Oblivious to Aerith, Vincent was still awake. He heard Aerith sighing often behind him, and heard her crying softly. He felt sick. He heard her proclamation, and he knew her feelings for him. Vincent knew too, knew that deep in his heart, he still cared deeply for Aerith. But, after that day. . .he forced himself to remember it, forced himself to relive it so that he would remember why he couldn't love her.
It was a beautiful warm day. The sky was cloudless, yet the sun was not too bright or hot. A light breeze blew delicately across the plains. Vincent didn't care about any of it. In fact, he wished for rain or storms; it would better suit his mood. She wasn't here with him to enjoy the beautiful sky, so why should the lovely weather even be there? Vincent looked up at the blue sky scornfully.
"I'm ready. Let's go find her."
'Finally.' Vincent thought. 'We should have left the moment we realized she was missing…' Vincent would have left alone, but the others persuaded him to wait just a little longer, just until everyone got their bearings. He unwillingly obliged, pacing, counting down the hours wasted until they were finally ready to leave.
Cloud picked Vincent and Tifa today to accompany him to the Sleeping Forest, not that Vincent would have let Cloud leave him behind. He had to be there, in the front lines, ready for any action. Plus, Vincent had been researching while everyone else was resting, and he knew where to go.
"I've done research on this Sleeping Forest. It is located by Bone Village, where the Lunar Harp, needed to enter the Sleeping Forest, is buried. The Tiny Bronco is waiting. Let's go." With that he headed toward the sandy beach, climbing aboard the Tiny Bronco with ease. Cloud and Tifa ran to catch up.
"Be careful with her, goddammit!" Cid yelled after him, waving his arms wildly. Vincent waved a hand dully in response. He didn't care about any god damn airplane. He'd been ready to go for days. But they'd had to wait for stupid, childish Cloud. Now, he wasn't wasting any more time.
They had passed easily through the Sleeping Forest, the monsters being weak yet obnoxious. They were now in the City of the Ancients, a unique and contemplative place. Even Vincent could hear the various mumbles and noises of the Ancients here that Aerith heard clearly everywhere. A pang went through his heart at the thought of her. He thought of Aerith's beautiful smile, her innocent eyes, her charming laugh. He thought of that kiss...they shared it together. He grimaced. Aerith going missing was a real blow to his heart. Now he remembered why he said he would never fall in love again. It was too much pain. Why should you willingly subject your body and soul to pain? After thirty years of torment...why did he subject himself to it again? He lashed out at the building with his claw, marring it further.
Cloud decided as soon as they arrived in the city that they should rest. An old home still had useable cots, and Cloud led them inside. Vincent disagreed, wanting to look for Aerith now, but as usual, Cloud was the leader. Tifa persuaded Vincent to stay and rest. Instead, he lay awake, staring at the ceiling for hours, listening to the mumblings of the long gone Ancients. Finally, he fell into a restless sleep, in which he dreamt of that wonderful night with Aerith, and heard the old voices around him. He woke a few hours later, spotting Cloud standing up, staring into space.
"She's here. I feel it. So is Sephiroth." Vincent blinked quickly, than regained his composure.
"Where? Hurry up!" Vincent jumped out of the cot and grabbed his weapon. Cloud walked down the short ladder and led the way to where the path split in three directions. Vincent heard Tifa behind the pair, huffing and yelling for them to wait up. Vincent planned on waiting for no one.
"Down there." He pointed down the middle, straight path.
"What are we waiting for!" Vincent began running down the path. Cloud and Tifa quickly followed, Cloud updating them on directions. Finally, they ended up in front of a building shaped like a shell. The place, Vincent thought, was beautiful. Quickly, he pushed his way inside, running up the spiral ramp and crossing a blue path. There, stretched out before him, was a beautiful crystalline city. Vincent stopped only for a moment to take in his surroundings, then rushed down the endless crystal stairs. Halfway down, he could see a crystal altar. Aerith was praying there, her hands folded delicately, eyes closed peacefully. Vincent stopped staring at her, taking in her beauty. Cloud rushed past him.
"Cloud, wait!" He yelled, running after him, Tifa in close pursuit. Cloud didn't listen, hopping from one platform to the next, heading closer and closer to the peaceful Aerith.
"Cloud, no! Wait for all of us!" Tifa shouted from close behind him, running at Vincent's quick pace, jumping over the logs as Cloud jerkily raised his Buster Sword over Aerith' head. Vincent instinctively fired his gun into the air, then pointed it at Cloud's skull. He wouldn't hesitate to kill him. Thankfully, the loud noise shook Cloud out of his controlled state. He stepped back, shaking his head. Vincent sighed in relief and lowered his gun, his relief overtaking his rage at Cloud. His relief was soon shattered.
Before anyone could realize or stop it, Sephiroth swooped down from above, his long sword stabbing through Aerith' chest, blood staining it and her pink dress. Aerith's eyes opened in shock, green orbs quickly growing dull. Her hair ribbon came undone, and Aerith took a last glance at Vincent's horrified face. As the life was drained from her body, her emerald eyes closed. Vincent's crimson eyes widened in horror. He watched as Cloud rushed forward in slow motion, grabbing Aerith's body as it fell gracefully to the ground. Tifa grabbed for the White Materia that fell from Aerith's hair, but it fell into the water with a small splash.
"No." Vincent whispered, not hearing anything Sephiroth or Cloud said. His eyes remained fixated on the bloody body, crumpled on the ground. "…no…" Vincent's blood was boiling, his skin was burning, his limbs were twitching. As Jenova fell down from the sky, Vincent screamed, an inhuman wail filled with rage and despair. His body transformed grotesquely into the beast known as Chaos. Wings painfully erupted from his back, ripping through his cloak and shirt. Both hand and claw were exchanged for brutal paws, each with a set of razor-sharp claws. Two horns protruded from his forehead, slowly growing from his head. Fangs glittered inside Chaos' dark cavern of a mouth, and his skin burned like acid before it turned a rough violet shade and became tough and enforced. Chaos roared again, and lunged for Jenova.
Tifa and Cloud stepped back, carrying Aerith's lifeless body between them as Vincent single-handedly attacked Jenova. Chaos tore into with his claws, raging inside. He bit and screamed, tearing Jenova to pieces. The beast within him cried for blood, cried for revenge. Chaos screamed one last time, shredding what remained of Jenova, before reverting back to gentle Vincent. Vincent kneeled on the ground among the gore, panting. Cloud and Tifa watched him warily, placing Aerith's body down gently. Vincent rose, stumbling from exhaustion, and slowly came towards them. His crimson eyes had lost their rage – now there was only despair. He knelt once more, this time in front of his love. Vincent gently felt Aerith's hair, still soft. He brushed her cheek, still warm. He placed a gentle kiss on her pallid forehead, and brushed her hair lovingly away from her face with his hand.
"Aerith. I love you." He whispered softly, lifting Aerith' small form. He cradled her bloody form to his chest. Tears stung his eyes, but he would not cry. He knew once again, somehow, he had sinned, and now he was to blame. This was his price to pay. He walked out slowly, carrying Aerith's dead weight. Tifa ran past him, sobbing hysterically, while Cloud stood dumbfounded where Aerith' pool of blood lay.
Vincent turned around to look at the sleeping Aerith. Did she know that he still loved her? With all of his monstrous black heart? He suddenly felt guilty for pushing her away. But it had hurt so much, there was so much pain when she died; he swore he wouldn't love anyone again. It was worse that he did nothing to stop her death; guilt racked him each day since her death. And on top of that, he became so angry and hurt that he lost control and turned into The Beast. What if he hurt her now, what if he hurt her as Chaos? He couldn't take that chance. He would return Aerith to safety, with one of her friends, while he atoned for his massive amount of sins once more.
