Well, this chapter is definitely an attempt to make up for just how slow I have been in updating previously, and honestly, the amount of fun a writer can have when you include Reno into the plot (even though his role in this chapter is smaller than I would have liked)... :D Needs no explanation. Enjoy!
Cloud was in disbelief.
Of all the people he thought may have been chosen to be his shadow, he certainly had not expected the red headed, loud mouth Turk. With Reno following him, Cloud could foresee a million ways things could go wrong.
Reno had a bad tendency to attract bad situations; almost as badly as Cloud himself.
"Yo." Reno greeted, moving past the stunned blond and into the room beyond, "Nice place you got. Bit... Bland though, don'tcha think?"
Cloud ignored the comment and closed the door. There was a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach that had accompanied Reno through the door.
"Tseng sent you?" Cloud asked, hoping that maybe there had been some mistake.
"You bet." Reno replied, sending a cheeky grin towards the blond. "I think he was just trying to get me out of his hair though. So sorry, but you're stuck with me."
Cloud wanted to bash his head against a hard surface in that moment. After knowing the red head for so long, Cloud knew that Reno was a good person at heart; but at the same time, there had been so many occasions that the Turk had caused more harm than good.
Zack, throughout the last few minutes, had simply been watching; unsure on how to react to Cloud's obvious dislike of the red headed Turk. Zack had a feeling that Cloud knew Reno from his own time, and he could only guess that the bond wasn't too fond of him either.
"Come on blondie, lighten up!" Reno said, his grin informing the two other men quickly that he was trying more for a reaction from the blond than a relaxation.
"Please tell me you know how to shadow?" Cloud asked, obviously doubting Reno's abilities.
"Of course I do!" Reno responded indignantly, "I go where you go; keep you safe while keeping an eye on you."
Cloud was very much tempted to find a very hard surface and see which was stronger; it, or Reno's head. The red head's straight forward manner was only irritating at the moment.
"Yes, but can you do it properly?" Cloud retorted tiredly, "You know; quietly?"
Reno put up a wounded look, but the amused glint in his eyes gave him away.
"Why Cloud! I am hurt that you could doubt my impeccable abilities." Reno mocked, clearly anything but hurt.
Cloud sighed and ran a hand through his hair, he doubted that anything else would be able to shock, surprise, or even trouble him today. He was simply too worn out.
Of course, if he looked back only a few hours later he would be cursing himself for such a thought.
The three young men fell into a strained silence. Reno soon began wandering around, looking into all the still empty draws, cupboards and shelves. Cloud moved to stand by the window, letting his gaze fall over the Shinra compounds below and letting his thoughts run rampant for a while. Zack looked between the two like a lost puppy, having no idea what to do in that moment.
This lasted for a little while until a soft knock on the door broke the silence. Zack jumped up from where he had finally decided to sit on the lounge, and went to the door with slightly more enthusiasm than was probably necessary.
The door opened to reveal a very tired looking Angeal, who stepped in and made his way towards the still blond by the window with Zack close behind. The tall first wasn't even phased by Reno's presence; apparently he had been filled in on the situation.
"Hey 'Geal, any news?" Zack asked, hoping for something that would make the last 24 hours seem less daunting.
"I just got out of a meeting with the President and Tseng." Angeal said, taking the time to ruffle Zack's hair before focusing on Cloud once more. "They believe that you had nothing to do with the attack, and they are now more concerned with your protection; after all you are the only remaining recruit to pass the exams."
Cloud simply nodded, turning to look at the tall First and seeing the concern that was thinly veiled in his eyes. "Good."
Angeal gave a small smile in response to the near silent remark. He could see the relief in the way Cloud's shoulders relaxed just slightly. After all, out of all of them, the blond had the most to loose. It was ironic, Angeal thought, that even though Cloud stood to loose so much, very little of it was for himself.
"Well, Razor did say that he would be back. More or less." Zack commented, sending a bright grin towards Cloud, who relaxed even more at the comforting gesture.
"However there is some bad news..." Angeal said, already knowing that neither of the two young men were going to like it, "Tseng and the President changed their minds about who was to train you. It will no longer be me."
As expected both pairs of eyes were on his in a second; Zack's wide and pleading already, while Cloud's were cautious.
"Why?" Zack whined.
"Who then?" Cloud asked, a bad feeling once again moving to sit in the pit of his stomach.
"I am not sure why, as far as I could tell there had been a request from someone of high standing. As to who, I haven't been informed yet. My guess is that I won't know until after you."
Cloud frowned and looked back outside once more, his mind attempting to compile a list of names that may be interested in his training. It was a list that consisted of nothing more than vague guesses that he honestly doubted.
"Who would take interest in my training?" Cloud asked, hoping that maybe the tall First would have a better idea than he did.
"I really have no idea Cloud. I was as surprised as you when I heard." Angeal admitted. "Either way you will know soon enough. You are to report to the VR room at 6 this evening."
"Today?" Zack questioned, "But he hasn't even rested!"
"Apparently who ever has taken interest in Cloud wants to begin as soon as possible." Angeal explained.
Cloud simply nodded his head. He knew that it would be better to simply go along with what Shinra wanted for now; while they might have said that they were only interested in his safety he wouldn't put it past them to want to keep an eye on him for other reasons as well. It would be best to tread carefully.
"Don't worry blondie, I'll be right behind you, yo." Reno interrupted, managing to sound more like a perverted stalker than a reassuring shadow.
No one decided to comment.
"Either way, you have a few hours Cloud. Go rest up." Angeal said, making it more of an order than a suggestion. The tall First knew that if he made it an option then the blond would never rest. As it was, Cloud still looked at him with a slight challenge in his eyes; only managing to prove Angeal's assumptions as correct. "Now."
With a small sigh Cloud relented and moved away from the window. He had already wanted some sleep, but he was used to not getting it; even after the last few months. Old habits die hard... Cloud mused as he entered his room.
He knew that Reno would still be there when he woke up, and he knew that Angeal and Zack would be back before he had to leave.
Cloud found it much easier to push aside this thoughts and concerns with that knowledge running through his mind...
XxXxX
Cloud woke up naturally with time to spare before he was due to report to the VR room. Quite frankly, the blond was slightly apprehensive about the possibility of using the Virtual Reality training simulator after the last attack that had happened while he and Zack were training. The Darkness had already been in once, what would stop it from attacking again.
Aside from that, the only other real concern Cloud had was exactly who he would be meeting. He could only hope that at very least it would be a neutral party that he could play the oblivious, high-achiever boy for that would ensure he gained a good report, while also lowering the chance of attack. Hopefully.
Cloud dressed in his newly supplied Third Class uniform and equipped First Sword before leaving his room. Reno was sprawled over his lounge with a bottle of fizzy drink and a packet of chips watching something on a portable device. The red head barely looked up as Cloud entered, only sending a distracted "Yo." in the blond's direction.
Cloud raised an eyebrow at his apparent shadow but otherwise did not comment and he make his way to his small kitchenette and scouted around for something to eat. He had to settle for a strong cup of coffee and a few pieces of bread. Not that he was complaining; he had eaten much, much worse over the years.
After eating, Cloud contented himself with cleaning First Sword. It had been a little while since he had done it, and as always it allowed Cloud a little amount of time where he didn't have to think. He just needed to act. Sadly, the only other time he could really achieve that frame of mind was when he was fighting.
Maybe some training wouldn't be too bad.
Sure enough, not long before he was due to go Angeal and Zack returned; both smiling when they saw the preoccupied blond carefully cleaning his sword. They had both noticed that Cloud often fell into a cleaning pattern when he needed to think clearly, or when he didn't want to think at all.
"Hey Spike." Zack greeted playfully as he sat next to the blond. Cloud gave a nod of acknowledgement and a small smile to the raven-haired man before putting his focus in the final touched for his sword.
Once done, Cloud sheathed the sword and turned his full attention to his two companions.
"Feel better?" Angeal asked, noticing the slightly more alert shine to Cloud's eyes and the more relaxed posture.
"Much." Cloud replied softly, thankful to Angeal for pushing him to rest. He had to remember that here he didn't need to try and stay awake and alert for days at a time with only increasingly small periods of rest every now and then. Here he didn't need to rely on only himself to survive and to keep everyone safe from an enemy that seemed to have no weakness.
"That's good to hear." Came the rumbled reply.
With a look at the clock, Cloud decided that it would probably be better to get moving, he would rather be early than late. Despite his seemingly total entrancement to the portable machine, Reno also stood up and was surprisingly ready to go.
Zack couldn't help but chuckle though when he noticed that there was a single chip stuck to the side of Reno's face. Cloud simply raised an eyebrow as the red head looked at Zack in confusion before proceeding to turn in a complete circle trying to what he thought must have been stuck on his suit.
Finally Reno looked up at Zack with a glare and opened his mouth as though he was going to accuse the raven-haired man for something, but just then the chip dislodged from Reno's cheek and fell directly into the red head's hand.
"Well... Damn..." Reno muttered before quickly putting the chip in his mouth and swallowing. Getting rid of the evidence.
By this point Zack had fallen into fits of laughter and even Cloud and Angeal were looking on with amused gazes. For once Reno decided not to comment and simply shrugged before moving to the door and making a quick exit to wait for Cloud in the hall.
"You want us to come with you Cloud?" Zack asked once he was able to catch his breath. Cloud thought about it for a moment before shaking his head with a small smile.
"I'll be fine. It would be best to go alone this time at least. Until we know who it is."
"That is probably a good idea." Angeal commented, "When you are finished go to Zack's room. We will wait for you there."
Cloud nodded his agreement before moving towards the door. He had really wanted their company, but at the same time, if this was some kind of set-up, he knew it would be better to keep them away.
Once he met Reno in the hall, Cloud made his way straight up to the VR room. It was pointless to delay any longer.
Reno followed along as promised and, for now at least, he managed to remain quiet. It was a small blessing to Cloud, who spent the time calming his thoughts so that he would be able to think clearly and sharply whatever the situation.
Despite that, he was no where near ready enough when he finally met who his trainer was going to be. If anything he thought that Gaia must be playing some sick joke on him.
It was none other than General Sephiroth who stood waiting in the VR room. Despite the fact that Cloud was early, it seemed to him that Sephiroth had already been waiting there for quite a while.
Upon opening the door and seeing the man that Cloud had spent nearly his entire time in Shinra attempting to avoid, he had been sorely tempted to just turn around and walk back out. But he had already been seen, and to walk away now would only raise a lot of unwanted questions.
"Good. You are early." Sephiroth said, his voice and face as emotionless as each other.
"You're my trainer?" Cloud asked, "...Sir?" Cloud kept his voice neutral, and barely remembered that here he was expected to act according to rank. Sephiroth merely nodded before looking at the red head behind Cloud.
"You are dismissed for now." Reno nodded obediently before quickly exiting the room.
Cloud wasn't sure what entity he had pissed off, but he was sure wondering if he had done anything to earn this. To have the General and poster SOLDIER training him was something that he had once dreamed of; once wished for with all his might as he chased his dream of becoming SOLDIER himself. But, of course, he had never received such a honour, and he most certainly had never heard of anyone else being trained by Sephiroth either. The closest anyone got was speeches and the occasional demonstration for new recruits.
In fact, as far as Cloud knew, Angeal was the only First Class to have taken on a mentoring role; and when it came to Zack, it was no surprise that Angeal had seen the potential and acted upon it.
Sephiroth turned and began adjusting the settings for whatever training program he had chosen. Cloud only watched in silence for a moment as he attempted to gather his currently scrambled thoughts.
"Why?" Cloud asked, knowing that he could very well be reprimanded for such a question.
"I was tasked with your training to ensure we do not lose the final recruit for the SOLDIER program in this batch." The silver haired General answered blandly, "It is also believed that you may be the target of another attack, and it is my duty to either catch or kill the one responsible."
"Why not General Hewley, Sir?" Cloud pushed, hoping that maybe the man was in a good enough mood to continue answering his questions; as it was he was shocked at the length of the previous answer.
"Angeal already has his hand full with Fair." Was the simple reply, "Now, we will begin with a simple tester program that will determine your current level. You will soon be supplied with your own credentials to access the system yourself."
Cloud just stood there for a moment as he watched the man before him; he had a feeling that there was more to the story than Angeal having Zack already, but Sephiroth hadn't left further room for questions.
Finally Cloud moved to grab a pair of VR goggles and took up position in the middle of the room. He felt uncomfortable as he placed the head set on, especially since he was now unsure about how he was suppose to act around a Sephiroth that was sane, and seemingly had the interests of others at least somewhere close to the forefront of his mind. It was difficult to make past memories and feelings of hate and anger simply wash away, especially when Cloud didn't know if he would be able to prevent such a thing from occurring once more.
Even as the scene of the VR room was lost behind a multitude of blue fluorescent cubes to be replaced with a monochromatic training simulation, the blond was unable to quiet his thoughts and feelings of unease.
So he simply drew First Sword and took action. After all fighting was always easier that emotions and thoughts.
XxXxX
The next few weeks crawled by at an agonisingly slow pace. Each day seemed to be nothing more than a new way of delaying Cloud from the task at hand, and there was no immediate way to change that either.
Reno was an annoyingly constant presence, but even he managed to have his moments of quiet that allowed Cloud some time to himself. Zack and Angeal spent a large amount of time with the blond. Both had been nearly as shocked as Cloud to learn that Sephiroth had taken the trainer role, but since neither fully understood Cloud's hesitation yet, they couldn't understand Cloud's concerns either. In the mean time both man had also taken to trying to figure out a pattern to Hojo's erratic movements within the company, but for all their searching they were about as likely to be able to predict the man's whereabouts as what the weather would be in Wutai. Aside from that, and Cloud's new training schedule, the three managed to find time to do some of their own training; the only down side being the constant presence of Reno in the background.
The training with Sephiroth itself was largely based in the VR room, and despite the whole thing having run smoothly for a while now, Cloud was still on edge. Sephiroth would direct Cloud's training and occasionally comment on the blond's technique or actions; however there was never a flicker of emotion behind the cold mako-green eyes. So Cloud simply did as he was instructed, making sure to slip up occasionally and tone his skill down so that no suspicions would be raised again.
The only other concern that had been bothering Cloud was the fact that he hadn't yet been called to go for his mako testing. It was a process that all newly instated Third Classes were suppose to undertake within the first week or so to determine the individuals tolerance to mako. It was suppose to be from those tests that the level of mako and frequency of injections was determined from.
So in this case, the silence was what worried Cloud the most, despite having been concerned about the testing for quite some time due to the fact that it would likely display the mako currently in his system; knowing that something was wrong only put Cloud further on edge. To him, it felt far to much like the calm before storm.
And if that rising storm hit, Cloud had a feeling it would hit hard.
With a final swing from First Sword, Cloud dispatched the final machine of the training program. And with a message of 'Mission Complete', the scene dissipated to reveal the inside of the VR room. Removing the goggles and placing them on their allocated stand, Cloud moved from the centre of the room to where he had left a bottle of water.
"Good." Was the only comment he received from Sephiroth, who had been monitoring the blond's progress.
Taking a long sip of water, Cloud allowed the single word to hang in the air. There was no point answering something that was not a direct question. Collecting the few items he had brought with him Cloud got ready to leave, he was hoping to catch up with Zack and Angeal in time to join them in training. It was about the only time they could get something close to privacy to discuss things; and that was only because Reno thankfully saw no need to be within ear-shot when the three of them were training, and according to Zack, they had found out some interesting information recently.
"Strife." Cloud paused before walking out the door and turned back to face Sephiroth, carefully hiding his surprise at being addressed. "You are to report to the Science Department first thing tomorrow morning."
Cloud nodded once, "Yes Sir." And with that he walked out.
There was something strange with everything recently; he had only been wondering about when he was due to go to the labs not long ago, and now it suddenly arises. The timing with Zack and Angeal's news of having found information was also a little too convenient. Things had been quiet recently, and thinking back on it; it had been too quiet.
After everything that had happened since Cloud woke up, it had been the most quiet since the last attack. Sure there hadn't been any physical threat during his initial time as a cadet, but much of the trouble had been adapting to this new life while trying to keep his head down and avoid attention.
Ever since that very first attack from Razor in the dorms, Cloud's life had become a roller coaster of movement and reaction. A dangerous game of hide and seek.
And currently, it was the other sides turn.
All the blond could do was wait and try and be ready for whatever move they may make. Something that he was reminded would be difficult as Reno came into sight leaning against the wall waiting.
"Yo." Reno greeted, pushing himself off the wall to walk along with Cloud.
"Hey." Cloud responded half-heartedly, mind still distracted. Reno watched the blond for a moment, yet again filling away everything he was learning in a secure section of his mind as per orders. Tseng had let slip that he believed that there was something more to Cloud Strife than what the world saw.
So far Reno had seen nothing out of the ordinary except a young man who seemed far older than his years, and what he could only call a tortured soul; whatever had happened in Cloud's past obviously had a large effect on him today.
And Reno wanted to know what it was.
Sure it might not have been his business, but he was a Turk! It was in his nature to want to stick his nose into everyone else's business. And Cloud was just shrouded in mystery; it was impossible not to want to know.
He just had to find a way to actually learn something about the withdrawn blond...
Pretty soon, the two had made their way into the elevator and down to the bottom floor, before exiting the building. The Turk had quickly gotten used to Cloud's odd training habits of going from one session of mandatory training to yet another one willingly just after. Sure, Angeal would only allow him to join if he made it on time, though. Something about if he couldn't make the beginning, then he would be overworking himself too much.
Sure enough though, both Zack and Angeal stood waiting for the blond at the edge of one of the many outdoor fields. Cloud held onto the fond memories of training there with Zack and not long after Angeal. One particular night laying there looking at the stars was still at the forefront of Cloud's mind whenever they got there.
"Just in time." Angeal commented with a soft smile as Cloud placed his gear on the edge of the field. "Zack was starting to worry."
"'Geal!" Zack yelped indignantly at he accusation, but the slight reddening of his cheeks gave him away.
"Well I made it." Cloud replied with a soft chuckle. Zack put on one of his million-watt smiles before preceding to pounce Cloud... Or attempting to anyway. Cloud had long ago learnt all of Zack's little warning signs and had been well prepared, stepping to the side just in time for Zack to fly by and land with an undignified Thump on the ground.
Angeal rolled his eyes at the display, a wry smile forming. Reno laughed loudly, sending a few jabs at the groaning Puppy. Cloud sent a warm smile of apology to Zack before helping him up.
"One day I'll learn not to do that." Zack muttered as he rubbed the spot on his head that he had apparently thought would be a good landing cushion.
"Maybe one day." Cloud replied, sarcasm running lightly through the sentence. "Anyway, we should get started soon, we have a lot to do."
Both Angeal and Zack understood that Cloud wanted to talk, and so they began moving out onto the field, leaving Reno where he sat. Even as they began a light spar session, the small bout of smiles had make everyone feel a bit lighter and more relaxed.
"So what did you find?" Cloud asked, carefully dodging a swipe from Zack and returning with a low kick that the raven-haired man easily jumped.
"Turns out that Hojo has been looking into some rather weird stuff." Zack answered, "We got a message from Vincent last night. He said something about Hojo sending people out to some place called the 'Northern Crater', or at least he said that it will be called that."
Cloud nodded, processing the information as he sent some quick jabs towards Zack's currently undefended abdomen.
"What would be want there?" Cloud mused.
"Dunno, Vincent said he was going to dig a little deeper. Aside from that Angeal found out about some supposed facility deep under Midgar that the little scientist likes to frequent."
Cloud's thoughts first went to the Deep-ground incident, but he quickly pushed it aside. He doubted that they would be connected.
"How deep exactly?" Cloud asked, his mind furiously working.
"Deep." Was the only reply he got as Zack took a leaping jump over his head and attempted to blind side him. He blocked the move.
"I've been ordered to go to the Science Department tomorrow." Cloud stated, wondering if his companions would have any opinions on the strange timing.
"Tomorrow? And you just found out?" Angeal asked, a frown forming at the information.
"Yeah." Cloud confirmed, "Why?"
"Usually you get at least three days notice Spike." Zack answered. It's really rare for there to be less.
"This could be concerning." Angeal noted, moving as if to correct something as Zack and Cloud still sparred.
"I thought so too. However, aside from that I need to figure out how I'm going to hide my mako levels. I had help once, but I don't know if it will work a second time."
Silence fell over the group for a short while, the only sounds being that movements of the two sparring.
"Well, it will take a while to process the testing anyway, so we will have a little time to figure out what to do. Perhaps we will have to alter the results somehow?" Angeal mused. The other two could only nod their agreement for now. There wasn't really much they could do.
XxXxX
The sparring continued for a while longer; giving them time to talk a little bit more, and to also just relax into something familiar. Soon enough though, they had to call it a night. Angeal bid everyone goodnight and moved off to try and get some of his ever mounting paper work done. As it was, he was badly behind.
Cloud and Zack headed up to the blonds room with Reno tracing along. It had been decided at some point that dinner would be at Cloud's, even if there was no special occasion. Apparently Zack was in sore need of something to do that didn't involve more training and as usual he turned to the blond.
Zack also had a little something planned for Cloud that he believed was long overdue by that point. He would only have to get Reno to disappear for a while.
Later that night, all three men were sitting in Cloud's small lounge room, Reno engrossed in some nonsense show on his portable device once more while Cloud and Zack spent the time relaxing and simply talking.
It was nights like these that Cloud loved the most.
It wasn't until late that the blond decided he should be get some sleep if he was to go to the labs the next morning. He had been half curious and half surprised when Zack followed him to his room, but he saw nothing wrong with it and instead welcomed the raven-haired man in.
"Hey... Cloud?" Zack asked, his demeanour changing slightly making him seem slightly shy.
"Yeah?"
"Think I can crash here tonight?" The raven-haired man continued, managing to confuse Cloud slightly as Zack would usually just crash for the night anyway when it got really late.
"Of course." Cloud replied, looking at Zack and trying to see whatever was making Zack act so strange. Zack smiled then, a softer, more intimate smile than usual and then quickly moved to pick up a now surprised blond before walking over to the small single bed.
Zack didn't hesitate to fall onto the bed, laying a protesting Cloud on top of him. Crystalline blue eyes looked up at him in a mix of confusion and amusement.
"Don't worry," Zack said softly, a glow of red adorning his cheeks for the second time that night, "I just... want to be close."
Cloud's featured fell into one of his rare full smiles as he moved to lay more to the side of Zack, getting more comfortable while still remaining in the raven-haired man's arms.
"Sounds... Great." Cloud admitted, feeling warm and safe.
Those two words sent Zack's heart fluttering for a while, and he doubted that Cloud could possibly know just how important he was to him. Some time since they had found him in the Wutai forests, Zack had come to completely depend on being able to see those blue eyes, and being able to pull smiles from stubborn lips.
Cloud was soon pulled into the soft embrace of sleep, the feel of Zack's arms around him making him feel impossibly comfortable. Somewhere between full sleep and dozing, he thought he might have heard Zack mumble something softly, but he wasn't sure.
An echo of "I love you." rang through a sleep addled mind.
It may have been forgotten by morning, but it had been the best sleep Cloud had had in years. The constant smell and feel of Zack left him more content and relaxed than he thought possible. It was heaven, and Cloud didn't want it to end.
But as so usually happens; all good things come to an end.
If only Cloud could have been prepared for just how brutally he would be ripped away...
Wow, biggest chapter in a while. I am certainly proud of how quick this one came out; considering I was at a camp for the past week for study... I clocked over 30 hours of study, and still managed to get this done! :)
I will be very interested to hear what you all thought about this one...
And I'm sorry for not replying to reviews, but on the camp I only had phone internet and wasn't able to. But I absolutely loved them all! Thank you all so much!
