#this is probably true for all spardas

[chachassirkom]

dante will be wearing some sh like this for no reason and feel like THE style queen

[icycoldninja]

Hello, can you write about sparda boys + V headcanons about reader who has Maria Antoinette syndrome (Canities subita, also called Marie Antoinette syndrome or Thomas More syndrome, is an alleged condition of hair turning white overnight due to stress or trauma) because they had to fight at a young age (like being a child soldier, but currently in a higher rank like a general, idk)?

I love your headcanons, hope you have great day

Thank you, I will, and hope you do too! Enjoy!

Sparda boys + V x Reader with Marie Antoinette syndrome headcannons

¤ Dante ¤

-Dante just thought you'd inherited Sparda genes somehow. Maybe his old man banged your great-great-old woman a while back and now you have the signature white hair.

-Hearing you backstory made him realize how traumatic your childhood must have been. His heart ached for you.

-Knowing that you are not his distant half-sibling or something means romantic advances are not out of line. He really wants to help you.

-He'll be there if you want to trauma dump all your experiences as a child soldier, and won't judge you for any of it.

-What they did to you was wrong, and he will make sure you know that he loves you and that he thinks you're perfect.

-He tells you he thinks your hair is really cool, because it's true, and can now confidently say you're twinning.

■ Vergil ■

-Vergil never gave much thought to your appearance.

-Sure, it was odd that a non-Sparda youth has white hair, but then again it could just be dye or kooky genes.

-Learning of your tragic past made all the pieces of the puzzle click together. It was a rare syndrome that you had, but an interesting one.

-He sympathizes with your having to fight at such a young age. He did too.

-Vergil's not very good at cheering people up, so don't expect long, wordy speeches about how amazing you are.

-He shows his love for you by MOTIVATING you throughout your day, helping you whenever you need assistance.

□ Nero □

-Nero thought your hair was cool as hell, just like his.

-He never wondered why your hair was that color because he honestly didn't care.

-Learning you had Marie Antoinette syndrome worried him; were there other effects that have yet to reveal themselves?

-Your past was definitely concerning and most likely the cause behind your syndrome taking affect.

-He's concerned you'll start prematurely aging whenever you get stressed and is now trying to take all your responsibilities so you don't turn into a mummy overnight.

-You'll have to explain to him that's not how it works, or he'll end up overworked and exhausted himself.

● V ●

-V thought you were an interesting person with an interesting appearance.

-He often wondered why your hair was so white, since you were so young and didn't seem to be of demon descent.

-However, he held his tongue, fearing it might be linked to a traumatic event from your past.

-He was right, too. You eventually told him that your syndrome kicked in when you were a child, fighting in some war.

-This information was quite depressing; V decided he would take care of you from now on in whatever way he could, because you deserved to be loved and cherished.

-He's very supportive and sweet towards you, and with time, he could probably help you recover from your trauma.

[issacballsac]

“Being Best-friends with Dante Sparda„

Being a son of Sparda doesn’t mean he doesn’t have time to fool around with you ! Gender neutral human reader

Teenage Years | DMC3

Being the massive flirt he is he’ll most likely try and flirt with you upon meeting

Seeing as his twin brother is currently trying to kill him and take his necklace he’ll keep your first conversation short and leave you with his number

After literal Hell on Earth he’ll remember to give you a call

Y’all click instantly…he’s also just a really easy person to get along with but we’ll just ignore that

Now we all know he STAYS broke so either you pay for a meal or y’all are taking a walk in the park somewhere

Getting him to actually talk about himself is pretty difficult

Give him space and he’ll open up about deeper things in his life eventually especially things that concern his demon half(brother, childhood, etc.)

He does enjoy throwing compliments everywhere so expect daily words of praise whether it be sarcastic, goofy, exaggerated, or sincere praise

If you like to compliment as well it’ll be like the most sickening bromance ever

If your still in school DO NOT go to him for homework help

He’ll hype you up for sure but if you need genuine academic help just get a tutor💀

Would be genuinely upset if you made a joke regarding his white hair bro would get hella moody and claim you aren’t friends anymore

If you have a part time job you can BET he’s gonna ask for some bread

Not exactly outright but he’ll allude to it like..

“You remember all the damage those demon guys did to my shop? Yeah…it’s gonna cost A TON to repair it by myself…”

“Are you hungry? Well I heard about this new pizza spot that WE should totally tryout 😁.”

If you like to make clothes/jewelry/accessories he’ll totally wear it

Refuses to let you mess with his hair until like two years into knowing each other

Takes pride in his looks and you should too! Self care! Ofc you’re paying for any and all expenses🫶

Glorified sugar daddy😭

If you live with your parents…so does he

Congratulations you have a new brother 🩰

If you don’t he’ll offer to be roommates so he can get a cheaper rent

You’ll definitely meet Lady she is absolutely appalled at how you tolerate him constantly sarcastically ofc she knows he’s a good guy

If you’re into video games he’ll play with you granted he doesn’t have the money to pay for a game console so it’ll be on whatever console you have

Once he’s in your life he’s never leaving literally.

A best-friend for a lifetime

Adult Years

He probably saved you from some demons

Like if you met him in his teenage year he’d def start flirting

What can I say he stays true to himself

His personality would never change regardless of his aging

Still the same wacky woohoo pizza man we know and love

Thinks you look hot and invites you on a date which quickly just turns into a hangout after the LACK of romance

Still finds hanging with you to be fun and keeps a friendship

Even after establishing a friendship he still flirts here and there—force of habit

Would definitely teach you how to ride a motorcycle if you didn’t already know

More willing to let you mess with his hair

Like put it in pigtails or tie it up/braid it

Introduced you to the whole DMC gang

Now depending on the time period he’ll tell you about Vergil and his upbringing

He would totally tell you all about it after the events of DMC5 after he returns ofc!

I feel like he’s an animal guy so if you have any pets they’re now his pets too

Co-parenting core🩰

If you’re an artist he’ll be your muse/reference material any day

Loves the attention

Drunk dance nights

Karaoke too he doesn’t have the best singing voice but it’s not the worst

Since he’s a devil hunter he goes on missions a lot and seeing as you don’t want to get your shit rocked you stay behind

Cherishes every moment spent together and will make sure you know that

You always take him with you on vacations

How could you not???

He appreciates if you chip in helping him pay off his MASSIVE FUCKING DEBT

He doesn’t expect you to though

Despite being broke he stays stylish and if you asked would help you with fashion

Ofc he isn’t like BIG on fashion but cmon have you seen his looks? He dabbles

Immediately sees you after missions and starts ranting about the entire thing

“Can you believe it?! So obviously I shot that nasty bitch and it had the nerve to explode all over my jacket! It died so I can’t even get it to pay for a new one!”

“Don’t worry about why I smell like this worry about the fact that Trish totally took MY commission!”

Very dramatic but laid back too if that makes sense

Calls you cheesy nicknames that I will not elaborate on use your imagination 🗣️🫶

Enjoys live music and will go with you to concerts if you like

Shows you his demon form if you’re interested

Whatever your hobby is he’ll be interested

Would make sure nothing ever bad happened to you regarding devils ofc

Best bros for life and in death🫡

[car-goes-brrr]

Back on my yap because I’ve wanted to mention this for a while

-

From the way I see it, Mundus must’ve been obsessed with the Sparda twins, especially Vergil.

Firstly we know that Mundus is kind of a mad-scientist type because of him constantly making demons (all of dmc1 demons were made by him). Most importantly, Nightmare, he literally took a bunch of demons, slapped them into one and realised he created a monstrosity that could even kill him. So that proves the whole Mad Scientist thing.

Then, because Vergil wasn’t concealing his identity, unlike Dante, Mundus literally stalked this young boy, collected data on him and how he fights and created a clone of him (Gilver) who he then sent to attack Dante. Knowing that Mundus stalked Vergil for who knows how long, he definitely caught onto Vergil wanting to reach Sparda’s level of power. He’s definitely seen what Vergils true intentions are (to never feel the pain and weakness he did the night Mundus killed his mother), and realised how weak mentally Vergil was in that state. Maybe he knew that Vergil was going to make his way to the Underworld one way or another.

This brings on my next point. The Proto-Angelo’s show that Mundus had probably wanted Vergil under his control but needed the perfect armour to do that. I think that maybe he ordered Machiavelli to do that, since we know he created the armours. Going along with the Mad Scientist and Mundus’ obsession with God-likeness, he was probably a perfectionist and needed the armour to be exactly perfect to keep Vergil trapped within.

Quick mention: I know that the 2005 DMC1 comics aren’t canon. But it really intrigued me how in those comics, Mundus “adopts” Nelo-Angelo. Going as far as to call him son. Ofc Mundus is a villain, very manipulative and deceptive. But it took me by surprise for him to not only brainwash Vergil, but to also use his admiration towards his father against him and make him think Mundus is his father. Once again, the comics aren’t canon but maybe this part could be.

Long story short: Mundus is an obsessive creep but super interesting as a villain (like what do you mean the world was covered in snow when he was born????) and I wish we got to see more of him

[actuallysaiyan]

hiiii,

May I request the valentines day request with vergil sparda x f!reader (dmc5 version) with this prompt [Reader/Character writes their loved one a Secret Admirer’s note and tries to deliver it discreetly. They are caught by their loved one!]

Where reader writes vergil a love poem or a confession and tries to tuck it like under his room door but he happens to be heading towards it and catches her off guard? They are not in a relationship but reader has feelings for vergil and considered the idea of confessing through the letter because she is shy :^ anyways so they encounter and reader quickly retreats shyly to her room where vergil then comes up to her to confess after reading the letter? Could be SFW or NSFW after the last part.

Totally love your writing, feel free to ignore it a shorten it if it's too much.

Love ya, xo.

(Also if u don't mind I want to be anonymous because I'm shy and anxious sorry for that :">)

warnings: smut, love confessions, mentions of crying, Nero's mother is slightly mentioned, cunnilingus/oral sex(fem receiving) word count: 1.1k pairings: Vergil x Fem!Reader summary: you write a sweet love letter to Vergil and are so nervous about him finding it. when he does find it, he's so touched...he shows you his true feelings through actions.

You keep rereading those words on the page. Your hands are shaking. Though you know that you won’t be getting a response right away, even just the thought of sliding this love poem/confession under Vergil’s door was making you so nervous. You had thought about doing it this way for weeks. The eldest Sparda twin had very much caught your attention, and the only way to confess to him perfectly would be to write him a love poem. Sure, you were no William Blake, but you knew he’d appreciate the sentiment regardless. That was…if he felt the same way. If he didn’t feel that way about you, you’d have to quit your job as Dante’s secretary and run very far away from Devil May Cry.

With a deep breath, you get up from your bed. Vergil had been on a mission all morning and well into the afternoon. Coincidentally, that was the time it took you to really get the nerve to even begin writing this letter. It was beginning to eat at you too, especially as you continue to reread it and desperately want to make corrections. But you know it also comes from the heart and that means everything.

So you tiptoe across the floor and open your room door. You peer outside into the hallway, looking for signs of anyone. When you don’t see any flashes of white hair nor do you spot Lady, that’s when you make your move. You grasp the letter and you walk a little further down the hallway, finding Vergil’s room door.

It’s silent save for the beating of your heart and the rushing of blood in your ears. It’s so frightening because you have this sinking suspicion that he’s going to find your letter and he’s going to toss it away. He’ll probably laugh at your sad attempt to write the literary man some kind of pathetic poetry. He won’t even look at you anymore after this, prompting him to ask Dante to kick you out.

You almost lose your nerve again when you crouch down to slide the letter under the door. Just as you’re getting back up, you notice someone is in the hallway with you. As you turn around, you come face-to-face with the man in question. Vergil cocks an eyebrow when his gaze meets yours. Your heart nearly stops as you try to come up with the right thing to say.

“Can I help you with something?” He asks, a ghost of a smirk on his face.

You shake your head, “N-no…”

You scurry away; you feel like you could faint. This was all so intense and you couldn’t believe you actually slid the letter under the door. He was seconds away from reading your confession. Seconds away from reading the contents of your heart. You couldn’t even think straight as you managed to hide yourself in your room.

For a few moments, you dive right under the covers and hide from the world. You try to convince yourself that your blankets will shield you from the rejection that is sure to come from this. And it keeps you safe and hides your tears as you feel them sliding down your cheeks. You were almost certain that Vergil wouldn’t even be the slightest bit interested in you.

Oh but you were so wrong about that. Through time and perseverance, you managed to capture the heart of the eldest Sparda twin. Even the first time he met you, he thought you were the sweetest thing in this world. A ray of sunshine in the darkness that loomed in his heart. He had his eyes on you from the very beginning, something that made his brother tease him to no end. Yet, Dante had swore not to meddle in the love affairs of his twin.

Vergil found your letter immediately as he stepped into his bedroom. He opens it up and reads it, leaning against his now closed door. Tears well up in his eyes as he reads the beautiful poem. You had reached into his chest and stolen his heart. It was almost too much. He wasn't even sure if plain old words could even be considered good enough to tell you how he felt.

After a little while, he decided to just go talk to you. He was beginning to think maybe just being able to be open with one another could help. Vergil knocks on your door, and you’re startled. Was he coming to reject you? You take a deep breath once more and open the door for him. His eyes widen when he takes in the sight of you.

“I…I…” he starts, but can’t even continue.

You gasp as he pushes you into the bedroom, closing the door behind him. His large hands cup your face and he pulls you in for the most passionate kiss you’ve ever felt in your life. It’s soft and sweet, but there’s a lingering hunger in it. 

“My love,” he says between heated kisses. “Your words have ignited a fire in my heart.”

You gasp when you feel his large hand enveloping yours and placing it over his heart. You feel the way it races just for you. Then you two meet in another sweet kiss, but the hunger lingers in this one as well. He guides you towards the bed, and within too much fuss, he begins to undress you. It’s slow and passionate, and you don’t feel pressured at all.

He tenderly spreads your legs, watching you through hooded eyes. You’re so beautiful like this. The soft lighting of your room makes you look almost like a painting. He then leans in to kiss your lips once more, making you feel lightheaded and breathless. Your eyes meet his gaze and he smirks as he begins removing his gloves. Then you let out a soft moan as his bare hands massage your thighs.

“May I taste you, beloved?”

Your heart skips a beat, but you manage to squeak out a “yes”. Vergil smirks at you, but it’s a genuine smirk. Then he spreads your legs, lowering himself onto his stomach between them. The smell of you makes him a little dizzy as he leans in to taste you. The moment his tongue touches your folds, he knows he’s done for.

He’s not ready to let you go.

Long languid laps of his tongue from your hole to your clit have you squirming beneath him. His name falls from your lips in soft pants and desperate little mewls. Vergil has never felt more hard in his entire life. This was all new, and yet there was a familiarity to it all. He wonders how he could have ever pulled himself from Nero’s mother if this is what it was to pleasure her.

He manages to push those thoughts away and focus solely on you. Just the sight of you being pleasured was enough to make him grunt against your wet skin. Your whole body feels warm, your eyes are rolled back in your head and your chest heaves as you pant to catch your breath.

“You are mine, my darling. All mine.”

[put-me-out-of-my-destiny]

I've previously talked about the storytelling benefits of Vergil destroying Yamato in order to close the Qliphoth portal after DMC5. And I've shared a plot idea in which Machiavelli, the allegedly dead demonic craftsman who created Nelo Angelo's armor, approached the twins and offered to help them return to the Human World. I've also said what I think would happen if Dante was split with Yamato in a response to the questions anon.

This post combines all of those ideas. Picture the following:

The twins cut down the Qliphoth, then Vergil seals the portal for good, mostly destroying Yamato in the process (leaving only the hilt and some of the blade). This makes a big impression on Dante, who never thought Vergil would give up something so precious to him for the greater good. This is the beginning of the twins beginning to trust each other more.

They travel the Underworld together for some time, surviving, catching up, growing closer, when they are approached by none other than Machiavelli. Being the creator of the first devil arm, and many devil arms since, it's not hard to believe when he claims he knows how to restore Yamato. He only asks for their labor in return, for them to travel to various parts of the Underworld to recover artifacts and resources that he can use.

Both twins have a bad history with Machiavelli - though not so directly in Dante's case - but they consider his proposal regardless. Dante is inclined to take the deal. In part because he doesn't consider Machiavelli to be a threat, in part because he's desperate to return home, and in part because he won't let Vergil hide from Nero forever. Because there is more trust between the twins now, Vergil reluctantly agrees.

Tangent: if this were a game, this half would be played from Dante's perspective, if only because Vergil doesn't have a weapon at this point. There would be a cutscene establishing Vergil gaining a replacement for Beowulf.

But being Machiavelli, of course he has hidden intentions. What he really wants is to claim Devil Sword Dante, and use Rebellion's power to merge the human and the demonic to reverse Sparda's act of separating the Human World and the Underworld. This is because the war between Sparda and Mundus was profitable for Machiavelli, and as soon as the worlds were separated, the war came to an end. Machiavelli believes that combining the worlds again would reignite the war, allowing him to capitalize on it once more.

Machiavelli executes this scheme by capturing Dante - probably by tricking and/or ambushing him - and turning him into an Angelo knight. By subverting Dante's will, Machiavelli gains control of his eponymous sword.

Of course, Vergil is obliged to save Dante, and manages to free him before the worst comes to pass, but Dante's body has become corrupted, much like Vergil's was before he split himself in DMC5. Naturally, Vergil decides that he cannot allow Dante to die like this, and elects to use what's left of Yamato to cut the corruption out. And while Vergil succeeds, this predictably has an unintended side effect.

Dante is split into two beings, one apparently fully human, and one apparently fully demonic.

Dante's human half, out of a once-abandoned wish to distance himself from his true identity, begins calling himself Tony Redgrave. He's a chubbier fellow who looks a bit older than Dante really is. He doesn't enjoy fighting demons, and wants to return to the Human World ASAP, without reuniting with his other half, so he can begin his shot at a normal life.

Dante's demon half, self-named Morrigan, has other plans. This crow-like dark knight immediately seizes Dante's devil arms - leaving the guns behind - and begins working to prevent any being from crossing between worlds again. Morrigan would go as far as to prevent Vergil from restoring Yamato and returning to the human world, seeing Vergil's willingness to do this as proof that his choice to destroy Yamato in the first place never really meant anything.

Tangent: I didn't choose the name Morrigan because I like how it sounds. The mythological figure is a goddess of war, but also of land and sovereignty, a guardian of territory. And the very legacy that Dante upholds is to preserve the independence of humanity from the demons that would seek to rule them. The mythological Morrigan is also associated with fate, and to Dante, his responsibility is an inescapable birthright, not something he chose. This is also the reason that I described this Morrigan as crow-like.

Tangent: the mythological Morrigan is, of course, a female deity. I'm not necessarily opposed to Dante's demonic half manifesting as a woman. I could enjoy the symbolism of both Morrigan and Tony (Toni?) Redgrave being women, suggesting that Dante's gender issues aren't a product of one oppressive side of him, but of two sides of him that he hasn't fully reconciled. But a big part of why a female V would have been interesting is the association with Dante and Vergil's human mother, Eva, and this Morrigan is supposed to strongly take after their demonic father, Sparda. I just don't think Morrigan being a woman would fit, thematically, at least not during the events of this plot. Maybe there's something to be said about Dante being split into a female human with a traditionally male name, and a male demon with a traditionally female name? Second opinions on this matter are very welcome.

This event would also create nightmare demons like Griffon and Shadow, which Morrigan would defeat and wield as devil arms. I could imagine Morrigan wielding these against Vergil, and scolding him about that "you've never lost anything" comment that he made when he was Urizen. Unlike the nimrod in question, Morrigan doesn't deny the past, instead drawing anger, grief, and guilt from it as motivation. If anything, Tony would be the one who claims to have "no recollection" of his old life.

Tangent: if this were a game, these nightmares could serve as an excuse to allow Dante to have weapons from previous games despite being unable to recover them from the Underworld. However, it's just as possible and much simpler for him to encounter similar demons in the Underworld and obtain similar weapons, like King Cerberus or the various sets of gauntlets and greaves he wields.

Tangent: it'd be interesting if Dante also manifested a copy of Griffon, which Vergil recruits. He functions a lot like the Griffon that served V, but he isn't the same being. This is uneasy for Vergil, who never really got to say goodbye to the friend and ally who protected him for a whole month, then threw his life away for Vergil's own good, without even asking him how he felt.

Plus, I think the separation of Dante would also result in the separation of his eponymous sword. Morrigan would wield Devil Sword Sparda, leaving Rebellion's hilt to Vergil and Tony.

Tangent: I like the idea that when Dante is inevitably restored, and Devil Sword Dante with him, the sword manifests differently, reflecting his character development and rebalanced priorities. I like Devil Sword Dante's canon design, but I think it's weird that it doesn't incorporate the bone motifs present in both of Dante's old swords (Rebellion's ribcage and Devil Sword Sparda's spine). It's also a little disappointing how little has been done with the fact that Devil Sword Sparda can turn into a scythe. DmC: Devil May Cry features a scythe weapon with its own moveset, and it even has a version of prop shredder, that can serve as inspiration. Devil Sword Dante II's scythe moves can be in Swordmaster, with his summoned swords being moved to a fifth style like Darkslayer from DMC4.

It quickly becomes clear that without Tony as a natural supply of human blood, Morrigan is rapidly burning through power, and will eventually grow weak and die (kind of like V almost did). Of course, Morrigan wouldn't be above cannibalizing Tony as a means of prolonging the inevitable. The demon would see Tony as what held Dante back from fully embracing his destiny and doing what must be done to keep humanity safe and free, as what got Dante tricked by Machiavelli, as what caused Dante to entrust Yamato to Nero and make him a target for Vergil, and what caused him to spare Vergil at Nero's behest. Nonetheless, Morrigan needs to ensure the Human World's independence permanently, and aims to do so by killing Vergil once and for all.

Tangent: this is the half of the game that would be played from Vergil's perspective.

Vergil needs to convince Tony to reunite with his other half, which isn't easy. But eventually, Tony realizes that even without demonic power, he isn't truly human, that he can never be truly normal, and that deep down, he doesn't really want to be. I can't help but think of that scene in Spider-Man 2 where Peter Parker charges into a burning building to save a kid despite not having powers at the time, because losing his powers didn't make him feel any less responsible for the well-being of others. Dante doesn't just fight demons because he has to, he really does want to, even if it isn't always easy.

But Tony also comes to understand that Dante doesn't have to shoulder Sparda's burden alone anymore, that Vergil is ready to step up and be the big brother that Dante needs, a bit of growth that also coincided with the creation of Devil Sword Vergil (which Machiavelli played no part in). Then it's just a matter of convincing his demonic half, of reminding Morrigan that Nero saved both of them because he believed that Dante and Vergil could make peace, and that Morrigan has a responsibility not just to humanity as a whole, but also to Dante's family.

After that, Dante and Vergil are reunited, and they return to the Human World. The End. For now.

[itsaleiah]

ROMANCING MR HALF-DEVIL | Vergil X Original Character

CHAPTER TWO: Traces Of The Future, Alessa

SUMMARY: Alessa Vera is a dreamer. She’s dreamt of many things to come for many times, believing that all of it is just a one big nightmare… but what if it isn’t?

"They're in danger, daddy I saw it!"

"What are you talking about Alessa?”

Alessa Vera was a dreamer.

She knew that when she was born, she was going to follow her mother's footsteps to stardom. She had no idea of the true life of her father, the true history of their family.

She had dreams of extravagance, of the future, of her future self.

She imagined herself on the stage, performing exactly like her mother, selling out millions of records and making people happy. Its what she ever wanted, to make other feel positive.

For little Alessa, helping others was the best thing a person could ever do. Little did she know, she had abilities that would exactly allow her to help, just not in the way that she expected.

But one day, things changed. Her dreams went from falling to a tunnel to... weird and realistic if you put it in simple context.

It was a nightmare, a regular dream and a paralysis demon all at once.

It first happened when she was 4, before she and her older brother met Sparda and his family. She remembered falling asleep to one of her father's tales of hunting down demons, a habit that they do even now.

She could feel her body surrendering to her restless dreams as her eyes fluttered shut. A few minutes later Alessa grumbled, having been woken up not even an hour in her sleep. She was ready to hit Hector when suddenly, she realized that she wasn't in her room nor her home.

Her heart started beating fast, not used to the unfamiliar surroundings. Where am I?

"Hector, Mom, Dad?" She opened the door and called out through the halls, afraid of what may await her in this place.

It took a few minutes without her family's response that she finally started walking around the place, though lightly, as to not alert what could probably be monsters around. As she wandered around, she realized just how massive the place is. It wasn't a house, it was a castle! And she was all alone... Maybe Daddy thought that we should have a family trip and they didn't bother to tell me? (How weird.. Hector would probably do something to make me cry or wake me up if that were the case.) The castle was very beautiful, the tapestries and designs were placed intricately - though the aura was lonely, making her wonder who or if anybody ever lived here. Little Alessa would have probably enjoyed it and even thrived in being there if it wasn't so.. Grim.

It felt so real, as if she was actually in there. And maybe she was? She couldn't tell anymore. The first thing she did was explore the castle. Nobody was there anyway and who would dare hurt her? Her father's the most powerful human in the world! Just one strand being misplaced would result in the evil demons getting their butts kicked!

As she turned a corner, she noticed a blade sticking out on the wall. It has lightning thingies in it. A part of her, the rebellious part of her, wanted to touch it but fortunately enough, the sensible part in the four year old's mind won, remembering her mother's scolding: "Don't touch things that aren't yours, Li!"

Leaving the sword behind, little Alessa walked around humming her mother's favorite tune, strolling as if she owned the place. When she finally got comfortable in the lonely halls of the palace, someone.. or something started crawling on top of her.

At first she didn't notice it until one of its webs fell in her hair. The young girl slowly looked up to see what it was and saw the monstrous creature looking up at her with malice and full intent on doing something to her.

She froze in her place, scared. As if moving was going to trigger the spider's cruel thoughts. But if she didn't do anything, it would get her either way - easier.

Run.

She felt her feet move on their accord, instantly doing everything to get away from that horrifying creature.

"Daddy, help me!" The poor girl cried out. The thing

being so cruel as to tease the little girl around the hallways. At first it would follow behind - and then it would climb up to look at her to frighten and terrify the girl even further - and then it would stop, approaching slowly and still keeping up to show that if it had gotten bored, it would have gotten the girl easily.

Alessa could feel the tears that were threatening to spill from her eyes, wishing that she'd have been crying over her brother's teasings, or father's stories, or mother's scolding. It had been chasing her around and no matter what she did, she couldn't run from it. Where are you daddy? you said you would protect me!

Her eyes widened when she saw a red door just around the corner. This is my time to escape!

The young girl ran as if her life depended on it - maybe it does, its still unclear whether or not it is a dream after all, only to bump into a young girl and falling. "Ow!"

"Alessa.. Please.. Save me.."

Suddenly a group of marionettes blocked her way, leaving her no chance to escape or save the young girl.

...

When she had woken up, she was screaming and crying. Her father immediately burst to her room, followed by her brother and mother.

"Alessa! Dear God.. what happened?" Her father looked so worried.. so tired that she almost felt bad for waking him up. She looked at him with fear, having a hard time breathing. "Okay.. Its okay, baby..try to breathe, okay? You're here with us now." Her father rubbed her back gently and slowly as to help her calm down.

"What happened, Li? Are you okay?" Her mother sat on the edge of her bed, her hands massaging her left leg to help easen up the little girl's panic. "Love, can you tell me what you dreamt of that scared you this much?" His father asked calmly and she nodded - her eyes still wide. "I.." She remembered it all too well, like it did happen to her, like she was there but she couldn't speak, as if something was keeping her. She couldn't let it out, like it was being restricted.

"I..."

"A-"

"Alessa?"

"S-"

"Spiders. A castle. Serah."

The last name - she didn't know who, came out of her mouth.

"Serah?" Her brother asked, leaning in to get closer to his sister, placing his hand on her forehead to check if her temperature was normal. "She's burning up, ma."

Their mother nodded before turning to her husband with a mean glare, the husband unaware and a tad bit scared as to why she was looking at her like that. "What?"

"Did you tell her one of your many tales again before she went to sleep?" His eyes widened and turned to look at his son instead, giving his wife the answer she needed. She sighed and rubbed her forehead. "You scared her in her sleep!"

Safe to say, she was afraid of spiders and heights after that.

After that, she had many more dreams - sometimes it was confusing, sometimes it made sense but whenever she'd try to explain it only small bits come out. The dreams never made sense and it scared her. It frequented her life so much that it resulted in her older brother to sleep in the same room as her to keep watch, and when she finally told a tale about how she once saw herself getting forced to marry one of Mundus' devil generals did her parents finally realize that something was wrong, and that they needed to seek help for the poor child's peace of mind.

"A dreamer. That's what she is." The man in front of her said, he looked Victorian, out of place. Like he didn't belong in this current era or timeline.

The Devil Sparda was his name, she heard her father call him. A supposed character from one of her father's bedtime stories for her right in front of her, alive and breathing.

And he was.. Being nice to her surprisingly.

He had two kids as well: Dante and Vergil

"You, little Alessa, is a special little thing." He smiled and Alessa couldn't help but only blink. Special. It was a word that she always heard, be it her father or mother telling her that she was their special little girl to her tutor complimenting her with her ability to pick up easily on anything. But this.. hearing that word come from The Devil Sparda, the one who changed it all and saved humanity - it truly made her believe, she was special.

“Here, a necklace. To lessen the dreams that could break your heart..” A pendant with a golden star, it was beautiful, a gift from Sparda, a necklace forged by her ancestors! So her dreams wouldn’t be as horrible.. and yet..

This time, she didn't dream about any of that. Instead, she dreamt of a house. No, it wasn't just a normal house. It was a familiar one, one she had been in before. She was sure that if she was awake then she'd recognize it!

The house was burning. And.. her father was there. With a white-haired boy... Dante.. Where's Vergil? Where's Auntie Eva?

"Psst."

"Alessa."

"Alessa!"

Bonk!

That woke the little girl up. "Ow! What the hell Hector?!"

Hector shrugged, throwing the pillow out of Alessa's reach so she couldn't use it against him. "You wouldn't wake."

She rolled her eyes and sat up. "What time is it even? You do know that I have school tomorrow, correct?" She irritably asked, rubbing her eyes to stop her sleepiness.

"Vergil's here. Dad brought him in a few hours ago."

"And Dante?"

"…”

"Your dreams, they were wrong."

"No - its not! It wasn't Vergil, it was Dante! It was Dante that I saw - “

"And its Vergil that Dad brought here, not Dante. Let it go Alessa, what matters is that Vergil is safe and here with us.” Hector cut her off and Alessa’s shoulder slumped. It couldn’t be true.. It didn’t matter to her who was safe or what, what she truly cared about is the three of them getting back alive, and they didn’t.

"How is he?" She asked, her voice soft and delicate like porcelain, as if one touch from her brother would break her and release the puddle of tears that she was holding back.

Hector shook his head and there was silence. The two of them didn’t know what to do or what to say. They were gone, Dante and Eva. And Vergil… God, how would he feel?

The footsteps grew closer and the two Vera siblings looked at each other immediately, a light bulb on the top of their heads. “Shh.” Hector signaled to Alessa as they slowly walked to their door. The door creaked a tad bit and Hector winced when hearing it.

She could not see much except Vergil’s white hair, always pushed back now reaching his shoulders damped with blood with her father’s coat covering his fragile body.

“Forgive me for what happened Vergil..” She heard her father say.

“You’ll be staying with us from now on, your father protected my family for the longest time so now its time to repay the favor.” Vergil did not reply but he did nod. What could he be thinking?

Their father opened the door for him and for a moment, he turned to the corner where the Vera siblings’ room resided in, and their eyes connected.

So much pain, so much suffering.

Alessa shuddered as Vergil looked away and entered the room, the two unaware that for a while, this would be the last time they’d see the white-haired boy.

“Vergil, its dinner time! Head on down so you could eat, your food will get cold!”

One.

“Verge, its been days since you’ve last eaten! You’re gonna get sick if you stay there! You should eat, kay? We’re waiting for you downstairs.”

Two.

“Verge, your food is outside your door, you can take it once I’m gone. Please eat, everyone’s getting worried.”

Three.

“Still no response?” Hector asked, leaning on Alessa’s bedroom door.

“Nope.”

“He’s still grieving, Aly. Maybe he’s not yet ready.”

“I know but..” She trailed off and Hector moved away to sit down on Alessa's bed and pats the other side to motion Alessa.

“What is it?” He asked and Alessa sighed. Fiddling with her fingers, she readjusted her sitting position and looked at her brother. “I.. I don’t know.. I just feel like he doesn’t like me.”

“Why?” Hector asked.

“I know it sounds silly but even before everything went down, he always seemed to avoid me.” She explained, looking down on the floor. The floorings must look really pretty from the way she stared at it.

“Have you.. ever talked to him about it?”

“I have. When me and..”

She gulped and grasped the necklace given to her by Sparda. Hector sensing the change of mood grabbed Alessa’s hand and held it.

“We were playing hide and seek.. And I found Vergil passed out. I woke him up and we spoke and I asked him why he wouldn’t play with me and.. you know.”

“And what did he say?”

“…”

He said nothing.

“He doesn’t hate you, Li.” Her older brother spoke softly, carefully placing a strand of Alessa’s hair by her ear.

“How can you be so sure?” She asked, a frown forming in her face. “I.. I just know.” He offered a comforting smile. “Just talk to him when he’s ready, Li.”

She couldn’t contain it anymore, the softness of her brother’s voice reminding her of what was lost.

“I miss them so much..” She cried out.

“I know, Aly. I know..”

“Its just so unfair.. Everything..”

“Shh…”

The first time Alessa saw Vergil out of his room was on a sunny afternoon, her classmates came to visit her, a common occurrence as the Vera Manor was practically a castle with how massive and extravagant it was. It was located in a town far from Redgrave City, the main attraction of the town. The town is welcoming to devil hunters as devils came to roam outside the gate, thus it became the main household for the Veras.

And her parents didn’t want her to go out. Ever since Vergil’s arrival, her father became strict, claiming that there might be danger outside their home. The four friends were playing by the backyard where there was a playground and there he was by the large balcony. He wasn’t particularly doing anything, only staring at Alessa and her friends. It wasn’t until her friend, Greta, pointed him out did she notice that the white-haired boy was upstairs and outside.

“Who’s that boy? He’s so handsome!” A friend of hers exclaimed.

“That’s my friend, Vergil. He’s here to stay since..” Oh.

“Since?”

“Since his family is overseas! They work in a boat.” She grinned awkwardly, hoping that they would believe her while trying to cover the sight of Vergil, he might feel uncomfortable if there are many eyes staring at him!

“Oh! Well I hope he comes down soon and play with us..” Alessa’s friend, Sunny spoke up suddenly, blush covering her cheeks. Alessa quirked her eyebrows and frowned, feeling s little irritated. Gee, what’s her issue?

She clapped her hands to bring her friends’ focus back on her, “Okay, okay, everyone shoo! We have a game to play!” And the other friends nodded, getting back to their places. But before starting, she looked back and smiled, waving at the boy, but he did nothing, instead he left causing her to frown.

The second time she saw him was when Vergil finally went down per her father’s request. She overheard her father speaking with him last night when she was supposed to steal one of Hector’s chocolates.

“Vergil!” Little Alessa smiled hopefully and waved to him but once again, he breaks her hopes when he went back inside, probably to the library.

“Its okay, Aly, he’ll come next time!”

The third time was her lucky chance. She had noticed a pattern—Vergil always came out onto the balcony around noon. This was it! She had even told her brother about her plan, ready to take action and finally speak with the boy her mind couldn’t resist thinking about. Her friends would get mad at her for ditching them again, but who cares? This was Vergil we’re talking about!

She twirled in front of the mirror, checking her reflection one last time. She was even wearing his favorite color—a blue dress that flowed as she moved.

Tiptoeing down the staircase, she kept her steps light and careful so the half-devil wouldn’t hear her approaching, her heart racing with anticipation. Her eyes glistened with happiness when she saw the balcony door was open, catching a glimpse of his white-hair that was now back up to its normal hairstyle outside. Gotcha! Her eyes sparkling with hope.

Peeking out from behind the curtains, he was sitting on the loveseat, focused in a book that she noticed that he had been reading even before what happened.. happened.

Alessa furrowed her brow slightly. Why does he stay out here? It’s hot as hell! she thought, wiping a bead of sweat from her forehead. The library’s much more comfortable!

But she shook off the thought. What mattered was that Vergil was here, right now. Now’s your chance, Aly!

“You come out here often,” she said with a grin, stepping out from behind the curtains. The sound of her voice made Vergil flinch, and he looked up, surprised.

“Oh. Alessa,” he said, his voice low and steady. The sound of her name on his lips sent a strange warmth through her, and for a moment, she stood frozen, her heart skipping a beat. It had been so long since she’d heard him speak.

She hovered in the doorway, her hands fidgeting with the hem of her dress. This is what I’ve been waiting for, so why am I just standing here?

“You should join your friends. They’re waiting for you,” Vergil murmured, his eyes flicking back to the pages of his book.

“And leave you behind? Don’t be silly, Vergil,” she said, taking a small step closer.

“Whatever pleases you, Aly,” he said softly, the nickname catching her off guard. He had never called her that before. Alessa blinked in surprise, then smiled.

“Can I…?” She gestured toward the empty spot beside him on the loveseat. Vergil paused for a moment, then gave a small nod, keeping his eyes on his book.

Alessa took a deep breath and sat down next to him, smoothing her dress nervously. She glanced sideways at him, searching for the right words. “How are you?” she asked, but he only nodded in response, not looking up.

Okay… she thought, biting her lip. The silence between them grew heavier, awkwardness creeping in. She shifted in her seat, wracking her brain for something to say. Why didn’t I ask Hector for tips beforehand?

“Your friends are… interesting,” Vergil said suddenly, breaking the silence. Alessa let out a laugh, relieved that he broke the tense air between them.

“You tell me! Sunny’s been begging to meet you, you know! She wouldn’t stop pestering me to bring you out, like you’re some kind of wild animal,” she said with a playful smirk. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the faintest hint of a smile tugging at Vergil’s lips. Her heart leapt. I made him smile!

I hope he never feels sad, the young girl thought. She could recall the days when he used to steal glances, thinking she didn’t notice—but she always did. Her eyes lingered in the same way his did, with a quiet yearning he never seemed to see. He was oblivious, lost in his own hesitations, while she was left wondering how to close the distance between them.

It hurt when he wouldn’t speak or play with her, leaving a space between them that felt impossible to cross. She told herself he was shy, but doubt crept in—did he even want to talk to her? The silence gnawed at her heart, and it was this uncertainty that led her to the conversation with her older brother.

“Just speak to him, Aly,” her brother had said, as if it were simple. “There’s no harm in it.”

No harm, she thought, except maybe to her heart. Easy for him to say, they were close friends!

…

What if he didn’t want to be friends with her after all? She longed to know him beyond the stolen glances, to break the quiet tension that seemed to bind them but keep them apart all the same.

“Verge…”

“Hm?” he replied, his attention still half on his book.

“Do you… hate me?” she asked, her voice quieter this time, her hands gripping the edge of her dress.

Vergil looked up, his gaze sharp and direct for the first time. “What makes you think that?”

“Well… you never really talk to me, and you ignore me a lot, so…”

“…”

So… is that a yes? You hate me?” she asked, her voice filled with playful frustration.

I like you.

“Now you’re the one who’s being silly,” he teased, a faint smile forming as he watched her puff her cheeks in that familiar, endearing way.

“Hey!” she huffed, crossing her arms. Her cheeks flushed with a mix of irritation and embarrassment. How could he be so annoying and so soft at the same time?

“I don’t hate you, Aly,” Vergil finally said, his voice quiet but steady. He closed the book in his lap, turning his full attention to her, something he rarely allowed himself to do - and if he did, he’d shy away immediately. But not now, not anymore.

His eyes met hers, and for once, he didn’t shy away. “I never could,” he added, his words laced with an honesty that made her breath catch for a moment.

Alessa’s annoyance faded, replaced by a quiet warmth. It wasn’t exactly what she had hoped to hear, but in his own way, Vergil was telling her something more, something he couldn’t quite say yet.

“I’m going to leave once I gain enough power.” he started, his voice taking on a serious tone. Alessa’s smile faded, and she turned to face him fully, her eyes wide.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s what Uncle and I agreed on. Once he believes I’m ready, he’ll train me and teach me how to control my power, and then I’ll leave this place.

“Where will you go?” she asked.

“….”

“What about you?” he continued, shifting the conversation. “From what I’ve heard, you’re attuned to magic. Just like your ancestors.”

“Yeah, I guess I am,” she said without a care.

“So why not train? You could use that power to protect yourself, protect your loved ones.” He asked, his tone growing a bit defensive, and Alessa understood why.

But a part of believed that she could count on her family, she would always be protected so she didn’t need to put the pressure of training on herself.

“I… I want to be like my mom. Performing on stage, bringing joy to people, helping them escape their worries.”

“You don’t want to fight?”

“No,” she said firmly. “I never want to.”

“So, like Auntie… A singer?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Nope! I want to be an actress! I want to bring characters to life!” she said, her eyes lighting up with excitement.

Vergil’s lips curled into a small smile as Alessa, continued, “Oh, I know! Actresses usually have bodyguards to protect them. Since you’re training to get stronger, you could be my bodyguard!” he said, a playful glint in his eyes.

“I’ll be the shining star, and you’ll be my sworn protector!” Alessa’s face lit up, and she giggled.

And for the first time since the incident, Vergil Sparda was happy.

“I like the sound of that.”

[dmc-questions-anon]

What effect do you think the legend of Sparda had on the horror genre in the DMC universe? Like, even if it just faded to a legend/children's story by the time Dante and Vergil were born, even legends and children's stories have an effect on culture, and horror as a genre. Makes me wonder if the Legend of the Dark Knight Sparda is like the story/character of Dracula, or something. (I wonder if people swoon over Sparda like they do Dracula/tragic, good monsters? Or "monsters"- think like the way Guillermo del Toro does monsters.)

There's also a movie poster in the subway/train station(?) of DMC5 that depicts a knight kneeling in front of a woman (princess?) in a white dress. I never was sure if that was supposed to be a reference to something that came out when DMC5 did, or if it was a call back to DMC4 (maybe to Nero and Kyrie? And awww, he's her dark Knight, that's so sweet!), or if it was just something that they'd have in-universe, so that kinda made me wonder about this.

Thanks for the ask!

In the DMC 2 Novel Beryl mentions having seen Sparda in picture books as a child, so his tale was made into picture books at least.

The idea that they made plays and movies and books about him is so funny to me and probably true. I'm just imagining somebody dragging Dante out to see a movie about his dad in theaters.

Imagine if they made tv shows about him too. Perhaps even video games, and maybe even board games.

Imagine they made stories where Sparda had children or something, not knowing he in fact did, probably not even knowing he was real.

I have never thought about all this and now I am and I thank you for that.

[polarisbibliotheque]

Vergil with his s/o using Yamato in a fight

Pairing: Vergil x Reader

Summary: Vergil had been training you on the art of yielding the power of Yamato. When one of his jobs alongside Dante and Nero went wrong, it was up to you to save the Sparda's - even if you weren't totally ready for it.

Author's notes: I just marathoned The Matrix and watched the 4th movie and, well... How can I put it into words... All the feelings I have were summed up by Trinity in the 4th movie and I am SCREAMING at how amazing she is and how much the power of love™️ is the thing that saves these two in ALL the movies (and everyone seemed to have missed the point that yeah, the movies are about a bunch of phylosophical things, but also love. My kind of story). So, here we are with Vergil, his ass-kicking s/o and the power of love™️ :D

*TRIGGER WARNING*: Vergil has a panic attack during one paragraph. It describes the feeling and I'm gonna keep it in purple in case you want to jump that part!

Vergil couldn’t precisely say when things got out of control.

He was effortlessly slaughtering another powerful demon when, suddenly, Nero appeared. He got used to fighting alongside Dante – it was something Vergil didn’t think he could enjoy but, secretly, he found it was better than doing things alone. But Nero…?

He wanted him out of the way.

The boy thought it was because his father didn’t like him – but Vergil knew that wasn’t true. With Nero around, he had a disadvantage. He got worried. It threw him off his focus – and that, for Vergil, could be lethal.

Of course, he was too proud to explain that to his own son. It was better if Nero believed he didn’t like him – that way, the kid would have a good reason to stay away. It weighted in Vergil’s heart, but he was already used to dealing with that kind of weight.

“Nero! Get out of here!” He didn’t want to be the kind of father who would always scold his son, but there he was.

“Why, huh? You’re that annoyed to have me around, ol’ man?” Nero had one of his sarcastic smiles plastered on his lips, already fed up with all that avoidance from his own father whenever they were hunting. “Guess what? No way to get rid of me now!”

“Of course. As foolish as your uncle.” Vergil muttered while using one of Yamato’s attacks to sever through multiple enemies, sparing both him and Nero.

That only made Nero angrier.

“Ei! This is between you two!” Dante hit another demon as if he was using a baseball bat, sending the creature flying in the skies never to be seen again. “Don’t drag me into this; you’re the one who needs to learn to deal with people!”

“Both of you need it!” Nero exploded in rage, using his anger to sucker punch a demon right in the face before it could even think about attacking them. “You two have issues, ya know?!”

“Ei, kiddo, I’ve been around longer than ‘Mr. Power’ here.” Dante didn’t even look at the demons, resting his sword on his shoulder and just shooting at the ones who dared to approach too much.

“It didn’t do you too good.” Vergil rolled his eyes, keeping demons at bay with long distance cuts from Yamato.

Nero laughed, agreeing with his dad. Something inside him wanted to kick himself for being nice to Vergil – but, as soon as he saw a slight smile on his father’s lips, Nero thought maybe his reaction wasn’t that bad.

“See?! It’s so much easier if we get along, you ass!” Yes, he wanted to sucker punch Vergil. And Dante. And whatever approached him at the moment.

Nico mentioned he might have anger management issues – and honestly, Nero just disagreed because it was Nico. But she probably was right.

“You need to learn to listen…”

Vergil stopped everything he was doing to stare at Nero – and he would drag the kid out of there if he needed to, but it was too late. The demon who sent all his minions to do its bidding appeared – crowned in the helmet of an Angelo Commander. One of the creatures who used to hold the ones like Vergil on a leash back when he fell on Hell.

“A son…?” The demon’s voice reverberated through the ground, making Vergil’s blood boil. It was the first time Nero saw such rage in his father’s cold eyes. “He will make a good addition to my army.”

“You will only try.” It was the last thing Vergil muttered before disappearing in a blur right in front of Nero and Dante. They exchanged looks while searching for the blue demon – but Vergil was already unleashing all his rage on the Angelo.

Dante immediately triggered to fly into battle. He could see how emotional Vergil was – and that was never good. Vergil losing his temper could only mean two things: either he would bring the whole city down in his rage or he wouldn’t be focused enough, falling right after that big burst of energy.

Dante considered both a disaster – he had to do his best to bring Vergil back to his cold and calculating state.

Nero jumped into battle right after his uncle – he didn’t need to be protected; he could do it himself. They were very aware Nero was stronger than both of those fools together and now they treated him like a child? He didn’t want to admit it was an instinct from both of them to protect family – after all, what did Nero and Vergil know about paternal instincts? – so he settled with them being dumb and belittling Nero’s power.

It was the most logical explanation after all.

That was why you couldn’t believe your eyes as you approached the fight. You were helping Trish and Lady with other demons, but, after finishing your job, you decided to check on them with the big guys. And that’s when you found Dante being held down by a bunch of demons, Vergil struggling against a good batch and the Angelo Commander trying to assimilate Nero as the boy fought viciously to survive.

It was when Nero heard his father being hit by a demon that his focus shifted. With that, the Angelo Commander managed to grab his opponent – Nero struggling as much as he could. Vergil screamed something no one could understand, because at that very moment, a swarm of demons launched themselves at him, knocking Yamato out of his hands.

That never happened before.

Nero watched in disbelief as his father was brought to his knees right in front of him – Vergil lost his beloved Yamato for trying to protect him. It downed on Nero that, after all, it was an instinct.

His dad was trying to save him.

“I waited long enough to have you in my ranks once more, son of Sparda.” The Angelo approached with big steps as Vergil kept being held on his knees, trying to make himself free. Dante screamed something, but with all the demons holding him face down on the ground, it was impossible to understand – he was trying, though, to reach his sword and save his brother and nephew.

Nero couldn’t understand what was going on. What did he mean by “once more”? No one ever told him what happened to Vergil. Did that mean his father was made into one of those mindless demons and managed to break himself free? Nero wasn’t aware of that but… Well. It was something to be respected. He couldn’t let Vergil fall again.

Specially not because of him.

“Hey, you ass, you already got me! Forgot it already?!” He tried to get the Angelo Commander’s attention, but it was to no use. The demon already summoned an Angelo helmet, ready to assimilate Vergil into his army.

Those silvery eyes were never as scared and angry as they were at that moment. Vergil had all his memories of his first “coronation” coming back like a punch on his stomach – he thought he would be sick. He couldn’t breathe. He wanted to break away, but his body was trembling, and he wasn’t able to fight. Vergil couldn’t feel his fingertips, nor his legs, and it looked like the world was slowly crumbling apart around him. His heart raced and it seemed like he would die – as if there wasn’t enough air in the world to help him fill his lungs. His eyes overflowed with anger and fear – and Nero was speechless.

He had never seen Vergil having a panic attack before. He thought Vergil wasn’t able to feel all that.

“Welcome back… Nelo Angelo.”

Dante and Nero struggled once more, screaming while trying to break themselves free. They had to save Vergil. They had to do something.

And, as the helmet was inches away from Vergil’s head, the Yamato stopped it from touching him.

“Round four, bitch.” You had a cocky smile on your lips, holding the blue and white hilt of the katana with pride, piercing through that hellish helmet, and breaking it in half.

“Y/n?!” Nero couldn’t believe his eyes. With a swift movement, you made the Angelo stumble back, the helmet breaking into a thousand little pieces. Vergil looked up at you with relief mixing with the despair in his rapid beating heart – if he didn’t know better, he would say you were an angel.

“You are not… The blood of Sparda.” The Angelo was honestly confused as you yielded Yamato to swiftly kill a bunch of demons in a matter of seconds, making his way towards him.

Focused. Powerful. Staring at your prey. Just like the Dark Slayer.

“No. But I do have the heart of one of them.” You raised your head with pride, getting into position with Yamato right by the side of your face. “And that is enough to yield his power.”

Running towards your enemy, the Angelo Commander did the same, finally letting Nero go. It wouldn’t be easy, of course: he was immediately surrounded by a swarm of bloodthirsty demons – Nero did his best to kill them as fast as he could to help you.

He thought you wouldn’t be able to tackle a demon that powerful – you were human, after all. You could get seriously hurt. And, even if Nero didn’t want to admit it, he couldn’t allow you to get hurt because of their foolishness.

You had been training, though. Night after night, you and Vergil got together so he could teach you how to use the Yamato. You weren’t ready to yield its whole power, but you knew a thing or two. And, if it meant saving Vergil from that doomed Angelo fate, you would do everything in your power.

The demon didn’t even know what happened. You hit it with a powerful combo, making it take a few steps back. You took your time to think and stare at the demon, figuring out your next move. It tried to hit you with its sword, but you managed to dodge every blow, not taking a single hit – if you did, you’d probably be dead, though. Sheathing the Yamato, you took it as an opportunity to block a few blows, using your own energy to help you.

Yielding the Yamato demanded a lot. You studied enough occultism to be powerful on arcane arts, but you had never seen anything like that before. You were always astounded by Vergil’s seemingly effortless use of his power – both his arcane and martial abilities at the same time – making it seem like it was the easiest thing in the world. You would be drained after that fight, but you wouldn’t allow any of them to fall.

“How…? How can a human…?” The Angelo was as astounded as Dante, Nero and Vergil watching you, the three of them trying to set themselves free from the ever-growing population of demons used to hold them down.

“Love. That’s how.” Those were the only words you would say, unsheathing the Yamato so quickly all the Angelo could see were the rapid slashes of a void cut engulfing it. Stepping as quickly as Vergil had taught you, the next combo used both the blade and the sheath to stun the demon – who fell to its knees.

“You… Cannot win.” The Angelo panted as you approached slowly, the same look of the Dark Slayer in your eyes. The demon could see it – and fear it. “You will all die.”

Taking a look around, you understood what it meant. His minions wouldn’t stop breaking down the Spardas and you, a mere human, could kill an Angelo Commander – but could you kill all those demons as well, before one of the Sparda’s fell?

Vergil could. But, in all your training sessions, you never managed to pull that off. He tried to train you, to teach you to hone your power, to focus and bring nothing but death to those pitiful demons around, but it was to no avail. You always ended up exhausted, never able to finish the attack.

You raised your head, taking a deep breath. Sheathing the Yamato, you tried to remember everything Vergil had ever taught you. It was time to calm down, to focus. Closing your eyes, you lowered in your legs, getting into the posture Vergil had corrected a thousand times.

Dante immediately realized what you wanted to do – and it could be your victory or your demise. You were human. Even if you had honed your skills up to that point, a judgement cut of that scale would probably kill you. Dante tried to reach to his sword in a desperate attempt to help you – his fingers brushing on the hilt, but never enough to grab it and break free from that mess.

Nero screamed your name, but you only ignored it. He tried to shoot his way to get to you, losing his Red Queen and Blue Rose in the process. Nero kept calling you, now trying to punch his way through those damn demons – but they were too much. He would never get to you in time.

Opening your eyes once more, the Angelo Commander could see in you the same determination he saw in Vergil himself before he fell on Hell. Holding tightly onto Yamato’s hilt, everyone felt as if a storm was approaching. Time seemed to bend, everything around being engulfed in a dark blue aura.

That was it. You always failed at that point. Risking a look to your lover by the Angelo’s side, you met Vergil’s silvery eyes – now filled with something so different than the motivation you were all so used to.

Vergil looked at you with a mix of hope, love and respect.

And that was all you needed – for the Dark Slayer only respected the power of a few beings in this world. And you were one of them.

“Yamato… Slay all.” You whispered to yourself, letting all that power be released.

You moved faster than the eyes could see. None of the Sparda’s, none of the demons and not even the Angelo Commander could watch your form as you killed every single damned soul that tried to take away your family. It was only when you appeared once more, your back facing the Angelo Commander as you kneeled on the floor and slowly sheathed the Yamato, that they understood what happened.

“How…?!” The Angelo Commander tried to ask again, but the blade was finally covered on its hilt. And, when it did, every demon gushed blood and fell on the floor – lifeless in their doomed existences.

You managed to get up and take a look around only to see Nero running towards you as Dante got himself away from the pile of demons it took to hold him down. As you tried to turn around to find your lover, you felt your world spinning violently while your legs simply couldn’t take your weight anymore, giving out as soon as you tried to move again.

Before you could hit the floor, though, Vergil managed to catch you. Your hands never left Yamato, holding tightly to their family heirloom.

On Vergil’s eyes, you could see nothing but pride.

“Y/n! Are you crazy, huh?! You could’ve died!” Nero quickly approached, almost breathless, as if he was competing with Dante who would arrive faster.

“Y/n might be dyin’ at this point. Verge?” Dante nudged his brother, who ran his fingers on your face, proudly watching you.

“Drained, not dying.” Vergil noted, raising your limp body from the ground on his arms. “It is normal after a perfect judgment cut.”

Dante and Nero just exchanged looks. Did it mean Vergil, when he first learnt it, spent his time trying to recover himself all alone, tossed on the ground until his body had enough strength to bring him to his feet again…?

They rather not think too much about that.

“We should see Kyrie. She’ll know what to do.” Nero concluded, a little less exasperated.

“Yeah. You call Nico to grab us here, kid?” And Dante decided to take the lead for a while. It seemed like Vergil’s attention would be all yours for a while.

“Well, we need to find a phone in this hellhole.” Nero sighed as they started walking towards what was left of civilization in that town, being slowly followed by Vergil’s silent steps.

As you were left alone, Vergil looked into your eyes – a faint, proud smile hidden in his lips.

“Love…?” It was the only thing he would ask, for he knew you would understand.

The Dark Slayer never thought love would be the source of your power – he could have never imagined it was what you needed to tap into to pull that off. But it was exactly what he saw in your eyes before you commanded Yamato to slay all.

“Love.” You agreed with a calm smile coloring your lips, as you closed your eyes to allow yourself to rest. “Sometimes… It’s more powerful than rage.”

No one was paying enough attention to see Vergil smiling at those words. You were right, indeed – love was more powerful than rage.

And now, he knew.

[proxis-shattered-expectations]

How would the 4 Horseman react to Sparda from Devil May Cry?

Oh this is a good one! I've always wanted to take a stab at Devil May Cry/Darksiders Crossover!

Death

. At first hearing about a new kind of Demon Lord, his reaction is "Ugggh...Not another one.". He kinda assumes he'll eventually meet him to hunt him down.

. But once he finds this is a powerful demon.....that fights against hell to protect humanity, color him surprised.

. In all his years of combating hell's legions that endanger the balance, here's one literally fighting against the grain and doing...good? Perish the thought. But even he can't deny it's a good kind of different

. Despite him not really believing it at first, if they were to meet, good chance Death will not try to pick a fight. He doesn't know how powerful Sparda is, and same on the other end. So first meeting could go many ways, but most likely not end in bloodshed.

. Maybe along the line could see him as an ally if things got bad on Earth. After all, Death went through quite a journey to bring back humanity, and a demon that has sworn to protect them is sure to get along.

. His shapeshifting ability would intrigue the old horsemen thought, and to take on the appearance of a human indefinitely is no small feat.

. If Death were to find out that Sparda had twin sons with a human, his immediate thought is. "Wonderful, more Nephilim spawn to torment my existence." (In Biblical texts, their version of a Nephilim is children from the union of Demon/Fallen angel with a human).

War

. At first thinks it's just another demon lord he will have to kill to preserve the balance.

. No joke, they might fight upon first meeting depending on how it goes. Mostly to test his strength and to ascertain if this isn't just some weak demon under the influence of Lucifer.

. But then afterward, might chill out a bit. It really depends.

. Once he finds out that Sparda is not your run of the mill Demon Lord in the sense that he fights against what all demons stand for, War would be willing to be Chaoseater away.

. Besides Vulgrim and occasionally the tense alliances with Samael, this would be a demon he could get along with much better.

. Would note the power Sparda wields, maybe even have a slight respect for him.

. In all essence, Sparda is an ally he has no qualms with teaming up with if push comes to shove.

Fury

. When she heard about a Demon lord from another realm that actually protects humanity...she is gonna laugh. Not just because she finds it hard to believe, but the irony.

. A Demon's purpose is to corrupt and destroy, why would one go through the trouble of fighting the demonic nature?

. She would have to see it to believe it, cuz she would not take any chances. Is more then willing to try and kill him if he gets in her way.

. Upon first meeting, while he is charismatic and well spoken for a demon (Sort of like Abraxis), it's not hard to deny this is a different kind of amicability not laced with deceit.

. While she normally likes working alone, even she can't deny having allies or uneasy acquaintances in strange places would be a benefit.

. In all honesty likes Sparda more than Vulgrim. Less likely to steal your soul or manipulate you to carry out favors for him.

. Is willing to be on peaceful terms, so long as he doesn't try anything, because she is more than willing to retract that kindness and unleash Scorn on him.

Strife

. A Demon lord that protects Humanity? This he has to see.

. If he were to meet Sparda in his true form, ngl would ask "So uhhhh...why a giant bug? No offense". Don't know how Sparda would react, but Strife is just curious.

. If human Sparda, oh all the questions he would have. Cuz Strife himself has that ability too.

. Essentially, he is more likely out of the four to truly get along with Sparda, for him being a demon, he keeps to his word. Which is rare, and he can respect that.

. Since Sparda has some note of omnipotence, would probably notice that Strife's personality and mannerisms bear a resemblance with his son Dante in the future. Depending on if he can see that far.

. If Strife found out that he has kids with a human, he does not hold back. " Wait wait wait.......You can do that?!"

. Is more than willing to fight alongside if push came to shove

(Sorry if it seems a little ooc, first time writing about anything DMC, so bear with me. Thank you for the ask!)

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Knight in Shining Red Armor | Dante + Child!Reader (DMC 4)

A/N: Hey so this is a rewrite of one of my first (and only) DMC fic from like...2016. This takes place post-DMC 4

You can read the og one on my DeviantArt! But if you're here for the new one then I hope ya'll enjoy!

Summary: Child!Reader was taken under Dante's wing after being saved from a demon invasion, but even years later he hesitates to tell them what he truly is, fearing they'll resent him for his demonic heritage.

............

"Hey, um..Dante?"

"What's up, kiddo?" The red-clad devil hunter asked, though he wasn't completely paying attention to you. Rather he was sitting at his desk, feet kicked up as he was flipping through a magazine.

Meanwhile you were roaming around the shop, stopping only to gaze at the massive curved sword with glowing gems hanging on the wall behind him. He mentioned claiming many weapons--"Devil Arms" as they were called--from defeated demons, but you were curious about their names.

"Just wondering..what's that sword behind you called?"

"The Sparda. It sealed the barrier between the Underworld and human world. Nero went through hell and back, quite literally, to return it to me, so don't even think about touching......it?"

Dante put the magazine down as he turned to see you holding the Sparda in your small hands. You smiled triumphantly, but stumbled a bit before the blade accidentally slammed into the wooden floor, making you wince.

"Oops."

Yet your little act amused him, as he chuckled and shook his head. "You're a little too young to go devil-hunting, I'm afraid. But maybe one day you will."

"And maybe you can help pay off Dante's debt, too." Trish lightly joked as she entered the room, taking the giant sword from you and putting it back on the wall.

Her words were responded by a groan from the male, who went back to reading.

"Whatcha reading?"

Dante slowly lowered the magazine to see you sitting on his desk, but he just snapped it shut and tossed it into the trash, out of your line of sight. "Nothing that eyes like yours gotta see."

"Okay....ooooooh, what's this briefcase?" Hopping off the desk, you ran over to Pandora and crouched down to poke the skull emblem.

"Pandora. That baby can turn into six hundred and sixty six different weapons, but...right now we only have access to seven." Now he was feeling like an exhausted teacher on a museum trip, trying to explain each exhibit to his hyper first graders--the exhibits being his Devil Arms.

Yet as you ran around asking him about more of them, he couldn't help but see his childhood-self reflected in you. Just full of energy and never-ending curiosity and optimism.

Yeah..he definitely saw the resemblance.

Eventually you decided to leave him be and dash off to your room.

And only then did Dante drop his smile, sighing as he put both feet back on the ground. He ran a hand through his hair before dragging it down the side of his face tiredly.

"You know..you'll have to tell them eventually." Trish reminded.

"How, though? That kid's afraid of all demons..hybrids or not. I'm pretty sure saying "oh by the way the guy who rescued you is actually half-demon" is gonna send 'em running, and...I can't risk that." He shook his head, gazing at the jukebox in the corner.

"But I think [y/n]'s old enough to comprehend the concept of not all demons being evil," Lady chimed in after overhearing the conversation. "Just give it to them straight and I'm sure they'll understand."

As much as Dante wanted to argue, he saw that she had a valid point. But he still worried...

How would you react?

It's been a few years since he saved you from a Mega Scarecrow, though it turned out that more demons invaded your neighborhood, slaughtering everyone you knew and loved. And as he took you back to the shop to patch you up, he could see the terror in your eyes, any traces of innocence long gone.

No child should have gone through such a tragedy.

A tragedy that he was all-too familiar with.

After the defeat of the Savior, things have been looking up. You've regained your happiness as you lived in Devil May Cry and learned of Dante's tales of devil hunting, though the memories of that horrible night never truly left you alone.

Along with that, just seeing a demon is enough to make you run and hide, and you were terrified when you first met Nero and saw his demonic arm.

From that incident alone, Dante became extremely reluctant to tell you of his own demonic heritage.

He just didn't know if he's only hurting you more by keeping it hidden..

...............

Later that night, you were plagued by yet another nightmare. Different demons, same neighborhood...same deaths of your loved ones.

But in this one Dante got hurt, too. And you tried so hard to be brave for him, even shouting in the demon's face...but in the end you failed as it snatched you away, dragging you into the darkness of the Underworld before he could reach you.

Although you calmed down since awakening, you wanted to be sure he was alright.

So with what little moonlight shone in the shop's darkness, you located the worn sofa where Dante laid. He was engrossed in some TV program, though after sensing your presence his eyes flickered to you.

No words had to be exchanged in order for him to see what was wrong, as he sat up and patted the spot beside him. You smiled in relief and climbed onto the sofa, snuggling into his side as he wrapped an arm around you. "Th-Thanks, Dante."

"No prob. So uh..another nightmare, I guess?"

"Yeah, but..they hurt you, too and...I-I tried staying brave. I shouted at them to leave you alone and..they didn't listen. But...I think one of them looked scared of me."

"Wow." He raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Gotta say I'm impressed."

"Really?"

"Absolutely. Y'know demons are used to seeing kids scream and cry, not take a stand against them. Plus that's pretty epic of you to defend me, so thanks." With a smile, he ruffled your hair.

"You're welcome," you giggled a bit. "But..I really just wanna be as brave as you. I mean...Nero says you laugh at giant demons and tease them all the time. How do you do that without being scared?"

"Well..it comes with the business. Getting them riled up just makes the fight more fun. At least for me. You might think I'm crazy but if ya decide to hunt demons one day...you'll see what I mean."

"But until then, could I watch you fight one? Like a big bad one?"

"......."

"Dante?"

"..kid, there's a reason I never took you on any missions." Dante sighed, swallowing back the growing lump in his throat as he carefully planned his next words. "And how I always...bounce back from getting smacked by a demon tail. No human would be able to withstand that without some broken bones."

"Oh?" You tilted your head. "Then..how can you if you're human?"

"....because I'm not fully human."

As much as he wanted to shut up, he decided to tell you the truth once and for all, not sugarcoating anything:

He explained how his parents were a demon and human--a forbidden romance which resulted in himself and Virgil being born. His bloodline allowed them to blend in with humans, exercise their demonic abilities in battle, and even tap into their true demon forms.

All the while you listened silently, with not much emotion on your face. So it was hard for him to tell what you were probably thinking in this moment.

It scared him.

"...and that's it." He sighed, closing his eyes and looking away from you. "So go ahead and hate me if you want. I won't blame you for-"

"Can you show me?"

Dante blinked stupidly as he swung his head back towards you, wondering if he heard you right.

"I...wish you told me before, but I don't wanna be scared of demons anymore." You smiled a tiny bit as you elaborated. "Especially not one who helped me. So...can I see your other form?"

"...a-alright. Just...if you get scared I can turn back instantly, so don't freak."

"I won't."

He had doubts you'll keep your word, but he got up and activated his Devil Trigger form. As he opened his eyes, you gasped upon seeing how much they were glowing--being orange rather than blue. Red electric sparks danced around his metallic body as he observed you close, anticipating your reaction. He expected you to scream or cry.

Yet..there was only curiosity and wonder in your eyes.

"Scared yet?" He asked in his distorted voice, crouching down in front of you.

Not even the way he spoke startled you, as you just shook your head. "I was wrong all along..not all demons are bad."

"Not even this one?"

"Nope. You look awesome..like a knight in shiny red armor."

"...wow..I um...." For once, the talkative devil hunter was at loss for words. But when you learned forward to hug him around the neck, he was completely shocked.

Earlier in the day he thought of countless worse-case scenarios, and yet...the best-case was happening right now.

You were accepting him, hugging him even.

He couldn't believe it.

Dante smiled as he wrapped his arms around you, making sure his armor spikes didn't hurt you. "Thanks, kid. It really means a lot that you're not terrified anymore........[y/n]?" He was concerned about your lack of response, before realizing you were dozing off.

'Damn..I might make a pretty good dad, after all..' He mused, standing up and making the trek back to your bedroom. Then he set you down and tucked you in, relief and warmth in his heart.

He had a feeling that your nightmares won't be so bad anymore. Now he felt like he could truly protect you.

Why?

Because he was gonna be your knight in shining red armor.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"Jeez, man. Quit clanking around shit and---AH!!! WHAT THE FUCK?!!"

"Shhhh! Chill out, Nero. You'll wake 'em." Dante was quick to shift back to his human form once he was outside your room, glaring at his nephew. "Why are you so freaked out? This ain't the first time you've seen my devil form."

"But still..why in the middle of the night?! Thought we had company."

"...just go back to bed, kid."

"Don't call me kid!"

[icycoldninja]

Hi! can i request again?

the boys with reader who is like Mikasa from AOT? (abilities & traits)

reader would probably act serious then would act soft around the boys, kinda like how Mikasa would act around Eren, lol

Yup, yup!

Sparda boys + V x Mikasa-like!Reader headcannons

¤ Dante ¤

-Dante admires your strength and speed since those are some of the most important abilities any devil hunter needs.

-He wasn't too bothered by how serious and cold you were since he got plenty of that from Vergil.

-It was how you acted when you guys were alone that surprised him. He never knew you had this sweet caring side to you.

-Not that he's complaining! Dante likes the fact that there's an aspect of your personality only he gets to see.

■ Vergil ■

-Being one who prizes strength above everything else, Vergil is glad you possess the POWER to keep up with him.

-He is a very serious man himself, so having an equally serious partner is a huge relief, given that he has to surround himself with FOOLS nearly all the time.

-It's nice, seeing your sweet, soft side when you're in private, because sometimes Vergil really needs it.

-He laughs on the inside when others quake in their boots after looking at you, knowing that even though you appear dangerous and frightening to others, you're loving and kind to him.

□ Nero □

-Nero respected you, you were his hero. You were so cool and confident, he just couldn't help but look up to you.

-Your strength was something else, too; you were almost as strong as a Sparda.

-Though he was intimidated by your serious nature at first, Nero realized that you were actually very sweet deep down.

-He treasures any moments he spends with you, regardless of how you're acting, because he knows your true colors and he loves them.

● V ●

-V is glad to have someone as strong and capable as you in his life because it means he can focus less on protecting you and more on keeping himself from turning into paper.

-He respects your authoritative presence, but also loves how sweet and loving you can be in private.

-He cherishes those moments with you, when you're all soft and sometimes emotional. They make him feel closer to you, like your bond has deepened.

-Then when it's time to return to battle, V will be there, by your side, ready to assist you however he can.

[avaantares]

the debt must be great that is paid in blood (any fandom)

Ahh, sorry this took so long! Between COVID brain and Gen Con prep, I'm barely remembering my dog's name this week. >.<

The Debt Must Be Great That is Paid in Blood is a very epic title... which calls for epic source material. Something larger-than-life, with sweeping, grandiose, unapologetic drama... *runs through list of fandoms I've written for in the past year* Welp, that's either TGCF or DMC (because those are similar). 😂 Hmm... I think Xie Lian is too nice to have a blood feud with anyone he didn't already destroy in canon, so DMC it is!

And you're getting this in real time because my brain is mush and I didn't think ahead, so HOORAY stream-of-consciousness-fic-brainstorming, let's go!

Some time after the events of DMC5, a portal to the underworld rips open, wreaking havoc on the local human population. Probably in Red Grave, again, because that town's always getting messed up. With Dante and Vergil still missing, Nero, Lady, and Trish go to beat down the escaping demons and address the portal. They're joined this time by Lucia, because people kept asking for her to show up during my last story clearly they need all the help they can get to deal with this Very Dangerous Situation That In No Way Resembles the Plots of Previous Games. (by Capcom do not steal)

The whole time they're in the neighborhood, Trish Has A Bad Feeling About This(TM), but they can't really leave this situation alone, so finally they enter the portal to cross into the other realm. When they reach the underworld, it quickly becomes apparent to those who have faced him before -- which would be, uh, just Trish, come to think of it -- that Mundus is once again trying to invade the human realm and take over the world. Third time's the charm, I guess? But Mundus has at least learned a little from his previous defeats, and has powered himself up a lot this time, and is using the resources of the underworld to his advantage -- including drawing some sort of power from a central source to protect his body from their attacks, as they discover when they rush him in his throne room. Lady remarks on the similarity of the experience to their disastrous fight against Urizen. Nero doesn't think Mundus is quite that strong, but none of them have true Devil Arms, and mundane attacks are blocked by Mundus's arcane shield. Trish barely manages to scratch him with Luce and Ombra charged up to maximum.

Facing Mundus on his own turf is a really inconvenient time for Trish to learn that her creator still controls the power he originally granted to her, but surprise! Fearing she'll be forced to turn against her friends if she keeps resisting, Trish allows herself to be taken captive by Mundus. Just as she's pulled in, she realizes something and tries to communicate to the others that there's something they need to do to destroy the shield -- something she can sense, something that could help them destroy Mundus once and for all... they just need to find the... Yeah, they don't quite catch the details. Knowing he's in no danger from the puny human (and demihuman, and nonhuman) hunters, Mundus takes Trish and goes to make the final preparations for his invasion of the human realm -- probably by upgrading Trish into his new martial champion, because he keeps losing those. (Sparda, Nero Angelo... pretty sure Trish's number is up next anyway)

After they flee the maison du Mundus (promising to return and free Trish once they take down the shield), the hunters search the surrounding area and find seals spaced out at regular intervals around his throne room. They estimate that there are... *rolls dice* nine of them, which Lucia can sense somehow because she's also a demon construct. (Or maybe it says "seal number nine" on one in devil script? We'll figure that out in the edit.) Lady, Lucia and Nero split up to tackle the seals, each of which is conveniently (for purposes of interspersing regular action scenes in the text) guarded by a boss. They've done the level crawl before, they know how this works. Go through an area, smack the boss, lather, rinse, repeat.

So we level chapter crawl through the sequence, following each protagonist further into the maze of the underworld as they solve a puzzle and fight a boss. With each seal that goes down, Nero feels a little more of something tugging at his mind, but he can't quite pin it down.

Eventually all the perimeter seals are opened, leaving only the main shield generator in the chamber behind Mundus's throne room -- which also seems to be the source of the sensation in Nero's head. They go to crack it open, and discover that the source emitting all the power that Mundus is using isn't a thing at all, but a whom -- and oddly, it's just an older human-looking guy with white hair and a solid case of power-drain-induced amnesia. They question him (once he wakes up) to no avail, though once he learns who and what they are, the man wonders if he might have been a hunter too, once. Nero thinks it's a little weird that there's another unknown hunter down here, but says they should take him with them rather than leave him here to be re-imprisoned by Mundus. Lady is suspicious of the whole situation, but agrees that they can't just leave a guy all alone down here, especially if he's an enemy of Mundus. Lucia is pretty sure the old guy is not human -- at least, not entirely -- but Nero shrugs that off. Maybe he's just half devil; after all, Dante and Vergil and Nero all have white hair too, so maybe that's just what all demihumans look like? Genetics are weird.

So now that the shield is down, it's time to rescue Trish and defeat Mundus, but they have to hike for a bit to get to where he currently is. Nero, the goodest boy when he's not being a punk, keeps an eye on Grandpa Amnesia to make sure he's okay and chats with him along the way. He talks about his home of Fortuna, which seems to trigger some of the man's memories. Bits and pieces start coming together. Grandpa says some things that would be giant waving signal flags to Nero if only he'd paid attention in Sparda School... but alas.

Eventually they catch up to Mundus, who has converted Trish into his new general. Mundus sics Trisho Angelo on the hunters, and...

Well. It turns out that if you're a benevolent family-minded devil lord who has had your power suppressed and drained by your former boss for several decades, and during that time you have been tormented and suffered grief over the loss of your family to the point of blocking your own memories of them and your own identity at the conscious level, and then suddenly your former boss trots out someone who looks exactly like your beloved wife -- whom he murdered -- and makes her try to kill you and your new friends... that's a good way to get un-amnesiafied real fast.

So Sparda takes extreme umbrage at the whole situation. Normally he would just wipe the floor with Mundus again, but he actually has been weakened by spending 40 years in a power siphon, and he can't just unload indiscriminately without vaporizing Trish in the process, so Nero and company get to help him take down the big bad and his adds (because you know he brought some). Lots of action, such fight scene, many boom, very esplodey.

After Mundus is defeated, Trish gets psychically recalibrated to undo the brainwashing and reunites with the others. Sparda has a bittersweet moment where he Does Not Get Emotional because for an instant he thought Eva was still alive, even though Mundus has taunted him with her death for years. He long ago swore to take revenge on Mundus for her murder, as well as his dear sons' (I guess he was probably already a drained battery by the time Nero Angelo came about? Maybe Mundus just never mentioned the whole failing-to-kill-the-twins thing), and he reflects on how in his subjective world, this was the greatest crime Mundus ever perpetrated, even more so than invading the human realm in the first place. Such a massive debt could only ever have come to one end. (Aaannd title payoff!)

He's just about to roll off into the sunset in dramatic, angsty solitude when Nero says something to the others like, "So where do you suppose those two are, anyway? Can't believe we had to come all the way down here and clean up this mess when Dante and Vergil were already in the neighborhood," and that's all it takes for Sparda to give himself whiplash turning around to gape at his heretofore-unknown grandson.

"But author," the readers interject, "that's a great point. Where are Dante and Vergil all this time? Surely if Mundus revived just a few blocks away, they'd put a stop to it immediately!"

To which the author replies, "Hmm, that sounds like a problem for the sequel to this hypothetical story! Fortunately for me, the ask game that started this whole thing didn't include a sequel provision."

So. There we go. 😅 Thanks for the ask!

[iloveyoubecauseyouarelove]

For the character ask game: V!

Thank you so much!

Favorite thing about them: I love his speech to inner child!Vergil. It was a defining moment of all his character development, and he heals the part of himself that feels betrayed, scared, and sad.

Least favorite thing about them: He continuously convinced himself that Nero was a tool to him, refusing to accept that Nero was becoming a very dear friend to him.

Favorite line: "Oh, you came to me? What a good boy" (Visions of V). I'm admittedly a simp

brOTP: Nico & V! It's like a disaster waiting to happen, for everyone else of course.

OTP: Vergil/V. They say the only true way to love another person is if you first love yourself. They get to kill two birds with one stone :)

nOTP: Obviously, all other Spardas are off limits, but aside from them I don't really have a nOTP. If I had to pick, maybe Kyrie?

Random headcanon: I think he's the type of person to try the most awful food combinations (as long as they aren't messy) on purpose, and still like them. His taste buds are probably different than Vergil's.

Unpopular opinion: I don't think I have one.

Song I associate with them: "demons" by Omri

Favorite picture of them:

[fang-wolfsbane]

Devil May Cry: Twist: Chapter 18: Contemplate

Two noble demons at his doorstep seeking to join him and his cause.

Dante would have laughed if the very thought weren’t so ridiculous. Or so familiar.

Back when Patty still stayed in the building, there had been another set of twins that had thought to manipulate him, probably Vergil as well.

Baul and Modeus. Students of his father, the great Sparda.

Unlike earlier, the laugh that wanted to build in his throat faded. Back when he first met Modeus, he thought that the demon might have been capable of being a protector of human kind. Baul had been a completely different story.

The moment the struggle with the two had ended, Dante could have sworn he had seen something like regret flash in Modeus’s eyes.

For the first time in years, he had genuinely felt true pain towards half of his bloodline. Granted being half human and half demon had left both him and Vergil torn between their heritages, it had also made it easier to live up to his father’s legacy.

Protector of humankind.

Vergil had laughed at him for sinking so low as to try and help those that he himself wished to rule over. For someone that had wished to rule over the humans, Vergil had done one hell of a job when it came to a certain woman that had managed to temporarily ease the need inside of him.

A religious woman at that, hence the reason why Nero was a living copy of his father. No, not a copy. Physically, maybe, but they both knew that the young half breed was capable of so much more than both his father and uncle.

Ever since taking Nero under his wing, there had been times he regretted it, but the one thing he regretted more than anything was not knowing about him before he reached maturity, or as mature as Nero could get.

Thinking on it, Dante knew all too well that if Vergil had known about his son, there was a good chance that he would have tried to corrupt his son into the same, twisted beliefs he had. As much as he hated to admit it, Dante was glad that Kyrie’s family had taken Nero in when they did.

Even though he didn’t approve of the church’s beliefs, he knew that they had a lot to do with moulding Nero into the man he was today. Granted he still had his easy to anger moments, but with his fiancé at his side, Nero had grown into a man even Dante admired. Not that he’d ever admit it. Not to him at least.

Devil May Cry, Dante, Patty Lowell, Vergil, Baul, Modeus, Sparda, Nero and Kyrie © Capcom Twist © Fang Wolfsbane

[put-me-out-of-my-destiny]

Some new thoughts about my "Dante and Vergil in the Underworld" plot:

First of all, I think it'd be very smart of Machiavelli to approach Dante with the claim that his work for Mundus was entirely under duress.

He would provide proof that he aided Sparda when he rebelled against Mundus - not untrue in my headcanon, just not without ulterior motives - and he would perform remorse for how his creations have harmed humans, and for creating Nelo Angelo. Maybe this would resonate with Dante if Vergil wasn't sufficiently performing remorse for his own actions.

Also, I've mentioned before that Dante could end up experiencing alcohol withdrawals during his time in the Underworld. I could see Machiavelli exploiting this, lowering Dante's guard with Human World comforts like alcohol, pizza, showers, clean clothes (maybe a pretense for Dante to get a more interesting outfit), a soft bed, etc.

It's fair to ask just how Machiavelli knows so much about Dante, especially while letting everyone believe he's dead.

Fucked up thought: what if Machiavelli had some role in creating Trish and, in the process, essentially bugged her? Perhaps originally with the intention of spying on Mundus, but after she betrayed him and spent some time literally living with the son of Sparda, she yielded an even greater opportunity? If this were the case, Machiavelli would probably know a lot about the Qliphoth incident too, given her time as Cavaliere Angelo.

God, that would be so upsetting for her and everyone around her. Maybe in the process of pitting Lucia and Trish against each other, Machiavelli tries to create the impression that Trish is some kind of mole feeding information to their enemies? Which is a little bit true, but not at all Trish's fault.

One more thing I want to mention, just because I don't know when else I would mention it, is the circumstances of Dante being split.

I don't imagine Vergil would do that by accident, he understands Yamato well enough to cut out someone's Angelo gunk without dividing them into two people.

But perhaps after a combination of having his guard lowered with human comforts and feelings, and being trapped in a sensory deprivation chamber for however long, Dante would be pushed to a point where he'd want to be split?

I like the image of Vergil cutting out the Angelo gunk, then preparing to pull out Yamato, only for Dante to grab it and drive it in deeper, leaving Vergil to watch helplessly as the split happens.

I think Vergil would be surprised that Dante knows how to do it, but he did know how to absorb Devil Sword Sparda using Rebellion, he used Yamato during DMC4, and he used a shard of Yamato to escape from the Underworld after DMC2. Dante knows more about Yamato and demonic swords in general than Vergil assumed, and I don't know how he would feel about that.