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A/N

Yay! Can you believe it? Three updates in a matter of three days! Now if only SOMEONE could make it four…..but that's not up to me. It's up to you :) SO beg her.

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CHAPTER 8

"All in all, I feel things went rather well, don't you?"

Sephiroth sat calmly at this desk, watching his second in command as he draped himself half on his desk, half on the other chair. He was actually lying more fully on Sephiroth's desk, with his lower half tilting off, and his feet propped up in the chair.

"Yup!" Zack answered cheerfully as he draped one of his arms across his face to cover his eyes. He was undeniably pleased with himself. During their mission, he had successfully gotten back on Seph's good side, and now that Seph was happy with him again, all was right in the world for Zack.

Of course, good things never last forever.

"Did you complete those forms?"

"Huh?" Zack took a moment to figure out what his superior was talking about, depressed that they were already talking business when they had only just returned.

"The Leave Request forms that I gave you before we left."

Zack rolled his eyes and glared at Sephiroth from around his arm.

"You mean the ones you pawned off on me? Yea…they're on my desk. Somewhere."

Zack's mock-glare turned to pathetic desperation.

"Can we just go over them later? I just laid down!" Let no one ever say that whining was below a First Class.

Sephiroth took in Zack's awkward 'laying' posture once more before deciding to do the younger man a rare favor. He had been so well-behaved on the mission after all, perhaps he deserved to relax a little longer.

"I will go get them. They have to be turned in today."

As Sephiroth stood and advanced to the door, Zack lifted his head with a ridiculous amount of effort and smiled after his favorite general.

"You're a good man, Seph. Don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise."

With that said, Zack flopped his head back onto the hard wood of the desk. He couldn't see the other man, but he knew that he was shaking his head at him. By now, Seph was probably over half way to Zack's office, as it was only two doors down. The only thing truly separating the two was an unused janitors' closet, one that Zack generally used for hoarding snacks and other necessities.

It was in that moment that something in Zack's mind clicked, and one thing became very clear.

He was probably about to die.

In all of the excitement of the mission, and his relationship with Seph out of danger, he had totally forgotten about Reno. More specifically, the booby-trap he'd rigged over his own office door. The door that Seph would be approaching any second now.

Frozen in place, Zack realized that there was nothing that he could do. He couldn't yell for Sephiroth to stop, no. Then Seph would be angry at him again that the 'petty feud' was still going on. But he couldn't just let…

As he heard the lock click open and door handle twist with much more clarity than he ought to have, he could only picture that now three day old pitcher of syrup.

His heart was in his throat as he heard the unmistakable thick slosh of the liquid death dumping out.

'Maybe he noticed, maybe he didn't walk in to the doorway…Maybe…"

Exhaustion forgotten, Zack pulled himself up and peeked his head out of the door way. He couldn't quite see Sephiroth, as he had been fully in the doorway when the disaster struck, and there was only one other person in the hall.

Rufus Shinra stood staring, clutching his thermos of coffee and stammering nervously. He didn't know what was going on, but he did know that he did not want to be there.

As Zack passed him in the hall, he gave him an encouraging look and patted his head before steeling himself and turning to look in his own doorway.

Sephiroth stood frozen, remaining perfectly still as he dripped in the messy doorway. He was completely covered in the muck, and his beautiful, silver hair was no longer beautiful or silver. Seeing this made Zack die on the inside, and more than just a little.

It was going to take a miracle to get all of that out.

But there was no time to waste on that now. He had to concentrate on getting Seph out of a public hallway and back into his familiar, private office before he realized what was going on and started slaying.

Hesitating for only a second, Zack placed his hands on the taller man's stiffened shoulders before beginning the process of guiding him back to where they came from.

Reaching the sanctuary of Seph's office, Zack made sure to quickly close the door, tossing one last meaningful glance to Rufus(should he be the last one to ever see Zack alive) and pushed the door shut.

Before Zack could fully turn around he found himself smacking face first into a wall, attempting to gather his bearings as he slid limply down it.

He was about to stand when a sticky hand wrapped itself around his throat, hoisting him easily and violently into the air.

Zack tugged at the hand as he tried not to be intimidated by the enraged, mako-green eyes he was currently staring helplessly down into.

"I am going. To. Kill you." The words came out in a deadly snarl, and Zack knew he had to think quickly. It was speak now or forever rest in peace, and naturally, passing the blame was the first thing to come to mind.

"Re..Reno did it!" he croaked out, watching as the rage in Seph's eyes turned in to a cold, dead, blank stare.

As he wondered briefly which expression meant something worse, he felt himself be placed gently down onto the floor. Sephiroth seemed to stare through him as he began to mechanically brush the younger man off.

Finishing his jerky movements of 'cleaning' Zack, Seph rounded and stiffly took a seat at his desk, staring blankly ahead before leaning forward and smacking his forehead onto his desk, showing no signs of picking it back up.

As Zack watched Seph's matted hair slowly creep and ruin countless documents, he could feel the guilt eating away at him. No one could see The General like this! But they couldn't exactly wait until everyone went home to get Seph out of here, either. They had to get him to a shower before that syrup dried. Once it hardened, there would be no way to get the stuff out, leaving a hair cut as the only option. And in all the years that Zack had known Sephiroth, he knew that his hair was the one thing that he had ever been given any control over.

So if it had to be cut because of his stupid mistake, then he….well. He didn't know what he' do.

"Seph?" Zack asked softly. He cringed as Sephiroth raised his head and reached up to remove the sheet of paper that had stuck to his face. The older man glanced at the soiled document in his hand with an almost forlorn expression, as though he knew things like this just didn't happen to him, before dropping it. Zack tried not to let his friend's demeanor break his heart.

"I'm gonna go get Tseng, and we're gonna get you home, and get this cleaned up. Okay Buddy?"

As his determined strides reached the door, Zack withheld a flinch as Seph's head smacked back against the desk with a dull thud.

(((((((Guilt Trip)))))))

As Tseng and Seph waited around the corner of the hall, Zack approached the front of the crowded room on a mission. He was to distract the entire room, and while everyone was looking at him, Tseng would drag Sephiroth over to the elevator. Once there, they would be home free.

Reaching the front, Zack stood up on one of the tables. He didn't know quite what he was going to say yet, but he had never had any trouble BS'ing it before.

"HEY!" He bellowed, the room quieting down and looking to the man first in annoyance, but then friendly interest upon realizing who it was.

"I JUST WANTED TO LET EVERYONE KNO-"

About this time, Tseng had begun the movement across the way. The two would-be stealthy men were stopped as a loud squeal filled the air, made louder by the already silent room.

"TSENG!" Elena had shrieked upon seeing her beloved boss, embarrassed that it had come out much louder than she intended.

Of course, she didn't have to worry as the room got impossibly silent-er, every ones' eyes falling on the Head Turk, whose arm was hooked with that of a syrup covered General.

'Shit.' Was the only thought Zack seemed capable of managing at that moment. This was not supposed to happen.

Staring back at the wide-eyed crowd, both Sephiroth and Tseng stood momentarily still before snapping into Commander-Mode, barking out orders and instructions to their respective groups of subordinates. Before long the only remaining occupants were Zack, Tseng, and Seph, as well as a very confused looking Reno, who had been in the room when this all started and considered it his divine right to remain and find out what was going on.

Had Reno any idea that he was to be blamed for this, he may have very well made a run for it when everyone else was clearing out.

Upon seeing the redhead, Sephiroth only gave a furious scowl before stalking off, opting to leave punishment for Tseng for now, and get his own revenge when his hair was safe and clean.

As Tseng approached the bewildered Turk, Zack felt the guilt bite him for the second time that day.

"You little bastard" Tseng growled out and Reno snapped his head up in surprise. Surely he wasn't blaming this on him…

"Do you think this is funny?" The dark-haired Turk asked in the tone of voice than Reno knew better than to mess with.

"Um, no." he answered, slightly angered that he was taking the blame for this, as well as mildly upset someone would do such a thing to Sephiroth. Reno watched Tseng glare at him, and saw Zack bearing a sickly look before the SOLDIER excused himself quietly to go help Seph.

"Why would I?" he added in a serious manner.

Upon hearing Reno's tone, Tseng remembered something.

Thinking back, he recalled the ridiculous obsession that Reno and Zack shared for one another's bosses. Zack almost had a heart attack when he, himself, had helped him in the lunch room yesterday, and Reno could be caught staring at Sephiroth more often than not. It was a mystery that Tseng and Seph had talked about, but been unable to solve.

Tseng had tried asking Reno about it one time, but the only answer he had received was

"He's just so goddamn cool"

Not a lot of help.

"You didn't have anything to do with it, did you?" The older man sighed as Reno shook his head solemnly.

"I swear on my life, Boss. I'd never fuck with that guy. 'Specially not his hair. I'm not a fuckin' loon, and I..respect him too much." Reno admitted oddly, before a look of annoyance crossed his features.

"Actually, I would like to know who did, so I could properly beat them hell out of them."

"You and me both." Tseng replied.

"Though I am surprised Zack hasn't already elected himself for the job."

'Zack' Reno thought. 'Wait...'

Just before the Lieutenant SOLDIER had slinked away, Reno recalled the expression on his face.

He'd been framed, and he knew who'd done it.

Now to make him confess.s