Variables
Genesis had to blink in surprise as Doctor Crescent came into his room with a smile about an hour and a half later than she usually visited in the morning, but had no time to ponder that or speak as she beat him to it. "So, I trust you're feeling fine?" she asked.
"I have been for days now," he replied dryly.
"Of course, largely because your cells hadn't entered a state of mass die-off," she agreed. "And you recall my saying why I was keeping you here?"
"To be sure my cells started regenerating with the injection you gave me, if I recall correctly," he blinked.
The woman nodded and told him, "As of this morning, the blood sample the nurse took showed significant improvement to the state of your cells—they're restoring and revitalizing themselves. I'll want another sample from you in a few weeks to see if the progression rate is holding—in which case, your cells will all or nearly all be healthy—but otherwise, you can go now. You'll be on a reduced workload until I can verify you're recovered, which Lazard knows, so he shouldn't give you anything which will over-strain your body. No, it also won't be the kinds of tasks given to Thirds, it'll be the kind given to Seconds or new Firsts, so not too far below what you're used to, either."
Feeling bemused by her explanation, Genesis had to ask, "So exactly what kind of 'strain' are you worried about if it's apparently not really 'physical' by the work you're still letting Lazard give me?"
"There's a point of stress—mental, emotional, physical—which causes a transition between manufactured Mako and direct activation of J-cells," Lucrecia answered bluntly, and he blinked in surprise. "The Mako from the Reactors is what's used in your infusions, and it has a limit to what it can repair only on its own power. The extra boost skilled Firsts have to act at the level you're capable of comes from the Mako reaching its limit and triggering compensation from the J-cells in your bodies to meet the difference. Right now, we don't want to strain your J-cells, otherwise we would risk triggering a mass die-off before enough of them have been repaired, so we're limiting you to what the Mako itself can do for you. Which doesn't negate the potential of you being injured in such a way as to cause mass die-off, so you know. We're not being so careful we'd have to keep you in a box for the next three weeks."
The red haired man first gaped in surprise, then blinked as he processed the words, then snorted and chuckled as he gave his head a shake. "I think you'd run the risk of me activating my own cell die-off if you tried to keep me here for the next three weeks."
"We realized that," Lucrecia answered in dry amusement. "So, any questions before I leave you to dress and head out?"
For a moment, Genesis paused, then commented slowly, "The General approached me to offer lessons on the use of my new wings." The woman blinked in mild surprise, but motioned for him to go on, so he asked, "Is it true getting those lessons would give Jenova less ability to control me again?" At least he now knew no one else had been behind Sephiroth making the offer—he had done it entirely himself.
For a moment, the woman just gazed at him evenly, then sighed and said, "Sephiroth spent three weeks struggling with her for control of his own body after his first activation of those wings." Genesis blinked, and she went on, "The effect she had was stronger when he was actively accessing her J-cells for something—like using his wings. What kept breaking her hold on him was how everything he found out about their use gave her one less avenue to cajole him into listening to her 'because she could teach him things no one else could'. We were all lucky Vincent has Chaos, and Chaos could teach him those things in Jenova's place. So, would those lessons be useful in keeping her from gaining control of you again?"
"Yes..." the red haired man breathed, a cross between stunned and horrified. The woman nodded, so he asked, "And I guess the same is true about any...past issues which would instinctively make me try to reject my wings, or other abilities coming from the J-cells?"
"You mean trauma from your childhood?" she asked, head tipped to the side. He was thankful she wasn't really showing emotion regarding the topic, just mostly taking it as data in order to give him answers.
"I don't know if it counts as 'trauma', exactly, but there are unpleasant things in my childhood which do admittedly still affect me now," he agreed, being deliberately vague. He hadn't actually intended to tell Sephiroth before, and he didn't want to share any details again now.
"Then yes. Theoretically, anything in your childhood which still affects you now is a potential foothold for her, but the ones which would have the greatest likelihood of her taking advantage of are the ones which directly reference or relate to her cells. And for your own well-being, dealing with those things from your past—all of them—would be beneficial. How much you do towards that and how quickly is up to you, but I do know a woman who could help you work through those things, and she's not affiliated with Shinra, so anything you discuss with her will stay private. If you decide you'd like her help, just let me know," Lucrecia offered. "Was there anything else you wanted to ask?"
"You want to send me to a shrink?" Genesis snorted in amusement.
"She's not one, actually," the Doctor replied in amusement, and he stared. "She's not going to handle you or what you tell her in the way they normally do because she intrinsically sees the world differently from the average person. Your meetings with her would be off the clock and on your own time. No one will be paying anything, unless she asks you for help with heavy lifting or whatever on a particular day, and there will actually be no official record of your meetings. What I know from personal experience is that her method works, which is why I recommend her to people who need the perspective and support she can give. I also even go to her sometimes for advice in dealing with patients. So, if you decide at any time to see if she can help you sort yourself out, I'll get you in touch with her, and the rest will be up to you."
"...Oh," the man replied, not sure how else he could respond.
"Anything else?" she asked after a short pause.
"No, I'm all good for right now," he said, still just staring at her.
"Good. Head out, then. You know where to find me if you need anything, and I'll be in touch with you in a few days with your appointment date for that—hopefully last—blood test." Lucrecia gave him a final nod, then left the room so he could dress.
It took him a few minutes to get himself moving, but then he quite eagerly dressed, gathered his things, and made his way out of the hospital room and towards the lobby. In the lobby, he found Angeal waiting, and the two greeted one another with hugs.
Then, a bubbly, "Hi, Genesis!" reached his ears, and he looked around Angeal's side to see Shelke standing there with a grin, and beside her was an older girl who glared at him suspiciously through her glasses. The older girl, if memory served him, would be Shalua, the older of his two younger sisters. "Ignore Shalua," Shelke added, seeing her sister's glare. "She's suspicious of everyone, even our dad and Auryn."
He laughed and said, "That's not entirely a bad thing, you know, Shelke," even as the older girl threw the younger one an annoyed glare.
"That's what I said, too," Angeal agreed in amusement. "So, back to your room?"
"Yeah, I need to get properly cleaned up before I do anything," Genesis agreed. "Then we can decide what we want to do until whenever you girls need to leave."
"We have to meet our dad for supper," Shalua offered, still looking suspicious. "Otherwise—we each should have had another class this afternoon, but the teacher for the Materia class canceled all of them. And Shelke didn't have to meet that Reeve guy today, either, so she insisted we meet you instead."
"...'That Reeve guy'?" Genesis repeated in amusement. "You do realize you're talking about one of the Shinra executives, right?"
"Don't care after those sort-of SOLDIERs tried to kidnap Shelke. I don't even like Shinra, even if their Academy offers some good classes. If I'd have had to work for Shinra by taking those classes, I'd have said no," Shalua answered bluntly, and both men's eyes widened marginally.
"But Mr. Reeve is nice! And Lady Shinra, too!" Shelke piped up, clearly whining at the older girl.
"Okay, let's go up to my apartment, then," Genesis cut in, grinning as he motioned them to follow him. They all did, even as he wondered if it was safe for Shalua to say things like that in public places in the Shinra building.
FoWD
The Wutain girl had woken later than normal that morning and borrowed more snack foods to eat. Then, she'd heard the other door in the apartment bedroom open, so she dove back into her nest in the cupboard. There were some 'moving cloth' sounds from the bedroom, then the sound of that door closing again reached her, and she wondered what that had been about. After waiting the required several minutes to be sure the man had left (since she was sure it was mostly just him coming in), she carefully got up and made her way softly to the room—only to pause at the door as she realized someone was laying in the bed.
She blinked, then slowly crept forward, curiosity over who it was getting the better of her. The person had been placed so they were mostly covered and facing the side of the bed towards the proper bedroom door, so it was closer to the side she was on, anyway. She was also sure whoever it was—the person wasn't a kid, though—was sleeping by the sound of their breathing, so she was pretty sure just looking would be okay, and she wouldn't get caught.
Until she was close enough to their head to be able to shuffle the sheet and blanket aside—
And a hand suddenly seized her wrist and yanked her, causing her to yelp as she found herself on her back, laying on the bed and being pinned down by a young man with long, golden hair and gold eyes like a cat's. At first, he looked completely disoriented and she was afraid he would hurt her—but then his eyes cleared and he sighed out, "Yufi Kisaragi..." A moment later, he'd groaned and released her, dropping back to the bed beside her on his belly, his arms wrapped around his head as she tried to work out what him knowing her on sight meant.
Then, the door opened as that man from before asked worriedly, "What's wrong, Aur—E—" Her gaze lifted to him in alarm as a man with orange hair and in the Turks' uniform froze to stare at her.
"Kariya, meet Emperor Godo's daughter, Yufi Kisaragi. She's a thief primarily, and shockingly good at keeping secrets. No, you're not going to hurt her or try to ransom her back to her father—I really don't want to be on his hit list for 'kidnapping' his daughter," the blond recited in a bland tone (other than the words he'd emphasized, those had sounded strained) muffled by his arms and the material of the pillow.
Both of the other two just stared at him in shock (didn't the Turk know the blond well enough to not be shocked?), and the girl thought about bolting.
The Turk ruined her chance for that by rounding the bed and offering a hand to her as he said, "Up you get, then, Princess." She took the hand and let him pull her to her feet, then the man asked the blond, "So, what do you want us to do with her, then?"
To her surprise, the younger man snorted and replied, "Put her in Turk training. Trust me, she'll be fantastic at it. And discipline her the same way you would another Turk or one of your kids if they pulled the kind of shit she will."
"...And her living arrangements?" Kariya asked, sounding suddenly bemused.
"Wherever she's willing to actually stay. If that's here, then it's here. If it's with someone like Tseng, Illis, or Genesis, let her stay there. She's a lot better behaved that way," the blond answered tiredly, still not moving.
"Hold on, how do you know so much about me? And how do you even know I'll like training as a Turk—as one of the bad guys?" Yufi asked suddenly, still just staring at the blond when she wasn't glancing at the entirely bemused Turk still holding one of her wrists.
"You're Wutain. Can you really not think of a way?" he asked her in reply, and her eyes widened as she realized he meant Leviathan's Blessing. "As for you liking it...You'll see for yourself once you get used to the way they handle you."
"So...How often does this happen?" Kariya asked before Yufi could reply.
"Often enough. Not normally just like this, but I've never met her first at the Palace, it's always been somewhere else, normally somewhere she wasn't supposed to be," the blond sighed. "This is the first time she's managed to get to Midgar alone at age nine. Then again, it's also the first time Shinra and Wutai haven't been at war at this point in time, either."
"I'll introduce her to Lady Shinra, then," Kariya agreed, still completely bemused. "Ed, is there a particular reason you don't want her father mad at you?"
"...His brand of torture is easily as bad as Tseng's. That's only happened twice, but it's not something a person forgets easily." The blond's words made Yufi's eyes widen in horror—her father wouldn't torture someone, especially not over her, but Leviathan's Blessing meant it happened in some future he was probably trying to change.
"Is it just me or do Wutains have a bad habit of being presented as psychotic torturers?" the Turk asked with a terse expression. That left the girl puzzled.
"Don't forget that there's easily as many people in these lands I've learned to fear in the same way for the same reason, Kariya," the blond—had the Turk called him 'Ed'?—said in an almost bland tone. "The only thing you can actually say about a Wutain is that, if they set out to do something, they're going to do it right. By extension, if they set out to save people, they most likely will, but if they set out to torture them to death...Well, they don't do anything half-way, unlike most of the people outside Wutai."
"...And Yufi? If you called her a thief, and Wutains don't do anything half-way..." At least the Turk had the sense to ask that.
"She's still a kid and can be re-trained to stop doing it, just like any kid. Well, unless they're soulless," the blond shrugged. "Can I please go back to sleep now?"
Kariya snorted and said, "Fine, fine. Rest, Ed, and don't worry about Yufi." He then used the grip he had on her wrist to pull her from the room through the extra door—which led to the bedroom of the next apartment over. From there, after he shut the door, he led her to the main room of his apartment, sat her at the table, and pulled out his PHS (she was glad to know she'd guessed right about that) to make a call to 'Lady Shinra'. After that, he started cooking, and she just waited warily for what would happen next, swinging her legs to use up the energy she wanted to be able to use so badly...
FoWD
Cloud was very nervous—upset, even—as he waited to find out if he'd be able to go to Shinra with the Turks. At least he knew they hadn't left town yet, but it was already noon and he hadn't heard from them. He couldn't eat and was so jittery he couldn't even just sit at the table, causing his mother to order him to start folding clothes from the laundry she'd done the day before and that morning. So, because he couldn't eat anyway and wouldn't have been able to focus on anything else, he just folded the clothes, something he at least was doing well enough for his mother to ignore him.
When a knock came on the door, he almost jumped out of his skin, and his mother got up to answer it, asking the person outside, "How can I help you?"
"I'd like to speak with Cloud, please," a familiar voice said, but until his mother had invited the man in and he could see his uniform, he wasn't able to put a name to him.
When he saw the man, he rose from where he'd been sitting folding the laundry and asked, "Verde, does this mean I did pass?"
The older blond's eyes found his after scanning over the room, and he replied to the query with, "I thought we already established the fact that you were doing things right from the start? Come join me at the table—and please eat. It's going to be a long flight to Midgar."
Cloud blushed as he realized the man had seen his uneaten meal—and probably knew he hadn't been able to eat because of nerves. In his defense, he said, "Nothing ever goes well for me, and waiting was hard because the longer I waited, the more I thought I hadn't been chosen after all..." He made his way to the table, though, and began eating, something he could do now because he was assured he'd be going with them. "Don't you just need to tell me to pack?"
"How does that help you if we don't tell you what you're packing for?" Verde asked in reply, and the boy blinked. "And in this case, that means a need for a discussion, because it's not as simple as saying 'you're bound for this department' and leaving it at that. Like with Miss Lockhart, two others in town we could be so simple with because there was no question of where their strengths were, but your results are too open-ended for that, and I'm pretty sure you never even gave thought to the options I can give you."
"...Open-ended?" Cloud asked in confusion as his mother sat beside him at the table. "What happened with my testing for you to say something like that?"
"The tests we run are actually arranged so we can find people who will do well in any department in Shinra, even though our traditional focus is on SOLDIER and the Turks, in that order. We also look for engineers, scientists, accountants, secretaries—you name it," Verde explained. "There are score ranges in the five parts, as well as a sixth, over-all assessment we do during the process, which can change the results of where a person could end up, and the combat test additionally directs placement into the various departments. It's complex and I won't go into all the details, but the scores you got placed you in three categories—SOLDIER, though that's a bare thing and it would be very hard on you, the Turks, and Weapons or Urban Development as an engineer."
Both Cloud's and his mother's eyes widened at the words, but after a moment, the older man went on, "On principle, you could choose any one of them as themselves. If you decide you don't want to fight after all, engineering is your best bet, but if you want that combat element, that's SOLDIER or the Turks. In SOLDIER, you'd have to start as a Cadet with no guarantee of success. However, as the Turks, we have an additional option—you could train in engineering while being a Turk. That would mean one of your primary functions in our unit would be to develop gear for us to use—weapons, various devices, armor, and so on. You'll still have the same work as any other Turk, and we have another engineer you'd be able to work with in our ranks, but she honestly works more with vehicles than with things like weapons and tools. If that's not something you want to explore, the Turks will still be open to you, and we'll capitalize on your speed and agility."
"How do you even know Cloud has skill in engineering?" Mrs. Strife asked in confusion. "He's never shown signs like that before."
"Did he 'not show' them, or did he never have a chance to try?" Verde asked shrewdly, and her eyes widened as she looked at her son. "One of the tests we ran was to hand everyone a damaged piece of engineering—in his case, it was a gun. Only people who have an engineering mind can, or will bother to, tell me as much as he observed about it, and we've found almost half our engineers with that test. He has a natural affinity for it, and would honestly do well with it in one of the engineering departments. The same is true for him being a Turk, even if there are obviously aspects he would need to work on if he joined us, like his ability to deal with people. Those are things we can, and will, do for someone with an observational skill and the sheer gall he has—things Turks need in spades. Though, during the testing, he mentioned to me a desire to join SOLDIER, so that's not completely off the table either."
"Are you offering SOLDIER just because that was where he was aiming?" the woman asked with a frown.
"No, Ma'am," the Turk answered in amusement. "He actually scored high enough in the things he needed to in order to qualify, it was just a near thing." His gaze moved to Cloud's as she blinked in surprise, and the man asked, "So, which way do you want to take things?"
"...You're not really giving me much time to decide..." Cloud pouted at him. Verde's brow rose and the boy blushed faintly. "...If I hadn't been thinking about it since the test yesterday..."
"And?" the older blond asked, sounding amused.
"...Do you know, I kept thinking about two things after I finished the test yesterday?" the boy asked, and Verde tipped his head to the side. "Something else about the gun kept bothering me, and I never thought I'd actually be interested to know more, or care if someone offered me more. I never thought that meant I was interested in engineering, but...I was also thinking about how you said Turks can even beat SOLDIERs, but the Turks aren't enhanced. Then, if I want to actually be as strong as I can be, I'd have to join the Turks, even if it means I won't be some hero in the news."
Verde smiled at the words, but Cloud went on, "About that gun...Didn't the barrel split because of something inside the gun?" The older blond's eyes widened in amazement, and the boy went on, "It was a test weapon with a new kind of bullet, but something went wrong and damaged the gun, but for some reason, once it started shooting, it wouldn't stop without something stopping the bullets from moving. That would also mean the bullets were larger than normal ones, and weren't being fired with gunpowder, otherwise the gun would be in pieces. Am I right?"
"Definitely an engineer," Verde replied by way of an answer.
For a long moment, the younger blond eyed him, then asked, "Could I test how doing engineering while training as a Turk goes, and switch to just one or the other if it doesn't work out?"
"I'm sure we can arrange that," Verde agreed. "That means you need to be prepared to take with you any weapons, gear, or equipment you have on hand, as well as clothes, both civilian and any meant for skills you train in. You may not have formal or even assigned clothes for combat training, and since you weren't aware you had engineering skill, you likely don't have anything in that line, but if you do, please take it with you. We may ask someone from Weapons or Urban Development to handle your engineering training, but otherwise, your training will be with the Turks. Who will take charge of you will depend on how Vincent and Verdot, the Director and his Second, work things out, so that will happen when we get back to Midgar. You'll stick with me when we disembark."
"Okay. How soon do I have to be packed?" the boy asked.
"Think you can manage within an hour?" Verde asked in reply. After a pause, the blond boy nodded, so he said, "Good, because that's how long you have, give or take a few minutes. Now that you've eaten, go get started on your packing. When you're done, head to Shinra Manor—we should be at the helicopter in the front yard by the time you get there. Also, since you're now bound for the Turks, you're welcome to sit in the front of the chopper with me for part or all of the flight if you like."
"Okay," Cloud agreed, so Verde rose, nodded to his mother, and left.
"Are you really sure you want to do this, Cloud?" his mother asked, reaching out to hug him tightly.
"Yes, Mom...I'm sure. I don't have a life here, so..." he answered softly, hugging her back just as tightly. "I'll miss you."
"Take care of yourself and write to me every few weeks, okay?" she requested, letting him go.
"I will," he agreed, then rose to pack.