((WARNING!: This is a yaoi LEMON fanfiction. That means fairly graphic descriptions of male/male sex. If this offends you- DON'T READ IT! I will ignore all flames that result from you not turning away now.))

Silver and Black

By Deathswings

Sephiroth was in a particularly bad mood. Those who didn't know him often thought that the stoic, silver haired teenager was *always* in a bad mood, but that wasn't the case. He was merely quiet, reserved. But today, he really *was* in a bad mood. In fact, he'd very much like to strangle someone. He'd been sent to Wutai- an annoying little backcountry province, in his opinion- to find a supposed traitor, who was plotting against Shinra. He knew that wasn't the case. Shinra has merely fought a war with the people of Wutai some time ago, and openly disliked them now, though they'd won the war. This "traitor" was just a mysterious Internet ghost- someone who hacked into places just for the thrill of breaking in. Ghosts were exactly like the real thing; they never touched anything, merely observing and going places because they could. Sephiroth actually admired them.

Their target this time was one of the best. They'd spent almost four years just finding out that he lived in Wutai! Now, Sephiroth and a team of investigators were being sent to find out the face behind the handle "Rayvansfire". He expected to come home empty handed. What he didn't expect was for the traitor to land right in his lap... literally.

Sephiroth was walking down an alley, exploring the city, when he heard a commotion up above him.

"Come back here, boy!"

"Whatever happened to Wutaiian loyalty? I thought we all stuck together until the end!"

"Shut up, boy! If they find you here, we're all doomed! How could you visit disaster upon us like this?" Sephiroth's ears perked up. Was the traitor on the roof above him? This was far too easy! He looked around for a way to climb up, when a large object fell from the roof. Sephiroth moved automatically, catching the object in his arms, only to find that it was not an object at all, but a young man about Sephiroth's age. He was exotically beautiful, with long, straight black hair, a very thin figure- though he had the beginnings of wide shoulders- almond shaped and colored eyes, and a tiny black dot on his head, right where a "third eye" would be. He gazed up at Sephiroth for a long moment, obviously shocked to have survived the fall. Then he blinked a couple of times, and his eyes widened. He yelped and struggled out of Sephiroth's arms,

"Shit... Out of the frying pan, and into the fire!" and then he was gone. Sephiroth stared after him, bemused. That was a traitor? He didn't think so. In fact, the boy looked quite harmless. But looks could be deceiving... Still, he knew who "Rayvansfire" was now. The only question was- what did he intend to do with the information?

Sephiroth gathered the people in the village up later that evening for an announcement,

"To apologize for Shinra's presence here, there will be a ball tonight in the hotel at Shinra's expense. However, I'm afraid that I must ask that you all attend, as I will be gathering information on the whereabouts of this traitor that we seek. If you are not the traitor, however, have no fear. The guards that are with me have been ordered not to harass or bully the citizens. Does everyone understand?"

"Sir, I think I can save you a lot of trouble. I know who the traitor is. It's Tseng!" There was a murmur in the crowd and the people around Tseng moved away from him. Sephiroth saw it was, indeed, the boy from earlier. Sephiroth moved over to him and seized the boy's chin in his hands. Though they were roughly the same age, Sephiroth's height and position made him seem very imposing. They locked eyes. They both knew that Tseng was the traitor, and Tseng knew that. But there was no fear in his eyes.

"Are you the one we seek? Are you the traitor?"

"I am not a traitor," Tseng said, eyes still locked with Sephiroth's "He is trying to dishonor my family. I will not allow that." Sephiroth held his gaze a moment longer, then released him,

"Very well then. If you say you are not the traitor, then you are not the traitor. Bring the other man in for questioning. Those who point the finger are often the ones with something to hide. Everyone else will attend the ball. Including you, Tseng. Just because I've cleared you doesn't mean you're exempt- understand?"

"Yes, sir."

Sephiroth turned away, hiding a smirk. He had a plan. And if it worked, Tseng might be seeing a lot more of the Shinra Company.

Several hours later, Sephiroth adjusted his tie with a total lack of self-consciousness. He looked damn good in a black suit, and he knew it, and he relished the opportunity to wear something other than his battle clothes. All the ball had become to him was an excuse to dress up and a vehicle to allow him to talk to Tseng.

He arrived at the ball with a total lack of fanfare, which is exactly what he wanted. It allowed him to sneak quietly up on Tseng and tap him on the shoulder. The look on Tseng's face when he turned around was well worth it.

"I believe we need to talk, Tseng. Perhaps you would like to take a little walk into the gardens?" Tseng nodded, his face a cool mask of indifference towards what he had to see as his quickly approaching death. Sephiroth led him outside, down a disused garden path, and behind a small shed that he had seen earlier. Out of sight and earshot. Perfect. Tseng just stood there, pale, but strong,

"Thank you for not dishonoring me in public, though I don't know why you didn't. Please kill my quietly and dispose of me somewhere where they won't find me." Sephiroth's eyes widened, impressed. This boy could really face down his death with such perfect calm? He was indeed perfect for the job Sephiroth had in mind.

"Do you want to die, Tseng?"

"Sir?"

"I said, do you want to die?"

"Well... no, of course not! Why would anyone want to die?"

"So, if I were to offer you a way out, you'd take it?"

"Yes. Yes, of course I'd take it."

"They say that a wise course of action is to keep your friends close and your enemies closer. I don't believe you're an enemy, exactly. I've never seen a ghost do any harm, but you are in the eyes of Shinra. So I have a little proposal for you."

"A proposal?"

"Join Shinra. Become a member of our ranks and leave Wutai forever. Or die. It's your choice."

"I'll come with you, then. But do you mean it? I could join Shinra? Doing what? Clerical work? Menial labor?" Sephiroth almost laughed,

"With those computer skills of yours, I was going to see about the Turks, actually."

"The...TURKS! You're not serious... You can't be serious!"

"I'm deadly serious. You showed some serious backbone out there in the square and some admirable qualities here when faced with death. And I like you. You're a normal human being. They need a few of those in their ranks. I'm not promising anything, but I'll lean my full weight behind you. Don't you dare disappoint me, Tseng."

"Don't worry, I won't, sir!" Tseng paused a moment, then added, "Sir? Thank you. They... they don't paint you as a very forgiving person, even at Shinra."

" 'They' don't know me very well. Come on, let's go back to the party."

Sephiroth stood at the podium at the end of the night,

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I have two pieces of excellent news. I am pleased to inform you that we have indeed located the traitor, and we will be dealing with him as we see fit to deal with him. Our other news is much happier. Tseng will be coming with us to Midgar where he will hopefully be the newest member of the Turks. His brave spirit in the face of possible dishonor and death is to be commended, and this is merely our way of rewarding that. Please congratulate him on your way out. Continue enjoying yourselves here as you see fit. I, however, believe I am retiring for the evening. Thank you and I hope you have a wonderful night!"

He stepped down and headed towards his room, stopping only to lean over to Tseng and whisper,

"Tseng, report to my quarters tomorrow morning at 11. We'll leave at noon. If you wish, you may tell your parents why you are going, and why you might not be back for awhile. I can give you that much."

"Yes, sir. Thank you very much, sir"

And Sephiroth retreated to his room.

Sephiroth knew he was dreaming the moment he opened his eyes. He was in his bed, dressed as he always was, in black, loose, silk pants, but something wasn't right. He wasn't sure what it was, but it *was*. It wasn't unpleasant; it just let him know he was dreaming. He rose from his bed, heading into the next room. Had he heard a noise there? Ah, now he knew he was dreaming, for it was Tseng who was sleeping in the bed in the room next to his, and Tseng was still at home. Tseng... Without knowing why exactly, he moved to stand over the black haired young man. Deftly, he reached down and flipped the blankets off of him, revealing that, like Sephiroth, he slept shirtless. Sephiroth reached a hand out and let his fingers brush against Tseng's chest, drawing a sleepy murmur from his "victim". Sephiroth couldn't explain why he was doing this; it seemed so totally insane. Why was he dreaming about being in Tseng's bedroom? Before he knew what he was doing, he'd leaned down and placed a long, sweet kiss to Tseng's lips, his tongue slowly moving to trace the soon-to-be Turk's lower lip. There was no point, no plot, just this sudden, languid, liquid pressure. As Tseng swam into the waking world, he began to kiss back, tongue sliding sleepily against Sephiroth's, his arms coming up around his sudden lover, pulling him down onto his bed.

And Sephiroth sat up straight in his. What on earth had that been? He'd thought of men that way before on more than one occasion- that didn't bother him much, but until now he'd never thought of Tseng like that. Why had he? Sure, the boy was beautiful, but so were Rufus Shinra and that new kid in SOLDIER and Zack... Zack... If Sephiroth would have had any dreams about men, he would have said that he would have had one about Zack. But he'd had one about Tseng... Tseng! Was there something particularly wrong with that, other than the fact that they were both men? No, not really. But it was shocking to Sephiroth that he would have such an intimate dream about someone that he had known for so short a time. Had he really fallen that much for the new Turk?

Tseng, meanwhile, was having a dream of his own.

He was at the ball, back out in the garden, with Sephiroth, and even though he knew it had been deadly quiet when the two of them were out there, he could hear the band now, playing softly through the trees. Sephiroth was leaning close to him, just as he had done during the real events, only this time, instead of offering him a new life, he was bending down to plant sweet kisses from his ear to his mouth, pulling the dark haired man into a tight embrace, whispering terms of endearments in his ear. Tseng thought he might die, just from the sheer intensity of it all... and Sephiroth was so beautiful. He clutched at the silver haired man, and Sephiroth swayed lightly against him, urging him to dance, or at least move slowly back and forth against him, in time to the music. Tseng readily complied, pressing his body against the taller man, totally awash in sensation.

"Sephiroth..."

And Tseng also found himself clutching at air.

Unlike Sephiroth, he knew exactly why he had dreamed what he had dreamed. Sephiroth was beautiful, uncanny, and his personal savior from hell. He didn't much relish the thought of leaving Wutai, but he'd do almost anything to become a Turk. But Tseng was starting to wonder how the other soldiers under Sephiroth managed to concentrate on anything other than that wonderful man when they were in the same room as him. Tseng had fallen in deep lust, and he knew it. But he knew Sephiroth was straight as a board, so he put such thoughts behind him. He couldn't let himself become distracted this easily if he was going to be a Turk.

But secretly, he wondered how often he'd get to see Sephiroth after he became a Turk...

A knock on Sephiroth's door came precisely at 11 sharp.

"Come in, Tseng. You're right on time."

"I try, sir. I hope I'm dressed appropriately... I don't really have any nicer clothes other than what I wore to the ball." Sephiroth glanced up from the bed he was perched on, taking in the Wutaiian from toe to forehead. Dark, slightly loose blue jeans, a white dress shirt and soft brown boots. Delicious.

"You look..." fabulous, sexy, delectable, "fine, Tseng. After all, you're still a civilian right now, and we are planning to travel today. I'm hardly out of bed myself, so I don't think I'm anyone to talk about how you are dressed."

And indeed, Sephiroth looked like he was barely out of bed, and Tseng found himself struggling to keep him breathing level. He was wearing black silk pants that could be nothing but pajamas and he had put on a black dress shirt, but he'd only half buttoned it. He was barefoot, and his hair looked like it hadn't been properly brushed yet. He looked like some Greek model of perfection, come down to earth and sitting cross-legged on a bed. Tseng was utterly captivated by him.

"Sir, when do we leave?"

"Are you packed?"

"Yes, sir"

"Then we leave now."

Several minutes later, Sephiroth walked out of the building and into the van. Tseng was already in the van, waiting for him.

"Hello, Tseng. I see that you're rather eager to go."

"More like eager to get the leaving over with so I can arrive someplace else."

Sephiroth laughed lightly,

"I like that, Tseng. We're going to go as far as the Gold Saucer before we stop, so I'm going to brief you about protocol while we travel."

"Yes, sir"

Six hours later, Tseng's head was beginning to spin with all of the new information. Even so, he wouldn't have traded this moment for the world. Sephiroth's hair was on fire, alight from the late afternoon sun pouring in the windows.

"So, do you think you understand any of that? I know it's a lot to digest right away. They'll tell you most of this stuff again. Don't worry."

"I'm only a little worried. I'm going to try to do well and make you proud. But I'm so afraid that all I'm going to do is fall on my face."

"Don't," Sephiroth said, his voice a bit softer than usual, as he placed a finger against the side of Tseng's face, "It would be a terrible waste." Tseng practically gaped at him, frozen in his eyes. Perhaps the moment would have lasted longer, gone further, but the driver ground to a halt outside the tram to the Gold Saucer.

"You go on in with the others. I'll get the rooms for us."

"Yes... sir."

The next time Tseng saw Sephiroth, the taller man was absolutely livid with rage,

"I can't believe these people! They promised me four rooms and they only have two available. You three are all in the same room. Tseng, as the junior member, you get the floor in my room.

"Yes, sir"

"I'm going to go check on some Shinra contacts here. You all go on up to the rooms and relax for awhile. Here's the key, Tseng. I'll be up in a little while. Try not to get lost or dismembered here..." and he was gone. Tseng watched him go. Then he turned away and headed to his room... his and Sephiroth's room. One of the other soldiers' hands fell on his shoulder,

"Hey, you got to room with Sephiroth?" he laughed lightly, "Boy, are you in for it. He's a total cold-hearted ogre. Watch your step."

"I will, thank you, sir."

"Hey, don't go around calling me sir, I'm hardly higher up than you are. Now, Jones over there, him you can call sir. He's about to be a SOLDIER First Class."

"Really? Wow..."

"Yeah. It's going to his head though. Well, here's our room... just come over here if the almighty cold one gets to be too much to handle, okay?"

"Okay. And thank you!"

Several doors down, Tseng unlocked his room and just felt his jaw hit the floor. Well... when Sephiroth traveled, he apparently didn't like to rough it. Even the carpet looked good right now. The room was open, with a huge Jacuzzi in one corner that looked sinfully good. Mmmm... a nice warm bath... Tseng couldn't resist the siren's lure. After all, Sephiroth would probably take several hours to interrogate all of his agents here, so Tseng could most likely bathe in peace. Smiling broadly, Tseng dropped his bags and headed for the tub.

Oh... this was heaven. Tseng had never been a bath taker, really, but then again, he'd never had a bathtub like this before. The thing was big enough to stand in and still have the water come comfortably up to his waist. He ducked under, wetting his hair, then leaned against the side, relaxing into the water, letting it ease tense muscles. His whole body just relaxed, so much so that he didn't hear Sephiroth come in until his soft chuckle fell on his ears. Tseng sat up quickly, his eyes widening,

"Sir! You're back much sooner than I thought! I'm sure you want a bath after all that traveling. I'll be out in a second." A positively evil thought occurred to Sephiroth, and he ran with it,

"No, stay right there. That thing's more than big enough for two."

Tseng resolutely kept his eyes closed as he listened to Sephiroth undress and ease into the tub directly across from him. He forced himself to think of anything other than Sephiroth's body, covered in water, that silver hair damp and clinging to his chest.

"Something strange is going on here, Tseng... all of my usual contacts are gone. Not a single one was here. But that's not really my problem. I'll just report it to Shinra- they'll probably send the Turks out, actually, to investigate." Tseng made the mistake of opening his eyes during that last speech and found himself confronted by the same lovely view that had just been haunting his thoughts. His mind threatened to short circuit. ~Control yourself, Tseng- now would *not* be a good time to get a nosebleed...~ Something of his panicked state of mind must have shown on his face, for Sephiroth's brow furrowed,

"Tseng, is something wrong?"

"No! Uh... no, sir..."

"You are a terrible liar, Tseng. I expect you to get better in the Turks. Now, what's wrong?"

"I... I...I... nothing, really... nothing, sir..." Tseng tried to find something else in the room to look at other than Sephiroth's damp hair, that really was clinging to his chest in a completely fascinating manner, or his deep aqua mako shining eyes- and failed miserably. Slowly, ever so slowly, Sephiroth smiled.

"Ah... I think I know what's bothering you, Tseng... Stand up."

Tseng did as he was told, brow furrowing in curiosity. What on Earth did Sephiroth think was the matter? How hard would it be not to laugh at Sephiroth's misinterpretation of Tseng's hesitancy? But with Sephiroth's next words, the need to laugh abruptly vanished,

"Turn around." Fear rose up within Tseng, but he did as Sephiroth commanded. Did Sephiroth know? Was he going to hurt Tseng? Tseng braced himself for the pain of Masamune through his back... and then almost leapt out of the tub as Sephiroth used a completely different kind of attack. Sephiroth wrapped warm, dripping arms around Tseng's chest, letting one hand stray low to dip into the water slightly. He tugged lightly, and a very surprised Tseng fell backwards into the embrace.

"Am I right? Is *this* what was bothering you?" he purred into Tseng ear. Tseng's mouth fell open, and breathing became an uncertain activity.

"Sephiroth... I... I..." you shouldn't admit it... he's your superior right now... he could just be toying with you... he- "yes... oh hell yes..."

"Mmmm... then why on Earth didn't you say something sooner?" he nibbled down the side of Tseng's neck, "You're delicious..." Tseng moaned softly and let Sephiroth take most of his weight. This was too incredible. He couldn't believe that this was actually happening to him. And then, it got even better... "I want you, Tseng. I want you right now!" his hands slipped further down Tseng's hips, "I've wanted you like this since you fell into my arms... damn, you're beautiful. Tseng..." Tseng's voice was nothing more than a choked moan,

"Sephiroth... take me... please, I want you to..."

"Turn around, Tseng," If this were some kind of a dream, Tseng would gladly sleep forever. He turned around, and Sephiroth lowered his lips to his, consuming him in a fiery, passionate kiss, his hand becoming increasingly intimate on the raven-haired man's body. All Tseng could do was surrender to those kisses, lean in to the touches, revel in the feel of Sephiroth's flesh pressed against his own. Sephiroth stepped backwards, pulling Tseng with him. He sat down on the ledge running the length of the tub, and urged Tseng onto his lap. Tseng straddled his legs, the height difference abruptly reversed though Sephiroth lost none of his imposing nature. Tseng started to feel a small blush creep over his cheeks,

"You're blushing, Tseng," Sephiroth touched a cheek, bemused.

"I'm sitting naked in a tub on top of the most gorgeous man I've ever seen, what else should I be doing... sir? I also happen to have never done this before, thank you."

"You mean... oh, Tseng... If you're trying to seduce me further, you've accomplished your task," he nibbled lightly on Tseng's lower lip, then ran his tongue along it. Tseng's brain erupted in fire,

"Seph... I'm not sure how this works, but... more... oh please, Seph, more..."

"This isn't going to feel too pleasant at first, Tseng... just hang on, okay?" Tseng was going to die, there was just nothing better in the world than this. This position left him feeling very open, vulnerable, and Sephiroth's length was so close, he wasn't sure to what exactly, but it felt mind numbingly good and yet he was still too far away. Tseng couldn't think like this, his mind felt oddly disconnected, and he wanted Sephiroth-now!

"Do it."

"Tseng..." Sephiroth shifted slightly, then moved, and Tseng's whole world erupted into pain and fire. A small, pained noise escaped his lips- he was in too much pain to draw a breath to scream- and he fought to hold back the tears that rebelled and tumbled silently down his cheeks. This hurt like nothing he'd ever experienced before. How on Earth could people possibly like this? How was he going to live until Sephiroth was done? And he wasn't even moving yet... Tseng rolled his head on Sephiroth's shoulder, trying to think of anything but the pain. And then Sephiroth began to move.

Tseng bit back a yelp of pain, wondering dimly how he was going to survive this, then found the yelp tumbling past his lips as a sudden, intense pleasure flooded through him. He flung back his head, water spraying everywhere, and Sephiroth took the opportunity to nip little kisses down his neck. The atmosphere changed totally. Tseng moaned and gritted his teeth, forcing Sephiroth deeper inside him. It still hurt, it hurt like hell, but he suddenly found that he *liked* it. He *wanted* it to hurt. It was so intense, so very good... Suddenly, beneath him, he felt Sephiroth begin to lose control of himself, and the feel of him coming inside him was all it took to push Tseng over the edge.

When Tseng next became aware of the world, his head was lolling on Sephiroth's shoulder, his body totally relaxed, his breathing still heavy. Coherent thought was elusive, and Tseng didn't really feel like chasing it down. It was much more pleasant just to lie here, Sephiroth still inside him, his delicate fingers running up the shorter man's spine. Finally, Sephiroth separated the two of them and, seeing as how Tseng seemed to be in no mental state to do anything, swooped him up out of the water, and dried him off gently, but swiftly, feeling more than a little exhausted himself. Tseng felt his back against the bed and opened his eyes slightly to gaze at Sephiroth, who was drying himself off.

"Mmmmnm... thought I was sleeping on the floor."

"If I had known about your feelings sooner, you never would have been sleeping on the floor," Sephiroth crawled into bed beside him, pulling the soon-to-be Turk into his arms with surprising tenderness, "Next time, we do this in bed, or we rest all day first. I'm so tired I can barely move."

Next time... Tseng smiled sleepily. There would be a next time... He snuggled against Sephiroth's side, and drifted pleasantly into dreams.

* * *

Tseng gazed at the Temple of the Ancients through black tinted sunglasses. They'd made it here with the key before those annoying people from AVALANCHE- thanks to Reeve's brilliant work with the stuffed doll. Tseng smiled. Their goal was only moments away... and then, he saw something move in the ruins ahead of him. The flash of white hair was unmistakable. Tseng froze for a moment, then squared his shoulders and walked on. He had to be strong. Nothing remained of the person he loved. Cloud had killed Sephiroth at Nibelhelm. He had to think that way. He had to believe that. His face firmly set, he headed deeper into the ruins. He would go wherever Shinra commanded, even into the depths of hell.

Sephiroth...

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Whew… my first lemon fanfic to ever make it to my webpage… I’d REALLY like some feedback on this one! Please e-mail me at Lucretia@jenovaproject.com

As usual, none of these wonderful characters belong to me.