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Cracking one eye open carefully, Sparda stared at his side.
There, as beautiful as ever, was laying asleep his radiant wife, her vivid blonde hair splayed like a halo against the covers.
Sparda barely managed to suppress a purr while he attempted to detangle himself from the sheets trapping him.
Pulling away slowly, he got up from the bed, Eva barely reacting at the motion, the only change a slight snore when she turned around, burrowing herself more into the warm blankets.
Sparda let out a quiet chuckle, before giving her a quick peck on the forehead.
Her sleepy demeanour was so adorable. Sparda would have loved to be able to simply lay in bed a bit longer, enjoying the endearing sight.
Regretfully, he had a mission to accomplish.
He moved to the door, occasionally glancing back to see if his beloved woke up, but thankfully, she remained blissfully asleep.
Good. That gave him some more time for what he wanted to attempt.
Closing the door quietly behind him, he padded towards the kitchen downstairs, a smile pulling at his lips. He wouldn't have been able to get rid of it even if he had tried.
Over the course of the many years that Sparda has been alive, he has seen all kind of human celebrations.
They were fascinating to say the least.
They could range from a banquet to celebrate the passage of time of the new season, to the building of a hearth meant to keep away unholy spirits and harmful beings at bay. A whole day where you would don costumes and party with your neighbours, a day to hang up your wishes written in paper in hopes that they'll come true…
And then some could have religious roots, other come from the fight in favour of human rights, celebrating historical events…
They were so many fascinating traditions. Sparda had seen them change across the millennia, and they kept surprising him regardless.
And all of these he had already mentioned were without even getting into the specifics of each of them, or even entering the topic of birthdays, which had only delighted him even more after his children (his children!) had been born.
How did humanity come up with all of these wonders? Even after all this time, it was difficult to wrap his head around all their occurrences.
Regarding these type of celebrations, Sparda was currently planning on partaking on one this time. One that he would have never previously even thought about.
Said celebration would be Mother's day.
How could he not try to do something special for today? A day meant to thank woman that had taken the task to take care of their children?
And of all people, he knew of no one more deserving to celebrate than Eva.
Who could be a more wonderful mother than his lovely wife, the light that chased away his darkness, with her fiery soul and kind heart that always pushed Sparda to do his best?
The children adored her and she had such a way to manage them. It was mesmerizing seeing her calm the twins down. They could be fighting one second and with just a few words she would have them busy with another task to entertain them with.
She deserved all the recognition and more for her strength, her courage, her lovely smile, the way she soothed the children, her laugh, the—
His bare feet collided against a displaced toy car he had not seen in the middle of the corridor, making him stumble and fight to regain his balance.
Sparda managed to hold onto the wall, trying to stop himself from landing on the floor, and waking the whole house because of his daydreaming.
Unfortunately, he wasn't able to stop himself from stepping on several Lego pieces that had been forgotten on the floor.
Squeezing his eyes and pressing his teeth against his tongue, he managed to hold in the pained yelp that threatened to escape him.
Humanity may not know of it, but the power these small cubes held was incomprehensible.
When his need to scream receded, Sparda breathed out, lifting his foot and picking up the pieces still attached to it.
Honestly, were did the children even managed to hide all this stuff? Sparda was sure that they hadn't been this many pieces before.
Sighing he picked the toys spread on the floor up, looking to put them away somewhere where no one got an injury from plastic weaponry getting to them.
Mostly him, since Eva had the uncanny ability to actually step on the mess the children made and not complain.
(It both amazed and terrified him)
Sparda made his way until he reached the door to his children's shared bedroom, arms full of the stack of things they kept forgetting to pick up after playing.
At least he had been the one to found the mess. Saved the children the scolding Eva would surely give them, but today she shouldn't have to worry about any of that. She deserved a day to relax.
And it wasn't as if the children would stop any time soon anyway. They were still far too little to bother with not making a mess.
Speaking of the twins…
Sparda opened the door to the bedroom carefully, poking his head through the entrance to check that neither of the kids had woken up.
He felt his expression soften and eyes mist at the sight that greeted him.
The children were laying on their beds, both tucked in between the blankets and soundly asleep, but that's were the similarities ended.
Dante was sprawled diagonally on the bed, half of his body falling to the floor. His blanket was only covering one of his tangled feet and half his body, his stomach visible because of the awkward position making his pyjama shirt to fall to his chin, were it kept swooshing due to his snores.
On the other hand, Vergil was nearly fully hidden from Sparda's view, except for the cloud of fluffy white hair poking out from the swaddle of blankets on the corner of the bed, and the tiny hand poking out clutching one of the library books he had thought missing. The only sign of life coming from Sparda's oldest was the constant up and down of the mountain of blankets and the light breaths he strained to hear coming from under them.
He bit back the urge to purr and curl on the floor with them, dragging his little nestlings for a hug into a more secure place to rest, right beneath his wings.
He shook his head, pushing back the urge and entering to lay down the array of toys besides the toy chest at the feet of Dante's bed.
Wrangling his youngest child into a less neck breaking position, and covering him carefully with the blankets once more, he got out of the room, looking back one last time at his adorable nestlings, ready to continue his mission.
When he finally reached his destination, Sparda assessed the kitchen, wondering how to go about his plan exactly.
Gazing to the clock on the wall, he mused on how long could it actually take him to make a good breakfast, rubbing his chin in deep thought.
It should be easy. He had been taking notes on how to actually work the kitchen appliances so as not to burn the whole room down after all. He didn't have much practice, but it couldn't be that complicated.
Besides, Sparda was planning to keep it fairly simple. Nothing too difficult at first glance.
Some pancakes, soft and spongy just like Eva liked to make them. Eggs, toast and some bacon, would be good too, because the twins were vacuum cleaners when they were hungry (which was nearly always). Orange juice and a cup of tea to drink.
It was quite a bit amount of food, but Sparda knew that if anything, Eva would be pleased at not having to hear the twins fight over the last bite like a pair of feral cats. Or about dividing things perfectly evenly if he made a good amount.
Yes, the amount of food was not a bad idea, he just needed to be patient and work steadily until everything was done.
Tapping his finger against his arm, Sparda turned to look for the ingredients he would need.
Now, what to do first…?
Pancakes would be the most complicated, so perhaps, that should be a good start. If he had too much trouble with them, he could always check for the other dishes to make.
Nodding to himself, Sparda finally walked towards the fridge, opening the door to pull out the necessary ingredients for the recipe, coolness reaching his face while he picked up the eggs, butter, milk and bacon.
He moved through the cupboards next, taking the flour, sugar and trying to find all the necessary utensils for this task.
Eva like to add fruit and honey to her pancakes…Did they have some left he may use?
Were did she usually leave the fruit?
He moved through the kitchen prowling in search of everything he may need. The pile in the kitchen island grew.
Finally, assessing the mound of ingredients, Sparda hummed, finally pleased at what he had gathered. He was pretty sure he had everything needed to work.
Picking up one of the eggs, he placed a crystal bowl in front of him.
"Alright. It should be simple…" he murmured to himself , focusing, "Just a clean movement to crack it like—this!"
The egg splattered against the bowl, far too much strength used. Sparda blinked the egg yolk away from his eyes. Half of the kitchen counter was covered in yellow.
Sparda stared at the mess, pursing his lips.
This…may prove slightly more complicated that he had first thought.
He took the remains of the eggshell and put them aside, turning around to get a rag to clean and open the trashcan. It was going to be needed if this was any indication.
When Sparda turned around he had to contain a yelp at the sudden pair of glowing eyes staring up at him in complete silence.
He still wasn't used to not being the only one with night vision it seemed.
Two identical pair of blue eyes blinked up at him, apparently curious.
On one hand, Sparda was highly proud of his children's great stealth. It was always an useful asset to have. Very advantageous in the battle field if you knew how to use it.
On the other, he would prefer to not be the first demon to die from experiencing a heart attack. He wasn't even sure if he could have heart attacks, but he would rather not test it.
When he felt his heartbeat settling down, he blinked at his children who were still quietly looking at him.
He frowned for second, before kneeling to look at them at eye-level. He glanced at the clock for a moment.
"Children, what are you both doing here?" he questioned, keeping his voice soft. "It's still early, you should be both in bed."
It was fairly early even for Eva, which had been Sparda's idea from the start to keep himself from tipping her off. But the twins were not early risers, that was for sure, so this was a bit odd.
And from the looks of the twins, it wasn't as if they were that awake. Dante was holding onto Vergil's sleeve, eyes dropping, while his oldest swayed, frowning at him in a very unintimidating way thanks to the ruffled spikes of hair.
Sparda held onto every inch of willpower he had not to simply pick them both up in a hug to nuzzle them.
Dante was the one to speak first, voice making an attempt to whisper, in that way that toddlers did that didn't quite land, "I heard the door closing and woke up Vergil to see what it was." he tilted his head straining his neck in an attempt to look behind Sparda, eyes squinting, "Wha's that?"
Sparda turned his head slightly, glancing at the still egg covered kitchen, pressing his lips slightly embarrassed at the mess, before looking back at his son.
"Ah, I was just…trying to surprise your mother with breakfast today, nothing else."
That got the attention of both of them, Vergil frowning at him in confusion, while Dante's eyes glinted in excitement.
"A surprise for mama!?"
The sudden loudness pierced Sparda's sensitive ears, making him grimace a bit before he attempted to shush his now much more awake child, glancing warily in the stairs direction.
It was for nought, because Vergil was faster at silencing his brother.
His oldest turned to the side and immediately slapped his twin on the head, making him cry out.
"Don't scream, you dumb-dumb! Mama will hear you!" he hissed pushing his hand against his sibling's mouth angrily.
Dante squirmed slapping Vergil's hand away and blowing a raspberry at him, tiny fists clenching in preparation.
Before Vergil could retaliate from the insult, Sparda pushed them both apart, keeping his arms between them.
"Children, what have I and your mother said about fighting?" he asked, already feeling tired.
Both four year old's, stared grumpily at each other, keeping their poisonous glares directed at their respective sibling.
"Children" he repeated, slightly more sternly.
"Not to…" "That we shouldn't…"
Sparda stared at the grouchy pair that shuffled in place moodily, before sighing again.
"Good. Now, yes, this is a surprise for your mother. Do you know which day is it today?" he questioned lightly, trying to distract them.
The children stared at him blankly, before Vergil, still with an adorable grouchy pout in his face grumpily attempted to answer, eyes losing some more of the drowsiness.
"It is…Mother's day?"
Sparda smiled at him, ruffling his hair even more, much to his nestling's displeasure. "Correct. Good job, Vergil. Yes, I am preparing a surprise for Eva for Mother's day."
Dante grabbed his pant leg, staring at him with a beaming smile and starry eyes, all tiredness and annoyance forgotten, "Can we help!? Pleasepleaseplease"
Vergil wasn't as vocal as his twin, but by the way he clung to his pant legs too and the intensity in his own glare, the meaning was clear.
Sparda bit back a laugh.
"Hush, we don't want to wake you mother do we?" he gazed back at the still nearly untouched kitchen, pondering his options.
He could try to send the children back to bed but…Even when they were tired and could end up arguing if he left them alone, it was far more likely for them to try to sneak back down to help him.
If they stayed with him, he could at least keep an eye on them. Though it would probably only make the cooking take much more time.
He spared a quick look at his children once more.
Sparda felt himself cave in at the doubled pleading stare.
Gosh, they were too adorable. His precious children.
Picking them up to place them besides the bowl, just far enough from the mess he had previously made, he finally answered.
"Alright, you can help. But, you have to listen to me, and no fighting or arguing allowed. If you can't behave you can't help. Am I clear?" he said, making an effort to sound stern.
The children nodded enthusiastically.
Huffing out a laugh, Sparda picked up another egg.
"Alright then. First, we are making pancakes."
Sparda may have been slightly overconfident of his cooking abilities. Perhaps just a tad.
He kept his gaze locked into the burnt mesh that was supposed to be a pancake. It was his fifth attempt already.
He had used the butter to avoid burning the pan, hadn't he? Unlike the first time.
Was it the mix? Maybe, he could do something a bit more—
Crack
That did not sound like a cracking egg. More like wood snapping.
Sparda felt a wave of relief that it hadn't sounded like bone.
The feeling was short lived.
There was a rise of two voices by his periphery, were the kids had been taking turns in mixing the batter, just before Sparda heard the unmistakeably loud noise of flesh hitting flesh, followed by a louder cry and more hitting.
Sparda turned around, already knowing what he was going to see.
The sight made him rethink his choice to have let the twins deal with something as messy as batter. The near death of the crystal bowl full of the half stirred mixture of eggs and flour didn't help at all.
Sparda lunged to avoid the splintered glass, catching it barely shy of meeting the floor, knocking his chin against the cold tiles in the process and just a few inches of avoiding crashing his head against the counter.
Catching his breath wasn't possible because next thing he saw was two tumbling silhouettes falling above him.
In his parental induced panic he let the bowl go to catch the children in his arms with a small 'oof'.
They were growing fast…and getting much heavier in the process. Soon they would barely even fit in his hold, which made Sparda feel awfully sentimental among the mess of hazy fear and agitation.
There was a moment were stillness endured for a long, steady heartbeat, Sparda's frayed nerves ready to snap, fangs elongating and eyes burning with contained demonic power.
It had been close. Too close, and even if it wouldn't make lasting damage the idea of seeing his children hurt—
Before he could make any attempt at scolding the twins for their reckless endangerment and fighting, a pair of sniffles reached his ears.
'Oh no. Oh, nononono'
His neck snapped back down were two blotchy teary faces were staring up at him, tears in the verge of spilling. Sparda opened his mouth, scrambling to find some reassurance to tell them, but it was for nought.
Salty water began to spill from their eyes and soon enough Sparda had two armfuls of distressed children, a spilled bowl of pancake mix and a burnt pan to clean.
"Nononono, it's alright children, Papa's here, please don't cry" he stammered, clumsily attempting to rock them side to side to calm them both down.
The twins didn't seemed to calm down, his attempt at calming then down not making much of a difference, with the poor kids still spooked by the sudden fall.
Sparda kept offering comforting platitudes trying to distract them and making them feel better, glancing around the room in search for a clue on how to make them calm down.
Eva would definitely know how to make them stop crying.
He winced slightly at the following thought.
She would also be far from happy to see the kids crying first thing in the morning because they had nearly gotten hurt.
Sparda leaned down to nuzzle against them both, letting out a gravely purr trying to calm down the twins. As babies that had helped, so maybe this time it would too.
He hoped so.
Sparda kept purring, stroking their heads carefully to reassure them, his demonic essence slipping out. The children snuggled closer, letting out distressed chirps.
Oh, his poor nestlings. He hated seeing them so frightened. He held them close, scales threatening with surfacing if he lost focus.
After what felt like a distressing eternity, Sparda heard both toddlers finally settle down slightly, squirming in his hold to stare back up at him.
Despite how the urge to keep his hold on them persisted, Sparda ended up sighing, loosening his arms just enough so that he could check that neither had any actual injury.
He was very glad about their fast regeneration, it was wildly appreciated that of all things they had inherited that aspect of his, but Sparda still felt iffy on how reliable it could be with human physiology added to the mix.
The moment he lowered his head to look at his children though, a little, pointy finger poked him just shy of stabbing his eyes out.
"Papa, the food is burning"
Sparda blinked looking at the twins, who were now staring at him as if nothing at all had happened.
…At least they had calmed down, he supposed.
"…Yes. I've noticed." he frowned at them both, eyes flicking between Vergil, who had yet to say a word since catching them and Dante who attempted to poke him again.
As much he would love not to reprimand them after their scare, he did not want a repeat of another fight. And least of all, another fall.
Snatching the offender finger down, he questioned them, "And why, pray tell me, were you two fighting?"
"Dante tried to snatch the spoon from me because he lost his own"
"I did not! You are a liar, Vergil!"
"Am not!"
Was this retribution for all of Sparda's bad deeds when he had still been underworld's general? To have constant feuds to stop?
"Papa, the food!" he heard his youngest child whine again.
Sparda forced himself to pick the squabbling children up again, this time leaving them in the kitchen chairs as to avoid another fall while he went to look at the (definitely) unsalvageable mix.
The scorched pan stared accusingly at him.
Sparda smothered the urge to hide his face in his hands.
There were barely any ingredients left for the actual pancakes after all the botched attempts!
He turned back to look at both children who were glaring at each other across the kitchen table. They looked very cute still, even with the utter animosity radiating off of them, but he needed a distraction least they begin another tussle.
Looking at the downed bowl and the few surviving ingredients, he had an idea.
Pancakes were out of the question but he didn't need to mention that directly to the children, did he now?
There had been no noise coming from upstairs yet. The clock marked that it had been an hour and a half since they had started. He was late on schedule but it could still be manageable.
"Alright, children!" he finally exclaimed, putting his arms on his hips. The twins stared at him, forgetting their annoyance at once and focusing on him, "Your mother will wake up shortly if we aren't quick enough so we need to up our efforts!"
Just as he had imagined, both the twins perked up, eyes shining with delight at the perceived challenge. He let out a soft chuckle in response.
"What are we doing then?" questioned Vergil, tilting his head curiously.
"Well…" he trailed off, picking up the bowl from the floor. Sparda then took the few surviving ingredients for the pancakes and placed them in front of them both. Dante and Vergil stared puzzle at the pile before looking at him, confused.
They were not enough to continue making the actual mix, but they would keep them entertained while worked.
Sparda would probably regret leaving them so much stuff they could turn into a mess (like the still uncleaned counter) but it was better than nothing. It could not be that bad.
…Probably.
Moving on!
He leaned towards them conspiratorially, both children tilting forward, eager to hear what he was going to say.
"I will continue with the rest of the dishes, but the pancake mix will take a bit of time." he paused, letting them soak in the idea. Both children nodded along to what he was saying, faces serious and completely focused.
Only then, did Sparda continue, avid eyes watching him intently, "I know I can trust you both to work together to make the best mix in pancake history for your mother, am I right?" he inquired, already knowing the response he would get.
The eager nods he got was all he needed. Sparda winced at how Dante's head knock against the wooden table.
Someone was still sleepy. Though Vergil's half lidded eyes were not as inconspicuous as he thought…
"We can! We definitely can, we are the bestest cooking pancakes ever!"
"Mama will have never tried something better!"
Sparda gave them a loving smile, barely restraining himself from cooing at their enthusiasm. He ruffled their head instead, gaining a slap on his hand from an annoyed Vergil and an offended squawk from Dante.
"I am sure of it, boys. I'll leave you to it. Tell me if there is any problem. And no. Fighting."
"Yeees, papaaaa." "Yes, dad…"
Sparda let his gaze linger on them for a moment, before turning around to stare at the uncooked bacon that still laid untouched.
The eggs had all but vanished, spent in trying to make an edible mix, the only two left with the children as to keep them busy, so that was a dish lost.
Regardless, he could still make something.
Sparda put the burnt pan in the sink, pulled a new, pristine one from the cupboard.
Tuning out the quiet discussion about how to best crack and egg behind him, and began to work.
Bacon was a bit more tricky than what he had imagined.
Was it…supposed to be so…rubbery…?
Sparda poked the slice still sizzling in the pan, narrowing his eyes.
What had he even done wrong this time? It was his fifth attempt now, and he hadn't gotten any closer to making it up to human consumption standards.
(He had liked it, but Eva had more than once teased him about how he enjoyed his meat rare. Rare as in, pretty much raw)
He passed a hand through his hair, staining it with all the mess his previous cooking attempts had left him with.
The bacon still looked rubbery.
Sparda held back a defeated whine.
Alright, bacon might need some work. Perhaps he could leave it be for a minute while he made toast, try and refresh his head before trying again.
Yeah, he could do that. Sparda was pretty sure.
He pulled out the bacon from the pan, tearing it out (it was not supposed to be sticky either was it…?) and threw it into the bucket he had procured.
Toast was supposed to be easy. He could surely make some toast. With the toaster.
Sparda twitched slightly at the thought. It was fine. It was a normal, completely usable kitchen appliance.
Eva, in all her gracious and sweet nature had endlessly explained him how to use it, despite his dreadful attempts. But he had made some burnt toast with her before!
He could get it done without her here too. Surely.
He turned his eyes to side-eye the silver toaster, laying innocently besides the coffee maker.
He shivered, remembering the last time he had tried to make it by himself. Eva had been laughing about it for a month straight, at least when they had managed to repaint The walls.
The Toast incident had been a fluke. it had been a fluke and nothing else. Sparda was a two-thousand year old warrior. He knew how to work a toaster of all things.
With a scowl, and not a pout as Eva would say, he turned to get the bread he had left on the opposite side of the counter, dreading the idea of working that unholy machine by himself.
Sparda stopped in his tracks, staring.
…
He turned his head to the clock on the wall.
Blinked.
Turned his head again, staring again in front of him.
Blinked again, slower this time.
What had Eva mentioned about quiet again…?
Sparda could still picture his wife's slightly rueful smile, raised eyebrow while she huffed out laugh, "Darling, if Dante and Vergil are being quiet, you should not be reassured. Quite the contrary, that means they are plotting something and don't want us to know."
Sparda had stared at her a bit puzzled, while she pulled back the bed covers to go to sleep, still frowning at the thought, "Well, perhaps but…they are very young, what could they even plot about?" Surely, nothing truly nefarious.
Eva had laughed at him, with that light giggles than seemed to melt his heart all over again, just like when she had first smiled at him, right before answering, her voice a bell that pulled him back to reality, "They are, but that only means that they are even more likely to get into trouble."
"But…why?"
Eva shook her head at him, eyes glinting with humour, "Because they are children Sparda. That's what they do best."
He should have listened more carefully. Eva was always right after all.
He could feel the blood draining from his face while he stared at the state of the kitchen behind him.
How had they even managed to strew the flour all over the kitchen floor and the hall? The bag had been nearly empty.
His eyelid trembled, feeling his stress levels spike.
…It was that egg yolk on the wall…? How had it even spread like that…?
And where—
Movement caught his eyes, just besides the door, where Sparda managed to distinguish two very animated lumps of what looked like flour. Stepping closer, he managed to see the broken bag of flour and a bag of sugar. The last one which he had not given to them.
(Oh dear lord, Eva was going to end him if ants managed to enter because of that—)
One of the white bundles shifted, letting him see the completely coated face of his youngest child, beaming up at him.
Sparda opened his mouth for— something, surely, but Dante interrupted him before he could think of anything.
"Papa, look!" he pointed at the overflowing bowl, which Vergil was painstakingly trying to mix, not even sparing Sparda a passing look. It looked more like a mountain of flour than anything else. "We needed more pancakes, so we used aaaaall the flour!"
Sparda held his stance, only managing not to fall to the floor, defeat radiating off of him.
"That's— great children." he said voice thin. Dante graces him with another toothy grin while Vergil finally turned to look at him with a proud smile.
Toast it was then. It couldn't be worse than this.
(It ended up being far worse.
Eva was going to be very peeved about the loss of the toaster but it was better than the whole kitchen burning.
Sparda closed the window, twins held up in his arms, clinging to him, while he stared at the treacherous contraption laying on the grass outside, still letting smoke out.
…He could cut fruit at least. And, he had made tea before. Kettles were far better than toasters anyway.)
Eva was feeling very comfortable snuggled up in bed. It was one of the few things that her sleep-induced brain registered after all.
The bed was very comfortable. She was bundled up in her blankets, which were very nice and soft, just like her pyjamas that had been washed the previous day, and she could hear a light pitter-patter of spring rain outside, shy and barely noticeable, making her even more sleepy.
It was one of those mornings. Those were the world still felt dreamy. Light. Utterly pleasant and unreal.
Eva sighed, content.
She liked to be productive in the mornings, but sometimes, allowing herself to sleep in just a tad more and wake herself later than usual felt too good to pass up. Sometimes granting herself a bit more rest was just too agreeable.
Turning around, she extended her hand a bit, reaching out. It landed on the other side of the bed, the mattress feeling room-temperature.
Eva frowned, confusion piercing through the fog of sleep.
She extended her hand some more, trying to feel for something that wasn't the cooling bedcover, but there was nothing there.
Eva cracked one eye open, still drowsy.
Her furnace of a husband didn't sleep as much as she did. As a demon he didn't need to. But he loved to stay in bed anyway, even if only to cuddle with her in the morning, like a very affectionate cat, and she quite enjoyed it too.
So for him to not be here was a bit odd.
Shaking off some of her sleepiness, Eva leaned up, still covering herself in the blankets. Staring at the window, she furrowed her face.
It was still raining a bit, but from the sunrays piercing through the clouds, it was clear that it was well into the late morning. Sparda would have come checked in by now, usually.
Pulling herself out of bed, Eva went to look for her slippers.
She had the nagging feeling that something was up today.
Letting out an amused huff, she went for the door, still dragging the blankets with her.
Yawning, she felt for the doorknob.
Gosh, she really had been exhausted yesterday.
She loved her children and husband dearly, but she was a human, she didn't have the endless energy supply needed to handle their constant shenanigans without feeling as if she had been trampled by an elephant later on.
And Sparda had said that the twins were still far from reaching their full capacities. Stars, Eva doubted she would even manage to keep up with them by the time they reached their sixth birthday at the rate they were going.
The moment she opened the door, Eva felt her sleepiness vanish, replaced by full-blown confusion. And a slight sense of dread too.
Something smelled charred. And if it reached the bedroom door, then it was going to be noticeable.
Eva sighed.
She loved her children more than anything in the world, but she wished that they could at least wait until lunch time to start trouble.
Eva walked slowly, opening a few windows on the way down as to help with the smell. The doors to the bedrooms were closed, so she at least wouldn't need to worry about them getting stunk.
Finally, she reached the kitchen.
Or better said, the entrance to the kitchen, from where she heard a whispered conversation traversing.
That wasn't what caught Eva's attention though. Instead she looked all over the floor, were an endless amount of flour coated the previously clean tiles and wood planks.
Eva lifted her head, counted to ten and breathed out.
She would ask. She would ask and would not get cross about whatever this was. It was fine.
Why not see what the kitchen tornado was about, anyway?
Eva finally crossed the threshold, arms akimbo, raising an eyebrow at the scene in front of her, clearing her throat.
The kitchen inhabitants immediately quieted down, three pair of blue, shiny eyes turning to look at her, not looking too unlike a surprised deer in headlights.
Eva felt her lips twitch while she took in the absolute mess that had been made of her kitchen, and the expressions of the three culprits covered in the evidence of the crime.
The littlest figures were holding a pair of spoons in each hand, and the hair and yesterday previously cleaned pyjamas were caked in the mess that also covered the kitchen floor and walls.
Her husband was staring at her with a mortified look, open-mouthed, and with a rag and bucket in hand, blush actively spreading through his pale complexion the more time it passed.
Eva opened her mouth, but before she could make any sound, two tiny missiles barrelled against her legs.
The only reason she didn't fall down on her butt was because she managed to hold onto the doorframe.
"Oof. Children, remember what I told you. No tackling, my darlings." she would probably lose her knees if they weren't careful.
Eva didn't get the response she hoped for, but honestly, that was to be expected. Instead she was assaulted by a barrage of information that she had no idea how to make sense of.
"AndthenIwokeupsoIwokeupVergilandwewenttothekitchenandPapaaskedforhelpand—"
"SoIpickedthebowlbecausePapaleftmeinchargebutDanteisdumbandhetoppledthebowland—"
A quiet morning, indeed.
She released a laugh, carefully detangling her legs from the two little octopuses her children had become and knelt down to pinch their cheeks.
Her anger melted away when she saw the eager look in their eyes, apparently excited to have her see their arduous work. She rested her hands on her knees, raising and eyebrow at them.
"Oh? Your father needed your help?" she got mirror excited nods as an answer. Eva chuckled, before continuing, "And why is that?"
That gave the children pause. Eva took away her eyes from them for a second, looking at her husband, but he was still standing in place just like before, face contorted in an embarrassed expression.
She felt a small tug on her sleeve, and when she looked, the twins exchanged serious expressions that looked hilarious in two flour-covered babies, before they both regaled her with blinding smiles.
"Happy Mother's day, mama!" she heard in a slightly off-timed chorus.
Eva blinked, caught off guard.
The twins kept looking at her, Dante nearly vibrating with excitement in his place, while Vergil shuffled his feet, obviously eagerly waiting for a reaction.
Eva felt her heart dissolve into mush, her eyes watering at the absolutely tooth-rotting sight.
She couldn't help but drag them both towards her, making them both squeak in surprise while she smothered them in kisses.
"Is that so, my little stars?" she said between kisses, making them giggle while they wriggled in her grasp, "So thoughtful of you two, aren't you the sweetest? Or is that from all the cooking you've been doing?" she said sparing a cheeky smile at her husband who was still furiously trying to avoid looking directly at her.
The twins kept giggling, complaining about her smothering, but Eva could see their proud smiles.
She supposed she couldn't really get too angry about the mess they had made this time. She laughed again, snuggling her beautiful children some more, despite how she knew that her own pyjama would need another wash afterwards.
Finally, she loosened her hold, staring at her babies, who smiled at her, looking awfully pleased with themselves.
"And, what were you three doing here then?"
Vergil was faster at answering, which caused Dante to pout at his sibling. Eva stifled a laugh.
"Papa asked us for help making breakfast."
"We were doing pancakes!" added Dante excitedly.
Eva strayed her eyes, looking around before glancing at Sparda who had surreptitiously thrown what Eva could swear looked like a frying pan in the sink.
She glanced at the bowl holding what must be a whole bag of flour the twins had been apparently working with.
She raised her eyebrow, barely managing to contain her laughter.
"You were making pancakes?" she said, incredulously.
"Yes! But we ran out of the mix and we needed to have everything ready for when you got here, so Papa also tried to make toast!"
Oh no.
"By himself?"
"Yes!" "He also tried to make bacon—"
Her dear husband was currently fully turned around, shoulders close to reaching his ears.
Eva finally let go of her boys, letting them on the floor, before tilting her head to look at them.
"Well, you've clearly been busy, haven't you three? Say, why don't you go clean your hands so that we can try this lovely breakfast, hmm?"
She got excited cheers as a response, before two tiny blurs were already crossing the hall to reach the bathroom.
Eva called without turning around to look, "No running in the bathroom children! And no fighting for first turn in the sink!"
She didn't hear a response, but there weren't any further screams, so it seemed to have worked for now.
Finally, Eva walked to her husband, hugging him from behind.
"I see you've been busy today haven't you, dearest?"
Eva heard a sputtered noise before Sparda turned around, sheepishly holding a cup of steaming tea in front of her.
Eva blinked, before smiling at him, feeling her heart soften even further.
"I…ah, may have overestimated my cooking capabilities…" he held the cup of tea out for her and Eva took it, still lovingly looking at him.
He always tried so hard. Her sweet, attentive husband.
She giggled, trying to avoid embarrassing him much further, but she couldn't help but poke at him a bit, "And you thought that dealing with both of the children wouldn't be an added challenge?"
Her husband huffed, looking like a kicked puppy, "I hadn't planned it like that exactly but…the children are lighter sleepers than I imagined."
Eva did laugh at that, snorting a bit, "Only sometimes. Other times they could be hibernating for all we know."
Sparda smiled at her, his expression softening and making her heart flip, pushing back a strand of stray her away from her face before letting his palm rest against it.
Eva leaned against his hand, feeling the affection in his husband's tender actions and how her heart fluttered in response.
She loved him so much.
"I'm sorry about the kitchen. I got distracted and before I knew it, it looked like this."
Eva hummed, not as bothered as she could be. "Well, I'm honestly just glad that the kitchen is still standing. With the twins, it wouldn't surprise me if it ended up toppling down."
Sparda huffed out a laugh, "Yes, I suppose you are right. As usual, my love." he nudged the cup in her hands a bit, looking eager, "Do try the tea. I did manage to work the kettle as I should. I am fairly confident that it's done correctly!" he said excitedly.
Eva smiled and brought the cup to her lips, looking around the kitchen lazily. The tea that reached her tongue was pleasant, a sweet herbal blend that she wasn't sure she recognised.
Quite good. Sparda had obviously done his best with this.
"Hmmm, and where is the toaster now? I can't see it in it's usual place." she questioned, good humorously.
"Ah. Well. That's. A bit more complicated."
Eva made her best at trying not to spit the tea while laughing at her husband's gloomy expression.
She would wheedled the story out of him later.
She left the cup of tea on the countertop, reaching back to hug her husband once more, who surrounded her in his arms in exchange, a loving gaze in his eyes.
Eva laid her head on his chest, playing with his long, silky hair, feeling warmth at the overwhelming love from her family.
Her husband held her close, leaving a small kiss against her temple. Eva giggled softly at the rumble that she heard him let out afterwards, feeling like a schoolgirl on her first date.
"Not that I don't appreciate all your efforts, lovebug, but next time, you and the children can attempt something that doesn't involve the kitchen. You don't have to go through this much trouble to surprise me, you know?"
Sparda nuzzled the side of her neck, purring, "Nonsense Eva, you deserve everything and more, nothing is too troublesome for you. Though..perhaps we should try something else next time. Just as not to make as noticeable a mess."
Eva laughed, pushing a bit away to stare at Sparda, "Not as much of a mess? But you still plan on making another mess?"
"Well, you can't fault me. I am being conscious of our children's tendencies to…be creative with what they can find."
She huffed, amused, "Of course, the children. Only them." Sparda pouted at her, which only made her laugh more. "My, such foresight. Aren't you thoughtful, dearest?"
"Anything for you, my life." answered Sparda chuckling, leaning for a soft kiss. Eva smiled against it, unable and uninclined to stop herself from returning it.
When they finally separated, Eva pushed Sparda towards the door, while she turned for the kitchen, despite Sparda's noises of protest.
"Go fetch the children. They've been too quiet for too long, so they are either brawling already, or planning something else."
Or maybe just playing with the bubbles in the sink, if they were lucky. But better safe than sorry. She wasn't counting on it and the kitchen was already looking like a war zone.
"But Eva—"
"Oh, hush. I don't mind cooking breakfast, you know that. I quite like it."
"It was supposed to be a free day for you!"
Eva kissed her husband in the cheek still trying to shove him out the door, "The holiday is supposed to show appreciation. Which you three did already, so go."
Sparda grumbled slightly, still reluctant to leave. "It's still not enough at all..."
Eva kissed his lips again, before shoving him out again, "It is for me. Now shoo, let me try to see if I can prepare something with what you left here."
Sparda sighed, relenting, "Fine, fine. I am leaving." Eva hummed, finally turning around, thinking on what to make.
Before managing to decide, she felt Sparda holding her against him again, peppering her neck with kisses and hugging her close.
"I thought you said you were leaving" she laughed, trying to pull away, but her husband didn't budge.
"I am. But…" he paused, looking at her with a mischievous glint in his eyes, "I just thought that, I had another idea to show my appreciation for you later today too."
Eva laughed harder at that, Sparda finally letting go, "You naughty devil! Go fetch the children already, they will get cranky if they have breakfast too late, and neither of us want that, do we?"
Sparda simply hummed, still looking at her smugly, while Eva tried to contain her laugh at her ridiculous husband's antics.
Finally, she turned to the mess left of the kitchen.
Pancakes were definitely out of the equation, but maybe with the bread her darling children and husband had managed to salvage she could manage something. Some french toast perhaps?
With the morning light bathing the kitchen, and the cheery voices of her family in the other room, Eva smiled and began the day, the love from her family encompassing her.