AN: Please send me feedback! I actually had the time to write this, (gasp!) so please take the time to show your appreciation. I thank everyone for their replies, and I'm sorry I can't reply to their reviews right now, but know that I still read them. (Heh.)

Warning: (the obvious, so I think I'll drop this if unless it's important)

The Complete Opposite

By Kaz

Chapter XI

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Sephiroth...

Glowing jade eyes shifted from one place to another, trying the faintest of movements. So far, nothing...

Sephiroth...

He looked around once more, only to find exactly what he saw before: endless swirls of green, white and blue. There wasn't a top or bottom; left or right; inside or out. However, though nothing was definite, he was able to stand, and walk as if he was on the ground. If he wanted to, he could fall lower, or ascend; but it wouldn't matter if he did. Everything was the same.

Sephiroth...

There it was again. An ethereal voice that called out to him from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. It surrounded him and was inside him. What the hell was calling him?

Sephiroth turned around again, slower this time. No one met him as he turned completely around, frustration getting to him. But he knew better than to lash out. The last time he did served him a scar under his collar bone, about three inches long, far too close to his heart...

Turning around again, Sephiroth came to a halt as he spotted something far off in the strange void. It was hard to figure out what it was, but as he moved closer, he realized just exactly what — or rather who — it was. His eyes widened a fraction as he came to a stop near the person. He watched as they slowly uncurled from their ball and turned toward him, a small smile creeping onto their face. Sephiroth narrowed his eyes as that person came near him, locking blue eyes with green.

"What are you doing?"

"Does it matter?" the blue-eyed one said instead. "Does it really matter?"

"Cloud..." he growled.

As the blonde started to circle him, Sephiroth followed his movement with his eyes, turning his head as the blonde passed behind him. "Ah, Sephiroth... What should I do? ...What should I do now? Such a troublesome man, pursuing a hopeless love and stupid dream... Everything just shattered right before you, didn't it?" Cloud stopped before him and his smile turned to a dark grin. "Oh, I forget. It was supposed to be MY fault, wasn't it? Me, for submitting to your mother's wishes."

Sephiroth resisted the urge to step back as this dream version of Cloud came closer, extending his arms and placing his palms on his chest. Sephiroth glanced down at the hands and noticed the ring on his left hand. Almost as if he see through it, he envisioned the engraving on the inside of the band. Cloud chuckled and wiggled his fourth finger when he caught the silver-haired man staring at his hand and drew his attention back to his face.

With a playfully evil look, the blonde spoke. "You know... I hear that another blonde such as myself has found its way onto your doorstep. How so, Sephiroth? Did you pick up another lost kitten, or did it force itself onto you? Or... is something else keeping you from killing him? You know, you could always hand him over to me. I'm sure I'd have such fun with him."

Sephiroth caught the blonde's wrists and pushed some distance between them. "What do you plan on doing to him?"

"Why would you care? Is it because he reminds you so much of me?" inquired the blonde, tilting his head to the side and retracting his hands. "What does it matter? I'd probably just play with him a bit before giving him to Her. After all, she certainly already misses her 'son'. ...You know?"

"Don't touch him."

The sentence was growled in a warning. Though Sephiroth himself didn't know why he would care for the blonde he currently gave hospitality to, he at least knew that he didn't want him falling into JENOVA's clutches. Who knew what would happen if this new Cloud was seduced by the resurrected witch?

"Why?"

Sephiroth narrowed his eyes as such a simple, yet complicated question.

Cloud laughed and turned around slowly, arms spread out. "Oh, you always were such a difficult person to get straight answers out of, Sephiroth." He came to a stop so quickly and launched himself at the silver-haired man he didn't have a chance to react, especially when he whispered, "That's why I love you." and leaned forward to kiss him. However, the blonde disappeared before there was any contact.

Sephiroth growled as his body felt the ghost touch of the other man's lips on his, and forced himself to waken. As his eyes opened to reality, he immediately met the face of a grinning black-haired man leaning over his bed.

"Howdy, neighbor. You up yet?"

Sephiroth sat up turned toward the younger man. "What do you want, Zack?"

The other man's grin widened. "Oh, just checking up on you. Thought you'd like some breakfast." His grin dropped as his expression suddenly turned serious. "Not to mention him. What are you going to do?"

Instead of answering, Sephiroth said, "How did you get in?"

"Red opened the door," was Zack's simple reply.

"He opened the door?" he repeated in half skepticism.

At the mention of his name, Red took the chance to enter the room, his fire-tipped tail swaying from side to side. "It's not that hard for me. But Sephiroth... Zack holds a good question. We have seen his side of things, and there is still that amount of information that was kept from us. We're lucky at this moment that he's sleeping and currently harmless, but he alone probably isn't the problem."

Zack frowned at the lion. "Are you talking about JENOVA's appearance? Back at the Forest?"

Red dipped his head. "That's exactly what I'm talking about. Her encounter with Strife alone raises questions, but when we saw what was in his mind, it all mixed into a larger mass of confusion and uncertainty. His behavior around her...? His memories of befriending us...? And you, Sephiroth, as the enemy...? We cannot know fact from fiction because we have no one to verify. Sephiroth, I know you doubt my Grandpa's and my words, and you have every right to. But... what are we supposed to do now? I have never heard of a materia that forces its victim to speak the truth."

Sephiroth shook his head. He knew the beast wanted to say more, but the more he talked, the more things became unclear and even more complicated, so he interrupted. "I know what you're trying to say, Red, and it's a lot to consider. However, if we're wrong, our lives will pay. I'm not willing to pay that price. Aeris nearly lost her life once; I don't want another tragedy like that happening again."

Red sat on his hunches and twitched his ears at the man's last sentence. The three of them took a moment to reminisce on the event, sharing different degrees of anger and sadness. Red was the first to recover and shook his mane, the ornaments woven into the long hairs clinking together. "Perhaps we should continue monitoring him a while longer?"

Sephiroth nodded and pushed back the covers, revealing that he only wore a pair of loose, black pajama pants. (1) Zack backed away from the side of the bed to let his friend get out of bed. He watched as the man untied his hair and shook his head, letting the silver tresses pool around his broad shoulders, his bangs framing his eyes.

As the taller man picked up a black shirt and pants and some underwear from a large dresser on the far side of the room, he took the opportunity to bring back a said inquiry. "Hey, Seph, what are you going to do with Strife? Don't you have an appointment with Rufus?"

Sephiroth was about to leave the room to head to the bathroom just outside his bedroom door when Zack had spoken. Pausing at the door, he responded, "Red and Vincent will watch over him while I'm gone. I'll see what to do after I come back."

Zack noticed how his name wasn't mentioned. "Hey, what about me?"

Sephiroth had already stepped out of his room. Calling over his shoulder, he said, "I don't trust you with him. You are to stay with the others or you can treat yourself to something in the city, but you aren't allowed near him." and shut the bathroom door behind him to block out anything Zack might have said to that.

In the bathroom, Sephiroth dumped his clothes on the cover of the toilet seat and started the water in the tub, pulling the plug for the drain. (2) He checked the temperature before stripping, waiting before stepping in. He shut off the water and leaned his head back on the side of the wide tub, wadding it up into a messy bun so that most of it did not trail in the water. It wasn't often that he took the time to relax in such a large bathtub with enough leg room for himself to lie down on the bottom with only his head crooked against the wall. He stared at the boring ceiling above him, the splatter technique of the painting making it look like the ceiling was melting and ready to drip down on him. He tried his best to distract himself in finding patterns amongst the dots, but his concentration was far too low, his thoughts wandering ever so often to the man next door. His eyes shifted to the wall that separated him from the room where the blonde was sleeping. Thoughts of the past came to mind, stirring something in him that he didn't want to be awakened again. It was hard to shake them away. He lifted a hand out of the water and rubbed at the bridge of his nose, his fingers slightly pruned from staying in the warm water too long. With an inward shake of his head, he sat up and worked at cleaning himself. When he was done, his hair had been cleaned and released; he ran it through a comb. He stared at his reflection in the mirror, everything from above the towel at his waist bare. Hovering over the sink, and with the water running, he splashed his face with cold water, the shock from the cold against his warm, damp skin waking him up from his brooding thoughts. Tendrils of water slid down his chest, a small shudder passing over his body.

Sephiroth dried himself off with another towel and dressed in the black pants and shirt. A knock echoed around his ears by the time he snapped the second button from the top. Gathering his things, he came to the door and opened it, stopping short as he nearly collided with a blonde head. Tilting his head slightly, he caught how the man before him had his head lowered, a hand rubbing at the corner of his eye. Sephiroth decided to clear his throat, drawing the shorter man's attention.

Unfocused, wide and pure blue eyes looked up at him, blinking several times. Once those eyes came into focus, they widened even more in shock and horror. The blonde man stepped back and took a moment to collect himself, eyes falling into slits. Sephiroth snorted faintly and walked past the man, noting how the other shuffled back to let him through. He knew he was being watched as he made his way back to his room, but made nothing of it as he spotted Red at the foot of his bed, curled on the trunk with his tail hanging over the side, and Zack sprawled across the bed, most likely trying to get the most out of his short stay in his room. Black hair fell over the side of the bed, touching the floor. As Zack lifted his head to acknowledge his presence, the hair still touched the floor, stating how long it was. A grin spread across the man's face as he sat up, shifting to sit with his feet on the floor instead of dangling awkwardly over the side of the bed. Sephiroth dumped his clothes on the chair in the corner of the room and turned to the two.

"So, did you run into Mr. Blondie?" Zack chirped with just a bit too much cheer.

The silver-haired man grunted in affirmation. "I'll be back later," he said after glancing at the clock on the nightstand. He bent down to slip on and adjust his boots. When he stood up straight again, he addressed Zack. "Get out. Vincent should be here in a minute."

As if on cue, a knock reached their ears, as well as the jingle of keys and the sound of boots against tile. Clad in black pants and a deep red dress shirt, Vincent appeared in the doorway, nodding to his son. To the other two, he merely looked at them to know he acknowledged them. Red dipped hi head in return, while Zack gaped at Sephiroth.

"He has a key? How come he can walk in here at will while I need to have your pet open the door for me and I'm shooed away! Am I unreliable enough that I can't watch over Blondie?" he cried. Red snorted and gave an expression of resentment towards being called a 'pet'.

Sephiroth glanced at him askance. "Yes."

It was such a simple answer; one word. Still, the other two males in the room couldn't help but laughing in some way or other. Red gave an animalistic road or laughter, tossing around his mane. A small quirk at the corner of Vincent's mouth showed his amusement toward the situation. Sephiroth moved on to put his things away properly as if he hadn't made a crude joke. Only the small twitch, a slight difference in his body language told the black-haired man of his amusement. Growling and throwing his hands up in the air, he stomped out, nearly hitting the blonde man who had just come out of the bathroom. They glanced at each other, sharing looks of mild shock and apology, before moving on to wherever they needed to be. Zack slipped out the door with a last glance at the blonde before snapping the door shut.

Cloud stared at the closed door. He didn't know how to react. First he bumped into Sephiroth in his half-woken state, and then Zack nearly runs him over like a truck to a small tabby cat! With a shake of his head, he glanced around the room before heading back to the one he figured was his, guessing it wouldn't be liked if he stayed out. And it wasn't like he wanted to run into Sephiroth again, anyway. Just being around the man send a shiver down his spine, as well as that bottle of anger to shake inside him. Snapping the door shut behind him, Cloud slinked to his bed and collapsed on it, burying his face in the plush pillow at the head. After a moment, he turned over and sat up again to unfasten his boots. He kicked them off and fell back on bed again, this time across it sideways.

Sections of blonde obscured his vision, his hair long after two years of not tending to it. It still held its usual spiky-ness, but most of his hair drooped down because of the weight. When was the last time he cut his own hair, he wondered. Oh well, it wasn't like it mattered. Who would care here anyway? He closed his eyes and sighed, turning to his side and drawing his legs up onto the bed. He found the remote for the television against the wall facing the foot of his bed and used it, flipping to his other side to watch sideways.

He stopped on a channel displaying local news. There was an update on Midgar's situation: since the fall of Meteor, Midgar has been left in its state after being demolished. It was left as a reminder of what happened, and what may happen again if the people of Gaea were ever to be misled by greed and power like Rufus was, as well as his father before him. Given that Midgar was never to be touched, Rufus, the sole survivor of Shinra Inc., created a new "Shinra Inc." at Junon. To atone for his what he had done, Rufus started up a program and small army called Force to help with the needy. Force aided the homeless, the families and people from the Slums of Midgar, and all of those who required service. Rufus extended the Force all over the continent, and even expanded his offerings all over Gaea. Several large cities, like Wutai and Rocket Town refused help, a grudge against Shinra far too large to get rid of so easily. Even small places like Gongaga and Nibelheim were reluctant to accept his help. Other small towns and cities were more accepting to Shinra's change. It took them a while, though, to get used to the idea.

The television changed displays, showing a woman in a crisp suit reporting the weather. After a few minutes of that, the show ended, starting up another program of news, this time worldwide. A man sitting at a desk flipped through papers as he spoke, soon changing to another man who was standing in front of the Crater. Cloud blinked as he saw something appeared on the screen that he knew shouldn't have been there. He frowned and lifted his head for a moment. The shadow disappeared and he shook his head, pushing the thought aside. He lay back down and closed his eyes as he listened to the rest of the news. He figured this was the best way of learning about his world, about what's been going on lately.

In a matter of minutes, after consuming a great amount of information, he fell asleep, curled in a fetal position. The remote rolled off his hand as he shifted a bit, curling his fingers and opening them several times. With a sigh, he settled into a peaceful sleep.

Vincent crossed his legs, listening to the news on the television. Red was lying on the rug near him, watching it as well. Sephiroth had left more than an hour ago, and as soon as the hour struck, he checked on the blonde. He was surprised to find the man sleeping sideways on his bed, curled up with such a peaceful expression on his face. He couldn't help staring at the man as long as he did. When Red came in to see what took the man so long in checking the so-called enemy, he too stared in mute surprise. It took several shakes of the head to clear their thoughts and get back to their duties. Vincent had turned on the television to distract them from what they saw and the thoughts that came with it. It wouldn't be long until Sephiroth came back, he figured, so there was certainly no reason to back in there when the blonde was sleeping.

Red lifted his head and twitched his ears as he glanced back at the black and red clad man. Deep red eyes met his and another twitch of his ears was the only signal of sharing the same thoughts. Sitting up, the lion turned fully to the black-haired man and twitched his ears again. "What do you suppose Sephiroth will say?"

"About the boy? I'm sure you can imagine."

Red grinned and his tail flipped from side to side. Strangely enough, the flame at the tip didn't burn anything it touched. "I feel like a young, excited kit' at the thought of this man appearing so suddenly. What could it mean? Why is he here? Is he friend or foe? There are so many questions buzzing in my head!"

Vincent laughed inwardly at the lion's energy. "But you must keep in mind our General's feelings toward the man."

Red dipped his head in a nod. "Of course. It is a shame he does not see things our way." When Vincent lifted a brow, he continued. "'Our way' as in the theory my Grandpa made. I believe that this man is different. We still need to be cautious around him, yes, but I believe that he carries a strange and different aura about him. Maybe it's his scent that's caused me to draw this conclusion."

The man frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Do you not agree? Before he changed clothes, his scent reminded me so very much of our jovial black-haired Ex-SOLDIER. But not only that... I have been thinking since our Cloud Strife's quarrel with his mother, and the more I think about it, and the more I look at him, I truly believe he also has the air of someone who has been touched by Gaea."

Vincent leaned forward a bit. "You think that Gaea's protecting him, then? But why would she call back the very being that threatened to destroy her?"

Red stood up on all fours and paced a bit, circling twice before sitting in a different spot before the man. "That also brings up another issue. Grandpa and I imagine that this man isn't who we think he is. Remember my words on parallel universes and alternate realities?"

Vincent was silent for a moment. "It is a possibility, but still highly doubtful, Red."

The lion shook his mane. "I know. I plan on speaking with Shinra later today about my Grandpa's theory. It's something that should be discusses with him."

"Yes, but not entirely wise. The more you tell, the more dangerous it can be. Suppose we're wrong. All the people who believed you will be put in danger. If not by their peers, then by the man himself for their vulnerability. And worse, if we were wrong and Sephiroth accepted it as true... I'm sorry, Red, but I do not want my son is such pain again."

Red lied down, resting his head on his front paws. He twitched his ears twice before lowering his gaze to the floor. He knew, as well as all the others of AVALANCHE that Vincent Valentine was protective of his son, especially after handing him over to Shinra to be experimented on. Though Vincent had no way of objecting to the project, rendered helpless against the empire, he still regretted having put his son through all that pain. The one thing he didn't regret, though, was the fact that for a short period of time, his son had a chance at being happy. And strangely enough, it was all thanks to the man who tried to kill them all.

When AVALANCHE came across Nibelheim, ventured down to the basement, and came across Vincent in a cursed slumber, the so-called immortal immediately joined in helping his son do right. It wasn't too obvious, but Red and a few other insightful members recognized Vincent's fatherly instincts kicking in every now and then whenever they battled or discussed matters. When Vincent had first joined them, Red remembered how the man was a bit uncertain in his role as a father. If not for the age-defying curse, the man would've been nearly sixty with such a late start at becoming the father he should've been. But now, still, he looked like he was barely thirty.

Red peeked up at the black-haired 'immortal'. He could see the resemblance between father and son. They had the same facial structure, if only Sephiroth's eyes had a strange, gentle slope to them, given by his mother, Lucrecia. Now, if only the silver-haired man smiled and looked peaceful for once. Even in his sleep, Red has caught the General in a twisted nightmare. To say he was sorry was an understatement; Red felt deeply sympathetic towards the man and wished him complete and eternal peace. That didn't mean Red wanted Sephiroth dead — he just wanted the man happy.

And speaking of... When Red turned toward the opening front door, he spotted a tired and bothered Ex-General walk through. Red sat up and curled his tail around his legs. "How was the meeting?" he asked.

Sephiroth turned his gaze to the lion and shook his head. "It's fine. How was he?"

Red knew immediately whom he spoke of. "He's been silent the entire time you've been gone. Did you need us to stay?"

Sepiroth shook his head and turned to his father. "Did Knightblade come back?"

Vincent shook his head. "We have had no disturbances what so ever. I believe you would like a moment to yourself? I'll show myself out."

Sephiroth nodded gratefully to the man and made his way to his room, slipping off his footwear as he heard the front door close and lock. Vincent was the only AVALANCHE member with the spare key to his room. No one else was allowed to come in without his consent. As the son figure, Sephiroth thought it just to give his father a key to his room, if anyone. The man had his own room, but he was still welcome to come in to Sephiroth's dorm anytime he liked.

After a moment's rest, Sephiroth came out of his room and spotted the lion in the same place, his tail sweeping the floor around his hindquarters. Red didn't even look up when Sephiroth passed him to the blonde's room. He tried the handle before swinging the door open, pausing when he heard the television on. It barely took a moment to get his eyes adjusted to the dark room. The curtains were closed, he noted. He spotted the blonde on the bed, but didn't know whether or not his eyes were open. Flipping the light switch on, he found the sight before him shocking and marvelous at the same time. Sephiroth almost found himself letting down his guard. He closed the door behind him and leaned against the door, sure that Red wouldn't bother him.

So angelic, don't you think?

Sephiroth shook his head.

So innocent... I thought you would take this chance in looking him over and ravishing him. Truly beautiful, no? Too bad he isn't a woman, or else you could've filled your life with more of him. Ahahahaha.

Sephiroth frowned as his eyes hovered over the blonde's face. Eyelashes impossibly long for a boy touched pale cheeks. Small lips that he had so recently been set in a scowl or frown were slightly parted. Sephiroth's fingers twitched as his eyes caught the sight of that halo of golden hair. It was longer than he remembered, but still held that bounce in it. When he first set his eyes on that hair at the Academy, he wondered what crackpot cut this boy's hair. He also wondered if the boy put any styling products in it to keep it so gravity defying. He remembered how surprised he was when he first touched that boy's hair. All his theories and assumptions were thrown awry. This boy... the Cloud he knew, and the Cloud here before him, were so different and yet so similar. And because this Cloud was so different, he wanted to start all over again. He wanted to touch, and poke, and explore, and examine, and study all over again. It was so strange...

He has such an effect on you, don't you think? Ahaha. But remember, he might not be just as willing. You're going to have to work at getting him to trust you before you can call him to your side. ...Or should I say "bedside"? Ahahahaha!

The silver-haired man sighed and located a chair not far from the foot of the bed. Before sitting down, he carefully reached over and picked up the remote and turned off the television. He couldn't get himself to leave the room when he had this perfect opportunity to watch him. With a strange, inward smile, he settled into the chair facing the bed and watched and waited, somehow half hoping for those perfect blue eyes to open, even if they were full of hatred.

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AN: Gah, it took me a while to get something going for this chapter because I took a few days to think it through. It's still pretty choppy, but I'm sure you, my wonderful readers, still enjoyed it, right? Finally, we see the Sephiroth side of this C/S story starting! I was wondering when I'd get to it. Eheh.

But anyway — has anyone heard of "Advent Children" yet? Maybe seen the trailer? I heard that it was being sold on DVD or something in Japan (of course it's always in Japan first) the autumn of 2004. Though different, Cloud and Sephiroth look so good! :wink: I don't know much about it, but I do know that with such good graphics, and on a preview I saw as well as a few pictures, I could see the Asian features on Cloud's new appearance. Does anyone ever notice those things? He looked like a killer blonde Asian! :squeals in glee while Zax rolls his eyes: I can't wait to see it!

—Oh, but first of all, don't forget to review for this! Of COURSE you can't forget to review for this! Heehee. ;)

(1) Oh, the unimportant-ness! I see Sephiroth as a boxers man. Don't you? (Oops, another spat of useless drivel. Oh well, it's still nice to know, right? I think some of my stuff is interesting or stupidly funny. :nods:)

(2) This large tub seems a bit illogical, doesn't it? But Sephiroth deserves a nice, hot, long bath to ease his aching muscles and try and cool his head, right? Okay, yeah. Just sharing that this was just a put in for Sephiroth and story-ness, not logic-ness, because we all know that that doesn't exist in my world (or at least I know that).

PS: I didn't do too much editing on this chapter, so please bare with the mistakes. I didn't have too much time writing this... (Forgive me!)