Failure. Again.
This time, he had brought many others down with him, people he had almost dared to call friends. Now, Sephiroth would remain subject to Hojo's experiments. Aeris had no one but Nanaki and Miera to protect her. And Lucrecia... what would happen to her? Would Hojo steal her away again? Gods, he should have just come alone.
"Hey, Vinny, you awake?"
He opened his eyes to meet Yuffie's dark grey gaze. Her voice had the guise of cheerfulness, but it was strained with uncertainty and fear.
Vincent sat up, his black hair falling forward into his eyes. He shoved it back absently and noticed then that his bandana was missing. He glanced at Yuffie questioningly.
She shrugged nervously and gestured to his arm. "It makes for a good bandage. They took all our materia, so I couldn't heal it."
He nodded and murmured a quiet "thank you" before looking around. He sat on the floor, Yuffie crouching nearby, in a small room devoid of any furnishings. The door had a complicated lock that would not be easy to pick without triggering an alarm.
"Oh!" Yuffie exclaimed suddenly, drawing his attention. He turned his head to look at her, noticing only then the dull pain in his head. Yuffie must have had it worse, but she had not complained. Vincent was impressed.
"I think it was Minerva," the ninja went on, handing him a small-cloth-wrapped bundle. "She left this for you."
He unfolded it silently, finding a few tools inside. It was an apology, he soon ascertained; she had left these for the reparation of his arm, which now hung as a dead weight at his left.
Vincent set to work immediately, removing the obtrusive bandage and pushing up the sleeve to expose what flesh remained of that arm. The wound had begun to heal, tentatively, but he ignored its progress and stabbed the metal point of a sharp tool into the gash, searching for the damaged parts of metal. He ignored the pain, but he saw Yuffie wince and look away.
"I wonder how the others are doing," she said quietly, hesitantly trying to draw him into conversation. He had no speculation to offer, however, so he said nothing. She glanced at him briefly and looked away again. He wondered if she was afraid of him; she certainly had every right to be.
"Is it bad?" she asked.
He paused to spare her a questioning glance.
"Your, uh... injury."
He shrugged and went back to work. Somehow his lack of response failed to encourage further attempts at conversation. For a long while, the only sounds in the room came from the tools clinking faintly against the metal of his arm.
Vincent studied Yuffie out of the corner of his eye. Admittedly the ninja had surprised him. In the past five years, she'd grown from a slip of a girl into a young woman, not only physically but mentally as well. Though her overconfidence and spunk remained, her child-like complaints and stubbornness had vanished, replaced by a genuine regard for her companions.
Sitting nearby on her heels, she seemed oddly poised for action, yet the barrier of the unknown and the untouchable served as an obstacle to any such endeavors. She did not speak again until he set down the bloodied tools and retrieved his bandana. He was surprised to find a tinge of bitterness in her voice.
"I'll bet I can guess what you're thinking," she sighed, rocking back off her heels to sit on her rear. "'Aw, shit, I'm stuck with Yuffie of all people. I hope she'll just shut up and leave me be instead of being her usual annoying, bratty self.'"
Vincent listened silently, winding the red fabric around his arm.
"Only, you'd never say it like that," she continued. "Or maybe you'd never say it at all because you think yourself too much of a gentleman. You'd just refuse to acknowledge it. But let's face it: you can't stand me."
Tying off the bandana, he finally met her gaze. "That isn't at all what I was thinking," he told her flatly.
"Oh, so I guess you barely even noticed me."
"I meant, you could not be farther from the truth."
Yuffie eyed him uncertainly. "What, you mean you don't think I'm annoying?"
"No."
"...then what do you think?" When he did not answer, she shook her head, grinning halfheartedly. "I guess that's going a little far, huh? To ask the opinion of Vinny Valentine."
"No, it isn't. To be honest, Yuffie, you've impressed me with how much you've matured in the past few years. You have grown stronger, I think, in more ways than one." He hesitated. "You remind me... of a woman I once met in Wutai."
Yuffie sat up eagerly. "You're from Wutai?"
"Yes, though I only lived there in my early childhood. This woman I met while visiting as a Turk."
Her face fell at the reminder of his association with Shinra. "Oh, that's right... You helped destroy it, didn't you?"
"Yes," he answered, fully expecting her to condemn him for it.
But when Yuffie looked up, she was smiling. "Well, that's okay. It was a long time ago, and it's not like you can undo stuff that's already happened. Wutai got ruined; you can't change that."
"But you can," Vincent said softly.
"Huh?"
"With you to lead it, I am certain Wutai will return to its former glory."
She flushed in embarrassment. "Thanks..."
He shrugged uncomfortably.
"I think you're going soft, Vinny," she told him, trying to joke her way through her discomfort. "All these compliments--it's not like you."
"I suppose not."
"Is it 'cause you've got Lucrecia back now?" she asked suddenly.
Probably, she was right, but at the moment he could only think of how he had failed Lucrecia by not bringing her back her son. He said nothing.
Yuffie shrugged. "Guess I won't push it. I mean, you've already said more in the past five minutes than you used to in a month."
A silence fell between them, and a more serious expression fell across the young ninja's face like a shadow. She drew her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms about them. "What do you think they're gonna do with us?"
Vincent frowned; he had not bothered to consider it. "Likely he wants us alive for the same reasons he wants Sephiroth and Aeris."
"You mean... human experimentation?" she asked with a shudder.
"Yes. In your case."
"That's right; you're not human, and neither are they. You've all been through this before, haven't you?"
Vincent nodded silently, trying to keep the vivid details from coming to mind.
"I'm scared," Yuffie confessed suddenly. "Of what he might do to me..."
The lock attracted his attention once more. "I know," he replied; there was nothing he could say to comfort her. "We need to find a way out."
She lifted her head. "Hey, is that why he put us together?" When Vincent glanced at her in confusion, she went on, "I mean, he doesn't want us to get out, so he threw us together 'cause he expects us to be, I dunno, counterproductive. 'Cause you don't talk, and I talk too much--Which means, I guess, that I should shut up now so we can get to work, right?"
"Right."
Yuffie grinned. "Looks like it didn't work very well."
Elena pushed herself up, rubbing her head, and made the mistake of getting to her feet too quickly. Why did her head hurt so badly? Where was she? Steadying herself, she looked around. A metal-walled cell greeted her eyes, featureless and devoid of furniture save for a small cot shoved into a corner like an afterthought.
She glanced down to find Cid coming to his senses. Once he had sat up, she asked, "How's your head?"
The pilot stared up at her blankly, as though not recognizing her. Then he cleared his throat and said gruffly, "Like shit." A pause. "How're you feeling?"
"It's like there's a hammer in my head," she complained melodramatically, putting a hand to her head as she sat down on the edge of the cot. She sighed and went on soberly, "I guess we're just lucky nothing worse happened to us. We've still got all our limbs, after all."
"For how long?" Cid wondered. "Maybe he'll do one of us like he did Vincent."
"Ugh! He'd better not choose me!"
"It was prob'ly just a special case," he reasoned. "He's got nothin' personal against us."
Elena was not reassured. "Do you think we can get outta here?"
"Dunno." He nodded towards the door. "Can you pick that kinda lock?"
She followed his gaze and shook her head. "Not me. Maybe Reno could--maybe. You'd have to get it exactly right on the first try, or it'd trigger an alarm."
"Damn."
"I don't see any other way out, do you?"
Cid shook his head. "Looks like we're stuck here for a while."
Elena sighed. "We should've tried to find our own way in, instead of persuading her to take us. If she were strong enough to help us, she would've left Hojo years ago."
"I'm still not convinced she didn't set out to trap us," Cid said flatly. "But hey, your friend seems to like her, huh?"
She rolled her eyes. "Oh, please, Reno likes anything that's female and isn't me."
"Why'd he rule you out?"
"How should I know? When we were Turks, he just saw me as 'the rookie,' and now I'm just... I dunno, like a bratty little sister to him."
"Huh. Guess that sucks."
"Oh, no, I don't care. You think I want him flirting with me? I'll take little sister to that any day."
This won a curt laugh from Cid. "Wouldn't know, kid."
Elena smiled faintly in response and lay back on the cot, her thoughts elsewhere. Reno had always been cool to her, and that was fine, but... so had Tseng. When she'd known him, he'd barely even noticed her, except to give out orders or scoldings. Only at the Temple had he talked to her like she was his equal, and asked her to dinner.
Though she doubted he had meant it. She had seen him on his death bed, and what had he said? 'Tell Aeris I'm sorry.' Elena had only been second choice, because he'd known Aeris was out of his reach. What did Aeris have that was so attractive to everyone? Okay, so it wasn't that hard of a question; she was pretty, she was smart, she was nice, and she was brave, too. Elena could never amount to something like that.
Even if Tseng was revived, he would never want her.
She stared up at the ceiling with a frown, wishing there were something to take her mind off of this. "No dots to count," she commented.
"Huh?"
"Nothing to do until they come to tell us what they're gonna do with us."
"If they bother telling us."
"Think they'll kill us?"
"Hojo? Nah. That bastard wouldn't waste lives like that, not when he has so many potential 'specimens.' He'll find something to use us for."
"'Potential specimen'? I'd rather die."
"Goddamnit," Reno muttered, forcing his eyes open and carefully pushing himself up. The pain in his head seemed to swirl violently, and he almost fell over again.
"I thought you'd be used to it," a voice remarked flatly. Looking up, Reno saw that the voice belonged to Cloud, and an annoyed gaze to a pair of Mako blue eyes. "What, with your hangovers and all," the blond added.
The Turk grumbled incoherently and got to his feet, pushing at his messy hair. "This is worse than a hangover."
"Whatever. It's about time you got up."
"Sorry," Reno said dryly, "I wasn't aware we were in a hurry."
"You wanna stay here forever?"
"Sure, seems pretty nice to me," the redhead replied, looking around appraisingly. "I just love the whole lack-of-color thing they've got going on."
Cloud folded his arms. "This is no time to be joking around."
"Man, you need to lighten up. Why'd I have to get stuck with you? Even Elena would be better company."
"Thanks a lot. You're no picnic either. But we've gotta get out of here." He eyed the lock on the door, clearly vexed. "We should never have listened to that girl. All she did was lead us inside so she could beat the hell out of us when our guard was down."
"Hey," Reno protested, "she was trying not to beat the hell out of us. I mean, she could've killed us easy, but she didn't. Hell, she even warned us!"
"You're only defending her because she's a girl," Cloud stated.
"Okay, so she's cute, but that's got nothing to do with it."
The blond leaned back against the wall, regarding him skeptically. "Sure it doesn't."
Reno sighed in annoyance. "Anyway, she said she was sorry."
"She didn't sound sorry, and even if she meant it, that doesn't make up for anything."
He shook his head. "No, not then. I mean, after the fight."
"What?"
"You mean you didn't hear it?"
Cloud shook his head. "If she said anything, I didn't hear it."
"It wasn't out loud. It was like... in my head."
The blond eyed him critically. "Are you feeling all right? Besides the worse-than-a-hangover headache, I mean."
Reno glared at him, roughly shoving his hands in his pockets and opening his mouth to bite off a retort. He stopped. He never carried anything but loose change and rubber bands in his pockets, but here was a slip of paper and--he pulled the items out--a screwdriver. Too, he noticed his nightstick tucked in his waistband. He glanced at Cloud, who was watching as though no longer certain whether or not to be angry, and unfolded the paper. The handwriting was neat and sharp, with no time wasted on elegance.
I am sorry for being such a fool as to think I could help you. They would not let me heal you, but perhaps I can provide some aid indirectly. I put you in this room for a reason; there is an old air vent above you that I believe you can access as an escape route.
"What's that?"
He handed the note to Cloud, pocketed the screwdriver, and looked up. At first, he saw nothing out of the ordinary, just a metal-panelled ceiling with several bright white lights set in it.
"I don't see anything," Cloud commented dubiously.
Reno glanced at him. "What, you think they'd made it obvious?" The two looked in silence for several minutes before the redhead pointed. "There."
"Oh. I see it."
The Turk made his way over to the room's narrow bed. "Could you gimme a hand? We lift it vertical, and it should be sturdy enough..."
"Wait. How do you know she's not trying to trick us somehow?"
"What d'you mean?"
"Well, why can't she help us more directly?"
Reno shrugged. "I guess it's like Elena said. And if Hojo notices her opening doors for us, she's gonna get it."
"You really believe that?"
"Didn't you see how much pain she was in?" he asked, waiting with one hand on the headboard. "She wasn't faking that."
Cloud shrugged. "Okay, okay. I guess this's our best chance, right? Why trick us if we're already captured?"
"Right. So are you gonna help me with this or what?"
The blond nodded and came over to help Reno lift the bed so that it rested on its backboard. The Turk then scrambled to the top while Cloud held it steady. Pulling out the screwdriver, he proceeded to open the duct and remove the cover. Once done, he set the panel aside and poked his head into the opening.
"Whoa, small."
"Can you fit in, though?"
"I think so. Lemme try." Reno pocketed the screws and hoisted himself into the duct, crawling forward a ways. Satisfied that he could move around, he backed up to stick his head out of the opening. "Yeah, just barely. I don't think you could fit."
"You just saying that because you wanna leave me here?"
"You wanna climb up and see for yourself? Be my guest."
"All right, I will." Cloud pulled himself up atop the bed while Reno crawled backwards out of his way. The blond stuck his head into the opening. "It is small," he admitted reluctantly. He climbed back down, and the redhead promptly reappeared.
"See? So, I'll go and see if I can get you and the others out, though that'll prolly take a while 'cause I've got no idea where this goes."
"How do I know you won't just bail yourself out and leave the rest of us here?"
"Hey," Reno said indignantly, "you think I'd leave my Turks behind and abandon the mission? 'sides, Aeris'd never forgive me if I left you locked up, of all people."
Cloud frowned.
"Anyway," Reno went on, "you've gotta cover my tracks so they can't figure out where I've gone." He pulled the screws out of his pocket and set them carefully down on the panel cover so they wouldn't roll off. "Hurry up and get everything back to normal. If someone walks in while the room's like this, we're in deep shit."
"What do I tell them?"
The Turk grinned. "Pretend I was never here. That's easy enough, right?"
Cloud nodded.
"Well, see ya." With that, he pulled himself forward across the opening and into the darkness of the air duct. He wondered if it led across the other cells, though he guessed it didn't matter if it wasn't accessible from them.
It was annoying that he couldn't see anything. Even his Mako-enhanced vision could make nothing out of this darkness except imaginary designs and swirling colors. It was slow going, and it seemed even slower with no way to mark either his progression or the passage of time; he couldn't read his watch in this black. He hoped Cloud wasn't making a fool of himself. He hoped the others were all right.
And he wondered if Minerva was all right. Even if she had won in the end, they'd put up a good fight, and maybe Hojo had punished her on top of that, for trying to disobey him. Reno had been in Hojo's lab a couple of times, for the Mako treatments, but he couldn't imagine what it was like for Minerva, being a specimen her whole life. Had she even seen the light of day before going to capture Sephiroth?
He stopped suddenly. What was that? He thought he heard a murmur of song... coming from up ahead. The humming stopped momentarily, and Reno crawled stealthily forward so that if she started up again, he'd be able to hear it. Sure enough, he soon heard a disconsolate voice below him.
"What are demons,
If you don't fight them?
Supposedly they add to your burdens,
But if they do, I don't notice.
"And what is pain,
If it doesn't hurt you?
I have heard people scream from it,
But I never have, and why should I?
"And what is love,
If no one loves you?
Presumably... it is to be strived for,
But what's one emotion worth?
"And who am I?
What am I here for?
I have no strength, no love, no fear--
So who would desire such a girl?"
By this time he had identified the singer as Minerva. She had a beautiful singing voice, he thought, clear and clean, but not too high. He heard her sigh below him and mutter, "No one, no one at all."
He wanted to talk to her, but he worried that the sound might carry to other parts of the lab. Instead, he tapped once on the panel below him, hoping she'd notice.
"Oh," she said softly, "I see you've made it into the ducts. Do not say anything; they will hear."
Reno held his tongue with some effort.
"You heard me singing, didn't you?" she asked tonelessly. "You want to comfort me? Humans are so strange..." He could imagine her shaking her head.
"If you continue in the direction you are headed, you will come out in the reactor. You can make your way out from there. As for your comrades, I would not advise coming back for them." She paused, and something about her tone changed slightly. "I have heard that Aeris is coming. You should stop her if you can; she will only get herself captured like the rest of you."
Aeris is coming? What the hell does she think she's doing? Reno hesitated, then wordlessly thanked Minerva and went on his way. Silence and darkness slunk in to claim their thrones as he crawled. Time stretched out as thin as it would go, and then stretched further. Yet somehow, despite the monotony, he found no room to think in the suffocating closeness of the air duct.
Light filtered in slowly enough for him not to notice he was nearing an exit until suddenly he was there at the end of the duct with a metal ladder leading down. Reno climbed out gratefully and nearly danced for joy there on the fragile-looking walkway.
Instead Reno peered into the semidarkness which, compared to the duct, seemed as bright as day. He did not recognize this part of the reactor; had they laid it out differently from the others, or had Meteor wreaked these changes upon it?
More importantly, where would he go from here? He could either find a way back and free the others, or find the exit and stop Aeris from making a mistake. What was she thinking, coming here? he wondered. She couldn't take care of herself, much less rescue anyone. He decided that making sure she stayed out of Hojo's grasp was more important; after convincing her, he could go back for the others on his own. Anyway, the others were probably working on getting out, too. They weren't stupid.
Reno looked around again and nearly laughed. What was he thinking? He didn't even know which way was which! How was he supposed to decide? With a shrug, he picked a direction and figured wherever he ended up would determine his actions.
"Damnit, Rude, can't you think of anything? You were a Turk, weren't you? Aren't the Turks supposed to be experts at getting in and out of places without being noticed?"
"Sorry," he muttered. Why did Hojo have to put him with her? He could have worked with anyone, even Cloud, but not her.
Tifa turned to eye him critically. "What's up with you anyway?"
He shook his head. "Nothing, I'm sorry." He leaned back against the wall and scanned the room, but his mind refused to focus. Five years hadn't changed her, he thought. She was still just as strong and just as beautiful as she had been then--and currently, just as angry as she used to get sometimes.
"No, it's not nothing," she stated with a frown. "So spit it out so we can move on."
He fixed his eyes on the door behind her, keeping his voice level. "Five years ago, when you were with Avalanche, I... developed feelings for you. It seems they haven't properly faded."
"What?" she exclaimed. Clearly this was the last thing she had expected. "But--how? We only ran into you guys a few times."
Rude shifted uncomfortably under her gaze. "We saw much more of you than you did of us. The Turks did not specialize in getting caught."
"Looks like you're caught now, though."
He nodded silently.
Tifa cleared her throat. "So, can you get that out of your head and help me with this lock?"
Another nod. He could tell his confession had only made her uncomfortable, but at least she wasn't angry anymore. He scanned the room first for any other ways out, but found nothing. Shaking his head, he strode forward for a better look at the lock.
"Anything?" Tifa asked after a few minutes.
"No. I'm not familiar with this kind of lock."
She sighed and slumped against a wall. "Does that mean there's no getting out of here on our own?"
Rude nodded.
Tifa frowned anxiously. "Let's hope the others had better luck," she said, though she did not sound very hopeful.
Reeve lay on his back staring up at the ceiling, the cold of the tile floor beneath him seeping through his clothing. He was alone. He wondered briefly if the others were alone like he was, and how they were doing, but thoughts like those would do him no good. He had to find a way out of here.
He saw nothing promising in the ceiling, and the lights were beginning to blind him. The metal panels fit too snugly; there was nothing above them. Sitting up, he turned his attention to the door, studying the lock. No, he didn't know how to get past that. He spared the floor a cursory examination and came up empty there, too.
He knew his other options. He was out of practice, but he could still operate Cait Sith. The question was what to do with it. He could return to the reactor, but what would he do then? He wouldn't even be able to get across the gap to the reactor or past Minerva's wall.
Or, he could send Cait to Cosmo Canyon to seek aid from Nanaki and Miera. With their sharp feline minds, maybe they could figure out a solution. The problem with this was that Aeris would want to get involved, and he didn't want to risk putting her in danger.
Then again, she'd probably already sensed something was amiss. Moreover, being a Cetra, maybe she would be able to get them past Minerva's barriers. And, he supposed, Minerva could capture her no matter where she was.
Reeve moved to the cot and lay down to concentrate, resolving to try to meet up with Aeris.
Sephiroth studied Talya carefully from where he sat in a corner. She had come in some time ago, but barely spoken. It almost seemed as though she had not noticed his presence. "How are they doing?" he asked.
"Hmm?"
"Aeris's friends. Minerva captured them for you, did she not?"
Talya looked down at her hands. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you know." He waited, and she sighed. "They're all right. Min said for the most part she didn't give them any serious wounds."
"I see."
"Aeris wasn't with them," she said suddenly.
"I know, but you will be going to get her soon enough."
She shrugged. "No orders yet. Minerva's been acting kinda weird..."
"That is understandable."
Talya looked over at him. "Then could you explain it to me? 'cause I sure don't get it." When he only smirked in reply, she sighed and glanced at the door. "You haven't even tried to escape, have you?"
"No. Why should I?"
"You mean you want to be one of Hojo's specimens? You want him to treat you like this?"
"No."
"Then why don't you leave?" There was something almost plaintive about her voice.
"Because I need to be contained," Sephiroth answered. "I am dangerous. If I leave here, people will die."
Talya scoffed. "You wouldn't kill anyone. You're sane."
"Am I, really?"
I have been wondering much the same thing, Jenova remarked carefully. You've been very quiet since you remembered what you did to Aeris.
"What are you talking about?" Talya demanded, but her eyes betrayed her uncertainty.
"How do you know I'm sane?" he asked. Thanks to you, I cannot think straight, he spat. I keep recalling how beautiful she looked when she died. But I will never fight for you. I am staying here, where I cannot get to anyone, where Minerva will keep my powers beyond my reach.
What if Minerva were to let go her control?
Talya was eyeing him skeptically, and the doubt had reached her voice. "Sure you're more secretive than before, but that doesn't mean you're insane. You look fine..."
Sephiroth smiled. "You're such a fool. You think I would show it that plainly?" I might let go mine.
And you'd kill for me?
"Last time, you burned down a village and killed hundreds," the ex-Turk stated flatly. "I'd call that 'showing it plainly.'"
"Ah, but now I've no villages to burn and nothing to burn them with. No people to kill save you, and nothing to kill you with save my bare hands..." Not for you. I was created to destroy, was I not? It is what comes easiest to me, and I do enjoy it. But, that pleasure does not justify it.
So you're glad they have you trapped like this? Jenova queried flatly, but he did not answer her.
Talya had nothing to say. Her eyes were a bit too wide, and she kept glancing at the door.
He stood smoothly. "I wonder... if I could kill you here and now. Of course, it wouldn't be a pretty death, without the clean cuts and the blood flowing out of you." He paced slowly forward, watching the emotions in her eyes. "Perhaps you wish to leave now?" A part of him hoped that she would, but another part wanted to search her for a knife, a blade of any kind, and run it down her bare arms, along her cheek, across her throat to let free the blood.
He stopped himself a few paces from her and shook his head. No, no, why am I thinking like this?
Because it's in your nature.
Talya had gotten to her feet by this time and stood with her back pressed to the wall. Seeing him frozen, she moved cautiously to the door, eyeing him with fear and something like concern. "Get a grip on yourself, okay? You're scaring me."
"Must I? Can I?" Sephiroth shook his head. "I doubt it, but I will try," he managed.
Talya stared at him for a moment longer, then quickly slipped out the door and locked it behind her.
He sat down hard on the bed. Good, she's gone.
She's afraid of you.
She should be.
"Thank you," the shopkeeper said, smiling as she accepted the coinage.
Aeris hefted her newly-acquired Prism Staff. It was light, and, despite going for so long without it, the make still felt familiar in her grip.
"Excuse me," the woman said hesitantly, leaning forward across the counter, "but your face looks familiar..."
The Cetra looked up. "Yes, I guess it might. I came here with my friends about five years ago."
"Five years ago," she murmured, tapping her lip thoughtfully. "Oh! You're one of Nanaki's friends?"
"That's right."
The shopkeeper straightened, her friendly smile returning. "Have you been here long?"
"Only a few days," Aeris answered.
"And you're leaving already? Where are you going?"
"Midgar."
The woman's eyes widened. "All the way to Midgar? I've heard it's a hideous place now, with what Meteor did to it. Why do you want to go there?"
"I have business there, and besides, I grew up in Midgar. It's about time I paid it a visit."
"I guess," the shopkeeper agreed doubtfully. "Well, have a safe journey."
"Thank you," Aeris replied. She headed down the steps to the gate where Nanaki was waiting.
He bumped his head against her leg in greeting. "You look cheery this morning."
She knelt down to stroke his mane. "I feel like I could take on the world."
He turned his head to regard her with some amusement. "And you know, that is almost what we are doing."
Aeris laughed. "I guess you're right. So, what did Miera say?"
"She's staying here. 'Someone has to keep the little ones out of trouble,' she says."
The Cetra shook her head and straightened. "Well then, are you ready to go?"
"Yes," he replied, then turned his head to look beyond her. Aeris followed his gaze to watch Katrina run up.
"Hey, guys," she greeted with some confusion. "You going somewhere?"
Aeris hesitated, and decided on the truth. "We're worried that our friends are in trouble, so we're going off to Midgar to help them out."
"Then you've got your strength back after, uh, being dead and then reviving Lucrecia?"
"Not completely," the Cetra admitted, "but if they're in trouble, then I can't afford to waste any time."
"Can I come with?" Katrina asked brightly.
She shook her head, smiling apologetically. "No, I don't think so. If you couldn't protect yourself from a few wolves, this battle will be far too dangerous for you."
"But..."
"I know you want to help," Aeris went on, "but wanting isn't enough. You'll only get in the way if you come with us, so please, just stay here and look after Lucrecia until we get back."
Nanaki nudged the girl's calf to get her attention. "Look after Kari, too, if you can. She is the most troublesome child in the village."
Katrina forced herself to smile. "I... I'll do that."
"Thank you."
"Well, good luck."
Aeris nodded gratefully and turned through the gate and down the steps, Nanaki at her heels. There they found the gold chocobo, and she stroked its neck absently, looking back towards the gate. "I hope she's not resentful, being left behind..."
"She must realize she wouldn't be able to help."
"I guess so," the Cetra agreed reluctantly, "but I still feel for her. I've heard those words before myself, and I didn't like it." Sighing, she pulled herself up atop the chocobo and looked down at Nanaki. "Can you keep up with a chocobo?"
"Fairly well," he replied. "I presume we are going to Costa del Sol from here?" He said it without sentiment, but she saw his nose wrinkle in distaste and remembered how much he had hated the heat.
"Only to buy passage on a ship to Junon." He nodded, and Aeris turned the chocobo northeast. "Well, let's get going. We've got a long road ahead of us, in more ways than one."
She listened to the sounds of Talya's receding footsteps, waiting until she was certain she would not be interrupted. Then her hand travelled slowly to her head. She sat down, her eyes closing, her fingers sliding through her silver hair, searching pointlessly. When he had electrocuted her, she felt as though she could feel it... right there. Her fingers stopped. There was nothing but scalp and fine hair, and she let her hand drop. That she had no access to it came as no surprise.
The electricity had hurt her, of course, but the pain had originated from that one point, and she wondered if the energy had damaged the device, too.
If it was damaged, then why didn't you stop fighting, hmm?
Minerva's eyes snapped open and her head shot up. Shut up. I don't want to hear anything from you on the subject.
But doesn't it prove that you enjoyed fighting them?
It proves nothing. I simply cannot think with that pain in my body.
So you still claim you do not want to kill them? You know you may have to, if the Professor deems them worthless.
I refuse. I will kill myself if he orders me to kill any of them. Just fighting them, I... I cannot. I will not do it again. He cannot make me!
You know, Jenova reminded her gently, if you would only change your mind, you wouldn't have to stay here. You wouldn't have to kill them. My offer still stands.
You would only have me slaughter others. I refuse.
Then don't come crying to me when you have to execute the Cetra's friends.
Since when have I asked you for help? Minerva demanded.
Never.
Exactly. So cease this nonsense. Her eyes were on the lock. I wonder... if it is truly damaged, could I just... walk out? Could I destroy the lock and leave without them ever noticing?
It's strange, Jenova remarked. Sephiroth would never have had any problem getting out of here, but you find it nearly impossible.
What do you mean?
Oh, he'd just teleport himself elsewhere. Minerva could sense the venom in Jenova's words as she added, Back to that Cetra friend of his.
I do not know how to do everything Sephiroth does, the girl stated coolly.
If you could release him from your spell, he could have the both of you out of here in an instant.
Minerva glanced at the wall between her room and Sephiroth's, wondering if he could hear her conversation with Jenova. She wondered, too, if it would be wise to free him in the condition he was in. The last time I tried something like that, the Professor nearly killed me, was all she said.
Ah, yes, that would be fresh in your mind. What was that? Two weeks ago? I still don't understand why you did it.
I felt something, and I knew I had to leave before...
Before what?
This.
Jenova fell silent, and Minerva sighed in relief. She stood, studying the lock. It would be so easy to rip it apart, if only the pain in her head would leave her alone. She took a step closer, fingering that spot at the base of her skull. Would the device work? Was the damage only superficial? Or was it dead now, just a useless piece of metal in her head?
Only one way to find out.
Author's Notes
Another Yuffie/Vincent scene! Oh, they make me happy. I'd just like to note that the woman Yuffie reminds Vincent of would be her mother. If you have him in your party when meeting Yuffie, Vincent will say "I've seen her somewhere before," which doesn't make sense unless you take into consideration that Yuffie may look a lot like her mother, who would have been around in Vincent's time. I've always found that interesting, so I wanted to incorporate it.
This chapter is just full of interesting character combinations. The Reno/Cloud scene was also a lot of fun to write. Minerva's song, not so easy. I did come up with a tune for it, but it's not really very good, so I've long since stopped sharing it. ;; In the original, it was one of two songs that Minerva composes, though she never sang the second one. The second she made for Aeris, but that's been cut from this version, partly because I decided it wasn't necessary, mostly because I don't really like the song anymore.
Cut from this chapter was an exchange between Miera and Katrina where Katrina, frustrated about not being able to help rescue Sephiroth, went off to find someone to teach her to fight. When I wrote it I was considering having her join in a later fight, possibly against Jenova, but I realized that it wouldn't make sense because even if she did learn to fight competently in that short span of time, she'd still be far too inexperienced to fight Jenova. I liked illustrating that she wanted to help, but decided it wasn't important enough to include.