Lights and Shadows

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Disclaimer: FFVII and all its characters belong to Square Enix Co. Ltd, not me. I am simply using that world and its characters as muses and a writing exercise. Sue me; you get nothing, good day, sir. I'm a minor you can't sue me so ha! I laugh at you.

Italics - mental conversations

' ' - thoughts

" " - normal conversation

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Chapter Four: All These Little Things

Zack had never slept so soundly before this night and he really didn't want to be torn away from the dream he was having. He smiled and snored slightly, completely sprawled across his bed his covers thrown about as well, but he clutched with a death like grip on one corner of the navy blue comforter. He was the portrayal of teenage laziness.

The sun slowly filled the room and fell on a digital alarm clock. The clock switched to 11:00 and began an insipid tone of utter annoyance. Zack groaned and turned over throwing his pillow over his head. He reached out blindly searching for the damnable device that dared to rouse him from his slumber. He realized he had moved his nightstand out of arm's reach so that the snooze or the off button wasn't an option from the bed. He growled and lifted up his pillow to stare at the red tick marks glaring at him. He turned on his side, trying to ignore it, but it donned on him about what time it was. His eyes widened and he immediately sat up in bed.

"Fuck fuck fuck! Oh shit! I'm so late! Sephiroth is going to kill me!" He screamed, beating his hands against his forehead. How could he have been so careless?

He turned the alarm clock off and ran over to his closet, tossing some clothes out. He really didn't have time to be picky showing up dressed haphazardly was far better than not showing up at all. He ran to the shower and took only three minutes to clean himself. He threw his light blue denim jeans on followed by a black tanktop. He brushed his teeth and barely touched his hair, figuring the water from the shower would tame it to a point. He grabbed his folders and ran to the elevators slamming his hand on the button for the correct floor.

The elevator couldn't have moved any slower to him than if there had been an old lady trying to get off. When the doors finally opened he ran down the halls in a speed he didn't know he possessed. He opened the door to the office and finally let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. He was bent down with his hands on his knees. He stared down at the floor, knowing this race was just getting started. Now he would race to save his ass from Sephiroth's vengeance.

"I'm here, Sephiroth. Sorry that I'm so-" He cut himself off abruptly when he noticed that the silver haired man in question was nowhere to be found.

Zack looked up and gazed around the office. Sephiroth's chair was empty and the man wasn't standing around in there. Zack ran his hand through his unruly hair and took on a look of curiosity. He really didn't expect Sephiroth to up and leave without locking his door even if it was for something as simple as coffee. That was ruled out immediately when Zack spotted his coffee mug filled to the brim.

"Well, that rules that possibility out." He sighed and then seated himself in his own chair, propping his feet up on his desk. It was something that Sephiroth hated him to do, but with him not here who could say that he couldn't? "Well… I guess I'll have to start without him. Maybe if I'm lucky he won't know how late I really was." A quick witted smile spread across his face as he reached across his desk and started on the paperwork.

Zack really couldn't recall how long he spent reading over old reports and applications. All the words blurred into this almost unintelligent mass in his mind. Sentences such as 'shows extreme potential' translated to 'Shaun had exceeding long ponytails.' He shook his head and looked up.

"I don't see how he does this all day. This is so BORING." He groaned as his eyes shifted over to the digital clock on the wall. It read 2:00. His eyes narrowed. "This is ridiculous…"

An idea popped into his mind as he gazed across the desk, his intercom system that connected him directly to Colonel Randsom, the secretary. Why not? If anyone knew where Sephiroth had gone, then Randsom would know. Zack lazily reached across his desk and pressed down the red button, holding it there.

A cackling and then a woman's voice came over the intercom. "Yes, Mr. Donovan?"

"Randsom, do you have any idea as to where Sephiroth wandered off to?"

"He went home a while ago, sir, after Hojo escorted him out."

Zack's face drew into this slightly vexed look. "Oh really…? Thank you, Randsom." He let go of his hold on the button not awaiting her reply. "There is no way in hell I am going to let him laze around while I do his work for him. I think now would be a good time to take a lunch break."

A sinister smile grew across his face as he waltzed over to Sephiroth's desk. Surely, he had to leave some documentation around as to his home address. He was sure the man wouldn't live in the Shin-Ra building. That would be asking to be bothered at all hours of the day. And Zack knew all too well from experience that the man enjoyed his private time and perhaps a little too much.

He started rummaging through the drawers and folders and produced nothing in thirty minutes. It was very discouraging. He took Sephiroth for granted. The man really didn't want to be found. Then, a light bulb turned itself on inside Zack's brain. He retrieved his keycard from the depths of his pocket and looked over to Sephiroth's computer. He placed the small card into the proper slot and waited until the Shin-Ra logo went away. The system pleased him when it welcomed him and allowed him onto a lot of restricted files off limits to most.

He sat down in Sephiroth's chair feeling empowered. He was in the general's chair. Who could say they had sat in the general's chair? Well, him that is who! He shook the train of thought off rail and typed a search for the addresses of the executive employees' homes. The computer produced a long list of names.

'Why am I really doing this? Oh yeah, that's right. He barks at me everyday to get to work, but here he is taking a holiday. Besides someone needs to make that man aware of his faults.'

He placed his chin in his hand and scrolled down the list in utter boredom. Then, his eyes caught sight of his superior's name and smiled in victory. He clicked on the file wondering why it had been so simple to retrieve this information. Man, how many women in Midgar wouldn't pay to know this information lay before him. Though, a lot of his biography was shrouded by this blocked message meaning his access card wasn't high enough to grant him access to it.

'Odd… Even my clearance codes aren't good enough for the general. I guess Shin-ra really wants to keep anything from the media or anyone who would leak out anything.' He shrugged. 'But it is none of my concern, I suppose.'

He took a pen in hand and scribbled down the address on a scratch sheet of paper on Sephiroth's desk. He gathered it and his PHS before exiting the office and locking it up. No use it letting unauthorized personal into the general and now lieutenant general's office. He threw his hand up at Randsom as he walked by.

The girl had obviously had a crush on him and the general as she always curled her hair whenever they looked at her. Zack winked at her and she looked down to her knees, blushing. He always had his way with the ladies. The way he flirted casually and well his looks didn't hurt either.

"Um… Mr. Donovan is there anything you could possibly need?" Randsom said, curling a lock of hair on one finger.

Zack smiled. How could he deny a pretty lady the time of day to at least see his smile for once? Besides, Sephiroth probably never gave the woman the time of the day. "I'm just taking my lunch break, Randsom. I'll be back in a few."

Randsom smiled in his direction before he strolled off to the elevator. The floors seemed to fly by this time as he neared the first floor. The elevator dinged and the doors opened. The floor was relatively quiet as even getting inside required an appointment. Billboards and posters decorated the floor along with a set of grand stairs that reminded Zack of a first class cruise liner.

He waved as people passed by him and he made his way to the employee parking lot. There had been a section set off specifically for the SOLDIERs who lived in the building to park their cars. He placed his hands inside his pockets as he walked over to the blue motorcycle he called his own. It had taken him a lot of saving up to afford it and he treated it so. Being male he had to invest in getting a bike, but he hardly ever drove it. He got on the vehicle and started his quest to find Sephiroth's apartment.

Zack found himself in front of five floored apartment complex in the upper part of town where Midgar's finest resided. It was a large gray building that could have been mistaken for a living quarters for secretaries. He sighed and extracted the piece of paper from his pocket. He glanced down at the address and walked forward to the stairs. He figured on the way up that each floor most likely housed a Turk as according to the records on Shin-Ra's files. More or less each floor was the entire apartment. Zack shook his head, wishing he was this privileged in his accommodations.

When he reached the fifth floor everything was eerily quiet. 'Not even the birds make sounds up here.' He looked up and walked over to the only door on the floor. He noted the palm scanner beside it and cursed himself. Well, so much for sneaking in and surprising him. He knocked on the door and waited. This process continued until he realized no one was going to answer. He was about to give up when the door moved of its own accord and opened.

"You've got to be kidding me that it was unlocked this entire time!"

Zack slowly pushed the door completely open. All the lights were out, but Sephiroth couldn't have been careless enough to leave his home unlocked and unguarded, could he? Zack was about to come to that conclusion, but then he heard something moaning.

"Sephiroth, are you there?"

Another moan came as his reply. Zack fumbled around before finding a light switch. Light flooded into the room and illuminated the ornate and expensive leather furniture in the living room. The walls were red and the floor was made of cherry hardwood. But he had no time to enjoy the scenery as he found the source of the moaning.

Laying prostate on the couch was his superior staring out from a small space between his eyelids and face. His pupils were nowhere to be found and his eyes were gazed over. His mouth was slightly open as he breathed lightly from it. He had a blanket pulled up to his waist and his hair fanned about him. That is when Zack chose to notice the clothes thrown on the floor. Sephiroth's entire ensemble was there minus a pair of boxers, that's if the man wore any. He may be keen to going around commando style.

The lack of clothes and the current state of his leader led Zack only to believe one thing. "You're telling me that you ditched work to come home to fuck some woman…. Great… and leave me at the office to do all the work while you're at home having all the fun!" He threw his hands into the air. "You know next time you could be considerate and invite me too." He crossed his arms.

Sephiroth offered no response in return, but instead lay in the same position on his back. Zack cocked his head to the side before waltzing over to the couch. He bent down at his waist to lean over the general. He snapped his fingers in front of the man, but produced no response not even movement in his eyes.

"Gaia to Sephiroth, are you home?" He waved his hand in front of his face. Zack smirked. He knew a way to make the man move. He reached out and poked Sephiroth's forehead. He knew the man wouldn't tolerate it from the previous experiences Zack had in poking him. This time, though, Sephiroth didn't move. Zack cocked his head to the side. Sephiroth's head was burning hot. "You're not feeling well...? And you came home with no one to watch over you...? You didn't even let anyone know? Damn... you're a loner..." He looked down at the man and sighed. "I guess you expect me to take care of you? Fine, I guess I can't leave a friend like this anyway..."

Zack walked off looking for a flannel to place on his friend's forehead in hopes to calm his fevered body. Zack knew exactly what ailed him, especially after reviewing the symptoms he had seen so often in his fellow men and sometimes... himself. It was mako poisoning brought on by the injections that SOLDIERs took, but he never saw a case this bad. He found a flannel, ran it in cold water, and then placed it on Sephiroth's forehead. He sighed and decided to wait around to make sure he was all right.

Sephiroth felt his consciousness stir as the reality of his body's pain became apparent. He felt immobile and his skin burned with a cold fire. He wanted his own skin to be pulled off to escape the pain the mako wrought upon his system. Sounds and smell filtered to his prone form and the distinct feel of a cold compress on his head that he didn't recall putting there before he passed out on the couch. His vision finally came into focus as he surveyed the blurry forms of his penthouse. He smelled something akin to vegetable soup. His eyes shifted towards his chair. There sat his second with his legs crossed in the chair in barefeet. Since when in the hell did he live here?

Sephiroth groaned. "I must still be dreaming..."

"Welcome back to the world of the living, Seph," Zack said with a smile. "Feeling any better...?"

"I didn't know dreams were this vivid, my consciousness can perfectly imitate his voice. Gaia, I am losing it..." he muttered seemlingly to himself.

"Sorry, bud, you're not lucky enough to have me as a figment of your imagination." Zack stood and walked over to the couch. He removed the flannel from Sephiroth's head and checked on his fever. Sephiroth wanted to protest but couldn't find the will to move his limbs properly. They were still paralyzed by the poisoning. "Well, your fever has gone down and you woke just in time to try my soup!" Zack walked joyfully off into the kitchen.

"Zachary... care to explain to me, why the hell you are in my penthouse?" Sephiroth said in a tone filled with ire.

"Well... You weren't at work so I started to worry because some bastard left me with all the paperwork. So... I searched the Shin-Ra's database and found your home address. So I came here and the door was opened so I let myself in. Anyway, well, I saw you ill with Mako poisoning most likely induced from Hojo-"

"How the fuck did you know that!"

"Damn, calm down. It was an assumption since I remembered Hojo telling you about an appointment and then your symptoms led me to believe it was mako poisoning..." Zack walked into the living room with a bowl of steaming hot soup. "And I made you some soup to make you feel better..." He smiled and he bent down beside the couch.

Sephiroth looked up with confusion in his eyes. "Zachary... why even bother with this..."

Zack blinked. The man wasn't yelling at him? He sighed and shook his head. "Because I can't leave a sick friend alone to take care of himself, can I?"

"Friend...?"

"Yes, Sephiroth, F-R-I-E-N-D. You're my friend... so I like to believe..."

"Zachary...?"

"Yes...?" He lifted his eyebrows.

"Thanks... I suppose..."

"Anytime, Sephiroth." He said with a smile.