Author Note: Hope you all enjoyed the last chapter ;) It was fun to write and I can't wait to write more for this story. Hope you all want more fluff because I have more 3
Marken: Thank you for your praise :) I feel the same when writers lose interest in what they're writing. Thankfully, I have this story well planned out so I should be able to keep writing for a long time. And maybe(just maybe) I will have a second 'book' to this story, but I have a long way before that. Till then, enjoy!
I do not own FF7 or any of its characters. Talin, Unit 28, and some other side characters are mine.
Chapter 20
Coming out of the bathroom, Talin found Zack's back turned to him and took the chance to nuzzle into the man's broad back. Disappointingly, when Talin's hands came to rest on the Commander's waist, he found that his pants were already refastened. Although, from the tension in the fabric, it was obvious Zack was still very much aroused.
"How are you enjoying working down that list of firsts?" Zack laced their fingers together on his hips, letting his Cadet snuggle up behind him as he wished.
"Great so far, but I have a feeling all my firsts will be enjoyable if they're with you," Talin was glad that he was behind the other as he felt himself blush before continuing, "But I want you to enjoy them too..." Pushing aside his nervousness, Talin hooked a thumb in Zack's waistband, giving a slight tug to get his point across.
"Oh, trust me, I enjoyed every second of it," The SOLDIER pulled the other's hands up before turning around and resettling them back on his hips again. His own went into Talin's hair as he leaned in to claim a slow kiss. "But if we start something," he whispered while lips traveled to the Cadet's ear and strong hands rubbed and massaged down the teen's neck, "I wouldn't be satisfied with just a little taste of you," With that, Zack grazed his teeth along Talin's ear sending a shiver down his spine. "And, you have twenty minutes till curfew." That teasing warning was enough to jolt Talin out of the heat of the moment but not enough to cool his need.
Zack tried not to laugh at the flustered Cadet as he went to get his boots on but couldn't help himself. Talin's genuine and unguarded reactions were such a welcome change to that of the jaded and desensitized ones of most guys his age. How he had remained virgin so long was a mystery, or maybe not... He was attractive enough but, from what he had said of his past, he hadn't really been around people much after age 12.
Wanting to ask but not about to dredge up possibly bad memories, the SOLDIER decided he better not. Still, how could a good-looking guy not have at least been kissed by a gal, or guy, for so long... Zack pondered this while Talin tied up his boots and then moved forward to help him with his blade harness.
It had been so tempting to take him up on the offer for more but, as bad as Zack was at being patient, he could wait for this. Talin would be worth the wait. After another slow kiss, the Cadet headed out to the elevator and back to his barracks, leaving Zack to take issues into his own hands, literally...
...
The day's events are still racing through his head as the Cadet makes it down to his floor. In truth, it had also been his first time out in the city since arriving in Midgar. Maybe I should take more time to explore, get out and actually enjoy the place I call home...
Talin's thoughts are interrupted as soon as he opens the door. The rumor mill had been hard at work already about General Sephiroth and his Trainee taking a trip on the train. No one knew where they had gone, only that Talin had come back with some fancy new blades.
After some nosey questions, and more than one person begging to see the swords, Talin finally showed them the butterfly blades but could only laugh when asked where they had gone. To be honest, since the sign was so old, he hadn't caught the name of the shop. He could only tell them that it was in the back neighborhoods of sector 4. He was also somewhat glad that he didn't know. It was kind of special, just between himself and his General.
Having the blades finally passed back to him, they all started getting ready for bed and the redhead did his best to ignore Callian's knowing looks as he asked how Talin's 'training' went.
"Looks like you have a bit of a bruise on your neck, did you get 'hit'?" Talin's instinctive flinch to cover the spot that Zack had bitten betrayed him.
Sorely tempted to tackle the now laughing blond, Talin instead grabs Cal round the neck in a light headlock before thoroughly messing up his wet hair. The laughing doesn't stop but Talin does hear the quiet 'Worth it!' as he released the other Cadet.
After such an eventful day, Talin was expecting to have trouble falling asleep, but as he lies down, his eyes close and mind drifts off before the lights even go out.
…
Morning found the cadets of U-28 in Commander Fair's class, again learning about weapons issued to infantrymen. It was always interesting to learn the new weapons but Talin can't help but be a little... distracted from the lesson by its instructor. By the end of it, he wasn't sure that he would really remember anything but how good Zack looked when he was being professional.
As the class was released, Talin finally realized he hadn't even taken notes. Packing the few things he had out, he was about to head up the steps when he heard his name called.
"Cadet Graft, come down and show me those new blades quick," Zack hid his mischievous grin by turning to straighten his desk papers while the other students shuffle out. All but Callian that is.
He intentionally took his time packing his few notes and book as Talin showed his swords to Zack who pretended that he hadn't already seen them. The smug grin Cal shot them as he held the door for the last student practically yelled that he knew what was really up. With a quick wave, the other Cadet followed out and pulled the door shut after himself.
The quiet click of the door was the signal for Zack's attention to shift from the blade to its owner. Fast as lightning, the butterfly sword was solidly embedded into the desktop and Talin found himself pinned to said desk with demanding lips devouring his own. His gasp at being suddenly trapped only allowed Zack to deepen the kiss.
The Cadet's hands found their way into thick black hair just as Zack's slid down his hips then shifting to gently grip his ass. It was all so sudden but Talin wasn't complaining. They both knew they didn't have long and that this couldn't happen every day so why not enjoy what they could.
Just as quickly, the gentle hands on his backside turned firm and he found himself lifted to sit on the edge of the desk with Zack firmly tucked between his now spread legs. Embarrassed at the vulnerable position but also turned on, Talin leaned back slightly to break their intense kiss and try to reign in his rampaging hormones.
"Something tells me you missed me," He teased the SOLDIER as he attempted to catch his breath. Zack just shifted to the teen's neck planting a single kiss before resting his head on Talin's shoulder.
"Na, not at all..." The accompanying press of hips against his and the tightening of hands on hips only added to the sarcastic remark. "O'course I missed you, Red. I just wish we had more time," The eyes he raised to meet Talin's were as full of need as his own surely were.
Zack placed his hands flat on either side of the legs that had slightly hooked around his hips and rocked forward gently. Dropping his head back to the arched neck, he licked from collar bone to jaw and enjoyed the shiver his attentions caused. It was so tempting to just push Talin down against the desk and... A light nip on his ear brought the 1st back to reality and he chuckled at his wayward thoughts.
"I wish we had more time too, but I need to get to class and you have another to teach." Talin let his head rest against Zack's and nuzzled him a bit, "I'm training with my blades tonight with Sephiroth. Will you be there?"
With great reluctance, the SOLDIER pulled back enough that the other's legs unhooked from around his. "Damn, I have a friend I'm helping tonight with some training. I'll be there tomorrow for sure," He really wanted to see the Cadet work with the new blades and could tell Talin was slightly disappointed that he wouldn't be there.
Feeling guilty and wanting a smile from the normally reserved Cadet, Zack suddenly picked Talin up off the desk, enjoying the feeling of strong legs locking around his hips.
"Zack! Put me dow..." Talin was cut off by another kiss before the hyperactive 1st started spinning them rapidly in circles. Their kiss devolved into laughter as he held tightly till Zack slowed to a stop, still holding the Cadet securely against himself.
Thoroughly dizzy, when he was let down to stand, Talin still clung to his... boyfriend? Lover? Shoving the thought aside for now he just held on till the world stopped spinning.
"Ok Red, I better get ready and you better get to class with your friend out there." With a final kiss, Talin grabbed his blade from the abused desk and sheathed it as he bolted up the steps. Silently he begged his body to calm down and was thankful that at least his face wasn't hot by the time he reached the door.
As Zack said, Callian was waiting for him and the two of them hightailed it to the next class. All the while Talin couldn't stop thinking of what it will be like when they no longer had to hide their relationship.
…
The rest of the classes that day were hardly as interesting as that morning had been. Military History had been interesting to Talin at first but now it was starting to get dull. They covered lots of different battles and skirmishes that had happened in the Wutai War before moving to small uprisings that had happened here and there across the globe. Nothing as interesting as the first major confrontations with Wutai had been to him but it was all good to know.
A thought occurred to him part way through the class that he should be looking at the strategy implemented in the fights for future use. He was a Unit Leader now, surely someday he might need that information. That thought kept him focused through the otherwise boring class.
Gym was more entertaining since he could harass his Unit, specifically Callian, to keep up with him in the drills. Cal was by no means a pushover, but Talin was feeling particularly spiteful since the blond kept making offhanded comments about Zack and the 'training' session the previous night.
By the time lunch was over, Talin found himself in a truly good mood. Life was finally going his way for once. He had friends, a boyfriend, his mentor, and daily challenges to keep him moving forward. The only current draw back was the amount of attention on his new blades from those outside his Unit.
The covetous looks and countless whispers were frustrating. It would be one thing if they just wished for a set of their own, but it was the nature of his obtaining them that was envied. People only wanted them because Sephiroth gave them to him, not because they were unique or because they wanted to learn to use them. It was a level of obsession that Talin couldn't stand but he didn't let it dampen his spirits as he left to the elevator. Let them be jealous of him, of his relationship with his General, Goddess help them if anyone ever got in his way.
These thoughts distracted him from the long ride up but as he stepped out of the elevator, he was dragged from them suddenly. Not because of any event or sudden noise, but because the total lack of it. The floor was ominously silent. Every hair on Talin's neck stood up as he made his way to the training room and instinct made him draw both swords into a defensive some reason he felt extremely wary of entering the room and hesitated just outside of the door's sensor range. He wouldn't put it past his mentor to coordinate a surprise attack but this heavy sense of tension in the air made Talin wonder if something else wasn't going on.
Sure enough, as he approached and the doors slid open, only darkness awaited him. Cautiously, Talin moved into the room, flinching slightly when the doors slid shut, leaving him enveloped fully in the pitch-black cavern of a room. The quiet click of the door locking behind him distracted almost enough to make him miss the quiet hiss of a projectile.
Dodging left just in time to avoid a small knife, Talin focused his heightened senses back on the room around him. Small sounds hit his ears from several locations around him and he wondered if maybe he had three ambushers instead of just the one.
His instincts again proved correct when more small blades flew at him from several angles at once. Body moving before the brain could catch up, Talin found himself ducking and rolling away from the rain of steel. The roll was awkward. With the blades laying flush against his forearms, he had to shift at the last second to avoid landing painfully on them.
The next barrage came from behind him. With a quick jump and flip, the Cadet was able to avoid the first set but then another flew at him while airborne. The wide blades allowed him to deflect them but the sound of the knifes clattering to the floor covered the sound of more incoming.
It was as he was about to land that the hiss registered. Twisting around at the last second, he changed his landing from a crouch to a, somewhat painful, slide onto his stomach. The blades were again in the way for this maneuver, and he had to adjust quickly to prevent a twisted wrist. Quick as he had landed, he was back up on his feet, listening for more. Nothing... Only his own breathing and pulse in his ears.
The hair rose on his neck. Ducking fast as he could, a booted foot cut across where his head had been. The blow wouldn't have done major damage but it would have hurt for sure. Springing backwards as a hook flew towards his face, Talin smiled, proud that he had avoided the attacks. It was a short-lived celebration.
His backwards momentum halted abruptly. Before the teen could redirect himself, thinking he had hit a wall, arms threaded over his and under the blades, rendering them useless. The shock of being so swiftly trapped made him panic momentarily, but when nothing else happened, he tried to think of a way out. The arms were more muscled than Sephiroth and not covered in red leather leaving only one other person, Angeal.
"Fuck," He said as he tried shifting his weight testing for any possible escape route but the man was solid as steel and unmoved by his struggles.
"Language, kiddo," He heard Angeal laugh in his ear.
"Ok, ok I get it. I lose," Talin muttered flopping his head back onto the man's strong chest. The lights came on ever so slightly, allowing only a dull glow to lighten the shadows of the room. Sephiroth and Genesis were wandering around picking up knives and pulling them from the walls while bickering, mostly on Genesis's part, about who came closest to hitting him. Angeal loosened his hold allowing Talin's arms to fall to his sides before resting them back around his shoulders.
Those strong arms were a comfortable weight across his chest, kind of like how Zack held him. They had similarities, similar Mako eyes, black hair, strong builds, but Angeal had broader shoulders, stronger arms, and that light scruff on his chin that was tickling Talin's ear.
"You did rather well, considering it was your first time fighting with your new swords. Looks like you picked your weapon well," With Talin held to his chest, Angeal's deep voice practically vibrated through him making his heart skip.
"How's your vision in this level of light?" Sephiroth asked as he came to stand with Genesis near Talin and Angeal. It wasn't bad, just a little hard to track faster movements. Nodding at this, Talin was told to try using Mako to try enhancing his eyesight. It didn't do much but it was enough for now.
Angeal released him then to allow Seph to start teaching him how to roll and fall with the blades properly, having noticed the trouble he'd had before. Talin missed the warmth but was glad to get his heart back into a normal rhythm. It felt odd, having that reaction to Angeal, and he wondered if it was the comparison to Zack or if he was just attracted to their brand of strength...
The first set of drills were strenuous enough to take his mind off such thoughts. Sephiroth was brutal when it came to teaching the basics and he had to relearn many of the simpler skills that were entirely different with two swords. The last thing you wanted in a fight was to overthink something that should be second nature. His General took the time to engrave them into his mind for now, muscle memory would come with time. As thorough as that first session was, the second portion was more stressful.
In the middle of practicing a dodge that forced him to twist and roll with the blades, Talin is suddenly grabbed and thrown across the room. The attack had been so silent and swift that he didn't have time to do anything but attempt to fall as painlessly as possible. He was mostly successful.
Twisting so he would skid to a halt on his side instead of face, Talin was able to keep his swords from being in the way. It also allowed him to keep his guard up even if he was in a prone position on the floor. None of the SOLDIERs came at him as he regained his feet but the laughing gleam in Genesis's eyes told the Cadet who had thrown him.
The drills continued with the new element of surprise attacks thrown in. The darkness made it far too easy for one of them to disappear from his line of sight and reappear when he least expected. By the end, Talin had a new respect for just how quietly they could move, especially Angeal.
As big as the man was, one would expect him to have difficulty sneaking up on anyone but it was he that threw Talin more than either of the other two. Silent and smooth as a cat when they wanted to be, he knew that he would have never heard them during the knife attack if they hadn't let him.
Arms sporting several new bruises from a few bad landings, Talin was glad when the training called to an end. With a quiet command by Seph to the lighting system, the lights brightened and Talin got a painful reminder of his Mako enhanced eyesight. The Mako usage had been so low that he had forgotten. Cutting off the flow and blinking as his eyes tried to return to normal, Talin started walking with the others to the door.
He took three steps before stumbling. A wave of dizziness hit him, making the world spin and his balance went out the window. Genesis was closest and caught Talin before he could fall, but the Cadet couldn't get his feet back under himself. The Commander had to all but carry him to the closest bench, setting him down as Seph and Angeal followed. The explanation of what happened only confused the others more however their concerned looks were lost on Talin who's eyes remained firmly shut.
"Talin, I need you to look at me," Sephiroth had knelt down and was holding the Cadet's chin so he could try to see what was wrong. For the brief moment that Talin had his eyes open, pain shot like an ice pick into his head. He was thankful when the General's hand moved to cover them and then called for the lights to be turned off.
When ordered to try again, the three 1sts could see the problem. Talin's pupils were severely dilated, so much so that the glowing green of iris were thin circles in the dark.
"Well that's unexpected," Genesis shrugged as he stood back up, "At least you didn't find this out on a mission." For that, Talin was thankful as well.
As his eyes adjusted to the slowly brightened room, they talked about testing his eyesight another day to see if they could prevent this kind of reaction. He had been using Mako on them for a few hours so maybe it had just been too long?
"We can debate and test that another day. How are you feeling now, Talin?" Angeal asked as the Cadet finally stood again.
"Better, just kinda tired," Sephiroth could see the small indications of evasiveness in the teen's response but said nothing till the others had left.
"Just kinda tired? Wanna tell me what's really going on in that head of yours?" Sephiroth had posted himself in the doorway while Talin retrieved his belongings and now prevented the Cadet from leaving.
"Sorry," He sighed, feeling stupid for still trying to hide anything from this perceptive man. He really should know better by now. "I feel fine. Tired, but also like I have too much energy again. I thought that would go away after the injections but I guess not."
"From what Hojo said, it should have... For tonight, I'll give you a homework assignment that should help." Sephiroth could have laughed at the small look of dismay on Talin's face. Knowing, however, that he would enjoy his homework made his order easy to give. "I know you usually practice with your Unit after our classes so tonight I want you to challenge them to a fight. However you want to do that is up to you. My only condition is that I want you to use as much Mako as possible without going past your limit." The grin on the teen's face was devilish at the thought of challenging his teammates and he quickly agreed to the condition.
One of the major flaws that they'd discovered with Talin's specific style of Mako use was that he would collapse if he used too much. It was like a battery running out of power, once he was too low, he simply crashed. It had taken a bit for him to be able to feel how close he was to that line but, with practice and some trial and error, Talin knew now just how far he could push.
…
At dinner, Talin told the group about his homework and they excitedly agreed to the match. What they didn't expect was for their Unit leader to draw his blades and order them to pick weapons from the training lockers. Talin moved to the center of the room before turning to see what each person chose to fight with.
"Now that everyone's ready, we have two rules. You get disarmed, you're out. If you're knocked down, you're out. Everyone got it?" The nods of agreement to their normal rules changed to some disbelieving stares when the redhead dropped into a fighting stance. Markings flickering to life with Mako and eyes glowing bright, Talin gave a challenging smirk, "Ok then, nineteen vs. one, let's go..."
