A/N: As you may have already noticed, the timeline for this will be covering a great many years. I'm sure there will be some time skips, but really, there are so many changes that have already happened that the timeline we know is muddled at best. Look forward to those changes. I hope you enjoy!
Chapter 2
It was three days after Lucrecia woke Vincent that the last two scientists left the mansion. Lucrecia had stayed away from them mostly, and Vincent had made sure to stay out of their sight. She wasn't sure where he was most of the time, but he would check in with her once a day, so she assumed he was going through the research left behind when the other two were not in the area. She hoped it was something like that anyway. He had been so cold since he woke that she felt she no longer knew him. The thought was a painful one, but not nearly as painful as the fact that they hadn't been able to even start on a plan to get the twins back.
As the two, Lily and Evan, were leaving, the young woman stopped long enough to seek Lucrecia out. She found her in the sunroom staring out one of the many windows toward the mountains. She felt terrible for the woman, but she was in no position to offer anything other than her sympathy. No one wanted to cross Hojo. Lucrecia jumped slightly when she called out but quickly masked her pain with another smile. Lily didn't say anything about it. Instead she got into why she had been looking for her. "Evan and I are leaving now. I wanted to check one last time to see if you will be going as well?"
Lucrecia tried her best not to look nervous as she responded. "No, I think I may stay here for a short time at least before I figure out what I will be doing. I will not be returning to Midgar."
Lily gave her a quick hug. She knew it didn't mean much in the big picture, but she hoped Lucrecia understood her reasoning at least. "I am sure there would be a place for you if you change your mind. I hope to see you again someday."
Lucrecia gave her a nod and a fragile smile but didn't say anything as the girl left. Once they were both gone, she made her way back down into the basement. She thought they might have locked everything up, but the only locked door was the one to the room Vincent had been in, and they had been the ones to lock that to keep up appearances. It would not have surprised her if the younger scientist had known and not said anything.
When she made her way into the lab, she grimaced at the sight of the empty tanks before she jumped in surprise at the sound of a voice directly behind her. She spun around and found Vincent had finally come out from wherever he had been hiding. She nearly cringed at the cold look he was giving her, but she was glad that he repeated what he said without her having to ask. "Are the others gone?"
She gave him a nod. "Yes. When they asked if I was returning, I told them I would be staying here for a short while, but I effectively gave my notice. Even if Hojo hears that I doubt that he will think of me as a threat for now; if he thinks of me at all."
Vincent's eyes narrowed at the mention of Hojo, but he didn't say anything right away. He brushed past her and headed further into the lab. He stopped at one of the computers before he spoke again. "The first thing we need to do is gather information. I can use these to hack into Hojo's files, but it will take time. I cannot rush and leave any evidence that I was there. While I am doing that you should take the time to go through everything that was left here since you will have a better idea of what is true or not. You already know that Hojo is a liar, so there is no telling what he left behind. I have checked some of them and can only assume he left these behind to be found later by someone else. It stinks of a setup."
She gave him a nod before she walked to one of the bookshelves and pulled a volume down. She barely read the first few words before Vincent spoke again. "Everything you find that is not useful needs to be destroyed. We can burn them as we find them. Also, if we are to stay here for now, it would be best if we try to come up with a cover story for the locals. We don't want them snooping around, but we cannot afford to alienate them either. It would be best if you handle that. A talk with the Mayor would be a good place to start."
Her brows had furrowed at his words. "You make it sound like we will be here long term."
Neither his voice nor his face changed at all when he answered. "I have already told you this could well take years. We will do all we can to make it sooner but be prepared for the worst."
She wanted so badly to scream at him, or to break down and cry, but she knew that neither of those would accomplish anything other than wasting time. Even with her resolve, she still had to blink several times before her eyes cleared enough to see. She finally swallowed the lump in her throat as well so she could respond. "I will talk to the Mayor tomorrow. For today I will focus on going through these. I doubt it will be a short task." Neither of them said anything else, as they both fell into the tasks they had assigned themselves.
Everyone in the part of the Science Department that had anything to do with Hojo and his newest experiments were walking on eggshells. It had been several days since they made it back to Midgar. Their first day had been no problem. The twins had hardly made any sounds. As far as babies went, the two of them were near perfect. Even when they were being subjected to the experiments lined out by Hojo, they would only cry until it was finished. Once they were no longer being messed with, they quickly quieted down.
That all changed on the second day when Hojo decided to separate them. They started crying almost immediately when they were taken to separate rooms on opposite sides of the lab. They only got louder the longer they were apart. They refused to be fed and only quieted when they finally became exhausted enough that sleep interrupted them. As soon as they woke the crying started again.
By the end of the third day, Hojo was ready to pull his own hair out and anyone stupid or unlucky enough to be in his path got the brunt of his irritation. He even yelled at Gast when the man came to check on things that afternoon. The head scientist didn't respond at all. Instead, he watched as his subordinate walked away still mumbling to himself. He realized things were already starting to spin out of control for the arrogant man and he decided keeping out of the way and watching would benefit him more.
It was after he realized the babies' cries were the cause of all the trouble, that he finally approached Hojo with a suggestion. He ignored the slight when he received a snap for his troubles and only gave the younger man a sharp look as he spoke. "Maybe you should put them back in the same room."
Hojo didn't pay attention at first. Gast swallowed his glare and repeated himself. Finally, Hojo looked back with disgust. "I separated them because they need to undergo separate tests."
Gast had to keep a tight hold on his temper. "I understand your reasoning, but it is obvious there is some problem. Also, it clearly didn't start until after they were separated. At least try my proposal, and if it does not solve your problem then you are free to do what you feel is best. It is your project after all. I am only making a suggestion."
Hojo looked like he wanted to dismiss the man out of hand, but no one ever accused him of being stupid. He took the reasoning into consideration for several moments before he turned to the closest assistant and practically yelled at them. "Bring the female. We will put her into the same room as the other and see if we can stop this incessant racket."
The young man gave a nod before he took off at a jog to follow orders. Gast didn't expect any other acknowledgment so he was not surprised when Hojo focused on watching the twin's reactions to being put back in the same room. Unfortunately, Gast realized too late what would happen when his theory was proved to be more correct than even he had anticipated.
As soon as the girl was brought into the same room, they both settled into hiccupping breaths. Gast knew that occasionally twins showed evidence of a slight connection, but he had never seen the behavior the two exhibited now. He had to bite back a curse when he saw Hojo's look of interest at the sudden silence.
Hojo's reaction didn't last long before he was barking orders. "I want another round of blood tests. Also, hook them both to an EEG. I want to see what happens when they are separated and together. We can run further tests after that."
After he gave the orders, there was a rush of motion as all the other scientists jumped to follow his orders. He watched the whole thing with a manic grin. Once the blood was drawn, one of the younger scientists worked up the nerve to speak to Hojo; something he would not have ordinarily dared, except Hojo was still grinning. "Professor, do you believe they could have a telepathic link?"
Hojo frowned slightly at the interruption of his thoughts, but he was still in a good enough mood that he deigned to answer. "Possibly, but it could be any number of other phenomena as well. We have already ascertained they have super human senses, so it could simply be that they hear or smell one another. It will be something we will need to continue to observe. It will be years before we can make an accurate hypothesis."
The younger scientist looked like he had more questions, but he swallowed them when Hojo started to frown. The twins had been separated again for the EEG tests and their wailing got on his nerves, even if he was the one to order it. Once he was sure things were back on track he turned to go to his office. He could go over the data they already gathered and not have to listen to the caterwauling. He ignored Gast as he passed the frowning man. He knew what his current boss was thinking and didn't care. Once he was in the hall, he smiled as he thought of all the things he could accomplish once he was in that position.
Lucrecia was standing nervously outside of the largest house other than the mansion. She had been pointed to it when she asked where the Mayor was. Apparently, he worked from his home. That wasn't so surprising with such a small town. It also didn't surprise her to find that he also helped the hunters occasionally. They didn't have much in the way of produce and didn't have soil that was fertile enough to support large scale farms or ranches. They relied mostly on imports for their daily vegetable needs. That explained why most of the town had more of a pallor than the area would suggest.
She caught herself thinking on a tangent again and shook her head. She was only glad that no one had seen her standing there in front of the door and staring into space. She steeled her resolve and knocked. It was only a few moments before a pretty brunette woman opened the door. Lucrecia was surprised to see her. The woman must have realized she was there to see the Mayor, as she opened the door wider and gave Lucrecia a smile before she spoke. "Please come in. My husband is out with an inspection team, but he should be back shortly."
Lucrecia felt her nerves start to melt. She wasn't sure what kind of reception she would receive since, as far as they knew, she still worked for Shinra. Having the Mayor's wife be so warm helped ease that fear a little. Only a little though, as she still hadn't talked to many others in the town.
She was led to a small sitting room and the woman waved to one of the chairs. "Please have a seat. Would you like some tea?"
Lucrecia gave her a smile. "That would be lovely, thank you."
The other woman gave her a nod and a smile. "I'll be right back. Make yourself at home."
Lucrecia hadn't planned on snooping while the woman was gone, but a small display across the room drew her eye. She was standing in front of it before she realized she had even moved. What she found had her eyes widened. It was a collection of hunting trophies as well as several black and white photographs of different men with large kills. There was even a dragon among them. All the photos had one man in common. She was drawn from her reverie as the woman returned with the tea. "Ah, I see you've found my husband's pride and joy."
She set the tea on the small table before she joined Lucrecia at the collection. She smiled wistfully and shook her head before she turned. "My husband is one of the best hunters in the village." She paused and gave Lucrecia a rueful smile. "I'm nearly certain that was why he was elected as Mayor. Oh! But don't tell him I said that."
Lucrecia smiled at the young woman. She estimated her to be a year or two younger and she was so bubbly, it was hard not to like her. The woman's eyes widened as she came to a realization. "Where are my manners, I never introduced myself." She held out a hand before she continued. "I'm Trisha Lockhart."
Lucrecia shook the proffered hand with a smile. "Pleased to meet you. I'm Lucrecia Crescent." At that, she followed the young woman back to the waiting tea. It helped her relax when they got lost in the latest gossip that small towns were prone to. Lucrecia almost allowed herself to forget why she was there in the first place and allowed the inane conversation to soothe her.
She had no idea how long they were chatting like that before they were interrupted by the door opening. Trisha jumped up when her husband came in and Lucrecia could tell the woman only refrained from jumping on him because she was there. She felt a pang at the sight, but she didn't let it show when she was introduced. The mayor gave her a curious look as he shook her hand. It wasn't an open curiosity either. She had expected it, so she didn't let it bother her as she finally launched into the reason she was there.
"Mayor Lockhart, I wanted to introduce myself. My name is Lucrecia Crescent. I was one of the scientists working here, but I have decided to stay here long term. The rest have all returned to Midgar."
Trisha shuffled nervously when she saw her husband give the woman a hard look. None of the townspeople trusted Shinra, and she hadn't thought that the personable young woman she had invited in had anything to do with them. It occurred to her that she should have questioned her further, but it was a moot point as her husband spoke. "Ms. Crescent, I have no idea why you want to stay, but know that we will not tolerate trouble."
Lucrecia swallowed, but she steeled her nerves. This was the reception she had expected. "I have no intentions to cause trouble at all. In fact, I was hoping to see if there was anyone in town that needs help. If I am to stay here, I will need to be gainfully employed and I have no qualms with hard work."
To say he was shocked was an understatement. He had not been sure what to expect from a Shinra employee, but the thought that she might ask for work had never crossed his mind. His look didn't change though. "If you are employed by Shinra, why would you need other work?"
Lucrecia barely managed to stop herself from shuffling nervously. She knew this question was likely to come up and at least she had an answer prepared. "When I decided to stay here, I was allowed the use of the mansion, but it also meant that my work is now considered part time. I have use of the facilities, but I have no further way to support myself. I am willing to do anything that is in my capacity to do."
The Mayor finally lost his hard look. He sighed as he pointed to the chairs. "I think maybe you should explain things a little better. I can decide what to do after we talk."
Lucrecia gave him a nod and followed him while Trisha went to get more tea. Once they were seated, he gave her a curious look. "Explain why you decided not to go back to Midgar."
Lucrecia thought this question might come up as well, but she hadn't been able to figure out exactly what to tell them. She knew she didn't want to lie, as that could cause problems down the road if it were found out, but she also wasn't sure how much she could trust them with the truth. She finally decided when Trisha came back and joined them. She took a deep breath to try to calm herself. "I am aware that you have no reason to trust anyone from Shinra. I recently found out the hard way, why that is the case in most places outside of Midgar."
She paused and took another breath, and then another. She could feel the tears pricking her eyes at the thought of what she was about to share, and she blinked a few times to keep them from falling. She caught Trisha's widened eyes and nearly broke down. She felt a single tear fall, but she ignored it as she spoke again. "The head scientist that was here took something very important away from me. I cannot say what it was right now, but I want them back. I can't fight Shinra, but I know there has to be a way. I planned on staying here until I can figure out how to do that."
No one spoke after that for several moments. Trisha came around and gave Lucrecia a hug when she saw another tear fall. At the unexpected motion, the scientist found she could no longer keep her tears at bay. She tried not to break down into sobs, but she couldn't stem her tears. Finally, the Mayor stood and gave her an unreadable look. "We don't want any trouble with Shinra, but I can't blame you. As long as you keep the town out of it, I will not deny you. If you're looking for work, the inn needs a new clerk. You can tell them I sent you."
Trisha stood at that point and helped Lucrecia to her feet. Once she was standing, she held out her hand. "Thank you, Mayor Lockhart. I will make sure I do not bring any trouble to Nibelheim."
He shook his head at her before he took her hand to shake it. "Don't thank me yet. I will be keeping an eye on you." He let go and started to turn back to the door before he stopped and gave her a small smile. "Also, if you plan on staying here for awhile then you might as well call me Brian. Being called Mayor is still new for me."
She gave him a smile and a nod as she followed him back out. He quickly gave her directions to the inn he mentioned, and Trisha wished her luck before they closed the door. Lucrecia was surprised and a little hopeful at how well that meeting went. She couldn't squash the hope that it meant things were finally looking up. She couldn't stand the thought of her children being in Hojo's clutches any longer.
