Disclaimer - I do not own any of the character's of Final Fantasy VII . . . but Seph is my muse, so leave him alone : )



AN - Okay . . . the reason why I'm not resurrecting Aeris . . . well, I just don't see a need for it at this time. It's not that I don't like the character of Aeris . . . I just don't need her this time around : ) And now, on to the story.



Chapter 3 - Discoveries



Nearly two and a half months later, he still found himself in Midgar. The search through Hojo's files was going slowly . . . much more so then he would have liked. The man's way of reporting and filing his findings had been as twisted as the man himself. There was no logic, no pattern to his files . . . something that Sephiroth, with his usually ordered and logical thoughts, was hard pressed not to blow up at. He had debated putting his fist through his computer screen any number of times from sheer frustration, but had stopped himself, knowing that allowing his temper free reign would only prolong the issue.

So, here he was, still in Midgar, still pretending to be a man he was not . . . and growing more concerned daily over the delay. It was not that he minded where he was . . . not at all, for in the months since he'd retrieved his belongings, he'd only grown fonder of the people who had been his former enemies. They were such an intriguing group of people . . . he couldn't help but sit back sometimes and wonder what his life could be like if he could stay here forever. But it was an impossible dream . . . no matter how much he wished otherwise.

"That is quite enough. Tifa is engaged, and has already asked you politely not to attempt to fondle her. I am not so nice . . . out you go," he growled, ejecting another overly drunk male from the bar, closing the door firmly behind the man before returning to his seat at the bar. Tifa smiled to him gratefully, and he nodded in reply before turning back to his single mug of beer. He knew Tifa was amused by his overly protective attitude towards her . . . he was hard pressed to understand it himself. He happened to glance down into his mug of beer, and grinned slightly to himself when he noticed there was more in the container then there had been when he had left it.

"Tifa . . . are you purposefully trying to get me drunk?" he murmured as she settled into a stool nearby, taking a much needed break from the floor.

"Why would I do that?" she replied, her grin giving her away. He snorted, glancing over at her before turning to examine the bar's patrons once again.

"Perhaps in the hopes that I will be more forthcoming about my past if you manage to get me 'smashed'," he said, and a slight smile graced his lips as she blushed, having been caught.

"I'm sorry Seth . . . it's just that you're such a mystery . . . you never speak of why you came to Midgar, or where you came from . . . one can't help but wonder if you are hiding from something . . ."

"Some things are best left a mystery, Tifa. I came to Midgar to escape my past and redeem it . . . as for where I came from . . . that is not important."

Oh, but they would find it EXTREMELY important, wouldn't they? And you can't escape your past . . . not forever.

'I do not believe I was talking to you. Get out of my conversations.'

Tifa sighed and turned her attention back to her customers as 'Seth' fell silent. They'd known him nearly three months now, and he was still as much of a mystery as he had been the day he'd rescued her. He spent most of his time off duty down in the basement, doing something on a computer he had bought, and when he was on duty, he did his job quietly and efficiently. The rest of the AVALANCHE members had fully accepted him, and even considered him a friend. He had a stunning intellect, and a quick wit . . . much like Vincent when he wasn't brooding. He had gained enormous amounts of respect since that first night with the whole group . . . even if he was withdrawn and closed off at times. He never talked about himself . . . but then, they were all used to that. Many of them had pasts that they wished they could forget. Shoving those thoughts aside, she wondered briefly if the rest of the group was okay. They were out combing the streets for Sephiroth again . . . although she doubted they would find him. There had been no sign of him at all since the break in . . . they had all begun to wonder if maybe Seth was right, and it had just been a looter with a lucky penchant for codes.

Beside her, Sephiroth stood up, glancing at the clock behind the bar.

"Tifa . . . it is nearly closing time. I will get rid of these last few patrons, and we can begin to clean up for tomorrow, if that is all right with you?" Tifa nodded, standing to go into the kitchen and tell the waitresses they could go home for the night as Sephiroth moved to gather up the few remaining people and usher them out the door.

Sephiroth was ejecting the last patron from the bar when he glanced out the door and froze. The street was empty . . . and terribly quiet. 'Something is not right,' he thought to himself. Even at this hour of night, the street should have been littered with at least a few pedestrians . . . but currently, there were none in sight. He stepped outside, locking the bar door behind him before descending the stairs and looking around. It was then that he spotted the group of men approaching the bar.

"Shit," he muttered. He'd left his gun inside, and from the looks of it, this group was armed to the teeth, unlike the last time they had tried this. They'd more then doubled their numbers too.

Get out of there, you foolish boy. This is not your fight . . . you have a destiny to fulfil . . . they are liars, filthy human parasites . . .

"They are my friends . . . as long as they know me as Seth, that is . . . and I WILL defend them if I so choose to do so. It is you who is the liar . . . and you should know by now that I will not listen to you," he muttered under his breath. He was relieved he'd had the presence of mind to lock the bar door behind him. Tifa was safe . . . there was no way he would allow any of this human scum to get past him to her. In the past three months, being around the members of AVALANCHE, talking with them . . . Sephiroth had come to understand a lot about human nature . . . and had discovered things within himself that he doubted would have ever come to light otherwise. Therefore, he would defend all of them . . . his friends, his teachers . . . no matter what came up, as long as he was here. This would be the end of it all, however . . . and he knew it. His gun was inside . . . which meant he would have to summon the Masamune, and that would be the finale if anyone actually saw him do it, or fight with it. Only one person had ever wielded a blade like it . . . and only one person ever would. 'So be it,' he thought. 'I have had more time here then should have been given to me anyway. I have some of the information I required . . . that will have to be enough.' He had one final moment of regret . . . because if anyone saw, it would be Tifa . . . a woman he had come to cherish in such a short time. He knew, of all of them, that Tifa had the worst memories of his former self . . . and seeing him would bring them all back. He had heard, from Cloud, of the number of times she had woken up screaming or crying, reliving that day in Nibelheim. He only hoped that she would not see him now . . . but he suspected that was an idle and fruitless hope.

Sighing, he stood facing the approaching men with determination stamped upon his face, his hands empty and hanging at his side.

"Well, well . . . if it isn't the unknown savior. Still hanging around, are you? Well, this time you're not gonna stop us . . . we're better armed and there are more of us. Ms. Lockheart owes us money, and this time she's gonna pay . . . one way or the other." The leader stopped a few feet away, signaling his men to fan out around the solitary figure.

"You will not get by me to have a chance at Tifa. Now leave, before I am forced to draw blood," Sephiroth growled. "You are only going to get this one chance to get out of here. I would suggest you take it."

"You're unarmed, and over-powered seventeen to one. You're the one who should take the chance to get out of here."

"The door is locked, boss. We'll have to break it down if we're gonna get in," one of the men called out.

"That's fine. We'll take care of this idiot first, then pay Ms. Lockheart a visit." He scowled at the black haired man standing in his way, and motioned to his men. Only a few held guns, Sephiroth noted . . . the rest held knives and short swords. Shaking his head at the folly of these imbeciles, he extended his hand.

DON'T DO IT! YOU'LL GIVE YOURSELF AWAY! RUN, YOU STUBBORN BOY!

Ignoring the ranting voice of Jenova, he stared hard at the surrounding gang.

"Last chance. Leave now, and you leave with your lives. Stay, and you guarantee your deaths." His voice was cold, the voice of death itself . . . death as he had once been not long ago. He watched as the men laughed, some raising their guns to fire as others advanced upon him. "So be it."

Shots rang out across the still night, and the gang gaped in shock as a six foot blade materialized from thin air, moving with an easy grace to block every single bullet. The blade hummed as the bullets ricocheted into nearby buildings, and Sephiroth swung it easily into ready position, the blade held at eye level. He stared down at the advancing men, violet eyes glowing eerily in the dim light of the Midgar night, the blade catching and reflecting the meager illumination.

"Come then . . . and die. My blade hungers for your blood," he murmured coldly. More shots rang out, bullets that he once again easily deflected. The nearest men charged him as he was distracted, getting in a few lucky shots before the blade of the Masamune found them. Sephiroth absently fingered a hole in his shirt, staring down at the blood that coated his fingers before he brought them to his lips, licking his blood from them. "My turn," he whispered, and charged.

Tifa watched in awe from the window, stunned into immobility by the appearance of the blade in 'Seth's' hand. The blade sparked memories that she had thought long buried, and she gasped as it hit her.

"Seth . . . Seth is . . . Sephiroth!" she whispered hoarsely, her eyes following the familiar figure as he charged towards the gathered thugs, watching them scramble to move out of the path of the blade. Crimson blood flowed as men fell under the sword, and she gasped as some thugs got close enough to land deep wounds on the swordsman.

A light rain had begun to fall, but Sephiroth was beyond noticing, deep into his battle mode as he was, his concentration fully on the blade in his hand and the opponent's before him. He could feel cuts decorating his sides and arms, and one along his cheek, near his eye. He was beyond caring, not noticing the dye that began to wash slowly out of his hair, revealing his trademark platinum strands, plastering them to his face along with the blood of his opponents.

'It is him . . . oh, Planet . . . Seth is Sephiroth . . . what the hell is going on? Oh heavens, I don't understand any of this . . . it's been him all along . . . but he's been so different, not like Sephiroth at all . . . but the proof is there, right in front of my eyes . . . what will the other's do, if they see him . . . will they know it's Seth . . . What am I thinking! They'll kill him! I have to stop him, I have to get him back in his disguise . . . wait! Why do I want to protect him?! He's a monster, a killer . . . but, it's Seth . . . I'm so confused . . . what should I do!?' Tifa tried to still her raging thoughts and think logically, but logic failed her as she watched the black hair fade into the platinum color that was so unnatural. "Come through this, Seth . . . don't let this be the beginning of the end," she murmured. "I don't understand any of it . . . but I want to . . . I want to know why . . ."

More gunshots rang out, some actually finding their mark as Sephiroth darted in and out of the gathered thugs. He grunted as one hit his shoulder, and another embedded itself in his back His battle plans shifted to take out the gunners first, and he turned towards them, turning his back on the end of the street to charge the gun men. Because of this, he didn't see the members of AVALANCHE round the corner, and stop dead at the sight of him locked in battle in front of Seventh Heaven.

"Holy Shit, that's fucking Sephiroth! He's right fucking there!" Cid said, starting to run forward, only to be stopped by Vincent's hand.

"Wait," Vincent murmured, studying the scene before him carefully before turning to Cloud. "Do you see what I see, Cloud?" Cloud nodded, his expression stunned.

"That's Sephiroth all right . . . but look at what he's wearing. Those are the clothes that Seth usually wears . . . and if what I'm seeing is right . . . it looks like Sephiroth is defending Seventh Heaven."

"No way," Barrett muttered. "Ain't no way in hell that what we're seein' is true."

"No . . . I think Cloud is right," Reeve said. "It looks like we found where Sephiroth has been this entire time we've been looking for him . . . right under our noses . . . as Seth."

Nanaki remained silent, listening to the conversation around him, remembering his own conversation with Sephiroth. Would they give Sephiroth the chance he had earned as Seth . . . or would their hatred of him over ride the friendship they had developed with him? He watched as Sephiroth dispatched another gun toting thug in a whirl of silver and crimson, turning to face another as he took a slug in the gut. He bent over the wound, but stood again quickly, advancing quietly across the pavement. The gun man, seeing death approaching him, broke and dropped his gun, running as fast as he could from the apparition before his eyes. That left the leader, who stared speechless at the 'harmless' man who had decimated his entire group, as the apparition of death turned to face him. The man shook as his thoughts provided him a name to that apparition . . . Sephiroth, a veritable god of death.

"I would suggest you run . . . now," Sephiroth murmured in a voice colder then space. The leader nodded shakily, and took off, his flight unsteady with panic driven muscles. Sephiroth, coming out of his battle rage, staggered suddenly, dismissing the Masamune to catch himself on a nearby lamp post. He looked up, and his eyes widened as he locked gazes with Cloud. They stared at each other, down the length of the street, Sephiroth using the post to remain on his feet. 'This . . . is not good . . .' he thought through the haze of pain.

The sound of a door crashing open and running feet broke the stare off as Tifa rushed into the street, taking one look at Cloud before stopping in front of Sephiroth, her back to him.

"Don't kill him! He's not the same! He just protected me and Seventh Heaven! Please . . . we have to give him a chance to explain!" Tifa called out, holding her arms wide, her body blocking Sephiroth from a direct attack by Vincent and Barrett's guns. 'I can't believe I'm doing this,' she thought to herself, but her heart told her it was the right thing to do. She remembered his comments from the night AVALANCHE had first gathered to discuss the break in . . . he'd been talking about himself, after all.

"Tifa . . ." Cloud called out, stunned by her actions. Tifa, of all people, was the last person he would have expected to be standing up for the man behind her.

"Tifa . . ." Sephiroth whispered from behind her, also stunned by her actions, but not into immobility. He lay a careful hand on her shoulder. "Thank you . . . and I apologize . . . for lying to you," he murmured, his voice hoarse with pain. "I just wanted . . .some time . . . to be human." He shoved off from the post and pushed his body into a run, ignoring the muscles that were screaming at him to stop and heal the wounds he had taken. Tifa cried out for him to stop, but he ignored her, running once again from his past . . . and from the normal life he had tasted for a short time. He gasped as his wounds throbbed, but he shoved the pain away, intent only on getting as far from AVALANCHE as he could before they came after him. He wouldn't . . . no, he couldn't, allow them to stop him from killing Jenova.

In a haze of pain, Jenova calling him a fool thousands of times in his head, he made his way to the abandoned Shin-Ra headquarters, staggering up the steps to his old suite in a fog of agony. Punching in the code, unaware of the blood coating his fingers and dripping from his wounds, he stumbled into the room, shutting the door behind him and dead bolting it before collapsing onto his former bed, his body lapsing into unconsciousness.



*----------*---------*---------*---------*



Tifa sank listlessly onto a bar stool, her eyes staring out into the street, seeing in her mind once again the battle that had raged just an hour ago. 'I can't believe . . . that was Sephiroth. Seth was Sephiroth . . . but he was so different . . .' her mind chanted over and over again. She stood abruptly as the bar door opened, admitting the rest of AVALANCHE, all of whom looked worn and stunned at the same time.

"There was no sign of him Teef," Cloud said, forestalling her question. "We followed the trail of blood he left to some sort of access panel, but it disappeared into thin air. He's gone."

"No . . . he can't be. He was wounded pretty badly, I could tell by his voice . . . he can't have gone far . . ." she murmured, shaking her head.

"Man . . . I still can't believe it. Seth was Sephiroth . . . that's jus' weird . . . hey, no wonda he won that drinkin' contest!" Tifa sighed as Barrett rambled on, voicing the thought that was on everyone's mind. The man they had come to regard as a friend . . . the man who had now twice protected Tifa and Seventh Heaven . . . was the very same man who had been their sworn enemy, who was supposed to have been dead for over a year now. Every person in the room had one thought . . . was he friend, or was he foe? Cloud, silencing Barrett's baritone vocals, stood near the door, his back leaning against it, his shoulders slumped.

"Look . . . I'm just as stunned as the rest of you. I'd gotten really close to 'Seth' . . . he was a great guy, and I considered him a good friend . . ." Nanaki interrupted him suddenly, his voice cold and emotionless, something that stunned the rest of AVALANCHE. They had never heard that tone of voice from the Cosmo Canyon Guardian before.

"You speak as if he is dead, Cloud. Seth still exists . . . does it really change the man we have come to know as Seth now that we have discovered who he truly is? You have all said, at one time or another, what a great guy Seth is, and how much you value him as a friend . . . do you not think that Seth is the person Sephiroth could have been, if circumstances had allowed for it? I have heard several of you over the last couple of months discussing Hojo's files, and the atrocities the man committed, many of them against his own son . . . those things left scars on Sephiroth that eventually overwhelmed him. Had none of that happened, have you ever stopped to consider what Sephiroth could have become? Not a killer, but a warrior? Not a monster, but a man?" Nanaki stood abruptly, staring at all of them before continuing. "You humans truly are strange animals if you would throw away such a valued friendship because of who he was, without weighing in the events of the past three months." With a swish of his tail, he left the room. Silence followed in his wake, as each individual in the room took his words to heart and mind.

"You know . . . I think Nanaki is right," Cloud said suddenly, breaking the silence. "Remember what he said, back when the break in occurred? 'There are always two sides to a story'? Maybe there was more to that whole thing then we knew. I think . . . that we need to find him and here the other side of the story. Tifa was right too . . . he's changed. He's not the same man . . . he couldn't be, not to have fooled us all as he did." Vincent suddenly spoke, startling everyone.

"I agree Cloud. It is the least we can do . . . we owe him the chance to explain himself, especially since he put his own life on the line to save Tifa, not once, but twice." Sighing, he stood. "I have an idea where he might have gone . . . that access panel is to a ladder that leads to the upper plate. He may have gone back to his quarters in the abandoned building, thinking perhaps we would not expect it. I will go there, and see what I can find."

"I'm going with you," Tifa said, in a voice that allowed no room for argument. "He seems to trust me . . . more so, I think, then he would if any of you went."



*---------*---------*--------*--------*



They'll be coming for you . . . you should have run farther, left Midgar. I warned you . . . I told you they would find out eventually, but you wouldn't listen. Now my plans are in danger before they are even begun, and you are wounded so badly I can't even force you to move.

Sephiroth moaned, turning his head in an attempt to escape her voice, to no avail.

"Leave me alone . . . I will not do anything that you wish . . . I just want to complete my mission . . ." he muttered in his sleep, grimacing as his body slowly healed the wounds he had taken. It would be days before he healed all of them though . . . something Jenova knew quite well.

You still defy me . . . you are mine, boy. You can't escape me, you never could. I am a part of you, I am your destiny, I am your master! I have allowed you this small flight of fantasy you have taken, but no longer. You will do as I command . . . you will fulfill our destiny and cleanse this planet for my designs . . . you cannot escape it . . . fighting it is just prolonging the agony of the stupid farce you insist on carrying out. You cannot have friends, you cannot have a life . . . YOU ARE MINE!

"No . . ." he whimpered, his hands clasping his head in agony, trying to force her from his thoughts, to regain a sense of equilibrium. There was a crash in the other room, startling him to consciousness. He staggered to his feet, rolling from the bed to put his back to the window . . . readying himself to dive through it if necessary. He couldn't allow them to stop him . . . not now, not when he was so close to finding the answer . . .

"The blood trail is here . . . he has to be in here . . ." Vincent's voice.

I told you. GO! Go now, before they can catch you and kill you. They know who you are now, they won't stop until you are dead . . . they hate you, you disgust them . . .

Distracted by Jenova and his fight with her for control, he did not realize that Vincent and Tifa had walked into the bedroom, and were now close enough to slow him down if he attempted anything.

"Seth . . . Sephiroth . . . please, stop . . . please, just let us help you . . ." Tifa . . . what was Tifa doing there?

"Tifa . . ." he murmured, holding his head in one hand as he pressed the other to the glass behind him. "No . . . I will not listen to you . . ." The agony in his head, in his body, was clouding his mind . . . he was slowly going under . . . falling to Jenova again . . .

SHE IS THE ENEMY! THEY ARE ALL THE ENEMY! THEY ALL MUST DIE!

"Sephiroth . . . Seth . . . we're here to help you . . . please, let us help you . . ." A warm hand touched his arm, and he started in shock, forcing his eyes to focus on the worried woman before him. He shoved her away, the effort dropping him to his knees. He had to protect her . . . had to get her away from him before Jenova pulled him in . . .

"Tifa . . . no, just stay away from me . . . Jenova . . . I WILL NOT LISTEN TO YOU!" he howled as Jenova ripped through his mind, trying to force him to comply with her wishes. He gripped his head in his hands, trying to block out the voice screaming at him to run, to kill them, to succumb to her will . . .

"We have no choice, Tifa . . . we have to sedate him . . ." A sharp sting against his neck, and blessed darkness closed over his mind, bringing silence and an end to the agony. 'Thank you, Vincent . . .'

Tifa looked on in concern as Sephiroth collapsed, Vincent catching him before he could hit the floor. Nanaki padded over to sniff at him before turning to Tifa.

"Who was he talking to . . ." Tifa wondered, staring at the enigmatic figure that Vincent carefully draped over his shoulder.

"Jenova . . . it appears that she is still with him, but that he is still managing to fight her off," Nanaki murmured. A glance passed between the three, and solemnly they carried their unconscious burden back to Seventh Heaven.



*---------*---------*---------*---------*



Tifa wrung out the cloth, placing it back over Sephiroth's forehead, smoothing the platinum hair back out of the way as she lay it down on the fevered flesh.

"I just can't believe it . . ." she murmured, staring down at the pale face of her one time enemy with concern and puzzlement written all over her face.

"Neither can the rest of us, Teef . . . he should be dead," Cloud replied, from where he lounged against a nearby wall. They had determined to take shifts keeping an eye on their guest, two per shift, especially since it seemed Jenova was still trying to regain control of him and use him to further her goals. Tifa and Cloud had volunteered for the first watch . . . Tifa in order to keep a good eye on his healing, and Cloud so he could talk to Tifa.

"Well . . . it seems that your dreams were in truth glimpses of the future . . . at least now, we'll get a chance to see if your suspicions about him were correct," she replied, turning to look at him. He nodded, and sighed.

"Yeah . . . although I'd say they were already confirmed by his actions over the past three months. He's just not the same guy . . . he couldn't be. He may have been a good actor . . . but no one is that good to keep an act that convincing up for three months straight." He straightened. "Vincent said he was fighting with Jenova when you guys found him?" Tifa nodded.

"Yes . . . it seemed she was trying to get him to do something . . . he pushed me away, trying to protect me while he was fighting with her . . . he seemed to be in a lot of mental pain."

"So he still has his mind at least. But, what puzzles me is why he came to Midgar. What is he after here? If he just wanted to live his life, he could have disappeared into one of the backwater towns and no one would have ever known he was alive . . . so why did he come here, where he must have known he would chance being discovered?" Cloud began to pace, his hands tucked in his pockets. "I just don't get it . . ." Sephiroth groaned suddenly, drawing two sets of worried and cautious eyes back to his prone figure.

Violet eyes flickered open, puzzlement showing in their gaze before comprehension dawned and they turned to meet Tifa's gaze.

"Shit," he murmured softly, struggling to rise. A firm hand planted on his chest halted his movement, and he turned to regard Cloud with something akin to amusement shining in his otherwise lifeless eyes. "I suppose I'm under the classification of prisoner?" he asked quietly, staring up into mako blue eyes, his voice resigned, without emotion. Cloud shook his head.

"No. We brought you here to treat your wounds . . . and because you're the man we've come to know as Seth, who just happens to be our friend. The fact that we know who you really are now . . . just complicates things a bit."

"Sephiroth . . . why did you do it? Why pretend for the past three months?" Tifa asked quietly, drawing his attention back to her.

"Why do you care? I did it and I do not regret any of it. Why not just kill me and get it over with?" he growled, turning his head away from their curious eyes. He didn't want to see the disgust and hatred . . . not now, not from them. He was surprised when Tifa answered him softly, her voice gentle.

"Because you are our friend . . . even if you have been lying to us. We want to hear the other side of the story." He sighed, shifting slightly before answering, trying to order his thoughts, still refusing to meet their gaze.

"I had not planned on it . . . it just happened. I came to Midgar to get information on the Jenova Project . . . real information, not the lies I learned in Nibelheim . . ." He winced as the name of that doomed town passed his lips, but continued. "I stopped into the bar that night out of curiosity, and because it would severely annoy that wretched creature." A ghost of a smile crossed his lips. "I stepped in to protect you, and then you offered me that position . . . it felt so right, to be doing something good for you, who I cost so much . . . and it just happened . . . days turned into weeks, weeks into months . . . and even after I got most the information I needed, I was reluctant to move on, because . . . because I was happy, for the first time in my life. I had friends, I had a home, a job . . . all things that I did for ME, not for someone or something else, but for me." He paused for a moment before continuing softly. "I knew . . . I knew I was being foolish, that eventually the truth would come out . . . but I kept hoping that maybe . . . just maybe I could have a little more time . . . a little more time to live a life I had never had before I had to continue on with my mission . . ."

"What mission, Sephiroth? Why did you come to Midgar?" Cloud asked. "Why do you need the information on the Jenova project?"

"To kill her. To find out how to destroy Jenova once and for all." Cloud stared down at him in complete shock. Sephiroth was out to kill Jenova? He was silent for a few moments, mulling that surprising bit of information over in his mind before asking his next question

"We heard that Jenova is still alive. But how?!"

There was no answer. Cloud stared down at the once proud general . . . the man who had been the enemy. He lay so still . . . silent to the point of death. He'd succumbed to unconsciousness once again. Cloud couldn't help but wonder - had he been right all along? Had Sephiroth really been only a puppet, as Cloud had once been?

"Well . . ." Cloud murmured. "That gives us a whole hell of a lot to think about."