My Little Demons – Chapter 1

I am reposting the chapters that are up here with some editing and minor changes for those of you who have already read these.

A/N: Okay, I'm trying to make the whole story (or at least most of it) in Vincent's POV. I'm going to actually try to write a darker side to the man. Focus more on his beasts. So lemme know whatcha think! My motivation feeds off reviews sometimes, y'know! Critics, comments, flames, happy-squee-go-lucky, etc.

Also, in case the voices get confusing I've made a list: (I would have preferred to use different fonts, but that's impossible with FFNET)

Bold italics Galian Beast

CAPS BOLD UNDERLINED DEATH GIGAS

Italics Hellmasker

Bold Chaos

-/-/-/-/-

My skin prickled against the cold breeze. I grunted an undistinguishable syllable and limped over to a tree. I sat down with another grunt and tried to catch my breath.

Who knows how long I had been detached from reality like this. The last thing I could remember was my long trek over the mountains from Costa Del Sol to Lucrecia's cave where I had acquired Death Penalty, such a long time ago.

I hunted her, as the Galian Beast put it so eloquently.

I couldn't help it. She was just like me now. We were both ageless and horrified of ourselves. I thought that if there were anyone that I could find solace in, it would be her. Of course, I had a feeling that she would just shun me and I would find myself hunting her forever. Perhaps that was Hojo's secret plan for me, my eternal atonement and his eternal malicious prank.

"You could just end the vicious cycle and rejoin the Turks again. That was fun," Chaos sneered, forcing me to remember the millions of times I had slaughtered someone.

I hissed unpleasantly.

"When we find Lucrecia, let's rape her and then kill her. We can do it. Kill, kill, kill," Hellmasker gleefully whispered.

"SHUT UP YOU INSOLENT MAGGOT," Death Gigas roared, silencing all other thoughts.

I enjoyed any minute of silence these days. For some reason, the demons in my mind were becoming louder, harder to control and, most distressing of all, they were forming solid personalities. They had always been there, whispering things to me, but they had never formed solid personas. I never knew which one was talking before, and now I could feel them, like they were right beside me. It was disturbing.

The Galian Beast rarely spoke, but instead gave off waves of uncontrollable animal urges. His voice was a commanding purr that always lulled my senses. He was truly the beast out of all of them. He only thought of three things: sex (uncontrollably when he was excited), food and sleep.

Death Gigas was remarkably level headed. His voice was loud, clear and powerful. He seemed to have a commanding air over the other three as well, which was queer, considering I had always assumed Chaos was the leading personality. He, however, seemed to be my only voice of reason.

Hellmasker, who I despised the most, was obviously psychotic. His voice was always raspy and thick with madness. He only thought of blood. He would always whisper seductively to me, always trying to get me to see that his way was the right way. I shuddered at the possibility that one day, he may persuade me.

And, of course, Chaos was the most talkative of the four. He spoke in a normal conversational voice, but it seemed to be too charismatic. He was quite sardonic as well. He seems to have formed an alliance with Hellmasker, which worries me. They seem to agree more and more.

I had been avoiding towns for almost four months, ever since these things have started getting worse. Unfortunately, I had underestimated a group of dragons and I was in some considerable pain. To make matters worse, I could feel myself becoming dehydrated and I hadn't eaten in five days. I could feel the Galian Beast getting frustrated.

"There's a town nearby," he said, sending a shiver up my spine, "Nibelheim. We are starving."

"I don't particularly like you, Valentine," Chaos said, "But we don't wanna die out here, looking for some ugly, old broad."

"Nibelheim is warm and ripe for the picking," Hellmasker said, making me lick my lips, "Let's pillage and burn! Kill, kill."

"I HATE TO AGREE WITH ANY OF THEM," Death Gigas said, "HOWEVER IF WE PROCEED LIKE THIS THERE IS NOTHING BUT DEATH FOR US TO SEARCH OUT."

I grudging agreed with his argument. I wasn't entirely immortal. I still required the basic functions of a human. I sighed, feeling very uneasy about going into a town.

Suddenly I felt my body convulse. My eyes widened as my vision grew hazy, and I felt my body change. I knew that somehow, I was transforming involuntarily. I couldn't stop the tidal wave of emotions and feelings as the Galian Beast took over me. I felt him now as though he was myself.

"How's it going Valentine?" Chaos snickered, "The backseat is pretty comfortable, considering how you drive."

"What are you-?" I started.

Then I realized what he meant. I saw myself, as though I was outside of my body. I looked about the same except for a few distinguishing factors. I had a long purple tail protruding out of my red cloak and there were massive claws where once was hands and feet. I also felt like my body was structured differently. Running four-legged was much more comfortable and faster than running on my two legs.

The expression on my face was fiercer as well. It stunned me to see myself this way. I had a hunger in my eyes that I couldn't explain. It was an animalistic dominance that I couldn't recognize.

"Nibelheim. Food," I watched my mouth say.

Then I sped off down the mountainside.

"Nibelheim! Nibelheim!" Hellmasker screeched gleefully.

"Shut up," I growled at him.

And I felt myself melt out of consciousness.

-/-/-/-/-

I awoke who knows how much later, finding myself back in my body. It was just at the beginning of the night, I noted, observing the sun setting into the horizon. I also observed that I could see the town quite well.

I stood up hesitantly, finding myself just as weak and pained as before the Galian Beast had taken over. I limped as fast as I could over to Nibelheim.

I reached the town miraculously without any hindrance and saw a dog eating near the town square out of his dog bowl. My enhanced vision zoomed in. It appeared to be some kibble mixed with some unidentified brown clumpy stuff.

"Food, quickly host!" the Galian Beast ordered, once again feeling my body being controlled by him. He strode over to the bowl, growling at the dog, and commanded me to eat.

His sensations were filling my mind and I could do nothing but obey. He controlled me and yet I was still myself. But I ate, oblivious to the crowd that had formed around me.

Food, glorious food; I licked the bowl clean.

I gave an unceremonious burp when I looked up innocently to see almost the whole town, looking at me, horrified expressions on their face.

Instantly I began to shrink away into myself. I was a monster. I chanted it, like a mantra. Even the dog looked as if he regarded me as such.

I heard a familiar voice in the crowd, questioning loudly, but I paid no mind. I was already past coherent thoughts.

"Hurry, run! We've been found out," Chaos urged, "They will use us as a specimen again!"

"No, let us smirk at them and eat them all! A feast like no other! Flesh! Let us eat all of their flesh!"

"They are intruding on our territory! We have to kill them!"

"Kill…" I whispered, barely audible.

"NO. LOOK AT THE CROWD. SHE IS CALLING YOU."

I shook my head and looked up into a pair of twinkling gray eyes.

"Vinnie? What'dya doin'?" Yuffie asked me curiously, "Are you eatin' dog food?"

I lowered my head, ashamed.

"Vinnie?" Chaos guffawed, "I definitely like her."

"…What's it taste like? I was always curious. It don't smell too bad, to me."

I looked up, surprised at her question. She just grinned back at me, holding her hand out to me. Friendly. Warm.

I refused her hand but stood up quietly, evading everyone's eyes.

"Oi," she said, shaking her head, but still smiling, "Everybody scram! There's nothing to see! Go on! SCRAAAAM!"

She continued to shout at everyone, running around, pushing people away. Finally, the crowd dispersed and left Yuffie and I alone, in the middle of the square.

"You don't look so good," she said, tugging on my cloak, "Let's go to my room at the inn, okay?"

I let her lead me up into her room at the inn. She vaguely gave me inclinations to the shower. Well, not too vague. This was Yuffie after all. So it was actually a lot blunter.

"Vinnie, I adore you, but you smell like a dead skunk that's been roastin' on the road for two months, in the middle of summer."

"Thank you," I replied wryly.

"I don't mean it like an insult!" Yuffie sighed, "Just take a shower, stinky."

"I don't want to intrude."

"Intrude on what?" Yuffie said, waving her hand at me, "I came to Nibelheim hoping to find you!"

"Find me?"

"No, I came to find the OTHER vampire living in a coffin in the Shinra mansion."

"…There's another…?"

"Oi!" she said, this one more adamant, "I was joking!"

I made some sort of 'hmm' sound and asked, "Why?"

"'Cause I need your help. Everyone is too busy or too annoyed by me. The only positive answer I got from anyone was a 'maybe' from Reeve."

I scowled at the mention of his name. I disliked Yuffie's association with Reeve, simply because Reeve had too many connections with Shinra that he continued to keep up with.

"Don't gimme that look Vinnie," Yuffie sighed, rolling her eyes.

It had also been very obvious to me that Yuffie had always a slight crush on the man since he had seemed to share her sense of mischief. And I have a feeling that Reeve leads her on purposely for his own mischief.

"C'mon! I'll get you some of Cloud's clothes," Yuffie chirped.

"Cloud?"

"Yeah! He lives here now. Weird huh? Moved into his old house. Also kinda creepy, but whatever."

I turned my head, not really caring.

"Mmm," Hellmasker purred, "She's getting riper every time I see her. I would love to just rip her open and lick her heart just as it stopped beating."

I shuddered at Hellmasker's voice.

"VINNIE!" Yuffie yelled, snapping him back to reality, "Stop dawdling! I'm gonna have to open a window as it is!"

The young girl had blossomed more than I had expected. She was still of the same blunt and cheerful mind, however she had gotten a little taller and her hair had grown down to the middle of her waist. She even had the smallest hint of curves now. Unfortunately, I could feel three of my personalities practically tracing them with invisible fingers.

"She still has no mate," the Galian Beast said, "I bet she could bare at least three litters. She's stronger now."

"Alright," I said, removing my cloak, "I will clean up."

"Goodie!" she said cheerfully, jumping up into the air, "Then, we can have dinner together and talk! I'll let you sleep in here too! I can have the innkeeper bring up a cot, no extra charge!"

She winked at me, and then left. I sighed, feeling almost too weary to keep up with Yuffie's conversations. I walked into the bathroom, shut the door and glanced into the mirror.

I was not vain in the least, but even I frowned when I looked at my appearance. My face was as pale as ever, becoming almost as stark white as the very walls the mirror was mounted on, and I had purple bags under my eyes. Although I still held my unemotional gaze, anyone could see the fatigue that I could not mask. It was an inbred fatigue that had been smothering my body. No amount of sleep could lift this fatigue. It was a weariness that came with realizing that I could not age and drift on into the next world peacefully with everyone else. It was a weariness that came with realizing that I was an outcast to every human being. It was a weariness that came with realizing that I was not really a human anymore.

My hair was stringy too. It hung in clumps around my bandana. There was dirt encrusted onto my face as well, along with a few scratches and old blood caked around them.

No wonder the crowd gaped at me so. Not only was I eating dog food ravenously, but I looked like a mess.

I sighed, removing my bandana and my clothes. My claw arm didn't seem to be capable of rusting so it was never a big deal to shower with it. I had gotten it very wet on numerous occasions. I even went swimming that one time everyone had gathered at Costa Del Sol for fun a few years ago. Yuffie and Reeve had been increasingly annoying in their attempts to make me so I had finally agreed, tired of them hounding me.

Cloud, Barrett and Cid could barely contain their laughter. Needless to say the only pair of swimming apparel that was left for me to borrow was Barrett's sailor suit thing. I didn't really care which way or another. It was just clothes, but Yuffie had taken a picture, and I had a feeling she carried it with her everywhere, just for giggles.

I turned the shower on, making sure the water was sufficiently warm, and then I stepped in. I closed my eyes and focused on the heat bathing my body. All of my personalities seemed to be drinking in the same sensation. It was relaxing, for all five of us.

After a significant time of just standing there, I used some shampoo and scrubbed my hair. I rinsed and focused on scrubbing all of the dirt and blood away. After I was satisfied with my cleansed state, I shut off the water and grabbed the nearest towel.

"Vinnie!" Yuffie called from outside the door, "Can you get back in the shower real quick?"

"Why?"

"Well, I'm gonna open the door and put the clothes in there. I don't need to be exposed to your chunk of man!"

I raised one of my eyebrows as I heard her refer to my 'chunk of man' but said, "Alright."

I climbed back into the shower and pulled the curtain closed.

"It is safe to enter," I said.

The door opened and I felt all of the sweet steam being sucked out into the cold bedroom. I heard the flop of clothing and then she shut the door again, keeping what heat was left trapped in. I climbed back out again and put on the clothes wordlessly.

She had delivered me a pair of boxers, which unnerved me a little, a pair of faded blue jeans and a pink T-shirt that had dancing moogles on the front.

I opened the door when I was finished and walked out to see her sitting on the bed. She was wearing capri length green pants, white sneakers, fingerless elbow length gloves and a sleeveless white tank top with a big styrofoam cup of ramen noodles on it with some Wutaian characters underneath. "Peace, Love & Chicken-Flavored Mao-chan Ramen Noodles!" She had also pulled her hair back into a braid, hanging over her left shoulder.

She smiled at me and hopped off her bed. She ran up to me and stood up on her tiptoes. She buried her face into my neck/collarbone area. She appeared to be sniffing me.

I stiffened as I heard to Chaos making some jeering noises.

"Ah!" Yuffie said, pulling herself back, "You smell much better!"

"Soap has that effect," I said.

"Well, duh," she giggled, tugging on my pink moogle shirt.

"Does Cloud actually own this shirt?" I asked.

"I know!" Yuffie said, "It's pretty ugly, but Tifa bought it for him at the Gold Saucer. She would pummel him if he ever directly got rid of it."

My lips twitched upward for a small second and then I looked away.

"Well now that you don't smell like roadkill," Yuffie said brightly, "Let's go get some grub! It probably won't be too much better than the dog food though. Seems like everyone in Nibelheim cooks as well as Tifa."

She scrunched her face up at her own remark.

Even though Tifa was quite good at making drinks and maintaining her bar, the poor girl couldn't even make a cheese sandwich.

"Food's food though," Yuffie smiled, grabbing my claw arm, "And I'm starvin'! Let's go!"

I automatically transferred her hand to my other arm and let her lead me downstairs to the kitchen of the inn.