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holly-fixation · 5 months ago

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Seraphic and Sinister

Summary: Sephiroth learns that he has a child, a lab made specimen existing under the same terrible conditions he was raised in. In a moment of pure rage, he rescues his child. However, his fate has long been sealed, but the child’s fate is unknown.

Never did he expect the cadet that killed him to take responsibility for the heir of His planet.

Inspired by various asks to @rottenpumpkin13

Please Enjoy.

…

Chapter 1: Violation

Hojo's laboratory.

The unwelcoming decor was an unwanted second home to the Silver Soldier of Shinra. The sterile air, the artificial light, the deep echoes of the halls. He hated it. He hated being here but it was required. Every attempt to convince the higher ups that this was not necessary ended in complete failure and laughter from the scientist he hated most.

These monthly appointments were not his choice. The board made that explicitly clear.

Worst of all in this terrible laboratory, he hated seeing the specimens, the creatures and monsters created to either die or be observed. Every ounce of their suffering was monitored twenty four hours a day. These hallways and these creatures remained within memories for as far as he could recall them. Each tile on the floor was mapped to perfect recollection after all his years. Medium cages, examination room, training room, large mako tanks, large cages, electric pipelines, monitors, sealed cages-

He stopped in his tracks.

But this observation glass was new, as was the darkened screen between the window and the door. Normally he would turn away in disgust at this new experiment, to ignore it and hope its usefulness ended soon for its own sake. But he didn't. He felt a churn in his stomach. A weight in his chest. Something pushing him toward the control pad beyond what he could call ‘curiosity’. All new experiments were in the back of the lab, so why was this added in the main hallway?

The screen brightened with the usual Shintra log in page, both the username and password fields left blank. He didn't know Hojo's information, however, he input his own credentials despite the threat that said doctor could discover his attempt and use it against him.

The screen immediately opened to a document application, white light reflecting on his skin. A new folder appeared within his personal pages without the cloud icon beside it, one that did not belong and did not make sense to him. Only one word titled the folder: Theory. Checking within he found dozens of seemingly new reports. What were these? Why were they there?

He opened one.

Each line captured his attention no matter the horror that laid behind it.

Pregnancy continuing with expected complications. Monitor for sudden nutrition loss.

Host uninjured at 30 weeks. Chances of successful production promising.

Child born July 7, 1997, 07:07. A healthy female. 7 pounds, 3 ounces. Unexpectedly vocal.

Host returned to home in [REDACTED]. Monitor residence and continue pension until host expires or conspires to spread word of the child.

Under direct presidential order, the child's designation must be similar to the designation of its father. (Since the oaf apparently cannot tell the difference between a fully grown masterpiece and a new experiment)

Child's designation agreed upon: Seraphina. Discontinue use of “Girl” and “Soldier”. Previous designations used only during negative reinforcement.

Child portrays signs of scotopia. Disable emergency lights at PM to encourage proper rest.

Child reaching 120.3 decibels. Install sound panels.

Child begins walking.

Presidential three month review. Deemed nothing of note. Project to be discontinued if results continue at current rate.

Implementation of mako in diet. Child's eyes begin displaying common symptoms within seven days.

10 mL mako injection through shoulder. Constant protest. Consequences earned. To be repeated every four weeks until further notice.

Child fully healed in 23.4 hours.

Diet transferred to commercial protein shakes until solid food can be consumed.

Child's strength becomes difficult to manage. Separate child from active lab tables.

Child maintains current record of 120.3 decibels whenever reacting to impact. When older, remedy this.

Technicians arrived to child sitting on a work desk beside activated soldering iron. Child showed no reaction to tool. Child held photo snatched from the current desk: A selfie of a technician's offspring with a cardboard cut out of Sephiroth. The offspring is smiling.

Child cracked glass with latest scream when photo was removed. Consequences distributed as necessary.

Child suddenly becomes silent. Literacy and mathematic skills difficult to judge with minimal reactions.

Child cries at night. Child exhibiting signs of nyctophobia despite scotopia. Note: habit must be removed by age three.

Child is given a Second Class sword. Child shows promise with a weapon.

Child is shown video of Sephiroth training at age twelve. Child is thoroughly engaged. Child attempts to copy technique.

Presentation for president confirmed.

Six month presidential review begins. Child referred to by name with president's approval.

Child is placed in room with a single robotic arm as room size slowly decreased. Child is severely injured but defeats robot.

President Shinra demands an alternate display of abilities.

Pain endurance trial begins.

Child endures 5X volume of [REDACTED] than average adult human male before losing consciousness.

Project permitted to continue.

Wound heals. Child unable to walk properly. Signs point to lingering [REDACTED] in child's body.

Three day recovery period begins. Check status every three hours.

Sephiroth couldn't stop reading every horrible detail on the page, every memory of his own childhood rushing him at the thought of another- no, not just another child- his child: one made without his knowledge or consent. He felt his hands click links to further documentation, his eyes scanning every detail dangerously before an image opened.

A video. No, not a video, live footage of the blacked out room before him. A small part of him expected to see his silver hair on a tiny child, to finally see the trait on someone other than himself.

But he didn't. Even through the shading greens of dark vision recordings, he could tell her hair was black, tiny specks interfering with the recording as if pixels glitched exactly where her hair portrayed through the screen.

The child was trying to walk, and only when she turned did he see the thick bandages around her thigh. Back and forth she limped through the room, never acknowledging the thin sword on the ground, the stacked weights by her crib, or the books on her desk. ‘Her’. None of it was truly hers. Every inch of her life belonged to Shinra and Shinra alone. She did not ask to be brought into this world. Hojo forced her mother, forced her, into this den and left with gil in hand as she wailed in abandonment. And he, her father, stood behind glass after six months of the same agony he suffered.

He put his PIN into the digital keypad by the door.

Access denied.

He tried again, slower, deliberate, confirming each and every input to follow his code.

Access denied.

He was given access to the files. Why couldn’t he enter the room? Why was Hojo continuing with these useless mind games? His chest boiled. His brows were furrowed. He brought his shaking hand to his heart and bowed his head, trying to remember the feeling of the locket once kept there, wanting guidance before he made a decision or one was made for him.

He was…angry. No. No- it was much more than that. This child didn’t deserve his suffering. His child didn’t deserve this imprisonment or the genocide missions that laid before her.

She deserved a normal life.

He summoned his blade to his side and slashed the metal door. The lights above shifted to crimson and a siren blared in his ears but he refused to stop. He refused to allow Hojo another violation into his life and the life of his child. He attacked until there was nothing but a pile of debris between him and his daughter.

Sephiroth took his first step into the room to find the child holding her own blade against him as her body shook with the struggle to maintain his old battle stance, standing against the crib. Why was a child- no- not even a child- why was a baby forced to learn these instincts?

Why wasn’t he enough to stop this from ever happening again?

He hoped it wasn’t too late.

She looked different than he expected. Her skin was a few notches paler than his own. What he assumed were failing pixels in photos and in videos were actually her hair; a codominant display of his silver piercing through solid black. It reminded him of stars shimmering in the night sky, the vast expanse she was never permitted to see.

No matter what, that changed today.

He returned his sword and held both his hands in open caution as he kneeled down, making himself smaller and hopefully less threatening. He tried to soften his expression. She was so delicate. He couldn’t be harsh with her. He didn’t want to be harsh with her. “I will not hurt you. Do you know who I am?”

The recognition in her eyes only elevated his rage, the smallest nod of her head. She glanced down and her eyes rapidly searched the air around her. Her mako blue, cat like eyes; slit pupils against the soldier trademark. If there was any doubt in his heart that this was only another one of Hojo’s tests, it vanished completely.

“It’s alright. You’re safe.”

The hard look in her eyes did not change. He wanted to strangle the scientist.

“You don’t have to say it the right way. Hojo’s not here. He won’t punish you and I will never let him see you again. Say what you think is right. Don’t think about-”

“Dada…”

Time froze. His heart skipped a beat.

She looked embarrassed and afraid, her voice weak and tiny and barely above a breath. He hated that he was correct. She said it again as if finally feeling the slightest drop of freedom. “Dada…?”

He nodded softly. “That’s right. I’m your father. And I’m saving you from this place, Seraphina.”

Maybe he overestimated her understanding because she just kept staring at him.

“You can put your sword away.” He made a small sheathing gesture with his hands. “We have to go. We have to leave right now and you will never see this horrible place again.”

She suddenly waddled up to him and he almost flinched as she tried to wrap her arms around his leg, her weapon forgotten on the floor.

The silver solider lifted the baby into his arms, and she clenched the straps across his chest so tight her knuckles were white. He sheathed her sword and protected her with his right arm. He had already wasted so much time, but he already knew he would never regret this first moment.

He could never return Shinra, to the memories it held or the friends he made. But they didn’t matter now. All that mattered was her safety.

All that mattered was his family.

To be continued…

Chapter list here!

Note: Okay I know the starry night/multicolored hair is very ‘original character do no steal-y’ but I promise it will be part of the plot and not just a neat detail. This is also my first time writing out an OC for someone ELSE (Hi Pumpkin!) so I’m trying to stay true to the multiple asks this AU spans. So welcome to my newest ‘Sephiroth with a child’ AU and say thank you to Pumpkin for letting me write this!

#ffvii #ff7 #final fantasy vii #sephiroth #final fantasy 7 #hojo ffvii #hojo's mentioned enough he's going in the tags #original character #sephiroth's daughter #sephiroth daughter au number too many

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