Kindred
Three weeks pass after that fateful event between Cloud and Sephiroth. All was quiet throughout the shop where the members of AVALANCHE inhabited, but the sound of silence was shattered by the sounds of someone rushing to somewhere. Cloud rushes to the bathroom with his right hand over his mouth. Making it, he regurgitates in the toilet, sickened by some illness the others couldn't pinpoint; not even him. instantly hearing the racket, Tifa rushes to Cloud's room with worry as she ran to her destination.
"Cloud! Cloud, are you alright?" asked Tifa. After a few coughs and a spit, Cloud sits up to face her, "I don't know...I don't know what's wrong with me." She walks towards Cloud and lightly rubbed his back to comfort him.
"We better get you back to bed...Come on," said Tifa as she helped clean him up and carried him to his bed. She lays him back onto his bed with the black sheets and blanket on the mattress. Resting on the mattress half asleep, Cloud was worried about his condition. "What is wrong with me?" questioned Cloud. Two more days pass and Cloud was still the same.
"What is going on? Why is Cloud still ill?" asked Yuffie. "I don't know...Something's not right. Food Poisoning can't be it because it wouldn't last that long," answered Tifa. After she finished her sentence, a set of knocks were heard at the door. Tifa reacts and goes to the door. "Come in!" she called. The door opens, revealing a little boy with brown hair carrying three lilies in his hand. The boy was Denzel. Right behind him were two guys that Tifa recognized immediately.
One of them had long, spiky-like red hair pulled in a pony-tail with a kind of tattoo below his eyes. He wore a kind of suit-like outfit with a tie and an open jacket in black, including his shoes and pants. The second was wearing the same thing as the red head, but more formal and wore pitch black shades and aliitle more darker skin; including black gloves. The two were Reno and Rude.
"You guys again...What now?" questioned Yuffie as she caught sight of them. "We heard rumors that Cloud isn't feeling too well...Is he still ill?" answered Reno.
"Still the same...We don't know what it is," answered Tifa. "I got some flowers for him..I hope Cloud gets better, too," said Denzel.
"Aw...You go ahead and take them to him. I bet it'll make Cloud happy," said Tifa. With a quick nod, Denzel runs to Cloud's room with the flowers. "How long has he been this sick?" asked Rude. On cue, Cid, Barret, and Red XIII arrive to the scene.
"Three weeks...We don't even know what it is. It can't be Food Poisoning," said Cid. "Plus two days," Barret said to finish Cid's sentence.
"Damn," answered Rude. "What symptoms is Cloud going through?" asked Reno, now becoming curious. At the door, Denzel immediately became polite and knocked on the door. After the sound of a few coughs and a spit, Cloud's voice was heard, "Come in." Opening the door carefully, the boy peeks through the opening.
"You don't look so good...How are you feeling, Cloud?" asked Denzel. "Bad...But I will get better eventually," groaned Cloud. The boy carries the lilies in a vase to the dresser stand right next to the bed, placing it on top its wooden surface.
"I brought you some lilies, just to help you get better. I wonder what it could be," said Denzel. "Thank you," said Cloud. After Reno and Rude were told of the symptoms, it was Reno himself that came up with a possible, but bizarre diagnosis.
"Oh, my god...I might know what it is, but if I told you guys..You'll think I'm insane," said Reno. Rude immediately crossed his arms, "What?"
"Well...If you listened, do you notice any patterns with the Nausea thing? It sounds like a case of...Morning Sickness...To me," said Reno, trying to bring out his sentence. Barret was appalled. "What? Morning Sickness? Women go through that if they're pregnant."
"No way...There is no way in heck Cloud is pregnant! Men can't have babies!" growled Cid. As soon as Cid gave his opinion, a familiar voice was heard behind the two Turks, "Reno is right, Cloud could be and I can now prove it." Everyone turns around, facing Vincent with a box.
"Vince! Your back!" cheered Yuffie. "Where the hell were you?" asked Barret.
"Drug store. I had to come up with a story of a girlfriend of mine thinking she could be expecting; which isn't true," answered Vincent with a shrug, "And I hate...Turks." "You used to been one..." grumbled Rude.
"Shut up...Or Galian will eat you both up. Where's Cloud?" said Vincent, ending with a question. Back in his room, Cloud was in the bathroom again, sick to his stomach. "You'll get better, it'll pass," Denzel said, trying to help Cloud by waiting outside. The child then hears footsteps coming towards the room. He sees Vincent walking in, looking around for someone or something.
"Hi, Vincent...Are you looking for Cloud? He's in the bathroom right now," said Denzel. "Is he? Cloud? Are you done in there?" answered Vincent.
"Yeah...I'm done...Why?" Cloud answered back. "I need to talk to you in private about something...Right now," said Vincent.
"I'll go see what the other guys are doing..Tell me when you guys are done," said the boy, immediately heading outside to the others. Cloud opens the bathroom door to see what Vincent wanted to talk about, but was pushed back inside and Vincent soon joins him.
"What is going on?" asked Cloud. "I need you to take this...I know what's wrong with you, but you need to take this test so I can know for sure," said Vincent, handing Cloud something that looked like a white stick that can fit in someone's hand.
"What? A pregnancy test? Vincent, are you out of your fricken mind? I'm not pregnant! Its impossible!" Cloud objected. "Prove it; then. We're not leaving this bathroom til you do...I'll make sure of it," said Vincent. Cloud wanted to argue about this further, but knew that Vincent wasn't fooling around. Cloud read the instructions on the manual and does what it tells him to do.
"Uh...Vince...Can you..Like..Turn around. I don't want you watching me go if you know what I mean," said Cloud, feeling uncomfortable under Vincent's gaze. He acknowledges and turns around to give Cloud some privacy. After a few minutes, the blonde was finished.
"Okay...We'll wait five minutes til it reads. I am not pregnant, Vince...There is no way. Can I go lay down now?" asked Cloud. "Yeah..We're done here..." answered Vincent. Ten minutes pass and everyone arrives to Cloud's room to see if Vincent's test is done. They all looked at the pregnancy test with Cloud, which to their shock read a blue plus. This meant one thing: Cloud really was pregnant. Cloud drops the test in total shock, realizing that Sephiroth was the only one that made love with him that night, and its also he that is the father.
"Oh, my god...I knew it in a way...He is!" gasped Reno. "Hell no..." said Rude. "Guys can have babies now?" asked Denzel. At the sudden realization, Cloud faints as Vincent changes form to the Galian Beast, catching Cloud into his arms. "Move! Move back! Give him some room," said Galian. Despite the fact that it was still Vincent, Galian was his own entity, along with Chaos and the other forms that the former Turk turns into. Entities with personalities and minds of their own, binded into one body with a telepathic connection to their human companion.
Less than three months pass and everyone was trying to figure out how to handle this unexplained pregnancy, but some of them were suggesting getting rid of the offspring, since the father was in fact the one who tried to destroy the planet: Sephiroth. Cid made a homemade sonogram machine by scratch, hoping to determine how many babies of Sephiroth are growing inside Cloud.
"Alright...Lets see how many babies we got in there," said Cid, looking on the screen to spot the developing embryo, or embryos. Cloud laid on the bed in his room, flat on his back. After a few moments of searching, the heartbeat of the embryo was heard. "There it is...The heart rate is strong," said Cid. Cloud looks at the screen, listening to the heartbeat.
"How many..Am I carrying inside me?" asked Cloud. "Not sure...I'm looking around right now. Sit tight for a bit," answered Cid with a toothpick in his mouth. He scans around inside Cloud's abdomen, till he spots another embryo; indicating that Cloud was carrying two babies.
"Oh, boy. We got two so far. Twins," Cid called out. "Two?" questioned Cloud. "Oh, god...That's a bad sign," said Reno. Cid continues scanning til he sees a third embryo. He was in shock.
"I take that back...There's three. Triplets," said Cid. "Your joking, right? Three?" asked Vincent. "That's the sign of the Apocalypse," said Reno. Cid scanned around more, but the three embryos were the only ones.
"There's only three. Surprisingly healthy indeed. Now what?" said Cid. 'Triplets...Was this Jenova's doing, or...Oh, they're so adorable,' thought Cloud. Even if Cloud wasn't planning or anticipating this, he immediately fell in love with the unborn babies. Through the next two days, the group discussed on what to do next.
"If those three babies are going to be three new Sephiroths, maybe new clones...We need to get rid of them before its too late. I am not going to deal with three to four Sephiroths; especially those remnants of his," said Barret.
"How would Cloud feel about this? I saw it in his face, he wants to keep them," said Tifa. "Think about it, Tifa...Would you like to take on four Sephiroths and three of his remnants all together? This is a matter of life or death. Besides..You saw how Cloud reacted to this from the very beginning. Right Vince?" said Cid.
"I'm not part of this. Chaos has advised me to stay out of it," said Vincent. "Oh, boy...He's neutral, now," said Yuffie. After another day of discussion, it soon was settled. It was Tifa that had to break the news to Cloud about the resolution. She composes herself as she walked towards Cloud's room, preparing for what she was going to tell him. Tifa opens the door, spotting Cloud lightly massaging his abdomen, singing a song to the triplets.
"Cloud," said Tifa. He ceases his singing; then turned to Tifa. "What is it? What were you guys discussing out there? I want to know," said Cloud. On cue, the others arrive into the room; except Vincent. Cloud became uneasy.
"What is going on? Why are you guys doing here? Tifa...What's going on?" questioned Cloud. "Cloud...We were talking about the triplets you are carrying. We're afraid that they could be three more Sephiroth clones. Maybe Sephiroth did this according to ShinRa's hidden plan of more Sephiroths. We decided...It would be best to terminate this pregnancy for your sake and everyone elses. I'm sorry, but we came up the decision. I wasn't happy about it," Tifa explained.
This struck a chord in Cloud's heart. A feeling of sadness washed over him. Cloud couldn't believe what he was hearing. These were his babies and he had to put his foot down to protect them. "We'll get you to the doctors first thing tomorrow. We'll tell them everything and get this settled," said Reno, who was still present.
"No," said Cloud. Everyone froze. 'That didn't sound good,' thought Red XIII. "Cloud? What's wrong?" asked Yuffie. The former SOLDIER stands up.
"No...I won't go. These are our babies...I will not let you hurt our babies," growled Cloud. "Our? Your talking about Sephiroth, aren't you? He's setting you up, maybe another plan he hatched up. We need to fix this as soon as-" "No! Don't you lay your hands on me! I won't let you hurt our babies. You don't get it..He loved me that night, loved me like no one else had ever loved me before. Sephiroth gave me these babies, because he knew that this was something I wanted to be. I won't let you take these gifts away from me!" Cloud roared, stopping Yuffie's sentence short.
"Your gay, now?" asked Reno. "Cloud, listen to us. Let us help you!" cried Tifa. Cloud pushes Tifa away from him to the ground with force, causing her to skid. "Stay away from my babies! I won't let you take them away from me," growled Cloud.
"Stop him!" cried Cid. Reno and Rude both tried to halt Cloud, but his strength over powered the two. Cloud manages to get out of the shop, running away to anywhere far. "Cloud! Come back! Cloud!" screamed Tifa. Cloud continues to flee away from them. He ran all the way out of Edge to near the ruined city of Midgar. Now six months into the pregnancy, Cloud rested on a floor of a ruined building; singing to his now swollen abdomen. He soon ceases when he heard noises. After a few seconds pass, he spots a boy fall from a floor above. It was Denzel, who followed Cloud to the ruins.
"Denzel...You shouldn't be here," said Cloud. "I overheard what both Reno and the others were talking about. I had to to make sure you're alright. I don't want you to lose your babies," answered Denzel. After that, another familiar voice spoke, "Babies?" They turned around, spotting Kadaj looking at them. A child-like smile appeared on his face as he approached Cloud.
"I'm pregnant...With three babies," said Cloud. "Brother's having Lord Sephiroth's babies...We must get you to Black Water," said Kadaj, as if talking to himself. Denzel shooed him away.
"Stay away from Cloud! I won't let you near him!" he cried out. On cue, Loz and Yazoo appear to the scene, along with a familiar former hero with one wing: Sephiroth. The sheer length of the blade caused Denzel to panic. "My lord...He's expecting. There's three babies," said Kadaj.
"Three babies?" asked Sephiroth. He kneels down to Cloud, "Cloud...What are you doing here? You should be resting with our babies growing inside you."
"Sephiroth...They wanted to hurt our babies. I had to run from there. I was wondering where you could be. I need your help with this," answered Cloud. He leans into Sephiroth. "We must get you to Black Water. That is where we mated and that is where you shall bare your babies. We must go; then we'll check on our babies," said Sephiroth. Being the strongest remnant in strength, Loz picks up Cloud and carries him to their hideout at the Forgotten City.
"My lord..What about this kid?" asked Yazoo. "He can come," answered Sephiroth. He walks to Denzel and kneels down to his level, making him peer into his aqua green pupil slitted eyes. "Know this. If you ever try to hurt my remnants, or me...I will make your death slow and painfully. Understand?" questioned Sephiroth. The boy nodded quickly with fear. Denzel was already afraid of Sephiroth.
"Good. Lets go; then," answered the former hero. By motorbikes, they traveled to the Forgotten City that stretched til night. During the course of the night, the four brought out many equipment they stole, just to make sure the triplets were doing well. Sephiroth used the sonogram to check the growth, size, and any abnormalities present with the three babies. After that was complete, Kadaj checked the heartbeats of the three babies with a Doppler.
"The little babies are doing excellent. They are healthy, Lord Sephiroth," said Kadaj. "That is excellent. Have they been active, Cloud?" said Sephiroth.
"Kicking and playing. They're very active in me," answered Cloud. The rest of the night went by slowly. As Cloud slept on his side, the boy moves to him; slowly placing his hand on Cloud's swollen abdomen. The blonde takes hold of the child's hand half asleep and aided with what the boy intended to do.
"Feel anything?" asked Cloud. "Yeah...I think they're playing," answered Denzel. He felt movements inside Cloud's swollen abdomen, fluttering about in liquid. For three months, the group searched for Cloud like crazy, til they arrived at Black water; spotting Cloud near a pool of water. Now full term and already drunk the synthesized potion to swap gender with retained appearance made by Sephiroth, labor was drawing near. Tifa arrives first to the scene.
"Cloud! There you are. We gotta get you out of here to a hospital," said Tifa, trying to help Cloud up. He fought back, "No..I'm giving birth here. I don't even trust you for trying to hurt my babies."
"Its not safe! Come on!-" Before Reno made it to the scene, the Galian Beast makes his appearance, protecting Cloud. "Damn it, Vincent! Who's side are you on?" growled Barret. Vincent changes back to human; then said, "I'm doing what's right. Don't you all see? Maybe this is what Cloud wants. I won't let any of you disturb this delicate process. If you do, I'll let either Galian or Chaos deal with you." Everyone took that threat seriously. Cloud began to wince in pain. Tifa and the others froze.
"Its...Its time...Sephiroth," groaned Cloud. As if summoned, the three remnants and Sephiroth arrive to Cloud's side. Sephiroth was the one right next to Cloud the closest. "Having contractions?" Sephiroth asked Cloud.
"Yes...They're coming," said Cloud. They soon head to the room where the mating took place nine months ago. Sephiroth and Cloud were the only two that went inside. The remnants kept guard, making sure no one disturbed the two during the labor and birthing process. Kadaj enforced this, armed with his katana. Denzel was still too young to understand this matter, so he waited outside. He knew that Cloud would be alright.
During the course of a hour, the contractions were coming together. Cloud was in agony. "Aggghhh...Sephiroth..Please help me," groaned Cloud. Sephiroth went to his mate's side and did his very best to soothe him. "Your doing wonderful, Cloud. Breathe through the contractions. Breathe...That's it," said Sephiroth. Cloud breathed through the contractions as instructed. A set of three gushes leaked through between his legs. The three sacs of fluid have broken for labor to progress further.
"My waters broke...They're coming," whispered Cloud. "That's good. It won't be long til their arrival," said Sephiroth. Cloud leans onto the former hero and nuzzles the left side of his face. This indicated to Sephiroth that Cloud wanted something. He leans in and by instinct gave a kiss to the blonde. Peering through the keyhole, Reno couldn't believe it.
"I can't believe this. They are enemeies, but yet they love each other. Does anyone see anything wrong with that?" asked Reno. "That is wrong," said Rude.
"Maybe...They're soul mates. I can see why Sephiroth always returns. He wants to be with Cloud and possibly spend a lifetime with him. Love saved the One Winged Angel and it was Cloud that saved him. Maybe we don't have to be enemies," said Tifa, giving her theory of the possibilities of Sephiroth's constant returns. Six hours pass and at last, Cloud was ready. In a calm trance right next to his mate, he began to push.
"That's it, Cloud...Push the babies out one at a time...That's it," whispered Sephiroth. Cloud exhales and pushes again. After another ten seconds, he exhales again and leans onto the seat of a wooden chair they used for labor. "Push, Cloud...The babies need to come out. Push...That's it, that's it," Sephiroth coached. After two sets of pushing, Cloud could feel the first baby crowning.
"Gahh! Sephiroth!" screamed Cloud. The former hero approaches the scene carefully and calmly, assessing the birthing's progress. "The head's coming...Keep pushing. A little push at a time, we don't want you to tear. Do you need to lay down?" asked the former hero. Cloud instantly nodded and laid carefully down while the head of the baby began to come out. Now on his back, Cloud lightly pushed as the silver haired man guided the head out. After a few seconds of pushing, Cloud lets out a gasp, panting slowly and deeply as the head came out.
"Beautiful..Beautiful. The head's out. Pant, pant...That's it, Cloud," said Sephiroth as he cleared the first baby's airways from the mucus and the fluids from the womb and its amniotic sac. "Very good, Cloud..Now you can push again. That's it Cloud, that's it," said Sephiroth. Cloud gives one final push; til he gasps out as the first baby slid out of his body covered with fluid and maternal blood from its mother.
"There we go. Hello, little one," said Sephiroth. Cloud sits himself up with his legs stil open, peering down at his first baby. "Hi! Hello!" said Cloud. The newborn wailed while the former hero cutted the cord. After Sephiroth sets the baby to the left with some blankets, Cloud felt the second baby moving through the birth canal.
"Sephiroth...Number two is coming. Its coming!" said Cloud, holding both hands on his still swollen abdomen. "Go ahead and lay back down. Push for me, Cloud...Push for me. Its coming, its coming," said Sephiroth. He aids by pressing down on Cloud's stomach to aid the baby. With three pushes, the second baby's head came out. Sephiroth cleared the second baby's airways as well while his blonde mate panted.
"Excellent. Beautiful. You can push again now...Push..Slowly, Cloud..Slowly," said Sephiroth. With a few seconds of pushing and little effort, the second baby slid out of the blonde's body. Cloud gives out a deep gasp; then fell into a short trance. After a few minutes of the trance, the baby's cry woke Cloud from this state, causing him to sit up and look at the baby.
"Hi...Did you come out? Hello," said Cloud, talking to the newborn. The former hero clamps and cuts the cord, freeing the baby from the connection with its mother. He then places the second newborn right next to its sibling; then waited til the third and final baby was ready to come out. Under the trance of the darkness and the candle lights of the soothing atmosphere, Sephiroth soothes Cloud under his only wing's embrace. The contractions wept through Cloud as the final baby prepared to exit its mother.
Then, as Cloud was about to speak, he felt a bulge down below in his groin. The third baby was emerging through the contractions. Sephiroth knew this and aided with the final delivery. "That's it...Go ahead and push the baby out. Push...Push," said Sephiroth. With a gentle calm, Cloud calmly pushes the baby out of his womb.
"That's it, Cloud...Keep going. The baby is coming out...Stop, stop, the head's out," said Sephiroth. Cloud ceased his pushing and begins to pant. Cloud could feel it, he was almost done birthing the triplets and he was running out of strength. "Sephiroth...I'm getting tired...I'm running out of strength," said Cloud.
"Your almost done...I know your growing weary. One more baby, Cloud...One more baby," said Sephiroth, understanding Cloud's complaint. Cloud nodded and began to push again. "One more push...One more push," said Sephiroth. Cloud began to cry in silence, pushing his body to the limit with one final push. He lets out one final gasp as the third and final newborn slid out of his body. Cloud was exhausted from the birthing, laying his head on a soft white pillow. Sephiroth clamps the cord and cuts it, finally ending the tiresome birth for its mother.
"Hello, little one. Lets get you to your siblings," said Sephiroth, holding the baby in his arms. Cloud rested in a trance, til he felt something being set on his bare chest and now normal sized abdomen, something in a set of three. Cloud woke up from this feeling and saw all three babies on him, crying together on their mother.
"Hi...Hello, guys. My babies," said Cloud. Then he turns to Sephiroth; then said, "Our babies...They're beautiful..They're perfect." The former hero leans into the blonde and gives a peck based kiss on his cheek, embracing Cloud and the babies with his only wing. After three hours pass of resting, the others came in to see the new babies, but the group of AVALANCHE knew that Cloud was still angry at them and kept their distance. Kadaj approached the newborns, whose eyes were open with the same eye features as Sephiroth.
"Hello, little ones. Hi," he said, carefully caressing the babies' soft skin while wearing gloves. The babies cooed in response. Denzel was nervous, but slowly made his way closer to see the babies. Sephiroth turns to him in response. The boy immediately ceased motion, frozen with fear from the One Winged Angel's gaze.
"You can see the babies. Do not be afraid," said Sephiroth. The boy was relieved. He moved closer to Cloud and looked at the three newborns. Vincent drew closer, but kept his distance. Three days pass from the birth of the triplets; with his trust from his friends shattered, Cloud remained at the Forgotten City. Sephiroth felt his pain, despite being cold hearted.
"I won't forgive them. I probably never will. They tried to kill our babies," said Cloud. "They thought the newborns were three more of me. It wasn't their fault. For so long we fought against one another, they wanted to help you so much. You can't remain angry at them forever," said Sephiroth. They stayed right next to the babies, holding each other. Footsteps were then heard heading to the area they sat at. Cloud looks up to see who it was. It was Tifa, wanting to see Cloud.
"What are you doing here? You shouldn't be here," said Cloud. "Cloud...I know your still angry at us, but can I try to apologize from what happened nine months ago?" said Tifa.
"No...You wanted to kill our babies. I don't want an apology..-" "Cloud...Listen to her. Let her speak," said Sephiroth.
"They wanted to kill the babies..-" "Cloud...Listen to her. Let her speak," Sephiroth interrupted Cloud a second time. Cloud looked over to Tifa, ready to listen. After a couple hours of apology and explanations, they looked at one another in silence.
"I see...I'm still angry at all of you for this, but at this point I can try to forgive. Do you realize the damage you caused? I will never trust you guys again; until you earn it," said Cloud. At the same time Cloud finished, the rest of the group arrive. Knowing that they caused emotional damage to Cloud, they kept their distance.
"Cloud...Some of us are wondering...Can we see them?" asked Yuffie. "He's not going to like that request. I have a feeling that we're gonna get denied," said Reno. Cloud wanted to say 'No', but he turns to the former hero for advice. Sephiroth nods, meaning that Cloud should agree to the request. The blonde then turns to the group with an answer.
"You can...But don't hurt them," said Cloud. Now granted to see the babies, the group approaches the hand-built crib with the babies in it, cooing and playing. Cloud stood by as a guardian, making sure nothing happened. "Hi, little ones...Hi!" whispered Yuffie.
"The little ones are all boys. They definitely have their father's eyes," said Cid. "I agree on that one," said Barret. As quiet as the dead, Vincent appears by their side, looking at the babies. Everyone stood side by side, looking at the new triplets that arrived into this world. They knew that they broken Cloud's trust, but til his heart recovers; they will regain it. Til then, Cloud remains in Black Water with the servants of Jenova and Sephiroth, caring for his babies like any mother should.
Cloud remained in Black Water after the group left, knowing he shouldn't return to Edge just yet. As he settled in bed to rest, the babies begin to cry, hungry for something to eat. Despite being tired, Cloud got up anyway and went to his babies. The bottles were already made and prepared for the feeding. As Cloud leaned in to pick up all three babies, the remnants arrive. "We gotta help brother..Come on," said Kadaj. They went to Cloud's aid and helped with the feedings. Sephiroth arrives as well, sitting down right next to Cloud.
"Let us handle this, you need your rest," said Sephiroth, giving a kiss on the blonde's forehead. "But I need to feed my babies," said Cloud.
"I know, but let us feed them. You need your rest," said Sephiroth. Cloud understood and laid down to rest. "Its okay, big brother. We'll feed the little ones," Kadaj assured him. With help caring for the babies, Cloud relaxed and went to sleep. With all the help, the blonde was relieved that he wasn't alone in this. Not now, not ever. The little triplets were beginning their lives with their parents. With their lives just beginning, Cloud wouldn't handle this all alone.