Back to the story now! Unless you didn't read my remedy for writers block in which case, as you were =3
Disclaimer – I don't own any Square Enix characters, places or events! This is a work of fan fiction, not for profit.
Chapter 16
Breaking barriers
Planet. Lifestream. Mako. Energy…
Meia was having trouble concentrating. Reactor mechanics were, at best, annoying. She tried to focus, but something bothered her. The reactors sucked out the lifestream, but if the lifestream was the planets blood…what would that do to it? It seemed backwards to her. Why take something you can't replace and find that years down the line…you potentially don't have a home anymore? She'd even raised her hand and asked the exact same question to their instructor. He assured her that there was nothing to fear.
She wasn't convinced.
Then there was the experiments involving mako. She remembered the scientist that defected. What had he meant? Clearly there were things going on at Shinra other than just sucking the planet out of the ground, the injection was evidence of that. She clutched her right shoulder, more out of memory than need. The hole, despite looking angry and sore after the injection, had completely healed in only a few days. What mad man possibly thought that was a good idea? Hojo…she reminded herself. She'd never met the man personally, but she knew enough to not want to. Then there was Sephiroth. Even though she was only half conscious at the time, the rage and hatred emanating from him that day in the hospital was frightening. There was something deep between the two of them but she dare not pry. Not yet.
A sucking snore to her left caught her attention. Zack had nodded off again. She firmly jabbed him in the ribcage, waking the bored teen and causing him to look about in astonishment. She shook her head at him before tuning back in to the lecture. Reactor mechanics. Dull.
Towards the end of the lesson however a small messenger entered the auditorium and headed straight for their instructor, exchanging quiet words with him. Then he nodded and pointed straight at her. Meia sat up, thinking she got spotted waking Zack up yet again. But the young man jogged quickly up the steps to her row and handed her a small envelope containing a note. She thanked him quietly and he left under the watchful eyes of the whole class.
Meia stared at the note, aware that quite a few people were watching her. She glanced around nervously before opening it in her lap, where it was relatively shielded from everyone. Except Zack,
Meia
Come to the briefing room after your lecture please.
I have arranged for your usual materia lectures to
Be replaced with personal training sessions from now
on until further notice.
Sephiroth
Zack snatched the note from her and read it closely, before staring at her and mouthing 'you've got to be kidding?!' Meia took the note back, before shrugging.
Once the class was dismissed however, Zack was back to his usual vocal self,
"Do you know how lucky you are?! That guy is a hero!" He said excitedly.
"Yea…I guess he is" Meia replied almost nonchalantly.
"I mean…" Zack carried on as if he's never heard her, "I've heard that SOLDIER's can take people as apprentices of sorts, but your only a third and he's so famous and-"
"Zack, I really have to get going. I've got to get back into the main building and up to the 49th floor in seven minutes. I'm sure being late wouldn't go down well…"
"Oh! Sure…hey, good luck!!!" Zack called to her as she marched away from him.
Sephiroth sat in the briefing room, just finishing up reading mail from Genesis and Angeal. They were currently assigned on a mission without him and from what he was reading, he was glad. He closed his notebook laptop and stood up. 10:28…ten minutes was more than enough time to get to him from the lecture halls. He also reminded himself he was an instructor for the next two hours. Not a friend.
Still, he didn't have to worry as Meia turned up a minute later, looking slightly harassed,
"I'm sorry…I would have been here sooner but everyone wanted to use the lift…"
Sephiroth watched her, amusement playing over his features, before motioning for her to follow him. He led her to the training room, where he fiddled with the settings in the control section. Meia watched as the room transformed into a simple black area, much like the combat program. But various targets and measurement lines were faintly illuminated on the walls, floor and ceiling. Lastly, the windows of the control room were blacked out before the program stated it was ready.
"Why have you tinted the windows?" Meia asked.
"So we don't unwittingly blind anyone who happens to walk in during your lessons" Sephiroth answered her simply and passed her a pair of tinted glasses,
"So we don't unwittingly blind ourselves" He explained with a small smile. Meia took them and put them on after he did the same.
Sephiroth had picked up a slim metal case as walked in, which he then placed on a simple black pedestal,
"Before we start Meia…" He began, the door hissing shut behind her and fading into the illusion of the room, "Remember in here I'm your instructor first, your friend second. Understood? I need you to listen to me this time"
"Of course Sir" She stood to attention.
"Besides, even though the room is soundproofed, I wouldn't want anyone to walk in on anything…unprofessional" He added in an undertone. Meia's lip curled up. She understood what he meant.
"You can stand at ease now. Did you use any materia in the Turks?" Meia shook her head. Sephiroth crossed his arms,
"I understand. What I'm going to teach you, you probably won't find in any text books. Much like reading a manual for a gun. They won't prepare you for what actually using them will be like. Materia is much the same" He turned and opened the case and invited her to step closer. Inside was four rows of materia; two rows on the bottom held small, marble sized orbs while the two rows on the top held much larger samples,
"I assume you know why they are different sizes?"
Meia nodded, "The large ones are more advanced, grown by their user most likely" She explained.
"Very good. This is some of my materia, Meia. I'll teach you to use mine first and then we can work on your own set" He stated, picking up one of the large green orbs and sinking it into his forearm.
"From what I've heard, you try too hard to use materia. Something everyone does at first. I'm going to teach you how to use it with virtually no effort. This isn't something your instructors can do; they simply can't dedicate the one on one time to go through it with each of you"
"So…may I ask why you're teaching me?"
"Save that for afterwards please Meia" He scolded her gently. "We'll start with something that can't cause too much harm for a beginner…" He said, walking towards the centre of the room and beckoned her over to him with a quick flick of his finger. She obeyed and stood before him, Trying to ignore how alluring the gesture was,
"Try and hit me Meia. Anywhere is fine" He instructed her with a slight smirk on his lips. Meia nodded, hesitated, and aimed a punch straight at his solar plexus. Just as she expected to connect, a strange feeling met her fist instead. Like she struck a cool gel pad instead of His body, which instantly halted her assault. She withdrew her hand and rubbed her wrist,
"Barrier, sir?" She volunteered. Sephiroth nodded,
"Barrier will stop and absorb anything physical that comes into contact with it, with varying results depending on the user and the materia's maturity" He told her, extracting the green orb again and handing it to Meia. She looked at it fondly before sinking it into her own arm. The difference between it and normal materia was instantly discernable. She actually felt the throb of power emanating from her forearm where it was now embedded. Sephiroth let her get used to it for a moment, before he started to circle her,
"Now you're going to use it…to stop me" His voice was calm and dead serious. Meia looked over her shoulder at him as he moved behind her,
"Just like that? I-I still don't know how to use it properly…" She stammered. Sephiroth was in front of her again, wearing a look of amusement. Without warning, he drew his left hand back and into a fist, his leather coat creaking as his muscles tightened in preparation to deliver a punch. Meia yelped ever so slightly and brought her hands up to defend herself. Even though she felt the materia react a little she still felt the puff of air that was traveling in front of his fist as it was driven towards her face and she hoped it would stop him. Moment later she felt not a solid punch, but a gentle, firm, poke to her forehead. She opened her eyes and stared down his left arm, all the way up to his bemused face,
"Any barrier you did manage to erect instantly fell as you lost focus and panicked…" He advised her softly. Meia was half furious; half relieved, and batted his finger away from her head,
"How am I meant to form a barrier when you do that? I had no warning!" She said heatedly. Sephiroth looked down his nose,
"Real life won't give you any warnings Meia. By the end of this I expect you to be able to defend against an attack like that, preferably with a punch attached" He stated firmly. Meia looked away and chewed her bottom lip. He had a point, of course he did.
For the next thirty minutes, Sephiroth calmly and patiently taught her how to feel the materia. Not to use it…
"…Feel it" He coached her gently. Currently they were holding their left hands up to each other's, palms pressed firmly together. Meia stared at her smaller hand contained in his and shook off her distraction yet again. It was no use; she couldn't feel anything except the slight pressure of him pushing back. She dropped her hand in frustration,
"I can't do it, I can't feel anything…" She told him. Sephiroth pursed his lips and moved to retrieve something from the pedestal, before joining her again. He carefully removed her glasses and hooked them on one of the metal loops on the front of his coat. The he circled around her again and stood close, slipping a soft silk blindfold over her eyes and tying it firmly,
"Can you see anything?" He asked her. She shook her head,
"Not a thing…."
"Good. We'll remove as many sensory barriers as we can to help you. I assure you; once you get it you won't forget how to do it ever again"
Meia felt him move in front of her again and grasp her left hand, where he peeled her glove off and asked her to hold her hand up again and start from the beginning. He instructed her to feel the materia in her forearm, something which was relatively easy due to its power. Then he pressed his hand against hers again and told her feel the materia pushing his hand away. At first it was no better than the first time she'd tried. But she found, without her sight to distract her, it was a lot easier to follow his coaching. She even noticed how quiet he was. She had to strain to hear him breathing. Eventually…she pushed his hand away with the Barrier materia. It was only a small separation but she could defiantly feel it. And like he promised, once she'd done it, she found she could do it again and again.
"Very good, Meia. Take a five minute break" He praised her and removed her blindfold. She saluted and went to get a drink of water. Sephiroth sighed. She wasn't terrible, but she wasn't good either. He found her easier to coach once she was blindfolded and he half toyed with the idea of making her wear it all the time. Still, she'd made good progress for only an hour's worth of teaching and he had to admit she was easier to coach than most people seemed to be. Just as she was nearly six months ago as a Turk. He wasn't naturally patient with most people he met and under normal circumstances, would have given up by now.
But this wasn't normal, it was Meia. And he'd never coached anyone before her, let alone one-on-one. He'd get used to it. Secretly, any chance to spend time with her he gladly accepted. For some reason he felt better when she was close. He felt calmer, more at peace. He hated to admit it to himself out of guilt. Guilt felt towards Angeal and Genesis. Of course he was fond of them too, but no matter how much he searched, he couldn't find the same feeling from them as he felt from Meia.
At the end of her first training session, Meia was confident in her ability to push Sephiroth's hand away from her own and was thoroughly disappointed when he dismissed her. Still, she had a feeling she wouldn't be as quick a study as he was meaning their lessons would continue for quite a while. She began to walk away but a firm throat-clearing stopped her and she turned. Sephiroth strode up to her and grasped her left hand,
"Where do you think you're going with that, hmm?" He asked her gently, pulling her arm up at the same time. Meia shrugged off her momentary confusion and realised she was happily striding off with his materia still. She watched him extract it and place it back in its case.
"Sorry Sir" She said sheepishly. He smiled at her, confident they were relatively alone,
"Are you heading down for lunch?"
"Yes Sir, I am. Do you want to…join me?"
"Join you? Would that be classed as special treatment?" He pretended to muse. Meia smiled and turned to walk away, Sephiroth following closely.
Meia had the rest of the afternoon free from classes or training so she could afford to relax a little. When they got in the elevator however, Sephiroth didn't select the floor for the canteen. He sent the lift all the way down to the ground floor. Seeing Meia's puzzled look, he explained although it cost a bit more there was a place he wanted to take her. She didn't argue with him. For one she saw it as practically a mini date and two…what else did she have to spend her wages on? Shinra provided her room at no cost, the canteen was cheap and she didn't go out very much. She still had plenty of money left even after her cut in pay. She was paid much more as a Turk…
They emerged into the cool afternoon air of the city. The layer of smog hung over their heads as usual making what should have been a nice spring day feel as gloomy as winter. In a bad way. Sephiroth led them to the residential building, explaining he needed to drop the materia case back in his room.
"Do you mind if I change out of my uniform? The wool they use for the roll necks is…itchy" Meia asked while they rode the glass elevators upwards. Sephiroth seemed to think a moment before nodding,
"Good idea"
They joined each other in the lobby about ten minutes later, and Meia was surprised to see Sephiroth had changed also. When he saw her face, he quickly explained,
"It's getting harder and harder for me to walk about unrecognised. If I take my uniform off, that's eighty percent of my identity removed" He spoke matter of factly, and sounded slightly exasperated. It wasn't a boast, it was a fact. Meia nodded. He looked much more his age now. Sporting fashionably ripped jeans and cream ribbed roll neck finished off with a chocolate brown coat and pastel striped scarf. She loved how it softened his appearance. He was commanding and imposing dressed totally in black. Probably why he did it, now she thought of it. She blinked a few times and snapped out of her thoughts.
They walked side by side to the sector eight train station where they boarded a locomotive to sector two, where Sephiroth assured Meia their destination was. On the train he attracted a few glances but no one bothered them. Once in sector two, Sephiroth led her towards the outer edge of the plate to a sweet side street which was filled with character café's and eateries. There were also bars and odd little curiosity shops. Soft comfortable chairs and sofas were laid out on the sidewalks and the whole place had a wonderfully homey feel to it. It was like its own little district. Then the smell hit her. The delicious smell of freshly ground coffee only better. Sephiroth chuckled as he watched Meia react to it,
"Here we are. I assume you can smell why I brought you here" He said holding the door open to a beautiful looking café. Meia stepped in and observed the menu board,
"There's so many…I've never seen anything like it"
"They get their coffee beans from the Cosmo canyon area apparently. More expensive, but meant to taste better. And they roast in house. Which one would you like?" Sephiroth asked her. Meia looked over the board one more time before making her request to the lady smiling at them from behind the counter.
"You must be the person Sephiroth was talking about the other week, am I right?" She asked while preparing Meia's order. He nodded and explained the lady and her family owned the whole alley and was the place that Genesis, Angeal and himself came too after their mako injections. Food, drink and comfort all in one. With the added bonus of discretion. They could let their hair down without having to worry about press or being harassed by rude members of the public. Meia liked it there already. She received her drink gratefully and sniffed the aroma; it smelt delicious. She took a sip and instantly her entire body seemed to exhale with pleasure. It was the best coffee she'd tasted.
Sephiroth led her outside to the heated seating area and sat down on a worn, old, comfy looking brown leather sofa. Meia sat next to him and curled herself around her coffee cup. Sephiroth's homework had seemingly paid off. He watched her; she almost radiated contentment and for a moment, he longed to pull her close to his body and feel what it was like to be as happy as she was now,
"Do you like it then?" He asked her gently. She looked at him with her bright blue eyes and simply smiled. The smile, he noticed, she reserved for him only. It was her way of saying 'thank you' that words alone couldn't convey. His heart fluttered and he looked away again, the tell-tale warmth of a flush creeping up his face.
Sephiroth then started talking about her materia training, confirming he'd managed to arrange her coaching indefinably. Unless he was called away or on a mission, in which case she was to attend her lectures as normal.
"So, why did you offer to train me personally?" She queried of him. She'd removed her shoes and drawn her legs up on the sofa and was currently sitting so she was facing him. He thought a moment before replying,
"Because Meia, you have potential to be an amazing SOLDIER. And I'm the one who got you in the mess you're in now. I felt it necessary"
"Necessary? You felt guilty you mean…" She pressed. Sephiroth opened his mouth to speak, but he didn't have anything to say so he closed it again.
"Ah…I'm sorry. I shouldn't keep bringing that up in that way" Meia sighed. She knew, despite his calm demeanour, he kept his feelings under lock and key. Bringing up his decision like that only caused more emotion to be squeezed into the already full bottle.
"It doesn't matter. I'm just glad…" His voice softened, "…that you don't hate me for it" This was the first time he'd finished a particularly emotional sentence with what he was actually thinking. Rather than just a fob-off. He looked at her; his usually tightly slitted pupils were wider in the dim, fading light of the already dull afternoon. His eyes are so beautiful…Meia thought. They stared at each other, lost in their own feelings, for a few moments more before the cheery lady popped her head out and asked if they needed anything, breaking the spell.
What little light there was started fading fast now, and soft lamps flickered to life bathing the seating area in a soft, warm glow. The air started getting colder and Meia clutched her coat close to her, sinking down into the worn leather. They had been talking for a while now, about this and that. Mostly on the topic of materia. Sephiroth was trying to explain that using the stuff was an art and 'feeling' it was a lot easier in the long run. Meia remarked that she hoped he knew what he was getting himself into. He simply laughed and said it would take as long as it took. This made her smile. Sephiroth's phone then rang and he flicked it open,
"Hello Genesis…you're back already? Of course not….no…Calcifur's Den. Meia…ok" And he hung up.
"Everything alright?" Meia asked, zipping her coat up. Sephiroth frowned,
"Genesis is home early…without Angeal…" He said slowly.
"You don't sound thrilled with that…" Meia stated. Sephiroth looked at her,
"He may have had an 'episode'" He said quietly, and explained when Meia gave him a quizzical look, "Genesis can…be rather strong headed at times. Those two have known each other since childhood but they still have the odd falling out" He rubbed the back of his head slowly, "He's on his way here now"
Meia pursed her lips, "Maybe I should go then, I need to take a swim anyway"
Sephiroth had to fight to contain his look of disappointment, and managed to pass it off as concern and worry. Meia slipped her shoes on and stood up,
"Thank you for bringing me here. It was a lovely surprise" She smiled down at him, "Good luck with Genesis"
Sephiroth watched her walk away and re-join the now rush hour crowd. He sighed and couldn't help but feel a twinge of resentment towards Genesis. He quickly told himself that wasn't fair though. There would be plenty of time to spend with Meia. Besides, now he thought about it, he didn't dare refuse Genesis an audience, he would be in a bad enough mood as it was. Sephiroth shivered; he felt cold all of a sudden. Cold and exposed…
Sephi…roth….
He blinked. Was he hearing things? He thought he only heard voices in his dreams…lingering between sleep and consciousness. Not out in the open…He frowned and looked about. There was no one else with him. He tucked his chin into his scarf and waited for Genesis, part of him longing for the comfort only one person seemed too able to bring him.