Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII. It is the property of Square-Enix. This is purely for the fun of writing and for people's enjoyment.
Title: Shiroi Kurisumasu
Rating: PG-13 for some swears and other stuff!
Word Count: 4,175
Warning(s): This particular fic will contain slight shounen-ai between CloudXZack. If you do not like such things then I suggest you browse some other fic. For the rest of you, prepare for some mushy stuff! XD
Summary: The very first Christmas Cloud and Zack spent together.
Dedication: To my family and friends (You know who you are) for making this year's Christmas the best one I have EVER experienced! :) To Cloud for always being there and giving me the inspiration and courage to say "Hello" to another day. To Zack for always getting on my nerves and putting a smile on my face whenever I believed it to have disappeared without a trace. And to a certain someone I've given hell since I was seven years old for just accepting everything I threw at him without holding it against me. This is my thanks… and my apology to you. To all of you. Thank you.
A/N: Merry Christmas everyone!!! How's it going? I'm back with a very special One-Shot that I got inspired to write just last night! It was short and sweet so I decided to share with you all! ::Grins:: This is just something I wanted to write because I was feeling all girly and what not and so what better way to show how happy I am then to drag the boys down with me? XD In case you're wondering, the title means White Christmas. I know. Not very creative but hey, I felt that it fit with the whole theme and what not. Besides, who doesn't love Japanese? XD Special guest appearances and Zack being a dork! What fun!!! XD Anyway, I really hope you enjoy this One-Shot and have a wonderful Christmas! Don't forget to wish Cloudy and Zack a wonderful Christmas, too! They need love as well! XD
Shiroi Kurisumasu
"Happy/Joyous/Merry Christmas, Cloud!" came the voice of the energetic Zack.
It was early morning. Too early for such loud banter. There weren't many who would wake as soon as the sun rose on their day off, let alone a First-Class SOLDIER, who rarely gets time off to begin with. However, this was the very first Christmas he was spending with his young friend and after trying to spend Christmas with him for two whole years now and not getting the satisfying results he sought… he was going to milk every single part of it.
"Come on, lazy! Wake-y, wake-y!" He pushed Cloud hard enough to get him to stir but gently enough as to not give him a heart attack.
A simple groan was the only reply he received from the blonde.
"Cloud! How can you sleep in when it's Christmas?" Zack snorted close to Cloud's ear to see if that would get him up. "Man, you're one heavy sleeper. You know… I can take advantage of this fact and do unsightly things to you." The mischievous smirk on his face grew wider with each passing fantasy.
Cloud shifted in his bed, swung his arm wide enough to smack Zack across the face, and threw the covers over his head. Apparently, Mr. Strife was not a morning person.
Zack stood there, rubbing his cheek. The excitement he felt was far more superior than a mere slap across the face was. It's not as if the boy used his full strength, anyway. Naturally, he was to have his revenge on Cloud for committing such a crime. Zack was a very cunning and intelligent being, though he rarely showed it, and he knew just the right buttons to push to get on Cloud's not-so-friendly side.
"Fine. You leave me no choice." With a crack of his knuckles and a twist of his head, Zack decided to do something so evil, so twisted that not even Rufus Shinra would want any of his enemies to suffer from this heinous act!
With a swift jump in the air, he pounced twice on top of Cloud, bringing the blonde to full alertness. Cloud swung his arms at the attacker but was interrupted mid-way. Zack caught both his arms with a single hand and forced them above Cloud's head. The SOLDIER promptly took this moment to commence with his malicious plan. He sneered down at Cloud, lifted the boy's shirt, and lowered himself to give Cloud the biggest raspberry he had ever received.
Muddled laughter was heard throughout the entire Shin-Ra Building. Down every hall, room, and toilet. Even the executives of Shin-Ra heard this strange laughter. However, they were all too drunk from partying all night long to give a damn. You see, for Shin-Ra, Christmas starts early. All except for one bunch.
::Turk Office::
"The hell's that?" came the much curious voice of Reno.
"SOLDIER at their finest," said Rude, who was more into finishing up his paperwork than he was into Reno's nosiness.
"Yeah but… the hell they doin'?"
"…"
"Maybe I should go investigate. Ya know? Fer security reasons."
"Don't. Remember what happened last time."
The redhead stood quiet for a moment before shrugging, already half-way to the door. "So I had ta kick tha crap outta some newbies fer stealin' my Vodka. Big deal. S'not like I killed them or anythin'."
"They were in the medical ward for two months."
"Ya know, Rude? You worry too much. Let's you an' me get a drink later, 'kay?"
"…"
"Seven it is, partner. Well, be seein' ya." Before he was able to step one foot outside the door, a stern voice echoed throughout the room.
"Reno."
He stopped dead in his tracks and came to attention immediately. "Yes, Mr. Bossman, Sir!"
"Where are you going?"
"Ta stretch my legs. They cramp an' I need movement, Sir."
"And did you hand in your paperwork?"
Reno slowly turned to face the leader of the Turks. In fact, his boss was sitting right in his desk, behind a mountain of paperwork. "Wha?"
"Reno, I will not repeat myself." Tseng did not raise his head from his work but his voice was low, on the verge of threatening.
"Uh… ya see… 'bout that…"
"I suggest you finish that first if you want your legs to receive the exercise they need."
With a grunt, curse, and a spit, he began to slowly drag his feet back to his own desk.
"Quietly. Or I won't let you play in the snow."
"Wha? Bossman, that ain't fair!"
For the first time, the Wutain man lifted his head off his paperwork and gave a look that told Reno to hush up instantly.
"Ha ha. You got in trouble with the boss!" Elena, who walked in just moments before the confrontation between Reno and Tseng took place, snickered at her senior Turk.
"Shaddap, 'Lena!"
"I warned you." Rude placed a pile of paperwork on Reno's desk, sporting a smile all the while.
"Dammit! All ya are gangin' up on me." He finally took a seat at his desk and started with his work. "Bossman, you really need ta learn how ta lighten up. I mean, no play time in tha snow? That's harsh, man."
Once again, Tseng lifted up his head, staring straight at all three of his Turks before turning his gaze upon the redhead. "Merry Christmas, Reno." With a slight smile, he turned back to his work, leaving a bewildered Reno surrounded by two grinning Turks muttering about their plans for this glorious day.
::Back at the Bedroom::
Tears ran down the young boy's face. He twisted and turned but could not escape Zack's grasp nor could he stop laughing. The only thing he was able to do was continue to laugh and think how much we wanted to kill his superior.
"Z-zack! S… stop al-already!" His face resembled that of a beet; so bright and red and a little puffy, too.
"Not until you apologize for the slap." With that said, he blew another raspberry into Cloud's belly.
"Okay! O-okay! I'm soREHHH!!!" The blonde just could not contain his laughter.
"That's my boy!" The ever infamous sheepish grin returned to the dark-haired man. "I knew you'd see it my way."
"For now…" he grumbled under his breath.
"What was that?"
"I said, 'Snow now?'"
His grin grew wider as he spoke more energetically to Cloud than before. "Have a look for yourself, buddy!" He finally got off of Cloud to allow him to peer out the window.
A beautiful white blanket covered the city of Midgar. The roads hadn't been cleaned and there weren't too many people who were walking the streets yet. The snow was still pure. Untouched. Unspoiled. Still in its prime, its moment. Even in a city as polluted as this one was, it was still a magnificent sight to behold.
Cloud turned his gaze to Zack once again and smiled, all anger and frustration subsided. "It's beautiful…."
"Isn't it? Now get up, brush your teeth, and get dressed! We are going to have a ball!"
"I kind of just want to stay in today."
"Nonsense! We are to make Snowbos!" He ran up to the coat rack that was off to the corner of the room, grabbed his coat, and made his way to the door. "I'll be waiting for you at the main lobby!" He almost closed the door before being called back.
"W-wait!"
"Yes, bud?"
"…what are 'Snowbos'?"
"Get dressed and you'll find out." With a wink and a nod, he shut the door behind himself and made his way to the lobby to wait for his friend.
::Outside of HQ::
"Cloud, does this look like a beak to you?" Zack held up a mountain of snow up to Cloud's face, nearly shoving the entire mound on top of the poor boy.
Taking a step back, he sighed and continued to make his version of a Snow Chocobo whilst continuing to converse with Zack. "It looks more like an egg to me."
"What? No way! I worked really hard on making this one."
"Throwing one pile of snow on top of the other does not qualify as 'working hard.'"
"You're just jealous because my Snowbo looks much cuter than yours," he remarked, sticking out his tongue.
"Oh, what ever will I do…," came his sarcastic remark as Cloud rolled his eyes, going back to his bird.
How nice. It was just starting to become a bit noisier as children were getting up to have their playtime in the snow. How could anyone find this to be revolting? Cloud, especially, enjoyed the laughter of the children rising through the air. Back at his home in Nibelheim, he was too busy helping his mother with chores and Christmas dinner to even know what it was like to play in the snow. Not that it bothered him. He was more than happy to help his mother whenever he could.
I wonder if Mother got my letter yet….
He just lacked the experience that other children had. For this sole reason, and a few others that shall remain unsaid, he was unable to fully comprehend what it was like to have fun. So when Zack was excited about having the day off for Christmas to make Snowbos and Snow Angels, he was a bit intimidated.
Though odd as it may have been for him to truly open up, he was enjoying his time with Zack. After all, it isn't everyday that he got to spend time with the one he cared about. He was always there for him. Always giving him that extra push that Cloud so desperately needed at times. And, oh, how grateful he was to him for bringing him out of the deep forest that seemed to wrap its branches around Cloud's neck. Yes, he must remember to thank Zack for everything he had done for him so far.
"Cloud?"
"Yes, Zac-" The object that seemed to have cut Cloud off was a giant snowball that appeared to have Chocobo wings attached to them.
::Zack's Room::
"I said I was sorry! How long are you going to keep ignoring me?" He ran a towel through Cloud's spiky hair which was covered in snow. This must have been the twenty-seventh time he had apologized to the kid.
"Until I figure out how I'm going to murder you and make it look like an accident!" He snatched the towel away from Zack and began drying his hair himself.
"Ah-ha! I got you to speak to me!"
"…"
"Come on. Admit it. I win."
"…I hate you." He shot a deathly glare at Zack, wanting nothing more than to bury his head in a heap of snow.
"Now, don't give me that look. I was only teasing. No need to get upset." He stood up from where they were both sitting on the bed, making his way to his bureau drawer, and pulling out another nicely folded towel. Going back to Cloud, he gently placed it on top of the boy's lap. "There. No hard feelings."
Cloud scoffed and roughly picked up the dry towel to run it through his spikes as well. Though, as soon as he hoisted up the towel, a tiny box fell from the folds. It was covered with simple wrapping paper of light blue with tiny silver snowflakes on it and a bow to match. On the card was written To my one and only Snowbo. Cloud stared from Zack to the little packet then back again without knowing what to say.
"Go ahead, buddy. Open it," came the cheeky reply of Zack.
The blonde nodded, feeling he must do something besides just sitting there like an idiot. He lifted the gift from off the floor and slowly began opening it, taking care as to not rip it to shreds. Once the packet was fully exposed from its wrapping, he removed the top lid to reveal a small set of earrings. Each a different shade of blue.
"So? Whatcha think? I didn't know really what to get you. Trust me. I was stumped for the longest time." Zack couldn't suppress his smile any longer, taking his seat next to Cloud and thrusting an arm around the boy's shoulder. "But then I thought, 'Hey, he seems to have a thing for jewelry. Why not buy him some earrings?' And so, here you are!"
Cloud eyed the earrings curiously. He took one in his hand, looked at it closely, placed it back in the box, and did the same with the other. Once finished, he turned his head slightly to the side, just enough to gaze right into Zack's eyes, and almost immediately have his face turned away, hiding the fact that his face was red.
Zack smiled and brought Cloud a little closer to him. "Figured it out, did ya? I had them specially made. One to match the color of each of our eyes. You see, the one that's my eye color is meant to be worn by you and the one that's your eye color is meant to be worn by me. Now, wouldn't you like to walk around having everyone know that we belong to each other?" A heartfelt laugh escaped from his lips as he glanced at Cloud from the corner of his eyes. He lowered it to a chuckle once he noticed he wasn't getting a reaction from the boy. "Of course… you don't have to wear it if you don't want to. I guess I was just over-excited from being with you all day." His goofy grin returned as he scratched the back of his head.
Silent. He remained silent for a long time. His silence made Zack second guess whether it was a good idea to give him the gift when suddenly, he spoke in a whispered tone. "Why did you give me this?"
Zack was stunned. He thought it was pretty obvious why he would give Cloud a present. "Oh, I don't know. I felt like giving random gifts out this year." He lowered his arm from Cloud's shoulder to his waist, smiling ever so warmly. "I wanted to let you know how I felt about you and this was the best way to show you."
He brought his hand to the side of Cloud's face, forcing him to turn back towards him. Eyes filled with grateful tears greeted his. He didn't know his gift would cause his young friend to react this way. However, with just one look at Cloud, he knew exactly why he acted the way he did.
In truth, Cloud himself didn't think he would react this way. Whilst growing up, it was just him and his mother. She used to slave away at work all day to make sure that there was enough food on the table for both of them. Sometimes, there was only enough food for just him. Even so, she always made sure to give him one present on Christmas morning. The only present he would receive all day, all year. For that and for all the other sacrifices she made for him, he always appreciated her and loved her the way a son ought to love his mother.
Now, to receive a gift from someone who was not family, not blood, was a little more than he could handle. He tried to keep his composure but… the tears still fell. And fall they did. He wanted nothing more but to hide his face from Zack. Nevertheless, the First-Class SOLDIER refused to let him have his way.
Zack pulled Cloud into an embrace. Holding him for as long as he was allowed to, gliding his hand up and down Cloud's back. After a good long moment, he broke away from the hug, tenderly kissing Cloud on his forehead before taking his face into his hands. "There's no need to feel ashamed in front of me. I'm glad you decided to show me this side of you." He chuckled to himself a bit before continuing. "I'm glad you actually TRUST me enough to see this side of you. It took you forever to get to this point." He wiped away Cloud's tears with his thumb and smiled affectionately at him. "Honestly, you've never looked more beautiful to me than you do right now."
At that moment, Cloud scoffed and playfully pushed Zack away from him. "Shut up, stupid."
"So you can still talk. That's good. I was starting to worry there."
The blonde smiled slightly, his face still puffy from crying, and placed one hand on top of Zack's. "Thank you… so much. For your friendship. For your gift. For… everything. Just… thank you."
"Getting sappy on me now? I swear, I can't keep up with you." For that, he deserved the punch on his arm.
"You're an idiot." He nearly snarled out that last word.
A grin. An infamous grin. And then… a kiss on the cheek. "Now, there's my Cloud. I was starting to wonder where you'd gone."
"You like seeing me angry, don't you?"
"It brings joy to my soul."
"You're a sick puppy."
Zack leaned in and grabbed the earring that was the color of his eyes. He removed the earring that Cloud was currently wearing and placed it in the box. Whilst putting the earring on Cloud, he said, "But this makes me your sick puppy."
Cloud eyed his superior put the remaining earring on himself. He couldn't help but feel content. How wonderful it was to be by Zack's side. This was what he always wanted. To have this which he never had before. Those feelings of longing, of hurt, of lonesomeness finally were beginning to dissipate. Finally.
"Ta-da! Now we're the perfect pair." Zack pressed his cheek against Cloud whilst holding up a mirror. "Oh, yeah. We're cute."
Cloud smiled back at his own reflection, thinking that Zack was right for once. If only about the part where Zack was cute. "Hey, Zack?"
"Yea-" He was interrupted by the lips of a young boy who seemed to really be taken in by his charms.
Zack wrapped his arms around Cloud's frame tightly, squeezing the blonde's body against his own. Cloud's own arms folded around Zack's neck, pulling him closer to get the full taste of his lips. They allowed each other's tongues to slide against each other before breaking the kiss slowly, savoring the taste of one another.
For a minute, Cloud stared into Zack's eyes, which resulted in having him remove a strand of hair from the boy's eyes. He smiled slightly, true happiness radiating from his being. "That was for hitting me with a snowball."
"Really? I should hit you with snowballs more often." He laughed, leaning in to nuzzle Cloud's neck.
"If you do, I'll have to get a bit more violent myself."
"Please don't tempt me, Cloud. You know how I get when I am tempted." With a smirk on display, he moved to nip Cloud on the nose.
Cloud laughed and hugged Zack tighter than before. He leaned in again to give Zack another kiss but Zack prevented him from doing so; much to Cloud's dismay. "What's wrong?"
"Follow me." Before Cloud could even respond, Zack stood from the bed. He grabbed Cloud by the hand and dragged him over to a spot underneath the ceiling fan.
"What is it? Why'd you move to this spot?"
Zack grinned and pointed up. "It's Christmas. We can't start making out without being under the mistletoe!"
An exasperated sigh and a thought of pushing someone out the window. "You really are an idiot."
With a tug and a light kiss on Cloud's lips, Zack responded merrily to him. "I love you, Cloud." And with that said, he began to show how much he truly loved him. This time without pause.
I love you, too, Zack.
Merry Christmas!!!
A/N: One last thing before I end all this. I want to say thank you to Vix3.16 for not only Betaing my fics but also for giving me the inspiration I needed to write the Turk part of this One-Shot. If it wasn't for her, I'm sure I'd still be ignoring all of them suit wearing people. So many thanks to her and to ALL of my readers! Thank you so much for the support! I hope you all have a wonderful Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays!!!