The young girl with silver hair walked silently into the ShinRa building, a nervous look on her face and a quivering lip to match. She was only very young - seventeen - and had no idea of what this was about, and she looked around for some help.
Feeling a little inferior to everyone else in the lobby, she walked up to the Information Desk rather meekly and asked a question.
"Director Lazard's office? Head up those stairs and go into the elevator, he's the third floor down, dear," said one of the kind ladies at the desk, pointing up the stairs and showing her. "Thank you, ma'am," said the female quickly, before heading up the stairs and pressing the elevator button, waiting for her lift to come. She hummed a little until the signalling chime sounded, and the elevator opened.
She went to walk in but saw who was in the lift, and took two steps back, looking at the floor. "What's wrong? Aren't you getting in?"
She looked up shyly and walked into the lift, nodding. "Yes, sir." she said quietly, keeping her eyes trained on the floor. The tall man beside her smiled a little. "You're here to see Lazard, right?" he asked her, the girl nodding again. "I'm Sephiroth. Pleased to meet you," he said kindly, putting his hand under her chin and tilting her head up so he could see her eyes. His azure eyes met her ice-blue ones, and he smiled at her warmly.
"Hi, s-sir. I'm Rain. Rain Kurosu." she stuttered, looking up at him innocently. Sephiroth nodded and removed his hand, the elevator conveniently stopping and opening its doors. "This way, Rain," said Sephiroth, taking her hand softly and leading her down a few hallways before stopping at a big white door. "He's in there. Good luck," said Sephiroth, ruffling her hair and walking back the way he came.
Rain quickly smoothed down her spiky hair and walked inside timidly, looking at the occupant of the chair in front of a very large desk. "Good morning, Ms. Kurosu," said the blonde man in the chair, smiling compassionately at the bundle of nerves called Rain. "I'm Director Lazard. Please, take a seat."
Rain did as she was told and looked up at the blonde man mutedly, her eyes flashing a little excitedly.
"I've heard so much of you from your brother," said Lazard cheerfully, his bright eyes shining welcomingly. "I've heard you're quite the warrior."
Rain blushed. "My brother told you about me? Oh…"
Lazard chuckled. "Yeah, he sort of brags about you when you're not there with him," he nodded, friendly. "I've got some news for you."
Rain's eyes instantly lit up, reacting to her moods like they always did.
"From what we've heard from Rude, you're a pretty strong fighter. I'm told you're also quite agile and sneaky, aren't you? Yeah, I heard about the cookie incident."
Rain blushed more than before.
"We've decided that we're going to test your skills - which is why we've decided to ask you to become a SOLIDIER."
Rain sat there, paralysed.
"You don't have to, I promise. It's just that your brother thinks you're worth it, and I can tell by looking at you that you've got potential. What do you say? Although to find out what Class you're going to be in will mean that I'm going to have to pit you against some of our other operatives. Sound fair?" asked Lazard, watching Rain as she considered her options.
"Okay. I'll try." she murmured, peering at the floor.
"Good. I'll have Sephiroth bring you to the SOLDIER floor, and you can get your stuff there, okay?"
Rain nodded mutedly.
"Are there any other female SOLDIERs?" she asked softly as Lazard showed her to the door.
"Nope," said Lazard brightly, "You're the only one!"
_____________________________________________________________________
Rude smiled as he read the long and detailed letter from his sister, beaming with pride as he took in the recent events of Rain's life. It had been a month since he had first sent her to the ShinRa building on her own, and by the sound of things, she was thoroughly enjoying her time in SOLDIER.
According to her letter, Rain had been sent on various missions, including raids in Wutai and small battles in the outskirts of Midgar. Most of them, Rude had discovered, had been set at night, and he knew that his sister was more comfortable in the depths of darkness. Rain didn't hate light at all, but she was usually more efficient in the dark. Apparently she had also gotten herself a weapon, which was some medium-weight silver sword engraved with the imprint of each a phoenix and Chocobo feather.
"Hiya, Rude! Whatcha reading?" asked a drunken sort of voice happily, its owner tapping Rude on the shoulder like an idiot.
Rude sighed. "You've been out to the Tavern, haven't you?" he said disappointedly, and he facepalmed. "Yuuuup!" said the redheaded Turk behind him, who promptly walked in front of Rude and without warning, gave him a big, warm bear hug.
"Get. Off. Me." said Rude through clenched teeth, feeling extremely uncomfortable as Reno started to pat his back. "Aww, you like that, huh?" giggled Reno, having already stepped over Rude's fine line of privacy and personal space. "Get your hands off me, you unwashed fool!" growled Rude, shoving Reno away. "Pool? I'm an unwashed pool? I didn't know they could get unwashed," said Reno moronically. He collapsed.
Rude sighed and folded his precious letter into his inner coat pocket, before effortlessly picking up Reno and heading back to the apartment.
_____________________________________________________________________
Rain sat on her bed sadly, twisting the ends of her beautiful hair into miniature ringlets. She sighed.
I miss you, Rude…
Rain put her head in her hands and began to cry, sparkling silver tears slowly streaming down her face.
There was a soft knock at the door but Rain didn't bother to answer it, instead sobbing into her hands and hoping whoever was there would leave.
She heard the door creak open, and some footsteps were heard. The door shut curtly behind the intruder, and although she couldn't see who it was she definitely knew who it was.
"Go away," she sobbed, turning away from Sephiroth as he sat down on the bed, wrapping a comforting arm around the girl's shoulders. Sephiroth had been keeping watch over Rain for the past month - why, she had no idea, but how he always knew when to come and help her out was a mystery to her.
"You miss him, don't you?"
Sephiroth, somehow, already knew about Rain's history, and could probably explain every little detail about it better than her own (two centimetre thick) profile could.
"No," she sniffed, attempting to hold back a fresh wave of tears, and failing miserably. "You're really bad at lying, Rain," said Sephiroth, holding her closely.
"Why are you always so nice to me?" she asked him, letting herself be drawn into Sephiroth's hold. "Is there a reason why I shouldn't be?" he countered, looking at the floor. "Well, you're not this nice to anyone else," she sniffed, and made a sobbing sort of giggle.
"I'm just glad that someone treats me like I'm an actual person," said Sephiroth, for some reason holding her a little tighter. "What do you mean?"
"Every time I walk past someone and say hi, all I get is this wimpy little 'Hello, sir", or a "Sorry I got in your way, sir". People don't even look me in the eye when they speak to me anymore." said Sephiroth, avoiding Rain's gaze as she looked up at him meekly with her bright azure eyes. "At least you talk to me like I'm human."
Rain rubbed a tear away from her eye. "I'm such a kid," she said disappointedly, shaking her head in shame.
Sephiroth suddenly released her and turned her to look at him, a stern look on his face. "Don't you ever, ever say that again! You are not a kid! You're nearly a grown woman and I expect you to act that way! You're an intelligent, beautiful person, and I will not have you talking down to yourself like that! YOU ARE A SOLDIER!"
Silence.
"Sorry, sir," she said quietly, looking down at the floor in embarrassment.
Sephiroth sighed. "I'm sorry. It's just that you're a very skilled person and you've got the potential to go so far, and I don't want you holding yourself back with those sort of remarks, you know what I mean?" he said apologetically, tilting her chin up so he could look deeply into her sapphire eyes.
"It's okay, I get it from Rude all the time," she sighed, and she gave him an uncertain smile.
"Oh - Lazard wanted me to give you this," said Sephiroth suddenly, reaching into his inner coat pocket. He pulled out two envelopes, one black and addressed in silver writing and the other white and written on in black ink.
"Do you want me to go while you read them?" asked Sephiroth, going to stand up, but Rain firmly caught his hand and pulled him back down without even noticing she did it.
She tried to open the letters by ripping them, but they wouldn't budge. "Darn," she muttered, frustrated. Sephiroth laughed, and she looked at him with a rather sharp look.
"These are Materia letters, Rain. You open them with the corresponding materia. Like this one, see?" he chuckled, pulling a little silver ball of something out of his pocket. "That's a…that's a Guard materia, right?" she said unsurely, and Sephiroth nodded. He pointed to the black letter.
"The materia that is used to open the letter also informs you of the importance of the letter. Whoever sent this to you wants you to know that this is an important letter, since they're using Guard," he explained, handing her the silver materia.
"Go on, open it, Rain!"
Rain winced and cast the spell, not wanting to look at the results. Sephiroth tapped her and she opened her eyes, and as promised the black envelope had opened, and she hesitantly pulled out the paper inside.
Dear Rain,
Just a note to inform you that the test is at 3:00 pm Tuesday. Please gather your required equipment (materia, sword, ect.) and wait at the SOLDIER floor entrance for your escort. You will be taken to the training facility (not to be confused with the Training Room on the SOLDIER floor) and we shall determine your rank and ability after these tests.
Have a nice day,
Director Lazard
Rain looked up excitedly at Sephiroth, who smiled supportively at her. "I wonder what rank I'll be!" she cried, and hugged Sephiroth, who looked a little shocked and patted her on the back.
"You can open this letter with any materia, but I'd advise you not to use Fire," said Sephiroth, Rain's attention turning back to her letter. He passed her a Blizzard materia and she cast the spell, no longer afraid of what could happen. As soon as the envelope opened she grabbed the (freezing cold) paper inside, and read its contents, her eyes widening with every word she read.
Hi Rain
How are you?
I got your letter, sorry for the late reply. I've been a bit busy at work. It's good to hear that you're enjoying your work, and I've heard that your test is sometime this week. Good luck! I saw Selena the other day, and she seems pretty happy. Takashi is alright, too.
I've had a word to Lazard and I'm very proud of your progress, so I hope you keep it up. You'll learn a lot in SOLDIER, believe me.
I've left something with a friend of yours and I'm sure he'll give it to you if he thinks you've been good enough.
Take care of yourself, and don't play with Fire materia or run with scissors.
Love, Rude.
Rain laughed at Rude's warning and shook her head, smiling. "That's Rude, alright," she murmured, and she showed it to Sephiroth, who read it in about ten seconds.
"Hmm," said Sephiroth slyly, putting on an innocent face, "I wonder who that SOLDIER he was talking about was? I sure wish I knew what they had for you."
Rain's eyes brightened, once again reacting to her ecstatic emotion. "It's you!" she cried, dramatically pointing a finger at her silver-haired friend.
Sephiroth again reached into his inner pocket and withdrew a medium sized package, and whatever it was, it was protected in a leather case, its handle sticking out. He smirked as he handed it to her and watched her open the sheath, and she gasped.
A beautifully crafted silver dagger engraved with smooth, swirling patterns on the blade lay snugly inside the casing, glinting attractively from inside. Rain slowly pulled the weapon out and held it up in her hands, not noticing Sephiroth's giggle as she examined her new tool with wonder. "It's… it's so beautiful… why would Rude send me this?" she asked out loud to nobody in particular.
Sephiroth too looked at her new "toy", the metal reflecting brilliantly in his mako blue eyes.
"One more thing, Rain," said Sephiroth, for the final time stealing her attention. Again, he reached into his pocket ("Who is he, Mary Poppins?" thought Rain), and he pulled out a pink mobile phone and slid it into her hands before he stood up and went to the door. Rain felt like Christmas had come early.
"You'll get messages from Kunsel, one of our SOLDIER 2nd Classes. He'll keep you up to date with your schedule, and other stuff," said Sephiroth, leaving before Rain could say a word more.
_____________________________________________________________________
It wasn't even daybreak when Rain was up, putting on her usual clothes and brushing her luxurious hair into their neat little spikes. She didn't have a uniform yet, seeing as she wasn't ranked yet (different ranks had different uniforms), so instead she wore her usual leather mini-shorts and her white tank top, and she pulled on her fingerless gloves excitedly and pulled on her Converses enthusiastically.
Today was the day.
Today, she was going to be a SOLDIER.
Today, she was going to be ranked.
A queasy yet excited feeling plagued her but she tried not to notice, instead being as positive as possible and drinking down a really big glass of milk. She rinsed her glass and walked over to her desk, picking up her dagger and strapping it to her belt that sat comfortably around her waist.
True, she had all day, but she wanted to be prepared, no matter how easy or difficult the task was going to be. As far as she knew, no one was up except for the guards, though she probably expected them to be slacking off too. She quietly opened her door and went to step outside, but she noticed a package on her doorstep. She picked it up and ripped the note from it, surprised.
Forgot to give you your materia, read Rain, the handwriting perfect and impeccable. I have no idea who your escort will be, but chances are that it will be me. Here is a Cure, a Blizzard, a Thunder and for some reason, a Firaga. I didn't choose these. I guess your brother didn't tell them to make sure you didn't play with Fire. Let's hope there's no scissors. There's also some other materia that was apparently picked out by Shinra himself just for you. I have no clue of what it does, so be careful. Good luck, I hope you make it to 1st, you certainly have the potential.
Sephiroth.
Rain smiled and looked inside the parcel, where there was another pouch, full of the said materia. She attached this, too, to her belt, and walked out of the corridors, beaming. She walked with a sense of nobility and walked to the main hall of the SOLDIER quarters, and took the lift down past Lazard's floor and into the offices.
Sephiroth had once said that if she wanted to see him, she could visit his office, and she thought that now would be a good time to see him.
Just as she walked out the lift, a tall man with short and stylish red hair stopped her, grabbing her arm and pulling her over to the wall. "Civilians aren't allowed down here," he said in a dangerously soft tone, his cerulean eyes meeting her ice-blue ones. "You should go back up to the Information Desk, lady."
Rain pulled her arm free and snarled. "Don't touch me," she said, the redhead looking a little surprised. "I'm not a civilian, I'm Rain Kurosu, and I'd thank you if you kept your paws off me. I'm doing my test today and I don't want to have to waste my energy on you!"
He laughed, almost cruelly. "I'm sorry, Miss Kurosu," he said, his voice returning to its lethal whisper. "I didn't realise. You're not wearing your uniform yet…" Rain lightened up a little. "Don't worry about it, mister. Hey, do you know where Sephy's office is?"
"Sephy?"
"Oh. I mean, Sephiroth. Do you know where his office is? Please?"
"Down the hall, turn left, third door on the left side."
She went to thank him when a helmeted infantry man walked down the passage to get into the elevator and turned to the man.
"Hey, Genesis, what's a 1st Class like you doing with a street girl?"
Rain's face turned red at the words "Genesis" and "1st Class".
"She's not a street girl, Kunzel. She's Rain Kurosu, and she's having her test today." said Genesis, looking to Rain, who immediately averted her gaze.
"You're Rain? Wow. Sorry. No uniform, so I didn't know…"
The lift came and Kunzel hurried in, closing the door.
"What's wrong?" asked Genesis, looking at the female who was, in turn, looking at the floor. "Nothing, sir. I'll be on my way, sir," said Rain quietly, not allowing herself to look at the man. "Why are you calling me sir? A moment ago, you were telling me to get my paws off you and to back off so you wouldn't have to waste your energy on me." said Genesis, smiling a little.
"I didn't know who you were. I meant no disrespect. My apologies. It won't happen again, sir." said Rain awkwardly, embarrassed.
"Call me Genesis," said the redhead, amused. "Of course you didn't know, you haven't been past the SOLDIER floor, have you?"
"No, si- I mean, Genesis," she said, still gawking at the ground.
"You're pretty for someone in SOLIDER… How old are you?" asked Genesis with mild interest, and he saw the girl sneak a glimpse of him before returning her gaze to the floor.
"I'm seventeen. Eighteen in two weeks, si- Genesis."
"You're still quite young… hey, why are you staring at the floor?"
"I'm ashamed of the way I spoke to you. I don't deserve to look at somebody as powerful as you."
Genesis looked at her a little curiously. "Hmm… powerful, huh? Ha, that's a good one. C'mon, look me in the eye when you talk to me, I don't want to be talking to a drone, you know."
Rain looked up a little until she was looking directly at him like she was before. "Sephy's office, down the hall, the third door on the left," she said quietly, and she went to hurry off, but the redhead caught her arm yet again. "Before you go… it was nice to meet you, Miss Kurosu," said Genesis, before releasing her and letting her run off.
He took his cell phone from his pocket and dialled a number, smiling as the recipient picked up. "Hello, Sephy," he laughed, leaning against the wall. "So she's the experiment, huh?"
_____________________________________________________________________
"Sephy?" said Rain quietly, knocking on the large, silver door that conveniently had "General - Sephiroth" engraved in it. No reply. She timidly opened the door and walked in, turning on the light switch.
"Huh?"
Sephiroth sat at his desk with a pen in his hand, looking over some documents. "Oh, Rain. Sorry, I didn't hear you. Come in." he said softly, putting down his pen. Rain blushed. " Sephy…I didn't know you were here… if you want, I can come back later…"
Sephiroth smiled. "No, it's fine. Take a seat. So, what's on your mind? Are you nervous?" he asked her, gesturing to a chair as she sat down awkwardly in it. Rain shook her head. "Nervous? Nah, I don't think so. I'm just… curious. And I wanted to thank you for dropping off the materia back there. Thanks heaps, I'll be ready for this test with all this stuff with me!"
Sephiroth laughed. "Good, good! You're going to go well, I just know it. But don't be scared of anything in there, okay? It's just a simple test. You'll see." he said rather mysteriously, and Rain took this as an "I can't tell you anything" sentence. She nodded. "Whatcha doing?" she asked, looking at the papers with her sapphire eyes. "Oh, this? Some stuff for Lazard. If I don't finish this soon, he'll kill me," he sighed, shooting a loathing look at the documents.
There was another knock at the door, and an infantryman walked in, looking a little desperate. "General Sephiroth, Lazard would like to see you, sir. That's all, sir," he said very quickly, before rushing back out frantically.
"See what I mean?" said Sephiroth in a bored tone, standing up from his desk.
"General Sephiroth, Lazard would like to see you, sir," he mimicked, shaking his head.
Rain felt a little sorry for the General.
"I'll see you later, then, Sephy," she said optimistically, following him to the door. Before he opened the door, she tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around, and was given a big hug by Rain, who nuzzled him a little. "Thanks, Sephy," she chirruped, before letting go, opening the door, and skipping out.
Sephiroth smiled and shook his head as he turned off the lights and closed the door. "That girl, honestly…"
_____________________________________________________________________
Rain spent most of the day looking around Sector Eight, for once being a little more adventurous and walking around the streets with interest. It wasn't like she hadn't been there before, of course, but as she has spent almost two months stuck inside a building constantly training and learning, the outside world took on a whole new perspective.
She knew quite a lot of the people in Sector Eight, and knew the area like the back of her hand, so there was no possible way of getting lost.
"Oh my god," said a nearby voice dreamily, attracting Rain's attention. A corporate-looking lady walked up to Rain smiling enthusiastically, and Rain raised an eyebrow. "Um, hello there," said Rain, feeling a little awkward. "You just walked out of the ShinRa building! Did you see Sephiroth? Did you? Did you? Huh? Huh? HUH?!" said the lady excitedly, almost jumping out of her skin.
"Yes…" said Rain awkwardly, now very disturbed.
"Rain, c'mon, back to the Training Room with you," said a bored voice, grabbing Rain by the waist and pulling her backwards into a strange sort of hug.
"OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG!!!" squealed the lady, now actually jumping. Sephiroth had appeared right behind Rain and hugged her, and took her hand as they began to walk away. But the lady wanted something from them. Nope, Sephiroth wasn't going anywhere. Not until -
"Hey! I want an autograph!" squealed the lady, running up in front of Sephiroth and waving a piece of paper in front of his face. "Sorry, ma'am," said Sephiroth, walking a little faster, "But I'm rather busy at the moment… perhaps another time?"
The lady looked as if she were about to cry, and her lip wobbled at him sadly. Sephiroth sighed, and pulled a pen from his coat. He signed a circle on the paper and walked off with Rain, leaving the lady to scream and smile and be a total psycho over the circle.
"Sephy! My test isn't for an hour or so!" cried Rain, unable to stop Sephiroth from practically dragging her away. "Yes, but I don't want you out here all day. You could get grabbed." he said a little roughly, successfully pulling her back into the ShinRa building and heading back to the lifts.
"Nah, no one could grab me," said Rain matter-of-factly, looking a little egotistical, "I'm too strong to get kidnapped by some random guy! I'm like a ninja - crazy!" she giggled, and Sephiroth couldn't help but chuckle.
"I don't care," he said, his seriousness returning, "I want you fresh and energized for your test. Stay on the SOLDIER floor, okay? And just in case you even consider wandering off again…"
The lift stopped and the doors opened, and the first thing Rain saw were two guards standing by the front of the lift, and they looked at Rain curiously (and slightly perversely), taking in her appearance.
"These guys will be watching the lifts so you don't go anywhere," he finished, smiling triumphantly. "Between you and me, Sephy," whispered Rain softly, "I think they're doing a better job at watching my ass than the lifts." Sephiroth laughed.
"Hey, Sephy, look! It's that new sword polisher! Quick, get it!" cried Rain suddenly, pointing to their right. Sephiroth looked at her dubiously and Rain tried to run - but she hadn't realised that he hadn't released her arm yet. "Nice try, Rain," smirked Sephiroth, pulling her right up to him, "But it's going to take more than that to make me look away."
"But I don't wanna stay on the SOLDIER floor," whined Rain, "I wanna go down to Sector Eight! I WANNA EXPLORE!"
Sephiroth smiled. "Sorry, Dora, but it looks like you'll have to go explore some other day." Rain rolled her eyes. "Since when was Dora the Explorer a SOLDIER?" she asked, smiling in spite of herself. "Since I told her to stay on the SOLDIER floor. And you will stay on the SOLDIER floor, won't you? I would be very disappointed in you if you didn't."
"But Sephy…"
"No. You're staying on the SOLDIER floor. Come on, it's only an hour. Talk to some of the guys. I'm sure they'd be pleased to talk to you." reasoned Sephiroth, squeezing her hand. "More like pleased to see my ass," murmured Rain, bringing their intertwined hands up to her face and holding them against her cheek.
She whimpered like a puppy and gave him an adorable, if not totally heart-melting puppy-eyes look, nuzzling against their hands. "I'm sorry, but no. Rain, I have to go, I'll see you after your test. Make me and your brother proud. We both have a lot of faith in you." He stroked the side of her face and gave her a peck on the cheek (the guards at the elevator had no idea of what to think about that) and smiled before getting into the lift and going down, leaving Rain standing there, stranded.
"So you call him Sephy, right?"
Rain turned around, scared half to death. "What the -"
A tall, raven-haired SOLDIER with spiky hair and an outgoing, endearing smile was standing right in front of her, and he laughed at her shock. "You're Storm, right?"
"Close. Rain."
The SOLDIER laughed again. "Nice to meet you, Rain. I'm Zack."
She raised an eyebrow, smiling.
"So, 'Zack'… What rank are you?" she asked, blinking innocently. "I'm a 3rd Class," said Zack happily, as if he wouldn't have it any other way. "What are you?"
"I'm a Nothing Class at the moment," admitted Rain, "I'm having my test today." Zack laughed. "Have fun with that," he smirked, and Rain rolled her eyes. "Oh, I'm so scared," she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Oh, dear Zack, won't you save me from the deep depths of my perilous test?"
She put her hands to her head dramatically, as if she were about to faint. "I would, fair lady, but I have an appointment with my life," said Zack, grinning. "Your life? Really? It looks more like you need an appointment with your hairbrush."
They both laughed.
"So, how did a tease like you get into SOLDIER?" asked Zack casually, a little interested. "Me? A tease? Nah… but I got into SOLDIER because of my brother. He's a Turk," explained Rain, and Zack nodded.
"I see."
"What about you, spiky?"
"Me? Just for my spunkiness," said Zack, smiling cheesily. Rain giggled.
"Hey, Rain. It's test time."
Rain turned around - and froze. "Sir…"
Genesis Rhapsodos stood relaxedly behind her, his arms crossed and looking rather disinterested. "Hey, I said you can call me Genesis. None of this 'sir' crap. Oh, hello, Zachary." He said it as if he had only just seen him.
"Hi, Genesis. You know this girl?"
"Mm-hmm." He took Rain's hand and began to lead her away. "We'll be back soon," he said shortly, before dragging Rain away, Zack smiling as she waved.
_______________________________________________________________________________
"In here," said Genesis, ushering Rain into the Training Room. It looked the same as usual - nothing different about it, really. "You do your preliminary test in here. Your results are recorded, and you go to the real test. Got it?"
Rain nodded. Weapons - check. Materia - check. Scared out of her shorts - yeah, check. Genesis went through a few more things and then left the training room, locking the door behind him.
"TEST INITIATING…"
Rain looked around as the area around her began to shift, change. Through the glass windows of the training room, she saw Sephiroth nod before everything altered.
"Wha-?"
The room suddenly transformed into what looked like Sector Eight, except it was night and there wasn't a soul around. Rain stepped backwards cautiously, drawing her sword from her back. She was ready.
ROAR.
She immediately whipped around and automatically fell into her fighting stance - one arm at her side, her sword arm drawn back, and her legs spread apart, one forward and one back. Her torso was leant back a little. Perfect.
A big, black creature about the size of a lion stepped forward, its slim tail in the air and its spiky end poised high. It had paws the side of a wolf's, and shining ebony talons. It had rough fur, and a fully-fanged mouth that snarled at Rain. It looked like some sort of mutant lion-wolf. Strange.
Rain swallowed her fear and leapt high into the air before finding herself above the creature - and she plunged her blade right into its spine, a shriek emitted from the beast.
Another came at her from behind and it suffered the same fate, and the third of its kind promptly had its head cut off.
She waited a minute but nothing else came for her, so she advanced into LOVELESS Avenue, a little shaken but still fine. Not a scratch.
The moment she set foot in the vicinity, two more of the lion hybrids flung themselves at her, and they were slain in a flash of sliver. She kept walking and looked around. And almost fainted.
A huge, black beast pawed the ground, its large amber eyes studying her angrily. It had gigantic incisors and a massive body. Its paws were encased in strange, purple flames, and a huge silver collar was strapped to its neck, a long sliver chain hanging broken on its clip.
"Looks like Cerberus lost its kid," murmured Rain, getting into her stance. Without warning, the dog-like beast lunged at her and swiped at her with its enormous paws, Rain only just escaping its strike as she jumped back. She skidded to a stop and leant forward, her body low and her legs in an awkward position, spread apart so she could lower her chest.
She put her hand into the pouch fastened to her belt and drew out the dagger her brother had given her and held it between her teeth before pulling out a few kunai and placing one between each finger as quick as lightning. She was skilled with shiny metal objects, especially in the kitchen - Rude was quite fond of her cooking.
Her sword arm drawn back and her other hand drawn across her chest, she bent her legs and pushed back before releasing and springing into the air, hurling at the monster. It roared and pounced at her, the two of them directed at each other. She freed the hand across her torso and sent several kunai at the brute, most of them piercing its chest. It fell midair and plummeted to the ground, collapsing on its belly - harmed, but not nearly defeated.
Still airborne, Rain jumped onto its back and slashed at it with her sword, her dagger still clenched in her jaws. Purple blood oozed from the creature's wounds, and it suddenly stood up, as if the pain had alerted it. Rain back flipped into the air and went to get off it, but it made a sharp turn around and slashed at her with its claws. She was sent crashing into a nearby building, destroying a wall.
She hauled herself to her feet and wiped blood from her lips, not realizing that her arms had been slashed - she was very pain tolerant. And she was pumped. She regained her posture and looked determinedly at the beast. At least she'd be able to tell Zack that she'd taught a puppy a lesson.
_______________________________________________________________________________
"That's amazing," said Zack as he watched Rain brawl with the beast, looking somewhat impressed. "I didn't think she'd survive the wall."
"I didn't think she'd survive talking to you," joked Genesis, his eyes also on the battling girl. He didn't know Zack very well at all, but if he was Angeal's friend, then there were no complaints from him. Angeal and Sephiroth, his only two friends, looked in awe at Rain, who had no idea that they were watching her fight. "I told you she was good," said Sephiroth, looking to Angeal. He nodded.
Sephiroth kept his eyes on her body - every time she moved, every time she leaped - there was a certain flexibility and grace about her that impressed him. She could arch her back and bend backwards as if it were as easy as walking - she was as agile as a cat. And she looked good when she did it, too.
"She's bleeding, but she won't stop to cure herself," said Zack, a little confused. "Doesn't she know that she's hurt?"
"She's a little too concerned with the monster to bother about herself," said Angeal, watching as she slashed at the beast's throat.
"That's exactly like her, too - too worried about everyone else to care about herself."
All heads turned to Sephiroth. "She's very concerned about others - she puts herself last in everything. If you were starving and she was too, and there was food - she'd let herself starve and give you the food. It's just how she is."
They continued to watch her slowly dispatch the fiend, until at long last, it died, falling with a highly audible thump, defeated.
"She shaved two minutes off your record, Genesis," smirked Sephiroth smugly, the redhead turning away. "She's good, but she'll never beat me," he said calmly, brushing a microscopic bit of lint from his coat.
"Well, let's send you in and find out," said a recognizable voice, Lazard himself walking into the control room. He went to push one of the buttons on the keyboard in front of the windows but Sephiroth held him back.
"I want to see how she'll react to me," he said tonelessly, pressing a different button. He walked towards the door and before he left for the Training Room he said, "I want to see how she'd kill me."
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Rain inhaled and looked around, the slain beast in front of her slowly fading away. She looked down at herself and gasped - there was blood trickling all over her, the crimson liquid seeping from her wounds. The moment she suddenly realized her damage, the pain set in, and before she felt it any more she cast Cure on herself, her wounds instantly healing and the blood disappearing. She sighed in releif.
The sound of footsteps behind her grabbed her attention and she swivelled around, the sword in her hand glinting sliver in the moonlight that flooded the virtual world she was in. "Sephy?"
The silver-haired man stepped out from the shadows and looked at her coldly, no emotion in his eyes. "Sephy, I'm okay! Is that why you're here? Don't worry, I'm just doing my test," she said, smiling at him. He did not return the gesture. Instead, he drew his sword and walked towards her, Rain stepping back as he advanced.
"Whoa, Sephy - put that thing down, you could hurt me - seriously, stop it, you're freaking me out. Sephy, stop - HEY!"
Sephiroth had lunged at her and had tried to slice her with Masamune, Rain narrowly avoiding it as she instinctively ducked.
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" she squealed, rolling from under his blade. He made no reply and went to hack at her again, this time getting her in the arm. Rain winced as the sting from his cut set in, blood leaking from a slim line on her shoulder. "Sephy, stop it!" she yelled, casting Cure on herself again. He paid her no attention and attacked her again, but this time she was quick enough to block it with her own sword.
Is this the test? she thought as she blocked another attempt and pulled a few more kunai from her pouch. Do I have to… kill him?
She saw an opportunity to strike and took it, making a small, thin slice on his neck. The wound's location had been intentional - maybe it would stop him for a moment, make him think clearly.
"Sephy, I'm not going to fight you," she vowed, watching as Sephiroth put his hand to his neck and then looked at it, blood on the tips of his fingers. "What if you have no choice?" said Sephiroth, licking his own blood from his fingertips. She blinked. "I don't care, I'm not going to fight you."
"Too bad. If you don't fight me, I'll kill you."
She narrowed her gaze. "Fine," she said uncertainly, trying to look a little tough. "I'll give you what you want." She sprung forward at him, grabbing some kunai, and threw a few of them, but Sephiroth's skilled hand warded them off with a flick of his wrist, Masamune deflecting them and hurling them back at her. She didn't notice them slash against her skin.
Rain glared at him and dashed forward at him and they clashed swords, Rain strong enough to stand her ground as they both pushed on each other. "Move!" she cried, and with a fresh burst of power she pushed him away.
"You're not very strong at all," commented Sephiroth, the moonlight reflecting off his silver hair. "You're no better than a 5th Class."
"If I'm not strong, then you mustn't have taught me very well at all," she countered, and she got into her fighting stance. "Come and get me, Sephy."
Without delay he shot himself at her and she back flipped in the air. She landed on his back and they both fell. Rain pinned him down beneath her and grabbed a few more kunai, and before he could think to move she threw them into the air, and five of them fell on the edges of his coat, securely holding him down. She grabbed his head and held it down, burying his face into the concrete. She grabbed the dagger that hadn't left her jaws and held it above his skull, ready to slay him.
A minute passed and she hadn't moved a muscle. Her blue eyes looked down at Sephiroth and she shook her head.
"Kill me," hissed Sephiroth, his face still pressed against the cold ground.
He tensed.
"No," she said quietly, slowly lowering her weapon. "No. I won't."
"Be a SOLDIER and kill me," he snarled, wiggling under her.
She put her dagger into her pouch and stood up, the man still pinned under the little knives.
"If I'm going to kill you," said Rain, picking up her sword, "Then I want to kill the real you, not a fake."
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"Impressive," said a congratulatory voice, and Rain turned around. She gasped and ran up to Sephiroth, literally glomping him. "Sephy!" she cheered, and this time she and the real Sephiroth fell to the floor in a pool of silver hair. The moment they fell, she tensed. She put all of her weight (which honestly wasn't that much) onto him and buried her face into his neck, as if feeling for something. Whatever she was looking for, she found, because she raised an eyebrow at him and cocked her head to the side like a puppy. And then she glomped him. Again.
He laughed. "Hey, calm down. I swear it's me this time," he smiled, sitting up. She was hugging him so tightly that if he wasn't as strong as he was, she would have cracked one of his ribs.
They took a moment to recuperate and then they both stood up, laughing.
"But how did you know it wasn't me?" asked Sephiroth, a little intrigued. "Well, for one thing, you wield Masamune on your right hand, and the clone was on the left. Secondly, when I fell on the fake you I put my head to his back and listened to its heartbeat. Your heart skips twice every five beats. This one didn't skip at all. And, um…"
"Yes?" asked Sephiroth, raising her chin so he could see her better. It was a habit of his to lift her head, and a habit of hers to lower it when embarrassed. It worked in sync.
"Your cologne… it smells like mint and fresh snow. Your clone had no scent. You never leave your room without wearing that cologne… And I can smell it on you right now…"
Sephiroth looked really surprised. "You know all of that? That's how you identified that it wasn't really me? Then why didn't you kill it?"
She looked up at him innocently.
"Didn't you hear me? If I'm going to kill you, then I want it to be the real you. Because I don't want anything to do with a fake. I like the real you better."
He looked at her thoughtfully.
"You're a very smart woman," he told her, stroking the side of her face. She nuzzled against his hand and giggled.
"Hey, Genesis. Turn it off - I think she's passed."
Rain moved from Sephiroth's hand and squeaked. "G-Genesis? He's here t-too?" she whispered, immediately hiding behind her mentor.
"No. But he was watching you fight, as I was. Zack, Angeal and Lazard saw you too."
She paled.
"Don't worry. I told them to turn off the monitoring system as soon as you killed the fake, or in this case, as soon as you realized that it wasn't me. Don't worry, they didn't see you glomp me."
She sighed. Sector Eight began to fade away and soon the Training Room returned, Rain blushing as she saw Zack wave to her through the glass. Sephiroth took her hand and led her out of the Training Room and back to the SOLDIER floor, Zack, Angeal, Genesis and Lazard emerging from the monitoring room.
"Very, very impressive!" said Lazard, his eyes gleaming with happiness. "The way you defeated the Behemoths was simply amazing. And the way you pinned down the clone with your kunai - the clone may have only been one eighth his strength, but honestly… you're definitely 1st Class material!"
"You're Rain, aren't you?" said Angeal, stepping forward and holding out his hand to her. She took it and shook his hand, beaming. "Yes, Sephiroth has told us a lot about you…" Her cheeks flushed red and she sort of elbowed Sephiroth softly in the guts, forging a bit of a fake smile. Angeal stepped back and turned around, excusing himself and walking off.
Genesis smirked at Rain. "Ever heard of LOVELESS?" he asked her, his hands in his coat pocket. "If it's the word that describes you, then yes, I think I have," she joked, putting on her best I'm-so-innocent-you-can't-touch-this look. Genesis smiled cockily at her. "I think you and I will be able to change that," he said, and before Rain could retort he strode off in the same direction that Angeal did, leaving Zack, Sephiroth and Rain looking a little creeped out.
"He's kidding," said Sephiroth, ruffling Rain's hair. "He's just embarrassed because you finished your prelims faster than he did. He doesn't like to be beaten."
He rubbed her head and then left Zack and Rain alone.
"What is it with 1st Classes and lonering us?" said Zack, his hands in his pockets and leaning against the wall casually. "I think they reckon they're too cool for us," replied Rain, "But I think we're better than them. We're younger and sexier."
Zack laughed. "True. Besides, without us, who would make them look so good?" he sniggered, his cerulean eyes gleaming at the female. "Yeah, they're nothing without us. They're just not that good without their awesome underlings!"
"So, Rain…"
She nodded. "Yeah?"
"You doing anything on Saturday? I've got a day off, so if you want, maybe we can, you know… go exercise in the T Room. You know…"
Rain looked stunned. "Are you asking me out?"
"If you call training a date, then, yes."
"You barely even know me," she reasoned, giving him a dubious look.
"Yeah, but as you can see, you're the only girl in this place… and you're interesting. I want to get to know you a little more."
"Or in other words, you want to get to know me so you can show all your pals that you scored the only girl in the building." she laughed, looking curious. "Well, yes, if you put it that way. You wanna?" asked Zack, giving her puppy eyes.
"Oh, alright, then. The T Room on Saturday. What time?"
"Hm… how does midday sound?" he smiled, showing off his bleach-white teeth.
"Sounds good. I'll see you later, then." said Rain, winking. They both went to walk away, but Rain grabbed Zack's hand and he turned around, puzzled. She gave him a small hug and then walked off, feeling pretty smug as she left Zack standing there, blushing.
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"You've got half an hour until your test, Rain. Stop worrying, you're sort of scaring me."
Rain ignored Kunzel's advice as she paced up and down the coffee room, too anxious to even touch her piping hot cappuccino. "I'm not worrying," she objected, "I'm just thinking. What if they pull another Sephy on me? Or what if it's some other clone? Or another Behemoth? Or something bigger?"
Kunzel laughed. "That's what you're worried about? Relax, girl. You'll be fine, I swear. It's just a short test. Nothing that'll jump out of your closet and kill you, I guarantee it."
"I doubt Behemoths jump out of closets."
"You know what I mean. You'll be fine. Stop fretting. Sephiroth wouldn't have recommended you for your test this soon if he thought you'd get seriously hurt. Potential SOLDIERs usually wait a year until doing their test. You're doing it after only three months. He must think you're really special." assured Kunzel, face palming as she continued to walk back and forth. "Seriously, Rain. You're making me dizzy. Stop it."
She stopped. "You're right, I guess," she mused, walking over to her half-cooled drink and sipping it. "I don't think Sephy would do this if he thought I was too immature. You're right. I'll probably get out of this just fine. Thanks, Kunzy."
He laughed. "Kunzy, is it? Ha, that's a nice one. You can call me that." he said approvingly, and she smiled. "Anyway, how long did it take you to finish your prelims?"
"Eleven minutes, fifteen seconds."
Kunzel almost choked on his latte. "You're joking," he spluttered, grabbing a napkin and wiping his mouth.
"Why would I joke about that?"
"You… you beat Genesis' record by two minutes? That's impossible! Even Angeal can't finish it that quickly, and he's one of the elite!"
"I beat Genesis' record? Really? Wow… I didn't think I could do that."
"Neither did anyone else."
She smiled at Kunzel.
"I'm gonna go back to my room for a while until my test is ready. Need anything before I go?"
"No, I'm fine, thanks. Good luck, Rain. We'll all be here with our fingers crossed for you!"
She gave him a spirited hi-five and walked out of the coffee room, feeling elated. When she'd first arrived, she thought she'd be an outcast. But everyone here seemed to like her, always happy to talk or play-fight. It was people like Kunzel and Zack that made things better - they always had smiles on their faces and were mostly optimistic. And it rubbed off on everyone else.
She walked back to her room and opened the door, going over to the first thing she'd seen - her bed. She pounced on it and lay there, not caring what she looked like. She sighed and lay on her stomach, burying her face into her pillow.
"Oh, hello to you, too, Rain."
Rain looked up and sat up. And squealed.
"Rude!" she exclaimed, getting up and tackling her brother. He didn't fall. He smiled and hugged her, his warmth infecting her.
"How are you? Are you alright? Your test is today, right? Are they treating you nicely? Are you eating enough? You look thin! Made any friends? Sleeping well? Have you been brushing your teeth properly? Is -"
She cupped her hand over his mouth and laughed. "Rude, I'm fine! Honestly. You sound like you should be my mum! My test is in about ten minutes. What are you doing here?"
He spoke from under hand but it was muffled, so she removed her hand.
"I wanted to see you before you finished your test and became a real SOLDIER," he explained, hugging her.
"As opposed… to a chocolate SOLDIER?"
"It's just so good to see you! Come on, test time."
He lead her out of her room and past a few hallways until they came to Lazard's office, and Rude opened the door. Lazard sat at his desk, smiling as usual, and he gestured to the seats.
"Okay, then. Rain, Rain, Rain… oh, here's your file… let's see now… just a few questions before your big test…"
Rain nodded excitedly. "Okay, Rain - any allergies?" asked Lazard, a pen ready in his hand.
"Nope."
Lazard smiled. "Good. Okay, now, which is your preferred Materia?"
"Fire."
"Good, good, yes - one more thing - out of a Chocobo and a dragoon, which would be your ideal pet?"
"A black Chocobo would be it."
"Thanks, Rain, that's all I need… now, say goodbye to your brother, you have to go now." advised Lazard, and he sent the papers through a fax machine.
Rain stood up and hugged her brother, who squeezed her back and ruffled her hair. "Now go on and make me proud!" he encouraged, leading her to the door. A SOLDIER infantryman stood outside the door and took Rain's hand and began to lead her away, Rain catching one last glimpse of her sibling as she waved him goodbye. As they left, she mused. What Rain wanted to know was - why did everyone lead her by the hand?!
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"So, um, mister infantryman - where are you taking me?" asked Rain guilelessly, sliding her hand from the man's and rubbing it.
"To your doom!" said a snickering voice, and Rain raised an eyebrow.
"Zack?"
The infantryman laughed. "No, I already told you - I am your doom!"
"Doom is mood backwards. And you are not my mood, Zack."
"No, but I can get you in the mood."
The so-called 'infantryman' removed his helmet and shiny black hair spilled out in neat spikes, the youth smiling smugly.
"That, my friend, I'm sure you can't."
But she glomped him anyway.
He, however, didn't fall.
"Here, I'll give you a piggyback," offered Zack, and he effortlessly hoisted the girl onto his back, holding her legs with his arms.
"Oh, wow, you're a Chocobo too!"
"Yes, I am, ma'am. Next stop, the test! I mean, err… kweh, kweh, kweh!"
He put his helmet back on and blushed beneath it as he heard her giggles while they ran, not caring about the interesting looks they both got. Yes, it was decided - he liked her.
They sprinted down several hallways and down several flights of stairs until they came to a long, white hallway, and a shiny black door was at the far end.
"And we have arrived. Kweh, kweh, kweh, ma'am."
She giggled. "Why thank you, my good Chocobo. If Chocobucks were a currency, I'd give you a million of them."
"Chocobucks may not exist, kweh, but I'm sure a huge glomp would suffice…"
She granted his request.
"Now go down that hallway and become… dun, dun, dun… a… SOLDIER of doom!"
"Yes, I shall prevail, and, um, become your doom!"
"Go on, get. You're useless to my moves now… when you're a real SOLDIER, you'll be so obsessed and infatuated with me…"
She laughed at him.
"I think I'll still be impervious to your 'moves' no matter how strong I get, Zack. I'll see you later, 'kay?"
They hugged and she walked up the hallway, taking her final steps as an ordinary girl. An ordinary woman. An ordinary human.
He smiled as he watched her leave - she was going to be a one-in-a-million girl.
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Sephiroth looked down at the papers just sent through the fax. Ah, the fax - such an old yet useful method of transferring information. At least then you knew that you didn't send it to the wrong email address. He scanned them carefully and passed them to Hojo, who did the same and pulled a few vials of something out of the Fusion Synthesis Instilment device. The Fusion Synthesis was where all the transfusions of mako and Jenova cells were kept, ready for their instilment into the a SOLDIER's body.
"She's rather agile, and likes Fire materia. You think you can help her out, Hojo?" asked Sephiroth, peering curiously at the vials.
"I have exactly what she needs right here. They'll be injected into her as soon as she arrives. Hey, wait, is that her?"
Rain had just walked into the lab, looking nervous and quite terrified. Labs had a way of doing that to her - she didn't like their white sterility. It was… creepy. Sephiroth had made himself scarce just before she'd come in, the usually proud SOLDIER hiding behind a box.
"Hello?" squeaked Rain nervously, looking around. There were big machines everywhere, some with test tubes in them and even some with people in them. She was scared.
"Rain, isn't it? Welcome," greeted Hojo, stepping out of the shadows of the labs. Rain almost jumped out of her skin. Hojo laughed. "It's okay, I'm not a Behemoth. I'm Professor Hojo, and I shall be initiating your test."
Rain blinked wearily. "Oh, right. Mr. Hobo. I mean, Mr. Hojo."
He snickered. "Now come this way, Rain - see that big glass enclosure? That's where I need you to go, so if you would, please…"
Rain shuddered and stepped into it, freaked out. The moment she stepped in, glass doors shut behind her and she turned around immediately, pressing her hands to the glass. Hojo ignored her as she banged on the glass doors and went over to a switchboard, and a strange pink gas filled Rain's enclosure. It was only just breathable but it was extremely murky and Rain couldn't see a thing. She struggled to breathe and inhaled a lot of the pink air, and it somehow slowed her down. She could no longer thump the glassy walls, and her arms became heavy. It was like breathing in a strange, intoxicating drug.
A moment later, the pink air suddenly vanished, and the doors opened. Rain staggered out and collapsed, not unconscious but very inebriated by the pinkness. Hojo rushed to her side and picked her up, carrying her over to a chair. He sat her down and did not falter as he took one of his vials and pushed a syringe into it, filling it with a shimmering blue substance. She whimpered as it was slowly injected into her, her veins now filled with the strange matter.
He went to another vial began to take another syringe, but he looked at the label and scowled. "Darn it," he muttered, "Out of Jenova cells again. Without them, she'll never make it, not with all this mako in her."
"May I be of some assistance?" asked a mellifluous voice, tapping the Professor on the shoulder. "I believe I have the answer to your dilemma, Hojo."
"Sephiroth…?What do you mean? I'm not getting in any more cells for a week. She won't survive an hour without them. Too much mako."
"Take a transplant of my blood and separate the cells. I'm sure that my 'donation' will help her live another day."
Hojo looked surprised. "A donation from you, huh? It's worth a shot. Here, give me a moment…"
The Professor took a fresh syringe and uncapped it while Sephiroth removed his jacket and bared his arm. Hojo dabbed an antibacterial wipe onto his arm and prepared to take his sample. He inserted the needle into the 1st Class' arm, Sephiroth not even flinching. As soon as the needle was full, Hojo removed it, and put a bandaid on Sephiroth, who promptly removed it when Hojo turned away.
Hojo went over to another of his contraptions and injected the blood into it, and a moment later two trays of cells came out from it - one was Sephiroth's regular, mako-contaminated cells, and the other tray just looked like silver blood.
He took the silvery Jenova cells and filled another needle with it, and introduced it to Rain's arm. She groaned, sleepily as he put a bandaid onto her.
He dabbed her forehead with a cloth and smiled. "There. All five drives should be increased," he told Sephiroth, who looked down at Rain distantly.
"All of her drives, replenished?"
"Not only replenished, but heightened. Her energy, strength, magic and senses are now all highly sensitive."
"You said there were five drives."
"Didn't you say something about her being extremely naïve?"
"Yeah?"
"I've fine-tuned her desire drive. If it works, she'll soon be in a situation where she won't be very naïve anymore."
"I don't think it'll help - she's as clean as the Virgin Mary herself. She's totally unaware of the dangers surrounding her body. She's as innocent as they come, but her body may as well have 'come and get it' written all over it."
"We'll see."
Sephiroth looked at him dubiously.
"Take her up to her room," instructed Hojo, "She'll probably sleep for a week or so until her body gets used to the mako. Don't let her get up, whatever you do. I'll be back to check on her in a few days."
"What about the side effects?"
"Her body might hurt a bit. You have to realize that the mako is like a booster for puberty. It develops your body at a very fast rate, and if she's undeveloped, then she'll probably just have a few contractions in the legs and her chest. Nothing to worry about."
Sephiroth picked up the somnolent female and headed straight to her room, opening the door and slipping her between the crisp, silken sheets.
He went to turn away when he heard her murmur his name.
"S-Sephy?"
He went over to her bedside and knelt. "Yeah?"
"D-Don't leave me… I-It hurts…"
"What hurts?"
"My whole body… it aches… please don't go, Sephy…"
Sephiroth sat beside her.
"I'm not going anywhere. C'mon, get some sleep. You'll feel better tomorrow."
He took her hand and squeezed it softly, whispering softly to her until she fell asleep.
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