���������It had always been dim within the small cottage up the hill north of Midgar. The temperature was slightly lower in the mountains but it was still better than the city�s polluted air. The reasons why he chose that place were that it was remote and hidden. He didn�t want the company to know about the existence of the three, knowing far too well what Shin Ra would do if they knew.
���������Hojo would�ve danced in glee if he heard that his precious specimens were still alive. He would try to get a hold on the children again, but it wasn�t like Sephiroth would allow such thing to happen. He scrunched his face in distaste when his thoughts meander over the lunatic.
���������Sephiroth heaved out a soft sigh, his eyes darted towards the king-sized bed where three innocent figures lay underneath the comforter.
���������It had only been a few hours since they arrived home, he carried Loz in his arms while Yazoo cradled Kadaj in his. The young boy was silent all the way back and Sephiroth didn�t complain, letting his own thoughts flow. He kept glancing over the quiet kid for a few times to make sure he was all right. Yazoo had his eyes lowered mostly on the weight in his arms, which caused the older man to warn the boy of every hole and tree they came upon.
���������Entering the small shelter, Sephiroth walked straight towards the bedrooms and Yazoo padded along behind him quietly. There were two bedrooms, located just the opposite of one another; one of the three and the other was his, for whenever he had the time to spend the night there. With what he earned every month, he could afford to shower the children with luxury even until they�re fourty, but like him, they wished nothing more than the necessities.
���������Both bedrooms had king-sized beds, and the children often took turns to spend the night in either room. It wasn�t like the silver-haired warrior minded, he knew he didn�t get to spend much time with them and they often missed him.
���������He deposited Loz on the bed, not really caring if the blood stained the light blue sheet. The young general moved aside, letting Yazoo did the same with Kadaj. Sephiroth walked towards the large cupboard across the bed and opened one of the large drawers, taking out a rather large sweatshirt.
���������Yazoo seemed to read his mind because when he returned to the bedside, the boy had already disposed of Kadaj�s torn shirt. He still had the dirty, crumpled pants in his grip, however.
����������Just throw it away, Yazoo.� The soft material was already ruined.
����������But it�s Kadaj�s favourite pants��
����������It�s torn and dirty, I�ll buy him a new one.�
���������The boy nodded weakly, and Sephiroth was slightly concerned of his languid movements. Yazoo watched as the older man dressed their youngest brother. The red shirt was awfully too big for him yet it was comfortable, and that�s what Kadaj needed right now. As much comfort he could have.
���������The silver-haired swordsman scooped Kadaj up momentarily before settling him beside Loz, placing the young boy at the center of the bed before he straightened. Yazoo was still quiet and unmoving on his feet, his small fists clenching on the torn fabrics. Sephiroth slowly patted his back, gently pushing him to climb on the bed. He took the clothes from the boy and helped the boy on the mattress. Yazoo scooted closer towards the two, brushing at Kadaj�s hair and reached over to squeeze Loz�s arm before settling down, his arm draped over the two for as far as his slender arm could reach.
���������Sephiroth unfolded the comforter, throwing the thick cloth over the three before settling on a chair beside the bed. Yazoo was still wide-awake, yet his eyes looked extremely exhausted. The young general raked his gloved fingers through Yazoo�s thick, silver strands, stroking the boy�s back in large, circular motion to lull him to sleep. It didn�t take long before the boy closed his eyes, drifting into peaceful slumber.
���������It wasn�t surprising though, that Sephiroth knew how to handle children. The three youth were originally experiments, ones that Hojo did by himself in a personal project. He shamelessly injected himself with Sephiroth�s genes before he found sluts willing enough to bear his children. Most of the attempts failed though, the women he successfully impregnated would either die within their period of pregnancy or during childbirth, which often ended with both the mother and the child dead.
���������His blood was poison.
���������Concentrated with Mako, he wondered how Hojo was able to take the acidity of his blood. Then again, it seemed that Hojo�s experiment did have a surprising effect after all. One of the whores he bedded was impregnated, gave birth and survived.
���������Not just once, but for four agonizing times.
���������She gave birth to Loz, the second child didn�t make it, Yazoo came out next, and after a few years, Kadaj was born. He knew no one liked the torture of bearing such strong beings and this proved to be right, when the woman begged, weary and weak from her constant labor, for the mad scientist to stop. Yet Hojo was too blinded to care about other than his own glory, putting his work affront. He had lost his humanity because of his obsession with science.
���������Hojo fucked her like an animal that hunger for flesh and she belly swell again with another child. As if knowing about its mother�s painful cries, the infant claimed death to have mercy on both of them.
���������Sephiroth only knew these when he had curiously sneaked into the files Hojo threw carelessly over his desk. The maniac had the tendency to leave secrets in the open, either he was careless or he could care less about it. When the young general learnt about the shocking truth, he threw the files against the wall, chest heaving with seething rage. His mind took a new turn of how repulsive the scientist truly was. He collected the files back on the desk, not wanting Hojo to know someone knew his secret, carefully reminding himself to take the location of where the sick man kept the innocent infants.
*********
���������It was in the small building near where Sephiroth usually had his daily sword training alone. The building had limited access, only Hojo held the key to it. It wasn�t difficult for Sephiroth to act though, being it was near where he was usually sighted, he found it hardly suspicious if anyone saw him there.
���������He had prepared well, even memorizing Hojo�s daily schedule when he first visited the building. That late evening Sephiroth acted, breaking into the room easily after smashing the electronic lock. He didn�t care about the damned lock, he could always say he misaimed an Ice.
���������Pushing the door open, Sephiroth stepped into the dim room, his eyes immediately watered at the full assault of various vile smells of something rotten, bile, Mako, blood and shit mixing in the dense air. He could identify another two or three different odours but pushed the thought away, swallowing tightly. He saw something, which looked like a row of beds in the far former of the room and walked towards it, winching as he felt and heard something squished and crunched under his boots.
���������(I�ll need to clean my boots later. How disgusting� How could Hojo even stand working in such shitty environment?) He was beginning to think the lunatic�s grubby nature was meant to drive people away. Well, the silver-haired man for instance, wouldn�t mind leaving the science freak to his own little freakish world of Mako and needles if that�s what it looked like, as long as he got the answer he needed.
���������Sephiroth stopped near the beds, eyes widening in shock. What he saw wasn�t completely what he had anticipated.
���������Three young children, weak and the smallest was probably still a baby, laid on three separated bunks. He thought they�re separated by three or four years at the very least, but being so weak, they nearly looked like they�re not that far apart. Tubes and wires were attached to their frail bodies, chemicals of different colours and density flowed through them into their young bodies. Sephiroth was enraged, his knuckles clenched and unclenched, shoulders shaking in anger. Hojo was a complete psychopath, how could a sane man do this to his own flesh and blood?
���������He wondered if Hojo was really their father, the way he treated the children was as if they�re not even a living being.
���������The children were pale, obviously unhealthy from the lack of sunlight and clean air. The young general briefly ignored them, strolling around the room to read the reports stacked inside the metal drawers. Flipping over the inventory, he skipped over the names of women who �participated� in the project. He scowled at how many names there were, even more than what he read from the main lab. Sephiroth recognized their mother�s name and took the file out, finding it was attached with many subfolders, one for every child.
���������As he went through every file, he learnt that all three of them had undergone serious Mako treatment, very much like he did when he was very little. However, he wasn�t that young when he received his first Mako shot. Shin Ra seemed to be more considerate than the scientist, unwilling to waste a large amount of money and suffer the ugly publicity should anything went wrong, only permitting him to be exposed to such high level of Mako at the age of two.
���������Some consideration, he mused bitterly, closing the file sharply, not really wanting to know half of the gruesome details.
���������His trained ears caught a slight shuffle, causing the warrior to spin around in alarm. He saw no one else in the room. He was being paranoid, he didn�t have to be afraid. This project should be illegal or else Hojo wouldn�t keep it secret until now. Sephiroth would gladly expose it to the company if he were provoked; he would really love to see the science freak who claimed himself as a genius squirm.
���������Sephiroth almost couldn�t hear the slight shuffle of cloth again if not for the faint gurgle that came with it. The silver-haired man froze, turning sharply at the three small bunks. Squinting his eyes, he could see movement in one of the beds. He swallowed unconsciously, curious and anxious of the fragile creature.
���������Another gurgle.
���������Sephiroth felt his feet moved on their own accord, stepping closer towards the said bed, curiously peeking into it. The baby could be recognized as smallest among the three, hair was only starting to grow on its pale head. Squinting his eyes, Sephiroth tried to see the colour of the baby�s hair.
���������Pale. Almost white. No�silver, like his own.
���������His heart dropped and his body felt suddenly cold, heavy guilt rushed over him. Gods, Hojo used him to create another copy of him. To be used, experimented on, caged like a wild beast. Sephiroth was lucky to have survived his childhood, barely escaping with a thin strand of sanity to keep his mind functioning, to be able to differentiate between right and wrong. Nevertheless, the young general admitted that there were times he would just gave in to his beastly urges, letting his strict rationale flee from his stressed mind and the war in Wutai two years ago had been his deadly playground to prove that fact. He was�what? Fifteen?
���������And Shin Ra made him �The Great General�, or more like �The Animalistic Killing Machine�, as he had sarcastically humoured himself.
���������The horror didn�t stop there, much to his dismay, as he saw the other two children held the same striking trait. Soft, fine hair much like fur on their heads gleamed dully and pale. Sephiroth leaned against the wall, suddenly his head was spinning. He needed to let it all out or he would go mad.
����������Gu�guuu�� His head shot up at the sound, staring at the bunk where the baby stirred restlessly in it. It took Sephiroth some time before he finally realized that it was waking up. Then only he started to panic. What if the baby started to cry? He wasn�t worried about being caught but he didn�t know how to handle the situation should the baby cried. Sephiroth straightened hurriedly, hovering beside the bed once more.
���������The baby�s eyes were open, jade, cat-like orb mirrored his own face as he stared at the baby, speechless at the similarities. The baby gurgled again, kicking on the standard hospital blanket with its tiny legs. Ah, a boy�
����������What is it?� he asked cautiously, lowering his voice as he leaned over the bed. The baby giggled when Sephiroth�s long bangs tickled against his sensitive skin, fingers curling around a few silver strands. Sephiroth arched an eyebrow, not understanding what�s so interesting about his hair. Until the baby brought his hand to his mouth�
����������Ah-ah, no�� Sephiroth pulled away quickly, seeing the baby staring at him in confusion. Then his bright eyes became all watery and tiny hands shot up, pale fingers clawing in the air at the silver curtains.
����������No, you can�t put my hair into your mouth.� He felt ridiculous, talking to a baby who probably didn�t even understand a word he said. Sephiroth almost groaned when he heard soft sniffle coming from the tiny man.
����������Shh�be quiet,� he whispered, trying his best not to sound commanding. After all, a baby would more likely understood voice tones than real words. He pulled off his right glove, wriggling his bare, long fingers to catch the baby�s attention. It did, and now the baby wanted his hand. Hesitantly, Sephiroth reached for the tiny hands, bracing himself for the incoming contact. He rarely experienced flesh-to-flesh contact, and he was suddenly afraid that this might affect the baby. He could hurt him.
���������The man almost jumped when he felt how cold the babyish fingers were. He always thought his body was cold enough, but the fragile limbs around his hand were even chillier than Shiva itself.
���������Silently, Sephiroth admitted that they needed human contact more than he did, Hojo not being one wasn�t helping.
���������Sephiroth could almost hear the baby sighed at the additional warmth, purring when the young general rubbed his hand against the smooth skin. Sephiroth tilted his head, a strange emotion filled him as he watched the infant closed his eyes in comfort, hands still clutching his thumb and middle finger. This time Sephiroth let the baby guided his index finger into his tiny mouth, feeling the baby�s soft tongue flicking over his bare flesh.
����������I�m not that sterile, you know�� The baby just looked at him without recognition of any word the man just said, toothless gum gnawing on the flesh as he continued to suck noisily.
������������� Sephiroth didn�t know what to say or do. He often had something to react with; talk, act, his quick thinking provided him with every detailed words before they formed into a smooth flow of speech and movements much more calculated and graceful than a professional dancer. Yet he was defeated by a mere, innocent child who knew nothing of victory itself.
����������A tiny smile cracked on his lips, thinking how unbelievable it was. This fragile being defeated him without doing anything at all. Sephiroth bit down the small chuckle that rose within his throat and let the baby sucked at his finger as the reward, catlike, Mako eyes darted over its small body. He frowned slightly, seeing the ribs and hipbones jutting out under the pallid skin.
����������Hungry, aren't you?� he asked softly, looking back into those bright eyes. The baby kept silent, lapping on the now wet finger in his mouth.
����������Hojo�s not feeding you well. How did he expect his experiments to succeed if he continues to be such an inconsiderate fool?� he could only shook his head, not understanding how stupid Hojo could be. The baby stopped sucking at his finger suddenly, his big eyes followed the movement of liquid-like silver that was the man�s hair in childlike awe. The swordsman leaned over, feeling the absence of pressure on his finger. It was still inside the tiny mouth and the baby was still clutching on his fingers.
����������Done?� he asked curiously. �Can I have my hand back now?�
���������As if the baby understood him, the unwavering grip slackened to allow the silver-haired man retracted his hand�but not before letting out a small burp. The baby giggled lightly as the silver-haired man made a face. �Don�t burp on my finger.� Sephiroth inspected his finger, it had gained a slight tinge of pink from the vigorous suction, but the colour soon returned to his original pale complexion.
����������Thank you. It seems that I�ll be keeping this finger after all.� He smiled softly when the baby giggled again, a sense of pride swelled within him for being able to cause a little happiness.
*********
�����������K�ad�?�
���������Sephiroth snapped his head towards the tiny voice, surprised that it actually formed a word. A pair of similar, bright green eyes stared at him with open curiousity, and fear. The other child was awake, and he was regarding the warrior with his sharp, catlike orbs. Sephiroth was lost for a moment, not knowing what to explain. This older child would likely understand some of the words he said.
���������The child averted his eyes from the general, glancing briefly at the baby before regarding the silver-haired warrior with more worry in his jade orbs. ��K-Kad�?� His whisper sounded like a demand in Sephiroth�s ears, and he could only guess that was the name of the infant.
����������He�s alright.� Sephiroth could only assure the boy that he didn�t harm his brother. The boy relaxed a little knowing this man didn�t do anything to the baby, but now he was curious of whom this person was. His appearance might look even fiercer than Hojo but he seemed to be gentler than the mad scientist was. His innocent eyes took the robust appearance of the warrior and realized something nagged at the back of his quickly developing mind.
���������He looked similar to them. Exactly the same.
����������W�who�?� By now Sephiroth could tell that the boy wasn�t whispering from fear, but exhaustion. He was too weak until he couldn�t operate his throat properly, sputtering only the important fragments from the intended sentences just enough for the man to figure it all out.
����������Kad� whimpered as the tall swordsman left his side, watching the man shifted to his older sibling. �My name is Sephiroth. I�m here to take you all out.�
���������Sephiroth didn�t know why he said that. The idea never crossed his mind once and from the look in the bright orbs, he didn�t once regret it. Maybe because he had seen enough pain in their young eyes that reminded him of his own childhood, he understood how they suffered. The silver-haired general never wanted anyone to experience what he had, and he intended to give these children a second chance of life.
����������R-rea�lly�?� Sephiroth couldn�t stand the burden if he was to crush the remaining bits of hope in the tiny voice. He nodded curtly, determined to keep his word. �Come on. We better go now before Hojo comes.�
���������He noticed the effect of that single name to the boy�s ears. His frail body went noticeably rigid but it didn�t last long, the promise of freedom fired the boy�s will to sit up and move his skinny hands, pushing the dusty blanket off his legs and tentatively plucked the wires and tubes from his bruised body. Sephiroth frowned, there were multiple streaks of dull grey marking the pale skin like tiger stripes, only in a more haphazard way.
���������The boy jolted when Sephiroth brushed his bare fingers against the markings, pupils widening in sudden fear. In reflex, he weakly tried to pull away but the young general grasped his uninjured shoulder to keep him still.
����������What are these?�
�������������� He could feel the abused body trembling in his hand.
����������Tell me, I�m not going to hurt you. I just want to know.�
���������The boy struggled to relax. ��Pipe�b-burn��
���������(Hojo was beating these children!?) He could only give the boy a firm squeeze, not trusting himself to be calm if he opened his mouth. Now he felt that he not only wanted, but needed to free these children from Hojo�s maniacal experiments. He had no right to abuse them, parent or not. Sephiroth growled lowly, his anger could wait. This boy�s wounds must be tended as soon as possible. Although the burn marks had healed immensely, he doubted the flesh was fully recovered.
���������The boy was still shaking, his hands pausing in the act of pulling the needles from his arm. Sephiroth loosened his grip and slid his hand down the lanky arm, gently plucking the needles out.
���������The boy was quiet, letting the older man removed the wires from his body and he gradually relaxed when all that Sephiroth did was helping him. Maybe this man would save them after all, he thought hopefully, studying the warrior carefully.
����������What�s your name?�
���������The boy�s head snapped up at his authoritative tone, eyes still wide with worry. Sephiroth didn�t return the boy�s gaze, knowing how his eyes could unnerve some people. He concentrated on pulling the small needles and tubes from the boy�s skin, brushing a gentle Cure with his fingers to close each small wound while waiting for the boy to form his words.
�����������Lo�z.�
����������Alright, Loz. Can you walk by yourself or do you prefer me to carry you?�
���������It was a generous offer, coming from a stoic man like Sephiroth, and somehow Loz knew that. �I�w�alk�,� croaked the boy softly.
���������Sephiroth nodded silently, respecting the boy�s wish, surprised that the child was strong at heart. �Now I need you go help your other sibling while I take care of the baby.� Loz nodded, slowly sliding off the bed and stood with wobbly feet. He only wore a pair of shorts that once had been white, staggering his way towards the other bed just next to his.
��������The other child was slightly younger than him, with much more slender built and ghostly pale skin, he looked like a fragile porcelain doll that threatened to break at any minute. His pale hair had grown past his cheekbones, disobeying Hojo�s strict orders that they should keep their hair short. The scientist was angry that the child became another �Sephiroth�, deliberately and clearly rebelling against him. Hence that�s why he hated that child most.��
���������Loz leaned against the bed to support himself while he called for the small figure on the bed. �Ya�zoo�wa�p�ake up� After a while, Loz gave up depending on his cracked voice, seeing the other boy didn�t even stir at his call. Standing on his toes, he reached for his brother, nudging the small shoulders gently. Still no reaction.
���������Sephiroth had already freed the baby from the wires, feeling rather awkward at cradling such fragile being in his arms. He hoped his technique was right, he never carried an infant before. He saw Loz was having trouble in waking the other boy. �What�s wrong, Loz?� Sephiroth walked over, seeing Loz looking up at him helplessly, worry in his young orbs when he shook his head in puzzlement.
���������Sephiroth handed the baby to the boy, which Loz had no trouble in handling the bundle securely within his arms. The boy rocked the baby gently in his arms, cooing to the baby as he watched Sephiroth removed the offending apparatus from the unconscious child.
*********
���������Sephiroth frowned, feeling the dead weight in his hands when he lifted the boy from the bed. His body sagged against the man�s hold, head lolled backwards the as swordsman sat the boy up.
���������He was beginning to doubt if the boy was alive at all. His skin was cold and he was even paler than the two. Cautiously, Sephiroth lowered the boy back on the bed, checking for his pulse. His eyes caught a purple bracelet of bruise around the boy�s left wrist, and sure enough, on his right too. He turned slightly, looking at Loz for explanation.
����������S-spark�te�st�Yazoo�s..scre�amed�� Spark? Sephiroth turned towards the limp body again, frowning at what �spark� was. Examining the bruises, he could make out shapes of metal cuffs. He saw metal cuffs in this room before, it was attached with a special machine surged with high voltage. (Electric�damn you, Hojo!)
����������Ya�zoo�o�kay?� He pressed two fingers against the boy�s wrist and neck. There's a pulse, but weak. (He�s still alive�though I don�t know for how long�) �Yazoo�s all right,� he murmured, not wanting Loz to worry too much. Sephiroth opened the boy�s eyes, seeing the eyes rolled to the back of his head. Yazoo was heavily drugged, probably to numb him from the pain.
����������Let�s go now,� he announced briskly, unwilling to stay any longer and uncover more horrendous details of Hojo�s experiments. He scooped Yazoo up, draping the boy�s flaccid arms around his neck while pressing the thin body against his chest. He grabbed a worn out shoes from the rack and instructed Loz to put them on, remembering what were on the floor. The boy obeyed willingly, one hand cradling the baby while the other gripped on Sephiroth�s leather coat for stability.
����������Wait.�
���������Loz looked up, seeing something played in the young general�s eyes. �Let�s give the good professor a surprise, shall we?� He didn�t understand what Sephiroth was talking about but he tagged along, eyes observing the man�s every action. He saw the young general arranging some apparatus on the table, lighting a small flame in the end.
���������Sephiroth smirked in satisfaction, �Let�s go.�
*********
���������It wasn�t hard to reach his personal quarters two blocks away as he had first suspected, in fact, they didn�t even need to sneak in, being that the soldiers were still on their one-month vacation. Sephiroth didn�t leave however, although Shin Ra allowed him to, the young general felt no need to go on a holiday. Partially because he had no relatives to visit, but mainly he just preferred his space.
���������The first thing he did when they reached his quarters was to make sure the boys get cleaned up. When he ushered Loz inside the living room before him, the boy was staring. The child probably had never seen such a large, inhabitable room before, he wondered sympathetically.
���������Sephiroth walked up behind the young boy, patting his shoulder to get the youth�s attention. When Loz looked up to him, he tilted his head, telling the boy to follow him before heading towards the bathroom. The bathroom was stark white but Sephiroth decorated it just enough to make it far different from Hojo�s cold lab, their reflection could be seen on the white marble floor. He crouched beside the bathtub, lying Yazoo across his lap as he reached to turn the water on, waiting for it to fill the white tub.
���������He turned around, looking at Loz. The boy was standing behind him with the baby in his secure hold. The baby had been quiet along their way here.
����������Is he all right?� he asked, seeing the boy�s head jerked up at his voice.
�����������Y-yes�Ka�daj�is�f-fine�,� he whispered slowly.
����������Yazoo�, �Kadaj� and �Loz��he wondered who gave them those names. Hojo couldn�t possibly think of those unique titles, knowing the maniac, he would most probably call them Specimen 1, 2 and 3 all their lives.
���������Sephiroth groaned, it was never pleasing to think of that man. He raked his bare hand into the water to test its temperature. It was warm enough. He turned off the tap and began to undress Yazoo in his lap. The boy too only wore a pair of plain, dirty shorts so there�s nothing hard to remove the material. Throwing the dirty clothe carelessly to the floor, he lowered the boy into the water.
����������Mmmhh�� Finally Yazoo stirred, moaning weakly when his body touched warm water. Sephiroth was relieved, maybe the drug was wearing off. �Loz, come. Bring Kadaj along. You both need to clean up too.�
���������The boy hesitantly obeyed, placing Kadaj on the toilet to dispose of his shorts before claiming the baby back and climbed into the tub. He sighed softly when the warm water soaked his body until his chest, the baby in his hand wriggled when he felt water against his skin.
���������Sephiroth leaned Yazoo against the edge of the tub since the boy was still drowsy from the drug, reaching up to get soap and shampoo for the children. In the corner of his eyes, he saw Loz scooting closer towards the comatose body, wrapping a protective arm around the other boy�s shoulders to keep him upright. It stirred something within him, seeing how the boys supported one other to survive. They only have each other anyway, which made the bond far stronger than what Hojo could breach. Sephiroth was alone since birth, never had a sibling to accompany him during the torturous years, but loneliness slowly became his strength.
���������He returned shortly with a bottle of soap and shampoo in his hands. The young general discarded his coat to make it easier for him to do the job, helping the children to get cleaned up. Kadaj giggled happily, playing with the bubbly water while Loz bathed him. What did he understand about suffering anyway?
���������Yazoo was getting more aware of his surroundings after some time, his eyes partially opened and misty. Sephiroth saw the cat-like pupils rolled around the unfamiliar room although they weren�t really registering any of the changes, simply roaming around. He turned on the shower above the tub to wash the soap away, walking towards a cabinet across the room to fetch some spare towels. He had quite abundant of them, really.
���������Sephiroth took Kadaj first and dried him up, wrapping the tiny body with another dry towel before handing another towel to Loz. As soon as the boy had wrapped the towel around him, the general returned the baby to Loz, turning his attention towards Yazoo. The swordsman easily lifted the semiconscious boy from the tub, wrapping his thin body with a large towel before settling the boy on his lap, drying the long hair with another towel.
���������The children looked much cleaner and alive after their bath. Opening the door, he brought the children towards his bedroom, knowing how exhausted they must�ve been.
**********
���������His bedroom was simple, even without any small decoration to make it pass as a normal bedroom, it still felt very homely. The only decoration in the room was a large painting of a green forest on the wall, which a bubbly second-class soldier, Zack, had proudly presented him with two months ago. The soldier had high potential and he was the only one who dared to approach the cold, young General.
���������Sephiroth had known Zack for two years now, yet still he found that the younger man�s happy character was hard to understand. He accepted the friendship anyway, no longer feeling the loneliness of being the head of the military base.
���������He laid Yazoo on the bed, motioning Loz to do the same. The boy looked at the king-sized bed hesitantly before turning to look at the tall swordsman.
����������Go on, you can sleep here. You�ll be safe, no one will find you here,� assured the warrior calmly, trying to vanquish the boy�s paranoia. Slowly Loz braved himself, touching the clean, white mattress tentatively. His eyes widened at how soft it felt than the hard bunks they had in the secret lab.
���������Clutching Kadaj nearer to his chest, he climbed up, anxious of how the mattress dipped from his slight weight. He crawled slowly to Yazoo�s level, placing the now sleeping Kadaj between them. Sephiroth carefully tucked a spare pillow under the boy�s head, watching how the Loz�s eyelids dropped slowly. After the children were settled comfortably on the bed, the silver-haired general draped a thick blanket over the three figures.
���������"Se...phi...roth...?"
���������He stopped fixing the blanket, eyes darting upwards to return the sleepy gaze.
���������"...Are...y...ou...fa...ther...?"
���������His eyes widened slightly at Loz's honest question, but he had thought about it during their trip to his barracks. Thanks to his curious nature, he often sneaked into Hojo's files and he knew who his father was, though he never admitted it. Hojo used his genes to create the children yet not sexually, so him being the father was out of the question. After all, he was too young to be their father.
���������"No," at last he spoke, tone confident as always, "I'm your eldest brother."
���������The sleepy eyes watched him for a moment as if considering the idea, before slowly closing to sleep.
���������Sephiroth watched as the children slept soundly on his bed, their young faces looked more relaxed in their slumber. He sighed heavily, grabbing a chair before settling it next to the bed, propping his chin with his hands.
���������He could keep the children with him for three weeks, but after that, the soldiers would return from their vacations and it�d be busy around the base. Sephiroth could be sure that no one would dare enter his quarters without permission, save for the nutty Zack who knew no rules. He needed to find a place for the children to stay, preferably far and hidden from Shin Ra. The young general blinked, he suddenly remembered about the hidden lodge he found up the hill north of Midgar. He found it while he was hunting for monsters to train several months ago. The cottage was obviously abandoned for a long time, collecting dust and moss yet it was still sturdy, and the silver-haired swordsman had it cleaned up a little since he could just disappear there when he wanted to think.
���������(That�s it. Tomorrow, I�ll check that place again.) Sephiroth rested his elbows on the bed, placing his cheek on the back of his hand.
���������Suddenly he heard a rumble of explosion from far away, being it was so big, the ground rattled a little. Luckily it was faint so the children weren�t awaken from the blast. Sephiroth smiled softly, knowing what the explosion was about, closing his eyes with that small smile still on his lips.
���������Bye bye, secret lab.
*********
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����� ~ Divine Star ~