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Summary:
Warnings:
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by
-Chapter 1-
"Let me be alone." Sephiroth's warning held a dark edge to it that was deeply troubling. He felt angry and confused at the moment. He couldn't get his mind off the monster he'd seen at the reactor. And the question 'You mean you're different?' echoed in his mind, anendless loop pushing his mind to the brink of insanity. His left hand was clenched tightly around Masamune's hilt, unseen knuckles turningeven paler than the alabaster shade of Sephiroth's slender fingers.
Cloud started to leave, then stopped. ~What kind of a friend am I?~ he asked himself. ~He did ask me toleave. But I can see that he needs me, despite what he might beasking. I won't abandon him.~
He turned to face Sephiroth, his eyes shining with sympathy and determination.
"No."
Sephiroth's eyes narrowed as his anger grew, "I suggest you remember who you are speaking to." His anger, which had been growing steadily since their visit to the reactor, reached a crescendo. With a speedborn of rage, he raised his legendary sword and turned to attack Cloud. He wanted to drive the annoying boy away; to get rid of him. Apart of him knew that Cloud meant no harm, that he was just trying to help, but he didn't care. He just wanted to be left alone. Why wouldn't Cloud leave him alone?
Although he had speculated that Sephiroth might attack him enough to have his hand ready on the hilt of his sword, he just managed to avoid being sliced in two.
Sephiroth struck again and again, fueled by his fury at Cloud's resistance. Cloud barely blocking each deadly stroke. "Your sword skills have improved greatly."
"I learned from the best." It was a bit cliche, he admitted to himself, but he was reeling from the compliment, coming as it did from the man the world had put upon a pedestal - the man Cloud had unknowingly lost his heart to so long ago.
The words were barely heard over the din of steel on steel. But they were heard and Sephiroth smiled at the return compliment for a brief moment even as the din of sword on sword went on.
"Sephiroth, please stop this," Cloud pleaded. "Look, I don't care how you were created or what anyone says. You're still the Sephiroth I've always loved." Suddenly, he went very pale. He'd meant to say'admired'. He did love Sephiroth, but he hadn't meant to blurt it outlike that.
Cloud looked around for the nearest rock to crawl under. He couldn't believe he'd just said that. What the heck had gotten into him? ~I cannot believe I just said that right in front of him. What in the world was I thinking?! How could I have been so stupid?!~
"Cloud?" Sephiroth asked. When the blond looked up, he could tell Cloud was in a state of near-panic. That simply wouldn't do; there wasa mission coming up and Sephiroth needed his SOLDIERs in top form. He sighed inwardly. Cloud seemed rather insecure at the moment. Sephiroth realized that if he simply told the spiky-haired grunt to stay focusedon his job or ignored this, the boy would be too upset to do any real work. There was no way around it. Sephiroth would have to admit his feelings to the boy. But first, he wanted to be sure that he had actually heard what he thought he'd heard. "Did you just tell me you loved me?" he asked.
Cloud nodded, morosely.
~Oh gods,~ Cloud though in horror, as he felt the beautiful dream world he'd been living in ever since he'd been chosen to be in General Sephiroth's regiment come crashing down around him. ~He's going to kick me out. How could I have made such a colossal mistake?!~
"Cloud..." Sephiroth's voice wavered a little.
A tremor of rage. Cloud was dead certain that's what it was. ~I'll be lucky if I get out of this mess in one piece.~ he told himself. ~If the General doesn't rip my head off in two seconds I will be extremely lucky.~
"Look, I know it was stupid of me to admit that, and I'm sorry," he blurted out in panic, unable to stand the stress any longer, "but it's true and I can't do a thing about it. And since you're about to throw me out of SOLDIER, may I go and pack please?"
"I love you, too."
Cloud blinked. Had Sephiroth just said...?
"Sir?!" Cloud's voice was filled with astonishment "But... But I'm..."
"Just a grunt?" Sephiroth knew where this was going already. Why would a high rank officer fall in love with a newly recruited grunt?
Cloud nodded. "And you're a..."
"General?" Sephiroth supplied again.
Another nod.
"And that means what?" Sephiroth asked. He'd never really cared about titles, so Cloud being a 'mere' grunt didn't phase him.
"So it doesn't bother you?" Cloud could feel his heart thumping in his chest. "What about what the others will say?"
"I've taught myself to ignore such things." Sephiroth stared into Cloud's eyes, trying to read him. It all seemed too good to be true.A ll his life he'd been mistreated and unloved. Every person who met him ignored the real Sephiroth in favor of some media icon he'd never wished to be.
Cloud's heart was beating so fast now, he thought it would come out of his chest. Sephiroth loved him! He was at Heaven's gate and his angel there with him. If he asked the question that was burning in his heart, that gate might be opened for him. But did he dare ask? He trembled, anxiously. What if Sephiroth rejected him? Admitting he wasin love, didn't mean Sephiroth was ready for a commitment.
"What's on your mind?" Sephiroth inquired as he sheathed Masamune and placed a hand on Cloud's shoulder.
Cloud looked nervous and elated at the same time. "Sephiroth, would you please tell me about your childhood? I want to learn more about the man I love."
Sephiroth sighed. "It's not something I like to think about." he told Cloud.
Cloud put a supportive hand on Sephiroth's shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize."
"I know you didn't." Sephiroth placed a trembling hand over Cloud's.
Cloud could feel Sephiroth's hand quivering and knew that the General's childhood had probably been far worse than him. Suddenly, he wanted to take the man in his arms and let him know everything was going to be all right.
Sephiroth went over to the desk and started filling out reports forShinra. He wanted to get his mind off the childhood Cloud had so innocently asked about. He wanted to forget the injections, the beatings. And those hadn't been the worst of it.
~I lost my virginity when I was seven.~ he thought. ~I'll never forget that awful day. It was... oh damn it all!~ he felt a tear run down his face and watched, absently, as it fell onto the paper. He crumpled it up and started writing again, cursing softly to himself. ~Stop those ridiculous tears! That's no way for a General to behave. And now I have to restart the report. I can't let the others see tear-stains on one of my reports!~
Cloud, however, had seen. He felt horrible for hurting Sephiroth. Hewent over to him as Sephiroth wadded up another paper and threw it into the wastebin.
"Sir, we have a patrol coming up in a minute." he said, timidly, at a lack of the right thing to say to break the cold air that had gathered around his superior.
"Thank you for reminding me." Sephiroth's voice held a bitter tone that made the blonde grunt flinch. He saw the boy's reaction and relaxed. "I'm not angry at you." he told Cloud. He forced himself to smile, for the sake of his newfound love, and was rewarded by a look of relief that spread across Cloud's face. "Let's go."
As he headed out on patrol with the man he loved, Cloud was amazingly relieved. He hadn't blown it with Sephiroth. The man still loved him. That was good.
~Because I want to spend the rest of my life with him.~
As soon as this realization hit, Cloud knew he would not be able to think of anything else until he got an answer.
~But first I've got to ask the question,~ he told himself. ~The real question.~
"Sir," his voice cracked from nervousness as he forced himself to speak, "I have something I need to ask you."
"It's all right," Sephiroth spoke in a reassuring tone to the spiky-haired boy. "You can ask me any question you like as long as it's not about my childhood again. That subject is closed. Are we clear on that point?"
Cloud nodded as he continued to walk alongside Sephiroth. They were crossing the town square when, realizing that if he waited he would lose the courage, he suddenly blurted out:
"Sephiroth, will you marry me?"
Everyone within earshot turned to face them. Cloud turned beet red. He hadn't meant for others to hear him. For a moment he was terrified that Sephiroth might be angered by Cloud's public proposal; then he heard Sephiroth's laughter. At first he was relieved, then he felt a little upset. Did Sephiroth think the whole thing had been a joke?
"I'm not joking, Seph'," Cloud told him.
"I know," Sephiroth replied as he looked into the eyes of the boy wh ohad just proposed to him. He saw love in those eyes; adoration, romance, compassion, and tenderness. He realized that those things were being offered to him at last. All he had to do was answer Cloud's question and they would be his for a lifetime. "I'm laughing because I'm so incredibly happy right now."
The others that were still around them were listening intently to the exchange, hanging on every word uttered between the two men from SOLDIER.
Mrs. Strife had been at market that morning and was just returning home with her purchases. She balanced the bag of groceries in one arm as she searched her purse for her house keys with her free hand. She was so distracted by her task that she didn't notice the large gathering of people and their hushed whispers of curiosity untils he was right upon them. Raising an eyebrow, Skye held her bag with both arms and, her interest perking, went to see what had caused such a large crowd to gather in the town square.
She spotted a man who wasn't speaking to anyone else at that momenta nd went over to him. "Large crowd." she remarked. "What's going on?"
"That blond kid just proposed to General Sephiroth," a man explained, not looking back to see who was asking. "We're just waiting to see what the General's answer will be."
Cloud's mother gaped as she recognized the blond kid in question."Cloud...?!" She had never suspected that her son might prefer men. She pushed her way through the crowd to get a better look at her son and the General. As she reached the front of the whispering throng, she spotted Tifa and noticed how agitated the poor girl looked. She made her way over to the girl, suspecting Tifa would need a bit ofsupport.
Tifa stood nearby, her fists clenched in anger that was directed partly at Cloud, partly at Sephiroth, and partly at herself. Why did Sephiroth have to be so damned beautiful?! Why did Cloud have to be so obsessed? Why had she been so mean to Cloud when they had been children? This couldn't be happening. It just couldn't! Cloud couldn't leave her for Sephiroth! It had to be a joke, an elaborate gag that Cloud was playing on her. Yeah! That was it! He was playing a practical joke to get back at her for all the times she'd been mean to him. But if it wasn't...
"Please say no," she whispered repeatedly in the way that people whisper to a golfball approaching the cup when they think that it will make the ball go in.
"Tifa," Cloud's mother put a hand on the girl's shoulder. "It's okay. I'm sure the General isn't going to accept."
A smile softened Sephiroth's usually harsh features and he gave a nod that seemed almost shy as tears of joy fell unrestrained down his face. Normally he could've kept them in check, but now he was too overwhelmed with emotion to even try. As angry as he had been that morning, that's how happy he was now.
"Yes, Cloud, I will marry you." he Cloud, elliciting a cheer from most of the crowd that had gathered around them.
Tifa blinked in astonishment as Sephiroth's answer confirmed the other man's identity. It *was* Cloud. *Her* Cloud. And he'd just thrown her off for another man! For General Sephiroth. How *dare* he?! How dare Cloud do such a thing to her?! How could he do that to her?!
She stormed up to them, her eyes blazing with intense rage. They were looking into each other's eyes with a affection that mocked her. She couldn't take it any longer.
"Cloud! You bastard! I hate you and I hate General Sephiroth, too!"
Cloud turned around in surprise. But before he could say a word Tifa angrily slapped him across the face and stormed off.
Cloud held his hand to his throbbing cheek in shock as he watched her disappear into the crowd.
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