Guilt’s Cost: Part XI

Separation

Tifa awoke to a knock at the door. For a moment she didn’t move, remaining nestled into Vincent’s back. When the knock came again, she struggled to her feet, incredibly sore from having slept on the floor. She looked back down at Vincent, still deep in sleep.

She opened the door seeing Tseng on the other side. "Morning."

He smiled back at her, his expression filled with concern. "Tifa, you don’t look very well, are you all right?"

She stepped out into the hall so she could talk to him without disturbing Vincent. "We had kind of a rough night."

Tseng cocked an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"It’s Vincent…" She hung her head. "He is having a hard time controlling Chaos. He lost it a little last night, and almost killed Reno."

Tseng’s eyes went wide. "I really should have let you know that Reno was here, I’m sorry if he scared you."

She shook her head. "That’s okay, but after Reno left, he turned on me."

He looked very concerned now. "Did he hurt you?"

"No." Tifa felt bad for discussing this without Vincent’s permission. "But he came pretty close to doing so. Isn’t there anything your men can do for him?"

Tseng sighed. "Not that I am aware of. Chaos is imbedded in him on the genetic level; I don’t know how we would ever get him out of Vincent. If you truly feel that you are in danger, I can provide and escort to stay with the two of you."

Clearly that idea was not acceptable to her. "No, I couldn’t do that, and Vincent would never have it. If he knew that I was frightened of him, he would leave. I don’t want him to do that, or something worse."

Tseng, well aware of his brother’s suicidal tendencies nodded in agreement. "You’re right. You might just know him better than I do. Is he all right now?"

She reopened the door so Tseng could see his brother lying on the floor. Tseng examined him from afar, seeing that the back of Vincent’s shirt had been shredded during his partial transformation. Vincent’s gun was a short distance from him on the ground, where he had dropped it while throttling Reno the night before.

Tifa motioned to Vincent and sighed. "The way he talked afterward makes me think that he is on the verge of losing his mind. I was so scared for him. If anything were to happen to him… I don’t know what I would do."

Tseng whispered. "You need to worry about your own safety too, Tifa. Vincent is a strong man, but that demon inside him only grows more powerful. If it happens again, you need to call me right away." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small remote. "If anything happens, just push that button and I will be alerted."

She shifted where she stood as she slipped the device into a pocket in her shorts. "So, what about the lab raid today?"

"Do you think he’s up to it?" Tseng asked.

"He wouldn’t miss it for the world, I’m afraid. But I’m a little nervous about going." She said, still looking over at Vincent.

Tseng shook his head. "I’m sorry if Reno didn’t make it clear, but the invitation was for Vincent only. Your implant would give you away. You need to stay here, my men are ready to evaluate your situation."

Tifa’s expression fell. "But I don’t want Vincent to go without me. What if something happened to him?"

"Tifa, he can take care of himself." Tseng smiled. "Besides, the best way for you to help him right now is to let us find a way to get that damned bug out of you. Once that’s done, you will be free to move around with him as you wish."

Vincent stirred from his sleep and rolled onto his back, staring blankly at the ceiling over him.

Tifa made her way back over to his side and knelt down. "Hi Vincent. Are you okay?"

He sat up, still a little dazed. "I think so."

Tseng stepped closer. "Vincent, I’ll be back in a little while to get you. I’ll have something sent down for you to wear."

Vincent looked over toward his brother, somewhat surprised to see him there. "Okay, I’ll be ready."

Tseng smiled one last time before backing out of the room and closing the door.

Vincent stood, stretching the stiffness from his body. He eyed Tifa, a sheepish grin on his lips. "Tifa, I’m sorry."

She embraced him. "Don’t talk about it, Vincent. It wasn’t your fault, and it’s over now. Tseng told me that I can’t go with you to the lab today."

He held her out at arm’s length. "Oh, the implant thing, huh? I completely forgot."

Tifa hung her head. "It’s fine. Tseng’s men are ready to get to work figuring out how to get the stupid thing out of me anyway. You go and have a good time."

Vincent could see that she was trying to cover her worry for him. "Tifa, I’ll be careful today. You know that I need to go with them."

"Yes." She replied kindly. "Who else better to send into a Shin Ra lab than someone who knows how Hojo operates."

"Thank you, Tifa." Vincent brought her close again. "I hope that they can figure something out about that implant in the mean while."

A short while later, one of Tseng’s men came to the door and handed over a pile of clothing for Vincent to wear. He took the new outfit with him into the bathroom and emerged a short while later.

Tifa had never seen Vincent in anything other than his cloak, black dress shirt, and pants before and she examined him closely.

What Tseng had sent down was something with a mission in mind. The outfit was black, which suited Vincent just fine. His slightly loose cargo pants had been tucked neatly into his boots, but the thinness of his mechanical legs was still obvious through them. His high collared shirt was of an elastic fabric and clung to his torso revealing the contours beneath.

She smiled in approval. "Tseng’s got good taste."

He gave little acknowledgment to her words. He felt awkward in the new clothes, wishing to throw his cloak about his shoulders, but the red color of the thing would have been too showy for a covert operation. Vincent had cinched his holster to his waist and picked his gun up from the floor, inspecting it briefly before securing it to his hip.

Another knock came to the door and Tifa opened it as Vincent tied his hair back. Tseng was back. He walked over to his brother, now ready to go. "I see you got the clothes."

Vincent nodded back. "Yes, thanks."

Tseng turned to Tifa. "Zale will be down for you in a moment to take you to our infirmary."

She nodded. "Great. When do you think you’ll be back?"

"Tomorrow morning at the latest." Tseng answered. "We will be flying to Midgar, so the trip will be short."

Vincent made his way to Tifa to give his good byes. "I’ll miss you."

She hugged him tightly. "Be careful, I love you."

He smiled at her. "I will, and I love you, too."

Tifa closed her eyes as Vincent gave her a lingering farewell kiss. She had a sinking feeling inside, and truly feared for his safety.

After Tseng and Vincent had left, Tifa slipped into the shower. Vincent had discovered while dressing that Tseng had placed some clothes into the pile for Tifa as well, and once out of the shower, she donned her new clean outfit.

She sat on the edge of the bed while waiting for Zale to retrieve her. Tifa prayed quietly to herself for Vincent’s safety, laughing to herself afterward knowing that he would have disapproved.

"Oh Vincent, please be okay." She said to herself as she tied her shoes.

Tseng’s assistant Zale chose that moment to walk through her door. "Hi, Ms. Lockhart."

Tifa jumped, slightly startled from his abrupt entrance. "Oh, hi there."

"The Doctor is ready to see you, if you are prepared." He asked.

She rose from where she sat and smiled. "Sure, let’s go."