Put Your Lights On

7.06.08

/\/\/\/\/\

This is a FFVII fic by kleptomaniac0. I own no characters except those you haven’t heard of, meaning the ones I’ve made. Normally I’m averse to posting something new while I have multiple works in progress, but this OC, the first OC I ever created, has been banging against the walls of my head ever since Advent Children came in out Japan. So I’m letting her out before she drives me crazy.

This will be a lot more unguarded than my other works, meaning it’ll be sloppier. I’m writing this to get it out of my head and though I always appreciate reviews and constructive criticism, I probably won’t be looking at them until the story’s done.

Who am I kidding? I need feedback like sunlight. Drop me a line, you know you want to.

/\/\/\/\/\

Chapter One Hundred and Seven

/\/\/\/\/\

Sephiroth sat in his car, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. He was parked outside the gates of Waverly, waiting for Toriko to come out—she seemed to be taking her time. It both suited him fine and annoyed the hell out of him, but there wasn’t much he could do about her lollygagging unless he started shouting at her, and shouting wasn’t exactly an attractive option when this would be the last time he’d see her for quite a while. Sephiroth would have sighed with boredom and exasperation except that his PHS buzzed loudly in his pocket, signaling a call. Sephiroth took it out and flipped it open.

“This is the General.”

“Wassup, sir?” Only Zack could be so cheerily impertinent. “You sent me a mail about a mission a while ago?”

“I did. Are you ready to leave Midgar?”

“What, now?”

“Tomorrow morning, 0400 hours.”

“Oh, well I’m fine then.”

“You had something planned tonight?”

“Hehe... Sort of.”

Knowing Zack, a girl was involved. Sephiroth chose not to pursue the subject. “Next time, read the mail I send you before calling back.”

“I did,” said Zack, sounding somewhat surprised. “All it said was that you wanted to take me on a mission. I figured I should call for details.”

“What?”

“Yeah.” Sephiroth heard some beeps. “See?”

Sephiroth held the PHS away from his ear as it chirped at him, and going to the mail menu he found the mail in question. It said, very simply, “We’re going on a mission.” Sephiroth puzzled at it for a while, confused by its succinctness yet recognizing it as something he’d written.

“But I thought I’d sent off something more detailed...”

Sephiroth looked over his shoulder. Sitting in the backseat was Hojo’s Mako case, silent and full of deadly green fluids. He wondered if its presence were to blame for his memory lapse and scowled at it briefly.

“I see,” said Sephiroth back into the PHS. “Forgive me. There’s been a lot on my mind lately.”

“The last mission?” Zack asked lightly, but Sephiroth could just hear curiosity eating the boy up from head to toe.

“Among other things.” Sephiroth rubbed his head. He wished painkillers worked for him like they were supposed to: his advanced metabolism reduced the efficacy of any drug to practically nothing. The persistent whine in his head had subsided further, becoming more of a low drone, but it was still loud enough to interfere with normal hearing and make everything seem more irritating. “Be ready to go tomorrow at 0400. We’ll leave from the Garrison and make a stopover in Junon for a Gelnika.”

“Sweet. Should I take anything special with me, materia-wise?”

“Don’t bother. It’s just a reactor check-up and a monster flush.”

“Alright.”

“One more thing: take the Buster Sword.”

“The Buster Sword?” Zack squawked indignantly. “That’s a training weapon!”

“And you’re coming along so you get some combat experience as a First,” said Sephiroth. He made a note to himself to get the paperwork changed to reflect Zack’s new status. It wasn’t going to be an empty promotion, even if it had been unexpected. Zack was certainly First Class material.

“But it’s so UGLY. It’s a meat cleaver, not a sword!”

“All swords are meat cleavers. Otherwise, they’re not doing their job.” Sephiroth looked up as a flicker of motion caught his eye. There was Toriko, finally, coming towards him with a strange expression on her face. It took Sephiroth a moment to realize that it was a look of complete and utter contentment, and chills of deep foreboding made him shudder all over. “0400 hours. General out.”

“Good afternoon, Father,” Toriko said as she opened the door and slid into the car. Her smile was still very bright and pleasant, and the sickly-sweet tone of her usual passive aggression was completely absent. Sephiroth looked at her suspiciously and probed her mind. Even her thoughts were bland and inoffensive, but it didn’t make him feel any better.

“Why aren’t you angry?” He asked bluntly. “Even a few hours ago, you were less than pleased with me.”

“Well, anger with the inevitable is so counterproductive, don’t you think?”

He turned to face her completely and stared forcefully into her eyes. Toriko blinked, but no familiar flicker of fear crossed her face. There was, however, a bit of annoyance.

“I am your daughter,” she thought at him. “No lackwit phony has mysteriously taken my place.”

“Is it so hard to believe that I can simply not be angry with you?” She asked pointedly.

“After all the struggle you’ve put up, it seems highly unlikely,” he said. Nevertheless Sephiroth turned back to face the wheel and turned the car on. It came to life with a subtle, subbass purr.

“Well, I spoke with Meryl.”

“Meryl?” Sephiroth could not possibly see how speaking to Reeve Tuestsi’s peculiar child could possibly make anyone calmer.

“Yes. Did you know she’s attended five different schools?”

“Is that a lot?”

“In eleven years? Certainly.” Toriko smoothed down her skirt, saying, “She told me she used to hate moving. Every friend she’d ever made just stopped talking to her when it wasn’t immediately convenient. No PHS calls, no letters. No mails. They just weren’t there anymore.

“And for a really long time, Meryl blamed her dad. Mr. Tuesti has moved the family with every promotion he received, and now that he’s at the top, well… There’s nowhere else to go. But up until a few years ago, Meryl still thought it was because of him that all her friends went away.”

“Is there a point to this?” Sephiroth demanded.

Toriko smiled patiently. Sephiroth didn’t like it. “A while ago, Meryl met one of her very old friends. They talked, and the friend asked Meryl why she hadn’t called or anything. Meryl realized that in order to keep friends, you have to make an effort. And also that her dad really just did what was best. Meryl told me that her friend was, well… Not that well off. In a lot of ways.”

“A prostitute?” Sephiroth asked dryly.

“No, but coming close,” Toriko said without rancor.

“You’d know.”

She tilted her head. “Are you trying to make me angry?”

“What? No.”

“Because it seems like you want me to be angry, Father.” Toriko smiled, once again completely beatific. Sephiroth resisted the irrational urge to strangle her. “I will support whatever decision you feel is best. I love you very much.”

Sephiroth glared. Toriko smiled back. He had to turn away and start driving. Eventually Toriko looked out of the window, not concentrating her sweet and trusting eyes on him any more.

“Was that her tactic?” Sephiroth thought, seething. “To make me feel so guilty that I don’t want to leave? If she’d been angry, I would have had to argue with her for the wisdom of my action, but now... Now...”

“So you aren’t worried about Hojo?” He asked, looking at her.

“No.”

“Not in the least?”

“Not really.”

She was lying. She had to be lying. But two could play that game.

“Well, that’s good,” he said, making his voice light and cheerful. “I’m glad to know that you’re growing up into such a fine young lady.”

“Thank you, Father,” Toriko said, looking at him and smiling with what seemed to be genuine pleasure. “That’s so wonderful to hear from you.”

“Well, I thought it was appropriate, considering that I may be gone for a very long time.”

“Enjoy your trip,” she practically chirped.

Sephiroth could not recall being so profoundly frustrated in the last ten years. Seething, he drove home in silence and was powerfully, hatefully aware of Toriko pleasantly humming like she had not a care in the world. She had to be lying about her feelings. He knew she couldn’t possibly be so unconcerned with his departure. She wanted him to stay... Didn’t she?

“That’s ridiculous. What possible reason could she want me to leave for? Then again... She will be staying with Rufus… No! No! That’s ridiculous! She’s only fourteen! Nothing would happen.

“Yes, like nothing happened to ME.”

By the time Sephiroth and Toriko walked through the apartment door, Sephiroth was fully convinced Toriko was playing some sort of wicked mind trick on him. But he wasn’t sure what it was, and the idea that it might be anything was driving him crazier than the whine in his head. Toriko disappeared into her room without so much as a backward glance, and with an explosive sigh Sephiroth sat down at the kitchen counter, growling softly. Stupid children. Stupid daughters. Stupid caring.

Sephiroth looked at the Hojo case. It sat at his feet, leaning against the barstool he was sitting on, and he could feel the vials inside reaching out to pulse softly against his feet. He looked at the clock and scowled: he’d left the bath only a few hours ago. He was supposed to take one vial every twenty-four hours. Sephiroth wasn’t even sure why he was thinking of taking one in the first place, knowing that the injections would be anything but relaxing. He rubbed his face, wondering what was becoming of him.

“The time away will do me some good,” he told himself. “It will be good to be doing work again. Simple, plain work. No city noise, no paperwork... No voice in my head, even though I’ve grown accustomed to her there. I’ll feel better after a rest. Clear-minded. Relaxed. Sane again.”

“Toriko, I’m going to sleep,” he called. “Cook for yourself.”

“Yes, Father.”

Her freakishly smooth compliance still rankled, but Sephiroth shook it off. As he left the kitchen and walked down to the hall to his bedroom, he wondered how well she really would adjust to living alone. Toriko knew how to cook, clean, do laundry, and forge his signature for any legal things that might arise. He couldn’t imagine anything like that would, but it was good to be prepared. Rufus would take care of her while he was away.

“Or I’ll know why. And if he lays one hand on her, I’ll fly back here and rip his head off. Or maybe I’ll start with his limbs.”

The thoughts of violence were oddly soothing. By the time Sephiroth had stripped down and changed into his sleeping pants, he was reliving his memories of war and slaughter and he drifted off dreaming of the freedom that came with the kill. He was so involved that he only absently noticed Toriko being very, very quiet.

/\/\/\/\/\

Author’s note:

I had a hard time writing this chapter because I want to get Sephiroth to freaking Nibelheim already. You know when you have point A and point B, but the line between them is not drawn yet? It’s like that. Really annoying, but the line is also necessary. Bleah. Stupid narrative structure, having RULES and stuff.

I’ve been a busy little beaver. Lots of stress from school and family health issues makes me procrastinate on writing because of studying for tests that, you know, would let me practice a skilled profession. X_X I miss being on . I miss writing. I even miss getting weird reviews, because darn it if they don’t make for some funny stories later.

In other news, my boyfriend gave me a PSP and Crisis Core for my birthday. I WIN SO HARD. I’m nearly through the New Game Plus, but for the life of me I can’t figure out how to unlock all the missions. Maybe I should read a strategy guide or something… I never look at them the first time I play a game, but the second time is hey! Anything goes. After some consideration, I’ve decided that I may sneak Angeal into this particular universe, though he’s going to be an AU version and much older than he officially is supposed to be. Does anybody else think his face looks peculiar? His concept art looks all hawt and rugged, but in the actual game his face is all weirdly smooth, like they tried to androgynize him and failed.

Also, Tseng’s eyes are TOO BIG. They really should not be that big.

And while I love Sephiroth, you all know I love Sephiroth, why the HELL does he still look like he did in Advent Children? He looked like a crackfiend in Advent Children! Dark rings under his eyes, lips that are too dark for anything except malnutrition or purple lip gloss... And his mouth is so narrow! And his arms are willowy and effete. ARGH!

To me, Sephiroth will always be wearing his original design (I hate his new coat, I bet it clinks when he walks) and look like he does in Ehrgeiz, this one bizarre little fighting game. Look at the art they use for his face—the black and white lines, not the colored art (because the colored art just looks strange). He actually looks MASCULINE and not like RuPaul with minimum makeup. Sorry Nomura, but it’s true. You have GIRLED HIM UP. ::cries in a corner::

-

One more thing. In the chapter where Zack got mortally wounded and consequently patched up, I wrote that he was using the Buster Sword. I changed my mind upon finding an even earlier chapter that said the Buster Sword was a training weapon. That’s my story—literally!—and I’m sticking to it.

/\/\/\/\/\