InsaneJournal

Vigil, Final Fantasy VII (Sephiroth/Zack)
Title: Vigil
Author: dogmatix
Rating: PG for language
Warnings: None, dangit.
Word count: 512
Prompt: Sephiroth/Zack: unexpected tenderness - 'As if all your hands/Could keep me clean'
Summary: Sephiroth gets some unexpected company in the Lifestream.
A/N: Set post-game and movie. This.. didn't turn out at all like what I planned, and I'm not sure I'm completely happy with how it came out, though I may revisit the central idea later. (also, fair warning my piece for tomorrow may be a few days late).

Vigil

Fingers curled tight around upper arms, gripped with the soft groan of leather on leather. Hunched down into a compact ball of black and silver and blood and ash, he kept a grim watch on the grotesque blue head that shared his personal hell.

Solid stone walls surrounded them almost claustrophobically close, the cavern lit only with a faint, unnatural green glow. Not even the sound of breathing broke the silence.

Except. There was a faint rhythm of taps, no, footfalls. Coming closer, growing louder.

Alarmed, Sephiroth cast about for the source of the noise, but the Planet’s memories of the sprawling cave system fractured the echoes until they could have come from anywhere at all.

At first, his grip on Jenova had been imperfect, clumsy, and she’d slipped through his restraints like a greased eel, dragging him into battle after battle against Avalanche, forcing him to watch helplessly from inside his own body, more a puppet than Strife ever was. He’d learned quickly, and when she’d been particularly weakened, he’d trapped her tight, locking her in here with him.

The second time though, Jenova had been yanked from his grasp by mortal hands, and her triumphant crow of victory had tasted of ashes and smoke.

Sephiroth had been glad to find Strife hale and whole, the sharpness of his blade untarnished by the intervening years. Living beings could have such short attention spans, after all.

Jenova was no more than embers now, slowly burning out as the Planet killed her cell by cell. Still, dangerously easy to blow fire from those embers, and he’d be damned if he let her slip again.

”Seph?”

It couldn’t be.

Glowing near-violet eyes said otherwise.

“Wow, you’re a difficult man to find, Seph,” Zack grinned.

He could only stare, stricken with remorse, as Zack ducked into the small space with him. Acutely aware of his blood- and soot-streaked appearance – he’d never bothered to change his last memory of himself – Sephiroth averted his eyes. “I-“

“Do you know how long Aeris and I had to look for your scrawny butt?”

”You should leave,” he forced out, hardening his heart against the generous smile being thrown his way.

“No can do, boss-man.”

”Zackary-“

”You really think we’re going to hold it against you?” he asked, almost sadly, not needing to specify.

”I hold it against me,” Sephiroth snarled, iron control breaking like glass.

Zack nodded solemnly but didn’t budge. “And that’s why you need us.”

He should protest. Yell. Throw Zack out on his ear.

Zack gave him a measuring look, then drew himself closer until they were sitting side by side.

It went against all logic and reason – Sephiroth had gotten him killed, and worse. Yet here he was, knees drawn up and elbow bumping Sephiroth’s. It felt… warm.

”So, you’re never going to guess what Reeve’s been up to.”

Sephiroth closed his eyes and shut out Jenova’s dying rage. He knew when to concede defeat, and this was one loss he couldn’t bring himself to regret. “No, but I’m sure you’re going to enlighten me.”