Once More, With Feeling... – Chapter 23: Careful Observations

Summary: So many people trying and failing to watch their actions and words…

Author: Illusor Meaneld

Rated T: for Descriptive violence and injuries, No Adult Situations, No Cussing.

Disclaimer: I did not create, and do not own the characters from Final Fantasy 7, They are owned by Square-Enix, and I am simply borrowing them for my own (and hopefully your) enjoyment.

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The day started out as a regular day for Cloud, he attended his morning Weapons Training Class with Sergeant Kerring, they had started into group skirmish practice. So Cloud got to try his hand fighting against multiple targets as they fought within the room. Zack was never allowed to teach this particular exercise, since it required a lot of careful attention from the instructor. The other boys in his squad were mostly quiet, Cyril managed to 'find' and fight Cloud fairly regularly, but unlike his attitude from before their 'sparring incident' Cyril was always silent. Logan and his two main lackeys fought Cloud only sparingly.

Cloud wasn't quite sure what to make of their avoidance; they seemed to almost take pains to know where he was when the students were moving about the room. The result of this odd practice was that Cloud ended up more often facing off against the boys he hadn't had occasion to get to know well before. Young Fallon Connor seemed to be his opponent more often than not; he was of medium build with brown hair and eyes almost the exact color of 'chocolate'. His weapon skills were about average for the class, but he was very quick at adapting. Another youth, Kyle McKinzie, reluctantly faced off against Cloud as well; he seemed to be struggling in the class, so Cloud tried to go easy on him. With red hair and green eyes, the boy reminded Cloud a bit of Reno, … now if only he weren't so shy…

Cloud left his first class in a good mood, idly debating which of his squad-mates were most likely to make it into SOLDIER. He was almost humming to himself as he thought, but his musings were interrupted by a particularly familiar set of footsteps. Even as he noticed them, the person picked up his pace, by the time Cloud looked up to meet the vibrant Blue eyes Zack was sprinting down the hallway in his direction. Cloud only had time to yelp indignantly before Zack had swept him off the floor in a crushing hug.

"ZAAA-CK!" Cloud wheezed, squirming vainly, "You… Promised!"

"Cloud!" Zack whimpered, pulling back enough that the Cadet could breath, "You… you're my friend right?"

The blonde was stunned when he saw tears threatening at the corners of the young SOLDIER's eyes. What the Planet? "Of course!" He hastily assured his upset friend, "I said we were friends right? We're friends Zack! Best friends! Awsome pals!"

"You'd tell me if anything was wrong… wouldn't you Cloud?" Zack's grip tightened a little, Cloud fought to keep a wince from his face, Zack was genuinely distressed!

"Zack… You know I would, … I don't claim friends lightly, and you and I are Best friends forever." Cloud wriggled an arm free to pat Zack on the head lightly, but his smile only served to make the youth sniffle,

"You… you're not gonna go away right Cloud? You're not… you … you'd do everything to stay here right?"

Cloud found himself frowning slightly, Gaia, what was he going ON about? … "Zack…" the blonde began,

"I'm serious!" Zack whined,

"Zack! … Is this about the Turks?" He questioned with sudden insight, "I don't want to join the Turks Zack, I want to be in SOLDIER! So don't worry about it okay? I'm not going anywhere alright?"

Zack nodded hesitantly, and loosened his grip even further. Cloud took this opportunity to squirm free and settle himself a little unsteadily on the floor, wincing at the small bruising forming on his sides. Zack was staring at the floor, rubbing his arm and shifting in place uncomfortably. Cloud stared back at him, wondering what had so worked the boy up, he still was unhappy… perhaps a bad dream? Rough day?? … Cloud slowly smiled, whatever it was, he knew a good remedy for this kind of emotional upset.

"Hey Zack," the SOLDIER 2nd looked up, still looking like a rather kicked puppy. Cloud smiled encouragingly, "You look like you could use some ice-cream." Zack blinked a couple of times before perking up hopefully,

"Ice-cream?"

Cloud nodded, "Yeah, … Let's go get some ice-cream alright? My Treat!" Slowly Zack mirrored Cloud's grin,

"Really? … Oh but... I can pay! You're just a Cadet and all…"

Cloud chuckled, "I'm also a Turk Intern, that's a decent paycheck."

"Huh?" Zack stared, Cloud just snickered,

"C'mon! You need a pick-me-up, Ice-cream's on me! What kinds do you like?" Wrapping his free hand around Zack's Cloud led the way, his own spirits quickly lifting as Zack began happily debating his favorite choices of frozen deserts. Cloud had a little free time, he could pick up some lunch while he was out, and he didn't have to report to Tseng for another hour and a half, more than enough time to cheer up his friend.

Zack was always worth it.

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Angeal leaned casually against a wall, down the hallway from where his protégé assaulted Cadet Cloud Strife. In his hands the Lieutenant held a folder full of important-looking documents, which he intentionally flipped through and extended a significant effort to avoid looking directly at the young blonde down the hall. Next to him, stood Genesis, the other SOLDIER 1st also had a stack of papers, but his gaze was decidedly bored where he looked over the documents. Both of them quietly observed the spectacle Zack was making, and heard as Cloud dragged the youth off with promises of 'ice-cream'. Once both the boys were out of earshot, Genesis leaned over conspiratorially to Angeal,

"So… what theory does THAT support?" The Auburn-haired SOLDIER muttered under his breath.

Angeal paused for several moments, gazing in the direction his pupil and the subject of their interest had disappeared. "Hmm…" He began, shuffling the papers in his hands, "I think that supports the 'Cloud is not a spy' theory of Zack's."

Genesis snorted quietly, and the both of them slowly made their way back to the SOLDIER section.

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Once Cloud returned from treating Zack to Ice-cream, the two friends parted to their various responsibilities, Zack to find Angeal for his customary training session, and Cloud to report to Tseng for today's Internship assignment. Cloud made a quick detour to his room to change from his SOLDIER Prep. Cadet uniform, into his blue suit.

Cloud had barely made it to Tseng's office when the door burst open the blonde's shirt-front grabbed, and with a sense of déjà vu, he was yanked bodily inside the room.

"RENO!!" Cloud yelped, glaring ineffectually at the red-headed youth who grabbed him. It might have been considered a hug, if not for the fact that Reno had pinned both of Cloud's arms to his sides and was now grinning at Tseng who watched on impassively.

"Got the newbie Tseng!"

Tseng nodded, glancing at Cloud's irritated face, and Reno's smug one. Finally he stepped forward, "Reno was concerned Cloud, he was unable to locate you after your classes today."

Cloud, who had stopped struggling once he realized Reno had no intention of immediately releasing him, looked up at his superior in mild surprise, he twisted to glance back at his partner, who twitched a crooked smile at him, before returning his gaze to Tseng. "My friend Zackary Fair was having a bad day today, … so I took him out for ice-cream after my classes."

"Ya took 'im out for ice-cream? How come ya didn' invite me yo?" Reno shifted position enough to rest his elbow on Cloud's head,

"He was having a bad day Reno," Cloud sighed, rolling his eyes up to meet his partner's "You don't exactly make an effort to put him in a good mood when you're there."

Reno chuckled and shrugged, "'spose not. Ah well, I wanted ta get'cha! Today's special yo!"

Now that Reno had relaxed his hold, Cloud took a moment to shrug the larger boy off him, shifting to stand next to the red-head instead. After straightening out his suit and dusting the wrinkles off, he looked Reno in the eye, raising one of his blonde eyebrows slightly, "Special? How is today in particular special?" He asked, folding his arms over his chest.

"Reno was supposed to inform you that your appointment to choose your Turk weapons was this afternoon." Tseng interrupted smoothly,

Cloud blinked twice, his gaze flicked quickly to the raven-haired Turk, "what? Today? … he said it was going to be in a week… it hasn't been that long."

"Eh, … a week's a relative term yo." Reno shrugged, "Anyways, if ya'd been where I coulda found ya, I'd'a told you it was t'day."

"Have you given some thought as to what you might choose for yourself Cloud?" Tseng's voice cut in again,

"Yes sir." Cloud responded automatically, earning himself a long-suffering sigh from Reno,

"Then let's go! Ain' got all day y'know?" The red-head snagged Cloud's arm and ignoring all protests began dragging him down the hall. In short order all three of them stood before a non-descript metal door.

"The Turk Armory." Tseng murmered,

Reno hastily pushed open the door at Tseng's gesture, "Welcome to our Toy box!"

Cloud raised one eyebrow again, but obligingly stepped inside. The smell of mineral oil and cloves hit him immediately. Cloud paused on the threshold, lifting his nose to inhale the scent. Until this moment he hadn't realized how much he'd missed polishing his sword. It had been a calming ritual. Glancing around he took stock of the room's interior. The walls were covered in shelves and racks; the sheer variety of weapons inside was stunning. Every thing from firearms and explosives to poles, blades, and throwing weapons. Cloud walked around intently, barely noticing the grin on Reno's face as he examined the bounty surrounding him. He eyed the guns carefully, though guns were not his first choice, they made a good backup weapon. The displayed pieces were good quality, and well made. He nodded to himself before continuing around the room. The far wall did hold some swords and daggers. Cloud busied himself eyeing those. Broad swords, two-handed blades, even a few katana. Cloud hefted one of the blades experimentally, before replacing it with a sigh. His fourteen year old body, even with all the training he'd been doing, was just not strong enough to wield a real sword effectively. He toyed with a few of the daggers, but eventually put them back in disappointment. a deep voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts.

"Oi, you must be Cloud."

Cloud jolted, his head whipping around to the man who now stood behind him. The tall, muscled figure grinned crookedly, He was incredibly burly, his arms covered in hundreds of tiny scars. His white t-shirt and dusty pants were covered by a leather apron. Currently he was wiping his hands on a small towel. One black eyebrow raised at Cloud, and his dark brown eyes twinkling.

"So Cloud… what're you lookin' fer?"

The blond glanced back at the sword rack, and then returned his gaze to what must have been the manager of the armory. "My weapon of choice is a sword." Cloud explained, turning to face the man completely as he spoke. "But I'm too small to wield any of these swords properly."

The manager nodded, giving Cloud a considering look. "D'ya think a sword'll do ya good little one?"

Cloud smiled, "I was hoping for a sturdy short-blade… perhaps something concealable? I know I'm too small to be intimidating, so rather than walk around flashing a blade, and acting like I've got something to prove, I'd rather capitalize on people underestimating me."

The burly man grinned, "Ach, that'll do well then." He eyed Cloud for a few moments longer before nodding to himself, "Yeh, that'll do well. Come with me Cloud, lemme show you some ah the Confiscated stuff."

Curious now, Cloud followed obediently. The larger man led him past several racks and into a half-hidden room in the back.

"By the way, m'name's Rory." He gruffly informed Cloud as they walked.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Rory," Cloud returned, noting the quick snort of amusement from his guide.

In the back room, there were several cases and crates, Rory stepped up to a particular stack of those and opened a few containers, gesturing for Cloud to come up and look. When he stepped forward, Cloud felt his eyes widening, "Confiscated" weapons, translated to "Wutaian" weapons. These must have been picked up during the war. Gazing over the pickings, Cloud couldn't resist the smile that spread across his face. The katana outside were standard length, and even Shinra swordsmiths knew how to make those these days. Reaching into one of the crates Cloud drew out a small black-sheathed blade. It was a spine-sheath with a flat-edged blackened ninja sword. The notch at the base of the blade was small and sharp. But there was no guard or cross-bar. Reverently drawing the slender weapon Cloud hefted it experimentally, slowly mimicking a few basic arm positions to determine the weight.

"It's perfect." Cloud murmered softly,

"D'ya know how ta take care of that blade?" Rory raised his dark eyebrow, half smirking as he wrapped his huge arms across his chest.

Cloud returned the smirk, "Do you have the oil, cloth, and powder ball?"

Rory burst out laughing, the deep throated mirth shaking his entire body, before he presented a small wooden box to Cloud, it was stained and dented, but the Wutaian lettering on the top was enough of an indicator as to what it was. He accepted the maintenance kit with a short bow, grinning when Rory laughed again.

"Ah like ya kid." The tall man chuckled, "Take good care a that y'hear? An' pick out a couple more pieces afor ya leave."

Cloud was smiling when he returned to where Reno was browsing the lances. The red-head grinned back, but when his eyes alighted on the blade in Cloud's hand his jaw dropped.

"Whoa! No way! That's a Wutaian blade!" Reno gaped, noting the black metal. Tseng stepped up next to the red-head, appraising the weapon quietly.

"Yeah." Cloud chuckled, "It's small enough for me, and a good weight."

"Nice." Reno gave an enthusiastic thumbs up.

"Rory said I could pick out something else too."

"What?" Reno goggled, "He said that? He never said that to me!"

Tseng's lips twitched, "I believe Rory said you could pick a 'couple' more items Cloud."

While Reno was still gawking, Cloud nodded and moved to examine his choices once more. He was happy with his sword, small as it was, so he tried to pick weapons to compliment it. He located a wrist sheath with a set of slender throwing knives, a light-weight black pistol, and at Tseng's suggestion a materia bracer for his other arm, with 3 materia. "Lightning", "All", and "Restore".

An inner-pants holster placed the gun at the small of his back, while both the wrist sheath and arm bracer were covered by his sleeves. The spine sheath went under his coat and when Cloud buttoned up his suit jacket and twitched everything into place he was pleased to note that none of it was readily apparent. Tseng watched the transformation speculatively. Finally nodding his approval while Reno just grinned broadly, snickering when Cloud turned around to show off his 'ensemble'.

Tseng was as quiet as always when the three of them made their way back to his office. The rest of the day was filled with normal errands. Delivering paperwork and performing odd-jobs to the higher ups in the company. No one seemed to notice that Cloud just happened to be armed this time.

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((The weapon I chose for Cloud, I've actually had in mind for a while. I discussed said blade with Lizeth before she completed the fanart piece. For those of you who are curious, the blade I chose can be found here: www [dot] blades-uk [dot] com/large_pic [dot] php?product_id=2543 … hopefully that link will work if you edit in the periods. ^_^

Also, Thank you to Parselmaster for pointing out my continuity errors in the last chapter. I fixed those. . I'll try not to finish chapters so late at night anymore.))