An even shorter chapter :S -Soranryu
Sephiroth walked back to the bedroom quickly after washing up in case Flame starts to have nightmares. As he climbed back onto the bed, he remembered the girl playing with his hair and heard her sharp inhale three nights ago. Did she figure something out? Most probably.
He wondered what they're going to do today. It is great that Jenova cannot control him here, but this place is so peaceful there's hardly anything to do. Maybe they could explore the forests that surround this little town. He could probably do some training too.
Movements beside him disrupted his thoughts. Ah, Flame is waking up. Sephiroth watched with soft eyes as she blinked sleepily and stretched. She then sat up and rubbed her eyes, trying to get rid of sleep. He moved behind her and wrapped his arms around her neck, "How are you feeling?"
"I-I'm fine. In fact, I think I've recovered," she stuttered at the close contact. That perked the ex-General's interest; she has never stuttered when they're in close contact before. However, these two days, she has been acting nervous whenever he hugs or even comes close to her. It didn't take long for Sephiroth to link her weird behavior to her realization three nights ago.
He has an idea on what the girl's realization might be, even though she didn't tell him. Well, he was supposed to be asleep in the first place. Sephiroth gave a smile hearing her answer. "But we still have to make sure," he said, going to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.
True to his word, he took Flame to the clinic for a check-up despite her protests. Because he made a lasting impression the last time, many people remembered him and did not dare cross his path. Therefore, no one made any comments when he went straight to the doctor's office without queueing.
"Oh, it's you, General Sephiroth. How may I help you?" the doctor gave a welcoming smile. Sephiroth gently place the girl in his arms on the chair, "Check her over. She said she's feeling fine." The doctor nodded and did as he was told. After a few minutes, he confirmed that Flame has fully recovered. Satisfied, Sephiroth gathered the girl into his arms and left the clinic, giving the doctor a nod of thanks.
"Sephiroth, you can put me down. I'm not sick anymore," Flame stated, patting his arm to get his attention. As much as he didn't want to, he did. "Since you're well now, let's head to the forests," the ex-General said casually, eyeing the forests with mild interest. The girl then murmured something which he didn't catch.
Flame repeated when he asked her to, "The pack is there at this time of the day; the forests are their hideout." Sephiroth's eyes darkened when she mentioned the pack. He could tell that she was still afraid of them, and he hates them for that. To be honest, Sephiroth never liked them from the beginning; they're just trash who pick on the weak and have no sense of honor.
Sensing Flame's fear just from thinking about the pack, he pulled her into his arms and reassured, "It's alright; you don't have to be afraid. They won't ever be able to land a hand on you, understand?" Flame nodded, calming down after hearing his words. He then unraveled his wing and flew home for them to get ready to spend the day in the forests.
Seph knows! Since the chappie is short, I shall keep my comments short XP -Soranryu