Chapter Seventy-Seven: Against Fate
Vincent would never remember how, but somehow, they had made it to Faramir.
Aralyn was at loath to release Sephiroth from her arms, but she couldn't carry him, and so had to submit. She had been surprised as Vincent carefully lifted her husband.
"Why are you helping us?" she had asked. "I can understand if you…"
"This is beyond me," Vincent insisted as the rain began to fall.
Aralyn had led the way, Zack trailing behind her, occasionally slipping away to scout ahead. Well past midnight, the party slipped past the threshold to the hidden home, drenched and frozen to the bone.
She turned on the lights and quickly led Vincent down the hall. "Put him in here," she said softly. "I'll get medicine and bandages." She scurried off to perform the task.
Vincent laid Sephiroth on the crimson sheets, noting that a small breath escaped his lips. He was hanging on somehow.
Aralyn returned and climbed onto the large bed. She was able to sit comfortably beside him with room for Vincent as well. Working quickly, she unfastened the clasps on Sephiroth's coat, peeling the fabric away where it had been plastered to his skin, and tossed the article aside, revealing the long, dark wound. Vincent grimaced; it was worse than it had originally looked.
Aralyn dipped a cloth in a bowl of warm water, gently pressing it to his side and holding it until the crimson soaked most of the white fabric. She moved quickly, but lovingly, cleaning the wound as best she could with worry in her eyes. After most of the blood was gone, she took out a balm and spread it generously around the area. She applied another medicine that was meant to ease the pain, and then an antibacterial.
"I'll bind it," Vincent said.
Aralyn moved aside to allow passage, maneuvering toward his head. She got another cloth and began to dab at the blood that trickled from his mouth, then wiped the sweat from his smooth, pale face. When she was done, his face gleaming with the thin layer of soothing water, she laid beside him, stroking his cheek and forehead with tentative fingers. Her lips moved, forming words, but Vincent could not hear them.
Vincent wasn't afraid of binding it too tightly, as cutting off Sephiroth's circulation was the least of his concerns. He worked with rapid precision until his entire torso was covered in the white cloth. He tied the loose ends at the top, and then circled around the wound again, as the red was already beginning to seep through.
Zack sat in the doorway, keeping silent vigil.
"We've done all we can," Vincent said, pulling away. "The rest is up to him."
Aralyn nodded, not taking her eyes from Sephiroth. Worry creased her face and there were dark circles under her eyes.
"I'll leave the two of you," he continued, climbing off the bed. "If you need anything, call."
"You can stay in the spare room," Aralyn offered. "It hasn't been used in years, but it's yours, if you want it."
Vincent looked across the hall to find a closed door, the knob collecting dust. "It will do."
Aralyn moved closer to Sephiroth, laying her forehead against his. She laid there, still, content to listen to his shallow breathing, for what seemed to be a taste of her past.
She knew that Sephiroth had changed; he was a murderer now, but she couldn't restrain the emotions that gripped her any longer. Leaning closer still, she pressed her lips against his cold ones, and kissed him.
What had she expected? A fight? Would he lash out at her?
Certainly, though, she had not expected a passionate, though drained return to her chaste and longing kiss.
Her heart stopped, and in shock she pulled away. Had he been in the grip of an illusion? Could he comprehend what it was he had just done?
"Sephiroth," she breathed, cupping his face in her hands. "My angel…oh, what have they done to you?"
For the first time in years, she curled up against his unconscious form and laid her head over his heart so she could feel the life pulsing through his veins. She took his hand in hers, intertwining their fingers even though his remained limp and lifeless.
"Oh, my angel…" she called as she cried.