A huge thank you to everybody who reviewed the last chapter, I'm glad that you all enjoyed it so much!
On Another note, I am now back at school so my recent run of fairly good update times will probably decline again... Either way this year is a fairly shot one, but really important none the less for me schooling wise, so please bare with me :)
Cloud decided that he hated parties; especially ones where there was so much attention on himself. Being part of such a small group meant that every damn person there managed to find a way to try and interact with him. Being the highest scoring exam taker didn't help either.
Aside from that, Cloud had to put up with being in the same room as the people who had more or less destroyed his life... Even if they hadn't gotten around to doing it yet. Thankfully Sephiroth was more anti-social than he was and hadn't bothered to so much as look at him since he arrived. Hojo on the other hand waisted no time in starting to circle him and the other new Third-Classes like a hawk with new prey. Although, Cloud thought darkly as he watched the deranged scientist, to him we are probably just that; prey...
Not for the first time that night, Cloud wished that he could simply leave and walk away. This sort of social interaction was more along Tifa's line, or better yet; Yuffie, but not him. Since he had been back at Shinra he had been forced to interact with more people than he had in years and a party of this scale was really testing his patience for the very company he was attempting to more or less bring down from the inside... Too bad there was so much security... Although, Cloud was tempted to see if he could beat them all and kill Hojo in the one night...
As he was pondering this Zack made his way over after a round of talking to the various people that had taken an interest in his own SOLDIER carrier.
"Cheer up Spike, it's your party and you look like you just want to go on a killing spree." Zack said cheerfully, earning a heated glare in retaliation.
"I do." Cloud answered honestly.
"Well that's just tough." Zack chirped happily, "You can't, so just enjoy."
Cloud knew that there was no point in attempting to explain his aversion to large groups of people when they had already had this argument several times earlier that afternoon as they were getting ready. It hadn't worked then and it had a 'slim to none' chance of working now.
So, Cloud decided that he was simply going to ignore the raven-haired man for the time being, if only for the very fact that he was so damn happy and comfortable in such a social environment.
Zack, having instantly recognised the 'cold shoulder' that he was getting from the blond couldn't help but laugh. It never ceased to amaze him how one person could be so damn comfortable while battling his way out of impossible situations, but if he was placed in a room that he had to actually act civil... Then everything went straight to hell.
At the sound of his friend laughing at his discomfort, Cloud's scowl only grew darker, which thankfully for him scared off the next lot of people who had been coming to scope out the 'up and coming star' of the new SOLDIER generation.
"What have you done to annoy him now Puppy?" Angeal asked upon walking over to where he had seen his student and Cloud standing and drawing a lot of attention from the surrounding crowd.
"Nothing 'Geal, I swear." Zack said through his laughter, "He did this one all on his own."
Angeal merely raised an eyebrow at the blond, who decided then and there that simply ignoring everyone was in his best interest until he was away from people who talked too loudly and smelt to strongly of either wine or faux expensive sprays.
"You sure know how to pick them my friend." The smooth baritone voice of Genesis washed over the three from just behind Angeal as the red-headed man made his presence known. "You have one who is much too cheerful, and now another who is far too quiet."
Cloud wondered for a moment if Aerith would hurt him much if he committed suicide...
"I suppose you're right Gen." Angeal replied easily to his childhood friend.
Genesis moved around the taller First to get a closer look at the boy that had held so much of Angeal and his Pup's time over the last few months. He had to admit that the smaller blond struck an imposing figure; it was easy to tell that the blond was lean but well muscled, a trait that was always shown off when one wore the SOLDIER uniform, aside from that the blond simply gave off an air of annoyed confidence that could have possibly rivalled his own at that moment, and the eerie blue eyes that glared resolutely out at the world looked too hold knowledge far beyond his young years...
"Have you ever thought of stage work?" Genesis asked pleasantly, knowing that he wouldn't get an answer from the pissed-off blond, "I can definitely say that you would fill the role of one of the three friends from LOVELESS quite well from looks alone."
Cloud raised an eyebrow at the statement, not believing the man for even a moment.
"Oh god Gen, not now. He looks about ready to rip into the nearest person as it is. Don't go quoting the play now." Angeal mock-begged in a voice that clearly said that he was setting both Cloud and Genesis up for a fall.
Cloud simply glared at the slightly smirking First Class SOLDIER but otherwise continued to ignore the world. Genesis smirked and did just as his friend suggested; he went into an animated one-man telling of his favoured play without so much as a glance at the small book that he always carried with him.
By the end of it, Genesis and Cloud had become the centre of a small gathering of people who had become entranced by the smooth talking First Class as he weaved a story for all to hear. The only one who was both uninterested and unaffected by the passionate display was Cloud himself, who had instead taken to coming up with several strategies to kill every person in the room who had managed to annoy him that night; with possibly the exception of Zack, Angeal and Genesis... Those three he would take his sweet time with and torture accordingly to how much they had annoyed him during that time.
In the end, as the small crown dispersed, Genesis took the time to study the irate blond once again before turning to Zack and Angeal.
"He has a stunning ability to ignore those around him that could possibly even match Sephiroth's..." The red head muttered.
Zack just chuckled, but knew that Genesis was wrong, even when Cloud was at his most distracted he tended to have a very good idea of just what was happening around him. And he knew that while the blond was most likely plotting all their murders, Cloud had also probably listened to Genesis' whole speech.
Despite the amount of fun it had been torturing the blond, Zack did kind of feel guilty now that he had been so cruel... Perhaps he could make it up to Cloud after the party... The raven-haired man couldn't quite keep the smile off his face as he thought about the ways he wanted to make Cloud smile and forgive him.
A small while later, after it had been deemed a long enough period of time for mingling, Mr Shinra himself called for the attention of the room; his large body making it easy for all those in the large room to see him. Cloud noticed with slight amusement that Rufus Shinra stood behind his father, attempting to look proud and strong, but failing while amongst the group of Turks that acted as body guards for the head, and founder of, the Shinra Electric Power Company.
"Welcome Honoured Guests!" Came the snide and guttural voice of Mr Shinra, "Today we celebrate yet another successful exam, with the best of the best from our ranks stepping up to take their first steps in becoming the elite of our society."
'And of course for you all to spend hundreds of gill for me as well', Cloud thought mockingly, attempting to mimic the man in thoughts alone. He decided after a moment of pondering that it was impossible for him to sound as rough and ugly as the man that stood before them.
As the speech continued Cloud took to people watching more than listening, and it was with a spike of hatred that his eyes landed on Hojo where he stood in one of the corners of the room, talking in hushed voices with a few of the people around him.
Almost as though he knew that there were eyes on him, Hojo turned and looked directly back at Cloud, a wicked smirk slowly creeping onto his wrinkled face that sent shivers down Cloud's spine. They stood like that for what seemed like an age; Hojo staring at him with a look that almost screamed a kind of objective hunger, and Cloud finding himself unable to look away from those cold, calculating eyes as though held under some spell that refused to release him.
It was only when Shinra's speech was over and the resounding thunder of all those gathered applauding sounded in his ears that Cloud was finally able to drag his eyes away. He felt as though he had just come up for air after being dragged deep under water, and he found his hands shaking and small beads of sweat running down the back of his neck. There was a dull roar in the back of his mind and it was hard to think.
Therefore when the crowd began to mingle again, Cloud wasted no time in winding his way through the crowds towards the nearest exit to the outside world, leaving a confused Zack, Angeal and Genesis behind.
Pushing past the large doors, Cloud found himself standing on one of the many balconies that overlooked a large majority of the Shinra compound far below. Leaning on the railing and closing his eyes as a soft breeze ran over his face and through his hair, Cloud allowed his mind to slowly cease its constant whirring and forced his thoughts into a coherent order once more.
He wasn't sure exactly why it had affected him so much, but when Hojo had met his gaze like that... Cloud had seen flashes of memories that had haunted him for years, and felt the phantom pain that the twisted scientist had forced upon him.
With a deep breath Cloud pushed any and all remainders of his past from his mind for the time being. He wouldn't be able to freeze up like that when the time came to kill the man, hell he would have to be much closer before he could even get a chance at killing him.
When the door behind him opened Cloud turned to see who had followed him out and honestly almost stopped breathing when he saw Hojo himself standing between him and the only exit from the balcony.
"You have the strangest eyes boy." Hojo said, his voice calm and his demeanour pleasant as though the situation was no more odd than commenting on the weather, while his eyes raked over Cloud's body as though he was already dissecting a specimen in his lab.
"And?" Cloud asked, voice calm as he slipped into a neutral expression.
"I would very much like to have a closer look at what could be the cause of such a brilliant colour." Hojo replied simply, the implications behind the sentence sending a chill down Cloud's spine.
"My eyes have nothing to do with you." Cloud responded curtly. Wishing once again that he had First Sword with him in that moment so he could cleave the horrid man in front of him in half.
Hojo just smiled that demented smile of his and stepped closer to the blond, who took a step back in response only to be met with the railing at the small of his back.
Cloud's mind was racing, and for a moment he thought about simply jumping from the balcony, but he quickly dismissed the idea as he knew that at such a height he shouldn't be able to survive the fall, and that if he was to land unharmed as he knew he would, it would cause more trouble and suspicion than it was worth.
All too soon Hojo stood far to close too Cloud, who was standing with fists clenched as he tried to keep his emotions under firm control and to not lash out and hurt the man. There would be a time and place for that, and it was not the time nor the place yet.
Or so Cloud had to keep reminding himself.
"Hmm, you are a fair subject indeed." Hojo muttered, running a hand up the side of Cloud's face before the blond violently jerked his head away. It was hard enough for Cloud to deal with Hojo being in the same room, let alone right in his personal space and touching him.
"Leave. Me. Alone." Cloud ground out evenly, attempting to move just that bit further away.
Hojo looked about ready to say something when the sound of a throat being cleared caught both of their attentions. Looking over Hojo's shoulder, Cloud wasn't sure if he wanted to be happy or horrified that it was Sephiroth standing there looking down imperiously at Hojo.
"Ah, Sephiroth. What brings you out here?" Hojo asked pleasantly, acting as though he hadn't just been harassing anyone.
"You have been requested inside." Was the stoic response. Hojo sighed heavily before turning back to Cloud for a moment.
"Well, duty calls boy. We shall continue this another time."
"That won't be happening." Cloud said quietly, his voice strong and deadly in its calmness. Hojo merely chuckled and made his way inside without a second glance back.
Cloud stood where he was, his body tense as he remained on high alert as he stood watching the silver-haired man that had yet to move.
"You should be cautious of that man." If Cloud had expected anything from Sephiroth, it wasn't a helpful warning like he had been given; even if it had been said in the most stoic voice any human being could manage.
"Uh... I figured that..." Cloud replied softly, forcing himself to remember that the man standing before him held no ill-will to the Planet or himself. That the man that stood before him was still the man that he would have once trusted with his life.
Mako green eyes turned directly on him for the first time, and for a moment a glimmer of something close to amusement shot through them before it disappeared to be replaced with a cold indifference. Nodding once to the blond man, Sephiroth turned and made his way inside, planning on keeping an eye on the man that had practically raised him...
Cloud was left outside, alone once more with thoughts racing through his mind as he struggled to find a common ground between what he knew would one day happen and what he knew hadn't yet come to pass. For so long he had viewed Sephiroth as his worst enemy; as the man that had destroyed not only his own life, but had attempted to take away everything that was once bright and good in the world by twisting it and fraying it at the edges. Now he was forced to more than simply remember that the silver-haired General had once been a good person, he had to experience it first hand once more. It brought back memories that he had long ago locked away, memories of his adoration, memories of his dreams to be just like him...
On the flip side, Cloud was also forced to once again live in fear of Hojo, made all the worse by the fact that the twisted scientist seemed to have taken an interest in him. Taking a deep breath, Cloud steeled his will against the fear that Hojo stirred within him and focused instead on preparing to make sure that the pain and suffering him and Zack had experienced would not occur again.
"I won't watch you die again..." Cloud whispered quietly to the wind.
And this time he could believe it. This time he had something to fight for, and this time he had the strength of both body and mind to truly back up his words.
Either that or he would die trying.
XxXxX
Cloud stood outside for an indiscernible amount of time, simply lost in thoughts of how different his life was at the moment. And how different he hoped it would continue to be. The cool breeze continued to play with his hair and run over the exposed skin of his arms and face like a gentle caress, working to calm his nerves and ease the tension in his body.
"Spike?" The questioning voice sounded worried behind him, so Cloud turned to see Zack standing just outside the slightly opened door, with the soft sounds of many voices talking floating out to meet Cloud's ears. "You ok?"
Cloud nodded and allowed a small smile to grace his lips as Zack moved out onto the balcony properly, closing the door behind him and moving to stand next to Cloud.
"You've been out here for ages." Zack commented, wondering if his blond friend was truly ok.
"I'm not surprised." Came the soft reply. "I've had a bit to think about."
"Oh," Zack said, tilting his head the slightest to the side in an inquisitive manner, "What about?"
"Everything..." Cloud answered truthfully. "You, me, Hojo, Sephiroth, the Darkness, and about all the things that are both the same and yet so... different for me right now." He continued, feeling an uncharacteristic urge to explain himself in detail.
"You know, you still haven't told me exactly why you reacted so strongly to Seph earlier." Zack noted, phrasing the question as lightly as he could.
"It's not really the place to discuss that here." Cloud noted with a light smirk. He hadn't forgotten his promise to finally explain everything to Zack, but he knew that if there was even the slightest chance of unwanted ears hearing such a conversation, then everything he had already gained would be put in serious danger.
The two continued to talk lightly for close to half an hour, simply taking the time to forget absolutely everything about their enemies and their allies alike. They instead spent the time simply talking about each other. Slowly the dark night before them seemed to brighten just that little bit and the future seemed to be just that little bit clearer...
Until the peaceful moment was shattered when there was an ear piercing scream. Even as the two men turned and raced inside the lights flickered once, twice, and then went out. Plunging the room into darkness.
And then the chaos started.
Neither Cloud nor Zack could see what was happening, but there were several other screams that filled that air as people began to panic and soon everyone was pushing against everyone else in an attempt to get out. Try as he might, Cloud couldn't tell if the person pushing past him at any given time was friend or foe.
In the uproar Zack and Cloud were separated, and Cloud was left feeling very vulnerable considering he had no weapon to use due to the restrictions of the party, and every second longer that the room was in darkness was a second longer that himself or someone he cared about could get hurt.
The calming, uplifted feeling he had been holding onto only moments before was suddenly and irretrievably gone.
Cloud gasped when hands came from no where and wrapped in a bone breaking vice of a grip around his throat, effectively lifting him off the ground and leaving him struggling as he tried to pry the hands from his windpipe.
There was suddenly a breathy laugh in his ear, and a second pair of hands laid gently on his shoulders as he fought desperately for breath.
"I told you that you would pay for the little stunt you pulled in Nibelheim, Cloud..." The voice of Razor whispered softly into his ear. "As we speak, many of my little pets are tearing the guests of this little party to pieces. And it's. All. Your. Fault."
"N-No..." Cloud gasped, beginning to feel the tug of unconsciousness on his mind. The was a scream right next to him and a thick layer of warm liquid coated his face and arms. Cloud didn't need light to tell him that the liquid was blood.
"Master has had enough of waiting. You will be his." Came a cold reply and the hands at his neck tightened just that little bit further. Effectively leaving Cloud thrashing around in an attempt to gain even the slightest bit of precious air.
Just when Cloud's struggles were slowly beginning to die down and he was sure that he wouldn't be able to cling to any form of coherent thought there was the familiar sound of a blade slicing through the air and seconds later the grip around his neck was gone.
Cloud fell to the ground on his knees, drawing in air in large gasps, and hearing Razor grunt as a second slice of a blade cut through the air above his head and must of at least nicked the shadow.
Only moments after the second slice, a blinding light filled the room from the back corner. In the revealing brightness, Cloud saw Genesis standing by the wall in front of both Mr Shinra and Rufus, with a ball of materia shining with the power of many suns, and showing an amazing ability of control as he lit up every corner of the room.
Standing above Cloud with sword drawn and in a defensive position was none other than Sephiroth, his blade poised delicately at the throat of Razor.
The scene around him was one of a bloody massacre. Every where Cloud turned his eyes there were dead and mutilated bodies. His eyes saw the torn open remains of the other recently appointed Third-Classes and he felt sick. Growing puddles of blood heralded the death of many of the aristocrats and wealthy. Cloud calmed only slightly when he saw Zack standing a little ways away, Angeal standing with blade drawn next to him. Cloud figured that if it were not for the three First Classes and their allowance to carry a weapon when they pleased many more would be dead...
"What were you trying to achieve here?" Sephiroth questioned stoicly, keeping Masamune in position at the intruders neck. All the other enemies had seemed to melt into the shadows themselves upon being slayed. Razor merely smirked and looked down at Cloud.
"Remember this Strife; It is not over." And then Razor seemed to melt away into the shadows, leaving the room in a frozen silence. No one moved.
Cloud couldn't think.
He was deprived of oxygen, the sight of so much blood that was inadvertently caused by his unwillingness to submit, the fact that the very man that had tried to kill him numerous times was now the one who had saved him, and the fear he had felt when he had lost track of Zack and he had been at the complete mercy of the shadows that hunted him was enough to drive him that last little step into unconsciousness.
The last thing Cloud recognised before his mind completely left him was the strong arms that prevented his head from colliding with the freshly painted rose coloured floor.
Well, once again I apologise profusely for such a long wait. But the attempt to get back into the school routine, coupled with a crazy work load this year was quite stressful. I hope you all liked the chapter and I look forward to hopefully hearing your thoughts :)
