Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to anything within the Final Fantasy VII Compilation.
A/N: I am trying my best to keep this updated at least once a week for now. I hope you all enjoy!
Chapter 2
By the time the sun started to shine into the tiny window, Sephiroth was no closer to finding any explanation for his guest's predicament. He also found that he was slightly worried. The whole reason he stayed up was to watch for choking or coughing. He had checked several times to make sure she was still alive, and she was still breathing, but she had not made any movements.
It was as he was checking on her once again that a knock sounded. He opened the door to find Dr. Branscum waiting. He gave the man a nod in greeting and stepped back. The man didn't hesitate to head toward his unexpected patient.
After another quick exam the doctor turned to Sephiroth with a frown. "Did she finally cough up the last of the liquid?"
Sephiroth's brow drew down as he answered. "No, I checked several times, but she has made no movements."
The doctor gave a heavy sigh. "I was afraid you were going to say that. Her temperature is fine, but there is no longer any sound of liquid in her lungs. With the fact that it had been mako it seems as if her body absorbed it instead of expelling it. It isn't unheard of, but it's a rare reaction. It is still uncertain what that could mean for her. We'll just have to wait and see."
Sephiroth's brow drew into a frown as he looked to the woman in the bed. He didn't say anything though. Instead he gave the doctor another nod. "Thank you for your help."
Once the man was gone Sephiroth looked to the woman one last time before leaving the room. He could not put off his mission, not even for something as interesting as his guest. He didn't want to leave her alone for long, so he quickly made arrangements with the innkeeper to have someone sit with her while he was out. The man had been flabbergasted by the request, but once Sephiroth promised to pay whatever fee was necessary, the man quickly had one of his staff upstairs.
Once that was settled Sephiroth left with the intent to find the beast that had evaded him the previous day. He found that he hoped he would run into a challenge. Despite the fact that he looked like he could fit in completely with the icy landscape around him, his irritation was building.
By the time he made it back to the inn, he was much closer to his normally calm self. He hadn't been able to track the monster from the previous day, as the tracks had been completely buried under new snowfall. He did however find the den of monsters that had been reported as terrorizing the area.
He didn't bother asking the female innkeeper how his guest was as he was sure the conversation would only irritate him again. Instead he headed straight up. He paused with his hand on the doorknob though. He could hear several voices on the other side of the door.
He opened it to find a young girl cowering near the door and Dr. Branscum trying to speak to the woman that had been sleeping. She was awake and currently trying to open the window. He caught the last of what the doctor had said. "-mako poisoning. You need to lie back down for now. We will have plenty of time to figure out what happened after we are sure you will be alright."
The woman turned to the doctor with a scowl. "Look, all I know is that I was swimming and got pulled under. I am positive that my friends are frantically looking for me." She looked down and to the side as she mumbled the rest. "I was so stupid. What the hell was I thinking."
Sephiroth's brow rose at those words. He doubted anyone else in the room had heard them. He also realized that no one had noticed him yet, so he stepped further into the room. The woman caught the movement and looked up. When her eyes landed on him they widened, and she took a step back, putting her back up against the window she had been trying to open.
Sephiroth was momentarily stunned as well. It wasn't the slight glow to her eyes, as that had been expected, but her eyes were the most unusual thing he had ever seen. One was a bright electric blue and the other was a deep green.
He recovered from his shock quickly enough that no one else in the room even noticed it. He took another step into the room before speaking. "I am glad to see you awake. We had feared you might not with the mako you were exposed to."
At his words her face showed confusion before the scowl quickly came back. "The other man said something about mako as well. What the hell is going on here? Was I saved by a bunch of crazies? Why the hell are you dressed like Sephiroth anyway?"
His brow rose at her questions. From what he could understand she believed him to be someone else pretending to be him. It was almost humorous. "While I am sure there are many that want to emulate me, I have not seen any so bold as to try."
She gave him a confused look before shaking her head. "What?"
He gave her a smirk as he answered. "I am saying that I am dressed as Sephiroth because I am Sephiroth."
His smirk was erased at her next caustic words. "I had assumed that was what you meant. My question was, why the hell do you believe that? Sephiroth isn't real, so it's kind of hard to really be him." Again, he heard her muttering. "This is just my luck. Why the hell didn't I listen to Mara."
He had no idea how to respond to what he had just heard. He was used to people being afraid of him, and of avoiding him, but he had never had someone refuse to believe that he was real. He couldn't fathom why she thought that in the first place. Instead of trying to force the issue he looked to the doctor who was still standing near the bed. He vaguely noted the young girl had already slipped out before he spoke. "Have you been able to examine our guest now that she is awake?"
The doctor gave him a frustrated look. "No, she will not allow anyone close to her."
The woman spoke up in a harsh tone at that. "Of course I won't. I don't know you. The only things I do know is that you're all talking crazy and somehow, I wound up where I'm surrounded by snow instead of on the beach. How the hell does that happen anyway?"
Sephiroth once again found himself at a loss. Either her memory was faulty, or there was more to this than he assumed. It was not unheard of for a person to fall into mako and wash up elsewhere on the planet, but the cases were so rare most people never heard of them. It was also unusual as none of the recorded cases had survived the ordeal. It was still worth exploring though. He concealed a small smile as he realized this mission just got even more interesting.
He didn't answer her question; he instead turned back to the doctor. "Thank you for your assistance Dr. Branscum. For now, we will put off an exam until our guest is more comfortable with us."
The doctor realized he had just been dismissed and gave Sephiroth a nod as he walked out. Once he was gone Sephiroth turned back to the woman, who was eying him even more warily. He felt his irritation spike at the look, but he was used to that kind of treatment, so he was able to conceal it before he spoke. "It is not my intention to make you uncomfortable. I will help as much as I am able as I am sure you will need some assistance. When I rescued you yesterday, you only had what you are wearing. For now, would you at least be willing to share your name?"
At his words she looked down. She hadn't thought about the fact that she was still in her bikini. That was a fact that normally wouldn't have bothered her, but she was in a room alone with a strange stranger. She quickly reached down and snatched one of the blankets to throw across her shoulders as she answered. "You can call me Eve."
He almost wanted to chuckle at her reaction to realizing she was still mostly undressed, but his irritation at her short answer kept it from forming. It was obvious she was not going to make this easy. "Fine, Eve, you said you were at the beach, so I assume you were swimming and got swept away. You also said your friends were probably looking for you. Why don't you tell me where you were, and we can reach out and see if they are still there?"
Evelyn eyed him warily. She was already fighting a panic attack and the fact that she was cooped up in this small room with such a large man was making it worse. It had started when she had opened her eyes to see a strange man touching her and had only gotten worse as the weirdos kept coming out of the woodwork. She wanted to try and bolt for it, but two things stopped her. The strange man was still standing in front of the door, and he was big enough to block the whole thing. The other was that she didn't even know where here was. Since she had absolutely nothing on her at the moment, it would be difficult at best to even get in touch with Mara and David. She finally gave him a scowl and tried to hide her increasing heart rate behind her sharp tone. "What exactly do you want with me? Why am I here in the first place? Where is here anyway?"
Sephiroth was taken aback by her accusatorial tone. He was quickly finding that although the idea of something to cut the boredom had appealed to him, actually dealing with this strange woman was irritating. He still only showed a calm face when he spoke again. "We are in Modeoheim. I found you drowning in a pool of mako and brought you back to this inn to recover. There is nothing that I want from you, except to assist you in finding out what happened."
She snorted at his words. "Why? It isn't like you know me, so why would you offer to help for nothing?"
He couldn't help the slight furrow between his brows when he answered her. "It is my job to investigate all unusual circumstances. You were found in the middle of nowhere, nearly dead and exposed to mako and all the while in only your underwear. So, if you would not like my assistance in trying to find your friends, you will answer some questions. Why were you in the woods to begin with?"
She was shocked by his hard tone, but more than that his words were unbelievable. "I've already told you! I was swimming just off the beach in Maui when I got caught by a riptide and was pulled under. I thought I was going to drown until a gloved- that hand was yours?"
Her tone had finally softened as she looked down at his black gloved hands and remembered that was what had saved her. That still didn't explain how she got to wherever here was, but it did make her feel slightly bad for yelling at him. So far, the worst these people had done was say strange things and in this guy's case, he seemed to have an issue with a bad case of cosplayitis. That was enough to make her wary, but she wasn't getting anywhere by being bitchy either.
She sighed as she looked back up to his face. He was giving her a contemplative look. She realized his offer might be the only way she was going to figure anything out. Before she could ask him though, he spoke up. "If it would put you at ease, I can show you where I found you. I'm sure it would be no problem to find appropriate attire. It might also allow us to find clues."
She thought about the option for a moment. It would allow her to try to figure out where she really was. It would also give her the chance to see if it was as desolate out there as it looked from the window. She could see other buildings, but everything looked like it came out of the 1800s. She hadn't seen anything motorized at all. It really made her wonder what kind of backwoods place she had been taken to. She finally gave him a nod. "That seems like as good a place as any to start."
With her consent, he quickly pulled a phone out of his pocket and dialed a number. She was glad to see that this place was close enough to civilization to support cell signal at least. She noted he was asking for a change of clothes for her, but it was a short conversation.
When he hung up, they stood in an awkward silence for a few minutes until there was a knock on the door. The man opened it to allow the girl that had been there earlier to enter with a bundle in her hands. She shot the tall man a scared look as she walked passed. When Evelyn saw it, she felt her blood boil again. She wondered what had been done to make the girl cower like she had. When she was handed the bundle, she made sure to catch the girl's eye and thank her. She smiled when she received a smile in response.
She had planned on asking the man what the deal was with the girl's fear, but he followed her out. She glared at the door for a moment before looking to see what she had been given. She was surprised to find a long-sleeved dress made of a heavy material along with socks and boots. There was also a jacket. She hated wearing dresses, but for now it would have to do.
Once she dressed, she went straight for the door. She knew it was likely that the man was waiting in the hallway, but it wouldn't hurt to check and see if she could leave anyway. She wasn't surprised to see him when she opened the door, even if she was disappointed.
He had been leaning against the far wall, so when she exited he stood. "If you are ready, we can go now. It will be dark in a few hours and it would be best to get you back before then."
She gave him a nod and followed him out. When they made it downstairs she noted that all talking immediately ceased. She looked around warily and found that the dozen or so people in the room were looking at the man with barely hidden fear. The sight made her hackles rise as she realized it wasn't just the girl; everyone here seemed to be wary of the large man.
When he moved to exit without speaking with anyone she halted and gave him a hard look. "Are you not planning on taking anyone else?"
He looked back with confusion. "I will be more than enough protection from any issues we might run into."
There were several gasps around the room when she spoke up again. "It isn't the animals I'm worried about. I don't think it would be a good idea for me to go anywhere alone with you. Especially not out into the woods!"
He gave her a shocked look that quickly turned into irritation. By the time he spoke most of the people that had been in the room had already scrambled to leave. "I am a Soldier. You have nothing to fear from me unless you are an enemy of Shinra. If we are going to get this done while it is still daylight we need to go now."
His tone brooked no argument. She looked around the room to see if there was anyone that might stand up to him as well but found that all the remaining people avoided eye contact. She huffed in irritation before turning back to him. "Fine, you're a Soldier." She snorted as she said that. "I would not feel comfortable being alone with any male."
He walked back to her and took her arm to force her to start moving. Before she could protest he spoke up in a hard tone. "I have already told you I am investigating these circumstances. It would be best for you if you would cooperate, but if you refuse I have no compunctions about taking a more drastic approach."
She started to struggle against his grip when she realized that she was no match for his iron grip and there was no one that was willing to help her. It took every ounce of her training not to fall into a panic attack. That was the last thing she could allow to happen at the moment. As he pulled her towards the door she looked around frantically for anything she could use. As they passed close to a table she grabbed a large stoneware mug sitting on the empty table. She wasn't sure how much good it would do her against him, but she felt a little better at having something with a little heft.
She allowed him to continue to lead her out of the town and towards the forest. He finally let her arm go when they reached a tiny trail that led off into the woods. She probably would have missed it if it weren't for the fact there was still a trail through the snow. When he let go of her he pointed to the trail. "I'll follow right behind. You'll know when we reach the clearing we are looking for."
She noticed he raised a brow at the mug she was still clutching but he didn't comment on it. She moved to the path and tried to keep from looking back every few seconds. The one time she did look she found that he was behind her, but far back enough that she felt a little better.
They had traveled down the trail for maybe half an hour when she stepped into a clearing and had to cover her eyes with her free hand. It took her eyes a few moments to adjust from the darkness of the tree line to the blinding brightness of the clearing. When she was able to see clearly, she gasped. In front of her was one of the most beautiful things she had ever seen. There was a small spring that was filled with a slightly green water. She briefly wondered what kind of algae was growing in it as she had never seen that color. She also wondered how it could grow in the snow.
When she realized it could be a hot spring she moved to dip her hand in it. Before she could kneel, she was brought up short by a hand on her arm. "You have already woken up after being exposed to mako once, but it would be best for you not to push your luck."
"What?" She shot him a confused look at his words. She was getting more than a little tired of his acting. He was certainly in character, but it was starting to get on her nerves.
He answered as if she had asked a real question. "The spring. Mako is easily absorbed through the skin as well. I am already saturated enough that it poses little risk, but for you it could cause complications."
She pulled her arm from his loose grip and moved to the other side of the small pool where she had seen a crystalized rock formation. She ignored the way he was watching her warily. When she reached the formation, she found that she was fascinated with the strange crystals. She had never seen any that grew into round formations. If it weren't for the fact that they were imbedded into the rock around them, she might have thought they were artificial. She finally reached out to touch one and was shocked when it fell off into her hand. She was further shocked when she instantly heard several voices and a flame shot up around her hand. She dropped the orb with a scream and fell backwards.
He was at her side in an instant. She barely even noted him helping her to her feet as she looked at her unblemished hand. She finally turned to him with a glare. "What the hell was that?"
He was giving her a contemplative look. "It would seem you have an unusual affinity with materia. Was that your first time handling one?"
The look she shot him would have had most people backing away, but he merely looked curious. "Seriously, what was that?" She walked away from him and looked around carefully before turning back to him. "Were those voices a recording? How did you fake the flames? What is your goal anyway?"
His look finally turned incredulous. "I have already told you why we are here. I will state I have never seen a reaction like yours to materia. Normally it takes people quite a bit of training before they can produce the smallest result. I know someone that might be interested in meeting you."
She gave him a look of disgust. "I really wish you'd drop the act. I don't care if you get off dressing like a fictional character or not but quit trying to drag me into it."
He only shook his head at her adamant refusal to believe him. He was no longer surprised at it. It was still irritating, but not shocking. He only wondered what it would take to make her stop. When she bent to pick up the materia again he started to stop her. He had no desire to deal with it if she accidentally burnt herself. He couldn't reach her in time though.
When she picked it up again, the reaction was nearly identical to the first time. The only difference was that now she wasn't taken by surprise. Instead she tilted her head as if she were trying to hear something better. She looked closely at her hand before walking around the pool of mako. He had to admit that he was fascinated as well. He had never seen anyone with the level of control needed to keep a flame burning in their hand for so long without getting burned. Genesis was the only person he knew that had better control. He imagined the warrior mage would be interested in knowing he wasn't the only one.
She had made it to the other side of the pool and Sephiroth just watched as she walked around looking for Gaia knew what. He realized it was a mistake to let her get out of arms reach when she tripped and started to fall towards the pool. He was too far away to catch her before she splashed into the mako. He instantly moved to try to grab her, but she came up spluttering. She took his hand gratefully, but her eyes were widened. The look she turned him was full of surprise.
Evelyn had been looking for the source of the voices and had become completely distracted. When she tripped she had been unable to catch herself. When she hit the water, she realized instantly it wasn't a hot spring. The liquid was nearly as cold as the air. That was her last coherent thought as she was instantly inundated with many more voices. She kept it together long enough to grasp onto the hand that was offered to help pull her out, but after that she was overcome by the sheer number of voices.
She barely noted when a large leather coat was draped over her shoulders and she was lifted. Despite how hard she tried to make sense of what she was hearing she couldn't. It started to feel like her head was going to explode before all the voices finally receded and a single sweet voice took over. "Evelyn, sleep now. You will need your strength for what is to come. Rest for now and know I am watching."
She knew she shouldn't listen to random voices, but she found that she didn't have much choice. No matter how much she tried to focus she found her consciousness slipping from her. By the time she slipped into unconsciousness she didn't even realize that the man she had been with was running to get her back to the inn.
