Fallen to the Planet

Chapter 7: A Gift

Than was discharged from the care of the WRO clinic. Reeve saw no reason to keep her there longer, as all tests and her own confessions proved what she was; the only real task to complete was to understand her strange biology. Why did her blood cells not die when denied oxygen? Such things had to be researched.

The man also kept his promise and freed her arms. She could swing them around at will but couldn't grab people anymore, which in turn sucked out all the vigor she once had. The girl acted quite normal and calm with her deadly threat taken away. As she put it: "there is no need to be energetic if I can't kill anyone."

The same day Than was given her arms back, Reeve divulged his idea to her; she scoffed at those as well. "Convert me? That is your big goal?" She laughed just like a mature woman does when she has accomplished something evil, "Mr. Tuesti, I am very happy to say that such a thing will never happen. My goal is clear; I will kill everyone on this planet and become powerful. The idea of trying to recruit me to your side is illogical." The inventor just smiled at her, for she was a simple thing, and let it go. Being open was the first step towards the goal.

It wasn't until Reeve and Vincent were escorting the creature down to the lower floors that she realized what she looked like. They had casually passed by a mirror in the hallway, placed there merely to add some phantom of asceticism when her own reflection caught her eye. She stopped walking immediately, causing the man she incapacitated earlier to bump into her. He was about to question her in a rather cold manner when he caught her gazing intently at herself.

"It's a mirror."

"I know that, Mr. Valentine." Hearing the two quietly bicker made Reeve stop his leading to see Than being absorbed by the reflective surface.

The girl cocked her head to one side, watching the copy mimic her. Then she slowly raised a hand to her face, touching her cheek. She got as close as she could to the mirror, staring at her sleeve and the movements she made in it. She reached up and patted at her short, curly snow hair. Cut much like a boys, she looked quite androgynous given her young face. Her skin was pale, but her blood made it pink in some spots. She stared at her inhuman light, lilac eyes.

"Have you never looked at yourself in the mirror?"

"I did when I copied people, and I did when I came up to kill you," she said it too casually, "but I had no reason to check myself otherwise."

"Come," Vincent commanded, giving the thing a little a push behind her back, "Vanity is a sin."

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For the next few days, Vincent didn't come by the WRO, if at all. He had little interest in the Jenova newborn, and wasn't going to spend his time around her. After all, nearly everyone's pain on this planet was the result of what her kind had done to them. His only interest was to make sure Reeve wasn't under any paranormal influence of Than's.

Which was what prompted him to visit the WRO today.

"Ah! My friend!" The inventor called out to the brooding man, quickening his step down the hall. "It's been a while since you've come by, Vincent." He was all smiles on this particular day. He stood right before his friend, holding some black cloth in his right hand.

"Yes." Vincent's dark voice flowed out, "It has."

"You avoid this place because you're still angry about what Than did to you." The taller man was silent. "You don't need to be so bitter about it."

"What are you holding?" He changed the subject, vaguely gesturing to the man's hand with his own golden one, the metal softly clinking against one another. Reeve accepted the change in subject and graced his friend with an answer.

"They're gloves." He presented them to Vincent, their ebony surface gave a slight sheen in the light, and at the wrist of the gloves, they could be hooked closed for a snug fit by a silver clasp. "They are made from PVC, so it's durable and waterproof. They are for Than." Red eyes gave a curious look at the inventor.

"You want to free her?"

"No, no. It's so she isn't wrapped up in that silly straitjacket. These silver clasps right here," he pointed the out with his free hand, "are locks." Reeve pulled out a small, delicate key from the inside of his coat pocket, and demonstrated their unique locking ability. "It's basically a metal band sewn into the wrists of the gloves, that can be completed by this lock system. Specially tailored to fit to Than's hands, of course. Quite creative, don't you think?" The gunman briefly picked up one of the gloves, it weighed a little heavy in his hand, and quickly enough lost interest in it.

"I don't know why you want to give her so much freedom."

"It's a plan, you see." The important businessman began, pocketing the gloves and key. He extended his arm out in front of Vincent, in an attempt to heard him in their new direction, and lead the way to a new destination. The long haired man kept his ears open for this explanation, glancing at Reeve out of the corner of his eyes as they walked through the WRO headquarters.

"Than is just a young thing. She is mostly speaking and acting out of instinct. Out of her design. I don't think she is looking for a reason for her actions. She just knows she needs to kill. No motive outside of the primitive. But right now, she is inhibited. We are keeping her from her goal." They turned corners and passed by office workers and secretaries. They walked out the east entrance of HQ, under the afternoon sky and were en route to the military training grounds. "At this stage, she is forced to use her mind. Absorb and use knowledge. We are giving her this knowledge, Vincent. She is learning from us. Everything we do to her, affects her. The first day you left, I showed her the gym. She watched a match between two soldiers, and was able to mimic their moves during a physical examination hours later."

Reeve opened the doors himself to the large, indoor training arena. The ceiling was set high above, but there was only one ground floor. Its modern construction equipped it with more than enough weapons to learn combat with and machines to study the human body. There was hardly any separators between the stations, and the retractable steel roof was drawn back, allowing the glass ceiling overhead to provide ample natural light to brighten the facility. The gym was silent in an unnerving way with the exception of a lone match between a girl and a punching bag. The thick whacks and thumps dully resonating in the large area. Reeve smiled to himself as he watched his newest project practice by herself.

"Are you hoping she'll grow a heart here?" The immortal man asked.

"A person has to learn to love, don't they?" Vincent huffed out an angry breath and shifted to turn away, but Reeve grabbed him by his arm and pulled him back. "I'm sorry, Vincent. I won't offend any more. Just watch her, please?"

The gunman was becoming soft. If he was asked to stay against his will as little as ten years ago, he would have scoffed at the person and laid down in his coffin for the rest of eternity. But Vincent liked this man, so he stayed a bit longer. Reeve smiled, and gave a silent thanks to him, before stopping the match.

"Thank you, Than! Thank you! That'll be enough." The girl turned around to face the man, huffing out a few deep breaths from her workout. She followed him with her eyes as Reeve made his way to the small collection of scientists, who were huddled over a monitor, displaying the girl's physical power.

"She's not frightfully strong, but she has a good kick." One man in a white coat pointed out on the odd collection of lines and numbers that displayed her stats.

"No more powerful than anyone else we train here."

"She is actually weaker than the people we do take on."

"But you see how fast her reflexes are. That's impressive."

A lot of talk, but not interesting for Than to eavesdrop on. She knew her only gift was her life sucking ability, and apathetically looked about the training room. She cocked her head a bit when she noticed Vincent was standing around, staring at her. A unsettling little smile came to her face.

"Mr. Valentine," she mused to herself. She took slow steps towards the gunman and stopped about ten feet away from him. The red eye death glare he was giving her, told her she needn't be any closer. "I haven't seen you in a while, Mr. Valentine."

"Yes. You've driven away my friend with your antics from a few days ago. You remember?" Reeve had managed to sneak behind Than and lay a hand on her shoulder. She looked up at the man. "Come with me. You're done here." And with that said, he gave the girl a slight push forward, and lead her out of the building, the brooding man following a few steps behind.

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Nothing important was said until the three had reached Reeve's office, high in WRO headquarters. Than was getting some odd amusement from asking Vincent questions he would not answer. Reeve couldn't help but feel tense the whole trip. But he thought this was best done someplace private.

Vincent took the responsibility of closing Reeve's office door himself, being the last one to enter. The inventor gestured to the chair sitting opposite of his desk, "Sit over there please, Than." Without a sound, she did as she was told. The gunman kept a close eye on her as he made his way across the room, towards the window where he usually stood. Reeve had moved around his desk, and slid his chair around to where Than sat. He finally took a seat, trying his best to appear friendly and open.

"I think I can start to trust you." He began. That mocking smile reappeared on Than's lips.

"If you think so, Mr. Tuesti." She straightened up in her seat. Reeve reached into his inner coat pocket and withdrew the gloves that he showed his friend earlier. The girl tilted her head in confusion at them.

"I was thinking of giving you these." He laid them out on his desk for her to examine. "So you could be more self sufficient. Wouldn't you like some more freedom, away from watchful eyes?" The young monster furrowed her brows at him and frowned deeply, switching her gaze back and forth between her captor's earthy eyes and the onyx gloves before her. She didn't understand.

"Of course I can't let you go completely. You will still stay here, at WRO. And these gloves will keep you from killing." He tapped the silver clasps on them. "So what do you think?" The men observed as Than examined her hidden hands, covered by the tough canvas of the jacket sleeves, and looked back up at the gloves. Surely this offer was better. She regained her impish look and turned her lilac eyes to Reeve.

"I would be happy to have them, Mr. Tuesti." She smiled widely. The man smiled at her in turn.

"Good! Let me get you out of that thing then." He quickly stood up, and moved behind the girl. He looked over to Vincent from his spot, and noticed his eyes ruby eyes widen in disbelief, as if to say "have you lost your mind?"

But the man believed he knew what he was doing, and tried to silently say to his friend "calm down. I can handle her." Because for a few minutes, Than would be completely free from any bonds and was a serious threat for that short time span. The caped man couldn't help but ready himself to shoot, his hand just inches from his faithful gun.

Reeve tilted the girl's head forward a bit, to help with exposing the many straps and buckles behind her back. It didn't take him long at all the undo them all, and the jacket slacked with each bit undone. Than didn't struggle or fidget, but sat quietly and behaved. The man finally came back to his chair, and pulled off the heavy material from her body. His eyes didn't leave her as he carefully set the thing beside him, but the only thing she did was stare back at him. The smile never leaving her. She was now a threat.

"Thank you for being so cooperative, Than." Reeve grabbed one glove from the desk and slowly held out his other hand towards her. As if reading his mind, she gave her hand to him, her palm facing up, and resting her wrist in his larger hand. Just as the gentleman was about to slip the the thing over her hand, she flipped her hand over and grabbed his wrist.

Reeve could've sworn his heart jumped into his throat and stopped beating right then and there, but he felt fine excluding his anxiety, waiting for pain and death to come. But Than only leaned in a bit closer and talked into his ear in a low voice.

"See? I can control myself." She gave a tight squeeze on Reeve before letting go and flipping her hand back over again. "I don't always kill what I touch." She leaned back to how she was, and watched the man recompose himself. It took a while, but he managed to slip the first glove over her hand, even if it was a little shaky.

"Wouldn't you like to know a bit more about Mr. Valentine?" She whispered to Reeve as he was slipping the material over her fingers on her other hand."His past? His interests? I know he doesn't tell anyone much." The inventor gave her a hard stare, trying to figure out what she was trying to do. What would she know about Vincent's past?

"How would you know about such things?" Was Reeve's only question, pulling the glove snugly over Than's hand.

"When I took his life, I took his memories. It's what makes a good impersonator." Her lips curved in an evil manner. "Would you like to know what's under Mr. Valentine's claw?" Though the offer was tempting, Reeve was a secretive man himself. And he knew whatever Vincent wasn't telling, was something he would rather die with than speak of.

"If Vincent wants me to know, he will tell me." The man gave a sly grin back at the girl, locking one glove with the little silver key from his pocket. "I don't need to get it from a thief." He locked the second hand into it's new prison, and stood up. "How do you like them?"

Than gave a mild glare at her oppressor, but began focusing on her hands instead. She could watch them and flex them for the first time in days. Oh how she missed them. She could even touch them together and run her fingers up and down her arm. This was much better than that horrible jacket.

"I love them, Mr. Tuesti." She paused for a long time, awkwardly glancing up at the man who had just given her more freedom than she ever thought she would receive. "Thank you." She quietly replied.

Vincent was in awe. This killer had willingly let prey lock her in a new prison. No problems ensued, just a clean transition. He watched Reeve grab the girl by her arms and help her up on her feet. He even extended his hand to test her new ability to touch others. She shook it, slightly amused by this new ability. Reeve couldn't be right. That thing didn't do anything! Didn't struggle; didn't run; didn't attack. It was odd. Unnerving. Vincent still didn't quiet believe it.

Reeve had pointed over to his friend, and spoke something to Than. He smiled a bit, and she made her way across the room, and stood right in front of the dark figure. Her eyes were bright like a child's, but the man couldn't shake away his feeling of apprehension about her. She extended her hand to him.

"I would appreciate your hand, Mr. Valentine."

The man eyed the gloved palm reaching out to him. Behind her, he saw his friend try to urge him to reach out and be friendly to what could be their destroyer. Slowly, he extended his own right hand; oddly almost identical in color and material to hers, and lightly grasped it. Than followed his lead, and lightly clenched her own fingers around his. A small up and down of their wrists, and Vincent seized his hand back. He was really getting tired with the little devil's grin.

The leader of the WRO warmly grasped the girl's shoulders in an approving manner.

"Good, good. Now take Cait with you," he ushered a cat doll from behind him, dressed in gloves and boots, complete with red ascot, "and enjoy some time walking around. I'll come get you later." Than cocked her head at the thing. It stood as tall as to reach her waist, unsure about what to do with it.

"Gimme your hand, dear." The doll prompted, startling her, and it extended a cute, white hand. Than stared at it for a while, eyed Reeve for a second, and then finally took the cat's hand. Cait lead her out of the office, making small talk and asking her questions. The two men watched as the girl and the feline both exited the room, the girl looking more like a small child than the becoming lady murderer.

"Why did you give her Cait?" Vincent's voice was obviously communicating annoyance.

"The staff gets tired of babysitting her. And I can't constantly keep watch of her. That one is new, so it doesn't have any important data yet." Reeve began pushing his chair back to it's rightful place. "And keeping her around people is a threat. So even if she attacks Cait, it won't be a human life that is lost."

"Why are you doing this."

"I told you why." He flopped back into his seat. Vincent walked around the large desk, standing right in front of the president. "Weren't you paying attention? She behaved herself. She was friendly."

"So you will drop your guard."

"She didn't attack me."

"She knew I would shot her if she did. It was an act." The gunman was becoming a bit irritated. Reeve let out a sigh. He tapped his desk a few times before answering his friend.

"She grabbed me." He paused to watch the man's reaction. "Right before I put on her gloves, she grabbed me." Vincent cautiously took a seat, his maroon eyes seemed unblinking as he watched Reeve explain. "She says she can control her power. And she didn't harm me to show me that."

Why he waiting for the silent man to reply, he didn't know. But he went on.

"I think this is improvement."

…

"She's learning to like us."

"If that's what you think..." Vincent adverted his gaze, staring at nothing in particular but trying to find a reason for her actions. "... Then you might be right."

Many thanks to those who have stayed and joined to read on in this fanfiction. All faves and comments and watches are appreciated. Thank you!

-halfbreedfox