Goddess' Gift
A Final Fantasy VII Story
Chapter 12:
Tragedy Befalls Her and Her Gift
AN: Hello again all you wonderful readers out there. I'm so sorry that I haven't posted in so long. I have been preoccupied with my life outside of writing and have been ignoring a lot of things that I do outside of it. Things like my PS4 games. Hanging out with my friends.
All those good things that make up a good life. So I finally noticed that I was doing that and basically slapped myself and said, "Girl you need to get your life back on track and get back to the things you normally do. LIKE WRITING AGAIN!" So I decided to come back and see if I can actually get my butt back into this. I hope I can do this now and I don't let myself get pulled away from this again.
Because I really enjoy doing this and it keeps me in touch with my more relaxed side and it's healthy to do things that make you happy, and darn it...THIS MAKES ME HAPPY! And I know that this is a long chappie but I wanted to make up for not posting in so long. And it gets a little sappy towards the end an then at the end. I'm not going to give up too much more than that but yeah. And I don't know if you would call a certain section of this "M" rated but it doesn't describe anything sexual, so I don't consider it "M" rated material.
If you do well, sorry get over it. So lets continue! Let's get straight down to business. I know I ended the last chappie kind of abruptly, but I was getting a little bored with writing out all of the Summons, and if I get bored writing something then the reader is going to get bored reading it. And I deff don't want that for you guys.
So I decided to skip the rest of the Summonings to get the story going again. If you've stuck with me through all of that...THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH! So now on with the rest. I will tell you one thing right now, this chappie is going to make my OC seem like a Mary-Sue...But I swear to you...SHE WILL NOT BE! What I am doing here is setting up for the adventure part of this Adventure/Romance story.
That's what the story is supposed to be about and I've decided that it's time to put the Adventure side into the story now that I've got the "Romance" part basically established. The romance will continue through the rest of the story, although all the "On the road" romances that I have read kinda have me going "huh?" after I read them. So I will be entering into uncharted territory when I start that point. It might be this chappie that I start off the adventure, it might be the next one. But I just wanted to let you know somewhat of what was going on, because of what was going to happen to my OC, and then have you think, "Oh no, it's another horrible Mary-Sue that can't take care of herself and has to have one of the main characters take care of her and she's so weak and she just depends on him for this and that, and this sad, horrible stuff is always happening to her and blah blah this, and blah blah that."
Yeah my OC has had a lot of crap happen to her in a short amount of time, but the thing that is coming up in this chappie as I said is going to start the actual adventure. So in a manner of speaking you could consider the first 11 chappies as a prologue to the actual adventure. Kinda like...where Amaterasu and Genesis first met and why they are going on the adventure they will be going on. Oh and Hollander has a lot better advancements in medicine that we do today so that's why he is able to help Amaterasu as fast as he is able to. I'll explain more about that in the ending AN.
So here's my new idea for Goddess' Gift.
"My friend the fates are cruel. There are no dreams, no honor remains. The arrow has left the bow of the Goddess." LOVELESS Act 4
"Don't walk in front of me… I may not follow
Don't walk behind me… I may not lead
Walk beside me… just be my friend"
― Albert Camus
Previously
Amaterasu nodded her head, considering what Genesis had told her. Turning his words over in her mind, she thought about all of the elements and what could do to what. What was strong, and what was weak. Even though things weren't flashy, they were still helpful. Now she understood.
"Okay, I see." she replied, "Do you have more?"
Genesis nodded his head.
"Yes, I do have more but I want you to try now." he said.
Amaterasu looked at him with wide eyes.
"WHAT?!" she replied, eyes wide with alarm.
"You heard me." Genesis replied, "It's your turn."
Chapter 12
Genesis took the PHS from her hands and began to push buttons on it.After a second a few monsters came up out of no where. They were still, as if they were frozen on the spot. Amaterasu walked over to one and waved her hand in front of it. The creature still didn't move. Genesis walked up behind her and put his arms around her waist making her jump.
"Those will be your targets." he said softly.
She placed her hands over his and nodded. She stepped away from Genesis and raised her hand that held the bangle on her wrist. Fire began to swirl around it and she tried to fire it off, but as it left her hand, it fizzled out and died. Amaterasu glared at her hand in disappointment. She huffed and looked at the monster in anger.
Closing her eyes, she held out her hand again. This time the fire swirled around her hand bigger than before. She was ready to fire it off, but suddenly Genesis grabbed her wrist thus canceling out the fire in her hand.
"Don't put so much power into it. You'll hurt yourself. Just concentrate it more heavily into your hand. Think about the density, not the power. If you put too much power behind it, it could explode in your face." he said aiming her hand at the monster sliding his hand up her arm to her elbow, then her shoulder, then releasing it.
Amaterasu nodded and took a deep breath calming herself. She closed her eyes, and slowed her breathing. Turning her thoughts inward, she searched the materia, trying to make the power that flowed into her hand more dense than powerful. But it was hard to find that density. She felt Genesis pull away from her, and she opened her eyes to focus on the monster in front of her.
The fire swirled around her arm instead of her hand this time. Amaterasu forced herself to stay calm, she didn't want this exploding in her face. When she felt she was ready to set it off, she flung her hand out before her. However, that was the wrong thing to do. The fire traveled back up her arm from her hand and up into her face.
With a cry she tried to turn away from the fire, but it was too late, the damage had been done. Her hands rose to her face as she gave a loud scream, dropping to her knees. Genesis ran forward as quickly as he could and dropped down next to her. He pulled her hands away from her face and looked at the damage that had been done. The skin over her eyes and halfway down her face had been burned severely.
He activated the Full Cure materia in his bangle and tried to heal what he could of it. But he needed to take her down to Professor Hollander. If the burn was as bad as it looked, she could possibly lose her sight! Genesis didn't want to lose those cat-like azure blue mako eyes, they were far too beautiful.
"Amaterasu, stay calm. I'm going to take you down to Hollander so he can take a look at you." he said quickly, beginning to pull her up into his arms.
Amaterasu instantly reacted, starting to shove him away. But he smoothed a hand gently over her shoulder.
"Amaterasu it's alright I promise. I won't let anything harm you. I'm just going to pick you up so I can take you down there." he soothed, reaching out to her again.
One of her arms instantly went around his neck as he picked her up bridal style and the other clenched his shirt tightly in a fist. He quickly and carefully walked out of the VR room and down to the lift. Nudging the button with his elbow, he waited impatiently for the lift to arrive. Amaterasu gave a small whimper in his arms. Genesis made a soft sound of reassurance as he held her closer to him.
Finally the lift arrived and he walked inside. He hit the button for the 67th floor and the doors swished closed. As he waited for the lift to reach the science floor, he began rocking from side to side, muttering soft words of comfort to her. She had stopped her "crying" almost as soon as they had exited the VR room, although Genesis was sure if she was "physically" able to cry at the moment she would be. He tried to get a look at her eyes but she kept her face turned away from him and that scared him immensely.
It was like Amaterasu didn't want him to see something. The lift dinged its arrival to floor 67 quick enough, and Genesis bolted out of the lift and to Hollanders lab.
"Hollander!" he yelled as he rushed inside.
Hollander was leaning over a computer console, when Genesis rushed in. But when he saw the girl in his arms and how she was holding onto him, he knew something was wrong. He quickly rushed over himself as Genesis set Amaterasu on one of the examining tables.
"What happened?" Hollander asked him.
"Fire materia..." Genesis replied, "First time using it. She put too much power into it and it backfired on her. She hit her face."
Amaterasu had let her hands rise to her face to touch it, but Hollander pulled her hands away quickly. She tried to pull away from him but Genesis put a reassuring arm around her shoulder.
"Don't worry, he's going to help..." he whispered.
Hollander forced Amaterasu lay her hands on her lap.
"Dear, I need you to keep your hands away from your face. If the wound gets infected, you could possibly lose your sight for good." he said gently.
Amaterasu gasped, but kept her hands down away from her face. Hollander tilted her face up so he could look at the damage. He gave a sharp inhale as he examined her, then moved off. Hollander began gathering things from around the lab, bringing them over to the table then walking off to get other things. Amaterasu sat there listening as things remained deafeningly quiet.
She was becoming scared about what was going to happen. After a few minutes, she felt Hollander touch her face again. She jumped from the sudden contact, but forced herself not to turn away. Hollander's hands moved gently as they smoothed something cold and creamy over where her eyes were and the surrounding tissue. The skin burned for a few seconds, then faded away along with the burn from the flames.
Hollander then placed two thick gauze pads over her eyes, asking Amaterasu to hold them. He then began to wrap a long gauze bandage around her head, covering the area over her eyes and a little farther down. He wrapped several layers over her eyes making sure that they were semi-tight, but not too tight that it would hurt.
"Amaterasu, I need you to stay here for a second while I talk to Genesis alone for a second, okay sweetheart. You'll be fine, there's no one else in here right now. We'll be right back, okay?" Hollander asked her.
Amaterasu's hands tightened into fists on her lap but she nodded her head. Hollander patted her head and smiled, though he knew she couldn't see it.
"That's my brave girl." he said gently.
Amaterasu gave a embarrassed smile and ducked her head away a little. Hollander chucked a tad. She was brave considering what she was going to go through for the rest of her life now... He beckoned for Genesis to follow him farther into the lab, away from Amaterasu. Once he was sure that Amaterasu could not hear him, he turned and faced Genesis.
"Genesis, I'm sorry. What I'm about to say to you is going to be very hard for you to hear, and even harder for her to live with." he began.
Genesis' breath caught, what was going to be so hard that he was going to have trouble with it as well as her. He was a strong person, he made it into SOLDIER after all. And Amaterasu had lived her life in hell inside the clutches of Hojo and still managed to survive this long. How bad could this be?
"I'm afraid, Genesis, that she has lost her sight permanently because of this. The burns over her eyes are severe, they were obviously seared by the fire when it hit her in the face. To be blunt, she burned her eyes. The optic nerves have been singed beyond anything that I could heal, beyond anything anyone could heal. She's blind Genesis.
She will now have to relie heavily on you. For everything. She has had her sight all of her life, and to suddenly be without it will be devastating. I've seen the same thing happen to SOLDIERs, and they were unable to cope with it. They found out the information and they were crushed.
Not only because they could no longer be in SOLDIER, but because of the fact that they no longer had control over their world. They could no longer do things for themselves, on their own. They lost their will to live and the only thing keeping them in this world was their friends. Amaterasu is already not in very good condition, if what I suspect is true. Hojo did something to her, did he not?" Hollander sighed.
Genesis nodded his head.
"She's been his captive all her life. So many different experiments were done to her, though she hasn't told me any of them. I haven't even thought to ask though. I didn't want to bring up the memories. But the look on her face, every time I have brought up Hojo's name...
It's like...she's staring death in the face, like it's come to take her away from this world and she's not ready to go, she's purely terrified." he replied.
Hollander nodded in return.
"I suspected as much from how she reacted when I touched her. With the mental state she is in now, then tacking on this...Genesis, she may not want to live. She just might give up." Hollander lowered his voice and head as he said this.
Genesis' eyes became hard as he listened to Hollander. He couldn't allow that to happen. He couldn't allow Amaterasu to give up on her life. Not when it had just begun. Genesis turned to Hollander.
"How do I help her?" he asked softly.
"Be there to guide her around. Help her when she needs it, even if she tells you she doesn't need it. Don't let her give up. I can tell that she loves you. Make sure that she knows that you love her, no matter what has happened or what will happen." Hollander sighed as he said this, "Now we have to go tell her. Do you want me to, or do you want to?"
Genesis looked at the ground, then he turned back and looked at where Amaterasu was sitting. Her hands were still balled into fists on her lap, and she was "staring" straight ahead of her.
Genesis sighed, "I will..."
Hollander and Genesis walked back over to Amaterasu and Genesis stood in front of Amaterasu putting his hands on her shoulders. A small smile spread over her lips as she reached out to touch him. Her hands hit his chest and they slowly rose up to the sides of his face. As they gently felt his face for the expression, she began to frown.
"What's wrong, what's going on? What's happened, is it something bad?" she asked, her voice suddenly wavering slightly.
Genesis sighed and let his hands wander their way up to the sides of her face so he could gently run his thumbs over her cheeks.
"I won't lie to you Amaterasu, I can't lie to you, my heart won't let me. The fire you set off... Hollander said when it hit your face, that it burned your eyes. You're...you're going to be blind for the rest of your life, Amaterasu." he whispered softly.
Amaterasu gasped and dropped her hands from Genesis' face. She pushed herself back from him and accidentally fell off the table in her haste to get away. She knocked over one of the tables next to the table as she fell and the instruments on it rained down around her. Hollander and Genesis started to follow her to try and help her up, but she shoved them away as she curled herself up in the space between two beds. Whimpers escaped from between her lips as she pressed her hands against her eyes, not believing what Genesis had just told her.
There was no way that she had blinded herself, she just couldn't have. She had just managed to get away from Hojo, had just managed to find a man that she loved, that she trusted, that she could give herself to, and now this. She had lost her sight due to a stupid little mistake she had made because she thought she could use materia properly. She had been so confident that she could use it, and look what it had done to her, look at the mess she had made. She had gotten herself burned, and lost her sight as well.
Coming out of her inner musings, she noticed that Genesis had managed to get his hands onto both of her shoulders and was gently shaking her, trying to get her attention. She shook her head viciously, and then flew forward into his arms, surprising him with her movements. Amaterasu's arms went around Genesis' neck and she buried her face in his hair. The apple-cinnamon scent that she so loved washed over her and soothed her. Genesis' arms closed around her back, and he held her against him gently.
"Don't worry, I'll protect you. I'll help you with everything that you need, I promise." he whispered to her.
She nodded, her face still buried in his hair. Hollander reached down and tapped Genesis on the shoulder.
"I've done what I can for her for now, take her up to her room for some rest. I'll give you some antibiotics for her eyes so the wound doesn't get infected, and some bandages to wrap and protect them. I want to see her back in two days." he whispered to him.
Genesis nodded, and then gently nudged Amaterasu.
"Let's get back up to our room. I want you to rest some, I'll stay with you, I promise." he whispered.
Amaterasu nodded then pulled away from him and put her hand out, searching for something to grab onto so she could get up. Genesis caught her hand and pulled her gently to her feet. Then his hands went to her elbows and her's to his.
"Let me guide you. It will be hard for you to get out of here..." he whispered.
Amaterasu "looked" down, then smiled as she looked back up. Genesis smiled in return, though he knew she couldn't see it. He slowly began to move backwards and Amaterasu hesitantly followed his steps.
"It's alright, I've got you. I won't let you fall, trust me." he whispered to her.
Amaterasu nodded and her steps became more sure and solid. Once the two of them were at the lab doors, Genesis looked back to Hollander and nodded to him. Amaterasu almost ran into the door thinking it was okay to keep walking, but Genesis quickly stopped her.
"Sorry, I was making sure Hollander didn't need anything else, the door is open now, let's go." he said.
Genesis put his arm around Amaterasu's waist and took her right hand in his. Amaterasu's left hand immediately dropped to the one around her waist and gripped it tightly. Genesis gently led her slightly in front of him so he would be able to guide her more easily. In the future, he would have to teach her to be lead around by just putting her hand on his shoulder, or just in the crook of his elbow. But for now, he believed that this would be the best way to start out, the best way to give her some confidence in being able to walk without her sight.
The walk to the lift was a slow one. Amaterasu wanting to be able to "feel" out the steps that she was taking, that and the fact that all the echoing that their foots steps made, made it hard for her to concentrate on where she was going. Trying to walk in a straight line with your eyes closed is never easy, even if you have help. Compound the fact that you have noise all around you and that just makes it ten times harder. Once they reached the lift, Genesis released her hand and reached out to press the lift button, but Amaterasu's hand shot out and reached the wall and began to search for the button.
He remembered what Hollander had told him and resigned himself to wait as Amaterasu was feeling for the button. As Amaterasu searched, she began to get impatient when she couldn't find it easily, so Genesis took her hand and gently guided it over to the button and allowed her to push it as she had wished. A small whimper left her lips as she lowered her hand, but that was the only sound she made. As they waited for the lift to come, Genesis pulled Amaterasu against him and began to hum a soft tune, hoping that it would sooth her and make her feel better. When the lift arrived, Amaterasu pulled out of his arms and lifted her hands and pressed them to the wall.
Slowly she made her way to the lift and walked inside by herself. Genesis followed making sure to stay close by in case she needed him. As the door closed, Genesis slid over and pressed the button for the 48th floor and watched as the door slid shut. He turned around to see Amaterasu pressed up against the back of the lift as if she were trying to look out the back and see the city outside. But he knew that she couldn't see it.
Slowly walking up behind her, he slid his arms around her waist and lowered his chin to her shoulder.
"You know I'm here for you right. I'll always be here, no matter what happens. No matter what you need, all you have to do is ask for it and you will have it. You already have my love, and you can have even more if you want it. Just say the word and it's yours." he whispered to her.
Amaterasu took in a sharp breath of air, then held it for a brief second, before turning in his arms. As she faced him, she would have been looking him in the eyes, but now that wasn't possible. Her hands rose to the side of his face and gently cupped it. One thumb traced itself over his lips, her other hand slid into his hair and gently tugged pulling him down. Once he was down at her level, she pulled him close and kissed him deeply, almost desperately.
Pulling away from the kiss, she laid her head against his chest and slid her other hand into his hair. A whimper escaped her throat. The lift doors opened and Genesis looked up. Gently nudging Amaterasu, he pulled her from the lift, walking backwards so that he could guide her down the hallway. Once they reached his apartment.
He slowly stopped, making sure Amaterasu knew to stop as well. Then he turned and slid his key card through the reader and waited for the door to slide open. As Genesis guided Amaterasu through his door, they were suddenly assaulted by his two best friends and one of his friends student.
"Genesis, where have you been. We were worried sick about you. We thought the President had told you to get rid of Amaterasu or something or..." Angeal cut himself off when he saw the bandages over Amaterasu's eyes, "What happened to Amaterasu?"
Amaterasu winced and turned away from his voice and tried to move across the room. However in her haste to move across, she tripped over the furniture, and fell to the floor. Sephiroth being the closest to her now, kneeled down and slid a hand under one arm and another under her shoulder.
"Amaterasu...easy. Are you alright, you didn't hurt yourself..." he began as he was helping her up, but she pulled away from him, and scooted back across the floor until she hit the wall.
Once she hit the wall she knew where she was. Standing up with her hands pressed up against it, she fled down the hall and to the door she knew led to Genesis' room. Opening the door, she slipped inside and slammed the door shut, leaving the three of the four men outside to wonder what had happened. Genesis made his way the rest of the way inside and allowed the door to shut before he removed his duster and threw it over the back of his leather couch. He glanced down at Angeal's student.
Zack wasn't one to usually come with Angeal when said man visited him. Genesis swore the boy was terrified of him. However he was here now. Angeal must have told him about Amaterasu and he had wanted to meet the girl. Fat chance of that happening now.
Not with the way that Amaterasu was acting at the moment. Genesis sighed and leaned against the back of his couch.
"Why are you here puppy?" he asked gently.
Zack looked up at him with alarm in his eyes. He had never heard him talk in that tone of voice before. Genesis was always commanding and forceful whenever he talked to him.
"I...I, uh...Angeal told me about this girl that Hojo had, and that you had saved and...I, uh...thought that I could...uh, offer to be her friend...you know..." he stuttered out, rubbing the back of his head with an awkward smile on his face.
"I don't think she'll be talking to anyone any time soon Fair. She's not in the best state of mind at the moment. Not after what just happened to her. I don't think anyone would be." Genesis told him.
Angeal's eyes widened.
"What happened to her Genesis?" he asked softly.
Genesis looked up at him with a sad look on his face, "She's blind now Angeal. She's never going to be able to see again."
Angeal's jaw dropped open at this news. His eyes flew over to the hall that Amaterasu had disappeared down. He took a shuddering breath, and light tears welled in his eyes. Though he had no romantic feelings toward Amaterasu, he did care for her. He didn't know if Amaterasu would consider him the same, but he would say that she was family to him.
With how much that Genesis cared about her, how could he not. Sephiroth was silent during all of this. Upon hearing that Amaterasu would no longer be able to see, his eyes had looked to the hallway as Angeal's had, but he had remained silent. Then silently as Genesis and Angeal and the puppy continued to stare at each other, he rose out of his seat and made his way down the hall to Genesis' room. Stopping outside the door, he listened for any noise inside.
Not hearing any, he gently knocked on the door and waited for an answer. Still hearing nothing, he slowly pushed the door open and peered inside. The room was dark, but he could still see due to the Mako in his system. He spotted her over on Genesis's bed, in the very center of it, with her wings out wrapped around herself. Her head was lowered down onto her knees.
Quietly, he walked inside then closed the door, but still Amaterasu did not move. Slowly he walked over to the bed and stood beside it. Reaching out his hand, Sephiroth touched one of her wings. But quite suddenly, the wing swung out knocking him away with surprising strength until his back hit the door to the room. As he hit the door, his head smashed against it, and for a moment he actually saw stars.
Sliding down the door after the impact, he waited for the dizziness to disappear before he felt someone trying to push the door open from the other side. He rolled to the side allowing the door to be pushed open and Genesis and Angeal flew inside looking ready for a fight, but when they saw that nothing was wrong all weapons and Materia were put away. Angeal looked down and saw Sephiroth on the floor and was about to question him, but Genesis pushed past him, nearly knocking him down in the process so he could get to Amaterasu. Once near her, he raised a hand to place it on her wing, but her hand shot out and she latched onto him and her wings slumped around her, small feathers fluttering to the ground. Sobs rung themselves from her throat as she tried to take shuddering breaths.
Pressing her face to his chest, she clung to him tightly.
"Why...why did it happen?" she asked, voice broken and heart wrenching.
Her hand fisted itself in his shirt.
"Tell me...why it happened...what went wrong...what did I do wrong...tell me..." she begged him.
Genesis put his arms around her and pulled her close against him. Pressing her head softly to his chest and running his hand down the side of it (he'd found he'd taken a liking to doing that and it seemed to calm her well), he looked down at her.
"Ami, I'm not sure exactly what caused the Materia to go off like that..." reaching out he ran a hand through one of her wings and her body shivered against his, "You might have put too much power into it..." another run through her wing and thus another shiver,"...or it could have been the fact that you have never used Materia before and the energy wasn't channeled right."
His hand returned to the side of her head where it began to run down the side of it again and again in an endless comforting motion.
"I have seen others do the same thing, and lose their sight as well. But listen to me, Amaterasu..." he pushed her back so he could look her in the face even though she couldn't see him.
One hand rose to the side of her face and cupped it gently, his thumb gently caressing her cheek. Amaterasu hick-upped back a sob as she waited for Genesis to finish what he was going to say.
"You are stronger than they are., Ami. You have been through hell and back because of Hojo, and none of them have done that."
At the mention of Hojo, Amaterasu looked away, remembering all of the pain, agony, and torture Hojo had put her through. Softly, Genesis turned her head so she was facing him again.
"There is only one other person who has gone through what you have gone through. And personally I think the two of you are the strongest in this world. So what you had this little accident. I bet in the long run, Ami, this will make you even stronger. Don't prove me wrong on that, okay?
Be that strong woman that I know you are and don't let this get you down, please."
Amaterasu stood before him for a moment, silent as a dark winters night. Then her hand rose up and took his hand in hers. A soft sob escaped her lips as she continued to look up at him, but this was no sob of sadness. A smile broke on her face as the soft sobs continued and her face was still tilted up at his. Amaterasu reached up and gently slid her hand up into Genesis' hair and gently pulled, indicating that she wanted him to come down to her level.
He obliged her and leaned down to her level and before he knew it, he was caught up in a gentle and sweet kiss.
Before he could even start to return it, she had pulled away and whispered into his ear, "Thank you..."
She slowly pulled away, then her wings rose up and disappeared into her back.
"Take me down to the VR room Genesis...now." she demanded, slowly walking over to the bedroom door making sure she didn't trip or run into anything.
Once she made it to the door, she grabbed hold of the handle then looked back to the three men that she knew were still standing next to the bed.
"I said take me to the VR room, now Genesis. There's something I want to do and the only place I can do it safely is in the VR room. And I need you there to activate the thing, and what I want to do involves you. Now lets go!" Amaterasu said firmly, opening the bedroom door, walking out, then closing it.
Genesis, Angeal, and Sephiroth all looked at each other, then one by one followed her out of the bedroom. Once they exited the hallway, they found Amaterasu had been accosted by the famous 2nd class puppy Zack Fair. They were standing by the leather couch that Genesis owned. Zack had obviously led her over there so they could talk and Amaterasu was laughing about something. Zack was laughing a big goofy laugh and had one hand in his spiky mess of hair fluffing it.
"Yeah, you should have seen the time I messed with the VR room. I rigged it so that when 'Geal, Gen, and Seph were in it, every time they killed a monster enormous amounts of pink foam would spew forth." he giggled like a fool at the memory, "And they didn't realize it soon enough so just after a few monsters they tried to book it out of the VR room but by the time they did when the VR room doors opened, the pink foam just came piling out of the room, and the three of them just fell on top of each other just trying to get out. I mean a literal pile of limbs and weapons. Of course I was there, waiting with a camera just outside to get a snapshot of the epic memory goodness. Although once Gen heard the camera go off, it was off to the races for me. I swear that man, when he gets angry, gets a boost of speed from somewhere.
But anyways. I take off for the stairwell, fortunately he was around the corner, and I had a small head start. I went down one level, then booked it out of the stairwell. Now one of my friends, SOLDIER 2nd Class Kunsel, one of my partners in crime, was waiting for me there. I passed off the camera, then made for the lifts to throw Gen off.
Kunsel on the other hand made his way to another room and climbed up into the air ducts in the ceiling. Now the air ducts in the ceilings of this place are like a theifs wet dream. Absolutely amazing to get away with things in. While Kunsel made his way a couple more floors down just to make sure her would get away, Gen saw me hot foot it into one of the lifts. Lucky for me, the lift doors closed just before he got there.
To make sure I got away, I told the lift to take me down to the 1st floor. As soon as the door was open wide enough, I slipped out and made my way across the lobby and out the door. I headed for the train platform, then took the train and made my way to Sector 5. I have a friend there and she lets me use the place as a hideout if I need and want to. But eventually Kunsel caught up to me, and it was an epic score.
We had the picture."
Amaterasu doubled over laughing, her arms around her stomach.
"Oh holy Gaia, I wish I could see that picture. Those three covered in pink foam. Ha, that sounds hilarious." she laughed.
"You have yet to hear the best part, Ami. You should have seen their hair. Pink blobs of foam all over it. It was so classic. Speaking of hair, would you like to hear another one that I pulled.
You would kill to see what this one looked like. They almost killed me for it. Well actually, only Gen did, but I still got good reactions out of the others." he asked excitedly, happy to have found someone other than Kunsel that found his jokes and pranks funny, or at lease amusing.
"You must be terribly hated when you play your jokes, cause it certainly sounds like it." she joked with him.
He laughed in return and rubbed the back of his head with one hand. "I only live to serve the humorous and to keep things lively around here. But yes, I have been told that on occasion..." he agreed, "...However, some do find the humor behind it, like the second one I wanted to tell you about..."
Genesis, Angeal, and Sephiroth stood in the hallway entry and watched the two interact. Amaterasu, who was normally very shy, but had her fiery moments, was acting all bubbly, probably siphoning off the boy I front of her. The boy was living up to his name, "Zack the Puppy", and you could practically see his tail wagging wagging as he spoke to her.
"It seems like your puppy has made a new friend, Angeal." Genesis whispered to his friend, a smile forming on his face.
"It's something that she needs right now. That kind of laughter will do her good, Genesis." Angeal replied.
Genesis nodded his head, "Agreed."
They focused their attention back on the other two.
"So basically, both Kunsel and II had the idea together, but he was way too chicken to pull it off with me. Too scared of Sephiroth and Masumune. Didn't want to become a Kunsel-ka-bob as all of SOLDIER calls it when they don't want to be skewered by Seph's famous sword."
At that, Amaterasu gave a giggle and Sephiroth a soft growl at the playful mention of his beloved sword.
"So basically he played the whole thing off on me. Said if I did it, I would get all of the glorious credit. So what was I to do? The prank was too good not to do so I went with it. The first step was to steal a key card so I could get into Seph's, 'Geal's, and Gen's rooms.
I swiped 'Geal's since his was the easiest to get a hold of. Then I got a hold of three different Materia. It was a shame to ruin them like I was going to, but the end result was worth it. So once I got a hold of the Materia, I slipped into Seph''s room, into his bathroom and slipped a yellow Materia into his shampoo. I then did the same to Gen, but with a purple Materia, then the same to 'Geal, but with a blue Materia.
Now all three of them were out on a mission when I did this so none of them knew anything about it. So four days later, they come home, tired, dusty and sandy from riding around in a truck going through the desert surrounding Midgar. Each one of them headed for their respective apartments and respective rooms. I got Kunsel and another friend of mine to wait outside each of their rooms to catch a pic of what was going to happen. About forty-five minutes later, we heard Genesis shriek and I looked down at Kunsel and nodded at him, telling him to be ready to take the pic and run.
Not ten minutes later, Gen comes storming out of his room in nothing but a pair of workout shorts...and everything else looks normal. Except for the fact that he had pink hair. The three of us forced down our laughter, Kunsel took the picture, then bolted. Genesis realized what happened, then with a couple of swears that would have made a sailor proud, he took off after him. Not three minutes later, Sephiroth walked out in similar clothing.
However, he had ended up with lime green hair. I held back a very obnoxious laugh as my other buddy snapped the pic and made off like a bolt of lightning so he didn't become a SOLDIER-ka-bob. I turned back to my door, waiting for 'Geal to come out to do the same to me, and he did come out. Needless to say, his hair had changed too. It was now a bright blue.
I took a snapshot, a prepared to run, but all he did was shake his head and say, "Really, pup. You knew you would get this reaction out of those two. And you know your tricks don't bother me. Although, this one might be a bit of a problem with some of the younger recruits. They might get the idea that it's okay to do this when you know it's not.
Now tell me how I can get this out so I can tell the other two once they have calmed down enough to listen." I told him I didn't know and he frowned at me. I told him I didn't even know what color it would turn their hair or if it would even turn their hair at all. 'Geal moved forward, then quickly slapped the back of my head in punishment then made his way back into his apartment. For the next four months all three of them sported the look I had given them.
Although, I got dirty looks every time I walked passed them." Zack finally concluded.
After he finished, Zack looked down and found Amaterasu rolling back and forth on the floor laughing so hard she was having trouble breathing. Zack watched her as she laughed, not seeing how she was able to laugh this much after just losing her sight. It was incredibly insane.
"Ami, you okay?" he asked, kneeling down next to her.
"Y-yeah, f-fine." she gasped and managed to sit up.
She reached her hand out and somehow it managed to latch onto his shoulder.
"T-tell me you have more." she giggled out.
Zack rubbed the back of his head then nodded.
Then he quickly realized that she couldn't see him nod and replied, "Yeah. One that took me forever to set up for too."
Amaterasu turned her face to him and grinned.
"You have to tell me..." she practically yelled at him.
Zack smiled then sat down next to her. Amaterasu adjusted how she was sitting so her shoulder was pressed up against his while her back was pressed up against the back of the couch.
"Well, this next one was hard to do. I had to gather a lot of a certain kind of Materia together and it's not the most easy kind of Materia to find. The Materia is called Gravity. It took me about a month, between going out on missions and then going out on my own to get the Materia. But once I had it, I then had to level it up so that it was mastered.
Once I did that, I swiped the key cards again and snuck into everyone's rooms. Then I activated the Gravity Materia. All of the furniture in the room then began to float it's way up to the the ceiling. So I just arranged all their furniture on the ceiling. Then I left the Materia activated like that.
Everyone was off on a mission again, so when they came home, they all got a big surprise when they opened the door. Not one of my best ones, but one that was worth the looks I got afterwords." he had a faraway look on his face as he relayed this memory to her, "Didn't get a picture of it. Wasn't worth it, but it was still fun. They had to figure out how to get all the furniture down without breaking all of it. Took them forever."
Over in the hallway Genesis growled, "So he was the little ass that did that?!"
Angeal whacked his on the back of the head.
"We knew that you nut, you just didn't ay attention." he hissed to him.
Back with Amaterasu and Zack Amaterasu was giggling.
"That had to have been funny. And annoying at that. But Genesis must have been able to deal with it." she said.
"Yeah, he did get past it well. Spoiled my fun big time." Zack replied, slightly glumly.
Finally Genesis, Angeal, and Sephiroth made themselves known by walking the rest of the way into the room and Zack's eyes flashed over to the three of them.
"Um...hey, uh...Ami, I just realized I have something...important to do...I-I have to go. It's been nice talking to you, I hope to see you later." he quickly said, jumping up, turning on his heel and dashing out the front door.
'Smart puppy...' Angeal thought to himself.
Amaterasu looked up from her place on the floor, confusion written all over what could been seen of her face.
"Zack? Where did you go?" turning her face in the direction of the door.
Angeal walked up behind her.
"He did what any smart prankster would do when someone finds out they are the one behind their pranks. He ran away so he can live to prank another day. Don't worry Ami, you'll see him again, I can guarantee it. Zack can never stay away from a pretty face, nor one that can enjoy laughing at the pranks he pulls. I can assure you, he will be back." he said gently.
Amaterasu looked up in his general direction, since she couldn't see him.
"Are you sure? I didn't do anything wrong, did I?" she asked softly.
Angeal smiled, the gentle, shy Amaterasu was back once more.
"Yes, I'm sure Ami. You didn't do anything wrong. He definitely considers you a friend, and he always comes back to see his friends." he assured her.
Amaterasu used the couch to help herself stand up and steady herself.
"I still want to go to the VR room. You will take me won't you?" she demanded from them.
And just like that, the gentle and shy Amaterasu was gone and the fiery one was back in control. Sephiroth put his hand on Genesis' shoulder.
"You definitely have strange tastes in women Genesis. Although, I doubt you would have her any other way, would you?" he asked softly.
"Damn right..." Genesis whispered in return, before moving forward and gently touching Amaterasu's elbow.
"Hey, you said you wanted to go to the VR room?" he asked, and she nodded her head, so Genesis gently pulled her closer to the door, "Well then let's go."
Genesis pulled out a key card and slid it through a reader that was next to the keypad so he didn't have to use the key code. Amaterasu's hand shot out ad took the key card from his hand before he could react.
'Damn, she's quick...' he thought to himself.
Amaterasu turned the key card over and over in her hands, running her fingers over it, feeling all of its contours and edges.
"This is a way in and out of all of your apartments?" she asked.
Genesis nodded, forgetting she couldn't see him, then realized what he was doing and answered her.
"Yes. Each apartment has its own key card and each card opens only one door. If we do let you wander after you get used to moving around without your sight, we'll have to get you a card for each apartment and make it so you can distinguish which card goes to which door. But for now, I want you to stay with one of us at all times okay?" he asked her.
Amaterasu nodded her head and pressed the key card back into Genesis' hand without having to search for it.
"Okay, that's fine with me. Now like I said, VR room...Now, please." she demanded again.
Genesis chuckled to himself. She was adamant about getting to the VR room. However, he had no idea as to why she wanted to go down there, but he had to admit he was curious to find out.
"Alright, alright, I'll get you there. Here take my arm and I'll lead you down there." he replied.
He offered his arm to her and with a few reaches out in front of her to find it, her hand latched onto his arm. Genesis was surprised at how well she was doing in adapting to her blindness. He moved her hand to the crook of his elbow and led her out the door way. Angeal and Sephiroth filed out behind him wondering why Amaterasu wanted to go to the VR room. They all made their way to the lift and Genesis pressed the button that would call the lift to them.
As they waited, Sephiroth studied Amaterasu. She had a small smile on her face that seemed almost sly and secretive. He wondered why she was smiling like that. He was about to ask her when the lift showed up and the door opened. The lift ride was a short one, only having to go up one level, then they all filed out making their way down to the VR room.
Once they had reached it, they walked into the room and the familiar yellow and black grid greeted them.
"I want you to create a flat, endless field that goes on forever, with no trees or anything of the like, just an endless field of grass." she said, running out into the middle of the room.
Genesis pulled out his PHS and typed in the instructions he gave her and implemented the program. A grass field appeared all around them and Amaterasu spun around in a circle seeming to appraise what was around her. She "hmm"ed then turned back towards Genesis with a smile.
"Can you make it night with a bright, full moon?" she asked again.
Genesis looked at he in confusion, then shrugged and entered the command into his PHS. The bright sunlight dimmed to complete darkness before the bright circle of the moon shown in the sky casting its bright light down all around them. Amaterasu smiled and walked a few more steps out into the field.
"Genesis, I want you to take off your coat and come here." she said over her shoulder.
Genesis looked at Angeal and Sephiroth, then slid his coat off his shoulders and let it fall to the ground in a leather heap, something he normally didn't do. However as he looked at Amaterasu from behind, his mind wasn't quite working like it normally did. Everything seemed like a distant buzz in the background and his normal habits were forgotten. As he walked up to Amaterasu, she looked up at him over her shoulder, seeing but not seeing him, and turned to face him. She took his arms and put them securely around her neck, then securely wrapped her arms around his waist.
Then she leaned up as far as she could and whispered, "This is my gift to you. For helping me when I cannot help myself."
Then he wings unfurled themselves from her back, held wide and proud under the moonlight, silver feathers fluttering down all around them. Then, before Genesis could react, Amaterasu had quickly bent her knees then shot the two of them up into the air, leaving more silver feathers fluttering to the ground after her take off. As Amaterasu shot up into the air, Genesis gave a very un-manly yelp, and tightened his arms around Amaterasu's neck. Amaterasu smiled as she flapped her wings hard to gain altitude in the sky. She wanted Genesis to have a good view.
Once she believed she was high enough, she flapped her wings just so, so she could stay in one place.
"Hey Gen, you can open your eyes now." she whispered.
Looking up, he opened his eyes, which he didn't realize he closed, and looked around him. When had be closed his eyes?
"Look up." Amaterasu whispered, gestured with her head and and turned her face to what she was talking about, "What do you think? Do you like?"
Genesis looked up in the direction she had indicated and his eyes widened. The moon hovered what felt like only inches in front of them, like if he reached out far enough he could touch it. And the color...it matched Amaterasu's wings exactly.
'No wait...' he corrected himself, 'No color is the same or is as beautiful as Ami's wings...'
"It's beautiful Ami, it's beautiful. But not as beautiful as you." he whispered.
"Thanks..." she whispered, leaning over and kissing him.
She momentarily forgot that she had to keep flapping her wings so they could stay aloft, and they fell several hundred feet before they managed to regain control of their flight plan.
Once righted, Amaterasu sighed, then whispered to herself, "Note to self: No kissing Genesis when flying. You *will* lose your concentration, and you *will* crash and burn."
Genesis heard her sigh, but not her words. He attributed her sigh to her being tired from flying.
"Do you want to go back to the apartment and rest? Flying like this must make you tired, having to carry your weight as well as mine. It can't be easy." he asked her.
A smile came to Amaterasu's lips as she shook her head.
"No, I'm fine...in fact..." she whispered, then she pulled her wings in against her back and angled them towards the ground.
"Ami, what the hell are you doing, you don't know how high you are off the ground.!" Genesis yelled, the wind created by their dive whooshing past them, ruffling his auburn hair and making it hard to talk.
"Trust me, as I trust you!" Amaterasu yelled back to him over the wind.
The ground was getting closer and closer and Genesis was starting to believe that Amaterasu was going to crash into it. But with a few feet of clearance, Amaterasu pulled up and shot back up into the air, doing a quick barrel roll to give Genesis a view of the ground before he could see the sky again. Genesis sighed to himself, relieved that he had escaped death by "splatter on the ground", but was curious how Amaterasu had known when to pull up. He opened his mouth to ask her, but she beat him to it.
"I don't exactly know how I knew, I just did. Flying seems like second nature to me, like I've been doing it all my life. For some reason, I could *feel* where the ground was and knew when to pull up. I can feel everything around me. The reason I wanted to start out with just a plain field to fly in, is because I wanted to test that flying theory out.
When I put my wings away however, all of that goes away. When we were in your apartment and I had my wings out, I could tell where everything was down to the last person and last piece of furniture. However, when I put my wings away everything went dark. Everything was gone. Then when I brought my wings out in here, everything returned again.
However it seems a little funny considering everything in this room is not real. But it does have some substance to it, so I do sense/see it. It's so strange..." she told him.
Swooping down, she quickly righted herself, rising a little into the air, then landing the both of them on their feet. Angeal walked over to the two of them.
"That was incredible Ami." he exclaimed.
Sephiroth appeared behind him, "I must agree Amaterasu. That was quite impressive. Do you think that you could take Angeal and I for a flight?"
Amaterasu turned her head in his direction, and nodded her head.
"You, Sephiroth, as soon as I get some rest and my wings are a bit stronger. You're a tad heavier than Genesis is, so I'll have to train my wings to carry a bit more weight..." she turned her head to "look" at Angeal, "You on the other hand, Angeal are a lot heavier than they are, so my wings will need a lot more training before I'll be able to give you a ride. Sorry Angeal." she told them.
Angeal smiled and gave a soft laugh.
"That's fine Ami. I'm not really one that likes heights unless I'm strapped securely into a seat anyway."
Ami smiled in return, "I understand. Heights can be a scarey thing. When some of the cadets or infantry men would come come in the lab they would tell stories and sometimes they would "confess" fears even though others would tease them mercilessly about it. So it's all good."
As Amaterasu finished her sentence she gave a wide yawn.
"Oh dear, I guess I have tired myself out. Gen let's head back to the apartment so I can rest okay?" she yawned again.
Arching her back, her wings slowly disappeared and she began to walk to the door. Genesis smiled, gave a nod to Angeal and Sephiroth, then made after Amaterasu. Once he reached her, he swept her up into his arms bridal style and continued walking. Amaterasu's eyes widened for a second, then she put her arms around his neck and laid her head against his shoulder. Genesis gently swayed side to side as he walked to the lift and continued to do so as they waited for it.
Once they were back down to the apartment level, he walked to his suite. Some how he managed to slip his key card out of his pocket and through the reader without dropping Amaterasu. As he walked through his apartment, he looked down and noticed that she had fallen asleep in his arms.
'I knew that she was tired, she just didn't want to admit it. She always tries to be so strong...' he thought, smiling to himself.
He walked into his bedroom and laid her down on his bed. Walking over to hiss dresser, he pulled out a shirt that would be too big for Amaterasu but would cover her modestly for sleeping. He walked back over to her and nudged her gently. Amaterasu's head rose off the pillow.
"What?" she asked sleepily.
"Don't want to sleep in your normal clothes do you?" Genesis asked.
Amaterasu shook her head then sat up and pulled off her shirt without a second thought. Genesis blushed a deep red that almost matched his hair and abruptly turned around.
"A-Ami, what are you doing?!" he stuttered.
She yawned sleepily, Well I can't see the shirt and I'm tired, and I'm sure you've seen a woman without her shirt before right?"
Genesis had to admit, she was right. He had seen his fair share of women, so why was he embarrassed about seeing Amaterasu. Maybe it was because Amaterasu actually meant something to him and the others hadn't.
"Genesis..." Amaterasu yawned, "I'm getting cold and I'm tired. Do you mind?"
Genesis peered over his shoulder, then turned his eyes back in front of him.
'Don''t stare, just don't stare. Concentrate on her face, not what's below it. Oh Goddess Minerva help me...' he thought to himself.
Slowly he turned around, and at first he was able to keep his promise to himself. But as Amaterasu lifted her arms in the air and he slipped the shirt over her head then led it down her chest, his eyes followed and his promise went out the door. However like a proper gentleman his eyes didn't linger long and he finished pulling the shirt onto her. Amaterasu smiled at him then laid back down.
"See, now that wasn't so hard now was it? For a little while I'll need help getting dressed so if I were you, I'd get used to doing that."
Genesis heard the smile in her voice almost as if she were laughing at him.
"You're evil, you know that Ami?" he muttered as he undressed and redressed for bed as well.
"Oh I am, am I? Would you rather Sephiroth or Angeal or Zack do it?" she asked.
"Mother Goddess Gaia no!" he screeched, making Amaterasu laugh hard.
"That's what I thought. Not so evil anymore now huh?" she asked.
Genesis grumbled a few words she couldn't decipher, but she could have swore she heard, "Still evil" in there some where. She smiled once more as she burrowed under the covers, laid her head down on the pillow and waited for Genesis to join her. Soon enough the mattress sank down and an arm threw itself over her waist. Amaterasu felt Genesis scoot his body up behind hers until his chest pressed up against her back. Her hand lifted itself and meshed itself together with the one over her waist.
"You know..." Genesis began, his warm breath tickling the back of her head.
"Hmm..." Amaterasu answered, tightening her hand over his.
"I never thought I would have someone like you. To love me as you do. All the other women that I have been with have only wanted either the money that I have or the fame that they would get for being with me. But you don't want any of that. You just want me for me.
Just for Genesis. No money, no fame, just me. Just Genesis. I'm so happy that I finally found someone who doesn't care who I am or how much money I have. You just want me, just me..." Genesis began to babble.
Amaterasu reached over her shoulder and placed two fingers over his lips.
"I get it Genesis. Before me, all the other women just wanted to use you for one thing or another, and that's exactly how you felt. Used. However, I don't want anything like that. Personally, I didn't even know that you were famous or that you were rich.
But that doesn't matter to me. I could care less about those things. All I want from you is your love. That's all I need, and so long as you give me that, I'll be happy." she whispered to him.
She heard a shuddering breath behind her and she froze. Had she said the wrong thing? Amaterasu quickly removed Genesis' arm from around her waist and turned over. She reached out and touched his face and found wetness there and realized he was struggling not to cry. She made a soft sound of annoyance and shifted him up so she could lay her back against the head board with his head against her chest.
She had never learned how to sooth someone, but she had felt how Genesis had soothed her when she cried so she decided to try that. Slowly sliding her hand down the side of his head, she felt his breath hitch in his throat and knew she had done the right thing. She leaned down and kissed his head then continued caressing the side of his head.
Softly she whispered, "So long as you love me Genesis, I will love you."
He nodded his head against her chest then looked up at her, not caring that she couldn't see him.
"Do...do you mind...if I stay here tonight...I don't want to move...please?" he begged her.
She smiled down at him then nodded her head.
"You could stay there forever if you wanted to." she whispered in reply.
She then pulled both pillows behind her so she would be comfortable then pulled Genesis back to her chest. Genesis closed his eyes and sighed deeply. He felt safe and secure for the first time in his life since he joined SOLDIER, and he prayed to the Goddess Minerva that no one would take that away from him. As Genesis slipped into a deep untroubled sleep, Amaterasu gently wiped the tears from his eyes. They would greet the dawn together like this, even though she couldn't see it.
And she was sure this sunrise would bring around the start of a new life for the man she loved.
AN: Okay people there we are, chappie 12 is out. Now I have been noticing that people have been reading my story but I have only had two different people review and I'm kinda getting the idea that people aren't liking this. Please tell me if you don''t and if you do PLEASE TELL ME! I want to know if I'm doing a good job or not. Thanks for reading!