The aroma of coffee lured Cloud from his slumber. He opened his eyes to see Sephiroth still deeply asleep. Carefully so as not to disturb the general, the blond climbed out of the bed and made his way downstairs.
He found Angeal having just finished making the coffee and was about to prepare a big hearty breakfast for everyone. Cloud saw this as an opportunity.
"Morning." Angeal greeted.
"Morning." Cloud yawned as he grabbed himself a cup.
He was a few sips in before making his inquiry.
"So, I noticed you guys went quiet when I made an observation last night. About the fact Soldiers prefer to flock to you and Genesis over Sephiroth. I'm not trying to dictate anything, I just want to figure out how to fix this."
The commander studied him with curiosity. His eyes were wary, but he could see that the blond was genuinely trying to help. Plus he had plans to change Soldier for the better.
"I'm sure you've noticed. He struggles to hold a normal conversation. He only understands how to give orders to his men while on mission."
"I can't see Genesis being so friendly to invite everyone for tea." Cloud pointed out. This earned a chuckle.
"I will admit, it took a while for many men to come around to Genesis. He's rash, quick to anger, and everything must go according to plan. But, he shows a talent with materia that can give him an advantage against Sephiroth. He's learned to keep an eye on those who also share this talent, and help them embrace it."
"Yet he doesn't teach?" Cloud found this interesting.
"Can you imagine him teaching?" Angeal raised an eyebrow.
Cloud tried to picture it. And he sighed.
"I'll give you that." Somehow there would be body bags.
Then a thought crossed his mind.
"I understand by Shinra's standards, Sephiroth is the best. But does he even want to be the general?"
"Do you want the professional or personal answer?" Angeal pursed his lips.
"I take it he doesn't, then." Cloud concluded.
"It's more of the fame. He doesn't feel comfortable with it. If you watch him carefully, you can tell he doesn't want to talk to reporters or the cameras. Hence why his public debuts are few and far between."
"And yet he walked straight into the den of the meeting board." The blond was confused.
"You don't understand how long he's been waiting. Searching. For you. He keeps everyone at arms length. Even us. With some it's a thirty foot pole. But you? It's like none of the barbed wire walls don't exist." Angeal explained. "It wouldn't surprise me if he's scared, though. He is not proud of the things he's done at the war front."
"How so?" Cloud was only curious because he wanted to understand his partner for life.
Angeal looked away. He breathed in, exhaled, then met Cloud's gaze again. There was fear mixed with sorrow in his eyes.
"There was a mission that required the three of us. Only us. It was one of our first missions in the war. We had to capture a man who commanded a camp that had been a pain in our asses. They worked like assassins."
"What happened?" Cloud felt this was going south.
"We did capture him. But he wouldn't talk. Even when we interrogated him in his own language. Sephiroth decided to get creative and torture him. And with each day the man didn't talk, he would try another method. Genesis and I became horrified when we noticed Sephiroth actually enjoyed it."
Angeal shivered. Now to Cloud, a shorter guy with smaller build, this was a huge moment to observe. Some big muscled Soldier, one of the best, shuddered from the terror of those memories.
"The man ended up dying after twenty eight days of straight torture. He never gave us anything. And we were too scared to put a stop to Sephiroth killing the man. I think, a part of us wanted the man to die so his suffering can stop."
For his part Cloud couldn't find it within himself to feel sorry for the commander. He also didn't show any signs that he was afraid of Sephiroth. Angeal noticed this, and little alarm bells rang in his head.
In truth the blond felt that it was merely an act of war. Sephiroth was younger, then. And the pressure of being general and winning the war was heavy. Cloud could imagine anyone going a little insane and found creative ways to handle the stress.
"I will keep that in mind." Cloud felt that it would be awkward to thank him.
And sensing that he may have done something odd for the commander to stare at him weird, the blond grabbed another cup. He silently made one for Sephiroth. He realized he didn't know what creamer Cloud preferred, so used his favorite and hoped it would be good.
Silently Cloud made his way back up the stairs with both cups. He could hear Angeal going back to preparing breakfast. The blond made a mental note not to come back down until Sephiroth was awake.
Green eyes opened at the strong smell of coffee. He blinked at the sight of two cups. Cloud set the black cup down at the nightstand.
"I wasn't sure how you would like yours. So I made it how I make mine." Cloud felt apprehensive.
"Thank you." Sephiroth sat up to try a sip.
He blinked. Before now he had always accepted his coffee without creamer or sugar. He found the creamers too sweet. This wasn't overly tooth rotting with the flavor.
"You're the only one to make my coffees from now on." The general stated, and the blond blinked in surprise.
"Noted. You love my coffee." Cloud felt proud for once.
The smell of breakfast being cooked reached them. It was enough incentive for them to head down after a few more sips of their coffee. For Sephiroth he was almost done with his cup.
Angeal for his part didn't act out of sorts from the earlier conversation. He was back to being Papa Mode of the group. Cloud remade Sephiroth's cup while the general helped prepare the next batch of bacon, potatoes, and eggs for Angeal.
When they were nearly done Zack raced out of his shared bedroom. He nearly tripped in the hallway but saved himself with his arm catching the wall to push himself back up. Then he climbed over the couch to find the remote.
"What's going on?" Angeal asked for everyone too stunned to see so much excitement in the morning.
"You guys gotta see this!" Zack found the remote then turned the TV on to the news channel.
Cloud scowled at the sight of Lazard. On either side of him were Turks and Soldier. There was no sign of Rufus or Tseng for that matter.
"As my first act of president, I am calling a peace treaty with Wutai. We have yet to receive an answer, but it is within my hope that they share the same sentiments as I do."
"Mr. President, who will be taking over your old seat as Director of Soldier? Who will replace Heidegger?"
"We are currently working on filling both of these seats as quickly as possible. I assure you I will not hand either of them to anyone who has the potential to abuse their power."
"And if Wutai decides not to agree with peace? Who will lead both departments?"
"We will have someone filled in if it comes to that."
"Mr. President! Is there any news about how General Sephiroth and your younger brother? Where are they currently?"
Cloud felt his hands tighten into fists. Of course they would ask. He grit his teeth so he wouldn't bite his lip.
"I have no comment to any questions regarding General Sephiroth and Cloud."
"Mr. President, there's a rumor going around that yourself and Vice President agreed to keep General Sephiroth and Cloud Strife separate until after the three of you took down your father. Is this true?"
Panic spread. Even Lazard was caught off guard. Cloud paled, glancing at everyone for any signs it was them. When they all shared the same shock, the blond reached for his phone. He tried Tseng.
No answer. Cloud began pacing as he tried again. Still not picking up. What the hell was going on?
Suddenly the camera changed to a helicopter hovering not far away. Cloud hung up, watching suspiciously. Rufus leaped out of the helicopter with grace. At his heels was his fond pet, Darkstar.
Rufus strode closer to stand next to Lazard.
"Whoever is making up these rumors needs to stop. For they're certainly not true. We would not shatter our brother's trust like that. Nor would we impede on General Sephiroth's."
"Yeah, right." Cloud snarled.
"We're brothers, and together we tackled our father to better our future. A future for Shinra, for Midgar. For the world. The last we need is for us to be torn just as we began our own legacy. For the moment, Cloud is bonding with Sephiroth. Once they have settled, they will return."
Now Cloud was beyond pissed. Rufus wasn't giving them a choice. Granted, Cloud felt that he should come back to be a pain and give them hell. But now Rufus took away the option to leave.
What the hell was going on? He tried Tseng again. There was no answer. He was beginning to suspect that he was the one who flew Rufus in and therefore can't answer while flying.
Gritting his teeth Cloud decided to try Lazard's phone. He glanced up at the screen to see his oldest brother glance at his pocket where his phone was vibrating. But he didn't check it because he was on air.
"Mr. Vice President, is there any particular reason why you brought your brothers together to take down the former president?"
Cloud paused. He was about to dial Rufus number. He stared as his brother stared straight into the camera.
"Besides our father being abusive with his power? Because of his lack of faith that I've found my destined heart already."
Many gasped. Cloud wasn't the only one to stare.
"I won't disclose details such as gender or names because they wish to remain anonymous. But we have known for quite a while. And, to be frank, it was getting tiresome hiding for so long. It put a strain on our relationship. So, today, I make the announcement that I have found my destined heart."
Cloud narrowed his eyes. He found all of this a bit too convenient. A rumor that was too close to the truth that made Lazard look bad, then Rufus swoops in to save the day and turn it around that he's found his promised love.
The blond began to search his contacts. He hated having to do this, but he called Reno's number. The redhead answered.
"You trying to get a hold of Tseng, goldilocks?"
"What the hell is going on?" Cloud demanded.
"Dunno, man. We weren't told shit. This is either an act of desperation or really great plotting."
So then he wasn't the only one to think this?
"Investigate who started the rumor. Use every resource you have at your disposal."
"Whoa, whoa, there. Slow down. I can't exactly take orders from a Soldier, you know?"
"You will because I accept the name Shinra. And this is on my behalf. This isn't just because it puts me or Sephiroth on the spot. This is about that little voices in our heads that this is planned." Cloud wasn't having it.
For a long moment everyone was stunned. On the screen Rufus and Lazard leave the podium together. It was the perfect symbol of two brothers standing side by side in equal power.
"...You got it. I don't know how long it'll be before they're alerted I'm snooping. But I'll be keeping you updated when I can, boss." Reno gave in.
Cloud hung up. He then sent a brief message to Lazard stating don't bother to call him back. The blond felt overwhelmed by everything. The TV, the stares, the whole situation.
Did he really just accept the name to get what he wanted? Feeling disgusted with himself, Cloud ran upstairs. He hid in the master bathroom. Cloud curled into a ball and leaned against the tub.
It took everything in him not to break the phone in his hand. Instead he dropped it and scooted it away from him. Not even two minutes later there was a knock on the door.
"Cloud? Are you all right?" Sephiroth opened the door just enough to peek his head through.
"Not really." Cloud was trembling. "I shouldn't be this surprised that it's come to this. And yet I was stupid enough to get wrapped up in it anyway."
The general stepped inside and sat down next to him. Cloud immediately noticed the way his body calmed at Sephiroth's scent. He leaned closer which prompted an arm to wrap around his smaller form protectively.
"If it comes down to a war between your brothers, I will stand by you. Even if it means taking on the whole company." Sephiroth vowed.
"I don't want it to come to that." Cloud couldn't stand the idea. "If anything, we have to corner them and make them cut the bullshit."
"You suspect both Lazard Rufus as the source?" Sephiroth was surprised.
"Lazard has proven he can be cunning. And sneaky. Rufus is upfront and personal. Although I still can't rule him out because all he gets out this mess is the freedom of not being pressured to produce an heir."
"Either way, do you think you really can put a stop to them? They have the advantage of knowing how to play the game of politics." Sephiroth inquired.
"I'm a fast learner. If anything I can just beat the shit out of them." Cloud shrugged, rather liking the mental image of him beating his brothers until they gave in.
"As long as I have front row seats." Sephiroth smirked.
"You're the first person I'm calling. With you there Tseng won't be able to step in." The blond watched the smirk turn into a smile.
And upon impulse he leaned up for a kiss. Their touch made them both tingle. Sephiroth was too surprised to respond. The blond misinterpreted it and pulled away.
"I - I'm sorry. I don't know what's come over me." Cloud blushed.
"Cloud. I'm not mad. I rather liked it." Sephiroth assured, and those blue eyes glanced up with hope.
Encouraged by his words Cloud leaned in for another kiss. After they felt comfortable the kiss deepened with growing passion. Cloud knew he was playing a dangerous game as he climbed onto Sephiroth's lap.
Their intense make out session was interrupted with Cloud's phone going off.