AN: I apologise if this chapter is as screwed up as the other uploads have been. I have been trying to fix it but nothing seems to be working! Ugh. Anyways, I hope you enjoy it if it is ok to read. Thank you.
Chapter One: Beginning
Cloud sat outside the house, he drew his knees to his chest and frowned down at the dusty floor as he scraped a random pattern into it with a stick. He could hear their voices, chattering blithely away as if the recent tragedy hadn't happened. He wondered why Tifa put up with it, they were stupid, stupid and vain and shallow. Cloud would never let anyone talk that cheerfully around Tifa if he was there, it was surely hurting her. The loss of her mother was well known already, a small town held too many gossips. He had come as soon as his mother had mentioned it, ignoring her cries as she told him to be back in time for dinner, he had flown out the door and run to Tifa's house, once again gazing up at the window as if it were a window into her soul. He didn't know exactly why he kept doing this, he knew that they didn't like him, that they thought he was weird but he couldn't help himself. He refused to admit that he came because he wanted to become a part of their little group, he didn't like to think that he was as stupid as they were. He sighed and kicked at a nearby stone, shifting into a more comfortable position before closing his eyes and listening to the friends gossip within. "I want...to see...Mother." Cloud looked up just as the sound of feet reached him, he stood up as the door to the house opened and Tifa ran out into the sunlight. He saw her friends follow her and paused, he watched where they were headed and bit his bottom lip, his eyes moving back to the house in a moment of indecision. Then he broke into a run, following them as they passed by the empty Shinra Mansion and towards the dangerous mountains.
Tifa's friends abandoned her one by one until she was alone, Cloud followed her, ignoring the others as they returned home again. He was worried, terrified of what could happen to her out here. There were monsters and people always went missing in the mountains, he didn't understand what Tifa was thinking as he watched her run across an ancient wooden bridge. He paused and gingerly put his weight on it, there was a loud snap, Tifa screamed and Cloud felt his feet shift beneath him. His eyes had time to widen before he was weightless, then gravity took hold and dragged him down into the deep canyon where he fell with a crash. He gasped, pain lancing through his knees and slowly he rolled over onto his back, gazing up into the twilit sky. After a moment to recover from the shock he slowly got to his feet, shaking his head and wincing as he looked down at his knees and saw that his trousers had gaping holes in them and blood seeped sluggishly from two minor wounds. He looked back up, barely even wondering at this miracle. He saw Tifa lying unconscious, he ran to her side and knelt down, ignoring the renewed pain and shaking her gently. "Tifa?! Tifa?!" He muttered, panic lancing through him as he wondered how she was injured. Blood stained the side of her face from a wound on her hair line, her eyes were closed and he couldn't tell if she was breathing, panic fluttered in his chest.
"Cloud! Why'd you bring Tifa to a place like this!" Cloud looked up, blinking in shock as Tifa's father appeared with another man from town, he opened his mouth but couldn't seem to form words as Tifa's limp body was lifted into the air. "What the hell's the matter with you!? What if she dies?!"
Cloud watched as the two men left him, taking Tifa with them. He swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat and lowered his head. Bitter tears stung his eyes and he choked on them before he slammed his fist angrily into the ground, he was too weak. Too weak to save Tifa, too weak to stop her from hurting herself. "Damn it!" He hissed, slowly getting to his feet again and furiously wiping his eyes, infuriated at himself for not being able to help when she had needed it most.
When he returned home his mother ran to him, tears streaming down her face as she wrapped him tightly in her arms. He let her hug him as he stared over her shoulder, not even seeing the battered wall paper or the pictures that hung on the wall. She released him when she realised he wasn't responding to her questions and gazed into his face, her own a mask of concern. "Cloud, what on earth is the matter?" She asked softly. "Did you get hurt in that fall? I heard from Tifa's father that she is in a coma...oh...oh i'm just so glad you're ok."
"Yeah...I'm fine." Cloud whispered, frowning a little at this fact. He had fallen the same distance as Tifa and yet had somehow come away with only scraped knees, how on earth had that happened? He opened his mouth to ask his mother but she merely smiled and wiped a little dirt from his face, he cringed away and she stepped back.
"Dinner's ready, if you're hungry."
Cloud shook his head and wrapped his arms around himself, he glared at the worn carpet. "Not hungry."
"Cloud...?"
"I'm going to bed."
"Cloud...wait!" He ignored her and tramped up the stairs, he passed a picture in the hall way and stared at it. It showed his mother standing beside another man, a man he had never known. He gazed at the image of his father before turning away again, he didn't care about the man, he had left before he was born and Cloud had no interest in him. He went to his bedroom and threw himself into bed, burying his head in the pillow as he re-lived the days events. He could only hope that Tifa was going to pull through.
Seven days passed and during that time Cloud had made up his mind, he had discovered a picture of a man in the newspapers. The man was tall with oddly beautiful sweeping silver hair, in the article he was hailed as a hero and Cloud felt his heart skip. The man's name was Sephiroth, he was young but a prodigy of ShinRa's SOLDIER division, Cloud was fascinated. Perhaps if he joined up he could become strong like Sephiroth, maybe if he was stronger he could protect Tifa. Maybe if he was stronger people would finally notice him. He had stuck the picture to his bedroom mirror and he gazed at it every morning, today, as he looked at his reflection, he saw the large bruise beneath his eye and grimaced. He had come home with it and refused to answer any of his mother's questions about where he had got it, she didn't let him see but he knew she was devastated by his sudden change in attitude. The anger he felt towards his own failings had turned outward and he was taking it out on anyone who dared even look at him funny, he started fight after fight and never backed down, no matter the sighed heavily, he knew that he was causing his mother pain, he knew that at night she sat downstairs, clutching a picture of his father and cried silently but Cloud couldn't bring himself to explain. He had a plan now, he only had to work out how to get his mother to agree to let him go.
When he proposed the idea his mother gazed at him for a long time in calculating silence, then, slowly, she sat on the sofa and clasped her hands between her knees. "Was this brought on by what happened to Tifa?" She asked softly, her blue eyes searching her son's face. He was so young, only fourteen and had such a long future ahead of him. It made her sad to see just how much he had grown.
"It doesn't matter. I've decided that it's what I want to do." Cloud replied, gazing at her in determination.
"Well...if it's that important to you then I can't object." She said with a soft sigh. She had known ever since those men had taken her baby away from her after he had been born that something like this would happen. She had no idea what they had done to him and she had no wish to know but it hadn't appeared to have made much of a difference, he was an apparently normal boy although he had been an unusually quiet baby and he had such difficulty making friends that it sometimes broke her heart but he had been a happy toddler and now he was very nearly a man. She saw the surprise on his face and smiled sadly, he had obviously been expecting resistance. She thought that it was better he go of his volition, somehow she knew that there was a chance that those men would be back and they would once again prize her baby boy from her fingers. It was better he go willingly and without knowing the terrible truth of what had happened on the day of his birth. "You may go, if it is what you really want, but just promise me that you will look after yourself." Slowly, like the sun coming out from behind the clouds, a smile spread across Cloud's face. It was a beautiful thing and she only wished he smiled more often. He wasn't what people would call handsome, on the contrary he was almost pretty. She knew it annoyed him when people brought this up, as if it were a slight on his masculinity, but she had always silently agreed with everyone else. He was a very pretty boy, his pale blond hair only a shade lighter than her own, his large, almost innocent blue eyes the exact colour of the sky. She smiled again as Cloud turned and, without another word, ran upstairs. Sadness crept into her soul, she felt as if something was happening beyond her control, somehow fate had decreed that Cloud was destined for greater things than what this small, quiet mountain town could provide and it scared her.
XXX
Cloud yawned widely as he climbed out of his small, uncomfortable bed. He rubbed at his hair and gazed blankly around the room. His dorm mate, Johnny, was just stirring as Cloud got up and went towards his wardrobe. "Hey man, what time is it?"
"Just past six." Cloud replied quietly as he rummaged around for his uniform and toothbrush, he found them and tucked them under his arm along with his boots. "I'm going to get a shower, we've got duty until three."
"Uh-huh."
When he was dressed and washed he went to the loud mess hall and sat alone, eating in silence as people around him greeted their friends and laughed. When he was done he put his tray away and went to begin morning duties which, according to his schedule, were to be guarding the executive offices, apparently there was an important meeting. He walked with his helmet under one arm as he checked the weeks schedule on his phone and was joined by Johnny who looked unusually tired. "We're together today." He said and yawned again widely.
"Hm." Cloud said, putting away his phone and lengthening his stride.
"We've been here half a year and you still barely talk."
"I...don't have much to say." Cloud replied softly, seeing his friend shake his head in confusion. They reached the lift and pressed the button, it began to rattle upwards slowly, Cloud watched the floors light up when they reached them until it dinged softly and the doors swished open. They walked in silence down the richly carpeted hall way and Cloud shoved his helmet on his head as they reached the right room and peeked inside. The room was full of men in suits, they were all talking softly and sitting around drinking coffee, Cloud watched as one of the men looked up and nodded his head in acknowledgement before the door closed and the two of them stood either side of it, ensuring that no one entered without permission. Hours ticked by slowly, Cloud's friend grew restless and began fidgeting a little until finally the door opened to reveal a man with short black hair, he turned a cool gaze on Cloud and handed out a sheaf of papers. "Take these down to the labs, give them to Professor Hojo." He ordered and Cloud took them, he nodded once and set off, hearing his companion sigh heavily.
The labs were well known to be a place to avoid to every new recruit. Everyone had some horror story regarding the sterile floor, with its weird experiments and monsters in cages. Cloud shivered as he reached the lift and pressed the button to go down, he waited in silent anticipation before the doors opened and revealed the lab in all its white and chrome glory. His feet moved forward before he had considered what he was doing, he could see the hunched figure of a man standing before a large glass container containing a monster Cloud had no name for. "S-Sir?" He stammered, clutching the sheaf of papers tightly as he waited for the man to turn around.
"A moment." The man said as he pushed a few buttons and the container holding the monster rose upwards. Finally he turned around and Cloud had to fight with his instinct to flee. "Yes?"
"I-uh-I was told to give you these..." He held out the papers and they were snatched out of his hands as Professor Hojo rifled through them, muttering to himself. Cloud waited to be dismissed but it seemed the professor had forgotten he was there. The lift doors opened behind him and he almost yelped, he turned on the spot and saw a sight that made his heart skip a beat. The man was tall, definitely over six feet, his long silver hair tumbled over his shoulders as he strode purposefully towards Hojo, ignoring Cloud completely.
"You called me, Hojo? I am very busy and don't have time to be ordered around by you!" Sephiroth hissed angrily, Cloud shuddered, his arms firmly behind his back as he waited in silence for Hojo to let him go. The smell of disinfectant was almost overpowering and was beginning to make him feel ill.
Hojo looked up at Sephiroth briefly. "I am in need of some more samples, go and sit and wait for me in the usual room."
Sephiroth clenched his teeth, his hands moving as if he were itching to hold a sword and Cloud held his breath in anticipation. "I am not your lab rat!"
"You are what I made you, go!" Hojo muttered, waving a dismissive hand and making Sephiroth growl in anger. Cloud had to admire Hojo's utter lack of fear, if he was in his position he would be wetting himself. That was when Sephiroth noticed Cloud, he blinked, looking down at the small blue clad infantryman as if he had said something to get his attention. When his eyes met Sephiroth's he felt something pull at his heart, he had never experienced anything like it before and he felt himself taking a soft breath. Tension worked its way into his shoulders as he forced his body to remain still and straight. There was an odd pulse inside his head, like a loud heart beat and it wasn't his own. Hojo looked up, his eyes widening then narrowing as he gazed at Sephiroth who was staring at Cloud. "Hmm? Who are you boy?" The professors voice seemed to shatter the spell and Sephiroth blinked rapidly, Cloud felt the tension ease as he turned his gaze towards Hojo instead.
Cloud swallowed a few times in order to get his voice back, being under such intense scrutiny from his idol was a little unnerving. "Strife, sir...Cloud Strife." He said and felt his eyes drawn to Sephiroth once again.
"Strife?" Hojo hummed again, his eyes sparkling and a smirk crossing his thin face. "Remove your helmet."
"S-sir...it's standard to wear it whilst on duty I can't-"
"Remove it!" Sephiroth ordered and Cloud did as he was told, pulling the confining helmet off of his head and staring at the other two with wide eyes.
"Ah yes, interesting, very interesting." Hojo muttered, making Cloud frown a little. Sephiroth seemed not to hear as he stared at Cloud as if he were the most fascinating thing he had ever seen. Cloud swallowed and began to feel a little light headed at all this attention, he lowered his head and gazed down at his feet.
"A-am I...am I able to return to my post now...s-sir?" He asked nervously, shifting as he felt those odd green eyes boring into him, it felt a little like being seared with fire.
"Yes, of course, you may leave Cadet." Sephiroth muttered, as if waking from a dream, he waved a leather clad hand and Cloud scurried off, forgetting to put his helmet back on. Behind him Hojo was smirking.
He finally reached the safety of the lift and hammered the button to return to the executive floors, his heart banged in his chest so violently he thought he was having a heart attack. His hands shook and he had trouble controlling them as he leaned against the wall, taking a deep breath as the door finally closed. As the lift began to move something happened, pain shot through his head as if someone had put a bullet through it. He collapsed to his knees as his vision wavered and with a gasp he closed his eyes and heard soft laughter in the back of his head, as if someone were telepathically laughing at him. The pain grew until he was almost sick, sweat sprang out across his skin and his body temperature rocketed. Then, as the lift doors opened, the pain was gone as suddenly as it had come, taking the laughter with it. After a moment to collect himself he picked up his helmet with one shaky hand and stood on weakened knees before moving out of the lift and back to where his friend waited.
A look of concern crossed Johnny's face but Cloud shook his head. "I'm fine." He muttered and put his helmet back on, standing straight with his hands behind his back as he thought about what had just happened. It was odd and a little scary, he had never felt anything like that before and he worried that he may be coming down with something. He decided to go to see a doctor as soon as possible to find out if it was anything serious.
XXX
"Well, Strife, as far as I can tell you are in perfect health." The woman said, tapping away on her computer before turning to him and smiling. "I think maybe you're just stressed, it happens to so many new recruits. I suggest plenty of bed rest and a balanced diet, cut down on the caffeine as well. I can have your duties rescheduled for a few days if you think that would help?"
"No, thank you, I think I will just have an early night." Cloud said softly, forcing a smile.
"Ok, well, if the headaches get worse come back and we will run some more tests."
Cloud stood and nodded, adjusting his uniform. "Thank you." He said and left the doctors office, he walked away and sighed heavily. So, it was just stress. He didn't feel particularly stressed, after all, his duties comprised only of guard duty and patrols of the SinRa HQ. It wasn't particularly hard, even his training was mild compared to what others endured. He couldn't understand where that terrible, sickening pain had come from, perhaps it was merely a side effect of the smells in the labs? He decided to put it down to that and pretend it had never happened. He walked on, returning to his dorm for an early night.