For some reason a large part of my reviewers thought Cloud had failed some SOLDIER requirement or other... uh... I'm sorry if I accidentally gave tat impression. It was absolutely not intentional (but now that I think of it, maybe I really should have implied it, just for kicks)(ish evil)
IMPORTANT! I just lost my apartment. This has caused a wild amount of stress and misery. Uh... and it means I gotta find a way to rectify the situation and find a job, so... uh... This is not exactly an 'on hold' message (because writing this is my stress relief) but I gotta stop 'stress-relieving' constantly. 'Cause I'm really gonna have to bust my ass off trying to get a job. Woe :( So yeah, just warning you.
–
Disorientation, Cloud decided as he slowly became conscious of being, of existing, was such a wholly insufficient word to describe what he was feeling just then. What had just happened? What was happening?
He became slowly aware that he was lying on a semi-soft surface (military hospital bed his mind automatically categorized) something covering mostb of his body, and least up to his chest. He arms were covered by the blanket as well and he flexed to free them from the impeding material. At least his sword arm should be free. He became aware of voices in the room (I'm in a room) suddenly stopping as he moved, and then the clinical smell hit him making him sneeze. Opening his eyes, though, wasn't an option. The stark light would sear his brain if he tried, he knew, and he was in enough pain as it was. He tried very hard not to think about how he knew that.
A pair of footsteps closed in on the bed and Cloud got a whiff of a body that didn't smell human. Not that it smelled animal either, it smelled alive but too clean, like it had been periodically washed in alcoholic disinfectant and he realized that he recognized not only the smell or the way the person walked, but also the near inaudible wheeze of every breath, the way he would push his glasses up his nose when he was exceptionally annoyed or exceptionally pleased and he knew the exact way this person regarded a human being reduced to a test specimen for the sake of his curiosity.
Before the mad scientist could put his hands on him (again, oh, Planet, Cetra, never again!) Cloud's hand shot up and caught a bony wrist. Still not looking, he had to resist the urge to simply break it and run and find Tifa and see if she was still his, still loved him (again?), if she was still expecting his child, but the mere fact that Hojo was alive made it abundantly clear that she wasn't, wouldn't be. Grief lanced through him at the same time as a painful muscle cramp made him grit his teeth harshly.
"Let go of my wrist, Mr. Strife."
Cloud had to swallow a sound of hysteria at being called Mr. by this monster before he could reply. He forced himself to add the honorific as he answered. "Professor Hojo." It was a testament of control, he thought to himself, that he hadn't twisted those words to echo with all the levels of hatred and scorn he felt. "If you touch me." He choked, the words too important to leave any room for doubt. "If you touch me, I swear by the Cetra, the moon and the sun, that I will put my hand through your chest." And even Dr. Hojo couldn't live without a heart.
"Don't be irrational. You would regret doing something like that."
He scoffed. Had to scoff at that idea. "Not nearly as much as you." And not nearly as much as Hojo thought he would, that was for sure. Where was he?
His reply clearly gave the scientist pause and Cloud got a vague idea that other people had threatened to kill the doctor before yet never followed through with it. The fact that someone truly seemed willing to risk their own life and everything they had accomplished (I... made it into SOLDIER) just to get rid of him had obviously never happened before.
"You need to have a check-up. You had quite the adverse reaction to the injections."
Cloud sensed victory within his reach and pushed his advantage, just a little, ignoring another spasm. "I'm sure one of your assistants can do it. You just need to take samples, right?"
Hojo huffed, but when he stepped back, Cloud let him go. "Swendsson, check his vitals and take the samples."
"Y-yessir!" The assistant in question almost fell over himself in his hurry to assist. Cloud kept his eyes shut as his pulse and blood pressure were measured, obediently made a fist before three vials was filled for blood samples, answered standard questions about hearing and feeling, twitched as he was supposed to when his reflexes were checked. When the assistant timidly asked him to open his eyes, he told them that they would have to lower the lighting first. Some of the lights right overhead flickered shut and he tentatively opened his eyes, slowly focusing on his surroundings. Hojo was standing just out of Cloud's reach, supervising his assistant and making sure no mistakes were made no doubt. The sadist pushed his glasses up his nose.
Cloud's blood samples had been placed on a slim table next to the door, where the other assistant in the room was standing; a woman, who seemed to be looking at Hojo in abject fascination. Cloud felt bile rise in his throat at the thought that she actually admired the crazy bastard, before his eyes finished their sweep. The machines standing next to his bed were all turned off and he was relieved to note, even though he he had known there wouldn't be, that there wasn't a mako tube anywhere in sight.
He looked into the light the assistant doing his check-up was holding then, grimacing slightly as his retinas burned at the brightness, but checking pupil functionality didn't usually take very long and Swendsson was efficient if a little clumsy at the scrutiny of his superior.
"Right. Your heart beat is a little slower than we would have liked, but your blood pressure seems well within normal for a SOLDIER..." Cloud sucked in a breath. He really was in SOLDIER. "...So unless you feel any unusual pain, it should be fine." Swendsson checked his clipboard again and seemed to compare results between two pieces of paper, shot a look at Hojo and then addressed the new SOLDIER lying still in the bed once more. "Your reaction time actually seems better than a high percentage of other SOLDIERs but unless you're feeling any undue aches, after your body has become accustomed to the mako in your system, that's fine too. Of course.
"Your senses are of course still a little over-sensitive, but once you get used to it that, too, will fade as will the cramps and spasms. For now, we'll only have to conduct some standard procedure tests on your blood samples and then you'll be released. Please rest until then, Mr. Strife."
The scientists left, the woman picking up the blood samples and Hojo shooting one last inscrutable look at the boy before following his assistants.
Cloud closed his eyes and tried to relax, but the disinfected smell covering the machinery, the faint smell of paint and the fact than none of the scientists had bothered to turn off the rest of the light would have been enough to keep him awake, even if his thoughts wasn't doing a jig through a dozen or more tender areas.
What in the world had happened?
A week ago he had casually run his hand across Tifa's flat stomach and... still been trying to get over motion sickness from being stuffed into the back of a transport helicopter as Jones told him to carry his own weight ...just suddenly known there was life there, growing... and he had been sulking over unfair treatment even as ...he had made love to her until neither of them could even walk... Jones had perished not two days later.
Sighing, Cloud had a sudden wish that there was a desk close enough for him to bang his head against, maybe that would remove the confusion or maybe even wake him up from this crazy... hallucination or whatever it was.
Maybe he had finally gone mad? But if he hadn't lost it during Hojo's years of torture or while fighting Sephiroth and Jenova, why in the world would he go over the edge now?
Or maybe those memories weren't even real? Maybe the last nine years of growing up in Nibelheim (again, something inside of him insisted) wasn't the illusion but rather the fantastic (insane, horrible, broken, happy and sad) memories were the illusion? They both felt so... real though.
He felt a laugh bubble up in his throat and squashed it again before hysteria could get a real hold of him.
There was the mako to contemplate too. Mako was condensed lifestream, and as such it was condensed... past lives. Maybe he had just gained a few of their experiences? But... wouldn't that be past? The memories he had just... remembered had definitely been of a future from this point. Mostly. And he had recognized Hojo's footsteps, smell and habits from those memories as well, had gained a whole lot of information that he knew a cadet (newly raised SOLDIER!) should not be privy to. Dangerous information. Information that could probably turn half the world against ShinRa if it became public. Of course, he had no proof for any of it, so he couldn't do anything about it anyway (if it's really real) so that point might be moot.
He jolted when he realized that he had gone from thinking of himself as a part of ShinRa to... to someone against ShinRa. He mulled that over, thinking of the Planet, dying slowly and painfully just for human comfort (because even if the memories were false that made a frightening amount of sense)(Are you doubting that Tifa's love, that your child was a lie?).
A sudden sob choked out of his throat before he stamped that down too.
He had been looking forward to being a father. Even if he already filled that role for Denzel and Marlene, imagining Tifa with a baby, his baby, pressed close to her bosom, it had just.... He had just been looking forward to seeing that, experiencing that, knowing that he could do more than kill monsters. And wasn't that a strange thought because he was fucking fourteen (twenty-seven!) and oh, Planet, he was going to go through puberty again. And with memories of all the things he had done with Tifa, had done to Tifa, a fully mature, beautiful, wicked Tifa...
The need for something hard to bang his head against rose again as his anatomy reacted to his thought process.
Just hormones, he told himself. Perfectly normal reasonable hormonal reaction considering that you're fourteen, shot full of mako and thinking of sex. He groaned and turned around to bury his face in the sorry excuse for a pillow provided. Idiot.
He dredged up that memory of Dr. Hojo at Costa del Sol, sunbathing and paying too many women to pay him attention, which he had carefully stored exactly for occasions like this. The thought that Hojo could return any moment helped and his erection deflated fast. Thank the Cetra.
Firmly not thinking of Tifa (and wasn't that an exercise) Cloud began contemplating what in the world he was doing here.
"The planet is going to send you back in time... in time to save me."
He swallowed. Aeris. He was going to save Aeris. Oh. Fuck. And wasn't that just a whole new can of worms?
He barely even noticed when another light cramp made him kick his covers off, merely moved the covers back afterwards.
It had taken him two years to come to terms with the fact that he hadn't saved Aeris, hadn't been able to save her and that he couldn't keep blaming himself for not being strong enough at the time, and then, what, six years after her death, it was suddenly imperative that she survive? How long did it take a planet to find out that it was dying anyway?
And fuck! If he had to go through all that all over again he really was going to lose his mind.
When had he accepted this quest?
Sighing and sitting up to lean his forehead on his knees he reconsidered. He had accepted it the minute he realised that it was necessary. By everything that lived, he wished he could stop being such a hero. He missed the casual way he had been able to dismiss other people's problems, hell, the entire planet's problems, back when he had first joined AVALANCHE. Well. Kind of missed it. It had been a bit lonely.
He sighed again and lied down before shooting up as thought struck with a bolt. He wouldn't... he could... he had been sent so far back... Zack! And his mum!
Swallowing past a sudden lump in his throat, eyes misting, Cloud couldn't quite contain the careful smile that broke out.
Footsteps sounding through the hall outside his room made him lie back down again, but he couldn't for the life of him seem to banish the smile even as another spasm zigzagged up his back and made him gasp. He could save Zack and his mum as well as Aeris. The three people most important to him next to Tifa and he had the chance to save them!
Hojo and his two assistants entered without knocking, not that Cloud had had any illusions that Hojo would bother with something like that for the sake of someone else's sense of dignity or pride or any such notions, but nevertheless it was a rather crude reminder of the current situation. Which placed him squarely in Hojo's reach.
His grin faded somewhat, but the thought that he could really... that he didn't have to watch them die again kept him from losing it completely.
The smile seemed to take Hojo aback somewhat as though he had never seen an expression of genuine satisfaction. He paused just inside which made both of his assistant almost walk right into him, giving Cloud a cursory look.
"Everything seems within acceptable parameters, Mr. Strife," the scientist said at last, but the way his eyes had narrowed, shooting sharp looks into Cloud's eyes (they'll be mako bright now he thought vaguely) told him that 'acceptable parameters' didn't equal 'normal' and that somehow he had roused Hojo's curiosity. An involuntary shudder, not caused by the mako and the mutations and the cramps, went through him. If Hojo so much as suggested he stay for any further 'examinations', Cloud would be out and running straight through the not-so-good doctor and keep running, SOLDIER be damned.
But the scientist remained curiously silent, shooting a very pointed look at Swendsson before exiting, the woman following him like a puppy on strings. The thought made Cloud shudder again.
"Right, so, Strife, they've assigned lodging for you in the SOLDIER quarters. If you go to the thirty-second floor, a representative will meet you there. You'll continue to experience muscle cramps for as long as half a day, possibly a little longer and you might feel lethargic for a few days until the mako has truly settled. Please, don't do anything strenuous until then. Please contact the science department if you should experience any undue pain or dizziness. You're required to meet for a check-up in five days."
"Uhm, Dr.?" Cloud asked, wondering if his question was even going to be answered. "Dr. Hojo said there was nothing outside of acceptable parameters, but he..." How to explain it in a way that would sound convincingly like a fourteen-year-old and not like someone who had intimate knowledge of Hojo's habits and tells? "He didn't seem like that was all he wanted to say."
Swendsson hesitated, wondering if he should tell the cadet, no, SOLDIER, then decided that it couldn't hurt any. "The percentage of mako in your blood, now, is far more than we calculated, even taking into consideration that you're younger and smaller than most other SOLDIERs. Frankly, I'm amazed you survived with your mind intact, not to mention surviving at all, you must have an unusually strong will. The mako we injected must have been more concentrated than normal." Or more probably the person who had calculated the concentration had made a mistake, but you didn't tell that to subjects of medical procedures.
"Oh." Did this mean he had gotten his old enhancements back as well? That would be a help. A huge help.
Swendsson ushered him out the door and locked it after him and Cloud went, more than willing to get away from the disgusting smell that felt much as though it had embedded itself in his now sensitive nose.
It felt weird, going through deserted halls in the ShinRa headquarters. The part of the floor he was on was usually used for SOLDIER operatives, who had been severely injured and needed medical attention beyond what could be done with materia on the field. Cloud tried hard not to think about what could happen to a SOLDIER to demand that kind of help.
Coming out of the elevators, he was met immediately with a hyper armload of black-haired SOLDIER puppy.
"Cloud! Congratulations! How are you feeling? We heard there were some complications and you're the last one up, you didn't go crazy?"
Cloud had to swallow, another lump clogging his throat. He was absolutely not prepared for this. At the same time as he had the memory of Zack in his Second Class uniform, sitting beside him and telling him he was being ridiculous for blaming himself for Jones' death, another memory of Zack, First Class charcoal ruined by bullet holes and soaked in blood, face (his hair was different?) running with more blood, giving him the Buster Sword (Angeal's?!) as his last legacy, was suddenly achingly, horribly clear.
"Fuck, Zack!" And he couldn't help it, pressing himself into Zack's friendly embrace.
"Oi," Zack exclaimed when his smaller friend entirely unexpectedly threw himself into the hug rather than pull away with a protest about personal space or hygiene or something. "Hey, Spiky, was it that bad?" His voice had taken on a more quiet, soothing quality and he began rubbing comforting circles on the other's tense shoulders.
Cloud took a deep breath and extracted himself slightly, but didn't entirely pull away. "You have no idea."
"Uh... I'm supposed to be showing you your new rooms, but if you'd like, we can, yanno, go to mine if you need company or just talk or something...?"
Drawing another shaky breath, the new SOLDIER (SOLDIER! A part of his mind was even now running around in half panicky, half ecstatic little circles over that) finally pulled entirely away. If he allowed himself to seek comfort from Zack's steady shoulder now, he might just break and he knew that he just wouldn't, couldn't, tell Zack what awaited him in the future. Or might await him.
"No. No, thanks, Zack, but I-I'm okay now. Thanks though. For the offer. Where are my rooms?"
Zack shot him a doubtful look, obviously measuring how truthful he had been and Cloud dredged up a half-smile. Not one of those completely fake 'never been better ever in my life' smiles but more a subdued 'I've had better days, but I'll pull through' smile. It tended to be more convincing and seemed to meet Zack's standards, because he answered it with a brilliant one of his own.
"Well, it's really kinda late, not that you can see that inside the building except in the outer rooms, lucky you. When I first got my rooms appointed, people were just sorta standing around. Totally awkward. They're in bed now, you'll get the treatment eventually, but at least you'll have your rest first."
The Second Class kept up a steady stream of chatter as he weaved through an almost labyrinthine set of corridors, the blond Third Class following and feeling much like a lost chocobo chick.
"SOLDIER quarters really aren't all it's cracked up to be, yanno. It's just a small room with a shower attached, but then again, after you've spent any amount of time in cadet barracks, I guess your own room and a private shower's like paradise. I didn't mind the communal thing much, personally, but sometimes you could just use a bit of privacy, if you get my drift? Besides, you're the private type, right? You like your space. Must've been a shock coming here... anyway! We've already relocated your stuff from your room and supplied your new uniform." He grinned. There was no denying that seeing Cloud in a SOLDIER uniform would be great. Angeal was his friend, but also his mentor and besides more than a decade older. Cloud was... more like an equal. Technically Zack was superior, but he felt they had gotten past that already, and now Cloud was in SOLDIER too! And after only half a year, just like him. Only a matter of time before they both made Firsts.
There was no expressing how awesome that was. Would be.
Zack automatically shot a hand out to steady the blond when the continuous cramps made his knees buckle and received a quiet tanks for his trouble.
"Anyways, here's your room. SOLDIER Third Class, Cloud Strife." Tapping the name plate, Zack finally turned grinning at his companion, who was looking exactly as dumbstruck as Zack had felt when he first saw his own name plate next to one of these doors.
Cloud accepted the key card, swiped it and opened the door to his new room, his new room. Zack had been right when he said it was nothing special, really. A tiny entryway with a coat rack, a door leading into a small bathroom with barely enough space for the sink to be crammed in between the toilet and the shower stall, and a bedroom containing a bed, a desk with a straight-backed chair and a wardrobe. But while the wardrobe wasn't exactly huge and the desk was rather small, the bed seemed to actually be twin-size, rather than the extra narrow version cadets were saddled with, and when Cloud went to sit on it the mattress was springy and even. He couldn't quite resist bouncing a little.
Zack grinned at him from the doorway, satisfied with the reaction. "It's too complicated explaining where my room is, I'll come find you tomorrow and show you. Sweet dreams, Cloud, and... congratulations." They both grinned before Zack closed the door, leaving Cloud once again to his thoughts.
The room smelled clean. Not like medical facilities, which smelled like disinfectant and medicine, but rather like someone had been just a little too generous with the detergent the last time it was cleaned. It was probably, Cloud mused morbidly, to erase the scent of whoever had lived there before. The higher-ups did have intimate knowledge of the sensitive nose of a SOLDIER.
Rolling around and inhaling the scent of heavenly clean bedsheets, the smell of detergent on these were vague, Cloud felt a sudden overwhelming sense of accomplishment. He had really done it. Without cheating. Instinctively knowing how to swing a sword didn't count, there was more to being a SOLDIER than that. Persevering no matter what, for one, something he hadn't done in those other memories.
A look in the closet intensified the feeling again, as he looked over three new, blue, sleeveless shirts, shoulder pauldrons neatly placed next to them and trousers, still stiff with starch and smelling of it, folded under the SOLDIER issue helmet. His few personal belongings seemed to have been taken from the cadet quarters most likely courtesy of Zack as well, considering the care whoever had taken with it.
Cloud stripped out of his cadet uniform for the last time, and had he really been wearing the same uniform since he had been abducted once upon a time more than a week ago? He was in serious need of a shower. It was amazing that Zack had been touching him willingly, especially since he had the distinct feeling that he smelled even worse after the... whatever exactly had happened with his mako injections.
He entered the shower, finding military issue soap and took his time letting the hot water (actual hot water, not lukewarm or icy) beat down on his body, taking his lingering tenseness with it down the drain. It felt amazing to put on a simple pair of pyjama bottoms and slide under the white cotton sheets. His pillow was even fluffy!
Cloud had planned on contemplating the... visions, delusions, memories, of another world, where Zack had died, where there was a girl named Aeris, who had also died, where General Sephiroth had gone mad and decided to end the world and where he had never made it into SOLDIER and even then had saved the world, but exhaustion and contentment combined with the comfort of a real bed soon pulled him under.
- - -
Waking up excited was an entirely new feeling. Not the waking and being awake immediately, he had done that both the in the strangely familiar memories and more recently every single time he had woken up since Jones died and he had been given responsibility (again? For the first time in his life?) without really wanting the responsibility (again? For the...?) but accepting the responsibility because he really was the one best suited (agai...?).
But that day he woke up excited, genuinely happy, looking forward to the day and wanting to get up immediately just to see what would happen! He felt like a child (I am a child!) (Am not, I'm fourteen!) on the day of his birthday.
...He would have to tackle those memories later because the ongoing quarrel in his head over whether he was a child or not was getting on his nerves, and surely he would be allowed respite for a day before trying to tackle the whole save the world issue, before saving Aeris (know someone named Aeris. Knew?) and, Planet, Zack!
With a force of will he knew came from those new, old memories he pushed the whole ugly affair away and got dressed in the brand new uniform, blue, sleeveless. He left the helmet.
He was smiling, that little quirk of his lips that Tifa had always said (hadn't ever commented on... by the gods, stop!) was better seen through his eyes.
He made it through the corridors more through luck than any remembrance of the path Zack had taken him and caught elevator two floors up, where the SOLDIER mess and was. It was noon. Everyone not on a mission would be eating.
Entering the mess hall, Cloud searched briefly for Zack, but the Second Class saw him first. "Cloud!" He called excitedly and all eyes suddenly turned at the cry, trying to figure out what had gotten Fair's attention. "Wow, you're already up, didn't expect you back on your feet for a while yet. Hungry?"
Cloud's stomach rumbled loud enough that not a few SOLDIERs nearby chuckled.
"That's a yes, come on, they've got a really good special today, you'll love it!"
The special, as it turned out, consisted of chicken fried in butter with whole garlic and assorted root vegetables baked with provincial spices and topped with gratuitous amounts of gravy.
Cloud didn't speak much as he ate, letting Zack update him on the gossip as he stuffed the huge meal down his throat, barely even chewing. He hadn't truly realised how hungry he was before he had gotten a whiff of his plate and despite the amount of food Zack had piled for him he still went for seconds and a piece of almost creamy chocolate cake for desert.
Zack just smirked knowingly and continued his chatter until Cloud had wiped up the last crumbs from his tray.
"Hey, Zack, where's Angeal?" He asked.
"Oh, him. The mighty lieutenant general is in a meeting with the mighty general and the other mighty lieutenant general together with the mighty president and the mighty heads of the departments. Oh, and Director Lazard. Something about strategy in Wutai that I'm not supposed to be privy to." He yawned pointedly, ignoring the exasperated looks he was getting. "You feeling up for a spar? I'll go easy on you, since you're new to the whole mako enhancement thing."
"Like you went easy on me last year?"
"Maybe not quite that easy," he grinned.
"I'm in. Prepare to get your ass handed to you, though." Maybe then he wouldn't feel quite so much like bouncing with all the ridiculous amount of energy running through him. And he hadn't had a single spasm or cramp since he woke.
"That sounds like a challenge!" Cloud suddenly and very acutely regretted his words as his friend, with an unholy glint in his eyes, stood up on the bench they were sitting on. "Listen, gentlemen!" He called loudly, gaining the attention of the entire room. "My little friend here, Cloud Strife, just made SOLDIER. He came out of the medical bay last night at 3 in the morning! And do you want to know what he just told me when I generously offered a light spar to allow him to gently ease into his new enhancements? He told me, me, to be prepared to get my ass handed back!" A chorus of cajoling, cat calling and a few "that's the way to go, kid" resounded making Cloud sink a bit lower in his seat while Zack preened. After a while, though, he raised his hands and the gathering of SOLDIERs quieted.
"This, of course, is a challenge and in accordance with unofficial company policy must be met and witnessed by... appropriate witnesses. Anyone here willing to do the honours?"
"I am," a calm authoritative voice sounded from the entrance. Both Zack and Cloud jumped as they saw the three figures standing there; Genesis, Angeal, and Sephiroth. The three most respected and well-known SOLDIERs. The three best SOLDIERs.
Zack broke into a brilliant grin, beaming at his mentor, who was the one who had offered. Angeal raised an eyebrow, causing Zack's smile to go up another notch.
"I think I would like to see it as well," a smooth cultured baritone broke in. All eyes turned to Sephiroth, who looked entirely unaffected by the flabbergasted expressions of his subordinates. "After all, both Zack Fair and Cloud Strife made it into the program in only half a year. Wouldn't it be interesting to see them pitted against the other?" For all of Sephiroth's only mildly bemused tone it released a new chorus of cajoling, even louder than before.
"Hmm, it certainly does sound interesting," Genesis interjected. "Where do you suggest we hold this duel? It seems like not a few would be interested."
For all of his airs, Zack hadn't quite expected his teasing to have caused that much of a commotion. He shot a measuring look at his blond companion, but Cloud's attention seemed entirely focused on the three Firsts, an undefinable emotion in his eyes. "Oi, Cloud?" He tried, keeping his voice low enough that only Cloud could hear..
"Mhm?"
"Uh, sorry about this. I thought maybe just a few of the guys were gonna follow us but now it's turned into a whole circus... you still game?"
"What? Oh." Cloud finally dragged his eyes back from where Sephiroth was conferring with his friends about an appropriate place for a SOLDIER duel and noticed Zack's contrite look. He sighed, knowing that there was no way he could be angry with the burly idiot when he so looked liked a kicked puppy. "Yeah, don't think I'll be going easy on you now."
"What? Go easy on me?! Oh, that's it, you're so going down."
Cloud smirked. He had way more battle experience than Zack and now he had enhancements as well.
"Cloud. If you keep smirking like that, I'm gonna think you're serious."
"I am, Zack. Entirely serious."
- -
NOTE: If you find any unforgivable canon transgressions concerning canon time line, SOLDIER procedures, or other... things (XD) they are most likely deliberate to fit plot or just to make it more exciting (I am very good at knowing my canon, usually) however even so, you're welcome to tell me. I'm hardly infallible.
Just for starters, I've moved the canon time line for when Genesis defected, which would have happened already in October the year Cloud (this Cloud, not canon!Cloud) registered and with Angeal defecting a month later. So! That's cleaned up. The official time line can be found on dot com under the FFVII topic (it's very helpful).
Next: Cloud and Zacks duel. And some more introspection and decisions made. ...Yes, this time I won't take the easy way out and just make a comment about what happened.