Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction / Kingdom Hearts Fan Fiction ❯ Jenova's Children ❯ Lithium ( Chapter 9 )

Jenova's Children

By Kawaii and Junsui

 

Chapter 9

Lithium

 

It wasn't until he was awake that Riku realized that he'd fallen asleep. He was lying with his head at a strange angle between a feather-filled pillow and the rest of the slightly worn couch in Kadaj's makeshift room, a plush blanket tucked around him tightly. Green and blue orbs slowly scanned the room, growing more frantic as he looked around and sat up suddenly, “Nii-san.”

Throwing the covers over his legs, Riku climbed off of the couch with a chorus of straining coils beneath him. “Nii-san… Nii-san…” He muttered under his breath, constantly sucking in and expelling air faster and faster as he became more and more frantic, “Nii-san?! Nii-san?!” Riku opened the door to the room and walked towards the bar, where he could hear the sounds of clinking plates and light conversation. But none of that meant anything as his fast pace turned into a sprint, “NII-SAN!”

Riku collided with Kadaj suddenly as he found the young man walking out from the kitchen and into the bar. The elder teen stood awkwardly as Riku held onto him for dear life, his cat-like orbs misted with emotion. “Don't leave me, not again…”

Kadaj sighed and placed an awkward hand on Riku's head, “I had to leave, I didn't want to wake you up-“

“I don't care.” Interrupted the silver-tressed teen as he trembled violently, holding back tears, “I never want to be alone. Never again.”

Riku's elder brother sighed once more and pushed a lock of silver hair out of his brother's face. It was bizarre to see a seventeen-year-old young man acting almost like a child; but then again, it was to be expected after such traumatic experiences… and it wasn't as if Kadaj had never acted childish before.

“I promise. I won't leave you.” Kadaj nodded as he ruffled Riku's hair, “C'mon. Tifa made waffles for breakfast… you have to hurry before Loz inhales the rest of them.”

“Sure.” Nodded the younger teen as he wiped his eyes with the side of his hand and composed himself and silently followed Kadaj into the kitchen.

It was as if he'd dived into a pool of silence.

Every pair of eyes in the room seemed to be directed at him, ranging from Vincent's unreadable garnet to Kairi's slightly timid violet. Riku was reminded suddenly of the time Kadaj had pointed out their similarities in appearance and shied away before reluctantly taking a seat next to Yazoo, whom was quietly spreading butter onto a waffle, his half-lidded orbs staring down at the food and lips slightly pursed. He glanced to Riku indifferently and the teen looked down at the table, tracing wood grain patterns with his eyes as to distract himself from what seemed to be a million eyes boring holes into him, shutting off all connection to the outside world as he threaded a hand through his bangs and rested his head on his palm, his blue-green orbs misted with concentration as he seemed to drift away from where he was.

A comfortably warm hand grasped mine as we walked along. It was large, and it fit around mine easily. This seemed to give me some sort of comfort as I beamed up at her and she smiled fondly down at me, her hazel orbs coruscating gently through the sea of raven tresses that always seemed to be falling over them. I beamed up at her with a toothy grin, my teeth small and spaced awkwardly.

My brother started talking and both she and I looked towards him. He was talking animatedly, constantly pushed obsidian bangs out of his large hazel orbs. He looked so much like her that it made me smile.

“They call him Riku, now, Kaa-San!” He cried happily and she looked down at me with a large smile.

“Is that right, Ri-“

“-ku? Riku?” Riku jumped out of his trance, finally looking up at Tifa, whose auburn orbs were clouded with worry as she stared at him, a concerned expression on her face, “Riku, honey, would you like something to eat?”

Riku blinked slowly at the young woman, practically surprised that she was actually addressing him. He glanced around and found that everyone was still looking at him, as if they were waiting for him to state the meaning of life.

“Um, no thanks.” Riku said quietly, glancing back down at the table. His reply was an angry, feminine huff. But it wasn't from Tifa. Riku glanced up with his new cat-like orbs and watched Yuffie angrily grab a waffle and ruthlessly formed a mountain of whipped cream on top of it. She stood up from her seat and promptly marched over to Riku, slamming the plate before him.

“Eat.” The ninja growled. It wasn't a request. Riku cast a weary glance to Yuffie, whom folded her arms over her chest and glared daggers at him, her mouth folded into a scowl. The silver-tressed teen picked up a fork and quietly cut a square out of the waffle, taking a bite out of the waffle. Every person at the table seemed to watch his every move.

“JESUS CHRIST ON A STICK!”

Riku jumped and looked to Kadaj, whom had suddenly leapt up from his seat, his dark pupils angry slits, “He's not an animal on display! Get back to your food, peons!”

Someone muttered something along the lines of “Hypocrite”. It was most likely Cloud, but Riku didn't bother to look up from his food for another several seconds. When he did, everyone seemed to be staring intently at their places as if they were the most interesting things in the world, focusing on eating other than staring at Riku. It was a minor relief, knowing that they were only doing this in as a way to avoid conflict with Riku or Kadaj… most likely Kadaj.

However, there was still one pair of eyes sending an optic death ray at Riku as he attempted to find his golden waffle under a pile of whipped cream. Yuffie huffed angrily and crossed her arms over he chest, narrowing her brown orbs as she bit the side of her lower lip and sunk into her chair.

“Dear Lord! Eat, man, EAT!” The ninja leapt up once more and grabbed Riku by the shoulders, shaking him violently as he stared at her with frightened eyes.

“Yuffie, leave him be.” A voice like velvet said softly. Riku's eyes widened as a row of metallic claws was placed on Yuffie's shoulder. The girl glanced to Vincent quickly before looking back to Riku and sighing dejectedly.

“Okay.” She nodded slowly and returned to poke at her food grumpily, shooting an unreadable glance to Riku every now and then.

 

 

After Tifa had Marlene and Denzel situated at the table with some things to color, Sora and Kairi long since departed for home after breakfast. The young woman gave a fond smile to her and Cloud's “children” and retired to the bar. The cool darkness away from the brightly lit kitchen was soothing to the ebony tressed woman as she wiped down the already-spotless bar with a rag. Expelling a long sigh, Tifa rested an elbow on the bar, threading her fingers though obsidian tresses and bitterly sucking in air through her teeth.

`No. You can't cry.' Tifa told herself as she felt a dull throb at the base of her eyes, `You have to be strong for yourself. For the kids. For Cloud.'

But it was too late; warm tears were already flowing down her cheeks from auburn orbs, splattering in tiny puddles on the bar. It was too much to hold in for any longer. She'd just stood back and watched the previous day; she'd stood there in numb shock while Cloud had almost died. If a teenage boy held that much power against him, did that mean that Cloud had grown weaker? Had Jenova grown stronger? If Jenova had grown stronger, did that mean that Sephiroth would return? What would happen to her family? To Edge? To Gaia?

Tifa jumped as she heard somebody enter the bar. Her garnet orbs wide, she hastily wiped away the tears on her cheeks with her palm.

“C-cloud…” She began, hoping her hadn't seen her tears, “I- I was just…”

“Why were you crying?” The towhead inquired as he walked behind the bar and stood close to her, his dewy azure orbs swimming with confusion.

“I… I…” Tifa stuttered, playing with a lock of her raven tresses. Cloud stepped foreword and placed his heavily gloved hands on her shoulders. Dewy blue locked with auburn as the blonde man stared Tifa straight in the eye.

“Please tell me.” He said softly, reaching up to brush obsidian tresses from her eyes. Tifa broke his gaze and pulled away, turning away from him and sheepishly rubbing her upper arm where a silken scarlet band was tired in memory of Aeris.

“Cloud, I- I'm afraid. “ She admitted softly, tears streaming down her cheeks once more, “When Riku attacked you, I didn't know what to do. I was just… horrified. It was like I saw Sephiroth returning… a second apocalypse. Everything happening a second time… me and my family… gone.”

Cloud was silent as Tifa trembled slightly, attempting to stifle the sobs that issued from her mouth with clasped hands.

“I am, too.”

Tifa's auburn eyes widened in shock as she spun to face Cloud, whom was smiling grimly, his blue orbs out of focus. “I realize now that I have so much to live for. Denzel, Marlene… they're my children as much as they are yours. They depend on me… they're my family and I can't die on them… I have so much to live for… and so much I've never gotten to experience.”

His dewy orbs suddenly snapped into focus and locked with her auburn ones. Tifa was still staring at him, wide-eyed as tears streamed down her cheeks, “I have to for us, Tifa. For you.”

He reached out slowly and gathered her face in his rough, gloved hands, brushing a single tear away with his thumb.

“Cloud…” Tifa whispered, reaching up to wrap her hands around his wrists.

“Tifa, I love you. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” Cloud whispered, pulling her close to kiss her, their soft, warm lips pressing up against one another. She pushed up against him, mashing her lips against his; Cloud kissed back, his tongue sliding against her lips, begging for entrance. Tifa parted her lips and kissed around his tongue, her hands grasping clumps of blonde hair as Cloud picked her up and set her on the bar, knocking away several glasses as he did; the objects falling to the floor and breaking loudly as Tifa wrapped her legs around his muscular frame. Cloud growled and pulled at her obsidian tresses lightly as he kissed Tifa hungrily, climbing up onto the bar to position himself above her, more glasses shattering onto the floor.

“Um…”

Auburn and dewy blue snapped up as Cloud and Tifa broke their kiss with a grotesque squelching noise.

Yuffie sighed and traipsed into the bar, shaking her head slowly. Vincent stood silently beside her, the majority of his face covered by the high collar of his cloak.

The ninja continued to shake her head, placing her hands on her hips as she clucked her tongue, “Carry on, I just came back to get something I left here, but obviously, we need to stay to watch the kids.” Chocolate orbs scoured the room quickly, “Where's Riku?” Yuffie inquired.

Tifa hastily pulled herself out from under Cloud, her face a bright shade of red. Cloud hopped off of the counter and scratched his head, scowling, but blushing all the same.

“Uhh…” The towhead cleared his throat; “He's out running errands with Kadaj.”

“When will they be back?” Vincent inquired, folding his arms as his garnet orbs flitted about the room.

“Um, in about an hour.” Tifa replied as she smoothed the wrinkles in her clothes; her auburn orbs suddenly clouded with concern, “What's the matter, Vincent? You look uneasy.”

Vincent was silent and merely swept off to the kitchen. Yuffie watched him go, blinking several times before she turned back to Cloud and Tifa, clapping her hands and rubbing them together greedily.

“So…” Began the ninja, “How much do you pay per hour to watch the kids?”

 

 

Riku peered into his reflection from the mirror-like surface of the water. Several pale yellow petals drifted across his reflection and he lightly reached out to touch one, smooth ripples extending across the surface and warping the image of the silver-tressed cat eyed teen staring back.

Kadaj sat upon the ruins of the stone wall, one leg slung over the side, drifting endlessly in a kicking motion as he twirled a white flower between his forefinger and thumb, staring down at it with a nearly expressionless face.

“Shouldn't we be working?” Riku inquired softly, scooping a small bit of water out of the pond.

“Its me that should be working. You have nothing to do with it.” The elder teen snorted, waving away the comment with a short gesture. He blinked and held the flower up to the sunlight, studying the veins that ran through the ivory petals with misty orbs.

Riku stared at his hands and the tiny mirror of water cupped within them. A sad kaleidoscope of green and blue stared back, cat-like pupils widened suddenly and he tossed the water back into the pond with a disgusted noise, turning from the small body of water and sitting at its edge, gathering his silver tresses in clumps as he felt the tears threaten to come once again, that familiar burning at the back of his eyes.

“Its okay.” A soft voice whispered. Riku jumped, his eyes wide with shock. Small flowers of pastel yellow and ivory tickled his ankles, swaying in a nonexistent breeze. Riku's silver tresses fluttered in front of his eyes as a soft hand was placed on his back, like that of an older sister comforting her frightened little brother. “You don't have to be afraid.” The breathy voice continued, “We've all made mistakes, don't think you're the only one.”

“Who are you?” Riku inquired, staring around the blank whiteness that had seemed to erupt around him. He heard the woman chuckle jovially.

“I am-“

“Having fun, little remnants?”

The comforting presence and the serene world of flowers was ripped away from Riku in the blink of an eye. It seemed as if the world had become colder as the teen whipped around to face Sephiroth. The ex-warlord stood, plain as day, within the church; an ebony wing folded behind his back. The man with the long silver tresses smirked and blinked slowly as Riku leapt up from where he was sitting. Kadaj extracted Shouba from its sheath and performed a reverse aerial flip from where he was sitting with his back facing Sephiroth, and landed elegantly, the double-bladed katana pointed towards the tall man.

“What do you want, Sephiroth?” Spat Riku, summoning The Way To The Dawn in a flash of light.

“I came to take back what is rightfully mine.” A sadistic smirk curled onto Sephiroth's lips as he stared at Riku and Kadaj with out-of-focus green-blue eyes and extracted Masume from the leather loop on his waist that acted as its sheath. Riku's eyes snapped wide as he leapt over the massive katana that had been brutally swung his way. Once he landed, Riku spun around, his eyes still wide and alert, and raised the indigo-tipped blade in an attempt to stop the oncoming Masume. Holding his own blade at an angle, the teen braced himself against the force of the sword. Sephiroth grinned as the two blades collided and Riku was thrown backwards, spinning in the air and landing in a feral crouch. The silver-tressed man raised his sword above his right shoulder, gripping it with both hands as he charged Riku.

Suddenly, Kadaj sprang from the ground behind Riku and landed on the tip of the two-yard katana, agilely running up the length of the sword and slashing at Sephiroth's face. The warlord bent backwards, flipping Masume over and swinging it upwards towards Kadaj, whom sprang to the side to avoid the attack, but the elder man adjusted the momentum of the sword and skinned the side of Kadaj's calf. The teen howled in pain, blood spraying across the room as he fell in a heap on the dirt floor.

“NII-SAN!” Riku yelled, his eyes so wide with horror that his pupils were merely dark slits.

Suddenly, the water of the pond began to tremble, bursting forth from the surface to rise in elegant spirals, which flowed through the air towards Kadaj's limp form.

Sephiroth's smirk flickered and he expelled a soft “Hmph.” Before raising his right hand, his left gripping Masume. A deep rumble sounded from the skies and Riku watched, dumbfounded, as a dark mist seeped in through the open doors, windows, and the ruins of the wall, spinning like an eye of a hurricane above Sephiroth's hands, the darkness churning and evanescing from the main group of mist.

An arm of darkness extended from the mass and wrapped around the water that had nearly reached Kadaj; for a moment, the water seemed to be fighting the dark mist, trembling and struggling as the two pressed against one another and the darkness finally contracted around the pale jade water, strangling and causing it to collapse on the ground in a spray of aquarian beads.

The mist washed over Kadaj and swept upwards and over, spiraling towards Riku.

The teen quickly dodged the dark mist as Sephiroth began to circle Riku slowly, Masume held out towards the teen as he cross-stepped again and again, his catlike orbs sparkling dimly with malice. Riku held his Keyblade in a slightly shaking hand, his eyes sliding in and out of focus as he panted for breath, sweat trickling down the side of his face.

Riku's eyes suddenly snapped wide, dark pupils shrinking to slits in a split second as the silver-tressed man lurched and charged Riku. Knowing he would be unable to dodge the attack and would be impaled in a split second, Riku closed his eyes and tensed his body.

At the last moment, however, a hand caught his arm, pulling Riku out of the sword's path. Masume ran across a metallic arm, aerate sparks flying as the two metal surfaces collided.

There was a definite click and a beam of light streaked down the length of a triple-barreled gun just before it reared back in a series of quick shots. Sephiroth's eyes became wide before a cruel smirk curled onto his face and he used Masume to deflect the bullets. Vincent blinked his garnet orbs calmly and grabbed Riku by the collar of his coat, pulling him to the ground as the bullets whizzed overhead.

Vincent reached into his cloak, removing a small box of ammo; in one quick movement, he reloaded the gun and pointed it towards Sephiroth, whom was quietly waiting, the dark mist swirling around him as Vincent grabbed Riku by the arm. “Come on.” He said in his dark voice, pulling the silver-tressed youth along with him.

“But what about Kada-?” Riku began quickly.

“He'll be fine.” Vincent said calmly and whipped his cloak around Riku.

 

 

The next thing Riku knew, his feet were on solid ground. Vincent threw his cloak out behind him, removing the warm fabric from Riku. The teen was met with a sudden blast of cold that forced him to wrap his arms around him for warmth. The only light in the area was a dull blue glow that radiated from many large formations of crystals; and according to the cold, wet air and the small pool of rippling water, they were somewhere deep underground. Cat-like orbs studied the area, coming to a stop when he spotted the largest crystal.

Encased within it was an elegant woman whom appeared to be in her thirties, her hands placidly crossed over her chest in a way eerily similar to that of a corpse. Her eyes were shut lightly, dark eyelashes clashing beautifully against her milky skin; so peaceful that it appeared that she was sleeping. The tendrils of brunette hair that framed her sleeping face looked so soft and real that Riku wished he could reach out and run his fingers over it. The crystal emitted a more whitish glow than the crystals around it, the light from the crystal blocked only by Vincent's silhouette that showed he was sitting several yards away from the crystal-encased woman.

Riku walked over to the large crystal, chilly water seeping in through his boots as he reached out to stroke the shimmering surface beside her placid face.

“I know her.” He said softly, his eyes misted over with confusion, “I know her from my dreams - from my memories.” His eyes widened suddenly. Could this be the woman he dreamed of; was this his mother?

“Vincent- wha-what's her name?!” Riku inquired, spinning towards the man. Vincent opened his ruby eyes, and they seemed to coruscate with regret and sadness.

“Lucrecia. Lucrecia Crescent.”

Riku whipped around towards the crystal, his eyes wide with shock and horror. Lucrecia. That was the name the man in his memory called the woman. Riku's blue and green orbs widened even further, his pupils so small that they were mere lines. He remembered her now; it was like she was there, preserved forever the middle-aged woman that had helped make Riku's life a living hell.

“Her! “ Riku gasped, panting for breath as he gripped at the crystal, “It was her! She helped do this to me!” Tears formed in Riku's eyes as he stared at the woman beyond the crystal, “How could she…?”

“Lucrecia made many mistakes.” Vincent spoke softly, his garnet orbs half-lidded and heavy with thought, “Though she wasn't the only one at fault.”

Riku narrowed his eyes in confusion and turned back to Vincent slowly, “What are you saying…?”

“Sephiroth… he's our son.” Vincent admitted quietly as he stared at Lucrecia's entombed form.

“How… what…?” Riku struggled to make a coherent sentence, shaking his head slowly as he did so.

“Lucrecia was a protégée when she was very young and knew my father well.” The red-cloaked man began to explain, “When my mother died giving birth to me, Lucrecia stepped in to fill the void as a female caregiver. She even went as far as to call me her son sometimes… but a girl such a young age shouldn't have had that much responsibility- she was only eleven.” Vincent closed his eyes and continued his story, “Regrettably, it threw some things off in her mind and she became… paranoid of me, eventually. She wanted nothing to do with me. When I was twenty-seven, and she thirty-seven, I was assigned to watch over her in my role of a Turk- assassins for the company she worked for- and…” Vincent finally opened his eyes to study the woman beyond the crystal, his face glowing with some sort of grim nostalgia, “We made some rash decisions. After that, she wanted nothing to do with me. She grew cold and uncaring. I lost my Lucrecia; the woman I fell in love with. She was a confused woman and I hope you do not blame her.”

Riku's green and blue orbs traveled to the peaceful face of the woman behind the thick quartz, not living, nor dead.

“Vincent.” Said the silver tressed teen softly, “Sephiroth said… he said that I'm his brother. Does that mean you're my…?”

“No.” Vincent shook his head, “I was sleeping for thirty years; when I was put into that sleep, Lucrecia hadn't even had Sephiroth yet.”

“Is she my mother?” Riku inquired in a hollow voice. But why would his own mother do something like that to her son?

“I think Sephiroth meant something different when he said you were brothers. He meant you were related by the Jenova cells. I doubt you were related to Sephiroth; however, you were most likely related to Kadaj, depending on if he was lying or not.” Vincent explained solemnly, “We could run a rough background check on the family name Kadaj provided to check the facts, if you'd like that.”

Riku bit his lip, staring at Lucrecia's preserved form. However oblivious she was, she had helped take him away from his family, and she'd helped push along the process that made Riku into this monster that had hurt his friends so badly-

Before Riku knew it, Vincent was holding back The Way To The Dawn as the teen struggled to swing it at the glowing quartz that housed Lucrecia.

“LET ME GO!” The silver-tressed youth screamed as he struggled to gain control over the Keyblade; he easily could have done so if he weren't in hysterics, tears coursing down his cheeks from the kaleidoscopes of green and blue that were his eyes, “I HATE HER! I HAVE TO! I HATE HER! LOOK WHAT SHE'S DONE TO ME!” Riku finally let go of the blade, Vincent stepping back slightly from the force he'd been using to hold it back. The blade disappeared in a streak of blue light, however, it didn't return to Riku's hand; instead, the teen angrily pounded at the large gem with a single fist, his eyes scrunched up as the tears flowed from them, “WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO ME? WHY?! Why?!” The teen began to calm down, slowly sliding down onto his knees, that became immersed in water, silver bangs falling over his eyes as he bowed his head, still weakly pounding at the crystal, the inquiring of `why' growing fainter and fainter until it was only a breath on his lips.

“Why did she do this to me?” Vincent asked softly, holding his arms away from his body, head bent in agony. Riku squinted his eyes in confusion, eyeing the elder man.

“W-What?” he choked out. “But I thought - “

“No. It wasn't just Lucrecia, Riku. It was Hojo.” Vincent growled the last name darkly. Riku bit back a startled gasp in recognition. A searing hot pain wracked his body, and he began to shake violently, screaming in pain. “Hojo! Do you think you're doing the right thing…? He's merely a child and-“ “Are you one to speak, Lucrecia?” “… nothing to say.” “Quite the hypocrite …” “Poor child.” “Commencing Project R.I.K.U Jenova #1445…”

“NO!”

White noise, the chill of water, and then darkness.

 

 

“NO!” Riku screamed again, eyes flashing open. His hands were tightly clenched around the fabric surrounding him, his heart hammering against his chest. He caught his breath and wiped the sweat from his brow, straining to remember what it was he was yelling about. Then it came to him, creeping slowly back and filling the cloudy memories. He was in that cave… with Vincent. And then… he frowned, urging the recollections to continue. Lucrecia! He had been in the water, trying to decimate her tomb. He had been crying as well. And there had been pain. Lots of pain.

Riku shook his foggy head; silver tresses splaying out around him, catching the dim light almost like a halo. He swung his legs over the edge of the mattress, supporting himself with his arms. In a split second, he was lying on his back with a muffled WUMP, his uttered yip echoing faintly in the bare room. “Man!” he whined, rubbing his bicep with a hand. “It feels like I just got my flu shot!” Biting his lip, he ignored the intense throbbing and pulled enough momentum to rise from the bed. The force made him stagger forwards a bit, and he caught himself by reaching out to the nearby dresser. “Sonnuva BITCH!” he hissed between clenched teeth. “Screw flu shot, they might as well have given me shots against rabies!” The teen swore vehemently under his breath.

“Now how the hell did I get here?” he pondered as he made his way slowly down the staircase in Tifa and Cloud's home. “Vincent?” he called wearily, wondering if the enigmatic man had decided to stick around long enough to see if he had come too or not. It was quiet a moment.

“Oui- erm, I mean… uh, yes?”

“Eh?” Riku scratched the base of his neck as he jumped the last two stairs, stalking into the bar. “I must be more delirious than I thought.” He muttered, cocking a fine brow. “Or were you really speaking French?”

“Oui, j'étais désolé, je devine que j'ai juste obtenu un peu perdu dans ma lecture. Mes excuses.” Vincent rattled off smoothly, setting a heavy volume on the bar.

“Um… I take that as a `yes'?” the teen said awkwardly, sitting on the stool beside the cloaked man.

“Hmn.” The raven tressed man smirked lightly, a mere line that his lips created. “I said: Yes, I was. Sorry, I guess I just got a bit lost in my reading. My apologies.”

“I see.” Riku nodded automatically, craning his head to the side to read the gold leaf lettering on the black leather-bound book. “Marquis de Sade?” he read off. “'Sade'? As in… sadism?” the seventeen-year-old remarked in slight disturbance.

“Indeed.” Vincent replied matter-of-factly, completely unperturbed. “As in well written French literature.” He took a sip of the small glass of brandy beside him. “As well as decently drawn illustrations.” Riku saw the brief glimmer of laughter that danced in the man's garnet eyes and shot him a suspicious look.

“Meaning what exactly?” he asked, feeling almost sly.

“Marquis de Sade is a renowned author like Lautreamont or Artaud. Such men have been called `mad', but are quite… insightful, might one say?” Another sip of brandy.

“I still don't think I'm following.” Riku admitted, reaching for the book. A metallic hand blanketed his quickly.

“If you must know, Marquis de Sade has page after page of repetitive pornography.” He smirked boldly, challenging the teen's questioning stare. Riku paled considerably.

“Eh… thanks for the information.” He blinked slowly, settling back in his chair. He mightjust go back for that book later, but granted, it wasa bit creepy to know Vincent had looked at it…

“If you're into surreal debauchery, sadism, nihilism and the morbidly bizarre, you might enjoy their works.” Vincent continued smoothly, clearly enjoying himself. Riku forced a smile.

“Thanks for the reference.” He squeaked out. Okay, scratch the previous thought. Sadistic? What kinda freak - man, the government should hire him to talk to kids about drugs. I bet he could go on for hourssaying how `wonderful' drugs are and say the most horrid things to those poor children in that pleasant but dark tone of his and - “Huh?” he asked, suddenly brought back to his senses.

“I was asking how you were feeling. You look a bit pale.” Vincent repeated, worry glazing over his smug expression. Well, as much expression as he was capable of portraying, anyways.

“Hmn? Oh, ah… I could use some water, really.” Riku commented, hopping down from the stool. As he walked back into the kitchenette behind the bar he caught the man reaching for the book again and shivered.The government, I swear! He thought fervently.

“Someone's pretty talkative today.” A voice commented dryly.

“GAH!” the teen jumped, fumbling with the cup in his hands. Cloud chuckled and stood up from his reclined position against the side of the refrigerator.

“Jeez, kid. I was standing right here this whole time.” He said amusedly, ruffling Riku's hair slightly.

“I'm not a kid.” The teen shot back half-heartedly, busy trying to keep shards of ice from spewing out across the linoleum floor.

“Sure ya are.” Cloud said, tossing the ice cream bar wrapper in the garbage under the sink. “And don't mind Vincent too much. He's just happy `cause he got laid.” The towhead threw over his shoulder with a slight chuckle as he traipsed out the door.

“I musta hit my head.” Riku decided soundly. “People around here are acting WAY too weird. Next I'm going to start seeing moogles…” He made his way back into the bar and resumed his seat beside Vincent, eyeing the man wearily. “So…” he began, swirling the ice cubes in his cup around lazily.

“You passed out.” The cloaked man commented.

“I noticed.” Riku snorted. “What did you mean about earlier? Look what she did to you? After that you said Hojo, so…?” he trailed off.

“My father, Grimoire Valentine, was assigned to protect the scientists that Shin-ra employed. He died protecting them, and I followed in his footsteps and became a Turk. As it turned out, they assigned me his role. When I first met Lucrecia, she seemed genuinely dumbfounded that I was given that position, and hastily made the comment that she had never met a Turk before. Well, as you now must have realized, Lucrecia became pregnant.”

“With yo-“

“Yes.” Vincent quickly interjected. “Being the scientist that she was, well… everything was an experiment to her.” He sighed heavily. “They all had been experimenting with the mako that the reactors produced, which ran all of the cities - and I mean everywhere. Even in Kalm, and Nebelheim. Midgar itself was the haven of mako, what with a reactor in every sector. But I digress. There was a reactor in the more mountainous region above Nebelheim - only reachable by mule - where horrible mutated creations were stored in locked compartments. Monsters that would occasionally get loose… that were once humans. They were drenched in the reek of mako, completely submerged in it. And it was there also that Jenova was kept - the alien life form that harvested the planet's cruelest cellular organisms, aptly named after her.

“The scientists created those monsters, then hid them away in the most top secret places were the people would never get word of the monstrosities that Shin-ra was responsible for. They were curious of the effects that the mako would have on humans. Hojo suggested…” Vincent swallowed hard, a nostalgic look misting over his generally clear garnet orbs. “Hojo suggested that they perform a new test. They had only tested on humans far into their lives, or even as early as late teens, but never any younger. Hojo declared they inject her, and therefore her unborn child, with the mako cells, and monitor the results. More than that, but he wanted to throw in the wildcard of the Jenova cells as well.

“I… I was so shocked… and hurt… that she would go through with it. What kind of mother would endanger her unborn child, as well as herself, so recklessly? I guess… she wished it dead anyways…”

“Don't say that!” Riku exclaimed, looking at him sharply.

“In any case.” The elder man continued bitterly. “I came to see if it were true. She yelled at me, but her message was clear enough - nothing would stop her from going through with the plan. Then again - “ he looked up solemnly. “There is reason to blame me as well. I should have said something; I should have tried to stop her. But I remained mute and numb to the situation, and let it pass. THAT is my Sin.” He looked away, his forefinger swirling around the edge of his glass.

“But how does that explain how… well…” Riku trailed off, trying to find words that wouldn't be offensive.

“How I have a metal arm and so forth?” the other man helpfully filled in. “I went to see her one day, to try for the last time to advise her against her course of action, and Hojo… shot me.”

“WHAT?!” Riku screeched incredulously. “WHAT THE HELL WOULD HE DO THAT FOR?!”

“I was endangering his project. He had failed repeatedly to spark the interest or good graces of Shin-ra, and he was a power monger, desperate to get higher up in ranks. He shot me with the intent of killing me, eliminating the problem. But he found me still breathing, and I could hear him cackling madly to himself as I tried to fight the unconsciousness that crept upon me. He kept saying how brilliant he was, how he could fix past mishaps and misdemeanors. How this experiment couldn't fail. The next thing I know, I wake up on an operating table, the way you see me now, in horrible pain. I managed to scramble off of it before I passed out again, and then I woke up in a tube filled with some liquid - presumably a mako induced substance. Hojo injected me with mako, but I do not have the mako eyes that are so characteristic of the chemical. He gave me… Chaos. With Chaos, my body will transform into horrid beasts with unimaginable power.

“But Chaos is a curse. Devious, and conscious in of itself. It seeks to

supplant me, to dominate my body and seek a life of it's own through me. And that was the last act of kindness I received from Lucrecia. Her whispers still haunt me, `I'm so sorry'. That's all she says. But thanks to her, I have the Protomateria inside me. Because of it, I can overpower Chaos, and instead use it's powers at will. So in ways, it is her fault. She was apart of the project I became, and at the same time, she gave me a way to live. It's complicated.”

“I'm sorry.” Riku said blankly, staring into his now empty cup. “That must be horrible. I mean, you two… jeez.” He brought the glass to his lips and set it back down. “I guess I'm luckier in leaps and bounds then, huh?” he laughed forcibly.

“Luck has nothing to do with it.” Vincent shook his head. “I'm sorry on her behalf for what has happened to you, but what becomes of you…” he rose from his seat and tucked Marquis de Sade under his arm. “Is entirely up to you.”

“Vincent!” Riku called as the tall man reached the doorway. He paused, and turned his head towards his shoulder, indicating his attentiveness. “Thanks.” The teen grinned a little. “It helps to know other's stories. Something to grow from, right?”

“Hmn.” Riku bet that Vincent was smiling.