Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII or anything in it.
A/N: Just to be clear, I love Reno.
"I'm just saying you're a little flirty now, that's all. You never were before."
Anthony tilted his beer bottle up to his lips, his eyes laughing at Cloud's discomfort. The two of them were having their bi-weekly catch-up with a few drinks at a common Soldier hangout. Anthony had just returned from Kalm; he alternated a week there and a week in Midgar on rotation as part of Cho's squad. Anthony liked Cho, but as a new First Class the guy made a lot of command mistakes. As a result the General was spending extra time with Cho's unit, riding the young commander and everyone else's ass until the performance of the squad was up to par. It was an exhilarating and terrifying time for all.
"But hey, it's not like you have to worry about it or anything," Anthony continued. "Like anybody's going to take you up on it while you're with the General."
"Well, normally. But apparently Turks are not deterred by this," Cloud said.
"You flirted with a Turk?"
"I think so. I wasn't paying close attention at the time." Cloud hadn't thought about Reno at all for the last few days, until this morning when he bumped into what he hoped he would not. An assignment with Turks. He was stuck asking Major Niven who was to be on the Turk on the team, and then having to tell him he couldn't go. Niven had raised an eyebrow in surprise and concern.
"The General has forbid my any contact with the Turk Reno Sinclair," Cloud said. "Ordered, actually."
"May I ask why?"
Cloud had shifted uneasily. He knew Niven well enough now that when he asked instead of ordered something he actually meant it; Cloud had a choice. The type of interaction that Reno had initiated had sort of made this a personal matter, so maybe he should keep quiet. But he didn't want to disappoint his commander, and Niven was one of Sephiroth's First Classes, after all. Seph trusted him.
"Seph seems to think this Turk has it in for him, and that he means to use me to that end."
Niven had frowned ferociously at that, and reassigned Cloud immediately. Along with a quiet suggestion that they both keep their eyes open for the General's sake, as he was notoriously reluctant to ask for help and if Turks were gunning for him he might need it. Then the man had smiled at him ever so slightly, and it occurred to Cloud for the first time that Niven accepted him, not only as a Soldier but as the General's companion. And also maybe the guy didn't completely hate him.
"Well," said Anthony, "I hope you're not looking to trade-in for some Turk. Everything still good? You and Sephiroth, I mean?"
"Things are great actually. Winternight was fabulous."
"Oh, right, I heard about the little caroling episode. Those guys are still giddy over it, getting to go up to the General's quarters and all. He give you those?" Anthony gestured with his bottle to one of Cloud's earrings.
"Yeah, he did." Cloud took a swig of his beer and thought about the secret materia slot. He felt like he was keeping things from Anthony, and he didn't like that. But it wasn't like he shared everything between him and Sephiroth. But this was... confusing. This wasn't just personal, he was carrying a hidden weapon, a tool, a healing device. Shouldn't his comrades in arms know about it, if he was unconscious or something and they could use it to help him or another Soldier... He needed to talk to Sephiroth more about this.
Cloud noticed Anthony for about the fourth time look over to a group of three girls. The pretty brunette stole another look back, smiling.
"I think you better go over there," Cloud said.
Anthony took one more swallow of his drink for courage. Monsters, terrorists, roving beasts, mako injections- all these he could handle bravely. Girls were a whole separate level of terrifying.
"Wish me luck," Anthony said, "I'd ask you along, but you know how it goes."
"Yeah, they get scared off by more than one guy. But they get to have a whole gaggle around them all the time,"
"Exactly. You guy guys have it so easy," Anthony said.
Cloud smiled in his sudden solitude, soaking in the seedy dimness of the bar, thinking Anthony was probably right.
"Hey, Cloud!"
Cloud looked up at the new voice. It was attached to a graceful, confident, redhead who had just walked into the bar. Cloud cursed his inattention.
"Hey Reno," Cloud tried to sound casual, tried to feel casual as he worked on how to extricate himself without causing a scene.
"Glad I ran into you," Reno said, taking Anthony's vacant seat at the bar next to Cloud and signaling the bar tender for a beer.
"I wanted to, um, apologize," Reno said, "For last time. Hey man, I was way out of line."
"Don't sweat it," Cloud said, relieved at the direction this was heading.
"No, I mean it. And I probably didn't react the way you expected either, when you told me you were with Sephiroth. I was just kind of off balance for a moment, and that's actually an abnormal thing for me if you can believe it."
Cloud nodded amiably. He had a chance to observe Reno in the field and after. He was impressively cool headed.
"I mean I just didn't..."
Reno shook his head, momentarily at a loss. Cloud looked at him sideways, the man was way uncomfortable.
"What?" Cloud asked.
Reno turned steady turquoise eyes to Cloud. "I knew he had somebody now, I was just surprised to bump into you that way. I've been actually trying not to pay too much attention." Reno's beer appeared in front of him and he casually dropped the gil for it on the bar. He took a sip, and then stared at the bar's surface, digging a fingernail at a rupture in the varnish. "I'm guessing he told you I was just a casual thing. And I'm sure for him that was true."
Reno tossed back a large swallow as Cloud's mind worked to wrap itself around that comment. Sephiroth and Reno? This was the bad history Seph had referred to?
"Well, hey, no hard feelings, or anything?" Reno asked.
"No, no way," Cloud said, and found himself shaking Reno's hand. It was warm and solid.
"And please tell Seph stop worrying about me, he 'bout scared me to death when he came to see me the other day."
"He went to see you?" Cloud asked, forgetting to let go of Reno's hand.
"Yeah, yeah, gave me the whole bit." Reno shook his head, smiling a little now, "You know, 'stay away from Cloud, he's mine', and... well, yeah." Reno looked down, noticed his hand still in Cloud's, and slid it out of Cloud's grasp. He looked away, down at the bar, and back to his beer during an uncomfortable lull.
"Hey, what about that action the other day though, was that fucked up or what?" Reno said to change the subject.
"Yeah, totally," Cloud said, though his mind was still elsewhere.
"I wish Turk and Soldier could get better organized together, so we wouldn't be stepping on each other like that. I had a good mission today with some of your guys, though. Went off like clockwork, beautiful. We'd been working for months on this ecoterrorist plot to blow up one of the towers, and we finally got all the major players in a hotel suite at the same time in sector four. About twenty of them, muscle, guns, whatnot. Turks coordinated the operation; four of your guys took down the door, part of the wall, all the muscle, most of the terrorists, all I had to do was clean up. But you won't believe what happened –." Reno lowered his voice and leaned forward conspiratorially. Cloud leaned in likewise to hear. The guys hadn't checked in yet from that mission by the time he had left and he hadn't heard how the mission had gone.
"We had this crazy guy with us, Roberto something-."
"Aragon, yeah, I know him. Wild."
"Yeah, right, well he decides the wall toppling thing is so fun he gets the guys together and they take down the wall to the suite across the hall too, even though it has nuthin' to do with the operation. So I'm watching the wall come down, four Soldiers on top of it, bits of drywall and dust wafting into the room, the bedroom actually, and guess who's in the bed? In the middle of the day, Sector four?"
"Who?" Cloud whispered. He had no idea who, or why he was whispering.
"Old man ShinRa and Scarlet."
Cloud's eyes went wide, he remembered the woman Scarlet from the Winternight party, half the President's age, and with huge...
"She screamed, he yelled, it was glorious! I lobbed a smoke bomb in there and hollered at your guys to get the hell out of there, you know, before either of the two horny execs could make them."
"But won't there still be trouble?" Cloud asked. The guys would all be listed on the mission roster, and he didn't want to see Roberto or anyone in his squad in trouble with the executives, remembering the result from the whole Zack- Palmer's-daughter thing. Especially since somebody on that mission must have taken his place.
"Nah, what are they going to do, complain to Tseng or Seph? They'd have to explain, so if they couldn't see a specific Soldier to ID and target unfairly by some other means, no problems."
They both laughed, and when they came to a stop Cloud found himself looking into Reno's eyes, grateful on the part of his guys, appreciating the dispersion of tension, and enjoying Reno's smile. And then quite suddenly Reno's lips were on his, moving, kissing, and he kissed him back, recognizing that smoky sweet taste from the last time, wanting more of that taste. Then Cloud gave the Turk a shove that almost sent them both over.
Reno blinked in surprise as Cloud rubbed his mouth with the back of his hand.
"Gaia, Cloud, sorry," Reno said, "I did it again. Lost my head." Reno turned back to his beer, looked at it as though thinking better of it, and set it back down. "I really shouldn't drink."
Cloud sighed. "Just don't do that again," he said, and then groaned at the sight of Zack at the door. Normally he was happy to see Zack, but lately he'd just been a pest. Cloud had actually worked to give him the slip earlier so he could get an evening alone with Anthony. And this was such bad timing; here he was sitting at the bar with the guy Sephiroth had ordered him to avoid. Although it could have been worse. It could have been ten seconds ago.
Reno followed Cloud's gaze to the door and saw Zack Fair scanning the dark bar.
"Looks like you've got a tail," Reno said.
"What?"
"Trust me, I know a tail when I see one, that one's tailing you. I think I better be going. See you around, kid."
Reno left, walking cool as an ice cube under Zack's obvious hostile glare. Zack took the seat next to Cloud.
"Hey Cl-."
"Did Seph tell you to follow me?" Cloud demanded.
"What?"
"Don't 'what' me, Zack, did he tell you to follow me?"
"Gaia, Cloud, he said he was worried about you, asked me to keep an extra eye on you, make sure you were safe. Not like I mind spending extra time with you."
Zack reached out to touch Cloud's shoulder but the blonde jerked away.
"Safe from what?" Cloud said.
"Turks actually. I figured he was just 'noiding, like he does sometimes, but didn't I just see you in here with that Turk Reno?"
Cloud looked sullenly at his beer.
"Cloud, stay away from those guys, they're sneaky as hell and always up to no good." Zack picked up Reno's abandoned bottle from the bar, testing its weight. It was still cold and half full. Good. Maybe the Turk had only sat down for a moment.
"I have to see Seph." Cloud stood up to go, noticing Anthony was already fixing to leave with the brunette. He turned abruptly back to Zack.
"Don't follow me," he hissed, and with that stormed out of the bar.
Zack Fair sat at the bar and contemplated PHS. Maybe Sephiroth would like a heads up, but this was one they were going to have to work out on their own.
cccccccccccccccc
Sephiroth opened his door silently and took a whiff into the apartment as was his habit. Cloud was present, home early. He detected the faint, stale cigarette bar smell, certainly brought in on Cloud from his night out with Anthony. Breakfast form this morning vaguely lingered, but nothing new. Cloud smelled odd though, he detected something- aggression? Anger maybe?
"Cloud?" Sephiroth asked, before he even slipped in the door. He removed his boots and saw the blonde on the couch, his mako blues blazing in the dark room. He turned on the lights, keeping the dimmer on low.
"What's up?" Sephiroth stepped carefully across the room and reached for Cloud. Cloud moved deliberately away.
"Why didn't you tell me you and Reno had been lovers?"
Sephiroth froze, arm still outstretched towards Cloud. His silence only fueled Cloud's frustration.
"Is this why you told me to avoid him? So I wouldn't find out?"
"Cloud, no," Sephiroth reached again for Cloud, but this only caused Cloud to stand up and square off with him.
"Is it over? You and him?" Cloud demanded.
Sephiroth took a deep breath, trying to clear his head and form an answer. Cloud had just asked five questions, barely waiting for an answer. "There was nothing to be over. Did you see him?"
"Did you? Go to see him?"
"Answer me first!" Sephiroth growled.
"Yeah, I saw him. I did what you asked, avoided a mission with him. I just accidentally saw him at the bar. I can't believe you didn't tell me any of this, and went to see him without saying anything!" Cloud yelled. "And I am NOT your property!"
"I never said you were!" Sephiroth closed on Cloud, fist clenched and eyes lighting. "And Reno and I were NOT lovers, that implies affection on both sides and there is none on either!"
"Reno seems to feel differently!"
"You would listen to this Turk, a man you barely know, over me?!"
"Well if you wouldn't hide things from me maybe I wouldn't have to hear them from some Turk!"
"Ungrateful mongrel!"
"Fuck you!" Cloud yelled, breathing hard. "Argh!"
Cloud stomped out through the door and slammed it powerfully behind him. There was no way he could fight with Sephiroth toe to toe this way. The guy was stronger, faster, and louder than him. And meaner. Had Sephiroth called him a... mongrel? He was beyond understanding what the hell that could have meant. And what was he doing out in this hallway? In his socks, no coat, all his gear left behind. He'd need that stuff if he was going to stay downstairs for awhile. He turned back toward the door and stood looking at it. No keycard either. He was locked out.
Cloud stood in front of the door, clenching and unclenching his fists. A minute passed while he stewed in his anger. He needed his stuff, but he couldn't bring himself to knock. Quite suddenly the door opened, jerked open, slammed open, in a noisy rush of air. Sephiroth stood on the other side, poised to exit, possibly to go after Cloud. As it was he stopped just short of running Cloud over, and they glared at one another, inches apart. Then quite suddenly something broke, a change in the heart and mind that neither would be able to determine from whom it started, and both wrapped arms around each other. Sephiroth guided them back inside and quietly shut the door.
"I'm sorry, Cloud, I don't want to fight."
"Me neither."
"I promise I won't yell. Did I frighten you?" Sephiroth asked, looking anxious, mortified even.
Cloud shook his head. "More like you frustrate me."
Then Cloud actually smiled a little, thinking how it never occurred to him to be frightened. He couldn't even imagine Sephiroth hitting or hurting him in that way.
"And of course I believe you," Cloud said, "You're no liar. You... omit things. It's a cousin to lying, you know."
Sephiroth winced.
"You need to talk to me. This thing with Reno is affecting me, and I need you to tell me everything if I'm to make good decisions."
Sephiroth nodded. It was sound reasoning. He wouldn't send a man out in the field and withhold information on the enemy. But he didn't know where to start.
Cloud decided prodding was needed. "Semantics aside regarding whether or not you were lovers, you had sex with Reno?"
"Yes," Sephiroth said. "Three times."
"That's it?" Cloud blurted out, sounding almost disappointed in his surprise.
Sephiroth nodded. "Once a year for the past three years."
Cloud frowned. This was going to be another one of those oddball stories. Maybe their annual 'appointment' was due, and that's why this was coming up now. Or maybe not... he counted months, he and Sephiroth had been together almost a year.
"Have you been with him since you were with me?" Cloud asked carefully, feeling another outburst just under his breath should Sephiroth answer yes.
"No. I've been confused about some things, but I've always understood that other men were off my menu."
Cloud nodded, thinking of the many things Sephiroth got confused over. "But you saw him the day before last?"
Sephiroth nodded.
"Didn't do anything on your list did you?" Cloud said, referring to the list he had made of 'things Sephiroth should not do if he wanted to keep Cloud'.
"Never," Sephiroth said, "I have it memorized." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a paper, folded and somewhat worn.
Cloud stared at the paper, completely distracted from his current line of questioning. "You carry that around with you? Why?"
"It's the only thing I have that you've written me."
Cloud made a mental note to write the man a love letter or something. But then he thought that this thing, this strange list that Sephiroth's bizarre upbringing had made necessary, was possibly the most romantic thing he could think of. Sephiroth tried, every day, to be what Cloud needed. He held onto that list like a lifeline to Cloud, to Cloud's love. Cloud pulled tight to Sephiroth and let his head sink into the other man's chest, shutting his eyes and willing himself to relax, not pulling away until he felt Sephiroth's lips in his hair. Then he looked up at Sephiroth, face open and compassionate.
"Just try and tell me everything, start at the beginning."
Sephiroth nodded. As painful as this was it seemed there was no way around it.
"I met Reno shortly after he hired on as a Turk, at that annual summer party that Rufus ShinRa thows. Rufus started young with every manner of sin money could buy and I... I was frequently bored back then. And commonly in a state of what you might call sexual frustration."
Sephiroth paused, struggling. Cloud tried to keep his face neutral and encouraging.
"I've never had anyone like you before," Sephiroth touched Cloud's cheek and smiled, suddenly back in the present. "Someone regular. Someone I loved. Back then I took partners sporadically, for one session maybe, usually professionals, and this party was designed for that type of thing."
Cloud had to ask. "Is this the same party you brought home the two Honeybees from last summer?"
Sephiroth's face contracted from the memory, the mistake that had nearly cost him Cloud.
"Yes. Alcohol, drugs of every type, Honeybees, Hosutos, often everything going on in the common area... it's a pretty wild time."
Cloud made a silent decision that Sephiroth was never going to this party again if he could do anything about it. The Honeybee memory was pretty distressing on its own, but the image of Sephiroth with a Hosuto boy, or several of the expensive, exotically gorgeous male prostitutes... He pushed it out of his mind.
"Anyway," Sephiroth continued, "That first year Reno showed up he was a fish in water. Gaia that guy can drink."
Cloud recalled Reno's comment from the bar, after he had kissed him, about how he shouldn't drink. As if he were a lightweight pushed easily out of control.
"Reno was, is, cocky as hell. He was working to seduce me pretty hard, and I can't deny he's beautiful. But you know how I feel about Turks."
Cloud nodded.
"Plus of all things he wanted to top. I told him I'd kill him if he tried. He said I wouldn't be able to or wouldn't dare or some such thing. So I took after him, meaning just to knock some quiet into him, but Gaia is he quick. And sneaky. And armed. I did finally catch him, not without injury myself, and then... we fucked."
Cloud waited to gather his thoughts. "You raped him?"
Now it was Sephiroth's turn to consider. "I don't think so. He certainly seemed to enjoy it enough, all that screaming and clutching and panting. And orgasming."
Cloud scrunched up his face. That was a bit more imagery than he cared for.
"It became some sort of a tradition after that. Once a year, we'd fight, then fuck."
"What are you fighting for?" Cloud asked.
"I'm not sure. Maybe just to fight. Maybe for who tops."
"And what if you lost?" Cloud asked, horrified.
"I never think about losing."
It was true. Sephiroth only ever thought about winning.
"And this last year, you saw him at the party?"
"Yes," Sephiroth said. "I ignored him. He was pissed."
"What's he been doing all this time then?" Cloud wondered out loud.
"Plotting."
Cloud raised his eyebrows. That was pretty hard to believe, but then again, from what he'd heard of Turks...
"Two days ago I accosted him in the ShinRa parking ramp," Sephiroth continued. "He said... he made some comment as to your vulnerability, to not knowing when you were being played."
Cloud bristled.
"I'm sorry. Cloud..."
"No, it's OK." Cloud reviewed his latest encounter with Reno. The Reno he met was unassuming, gentle, and apologetic for an advance that half a beer lured him into. A little self-conscious. The Reno Sephiroth described was cocky, heavy drinking, manipulative, and with a taste for wild sex. Differences in perception alone couldn't account for these disparate personas. One of these representations of Reno was a lie, maybe both, and that was a confusing train of thought. But Cloud knew who he trusted. He trusted Sephiroth. .
"He was right, I couldn't tell." Cloud cringed, remembering one more thing. "I kissed him again."
Sephiroth clenched his jaw and ground his teeth until muscle cords stood out on his jaw. "You kissed him? Again?"
"He kissed me," Cloud said, clearer this time on the whole 'who was kissing whom' thing, especially in the light of what Reno was up to. "I shoved him off, but I had let my guard down. He was just so... charming."
"He can be," Sephiroth said begrudgingly.
"Listen Cloud, I would've taken care of him in the parking lot, but he made a very valid point that doing so would rain Turk retribution down on me, and they would start that attack with you. Please, please take this seriously. Reno, and the rest of them, are very dangerous. They won't be as strong as you because their enhancements are tailored for speed. But Reno is probably quicker than you. He's wary and armed with things you wouldn't dream of. I don't want you alone where he can get at you; stay with your squad or with me or with Zack."
Cloud nodded. Zack. He suddenly felt bad for yelling at him earlier. This had been a tough night all around. They readied for bed and turned in with little more conversation. There would be no lovemaking tonight, both of them too raw with this unsolved problem and the sexual intrusion Reno represented hovering in the air.
In the big warm bed Cloud lay against Sephiroth's chest, thinking, worrying in the dark.
"What are you going to do?" Cloud asked.
"Kill him. I just don't know how yet."
Cloud was still, listening to the sound of Sephiroth's heart. Could the Turks really kill his love, take him away forever? Cloud had no doubt they would do something if Sephiroth took out one of their men. And if they were as clever as everyone kept saying the General who never considered defeat might lose this one. He closed his eyes to the breathing and rhythm in Sephiroth's body. Sephiroth was his. He wasn't about to let anything happen to him. He would lie, steal, kill if he had to, but nothing was happening to Sephiroth.