Title: Tabby Fever
Author: R.L.N.
Keywords: A/U, Yaoi, Fluff, Sap
Pairings: G/C
Spoilers: None.
Summary: Springtime brings new life to the world of Gaia and a burst of new kittens take over Shinra. While wishing he could keep one, a lonely cadet meets a friendly fiery orange tabby.
Rating: K
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by their original creators. No money is being made and no infringement is intended.
Author's Note: Just a short, fluffy one-shot inspired by my own cat. Enjoy.
"Meow."
Cadet Cloud Strife looked up from his book and regarded the bright orange tabby curiously. He was lounging on his bed in the barracks, a few other cadets scattered around but most had taken the afternoon off. The cat was huge, and the bed dipped as it jumped up and crawled next to Cloud and sprawled out.
"Hello there, what's your name?" Cloud asked, looking at the collar. A single thick tag in the shape of a key hung from the red leather collar, and the name Burnout was the only thing engraved on it. An odd name, but Cloud just petted the cat and let him (quick check, yes it was a boy) sleep next to him while Cloud read.
"DAMMIT!" someone yelled from across the room, and Cloud looked up at the raging cadet throwing things around. "Another cat had kittens under my bed! That's at least fifteen in this barracks alone!"
"I'll take them," Cloud said, getting up and heading over. He pulled the other boy's nest of shirts the mother cat had used and counted out five kittens. The mother cat hissed a little, but Cloud just scooped them all up and carried them back to his bunk, tucking them into a cardboard box he had just used to vacate the last batch of kittens he had found.
The white female followed and growled a little, but calmed down when Cloud tucked her kittens safely under his own bed and she settled down to nurse her newborns. The kittens were getting out of hand now; there was a litter nearly twice a week now around Shinra. Cloud wished he could keep at least one kitten, but orders were to clear out the kittens as soon as possible. Pets weren't allowed to cadets, so the orange tabby comfortably napping by Cloud's side obviously belonged to someone higher up. Cloud gave a soft scratch behind Burnout's ears and smiled at the purring before settling back down to finish his book.
All that week Cloud helped clear out kittens, and all that week the orange tabby Burnout had stayed with him. Cloud was curious as to why he didn't just go home, but he seemed content to just lounge around with the cadets, eating whatever scraps the mother cats brought in and the canned food Cloud snuck him. Cloud spent his free time playing with kittens and cats, there were so many around Shinra compound now that even the officials had given up trying to deal with all of them. Cloud never grew too attached to any particular kitten, for it was all too often that another cadet would pack up a box of them and turn them all in, so he turned most of his attention to Burnout.
It was the Sunday and late at night, most of the cadets had either gone out for a last-minute party or stayed in to catch up on sleep. Cat-duty had everyone tired, and Cloud had just tucked in another litter of kittens under his bed when Burnout jumped from his bed and started walking out the door.
"Meow."
Cloud looked up curiously, and put on a pair of tennis shoes before following the tabby. He wasn't fully dressed, only wearing a tank and sleep shorts, but Burnout had already trotted off. The tabby seemed to know where he was going, and Cloud opened the door to the staircase and watched him easily start making his way up the flights of stairs.
"Burnout, come back here," Cloud whispered, looking around before following the cat up the steps.
Cloud thought that Burnout was a fat cat, at least twenty pounds if not more, but he must have just been big-boned and muscular because he was a fast and strong cat making it up flight after flight of stairs. Cloud caught up to him and opened the door he was waiting at, and followed him down the short hallway and tried to open the door Burnout stopped at again.
"It's locked," Cloud said, feeling silly talking to the cat.
Burnout just pawed the door, scratching down the side, and Cloud huffed in frustration. "It's locked Burnout, you need a key…"
Getting a look at Burnout's collar, Cloud reached down and pulled off the nametag, and stuck the tag into the keyhole and turned it. The tag really was a key, it didn't just look like one, and Cloud followed Burnout through the dark hallway. They passed two doors before stopping at a third, and Cloud tried the nametag key.
The door opened quietly, and Cloud watched Burnout enter and stepped into after the cat, closing the door behind him. He was in an apartment, but just like the cat he didn't know to whom it belonged to.
Cloud looked around for clues as to who it could be. There were swords decorating the walls, and Cloud blinked at the wall nearest him by the door. Were those…scorch marks?
Now Cloud was scared. What if someone was in here with him and mistook him for a burglar and killed him? Cloud crept quietly forward, looking around for Burnout. The cat came trotting back into view, and Cloud jumped a mile but managed to avoid making any noise. Burnout just looked at him before pawing at the door, and Cloud opened it, fleeing for his life with the cat. The left the same way they came, the door automatically locking behind them as it closed.
Once Cloud was back at the barracks he collapsed onto his bed and let out a shaky breath. Whoever owned Burnout could have been in that room…but Cloud wasn't too keen on surprising someone with a sword and a fiery hot temper in the middle of the night.
The next morning Cloud was leaving the last classroom lecture of his day when he ran into his friend Zack Fair. Zack was a SOLDIER, something Cloud was striving very hard to achieve, and had seemed to take it upon himself to mentor Cloud to a small degree.
"Hi Cloud!" Zack greeted, and Cloud returned a small smile and wave.
"Hello Zack," Cloud replied, and allowed the taller man to sling an arm over his shoulders and direct him to wherever Zack wanted.
"I'd like your company for a while," Zack said as he removed his arm, and Cloud obediently followed him to the training floors. "Angeal is training with Genesis and told me to wait for him. As if I have the patience to just sit and wait!"
The entered the observation deck and Cloud sat down while Zack paced around. He never met Zack's mentor, but had heard of Angeal Hewley through many rumors. He's also heard just as many about Genesis Rhapsodos.
"Look, they've already started," Cloud said, but Zack wasn't watching.
"Angeal said Genesis has been depressed since his cat disappeared," Zack said, squatting up and down. "I told him there are a million cats running around Shinra now and to just pick another one, and he blasted a fireball at me! I was knocked clear out of his apartment!"
"Sometimes it's hard to move on when you don't know what happened to what was lost," Cloud said, watching the two 1st Class SOLDIERS duel. It was mesmerizing, and he was having a hard time paying attention to Zack. "You wouldn't just find a new pet yourself, would you?"
"I suppose not," Zack said, feeling a little more sober about the matter. "Looks like they're done, let's go."
Cloud didn't have time to protest as Zack grabbed him and dragged him down into the training room. He flushed bright red as he realized he still had his book bag slung awkwardly over one shoulder and wasn't technically in full uniform. His shoulder pads and kneepads never fit right so by the end of the day they were stuffed in his bag along with the belt straps, his helmet conveniently forgotten by his bed, and he just managed to tuck his scarf up around his face to hide as Zack opened the door and bounded inside.
Cloud stumbled a little, but managed not to fall over from the weight of his bag as Zack dragged him into the training room. He could feel his face heating up as both Commanders looked at him, and almost wished he had his helmet to hide behind.
"Angeal, Genesis, this is my friend Cloud Strife," Zack introduced. "Cloud, this is Angeal and Genesis. Angeal's been mentoring me."
"H-hello sirs," Cloud said softly, feeling even his ears burn. He focused on the leather strap that ran along Angeal's chest, and with great strength flicked his eyes upward. Sweet Gaia the man is tall, and Cloud wished fervently again to have a growth spurt or something to make him at least bigger than Angeal's sword.
Angeal smiled warmly at Cloud, and Cloud smiled shyly before his gaze flittered over to Genesis. The other man wasn't smiling, in fact, he seemed to be sulking. Cloud didn't get to wonder what was wrong for long when Genesis abruptly left, not saying anything.
"Don't mind him, he's just missing his baby," Angeal said, sighing. Cloud glanced up in confusion, and Zack piped up.
"His cat that went missing," Zack reminded.
"Oh," Cloud murmured, adjusting the strap of his bag as he followed Zack and Angeal out of the training room. "I wish I could have a cat. We're not allowed them in the barracks."
"If you ever get one, I hope you never lose it," Angeal said, and Cloud just nodded and waved as they separated, Zack and Angeal leaving to train and Cloud going back to the barracks.
Burnout was sleeping on his bed, and Cloud put his belongings away before scooting the big tabby over and curled up next to him. He was warm, and Cloud took a nap listening to the soft purrs.
"I'm sure you two meant well, but I'm not little child," Genesis said, frowning at his friends. "You don't need to check up on me in the middle of the night."
Sephiroth and Angeal looked at each before looking at Genesis. "We heard the back door open and figured it was you," Angeal said, shaking his head. "Someone came up through the back door that wasn't any of us?"
"You are the only one with a key, correct?" Sephiroth asked, and Genesis nodded, no longer angry.
"I don't just hand them out," Genesis said. "It's on…well it was on Burney's collar."
"You put the key to your apartment on your cat's collar?" Angeal asked incredulously. "Anyone could have it now."
Genesis threw his hands up in the air, getting irritated again. "So some mysterious person comes in, looks around my apartment, and leaves? This makes no sense! How would they know where I live?"
"That is a little strange, that someone would figure out which door to unlock," Sephiroth said, a little puzzled and not liking the feeling of not knowing all the information. "The cat is being taken care of, most likely by someone caring for all the strays. Perhaps someone followed him home?"
"At least Burney's around," Angeal tried to reason. "Try and get some work done now, Genesis."
Genesis just frowned, sulking some more. He had less information and more questions and now a mystery of how someone had gotten into his personal apartment and Angeal wanted him to work! All three of them were currently in Sephiroth's office, it being the largest, and they were supposed to be filing cadet forms for evaluations later that week.
"Hmm," Angeal said, holding up a paper. "It's Zack's friend Cloud."
"Who's Cloud?" Sephiroth and Genesis asked in unison, and Angeal looked at Genesis in exasperation.
"You just met him today," Angeal reminded, and Genesis just shrugged. He vaguely remembered some blond cadet out of uniform after training, but he's been so upset over Burney he hasn't thought about much else.
Angeal placed the paper on Genesis' pile, rolling his eyes playfully. "You get to evaluate him then, since you've already forgotten him. Be nice, he's a cat person."
At that tidbit Genesis did perk up a bit, glancing over the paper briefly before getting back to work.
That Friday, Cloud nearly shook in his boots as he waited for his evaluation to begin. This time he was in full uniform, including his helmet that smashed his spiky hair down and made his neck itch. He didn't know who was going to be evaluating him, but Cloud hoped it was Angeal; the man had smiled at him and seemed nice.
When Genesis Rhapsodos strolled into the room Cloud nearly fainted. As it was, he immediately sat down in the chair when motioned to, and sat ramrod straight as Genesis sat across from him at the table.
The room was a small study room off the main library hall, and Cloud wished he wasn't so far off from people so there would at least be witnesses if he were to be blasted apart by a fireball. Genesis didn't seem to be in a sour mood though, and Cloud started to relax as the evaluation started.
By the end of an hour Cloud was tired, he was sweating under his helmet, and his shoulders were aching from the too-heavy shoulder pads. Genesis seemed to have lost interest as well, and was instead marking down answers without really talking to Cloud.
"All right, we're done enough," Genesis finally said, and Cloud breathed a soft sigh of relief. It wasn't soft enough, and he blushed under his helmet when Genesis gave him a smirk. "All ready to get away from me?"
"N-no sir," Cloud stammered, flushing darker.
"Helmet off, cadet," Genesis ordered, and Cloud obediently took it off, wiping sweat from his brow and wishing his blush away.
"Since we're officially done, let's talk about something else," Genesis said, leaning back in his chair. "Angeal said you're a cat person."
Cloud nodded, smiling softly as he thought about Burnout. "I am. Cats were rare in Nibelheim, it was usually too cold for them, but my mother had one when I was small. And there are cats all over here every spring now. I wish I could keep one."
"I could write on your evaluation that a companion could improve your performance," Genesis offered, and Cloud just gasped before laughing, covering his mouth with a gloved hand to smother his giggles.
"It's ok, there's this cat that's been visiting me for two weeks now," Cloud said, smiling. "He's a huge orange tabby. He sleeps with me every night and is always there when I come back during the day."
"…An orange tabby?" Genesis repeated. "Does he have a white striped tail, by chance?"
Cloud just blinked before nodding. "Yeah…his name's Burnout, sort of a weird na-"
"You have my cat!" Genesis exclaimed, and Cloud was startled to his feet before being grabbed by Genesis and hauled out and towards the barracks.
The trek to the barracks was a blur of red and fire, and Cloud stumbled as he opened the door and looked inside. He went to his bed, but Burnout wasn't on it. The big imprint on his pillow and covers was still warm, but Cloud looked under the bed and all around.
"He's not here," Cloud said frowning.
"And you're sure his name's Burnout?" Genesis said, frowning as he watched Cloud crawl around.
"Yeah, look, I have his nametag," Cloud said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out the key.
Genesis took it, sure enough it was the key to the back door and his apartment engraved with Burnout's name. But the cat was nowhere to be seen.
"I'm sorry sir, if I see him I'll bring him to you," Cloud offered. "I followed him up the stairs one night. It must have been your apartment I entered."
That explained the mysterious visitor. "Here then," Genesis said, holding out the key. "Keep this, and come up to the room when you have him."
"R-right away sir," Cloud said, closing his hand around the key and putting it in his pocket.
Genesis turned and went to leave, but stopped and looked back at Cloud. "Thank you," Genesis said, and he smiled softly. "For letting me know my cat's all right."
"I've been taking great care of him, sir," Cloud reassured and blushed as Genesis tossed him a wink and left.
Cloud collapsed on his bed, closing his eyes for a short nap. He woke up a few hours later and glanced around. The barracks was still deserted; most likely the cadets were either celebrating their evaluations or sobbing in a corner somewhere. Cloud was getting hungry for dinner, and began stripping off his uniform to change. He had just managed most of it when a loud "Meow" caught his attention.
"…Burnout!" Cloud exclaimed, watching the cat trot over and jump onto his bed, lying down in his sleep imprint. "Come here!"
Cloud lifted the cat, but somehow the twenty pound cat suddenly weighed forty, and Cloud struggled to hold him as he oozed out of his arms like liquid. Cloud kept trying, and managed to scoop up as much cat as he could, and began making his way out of the barracks and up to the apartment.
He probably looked like a fool, and Cloud wouldn't blame anyone for pointing and laughing if they saw him. He wore only a white tank and his uniform pants and boots, and had a liquid oozing orange cat that was shedding all over him. He was panting by the time he got to the top of the stairs, and Burnout started meowing loudly and pitifully as if he knew where he was going.
"You're going home Burnout," Cloud said, out of breath as he adjusted the orange ball of gelatinous cat in his arms. He made it to the locked door, and had to kneel on the floor to dig the key out of his pocket as Burnout oozed out of his one-armed hold and flopped to the floor, crying.
Cloud unlocked the door and opened it, scooping Burnout back up and managed to carry him to the apartment door. This time, key in hand, Cloud managed to get the door open without dropping the cat. He stumbled in through the door and shut it, collapsing against it and sliding to the floor.
Burnout came back to life after that, rolling over and standing up. Cloud watched him trot off, and blew sweaty bangs out of his eyes as he was too exhausted to get off the floor.
"…You're as orange as my cat."
Cloud looked up in surprise, and flushed bright red as he realized Genesis Rhapsodos was staring at him with one eyebrow raised from his couch. He glanced down and realized Burnout had shed orange fur all over his white tank top, and Cloud just sighed, too tired to care.
"At least he's home," Cloud said. "I hope you don't lose him again, sir."
Genesis had gotten up at this point and walked over, holding out his hand. Cloud took it and was easily pulled to his feet. With a surprised sound that was definitely not a squeak, Genesis tugged the dirty tank over Cloud's head and tossed it aside.
"I'll get you a clean shirt," Genesis offered, and Cloud fought down the urge to cover himself as he followed bare-chested.
The t-shirt that was thrown over Cloud's head was soft and smelled like baked apples, and Cloud pulled it on with a soft hum of pleasure. It was big on him, but Cloud didn't mind as he followed Genesis back out to the living room.
Cloud untied his boots and left them by the door before sitting on the couch, tucking his feet under his body to keep them warm. Genesis was in the kitchen heating up apple pie, and Cloud probably should have protested something about dessert before dinner. But the pie was delicious, and Cloud ate every bite he could out of the bowl.
Burnout seemed happy enough that Cloud was around, and cuddled up on Cloud's lap on the couch. Genesis seemed much more relaxed in his apartment. They ate leftovers for dinner and talked about cats, and when it was nearing curfew Cloud put his boots on and hovered by the door.
"Here's your key back," Cloud said, holding out Burnout's nametag.
"Keep it," Genesis said.
Cloud smiled shyly, and when Genesis leaned in close Cloud tilted up and met him in a kiss goodbye. It was warm and soft, and Cloud sighed as he felt Genesis' hand cup his cheek and tongue tease into his mouth. Cloud wound both arms around Genesis' neck and was pulled closer as the kiss deepened. He wasn't sure how long they spent making out against the door, but by the time Cloud finally, finally left he was breathless and definitely well-past curfew.
"Come up anytime," Genesis offered and Cloud just smiled, feeling bold.
"You can count on it."
End.
Author's Note: My gray tabby has this habit of going boneless when I pick him up and he'd rather stay in my bed. I swear he goes from fifteen pounds to thirty and sheds all his fur instantly as a hissy-fit mechanism. Cats…gotta love them.