The Angel's Redemption

Sephiroth woke up, expecting the usual, but didn't see Yuna in her bed, he raised an eyebrow and put on his overcoat, and held onto his sword as per usual. He walked out of the hut, seeing everyone waiting on him. Yuna walked up to him, smiling.

"Look who's late this time." she giggled and spun around, Sephiroth chuckled and followed Yuna to the others. They all nodded and walked to the gate, one kid ran up to him, and handed him some kind of charm, in the shape of a star. He takes it and observes it's crafting.

"This'll make you keep a promise!" Sephiroth tilted his head, and looked at the boy. "It'll make you promise that you'll take care of Lady Yuna." he chuckled a little boy chuckle, Sephiroth chuckled with him, "Don't worry, I promise. Nothing bad will happen to her." He stood up and did a salute he and the boy came up with, and the boy saluted back, Sephiroth turned and walked to catch up with the others. The boy was waving bye to him, and Sephiroth waved bye right back.

*Hmm...seems not all worlds are bad..this one holds it corruptions..but I have yet to see them.*

Sephiroth turned back around, Yuna walking next to him now, Tidus on front of him, next to Kimahri, Wakka, and Lulu. His armor clanked and clanged together as they walked on towards the beach, where the boat laid waiting. Yuna stared at the man next to her, not realizing it, but she had seen something in him. Sephiroth glanced next to him and hid a smirk, *Is she observing me?* He mentally shook his head and kept walking.

They arrived at the beach sooner than they thought, since Sephiroth easily cut down any Lupines, Iton Giants, and Flans. They walked to the dock, and he stopped for a moment. He looked at the sky, beholding the beauty it held, moreso than his home did. "You ok Sephiroth?" the young summoner asked, a bit concerned. He looked down at her, and nodded, "Just looking at the sky, this place is nothing like my home. It's much more beautiful." *Just like you...* Sephiroth shook his head, and chuckled a bit, quietly. He looked at Yuna and nodded, walking past her onto the boat. The charm the boy had given him dangled on the end of his sword, the bottom of the handle, like a keychain.

He looked around and took in the sea surrounding them, they were departing, noting the salty tasting air, and smiled. He never thought to look at his home more than he did, wanting it burned and destroyed. "It's beautiful.." he mumbled to himself, his eyes half-closed. Yuna walked up behind him, and out of the blue, hugged him, he blushed and looked behind him, "Wha.." she looked up at him, and smiled. "Thanks for helping us...I'm glad you agreed to be my guardian..." Sephiroth nodded and turned around, putting an arm around her. "No problem..just ask..and I will obey.." Sephiroth looked down at Yuna, her head resting on his chest, then looked back up, seeing Tidus glaring at him, jealousy reigning on his face. He smiled wickedly, and slowly moved his sword over Yuna, almost like a shield. He mouth the words, 'Back off.' silently to the boy, and shot a glare at him.

Tidus rolled his eyes and walked away, to the bow of the boat. He lowered his sword and his head slowly, sniffing her hair, taking in her scent, tingling. His eyes half-closed, and heard someone else coming to the back of the boat, he looked back up, and saw it was Wakka. "Hello Wakka." Yuna opened her eyes and started to panic a bit, he patted her back gently, to re-assure her. "Hey you seen Yuna?" he nodded and motioning to the girl in his arms, Yuna in his embrace, Wakka sighed, "Shoulda guessed, be nice Seph, we don't need any trouble on this boat trip, ya?" Sephiroth rolled his eyes and turned back to the sea, holding Yuna close. Wakka shook his head, and walked away to the bow, where Tidus was. He closed his eyes setting his chin on Yuna's head, almost covering her from the world.

*She is mine...and no one is going to take her away from me...* he blushed at this thought and quickly dismissed it.

She snuggled into his chest, sighing contently, which made Sephiroth smile. Then the boat rocked violently, and Sephiroth holds onto Yuna, making sure she doesn't fall, making her blush. He looks around noticing the waves are very high, "What the..." then a giant fin bursts out of the water, one of the deckhands yell out, "Sin!" he glares at the fin, but decides to stay with Yuna, making sure she's ok. Then two of the deckhands run up to the harpoons, manning them. Wakka looks at them, alarmed.

"What do you think you're doing?!"

"You hit him, we're gonna get dragged under!"

"Sin is heading for Kilika! We have to distract it!"

"Our families are in Kilika! Forgive us Lady Summoner."

Yuna stares at them, then nods, the two nod back and fire, a harpoon misses, but the other hits it's target. The boat is pulled violently, and a wave washes onto the deck, Sephiroth holds Yuna close as it does, making him move a bit, and Sin launches numerous Sinspawn. "Kimahri! Keep Yuna safe!" he nods to the swordsman, and takes Yuna, holding her close, and Sephiroth fixs Masamune, holding it at the ready for a fight. The Sinspawn land, and he strikes them down effortlessly with a single swipe, and 5 more land, unraveling into their mobile forms, lunging at him. He cuts another four, and Lulu scorches the last one. "Damn it..Lulu use your magic on the fin, we need to detatch from this thing!" Sin pulls the boat along like a toy,

Sephiroth casts a Fire3 at the fin, hitting it, and curses to himself, "I'll distract them, just keep hitting the fin!" she nods to the silver-haired man, and casts Thunder striking the fin again. Sephiroth keeps striking down sinspawn after Sinspawn. His mind screams, *None of them will touch her! None!* he blushes a bit, but keeps striking them down. The harpoon gun detatches from the boat, and the monster surfaces, slamming it's fin into the water, sending a huge wave over the boat, knocking Sephiroth and Tidus off, after the water settles and Sin departs, they look around, noticing Sephiroth and Tidus are missing, Wakka dives into the water after them. Sephiroth is seen swimming towards tidus, feeling pity for the kid, and Wakka swims up to them, and they nod at each other, and a pair of dolphins swim by, the look back from where the dolphins came from and a giant fiend rises from the depths, whom Sephiroth glares at and nods at Wakka, telling him to get Tidus to the boat, and promptly lunges at the fiend.

The fiend summons a couple of Sinspawns, and they swim at the swordsman, who easily dispatches them, and casts a Comet2 spell at the fiend. Yuna looks up seeing the flaming rocks plummet into the water, slamming into the fiend, causing it great pain. It convulses a few times before detonating into a bunch of pyreflies, which let's Sephiroth swim to the surface, and climbs into the boat. He passes out from the lack of air he had, and wakes up a few hours later, it's dusk and Yuna has his head in her lap, he sits up after staring at her face for a few minutes, looking at the destuction Sin had wrought upon Kilika. "Sin...so..that's why Summoners need guardians..." who recievs a nod from everyone, he stands up, seeing his sword lieing against the wheelhouse, and they dock, stepping onto the ruins of the port, Yuna asks to perform the 'sending' Sephiroth had no idea what it was, so he decides to watch it.

"Lulu..what is a sending?" he looks down at the black mage, a questioning look on his face. She grins and looks up at the swordsman.

"The dead need guidance...they grieve over their own deaths..and refuse to face their fate." she looked dead serious. "They yearn to live on, and resent those still alive." she continues. "You see, they envy the living. In time..that envy turns into anger, even hate. Should these spirits remain in Spira, they become fiends that prey on the living..." she finishes. Sephiroth nods, his arms folded, "Tis a sad tale...fiends that prey on the living..because of resentment.." he looks down.

"The sending takes them to the Farplane, where they may rest in peace." he nods and looks at Yuna, as she begins.

She twirls her staff as she twirls herself as well, standing on the surface of the water like a goddess. The local villagers begin to cry and grieve over their lost loved ones, while Sephiroth observes Yuna, and remember his death-dealing in the past, ashamed of what he had done, realizing he had taken away peoples loved ones. She begins to do an odd dance, holding her staff above her head, and bringing it to her face, he notes that pyreflies begin to rise out of the caskets that hold the dead bodies. The fire of the torches turn blue, and the water below Yuna begins to rise, raising her into the air, like she was willing it to do so. He stood in awe of her beauty infront of the sun and above the water. She twirls about like in a trance-induced dance, sending the pyreflies upward into the air. As she begins to finish the water lowers her, she is done and walks back onto the dock.

She walks up to Sephiroth and Lulu, "I hope..I hope I did okay." he steps off the battered railing nodding, "It was beautiful.." she walked up to Sephiroth and embraced him, he felt tears hit his skin and he frowned. He wraps his arms around her, wanting it to comfort her.

*I swear...you will never have to do that again..even if I have to fight Sin by myself...to ensure you will not have to do another sending....Yuna...*

He picks her up, and holds her close, "Where's the inn?" he said in a warm, yet commanding tone, one of the vilalgers pointed to a large hut, and he nods at them, thanking them and walks to it, walking in the air itself, wanting to distance himself from the others as quickly as possible, they stare in awe as he does. He steps onto the dock and walks in, "I'm renting a room, I don't care how much." the innkeeper nods and asks for the amount, and he hands it to her, walking upstairs. He sits down on the bed, Yuna's face buried in his chest. "Please...no more tears Yuna..." he says in the sweetest voice he himself had ever heard. She sniffles and looks up at him, and smiles a bit, wrapping her arms around his neck, hugging him. He notices how close their faces are, but doesn't blush, too concerned and worried about Yuna's feelings to care. "That sending was beautiful but...I never want to see it again...I don't want to see you cry...no mroe tears...you won't see another death...I swear it..." he was slightly disturbed at how kind he was being, how caring, how protective, he ignored his cold feelings, screaming to push her away, to stop caring about this weak girl, his warm feelings screaming back, hold her, keep her safe, comfort her, never let her down.

His warm and kind feelings won out in the end and he laid down with her, holding her close. He closed his eyes, feeling her put her forehead against his, feeling safe and secure, she smiled. He didn't feel a tear hit his overcoat, which made him feel better. They laid together for what seemed like hours, while in truth it had been only forty-five minutes. Lulu came walking up, seeing them laying together and held her figner up to the people behind her, and they nodded, Kimahri gave a glance at them, and Tidus flared up in jealousy, he only got a word out before Wakka covered his mouth with his hand, shaking his head no. Sephiroth moved his head a bit, keeping his arms around Yuna. The summoner stirred, and saw Lulu, who mouthed, go back to sleep, so she didn't wake Sephiroth. Yuna nodded and closed her eyes again, falling back asleep, a smile on her face, in the embrace of HER silver-haired guardian angel.

The sun rose, as the two woke up, First Yuna, who stayed quiet, admiring Sephiroth's sleeping face, tempted to do something, she wasn't sure what to do. She wanted so badly to kiss him but she was afraid of what he would do. *Will he walk away? Would he kill me? What..what to do..* she blushed at her thoughts and closed her eyes, trembling a bit, which woke Sephiroth up, he didn't move, hearing Yuna talking to herself quietly, thinking he was still asleep. So, he decided to keep making her think that, and closed his eyes. He felt her nod to herself and lean up to his face. She planted a gentle kiss on his lips, and pulled back laying her head back down. He was blushing, and so was she. He opened his eyes slowly, as she looked at him, she closed her eyes tightly, thinking he would walk away, but she was wrong. He put a finger on her chin and lifted her face to his, and kissed her back. She quickly melted into the kiss and closed her eyes after the initial surprise. She placed a hand on his chest, but didn't push away, Sephiroth pulled back slowly and stared at his charge. Yuna opened her eyes and stared back, their eyes half-closed. "Sephiroth I-" he kissed her again, cutting her off, and made this one last longer, it was more passionate, he placed a hand on her cheek, cupping it, and pulled back. "Yuna..is this how you've really felt about me? Since that hug on the boat?" she shakes her head, "Since I first saw you..My wish came true..to have an angel come and help me..to ease my journey's weight on my shoulders..." this made him smile, "An angel..?" he kissed her again, "Yeah..an angel..my angel.." he heard footsteps and pulled away from Yuna, it was Tidus, who frowned at the two, "Yo, Wakka's looking for you two." he walked over and picked up Yuna, "Come on. We gotta get moving right?" she yelped and walked a bit, tripping and sits up.

"Yuna...you ok?" Sephiroth was standing tall, glaring murderously at the blonde. He grabs him by the throat, lifting the snobbish blitzer into the air, "I'm giving you one...and only ONE warning...touch her like that again...I swear to Yevon or whoever you worship...I will tear your throat out...I will make sure you are nothing but a bloody mess...you will never...EVER do that again!" his eyes flared angrily at the teen boy, he looked at Sephiroth with terrified eyes, like he was looking at Death square in the face, while Yuna just looked at them, surprised at how Sephiroth spoke so deathly cold to the blonde.

"Am I clear...?" the blonde nodded slowly, and Sephiroth dropped him, making a loud thump, Tidus quickly stood, and began to run, who was pulled by his hood, "Apologize to Lady Yuna boy." He chokes a bit and bows a bit to Yuna, "S..sorry Lady Yuna." Sephiroth promptly let's go of his hood, and Tidus bolts down the stairs and out the exit. Yuna looked at Sephiroth with a bit of fear in her eyes, he walked up to her, kneeling down, and hugging her, she sighed, relieved, "Sorry you had to hear that Yuna...I will not have anyone man-handling you..not while I still breath..." she smiles and nods, "We better get moving Sephy..." she giggles, "Everyone's waiting." Sephiroth sighs, "Normally...I don't let anyone call me that...but for you...I'll make an exception.." they both smile at each other and walk down the stairs and outside, heading to the forest.

Before they walk any further, Sephiroth yanks a kid off a collapsing home, the kid bows and runs towards Wakka who is walking towards them. "Saw Tidus runnin outta the inn, you musta really spooked him Seph." hearing that made Sephiroth laugh for a bit. "I wasn't too nice." he shook his head, "Anyway...where are we headed?" Wakka points to the jungle, "We head for the temple, at the top of the stairs." he nods and walks towards the jungle Yuna following him, happy that her guardian angel is here to help her through her journey.