Crisis Core: Desert Garden {part four}
Author’s note: The song Sephiroth is listening to is called “Sposa Son Disprezzata” (I Am Wife and I Am Scorned), a song sung by Cecilia Bartoli about a wife whose husband has betrayed her. Unfortunately, Sephiroth is about to understand all too well what a betrayal of everything he knows feels like. I was going for a bit of juxtaposition between Sephiroth and President Shinra (remember how he’s listening to classical music as the plate below blows up?). The first time I heard this song my chest felt tight. There is something so deeply haunting about it. Look up the performance on YouTube if you can!
I hope you guys like this part! It has quite a bit of fluff! I think Cloud is really supposed to be 16 at this point, but I like him being 15 better . . . because I am perverted, I think. XD
~x~x~x~
There's no angels here
Just a sun to light the way
To places where my friends
Turn to strangers
~x~x~x~
Part Four
~x~x~x~
The air seemed electric. The little hairs on the back of Zack’s neck stood on end as he moved slowly through the abandoned street. He pulled his hand back slowly to draw his sword, eyes following a tattered Loveless poster being carried through the wind. His ears strained to hear as he lowered the sword and moved it out in an arc a few inches from the ground. He silently stalked, turning in circles carefully each time the wind brushed against his ear. He shivered a little as he felt a presence and as he turned again in the same semi-circle he felt the air rush in on him, seeing him before it was too late. He parried at the last second, his form sloppy.
Angeal’s eyes flashed with something as his sword sparked against Zack’s, forcing the younger man up against the side of an abandoned warehouse. Zack’s eyes grew wild and determined though he was cornered and he let out an aggressive bark as he surged forward, metal ringing as his weapon scraped against the side of Angeal’s identical broadsword. Zack ducked, pulled the sword back, and with a triumphant and almost breathless smile, spun his way into the warehouse cloaked in darkness. The only light inside came from the cracks in the boarded up windows.
Angeal’s eyes were filled with amusement as he pursued at Zack’s heels, anticipating each and every move of Zack’s sword. Zack attempted to force Angeal back in a flurry of steel meeting steel, but Angeal blocked each attack. Where Angeal’s eyes were full with amusement and pride for his student, Zack’s eyes glowed with the fire of passion in the darkness enveloping them. Zack’s vibrant eyes were the only things not immediately rendered a shade of light gray in the dark by Angeal’s mako-sensitive eyes.
“Now,” Angeal ordered, twisting as his sword followed the arc of his movement. Zack’s eyes narrowed as he followed the blur of flesh and steel. He raised his sword up into the air and surged forward once again, blade screeching as it found Angeal’s. His footing was not as stable as the older man’s and his eyes flew wide in surprise as Angeal backed him up into another corner, their swords trembling under the weight of twin forces. Zack felt like he was going to buckle under Angeal’s force, his own heart pounding angrily in his ears, his chest heaving. Zack let out a frustrated cry; he was unable to push Angeal back and hyper aware of the fact that his mentor had barely broken a sweat. He was just as calm and collected as if he were standing still and the way he moved was smooth and effortless.
Zack couldn’t stand that small smile tugging at the older man’s lips-not anymore. One of their rules was that as soon as Zack expressed his desire to end their session Angeal would have to relent, no matter what. This was an idea suggested by Angeal so that Zack didn’t hurt himself when they sparred, as it was a fairly new development in their training sessions. Thus far it was Angeal’s call whether to continue or abort their sessions, but Zack so often pushed himself beyond his capabilities that Angeal had to force his student to understand his own limitations. Leaving it up to Zack was a point of trust for Angeal because he would have to believe that Zack would end the session when it was appropriate.
Zack smiled through gritted teeth, arms shaking, and pulled his trump card.
“End it!” Zack growled, arms trembling.
Angeal took the bait and relented, but not all the way, testing Zack. It was just enough for Zack to use one arm to tug Angeal’s head closer by his hair. His lips crashed against Angeal’s between their blades.
Angeal took a step back, sheathed his sword, and pressed in against Zack again, this time with the intent to claim him. Zack’s blade fell to the floor with a clang at the predatory gleam in his mentor’s eyes and when he felt Angeal’s lips on his own, his chest tightened and he didn’t dare breathe for fear that it would end.
The kiss was brutal and hard, passionate and animalistic all in the same moment and inexperienced as Zack was, he learned fast and was guided by his passionate heart like in all matters. Soon both he and Angeal were breathless and ragged. Angeal’s glove-clad hands-used so often to touch him in tantalizing places for mere moments when correcting his student’s stances-now touched and lingered with hungry need in all the right places. Bodies crashed together and writhed and Zack threw his head back and his hips forward, hitting the wall as-
A bright light flooded in front of Zack’s eyes. A whimper fell from his lips as he quickly realized he was waking up from a dream he wanted to sink back into. But the light wouldn’t allow him to drift. There was only one option and so Zack’s eyes fluttered open regretfully. What greeted him was the sight of Cloud standing in the middle of the doorway to his bedroom, presumably lost in his own thoughts. Zack quickly shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep, wondering what the boy would do next. To his amazement, he heard him walk toward the couch where Zack lay. The air shifted as Cloud rested on his knees in front of the SOLDIER. What could Cloud be doing? Zack didn’t have to wait long. He felt a hand place itself rather awkwardly on his cheek. Two fingers softly traced the scar there. A shiver tore through Zack’s body and his eyes opened slowly, eyebrows knit in confusion as he looked up into Cloud’s face. The boy recoiled as though his hand had been burned.
“Cloud?”
“You . . . you were making these noises in your sleep . . . I just . . . just wanted to know if you were all right.”
“Did I wake you up?” Zack asked groggily. Cloud shook his head, a guilty look crossing over his face.
“I’ve . . . been up. Actually, I can’t go to sleep.” Cloud couldn’t bring himself to look into Zack’s eyes.
“What’s keeping you up?” Zack asked dazedly, his mind still foggy from the dream.
“I don’t know . . .” Cloud began, his voice barely above a whisper.
“Nnnh?” Zack shook his head and slowly propped himself up onto an elbow to regard Cloud with as much serious attention he could give him with a raging hardon. “Tell me, please?”
“I’ve been hearing a lot of people saying things about Shinra . . . how it’s going to collapse right under itself . . . I don’t know how things are going to be . . . And . . . well, I don’t want to have any regrets. You’ve told me to be tough . . . to embrace my dreams . . . and . . . I know what your mentor meant to you now . . . I figured it out.”
Zack knew that Cloud was aware that Shinra kept secrets . . .
Monsters . . . angel wings . . . experiments . . .
Shinra’s closet of secrets was about to burst open. Just because the company was trying to lull its infantrymen into a false sense of security didn’t mean Cloud wasn’t aware that as a Shinra guard he was their first line of defense.
Cloud quickly leaned down and pressed his lips to Zack’s in an awkwardly chaste kiss. Zack was nearly stunned, but when Cloud moved back away Zack took a hold of Cloud’s wrist and tugged him up and onto the couch with him.
“M’sorry,” Cloud mumbled. Zack could feel him shaking. Kissing his mentor was probably the boldest thing the kid had ever done in his short life.
“Don’t be sorry,” Zack murmured softly as he leaned his head down and brushed his lips against Cloud’s. His arms moved reassuringly around the smaller boy’s back and gently pulled him against his chest. Cloud snuggled close, surprised by the warmth that enveloped him. His face felt like it was burning hotly, but Cloud parted his lips for Zack and allowed his mentor to deepen the kiss. Zack could taste the desperation there, the need for comfort and solace. As an infantryman Zack had seen kids his age torn from their families and forced to join the Shinra guard, had seen the look in their eyes of lost innocence and stolen youth.
But both he and Cloud, they had joined because they felt destined somehow, unattainable as their dreams seemed.
To have dreams, no matter how unattainable, was beautiful. Could Zack taste that in Cloud? Never had a simple kiss given him so much understanding.
Cloud wasn’t fifteen then, and Zack doubted he would ever think of him that way again. What he felt wasn’t complicated, really. And Cloud had been right about regrets. Zack slipped his heated fingers against the nape of Cloud’s neck and kissed the breath out of him. The only sound in the apartment was their harsh breathing and their lips finding one another’s over and over. Cloud could barely see Zack in the mostly dark room, but what he felt . . . what he felt more than made up for the lack of sight.
Zack’s fingers slid up under Cloud’s shirt to feel pale skin and trapped Cloud’s body against the couch. His hips rubbed slowly, agonizingly. The whimpers that fell from Cloud’s lips grew louder, more desperate. It didn’t take long, but Zack would not have traded anything in the world for the sight of those clear blue eyes clouded with pleasure.
Cloud groggily allowed Zack to carry him back to the bed and didn’t protest when he felt what seemed like disembodied hands to his sleepy mind tug his soiled clothes off. Zack disappeared for a few moments and returned with a pair of his shorts and a shirt. He cleaned the rest of the sticky substance from slim thighs and dressed Cloud with care. When he was done Zack ruffled the boy’s golden hair and turned to leave, but Cloud grabbed Zack’s arm and pleaded for him to stay. He obliged and pulled Cloud into his arms.
“Sweet dreams. To the both of us.” Zack yawned. It didn’t take him long to drop off to sleep.
~x~x~x~
There's no angels here
Just a light to lead the way
There's no innocence
Only strangers
~x~x~x~
“What do angels dream of? . . . To be human.”
The next day Zack was wandering around in a pleasant fog when he received a call from Sephiroth. The fog lifted a little and Zack’s voice filled with nervous excitement. It had been a while since he’d heard from the silver-haired general and he rushed back into the Shinra building to seek the man out in his office.
“Zack.”
The sound of a woman’s desperate and plaintive singing voice felt heavy around Zack. Sephiroth stood at the window in his office staring down over Midgar. Zack shifted nervously as he watched Sephiroth’s hand slide over the glass and return to his side. His head tilted just slightly backward, but he didn’t turn to face Zack.
“Do you know what sets us apart from beasts?”
Zack didn’t answer. Sephiroth was the type of man to pose questions only so that he could answer them.
“Culture.” Sephiroth turned around slowly, his hair falling just over his eyes and not quite shielding the strange expression in them that Zack had never seen there. He ordered the photos strewn over his desk and slid them into the briefing folder laying open at the edge and held them in front of his eyes as the climbing emotion in the voice enfolded them both. After a few moments Sephiroth lifted his eyes to Zack’s. A shiver ran up Zack’s spine. “You can hear the desperation and betrayal in her voice, the raw emotion. Are we really so different from beasts?”
“SOLDIER . . . they’re scary. They fight . . . and they love it.”
Zack was alarmed. The same look he had seen in Aerith’s eyes? A bit of sadness and something searching . . . like to understand was just out of reach. Sephiroth walked over to Zack and handed him a picture from the folder. Zack stared at it, squinting for some hidden meaning. What he saw was a large mangy dog half dragging its body, mako oozing from its wounds. One side of its body was half torn away, muscles bulging impossibly large. Zack expected to be disgusted, but . . . his heart welled up with sadness.
“Abominations.” Sephiroth’s voice was hard with barely concealed hatred. Zack looked up from the photo and felt himself swallowing hard.
“What is this?” Zack asked, unable to shake the ominous feeling.
“You’ll know in a few days,” Sephiroth said dismissively as he held out his hand toward Zack and took back the photo. He placed it among the others before dropping the folder back onto his desk. “I hear you’ve become somewhat of an inspirational speaker for those aspiring heroism.” A small smile ghosted on Sephiroth’s lips. “Angeal would be proud.”
Zack was surprised, but brightness returned to his face. “Thanks, Sephiroth. General. Sir. And hey . . . listen . . . don’t stay cooped up in here listening to this for too long, okay? You’re starting to sound a bit like Genesis and it’s creeping me out pretty good.”
“Hmm,” Sephiroth blinked, arms folding in front of his chest. “Noted. Permission to leave granted.” Zack shrugged his shoulders and turned to leave.
“Oh, and Zack?”
Zack turned back around and caught Sephiroth contemplating the woman’s voice as though he was trying to understand the emotion.
“I know you’re fond of an infantryman named Cloud Strife.” His eyes fell on Zack’s again and this time there was a bit of softness in them. Zack had seen that look in the general’s eyes before . . . when he spoke of friendship. “Tell him that he will be accompanying you on a mission again very very soon.” The general turned again and walked back over to the window overlooking Midgar and Zack knew it was his cue to leave. As he did so he thought about how it had been a while since he had seen the man, but something . . .
Something was different. The look in those normally aloof mako eyes troubled him almost as much as the sad look he had seen in the photo of the beast.
~x~x~x~
I hope you guys like this part! It has quite a bit of fluff! I think Cloud is really supposed to be 16 at this point, but I like him being 15 better . . . because I am perverted, I think. XD
~x~x~x~
There's no angels here
Just a sun to light the way
To places where my friends
Turn to strangers
~x~x~x~
Part Four
~x~x~x~
The air seemed electric. The little hairs on the back of Zack’s neck stood on end as he moved slowly through the abandoned street. He pulled his hand back slowly to draw his sword, eyes following a tattered Loveless poster being carried through the wind. His ears strained to hear as he lowered the sword and moved it out in an arc a few inches from the ground. He silently stalked, turning in circles carefully each time the wind brushed against his ear. He shivered a little as he felt a presence and as he turned again in the same semi-circle he felt the air rush in on him, seeing him before it was too late. He parried at the last second, his form sloppy.
Angeal’s eyes flashed with something as his sword sparked against Zack’s, forcing the younger man up against the side of an abandoned warehouse. Zack’s eyes grew wild and determined though he was cornered and he let out an aggressive bark as he surged forward, metal ringing as his weapon scraped against the side of Angeal’s identical broadsword. Zack ducked, pulled the sword back, and with a triumphant and almost breathless smile, spun his way into the warehouse cloaked in darkness. The only light inside came from the cracks in the boarded up windows.
Angeal’s eyes were filled with amusement as he pursued at Zack’s heels, anticipating each and every move of Zack’s sword. Zack attempted to force Angeal back in a flurry of steel meeting steel, but Angeal blocked each attack. Where Angeal’s eyes were full with amusement and pride for his student, Zack’s eyes glowed with the fire of passion in the darkness enveloping them. Zack’s vibrant eyes were the only things not immediately rendered a shade of light gray in the dark by Angeal’s mako-sensitive eyes.
“Now,” Angeal ordered, twisting as his sword followed the arc of his movement. Zack’s eyes narrowed as he followed the blur of flesh and steel. He raised his sword up into the air and surged forward once again, blade screeching as it found Angeal’s. His footing was not as stable as the older man’s and his eyes flew wide in surprise as Angeal backed him up into another corner, their swords trembling under the weight of twin forces. Zack felt like he was going to buckle under Angeal’s force, his own heart pounding angrily in his ears, his chest heaving. Zack let out a frustrated cry; he was unable to push Angeal back and hyper aware of the fact that his mentor had barely broken a sweat. He was just as calm and collected as if he were standing still and the way he moved was smooth and effortless.
Zack couldn’t stand that small smile tugging at the older man’s lips-not anymore. One of their rules was that as soon as Zack expressed his desire to end their session Angeal would have to relent, no matter what. This was an idea suggested by Angeal so that Zack didn’t hurt himself when they sparred, as it was a fairly new development in their training sessions. Thus far it was Angeal’s call whether to continue or abort their sessions, but Zack so often pushed himself beyond his capabilities that Angeal had to force his student to understand his own limitations. Leaving it up to Zack was a point of trust for Angeal because he would have to believe that Zack would end the session when it was appropriate.
Zack smiled through gritted teeth, arms shaking, and pulled his trump card.
“End it!” Zack growled, arms trembling.
Angeal took the bait and relented, but not all the way, testing Zack. It was just enough for Zack to use one arm to tug Angeal’s head closer by his hair. His lips crashed against Angeal’s between their blades.
Angeal took a step back, sheathed his sword, and pressed in against Zack again, this time with the intent to claim him. Zack’s blade fell to the floor with a clang at the predatory gleam in his mentor’s eyes and when he felt Angeal’s lips on his own, his chest tightened and he didn’t dare breathe for fear that it would end.
The kiss was brutal and hard, passionate and animalistic all in the same moment and inexperienced as Zack was, he learned fast and was guided by his passionate heart like in all matters. Soon both he and Angeal were breathless and ragged. Angeal’s glove-clad hands-used so often to touch him in tantalizing places for mere moments when correcting his student’s stances-now touched and lingered with hungry need in all the right places. Bodies crashed together and writhed and Zack threw his head back and his hips forward, hitting the wall as-
A bright light flooded in front of Zack’s eyes. A whimper fell from his lips as he quickly realized he was waking up from a dream he wanted to sink back into. But the light wouldn’t allow him to drift. There was only one option and so Zack’s eyes fluttered open regretfully. What greeted him was the sight of Cloud standing in the middle of the doorway to his bedroom, presumably lost in his own thoughts. Zack quickly shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep, wondering what the boy would do next. To his amazement, he heard him walk toward the couch where Zack lay. The air shifted as Cloud rested on his knees in front of the SOLDIER. What could Cloud be doing? Zack didn’t have to wait long. He felt a hand place itself rather awkwardly on his cheek. Two fingers softly traced the scar there. A shiver tore through Zack’s body and his eyes opened slowly, eyebrows knit in confusion as he looked up into Cloud’s face. The boy recoiled as though his hand had been burned.
“Cloud?”
“You . . . you were making these noises in your sleep . . . I just . . . just wanted to know if you were all right.”
“Did I wake you up?” Zack asked groggily. Cloud shook his head, a guilty look crossing over his face.
“I’ve . . . been up. Actually, I can’t go to sleep.” Cloud couldn’t bring himself to look into Zack’s eyes.
“What’s keeping you up?” Zack asked dazedly, his mind still foggy from the dream.
“I don’t know . . .” Cloud began, his voice barely above a whisper.
“Nnnh?” Zack shook his head and slowly propped himself up onto an elbow to regard Cloud with as much serious attention he could give him with a raging hardon. “Tell me, please?”
“I’ve been hearing a lot of people saying things about Shinra . . . how it’s going to collapse right under itself . . . I don’t know how things are going to be . . . And . . . well, I don’t want to have any regrets. You’ve told me to be tough . . . to embrace my dreams . . . and . . . I know what your mentor meant to you now . . . I figured it out.”
Zack knew that Cloud was aware that Shinra kept secrets . . .
Monsters . . . angel wings . . . experiments . . .
Shinra’s closet of secrets was about to burst open. Just because the company was trying to lull its infantrymen into a false sense of security didn’t mean Cloud wasn’t aware that as a Shinra guard he was their first line of defense.
Cloud quickly leaned down and pressed his lips to Zack’s in an awkwardly chaste kiss. Zack was nearly stunned, but when Cloud moved back away Zack took a hold of Cloud’s wrist and tugged him up and onto the couch with him.
“M’sorry,” Cloud mumbled. Zack could feel him shaking. Kissing his mentor was probably the boldest thing the kid had ever done in his short life.
“Don’t be sorry,” Zack murmured softly as he leaned his head down and brushed his lips against Cloud’s. His arms moved reassuringly around the smaller boy’s back and gently pulled him against his chest. Cloud snuggled close, surprised by the warmth that enveloped him. His face felt like it was burning hotly, but Cloud parted his lips for Zack and allowed his mentor to deepen the kiss. Zack could taste the desperation there, the need for comfort and solace. As an infantryman Zack had seen kids his age torn from their families and forced to join the Shinra guard, had seen the look in their eyes of lost innocence and stolen youth.
But both he and Cloud, they had joined because they felt destined somehow, unattainable as their dreams seemed.
To have dreams, no matter how unattainable, was beautiful. Could Zack taste that in Cloud? Never had a simple kiss given him so much understanding.
Cloud wasn’t fifteen then, and Zack doubted he would ever think of him that way again. What he felt wasn’t complicated, really. And Cloud had been right about regrets. Zack slipped his heated fingers against the nape of Cloud’s neck and kissed the breath out of him. The only sound in the apartment was their harsh breathing and their lips finding one another’s over and over. Cloud could barely see Zack in the mostly dark room, but what he felt . . . what he felt more than made up for the lack of sight.
Zack’s fingers slid up under Cloud’s shirt to feel pale skin and trapped Cloud’s body against the couch. His hips rubbed slowly, agonizingly. The whimpers that fell from Cloud’s lips grew louder, more desperate. It didn’t take long, but Zack would not have traded anything in the world for the sight of those clear blue eyes clouded with pleasure.
Cloud groggily allowed Zack to carry him back to the bed and didn’t protest when he felt what seemed like disembodied hands to his sleepy mind tug his soiled clothes off. Zack disappeared for a few moments and returned with a pair of his shorts and a shirt. He cleaned the rest of the sticky substance from slim thighs and dressed Cloud with care. When he was done Zack ruffled the boy’s golden hair and turned to leave, but Cloud grabbed Zack’s arm and pleaded for him to stay. He obliged and pulled Cloud into his arms.
“Sweet dreams. To the both of us.” Zack yawned. It didn’t take him long to drop off to sleep.
~x~x~x~
There's no angels here
Just a light to lead the way
There's no innocence
Only strangers
~x~x~x~
“What do angels dream of? . . . To be human.”
The next day Zack was wandering around in a pleasant fog when he received a call from Sephiroth. The fog lifted a little and Zack’s voice filled with nervous excitement. It had been a while since he’d heard from the silver-haired general and he rushed back into the Shinra building to seek the man out in his office.
“Zack.”
The sound of a woman’s desperate and plaintive singing voice felt heavy around Zack. Sephiroth stood at the window in his office staring down over Midgar. Zack shifted nervously as he watched Sephiroth’s hand slide over the glass and return to his side. His head tilted just slightly backward, but he didn’t turn to face Zack.
“Do you know what sets us apart from beasts?”
Zack didn’t answer. Sephiroth was the type of man to pose questions only so that he could answer them.
“Culture.” Sephiroth turned around slowly, his hair falling just over his eyes and not quite shielding the strange expression in them that Zack had never seen there. He ordered the photos strewn over his desk and slid them into the briefing folder laying open at the edge and held them in front of his eyes as the climbing emotion in the voice enfolded them both. After a few moments Sephiroth lifted his eyes to Zack’s. A shiver ran up Zack’s spine. “You can hear the desperation and betrayal in her voice, the raw emotion. Are we really so different from beasts?”
“SOLDIER . . . they’re scary. They fight . . . and they love it.”
Zack was alarmed. The same look he had seen in Aerith’s eyes? A bit of sadness and something searching . . . like to understand was just out of reach. Sephiroth walked over to Zack and handed him a picture from the folder. Zack stared at it, squinting for some hidden meaning. What he saw was a large mangy dog half dragging its body, mako oozing from its wounds. One side of its body was half torn away, muscles bulging impossibly large. Zack expected to be disgusted, but . . . his heart welled up with sadness.
“Abominations.” Sephiroth’s voice was hard with barely concealed hatred. Zack looked up from the photo and felt himself swallowing hard.
“What is this?” Zack asked, unable to shake the ominous feeling.
“You’ll know in a few days,” Sephiroth said dismissively as he held out his hand toward Zack and took back the photo. He placed it among the others before dropping the folder back onto his desk. “I hear you’ve become somewhat of an inspirational speaker for those aspiring heroism.” A small smile ghosted on Sephiroth’s lips. “Angeal would be proud.”
Zack was surprised, but brightness returned to his face. “Thanks, Sephiroth. General. Sir. And hey . . . listen . . . don’t stay cooped up in here listening to this for too long, okay? You’re starting to sound a bit like Genesis and it’s creeping me out pretty good.”
“Hmm,” Sephiroth blinked, arms folding in front of his chest. “Noted. Permission to leave granted.” Zack shrugged his shoulders and turned to leave.
“Oh, and Zack?”
Zack turned back around and caught Sephiroth contemplating the woman’s voice as though he was trying to understand the emotion.
“I know you’re fond of an infantryman named Cloud Strife.” His eyes fell on Zack’s again and this time there was a bit of softness in them. Zack had seen that look in the general’s eyes before . . . when he spoke of friendship. “Tell him that he will be accompanying you on a mission again very very soon.” The general turned again and walked back over to the window overlooking Midgar and Zack knew it was his cue to leave. As he did so he thought about how it had been a while since he had seen the man, but something . . .
Something was different. The look in those normally aloof mako eyes troubled him almost as much as the sad look he had seen in the photo of the beast.
~x~x~x~