Ok well unlike other stories this one doesn't have a set chapter length, such as 2k words, yet. Meaning the length will fluctuate.

So I've been reading up on FFVII, and I already had one plot hole. Yay! Well I tried to fix it as best I could, but this story is officially AU. And we'll be seeing Seifer again very soon.

Question: How do you pronounce SeeD? "Seed", "C.D.", or ".D"? I've been saying "C.D.", mostly because "Seed" sounds weird. But I want to know. :D

R&R!

Negotiation Table

I nod at the boy and follow them out of the castle, no one is speaking at this point and the air is somewhat tense. First Tsurugi was in its holsters on my back, the sheer size of the sword an intimidating insurance to keep people from being too forward. Once outside the castle, I can see that the entire group is slightly worried about something. They're all looking around like something was going to happen. I spare a glace around the area; it's desolate and built on a terrace on the side of a mountain. The leader is frowning and looking skyward. I almost want to ask what's going on, but a dramatic shift in the world around me is enough to shut me up. Slowly the world melted away and left us in the middle of some city. Out of the corner of my eye I can see the blond, Seifer, hiding and watching as the world changes. As soon as we're in a city he ducks out and leaves quietly.

There's a collective sigh of relief as it appears we've returned to the "real" world. All eyes are on us as a crowd of people surround the area where we stand. The leader pulls out a PHS, or whatever they call them here, and calls someone. I can hear him murmuring into the phone, almost too softly for even me to hear. The next thing I know there's a giant floating ship hovering over head. The leader pauses in his conversation and looks up. There's a flicker of surprise, perhaps at the fact the ship arrived so quickly, but it subsides.

It wasn't ten minutes later that we'd boarded and now sat around a large table with all eyes back on me. I force a composed look and assume my "Sephiroth mode", or so it was once affectionately dubbed by Zack. My eyebrow quirks upward in a blatant display of expectancy. It was enough because the leader begins to speak immediately.

"My name is Squall Leonhart. I'm a SeeD from Balamb Garden, which you are on right now. These are my friends. Rinoa Heartilly, Selphie Tilmitt, Irvine Kinneas, Zell Dincht, and Quistis Trepe. The man you saw earlier was a traitor from this Garden, Seifer Almasy," his voice was very cool and collected but I'd already found two cracks into which I could pry. I raised a hand and stopped the potential monologue.

"I'm Cloud Strife, ex-SOLDIER from ShinRa on Gaia, my planet. The silver haired man you saw is Sephiroth, the deranged ex-SOLDIER General of the ShinRa army. He sent us both here and I have to find a way back, and kill him quickly before he does irreparable damage to your planet. Back to you. You speak of this Seifer in a very emotionally attached way, he's a former friend?" The entire group more or less sputters as I ask the question, giving me plenty of an answer, but I still wait for Squall to respond.

He frowns deeply and answers just as coolly as before, "Not a friend. He's an old rival." He gestures to the scar on his face, one mirrored in Seifer. "We gave these to each other. He is my equal in battle, but he betrayed the Garden and therefore his life is forfeit."

Now it's my turn to frown. Forfeit? I hold down a shudder at the prospect of having walked into anothercorrupt military facility. But the look in Squall's eyes is enough to tell me otherwise. I can practically read the anguish in his heart right through those seemingly dead, blue eyes. Rival, hmm? Not likely. I take the chance to scan the people while Squall quickly resumes his composure. I'm grateful for the ShinRa training in reading power levels out of battle. I can see that none of the people in the room are as physically strong as even Elena, whose mako enhancement is at an all time low. But compared to normal, non-enhanced people, like Tifa, these people are very high above the average strength levels. Squall is about as strong as Zack would be without the mako, strong but not strong enough to face a SOLDIER. None the less I'm impressed by their training, in particular the sharpshooter eyes on the man known as Irvine. I can tell they've all got special qualities that make them an effective group.

My eyes land on the girl sitting next to Squall and my frown deepens. She looks too much like Tifa. The long brown-black hair and dark eyes are so familiar that I have to shake my head slightly to clear my best friend's image from my mind. I look a little closer and take note of the fact that this girl, Rinoa, is much more "girly" than Tifa, who prefers black leather to soft cashmere. Tifa also doesn't use make-up often, almost never, as she's never needed it, the woman before me is wearing a foundation and eye make-up, albeit a light coating of both, but I felt that would be one point for Tifa if comparing their beauty.

I almost have to shake myself again as I refocus on Squall who just cleared his throat rather noisily for someone I can already see is fairly taciturn. Rinoa is blushing, most likely from my staring, and Squall is glaring slightly. I smirk a bit and raise a hand in apology.

"You'll have to excuse the staring. I over analyze everything and everyone, and your girlfriend looks like a very good friend of mine." I don't know why I feel like I have to prove it, but I pull a small picture of Tifa out of my wallet and slide it across the table. It was the picture we took together out on a picnic with the kids. Tifa was smiling and joyful, but I was off to the side, frowning. I smile softly now in memory. I never gave her what she deserved. I looked back to the scene to see the entire table gathered around the picture and flicking their gazes from Tifa's image to Rinoa. Squall just stares at the picture and blushes so thinly that at first I think my mako-enhanced eyes are fooling me or exaggerating again.

His eyes raise and mine meet his. The air is suddenly electric with tension. The group is oblivious as we engage in a harmless staring match. I smirk slightly as I realize just how androgynous and pretty he is. At least he doesn't have a name suited better for a woman, and at least I have enough muscle to distinctly express my gender.

The stare feels like two predators staring each other down in an attempt to make the other prey, and as Squall relents and lowers his eyes, I, the wolf, have the satisfaction of beating this proud lion. I've always been a dog person anyway. However my gloating is cut short as I backtrack and try to remember why I think of him as a lion. I scan his appearance again and my eyes land on a pendant around his neck, a metal lion. Leonhart the lion, how fitting.

"You said that this Sephiroth sent you both here and that he was dangerous. What do you think his motives were?" Squall is the one to speak again, showing a growing pattern of leadership in the boy. I assume my business façade again and pack away all the silly thoughts.

"Yeah, he's insane and driven to destroy planets. It's possible that he's trying to isolate me from my friends and what he thinks is my power source. He probably thinks he's weakening me by sending us here, but he forgets we draw our main power from the same source, a type of cells injected into both of us during experiments preformed by an even more insane scientist. Consequently, it's these cells that make him insane, which means I can be just as dangerous, but I'd like to think that I've gained some immunity against them. Which leads me to another theory, he could have taken me here to cut me off from that immunity and make it harder for me to fight the cells. No matter the reason, however, it can't be good. I'll need some help in locating and killing him, and getting home to my planet. Do you happen to have a map of the star system that we're located in?"

Squall nods slightly and looks at Selphie. She instantly perks up and cries out, "I'm on it, boss!" To which Squall replies with pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head.

I smile again, this time at the young girl who reminds me of Yuffie. She scampers off to a computer and pulls up a star system map on a projector. I look at the map and am instantly relieved to recognize Gaia and her three moons two planets up from the one marked as this planet, Radiant Garden.

Now it's all about finding a way back.