Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Family ❯ Revelation ( Chapter 20 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Family
Disclaimer: We do not own any characters of Final Fantasy. They are the property of Square Enix and Sony. We do not make any money from the writing of this story.
Pairing: Sephiroth/Cloud
W A R N I N G: This is about male pregnancy (possibly) and male/male relationships. We are letting you know now what the relationships WILL contain. So, if you are AGAINST such pairings, please find something else more to your liking, you have been WARNED.

NOTES: Mitts and I would like to apologize for taking so long to update. We've been working on our own individual fics.Plus, Mitts started a new job about a week or two ago and is still trying to settle in. Please wish her luck! Now, enough of my endless chatter—one with the show! Enjoy!

Flames will be ignored.

Special thanks to: those who have read and didn't review thanks for reading thus far. We hope you enjoyed it.

oOoOoOo

Chapter 20: Revelation

Tifa had not spoken to Cloud in days. She just couldn't face him. She couldn't let him see her sorrow and disappointment, not to mention the hurt. All her girlhood dreams, all her hopes and fantasies, had vanished with just one touch. Just thinking about what she had felt, the slight movements inside his tummy, was making her tear up again.

Now she sat at her dressing room table, staring back at herself through the mirror, her eyes swollen from all the crying she'd been doing for the last couple of days. However, today was the worse. Today was the day of his wedding to Sephiroth, and not to her. And she knew; she just knew; that she had to go and watch.

Tifa would have to force herself to see, with her own eyes, whether or not she had truly lost Cloud forever.

oOoOoOo

Outside, in the back yard of 7th Heaven, the final touches were being prepared. From his bedroom window, Cloud watched as the hired caterers walked around below like ants fetching supplies for the colony. Flowers were being arranged, and chairs were being neatly laid out in horizontal rows. Buffet tables were being set up, and steamers and balloons adorned every attachable surface.

He hadn't seen Sephiroth yet this morning, but he was quite certain his silver haired lover was around, somewhere. He wished with all his heart that the General were here right now to comfort him, but his mom had made sure to separate them the night before.

She was still insisting on them following the old fashioned ways, adamant that they go through with a traditional ceremony, whatever the hell that meant. Cloud sighed and closed his eyes, fighting to hold back the tears. This was not what he or Sephiroth really wanted. Why couldn't his mother ever do things the simple way?

His bedroom door opened. Without turning, he knew it was his mother, by the bustle of her skirts.

“Cloud, what are you doing, just standing there? Honey, you need to start getting ready. I've come to help you dress.” She hurried over to the bed, where his white bridal suit was laid out.

But Cloud didn't move from his spot. The reality of him getting married was sinking in, and it was un-nerving him, badly. The beautiful notes of soft classical music came drifting through the open window, but to him, it sounded like static to his keen hearing. The melodious tune hurt his ears, and thumped around inside his head. His face grimaced, as he began to develop a headache. Bright lights flashed before him, and he felt sick.

Swaying from his place at the window, Cloud vaguely noticed that the scenery tilted, before his vision faded from view.

oOoOoOo

It was just a little past noon, and every one had begun gathering outside for the ceremony. Sephiroth was standing nervously next to the magistrate. He tugged at the tight collar of his white dress shirt, his fingers pulling and stretching at the restricting neckline, unused to wearing such formal wear. Those around him noticed how uncomfortable he looked, and backed away, just slightly, although all eyes were drawn to the magnificence of him in his wedding attire.

The black tuxedo he wore fitted his tall lithe frame like a second skin, the dark suit showing off his well defined muscles and broad shoulders. He was a god standing among mortals, Adonis in flesh and blood. And everyone knew it……

Zack, similarly dressed, was also fiddling with his clothing. His blue cummerbund and bow-tie were driving him insane. No matter how many times he'd tried tying and straightening the tricky things, they still didn't look right to him.

He knew that he looked good though, because every so often he would look around to find Aerith or one of the other ladies staring his way. He began flirting with them, looking back over his shoulder, winking and smiling, seeing them blush prettily, and enjoying making them giggle.

As Sephiroth gazed back at the small crowd of guests assembling, his eyes went towards two in particular. Vincent Valentine, and Cid Highwind. Judging by their glaring at one another, something must have transpired between the men. Sephiroth wondered what it was that had put them in such a bad mood with one another.

From what he had seen of them both, they were perfectly amicable people, easy to talk to, easy to get on with… especially Vincent, for some unexplainable reason. Cid seemed a little rough around the edges at times, but the pilot chatted up quite a storm with Sephiroth, when Cloud wasn't at his side.

The two men were (in a word) nice to him.

But Sephiroth didn't have time to ponder on the men's attitudes towards one another for long. His attention was now grabbed by the flinging open wide of a door, of a hurrying woman, all skirts and flailing arms, coming straight in his direction.

Her blonde hair was coming loose from its wrap from running, and there was a pensive look on her fair features.

“Sephiroth……….Please…… ” she panted, one hand clutching her throat, trying to catch her breath, the other gripping tightly to the man's sleeve for support. “Please come quickly….. It's Cloud.”

As the small woman's words sank in, a moments silence was heard…before a rushing of stampeding feet and the pushing of chairs signified that everyone heard the importance of her words. Unlike everyone else, who had gone to run through the bar, Sephiroth, without even thinking twice, unfurled his wing, and ascended to his and Cloud's bedroom in one fell swoop.

Cid and Vincent, like the others, hurried behind Zack and Mrs. Strife. They felt the ground rumble, and heard the sound of glass and debris falling from the second story window. Sephiroth had gotten there first, and they knew he would be in an uncontrollable rage if he found anything wrong with his lover. Heads would roll. Zack had no doubt in his mind, that if one strain of blond hair was out of place on Cloud's head, there would be trouble.

This thought caused them to hurry their pace even faster.

oOoOoOo

Not knowing what he was going to find, Sephiroth withdraw Masamune upon his entry through the broken window, flipping in through the gapping hole in the glass that he had made. Landing on silent feet, he cast his eyes swiftly around the room, searching for any sign of danger. There was none. The room was empty.

Already having damaged his dress shirt and suit jacket by allowing his massive right wing to spring free, Sephiroth removed what remained of the tattered garments with ease, dropping them carelessly to the floor. He swept the room with hard calculating cat-like spheres, looking for his fiancé. There was no danger here, so then, where was his beloved? Had he fallen out of bed, knocking himself out?

Unconsciously flexing out his wing, the General walked around the bed to find—nothing.

He snapped his head around sharply towards the door, as he heard the approaching sounds of several pairs of thudding feet running towards the room. The door to the en-suite bathroom simultaneously opened at the same time as the chamber door swung violently open.

Zack instinctively dropped to the floor, as a whooshing sound was heard, slicing through the air where moments before his neck had been. This sound was followed up by the warning of a gun being cocked. Sparks momentarily flew on contact, as Masamune's deadly assault was deftly blocked by a gold, metal clawed gauntlet. Cerberus was pointed directly at Sephiroth's heart, but was put away as soon as the long sword was safely lowered.

“What the fuck is going on?” Cloud weakly called out in alarm, as he crossed the room from the bathroom, and climbed back into bed, still in his night wear. He looked pale and weary, and stared at his uninvited visitors through puffy, tear swollen eyes.

Forcing her way through the bodies blocking the door, Mrs. Strife hastened to her son's side. Her hand touched his brow, her fingers brushing back stray locks of his sweat damp hair out of his eyes. She tutted and cursed at him, scolding him for moving, saying he should have stayed where he was until help arrived.

He in turn tried to push her hand away, and turned his face from the people staring at him. He just wanted to be left alone.

“Mom…Please. Stop fussing over me….I'm alright,” he protested, humiliated by her pampering of him in front of his friends. He was a grown man… not the fifteen year old boy who had left home over three years ago!

Standing there watching, Sephiroth took note of Cloud's sickly pallor, and also noticed with a twinge of jealousy, how well his mother was tending to his partner. He felt that he should be the one seeing to him, and it hurt a little that Cloud didn't even turn to meet his eyes. A dark thought began to emerge in his mind…and the pit of his stomach lurched, even as the thought took root…

I'mforcingthe boyto do something he doesn'twantto do……..

“Child…..You had me worried. You had all these nice people worried too. Now, get up out of that bed, get changed into the suit I picked out for you, and let's get this wedding started,” Cloud's mother remonstrated.

“No, Mom. I—I can't go through with this…”Cloud cried, tears sprung forth once more.

Sephiroth's greatest fear came thundering to the forefront. In front of witnesses, the boy he loved had just uttered the very words he had never wished to hear. I'm a fool, a fool…..

He didn't bother waiting around to hear what response those words evoked from the others. He didn't want to be there, to see the faces of everyone looking at him, their expressions full of pity, full of embarrassment.

With a flurry of black feathers, he left the room via the destroyed window, and was gone before anyone could make a move to stop him.

oOoOoOo

Zack stood there and listened to Cloud and his mother debate about the now, late to start, wedding. The petite blonde woman was telling her son he had to go through with it, everything had been organized…. Don't yourealize you arespoiling all myhard work? she argued, at some point in their verbal fight.

And the boy was arguing back about how he wasn't ready, repeatedly telling his mother that this was not how he wanted to get married, this wasnot how he had envisioned his big day to be.

From the sound of things, Zack guessed Cloud was having pre-wedding jitters, as well as stage fright. What a bad combination to have, he thought, sympathetically.

“I can't even believe Sephiroth agreed to this whole charade,” Cloud burst out. “What kind of guilt trip did you lay on him, mom? That… that this is your only time to see your son get married? Or did you threaten him with the, `I'm his mother and I know what's best for my son', line?”

Hearing Sephiroth's name mentioned; Zack search the room's occupants to see what his reaction was to this little spectacle going on before them. However, the only evidence he could see of the General ever having been in the now war torn room, were the black feathers scattered around on the carpet, fluttering amidst the blown in concrete bits, and glass splinters.

“I…. WANT…..SEPHIROTH!” Cloud suddenly yelled, gaining everyone's attention. “I WANT SEPHIROTH, NOW!”

Zack turned to look back at the bed, smiling to himself when he saw how the temperamental boy had put his hands over his ears, closing his eyes against his mother. Zack saw it for what it was worth….Cloud was having a tantrum, and a bad one to boot.

Mrs. Strife, not seeing the danger of her son's impending blow-up, continued to chastise him.

“Cloud, please calm yourself. It's not good for the baby.” But Cloud wasn't hearing it.

“Fuck calm, Mom!” he answered back, flippantly. “You have managed to totally—ARGH!” With a cry of pain, Cloud doubled over, gripping his stomach.

“Cloud!”

A unison of voices rang out, as it seemed everyone rushed forward to help, but not everyone rushed to the bed.

Instead of rushing forward like the others, Zack had made an instinctive move towards the doorway. He had to find Sephiroth, to bring him back here. If Cloud were in trouble…… Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Vincent beat him out the room, taking off through the hole where the window use to be, in a streak of red and purple.

The 1st Class SOLDIER went across now to the shattered hole, gazing out after the man who had departed. Arms folded, he tapped his bicep in curiosity, deep in thought. Why would a complete stranger go after someone whom he had only just met only a week ago? There'smore to this Vincent Valentine than meets the eye, he concluded.

Knowing that Sephiroth would be fetched, Zack remained with Cloud. He would do all he could for now until Sephiroth's return, and find out later what business Valentine had with his best friend.

oOoOoOo

The sound of rocks tumbling down the side of the cliff echoed in Sephiroth's sensitive ears, alerting him to his unwelcome visitor. Not even bothering to turn around to see who was invading his space, Sephiroth just said, “What do you want?” He knew full well who was there. He'd known the second he had heard the flapping of the man's tattered cloak.

“That's no way to speak to someone who's concerned about a friend,” Vincent reproached, coming to stand beside the man he had set out to find. He had found Sephiroth easily enough. He knew that this was the silver haired General's favorite place to come when he wanted to be alone. He understood that his son enjoyed peace and solitude when he needed to think…..as did he.

The late afternoon sun beat down on the two, tall ominous figures, as they both stood there silently, perched on the rim of an outcrop over looking Edge, their eyes fixed ahead on the horizon.

Vincent would have liked to have stayed by his son's side for longer, for he enjoyed the feeling of closeness he obtained, the sense of belonging….But he knew another's needs were greater than his……

“Sephiroth… Cloud needs you.”

“No, he doesn't.” Sephiroth's reply was sullen, his mouth pouting. He drew his booted foot back, and kicked at a loose pebble, sending the little stone flying off their perch to go crashing down, down, down to the depths below.

Vincent was amazed at the man's attitude. He turned upon him, reaching out and grabbing hold of Sephiroth by one arm, spinning him around, forcing his son to face him.

“Why are acting like this?” he asked, brusquely. “Back there, your partner is having an anxiety attack. He's calling out for his lover. That's you! And the only thing you can do is throw a tantrum like some child who just lost his favorite toy!” He spat the last words out through clenched teeth.

Normally, he was more in control of his emotions, but dealing with Sephiroth, while the silver haired man was in a strop, was proving to be a challenge. Vincent seemed to lose all his restraint, and, right now, he could think of nothing better than to flip his son over his knee and giving him a good, sound, spanking.

Instead, Vincent took a deep breath, and tried to reason with the stubborn man.

“Cloud is just upset with his mother,” the dark haired gunman began, holding up his hand for silence when Sephiroth opened his mouth, not giving the other a chance to comment. Vincent continued on, his voice more calm, more reasoning. “The boy wanted his wedding to be a simple affair, and instead, his mother took it far beyond what was required.”

The tight hold that Vincent had on his son's arm now became a reassuring squeeze. “Cloud isn't rejecting you, Sephiroth. He loves you. Pha! Why else would he be calling for you? The only thing that matters to him, as far as you and he are concerned, is to be married simply. A witness and a priest, that's all he wants, to become your wedded. This flamboyant affair his mother has arranged has scared him, that's all.”

Stoic, Sephiroth remained silent, unmoved. He pulled his arm from the other man's grip, turning his back on him.

Vincent gave a deep sigh. His son certainly had his disposition, unfortunately. The former Turk wished that his son had inherited Lucrecia's personality. At least she, sometimes, had been able to think things over with a more level head.

He knew there was nothing more he could say to make the other change his mind. Obstinacy….Vincent knew all about that trait. With a curt nod to the back of Sephiroth's head, he turned to leave the man in peace.

“I sometimes wonder what my life would have been like…,” Sephiroth said, out of the blue, “… if my mother and father had raised me, instead of Hojo.” His voice was low, wistful, and his shrouded eyes sightlessly roamed the barren landscape in front of him.

Vincent turned back to him, and his heart broke, knowing that his only son had been abused in Hojo's care. And that thought stirred the beast within him.

See! See! This is all the more reason for us to kill HIM, the being inside his head snarled.

SILENCE! Vincent yelled back in his mind, but Chaos refused to retreat.

Your son has suffered just as you have,at that insanescientist's hands, his recklessexperiments. And what of your lover... Lucrecia?…

“ENOUGH!” Vincent raged out loud. He threw his hands to his head, covering his ears, closing his eyes, trying to block out any, and all, senses of the beast that wanted to escape.

At the man's raised voice, Sephiroth spun around, to see Vincent staggering backwards, doubled over as if in pain. A black and purple aura wafted around Vincent's slight body, and Sephiroth watched, mesmerized, as the colourful plume danced around the other mans torso.

He opened his mouth to call to him, to ask him if he were alright, but, before he could form the words to his question, Vincent dropped to his knees, breathing heavily. He was sweating, his chest heaving….and the mist that had enveloped him slowly began to dissipate.

“I'm sorry that Lucrecia wasn't with you,” Vincent said panting, not looking up, and keeping his face to the ground. His voice sounded full of regret, as well as pain.

Hardly anything surprised Sephiroth but…

“How do you know my mother?” he asked; his own voice dangerously low.

Slowly rising to his feet, finally lifting his eyes to make eye contact with his son's, Vincent replied, “I was her bodyguard.”

Without any warning, Sephiroth grabbed Vincent by the throat, and his fingers began to squeeze. “YOU? You could have prevented that psycho-maniac from using my mother?”

He stared down accusingly at the man he had in his tight grasp. His hand began to press harder around the man's neck, bruising the skin underneath, but it didn't affect Vincent in anyway. He just stood there, passive, unwilling to fight back.

“I would have done anything for your mother…..anything. But Lucrecia made her decisions without my approval,” he choked. “I told her not to trust Hojo, I told her he was unstable…. but it was too late. He had already injected her with the Jenova cells.”

Vincent's aura began to bleed out again, billowing and flowing around them, rippling out, causing the dry earth to split open…….Chaos wanted out. Vincent had to fight with everything he had, to contain him.

“I went to Hojo's lab,” he gasped out, trying to draw air into his tightly compressed lungs. “I went to confront him about using Lucrecia and her unborn child for the sake of science. But… he knew I was coming for him.... Andthe bastard shotme, leaving me for dead! Left me dead! If it hadn't been for Lu…” Vincent caught himself.

Crimson eyes slowly began to turn yellow, and Vincent's skin turned an unhealthy shade of graveyard grey. The frayed cloak he wore about his shoulders morphed into bat wings, the leathery appendages flexing out in relief from being tuck away for so long. Vincent was losing his battle to remain in control.

“This… this is my sin, for failing your mother,” Vincent softly whispered, still trying desperately to maintain the beast. “Your eyes,” he said, his voice barely heard, “would have been crimson too, like mine, if not for Lucrecia letting Hojo taint her body with Jenova cells.”

The softly spoken words spun around inside Sephiroth's head. He looked at Vincent, puzzled, wondering why it was he could not kill him….Damn it, the man had been responsible for all that had happened to him…

Crimson eyes….like mine….your eyes…like mine……

It was in that moment that Sephiroth realized what Vincent meant.

Cat-like eyes widened, and pressing, hurting fingers began to relax their crushing grip.

“You're………my father……...”

oOo TBC oOo

A/N: Oh, my god! Sephiroth knows. Can you believe that? What's going to happen now? Will Cloud still go through with the wedding? And what about Cid and Vincent? It seems that they haven't had that talk yet about that kiss. Want to find out? Well, stay tuned for the next chapter.

Mitts & ArchNemesis

oOo Teaser for Chapter 21 oOo

Rufus smirked when he heard `oh, shit' from his female body guard as Tseng came into the room.

“Rufus, what the hell are you doing here?”

Sliding up to his lover, inhaling his scent, Rufus stared him in they eyes, again the executive was cut off by an enthusiastic shout of “Mommy!”