The Inevitable Crisis

Chapter 10: Home

Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII CC in any way, shape or form. BUT I do have the game for my PSP and cried TWICE for both times I finished the game at Zack's death scene. I haven't had the heart to complete it again since.

"The ache for home lives in all of us. The safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned." -Maya Angelou, All God's Children Need Traveling Shoes

Autumn's POV

So, as it turns out, once we finally touched down at HQ and I sprinted down to call a cab, anxiously ride the train to the slums, and call another cab to get to Sector 5 to check up on my two remaining family members, I had nothing to worry about.

No Genesis copies attacked them at random, plus the house was sort of isolated from the rest of the run-down apartments, shabby houses and rather shady establishments.

I'd mastered my Blizzaga materia a while back and still had the new one it produced, so with that in mind I rang the door bell and knocked three times.

My mother swung the door open, her aged blue eyes widening in surprise. "Oh, Autumn! I told you we're fine, Aerith hasn't-"

"That's not why I'm here, Mom. I just wanted to drop by and maybe have something to eat?" I interposed, inwardly grimacing at how tired I sounded.

I saw the slap coming, so I ducked and ventured further into the house. "Mom! What're you-"

"It's rude to interrupt! I thought I taught you better than that." She chided, closing the door behind her as she followed me into the kitchen.

Darn. Apparently I'd exhausted the "I-hardly-ever-visit" excuse and mom's rage mode had returned.

"Yes ma'am, sorry ma'am."

"That had better not be sarcastic young lady."

"I swear it's not!" I defended, pouting as I continued towards the kitchen.

"And change your clothes at some point. Do I even want to know why half of your pants are nearly burned off?"

"No, not really. Did you have a bad day or something?" I answered with a grin, waltzing on into the cooking area.

Mom sighed behind me. "You could say that. In fact, it's more of an understatement. But, I won't get into the details with you. And even though I've had an unpleasant day, you also cannot just go disregarding all of the manners your master and I have worked into that thick head of yours."

"Yes, ma'am."

My focus waned to the kitchen. I'd been drawn in by the savory, mouth-watering smells that had hit my nose all at once. My glowing eyes roved over the cooking steaks, feeling saliva gather in my mouth as my stomach squealed in delight.

"Oooohhh, steaakkk~" I murmured in a sing-songy voice.

Mom chuckled, taking over at the stove while I washed the veggies. "You and Aerith are such little carnivores."

"Yup." I agreed, deciding to omit the fact that we both got it from my biological mom.

I heard the pattering of light feet coming down the stairs, signaling that Aerith had finally arrived.

"Sorry I'm a little late getting down here to help, Mom, I-"

Her startled emerald orbs landed on me, a smile spreading across her face just as quickly. "Sis! I wasn't expecting you!"

She threw her arms around me in a tight hug as I reciprocated it, my own grin beginning to fade a little when Zachary's kiss popped back into my mind. Should I tell her? What would even be the point aside from hurting her? It wasn't as if Zachary's lingering bits of feelings for me were going to lead to anything more.

"Yeah, I decided to drop by in order to ease my conscience. I just keep worrying about you and Mom. Speaking of which, these are for you. I know you have that rod I gave you, but I think you should have a little more to your arsenal. I'll help you train with them, don't worry." I grinned, handing her my new Curaga, an old Restore I stopped using and my new Blizzaga.

She stared at the three orbs of materia in surprise, accepting them into her waiting palms. "Wow...do I...do I really get to keep these?"

Nodding, I guided her into the kitchen where we grabbed plates, eating increments, and glasses to set the table. "Yup. They're yours now. I'll be stopping by a few days a week to help you with it; don't exactly want you accidentally encasing the house in ice or something."

After we finished setting the table she gazed at me uncertainly. "Thanks, but...are you sure I'll even have to use them?"

"At some point? Yes. Whether it's to defend yourself against creepy humans or violent monsters, I'm sure the time will come when you'll need to use them. Don't worry, it's only a safety measure. I want you to have as much at your disposal as possible so I'm not tossing and turning in bed at night, okay?"

"Yeah, okay," She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. It lasted for a second, until her emerald eyes flickered down to my pants. "Do I want to know why half of your pants are burned off?"

"No, no you do not. It's been a long day anyway," I replied with a tired smile. "I'll grab a pair of sweats from my room. I'm surprised I was even able to stock up on clothing here to be completely honest. Hmm...maybe I can come by more often if I wear, like, a wig and contacts."

Aerith grew a playful grin, her eyes looking me up and down. "Hmm...maybe. Just don't be a blonde. The Turks will never fall for that. Plus you'd look terrible."

I rolled my eyes, slowly walking past her only to speedily poke her in the sides, making her squeal. "Thanks Miss Supportive! Geez, you've gotten really cheeky."

She batted my hands away, laughing with me as she got me back. "And you've gotten really bad with comebacks!"

"Whaat? My comebacks are legit!"

"You-"

"-Okay, the steaks and mac 'n cheese are ready! Autumn, why don't you go grab the salads you prepared?" Mom requested, setting down heavy platters of the roasted meat and oozing, cheesy goodness.

"Sure! Want me to grab the water, too?"

"Yes, thank you sweetheart."

Waltzing back into the kitchen, I grabbed the salads and the pitcher of water, finding it weird that I hadn't been interrupted by any phone calls yet. Oh well, might as well enjoy it while I can.

Once we were all settled, each of us clasped our hands together in prayer.

"Autumn, honey, why don't you say Grace for once? It's not often we have you over for dinner." Mom suggested, confirming it with Aerith, who also urged me to do it.

"Alright, but uh, it's been a while since I've said the official one, so I'm a little rusty..." I admitted a little bashfully. "Ahem...O' Goddess of the Lifestream, thank you for all You have provided for us, both physically and spiritually...uh, what came next?"

"Bless us." Aerith whispered, an amused smile on her pretty face.

"Oh, right. Bless us and this bounty we are about to receive. Amen."

"Amen." Mom and Aerith repeated, opening their eyes and unclasping their hands.

Then Mom started dishing out the steak and mac 'n cheese while my sister and I munched on our salads, chattering away and giggling as if we weren't being hunted or that we were the last two of our kind on the face of the Planet.

"Sooo...have you found your crush from Nibelheim?" Aerith teasingly asked, propping her chin onto her upturned palms.

I tried not to blush, but I still felt the heat flooding into my cheeks. "Err...can we not talk about this now?"

She pouted. "Why not? I've been dying to know about it for weeks!"

Mom quirked a brow. "Oh, really? You two have discussed this before?"

I smiled nervously. "Eheh...maybe? I mean, it's not like I plan to date him or anything. I've got too much going on and-"

"-So you have found him?"

"...uhhh..."

My sister gasped. "You have!" Grinning excitedly, she continued to question me. "How did it go? Have either of you confessed yet? Are you two together? Have you kissed?"

"Goddess, Aerith...it wasn't like I found him by his lonesome; it was on a mission so it wasn't exactly the most romantic of situations. No. No. Aaannnd definitely not. I think I'd tell you if that happened. As in, 'what the heck do I do now?'" I snorted, finishing off my salad and downing some of my water.

"How close do you think the two of you are, exactly?" Mom questioned, eyeing me with suspicion.

I fidgeted, stuffing my face with steak. "Uh...I mean, we grew up together. And now I've been training him whenever I get the chance, so...I guess we're pretty close. He, um...he saved my life, too."

I made sure to add that part on purpose for obvious reasons.

Mom stared at me in surprise as Aerith's grip on her fork tightened. "Did he?"

"Yeah, he...blasted open the doors, cast Cure on me and carried me all the way to the chopper. Apparently he was there at my side the entire time, and was the first to arrive when I was finally allowed to have visitors. Our mutual friends in the infantry spilled everything to me." I smiled faintly, recalling how I always held his hand throughout his visits, as if I feared he was going to disappear.

I didn't want to let go, not then, and not now. Which was a problem, because that was how I had to protect him once I abandoned Shinra. Everyone else except Sephiroth was easy - Sarrel, Tyler and Jason called and texted constantly, but the infantry kept them too busy to persist further, Kunsel and Luxiere were some of the few talented higher class SOLDIERs left, and Zachary was an idiot that made it far too effortless to distance myself from him.

But Cloud was different. Whenever I believed I finally had the conviction to push him away, he called my PHS and I couldn't help but answer, if not to just hear his smooth tenor voice that deepened since we parted ways in Nibelheim. I enjoyed our training sessions as well as the time we spent together afterward. With him, I was just me. No pretense, no masks. I was just plain old Autumn Gainsborough.

"..." Mom was silent, her light blue eyes intensely gazing at me in contemplation.

For some reason, I wasn't the only one holding my breath. When I glanced at Aerith, she was just as nervous and anxious as I felt inside. Oh Shiva, why was this so nerve-wracking?!

"This young man needs to come over so I can properly thank him for saving my daughter's life, and for obviously caring for her so deeply." She smiled, tucking away a few graying brown strands of hair that fell free of her bun.

I released a long breath, grinning at her gratefully. "Yeah, sure. I'll bring him when it's safe and neither of us are working."

Aerith winked at me, her pink lips stretching across her face. It was then I realized just how much I missed them, every second of every day. It felt as if nothing else existed when I sat here, laughing with my mom and sister.

This. This was what I fought for. For a chance to always be able to sit here, laughing with my family without fearing the consequences.

I wasn't sure where Cloud fit into this beautiful picture, but I just knew that now it wouldn't be complete without him or Sephiroth. Zachary was a confusing little extra piece that I had no idea what to do with, but for now I'll just focus on my crush-turned-something-else and silver-haired friend.

A shadow left as quickly as it came across the window, with the faintest glimpse of spiky raven hair.

"Seems like there's a lost puppy outside." I mused, too distracted by the excited exclamations from Aerith and the intrigued questions from Mom to really think about it.

Right now, I was going to let myself be happy for once. Not guilty over people I killed or failed to save, not stressed about leaving, not worried about who to keep by my side or to push away.

All that mattered in this moment was the laughter bubbling from my throat and the warmth radiating in my soul. I was home.

I felt so loved and happy I wanted to cry.

Sephiroth

He had promised Autumn to talk to someone about his...issues, but alas he had no idea who to turn to. Definitely not a Shinra doctor or scientist. He'd rather stab himself with the Masamune than resort to such a drastic measure.

Autumn was busy with her family that she so rightly deserved to visit, Zack was off doing Zack things, and in all honesty they were the only people Sephiroth was truly close to. Since the discovery of his inhuman prowess, the public placed him on a pedestal so high most were too intimidated to approach him, including those who put him there.

So he wasn't surprised when he found himself meandering to the train station in Sector 1 after taking the liberties of wearing a disguise this time (which was really just ditching his trench coat for a shorter leather jacket and hiding his hair in a cap) to head down to the Sector 6 slums.

Due to his uncanny memory, the General recalled the route he took to a particular house he had only visited once: the residence of Lorie and Daniel Frost.

He'd had a good cry by himself, much to his embarrassment, but since Autumn had told him that no one goes without letting a few things off their chest to a listening ear, here he was. That, and she threatened to both approach his fan club regarding the still trending ship name and ban him from ever seeing Buster again. He wished to avoid that headache and never seeing the young dog Sephiroth had taken a shining to.

Sephiroth brought a curled fist up to the wooden door to knock, then hesitated. Was she even home? It was the weekend, but considering how many jobs she worked and the need to support her family, she might have opted to working on the weekends as well.

He chuckled a little under his breath, feeling absolutely ridiculous.

"This is absurd."

But was it, really? Admittedly, this wasn't the best time for a visit, especially to just show up out of the blue and request for Lorie to act as his personal grief counselor or therapist. However, she did tell him to stop by anytime, so here he was. She was nice and kind enough to approach, plus she'd gone through similar circumstances.

So, he finally managed to knock on the door. When he heard footsteps, he released a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding in. They were too clumsy and loud to be Lorie's. They sounded more like Daniel's.

"Who goes there?" He demanded in an amusingly scratchy voice.

"A friend seeking advice." Sephiroth answered, smiling when the door swung open to reveal an excited Daniel.

He saluted, trying to look like a loyal soldier in his tiny body. "Hello, General Sephiroth, sir! What brings you here, sir?"

"At ease. Just Sephiroth will be fine, Daniel. Is Lorie available?" The silver-haired General asked, glancing past the boy into the quaint little house.

"No, she hasn't gotten off her shift at the diner yet. But she'll be back any minute! Wanna come in and wait for her?"

"That is a kind offer, Daniel, but I do not wish to intrude."

"Danny? Who's at the door, sweetie?" An older, weak voice queried.

The child turned away from the silver-haired general to answer her. "Oh, you won't believe it Gran! It's General Sephiroth!"

"What? Are you sure it's not just your imagination again? Why in the world would the famous General wanna visit? What did you do?"

Danny pouted, pulling the door open wider to, with great hope, welcome Sephiroth in. "I didn't do anything! I swear! The General saved Lorie and me!"

"It's 'Lorie and I', child. At least use proper grammar! Oh Goddess, don't tell me he's still standing out there?! Danny, let him in for Shiva's sake! It's getting cold outside!"

The boy stumbled, fumbling with the knob as he ushered the towering man in and locking it behind him while grumbling a response. "Right, right...Sorry Gran..."

Now that the silver-haired man had no choice but to wait for Lorie, he decided to ignore his antisocial tendencies and introduce himself to the sickly grandmother he'd been told about.

"Pardon the intrusion, ma'am. I did not intend to disrupt your evening. I needed to speak with Lorie about a...personal matter, but since she is unavailable I will come by another time." He said politely, reaching the old woman's room.

The door was wide open, but he didn't dare let himself in. So instead, Sephiroth glanced into a room with white walls plastered with painted decorations, a carpeted floor, practical furniture, and the woman herself lying in bed.

Grandma Frost looked healthier than the image he'd pieced together in his mind. Though her complexion was paler than normal, it was not excessively sickly-looking. Her eyes had taken on a dull shine, though. It revealed her tiredness, both physically and emotionally, and her immense pain from her illnesses.

She smiled excitedly at the General, beckoning him in with a hand. "Oh, don't be so shy! Goodness, I never would've guessed that the one and only hero General Sephiroth would pop up at my door, asking for my only granddaughter! Oh my, you're even more handsome in person!"

He smiled awkwardly, as if he didn't agree with her gushing compliments and insinuations, though he dipped his head in her direction regardless. "I...appreciate your flattery, ma'am."

Grandma Frost briefly looked at Danny, who was gazing into her bedroom with his eyes locked onto the General with hopefulness. "Danny, why don't you go into your room and work on your homework?"

He groaned, retreating from the doorway. "Fiinnee. Sorry General Sephiroth sir, I have to go work now. It's been awesome having you here!"

His gran looked at him with a warning glare. He straightened his posture, saluting the General and the old lady.

"Sorry, I mean, it's been a pleasure having your company in our home, sir!...Is that better, Gran?" Danny asked, subtly rolling his eyes in exasperation.

Granny Frost smiled, chuckling a little. Her laughter was throaty and gravelly, accentuating her age. "Yes, good enough."

He grinned back and practically skipped off to his room when Sephiroth saluted back with a small smile of his own.

"So the boy-Daniel goes to school, yet Miss Lorie does not? She probably sacrifices her own education for work in order to pay for his schooling." Sephiroth mused, finding himself admiring the girl's selflessness.

It reminded him of Angeal.

The old woman's gaze returned to Sephiroth, quirking a brow in amusement. "'Ma'am', huh? That's very proper, young man, but I'd much rather prefer Gran, if you don't mind. Or at least Gran Frost. 'Ma'am' is much too official for me."

She took a moment to cough, sounding like she was hacking up a lung. Once it stopped, her arm that had risen to cover her mouth in the crook of her elbow quivered, the energy in it already fading.

Gran Frost sighed, dropping her limp arm back onto her bed. "I hate this situation I'm in, always resting and feeling sick. I wasn't always this way, y'know. Back in my day, I was so tough no one dared mess with me. I was Queen of the Slums back then. And in case you were wondering, yes, there were slums back then even before Shinra came to power as a monopoly. I actually knew the President's father; Benedict Shinra. Ah, that man could sweep you off your feet before you could process what was happening, he was that charming."

"Is that so? I was unaware the President's father and you were acquaintances."

"Oh yes. He said he wanted contacts spread out everywhere to make it easier to connect to all of the people, even down here in the slums. He was a very considerate gentleman, I'll admit that. But once his company took off and kept growing in power, corruption started to sprout in his employees; even his own son. Fortunately, Rufus was able to spend some time with him before he passed, so he isn't completely like his pig of a father." Gran Frost spat, her pale brown eyes flaming with spite.

"Pardon?" Sephiroth frowned, uncomfortable with hearing such insults directed towards his boss.

"Hm, seems I got a bit off-track. Where was I? Oh, right! Queen of the Slums, heheh. Well, 'till I fell in love, that is," she chuckled, glancing at a picture on her bedside table. "I decided, once I got pregnant with Lorie and Danny's father, I'd quit the life. And look at me now; got grandkids protected by my reputation without me really doing anything. 'Course, being bedridden most of the day now isn't all what it's cracked up to be. But I still have my thick list of contacts."

Sephiroth pursed his lips, frowning at her pride while her only granddaughter had indeed not been protected, considering she'd been kidnapped and assaulted by Corneo's men.

"Evidently your contacts are not as reliable as you might believe, Ms-"

"-Gran, young man."

The silver-haired general dipped his head humbly. "Apologies. Gran Frost. Your daughter was assaulted by some dangerous men working for Don Corneo about a week or so ago. And, from what they mentioned before I intervened, she had been apprehended by them previously."

Her face contorted from sickly and kind to purely enraged. "Pardon? Are you saying my only granddaughter got kidnapped by some...some street rat thugs?! And for that perverted mobster no less!? Where the hell was Cass?"

Sephiroth was sure that he did not want to know who Cass even was, but clearly he or she was not doing their job properly. And, judging by the killer intent rolling off of Gran Frost in waves, he/she was not going to make that mistake again if he/she somehow managed to live another day.

At that precise moment, however, the door swung open to reveal an exhausted Lorie, unwrapping the scarf around her neck and pulling off her mittens. "Ah, it's getting cold again. Danny? Gran? I'm home!"

The silver-haired General patiently waited until the dirty-blonde poked her head into her grandmother's room. Her honey brown eyes widened in shock with her jaw hanging open. He wasn't sure if her cheeks were flushed red from the cold, or from him.

"G-G-General Sephiroth! U-umm...what a surprise!" she stuttered, evidently caught off-guard, "Uh, what brings you back here? I mean, not to say you're unwanted here, that is, I just...I mean..."

"I understand what you are attempting to imply. Apologies for the unexpected visit, I do not have a means of contacting you otherwise and I need to speak with you privately." The Masamune-wielder replied gently, resisting the urge to squirm under Gran Frost's intense stare.

"R-right! Um-"

"-Young lady!" Gran Frost abruptly snapped, causing Lorie to jump to attention.

"Y-yes, Gran...?"

The old woman then realized that their guest was standing awkwardly to the side, forgotten. She huffed, easing back into her bed. "We'll talk later about some...incidents that you got into. But, we do have a guest that came all the way down here just to see you. Give me a hug, sweetie."

Lorie complied, slipping a cup of something warm into her hands. "Here's your favorite tea, Gran. I managed to make you a cup before I left my shift at the cafe."

"Oh, thank you. I've been wanting something warm to drink. Alright, we'll talk more later. The General has been kept waiting long enough."

The blonde nodded, turning to nervously smile at the towering silver-haired man. "O-okay. Um, do you mind if we take this conversation to the living room?"

"Of course not. After you." Sephiroth politely gestured towards the door, stepping aside for her to exit.

"T-thank you." She stuttered, her embarrassment affecting her tongue again.

Once they were all settled and seated, Lorie put on a brave face and turned to Sephiroth, who looked just as awkward and nervous as she did.

"So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

His glowing, catlike cyan eyes locked on her honey brown pair. Her eyes were still so warm despite the chilling temperatures, it soothed his worries and doubts about going through with this.

"A friend made me promise to speak to someone of my hardships. I have designated you to be that person, if you do not mind."

Lorie flushed, tucking her hair behind her right ear. "O-oh, well...I am certainly flattered. Yes - I mean, no - I don't mind. Not at all."

She smiled, handing him an extra cup he noticed she'd been holding for a while. "It's decaf green tea. I was saving it for myself, but I think you need it more right now than I do. Besides, I can always brew some here. So...what did you want to talk about?"

"Thank you for the tea. Where do I begin...I suppose I shall start with when I caused Genesis' accident in the training rooms..."

He was very awkward at first, pausing at times to find the right words to say, but Lorie simply sat across from him with her hands folded on her lap, smiling in understanding. After some time though, he found it was becoming easier to open up about everything. He talked for hours, covering every inch of what was bothering him about Angeal and Genesis. And Lorie just sat there patiently for a long time, though she did get up to make a little snack for the two of them, staring at him with her warm honey eyes and open ears.

Sephiroth stayed for dinner. At some point during the course of the meal with the laughter and warmth from the Frost family, he realized he was experiencing what a true family was like. And he found that he enjoyed it very much.

Location: ?

"It's time, my son. Make her hatred grow, and then bring her to me."

"Understood, Mother."

Chartreuse eyes gleamed in the darkness, piercing through the opaque veil of night. Feet silently pounded against hardened, parched soil at an inhuman speed, leaping up ledges and boulders onto cliff-sides.

A midnight-black 'copter came into view, its blades chopping at the air and filling the area with the loud buzz of its propellers. A gloved hand glowed brightly with a bright orange-ish red power, charging up until the chopper came closer. Then, the hand shot out to hit the chopper with a volley of fireballs.

The person responsible leapt up, invading the chopper and quickly slaying the SOLDIERs inside with swift movements from his twin blades. The same blades broke a pair of handcuffs chaining up a certain insane scientist.

"Wh-who are you? Why are you helping me?" The deep, gruff voice of Hollander questioned, his light brown orbs full of fear.

What a disgusting, pathetic creature. But as long as he helped Mother's plans progress further, he wasn't going to complain. As long as it bothered and angered Sister, he would gladly do it again.

A smile spread across his masked face. Everything was going just as planned.

A/N: Annnd there! Done! Sorry for the REALLY LONG WAIT! Between life and writer's block, I've been trying super hard to finally finish this chapter and get it out there! Ugh. Anyways, MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE! As always, please review, favorite and follow!