Chapter Text
Ever since he had stepped foot into this seaside nightmare, something about it had felt off.
Way off.
Vincent's eyes trailed down the crowded streets, spewing tourists out of every other shop, while a man shouted at him to get his ‘ice cold materia pop’.
No.
He could think of somewhere else to put that materia pop.
Even just pacing through this farcical nightmare was enough to send a shudder of revulsion down his spine.
Maybe the place wasn't off.
Maybe he was off.
It was a grim thought, grim but quite possibly accurate as he continued to trail behind the other members of this ragtag group of mercenaries.
Perhaps it would be better than sleeping in a coffin for all eternity.
Vincent commanded a deep breath into his lungs before forcing it from his lips. The sigh was louder than he had intended as the eyes of Barret, Tifa and Yuffie suddenly descended upon him like vultures.
Perhaps they thought he was bored, maybe even mired up to his eyeballs in regret because of his decision to come along.
Though, boredom and regret weren't exactly the words he would have used.
His eyes fell upon Tifa, whose gaze was the only one of the three who still lingered upon him. The other two may have resigned themselves to the fact that nothing were amiss, but her crimson orbs continued to study him as though he were a puzzle in need of solving. She was far from convinced.
Sometimes she looked as though she had the weight of the world upon her. Today was one such day.
Every ounce of decency demanded that he look away. One could only maintain eye contact for so long before succumbing to the instinct to look away.
It was rude to stare after all. Yet his gaze remained as he equally searched her crimson orbs, but for what?
Her deepest, closely guarded feelings? Her fears? How her difficult past was doomed to repeat itself? To become her future? To play out again and again as though she were trapped on a nightmare carousel?
Rinse and repeat?
Expect the worst.
But hope for the best.
No.
Those weren't her thoughts.
Those were his.
Whatever was on her mind, she was attempting to disguise it's burden with a warm smile brandished across her lips.
It may have deflected any probing questions her friends may have accosted her with, yet it wasn't fooling him.
Her smile always faded that fraction of a second too early, when she thought no one's eyes were upon her any more.
When she thought she was safe.
While it was true that he hardly knew her, there was something about the woman that captivated him.
It was an intrigue he hadn't felt for so long. Since her, since Lucrecia.
Perhaps he feared for Tifa, feared he could see too much of himself in her. What if her fate would equate to that of Lucrecia, merely because she had the misfortune of crossing paths with him.
Her biggest weakness was also her strength. She would throw her life down to save the lives of her friends. An act she would conduct with neither thought nor hesitation. She was loyal and cared deeply for those around her. Friend or foe.
Yet, who existed for her in the same capacity?
Who would be there for her in her time of need?
Or perhaps all this nonsense was simply a product of his imagination. Maybe he had spent too long in the basement of Shinra Manor.
Too long alone.
“So, where are we staying?” Yuffie grinned as the party strode past the Grand Hotel as it stood, towering proudly in front of Costa Del Sol's main beach.
“You know that's not where we are staying.” Barret scowled as he waved dismissively for the group to follow his lead.
And there it was again. That off feeling surging down down his spine like he had just been electrocuted by a Shinra slug ray.
Vincent glanced over his shoulder as his eyes caught a shadow for but a mere second.
This time he was certain the spectre was not simply a trick of his eyes.
Were they being followed?
With what this group were up to, he'd be surprised if they weren't.
One thing was for sure, whoever was tailing them was too careless to be a Turk. But then, what was it?
It looked disturbingly similar to one of Hojo's wretched creations.
He did have a history of frequenting Costa Del Sol after all.
“So, I guess it's Johnny's?” Tifa suggested the answer that was on everyone's mind.
“Yeah, maybe he's finally got the place up to code.” Aerith suggested, imbuing her words with as much sincerity as the circumstances would allow.
“I highly doubt that.” Barret groaned as he contorted his body to fit through the narrow passage that offered the only entrance to their destination.
Vincent stood at the back, determined to go last as his eyes searched the rooftops and crevices for that creature. Had anyone else even noticed it?
No.
If they had, they would have said something.
Dealt with it even.
Vincent's eyes trailed over the immediate vicinity one last time, yet even as he did so, he knew whatever it was was long gone.
“Are you coming?” Tifa summoned the man's attention from the other side of the narrow passage as he quickly became aware that he was the only member who had yet to traverse the alleyway.
Vincent nodded, whatever that creature was, it was gone now.
“What were you looking at?” The warm smile had returned to the woman's lips as she watched him emerge to join the fray.
“Nothing.” Vincent murmured as though embarrassed to be caught in a distracted state. Or perhaps he simply didn't wish to worry Tifa over something that was likely irrelevant.
“It must take a bit of getting used to.” Tifa began as the sun began its descent in the sky.
“Hmm?”
“Being amongst all these crowds of people again.”
She was right, though he wasn't so ready to admit it outright.
Not yet at least.
“The Gold Saucer will be worse than this.”
Vincent stated as though psyching himself up for the worst.
“Well it's certainly noisier.” Tifa confessed as her mind rifled back to the last time they had spent time there.
“Hurry up you two!” Yuffie shouted from the window of the corner room.
“You're sharing with us Tifa.” Aerith added, though this were a foregone conclusion in the Martialist’s mind.
“You're sharing with Cloud and Cid!” Yuffie pointed her index finger squarely at Vincent.
“I'm gonna have a shower and then head to the beach. I'll see you around.” Tifa offered the man a slight wave as she headed up the stairs before joining Yuffie in the corner room.
Vincent nodded, though it might as well have been to himself as he watched the Martialist disappear behind a closed door.
Vincent summoned a deep breath as he contemplated his next course of action.
Why had Tifa told him her plans for the rest of the evening? Perhaps she was just being friendly and inclusive.
Or perhaps he was simply reading far too much into everything.
From the corner of his eye he spotted something.
It was back.
The monstrosity now lurked behind a series of carelessly discarded crates.
But why?
Now Vincent possessed no doubt that the creature was following them.
After all, the creature had followed them all the way to their hotel.
But who exactly was it after?
There it was again.
For a split second he saw the shadowy figure dart from the crates to behind the hotel.
Well…
It couldn't have been after him, it had had ample opportunity to strike and had failed to even attempt it.
Then who?
Screw it.
Vincent jumped behind the crates, following in the creature's footsteps until he too found himself behind the hotel.
His crimson orbs scanned the area, analyzing every inch for anything out of the ordinary.
Thats when he spotted it.
The creature was crouched over the roof, peering into one of the rooms.
Vincent crept closer, until he could tell exactly which room the creature was stalking.
The corner room.
Damn it.
Vincent pulled out his Cerberus before swiftly aiming it at the creature.
He had a clear shot as he slid his index finger down over the trigger.
The creature lurched forward, only Vincent hadn't actually pressed the trigger yet.
For a split second he doubted himself but no.
He hadn't shot the creature.
That means it had lurched itself into the girls room.
Into Tifa's room.
Damn it.
Vincent didn't waste a second as he jumped up onto the balustrading before jumping through Tifa's window.