Plotbunnies
28 December 2005 15:20![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mimi_sardiniaI had imaginings while away, one that's been around for a little while, another that is newish (though I suspect it's a variation on older ones).
First of all, the old:
The House of §trange is weird.
I totally blame it's weirdness on the fact that this persona (Mimi Sardinia) started out as a Mary Sue (as is mentioned in my user info).
As my alter ego defined it...
The House is located in high snowy mountains. It is actually above the snowline but the valley it is in is dominated by a lake that fed by hot springs that keep the valley temperate enough that the snow is held back. (I honestly don't know if such a thing could really exist but the House and the valley are my mindscape so even if it wouldn't in the real world it does because the Valley isn't a real physical place.)
There is some space around the lake that is grassland, though posibly cleared as most of the slopes of the Valley are covered in think forrest. The one notable slope that isn't so treed is the one that the House and it's directly surrounding gardens is located on.
The house has at least three stories visible, though it also delves belowground into a cave system that tunnels into the mountain.
This is the House, as it is, in what is currently my "bedtime fantasy" (something fluffy and chocked full of "happy thoughts" (i.e. sex) to help put me to sleep), and since I started imagining a few of my favourite FF7 characters there.
But first I have to explain the chibis.
So, I have four FF7 characters who are residents of the House. All of them have child-versions of themselves running around though.
Usually the arrival of one of the adult versions was presaged by a chibi making an appearance (sometimes not by much though).
Currently in residence: Vincent, Cloud, Seph, Aerith.
Arrival order: Vin-chan, Vincent, Cloudy-chan, Sephy-chan, Cloud, Sephiroth, Aerith-chan, Aerith.
Seph was pre-emptive though on the issue of Aerith, when her chibi incarnation arrived he disappeared for a while and went hunting for the adult version.
The kids can mind themselves quite well, and even so are more than likely to have one of the other residents (like Narri, Imoen or even Anvelice (one of my fellow §trange Sues)) keeping an eye on them.
The adults... well I have three words for them: Happy little foursome.
As for the new...
Well my Telepathy materia is a symptom of how fond I am of telepathy in general as a plotbunny.
The general idea that turned out not to be general but instead a massive essay:
Gaea suspects Sephiroth could be a problem (what with his high proportion of Jenova DNA) and pre-emptively does something to prevent it while he is still a child. The Planet alters an unborn child so as to telepathically link it to Sephiroth, hoping the contact will keep Seph from losing too much of his humanity and slipping into "Jenova's" control*.
Because the Planet has to do this as Seph's "keeper" is still in early pre-natal development neither of them become conciously aware of each other until Cloud (who did you expect it to be?) is about five and Seph is 14**.
At this stage they start becoming conciously aware of the constant presence in their dreams, Cloud (being so young) takes to Seph as one might expect a child to do so with an imaginary friend, Seph starts studying the link, slowly working out that Cloud is more than some repetitive dream-image.
It is another 5 years however before Seph and Cloud meet for the first time however, with Seph having to return to Midgar from the war in Wutai - giving him chance to go via Nibelheim and be able to meet the child who has been his constant dream-companion, friend and guide to a belated childhood for the last five years. (Ages: Cloud 10, Seph 19) It also gives him an excuse to investigate a curiousity that he has found in Cloud's dream-images of Nibelheim - namely the Shin-Ra Mansion.
Cloud meets him as he enters the town, intantly becoming his constant shadow. That night, after dark (and after Cloud is suposed to be in bed), they go visit the mansion (Seph understandably making sure Cloud stays well back until he's made sure there is now danger).
Seph finds the basement library and starts looking through the books while Cloud, quickly bored of books with no pictures (at least, none that'd appeal to a child) goes exploring and discovers a room with coffins (did you think I would leave that unfound?). The discovery of at least one occupant who is still alive is understandably a bit of a scare for a kid who probably was raised on tales of the mansion being haunted.
Seph comes running of course, to discover a somewhat puzzled ex-Turk by the name of Vincent Valentine.
Of course, meeting Vincent is a huge key to Seph's own unknown past and several very important personal issues (like the one of his MOTHER). While Vincent is unwilling to broach the issue because of uncertainty***, Cloud, listening to the conversation, puts in the question: "Are you Seph's papa?"
Somehow, Seph's sidetrack gets back to Shin-Ra HQ, and to Hojo (he probably was not travelling back to Midgar alone so maybe one of the soldiers with him reported the diversion). This gains immediate reaction with Hojo panicking about what Sephiroth could find in Nibelheim, prompting the scientist to push President Shin-Ra into suplying him with troops, air transport - maybe even Turk suport.
This ends up becoming a showdown of sorts, somehow ending up in the Mt. Nibel reactor (Jenny Dear is there, of course) with at least Cloud falling into the Mako in the fight (the original version also had both Seph and Vincent falling as well, but reconsideration has me thinking that it may be better if they don't).
Seph is taken by Shin-Ra and is "adjusted" so he cannot directly disobey, but he still has some free will (or else he would be rendered useless as a fighter). He is also subjected to Hojo's constant experimenting.
Somewhere in this maybe Nibelheim is raised by Shin-Ra as well - it'd give a reason for Tifa to figure later if she was one of the survivors (somehow I see a few more survivors of Nibelheim in this version than canon (Yes, I am still going to kill off Cloud's mother, though some of the other adult villagers may survive, managing to get away with some of the kids - Tifa included).
Vincent's location is unknown (if he fell, Gaea "fiddled" with him, if he didn't, he got away anyway) and Cloud is somewhere in the Lifestream.
Gaea is worried enough about Sephiroth that while she has Cloud she sets to work on him, altering him to be her defender - a "new Cetra" so to speak, with the abilities to hear her and access a good few magical abilities without materia (though not completely without penalty - doing so probably tires him just as using materia would (MP drain) - or maybe even faster than average materia usage would****).
Cloud is washed up on the shores of Wutai and ends up being taken in by Godo Kisaragi and his wife and is raised as a foster brother to Godo's young daughter, Yuffie.
It is quickly realised that Cloud is something exceptional so Godo sees to it that he is trained to fight - and Cloud, in some sort of rememberance***** insists on learning how to use a sword.
Some factions of Wutai however suspect that Cloud is some sort of demon and the advantages of having him on their side may not outweigh future costs.
Vincent somewhere along the way comes into contact with AVALANCHE (the older version of it - the BC version, which I really need to read up on but I get the impression are true "terrorists" - even if Shin-Ra is the BIG BAD COMPANY - hell I think AVALANCHE at the begining of FF7 is still "true terrorists" as well, it stopped being such once it left Midgar) and decides that while their cause may be honourable in theory he is not impressed by their manner of persuing it, so while he not against them neither is he a dedicated member - at best, a sometime ally. Mostly though he is independant of every faction that exists, and while he is looking for Cloud, believing him to be alive, he does not want to get himself involved in the warzone, not to mention may have some personal issues of his own with Wutai (something in his personal background).
A boy from Gongaga joins the Shin-Ra army and does his best to befriend the isolated General, giving Sephiroth at least one person who is on his side, and someone who (if he can avoid drawing attention tohimself) can act where Sephiroth cannot.
Zack also meets a nice girl living in the Slums that he becomes fond of but she is wary at times of Zack's connection to Shin-Ra.
The Shin-Ra establishment (as run by Shinra Snr.) is fighting Wutai, as well as trying to hold off AVALANCHE.
Rufus Shinra is plotting to steal the company out from under his father any way he can - even if it means getting someone to kill the old man off for him.
Yuffie is still a brat.
Cid may still have lost his chance to go into space, but more than likely due to budget cuts that prevented the manned mission he was slated for because of the continuation of the war******.
The destruction of Corel may yet have happened as per original canon, thrusting Barret into a point where he is recruited by AVALANCHE.
Tifa somewhere along the line joins AVALANCHE's side, because of the loss of Nibelheim.
Shin-Ra may yet have got ahold of Nanaki. If so, it is by Seph and Zack's doing that he is freed.
Along the way Seph pushes Zack to get Aerith away from Midgar as well - possibly after her being caught (sympathy on Seph's path for a fellow victim of Hojo's experiments).
Ten years after Seph and Cloud's one meeting:
Shin-Ra come to a point in the war with Wutai where they are desperate enough to risk setting Sephiroth loose. They don't realise Wutai has their own secret weapon - Cloud Strife.
The two end up facing each other and Cloud brings Seph down - only knocking him out though, and avoiding injuring him extremely. He takes Sephiroth as his "captive".
The Wutain side is not sure what to make of this either, thinking someone as dangerous as Sephiroth ought to be executed. Cloud is adamant however that Sephiroth is his - even to the point of threatening all the objectors with anilation if they dare any sort of attack against Seph.
This is only the begining though, while his wish to breed Seph has been stymied at every turn Hojo has managed to create a new breed of super-soldier. He has also taken to breeding monsters to fight on Shin-Ra's side.
What's more, he may have found a way to revive Jenova herself.
* Yes, I still like the idea of Seph being an evolved version of Jenova and them basically being two aspects of the same being divided into two bodies (the original Jenova being a creature of instinct that could, at most, only borrow the conciousness of other creatures, while Sephiroth being the first true conciousness that truly belongs to any part of "Jenova"). For those who don't subscribe to this theory, my wording was meant to be open to include the common opinion of Jenova being an independant conciousness.
** Seph's age is based on estimates that have him as 25 at the burning of Nibelhiem. This would make him 9 years older than Cloud.
*** While I love Vincent=Seph's fatherI still suspect Squeenix intented Hojo=Seph's father.
No, actually, I don't suspect. I bloody-well accept it is so! I may wish otherwise and love fanfic writers who go the Vincent=Seph's father but I accept Hojo was his canon father. Besides, Hojo may have been better looking when he was younger, he could have just got old and decepid. We'll have to see when better pics come out from the DoC flashbacks.
**** I wouldn't want to Gary Stu Cloud too much, hence why I specify some sort of penalty.
***** Since he's taken a swim in the Lifestream he may initially have amnesia.
****** Proper credit for this idea should go to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
misskalloway.
I know, it's open-ended. It'd take someone with a better idea of how to write a war to close it off. It shows all the hallmarks of being a massive epic though and I can barely write ficlets, let alone super-epics. I just suffer the plotbunny attacks.
First of all, the old:
The House of §trange is weird.
I totally blame it's weirdness on the fact that this persona (Mimi Sardinia) started out as a Mary Sue (as is mentioned in my user info).
As my alter ego defined it...
The House is located in high snowy mountains. It is actually above the snowline but the valley it is in is dominated by a lake that fed by hot springs that keep the valley temperate enough that the snow is held back. (I honestly don't know if such a thing could really exist but the House and the valley are my mindscape so even if it wouldn't in the real world it does because the Valley isn't a real physical place.)
There is some space around the lake that is grassland, though posibly cleared as most of the slopes of the Valley are covered in think forrest. The one notable slope that isn't so treed is the one that the House and it's directly surrounding gardens is located on.
The house has at least three stories visible, though it also delves belowground into a cave system that tunnels into the mountain.
This is the House, as it is, in what is currently my "bedtime fantasy" (something fluffy and chocked full of "happy thoughts" (i.e. sex) to help put me to sleep), and since I started imagining a few of my favourite FF7 characters there.
But first I have to explain the chibis.
So, I have four FF7 characters who are residents of the House. All of them have child-versions of themselves running around though.
Usually the arrival of one of the adult versions was presaged by a chibi making an appearance (sometimes not by much though).
Currently in residence: Vincent, Cloud, Seph, Aerith.
Arrival order: Vin-chan, Vincent, Cloudy-chan, Sephy-chan, Cloud, Sephiroth, Aerith-chan, Aerith.
Seph was pre-emptive though on the issue of Aerith, when her chibi incarnation arrived he disappeared for a while and went hunting for the adult version.
The kids can mind themselves quite well, and even so are more than likely to have one of the other residents (like Narri, Imoen or even Anvelice (one of my fellow §trange Sues)) keeping an eye on them.
The adults... well I have three words for them: Happy little foursome.
As for the new...
Well my Telepathy materia is a symptom of how fond I am of telepathy in general as a plotbunny.
The general idea that turned out not to be general but instead a massive essay:
Gaea suspects Sephiroth could be a problem (what with his high proportion of Jenova DNA) and pre-emptively does something to prevent it while he is still a child. The Planet alters an unborn child so as to telepathically link it to Sephiroth, hoping the contact will keep Seph from losing too much of his humanity and slipping into "Jenova's" control*.
Because the Planet has to do this as Seph's "keeper" is still in early pre-natal development neither of them become conciously aware of each other until Cloud (who did you expect it to be?) is about five and Seph is 14**.
At this stage they start becoming conciously aware of the constant presence in their dreams, Cloud (being so young) takes to Seph as one might expect a child to do so with an imaginary friend, Seph starts studying the link, slowly working out that Cloud is more than some repetitive dream-image.
It is another 5 years however before Seph and Cloud meet for the first time however, with Seph having to return to Midgar from the war in Wutai - giving him chance to go via Nibelheim and be able to meet the child who has been his constant dream-companion, friend and guide to a belated childhood for the last five years. (Ages: Cloud 10, Seph 19) It also gives him an excuse to investigate a curiousity that he has found in Cloud's dream-images of Nibelheim - namely the Shin-Ra Mansion.
Cloud meets him as he enters the town, intantly becoming his constant shadow. That night, after dark (and after Cloud is suposed to be in bed), they go visit the mansion (Seph understandably making sure Cloud stays well back until he's made sure there is now danger).
Seph finds the basement library and starts looking through the books while Cloud, quickly bored of books with no pictures (at least, none that'd appeal to a child) goes exploring and discovers a room with coffins (did you think I would leave that unfound?). The discovery of at least one occupant who is still alive is understandably a bit of a scare for a kid who probably was raised on tales of the mansion being haunted.
Seph comes running of course, to discover a somewhat puzzled ex-Turk by the name of Vincent Valentine.
Of course, meeting Vincent is a huge key to Seph's own unknown past and several very important personal issues (like the one of his MOTHER). While Vincent is unwilling to broach the issue because of uncertainty***, Cloud, listening to the conversation, puts in the question: "Are you Seph's papa?"
Somehow, Seph's sidetrack gets back to Shin-Ra HQ, and to Hojo (he probably was not travelling back to Midgar alone so maybe one of the soldiers with him reported the diversion). This gains immediate reaction with Hojo panicking about what Sephiroth could find in Nibelheim, prompting the scientist to push President Shin-Ra into suplying him with troops, air transport - maybe even Turk suport.
This ends up becoming a showdown of sorts, somehow ending up in the Mt. Nibel reactor (Jenny Dear is there, of course) with at least Cloud falling into the Mako in the fight (the original version also had both Seph and Vincent falling as well, but reconsideration has me thinking that it may be better if they don't).
Seph is taken by Shin-Ra and is "adjusted" so he cannot directly disobey, but he still has some free will (or else he would be rendered useless as a fighter). He is also subjected to Hojo's constant experimenting.
Somewhere in this maybe Nibelheim is raised by Shin-Ra as well - it'd give a reason for Tifa to figure later if she was one of the survivors (somehow I see a few more survivors of Nibelheim in this version than canon (Yes, I am still going to kill off Cloud's mother, though some of the other adult villagers may survive, managing to get away with some of the kids - Tifa included).
Vincent's location is unknown (if he fell, Gaea "fiddled" with him, if he didn't, he got away anyway) and Cloud is somewhere in the Lifestream.
Gaea is worried enough about Sephiroth that while she has Cloud she sets to work on him, altering him to be her defender - a "new Cetra" so to speak, with the abilities to hear her and access a good few magical abilities without materia (though not completely without penalty - doing so probably tires him just as using materia would (MP drain) - or maybe even faster than average materia usage would****).
Cloud is washed up on the shores of Wutai and ends up being taken in by Godo Kisaragi and his wife and is raised as a foster brother to Godo's young daughter, Yuffie.
It is quickly realised that Cloud is something exceptional so Godo sees to it that he is trained to fight - and Cloud, in some sort of rememberance***** insists on learning how to use a sword.
Some factions of Wutai however suspect that Cloud is some sort of demon and the advantages of having him on their side may not outweigh future costs.
Vincent somewhere along the way comes into contact with AVALANCHE (the older version of it - the BC version, which I really need to read up on but I get the impression are true "terrorists" - even if Shin-Ra is the BIG BAD COMPANY - hell I think AVALANCHE at the begining of FF7 is still "true terrorists" as well, it stopped being such once it left Midgar) and decides that while their cause may be honourable in theory he is not impressed by their manner of persuing it, so while he not against them neither is he a dedicated member - at best, a sometime ally. Mostly though he is independant of every faction that exists, and while he is looking for Cloud, believing him to be alive, he does not want to get himself involved in the warzone, not to mention may have some personal issues of his own with Wutai (something in his personal background).
A boy from Gongaga joins the Shin-Ra army and does his best to befriend the isolated General, giving Sephiroth at least one person who is on his side, and someone who (if he can avoid drawing attention tohimself) can act where Sephiroth cannot.
Zack also meets a nice girl living in the Slums that he becomes fond of but she is wary at times of Zack's connection to Shin-Ra.
The Shin-Ra establishment (as run by Shinra Snr.) is fighting Wutai, as well as trying to hold off AVALANCHE.
Rufus Shinra is plotting to steal the company out from under his father any way he can - even if it means getting someone to kill the old man off for him.
Yuffie is still a brat.
Cid may still have lost his chance to go into space, but more than likely due to budget cuts that prevented the manned mission he was slated for because of the continuation of the war******.
The destruction of Corel may yet have happened as per original canon, thrusting Barret into a point where he is recruited by AVALANCHE.
Tifa somewhere along the line joins AVALANCHE's side, because of the loss of Nibelheim.
Shin-Ra may yet have got ahold of Nanaki. If so, it is by Seph and Zack's doing that he is freed.
Along the way Seph pushes Zack to get Aerith away from Midgar as well - possibly after her being caught (sympathy on Seph's path for a fellow victim of Hojo's experiments).
Ten years after Seph and Cloud's one meeting:
Shin-Ra come to a point in the war with Wutai where they are desperate enough to risk setting Sephiroth loose. They don't realise Wutai has their own secret weapon - Cloud Strife.
The two end up facing each other and Cloud brings Seph down - only knocking him out though, and avoiding injuring him extremely. He takes Sephiroth as his "captive".
The Wutain side is not sure what to make of this either, thinking someone as dangerous as Sephiroth ought to be executed. Cloud is adamant however that Sephiroth is his - even to the point of threatening all the objectors with anilation if they dare any sort of attack against Seph.
This is only the begining though, while his wish to breed Seph has been stymied at every turn Hojo has managed to create a new breed of super-soldier. He has also taken to breeding monsters to fight on Shin-Ra's side.
What's more, he may have found a way to revive Jenova herself.
* Yes, I still like the idea of Seph being an evolved version of Jenova and them basically being two aspects of the same being divided into two bodies (the original Jenova being a creature of instinct that could, at most, only borrow the conciousness of other creatures, while Sephiroth being the first true conciousness that truly belongs to any part of "Jenova"). For those who don't subscribe to this theory, my wording was meant to be open to include the common opinion of Jenova being an independant conciousness.
** Seph's age is based on estimates that have him as 25 at the burning of Nibelhiem. This would make him 9 years older than Cloud.
*** While I love Vincent=Seph's father
No, actually, I don't suspect. I bloody-well accept it is so! I may wish otherwise and love fanfic writers who go the Vincent=Seph's father but I accept Hojo was his canon father. Besides, Hojo may have been better looking when he was younger, he could have just got old and decepid. We'll have to see when better pics come out from the DoC flashbacks.
**** I wouldn't want to Gary Stu Cloud too much, hence why I specify some sort of penalty.
***** Since he's taken a swim in the Lifestream he may initially have amnesia.
****** Proper credit for this idea should go to
misskalloway. I know, it's open-ended. It'd take someone with a better idea of how to write a war to close it off. It shows all the hallmarks of being a massive epic though and I can barely write ficlets, let alone super-epics. I just suffer the plotbunny attacks.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
2005-12-27 22:25 (UTC)no subject
2005-12-28 00:42 (UTC)Besides, in this plotbunny Nibelheim happened when Zack was 12.
no subject
2005-12-28 10:08 (UTC)no subject
2005-12-28 21:05 (UTC)But scary, yep! ^_^