Archive of Our Own ^beta

Summer was sweet.

The sun ripened fruits and vegetables until each bite was bursting with flavor. Beasts, both big and small, came out of hiding in order to feast on the ever-abundant treasures.

Sephiroth was no stranger to beasts. Abominations were common in the labs and it wasn’t unusual to stumble onto another experiment with extra arms or legs or fangs.

But this was strange, even for him.

“How is it alive?” Sephiroth questioned, holding up the watermelon shaped tonberry up by the foot.

“The world is filled with mysterious creatures,” Cloud sighed. “Just don’t… Don’t hurt it.”

Sephiroth blinked at Cloud before lowering the flailing creature back onto the ground. “It attacked you.”

Cloud winced, looking at him. Sephiroth stared back, puzzled. 

There was something odd about Cloud’s logic, but Sephiroth figured that it had something to do with Cloud’s morals. At times, Cloud seemed contradictory regarding whether or not they should fight something or sneak past. Other times, he appeared willing to kill, though he would always stop Sephiroth from doing the same.

It was not a secret that his friends were the same way. Especially regarding Sephiroth, himself.

Sephiroth had been deemed “Cloud’s problem” since he had shown up, though Sephiroth was more than happy with the arrangement. Oddly enough, the others seemed wary of him, though Sephiroth couldn’t be sure why. This meant, of course, that Sephiroth was left alone with Cloud quite often.

“I won’t hurt it unless it attacks you again,” Sephiroth reassured, giving the creature a nod. “Hitting you with a stick is far less effective than the knives tonberries normally carry.”

Unlike the typical tonberry, this tonberry was round and had some kind of blindfold on. Honestly, it looked more like a tonberry that had stuffed itself into a watermelon than an actual tonberry. It had even swapped its knife for a stick.

Watermelon bash, as Cloud had called it.

Well, certainly, the creature was dressed for it. And, according to Cloud, it was responsible for bringing the watermelon as well.

“Do you want to try?” Cloud asked, gesturing to the enormous watermelon that was sitting on the sand.

“Try?”

Sephiroth eyed the stick the tonberry was holding and then the watermelon sitting in front of them. It was a game he had never played, but if Cloud was asking…

“Sure, I’ll try.”

Sephiroth found a stick.

It wasn’t a sword. It wasn’t materia. It wasn’t even something that looked out of place in any other child’s hands. As a kid, Cloud was sure that he had found branches that looked just like the one Sephiroth was holding.

But somehow… Somehow, it looked like a weapon in Sephiroth’s hands. It was a stick and Sephiroth held it like a sword. The stick seemed far more deadly in Sephiroth’s hands than in any other teen’s. 

The branch looked like any other tree branch. It still had a few leaves sticking out of the branch. Sephiroth had picked it up somewhere outside of Costa Del Sol, near the forest.

It was a stick, but Sephiroth looked ready to murder someone with it.

As if everyone else had the same thoughts, they were giving the blindfolded child a wide berth. Cloud was standing the closest, but even he didn’t feel completely safe.

Even the watermelon tonberry had taken a few steps back, jumping for joy as Sephrioth approached the watermelon. There were no words of encouragement. No cheers. No screams of “Go Right” or “Go Left”. No one who dared to touch the teen to spin him around, as per the game’s rules. Instead, the silence felt like watching someone perform an execution. 

Except the victim was a gigantic watermelon. And the executioner was Sephiroth. And he was holding a stick.

Quite frankly, it was ridiculous. So Cloud sighed and held his hands up and said, “make sure you cut it up enough for everyone!”

Sephiroth’s head tilted in his direction and then he held up the stick. He paused and then turned to Cloud. “How many pieces do we need?”

Relaxing a little, Cloud glanced at the crowd. “However many you want!” he called back.

Sephiroth held the stick up and seemed to be contemplating the answer. Then he swung the stick in a massive arc, cracking through the thick rind of the watermelon with ease. The watermelon slid onto the sand in six even slices. Cloud let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding and smiled, running over to Sephiroth and giving his shoulder a pat.

“Well done,” he complimented as Sephiroth lifted his right hand to tug off the blindfold. “We’ll divide it for everyone. Thanks Sephiroth!”

He turned away, making a point to avoid looking at the stick, gesturing to the crowd to grab the slices of watermelon before the sand was blown into it. Tifa and Barret each took a slice to divide among the others. Cloud did the same with his own slice, making sure to save a few for Sephiroth, who had retreated under their umbrella.

It wasn’t a surprise that Sephiroth had chosen to retreat among the crowd. Even as a child, Sephiroth didn’t appear fond of large groups or chatter. While he was more expressive and talkative, he still didn’t enjoy all the attention.

Cloud looked at the watermelon tonberry, who was happily holding its own slice of watermelon and then at the plate that he had set aside for Sephiroth. He had been grateful that his friends hadn’t immediately shunned the teen, but it was clear that there was some level of discomfort among them. Sephiroth wasn’t welcome among them, even if Cloud had vouched for him. The wounds were too fresh. Too deep.

Even if it wasn’t this Sephiroth.

He turned to the teen and caught his gaze before jerking his head towards them as a clear invitation. Sephiroth hesitated, before slowly standing and making his way towards them.

“Here, have some,” Cloud invited, holding the plate out to the teen.

Sephiroth looked at the slices of watermelon and then at Cloud and the group in turn. “What does watermelon taste like?” he asked quietly.

The group paused. Tifa’s slice was frozen halfway to her mouth, her eyes wide with surprise. Barret was in the middle of wiping Marlene’s cheek. Yuffie’s hand was reaching towards one of the other plates before she pulled it back and stuck her hands on her hips.

“What’da mean?” she asked. “It tastes like summer!”

Sephiroth appeared confused before turning to Cloud. “Tastes like summer?”

“Have you… never had watermelon before?” Tifa asked gently, trying to stifle the shock on her face.

“I…” Sephiroth looked between them and then at the plate. “I apologize. I did not realize that it was rude to ask.”

Barret scoffed, wiping off Marlene’s face and then gesturing to the plate. “It ain’t rude. If you’ve never had some, then it’s the perfect time to try! We’d thought you’d have eaten fancy stuff in Shinra, is all.”

Something on Sephiroth’s expression relaxed. “No. My diet was strictly controlled to be optimized for my growth. I can’t remember the last time I’ve had something like this before I met Cloud...”

Letting out a soft breath, Cloud backed off a little as the group seemed to accept the teenage Sephiroth into their conversation. At least, for the time being. But the look on Tifa’s face said that the conversation was far from over.

Sephiroth slowly reached for the plate and took a slice of watermelon, watching Yuffie take a big bite from hers. Then he looked down at his own slice and mimicked the action.

Cloud watched as those unsettling green eyes widened, Sephiroth’s expression morphing into wonder as he stared down at the slice of watermelon. The brief glances towards his friends proved that they had seen it as well and Cloud could see the muscle in Barret’s jaw clench the same way it did when he was tempted to spoil Marlene. 

Really, stick or no, it had only been a matter of time.

Sephiroth didn’t play like other children.

Barret knew this. Knowing Sephiroth’s past and the little hints that Cloud had spoken about the teen, it was clear that Sephiroth was very different from other children. Sephiroth might have been sent to war at this age. He was far from the hero that Shinra had painted him as.

Damnit, Sephiroth was still a kid!

He deserved to have fun. He deserved to eat junk food and stay up late. He deserved to have friends.

But Sephiroth seemed content in hanging around Cloud. He seemed to know, instinctively, that he was not wanted around them. He seemed to sense the animosity from Yuffie, although Yuffie did her best to hide her dislike. He seemed to understand that he was not welcome and made himself scarce unless Cloud had explicitly invited him.

Like a soldier… 

It was a terrible way to live. And entirely unfair.

Barret had seen too many kids like it in the slums. And he was done sitting back and watching kids suffer. 

Sephiroth had backed off to enjoy the plate of watermelon under Cloud’s umbrella. The stick he had picked up to slice apart the watermelon was close to his hand, though he didn’t reach for it as he ate.

The next time he brought star candy for Marlene, he made sure to leave some with Cloud as well.

They glittered like stars in Sephiroth’s pale hands. Sephiroth had a lot of self control as a kid, allowing Cloud to set the bottle of candy aside, never taking more than what was offered. He didn’t ask to be allowed among them, hiding away when Barret showed up with Marlene.

“Why don’t you go play with Sephiroth?” Barret offered, looking at Marlene.

Marlene smiled and hopped off the stool. “Okay!”

Cloud waited until Marlene had vanished out the door to follow Sephiroth before glancing at him. “Are you certain that’s wise?” he asked quietly.

Barret shrugged. “You took his sword away, didn’t you?” he commented. “He’s just a kid.”

If there was anyone who could talk with Sephiroth, Marlene would be a good option. As a kid herself, she could probably help him open up. 

Plus, no one could resist Marlene!

“He’s still Sephiroth,” Cloud said. 

“You saying we need to go after them?” Barret asked.

There was a moment of silence and then Cloud shook his head. “No. I think you can trust that Sephiroth will keep her safe.”

It was pretty ironic that Cloud was saying it, but if it came from Cloud, Barret wouldn’t argue. Out of all of them, Cloud had spent the most time with Sephiroth and Sephiroth had clearly attached himself to him. They could trust Cloud’s judgment.

“How is he?” Barret asked.

“He’s… a kid, Barret.” Cloud slowly reached across the table to pick up his mug from the other side. “I told you before. He doesn’t know a lot. He doesn’t know that he…”

Brown eyes flickered towards the door. “I think he may know more than ya think,” he commented. 

Sephiroth wasn’t stupid, after all. He could sense the hostility from them. Just as he could probably sense that Marlene meant him no harm.  

“Do you think we should tell him?” Cloud asked.

“Might be better coming from us than from someone who wanted to hurt him,” Barret answered. “You should tell him, Cloud.”

Cloud looked away. Barret gave a bitter smile.

“He’ll learn the truth one way or another,” Barret reminded. “Better to come from you.”

After all, Cloud had already proven himself to be the only person who could handle Sephiroth.

“Did you like the candy?” 

Sephiroth tilted his head at the little girl, somewhat curious. The girl gave a smile and held out her hand, holding her index and thumb up to gesture at an object about the size of a marble. It took a few seconds before Sephiroth realized what the girl was asking.

“Ah, the star candy? Yes, it was quite good,” Sephiroth nodded.

“Daddy said you probably never had it before,” the girl said cheerfully. “So I asked him to get some for you.”

“That is quite kind of you.”

Sephiroth couldn’t remember the last time someone thought of him like that. Only Cloud, who had taken charge of his well being, seemed to do things like that. But perhaps it was… part of a normal life.

“You looked surprised when we had the watermelon together,” the girl continued. “Does Cloud not buy watermelon?”

“Cloud has done enough for me. I don’t want to trouble him,” Sephiroth defended. He glanced down at the branch still in his left hand before sighing. “I also never asked him before.”

The girl smiled. “You really like Cloud, don’t you?”

It was a strange question, but one that didn’t really occur to Sephiroth until then. He considered his answer and hesitated. The girl probably wouldn’t understand, being surrounded by people who cared about her all the time, but he also didn’t want to alarm her. 

“He’s nice to me,” Sephiroth settled on, tapping the tip of the stick onto the ground. “No one’s ever been nice to be like that before.”

Shifting slightly, the girl extended her hand to him. “I’ll be nice to you too! Hi! I’m Marlene!”

Surprise was a mild word to use, but Sephiroth extended his hand to Marlene as well. “Sephiroth.”

Marlene didn’t seem surprised at his hesitation, and gently held onto his hand. “Want to go exploring? There’s a hideout that kids like to hang out in.”

Crowds weren’t really Sephiroth’s thing, but seeing what normal children did might be something of a learning experience. He glanced behind them at the door where Cloud and Barret were talking and then at Marlene. Even without his sword, he could still protect Marlene.

“Sure.”

“Cloud! It’s Sephiroth!”

Cloud whipped around to look at Denzel, his eyes wide. Barret also turned, mid-drink, spraying himself with a small amount of whiskey. 

“Marlene!”

“Lead the way,” Cloud ordered, grabbing the handle of his sword and swinging it on his back. He didn’t think that Sephiroth would have done anything, but he couldn’t help the dread that pooled through his stomach.

“He came over to our hideout,” Denzel said as he guided them back. “Marlene brought him. I don’t know what happened, but a monster showed up and Sephiroth just…”

Swearing in his head, Cloud glanced at Barret. Sephiroth didn’t have his sword–he couldn’t defend himself from a monster. Cloud, himself, had taken charge of Sephiroth’s weapon and Sephiroth had allowed him. But now, it was a huge handicap against him. Without a sword, who knew what kind of brutal killing Sephiroth would have performed in front of the other children.

It had been slow, but Cloud had been working on teaching the teen self-control around other children.

Cloud shuffled through the narrow opening to the children’s hideout, prepared to see the worst. Maybe an inferno of fire or a bloodbath of monster parts. Or maybe… an injured Sephiroth.

“Sephi–” Cloud called out as soon as he squeezed himself out on the other side before stopping.

Sephiroth was holding the stick in his left hand, his right hand outstretched with the children huddled behind him. He didn’t turn at the sound of Cloud’s voice, his eyes pinned on the enemy in front of him. With one movement, Sephiroth had swiped the stick up in a cross motion, sending a dark beam of energy at the creature that stumbled back to avoid being struck.

It was a watermelon tonberry. Bright yellow and holding a stick, the tonberry was trying to stumble closer, its stubby arms and legs flailing. 

“Sephiroth, just–” Cloud called, running forward and drawing his weapon. A mix of emotions crossed over Cloud’s expression as he struggled to find the words. Then he settled on, “I’ll do it.”

Sephiroth stepped back and allowed him to step forward, ushering the children to take cover. Barret stepped up, holding up his gun arm as he glared at the tonberry.

“That’s the thing that scared my Marlene?!” Barret growled, his eyes narrowed.

The tonberry gave a wave of its stick in protest.

The incident had shaken the children, but it didn’t stop the kids from playing in the same area. Cloud sighed as Barret took Marlene home, gesturing for Denzel and Sephiroth to follow him. 

“Hey, Sephiroth?” Denzel said softly as they made their way back to Seventh Heaven. “Thanks for keeping them safe.”

Cloud saw Sephiroth hesitate out of the corner of his eye, wondering how the teen would respond. 

“Of course,” Sephiroth murmured back. “I said I would.”

There was clearly a conversation that needed to happen, but Cloud wouldn’t address it in front of Denzel. So he waited until Denzel had settled in bed for the night after dinner, gently swinging the door shut to his shared room with Sephiroth. The standard sword that Sephiroth carried around was still perched against the wall, a mockery of Cloud’s weakness.

It was a reminder that Cloud didn’t trust Sephiroth, although Sephiroth didn’t seem to mind. He hadn’t protested when Cloud had taken it away, though that might have been because Cloud had defended his actions by saying that Sephiroth wouldn’t need his blade in Edge. While Sephiroth was clearly far from helpless, Cloud couldn’t help but feel a little better when he was disarmed.

“About this afternoon,” Cloud started, making Sephiroth turn to him. “You… um… You did well keeping them safe.”

Sephiroth blinked at him. There was a moment of silence as they both seemed to digest this statement and then Sephiroth spoke. “They called me a Hero. The Great Hero Sephiroth.”

There was an uncomfortable silence again. Cloud couldn’t seem to find the right words to this, but Sephiroth continued.

“Does that… Does it bother you?” Cloud asked.

It felt like Cloud was looking into a mirror. Hailed as a hero and being incredibly uncomfortable with the idea. Cloud, himself, had spent countless hours attempting to digest the burden of the title. And here he was, watching Sephiroth do the same.

The same, but different.

“I never did anything grand enough to be called a hero,” Sephiroth answered. “But for a moment… I felt like I was one. At least, to those children.”

It was a familiar feeling. Cloud’s blue eyes slowly looked towards Sephiroth’s sword. “You didn’t kill the tonberry.”

“You had asked me not to hurt them.”

It was true. Cloud had asked Sephiroth not to hurt the tonberry before. Sephiroth had honored that, using himself as a shield to protect the children and choosing to use non-lethal methods in order to hold the tonberry back while Denzel went to get help. It wasn’t a move that Cloud expected from Sephiroth, but here they were.

“If you had your sword… Would you have killed it?” Cloud asked.

The moment the words had left his lips, Cloud regretted them. Sephiroth had clearly honored Cloud’s wishes and made his intentions incredibly clear. Sephiroth had even chosen to drive back the tonberry instead of aiming for lethal blows.

The stick was looking more and more dangerous now.

Green eyes turned to him in surprise. There was a pause and then Sephiroth slowly shook his head. “I could have. But you asked me not to. So I wouldn’t have.”

A stick or a sword. It seemed like it didn’t matter. Sephiroth had the capability, even if he didn’t use it that way. 

“Even if it hurt you?” Cloud pushed.

“I’m no stranger to pain,” Sephiroth said in a tone that was apparently meant to be reassuring. A small smile had crossed his lips. “I’ll heal.”

A low sigh crossed Cloud’s lips and he silently vowed to himself that Shinra would never get their hands on the teen again. “Sephiroth–”

“I’m fine, Cloud,” Sephiroth said. “You don’t need to worry about me.”

Cloud fell silent and slowly turned to look at the sword leaning against the wall. Sephiroth had, ironically, brought the stick inside with him and leaned it against the wall next to his sword. He eyed it and then turned to his desk, picking up the bottle with the star candy inside. He offered the bottle to Sephiroth, a small smile crossing his lips. Sephiroth took the offered bottle, meeting Cloud’s gaze. The candy rattled against the glass, shining like the fireworks in the clear night sky.

“Keep the stick with you then,” Cloud commented.

He still didn’t trust Sephiroth with a sword, even if Sephiroth had proven that he could do just as much with the stick. But it made him feel better anyway.

Sephiroth opened the bottle and tilted it, letting a star fall into his palm. He passed it to Cloud, who accepted it when Sephiroth took one for himself as well. “Okay.”

The sugar was extra sweet on his tongue.