Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or settings. If I did, I would have the money to deal with being sued. As Square Enix owns them, I'm apparently broke.

Notes: This is the first fanfiction I've ever written. I plan to write this in a serial/ episodic fashion. It takes place approximately six years prior to Final Fantasy VII. There may be times the characters are "out of character."


The Secretary

Pilot Episode: Hello

He tapped his pen on his desk. His new secretary was late.

A brown haired girl stuck her head in the door. "Hello, Mr.—"

He stopped moving his hand. "You are 10.6 seconds late. For your sake, I would not do it again." His piercing jade eyes tried to stare his new secretary down.

Rather than tremble, faint, or apologize, the secretary stared her boss in the eye. She smirked as she moved into the office. "Actually, I'm early… Your watch must be fast." She set a briefcase down beside a small chair.

It took all of his concentration to keep his mouth from dropping. She had questioned—no, challenged—what he said! Whose idea was it to get me a secretary? I'll need to remember to maim them.

Her amber irises scanned the office. It was minimalist. Books with titles like Special peace keeping law, Materia production and its military uses, and Ranks and extended use of Mako weaponry sat on the bookshelf behind the silver-haired man. Workaholic ass. The secretary gave her new boss the fakest smile in the history of Midgar.

There was a knock at the office. She glided to the door. Opening the door, she stuck her head out. "Yes, how may I help you… No, Mr. Sephiroth cannot today… Well, I'm sorry he can't… I suggest you call and make an appointment…" She seemed to be annoyed by the intruder. "… Wait one moment please."

She reentered the office ignoring her superior. She walked to her briefcase. She kneeled and opened it. Sephiroth could not see what she was doing. "Miss…"

"Jessie." She supplied absently.

"Jessie… What are you doing?" He raised an eyebrow. Not that she was looking at him.

She stood up, revealing a sniper rifle. "Excuse me." She walked outside, and closed the door. It was not long before Sephiroth heard the gun fired. Jessie walked back in, sat on his desk, and called the custodial staff.

"… You're insane, aren't you?"

"Perhaps," she smiled. "I was told to make your job 'comfortable.' Besides, I like flashy stuff. Computers, bombs that sort of thing."

He eyed his precious sword leaning near the door. Sephiroth made a mental note to keep masamume closer.

Getting up, Jessie went outside. She returned with a stack of folders. "These are the new SOLDIER candidates." Dropping them on the desk, she continued, "They need to be reviewed, and separated into approved and unapproved candidates."

He looked at the foot of paperwork. "Couldn't you do this?"

She tilted her head. "Nope. Wouldn't know what to look for…" She began to disassemble her rifle. "Just think of it this way: bureaucracy is the prize for winning a war."

Sephiroth let out a groan. Forget the maiming. Whoever is responsible for her deserves nothing short of a brutal death. The phone began to ring. Sephiroth reached his hand out, only to find nothing there.

"Mr. Sephiroth's office. Jessie speaking. How may I help you?" She made a series of affirmative noises to the caller. Eventually, the brunette placed the phone upon her chest. "It's larda—Palmer. He wants to know if you would like tea tomorrow. "

"Tea?"

"Yeah, somethin' 'bout SOLDIERs in space…"

"Uh… Tell him I'm busy."

Jessie returned the receiver to her ear and relayed the lie. After a few minutes, she replaced the phone. "You really should get started on those files." She picked up her briefcase and left.

After the door closed, Sephiroth breathed a sigh of relief. He strode over to masamune. Fingering it through leather gloves he possessively moved it to his desk. He picked up the first application and began to read about someone named "Strife." What kind of a name is "Cloud!"


Like it? Believe I need medication? No opinion? Please review and thank you for taking time for this bit of fluff.

Before you ask why Jessie (who is 12-16 at this point) would have a fulltime job, I'm of the opinion there is no public education system in Gaia (the world of FF7). This would explain Cloud leaving home at 14 to join SOLDIER and Barrett worrying about money for "Marlene's schoolin'."