A Word from the Author: Thanks for the reviews, everyone! I apologize for the double cliffhangers since some of my reviewers seem to be extremely mad with me. Cheer up! Now I bring to you the fulfillment of the first cliffhanger...YEAH! So, Jenova and Sephy delight coming up!

Chapter Seventeen: Reunion...and it ain't going to be pleasant

"Greetings, my son," the voice said coldly, ringing through the still night air, faintly musical. "So we meet again."

Paralyzed with indecision and a most unfamiliar emotion, Sephiroth froze, his eyes locked to the sorceress' face. His fear was a bitter, iron taste in his mouth, and his feathers fluttered slightly as he trembled, just a little. Around him, Elenor and Keire were still in a tableau of surprise, their eyes skipping from one to another like ping-pong balls. Daniel continued to lie on the ground, head lolling, but Paine was beginning to come to. There was terror in her gray eyes as she stared at Adele, and absently she rubbed at her wound. She gazed at Avine's crumpled body, the blood on Sephiroth's Masamune, and a sick realization erupted on her face.

"Yes," Adele hissed menacingly. "You never did ask Sephiroth about his past, did you?" Sephiroth gulped most uncharacteristically and started shaking his head violently, his eye pleading. Adele maliciously ignored him and proceeded with relish, "How he once killed so many people. He burnt down a town and murdered everyone in it...children, women, men, the innocents... and laughed ... He cast a spell, Meteor, to destroy the Planet. He killed a girl as she knelt praying before an altar. All this and more...what, you don't believe me? Tell them, son." The sorceress stood back and watched the effects of her words on her audience with cruel amusement.

"SHUT UP!" Paine screamed suddenly. "You're lying, damn your tongue. That's not possible. There would have been reports about such an occurrence...and Gaia definitely wasn't destroyed...we would have known..."

Sephiroth hung his head, hiding his face in his long hair. He couldn't bear to look at his 'mother's' face any longer. He heard Adele laugh delightedly, mellifluous laughter spilling forth and mocking him painfully.

"Foolish girl," Adele sneered at her. "What made you think it happened in 'this' world? There's so many universes out there, and we were from one of them. In fact, why don't you ask my son?"

"Sephiroth." Paine turned to face him, but he averted his eyes, his hands curling into fists of agony. He could hear the hesitation and pain in her voice. "Tell me she's a liar. Tell me it isn't true. Please."

"It's true," he said dully, every word cutting his intestines into little pieces. "I'm...a murderer." Guilt assailed him, and he heard Adele crow in triumph. "Come with me, son," she said enticingly, kneeling before him. She stroked his shivering feathers with a perfectly manicured hand. "We can rule this world together, just as we almost managed to do before. But this time, we will succeed! We have the might of armies behind us...willing to fight for us..."

"Get away from him, you witch!" Elenor screamed suddenly, lashing out at Adele with her sword. Before it could reach its target, Adele waved a hand carelessly. There was a flash of bright blue-white light, and both Elenor and Keire froze in place, unable to move. Only their eyes were mobile, filled with anger and helplessness.

Sephiroth started, and turned his head, his eyes darkening with rage. Adele grabbed his face and bent his head so that he gazed into her eyes. "Join me," she said insistently, every word filled with hypnotic power. Her golden eyes flared with amber light, and the youth was drawn to look into their molten depths. He relaxed, ensnared by Adele's charm, and she smiled in affection and satisfaction. The alien cells in his brain responded to their mistress' instigation and burrowed deeper into the tissue, sparking off a chain of chemical activity, duplicating Adele's chain of thoughts and replacing those previously existing in the youth. A dreamy smile floated across his lips and his eyes deadened.

Adele forced her will harder upon her son, smiling more ecstatically than ever. Paine could see that smile from where she lay, her ribs still aching, and she did not like it. The sorceress had discounted her because of her injury. Surely there was a way to turn it to her advantage, she thought desperately. After seeing what Adele had done to her superiors, she doubted that her broadsword would leave any significant damage, if any at all. Helplessly she gritted her teeth, desperately trying to think of some magic that could stop Adele. Unfortunately, the only Guardian she was Junctioned to was Carbuncle, who used defensive magic. Her own power wasn't particularly strong either. Not to mention Adele was a sorceress...

"Are you with me, son?" Adele asked, pulling Sephiroth up as she stood. He inclined his head, his eyes blank. Like Avine, Paine realized in horror. She didn't care what Sephiroth had said, that he had killed people before. What mattered was the present, that he had changed his ways and become good. Her inner sense had a good feeling about Sephiroth, and she trusted her instinct.

"Prove it, then," Adele continued. She gestured flamboyantly at the petrified forms of the instructors, smiling ruthlessly. "Kill them for me. Then we will return together to my lair. I must admit, Sephiroth, that I did not expect to find you here. You must remind me to thank the Planet someday." She laughed again, long and loud. "Now to business, my son. Kill them."

The youth nodded mechanically in answer to Adele's command. He turned and strode towards Keire and Elenor, his face cold and harsh. The trapped instructors visibly strained against their invisible prison, fear and wrath in their gaze. Elenor looked in particular ready to spit on Adele's flawless face and boot her down a convenient doorway to hell. Sephiroth stopped in front of the closest SeeD, who happened to be the yellow-eyed swordswoman. Glassy-eyed and expressionless, he raised his Masmaune in a salute, ready to bring it down in a crashing—and fatal—stroke. Elenor closed her eyes, facial muscles tensing for the blow.

—Sephiroth!!! NO, don't listen to her, she's playing with your mind, Sephiroth, come back to us!—

The swordsman paused in mid-stroke, vaguely puzzled, as the voice of the Planet pounded in his ears, distracting him, trying to reverse the damage Adele had wrought. His Armlet glowed with rich emerald light, reflecting in his eyes and shredding through the sorceress' lies. He shook his head, once, twice, reason beginning to glimmer in his eyes once more.

—Yes, Sephiroth, fight her!— the Planet encouraged its champion fervently.

"Go, Sephiroth! Carry out my wish! I did not say you could stop!" Adele screamed shrilly. She flew to her son's side and touched the side of his face very gently with her fingernails. The youth shuddered imperceptibly, struggling within himself. It was then Adele saw the fiercely shining bracelet adorning his wrist. "Oh, I understand!" she spat out, gazing at the armor with malevolent eyes. "Take the damned Armlet off! Do you understand me, Sephiroth? Remove it NOW!"

Paine watched as the youth warred with himself again, beads of sweat dotting his forehead. Ignoring the screaming pain in her side, she pushed herself upright, and focused on Adele. She began to speak the language of the Guardians, squeezing the words through thin lips. As Adele held Sephiroth's gaze with burning eyes, he jerkily began to reach towards the Armlet that powered his link to the distant Planet. His fingers found the catch and closed over it.

(No! What am I doing?! I can't stop I can't stop damn it...) Sephiroth tried to resist Adele's seductive tendrils of manipulation, his last rational thoughts fading in his mind as his brain began to shut down under the onslaught of the alien cells.

/Just sleep.../ Adele crooned.

"Tornado!" Paine shrieked, flinging her hands wide.

The winds tore free from her outstretched fingers, growing in size and velocity. The girl's eyes widened in surprise at the sheer might of her casting. Sand and grass flew into the air, torn from the ground as the swirling tornado blazed a trail towards Adele. Her beautiful features distorted with rage, she retaliated with another spell that sent the monstrous gust howling back towards her. Paine remained as calm as she could under the circumstances and reached out with her mind.

"Portus, gemma advoco tutela ma Carbuncle!" she shouted, and in response a little green furry creature leaped up from a hole in the ground. He visibly quailed before Adele's anger, but mustered up his courage and sprang into the air, rainbow light radiating from a bright red jewel on his forehead. He fell back into his portal, shivering, in relief just as the Tornado struck against Carbuncle's reflective shield. Paine was driven to her knees by the force of her own conjured spell, then as it seemed that the Reflect was about to shatter beneath the strain, the Tornado Dispelled into thin air. Knowing that it was not over yet, Paine braced herself, mouth open to cry out another spell, as Adele advanced on her, eyes flashing. Behind the sorceress, Sephiroth fell to the ground, clutching his head, whimpering occasionally at whatever nightmares attacked him in his worn mind.

The Silence whacked Paine straight on her lips and numbly she stared in dread as Adele began to articulate a spell...possibly the last she would ever hear. In trepidation she grasped her sword and flung it towards Adele, boomerang style, praying that it could at least hit something. Hopefully leave a big ugly scar on that damned perfect face.

No such luck. Paine cursed as the heavy missile crashed with a ring of steel against the sorceress' Protect. Blue-green light cascaded from the wound in the shield's surface before it mended itself. The sword fell uselessly to the ground and the sorceress' spell reached a dramatic climax. "Cado cadere cecidi," she finished, with an air of sinister finality.

Goodbye, Gaia, Paine mentally wished the good ol' blue ball farewell as Adele laughed and released a writhing bal of noxious black energy right at her face. She tried to jump out of the way, but it followed her every movement persistently. She shut her eyes, resolving not to let a single cry escape her and give the sorceress the satisfaction of knowing how badly she was frightened. She could feel the ebony tendrils coming towards her, so close they caressed her skin with a touch as cold as the grave...an odd keening sound filled her ears, and her vision was going...

"Aegis anima adlido letum!" a strong male voice shouted over the sound of the tortured screams. Through the despair and blackness Paine saw Sephiroth. He was on his feet again, and though stooped over, his voice was purposeful and filled with strength and authority. "Adesdum, avis et lumen!" He tossed what looked like a long, glittering red feather at his feet and it exploded in a burst of roiling fire. Out of the flame the Phoenix emerged, its feathers crimson and gold and in stark contrast to Sephiroth's shadowy wing. The massive bird needed no prompting; one glance at Adele sent her into a fit of hate. The black ball of death dissolved as she inhaled, and Paine, released from the spell, took a step backwards.

Adele flashed a glare at Sephiroth, and as he started to speak again, turned her back on the Phoenix contemptuously. She addressed him, and he sputtered to a halt as his concentration broke. "You may have won now, but the war is far from over. I will see you again, and next time I will be more prepared. For now, farewell."

"Don't run!" the youth snarled, lunging at her.

The Phoenix exhaled, and fire poured from its throat, engulfing Adele. Sephiroth, though invincible against ordinary fire, backed away from the Phoenix's breath as her fire singed his hair and scorched the air. When the bird paused, the sorceress was gone, the only trace of her presence a black charred spot on the sand. Not dead, Sephiroth suspected. Adele would not die that easily. The youth went to the Phoenix and mentally thanked her for her help. The Phoenix graciously bowed her head, then left the mortal plane in another explosion of fire, leaving a tail feather behind, a mark of her favor. Smiling slightly, the youth slid his new feather into his belt and hurried over to examine his friends' condition. His smile faded slightly as he remembered that he had almost killed them. He winced as he realized that they might have cause to hate him forever...and to tell the truth, he wouldn't blame them for their enmity.

Slowly he pointed at Keire and Elenor, who were staring impatiently at him, and intoned, "Resolvo defigo autem...Dispel!" There was a distinct crunching noise as violet spheres formed and surrounded the instructors before vanishing. Elenor, still in the act of leaping, promptly hurtled towards the sand and bumped her knee. Keire tumbled over backwards with a muffled 'omph'. Paine, glancing warily at Sephiroth, walked over and gave Keire a helping hand. When the three were all vertical again (except Daniel, who was still unconscious) they surrounded him, with identical grim expressions on their faces.

"Now, Sephiroth..." Elenor said in her most dangerous voice.

He held up his hands, dropping the Masamune at his feet, and backed away, looking abashed and shamed. "I'm sorry. If you want to put me under arrest...execute me...expel me...whatever. I understand." He lowered his gaze to his feet, feeling as though someone had stomped over his heart a few dozen times. Here he was, on the verge of finally being accepted by his peers, and Adele had ruined everything. He was an outcast all over again. He sighed and said again, very sincerely, "I'm so sorry."

"Wait," Elenor said sharply. "No one said anything about expulsion, much less decapitation. I believe there's something else going on here we don't know about. Something big. You should have told us the truth, Sephiroth. We would have tried to help you."

The youth raised his face, looking disbelieving this time, but hope began to light up in his eyes. "I..." he stuttered.

Elenor held up a quelling hand. "Later, we have to return to Garden first. Then you can tell Xu and the committee what you know. Everything." She leveled her gaze at him. "The only reason I'm not holding you at swordpoint right now is because I believe in you. And you had better not betray that trust, or you'll be entering Garden in a body bag."

Sephiroth nodded, relieved at his respite and all too accustomed to Elenor's blunt way of speaking. The instructor was about to speak again when she was interrupted by the sound of gunfire and panicked screams. She spun around, hand going to her rapier. Everyone gazed in the direction of the noise, back towards Coruthary, orange flashes visible and growing nearer.

"What's going on?" Keire muttered, frowning. "The squads should have infiltrated Coruthary by now and made contact with the leaders..."

As if in answer to his question, a group of blue-clad SeeDs and cadets came into view, bullets striking against their Protects in a shower of magical sparks. As they watched, dumbfounded, one shield failed suddenly and a bullet hit home, spraying the air with dark red blood. The victim stumbled and fell headlong in the sand, never to rise again. The remaining fifteen continued sprinting, though one or two lagged behind, occasionally turning to spray the unseen enemy with a barrage of bullets.

"Why don't they call their Guardians?" Paine wondered. "At least one should be Junctioned..."

Elenor frowned, and raised her arms, rapier raised upwards. Guttural words spilled out of her mouth, and there was a flare of blue, icy light in the air between her erect limbs. The woman gasped suddenly, her features contorting. She strained clearly, tendons and sinews standing out on her neck and arms, then an echoing cry sounded, and faded away. The light flashed feebly, then winked out of existence. Elenor lurched as the spell went on the blink. "That's why," she spat out raggedly. "The Galbadians must have activated the damned Sting."

"We'll have to save them!" Paine said urgently, pointing at their fleeing comrades.

Sephiroth turned to her. "Give me one of your guns, Paine," he said hastily. The girl looked at him for a moment, then nodded solemnly and extended her left hand. The silver-haired youth grasped the offered weapon in his hand. It was cold and solid and deadly. He sheathed his Masamune and looked towards the sky.

"Is it fully loaded?" He asked, not looking at them.

"With Pulse Ammo, though I used up some earlier in the Galbadian camp," she replied. "I suppose you need spares?"

Sephiroth counted the bullets still in the pistol and snapped the compartment shut. "No," he said shortly. "This is satisfactory. Save them for yourself."

"What are you thinking?" Keire demanded.

Sephiroth glanced at him and sighed. "A distraction," he answered simply. "You will know when and what to do when the time comes." He flexed his wing, folding and unfurling it. He had not had time to adapt to the extra weight of the appendage on his back, but he would have to make do. The muscles from his wing were rusty from disuse, and he flapped it experimentally. He felt different in sorcerer form in this world. Here, he could feel a deep connection to the earth he stood upon, the air, the dried up plants curled close to the sand. Each was unique, and throbbed with its own special magic. He drew upon it, and felt a surge of power warm his body. It was wonderful, like receiving a blessing from the living creatures of the earth.

He rose into the air, doing a flip just for the sheer euphoria of flying, free and unfettered. The lack of another wing did not affect his flying skills. The air rushed against his face as he soared straight up to gain air space, then he tucked his wing close and glided smoothly over the heads of his earth-bound companions. Close on the prey's heels were the hunters, a whole squadron, all big and brawny and armed with nasty-looking machine guns. He hovered just above them, cocking Paine's pistol and sighting his target, drawing the Masamune with another. He normally disliked using guns, but he needed a long-range weapon for what he was about to do.

The Galbadians had not noticed him yet. He narrowed his eyes and pulled back on the trigger. The unmistakable crack whipped through the air, and as one the Galbadians glanced up automatically. For his victim, it was already too late; even as he looked, he was staggering, then he was lying still in the dust. The boots of his own comrades pounded into him as they skidded to a stop. They were pointing at the black-winged figure and yelling.

He grinned wickedly in response, knowing that he was a disturbing sight. Eyes glowing with demonic fire, his hair lifted off his shoulders by a mysterious wind. He fired again, every shot viciously accurate and ripping through the bodies of the men so fast that they were still in mid-motion before their brains realized that they were dead. In a matter of minutes they were reduced to half their number and Sephiroth was out of bullets. The hunters had become the hunted; the SeeDs had turned back and were bearing upon their foe, triumphantly flashing swords, daggers, whips and rifles. The trapped Galbadians reversed directions and fled from the face of death. Only a few were brave—or foolish—to stand their ground against the onrushing SeeDs, all enraged and seeking retribution for the death of their comrades. They were pulverized instantly by the onrushing tide. Sephiroth smiled grimly and tucked the pistol in his belt, unsheathing the Masamune.

He headed towards the ground to join in the battle just as his squad came barreling up. The more excitable Keire was whooping, his gunblade tracing arcs in the air. Paine stood from afar, picking off Galbadians with her remaining gun and standing guard over Daniel. Her partner landed next to her and returned her weapon. She winked at him and flashed a thumbs-up. He repeated the universal gesture and raced past her into the thick of battle. The Galbadians had stopped running and were trying to make a stand. Fiercely, desperately, like only cornered rats could. Another cadet plunged down, staining the ground crimson with the contents of her insides. Her murderer slipped in the intestines that spilled forth and was promptly cut down by an angry cadet.

Sephiroth touched down and immediately started fighting. The bloodlust that was never far from his mind poured through his veins, excited by the pungent stench of blood and the hostility and hate rampant in the atmosphere. The tough Galbadian armor was no match for the powerful Masamune, and they fell before him like leaves before a wind. Heartened, the SeeDs fought with renewed vigor, and in a matter of time the enemy was decimated. Save one, whom the instructors bound and Silenced for interrogation in Balamb Garden. The twenty survivors of the disastrous mission retrieved their fallen comrades and arranged them reverently in a row. They had no time to bury them, so the instructors decided on cremation. Deckard Proeliator, the highest ranking among the instructors, bowed his head as the SeeDs gathered somberly around him.

Quietly he said, "Brave warriors who have died courageously in battle, may Hyne watch over your souls, and guide your passage into Heaven. Let us burn your mortal shells, you who have no need for them any longer, and set free your spirits to soar unbound into the sky. Rest in peace."

Face pale, Elenor came forward and aimed her fingers at the line of dead SeeDs and cadets. Were it not for the pale gleam of exposed bone and the blood, they could almost be asleep. She closed her eyes and whispered the beginnings of the spell. "Immolatus infernato incantem ardesco impetrtive!" As she spoke, orange light kindled and erupted forth, spilling all over the assembled bodies. They burnt, the sickly sweet smell of cooked flesh filling the air. Here and there a cadet or instructor wept for the loss of friend, lover, or relative. Sephiroth stood awkwardly, feeling like an intruder that had imposed upon the sobbing SeeDs. The dead were strangers to him; it was hard to mourn for someone whom he did not know, and he felt vaguely guilty for not feeling more over the deaths.

As the final corpse disintegrated into black, greasy ash, Proeliator wiped at his suspiciously moist eyes and said in a shaking voice, "And now, fly high, and be free of the mortal constraints of the living. We do not bid you farewell, in the hopes that we will meet you once again in the paradise that comes after death..." His voice faltered and shook, dying in his throat. Brusquely, in a tone that was still hoarse with grief, he snapped out orders and got the survivors moving. Elenor jogged to catch up with him and asked in a hushed voice that Sephiroth picked up, "Do you think the ships will still be intact?"

"The Mirrormists still guard them," Proeliator returned in a subdued timbre.

"The Galbadians are adequately armed as well," Elenor replied softly.

Proeliator let out a humorless bark of bitter laughter. "I don't honestly know, Elenor. I just hope, that's all. And, damn it, haven't we suffered enough for one day?"

Elenor touched his arm once and withdrew silently. The beach came into view soon after, but it was very much different than the state it had been in when they had first left it. The sand was decorated with strips of wreckage, twisted metal, the smoking carcasses of damaged Mirrormists that had obviously crashed to earth and was blackened in several places. A few bodies were littered about, half-scorched and in fetal positions. However, the SeeD ships were, surprisingly, mostly in good condition, other than being soot-streaked and more battered than before. One, however, was busted beyond repair. It listed sideways in the sea, water pouring through half a dozen cracks in its armor. Elenor was pleased. It appeared that the Balamb Mirrormists had been successful in repelling the Galbadian forces.

Proeliator gestured at his remaining forces, asking them to try identifying the bodies. Only one of them was recognized to be a Balamb SeeD, but there could be others trapped beneath the ruin around them. Elenor walked up to the older instructor, frowning. "My radio's broken. Have you tried yours?"

Proeliator grunted. "No use. The Galbadians have established radio silence all over Galbadia and Coruthary." He started as one cadet pointed at the sky and shouted, "Approaching planes!" One thought flashed through everyone's minds: friend or foe? They tensed, drawing their weapons and preparing themselves for battle. A girl almost cried in relief as the Mirrormists came close enough to be identified. The insignia of Balamb Garden shone clearly on the black metal. One of the Mirrormists was missing; there was a noticeable gap in their formation. The Mirrormist at the head, the leader, spiraled down, and the SeeDs scrambled backwards to clear a space for the warplane. The ramp hissed down moments later, and an instructor walked out, his features a study in delight.

"I can't believe it!' he exclaimed, looking as though he had no idea whether to burst into tears of laughter. "I thought...frankly I thought you were all dead. My boys convinced me to stick around, though, and I'm glad I did."

"Isn't Frank the Wing Commander?" Keire asked curiously, pushing his way to the front.

The SeeD's smile slipped off his face. "He was. I was the next ranking, so I took over temporarily."

"Oh," Keire said inaudibly, his face falling.

Proeliator looked at the remaining SeeDs under his command, and thought of how they had looked when they had left home two days before, filled with life and vitality, laughing and joking. They had faced war, and now they were changed. They had seen what war truly was; a thief that stole the magnificence, the dignity from Death. They were the strong who had survived the clutches of war , and as a result, something had been taken from them. They were adults in children's bodies, responsible for keeping safe those who had not yet lost their innocence. In a way, they were safeguarding the purity of the people.

Sephiroth was thinking something along the same lines. He was thinking about the first time he had killed. He had been nine years old, pumped up full of Mako and Jenova cells, filled with insanity. They had locked him in a plexiglass prison and dumped in a hapless guard, who had fired round after round into him but failed to stop him. He had leaped onto the man like a demon and ripped him apart. Afterwards, when the drugs had bled out of his system, he had been appalled, and regretful. He had hated himself for the longest time. His innocence had been tarnished for so long that he had only a blurry memory of what those days felt like and a vague, but powerful, longing for those times. What about these SeeDs, then? They had been children longer than he had, had the luxury of being unsullied. What did it feel to them to have that sense of security ripped away, to have experienced all those feelings associated with war: terror, revenge, sorrow, rage, abhorrence? It made the loss all the more precious and heart-wrenching.

The newly-appointed Wing Commander said soberly, "Let's go home."

............................................................................................................

The sad remnants of the SeeD force drifted home, arriving the next day in the gray twilight. It seemed oddly appropriate for the SeeDs to return at this hour, just at the edge of light's end and the night's beginning. Beaten and exhausted, they stumbled out at the harbor, while the Mirrormists zoomed on. The owner of the car rental took one look at the SeeDs, white with tears and soreness, and at once offered to drive them back. They accepted his kind offer gratefully, well aware that they were unfit to drive in their condition. They would probably end up driving into the forest. He and his wife drove the SeeDs back to the Garden five at a time. The instructors left first so that Xu could receive a complete report of the mission's events, and the cadets

Sephiroth curled up on a bench in the garage, knees pulled up to his chest, while the others followed his example or milled around, still bearing expressions of shock, speaking to each other in hushed voices. Paine sat down next to him, wearing a look he couldn't quite decipher. She appeared oddly agitated, fidgeting madly and tugging at a lock of hair.

"What is it?" he asked at last, when it became clear that Paine wanted to tell him something but couldn't quite gather the courage to say it aloud.

She glanced sidelong at him, now nibbling on her lower lip. Her eyes were disturbingly large in her pale face, and even her lips seemed devoid of color. Her hands fisted themselves in her lap. Choking off a sob, she smiled wanly. "However did you guess? That's true. I...just noticed something. I can't tell the instructors for several reasons. They..." She snuffled again. "It's a curse," she said at length.

Sephiroth was alarmed. She sounded in despair and hopeless. He leaned over and gently, gingerly laid his fingers on her shoulder. She put her hand on his and intertwined their fingers together. She steeled herself, took a breath, and said, "Don't tell anybody, okay? Please. Not...not until I'm ready."

"Of course. I promise," he said sincerely, now extremely concerned at her panicky demeanor. Paine had always seemed a calm soul to him. He squeezed her hand a little to reassure her.

She swallowed. "I'm...I'm a..."

At that precise moment, one of the cadets walked over and plopped down next to Paine. The rest of her statement was lost in a small squeak and she jumped up as though she had been burned, disentangling her hand, racing away and huddling in a corner of the garage. The cadet, whose name Sephiroth vaguely remembered as Flick, looked surprised. "What's up with her?' he asked, his tone filled with weariness. He apparently did not expect his question to be answered, for when Sephiroth ignored him and got up to go after Paine, he shrugged and lapsed once more into his own world.

"Paine?" he queried as he neared her. She seemed to be unstable and he didn't want to push her. She deliberately looked anywhere but at him. "I wasn't going to say anything," she said harshly. "It was a mistake. I didn't mean it...just leave me alone, damn you!" The girl dissolved into tears and he stood dumbly for a few seconds before recalling the existence of chivalry. He clumsily put an arm around her and turned her to face him. She sagged into his chest, her tears damping his uniform, and not knowing what else to do, he held her close until the car returned to take them to Garden.

............................................................................................................

"And that concludes my report, Headmistress," Elenor said as she came to an end. Xu nodded tiredly, her thumbs massaging her temples as she looked at Deckard, and the other instructors that had gone on the ill-fated mission to Coruthary. Fully two-thirds of them were missing in action or confirmed dead. And that wasn't even counting the injuries. Two of them were in the infirmary and Fayne was having her arm amputated. It was a disaster, a loss that she could not afford in the coming war. Only twenty out of sixty had returned.

Xu banged her fist on the table. Her instructors flinched. First that business with the Kinneases, then the problem of Skeiz Mardon, now this. The revelation that they had lost three of their greatest allies was a major blow. Trabia, Esthar, Coruthary, defeated by love, corruption and trickery respectively.

They were doomed.

Xu gazed unseeing at the tabletop. A simple mission gone horribly wrong. In a low voice she said, "Dismissed," and silently her subordinates filed out, none looking at her. They probably felt that she had failed them.

Avine, insane, killed by a cadet. Another sorceress, a new threat posed. The other squads, trapped within the city, only a few escaping with their lives. Coruthary, contrary to the message she had received from the Consul, had not been under siege. No, it had been invaded a week prior to the mission. Galbadians, hiding, had exploded out of cover the moment the squads had snuck inside the city and the gates had shut behind them. No place to run, with the Sting operational ( and thus no way to summon the Guardians for help) and vastly outnumbered, it had been a massacre. At last a squad had managed to blow the gates up and escape, and after that they had still been pursued by Galbadian forces and would have all died were it not for the timely intervention of Squad B.

Xu felt very dead beat at the moment. While she had been safe and snug on her backside in her office shuffling papers, her SeeDs had been out there getting killed, all at her behest. The guilt stung deeper than she could have imagined. She rested her head stop her crossed arms, feeling a headache coming on.

There was a timid knocking on her front door, and she clicked open a window. The camera perched discreetly on her door showed her the forms of Sephiroth, Paine and Elenor. All three looked dead on their feet. Xu wondered why Elenor would not let her cadets rest first before coming to speak with her. The whole thing stank of urgency.

Xu slapped a button beneath her desk and the door slid open to admit her visitors. The cadets trooped in, bringing in the fragrant aroma of battle. Xu couldn't help but wince as they left bloodstains on her recently cleaned floor, then mentally admonished herself for thinking about such trivial matters when the fate of Gaia was in the balance.

"They have something to tell you, and yes, it can't wait," Elenor said curtly. "You can start by telling the Headmistress your tale, Sephiroth," she said with a lift of her chin.

"It's a long story," the youth said softly, his eyes glazing over as his eyes looked somewhere in his past.

"I have time," Xu replied.

The youth nodded slightly. "Very well, then. I shall start at the beginning. It all begun before my birth, in another world, in an obscure little town named Nibelheim..."

Enthralled, the other three listened, as Sephiroth spoke, his voice ranging from blandness to anger, to hate, to sorrow, then becoming empty as he mastered himself. They traveled with him from the town of his birth, to the urban city of Midgar, to Wutai, to the Golden Saucer, to the City of the Ancients, and finally to the Northern Crater, where his story had ended only to be reborn in hope. They grieved with him, triumphed with him, empathized with him on the journey of his life. When he finished, they gazed expectantly at him, as though waiting for him to say more. He gazed back, his eyes open wounds filled with bitterness and sadness.

"And that is my story," he said, with an air of finality.

"You're very strong," Xu said after a pause. "I would have gone mad." She winced slightly at her tactlessness.

"I did," Sephiroth said coldly.

"But you found the strength to go on," Elenor joined in unexpectedly. He looked at her with some amazement, then lowered his head. "Thank you," he said in a hushed voice.

"So you're a sorcerer, of sorts," Xu mused. "Ever heard the prophecy?"

Sephiroth shook his head "No. Should I?"

Xu leaned back in her chair and contemplated. "It goes like this. Listen carefully." Adopting a theatrical voice, she intoned, "'I see death and suffering, broken by periods of peace, a mockery of the carnage that is to come. Look to the skies, for it is from there that danger shall descend. The day will come in the future when a sorcerer will save Gaia from the Scourge with the key to the wellspring of energy deep within Gaia for there will be no one else to stop the tragedy as Hyne shall be gone. When he calls, all of Heaven shall hear him, and Hyne himself will come in answer.'" Sephiroth listened intently, absorbing every word into his soul and memorizing it.

"That is certainly intriguing," he said, frowning.

"That's just understating it.," Paine interjected. When Sephiroth looked at her, an eyebrow raised, she blushed and said quickly, "Look, it's true. It's some kind of a requirement that all prophecies must be weird and mysterious and filled with death and keys and whatever frightening stuff. When has there ever been a prediction in which the oracle just nicely explains everything that's gonna happen in the future?"

"That's beside the point right now," Xu muttered, brushing Paine's observation away. "Alright, Sephiroth, I'll take your account under consideration. You are hereby cleared of all charges whatsoever, and you re fit to return to duty."

"Thank you, ma'am," the youth said, grinning lopsidedly.

"What about you?" Xu asked, turning to look at Paine.

"Nowhere near as action-packed, but still good news. I hope," Paine reported. "While I was skulking around the G-Camp looking for Avine, I stumbled upon this major's tent. He came out screaming bloody murder and I killed him. Then, on a hunch, I went in and poked around his stuff a bit, since he no longer needed them. I found this iron box stowed away in a false bottom in his trunk. It must be really important, because it was trapped three times and was rigged to throw acid, fire and lightning in that order if you didn't know the proper way to open it. Anyway, to make a long story short, I figured the combination and found the box. I froze the lock with an Ice spell and smashed it. That set off an alarm, but no one notices that in the middle of a battle. I seized the papers inside, flipped through them a bit, hid them in my shirt, and hightailed it out of there back to the leader."

"May I?" Xu asked, holding out a hand.

Paine nodded and reached inside her uniform, pulling out a sheaf of papers. "It's encoded," she went on, slapping them down in front of Xu, "and look at this. Looks familiar, huh?" She extricated a paper from the middle and jabbed a finger at the detailed drawing of a machine.

"The Sting," Elenor said, examining it. "Good work, Falkern. Figure this will stand up to our program, Headmistress?"

"We shall see,' Xu said, cracking her knuckles. "Okay, you cadets have been really helpful and I appreciate it. Get some sleep, you look like you're going to topple over at any moment. Elenor, mind waking Tre and sending her to see me? She's the best in this area."

The cadets and instructor saluted and departed Xu's office. Elenor paused at the door and looked squarely at the older woman. "You should get some sleep yourself, Xu," she said quietly.

"Later," Xu replied dismissively.

"Good night," Elenor said and left, the door shutting behind her with a mechanical swish. Rubbing her eyes, Xu reached for a cup of coffee and resigned herself to a long night.

............................................................................................................

(The next morning...or that is, later that morning...)

"All participants in yesterday's mission, please report to the 2F hallway at once. I repeat, all participants..." the intercom blared.

Sephiroth groaned and pulled the pillow over his face, but the buzzing voice was too loud. Every part of him was sore, particularly the area just behind his shoulder where the wing had burst through. He had discovered that he could retract and summon the wing at will, but both instances were particularly painful.

He pulled himself out of bed and examined himself in the mirror. His room felt empty without Daniel in it, much to his private surprise. He had come to miss the other youth's friendly chatter. But the only boy was still in the infirmary recovering.

He looked terrible; that was the only word for it. His hair was a tangled crow's nest, dark circles decorated his eyes, and his skin was a mess of angry, half-healed scars and rainbow-colored bruises. In time the marks would disappear, but for now he looked as though some maniac child with a sugar high and a huge box of crayons had been set loose on him. He found a comb, dragged it through his hair before it broke into two, and resorted to flattening his hair with water. After dressing, he forced his aching body to walk out and take the elevator to the second floor. The other cadets, sprawled carelessly in the floor, looked and felt just as bad as he did. After yesterday, most of them just wanted to lie in their beds and sleep forever.

A Garden faculty member arrived and they listlessly looked at him, trying to muster up some anticipation but too tired to do so. He held a very short list in his hands and said, "Due to the circumstances, only five will be allowed to pass this test. The results are: Squad B, Sephiroth, and Paine Falkern."

Paine managed a half-hearted cheer. Sephiroth just closed his eyes and visualized the agonizing journey back to his bed.

"Squad D: Flick Orioynt." The brown-haired boy who had sat next to Paine in the garage smiled , but it looked forced.

"Squad E: Kerry Maclaw and Gloria Madison." The two squad members perked up and high-fived each other. The Garden Faculty member nodded at the five new SeeDs and said, "Follow me to the Headmistress' office to receive your certificates. The SeeD Graduation Ball is to proceed as planned. Wear your new uniforms; they will be delivered this afternoon to your dorm." For a moment, his craggy features softened as he looked at the bone-weary SeeDs, then he left, heading down the corridor.

"Isn't it a little unfair?" Gloria voiced the question in the their heads. "we all worked and suffered so hard...and still some don't get chosen?"

"Headmistress Fraden probably has a reason for it," Kerry said diplomatically. There was a moment of silence, then the SeeDs and cadets filed out. The SeeDs headed towards the administrative section towards Xu's office. She was standing by the window, her hands clasped behind her back, as they entered, assembling themselves in a row before her. She looked at them sadly, her eyes probably imagining the five others who should have bee here with them excitedly, proud to be a member of an elite force.

"You have made it to SeeD," she said after a brief pause. "Our mission is to kill the sorceresses." Paine flinched a little next to Sephiroth; he glanced at her, figuring she was remembering Avine's gruesome death. "Congratulations, SeeDs. Always remember; uphold our qualities: honor, courage and justice. Carry out your duties well. Sephiroth."

The youth walked up and she placed a scroll in his hand. She said to him, "If you choose to stay here when your quest is done, we will always have a place for you."

"Thanks," he said in a whisper.

One by one the others came up to receive their scrolls and some words of advice from the Headmistress. When the five had collected their scrolls, Xu dismissed them. Sephiroth walked with Paine, who practically tore off the red ribbon as soon as she stepped out of the door in a hurry to see what rank she had landed. Her companion calmly untied the ribbon as she unrolled her scroll and scanned it. "Full points for judgment!" she declared happily. "SeeD rank 7. Not bad, really. How about you?"

In answer Sephiroth handed it over for her to read. She gasped in admiration. "Cool! I wouldn't have expected less. You were so wonderful during the whole mission."

Sephiroth grunted. "I don't feel I deserve rank 10," he said moodily, stuffing the scroll in his pocket. "I made loads of mistakes too."

"No one can be perfect, Sephiroth," Paine chided gently. They turned down the path leading to the dormitories and she paused at the junction to the girls' dorms. "See you tonight."

"By the way," Sephiroth said, "what did you want to tell me last night?"

Paine's buoyancy faded a bit. "Why do you keep bringing that up?" For a heartbeat, she paused, then said grudgingly, "Okay. I'll tell you tonight, if I can." She smiled a little but it was clear her heart was not in it. "See you tonight," she said again and tip-toed, kissing him swiftly on the cheek before racing to her room.

Women were strange creatures, Sephiroth thought bemusedly as he continued to his own dorm to prepare for, horror of horrors, the ball.

............................................................................................................

(That night...)

Unlike previous years, this ball had a more somber air, since many of SeeD's members would no longer be present. In memory of the dead, the SeeDs wore some black article or other on their person; a black feather, a sash, a ribbon. Some eyes were red. The couples twirled on the dance floor to the rhythm of sad, flowing music that seemed to echo the own grief many of the SeeDs still felt and would feel forever.

Sephiroth was there with them. He had originally preferred to hide in a shadowy corner for the rest of the night but Paine had other plans. She had virtually dragged him to the middle of the ball room despite his protests. He was astonished to find that the old dance moves he had been taught still came to him easily. As General he had been required to attend many functions and (shudder) dance with the overweight wives of the dignitaries. (He would never forget the time Scarlet had made unwelcome advances towards him. His mind wouldn't let him.) Paine looked pleasantly surprised and commented, "If you can dance that well, why don't you? Waste of your skills."

"Dancing has negative memories associated with it," he said, with a shiver. His mind refused to banish the image of Scarlet, suddenly.

"How's that possible?" Paine asked, confused.

Sephiroth, against his better judgment, related the embarrassing incident to her. When he reached the part where Scarlet's head had landed in the punch bowl, she howled with laughter, dispersing the lingering shadows in her eyes for a while. Wiping tears of laughter from her eyes, she chuckled, "The girls were really climbing over each other to get you, eh?"

"I would rather face a hundred Ruby Dragons alone than go up against rabid fan girls again. Some were male too. That's all I'm saying," Sephiroth replied seriously.

"Well, I don't blame them," Paine said, clutching her ribs. "You're very good-looking, you know. Very unusual coloring."

"Er...thanks," the youth answered, a little uncomfortable with her compliments. Especially when the new song started, a slow, romantic one. She inched closer with every beat and was practically all over him by the end of the song. He had to fight the urge to pull away or Paine might be affronted. After all, maybe he was getting the wrong idea. Or maybe she was. He couldn't tell.

Women were strange creatures, he thought to himself.

At the end, Paine grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the balcony. There was already a couple there who was...er...extremely active and Sephiroth's face heated at some of the more vocal movements. Paine chased them out and the woman shot a murderous look at her as she passed. The girl sat down at one end and motioned for Sephiroth to sit opposite her.

Paine took a deep breath. "Okay, let's try this again. I need to tell you something... You're the only one who could possibly understand my situation. Remember, you promised."

Sephiroth nodded, listening attentively.

Paine held out her hand. "Watch this." She flicked her index finger and thumb together. A blue spark sprang from the contact and a blue flame burned merrily in the air above her hand. She snapped her fingers again and the fire was gone. "Do you know now?" she asked softly.

"Avine's power had to go somewhere after she died," Sephiroth murmured in comprehension.

"Yes, to me." The girl hugged her knees, looking strangely forlorn and alone in the gathering shadows. "No offense, Sephiroth, but all the sorceresses who ever received their powers in history have somehow gone mad one way or another. Look at Avine. Look at Adel, Ultimecia, your 'mother.' Even Rinoa, who is hailed as a heroine, freed Adel from her frozen stasis in space. I don't wanna be like that. Like Avine. Controlled, a puppet, no way to plan her own destiny. But this fricking curse makes possession a reality. Then...SeeD will kill me." She was shaking hard, silent tears pouring gown her face in steady streams. They glistened silver in the ivory moonlight. Sephiroth couldn't bear to see her in such pain and moved forward, embracing her.

"I don't know what to say," he said solemnly, looking into her gray eyes. "I can't say useless words of comfort, because everything you've said is true. Hell. I've experienced it myself. All I can say is, I'm confident you'll prevail. And SeeD is here to lend you our strength. We're your family. And not all sorceresses are evil. Some have been good and contributed to society/ They have been loved and accepted and welcomed. Just because you are a sorceress doesn't necessarily mean you are bound to become bad one day. And if you are ever possessed, do one thing; keep the memory of yourself and all of us who care about you locked somewhere. There are ways to break possession. And as long as there is hope, I...SeeD won't touch you."

She sniffed, her breath warm against his neck. "You're the best."

"Just doing my job," he answered easily, feeling her hands creep forward to touch his shoulders. He smiled at her, beginning to ask solicitously after her condition, then her lips were on his, soft and moist and filled with hunger. He froze, shocked, and taking it as assent she leaned closer, her hands tangling in his hair. He inhaled her scent, like wildflowers and pepper. There was a definite drawback to being a teenager, he realized as his hormones began to rage out of control. He took himself firmly in hand and pulled himself away, breaking the kiss before things could go any further. She stumbled forward a bit and he gently but firmly pushed her back.

"What?" she asked sullenly, her eyes dark with hurt.

"I don't feel that way about you," he said honestly, his heart bleeding for her. "That is, I care about you as a friend, but that's it. I'm not willing to go to the extreme. I'm...I'm sorry, Paine."

His Mako eyes saw painfully well in the darkness, and he saw Paine's eyes well with tears again. He started to apologize, but then she leaped convulsively to her feet and ran away. She moved surprisingly fast; by the time he had gathered his wits and chased after her she had blended into the crowd of people. He leant against a wall, his heart heavy, and hoped that he had not ruined his friendship with Paine. He was upset with himself that he had let Paine interpret his actions wrongly. Having no more heart for the ball, and with good reason, he left the ballroom, refusing several offers to dance on the way, to find the security and quiet of his own room.

............................................................................................................

Author's Ending Note: Whew, it's done at long long last. The Seph/ Jenova battle, the aftermath, even the Grad ball and the promised dance with a girl. All for you readers out there. I hope you have found this new chapter satisfactory and to your liking. Who anticipated that twist in the end? I seem to enjoy torturing my characters a lot. Especially the original ones, since I own them, body AND soul... heh heh heh...(a few random passersby begin to edge away warily and the Authoress comes back to reality with a bump.) Any comments are welcome. Next chapter: Schemes Galore, and the unveiling of the second cliffhanger from the previous chapter . Thanks to putting up with me for so far.

Travithian Axile signing out

Thanks to:

The WyldeWestWind: It's spelt seizure, just to be helpful. Ahem. So, keep tuned for the next cliffhanger dissection.

Anasazi Darkmoon: Yeah, Star Wars was what gave me the idea for the utility droids. In case some law-abiding citizen is reading this...Star Wars is the official property of George Lucas, and I don't own a single piece of it. There.

Zack M. Strith: Couldn't you be more like your namesake and be more voluble? No offense intended.

emeralddrake: Here you go.

nekochan: Cool, Artemis fan! You gotta love him. Vampire smile and all.

Hikari-Remix: AND I made him dance with Scarlet in the past and get seduced. (An evil snicker and the sound of a traumatized Sephiroth crying is heard) Say, now I've got an idea for a one-shot fic. Involving you-know-what. Watch out for it in case I decide to write it one day.

tetraflash777: It's your opinion. More Quistis next chapter, though.