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Final Fantasy VII- Sephiroth Fanfiction Favs

This is a fanfic rec list that recommends stories that focus on or heavily feature Sephiroth. :) All ships, no ships, genfic. Nothing is tagged, so heed the fic warnings if you're sensitive to stuff.

Final Fantasy VII OG- Canon only Fic Recs (Compilation characters like Genesis and Angeal do not appear)

The Monsters Within by TheCalamity (The Nightmare Begins, A Cold-Hearted Boy, Minute to Breath)

A story about the destruction of endurance. What does it cost - as individuals, as a species - to survive? We are how it ends. [A contemplation and analysis of the original 1997 Final Fantasy VII. Chronicles the Jenova Project, Sephiroth's childhood with ShinRa, and the events of FFVII through the lens of Vincent Valentine. This series is a deep dive into the philosophy, themes, characters, dynamics, world, lore and message of OG FFVII.]

This quite possibly the story I've reread the most that I'll recommend on this blog. Banging soundtrack, gorgeous art, brilliant formatting, terror, awesome, gut-wrenching-- all words to describe this story. The author doesn't shy away from the grotesque, and there are tender moments woven through an epic saga about terrible people desperately seeking connection and meaning. I don't think I've ever read anything like in any fandom ever. I don't know if I ever will.

Lament of Memories by CryptCreeperX

From test-tube freak to First-Class SOLDIER to super villain to a quirky mechanic suffering from a bad case of amnesia… This is a strange tale of how the end of the world, a band of misfits, forgotten memories, and raunchy romance novels push a fallen angel to rise again.

It's a tragedy this is incomplete because I needed more of this 7 years ago. T_T

Earthing by Grenespek

Gast survives being shot by Hojo, only to wake from a coma seventeen years later. Searching for his wife and daughter, events find him in Nibelheim on the day Sephiroth disappeared. A Sephiroth redemption exploration.

I love me three things in a Sephiroth story: 1) a Sephiroth that subsumes Jenova 2) Terrifying Sephiroth 3) Sciency Sephiroth. Told from the rotating perspective of terrifically flawed Gast, an in-character badass Aerith, and a Sephiroth that I can definitely see being the progeny of two insane scientists and a space alien.

Our Shining Past by Tocasia FFN | Ao3 @tocasia

A series of old-style (original game mostly, no CC) Sephiroth and Zack Friendship stories (all genfic) from a list of 100 prompts, in order of completion. Variously dark, silly, cute. Mostly one-shots; chapter format is a lie. Same AU? maybe… or maybe not. Halfway there on 7/1/2018!

Consider this blanket recommendation of all of Tocasia's works. Pair impeccable writing with nuanced characterization, humor, action, excellent integration of the game-mechanic style worldbuilding that is so rare in video-game fics, and you've got this series of one-shots. Zack's character is so much more interesting to me pre-crisis core, and unfortunately fics that explore what canon jossed 15 years ago are slim or mostly gone from the internet. Other favorites of mine from them include God of Paperwork and The World that Will Never Be, a Kingdom Hearts crossover.

A Good Son by myeve123

AR Ending for Nibelheim Incident. After Hojo fished him out from Nibelheim Mako Reactor, Sephiroth sets about cleaning up the mess. Preferably before the chemical imbalance in his brain drowns him for good.

Ugh, this story need so much more love than it's gotten. I'm a slut for stories that play around with the relationship between Lucrecia, Vincent, and Sephiroth, and take it in a true canon divergence! Excellent visual writing, and fast paced. Unfortunately, all the images are broken.

This Family Is Alright by axilet

A series of stories exploring the dysfunctional dynamic between mad science sibs Gast, Hojo and Lucrecia, and their son Sephiroth who they're completely unfit to raise. Just imagine what the poor kid will be like once he's all grown up. Sad Uncle Vincent tries to stage an intervention but you know how that turns out.

An oldie but goodie that I first encountered on FFN some years ago now, but I misplaced the link; now archived on ao3. How To Train Your Super Soldier Son (to become an insane destroyer of worlds) is the Sephiroth-centric fic of the series, and also the first one I read.

They Were Monsters by Yinza @yinza

In the midst of his breakdown in the Shinra mansion and desperate for answers, Sephiroth breaks open the locked basement door to find the man who might be his father… But though Vincent presents him with possibilities he hadn't imagined, Sephiroth struggles with who to trust, and what path he might follow--Jenova's, or his own.

Yinza is another ruler of horror. Actually maybe I'm just a slut for horror there's a lot of those recs on this list lol. Anyway, this fic is so well-written. If a sense of creeping dread is the sensation you seek, look not further than this story. For a not-Sephiroth centric rec, I must include their story No Moms Die, which according to my ao3 history I have 32 times @_@. If we exclude the chapter updates, I've reread it more than times since it finished :D It's that good.

Final Fantasy VII Compilation (includes Advent Children and Crisis Core)

To Be Human by LadyKF LadyKF On FFN On Ao3 [For Archive Users Only]

The world seems black and white at a glance, but the truth is never so easy. Where one draws the line between human and monster is a lot less clear when motive and deed don’t match, and a change in form is only proof of something that has been there all along. (Angel's Wings rewrite, Crisis Core fix-it.)

Ahh I was obsessed with Angel's Wings while it was updating, and To Be Human and it's compilation side stories blew the first story out of the water. The worldbuilding! The writing! The jump straight into action! The CANON DIVERGENCE!!! We all read fanfic here, we all know how rare an actual 'canon divergence' story is that actually sticks within canon without being a lazy rehash? This story is THE fix-it.

Be Not Afraid by Tiffany_Park On FFN

Hollander to Angeal: "Jenova's power has passed on to you completely." What does it mean to have received "Jenova's power"? Chances are it's not pretty. (Yeah, it was pretty ugly in Crisis Core. It's worse in this AU because Hojo got involved.) Warning: These are horror stories. Check the tags and take them seriously.

I prefer to read this series on FFN because yay for giant font but I've linked the AO3 since it puts the series in order. I live for everything this woman writes. This series takes the body-horror in canon and amps it up to 11. From Zack's POV but the Sephiroth characterization is just *chefs kiss*. Unsettling and blue-and-orange morality kind of ride of die friendship love for the win.

Snowball Effect by Tiffany_Park On FFN

Once upon a time in his youth, Angeal posed as the centerfold for an obscure porn magazine. When he made SOLDIER First Class, Shinra decided to erase its history for PR reasons. A few years later, Reno and Rude find an old copy in a used bookstore and purchase it so it can be safely destroyed. This results in many more complications than if they'd just left it to molder there.

If you read that summary and thought, "the premise of this story is utterly ridiculous", you would be entirely correct, but it's not a crack-fic in that it takes this completely seriously and runs with it. Features Shinra Corp. being dastardly, fangirls that fit effortlessly into the 90s sci-fi setting, and wonderful characterization of Angeal, Genesis, and Sephiroth, who all manage to be completely terrifying in their own special ways.

What is Lost by UnLike_Us

What little is left of Sephiroth after 100 years in the Lifestream suddenly finds itself without a purpose. Determined to find its lost history and reason behind its obsession, it goes back to where it all started.

One of the fluffier picks on this list, the author really plays with the idea of inner memories. A time-travel fic I don't hate lol, if only because the time travel doesn't result in an OP fix-it.

Father: Verb by Naughty_Nishitani

11 year-old WMD Sephiroth is assigned a new handler/bodyguard, named Vincent Valentine. I am sure this has been done 10000 times but I can't stop thinking about it, so here's my version.

As the author says in the summary, I too am a slut for murder-baby Sephiroth, and this is one iteration of the trope I've reread many times. Another Sephiroth fic from the same author I enjoyed is First Soldier.

Starstruck by DyraDoodles @dyradoodles

Zack's limit break always mimics people who end up shaping his life in one way or another. Once he's met them, he can use a break similar to one of theirs, no problem. This time, there is a problem: He's mimicked someone with the power to blow up a solar system, and he has no idea how to control it. He'll have to track them down, and hopefully get them to take an active role in not just teaching the limit break, but his entire life.

This fic is crack to me. I've been salivating over every update since chapter 3. DyraDoodles has another more popular series Redux Hero AU, which I also enjoyed, but that one is much more Zack-centric and so not a good fit for this list; I rec it nonetheless.

Sephiroth Shinden: CLASSIFIED 'PROJECT S.' by goddamnitaisha

A series of one-shots exploring Sephiroth's life. One of the most no-woobie takes of Sephiroth's character, which I really, really like. Paired with an almost bleak writing style, the blunted amorality of the characters really shine through in each one-shot. A favorite of mine. Ao3 users only, unfortunately, but the author has a tumblr @goddamnitaisha. Her blog is truly gorgeous and definitely worth checking out! Not Sephiroth-centric but I really love The Unpromised Land. That's the first story I read from her on tumblr a long ass time ago.

Final Fantasy VII Remake (explicitly set within the Remake/Rebirth verse)

Swords into Plowshares by brilliantKatabasis

The purpose of the Jenova project was to produce a Cetra, someone to negotiate with the Planet on Shinra's behalf. The military applications for the entity were compelling, it's true, but ultimately limited in scope- they have robots for these things, after all- and so the SOLDIER proposal was rejected, quietly shelved away. The asset is instead committed to the significantly more lucrative field of agribusiness, where it is hoped the cultural cache of his mystic heritage will assuage the rise in environmental concerns and planetological sympathies among key interested parties. Sephiroth, Director of Stewardship, tracks down the supplier of the only fresh flowers in Midgar he's had no hand in cultivating, oblivious to the web of time he's threatening. Oblivious to the probability he shares a name with, who longs to crush this flight of fancy and claim his rightful title of certainty, gathering like a cloud on the horizon. Oblivious to the attention he's brought to his local florist's door.

Ugh, remember everything I said I loved about Earthing? This fic is an AU with a similar vibe, completely different premise. I actually recommend you check out all of brilliantKatabasis' library; they truly are an excellent writer.

For the Love of Rain by Boomchick (On Tumblr)

Sephiroth is not human. There is no doubting that now. He fell in two pieces into the reactor all those many months ago. And yet there he is again. Appearing between one heartbeat and the next, while Zack floats hopeless in Mako. There he is, opening the tanks and setting Zack and Cloud free. There he is, chuckling “there is no rush” and smiling an indulgent smile.

If you like Sephiroth-fic, you've probably been recced Boomchick before. If you haven't, I highly recommend you read all her fics, especially The Trooper Series and Restart. A lot of her stories are accompanied by epic art by tomowowo. Why did this fic make it onto the list and not the rest? Because, and I quote, it gives me the tag "Nightmare Sephiroth chooses friendship." That is epic.

Little Seph by ToastedCatBread @toastedcatbread

A life spared, a life returned. A future unseen, a future to fight for. This is the story about the Candle and the Star.

On the note of Nightmare!Sephiroth, what if he was tiny instead of hot and terrifying? :D That's what this story is. Love it!

Those Called by the Reunion by EllaEpoche

Shinra Electric Power Company’s Administrative Investigator Agatha Highmore has just landed the gig of a lifetime - investigating the leak of compromising photographs of the SOLDIER hero Sephiroth. But after a night of passion, Agatha finds herself entangled in a world of human experimentation, corporate scandal, and mysterious illnesses, with only one goal: find and reunite with her lost love.

This fic is a trip @_@. EllaEpoche is one of those authors whose brain cooks up the most insane plots and has the writing talent to back up the wild storytelling. Also recommend Schrodinger's Sephiroth, which explores the multiple timelines introduced in the remake. Ten Thousand Cold Nights also gets a mention here.

Epiphany by Fenrir4life, The_Story_Maker

Sephiroth is looping, repeating the events of Final Fantasy VII over and over again. He has experienced not only the events of the original game and the remake, but many more cycles beyond, stretching into a multitude of similar and yet ever-so-slightly different worlds. Regardless of loss, death, or even victory, he has been unable to free himself from this time loop – or even uncover why he is looping at all. Determining to find answers, he seeks out Aerith Gainsborough to see if he can convince her to interrogate the planet itself for information. However, it turns out Aerith is not completely ignorant of the cycle. Fed experiences by the planet of the events of the original Final Fantasy VII, she has good reason to distrust Sephiroth and his plans. This story revolves around their interactions with each other and the resulting consequences that ripple through this particular cycle.

This is probably my favorite Remake fic. It matches the perfect balance of silliness and action that attracted me to the characters in the first place and hits it with a hefty dose of perfectly written Aeriseph, like you hit the pot with the hot pepper to make the flavor pop. Love it!

Alternate Universe

The Host by CryptCreeperX

A troubled youth, Cloud leaves home to join an elite gang of soldiers. But flipping burgers at Chocobo Chow and living in the Slums during unsafe times wasn't in the plan. Neither were rejection letters from Shinra Inc. An encounter with an enigmatic silver-haired Host presents a new obstacle. Guided to a world of sensual pleasure, Cloud bonds with a man who revels in dark passions

This story is sensual. Even the most mundane moment are described so thoroughly? So intensely? Like, this is a POV of a dude who has zero-chill and you can feel that every moment in his narration, even when man is flipping burgers. Plus, Sephiroth is HOT. The makeup of my bi-dreams.

The Boy Voted Most Likely to Rule the Planet by CryptCreeperX

In High School, there's the pressure to fit in, raging hormones, and seeing the boy of your dreams with someone else. Sephiroth deals with all this. He's been on the run his whole life. When he and his nutjob dad move to Nibelheim, things get complicated. An unruly boy catches his eye. Now he must contend with his feelings while making sure Dad doesn't turn him into a pet project.

I hate high school AUs. But sprinkle some mad science and psycho kids and all of a sudden you have a perfect story. It's like when you don't like a certain fruit but cooked into a pastry that shit is godly? That's this story.

Wonders of the World by CryptCreeperX

Once, a man driven by love nearly ended the world in hate. 200 years have passed since Meteorfall. A film crew documents a derelict mountain village shrouded in snow. Isolated from the world, it's rumored the Lifestream runs black there and spirits of the dead stalk its grounds. Their guide is Wolf, a man with odd blue eyes. He likes to smile. He also says some memories never die.

This thing's got the pacing of an M.Night Shyamalan movie. Love it!

The Prophet by NazoFox2501

In Assiah, there are prophets that are chosen by the god Sephiroth to speak on Their behalf. Cloud, an atheist college student, is afflicted with a deadly disease, the mark of the next chosen prophet. On a journey with his friends, will he be cured and accept his fate, or can he overcome it?

If religious trauma horror is your cup of tea, this story is for you. If your favorite bit of FFVIIR is how terrified Cloud is in Midgar, this story is for you.

#ffvii #sephiroth #fic recs #reblog

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