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Candy Wrapper	By : KSipesh Category: Final Fantasy VII > Het - Male/Female Views: 1100 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 8
- 9
- 10
Pardon the typos, I�ll edit it tomorrow better.

Oh yeah, more game dialogue in this one, too.

Candy Wrapper, Chapter 9

Vincent had gotten dressed again, but left his cloak unbuckled and resting upon his shoulders. He reached into the pocket within it and pulled something forth and held it out to me. "I believe this is yours."

I smiled widely and took the wrapper from him. He�d actually saved it for me as he�d said he would do over the radio. "I do believe it is."

He shook his head and dropped his gaze to the floor. "I�ll take another, if you don�t mind."

I turned around and went back over to my bed, grabbing the candy bar that I�d initially offered him upon getting to my room. "Are you going to have it now?"

Vincent looked at it as he clutched it within his right hand, seeming to slip into contemplation for a moment. "Perhaps�I shall save it for victory."

I would have laughed at him right then and there, but there was something in his voice that chilled me to the core. I took a step closer and placed my hands upon his shoulders. "Vincent?"

He turned his stare up into my eyes.

"Twice now�you�ve sort of sounded like, well, like you don�t think you�re going to make it through this." I searched his face as I said this, looking for any subtle reaction.

Vincent was so damn good at hiding his honest emotions when he wanted to that it was scary. There was no reaction at all. With his stoic air in place, he gave his reply. "I apologize if I�ve given you any such notion."

My anxiety over the entire situation came up and I felt tears come. "I�I don�t want to do this�"

Vincent quickly pulled me to him, placing his arms around me. He stroked my hair with his right hand, rocking me gently. "Tifa, if we do nothing, we all die. If we do this, there is at least a chance. A small chance perhaps, but a chance. Our path is set, it does no good to�"

His voice had wavered with those last words and I looked up, seeing the tear that was already making its way down his cheek. I reached up and brushed it away. "Let�s make it, then."

Vincent�s lips hinted at a smile and he nodded. "When I--"

His words were cut off as the intercom crackled to life. "Wherever in the hell everyone ran off to, get your asses back up on deck. We�re there."

I shrugged. "I guess we better go."

"Yes." Vincent bent down and pressed his lips to mine. I submitted completely to the kiss, not sure if we�d ever get the chance again. He invaded my mouth passionately, holding me against his body tighter.

The kiss went on for a few minutes, before we finally stepped back from one another. I gave him a smile. "Vincent, I love you."

"I love you, too." He took my hand within his right. "We�d better go."

I grabbed one more candy bar on the way out, and then followed as Vincent lead me to the deck of the ship. Even when we got there, he didn�t let go of my hand.

Cid saw us arrive and nodded in acknowledgement. We were all present and as ready as we were going to get.

The pilot pulled the cigarette he had resting between his lips out. "All right, let�s get this over with."

We followed him and disembarked, finding ourselves standing before the crude cavern in the ground that had been ripped open ages ago. Vincent let go of my hand and stepped forward, looking down into the chasm. I watched him as he gazed downward, the sickly breeze coming up from within pushing his hair back.

Cloud and Cid started saying something to one another, but for the moment, I had them tuned out, being too taken with watching Vincent as he stood there, assessing the situation.

Then, a terrible grumbling roar emanated from within the crater, making all of us go to the edge where Vincent already was. That�s when we saw what he did.

From within the crater were crawling up an army of creatures. They were twisted, sick things, clamoring up the walls, determined to wipe out the intruders that they sensed upon their turf.

Nanaki was to my left, switching his flame tipped tail back and forth nervously. "Look at the number�"

"Aw fuck it," Cid growled, "They�re comin� out full force!"

Jokingly, Barrett shoved Cloud forward. "You go first."

He didn�t seem eager to jump into the fray. "I�m fighting here, too."

"Shut up!" Barrett rattled his gun arm at his side, still sizing up the coming threat. "It won�t do us no good with everyone back here."

Cid flicked his spent cigarette off to the side. "Barrett�s right. You take two of us and go down first. The rest�ll catch up later."

I was terrified and stepped closer to Vincent�s side, needing his reassurance. Without really thinking about it, I spoke aloud. "Is this like a practice run before the real thing?"

"Yeah, a major practice run�" Cait Sith sighed back.

Yuffie gave her nervous giggle. "I�m fine with that, it�s probably more fun than fighting Sephiroth down there."

Vincent looked over at me, his eyes narrowed. For some reason, the threat of a fight always put a strange spark in his countenance. "It might be fun to pass the time."

Another ear shattering roar rang out, and the time for action had come. Cloud looked back over his shoulder, pointing at Vincent and I. We were going in with him, and we were going in first.

Much of what happened after that was a blur. The three of us headed down, fighting every step of the way. The screams of the monsters that dwelt within were punctuated by gunshots as Vincent would raise his weapon and fire, killing those intent on stopping us with frightening accuracy.

Then, the monsters seemed to run away past us, no longer caring that we were there. Apparently, there was something coming that they were afraid of and no longer were we their main concern.

Vincent nudged me in the side, lifting his left hand and pointing ahead of us. "Jenova�"

Cloud took a few steps forward. "Jenova? It�s coming!"

My eyes went wide as I saw this�thing emerge from the darkness before us. It was enormous-- a grotesque spherical mass, with the head of Jenova adorning the center.

We didn�t have much of a chance for further reaction as it was upon us in a heartbeat. The three of us laid into it with all that we had. Vincent unloaded clip after clip into the thing, and Cloud launched into it with his sword. I went at it to, but to be real honest with you, I think the men did most of the damage. We managed to stop it and finally it fell to the ground twitching and writhing. Without any expression whatsoever, Vincent had walked right up to it at that point and placed one last round into the head of the thing, causing its tentacles to quit flailing.

We knew, of course, that this wasn�t the end of it, and suddenly the ground gave out beneath us and we fell for God only knows how long. I�m going to admit that I screamed and closed my eyes, terrified that when we did hit the ground that we would be done for, but suddenly our fall was halted.

Disoriented and confused, I opened my eyes. We�d never hit the ground, but rather, we were suspended in space, a sensation that made my head spin. I put my hands against the sides of my head, groaning as my stomach turned from the alien feeling.

Cloud was close to my right side, and he seemed concerned. "Tifa?"

I looked around, searching for Vincent, but I couldn�t see him. I glanced over at Cloud. "So, we did end up together�"

Further conversation between us was cut off as something emerged from the darkness before us. It was Sephiroth, or at least, I�m pretty sure that it had been at one time. He�d been somehow transformed into some large creature, Hell bent on wiping us out and ending our meddling in his affairs once and for all.

Cloud�s eyes went wide. "Sephiroth!"

There was another sound from above, and all the others plummeted down to join us as we hung there, awaiting our fate.

There were a few things said between Barrett, Cid, and the others, but I didn�t hear any of it. I was still looking for Vincent. There were tears in my eyes and I forgot about my nausea in my terror over what may have happened to him.

I looked back at Cloud, needing some sort of comfort. "Cloud�"

He seemed to ignore me. "It�s here�"

In my confusion, I called for him again. "Cloud�"

"Holy�Holy is there�" Cloud pointed downward, toward a faint white glow that was staring in the depths below us. "Holy is shining� Aeris� prayer is shining�"

The thought of the girl wrenched my heart, joining my stress over Vincent�s fate. "Holy� Aeris�"

We found ourselves dropped from the air and onto the rocky ledges around us. I hit the stone hard, knocking the breath out of me for a moment. I struggled up to my hands and knees, gasping to catch my breath. Then, I felt an arm around my waist and I was easily hoisted up to my feet, finding myself in Vincent�s arms.

"Oh my God! I couldn�t see you, and I thought�"

He placed one of the talons from his left hand across my lips, silencing me. "No time, we have to fight."

I nodded and offered him a smile, before turning back to face the threat. I remembered that I was fighting for a future�my reason for fighting was Vincent.

Cloud stepped to the edge of the ledge we were on. "It�s not over� This isn�t the end yet!"

With that, Sephiroth�or whatever he was now launched into us. Once more, Vincent�s gun blazed to life and Cloud leapt from where we were standing, landing upon this thing and stabbing it relentlessly with his sword. From another ledge nearby, the others in our group also began attacking. I could hear Cid give his usual over excited battle cries and sure enough, he quickly appeared on the beast as well, his spear in his hands.

I stayed on the ledge, at Vincent�s side. When the thing would get close enough, I�d strike out at it, giving it all I had, while Vincent fired, continuously fired, desperately reloading during every brief break that we got.

The creature turned toward us and lashed out at me. I braced for the blow, but never felt it. When I dared to look, I saw that Vincent had gotten in front of me and took the brunt of the attack. He was hit hard and sent flying to the side. Vincent struck the rock face with a sickening crack and crumpled to the ground. He didn�t move.

I grew afraid. "Vincent!"

There was no response from him.

"Shit!" I ran over to his side and knelt down. At first, I was afraid to touch him, but finally I dared to do so. He was lying on his side, facing away from me and I placed my hands upon him, rolling him onto his back.

Vincent�s eyes were half-open, and he was drawing in harsh breaths. I feared that he�d broken damn near every bone in his body. There was blood running from the corners of his mouth and I wondered if he�d punctured his lungs. He was completely unresponsive.

"Vincent? Come on! Please!" I put my hands on the sides of his face, desperate for any sign. "Vince�"

Slowly, his eyes focused on me and he groaned in agony. "Tifa�step back�"

"No, you�re hurt."

He locked gazes with me. "I know, hence the problem. Get back."

The sudden change in his voice told me that this wasn�t the time to argue with him. This wasn�t about pride, this was about survival. I backed away, nervously glancing over my shoulder, making sure that Sephiroth�s attention was still elsewhere.

Vincent struggled to his knees and reached up, unbuckling his cloak and letting it fall to the ground behind him. Every move he made gave clear indication of how badly he was honestly injured and attested to the misery he was in. He looked over at me as he began to unbutton his shirt. "I�m sorry�I didn�t want you to ever have to see this�"

Suddenly, I understood exactly what was happening. Past conversations between Cloud, Cid, and I ran through my head.

"�and then the mother fucker starts taking his clothes off," Cid had laughed as we sat eating, following a battle two weeks before.

Cloud had clapped his hands together. "Yeah, I look over and see Vincent getting butt naked, I looked at Cid, and you should have seen the expression on his face!"

"Hey man, it�s not everyday you see someone strip in the middle of a fight like that! I mean, I knew he was weird, but fuck! Then, he got�I don�t know�like something was tearing him apart inside." Cid shook his head and looked down at the beer bottle in his hands. "Suddenly, it quit bein� funny."

Cloud nodded in agreement. "He started to change, Tifa. I mean, his skin turned this really gross purple color�"

"And these wings!" Cid slammed his hand on the table. "These big ass wings, like bats got. And the rest of him changed, too. He looked like the fuckin� devil himself."

And now I was seeing what they�d described for myself. "It�s okay, Vincent�"

He looked away from me, now completely undressed. A cry escaped his lips and he bent forward. Just like Cid and Cloud had said, his skin immediately began to darken. The muscles of his body seemed to all cramp and he fell forward to his hands and knees and his wings, those wonderful and yet terrible wings of his, erupted from his back, unfolding around him. Another strangled sound came from him and for a moment, his wings drooped down around him, obscuring my view.

I looked back over my shoulder again, seeing that the others still had the attention of our opponent. When I turned my eyes back to Vincent, I felt my jaw drop.

Anything recognizable about him was gone. The demon that was there now rose up to its full height, towering far above me. He turned my direction and looked at me, taking a few steps toward me.

I was afraid on some level, wondering how much of Vincent was still inside this creature. It didn�t matter, though, there was no where for me to run and somehow, I knew better than to do so. I stood my ground.

He came right before me and then stooped down, until his snout was just inches from my face. There was something in the eyes, though, those familiar red eyes that told me everything I needed to know and within them, I saw a hint of fear.

Despite it all, Vincent, even then, like that, was seeking my acceptance before he acted. I was hit with a blast of his hot breath as he remained there before me, unwilling to move until I let him know how I felt about it.

With my hand trembling, I reached out and placed it on the beast�s cheek, quickly able to appreciate his snake like skin. I looked into his eyes and smiled. "I told you, I accept it all, Vincent. Everything."

The monster snorted and he nodded slightly before straightening back up to his full height. He stalked over to the edge of the ledge we were on and unfurled his wings. He screamed out, or maybe it was more of a roar, toward Sephiroth.

Apparently, Vincent was done playing and was going to get serious.

He dove off the ledge and took to the air, going forward and savagely laying into our enemy. Vincent, or rather, Chaos, fought with everything he had. His claws and fangs ripped into Sephiroth�s newly found form, and the damage he caused, along with what was being done by the others, eventually took its toll. Sephiroth faltered and vanished back into the depths.

A quiet settled over us as everyone wondered what was going to happen next.

Chaos alit next to me, keeping his gaze trained out into the darkness. Clearly, he knew that there was more to come.

I looked up at him, seeing the blood that soaked his body and I grew concerned. "Vincent? Are you all right?"

Chaos glanced over at me and gave me a curt nod. I wasn�t sure if he could speak like he was, but he answered in more of a growl. "Fine. You?"

I took a step closer to him. "I�m okay."

His eyes narrowed and he reached out with one of his arms. Carefully, he hooked an errant tendril of my hair that had worked loose from my ponytail with one of his claws and he put it back behind my ear.

I couldn�t help it and I gave him a smile. Vincent was in there and he seemed to be in a lot more control than anyone had ever given him credit for. I reached up and touched his hand as it lingered beside my head. "So far, so good, right?"

He offered me another nod, but then looked out into the chasm once more.

There was a sound and a light from below. The sound of wings could be heard and the light grew to an unbearable brightness, forcing me to turn away. When I was able to look back, I came to realize that everything that we�d faced so far was just a joke.

It was Sephiroth, or should I say, the real Sephiroth, hovering there before us as some immense winged creature. His green eyes scanned over all of us, a self-confident smirk upon his lips. He didn�t seem worried in the least.

Once more, Chaos dove from the ledge and went forward to attack, as the others moved in as well. They all put up a good fight, but Sephiroth wasn�t going to be easy to kill. It was going to take a lot to wear him down and we had already been through two hellacious fights. The odds weren�t looking good.

I watched from my vantage point, unable to reach the fight myself and waiting anxiously for someone to make a hit upon Sephiroth that actually seemed to faze him. Cloud was upon him and slashing wildly, his personal vendetta with Sephiroth fueling his rage. Focusing on the worst threat, Sephiroth knocked Cloud away and back to the ledge Barrett was upon. That done, he trained his gaze upon Chaos, who was diving at him for another attack.

Sephiroth lifted his hand, and just as Chaos was about to plow into him, Sephiroth released a blinding flash of energy, the heat of which I could feel from where I was at.

Chaos produced a screech was knocked back violently, and I watched as he trailed through the air and into the side of the cliff about fifty feet above me, looking like little more than a smoking ember as he went, the heat of the energy blast apparently having burned him.

He impacted the cliff and immediately began to plummet down, his wings crumpled behind him, broken and useless.

I ran to the brink of the ledge I was upon. I cried out as Chaos fell past, disappearing into the vast darkness below.

He was gone.

I fell to my knees and cried. My entire reason for fighting was no more and I felt no need to go on. I could hear the screams and yells of the others as they continued to throw everything they had at Sephiroth, but I barely took notice. My heart was broken and I didn�t care anymore about Sephiroth, the Planet, or anything else.

I remained there, looking down into the darkness for a long time, until I heard distinct words coming from the others.

"You fuckin� got him, Cloud! One more!" Cid�s voice rang through the mayhem.

"You killed her! You fucking killed her!" Cloud shrieked, causing me to look. I saw him raise his sword just one more time, driving it through the center of Sephiroth�s chest, mimicking the death wound he�d given Aeris weeks before.

Sephiroth�s wings quit beating and he started to fall into the darkness. Cloud leapt from him and landed on the ledge I was upon. He put his arm around my shoulders as we watched the monster fall back and away into the pit, vanishing from view and leaving us in complete silence.

"That�s all we could do," Cloud said to me in a whisper.

From afar, I heard Barrett�s distinct voice cut through the darkness. "Wait! What about Holy? What�s gonna happen to the Planet?"

Cloud stepped forward, giving a reply. "That�I don�t know. Isn�t the rest up to the Planet?"

I shook my head, my heartache over Vincent�s fate tearing me apart. "�You�re right, we�ve done all that we could do."

Cloud nodded. "All right, everyone! It�s no use thinking about it! We�ll leave all our worries here. Let�s go home proud."

I was staring at Cloud�s back, and saw him suddenly waver. He fell forward and tumbled to the ledge just below the one we were on. I ran over and knelt at the edge, looking down at where he�d landed. "What happened?"

He was confused and disoriented. "�I can feel it."

"What?"

Cloud�s eyes went wide and he looked up at me. "He�s still here�still�"

"Cloud?" I called down to him, wondering what was wrong with him. I watched helplessly as he slumped over onto his side, seeming to slip from consciousness. For several minutes I watched as he lay there unmoving. I was fairly convinced then that not only had I lost Vincent, but Cloud as well.

Finally, he moved and got to his feet. As he did so, the ground started shaking and rocks began to fall. I reached out for him, wanting to get a hold of him before the ledge he was on fell, never thinking that it was going to be the ledge I was on that gave out first.

The ground crumbled beneath me and I found myself starting to plummet into the depths where Vincent had vanished to, but somehow, Cloud managed to get a hold of me. When I dared to open my eyes, I realized that he was hanging by one arm, the other wrapped around me.

He was able to muster the strength to hoist both of us up onto another ledge. As we climbed up, Cloud spoke quietly. "I think I�m beginning to understand."

"What?" I asked, standing up despite the ground still moving.

He got up as well, looking down into the chasm. "An answer from the Planet�the Promised Land. I think I can meet her there."

I closed my eyes and sighed. I figured that Cloud meant we were all going to die and be reunited with Aeris in death. Maybe that�s what the Promised Land was. If that was the case, then I figured Vincent might be there, too. "Yeah, let�s go meet her."

Cloud gave me a sad smile. "Hey, where is everyone?"

I didn�t get a chance to respond before Barrett�s voice rang through the cave again. "Hey!"

I looked over, seeing Nanaki, Barrett, Cait Sith, Yuffie, and Cid-- already with another cigarette lit up, sitting on the ledge above us. I smiled weakly up at them. "I�m glad you�re all safe!"

"�what are we gonna do?" Barrett asked someone.

Nanaki�s resonating voice answered. "Holy should be moving soon and that means that this place will�"

Cid stood up, his cigarette falling from his lips as he looked upward. "Oh, Lady Luck don�t fail me now�"

We all stared up as the ceiling to the cavern we were in fell open and the airship plummeted down toward us. I was fairly convinced in that moment that we were all going to be crushed by the thing or knocked to our deaths, but when it reached the level we were at, the craft got hung up and stopped.

There was a brief moment of silence, before Cid gave the order. "Anyone who wants to fuckin� live better get inside now!"

Without thinking about it, I ran with Cloud and entered the craft. We all stood there inside, staring at one another, until finally, someone asked the obvious.

Cid looked over at me. "Where�s Sunshine?"

With all of the stress and misery, I fell to my knees and covered my face with my hands. "Vincent�he�s gone."

No one said a word. No one.

A/N-- This isn�t yet the end, just where I�m stoppin� for tonight. Whatcha think so far?
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Candy Wrapper