Chapter Two

Nicolae

I looked down at the child that I have so willingly called my own, though she is proclaimed as a witch to others, to me, the small girl who had found herself a home in my catacomb lifestyle, I had never thought that love could be given without being earned, but Aria Savannah Shepherd had danced into this glacier heart and melted it, showing that love could be found. My only regret in my decision to leave her with my brother was not being able to see her as I would like to. I had no fears Leonard wouldn't keep her. My brother, though he seemed to be more of the personality housing our father, he was taken to Aria. I smiled at the small child currently clinging to my black jean pant leg, staining it with her tears. "Aria, nothing is going to happen. Come, let's go home and make you something to eat." She looked at me with a smile. I placed my hand on her cheek. "You know I love you, right?" She looked at me with a smile, causing a smile to appear on my lips. "You know I would do anything to see you safe, right?" She nodded her head. I kissed the top of her hair, hugging her.

"I love you, daddy, we'll get through this together. I know we can."

I looked at her. This was the first goodbye that I had the most difficult time leaving, little mystic green eyes staring up at me as if she knows that tonight may be our last night as a family. Leonard found this little light in the clutches of the ShinRa Company. Months after not finding her parents, Leonard took the responsibility of watching her and putting her into someone's care that he knew needed her. At first, I didn't want her even telling him to keep her. I was not interested in being a father to someone so young. Younger than Kyra even, it was a rough week of her turning my home into a battleground of toys thrown everywhere, waking up to her watching cartoons at unreasonable hours, because of the lack of sleep, often meaning either no sleep that night or her falling asleep in my bed and me taking the floor. After weeks of struggling with her learning the rules of the home, she went from the child I didn't want to my best friend. It was since that time, I promised I would protect her, love her and be the person she could call daddy.

I looked at her standing to my feet as she let go of my leg. We continued our walk home. I watched as she would wipe the remaining tears away until I stopped looking at her, gathering her up in my arms and carrying her. My thoughts of leaving her caused my heart to break. I found myself in a new inner battle, and though Aria was preoccupied with the stars in the sky, she did not know that she had me wrapped around her little finger, I would squeeze her a little when I felt I was alone in the fight, feeling relieved that she had not moved. When we got home. I put Aria on the porch, unlocked the door, then opened the door as she ran inside climbing on the couch, kicking her boots off laying on the couch looking for the remote to watch cartoons. I walked to the door frame leaning against it as if to take every memory of the child the battle raging inside my consciousness, against Sephiroth's control and Aria's, both just waiting for my decision, I sighed as my cell phone rang in my pants pocket, I retrieved it looking at the caller ID seeing it was Leonard, "Brother, why are you calling? Aren't you working?"

'Don't act innocent, Nicolae. I know what you're planning. You're planning to leave Aria. I never thought you of all people would run like a fiend with its head down and tail tucked at the first sign of a battle. How very disappointing, little brother."

"What do you mean, Leonard?" I walked from the living, up the stairs, "I have nothing planned," an hour ago that would have been a lie, but at this moment, that seemed to be the truest statement I made tonight.

"Nicolae, you're not fooling anyone. Do I agree that CID and Yuffie need to come back to planet Earth? Yes, I do. But that isn't our job to dictate their stupidity, it's our job as parents to protect what is ours. I have considered doing this same thing also, but you're not hurting them, Nicolae, they don't care about us. You'll only hurt yourself and Aria, CID and Yuffie have already proven our status to the group. I've put up with it for years, for my family. That's what we do as warriors, and as fathers. We protect our children from the adults that act like children, we Shepherd's never run."

"How did you even know I had this planned? Have you been interfering with my mind again? I leaned against the wall with a sigh. The one skill that my brother uses is his mind-reading skill.

"Why does everyone still accuse me of doing that, when I find out something I'm a sneak? But this time, brother, your accusation is misleading. I don't interfere with your thoughts, but after tonight's fiasco, it will become a regular activity. My knowledge comes from Tifa."

"Tifa?"

"I just said that Nicolae, but yes, Tifa. She said little, except for what I needed to hear. You made the threat again." he paused. The hint of a smile showed through his next words, "it's funny, Nicolae. Tifa can kick a grown man across the room, but she watches out for you." he sighed as his smiles reign was cut short, "why are you oblivious to her feelings towards you? It's clear to everyone who sees her when she is around you, even blondie."

"Don't be ridiculous."

"That statement hardly seems fair. I point out facts that a woman is in love with my brother, all the while my same brother is planning a suicide attempt with everything I built. Who's being ridiculous now... Nicolae?"

I sighed. "Are you finished? I think I learned my lesson, Leonard. Aren't you afraid of getting fired?"

Laughter filled the other line, then stopped. "Brother, why don't you let me deal with my position as General? If Rufus was to gain knowledge of your, plotting he would jump to stop you. I saved us both the dreadful effort of possibly being memories to our daughters," the line grew silent, "One more thing dear brother, one more of these little tantrums, and outbursts you won't have AVALANCHE and ShinRa to deal with, I will handle that issue personally." The line went dead as Leonard ended the call.

I sighed walking back downstairs, stopping in the living room to see Aria eating a bowl of cereal, her mess of spilled milk, made puddles on the floor along with larger puddles on the oak table. Sighing, I placed my phone on charge, making my way to the kitchen. A milk pathway led from the refrigerator to the dripping puddle under the half-empty jug. I sat down beside her. "Aria."

She looked at me, then at the mess. "Yes?"

"You're doing so well at making your cereal now."

She looked at me, still chewing her food with a smile. I stood up. "after you eat, it's bath time. While you do that, I'll clean your mess."

Aria frowned, swallowing her food, "But daddy, I already took a bath today."

I looked at her. "You also made yourself some cereal. You have more milk on you than you do in the bowl." Pointing at her pink shirt, with cartoon-style unicorns, now soaked from the milk. She looked at her shirt and frowned.

"But I did good... right, daddy, on the bright side you didn't have to make it." She looked at me with a smile.

"It's a starting point, but from now on, just let me handle the kitchen work. I've not got the funds to buy a new home if you decide that cooking is your next idea to try." I patted her head, putting the remaining milk into the refrigerator. She smiled and continued to eat her cereal. I walked from the room to run her water and pick out her clothes.