In which Lilia finds and adopts Sephiroth, and canon is out the window from day one.

Garnet eyes looked at the far too tiny frame that was still shivering under his jacket. The boy couldn't possibly be older than his adopted son Silver, and his clothes were absolutely not winter appropriate, much less for such a nasty storm like this.

There was even signs of a dead animal, and a half-broken sword that implied a nasty fight. The boy had no wounds on him, but he could also be a fast healer for all he knew or had gotten lucky.

Lilia built the fire up a bit more with another piece of wood from a nearby tree. It crackled merrily inside the cave, giving a small degree of warmth to the two.

The boy was entirely too small. He was wearing thin clothing that was completely useless in the winter storm raging outside the cave. His shoes barely covered his feet and did nothing to protect him from the icy chill outside.

He was so small that the jacket he was wearing covered the small child up, and that was before the boy curled into the residual body heat it gave off. Lilia laid the boy as close to the fire as he dared, and made a point not to venture too far while he got some food supplies.

The storm was an annoyance at best, and he was able to procure some berries and a few rabbits. It was better than nothing, and he knew he heard that boy's stomach rumbling. A pity he didn't have his spices on him, but the berries would have to do.

By the time the rabbits were done cooking, the boy was warmed up enough that he began to stir. Lilia was unsurprised that he fell upon both rabbits like a ravenous wolf. He looked partially emaciated, and it was dubious he had found anything while trying to find shelter in the storm.

The boy had short silver hair, and when he opened his eyes Lilia saw a pair of haunting green. It was almost the shade of jade, but the color was slightly off, as there was too much pale blue. His skin was so pale that it was barely darker than the snow outside.

Lilia said nothing as the child sat a little closer to the fire, to absorb more of the warmth it provided.

The two sat in silence as the storm raged for several hours, and Lilia allowed the little one to curl up against him for extra body heat. The storm was so loud that you would have to yell to be heard.

Once the storm was over, the boy looked out with an unhappy gaze, mostly at the thought of having to walk through the knee-deep snow and cold.

"So little one, why were you out in this nasty storm?" asked Lilia.

"My name's not little one...it's Sephiroth," he said tiredly. He had slept badly, but at least he wasn't as cold as before. "And father said it was for survival training."

"Survival training?" said Lilia in disbelief. "Survival training implies they give you the bare minimum of supplies to survive the cold."

Sephiroth had a visibly unhappy expression on his face.

"Father said that I'm 'superior' to normal humans and should be able to survive things most people can't," said Sephiroth. "He also said that I should ignore any creature comforts as they deter me from my training."

Lilia had an odd expression on his face.

Sephiroth let out a surprised squeak when he found himself being carried piggyback on the stranger's back.

"What are you doing?"

"Caves like this are seldom left unoccupied for long. I'm finding us better shelter, because I'd rather have proper shelter when the storm hits again."

The strange man was strong, despite his tiny frame. Sephiroth noticed he had no problems carrying him through the snow, barely paying any real mind to the cold weather.

"Doesn't it bother you? The snow I mean?"

"Take a better look," chuckled Lilia. Sephiroth did, and gaped.

"You're floating!" he said astonished, as he couldn't see a trace of footprints on the ground behind them.

Sephiroth almost flinched when he realized they were growing closer to the labs, but became confused when Lilia walked past the obvious signs of habitation.

"You're not going to stop?" he asked, confused.

"I know a military installation when I see one," said Lilia deadpan. "That plus your flinch makes me believe the idiot who sent you out happens to be near there."

Sephiroth had a brief moment to fantasize about not going back to the lab, of dealing with those awful tests and injections that made him feel sick. Of not being thrown to the wolves against stronger monsters to test his combat ability.

However the second his father found him, he would stop at nothing to drag him back to the labs.

He eagerly dove into the hot soup provided by the nice lady at the inn. Where Lilia hid that bag of coins, he didn't know but right now he was happy and warm.

She gave Lilia an askance look, but kept her mouth shut. A wise move, considering she didn't want to risk angering the wrong person. Especially so close to the labs.

Sephiroth found himself in much warmer clothing and new shoes after a quick trip to the armorer. He also acquired a better sword to fight with.

Lilia paused on the way out of the town.

"You have two choices from here on out," he said honestly.

Sephiroth listened with the attention of someone trained as a soldier.

"You can try and contact the lab you came from, and return to what you had been doing..."

"Or?" said Sephiroth.

"You could join me on a world tour. I don't plan to stick around for very long, and I want to see what the world has to offer. I could use a proper traveling companion, and anyone able to survive that mess of a storm has the right instincts."

Sephiroth only hesitated for a brief moment. Honestly, Lilia had been kinder to him since Professor Gast's mysterious death. And he really didn't want to deal with his father berating him for a 'miserable performance' or taking so long to get back. He knew his father would immediately take the nice clothes and likely the weapon from him the second he returned.

Lilia had a warm expression in his eyes when Sephiroth shyly took his hand, and prepared to enjoy this journey...however long it lasted before his father's employer found him. His hand felt positively tiny in Lilia's, which was very warm. He savored the feeling.

Seven years later...

"So the sign-ups for SOLDIER are about to start soon," said Sephiroth slowly.

"That's interesting," said Lilia hard at work cooking their dinner.

"I was thinking of applying this year. The minimum age allowed is fifteen," said Sephiroth, eyeing the stew warily.

Lilia paused for a moment.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked, looking at his adopted son.

Sephiroth nodded.

"And what will happen if you can't make it this year?" asked Lilia.

"I'll try again next year. There's a maximum of three attempts before they ban you," said Sephiroth.

"It's not going to be easy, you know. There's strong rumors that Shin-Ra plans to invade Wutai for...something."

Sephiroth grimaced, as that honestly made no sense to invade. He wasn't sure what the fat pig was looking for, but there had to be easier ways to do it.

Lilia added something to the stew, to Sephiroth's dismay.

"I know," said Sephiroth.

It really didn't help that they were in Wutai at the moment.

Lilia put the lid on the stew, and looked at his adopted son with a serious, but calm expression on his face.

"I'll let you join SOLDIER on one condition."

"What is it?" asked Sephiroth.

"One year. Wait one year, and I'll train you so that you pass on the first try regardless of what they say," said Lilia.

Sephiroth straightened. An entire year of proper training, rather than an extended vacation with his adopted father? He had already seen Lilia's skill before, and knew the man was much more terrifying than his appearance suggested. The few times he had sparred with Lilia, he had come out looking like something the cat dragged in. However you couldn't wipe the smile off his face, because it was the most exhilarating fight he had been in, bar none.

"Are you serious?"

"If you want to be a soldier, then I'll make you the best they've ever seen," said Lilia. There was a look in his eyes that made Sephiroth instinctively straighten.

This wasn't the Lilia he had grown up with, who rarely took things seriously. This was a general, one who commanded others and earned their respect with his strength.

Sephiroth desperately wanted to be like that. It was why he trained hard to make Lilia proud.

Lilia looked at his adopted son with a calm smile that spoke of ageless wisdom, and gently patted the boy's head.

"You're a good child, Sephiroth. Don't let the ambitions of foolish men stop that. If things get bad, you can always just leave and let them clean up the mess they created," said Lilia.

"You mean like the Mako reactors?"

Lilia's face skewed into open distaste. His opinion of the things were very clear to anyone who talked to him, and he had spoken at length how stupid they were.

Shin-ra used them for energy, yes, but even he could tell they weren't bothering to maintain the things or look for an alternative solution. The damn things leaked like no one's business, and the area around the reactors was usually pretty dead. Lilia absolutely refused to go near Midgard, because it felt sick to him.

Sephiroth had accepted that Lilia hated the reactors, even if he couldn't fully explain why. And honestly, they creeped him out to. It sounded like the things were whispering to him.

It had been less than two months into the rigorous training his adopted father was putting him through, and Sephiroth could already tell he was becoming stronger. Training gave him a thrill he couldn't adequately describe in words, as Lilia gave him advice and encouragement whenever he faltered.

Neither of them had expected the attack on the small town on the coast by Shin-Ra troops to happen. Sephiroth stared at the horrible devestation caused by the machines, while Lilia gained a grim countenance.

"We need to evacuate the civilians," said Lilia.

Sephiroth didn't question his father's orders. For the next several hours, he followed Lilia's command without question or thought. Mostly, he was used to help the civilians evacuate away from the invading soldiers, occasionally dealing with any who got too close. Lilia on the other hand was playing merry hell with the machines, taking unholy glee in destroying them.

The expression on Lilia's face was one of an old hate, as it was clear he took this attack personally. He left none of the machines intact, and reduced any that came near him to complete slag with his fully mastered Fire materia.

By dawn's morning light, Sephiroth went to check on his father.

"Are you alright? You seemed...angry."

Lilia looked tired, his cheerful expression replaced with that of a war-worn general.

"It's nothing."

"It's not nothing. I've never seen you so angry," said Sephiroth. "It was as if you took their attack on the village personally."

Lilia sighed, and looked to adopted son.

"My home in the Briar Valley used to be a lush paradise, rich in resources like this country. Then one day, humans came to our land," said Lilia.

Sephiroth sat down on a nearby rock and listened.

"What happened?"

"At first, we did nothing. After all, why would the affairs of humans bother us? They kept to their territory, and we avoided them. Then they began strip-mining the place, and things went to hell," said Lilia tiredly. "Their actions caused the monsters in our territory to attack our towns, because they were driven off from their homes. Many lives were lost. The queen became angry, and all too soon a war between us began."

"Queen?" said Sephiroth.

"Queen Maleficia. She lost her daughter and son-in-law to the war, and I was barely able to bring her grandson to the stronghold. Then I ended up finding the son of the enemy general hidden away in the castle where the Princess was lost. Apparently he was part of a succession dispute, so the retainers who raised his father took him away and hid him for his own safety."

"So what happened to him?"

Lilia let out a sardonic laugh.

"He became my son. You know him as Silver," said Lilia. "He has no idea of his origins, and I don't see the point of telling him. I want him to live free of that ancient hate."

Sephiroth was silent.

"So what are we going to do?" asked Sephiroth.

"If Shin-Ra wants a fight, then they're going to get one. I'm not going to stand by and watch another paradise be destroyed out of senseless greed."

Sephiroth silently vowed to help him. He could tell the matter hit a little too close to home for his father.