Work Text:
Another One Of Those Untitled Fanfics
by Sephiroth
If the mountain climber had not chosen to try his luck once more, the luck of another would've run out.
At the base of snow and ice covered mountain, a small child lay dying. His small, delicate body, protected only by a shimmering curtain of silver hair, had been frozen by the harsh cold of Mt.Gaea. Barely a breath was seen from silent lips that were slowly turning an unlovely shade of blue.
The mountain climber would've missed the small body if he hadn't chosen that moment to check his supplies. As he looked down in the general direction of his pockets, he spotted the fragile form that lie there.
"Poor kid."
The kind-hearted man lifted the frozen body from its bed of snow and carried him back to his cabin. Wrapping the small bundle in warm blankets, he put a kettle of homemade soup on the fire. The boy, no more than five years old, was familiar in a way that he couldn't quite place.
He fancied one of his shirts would make a good nightgown for the child and to this end, he dressed the boy up in it, all the while lost in thought. He tried to think of who the child reminded him of, but he'd been living at the base of Mt. Gaea for too long and it was all he
could do to remember his own name.
In a fairly short time, the boy's coloring went from a ghastly bluish tinge to a delicate alabaster. Given the boy's silver hair, the man didn't expect it to change any more than that.
"He'll be quite handsome if he lives to adulthood," the mountain climber decided. "But he won't live to adulthood if he stays here."
The man checked the items the group of people he'd met a day ago had given him. What had they called themselves? Avalanche? Strange name, he thought, for a group of people going *up* a mountain. He was pleased to find a map included in those items. It would, he decided, be a great help in getting the child back to the village.
He kept vigil that night, at the boy's bedside, warming the child against the bitter cold that had so very nearly taken his life. By morning, he was rewarded by the sight of the child's eyes opening.
"Why is a boy so small out here all alone," the man asked. "What is your name?"
"My name is Sephiroth," the boy replied, sulkily. "And what do you mean by small?"
He threw off the blankets and leapt up, speaking as he moved. "I would hardly call myself..." and here he stumbled, not in his bearing but upon his words, for he found himself to be ever so much shorter than last he could recall.
"Funny," he remarked, a puzzled frown upon his face as he pondered what his predicament might be, "I was a lot taller yesterday. And a bit older, too, if this new voice of mine is any indication of age. I daresay I shan't remember much of the things I knew when I was grown up now that I am to be a child again. Or is it again? I don't remember my last childhood, or if I even had such."
"Sephiroth?"
The mountain climber considered this for a moment. "If you are the same Sephiroth as he who is so often spoken of, then it would seem that you have, for some reason, been given a second chance. Let is see to it that you have to opportunity to use it wisely." He gave the boy a bowl of soup and a spoon with which to eat it, then served some to himself in the same manner.
"I am the same Sephiroth,." the boy replied, tasting the soup. He smiled at the taste. It wasn't bad, and he found, to his delight, that it did warm him up considerably.
"You like it?" the man asked.
The boy decided that he did and let the man know this with a nod since his mouth was currently busy with the soup in question.
"Once you're done eating, we must head down to the village," the man told him. "This place is too cold and too dangerous for a small child. And though you may find it difficult to accept, a small child is just what you are at this moment."
*****
Having picked up Marlene and Mrs. Gainsborough, Avalanche was on its way back to Icicle Village.
Mrs. Gainsborough looked out at the landscape that moved beneath her. Aeris was gone, and she would have to somehow learn to cope with the loneliness. Marlene was some comfort, but not as much as she might have expected. She supposed that was because she knew she could not keep the child. Not unless Barrett were to suddenly propose to her. She laughed, cheerfully, at the idea. The two were so unalike, their only real similarities being their love for a sweet little girl and their desire to do the right thing for that very same child.
"Mrs. Gainsborough," Marlene asked, joining her. "how come some boys fall in love with other boys instead of girls?"
Mrs. Gainsborough was surprised at the question and didn't answer right away. Finally, she knelt down, facing the little girl.
"I guess all have different reasons." she said, deciding that Marlene was too young for any other answer and that, at any rate, it should come from her father. "Why did you ask me that question?"
"Cause I think that boy Cloud loves that Vincent guy more than that Tifa girl." Marlene explained. "He tries to make everyone think he likes her, but he's happier and smiles more when he's talking to Vincent."
"I think so, too." Mrs. Gainsborough agreed.
Cloud listened to this for a moment, at the door to the Highwind's upper deck, before heading back down the stairs. He had gone up to tell them they'd be arriving at Icicle Village shortly. He had wanted Mrs. Gainsborough to be able to visit the place in which Aeris had been born. It was, he thought, the least he could do for her after what had happened. She'd been pleased with his offer, though the memory of her adopted daughter brought a mixture of joy and sadness to the kindly woman.
As he'd been about to step onto the deck, he'd heard Mrs. Gainsborough and Marlene talking about how Marlene had noticed that Cloud was in love with Vincent. That had been a surprise. He hadn't noticed, or perhaps he hadn't wanted to notice. But thinking back, he realized the little girl was right. There was something about the man that drew Cloud and made the ex-SOLDIER want to protect him and comfort him, though it was quite plain to all that Vincent Valentine didn't need anyone to protect him.
"I'm in love with Sephiroth's father," he muttered to himself, not believing for a moment that anyone as sickly as Hojo could have fathered a son as strong and as beautiful as Sephiroth had been. He rejoined the other members of Avalanche on the bridge. "Barrett, you'd better go tell them. " he said. "I have to have a word with Vincent."
------------------------
The people of Icicle Village had been very glad to see their old friend returned safe and sound after a prolonged absence. The first to see him had been the kindly man who had warned Cloud about needing a snowboard. He'd immediately rushed to get the man's wife.
The look of stunned joy on her face had been too emotionally charged to properly describe. And the sight of the small, now-sleeping boy in the man's arms made the smile she wore all the brighter.
"What a sweet little boy," she said, taking the sleeping child from her newly-returned husband. She was about to kiss the boy's forehead, when she realized she knew this child, or rather someone who looked remarkably like him. She looked, concernedly, up at her husband.
"He looks like Sephiroth"
"He *is* Sephiroth," the man told her.
"Oh," the woman regarded this for a moment, then carried the little boy into house.
*****
Cloud and Vincent walked into the bar at the Icicle Inn and found a quiet table in the corner.
"I don't trust myself alone with you," Cloud admitted. "I don't know whether to kill you or kiss you."
"Killing me I could understand, Vincent told him as he leaned back and watched Cloud sip his drink. "But why in the world would you want to kiss me?"
"I think I'm falling in love with you."
Vincent crossed his arms and tried to appear as nonchalant as he didn't feel. "I'm a dangerous person to love, Cloud." he said. "Chaos and all those others... I don't know if they just appear when I'm angry or frightened. Maybe any strong emotion, even lust, could set
them off. You could get into bed with me and find yourself dealing with who-knows-what."
"Or you could be afraid for no reason." Cloud told him. "missing out on something..." his voice trailed off as he heard a familiar name at from one of the other patrons. He turned to the man and leaned over, glaring at him. "What the fuck did you just say?" he demanded.
"Oh, I was just saying I hope we're not all making too much noise, or we'll wake Sephiroth." the man replied.
"What do you mean wake Sephiroth?!" Cloud was on his feet, instantly on full-alert. "Where is he?"
"He's upstairs, but..."
Cloud was two thirds of the way up the stairs by the time the man had gotten to this point, so the rest was left unheard. Sephiroth was alive! The bastard had gotten away again, somehow, and now his vile presence was lousing up the place where Aeris had been born. He
wouldn't have it. Determined to kill his enemy once and for all, he barged into the room, sword drawn...
...and froze in utter shock.
"Owww," the small child complained as the woman combed out his long silver hair, "that hurts!"
"I'm sorry, Seph'." the woman apologized. "You want to look nice at dinner, right?"
Cloud let his beweaponed sword-arm drop to his side as the woman and child turned to him. The child saw the sword and instantly hid behind the woman.
"Don't you dare hurt this little boy," the woman warned, glaring at this man who had barged into this room with a weapon drawn.
"My apologies for scaring you," Cloud told Sephiroth. "You weren't what I expected."
-Part 4-
The woman knelt down in front of Sephiroth and hugged the little boy, warmly. "I don't believe you did any of those naughty things. But if you did, then you should use this chance you've been given to make things right."
"How," the little boy asked. It seemed a heavy burden for one small child to bear.
"You made people unhappy last time, so you make up for it by making people happy," the woman explained. Seeing the boy's expression, she smiled, reassuringly. "Don't worry. It's easy. Remember to always speak kindly of others and when you meet people for the first time, smile. Promise?"
Sephiroth nodded. "I promise," he said, taking the hand Vincent extended toward him.
"Thank you for taking care of him," Vincent told the innkeeper. "What do I owe you for...?"
"Be a good father," the innkeeper told him. "And remember to keep your promise and visit us often."
~This would make a nice place for a honeymoon.~ Cloud thought, despite Vincent's earlier warning, as he watched Vincent, who was now fussing over Sephiroth, making sure the boy's collar was buttoned up so he'd be nice and warm during the walk back to the Highwind. Cloud
and Vincent would have to get a babysitter for Sephiroth while they were...
~What am I thinking? I haven't even started dating him yet. Unless this counts as our first date.~
The innkeeper had given the child some new clothes shortly after he'd first arrived, dressed only in one of her husband's shirts. Although they weren't what Vincent would've selected, being of a rustic appearance while Vincent prefer a more urban look, they were nice and very fitting for the village's cold climate.
Cloud paid for the drinks he'd had and turned to Vincent. "The others are waiting back on the Highwind."
Vincent nodded, then looked down at Sephiroth. "You ready for an adventure?" he asked, smiling at his son, at the second chance they'd both been given.
Sephiroth smiled up at him, already keeping his promise to the kindly woman, and nodded.
~OWARI~