Chapter 8: It Only Gets Weirder
Disclaimer: I don't own FF7.
To my reviewers: A thousand pardons for being so late on this update! I'm dreadfully sorry about it! It's just that the last week has been extremely bad (Excluding Christmas, that was about the only high point of the week) My biggest problem when writing is that I start to hate my stories when I'm right in the middle of them. For about 4 days I couldn't even stand to look at this. I know that there are lots of perfectionists out there, but believe me when I say that I take perfectionist to the next level. Anyways, enough of my whining! Here's the next chapter! I hope it's good! (As usual.)
I'm here my lady…
The words played in the back of my mind like a sweet melody. I clung to them as I lay there at the brink of consciousness drowning in my fear. Had I really heard his voice or was it only a hallucination conjured up by my despair and helplessness?
I wanted to believe it. That I could be saved from this horrible fate, but it was much too good to be true. All I had to do was open my eyes and see. Did I dare do such a thing and risk seeing the syringe as it forced the alien fluids into my body?
The thought was too terrifying. I didn't want to open my eyes to this painful reality. I'd found a peaceful place here where I could accept my fate and be done with it.
"Tifa?"
Someone was calling to me, from the outside. It was very faint, but I was certain that I'd heard it. There was something urgent and desperate in the voice that drew me out of my semi-coma and back into the world.
I couldn't feel the straps that had once bound me to this wretched table. Warm hands cradled my head as I lay there. I gradually opened my eyes unsure and fearful of what I would see. Sephiroth had never looked so beautiful. Words could not express the immense joy that I felt in that moment as I stared into his lovely mako eyes.
"You came!" I cried with relief and threw my arms around his neck.
He lifted me off the dreadful table and set me on my feet. "Are you alright?" He asked urgently. His hands took hold of my shoulders firmly and pushed me away.
I nodded. "Yes."
"Good." He answered and started for the door. "Nanaki and Yuffie are getting the others. We are to meet them at the Highwind." He called.
I lifted my head in surprise. "Nanaki and Yuffie are both here?" I echoed. "Who's taking care of the girls?" I asked, immediately overcome with worry. Had they been recaptured?
"The girls are fine. Elmyra is taking care of them." He answered. "Oh, here." He pulled something out of his pocket and tossed it to me.
I reached out clumsily in attempt to catch the mysterious things flying at me. My eyes brightened happily as my hands wrapped firmly around the objects. "My gloves!" I exclaimed. "Where did you find them?"
"They were lying on a table in one of the rooms I went through on my way here." He responded.
I slid my beloved weapons onto my hands and flexed my fists. The gloves rubbed slightly against the old wounds on my wrists, but it was nothing serious. "I've been so worried about other things I never gave much thought to them till now. Thank you." I said softly studying them with a curious and loving eye.
"You may need them." Sephiroth said. "Come on."
I didn't move. Something was nagging at the back of my mind, but why? The others were with Yuffie and Nanaki. Vincent… My eyes widened as I remembered that he was not with the others. "Wait!" I shouted as Sephiroth opened the door.
He whirled around to meet my gaze. "What?"
"Vincent isn't with the others!" I exclaimed urgently. "We've got to find him or else…" My voice trailed off as the bitter reality resurfaced.
The sound of laughter ringing out from behind us caused me to reel around.
Lorse was standing there among three others his eyes glimmering humorously. "I'm glad to find you are both still here. I'm afraid I can't hand Vincent over to you, he's much too valuable." He shook his head. "I've something else planned, care to meet my creations?" He grinned.
My face twisted in disgust as I examined the three men who'd now placed themselves in front of Lorse. They looked almost normal, but their eyes glowed a vibrant red and had no pupils. The one in the middle, the strongest looking of them all, carried two short swords. The man to his left, a thin quick looking fighter, held two daggers and the third man who looked to be the weakest carried a scythe like weapon.
Sephiroth stepped up beside me the masamune ready in his right hand. His eyes narrowed with hatred on Lorse and he took a step forward. "The coward returns." He hissed.
"Of course! I've got to test my specimens and see how they rank against the greatest creation of all time!" He piped happily. "I've been awaiting this moment for days! These were once the frailest of men, you know? Let's see how my solution transformed them! Go on my fighting machines, show me your worth!"
The three fighters advanced slowly their demon like eyes studying us intently. A shiver ran up my spine and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. They may have looked mostly normal, but they gave off an awfully strong aura that left me trembling in my shoes. One could never know what to expect from scientifically altered beings.
"I'll handled the one in the middle and the one to his right." Sephiroth said and charged forward leaving me behind.
The man with the daggers slipped passed Sephiroth wasting no time and attacking me at once. He was fast, as I suspected, but not quite as fast as Sephiroth. It would be a hard battle, but I could win granted that I didn't make any mistakes. I jumped back avoiding the glistening blade of the first dagger. The second just barely missed and I countered with a punch to his stomach. The blow landed, but he caught me on the retreat. Red liquid trickled down my arm from the wound and splattered onto the white floor.
My opponent grinned at the sight of the blood and came at me quickly the momentum on his side now. It would not last long though. I dodged another of his attacks and caught his right hand with my steel-toed boot. The knife flew across the room clattering to the floor several yards away. Now it was my time to smile I thought and landed an elbow into his face. A satisfying sound of crunching bones and cartilage followed.
I bounded backwards quickly expecting an immediate counter that didn't come. My eyes widened as blue blood streamed out of the man's broken nose. He made no attempt at attacking again. His eyes closed and his lips began to move rapidly as he muttered strange words beneath his breath.
For a moment I just stood there dumbstruck and unsure of what I should do. The sudden realization that something very bad was going to happen hit me and I started after him in desperation. Just as I was about to reach him the blade of the masamune pierced his stomach. I jumped to the side avoiding getting gored myself and watched sadly as the body slumped to the ground. I couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the three men lying still on the floor around us. Their memories had no doubt been taken away. Who ever they once had been was lost.
Sephiroth yanked his sword out and signaled for me to follow him. I ran after him as he disappeared through a back door and into another long hall. Lorse disappeared around a corner at the very end just as we entered. We rounded the same corner just in time to see a door slam and two Turks appear to intercept us. Sephiroth wiped them out in an instant and burst into the room Lorse had disappeared into.
I skipped over the bodies and followed him inside. Sephiroth had come to a sudden halt and I just barely spared myself from crashing into him. I stepped up beside him peering around his shoulder curiously. My jaw dropped and my hand flew up to cover my mouth in complete shock and dismay.
Lorse held a gun in his trembling hand the barrel pointed at Vincent's chest. "D-d-don't come any closer!" He stammered. "I'll s-s-shoot him." It seemed that fear had finally needled its way into his soul. It was about time!
Vincent was standing on his own two feet glaring at Lorse through narrow slits. "Do it, I dare you!" He challenged his lips curving into a sinful grin. "It may turn out to be the worst mistake of your life though."
Lorse took a step away from Vincent eyeing him skeptically. "W-what are you talking about?"
Vincent's grin only widened his eyes burning with hatred. He took a step forward towards the terrified Lorse. "Perhaps you'd like to find out first hand what it's like to house chaos in your body?"
"NO! Get away!" Lorse shrieked and the gun fired.
The bullet landed in Vincent's chest and he staggered back his teeth clenched, but he didn't fall. Dark, scarlet blood poured out of the wound yet Vincent paid it no heed.
"Vincent!" I cried in astonishment and started after Lorse in a mindless rage. Sephiroth's arm slipped around my waist and pulled me back at the last moment.
"Don't." Sephiroth warned me his cold stare transfixed on Lorse.
"I'll shoot her too!" Lorse cried as he swung the barrel around to point at me.
I froze still.
Sardonic laughter split the air and Vincent's clawed hand reached out and clamped onto Lorse's wrist. Lorse screamed out in pain as the sharp fingertips dug into his skin and the gun fell from his bleeding hand.
My eyes widened as a swirl of black surrounded the two and Vincent began to chant in an odd language I'd never head before. The room shuddered violently as massive amounts of an invisible force exercised its foundations.
A burst of powerful energy threw both Sephiroth and myself backwards. Another shriek pierced the air. The black fog dwindled away, and revealed Vincent kneeling in exhaustion and Lorse wrenching his blood drenched arm away from Vincent's claw.
"Wha-what's going on?" Lorse gasped. His body convulsed violently and his eyes rolled up into the back of his head. Then it stopped and his eyelids closed. An awkward silence fell upon the entire room as he stood there unmoving his face emotionless.
A mixture of confusion and fear consumed me. What on earth had just happened? No one dared move for fear of awakening something terrible. At this moment in time I was of the opinion that anything could happen and I was 100 sure that it would be bad.
I jerked back in horror as Lorse's eyes shot open revealing an endless blackness. His eyes shined like onyx stones with queer amusement. There was an odd intelligence there too though, like that of a wise man who knows all. This was not Lorse, not anymore. As if on cue the purple wings of Chaos burst out from his shoulder blades.
He grinned. "It's been a while since I've had the upper hand in my mutual relationship, but really Vincent this man is pathetic!" He chuckled the sound coming out in a more grotesque manner than perhaps intended. "Couldn't you've chosen someone else?"
Vincent scowled at the demon. "My options were limited." He growled in response.
Chaos sighed. "Pity." His frown quickly transformed into a gleeful smile. "But oh the things I can do now!" He cried spreading his arms towards the ceiling. "This place definitely needs to go." He stated. A few silent words escaped his lips and the entire building began to tremble in response.
Sephiroth pulled me to my feet eyeing the demon cautiously.
Vincent slumped to the ground at Chaos's feet his life ebbing away ever so slowly. What I couldn't understand was why Vincent looked so completely calm when everything was quite clearly out of control!
Chaos' eyes narrowed and he nudged Vincent in the thigh. "What are you doing going off and dying like that you idiot? You don't think I actually plan on staying in this wretched body do you?" He let out a growl of annoyance. He turned away and eyed us curiously. "I'll give you a head start, but no more. I'd hurry if I were you." He said and busted up through the ceiling.
I raced to Vincent's side in an instant. "Vincent…" It was the only thing that I could think of to say. To ask if he was ok would be absolutely ridiculous since it was obvious that he was NOT ok.
His eyes were closed for the moment as he laid there his breathing slow and steady. Blood oozed from the wound that should have killed him by now. A long slow breath emitted his lips and he opened his eyes to look past me. "Sephiroth…come here."
"What for?" He asked suspiciously.
Vincent pulled out a small leather journal and handed it to me. "Read what it says. Page 12. The first entry."
"But Vincent! This place is going to collapse! We don't have time!" I cried in protest.
"Just do it!" He snapped.
I nodded quickly and opened the journal to page 12.
"June 13: It has been 3 days since the birth of Sephiroth, the child I've been waiting for. It seems that my plans will not go exactly as planned unfortunately, but I cannot stop the experiment now for we are too far into the project. After conducting blood tests on the child to be sure of the parents I made a rather startling discovery. The child is in fact not mine. Though it irks me beyond comprehension the boy will have to suffice." I stopped here and gaped at the page. Unbelievable…
Sephiroth let out a short gasp from behind me. I took a deep breath and continued on. "The boys real father is my wife's supposed lover Vincent Valentine." The leather book slipped from my stunned hands and landed in Vincent's lap.
Slow footsteps approached from behind me. Sephiroth stopped down and snatched up the journal. He leafed through the pages and began to read the passage. When he finished he threw it aside and averted his gaze to Vincent his expression literally unreadable.
Parts of the ceiling began to fall about us and I jumped to my feet. "If we don't get out we'll be crushed!" I said urgently. Looking back and forth between the two motionless figures.
Both of them ignored me.
Vincent's eyes gazed directly into Sephiroth's. "You must go to see your mother." He coughed. "Her soul must be put to rest for she still mourns over you. Tifa knows the way, let her show you." He stopped for a moment and looked up at me. "Goodbye Tifa, for the moment. Now go before it's too late."
Sephiroth nodded and spun around swiftly coming to my side.
I opened my mouth in protest, but Sephiroth had taken a hold of my wrist and was pulling me out of the room before I could say anything but goodbye. Tears streaked down my befuddled face as I stumbled lamely behind him. What did Vincent mean by 'for the moment'? This was it, wasn't it?
Somehow I managed to keep up with Sephiroth's blistering pace and not trip in the process. He'd not let me go yet and gave no hint of doing so. This made it ten times harder to stay on my feet for he was practically dragging me down the hall.
Several times I narrowly missed a piece of falling ceiling. Finally the stairs that lead to the surface appeared. Unfortunately there were several others who'd also arrived at the same moment we did. Sephiroth plowed through the terror stricken men and woman, and force his way to the door. Upon setting foot above ground, our speed of movement did not lessen.
Only when the Highwind finally came into view along with Yuffie and the others did we slow down. Then the ground gave a hard jolt and began to crack beneath our feet.
"Hurry!" Yuffie cried jumping up and down madly. The others had already started up the ladder to avoid taking a fatal plunge into the dark depths below.
Sephiroth released me as we came to a halt before Yuffie.
"Where's Vincent?" She asked the fear embedding itself in her heart.
"He's not coming." Sephiroth responded curtly. "I suggest we get going before the ground swallow's us. Now."
Yuffie nodded quietly and hurried up the ladder. I climbed up after her and Sephiroth came up behind me. Barret, Nanaki and Reeve were waiting at the top for us.
"Vincent is dead?" Reeve inquired.
"Most likely." Sephiroth responded and disappeared inside. The others followed.
I stepped up to the railing and watched as people scurried across the Midgar ruins like ants. Giant cracks formed and several sections collapsed a good 20 feet into the earth. Chaos had done a job on it, but what for? What were we dealing with now and why on earth had Vincent done this? It didn't make sense to me, but I had a feeling Vincent knew something that he failed to share with the rest of us. That was his way I guess.
The Highwind turned slowly around and started off. Another section of the ruins collapsed and a large mushroom cloud of dust projected into the air as we sped away.
Padded footsteps approached from behind me. "Let's go inside Tifa." Nanaki spoke and turned to leave.
"Ok." I answered softly and followed him inside.
Nanaki twisted his head around to look at me while we walked. "It's good to see you again Tifa." He said.
"It's good to see you again too, Nanaki." I replied.
The others had already headed to the bridge and were waiting for us when we arrived.
A painful silence hovered in the air. Sullen faces looked our way for only a short moment before they turned back to some inanimate object and their morning thoughts.
Barret's face formed a deepened scowl and he took a step forward. "What's goin on now? Someone mind tellin the rest of us who wasn't present at the time?" He growled irritably and waited impatiently for an answer. His eyes were fastened on Sephiroth who was currently standing with his back turned to us at the front of the bridge.
I sighed heavily letting my shoulders slump forward for a short instant. The small sound brought everyone's attention to me, excluding Sephiroth who apparently had no interest in us at the moment. They watched me with expectant eyes as I nervously cleared my throat and explained what happened.
Fifteen minutes later I finished and gladly stopped to take a break from speaking.
Cid kicked a nearby wall and let out a string of notorious curses. "Now we got ($#&$ (&$#(& Chaos running around!" His grumbling didn't cease for quite some time while the rest of us stood quietly… that wasn't entirely true though, Barret also had a few words to put in, but I'd rather not repeat what I believe he was saying.
"When we arrive at Cosmo Canyon I'll speak to Grandfather." Nanaki announced. "I do not believe that Vincent is dead after what Tifa has told us. I'm certain that he isn't. He's up to something, all we have to do is figure out what it is."
"How's he gonna live through that though?" Yuffie cried. Her motion sickness had apparently taken the day off it seemed, which was a first. "I'd like to believe it, but it just doesn't seem very likely, if you know what I mean."
"It certainly doesn't." Reeve agreed. "How do you figure that anyways Nanaki?"
"I remind all of you that Vincent has also been injected with Jenova cells. This may be the key to his survival." Nanaki answered. "Besides, Vincent is not the type who will give in easily. He stayed because he knew he wouldn't make it out with Tifa and Sephiroth, he was too weak. But, he may have had an idea. There is still a chance that Vincent is alive."
"It may only be a small bit of hope, but it's something." Shera sighed. "When will we be arriving at Cosmo Canyon?"
"Bout 5 hours." Cid replied a cigarette lodged into the corner of his mouth.
A rustling of clothing caused me to turn my attention to Sephiroth who'd finally decided to turn around and acknowledge our existence. His eyes landed on me. "Didn't you forget something?"
I frowned my mind searching about for what I could possibly have missed. The memory slapped me across the back of the head. "Oh. I see." I answered. "Do you want me to tell them?"
"You might as well." Sephiroth answered and turned back around.
"What now!" Barret exclaimed his eyes narrowing.
" Vincent is Sephiroth's father." I blurted out. My hands laced together behind my back and I studied the floor absentmindedly. I myself had not yet had the chance to let the information sink in. It had been so unexpected.
"Yer kidding me!" Yuffie yelled and let her jaw drop.
"Huh?" Barret's scowl formed into a wide-eyed bewildered stare.
Reeve placed his hands in his pockets again his usually look of uncertainty etched on his face.
Cid's cigarette was now lying on the floor, his mouth gaping open. Shera stood beside him her eyes seemingly looking into space, lost and befuddled.
"That's not quite as impossible as it may seem." Nanaki remarked his bushy brows knitting together thoughtfully. "I should have suspected it before, there is quite a resemblance between the two if you compare them. Vincent's past is directly connected with this entire Hojo debacle and his twisted experiment too."
"(#(, this gets weirder and weirder every damn minute!" Cid grumbled and seized the cigarette lying on the floor. "What about the Black Materia and the remainder of Lorse's followers?"
"It is possible that whatever Vincent was doing may be tied in with the black materia." Nanaki replied. "Right now we must concentrate on figuring out what exactly Chaos plans to do though. "
"Cause chaos?" Cid suggested with a grin.
"That's not even remotely funny." Yuffie mumbled and gave him an elbow in the ribs.
"Ouch!" He yelped and reached out to grab her. She bounded out of range easily.
"As for the remainder of Lorse's followers," Nanaki said loudly eyeing Cid and Yuffie with a bit of annoyance. "We'll hunt them down once Chaos has been dealt with."
Cid straitened up and nodded sternly. "Damn right!" He exclaimed. "I'd love to run that little bastard Evan through with my Venus Gospel."
"Don't we all." I answered in agreement feeling the heat of anger rise inside me at the simple mentioning of the bastard's name.
"So, is our meeting over then?" Yuffie interrupted. "I'm kinda sleepy."
"Yes." Nanaki replied. "We can't really find out anything till we arrive at Cosmo Canyon, but it won't hurt to think about it." He added. "If anything comes to mind don't hesitate to share it."
"Sleepy!" Barret shouted completely ignoring Nanaki's suggestion of 'thinking' just like everyone else. "It's 3 in the afternoon!"
Yuffie shot him a death glare. "So? Putting up with 'Mister I'm all mighty' over there is kind of exhausting you know?"
Barret smirked. "You'd think it'd be the other way around."
"Why you!" Yuffie shook her fist at him, but her energy fleeted away rather quickly. "If I wasn't so tired I'd…I'd…" Her mouth closed abruptly and her eyes wondered around in a state of confusion.
"You'd what?" Barret asked.
"Shut up, I'm trying to think here!" She snapped.
I stretched an arm around Yuffie's shoulder and gave Barret a warning look. "Don't tempt her, she's much too tired to be wrestling around with you." I said and lead her away.
Yuffie yawned tiredly and her eyes closed letting most of her weight lean against me.
I ended up half carrying, half dragging her down the stairs and across the grating to where she usually hung out. I frowned at the hard, cold floor and looked around for something that might be a little more comfortable for her.
"Here." Shera's voice rang out from behind me. She brushed past me and stretched out a large cotton blanket on the floor. "At least it won't be quite as cold."
"Good idea." I answered and put Yuffie down on the blanket. "Are there more where that came from?"
"I've got another one right here." Shera replied and draped the second blanket over Yuffie's sleeping form. Shera turned around placing her hands on her hips. "Well, it's been quite a hectic week, hasn't it?"
"Yes." I said softly and started back towards the bridge. "I can't say that I'm not a little tired either. Sleeping in that prison was nearly impossible."
"I know." Shera said as she walked beside me. She tilted her head to look at me curiously. "Tifa?"
"Hmm?" I murmured curiously.
"Are you alright?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired." I responded adding a smile of reassurance. Although I could be better I thought to myself. Sephiroth's behavior was gradually upsetting me more and more each minute.
The bridge was mostly silent when we returned. The gentle tap of cards hitting a hard surface was the only thing that could be heard. My gaze followed the sound to Barret, Reeve and Cid who were all engaged in a game of cards. I couldn't blame them, there wasn't much else to do and it was a nice way to relax when things weren't going so well.
I smiled lightly as I walked passed taking my place to the right of Sephiroth. He didn't appear to notice me as I guessed he wouldn't. This only intensified my current anger towards him. I'd come to the conclusion long ago when he'd rescued me that there was something definitely wrong, but what? Three extremely long, lonely days had passed since we were parted and now that he was back he wouldn't speak to me.
I snuck a glance at him and his eyes immediately shifted towards mine. I jumped, taken by surprise, and averted my gaze quickly away to the ocean that now lay before us.
"Yes?" The sharpness of his voice shattered my train of thought and made me shudder.
I whirled around, his sudden outburst catching me by surprise. "W-what?" I stammered idiotically.
His eyes narrowed. "Don't be stupid Lockheart, I saw that. What do you want?"
My cheeks flushed furiously. "I don't know what you're talking about." I retorted and went back to staring at the ocean. The rhythmic flowing of the water calmed my anger and kept me from punching him in the nose. Sometimes he could be so arrogant and annoying! And what was all this about? Everything had been fine before! Why was he suddenly being so cruel? What had I done?
His glare remained on me for quite some time before he finally looked away. I stood there for an hour just gazing at the ocean trying to figure out why he was being the way he was. Too bad we still had another 4 hours to go I thought miserably. I placed my hands on the rail and rested my head on them tiredly.
"Yo Tif!" Barret called.
"What?" I asked turning to face the three card players.
"We need another player for Oh Hell." He answered. "Ya know how ta play?"
My lips curved into a wide grin. "Yes." I answered and swiftly approached the table.
Cid pulled out a chair. "Then have a seat. Ain't like there's something else to do. Can't understand how you manage to stand there for so long without dying of boredom anyways. You look like you need some cheering up." He winced.
"Thanks Cid." I smiled and sat down on the empty chair. This would be interesting I thought. I'd played a lot of Oh Hell in my time. It was one of my favorite card games, but it had been a while. Now it was time to find out just how rusty I was.
We spent the next 4 hours playing card games. After the first two games of Oh Hell, both of which I won, everyone decided to switch to Hearts in hopes that they might beat me there. Luckily for them I detested Hearts and lost the majority of the first few hands, but as the playing progressed I found my game once again. Towards the end I really started to get lucky, or in Cid and Barret's terms, I was stacking the deck.
The Highwind came to a halt after the pilot announced our arrival at Cosmo Canyon and everyone filed out of the bridge except for myself. I was left to clean up the cards that had been scattered across the floor after Cid's loss of control (He'd lost for the 5th time in a row and couldn't take it anymore). Barret had pitched a few of his own cards as well. Reeve had been polite enough to leave his cards on the table bless his heart, but that was mostly because he won all the hands I lost.
Cid and Barret were not excellent card players by any means and after Cid's first attempt at cheating things went steadily down hill from there for him. As for Barret, there really was no explenation for his horrible bad luck and ghastly card playing.
I neatly stacked the cards on the table and hurried to catch up with the others. Thoughts of food, a shower and rest filled my head bringing a smile to my face. It would be nice to clean up and get a good night's sleep for once, but was it possible with so many things on my mind?
Eventually I caught up with the others just as they were heading inside. Elmyra, Marlene and Melony awaited us there and the girls were finally reunited with their parents. It was the highest point of my day seeing the smiles on their faces. It must have been hard for the two families to have their children taken away.
A late dinner was served for us and we were finally able to quench our hunger. It was already 10 p.m. when I finished and a few of the others had already gone to sleep, namely Yuffie. She was barely awake during dinner, just enough to chew her food and swallow. Barret and his daughter retired to their room as well to get some rest. It was no surprise that everyone was exhausted, both physically and mentally.
I rested my weary muscles in a hot bath for almost an hour after eating. The herbs that had been placed in the water had helped to sooth my aching muscles and allowed me to relax for a short while. Getting out was not easy, but I couldn't stay there forever and the water was getting cold. I fumbled around with my clothing for a bit fighting off goose bumps in the process. Eventually I got everything on and was not quite as cold as I was before.
Again I was stuck with a blasted hair dryer to dry my hair. I really wasn't fond of them for some reason, but if I were to sleep tonight my hair would have to be dry or else I'd be a miserable wreck for the entire night. Nothing is worse than sleeping on a wet pillow.
Once the time consuming job was finally finished I headed to the room that I shared with Yuffie. I slipped inside to be engulfed by darkness and tip toed over to my bed. Silver light peeked through the window and illuminated a small portion of the floor. My gaze traveled outside and I approached the window curiously. As I looked out the moon shed her brilliance on me. The moon was simply stunning tonight and for a moment I felt at peace.
Sephiroth hovered in my mind though refusing to go away. Just the thought of him and his anger towards me earlier caused my mood to plummet into the ground. I sighed and shot a glance at my untouched bed. I could already feel anxiousness driving its fangs into my flesh, but I crawled under the covers of my bed just the same and tried to rest my tired body.
Author's Notes: Whew, I'm so exhausted. I've been working non-stop for the last 3 days. Finally this chapter is up! Again I'm very sorry for not updating quickly like I said I would. Writer depression caught me by surprise. Anyways, I hope that everyone had an excellent Christmas! Please review too (if it's good, which I hope it is)! You're encouragement motivates me to get chapters out faster! Oh and I'm positive that chapter 9 will be up in only 3 or 4 more days. (The first half of it was originally going to be part of this chapter, but it was much to long, over 8000 words!)
I'd like to give thanks to my brother Kiche who helped me come up with the idea of having Chaos become a major part of the story! Without his help I don't think I would have been able to finish this chapter near as quickly as I did (that's scary considering how long it DID take me to get this up).