Roy made his way outside to find the truck which contained the supplies he would be moving with the help of a SOLDIER. He grinned to himself as he recalled the conversation he'd had with Davis that morning.

"What? You're working with a SOLDIER?" Davis had gasped.

"Uh, yeah..." Roy mumbled cautiously.

"No way! Why d'you always get the best deal?" Davis whined.

Roy stiffened slightly and was brought from his recollection as he saw a SOLDIER leaning against one of the trucks with an incredibly bored expression on his face. He swallowed and squared his shoulders, walking straight up and saluting.

"Ah, so you must be Roy Peters." the SOLDIER said, pushing away from the truck and standing up straight.

"Yes, Sir." Roy confirmed with a nod.

"I see. I'm Genesis Rhapsodos, SOLDIER 1st Class." the man introduced himself.

"It's a pleasure, Sir." Roy gushed out, and immediately felt silly. He ducked his head, feeling his cheeks flame up in embarrassment. The SOLDIER with red hair simply smirked in amusement.

"I believe you are aware of our task outline?" Genesis asked.

"Yes, Sir." Roy said again.

"Good. Then let's get to work at once." Genesis moved to the back of the truck and opened the door, reaching inside to grab something and then handing it over to Roy.

Once Roy's hands were full of things Genesis had handed to him and Genesis also had as much as he could carry, they walked off towards the building again and straight to the elevator, where Genesis pressed the number forty-nine once they were inside.

"So are you here to become a SOLDIER?" Genesis asked curiously.

"Yes, Sir." Roy nodded. "It's my dream."

"Why?" Genesis probed with a shrug. Roy frowned slightly, thinking over the question. He knew the answer, but he also knew he couldn't say it or everything he'd done in the past three months would be for nothing.

"I guess I want to be a hero." he settled for.

Genesis looked over at him and narrowed his eyes as if analysing him. Could he tell? Did he know? Was it obvious?

"I don't think you do." he said softly, and then let out a loud sigh. "Whatever, it's not my place to ask."

Roy clenched his teeth nervously, realising he should have known better than to lie to a SOLDIER. He looked up to watch the number of floors flash by, getting closer to their destination.

"Ah, crap."

Roy looked over and his eyes widened at the sight he saw. Genesis Rhapsodos had begun juggling his items over to one arm (which was quite an amazing feat) and then proceeded to pull his PHS from his pocket and hold it to his ear.

"What!?" the SOLDIER snapped, keeping an eye on the numbers of the floors. "You're joking! What, right now!?" He let out a sigh and gave Roy an exasperated look, beginning to tap his foot. "No, listen- Hey!"

The elevator gave a small ding sound as it reached their wanted floor and Roy hurriedly stepped out, putting what he had been carrying onto the floor and then turning back to help Genesis with his arm-load. Genesis gave him a thankful smile.

"Seph, be rational." Genesis said, still talking to whoever had called him.

Roy's eyes widened at what Genesis had said to address the person he was speaking to. Could he really be speaking to General Sephiroth?

"If I leave now this infantryman's gonna screw something up." Genesis sighed, holding some of the things in one arm and walking off towards one of the office's. Roy's eyes darkened at that. He would not screw anything up! ...as long as he knew what he was doing.

Genesis continued talking and absent-mindedly knocked on the door of an office before going in without waiting for an answer. As Roy followed behind, he thought for a moment that Zack was inside, however as it turned out it wasn't Zack.

"Oh, finally." the man said, standing and walking over to grab some of the things from Roy. He worked silently beside Genesis as the two of them set everything up and Roy stood back awkwardly, waiting to be told what to do.

"Stop trying to persuade me." Genesis growled. "I do not want to come."

"Where does he want you to go?" the man in the room asked.

"To Wutai." Genesis muttered, and then said, "Look, do you want to talk to Angeal?" The man, Angeal, hurriedly backed up and shot Genesis an angry look, but the PHS was already being thrust at him. Grumbling, he held it up to his ear.

"No." he said simply, then handing it back to Genesis. The red-head narrowed his eyes angrily but took it.

"Seph, how many times do I have to tell you to buy yourself a puppy?"

This time, Sephiroth's answer was so loud even Roy could hear it – and he didn't even have mako hearing.

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU I DO NOT WANT A PUPPY!?"

"Oh, relax, Seph!" Genesis rolled his eyes. "I was just kidding. Hey, why don't you just pass it off onto someone else? Like one of the thirds. Make them go instead of you."

Roy could hear Sephiroth muttering something in response and Genesis smirked.

"Anyway, I really have to go now. This kid's looking freaked out." Genesis said with a glance at Roy, then rolled his eyes at something Sephiroth said. "Of course I'm not keeping a count of how many times you give away your missions!" Genesis mouthed a 'thirty-three' to Angeal and the two shared a silent chuckle.

"Okay, Seph. That's nice." Genesis said sarcastically. "Yes, this is me telling you to shut up and get off the phone." He then said goodbye and hung up, putting his PHS back into his pocket.

"He should get a puppy, though." Angeal said thoughtfully.

"Yeah, if he did he wouldn't annoy us as much." Genesis agreed. "C'mon Peters. Let's go get the rest of this stuff."

Leading Roy back to the elevator and then out to the trunk, Genesis piled them both up with objects before they set off the way they had come for the second time. This continued on for about six times, by the end of which Roy knew how to set up printers, computers, phones, fax machines, type-writers, and just about everything else that was operated by technology.

Roy also came to the conclusion that, if given the chance, he could definitely eat three large elephants; he was that hungry.

"You've done well today." Genesis said as he walked with him back to the elevator. "I've never seen anyone connect computer wires so fast their first time."

"Maybe no one else was shown how to do it fives times first." Roy shot back with a grin. He felt more comfortable when talking to the SOLDIER now and completely forgot to add a 'sir' to the end of his sentence. Fortunately, Genesis seemed to have forgotten too.

Finally making his way to the cafeteria for lunch, Roy sunk down into a seat beside Rex and let his head thump loudly onto the table.

"You look dead." Rex commented, happily eating his own food.

"Eh, feel it." Roy muttered, prying his head off the table and grabbing one of the stacked trays. Pulling himself to his feet, he went over and stood in line to get some food(actually a lot of food) before sitting beside Rex again.

"So who'd you work with?" Rex asked.

"Genesis Rhapsodos. He's got red hair." Roy explained, shovelling some food into his mouth and sighing happily.

"What did you do?" Rex questioned before also piling food into his own mouth.

"Mm," Roy quickly finished eating his mouthful and then continued. "Set up office equipment."

"Really? How'd you go?"

"Alright." Roy shrugged. "It was so tiring though. Those boxes weigh a tonne each!"

"Good for you, yeah? Maybe they'll let you off swimming for today. You could tell 'em you worked with a SOLDIER-"

Roy's head shot up and he dropped what he was holding, staring ahead with a horror-stricken look in his eyes.

"No way..." he mumbled. He had completely forgotten about their swimming lesson after lunch.

"You really hate water that much, do you?" Rex asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes. Hate it. Stacks." Roy spluttered. Rex looked over at him again and his eyes widened as he saw his friend shaking and hyperventilating.

"Hey, wanna go talk to the instructor now?" Rex asked, putting down his fork. "You won't have to do it. So long as you keep this up so they can see..."

"Uh-" Roy's teeth chattered and he gripped the table with both hands, his knuckles turning white with the strain.

"Come on." Rex said, standing and tugging on Roy's arm to make him follow. Roy got to his feet, swaying slightly as he stumbled after his friend.

The two made their way first back to their room, where Rex rummaged for his schedule to find out who the instructor actually was. Once he found out, however, he refused to tell Roy and dragged him away from their room quickly, leaving the schedule behind.

"Don't worry about it. I'll do all the talking." Rex said. Roy was still shaking and now had to hold onto Rex's arm to stop from collapsing.

"B-but I-"

"It doesn't matter who the instructor is." Rex snapped.

Reaching the elevator, Rex shoved Roy inside and stepped in behind, pressing the number forty-nine.

"W-why are we going to th-the SOLDIER lev-"

"Who cares?" Rex asked hotly. "Just keep thinking about swimming." Roy shuddered and when the elevator finally tinged Rex pulled him out, looking around frantically.

They wandered down corridors, with no real idea of where they were going. Roy continued asking and Rex continued shutting him down fast. Finally, they were stopped by another SOLDIER who wanted to know what they thought they were doing on the SOLDIER floor unaccompanied.

"We're looking for General Sephiroth. We have something urgent to discuss." Rex explained. Roy whimpered and fought to get out of Rex's grip.

"What do you need to talk to him about?" the SOLDIER asked, giving Roy a weird look.

"He's our instructor for swimming and Roy's got a fear of water." Rex said, frowning as he tried to make Roy stop squirming.

"I'll go get him." the SOLDIER said, shooting Roy another look before walking off.

"Stop it!" Rex snapped as soon as the SOLDIER was out of ear-shot. "You're making yourself look like even more of a fool than you already are."

"B-but he can't meet me like this!" Roy complained, his eyes wide in terror.

"It's your own fault!" Rex exclaimed.

"You don't understand-"

"What's going on here?"

They both froze, although Roy continued shaking, and looked over to see the General walking up with a frown on his face. He looked incredibly unimpressed.

"Uh, sir... about the swimming lesson this afternoon?" Rex said slowly, his own fear of talking to General Sephiroth finally showing itself.

"What about it?" Sephiroth asked, glancing at his watch. "You've still got another half an hour before it starts."

"Yes, sir, but you see," Rex pulled Roy forward slightly as he had been trying to sneak away. "He's got a fear of water."

"I see." Sephiroth said, his eyes taking in Roy's quivering form. "And?"

"And it's terrible, sir!" Rex continued. "I just said the word 'swimming' and he went off his nut like this!"

"What's your name?" Sephiroth snapped, his full attention now turned to Roy.

"R-Roy Peters." Roy stuttered, his eyes fixed to the floor.

"You will accompany me to the pool this instant." Sephiroth turned his eyes back to Rex. "Dismissed."

Roy shot Rex a look of panic before slowly stumbling forward over his own feet. Sephiroth put a firm hand on his shoulder and steered him away, back to his office to grab a few things and then all the way out to the in-door pool on another floor.

Roy didn't stop trembling. He knew he must look like a fool, but not only was he about to be forced into water, he was also going to be doing so with the General watching his every move!

Sephiroth walked right over to the side of the pool, watching as Roy tried to squirm away. He then let go of the boys shoulder and folded his arms. Roy took one step back from the edge.

"What is it about water that frightens you?" Sephiroth asked calmly.

"I- I don't know." Roy mumbled.

"Yes you do." Sephiroth replied. His voice was still calm. Roy tore his eyes away from the water and looked up at Sephiroth. The General was watching him curiously, as though trying to figure out what frightened him just by watching his body language.

"I don't know, sir." Roy repeated.

"Is it the thought of drowning?" Sephiroth asked, tilting his head slightly.

"Uh, maybe." Roy shrugged.

"This may sound like a stupid question considering your fear, but can you swim?" Sephiroth asked. There was no humour in his eyes and Roy felt cornered. Surely the General already knew his secret and only wanted him to admit it?

"No, I can't swim sir." Roy answered, his voice quivering a little.

"Listen to me, Peters," Sephiroth said slowly. "You worked with one of my close friends this morning, Genesis Rhapsodos. He informed me that you would like to be a SOLDIER. Is this correct?"

Roy hurriedly nodded.

"Then let me tell you something. SOLDIERs have to be the best of the best. They learn mainly how to use swords but also how to use guns in case they ever end up in a situation where that is all they have. If I did not know how to swim and in order to save someone from imminent death I had to do just that – what would happen?"

Sephiroth was watching Roy's face for a reaction, and the sinking feeling in Roy's heart was plainly shown on his face.

"Whoever you had to save would die." Roy whispered.

"Exactly." Sephiroth nodded. "So, if you really want to be a SOLDIER, you have to learn how to swim. Can you do this?"

Roy had an inkling that Sephiroth had probably had to persuade an infantryman to conquer a fear over something in order to be a SOLDIER in the past; he also knew that if he really was Roy Peters – afraid of water – hearing Sephiroth say what he had just said would have made him jump head first into the pool to prove himself. Unfortunately, Roy wasn't actually Roy.

"I'm sorry sir," Roy said, lowering his gaze to the ground. "I can't."

"Then you and I are both wasting our time." Sephiroth said instantly. "If you are going to let a fear of water stand between you and your chance at being a SOLDIER then you don't want it enough."

"Sir, I do-!"

"Unless you can get into that water right now and show me how much you want to be a SOLDIER, I will have you out of here by tomorrow morning!" Sephiroth snapped. Roy knew without a doubt that he meant business.

"Fine." Roy replied quickly. He felt his face burning in anger and turned to the pool, jumping in. Idiot, I'll never get out of swimming lesson's now...

When he resurfaced and came over to the side to hold on, Sephiroth had squatted down.

"What is it that frightens you about water?" he asked again.

"I'm self-conscious sir." Roy said without even thinking it over. "Swimming means you only wear board-shorts."

Sephiroth stood up and laughed. The sight was so far from what Roy had expected that he actually began hyperventilating again.

"You- you don't want to wear board-shorts..." Sephiroth turned away and seemed to be struggling to calm himself down. Then he turned back around, only a slight smile remaining on his face. "You're serious?" he asked, just to be sure.

"Yes, sir." Roy said.

"Well then, we'll have to boost your ego." Sephiroth chuckled as if enjoying a private joke. "Oh, and Peters? You shouldn't lie about not being able to swim."

"Sir-"

"I want you to do two laps right now. Go."

Sephiroth walked over to sit on one of the benches and watched as Roy stared with his mouth open. Finally, after narrowing his eyes angrily, Roy pushed away from the wall of the pool and disappeared under the water.

Sephiroth watched as Roy's figure swam towards the end of the pool without coming up to get a breath. When Roy's hands touched the end he brought his head up to take a big breath, shoot a glare at Sephiroth, and then he went back under.

For the rest of the half hour before their class would actually be officially starting, Sephiroth drilled Roy about the importance of being a SOLDIER and conquering fears.

"Alright, you can go." Sephiroth said, glancing at his watch.

"But sir, class is about to-"

"I said you could go." Sephiroth narrowed his eyes and looked up at Roy, as if challenging him to argue any more.

"Yes sir." Roy said stiffly, turning towards the door they had entered through and wondering momentarily whether or not he should take a towel with him; he was dripping everywhere.

"Oh, two more things." Sephiroth said. Roy turned back to him and noticed that a hint of a smirk was on his face. "You'll need to use that door," he gestured to a door at the opposite side of the room, "And make sure you fix your make-up before being seen in public again.

Roy's eyes widened and he stared, gob-smacked, at the General. My make-up?

"Oh come on, you don't need me to help you walk now too, do you?" Sephiroth asked with a sigh.

"Uh, no sir." Roy shook his head. Taking a deep breath, he headed towards the door he was to leave through. As he walked, he touched his face with his fingers and felt his heart-rate speed up as he noticed the make-up coming off on them.

Why didn't he tell me to grab my things and leave?

With one last backward glance, Roy slipped out the door and hurried to the main building and into his room. Taking advantage of having the room and bathrooms to himself, he grabbed a towel and rushed to the shower.

I won't ever be able to sleep again without knowing if he's going to tell someone or not. But then again, maybe he just thinks I'm a guy that wears make-up? I mean, I said I was self-conscious, so maybe that's all he thinks it is...

Oh boy, I hope so.