By: General Quistis (samaralockheartshinra@yahoo.com) and Zhakeena (zhakeena@yahoo.com)
Disclaimer: We don't own anything but the story plot. Gyah! Any resemblance to any other plots is purely coincidental…
General Quistis's Note: Gomen nasai… I'm sorry… pardon me… but due to confusion, I just named one of the insert characters Samara…. ;_; I know it's a recycled name from my other fic Claiming Tifa… but hey, it's a nice name, right? ;_; gyah… -.-' Anyway, back to the story…
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"Excuse me, madam,"
Lucrecia turned around when she heard someone call her attention. She smiled uneasily at the familiar-looking woman with long dark hair and crimson eyes. She hasn't seen that woman for seven years already… but she hoped that the woman wouldn't recognize her. "After all, I'm wearing different clothes…" she thought silently.
"Yes, ma'am?" Lucrecia asked.
"I seem to be lost. I'm supposed to meet my husband at the newly-built hotel here in Nibelheim but I don't know where it is," the woman said.
Lucrecia felt relieved that the woman did not seem to recognize her, but her thoughts were interrupted when she felt someone tug at her skirt. It was her six-year old son. "Mom, let's go back home. I'm hungry already," he said with an annoyed look in his green eyes.
"Just a moment, honey," Lucrecia replied before turning back to the woman who was looking strangely at the little boy.
For sure, everyone thought that her son was abnormal because of the unusual color of his hair: silver. Plus, he was very smart and despite his age, he could qualify for ninth grade.
"It's two blocks away from here. You can tell your chauffer to take a right turn at the next street and go straight ahead. It's the beige-colored building." Lucrecia told the woman.
Tifa Lockheart ShinRa turned back to Lucrecia with a curious look on her face. "D…do I know you?" she asked.
Lucrecia raised her eyebrows at her and shook her head in disagreement. "I'm afraid not, ma'am. Excuse me," she said before grabbing her son's hand and dragging him with her to the direction of the ShinRa Mansion.
"Mrs. ShinRa," Tifa was interrupted when she heard Elena's voice from inside the black limousine. Tifa turned back to the limo and approached it. After she got inside, she decided to look outside and follow the woman and the little boy with her gaze, but to her surprise, they were gone.
"Is anything wrong, Mrs. ShinRa?" Elena asked.
Tifa turned back to Elena with a weak smile on her face. It has been seven years ever since Vincent and Lucrecia had disappeared. "N…nothing… I just thought I've seen Lucrecia… but anyway, let's just get going. Rufus is waiting for us," she said weakly.
Elena blinked before turning to the chauffer. "Let's go, man." She commanded.
***
"We're home!"
Vincent closed the book that he was reading as he smiled happily at the sound of Lucrecia's voice. He got up when his little boy ran to him happily. "Daddy!" the little boy exclaimed excitedly with open arms.
Vincent embraced him and carried him up on his shoulder. "Hello, Sephiroth. Did you help mommy with the groceries?" he asked.
Sephiroth nodded happily. "Of course, daddy." He replied.
Lucrecia smiled as she watched Vincent and Sephiroth head together for the dining area. She followed closely behind them. "Careful, Vinny. You might hit Sephiroth's head again on those arches," she warned.
"Don't be silly, Lucrecia. Sephiroth is practically safe when it comes to me carrying him up my shoulder. Isn't that right, son?" he asked with a wink as he looked up at him.
"Heheh… you said it daddy!" Sephiroth said happily.
Upon reaching the dining area, Vincent settled Sephiroth on the floor again. The little boy with silver hair and green eyes rushed to his seat and sat down.
Vincent sat down at the head of the table and noticed the worried look on Lucrecia's face. "Anything wrong?" he asked.
She sat down uneasily and clasped her hands together on her lap. "I… I just saw Tifa Lockheart today… remember her?" she asked.
Vincent frowned slightly. "Yes, of course. I do remember her… but I think she's already a ShinRa based from the newspapers that I've read," he said.
Lucrecia bowed down her head. "Figures… just looking at her clothes…" she muttered.
Sephiroth frowned slightly as he observed his parents and listened further to their conversation.
"Where did you see her?" Vincent asked.
She looked up at her husband, "Sephiroth and I were on our way home when this limousine stopped. I pretended not to see it so I just turned away, but I think she personally got down from the limo to ask for directions. She said that she's going to meet Rufus in the newly-built hotel a little bit far from here." She said.
"Rufus is here?" he asked.
"Vincent, what if they find us?" she asked.
"Are we hiding from someone?" Sephiroth chimed in.
The two fell silent as they turned to Sephiroth.
"No, we're not, Sephiroth." Lucrecia replied with a stern look on her face.
He blinked and stared up at his mother before getting his spoon and fork and started eating.
With that, Lucrecia turned back to Vincent. "They're here in Nibelheim. What if they decided to inspect this place since this is Rufus's old home? I think Tifa even suspected that it's really me just when I thought that she failed to recognize me already because my clothes are different… but I saw her staring at Sephiroth like she knew him and there was fear in her eyes too…"
Vincent shook his head. "I don't know, Lucrecia… I haven't heard from Cloud, Aerith or Tifa for a long time already… I doubt if they're still interested in finding our whereabouts." He said.
Sephiroth accidentally dropped his spoon on his plate upon hearing those names.
Vincent and Lucrecia turned their gazes to him.
He smiled sheepishly and grabbed his spoon again. "Sorry. It slipped my hand…" he said sheepishly before starting to eat again. But in his mind, he was thinking, "I've heard of those names before… but when? Though I'm certain that this is the first time that mom and dad mentioned those…"
***
Rufus turned his gaze from his luggage to the door when he heard it open. He smiled when he saw Tifa enter. "Hello," he greeted.
She walked over to him and gave him a kiss, but he couldn't help but notice the confused look on her face. "Anything wrong?" he asked with a slight frown.
She sighed heavily. "I think I just saw Lucrecia… she's with this little boy who looks like Sephiroth," she replied uneasily.
His mouth dropped open in surprise. "What? Lucrecia?" he asked. His frown deepened. "…and Sephiroth?" he asked.
The one big thing that they were trying to prevent has happened already.
He kept his eyes on her. "What about Vincent?" he asked.
She shrugged. "I'm not so sure. I was about to find out where they were going but when I looked again, they were gone. But I'm positive that they're heading for the direction of the ShinRa Mansion." She said.
Rufus looked down and flipped his hair. "I'm certain that Cloud once mentioned that Vincent resided in that place for several years… it could be quite possible that after they ran away, they could just head there." he smiled weakly at her. "Why didn't we think of that before?" he asked.
Tifa was about to answer but she was interrupted when Heidegger and a little girl entered the scene without any warning. She smiled at the little girl, "Samara," she said.
"Oh there you are… I've been looking all over for you. Where have you been?" Rufus asked with a stiff tone as the little girl ran to Tifa and embraced her.
The little girl turned her icy blue eyes to Heidegger.
Heidegger jerked upon seeing the little girl look up at him. "Gyah… I just took Miss Samara out for a walk, President Rufus. She said she wanted to see the town where her mother grew up. Isn't that right, Miss Samara?" he asked with a weak smile on his face.
She just frowned at him and looked up at her mother. "That's what I wanted to do, Mommy… but he was looking for a person." She admitted with a sly smile on her face.
Heidegger thought that for a little girl, Samara was too wise, too haughty and too sly… just like her father… and he somewhat hated it.
Rufus and Tifa turned to Heidegger with surprised looks on their faces. "What person?" the former asked.
"Uhm… gyahahahahahahaha! President Rufus, who knows, Miss Samara could be making up stories, right?" Heidegger asked.
Tifa frowned at him. "Are you saying that my daughter is a liar, General Heidegger?" she snapped.
Heidegger froze when he saw Samara giving him a warning look that seems to be saying, "I will kill you…"
Samara smiled slyly at him and looked up at her mother again, "I believe that person's name is Vincent Valentine." She blurted out.
"Stupid kid… what does she know anyway? Gyah! I know how much she hates me but does she always have to get in my way?!" Heidegger thought angrily. He looked away from all of them, "Besides, I'm certain that that Vincent Valentine already has a little boy named Sephiroth. ShinRa is in need of a stronger Soldier… and if Lucrecia is the mother, history could repeat itself. I can take the boy in ShinRa and train him to be qualified for Soldier… and he'll be the greatest!" he thought silently with a secret smile on his face.
Rufus frowned at Heidegger. "What do you want with Vincent Valentine?" he asked.
"Gyah… nothing, sir. I just want to see how he's doing. I suppose he's here in Nibelheim based from all the things that I've heard… that he's in the ShinRa Mansion with his little family," Heidegger admitted with a stern look on his face.
"I'm warning you, Heidegger. Leave them alone. They're not doing anything stupid. Besides, they're not worth ShinRa's time anymore. We have other plans than to try to suck up all the JENOVA from that woman. I trust Vincent Valentine and that woman that they are good parents because if they're not, a little boy with silver hair could just be running around holding a Masamune and slashing everyone that passes his way." Rufus replied with a haughty look on his face as he flipped his hair before turning to Tifa. "Isn't that right, Tifa?" he asked.
Tifa smiled at him before looking down at Samara and stroked her daughter's long black hair. "Of course, Rufus," she replied as she brushed off the hair that covered Samara's face. "What did you do to your ribbon again?" she asked.
"I didn't wear it today because daddy doesn't know how to tie my hair." Samara replied.
Tifa smiled impishly at Rufus. "Next time, I won't allow you to take her in your out-of-town conferences if you wouldn't keep track of her appearance. Why, she looks scary with all her hair covering her face!" she said.
He just smiled at her. "I think it looks just fine, right, Samara?" he asked, turning to his daughter.
Samara let go of Tifa and looked up at Rufus. "Daddy, next time, can Mister Reeve be my babysitter?" she asked.
"Well… whatever you want, Samara," Rufus replied before turning to Heidegger. "You take the limo with Elena and the rest. I'll take the chopper with Tifa and Samara. Understood?" he asked.
"Gyah… yes, sir," Heidegger replied.
"You can take these luggage with you downstairs to the limo. We'll be going down in a minute," Rufus commanded.
Heidegger headed for Rufus's luggage and carried them to the door. He exited without saying anything, but he was thinking, "Gyah… if President Rufus doesn't like my idea, then I'll just proceed on my own… I will get that Sephiroth for the sake of ShinRa. Gyahahahahahahahahahaha."
***
Sephiroth was seated in the library of the ShinRa Mansion reading all the books he could find about JENOVA. He knows that he has those in his bloodstream; his parents had informed him. For some reason, he was thankful that his parents were honest enough to explain everything to him… and he didn't have to find out everything for himself and feel bad about it.
"Sephiroth, we know that you are far more advanced and talented than all the other kids out there, but please, for our sake, do not let it all go into your head. You wouldn't want to make your mother disappointed, right?" he could recall his father telling him that.
And he agreed.
Vincent watched from the doorway as his son continued to read without really knowing that someone was watching him. "He's very different from the old Sephiroth…" he thought silently with a slight smile on his face. "And I hope it stays that way," he continued before leaving.
Eventually, everything bored Sephiroth so he just stopped reading and got up from the chair. "Gotta get some fresh air…" he mumbled with a happy smile on his face before running. "I'm going out!" he yelled before he got out.
"Be back before dinner!" Lucrecia yelled back.
Sephiroth got out of the ShinRa Mansion and ran down the streets of Nibelheim with a happy smile on his face. He kept on running and running, enjoying the cool afternoon breeze blowing through his face, until he stopped to catch his breath in front of the newly-built hotel. He noticed a rich couple and their daughter heading for the chopper that was ready to fly on the helipad. He frowned when he realized that he could recognize the rich couple. "I've seen them before… but where? Though I'm certain that I do not know them…" he thought silently. He stopped his thoughts when he saw the daughter eye him curiously before boarding the chopper.
Noticing that his daughter was looking at something, Rufus followed her gaze which led to the boy with silver hair and green eyes. His eyes grew wide upon seeing the boy and he stopped in his tracks and gave Tifa a gentle nudge.
Tifa turned and saw the boy.
Sephiroth wondered why they were looking at him. "What's their problem?" he thought silently with a ridiculous look on his face before he decided to just turn and walk away. "Oh well… there's nothing to see there but rich people." He thought.
"Who's that, mommy? Why is he looking at us?" Samara asked, interrupting her parents.
"N…nothing, Samara. It's just that… he resembles someone." Tifa replied with a weak smile before boarding the chopper. Rufus followed after her with a deep frown on his face. "It is Sephiroth…" he thought silently as he looked at Tifa and noticed the worried look on her face.
But they were determined to just leave the boy and his family alone.
After all, nothing bad could happen, right?
Heidegger waited until the chopper took off. He turned to the chauffer of the limo and smiled cruelly, "Gyah… I want you to go after that kid," he said.
Elena's eyes grew wide. "What?!"
The chauffer stared at Heidegger.
Elena tugged at Heidegger's sleeve. "But, General Heidegger… why?" she asked.
"He's going to be a Soldier, 'ayt?" Heidegger replied before nudging the chauffer. "Now go! Stop before him and I'll grab him!" he snapped.
Sephiroth stopped when he heard the sound of a vehicle behind him. He was surprised to see the black limo and the fat guy coming down from it and rushing to him. "What the…" he thought silently.
The fat guy swept him off from the ground and covered his face with some kind of cloth. "Argh! Let me go!" Sephiroth cried out, but his voice sounded so muffled.
"Gyahahahahahahahaha! You're coming with us, Sephiroth!" Heidegger cheered.
"How did you know my name?!" Sephiroth wanted to say in confusion, but he can't. There was some kind of sleep stuff in the cloth…
"No… things like these should not work for me… I'm supposed to be invincible… but… why? Who am I?!" Sephiroth thought in confusion as he slowly closed his eyes and lost consciousness.
Elena stared in fear at the little boy, which Heidegger had placed beside her as he got back inside the limo.
"Let's get out of here!" Heidegger commanded.
As the limo started to move, Elena really wanted to slap Heidegger's face, but she couldn't. He was superior than her. "General Heidegger… what are we going to do with… with Sephiroth?" she asked.
"I'll take care of this boy and train him to become the formidable high-ranking First Class Soldier that ShinRa's ever possessed in its grasps! Gyahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!" Heidegger explained with a victorious look on his face.
"But… what if he wakes up and he escapes!? You know that he's not an ordinary child!" Elena asked.
"Gyahahahaha! That's chicken feed, Elena. And shut up about it or I'll make sure that you'll not only lose your job but also your life! Gyah…" Heidegger snapped.
Elena bit her lower lip and just kept quiet.
***
"Where's Sephiroth?" Vincent asked.
Lucrecia looked up at the grandfather's clock in one corner of the dining room and then down to the floor with a worried look on her face. She clenched her fists. "He said that he's just going out… how come he's not yet here?" she asked.
Vincent frowned as he approached her. "He went out?" he asked.
She nodded. "I'm getting worried about him… what if something bad happened to him?" she asked as tears slowly filled her eyes.
He embraced her and tried to comfort her. "Stop being pessimistic, Lucrecia. He's coming home…" he said gently. Though something was telling him that Sephiroth wouldn't be coming home… and it made him feel nervous.
Midnight came and Sephiroth wasn't home yet and Lucrecia was already beginning to lose her patience. "Where is he?!" she screamed as she cried.
Vincent clenched his right fist before decided to leave her for a while and search for Sephiroth around Nibelheim. As he walked around the little town, he recalled Lucrecia telling him that Tifa and Rufus were in town. He checked on the hotel but the receptionist informed him that the ShinRas checked out that afternoon.
Vincent's eyes grew wide. "No… they can't do this to me… they can't take Sephiroth… no… they want Lucrecia but they couldn't have her… so they took Sephiroth…" he thought silently with a troubled look on his face as he made his way back to the mansion where Lucrecia was still crying helplessly in their room.
She glared up at him angrily. "They took him away from us!" she screamed.
He didn't know what to say.
She got up and made a run for the door but he stopped her by holding her tightly. "Lucrecia, no! It's dangerous to go to Midgar at this hour," he said.
She pounded helplessly on his chest. "Vincent… why are they doing this to me?! Am I still paying for my sins?! Why not me?! Why Sephiroth?!" she cried in despair.
Vincent tried his best not to let his tears show as he embraced his beloved Lucrecia. "I'm getting our son back here, Lucrecia…" he thought silently with a deep frown on his face.
***
Sephiroth looked up at the stars from outside his bedroom window. "So I'm to become a Soldier…" he thought silently with a proud look on his face.
He could recall his talk with Heidegger and what he said to him: "It will impress your parents. You'd want to impress them, right?"
Sephiroth smiled. "Of course, I want to impress my parents…" he decided.
Heidegger took him to Junon so that he could start training there. For starters, he already presented to him a very long sword…
To Sephiroth, when he got hold of the sword, he just unconsciously began to do some different slashes with it… like he had known how to use it for a long time.
"This is called the Masamune, right?" he asked mindlessly.
Heidegger was surprised at the question. "Of course. That is the Masamune." He replied with a determined look on his face. "Gyahahahaha. I can prove President Rufus wrong… Sephiroth is going to be the best Soldier ever again…" he thought silently.
***
