Before I Wake To Find You Gone

By: General Quistis (samaralockheartshinra@yahoo.com) and Zhakeena (zhakeena@yahoo.com)

Disclaimer: We don't own anything but the story plot. Gyah! Any resemblance to any other plots is purely coincidental…

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            Cloud finally arrived home and Aerith was waiting for him. She was seated by the front porch and she had this worried look on her face. "Oh Cloud," she said as she got up and ran to him, embracing him.

He smiled gently as he embraced her back. "You're still up? It's midnight! You should be asleep," he told her with a concerned tone.

She shook her head as she withdrew from him, opening the door so that they could go inside. "I got so worried about you. You just left without telling us where you're going. Are you okay?" she asked as they got inside the house.

"Yes, I'm okay… let's go to sleep," he said as he closed the door and led the way upstairs.

Aerith was silently thinking, "Where's Tifa?" as she examined the tired look on Cloud's face.

Cloud was silently thinking, "I can't lie to Aerith… I have to tell her the truth…" as he turned to face her once they reached their bedroom. "I have to tell you something," he began with a serious look on his face as she shut the door.

She blinked. "Wh…what is it?" she asked.

"It's about… where I really went…" he replied with a troubled look on his face.

She looked down to the floor as she went to the bed and sat down quietly. When Cloud didn't speak up, she decided to look back at him.

That's when he started to speak, "Early this evening, I received a call from Rufus ShinRa. I went to the ShinRa HQ…" he sighed. "The truth is, I'm helping him out." He declared.

Her eyes grew wide. "Helping him?" she asked.

"Please don't tell anyone else, most especially Vincent. This is supposed to be confidential… but I'm telling you because I know I could trust you and I cannot lie to you," he said with a weak smile on his face as he sat down beside her.

She bit her lower lip as she looked away, turning to the window and looking outside, seeing the stars and the moon.

When she did not reply, he just began to remove his boots, his gloves and his left shoulder-guard; got up and placed everything on the dresser.

Aerith smiled at the moon. "This is about Lucrecia, right?" she asked.

He froze and turned to her. "How did you know?" he asked.

She faced him again. "The voices told me. She is supposed to be dead, right? But she is here… alive. There is a reason and the voices told me what it is…" she admitted.

Cloud blinked in awe as he removed his belt, still keeping his gaze on her.

She chuckled lightly as she got up and started to remove her boots and unbraided her hair. "C'mon, Cloud. You know who I am," she said with a wink.

He smiled at her.

"Thank you for trusting me, Cloud. I won't tell Vincent and the others…" she told him reassuringly.

He was about to say something more but he stopped when he heard the sound of a vehicle arriving and then stopping, then after a few minutes, it moved again.

Cloud raised an eyebrow as he smiled impishly.

Aerith was already removing her pink denim jacket when they heard someone knocking on the front door downstairs. "Who could that be?" she asked aloud.

"Oh, and did I mention that Tifa followed me?" Cloud added.

Aerith blnked and just ran downstairs to get the door.

She opened the door and was surprised to see Tifa standing there, her arms crossed across her chest with a tired and glum look on her face.

"Tifa!" Aerith exclaimed.

"Is Cloud home already?" Tifa asked as she stepped inside.

Aerith shut the door and locked it. "Yes, he is. H…how did you get home?" she asked.

Tifa raised an eyebrow. "I'd rather not talk about it…" she said with a slight blush on her face as she headed upstairs, trying to stop herself from smiling.

As she and Aerith climbed up the stairs, they stopped when they saw Cloud standing on their way. "Hello, Tifa. Did your date give you a good night kiss?" he asked with a teasing smile on his face.

"It's just so unlikely of you to be teasing me, Cloud," she said with a sarcastic smile on her face.

Aerith blinked curiously and stared unbelievably at Tifa. "You… you went on a date?" she asked.

"I did not… he just took me back here because Cloud left me alone with him." Tifa said, feeling so embarrassed about the situation. She just proceeded and pushed Cloud out of her way and ran immediately to her room.

Aerith approached Cloud. "Who's the him?" she asked.

"Only the richest guy in the Planet," Cloud said with a wink as she got Aerith's hand and led the way back to their bedroom.

***

            Rufus entered the Hojo's old underground laboratory at around 4:00 am. He couldn't sleep so he just decided to do some research in the lab.

"I have to find out something very important if I want to assure everyone of safety… I have to change things… I am not following old man's footsteps…" he thought as he opened all the confidential files from the PC.

"I've fixed all sectors, I've stopped all the Mako reactors, developed new ways of providing electricity and power to the whole of Midgar… and now this…" he thought silently as he stared at the full data of Sephiroth.

His eyes scanned over the destructible pieces of paper with some of the company's most valuable information scribbled on them.

Name: Sephiroth Specimen # 006600666

Rufus raised an eyebrow at this. "They've labeled Sephiroth as a specimen? How disgusting," he mumbled as he proceeded to reading the sheet of paper

Biological parents are Professors Hojo and Lucrecia; both working in ShinRa Electric Power Company… Specimen is result of the JENOVA experiment--

His frown deepened as he stared at the pictures of a growing Sephiroth. "Such an innocent child… but he was ruined…" he thought.

He spent 15 more minutes reading the rest of the files about Sephiroth, and then proceeded to the next file labeled "Vincent Valentine"

He spent almost an hour absorbing all the information about Vincent before proceeding to Lucrecia.

"JENOVA…" the name keeps on repeating on his head.

He sat down on the tall stool and continued to read, not noticing the time passing by.

***

            Reeve, Scarlet, Rude, Reno and Elena led the way to the underground Laboratory.

"It's this way," Elena said.

"We know," Vincent and Lucrecia both responded in unison.

Elena giggled sheepishly. "Heehee! I'm sorry! I forgot that you guys used to work here," she said.

"It's okay, Miss Elena," Lucrecia said with a gentle smile on her face.

"Okay… I suppose everything you need is right here because you were the last persons to touch this place," Reeve said as they walked along the hallway.

"Kyah… no, actually, Sephiroth did some stuff in there, too. He read those JENOVA notes, remember? That's how he went craz…" Scarlet started, but stopped when she remembered that Lucrecia didn't need to know those information…

Lucrecia stared unbelievably at Scarlet. "Wh…what?" she asked.

"Uh-oh…" Vincent thought.

Reeve flashed Scarlet a "Nice goin'" look.

Rude shook his head in disbelief as he proceeded to walk with Reno and Elena, leaving the others behind because Lucrecia stopped walking and stared unbelievably at Scarlet.

"Are you saying that… my son went crazy?" Lucrecia demanded.

"Kyah… you're his mother and you do not know anything?" Scarlet snapped.

"I… I…" Lucrecia stammered, turning to Vincent with a confused look on her face.

Vincent frowned and pulled Lucrecia away from Scarlet. "Stop it." He snapped at the blonde woman before facing Lucrecia with a gentle look on his face. "We will explain everything to you but you have to promise me that you'll stay calm and be reasonable, okay?" he asked.

She was already trembling but she tried to stop herself from breaking down. She bit her lower lip as she nodded her head eagerly with a weak smile on her face. "You'll be there?" she asked.

"Of course, Lucrecia… of course. I promise you," Vincent said reassuringly.

"Hah… that's so sweet. Let's hurry up. We'd better get her blood sample as soon as possible." Scarlet snapped impatiently as she went ahead.

Reeve shook his head in disbelief as he approached Vincent and Lucrecia with an apologetic look on his face. "I'm so sorry about Scarlet. She's just very cranky… I hope you get used to it." He said.

Lucrecia nodded uneasily. "O… okay," she said.

Vincent smiled at Reeve before proceeding to walk with Lucrecia.

Upon entering the laboratory, they were all surprised to see Rufus seated and still reading the files, this time, from the computer.

"President Rufus," Reeve began.

Rufus turned to them with a frown on his face.

"You're here early?" Reeve asked.

"I've been here ever since dawn." Rufus said, trying to keep a straight face, but he could not hide the sleepy expression in his eyes. "You may start now with the tests." He commanded before turning back to the computer monitor.

"Follow me here, Miss Lucrecia," Reeve told her as he went ahead.

Vincent gently nudged Lucrecia to follow Reeve, but she held on to him tightly. He sighed heavily with a silly smile on his face before finally agreeing to just go with Lucrecia.

***

"Ow…" Lucrecia winced as Reeve pulled out the needle.

"Kyah… I would assume that you're already used to those needles since maybe Hojo did so many tests with you before," Scarlet said mockingly.

"Shut up, Scarlet." Reeve snapped impatiently.

"Don't you think those blood samples are enough already? That's the 15th needle," Vincent said.

"We're not gonna suck up all of her blood." Scarlet told him.

Lucrecia looked up at the ceiling and around the room. "This place hasn't changed at all…" she realized.

Vincent was having the same thoughts, but he just tried to shrug it off when Reno and Elena approached him. "We'd like to do some inspections, Mister Valentine," Reno said with a sly smile.

Vincent saw that the two Turks were holding some wrenches and some other gadgets for metal. He raised his eyebrow. "Wh…what are you going to do?" he asked nervously with a weak smile on his face.

"Just lie down here," Elena said, referring to the operating table.

"Yes, but why is this necessary?" Vincent asked as he uneasily sat down on the said operating table.

"Oh, you know. You might have a lot to do with this thing," Reno said as he forcefully removed Vincent's cape and black top before pushing Vincent down on the operating table, forcing him to lie down.

Vincent froze.

Lucrecia observed quietly as Reno and Elena began to take Vincent's blood pressure, take blood samples, attach some wires onto his chest and more stuff… She turned back to Reeve and Scarlet who were already beginning to inspect her blood with the microscope that Hojo used to use for himself.

"Is this really necessary?" Vincent asked the two Turks again.

"Yes, it is. Now, how old are you?" Elena asked.

"Uh… can't I just keep it a secret?" he asked.

Reno shrugged and turned to Lucrecia. "Hey, missy, how old was Vinny when he proposed to you?" he asked with a teasing look on his face.

She frowned at him. "What?" she asked.

"Fine! I'm 57 now! Leave her alone!" Vincent snapped with a slight blush.

"Relax, Mister Valentine, we're trying to monitor your heart. Don't get excited." Elena said as he patted his shoulder.

"…" Vincent just stared up at the ceiling. He had to admit, the atmosphere of the room was really cold… very cold… and considering the fact that he was topless.

"Uh… I'm getting cold here," he announced.

No reaction.

"Never mind…" he thought frustratingly.

Lucrecia slowly approached the laboratory table where Reeve and Scarlet were inspecting her blood. She had seen that Reeve had gotten her DNA from it too. She saw him compare it with another DNA… which is of Sephiroth's.

"No doubt, she's his mother…" he murmured to Scarlet.

"Kyah…" she uttered under her breath.

"Why?" he asked.

"I don't know how to do this… determining the blood type and all the others… and knowing if there's still some JENOVA in it…" she replied.

Lucrecia bit her lip before speaking up, surprising the two since they didn't know that she was watching them from behind. "Maybe I can help? I know how Hojo did those things," she said.

The two stared unbelievably at her. "O…okay…" Scarlet said as she stepped aside to let Lucrecia inspect the microscope.

Lucrecia began to take notes and out of the blue, she just asked, "What will you do to me if you find out that JENOVA is still present in my bloodstream?"

Reeve and Scarlet exchanged confused glances.

Vincent heard the question but he just kept quiet.

"Are you going to kill me?" she asked with a voice that seemed to falter.

"No, we're not going to kill you." Reeve said immediately.

Lucrecia was silent as she continued to work. Something was telling her that she is not going to die, but they are going to do something to her that would be equivalent to death… yet she didn't know what it is…

Rufus, who was listening to every word that every person in the room uttered, approached them. "If we do find out that JENOVA is still alive in you," he began. Reeve, Scarlet and Lucrecia turned to him curiously. "Then we'll just get rid of her. Simple as that, right?" he said simply.

The three of them stared at him in disbelief. "Kyah… I think that's easier said than done, sir…" Scarlet said after awhile.

"Of course, Scarlet. Almost everything in this world is easier said than done," Rufus said. "Of course, I trust that everybody working on this would come up with something. I'd hate to be found wrong…"

Everybody else had nothing to say to that. Vincent pondered on Rufus' words. "Then we'll get rid of her. Simple as that, right?" He frowned. Nothing is that simple. Who knows, that simple thing might cause him to lose Lucrecia once more. As for Lucrecia… she was just stunned at this man's words. She was still wondering on why a stranger like him would be willing to do so much for her and Vincent…

"All right, I guess everything you need to do after this is clear," Rufus said, going back to reading those files waiting on the computer.

Vincent watched as Elena scribbled down notes on his physical conditions and all that stuff and as Reno read over her shoulder.

"Okay… Mister Valentine, I think we're done," Elena said as she put down the clipboard and began to remove the wires attached all over him. Reno, on the other hand, threw back Vincent's cape and shirt to him. "Here, man. Feel decent again," he said with an annoying smile.

Lucrecia frowned as she turned to Scarlet. "Do you have samples of JENOVA cells?" she asked.

Scarlet handed her a test tube from one of the old cabinets. "That's Sephiroth's. You can compare it with yours if you want," she said with a sneer.

Lucrecia couldn't understand why such a woman could be so rude. She just shrugged it off and proceeded to work. After a few minutes, the results shocked her and she almost dropped Sephiroth's blood samples on the floor as she stared at the microscope.

Everyone was silent for a few seconds, then Vincent came running to her, with Reno, Elena and Reeve close behind him. "Lucrecia! What's wrong?"

Lucrecia looked up at them, the shock in her eyes not leaving. "S-sephiroth…" she whispered.

"What the hell's goin' on, anyway?" Reno drawled.

Vincent wanted to find out for himself. He made his way towards the microscope and looked at the lens.

Notable green glow on the RBC. There seems to be an otherworldly power emanating from the said RBCs. Cells cannot be annihilated by any means. Also immune to viruses.

Vincent remembered those notes Hojo always wrote down during those experiments. Then, he understood. "So… there was more of JENOVA that we didn't finish of," he thought to himself.

"What is going on?" Rufus asked as he approached them with an impatient look on his face.

Lucrecia felt her heart aching again. She clutched her chest tightly as she winced uncomfortably in pain. "I…" she stammered as she gasp. Her eyes reflected too much pain as she leaned on to Vincent, letting him embrace her. "Vin… Vincent… it hurts…" she said before she closed her eyes and finally fainted, but before she could fall completely to the ground, Vincent caught her in his arms. "Lucrecia," he said in panic.

Rufus stared at them coldly before proceeding to the microscope and viewed the results. Comparing it with Hojo's files which he had read and absorbed in his memory, his frown deepened as he clenched his fists. "The JENOVA inside her won't let her die…" he realized. Observing Lucrecia, he thought, "Maybe she has some heart ailment or something… but she survives because of JENOVA." He looked at Vincent before saying, "Reeve, get me Cloud Strife." He said.

Vincent's eyes grew wide. "What? What's with Cloud?" he asked in surprise.

Rufus ignored him and just said, "Take her back to her room. She needs to rest. Inform me once she's awake,"

Vincent fell silent as he looked down at Lucrecia whose head was resting on his shoulder. "What does Rufus want? Are they just using us for something?" he thought. As he carried Lucrecia back to her room, he was thinking, "And what is Cloud's role in this situation? Don't tell me he's working with Rufus?"

He stared at Lucrecia for a long time after he placed her on the bed and sighed heavily. "Are you okay, Lucrecia?" he whispered with a sad look on his face as he gently caressed her cheek with the back of his right hand.

***