20 August 1980
Cloud slept fitfully next to him, and Sephiroth could tell that his dreams weren't very pleasant. The child snuggled into his side again, gripping tightly. Sephiroth ran a hand against Cloud's back, rubbing in small circles in another attempt to soothe him. He couldn't get over what had happened only a few hours before, and apparently neither could Cloud. The boy had a fit in his sleep every time Sephiroth made even the slightest move.
Cloud exhaled, making Sephiroth almost mistake the breathy sound for a sigh. The silver-haired man continued to lay there, not planning to go to sleep any time soon.
Footsteps sounded, stopping at his door. Sephiroth heard a click and then a small creak, spotting Yazoo entering his room. His brother sat on the edge of the bed, alternating between looking at Cloud and Sephiroth.
"Morality-wise, I suppose you could say that it was the right thing for the woman to do," Yazoo said lowly.
Sephiroth didn't reply. He merely stared off into space, unblinking.
"...this is going to sound cruel of me, but you should be grateful. Mother took a lot of time into him, and you wanted him to stay anyways."
He did want Cloud to stay. And he was glad that Cloud could stay. However, Sephiroth never would have scarred the boy like this. Mrs. Strife was the only family Cloud had, and Sephiroth understood how it was. He himself had only his mother to rely on for a very long time up until his brothers were born. But despite the circumstances Mrs. Strife was in, he was still half-disgusted that she made The Deal. His own mother would never have given any of them up no matter what.
Yet he couldn't blame Mrs. Strife. If she had tried to survive out in the wild, she would have died and so would have Cloud. In some way, he had to be glad that she did end up making The Deal. If she hadn't, then Sephiroth would never have met Cloud.
"There's that, too," Yazoo said, having read through some of Sephiroth's thoughts. "Don't think that we haven't noticed how you've been acting around the kid."
"Are you going to let jealousy overcome you and do what you can to get rid of him?" Sephiroth snapped. He did not need another Kadaj antagonizing him.
His brother snorted. "I'm taking that as an insult. I don't care whether you like the kid or not. I just think it's strange that you've actually made a real friend. It's not something you would normally do."
"Spare me the false concern you have," Sephiroth muttered.
"I have no reason to be jealous nor do I have any reason to hate the kid," Yazoo insisted. "I do, however, have a reason to make sure a brother of mine isn't blaming himself or feeling guilty for something that he took no part in."
"I did take some part in this."
"You know what I mean."
"That's not the only reason you're here, is it?"
"Here, exactly? It is. I was only going to the bathroom and noticed that you were awake."
Sephiroth rolled his eyes. "Don't sleep in the tub again."
"Hm." Yazoo stood up and proceeded to do the opposite of what Sephiroth just said.
"I can guarantee that the floor is more comfortable."
"How would you know?" Yazoo asked softly. He shut the bathroom door behind him.
Sephiroth tried to get out of bed to go after his brother, but Cloud stopped him. The boy refused to let go, even in his sleep, and Sephiroth was torn. He decided that it would be better right then if he stayed with Cloud. Yazoo only needed a place to sleep other than the room he shared with Kadaj and Loz, and if he decided to go along with the wild idea that he should sleep in a bathtub, then that was his thing.
Loz kept out of the way as Kadaj continued to pace angrily. His little brother had been doing this right after Mother had finally told, and if he kept it up until morning, there would definitely be a wear in the floor.
Loz moved his head back and forth as Kadaj paced back and forth. Back, and then forth. Back, and then forth.
Back.
"Quit looking at me like that."
Forth.
"Like what?" Loz questioned cheekily.
Back.
"Like a dumb-ass, dumb-ass."
Forth.
"Stop walking like that."
"Like what?" Kadaj mocked. "Like this?" He kicked Loz in the shin.
The hit did not leave a mark nor did Loz really feel it.
"No, like this." Loz kicked Kadaj's ass hard enough to knock him forward until he hit the wall.
"You..." Kadaj said venomously. Loz prepared himself for retaliation, but it never came. Instead, Kadaj resumed pacing.
The pacing was driving Loz insane. He couldn't stand repetition at all. He stuck out a leg for Kadaj to trip over, but his brother stepped over it.
"Are you still being a big, whiny baby?"
"Whiny baby? Me?" Kadaj asked incredulously. "You saw that kid. 'Wahh, wah, my mother's gone!'"
"Whiner. 'Throw him back and never bring him again!'" Loz imitated, making sure to sound as whiny and girly as possible.
"Shut the hell up," Kadaj said through clenched teeth. "You're the idiot that plays with kids' toys."
"You're the idiot that gets jealous over a little kid."
"G- J- F- WHAT?! Are you stupid or something? It's taking our brother away and you're just going to let it?! And you're totally fine with the little piece of crap staying here?!"
Loz frowned. "No, I didn't want him to stay here."
Kadaj calmed down a little. "Good. At least you have some sense in you."
"It's not fair!" Loz exclaimed. "Why does Sephiroth get a doll and I don't?"
Kadaj froze, then smacked himself on the head. "Are you serious?"
"It's not fair," Loz repeated. "He gets the best present ever and we get nothing." If only he had a little servant of his own... Then he wouldn't have to do a lot of things by himself anymore. He'd have someone to create and act out war and destruction scenarios with. He wouldn't need his brothers anymore; they never really wanted to play with little soldiers anyways. No wonder Sephiroth didn't spend as much time with them anymore.
"Doll, huh?" Kadaj said thoughtfully. He burst into laughter. "Doll, haha! Haha! He's a little plaything!"
That just made Loz feel worse. He wanted a plaything, too.
"I'm going to sleep," Loz grumbled, climbing into his bunk. He threw a boot at Kadaj's head when his brother wouldn't quiet down.
3 September 1980
He had more freedom now. He could do whatever he wanted without anybody to stop him or to tell him that it wasn't safe or that he had to go to bed early or anything else. It was what he'd always wanted.
But now, more than ever, all Cloud wanted was his mama. It just wasn't the same without her, and he'd rather have all of the restrictions put on him just so he could be with her again. At the very least, he had Sephiroth, and he never let the man out of his sight for a single fraction of a second. Any time Cloud suspected that Sephiroth was gone, he panicked and searched everywhere for him, crying. Sephiroth quickly learned that it was better for Cloud if he was within the child's sight.
"We're going out today," Sephiroth said. He put on Cloud's right shoe, hastily tying the laces.
"Where?" He didn't feel like going outside all that much. He still wasn't feeling very well from his worst birthday ever.
"To see your mother."
Cloud jumped to attention and looked up at Sephiroth, wanting desperately to believe him. He could tell that he wasn't lying. "Can we bring her back?"
Sephiroth looked at him sadly and shook his head. "I'm sorry."
"Why not?" He was lifted and placed on Sephiroth's shoulders. His whole body relaxed of its own accord and he slumped forward. He felt Sephiroth tense at that, but Cloud paid it no mind. "Why can't she come back?"
Sephiroth didn't answer and refused to answer as he trailed down the mountain, taking the shortcut. Cloud's excitement grew, and he held his breath as they approached a town and stopped at a house. Sephiroth knocked a few times and waited.
Soon, the door opened and an exhausted-looking woman appeared.
"Cloud?!"
Notes:
Started: 2013年9月30日(月)
Finished: 2013年10月2日(水)
Apologies for a short chapter in such a long time, but I needed to get this out or there would have been an even longer wait. This weekend, on the fifth and sixth, I'll be going to a con. Awesome part is, my Halloween costume comes in tomorrow, so I can wear it there! (If anybody asks why I'm wearing a stupid bunny suit, I'll be asking you why you're wearing that stupid man suit.) Quick warning: updates for anything might be slow this month because of real life and Halloween, but I'll do what I can.
Sleeping on the couch? Pfft, that's overrated!
Hey, if anybody could vote in the poll on the profile page, I'd appreciate it. I'm wondering which choice will get the most votes...
Also, if anybody here uses Facebook, a friend and I made a Page dedicated to Sephiroth/Cloud. Link is also in the profile.
