The first time Cloud ever got sent home with bloody knuckles and scrapped knees, it had been a fight over Sephiroth.
The man had been a household staple for only two or three years. A young rising star in Shinra, hero of the Wutai war and the symbol of so many young people's hopes and dreams. He was on the cover of every magazine, the subject of tv specials and radio shows. Footage of the war was aired over the news and Cloud watched in awe at the way people followed this man, respected this man, how they crawled on hands and knees through hell for him.
Cloud had only been thirteen at the time and understood so little about war or the world. But watching the TV in class at school – a special rarity, for the signing of the treaty to end the war – watching Sephiroth command the attention of all around him, with such grace and poise. Cloud wanted that. He wanted to be like that.
Kyle, the fourteen year old boy behind Cloud, had muttered, "Look at his hair and his pretty face. He's probably a huge gay prick."
The young boy had seen red. He didn't recall a lot of the incident. There was something about tossing a desk around, leaping out of his chair, punches flying and screaming the words "SEPHIROTH'S NOT A GAY PRICK". He'd gotten his eye blackened, and his arm badly bruised, and sent home on suspension with a letter to his mother.
The woman had been waiting for him on the front porch, read the letter with keen eyes and quiet severity, then sighed before dragging him in the house, practically by the ear, to clean him up. "Don't start fights – and don't say prick," Was all she really had to say about it.
Cloud hadn't minded the suspension or the other punishments he'd received. So far as he saw it, he was defending Sephiroth's honor, fighting for the General's behalf, even if the General didn't know about it.
Sitting across from the man in his own apartment complex in Shinra's headquarters, Cloud is suddenly and vividly reminded of the whole incident. He can't help but hope this one doesn't end with bruises and black eyes.
The moment Sephiroth enters the room, the blond stands up. He's wide eyed, clearly nervous, fidgeting on his feet. Cloud seems to realize the way he's reacted and flushes, sitting down again. But clearly the instinctive response, the general attitude towards him, reveal that this young man is one of those "fans" Sephiroth's gained over the years.
Internally, the general sighs. It would be so easy to try and dismiss this boy as a fan gone too far, but there's too much else going on. For one, while his behavior is… boyish, there's something else there. His tirade in the city, for one. Few people have ever had the gall to talk to General Sephiroth in such a manner. (Fewer still are currently breathing). For another: his eyes, his strange demon friend, Zack's unshakable support for him. In anger, Sephiroth might've accused the boy of naivety but the truth is, Zack's smart. He knows people. For some reason, he trusts this Cloud and it makes Sephiroth wonder.
The blond is sitting again, one knee bouncing in place, elbows resting on his knees as he leans forward. His head is lowered, but those eyes never leave Sephiroth. The silverette notices but doesn't draw attention to it. Cloud is painfully aware of his presence in the room – perhaps… a former SOLDIER candidate? Either dishonorably discharged or failed the program, and didn't finish the injections? That would give him reason to try and pull some stunt to discredit, harm, or even kill the General…
But none of that would fall in line with the pure adoration in the boy's gaze. Green eyes narrow as Sephiroth stalks over to them. Zack is talking, Sephiroth vaguely listens and notes what he's saying as he thinks. If Cloud were a disgruntled former employee, he wouldn't be so clearly still respectful or admiring of the General.
Perhaps a victim of some Shinra coverup? No; the mako in his blood would imply relation to the science department. Why come to Sephiroth for an incident that relates to another department? It has to be SOLDIER related, or personal to him; but Sephiroth can't think of anything a young man could know that would mean anything to him. As he sits beside Zack, his eyes narrow, and he finally speaks.
"So," Sephiroth begins. "You say you have information for me. Generally, those who come forward with 'tips' for the General come to claim they've had my child, or that they were harmed somehow by my leadership," The second one, almost always former SOLDIERs, were usually bad tempers who disobeyed orders and got in trouble for it. Sephiroth had not once been held liable for any of those.
"C – Child? No," Cloud shakes his head. "This has nothing to do with kids. Not yours, anyway." He amends. The comment is telling, and interesting. Sephiroth makes note of it.
"Then what is it you have to say?"
The blond shakes his head. "Vincent, first. You have to know something."
He hesitates. To withhold, or no? For a moment he considers it – but this man shows all the signs of being an open, honest person, unlikely to be considering the angles or thinking strategically about their conversation. "He is in the building, in one of the labs. At the moment he is simply being held – all our top scientists are as embroiled in the… events of this morning as I am."
"Yeah, all that," Cloud frowns. "I meant to ask, how in the world did that happen? I mean no offence, but…" Leaning back, the boy glances off, scratching his chin. "This is Shinra, right? How did a bunch of randos get the better of you?"
A question Sephiroth is forced to ask himself much too often. The man sighs. "Shinra is… not what it used to be." Zack snorts beside him.
"He's not kidding." The brunette starts. "Last five years, it's gotten pretty bad. Inter-departmental fighting, misuse of funds, huge drop in recruitment… it's falling apart from the inside."
"And someone on the outside knew, and took advantage." Sephiroth comments. Zack meets his eyes, and by the look on the other's face, he was thinking the same thing. Good. "For the moment, that is not our concern." He turns back to the civilian, scowling heavily. "What I want to know is, who are you, who is your companion, and what brought you here?"
Through his childhood, Cloud has imagined this meeting thousands of times. It never went anything like this. Most of the time, it was on the battlefield. Amid fighting monsters or defending the village, Sephiroth would appear and be blown away by Cloud's prowess. Or, Shinra would come looking to recruit him and send the man, and Cloud would of course have to politely decline. In all those scenarios, he got to look badass.
This is not that.
This is a completely awkward situation that honestly, Cloud doesn't know how to navigate. All this time he was trying so hard to get here, to have the conversation, when he never thought about what he'd actually say. How do you tell someone something like this? How do you make them believe it?
"I…" He gulps, turning his gaze away. Sephiroth's eyes are too intense. Then he sighs. All of this would be easier if he didn't have such a huge headache. "I don't even know where to start."
"The beginning is usually a sound choice."
He chuckles a little at that. Then, with another sigh, he begins. "There's this place back home, we call the Shinra Mansion. It's a dump that's been abandoned for years, but a few decades ago I guess it was a lab, or something. Anyway, when I was younger I got lost inside it, and Vincent saved me."
"And that is your companion?" Sephiroth asks. Cloud nods in confirmation.
"Yeah. He'd been one of the experiments, left to rot. He was trapped by a summon-based seal, and hadn't been outside in over thirty years. It took me a while to break it, but a few months ago–"
"Wait." The General holds up a hand. "The seal. You broke the seal?"
"Uh, yeah." Cloud nods. He'd just said that, right? Confused, he glances at Zack, who looks completely flummoxed.
"The hell is a – what'd you call it?"
"A seal is a type of spell cast to keep things, living or otherwise, contained within certain parameters. As it is drawn from magic, it requires materia, and the type used defines the type of seal."
"Right," Cloud nods at the explanation. "Anyway –"
"And you," Sephiroth pointedly interrupts again. A spark of annoyance runs up Cloud's spine, but he bites his tongue. "Broke it?"
"I just said that."
"I have a hard time believing an untrained civilian could have done so."
"Well, it did take five years." Flustered and embarrassed at the doubting tone, Cloud tries ignoring the stab of hurt it causes.
"Anyway," He almost hesitates and glances at Sephiroth, as if daring another interruption, unable to help the scowl on his face. The General notices, if his insulted frown is anything to go by. "The man who sealed him away was this guy named Hojo,"
"Oh, boy," This interruption comes from Zack, who is properly cowed from one annoyed glare from the blonde.
"Vincent was a Turk assigned to protect him, Hojo betrayed him and used him as an experiment before locking him away."
Sephiroth's brow rises. "Those are some heavy accusations."
"Yeah, you didn't mention he was a Turk!" Zack whistles. "There's a lot of stuff Shinra will let you get away with but – turning on a Turk? If Shinra doesn't officially get you, sure as hell the Turks will."
"They are – decidedly loyal." Sephiroth glances to his subordinate with a thoughtful gaze. "How long ago do you claim this was?"
Cloud scowls at the wording. "It was about thirty years ago. Give or take."
"The Turks were not established at the time." Sephiroth retorts. There's a smarmy smile on his face, an "I told you so".
"That is correct." Cloud smirks triumphantly back – "Ha!" "But their predecessor was, and that department was the one Vincent Valentine worked for. I bet there's paperwork on him somewhere."
"Fine, we will investigate," Sighing, the General rubs his temple, showing a level of annoyance few have been allowed to see. Cloud didn't know that; he just felt another surge of anger at the clear dismissals he was getting. "But I am still not understanding how this is related to me."
"Well if you would stop interrupting –" Cloud almost barks, temper flared, but a pointed throat-clearing from Zack makes him back down. He sighs. "Hojo attacked Vincent because he was planning on going back to Shinra to fight him over some of his experiments. Mainly, uh, - you."
Sephiroth shows little emotion at this. The irritation and frustration are gone. His face is a blank slate, cool, poised, practiced.
"Um," Cloud feels his own irritation dying down, overcome by awkwardness and nerves instead. "Hojo wanted to experiment on you before you were born, and Vincent fought him. And… it's entirely possible Hojo actually murdered your birth parents and took you from them."
That's muddling it up a little bit – since his mom was involved in the experiments, and Cloud had already mentioned Vincent… but this is probably the easiest way to do it for now. Better than dumping it all on the man at once, … right?
There's an eerily long moment where it looks like Sephiroth just stops moving entirely. He doesn't so much as blink for fifty seconds – Cloud counts – and then suddenly stands all at once.
"I want those files," He tells Zack, staring straight ahead. The SOLDIER gets it, standing at once. "Everything on the people and agents involved, the experiments, the missions associated with Nibelheim – all of it. And you," He points at Cloud, gaze furrowing, and for a moment the blond is pretty sure he's about to meet the business end of Masamune.
Maybe the fear is clear in his eyes. After a moment, Sephiroth's gaze lightens, his rage calming into something tired, something worn. He sighs. "Just – stay with Lt. Fair, for now." Then, the General is gone, and Cloud is finally able to breathe again.
After a minute, he breaks the silence. "Is he always like that?"
"Just about," The other man comments with a wry chuckle. "Just about."
No one ever told Sephiroth who his parents were.
Everything he believes about his past is an assumption – which he hates, but is forced to rely on. Suppositions and half-formed beliefs. Scientists work with facts, but then, Sephiroth is not truly a scientist… he is science. The monster to Hojo's Dr. Frankenstein.
As a child, asking about his parents got him sharp glares, smacks, barbed replies. "I created you", is the most Hojo will say of it. Sephiroth eventually took it to heart. 'I created you' is about as good as fatherhood, isn't it?
He doesn't call him father to his face. Everyone calls the man Dr. Hojo. But the scientist is the closest thing to a guardian Sephiroth has ever had. He is there in all his early memories. The labs, the tests, the field performances, the medical exams. He was always there. Isn't that a father?
During the war, Sephiroth once saw a civilian throw himself in front of a Wutaian soldier. It was odd enough to make the General pause. The soldier had frozen, growing terrified, trying to make the older man move. But the old man's eyes – determined, frightened, pained all at once. Sephiroth had stopped.
"Please," the man had begged in Wutaese. "Please don't kill my son."
My son. Fatherhood. Is that what it is? Ownership? The bondage between generations?
Sephiroth broods on it as he storms through the halls of Shinra, trying to find an answer. No one asks for his badge or his authentication, not even here, in the bowels of the building. No one – until he comes to the lab he's looking for.
"Uh, sir," Two very nervous infantrymen stand in his way. "We've been given orders not to let anyone in here."
He merely looks at one out of the corner of his eye. The man jumps. "I – I can't, sir. Especially you."
A slip, by the way the other elbows him. Especially him? "Hojo's orders, I presume?" No one else could cow the people of Shinra like him – besides Sephiroth. Caught between a rock and a hard place, these two are, and Sephiroth almost smiles. They don't try to stop him when he slides his card and enters the lab, anyway.
The door slides open and Sephiroth stops thinking about them. The lab is dark – almost cavern-like. He steps inside, the doors sliding behind him sealing out all the light.
Until two ruby pinpricks appear a good few meters ahead of him.
Sephiroth reaches out to flip on the light, but thinks better of it. He can see in the dark just fine; apparently, so can this man. The red gaze tracks him through the room as Sephiroth approaches, eying the stranger more carefully than he had before.
Rail thin, tall, long messy hair and taut, pale skin. He looks like a former experiment. Those red eyes certainly don't seem natural. Neither does the aura around him – one of immense danger, darkness, and blood.
Yet… Sephiroth doesn't feel as if it is aimed at him at all.
He circles the man, who has backed himself into a corner as best he can in the circular, see-through prison. It's a sphere about ten feet wide at the most, and it is not comfortable. Sephiroth knows from experience.
This man… this "Vincent"… was imprisoned because of him?
There are pieces to this he is missing, Sephiroth knows. But he is a patient man. Still, what he knows already is enough to make him very curious about this Vincent. Why? Why had he stood up to Hojo? When so few people ever did – and clearly, their fears were rational given what happened to this man.
Sephiroth notices that though Vincent never moves, those red eyes keep following him. He comes to a halt in front of the sphere, hands behind his back, head up, yet… nervous.
Why? He wants to ask but he's not exactly sure what the question is. Why did you stand up to Hojo? Or… why did you want to stop the experiments? Why…
Did you want to save me?
Clearly, it was simply moral grounds. Vincent disapproved of human experimentation most likely. A general disapproval of Hojo's methods, not… personal involvement.
"You know who I am." Usually, that is not a question Sephiroth has to ask. The man nods.
"… you have your mother's eyes."
The response shocks him to his core; yet, at the same time, confirms his disbelief. The fact that anyone would think to say this to him – that anyone would reference parents who might as well not exist – they are reference points he doesn't have.
"That is not possible." Sephiroth tries to sound victorious – he has disproved the man's ruse. But he just sounds weary. "The color of my iris and shape of my pupil are due to years of exposure to mako and various other substances through Dr. Hojo's experiments."
"Not that," The man says with a shake of his head. There's something so certain, so sure in his gaze and pose, that makes Sephiroth feel uneasy. Unsure of himself. "The shape. Like almonds. And… that look you're giving me, as if you can't believe your eyes. The disbelief. Your brow furrows and little crinkles form around your eyes." He chuckles a little, raspy and deep. "She used to look at me in much the same way."
His certainty is shaking. The labs always make him uneasy but this time it is the subject in the cage that makes Sephiroth want to run far, far away. "It's not possible," He begins, simply because… why? Because he can't fathom believing the one person he's always thought of as family had betrayed him so deeply?
Or because he can't hope for it to be true only for it to be a lie?
"I'm sorry," The man murmurs. Sephiroth eyes him once more, heart pounding in his chest.
"So am I," He manages to say, before he all but runs from the room.
"Find anything yet?"
Cloud scoffs, poking his head up through a cloud of dust and piles of paperwork. "If I find a thing other than a dead bug I'll let you know."
"Ew," Zack, across the room, continues sorting through his stack. "This place is gross." As he says it, he holds up a page that is – sticky, for some reason, and comes away from the rest of the stack with gooey mess attaching it to the next page. Sticking out his tongue, he decides that pile is a lost cause and shoves it away.
"How come Shinra's file system sucks so bad?"
"It's not this bad mostly." Zack retorts across the room. "But this is all the old stuff no one bothers with. Everything from before we had computers and it all went digital. Nobody ever put it into the system, but nobody wanted to get rid of it either."
"Unless somebody did." Cloud mutters. "It'd be easy to take anything out of here and no one miss it."
"Or just let it get lost in here." Zack sighs, leaning back. "You're right, this is a mess." The hope of finding something dwindles with every passing minute, until finally, the brunette hears a cheer across the room. He sits up. "Find something?"
"Yeah, look!"
Zack leaps to his feet, bounding across the room to the blond. Cloud's sitting cross legged on the floor, a file folder open in front of him. The tab on it reads simply "Nibelheim".
"Hey, that's something." The SOLDIER sits down beside him. "Any mention of Hojo or Seph or that friend of yours?"
"Not yet," Cloud shakes his head. "But there's a lot here." The man's right – a stack half a foot thick sits within the folders that all are labeled "Nibelheim".
"Well, grab em." Zack says with a sigh. "I don't know how much else we'll find in here. Let's head back to Seph with this much at least."
Cloud isn't quite as ready to give up – but he's not exactly in charge. So he nods, gathers his find together, and follows after Zack.
They return to find Sephiroth prowling in his room. Cloud freezes in the doorway. The man is storming back and forth in front of his window, black coat billowing behind him, and for a moment Cloud has a vision of what Sephiroth as an angered enemy might look like.
'Dear gods, don't ever let him get that pissed at me,' He thinks desperately. Then, he manages to step into the room, setting the stack of paper on the nearest flat surface.
"Found something," Zack announces, which draws the other man's attention. His eyes narrow further, and he storms over to the stack of paper. Cloud is all but bowled out of the way, like a fly swatted. He blinks, then scowls at Sephiroth's back. The man isn't even registering him – he's focused on the stack of paper, swiping through it madly.
Fine, the blond thinks. He's not going to start something now, when he's so exhausted. After everything that's happened, he could use a minute to breathe. So he sits down on Sephiroth's couch and makes himself comfortable, boots on the pillows and everything, and thinks of it as his little revenge.
After Sephiroth leaves, Vincent lets his mind slip away into oblivion.
It hurts – it hurts so much. The man looks so much like his mother. It's subtle, and perhaps Vincent is simply seeing what he wants to see, but – he can't help but find hints of Lucrecia in him. The way he moves, his posture, his eyes. Gaia, he could almost see the way Lucrecia used to look when she was lost in a project, eyes narrowed in thought, hands behind her back, just thinking.
He weeps to think of what's been done to this boy, what he failed to stop. A surge of fiery rage fills him, calls Chaos closer to the surface – Hojo. The man's stench is all over this lab. He hasn't been seen since their first reintroduction, and all Vincent has wanted since is to close his claws around the man's greasy throat.
Vincent refuses to be a prisoner again. Last time, he could not save himself – could not save anyone. This time, he is stronger. This time, they are stronger. He won't let Hojo have his way again. Somehow, he'll find a way.
Voices come to him. Vincent rises to the surface, opens his eyes again, just to hear what's being said. Two scientists have entered; they make no note of him. They are preoccupied with the strange orange lion in the other cage. "So, where's the other one?" One asks.
"Other?"
"The blond. The one that attacked the General. Didn't they put him in the labs?"
"Dunno. Haven't seen him."
Blonde. Cloud. Vincent's fear and worry surge to the surface and he keens quietly. His escape is more urgent now. Before, he had been inclined to wait, to bid his time. But now… if Cloud is in Shinra's grasp, there is nothing that Vincent will not do to save him. He'll tear the building to the ground.
He's dreaming – or, reliving a memory. That night, under the stars. Tifa making him promise, to come back and be her hero. He promises he will. He wants to try at least. But he also remembers thinking…
Who's going to save me?
Bleary eyes blink open. He's not home; this isn't Nibelheim. Sitting up, Cloud sees Sephiroth's apartment spread before him, and the man himself, still sitting at the kitchen counter, the contents of those files spread before him. Somehow, Cloud knows the man's been hunched over studying them for a long time. His back is tense and stiff, pose rigid to the point of painful. Cloud's heart aches for him.
He knows what it is to not have a father – but to not have anything, or anyone… to be so unrooted, without history… it must be painful. Especially for the most powerful man in the world, so used to being in control of everything… Cloud's earlier frustration melts away beneath sympathy. He stands, unsure whether to approach or not.
It occurs to him for the millionth time that this is Sephiroth, the man he spent his childhood adoring. His first crush. The guy Cloud had his first naughty dream about - dontthinkaboutit. Flushing, Cloud glances away, once again caught in the surreal quality of the situation.
Eventually he steels himself and steps forward. "Need some help?"
Sephiroth glances at him from behind silver bangs, and after a moment, nods. He slides a stack of paper Cloud's way, and the blond takes a seat. The lights in the room are dim; there's no sign of Zack or anyone else. Cloud gulps. They're alone.
Antsy, he settles into his seat and opens the file. "Uh, find anything interesting?"
"Some." Sephiroth gestures to a small stack laid in front, which he had clearly marked as important. There are colored tags sticking out of it, highlighter marks on all the pages. The man has a system clearly. Cloud, unsure of how to respond, just nods. Time to get on with it.
He's quiet as he works – but he can't just ignore the presence of the other man. Fidgeting, he reads. His knee bounces beneath the table. After a few minutes of that, he hears a sigh. Cloud glances up.
With one elbow on the table, Sephiroth is leaning into his hand, hard eyes glaring at Cloud. "Must you?" The blond looks confused. Sephiroth's gaze darts down, then back up meaningfully.
"What?"
"Your movement is distracting."
Oh. Cloud slows to a halt, embarrassed. "Sorry, I – "
"I realize your sexual attraction to me is a factor but at this point your help is more of a hindrance if you cannot control it."
Cloud blinks. "What!?" Flustered, he spurts, "I'm not –"
"When I am in the room, your eyes dilate and your pulse grows rapidly," Sephiroth comments like he's talking about the weather. Eyes down, he keeps reading, flipping to another page. "You grow flushed, anxious, and unable to keep still due to your energy levels, which may be naturally high or increased due to mako exposure."
He blinks again. A small voice in his head is trying to warn him, but it is too quiet beneath the wave of fury that's surging over him. Face red, fists clenched, Cloud forces his gaze down to the paper. But he can't quite control his mouth. "Are you always this awful to people who're trying to help you?" He's fuming, teeth clenched tight, as he reads.
"… was I not supposed to comment upon that?"
That's… not the reaction Cloud was expecting. Looking up again, he sees pure confusion on Sephiroth's face; not derision, not a dismissive glance. Cloud'd thought the man was making fun of him, but… he looks so …
"I apologize; conversation is not my forte," Sighing, the man glances back down at the paper. "Perhaps I should simply work alone. You may retire to the guest room if you wish."
"No, I," Anger abated somewhat, Cloud sighs. "I'll stay. And…" Still embarrassed, he tries to smile. "I'll try and keep my attraction under wraps." It's a weak joke, but Sephiroth manages a smile. "You'll have to try to be less attractive, though."
"How do I manage that when I don't know how I became 'attractive' in the first place?" He huffs as if this is a question that has actually bothered him. "It would solve many problems for me." He sounds so damned annoyed and sincere that Cloud can only laugh.
"Sorry, it's just," he waves it off. "That's not a complaint most people have. Though I guess you aren't most people."
"Hm," Sephiroth hums, before setting the papers down. "Neither are you." He looks up. "You realize I have never been physically tossed by anyone before?"
Cloud blinks. "Huh?"
"In the city. You lifted me over your head and body slammed me into the ground." Sephiroth starts to smirk at the dull horror in Cloud's expression.
"I did what?"
"I had to cast a sleep spell on you to stop you." Sephiroth leans forward slightly, hands beneath his chin. "Very few people in this world have ever been my physical equal, and I do believe all of them are dead."
"I – I'm not –" Shocked, Cloud snaps his gaping mouth shut. "I'm not your equal."
"Hmm," Sephiroth glances down again. "Have you ever been trained in combat?"
"A little," Cloud shuffles his feet. He can't help it – he can't just sit still. "Vincent's trained me in general combat some. My mom used to be a swordswoman, and she's given me some pointers. But she's older now so it's not the same."
"No formal training then." Sephiroth comments. "Yet you tossed most of my 2nd class SOLDIERS aside easily, as well as overcoming me."
Cloud's chest is hot, practically on fire.
"And the Mako?" The General continues.
"That was an accident." He insists. "Well – a lot of accidents. The area Vincent was trapped in was part of an old Shinra lab, and I was in there a lot. It got in my wounds sometimes, or on my skin – I guess over the years I just adapted to it."
"Years of Mako exposure, and who knows what else given what Shinra does…" Sephiroth murmurs. "You may well be at the physical level of a SOLDIER 1st class; you simply lack the training."
"I – I'm not," Cloud stands finally, backing away. "I can't be – that. I'm just me." Shaking his head, he huffs. "This isn't about me, anyway, this is about you and Vincent!"
"Is it?" Sephiroth's brow is quirked and Cloud's heart skips a beat. Did he say something? Why is Sephiroth staring at him like he just let something slip?
He doesn't have the time to wonder – in the next instant, the night silence is shattered by a blaring siren.