Beneath the Red
folder
Final Fantasy VII › Yaoi - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
7
Views:
865
Reviews:
31
Recommended:
0
Currently Reading:
0
Category:
Final Fantasy VII › Yaoi - Male/Male
Rating:
Adult ++
Chapters:
7
Views:
865
Reviews:
31
Recommended:
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.
One Last Secret
*You all honestly thought I would kill Cid?? Mwahahahaha!
Yeah right! Besides, I would have warned “character death”
in the descriptions ^_^. Not to mention he’s the coolest
character ever (well, debatable, for I share equal love for
Vince and Reno… I’ll shu’up now. :-P)*
Beneath the Red
Epilogue
One Last Secret
Cid woke up from a blank sleep that was too deep to dream in.
His body tingled… there was a fading green glow and a faint breeze
that was just dying off… Mako…
“Ugh…” he grunted, holding his delicately healed chest. He tried to
sit up.
“I wouldn’t.”
Vincent was sitting in Cid’s desk chair, pulled next to his bed. They
were in his room… and he was alive… “Oh man… I thought I was a
goner…”
“It’s fortunate that you weren’t.”
Cid caught sight of Vincent’s face. There were a series of scrapes
across his cheek and nose and his eye was blackened. “Jesus, I
didn’t hurt you too bad, did I?”
Vincent let a small wry smile escape. “You’re not the one who should
be asking that question.”
“Use that on yourself, Vince. I’m fine now.”
“It’s not the mastered one.”
“Who the hell has FullCure then?”
Vincent shrugged. “That’s not the point.”
“You were gonna make a point?”
The pale man’s shoulders slumped, skin almost glowing in the moonlight.
Cid realized that both of them were shirtless—probably in the wash from
all that blood. “I can’t tell you how deeply sorry I am for hurting you.
And… seeing how truly happy you can be has shown me how unfathomably
selfish I have been…”
“What the hell did I tell you about kicking yourself?” Cid scolded, sitting up
anyway through the pain and fragile scar tissue ready to break at any
greater strain. “Hey, do me a favor? Get in my desk and fish me out a
cigarette?”
Vincent rolled the chair back and rummaged awkwardly with his good hand
and found Cid’s fix and lighter with the silhouette of a nude woman on it.
He helped Cid ignite the death-stick and sat back. The smoke made the
silence less tense.
“So Cloud—?”
“Forget about Cloud,” Vincent interrupted sort of sharply, not avoiding eye
contact for once. “It’s you and I for the moment.”
Cid grinned. The giddiness returned. He had gotten through at last. The
barriers had at last crumbled and Vincent was open and free with him, if not
simple and blunt with his words. Cid preened himself with the idea that his
inclusion was exclusive to himself.
“Are you ready then?”
“Ready?”
“For Sephiroth.”
Vincent’s expression didn’t change. It was habit to mute automatically, Cid
fancied, but he was beginning to be able to decipher his subtleties. It
disturbed his lover deeply. No, he wasn’t ready.
“Yes,” he finally said.
“Liar.”
“…True,” Vincent agreed with a ‘fair enough’ half shrug.
“Is he really your son?”
Vincent leaned back into himself, but his brooding enclosed a wider radius
that now encompassed Cid instead of shutting him out. After a moment he
spoke. “He looks so much like Lucretia I can’t be sure.”
Cid was reluctant to point out that they shared the same elegant nose and
luminescent skin tone. “He’s insane, Vince.”
“I know. That’s why I told Lucretia that he was dead,” he replied grimly.
“No. I’d rather not know. He must die anyway, and knowing makes the sin
no better.”
“Cloud wants to move out soon,” Cid pointed out.
Vincent made a little smile. “Then with the death of Sephiroth is the death
of my repentance. My atonement will be complete… and though I will grieve
his loss as if he were mine, I will let it go. It’s time to heal. You told me that,
Cid. And … I believe you.”
Cid shrugged. “That or we all die. You know the whole all-powerful thing and
then there’s Meteor and Holy to worry about or some crap like that… the
save-the-world bullshit…”
Vincent actually let a tiny laugh through his small closed smile. “I see now.
It makes sense.”
Cid smirked, glad that Vincent was at the beginning of a metamorphosis. “So
what do you wanna do after we save the world?”
Vincent seemed surprised. “I… never thought about it.”
Cid laughed. “Me neither!” He held his ribs from the sudden pain. “Ooh… sore…”
Vincent leaned over and pressed his warm lips against the wound, giving Cid
goosebumps. “That was sort of a cliché statement, Cid…”
“Huh?”
“ ‘Dreams come true…’”
“Sorry for not being creative, but it was the least I could do, considering
you were about to rip my head off…”
Vincent sort of looked a little hurt. “Your kindness daunted me at first…”
he said softly. “I still don’t understand why you would extend it to me of
all people.”
“If it makes you feel better, neither do I,” Cid chuckled. “But don’t question
it, man. Aren’t you glad I did?”
“Undoubtedly.” The response was immediate. Finally, the recognition of
something positive within him. He looked up with that vexing expression
and it dawned on Cid. Love. The memory of Shera when they first started,
before they ever fell out made him recognize it. Vincent loved him. And that
was instinct not to say, especially for a man—even more so for men
like themselves.
Then again, it really didn’t need to be said aloud.
The red was full of darkness—rank with rape, murder and decay. The red
was a cold poison wall, trapping and mutating all that entered or exited.
But beneath the red rested the exact opposite.
Vincent was not the red.
Vincent was beneath the red.
End
******************************************************
*yeesh, that took way too long! I know it was sort of dumb, but I see Vince
as a sort of real sensitive guy under all that darkness. By the way for those
of you who want to get technical, yes I know that FullCure isn’t found until
midway through the Crater, but I’m just exorcising a little artistic license. ^_^
I’m glad you all stuck around to see the ending, and thank you all for your
patience once again. A special shout out to: Abdack Bluden, FullMetalBlunt,
Epsy, Yami, Saesama,“Anon” and everyone else who reviewed or showed
support! #MUAH!#* oh, and check out the companion piece called "lamentations." vincen'ts point of view is much different!!
Yeah right! Besides, I would have warned “character death”
in the descriptions ^_^. Not to mention he’s the coolest
character ever (well, debatable, for I share equal love for
Vince and Reno… I’ll shu’up now. :-P)*
Beneath the Red
Epilogue
One Last Secret
Cid woke up from a blank sleep that was too deep to dream in.
His body tingled… there was a fading green glow and a faint breeze
that was just dying off… Mako…
“Ugh…” he grunted, holding his delicately healed chest. He tried to
sit up.
“I wouldn’t.”
Vincent was sitting in Cid’s desk chair, pulled next to his bed. They
were in his room… and he was alive… “Oh man… I thought I was a
goner…”
“It’s fortunate that you weren’t.”
Cid caught sight of Vincent’s face. There were a series of scrapes
across his cheek and nose and his eye was blackened. “Jesus, I
didn’t hurt you too bad, did I?”
Vincent let a small wry smile escape. “You’re not the one who should
be asking that question.”
“Use that on yourself, Vince. I’m fine now.”
“It’s not the mastered one.”
“Who the hell has FullCure then?”
Vincent shrugged. “That’s not the point.”
“You were gonna make a point?”
The pale man’s shoulders slumped, skin almost glowing in the moonlight.
Cid realized that both of them were shirtless—probably in the wash from
all that blood. “I can’t tell you how deeply sorry I am for hurting you.
And… seeing how truly happy you can be has shown me how unfathomably
selfish I have been…”
“What the hell did I tell you about kicking yourself?” Cid scolded, sitting up
anyway through the pain and fragile scar tissue ready to break at any
greater strain. “Hey, do me a favor? Get in my desk and fish me out a
cigarette?”
Vincent rolled the chair back and rummaged awkwardly with his good hand
and found Cid’s fix and lighter with the silhouette of a nude woman on it.
He helped Cid ignite the death-stick and sat back. The smoke made the
silence less tense.
“So Cloud—?”
“Forget about Cloud,” Vincent interrupted sort of sharply, not avoiding eye
contact for once. “It’s you and I for the moment.”
Cid grinned. The giddiness returned. He had gotten through at last. The
barriers had at last crumbled and Vincent was open and free with him, if not
simple and blunt with his words. Cid preened himself with the idea that his
inclusion was exclusive to himself.
“Are you ready then?”
“Ready?”
“For Sephiroth.”
Vincent’s expression didn’t change. It was habit to mute automatically, Cid
fancied, but he was beginning to be able to decipher his subtleties. It
disturbed his lover deeply. No, he wasn’t ready.
“Yes,” he finally said.
“Liar.”
“…True,” Vincent agreed with a ‘fair enough’ half shrug.
“Is he really your son?”
Vincent leaned back into himself, but his brooding enclosed a wider radius
that now encompassed Cid instead of shutting him out. After a moment he
spoke. “He looks so much like Lucretia I can’t be sure.”
Cid was reluctant to point out that they shared the same elegant nose and
luminescent skin tone. “He’s insane, Vince.”
“I know. That’s why I told Lucretia that he was dead,” he replied grimly.
“No. I’d rather not know. He must die anyway, and knowing makes the sin
no better.”
“Cloud wants to move out soon,” Cid pointed out.
Vincent made a little smile. “Then with the death of Sephiroth is the death
of my repentance. My atonement will be complete… and though I will grieve
his loss as if he were mine, I will let it go. It’s time to heal. You told me that,
Cid. And … I believe you.”
Cid shrugged. “That or we all die. You know the whole all-powerful thing and
then there’s Meteor and Holy to worry about or some crap like that… the
save-the-world bullshit…”
Vincent actually let a tiny laugh through his small closed smile. “I see now.
It makes sense.”
Cid smirked, glad that Vincent was at the beginning of a metamorphosis. “So
what do you wanna do after we save the world?”
Vincent seemed surprised. “I… never thought about it.”
Cid laughed. “Me neither!” He held his ribs from the sudden pain. “Ooh… sore…”
Vincent leaned over and pressed his warm lips against the wound, giving Cid
goosebumps. “That was sort of a cliché statement, Cid…”
“Huh?”
“ ‘Dreams come true…’”
“Sorry for not being creative, but it was the least I could do, considering
you were about to rip my head off…”
Vincent sort of looked a little hurt. “Your kindness daunted me at first…”
he said softly. “I still don’t understand why you would extend it to me of
all people.”
“If it makes you feel better, neither do I,” Cid chuckled. “But don’t question
it, man. Aren’t you glad I did?”
“Undoubtedly.” The response was immediate. Finally, the recognition of
something positive within him. He looked up with that vexing expression
and it dawned on Cid. Love. The memory of Shera when they first started,
before they ever fell out made him recognize it. Vincent loved him. And that
was instinct not to say, especially for a man—even more so for men
like themselves.
Then again, it really didn’t need to be said aloud.
The red was full of darkness—rank with rape, murder and decay. The red
was a cold poison wall, trapping and mutating all that entered or exited.
But beneath the red rested the exact opposite.
Vincent was not the red.
Vincent was beneath the red.
End
******************************************************
*yeesh, that took way too long! I know it was sort of dumb, but I see Vince
as a sort of real sensitive guy under all that darkness. By the way for those
of you who want to get technical, yes I know that FullCure isn’t found until
midway through the Crater, but I’m just exorcising a little artistic license. ^_^
I’m glad you all stuck around to see the ending, and thank you all for your
patience once again. A special shout out to: Abdack Bluden, FullMetalBlunt,
Epsy, Yami, Saesama,“Anon” and everyone else who reviewed or showed
support! #MUAH!#* oh, and check out the companion piece called "lamentations." vincen'ts point of view is much different!!