Sephiroth felt the blond beneath him stiffen at the words.

"Cloud…?"

The blond let out a sharp outtake of a breath, then in, before answering "Yes-?" His voice was raw. As if he was afraid to even let it out.

It sent a bad feeling into the pit of sephiroth's stomach. Was Cloud nervous?

"You… You were with me back then." He said as he sat down at the edge of the bed leaning his elbows on his knees.

"...'M sorry." Came a broken reply.

Sephiroth furrowed his brows further. Was it perhaps a mistake to bring up the blond's much dreaded past? It probably brought him nothing but misery thinking about it. Sephiroth couldn't fault the blond in that, given that it pretty much brought out the same feeling in him.

But between the bitterness and hate of his past, he knew there was something else hidden there, something warm that gave him comfort in the worst of times. And he wanted to know that someone shared the memories with him, to know that they weren't just something a child would imagine in desperation. somehow knowing that someone shared his childhood memories made everything seem so much real, made him seem real. Like a real person who was once a child that could cry when sad and laugh when happy.

It all seems so far away now. So fictitious.

Sephiroth turned to him, the little light from the half-open bedroom door illuminating his frown and knitted brows.

"Why?"

The blond tilted his head in question.

"Why are you apologizing."

"I… I'm- uh."

"You shouldn't apologize." Sephiroth tried to channel Angeal's gentle demeanor, but somehow must have landed far off, seeing as the blond quickly turned his head down towards the duvet, focusing on his hands in his lap.

Sephiroth could see a slight tremble in his hands as he picked at the fabric. The general suppressed a sigh. He wasn't particularly good at reading a person's emotions, not like Angeal and Genesis was. But he knew very well when he made a person nervous, he'd been faced with the uneasy flinching eyes and jittery demeanor enough times to be able to pick it up from the slightest shudder of a person, no matter how good they are at concealing it.

Cloud was scared of him.

This time Sephiroth couldn't suppress a sigh. He thought he had made progress in his relationship with Dr. Strife. Finding the blond flinching at his every movement again… disappointed him.

He'd just have to do better to assure the blond.

"For… for the longest time, the most prominent memory I had of my childhood was a blank room with a bed in the corner. Still, somehow, it was always a happy memory." He huffed in reminiscence, his lips giving a small twitch of a smile. "At the time, I didn't know why it'd be a happy memory, seeing as it was one of many times I remember sitting in that room staring at a wall. I think what made the memory stand out… was you." He heard the sharp intake of breath come from the blond beside him. Afraid to see the expression on Cloud's face, he kept his head turned towards the floor in front of him.

"I remember on the way back from… examination-" He saw the blond flinch in his peripheral view, "You were holding my hand as we were walking," He opened his unclenched his fist and looked down at his palm, as if he still could feel the warmth of the memory. "I asked you something, I think it was about Dragons, then you started telling this story about a gentle dragon that helped a lost little boy find his way home. I remember thinking the story totally contradicted everything I've read about them. I think I knew the story was fiction, but somehow it made me like it even more. Because everything I read back then was always bleak and logical. I believe that was why the story captivated me to such an extent."

"I remember that…"

Sephiroth turned to the blond and for the first time ever, he saw traces of real joy line the other's face.

"I didn't think you liked the story," Blue eyes met his, and Sephiroth found himself holding his breath. "You were always trying to disprove the it, finding holes in the plot, questioning every action of the boy and the dragon." Cloud paused to search his face. "You were always such a curious child…"

Somehow, having someone else validate his most vulnerable memories made his throat tighten. He gulped down the feeling a few times before he could force himself to breath again.

The blond gave him a delicate smile and Sephiroth met it in turn.

They sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes before Cloud's face scrunched, his eyes skitting back and forth deep thought.

"Wait, what about-?" Once again the blond searched his face, this time with a hint of panic behind his eyes.

"About?"

The older man's breaths came in quick and short huffs. Sephiroth raised his hand and gently put it on a tense shoulder. The blond flinched at the touch, then he seemed to carefully compose himself before softly leaning into it.

"We- we were walking back… the same route. I was holding your hand and-" His focus was once again stolen away by distant memories. The expression on his face evened out from panic to… nothing.

Somehow that dismayed Sephiroth much more than the panic did.

"Y- you asked me about the color of the sky…" His eyes grew more distant, and his voice hoarser. "You wanted to see it. The sky."

Sephiroth's eyes widened in remembrance. Flashes of familiar hallways blurring together. An earthly smell engulfed him. He couldn't place it at the time, but it was the scent of a forest after the rain.

He remembers feeling someone's warm embrace, the panthing gasps of air by his ear, his hair shifting with the wind. They were going so fast, his eyes could barely follow, through one white nondescript hallway and into another. He remembers feeling hope blooming in his heart. Like a plant finally sprouting in spring after a long and cold winter.

They were moving so fast. But not fast enough.

Before he could think twice about the new feeling in his chest, he was placed back into that bleak room, white dull walls always closing in on him.

Dr. Strife had said he'd show him what was beyond those walls. Like Sephiroth had wished for in the quiet of his room, where there was no chance of reprimadals if someone inexplicably read his thoughts on his face.

He remembers looking back at the small man held down, hands behind his back and neck straining to look up at him, and finding a forced smile of reassurance. The normally soothing smile did nothing to ease the ache of his heart.

Sephiroth stood up from on shaky feet, and tried to blink away the awful memory. His breath shuddered as he struggled to get the sinking gut feeling under wrap.

"...You didn't remember." The blond let out in a small sigh, blue eyes seeing right through him. "I thought you did… to some extent anyway."

Sephiroth turned to face the blond still sitting on the bed. His hands carefully placed in his lap. His breath shallow and his eyes lost in space, his whole demeanor looking downtrodden. Like he was when he first arrived. Too afraid to make any sudden motions. Sitting still for hours on end and if necessary only making unnaturally smooth movements, that could be mistaken for grace to the untrained eye. Sephiroth knew better. He shouldn't have dug up in the past like that if the blond was going to revert back like this. Screw the shared memories.

He slowly noticed the familiar feeling of guilt creep into his chest.

Sephiroth tried to meet Cloud's unfocused eyes, but soon gave up once he realised the futility of it. "Why? Why did you think I did?"

"When you got taken from me… I- I didn't…" the blond took a second to gather himself as much as he could. "Hojo," He almost hissed, "he is a lot of things, but when he makes a threat, he keeps it… I know that first hand, I just- I'd hoped you hadn't."

The blond gulped, his jaw muscles moving at the action.

Sephiroth's mind was racing, trying to inspect the meaning of the blond's words, going back and forth between possibilities, before finally falling on a possible theory with dreaded apprehension.

The only light source in the room was coming from the light from the hallway, and a small speck of moonlight from behind the half closed curtains. Most of Cloud's face is encompassed in shadow, yet his eyes gave off the distinct glow of a SOLDIER's eyes, which made Sephiroth's eyes unintentionally fall to the scars littered all over his bare arms. Some as long as his forearm, others only an inch or so long, but Sephiroth knew that Hojo could make even the smallest incision emanate unbearable pain.

"That day… in the slums, you thought I gave you to Hojo on purpose...?"

The blond didn't answer, which only solidified the theory, and in turn made Sephiroth's blood freeze in his veins.

Cloud thought his actions were a sort of revenge? That they were meticulous? For something that happened twenty years ago, that Sephiroth barely even remembered? He thought Sephiroth wanted him to suffer, to atone, for something Sephiroth blamed no one but the man actually responsible.

"Cloud…?"

"Cloud."

"..."

"Dr. Strife."

Blue eyes finale stirred in recognition, and Sephiroth found his heart simultaneously break and burn for revenge as he saw his eyes filled with guilt and witnessed how much the fact broke Cloud.

"...I deserve worse."

Sephiroth once again had to stop the sharp intake of breath. Had to stop himself from summoning Masamune, finding the quickest route to wherever Hojo is and planting the sword in the middle of the bastard's chest.

Sephiroth closed himself up. Reigned in all emotions so his rage wouldn't show. He was good at that at least.

"I never blamed you for any of that…"

"..."

"Cloud. I don't." He sighed and sat himself down on the edge of the bed again. "I didn't know at the time- I didn't remember you. Although I felt there was something familiar about you. But had I known, I'd never have handed you over."

Cloud finally met his eyes head on. Through the little visible light, Sephiroth could see that color was returning to the blond's pale face.

"...I don't know what to do to make you believe me."

The room once more fell into silence.

Sephiroth felt compelled to break it before the blond withdrew back inside his head.

"I'm sorry."

Cloud's eyes sharpened at the words.

"You don-"

"I do. Even if I didn't remember you, handing you back to Hojo like that is… inexcusable."

"I deserv-"

"Please don't say that. Your worth is immeasurable... to me- and Angeal and Genesis as well, even Zack. You're our friend."

The blond deflated as his eyes softened at the corners, "Friend?"

"Yes." Sephiroth finally let the tension seep from his shoulders.

"I see…"

Cloud turned his head towards the window. The curtains were pulled close, but a sliver of light was seeping through on the side. That seemed to pull at the blonds attention.

Sephiroth stood up and walked up to the window. He pulled each curtain back, slowly, in case of Cloud's protest, before stepping back and turning towards the bed again.

"There's no stars?"

Sephiroth glanced up at the other man, then towards the night sky. "There's stars. The city's light pollution's just to tick for them to be visible."

He stilled as he watched the blond man pull aside the duvet and slowly walk up to Sephiroth. He stood, looking out the window, his eyes searching the night sky. "There's one." He pointed at the glass window. Sephiroth's eyes followed the direction. He could almost see a slight shimmer through the thick clouds that constantly layed over the city. He hummed. "I believe that's Sirius A, did you know it's called the Dog star?" He turned towards Sephiroth, blue eyes reflecting the city below, making the lights dance in the navy color. He tilted his head at the blond, indicating him to continue. "Well, it's part of a big constellation called the Canis Major, which would translate to the Greater Dog. And that would make Orion's placement around here." Cloud's finger moved to the right, and stopped at the blank wall beside them.

Sephiroth's eyes shifted from the wall to the energic blond. "Would you like to go to the rooftop?"

Cloud turned to him, a question in his eyes and lips.

"I doubt we'll be able to see any more stars, but you could tell me where they'd be. You seem to know quite a lot about that."

"...Okay."

Sephiroth lent him a jacket, although the weather had been quite nice lately, there would undoubtedly still be strong winds blowing in from north at the top of the building. They took the stairs, both because Sephiroth was sure there were still a few stragglers moving around the building, with the stairs it'd be less of a chance or running into any of them. Plus the motion's probably good for the blond's body, and Sephiroth doubted he'd have been given the courtesy previously.

They arrived at the roof and were immediately hit in the face with a cold breeze. Cloud packed the jacket around him. With his arms crossed, he walked to the edge of the roof with Sephiroth in step.

Going out was the right choice.

The other's blue eyes were eagerly searching the city below him. Sephiroth's gotta admit, midgar at night was nothing to scoff at, the whole expanse littered with flashing lights of different colors. They could hear the life of the city even from up here. The cars driving, billboards booming. The overall commotion of the city blurred together into an almost calming white noise.

"Right there would be the Big Dipper." Cloud's finger traced up from the only just star visible in the night sky, to over their heads. "That's my favorite," He said with a fond smile. "It was the first one my mother taught me, so it remin-" The blond froze, his finger dropped.

Sephiroth's eyes widened, brows twitching with the movement.

"Reminds me of her…" He finished, looking up at the muddled sky in wonder.

Sephiroth's breath shuttered to a halt. Time around them seemed to stop. even the noise of the city faded away, the world came to an abrupt standstill, til it was just the two of them standing on a lone rooftop.

He winced as he saw a slight quiver run through the blond's body. Just as he was about to place his hand on the other man's shoulder in an amateurish try at confort, he paused when he heard a small giggle coming from him.

"I remember her… " Cloud laughed, the small puffs of air visible in the cold night.

Cloud turned to him. His eyes searching for Sephiroth's. "She's… is she-?" He quickly grasped what the other man was asking.

"She's well."

The man's lips stretched into a wide smile. His brows climbed up to his hair as he laughed in pure happiness.

Before he knew what was happening, Sephiroth was wrapped in a warm embrace. He involuntarily let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and looked down in question at the blond that had his arms wrapped around his chest. Sephiroth's own arms were hovering tensely over the other man's smaller shoulders, before he loosely but gently wrapped them around Cloud.

"I'm sorry for getting angry earlier. Thank you for protecting her," Cloud looked up at him, his arms still around him, emmetating a warmth so strong Sephirth was sure it's almost scalding him even though his shirt. "And me." Kind eyes and a kinder smile were directed up at him, and somehow he felt like he reverted back to a kid again, gravitating towards the only light in his life, wanting to constantly feel the warmth of it.

The feeling was only accentuated when Cloud reached up and placed his hand on his head and patted him as he gave him a fond look.

"You've grown into a very fine young man."

Sephiroth is unsure of what kind of face he was making, but it must have been an amusing look he gave Cloud, because it caused the other man to expel a soft laugh.

Another cold breeze hit them head-on, which caused Cloud to shift back, and shrink inn on himself with his arms crossed.

"Shall we head in?" Sephiroth was sure he couldn't trust his own voice to be steady, so he spoke in a calm whisper instead.

Cloud nodded and they went back in. The way down seemed a lot shorter.

Sephiroth's eyes swept across the blonds back as they walked down the steps at a steady pace. Cloud seemed to be growing healthier and healthier with each passing day. He'd have to think up a plan on how to get rid of potential threats pretty soon. He wants Cloud to have as much freedom as possible, and that isn't possible with someone like Hojo hovering over the other man's shoulders. Angeal and Genesis would probably want to be in on it before he made any moves. He might even have to send Cloud away if things came to that. He couldn't have the blond staying in a building filled to the brim with potential enemies. He can't send him away alone though and the only other person that knows of him is Angeal's student, Zack... He'll just have to do.

"Sephiroth?"

He was standing in the fourier, Cloud was looking at him quizzically while taking of his shoes and jacket.

"Hn, it's nothing."

They headed further into the apartment. It was still dark out so Cloud could manage a few more hours of sleep before the sun started to rise. The blond man stopped at the door of the bedroom, once more looking at Sephiroth with a question in his eyes.

"I'll sleep out here." He nodded towards the couch. Which made Cloud's eyebrows furrow further.

"That can't be good for you…" He muttered, almost to himself.

"It's-"

Once again Cloud managed to surprise him. The smaller man briskly walked up to him and grabbed his hand, dragging him with him into the bedroom. He'd never gotten used to bodily contact, even after years of being Genesis' friend, but he figured, since it's Cloud, he at least can try to get accustomed to it.

"Nonsense. The bed is big enough for two, it shouldn't be an issue."

Sephiroth stood still watching the blond get ready for bed, not sure if he should too, or if he should go out into the living room and start getting a plan of action read like he had intended to. Cloud saw him hesitating and narrowed his eyes at him.

"If you're not sleeping neither am I." He said with a slight huff.

Sephiroth's not sure how that would benefit either of them, nor why the threat is as effective as it is.

He stepped over to the opposite side of the bed, he'd already been wearing his sleeping clothes before they went out on their midnight excursion, so he laid down in the bed at once, before stiffly turning his head to Cloud side once he felt a dip in the mattress. The other man gently placed the duvet over them both before laying down on his side.

Cloud must have been exhausted, because after giving Sephiroth a small smile he promptly fell asleep, his breathing evening out and eyes shifting back and forth under his eyelids.

Sephiroth didn't fall asleep that night, but mostly from lack of trying. After the cluster fuck of the day before he culdn't risk being indisposed in case any more Turks came knocking.

He stood up from the bed at the first sign of light from the horizon. Carefully, so as to not wake Cloud, he made his way to the bathroom to freshen up. When he got out again Cloud was already up and about.

"Are you going out today?"

"No, I'll work from here."

A funny expression crossed the blond's face, but before Sephiroth could get to deciphering it, it was gone.

They sat down on the kitchen table, each with a serving of some scrambled eggs, the only thing Sephiroth was currently able to make. Cloud didn't seem to mind it much.

Last night's event lifted a weight off both of their shoulders. Sephiroth didn't feel like he had to tip-toe around the blond anymore, and Cloud seemed to have more room to grow into himself.

The blond was currently eating his food with vigor, taking breaks for a sip of tea in between each bite.

The morning went about lazely. They didn't speak much, but that was mostly because of lack of need to. Sephiroth wasn't much of a talker to begin with. Cloud, now, didn't seem to be either, in fact he appeared to appreciate his space. He even turned the chair in the livingroom to face the window and started reading one of the many books Sephiroth had laying around.

Sephiroth smiled at the sight.

They had been sitting in silence for a few hours before he felt the couch dip next to him.

"Working for Shinra's quiet hard, isn't it?" Sephiroth turned to look at the blond. He could feel his golden strands tickling his cheek. "I hope they're at least treating you well."

"You knew?"

Cloud shrugged "I figured."

Sephiroth struggled to find an excuse, or an adequate enough explanation. "...I'm not-" What? A part of Shinra? Like them? He couldn't let the words out, because at the end of the day, no matter what kind of feelings he held for the company, he was as big a part of it as Hojo is. The thought made Sephiroth sick.

"You don't have to explain yourself to me. As long as you're happy with your life, then I'm happy for you as well."

With that Cloud stepped away and returned to his previous activity.

Sephiroth's attention returned to his work, and blankly stayed there.

They slept in the same bed that night as well. Cloud's eyes were closed, but sleep didn't seem to come as easily this time. His breathing uneven, as he uncomfortably shifted back and forth under the duvet.

"You grew your hair quite long. It looks good on you." Sephiroth turned to see Cloud laying on his back, eyes staring blankly at the ceiling of the dark room. "I'm glad you have good friends like Angeal, Genesis and Zack. I can see that they care a great deal for you."

"Cloud…?"

"Could you tell me about yourself?" He asked softly. "I always wondered what kind of person you would grow up to be. I knew gentleness would be a big part of your personality, it always has been, but what about the rest? Do you have any hobbies? Any food you like or don't like?" Cloud huffed out a laugh, "I remember you had a particular distaste for scallions, couldn't stand the stuff, but you'd always force yourself to eat everything on the plate."

"I hate scallions." Sephiroth drabbed. His monotone voice stirred another laugh from the blond.

Sephiroth was starting to love the sound of it.

They stayed like that for a big part of the night. Sephiroth, talking about his life up till now, telling Cloud everything from disputes between him and the other Firsts, to his first time getting drunk. He doesn't think he's ever spoken that much in one sitting before. But Cloud always stirred him on, always indicating Sephiroth to go on with a smile or slight nod, humming and laughing in turn. The blond didn't say much himself, he just attentively listened, as if afraid he'd miss anything Sephiroth said.

He doesn't know if he likes talking about himself to Cloud. He'd never liked to divulging personal information to anyone before, not even Angeal and Genesis, but the fact that the question still was up for consideration, meant that Cloud was different.

Cloud fell asleep halfway through the night. And, somehow, Sephiroth fell asleep not too long after.

And immediately regretted it when he felt the space next to him empty and cold,

"Cloud?"

Sephiroth walked out of the bedroom, hoping to find the blond in his regular spot by the window.

When he couldn't find him in the living room he swiftly turned to the kitchen.

"Cloud?" He called out again.

No reply came.

Sephiroth was panicking. Did Hojo know about Cloud? How did he get into the apartment without him noticing?

Had Cloud shouted for him as he was taken away?

He shouldn't have fallen asleep. He should have stood guard like he'd done every night previously. Why? Why did they come the one night he'd let his guard down?

Was the apartment bugged after all? Maybe he'd missed something when he had searched for any surveillance.

Sephiroth went to get his PHS. The plan was set in motion much earlier than intended, but there's nothing to be done with that now. No way he'd leave Cloud in that monster's clutches for longer than necessary.

He needed to get Cloud back as soon as possible. Before Hojo did something irreversibly to the blond-

"DAMMIT!"

He slammed his fist into the wall, making the plaster under his fist crumble.

He got dressed as quickly as possible making his way out and down the corridor. His right hand working on his PHS, and his left ready to summon Masamune. He knew the lines were closely monitored, but that didn't matter much anymore.

Hojo had multiple potential labs around Midgar, and even Gaia, but he only had one in this building.

He made his way to the elevator with quick strides, dread creeping up his back with each step. He had promised Cloud to protect him, to keep him safe. It was his choice to keep Cloud in the Shinra building. What a stupid oversight on his part.

If Hojo had touched even a hair on the blond man's head. He'd make sure to pay the man in kind for all the years of torture all at once, keeping him alive through it all. He'd rip the other man limb from limb.

He barely noticed as other employees and SOLDIERs alike jumped out of his way as he marched down the corridor.

"Sephiroth?"

The gentle rasp made him abruptly halt. He sharply turned to the source and found blue eyes staring questiongly at him.

"Where are you going?" Cloud asked with a tilt of his head. Beside him, Zack copied the move.

"...Where…?" Sephiroth looked up and down the smaller man, looking for any injuries. When he didn't find any his eyes travelled to the blond's face. His hair had been put in a high ponytail. The only hair loose was his fringe.

"Sephiroth, did you not see my note?"

"Note…" Sephiroth had been in a frantic state to notice much of anything. Now that he thinks about it, the normally clean coffee table did have some sort of clutter on it didn't it?

"Oh man, I knew he wasn't gonna see the note." Zack sighed and ran his fingers through his spikes. Before suddenly pausing and giving Sephiroth wide eyes. "Holy shit, were you just about to go on a killing spree? You totally were, weren't you!"

Sephiroth ignored the man and instead directed his focus back to Cloud. "You went outside?"

"Well, Zack showed up for a visit, and you were sleeping so peacefully, I didn't want to wake you…" His hand went up to rub the back of his head, a nervous shift. "So I suggested we head out instead."

"Hey, it went fine! Very few saw us, and those who did didn't ask any questions." Zack stepped in front of the blond, as if to shield him from Sephiroth. Which was a ridiculous notion, He would never hurt Cloud.

"I see…"

"Sephiroth…?" Cloud stepped around Zack. "Should I not have? Shall we head back in?"

Sephiroth wanted to say 'Yes', wanted to tell them that it was irresponsible leaving his sight like that. Even with Zack at his side, what chance did he have at protecting Cloud when even Sephirothe himself wasn't able to?

Instead he kept his mouth shut. He doesn't know if it's because of the heart-to-heart they had yesterday, or his little outing today, but color has returned to the blond's face. The other man seemed much more expressive. Glancing up at him like that, with raised brows and a kind smile, there's no way Sephiroth can deny him something this small.

"No… no, it's alright." Tension seeped from the two men's shoulders at his words.

"Great, let's get back to it then!" Zack nudged the smaller blond, which in turn gave an exasperated smile back.

"He was showing me around the floor when we came across a ping pong table."

"You're playing ping pong." The amusement in his voice was adamant.

"Correction, he's killing it at ping pong! He's ahead by two points." Zack grinned, and turned to walk back to the table in the corner of the common room of the floor.

"I'm pretty sure he's been letting me win." Cloud mock-whispers to him with a chuckle.

"Hey! That's a terrible whisper voice! And you should know I haven't gone easy on you since the first round, the rest is all you buddy!" He pouted as he walked backwards, his focus split between walking a straight line and huffing indignantly at Cloud. "So I'll thank you not to laugh at my ping pong skills."

"My sincerest apologies." Cloud bantered back.

"That doesn't sound sincere." The other muttered with a twitch of a brow.

Sephiroth stayed and watched the couple's back and forth. Cloud seemed in a much better place than before. Not only physiologically, but even his scars didn't seem to bother him as much as they previously had. Overall he looked much happier than he had been these last few days. If going out and seeing a new scenery had that much of an impact on his health then it'd have to become a daily occurence.

"Should we take a break? I'm starting to get hungry." The raven haired said whilst rubbing his stomach. "You haven't eaten today, right Cloud?"

Sephiroth stood up from his perch. " I can head down to the cafeteria and get us breakfast."

"What? Not cafeteria food, it's so tasteless!" He whined loudly. "We should totally order in!"

Sephiroth didn't have a preference either way, so he turned to Cloud to let him decide.

"I vote cafeteria. I wanna know what you've been complaining about this whole time." He said, giving Zack a cheeky smile.

Rather than sad Zack seemed happy. Putting a hand on his heart, he couldn't stop the smile pulling at his lips. "Ouch, Cloudy! You know I'd never lie about food."

Sephiroth almost twitched at the nickname. Cloud did.

"I'll be back in a few minutes." He said and headed towards the elevator.

"We'll wait for you back home." Cloud called at his back.

The whole way down Sephiroth could feel warmth at the blond man's words.

They finished eating, and unlike previous times there was no silence to be had.

Cloud didn't seem to mind the raven haird's constant chatter. Often even egging him on. And Zack eager to please never ceased to speak..

"So what do you say? You think my complaints were warranted?" Zack gave a knowing smirk to the blond sitting across from him.

"I think, maybe, you've gotten used to the finer things like dining out and whatnot. This isn't that bad."

"That…!" Zack paused his words "-might actually be it, now that I think about it."

Cloud laughed.

"Holy shit! I never actually hated the cafeteria food before I became a SOLDIER with higher pay and a more delicate palate."

"You're ridiculous." The smaller man chuckled.

As they were cleaning away the table, Cloud caught himself in the reflection of a glass.
His fingers running through his long strands of hair. "I think I wanna cut my hair." He said while twirling the edge.

Sephiroth turned from washing up. "Why?"

"No particular reason. Just felt like it's time."

Zack chose that moment to pop his head into the kitchen. "He got mistaken for my girlfriend twice."

Sephiroth's brows twitched upwards, before turning back to Cloud.

"I got mistaken for his girlfriend twice." He said, as if resigned to the fact.

"I can cut your hair!" Said Zack as he fully stepped into the room.

"Do you… have experience?"

"I've been cutting my own hair since I was twelve."

Cloud shrugged, clearly much more unperturbed by the idea than Sephirpth was.

"Okay."

"Yes!" He said, enthusiastically throwing his arms up in victory. "Do you have any scissors?" He asked him.

Sephiroth supposed there's nothing he could really do about Cloud's choice, no matter how questionable. He's mostly just glad Cloud was able to voice his preferences at all.

He located the scissors and Zack pulled a chair into the bathroom creating a makeshift hair salon.

"Ok, how short do you want it?"

"As short as possible." Cloud replied with a smile, looking up at Zack through the mirror.

"W- you wanna go for a bald look?" The raven haired choked out while casting the blond an incredulous look.

Cloud only shrugged again. "Surprise me."

"Alright dude, your choice." He huffed and got to work on the blond's hair.

Cloud ended up with a standard military cut. Short on the back and longer in the front. It suited the blond quiet well, and Sephiroth made sure to voice that opinion.

The scars were what brought an edge to the previously relaxing atmosphere. Sephiroth tried to contain himself, but a narrowing of the eyes managed to slip through his demeanor. Zack, on the other hand, did a worse job. Once the blond strands were out of the way, more and more scars were made visible. The most prominent one starting at his temple and going up into the hairline. Zack's hands stilled at the sight, but unlike Sephiroth he managed to keep his emotions showing on his face, still having the default smile plastered on in a kind of desperate way.

His hand holding the scissors gave off a slight tremor before he got that under control by clenching them hard til his knuckles turned white.

Either Cloud didn't notice the scars or simply didn't care, he stood up and ran his hand through the, now, short strands with a pleased smile.

"I like it."

Somehow, the tense mood from before slipped away as easy as that.

The days passed with relative laziness, Zack coming and going from missions, Sephiroth refusing every mission coming his way, or assigning it to someone else.

He worked mainly from home, and when he absolutely had to leave he made sure Zack was with the blond. Cloud basically got no down time of his own, but Sephiroth made sure he got out of the apartment at least once a day. Which quelled the blond to some extent.

Genesis was the first to get back.

When he saw Cloud, he did a double take, raised his brows, and gave his trademark smirk and said. "Looks good on you, spiky."

Which expelled a slight huff of a laugh from Cloud, which then in turn made Genesis' smirk grow bigger.

Sephiroth had divulged the past few day's events to Genesis. They came to the agreement that they'd need to act as soon as possible. Especially with two Turk encounters hanging over their heads. They needed to put a plan into motion before the Turks did. But they had to wait for Angeal's return, which would be any day now.

That day Sephiroth wakes up from an abnormally peaceful sleep. He glanced to the side and noted that the blond had once again disappeared from his spot beside him, which hadn't grown to be that unusual lately. Normally Zack or Genesis would have an arrangement with the blond, they'd take him out and show him around the building, never actually leaving it, and never straying too far from his floor. Sephiroth trusted them to know how to act.

"Cloud?" He called out just in case it was one of those mornings the blond had been sitting in the living room or kitchen, waiting for him to wake up.

There came no answer, so Sephiroth stood up and walked out of the bedroom. Sure enough, there was a note laying innocently on the coffee table.

'Went out with Zack, back in a few.'

It was unmistakably Cloud's writing, so Sephiroth pushed his uneasiness to the back of his mind.

He might as well get started on a plan with Genesis to have something to run past Angeal for when he came back.

He sent Genesis a quick message asking him to meet in his office.

After quickly getting dressed and freshening up, he made his way up to his office, unlocked it and sat himself behind the big oak desk. The first thing they needed to do was locate all potential threats to the blond. Starting with Hojo. they needed a list of labs he frequented, Sephiroth knew the slimy bastard never stayed at one place too long, so he had to be one step ahead of him in predicting where he'd be and most importantly who he'd be with. If it was someone with access to the higher ups, he needed to dispose of them cleanly, of course there wasn't going to be any witnesses left to testify, but better safe than sorry.

He was shaken out of his thoughts when he heard a sharp, and impatient knock on the door. That'd be Genesis.

"Come in."

"Hey, I sent a message to Angeal to head back as soon as possible and-" He stopped himself, and looked around the office. "Where's Cloud?"

"He's with Zack."

Genesis' brows knitted at his answer. "No, he's not. I just met the puppy outside. He's been getting ready to head out with some friends."

Sephiroth's blood ran cold. Genesis quickly noticed his demeanor and took out his PHS.

"...Maybe they met up after." He muttered, clearly barely believing his own words.

Something had happened to Cloud. This time for real.

Sephiroth thought back to the note on the table as he paced back and forth in front of the desk. It wasn't hastily scribbled. And it was undoubtedly Cloud's hand writing.

Had someone managed to copy his penmanship in such a short span of time? Had they truly been that closely monitored without anyone noticing?

"They're not together." Genesis said sternly. "Zack's heading back now."

Sehiroth couldn't stop himself from clenching his hands around the edge of the desk, making it moan in distress and slightly splinter.

Once again Cloud had been taken from him from right under his nose.