It took a few days of Zack's pestering to finally meet Cloud. Sephiroth wanted to wait longer originally, but there was only so much patience he had with the constant questions. And Cloud was proving to mostly be calm when Sephiroth gave him the tour of the company.

He realized Cloud was bored of sitting around while Sephiroth was handling his everyday duties. When he wasn't on a mission or at the front lines then he was often going through endless paperwork.

So Sephiroth reluctantly agreed. But there were rules. Angeal must be present. And if it came down to it then Sephiroth must be the one to handle Cloud should he act out.

"We're expecting company. Angeal is bringing his pupil to meet you. His name is Zack." Sephiroth informed.

"Is this the puppy you guys talk about? Why is he called a puppy anyway?" Cloud perked up.

"Because he acts like a bouncing puppy."

"I still don't understand? Does that mean he's actually a puppy or is it a strange form of expression?"

Sephiroth and his two friends have been doing their best to explain simple things to Cloud. To their credit they were patient with his questions and never got mad when he needed something to be explained in a different way. Cloud had a harder time with metaphors.

"A form of friendly expression." Sephiroth answered.

They also had to explain the difference between when someone was being friendly and when someone wasn't. Angeal brought this up with the slight concern Cloud wouldn't immediately understand if he was subject of a joke. Genesis countered that Cloud would understand almost immediately, but just to be safe they implemented this as well.

"What is a pupil?"

"Angeal is Zack's teacher. Zack is the pupil, Angeal the teacher. He is learning from Angeal the ways of Soldier."

"And I'm to become one? Does this mean you're my teacher?"

"Technically all three of us are. But I am your main teacher since you live with me."

There was a knock. Cloud sat up eagerly, watching as Sephiroth opened the door. Angeal entered and next to him was a young man with dark spiked hair. Pale blue eyes and a wide grin as he bounded his way over to Cloud.

"Hello! My name is Zack. You must be Cloud! I've heard so much about you. Say, is it true you eat hearts? Is it okay if I ask why? I tried asking Angeal, but he didn't have an answer. I'm just curious, is all."

Angeal raised a hand to his face. Sephiroth stood behind Zack, staring intently at the young man. He didn't seem bothered by Sephiroth's presence. Zack was too focused on new person.

Cloud blinked. He wasn't sure what to think of this young man quite yet. He smelled of the cusp of spring and summer after a fresh rain.

"Yes, I eat hearts. But only after I kill those who were a challenge to kill." Cloud thought about the why and how to word it proper.

"So only the strongest? Is it sort of like a trophy or something?"

"What's a trophy?" The blond got distracted.

"A trophy is a reward after accomplishing something great." Angeal explained when Zack tilted his head.

"Oh. I guess kind of? It's more of acknowledging they were hard to kill. Sometimes it's honoring their life by taking a piece of them into me. There was only one where it wasn't to be honorable, simply because I hated him. He was easy to kill but under the circumstances I wasn't allowed to kill him until an opportunity presented itself. That one was a trophy kill to me."

The explanation kind of made sense? Sephiroth shared a look with Angeal. This was the first time they heard Cloud's reasoning. Sephiroth had been reluctant to ask because he was still adjusting to living with the young man.

Honoring the dead for being a challenge was one thing. But taking their hearts and eating them was a bit of the extreme.

"I see. What got you started to do that?" Zack was still interested despite the strange details.

Cloud actually had to think about it. He had done it for so long it was a habit. And the others he had been trapped in the laboratory with never questioned him about it. They accepted it as a part of how he is. They had their own quirks, too.

"I was...seven? I had trouble fighting a beast. I actually wanted to die. But then I felt the strength to fight. And somehow it was enough for me to win. I remember crying afterwards because I still wanted to die. And I killed an innocent beast that didn't know any better but to fight because of the lab coat."

"That's young, isn't it?"

"I wouldn't know? I remember Weiss approaching me. He told me that it's okay to mourn. He told me that the beast isn't suffering anymore, so I should honor his death. But once it's done then put the fight behind me and never look back. I asked him how do I honor the beast. He told me whatever I felt that would be best."

"And you chose eating it's heart? Just like that?" Zack tilted his head.

"Well, I couldn't think of anything else." Cloud shrugged.

"But you don't want to eat everyone's heart?"

"No. Why would I? It's only those who proved themselves worthy by either hurting me in battle or I had to push harder than ever before. Anyone too much of a pushover I won't even bother."

Well, it was comforting that Cloud wouldn't actively try to take his heart in his sleep. Sephiroth can somewhat sleep easier knowing this.

"Hey, think I can show him around town?" Zack turned to his superiors.

"Not at this time. You haven't earned his respect yet." Sephiroth sighed at the idea. That would definitely lead into a disaster.

"Why not? We seem to be getting along just fine."

"He's tolerating you because he knows you're close to me. I don't even know on what scale of strength he's at compared to the rest of us."

"Well why not a friendly spar?"

"As in a fight?" Cloud perked up at this.

"Zack," Sephiroth wanted to put a stop to that idea. But he saw the eagerness in Cloud's eyes. And a sinking feeling hit his stomach.

"Fine, but I'm supervising." He couldn't believe he gave in.

They made their way to the training room. The sight of Cloud made people turn heads. By now rumors had spread of the Heart Eater, but not much was known about him. Cloud for his part didn't show he was nervous of the stares.

Zack was ever eager for a new opponent. He saw it as plain fun to test himself. Sephiroth and Angeal however felt uneasy as they understood that with Cloud, anything could go wrong.

"What sort of sword is that?" Zack whistled at Cloud's weapon.

"Twin Stinger. A perfect balance of materia and brute force." Angeal explained.

"What sort of materia you got in there?"

"We weren't allowed any. But out of the swords this was my favorite."

"Should I not use my own to make it more even?" Zack didn't even question why Cloud wasn't allowed to use materia.

"Might be better off. I'm not introducing materia to him just yet." Sephiroth agreed to the suggestion.

"Will you be the referee or shall I?" Angeal offered to take the roll.

"I'll be the referee. Rules are no killing. No cheap shots. No materia. Only skills and talent. First one to fall loses the round." Sephiroth stated the rules.

So the spar began. Sephiroth felt nervous for many reasons. A crowd began to form around them. He focused mainly on the pair. And soon Zack's cheerful grin disappeared as he began to focus.

Cloud was proving himself to hold his ground easily against Zack. And soon they began to realize they both had to push themselves to try and gain the upper hand.

Zack even began his tornado attacks. Cloud was always quick to back up and block. The blond then to push with his speed. He dashed from every which direction to try and overwhelm Zack.

And it was working. The Second Class struggled to keep up. The combination of Cloud's speed and power was close to sending, Zack off his feet. However he was always good with balance. So even though he looked like he was doing some sort of weird dance the Second Class still remained upright.

Realizing that this wasn't enough Cloud stopped rushing. He took a moment to gather his breath. Zack took his chance and began his offensive. Cloud deflected each one. But the surprise on his face said it all in terms of the power behind the strikes.

Clearly they had underestimated each other. Angeal couldn't help a small smile. He felt proud at this moment.

Cloud managed to push Zack away, interrupting the flow of attacks. While the Second Class was keeping balance the blond lunged with his most powerful swing. Zack rolled just in time. Twin Stinger was inches away from hitting him.

The floor dented under the strike. Sephiroth resisted ending the fight then and there as gasps murmured at the sight before them. Lazard will have a headache with maintenance later.

Cloud whirled with another strike. Zack couldn't dodge this time for he was too close ranged. Instead he worked on using Cloud's power and momentum against him. In the amazement of everyone Cloud flew over Zack's shoulder and land on the floor.

The blond blinked. He was confused how that happened. Zack offered his hand with a huge grin on his face. For a moment Sephiroth worried Cloud would swing. Instead he grasped the offered hand and Zack helped him to his feet.

"Damn, you're good!" Zack complimented.

"You're not bad. Can you teach me that move? How did you do that?"

"It's all about using your opponents weight and power against them. Use the momentum to send them down. It helps when you're fighting big guys like Angeal." Zack had come up with the technique after many failed attempts to gain the upper hand against his mentor.

"So then it's like transfer of energy with little effort on your end?"

"I guess so? I mean that's one way to put it." He hadn't thought of that angle. And a new form of respect formed towards Cloud.

"Understand that method won't always work. Sephiroth is too fast. I've tried more times than I can count." Angeal advised.

"No I know he is." Cloud frowned. "You think I challenge those that knocked me down?"

"Well you had it out for Alexus. For good reason, but still. And you didn't listen to Weiss."

"Because I didn't fit with his pack. The lab coat had it coming."

"Wait so you view us as your pack?" Zack tilted his head.

"...Not all of you. But so far I'm comfortable." Cloud wasn't sure with Genesis and Angeal. But so far Zack and Sephiroth earned his respect.

He liked Angeal well enough. Genesis has been scarce due to missions. But Cloud knew that if he challenged them then Sephiroth will be mad.

"Well, I like to see you as a friend!" Zack grinned wide.

"What's a friend?"

"A friend is someone who always got your back. Think of it like a packmate." The Second Class was quick to connect the pack mentality with regular normal words as a comparison.

Sephiroth sensed that he didn't have to concern himself with Zack anymore. This young man was a blessing in disguise. Zack became the bridge that they needed to introduce Cloud to the world.

Then a few hours later Sephiroth got a call from Lazard. Angeal and Zack were over to visit. The general was still hesitant in allowing Cloud within the city, so they opted to visit instead.

"I want the names of everyone who saw the fight between Cloud and Zack."

"What's the issue? Zack won and earned his respect." Sephiroth frowned.

"That's not what I'm upset over. I think it's great that he's experiencing friendship. It's a good major step. But that fight was recorded and released online. I wasn't made aware of this until I got a very distraught call from Cloud's mother."

"You know what he believes. This won't end well." A sinking feeling hit the pit of the general's stomach.

"I am well aware. She had passed through every secretary until someone had the thought of passing her to me. Now I'm in a position where I don't know what to do but discipline those who released the video."

"Have you tried explaining his belief?"

"Yes. But she's adamant to meet him still. Says if we don't provide her transport then she will come to Midgar on her own."

"Shit." Sephiroth cursed. This time the others glanced his way curiously.

"Lazard, let me get back to you. Go ahead and make the arrangements. I'll do what I can on this end."

"I hope you know what you're doing."