Zack Fair attacked the offender with a powerful swing of his arm. His aim connected, and the offender fell silent. Victory.
He rolled over and pulled the blankets over his head. Why the hell had he set the alarm to go off at this unholy hour on his day of leave?!
Beep.
With a rather pathetic whine to himself (Zack and mornings do not mix), Zack yanked the covers off of his head and turned around. The alarm clock was as it should be, in two pieces on the floor (thank the Planet that ShinRa supplied replacements free of charge)...then why was it still beeping?
Beep.
Coherance began to return to Zack's sleep filled mind and he spotted the real offender, his cell phone was lying across the room and vibrating as it rang. Zack rubbed his eyes, dragged himself out of his bed, and grudglingly manuvered through his piles of messy clothes to retrieve the phone. He longingly thought of the days when he was not second to the General and therefore was not required by duty to answer his phone at down right offensive hours.
Speaking of the General...
"Zack?" came General Sephiroth's voice through the phone.
Zack scowled for a moment and began his usual early morning tyraid, "Sephiroth?! Why in the world are y.."
Sephiroth interrupted, "Zack, shut up."
General Sephiroth told Zack to "shut up" a least a hundred times a day, (and Zack ignored him a hundred times a day as well...) but something in Sephiroth's tone of voice quieted Zack. Anyone other than Zack would say that the General had only one tone of voice, and that was cold. However, Zack, being nearly inseperable from Sephiroth (no matter how Sephiroth tried to deny it) since they fought side by side in Wutai, could speak Sephiroth's language. Something serious was up.
"Are you awake enough to even recall what day it is?" the General's voice came again through the phone.
The question startled Zack back into the world of reality, "Oh...", was all Zack could muster. Recalling the day, his stomach did a small turn.
"Get dressed, and come up to my apartment." Sephiroth hung up the phone.
Zack wasted no time, he closed his phone and searched for a clean uniform. Usually, when Zack recieved an early morning summon, he spent an unusual amout of time in the morning choosing what boxers he should wear for the day, Generals orders or not.
But thinking on Sephiroth's tone of voice, which Zack concluded was worry, made him feel very uneasy.
He rounded the corner of his SOLDIER apartment and entered his living room half expecting to find his other best friend sprawled out on his couch.
At Zack's insistance, Recruit Cloud Strife has spent last night at his apartment in an attempt by Zack to calm Cloud down, who was stressing the hell out.
Reserved Cloud Strife normally hid his emotions (Zack seemed to attract that type), but not last night, no. One moment Zack was cracking a corny joke and Cloud was laughing, the next Cloud was trying to hide the fact that he was suddenly in tears.
Really now, he didnt think his jokes were THAT terrible...
It wasnt long again until Cloud had pushed himself out of Zack's consoling arms, and was pacing back and forth, intent on burning a hole into Zack's carpet. (As if he needed to wrack up more home repair costs with ShinRa!)
Zack had thought Cloud was acting like a pregnant woman. He voiced that thought out loud last night. Cloud was not amused.
Ouch, Zack rubbed his arm as he reached for his card keys, that bruise was still there.
After one last desperete attempt at consoling his friend, which involved Zack, some alchohic beverages and Chocobo treats, Zack gave up and allowed Cloud to return to his Recruit barracks to drive himself mad in peace.
Zack noted that the time on the elevator's clock read 4:24 AM as his slid his key card and hit the access code for Sephiroth's private apartement floor.
As the elevator began it's ascent, Zack's thoughts drifited back to his young friend. He ran his head through his dark hair and sighed, trying convince himself that this had nothing to do with him. His efforts were in vain however, Zack had a distinct feeling that this had everything to do with Cloud. The elevator doors slid open, and Zack found himself hurrying to the General's door.
It was left unlocked and he helped himself inside.
Sephiroth had been waiting for him it seemed. The stern General was leaning against the bar that connected his kitchen and his living room. His long silver hair hid his face as his attention was diverted to a pile of papers below him that he was sorting through.
"I did not mean to wake you...", Sephiroth began in a quiet voice, never looking up from his work.
Zack threw down his card keys onto the bar's surface and pulled up a stool beside his friend.
"S'alright. Whats up...?" Zack asked, purposley diverting his gaze from the papers Sephiroth had now pushed aside.
Sephiroth motioned for him to wait a moment as he signed his name at the top of a pile. He gathered most of the papers and shoved them back into a
file box at the edge of the counter.
Despite his efforts not to, Zack caught a glimpse of the file's label.
"SOLDIER Admission Examinaton Results", it read.
Yes, it was that day.
Zack motioned to the box and the papers, "That is what this is about, isnt it?"
Sephiroth turned in his chair and faced Zack. Without saying a word, the General pushed a small set of papers towards Zack.
Silence from Sephiroth was not an unusual thing, but for some reason, his silence was doing nothing good for Zack at the moment.
"Recruit Strife, Cloud" read the headline of the pages that Sephiroth pushed toward him.
Zack took them in his hands and sighed.
"I wanted you to see this first." Sephiroth simply said.
Almost every night for the entire year that Zack had known Cloud, while all of the other SOLDIER Recruits were relaxing after their grueiling day of training, Cloud would be at the gym locked in a room, practicing until his arms couldnt hold a sword any longer.
The kid would almost damn near kill himself.
There was many a night where Zack had to physically force Cloud just to go out to the city with him, to relax.
Cloud may have been the smallest one of this year's batch of Recruits, the naive longshot from a hick town, but Zack was damn sure that he was the most dedicated Recruit that ShinRa had ever seen.
Sephiroth had even agreed as Zack brought Cloud around him more and more.
If the kid even failed all of the phsycial and mental tests, ShinRa should let him in SOLDIER because of his pure devotion alone.
Not that Cloud completley lacked any skill or anything.
What he lacked in physical strength and endurance, he made up for in speed. The skill part, Cloud had improved a lot over his year as a Recruit.
His secret training sessions with Zack, had a lot to do with it. Which of course, Zack took full credit for and jumped at any opportunity to brag to Sephiroth about.
As Cloud and Zack grew closer and so did the date for the SOLDIER Examiniations, Zack felt the pressure build as if he were the Recruit again.
Suddenly, Cloud did not even seem to enjoy going out on the motorcycle with Zack, which was something the kid loved to do. He was a changed person.
It worried Zack, a lot. The kid seemed to put everything into making it into SOLDIER, as if there were nothing else worthy in life to live for.
He understood, a little. He remembered being in Cloud's shoes as a Recruit, remembered participating in the hero worship of SOLDIERS, desperetly craving the privelage and pride and everything that came with that title. Everything a common Cadet could only dream of.
Heh, what they dont understand is the other things that come with the title. The unspoken things. Being on the frontlines of war, the almost unbearable pain of the mako treatments, carrying out an order given by ShinRa to slaughter innocents...
Yeah, that part of SOLDIER. The part that kept Zack awake on some nights.
Some secret side of Zack almost wished for Cloud to not make SOLDIER, to never have to see these things. Never to see a fellow SOLDIER writhing on the ground suddenly, screaming as the mako turned against them, burning them from the inside out...
Zack would be deeply saddened to see Cloud loose that innocence he had. Ignorance, could be a merciful thing.
Then again, Zack would also be saddened to see rejection break Cloud's heart as it surley would.
It was almost a loose loose situation.
As the exam date neared, he worried out loud to Sephiroth so much about Cloud's well-being that Sephiroth had forbidden the topic of Cloud
in the office until after the Exams. (Not that Zack really obeyed...) And now, here it was, the moment of truth, lying in front of him in the form of a intimidating looking paper.
Zack glanced at Sephiroth, whose face was his trademark devoid of emotion.
"Recruit Strife, Cloud". The paper went on to list his statistics, hometown, age, weight etc...
Blah blah blah.
Zack flipped the page impatiently, his heart beating faster despite his attempts to stay calm.
Cloud had passed the written test with flying colors, recieving praising comments from his Instructors like Zack predicted.
Even if he came from a backwards town where having a street light warranted a party, the chocobo haired kid was intellegent. He and Sephiroth, had that in common.
He did pretty well on his physical tests too..., Zack noted. He only tripped up badly on the Materia and the strength test, which was expected...
Zack allowed a small smile as he read the marks of the other tests. Messing up in some areas was alright. No Recruit since Sephiroth took his SOLDIER test had ever passed every single thing. In fact, Zack did terrible on almost all of his written tests, no, miserable was a better word. Zack and books were not best friends.
A few weeks ago, while sprawled out on Zack's apartement floor studying for a test, Cloud asked for Zack's help on a question that went something like: What is the proper way to dispose of an expired Materia? To which Zack replied with somthing utterly x-rated and inappropitate followed by a suggestion for trying it.
He never seen the kid's eyes get so big as they did then...
Zack flipped the page again. There was a tiny paragraph about the final test.
"Medical Examinaton Results:
Conducted by: Professor Hojo, head of the ShinRa Scientific Research and Development.
Physical and Mental Health Evaluation: Pass.
Mako Compatibility: Fail.
Conclusion: Not Admitted into the SOLDIER Program."
It was followed by a small line for the General's suggestion for placement within the ranks of the Cadets.
The ranks...of Cadets...
Not of SOLDIERS.
Zack put the paper down. He stared blankly at it. He felt strangley numb, as if he did not know what to feel.
"I...am sorry," Sephiroth broke his silence. "I know it meant a lot to him."
Zack looked up at his friend for a long moment, processing his words.
One thought suddenly ruled his mind, "I, never ask favors of you..." Zack began quietly.
Sephiroth interuppted, "I am sorry Zack, I cannot."
Zack jumped up, his stool scraping backwards loudly. Desperation took over, "But, you are the GENERAL! You cant, override this? Please, Seph..." Zack's voice died off. Was he actually begging?
"Unfortuantley," Sephiroth replied calmly, "When it comes to compatibility with mako, there is nothing I can do. His body could not handle it..."
Zack had a vivid flashback of the night of Cloud's trial injection, the way he had to hold Cloud to the floor to prevent him from tearing at his skin, the frantic desperation of Cloud as he tried to ease the burning in his veins. This went on for two whole nights, it was only supposed to last one.
Sephiroth, was right. Zack slumped back down into his chair and put his head in his hands.
Oh gods, it was even worse that the kid was failed only because of something he couldn't control. It was downright cruel.
The thought upset Zack greatly.
He heard movement and felt a comforting arm wind itself around his shoulders. He leaned into the embrace.
After a moment, Sephiroth continued in a low cautious voice, "I give you permission to tell him the results yourself. Someone should hear something like this from a friend, correct?"
Sephiroth had never known this kind of rejection in his entire life.
Zack sighed and nodded slowly, "I, I am afraid of what he will do to himself if he is alone," Zack said softly, "I am going to bring him to my apartment."
Sephiroth agreed to the idea.
The Cadets would be waking to see the results posted very soon. If Zack wanted to reach Cloud first, he had to leave now.
Sephiroth stated this fact before Zack could, gently pulling away from him.
Zack, had faced many hard things in his life, he had seen war, he had seen death, but the walk to Cloud's dorm was one of the hardest things he had ever done.
He stood in the silent hall of the Recruit's dormitory, in front of him was the door that bore Cloud's name.
"I am sorry, kid." he whispered to the door.
He put on his best stony SOLDIER face, raised his hand, and knocked.
-fin-