Adult-FanFiction.org : Final Fantasy

Darkened Skies	By : Cynthia Category: Final Fantasy VII > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 949 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: Final Fantasy and all characters are the property of Square Enix. I do not profit from this fanfiction, it’s for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter List
- 10
- 11
- 12
"Darkened Skies"
Chapter eleven: Mental fortitude
A Final Fantasy 7 AU fanfiction
~***********************************~

            Over the next few days, Sephiroth dragged himself out of the entropic emotional state he'd been mired in, with Zack's constant encouragement. His already rare smiles were now virtually extinct and he was even more withdrawn from humanity than before, but his psychiatric evaluation was favorable. He was pronounced mentally capable of resuming his duties, provided he eased back into them gradually. Zack suspected he wasn't nearly as "recovered" as he claimed and he dutifully kept a sharp eye on him, keeping him company whenever possible without crowding him too much. The general must have felt he needed watching too—otherwise he would have declared his cooperation to be at its end. His compliance was more troubling than comforting.
            Poor Zack suffered for his attentiveness. The night that he stopped Sephiroth from committing suicide, he of course missed out on his date with Cissnei. In fact, he forgot all about it and he couldn't even explain what happened to her. All he could tell her was that he got called out on a mission and he didn't have the chance to call and cancel the date. By now, Cissnei had been stood up and cancelled on enough times to have her fill. On the third day after Zack's intervention, she arranged to meet him at the fountain in Sector 8 after work. When he showed up, she informed him she didn't want to date him any more.
            "Zack, I really like you and I know our jobs make things...complicated...but I really don't want to keep playing 'catch up' with you."
            Zack winced and gave her a pleading look. "Hey, I've got a really good excuse for missing our movie night, Cissnei."
            She planted her hands on her hips and gazed up at him with doubtful brown eyes. "Then let's hear it."
            "I...I told you," he stammered, "they called me out on a mission and I just didn't get the chance to call you up and cancel our date. Believe me, I'd have been there if I could make it. You've got to give me a break...please?"
            She sighed and looked up at the power lines overhead. "Another mission. It's always a mission, or someone needs your help, or you lost track of time while you were training. I could accept it at first because I know what it's like to have to put your job before your personal life, but it always seems like something 'comes up' right about when we're supposed to have some time alone together. It doesn't feel like I have a boyfriend."
            "Aw, don't be that way," he coaxed, reaching out to rub her arms. "Cissnei, I don't plan for this stuff to happen. I really, really want to spend time with you and believe me; nobody's more frustrated than I am that this crap keeps happening! I really think things are going to start settling down now, okay? Just give it a chance."
            She shook her head and bit her lower lip. "I'm sorry, Zack. I've wrestled with myself over this and I really think it's best for both of us if we stop seeing each other. This isn't a relationship and to be honest, I'm not sure people like us are meant to have one anyhow."
            He lowered his gaze and released her. "You sure you don't want to think on this just a little more?"
            Cissnei gave him a sad little smile. "I've put it off for long enough." She stepped closer and stood up on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on his cheek. "Maybe some day, you'll find someone that fits into your life better, Zack. I hope we can be friends."
            He found it impossible to be angry with her, looking into her sincere, warm brown eyes. He shrugged and smirked good-naturedly, trying to ignore the sting of rejection. "I'd rather have you as a friend than an enemy, so I guess I've got to cooperate."
            Her smile grew brighter and she favored him with one of the sweet, soft giggles that had initially played a part in drawing his attraction. "Good answer."
~*************************************~

            Reeve caught up with Zack in Headquarters shortly after he returned. Zack was just getting into the elevator to go up to his personal quarters and get some rack, when the executive stopped the doors from closing and joined him.
            "So where have you been?" Zack questioned as Reeve stepped into the elevator car. He noticed that the older man hadn't pushed any buttons yet and he frowned. "Uh...are you going to pick a floor, or do you want me to pick one for you?"
            "I'm not in here to pick a floor," explained Reeve. He glanced sidelong at Zack as if measuring him up.
            Zack was stricken by a sudden, powerful sense of discomfort and awkwardness. He sidestepped away from Reeve and tried to let him down gently. "Uh, look...I'm sure you're a handsome guy and it's none of my business what you do on your time, but I don't swing that way."
            Reeve turned his head to stare at him, slack-mouthed. For two heartbeats, his expression was utterly mystified—and then he burst into laughter and clapped Zack on the shoulder.
            "You thought that was a come-on? Ah, Zack...give me a little credit, kid!" Reeve wiped his eyes and almost seemed like he might piss himself. He took a deep breath, blurted another chuckle and then cleared his throat, visibly struggling to control his mirth.
Zack was grinning sheepishly and blushing with the realization that he'd completely misread the man. "I guess I like the taste of my own feet. You just had this weird look on your face and I thought...never mind. Sorry, man. It's just been one of those weeks."
Reeve pinched the bridge of his nose and nodded. "Oh, I can't tell you how much I can relate to that sentiment. Funny misunderstandings aside, I hijacked your elevator to bend your ear about something." He reached out and hit the stop button, bringing the car to a halt.
Zack frowned at him. "Can't you just come to my quarters with me to talk?"
"Well, I was going to suggest that, but then you thought I was hitting on you so I had to improvise."
Zack flushed again, chagrined. "Well, now I know you're not, so let's start this elevator back up before someone gets the wrong idea."
Reeve chuckled and complied.
~**************************************~

            "Want something to drink?" Zack walked over to his mini fridge and opened it up to dig out an orange soda for himself.
            "Thanks, no." Reeve clasped his hands behind his back and walked the length of the room, seeming to pull his thoughts together.
            Zack opened his can of drink and watched the other man curiously. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"
            "Sephiroth," answered Reeve.
            Zack lowered his drink and regarded the administrator warily. "What about him? Hey, if you're worried he might trip out again, don't. He's got everything under control, now."
            "But for how long?" Reeve held Zack's gaze sincerely. "Sephiroth has issues that go deeper than being a product of experimentation."
            Zack frowned. "Like what?"
            Reeve hesitated and looked away. "I can't give you specific details, but he has to rely on Hojo to keep those issues under control. I'm sure I don't need to tell you what a blow to his pride that is, Zack."
            The Soldier winced, imagining how hard it must be for Sephiroth to require that slimy bastard's help. He wondered what he hadn't told him, but Zack knew if Sephiroth thought he needed to know, he would have shared whatever personal secret Reeve was hinting at. It rankled him a little that a suit knew more than he did, but he was sure there was a reason behind that.
            "So you think you can do something about that?"
            Reeve nodded confidently. "I do. Or at least, I've brought someone who probably can. If Sephiroth cooperates, we may be able to eliminate his need to rely on Hojo entirely. That can only be good news, as far as I'm concerned."
            "Hell yeah," agreed Zack. "So, who's this person you're hinting at? Some kind of super therapist? Ooh, does he hypnotize people or something? Is he going to give Seph some kind of pills to take...or maybe he can do whatever Hojo does for him in his place?"
            The bombardment of questions had Reeve holding his hands up in a placating gesture. "If you'll quiet down, I'll explain."
            Zack gave himself a mental nudge, remembering his personal vow to stop running off at the mouth so much. People needed to start taking him seriously and that would never happen if he kept acting like "the puppy".
            "Okay, shoot. Who is this guy...or girl?"
            "A friend," assured Reeve. "One you've met before...under unfortunate circumstances. Do you remember the night in Nibelheim, when we spoke in the cellar in that storage room?"
            "The one with the coffins?" Zack cringed inwardly, fighting a shiver. "Yeah. I won't be forgetting that trip anytime soon."
            "Well, that's where you met my friend; the one who's going to help Sephiroth control his problem."
            Zack stared at him. "Wha-huh?"
            "The man in the red cape," elaborated Reeve. "The one that startled you so badly."
            Zack's brows drew down severely. "You mean the dead guy? You told me I hit my head and imagined that!"
            "Er, yes...I lied. That was no 'dead guy'. That was Vincent."
            Zack stared at him again. "Vincent?"
            Reeve inclined his head. "Vincent Valentine. He wasn't dead, he was sleeping."
            "In a coffin?"
            Reeve nodded again. "That's right."
            Zack forgot he had his drink in his hands and he spilled some as he threw his arms out. "Who the hell sleeps in a coffin, in some creepy basement where ShinRa used to do secret experiments?"
            "Vincent does."
            Zack went still, his face freezing into an expression of a person who's had enough. "All of you people are mental. Is everybody ShinRa hires out of their goddamned minds?"
            Reeve shrugged. "More or less. One has to be a little crazy to work here, Zack."
            "Not helping!" Zack dragged his fingers through his spiked hair. "My parents warned me, but I didn't listen. You city people really are bonkers!"
            "I like what you've done with your hair."
            Zack didn't think it was possible for his eyes to get any wider without rolling out of his head. "What does my hair have to do with—"
            "It makes you look more mature," Reeve went on calmly, gesturing at him. "Granted, it's more severe than the 'fluffy' look you were sporting when I left to enlist Vincent's help, but it suits you. I wouldn't want to be standing next to you in an earthquake, however. Those spikes could put someone's eye out."
            Zack's jaw dropped.
            "I see I've succeeded in distracting you from your rant." Reeve gave him a ghost of a smile. "Now, will you please calm down and listen?"
            At his wits end, Zack could only nod. Part of him wanted to just pack up and leave this insanity for good, but he cared too much about his friends and he was interested to hear how Reeve thought some guy with a vampire complex could help Sephiroth.
            He took another sip of his drink and sat down on his bed. "Okay, let's hear it. What is this Victor guy—"
            "Vincent."
            "Vincent...whatever. What makes you think he can help Sephiroth?"
            "He has some...experience with fighting inner demons, Zack. I can tell you his story later, with his approval. Right now, it's important that Sephiroth meet up with him and begin training."
            "Training?" repeated Zack with a frown.
            Reeve nodded. "Mental exercise, to be precise. Vincent is going to teach him to do for himself what Hojo's been doing with medical hypnosis. Like I said before; if this works, Sephiroth can be completely self-sufficient and that should lift a sizeable burden from his shoulders. I know he responds well to you and I thought you'd have a better chance of convincing him to try this than I would. What do you say, Zack?"
            The young fighter scratched the back of his head and grimaced uncertainly. "I say this all sounds kooky and you've been sniffing glue if you think he 'responds well to me', but I guess he likes me better than anyone else in this joint, right now. I'll find a way to talk him into it and hope to hell you're right about this helping him."
~**************************************~

            Sephiroth again wondered how Zack managed to talk him into going to this part of town. He was supposedly meeting up with a "friend" that he wanted the general to talk to—supposedly a friend that had some information concerning Jenova. He supposed curiosity combined with quiet desperation to calm the storm within himself were both to blame for his compliance.
            "Your friend lives in the slums?" Sephiroth glanced sidelong at his companion as the taxi drove them through the dilapidated streets of Sector 7.
            Zack shrugged and checked the address saved on his phone again. "He's not real big on creature comforts, I guess. The guy could sleep in a coffin comfortably."
            Having no idea that Zack meant that literally, Sephiroth sighed and looked out the window again. Watching people living in squalor was a sobering reminder that despite his rather significant problems, he could be worse off. It was really no wonder Reeve Tuesti was constantly pushing for better social welfare programs and habitat programs.
            Speaking of Reeve Tuesti, Sephiroth was surprised and mildly suspicious when the vehicle pulled up to a small shack of a house on Walker Street, and the head of Urban Development himself was standing outside by the front door. He looked as though he'd been expecting their arrival and Sephiroth looked at Zack with narrowed eyes.
            "Reeve Tuesti is your source?" It seemed Zack didn't have anything new to offer him after all; and that put the bitter taste of disappointment in Sephiroth's mouth.
            "Nope," answered Zack, unbuckling his safety belt, "Reeve convinced the other guy to come. Think of us as negotiators."
            Sephiroth felt a dull glimmer of hope. "This 'other guy' you speak of wouldn't go by the name of Gast, would he?"
            Zack shook his head. "Sorry man, it's not him. This guy knew your mother, though—according to Reeve."
            Sephiroth raised a silvery brow with intrigue and he unbuckled his safety belt to get out of the car with Zack. Reeve perked up at their approach and he offered his hand to Sephiroth in a polite manner. The general shook it out of polite compulsion, watching Reeve with curious, wary green eyes.
            "I've been told you have someone in there who knew my mother," Sephiroth murmured, glancing at the house. "I'm interested to know who this individual is."
            "It's a long story," sighed Reeve. He looked around at their bleak surroundings. "I offered to set him up in a nice hotel, but it seems he's more comfortable in minimalist dwellings. At least this gives us all the chance to see how the little people live, under the plate."
            Sephiroth suspected that Reeve already knew good and well how the "little people" lived down here, and he wondered if this setting was at least partly contrived by him. He was a subtle bastard but Reeve knew how to get his point across.
            "I didn't come here to discuss welfare politics," reminded Sephiroth coolly, "so if it's your hope that I'll lend you my support against the other departments based on what I've seen in these streets, you've set yourself up for disappointment."
            Reeve held his innocent expression for about two seconds under the general's stare, and then he deflated and sighed. "You're not an easy man to manipulate, Sephiroth."
            Zack looked between the two of them with confusion. "Wait...so you set this up here because you wanted to push your urban development?"
            "No," assured Reeve, "but the location Vincent picked to stay in did provide me with a convenient excuse to slide a little hint in. Far be it from me to pass up an opportunity like that."
            Zack sighed. "Man, I don't get you. I thought you were more honest than the others."
            "In Reeve's defense," Sephiroth said thoughtfully, "one doesn't rise to the top in ShinRa inc. without practicing some form of deception, manipulation or ruthlessness. He's a suit for a reason, Zackary. That being said, he is more honest than most other administrators...as is Lazard. That's the only reason I'm not calling that taxi back."
            "I've always said you were a man of class, Sephiroth," Reeve announced. He patted Zack on the arm. "Zack, I'm sorry if I've disappointed you. I think you're a good kid and I wish you didn't have to learn about the dark side of humanity through any of my actions. Still, it's better for you to be disappointed and aware than blissfully ignorant. Trust me, the latter is the more dangerous of the two."
            "We can discuss the finer points of real life another time," Sephiroth prompted, his face betraying a subtle loss of patience. "I want to know exactly why I'm here. Now."
            Reeve and Zack both winced. The older man gave a nod and gestured at the door. "Right this way, gentlemen."
~************************************~

            Vincent looked up as the trio stepped into the darkened shack. He sat on the worn couch, reading a newspaper to catch up on recent happenings. His eyes immediately went to Sephiroth and the first thing he did was search for Lucrecia's traits. The resemblance was faint—mostly in the cheekbones and the shape of the jaw. What interested Vincent was the utter lack of similarity to Hojo's features. The young man was utterly beautiful—but it was an alien beauty. His strange eyes lent testimony to that.
            Sephiroth likewise regarded him with veiled interest, his bright gaze taking in everything and giving little away in return. Beside him, Zack cleared his throat and started to make introductions.
            "Sephiroth, this is Virgil—"
            "Vincent," corrected both Reeve and Vincent at the same time.
            "Uh, Vincent," revised Zack, looking a little embarrassed. "Vincent Valentine...that's right, isn't it?" He looked at Reeve for confirmation, uncertain. The executive nodded and controlled a smile of amusement.
            "You knew my mother, according to them," Sephiroth said, his eyes remaining locked on Vincent.
            Other men would have been intimidated by that relentless, serpentine stare but Vincent merely found it direct and he approved. He gave a single nod. "I did."
He almost said he knew her well, but upon reflection, he realized that he really didn't know Lucrecia at all. Otherwise, he could have predicted that she would have chosen a cold, conniving scientist over him and sacrificed herself and her unborn child in the name of research.
Sephiroth frowned at him, his brows knitting slightly in a mild show of confusion. "You look no older than me."
Zack threw his hands up. "Thank you! I thought it was just me."
"Zack, why don't we give them some privacy," suggested Reeve tactfully. "There's a coffee shop down the street we can go to."
Zack looked a little uncertainly at Sephiroth. "Is that cool with you?"
The general spared him a nod. "Go, Zackary. I think Mr. Valentine and I have a lot to discuss."
Vincent nodded in agreement and when the two other men were out the door and gone, he got up and went to the kitchen area of the room. He poured a glass of water for Sephiroth from a bottle he'd bought at the grocery store—not quite trusting the old plumbing in his temporary residence to provide clean drinking water.
"Thank you," said Sephiroth as the gunman offered the glass to him and gestured for him to sit.
Vincent watched him and he waited until he was seated in the ratty armchair, before taking his own seat again. Sephiroth sipped the cool water; probably out of politeness sake more than thirst. There were veiled questions in his gaze as he watched Vincent and the gunman waited in silence, giving him the chance to speak first.
"Can I presume by the glow in your eyes and your youthful appearance that you've had high exposure to Mako treatments?"
"Some," agreed Vincent, "but it's more complex than that. The...treatment...that was done on me has permanently halted my aging process. I'll appear as I did when I died, for the rest of my existence."
His explanation gave Sephiroth pause and he stopped drinking, lowering his glass. "You died...and yet you're sitting here talking to me."
"I was resuscitated...during an experimental process that left me in an altered state. When I woke up, I was a monster."
Sephiroth frowned, keeping whatever personal thoughts he had on that statement to himself. "How did you die?"
"The same man who experimented on me was responsible for my demise." Vincent lifted his golden claw hand and slowly clenched it, watching it with detachment. "Your father, Hojo."
Sephiroth's pupils briefly expanded, then contracted back to normal. "I see. What was your relationship with my mother?"
"I was her bodyguard, at first." Vincent lowered his gaze and replayed memories of her quiet smiles, her gentle touches and her reassuring voice in his mind. "I...came to care for her."
"As more than a friend?" guessed Sephiroth.
Vincent nodded, seeing no reason to hide the truth from the boy. He'd probably already read the truth in his body language. "Yes, but she chose Hojo, in the end. She admired him for his ingenuity. I was just a Turk."
"But he guessed your feelings for her and he somehow managed to kill you." Sephiroth looked at the gun holstered at Vincent's hip. "You don't strike me as the sort of man to die easily."
"I was careless," answered Vincent. "Grieving. Reeve has informed me that you've seen the files Hojo kept from you. If you've seen them, you know your mother died shortly after you were born...after he took you from her and left her to her fate. I wanted to avenge her, and I couldn't see through my own rage. I failed to notice the gun, until it was too late. He kept me in the hidden laboratory, beneath the ShinRa mansion."
Sephiroth nodded. "You're the one he put in the basement, then. I found snatches of information on my own, about a threat to his research that he dealt with in his 'own way'. He must have meant you."
Vincent nodded.
"What did he do to you?" There was no sympathy in the general's voice, merely curiosity.
Vincent looked at his claw-hand again. "He fused the essence of old, demonic forces with my body, forcing them into my cells to become a part of me. The process left my body unstable and Lucrecia treated me to stabilize it again. In the process, she fused another entity with me and she gave me the means to control it through surgical implantation of a specialized form of materia, known as protomateria."
"I've never heard of it," admitted Sephiroth. He looked doubtful. "I have only your word for all of this. I think I'd like to see some form of proof, before we continue. You'll forgive me for being skeptical, but I've been deceived and manipulated enough."
Vincent shut his eyes. He'd been afraid it would come to this. He could only think of one demon he trusted enough to give him back control when he asked for it, and he got out of his chair and walked to the far side of the room before calling to him.
"I warn you, I'll only do this once," announced Vincent. "It isn't a pleasant experience."
~******************************************~

            Sephiroth's curiosity grew as he waited to see what the mysterious gunman would do. In truth, he didn't have any reason to disbelieve what Vincent had told him. He knew firsthand the sort of twisted things Hojo could get up to, if given the opportunity. He wanted to see if Vincent was exaggerating, however. He needed to know it was the truth, rather than the delusions of a former test subject gone insane.
            When Valentine began to grow in size, Sephiroth frowned and set his water on the coffee table. He stood up and watched as Vincent began to groan in pain. There was a popping sound, as if his bones were reshaping themselves. The ruby color of his eyes went to yellow and his face began to elongate weirdly into a muzzle. His skin darkened and spouted black fur, his long, raven hair went white from roots to tips and a pair of curved horns grew from the top of his head.
            Sephiroth found himself looking up at a werewolf-like creature, towering over him near the door. He was considered a tall man, but he only came up to the bottom of this creature's chest. It hunkered over to avoid hitting its head on the ceiling and it snarled at him, licking its chops like he was a tasty looking morsel.
            Sephiroth impulsively reached for his recently returned masamune, leaning against the chair. "I accept your proof. Let's not turn this into an ugly encounter, Valentine."
~************************************~

            Minutes later, Vincent was back in his original form and pouring himself a cup of tea from the chipped pot on the stove. He glanced at Sephiroth in a quiet, musing way as he brought his drink over to the couch and sat down again.
            "You hold your calm remarkably," he complimented. "Even the most hardened men usually spare a shiver, whenever they see one of my demons. The Galian beast may as well have been a stray mutt off the street, for all the fear you showed."
            Sephiroth smirked without humor. "I've witnessed the botched results of some of Hojo's experiments. I don't scare easily."
            "I understand." Vincent set his steaming tea aside and he sighed. "Unfortunately, you and I have something unpleasant in common. As you can see, I live with separate entities inside of me, at all times."
            Sephiroth thought he understood where this was going, but he didn't dare let his hopes rise. "Reeve told you about my situation, then."
            "Yes. He was concerned. Not just for you, but for the people you've sworn to protect. ShinRa has declared you fit to resume duties, but I think we're both aware that they tend to favor the easiest answer, rather than the most sensible one. You must have your doubts, or you wouldn't have come."
            The annoyance Sephiroth felt at his observation was tempered with discipline. "Zack brought me here because he thought you might have something useful for me. Was he wrong?"
            "I can teach you to quiet the inner voice," answered Vincent, "so that you rarely hear it at all. It will take time, but you can learn to shut it out. Interested?"
            Sephiroth rested his sword against the chair again and he changed his mind about walking out. If there was even a small chance he could block Jenova from his mind and find out if he could be the kind of man to live in this world without burning it to ash, he had to take it.
            "Tell me more."
~**************************************~

Nearly a week later, the summit ended more or less favorably for SOLDIER. It was agreed that some of the bonus budget for the year would go into replacing the operatives that the program lost during the war and the subsequent defection. Angeal and Genesis returned to Midgar with Lazard and unfortunately, Rufus and Scarlet soon followed. It would have been easier all around if they had stayed in Junon to conduct company business, but the president wanted them to return to Midgar for some reason—possibly because the summit proved to him that his two sons were capable of working together and maintaining some semblance of civility.
Neither of the two Soldiers said anything to their administrator about the nights he spent with the redhead from the pool. Angeal refrained because it was none of his business, while Genesis held his tongue because Lazard's "extracurricular activities" resulted in he and his partner having the VIP suite—and its king-sized bed—all to themselves at night.
For Lazard, it was back to business as usual almost as soon as he returned and gave his report to the president. For Angeal and Genesis, it was time to prove their cooperation with the company...which meant donating cell samples to the research department and in Genesis' case, undergoing psychiatric evaluation. They didn't even get the chance to speak with Zack about recent events and Sephiroth's condition before they were called away to have blood drawn, tests run and questions asked.
While Angeal was having tests run, his lover went in for his evaluation. Sadly, Genesis' resentment over the terms of his release reared its ugly head during his psychological analysis and when President Shinra got the reports, he called Lazard, Genesis, Angeal and the attending psychologist directly to his office.
~*************************************~

            They stood before the portly man's desk as President Shinra read the summary of Genesis' mental evaluation aloud. Angeal kept giving his companion frowning looks, worried to the core that his impetuous nature might have pushed things too far and negated the terms of his release. When the president began to read the doctor's notes, Angeal groaned softly and rubbed his forehead.
            "The patient seemed calm and lucid, at first," read President Shinra aloud, "But as my questions became more personal, he became more obstinate and agitated. When asked to identify ink blots, he announced that they all looked like my face."

            Lazard and Angeal both looked at Genesis with disbelieving frowns and the redhead shrugged and shook his head, waving it off like it was nothing.

            "When asked how he was feeling, he responded that he felt fine but was suffering a powerful craving for human flesh. In addition, he felt it only fair to warn me that he enjoyed a good raspberry sauce when he dined on innards and he advised that I was beginning to look tasty."

            "Genesis," muttered Angeal under his breath, beyond the point of embarrassment. " What were you trying to—"
            President Shinra cleared his throat loudly to interrupt, and he continued to read the report. "The patient became more hostile when I pointed out his sarcastic defensive mechanism and in closing, he advised me to go and sodomize myself sideways with the Junon canon. He was completely uncooperative, after that."

            The president dropped the document on his desk and he looked up at Genesis. "Now, do you have anything to say, young man?"
            Genesis shrugged. "I believe I articulated my thoughts to the shrink, earlier."
            Lazard sighed and stepped forward. "Mr. President, please understand that this Soldier has suffered traumatic experiences. Try to remember what a valuable Soldier Rhapsodos was before this all happened."
            "Plenty of people have suffered 'traumatic experiences' in their lives, Director," reminded President Shinra unsympathetically, "but they don't run out and kill their own parents or resort to terrorism, do they?"
            "He turned himself in," reminded Lazard stubbornly. "He could have evaded authorities indefinitely, but he chose to cooperate."
            "And that's why I'm not tossing him back into jail or ordering him institutionalized," answered the president. He looked at Dr. Sato. "Doctor, your analysis says that the patient 'needs more time'. In your opinion, is he sane or not?"
            The small, dark-haired man looked at Genesis appraisingly. "He's sane. He has a host of issues—particularly with anger management, mental maturity and social disconnection, but he's sane."
            The president watched Genesis with interest as the redhead shot a killing glare at the doctor. "Then why sabotage his own evaluation?"
            "I was merely playing the role you people set up for me," insisted Genesis before the doctor could answer. "And I don't appreciate having someone I've never even met before making a list of all the little things he thinks are 'broken' with me, if you must know the truth."
            "Well then, perhaps you'll appreciate this: If you can sit through an evaluation seriously and cooperate enough to become a functioning part of this organization again, you'll be reinstated. If not, you'll become a liability and I'll have both you and Hewley written off as a lost cause, to be locked away out of sight for the rest of your lives. Do I make myself clear, young man?"
            Genesis narrowed his eyes on the president and for a brief, horrifying moment, Angeal feared he might lunge across the room at him. The redhead visibly struggled with himself before giving the balding man a tense nod and clenching his jaw.
            "Crystal clear," agreed Genesis through his teeth.
~***************************************~

            "You know I'm only going through with this farce for you," Genesis informed Angeal in a mutter as they stopped outside the door to Zack's quarters, much later that evening. "Don't you?"
            "Yes, and I know I'm going to have to make it up to you several times over," sighed Angeal. He gave his companion a sidelong, reserved smile. "Thank you for restraining yourself when the president gave you that ultimatum."
            Genesis shrugged and knocked insistently on Zack's door. "I would have enjoyed nothing more than popping his tiny balding head off of his bloated body...like a tick. How that man fathered two such attractive sons, I'll never know. It's as much a puzzle as Sephiroth's fortunate escape from Hojo's repulsive genetics."
            "What's important is that you get through this without causing more un-necessary drama," Angeal insisted. "Just remember that it's a means to an end."
            "I'll keep that in mind," sighed Genesis. He knocked harder on the door. "Open up, Zack the Puppy. Your mentor wants to see you before bedtime."
            The door slid open a moment later and both men were somewhat startled by the sight of Zack. His hair had been getting on the long-ish side but rather than have it trimmed again, he'd chosen to style it differently. It was hard to tell if the spikes and hanging strands were deliberate, or a result of bed-mussing. He was in his boxers, his breath smelled like beer and he looked half-asleep.
            "Hey Ange," Zack yawned. He seemed to realize who he was looking at and he shook his head to clear it. "Whoa, how long have you been back?"
            "Most of the day," answered Angeal, "but this is the first chance we've had to touch bases with you. Where's Sephiroth?"
            "He's in the slums." Zack covered another yawn. "Hanging out with a dead guy."
            Genesis and Angeal exchanged a befuddled look.
            "Your answer," Genesis said, "was just rife with brow-knitting wonderment. Care to reconsider it and answer again, Zack?"
            Zack shook his head and motioned them to come inside. When they did, he shut the door and went to his bed, plopping down on the mattress. He lay on his side and explained in a sleepy voice. "Reeve brought this guy named Vincent from Nibelheim and he's staying in the slums. Seph's been going there every night to do some kind of mental exercises that are supposed to keep his head screwed on straight. Don't worry, I've been keeping tabs on it."
            Zack yawned again and rolled over, presenting his back to them. He hugged his pillow and mumbled something about Cissnei. Concerned, Angeal approached the bed and looked down at the younger man.
            "What sort of 'mental exercises', Zack? Who is this man?"
            A soft snore was his response.
            "Zack?"
Angeal started to reach down and shake his student's shoulder, but he reconsidered and sighed, instead. He pulled the sheets up to cover Zack's slumbering form and he nodded at the door.
"We'll get the details in the morning," he murmured to Genesis, suspecting that it was too late to go to Reeve demanding answers. They would just have to trust Zack's judgment and trust that Sephiroth could handle himself, for tonight.
~*************************************~

-To be continued
- 10
- 11
- 12
You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.You need to be logged in to leave a review for this story.
Report Story

Darkened Skies