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The city was loud and he hated it instantly, Sephi decided.
It didn't have Fen-Fen or Nika, everyone talked like he wasn't there—Everyone but Father and Sephi avoided him as much as he could.
He wandered through the hallways, bored because the grownups thought he couldn't keep up.
He could and was trying to read the medical books left in the suite of rooms he shared with Father. They gave him a headache after a while even if he had learned what Father had cut the last time he'd been on the table.
Sephi avoided the grownups by jumping onto the rafters, especially the ones that smelled like blood and death with the navy suits.
He bounced between rafters, slipping and landing hard on the railing of Floor 51 and slamming into the wall with a grunt.
The wall crumbled beneath his struggle but held after he clutched the railing.
Metal groaned under his grip as Sephi wheezed out a breath and realized he was lost. He sniffed at the air, shivered and then stopped as he caught the scent of Mako-soaked sweat.
""Man, what is in this stuff, I've never been faster?!""
""I know I volunteered but,""
""Feels like we're just confirming something for some suit?""
""Hey Wolf?""
""Yeah, Henderson?""
""I heard...""
""Yeah, me too,""
Sephi squeaked as he was scooped up, large hands under his armpits, and then he snarled, fingernails digging into the arms holding him up.
"Feisty little... one?"
"Gerroff!" He released the arms, scrunched up his legs and then kicked hard, almost like Fen-Fen's Chocobo.
Sephi dropped and flipped out of the grasping hands of the second person, hair flying out of the green ribbon that had been put in it by a bored intern after the second day of meetings.
It fluttered down the stairwell, lost to the depths.
At least she was nice, he thought as he looked up, up, up at these new grownups.
"OOF! Ouch, kiddo, you've got a kick like a Chocobo," the man rubbed ruefully at his chest but hadn't cracked anything.
Maybe they were like him?
Stronger, faster—Better than regular humans.
"... 'M sorry sir." He blurted, hoping that Father couldn't hear him do it. "Do you get Mako tanked too?"
The second man—the one that he hadn't kicked—blinked, looked at Sephi with an unreadable look and then said something angrily in a tone Sephi knew well.
Fen-Fen did that sometimes, especially after he saw Father's work.
"Henderson, you're freaking the kid out," the other man swatted Henderson's shoulder. He knelt down, golden eyes the same as his Nibel Wolf plushy at Fen-Fen's house. "I'm Wolf, what's your name?"
"... Father says I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."
"You know my name though," Wolf said, still kneeling. Sephi stepped closer, just a little. "And, uh, yeah, sometimes we get in the Mako tank."
"Does it burn for you too? Sir?"
"Yeah, kiddo," Wolf sighed. "burns every time we get a dip."
Sephi slowly made it step-by-step, ready to bolt again at a moment's notice. "Do you," he hesitated, "get sick?"
"Sometimes," Wolf hummed.
"Oh." He stopped just short of them.
"You lost kiddo?" Henderson asked, having sat down criss-cross applesauce.
"I... I'm not supposed to forget where he is,"
"Okay," Wolf said gently, "but do you remember? Is he important to you?"
"Father is busy. He is speaking to someone important to the ShinRa company."
"And what's his name?"
"Professor Hojo, sir."
Wolf's face scrunched and he blew out a long breath. "Okay, so you technically belong with Hojo. How'd you end up here?"
"... Most grownups ignore me. I understand a lot. I can list all the bones and muscles. Reading the books make my head hurt though." He muttered.
"I bet, kiddo, those are medical books. You're pretty young."
"The rafters are fun but," here Sephi paused, "I think I don't know how to get back. Father will be furious."
"We can take you to him," Henderson offered. "if you're okay with that?"
"You can take me there?"
"Mm-hmm. Or find someone who knows where he is, like the secretary pool." Wolf agreed, blood marking where Sephi had scratched him.
Like him, it healed fast, faster than even Father when he got cut.
"Sorry about scratching your arms," he shuffled, toeing at the ground with his boot.
"Nah, you didn't know me yet," Wolf reassured. "'s good that you fought like a Cuahl."
"What's a Cuahl?"
"Big, uh, cat monster," Henderson dug into his pouch, pulled out a book and flipped until he found the right page. "Here,"
Large, spotted and with sharp teeth, the comparison made Sephi happy.
"... My name's Seph-i-roth. Can you take me to Father?"
"... Sure thing, Sephiroth." Wolf agreed even as his scent didn't; the spike of juniper berry and bittersweet chocolate meant that Wolf didn't want to return him. Maybe, like Fen-Fen and Nika, they didn't want him to go back to Father at all.
"If that's what you want, kiddo." Henderson sighed.
"Hey, Sephiroth?"
"Huh?"
"Have you ever ridden on someone's shoulders before?"
The view from on top of Wolf's shoulders was wonderful, almost as good as being in Fen-Fen's arms.
No one could beat Fen-Fen, not even Father; Fen-Fen could fight Dragons and he told Sephi he loved him everytime Sephi saw him.
""Find Subject S or so help me, no deity on this Planet will save you from my wrath—"" Father snarled, the bitter spike of Mako-scented fury enough to make Sephi choke on his joy at hearing him again.
"Excuse me, sir, but I believe we've found your wayward cub," Wolf offered, carefully hissing under his breath as Sephi's grip tightened in his hair. "He ran into us on the residential floors."
"Thank you, SOLDIER Candidate." Father managed carefully, the fury now blanketing the hall. "Come, Subject S, time for your assessment."
"Assessment, sir? Surely you mean someone else?" Wolf argued.
"Subject S is to be examined for suitability for the SOLDIER Program." came the reply.
"He can't be more than-" Henderson protested, juniper berry drowning out the Mako.
"He is not your concern, Candidate." Father cut in, colder than the Nibel spring. "Boy, what is your tutor teaching you?"
"The Art of War, Father," he replied, careful to enunciate his words as he back flipped off of Wolf's shoulders, "and kata for the nodachi I have been assigned."
"Indeed." Father's grip made the fibers of the uniform creak as he was led away.
"... Goodbye." He whispered. "You were nice."
"You were pretty great yourself, kiddo," Wolf replied as the corridor swallowed them in darkness.
They handed him the sword, watched him practice for a moment before they placed him in a cold room.
""Subject S, you are to defeat a Nibel Dragon and three packs of Nibel Wolves. Do. Not. Fail.""
"Yessir." Sephi responded by rote.
""Search and destroy, SOLDIER!"" The bark from Wolf sounded pained but Sephi knew he could do it.
"Yessir!" He saluted with the sword, squared his stance and braced for the Dragon.
It roared to life even as the environment changed to the cold peaks of the Nibel Range.
Sephi juked to the side, then kicked off the ground and struck from above, his sword carving through the right shoulder.
He rolled under the tail as it slammed, one—two—THREE!—and looked up at the underbelly.
Scrambling to his feet, he lifted the sword and slammed it in.
He ignored the way his face felt wet even as he ran the blade forward. He didn't stop until he was greeted by the wet plop of organs.
The Dragon crashed down mid-roar, the claws trapping him until he wriggled out of the limp grip.
Wolves howled and he snarled back, hopping onto the Dragon for higher ground, like Fen-Fen taught him.
The yelps the Wolves made as they fell to the sharpest edge cut into his chest, the ache almost as bad as the tears that followed.
Sephi swiped away his tears as they blinded him—He couldn't fail.
When the last Nibel Wolf struck the snow, the room went dark.
A tiny sob escaped him, muffled as he slapped his free hand over his mouth.
""Get it back online!"" Father hissed, ""Subject S, stay put!""
"Yessir," he choked out, staring into the distance.
::Emergency Light Protocol Activated::
With the soothing voice came back lighting, dimmer than the Range.
""Godsbedamned door! Remove it!""
""Yessir,"" Wolf sighed, the groan of metal being sheared off by brute strength one that echoed in Sephiroth's muffled hearing.
His ears popped right as the door was tossed to the side. "Kiddo?"
"Here, sir." He whispered, eyes locked on the lights.
"C'mon, I gotcha," Wolf gently picked him up, sword and all, maneuvering out of the room as to not damage the blade.
"Subject-"
"Sir, with all due respect given your position, fuck off. He's exhausted and given that the lights went out on a kid barely over the age of five you're gonna let it go." Wolf quietly said, the spike of sunflowers mean that his watcher was protecting him.
"You and what army, Lt. Wolf?" Father sneered.
"Don't need one," Wolf said point blank. "I'm enhanced and you're not. Just this once, let the kid be a kid and hide his face in some comfort. We understand each other, Professor?"
"Clearly," Father surrendered, the bitter scent of smoke showcasing his reluctant response. "Threaten me again and I will revoke your Mako injection permissions."
"... Fair enough, sir, if you'll excuse me."
"Take him to Section—of the Midgar—"
Sephi blinked out of his stupor and smelled cinnamon.
Cinnamon he knew.
But...
Nika wasn't here.
"Hello little one," the soft voice was warm, even as he stirred.
"Who're you?" He slurred as he sat up, "You smell like Nika."
"And who's Nika?"
"My Nika. She shares kisses with Fen-Fen." Sephi grumbled.
"Ahhh, like my Gast then."
"Gast? You know-?" He scrambled, searching the green eyes that were almost the same shade as his own.
"My liebe, he was. I am Ifalna Faramis and this is my daughter, Aerith." She replied gently, careful to show him a very large baby.
He reached out, hesitated with his hand above Aerith before Ms. Ifalna placed his fingertips on the soft hair. "She's like Nika's bun?"
"I'm afraid I don't follow, little one."
"Her bun!" Sephiroth made a circle with his arms around his stomach.
"Ahhh, her baby! Yes, Aerith is just a little older," she corrected gently. "May I know your name?"
"... 'S Seph-i-roth."
"Quite a mouthful for such a little guy, would you mind if I used Seph?" She asked, stroking his bangs to the side like Nika did.
"Uh-uh." He leaned into the touch, almost falling over onto the bed again.
"Careful!" The soft laugh was without the cold Father had. "I heard you had a long day from a pretty Wolf."
"Mnn."
"Would you like to rest some more or return to your Father?" Sephi barely controlled his face. "Ah. Return to your Father it is. He's down the hall and to the right, rap on the glass, little one."
"... Thank you, Ms. Ifalna."
"Oh you're always welcome here, Seph."