Prisoners of War Omake 5: Colour-Coded
Title: Colour-Coded
Author: xpaperplanex
Rating: PG
Word Count: ~4400
Pairings: Sephiroth/Cloud
Genre: humour, romance
Warnings: underage drinking
Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII and make no money from this work.
Summary: ShinRa's annual Midwinter party is something all SOLDIERs and their partners look forward too. Unfortunately, they sometimes forget that not everyone knows the about the party's conventions.
Woo! I did it! Assuming the 21st is the solstice. I can never remember these things. Hope you have a great whatever you celebrate. I'm going to have the weirdest Christmas I've ever had... probably even weirder than the one I spent on a plane. I'll be eating steak and getting drunk at all night karaoke. Hopefully it will at least be more fun than the plane. :D
This one takes place before chapter 26 of Prisoners of War, but after the Memo omake.
***
"Cloud, hurry up. We're late already."
Cloud heard the fridge open and the clinking of bottles. There was plenty of beer in there; Sephiroth could wait a few more minutes. His final attempt at making his hair look like he had spiked it on purpose was mildly successful - as long as he didn't move his head. Sighing, Cloud fixed his shirt and stood up straight. "Why do I have to look so fucking young?" he yelled suddenly at the mirror.
"You don't look that young." Sephiroth appeared in the doorway holding a beer and looking much more mature than Cloud could ever manage. "And you look very nice, so that's what counts. I don't know what you're so worked up about anyways. It's just the guys."
"No." Cloud spun on his heel. "It's just your guys. And your guys happen to be fucking intimidating! Gimme that beer." Cloud snatched the bottle out of Sephiroth's hand and began chugging it before he had a chance to protest.
"Hey, come on, Cloud. It's not that bad. You've met a lot of them before, haven't you? I know it sucks that Zack's not coming, but you'll still have fun, I promise."
"Sure, I've met some of them before." Cloud drained the bottle and slammed it down on the counter. "As an assistant for the day. Now I'm being introduced as your boyfriend and you're going to get dragged off to talk to people and they're not going to want me around so I'll get left alone and I'll just be a freak standing in the corner with no one to talk to."
"You won't be a freak, Cloud. And I'll do my best to not abandon you, I promise. The other SOLDIERs know who you are and that you're coming with me; you'll have someone to talk to even if I get dragged off." Sephiroth was giving him that pleading look that Cloud had trouble resisting. It wasn't that he didn't want to go, it was just... scary. But he had to admit, it felt nice that Sephiroth had invited him to come as his 'significant other'.
Cloud managed a small smile and tugged at an unruly spike. "Don't worry," he sighed. "I haven't changed my mind. Let's go."
***
Shin-Ra spared no expense on the SOLDIER Midwinter party; Cloud had to stop and stare in awe for a few moments at the lavish decorations. Massive garlands hung from the ceiling, ice sculptures glittered in every corner, and the tables were piled high with food. Sephiroth allowed Cloud to stare a short while before taking him by the hand and gently tugging him out of the doorway.
"Let's go take a look around and grab some drinks."
Cloud followed distractedly and leaned in for a closer look when Sephiroth let go of his hand by the first set of tables they came to. There were delicate little sugar things laid out on a tray, sparkling in the red and blue lights that were hung around the room. They were shaped like large snowflakes and looked like they would break if you breathed too heavily. He looked up to see Sephiroth coming back with two cups of what looked like eggnog.
"Are these edible?" Cloud asked wonderingly.
"Huh? Oh, Sugarflakes, sure they are. Help yourself." Sephiroth set the cups down and popped one in his mouth, making a face. "Solid sugar, mind you..."
Cloud very carefully picked one up and sucked on the end of it. For solid sugar, it was pretty good. It had little granules of sugar sprinkled on top and he could have sworn there was some sort of flavour to it. Sort of lemony, maybe.
"Happy Solstice, General," a voice boomed out behind Cloud, causing him jump and break his snowflake. "So we finally get to meet your boy toy, do we?" A hand clapped down on Cloud's shoulder and he did his best not to cringe away from it. This was exactly what he had been afraid of: being thought of as Sephiroth's toy.
"My what?" Sephiroth asked icily and Cloud scooted out from under the hand and over next to Sephiroth, trying to look as unruffled as possible. Sephiroth wouldn't let stuff like that slide.
"I meant your boyfriend." The SOLDIER smiled uneasily at Sephiroth. "Apologies, General."
Cloud fumed. He was the one being insulted. He deserved an apology too. In a sudden surge of confidence that he was pretty sure he only felt because Sephiroth was standing right next to him, Cloud looked the SOLDIER square in the eyes and stuck out his hand. "My name is Cloud and I'm not Sephiroth's toy. It's nice to meet you, sir."
The man blinked a couple times and gaped at Cloud in surprise before shrugging and taking Cloud's hand, giving it a firm shake. "Harvey, Jason Harvey, First Class. It's nice to meet you too, Cloud. And I am sorry about the boy toy thing. It was just a joke; I didn't mean to offend you."
Cloud nodded his acceptance, feeling suddenly nervous again, and turned to pick up one of the cups of nog Sephiroth had brought. He sipped at it while Sephiroth and Harvey talked about troop movements in Wutai. Sephiroth kept an arm casually slung over his shoulder while he talked and Cloud did his best not to look like he was leaning on Sephiroth for support for his trembling knees. He had talked back to a First Class! That-that was quite possibly the stupidest thing he had ever done!
By the time they had agreed that there needed to be a meeting about ration shipments, Cloud had very nearly recovered himself. Then Harvey clapped him on the shoulder again and nearly knocked him over.
"Take care of our General tonight, Cloud. Make sure he doesn't kill any execs before we kick them out and start the real party, okay?"
"O-okay, sir."
"He's cute, sir, if you don't mind my saying so. Can't wait to see him in SOLDIER."
"Thank you, Harvey." Sephiroth turned and steered Cloud away, stopping at the punch bowl to refill Cloud's cup. "Told you you'd be able to handle them," Sephiroth said cheerfully.
"Handle them!? I almost died, Sephiroth!" Cloud took a big gulp of his drink; this one didn't seem as strong as the other. That was a bit weird.
"You did not. And you made a good impression. SOLDIERs tend to like people who stand up for themselves."
"You don't get it."
"Sure I do, I just think you're overreacting." Sephiroth nudged him a little further along and paused at another punch bowl-this one was a nice, festive blue-and filled a fresh glass of eggnog for himself. "Come on, let's hit the dance floor. You'll enjoy that and no one will talk to us."
Cloud was feeling pretty good by the time they took a break from dancing. If only they could have kept it up all night, but the people who kept trying to interrupt them only to be brushed aside seemed to be getting desperate. He couldn't help but wonder why they had to bug Sephiroth about work stuff while he was at a party. Sephiroth eventually had to give in, unfortunately, and allowed himself to be dragged away by an angry-looking woman in a red dress after promising Cloud that he'd be right back.
Sephiroth wasn't right back, so he decided to get himself another drink. Since he was still technically underage when it came to drinking, and Sephiroth wasn't there as his get-out-of-jail-free card, he had to be a bit sneaky about acquiring another one and made a dash for the eggnog as soon as no one seemed to be looking. He downed it quickly and was about to refill it when a voice he recognized spoke behind him.
"Chocobohead! How's it going?"
Cloud set the glass down and turned around so he was hiding it from view. "I told you not to call me that, Kunsel!"
"Happy Solstice to you too, brat. What's up? Where're Zack and the general?" There were two other SOLDIERs with Kunsel and Cloud glanced at them nervously.
"Zack couldn't make it; he's spending the night celebrating with Aerith. Sephiroth got dragged away by some lady... I dunno when he'll be back."
"He abandoned you? That sucks. Well, we were just going to grab some drinks and go hang out on the balcony for a little while, if you want to come with." Kunsel nudged Cloud out of the way and each of them grabbed three cups and began filling them.
"Thanks, but I should probably wait for Sephiroth to come back. He shouldn't be much longer." Cloud eyed the glasses the SOLDIERs were balancing carefully; one in each hand and the third squashed between them. It didn't look safe.
"All right, well, if you give up on your man, come find us. I promise to probably not call you 'Chocobohead'." Kunsel gave him a wink and disappeared in the direction of the balconies. Cloud overheard one of the other SOLDIERs wondering how a kid like that had caught the general and he sighed, refilling his own cup.
As he drained the last of it, the world was starting to seem quite blurry and the room seemed to be spinning a bit. He had only had... how many? Cloud was trying to puzzle it out when he heard a couple people talking nearby.
"So is that the General's new squeeze?" an overly muscled man was asking.
"Think so... I saw a picture of 'im in his office the other week," said the other, lankier-looking man. "Looks the same."
"He's tiny. What the hell does he see in him?"
"Well he is pretty cute, if barely legal. Maybe he just likes 'em young?"
Cloud banged his cup setting it down, furious. He could feel the rum running through his veins and giving him an extra boost of courage again. They were talking about him like he wasn't even there! Wobbling slightly, Cloud pushed himself away from the table and marched over to the two men. And panicked. Now what the hell was he supposed to do? His mind became a screaming sheet of white noise. Unable to think of anything to say, Cloud just looked back and forth between the two, not blinking and trying not to show his fear.
The SOLDIERs stared back at him for a few moments until the burly one cleared his throat. "So I heard Essai got roped into teaching another cadet class, making it four. Poor guy's had no time for missions lately."
"Better," Cloud muttered and gave a sharp nod of his head. He returned to his spot by the eggnog and mumbled to himself while he poured another glass. "Damn right should be shcared of me. I'm scary. Have a Sefferrof."
Cloud giggled and wandered off to poke at some of the decorations stuck to the corners of the tables. Tinsel somehow ended up tangled around him and he flapped his hands in an attempt to get it off, which only served to spread it around. A long piece was dangling in front of one eye, but he couldn't quite catch it to pull it away.
"Cloud, are you all right?"
Cloud giggled again. "I'm drunk... and tinsel'sh shtuck to me."
"Yeah... I can see that." Cloud was turned around and he blinked up at Kunsel a bit bewilderedly.
"You... not wearing hat."
"No, I'm not. I take my helmet off for fancy parties. How about we get some water into you. Has Sephiroth still not been back?"
"No' back. Ran away, I think."
"Nah, he didn't run away. Scarlet's probably just trying to molest him and he's trying to escape without hurting her. Come on, let's get you sitting down." Kunsel took Cloud by the hand and led him, stumbling, over to some chairs against the wall. "You sit here and I'm going to get you some water, okay?"
"Oookie doke. I sit here." Cloud sat, poking at a gouge in the chair and trying to get the tinsel out of his hair, when someone poked his leg with their foot.
"Hey, I'm talking to you, Private." Cloud inspected a big pair of shoes, but couldn't quite find the willpower to raise his head.
"No' a Privut. Cor'rl. Corple. Cororperel. Fuck it. Not Pravvit."
"Yeah, well, we've all heard the rumours about how a pansy-ass like you earned that-"
Cloud surged to his feet and swung his fist as hard as he could, connecting with something that made the person talking to him make a noise that could have been of pain. It also made Cloud lose his balance and he fell on his ass, giggling. The big shoes were still standing next to him and they seemed like rather unimpressed big shoes. Some small part of his brain tried to tell him that that wasn't a good thing, but all Cloud could think was that someone should draw frowny faces on the shoes so he'd know for sure. The thought made him giggle even harder, even as a hand reached down and grabbed his shirt.
"Hey! What's going on, Trent?" The hand let go of Cloud immediately and he slumped back to the floor. There was some yelling going on above him and some more shoes came over. A bit more yelling followed, before the frowny shoes went away stomping and a face suddenly appeared in Cloud's vision.
"You all right, kid?" It was that first guy they had talked to.
"No' a toy! And brave! Thash how got pormosshun." Cloud failed his fists angrily.
"Poro...? Oh, promotion. Yeah, I know, I heard about how brave you were. How the hell did he get this drunk?"
"Dunno. Nog'sh good."
"Anybody notice what colour bowl he was drinking from?"
"Shit... he was standing by one of the blue ones... did Sephiroth not tell him?"
"Cloud, hey, pay attention." The First's face was looming at him again. "Were you drinking eggnog out of the blue punchbowls?"
"Mebbe... blue wash pretty."
"Well shit, Cloud. I'm amazed you're not in the hospital. Come on, let's get you off the floor."
Someone grabbed Cloud from behind and he struggled wildly, not wanting to get picked up by some stranger. It didn't work, though; the person trying to pick him up was obviously a lot stronger than he was. That brought on a momentary feeling of panic until he thought of just going limp. Whoever had him lost his grip and Cloud slid to the floor with a thud.
"Nice soggy noodle act, Chocobohead." The person behind him disappeared and reappeared in front of him, looking like Kunsel.
"No hat." Cloud poked him on the forehead.
"Nope, no hat, you drunk. Come on, stop being a brat and let me help you up."
"Was you?"
"Yes, it was me. Who did you think it was?"
"Dunno... all grabby an' stuff."
The First Class was still there and he let out a loud barking laugh. "Do me a favour, Cloud. Don't go telling Sephiroth that Kunsel was 'all grabby and stuff' with you."
Cloud tapped his chin with one finger, considering. "Speshul favour. Jush for you."
The First laughed again and leaned down to grab one of Cloud's hands. "Take his other one. You're too kind, kid."
Kunsel took his other hand and Cloud was hauled to his wobbly legs, which would have given out under him if it hadn't been for Kunsel wrapping an arm around him.
"What the hell's going on?"
"Sefferrof!" Cloud perked up and surged towards the voice. "I punshed someone!"
"What?" Familiar arms caught him and Cloud latched on.
"Punshed 'im good! Bashdard!"
"I was just going to give him some water, sir..."
"All right, let me get him sitting down." Cloud was pushed downwards and collapsed into a chair, and Sephiroth was forced to follow him because Cloud wasn't letting go. Somebody turned his head so his face wasn't pressed into Sephiroth's chest and a cool glass was pressed to his lips. "Drink this, Cloud."
Cloud gulped at the water, even letting go of Sephiroth so he could hold the glass himself, trusting that the arm would stay wrapped around him.
"What actually happened?"
"I wasn't there, but as near as I can figure it, someone was speculating about how Cloud got his promotion. Cloud punched him and knocked himself over in the process."
"I see... Harvey?"
"I got there after Kunsel. The other SOLDIER was drunk and being argumentative, so I sent him back to his quarters. I'll handle any disciplinary action in the morning."
"You don't want to tell me who it was."
Cloud finished his water and tapped the glass against Sephiroth's hand. "More?" Someone, not Sephiroth, took the empty glass and replaced it with a full one. Cloud rolled his head back to smile up at Kunsel. "Thank you."
"I'd rather not, sir. You don't need to concern yourself with it; I don't think he actually said much before Cloud hit him. And... you have your hands full."
"I do... Why is he this drunk? He knows his limits."
"Er, we think he may have been drinking the SOLDIER-strength eggnog."
Cloud's water jostled and splashed as Sephiroth sat bolt upright. "He~y."
"Sorry, Cloud. The SOLDIER-strength? Are you sure? Why didn't anyone notice and stop him?" Cloud settled back down into the crook of Sephiroth's shoulder and sipped more slowly at his water this time. He shut his eyes and tried to pay attention to what people were saying. They were talking about him after all.
"I never saw him drinking when he wasn't with you, sir, or I would have. Didn't he know about the colour-codes?"
"I... I don't think I mentioned it, actually. Shit, Cloud, let's get you home, okay?"
"Nuh-uh! Wanna dansh!" Cloud splashed the water again as he struggled to sit up straight.
"Cloud, we should go home. You're not-"
"Want. To. Dance!" he said firmly, trying his best to enunciate each word properly.
"All right, all right, don't shout. One dance and then we're going." The glass was taken out of his hand and Sephiroth pulled Cloud to his feet, leading him towards the dance floor. Cloud's knees kept trying to collapse with each step, so he opted for taking much larger ones to cut down on the number required to reach their destination. "Put on something slow," Sephiroth said when they finally got there, and the music was abruptly cut off.
It was replaced with a slow tune that made Cloud feel like swaying. He tried and nearly fell over on his first sway. There was muttering all around him, but Sephiroth just chuckled.
"Come here, you." Strong arms scooped Cloud up and cradled him against Sephiroth's warm chest. He wrapped his arms around Sephiroth's shoulders and tucked his head under his chin.
"Want to dance," he said quietly.
"You are dancing, Cloud. See?"
He was. His body was moving in time with the music, swaying back and forth as they slowly made their way around the dance floor. "M'a good dancer," Cloud mumbled, face pressed into Sephiroth's chest.
"You're a very good dancer." Cloud felt lips press against the crown of his head and he smiled to himself.
Cloud allowed himself to be lulled into a relaxed state and barely noticed when the song ended and they were moving away from the dance floor. He was jostled a little bit as a coat was wrapped around him. "Home?" he asked.
"Yeah, we're going home. You need to get some food and more water into you before you pass out."
There were some voices talking around him, but it was hard to pay attention. "Not doin' any shexy things wish you tonigh'."
There was a burst of laughter from several people and it felt like Sephiroth clunked his head against Cloud's. "No, no sexy things tonight."
"I mean it!"
More people were laughing now. "Cloud, I hate to break it to you, but you're not very sexy right now."
"At least he's not puking, sir."
"Oh, don't say that, Kunsel. You'll give him ideas. All right, we're out of here. Happy Solstice, everyone."
"Ha-ee Solshtish." A hand ruffled Cloud's hair and then they were away.
"We're taking the stairs, Cloud, so you've got no reason to puke."
"Kay." Cloud snuggled down under his coat and drifted off into a light doze.
***
"Cloud. Cloud, wake up. I need you to drink this." Someone was roughly shaking Cloud's shoulder and he groaned, pulling the soft thing that was on top of him over his head.
"Go 'way."
The thing covering him was roughly pulled away and Cloud blinked up at Sephiroth. "Nope. You're going to drink this, you're going to eat something, you're going to have some more water, and then you're going to get in your pyjamas and go to bed. Here."
A bottle was shoved into Cloud's hands and he sat up a little and took a sip. "Eugh! Gross! Hell're you tryin'a do?
"I put electrolyte powder in it. Trust me, you'll appreciate it in the morning. Drink it."
"Gross... why not real sport drinks?"
Sephiroth sat down next to him-they must have been on the couch-and pushed the bottle towards his lips. "Sports drinks are full of sugar and chemicals you don't need," he said shortly.
Cloud reluctantly took a few more sips of the nasty water. "Mad at me, arn'you?"
He heard Sephiroth sigh and an arm wrapped around him. "I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at myself for forgetting to tell you about the bowls, but I'm definitely not mad at you. I'm just worried now. It's easy to get a lot of the SOLDIER booze into you before you even feel it. Do you know how much you drank?"
"Dunno, ts'all fuzzy."
"That's okay, don't worry about it. Here, Luxiere packed you up some sandwiches. Think you can handle eating one?"
"Who's Luxsheer?" Cloud asked as he took a bit of the sandwich.
"A SOLDIER you impressed. Takes guts punching a Second Class."
Cloud dropped his sandwich. "What?"
"You impressed me too." Sephiroth pressed a fresh sandwich into Cloud's hands. "Eat."
"Punched... Second? I punched a Second?"
"From what I heard, he deserved it, so don't worry about it. Get that look off your face." Sephiroth took the sandwich back and shoved it into Cloud's open mouth. Cloud bit out of sheer reflex and chewed absently, his mind reeling at the horror of what he had done.
Cloud swallowed his mouthful. "You hate me. Talked back to a First, got drunk, punched someone, made you carry me..."
"I had fun dancing with you, even the last one. You're cute when you're wasted."
"But not sexy," Cloud wailed, feeling more sober by the second. "Everyone was there, weren't they?"
Chuckling softly, Sephiroth handed him the water bottle again. "You didn't throw up; you deserve an award." Sephiroth paused a moment as he seemed to realize something. "Tell me if you're feeling sick, though," he added.
"If you have any mercy at all, you'll kill me now and save me the embarrassment. No one would blame you, I'm sure." If he could just curl up and die here on the couch, that would be best.
"No can do, I like you too much to kill you. Finish up your water and we'll go to bed. I promise it won't seem so bad in the morning."
"Yeah... I'll be in too much pain to care." Cloud chugged his disgusting water; it really was the only way he was going to have a chance of lessening tomorrow's hangover. His head was already beginning to hurt. When he finished it and the sandwich, Sephiroth hauled him up off the couch; apparently his legs were still incredibly drunk. He struggled into his pyjamas and crawled under the covers, feeling Sephiroth lie down next to him a few minutes later.
"There're two more bottles of water on the nightstand," Sephiroth said as he wrapped an arm around Cloud. "Wake me up if you need more."
***
Subject: The night of silver winds.
Last night was Shin-Ra's annual Midwinter Party held for the brave SOLDIERs as thanks for all they do. Sephiroth was, of course, present at the party, and he brought along his devoted lover, Cloud, to keep him company. It was a private party, so Silver Elite staff were not allowed on the premises, but we naturally had an informer who kept us up to date on all the happenings.
The party was the first corporate function that Cloud had attended, and he was understandably nervous about it. We can only imagine how difficult it would be to live up to Sephiroth and SOLDIER's expectations. Cloud, however, became the talk of the party for his witty banter and amazing dance skills. Sephiroth showed utmost devotion to his tired partner at the end of the night, even going so far as to carry him on the dance floor for one final dance before they bid everyone a Happy Solstice. Doubters hoping for a swift breakup of the pair were no doubt disappointed by the night's events. We at the Silver Elite are glad that they have found such happiness with each other and would like to assure our fans that, despite rumours, there was no fight at the party, and Sephiroth went home satisfied with an exhausted Cloud in his arms.
We have attached an exclusive photo that will be sure to brighten up everyone's holidays.
Sephiroth could barely contain his laughter at the wild inaccuracy of the report. "Well, at least he doesn't look completely wasted in the picture."
"Seph! He doesn't look drunk at all, that's why Cissnei picked it. You can barely even see the tinsel in his hair. He just looks like he's snuggled up 'cause he's all tired and he loves you so much."
"Zack, don't say things like that. But can you let Cissnei know that I want a copy of the picture?"
"Sure thing, bud. So... why can't I say things like that?"
***
Omake 3 | Next Chapter
A/N: I rather adore writing the Silver Elite fanmail, but the subject lines are a bitch to come up with. Also, I imagined the SOLDIER-strength nog to be made with Bacardi 151 and rather heavy on the rum part. Cloud can hold his liquor like a champ.
Author: xpaperplanex
Rating: PG
Word Count: ~4400
Pairings: Sephiroth/Cloud
Genre: humour, romance
Warnings: underage drinking
Disclaimer: I do not own FFVII and make no money from this work.
Summary: ShinRa's annual Midwinter party is something all SOLDIERs and their partners look forward too. Unfortunately, they sometimes forget that not everyone knows the about the party's conventions.
Woo! I did it! Assuming the 21st is the solstice. I can never remember these things. Hope you have a great whatever you celebrate. I'm going to have the weirdest Christmas I've ever had... probably even weirder than the one I spent on a plane. I'll be eating steak and getting drunk at all night karaoke. Hopefully it will at least be more fun than the plane. :D
This one takes place before chapter 26 of Prisoners of War, but after the Memo omake.
***
"Cloud, hurry up. We're late already."
Cloud heard the fridge open and the clinking of bottles. There was plenty of beer in there; Sephiroth could wait a few more minutes. His final attempt at making his hair look like he had spiked it on purpose was mildly successful - as long as he didn't move his head. Sighing, Cloud fixed his shirt and stood up straight. "Why do I have to look so fucking young?" he yelled suddenly at the mirror.
"You don't look that young." Sephiroth appeared in the doorway holding a beer and looking much more mature than Cloud could ever manage. "And you look very nice, so that's what counts. I don't know what you're so worked up about anyways. It's just the guys."
"No." Cloud spun on his heel. "It's just your guys. And your guys happen to be fucking intimidating! Gimme that beer." Cloud snatched the bottle out of Sephiroth's hand and began chugging it before he had a chance to protest.
"Hey, come on, Cloud. It's not that bad. You've met a lot of them before, haven't you? I know it sucks that Zack's not coming, but you'll still have fun, I promise."
"Sure, I've met some of them before." Cloud drained the bottle and slammed it down on the counter. "As an assistant for the day. Now I'm being introduced as your boyfriend and you're going to get dragged off to talk to people and they're not going to want me around so I'll get left alone and I'll just be a freak standing in the corner with no one to talk to."
"You won't be a freak, Cloud. And I'll do my best to not abandon you, I promise. The other SOLDIERs know who you are and that you're coming with me; you'll have someone to talk to even if I get dragged off." Sephiroth was giving him that pleading look that Cloud had trouble resisting. It wasn't that he didn't want to go, it was just... scary. But he had to admit, it felt nice that Sephiroth had invited him to come as his 'significant other'.
Cloud managed a small smile and tugged at an unruly spike. "Don't worry," he sighed. "I haven't changed my mind. Let's go."
***
Shin-Ra spared no expense on the SOLDIER Midwinter party; Cloud had to stop and stare in awe for a few moments at the lavish decorations. Massive garlands hung from the ceiling, ice sculptures glittered in every corner, and the tables were piled high with food. Sephiroth allowed Cloud to stare a short while before taking him by the hand and gently tugging him out of the doorway.
"Let's go take a look around and grab some drinks."
Cloud followed distractedly and leaned in for a closer look when Sephiroth let go of his hand by the first set of tables they came to. There were delicate little sugar things laid out on a tray, sparkling in the red and blue lights that were hung around the room. They were shaped like large snowflakes and looked like they would break if you breathed too heavily. He looked up to see Sephiroth coming back with two cups of what looked like eggnog.
"Are these edible?" Cloud asked wonderingly.
"Huh? Oh, Sugarflakes, sure they are. Help yourself." Sephiroth set the cups down and popped one in his mouth, making a face. "Solid sugar, mind you..."
Cloud very carefully picked one up and sucked on the end of it. For solid sugar, it was pretty good. It had little granules of sugar sprinkled on top and he could have sworn there was some sort of flavour to it. Sort of lemony, maybe.
"Happy Solstice, General," a voice boomed out behind Cloud, causing him jump and break his snowflake. "So we finally get to meet your boy toy, do we?" A hand clapped down on Cloud's shoulder and he did his best not to cringe away from it. This was exactly what he had been afraid of: being thought of as Sephiroth's toy.
"My what?" Sephiroth asked icily and Cloud scooted out from under the hand and over next to Sephiroth, trying to look as unruffled as possible. Sephiroth wouldn't let stuff like that slide.
"I meant your boyfriend." The SOLDIER smiled uneasily at Sephiroth. "Apologies, General."
Cloud fumed. He was the one being insulted. He deserved an apology too. In a sudden surge of confidence that he was pretty sure he only felt because Sephiroth was standing right next to him, Cloud looked the SOLDIER square in the eyes and stuck out his hand. "My name is Cloud and I'm not Sephiroth's toy. It's nice to meet you, sir."
The man blinked a couple times and gaped at Cloud in surprise before shrugging and taking Cloud's hand, giving it a firm shake. "Harvey, Jason Harvey, First Class. It's nice to meet you too, Cloud. And I am sorry about the boy toy thing. It was just a joke; I didn't mean to offend you."
Cloud nodded his acceptance, feeling suddenly nervous again, and turned to pick up one of the cups of nog Sephiroth had brought. He sipped at it while Sephiroth and Harvey talked about troop movements in Wutai. Sephiroth kept an arm casually slung over his shoulder while he talked and Cloud did his best not to look like he was leaning on Sephiroth for support for his trembling knees. He had talked back to a First Class! That-that was quite possibly the stupidest thing he had ever done!
By the time they had agreed that there needed to be a meeting about ration shipments, Cloud had very nearly recovered himself. Then Harvey clapped him on the shoulder again and nearly knocked him over.
"Take care of our General tonight, Cloud. Make sure he doesn't kill any execs before we kick them out and start the real party, okay?"
"O-okay, sir."
"He's cute, sir, if you don't mind my saying so. Can't wait to see him in SOLDIER."
"Thank you, Harvey." Sephiroth turned and steered Cloud away, stopping at the punch bowl to refill Cloud's cup. "Told you you'd be able to handle them," Sephiroth said cheerfully.
"Handle them!? I almost died, Sephiroth!" Cloud took a big gulp of his drink; this one didn't seem as strong as the other. That was a bit weird.
"You did not. And you made a good impression. SOLDIERs tend to like people who stand up for themselves."
"You don't get it."
"Sure I do, I just think you're overreacting." Sephiroth nudged him a little further along and paused at another punch bowl-this one was a nice, festive blue-and filled a fresh glass of eggnog for himself. "Come on, let's hit the dance floor. You'll enjoy that and no one will talk to us."
Cloud was feeling pretty good by the time they took a break from dancing. If only they could have kept it up all night, but the people who kept trying to interrupt them only to be brushed aside seemed to be getting desperate. He couldn't help but wonder why they had to bug Sephiroth about work stuff while he was at a party. Sephiroth eventually had to give in, unfortunately, and allowed himself to be dragged away by an angry-looking woman in a red dress after promising Cloud that he'd be right back.
Sephiroth wasn't right back, so he decided to get himself another drink. Since he was still technically underage when it came to drinking, and Sephiroth wasn't there as his get-out-of-jail-free card, he had to be a bit sneaky about acquiring another one and made a dash for the eggnog as soon as no one seemed to be looking. He downed it quickly and was about to refill it when a voice he recognized spoke behind him.
"Chocobohead! How's it going?"
Cloud set the glass down and turned around so he was hiding it from view. "I told you not to call me that, Kunsel!"
"Happy Solstice to you too, brat. What's up? Where're Zack and the general?" There were two other SOLDIERs with Kunsel and Cloud glanced at them nervously.
"Zack couldn't make it; he's spending the night celebrating with Aerith. Sephiroth got dragged away by some lady... I dunno when he'll be back."
"He abandoned you? That sucks. Well, we were just going to grab some drinks and go hang out on the balcony for a little while, if you want to come with." Kunsel nudged Cloud out of the way and each of them grabbed three cups and began filling them.
"Thanks, but I should probably wait for Sephiroth to come back. He shouldn't be much longer." Cloud eyed the glasses the SOLDIERs were balancing carefully; one in each hand and the third squashed between them. It didn't look safe.
"All right, well, if you give up on your man, come find us. I promise to probably not call you 'Chocobohead'." Kunsel gave him a wink and disappeared in the direction of the balconies. Cloud overheard one of the other SOLDIERs wondering how a kid like that had caught the general and he sighed, refilling his own cup.
As he drained the last of it, the world was starting to seem quite blurry and the room seemed to be spinning a bit. He had only had... how many? Cloud was trying to puzzle it out when he heard a couple people talking nearby.
"So is that the General's new squeeze?" an overly muscled man was asking.
"Think so... I saw a picture of 'im in his office the other week," said the other, lankier-looking man. "Looks the same."
"He's tiny. What the hell does he see in him?"
"Well he is pretty cute, if barely legal. Maybe he just likes 'em young?"
Cloud banged his cup setting it down, furious. He could feel the rum running through his veins and giving him an extra boost of courage again. They were talking about him like he wasn't even there! Wobbling slightly, Cloud pushed himself away from the table and marched over to the two men. And panicked. Now what the hell was he supposed to do? His mind became a screaming sheet of white noise. Unable to think of anything to say, Cloud just looked back and forth between the two, not blinking and trying not to show his fear.
The SOLDIERs stared back at him for a few moments until the burly one cleared his throat. "So I heard Essai got roped into teaching another cadet class, making it four. Poor guy's had no time for missions lately."
"Better," Cloud muttered and gave a sharp nod of his head. He returned to his spot by the eggnog and mumbled to himself while he poured another glass. "Damn right should be shcared of me. I'm scary. Have a Sefferrof."
Cloud giggled and wandered off to poke at some of the decorations stuck to the corners of the tables. Tinsel somehow ended up tangled around him and he flapped his hands in an attempt to get it off, which only served to spread it around. A long piece was dangling in front of one eye, but he couldn't quite catch it to pull it away.
"Cloud, are you all right?"
Cloud giggled again. "I'm drunk... and tinsel'sh shtuck to me."
"Yeah... I can see that." Cloud was turned around and he blinked up at Kunsel a bit bewilderedly.
"You... not wearing hat."
"No, I'm not. I take my helmet off for fancy parties. How about we get some water into you. Has Sephiroth still not been back?"
"No' back. Ran away, I think."
"Nah, he didn't run away. Scarlet's probably just trying to molest him and he's trying to escape without hurting her. Come on, let's get you sitting down." Kunsel took Cloud by the hand and led him, stumbling, over to some chairs against the wall. "You sit here and I'm going to get you some water, okay?"
"Oookie doke. I sit here." Cloud sat, poking at a gouge in the chair and trying to get the tinsel out of his hair, when someone poked his leg with their foot.
"Hey, I'm talking to you, Private." Cloud inspected a big pair of shoes, but couldn't quite find the willpower to raise his head.
"No' a Privut. Cor'rl. Corple. Cororperel. Fuck it. Not Pravvit."
"Yeah, well, we've all heard the rumours about how a pansy-ass like you earned that-"
Cloud surged to his feet and swung his fist as hard as he could, connecting with something that made the person talking to him make a noise that could have been of pain. It also made Cloud lose his balance and he fell on his ass, giggling. The big shoes were still standing next to him and they seemed like rather unimpressed big shoes. Some small part of his brain tried to tell him that that wasn't a good thing, but all Cloud could think was that someone should draw frowny faces on the shoes so he'd know for sure. The thought made him giggle even harder, even as a hand reached down and grabbed his shirt.
"Hey! What's going on, Trent?" The hand let go of Cloud immediately and he slumped back to the floor. There was some yelling going on above him and some more shoes came over. A bit more yelling followed, before the frowny shoes went away stomping and a face suddenly appeared in Cloud's vision.
"You all right, kid?" It was that first guy they had talked to.
"No' a toy! And brave! Thash how got pormosshun." Cloud failed his fists angrily.
"Poro...? Oh, promotion. Yeah, I know, I heard about how brave you were. How the hell did he get this drunk?"
"Dunno. Nog'sh good."
"Anybody notice what colour bowl he was drinking from?"
"Shit... he was standing by one of the blue ones... did Sephiroth not tell him?"
"Cloud, hey, pay attention." The First's face was looming at him again. "Were you drinking eggnog out of the blue punchbowls?"
"Mebbe... blue wash pretty."
"Well shit, Cloud. I'm amazed you're not in the hospital. Come on, let's get you off the floor."
Someone grabbed Cloud from behind and he struggled wildly, not wanting to get picked up by some stranger. It didn't work, though; the person trying to pick him up was obviously a lot stronger than he was. That brought on a momentary feeling of panic until he thought of just going limp. Whoever had him lost his grip and Cloud slid to the floor with a thud.
"Nice soggy noodle act, Chocobohead." The person behind him disappeared and reappeared in front of him, looking like Kunsel.
"No hat." Cloud poked him on the forehead.
"Nope, no hat, you drunk. Come on, stop being a brat and let me help you up."
"Was you?"
"Yes, it was me. Who did you think it was?"
"Dunno... all grabby an' stuff."
The First Class was still there and he let out a loud barking laugh. "Do me a favour, Cloud. Don't go telling Sephiroth that Kunsel was 'all grabby and stuff' with you."
Cloud tapped his chin with one finger, considering. "Speshul favour. Jush for you."
The First laughed again and leaned down to grab one of Cloud's hands. "Take his other one. You're too kind, kid."
Kunsel took his other hand and Cloud was hauled to his wobbly legs, which would have given out under him if it hadn't been for Kunsel wrapping an arm around him.
"What the hell's going on?"
"Sefferrof!" Cloud perked up and surged towards the voice. "I punshed someone!"
"What?" Familiar arms caught him and Cloud latched on.
"Punshed 'im good! Bashdard!"
"I was just going to give him some water, sir..."
"All right, let me get him sitting down." Cloud was pushed downwards and collapsed into a chair, and Sephiroth was forced to follow him because Cloud wasn't letting go. Somebody turned his head so his face wasn't pressed into Sephiroth's chest and a cool glass was pressed to his lips. "Drink this, Cloud."
Cloud gulped at the water, even letting go of Sephiroth so he could hold the glass himself, trusting that the arm would stay wrapped around him.
"What actually happened?"
"I wasn't there, but as near as I can figure it, someone was speculating about how Cloud got his promotion. Cloud punched him and knocked himself over in the process."
"I see... Harvey?"
"I got there after Kunsel. The other SOLDIER was drunk and being argumentative, so I sent him back to his quarters. I'll handle any disciplinary action in the morning."
"You don't want to tell me who it was."
Cloud finished his water and tapped the glass against Sephiroth's hand. "More?" Someone, not Sephiroth, took the empty glass and replaced it with a full one. Cloud rolled his head back to smile up at Kunsel. "Thank you."
"I'd rather not, sir. You don't need to concern yourself with it; I don't think he actually said much before Cloud hit him. And... you have your hands full."
"I do... Why is he this drunk? He knows his limits."
"Er, we think he may have been drinking the SOLDIER-strength eggnog."
Cloud's water jostled and splashed as Sephiroth sat bolt upright. "He~y."
"Sorry, Cloud. The SOLDIER-strength? Are you sure? Why didn't anyone notice and stop him?" Cloud settled back down into the crook of Sephiroth's shoulder and sipped more slowly at his water this time. He shut his eyes and tried to pay attention to what people were saying. They were talking about him after all.
"I never saw him drinking when he wasn't with you, sir, or I would have. Didn't he know about the colour-codes?"
"I... I don't think I mentioned it, actually. Shit, Cloud, let's get you home, okay?"
"Nuh-uh! Wanna dansh!" Cloud splashed the water again as he struggled to sit up straight.
"Cloud, we should go home. You're not-"
"Want. To. Dance!" he said firmly, trying his best to enunciate each word properly.
"All right, all right, don't shout. One dance and then we're going." The glass was taken out of his hand and Sephiroth pulled Cloud to his feet, leading him towards the dance floor. Cloud's knees kept trying to collapse with each step, so he opted for taking much larger ones to cut down on the number required to reach their destination. "Put on something slow," Sephiroth said when they finally got there, and the music was abruptly cut off.
It was replaced with a slow tune that made Cloud feel like swaying. He tried and nearly fell over on his first sway. There was muttering all around him, but Sephiroth just chuckled.
"Come here, you." Strong arms scooped Cloud up and cradled him against Sephiroth's warm chest. He wrapped his arms around Sephiroth's shoulders and tucked his head under his chin.
"Want to dance," he said quietly.
"You are dancing, Cloud. See?"
He was. His body was moving in time with the music, swaying back and forth as they slowly made their way around the dance floor. "M'a good dancer," Cloud mumbled, face pressed into Sephiroth's chest.
"You're a very good dancer." Cloud felt lips press against the crown of his head and he smiled to himself.
Cloud allowed himself to be lulled into a relaxed state and barely noticed when the song ended and they were moving away from the dance floor. He was jostled a little bit as a coat was wrapped around him. "Home?" he asked.
"Yeah, we're going home. You need to get some food and more water into you before you pass out."
There were some voices talking around him, but it was hard to pay attention. "Not doin' any shexy things wish you tonigh'."
There was a burst of laughter from several people and it felt like Sephiroth clunked his head against Cloud's. "No, no sexy things tonight."
"I mean it!"
More people were laughing now. "Cloud, I hate to break it to you, but you're not very sexy right now."
"At least he's not puking, sir."
"Oh, don't say that, Kunsel. You'll give him ideas. All right, we're out of here. Happy Solstice, everyone."
"Ha-ee Solshtish." A hand ruffled Cloud's hair and then they were away.
"We're taking the stairs, Cloud, so you've got no reason to puke."
"Kay." Cloud snuggled down under his coat and drifted off into a light doze.
***
"Cloud. Cloud, wake up. I need you to drink this." Someone was roughly shaking Cloud's shoulder and he groaned, pulling the soft thing that was on top of him over his head.
"Go 'way."
The thing covering him was roughly pulled away and Cloud blinked up at Sephiroth. "Nope. You're going to drink this, you're going to eat something, you're going to have some more water, and then you're going to get in your pyjamas and go to bed. Here."
A bottle was shoved into Cloud's hands and he sat up a little and took a sip. "Eugh! Gross! Hell're you tryin'a do?
"I put electrolyte powder in it. Trust me, you'll appreciate it in the morning. Drink it."
"Gross... why not real sport drinks?"
Sephiroth sat down next to him-they must have been on the couch-and pushed the bottle towards his lips. "Sports drinks are full of sugar and chemicals you don't need," he said shortly.
Cloud reluctantly took a few more sips of the nasty water. "Mad at me, arn'you?"
He heard Sephiroth sigh and an arm wrapped around him. "I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at myself for forgetting to tell you about the bowls, but I'm definitely not mad at you. I'm just worried now. It's easy to get a lot of the SOLDIER booze into you before you even feel it. Do you know how much you drank?"
"Dunno, ts'all fuzzy."
"That's okay, don't worry about it. Here, Luxiere packed you up some sandwiches. Think you can handle eating one?"
"Who's Luxsheer?" Cloud asked as he took a bit of the sandwich.
"A SOLDIER you impressed. Takes guts punching a Second Class."
Cloud dropped his sandwich. "What?"
"You impressed me too." Sephiroth pressed a fresh sandwich into Cloud's hands. "Eat."
"Punched... Second? I punched a Second?"
"From what I heard, he deserved it, so don't worry about it. Get that look off your face." Sephiroth took the sandwich back and shoved it into Cloud's open mouth. Cloud bit out of sheer reflex and chewed absently, his mind reeling at the horror of what he had done.
Cloud swallowed his mouthful. "You hate me. Talked back to a First, got drunk, punched someone, made you carry me..."
"I had fun dancing with you, even the last one. You're cute when you're wasted."
"But not sexy," Cloud wailed, feeling more sober by the second. "Everyone was there, weren't they?"
Chuckling softly, Sephiroth handed him the water bottle again. "You didn't throw up; you deserve an award." Sephiroth paused a moment as he seemed to realize something. "Tell me if you're feeling sick, though," he added.
"If you have any mercy at all, you'll kill me now and save me the embarrassment. No one would blame you, I'm sure." If he could just curl up and die here on the couch, that would be best.
"No can do, I like you too much to kill you. Finish up your water and we'll go to bed. I promise it won't seem so bad in the morning."
"Yeah... I'll be in too much pain to care." Cloud chugged his disgusting water; it really was the only way he was going to have a chance of lessening tomorrow's hangover. His head was already beginning to hurt. When he finished it and the sandwich, Sephiroth hauled him up off the couch; apparently his legs were still incredibly drunk. He struggled into his pyjamas and crawled under the covers, feeling Sephiroth lie down next to him a few minutes later.
"There're two more bottles of water on the nightstand," Sephiroth said as he wrapped an arm around Cloud. "Wake me up if you need more."
***
Subject: The night of silver winds.
Last night was Shin-Ra's annual Midwinter Party held for the brave SOLDIERs as thanks for all they do. Sephiroth was, of course, present at the party, and he brought along his devoted lover, Cloud, to keep him company. It was a private party, so Silver Elite staff were not allowed on the premises, but we naturally had an informer who kept us up to date on all the happenings.
The party was the first corporate function that Cloud had attended, and he was understandably nervous about it. We can only imagine how difficult it would be to live up to Sephiroth and SOLDIER's expectations. Cloud, however, became the talk of the party for his witty banter and amazing dance skills. Sephiroth showed utmost devotion to his tired partner at the end of the night, even going so far as to carry him on the dance floor for one final dance before they bid everyone a Happy Solstice. Doubters hoping for a swift breakup of the pair were no doubt disappointed by the night's events. We at the Silver Elite are glad that they have found such happiness with each other and would like to assure our fans that, despite rumours, there was no fight at the party, and Sephiroth went home satisfied with an exhausted Cloud in his arms.
We have attached an exclusive photo that will be sure to brighten up everyone's holidays.
Sephiroth could barely contain his laughter at the wild inaccuracy of the report. "Well, at least he doesn't look completely wasted in the picture."
"Seph! He doesn't look drunk at all, that's why Cissnei picked it. You can barely even see the tinsel in his hair. He just looks like he's snuggled up 'cause he's all tired and he loves you so much."
"Zack, don't say things like that. But can you let Cissnei know that I want a copy of the picture?"
"Sure thing, bud. So... why can't I say things like that?"
***
Omake 3 | Next Chapter
A/N: I rather adore writing the Silver Elite fanmail, but the subject lines are a bitch to come up with. Also, I imagined the SOLDIER-strength nog to be made with Bacardi 151 and rather heavy on the rum part. Cloud can hold his liquor like a champ.