A/N:
This is a one shot project that got out of hand…and became a chaptered story. I attempted to put a more realistic spin on the Sephiroth and Yuffie pairing, so no crack humor. Please give it a chance, enjoy the result and, of course, review!
I would like to thank Blackcat686 for being an awesome beta and, not only cleaning up this first chapter, but also giving me some wonderful ideas to flesh the story out.
Summary: They were both pawns in a game between nations. Can either of them win? A remix of the Wutai War and its effects on the events that follow, including what is cannon to Crisis Core and after. Gradual Sephiroth x Yuffie.
Word Count: 4,400
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot.
Something Different, Entirely Unexpected
By Catsitta
(Chapter Beta: blackcat868)
1.
Wutai was a beautiful land full of pride and tradition. Its people were strong, with a love of crafts seen by outsiders as exotic or unfamiliar. From festivals that showcased their love of danger and dance, to the marketplaces that sold the fruit of labors generations in the making, every aspect of Wutai was a piece of its cultural puzzle. For centuries, this was how it was. Never changing…a land lost, or perhaps preserved by, the passing of time.
Then came ShinRa, a man seeking profit and glory, who did not take no for an answer. When Emperor Godo Kisaragi told him to go elsewhere in his search for the Promise Land, that he would not soil his country with the stain of foreign ambition, ShinRa became angry.
He declared war on Wutai, provoking the smaller nation into action.
No one thought he would win.
No one knew that the President of a mere electric company had done what had been deemed impossible.
ShinRa had united a string of small towns and cities through his quest for Mako energy. To protect his investments, the Mako Reactors, he hired men to defend them and scientists to monitor and improve them, as well as inventors to create new Mako powered systems. In a time frame spanning perhaps a decade, he had built a company whose influence touched half of the known world, and a position of power that no one could deny.
Especially not after he introduced the SOLDIER and Turk programs.
His hired men, who had become a military over the few short years, were tested and trained and the best of the best were given a chance to become part of the elite. Many died. Many quit. Many turned the offer down. But by the time ShinRa came to Wutai, he had a dozen Turks behind him, and fifteen Mako-enhanced SOLDIERs. The two groups were very different, but their purpose was united.
They were to cripple Wutai, destroy its defenses and rip from it its strength.
It became a long a treacherous battle, with neither side relenting.
Well over a decade passed before the tide turned—stealing away Wutai's chance at driving out the invading force.
ShinRa had loosed a Demon in their midst.
A child SOLDIER named Sephiroth.
000X000
He was only a boy. What had ShinRa done to corrupt the youth and turn him into a monster?
These were the thoughts of Empress Kisaragi as she watched her husband bargain with the enemy. President ShinRa had come to Wutai to negotiate peace, or so he said, but how were they to make peaceful arrangements when behind him stood the men who bloodied their country with weapons and magic?
Turks and SOLDIERs, he called them.
She saw boys trained to be murders and spies, stuffed in either a navy suit or a combat uniform. It was shameful, what ShinRa had done to his own people, turning children into men too young and sending them off to war. The youngest of all, at fifteen, being the General of his army, Sephiroth. And just by looking at him she knew they had done something horrible to craft him into a demon that no one could match in battle.
With a strikingly beautiful countenance any stage performer would envy, from his high cheek bones to his narrow nose and curved mouth, the Empress believed Sephiroth to have been destined to a life more suited to gentler trades. Whatever ShinRa and his scientists did to him turned that pretty child into a weapon also gave the boy definitively…alien features. Long hair silver by birth rather than age, being the first; and the second being his cat-like eyes that were green rather than the typical SOLDIER blue.
Said eyes seemed distant at the moment. Lingering on a place on the wall above everyone's heads. There was a dream-like softness about him as his thoughts wandered another world, and one could only wonder if it was a land of beauty or of blood that caused his gaze to glaze over. One could only marvel at how peaceful he could be and how young he was for a man of his station.
It was then that she remembered what lay mounted upon the wall above. A true masterpiece that any swordsman would be a fool not to appreciate.
Curious, but saddened, the Empress looked away.
Pitying the enemy was the last thing that should be on her mind.
Her daughter, her little Yuffie, should be her first and only concern. The girl was only a year old and often slept fitfully, crying loudly when unable to rest, wanting the comfort of her mother's arms.
"YOU CANNOT DO THIS TO US!" Bellowed Godo.
"You've left me no other choice." Countered ShinRa.
The Empress kept her eyes down, knowing it was not her place to interfere with the politics of men. It was hard, though, when she desired nothing more than to stand up from where she knelt and speak her mind—to silence the arguments. She hated conflict. She hated war. After a lifetime worth of war, all she wanted was peace.
She would give anything for this goal.
Did these men not understand how weary their nations were of war? Those that heeded ShinRa's call likely had families they wanted to return to, children they wanted a chance to raise. The people of Wutai could not possibly be alone in their seeking of an end.
She could not possibly be alone…
"There must be a way to end this bloodshed." Said Godo, wearily, drawing the Empress' attention once again to the conversation. She lifted gray eyes just a fraction, noting his ashen complexion.
"I wish to build Mako Reactors in Wutai." ShinRa wore a mask of calm, but his steel-blue eyes were glittering with arrogant satisfaction. "Of course, had you agreed in the first place to the proposal then we would not be having this conversation."
Godo was silent, weariness aging him well beyond his actual years.
"And even should you agree now, it would be impossible for me to trust your intentions. A rebel faction may attack my workers or destroy my Reactors. If you want peace between us, Emperor Kisaragi, then you must allow the Reactors to be built and for my men to be stationed in Wutai as a means of security."
"What? You cannot—"
"How else could you guarantee the safety of the Reactors?"
Godo stood, his face suddenly flushed with outrage. "You wish to suppress my people with your SOLDIERs. You wish to put fear in hearts of every man, woman and child. You wish for us to bow to your word. We will never bend! I shall not sign a treaty on these terms!"
"Then we will remain at war."
She could no longer stand it. The foolishness of these men!
Empress Kisaragi stood, uncaring of the consequences; she would blame it on her genteel nature and youth. But this war had to stop here and now and she was prepared to lose everything if it meant her daughter could grow up in a world free of the nightmares she had lived through. How she hated the cry of battle, the rattle of gunfire…the screams of pain. How she hated the sight of bleeding, dying men as they fell before her very eyes in order to report the obliteration of a battalion.
Feeling all eyes on her, she steadied herself, found her inner resolve and kept her chin high. Any weakness would ruin her chance of stopping the death and destruction.
"President ShinRa, you want more than a mere promise for us to keep our word and leave your Reactors alone." A statement—nothing could be questioned at this point. "Then let us prove our desire for peace. A union between your nation and Wutai, perhaps. That way, we cannot go back upon our word without harming the heart of our honor."
There was a hitch in her husband's breath as the realization settled in. His angry flush became white terror. "No…" His voice was but a whisper.
ShinRa considered her words for moment before folding both hands before him, leaning across the low table separating them. "What kind of union do you mean, your highness?"
"It was once common practice to bind families through blood in order to seal contracts…to guarantee both would keep their part in an arrangement or to bring peace during a conflict."
"Marriage…Between whom, your highness?" The man seemed confused by the concept.
"As the ruling family of Wutai, it would be the honor of our daughter to marry your heir."
"My son is eight and your daughter newborn, your highness."
"My husband is near twenty years my senior." A small smile quirked upon your lips," Though I suspect it goes against your ideals to have a marriage arranged for your son with the daughter of the enemy."
The expression on ShinRa's face confirmed her presumptions and a cold weight dropped in her gut. He was not bending…he was not changing from his course of action. Her speaking out was for naught…
"These terms need to be considered, your highness." Said ShinRa.
"An hour." The Empress knew better to give the man too much time to think.
"In an hour then," the man motioned to his men, "we shall resume this meeting. You have given me much to ponder, your highness."
And then they were gone, with the exception of the Demon. He hesitated when the others followed without question and looked back. She refrained from shuddering beneath the raw intensity of his gaze—Sephiroth was more than a tactical mind, more than simply cunning…His were the eyes of a genius, a mind seeking to understand every detail before plunging into the chaos. He understood that she was willing to make one of the greatest sacrifices a mother could make, and he respected it despite questioning it as he was likely prone to do concerning all things.
The boy General turned on his heel and swiftly disappeared from the room as well, almost as if he had never paused in the first place.
And as the weight of the room lightened, the Empress breathed in deeply and glanced towards her husband.
He stared back at her with disbelief.
Godo was willing to send every man in his country to his early grave for the sake of honor, but the life of his only child was something too great for him to ever sacrifice. He would one day understand, she decided, kneeling yet again.
Her husband said nothing, too heartbroken to find the words.
The wheels of fate were in motion, and in an hour's time, they would know where they had ended up.
000X000
In silence, Sephiroth waited for the President to make a decision. He was rambling aloud, attempting to use the proposal made by the Empress to his best advantage. It became obvious, very quickly, that he did not want his family bloodline tainted by 'Wutaian' filth. The very thought of his precious son marrying the Empress' daughter appalled him. However, he wanted the union; it would give his company more power than it ever had before…
But who? It seemed to be the key question. Who could he marry the girl off to that would not be seen as so much of an insult to the Wutaian people that they withdrew the offer? It would have to make strategic sense.
Sephiroth only shook his head.
He was the General of the military, and it was part of his duty to attend meetings such as these and occasionally even put his signature on a document or two. While he meandered here in the Royal Palace, there was a war out there still being fought. How his fingers itched to take up a blade and make it sing.
Speaking of which, he could not get his mind off of the beautiful sword displayed on the wall above the Emperor and Empress. His thoughts kept flicking back to it and the fact that everyone else in the room seemed oblivious to its masterful craftsmanship. Amongst a sea of colorful draperies, artful watercolors, and painted paper lanterns—the sword stood out. It was a harsh plane of gray amongst the frivolous opulence…practical in its impracticality.
After all, a seven foot katana was not a weapon the average man would consider more than decoration. It was of the finest make, Sephiroth could tell just from what he had seen of it, because its unique shine revealed it to be made of the rarest of metals, demascus steel, something only master swords makers were allowed to even touch.
"General Sephiroth, are you paying attention?"
Upon hearing the President ask that very question, Sephiroth blinked back into reality.
"Pardon sir, for my distraction."
"No matter, our time is up. Let us return to the Emperor and his dear lady."
The silver General nodded, offering a polite salute before following the man out of the room, his mind quickly traveling elsewhere.
000X000
Leaning against the back wall, furthest from the debating political leaders, Sephiroth stared at the sword above. It was hard not to let his looks become longing…lustful. Every ounce of his being seemed to gravitate towards to the beautiful blade and to be in its presence was like denying himself a drug he was all too tempted to taste. How he wanted to feel its weight in his hand.
Just as his eyes slipped shut, if only to break the spell and resist the unfamiliar sensation of desire—Sephiroth heard the clatter of porcelain as it hit wood, its contents spilled. Curious, he at last graced the scene with his attention, noting the pallor of every face in the room. Two tea cups were rolling on the low table before the royal family, both severely cracked from the impact of being dropped. Then, one of them crawled to the edge and fell, shattering against the marble floor, breaking the sudden silence.
For some reason, President ShinRa was the only certain one in the room.
His steel colored eyes were narrowed, a thin smirk splitting his handsome features like a razor. He had put on weight since he first came into office, and typically it gave his face a healthy, almost friendly softness that put many men at ease. But now, one could see past his gentle mask and peer into the madness within. The very madness he concealed behind white teeth, rosy cheeks and low swept blond hair.
Sephiroth shook his head imperceptibly and allowed his bangs to shadow his face. For all he was the esteemed and cold-hearted demon General, he was but a child playing a man. The President had more than once revealed to the Board of Directors his true colors, and as General, Sephiroth had to attend. Watching the man now reminded him of those long-winded hours where the man schemed and plotted with his council of maniacs and fools, blissfully ignoring the whispered conscious of the one good-hearted man present.
It sickened him then as much as it did now, but he was only a warrior…a weapon…His voice was not one meant to be heard in any matter outside that of war.
"You cannot possibly expect us to accept that arrangement!" It was the Emperor who broke the terrified silence, his voice pitched high with tension. He appeared to be trembling, his knuckles white, bloodless, as he gripped the edge of the table—almost as if it were the only anchor he possessed. "It is insulting! Preposterous! The shame it would bring upon our household."
ShinRa maintained his eerily sharp smirk, however, the paleness to his lips suggested the expression quickly becoming forced. "Then I am afraid we have no treaty." He stood, brushing off his suit casually and motioning for the aid of his Turk bodyguards. "I shall depart. Perhaps we can reach a reasonable agreement at another time."
Veld, the Turk Director, came to stand between the President and the royal family. His loyal men were quick to assemble and coordinate, ready to escort the man from the palace.
Wearily, Sephiroth cast one last glance at the sword on the wall before taking his place in the formation…only, he felt as if there were eyes upon him. Turning his head to glance over one shoulder, he noticed that the Empress was staring, her gaze burning straight through him. She was a tiny, harmless looking creature, but he knew better. The woman was a hardened ninja disguised as a hothouse flower—her deadly nature masked by her submissive mannerisms and painted face. Much like a rose with poisoned thorns.
He doubted anyone else knew, even the Emperor himself.
But the way she held herself, even while kneeling like some fragile maiden, revealed to him her secrets. Why a woman heavily training in the art of combat would settle for a life of marble and silk was beyond him…perhaps it suited her better. Perhaps she was disgusted by her own deadly efficiency and turned in her steel for a life of luxury. A life without bloodshed. A life in which she could act the delicate orchid blooming despite the conditions under which her seed was sown.
Maybe, just maybe, she was a soul none too unlike himself. She merely had a chance to lay down her training in favor of something different…something she wanted instead of something she was forced to accept.
Sephiroth nodded to her, uncertain why exactly she was watching him so intently.
To his surprise, a smile graced her features. Those gray eyes that had been adverted for the majority of the meeting sparked with the same determination as when she proposed a marriage between her daughter and the ShinRa heir. He was quickly unsettled by the fire in those eyes. The pride. The certainty.
What was she planning?
"President ShinRa!" The Empress was on her feet, that small, lean body radiating confidence. She was far from the cowed little girl she claimed to be, and it seemed that today she was determined to prove it. "I have considered your proposal and have determined that it is for the best of both our people." Emperor Godo looked sick and stared weakly up at his young wife. The stress was taking its toll on him and he hadn't the strength to protest her actions. "A union between our two nations is an opportunity that cannot be ignored, and while my daughter cannot wed until her eighteenth year, I wish for us to make peace today."
Every pair of eyes was on the Empress, while hers were upon Sephiroth.
"I was under the impression that my chosen suitor for your daughter was an insult." ShinRa began, his hand resting on the doorframe, his back still turned away. "What brought about this change of heart?"
The Empress lifted her chin in a gesture that radiated sheer dignity.
"The realization that, for all his sins, he is but a child. One whom you have recognized as your ward. While he is not the heir to your bloodline or even your Presidency, a union between he and my daughter will be the closest guarantee you can promise to this war ending."
Sephiroth felt a chill run down his spine.
"Come, we shall write up the contract. As both members in this arrangement are under the age of adulthood, we as their guardians shall sign for them." Emperor Godo buried his face with both hands, as if he could not believe his wife was defying him in such a way. President ShinRa was now looking at the Empress with curiosity and satisfaction in his gaze. And Sephiroth was simply trying to process the information he had just heard. How much of the meeting had he ignored? "And, in seventeen years, upon my daughter's coming of age, the contract will be sealed. If before that date either child were to die, then the contract will be rendered invalid. After their marriage, there is no voiding the agreement except in the occurrence of acts considered treasonous."
Sephiroth frowned. Who was the Princess being married to?
"General Sephiroth," the silver-haired teen arched a brow at the Empress. "As an expression of good faith, once the contract and treaty are signed, I would like to present to you an early piece of your future…dowry." He felt his entire body go ridged. His throat was unbearably dry. Had she just implied…? The Empress motioned to the proud sword on the wall above her head. "The Masamune has been in our family for generations, waiting for the right master. She is yours as a promise to make peace rather than war. May she serve you well in the coming years."
Disbelief overtook him, but he did not betray his reaction by allowing it show on his face. Rather, he steeled himself, forcing down the weakness of emotion in order to keep his cool resolution. Sephiroth knew he should be panicking or protesting, but one glance in the President's direction merely reinforced his forced calm. The man was watching him expectantly, as if he half-suspected him to speak up in disagreement or bow his head and surrender to his fate.
Instead, Sephiroth did neither.
"Your highness," he began, keeping his voice low so as to keep his tone even, "I am honored by your trust, but…" President ShinRa's gaze was unrelenting. His bid for the General to return to silence almost willed-strongly enough to hear. "What of your people? What of your daughter? Peace cannot be obtained through the union of Wutai's beloved and the Demon that the ShinRa Company sent to conquer the land. Your people are too proud. It will wound their trust in you as their Empress. As for your daughter, how will she feel growing up, knowing, that her hand is promised to the enemy?"
While he did not make small talk often, the young General had learned early on how speak to a crowd. His tactical mind could sort and place each word of a speech in a way that appealed to his audience. He could set his tone, his posture and diction in order to telegraph the underlying message within. Whether it be a motivational speech to rally his troops, or a meeting of the minds in which he needed to express ideas in a fluid sequence of thought—Sephiroth could talk his way through all of it.
It was one of the reasons he reached General so young. Not only was his immensely powerful, but he was charismatic when need be. People often whispered of how hypnotizing his voice was, and how it was impossible not to listen when he spoke.
There was no possible reason why the Empress would ignore him or his warnings. It would simply be impractical! However, it was all too easy to forget how impractical humans were by nature…
"You speak the truth," The Empress admitted, though with a gleam in her eye, "and your observations are commendable for someone so young." Hypocrite, Sephiroth silently added, deducing that the women herself was perhaps four, maybe five years his senior at most. It was difficult to tell sometimes with Wutaians (ironically enough he was half Wutaian himself) because they kept their youthful looks well into their middle years. "However, my decision is final. As long as President ShinRa and my husband are willing to sign the contract and the treaty, I am not retracting my choice. In the end, even if they hate me for it, this will protect my people. I love them too much to continue watching them suffer and perish in vain."
Sephiroth drew in a ragged breath, unable to quite come to terms with what was happening. "An honorable sacrifice, your highness." He said, realizing the inevitable. "I—I…" His charisma fled him, leaving him feeling vulnerable and childish beneath the Empress' never wavering gaze. So instead of continuing to try and protest, he schooled his emotions and expressions into that of acceptance.
He was, after all, just a pawn in the grand scheme of things.
The world may have known him as the fearless Demon of Wutai, and run in both fear and awe when he approached—but he held no power in this game between nations. His title and rank, superb mental acuity and strength were valuable to himself alone in the end. He was expendable. And right now, the President was using Sephiroth to gain more of the power he craved.
There was nothing he could say or do to change a thing aside from kill himself or abandon the only world he ever knew. The world of science and SOLDIER, of politics and war. What would he do with himself should he choose to leave, to not play this game? Nothing. That was the problem. He could do nothing outside of becoming the ultimate weapon for a company who treated him like a tool and used him shamelessly for its own benefit.
It was why he did not fight harder to change everyone's mind.
He was the President's ward, and as long as the man kept him safely out of Professor Hojo's reach, Sephiroth would find some way to be appreciative and happy with his situation. Even if it meant marrying an utter stranger, one who would have every reason to hate him, in seventeen years.
'I will be thirty-two when she is eighteen…' Sephiroth found himself realizing as he watched the royal family, the President and a slew of Turks disappear into another room to discuss the details of the contract and treaty. Already, at only fifteen, he felt like some kind of pedophile…a creepy old man…a cradle robber. His bride-to-be was but a squalling infant while he was almost a grown man! 'It is…unfortunate that things have come to this.'
Deciding not to linger on his thoughts too long, he turned his focus onto Masamune. The Empress had offered the blade as a temptation, and since he had no choice in the matter, he might as well claim the one object he had ever desired with any level of intensity.
His mind clearing of the unpleasantness of the past and future, Sephiroth reached for Masamune, savoring the feel of untouched sharkskin leather against his palm as he curled his fingers around the weapon's hilt.
000tbc000
A/N: ( So…what do you think? I'm mostly done with the second part of this story and will hopefully be able to post it soon. I want to hear your thoughts, theories, etc. Idea cookies are my favorite! )