Note: I felt sorry for Nero and Weiss as I played DoC, so I decided to write a oneshot about them... dedicated to the oddest brother-brother relationship.
Let's play a game to make it a little happy... if you cried while reading this... review saying, "WOW".
... WOW.
Yeah, I cried while writing this. Enjoy it! It's my prediction... it's probably wrong... but there it is.
---
Deepground. An army built by ShinRa. Nobody had ever seen the sky. Even their houses were underground, and as were the major buildings.
At only seven years old, Weiss lied asleep in his bed, tucked neatly inside the covers. Silver hair tickling his face, and his small hand neatly brushing it away. His narrowed eyes were focused on the picture of his mother that was upright on the nightstand. He had just been tucked in by his mother half an hour ago, but couldn't seem to brisk away into deep sleep. His father had just died last month, and his mother was expecting another baby anyday now. Weiss thought deeply as he stared at the ceiling, his ascetic expression staring blankly at the glowing star night-lights hung specially for him, and he was troubled by the fact that his mother was going to have another baby, which meant he'd be a big brother.
His thoughts were interrupted when the door swung open, and he saw his mother's expression of pain. She was panting and sweating, so Weiss's first reaction was to leap out of the covers and race over to her, "Mom, what's wrong?" he asked, noticing that she had faltered down to his eye-level, and her expression had death written all over. "Why are you scared, Mommy?" Weiss nervously asked again.
"I -- I think... She's going to be born!" She said. Weiss knew that his mother had always wanted a daughter, so he assumed that his 'little sister' would be born. His mother hadn't been ultrasounded to check for baby gender, so Weiss and her were clueless. "Weiss, get in the car." His mother said, as she struggled in the hallway, and Weiss ended up helping her.
-
At the hospital, Weiss was admitted to the delivery room to witness his sibling's birth... it was special since Weiss's father wasn't there, and now Weiss was the man of the house. He stared blankly at the antagonizing struggle his mother was going through as she tried to give birth to this human being. He had to hold her hand, and she sure squeezed it tight. He'd have to remind her that she was breaking his wrist. The doctors and nurses helped the woman deliver the baby, but what happened next was unexpected.
The thin, young woman with long brown hair had delivered her baby, but soon after, she stopped responding to people's voices and began twitching. The baby didn't move either. Weiss looked horrified at his mother, and didn't care about the little sibling... "M-- Mother?" Weiss squeaked, and placed a hand on her apathetic face. Suddenly, darkness exploded around her like a black hole, and Weiss screamed out, "NO!!"
The doctors and nurses held the seven-year-old boy back as the darkness engulfed his mother. "MOMMY!! MOTHER!!" Weiss helplessly called out, as he saw her perfect, feminine hand fade completely away. "... A dark child." Weiss whispered, looking at the baby, that didn't cry. Its eyes blinked open and stared at Weiss. "You..." Weiss whispered in a serious tone.
"This isn't the baby's fault!" the nurses and doctors reminded Weiss, who was devestated and grieving over his mother's death.
As Weiss approached the baby, the surgeons feared that Weiss would get angry at it, and kill it. Instead, Weiss picked it up, and hugged it, "Welcome, Nero..." he said, and the doctors were stunned by the boy's reaction to the little brother that had killed his mother. Never had they seen such a reaction from a child.
-
Nero was raised by his older brother, Weiss, and was taught to cherish life and take certain things for granted. "Be glad you've got what you have," Weiss would always say, "For you might not have it tomorrow." Nero always followed Weiss's guidance, and always looked up to him... ever since Nero was born, Weiss was never alone.
Weiss always got phone calls from the hospitals, and they wanted to experiment on Nero, since he caused darkness to engulf his mother. Weiss would shout on the phone, and hang it up immediately. Weiss was now eleven years old, and Nero was four. "What's wrong, Weiss?" Nero asked, capable of understanding who the doctors are and what they intended to do. Weiss would gave a worried look to Nero, and sigh.
One particular day, Weiss immediately snatched Nero and put him in the closet, "Where are you going, brother?!" Nero called out in an alarmed tone.
"I'm going to deal with these fatso's!" Weiss replied, locking the closet door, not allowing Nero to escape. "Please be good, and don't panic!"
"I won't!" Nero promised, shouting through the door.
What Weiss really meant was that the paramedics had rushed over to the residence, but he didn't want them to take Nero away, which seemed to be their goal.
"No, you're not taking him away!!" Weiss shouted, throwing his arms out, blocking them from entering the house.
"Out of our way, kid!" they'd shout, shoving poor Weiss to the side, and searching the house. "Kinda tidy for two kids to be living here..."
"Stop!" Weiss shouted, and would threaten to bite somebody if they found him. "Please!! Please!!" he'd shout, in tears as they were near the closet.
"So this is where you've hid him..." the paramedic began tearing the closet door open.
"No!! NO!!" Weiss shouted, but was held back by two paramedics. "Nero! Nero!!"
-
Nero awoke in a hospital bed with monitors attached to him... the doctors kept muttering about darkness sleeping inside him. Nero hated to see Weiss suffer through the glass as the doctors calmly tried to speak to the hysterical boy. Nero's eyes narrowed, and he knew that never once in his life had he cried, not even as an infant. This reminded him that he must be strong. He closed his eyes, and his hand twitched as he heard the heart monitor.
"Weiss, you have to listen to us!" the doctor said.
"But you're all wrong!" Weiss shouted, "You're wrong!!"
"We are not." the doctor said, "Nero was born with a defect of darkness... the Planet wants him dead. We must cut the monitors off."
"No!" Weiss shouted, "First you kidnap him, now you threaten to murder him. WHAT DID I EVER DO TO YOU!?"
"Calm him down." the doctor said, leaving a few nurses to assist Weiss out of the way.
"You're a fathead!" Weiss screamed at the doctor as he was being pulled away, "Murderer!"
Nero's eyes intently watched the scene, and his hand twitched once more, unable to speak, he choked out a few coughs before his eyes shut again.
-
"Who cares what the Planet wants!?"
Nero awoke once again, and it was dark, so nightfall must've rolled by. His tired, straining eyes were able to focus through the glass of the blurry figure of Weiss and the doctor. Nero always knew that his heart was weak because of the darkness pressuring it, but he didn't know it jeopardized his life this badly.
"I want him alive!" Weiss shouted.
"You're his caretaker, and it's your choice that you're choosing to let him suffer." the doctor blantly stated.
"I'm not letting him suffer!" Weiss screamed.
Nero slipped into unconsciousness again... Maybe I am suffering... he thought, But I don't feel any pain. I want to live. Weiss, tell them I want to go home.
-
Nero awoke with scissors by the tubes, and if they snapped, Nero would die. Weiss was screaming and crying in the distance - hey, he's eleven years old and it's his brother - while Nero stared in horror at the scissors. "S -- ssss!!" Nero hissed with labored breathing, "Ssssss!!"
The doctor stared in horror, "He's awaken from the coma!"
"Ss -- ssss ---" Nero couldn't make out any words, but managed to produce a hissing voice.
"Go on, son, say it!" the doctor encouraged.
"Sssst --" Nero choked, "Stop..." the doctor's eyes widened, "Stop cutting the tubes."
If only Weiss could hear Nero stand up for himself, beg to live. The doctor finally agreed with Weiss in the fact that Nero was in a lot of pain, but yet wanted to live. Nero couldn't feel any pain, just a numbing sensation as if his body grew cold, lifeless, paralyzed or dead. His slick black hair shrouded his face, and he slipped off into another sleep.
"He's fighting for his life." the doctor said to Weiss, "It seems he doesn't want to die."
"Of course, he doesn't!" Weiss said, "Please, let me take him home."
"Alright, but only if he can heal properly." the doctor said, "The darkness is tearing his heart open... those machines keep his heart pumping, and if it doesn't heal, he'll die automatically, and if we cut off the machine's supply, they'll stop pumping the heart, which will cause Nero to go under stress, and his heart will fail."
Weiss understood the circumstances, "Please do your best to let him live."
-
Nero woke up once again to see Weiss by his side, and Nero smiled... "Oh, you're awake!" Weiss said, smiling down at the four-year-old boy, "I wanted to tell you something."
"If you're a good boy, and live through this..." Weiss said, "I'll break you out of here someday!" Nero's eyes widened with fascination, "We'll run away together! And I'll show you what the sky looks like..."
Nero stared with curious eyes up to the ceiling, "I promise." Weiss said, sighing, "We'll see the sky. The beautiful sky."
Tears slid down Nero's cheeks as he imagined the pictures of death, and Weiss looked down to see his brother's sadness. "No, you'll live..." Weiss encouraged him, hugging him tightly, even though he was small for his age. A few tears slid down Weiss's face as even he wasn't sure if Nero would make it. "You're all I've got left of mother..."
Nero's dazed eyes stared at the ceiling, "When I was little... mother hung glowing stars on the ceiling, and told me that dad was watching over me." Weiss said. Nero looked at him and stared into Weiss's perfect periwinkle eyes. "Well, now mom and dad are watching us, Nero."
Nero spoke for the first time in a long time, "Will... I be watching over you, Weiss? If I die?"
Weiss didn't answer, but faced a different direction to look away from him. Nero could tell that was not a good sign. "Yes." Weiss finally answered, "You will... But only if you want to."
"I want to." Nero said, "I'll watch over you..."
"Please, don't tell me you're going to die." Weiss said, rubbing the tears away, "Please tell me that you'll be okay."
"My heart aches, Weiss." Nero shook his head, "I'm slipping away slowly..."
There was some silence, as Nero heard Weiss sob, and Nero knew that for the first time in his life, he cried with Weiss, "I'll do something about it." Weiss said, refraining his sobs, "I'll be back in the morning, okay?"
Don't go, Weiss. This may be my last chance to say good-bye.
"Okay." Nero said. Weiss nodded, and disappeared around the corner, and he watched his big brother through the glass until he was gone.
I'll miss you, Weiss. I'll see you in heaven... if I make it there.
Nero closed his eyes.
-
"Where am I?"
Nero suddenly screamed when he heard his own voice. He was a lot taller than when he last awoke, "Did I die?" he asked himself, looking around.
"You've been asleep for thirteen years."
"Who are you!?" Nero shouted at the intruder's voice.
"I am your darkness, Nero."
"My darkness?" Nero asked, looking around.
"I am G."
"... My darkness?" Nero repeated, "How old am I?"
"Seventeen." G sighed.
"What happened to Weiss!?" Nero asked.
"Don't you know? Thirteen years ago, he sought to find a cure for his little brother... and he had to die in your place to save you."
"What." Nero's eyes widened, "WHAT?" he repeated, "Weiss!? Died?" Nero threw his arms out in anger and frustration, "YOU'RE LYING!!"
-
Nero became one of the strongest in Deepground, naming himself 'Nero the Sable' and he searched for his dear 23-year-old brother, 'Weiss the Immaculate'. He met Vincent, holder of CHAOS, and he did find Weiss dead on the throne, being controlled by Hojo.
In the end, Nero was able to confront Weiss one last time.
"Brother..." Nero said, hugging Weiss, "Let us merge together into one..."
"Oh," Weiss groaned, dying from the impact shocks of the attacks from earlier, "Nero..."
"Please." Nero asked.
"Yes..." Weiss choked under his breath, "Let's... become one."
"There's so much I must tell you." Nero sobbed.
"Let me hear it all." Weiss smiled.
The End.