Disclaimer: Characters in this story are copyrights of Square Enix. They are by no means mine. Only the storyline belongs to me. If by any chance I have used any ideas similar to those of existing authors, please inform me so that I may change the details. If there is no notice, I will take it that usage of the idea is permitted. Thank you.

Legend

"…" conversation

'…' thoughts

break

Chapter Three: Rebirth

When Yazoo returned to Seventh Heaven (properly dried and equipped with an umbrella) later during the night, the first thing he thought was that he should have come back when everyone was sleeping. Tifa stood looming at the doorway, arms crossed and silent. The next minute, however, was not very quiet.

"Where have you been, young man?" Yazoo backed up, alarmed at the outburst. "Do you know what time it is?"

"None of your god damn business!" Yazoo retorted.

"I make it my business when someone's living under my roof!"

"We didn't ask for it! You were the one who dragged us here!"

"You make it sound like we're the ones forcing you to stay!"

"Enough!"

Tifa and Yazoo turned to the staircase to find Cloud and Loz there.

"Kadaj just drifted off. At this rate, you'll wake everyone." Cloud said in a low voice.

Loz approached the two.

"Look, Yazoo. If they didn't take us in, we'd be dead."

Yazoo stared at Loz with disbelief etched all over his face.

"Loz! You're siding with them?"

"I'm not siding with anyone. All I'm trying to say is…I'm thankful that I'm alive. And for that, I'm grateful to them."

"Like they really cared about us…" sneered Yazoo.

"We do. We were worried when you just walked out like that and disappeared for hours." This time, Tifa was the one to speak up. She was no longer talking with a raised voice, but in a very gentle, almost motherly manner. Yazoo shook his head and laughed humourlessly.

"Have you forgotten? We tried to kill you!"

"What's past is past. The moment we brought you here, you were no longer our enemy." Tifa countered.

The long-haired youth bit his lower lip. He was running out of arguments.

"We're not even human."

The statement was too true to be turned, and Tifa and Loz were rendered silent.

"You care about Kadaj…" interjected Cloud. "That makes you human."

Yazoo was speechless. Here was the very man they were sent out to kill, the man who knew that they were but Jenova's puppets. Cloud had not only forgiven them, he accepted them. The blond was telling him that he was like them, human…not monster…equal.

Yazoo cast his eyes down. Cloud and Tifa radiated with sincerity. The trust, the firm belief that he too, had earned a right to be human, made a hot feeling rise to his chest. The feeling spread all the way to his eyes and Yazoo pinched them shut to prevent himself from crying. He turned his face away. Was this how it feels to be acknowledged and forgiven?

"It is all right to cry," coaxed Tifa. "It's a strength to be able to cry, when you need to."

They spent a while looking at Yazoo's shuddering back. None said a word, for tears were necessary for him to be reborn…as a human being.

When he opened his eyes, his vision was blurry. He felt, rather faintly, as though he was lying on a lumpy pile of clothes. He closed his eyes, and took deep breaths. Slowly, his senses returned to him and he could smell the mustiness in the air, hear the tiny crackling of a fire. He opened his eyes and scanned his surroundings. It appeared to be an old and abandoned shack.

Sephiroth felt a familiar bristling of caution. He had no idea where he was, no inkling who brought him here. Whoever it was, it couldn't be good. He caught sight of his coat, folded neatly on top of a rather dusty table. He needed to get out, now. Sephiroth pushed himself up into a sitting position.

Suddenly, the world seemed to be tilting and Sephiroth was attacked by a wave of nausea. From the unnatural heaving of his breath and the burning feeling of his body, Sephiroth could tell that he was having a fever. He staggered to his feet and grabbed the coat. Clumsily, he pulled it on and stumbled out of the door.

"You're joking." Yazoo had a look of utmost dismay on his face. Cloud shook his head. Kadaj and Loz had their backs turned to them, their bodies trembling. Yazoo glanced down at the object of his distress and looked at Cloud again. The blond merely shrugged.

"There's no way in hell I'm going to wear this-this…hideous, repulsive…thing!"

Kadaj and Loz burst into fits of laughter as Yazoo threw down the outfit he was holding, fuming. Even Cloud couldn't hide the twitching of his lips. Of course, they understood the reason for his grief. Tifa had just given him a waitress costume.

"Aw, come on. I'm sure it'll look good on you!" wheezed Loz.

"Yeah, Tifa must love you, Yazoo. We only got the standard vest and pants." Kadaj wiped tears out of his eyes.

"I swear, one day, I'll kill that woman." Yazoo glared at the wall, imagining that it was Tifa and he was burning holes into her head.

"Well, we obviously couldn't carry the costume well. I mean, I'll never pass for a girl!" said Loz. Kadaj promptly began laughing again. Yazoo looked scandalised. Then, he turned to the door.

"TIFA!"

Approximately two minutes later, sounds of bickering voices pierced the silent bar. Cloud sighed.

'Here we go again…'

Tifa had made the three siblings work at her bar, as 'payment' for living at her place. It was a good idea, she had said. She was in need of some extra hands anyway. Loz agreed to play bartender, which left Yazoo and Kadaj to be waiters. The two refused to let Kadaj out of bed, but the youth was persistent, and Kadaj usually got what he wanted.

"We better put a stop to it, before they take each other apart." Loz sighed as he went off to appease the screaming duo.

Cloud observed the silver-haired teen before him. Kadaj still looked sickly, but the smile on his face and the slightly flushed cheeks from the previous bouts of laughter gave his pale skin some colour. Cloud had never seen the boy smile in this sincerity. He looked truly…happy. Presently, Kadaj was looking at him, a curious expression on his face. Before he could say a word though, Loz called for him.

Darkness had fallen. Sephiroth knew from experience that this was a dangerous time. Monsters were at their most active moments, and the sense of sight could not be fully depended upon. Add to it the fact that he was sick…well, it wouldn't do any good to be lurking around in the dark and cold.

Sephiroth froze. His ears caught a slight rustle in the bushes. His hand moved to his side in a reflexive motion, only to find that Masamune was not with him. Sephiroth felt the cold penetrate him further. He had never had Masamune removed from his side. It was more that a weapon, more than a tool…it was the one thing that gave him a sense of security.

'Well, this complicates things…'

He stood still in the clearing, catlike eyes darting left and right. His muscles tensed, ready to jump into action. Something shot out of the trees on his left and Sephiroth jumped away.

'What…is this?'

In front of him, was what looked like a…wolf? But this wolf was huge, and it looked…malformed. Its features were twisted, as though in pain. It shuddered and roared and rammed its head into a nearby tree. Sephiroth had never seen any monster act this way before. The monster raised its head and roared into the air. Then, as though it had just noticed the figure watching him, it charged.

Sephiroth dived aside and rolled out of the pouncing creature's reach. The wolf jumped after him and swiped at the silver-haired man with its powerful paws. Rebounding off a tree, he aimed a kick at its snout. The wolf growled and twisted its body. Sephiroth grunted painfully when it slammed its tail into his back. Sephiroth frowned. He couldn't possibly defeat something of this size without a weapon, especially not in his current condition.

'What the-'

The wolf brought its paw down on him. Sephiroth evaded the blow but not the claws. Ignoring his bleeding shoulder, he clung onto the creature's fur and scaled its body. The monster raged, trying to throw the former general off its back. Sephiroth gripped the fur tightly as the monster trashed against the trees. He reached out and caught a broken branch. Holding it in his uninjured hand, he plunged it into the creature's eye.

Bellowing with pain and fury, the wolf reared his head. Sephiroth jumped down, but before he could land properly, he was knocked into a tree with a strong kick. He groaned as his body took the battering. His head hurt, his back hurt, heck, he was feeling pain everywhere! The monster raised itself on two feet, determined to make it a short job. Sephiroth glared at the creature which was about to crush him to death and tried to will his body to move.

Gunshots followed one after another, as a flurry of bullets embedded themselves into the wolf's body. The creature became motionless, and then swayed dangerously and landed heavily on one side. From the darkness, Vincent Valentine stepped out, Death Penalty smoking in his hands.

A/N: I wanted to lighten things up a bit. Can't have everyone being so solemn in every chapter now, can we? Gah, I suck at action scenes, especially monster scenes. I can do man vs man okay, but how are you supposed to describe a monster's movements without making it look like a human being? Please review, and thank you!