AUTHOR'S NOTE: I own nothing of Bayonetta or Final Fantasy 7.
Isla Del Sol was far more technologically advanced than the rest of Vigrid. Sleek buildings rose into the sky, futuristic cars and trams transported the unconcerned citizens around the soaking wet trio. In the distance, in the exact centre of the spiral island, was an impossibly large building. The place no one of the two adults wanted to go to, but the destination they needed to go to.
"The Ithavoll tower." Luka said gravely. "Never seen it before, and it certainly lives up to the splendour."
"Lead the way, Cheshire." Bayonetta gently took Cereza. "We certainly don't have time to waste."
Cereza's eyes didn't stray from hers. "Are we close to what you are looking for, Mummy?"
She smiled and nodded at the small girl in her arms. "We are, little one. Remember what I told you?"
"Welcome to Isla Del Sol, the Island of wealth and power!" An all too familiar voice said from behind them, interrupting Cereza before she had a chance to reply.
Bayonetta turned, a sinking feeling in her chest. Luka turned as well, his eyes wide, and she flinched from the sight of the witch.
Her outfit was dirty, torn and had obvious patches of blood seeped into it. Her face was drawn into a grim line, and her eyes were sunken in, dark patched surrounding them.
"Jeanne." Bayonetta greeted cordially, and with familiarity. Her eyes narrowed at her former friend.
"Yes…" She smiled in obvious relief. "If you've made it this far, you should be back to your old self. And it seems you are."
"Jeanne…" Bayonetta put down Cereza gently. "We don't have to do this. You're my friend, aren't you?"
"This is where we finish what was started so long ago!" The witch in red pointed at Bayonetta's chest. "That Eye will become mine!"
"This Umbran Eye will never fall into the hands of another." She repeated Jeanne's words from so long ago. "A friend of my enemy, even if they were mine as well, is still my enemy. Be it Witch or Sage."
Luka grabbed Cereza and began to back off from the pair of witches. Bayonetta sent him a glance, her eyes thanking the man's ingenuity. He nodded at her, and then ran into another alleyway, pushing through the Vigridians and out of sight.
"The Lumen Sages…" Jeanne stopped to ponder for a second, looking down. "They were our counterbalance as overseers, until one broke the law that was never to be broken." She returned her gaze to the woman standing opposite her. "And the result of that was you, Bayonetta."
She stared warily at her. "It doesn't matter now. They are all gone, and the past is that; the past now!"
"Your existence is what is allowing the Father to fulfil the prophecy." Jeanne faltered, and a hand massaged her temple. "And with the girl and the experiment about to fall within our grasp, your assistance in the resurrection is not required any longer."
"Your Eye, however, is required." Two guns dropped out of Inferno and into her hands. Bayonetta noticed that she only had one gun on her heel as the witch in red placed one hand behind her back and held the other up, preparing for battle. "As unfortunate as it is for her, it is time for you to end."
The strange wording nagged at her as she grabbed the Scarborough Fair and took a defensive stance. "Her?"
"Haven't you figured it out yet?" Jeanne laughed. "Obviously your memory isn't quite up to scratch. I do like to take the reins properly occasionally, my dear."
Growling, she jumped forward, guns blazing. Bayonetta stood staunchly, waiting to meet her, barely hearing the screams of the Vigridians behind her.
…
Sephiroth watched with apathy as Sapentia fell into Khepri's awaiting arms.
"And so falls the last of the Auditio." He murmured to himself. The Audito roared with pain, trying to break free of the Infernal's grasp, but then was silenced as Khepri dragged it into Inferno, the portal closing with a pop.
Why, thank you for your sacrifice. His patron sounded pleased as she contacted. It just took you twenty bloody years to do it!
He smiled at her. "I was very busy not dying, thank you."
Your friends made it, by the way. Khepri went quiet. That was one hell of a spell. I can honestly say you impressed me.
"That's a relief." He felt that worry fade. "It's time we joined them."
Telepathically, he searched for them. Finding Luka and Cereza, he teleported into the city he had sworn to never return to.
"Shit!" Luka jumped as he remanifested beside him. "Don't do that again!"
"Sorry." He quickly glanced around. They were in an alleyway, away from the population and from prying eyes, but not the alleyway he had sent them to. "Where is Bayonetta?"
"Mummy is fighting with the other witch." Cereza answered, sounding afraid. "Will Mummy be ok?"
"Jeanne…" Sephiroth looked to the buildings and found a pair of familiar presences fighting on one of the sides. "Mummy will be fine."
Luka became distracted, turning away and sniffing the air. "Why can I smell rosemary again? Bayonetta isn't even here this time!"
The presence of Laguna assaulted his senses. "Shit."
Fearing the worst, he tore his way into Purgatorio. The sight of a whole flight of angels heading their way greeted him. "Shit!"
Popping back into the mortal realm, he gestured to Luka. "Find a weapon. Cereza, give him your glasses."
"A weapon?!" The mortal looked at him, dumbfounded. "I don't have a weapon! For what?"
Sephiroth teleported to a random store and grabbed the first weapon-like thing he saw. He came back and tossed it to him as he was affixing the child-sized glasses to his head
"A baseball bat?" Luka stared at him. "Sephiroth, what is going on?"
"They are coming." He replied grimly, grabbing Sharuba out of Inferno. "The angels have found us."
…
"It's my time!" Jeanne spun on her heel as she attempted to deliver a roundhouse kick to the witch on the opposite window. Bayonetta answered with a kick of her own, blocking it and leaving the two in a stalemate. The witch in red merely growled and opened fire with her guns. Summoning a small barrier on her wrist, the witch in black began to move her arm rapidly, deflecting each bullet as they came. Grunting in frustration, Jeanne jumped back, firing at the glass underneath her instead.
Jumping up from the glass before it shattered, Bayonetta sent a wicked uppercut chasing after her. It caught Jeanne, and the witch cried out in pain as she lost control in the air and started to spin wildly. Wasting no time, the witch in black streaked forward with an afterburner kick, slamming into her stomach and throwing her through the building opposite. A massive hole opened where the witch had landed, and the remains of her red outfit floated away in the wind.
Landing in the new entrance way, she immediately took stock of the situation. A small family of four was against the back wall, eyes wide in terror at the witch in their wall. Jeanne was lying on the floor, as naked as the day she was born. Rolling her eyes, she pointed at the door. The family took one look at the witch on the floor, returned their eyes to her and then bolted out of the room.
"You were always considerate for mortals." Jeanne's voice was bitter. "Too considerate for an overseer."
The witch stood up, unconcerned about her lack of clothing. "You have become far too attached to them already. An overseer can't afford to do that, lest they fall to their own emotions."
"I'm not an overseer." She answered, glaring at her.
"Oh, but you are." Her hair flowed from her scalp, covering her body with a tight-fitting grey jumpsuit, not dissimilar to Bayonetta's own. "Accepting the Left Eye is the last step you need to complete before you would've been accepted as the Overseer of Darkness."
"It's a shame we got interrupted by a war before you could." She pointed at her Umbran Watch. "But nevertheless. You will accept your destiny soon enough."
"My destiny is not for some old, grey-haired woman to decide." Bayonetta gave her a smile. "I'd prefer it if I can control my own. After all, I am one of a kind."
"You have no idea how true that is." Jeanne jumped at her, tackling her out of the building. The pair fell, grappling with each other, both trying to gain the upper hand.
"Give into it, Bayonetta!" She screamed. "Accept your fate!"
Bayonetta merely punched her in the jaw, shutting her up. She saw the ground approaching from the corner of her eye and prepared for the impact.
They both slammed into the street. Splitting, they both flipped up to their feet and slid to a stop, crouching in anticipation, focusing on each other. The remaining citizens were running down the street, towards the Ithavoll building. A commotion down the street both had them turn their heads against the flow in curiosity.
"I swear! I'm not crazy!" Luka was talking and gesturing animatedly to a pair of security officers. "My friend over there needs my help!"
"Look sir, you are waving your weapon around in an unnecessarily dangerous and erratic fashion." One replied. "Until you are evaluated, you are not fit to take care of this child."
"She needs my help!" He argued. "You don't understand!"
"My, it looks like your friend here is in a spot of trouble." Jeanne smiled at her. "Aren't all mortals just… pathetic?"
"Luka is not pathetic!" She retorted with a frown, then held a hand to her mouth in shock.
"Awwwww, is someone sad I insulted their boyfriend?" Jeanne wiped a mock tear from her cheek. "And here I was thinking he was a glorified sex toy you had managed to entwine with a spell."
"Luka is not my boyfriend, or of any relationship to me!" She stood up and stared down at the crouching witch. "He is a good friend, nothing else."
Jeanne stood up and smirked. "You still lie to yourself, even after all these years."
She frowned but said nothing. Jeanne looked back over to the four people, and then pulled her glasses on to her face.
"Oh, so that's where you got up to." She pulled off her glasses, replacing them onto her forehead, and turned back to her. "Your friends are all here, just as we planned."
Bayonetta tapped her glasses and looked to see Sephiroth fending off an entire horde of angels, and Cereza behind him in an Umbran barrier.
"Sephiroth…" She whispered, and then understood what Luka was doing. If she looked carefully, she could see the outline of Cereza's glasses on his face.
"Your friends will have to prove themselves as well." Jeanne addressed her, pointing a gun at her. "And stragglers will be left behind."
"They can handle themselves." Bayonetta tilted her head at her, then raised a gun in response.
"Can they?" Jeanne's eyes glinted. "Can he really?"
Bayonetta's face went white and she dropped her gun. "You wouldn't dare!"
"Our Lagunan friends have relished for the chance to return to the mortal realm for an eternity." Her lips curled in victory. "These ones will have the honour of being the first!"
"Jeanne! Don't!" Bayonetta dove at her, but the witch in grey merely snapped her fingers with a smile.
…
"Luka!" Sephiroth screamed as the angels dove onto the man and the two officers, leaking out of Purgatorio like a flood. Tearing his way out of the realm, he slammed onto the pack, tearing and throwing several Affinity's away from the pile.
Eventually, he saw the man lying on the ground, eyes glazed. Dropping down to a knee, he checked for a pulse. Sighing with relief, he found one.
The shield around Cereza was barely holding. Sending a firestorm at the affinities swarming her, he began to feel despair creeping up to him again. He was going to get them killed; what the hell was he thinking, thinking he could go against the Father on his home turf?
Your mind is being manipulated, Sephiroth. Khepri said with urgency. Find where!
A Joy was lurking somewhere. He shook his head, trying to not let the thoughts overwhelm him. Grabbing an Affinity that got too close, he tossed it at a group and sent them flying into the street, ignoring the cries of horror of the Vigridians. He let his senses flow out, and he found something in the building to his left. He telekinetically grabbed what was there and threw it onto the street, pulling it out of Purgatorio as he did. A Joy crashed through the window and rolled onto the road. Its head snapped up and gazed at him with anger. Spinning its legs around, it jumped to its feet and struck of a pose. He frowned at it, and then his eyes widened as it split into two new Joys.
"Well, fuck you two then!" He took his stance and stared at the pair, fully aware of the angelic host reforming to his sides. He really hoped that something would happen to turn the tide in his favour.
One of the Joy's collapsed. Luka stood behind it, his baseball bat clutched in his hand. The angels stared at him in surprise, and the other Joy stood there, stunned by the audacity of the mortal.
"Luka!" He exclaimed. "What are you doing?"
"The thing you really should be doing!" He swung the bat into the other Joy, crushing its head. "Fight, dammit!"
He nodded, concentrating. If he got out-smarted and squared-up by Luka of all people, neither of his friends would let him live it down. Stepping back into Purgatorio, he found even more Affinities awaiting him.
Luka. He spoke to the man mentally. Hold on if you can.
You can speak to me in my mind?! The reply was panicked. How I am I going to hold on!?
Just stay alive! He said, moving swiftly to engage the screaming Affinities.
…
"You'll pay for that!" Bayonetta screamed as she threw herself at the witch in grey, guns blazing and her hair whipping out wildly. Jeanne began to retreat, her movements betraying her calm visage.
She was terrified of what she had unleashed.
The witch in black began to mercilessly strike at her, sending wicked kicks and punches at the fleeing witch, tearing up both the ground and the street in her fury. Jeanne leaped from the ground and landed onto a nearby building, scaling up it with ease. Bayonetta followed suite, transforming into a panther to close the gap briefly.
"Why are you so bloody attached to that mortal in particular!?" Jeanne looked back at her. "It's a fucking mortal!"
She chose not to answer and fired a salvo of bullets at her. The witch in grey merely swayed back and forth, slipping between each bullet.
"I'm your friend, Bayonetta!" She screamed, jumping over the edge of the building and onto the roof. "I will always be here, unlike him! He will expire long before you age another year!"
"He has done far more for me than you!" She answered, sending a wicked stomp in her direction. "And I don't care about his mortality!"
Jeanne cartwheeled out of its way and stared at her in fury. "He has threatened to kill you, multiple times, and has an obsession over you! How can you care about someone like that?!"
She levelled her gaze at her, letting her hatred shine through. "Because he cares about me, unlike you. You just described yourself, Jeanne!"
"I care about you far more than he does!" Jeanne screamed. "Far more than you could realise!"
"You have tried to kill me! Far more times than he has even entertained the matter." Bayonetta threw her hands in the air in frustration. "How is that more than I can realise?"
"Why else would I chase you around this god-forsaken country, when I could wait here for you to show up?" Jeanne gave her a look. "You are still as oblivious as you were five hundred years ago."
Bayonetta's eyes widened at the implication. "Oh no…"
"Oh yes, Bayonetta." Jeanne smiled wickedly. "The Father made me many promises when he convinced me of his ideals. One of them, was you."
"This isn't the Jeanne I know." She began to weave a spell behind her back, calling upon Madama Butterfly. "The Jeanne I know wouldn't sell herself out to her enemies because of love."
"You think this was all because of love, Bayonetta?" Jeanne shook her head. "You have no idea, what it was like, to be the prim and proper heiress to the Umbran throne, your life full of beautiful men and women alike, all of them waiting to be the suitor to me."
She pointed at the witch in black. "Instead, I fell for the one witch which would get me killed to reveal that was who I wanted. You don't understand how I felt when I had to put you in that coffin, seal you away for five hundred years. Five hundred years! I have waited far too long for you to return to me, my Umbran Sister! And when Jubileus creates a new universe, you will be remade into the perfect lover, one that will never be replaced!"
She stared at the madness in Jeanne's eyes with horror. "You're insane if you believe that." She dropped her guns and gestured to her. "Jubileus does not discriminate and does not pay favours to anyone; it will do whatever it pleases."
"I like how you aren't addressing the elephant in this room, Bayonetta." Jeanne smiled, a gleam in her eyes. "You're still afraid of what truly matters."
"I would rather marry Luka than touch my skin against yours in pleasure." She summoned a gun and pointed it at her. "And to be honest, keeping him around would be more beneficial than a girl with separation issues."
Jeanne's eyes blazed with fury, and her body trembled with rage. "You wouldn't dare…"
She launched herself, arms outstretched, her fingers curled into claws. "You! Are! Mine!"
Bayonetta released the wicked weave she had been holding onto in a direct punch to Jeanne. Throwing the witch back, she landed heavily onto the ground, bouncing once and slammed her head into a pipe. Spinning and sliding along the concrete, the witch in grey collided with the retaining wall surround the building and stayed there, both hands gripping her head tightly. She tried to get back up, but fell back down, curling into a ball.
Bayonetta approached her cautiously. Jeanne was grimacing in pain, and her hands were on her head, gripping it tightly. Her eyes opened and fixated themselves on her. Gone was the golden tinge; grey eyes stared at her with shock. "You… you shouldn't be here. You can't be here."
Her tone had changed dramatically. Gone was the arrogance, replaced now with fear.
"Why should I not be?" She kneeled beside her. This was the Jeanne she remembered, or at least she hoped it was.
"The prophecy, your destiny, it's all tied to that Jewel." Her hands left her head and one pointed at her Umbran Watch. "The Left Eye. We fought for that stone, in my arrogance and foolishness, and because of it everyone died."
"I could have chosen to not accept your challenge." Bayonetta shook her head. "It's as much as your fault as mine."
"Stupid…" Jeanne coughed hard, and she held a hand weakly to her mouth. "You didn't know the full extent of the Prophecy, and why everyone was so fucking afraid of you. It was my fault for having the arrogance to think I could best you, just because I thought I could spite them with you."
"Afraid?" She looked at her with suspicion. "Of me?"
"What, you think everyone had a raging hate for you for no fucking reason?" She shook her head. "You were conceived from the union of an Umbran Witch and a Lumen Sage; the most forbidden of both clan's tenets!"
Her eyes widened at the revelation. "A child born of light and dark…"
"You're beginning to see the bigger picture, aren't you?" Jeanne looked at her, her eyes serious. "You being on this island is exactly what the Father wants!"
"There has to be two, right?" She recalled the strange prophecy from the Umbran Mountains. "Two people who are born of light and dark don't exist right now. That prophecy can't be fulfilled! Right?"
"You still know nothing." She leaned her head back onto the roof. "Not that I should expect you to, of course."
"Jeanne…" She grabbed the witch's hand. "What is going on? Why is this Eye so important?" She swallowed. "Why did you betray me?"
"The Father can be very persuasive when he wants to be." She answered, and then closed her eyes tightly. "He is starting to figure out that I have slipped from his control."
"Jeanne, fight it!" She held onto the hand tighter. "Stay with me!"
Smiling, she pulled out a remote control from her sleeve. "It's inevitable when he does; he can't have me if I'm dead, though." One of her guns reappeared in her hand and she pointed it at her. Retreating backwards, Bayonetta gave her childhood friend a look of horror and shock.
"Please, Jeanne..." She whispered, her voice beginning to crack.
"Get out of here, Cereza. Make sure my sacrifice will not be in vain!" Her voice was starting to tremble, and her eyes were shining with the pain of the mental battle.
"Jeanne!" She screamed as she pushed the button. "Don't!"
Several klaxons wailed out as missiles launched themselves at the building. They smashed into the roof, detonating and sending Bayonetta flying back and towards the Ithavoll Building. Smashing through the glass, she only felt only the numbed pain flowing through her.
She was now the last Umbran Witch.
…
"Holy shit!" Luka cursed as the shock wave threw him down and scattered the Affinities around him. "Are they crazy!?"
The Father will stop at nothing to resurrect Jubileus. Sephiroth shook his head to himself as he conversed with the man. Not even for his allies or the populace on this island.
The angels began to regroup. They screamed at the trio and pointed at them. Speaking to each other rapidly in Enochulan, they seemed to be arguing.
"Do you, uh, understand what they are saying?" The mortal gripped his baseball bat tightly, ready for anything.
I do, but they are talking way too fast for me to understand it. Sephiroth frowned, trying to make out one of the Affinity's garbled speech.
The Applaud screeched loudly, getting the attention of the rest. It gestured at the winged man.
"The Father wants him alive, and the girl intact."
He began to grip Shuraba a little tighter, feeling a little safer with the weapon. A lone Affinity stepped out of the group, ignoring the hissing from the rest.
"We say we take them by force!" It leaped at the trio. Holding up the katana, he let it impale itself. The Affinity screamed in pain, and then quietened as it perished. The rest of the flock merely opened a portal to Paradiso and slipped out of Purgatorio
Sephiroth threw the affinity away and gestured to Luka. The man ran towards him and waited for him to leave Purgatorio.
"The Ithavoll Building is just ahead." Sephiroth said as he stepped out, gesturing at the barrier. "Take Cereza inside and get her out of this death trap."
"Alrighty!" Luka visibly smiled in relief. "What about you?"
Sephiroth looked at the building where the massive explosion had ripped through. "There is something I have to do. I will be back, I promise."
…
She was lying there, head in hands, curled up in pain. Sephiroth approached her cautiously, immediately noticing the red barrier flickering around her and figured that she used it to escape the explosion. He dispelled it and knelt next to her, taking in her new, grey outfit.
"Jeanne?" He cautiously held a hand out to her, touching her shoulder.
"The experiment returns, to see this wench." Her voice sounded fractured, as if multiple beings were speaking. She turned to face him, her eyes white. "Why does he? I want to know."
"Balder." He spoke the name aloud for the first time, and acknowledged the current personality inside of her. "I don't fear you no longer."
"Very good." Jeanne's mouth twisted into a smile. "Then you shall take your rightful place at my side?"
Sephiroth glared at the possessed woman. "Like hell I will."
She hissed and was immediately trapped by his body as he pinned her down, using all his strength to keep her in his grip. He kept a stony face as he tried to control her, keeping her limbs down.
"What are you doing?" The Enochian was frightened, yet furious. "You can't be thinking of taking her as your prisoner!"
He stayed silent, his eyes glowing as he entered her mind for the second time.
"What are you doing!?" The voice was panicking. "Get out of her head!"
He found the golden chains easy enough. They came to the intrusive presence, each barricading and blocking him from further probing. Whispering the spell Khepri was feeding him, he began to break apart each individual chain, rotting their centre.
Jeanne's body thrashed against his, trying to loosen his grip or interrupt his spell. He ignored her efforts, focusing on breaking through.
"Stop this at once!" The voice hissed. "Enough!"
A gap formed in the chains and he surged through, finally reaching the interior of her mind. Seeing the golden strings connecting her psyche to the outside world, he found the one that was foreign.
"Don't you dare!" Balder was beginning to lose his composure fully. "I will kill her before you can get me out!"
He said nothing and began to wear away at the connection. Jeanne's thrashing increased, and Balder's cries threatened to overload his senses. Blood began to drip from his nose, but he did not care.
She was going to be free again, whether he died or not.
Then it all started to go dark. Jeanne had suddenly gone still, and her psyche was fading. Sephiroth's eyes widened as he finally freed her mind from his influence.
Balder had killed her, as he said he would.
Withdrawing out of her psyche and back into his own mind, he began to take stock of the situation. Her life force was fading, and he was at a loss of what he could do.
Could he cheat death?
Yes, mortal. Khepri's voice spoke with urgency. Just use this. Quickly!
"MALPIRGI!" He screamed, pouring all his magic into the word. The world went green, but instead of burning and disintegrating the environment, a warm and welcoming feeling permeated the area. He sensed her spirit return to her body, and he collapsed to the side from exhaustion.
…
Jeanne awoke truly for the first time in one hundred years.
She gasped and struggled to breathe. Memories were rushing through her, each one causing her to flinch and want to scream. What had she done? Where was he? Did Cereza survive?
She sat up, feeling every muscle and bone ache from pain. Her body was broken, most likely beyond repair. Groaning, she saw the ruins of the building surround her, and her guilt grew yet again. She had launched the missiles and had killed countless people on this day alone, if she forgot the past. All because of her selfishness.
She turned to her right and her eyes widened as she recognised the body next to hers. Memories of the last couple of minutes replaced the ones currently swarming her brain.
He had saved her. The one she had put through the most hell, the one she had slaughtered his family for nothing and the one who had every right to send her to Inferno.
And he was nearly dead from exhaustion in doing so.
Hold on a fucking minute; she had died! Her mind began to whirl, and her head began to spin. He had saved her from death! How the fuck did he manage that, of all things?
It was all too much for her. Her head was beginning to pound from the inevitable headache, and she fell back to the ground, hands clutching her temples, eyes closed tight.
A pair of hands caught her.
"Jeanne…" His voice was dry, but full of relief. "You're alive."
Her vocal chords were raw. "I feel like shit."
"That would be my fault." His voice sounded remorseful. "I am truly sorry for what I have done to you."
Would it be? She couldn't recall-
Her body tensed and shivered involuntarily as she remembered Vigrid Airport.
"Why?" She had to know. "Why did you save me?"
"You are what I was to become." He said after a small moment of silence. "And ever since I found out you were being controlled by him, I hoped I could try to get you free."
"Balder killed me." She opened her eyes to see his concerned face looking down at her. "How did you save me from death?"
"Khepri tells me that you weren't exactly dead; Balder ripped your soul out, and it was as simple as a process to catch it and drag it back in." He said. "If I had waited any longer, your soul would've been lost to Inferno."
She closed her eyes again. "That doesn't tell me why you saved me."
"What do you mean?" He asked, confusion in his tone.
"I have done terrible things to you, Sephiroth. I deserve to be dead." She relaxed into the ground. "Let alone what I have done to people who aren't you."
A warm feeling filled her, and she opened her eyes to see his hand moving over her, the remnants of a healing spell fading.
"Trust me." He grinned. "Bayonetta would kill me if she known I'd let you die."
She frowned at the name but smiled. "That she would."
He stood up, holding himself unsteadily. He held a hand out to her. "No one will be dying today, Jeanne."
She accepted his hand and stood up, feeling rejuvenated. "To Ithavoll, then."
He glanced at her. "For me, yes."
"What?" She hissed at him. "I am going with you."
"If all goes to shit, Khepri has promised to teach me a spell that will level this island, and maybe this continent." He looked away from her. "I want every mortal, witch and animal out of the way before I even have the chance to cast it."
She hesitated for a second. "That is… actually reasonable, but no. I am coming with you."
"Don't Jeanne." He looked back at her with pleading eyes. "I risked everything to save you. Please don't throw it all away for vengeance."
She looked down and gritted her teeth. "This accursed island better be destroyed by the time I get back to it."
Turning her heel, she walked away, jumping off the building.
…
Bayonetta sat up and stared at the remains of the building. Curling her legs beneath her, she felt a sob escape her body.
"Jeanne…" She held a hand out, as if her friend would appear and laugh at her and tell her everything was ok. "I'm sorry."
She didn't hear the bell of the elevator to her left, and the mechanical sound of the door opening.
"Is it over?" Luka asked suddenly, and she panicked slightly. Gasping, she turned to see the man looking at her with concern, and Cereza sleeping in his arms.
"What?" He smiled, trying to break the tension. "You're not the only one allowed to scare the shit out of people."
"I don't know whether to shoot you or to take you to Vegas with your luck, Cheshire." She stared at him. "How on Earth did you survive that?"
"You see, Bayonetta, with L-U-K-A, Luka, there is no such thing as luck, only skill." He puffed his chest out, but very quickly straightened out and rubbed the back of his head. "Well, Sephiroth saved me, which is a testament to his skill."
She shook her head at his antics and climbed back to her feet. "How is the little one?"
"Probably terrified, but other than that, out like a light." He glanced at the girl in his arms. "What about you? Do you think I'm going to let myself be seen in public with a girl looking all beat up like that?"
She immediately became aware of the dirt that caked her, the bruises and cuts formed on her and the small tears in her clothing. Quickly repairing the damage to her Umbran Uniform, she returned her attention to him as he clicked his fingers and a lollipop appeared in them.
"Oh!" She accepted it, letting the candy ride her taste buds for a minute. Adjusting her glasses, she began to pace around him.
"I look dreadful, do I?" She teased, poking his shoulder.
"Huh?!" Luka's posture went defensive, and his eyes saddened.
"You'll have to learn to wipe that stupid look off your face, or I'll never let you run around with me all over this world. Got that?" She walked passed him, and towards the double doors she had seen earlier. "Luka."
His eyes widened. Glancing around to see if anyone was watching, he pumped his fist once. "Now that's more like it." He turned and ran after her.
"Where is Sephiroth?" She asked him as he caught up to her.
"No idea." He shrugged. "He'll join us in due time, I imagine. He said he had something to do."
"He better." She stopped in front of the doors. "Although I don't imagine him ditching us at the last minute."
"Neither." He looked at the doors with apprehension. "It's time to end this."