Nations- Mother
Title: Mother
Fandom: FF7
Warning: The universe! And implied sex!
Note: And Vincent is thinking. Allot. And his mother... is someone I think you guys should take a guess at. She may say 'the end', but, Outlands is more persistant then she really believed that it was going to be.
She was his mother. Really, if not for that he would never have come home, never spoken to her, and never ever gave her his love. But she was his mother, and that meant that he loved her. No matter what kind of person she really was.
He had turned a blind eye to how she dealt with political matters. He was a bastard child, and as such, he technically shouldn't exist. Society didn't really have to acknowledge that he did, and while that made some things harder, it made other things easier. She'd had him to try and further her personal ambitions. A bastard son of a foreign nation may have a glaring sign painted on his spine, but the lack of any other children from that nation's king could have made her Queen.
Of course, then that king had gotten married and had a son, thus ruining her chances unless by some perchance the entire family was killed off. It was almost disturbing to hear the fact that that king, his father, was dead when it had happened. It had been more disconcerting to see that his mother was actually rather pleased to get the news.
He was Cemeran. Cemere was the country he was born to, and was the land where he had been formed and taught his art of killing in. It was where he became the demon of the battlefield. Junon was where he grew up, and the matter of Galetha should not have impacted him. His mother was a low ranking noble, even if her contacts were at times terrifying and vast. He would not reveal her because he was more loyal than that, and was a good son, but that never meant that he agreed with her methods. They both knew that, and she often used it against him.
Still, when there had been a shift in power from king to queen, he had been one of the first nobles in his country to hear about it. His mother's friend, a man named Hojo, had sent her a message to indicate what had happened, and he had been the courier from door to sitting room so that he could give her the missive. She usually didn't pass any letters along to him after she read them, for which he was grateful, but apparently she'd wanted him to be aware of the news.
He couldn't ever remember seeing her smile quite like that before that time, and he could honestly say that it unnerved him. It was like a reptile's grin, nothing warm about it at all, and it came more often after that day, usually on the heels of bad news, such as when the queen of Galetha had fallen years later.
He didn’t like the idea that she'd come unhinged as he'd grown older. That in mind, he'd discounted it as a possibility entirely, picking apart his memories of her with studious care. He quickly found that her cold-blooded tendencies had always been there. The vicious ruthless streak, the chill calculating looks, neither of them was new. Shrouded in a gentle touch and motherly love, at least so much as a woman like her was capable, they seemed to go down to her core. He had no idea how he'd grown to be such an honorable man with her as a role model, but he knew he was, in comparison to many.
When the Cemere military had shown an interest in his talents during a practice, his mother had encouraged him to follow the prompting. His quiet caution in picking at her motives had quickly become more, deeper, cynical. He'd been such a fool as a child, but he was more a fool later, because even though he could now see her for what she was, she was still his mother, and so she would remain. It wasn't exactly something that one could avoid.
In turn, when he'd been chosen as a gift for the king of Galetha, he hadn't been sure how to take the news. Some secrets were truly secret, and while most didn't know his parentage for a certainty, others suspected and were not wrong. He still had moments when he wondered if he was more a joke than a gift, but he knew some, who had been at the bargaining table that day, were still angry that he'd been taken in so graciously.
He could only guess they'd been careful in trying to pick someone they thought might be refused, thus giving excuse for the fighting that they dearly wished to continue. That was years ago now, and there was a sharply enforced peace across the four nations. At least, they would be the four nations as soon as the wedding was finally official. For years now it had been the three nations and Wutai, not enemies, but with a shakable alliance.
Thus was the role of the elder Princess, Tifa Lockhart Kirasagi, of Wutai. He met her once before, while he was officially seen as a warrior, and now he was going to watch her marry his king from the shadows as a harem slave. He couldn’t begrudge her, the king needed a queen. He knew he never wanted to step up from the concealing shadow he'd lived his life in, and the best way to ensure that was to make sure that the current king had a child. He was no king in the making, whatever goal his mother may have had in birthing him, and he felt no guilt in thwarting her.
He simply had to keep an eye on those in attendance, because he knew she was invited. He didn't want her to put his king at risk. Much as he loved his mother, he trusted his king more.
Fandom: FF7
Warning: The universe! And implied sex!
Note: And Vincent is thinking. Allot. And his mother... is someone I think you guys should take a guess at. She may say 'the end', but, Outlands is more persistant then she really believed that it was going to be.
She was his mother. Really, if not for that he would never have come home, never spoken to her, and never ever gave her his love. But she was his mother, and that meant that he loved her. No matter what kind of person she really was.
He had turned a blind eye to how she dealt with political matters. He was a bastard child, and as such, he technically shouldn't exist. Society didn't really have to acknowledge that he did, and while that made some things harder, it made other things easier. She'd had him to try and further her personal ambitions. A bastard son of a foreign nation may have a glaring sign painted on his spine, but the lack of any other children from that nation's king could have made her Queen.
Of course, then that king had gotten married and had a son, thus ruining her chances unless by some perchance the entire family was killed off. It was almost disturbing to hear the fact that that king, his father, was dead when it had happened. It had been more disconcerting to see that his mother was actually rather pleased to get the news.
He was Cemeran. Cemere was the country he was born to, and was the land where he had been formed and taught his art of killing in. It was where he became the demon of the battlefield. Junon was where he grew up, and the matter of Galetha should not have impacted him. His mother was a low ranking noble, even if her contacts were at times terrifying and vast. He would not reveal her because he was more loyal than that, and was a good son, but that never meant that he agreed with her methods. They both knew that, and she often used it against him.
Still, when there had been a shift in power from king to queen, he had been one of the first nobles in his country to hear about it. His mother's friend, a man named Hojo, had sent her a message to indicate what had happened, and he had been the courier from door to sitting room so that he could give her the missive. She usually didn't pass any letters along to him after she read them, for which he was grateful, but apparently she'd wanted him to be aware of the news.
He couldn't ever remember seeing her smile quite like that before that time, and he could honestly say that it unnerved him. It was like a reptile's grin, nothing warm about it at all, and it came more often after that day, usually on the heels of bad news, such as when the queen of Galetha had fallen years later.
He didn’t like the idea that she'd come unhinged as he'd grown older. That in mind, he'd discounted it as a possibility entirely, picking apart his memories of her with studious care. He quickly found that her cold-blooded tendencies had always been there. The vicious ruthless streak, the chill calculating looks, neither of them was new. Shrouded in a gentle touch and motherly love, at least so much as a woman like her was capable, they seemed to go down to her core. He had no idea how he'd grown to be such an honorable man with her as a role model, but he knew he was, in comparison to many.
When the Cemere military had shown an interest in his talents during a practice, his mother had encouraged him to follow the prompting. His quiet caution in picking at her motives had quickly become more, deeper, cynical. He'd been such a fool as a child, but he was more a fool later, because even though he could now see her for what she was, she was still his mother, and so she would remain. It wasn't exactly something that one could avoid.
In turn, when he'd been chosen as a gift for the king of Galetha, he hadn't been sure how to take the news. Some secrets were truly secret, and while most didn't know his parentage for a certainty, others suspected and were not wrong. He still had moments when he wondered if he was more a joke than a gift, but he knew some, who had been at the bargaining table that day, were still angry that he'd been taken in so graciously.
He could only guess they'd been careful in trying to pick someone they thought might be refused, thus giving excuse for the fighting that they dearly wished to continue. That was years ago now, and there was a sharply enforced peace across the four nations. At least, they would be the four nations as soon as the wedding was finally official. For years now it had been the three nations and Wutai, not enemies, but with a shakable alliance.
Thus was the role of the elder Princess, Tifa Lockhart Kirasagi, of Wutai. He met her once before, while he was officially seen as a warrior, and now he was going to watch her marry his king from the shadows as a harem slave. He couldn’t begrudge her, the king needed a queen. He knew he never wanted to step up from the concealing shadow he'd lived his life in, and the best way to ensure that was to make sure that the current king had a child. He was no king in the making, whatever goal his mother may have had in birthing him, and he felt no guilt in thwarting her.
He simply had to keep an eye on those in attendance, because he knew she was invited. He didn't want her to put his king at risk. Much as he loved his mother, he trusted his king more.