Cloud was lying in his bed waiting for sleep to take him when his cell phone rang loudly against the nightstand. He groaned and picked it up. It was Vincent. He was a little surprised but quickly answered it. "Vincent?"

The blond was assaulted by a barrage of word that seemed to slur together. He took the phone away from his ear until the sound quieted. He put his ear back up to the phone and asked what was wrong.

"Could I speak to Tifa… please?" Vincent mumbled into the receiver. His voice was hoarse.

"Sure, is something wrong?" Cloud asked as he made his way downstairs to the tavern. His heavy footfalls shook the stairs.

"I just need to talk to Tifa." He growled in reply.

"Fine, fine." Cloud finally said with a shrug. He found Tifa in the kitchen washing a few dishes. "Tifa. Somebody wants to speak with you."

She turned at the sound of his voice and wiped off her hands on the towel hanging at her hip. "Well, who is it?"

"Just take the phone, it's urgent." Cloud handed over the phone and left the kitchen to go take his nap.

Vincent's room was as quiet as a still night. Nothing stirred except the slight rustle of the bats' leathery wings. They had roosted where ever there was space. Talon was once again lying in Vincent's bed just like the night he was first found. He had fallen asleep crying in Vincent's arm.

He didn't try to move. He didn't want to move. The numb feeling coursing through his body was dulling the pain. Talon clawed at the bed sheets in frustration.

His acute hearing caught onto Vincent's smooth voice but it was hesitant and unsure. Talon wanted to call out to him but truly, he still didn't know his name. He searched through his limited vocabulary for proper words. Nothing came to mind… Well, except for one word. "Fuck…"

Outside the room, Vincent was confessing his "sins" to Tifa over the phone. The guilt was mounting up as he spoke of the events spilling into his mind like knowledge from a book. "Can I leave him at the tavern for a while?"

Pause.

"Thank you, Tifa." He hung up the phone and quietly entered his room. Talon lifted his head immediately and put on what he thought was a happy expression. It was a timid sort of smile that reminded Vincent of Marlene or Denzel. "Good morning, Talon." He said as a reply, sitting on the edge of the bed.

Although he knew there would be pain, Talon wobbled over to Vincent. The warrior laid his head on Vincent's thigh comfortably. He was like a dog greeting his master.

Vincent actually felt the blood rise to his pale face but he did reject Talon for fear of a relapse of earlier events. "Talon, we're going to go see a friend today. Will that be okay?" He asked carefully. Talon nodded. "Then you're going to need some clothes. Come." He gestured for the warrior to stand.

This time Talon shook his head. The motion churned his brain almost violently.

With a sigh, Vincent stood up and grabbed Talon with the sheets still tangling around his scrawny body.

It was as if the gravity had been shifted on inside Talon's body. He struggled in Vincent's arms until he was back on the bed. Pulling the sheets, Talon could finally see what had happened. Semen was seeping from his rectum. Vincent had to turn away from the sight as he felt more guilt building. He had taken away the warrior's innocence and tainted him.

Talon turned back to Vincent with a pleading expression but their eyes wouldn't meet. He watched the sticky white substance drip onto the clean sheets. He averted his gaze from the awkward scene. In an effort to get Vincent's attention, he sat down and mewled gently.

Vincent's ears picked up on the sound and turned. The innocent look on Talon's face drew him. With a meek sigh, he picked Talon up once more and walked towards the closet. It was still as empty as ever. Vincent scanned the surprisingly large space to only find shirts and his old suit. He had made many excuses of why he hadn't thrown away the damn thing. "Maybe it'll fit…" His voice was distant as he spoke.

Talon felt uncomfortable in the suit. Vincent had to tear two large slits into the back of the suit to accommodate the tubing. He had fought Vincent tooth and nail but in the end, he was too weak to fight him off. His only arm had torn through the sleeve entirely. He glared at Vincent out the corner of his eye as he was forced to walk barefoot down the cold alleyway to 7th Heaven.

Tifa welcomed Vincent with a smile and gasped at Talon's dainty appearance. "Vincent, is this him?" She rushed out from behind the bar and went to Talon's side for quick examination. The warrior stayed still, a little confused by the woman's concern. "Haven't you fed him at all?"

"It wasn't my fault… He wouldn't eat meat." Vincent mumbled. He was beginning to sulk again.

Talon focused on Vincent once more. He finally knew his name. "Vincent…?"

"C'mere Talon. You must be starving." Tifa said. She reached to take Talon's hand but found herself grabbing air. "Whoops." She gingerly took a hold Talon's wrist and dragged him off towards the kitchen.

Then, it was quiet. Both Denzel and Marlene had gone off with Yuffie; Cloud was still taking his nap and technically, the bar was closed. Vincent felt very alone… Why? He was always alone. His eyes shifted left and right before going behind the counter and grabbing a large bottle of scotch. He opened it quietly and took a quick swig. The alcohol did its job well, dulling his senses and desensitizing his emotions. He gasped and slid down slowly to the floor. He stayed like that until Tifa finally came out of the kitchen with Talon.

She took him upstairs to an empty bedroom with a large plate of dessert: White cake and chocolate ice cream. The warrior sat down on the bed, balanced the plate of food in his lap and began to scarf down the food on his plate. It was true: he had been starving. As soon as he had managed to use a fork he was gone. He went through three helpings of pasta, mashed potatoes, salad and whatever else Tifa could dish out. She giggled at his disgruntled appetite. "Do you like it?" she asked.

He licked his lips and nodded, smiling like a happy child. "Talon like." He said in that whimsical voice. The words fluttered gently on his tongue. He had started talking in the third person ever since Tifa had got him talking.

"Good." She said as she took his plate. "So, get a little sleep while I talk to Vincent okay?"

He nodded.

"Promise?" Tifa asked with a mischievous smile. She held his chin in place so he could look him eye to eye.

"Promise." Talon smiled and received a small kiss upon the head.

"Good boy." She then left him to go assess Vincent's mental state.

Vincent was slouched against the bar. He was surrounded by a dark cloud of depression. Next to him was Cloud who seemed to be trying to cheer him up.

"Cloud, go back upstairs." Tifa growled viciously. "I need to talk with Vincent. Alone."

The blonde stood up straight and confronted her head one in a displeased whisper. "Well, what's wrong with him?"

"I'm not allowed to talk about it." She whispered back.

"Why-?"

"Look, it was like when Aerith died okay? You wouldn't want to talk about that either, would you?" Her voice had rose past a whisper. She hadn't thought about her words until it was too late. "Oh… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have…"

Cloud was grimacing deeply at the comment before stalking off past Tifa and back to his bedroom.

Tifa sighed and turned back to Vincent. "Sheesh, now both of them are acting emo…"

A/N: So... I hope you enjoyed chapter 4. Next time, the Turks are finally going to find Talon but will Vincent be willing to give him?
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