Yay, new story! ^-^ Are you excited? I sure am :D Soooo, yes my first attempt at a Final Fantasy fic, hope you'll like it ;)

As you'll probably notice, the fic is somewhat AU. While I kept some of the main events from Crisis Core, I didn't quite follow the original plot. I hope you'll like it even like that... at least Zack won't die this time *coughspoilercough* But enough of this, enjoy the first chapter lovelies :)

P.S. Every Final Fantasy character belongs to Square Enix. Otherwise Sephiroth would be locked in my closet ;P

Just a child

Sephiroth again walked those dirty, old slums as he made his way. His reason today? A mission... he was apparently supposed to bust a prostitution ring by breaking in and mowing down all the men inside. Yes, he was only supposed to kill the males. As he approached, the two tall, armed guards stepped in his way.

"Say the password or get lost."

The SOLDIER General gave off an eerie smile as he leaned forward.

"You know... I think I saw your mother in here, last night. Also, yours..."

He then turned to the other fellow, before adding on.

"...I know I've seen her here. In fact, I still owe her a few gil."

Both of them scowled and moved to approach, though after a thunderous clapping sound, the sickening audio of bones cracking could be heard that would result in their collapses and deaths. Rushing to the door, he kicked it in and brandished his weapon, immediately starting to coat its excessively lengthy blade in blood. A master of his sword, he was able to avoid the women who were set out like objects for show. Devilishly grinning, he jumped up and kicked one last, dumbfounded man in the nose, fracturing his skull and sending shards into his brain to effectively ensure his demise. Now, he glanced around; so many damn doors. When one of the women working in that brothel stepped out of her room, apparently to take a break while her latest client was getting dressed, her eyes widened at the sight of what looked like a lunatic wielding a bloodstained sword.

Her frightened shriek made all the doors slam open one by one within the following minute, the women now rushing to get away along the staircase at the opposite end of the hallway. It wasn't too long before they were followed by their clients, most of them half dressed or naked, but all of them clearly confused as to what had frightened the women away. With the other men stepping out, Sephiroth blurred about, slashing down the masculine victims and leaving the women to flee. With all of the men dead, he turned toward the last few girls, who seemed rooted to the spot in fear. Raising a brow, he tipped his head and calmly vocalized.

"Boo..."

When they screeched and ran away, he headed off to the doors and started pushing them. Empty room, empty room, more of the same... then, as he scaled the winding flight to the next floor, he saw that all of them were open; except one. Jumping up, he shot off to the one at the end of the hall. This job was so much fun! Upon his approach to the locked door, a male voice resounded from within, mixed with a sickening laugher.

"Now, now... come here... I'm not gonna hurt you, you playful minx."

Within a few moments, however, that same voice erupted in a painful shout, followed by the distinct sound of flesh hitting flesh.

"You fucking little bitch!"

Inside the room, the girl now crawled away from the disgusting male trying to rape her, curling into a corner with her arm extended forward. In her grasp was what looked like a hairpin, dripping of the same blood that poured from the male's hand. Her whole body was shaking with fear and she felt nauseous at the thought that that obnoxious pig wanted to force her into sleeping with him. Grabbing a cloth and tying it around his bleeding hand, the male now growled as he made his way to her.

"Whatever... I don't care if you want it or not. I paid good money for you!"

Abruptly halting in front of the door, Sephiroth landed on his feet and brought up Masamune, slicing through the door and wall several times, which created a square hole for his entry. Slipping inside, he gave something of a nod.

"Grand entrance? Check. Show of power?"

Putting his hand forward, he fired the basic bolt spell at the man, which moved through his body like a beam to rip out the flesh it hit. Needless to say, he flew across the room like a ragdoll, blood flying along his path until he landed limply on the floor. Taking in a breath, he shrugged.

"...Not so much on the show of power, but I guess that'll do."

Some moments after the male went limp, a shaky, soft female voice reached his ears.

"Th... thank you..."

Having dropped the hairpin, the girl was now tightly grasping at her torn clothes in an attempt to cover herself. Though she was still shaking like a leaf in the wind, and her face was still full of tears, her steel colored eyes – fixed upon her savior – held a gaze that didn't show any sort of fear. Sure, he looked like a serial killer and a man who loved taking lives; but he'd saved her from getting raped out of her virginity. He couldn't be all that bad... Sephiroth cut the air, sending blood to the floor before he glanced to the girl.

"...You should go home, if you have one. They won't come looking for you again."

He had pretty much made certain of that; there were none to seek her out. They were all shredded throughout the building, which now looked more like a battlefield than a whore house. Lowering her eyes, the girl now shook her head.

"They'll just sell me again..."

Wrapping her arms tighter around her knees, she fixed her gaze on her bared feet.

"My family's poor... a few years ago my father lost his job while mother was pregnant with my twin brothers. He tried, but couldn't get another job no matter where he searched. Two weeks ago the patron of this house came to us and said he'll buy me for a lot of money. I don't know how much he offered... all I know is that my parents sold me away."

Sephiroth's somewhat playful features faded toward seriousness. His mother... he didn't know her, but he couldn't quite imagine how it would feel if she sold him to some pervert. It was then that his voice came out, deeper and gentler.

"...Come on. I'll take you with me."

He wouldn't leave her to simply wander. At the very least, he could teach her some self defense, condition her and send her off to the military. Looking back to him with wide eyes, the girl then nodded and moved to her feet. Rushing to the wardrobe she opened it and took out a plain black dress. It wasn't the humblest of attires, but at least she wouldn't walk the streets naked.

"I'll be ready in a minute..."

With that she entered the bathroom to change, returning to him in a matter of seconds, already fully clothed and wearing a pair of black sandals.

"I'm ready..."

It was now that her lips curved into a smile which lit up her entire face, much like the sun shining after a cloud had passed before it. Only now when she stood next to him did she realize just how tall he was; he towered over her by almost two heads, though the feature that first drew her attention were his eyes.

"So pretty..." she muttered, while letting herself delve into that alien shade of green.

"Yeah, I get that a lot."

The man simply smiled while he turned and plainly walked out, then down the stairs. He didn't mind the girl's comments in the least, as long as she didn't start getting weird with him. Sephiroth found that he had never been interested in romance; he was a warrior and enjoyed the kill too much to give up the long missions away from home, warring with other nations and bringing down men with magic and sword. Blinking the girl now blushed and lowered her gaze in embarrassment.

"Oh... I'm sorry if that sounded... weird."

When he left she moved to follow him, walking quietly at his side and apparently not minding the carnage around them.

"I'm Karinna, by the way... Karinna Hale." she said with an innocent smile.

Looking up at him again, the girl then voiced her curiosity.

"So... you're with SOLDIER... aren't you? There aren't any people in the slums who can use magic."

"First Class SOLDIER, Sephiroth."

By the time he had said anything, they were out of the building and the male was wiping blood off of his shoulder pads. Maybe he would ask someone to spar with him when he got back; his blood was boiling, his soul begging for another kill... on second thought, maybe he wouldn't ask for a spar. He would just take up the training room for a simulated mission. He didn't want to kill Genesis or Angeal, after all. Widening her eyes, the girl slightly tilted her head.

"Sephiroth? I heard that name before..."

Seemingly taking a while to ponder something she then looked around when awed mutters reached her ears, only to see people moving away in fear at the sight of him. Looking back at him, she lightly shook her head to herself... what in the world could they find frightening in him?

"Why... does everyone fear you? You seem... nice..."

Really, what were people thinking, fearing a man who protected the weak and innocent?

"I kill for a living, I'm good at it and I love my job. Also, in the slums there's a saying... when you see me, either someone has died, or will die. I'd be lying if I said it weren't true."

He saw fit to be brutally honest with her; he didn't like the slums. While he felt sorry for the people who had to live in the ugliest place in the entire world, he only came down here to work.

"This sword doesn't help much either, but I don't care."

"Yeah, but..."

Lowering her gaze with a saddened expression, she took a few moments before seeking his gaze again.

"You're nice..." she said softly, smiling again.

Taking a short while to seemingly analyze things again she looked at him with a concerned gaze.

"Should I... fear you? Like the others...?"

Perhaps he enjoyed being feared, though in that case she would have to put up an act in front of him. Yet even as she spoke, she did notice people staring at her as she walked with him. She'd always been considered a bit weird, as children tended to lose their innocence quite early on in the slums, whereas she had kept hers. Sure, she could be cunning and analytical, but she'd always kept a childish side stored somewhere in her heart... and she wasn't about to let it go that easily.

"...Only if you've broken the law."

His tone was ever so slightly slicing, expression severe. After a few seconds, he then grinned, since he didn't want to frighten her. After all, she would soon be going up to the top with him, where he would commence her training. There was hardly any credential that would get her into the military quicker than a footnote on her application that stated, Trained by Sephiroth. Startled at his tone, the girl briefly lowered her gaze... however, she found that she so enjoyed the color in his eyes that she simply had to look at him again. Seeing his expression, her lips curved upwards once more.

"You have a beautiful smile... you should use it more often. People might not fear you so much if you'd smile more."

With that she now averted her gaze to the streets they were walking, starting to hum a soft tune. Truly, it was as if he had taken her out of a perfectly normal environment, not a whore house. About an hour later they finally arrived at the top, the girl glancing around wide-eyed at all the steel structures surrounding them.

"Wow..." she said on a half-whispered tone.

The echo of her soft voice was cut by a male one, not much older than her, judging by the sound.

"Wha... Angeal, is that... Sephiroth? With a girl?"

Casting his sky blue gaze toward his mentor, Zack pointed to their General and Karinna with a slightly jesting expression. The other dark haired male turned from Zack, gazing upon Sephiroth and the female. Blinking, he then habitually roughened his countenance.

"Sephiroth..."

Then, he gave off a laugh at the sight of them.

"So you found your own puppy, huh?"

The other First Class member gave off a hearty laugh, before he shot Zack a glance, then moved his eyes back to Angeal.

"Heh, at least mine is cute."

At the sight of the two males Karinna now hid behind Sephiroth, grasping his arm as she peeked at them from her new spot. Frowning, Zack waved his fist at Sephiroth.

"Hey... what's that supposed to mean? I'm cute too! At least... I'm cuter than you are!" he retorted, clearly annoyed by the General's reply.

He hadn't even realized that he'd just agreed with being called a puppy, despite always getting annoyed when Angeal called him that. When the girl gave off a soft giggle at that, the boy now settled down and placed his hands on his hips.

"So... where'd you find her, anyway? I thought you'd left on a mission..."

"Oh? So you are my puppy. Aww, good boy."

It was all Angeal said, the two First Classes sharing yet another laugh at Zack's expense previous to Sephiroth's plain response to the Fair.

"She was an unwilling participant in the whole thing... she was the only girl who didn't run away. I told her to go home, just to find out she doesn't have one. So, I brought her up here. In other news... I don't think there will be any demand for sex slaves for a long, long time. I made a big scene of it so that people wouldn't forget... at least, for a few years."

Having frowned again, Zack had just opened his mouth to give Angeal a smartass retort, when Sephiroth's words silenced him. Blinking in surprise, he leaned forward to take a better look at the girl.

"No way... she's just a kid."

What kind of sick people would force a child to offer sex for money? His expression went from a contemplating frown back to a puzzled one, when the girl now finally spoke.

"Look who's talking... you're just as much of a kid."

Her miffed expression, however, was enough to make the boy burst out into laughter.

"Oh, really? Who's more of a kid in between us? Aren't you the one hiding behind Sephiroth?" he grinned.

Blinking at his retort, the girl frowned and blushed in embarrassment.

"I... I like it here... it's a safe place to be..."

It was at those words that Zack's expression softened away from humor. He expected the girl to fear males given what she'd been through... so then why didn't she fear Sephiroth? Sure, he'd saved her, but he was a male nonetheless; not to mention, the most feared male in all of Midgar and even outside the city walls. Angeal shrugged somewhat at the answer she had given. One couldn't argue with that...

"She may be a child, but when I got there she was fighting off her first client. She might have actually won, if I hadn't gotten involved..."

Sephiroth did think on that. Especially with something that wasn't even supposed to be an armament, a girl her age defeating a grown man would have revealed her potential to be a warrior.

"Oh... we have a guest?"

Startled by the soft male voice behind her, the girl now grasped Sephiroth's arm, turning her head only to find herself lost in a pair of eyes as blue as the deep sea. Really... did every single male up here have such mesmerizing eyes? Arching a brow at her reaction, Genesis straightened his posture and placed his hands into the pockets of his long coat.

"I never imagined you as the one to adopt a child, Sephiroth." he stated with a slightly jesting note in his voice, whilst his lips curved into a subtle smile.

Sephiroth turned his head to Genesis, giving his friend a smile.

"Adoption...? No. I likely will be training her in preparation for the military. I found her struggling with a man on today's mission, and she has nowhere else to go."

A living as a soldier was far from the most undignified position anyone could find themselves in. It was far worse to be a whore, as she most likely would have been if Shinra had not sent him on that mission. With humor fading from his expression, the young male once more turned his eyes to the girl.

"Such a young child..." he stated contemplatively.

Keeping silent while Karinna now settled down somewhat, he then broke the lock on their gazes, walking past Sephiroth to come into the visual field of Angeal and Zack as well.

"I suggest you take her to the hospital first... she might have been fighting that man, but there's no telling what he did to her before you got there."

His attention was drawn back to the girl, just like Zack's, however, when she finally spoke with a subtle frown.

"He didn't get to do anything... I wasn't about to let that pig have my virginity."

Lightly smiling again, Genesis again settled his gaze onto her.

"A fighter, huh? You'd make a fine SOLDIER with that attitude."

Of course, that would remain as just a statement, since they all knew Shinra had never taken women into SOLDIER ranks.

"Then I'll become one." she stated without any trace of hesitation.