013 | So clearly lightning resistance needs work....

[neverbeamemory]

Characters: Sephiroth & YOU
Passive/optional tag: Cloud, Hojo, Rufus - Side Effect: Forceful Jenova cell 'pull'.
Setting: Following evening after This - towards the end of the event. Locations below.
Format: Usual wordy prose but will switch to match
Summary: Aftermath: Sephiroth's 1st death in the Tower, at the hands of future!Hei. 1st reaction: WTF-with-the-not-moving. Later restless wandering around.
Warnings: It's late at night and it's dangerous in the Tower. Careful how you approach; edgier than usual Sephiroth 

Part 1: Next Evening - Dorm 03-02
Suddenly Sephiroth felt again. He felt the familiar give of the mattress enough to know it was his bed in the Dormitory and he breathed slowly in the precursor to waking up. So he'd died; in all it's painful glory. It wasn't as if Sephiroth wasn't used to what death felt like, but now he couldn't move. Even his eyes won't open yet even though he feels like they are ready to. A heartbeat skipped, then Sephiroth remembers that he had experienced this once before; that day when he'd first woken up here. So this was the consequence of death in the Tower - a relapse to the paralysis. Great, he'd hated that enough the first time.

Though it hadn't been this long before. Or at least not as far as he could remember. He can't even tell how long it has been, and this waiting quickly gets old. There had to be something he could do about it. Sephiroth took a long inhale and settling his focus back inside himself he concentrated on wrapping his willpower around the already panicking jenova cells inside and PULLED.

Nothing. He still couldn't move.

Again and again he PULLED. Trying to will the great Jenova-web work to give him his motor functions back quicker; each time more desperate but all in vain. He couldn't let them get away with leaving him paralyzed like this - especially since there were others in the Tower with the cells that could be made to help him. Perfect opportunity to stretch and test his influence so to speak.

For the longest ten minutes these attempts went on. Sephiroth was trying so hard, that when suddenly the paralysis let go his eyes shot open with such speed that it made him dizzy. Whatever influence he'd held over the web snapped with the shock and Sephiroth lent up somewhat heavily on his elbows while his mind adjusted to being awake, peering around the Dormitory. So it was the next evening?

Part 2: Nighttime wandering: Hallways > Elevator > Floor 12 and back again
Once settled Sephiroth felt quite proud. Sure he hadn't been able to force himself to overcome the paralysis but stretching and feeling out what connections were available to him, through Mother's gifts, was something he really should have discovered sooner. He blamed it on having to settle into his new environment, and having to deal with the blinding questions that tended to circle around in his mind too fast for him to focus on one thing.

Apparently then, the meditation was helping to re-focus him, if nothing else. Maybe it was a case of that he couldn't see the wood for the trees; maybe if he stopped looking for answers he might learn something. Something to consider.

Having been 'dead' during the daytime - followed by the panic at not being able to move, it's not like Sephiroth could just lie back down and go to sleep. So instead he got up and equipped himself for a night time wander. Though he'd certainly watch his back a lot more in case that crazy lightning guy wasn't finished with his rampage. That had certainly been a very personal attack; if only Sephiroth knew what it was he'd done, it must have been heavy to have earned that response. Well there was a bit of strangeness going on after all, Sephiroth would wait for his time to exact revenge for that insult.

Sephiroth made his way down the lift from the Dormitories and then up stairwells. He'd avoid what monsters he could, though inevitably some monsters won't be avoided especially considering how dangerous the Tower is during night time. At least his first death here hasn't blunted his sword any, and his strength is as it was as well. Finally Sephiroth would linger for a while on the 12th floor, watching the projection from start to finish a few times before the frequency of shadow-based monsters appearing was ruining his chance to get the escape he'd come here for and then he'd return back in the direction he came.

Comments

Hallways

[grimgrimoire]

As anyone who had been here for more than twenty-four hours could tell you, the Tower was not a happy place to be at night. The monsters never came up the stairs to the dormitories, Ienzo found, which was certainly welcome; an innocent being preyed on and killed in their sleep just struck him as wrong. However, even though there was significantly less anger up here, Ienzo had found that there was significantly less traffic in the dormitory hallways when the late hours rolled around.

He himself had a reason to be up at these times; as a sort of side project, designed to keep him busy so he wouldn't go insane, Ienzo had started drafting a Tower bestiary, and included with that bestiary was the frequency with which a monster 'appeared'. Since he had escaped from several nighttime run-ins with monsters he'd never seen during the day, Ienzo had decided that there had to be some creatures who were nocturnal, and tonight was his first night actually staying up to go hunting for them. And of all the strange things he expected to see, another person was not one of them. At the very least the man was protected, if that enormous sword was anything to go by.

"Good evening," he said, Book of Retribution under his arm as a stand-in notebook (his other ones had filled up). Ienzo quietly thought it rather odd that anyone else would be up at this hour; perhaps, because this silver-haired man was, he would be of use to him somehow.

Re: Hallways

[neverbeamemory]

At this time of night, it would be utterly foolish to not have Masamune manifest, at it's keenest, at all times. Despite the apparent safety of the Dormitory levels, one could never be certain and especially tonight Sephiroth was being careful.

"Evening." The silver-haired warrior stopped and turned towards the other resident slightly with the great sword held slightly back - a resting position but it could be used in an instant if needed. Green eyes dimly lit even in this gloom peered over the fellow wanderer; taking in details.

Hallways

[grimgrimoire]

A very good mentality to have, all things considered. Ienzo hadn't even come close to seeing the full extent of the dangers posed by this Tower, and yet he still felt the need to carry around his grimoire at all times, even though he could summon it at any. Ienzo took a moment to allow the other man to look him over while he did the same, and after that time had more or less expired, finally spoke.

"What are you doing up at this hour?" he asked, quite innocently. "You must know that on the lower floors, the monsters become much more dangerous at night."

Re: Hallways

[neverbeamemory]

Sephiroth had just been at the point of looking away and continuing to wander of his own accord before the question popped the silence.

"That's my purpose in fact, otherwise I doubt I could sleep at all tonight." He replied, as if it were something he did quite often. In fact it wasn't a hobby as such, though he has infrequently been monster hunting during the evening on the occasion when he finds his mind can't switch off. Indeed it was a fine excuse almost, another way to keep ones skills sharp.

"I assume you have come up from there just now?" Sephiroth inquired, taking his only evidence as the book that the other guy was holding as an indication he'd just come up from the Library on the 3rd floor. It didn't hurt to try and gain some lay of the land before he went down there himself.

Hallways

[grimgrimoire]

“Monster killing is therapeutic for you?” That... was not the answer Ienzo expected, even if this was a man with shoulder armor and an unreasonably long sword he was talking about. Still, he kept any surprise or other feelings out of his voice; for some people, causing harm to others was quite calming, and it was better that he take out his impulses on monsters than other people. At least that way, it could serve as a form of population control.

In response to the question, Ienzo shook his head. “No, actually; I was just heading down. It seems we’ve had the same idea.” He gave an odd little smile. If this man was going monster hunting... “Actually, what I came to work on was a Tower bestiary, and I understand the power and frequency of some monsters’ appearances changes at night. Do you think I might be able to join you in your search?” He flipped the book open with a practiced movement. “I can hold my own in battle, I assure you.”

Re: Hallways

[neverbeamemory]

"Sometimes." That is indeed when Sephiroth needs to release the easily built-up frustration that accumulates from living in this Tower at the whim of not-himself. Tonight is such an occasion since he's just been returned from dead and common sense tells him not to go right back and hunt down the one who killed him.

Noted, so that book isn't something from the library - so it must be a personal item. Sephiroth looks over the young adult again as if gauging his merit in such a monster hunt. He didn't look much but if there was one thing that Sephiroth was learning in the Tower, it was that people most of the time aren't what they seem. A bestiary huh?

Perhaps this could be a mutually beneficial arrangement. He'd have a better idea of which monsters could provide a better challenge to him then - save wandering around somewhat aimlessly when the mood took him.

"Sure." Sephiroth allowed a smirk to creep across his features, before starting to head for the elevators.

Hallways

[grimgrimoire]

"Thank you very much." Ienzo smiled as well, though his looked considerably less sinister than Sephiroth's, and followed behind him at a respectable pace. He didn't miss the inspection that had been conducted in those few seconds (he never did), and though he could understand why the man would want to look him over a bit before trusting him with both of their well-being, it still amused him somewhat. There was something in the man's scrutiny that seemed familiar... and the long hair didn't hurt either.

"Now then, if you don't mind, I would like your name? Mine is Ienzo." Just for ease of conversation, you'll understand.

Hallways > Floor ?

[neverbeamemory]

There had to be credit where it was due, this one was smart enough not to follow too closely at Sephiroth's heels. That would have just been overbearing and wouldn't have been a good indication for how positive this little adventure might prove. It was a good thing also bearing in mind should Sephiroth turn and have to attack something behind them then this 'companion' wouldn't be directly in the path of where Masamune needed to go.

This might not actually go to badly. The guy seemed smart, respectable and -

"Sephiroth." -polite too, Sephiroth resolved as he answered Ienzo with a nod. Not stopping to answer or even turn around at all as they progressed through corridors; he wasn't going to check every five seconds that Ienzo was still there or not.

The Tower sure harbored names he's never heard the likes of before, and silver hair doesn't really seem a rarity here either. Sephiroth quite naturally likens Ienzo's appearance to Kadaj' what with the similar hairstyle and this ticks boxes with regards to Sephiroth's tolerance of him - not that it would ever be admitted. He did look the scientist stereotype a little though, Sephiroth gave him the benefit of the doubt for now, he was trying hard not to pre-judge too much.

Eventually getting to the elevators Sephiroth pressed the call button, holding Masamune in close along the back length of his arm as he turned back towards Ienzo. "1st floor?"

Hallways > Floor ?

[grimgrimoire]

It would take an idiot to want to trail too close behind Sephiroth, to be perfectly honest. Even if Ienzo wanted to be within the radius of that sword for any conceivable reason, his particular brand of battling was better put to use in the back row. Raining down spells from above was a tricky business, and aftershocks could easily damage people and things that the caster didn’t want to damage — in this case, Sephiroth. He really didn’t care about the surroundings. They had lasted this long, a bit of swordplay and magic in the halls wouldn’t hurt anything too badly.

While they walked, Ienzo kept the Book of Retribution at the ready, flipping through it to find the spells. It had quite a wealth of information in it, this tome, much more than should have fit in the pages; as a result, the ink tended to move around on its own to form different words, mostly consisting of whatever Ienzo happened to need at the time... mostly. Sometimes it still refused to operate, eschewing the pages Ienzo knew he needed for cryptic messages scrawled in a hand that might or might not have been his own. It had really been too far back to remember by this point, assuming the Darkness hadn’t spotted out his memory.

“I don’t think that would be a very prudent idea,” he noted at the elevators. “Monsters don’t generally come down there, and if we get into a fight, then there may be some serious damage that can’t be fixed in time for tomorrow morning. Perhaps we should go somewhere less vital to the tower, such as the forest?” It was only a few floors up from the cafeteria, after all.

Daddy is here for you, Sephiroth.

[denigrator]

He felt it at once. The pull. It was unlike any other sensation, wrenching at him, not an external force, but internal. A shudder that ran through the very cells of his body. He could feel it stirring inside him, more insistent with each moment that passed. It wasn't something that could be denied or disobeyed. It was a reminder that he wasn't a single lifeform anymore. He had altered himself on the genetic level. He was part of something larger, inhuman. That larger force moved him, and he went with it. He put down the equipment he was working with and made his way to the nearest elevator.

When he reached Sephiroth's room, he stood in the doorway, his hands in the pockets of his lab coat. He disliked it, this submission he was forced into. The fact that Sephiroth, who he had made, had this power over him. Of course, it was his own doing. He had willingly injected himself with the cells. Not for the first time, he doubted his scientific brilliance, and that doubt made him scowl. No, he had to believe in his superiority. Just look at what he had accomplished. There had been setbacks, that was all. Too many people had interfered in his work.

"Well, what is it?"

[neverbeamemory]

If he'd needed any proof, the voice at the doorway held enough. Sephiroth had near smelled Jenova in Hojo the moment he had first encountered the Professor here in the Tower. Though as far as Sephiroth was concerned, he'd pulled only at the energies that by extension the cells could grant him from their hosts but he certainly hadn't counted on what may be the side effects.

To summon one, as if it were a Reunion - right to the very doorway of the Dormitory. Sephiroth smirked widely at the realization that very likely he was the reason the Professor was there, well now wasn't that a discovery. That even though all were brought here as specimens to the grander experiment, apparently they had done nothing to stop him from unveiling Mothers power. Limitations of this would have to be tested of course, carefully as well so as not to attract too much attention, but the possibilities were quite inviting.

"Did I compel you away from something important, Professor?" Sephiroth couldn't hide the amusement in his voice as he remained lent up on his elbows looking at Hojo. Some other dorm-mate must still be out and about, since the door was open.

[denigrator]

"It's not as if I'm surprised," said Hojo, with a trace of bitterness. "This was all part of my design." He had to maintain some control here. He had expected to become part of the new creation Sephiroth would make through Jenova, but this was another matter, to be called here like a servant, with his energy pulled at and used. "And yes, I was working." He wasn't sure if it was necessarily important work, except in that all his work was important, as the Tower had been frustrating his efforts of late, but there was no need to mention that.

"Is there some particular reason I'm here?"

[neverbeamemory]

Part of his design eh? That certainly sounded a little too bitter to be completely true. Perhaps that was what Hojo would tell himself but Sephiroth knew better. This proved he could very much still be the puppetmaster, hell he hadn't even been trying for that outcome. That smirk continued to curl its way up at the corners of Sephiroth's mouth as he answered the scientist.

"An unexpected side effect, though satisfying enough. Don't think too much into it."

Not that he was going to tell Hojo that he'd just experienced his first death here. Indeed, Sephiroth wasn't even sure if the scientist had actually felt that as life had dried up out of Sephiroth's own body from the fatal damage that had been done. Better to give up if the damage was too great - after all as far as the cells knew, Reunion was inevitable. Sephiroth remained silent, almost testing to see if Hojo would make a comment to confirm whether he was aware of the death or not.

[denigrator]

He decided not to mention the transformation that the Jenova cells were able to affect in him, which the Tower seemed to usually prevent. The change had taken place in the tower once before, during his previous visit, and he had no desire to metamorphose again. It was inconvenient, to say the least. "I'm pleased you're so satisfied," he said, with no small amount of sarcasm.

"I don't need to think into it. I understand it completely," Hojo snapped. No one understood the phenomenon better than he did, as he was the world's primary expert on Jenova.

The connection between them wasn't completely one way. Hojo had sensed the urgency in the pull. With the cells linking them, he was technically part of Sephiroth, as galling as that was in their current forms. He didn't like to think of himself as some puppet whose strings could be pulled, like the Sephiroth clones he'd created. Although he was another matter, having injected himself outright with a large number of the cells. "I assume you were undergoing some extreme stress, and here you are in bed. It's certainly suggestive." Hojo having died a few times in the Tower, he was no stranger to the process.

[neverbeamemory]

It took all Sephiroth had to keep the smirk and not have it develop into a knowing grin. Here was Hojo, the self-proclaimed genius of the Jenova project stamping his foot in what might as well have been an echo-y canyon. While Hojo may indeed lay claim to knowing a great deal about Jenova as far as what one may learn through experimentation. Sephiroth, however, knew how to use such tools as gifted from Mother directly. No one else understood the comforting feeling of great power that he was destined to wield.

"That's one way of putting it." The scientist certainly wasn't wrong. It had been very stressful to awaken again and be unable to move. It wasn't like the Reunion where his consciousness had been fully aware of what was happening and calm enough to extend itself as needed in order to get what he wanted.

"I did hear death was a regular acquaintance to most here."

[denigrator]

He didn't care for that smirk. He had to reassert himself somehow. Knowing as much as he did about Jenova, he understood that it was Sephiroth who wielded the greater share of her power, and not himelf. Not that he had to like that fact. "So, you've died. I've died several times and saw no need to react with such vehemence." He shrugged. "My physical body is dead on Gaia, so it hardly matters to me. Death is no setback for the great scientist." Asserting that, his attitude following being pulled around by Sephiroth's will improved slightly. Sephiroth didn't know everything. In fact, there was much he didn't remember, and the Jenova Project wasn't Hojo's only project.

"However, you should be more resilient. You've been designed to withstand a great deal of damage without fatal consequences." Again, he alluded to the fact that he was responsible for Sephiroth's existence. "Emotion is an impediment. You shouldn't allow yourself to react so strongly."

[neverbeamemory]

So apparently Hojo had greeted his first death and it's following paralysis with the epitome of tranquil reactions, Sephiroth severely doubted that. Quite clearly Hojo was trying to do as Hojo would always - put himself as a cut above the rest. That smirk sure enough dropped away as the natural next logical thought ran along the similarities between them. No. Sephiroth is the superior lifeform, Hojo would always be subject to his own inferior limitations. Whatever similarities they had, they weren't relevant.

Of course Hojo would seem to think that Sephiroth had been careless to have died at all, there were after all several ways one could die here through negligence. It hadn't been like that at all and so Sephiroth partially turned off from the lecture. He didn't need Hojo to tell him what his faults were and he certainly didn't need the direction either. The very nature of their residence here got under his skin so much but having been here for a couple of months now he was starting to improve his nerve. The consequence of waking from death though, hadn't been expected and Sephiroth had done what he'd thought may have solved the issue. Simple as.

If Hojo didn't like that his will had summoned him here by accident, then what would he think should Sephiroth ever get to a point where he would need such control over the puppet strings again.

Floor 13 | Cathedral + Hallways

[provenworth]

Planning a wedding was hard work. Especially when the groom was not that keen in getting involved, the Tower did not offer much in supplies and support, your President was on-site and made aware of it and yet had not said much about it, and lets not forget that within the Tower were people who wanted you dead. A lovely little deathly cocktail with the little olive of hopeful joy bouncing in the black liquid.

Joy that, oddly enough, at the thought still earned a bit of a chill down her back. She could still remember the Northern crater, those few moments where she had been able to give Rude Jenova's head while he stood in the helicopter. It was one of the few times she'd actually seen concern - perhaps even worry - on the silent Turk's face. She'd safely shut the door and gave Reno the lift-off order before bullets flew, threatening the safety of the helicopter. The way he'd shouted her name as the chopper retreated, a response to her unintentional noise of pain from being shot - that had haunted her for the first several hours in the Northern Crater.

Sitting in one of the pews, she folded the small notebook she'd acquired shut, notes on both Tower and wedding spanning several pages. She'd come for quiet and solace, a little voice dangerously questioning if it was even a good idea. Reno's sanity was perched precariously on a fence and was on the verge of tipping. Maybe it was foolish of her to think that she could save him, protect him even. But if she reneged now - in fear that if something happened to her and he was left alone - would that too cause him to tip in the way of insanity? Thinking back on it, with a clear head, the question on whether she should have even said yes settled heavily on her conscious.

"Pff. Thinking too much this time, Elena. That's a first," she quipped, her voice quickly dying in the silence around her.

Giving an audible sigh, shoulders slumping frustration, Elena rose from her seat, knowing that sleep would continue to evade her for the next several hours but it would at least be wise to try and get some rest. Tucking the notebook under her arm, feet took her back towards the entryway, eyes glazed over with thoughts keeping her mind elsewhere than paying attention to where she was going. Not that it ought to matter, given the time of night. Who would really be out wandering the tower at this time of night?

Oh lord why....though Floor 3 Library on the way down?

[neverbeamemory]

The monster hunt for Ienzo's bestiary had been very fulfilling while it had lasted. Not only had Sephiroth been able to explode his own frustrations on the abundant wildlife on the Forest floor but there had been quite a variance of nocturnal monsters for him to try out as well.

Then afterwards he had wandered briefly up to the 12th before, quite rightly starting to head back down stairs - it was getting towards midnight and even he couldn't really reflect in a dark room where every shadow could be waiting to swallow you.

There had been a couple of close scrapes but surely that was more than half of the reason for his nighttime wandering; as the stinging sensation to a healing slash at his cheek was reminding him as Sephiroth sat catching up on the network in the library - the latest wave of Miniblin littered just a few feet away from the terminal he occupied, still twitching with their death-throws. Sephiroth himself was quite contently, if somewhat bored eyeing over the screen.

Oh yes - to the library! Becuse I am the most horrible to Elena.

[provenworth]

Turks move fast. Yes they do. That's how they were able to appear in Junon one day, then Wutai the next. In the Tower, its still somewhat the same. Where Elena had been exiting the Cathedral floor ten minutes ago, now she was exiting the cafeteria with a cup of hot tea in hand. Surely a cup of tea and a good book would help bring on a good night's sleep.

Sipping on the hot drink, Elena's steps were carefully balanced to prevent the liquid from spilling and burning her hand, taking each step of the stairs with a dancer's grace. It was beneficial the library wasn't too far up, the single styrofoam cup warming fingers to uncomfortable levels. Feet padded across the carpet silently, eyes focused more on the sloshing liquid than where she was going. At the sight of the first table creeping into her peripheral vision, Elena's course verged to meet it, placing the cup down hastily.

"...Gaia, that's hot!"

Grumbling as she blew on her fingers, she placed the notebook she'd been carrying in her other hand next to the cup, turning to look at the mass of shelves. In her haste to place down the burning beverage, she had disregarded the line of terminals that lined the wall nearby, her back blocking her view of the dead monsters and the monster himself.

It was only after a few seconds of listening to the humming silence of the lights that she felt it. A burning in the center of her chest - where she had been stabbed straight through - and a pull at the back of her head. The sensation of another presence nearby. Turning her head ever so slightly, she peered out of the corner of her eye at the terminals on the adjacent end of the wall. At the sight of silver and leather she dropped to the floor, knees pressing tightly against her chest.

Oh for fuck's sake! What is this luck of mine?!

Out. She had to get out before he noticed her and decided to finish what he had started with her before being interrupted by the Dark Angel Hei. Fingers reached up over her head, moving over the slick surface of the tabletop to find her notebook. Finding it, she slipped it over the edge and into her lap, remaining still while slowing her breathing. Only after she'd slowed her breathing and had a plan in place would she move, also after checking that he had not picked up on her accidental presence.

Glutton for punishment, as usual.

[neverbeamemory]

"...Gaia, that's hot!"

Sephiroth must certainly have started tiring, as he didn't until then notice that he wasn't alone in the library. Indeed, he might well have been in worse luck had it have been one of the more menacing monsters that he knew the Tower was capable of producing at this time of night.

He wasn't so tired as to let this other presence go unchecked though. Even though his back is turned and his attention apparently fixated on the terminal screen, there is nothing wrong with his hearing. He noticed in particular the sounds coming from that direction turned significantly softer in the engulfing silence highlighted further by the hum of the lights.

Sephiroth wrinkled his nose up a little as if at a smell. It could well have been something rancid starting to emanate from the now-dead monsters between him and his late night companion in the library. He imagined though, that he could smell the fear permeating from that way. Only a glance over his armored shoulder, to spy the frantic hand flapping across the tabletop after the notebook, was needed to tie up who was cowering all bunched up on the floor. As if making herself smaller was supposed to enable her to vanish into oblivion?

Sephiroth didn't move from the terminal though, he didn't even turn towards Elena. In fact he turned his head momentarily away from her, peering over the gloom as if he could already predict where the next monsters would come from.

"It's dangerous to be so skittish, up and around at this hour."

You know me. ^.~

[provenworth]

Clutching at her notebook against her chest, Elena's ears strained against the silence of the room to hear something – anything – that would tell her his status. But nothing by the humming sound of the overhead lights could be heard, save for the hammering of her heart against her ribs. Which could mean one of several things: that he had not heard her come in, or talk – Alexander curse her, she just gave herself away cursing her hot drink – aloud; that he had and didn’t give her the courtesy of noticing her; or he was slinking over like a cat, his footsteps so faint that she wouldn't realize he was ready to pounce until she was flat on her back and pinned. Which was the most horrible vision of the three and one she would most like to avoid at all possible.

Lips pressed together to create a thin line, doubtful as to whether or not it was safe to move. He'd been silent. She'd been silent. Perhaps she was in the clear and escape would come easy this time. Leather of her shoes gave a little protest as she rocked forward slowly in an attempt to move towards the door, the faint creak then drowned by the sound of his voice.

Summons damn it.

Leaning back against the table, the back of her head hit the side of the table, earning a painful grunt and hiss, a hand reaching up to touch the injured area. After a few moments of tending to the sensitive spot, she moved to grip the ledge of the table, pulling herself up, turning to carefully watch his unmoving back. It was...unusual to see him so indifferent, given their last interaction. Then again, she had been stalking him.

"...’m not skittish..." she mumbled beneath her breath, placing her notebook down on the table to adjust her suit. Eyes continued to bore into his back, looking for any movement that she would read as aggressive or threatening. "I just came for some light reading."

.....

[neverbeamemory]

"...And apparently you felt like reading it under the desk.

Hmph."

That could have been a joke, but it really isn't funny. Why shouldn't she be scared. At least someone has a proper regard and respect for his capabilities in this place. Sephiroth smirked a little at that thought before turning away from the terminal, looking once more over the surroundings for any lurking monster and then finally gazing over at Elena. With him sat on the chair and her standing, it may even give the impression of equality.

That was soon rectified as Sephiroth got to his feet, uncomfortable not being in his superior position after all. He peered down at her, letting their last encounter dance around his thoughts - but this led to the next encounter he'd had with Hei. Another failure. 8 years of lost memories. He couldn't hold her gaze for long before he blinked and looked off down into the gloomy part of the library where apparently the Miniblin dead on the floor had come in from before. He ran a hand back through one side of his silver hair, tucking a few strands back where they belonged behind an ear as once again his thoughts imposed upon the tight control he had over them. He spent a few uncomfortable seconds rubbing at the top edge of his collar before he realized what he was doing and snapped his lingering thoughts back into the here and now.

"You really are a jobsworth aren't you. Though I don't think even Reno would want you carrying out surveillance at this hour. In fact-" He met her gaze again and a sardonic smile banished those uncomfortable notions of just a moment ago.

"-I know for a fact he wouldn't want you here."

....../flail

[provenworth]

"Its a legitimate place to read."

She's half-defensive, half-confident in her response, almost childish in holding her position. She was a Turk, after all, and not one who had to justify what she was doing to anybody save her President and her Director. However, this was Sephiroth and their counters were not far in the recesses of her memory, the ghost of her injury an irritating itch that she refused to scratch.

Sheen of silver shifted with his head and it was interesting when she realized that, even when he was seated, he was nearly as tall as she was when standing. It was also interesting to note just how aware he was of his surroundings, looking around as if sensing additional hostile creatures beyond himself. That realization, in turn, made Elena turn her head to look back to the doorway and behind her to where shadows played in darkness to tease the eyes. Ears picked up the sound of a chair moving, telling her that he was standing before she saw it for herself.

And the man was tall. Looming over her like a skyscraper, it was hard to forget how dominating his presence was - memories of their past encounters quickly coming to the front of her memory. Eyes watched his movements carefully, looking to any sort of tell or sign that would betray his next move to better prepare. What she caught, however, was awkward movements of fingers against leather, either subconscious or completely unconscious to his own thoughts. Honey colored eyes narrowed on that betraying movement before being drawn back up to his face as he spoke again.

"I do what must be done."

Ignoring her instantaneous fear and desire to get as far away from him as she could, Elena stood her ground and held his gaze firmly. Hairs on the back of her neck rose at the creeping smile that pulled at his features, her back straightening and shoulders squaring in an attempt to make herself appear larger and in control.

"Who's not to say that Reno isn't out and about doing his own surveillance right now and I happened to draw the lower floors? He and I know there are dangerous in the Tower - some more dangers than even you - and that comes with the territory of being a Turk." But, oh, how she would prefer that he not smile at her like that - like he was making promises that she would be all to happy to not hear. "This place is no more dangerous than any of the other floors. Unless....you're worried that something might happen to cause the wedding to get cancelled, thus pissing Ruana off and having her take it out on the Tower."

[neverbeamemory]

Sephiroth allowed the grin to stretch wider at the way that Elena tried oh-so hard to try to make herself more dominant in this situation. Against such an ego as his, however just wasn't going to cut in the slightest. It was so amusing how she seemed to think being a Turk could justify anything.

"I don't assume to know - I just can't accept that your patrols, in particular, coincidentally always cross my path. Besides, being aware of how dangerous this place is isn't only in the interest of Turks for sure." Point to Elena, she was right about everywhere being as dangerous, if not more so than him - as the current slash to his cheek proved. Of course, Sephiroth would and has already gone to great lengths to try to know as much as possible about his new surroundings. After all that was the only thing to do around here - when you aren't caught up in some experiment - not that he's about to let on to a Turk that he's about as lost in direction as the next person in the Tower.

Sephiroth lent back a little against the desktop table, watching Elena but not too directly; he's a lot more concerned that something may be about ready to leap out of the shadows again.

"I think the whole thing is a stupid idea, but I made that clear already. Lucky for you I'm not in the habit of correcting other's mistakes." In other words, he doesn't want anything to do with it. Or he wants her to think he's not interested; Elena would have to come to her own conclusion on that one. Of course if they annoyed Ruana in anyway whatsoever during the wedding, it would be a coin-toss as to whether she took her displeasure out on all of them or if it would just be select people. So it might actually be in his interest to not be anywhere near the event.