A/N: This is going to be a three-shot. Lol, hopefully it will be long. I had this idea of taking a break from writing, but well, things never happen the way you plan them too.
This story is a real AU. Hope you like it!!!
Royal Fraud
Tifa ran down the hallway with a huge tray in her hands. She was delivering breakfast to the princess before having to go back down to the kitchen and prepare more food for the banquet at the end of the day. She grimaced as she remembered her boss's look this morning. The woman had looked ready to kill. Everyone else in the kitchen was doing their work, but tifa was doing two times the normal work. Tifa still got yelled at for every mistake that went on in that kitchen. It didn't matter that she was personally preparing the princess's meals, or that she was rushing to complete everything. She had just smiled, like usual, and took the criticism with closed ears.
After all the arguments, she had left and was running to the princess's bedroom. She sighed and lightly knocked on the door. The princess came up and opened it hesitantly. Her brown hair was rumpled and her green eyes were glowing with happiness. Tifa bowed slightly and carried the tray in. she saw a man with blonde hair on the bed. Tifa bowed again and left.
"Tifa?" the princess asked.
"Yes, Princess Aerith," Tifa said gently. Aerith blushed a little.
"Please do not tell anyone," she said. Tifa nodded.
"You have my word, Princess," she said. Aerith nodded and closed the door. Tifa made her way back down to the kitchen.
"It's not fair!" one of the chefs proclaimed when he was working on his sandwiches. "The queen was the only one who could stop this man from corrupting everything! Now, the true princess is serving that man's daughter!"
"Well, we can't do anything about it," a scullery maid said. "The queen left us instructions to keep the true princess safe. Until her mother comes back, that's all we can do."
"Still ain't fair! She's the one who should be getting our adoration!" the chef shouted. One of the others pulled a knife out of his apron and shot it at the billboard in the back.
"We can't afford to lose her, so shut it!" he warned. "She's all that we have left from that family. Besides, the princess is fucking the captain of the guard!"
"She has every right to," said one of the castle gossips. "He sneaks into her room every night. They love each other."
"He loves her power," the head chef said. She tied her red hair back. Her golden eyes glowed with contempt. "If he knew who he truly was, he wouldn't be doing that."
"Well, he doesn't," one of the soups chefs said. He was sharpening his knives and smiling fondly at them. "He doesn't know because his parents wouldn't want him knowing. He's not the one destined for the real power anyway. His uncle handed him that rank as captain of the guard."
"I wish Angeal were here," one of the female chefs sighed. "He was always protecting her highness, but he was always here to help."
"He's coming back soon," the boss chef said. "He and Sephiroth are coming back soon."
"Really?" the gossip asked. The boss nodded. She smiled and threw a knife over her shoulder. It hit dead center of the throwing block. She smiled and got back to work.
Tifa came running down into the kitchen. She gasped for air as all the kitchen staff huddled around her.
"I saw a huge limo," she said. "I saw a man with waist long black hair get out and another with longer silver hair… they were both protecting someone else. The guy who got out last had black hair and blue eyes. They all got into a protective formation and another guy came out. He had red hair and green eyes." Everyone shifted their heads to the head chef.
"Angeal and Sephiroth have come home," she said. "So has Reno." She grinned and brought her two knives in their sheaths. She grinned wider as she looked at Tifa. "You are going to be in for a show." She motioned for all the cooks to start cooking. Each of them nodded and turned on all the fires. Everyone was cooking at double of what they usually did.
"What are you talking about, Kiara?" Tifa asked her. Kiara grinned at her and looked her straight in the eye.
"The moment that we all have been waiting for is upon us," she said. "We now have all the pieces in the same castle. It's time for you to fulfill your destiny." Tifa shook her head and went over to her cooking station. She pulled her hair back and put a bandana on. She started preparing appetizers.
Sephiroth stood in front of the palace that he had once called home. His little sister was somewhere in those walls. She would need his help, again. He sighed. The courtyard was surrounded by the castle from three sides. Four towers stood in the four cardinal directions. The two in the front were by the long gate and stood as a weapon of lookout for invasion. The two in the back were blocked with the castle. Sephiroth grimaced as he noticed the amber color that now graced the outside of the castle.
"I hate this place," he said. Angeal nodded. Zack looked at the both of them in confusion. Reno spit out of his mouth and just sneered.
"It's like being in a nightmare," he said. Sephiroth nodded. Angeal smiled cruelly.
"At least we can find the king and the queen this time," he said. Sephiroth nodded.
"I have to find my sister," he said. Reno nodded. Angeal gave a confirming nod of his head. Zack just scratched his head.
"Who's going to be the prince?" he asked. Sephiroth and Angeal looked directly at reno. Reno froze and shook his head wildly.
"The staff will recognize me in a heartbeat," he said frantically.
"They will keep their mouths shut," Angeal said. "Besides, we are the ones who need to be covert around the castle. And the real prince can't be discovered. Or else, it will be all of our heads." Zack nodded. Angeal glared at him. Zack glanced up and found himself staring into the brownest eyes he had ever seen. He stopped in mid-stride just to keep looking at them. Then, he saw the rest of her. She had long dark brown hair. She had a slim figure that was covered in cooking gear. She looked uncertain as she met his eyes, and when she saw Sephiroth, she fled. Zack turned and saw Sephiroth looking in the girl's direction. His gaze was intense.
"She's still here," he murmured. His gaze became tender as he set eyes on his long lost sister.
"Don't get sentimental on me now," Angeal said. Sephiroth nodded solemnly. He would corner her later, and tell her everything.
They went into the great hall and were escorted by one of many butlers to the throne room. There were balconies from the second floor surrounding the whole room. The throne room was at the center of the vast castle. The four original thrones were still there, for they couldn't be pulled away from the spots that the original four rulers had placed them. But, they were treated as relics now, and a wall was built around them. a lone throne stood in the center of the room. Sephiroth glared. It had not been like this fifteen years ago. Things had changed a lot. He couldn't believe how much. Sephiroth sighed silently.
The 'king' came up to them. He had graying hair and black eyes. His eyes widened when he saw Sephiroth and Angeal. Angeal nodded to him and bowed. Sephiroth bowed coldly. Zack bowed gracefully. Reno came up and offered him his hand. The king took the hand and shook it profusely. Zack started examining the surroundings. Sephiroth took in the secret door behind the throne. Angeal took in the two main passage ways, and the one that was behind them. He looked at Sephiroth, who just nodded.
"May I see your kitchen?" Sephiroth asked. The king nodded. Sephiroth dragged Zack with him to the kitchens.
They got down there and all the chefs were working. They were doing double time, actually. Sephiroth grinned as he saw Kiara barking out orders.
"Sam, get that fish going! Alex, get your head out of the clouds and do those salads! Tammy, get out of the scullery closet and become an assistant! Jack, stop groping yourself and get back to helping Tammy!" Kiara barked like the general that she proclaimed not to be. Everyone froze when they saw Sephiroth and Zack enter the kitchen. Tifa, who was in the way back, froze and dropped her dish. She wiped her hands on her apron and came to the front. She looked at Sephiroth for a long time and just stood there.
"Sephie… you took a long time getting here," she said. Sephiroth softened and brought her into his embrace. She cried into his shoulder.
"All right! Maxwell, cover Tifa's station! Everyone get back to work!" Kiara yelled. She looked directly at Zack. "You cut vegetables well?"
"Sephiroth said I got potential," he said. Kiara nodded and handed him a knife. She started shoving vegetables his way.
"A centimeter apart, do you hear me? Anymore or less than that, I'm going to hang you," she said. He quickly nodded and started chopping. He did the technique that Sephiroth had taught him. He was chopping the vegetables and looking at Sephiroth and the girl that he had been crushing on whisper to each other.
"Who's she?" he asked Kiara. Kiara grinned and gave him more vegetables.
"She's Tifa," Kiara said and looked at all of the final products of the dishes before sending them off to the warmer for later. She sighed and began telling him the tale of the two siblings.
"There was a family about fifteen years ago that ruled the kingdom. They were direct descendants of the original kings and queens of Old. The Old ways of life are lost, except to us native people. We had them handed down in traditional ceremonies… but back to the topic on hand.
"The Kings and Queens ruled a different cardinal direction. That's why there are four thrones in the main throne room. They've been sealed off because of this new so called king…
"The coup was about fifteen years ago. The chancellor was planning everything. He saw how the King and Queen ruled the kingdom in peace. He wanted them to be terminated. He wanted all of the power for himself. You see, the chancellor's position was in name only. The king and queen didn't trust him as far as they could throw him. The king had a fair and just mind. Even though he was intimidating with his silver hair and his silver eyes, he was a good man. His wife was kind and gentle to all that knew her. She had the heart of the people. She had long dark brown hair and chocolate brown eyes. She was one of the world's best diplomats… but back to the story.
"It all began the night of the Red Moon. The chancellor had some stupid crime made up and made the guards arrest the king and queen. Before he could do so, the king and queen made sure that the children were separated and safe… one stayed and the other went south. They had to be separated. They were the heirs to the kingdom," Kiara said, pointing to Sephiroth and Tifa. "He's older than her, so if you get any funny ideas, he's probably going to shoot you." Kiara gave him more vegetables. Zack looked longingly at Tifa.
"What are you doing here?" she asked him urgently. He shrugged carelessly. She smiled as he hugged her again.
"I couldn't leave you to fight the battle alone. It's not right that you're here and I'm off somewhere fighting another country's wars…" he paused. "We came here to have the Prince get married to the Princess…"
"Yeah," Tifa said. She grinned and let him go. "I'll see you later. There's going to be a party tonight to celebrate the Prince coming to see Princess Aerith and everything. I'll tell you everything then." Sephiroth nodded and watched her go back to her station. She washed her hands and began working. He grimaced as he realized that she shouldn't be living this kind of life.
"She's good at what she does," Kiara said to him. Sephiroth looked down at her and frowned. "She's not like any other noble. She's gifted. She's got so much potential, if only she'd let people see her true self. She won't let anyone know who her parents were, because it could get her arrested. She's had to hide everything. Except her looks. She said that her mother gave them to her and that she was damned proud to have them. but, she's been living in a shadow ever since that night."
Sephiroth only nodded and started remembering what happened on the night of the coup.
A/N: Well, I'm going to leave you a cliffhanger. But, I thought to make Sephiroth and Tifa brother and sister, which is a little unusual. Cold and calculating meet warm and kind… hm. But, anyways, the whole next chapter will be their different upbringings, and it will explain a lot more.
p.s. there's an awesome story to read:
1. Knight in Shining Armor by Valentine'sNinja
2. Splintered Dreams by Fairheartstrife
And finally:
3. Anywhere by Alialka
They are all great Zack and Tifa stories, so most people will probably read them, but they deserve to be read more than once. AND:
Whatever It Takes by fangirlgeek is an awesome story!! It's funny and extremely well written. If you're taking the time to read mine, read theirs too b/c they are awesome writers!
`Til next time!
DarkBelieverAnge
