The Beginning is the End...

Beta’d by CaseyAnn’sPrecious!

AN: I know that the time traveling thing has been done so many times before, but I’m still grateful that you’ve decided to read it anyways. And a huge thanks to those who took the time to type a review. Like all writers, good or bad, it’s nice to know what people are enjoying and what I need to work on.

Ratings, Disclaimer, and iWarnings! are still the same.

Unstable
(By: Adema)
Chapter 3

His head was throbbing. It felt like a massive bag of cotton was overstuffed into his brain.
His thoughts were scattered, his body was sore, and his throat was dry.

But it was quiet… and warm, tranquil, and he was on an unusual elongated couch that rode low to the ground, firm, and was incased in a soft fabric of earthly color. As he became more aware he took alarm to the fact that he was half naked while on a couch in an unknown home and was only covered by a light blanket. Careful not to move to alert anyone to his consciousness, he cautiously looked around the room. He didn't want a confrontation until he could remember what had happened.

The room felt… home-like, modern, and silence accentuated the given serenity even more so. Rain pattered on the windows, and from outside came a loud thunderous rumble that caused the house to lightly shake. A groan escaped from his lips as the small twinges of discomfort he had in his head turned into a heavy ache, and the events coming up to this moment were swiftly shoved to the front of his mind.

He never made it into SOLDIER, but mako had still been in his bloodstream. Professor Hojo had secretly abducted him to study different types of experimental mako and the amounts that human bodies could contain. His limits were reached too many times and his mind had gone into shock. For a long time he’d forgotten about who he really was and believed himself only to be a failed experiment. And the number… it seemed so important back then.
Recruitment. Training was fun now with Zack there again; though, the SOLDIER went easy on him because he didn’t have any enhancements.
Rain… the Storm; it was chaos outside as the winds blew. Mako was gushing out of the tubes from on top of the Shinra building and carried by the winds as it rained down. It was as if it were a mako hurricane. Materia, Gaia… Time. He’d been reaching for the Time Materia. He didn’t know what it would do, but Aerith and Zack had died while trying to reach it… and there were still so many unanswered questions.
Water… the pool, he’d almost drowned!

"We're friends, right?"

Panicked, Cloud’s eyes widened as his senses kicked in. Where was he? How did he get here? He was going out to the pool to work on his swimming, but he was also reaching for the Materia… the Time Materia.

Was this because of the Time Materia? The orb was so small, so powerful... could it really have controlled the flow of time? He’d woken up with two sets of recent memories and the overwhelming certainty of which timeline it was only proved his thoughts. It could… but it was bizarre! When Aerith had told him it was a Time Materia, Cloud had assumed it was some powerful Haste, Slow, or even Stop… something that Sephiroth wouldn't be immune to.

His mind was rapidly sifting through thoughts, but he allowed himself to relax as common sense told him there was no one else in the room. Otherwise, someone would have come to check on him when he made the noise. Taking a closer look around the apartment, he saw that the kitchen, living room, and dining room were all adjoining. The only thing separating the kitchen from the dining area was a table peninsula paired with windowed ceiling cupboards.

There was enough natural light to clearly see as dull rays came in through the window, but there was an oddity; it was beginning to storm outside. A bolt of lightning hit particularly close and made the room light up vibrantly, almost blinding, and Cloud jumped when following close behind came a deafening thunder that sent the house trembling.

Amazed, the blond slowly got up from the couch and quietly walked over to the window. The room was at least thirty floors high, so he deemed it safe to assume that it was an apartment complex. He observed the rain as it heavily fell, but there were parts to the north and south that were still sunny and clear. This place… only one area had weather as crazy as this.

"Junon," he whispered aloud while stupefied at the wonder of the Materia, speaking to hopefully bring more realism into this surreal situation. He brought a hand to his throat and delicately ran his fingertips over his developing adam’s apple. His voice wasn't as deep, yet it was still the same. The warrior looked down at his small frame, stretching the muscles and moving his arms. It felt seemingly unchanged, yet alien, and he wasn’t nearly as strong as he remembered… although there was definite improvement compared to a few weeks ago.

This was really weird, and he still didn't recall how he’d gotten here. It clearly wasn’t where Zack stayed, or anyone else he knew, for that matter. More memories clashed and blended together as he walked away from the window, and he grabbed a hold of something solid when wave of dizziness washed over him. He never would have imagined to be pulled back and have two consciences slammed together like this. It was definitely a special kind of Time.

When his head cleared enough to actually see what was in front of his face, Cloud noted that he'd grabbed hold of a shelf filled with movies, tapes, and pictures. One of the pictures that caught his interest contained two men who appeared in their late twenties to early thirties, but what he noticed first was that one of the men was carrying Zack's sword. That brought up questions.

Absorbed in the picture, he didn't hear the door when it open and close behind him. Even if he had kept his mako-enhanced hearing, the soft footsteps would have still been unnoticeable.

--

The General cursed the press as he headed back to his apartment. Though reporters weren't allowed on the grounds, it didn't stop them from slipping in and hiding until they got a bite. He'd barely gotten the boy out of the water when Angeal and Zack burst through the door, and Sephiroth told Angeal to put the kid in his room while he went outside to take care of the vultures.

For three hours he had to make repeated statements of 'no comment' when questioned about his brave action and, god forbid, relationship toward the recruit. The media finally gave up trying to interrogate him and attempted to follow the other SOLDIER to get to the half-drowned boy. Fortunately, Zack and he were capable of blocking their way without using, as Shinra liked to put it, 'excessive force' and the reporters were escorted off of the premises when reinforcements arrived.

Sephiroth gave another curse as he trudged up the stairs and it seemed as if each step he took was heavier than the last. He chose to walk because he needed the physical movement to help work off some of the steam that had been building up, and muddled thoughts cluttered his mind as to just who was alone in his apartment was setting in.

No matter how many times Sephiroth had told himself that Cloud didn’t matter, that Zack could become his new sparring partner, he was aware of the a small part inside of him that was still waiting for the old battles to come back. It wasn’t because of the way Cloud fought, or how strong the other was, but because the blond-haired warrior didn’t care if he, the General, was cut down. Real battles were based on fighting to kill, and Cloud had tried.

Only…

This Cloud wasn’t the same one he wanted. This boy was a different version of the other warrior in every sense of the word; weaker, unable to hold his own, limited. Sephiroth had finally realized this when he’d pulled the blonds’ limp form from out of the water.

He didn't have his battle for mother, he was still the General that nobody wanted to harm, and the furious swordsman that had fought him with unreserved strength was probably lost forever. He felt… bored, useless.

His superiority, the cadet's lack of courage, it all seemed so wrong, and now the unguarded boy was resting on his couch. He felt sick…

Sephiroth made it to his floor and slowly crossed the hallway until he paused at his door. ‘I should apologize for my actions to him. I'm sure he's noticed and has been wondering why. Not that I'll explain, but the apology should suffice.’ He grabbed his keys and quietly walked into his home. Stepping lightly as to not wake the blond, he shut the door and took off his shoes. Turning, he saw that the other was already awake and standing by the bookshelf. The boy's hair was even more of a mess from sleep and he had a tilt to his head while looking down at a picture.

‘I should make myself known.’ Sephiroth took a few steps closer and gave off a presence that only he could achieve. And go back to proper titles.

"Soldier." The word came out forced, and the young blond jumped and gave a startled gasp. This, of course, was accompanied by the sound of broken glass when the picture fell to the floor. It didn't faze him; he should have expected a reaction like that anyways, having gotten it enough times from raving fans. "I trust you are well enough to head back to your barracks?"

The soldier’s vivid blue eyes continued to openly stare and the boy even seemed to stop breathing. He was about to ask what was wrong, but was interrupted by a word, something he'd heard many times before that seemed so long ago.

"Sephiroth."

His pupils dilated as the name slipped from the boy's parted lips and a look that could never come from idol worship filled those eyes; dread. Sephiroth gave a feral grin as all thoughts of earlier apologies swiftly fled from his mind. The day had been turning out for the worse, but now it didn’t seem so bad… not when the one person who could disrupt the repetitiveness this place had was standing right in front of him. He knew it was him, it was from the way the other said his name, the look.

And he gladly answered, "Cloud."

The two warriors stared each other down, eyeing one another with careful apprehension. Sephiroth smirked as Cloud’s gaze shifted to the door; even through all of the battle experience and training, the other was still so easy to read.

He knew that the blond was panicking, trying to keep a level head while staring in the face of what should be an opponent, and he only watched while the other cautiously stepped around the couch to get to the door.

--

Cloud ran down the end of the hallway and smashed the elevator button. He did a quick glance back to make sure he wasn't being followed while the panels glided opened, and once inside he rapidly pressed on the number to get to the first floor.

‘Sephiroth. It was Sephiroth. Oh, Gaia, it was Sephiroth!’ His mind repeated him over and over.

His hands and knees were trembling and he swallowed nervously. The home he’d been in, it was Sephiroth’s. It was like a deathtrap, and he didn’t particularly enjoy running into those. ‘Sephiroth, Sephiroth, Sephiroth. He doesn't know, can't know, wouldn't know.’ Cloud placed his forehead on the cool metal wall and tried to calm his breathing.

“Cloud.” His mind flashed back to the way his name was sadistically rolled off the other's tongue. ‘No, I must have heard it wrong. The Materia brought me back, not him. I grabbed it first and if it were him then I'd be dead, but…’

His heart felt like it was going to burst from inside his chest.

Cloud mentally smacked himself for not paying more attention back in the room. How could he have let his guard down so carelessly while in unknown territory? That voice, when he heard that voice all his muscles had tensed, and the only thing that had worked properly was his fight or flight response. His body was weak and unenhanced, and he wouldn’t have stood a chance if the other chosen to kill him right then and there. But…

‘But he didn't kill me.’

The other had stood far away from the door to make the escape route easier. If Sephiroth meant to kill him then it wouldn’t have been so obvious that the space was meant to make use out of.

The elevator gave a ding as its doors opened to allow him off, and chill crawled up his spine as his body began to cool from after being in the warm room. It was chilly inside the building, and he only had a pair of partially dried swim trunks as protection. It only reminded him as to how this situation came to be in the first place.

He wanted to moan in frustration at how unlucky he was. Why couldn’t the Materia have spontaneously sent him to Aerith's place?

Aerith! It finally dawned on him; Aerith was still alive! And Zack! Hell, of course Zack was still alive, his friend was practically mentoring him! Cloud frowned at that. When the first battle with Sephiroth ended, he'd spent almost a year in solitary trying to remember things about the past. Though back then there were a lot of holes, everything now seemed filled up to the parts that hadn’t happened yet. Zack and he were friends, good friends, but…

‘I don't remember him teaching me this stuff before.’ His eyebrows furrowed as he wondered if something could have happened. ‘Or maybe he did? No, impossible.’ Cloud cut thought off at the bud before it had a chance to develop because he still hadn't known how to swim even after the Sephiroth battle, and he certain of this because of the embarrassment he had when he finally asked for help. During that phase in his life, Cloud worried over who he should put his trust in to keep a minor secret. He’d thought of each friend carefully and had mauled over it for months, but there was always something that would make him feel weary and he’d turn around back go out the way he came when he spotted them.

Then he had taken the ninja into consideration. Yuffie was born in Wutai. Wutai was an island. Who came from an island and couldn't swim? No one. And the best thing was is that all she had requested for her silence was some mastered Materia. Cloud had been taught how to swim in a remote location, Yuffie had gotten her Materia, no one had found out, and everyone was happy.

But why was Zack teaching him this time?

He gave blissful sigh when he caught sight the front desk. Thanking Gaia for small favors, he quickly found the doors headed out into the open with full intent to get to his bunker and change into something warm.

--

Sephiroth was, yet again, looking down from his window to the vacant streets below. It had taken a while, but the blond had finally made it out of the building and was assumingly heading back to the soldier barracks. He contemplated on almost telling the blond that there was nothing to fear from him, that Jenova wasn't in control.

But the urge to get him back was strong. It was amusing, just an hour ago he was about to swallow his pride and give the boy another chance, but now that Cloud was back he wanted him crushed… and crush him he would.

He quickly put a stop to the dark throaty chuckle he was giving the moment he realized he was doing it. Grabbing a pear from the kitchen, he took a bite and then felt a wave of uncertainty. What if it wasn't the Cloud he knew and fought with? If it wasn't, then why would the other have acted like that just moments ago… of course, if it was still the young foot soldier then the boy would have plausible reason to react so badly. There were other incidents where recruits, cadets, foot soldiers, and even some newer SOLDIERs had turned and ran from just spotting him near, and remembering how he had treated the boy it was no wonder if the blond had come to fear him.

"Sephiroth." His mind went over the way the youth had spoken his name. He had been so sure, so sure it was him. What if it had just slipped out? He heard the way people spoke. They dropped all titles and were unguarded as they didn’t give a second thought about their comments. The optimism he felt earlier took a slump as he rationalized that it could have just been a fluke, and then quickly neutralized whatever feeling that gave and reattempted to finish his snack.

Heavy footsteps were heard running through the halls and then accompanied by the sound of a knob slamming against the wall as the door flew open.

"Where's Cloud?!"

Sephiroth doubted that Zack would ever learn to knock on his door.

*0~0*0~0*0~0*

"When do you think Angeal will be back?" the young SOLDIER 3rd asked. He had invited Zack to, as Genesis put it, 'hang out' while Angeal was away. The Commander thought it was a good idea for them to get better aquatinted since they were going to see a lot of each other. He didn’t mind, it worked, and Zack was becoming more relaxed around him all the time… a little too relaxed, sometimes. But right now, the kid looked pathetic as they were all waiting for Angeal to come back from a mission.

He gave a mental sigh and replied, "Sometime around tomorrow, possibly." Zack only nodded and continued to gaze up at the ceiling. "My door is unlocked if I'm home. If you ever feel the need to interact with anyone, you are welcome in."

Zack returned with a bright smile and a 'thanks'.

*0~0*0~0*0~0*

He’d rued the day that he didn’t further explain his offer. It was ingrained in him to always knock first when entering someone's office or place of residence and figured it would be the same for this too. Angeal and Genesis had always knocked first, but now Zack was walking in and out of his home unannounced and on spontaneous occasions.

"Is he gone? Where'd he go?" The other looked back and forth across the room to make sure the blond wasn't going to pop up anywhere.

"He just made it outside, most likely going to his room," he responded. A polite knock on the doorframe alerted him to Angeal’s presence.

Zack let out a dejected groan, "Aw… we just missed him? I didn't see him comin' up though!"

"He might have taken a longer route," Angeal said, "most get lost in this building if they've never been in here before." Zack turned to run out the door and catch up to his blond friend, but before he could make it Angeal stopped him. "You can see how he is later; you need to get some rest. The beginning tests will be starting soon."

"UH? Oh, man, I totally spaced those out!" Zack exclaimed and it was Angeal's turn to give a sigh.

"I'll talk with you tomorrow," Angeal said to him and walked his charge out the door.

--

The room was quiet except for the occasional shuffle of paper. Hojo was at his desk, the single light in use was a small lamp that only lit up the desk area while darkness enshrouded the rest. He didn't mind, he was far too absorbed in the data he'd memorized a million times over. The man who'd written this so many years ago had been brilliant, but not brilliant enough to escape from his fate the moment he chose to run from Shinra.

Hojo had been second only to that man, who was the only reason why he had to follow someone else’s work, and why he couldn’t freely experiment to make a different path for mankind. He was forced to study under the ‘lead scientist’ from the first day the new science division had developed. The Professor scowled at the memory. He hated being thought of as second, he was second to no one! Not even Prof. Hollander would take his title away from being Shinra's top scientist!

The notes he held were old. The beginning of the research was filled with eagerness over the new finding, informative as the results mapped out to a conclusion, and then they abruptly ended. That's where his notes began, but something was off. There was something, something that had been in the original project before that wasn't written out, and therein laid a secret. Hojo knew about the alien, he'd known the same moment the late Prof. Gast found out, and at the time both were thrilled over the new discovery. However, Gast's excitement faded over time… he grew to be wary, and then he suddenly disappeared.

Hojo was sure that the man sensed his growing resentment for still being one step behind. It didn't matter that Gast ran because he had permission to have Turks search for the man and get rid of the evidence if there was refusal to come back to Shinra. Hojo found him with a woman in some remote location that was close to an isolated town, and after he had gotten rid of them he confiscated all the evidence to see if the man had continued the research. In other files there were samples of Prof. Gast's blood work, but Hojo couldn't seem to find the answer he was looking for. Why would the man seem almost paranoid of his own blood samples? They were the same as when he'd gotten the physical examinations at Shinra. Though he hated to admit it, the man that was considered to be brilliant didn't make sense!

What was Gast studying that made him so high-strung that he tried to destroy the Jenova project? Did he try to destroy it because he realized that Hojo was planning his 'accidental’ death and didn't want him to take full credit for their work? Hojo was certain that at the time neither one of them knew what the alien had done to the Ancients, nor could a happy-go-lucky man like that ever sense bloodlust.

"Something, something, something," the Professor mumbled to himself as he flipped one of the pages back to reread it. He still got nothing! Somewhere in the files laid a tape, a worthless piece of garbage that he should have put in the disposal.

"Visual tapes 1-47 had been destroyed along with documentaries and data that I had collected," Gast had spoken into the camera. His voice was smooth and didn't carry any of the panicked tone a hunted man should have. "The original Project J will end, though I only hope I destroyed enough to make it cease to continue. Another project has also ended, all data destroyed."

A woman was moving in the background and was clearly pregnant. She looked up when she saw her husband working and humbly moved back out from the room as to not disturb him.

"I was saved." The video and all else that could have been Jenova related was ended there.

Hojo angrily tossed the tape behind him. He should have thrown it out after first watching it, its presence only served to cause more irritation. Beside his elbow lay two other files just recently acquired. The soon to be late Professor Hollander had given him all the research he needed. The projects would soon follow under his name just as the late Professor Gast's had done, but only this time he could rely on natural causes.

There wasn't even a need to wait for the man's death! Hollander was a gullible man. The other would begin the process for getting the containers ready for the new experiments so he wouldn't have to waste precious time. Hojo chuckled in his usual high-pitched tone. Soon he wouldn't have to compete with anyone, and he'd get two new specimens to continue his project. He would find out what Prof. Gast had known, and he would take the name of the world's top scientist; a name that should have been given to him from the beginning!

To be continued…

AN: I’m sure you’ve noticed that Sephiroth has been calling Cloud ‘cadet’ rather than ‘soldier’ (except in the apartment scene) but in the military those that are of low rank are like cannon fodder to the higher-ups. He’s never done that before, but is now as a small way to vent his anger.

Also, anyone notice that in FF7 Cloud only crosses rivers/streams that are one foot deep? If you want to cross something larger/deeper you have to use a vehicle. So, my conclusion is that he can’t swim! *cackles*
I wanted a little Zack time in there, but I need him gone cause tests are starting for SOLDIER….

Have any questions? I might have matching answers!

Please review! (Criticism accepted as long as it’s constructive…)