Hello all and welcome back to the next chapter of this story. I'm not really sure what to say for this one at least, but we have another chapter ready for you. We hope you enjoy!
Ch.3
Cloud was waiting in his room quietly, as he started to think to himself about things that had transpired over the past week. Every day, he had been led down to the lab area for more tests, but he never really understood what the purpose was. He could sometimes the people down there speaking about things. Even Hojo had told him some things that were happening before; however, Cloud could not remember what it was. This was partially due to his lack of understanding of more complicated matters. After all, he was only five-years old.
Today would be no different either. He knew that at some point, they would come and collect him and take him for more tests. He only hoped that it would be the nice lady that would come and get him. She is the only one that Cloud seemed to be at ease around. She did seem to have a personality at least, unlike the others who all wore sullen looks constantly.
Cloud sighed as he laid back on the bed and helded up Mr. Chocobo to his face. "Why they gotta keep talkin' boring adult stuff? I just wanna go home… I wanna see mommy. Why don't they know that?"
Cloud stared at Mr. Chocobo, hoping that maybe he would answer, but of course it was just a regular chocobo plush. It was still really the only friend that he had to talk to though about things. At least he was a good listener.
"These results are just what I am looking for. All of this, is going perfectly," Hojo said as he wrote down notes in a file label Experiment No. 049.
"Um, Professor Hojo," one of the assistant started to say. It was the kind woman who usually went to bring Cloud down to the lab. "What is it exactly that you are trying to achieve here with Clou-... I mean 049. You still have not given us the exact details yet for this experiment."
"Ah yes," Hojo started as he pushed up on his glasses. "I've looked into the powers and capabilities of Materia many times before. But as of right now the only way people can use it, is to channel it into their weapons and armor. So my thought is… what if it could be placed into the body and used naturally?"
"Placed in the body? But...wouldn't that be nearly fatal for the host? I can't recall anyone ever attempting that before," she said, a hint of concern adorning her voice. "I mean, human brainwave activity is quite sporadic, and elevated levels could cause materia to react in ways unbeknownst to us."
"But that is the point of this research, you see. If someone is taught and trained to control that though, it is very well possible that they could keep and contain the Materia within him. The reason why Experiment 049 is the perfect choice for this is because he is the right age. He is old enough to easily learn new things and adapt while also being able to manage on his own, for the most part. Then there is the other side that he is still growing. Implementing the Materia at such a young age, his body could adapt to it."
The assistants had all listened intently to Hojo's explanation, which did make sense to all of them. After all, they were here to conduct research on anything deemed necessary. Though, there were still a few points to touch on about this new-age experiment.
"So, you believe experiments at such a young age will yield similar results to that of Sephiroth," one of the older male assistants spoke aloud in response.
The female assistant then retorted. "That would make sense of course. Though, Professor Hojo, you were going on earlier about the results of the subject's tests. There must be something more than just his age that drew you to him repeatedly. Or do you plan to just use him as a guinea pig for this new project?"
Hojo smirked as he looked over his files he had made about Cloud. "It is true that this experiment is intended to make someone that could equal to or possibly even rival Sephiroth's strength. As you know he is currently only eleven-years-old and already is a 2nd Class SOLDIER. No doubt he will make 1st class by next year. But yes… there is something that is rather intriguing about this child. His blood type shows that he could grow up to be extremely strong, if taught properly of course. Though on the other hand, he is still a young child and his mental condition isn't the strongest, meaning that… with some manipulation he could be pushed to doing just what I want of him."
"You, want to control him? I thought..." she trailed off as she barely stopped herself. She knew she couldn't speak out against Hojo, but she hated to see the boy, Cloud, be put through that. She had helped with others before, but Cloud was only a child. She tried to clear her head of those stray thoughts.
"What is it Adelaide? Don't tell me you're getting cold feet on this project? This is new and untested research. This is what we all signed up for. To study and learn from the great Professor Hojo," one of the other assistants asserted.
"Of course not. I agree with what Professor Hojo said. To make him a valuable asset to Shinra. Though, the research is still in developmental stages. However, I suppose that is what we are here for, to make sure it succeeds" the lady, now know as Adelaide, responded. "So, when do we start with the real tests?"
"We shall begin as soon as we can. Though there are some preliminary tests that must happen first before the rest. Experiment 049 is a child as we know, so getting him to cooperate is the one downside. We may need to use, a little bit of extra help to get him to be more willing to listen and to understand what I need of him."
"You think we will have to use the sedatives on him?" one assistant asked.
"If it leads to that we may have to, but I was thinking more along the lines of ways to weaken his mind so he is more vulnerable to listen and learn," Hojo replied coldly.
"Well maybe he will cooperate with us more easily. It would be the better option for the child at the least. I suppose...I can watch over him to make sure of that," Adelaide responded.
Hojo nodded. "I shall leave you in charge of watching over Experiment 049 then whenever he is not here. That shall be your other roll, second to helping here when it is time for the tests. Regardless whether he listens or not is of little importance. All that will decide is how much strain 049 will be placed under," he replied with an icy tone.
Adelaide almost wanted to say something else, but she held her tongue. "Very well. Should I go and prepare the subject now?"
"Yes yes, we want to begin this before the sun sets today. So make haste," Hojo replied quickly.
Adelaide did as she was told and walked towards the exit of the lab. The doors slid open as soon as she reached them, and she then strode from the lab and started making her short trip to Cloud's room. She needed to try to convince Cloud to listen and not to disobey. It was true that she wanted to see this project through, as she was quite curious to see the results. However, she was still bothered by how concerned she was for the boy. She had never really been that compassionate, at least not anymore. But, this time was different. She tried to blank her mind though as she continued on her way.
Cloud had apparently dozed off to sleep as he slowly blinked his eyes a bit before being able to open them. He was still curled up with his chocobo toy with him, clinging to it tightly. He slowly sat up in the bed and looked around quickly to see if there was anything different about the room but everything still seemed the same. He could not tell how long he had been out, though he wished he would have been asleep longer. His dreams were far more pleasant than the place he was in now.
Cloud continued to look forward to the wall as it's blank canvas mirrored his eyes. The only thought that crossed his mind was possibly some more rest. After a few minutes of gawking at nothingness, a sudden knock on the door startled him out his his mesmerized state.
He rotated his head slightly towards the door and watched as it creaked open slowly once again. Standing in the doorway was the same woman as before that had collected Cloud for testing. A mixture of emotion surged through his body suddenly as he felt relief and apprehension at the same time. He was thankful that she was there with him since he had found her to be quite a nice lady, but at the same time, the fact that she was there meant that he would have to go back down for more tests.
She walked into the room and approached Cloud, who was still sitting on the bed, staring at her. "Hello there, Cloud. I guess you know why I'm here now," she said bluntly with only a slight bit of emotion in her voice.
Cloud dropped her gaze as he hung his head. "Yeah, I know. I don't wanna go to the scary place again though...I wanna stay here. You could stay with me," he suggested lightly has he looked back up with a hopeful glance. Hoping that this one lady would show her nicer side today, like she had done before.
She shook her head. "As much as that would be nice, it's not possible. We don't have to go immediately, so we can delay a bit and relax. But we will have to go after that okay?"
"Okay…" Cloud said as he huffed loudly at that fact.
"So, I'll be here with you until then. If you want to go over some things we can," she spoke softly as she took a seat on the bed beside him and crossed her legs.
Cloud thought briefly about what she had said when a thought rushed into his mind. "Oh! I remember. I kept forgetting to ask. What's your name miss?"
"Oh that's right, I never did give you my name properly. It's Adelaide."
"Ade- Adelay- Ady- Umm, how do you say it?" Cloud asked with embarrassment as he struggled to pronounce the longer name.
Adelaide chuckled mildly at his attempts. "Well, how about just for you, call me Addy. It's shorter so you should be able to say it."
"Addy… Addy! I can say that. Okay then. That's a nice name," Cloud uttered as he smiled at her
Addy cracked a small smile at the boy before averting her face from his momentarily. "We'll keep that name between us okay?"
"Okay!" Cloud said in excitement. The two of them sat in silence for a little while after that.
Cloud was happy to have a friend there now so that he would not be too lonely anymore. The way that Addy presented herself to him most of the time reminded him of his mother, and how warm she was towards him. He started to think about all of the ways that they were similar, but the more he thought it over, the more saddened he had become.
Suddenly, Addy heard some sniffling coming from him once again and turned to face him to see that he was wiping his eyes again. "Hey, what's the matter now?"
Cloud tried to dry his eyes some more before looking up at her. "It's just… I miss my mommy. I wanna see her. Why do I have to be away? It's not fair…"
Conflicted emotions coursed through Addy's being as she looked upon Cloud. Her scientific reasoning was in a tight-locked battle with her compassion now, which was strange since she had try to stray from most emotions for some time now. But for some reason, she felt hooked to Cloud.
She placed a hand on his shoulder lightly. "Unfortunately you have to be here for now. I can't do anything about that. I know it's hard, but try not to think too much on those things okay? That way you won't be too sad," she gently said, trying to be as sincere as she could.
She didn't want the poor boy to worry about his mother, but it was also because she knew that his mother was still out there looking for him. The other day Hojo had mentioned about a woman wandering around the edge of the premise, he figured it had to be the boy's mother. But soon enough Cloud's mother had left the area near the mansion and headed back towards Nibelheim. It did sadden Addy a little to think how much she would be worrying about Cloud, but there was nothing she could do to change that.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Cloud. "But...the tests...I don't wanna do those. I don't like them…"
"Well, we've been over this earlier. You have to do the tests. Listen… think of it as a way to make you a stronger person. That way, you can protect more people. That's what Professor Hojo had told me would happen at least," she replied genuinely, trying to let Cloud know some of the reasons for the tests.
He stopped whimpering as he tried to listen to what she was saying. "R-really? I could be strong? And help people? That... sounds nice…"
"Yeah, that's right. I help people in my own way as well. It's why I became a scientist. So in a way, I help you help others. It just, takes time and sometimes…" she trailed off as she lowered her head in thought.
Several different thoughts raced through her mind, mainly of reasons why she was there and doing what she was doing. However, she noticed that Cloud was just staring at her now, hanging on her words. She regained her composure then. "Oh, sorry… just thinking about something. It doesn't matter. What does matter is, do you understand what I'm saying?"
Cloud continued staring at her in an unmoving position as he looked like he was in deep thought on the subject. Though, Addy wondered how deep a five-year old's mind could really go, but she waited until he finally was done.
"Okay… I think I get it. I still don't like the tests though…"
"I know… they are probably hard for you. But you will pull through, okay?"
Cloud didn't answer verbally, he only nodded quietly as he seemed to relax a little. Addy gave him a smile as she stood back up. "If you are ready then, let's go head down." She held out her hand for Cloud to take.
Cloud nodded slightly, but didn't budge from his spot. "Can you… Can you carry me down there? It's still scary…"
Addy let out a short sigh before she leaned forward and nodded. "Sure, hold on tight now."
Cloud wrapped his arms around her and she carefully held him as she stood up properly. She cradled him gently as she walked out of the room and started to head down towards the lab. Cloud rested against her chest, not saying anything else, but he breathed steadily and peacefully. Addy couldn't help but smile at the little boy. There was just something about him. Something about him that made her enjoy being around him. Maybe it was just a motherly instinct, but nonetheless she still enjoyed her time with him. Though she did begin to worry what would happen once Hojo took the next step of the tests. Things would only get harder from here on out.
And that wraps up another chapter. We have an OC in the story now that seems to be helping the poor boy at least. Gotta have a little fluff with the angst. I hope you guys enjoy what is happening with it and there will be more to come. See you in the next one!
