Nothing really reguarding Abyss Friday, I just have to say this fic is so amazing, I havent been reading or writing much and it actually got me out of my creative slump. Im so excited to see what happens next.
Hi!!
I am so happy you’ve enjoyed the fic ❤️❤️.
It has taken so much out of me to write it lol but I’m really happy with how it’s turned out. Please don’t use me as any basis for a reasonable update schedule 🤣
But thank you. Knowing that I’ve helped with someone else’s creativity is huge to me 🥰. I’m not great at being consistent but I do want to try foster community and creativity with my writing, and encourage others as much as I can. It sounds cliche but if I can be the reason someone else gets the courage to share their ideas with the world then that makes all of the hardships of writing worth it ❤️❤️
Rev you said you added a whole new sex scene. tell me more please
Lol, okay so, I've always known how Abyss would end, what the big, final sex scene would be, and it's about control.
The idea is that Reader had their world turned upside down today. Control is sort of a blanket statement, but we're addressing, how they lost alot of autonomy today, who they thought they were, that they can't just go back to that, and that maybe they don't want to. The temple took their control, over feelings, fears, events and just everything. Vincent is willing to allow them to get some of that back.
And the sex is good, having control feels good, it feels really good. The physically strongest person that they've ever met is letting them do anything they want to him, allowing everything, when he's so touch averse to everyone else in existence. It feels good, it's intense, the orgasm is good, and then the endorphin crash hits.
I intended for them to talk out the endorphin crash, cuddle and then move on, but it didn't work out that way. It's not just a crash from sex, but of everything that happened, and this not being the right place to deal with any of it either. We want comfort and safety, and to go back to something familiar.
Vincent is reluctant, knows this isn't a good coping thing, so we need to seduce him. Which of course, we do by *spoilers*, covering our fingers with the slick remains of our own orgasm that are still smeared on his now soft cock, and wiping them on his bottom lip.
I am in so deep with the next chapter that I can barely remember what happened in the last one. Let's get into it anyway!
I watched the cutscenes and wrote out the script for the Temple of the Ancients portion of Rebirth like 2 years ago, and got bored ¾ of the way through lol. I stopped at when everyone was undergoing their flashback trials, because I knew I wouldn't need to write that, and just figured I'd do the rest later.
...That was a mistake
Essentially, I then had a really clear idea about the first chunk of the fic, with a script I could reference and was just relying on my memory for the rest… My memory was incorrect. The end of this fic and the plot of the next one (if I get to it lol) relies on some specific events happening, that apparently do not happen in Rebirth lmaooo, only in the OG.
I have been sweating, freaking out and utterly pantsing how I was going to make everything come together as I got closer and closer to the end. I am pretty impressed with how everything did play out, I'm happy with everything, but it was hard to get here.
I am a little bit disappointed with how the chapter breakups happened, because it does feel a bit silly to have an entire quest down into the depths of the temple where nothing happens. I think if something small had happened it would have been better, or just had more of focus on the uncanny silence, but Vincent's reaction time right now is very slow and I couldn't effectively write him reacting to something in an interesting way.
I had also forgotten that he yells out "Come," before he talks about the secured exit. I was fucking jump scared when I watched an english video to get the script and he yelled it right in my ear. Hnggggg. Anyway I had to include him saying come, even though I think a short, frantic address to everyone else would have worked better, and not involved him running off on his own. But it's also a good scene in game, so I wanted to keep it as similar as possible.
I love "We have secured an exit," it's beautiful and that line was always gonna be there. At this time, Vincent doesn't even know that an exit has actually been secured. We just told him Galian broke through some walls and made one and he was 100% ride or die with it, not even a hint of doubt <3.
I was annoyed in the actual game that we escape the temple by running through the main rooms, but it just ignores all the damn puzzles that had to be solved to get there. I wanted to put in an actual escape route, so even though maybe destroying just 2 walls didn't feel like enough. I did previously expand on how the Temple layout makes no sense and it twists and turns and plays with reality. So it's fine, dw about it lol.
One of my favourite things about Vincent is that he is so straight laced, but the game puts him in stupid situations and he just goes along with it, literally not even breaking character slightly. I previously talked about how much trouble Barret was having getting around the Temple, and that Cloud and everyone else was helping him. So now that Cloud's having a moment and everything is coming apart, Barret is just fucked.
Throughout the Temple, I've mentioned that Vincent won't let anyone else touch him, won't help pull anyone up but he does make handholds and try to be helpful. This does get addressed a bit in the next chapter, but for now, it means that Barret gets thrown around like a doll instead of being pulled up or helped lol.
There's an unspoken thing that because Vincent and Cloud are enhanced, they're relied on for help. Vincent is aware that sometimes he needs to step in because he's the only person that can get something done, and he doesn't begrudge it or anything, but it's a dynamic that has an undercurrent that continues on throughout the story. Obviously FFVII is a video game and takes liberties with a lot of things, but I want my stories to be a bit more grounded and realistic when it comes to navigating things that seem impossible.
Anyway, the bridge. This gets some spotlight in the next chapter so I'm not gonna talk about it too much here. Obviously Vincent made the right call, even though it's frustrating cause we wanted to show off our character development, but we get back at him so it's fine.
Cloud. Cloud, Cloud, Cloud lol. I think it was about when I posted chapter 5, I suddenly realised that I was foreshadowing this big showdown happening with Cloud that I had never planned for lmao. I mentioned it in the author's note that I find it frustrating that everyone in the OG just ignores Cloud's problems until it all gets out of hand. We're gonna call him and others out on it lol.
I didn't want Cloud to actually attack anyone, but he had to try. Barret is quite a grounded character and he tries to wash his hands of all the weird supernatural stuff that's going on, and he thinks Cloud already has a little bit of a screw loose from the SOLDIER experiments. It makes sense to me in game why he gives the materia back to Cloud, and that no one stopped him because they were distracted by Cait Sith returning and that they're all in denial about Cloud too.
But, our Reader is good at calling out bullshit, and even though she has a low tolerance for direct lifestream intervention, she actually has quite a high tolerance regarding Sephiroth and Jenova related interference.
I have a headcanon that Jenova's power makes everyone sort of turn a blind eye to her antics, which is why she's so insidious and managed to wipe out the Cetra, and why the plot plays out as it does. Vincent has a high tolerance to her bullshit too, but isn't the type to call anything out.
So, let's do it. Let's call Cloud out on whatever the fuck is going on because even without Jenova's influence: Tifa won't, Aerith won't, and Nanaki won't without backup either.
I'm not quite sure if it ended up coming across in how I wrote the Reader's flashback, but one point I wanted to address was having an inner strength that is constantly beaten down by the world and society through literally no fault of her own. Her character swaps between being confident and shutting down, it's in the prose and Vincent mentions it a lot in his pov aswell, because it's hard to be upbeat and true to yourself when you're used to being punished for it, directly and indirectly.
She is used to being weak but trying to stand up for herself and others when it's important, and failing but still trying. Except she's not weak anymore, she has a possessive, enhanced boyfriend that will commit murder and that's something she's gotta come to terms with as well. We suddenly swap from being the self-perceived weakest link, to now having everyone be a little bit apprehensive and terrified about their actions maybe having consequences.
Fun stuff ya'll. This is why I'm hoping I have the energy to write the next part once Revelation is out, cause there's so much more good stuff to come.
Anyway, Sephiroth. I deliberated for ages about whether to put in the black whispers thing or not. It's an unintended side effect of the plot, and doesn't have huge relevance to anything overarching, so I didn't have to include it. But, it adds mystery, not just to the story in general, but also because now the other characters have seen it happen, and wonder what the fuck is going on. It arouses suspicion and distrust, and so I couldn't resist.
Honestly, I just wanted to shoot Sephiroth in the face. At the end of the day, he keeps getting away with things because of plot armour and it's frustrating. Let's strip some of it away. In the OG, the Sephiroth that appears is Jenova posessing black cloaks. In Remake, there are many Sephiroths, and we don't know if we're seeing a real one, or a Jenova hallucination. I put in a line that could be read either way in case it gets unveiled properly, but at the end of the day, shooting him in the face isn't enough to injure, and it's not enough to change the plot hugely.
I want it to be, like, I want this shot to have changed everything, but while this story does have a happy ending, it's not all sunshine and rainbows to get there.
Anyway, feel free to ask any follow up questions or whatever. I am still working hard on the next chapter and going to try my best to get it ready for next week, but it might not happen. If not, I'll do another Abyss Friday meta analysis. I don't wanna disappoint you all.
Anyway, this was a long one, thanks for reading to the end. Here's our peek at the next chapter:
The Galian Beast liked this, of course he did. You can see the reflection of his expression in Vincent’s face, or maybe it’s the other way around. You’re curious, releasing his hair to move your hand upwards. You rub over where Galian’s horn might have come out of, a careful, massaging pressure and Vincent practically melts underneath you. Breath coming out in a long, shuddering exhale, fingers twitching against your thigh, the tension in his face disappearing.
Sephiroth is speaking but you can’t hear him, the air filling with static, a wrongness, a dreadful power that’s so unlike Vincent’s, impossible to resist
Abyss Friday again. A lot happened in the last chapter from a narrative perspective, so let's go deep dive into all that.
I wanted to introduce Galian specifically in this fic so he could have a proper spotlight moment to himself. I wanted for him not to be forced out during battle so he's calmer and less full of blood lust, and I wanted it just to be him and Reader, so they can communicate and form a bond. Now that's happened, I can bring him out whenever I want, even while the others are around and continue building their relationship. It took a lot of words and more chapters than I expected to introduce him properly, but honestly it is a huge relief that's done so I can move on with the story.
Quick disclaimer that I have no idea what I'm doing with Galian's gift lmao. I wanted him to give her something so we can start a whole courtship thing, and we're probably gonna end up with a charm bracelet representing all the monster's eye colours or something like that lol. I have no plan, just prepare for that to randomly come up again sometime.
The "primal" scene was a late addition to the chapter. Initially, I had Galian fighting but changed it because I'm a thot and it ended up accomplishing the same thing narratively lol. There was a scene of Galian ripping out and chewing on a spinal column, which I wanted to leave in but the point of that scene was to give us a reason to think why Vincent hates spines, and I ended up revealing a lot more about all of that plot than I initially intended to. So we're not in as much denial about it as I initially thought, so the fic will continue fine without it.
Let's discuss the primal bit, giving Galian a hug and then him turning back, because I deliberately left the scene a little bit vague, and ya'll that read these Friday ramblings are so good to me that you deserve some lore.
Vincent knows things, he's seen visions of the future while he was sleeping, once he woke up and he continues to see them. However due to reasons there are some gaps and blocked out parts in these visions, things that don't quite make sense. This is a big spoiler, so I'm going to refer to it vaguely in italics while talking about it here lol. These gaps are related to the quieting of his monsters, and the mechanism for that is not healthy for his mind.
Essentially, we stopped a transformation by using a side effect of something that's pretty demanding, then forced one out very soon after. This left Vincent's mind in quite a vulnerable state and allowed Galian more control than usual. Now, he would have transformed back eventually, but it would have taken a long time without any external catalyst affecting it. Galian knew this but didn't want to say anything, because he wanted more pets.
Vincent doesn't reveal much about himself but also wears his heart on his sleeve to a point. He's been a little bit vague but has expressed his insecurities previously, both verbally and then obviously with his actions. Galian, feeling overwhelmed, fighting back his feelings, growing a temper that affects the air and then closing in on himself with embarrassment after, well Reader has seen Vincent do that before.
For her, the understanding that they're both essentially the same, that Vincent's transformations are a manifestation of his trauma, means she understands what Vincent needs right now. An embrace and reassurance.
Embracing Galian both physically and psychologically is enough to affect the mechanism enough to bring Vincent back.
But Vincent is still recovering. I'm not sure how to express that he's sort of past human limits for tiredness at this point lol. He usually passes out after transformation, but he was Galian for a long time, was already tired and we have been playing with the mechanism, so he is just beyond tired. But Galian is our GOAT and refuses to let him pass out, bonking Vincent in the back of the head every 5 seconds, forcing him to stay awake.
So Vincent is exhausted, short tempered and has a very short list of priorities rn.
Vincent trusts in the strength of the rest of the party. He knows that they are fully capable of taking care of themselves. He doesn't feel like he needs to be there to protect them, so doing so isn't a priority for him. Reader loves her friends, she's seen them struggle and knows that they weren't always so strong. She wants to be there to help them, protect them, even though she also doesn't think she's strong enough to. Having Vincent by her side gives her power that she's never had before and she wants to use it to help her friends regardless of if it's to her own detriment.
And that's something we're gonna be looking at in the final chapter.
Vincent respects Reader's limits, understands that she's not a warrior but also won't stop her from fighting, or climbing the massive wall on her own for example. He wouldn't just let her wander into the Temple depths unsupervised usually of course, but he's definitely not going to do it after how the temple has treated her, so his main priority right now is getting the both of them out, even if he has to head in deeper. He doesn't respect his own limits normally and certainly isn't going to start now lol.
Anyway, signing off by addressing the chewing gum because it felt so out of place to me lol. I'm trying my best to make this world seem lived in, these characters spend a lot of time together that we don't see, and have their own relationships and jokes with each other. I've tried to address this with just throwaway remarks but it's time to start bringing in more complicated stuff.
The chewing gum segment is obviously a throw back to when Vincent bought condoms at the Costa Del Sol, and ends up picking up some gum as well.
See, I can do foreshadowing over a year in advance, I plot my fics out properly lmao.
Anyway, Cid saw a man that for all intents and purposes seems to know what he's doing, while also sleeping fully clothed above the covers and not taking care of himself. Cid walked into the Bronco first thing that morning and saw Vincent sitting on the pilot seat, missing a bunch of his clothes, hair in a braid, demeanour a lot more relaxed and decided to give him a gentle reminder of how to appropriately conduct himself the morning after lol.
Anyway, the next chapter has us securing an exit… and Sephiroth. Get Hyped!
The energy in this part of the temple is different, ominous and full of hatred. Oppressive, humid air grows thicker, more difficult to breathe as you continue downwards, venturing further into dark depths. There are signs of violence everywhere, blood splattered across the walls and floor while lifestream skitters across mangled fiend corpses, the green tendrils taunting you. Massive cut marks are etched into dark concrete, vicious slices made with an inhuman strength. Cloud ripped through here, violently. It appears that his sanity has only continued to slip.
