[FF7][SC] Star Flower

In the gunpowder smoke, one hand firmly held the muzzle of the gun, blood spattered, sprayed on the arm and the quilt; the bullet brushed the side of Sephiroth's face, leaving scorched marks, and the cold snake eyes were indifferent It locks on the intruder dynamically, and the dark poison flickers in it.Being watched by such a pair of inorganic eyes, even Vincent couldn't help but feel his heart skip a beat.

The hand holding the barrel of the gun was tightened violently, and more blood flowed across the side. During the stalemate between the two, the tooth-piercing sound of metal dragging sounded intermittently until the whole body bent upwards.Vincent had to let go of his hand on the trigger to prevent the chamber from exploding if it was pulled by mistake.Sephiroth sat up, flung the gun aside and let his left hand hang down, half of his sleeve was soaked in blood, completely useless.

Vincent opened his mouth——

"Safie...Ross...?"

Claude opened his eyes and looked at Sephiroth blankly. Is that really "seeing"?

The tense atmosphere that pricked his skin suddenly dissipated, and Sephiroth no longer gave Vincent any attention, but gently stroked the boy's forehead with his gloved right hand. "Go on sleeping." He coaxed softly, regardless of whether the other party could understand, "It's okay, I'm here."

"Safi... Rose..."

He hesitated for a moment, then covered Claude's eyes with his hands, bowed down, and dropped a soft and lingering kiss on the back of his hand.Silver hair fell between them, intertwined with bright red, melting in the cold moonlight.

His lips trembled, and finally he returned to silence.Vincent noticed a hollow in his ribcage, and although it had been filled with complement, the hollow had grown over time and he was rotting away.When he stopped making a sound, he was no different from an ordinary corpse. This fact was so cruelly revealed in front of them.

Sephiroth rolled over and got off the bed, signaling Vincent to go out.

In other words, drive out of your own territory.

"your hands……"

"It's fine." The fingers curled and twitched uncontrollably, Sephiroth held it down, avoiding the magic flashing in Vincent's palm, and cast a reply by himself, "Have you figured out what to say?"

"nothing to say."

This calmness deeply angered Sephiroth.He opened his mouth, but the depressed anger was stuck in his throat, and he couldn't utter a word; instead, he slammed Vincent into the wall roughly, and he could no longer force himself to calm down, and punched him into the wall furiously!The heavy panting echoed between the two of them, and it never subsided for a long time.Vincent looked at him quietly, standing still, neither happy nor sad.

"Didn't you come to kill me?" As dark as the shadows covered by the corridor, the light blue in Sephiroth's eyes was as bright as it was faintly fluorescent. Isn't it to continue the battle three years ago? The planet's weapon, Jenova, makes you so afraid?"

Unobvious surprise flashed, and then it was clear, "You know."

"What else?" Sephiroth smiled nervously, "Is there any great mission for you to complete?"

"The planetary weapon is not me." Vincent sighed, "It's Claude."

Vincent pushed Sephiroth's hand away with little effort; he stepped back a little and stood sideways, with the moon shadow stretching diagonally under his feet.Sephiroth was silent in the shadows, but Vincent could still clearly recognize some subtle changes, the angle of the eyebrows, the slight trembling of the eyelashes, and the slightly lowered corners of the pursed mouth.

In his memory, Sephiroth was always angry, but the form of expression was different; the only thing that remained the same was the peace that could never be obtained.He denies the world, because the world denies him, so he no longer needs any recognition, he only needs to be Sephiroth.

However, all these denials are not as severe as the fact that Claude is a planetary weapon.

"You..." Vincent said uncertainly, "Are you sad?"

Both were stunned.

Not anger, but sadness.

This man was so easy to understand, Vincent realized again.

Claude felt hurt by the planetary weapon, but he couldn't express it, maybe he didn't know he was hurt at all.It's not that the battle is fated to end with the death of one side, which is nothing to Sephiroth; it's the fact that Cloud stays with him to kill him.The pain, the regret, the retreat...all the completely new emotions of being human will be meaningless.

"The planet is afraid of the existence of Jenova, and sealed her in the scars of the planet at the cost of the entire ancient race. But their sacrifice failed. The ancient body as a prison was discovered by Shinra and became The power of human greed has also become an inseparable part of you." Vincent told Sephiroth involuntarily, and he felt that he should know, "So this time, it made a completely different weapon-its existence is For eternal death, Jenova's, and its own."

"He's not." Sephiroth shook his head and stared at him with hatred, as if he could deny the existence of the facts. "If he is a planetary weapon, why has he never taken any action?"

"It's a planetary weapon." Vincent blinked, and suddenly understood what he wanted to say, "But, he is also Claude."

"I—" Sephiroth covered his face, his words stuck in his throat, and he took a few steps back waveringly, "I don't understand—" He raised his head suddenly, his expression was between crying and laughing; he was redeemed by the truth, But because of this, he fell into deeper despair, "Why—?"

"Because he became a monster for you, but also became a human again for you."

"Ice magic is useless, isn't it? I heard that you are going to send him to be frozen with liquid nitrogen tomorrow." Vincent continued, "But that is also meaningless and will only prolong the painful process a little bit. He's gone. If you really cared about him, you should let him go now."

Sephiroth refuses to accept it all.He can't lose Claude. "He's still alive. I won't let you hurt him, not anyone."

"I know. That's why I'm here."

Sephiroth didn't understand the meaning of this sentence.

But, immediately, he realized something was wrong, turned around and ran to the ward.Vincent stood where he was, watching his staggering back, and then turned his head to stare at the bright moon shadow outside the window, his scarlet eyes were filled with endless regret.

What was waiting for Sephiroth was the empty ward, and the curtains swayed gently in the wind.

[1] Emily Dickinson

[2] Gul'dan