Violet Shadows (FFVII)

I) Avalanche

I grab my quiver of arrows and strap my bow over my back before exiting the cave I've used as a temporary home for the past week. Shadow crawls into the deepest recesses of my mind, content from the haunting nightmares she was allowed to dish out last night. It's time for me to move on to the next safe place, perhaps Midgar or Rocket Town. The Nibelheim mountain ranges are devoid of all human life and the town on the other side is hardly worth visiting due to its lack of citizens... Perfect. I sigh and step out into the sunlight, stretching my arms over my head.

Thirty years of isolated wandering across the Planet tends to remove any sense of home. But I must live like this until the day I die, uncertain of what to do with myself other than build up my strength in order to destroy the man who dragged me through Hell and back. I will never know if Lucrecia is alive, though what has become of her son is no secret. The experiments Hojo ran on his child created a devastating monster who learned of his origins with Jenova and went on a rampage. No one knows where to find Sephiroth now. I huff, setting off in a long stride, my gaze fixed on the horizon of the mountains. I wonder if Vincent ever escaped. I like to think he forgot his obsessive love for my elder sister and rejoined the Turks even stronger than before. Of course, nothing good works out these days.

I take a deep breath of fresh air and stare out at Nibelhiem, the small town where I was born, raised, and killed. Maybe I should go around. The place tends to draw its victims back again and again, like metal to a magnet, forcing them to relieve decades of memories and tortures. I should know. I've passed through far more times than necessary since I escaped, searching for Hojo in his lab only to find it abandoned. Visiting my crumbling childhood home only to see a middle-aged woman squawking orders at her unruly children.

There's something in that mansion that Shadow wants me to find, but I can't bear to enter any longer. Every time I pass the gate, she screams and kicks and pleads, but I can't bring myself to touch the cold iron and step into the unruly garden that was once tended by a kind-hearted member of SOLDIER. There's something in that mansion.

The low rumble of a vehicle catches my ears and I sigh, tugging my hood further over my head. Just pass me by. I continue walking tall, tuning out the sound of the car. That is, until I feel the point of a sword in my back.

"Stop right there."

"And why should I?" I demand, turning around and placing my hands on my hips. "Well? I haven't got all day."

"Whoops," the woman behind the swordsman breathes out. Her spiky haired companion puts his massive broadsword away slowly, frowning.

"Sorry, you looked like someone we're searching for."

"Apology accepted," I mutter, turning sharply and striding away.

"Wait!" he calls, bright blue eyes glittering in the sunlight. Mako eyes... SOLDIER eyes. "Have you seen anyone dressed like you out here? Sephiroth clones?"

"Sephiroth?" I repeat, glancing back at the boy over my shoulder. "Clones?"

"Yeah, Hojo's creations," he explains, crossing his muscular arms.

"Hojo," I murmur, my eyes falling to the tall grass. "He's still alive, then?"

"Unfortunately," the blond swordsman breathes. "Why?"

"No reason," I shake my head, moving to leave once more. "Sorry to have disturbed you."

"You have a score to settle," he points out abruptly, stepping closer to me. I pause, staring down at the tips of my black boots. I've become easy to read. "We're going after Sephiroth. There's a high chance we'll find Hojo along the way." Can I risk it?