short, i know, but the next chapter will be longer. and i'm working on it today; i had one of those divine inspirational moments earlier today. sorry its taken me so long to update; i've been focusing on my contest piece for the sephyxcloud club over on deviantart. i have only the epilogue left of that one, then its ready to go. wish me luck and go check out my deviantart account if you feel the need. the user ID is the same as here.

Chapter 20

The Galian Beast woke Vincent just after dawn by carefully poking his side with his horns. All that kept the Beast from getting shot was the fact that he handgun had no ammunition anymore.

For his part, the Galian Beast looked surprised to be staring down the barrel of the gun as Vincent's brain caught up with his reflexes. "Don't do that, Beast."

Vincent lowered the gun and reholstered it, while the Beast snuffled in apology. Vincent patted his companion's head consolingly. "Its all right, Beast. Did you find any breakfast?" The gunslinger wasn't expecting a positive answer—or at least not anything he could have eaten.

Therefore, he was pleasantly surprised when the Galian Beast dropped the carcass of a large rabbit in his lap. Vincent couldn't help but think that the creature looked incredibly pleased with himself.

"Nice work," he said. "Have you eaten?"

The Beast nodded and looked at Vincent expectantly. Vincent laughed at his expression. "I'm going to eat the rabbit, Beast. I just have to clean it and cook it first."

The Galian Beast seemed satisfied with this answer, as he turned away from Vincent and took up his guard position by the door.

For once, the gunslinger found himself being grateful for the sharpness of his clawed hand as he used it to skin the rabbit. He wondered, though, why the Planet had left him with it when he was reconstructed. Perhaps the Planet simply assumed I was supposed to be this way. I doubt that it keeps track of the exact lives of all its inhabitants, after all.

Inwardly, Vincent shrugged off his thoughts before they could turn down the dark, brooding path he'd felt them taking; the claw was a reminder that even though his body was his own now, he still didn't feel entirely human. There was…something still inside him, something dark that he feared to see brought forth.

And yet, like the demons, he knew that this last secret would also be pulled into the light at the least convenient moment.

He thought about Yuffie instead. About her warm smile and bright eyes. How mature she really was, even if she still often acted like a child. How she could make even the most horrible ordeal bearable just by being there.

About how much he loved her.

The rabbit was less done than he would have liked normally when he pulled it out of the fire to eat, but he was seized by a desperate urge to move on as soon as possible. He was still worried about Chaos, but he suddenly, desperately needed to see Yuffie again.