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Final Fantasy VII: Angelic Threnody	By : DarkSeraphim1 Category: Final Fantasy VII > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 1315 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, Crisis Core, Before Crisis, or Dirge of Cerberus. I do not profit from the writing and/or posting of this fic. I am just a humble fan paying tribute to another's wonderful creations.

Chapter List
- 43
- 44
- 45
Final Fantasy VII: Angelic Threnody
Chapter 45
'When the war of the beasts brings about the world's end, the goddess descends from the sky. Wings of light and dark spread afar, she guides us to bliss, her gift everlasting' -Loveless, PROLOGUE
Vincent sighed deeply as he stared up into the clear night sky, his blood red gaze trained on the hunter's moon which rose high overhead. Chaos had fallen blessedly silent after his less than complimentary comments about Sephiroth, much to Vincent's everlasting relief. He was still reeling from the consequences of the demon's earlier actions, trying to come to terms with the knowledge that Yazoo was now bound to him for the duration of their unnaturally long lives. It was not the fate he would have chosen-for either of them.
He ignored the part of him that clamored for him to start that life now, still convinced that no good would come a relationship between them. Yazoo was young, beautiful, and very much a sexual creature. He would not be content with someone like Vincent, who was quiet and reserved and rather prudish by nature. He deserved someone like Reno, who would show his appreciation in more obvious ways, and would never leave Yazoo questioning his importance to him.
Chaos' snort resounded through his mind. 'Our pretty one does not want the loud, pathetic Turk. He wants us!'
'He deserves better,' Vincent told him firmly, staunch in his belief that Yazoo would not be happy with what they—with what he—had to offer. 'We would not be enough for him.'
'But we are what he wants, host!'
Vincent only shook his head negatively. 'He does not know what he wants, demon. Let it be. I will not change my mind.'
'Yes, you will,' came the ominous reply. 'Soon, you will not have a choice.'
Vincent's heart sunk at the certainty of those menacing words. 'Chaos, what have you done?'
'We are one once again,' the king of demons replied smugly. 'Is that not what you wanted?'
Scarlet eyes widened as comprehension seared him. 'You merged with me?' Vincent asked with amazement. 'Voluntarily?'
He could feel Chaos' satisfaction as he replied, 'You no longer have to worry that I will harm our pretty one, host. Only you have the power to do so now, and I know that you will not purposely do so, again.'
Vincent blinked, still stunned by the knowledge that Chaos had willingly forsaken his freedom to bring Vincent and Yazoo together. 'But. . .why?'
'My place is with you, Vincent Valentine, and your place is with him. There is nowhere else I wish to be.'
'But what of your destiny?' he questioned with alarm. 'Without you, Omega cannot be destroyed.'
'Omega will not rise, host. You and Jenova's Child have assured that with your current actions, which is your son's only redeeming quality.'
Had they truly changed future events to such an astonishing degree? Vincent asked himself with surprise. Had rescuing the remnants and joining forces with Sephiroth really had such positive, long-reaching results?
'Isn't that what I just said?' Chaos threw out impatiently. 'Now, will you consider going to the pretty one? I am eager to 'embrace' our true destiny.'
Vincent drew in a sharp breath as temptation danced before him. He was no longer doomed to struggle with Chaos in an eternal battle that neither could win? he thought incredulously. 'What of the others?' he demanded suddenly. 'How do I know that they will not harm Yazoo in your stead?'
'Yes, I can see why you worry,' the demon said with unmistakable sarcasm, 'because Galian has already done sooo much damage on his own.'
He flushed with embarrassment at the memory of the Galian Beast humbling himself before a wary Yazoo. 'It is not Galian who concerns me,' he returned gruffly. 'Hellmasker and Gigas—'
'Are still subservient to me,' Chaos assured him with a frustrated sigh of his own. 'They would not dare to harm the pretty one, even if they felt the urge to do so, which they do not. We are of one mind in this, host. What about you?'
Vincent released the breath that he hadn't been aware that he had been holding. 'You will allow me to. . .approach this in my own way?' he asked cautiously.
'So long as you do not spend years wooing him back to us,' Chaos snapped sarcastically, 'you can set whatever pace you like.'
He frowned at the sarcasm even as hope welled up within him. He would have to be cautious, especially in light of how he had already hurt Yazoo, but was there truly any reason to hold himself back? Chaos had essentially promised not to interfere, and Vincent knew that the demon was strong enough to keep the others in check, so Yazoo's physical safety would not be an issue.
No, Vincent thought with the beginnings of a smile, all that was left was for him to overcome his fears of being hurt again. And considering how hard he had been fighting his feelings for Yazoo, he knew that it would not take much to do so. Yes, he had loved Lucrecia, and she had hurt him, but Yazoo had never done so intentionally. Their short relationship had been passionate, but hampered by a lack of communication. They had misjudged one another, and they had each paid a horrible price for their ignorance.
But no longer, Vincent swore to himself resolutely. It would take time to undo the damage he had wrought with his selfish cruelty, but he believed that he could make it up to the beautiful young remnant, if Yazoo himself would allow it. After the way that Vincent had turned him away, he knew that he could not expect immediate acceptance. That would only come with time spent together, getting to know one another as they hadn't taken the time to before. Until that happened, nothing was certain.
'Oh, quit whining, host!' Chaos exclaimed unexpectedly. 'Our pretty one is not as weak as that woman was. He will not turn us away.'
'I hope you are right, demon,' Vincent returned, his very real worry not enough to dim the smile that stretched across his face. 'We will find out soon enough, in any case.'
'Yes, we will. Now, concentrate on other things, my host. We are under attack!'
Vincent felt the stirring deep in the pit of his stomach, a wholly unpleasant awakening of something that was not human. "Jenova!" he gasped aloud, his concern not for himself—Jenova could not defeat Chaos—but for his son and Yazoo. If The Calamity had gone after Sephiroth, and his instincts were screaming that she had, then it stood to reason that she wouldn't stop there. She would think nothing of attacking her 'son's' remnants, and Yazoo was not the strongest of the three. He might not be able to fight her off, and Vincent was suddenly terrified that he would lose Yazoo before he had a chance mend the rift he had created between them.
As he whirled around, his scarlet cloak flaring in the cool Banora air, and leapt from the roof of the Rhapsodos house, he could only pray that he would not be too late.

Zack lounged lazily on the end of Cloud's bed, swinging the foot that hung over the side as he leaned back on his elbows. He grinned as he watched the other boy—the other man—swing the cool crystal sword that Vincent had found down in the 'Gaia's' shrine. The enormous blade made a high-pitched sound as it cut through the air, its considerable weight belied by the ease with which Cloud swung it, and Zack realized that he should have known from the very beginning that his spiky-haired friend was mako-enhanced. It was in the way that he moved, so quickly that his speed surpassed that own, and nearly rivaled Sephiroth's.
He was also really good with materia, too good for a simple SOLDIER 2nd Class. He could cast any magic spell with a strength that was on par with Genesis' own abilities, another neon hint that should have been enough to tell Zack that his new best bud was not an inexperienced 3rd Class cadet. But, Cloud definitely didn't look like he was a twenty-five-year man. He was the same age as Angeal, Genesis, and Sephiroth, for crying out loud!
Although, he really didn't act like it, Zack realized with a start. Cloud was quiet and serious, but he still acted like a teenager, which is what he had been when Hojo had gotten his greedy little hands on him. And to wander for what had sounded like years with no memory of himself hadn't helped him grow up any. Cloud was mature in some ways, but in his mind, Zack was willing to bet that he still saw himself as the kid he'd been before Hojo snatched him.
And that was all right with Zack. He liked that Cloud was willing to bicker with him and wrestle with him when he pounced. He'd hate it if Cloud ever changed, and as much as he hated the thought of what the other boy must have gone through in Hojo's care, he was damned glad that Cloud was here with him now.
Cloud sent him a small smile his way as he brought Crystal Sword down before him in an overhand strike, only to stop short of actually hitting the floor. He had a lot of memories of using this weapon, both good and bad, but he had no intention of accepting The Planet's 'gift' to him this time around. He had First Tsurugi, forged with his own two hands, proven in battle against Sephiroth himself. He didn't need another sword, especially not one meant to further tie him to a destiny that had been forced upon him so violently.
No, he thought as he held the shimmering blade up before him, he had other, better plans for this. "So, what do you think?" he asked, lowering the sword as he aimed another smile at Zack Fair.
"It's awesome, Spike," Zack answered with a wide grin. "Somebody up there definitely loves you."
Cloud only snorted as he came to stand before him. Gaia could keep her 'love'. His life belonged to Kadaj, now. "Well, you're kinda short a sword now," he said with another smile, "so I thought that maybe you could use it. What do you say?"
Zack's jaw dropped as he watched the diminutive blond set the tip of the humongous sword on the floor and gesture for him to take it. "You're giving it to me?" he asked incredulously. "But Vincent said it's a boon from The Planet!"
"I don't need any boons, Zack," Cloud said in all seriousness. "I've got my friends and family. I don't need any more than that. But you do need a weapon, so. . .?"
Oh, this was too freakin' awesome! Zack thought with excitement. Finally, he was going to have a real fucking sword! He couldn't wait to tell Angeal!
"I'll take it!" he declared, sitting up and bouncing on the mattress in his enthusiasm. He reached out for the sword, his gloved hand wrapping around the solid black hilt, and the sword flared with brilliant light. "What the—?"
Cloud was laughing as he felt The Planet accept Zack Fair as one of its protectors without protest. While Gaia was never kind to her champions, at least, he knew that Zack would survive whatever the future threw at him. That was more than enough for Cloud.
"It looks like I'm not the only one who's loved," he commented in a dry voice.
"Oh, man!" Zack's clear blue eyes were huge as he lifted the sword with reverent hands. "I'm gonna be a hero!"
Cloud did his best to keep the sorrow out of his expression as he said, "Zack, you already are."
The other man only beamed at him, and Cloud nodded once. "We'll have to spar tomorrow, so you can get a feel for how it handles."
Zack back away from him, towards the center of the room, and gave Crystal Sword a few experimental swings. "Oh yeah, baby!" he exclaimed, obviously pleased, and Cloud shook his head to cover the sudden moisture in his eyes. "I am so going to kick your ass with this, Spike!"
Cloud laughed again he leaned back against the side of the mattress. "You and what army, Pup?"
"Oh, a challenge," Zack shot back, the grin never leaving his face. "You know what puppies do to chocobos, don't you?"
"Growl ferociously, then whine and run away?" Cloud guessed facetiously.
Zack burst out laughing as he suddenly dropped the sword and lunged towards Cloud in one blurred movement. Cloud found himself in yet another headlock, Zack's knuckles grinding into the top of his head in a noogie, and began to struggle in earnest. "Damn it, Zack. I was just kidding!"
"Aw, you know I'd never hurt my favorite little Chocobo, Cloud."
Cloud scowled at the familiar crooning tone, as well as the hated Chocobo comparison, and elbowed the other boy in the stomach. Zack only laughed again and shifted his hold, and Cloud crossed his arms as he realized that he wouldn't be getting away any time soon.
"You can stop, now," he said in a grumble. "I'm sure I don't have any hair left."
Zack only opened his hand and ruffled those soft golden spikes, his touch gentling just a bit. 'Nope, you still got plenty of hair to play with, Spike."
"Lucky me," Cloud said sourly. He waited as patiently as he could for Zack to get bored by his lack of resistance, secretly enjoying the patronizing treatment, because it was coming from someone he had thought forever lost to him. He'd let his head be noogied bald if it meant keeping Zack alive and well and with him, but that didn't mean that he had to enjoy it.
Sure enough, Zack lost interest in removing his hair and flopped down on the bed beside him. "It's no fun when you don't fight back," he pouted.
Cloud shot him an exasperated look as he threw himself down beside him. "That's the whole point, Zack."
The sulky expression didn't last long. With Zack, it never did. "So, what's the deal with you and Kadaj?" he asked suddenly. "He's not exactly what I expected, Spike."
Cloud only smiled in rueful acknowledgement. "Kadaj is. . .different," he said with a shrug.
"Yeah, no shit," Zack said dryly. "Don't take this the wrong way or anything, but he really doesn't seem like your type."
"No offense taken," Cloud assured him. "When I first met him, I wasn't even sure that I liked him, but," he sighed, his expression gentling, "he grows on you."
"Yeah, he kinda does," Zack agreed. He'd become fond of the bossy little brat himself. "Seph's gotten really attached him. Loz and Yazoo, too. It's weird, though. I never pictured Sephiroth as a parent. It just. . .didn't fit."
"Tell me about it." Cloud still couldn't believe how quickly the boys had bonded with Sephiroth, Kadaj even going so far as to try to protect The Nightmare from the planet he had once tried to destroy. "But, maybe it's what Sephiroth needed, you know?"
"Maybe." Zack, never one to remain still, shrugged and pushed himself into a sitting position. "So, why don't you get along with Yazoo? I mean, you're both obviously crazy about Kadaj, so I kinda thought the two of you would become best buds or something."
Cloud shrugged as he thought of the last confrontation with the two eldest remnants, and its devastating results. "We've never talked," he answered with a sigh. "I don't honestly know how Yazoo feels about. . .well, anything."
"Mmmm." Zack considered that for a moment. "He's a lot like Seph, isn't he? He's all quiet and controlled and people think he's cold because of it."
"Yeah," he answered slowly, "I guess so. I hadn't really thought about it."
"Well, you should." Zack bent one leg and wrapped his arms around it, resting his chin on his upraised knee. "Seems to me that he's your boyfriend's favorite brother, and that it's going to be hard on Kadaj if you guys can't get along. You might want to try talking to the guy, if you're really going to live with Sephiroth once we get wherever the hell we're going."
Cloud only sighed at that. He and Sephiroth hadn't discussed exactly what their living arrangements would once they hit Wutai. They'd been too focused on finding a place to take the boys where they would be relatively safe from Shinra Inc.. But it was no stretch of the imagination to know that Kadaj would want to be near his 'father', and that meant that he probably end up living with Sephiroth if he wanted to keep his little tyrant happy.
And he did want make Kadaj happy.
'Puppet.'
Cloud's entire body stiffened at the ghostlike whisper that threaded its way through his mind. Shit, he thought with horror, it was Jenova! He cast a quick, panicked glance at Zack, whose smile faltered as his mouth began to move, but Cloud never heard his words. He could only reach out and clutch his friend's arm to anchor himself as reality itself began to shift and warp before his very eyes.
'Don't pretend you're scared,' that voice, deep and velvety and wholly terrifying, was hushed as it echoed through his head, belonging not to Jenova, but to Sephiroth. 'Why tremble with fear that's not even there? Face it, Cloud. All you are is an empty puppet.'
'No. . .'
'My puppet.'
Cloud bowed his back as agony raced through his body, the phantom pain just as strong as the Geostigma ever had been. He could feel Zack's hands as they grasped his shoulders and strove to hold him in place, but he couldn't respond as his every sense was overwhelmed by the sheer force of Sephiroth's—no, of Jenova's—will.
It couldn't be Sephiroth! he thought in denial. Sephiroth was stronger now, able to fight off Jenova's influence, bolstered by the support of his remnants, anchored by his love for Genesis. There was no reason for him to fall to her now, when they were so close to changing everything for the better!
As Cloud struggled to close his fragile mind to powerful invasion, he realized just what Jenova was trying to do. She was trying to trick him into believing that Sephiroth had gone insane again in an attempt to make him distrust his one-time nemesis. She feared Cloud, simply because he was the only being on Gaia that could defeat her, and she was drying to drive a wedge between he and her son so that Sephiroth would be left alone and vulnerable. Jenova was fucking with his mind, and if she had reached out to him so easily, Gaia only knew what she was doing to Sephiroth and Kadaj right now.
That realization gave Cloud the power to fight, to shake off the illusion of physical pain by focusing his own stubborn will on defeating Jenova's. He might not have been the strongest of Sephiroth's clones, but he was the only one who had survived Meteorfall, and he had been strong enough to stop Jenova's second attempt at Reunion.
And, he was one of the few people in this world who could control Kadaj. The youngest remnant was nearly as powerful as Sephiroth; he only lacked The Nightmare's ironclad restraint, and Yazoo's cool self-possession wasn't enough to make up for that. Without Cloud at his side, Kadaj would be vulnerable to his 'mother's' manipulations, a fact Jenova knew all too well, and was probably hoping to use to her advantage.
"No!" Cloud whispered harshly, shaking off the hands that held him and rising unsteadily to his feet. "I'm coming, baby. Hold on. Don't let her take you."
"Spike?" Zack hovered at his side, one arm extended to steady him as his body swayed. "Whoa, your eyes look like Sephiroth's!"
Cloud flinched as he imagined his blue eyes a terrifying acid-green, and knew without asking that his pupils had elongated until they were mere slits. "Kadaj," he was all he said as he pulled away and rushed unsteadily out of the room.
"Hey!" the other man called out as he ran after him. "Wait for me!"

Genesis paced the length of his childhood bedroom, his crimson robe flaring dramatically around his legs, as he fought to maintain his anger at Sephiroth's high-handedness. "How dare he?" he muttered to himself, ignoring the telltale sting in his eyes as his gaze landed on the scrapbook he had planned on showing to his lover before everything had gone to hell. "Fucking hell!"
The old, battered binder blurred out of focus, and he blinked furiously to clear his vision. He was not going to cry over this, he told himself fiercely. He wasn't in the wrong here, damn it all! Sephiroth was.
Sephiroth was the one who was lying to him, feeding him half-truths and evasions until he wanted to scream from the unfairness of it all. He had given up his career for him, for fuck's sake, and this was how Sephiroth repaid him?
How could he? Genesis cried silently. How could Sephiroth look him in the eye and lie after promising that he wouldn't? Hadn't Genesis loved him enough, supported him enough? What had Genesis done to make the other man believe that he couldn't be trusted?
An image of Sephiroth as he had last seen him flashed through his mind, his stunning features coldly angry, his pale emerald eyes flashing with suppressed pain, and Genesis winced at the memory of the way he had practically thrown the younger man out of his room. Sephiroth hadn't tried to protest, or to argue any further. He had simply hidden behind that sexy fall of silver hair and walked away. He had even closed the door quietly, instead of slamming it the way Genesis himself would have, when Genesis knew that he had to have been angry.
"Fuck," he mumbled as the first tendrils of guilt slithered through him. Okay, so maybe he did have a tendency to overreact in certain situations, but that was nothing new, for Gaia's sake! He had always had a quick temper, and as Sephiroth had told him repeatedly, he admired the 'fire' that made Genesis' personality so unique.
And yet, here he was, all alone, Genesis thought glumly. It was possible that he might have been just a tad too hard on the other man. The Goddess knew, Sephiroth wasn't great when it came to interpersonal relations, and he had tried to answer Genesis' questions. He simply done it very, very badly.
Genesis knew how much stress Sephiroth was under right now. He had left the only home he'd ever known when they had fled Shinra, and Sephiroth absolutely abhorred change. He had taken responsibility for the three boys Hojo had cloned from his cells, and he now found himself in the unenviable position of playing father to them, when he had never before been exposed to children. They were fugitives now, forced to hide from Shinra like common criminals to keep those children safe, and they had already been forced into two battles as a result.
The fact that Genesis had been wounded so badly in the first had shaken him. Genesis knew that for a fact. Sephiroth was like him in that aspect of his personality. He was frightened of losing the ones he loved, and he worried that would fail those he had sworn to protect. The younger man might be The Planet's strongest warrior, but even he had his limits, and Genesis may very well have pushed him past them tonight.
That thought wiped out any last vestige of anger he might have felt with his powerful lover. Genesis shook his head at his own stupidity as he bent over to retrieve the fallen book. He would be damned if he'd let something like this come between them. He'd give Sephiroth a little more time to prepare himself to tell whatever truth he was so reluctant to share, but he'd make it clear that he wouldn't wait too much longer. And in the meantime. . .
Genesis smiled down at the binder in his hands, trying to imagine Sephiroth's reaction to what was inside. Sephiroth would be surprised, and almost certainly embarrassed, but he would understand what Genesis was offering him with this latest gift, and Genesis could only hope that it would be enough to soothe the other man's hurt feelings.
Of course, it would, he rushed to reassure himself. Sephiroth was crazy about him. He wouldn't let something like this ridiculous little quarrel come between them. Once Genesis apologized for being a grade-A prick, Sephiroth would smile and call him his kitten again, and everything would be all right. He would show his moonbeam his cherished scrapbook, and Sephiroth would finally understand how much he had always meant to him, and they would become even closer.
Genesis hugged the book to him as he strode determinedly towards the door. He had a hand on the knob when he felt it, the dark feeling of foreboding that crept over him, and threatened to rob him of his newfound confidence.
Sephiroth stood proudly before him, his silver hair flowing over his shoulders in a cascade of moonspun silk, his bangs curving to frame his patrician features lovingly. His expression held an odd combination of rage and sorrow, which was reflected in the ice-green of his eyes as they flicked down to the sword which was intended to hold him at bay. Genesis followed the movement and was stunned to see a familiar crimson broadsword aimed at that lovely ivory throat.
Those cat-like eyes rose back to his own, and Genesis nearly cried out at the pain which radiated from their pale green depths. Rapier dropped out of his line of vision, and then he was walking past Sephiroth, his heart pounding heavily in his chest. He could hear himself quoting Loveless and arrogantly informing his lover that his fame should have been his all along, and Sephiroth's weary response as he was told that he was welcome to it.
No, that wasn't right! Genesis thought painfully, completely unaware of his surroundings as he stumbled against the door and began to slid down its slick wooden surface. He had hidden his jealousy from Sephiroth because he'd known how much it would hurt the other man to have it revealed. He would never intentionally inflict that kind of pain on someone who loved him!
He saw Sephiroth in his mind, tall and regal and gloriously beautiful as only he could be, at the top of a snow-covered mountain trail. Masamune glinted as it reflected the winter moonlight, even through the crimson stains that spread across its immense surface, as Sephiroth held it behind him in one gloved hand. It was blood that covered Masamune, and its master, in a horrifying scarlet glaze, the blood of the innocents who had once occupied the valley below.
Oh, Goddess, what have I done?
The thought echoed through his mind, but never made it past his lips, as Sephiroth threw his silver head back and laughed aloud. The dark beauty of that deep chuckle had been twisted, warped, as had Sephiroth himself, and he had only himself to blame. As he hovered in the cold winter air above his fallen lover, he felt something within himself wither and die. If his beautiful, powerful lover could fall so far, what hope did he have for himself?
Genesis came back to awareness to find himself slumped against his bedroom door, shaking from head to foot as he clutched the scrapbook to him. What the fuck had just happened? he asked himself with a touch of fear. Nothing like that ever happened—to either he or Sephiroth—so it couldn't be a godsdamned memory.
But damned if it hadn't felt like one, Genesis thought with a shiver. He reached up with a shaky hand and used the doorknob to drag himself to his feet. He waited until body had stopped swaying to turn the knob and stagger out of the room. He had to find Sephiroth, and make sure that nothing had happened to him, as irrational as that might seem.
As an image of the other man, all but painted in blood, flashed through his mind, Genesis shuddered and hurried down the hall. He spied a duffel bag lying on the left side of the hallway and hurriedly knew beside it. He saw the Shinra logo on it and quickly grasped the handles, knowing that it had to belong to Sephiroth. What he didn't know was what the hell it was doing lying in the middle of the fucking hallway without its owner!
"Seph?" he called out, quietly at first, and then with increasing worry. "Seph, where are you? Damn it, Sephiroth, answer me!"
"He's in here." Vincent appeared in the doorway of Sephiroth's own bedroom, and Genesis scowled as he strode towards him. What the fuck was Sephiroth's father in Seph's bedroom? "Kadaj says he'll be all right, but something... odd has happened to him."
Genesis only shot him a dark look and brushed past him, only to stops short as he took in the scene before him. Zack was standing to his left, looking both scared and confused as he literally bounced in place. Cloud was sitting on the side of Sephiroth's bed, his arms wrapped around Kadaj, who was draped across Sephiroth's stomach as he hugged him back. Yazoo was curled around Sephiroth's back, one arm pillowing his head, the other stroking his hair as the boy gazed at Cloud and his brother with veiled silver-green eyes. Loz was watching him with a worried expression, and it was obvious from his position on the bed that he had been holding Kadaj and Sephiroth both.
Sephiroth himself was lying on his side, his angelic features drawn and haggard, his stunning green eyes mere slits as they shone from between long golden lashes. As Genesis swallowed hard and drew closer, he could see for himself that Sephiroth's catlike pupils had shrank until they were little more than a pencil-thin slash of ebony amidst that glowing green sea. He gingerly seated himself on the bed beside his lover, barely noticing as Loz shifted and drew his feet up to give him more room, all of his attention focused on the man he loved.
"Seph?" His hand trembled as he reached towards the other man, only to have his wrist shackled in an unbreakable hold. "Not if you're gonna hurt him again, Gen."
Genesis' gaze jerked to Loz's own, his blue eyes wide with surprise and hurt, and the boy surprised him even more with a hard stare. "I don't know why you guys were fighting, but you hurt him, and she almost took him because of it. So, no more touching until you're ready to be nice."
Loz tightened his grip just enough to make his point, and then released him to turn back to his father. He reached out and took one of Sephiroth's hands in his own, his slanted green eyes filling with moisture, which he quickly blinked away. Sephiroth's hand tightened visibly around his clone's, but there was no other response, and Genesis' worry increased tenfold as he pulled his own hand back towards himself.
"What's wrong with him?" he asked, his voice shaking as those terrifyingly real not memories raced through his mind.
"She tried to steal him from us!" Kadaj pulled away from Cloud as he turned to face Genesis fully, and the loathing he saw reflected in those cherubic features shocked him. "Who tried to steal him?" he asked with alarm. "Rosso didn't do this, did she?!"
"Yeah, right, like a Color could do this to Sephiroth," Kadaj sneered with disgust.
Genesis set the scrapbook on the bed behind him and carefully inched closer to his insensate lover. "Who, then?" he whispered, his pale blue gaze never leaving Sephiroth's pale, beautiful, exhausted face.
"Her."
It was spat with such venom that Genesis flinched involuntarily. Kadaj sounded much the way he had when Genesis and Cloud had first found him, full of hatred and malice, and Genesis was suddenly grateful that that rage was no longer directed at him. "Who, Kadaj?" he questioned, struggling to make his voice as calm and soothing as he could. "I don't know of anyone powerful enough to do something like this to your father."
Kadaj hesitated as he looked around the room, trading meaningful glances with everyone but Genesis and Zack. Even Vincent, who stood near Yazoo at the head of the bed, was treated to one, and Genesis watched with concern as Sephiroth's father nodded once in response. Whatever was going on here, both Vincent and Cloud were a part of it, and Genesis was smart enough to realize the significance of that. He was about to have his questions answered, and he was suddenly dreading whatever revelations lay in store for him.
The boy turned back to him, looking both scared and defiant, as he said, "You know that we're part Cetra, right?"
Genesis only nodded encouragingly. Even if Kadaj hadn't been blunt in his declarations of his Cetra lineage, Genesis had figured it out for himself back at Fort Condor. When the boy didn't continue, Genesis said, "It's your Cetra blood that gives you the power to heal, as Aerith does."
Bow lips curved into an approving smile as even as Kadaj laid a protective hand on Sephiroth's hip. "Father's part Ancient, too."
"Yes, I had put that together myself," Genesis said, returning that smile briefly before sobering once again. "What does being part Cetra have to do with what's happened Seph?"
Kadaj flicked a glance at Cloud, who exhaled harshly as he realized exactly what the boys were going to do. He in turn looked to Vincent, and the older man's response was to cross his arms over his chest and bury his chin in the cowl of his cloak. "Zack should go find Aerith," he suggested in a low voice, his gaze rife with meaning as it met Cloud's own.
"Hey!" the young man in question protested, and Cloud quickly nodded his head in agreement. "He's right, Zack. Aerith's an Ancient. She'll be able to help us with this."
"But. . ." Zack's shoulders slumped for moment before he nodded his acceptance. "Okay, but you'll have tell me all about it later!"
Cloud smiled a little at that. "I will."
The other man flashed a grin before dashing from the room, and Vincent let out a quiet breath of relief. He wanted this over and done with. "Twenty-six years ago, the body of an Ancient was found in the Northern Cave," he began without preamble. His voice was low and partially muffled, but Genesis had no trouble understanding him. "Gast Faremis was the lead scientist on the expedition. He named the Ancient Jenova."
Genesis frowned as the name resonated with something forgotten in his mind. "Jenova," he murmured thoughtfully, and was appalled as it finally came to him. "Sephiroth once told me that his mother's name was Jenova, and that she had died giving birth to him."
Vincent only nodded, his rather lovely features taking on a pained cast. "Another example of Hojo's twisted sense of humor," he muttered with a touch of anger.
It was a good thing that bastard was already dead, or Genesis would have killed him for that little stunt! "Hojo used the Ancient's DNA to enhance Sephiroth, didn't he?" he asked, his rich voice taut with suppressed anger.
"Yes," Yazoo surprised them all by answering for him, "but he did it before Sephiroth was born."
Vincent slanted a glance down at the middle remnant, whose green eyes were trained on Genesis' confused face, and felt a rush of surprised gratitude. He did not like speaking of the events which had led to his death, and Yazoo had evidently sensed that, and had responding accordingly. "Thank you," he murmured quietly.
Those icy emerald eyes flickered and rose to meet his own briefly before skittering away, and Vincent felt the loss like a physical blow. "I don't know why Lucrecia volunteered her unborn child for the procedure," he said at last, "but she allowed Hojo to inject them both with Jenova cells."
"Didn't you try to stop her?" Genesis asked, appalled. "She was carrying your child, Vincent."
Vincent only shook his dark head as he lowered his arms and turned towards the window. "She never told me," he said in a too-quiet voice. "She let me believe that the child was Hojo's, and I didn't feel that I had the right to interfere. I was only a Turk, assigned to protect her while she studied the Ancient. I was her bodyguard, and she made it clear that that was all that I was to her."
Yazoo heard the echoes of remembered pain in that deep, rich voice and couldn't stop himself from reaching out. He shifted until he was sitting up and took Vincent's gauntleted hand in his own. He waited for other man to pull away, to reject the comfort that Yazoo was compelled to offer, and was astonished when that golden claw curved carefully around his fingers.
"I couldn't have stopped her," Vincent whispered at length. "For reasons I will never understand, she was determined to go through with the experiment. She never wavered in her resolve, not even when the pregnancy began to affect her health."
Vincent half-turned, his gaze settling on his only child with obvious sorrow. "Sephiroth's mother didn't die in childbirth, but she might as well have. They took her child away from her before she even had a chance to hold him, and she never recovered from that."
Genesis shuddered with sympathy as he reached out and touched the only part of Sephiroth that he could reach. He smoothed a hand over the lean curve of his lover's calf, blinking as he felt something more than smooth skin beneath the soft fabric of his pants. He glanced down at Sephiroth's feet and was astonished to see the shining black leather of his uniform boots.
"I liked the way you looked in your boots and nothing else," he heard himself say. "'You'll have to wear them for me some other time."
"I'll wear whatever you wish, so long as you allow me to touch you as I am now."
Oh, Seph, he thought as he caressed the butter-soft leather, did you really wear them just for me?
"Gen?" He looked up to find Kadaj watching him with concern in his pale green eyes. "You're not crying, are you?"
Genesis felt the moisture clinging to his lashes and hurriedly raised a hand to dash it away. "Of course not," he snapped irritably. "Now, tell me what Cetra DNA has to do with Sephiroth ending up comatose."
The boy grunted, much as Sephiroth would have done, and Genesis felt a sudden urge to smile, one which he hastily suppressed. "He's not comatose," Kadaj snapped right back. "He's just. . .hiding right now."
"Fine," Genesis said on a long-suffering sigh, "tell me what he's hiding from then."
"He's hiding from Jenova," the boy answered in a 'duh' tone of voice.
Genesis frowned at that. "Why would Sephiroth need to hide from a dead Ancient?"
Loz sat up to field this one. "Uh, she's not exactly dead, Gen."
The older man shot him an incredulous look, and Yazoo hastened to explain. "For some reason unknown to the scientists that unearthed her, Jenova started showing signs of life shortly after being excavated. They theorized that the extreme temperatures inside of the Northern Crater had somehow. . .preserved the Ancient."
Yazoo didn't add that they'd later discovered that Jenova was in truth a Cetra infected with an extraterrestrial virus. That was information that Genesis simply did not need to know at this point in time. "Jenova is telepathic," he added, almost as an afterthought.
Genesis thought of the odd, nonsensical images that had filled his mind only a short time ago, and everything clicked into place. "This not-so-dead Ancient went after Seph, and that's why he's," he gestured towards his insentient lover, "like this?"
"Yes!" Kadaj all but hissed, his excitement palpable as Koneko finally got it. "She's a mean, crazy bitch, and she thinks we're her 'sons'."
The young clone snorted at his own words, as if to convey his opinion of that, and Yazoo and Loz both nodded solemnly in confirmation. "She considers Sephiroth to be her strongest child, and she's trying to draw him to her," Yazoo said in a calm voice which belied his own concern. "She is very violent, Genesis. We cannot allow her to take him. He would not survive the experience unscathed."
Genesis raised a hand to his suddenly aching head. It was so much to take in, and it was such an unbelievable story. And yet, as he saw the bright, hopeful, expectant look on Kadaj's deceptively angelic features, he knew that it had to be the truth. Sephiroth was being stalked not only by a psychotic SOLDIER, but by a not-dead telepathic Cetra with delusions of motherhood.
Fucking hell.
"Alright," he said at length, his concern for Sephiroth overriding all other thoughts, "tell me what I can do to help you keep this from happening, again?"
Kadaj responded instantly. "He needs to be strong if he's going to fight her," he explained urgently, leaning towards Genesis in his eagerness to make him understand. "That means that you can't pick fights with him anymore, because it weakens him when he's unhappy. That's how she gets to him."
Shit, so this was his fault, Genesis thought with guilt. "No more fights," he promised, his dropping his hand and clutching his lover's leg tightly. "How long is he going to be like this?"
Kadaj only shrugged and looked to Yazoo. "Yaz?"
"He'll come back to himself once he feels safe," Yazoo answered rather vaguely. "We simply have to stay with him until that happens."
Genesis ran his free hand through his hair and realized that he was still wearing his bathrobe and fought a long-forgotten urge to blush. Yazoo smiled with knowing affection and as he finally released Vincent's hand. "Go on," he told Genesis in a soft voice. "We'll stay with him while you make yourself more. . .presentable."
"Yeah, go put some fucking clothes on already!" Kadaj ordered imperiously. "You shouldn't be running around half-naked, anyway."
Loz chuckled at Genesis' outraged expression. "Sorry, Gen," he said apologetically, "but the robe really doesn't hide much."
"Well, excuse me!" Genesis huffed, tossing his head as he rose to his feet. "I'm coming right back. Don't you three even think about going anywhere until I do!"
Kadaj only grinned as Sephiroth's kitten practically flounced out of the room in a fondly remembered fashion. "He's still a drama-queen," he commented drolly.
"Very much so," Yazoo said with a light sigh. "I always adored that about him."
"Yeah," Loz agreed with a smile, "Gen was always good for a laugh."
Cloud choked back a laugh at the strange conversation. "Well, at least, he accepted what you told him without freaking out," he said with relief. "Sephiroth was sure he'd be destroyed by it."
"We didn't tell him everything," Yazoo pointed out, his voice cooling considerably as he turned to face his brother's lover. "If we had done so, his reaction would have been quite different, I assure you."
"Yaz!" Kadaj frowned at him as he climbed over Sephiroth and onto Cloud's lap. "Be nice to Nii-san, damn it!"
"Yes, tenshi," Yazoo said dutifully, even as he turned away to stroke Sephiroth's hair once more. "My apologies, Nii-san. I meant no offense."
"None taken," Cloud returned with a sigh. He thought of Zack's earlier words and knew that he had to make an effort to reach out to Yazoo. He had every intention of spending his life with Kadaj, and that meant spending it with his brothers too. "Look, I know we don't really know each other, but. . .we are family, in a weird sort of way, and I'd like for us to at least try to get along."
It took Yazoo a moment to realize that Cloud was speaking to him, and he was surprised that the other man would bother to do so. "I am well aware that you do not approve of me," he said quietly in return. "I do not blame you for your feelings, nor do I expect you to accept me simply because Kadaj expects it of you."
"Yazoo!"
He ignored the baby's warning hiss as he continued to soothe Sephiroth, the action more for his comfort than Sephiroth's own, considering his progenitor's current condition. "You have every reason to distrust—even dislike—me. I am simply grateful that you no longer feel that way about my brother."
"I never wanted to hurt any of you," Cloud told him honestly.
Heavy-lidded green eyes slid to his own. "You killed Kadaj," Yazoo said simply, and Cloud flinched violently in response.
Kadaj slipped off of Cloud's lap and rose up onto his knees, his hands clenching into his fists at his sides. "Yazoo, that is enough," he said, using his considerable will to force his normally docile brother into silence. "It's in the past. Nii-san would never hurt me, now."
Yazoo only shook his head, determined to say his peace. "If you believed that, you wouldn't have hidden the fact that Mother was speaking to you again."
Loz looked alarmed as his wide-eyed gaze shot back and forth between his younger brothers. "Yazoo, don't push him!"
"Why not?" Yazoo questioned flatly. "I only speak the truth."
The baby flushed angrily, his body tensing, and Yazoo braced himself for the assault which would follow his disobedience. Vincent stirred at his side, one hand pushing his cloak away from the gun at his hip in an unmistakable threat, and Cloud hastily pulled Kadaj back against him. "Now isn't the time for us to be fighting with each other," he said quickly. "Yazoo, no matter what happens, I will never hurt your brother again. I promised to protect him, and I will. You and your brothers are my family now, too."
Yazoo gazed at him with silent, disbelieving eyes before looking up at Vincent. "Why would you try to protect me?" he asked with quiet confusion, and Vincent could only gaze at him sadly as Genesis rushed back into the room, and the moment was lost.
"Is everything all right?" he asked breathlessly, and Yazoo tore his gaze from Vincent's as he said, "Everything is fine, Genesis. Sephiroth is still. . .resting."
The fiery First was still fussing with the collar of his blue t-shirt as he resumed his place on the bed. "I'll stay with him, now," he announced. "You guys can go, if you want to."
"You'll take care of him?" Kadaj asked sharply.
Genesis nodded, his expression set in unusually solemn lines. "I won't let anyone hurt him, Kadaj."
The boy studied him for a moment longer before grunting his approval. "We'll leave, then." He climbed off of the bed and grasped Cloud's hand, tugging him to his feet. He rounded the bed and grabbed Souba from its place against the nightstand. "Come on, Nii-san, I filched some apples from the kitchen for us."
Cloud rolled his eyes as he allowed himself to be dragged from the room, and Genesis couldn't suppress a snicker. "Thank the Gods that Cloud is a patient man," he said to no one in particular.
Loz eyed him warily before finally cracking a reluctant smile. 'Daj is special, all right."
Genesis sighed as he observed the boy's reluctance. "It's okay, Loz. You can go." His gaze slid to Sephiroth's slack features. "I won't hurt him again."
"You'd better not," Loz warned as he finally rose to his feet. "Father doesn't need that right now."
"No, he doesn't," Genesis agreed, scooting up the bed until he was sitting in Loz's spot. He cast a quick glance at Yazoo and asked, "What about you? Do want to—"
"No." Yazoo lifted Sephiroth in his arms and passed him to Genesis. "I'd like to stay a little longer, if it's all the same to you."
"Of course," Genesis said, smiling over Sephiroth's head as he pulled his lover to him. "I'm sure your father will appreciate all the help you've given him when he wakes up."
Yazoo smiled briefly as he reached out and trailed his surprisingly bare hand through Sephiroth's hair. He remained silent as the others slowly trickled out of the room, his gaze lingering on Vincent, who was the last to go. Vincent paused on the threshold, throwing what Yazoo was sure was an unintentionally provocative glance over his shoulder, before finally leaving.
Yazoo shivered in response and shifted just a little closer to his father. "He'll be disoriented when he awakens," he murmured almost absently, "and he'll likely have an atrocious headache. Don't question him right away. Give him time to come back to himself fully before you do."
Genesis looked down at his insensate lover and hugged him protectively. "No more questions," he said, pressing his lips to the top of Sephiroth's head. "If I'd had any inkling of what kind of pressure he was under, I never would have started this in the first place."
That drew a faint smile from the solemn young man beside him. "He didn't want you to see him as a monster, Genesis. That's why he was reluctant to answer your questions."
"Oh, Gods, don't say that," Genesis groaned miserably, burying his face in the other man's hair. "You're not a monster, Seph. Do you hear me?"
Only silence met his words, and he had to blink back an onslaught of fresh tears. "I've never understood how he could believe something like about himself," Genesis whispered thickly. "How could he not see how fucking special he is?"
"Ssshh." Yazoo put his arms around both men and held them tightly. "All will be well, kitten, so long as he has you."
Genesis only shuddered and clutched Sephiroth tighter. It was unnerving to hear a voice so similar to his own call him 'kitten', and yet, it was comforting in a strange way. It meant that at least one of the boys had good memories of him, and that he hadn't always treated Sephiroth badly.
"I never meant to hurt him," Genesis said in a voice that trembled. "I never dreamed that I could. He was always so far above me, so much better than me at everything. He was a hero, and I was. . .just me."
"You were always more to him," Yazoo told him somberly. "You should never doubt how much you mean to him. You are everything, Genesis."
Genesis' breath caught on a sob, and he hastily choked it back. He felt Yazoo press a kiss to his head in the same way that Sephiroth always had, and the tears broke free. The bed dipped suddenly, and he watched through blurry eyes as the slender young man slipped silently out of the room.
"Seph, I'm so sorry," he whispered, rocking the other man as he strove to comfort them both. "Please, come back to me. Don't leave me alone, alright?"
More silence, broken only by the chorus of crickets through the open window, and his own harsh breathing, and Genesis shivered as he scooted down on the bed and held Sephiroth tighter. All he wanted was to feel those strong arms close around him, to hear that too-deep voice tell him that everything was going to be all right, and he hated that he couldn't have it.
Goddess, but he was selfish son of a bitch, he thought with self-recrimination. Sephiroth was fucking comatose, and here he was, bitching because the other man couldn't respond to him. How fucking low was that?
"I'll do better, Seph," he promised the unconscious man hoarsely. "I'll be strong, and for once, I'll take care of you."
Genesis sniffed as rubbed his damp cheek against Sephiroth's own. Gilded strands of silken hair clung to the wetness of his tears, and Genesis smiled tremulously as he reached up to pull them away. "I'm always playing with your hair, aren't I? I don't know how you can stand it, but I'm glad that you do, moonbeam."
He gently stroked the other man's cheek with his thumb, sighing a little at the pale softness of his skin. "It'll be over soon, Seph. We'll be in Wutai with our boys, and we'll be a family, just like we planned."
He pressed his lips to that supple cheek and closed his eyes. "I love you, Sephiroth," he said in an achingly tender voice. "I'll be right here, waiting for you, when you come back, okay?"
He sighed again and eased back, laying Sephiroth on his back as he reached for the buttons of his shirt. "I'm just going to get you out of these clothes, so you'll be more comfortable. I know how much you hate sleeping them."
Genesis kept up a steady stream on conversation as he maneuvered the other man out of his clothes and into a pair of pajama bottoms. It wasn't much, but it was really all he could do for him right now, and it made Genesis feel better to have something constructive to do. Patience had never been his strong suit.
He tossed Sephiroth's clothes into the hamper, knowing that the maid would see to them in the morning, and set Sephiroth's boots next to the bed, and then crawled back into bed beside him. As he pulled the coverlet up over them, he snuggled up to Sephiroth, and was rewarded as strong arms banded around him. Relief made him light-headed as he raised his head, only to find that Sephiroth was still asleep. The other man had embraced him automatically, the same way he had grasped Loz's hand earlier, and something inside of Genesis eased. Sephiroth wasn't completely gone from him, as he had secretly feared. He was just. . .temporarily unavailable, and that was something that Genesis could deal with.
"Goodnight, moonbeam," he whispered, brushing his lips over the other man's. "Sleep well."
Genesis drew back just enough to lay his head on Sephiroth's chest, and was comforted by the familiar sound of his lover's heartbeat. He smiled to himself as he closed his eyes, knowing that when he awoke, Sephiroth's beautiful green eyes would be the first thing he'd see, and that something that would always be worth waiting for.

Angeal stood stiffly in the Rhapsodos garden, singularly uncomfortable as he watched Aerith talk to the Rain Daisies as she knelt before them. He still didn't know why he had allowed the girl to talk him into coming out here, but he knew a bad idea when he had one. Aerith Gainsborough was a lovely young woman with unusual abilities gifted to her by her Cetra blood, but she was also a girl who had no business sniffing around a man his age.
Zack, of course, didn't mind the attention, but he was young himself. He didn't understand what the consequences of flirting with a teenage girl could be. Aerith was young enough that she probably still believed in knights in shining armor and fairy tale romances.
Aerith chose that moment to look over her shoulder and smile, almost as though reading his thoughts, and Angeal could only shake his head. While he knew that that wasn't possible, the girl had proven to be extraordinarily intuitive. Even his mother had remarked upon it, and Gillian Hewley was not a pushover by any means. She had taken a liking to Aerith upon first meeting her, especially when the girl had shown an interest in the Nelumbo nucifera that grew in a specially made pond in his mother's backyard. While his parents had never been wealthy, Angeal's father had done his best to provide for his family, and that included learning how to build a pond with his bare hands to please his beloved wife.
Aerith, of course, had been delighted to find the lotus, which she had only seen in books, in a town as small as Banora. She had begun to talk to the plant, much as she was doing now, even as she explained to his mother that she herself had grown flowers in the abandoned church in Sector 5. That had led to a discussion which had only ended when they had heard the sounds of battle in the center of town.
He hadn't liked that the girl had followed him, but he had to admit that she was good with that staff of hers. It wasn't a weapon that Angeal himself would have chosen, but it suited her and her inherent magical abilities much better than a sword would have. She was also far too reckless for his tastes; sneaking up behind an enhanced opponent in the midst of battle and bashing the woman over the head hadn't been the brightest thing to do. Angeal had found himself stepping between Aerith and Rosso The Crimson, certain that the Tsviet was about to kill the girl for what she had done. He could only be grateful that Genesis had distracted Rosso long enough for him to get Aerith out of the way. Having her death on his conscience was something that he did not want.
Aerith gave the white blossom she'd been talking to a final pat before rising to her feet. The voices of her Cetra ancestors had assured her that Angeal Hewley was not part of Jenova's machinations, and that he would be acceptable to them as a consort. While it thrilled her to know that, Aerith wasn't going to let them dictate how she lived her life. She had her heart set on two men, and by The Planet, she was going to get them!
She smiled mischievously as turned to face Angeal, the more stubborn of the two she had chosen. "The flowers are very beautiful here in Banora," she said conversationally. "They must be well tended to be so happy. Genesis' mother is obviously a good gardener."
Angeal blinked, his deep sapphire eyes showing bemusement, as he shook his head a second time. "I doubt that Mrs. Rhapsodos has ever done more than entertain in this garden," he said, not unkindly. "She's really not the gardening type."
"Oh, I think you'd be surprised," she returned, taking a step closer. "The daisies told me that she spends a lot of time with them, and that she's pretty gentle too."
"Ah." Two brown-black brows shot up as Angeal cleared his throat and quickly changed the subject. "We should probably go inside, now. The others will wonder what's happened to us."
Aerith only shook her own head and approached him with light, bouncy steps. "I doubt Sephiroth and Genesis have even noticed our absence," she said with a giggle. "They don't seem to see much besides each other. It's romantic, really. Don't you agree?"
Oh, no.
Angeal took a hasty step back, only to find himself trapped between a Calathea roseo-picta, and Aerith Gainsborough. "Aerith, this isn't a good idea—"
Warm lips pressed against his, cutting him off in mid-protest, and Angeal's brain simply shut down. He grabbed the girl by the shoulders and hauled her to him, instinct guiding him as he opened his mouth over hers. She threw her arms around his neck as she kissed him back, and Angeal was nearly undone by her passionate, uninhibited response.
He shuddered and hurriedly reached up behind him, grasping her wrists and forcing her away from him, even as his body screamed in protest. "We can't," he gasped desperately. "You're too young, and Zack—"
"Wants this as much as we do." Aerith gazed up at him with dark green eyes, stunned by intensity of what she had felt in this man's kiss. She had loved Zack with all of your young heart, but he had never made her feel like this. "This isn't a betrayal of him, Angeal. I would never do anything to hurt Zack. I love him just as much as you do."
Angeal frowned darkly as he released her wrists. "You hardly know him," he told her gruffly, "or me, for that matter. You couldn't possibly love either us, and I think—"
"Hey, there you are!" Zack's voice shattered the moment as he rounded the corner. "Something's happened to Sephiroth, and Cloud sent me to find. . ."
His voice trailed off at the guilty look on his lover's features. "Uh, Angeal?" he said, hoping that he was right about what that look meant. "You okay?"
Angeal sighed heavily. "Zack, I—"
A strangled sound escaped Aerith as she felt her mind being violated for the very first time. She barely felt Angeal as he reached out to steady her, her mind occupied by the past rose up to tauntingly before her, accompanied by an eerie feminine laugh that she had never heard before, but was very much afraid that she knew.
"Jenova!" she gasped, just before the world around her was snatched away by cruel alien hands.
Zack smiled brightly as he struggled to build a flower cart out of nothing more than scrap metal, and her foolish insistence that he build her a better, prettier one.
A world painted in shades of Pain as Sephiroth was beaten by Hojo's SOLDIERs, her senses filled with him as he bought her freedom at the price of his own well-being.
Cloud, sitting across from her on the gondola, his arms folded over his chest, as she asked him to let her see him as he really was.
Genesis' grief as The Planet celebrated the death of his lover, and the subsequent rage which made Gaia's destruction inevitable
Feeling Zack's life-force dwindling away, and being unaware that it was him as he returned to The Planet.
The remnants as they fought for the mother they had never had, a father that they hardly knew, only to sacrifice themselves on the pyres of another's ambition.
Vincent's despair as he mourned Yazoo among the obscenely pristine beauty of the Forgotten Capital.
The pain of Masamune as it pierced her back, the crystalline tears in Cloud's blue, blue eyes, as her world slowly faded to black.
She didn't know how much time had passed before she felt a pleasantly familiar touch on her face. She opened her eyes to find six pairs of terrified eyes on her, and she smiled—albeit shakily—to show that she was all right. The arms which held her were infinitely gentle as they lifted her into a sitting position, and she knew without looking that it was Angeal who held her so tenderly.
"What happened?" Loz asked as he grasped her hand in his. "Was it. . . Mother?"
"I. . .think so." Aerith winced at the hoarse croak that was her voice and daintily cleared her throat. "Sephiroth?"
"He's safe, for now." Vincent squatted down beside her, ignoring Angeal and Zack completely as he focused on the young Cetra who was so important. "Yazoo showed him how to hide from Jenova. Genesis is with him now."
"Good." She closed her eyes as her head pounded painfully. "Kadaj, are you-"
"She didn't hurt us," the young remnant rushed to reassure her. "We only kept her busy long enough to let Yazoo help Father, and then we got the fuck out of there."
"You. . .fought her?" Aerith winced as she opened her eyes, trying very hard not to smile at the youngest remnant's proud expression. "Of course, you did," she murmured affectionately. "Always the warrior, aren't you?"
"You're damned straight." Kadaj's gaze turned inward for a moment, and then he smiled again. "Yaz is on his way. He's going to make sure she didn't hurt you too badly."
"I'm fine, little brother," she told him with a shaky laugh. "She's not strong enough to do any permanent damage."
"You didn't see what she did to Sephiroth," Cloud said as he stood just outside of the terrace doors. "Let Yazoo look you over, just to be sure, alright?"
"But—"
"Listen to Spike," Zack told her as he helped Angeal position her comfortably. "I don't know exactly what's going on, but Sephiroth's in really bad shape right now. Let Yazoo do whatever it is that he's going to do."
"Zack, really," she protested with exasperation. "I'm fine."
He only leveled a knowing look at her and said, "Don't make me sic Angeal on you, honey."
Aerith gazed at him for a long moment before bringing a hand up to smother a laugh. "Zack, that was so mean." She tilted her head back to look up at Angeal, who was frowning at them both, and said, "You know that he didn't mean it the way it sounded, Angeal."
Angeal's gaze shot back and forth between them before he sighed soundlessly. "You're just as bad as he is, you know," he murmured, his voice softening tellingly.
She only smiled up at him, the serene smile that spoke of utterly mysterious things, and Angeal's lips twitched as he fought the urge to return it. He was saved from further embarrassment as Yazoo glided gracefully through the open doorway. The middle boy knelt before them, his own smile both tranquil and somehow reassuring, as he removed his gloves and reached for Aerith's face.
Angeal frowned at what he believed was unnecessary physical contact, and Yazoo's smile took on shrewd cast. "I will be brief, my friend," he assured the older man before meeting Aerith's gaze once more. "You are a very lucky woman, sister."
Aerith's smile widened as reached out, grasped those pale, elegant hands in her own, and raised them to her face. "Let's get this over with, brother," she told him dryly. "You're really beginning to cramp my style."
Yazoo uttered a soft laugh as he cupped her face and made a very tentative foray in to his sister's mind. Unlike Sephiroth, Aerith's mind was a calm, cheerful place. She'd had her dark moments, as was apparent as he carefully skirted around the scene of her death. While he could feel the echo of Mother's power around certain, painful memories, he could find no trace of Jenova's actual spiritual presence.
What he did find, however, was a beautifully passionate kiss between his adopted sister and honorable Angeal. "Oh, my," he murmured as he hastily forced himself to withdraw, "that was certainly unexpected, but pleasant, I would imagine."
"Very." Aerith grinned at him as he opened his eyes. "None of you were ever curious?"
Yazoo only shook his head negatively. "There was only ever one for us," he answered ruefully, "even if the 'one' has changed for each of us in this incarnation. As for sex with. . .well, the notion would never have occurred to us, to be quite honest."
"Sex with who?" Kadaj asked curiously. Yazoo sent him the mental image he'd just seen, and the baby let out a disgusted squeal. "Eeeeewwwww! You kissed Angeal?!"
"No way!" Loz looked shocked as he rocked on his heels, his gaze flying to the man in question. "But. . .why?"
"Hey, what's wrong with Angeal?" Zack demanded, thoroughly offended by their reactions. "I'll have you know that he's a great kisser!"
The sound of near-hysterical laughter sounded, and all eyes turned to the doorway, where Reno was clutching his stomach as he laughed his ass off. "Oh, man!" he gasped breathlessly. "Little sister hit on big, bad General Hewley! This is awesome stuff, yo!"
Cissnei snickered behind a gloved hand as Angeal turned a bright, cherry red. "Reno, it's not that funny."
"Oh yes, it is! Sweet, innocent little Aerith, hitting on-" Reno dropped abruptly to the ground. "Ow, that hurt, yo."
Kadaj sneered as he withdrew his foot. "What you say about big sister, moron."
Cloud rolled his eyes, reached out, and pulled Kadaj away before he could do any more damage. "Reno, stick your foot in your mouth before Kadaj does it for you," he ordered sternly. Kadaj pointed at the Turk and laughed uproariously, until Cloud added, "Put a sock in it, baby."
"Hmph." Kadaj jerked away from, folded his arms over his chest, and stuck his nose in the air. "I don't take orders from you, Nii-san."
"You will if you want to get laid anytime soon."
"Nii-san!" Kadaj looked stunned, and then hurt, as he dropped his arms. "But I haven't gotten any at all since I came back!"
That sent Reno into renewed peals of laughter, and Cloud hastily grabbed his young lover before the situation got too out of hand. "Shut the hell up, Reno!" he snapped as he threw Kadaj over his shoulder. "Come on, baby, we'll take care that right now."
Kadaj only grinned at his brothers over his shoulder and allowed himself to be carried away. Reno shook his head as he picked himself up off of the ground, and then to the rest of the party. "So, what'd I miss, yo?"
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Final Fantasy VII: Angelic Threnody