-=Part II- Heart of Stone=-
-Part 2.3-
Lucrecia sat in the chair of her room quietly, tears rolling down her cheeks. The candle burned brightly, promising hope but giving nothing more than a yellow glow. Am I making the right choice? Lucas and Gast were down in the basement, researching all that they could and preparing the lab. Vincent was with them, but she knew he wouldn't say anything to them. That was his way. He'd listen silently to everything, taking it in, and then and only then would he protest. It was what made him the best Turk of Shinra.
Her baby kicked inside her stomach, and a smile came to her face. But it was a smile that didn't reach her eyes. What kind of environment would her baby grow up in? A laboratory filled with test tubes, and all sorts of chemicals. Or an isolation chamber perhaps. But not forever. Gast and Hojo had promised her that the child would be allowed a normal childhood life. And she trusted them.
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Hojo mumbled to himself, as he prepared everything, bustling around busily, pausing every now and then to give Lucrecia a reassuring grin. She was unusually silent, he noticed. Perhaps something to do with the chemical imbalances of emotions in her head? Something to research later, definitely. He almost dropped everything when the door burst open. Vincent Valentine, that meddlesome Turk, stood there, his eyes blazing.
"Gast told me everything," he shouted, his voice dropping to a menacingly low tone. "I'm against it! Why experiment on humans?!" Hojo sighed in annoyance.
"She and I are both scientists!" he said fervently. Lucrecia just looked at the floor with her head hung, avoiding Vincent's accusing glare. Vincent glanced at Lucrecia, and shook his head in incredulity at the both of them.
"You just wait, Hojo," he hissed. "I'll find out what you are doing." With that, he stormed out of the room and back upstairs. Hojo returned to resorting his journals, chuckling to himself. Lucrecia sank against the wall, her head in her hands.
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Something in the pit of Vincent's stomach told him to check on Lucrecia. It had been a few days since the birth of Sephiroth, her son. He hadn't talked to Hojo or Lucrecia much since the heated argument three weeks ago. Lucrecia had had her son at the stroke of ten at night, which made Vincent ill at ease more than he was willing to admit. Then the child had been whisked away to the lab, to be 'observed'. Vincent scoffed, knowing full well that was just Hojo's excuse. The child was probably being subjected to all kinds of experiments.
He hurried upstairs, to Lucrecia's room. Anxiously, he pushed the door open. It seems ironic how well people remember the grief in their lives, rather than the joy. And grief was definitely what he felt when he saw the body of his love, lying on the floor so close to death.
"Lucrecia!" he cried in anguish, rushing to her side and kneeling down beside her. Her eyes fluttered open, and she coughed weakly.
"Lucas?" she murmured, as Vincent took her hand. He shook his head. Her eyes widened slightly in recognition. "Vincent… Jenova… corrosive fluids… Sephiroth!" She had become delusional, Vincent realised in horror. She tried to sit up in pain, but couldn't, and slumped into his arms, her eyes closing. For years to come, Vincent would wonder whom she had addressed her last words to. But he would never truly know.
"… I… love you…" Her eyes closed, she fell back into a deep sleep. She wasn't dead, yet. Vincent gritted his teeth in fury, picking her up and laying her gently on the bed. Hojo would pay dearly for this. He left the room angrily, and went downstairs towards the entry to the basement.
He only stopped when his infuriated gaze landed upon a thick journal entitled 'Jenova'. Hadn't that been one of the words Lucrecia mumbled? He flicked open to the first page, and saw that it was written in a mixture of Hojo's messy scrawl and Gast's neat print. He narrowed his eyes when he saw Lucrecia's name mentioned, and his eyes widened in anger as he read on. He only skimmed, but enough was absorbed into his furious mind, and he ran almost blind with rage down to the lab. He threw the door open so hard that it smashed into the wall, its hinges creaking. Hojo looked up in surprise, and a smirk played his lips when he saw Vincent standing there.
"You knew she was going to die!" Vincent spat venomously. Hojo shrugged.
"We knew it was a possibility," he said coldly. Vincent shook his head, seething. "Could you please see fit to leave the room yourself?" Vincent held up the journal in defiance. Hojo's eyes widened in astonishment, and he staggered back. "How… did you get that?" Vincent held the book tightly.
"I'm taking this to Shinra, and I'm showing them exactly what you are doing. When the HRA find out about this, you'll be killed. When they find out what your plans for Sephiroth are, they'll make sure you rot in hell. Maybe they will stop there. Maybe they won't. But if they don't make sure you pay, I will." Hojo shook his head sadly at Vincent, running a hand through his black hair.
"I'm sorry, Vincent, I really am," he said resentfully. Then he produced the gun from nowhere, and shot Vincent in the stomach. Pain flooded to Vincent's eyes, making them sting with tears. There was red, so much red. Everything was red. His blood was seeping through his jacket, dripping onto the floor. He could feel his mind slowing down, his heartbeat quickening. He gasped for air, wondering why he couldn't breathe, and staggered towards Hojo, looking desperately into his black eyes for compassion. But all that was there was a deep black emptiness, and an inconceivable satisfaction. Vincent fell to his knees, the pain beginning to overwhelm him. So this was what it was like to die…
Hojo merely stepped back as Vincent collapsed on the cold brick floor, leaning forward only to snatch the book from his deathly pale hands.
"This will go somewhere where no one will find it," Hojo muttered, filing it away. Then he returned, and heaved the Turk onto the surgery table. He chuckled to himself, attached the IV unit and plugging the machinery into the wall. It hummed happily, and Hojo smiled. He had needed a human test subject to trial some of those other specimens he himself had found.
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Authors note:- Yay! Only one more part to upload! If you're wondering why it is called Part II, well I'm considering writing Part I which will deal with Vincent's past before Lucrecia and after Lucrecia. Let me know if you think I should, and also while you're at it, can you review? Thank you!! You guys are the best for reading this!
-Part 2.3-
Lucrecia sat in the chair of her room quietly, tears rolling down her cheeks. The candle burned brightly, promising hope but giving nothing more than a yellow glow. Am I making the right choice? Lucas and Gast were down in the basement, researching all that they could and preparing the lab. Vincent was with them, but she knew he wouldn't say anything to them. That was his way. He'd listen silently to everything, taking it in, and then and only then would he protest. It was what made him the best Turk of Shinra.
Her baby kicked inside her stomach, and a smile came to her face. But it was a smile that didn't reach her eyes. What kind of environment would her baby grow up in? A laboratory filled with test tubes, and all sorts of chemicals. Or an isolation chamber perhaps. But not forever. Gast and Hojo had promised her that the child would be allowed a normal childhood life. And she trusted them.
--------------------------------------------------------
Hojo mumbled to himself, as he prepared everything, bustling around busily, pausing every now and then to give Lucrecia a reassuring grin. She was unusually silent, he noticed. Perhaps something to do with the chemical imbalances of emotions in her head? Something to research later, definitely. He almost dropped everything when the door burst open. Vincent Valentine, that meddlesome Turk, stood there, his eyes blazing.
"Gast told me everything," he shouted, his voice dropping to a menacingly low tone. "I'm against it! Why experiment on humans?!" Hojo sighed in annoyance.
"She and I are both scientists!" he said fervently. Lucrecia just looked at the floor with her head hung, avoiding Vincent's accusing glare. Vincent glanced at Lucrecia, and shook his head in incredulity at the both of them.
"You just wait, Hojo," he hissed. "I'll find out what you are doing." With that, he stormed out of the room and back upstairs. Hojo returned to resorting his journals, chuckling to himself. Lucrecia sank against the wall, her head in her hands.
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Something in the pit of Vincent's stomach told him to check on Lucrecia. It had been a few days since the birth of Sephiroth, her son. He hadn't talked to Hojo or Lucrecia much since the heated argument three weeks ago. Lucrecia had had her son at the stroke of ten at night, which made Vincent ill at ease more than he was willing to admit. Then the child had been whisked away to the lab, to be 'observed'. Vincent scoffed, knowing full well that was just Hojo's excuse. The child was probably being subjected to all kinds of experiments.
He hurried upstairs, to Lucrecia's room. Anxiously, he pushed the door open. It seems ironic how well people remember the grief in their lives, rather than the joy. And grief was definitely what he felt when he saw the body of his love, lying on the floor so close to death.
"Lucrecia!" he cried in anguish, rushing to her side and kneeling down beside her. Her eyes fluttered open, and she coughed weakly.
"Lucas?" she murmured, as Vincent took her hand. He shook his head. Her eyes widened slightly in recognition. "Vincent… Jenova… corrosive fluids… Sephiroth!" She had become delusional, Vincent realised in horror. She tried to sit up in pain, but couldn't, and slumped into his arms, her eyes closing. For years to come, Vincent would wonder whom she had addressed her last words to. But he would never truly know.
"… I… love you…" Her eyes closed, she fell back into a deep sleep. She wasn't dead, yet. Vincent gritted his teeth in fury, picking her up and laying her gently on the bed. Hojo would pay dearly for this. He left the room angrily, and went downstairs towards the entry to the basement.
He only stopped when his infuriated gaze landed upon a thick journal entitled 'Jenova'. Hadn't that been one of the words Lucrecia mumbled? He flicked open to the first page, and saw that it was written in a mixture of Hojo's messy scrawl and Gast's neat print. He narrowed his eyes when he saw Lucrecia's name mentioned, and his eyes widened in anger as he read on. He only skimmed, but enough was absorbed into his furious mind, and he ran almost blind with rage down to the lab. He threw the door open so hard that it smashed into the wall, its hinges creaking. Hojo looked up in surprise, and a smirk played his lips when he saw Vincent standing there.
"You knew she was going to die!" Vincent spat venomously. Hojo shrugged.
"We knew it was a possibility," he said coldly. Vincent shook his head, seething. "Could you please see fit to leave the room yourself?" Vincent held up the journal in defiance. Hojo's eyes widened in astonishment, and he staggered back. "How… did you get that?" Vincent held the book tightly.
"I'm taking this to Shinra, and I'm showing them exactly what you are doing. When the HRA find out about this, you'll be killed. When they find out what your plans for Sephiroth are, they'll make sure you rot in hell. Maybe they will stop there. Maybe they won't. But if they don't make sure you pay, I will." Hojo shook his head sadly at Vincent, running a hand through his black hair.
"I'm sorry, Vincent, I really am," he said resentfully. Then he produced the gun from nowhere, and shot Vincent in the stomach. Pain flooded to Vincent's eyes, making them sting with tears. There was red, so much red. Everything was red. His blood was seeping through his jacket, dripping onto the floor. He could feel his mind slowing down, his heartbeat quickening. He gasped for air, wondering why he couldn't breathe, and staggered towards Hojo, looking desperately into his black eyes for compassion. But all that was there was a deep black emptiness, and an inconceivable satisfaction. Vincent fell to his knees, the pain beginning to overwhelm him. So this was what it was like to die…
Hojo merely stepped back as Vincent collapsed on the cold brick floor, leaning forward only to snatch the book from his deathly pale hands.
"This will go somewhere where no one will find it," Hojo muttered, filing it away. Then he returned, and heaved the Turk onto the surgery table. He chuckled to himself, attached the IV unit and plugging the machinery into the wall. It hummed happily, and Hojo smiled. He had needed a human test subject to trial some of those other specimens he himself had found.
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Authors note:- Yay! Only one more part to upload! If you're wondering why it is called Part II, well I'm considering writing Part I which will deal with Vincent's past before Lucrecia and after Lucrecia. Let me know if you think I should, and also while you're at it, can you review? Thank you!! You guys are the best for reading this!