Heartstrings
by TacomaSquall
Part Four:
Stolen
I was the one who was a thief,
I joined you to take your materia.
Why is it that I cannot leave you -
Abandoning a war not my own?
Life, for me, was one huge adventure,
Exciting and filled with fun -
But since I joined you, I have seen darkness,
Known despair, and tasted defeat.
I have watched a wonderful man
Crushed by others' manipulations -
Driven to the verges of sanity -
Doubting memory and identity.
Vincent, your silences call to me,
Like a moth is called by the open flame -
I am desperate to know the tenor,
The substance of your hidden thoughts.
When Aeris was murdered by Sephiroth,
I watched, powerless, the blade descending,
Piercing her body as she prayed
For the salvation of the whole world.
She, of you all, accepted me,
Welcomed me, forgave my ill-timed theft.
She became like a big sister to me,
Protecting me, freely giving her support.
Her death rocked my entire world,
I had not understood how fragile
Every one of us really is.
My illusions have been shattered.
I stand beside you, my friends,
Not just to protect my homeland,
But something I never acknowledged
Was stolen from me, never to be restored.
My innocence.