Natalie hurriedly wrote the notes on the quickly filling desk blotter before looking for the other blood sample. She placed the slide under the microscope and zoomed in. "That is so odd. How can that be right? Did I date them wrong?" She sat back in the chair, gnawing on her lower lip as she twirled a curl around her finger. Then she nibbled on the end. "It's like looking at samples from three different people; Vincent's original sample, his present one, and the one taken directly after the experiment done by Hojo..."

Natalie couldn't understand it. The one she had just taken more closely resembled his original, but with definite traces of the Jenova cells forcefully inserted into his protein makeup, only not as pronounced. Natalie pulled her hair back into a bun, fastening it by wrapping the hair around a pencil and securing that pencil through her mass of curls. Then she went over to the lights that shone behind Vincent's X-ray. Thanks to Shinra technology, she'd been able to scan through the claw to see the human skeletal structure beneath. What she'd assumed was a Jenova graft, wasn't.

"It's his arm. But there must be a reason for the claw's presence, and by looking at these wavering Jenova traces in his blood, I'm beginning to think... Could it be that simple? Could it?"

Natalie turned away, lightly scratching at her scalp as she frowned. "I have to take the outer covering off. I have to know what's under there before I can think anything."

She nodded brusquely and hurried from the lab, rushing down the hallway to climb the spiral stairs and hurry out of the Mansion to Cloud's house. She didn't notice the stars twinkling in the sky, the still silence of the town as the people slept, nor the fact it was close to two o'clock in the morning.

She knocked. The door was immediately opened by Vincent. Natalie didn't notice the concern in his eyes or the lack of sleep and haggardness that marked his face. All she focused on were reasons and possibilities. "Vincent, I need you to come to the lab."

Vincent shut the door behind him. "Is something wrong?"

Natalie shook her head, absently taking his hand and pulling him toward the Mansion. "No. Nothing's wrong. I just need to see about taking off the outer covering of your claw."

"Take off the outer covering?"

Natalie gave a nod, offering nothing more and oblivious to his puzzled scrutiny of her face.

When they reached the basement laboratory, she sat him in the chair and went in search of the tools seen. "Here they are." She went back to his side, set out the ones she'd need, and then went to work. "This shouldn't hurt."

It didn't. At least he didn't complain. The claw, much to Natalie's surprise, was very easy to dismantle. All she had to do was press a switch here, release a catch there, slide off a restraining chain from a screw, and the claw slipped free-- to a certain extent. It seemed to catch on something and, when she attempted to pull it the remaining way, Vincent winced.

"Sorry," she said absently, and immediately went to work analyzing the problem. "There seems to be something connected in there. Hold on a second." Natalie touched her upper lip with the tip of her tongue as she looked up toward the ceiling, closing her eyes to aid in her concentration as she gingerly felt up his arm. Her eyes flew open. "Oh my goodness!" She knelt and tried to see what she'd found with her fingers, then sat back on her heels as a hand went to her forehead. "Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?"

Natalie shook her head with a slight laugh as she rushed to her feet, hurrying to the other side of the laboratory while muttering under her breath about "chemical reactions" and the "possibility of rejection" being "too great to risk anything else". Vincent could only watch her - when she was very occasionally in his view - desperately attempting to reason out why his arm had been hidden by a claw and not a grotesque portion of Jenova grafted to his body, as he'd supposed for years.

Finally, Natalie came to kneel in front of him again. Her hands disappeared under his shirt to his underarm to feel for the things she'd found before. "Okay," she told him matter-of-fact as she faced him with eyes closed, "you have some tubes inserted into different arteries in your arms that are, apparently, circulating the Jenova cells into your system on a semi-continuous basis."

Her tongue flicked out to touch her lips in concentration for a moment, and then she opened her eyes with a smile, withdrew her hands, and rested them on the thighs of her legs as she sat back on her heels. Her eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. "Do you know what this means? It means your body rejects Jenova cells when left to its own devices! The chemical matrix of your body and that of Jenova aren't compatible. So Hojo had to rig up this device, which works like a dialysis system, in order to continually introduce the Jenova cells that have kept you this way."

Vincent's eyes changed, and Natalie continued to smile up at him. "What made you think of this?" he asked.

"I noticed that your blood chemistry was different in ways that it shouldn't have been. It's as if the claw is set to introduce the Jenova cells only at certain times."

"If you remove the claw and the tubes that have been inserted... I should revert to my original form?"

Natalie laughed as she leaned forward to rest her elbows on his knees, resting her chin on one hand as she gazed up at him. "No, no. You're already in your original form. You'll just lose the characteristics Jenova gave: the red eyes, longevity of life, flight, and who knows what else."

Vincent moved his focus from her face to the claw dangling precariously within his grasp. Tubing snaked from its hollow shell to disappear up his arm. Every once and a while there was a slight twinge in his upper arm. Mostly it came when he attempted to move, which pulled at the claw and, consequently, at the tubes inserted into the arteries.

"I... I..." Vincent attempted.

Natalie's expression softened as she stood, carefully reassembling the claw over his arm. He placed a hand on hers to stop her, and she looked over at him. "It's all right, Vincent. I'm only going to put it on temporarily. I don't want to hurt you. Besides, I need to do a little bit more research into how it's inserted into your arm before I go poking around in there."

Vincent removed his hand and watched her own as they worked, gently reconstructing the cool, golden claw. "Could it be? Could my answer be so simple?"

Natalie's smile remained as her hands tenderly held the claw in place. "Come on. I need you to move over there. I'll hold it to make sure it doesn't pull."

Vincent stood, allowing himself to be led to the table where the X-ray machine had been. Said machine had been converted into an examination bed, offering more comfort than the hard surface of the X-ray table from earlier. He laid back and rest his arm on a side table. Natalie again dissembled the claw and arranged it as painlessly as possible around his arm.

"Natalie," Vincent said in a quiet tone, "could the cure be as simple as this?"

Natalie set the pieces of the claw aside to pull a chair up to the table. She took his previously glove-covered hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "We're the ones who usually believe science must be complicated. Oftentimes it isn't. Just like this. The most difficult thing will be the removal procedure. I'm not a surgeon, and it's been a long time since I took anatomy in school. But." Natalie squeezed his hand again. "I don't want to take them out just yet. I'm going to clamp them off first. I don't want to take them out only to find that you go into some type of horrid withdrawal. It would be just my luck that Hojo used an addictive chemical base." Natalie's smile faded to hesitation. "All right?"

"You are the professor, Natalie. This is your field of expertise."

She smiled. "You just want the easy way out."

Vincent reluctantly smiled. "I would never recognize the easy way."

"No. I guess you wouldn't." Natalie sighed, leaning forward to caress his cheek with her fingers. "If something bad happens, to spite Hojo I'll design a way to use this thing to reintroduce your original DNA, or plasma, or blood, or whatever needs to be done. It serves him right."

"And once Jenova is removed from my system?"

Natalie gave a slight shrug as she smiled. "Knowing you, rejection won't take too long. So I would recommend bedrest for at least a month." She gave his hand another gentle squeeze. "Don't worry, though. I'll take care of you."

Vincent continued to stare at the hand and arm freed from the chilled metal of the claw. Natalie's eyes brimmed with tears as she watched him. Her other hand reached out to brush some hair from his cheek. His hand tightened on hers as his gaze went to her face.

"Are you going to be all right?" Natalie asked softly. "This is a lot of information to be sprung on you, I know."

Vincent's eyes once again focused on his hand as it held hers. "Could it be so simple?"

"Sure. Why not?" Natalie rested her elbow on the bed and propped her chin on her hand, watching him with a slight smile. "You've never had a simple life, have you?"

He laid his head back and closed his eyes. His hand tightened on hers again. "No."

"I'd love to break your record, Vincent," she whispered. Her thumb continued to caress his hand. "You deserve a break. Don't you think?"

Vincent's lips twitched upward. "Perhaps." Her presence eased the tension. Vincent's eyes drifted open long enough to catch her gaze. "I was concerned for you. You missed lunch."

Her expression showed regret. "I'm sorry, Vincent. You're not mad, are you?"

"No. I knew that you were working." His eyes closed again. "I tried to meet you in my dreams instead."

"Couldn't sleep?"

He released a long breath. "No. Your voice wasn't there."

Natalie's eyes darkened. She stood to carefully ease herself up beside him, turning in to his side and draping her arm across him as she laid her cheek on his chest. His heartbeat was rhythmic and strong. "I'm here now, Vincent. Go to sleep."

"Aren't I already? Are you sure this isn't a dream?"

Her eyelids began to droop, and she fought back a yawn. "Positive. I'm too sleepy." She surrendered to the yawn and let her eyes close. "I think I'll take a nap, too. You're warm. I'll cure you in the morning." She snuggled in closer. "I love you, Vincent."

Vincent pressed his lips against her hair, and Natalie released a long breath as reality faded to dreams. He stared down at her for a moment once sleep had beckoned her away. Then he moved his gaze to the claw that had come to represent his separation from gentleness. The urge to grasp it and tear it from his arm was so strong--

He turned his face away and clenched his fist. He had waited this long. A few more weeks or days would be a mere blink, especially when Natalie would be so close. What else matters?...

"The realization of my freedom," he muttered harshly. "Don't forget that."

But that had already faded to a distant second. He knew that if the cure would cause his death he'd be content to remain as he was. After all, how could he not be content when Natalie loved him for who and what he was: darkness and light.

Vincent took in a deep breath of the scent of her. With each breath his humanness forced its way through the mired sludge that had once choked his compassion to nonexistence. Now... Every laugh. Every smile. Every intentional touch of her hand on his revived what he had once thought lost forever.

A voice pushed through to whisper 'I am becoming less human...'

Yes. He had thought that when taking on his final form: Chaos. Now he remembered it again. As he had told himself he would. Vincent changed his focus to Natalie's peaceful face. You have lost, Hojo. Your final defeat lies within her control. Her tender touch will render your twisted accomplishment void, and you will be forgotten. You will be forgotten and not I. That admission caused a wave of warmth and freedom.

A smile danced on his lips and twinkled in his eyes. He drew her closer with his golden claw and pressed his lips against her hair. Then he surrendered to the beckoning darkness of a sleep with no fear.

"Tifa, you seen Vincent or Natalie?"

Tifa looked up from where she had curled up on the couch reading a book. She sent Cloud a smile. "Hey, you. How was the walk with Cid to the power plant?"

Cloud came over to sit beside her, pulling her legs up onto his lap. "Good, considering. Everything's looking great. It's working fine. No hiccups. No bugs. Nothing wrong that we can see. He scoped out a couple more places where he can build them, and he figures we can power at least one more town just from here. We only need to figure the best way to get the power from point A to point B. I'm voting for underground cable."

"That's great. Now, what's this about Vincent and Natalie?"

"When I woke up this morning he was gone. And Yuffie said Natalie never went to bed last night."

"Do you think they're in the Mansion? You know yesterday was the day."

"I was on my way over when I figured I'd stop and say 'hi'." Cloud placed a kiss on her lips and smiled at her. "Hi."

Tifa wrapped her arms around his neck. "Hi, yourself."

Cloud stood, Tifa still in his arms. "Wanna come with?"

"To the Mansion?" She shrugged, adjusting her hold around his neck. "Sure. Why not? It's not like I have anywhere else to go."

Cloud made his way to the door, waited while she opened it for him, and then stepped through to head toward the Mansion. "I hope they aren't in a situation like before."

"Yeah. Catching them twice would be a little too embarrassing." Tifa was quiet for a moment, and then rested her head against him. "It was sweet, though. Vincent kissing someone geeky like Natalie. A Turk with a professional bookworm."

"Go figure."

They reached the entrance of the Mansion. "So, what exactly did you want with Vincent and Natalie?"

Cloud smirked. "I was wanting to know how the computer was running."

"Liar. You wanted to check up on those two. You aren't their chaperone, you know."

"I know."

"So what's the real reason?"

Cloud's eyes twinkled. "I was curious. I wanted to see what she was planning on doing. Look over her shoulder, I guess. Maybe give her a hand."

"Don't you think she'd ask if she needed help?"

Cloud shook his head with a chuckle. "Are you kidding? She wouldn't think of that. She's used to working by herself. Just like me."

"Oh. You recognized the 'loner' attitude, eh?"

Cloud set her on her feet inside the Mansion. "Something like that."

"Vincent sure makes it go away, huh?"

"You noticed?"

Tifa smirked, nudging him toward the room with the spiral staircase. "Smart aleck."

"Hey. No name calling. I'll have to retaliate."

Tifa chuckled. "Oh? Now that I would like to see."

Cloud grabbed her waist and nibbled on her ear. "Hey, just say the word."

She pulled herself free and turned to face him, still walking backwards. "Behave yourself, Mr. Strife, or there will be no dinner for you."

Cloud smiled before putting on a dutifully abashed expression. "Yes, ma'am."

Tifa laughed. She reached out to grab his hand. "Oh come on, silly. Let's go down and see if they're here."

The two didn't hear voices or any telltale sign of activity as they made their way down the spiral staircase and through the hall to the basement laboratory beyond. Once they reached the door to the lab, they were reasonably certain there wouldn't be any surprises behind the door. Not to mention the fact that it was already slightly ajar. So, Cloud and Tifa both gave a shrug and pushed it open.

Inside, Vincent and Natalie were sound asleep on a makeshift examination bed positioned on the far side of the lab.

Tifa tightened her grip on Cloud's hand as she rested her head on his arm. "Is that the sweetest thing you've seen in ages, or what?"

"Damned if I thought it would happen." There was an obvious smile in his voice. "It couldn't have happened to nicer people, though."

"It's like they've been together forever."

Cloud nodded. Then he gestured over to the desk with its varying assortment of opened books, scribbled notes, and microscope slides. "Take a look. She's been busy."

"How much of that is new and how much is from her whole life researching him?"

"Probably six of one and half a dozen of the other."

Tifa wrapped her arms around Cloud's midsection. "You think she'll cure him?"

"Hell ya. That woman is a lot like you. She can do anything once she sets her mind to it."

"Thanks."

He pressed his lips against her hair. "No problem. Now, come on. I feel like we're eavesdropping. Let's go have some dinner. They'll wake up soon enough to let us know how things are going."

Tifa nodded. She sent the sleeping couple one last smile before turning and following Cloud from the room. She closed the door quietly behind her.

*

The Choice that Wasn't / Passions

Chapter Index