Wings of an Angel
By Henrika

Henrika- I'm sorry that this is so short. And somewhat confusing. Really sorry for that. Oh and that I didn't say a thing about what happened to Tifa in this chapter. Or what's really up with the whole wing thing. Next chapter hopefully. So sorry. Enjoy and review please?

It was gray.

All around him was empty gray space.

And right in front of him was the one-winged angel, silver hair caressing his leather clothes as he smiled and languidly flapped his pitch-black wing. "I was wondering when you'd arrive here."

Cloud instantly went to draw First Tsurugi and found that the sword was no longer at the holster on his back. In fact there was something far different there, something soft and feathery and very much attached to him. He uttered a few of the more creative curses he had learned from Cid upon realizing that they were wings.

Getting past that took him a few moments, but Sephiroth merely stood there, not attacking him. It took Cloud a few more moments to figure out why. Masamune was not at Sephiroth's side. Regardless of that, he refused to let his guard down, resolving to attack the man the first moment he could. He was not going to let Sephiroth take him over.

"You're going to attack me the moment you see an opening, aren't you?" Cloud hesitated, surprised that his plans had already been foiled. "I suggest you have a seat, there are things you need to know."

He was too calm. It was making Cloud uneasy. The man was always calm, but always with that bordering edge of insanity. But there was no trace of that frenzied madness. It was like…Cloud gasped. He could have sworn…no, he knew that that man was dead. But it was hard to deny his old memories, even if they were mixed up with Zack's. And perhaps they were stronger because of that.

"General?"

"Yes."

"But…how?"

"Do you know what's happening to you?"

"What do you mean?"

"What was the last thing you remember?"

"I was talking to Tifa."

Sephiroth sighed. "I thought so. The Planet and the Lifestream have decided to get rid of Jenova and I. You have been given Geostigma in an effort to expel us from both your body and the Planet. You are currently unconscious. This place is inside your head and was facilitated by the use of a time spell that a young girl cast."

"Oh."

"As for who I am, yes, I am the true General Sephiroth."

"But Jenova…"

"Hojo told me that was the name of my mother. He lied to me, something that happened rather frequently. It appears that my mother was a woman by the name of Lucrecia Crescent."

"But, how do you know that?"

"Puppets are made to be manipulated Cloud. You and I were made to those standards. Jenova controlled me to a much higher extent than I controlled you. She warped my mind and turned my anger to her advantage. But there were records, ones I saw when I was a very young child. They listed that woman as my mother. But Jenova and Hojo made me forget that."

"I'm sorry." The words were out of his mouth before Cloud had even realized what he'd said. Even Sephiroth looked surprised.

"The fault was theirs. As the Geostigma progresses, Jenova loses the control she had over me. Once she is gone, perhaps the Ancients will allow me to join the Lifestream instead of purging my existence from it.

"You knew what you were doing." Cloud accused. "All that time, all the places you destroyed, all the people you murdered!"

"Did you know what you were doing when you gave me the Black materia?"

"What?"

"Sometimes I knew what I was doing, other times I was unable to stop, even if I desired to do so."

Cloud heaved a breath out. "What about Aeris?"

"The one who called Holy?"

"Yes. Were you in control when you…when you…did you kill her willingly?"

"Holy was the only thing that could stop Meteor and she was the only one who could summon it. I was to ensure the Planet's destruction. It was Jenova's will and perhaps mine as well. To make the Planet suffer for my suffering."

"Did you kill her?"

"You will never accept the answer I give you. Whether it was of my own volition or not, I destroyed your town, your friends, even my own friend."

"Zack."

"Zack." Sephiroth nodded.

Cloud slumped to the ground suddenly, overwhelmed. "Why was that thing on our Planet? She ruined so many lives." His wings bent to cover him, forgotten until that moment and strangely comforting.

"It no longer matters. She will be eradicated. But you are the only one who can truly destroy her."

"Why me?"

It was a question laced with pity and Sephiroth had never had the tolerance for pity. "You were always weak. The other cadets picked on you as I remember. Yet somehow you attracted Zack's attention. Somehow you survived Hojo. Somehow you survived me. And somehow you survived Meteor and Jenova. Regardless of what you stole from Zack, you are a SOLDIER. Rise and fulfill your duty." Cloud cowered behind his wings, the feathery appendages wrapping tighter around his body.

The gray space around them shuddered like a ripple through a pond.

"Our time is getting short. I will not have you fail at the very end. Get up." The General was most decisively in control now, his commands still meriting the enormous respect they had received before any of this had started.

And Cloud stood.

The General nodded, satisfied. "Come, you have much to learn in little time. And I'm sure you're curious about those." He pointed to Cloud's wings, the black and white striking out sharply against the gray; the brightly colored feathers on the white wing standing out in brilliant relief to everything around them.

"Yeah. That'd be something to know." He didn't know why, but he felt like smiling.

Henrika- Dives for shelter. Don't hurt me! Look, look! I even updated on time, though it was darn close cause of work. Oh well. More to come!