Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII or any of it's spinoffs.

A/N: Here it is. Hope you like. Read and Review!

Roses are Red

Chapter One

I opened my eyes, unaware that I'd fallen asleep. A small, white butterfly flitted by my face, landing on a flower not too far from me. Birds sang to one another, and the leaves of the tree I was leaning on rustled as a squirrel scared them and they took to the skies. Clear blue water lapped at the toes of my boots from the lake I sat next to. A pair of ducks made their way across the water, followed by tiny brown ducklings learning to swim.

I blinked the sleep from my eyes, moving my hand from my lap to my side. I grabbed the hilt of my sword, Masamune, tucked my legs underneath me, then pushed myself up. I leaned against the tree and regarded my surroundings, scanning the area. Where am I? I asked myself, squinting in the sunlight that reflected on the water's surface. I lifted my hand in front of my eyes, blocking the sun, and let my face relax.

My nose crinkled as I breathed in a tangy scent, and I held my breath. I moved to the side, into the shade of the tree, and looked at my hand.

My eyes widened and I thrust my arm away from me, as if I could throw it to the other side of the lake if I wanted to. And I definately wanted to.

The glove was soaked through with blood, giving off the horrible, rusty odor I had smelled. There was a cut across the length of my palm, though the skin was flawless underneath the fabric.

My eyes narrowed and I drew the hand to my side once again. I should've grown used to this scene by now.

Haven't you had enough, Jenova? I asked silently, making my way through the forest towards what I hoped was a recognizeable landmark.

Her laughter assailed my brain, and I clenched my teeth. I'll never have enough, Sephiroth. I won't be done until you die.

Hopefully that won't be too much longer, I growled back, emerging from the forest. Jenova said nothing as I walked, but I could feel her smirk. The anger built in my stomach, but I pushed the feeling away, returning to my typical emotionless state. I couldn't have her taking advantage of my weakness again, especially so soon after she'd just done so. It might actually kill me this time.

After walking a few silent miles I saw what looked like a town in the distance. Sure enough, as I came closer, I recognized Kalm. Perfect, that meant Midgar wasn't too far away.

I walked into the town, immediately feeling shut in by the little space in between the buildings. There didn't seem to be many people walking the streets, but those that were moved away from me. People in front of their houses shot me fearful glares, and everywhere I went windows and doors closed. A dog barked at me and ran toward me, teeth bared, but was stopped by the length of the chain it was held by.

I cast my eyes around warily, looking for a sign of a nearby inn. The sun was setting fast and, as much as it displeased me, I needed to find a place to stay in this town.

Finally, I found a place. I didn't bother to read the name; all I saw was Inn, so I sheathed my blade and entered.

The woman at the counter jumped a little when she saw me, and I saw her hand reach under the counter, but otherwise she acted normal. I didn't bother to lessen her fear; I kept my emotionless face on and walked straight up to her, keeping my hand on the hilt of my sword. "I need a room," I said simply.

Her mouth opened, but it was seconds after when she finally spoke. "O-Okay, we have two vacancies. Um, would you rather a room with a view or -"

"It doesn't matter," I interrupted, "any room will do."

She did nothing but nod, then turned and grabbed the key from its hook and set it on the table. "The fee for one night is one hundred gil," she said meekly, her hand moving back under the table.

"That'll be all then." I set the money on the table, took the key, then went up the stairs to find my room.

The number was seven, and it was marked by a tarnished gold number nailed onto the door, about head height. I unlocked it and pushed the door open, then stepped inside. There was a large window looking out to the edge of the city, and the mountains were visible on the horizon. A queen-size bed was pressed against the wall, with tables on either end, and lamps on both. There was a sitting desk near the window, with a swivel chair, and various magazines spread on top. A television sat inside a mahogany entertainment center, the remote on a shelf above it. The bathroom was across from a closet near the door, next to me.

I walked into the bathroom and looked in the mirror, checking my reflection.

No wonder people were running from me. There was dried blood all over my face and my clothes were slightly torn in places. Blood was splattered all over me, and in some places it was still relatively wet; it must've been dripping on the ground as I walked.

I felt a pang in my chest as I looked at myself, and I winced and looked away. I sighed heavily and walked back into the room, where I removed my coat and sheath, laying it on the bed before I sat down on the edge.

All those innocent people... I could've murdered an entire village judging by the amount of blood all over me. I probably killed everyone who lived there. Men, women, fathers and mothers, children...

Genesis was right. I truly am a monster.

I shut my eyes tight and ran a hand through my hair. I needed a shower. I had to get this off of me.

I stood and made my way to the bathroom again, avoiding looking at the mirror at all costs. I turned on the water to its highest setting and stripped my sticky clothes off while it heated up. I set a towel on the counter and stepped into the shower, clenching my teeth as I let the molten water wash away my sins.

I woke suddenly to a knock on the door, and jumped up. I grabbed my sword, sliding it easily and quickly out of its sheath, and opened the door, my muscles tensed for an attack.

A young woman, looking to be about twenty or so, stood in the doorway, a cart of cleaning supplies behind her. Her hand was still raised as if she was about to knock on the door again, and her expression was that of complete surprise. She had to turn her head up to look me in the eyes, but her eyes kept flicking away from mine as her face went a deep shade of red.

I let myself relax and realized I was only wearing pants. I rolled my eyes. Great, now she was going to tell all her little friends about the shirtless guy at the inn. "What is it?" I asked, my voice still rough with sleep, and moved some stray hair back into place, leaning my free hand on the doorframe.

Her mouth gaped open for a second or two, but she hastily tried to save herself. "Uh-Uh... housekeeping," she said stupidly, gesturing slightly to the cart with her broom.

I sighed. It was just like me to get worked up over nothing but a girl with a broom. "Come back later," I replied sleepily, shutting the door and turning away.

"O-Okay," came her small answer as I shut the door in her face.

I looked out the window and saw that the sun was already high in the sky. I must've slept longer than I thought I did. I yawned and tried to push away how tired I still was. I had to get moving if I was going to make it to Midgar before sundown.

I checked out of the inn, not missing how the woman at the desk was looking me over. Her housekeeping friend must've already passed the word on. I ignored it and left, walking out of the city and back onto the open road to Midgar.

After a few hours and many miles, I came across a wild chocobo herd. Good, just what I needed. I went up slowly, quietly, behind one, tossed some greens in front of it and, once it was off its guard, grabbed its feathers and hoisted myself up. It kicked for a moment, but it soon calmed down, and I led it back to the road and kept going toward Midgar.

It was about an hour before sundown when I came to the city limits. I hopped off the chocobo and let it go free, then slipped in my keycard to open the gates to Sector Six. I was surprised the keycard wasn't expired; the gates opened slowly, as if they hadn't been used in a long time. I was reminded of my time here, how dismal it had always been. It wouldn't surprise me at all if nothing had changed in eight years.

I wasn't surprised. The air was still musty and filled with smoke, and I could recognize many of the buildings. Children sat in the streets and ran around in filthy clothes, and homeless families covered their children with thin, worn blankets while shaking their tin cup at people for change. I dumped a few coins into one as I went by, but the woman was tending to a crying child and didn't notice.

I gradually realized how tired I was as I walked through the Sector. Perhaps it was just the aura of the place, but I felt like I just wanted to curl up somewhere and sleep, and be numb. I hated this place.

A shrill scream made me look up from the trash-littered streets. There was a few little girls getting chased by boys their age, in an intense game of tag. They were all smiling and laughing and screaming, and I almost smiled at how, despite their circumstances, they could still play games and enjoy life.

But then one of the boys pushed a different little girl out of his way, and she let out a little "oomph!" and fell to the ground, letting go of the basket she was carrying.

I made my way over to the little girl, and grabbed the boy's shirt on the way there. "Hey!" he squealed, and tried to wriggle out of my grip, but it was no use.

I glared at him. "Watch where you're going," I growled at him, and the little boy swallowed and fell silent. I shoved him in front of the girl. "Now, apologize."

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, looking at his feet as he kicked a rock and wringing his hands nervously.

The girl pushed herself to her feet and brushed the dirt off her dress. "It's okay," she said, smiling at the boy kindheartedly, and picked up the basket that was nearly half her size.

The boy cast me a look, and I nodded. He quickly took his leave and proceeded to tell his friends everything that had just happened while they walked away.

I kneeled down in front of the girl. She was cute, with a round, childish face and big blue eyes, brown hair tied up in a ponytail with little bangs off to the side, and a little pink dress with a cheap satin ribbon tied around her waist. She looked to be about seven or eight, and she offered me a smile as I looked at her. "Are you alright?" I asked, trying my best to make my face look open, at least not frightening.

"I'm fine," she said, her voice high-pitched and full of life. "Thanks for helping me, mister."

I smiled a little. "You're welcome," I responded. "What's your name?"

"I'm Lexi," she said happily, straightening her back as if she were proud. "Lexi Marie Sweep. What's yours?"

"My name's Sephiroth." Please let her not know who I am.

She made a face. "That's a weird name, Stephiroff," she said.

I grinned at her mispronunciation of my name. "Yeah, I guess it is." I glanced at her basket. "What do you have there, Lexi?"

She smiled brightly once again and held the basket out for me to see. "I'm selling roses that me and my mommy grew! Do you want one?"

I looked at the roses. They were long stemmed, with thorns but no leaves, and red as fresh blood. They were in perfect bloom, and had obviously been tended constantly. "Sure, I'd love one," I answered. I picked out one at random. "How much for it?"

"Just a gil," Lexi said, letting the basket rest at her side again.

"A gil?" I repeated in surprise. "Why are they so cheap?"

"Mommy says no one will buy them if they cost any more," she answered, swinging the basket in front of her lightly back and forth. "She says people don't like spending a lot of money on things. She says people don't have much money anyways." She put a hand by her mouth and leaned forward to whisper to me. "And when she thinks I'm not listening, she says that we're lucky if people even buy them anyways."

"Well, I don't see why people wouldn't want such beautiful roses, Lexi." I fished out my pouch of gil and held it in my hand. "Name your price."

Lexi smiled and thought for a moment. "Twenty gil!" she said excitedly.

"Thirty," I shot back.

Her eyes widened. "Forty!"

"Fifty."

She opened her mouth, beaming, then made a face. "What comes after fifty?" she asked.

I chuckled lightly at that. "You know what, Lexi?"

"What?" she asked, her voice almost a whisper.

"Hold out your hand," I commanded, and she did so. I dropped the pouch into her hand. "I'll give you two hundred gil for this one rose."

Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth in a huge "O". "Thank you, Stephiroff!" she exclaimed, her smile stretching from ear-to-ear.

I grinned back at her. "You're welcome," I said, then shook her little hand. "It was nice meeting you, Lexi."

"You, too!" She jumped up and down lightly in her black patent leather shoes. "Mommy's gonna be soooo happy!"

I stood up and looked down at her. "Well, why don't you get back to your mommy, okay, Lexi? It's getting late."

She nodded vigarously. "Okay!" She gave me a big hug, her arms only reaching to my thighs. I tensed up slightly, but patted her lightly on the head nonetheless. "Bye bye, Stephiroff!"

"Goodbye, Lexi," I said, giving her one last smile as she ran excitedly down the street.