yourself out of bed. You were surprised to find that Vergil had tossed you a matching pair of clothes and your favorite jacket. Had he really been paying that much attention to you? Impossible. Even on jobs he rarely looked at you. Maybe he’d just gotten lucky with his choices. Regardless, you begrudgingly put them on, lacking the energy to find anything else, threw your hair up into a messy pony-tail and found one of your perfumes to mask the lack of a shower. At the end of it, you stared at yourself in the mirror, wondering if this was the right decision. You could still feel your bed pulling at you, but you were able to ignore it as you wandered down the stairs where Vergil was waiting. 

“So where are we going?” You said. 

He cut open a portal and stepped aside. “Go.”

You scowled as your feet twitched, aching to follow the command. “You’re terrible at this “avoiding accidental commands” thing today.”

“They’re not accidental,” He said. “Now go.” 

“Asshole,” You muttered as you found yourself unable to ignore his summons any longer. You stepped through the portal as miserable-looking as possible, but your mood perked when you saw where he’d taken you. “An animal shelter?” You said as he stepped out beside you and the portal snapped shut. “What are we doing here?”

“Dante has agreed that the shop could be a bit more lively for days that you might be home alone.” He glanced at you. “Something that isn’t fully dependent on your moods.”

For some reason, you found yourself excited. “We’re getting a pet?”

“You are, yes,” Vergil said. “Morrison has taken care of all the paperwork. You just need to pick the one that suits you.” He crossed his arms. “A quiet one, preferably.”

“Is that a command?”

Vergil sighed. “No. It’s entirely yours to pick and take care of.”

You rolled your eyes. “You got it, dad.”

Vergil scowled, but you just laughed as you made your way across the street. “Are you coming with me?”

Vergil’s eyebrow shot up. “You want me to join you?”

You paused. “It’s probably best that you do, right? Not every animal will feel comfortable around a demon, so we should probably find one that is.”

Slowly, Vergil nodded. “I suppose that makes sense.”

“Is that a compliment?”

He huffed as he walked by you, but you were quick to catch up. As the doors opened, dozens of smells almost overwhelmed you. A dozen sunflowers nearby started to grow, but you caught yourself and shrunk them again before anyone noticed. A short brunette grinned at both of you from behind the counter. “Welcome!” She said. “Here for an adoption?”

“Yes,” Vergil said, slipping past you as he reached into his coat and put a stack of papers on the table. 

The woman looked them over quickly and nodded. “Anybody in particular you’re looking for?”

“Cats,” You said. Vergil glanced at you in what might have been surprise, but you were too excited to care. “Something that loves to cuddle and play, but can also spend some time alone while we’re at work.” 

The woman nodded again. “I always love helping couples pick out their first little buddy.”

You blinked. Vergil stiffened beside you. “Oh no, it's not like that.” You said.

The woman chuckled. “It’s okay. I won’t tell anyone.” She winked as she turned away, leaving you flustered. Vergil just rolled his eyes and followed after the woman. You rushed to catch up to them. “No really, it’s…”

“Stop,” Vergil said. You froze in place, glaring at him. “Not like that.”

“How else is one supposed to stop?”

He sighed in annoyance. “Stop… stopping.”

You let go of a breath as your body released. “Stop doing that.”

“It’s harder than it looks.”

“Clearly,” You walked past him, but your irritation faded the second you stepped into the kitten corral. Various pitches of meows greeted you as numerous kittens moved toward the front of their cages and peered at you. Some ignored you completely. Others were playing with each other. You followed along the sides, peering at as many kittens as you could. “They’re so cute!” You breathed. 

“You’ll probably want an older cat,” The woman said. “You’ll find those over here.” 

On the way, you stopped at a certain cage, your heart swelling the second you saw the black cat inside. It was alone, curled up in a ball and purring as it slept the day away. But all you could see was a smaller Shadow, waiting for you to take him away. “Hey little guy,” You whispered, reaching your fingers through the cage to gently pet its ears. The cat’s eyes opened, but he just eyed you curiously, his tail flicking back and forth. 

“That’s one of our new arrivals,” The woman said. “We’ve been calling him Shadow.”

“Can I hold him?”

“Of course!” She said as she opened the cage. “He’s incredibly calm and quiet. I’m honestly surprised he hasn’t been adopted before now.” She gently pulled Shadow from his cage, handing him to you. The cat purred as you held him like a baby, scratching behind his ears.

“Vergil!” You said, turning toward him. You were surprised to find that he was waiting in the doorway, eyes locked on you. After a moment, you moved toward him, holding Shadow out. “What do you think?”

“He’s your pet,” Vergil said. “I don’t…” He trailed off as you shoved the cat into his arms. Vergil’s eyes widened before moving back to the cat himself. The creature sat up in Vergil’s arms, eyes meeting his. You swore you saw Vergil melt just a bit. His shoulders relaxed. His gaze softened. For the briefest of moments, you could imagine V standing there, smiling as he cradled the cat with the same fondness he’d given his familiars. You shook your head, dispelling the image. Vergil wasn’t smiling, but his mouth was surprisingly agape, and you wondered what he was thinking. Did he even remember Shadow? Surely something so important to his human self would have remained in his head. But he hadn’t remembered you, so nobody but Vergil knew how all of that worked. 

But you’d never seen him like this. Relaxed. Slightly surprised. Guard down. He’d always been so uptight around you, especially after the greenhouse incident. But this was more… V like. A man that didn’t care what people thought of him and wasn’t afraid of his own emotions. 

“Vergil?”

He snapped his mouth closed and his muscles returned to their original rigidity. He handed Shadow back before crossing his arms and leaning against the door. “It's your choice,” he said, but you heard a strange sense of longing in his tone. 

You looked down at the cat, only to see it staring back at you. “I think we’ve found our companion,” You said. This time, Vergil didn’t react to your wording. In fact, he almost seemed to relax. 

The woman smiled. “I’ll get the paperwork.”

  “Why am I not surprised?” Dante said when he returned home to find you playing with your new cat in the lobby. Vergil was reading on the couch behind you, but you hadn’t missed how his eyes had occasionally drifted to you and Shadow throughout the evening. Of course, he never asked to hold the cat again, and you knew he would never admit to wanting to play with him, but you knew he approved. “And let me guess. His name is Shadow. ”

“The adoption center named him,” You said. 

“But that is his name, yeah?”

You smiled as Shadow curled up into your lap, purring. “Maybe.”

Dante laughed as he plopped down at his desk. “And Vergil approved?”

“It wasn’t my choice,” Vergil said.

You rolled your eyes. “He’s said that a lot today.” You scratched behind Shadow’s ears. “But he didn’t complain when we went shopping for the toys, the food, or the crate. We got Shadow a bed too! So, I’d call that a victory.”

“Verge loves him,” Dante said as he kicked his feet up. “I can tell by the look on his face.” 

Vergil didn’t say anything, but you were more than used to that by now. “Well it’s a good time for us to get to bed,” You said, rising from your seat on the floor with Shadow in hand. The cat meowed as it yawned, approving of your decision. “When are we leaving tomorrow?”

Vergil’s eyes shot up in surprise. “What?”

“Well you have a plan, don’t you?” You said, nuzzling your cat. 

“... I’ll tell you in the morning.”

As you climbed the stairs, you heard Dante laugh. “I knew this was a good idea.”

[queenmuzz]

Operation: Tiddy Freedom

A special Valentine’s Day Dante x Reader oneshot.

“Oh, you guys are not going to believe this...” Dante yelped as he leapt down the stairs, three at a time, startling both you and Vergil as you organized the bookshelf. You were dusting, while Vergil placed the books (after 'checking' them thoroughly, more than once you had to clear your throat to get his nose out of a book and hand it to you) in their correct slots.

“Found this baby in storage in the upper room, it's over twenty years old, and boy, does it bring back memories!” he crowed proudly “And the best part, it still fits!”

You gave up resisting the distraction, and you finally turned around and saw Dante in the most ridiculous get up. Combat boots, dark brown leather pants... and no shirt. Instead, he wore a bright red, if a bit faded over time leather overcoat, with a wide matching red belt at the waist, with a silvery metal buckle. Looking at the holes on the belt, you deduced that it had never actually been buckled up, ever.

But what really caught your eyes was the brown, nearly black belt of leather that wrapped around his chest. Barely. It had obviously been designed when he was a younger, slimmer, less developed man. It looked like a hoop around a whiskey barrel, barely holding on. In fact, you were certain he was contracting his chest in to keep it from snapping. You could imagine the pattern of the leather embedded into his flesh for a few precious moments after it snapped, the texture of it as it faded under your fingertips as you slowly dragged them across across his chest...

“Ahem” The sound of Vergil disapprovingly clearing his throat, most likely in mockery of your earlier actions dragged you kicking and screaming back to the present. Slightly mortified to be caught in such a daydream, you anxiously glanced at both men, but Vergil was busy frowning at his younger brother, and Dante was too busy checking himself out in the reflection of the jukebox to notice you gawking.

“You looked ridiculous in that as a nineteen year old, and you look even more ridiculous now as a middle aged man, Dante.” Vergil observed, sharply.

“Says the guy who wore an ascot at the same time I wore this,” Dante countered, “Brother, you have no leg to stand on when it comes to fashion. And unlike you,” he paused to flex, and you swore you could hear from across the room, the leather belt protest at the stretching, “I still make it look good, regardless of age, don't you agree sweetheart?”

An uncomfortable period of silence occurred as his words pushed aside the fantasies you had clogging in your brain, like an overcrowded elevator. “O-oh, yeah... Dante... y-you look great,” you stammered. Okay, at least one of them had to notice that you must have turned as red as Dante's overcoat, but nope, the younger brother was too busy preening at your compliment, while the elder was rolling his eyes as he picked up several boxes full of old books.

“Dante,” Vergil's dour voice cut through his brothers cheerfulness, “you were supposed to be cleaning upstairs, not playing dress up. I thought we had agreed that today was to be dedicating to cleaning this poor excuse of a residence”

“Aw man,” Dante pouted, “You can't let a guy just reminisce about his younger years, just a little bit?”

“Look,” you interceded. You didn't want a fight to break out, piling 'Clean bloodstains off the floor' to your list of cleaning duties. “We all deserve a little break,” you turned to Vergil, “How about you drop off those old books to the used book shop, and have yourself a treat at the cafe?” Vergil paused, taking a moment to think about it, before hefting the box of books a bit higher, and nodding. “Very well,” he agreed, “I shall leave you and... this fool alone” You could have sworn you saw a knowing look in his eye as he stared at you for a moment, before he left. Did he know what thoughts were going through your head?. No, he couldn't have.

Even if he had, it was apparent that Dante was oblivious. He was still grinning like an idiot as he adjusted his leather gloves. “I guess I'll get back to the boooooring parts of this job. But....” he said as he pointed his thumbs to his muscular chest, “I'm still gonna keep wearing this”. And after clicking his tongue as he gave you finger guns, he leapt back up the steps, and back into his work.

You continued to tidy up the living room, dusting, organizing, and eventually you pulled out the ancient vacuum cleaner, nearly as dusty as the room itself had been. After getting it to work, you methodically sucked up all that you could, but you couldn't get the image out of your head. That leather belt pressing against his chest, the sound of it creaking as it struggled to envelop that mass of pure muscle. The white hairs peeking around the edges....

That was it, you thought... you needed to find a way to make that leather band snap, preferably while in your vicinity. And you had to be subtle about it, you'd be mortified if Dante found out what you were up to....

Operation: Tiddy Freedom commences now!

The easiest way was obvious; get him to flex his chest muscles. And to do that, he would have to exert himself, lifting something heavy... you looked at the couch, blocking your progress...

“Hey Dante!” you yelled over the drone of the vacuum. For a moment, you thought perhaps you should have turned it off first, but then, the man appeared, sliding down the banister, before landing perfectly on the ground floor.

“What's up babe?” he asked over the din, and you pointed at the couch, miming it being lifted up. You couldn't trust yourself to voice yourself, worried you'd give away your true intentions.

He got the message, “No problem! Anything for you, sweetcheeks” and you blushed, (you hoped if he noticed that, he'd think it was because of the pet name, and not in... anticipation.

And with about as much effort as it took to lift up the receiver of his phone, he lifted up the couch up with one hand, and smiled as he motioned you to proceed. Keeping one eye on his chest, you quickly vacuumed underneath, getting rid of the veritable hutch of dust bunnies that had accumulated.

The leather belt held....

You did your best to hide your disappointment, but really, what were you expecting? The Sparda brothers were freakishly strong, it wouldn't have taken Dante much effort to lift something like this, barely needing to flex his muscles. Your sighs were drowned out by the persistent whine of the vacuum, and you faked a thankful smile to him, (to be fair, he had been helpful, the antique couch would have been a pain in the butt to move by yourself).

The man gave you a cocky smile and then headed back up. You'd have to think of something else.

Operation: Tiddy Freedom

Phase One: Failure

After the living room was decent, you headed to the kitchen. You could vaguely hear Dante thumping around upstairs, and every so often you could hear him singing a rock tune or something. You wiped down the cupboards, emptied the drawers of all unessential items (Did you really need that power cord that goes to who knows what? Nah, just toss it....TOSS IT) and boxed the old dishes that you guys never used.

After coating the oven with the foamy oven cleaner, you decided to sweep the kitchen while you were waiting for it to do it's magic. While not as dusty as the living room, there were some grimy corners that cried out to be swept and scrubbed. One such threatening spot was on the edge of the base of the fridge. The metaphorical light-bulb (that strangely looked like the oven light) went off in your head.

“Dante!” you yelled out, “Need some more help!” And quick as a flash, as if you had summoned Hermes himself, the red clad demon hunter appeared.

“Alrighty, what can ole' Dante do for you?”

You composed yourself as best as you could “I need to sweep and scrub underneath the fridge, mind moving it for me?”

He grinned, and with a focused 'Hmmmph' he wrapped his muscular arms around the machine, pulled, and lifted. You had never in your life thought you would be jealous of a refrigerator, but then again, you never thought you'd fall in love with a silver fox half-demon. But now to the business at hand.

Dante kept the fridge up, a few inches off the floor as you tried to pretend to move quickly to sweep and with the scratchy side of a sponge, getting rid of the decades old dirt that had accumulated there. After all, the longer he held it up, the more likely that leather belt would snap. But there was no distinctive sound of creaking leather being pushed past it's breaking point, no grunt of surprise from Dante, and as he set it back in place after you finished, you quickly glanced at his chest.

The belt remained intact.

Dismay fought to take over your facial features, but you held firm. If he knew what you were trying to do, you weren't sure you could handle the teasing. So instead, you gave him yet another fake smile, thanking him profusely for his help. He gave you a quick kiss on the cheek, and left the kitchen, and you heard his combat boots clattering up the stairs.

Operation: Tiddy Freedom

Phase Two: Failure.

You began to wipe out the cleaning foam out of the oven, marvelling at how something so delicate as a bunch of bubbles could be strong enough the strip the encrusted dirt. After that, you finished sweeping and scrubbing the rest of the kitchen floor, before taking a breather. All that was left for this room was taking the boxes of unused dishes to the car, for transport to the local second hand shop.

The boxes themselves weren't that heavy, so there was no point in asking him to help you, it was easy enough on its own.  But as you loaded the boxes into your car trunk, a devious idea popped into your brain.  Alright, perhaps the couch, and even the fridge hadn’t been enough, but surely lifting a car….

You pulled out your phone, then gently set it on the ground, before pushing it so it was totally out of reach underneath the vehicle.   Now, to put your acting skills to good use.

“Dante!” you cried out in mock horror, “I need help!”

The man came out running, a bit quicker than you thought, obvious worry on his face. Good, the ploy was working  “What’s wrong, babe?”

Now to play the part of lover in distress.  “My phone,” you said sadly, “I was carrying out the boxes to put in the trunk, and my phone popped out of my pocket, and I can’t reach it under the car.  Silly me, I should have left it inside.”

Dante’s face relaxed in relief as he took a peek at the undercarriage.  “Ah, don’t you worry your pretty little head, just be ready to snatch it up.  And after spending a few moments cracking his knuckles, he grabbed your back bunker, and with both hands, lifted the car a good three quarters of a metre off the ground.

You darted underneath, grabbed your phone, and once you were free and clear, tapped him on the shoulder to let him know it was safe to put it down, which he did with surprising gentleness.  You gave a kiss on the lips as thanks.

And yet, the leather belt still remained unbroken.

Operation: Tiddy Freedom

Phase Three: Failure

You sighed sadly.  All this work for naught.  You’d have to ask him who the leather-worker was for that, seeing as it was such good quality, even after these years.  But it was cold comfort…

“Babe, you okay?” his worried voice split into your morose thoughts.  You shook your head to clean out the mental cobwebs, and you smiled, although you didn’t feel like it.  You felt as dirty as the floor behind the fridge for making Dante do all these things, just for your amusement.

“It’s…. just been a long day, cleaning and such” you replied, truthfully this time.

“Awww, come here sweetheart,” and you felt his strong arms envelope you in a big hug.  So this is what the fridge felt like… You thought to yourself, as he tightly held you against his bare chest. 

All of a sudden, you heard, and felt  what was unmistakably the sound of leather stretching beyond its capabilities, and then....

SNAP!

Dante’s chest belt ripped down the middle, the two ends dangling sadly at his sides.  You stared at them, then at the reddened mark where just a few moments ago, it had been practically embedded into his skin.  You swore you could see the stitches echoed into his muscular flesh.

“Aw shucks,” you heard him say, and you looked up to see him with a cheeky grin on his face.  “Will you look at that?  Looks like I hugged you a bit too strongly.  Sometimes I don't know my own strength, didn’t crush any of your ribs, did I?”

He was joking of course… but that grin he gave you….and the fact that he’d just snapped his belt like it was a piece of dried spaghetti...Wait….did he know what your plan had been all along?

You pressed your face into his chest, both attempting to feel the rapidly fading marks, and also to hide the fact your face had more blush than the entire pharmacy makeup aisle.  

Dante lowered his head, so his mouth was at your ear level, and murmured,seductively “You know, I cleaned up the bedroom, we ought to… christen it before Verg gets home…”

You had barely nodded your head before without warning, Dante lifted you up, bridal style, and carried you indoors like you weighed nothing at all.

And to be truthful, that’s how you felt.

[prolestariwrites]

The Wish [2]

Fandom: Devil May Cry Characters: Dante, Vergil, Nero, V, Lady, Eva, Sparda, OC Rating: General Tags: Family, Humor, Fluff, Angst, Typical demon hunting violence

Summary: A demon gives Dante the chance to have his greatest desires made real. When he finds himself in a seemingly idyllic life, all seems well until it starts to unravel. Will he sacrifice himself to save the family he lost, or will he choose to give them up for the truth?

Now Posted: Chapter 2, in which Dante hunts for clues and to who he is, and where he is, when he reconnects with a long-lost relative.

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Chapter 2: Pictures and Clues

Dante spends a full ten minutes just sitting on the bed in his underwear. He reviews every step of the night before: Nero texting him about this job, catching the train to Fortuna, the two of them driving out to the warehouse with the radio blaring and picking up burgers on the way. Then the demons, dozens upon dozens, that weren't difficult but packed to the brim so that when they pried open the front door of the building they swarmed like roaches.

He had found the queen at the top, but there it gets fuzzy. It talked to him, but about what? Something about his family? Every time he gets to that part, his headache turns a little sharper, so Dante decides to give thinking a rest so he can figure out where the hell he actually is.

His jeans are slung over a chair so he grabs them and fishes inside for his cell phone. It's different from the one he normally has, and he frowns as he turns it on and finds a passcode. He tries the first thing he can think of—1, 2, 3, 4, easy enough—and luckily it works. Quickly he dials Nero's number, but isn't really surprised when the automated voice comes on the line to tell him that number is not in service.

Dante scratches the back of his head. He's here, in a strange house with a woman who knows his parents, and Nero is… somewhere. Got it.

But then he wonders if something might have happened to Nero. What if he needs his help? Then this has got to be a dream, right? So how does he wake up?

Once he pulls his jeans on and finds a t-shirt in the other set of drawers, he tries the door. Cautiously he opens it, but the house is quiet, so Dante slips into the hallway. There are two other bedrooms and a bathroom which look suspiciously normal. Even the closets are tidy, and Dante snorts when he gets to the linen closet. This must be a dream. Who owns so many towels?

Next, he heads downstairs to the main floor. At the bottom is a living room, complete with a comfortable-looking sofa and a big-screen television. Dante stands in front of it and admires it for a minute before grabbing the remote control. He lets out a low whistle when he sees the picture quality, thinking if this is a dream, he's got good taste.

That demon's got good taste.

Dante shakes his head and continues his search. A small dining room is to the left, and to the right is a hallway leading to another half bath. The kitchen is nice too, the dishwasher humming and a pot of coffee warm on the counter. Even the refrigerator is stocked, and Dante helps himself to a piece of chicken he finds in a plastic container, figuring he can eat whatever he wants in a dream.

Out the kitchen window he can see a little backyard, and Dante sighs as he leans against the counter and chews thoughtfully. It's a nice enough house, something any ordinary couple might buy for a starter home. He glances down at the gold band on his finger, holding it up so he can examine it closely. Setting the chicken down, he wipes his hand on his jeans and slips it off, turning it over until he notices an inscription on the inside: Dante and Lir Forever.

He pictures the cute blonde who was half his size but acted more than familiar. "Lir," he murmurs out loud, slipping the ring back on as he looks around.

Wandering back through the house, Dante notices some pictures sitting on the windowsill in the living room. He walks over and picks up the first one, his face going a bit pale. He is in a suit, and that woman‚ Lir, is in a wedding dress. They are posed and smiling in front of a cake, holding a knife together as if to cut it. He turns it over but there's nothing out of the ordinary about it, and Dante snorts as he sets it back down again.

The next few are of them as well: a selfie in winter gear, posing in what Patty would call "Sunday attire", in bathing suits at a beach, arms around each other and grinning at the camera. He's gotta admit, they look pretty good together. His brain did a good job dreaming this girl up.

The next photo, however, feels like a punch to the gut. It's a double-sided frame on a hinge, and on one side it's him and a man who looks exactly like him, only his hair is slicked back instead of hanging in fringes around his face. In fact, he looks exactly like what Vergil would look like. If he was still alive.

Dante's hand shakes as he examines the picture. It is Vergil, it's got to be, the same slightly slimmer build and the half-inch in height that made it possible to tell them apart. The only thing that shocks him more than seeing this picture is the one opposite. Across from Dante and Vergil posed with small smiles is Vergil and Lady, her hand in his arm as they smile into the camera.

Gripping the picture frame, he grabs the next one and braces himself. Staring up at him are two people he somewhat recognizes, as if he had seen them in a dream. They are older, in their 60s maybe, the man grinning with his arm around his wife, sitting together on a couch. He has longish silver hair, not unlike Dante's, a pair of glasses hanging around his neck. Her blonde hair is swept up into a bun, streaks of white only making her more dignified, her hand on the man's knee. Dante brings the picture up so close his nose nearly touches it, and that's when he realizes that the woman is a dead ringer for Trish, if Trish was about 40 years older.

His cell phone rings in his pocket, startling him out of his examination. Dante fumbles for the phone but freezes when he sees the name Vergil appear on the screen. It takes another three rings before he gets the courage to answer. "Yeah?"

"Did I wake you or something?"

Dante staggers to the couch and sits heavily, still clutching the two pictures in his hands. He knew what to expect, but nothing could have prepared him for hearing that voice on the other end. "Dante," it says again. "You there?"

"Y-yeah," he stammers, his voice cracking around a dry throat. "Verge, is that you?"

"Of course it's me. I want to talk about tonight." Dante's eyes close as he listens, trying not to freak out. Even Vergil's exasperation for him is the same. "I'm paying for dinner, and I don't want to hear anything about it. We need to settle this now so we don't argue at the restaurant."

"What uh…" Dante's mind is spinning and he shakes his head to clear it. "Yeah uh, Lir mentioned something about a dinner. Do you know Lir?"

"I'm surprised you forgot, Dante. Usually you remember these sorts of things." Dante leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he tries to breathe. "This dinner tonight is important and I don't want a scene. Just let me pay for it, and afterward we can agree on how you'll pay me back your half. Agreed?"

Dante swallows thickly. "Yeah, yeah that's fine. Vergil. Vergil."

Even saying his name gives Dante the shivers. "Well I expected more of an argument. Glad you're going to listen to reason. Don't be late."

"Wait, Verge?" Dante looks down at the picture in his hand, something hot and tight tickling his throat. "Can I see you? Can you come over?"

"What for? I'll be seeing you tonight, and I have the kids. Are you sick? Where's Lir?"

"She covered a shift," Dante replies. "Please, Verge, I got… I need to say some things."

"Well say it tonight. I'm not driving all the way over there when I'll see you in a few hours."

Dante chuckles, swallowing tears as his breath escapes in a laugh. "Okay. Yeah. Hey uh, is mom and dad… they really gonna be there? At this dinner thing?"

There is a long pause, and then Vergil huffs, "Don't be stupid," before hanging up on him.

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The rest of the afternoon Dante spends figuring out his life. He finds photo albums in the closet, handmade scrapbooks that Lir definitely made. They chronicle some of their vacations, and he smiles as he turns the pages to see them camping, at the beach, at Disneyworld. The wedding one makes him wince a bit, the smiling faces of his brother and his parents making something in his chest tight. The date on the preserved invitation tells him they've been married about ten years, which is pretty funny since the longest relationship he's ever had was about ten minutes after getting dressed.

He looks weird in a suit, and Dante snorts to think what Lady or Trish would say if they saw him. But Lady is there, on Vergil's arm, and that is a mystery he can't wait to solve. And Trish kind of is there, in the form of his mother, looking slightly older but just as lovely.

There is a drawer in the desk in the office that has some bills, and he boots up the computer to take a look through. The email is pretty normal, receipts from online orders and utility companies, messages from the family and people he doesn't know. There is a link to a bank account and Dante's brows lift to see the balance. Compared to his normal finances, the amount seems like a small fortune.

There must be something a god of fortune can give you.

A cat appears suddenly, jumping onto the desk and stalking across the keyboard to plop across his arms. Dante pulls back in reaction, which earns him a very annoyed look from the cat. "Hey uh, there," he says, tentatively reaching out to pat its head.

The cat snaps at him, and Dante rolls his eyes. He never got along with animals as a rule. "So you want to sit on my computer as I'm using it but I can't pet you, hm?" he grumbles. The cat yawns in response, so he decides to go find lunch instead.

There's not much more to discover after having a sandwich. His life seems completely ordinary, although he doesn't know exactly what he does or even if he's still in Red Grave City. The other question still to solve is Nero. If Vergil is alive and married to Lady, then does Nero even exist? His face goes a bit hot to think of the kid not being around. But Vergil had mentioned kids on the phone… is it possible?

He is dozing on the couch and watching television when the door bursts open. Dante is on his feet and reaching for his guns that aren't there when Lir hurries in, her arms filled with dry cleaning as she comes like a whirlwind into the living room. "I'm so sorry I'm late! I can't believe I got stuck there! I told them I couldn't stay, and now look at the time!"

She pushes the clothes and plastic into his arms and pulls her cell phone from her purse. "Did you take a shower yet? You still need to shave. You are going to shave, right? You can't look like a sasquatch at the party."

Lir looks up at him expectantly, and Dante shrugs. "Yeah, I guess?"

"Good. Wait. Are you okay?" She steps up and presses a hand to his forehead. "You were sick this morning. How do you feel?"

"I'm okay," he assures her. "I had a weird dream."

She smiles, and his heart actually skips a beat. His brain is good. "Good. Did you feed Claudius?"

"Claudius?"

"Yes. The cat." Lir laughs and pats his chest. "Was he a problem today?"

Dante thinks about the cat that interrupted his computer search. "No. And no, I didn't feed him."

"Okay. I'll take care of it. You go shower and get dressed. And don't take too much off, you know I prefer a bit of facial hair." She takes the dry cleaning from his arms and pulls one of the hangers to hand back to him. "Here's your shirt and pants. I'm glad you're feeling better."

"Yeah." He watches her step around him, draping the rest of the clothes over the back of a chair before disappearing into the kitchen. If this is a dream, it's more vivid than any he can remember.

The shower feels good, even if Dante is amazed by how many things are on the shelves. He's never lived with a girl but is there anything needed really other than a bar of soap? In one of the drawers under the sink he finds a shaving kit and goes to work before the shower fixing up his face just like she asked. It occurs to Dante that this is his dream and he can do whatever he wants, but something makes him not want to disappoint her, so he makes sure to leave a nicely trimmed beard while removing the rest from his cheeks and neck. Once the shower is hot, he goes for the least-strange sounding soaps before finishing up and drying off with a nice fluffy towel.

He peeks into the bedroom and finds it empty. Quickly he hurries over to the bureau and opens the top drawer, rummaging around for some underwear. Dante just has his first foot in when Lir enters, and he yelps when he sees her. "Hey! I'm getting dressed!" he protests.

She freezes and looks at him in surprise as he pulls his boxer briefs up. "Yeah. I see that." With a laugh she moves to the closet and hangs the rest of the dry cleaning up before disappearing into the bathroom.

Dante frowns before he remembers, they are married. He rubs his hand on his face with an internal groan. He is going to have to get used to this as long as this dream or whatever lasted, including being half-dressed in front of her. While she's gone he quickly pulls on the dark slacks and gray dress shirt before heading to the closet. He finds some black dress shoes he figures Lir will like, and once he's all ready he stands and looks at himself in the full-length mirror that is propped against the wall.

Dante barely recognizes himself without the low-slung denim and some red leather, but he figures he still looks pretty good. As long as he looks better than Vergil, he'll be satisfied, chuckling to himself at the thought. But then he sobers a bit as his stomach turns, wondering what it will be like to see Vergil again. The last time was on Mallet Island, and before that, watching him fall off the Temen-ni-gru. Did that even happen in this place? There had to be a Temen-ni-gru if Lady was here, right? He shakes his head, confused as ever. He needs to figure this out, and fast.

Lir steps past him, again dressed in only a bra and panties, and Dante quickly looks the other way as she pulls her dress over her head. "Will you get this zipper?" she asks as she steps into a pair of heels.

Clearing his throat, he steps up behind her and carefully pulls the zipper up as she smooths her hands down the front. It's a sleeveless blue little number that fits her just right, and when she turns around to fix his collar he admires how nice she looks. "Okay," Lir smiles. "You ready to go? Dinner with the family is always interesting."

Dinner with the family. "Yeah, I'm ready," he grins. Maybe the mystery-solving can wait until after seeing them again at least. Couldn't hurt, right?

[rodeoxqueen]

The Sparda Boys Taking Care Of Stray Animals Headcanons-(AO3 Request by @Zehnmou)

Zehnmou requested: Why is this so cute...urgh, my heart just exploded. 😭. I have always love Dante being a goofy dad

Anyway, pardon me, but might I ask for a request here? I don't have any Tumblr account though,

What about Sparda boys taking care of stray pets in their own ways? (oh any kinda is fine to me though, cats, dogs, birds,....they're all good to go)? Like fluffy stuff. Thank you so much.

I love this idea. Pull my fluff trigger, if you will. I did not write Nero, though I will add his segment later.  I’m too burnt out from school to do more but I still wanted you to have something to read as soon as possible. This was all my exhausted cowboy brain could scrounge up to write. 

Thank you for requesting darling,

Rodeo

Vergil

Our favorite ice king tries not to make it obvious but he is a cat person.

He is a staunch believer that owning a pet is extra work and pointless. Besides, you own another creature and that’s freaky. 

But as soon as he sees them toe beans and twitching whiskers, he’s not that loud about his aforementioned opinion. 

He won’t exactly house them, but Dante sometimes catches him leaving cans of tuna around the alleys. He refuses to admit it’s him. 

It’s even harder to hide he’s the local cat dad when he walks down the street and there’s a gaggle of cats following him, tails swishing the air with affection. 

His pants at the ankle area are covered in cat hair. He can’t walk out the street without a pack of all sorts of cats rubbing themselves on his legs. 

Sometimes there will be some sickly kitten that’s left on the street. Vergil can be found in his plastic white chair, bottle-feeding the poor thing. It grows healthy and cute and he lets the kitty, who he named William, sit on his shoulders while he reads. 

After he lets in that cat, about twenty more show up. Dante had to beg Vergil to be sensible, a rare sight to behold, when there are cats everywhere in his shop. 

Vergil= Crazy Cat DILF. 

V

Unlike his complete form, he’s quite into the idea of animal companionship even if Griffon is annoying as hell sometimes. 

He loves feeding birds. When he’s reading with Shadow’s head on his lap and Griffon is preening, he’s throwing bits of cracker and biscuit onto the ground for pigeons. Sometimes Shadow tries to eat one or Griffon strikes lightning at them with a chortle. He is inconsolably pissed. 

One day at a local park,  he keeps hearing this wretched and pitiable noise. After some tracking around, he finds a raven with a broken wing. They’re hopping around pathetically and incapable of flight. 

When they see him approaching, they freak and screech at him and try to flee. 

“Have no fear, little bird. I mean you no harm.” He stoops down, hands gentle and slow to approach them. 

For some reason, the corvid trusts him, beak stroked by his careful fingers. He cups the bird and takes them home. 

He manages to fix their wing with a splint. The bird hops following him. Shadow tries so hard to not eat the poor thing and Griffon is offended. 

“What?! Am I not cute enough for ya, V? You cheating on me with another birdie?!”

When they begin to heal and can fly again, V sadly lets them leave. He gives them a little push towards the window. 

“Go on now, little wanderer. You’re well and free once more.” They don’t move, intelligent eyes focused on him only. They hop back and caw at him, flying up to sit upon his shoulder. 

“If you wish.” V muses. He strokes the bird’s head. 

“If you are to stay, I must find you a name. How about Poe?” 

“Caw.” 

“Excellent choice.” 

V is not very original. But he has a pet raven and that makes him so much cooler than you.  

Dante

On account that he does live in the shadier parts of Redgrave, there’s a lot of strays. However, there’s also a lot of demons that like to eat the aforementioned strays. It’s a brutal little ecosystem. 

So imagine Dante’s surprise one night, when a hellhound runs into the alley near his shop. 

The hound is snarling with some sort of black goo in its mouth and its claws like scythes scraping the ground. Dante thinks it’s a dog that’s dumpster diving. 

“Same.” He walks away. It barks at him, looking for a fight.

“Look puppy. I fight Cerberus for fun, you are not going to win this.” The hound jumps him anyway, taking a good chunk off his leather coat. He throws the dog off and semi triggers, exposing his demonic skin. 

He assumed the hound would just run away. Instead, it rolls onto its back with its tail shaking. He can’t get it to leave and he eventually lets it inside. 

He has a dog now, he guesses. 

The hellhound is a lot different than a normal dog. Firstly, it’s from hell. 

It also is super strong and fast, and incredibly violent. It should not be treated as a pet.

Dante disregards that and plays fetch with it using an old can. It runs into traffic and comes back with half a stop sign. 

“Come here, boy!” The hound leaps onto him and sends him through a wall. Dante has to borrow Nico’s saw to clip its nails. Don’t even get him started on bathing the hound. It tore the faucet right out of the wall and sent a spray of water right at Dante. 

He never really finds a name for the hellhound. He just whistles and it’s there. 

He and the dog can enjoy a pizza together and he feeds it the olives when they show up on his slices. However, the hound is perfectly happy with some demon leftovers or roadkill. 

Its breath? Terrible. 

He tried to leash the dog and it bit a hole through his hand. No leashes. 

He cannot take the hound to the dog park. The last time he did the dumb hound tried to eat someone’s Pomeranian. 

The hound’s really useful during hunts when Dante brings it.  

Dante gets a side compartment for Cavalier so the hound can sit and let the open air hit its face. The hound can run just as fast as a car but it loves it. 

At the end of a hard day, the hellhound will jump up and down and chase its tail with joy when Dante comes back from work. 

He and the hound sleep on the same bed, the hound laying its stupid little head right on his chest. Both their snores make Vergil want to set the shop on fire. 

(For my Tumblr Lone Rangers Only)-Vergil walked in on Dante doing this to his hellhound and he simply walked out of the building: 

Rodeo’s Two Pieces: 

This Cowboy Is Tired But Never Of Your Requests and Comments.

[sethrine-writes]

Devil-sitter May Cry, Ch. 6

Pairing: Dante x F!Reader, Vergil x F!Reader (Undecided)

Words:  1474

Warning:  Exposition, cuteness

Story Summary: Low on cash and desperate for a job, you reply to a flyer for a babysitting position. Little did you know that the opportunity to watch over two special boys would bring your life so much mayhem and adventure…and, perhaps, a chance at a family of your own.

A/N: Another shorter chapter. Also posting at cryptid hours because I am, myself, a night owl by nature and have no impulse control. Enjoy!

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Chapter 6 - Last-minute Services

You waited patiently at the front door of Devil May Cry, admiring the streetside that was aglow with twilight. Normally, you arrived during early to mid-morning hours, plenty of time for the sun to rise and brighten everything around it. Sunsets had an interesting way of making things seem so much more ethereal, even a normal city block such as the one you found yourself in.

Huh...that motorbike on the curb was new, wasn't it?

The door opened abruptly and interrupted your train of thought. You turned to greet who you assumed would be Dante only to falter at finding a woman standing there, smile bright and expecting.

"There you are! A bit late, but I take it you took the bus, right?"

You floundered for just a moment, completely caught off-guard at having someone new and unknown beckon you into the establishment.

"Uh, y-yeah, I took the next available bus I could after I got the call," you explained while entering the building behind the dark-haired woman, perplexed and a little wary at her presence.

Dante had been the one to call you in on such short notice, and yet a quick glance told you that neither he nor Vergil -nor their respective weapons- were anywhere to be seen.

"You should seriously invest in your own transportation, you know. It'll cut your travel time almost in half, something to consider in this line of work."

She turned abruptly toward you, stopping you in your tracks as her lovely heterochromatic gaze found yours.

"I'm Lady, by the way," she said, holding out her hand, "we've talked before."

Realization crossed your mind, and a sense of ease washed over you as you took her hand in a more formal greeting.

"Oh, for the babysitting job, yes! I'm so sorry, I didn't even realize...you sound so different over the phone."

"Phones are weird like that," she dismissed easily, pulling back and heading straight for the desk, beckoning you once more to follow her as she began shuffling through the mess of papers and bills scattered about.

"Alright, the boys have already had dinner, so the rest of the night should be pretty easy stuff. They get another hour or so of playtime, then a bath, V's nighttime stretches and meds, and then bedtime - ah!"

She turned quickly to you yet again with a startling flourish, brandishing an envelope she had apparently been searching for. You eyed it curiously as you placed your bag on the floor beside the desk, taking the envelope from her gloved fingers. It felt thick between your own.

"What's this?"

"Your week's pay! Dante did give you last week's, right? I can straighten him out in a heartbeat, if he didn't."

"It's barely the middle of the week," you explained in bewilderment, attempting to give the envelope back, "it's hardly fair!"

"No, no, take it! Think of it as an advanced payment," she explained, "for Dante and Vergil needing your services at such a sudden and late hour. Besides, this current job is paying very well, and it's best to give you your cut before the idiot blows it for something else."

She pushed your hands toward you insistently, her assured smile only slighting your worries minimally.

"Thank you," you said, your words enough to placate the grinning woman before you.

"No problem. Oh! I set out a blanket and an extra pillow for you. It's not much, but I'm sure the guys will remember their manners, next time, and offer you a real bed to take advantage of."

Lady pointed out said blanket and pillow neatly stacked on the worn leather couch with a tilt of her head. She then began moving swiftly towards the door, picking up some sort of massive weapon you hadn't even noticed upon entering the building that was propped up against the wall beside the doors.

How did she manage to carry that thing?

"Alright, I'll leave you to it," she said with a nod, giving a cheery two-fingered salute while walking out the door, clearly in a hurry.

"It was nice to meet you!" you called out just as the door swung shut, and for a moment, you were left in the quiet of the lounge, floating in an odd sort of limbo as to the quick nature of your first meeting with Lady.

An engine roared to life outside, the sound of a motorbike revving and tires squealing briefly against the asphalt almost startling you.

Ah, well...that little mystery made sense.

"Nero, she's here!"

Looking up toward the top of the stairs found an excited looking V waving down at you, of which you were quick to reciprocate with your own smile and wave. Not two seconds later, Nero came running around the corner, nearly knocking into V in his haste.

"Yes! Lady said you'd give us ice cream!"

"Did she, now?" you asked in amusement, moving to stuff your early week's pay into your bag as excited little feet made their way down the stairs.

"Mhm! I want sprinkles on mine!"

"Can I have an ice cream cone?"

"No, wait, I want that, too!"

Nero was practically dragging you towards the kitchen in his excitement, V happy to complete the train by holding your free hand and following along.

You could only hope their energy depleted itself over the next couple of hours, despite loving every minute of their creativity. As rambunctious as they seemed to be, it would be a miracle to get them to bed on time, and the last thing you wanted was Vergil reprimanding you on your terrible timekeeping.

---

Well, an hour past scheduled bedtime wasn't too bad, considering you expected even more trouble than that to get the boys down.

Luckily, it seemed bath time wore out V, for the most part, and it was a matter of calming Nero's high-energy self with relaxing bedtime stories from space-related books to finally get him settled.

They both had their own beds, rather spacious for their age, but it was easy to see why when Nero brought over his own pillow to V's bed and settled in snuggly beside his cousin for stories. It must have been an often occurrence, the boys finding comfort in sleeping next to each other.

You found just as much comfort at watching them both nod off, Nero much slower to do so, but his sweet parting of V's hair and his drooping gaze as he relaxed was such a precious thing to watch happen from your peripheral. By book three, Nero had finally succumbed to his own personal dreamland, no doubt filled with a nighttime sky just waiting to be explored.

For a long moment, you watched the two boys sleep soundly, taking the time to tuck them in further with their respective stuffies and gently brushing the hair from their faces. Your heart ached at the tenderness it brought about, a hand coming up to twiddle with the pendant around your neck almost absentmindedly.

A small sigh escaped you, and with quiet steps, you left their bedroom and slowly shut the door, finding your way back downstairs.

You checked the front door one last time, ensuring you had flicked both locks into place, then made your way over to the couch-

Where you were promptly greeted by Shadow popping up from behind the blanket and pillow set out for you. You'd never pulled your hand over your mouth so fast to stop yourself from screaming, you were sure of it.

"Jesus, you crazy demon cat! You're trying to give me a heart attack, aren't you?" you accused with curious suspicion.

The answer you received was a quaint little meow, one that was deceptively cheerful sounding and not at all representative of the ferocious visage she made when not parading as a house cat.

"Mhm, whatever you say," you groused, reaching out to pet along the length of her dark, shining fur still amazed at the tiny sparks of red that shimmered through after your touch. "So long as I'm off-duty, you got that?"

The following purring was cathartic just as it was playfully ominous, and you couldn't help but smile at the ridiculousness of the moment.

"Glad we could come to an agreement. You gonna keep me company for a while, or are you just here to threaten me with your cuteness?"

Shadow made a soft sound, jumping up gracefully on top of the pillow and settling against it. It was all the invitation you needed to sit on the couch beside her, the worn leather rather comfortable to relax into. Your hand found it's way to Shadow once more, her purring intensifying with each gentle stroke along her back you completed.

Perhaps this would be a good way to waste away your time, at least for a little while.

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Tag List:  @v-vic, @astridstark13

[solynaceawrites]

Wires [2]: Defensive Wounds

Rating: Mature Archive Warnings: Graphic Depictions of Violence, Major Character Death Categories: F/F, F/M Fandom: Devil May Cry Relationships: Dante/Original Female Character(s), Implied Nero/Kyrie, Implied Vergil/Original Female Character(s), Implied Lady/Trish, Dante/Lirael Thorne, Dante/Lir Characters: Dante, Morrison, Nero, Original Female Character(s), Lirael Thorne, Lir Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Detectives, Violence, Gore, Dark, Horror, Supernatural Elements, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Serial Killers, Angst, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut Summary: In Red Grave City, a serial killer stalks the streets. Lirael Thorne, recently transferred from Fortuna and looking for an escape from her past, winds up on his trail. Hunting him with her veteran partner, Dante Redgrave, they try to piece together the wires that bind the three of them together. In a race to catch him before he leaves more victims in his wake, the things thought buried will come to the surface, tearing lives and comfort apart.

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“Agonies are one of my changes of garments, I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself become the wounded person, My hurts turn livid upon me as I lean on a cane and observe.” — Walt Whitman

»»————-　⚜　————-««

The morgue is cool and quiet, gleaming metal polished to a shine that sends little daggers of light into Lir’s eyes. She gives herself a moment to adjust, listening to the faint tic tic tic of the freezers, fingering the bottle of aspirin in her pocket while she waits to see if the subtle pressure in her skull is going to shift from discomfort to agony. Next to the door is a desk, with a state of the art computer, a few files, a cup full of pens, and a half-drunk cup of coffee with lipstick on the rim; beyond that, there is another door, one that probably leads to a storage room, two walls of cold lockers in four rows of four, and two x-ray displays on the final wall. In the center of the room are three slabs. On one of them is the Jane Doe, covered respectfully with a sheet, her eyes closed to give her an expression of peace. At her side is Trish, her blonde hair pulled into a knot at the top of her head and her face partially obscured by a sterile mask that she tugs down on Lir’s approach.

“Thorne,” she greets cheerfully. “You here for the autopsy report?” Lir nods, and Trish beckons her closer. “You’re right on time. Just got done with our guest.”

Lir isn’t sure what to make of having a corpse called a guest. Gallows humor, she supposes. “What can you tell me about her?”

“She suffered, that’s for certain.” Trish turns on the light over the slab and pulls it down, illuminating the Jane Doe with a grisly, fluorescent white that turns her already dead pallor a sickly blue-gray. Then she pulls the sheet down, and Lir is suddenly, incredibly grateful that she hasn’t eaten yet, the bile in her throat bitter but weak. “The throat and abdominal trauma was all perimortem. She was alive, but not struggling, when our killer cut her open. Judging from the tissue damage, looks like the throat happened first, but it was ultimately shock and blood loss that killed her.”

“She was alive for the whole thing?”

“Mm-hm. Though I don’t know how aware of it she was. I don’t have the toxicology report yet—that will take a little longer to run, sorry—but pupil dilation is indicative of intoxication. Judging from the depth of the gash here,” Trish points to Jane Doe’s throat, “it was more to keep her quiet than kill her. She would have bled out from that alone eventually if no one found her first, but it doesn’t go through bone. The hesitation marks at the edges make me think he was more . . . Well, there’s no easy way to say this. Probably sawed through her.”

Lir tries to picture it, being too strung out or drunk to defend herself, being helpless while some maniac slashed her throat and cut her open like a butcher. From the corner of her eye, she catches sight of a red dress and pale hair and holds her breath, counting to ten until it fades, then asks, “You said at the scene there weren’t any defensive wounds.”

“That’s right. And there aren’t. No blood or tissue under her nails, no bruising or scrapes or cuts to show that she tried to fight back.” Trish sighs, lifting the sheet back over Jane Doe before tugging off her gloves. “Whoever this is, they’re one sick puppy.”

“Yeah.” Photographs on the wall catch her attention, and Lir walks over to study them closely. They’re all from the crime scene, some of little bits of evidence next to their markers, others of the victim, and it’s the latter she really looks at. “Does that pendant have any religious connotations?”

“You’d have to check. Why?”

“I just thought she looks kind of like an angel.”

Trish comes to stand next to her, her expression grave. “You know, I had the same idea.”

They stand in a heavy silence, the clock on the wall ticking loudly until Lir sighs. She bids farewell to Trish, who promises to have the full report to her by the end of the day, and takes the elevator back up to the bullpen. Dante will no doubt want to know what she’s learned, but she finds that she doesn’t quite want to tell him. Something about this all is nagging her, tugging the thin strands of her memory with an urgency, look, look, you’ve seen this before, even though she’s fairly certain that she never has. Was there a similar case in Fortuna? So lost in wracking her thoughts she nearly runs right into Simmons as she steps off the elevator, and she mumbles an apology and returns to her desk, where she boots up the computer, hunting for a notepad and a pen while she waits for it to finish loading.

A cup of coffee thudding next to her elbow has her peering up. Dante sits back down, a cup of his own in his hand that he raises to her before he takes a sip. His face screws up in disgust. “Fuck. No matter how long I’m here, coffee still tastes like shit. What’d Trish say?”

“That we’d have the full report soon,” Lir replies. She finds what she was looking for and logs into the terminal. “Victim was slaughtered like livestock and left to die. Too something to even try to save her own life.”

“That all?” 

She’s aware of his gaze, critical and assessing on her, and it makes her skin flush unpleasantly. “Until toxicology comes back.”

With a nod, he leans back in his seat. “Alright. What are your thoughts?”

Now you want to know? she nearly asks. Rubbing her temples, she replies instead, “Our guy is bold. A nightclub on one side, a bar on the other, people coming and going at all hours? Not to mention, he had to have been familiar with the location to avoid the security camera, if he did. Speaking of, is that footage here yet?” Dante shakes his head. “Right. Okay. So, Jane Doe was probably at one of the two places. Why risk dragging her any farther than that? And he had to get her to go with him somehow. A knife or a gun would have been too obvious, even for a crowded bar.”

“Could’ve posed as a hook-up,” Dante suggests.

“Mm. If she wasn’t drunk, he might have drugged her.”

“Drugs?”

“Her pupils were blown.”

“So,” he says slowly, “we’ve got a bold, possibly attractive killer who goes to bars to pick up women. Think he knew the vic?”

Lir realizes suddenly that he’s testing her, digging to see her worth, and it makes her angry all over again. “No, too risky. He’s got balls, but he’s not an idiot. All this planning, all the care he took, he wouldn’t want to leave any trace of himself, and that means he was probably a stranger and he picked her out when he got there. If it hadn’t been her, it would have been someone else.”

“Opportunistic. Well, shit. Means he’s gonna be a bitch to find.” He offers her a crooked grin that doesn’t reach his eyes. “Want to flip a coin to see who’s givin’ Morrison the news?”

“You do it. I need to look for something.”

Dante frowns then, but the expression is quickly smothered as he stands. He takes his coffee with him into Morrison’s office; once the door is closed firmly behind him, Lir releases a sigh and slumps in her chair, cradling her head in her hands. This was meant to be a new beginning for her. Get out of Fortuna, away from the good-intentioned but condescending men she worked with, leave the bitter break-up and the cramped apartment behind her to set out in the bigger city. Yet here she is, dealing with condescending men, living in an apartment that’s large enough to feel empty, with a killer that she knows she has an infinitesimally small chance of catching on her hands. Maybe I’ll get a cat, she thinks, and then discards it. She’s going to be too busy to give any pet the love it would deserve.

Lir pulls up the database and enters her credentials, watching the wheel spin as the program decides whether or not she’s allowed in. Once it opens, she navigates to the search bar, where she types evisceration, hoping the term will be narrow enough to ping any cases that might have been similar. All she gets are animal cruelty cases, youths torturing cats and dogs, and she groans. Next is religious, but that doesn’t get her anything other than some fraud. Jane Doe is too broad, while trying by location only gets her arrests for petty theft, assault, and drunk and disorderlies. Her fingers drum on her desk as she thinks; maybe, if whatever it is that she thinks she remembers was before her time in the force, it would have been before they started digitizing their records. 

Which would mean figuring out the location and then digging through that city’s physical files.

She pinches the bridge of her nose. Most of what she said to Dante was speculation, and she knows that they’re going to spend at least a week trying to identify their victim and looking for anyone who might have seen her, tracking down friends and acquaintances and ex-boyfriends to see if any of them had the fury and the cruelty needed to butcher someone like that. If they’re lucky, she’ll have gotten into some sort of trouble with the law and there will be prints they can match. If they’re unlucky, it’s beating the streets, shoving her photograph in people’s faces to try and jar their memory.

“Detective?” Lir opens her eyes to find Simmons standing next to her, a USB stick in his hand. “The nightclub owner sent this over. Said it’s all the footage from the last twenty-four hours and you wanted it?”

He sounds uncertain, and she forces herself to smile. “Yeah, thanks. While I’ve got you here, can I ask a favor?” Hesitantly, he nods. “Head down to the morgue to get the victim’s prints from Trish and run ‘em, will you? It’s a long shot, but it might help us figure out who she is.”

Simmons doesn’t look like he finds the idea appealing, but he gives a weak salute and heads down the stairs. Lir watches him until he disappears into the elevator, and then she plugs the USB into her computer and opens the files to scroll through it. Twenty-four hours of hopefully unaltered footage stored in four hour chunks which, when she clicks on the first video to play it, turn out to be monochrome and grainy. She fights through the urge to yank her hair, instead getting up and going to grab a fresh cup of coffee from the canteen. After a moment of hesitation, she takes the entire pot, setting a second one to brew; this is going to be an all-nighter for sure, and the only thing that’s going to get her through it is enough caffeine to make her jittery.

Dante is back at his desk when she returns. He arches a brow at the sight of her with the pot, but that turns into a loud groan as she says, “Footage got here. All twenty-four hours worth. Want to grab a seat?”

“There’s a meeting room we can use,” he mutters. “Bigger screen. Grab it and let’s go. Is that all the coffee?”

“For now.”

His long-suffering sigh draws an unwilling smile from her. Dante leads her down a hallway to a room mostly taken up by a large oval table surrounded by plush leather chairs, and he sinks into one as she sets up the monitor on the wall and gets the USB situated. “Ready?”

“Not really.”

“Tough shit.” She chuckles and presses play.

Hours pass as they work through both the footage and the coffee, pausing only when they catch sight of a pale-haired woman before slumping back in disappointment and carrying on. Morrison stops by once to check on them, then Simmons with the news that the prints were a dead end, and finally Trish with her full report, toxicology included. None of them linger for more than a few minutes at most. Dante and Lir alternate bathroom breaks and coffee runs, neither of them willing to stop the tape until it’s done. Like ripping a bandaid off, she thinks at one point, stifling a yawn before taking a large swig of her lukewarm coffee. Get it over with in one go, no hesitation. 

It’s just passed four in the morning when Dante lurches in his seat. “Pause it, pause it!” Lir jumps, pressing quickly on the remote, and he squints. “Rewind it a bit. There, stop, stop. Press play.”

“What is—oh!” She scrambles for the file on the table, flipping it open so she can see the picture of Jane Doe clipped to the inside. Pulling it free, she holds it up, glancing between it and the screen. “It’s her.”

“Mm. Looks like . . .” He leans forward, his eyes narrowed as his lips move silently. “Two?”

Lir blinks, then turns her laugh into a rough cough. “No. It’s, uh . . . It’s 3:37.”

Dante scowls at her as he reaches into the pocket of his vest to pull out a pair of square glasses, the style just as noir as his clothing. He perches them on his nose, then nods. “Yeah. Alright. So our victim walked into the club at 3:37 am. Since her body was found at quarter to eight, means there’s a five hour window for our killer to have found her and pulled her into the alley.”

“That’s if you don’t remove however long she was in the bar and the killer leaving,” Lir points out.

He clicks his tongue. “Don’t be a wiseass, Thorne. It’s not cute.”

“I’m not here to be cute,” she replies irritably. 

“Shame.” Just as she’s debating dumping her coffee on him, he asks, “There a way to print this? We’ll take it with her autopsy photo and show it to the staff at the club, see if any of ‘em remember her. Maybe she paid with a credit card, which’d give us a name.”

“You plannin’ to sleep tonight?” she asks dryly.

“Sleep when you’re dead, Thorne. Print and let’s go.”

Biting her tongue, she heads back to the computer attached to the monitor and screenshots the frozen video. Once it’s in her hands, the two of them head out back, where the employee lot is, and Dante leads her to a car that she recognizes from her childhood. Her mouth drops open as she takes in the ‘58 Corvette, the same type her father had often talked dreamily of owning when he retired, the black paint and white cut-outs glossy in the early dawn light. The top is closed against the dew, but she can still make the red leather interior, and she laughs incredulously when Dante unlocks it. “Seriously?”

“You can take a cab if you like,” he replies tightly.

Lir closes her mouth and climbs in, looking around curiously. The seats are incredibly comfortable, and it doesn’t seem like Dante has done any upgrading to it at all: the gearshift is still topped by a clean white knob, and the only source of sound is the radio, the knob of which Dante turns until classical rock filters softly through the speakers. A good car is like a good woman, her father had told her two months before his death, holding her in his lap as he pointed to the yellowed magazine, treat her right and she’ll stick with you for life. She’d put the damned ad in his casket before they buried him, and Lir closes her eyes against both the unwelcome sting of tears and the sight of him with his misshapen head on the silk pillow. Botched robbery, her mother said tearfully. Throat closed with sudden grief, just as sharp as it had been then, Lir hardly notices when they pull away from the curb.

“She’s beautiful,” she whispers.

Dante’s startled silence is the only reply she gets.