Disclaimer - I don't own any FFVII stuff besides my copy of the game and a few figurines, so don't sue me : )





Chapter 2- Stepping Out



Sephiroth eyed his appearance in the mirror, trying not to grimace in disgust. Zack had managed to find a temporary hair dye that turned his hair black, and a pair of sunglasses to hide his rather distinctive split-pupil eyes, but now he had to change his clothes? He snorted in contempt, and turned to eye the ensemble lying across his bed. Tight leather pants and a emerald green long sleeved silk shirt, with a black leather vest . . . at least he could still wear his boots.

He sighed, sliding his long legs into the pants fairly easily. Where did Zack come up with these clothes? Never mind . . . he wasn't really sure he wanted to know. Knowing Zack . . . well, they could have come from any number of places, none of which Sephiroth wanted to contemplate for too long. He stood, sliding his muscular arms into the shirt sleeves with a sigh. The silk was nice . . . the pants were annoying, but comfortable at least. Buttoning the shirt to the collar, he slid the vest on and then bent to shove his feet into his boots. He left the Masamune leaning against the wall . . . Zack had threatened him bodily harm if he'd so much as thought of bringing the damn thing with him. He grinned at the thought. Both he an Zack knew damn well that it was an empty threat . . . his lieutenant didn't stand a chance in hell if it came down to a fight against him . . . but for once Sephiroth fully agreed with him. That sword above all else would give him away, and the whole point of this outing was to forget that he was the mighty general for once.

A knock on the door brought his attention back to the current situation. He moved slowly to answer it, adjusting the vest self consciously. What he wouldn't give for his trench coat about now.

Zack stood smugly just outside the door, his eyes making a once over of his superiors appearance before he gave a nod of approval.

"Not bad . . . but undo a few shirt buttons, huh? Loosen up a little, we're supposed to be out to have fun, not going to a formal meeting." He sighed at the look Sephiroth gave him. "Aww, come on man. It's not gonna kill you, geesh." Grumbling, the taller man did as Zack suggested, unbuttoning the first couple of buttons to the shirt deftly. "Better. Now come on, I know just the place to go."

Sighing, Sephiroth followed the shorter man down the hallway to the elevators, his now-ebony hair swaying gently against his back with his movements. He already felt naked without the Masamune near at hand, and he was supposed to go out in public like this? He shook his head slightly, stepping into the elevator with the air of a man marching to his doom.

Zack grinned and looked back at his sulking superior. "You don't have to keep the social mask up now, you know. No one is gonna know it's you . . . you can try to be just a normal human being tonight."

'Humph. If only he knew . . . you'll never be a 'normal human'. You never were.'

'Shut up. I'm not listening to you tonight, or ever, so give up and go back in my subconscious where you belong,' he told the voice silently.

'If only you realized what I am . . .' the voice faded off. He sighed in relief. He really did think he was losing his mind. Maybe it was the stress of the job. He looked up as the elevator stopped at another floor, opening up to reveal, of all things, his new recruits. He glared at Zack, who only grinned in reply before making room for the new arrivals. He rolled his eyes. Trust Zack not to see the annoyance in this situation.

The last to board was the blonde recruit, his hair standing up in spikes that seemed even more out of control then they had earlier. 'You know . . . the word 'buzz cut' comes to mind there,' he mused to himself as he watched the boy run a hand through the mess, trying to tame it. All he succeeded in doing was make it worse.

"Hey guys . . . sorry it took so long," he said, grinning widely at his friends. Then he noticed who they were sharing the elevator with. "Oh . . . hello Lieutenant," he mumbled. He looked unsure as to whether he should salute or just nod his head in greeting. He didn't even spare a second glance to the other occupant. Zack's grin widened as he noticed the boy's indecision.

"At ease, recruit. We're all off duty . . .well, most of us anyway," he added with a glance to his silent companion. Sephiroth just shrugged, vaguely amused. It seemed Zack's disguise was working after all.

"Where are you heading, sir?" the blonde asked curiously.

"Reload. I heard the night life there can be pretty interesting, so me and . . . ummm, Phiro, are going to check it out."

"Phiro?" Sephiroth mouthed silently at Zack, one eyebrow arched in question. Zack just shrugged and grinned at him. He sighed. Reload. Joy of joys . . . Zack was dragging him to a nightclub. He should have guessed. Zack was determined to make the most out of his success in getting him out on the town.

"Really? That's where the guys and I are heading. We figure to make the most of this weekend since starting Monday we'll be full time training," the blonde said.

"Hmm. What's your name, recruit?" Zack asked suddenly. The blonde stuck out his hand, which Zack took in a brief handshake.

"The name's Cloud. Cloud Strife, from Nibelheim."

"Well, Cloud . . . what do you think so far?" Zack asked. Sephiroth stared at him. He really was pushing to the limit tonight.

"So far, so good. Training seems pretty steady at pushing us to our limits, and the food and board is great . . . so's the money, from what I hear. So," he shrugged, "it's fine, so far."

"Hey Cloud!" one of the others spoke up. "What about the General?" Sephiroth's eyebrows shot up. This could get interesting. Cloud shrugged.

"He's a great man . . . a military genius, so they say. I admire him. He seems cold . . . but I guess he would have to be to do his job." Sephiroth caught Zack looking at him worriedly. He shrugged slightly, a slight smile playing over his features to show he wasn't offended. He actually found it rather amusing. These new recruits had no idea that the very man they were discussing was standing behind them, lounging against the elevator wall. He listened to the conversation silently, chuckling to himself as they discussed the "Great General Sephiroth". If only they knew how much the screams of the wounded and dying haunted his dreams at night . . . how often he woke in a cold sweat to stare at his hands, sure that they were permanently stained in the blood of those he had killed. He doubted he would seem so great then.

Zack sighed in relief when the elevator finally hit the ground floor, spewing it's contents into the lobby of the Shin-Ra building. Sephiroth had been too quiet for his liking . . . other then a few chuckles now and then at something one of the recruits had said. He knew how much the general beat himself up inside about the people he had killed or the troops he had ordered into battle . . . hell, he'd sat by the man's side a couple of times as he tossed and turned in the grip of a nightmare that had him calling out to his victims to forgive him. He shook his head, and strode towards the front doors, feeling Sephiroth fall into step beside him naturally. He grinned as he stepped outside and met the roar a the few dozen girls gathered there.

"Your fan club's here, Seph," he murmured to his companion, aware of their companions nearby ears.

Sephiroth snorted as he glanced at the giggling bimbo's holding pictures of him above their heads. Steadfastly ignoring them, he strode to the sidewalk, looking back at Zack with the air of a man who would only tolerate so much. Zack shook his head, grinning as he jogged to catch up to the longer strides of his boss. He could hear Cloud and his group of friends following slowly, admiring a few of the girls in the crowd, wolf-whistles sounding out at a few of the more buxom girls.

"See, I told you no one would recognize you," Zack huffed as he finally caught up.

"Yes, you did. That was rather amusing," Sephiroth murmured. "Now, where the hell is this night club you're dragging me off to?"

"Lower plate, Seph. They're more . . . rambunctious and fun down there. Not like the stiffs that live up here." Sephiroth snorted, and turned towards the train station.



To Be Continued



AN- Not sure how far I'm going to go with this . . . It's just sort of been floating around in my head while I try to work on two other fics. There will be at least one or two more chapters. So, read, review, tell me what you think. Oh, and for those of you who like Seph (or drool over him) what you think of the outfit? I just got a mental image of that and had to go get a mop : P I couldn't help it, that man was just too damn good looking for an animated bad guy.