Disclaimer: Oh, hell. It's about time I refreshed this disclaimer. xD I don't own any of the characters in Final Fantasy VII, nor do I make any profit from the writing of this story. The only things I own are the plot I created for this piece, and any characters I've specifically created for it. So don't sue me, Square. I've got no money, anyway. Oo

What Little Boys Are Made Of

Chapter 10: Disappearing Act

Days Until War: 4

It didn't occur to Zack until a bit after Reno left that he had actually wanted to see the redheaded Turk. Out of all the people that could have been at Mickey D's at that very moment, out of all the people that were hard to find when they didn't want to be found, and out of all the people he was trying to find right now, the one he had most wanted to see had waltzed into his reach, and the Soldier had let him waltz right back out again. With Cloud in tow, nonetheless.

Boy, did he feel like some superior level of testosterone-induced, pride-enhanced, jealousy-spurred stupid right now, and it was a stupid that Cloud was about to pay for.

Angry at Reno, at Shin-Ra, at the world, and at himself most of all, Zack screamed into the small, confined space within the pyramid, screamed until he ran out of breath, the guttural sound echoing within it as a reminder to the black-haired Soldier how much he'd failed in his promise to the blonde. Spent, Zack sunk to his knees, blade falling to the ground beside him with a metallic clank as he stared forlornly at the dirtied tiles of the floor.

He was silent for a moment, lost in his thoughts and self-loathing, until he came to a sudden realization: no, he hadn't failed the spiky blonde. Not yet. That was the key. Cloud was safe for the moment, he could feel it, and if he were to keep up his end, he had to find the boy and find him fast.

Lifting his head, newfound determination in his limbs, Zack gripped the hilt of his Buster blade and rose, a boyish grin on his face.

Oh, Reno, that little shit-eating bastard, would see... Zack would protect Cloud. From Reno, from Shin-Ra, from the world. Even if it cost him his life.

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The ducts gave another ominous creak under his weight, and the small, black-haired First-Class Soldier found himself giving another silent prayer to whatever gods may have been listening that the cables didn't give out right then and there, sending him plummeting through the roof and to the floor below. Taking a long, slow and somewhat shaky breath to steady himself, Dante lifted his arm as best he could to wipe at the sweat dripping from his brow.

The air ducts were horribly hot and compact, making breathing difficult in areas, and carrying the heavy bag of cameras constantly left him with the fear that he would end up getting wedged somewhere and not be found until Shin-Ra employees started complaining about a particular stench coming from the ventilation system. The six-floor vertical climb hadn't been the easiest to deal with, either, and he'd had to push the bag up ahead of him while locking himself in place with only his booted feet braced against the thin, slippery metal walls of the ducts.

Regardless, he was alive at the moment, and he pushed forward, black eyes searching the ducts ahead for the next turn and ears peeled for hints of his current location. He'd passed the President's personal quarters not too terribly long ago, so his office shouldn't have been too far. Had he made a wrong turn or gotten turned around?

Dante frowned, wrinkling his nose, and squished himself to one side of the shaft, bending to glance back at the way he'd come from. His brows knit together as he contemplated retracing his steps, but then he mentally berated himself with the simple reminder that Sephiroth was counting on him. With a nod, he hauled himself around the next corner, continuing determinedly forward.

It wasn't long before he was rewarded with the sight of an exit. A silent sigh of relief poured out of him, and he quickly shuffled toward the dim stream of light flowing through it. Dante peered down the short drop and past the secured grate, almost surprised to find that President Shin-Ra was sitting at his desk with only the light from a single lamp and his computer screen to illuminate the room. He appeared to be typing away intently, so Dante took the opportunity to pull the bag of cameras closer, pulling one out and setting up the appropriate wiring. Getting a signal for the wireless transmitter was a bit more difficult, but after a bit of quiet shuffling, he found a suitable location and stuck it to the side of the shaft.

There were three ducts in total that exited into the President's suite, and he made sure to place a camera in each of them. Once the task was completed – with blessedly little difficulty – Dante fled the scene of the crime, backtracking his way to the lavatory from which he had entered.

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Rufus and Tseng were well aware of Reno's return, as the obnoxious singing of something that vaguely sounded like a victory march had found its way to their less-than-happy ears. The blonde Vice President raised an eyebrow, turning away from the computer screen momentarily to glance out the doorway.

"I might as well see what he's brought," Rufus muttered, rolling his eyes but somehow managing a small smile. "And maybe I can get him to shut up while I'm at it." After a quick nod of agreement from the stoic Turk, Rufus exited the room, heading toward the entryway, expecting fully to scold Reno as soon as he got there.

The words died on his lips, though, as soon as he saw the Turk. With the small form of a blonde Soldier balanced precariously on one hip and two bags of food on the other, Reno looked like he'd picked up a bit more than lunch.

"What the hell?" Rufus sputtered, not entirely sure what to think. "Is that Cloud? Where did you find him?" The blonde moved closer, bending slightly to get a better look at the boy before straightening and giving the redhead a critical eye. Whether or not he was impressed or angry was hard to tell.

"Came with the food, yo," was the redhead's response, followed by a cheeky grin and a wink. Brushing past Rufus and handing the blonde the bags of food as he did so, he moved into the living room and unceremoniously plunked Cloud down upon the couch. "Actually, he and Zack were on a steamy date. Footsy 'n' everything. Had to bring Cloud with me, 'else he might've got raped." Reno wiggled his eyebrows, as if this were somehow an invitation of some sort, and the white-clad blonde simply scoffed in response.

"I see. Well, this makes our job somewhat easier, I suppose," Rufus replied, crossing his arms and tilting his head to the side as he watched the Turk. Somehow he doubted that Zack would have handed over Cloud without a fight, but Reno seemed none the worse for wear. Rufus could really only speculate what must have occurred, and it wasn't pretty. "I suppose we should inform Tseng that—"

"I'm already well informed, Sir," the Wutanese man noted as he appeared from the hallway, much to the chagrin of the redhead and amusement of the blonde. Mild craning of his slender neck revealed the unconscious form of the blonde Soldier, and he put on a mild frown as he noted the boy's rather unresponsive state. Hopefully Cloud wouldn't be out for too much longer, as the sooner they explained things to him, the sooner they could gain his cooperation.

"I won't be able to retrieve any more information off the disc," the leader of the Turks continued, returning his cool gaze to the Vice President. "We'll have to rely on what Cloud can tell us, if he knows anything at all. The only other valuable source of information would likely be Zack, but given relations with him previously, I doubt that he'll be so willing to part with information unless we share with him what we know."

Reno let out a groan and ran a pale hand through his bright red hair in exasperation. "Are you seriously saying that I have to go back there and grab that damned Hedgehog? He's going to think I'm a dumbass, you know."

"Indeed," Rufus huffed, that simple exhalation of air somehow managing to convey the very clear, precise thought of "not that we're saying you aren't" without words. "But Tseng is right, Reno. Zack could be a valuable source of information. It would be wise of us to speak with him, and since we have Cloud now, he probably views us as his enemy."

Tseng grunted his agreement and Reno gave an almost childish pout, shifting his weight to one side and setting his hand on his hip in a rebellious gesture. "Can't we call Rude and get him to pick up Hedgehog on his way over, or something?"

Rufus shook his head, frowning, and similarly shifted his weight onto one leg, save the fact that his pose was far more reminiscent of one who was used to getting his way. "We need to have a contact at Shin-Ra in case something happens. You know that, Reno."

"Yeah, yeah. I know, I know. Just trying to keep some of my pride intact, yo. At least give me five minutes to stuff my face before I go." Indignantly marching back over to the blonde, he relieved the smug Rufus of the bags of food and headed into the kitchen for some plates. "Guy's gotta eat sometime."

Tseng looked at Rufus, who simply gave a resigned shrug, and the two men, oddly opposite in coloring, followed the redhead into the kitchen. Surely five minutes could be spared to keep the spunky Turk from starving while on duty.

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"Nhh," a hoarse voice whispered as the owner pulled himself out of unconsciousness, eyes opening to nothing but a dim, blurry haze of a white, stucco ceiling with a slowly rotating fan that was starting to make him feel ill with its incessant movement.

"Good morning," a masculine voice replied that distinctly did not belong to Zack.

Cloud bolted upright and immediately regretted it, his head swimming and vision spinning. There was a hand on his back then, pushing him to a sitting position and supporting him. "No need to rush yourself, Cloud," the voice said again, seeming just above and behind him.

The blonde slowly tilted his head back, settling his gaze upon a hazy white figure that was leaning over the back of a ... couch?... toward him. He blinked a few times, and the figure became a bit clearer. Rubbing his eyes helped a bit more, and when he opened his eyes once more, he was finally able to clearly see that he was being peered at with eyes that were as blue as his own.

"Rufus?!" Cloud asked, startled, and pitched away from the other blonde. He promptly landed on the floor, but luckily the pile of blankets Reno had left behind cushioned his fall. The Soldier scrambled to his feet, flinging blankets this way and that in his haste, and soon coming to the conclusion that the familiar weight of his sword and gun were gone.

Rufus sighed irritably at the overblown reaction. "Calm down, Strife. I'm not going to kill you. I'm not even going to hurt you. As a matter of fact, I'm going to help you, so I would appreciate a bit less of a melodramatic reaction."

"Where's Zack?" the youth asked, as if he hadn't even heard anything that Rufus had said. Right now, he had no idea where he was, how he'd gotten here, or where his best friend was, or even if he was alright, never mind alive.

"He'll be here shortly," the Vice President said, turning as the door behind him made the distinct clicking sound of being unlocked. "Ah, Reno, you're just in..." The blonde trailed to a stop, eyeing the Turk. "Where's Zack?" He raised an eyebrow as he stared at the redhead, who was definitely NOT in the presence of any black-haired First-Class Soldiers as he certainly should have been if he'd done his job right.

The red-haired Turk grinned sheepishly, raising his hand to fiddle with his goggles nervously as he dug the toe of his shoe into the welcome mat at his front door. "Well. About that. He was gone when I went back. Seriously, I had him in my Pyramid spell and everything! Should've lasted until I got back, that's for damn sure. Mind you, Hedgehog's pretty determined... Sorry 'bout that, Boss."

Both Cloud and Rufus stared at Reno for a long time, neither particularly impressed, but for entirely different reasons. Cloud spoke first, having remembered the events from earlier that day. "You attacked us, put Zack in that weird spell thing, and then electrocuted me!"

The other blonde held up his hand to silence the first. "That's not important right now, Cloud. We need to find Zack so we can speak with the both of you about this whole situation. There's no sense in getting mad at Reno for something that can't be undone."

Cloud frowned, but nodded after a moment. Although he wasn't particularly fond of either Rufus or Reno at this moment, he was aware that the bigger picture was more important than small squabbles. "He... probably went back to find Rude."

At mention of their bald-headed companion, Rufus snapped Reno an "I told you so" look and looked back at Cloud. "Why's that?"

"He asked Rude for Reno's address once, but we ended up in the middle of nowhere."

Reno grinned, clapping his hand on his thigh. "Booya! Go, Rude!" he exclaimed with a laugh, obviously quite thrilled with the fact that his partner had sent the two Soldiers on a wild goose chase. This earned him glares from both Cloud and Rufus.

"I'll call Rude and tell him to send Zack over here," Tseng said, pulling his cell phone out his pocket.

Everyone's gaze whipped over to the Wutanese Turk. Somehow, he had managed to materialize out of nowhere again. Cloud blinked and leaned towards Rufus. "Where did he come from?" the Soldier asked quietly, eyes wide.

Rufus simply shook his head. "Sometimes I think it's better not to ask."