Okay, so, for anyone unfamiliar, the FFVII Reunion Files was a bilingual Japanese-English artbook published in 2006 as promo for Advent Children, and it had some pages about other Compilation pieces.
Anyone who's been involved with the Turk side of fandom is probably familiar with the eternal question of how to transliterate 「ヴェルド」, the name of the Director of the Turks before Tseng. Official sources go back & forth between "Veld" & "Verdot," so I was curious which way this book went.
... I didn't expect to see it spelled both ways on one page!
😂
(If you'd like to see for yourself, it's available on archive.org, page 96.)
So like. What if a big reason Veld cares so much for his Turks has to do with Vincent.
Has to do with the fact that, no matter how much he asked and pleaded, the previous Turk leader refused to look for Vincent or even ask any higher power about what might've happened to him.
Veld likely has no idea what happened to Vincent. Why would Hojo tell him? And Lucrecia couldn't of, considering she was working on Vincent in her lab and furthermore having a mental breakdown.
Veld would never forget, though.
Everytime he lost a Turk, it ate at him. Of course it did.
But at least he knew how they died.
At least he could mourn properly, in most cases.
Plus, this is the same man who thought he lost his fucking daughter, thinking she was dead for a while too– but, as far as I know, he doesn't seem too affected. Veld is so mentally strong, or at least really good at acting like his life is put together.
He is a fucking mess. And he still cares for his Turks and is so damn proud of them??
...Damn, this turned into a rant about Veld. I love him. He's great, I really want him to get characterization outside of Before Crisis.
(5 minute later update/edit: I'm crying thinking about this VELD JUST HURTS ME GIVE HIM VINCENT BACK I'M)
And I was reminded someone in Shinra took Tifa to Sheiran to get medical help,
So listen, it's probably not right, but imagine Veld seeing Tifa, being violently reminded of his own daughter, and flying her ass all the way to Corel for medical help. It's definitely possible and it makes me all goopy inside
(I wrote about Veld way too early in the morning: might delete later we'll see)
Derealization:
An alteration in the perception of the external world, causing those with the condition to perceive it as unreal, distant, distorted, or falsified. Other symptoms include feeling as if one's environment is lacking in spontaneity, emotion, and depth.
Veld could only wonder if it was real.
Staring up at the ceiling of the dim room, cheeks stained with damp trails of his last few tears, he couldn't feel. He could only think, and even now, he couldn't even do that right.
A whole human being slipped through his fingers. Adruptly disappeared from existence as if suddenly scratched from the narrative; yanked away from Veld's gentle grasp, without a word. The only proof he has Vincent existed at all are his tags, which rest on Veld's chest. He doesn't want them to slip away too, somehow.
No one cared to look. He couldn't help the sting of resentment in his stomach, listening to the short speech the Turk leader gave at the small, body-less funeral they gave for his partner. Veld repeatedly begged him to search for Vincent– to ask about Vincent... or even give Veld permission to look and ask for himself. He couldn't help but feel betrayed with every denial. It felt like a punch to the stomach every time he thought about how spendable it made him seem.
And Veld knew this numbness wasn't very efficient: efficiency is all that matters in the limited days of a Turk, but Veld couldn't help it. He couldn't help but grimace and clench his fists. He couldn't stop the tears that haunt his vision and the gut-renching guilt that tore at his torso and mind.
Veld slowly lifted a hand, moving it up his face until he felt his fingers brush through his hair: trying to feel something– anything.
The vibrant, phantom memories of Vincent Valentine remain in Veld's head every day of his life, especially during the days he couldn't seem to see the color or reason in anything. After leaving Shinra, after he escaped to the outside world with his daughter Elfe, another that he thought snatched away from him, he holds her tight every moment he can. He fears nothing more than her truly disappearing– slipping through his desperate fingers to join Vincent on whatever far-off world they were flown away to.
And oh, what he'd do to know what happened is a list of many, but the list of what he'd do to see Vincent once more is even richer a script.
Current midnight thought is the fact my favorite ff7 pairing is, to put it very simply; "these two old bisexuals reallllyyyy missed each other okay let them have this they are so tired"
