Vagaries of Fate

Progression

Chapter 34

Zack had come and gone by the time Sephiroth arrived. Clarissa laughed at the sight of him trying to unfold out of the tiny car he had requisitioned from the company garage. She knew the reason he had done so was to keep himself out of sight from the general populace. At least until he got behind the gate of the complex where they were housed.

The boys had still been busy looking through the books when Zack came. As a matter of fact, the only reason they moved when Sephiroth came in was that Clarissa made them. It was dinner time, and they had to clean up. Thankfully, Sephiroth had once again brought enough groceries for several days.

Dinner was mostly quiet. The only conversation was from Clarissa. She was thrilled the boys were so enraptured with the book collection and asked them if they wanted her to read to them before bed. They were all blown away at the idea. Especially when she confirmed that for that night only, it would be alright for them to bring their blankets into the living room so they could all sleep together, Sephiroth included. Though both adults knew he didn't plan on sleeping. Not if he was there as a guard. Still, he could at least lay down until the boys fell asleep.

It wasn't long after they cleaned up before the boys had everything on the living room floor. Clarissa could hardly contain her grin at the muted excitement they were showing. Not everyone would have noticed, but it was easy for her to see since she had been around them nearly constantly for a couple of weeks already. She still kept those thoughts to herself. She didn't want to make them feel self-conscious about it.

It didn't take them long to get everything laid out. Clarissa had them lay down, and she covered them all up before she leaned against the couch and opened the book they had picked. It was a ridiculously long adventure novel, but she didn't question the choice. At least it was bonding time. Though, she did state that there was no way she could read the whole thing. It would have to come in sections. Secretly she was glad for it. The time she spent reading to them could only help.

Sephiroth was sitting on the end of the pallet across from them as Clarissa started reading. It was near to the end of the third chapter that Loz and Kadaj's eyes began to drift closed. Clarissa smiled at them while she finished the chapter. She then closed the book softly. Kadaj stirred, but he didn't wake. Yazoo gave her a hard look but didn't say anything before he turned over and scooted a little closer to his brother. It wasn't long at all before all three of them were asleep.

It was late by that time, and Sephiroth gave her a smile as he stood. "Why don't you get some sleep as well. I'm sure it has been a long day for you."

She gave him a tired look and tried to smile as well. "That's no joke." She only stood far enough to sit on the couch. She didn't want to be too far in case the boys woke up.

When Sephiroth turned to go check the windows and doors, she called out to stop him. "Hey, I wanted to thank you for being here tonight. They may not know how to show it much, but it means a lot to them."

When Sephiroth looked back, his eyes were haunted, and his voice was low. "I know. That is something I hope they can grow out of eventually."

Clarissa stood and moved to put a hand on his arm. She looked up with understanding. "Don't worry. About them or yourself. You may not see it, but you aren't as bad at it as you might think."

He let go of a little chuckle and shook his head before he answered. "Perhaps not, but I have good friends that helped."

She gave him a smile and patted his arm once before she went back to lay down. It gave her hope to know that recovery for them all was finally possible. Even if it would take time. Those thoughts and ones of Genesis were what finally ushered her into sleep.

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Clarissa was thankful when her husband finally called the next day. They had both been too busy to do more than send a few texts since she got back to Midgar. The boys were still exploring the new apartment, so she had a few minutes to just sit and listen to his voice. She knew she had missed him but hadn't anticipated how good it would be to hear him speak. Even if he was irritated. She was especially grateful when he let her know that there was still no sign that Avalanche had been there.

His irritation stemmed from the fact that they had the other Soldiers secure the first facility, but not clear it. That meant that once he was finished at the second lab, he would have to go back to the first. It was anticipated to take them a little more than an extra week to go through it all, but that meant it could be anywhere between another three to four weeks before they got to see each other again. When she found out, she wasn't any more thrilled than Genesis. The one plus was that they both had more than enough to keep them busy. Not that it helped at night.

Despite the fact that they were separated, Genesis still found time to call each day over the next two weeks. Now that they were settled into the clearing part, he had a little more free time. Not much, but it was better than no communication at all. Clarissa was even more thrilled each night when he reported that there was still no sign of Avalanche again at either facility. She hoped that meant that perhaps Shears was considering her words after all. It would make their lives easier if he did, that was for sure.

As for the boys, they were settling into life in Midgar about as well as Clarissa had expected. They looked forward to the nights that Sephiroth could visit and tolerated the other Soldiers that came. Zack was the only that even seemed to break the ice with them at all. Not that they talked to him much, but it was only after his third visit that they at least quit trying to avoid him like they still did anyone else that didn't have Jenova cells. It was a start, and Clarissa was thrilled to see it.

Unfortunately, the Soldiers were still the only other people that the boys were exposed to. Clarissa asked them each day if they wanted to get out. There had ba a few times that Loz looked like he wanted to say yes, but at a glance from the other two, it was decided they were not yet ready. That didn't keep her from asking every day anyway.

The only exception to their isolation was the two times that Shalua came to visit with Shelke. The two girls had come over late in the afternoon a couple of times and stayed for dinner. The first time Clarissa could barely contain her grin when the boys had to show Shelke that they now knew the songs she had mentioned the first time she visited. It was adorable to watch them all run through the actions of the children's songs. Even more so when they roped Clarissa into helping.

All in all, the boys were progressing slowly toward learning to become part of society, but Clarissa wasn't as worried as she once was. She knew they trusted her now, and they trusted Sephiroth. She had a feeling that it wouldn't be long until they trusted Genesis as well. Not once he was back. No matter the speed with which they adapted, she could tell that they would eventually learn to have mostly normal lives, and it made her proud. Despite not wanting to make them self-conscious, she still made sure to tell them that too. At least a few times. There was no point in making them clam up again after all.

It had been nearly three weeks that the boys had been in Midgar with Clarissa. Genesis was supposed to arrive in a couple of days as well. That helped boost the mood around the dinner table that night significantly. It didn't hurt that Zack was the Soldier assigned to guard duty that night, either.

The Second was still sitting at the table after everything was cleared away and was currently showing the three boys some card tricks he had picked up. Clarissa had to fight not to laugh at Zack's disappointment when Yazoo was quick to point out the method behind each of them.

She let it go on a longer than usual, just because they all seemed to be enjoying themselves. Still, after the fifth trick, she had to call a halt to it. If she hadn't, then Zack probably would have kept trying until he found one the boys couldn't figure out just by watching. Not that it would have happened.