Chapter 10 : Would you let me?

Cloud was honking her horn unstopablely, she and her assistant had been stuck in the traffic for a half me like this, she really hoped that her children wasn't so clever. If they have, they might already realized that Sephiroth is their-

"Cloud! Calm down!" Aerith called, bringing the blond back to the reality, "Why are you so upset? The school hasn't done yet, We'll probably make in time." She hushed her devastated lookin boss.

"That's not why I'm worried about! I'm practically freaked because there's a damn traffic in the middle of the day!" Cloud bluffed. She banged her head to the steer.

"It's lunch break. People get out of their office to search for food. Just how long haven't you got out of the house to notice that this trafic in the middle of the day is usual?" Aerith giggled. Actually, she hasn't seen Cloud got out of her house much.

"Have you forgot I'm very busy at home taking care of the most important things of my life?" Cloud scoffed, she wasn't lying anyway.

"Aww, Cloud, I didn't mean to insult you with that." She gently rubbed the backside of the stressed blond.

"I just hope we could make it on time." Cloud sighed in frustration, leaning forward to the steer, resting her head there

Cloud wasn't worried about the test but, she was worried about the twins, who probably already met the man she was trying -no dying to make them avoid or better never meet. Yes, she was being very cruel to the twin's fathe- no, Sephiroth, because she was being a dragon's hen. She didn't want a man being in her life. She had a great trauma because of her uncle, and not just that. A while back, something horrible happened to the twins that scared her out of her pathetic life. And that happened because of men. Every time she thought about a man being in her life, she would repeatedly have nightmares of him coming home with bloody clothes, deadly scars, and eventually drop dead on the floor within her arms.

Ohoho... Don't forget the occupation of man supposed to be the father of the twins...

She was an egoist bitch who only thinks of herself and didn't consider the emptiness of her children's heart because their growing up without a father. But, she was only trying to protect them. She was stupid because letting Sephiroth used her that night but, she also couldn't stop being grateful to him because he gave her, her lights of life. When she was pregnant with their twins, she was filled with terror and doubt also with a mix with happiness and sweet-dreams. She thought of contacting Sephiroth some frequent times but, her nightmares of Adam keeps her away from calling him and acknowledging him being the father of her children. Then, his occupation as the world's hero and enemy might make her nightmares turns into reality again. And it wouldn't just damage her but also kill her innocent children. If only Sephiroth wasn't a general...

Deep within her deep minds, she stared blankly to the unmoved cars before her. Earlier when she was informed that Sephiroth was visiting the twin's school, her most terrifying fear was slowly creeping up from her heart, then tries to squash her mind. If Sephiroth manage to find them, the absolution of him knowing their exsistance would be 99.9% inevitably and undeniablely, exposed. Then, he will try to take them away from her by setting up some law defences and logical accuses. She made the wrong step at first but, she's not an idiot to lose if Sephiroth wanted a war for the legal parenting right of her children.

Cloud leaned back and rested her body straight to the seat when she took a deep inhale, "I can't let him..." She murmured quietly, "Not to me..."

Meanwhile back at the Shin-Ra academy library, the twins were excited talking about some information they got from the book that catches their interest. Sephiroth watched them with a small crept from the corner of his lips. Earlier, he identified that the twins were Cloud's kids and she was still in Midgar. When he looked at the happy learning kids, he was sure that those twins were his and Cloud's. They were 4 and almost 5 so it didn't take too much time and effort to calculate the time and realization. The only thing that bothered him was, did Cloud really wanted to keep them away from him?

Sephiroth leaned back at the soft sofa and closed his eyes, trying to inhale the great scent of nature and relaxation which filled the room. He pinched the edge of his nose, trying his best not to fall asleep because the overload of stress and negative thinking.

Why didn't Cloud contacted him when she found out about these angels?

Did Cloud not trusted him at all?

Of course she doesn't, you idiot. You only slept her because she was at her weak state and you took the advantage to use her.

Sephiroth's eyes opened slightly, his heart was right. He used her, so it would be accurate to say Cloud wouldn't let him be near her children. As he was informed that she's a scientist, she was definitely not an idiot. But, then, if she was a scientist then,

Does she treat them like Hojo did to him?

His eyes shot opened at the realization, his marine glowing cat pupiled eyes gazes thoroughly towards the happy children smiling towards each other, laughing and arguing as they exchange opinion about matters out of a league for young elementary students, his eyes relaxed at the peace faces the twins have that he never did when he was their age.

There was no way Cloud would do that to them, not while they're smiling and thinking like this...

He sighed in relief. For now, he'll believe that Cloud would never hurt them. But, his mind was still clouded like her name for the negativity she had caused him since he found these twins. While deep in his thought, Sefia was oddly taking good looks at him without his notice.

"Brother," she called her twin, "I think, I've notice something odd about him."

Hadaron snorted, "Sef, He's a General. He's odd in many ways and that's normal for him."

"Not that, idiot." She rolled her eyes, "He's been in deep thought while stealing glances at us. Look, even if we talk this loud, he still doesn't notice we were talking about him." She pointed.

The twin brother looked up to the man next to him, she saw her point. He was looking at the vast wall, while his mind was literally deep in the ocean. Hadaron waved his little palm in the same line where the general was gazing. With a little effort, the silver haired man quickly gained the conscious of reality and stared down to the confused looking kids.

"What is it?" He asked, rather surprised.

"Shouldn't we be the one to ask you that?" Hadaron smiled a bit, "you seem drowned in your thought, so me and Sef decided to save you from the nightmare." This earned a nod from the whitenette.

Sephiroth was taken a back, "why would you say that "thoughts" are "nightmare"?"

Sefia closed the book of her palm and stood up, "It depends on your facial expression wheter it is a nightmare or a daydream. Mama told us that."

"Uh-huh," Hadaron also closed his books, "She taught us about knowing someone's situation so that we could behave more understandable to others."

Sephiroth was not just 'quite-relieved', he was 'extremely-relieved'. Cloud taught them more to be a human than a deadly weapon to kill. This moved many negativity and pressure from his dark assumptions. Then, he felt a soft press in his hand, placed in his thigh. He looked down to the white-haired doll looking girl, who gave him a small smile and reassuring look.

"You were looking at us differently since you met us. I usually hate people who stares much at us, but, somehow your look was not-much annoying than many people." She said with a flat tone. Sephiroth gave her a small smile at the angel.

"But, that still means it annoys you a-little-bit?" Hadaron broke the comfortable feeling of the General.

"Of course, it does."

Sephiroth broke into a faint chuckles, it seems she taught them 'honesty' as well. Many people wouldn't want to admit someone's annoying habit, especially towards the specific person of 'someone' is acually a world hero.

Magnazorda and Zefalgar were current poking the already-sailed-to-dreamland-SOLDIER, with the edges of their books and pencils. While they were disturbing the raven-haired SOLDIER, the bell that points out the end of school time had ended rang and the four children in the room, sighed in relieve. Well.. Except the other two...

"Sef! The school's over!" Hadaron frantically shook the girl twin with much force, earning a painful groan from the said one.

"You think I'm deaf? Of course, I know that!" She throw her twin's hands off of her shoulders.

"What are we gonna do?" Hadaron jumped off of the sofa and pace back and forth, "ughh... I don't want to do this!" He clutches his hair and threw his small body to his sister, "Sef! Tell them we can't do this!"

Sefia remained silent, also throwing her arms at her stressed brother. She knew why his brother was terrified. Heck, she felt the same way. This was terrifying. They felt that the test was somehow tries to bind them down till they became some sort of slaves to the school. Sefia shuted her eyes, "me too..." She silently spoke, thinking only her twin could hear her.

And oh boy was she wrong.

Sephiroth manage to hear her soft whimper through his enhanced ears. He looked down to the twins, who most certainly is frighten of their test after this. He bend down to their level and put his arms around them. This definitely startled the twins, but they weren't fast enough to react when Sephiroth lifted them up and putted them in his lap. They looked up to the man to see him smile and snuggled them closer.

Somehow gods send the silver-haired man a feeling that the twins were scared and needed comfort. He thanked any god who did it because he felt wonderful having these scared kids, bundled up in his arms. He could feel the both of them tensed and still.

He looked down to their level, "I know the both of you are scared..."

Sefia quickly tried to squirm away from him when she heard that, "No, we're not! And how on Gaia would you know? You're not us." She spat, throwing her gaze away from the general, pushing his large hands away.

Sephiroth smiled, 'so stubborn... Just like her mother.' He didn't grant the wish of the struggling child, but instead pulled her closer, "Fighting with me is in vain." He smirked, earning an irritating glare from the whitenette.

"Um, General?" The other twin, "as much as I'm honored to be in your arms right now," He smiled sweetly, before glaring death at him with the similar glowing marine daggers, "Let. Us. Go."

This earned quite the shocking look from the General, 'same...' He thought and mirrored himself in those glowing orbs. He felt the other twin shifted uncomfortably.

"You shouldn't make Hadaron angry, He's a different person if he's mad." Sefia warned, as his arms slowly started to release the children. They jumped down to the floor. Hadaron looked up to the stunned general and slightly hold his hand.

"Sorry, General. We didn't mean to be rude, its just that we don't like being touched, not by strangers that is.. " Hadaron gave out a simpethetic look, then pulled the silver haired man, signing him to stand up, "We're traumatized by it."

Sephiroth gaze worriedly to the twins, 'What?' Has something ever happened to them? He saw Hadaron's marine eyes glows out sadness while Sefia's reflected instant panic.

Sefia was the first one to take notice of his silent question, she grabbed his other hand then dragged him upwards in his feet then walked out of the room leaving her brother who released his grip from the other hand. They left the other four inside the room, as she pulled him fast out of the building. Sephiroth with his long legs tried effortlessly keeping up with the girl twin.

When they were out of the library, Sefia turned around to face the tall General, "Sir, whatever you think your sympathizing about us, means nothing. So you better not look like that in front of me or my brother again."

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow, "what look?"

Sefia rolled her eyes, "The worried look." She glared, "only our family could look at us that way."

"Why is it so hard for you to accept other's care?" Sephiroth was trying his best to melt this little girl's somehow frozen heart. He doesn't know if this attitude was earned by Cloud's gens or his.

Sefia laughed sarcastically, "oh boy, General."

If Cloud really teaches this child to be a pain in the ass for the future, he is certainly going to drag this girl out of her, "What's so funny?" He cringed.

Sefia wipes a tear from her eyes after laughing so hard, she looked up and give him a drill glare,

"We almost die because of care."

Sephiroth was more than just shock, his mind froze and refused to break the drilling glare and words, "what?"

"We were kidnapped a few months ago by a guy from the slums, threatening our mom to give him thousands of gil for exchange with our life."

Her blue daggers were showing weariness and sadness, but the power of the glare was getting stronger, as a child, she'll be a great intimidator, Sephiroth thought. His mind was slowly processing the story and his heart was growing in rage.

"The worst part is that we knew him because he lived closely to us and trusted him. We let him be a part of our family and then he treated us inhumanly, paining our hearts."

The only thing which wanders dangerously in the General's head is, 'who is this man who dares to hurt his children?'

Sefia turned down, "I respect you as a great man, Sir. So please don't let my respection to cease."

Sephiroth bend down to her level, "I apologize, I have no idea."

Sefia took a good look at his face, he thought. Sefia was scanning through-out his mind like his stone face was somehow similar to some...one. Sefia put her palms in the slim cheeks of the same leveled General. The silver-haired man flinced through the contact. Her small hands were cold but so soft. So so so soft.

"You oddly look like someone." She flatly said. Sephiroth, slightly calmed down, put his large palm above the smaller one, Pressing it softly.

The General chuckled softly, "If you're a genius, you might've already figured it out why."

Sefia only gave him a look, before her mind started working. She hasn't notice it before, but, he really looks like older Hadaron. His face shape was slightly sharper but other than that, his eyes, nose, lips, eyebrow, forehead, and else, looked precisely like her brother's. So tecnically, if he looks like her brother, then he would definitely look like her too.

Sephiroth was slightly happy to see the change expression of the little girl. He knew she was smart. So, that expression means she's starting to realize something.

Sefia's mind was fastly processing but her heart was immobilely refusing to accept the mind's data. He is a General who worked for Shin-Ra so he's always busy all the time. He's someone Hadaron and she respected, admired, and liked. But, since He's a General, he also has many enemy. Mama isn't someone who like to have many enemy and that's how she protected us. And maybe that's why she ...

Sefia gasped, he pull her hands away and took a slight few steps back. Her blue electrical eyes widen in many emotions. Sephiroth was satisfied, she must've realized it.

"Y-you... You can't be.." She manage to stutter. Sephiroth straightens himself. He took a brave step forward, then he bend down on his knees again.

"Nice to meet you." He gave out his hands. He gave her a soft reassuring smile he never thought he would give.

Hadaron who manage to restrain his anger, huffed it out and immediately went out to search for the duo who left earlier. He jogged his way out of the library, giving a farewell to the library lady, and took off outside to see his twin and the general talking in a relatively close distance. He walked closer to them, then he saw Sefia backed up for a bit. He move in faster but his pace stopped when the man stepped closer to his sister and bend down to her level and say something he never expected to hear.

"My daughter..."