Chapter 11: A Friend In Need

A loud ring roused Sephiroth from his sleep and he untangled himself from Haruka to answer his cell phone. He grabbed it off the bedside table and flipped it open to answer it. As soon as he placed it to his ear, He heard Lazard's voice on the other end.

"Sephiroth," he said, "we need you on another mission. Are you at your apartment right now?"

"Yes," he whispered so he would wake Haruka. "I'll be at the building ASAP. Good bye, sir."

"Good bye," replied Lazard, hanging up his mobile.

Sephiroth stumbled out of the sheets to pull on his pants and coat but stole another glance at the sleeping woman in his bed. A sharp pang of need stabbed at his chest as he stared at her. He didn't want to leave her; he wanted to just take all his clothes off and explore her body more. With impressive self-control, he managed to kiss her on the forehead and walk away silently but a voice woke him up.

"Seph," she whispered gently, touching his arm, "where are you going?"

He looked back and saw her staring at him expectantly. Her brown eyes made him feel that feeling again so he walked over to her and pressed a kiss to her soft lips. Suddenly, he found himself on top of her, kissing her lips firmly, and she was pushing his clothes off again. Oddly, he didn't mind. He wanted to do it again, and before he knew it they were making love again.

…

About three hours later, both Sephiroth and Haruka were showered and dressed and the soldier was telling her about the mission he had to do. She looked sad but she nodded approvingly, placing her gentle hand over his. She was proud of him for taking a mission because she knew it would be hard for him to confront Angeal and Genesis.

"I'm proud of you, Seph," she whispered, placing her hand on his face. "I hope you can bring them home."

"Me too," he replied, giving her another kiss on the lips. "I have to go. I'll try and get back as soon as I can. I'll call you."

"I love you," she said gently.

"I love you too," he said to her, giving her a tight embrace.

"Bye," she whispered, heading out to go home so she wouldn't worry her mother and sister any more.

Sephiroth smiled gently, replaying the feel of her lips on his, and walked out of his apartment to get to work.

…

"You have a mission for me, sir?" asked Sephiroth once he walked into Lazard's office.

"Yes," replied the man, looking up at the man. "Our sources tell me that Genesis and Angeal have been sighted in Modeoheim. I need you to go there and see to them."

Sephiroth's face went blank when he repeated the mission in his head. He would have to murder them or be known as a traitor who betrayed Shinra. Closing his eyes, he thought of Haruka and her smiling face and then opened his eyes to look at Lazard.

"Understood," replied the general, nodding. "I'll start the mission now."

He turned to walk out of the room but Lazard's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Reno and Rude will watch over Haruka while you're gone," he said gravely. "She'll be safe with them."

Sephiroth nodded slowly before walking out of the room, praying that Haruka would be safe while he was gone.

…

Haruka slipped into her house quietly but she got found by both her mother and her sister. They sat in the kitchen waiting for her to come in. Both of them looked grave and worried when they saw Haruka come in.

"Where were you last night?" asked her mother, looking frosty.

Haruka said the first thing that came into her mind, "I was at Hikari's house."

"That's odd," replied her mother. "I called her mother last night and she said you weren't there. Where were you, young lady?"

Haruka bowed her head and sighed. She knew she couldn't lie to her mother so she had to come clean.

"I was at Sephiroth's house," she answered quietly. "I slept over there." She closed her eyes, bracing herself for a torrent of yelling.

"Did you sleep with him?" asked her mother softly.

Haruka just nodded with her head bowed still, feeling totally ashamed of lying to her mom.

"Did you use protection?" she asked again.

"No, ma'am," whispered Haruka, feeling sad.

"Well, you better go check if you're pregnant or not," replied her mother. "I'll go to the store and get some pregnancy testers just in case."

Haruka walked up to her room and sat down on her bed with sigh. There was an emptiness in her stomach that she felt that made her heart ache. She wanted Sephiroth; she wanted to hear his sweet words; feel his gentle embrace; and see his beautiful eyes. She missed him so much. A tear rolled down her eye when she thought of the silver haired General. Please, she prayed, let him come home safely…

…

When Sephiroth got to Modeoheim, it was too late. Genesis and Angeal had been killed by Zack. Sephiroth approached Zack, who was beside himself, and asked what had happened. Through tears and gasps, Zack told the general that Genesis fell to his death and Angeal attacked so Zack defended himself and killed Angeal. After taking this information in, Sephiroth bowed his head and tears rolled down his face. His two best friends were gone and there was nothing he could do now.

For once, Sephiroth dropped his defenses and gathered the crying Zack into a hug. Despite being taller than him, Zack managed to bury his head into Sephiroth's shoulder and weep like a little kid. Sephiroth said nothing but held the boy like he was a child. Soldiers weren't supposed to cry but this was a necessary moment. Zack lost his mentor, and Sephiroth lost his friends. It wasn't against the rules to mourn the deaths of friends.

After a while, Sephiroth, Zack, Tseng, and the infantrymen went to the helicopter and left Modeoheim and all its horrible memories behind. Zack rested his head on Sephiroth's shoulder the whole ride back and for a moment, Sephiroth wondered if this was what it was like to be a parent. He wondered if Angeal and Zack had the same relationship. Now he would never know because Angeal was dead, along with Genesis.

…

Once Haruka learned from Aerith that Zack and Sephiroth had lost someone close to them, Haruka went straight to Sephiroth's house to see if he was alright. When she opened the door to his apartment, she saw that the place was a mess like he didn't clean it for a while and that he was sitting on his bed numbly. Haruka let out a quiet sigh and walked into Sephiroth's room. He didn't take acknowledge to her entrance but he knew she was there.

"I'm sorry," she said gently as she stood by the doorway.

"Whatever…" he replied in a quiet, numb tone, not moving from his spot.

"No," said Haruka, walking over to him, "not whatever." She moved and sat down next to him on his bed. "I'm sorry…about Angeal and about Genesis. I'm sorry."

Sephiroth finally lifted his head to look at her and Haruka could see tears in his eyes. Feeling her heart ache for him, she gave him a pitying look and shook her head slowly. Suddenly, he captured her face in his hands and pressed his lips to hers. As delighted as Haruka was, she didn't want to take advantage of Sephiroth in his time of mourning.

She slid her hands on his shoulders and pushed back, shaking her head. "Sephiroth…" she started in objection but he interrupted her, "Please, just for tonight. Just for this one night, please."

Haruka nodded and he resumed kissing her lips. She twined her arms around his neck and deepened the kiss but then she felt moisture on her lips. She broke the kiss off and saw that Sephiroth had begun crying. Placing her hands on his cheeks, she gave him a gentle look and stroked his hair soothingly.

"Please…" wept Sephiroth in a broken whisper. "Please…Please…" He bowed his head in defeat and Haruka pressed her forehead to his and closed her eyes.

Gently, she guided his face onto her shoulder and allowed him to weep. She knew that everything would be okay someday but for now, she allowed Sephiroth to have his moment of grief. He needed to let it all out so he could feel better. No matter how much it hurt, Haruka was there to comfort him and hold him when he needed her. It was there that their relationship deepened into a more emotional one; that moment defined who they were as people, not as Ancient and soldier. This was their moment and they savored it together.

A/N: Short but sad! Sephiroth may seem OOC but even the most strongest man would cry if he lost all his friends. Sorry for the late update! R&R please!