Disclaimer: These wonderful characters don't belong to me. Final Fantasy
belongs to Squaresoft.
Author's Note: Well, what did you guys think? Let me know, please review!! This chapter is dedicated to all of my wonderful silent readers. Everyone knows I love readers who review, but I'm glad there are people who read and don't review too. Makes me wonder what you guys think, though… Anyway, do you guys like how I made Zack? I really liked the last chapter a lot, and I (surprisingly enough) have an actual plan for the next few chapters. You can look forward to a short intro for Cloud and Tifa, as well as a few of the ShinRa people, i.e. Tseng, Rude, and Shinra himself. As usual, I'm not making any promises. Just a few random ideas floating around in my head…
Chapter 15:
Clearly Insane
Aeris' eyes scanned the playground anxiously. She wondered briefly why she was standing over here instead of hanging around with everyone else, as she normally did. Of course, that might just be because everyone who normally hung around her suddenly surrounded the newcomer as if he was handing out free money. But there was no money to be found, only his ever- present good looks and charm.
She smiled despite herself. Well, it wasn't as if she was angry with him. In fact, she preferred being able to talk to the planet in peace today, as opposed to most days when she was forced to hang around with people who she didn't necessarily like.
Unfortunately, since he was surrounded by almost the entire class, there was no way she would be able to get to know him.
Still, it was nice to see him blending in with everyone else. Especially Sephiroth.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Sephiroth stared at the crowd of people. When a pair of eyes met his briefly, they quickly darted away. That was fine by him. Let them be afraid of him. What did it matter?
He was leaning against a brick wall, watching Zack's crowd with narrowed eyes. Of course those children would throw themselves all over him. It was only natural. They seemed to follow whoever had the most charisma. It used to be Aeris, now it was this Zack.
Aeris. The girl hadn't tried to speak to Zack yet, but he knew it was only a matter of time. She was probably just waiting until he wasn't surrounded by a crowd of people. It made for quick, impersonal introductions. And Aeris didn't come off as the quick, impersonal type. She would want to meet him and find out more about him, just as she had tried to do with Sephiroth.
A funny thing, that. Why would she even try to get to know him? After all, Sephiroth was, on all accounts, a cruel person compared with the young girl. She was his complete opposite in every way, except perhaps her eyes. They had the same greenish hue that was found in his own. But while his eyes were dark and seemed to suck in light, her eyes reflected light in an amazing array of colors that surrounded her irises. There were few colors that were not green. Most of the time, her eyes stayed wide open, which left anyone a full view of the astounding varying shades that her eyes offered. But when they narrowed, either in thought or anger, only the central shades of green remained, leaving her eyes darker and more attractive.
Wait. More attractive? When had he begun to think of her as attractive? It was just a train of thought. There was nothing behind it, really. After all, she was still a child, and he would never think of her as anything but that.
Sephiroth glanced over at Zack. The new boy was smiling and laughing, which was somehow not surprising. Sephiroth thought about earlier that day, and growled in anger. Why had the boy chosen to sit next to him? It wasn't as if he was good company, or even that he had wanted company in the first place. In fact, he had clearly wanted to be left alone. Why would anyone in their right mind choose to remain with someone who despised them, when they had the option of plenty of other people who adored them?
It really made no sense whatsoever. Who would prefer the first when the second was within reach? Absurd. To think that this newcomer would rather be ignored in the company of such an unpopular youth when so many others were eager to have him belong with them. It was unthinkable.
The boy was clearly insane.
Green eyes glanced over the crowd once more, assessing the situation. A pair of dark brown eyes met his own, and he glared. All he got for his trouble was a quick smile and a friendly look.
He sighed. What was that boy thinking?
~*~*~*~*~*~
It was later that day when Aeris finally got her chance. She had been patient, willing to let everyone else make their presence known before she did. She still believed that she would see him before the day ended.
However, when it was almost time to leave school, she knew she'd have to wait until tomorrow. But, really, what was the rush? He would still be here then. It wasn't as if she had anything specific to talk to him about, anyway. Just random introductions, that was all.
She nodded to herself and suddenly turned around to walk back to her seat. Thus it was with surprise and chagrin that she ran into him. Literally.
"Oh! Excuse me," she said, stumbling a bit over her faux pas. A strong hand grabbed her arm and hauled her upright. She looked up, startled, to find a pair of dark brown eyes staring down at her in concern.
"Are you alright?" Zack asked. He was smiling, as usual, and it made her blush uncontrollably.
"I-I'm fine," she responded, quickly disentangling herself from him. "Thanks."
He shrugged. "No problem." He held out his hand to her, and said, "Hi, I'm Zack."
She took it lightly, and replied, "I'm Aeris."
He looked her over appraisingly, which from some would have been considered a rude gesture, but from him it seemed almost appropriate. "You weren't around before."
Aeris giggled. "Oh, I was around. It was just that you were surrounded by all those people before."
He scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Yeah, I guess they were kind of suffocating me." He put his hands up to his throat and started to gag himself melodramatically. Aeris giggled again, and he smiled at her response. "It was awful."
She raised an eyebrow, trying to be mad but failing miserably. "Oh, really? You seemed pretty happy from my point of view."
"Well, you obviously weren't standing close enough to tell."
She blushed at his words. "I figured you were getting to know everyone, so-"
"Not everyone," he replied.
Aeris flustered for something to say, but the teacher called them all to sit back down for their last assignment. She looked back at Zack once, then retreated to her seat.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Sephiroth watched Zack walk back towards him and sit down in the adjacent seat. Zack smiled at him and Sephiroth scowled. What did he think he was doing, talking to Aeris like that? He acted as if he owned the world. It was far more irritating than it should have been.
Zack slouched in his chair and leaned back. The chair creaked with his weight, and he stretched his arms out behind him. He yawned loudly, which in turn made half the girls in the room turn and giggle. He smiled lazily and looked up at his tablemate. Sephiroth rolled his eyes.
"So, Sephiroth," Zack started conversationally. "Hmm…. Sephiroth- that's so long." He looked at Sephiroth curiously. "Do you have a nickname? Like the dark, brooding guy in the corner?" After a long silence, Zack shrugged. "Okay, so it wasn't funny. Give a guy a break." Another silence. "What is it with you? Okay, so you don't have a nickname, I'll just-"
"Seph."
"What?"
Sephiroth blinked. He had surprised himself by responding to Zack's question. But then, it wasn't really the question he was thinking about. Bright green eyes, soft mahogany hair, a musical voice asking him if Seph was alright. Why had he thought of her? It made no sense. And now Zack was there, staring at him, expecting an answer to some question that he may or may not have heard. Sephiroth, as usual, relied on silence to communicate with the new boy. Unfortunately, Zack was not aware of Sephiroth's unusual habit and proceeded to annoy him some more.
"What? Excuse me? Did the silent wonder just speak?" He dropped his hands onto Sephiroth's shoulders melodramatically. "Do it once more. Please. For me?" He batted his eyes at Sephiroth, who was eying Zack's hands. When Zack did not remove them, Sephiroth shrugged them off.
"Don't do that," Sephiroth said in monotone. At Zack's confused expression, he sighed. "Putting your hands on my shoulders. I don't like to be touched."
"Well, excuse me. Sorry." Zack rolled his eyes and shrugged. Shaking his head, he continued, "So, Seph- see I was listening- what kind of person are you?" Silence. "Where do you live?" No response. "What do you do, beside sschool?" … "Do you play sports? Any hobbies? Talents? Parcheesi?" Sephiroth just stared at him. "Alright, maybe not. But, you've got to do something outside of-"
The ending bell interrupted him. Sephiroth glanced down at his unfinished work and sighed. Zack quickly scribbled in random words and numbers, copying what little there was of Sephiroth's paper.
"Thanks, Seph. See you tomorrow!" Zack, waving, called as he ran out of the room.
Sephiroth could hardly wait.
Author's Note: Well, what did you guys think? Let me know, please review!! This chapter is dedicated to all of my wonderful silent readers. Everyone knows I love readers who review, but I'm glad there are people who read and don't review too. Makes me wonder what you guys think, though… Anyway, do you guys like how I made Zack? I really liked the last chapter a lot, and I (surprisingly enough) have an actual plan for the next few chapters. You can look forward to a short intro for Cloud and Tifa, as well as a few of the ShinRa people, i.e. Tseng, Rude, and Shinra himself. As usual, I'm not making any promises. Just a few random ideas floating around in my head…
Chapter 15:
Clearly Insane
Aeris' eyes scanned the playground anxiously. She wondered briefly why she was standing over here instead of hanging around with everyone else, as she normally did. Of course, that might just be because everyone who normally hung around her suddenly surrounded the newcomer as if he was handing out free money. But there was no money to be found, only his ever- present good looks and charm.
She smiled despite herself. Well, it wasn't as if she was angry with him. In fact, she preferred being able to talk to the planet in peace today, as opposed to most days when she was forced to hang around with people who she didn't necessarily like.
Unfortunately, since he was surrounded by almost the entire class, there was no way she would be able to get to know him.
Still, it was nice to see him blending in with everyone else. Especially Sephiroth.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Sephiroth stared at the crowd of people. When a pair of eyes met his briefly, they quickly darted away. That was fine by him. Let them be afraid of him. What did it matter?
He was leaning against a brick wall, watching Zack's crowd with narrowed eyes. Of course those children would throw themselves all over him. It was only natural. They seemed to follow whoever had the most charisma. It used to be Aeris, now it was this Zack.
Aeris. The girl hadn't tried to speak to Zack yet, but he knew it was only a matter of time. She was probably just waiting until he wasn't surrounded by a crowd of people. It made for quick, impersonal introductions. And Aeris didn't come off as the quick, impersonal type. She would want to meet him and find out more about him, just as she had tried to do with Sephiroth.
A funny thing, that. Why would she even try to get to know him? After all, Sephiroth was, on all accounts, a cruel person compared with the young girl. She was his complete opposite in every way, except perhaps her eyes. They had the same greenish hue that was found in his own. But while his eyes were dark and seemed to suck in light, her eyes reflected light in an amazing array of colors that surrounded her irises. There were few colors that were not green. Most of the time, her eyes stayed wide open, which left anyone a full view of the astounding varying shades that her eyes offered. But when they narrowed, either in thought or anger, only the central shades of green remained, leaving her eyes darker and more attractive.
Wait. More attractive? When had he begun to think of her as attractive? It was just a train of thought. There was nothing behind it, really. After all, she was still a child, and he would never think of her as anything but that.
Sephiroth glanced over at Zack. The new boy was smiling and laughing, which was somehow not surprising. Sephiroth thought about earlier that day, and growled in anger. Why had the boy chosen to sit next to him? It wasn't as if he was good company, or even that he had wanted company in the first place. In fact, he had clearly wanted to be left alone. Why would anyone in their right mind choose to remain with someone who despised them, when they had the option of plenty of other people who adored them?
It really made no sense whatsoever. Who would prefer the first when the second was within reach? Absurd. To think that this newcomer would rather be ignored in the company of such an unpopular youth when so many others were eager to have him belong with them. It was unthinkable.
The boy was clearly insane.
Green eyes glanced over the crowd once more, assessing the situation. A pair of dark brown eyes met his own, and he glared. All he got for his trouble was a quick smile and a friendly look.
He sighed. What was that boy thinking?
~*~*~*~*~*~
It was later that day when Aeris finally got her chance. She had been patient, willing to let everyone else make their presence known before she did. She still believed that she would see him before the day ended.
However, when it was almost time to leave school, she knew she'd have to wait until tomorrow. But, really, what was the rush? He would still be here then. It wasn't as if she had anything specific to talk to him about, anyway. Just random introductions, that was all.
She nodded to herself and suddenly turned around to walk back to her seat. Thus it was with surprise and chagrin that she ran into him. Literally.
"Oh! Excuse me," she said, stumbling a bit over her faux pas. A strong hand grabbed her arm and hauled her upright. She looked up, startled, to find a pair of dark brown eyes staring down at her in concern.
"Are you alright?" Zack asked. He was smiling, as usual, and it made her blush uncontrollably.
"I-I'm fine," she responded, quickly disentangling herself from him. "Thanks."
He shrugged. "No problem." He held out his hand to her, and said, "Hi, I'm Zack."
She took it lightly, and replied, "I'm Aeris."
He looked her over appraisingly, which from some would have been considered a rude gesture, but from him it seemed almost appropriate. "You weren't around before."
Aeris giggled. "Oh, I was around. It was just that you were surrounded by all those people before."
He scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Yeah, I guess they were kind of suffocating me." He put his hands up to his throat and started to gag himself melodramatically. Aeris giggled again, and he smiled at her response. "It was awful."
She raised an eyebrow, trying to be mad but failing miserably. "Oh, really? You seemed pretty happy from my point of view."
"Well, you obviously weren't standing close enough to tell."
She blushed at his words. "I figured you were getting to know everyone, so-"
"Not everyone," he replied.
Aeris flustered for something to say, but the teacher called them all to sit back down for their last assignment. She looked back at Zack once, then retreated to her seat.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Sephiroth watched Zack walk back towards him and sit down in the adjacent seat. Zack smiled at him and Sephiroth scowled. What did he think he was doing, talking to Aeris like that? He acted as if he owned the world. It was far more irritating than it should have been.
Zack slouched in his chair and leaned back. The chair creaked with his weight, and he stretched his arms out behind him. He yawned loudly, which in turn made half the girls in the room turn and giggle. He smiled lazily and looked up at his tablemate. Sephiroth rolled his eyes.
"So, Sephiroth," Zack started conversationally. "Hmm…. Sephiroth- that's so long." He looked at Sephiroth curiously. "Do you have a nickname? Like the dark, brooding guy in the corner?" After a long silence, Zack shrugged. "Okay, so it wasn't funny. Give a guy a break." Another silence. "What is it with you? Okay, so you don't have a nickname, I'll just-"
"Seph."
"What?"
Sephiroth blinked. He had surprised himself by responding to Zack's question. But then, it wasn't really the question he was thinking about. Bright green eyes, soft mahogany hair, a musical voice asking him if Seph was alright. Why had he thought of her? It made no sense. And now Zack was there, staring at him, expecting an answer to some question that he may or may not have heard. Sephiroth, as usual, relied on silence to communicate with the new boy. Unfortunately, Zack was not aware of Sephiroth's unusual habit and proceeded to annoy him some more.
"What? Excuse me? Did the silent wonder just speak?" He dropped his hands onto Sephiroth's shoulders melodramatically. "Do it once more. Please. For me?" He batted his eyes at Sephiroth, who was eying Zack's hands. When Zack did not remove them, Sephiroth shrugged them off.
"Don't do that," Sephiroth said in monotone. At Zack's confused expression, he sighed. "Putting your hands on my shoulders. I don't like to be touched."
"Well, excuse me. Sorry." Zack rolled his eyes and shrugged. Shaking his head, he continued, "So, Seph- see I was listening- what kind of person are you?" Silence. "Where do you live?" No response. "What do you do, beside sschool?" … "Do you play sports? Any hobbies? Talents? Parcheesi?" Sephiroth just stared at him. "Alright, maybe not. But, you've got to do something outside of-"
The ending bell interrupted him. Sephiroth glanced down at his unfinished work and sighed. Zack quickly scribbled in random words and numbers, copying what little there was of Sephiroth's paper.
"Thanks, Seph. See you tomorrow!" Zack, waving, called as he ran out of the room.
Sephiroth could hardly wait.