Hi! It's been a while, I know, but this part is long, and I'm posting the next part soon, too. I divided it solely for convenience in making my notes, and figuring out what reviewers are talking about. In this part, we see a little angst resolution, and tie-ins to my other FFVII fanfiction Scenic Route to the Promised Land: Reno!
For those daunted by Scenic Route's NC-17 rating, or those who haven't read it, meet a member of Reno's not totally functional family! Those who have, say hi again to Galen! I wrote him as a bookworm in Scenic Route specifically so he could bug Cloud here in CAN.
Comments and questions are welcomed. Reviews are adored, and if you present a question in that forum, I will try to reply if you leave an email. (Silly no name reviewers…*grumble*)
Also, I'd like to thank my wonderful Beta readers! The two of you shall never be sufficiently praised! I love you! I write with you two in mind, and I'm eternally grateful that you put up with my typos, egregious spelling and grammar errors, lack of clarity, and general bone-headed-ness. Please continue to do so!
Enough of my ramblings! Real notes follow the fic proper, please read them. And now, the fic!
* * *
Zack twitched in anxiety. He had no idea what had caused Sephiroth to change his mind and come meet Aeris (well, actually, he was pretty sure it was something Cloud had said, but he wasn't about to ask!), but he was damn nervous about the whole matter. Aeris, he knew, had no real problem with his previous relationships or any simultaneous ones, so long as he still loved her, but Sephiroth was a possessive bastard, sometimes.
He felt a gentle hand touch his arm, and looked down into the bright green eyes of Aeris. She smiled sweetly at him. "Don't worry Zack. I'm sure we'll get along fine. And even if we don't, I'll always be here for you. And I'm sure he will be, too."
Zack smiled at her quiet reassurance, and wondered, not for the first time, how he'd been lucky enough to meet two kids endowed with enough wisdom to make him feel like a child himself. First Cloud, then Aeris. Imagine that.
Just then, a familiar figure stepped onto the street, gazing about himself with purpose. He was dressed in a long black cape with a hood, but Zack could tell Sephiroth no matter what he was wearing. He whistled quietly, a sound no one that far away would have been able to detect without significant Mako enhancement. Sephiroth turned toward them instantly, sharp green eyes catching sight of them almost immediately. He strode past people without even giving them a sideways glance.
Aeris giggled. "I see why you might like him. He's very confident."
Zack spared her a smile, then looked up as Sephiroth finally reached them. He indicated the tiny café they stood before. "How about we go inside to talk?"
Sephiroth nodded, and they all headed that way. Zack held the door open for Aeris and Sephiroth, following behind. They sat at a table together, and Zack was mildly amused to see Sephiroth take up his usual orientation: facing the entrances, and by the wall so he could watch everyone else in the restaurant at once.
Aeris started as soon as the waitress had been by to get orders. "Well, you must be Sephiroth. Pleased to meet you! I'm Aeris."
Sephiroth bobbed his head courteously in response, but remained silent. Aeris looked to Zack, and he shrugged. He was just like this, more often than not, and even after being warned, Aeris usually didn't know how to deal with people like this. She was open and caring, and didn't understand how someone could close himself off so completely. She got really miffed when Zack sank into similar moods, and usually did something to shock him out of them. He prayed she would do no such thing to a stranger she'd just met.
No such luck.
"So, do you still want him?" she asked, and Sephiroth froze, his glass of water half raised. Zack felt like sinking under the table and quietly dying. The glass came down, and Sephiroth's eyes grew hard under his hood.
"Do you?" he ground out.
"Of course!"
"There's your answer, then." Sephiroth glared at her. She nodded, as if accepting his answer, then looked up again.
"Now, the question is 'why'. Why do you want him? Just as some object? Because I want him, and you have some territory issue with him? Are you just holding on to what was but can't ever be again?"
Sephiroth shook his head energetically. "No! It's none of that. Maybe a little of holding on… and he is mine, but…" The general hung his head and muttered something. Aeris cocked her head, her long braid trailing over her shoulder.
"What was that? I can't hear you."
Sephiroth glared. "Fine. Because I love him, are you happy?" His voice was tense, and Zack could hear the pain in it. He'd never heard Seph in emotional pain like this. When he hurt, he kept it to himself. When he wanted, was uncertain, afraid, lonely, never did he open up enough to alert another. Zack had already felt guilty over what he'd done to his best friend; now he wanted to throw himself across the table into the other's lap, and swear that things would be okay, that he still loved him, too. But Aeris obviously had something in mind, so he waited, for he loved and trusted her too.
She sat silent another few moments. "Well, why don't we share him?" Sephiroth sputtered, and Zack inhaled some of his soda in his shock. Once the crisis of having Zack die of the fizzies in the back of his throat and sinuses was averted, Aeris continued.
"Well, we both love him, and he loves both of us. It's just stupid that people think only one love is possible, or at least only one at a time. If he wants to be with both of us, I certainly don't mind sharing. I can accept that he loves another, and I doubt anything would be able to drag him away from you." She smiled. "Besides, I already find I like and respect you. You've already overcome your own inhibitions and pride enough to say that you love him. That takes guts, especially in front of a stranger."
Sephiroth leaned over the table towards her, displeasure rippling off him in waves. "I do not like sharing my lover." He gritted his teeth, and sat back again, eyes averted in an uncharacteristic expression of vulnerability and resignation. "But… If it makes Zack happy, how could I deny him anything, especially the right to love another? What right have I to interfere?" he asked bitterly, and Zack could no longer contain himself.
He moved from the seat beside Aeris, to the seat beside Sephiroth and wrapped his arms around his long-time friend and lover. "I'm so sorry, Seph…" he said, barely managing not to sob openly in empathic pain for the other. His voice did, however, shake, and he didn't even bother trying to control that. "I don't want to hurt you, and I love you so much… But I love Aeris, too! I can't just give her up, not even for you. I'm so sorry…"
"Don't." Sephiroth placed a finger to Zack's lips, silencing him. "Don't apologize for being big enough to love more than once. I don't want you to regret."
Zack cuddled a moment longer, then looked up into his lover's face. "And what about Cloud?"
Sephiroth blinked. "What do you mean?"
Zack elbowed him lightly in the ribs. "C'mon, Seph. I know you way too well for the innocent routine to work. I know you want him, too."
Sephiroth blushed pink. "Is it that obvious?" At Zack's nod, he sighed. "Well, it's not like it matters; he's not legal, nor is he interested."
Zack shook his head. "He's interested, all right. His interest just hasn't jumped to the physical level, yet. And he expresses it differently from me. Just watch him for a while, Seph. You'll see."
Aeris suddenly cleared her throat. "If you two are done…" she said. "I believe our orders are here."
Zack flushed, and scrambled back to his seat. Sephiroth seemed totally unperturbed, but he'd flushed a little. Aeris smiled. "I think things will work out just fine, now."
Sephiroth surprised Zack by smiling comfortably and leaning back in his chair. "You may be right," he said, eyes darting to Zack. "You may be right."
* * *
Cloud sighed in exhaustion and threw himself down in his chair. He'd kept up with all the schoolwork he could while in Wutai, but he still had two classes he had to take between his already tight military schedule, and this was definitely the hardest.
The first class was fairly straightforward. It was part two of an advanced Mako-handling techniques class. It was a real snoozer, but it was required for his degree, not to mention for any further classes in this field. Cloud already knew most of it, anyway, from the hands-on crash course he'd gotten upon joining the Mako Sciences branch of the Shinra Army. Cloud was more than happy for an easy class, most of the time; now, any additional time strain was a serious pain.
The second class, the one he was in at the moment was a fairly rigorous class, especially given that it took place over the summer term. However, it was also a lab class, which meant things usually took a while, despite the shortened term. That meant Cloud had to be planning several experiments at a time, and working on several, too. Fortunately, they were closing in on the end of the summer term, and Cloud and his lab partner were on the last experiment, with nothing else to distract them, which was orders of magnitude better than most of the other pairs.
Cloud looked over at the partner in question, with something very like gratitude. He was entirely too well aware of how much of their current ability to just coast was due to him, and was amazed by how well the other had planned things to get them to where they were.
Galen was Cloud's age, a real oddity in a class like this. Actually, he was about a month older than Cloud, a fact he was obviously delighted with, because he (like Cloud) virulently hated being the 'baby genius' in all his classes, and was only too happy to have a class where someone else had the title. Galen was a nice guy, but Cloud occasionally felt the urge to erase his lightly teasing smile.
Galen was a little taller than Cloud was, big surprise there, and had some of the most eye tearing, teeth gritting, grab-you-by-the-eyeballs-and-make-you-look red hair Cloud had ever seen. It reminded him, rather forcefully, of Reno, and Cloud suspected Galen was one of Reno's relatives. He looked to be headed for greater physical heights than the TURK, and didn't have the look of one who had starved almost to death through his whole childhood as Reno did, but their hair color and (especially) eyes were too uncannily similar for them to be coincidences. Whenever he focused on it, though, Cloud found his mind slid away from the thought, almost too subtly to be noticed. Cloud recognized the effects of a custom made spell when he encountered them (he had taken that class, too, after all), but decided not to push. There had to be some reason for it, and Cloud didn't want to find out the specifics.
Now Cloud looked into Galen's almond-shaped blue eyes and flashed a weary smile. He read the worry there, but dismissed the other's concerns with a wave. "Yo, Galen. We ready for today's experiment?"
Galen smiled a wide lazy grin that would have looked more normal on a street urchin than it did on a skinny guy in a lab coat. "Actually, it's more like the week's experiment, but yeah, we have all we need for it."
Cloud's smile morphed into a grin. "Well, let's get started, shall we? No time to waste chewing the fat, ne?" Galen rose, nodding with an admirably serious expression on his face; after all, they both knew that, once they were started, they could talk to their hearts' content.
The 'experiment' they were working on today was really more like a project. The project, since it counted for twenty percent of the final grade. Many of their classmates were abandoning other experiments to work on this so they would take a smaller hit in the gradebook. The point of the exercise was to use Mako and various techniques to remake an already adult organism according to specific guidelines given by the instructor. Each group had a different set of guidelines, but all had the same base specimen: a rat. The team could choose the gender of their specimens (each was allowed 10 rats) and their basic phenotypes, but not much else was left for them to decide.
Cloud walked over to the cage with their rats in it, and flicked the switch that started pumping in anesthetic with the air. Once the rodents were completely asleep, Cloud shut off the pump, disconnected the cage, and carried it to the work area where Galen was already set up. The previous day had been spent finishing the write-ups for the previous experiment and planning the alterations the two of them were going to make, and their plans had been very thorough indeed.
All they had to do was take some DNA samples from the rats they were going to modify, rewrite the parts they needed rewritten, and then to plug the altered sequence into the delivery mechanism. All they'd have to do after that was expose each rat to the delivery mechanism (in this case, Factor J), and irradiate their specimens with Mako.
Simple.
* * *
/'Simple.'/ Cloud thought mockingly to himself as he staggered away from the class. If he'd been tired before, now he was exhausted. Even Galen was glassy-eyed with fatigue. They'd been forced to stay an extra half hour in order to wrap things up, since the electrophoresis machine had decided to die part-way through and Cloud had been forced to jury rig it to work well enough to let them continue with the procedure. That had set them a bit behind schedule, but when the fact that the class was three hours long anyway was taken into account, the weariness the two of them were displaying was what came out of it.
/Thank the Ancients that's my last class! And Galen's./ The red-head in question looked up as if his name had been called, then smiled wearily at Cloud.
"What a pair the two of us make, ne?"
"Hn," Cloud replied intelligently. Galen laughed.
"Your stunning verbal skills in action! Your talent with words blows me away!" Cloud's lips twitched in a wry smile, then he looked quizzically at Galen who had stopped suddenly, snapping his fingers in the manner of one who has just remembered something. "Hey, your birthday's coming up in a bit, isn't it?"
Cloud nodded warily. Birthdays had never been that great for him, and despite the fact that this year was turning out to be very different from all previous years, he wasn't holding out much hope for his birthday. A day like that just begged for bad things to happen on it. Galen, however, just grinned.
"Dang, I better get on the ball, then! I still have to find you a present, and since we'll be outta here before then, I'll have to get it, wrap it, find a card, and everything before the summer term ends!" He shook his head. "I don't even know what you want!"
Cloud shrugged. "Don't worry about it. What I want, I doubt you could give."
Galen's eyes sharpened, an amazing sight considering how brilliant they were to begin with. Cloud had seen brighter, half living with SOLDIERs would guarantee that, but Galen's eyes were still impressive. "What do you want?" the red head asked.
Cloud sighed. "I just want my birthday to be an ordinary, normal, boring day, like any other. I want nothing to go wrong, nobody to be pissed, irritated, vexed, or annoyed with me. I just want to slink through the day without being noticed."
Galen looked skeptically at him. "Are you serious?" He met Cloud's level gaze, and his eyes widened. "You are serious!" Then his shook his head. "Cloud, you'll never be able to do that! You aren't the sort to slink through life. I know you can go unnoticed when you want to, and often enough, do; but you're not going to be able to do it." He hesitated for a moment, looking like he was going to say something, then finally decided to say it.
"Cloud, I don't usually give advice; I don't like giving advice. But you seem to really need some right now. I know you've not had an easy or happy life, but you have to treat it the way you treat people: go with it when things are going good, kick 'em where it hurts if it hurts you, and spit in the eye of whatever defies you. Don't live shadow to shadow; walk with your head up. You can avoid obstacles better that way." He suddenly smiled an impish grin.
"Besides, if you want a normal life, you gotta do what's normal. I happen to know that, in the Nibel Region, legal age is fifteen. Midgar respects foreign rules governing that sort of thing, and legal age here is only sixteen. When people are finally considered old enough to do whatever the heck they want, they usually go out and do exactly that. Man, Cloud, go out and live a little. Get drunk, browse the porn section, whatever. Just work it out of your system so you can go back to life-as-usual."
Cloud blinked. He'd forgotten that it was fifteen coming up. Nibel Region, of which (scarily enough) tiny little Nibelheim was the capital, was very sparsely populated, and just about everyone was related, however distantly, to everybody else. Since people there matured in body very quickly, and tended to die young from over work, poor medical care, or monster attacks, legal age was ridiculously low in the area. Most people were engaged by thirteen, if not sooner, and usually married very soon after fifteen. The first children were usually born by eighteen, which was the legal age to marry most other places.
Cloud shuddered. He couldn't even imagine being married, and the idea of kids was almost enough to wake him screaming and in a cold-sweat.
There were perks, though…
Galen, seeing Cloud's eyes grow unfocused as he considered, grinned. He'd somehow thought that would lift his friend's spirits a little. Only Cloud could forget something like becoming a fully functional member of society. Give the guy a problem in a school context (or on the battlefield, by all accounts) and he never forgot a thing, and always got the right answer. As for his personal life, though…hopeless.
Galen studied his partner. The physical differences between the two of them were very noticeable to a discerning eye. Cloud's face was still round with youth, but the underlying bones were sharp and fully mature. His growth-rate had already slowed, and he would probably only gain a few more inches, and that only if he was lucky. His musculature was already more defined than any fourteen-year-old's should have been, and Galen had seen him with an occasional cut from a razor, indicating he had to shave at least sometimes.
The two of them had studied some of the more interesting genetic oddities in the world, and what were called the Gast-Alpha and -Beta clusters were among those. They were the segments of the Human genome that Professor Gast had identified as the culprits in the odd aging patterns of the people of the Nibel Area, which he'd spent quite some time in. They caused children to grow up fast and to stay in their primes until well on in their lives. After they started showing symptoms of old age coming on, they usually only had a few years left to live. Even the term of pregnancy for people with those genes was markedly different: only eight months. Gast had been unsure as to how such radical differences had appeared at all, was further confused as to why, and how they had come to totally dominate in the Nibel area, but didn't exist anywhere else was one of the Planet's great mysteries in biological science. There were theories floating around in the scientific community attributing those differences to environmental stresses. After all, that pattern of short pregnancies, reaching maturity early, and swift aging once it finally started, was typical in the animal kingdom. It was a natural attempt by a species to ensure its continuance.
But they were obviously no rumor or exaggeration, seeing as Galen's own lab partner showed the phenotypes for both Gast-A and Gast-B. It was all he could do to restrain himself from begging for Cloud's consent to run some itty-bitty, simple tests, maybe get him to agree to help him for his doctoral studies and dissertation…
Galen looked up at Cloud again (or down, rather, since Galen was already taller than Cloud, who would always be short), and barely had time to register the grin on Cloud's face before the petite blond jumped on him with a big hug. Cloud was not the type to express himself physically, except to beat the crap out of the object of his displeasure, so the red head was naturally surprised.
Imagine his surprise when Cloud kissed him full on the lips.
With tongue.
Galen knew he was gawking stupidly, and that his face was undoubtedly some color that clashed horribly with his hair, but he just couldn't jump-start his brain. Cloud grinned, a smile that would have suited any one of Galen's siblings better, and pushed his jaw closed.
"You'll swallow a fly like that, and I doubt you need the protein that badly," he said softly. The red head nodded mutely, and Cloud chuckled. "Go home, Galen. We're both tired, and there's class tomorrow, too." He let go and turned to saunter down the street with a distinct cat + canary air about him. He waved casually as he went. "Thanks for the advice!"
Galen never knew how long he stood there yelling at his muscles to unlock, or at least take him home on autopilot, but when he finally got started again, he could only imagine what sort of monster he'd just created.
* * *
(One week later.)
Zack opened the door to find Cloud grinning hugely on the other side. Zack was puzzled. Wasn't the blond supposed to be in class right now?
Cloud stepped inside, clutching some packages to his chest. "Hey, Zack!" He caroled, and Zack wondered who this really was. He bore a superficial resemblance to Cloud, but his manner was all wrong. /Uh…T.W.T.F.O.?/ he thought. The doppelganger continued, apparently oblivious to Zack's current state of confusion. Sephiroth came out of the back, still dripping wet from his post-work shower (he was obsessive about washing all traces of Shinra from himself after he got home), toweling his hair and dressed only in a loose pair of pants. He was finally comfortable enough in Zack's presence to appear only semi-clothed, for which Zack was supremely grateful. Even if it underscored the fact that Sephiroth was no longer his.
"Who was at the door, Zack?" He asked before his eyes spotted Cloud. "Oh, hello, Cloud." He frowned. "Don't you have class today?"
Cloud shook his head. "I just needed you guys' opinions on something." He reached into one package and pulled out something long and black. He dropped both packages to the ground, and slid his arms into the billowing black fabric. Zack and Sephiroth stared as they realized they were looking at a college graduation robe. "Do you think I should go one size larger? This thing kinda ends up a little high on my calves… Oh! What do you think I should wear under it? I don't think I have any formal-type stuff, since I had to be in uniform for class. Do the regs say anything about having to wear uniform to a non-military graduation? Maybe I should go up a size…"
Cloud's excited chatter was interrupted by Zack scooping him up in a bear hug. "Wow, you're already graduating? You haven't even been in Midgar a whole year yet! I didn't realize you were already going to graduate!"
Cloud sniffed disdainfully, even as he returned the hug. "Of course! I've been taking a heavy class load since I got here, and I took correspondence classes from Nibelheim and classes at the community college. Hell, I even took classes in Xi-Fe-Xiu! Do you know how frustrating it is to be trying to make assignment deadlines in the middle of a shooting war?"
Zack blinked at Cloud, and stood back from him. "I seem to recall your file saying something about you already holding an Associates Degree…Is this your Bachelors already?"
Cloud nodded. "In Nibel, we usually do things a lot faster than most other places. Not to mention, the public schooling system there sucks! Mom sent me to the college to do my high school level education, too, and I took mostly courses that carried straight over into my Associates." He grinned. "Mom's gonna be so happy!"
Zack smiled, too. "So, when's the ceremony? I'm sure your mom will want pictures, and I'd be happy to take them."
"Friday, 1900 hours, in the auditorium. It'll probably go for several hours before they actually get to me, though," he warned.
"Well, that's fine. I want to be there, and nothing short of the Apocalypse could stop me from coming!"
Sephiroth cleared his throat. "I'd like to be there, too," he stated, then he cast his glowing eyes down. "I'll just have to find some way to get in unnoticed…"
Cloud grinned. "Don't worry, Seph. You can do it. I'm sure you can."
Sephiroth and Zack both blinked at the quiet, unwavering confidence in the blond's voice. Then the green-eyed general shook off his embarrassed thoughts, and grinned impishly (which surprised Zack to no end. What was this, out-of-character day?). He indicated Cloud's black attire. "How 'bout taking that off, so I can smash you like Zack did? I don't want to get your finery all wet."
Cloud started reflexively to shrug out of the robe, but he slowed as Sephiroth's words really sank in. He looked at Sephiroth, really looked, and Zack could see, even from the angle he was at, that Cloud's eyes suddenly dilated, the Mako flaring up in them suddenly. A faint flush crept into his cheeks, then he was scrambling out of the robes as if his life depended on it. Sephiroth looked slightly confused, but Zack knew that look.
After all, he had, himself, worn it before.
That look was the sudden awareness of another's attractiveness, known before in the mind, but now making the leap to the body as well. Sephiroth always seemed to miss such moments, only catching on later, but Zack didn't have that particular blind spot. /Too bad for poor Cloud that Seph is such a gentleman. He'd never dream about actually acting on any sort of attraction with a minor./
Sephiroth finally gave Cloud his hug, gingerly, not wanting to get the other wet. Cloud, on the other hand, seemed to want nothing more than to be soaked to the bone, so long as the water came from Sephiroth's dripping form. Zack couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy and pity for the other. Gongaga was a more conventional place than Midgar, so legal age there was a full 18. As far as anyone knew, Sephiroth was from Midgar, so he was legal at 16. Zack had spent months trying to convince Sephiroth that it was okay for the two of them to be together, but Sephiroth had held out until it was perfectly legal for Zack, at which time Sephiroth had been legal for four years.
/Poor, poor Cloud,/ Zack thought, viciously squashing the part of him that was overjoyed that the blond would be as tormented as he had been. He knew he'd been feeling a little nasty recently (the green-eyed monster was making its presence well known) but he tried his best not to let his ill feelings get in the way of his friendship with either Cloud or Sephiroth. Besides, Aeris was already 16, herself…Maybe…
Zack shook his thoughts clear of that well-worn rut. He forced them into being happy for his friend. After all, this was quite an accomplishment. He was a little worried at the frantic pace Cloud seemed to live by, as if he felt he had to cram a life's worth of everything into half a life. He also realized, however, that there was no way to force the blond to change, and that he probably wouldn't want to change him anyway.
He grinned, indicating that Cloud should -sit down. The living room had taken on a lot more of Cloud's personality than anyone else's, now that the blond spent most of his time off over at their place, mooching off Sephiroth's cooking, and hanging out with their SOLDIER neighbors (when he wasn't at the gym). Now Cloud sank into 'his' seat, the one closest to the door, still beaming. Sephiroth took up his customary perch on a stool by the kitchen door, and Zack plopped down on a beanbag by the mouth of the hallway.
"So?" Sephiroth urged. "Were you going to just sit there and gloat at us mere mortals, or were you going to tell us about your classes? You mentioned earlier that you were working on a project, and that was why you couldn't come over at all this past week."
Cloud nodded. "Yeah, a big project. Me'n my lab partner had to reengineer rats to be the size of dogs, and to lack any ability to digest cellulose. Basically, big, mean, solely carnivorous rats. I wonder where the teacher got an idea like that? Most of the other groups got things like…oh, making them phosphoresce, or regenerate missing body parts, or produce certain chemicals in their saliva or urine or whatever. But killer rats? Please. Of course, we destroyed them after our results had been evaluated, but geeze! Those things were a menace!"
"How pleasant," Zack muttered, wondering if he looked as green as he felt. "And why, exactly, did you get into this stuff?"
Cloud shrugged. "I don't know. Mom pushed me at it, and I remember helping dad in the lab when I was really little. I guess all the external influences were prodding me this way. Not to mention, I find the stuff totally engaging; not much holds my interest long, anyway, and finding something that does is always great. And it's good pay in the civilian sector."
Cloud suddenly glanced down at his hands clasped in his lap. "Mom will want me back as soon as possible. She was pissed when she found out I entered the military to fund my studies, and was even more upset, if you can believe it, when I told her I was in for a minimum of six-years." He sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Down to a little over five, now…"
For some reason, this thought seemed to depress Cloud, and Zack cast about for something to distract the blond from his unhappiness. His eyes lit on the other package Cloud had been carrying, and he decided that that was an acceptable diversion.
"Hey, Spike," he said. When he was sure he had the other's attention, he pointed to the abandoned package. It was wrapped in brightly colored paper with bits of ribbons sticking off of it. "What's that?"
Cloud suddenly perked up. "Oh, yeah! That's my birthday present!" He slithered off his chair and onto the floor. He scooped up the little package and cradled it to his chest with a possessive air that seemed a little odd on him. But he was smiling like a little kid on Christmas, so Zack didn't let it bother him. Cloud continued, chattering like he had when he'd first come in the door. "Galen—that's my lab partner, you know—he gave it to me. He said I ought to have a birthday present, and a graduation present, and that, since we probably won't see each other for a while, it could double as a goodbye present. That's so nice of him, don't you think? I never got birthday present from anyone but Mom before. I wonder what he got me?"
Sephiroth chuckled. "Calm down, Cloud. If you want to know, why don't you open it?"
Cloud shook his head. "Nope, I can't. Not until my birthday. That's next week."
Zack rolled his eyes. "It's also a graduation gift. You should open it for graduation. You've got a perfectly legitimate excuse for it. Besides, it might be something you can wear, and it might be nice to let him know you got whatever it is and appreciate it."
Cloud twitched an eyebrow upwards, frowning thoughtfully. "You may be right… Then, if I see him, I can thank him in person. I don't even know where he lives, you know, except for 'not on the plate'." Cloud seemed to consider a moment more, then obviously made up his mind. "Okay!" He tore into the paper, though only at the tape seams. He somehow managed to get the paper and ribbon off without tearing any of it, and was left holding a small cardboard box.
He opened it and a small piece of folded paper fluttered out. He picked it up, then opened it. It was a note.
Cloud!
Hey, it was great meeting you. You're the best lab partner I've ever had,
and I'd like to consider us pretty good friends. I hope to see you around,
occasionally. Maybe we'll have some more classes together sometime! Take care
of yourself, and have fun. Congratulations on your degree and your impending
legality! Here's something to remember me by, just in case.
Always,
Galen Hernandez
P.S. Where did you learn to kiss like that? You're gonna be a regular
heartbreaker!
Cloud smiled, and his fingertips rose, of their own accord, to his lips in memory of the only real kiss he'd ever had. Sephiroth and Zack got identical expressions of evaluation on their faces, as they noted the gesture.
Cloud, however was oblivious, moving on past the note to the gift itself. The little box was padded with cotton, and Cloud had to lift away several layers in order to find the actual gift. When he did, though, his breath caught.
Inside the box was a pair of tiny earrings. They appeared to be blue-violet, but upon closer inspection he realized they really had no color, that it was the metal the tiny orbs were set in (an alloy of Adamant and Mythril) that lent them their apparent color. Pressing a finger to the surface of one little stone, he felt the tiny buzz of power that told him these stones were Materia. Cloud, in all his studies, had never heard of a colorless Materia; even in tiny slivers, they remained true to their colors.
Despite the mystery of colorless Materia, he could think only of his delight. He held up the box to the two of them, and saw eyebrows rise. The gift was obviously expensive, and both Zack and Sephiroth were trying to puzzle out what would prompt someone who had known Cloud for only a few months to give him such a gift.
/Damn,/ Zack thought. /Did Cloud win this guy his whole grade, or what? Looks like they managed to become pretty good friends, awful damn fast! Good. Cloud needs friends outside the military./
Sephiroth's thoughts were less unconcerned. /Grrr… What the hell is this about? Friends? Ha! This lab partner better just keep his hands to himself! And what was with that look Cloud had a little while ago? Like he'd just been kissed? Dammit, dammit, dammitdammitdammit!/
Cloud was oblivious to Zack's approving smile and Sephiroth's growing unhappiness. He reached up to his ears and practically tore out the earrings he had on. Then he carefully replaced them with Galen's beautiful gifts. He held his messy blond hair out of the way for Zack and Sephiroth, so they could see his new adornments. "How do they look?" he asked anxiously.
Even Sephiroth had to admit they looked beautiful on him. They seemed to have caught the exact shade of Cloud's eyes, right down to the glow in them. Cloud was delighted, and vowed he wouldn't take them off for at least until after graduation. He was going to find Galen to thank him appropriately.
* * *
So, there we have it!
I decided I'd tortured Zack and Sephiroth enough emotionally, for now, so I had them reach a sort of understanding, finally. I also had to clear the range for Cloud somehow!
In Scenic Route, I mentioned that Galen was a bookworm and liked the sciences best. Here he is, at Midgar University, training to practice his passions for a living! And, yes, he's Cloud's age and living a rough life (though not as bad as his 'Niisan's, fortunately!), so he can relate a little to Cloud. The custom spell referred to is something Reno put in place to hide his relationship to his/James's brothers. Galen doesn't know about it, but he also doesn't know Cloud knows Reno, and doesn't suspect anything.
All right, I am openly admitting that the whole Gast-Alpha, -Beta thing is mostly a rig to get Cloud legal for Sephy. Okay? I also thought that Cloud always seemed to operate, physically, in a much more adult manner that his years would indicate. I mean, how many 16-year-olds do you know who go around killing monsters, trying to get into elite military groups, and swinging swords as big as they are? This is my attempt to explain this little oddity that seems to pop up all over the place in the anime/manga/videogame world.
Yes, Factor J. Read: Jenova cells. Not that anyone at this point has any idea what they really are (except Hojo, the bastard). The class thinks they are a special virus-based vector to introduce their modifications into their rats.
For those who may not know: T.W.T.F.O. means "Transmit, What The Fuck?! Over." Just a little tidbit wrested from the vast stores of my mother's knowledge. *grin*
All right. I was already asked by one of my lovely betas what the colorless Materia were, so I better explain, ne? In the game, there was only one 'colorless' aka White Materia, and that was Holy. It glows green when activated. So Cloud's been carrying Holy with him all these years without even knowing! I will probably elaborate on this in Scenic Route, but the basic theory is that the Cetra all have a Holy Materia, that it is a part of their personal Lifestream energy. They can manifest it, if they are strong enough to, into the form of a Materia. In giving a little of his Holy Materia to Cloud, Galen gave up a little of his strength, but also gave himself a way of finding our spiky-headed hero if he needs to. Call it…a Cetra's intuition. *grin*
Okay, that should be it…the next portion should be posted shortly. Thanks for reading!
--Akuma no Tsubasa