Author's Notes:  See chapter one for disclaimer and explanation.

Again, I'm really late.  I apologize, but circumstances have not been kind to me.  I'll try my hardest to write a little more often.

Separate Destinies By Annie-chan Chapter Sixteen:  A Mother's Concern

"Come on, Tanis," Riku urged, his feet skidding a bit as he landed.  "Come at me like you mean it."

The red-haired youth pushed himself up from his knees to his feet, breathing hard.  His lip bled a bit where he had bitten it, and sweat shined in the sunlight on his skin.  His shirt and shoes were off, and his longish hair was sticking to his neck.

Tanis' tenth birthday had recently come and gone.  He was not the small, scrawny child a ten-year-old human would be, but the fully-grown, sleekly-built young man a ten-year-old ylfe was.  Though only halfway to adulthood socially, he was very much an adult physically.

Riku was in a similar state of undress as his son, and the soles of his feet stung a bit from the hard landing.  He paid it no mind.  The sun was beating down on his back, and his long silver hair stuck to him like a shining mantle.  It was hot and uncomfortable, and he had often considered cutting it off.  He never did, though, knowing how shocked and dismayed Leiya would be.  She loved his hair.

The things you do for love, he chided himself, dropping into a defensive position.  Tanis had charged again, and Riku quickly made to grab his son's fist as it came toward him, intercepting the punch aimed for his midsection.  It had more power than he expected, and he almost stumbled backward.  He managed to keep his balance, but Tanis continued forward, wrapping his other arm around his father's waist and driving his shoulder into Riku's breastbone, knocking the wind out of him and tackling him to the ground at the same time.

Riku fell on his back hard, Tanis on top of him.  He struggled to breathe, as his lungs seemed paralyzed from the blow.  Finally, he did manage to suck in a breath, and by that time, Tanis had pushed himself up to his knees, sitting beside him, catching his breath.

"Good takedown, Son," Riku coughed.  "You caught me off guard.  There's just one thing you're forgetting."

"What's that?" Tanis asked, brushing his hair out of his eyes.

Instead of answering, Riku suddenly lunged upward, one hand grabbing Tanis' throat and the other clamping onto his wrist.  Jerking the arm to one side, he managed to turn his son around, then drove his own weight down onto Tanis' back, throwing him roughly to the ground.  The arm Riku had not grabbed was now trapped between Tanis' body and the ground.  The other was twisted painfully behind his back, still held tightly by his father.  The hand Riku had on his son's throat squeezed tightly, not hard enough to cut off his oxygen entirely, but enough to take the fight out of him.

"Don't take your hands off your opponent until he can't fight anymore," he hissed into his son's ear when Tanis' struggles ceased.  He released his throat, feeling his shoulder blades heave as he gasped for air.

"Y-yes, Father," Tanis replied hoarsely.

"Good," Riku smiled, releasing Tanis and sitting up.  The boy pulled himself a few paces away and knelt there, a little shaky.  He looked exhausted.  "I think that's enough for today," Riku said.

"Thank you," Tanis sighed, visibly relieved.  Now halfway through his training period, Riku had stepped up the intensity, as Sephiroth had done with him.  He was responsible with training Tanis in physical combat, while Leiya took care of teaching him magic.  He would spend one day training with his father, the next with his mother, and so on.

I wonder how Father managed to train me all on his own, Riku often found himself wondering.  We trained nearly every day.  He sacrificed much of those ten years just to help me hone my skills.  Years after Sephiroth's death, Riku still thought about him quite a bit.  His father had given his all to raise him well.  Riku thought that perhaps some of it was guilt over leaving him with an abusive mother for his early years, but he knew much of it stemmed more from love than guilt.  Their souls had touched, bringing them much closer together than most parent-child relationships, and it gave them an understanding of each other that surpassed all but a soulmate's understanding.  Though Riku had seen much of his father's mind, his heart of hearts had remained closed to him.  Wenna had been the only one to see inside, and she had been long gone, her loss ripping away half of Sephiroth's self.  He knew his father had loved him very much, but the reason and the truth depth of it was still a mystery to him.  It would probably stay a mystery to him forevermore.

"Father?" Tanis asked.  He was peering into Riku's eyes, having come closer.

"Huh…?" Riku blinked, coming out of his reverie.

"Are you all right?" Tanis queried, concerned.  "You looked distant."

"Oh, I was just thinking," Riku replied truthfully, "about your grandfather."

"Sephiroth," the youth said, more of a statement than a question.

"Yes," Riku nodded.

"I wish I had been born while he still lived," Tanis said softly.  "To hear you speak, I think of him as a very great man.  He sounds kind and loving and wise and strong and honorable."

"He was a great man," Riku agreed, "but he was also violent and short-tempered and wrathful and crazy and broken.  I loved him dearly, but I will not lie to you, Tanis.  He was a very dangerous one to be around, if the wrong mood seized him."  His voice softened, his eyes dimming a bit.  "He tried to kill me more than once."

"In his blind rages," Tanis nodded slowly.  "You told me about those."

"I have fallen prey to them before," Riku explained.  "I don't think you've ever seen me like that, but it has happened.  I am not so vulnerable to them as my father, though.  His were caused by a deep hole in his spirit, mine by undue stress and frustration."  He smiled wryly.  "The first time, I beat him nearly unconscious."

Tanis laughed.

"Let's get back," Riku said, standing.  "We both need a bath, and your mother is probably wondering where we are by now."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The doors to the master bedroom opened silently, but Riku felt a slight chill as the breeze from the opening doors moved past him.  His hair was still a little damp from being washed.

When he and Tanis had arrived home, Leiya had been partway through preparing the evening meal, giving them time to wash up.  Afterward, Riku and Tanis had cleaned up.  Now, Riku was returning to his bedroom for the night, expecting to see Leiya.  She was there, lying on her front on their bed, reading.

"Riku," she said, looking up when he closed the door.  "How was today?"

"Strenuous," he replied, rubbing his shoulder, which ached from his impact with the ground.  He grunted slightly when his neck popped.

"Come here," she said, putting her book down and sitting up.  "Sit in front of me."

Riku obeyed, stopping on the way to remove his boots and gloves.

"You're tense," she said softly, her nimble hands fluttering over his neck and shoulders, squeezing and testing the muscles.  "Are you sure you aren't overworking yourself?"

"I'm fine," Riku nodded.  "I got a lot more tired during my own training, and I usually had to take care of it myself.  I didn't have you to help me."  He looked back at her.  "Don't worry about me."  Leiya specialized in healing magic, so she always subconsciously searched for maladies whenever she looked at or touched someone.  It wasn't to the point of obsession, but she tended to be overly concerned for her mate and son.  Still, Riku didn't like to distress her, so he allowed her to mother hen him.  Sometimes.

"Take off your shirt," she said, illustrating her request by tugging on his collar.  When Riku complied, she continued her exam of his back and shoulders.  "I don't come out and watch you two as often as I should," she sighed.  "I'll make a point of changing that."

"Oh, Leiya," Riku smiled softly, pulling his hair over his shoulder to make it easier for her.  "You being there won't stop injuries from happening, and it's pretty rare that either of us gets hurt enough to interrupt our exercises, anyway."

"I know, I'm just concerned," she said.

"The training my father gave me was about the same," Riku continued.  "In fact, it was more intense in some respects, and I got through fine, as you can see."

"Yes, but you very obviously inherited your father's physical strength," Leiya countered.  "Tanis is more like me.  He's more prone to magical skills than physical ones."

"I understand that," he replied evenly, "but I'll still stretch him to his limits, whatever those may be.  You can't improve if you don't strain yourself once in a while."

Leiya sighed.

"I won't overdo it, I promise," Riku assured her.  "Once it seems he's hit a wall, I'll tone it down so he's merely maintaining his current levels."

"I'm just worried, that's all," Leiya murmured.

"I know, Love," Riku nodded.  "I know."

They did not speak again for several minutes.  Leiya had apparently lost track of her examination, now just stroking her fingers lightly up and down his neck and upper back.  She often found herself staring at him, for no apparent reason.  Now was one of those times, her eyes traveling over his lithe form, noting how the jet-black of his feathers contrasted sharply with his milk-white skin.  He was so unique, in more than one way.  The colors of his hair and eyes, rare by themselves among ylfen, were almost unheard of together.  His graceful features, almost feminine, gave him a beauty that stood him out even among the aesthetic ylfe population, where physical attractiveness considered uncommon among humans was the norm.  He harbored an extremely rare power within him, the psychic abilities that come naturally to him being a mystery and curiosity to the vast majority of ylfen.  Above all, he was half-human.  He was the first and so far last half-breed known to exist between the two species, and despite doubts from other members of the community, he had adapted so well to ylfe life that one wouldn't know his mixed ancestry unless told.

She watched his muscles move beneath his skin as he shifted, no small detail of movement escaping notice.  He held so much power in that body, in those strong hands.  Not only was he powerful in the normal sense, but he was one of the very few to have psychic abilities.  Those abilities enhanced his normal ylfen skills, making them easier to grasp and less time-consuming to master.  The only thing he's had substantial trouble with as of yet was teleportation, as he had only recently become skilled at it, due to Cloud drilling it into his head.

Leiya sometimes found herself wondering if his mixed parentage wasn't the cause of his surprising power.  It may not account for his being psychic, but she wondered if mixing human and ylfe blood didn't result in a powerful hybrid.  Riku had said that even Sephiroth couldn't entirely explain his progress, even though he himself was the strongest ylfe known to live.  Perhaps his unusual DNA had to do with at least some of it.  Tanis was less mixed, being only one-quarter human, and he was noticeably less strong than Riku had been at ten years of age.  He was not weak, but his progress and talent was more on par with the average ylfe youth.  Riku was not disappointed, but he did make a point of expecting Tanis' best, not his own from when he was that age.

"Leiya?" Riku asked.  "Is something wrong?"

Leiya shook her head and smiled.  "Oh, nothing's wrong, Riku.  I was just thinking."

"Hm," Riku replied.  "Tanis caught me stuck in my thoughts today, too."

"What were you thinking about?" she asked.

As a response, Riku looked at the painting of his father and Wenna.

"I see," Leiya said.

"I find myself wondering how he managed to train me almost by himself for those ten years," Riku mused aloud.  "Most ylfe parents split the responsibility up, like we have, but he took it all on himself, since he was my only living parent.  Cloud, Samara, and Darius often helped, but most of it was just him."

Leiya nodded.  She knew how often Riku's thoughts wandered back over to his father.  She knew Riku wasn't dwelling on guilt or other negative emotions, and she was not jealous, but it did happen a lot.  Sephiroth had been such a strong influence on his son for much of Riku's life up to Sephiroth's death.  Riku had his own thoughts and opinions on things, living his own life, but his father would never entirely leave his subconscious.

"I'm glad for him, though," Riku said, looking away from the painting.  "He's where he belongs.  His soul is mended and his love beside him again."  He leaned back a bit toward Leiya, turning his head to look at her.  "Besides, I have you.  I can't grieve for too long with you with me."

She smiled, feeling his strong arm curl around her and pull her toward him as he turned around.  Soft yet possessive lips pressed against hers, skillfully coaxing her mouth open for his tongue to slide inside.  She moaned and shivered, moving closer to him so that their bodies touched.  Her own tongue brushed eagerly against his, drawing him in fully.  She loved his kisses, the mere thought of them able to send shivers through every part of her.  Lying back, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down on top of her, signaling her need for him.  The rustle of cloth over skin reached her ears, and she almost groaned again to feel his fingers undoing and removing her clothes…

He made love to her, taking his time, drawing out the bliss and sweet agony.  He liked to tease her, make her beg for one thing and then give her something entirely different, going back to what she had wanted when she didn't expect it.  She often protested and squirmed, trying to get out from under him and take control, but he knew she loved this.  More than once, she screamed for something she thought she needed, but in the end, he brought her to a climax so intense that she stopped breathing entirely until it was over.

Afterward, Riku lay on top of her, pleasurably tired, his breath starting to calm.  Her slender form was still trapped underneath him, her legs still loosely wound around him.  He rolled to the side, withdrawing from her, and gathered her to him, laying a kiss on her hair.  He squeezed her lightly when she sighed his name.

"Sleep, Love," he gently shushed her, laying a finger against her lips.  "Sleep now.  Tomorrow, it's your time to train our son."

"I know, I know," she muttered, her voice muffled slightly.  "I'll sleep well tonight, thanks to you."

"Oh, no problem," Riku grinned.

To be continued…

Author's Notes:  I know.  Short, pointless chapter.  This chapter didn't have much plot to it, if any at all, but I haven't updated this fic in a while, and I figured I ought to give you guys something new to chew on.  Besides, my plans for chapter sixteen went right to Tanis' adulthood, and I decided I wanted to put something in where he's still a youngster.  My plans for chapter sixteen will now be chapter seventeen.  I hope to God that I get that written and posted more promptly than my writing has been lately.  -_-;;

I noticed that, lately, I've been putting in a lot of little sex snippets.  Nothing is graphic, really, but it might be a bit much for more conservative readers, and I can't complain about that, since I haven't put up any warnings, like I usually do with this stuff.  I was wondering if I should change the rating from "PG-13" to "R", just so people have an idea of what they might encounter.  I mean, back when I posted chapter two, with the talk about Riku's mother sleeping around, I got some raised eyebrows about the rating I chose.  Think you guys could give me your opinion on this?  I'd really appreciate it.

Anyway, whatever you do, please let me know what you think of this chapter in a review or an email to mangareader@hotmail.com, onegai shimasu!