Yup. You got ripped off. This is simply a filler chapter. The next one will be longer, seeing as it is already done, it could be posted as early as tomorrow. But I need to know, would I have to change the rating to M if I included a sex talk? The song in here is "Smiley Faces" by Gnarls Barkley.

Pairing: SephxCloud Eventual SephxZackxCloud

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

When Tseng walked into Sephiroth's office, he had to do a double take. Then blink a few times and chech the name of the door.

He had been expecting the General doing paperwork, reviewing files or something.

He was completely unprepared for what he saw. There was various cleaning supplies scattered around, in no order that Tseng could distinguish. Two of Sephiroth's sofas had been dragged to the corner of the office and a small table placed in between. Sephiroth and a small blond- his cadet?- were occupying that space. A file was spread out between them and they spoke in hushed whispers.

That in itself was strange. It only got weirder from there.

Sephiroth's desk had apparently become a stage. Reno was on top of it, a bundle of taped together pens in his hand, holding them to his mouth and shrieking. Zack sat on the floor and clapped with a mysteriously empty bottle next to him.

On the wall hung a banner. "Careiyokei Knight," it proclaimed.

Sephiroth looked up, preparing to threaten the intruder into silence so his reputation would not be damaged, but saw it was his less annoying friend. He motioned for Tseng to come over, and he did. He was careful to skirt around Zack and Reno, seeing as how Reno toppled off the desk and Zack lept up to take his place.

"I thought that mako voided alchohol," Tseng said to Sephiroth bluntly.

"It does. Zachary was unusually focused on finding the right mix of alchohol. Apparently he found a way around it," Sephiroth explained while moving over to offer the Turk a seat.

Once seated, Tseng looked at Cloud, who had been silent, only peering up at him through a shock of golden hair. He tried to smile, hoping to ease what he thought the boy's discomfort. "I promise, though I am a Turk, I will not bite."

Cloud blinked in mild confusion. Sephiroth was the one to answer. "Tseng, he's a cadet that's focused on his training and studies. He doesn't have time to learn to fear and hate Turks," Sephiroth leaned forward and swept up all the papers, putting them neatly into the folder. "He's just shy."

Cloud was indeed shy, if the eyes glued to the floor and the fiddling with loose threds on his clothes were any indication. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir," he whispered.

Tseng tried to keep up his smile. "The pleasure is mine, cadet. If I may call you Cloud?"

Cloud's spikes were jolted as his head snapped up with confusion in his eyes. "You know my name?" He didn't sound angry that they had been talking behind his back, but confused.

Sephiroth once again stepped in, ignoring Zack's own fall from the 'stage.' "I told him about you."

Far from clearing, Cloud's confusion seemed to grow. "Why would you want to talk about me?"

Tseng realized what Sephiroth had been trying to say earlier. This child was almost as damaged as him, but with the added hurt of truly believing he wasn't worth the effort. "I heard that you were making Sephiroth soft."

Cloud's mouth turned upwards for a moment, then he found himself being yanked out of his seat and deposited on the desk. Reno stepped back proudly. "It's your turn to sing puppybo," he announced, unaware that his speech began to slur.

Sephiroth shook his head and Tseng just observed the blond as he tried to make a break for it. In the end, it took the threat of gluing the 'microphone' to his hand, several promises to do whatever he wished, several promises to be his best friend, and a lewd suggestion from Reno of what they could do instead to get Cloud to consent.

Cloud sat on the desk, swinging his feet, as they were not long enough to reach the floor. Reno and Zack both sat on the floor expectantly. "Um... What should I sing?" Cloud asked.

"That one song!" Zack volunteered. "The one I was listening to when it was raining and depressing outside."

Cloud took a breath and began to sing, surprising everyone in the room with his voice.

What did you do?

What did you say?

Did you walk or did you run away?

Where are you now,

where have you been,

did you go alone or did you bring a friend?

I need to know this,

'cause I notice,

that your smiling,

out in the sun,

having fun and feeling free.

And I can tell you know how hard this life can be,

but you keep on smiling for me.

What went right,

what went wrong,

was it a story or was it a song?

Was it overnight,

or did it take you long?

Was knowing your weakness what made you strong?

Or all the above,

oh how I love to see you smiling.

And oh yeah,

take a little pain just in case.

You need something warm to embrace,

to help you put smiling face.

I want to be you,

whenever I see you smiling,

cause it's easily one of the most hardest thing to do.

Your worries and fears become your friends,

and they end up smiling at me.

Put on a smiling face.

When he was done, everyone was staring at him. Cloud began stuttering half-formed apologies, but was caught up in a warm hug from Zack. Drunk or not, he knew what to do to keep Cloud around.

Tseng took his leave, but not before noticing Sephiroth's tender eyes as he gazed at the boy.