I love reviews. I think I'm addicted. It's fun.
Anyway, this is the longest chapter I've written. For anything. Soak it in. It probably won't ever happen again.
Vincent is introduced in this chapter! Hurray! Of course, it's not a very good introduction. Oh well, it's been decades since he's had to deal with people. Hope you like it.
Oh, and Tifa won't be in the main pairings, but if you wanna see her with someone, just let me know.
-o-o-
"Gen?" Cloud asked, looking a little concerned. "What's wrong?"
Genesis had finally made it back to the room and he was currently glaring at Sephiroth with as much hate as he could muster. Cloud took notice of the look and he was worried. Angeal and Zack glanced at Genesis curiously before moving to set up breakfast.
"Nothing, Kitten. My issue is with Sephiroth," Genesis assured him, glaring ceaselessly at the General. He was ignored as Sephiroth preferred to pour himself some tea and relax in a chair instead. He opened up his laptop and began working on it.
"Which makes it all of our problem," Cloud insisted. Genesis blamed Cloud's annoying persistance on the blondness. He'd work on it with him.
Angeal sighed and shooed Zack away from the scalding hot tea. Zack pouted and lightly blew on the small burn he had already gotten. Without anything else to do, he bounced over to the bed and jumped in with Cloud. Cloud squeaked cutely and Zack grabbed him for a tight hug. Zack wanted nothing more than to just stay where he was for a while. Just relaxing in a warm bed with Cloud. Then he remembered what they were talking about.
"Gotta agree with Cloud on this one, Gen-Gen," Zack laughed. "We don't need any unnecessary tension... Outside of the bed, of course."
"Okay, I have to ask," Genesis finally broke off his glare to stare at his kitten and puppy playing cutely in the bed. His mindly briefly flashed back to the first time they all had sex. In the back of his mind he laughed at how many layers of clothes Zack had on (even with the fire heating the room) in contrast to how many Zack had on in Gongaga. "What's with the nicknames?"
The playing stopped and twin pairs of bright blue eyes peeked at him from under several layers of blankets and sheets. Genesis supressed the urge to either sigh or squee. Honestly, he had been looking at them and suddenly they were under the covers. It was like magic.
"Do you not like them?" Cloud asked. He pouted unknowingly and Genesis nearly snorted.
"It's not that," he hurriedly corrected. "Well, I don't like Gen-Gen. Zack, you're an idiot for even thinking it, but I just want to know why?"
"Well we don't have a nickname for you," Zack said as if it was obvious. "We call Sephiroth Seph and Cloud has millions of them. I have Zack."
"And what about Angeal?" Genesis questioned, looking at said man. Angeal just looked back amusedly. He wasn't about to help.
"What about him?" Zack rolled his eyes. "I call him 'Geal sometimes, that's good enough."
"So that just leaves you," Cloud summed up with an eager to please smile.
"Fine, alright," Genesis grumbled. Those two... Honestly... "Gen will do. Not Gen-Gen."
"Great! So what's your problem with Seph, Gen-Gen?" Zack asked, bouncing on the bed. He fought the covers enough to have the room for it but Cloud flopped over on him, giggling quietly. Zack swiped at him playfully.
Genesis glared at him and took some half-hearted swings for himself that Zack bounced to avoid. Zack seemed to be having a great time, even if Cloud was sabotoging him and Genesis wanted to hit him.
"Pup, not on the furniture," Angeal said sharply. Zack grinned and bounced off and ran over to Angeal.
"Angeeeeeeal," he whined and was snatched up into a hug by his mentor. He laughed as he was swung around. Genesis and Cloud watched fondly before Genesis remembered he was going to explain.
"Sephiroth called his huge sword advertisement," Genesis pouted.
Sephiroth wandered back to the bed as Angeal and Zack laughed. He scooted over to Cloud to pull him out of the maze of covers. "Genesis, you're the one who called it overcompensation, I just corrected you. It was rude."
"Sephiroth?" Cloud asked, looking up at him as he was freed from the last few blankets. "What were you advertising?"
"Nothing, Cloud," he cooed at the big, blue eyes, picking the cadet up and setting him at the table. "What do you want to do today?"
That was a sufficient distraction. Cloud paused and considered. He wanted to go see his mom, of course, but how to do it? Sneak and do it so the town doesn't see him or just match right over without a care? He thought it over as he answered.
"I want to go see my mom... But without you guys, okay? I want to tell her in private and then bring you to meet her," Cloud explained. "Not that I'm embarrassed or anything, it's just... I don't want to throw everything at her all at once. I love her too much for all that."
"It's fine, Cloud," Angeal soothed, patting him on the head with his free hand, the other firmly holding Zack to his chest. Cloud grinned up and leaned into the touch.
"I was actually hoping you would say that," Genesis confessed, joining Cloud and now Angeal and Zack at the table. "I was hoping to shock and appall the nice, small-minded townsfolk."
"Not too bad," Sephiroth said at once, noticing the concerned look on his youngest lover's face. "Just enough to make us laugh."
"We really shouldn't," Angeal said. He had a strict moral code that would not be broken, even for the annoying Nibelheim natives. "The townspeople may be rude and close-minded but we should have enough honor to respect their way of life. There is no need to act as they do."
Zack groaned as he was set in his own seat. He rolled his eyes so Cloud could see and explained, "Angeal is honor-crazed. Seriously, he won't shut up about it."
"Zack," Angeal scolded firmly. "Honor is something that shouldn't be taken lightly."
"Honor is what kept you from asking Genesis for apples off his tree," Zack pointed out, rolling his eyes again. He knew he was throwing Angeal under the bus but he really didn't care. "Even though you were poor and Gen had the tree with the best apples, you wouldn't steal them because you were best friends, right?"
"Ange?" Genesis asked in confusion, looking at his oldest friend. "What's the pup going on about?"
"While we were deployed in Wutai one time I shared stories," Angeal said reluctantly, looking distinctly uncomfortable. "We touched upon Banora Whites."
"You know that if you wanted some apples, you could have just asked for some apples," Genesis growled. He loved his friend and even his friend's honor but when it got in the way of Angeal getting what he needed and deserved, Genesis found himself angry. In his eyes, Angeal deserved everything and his stupid honor wouldn't let him have it.
"That's pretty much what I said," Zack told him, digging into the food and piling some on Cloud's plate while he was at it. Sephiroth took his own food as well and he added more to Cloud's plate. Cloud smiled at them and began to eat.
"Sometimes honor can be quite the burden," Angeal said simply. He reached for the food and frowned when his hand was slapped away by Genesis. He sighed and directed his gaze at his friend, ready to face his wrath.
"You know what this means, don't you?" Genesis growled, pointing a bread knife at him menacingly. "You're forcing me to go back there to that damned place just to get you some Goddess-damned apples!"
"Genesis," Angeal began firmly but was cut off.
"Angeal, what would you do if the situation was reversed?" Sephiroth asked practically. "What if Genesis was the poor one that had to steal to survive? Wouldn't you want to give him anything you could?"
"Of course," he began. "But-"
"How do you think I feel now, knowing that you wanted some of my apples for so long?"
"But it's-"
"Angeal, give it up," Zack advised. "You spoil us all and then talk about honor and we never do anything for you so..." Zack shrugged. "Just let Gen get you some apples."
Angeal sighed in frustration and reached toward the food again and was mildly relieved that he didn't get his hand hit away this time. He piled his plate and saw Cloud looking politely confused.
"Genesis and I grew up in Banora," Angeal explained for the cadet's benefit. "It's a place where Banora White apples grow, also known as dumbapples. They grow at random times in the year so there is no harvesting season or anything, which is where they got their names. We came from slightly different backgrounds-"
"Like hell," Genesis muttered moodily, stabbing at the food with a spork. "I was the mayor's son so I was pretty well off. We had our orchard. Angeal was the son of a poor couple. They had nothing but the Buster Sword. His dad died when he was young so he had to be the man of the house. I think that's what drove him so crazy."
"And he had to steal apples sometimes, but not from Genesis' trees because they were BBFs forevs or something," Zack added.
Angeal just glared at them a bit, looking uncomfortable though he really shouldn't. Cloud looked at him and he avoided looking back.
"Me and my mom didn't have much either," he offered and then frowned. "I used to be really sick and my mom and dad had to work hard for my medicine. I got better slowly and money was really tight after my dad ran off. It was okay though. The town didn't like me but they liked my mom well enough. I worried a lot when I left for Shinra."
"What was it like?" Sephiroth asked curiously. He had never been in the spot where he could choose so he wanted to know why people would choose Shinra willingly.
"Well it was sad. I was growing up and getting more and more different by the day," Cloud said, thinking back. "After a while I realized that I couldn't stay forever so I packed some stuff and said my goodbyes and left. I didn't really have a fix on any goal but I ended up at Shinra, so I applied."
"What about you, Zack?" Sephiroth shifted his gaze to the man in question.
"Gongaga's a small town, definitely not big enough for me," Zack joked. "I didn't want to grow up to farm and eat toads and junk. I wanted to be a hero. It was my dream." Zack grinned at Angeal.
"And for you two?" Sephiroth moved on.
Genesis and Angeal looked at eachother with distant eyes. Angeal began, "Well we knew that we had some greater purpose. In a small, agricultural town it wasn't unheard of to turn to Shinra when you had nothing else."
"That's how it was for us," Genesis added. "One day we were just walking around the orchards when I brought up Shinra. We talked and decided that we had to go on to bigger and better things."
"Did you get what you wanted?" Sephiroth had to ask. "When you decided in that orchard, did you achieve everything you wanted?
"Yes," Angeal said quietly, looking to the fire. "But we never expected the horrors we had to face for our childish dreams."
No one had anything to say to that. The rest of the breakfast was eaten in silence.
-o-o-
Cloud decided to just walk over to his mother's home. Screw hiding and sneaking around. He really didn't have anything to hide. He wasn't ashamed or anything. If the people wanted to throw a fit, they could throw their fits but they had better be ready for him to throw a fit right back at them.
So without any further hesitation, he got dressed in nice clothes (he wanted to look good for his mom) and said his goodbyes to his lovers (who were planning on wandering the town for a while, if only to freak them all out).
They kissed him and wished him the best of luck and he was out the door and on his way. It was early afternoon, so everyone would be out but he found he didn't really care. When the innkeeper and her husband gave him a dumbfounded look, he grinned at them and waved. He walked off while whistling a little tune.
Everyone gaped at him as he walked merrily through the center of town towards his old home. He was actually enjoying being back home, even with all the whispered comments about how he was kicked out and made to go home. Whatever.
"Cloud?" the voice was a higher pitch than his own, womanly and soft. He turned and smiled at the own of said voice.
"Hi Tifa," he greeted.
"Hi Cloud," she smiled back.
He reached out for her hand and took it. She didn't hesitate or try to shy away. After he left, he still wrote the woman and she was the first to know about his sexuality. Their friendship had benefited from that. Tifa gained an invaluable friend (a male one that wasn't interested in her steadily developing breasts) and so did Cloud (a female one that wouldn't get the wrong idea). They could be friends without worrying about any tangled emotions.
Simple. Uncomplicated. Wonderfully childlike.
They walked towards the Strife home, swinging their interlocked hands merrily, chatting about life, what he was doing there and anything else that they could think of. Tifa was excited to hear that she would finally be meeting Cloud's boyfriends and she was surprised to hear about him picking up two more.
It seemed all too soon when they came upon Cloud's childhood home. He bid his female friend farewell and debated on knocking or just walking in. He went for the latter and he opened the door slowly and peeked in.
"Mom?" he called out, stepping in slowly. He was thrown back several inches as a small blonde woman threw herself at him. Cloud reeled from the shock and - holy crap, he was taller than her now! - could do nothing but hold on as he was squeezed tight.
"Cloud!" she cried out, finally pulling away. "Why didn't you tell me you would be visiting?"
"Sorry, mom," he blushed. "It was a sort of snap decision."
"Come in, come in, don't be a stranger in your own home," she practically wailed. "Oh Cloud!"
"Sorry, mom," he said again, laughing. He felt so much better. It was like he was going back in time to when he was nothing but a child. He stepped away from his mother and walked into the home, marveling at every little thing. It was surreal, coming back after everything.
Everything he had done since going to Midgar washed away. He never learned to shoot or be shot at. He never had to kill anyone on orders he didn't understand. He never was bullied in the barracks. But with the bad went the good. Meeting Zack and being assigned to Sephiroth. He never was hugged hard enough to break him in half by Zack and he never kissed Sephiroth. He never met Angeal and Genesis, never had sex.
He looked back at his mother with wondering eyes.
"So much has changed, but..." Cloud trailed off and he was looking around the cabin again. "Nothing changed here. Nothing... It's the same."
"This is your home, Cloud," the woman said, smiling softly. "Nothing will ever change for you in here. You're safe here."
To Cloud's embarrassment, he began tearing up despite his best efforts to blink the tears away. His mother moved to the bed and pulled him with her. They curled up there, Cloud in her embrace, and suddenly Cloud was nothing more than an innocent child again.
Cloud never cried harder in his life.
-o-o-
"Mom?" Cloud asked after a while. He had stopped crying a while ago and was let go by his mother, who withdrew and set to puttering around the house doing meaningless chores.
"Yes, Cloud?" she asked, looking at him.
"I did have a reason for coming, other than to see you," he admitted. She put down her dust rag and gave him all her attention. He wanted to hide his face in the pillows.
"I'll be blunt, okay?" he bit his lip as his mother nodded. "I have four boyfriends."
...That went over like a ton of freaking bricks.
-o-o-
After Cloud calmed down his mother and explained, she actually took to the idea of four protectors for her baby fairly well. She then turned to him and demanded they be brought over for dinner tonight - no protests.
Cloud agreed and departed in high spirits. Tifa met him halfway and he invited her to come meet his boyfriends. She agreed with a smile and let him lead the way. He knocked on the door to the room and called out first, just incase.
"Hey, it's me. Make sure you're clothed, I have a guest," he said as he rapped on the door. There was cursing and fumbling from behind the door and Cloud's eyebrows rose as he looked at Tifa. He sorely hoped that they weren't doing anything. Before he could give up and walk away, the door was thrown open. Zack stood there in all his six-layered glory.
"Hey there, brought a friend?" he questioned, moving out of the way so they could enter. They did, Tifa giving Zack a shy smile that he cheerfully returned as she passed. She held herself self-consciously as the three older men looked up from their cards.
"I hope you don't mind, but I brought Tifa with me," Cloud announced. "We were friends before I went to Midgar and we stayed in touch. Tifa, the one that looks ridiculous in 80 million layers is Zack Fair, SOLDIER 1st Class, Second in Command of Shinra's armed forces." Zack pouted and Tifa giggled. "I think you know Sephiroth, he's been in the papers up here." Tifa nodded and Sephiroth quirked an eyebrow. "The one with the beard is Angeal and the other one is Genesis."
"So I'm just the 'other one' now, Cloud?" Genesis asked, pretending to be hurt.
"Pretty much, yeah. Before you ask, my mom took the news pretty, um, badly actually. But she reconsidered because I'm her baby. She wants us all for dinner tonight. Oh, you're invited too Tifa," Cloud told her belatedly, just remembering. He crawled into the bed and patted the space beside him. "Just because the beds are together doesn't mean we've been doing anything in it. You can sit."
Tifa took his advice and sat, shyly looking over at the men who abandoned their cards in favor of turning towards the youngest people in the room. Zack just shrugged and flopped onto the bed, nearly crashing into Tifa. He looked at the older men.
"So what's on today's agenda?" Zack asked pleasantly.
"Food," was Sephiroth's first thought. "Cloud's mother wants us for dinner."
"But what else? The entire day can't be centered around food, Seph," Cloud scolded, leaning up against Tifa, who returned the favor.
"Well if we work hard enough at it," Genesis declared. "We can make it happen. Today can be food day."
"Genesis," Angeal scolded, tearing his fond gaze off of the trio to give his best friend a look. "We are not making today about food. We have dignity and manners."
"And honor, right?" Cloud summed up, smiling at him slightly.
"Well, yes..."
"I was just stating what was already planned," Sephiroth cut in. "We have the day to fill but we have to be back on time. Is there a specific time we should arrive, Cloud?"
"Nah," Cloud muttered, drawing invisible patterns on the cloth beneath him, thinking. "When I was little I just wandered home whenever it got dark, so I assume we'll wander on over when it gets dark."
"You willingly went out in that weather?" Zack asked, amazed.
Cloud rolled his eyes and looked at Tifa. She snickered quietly. "Zack's from a tropical jungle. He's rather delicate when it comes to the cold."
"Shut up, Cloud! You're the one who almost passed out from the heat in my hometown!" he pointed out, crossing his arms childishly.
"Yes because it's not like you should have a higher tolerance because you're a SOLDIER or anything," Genesis stage whispered to himself, looking away and sipping at his tea delicately. Zack just glared.
"Well," Tifa said unsurely. "You could always just hike around the mountain for awhile. There are some really pretty places."
"You're coming too," Cloud told her pleasantly. "They don't mind."
"Not even gonna ask?" Genesis smirked.
"Would you really say 'no' to me?" Cloud asked practically and they all conceded to his point. "So yeah, you're coming, right?"
"Okay," she brightened. "Oh, I've gotten much better with my master!"
"Then we have to promise that we will never spar," Cloud told her cheerfully. "I'm horrible at hand-to-hand. I'd rather hack someone to death with a sword. But since I'm just a cadet, I have to use a gun mostly unless I'm training."
"Oh, that's not fair," she sympathized.
"Mmm?" Zack perked up. He had been drifting to sleep but the use of his last name pulled him awake. "You call?"
"Zack's last name is Fair," Cloud explained. To Zack he said, "No, go back to sleep."
Zack nodded and buried his head in the blankets again.
Genesis smirked and Sephiroth's own wasn't far behind.
"It's just not fair," Sephiroth said quietly. "We have to keep track of which fair is our Fair."
"I don't think this game is fair," Genesis pointed to the cards, grinning wickedly. "You can see my cards."
"Angeal can be the judge," Sephiroth assured him. "He's always fair to us."
Zack threw off the covered and howled in fury, launching himself at the guilty party. They just snatched him out of the air and hugged him. They looked back to the bed when they heard muffled noises coming from it.
It seemed that Zack's crash course flight left the blankets to settle over the youngest teens. They seemed to be fighting their way free.
"Y'know," Zack commented, staring hard at the struggling mass. "If Cloud wasn't gay, I would be getting the wrong idea.
Angeal hit him on the back of his head and helped them out of the entrapment. He hefted Cloud into his arms and after a moment did the same for Tifa. She looked surprised but Cloud just smiled, clinging to Angeal's sweater.
"Just go with it," he advised. "So much better than walking."
"Um," she answered intelligently.
"We take a vote," Angeal announced to the room, ignoring his passengers. "Go out exploring or no?"
"They have mako springs here, right?" Genesis asked. "I say explore."
"As do I," Sephiroth agreed.
"I'm willing," Angeal said.
"Urg, cold," Zack groaned. He shook his head and grinned half-heartedly. "But I'll go too."
"Cloud?" Angeal asked, looking down at the cute face. He couldn't resist so he placed a gentle kiss to the cadet's temple. "Exploring?"
"Of course," he answered at once, eyes lighting up. "I get to take my sword, right?"
"Yes, Cloud. But no fighting dragons. And keep a buddy with you," Angeal ordered.
"Fine by me," he agreed easily. "Tifa can be my buddy."
"I don't think that would be a good idea," Angeal frowned.
"Ah, but I can fight!" Tifa cut in, blushing when he looked at her. "I know I'm a girl but I can defend myself fine!"
"I promise you that your gender has nothing to do with it," Angeal announced. "But you two are the only guides we have and if you go wandering off, the rest of us will be lost."
"Not like it's hard to get down off a mountain," Cloud muttered. "Just walk down. Gravity'll help you with it, I promise."
"Don't be a smart-ass, Cloud," Tifa scowled. "It's a valid concern. If that's what you're worried about, we shouldn't have buddies but parties. Three in each."
"That's reasonable," Angeal allowed.
"I call Cloud!" Genesis called out. "No offense, Tifa, but I haven't had sex with you so I'm least attached to you."
Tifa choked on air while Cloud squirmed in Angeal's grip, turning cherry red.
"Genesis!" he screeched, trying to get free.
"Gen, don't tease Cloud about sex. One time I thought he had sex with Reno and I told him as much and I got chased for hours with a kitchen knife," Zack advised.
Genesis rolled his eyes, "Fine then. Sorry, Kitten."
"Not funny!"
Sephiroth smiled indulgently at the group.
"To get back to the original point," he butted in politely. "Cloud should be with Genesis and Zack and Angeal and I can have the honor of Tifa's escort."
"Don't make her sound like a prostitute or something," Genesis said, grinning. Sephiroth took one more drink from his tea and proceeded to grab Genesis and bodily throw him out the door. Tifa watched, blushing and mouth open.
"SEPHIROTH," Genesis yelled from outside the door. "OPEN THIS DOOR RIGHT NOW! IT WAS A JOKE... YOU'RE SUCH A DRAMA QUEEN!"
Sephiroth just returned to his tea and drank some more, completely calm. "And that is the reason for that."
"IF YOU DON'T OPEN THIS DOOR NOW, I'LL MAKE YOU REGRET IT!"
"Good call," Zack agreed.
"DON'T ENCOURAGE HIM! LET ME IN!"
"Sephiroth, that means Cloud's going to be left with Genesis and Zack," Angeal had to mention. The poor kid could handle Genesis, but both Genesis and Zack at the same time? Not likely.
"I have confidence in his bitchitude," Sephiroth smirked. Angeal wasn't convinced but he had to laugh at the comment. Cloud went red and buried his head in the crook of Angeal's neck, not minding the coarse hairs he found there.
"Seeeeeephiroth!" he whined, sounding a lot like Zack.
"Shall we revisit the time in Wutai when you tweaked my nose in front of the emperor and princess?" he asked playfully. Angeal took the hint and set Cloud down. Without the blonde, there was no reason to hold his friend so he set Tifa down as well. Cloud ran over to Sephiroth and was caught easily and hugged tightly.
"Or the time you broke Reno's arm because he grabbed your butt?" Zack laughed.
"Zack! Not you too!" the protests were muffled by Sephiroth's shoulder.
"It's a good thing," Angeal comforted. "Otherwise we might hurt you."
"Hurt him?" Tifa asked, looking concerned. "Why?"
"It wouldn't be intentional," Angeal assured her. "All four of us have had SOLDIER enhancements. We could hurt Cloud if we weren't careful. Even if we weren't, it is an easy thing to get arrogant with a partner. It's how abusive relationships start. One partner just won't speak up for himself or herself."
"We made Cloud promise not to do that," Zack added. Since the pounding on the door stopped, he went over to let Genesis in. Genesis swept into the room, embracing Zack and glaring at Sephiroth, who looked smug over Cloud's head.
"You guys are so weird," she whispered to herself and turned red when she realized she said it out loud. "Uh, sorry."
"Not at all," Genesis assured her, laughing. "It's pretty weird, we won't deny it. Has Cloud told you that Angeal and I are actually dead?"
"What?" she looked shocked, so he assumed she had not been informed.
"Angeal and I were declared dead years ago," Genesis boasted. For what reason, no one knew.
"Life around us is like a soap opera, you have to move fast if you want to catch up," Zack grinned.
"Well, shall we go?" Sephiroth stood up, still holding Cloud. He dangled his legs to indicate that he wanted down. "No, Cloud. I'll hold you."
The dangling became a little more persistent. Sephiroth looked at Tifa and sighed, rolling his eyes for her benefit. He released the blonde and was a little pleased to see him stumble as he hit the ground.
"How can I guide if I'm being carried?" he asked sensibly.
"You could always ride on my shoulders," he pointed out wistfully.
"Uh, no thanks. Where to first?"
"Shouldn't you go get dressed in more appropriate clothing?" Angeal asked Tifa. "You look cold."
"But I'm not. It's actually pretty warm for Nibelheim. This outfit will do fine. I can fight in it and everything," Tifa beamed. Her cow girl outfit looked ridiculous and cold to them, but Cloud just nodded.
They assumed it was a mountain hick thing and scattered to get their own gear. Cloud rolled his eyes and retrieved his sword and moved close to Tifa.
"We can wait downstairs, if you want. It's weird here. You look like you could use a breather," Cloud offered. She looked grateful and nodded. They left without saying anything and four pairs of glowing eyes followed their movements.
"What do you think?" Genesis asked at once.
"I don't know," Sephiroth said slowly. "He said he didn't have any friends from childhood and the Turks confirmed it, so..."
"She's pretty," fretted Zack. "Pretty girl from his hometown that he's known from childhood."
"But he's gay, isn't he?" Genesis' brows furrowed. "Not bi like you. Cloud's gay. He has to be. Not a topping bone in his body."
"You don't have to top with a girl, you just have to be hard," Zack whined.
"He wouldn't cheat," Angeal said firmly. "We should be encouraging friendships without any Shinra influence. It's good to have something other than Shinra sometimes."
"Like you have your mom?" Sephiroth asked, slipping into his leather harness.
"And like Zack has his village. You write don't you, Zack?" Angeal secured his belt around him and levered his Buster Sword onto its place on his back.
"Mmm," Zack agreed, putting his own sword into its spot. He wore it just like Angeal.
"I have Banora and if things get terribly desperate, my parents," Genesis mused. He tugged on his red leather coat that looked a little worse for wear.
"I don't have anything," Sephiroth said quietly. Masamune was naked in his hand and he was frowning.
"Sure you do," Zack said quickly, moving over. "You have Wutai. They like you a little now and you love it there."
"That's true," Sephiroth agreed, snaking his arms around Zack's torso. "Thank you. Let's go see what Cloud and his friend are doing."
-o-o-
"Are they always like that?" Tifa asked as they descended. Cloud nodded, sighing.
"Yeah, sorry. I should have warned you better."
The two took a seat at one of the tables, ignoring the stares of the few people eating in the room. Cloud slouched over the table, supporting his head with one elbow. Tifa leaned forward, laying her head on her arms.
"They seem nice though," she said, trying not to be critical of Cloud's boyfriends.
"They're weird. They aren't for everybody," he explained.
"Yeah, I can tell," Tifa laughed. The bell on the door tinkled and neither one of them thought anything of it until Cloud was wretched out of his seat by a tight grip on his upper arm. Tifa stood up, outraged, and saw who it was who gripped Cloud. The mayor. Her father. She faltered.
"Get away from my daughter," he spat. Cloud looked annoyed.
"What?" he asked incredulously.
"You and those Midgar men will not defile her!" he yelled. "SOLDIERs or not!"
"Daddy, they aren't like that!"
"WHAT?" Cloud was stunned by the accusation.
"I know about big city men! They won't hesitate to hurt a little girl!"
"You're crazy," Cloud had to say. The man slapped him hard and something popped in his neck. He tried to move it and he could, but with searing white pain that made him gasp. His free hand fluttered near the site and Tifa stepped forward, whether to help Cloud's neck or to push her father off the boy, she wasn't sure and Cloud wasn't picky.
"Get off of him," a snarl came from near the staircase and the silent room looked horrified as the mayor turned to see Sephiroth striding forward. "Hand off him NOW unless you want to lose it."
The man dropped Cloud's arm as if he were burnt and he took a step away. Sephiroth still advanced, Masamune in his hand.
Angeal slide in between Sephiroth and the mayor.
"Seph, you have a Cure materia," he pointed out. "Cure Cloud and wait outside, I'll clear this up. Genesis, go with them."
Genesis gave him an annoyed look and Sephiroth didn't back down.
"Sephiroth, for god's sake, take a chill pill," Cloud grumbled, rubbing his neck. "Why is it everything you do is an overreaction?"
"He hurt you," he replied, staring at the man over Angeal's shoulder.
"Oh for... Get out," he sounded a little annoyed now himself. "Get out. You can come back in when you stop being so pissy."
"Cloud?" Sephiroth asked, looking at him now.
"You're doing no good just growling like a pissed off cat," Cloud glared right back when Sephiroth glared at him. "Genesis is acting more mature than you. Zack is too."
Genesis sighed and conceded. He strode forward and grabbed the collar of Sephiroth's coat and hauled him outside with him. He poked his head in to ask, "Coming, Cloud?"
"Seriously, my neck is fine. I'll be out after this is cleared up."
"Suit yourself. Stop pushing Sephiroth, I'm not letting you back in," Genesis turned away and let the door close.
"So what is the problem?" Angeal asked at once, not letting them dwell of the fact Sephiroth just got kicked out by Cloud.
The mayor seemed to remember his original purpose and he puffed out in anger. "I won't have any men defiling my daughter."
"That's good," Angeal said blandly. "I still don't see what this has to do with us and I definitely don't see anything worth hitting Cloud."
"Angeal, I brought Tifa up at the room to meet you guys. They assume that we did something to her," Cloud explained, sounding bored. "He won't listen to Tifa."
"She's been traumatized!"
"Daddy, I'm fine!"
Angeal silenced their argument with a glare and Cloud saw Zack shrink back out of the corner of his eye and got the feeling this probably would not be pleasant.
"You believe we raped your daughter," Angeal stated without any feeling. When the man didn't speak, he continued. "You believe that we are without honor."
"You're from the city," the man growled out. "Everyone knows what goes on in the city."
"I am not," Angeal corrected. "The only one of us that was born in a city is Sephiroth. And I must be unintelligent. I don't understand what you mean."
"In the city girls are defiled!" the mayor ground out. "And you men come in and think you're going to do that to my daughter-"
Angeal sighed. It was carefully neutral but it still made him fall silent.
"You have a rather narrow view on life and I am disappointed that you could not comprehend what is so obvious," Angeal said icily.
The man puffed himself up a bit and glared at him. He glared at Angeal. Zack almost groaned.
"I don't know how the city men treat women," Angeal said softly. "But we are SOLDIERs and we have honor. You have a rather generalized idea about cities and you cannot see how you yourself have hurt your daughter."
"I haven't hurt my Tifa!" he burst out, turning crimson with rage.
"I am talking," Angeal thundered. "You call her yours as if she's a possession. You treat her as if she is weaker than a man and you think that we're hurting her?"
The man seemed to steadily deflate. Angeal glared at him and waited for his response.
"The city is-"
"Have you ever been to the city?" Angeal cut him off.
"W-well no-"
"Then how would you know how they treat their women?"
He was silent at that. Zack decided to take a risk and try to diffuse the situation.
"Well, it's not like we would do anything with your daughter even if she consented," he joked. "Not like SOLDIER is a female friendly place."
"Zack," Angeal scolded, looking at him and losing his edge.
"Yes?"
"Zack control yourself."
"I am. Cloud still has clothes on, doesn't he?"
Cloud turned red and sputtered senselessly. Angeal strode over and grabbed him by his collar and threw him out the door with Sephiroth and Genesis.
The room was silent and Cloud covered his face with his hands.
"Daddy, like I tried to tell you," Tifa muttered, tugging on his arm. "They're together. All of them."
"What?" he sounded startled.
"Some people have open minds," Angeal pointed out. "Some people don't care about gender when it comes to love."
"All five?"
"We have big hearts," he said simply. "This isn't how everyone lives, but we are content with it."
With that he strode out the door, Cloud hastily following. Zack poked his head in and smiled at Tifa.
"We did want you to come with us, but if your psycho-controlling dad says no, we don't want to get you in trouble," he told her and then closed the door.
"I'm going as a guide," Tifa announced, walking towards the door. "I'll be safe and I'll come back before dark."
Tifa ran out to find that they were waiting by the water tower. Sephiroth just finished healing Cloud and they looked over to her with smiles. She grinned and ran up to them. "Thanks for waiting! Now we can go, right?"
"Yeah," Zack enthused. "Let's go to that mansion place first, that place sounds cool even though it is haunted!"
He took Cloud and Tifa's hands and immediately started dragging them along until it registered that he had no idea where he was going. He looked at Tifa. "Um, help?"
"Just go up the stairs there and to the left," she told him. "It's close so there shouldn't be any monsters or anything on the way."
"Aw, too bad!" he chirped. Cloud grinned.
Sephiroth, Angeal and Genesis followed the youngest of their group up stairs and to the left. As Tifa told them, a mansion stood there. It was in a state of disrepair but they still admired it all the same. Sephiroth bit his tongue to stop from telling them how the place bore an eerie resemblance to a place he had seen in his earliest memory.
The path was devoid of any monster life or even animal life. They noted how there was a scarcity of even plants clinging to the rock. Zack noticed all of that, but he persisted until they reached the door and found it locked.
"Break it down?" he asked, looking back at Sephiroth.
"It would be in bad taste," Sephiroth admitted. "I'm sure there must be somewhere else we could enter."
"Does that make this breaking and entering?" Cloud wondered out loud as he was tugged along. He looked at Tifa and was glad to see a rather enthusiastic expression on her face. He worried about her being around his SOLDIER men and it was a relief to see she was perfectly happy.
"No, just trespassing," Genesis assured him.
"Oh. Cheers then."
Zack dragged them all the way around the house until they found an open window. It was small to the point they were unsure any of them could fit in it. Angeal was ruled out immediately. Sephiroth was ruled out as well because he refused to climb through a window. Genesis was considered but they determined his shoulders were too broad. Zack was also a possibility so they made him climb up the side of the house but he couldn't fit.
That only left Cloud and Tifa.
"Cloud, it has to be you," Angeal said apologetically.
"I can do it," Tifa perked up.
"Sorry, no," Genesis scuffed his foot on the ground, not looking at her.
"Why not?" she pouted.
"Erm, well excuse me for being so crude about it but your boobs wouldn't fit through," Genesis said in a rush. Tifa blushed and looked away.
"Okay then, I'll do it," Cloud consented. "I'll see if I can let you in the front door?"
"Yes. Listen, if you need us for any reason, send us a message or do something to let us know you need us," Sephiroth fretted, handing his PHS to the blonde.
"I will, don't worry," Cloud smiled and grabbed hold of the vines. If they held Zack, they'd hold him he figured as he climbed. The window was a tight squeeze but he made it in and dropped to the floor with a loud thud. He heard murmuring from outside so he called out, "I'm okay!"
The murmuring transformed into chuckles and he smiled as well before getting back to the task at hand. He peered through the darkness to see several bookshelves and desks. He finally spotted the door and went to it. He turned the doorknob and pulled.
Nothing.
The door was locked. He nervously wondered why the door was locked from the outside. He stood there, peering around the room, tugging on the doorknob. He promised himself he would not cry.
After a few more moments of nothing attacking him, he released the doorknob and cautiously looked around the room. He scanned the books but they all had scientific titles that made no sense to him. Out of curiosity he pulled a book out and flipped it open. It was promptly dropped and kicked away as a giant spider crawled out and attempted to latch itself on his hand. It looked venomous to Cloud. And ugly. He had several remedies with him but he didn't want to use them. Besides, did remedies even work on spider bites?
He poked his head out the window and smiled at the group to reassure them.
"Question. Do remedies work on poisonous spider bites?" he asked. At their alarmed looks, he hurriedly explained. "I wasn't bitten; I just saw a spider and wondered."
"It should," Angeal called up to him. "But if you are bitten, don't take chances. Come right back here."
"Okay," Cloud agreed. "Another question. The door is locked from the outside. Isn't that a bad thing?"
Once again, they looked alarmed. And at that moment, he quite agreed with them as he felt something move behind him. He whirled around, scanning the room. His heart thundered in his chest. He had never fought alone before. It was a scary thing.
He took his sword from its resting place at his waist and held it firmly. But not too firmly, he reminded himself. He abandoned his spot by the window to slide against the wall to a corner. He couldn't see anything but he felt it. There had to be something in the room with him. He stared until he actually could see something and then he moved forward with his blade.
It wasn't anything major, he was relieved to see. Just a dorky face. He sighed in relief and quickly dispatched it before moving back to the window.
"What happened, Cloud?" Genesis called out anxiously as soon as he could see Cloud.
"There was a dorky face and I killed it. But I can't go any farther, like I said. The door's locked."
"Just stay there. The others are going to break down the front door and they'll find you."
"Genesis, it's fine," he protested. "I can just climb out the window if it's that much of a problem."
"Nah, just keep looking around. What's it look like in there?"
"Dusty. There are a lot of books here but they're all science-y and stuff. I tried opening one and was attacked by a spider," he complained and then heard creaking by the door. "Oh, I think they're outside."
"Wait-"
Cloud had already abandoned the window and moved over to the door. It swung open and Cloud froze. That was NOT any of his lovers.
He screamed and it was cut off quickly. He saw red all around and then there was nothing.
-o-o-
Genesis nearly had a heart attack when he heard the scream. He threw his panic out the window and activated his fire materia and hurled a Fire3 at the window and it served his purpose of breaking the structure enough for him to jump up and through.
The room was empty. Completely empty. The door was open though, so he flew to that and very nearly collided with Angeal. They managed to stop in time and they stared at eachother with wide eyes until it registered.
"Where's Cloud?" Angeal asked.
"I heard him scream but when I got here the room was empty," Genesis shared. "You didn't see him?"
"No."
"He didn't go out the window and he didn't go by you so where the hell is he?" Genesis yelled.
"Calm down," Zack butted in. "Seph and I are gonna take Tifa home because it's too dangerous. You guys should search the mansion. When we get back we'll figure out where to go from there."
"Go, pup," Angeal commanded. Sephiroth nodded behind him and offered his hand to Tifa.
"It will be faster if I carry you," he explained. Tifa nodded and let him pick her off and then he and Zack were off like bullets. SOLDIER enhancements were pretty useful in these kinds of situations.
"I've got the top floor," Angeal decided. "Genesis, you try the first floor."
"Got it," he affirmed but he didn't move. His brow furrowed. "Angeal..."
"I know, it's scary but-"
"No, that's not it," he cut off. "Well, not entirely. Cloud had Sephiroth's PHS, can't that be tracked?"
"Not Sephiroth's," Angeal said disappointedly. "It would be a problem if he could be tracked. We could call it though. But neither of us has a PHS so we'll just have to search while we wait for Zack to show up."
Genesis glumly noted this and he ran back the way Angeal came and began searching the first floor methodically. His search disturbed several monsters (all of which were killed without hesitation) but no Cloud. He had just finished when he heard Angeal should from upstairs.
He didn't think then. He just acted. Cloud had gone missing, Angeal could too and that terrified him. He ran faster than he ever dared to and was there in less than five seconds.
He was overcome by relief when he saw Angeal standing there but it quickly turned to horror as he took in the monster he was facing. It looked wrong on too many levels to count. He pulled out his sense materia and assessed. It wasn't a proper monster, but it had a name. The Lost Number. It had two sides and according to the materia, one was magic proof and the other was hit proof.
Perfect. Angeal was the physical fighter and Genesis had always been better with materia.
Genesis smirked and activated his Odin summon.
-o-o-
When Sephiroth and Zack returned, they found that Angeal and Genesis had just beaten the monster and was now raiding the safe it had come out of. They found a summon materia that Genesis immediately claimed and a key that they proceeded to try on anything with a lock on it. It didn't work on anything.
Without that lead, they decided to pursue their PHS lead. Zack dialed and put it on speaker phone with them all crowded around. They weren't worried about being attacked. They had cleared the monsters out while they searched.
There was nothing but ringing until suddenly it just went silent. The PHS was answered, but without any greeting.
"Hello?" Zack ventured. "Cloud, can you hear me?"
There was more silence and Zack almost called out again.
"Who is this?" a smooth voice questioned.
"I'm Zack Fair," he answered, seeing no reason to lie. "Who are you? Where's Cloud? What happened?"
"...I am Vincent."