Chapter 10: Killing Time
"So what do you think it's all about?" Genesis asked Sephiroth for the third time. Both men still sat at their table in the cafeteria, though neither was eating. Genesis poked at the mangled remains of his eggs with his fork. Sephiroth remained calm and pointedly did not prod, stir, mangle, mutilate, or otherwise play with his food. They each kept glancing at the entry to the cafeteria, but the object of their interest did not appear.
"Angeal said it was stupid and promised to explain," said Sephiroth. He started to tap his fork on his plate, frowned at both inanimate objects, and set the fork down. "It didn't sound serious. We will just have to wait until he gets back."
"You weren't paying close enough attention, my friend. He didn't promise anything. I think he was just trying to get us to drop it. Wanna bet he tries to just gloss over it and blow us off?"
As far as Sephiroth was concerned, Angeal's words had been as good as a promise. "It did seem to cause him a great deal of embarrassment." Sephiroth's mouth twitched into a small smile at the memory of his friend's vivid blush.
"I don't think I've seen him turn that color since we were kids and he had his first real crush," Genesis snickered.
"You mean he blushed back then because you were teasing him about his crush."
"Well, of course. I was pretty merciless, as I recall. Don't feel too sorry for him. He got even later on." Genesis gazed at the cafeteria entrance thoughtfully. "I'm not going to let him off the hook about this business with the Turks, and neither should you. I'm dreadfully curious about this Michael Stevens person who was supposedly from Banora. I've never heard of him."
"Did you know every single person who lived in Banora?" Sephiroth asked with only a touch of sarcasm.
"Banora really isn't all that big." Genesis turned back to him. "But point taken. There were plenty of people I never met, and migrant workers were always in and out to pick dumbapples and a few other crops. Still, if Angeal knew this person, I might've, too, but I just keep drawing a blank."
Sephiroth grunted.
They subsided. Genesis poked some more at his mutilated eggs. Sephiroth ate a bite of his own, not-mutilated eggs. Genesis pushed Angeal's abandoned tray in a circle and then moved it towards the center of the table. Sephiroth checked his PHS just in case he'd missed any messages in the past five minutes.
They took turns glancing at the cafeteria entrance.
Sephiroth said, "Veld claimed the discussion, whatever it was about, wouldn't take long."
"They needed to discuss Michael Stevens, the mystery man of Banora," Genesis said. "And Veld said Angeal'd be back in time to finish breakfast."
Sephiroth checked the time. "It's only been twenty-five minutes. That's not very long. They would have had to find an empty office or conference room."
"That might have taken some time," Genesis agreed. "Especially if they had to go to the other side of the floor, or even to a different floor."
"You're absolutely sure you've never heard of Michael Stevens before?"
"You're the one who just ridiculed me for not knowing everyone in Banora." Genesis scowled at him.
"You're the one who was surprised you didn't know a person from Banora that Angeal knew."
Genesis shot him an annoyed look and started arranging the remains of his eggs into a smiley face.
They went quiet again. A few more minutes passed while Sephiroth watched Genesis create unsophisticated and somewhat lumpy food cartoons. A frowny face joined the smiley face.
Sephiroth said with a carefully blank expression, "I had no idea you had any artistic pretentions aside from Loveless recitations and literary analysis."
Genesis dumped some ketchup onto his plate and used it and some rice to draw a smiling sun shining above the faces. "Don't tell me you never played with your food before? Not even when you were a kid?"
"Hojo didn't approve of such pursuits," Sephiroth murmured.
"Hojo's not here. You should try it."
Sephiroth also poured ketchup onto his eggs and, using a table knife, arranged the resulting, inedible mess into a simple dog head with floppy ears and big eyes. Genesis half stood to lean over the table and get a better look. "Of course you're drawing a fancier picture than I did. Naturally." He sounded disgruntled.
"Angeal likes dogs," was all Sephiroth said to defend himself.
"He likes plants, too. Do a flower next." Genesis grimaced. "Or a bug. His plants always seem to attract bugs. Back when we were Thirds and shared quarters, I always found his rotten bugs around my bed. He even lectured me once about accepting them as part of nature." Genesis rolled his eyes and finished griping with, "He doesn't admit it, but I think he likes bugs, too."
"He just knows you don't like bugs."
"You think he picks houseplants that attract bugs to annoy me?"
Sephiroth only smirked.
"He's not that devious," Genesis declared, sitting back down and folding his arms.
Without saying a word, Sephiroth nodded his head and applied himself to drawing a lopsided housefly in ketchup.
Genesis's eyes narrowed. "You know something about this, don't you? Tell me."
The housefly finished, Sephiroth started drawing a crude flower beneath it with runny egg yolks.
"Sephiroth." Genesis fixed him with an intense stare. "Sephiroth. Sephiroth."
Sephiroth sprinkled salt over the entire creation just to watch it dissolve.
Genesis snorted. "For someone who doesn't play with his food, you're certainly doing a professional job of it. Now tell me about Angeal's bugs."
"I have nothing to say, except that he once told me that annoying you was sometimes an entertaining pastime. He encouraged me to indulge myself once in a while, especially when I needed a light diversion."
"He did pick houseplants based on their bug-attracting superpowers back then!" Genesis burst out. "That asshole! I'm going to find a way to get him back for that."
"You didn't hear it from me."
"No, of course not. Plausible deniability and all that." Genesis gave him the stink eye. "Don't think I'll forget your part in this."
"He was right that irritating you can be an amusing pastime." Sephiroth deliberately smeared his food art into a gooey mess, then set down his utensils, looked up, and pursed his lips. "But I thought he didn't like drama."
"He doesn't like engaging in drama himself," Genesis corrected. "I think he secretly adores watching it, though. Like a show. Why else does he spend so much time with you and me?"
"I for one do not create drama." Sephiroth denied the accusation with a bit more emphasis than necessary. At Genesis's knowing grin, he added petulantly, "And it is impossible to spend significant time in your company without eventually becoming involved in the drama you generate."
"Oh, please, don't act so innocent."
"If you're aware of his motivations, why do you continue?"
Genesis cocked his head, looking smug. "Don't tell me you don't enjoy the spectacle of him trying to calm us down when he's had enough or he thinks we're going too far?"
"Ah," said Sephiroth. Though sometimes Angeal was right and they both did go too far, but he'd never admit that to Genesis. He smiled. "We are all set in our ways, aren't we?"
"Ruts are inevitable facts of life among longtime friends. At least our ruts are spectacular." Genesis checked the time and scowled. "It's been forty minutes now. What's keeping him?"
"Veld is the head of the Turks," Sephiroth said slowly. "Perhaps whatever the meeting was about is more important than they let on."
"Do you suppose he needs rescuing?" Genesis said, rising.
Sephiroth also stood. "I'm sure we pass many conference rooms on the way to our own offices."
Sephiroth and Genesis's PHSs chimed at the same time. They exchanged looks and then checked their text messages.
"That asshole!" Genesis snapped upon reading his screen. "He's not coming back."
Sephiroth stared at his own PHS, baffled. "He sent this to both of us. He says he was running late and had to set up some equipment before teaching his seminar." He snapped his PHS shut and frowned. "At least he says there's nothing to worry about."
"Asshole," Genesis repeated, but with less heat than before. "He's just avoiding us."
"As I recall, the class topic is unarmed defense against swords, so he does have to obtain the weapons before it begins. He might really be short on time. He has invited us to his apartment for dinner tonight at eighteen-thirty. That doesn't sound like avoidance. We all do have busy schedules today."
"He's stalling," Genesis insisted.
"But he will explain at dinner." Of that, Sephiroth was certain.
Genesis grinned like a shark smelling blood. "Then we'd best send our acceptances of his kind invitation."