Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

CLOUD STRIFE, STRIFE DELIVERY SERVICE - WALL MARKET

The only thing worse than a Monday is a Monday where Cloud has to unstick his boots from the grimy asphalt outside Wall Market.

He shoves his goggles up into blond spikes and starts toward the gate with a deep breath. Wall Market is a suffocating tangle of doors, stairways, alleys, and people people people. People everywhere, in groups and doorways and corners. Neon signs glare down on everything, gilding scuffed benches and worn railings with hot pink and molten blue.

It’s loud, busy, and Cloud always tries to ghost through as quick as humanly possible.

Someone retches in an alley nearby. Someone urges him to enter their shop. Someone whistles at him while another curses him out. He’s stepping over a murky puddle when someone bumps into him, hard. They flick him off when they feel around and find his pockets are empty. Like he’d bring his wallet here.

He rubs his arm where a dull ache complains under the leather of his sleeve.

Cloud switches the box to his other arm. It’s addressed to the care of Mr. Andrea Rhodea at the Honeybee Inn, and Cloud’s already tense from sensory overload. When he looks up, he’s standing in front of the glistening and glittering building. He hurries inside before a random sidles up to him for who knows what, heading straight to the long reception counter. A receptionist greets him.

“Good evening. Welcome to the Honeybee Inn. Is there a honeyboy or girl whose company you desire?”

Cloud shuffles. Checks the box again.

“Package for Andrea Rhodea.”

The attendant smiles and tilts their head.

“I can take that.”

“No note about leaving it at the desk,” Cloud says, checking his PHS. “It needs to go to Mr. Rhodea directly.”

The glossy smile strains a bit, and the attendant turns to push some buttons on a phone with some force.

“I have a package- yes. Yes. Very insistent on delivering it.” They eye Cloud. “Directly.”

That’s why he’s got decent reviews across the galaxy. Insistent. Persistent. And efficient. People sure don’t hire him for the customer service.

“You can come with me,” the attendant finally says, gesturing as they move out from behind the counter. They glide ahead of Cloud, and he follows down a hall bustling with people in elaborate bee-themed outfits. Some coo and reach out, hands glancing off bits of his outfit that catch the eye. Cloud inconspicuously shelters his left arm from the touching.

His outfit, monotone as it is, stands out worse here- a moody smudge of black against the shiny and glaring gold. The lights catch on his buckles and accents, and he tries not to shrink under the attention. He’s taken the effort to find something that suits him, tried new things after-

A flurry of activity and people moving towards him interrupts his anxious thoughts.

Cloud braces himself. Crowds aren’t his thing. There’s a man in the center of the entourage, dressed in some sort of ornate strappy tunic, all in tones of black and honey (because of course). He’s glowing, sharp makeup and hair shaved skin-short with well groomed facial hair. Everyone is showing him something or asking questions, and he fires off decisions and answers with smooth ease. When his eyes land on Cloud, there’s no mistake- they are hard and glinting like cut gems. Sharp and all business, good or bad.

Those eyes size him up in one sweeping motion before they gleam.

Cloud doesn’t know what to say- usually doesn’t- so he just says the only thing that comes to mind.

“Delivery for Mr. Andrea Rhodea.”

“Online shopping again Andi?” a bee says, giggling and theatrical. “Where will you put him?”

“Stop,” Andrea scolds, a playful put upon expression disappearing with a smile at Cloud. “Your diligence is much appreciated. Cloud Strife, was it? Strife Delivery Service.”

Cloud doesn’t remember telling this guy his name, but he figures it’s not hard to find.

He holds out the box.

“Anytime. Your bill’s settled already, so…if you could confirm receipt.”

One day, when Cloud gets rich, he’ll have a robot to do this part. It’d probably get better reviews for customer service than he does.

Andrea doesn’t seem to mind. He takes the box, bowing his head.

“Confirmed. An absolute pleasure doing business with you.”

“Likewise,” Cloud mumbles, wavering awkwardly. “Have a good day.”

“I’m sure we’ll see each other again soon, Cloud.”

Cloud hurries out with no response after that, followed by a chorus of giggles and goodbyes. He leaves the Honeybee Inn and Andrea and his bees, eager to make his way back to where he left Fenrir.

He gets about ten feet before he gets cornered by two very familiar people. He stares, open-mouthed.

“Tifa? Aerith?”

“Cloud!”

His friends are draped in expensive looking dresses and jewelry and shimmer. There’s a lot of shoulder and biceps and skin on display. They wouldn’t be out of place on a magazine cover. He is very easily manhandled into an alley. Tifa is telling him something.

“Cloud, focus!” Aerith says, looking far too entertained.

Cloud shakes his head to regain his bearings and tunes back in, listening to Tifa.

“So we need to get into Corneo’s mansion- it’s a trafficking operation with ties to Shinra funds, Barrett wants to hit this one hard-”

This sounds like a bad idea. It must show on his face.

“Cloud, it’s two birds with one stone. We get the bounty, and Wall Market can be free of this sicko. Did I mention the bounty?” Aerith is in full salesman mode.

“This is too dangerous,” Cloud says, crossing his arms. “You’re going in there with no backup-”

“We have backup,” Aerith chirps. She makes big significant eyes at Tifa, who, of course, picks it up immediately.

“We do have backup,” Tifa says slowly, stepping closer to Cloud before she says the next part in a rush. “You’re here now, right?”

Cloud shakes his head.

“Where’s everyone else? Barret? Red?”

Aerith cuts in. “Keeping the Shera warm for a super fast getaway- of course they’re already setting everything up. Like Jessie said, ‘they won’t know what hit em’!’”

A headache is setting in. Tifa leans in and brushes his bad arm with a gentle touch, trying to catch his eye.

“You okay? They’re taking care of everything else- we just need to get inside to make sure Corneo can’t slither away. This is a bit of a…test run.”

“Test run?”

“Barret’s checking out that other crew. The anti-Shinra group.”

“Oh,” Cloud says.

He doesn’t know much about all that, and he isn’t sure he wants anything to do with it. He’s made it pretty clear to Barret and Tifa, he doesn’t mind exchanging his services for board on the Shera, but he vastly prefers the simplicity of his delivery side hustle. He doesn’t do long term contracts. At least not with people he doesn’t know.

But he also doesn’t like the idea of Tifa and Aerith toe to toe with human traffickers while they’re stuck in pointy heels.

Aerith takes her opportunity, observant and understanding in one.

“Come on,” she says, linking her arm with his. “I have an idea.”

Tifa grabs his other arm carefully, and they steer him towards a door he doesn’t notice until they’re opening it.

Cloud regrets going through the door.

The proprietor of this establishment has the same big presence as Andrea Rhodea, except where Andrea is surrounded by countless bee people, Madam M is solitary, like a coeurl. She glances at them, demure at first. Cloud thinks she’s a desk attendant until Tifa and Aerith run up to her.

They’re acquainted already. This is the mind behind Tifa and Aerith’s transformations. She’s a lady in a long, embroidered robe, straight out of a painting, the kind of person people write poems about or whatever- but her expressions are scarier than the most rugged outlaws Cloud has met.

As for Aerith’s idea, it’s not great. It’s real bad, actually.

Madam M is circling him, muttering.

“I don’t know why you think I’m just going to work multiple miracles a night. Two wishes are never enough, hm?”

But she’s grabbed Cloud’s chin and she’s turning his head this way and that, her own face an inch away as she observes. Cloud holds his breath, frozen.

Her hand drifts to his collarbone, smoothing out along his sleeved shoulder, ghosting down over his bad arm to his gloved hand. His arm trembles- fuck- and she locks eyes with him.

“A pity.” She turns abruptly. “Since you’re all doing us a bit of a favor though…I’m sure Andrea has a lot of ideas for you.”

An hour later, Cloud mutely stalks towards the Corneo mansion. Tifa and Aerith are flanking him, as close as they can without messing up his new dress.

He doesn’t really know what to think right now, and maybe it’s easier not to. It’s easier to rationalize that the tight (tight) corset isn’t too different from his standard issue bracer, the knee length boots aren’t too different from his usual boots, the skirts that swing against his legs are just like his leather guard he wears around his hips.

It gives him something to focus on while his thoughts settle. Andrea Rhodea certainly did have ideas for him, and seemed delighted to cancel his 7pm to “throw something together”.

‘Something’ is tight at the waist and voluminous at the hips, an elaborate dress that honestly makes him unrecognizable when he caught a glimpse in the mirror. Andrea didn’t comment on the bandages covering his left arm once exposed, but he did tell him something- ‘don’t ever be afraid’. He probably meant it to soothe someone who didn’t usually wear dresses, but Cloud finds himself taking it seriously.

‘Don’t ever be afraid’. That sounds like something Cloud can internalize. It’s a little dramatic and shiny, but no one needs to know he’s filing it away to examine later (both in and out of context).

It’s too soon that they are on Corneo’s doorstep, and Cloud takes a deep breath.

“Let’s do this.”

It’s kind of a shitshow. They’re led into the extravagant manor, ready for anything, but Corneo still catches them off guard with some sort of knock-out gas. They wake up on a cold stone floor, a slightly traumatizing dilemma before they’re lined up and compared.

Corneo is a toad of a man, making a big show of his choice, and Cloud ‘wins’ a tour of Corneo’s bedroom. Corneo must like ‘em mean, because Cloud is being outright hostile and Corneo is practically drooling over it. It takes a while for Cloud to piss him off, and by that time Tifa and Aerith catch up and rescue him. His heroes. They’re threatening Corneo’s virility when the first explosion rattles the room.

Tifa’s frowning. “That’s..bigger than expected.”

Corneo leans against his pile of pillows, stuck between simpering and seething.

“Bombs? Really?”

Cloud scowls. “You’re through, Corneo. This shit’s over.”

Corneo hugs himself with an exaggerated shiver.

“I’m shaking in my boots, kitten. You think this is gonna slide under their radar?”

“Whose radar?” Tifa asks, stomping a foot forward in a menacing sort of way.

“Shinra?” Aerith guesses.

Corneo smiles, small yellow teeth set in a wide grin. There’s another explosion, and the sound of a distant commotion sifting through the walls now.

“After all, there’s quite the bounty pinned on AVALANCHE, courtesy of Shinra. You’ve sure caught their eye, haven’t you?”

Cloud glances at Tifa. “What do you want to do here-”

Another explosion- and the sound of a ship setting down. Is it the Shera?

Tifa still looks like this isn’t what she expected, her brows furrowed together. “What is going on out there…either way, we’re stopping this today, Corneo.”

As if agreeing, a blast takes out the whole wall of the room. Smoke covers everything. As it clears, a huge Shinra tower robot sags into the structure of the mansion, steaming and smoking as it breaks down. Corneo screams, scrambling to escape the room.

When he throws the door open, he comes face to face with two massive guys in visors and outfitted in tactical gear. One holds a rifle and the other hefts a wickedly huge sword.

“Found the target, sir,” one says into an earpiece.

Cloud waves to get Tifa’s attention before their smoke screen dissipates. He jerks his head to the hole in the wall. It’s a bit of a jump, but they manage to get outside and on the ground while the two guys are distracted with Corneo.

“Lemme guess- those our guys? The test run crew?”

“Think so. Pretty intimidating, huh?”

Aerith hums. “I think we’re scarier,” she says.

An incredulous laugh bursts out of Tifa. “Are we?” She asks.

They’re running now. Cloud pulls them into an alcove.

“I just need-” He tugs at a few of the skirt layers. They seem to be removable, so he pulls off several, left with an awkward kind of butt cape thing going on. Luckily, the black stockings are opaque, so he’s not worried about flashing anyone. While he tugs out some of the more annoying hair extensions, Aerith and Tifa adjust their dresses for easier movement. Aerith follows Cloud’s lead and tugs out the heaviest hair piece in her ponytail, sighing in relief at the lightness.

Tifa kicks her heels off. “This will suck, but I need to be able to kick,” she says. “Let’s go.”

They reach the street and it’s chaos. The Shera hovers above Wall Market, and a big Shinra transport hovers above that. The part of Wall Market they can see is thick with panic and pandemonium. People are running and yelling, pushing in crushes to the exits on either end of the district.

There’s another ship on the ground- probably the one they heard landing. It’s not much bigger than the Shera, and there’s a couple people jumping out of it, heavily armed fighters. Their faces are covered with visors. If that’s the anti-Shinra group Barret is working with…they’re very Shinra-esque. If Cloud didn’t know better he’d think it was more Shinra forces. But the ship is run down and well-loved. The people who jump out are mostly solo, bee lining in random directions to engage the Shinra troops and robots already on the ground. There’s about five big robots stomping nearby, plus a bunch of tiny annoying drones flitting around.

“They’ll be helping to evacuate the people here,” Tifa explains, pulling her gloves on. “They’ll cover us too- beat the Shinra down. AVALANCHE will be focusing on dismantling Corneo’s mansion. He’s stolen a lot of stuff from Wutai.”

“Makes sense.” Barret’s mentioned some funding from Wutai. “Guess the trafficking didn’t pay well enough.”

“Disgusting,” Aerith declares.

Cloud’s got more questions, but a small group of Shinra troops is approaching, obviously not viewing them as a threat. The three of them stay quiet until they pass, then Tifa punches the shit out of them in a lightning fast melee. Aerith pulls her collapsible staff out of nowhere, expanding it and finishing them up with a thunderbolt. Barret’s machine gun rattles, not far off.

“I need a weapon or I won’t be much help,” Cloud says. “Meet you at the ship when this is over? Call me if you get in a tight spot.”

That’s when Barret bursts into the street they’re on, spraying bullets at someone behind him. It’s so comforting to have gunfire on his side for once. Maybe that wouldn’t be a thing if he stopped hanging around a notorious crew of rebels, but either way he hopes Barret doesn’t notice Cloud has positive feelings towards him. Too awkward. Cloud frowns up at him to make sure.

“Cloud!? What the HELL are you wearin’?!” Barret yells.

Now Cloud is genuinely frowning.

“I know. It’s a look. Can we ignore this for now?”

They’re running in different directions before Barret can push the issue. Cloud tries to make sense of the situation as he heads towards Fenrir, eyes darting everywhere and taking everything in.

Shinra has troops and robots heading toward the Corneo mansion. Barret had said Corneo was an under the table income stream in Shinra’s pocket, so that much he expected. Still, it’s strange how quickly the transport arrived on top of them, or that they even sent that big of a transport to begin with. It would definitely be out of hand without the added friendly militia group.

It’s gotta be thanks to the rising bounty on AVALANCHE. Barret’s been years at work on this, but it’s only recently he’s had the manpower and resources to raise some real hell, starting with the mako reactor stations orbiting nearly every planet in the system.

Cloud is just a courier, but he wouldn’t lie- he’s been one of those resources. Sometimes a delivery can be a kick in the ass, or a bomb when Barret pays him enough (always shoves him a little or pulls his cheek when Cloud gets too moneyminded). He guesses he might’ve missed the line that marked where ‘errands’ turned into ‘illegal activities’.

He ducks into an alley to avoid a big scuffle. The fray can wait until he’s got his gear back from Andrea- at the very least, he needs his boots. He’ll stop and warn Madam M and Andrea if they’re still around. Least he can do.

Tight timelines and high stakes. Not even a tip waiting if he makes it.

There’s a repeating announcement blaring- “Civilians please evacuate at the nearest exit. We recommend leaving planet.”

Not good. Shinra’s expecting this to get ugly. They have a tendency to go nuclear, as he’s learned in past encounters.

Ironically, it’s AVALANCHE and the anti-Shinra assisting civilians, tackling the Shinra troops in their way.

At last, Cloud reaches the quiet nook he parked Fenrir in. He’s quick, in business mode. Sorts through the blades of his arsenal and picking three of his favorites to snap together. The main blade, his workhorse, the hollow second blade, for multiple opponents, and one of the smaller sword pieces, for emergencies. He likes options.

Back to running. This time feels a little more comfortable with the weight of his sword anchoring him. There’s a small explosion up ahead, between him and Madam M’s parlor- he gets some height on the situation and runs up a stairway to jump along some balconies.

There’s some anti-Shinra pressing a squad of troopers. Wedge is there too, holding his own. The anti-Shinra are beasts in comparison. The ones he’s seen are all tall, strong, covered head to toe and completely wrecking the opposition with swords and materia alone. Shinra’s only seemed to dispatch infantry, and it’s almost unfair how easily they are getting tossed around. The robots are the only challenge.

Cloud trusts they’ll keep it up and books it towards Madam M’s door.

He’s cut off by two men coming out of nowhere, popping out of an alley. Cloud has to skid to avoid ramming into them, and mentally apologizes for fucking up Andrea’s shoes.

The men are incredibly out of place against the active battle in their sharp black suits. The redhead looks like he could be a Honeybee Inn customer, his back slouched and suit open in a deep deep v. Two red tattoos slash across his cheeks, giving him an alarming stare. He turns those sharp eyes to Cloud.

“Hey sweety, it’s not a good time for you to be running around,” he sneers in a thick Midgar accent.

The other guy frowns, an imposing bald man in dark sunglasses and leather gloves. He’d make a great bouncer.

“Nice sword you have there, miss,” he says, and his tone is all threat.

“No time for picking up ladies, partner,” The redhead says, rolling his eyes. “Sorry dollface, we got things to do.”

Cloud stays frozen as they run off down another alley. That’s right. He’s got a face full of makeup and half a gown on. He looks like any random woman. They don’t recognize him, but he recognizes them- from the Midgar reactors. The most aggressive and covert Shinra agents, Turks. Why are they here? He sets his shoulders and keeps going.

When he bursts into the parlor, Madam M and Andrea Rhodea are mid-conversation, like the place isn’t falling apart right outside their door.

“No manners,” Madam M says with a glare. “You ever hear of knocking?”

Andrea’s hand drifts to his chin. “I like what you’ve done with the look, Cloud. Quite rugged. Caught up in the mess out there, hm?”

“You guys need to get out of here,” Cloud says, not bothering with pleasantries. “This is getting ugly.”

“How thoughtful.” Madam M says with a scoff. “Obviously we’d love to, but some of us have obligations to take care of before we can run off.”

Cloud tries not to get irritated.

“They’re evacuating Wall Market. If you stay here, you could get seriously hurt. I’m going out there, once I grab my clothes. Tell me what you need and I’ll get it before I go.”

Andrea is smiling now, and Madam M’s eyebrows are to the ceiling.

“Well well. Aren’t you a good little delivery boy,” she says, the fan she’s holding drifting towards her mouth to hide a smile.

“Yes I know thank you, will you get out of here now?”

“Cloud,” Andrea says. “Thank you for the warning. We’ll be okay.” He grabs something from behind Madam M’s counter- a large bag.

Cloud grabs it and finds his gear is inside.

“You want this stuff back?” Cloud says, gesturing to his outfit and the state of it. He grabs his boots out of the bag for now. “Think some of it I’ll have to pay you back for.”

Andrea shares a glance with Madam M, then shakes his head. “If your friends can take Corneo out, consider it part of our thanks.”

Cloud nods, tightening his boots. He straightens up. He’s still stuck in a corset and the under layers of the skirts and bodice, but he has enough movement to help. His appearance isn’t even a concern right now.

“Go on then- I’m sure you’re dying to join the fray,” Madam M says. She makes a shooing gesture.

And then he’s running again, much more secure with his feet flat on the ground.

Most of the fighting is concentrated near Corneo’s mansion. It was the original target, after all. Cloud stares up at a tower robot lurching tall above him, dispensing bullets and plumes of flame as it spins. It’s making a damn mess, and friendly fire is on- it’s attacking anything in its path. The Shinra troops are giving it a wide berth.

He’s bringing his sword up to strike when someone beats him to it. Lightning pulses through the hulking form, causing it to spark and crackle through a good fry.

“Got this one,” someone says cheerfully. Familiar voice. “You can keep going on!”

Cloud is trying to identify the newcomer when the robot cranks a half turn, one of the arms catching him off guard. It clashes against his sword at the last second and Cloud gets tossed back before he can brace himself.

“Oops, incoming! I gotcha!”

A hand is suddenly at Cloud’s waist, catching him like it’s no effort at all. He’s leaned up in someone’s arm, someone with tan skin and a big grin. Dark spiky hair and eyes covered with a giant protective visor. The way he’s got him caught like it’s safe is ringing bells. It’s all so familiar- Cloud’s let loose and he’s stuck for a second, when the guy does a double take.

“...huh? Wait- are you-“

Whatever he’s about to say gets cut off by a scream. Very close.

Cloud scans the area. A small figure huddles in the middle of the street ahead. They shake under bullets and the aftershocks of explosions and falling debris. A kid, small pale face streaked with tears and a black smear of what might be mistaken for soot on their forehead.

He knows what that smudge means.

Cloud’s sprinting over before he knows it. He’s fast, he’s always been fast. He’s flying and sliding, gravel eating up his boots, shredding up his tights, scraping down as he reaches out. He pulls the kid into himself, and he’s running again.

He’s got the kid all tucked up in his arms and at this point he’s just thinking ‘get back to Fenrir’. He’s just thinking ‘get somewhere safe’. His left arm is burning like hell and he’s sure the kid’s forehead is too.

He’d know the blackened and flushed bruises anywhere, because he has a similar shadow eating up his arm. The kid has geostigma, just like Cloud.

The second they make it to the Shera, Cloud pops the hatch open and hops off Fenrir. He checks his unexpected passenger.

The kid blinks, eyes red and wet from earlier. He’s not crying now, just gazing up at Cloud like he hung the moon. Cloud’s definitely still got a face full of ruined makeup and shredded pieces of the lacy dress on. He hopes he doesn’t look too nightmarish. Kid’s been through a lot.

“You okay?” he asks the kid.

The ship intercom crackles to life, and Cid’s growl fills the entry bay.

“Cloud! Why’re you up here, punk? Fight’s the other way!”

“I don’t remember getting paid,” Cloud bites back. Cid cackles as Cloud helps the kid off Fenrir.

“Don’t worry- that’s the captain, Cid Highwind. We’ll get you back down there soon- my friends are- well…”

Cloud actually has no idea what’s going on. From the way the tears well up, the kid doesn’t care.

“I don’t want to go back,” he whispers.

Cloud blinks. “Huh?”

The kid wavers, hesitating. Then he lunges towards Cloud and throws his arms around his waist.

“They’re gone!”

Cloud’s stomach drops, and he freezes where his hands are hovering over the kid’s shoulders.

“My mom and dad…” and there’s nothing else he can sort out from the sobbing.

Cloud lets his fingers tighten on the kid’s shoulders, not pulling him closer, but not pushing him away.

“Hey,” he says. The kid blinks up at him wetly. “You’re safe now. What’s your name?”

“D…Denzel.”

“Okay, Denzel. We can stay here. Let’s go see if Cid is hiring anymore little guys.”

“I’m not little,” Denzel argues, still sniffling but a little calmer. He takes a deep breath and seems to be shuttering his panic. Cloud knows he needs to keep talking.

“Yeah, yeah, listen, as a little guy, you better get used to hearing it around here. Brutal.”

A laugh escapes Denzel’s mouth like he didn’t mean to, then he laughs again, still teary. His smaller hand finds Cloud’s, and Cloud can’t find it in him to shake it off.

Chapter Text

ZACK FAIR, MERCENARY - WALL MARKET

Zack’s fucked up.

It’s okay, because he’s great at saving stuff for later. Right now, he’s focusing. What’s important at the moment is the big ugly robot looming above him. 

He’s kicking ass so it’s fine. He’s in his element, in the zone, and he’s had a good feeling all day. Helping people makes him happy.

He likes Barret Wallace, and the other members of AVALANCHE that he’s talked to. Better yet, Aerith was in there too. Angeal had them conceal their identities for the time being, but the second he heard her familiar voice over the comms link, it was hard not to start tearing up immediately. Call him a softie- it’s been too long since he last saw her. Way too long. He feels kind of bad about how they broke up, considering he basically…went missing. He knows once she lets him have it she’ll also let him have a hug. 

Zack spent like three years craving anything resembling comfort in the labs. He’s not going to steamroll anyone’s boundaries, but he hopes no one minds that he’s a little clingy now.

He’s dying for that hug from one of his favorite people. 

That’s also why he’s fucked up. 

Because he thinks maybe he met another one of his favorite people, but it’s literally impossible. It’s impossible because…

Zack jumps and swings his sword with his whole body, plunging it into one of the robot’s exposed joints. 

That means he wasn’t dead when they destroyed the lab.

Zack pushes the thought away again. Rips the sword out in a shower of sparks and parts.

He’s putting it away for now. He’s not even sure who he saw to be honest. Yeah it felt like him, looked like him, but it’s been such a fast-paced day and there’s-

No way.

Zack hacks and slashes away, before another thought pops up and grabs his attention. 

The outfit? The makeup??

He hops up onto the roof, making sure the area is clear of any more crying children before the robot shudders and explodes. Then he pauses to take a breath. 

The person in his arms had been Cloud. Cloud, part of the reason he and Seph joined up with Genesis and Angeal in the first place. It was definitely him. The hair Zack loved to ruffle and mess up, the nose Zack always ran a finger down before smooshing, that stunned expression… despite the smoky makeup and the dress he was wearing, it was him. Zack knows. He’d know him anywhere. The biggest giveaway was those big blue eyes, glowing with mako, Zack’s biggest failure. Why would Cloud be in Wall Market though? He hopes it’s nothing dangerous. What if-

“Helloooo- Genesis to Zack.” 

Zack snaps back to reality and presses his comm to talk.

“Heya Gen. What’s up?”

“Oh, nothing- just, you know, hoping you’d be more present during our first joint mission.”

“Whaaat? You caught me lost in thought! I’m doing great.”

“Unbelievable,” Genesis says, but his tone is light. “Any sign of our new partners?” 

He’s referring to AVALANCHE. 

“Haven’t run into anyone yet, but they sound like they’re holding it down,” Zack says with a smile. Rapid gunfire is coming his way. “I hear a machine gun- wouldn’t that be Barret?”

“Why don’t you go see? We’d like to make contact. This won’t take long- Shinra didn’t send much force. They didn’t expect us, I’m sure.”

Zack hums. “Lucky us, huh? We’re pulling out to draw Shinra off, right?”

“Yes. We’ll get in touch with Barret remotely later- grand reveal and all that. Let them handle wrap up.” 

A huge mountain of a man with a gun prosthetic on his arm bursts into the intersection below. A woman in a skimpy purple dress follows him. 

“Oh- Zack,” Genesis says. 

Zack raises his eyebrows. “Hm?”

“Turks are here.”

“And~?” 

“Who knows. Just wanted you to be aware.”

“Thanks Genny, I’ll be careful,” Zack coos.

He knows Genesis rolls his eyes. Zack’s eyes are glued on the street below though.

He waves when the fighters look up to the roof and spot him. What really catches his attention is Aerith, who’s jumped into the street in quite an elaborate outfit. Wow.

“Yo!” Zack calls, before leaping down to them and landing in a crouch.

Big guy’s got his gun ready, but seems to recognize he’s not a threat.

“Awright- you one of those SOLDIER boys with Ang?” It’s nice to put a face to the voice he’s heard during dozens of planning meetings.

“That’s me! Ex-SOLDIER,” Zack says, jabbing a thumb towards himself. “Barret Wallace? Nice to finally meet you. If you’ll excuse me for a sec-”

Zack turns and rushes at Aerith, scooping her up into a spin. 

“It’s Zack,” he whispers. “I found you!”

“ZACK!” she yells in delight like she already knew. Then her face falls. “Where- where have you been?! ”

Zack lets her feet touch the ground but doesn’t let go, squeezing her. 

“I’m so sorry,” he whispers.

She’s squeezing him back, and he finds it’s hard to see clearly, blinking hard against the sudden watery eye problem he’s having.

“As much as I’d love to catch you up-” he starts. Aerith interrupts him.

“You have to- to tell me everything. You’re with the anti-Shinra mercenaries?”

“We prefer, like, veterans against capitalism.” Zack grins, before he realizes Barret’s considering it with a hand on his chin.

“Joking,” Zack says quickly. “No cool name.”

“I think it has a nice ring to it,” the other woman says with a playful smile. There’s something hesitant about the way she’s looking at him, like she’s trying to peer through his visor. “I’m Tifa Lockhart. Guess you two know each other. Zack, was it?”

Something about her name is familiar. They dealt mainly with Barret during the meetings, but it’s possible her name came up.

Zack nods. “We go way back. By the way, you guys look great! Very interesting uniforms!”

Aerith hits his arm, but she’s giggling.

Zack tries to reign in his energy. He’s so glad she’s here. “Thanks for your hard work. Plan goes on as we said- we’ll head out once we’ve beaten Shinra back and draw them into pursuit while you guys finish up here.”

Barret squares his jaw. “They underestimated us. We’ll be done before they can send reinforcements.”

“Good,” Zack says. “They suck at follow-up. Short attention span. The quicker you guys are out the better.”

He turns and smiles at Aerith and Tifa. “Kick some ass, okay? I gotta go do a sweep for any more of the big robots, make sure the civilians are outta here.” 

Tifa scooches towards Aerith. “Some of your guys took Corneo.”

“Ang will take care of that, then,” Zack says.

“And we’ll help the victims with legal help!” Barret announces with a triumphant wave of his giant gun arm.

Zack beams. “You guys don’t mess around, huh?” 

“This isn’t our first rodeo,” Barret says, crossing his arms. “Our greatest strength is our people. No matter how unique or bizarre. It’s not some arm wrestling contest like Shinra.”

Barret looks directly at Zack, challenging him like he’s picking a fight. Zack makes a mental correction- he doesn’t like Barret Wallace, he loves Barret Wallace. 

“I love the energy!” Zack exclaims. He pumps his arms, re-energized. “Hey listen, guys, before I go, have you seen someone-”

He doesn’t get to finish his question before a large group of troopers turn the corner. Zack instinctively moves closer to Aerith, sword up. On her other side, Tifa’s raised her fists and stepped into a fighting stance.

“I don’t think I’ve shown you any of my new tricks,” Aerith says breezily, holding out a staff. A small explosion knocks several of the troopers off their feet and onto the concrete. 

Zack whistles. “As if you needed to be more dangerous!” 

“That’s not the half of it,” Aerith says. “You should see Tifa!”

Tifa’s cheeks are flushed. “Get moving, Zack. We’ve got this- the evacuation is more important. Who knows what they’ll send down if we don’t cut this off.” 

“Aye aye! I’m pretty sure my buddies are taking care of business as we speak.”

As if on cue, there’s an explosion up on the Shinra transport. Sephiroth is probably making sure they retreat.

The call to withdraw starts blaring, and he hears the troops’ boots stomping as they head back to the transport. They’ll leave the robots as a nasty mess to clean up. Typical Shinra- didn’t even deploy any actual SOLDIERs. They don’t care about Wall Market, but they will care about this new rebellious alliance.

Genesis is betting on it- they’re skipping the declaration of war and going straight to the soft open. None of them are naive enough to think there won’t be a report on this small force of super strong rebels in disguise who conveniently match up with all the defected SOLDIERs. But they can take them by surprise, get them antsy and unbalanced. 

It’s him and Seph, Gen, and Angeal, and some of his favorite ex-SOLDIERs. Kunsel is gunning for the number one spot, but Zack can’t hand out that trophy so easily. Kunsel would get too complacent.

They have their ship, the ‘Beloved ’ (thanks Gen!), scraped of any trackable registration info. Everyone’s covered up, no shining mako eyes giving them away. It’s a safety measure as well. Not even Barret Wallace knows their full names- they’ve kept it to a first name basis. There’s a chance that when AVALANCHE finds out who they’ve really been working with, Barret will scrap the partnership. Zack hopes he’ll give them a chance. 

Angeal wasn’t a huge fan of hiding it, but it was his idea to wait until after their first operation together to meet in person and properly introduce themselves. It’s for the sake of the fifty ex-SOLDIERs who followed them. There’s a lot riding on this! It’s key that Zack do his part and not let anyone down.

He’s fucked up so much, and it’s cost lives. It’s all around him right now, the explosions and gunfire, and ghosts that look just like Cloud .

Though he knows everything in his head got shaken around pretty bad back in the labs, he is certain that Cloud was there.

Zack cuts down all the robots himself. It’s getting kind of boring and he finds himself hunting for hints of blond hair, when Angeal touches down. 

“Zack. Time to head out.”

Zack nods. All he can see is Angeal’s spiky black hair and his frown, thanks to the large visor. He can’t stand these things!

“Seph all done harassing that transport?” 

Said transport is flashing with warning lights, considerably damaged. Shinra will waste more time retrieving it from wherever they lead it, if it even bothers pursuing at this point. They start heading back to the ship. 

“Ran into Barret Wallace and some of his crew,” Zack says casually, returning his sword to its place on his back.

“Oh? I’ll admit- I’m excited to stop hiding later.” Angeal sounds relieved. “I think we’ve proven where our loyalty lies with this.”

Zack turns so he’s walking backwards, facing Angeal. He doesn’t know why he’s so antsy, but he’s gotta change the subject.

“Did you know? Aerith’s in AVALANCHE! Kunsel showed me.” 

“Aerith…your girlfriend from back then, right?”

“Pretty sure we’re exes, now,” Zack says, staring at AVALANCHE’s ship in the distance. He gets jumpier the closer they get to their own ship.

Angeal just looks at him with a complicated expression. “I’m sure she’d understand if…”

“I don’t know, Ang. ‘Sorry I never called you back, I was trapped in a secret lab getting my brains rearranged, and now I have to do therapy with my old boss every Thursday so I don’t go postal’ sounds like a cop out.” He’s trying for humor, but it’s not funny because neither he or Angeal laugh. 

“Sorry,” Zack says, turning back around. “Awkward subject.”

“Don’t. Nothing that happened to you was your fault,” Angeal says sternly. 

“Did you ever meet Cloud?”

“Cloud…the trooper you were with in the labs?”

“Mm.”

“I never met him. Not personally.” 

Zack’s got a lump in his throat. It’s blocking his voice. He can’t put this away anymore.

“I think I saw him.”

He can tell by the eyebrows that Angeal immediately takes it the wrong way.

“Not like- not like a ghost . Like I… I actually saw him. I thought…we left because we thought…”

“Zack. Let’s get back to the others. You can explain when we’re on board.” 

“If…If we left him-”

“Don’t jump to conclusions. We have to finish the mission. Then we can figure that out.”

Right. They aren’t done- they’re drawing Shinra away, giving them something to chew on, buy AVALANCHE time. Civilians. Evacuate. 

A loud abrasive voice cuts across from an alleyway. “C’mon princess, you really don’t wanna get stuck here. Place is fallin’ apart.”

“I definitely don’t wanna get stuck with you either,” a familiar voice taunts back.

“Aerith?” Zack pulls his sword from his back, Angeal doing the same.

They follow the voices- bingo.

Two Turks are in a standoff with Aerith. Zack recognizes them- Reno and Rude. Fun to drink with! A bitch to fight. Reno catches sight of them and grimaces.

“Sorry pals. Private party,” he bites out, obviously not recognizing either of them under the visors and gear. Yay for disguises.

“Think she said leave her alone,” Zack says. He can’t help but grin.

Aerith giggles, before she runs to stand behind Zack. Angeal relaxes, less concerned now that they stand between her and the Turks.

Rude’s cracking gloved knuckles, but Reno is squinting like he’s trying to figure something out. Sooo close!

“To the ship,” Zack whispers, and Aerith nods before holding out her staff.

“Mind giving us a little head start?” she says sweetly, before casting sleep on the Turks, who both manage to get out a curse before swaying into a magical nap.

“Woohoo!” Zack cheers as they start running. “You weren’t kidding about those new tricks, huh?!”

“That was impressive. You’re Aerith, then? I’ve heard a lot about you, but it’s a shame we never formally met,” Angeal says with a smile. “I’m Angeal.”

Once they’re back on board the Beloved, Angeal heads to the bridge to see where they’re at. Zack removes his visor and takes Aerith over to one of the big windows, so they have a good view of the chaos of Wall Market.

“Looks like we cleared out most of the Shinra threats. Up to your man Barret now.” Zack glances at Aerith, who seems calm except for her hands twisting on her staff.

“They’ve got it under control,” she says, distant but full of confidence.

More of the guys are returning, walking by at a good clip. Aerith watches them, before she sets her gaze on Zack. He finds himself a little flustered.

“Seems like you had a lot of people who agreed with you,” Aerith says. “Are they all ex-SOLDIER?”

Zack nods. “We have about fifty on board. Mostly second class, but there’s a few thirds. And of course, the firsts.” He finds himself frowning at the hesitance in his voice. Like he’s ashamed.

“Hmm, like you? Mr. First Class?”

“Heh, not like it matters anymore, but you remembered, huh?”

Aerith laughs.

“You know…” she says, her tone more serious. “I met another-”

Genesis’ voice interrupts them, tinny from a speaker above.

“We are alighting from the planet. Prepare for pursuit by Shinra- if they’re feeling lucky.”

“Huh? Is everyone back?” Aerith looks around at the flurry of activity.

“We’ll leave a few guys just in case of any trouble,” Zack explains. “They’ll find their way back later.” 

“This is… impressive. Like your own army,” she says with a little smirk.

Zack winces. “Don’t let Gen hear you call it that. He prefers more dramatic terms. We’re…seeking justice. Or something.”

“Justice… is that what you’re seeking?”

Aerith turns fully to him now, leaning up against the window, back to the view. She pins him with a stare, the way that always made him feel transparent.

Zack sighs. Engines pick up below them. 

“It’s…been awhile. But yeah, I think. Answers for me. Justice for…”

Him.

The day has shaken him, he’s finally admitting it, and it’s all falling apart in front of Aerith, just like the good old days.

“When I disappeared…everything had gone wrong. I was captured by a Shinra scientist.” Zack looks out at Wall Market as the ship shudders, beginning to rise. “Not like a rogue one either. They knew what he was doing. They handed us over when we weren’t even- anyways. I wasn’t alone. There was this trooper on the mission… my friend. They kept us for three years. It was bad, but…he was just a regular guy. A kid really.”

“You both were. We were kids then too, Zack.”

“But I had just made first class. Not like him. He was-” 

Get back on track, Zack.

“Anyways.” Toneless.

He’s pushing it back, putting it away, taking a deep breath and rolling his neck so it cracks.

“I never got to tell you what was happening. Or my parents. So I was KIA. They declared me killed in action even though they knew-”

Reels it in to try again.

“Seph came back for us. Even though…well, it was a clusterfuck for him too. Gen and Ang came too.”

“They had all defected,” Aerith clarifies.

“They got me out. But…”

“Your friend?” She is so gentle with her prompting.

“We couldn’t find him, Aer. He was gone. Listen, we looked, we looked everywhere. Hunted for him, but we had to destroy the lab. Couldn’t leave it. Nothing- and- and this is super depressing. Topic change? How’d you join AVALANCHE? I didn’t even ask, sorry- just going on…”

He doesn’t realize he’s crying until Aerith is holding his wet face, wiping his tears.

“Zack, your friend, what’s his name?” she asks, green eyes fixed on his.

“Cloud. Cloud Strife.” Zack blinks the tears away. “Aerith, I think I saw him.”

Aerith is staring at him. 

“He lives on the Shera with us,” she says, a smile blooming across her face. 

Zack’s heart stops. 

“I never…I never really thought about it. It makes so much sense now! He reminded me so much of- Zack.” Her smile falls.

His heart starts up again all new, a million beats per second.

“Huh,” he breathes out, almost afraid to ask why she stopped smiling. “What’s wrong?”

“Is that true? That he was a trooper?” 

Zack can only nod.

“Not a first class SOLDIER?”

He frowns. “No, he was still infantry. I mean the Turks liked him on missions but…”

Aerith watches the surface shrink as the ship begins to ascend. Her eyebrows are furrowed the tiniest bit.

“Zack Fair, please report to the bridge when you are able,” Genesis interrupts over the intercom. He sounds irritated.

“C’mon,” Zack says, grabbing Aerith’s hand. There’s still a lump stuck in his throat, but it’s giving way to…hope? Elation?

Cloud’s alive? Every hope and wish he’s made late into the nights and early into every morning has come true.

Cloud’s alive.

It’s energizing him, and he bounds into the bridge with Aerith, where Angeal, Genesis, and Sephiroth are gathered around the status monitor. He only avoids leaping onto Seph and hugging him because he knows Seph would hate that.

Genesis turns and glares at Aerith in confusion. Angeal waves at her while Sephiroth nods the tiniest amount. 

“Nice to meet you all at last,” Aerith chirps. “Lovely ship!”

“A friend, Zack? Really? Your sociability never fails to amaze me.” Genesis is rolling his eyes, but extends a hand to Aerith for a very dramatic shake and bow.

“We’re always happy to help our allies,” Angeal says, and aims a look at Genesis. “I’m sorry it will be some time before we can get you back to AVALANCHE. The Shinra ship is following, though it’s definitely in need of repair.”

“Oh don’t mind me,” Aerith says. “I’m just happy to be here.”

Genesis huffs a laugh before frowning again. “AVALANCHE, hmm? Quite the interesting variety of members.” He’s eyeing Aerith’s pink dress and bangles. “You do have a powerful energy. Materia?”

“Yup! Personally, I think SOLDIER was missing out!” she says with a smile. Angeal laughs.

“Don’t get me started,” Genesis says, and his tone is already warming up. “You’ll find we don’t disagree there at all.”

The Beloved is going at a good clip now, leaving Wall Market behind. 

“Are you going to confront the other ship?” Aerith asks.

“Just taking the heat off AVALANCHE,” Angeal answers, keeping an eye on the radar that shows their positions. “It was a powerful combination. You all really got it done out there. We’re impressed.”

“We’ve got a good thing going…stopping Corneo was the real prize. What a scumbag.” She shivers a little.

“Some of the partnerships Shinra has developed are truly inscrutable,” Sephiroth says, breaking his silence. “We do thank you and your team for organizing this. I hope we can continue as partners.” 

Aerith looks down with a bashful smile. 

“You’re probably talking to the wrong person- but I’m totally game!”

Zack, through all this, is literally vibrating with energy.

Alive. Alive. Alive!

Genesis has noticed, fixing him with a stare.

“Zack. You look like you just drank a hyper. Are you alright?” 

“Cloud’s alive,” Zack blurts out. “He’s part of AVALANCHE.” 

Sephiroth gets it first, of course. As part of the terrible initial mission, who returned less than human. His green eyes, always so striking, are wide. 

On that day, they entered the Nibel reactor station only to find scores of bodies. Scores of blank, glowing green eyes, like a firefly swamp at night. Zack doesn’t hold it against Seph, but sometimes the green in his eyes makes him sick. Reminds him of lab floors and mako and Cloud not moving.

They are hunters now. Shinra’s death warrant was signed the day Zack survived. The day Sephiroth found the beginning of the truth in a hundred blank clones. The day Genesis’ wound didn’t heal. The day Angeal found numerous abnormalities in his cells. 

Zack remembers staring, stunned, at all the Sephiroth duplicates- all floating in tanks stretching as far as he could see. It has Hojo written all over it.

Sephiroth- his Sephiroth- stood stiffly next to him.

Behind him, Genesis and Angeal were silent. 

“We need to destroy them,” Sephiroth said. “Destroy it all.”

Zack’s stomach had turned. “What- what about Cloud?”

A hand on his shoulder. Angeal. “Zack, we’ve looked everywhere we could. We can’t stay here any longer, we can’t leave this intact. He’s not here.”

“It’s surprising they haven’t sent anyone yet,” Genesis said. “We have to destroy this now, before they can run with anything. I retrieved as much data as I could.”

Sephiroth was still staring at the clones. 

“Okay. Okay,” Zack said, his chest clenching and his throat tight. He had felt at the time like he was personally letting Cloud die. Killing him.

It wasn’t until they charred everything to aggressive cinders that he started to sob, heaving breaths and didn’t even notice the arms that came to hold him. Not tight, but there. 

Chapter Text

CLOUD STRIFE, STRIFE DELIVERY SERVICE - SHERA, GALLEY

Cloud’s never been good with kids or cooking. He hesitates above the sandwich. Tifa always said a colorful plate meant a healthy plate. He rustles around in the fridge and finds some little carrots, puts a few on the plate. Flounders again. That’s just orange now. And beige. 

He pours a glass of milk in a hurry and grabs some of Marlene’s cookies.

Denzel doesn’t seem to mind when Cloud sets everything in front of him.

“Eat up,” Cloud says, feeling awkward. “It’ll help.”

Denzel nods and sniffles a little, before he grabs the sandwich and starts eating mechanically. Cloud watches for a second, leaning against the counter.

The day is catching up to him. It looks like it’s catching up to Denzel too. From what Denzel has shared, Denzel’s rough day is actually a culmination of a rough few weeks. His parents did not die in Wall Market, they died in the recent Midgar mako reactor incident. Denzel had left afterwards, making his way on various ships until he eventually ended up at Wall Market of all places. It’s strange to see such a haunted scowl on his young face, still soft in the cheeks with baby fat. The anger’s been enough to keep Denzel alive and scrappy.

Cloud shifts to lighten the ache in his chest.

“You gonna eat?” Denzel mumbles, mouth full of bread.

“Not that hungry,” Cloud says. 

AVALANCHE members are trickling in from the sound of it, the entry bay door beeping on and off. Barret’s voice is loudest. They’ll probably leave soon. Cloud wonders about the anti-Shinra group, and the man who caught him.

“Will you be okay here?” Cloud asks Denzel, who nods. “I’ll come back and introduce you to everyone.” 

On second thought, Cloud grabs the rest of Marlene’s cookies and puts them by Denzel.

“Sorry- try not to wander around, okay?”

Up at the bridge, Barret and Cid are yelling at each other, but it’s all in good humor. Red XIII perches on one of the chairs near Cid. Tifa is pacing near the door with a PHS to her ear. Cloud goes ahead to stand near Red XIII, who nods hello with a swish of his flaming tail. Cloud wonders what Denzel will think about a fire-lion as he settles in to give Red a scritch. Red leans into Cloud’s side appreciatively.

“Hold on to ya butts,” Cid says, clenching a toothpick in his teeth. “Think everyone is back aboard.”

“No!” Tifa exclaims. “Aerith still isn’t back yet. She isn’t answering-”

Barret whirls in his seat. “What?! Wasn’t she with you?”

Tifa just frowns harder and resumes her pacing.

“Yoohoo,” Cid interrupts. “We got an incomin’ transmission from our buds.”

Aerith’s face pops up on screen 

“Miss me?” She says sweetly. 

Tifa drops the PHS and lets out a huge sigh of relief. “Aerith! You’re alright! I was so worried!”

“Yeah, seems like I climbed onto the wrong ship! No worries, though.”

“Are you with the…other guys?” Barret asks.

Aerith nods. “But…promise not to freak out when you see them?”

“Huh? Why would I do that?” Barret scratches his head and looks to Tifa and Cid for insight. They both shrug.

Cloud starts to feel an unease in his stomach. He backs off, staying out of the camera’s view, but still able to see the screen. Red XIII turns to pin him with a considering glance, tilting his head.

“Well…you promised.” Aerith steps back to reveal four men.

Cloud’s stomach drops.

Sephiroth. He stands as tall and imposing as ever. Next to him are two men he doesn’t recognize, but they are also unmistakably SOLDIER first class as well- eyes that glow like mako, the signature pauldrons. And on his other side-

First class SOLDIER Zack Fair!

Barret’s clenching his fist so hard the leather creaks. 

“Shinra?! You snakes!!”

One of the men, dark haired with a small scruff of goatee, holds up a hand, while he waves his arms apologetically.

“ Ex- Shinra! We’re defectors!” 

Everyone’s talking at once. Barret with a barrage of suspicious questions, Tifa adding reasonable caution, Cid wise-cracking as he bites his toothpick in half out of stress. Red XIII and Aerith watch the mess like it’s a spectator sport.

Cloud’s not taking any of it in, really, he’s shaking. His eyes dart from him, his wide smile, to Sephiroth, and there’s a ringing in his ears. 

“Where’s Cloud?” he hears Aerith say, like she’s underwater. 

He’s here. He’s stuck. He's not sure what to focus on. He’s whirling around and rushing down the hallway.

“He’s right…here?” Tifa’s voice fades as he nearly runs down the hall. 

He beelines past the galley and heads towards the bathroom.

There’s nothing to throw up when he gets there, but he gasps into the toilet. Slams a hand on the lock. Thuds back against the wall to stare into nothing. Cold creeps over him. He can’t catch his breath. His arm is on fire. 

It’s like memories are being poured into his head, like water into a bucket. A movie just for him, too fast to make sense of. There’s a loose thread on his pants and even though he changed and washed his face, he can feel the residue from the makeup. And his arm. Hurts.

He takes a deep breath, but it gets stuck in his ribcage and makes him feel stiff. He doesn’t remember anything before he suddenly woke up to someone informing him he was an illegal stowaway and ‘ well you’ve made it to Midgar…now scram’ .

Cloud does know that man- Zack- meant something. He remembered Tifa, why is this so hard? He’s trying to ignore the flashes of yelling and green- he’s terrified of that green.

Terrified of those lights.

“Um…Cloud?”

It breaks through. Cloud turns like he can see through the door. Denzel.

“What-” Clears his throat, tries again. “What’s up, kid?”

His arm is starting to cool down, the stabbing pain now a dull throb. He’ll need to check it when he changes the bandages next, he’s sure it flared up.

“I just…wanted to make sure you’re okay. And um, to ask if maybe you had a bandage?”

Denzel gives him something to grab onto, someone who needs something. An easy request Cloud can handle.

“One sec.”

He heaves himself off the floor, inhaling deeply before opening the door. Denzel is holding a paper towel to his forehead, eyes downcast. That’s right. Geostigma runs rampant around the mako reactors. Denzel probably got it during the incident that caused his parents’ death, or even before. 

A pang of guilt wracks Cloud as he leads Denzel to the medbay. He leans in, lets it numb him. This is why the reactors need to go. He’s listened to enough of Barret’s impassioned speeches to see the logic. People die from living near the reactor stations, but Shinra will pin every death from taking them out on AVALANCHE. It’s just how it is.

At least Denzel doesn’t seem to get who picked him up yet. Cloud sneaks a glance at the kid, his fluffy hair and oversized clothes. Cid said he could stay as long as he needs to, but Cloud thinks differently. He’ll find somewhere for Denzel so he can live a decent life, not living with the pirates who ruined his childhood. So he can be a normal kid. 

Cloud grabs supplies from medbay and leads Denzel down to the cabin level. There’s always been an empty bunk in the cabin he rents from Cid, and he pushes the door open button with his hip before waving Denzel in. 

“You can bunk with me for now,” Cloud says, dumping everything on the lower bed. “It’s not the best, but it’ll do.”

He turns to catch Denzel with a big smile on his face, one he isn’t quick enough to play off.

“I can stay with you? In here?”

Cloud pauses. “Yes?” He points at the upper bed. “You get the top bunk.”

Denzel nods fervently.

“Okay, sit.” Cloud points to a stool and Denzel rushes to sit on it. Cloud grabs the hand with the paper towel and gently pulls it away from his forehead.

“Not too bad yet,” Cloud mutters.

“Ruvie…Ruvie said I’m pretty strong. It’s not spreading.”

Cloud doesn’t know who Ruvie is, but whoever it is isn’t around now, so he won’t push. Denzel can decide when he wants to talk. He sprays disinfectant and numbing spray on the blackened skin.

“How do you want to wrap this?” Cloud grabbed some roll bandages and some big plasters. Denzel picks the plaster and Cloud smooths it onto his forehead, covering the shadow that mars his young face.

“Good enough. Feel any better?” Cloud asks.

Denzel opens his eyes and nods. “Cloud…do you-”

Tiny rapid footsteps outside cut Denzel off, then a frantic but quiet knock. 

“Yeah?” Cloud calls, angling a knowing smile at Denzel.

“Cloud!” A loud whisper. “Are you in there?”

“Dunno. Who’s asking?” Cloud’s already up, ready to press the door button.

“It’s Marlene!” The voice hisses.

The door slides open to reveal a little girl glaring up at Cloud, Barret’s daughter.

“Did you eat my cookies?” she asks, before her gaze falls past Cloud and she notices Denzel. Cloud would guess they are around the same age, Denzel maybe a few years older.

“Who’s he?!” Marlene asks, cookies forgotten.

“This is Denzel,” Cloud says, when he realizes Denzel is too shocked to say anything. “ He ate your cookies. Sorry.”

Marlene shakes her head before she pushes past Cloud and runs up to Denzel.

“What happened to your head? Are you okay?” she says, her hand zooming towards the bandage.

Before Cloud can stop her, her hand softens to brush away his bangs. Denzel still flinches while Marlene peers at the bandage.

“Yup,” Marlene says, tilting her head. “You gotta see Aerith. She’s better at this than Cloud. Cloud, are you hurt?”

Cloud shakes his head, leans against the doorframe. “I’m okay. Thanks Marlene.”

“Um,” Denzel says, frozen.

That’s all it takes for Marlene to suddenly remember her manners. 

“Oh! Well, I’m Marlene. I live on this ship with my daddy. There’s no other kids here. Will you stay?”

Denzel nods stiffly, his eyes darting to Cloud. “...I think?” 

Cloud sighs. “Yeah. Marlene, Denzel is going to be staying here for now. He’s…he’s on his own.” 

He sneaks a glance at Denzel, not wanting to overshare. Marlene frowns, and she sits on the bed in front of Denzel’s stool. “That’s sad. But me too! Daddy is gone a lot, saving the galaxy and helping people. I’m pretty good at being on my own.”

Denzel fidgets, his fingers picking at each other.

“I have geostigma,” he blurts out.

“Geostigma…?” Marlene repeats. “Oh! The mako disease…I know about that! You were near a reactor, huh? Does it hurt?”

Cloud shifts a little, antsy. He doesn’t need his own affliction revealed. He woke up with it, and it’s been a secret since he found out what it was, covered by a heavy sleeve.

“Marlene,” Cloud says.

Both she and Denzel look up.

“I was gonna introduce Denzel to everyone else, but why don’t you show him around? Tifa and your dad are back too- tell him he’s with me.”

Denzel has a funny expression on his face, half nerves, half terror, but Marlene grabs his hand and hops up.

“C’mon!! Have you ever met a fire lion before? Red is sooo funny…”

The kids run out, Denzel shooting a helpless but excited smile at Cloud before disappearing around the door frame.

Cloud sighs once the cabin is empty. 

He doesn’t want to go to the bridge.

Cloud’s fresh out of the shower, wearing a clean set of sweats, when he bumps into Tifa. 

“Cloud!” she exclaims. “There you are!”

The bubble of anxiety in his chest returns. 

“What’s with the kid?” she asks. “He looked like he could use a hug or ten. Marlene’s got him watching a movie with her now.”

“Wall Market. He was in the street in the middle of everything.” Cloud lowers his voice. “His parents were killed in one of the reactor explosions. Civilians.”

Tifa’s face turns stricken. 

“I haven’t told him, but-”

“It’s our fault, according to Shinra,” she whispers. “He can stay here as long as he needs- or wants to. Cloud…there’s…can we talk?”

She grabs his arm.

The bubble grows.

“What…what do you remember from before we met again?” Tifa asks.

They’re tucked into some chairs in a small alcove meant for private communications. Tifa’s burgundy eyes stay fixed on him, until he looks down into his lap.

“Not much. I think I told you most of it. Joined Shinra after I left Nibelheim, spent a few years in there, then went on…some mission back home with General Sephiroth. You remember. He lost his mind, burnt everything down… maybe something infected him? I…”

Cloud trails off. His last memories are incredibly chaotic. They don’t line up exactly. There’s a lot of gaps and overlap. He’s aware of that, but he can’t push at it without things shaking apart. 

“I killed him. Then you found me.”

Hell of a gap.

“In Midgar,” Tifa says, hugging herself. Her foot is bouncing under the table.

“In Midgar,” he confirms. “No idea what happened in between.”

They’ve talked about this before, lightly. Cloud knows the feeling when he can’t answer something. Confusion. Too many details coming to mind, or not enough. Silence. When he can’t scratch up the vaguest memory.

He’s never lied to her though. He won’t.

“Do…do you remember someone named Zack?”

No, but he sure does know Zack’s a SOLDIER, first class. 

“No. I don’t know,” Cloud says, trying to not freak out.

He’s freaking out.

Tifa notices because she always notices everything. It makes her an excellent fighter and a good friend.

“Cloud,” she says firmly, as he stares at his knee. “Cloud.” 

There’s hands at the sides of his face, leather gloves that are soft from age and use and warm from body heat.

“Hey. You’re okay. It’s alright, Cloud.” 

Cloud blinks and refocuses on her. “Uh huh,” he says, not breaking eye contact. “Is there a reason I should know that name?”

Secretly: ‘why do I know that name’.

Tifa looks away finally, letting him go. Her hands fall to his shoulders, then away.

“Aerith is on the other ship,” she says.

“I saw.”

“So you saw when she called…did you-?”

“I saw him. Sephiroth.”

There’s a mild silence. Tifa rubs her arm. 

“Barret ripped them a new one for hiding that they were from Shinra,” she says, hesitant. “But I think I get it. We might not have given them a chance.”

Tifa lost everything too. Sephiroth took it all that night. Despite how muddled his brain is, he has to remember that. Cloud trusts her, because he knows this can’t be easy for her either.

“You okay?” He asks. 

“I think you of all people probably understand how I feel about it, huh?”

She smiles, this sad little smile, and Cloud has the urge to hug her. He grabs her arm instead.

“If…If Barret talked to them, that’s enough for me. He wouldn’t do anything that would jeopardize AVALANCHE. And we don’t have to do anything you’re not comfortable with, or talk to him. Or any of them.”

“I guess they’re all former first classes,” she says with a shrug. “Just like you, right?

Cloud feels wrong again as he nods, like he’s lying. He’s not, but…he can’t remember shit and it’s got him on edge. Everything is a surprise.

Tifa’s gaze is searching, before she sighs. 

“We’re meeting them tomorrow to get Aerith.”

That night Cloud doesn’t remember going to sleep, but he does dream. 

A nightmare, specifically.

It starts out bright and lovely, a big smile and strong embrace. It gets darker, colder. The smile becomes strained but he doesn’t look away, even when everything hurts and there are bright ugly lights blinding him. He’s stuck for hours and days and months. He can’t move anymore and green eyes follow him everywhere, blank but imploring. The whole time someone holds onto him like they don’t want to ever let go, tells him who he is, until everything is green and violent. He’s alone at the end, torn away from that smile, but a calm voice calls to him over a million miles away. Whispers right in his ear. Calls him back to Nibel. Tells him of the most wonderful reunion.

He wakes up breathing heavy and in a cold sweat.

Chapter Text

ZACK FAIR, MERCENARY - THE BELOVED, ZACK’S QUARTERS

Zack can tell Seph is curious about Aerith, and he feels a little bad ditching him after dinner so they can run off to Zack’s quarters. He’ll give him apology smooches later.

The reason? Aerith’s PHS is ringing off the hook thanks to one Tifa Lockhart.

“My love!” Aerith says upon answering, once they are sitting on Zack’s bed.

Zack doesn’t mean to eavesdrop, but it’s hard not to with his enhanced hearing.

“Aerith! Is Zack around?”

“Wow! I see how it is~” Aerith teases.

“Don’t be like that. You know I’m worried to death about you.” 

Aerith giggles, and Zack has to smile. Tifa and Aerith definitely suit each other.

“I know, I know.” Aerith glances at Zack. “What did you want Zack for? I’ll put this on speaker.”

Zack lets her, even though he can hear just fine. 

“Zack?” 

“Long time no see- we have to stop running into each other like this,” Zack jokes with a grin. 

Tifa gives a half-hearted little huff, before pausing. 

“It’s about tomorrow. Um…” She sighs and gets to the point. “I talked with Cloud. You two were close, right?”

Cloud hadn’t stuck around during their big reveal. Tifa said he had been there at the bridge, which meant he left for some reason. Seems like she kept her promise to ask him about it.

“We were. Are. Should be.” Whatever. If things have changed, Zack will adapt. He’s flexible.

“...he doesn’t remember that.” 

Zack doesn’t freeze at Tifa’s words. He doesn’t gasp or sob, he just stares at the PHS, frowning. He wasn’t expecting that, somehow. He was prepared for Cloud’s anger, or betrayal, or coldness- he wasn’t prepared for…nothing. His fingers tap on his knee. Zack has always been a good problem-solver, not easily discouraged. This is a problem. Aerith’s hand stills his tapping fingers.

“Okay,” Zack blurts out. “What do you think about it?”

Tifa is silent for a moment.

“I think…I think he’s really messed up. He hasn’t been aboard that long. I found him wandering around Sector 7 in Midgar a few months back.”

The timeline and location line up with Zack’s own escape. 

“We were going to head there,” Zack confirms. “If… when we got out.”

After that disaster of a mission. After they escaped their test tube prisons. Zack crosses his arm and pulls on his calmness. 

“We got out of Nibelheim. We were kept there as, uh, specimens. For three years. I escaped when the other firsts showed up, but he was…gone. I lost him. We had to destroy all of it.”

Every time he tells the story, his disappointment and regret deepen. 

“Specimens…?” Tifa repeats, her voice low and horrified.

“It’s gonna be a hard stop here for me right now. Sorry. But you need to know…we looked everywhere. When Seph came back-”

“Sephiroth. The one who burned Nibelheim down back then.” Tifa’s voice is pitching higher. “Why is he even-”

“Hang on, hang on. Wait. I…I know. I know and you have every right to hate him. But that Sephiroth wasn’t the real Sephiroth.”

“How do you know that?” Tifa asks.

“We saw the others. We almost became them,” Zack says, leaning over the PHS like he can get closer through it. “Our Seph is…is trying to end this fucking clone thing. There’s tons of them. And something is infecting them.”

“Infecting?” Aerith murmurs.

“Whatever was in those labs under the surface- it was alive and infecting those clones. It infected the town and it infected him too. It makes people go crazy.”

“Infecting…Cloud said that too. But why are there clones to begin with…”

Aerith scooches in, interrupting.

“Where is Cloud?”

“I…I don’t know if it’s a good idea for you to meet him right now.”

Zack ignores the little knife stabbing into his heart. Tifa seems close to Cloud- even if she’s being protective, he feels like she wouldn’t say that lightly.

“Why?” he asks, voice soft.

“I’ve known Cloud since we were little kids. We weren’t super close, but…small town, a tiny nowhere planet, you know? We talked sometimes. He…came back different. I thought maybe it was just how he was after so many years.”

Aerith hums thoughtfully. 

“You said he was a trooper, Zack,” she says. “Not a first class SOLDIER.” 

“Cloud says he’s a former first class,” Tifa says. “And he believes it. He’s more social than he was. More confident. Like…like he’s a different person sometimes.”

Tifa sucks in a breath. 

“But when I asked him about you…he didn’t know. He got antsy.” 

Zack sits, hunched over the PHS, focused on it like nothing else matters.

“Thanks for this, Tifa. I- I didn’t think of this as a possibility. To be honest, I thought he was dead. I really did.”

“I still don’t know if it’s a good idea,” Tifa repeats, before she hesitates again. “But maybe…maybe you should meet. He doesn’t remember why or who you are, but I think he does know you, Zack. As we talk, I can tell. You sound like him sometimes.”  

It’s definitely too early when Zack wakes up, his eyes popping open like it’s not still dark hours on the ship.

He doesn’t bother turning his lights on, there’s enough visibility between the auxiliary lights and his enhanced vision to see. Aerith snoozes in his bed, while he stretches out on the floor on his yoga mat. Zack didn’t dream, but he has a fleeting thought of Cloud, which he sinks into happily. 

The view isn’t great- the gray void of his ceiling in the dark, no windows to gild anything in star softness. The harsh glare of the night lights catch the photos taped to his walls.

It doesn’t matter. Zack tries to remember all those moments he shoved away under grief. He blinks hard at the dark above him, letting his imagination paint a picture just for him. Something he hasn’t trusted himself with before. Scared he’d ruin the only good memories he had.

The thing you noticed about Cloud first, from moment zero, was his hair. Zack had seen it around even before they met, because it was that bright, catching the light always, and kind of a mess. 

They met on a mission, when everything was falling apart in Zack’s life. He’d been promoted just in time for Genesis to go AWOL. Angeal followed Genesis not long after, and Sephiroth was lost, trying to understand. Zack was lost too, grieving and fucking up his new relationship with Aerith. He’d pulled some cheesy line and Cloud had laughed, then pulled off his helmet and-

Hair. Eyes. Smile.

Zack never stood a chance. 

He kept running into him, despite the odds. Cloud had been identified as good mission support for him, apparently, but at the time Zack felt lucky. Everything was still falling apart but Cloud never asked him for anything. He didn’t treat Zack like some hardened warrior, or scold him for being immature. Zack joined Shinra when he was barely fourteen, and he wishes he had ever realized how young that really was. He couldn’t get that time back. Cloud cemented that in his brain for some reason. Cloud’s only two years younger, but Zack caught himself protecting him, wishing he didn’t join Shinra, daydreaming about leaving together- silly thoughts. 

That’s how they met.

Blue eyes, light blue, like the sky on a sunny day. Cloud liked Zack for being Zack. 

Zack was like a moth to a flame- couldn’t help wanting to keep him around, and yeah he was sorta dating Aerith at that point, but no one said he couldn’t have new friends and keep them close. 

Zack understands now how he lied to himself.

Maybe if he had been honest it could’ve worked out with both. He could have gotten a happy ending with the two of them, but he wasn’t brave back then, just bold. Life sure taught him a lesson about dragging his feet.

It had to be his fault, because Cloud didn’t deserve one second of what he got. 

Focus on the hair. And the eyes . Even after the mako, so bright. Like the moon.

Take a deep breath.

Laughing at Zack’s bad jokes, always giving Zack his full attention. Oblivious to Zack’s flirting in the most charming and frustrating way.

Zack’s talked a lot about it to Genesis. Sometimes it’s all he talks about. The way the scientists preferred Cloud as a subject for whatever fucked up shit they were testing. The way Zack was unable to get their attention back- please leave him alone, he’s not like me, he can’t handle it. Take me instead. Please.

Because Cloud seemed young like Zack had been- still was- before he got picked as a SOLDIER candidate. 

Quiet, earnest, observant, born-in-a-blizzard scrap of a kid ready to tell Zack all the worst things about himself.

And Zack was a loud, unstoppable, impulsive, born-in-a-hurricane jungle boy ready to grab him and tell him to shut it, both laughing like everything wasn’t about to go bad. Real bad.

It’s still early.

Zack leaves a note for Aerith and finds himself in front of one of his favorite doors, waiting after a spirited knock.

It opens after a moment, and Sephiroth peers out, vivid green eyes curious.

“Zack,” he says, already stepping to the side to invite him in. 

“Mornin’ Seph. You’re up early,” Zack says with a grin. He strides inside. 

Sephiroth’s lips quirk up in a tiny smile. “Look who’s talking,” he says.

“And in a good mood! My lucky day,” Zack exclaims. He can’t believe Seph ever made him nervous before. He already feels better and it’s been two seconds. 

“And you…aren’t,” Seph says, hesitant. He glides over to the table Zack’s perched against.

Zack doesn’t know what gave him away. 

“Huh? I’m great. I’m fine!” Maybe a little too enthusiastic.

Sephiroth reaches out, stilling Zack’s bouncing knee with a hand.

Oh.

“Is it Cloud?” Sephiroth asks, letting his hand drop but staying close. 

Zack rubs his face, groaning. 

“I talked to Tifa,” he says. “He was there.”

Sephiroth nods.

“Is he part of AVALANCHE?”

“Maybe?” Zack pushes off the table and saunters over to inspect a mug on the little counter. Tea. “Seems less rigid over there, people go in and out…but Tifa’s from his homeworld. Nibel. They were childhood friends.”

Sephiroth’s eyebrows shoot up to the ceiling.

“Nibelheim,” he says.

“Yeah, I don’t know how much she remembers about…that day. But she does remember you. And Cloud. He’s…different now. She said he was different. He thinks he’s a first class SOLDIER.”

Sephiroth finally moves, two steps that count as pacing for him. 

“If it is Cloud, it’s not surprising his brain would have sustained side effects from the mako exposure and the experiments.”

“It’s the real him,” Zack says firmly. “I don’t know how to explain it, but I know.”

Sephiroth nods. “It’s easy enough to confirm. Especially if…”

If Jenova cells run through his veins.

Zack slumps over. It always leads back to that. 

Jenova. A sentient, predatory symbiont from some sorry crevice of space. World-eater, if you were trying to make it blush.

From what they’ve gathered, Jenova could’ve rotted away if it hadn’t been discovered by some of the most depraved minds in science. Conveniently on Shinra’s payroll.

Zack was the only first class SOLDIER that wasn’t from one of the fucked up experiments on literal children and babies. All three of the original first classes have Jenova’s material entwined with their DNA.

Sephiroth, right in front of him, almost went mad when he learned of his origins. 

Angeal and Genesis just got even. 

Hell of a baby story, Zack figures.

Zack had luck on his side. He was already as mako-enhanced as possible by the time that dick Hojo tried to make him the next fucked up experiment, but Cloud suffered for it.

It’s a mystery what those cells are doing to Cloud now- is he degrading? Is he still mutating? They didn’t need to worry about it when Cloud was presumed dead. 

Zack needs to ask Gen if he still has the documents from the lab. 

Sephiroth reaches out, jolting Zack out of his thoughts. His hand rests on his head, smoothing dark spikes down. Zack knows they pop right back up again, and Sephiroth smiles on cue. Zack’s getting so many smiles from Sephiroth today.

“We will meet him together. If you want. I’ll know if he’s connected to me.” 

“You sure it won’t kick something off?” Zack asks, skeptical. Nothing’s easy when it comes to this science shit.

“No. But I am confident I can handle this body, and I am confident you will be able to handle anything that goes astray. However, I am concerned about…the others.”

The other Sephiroth, and other Jenova mutations.

“Yeah. Could be a problem if they catch a whiff.”

Zack’s back to tapping his feet, and Sephiroth’s hand drifts down to his cheek.

“Would you like to stay with me until a more humane hour of the morning?” Sephiroth asks, his voice deep and smooth.

It chips away at Zack’s bad mood like a jackhammer. 

He grins. “ Would I- I call dibs on big spoon!”

By the time Sephiroth convinces Zack to get out of bed (again), Aerith is eating cereal in the mess. Angeal and Genesis are there too, arguing over the coffee machine. 

Aerith wiggles her eyebrows up and down when Zack and Sephiroth walk in. Zack does it right back at her before grabbing a bowl and sitting next to her.

“Can’t believe you’d sneak out of your room to go cuddle with your coworker,” Aerith says, wagging her spoon at Zack.

“Appalling manners,” Genesis agrees. “Coffee?”

Zack shakes his head. He wants mooglemallows.

Angeal clears his throat. 

“We’ll be heading to rendezvous with the Shera at 1200 hours. Sound good to everyone?”

“Sounds good to me,” Zack says with a stretch. “I’m sure Aerith is excited to have a change of clothes.”

“Mhmm. And it’ll be nice to have everyone together,” Aerith says. 

She’s interrupted by her PHS going off. “Sorry- hang on…Hi Tifa!”

Yelling filters through speaker mode, and her smile fades. 

“Tifa, we can’t- what’s going on over there?” 

“Bad news. Shinra found us. We’re trying to get out of here.”

“Shinra?” Zack repeats.

“What type of ship?” Sephiroth asks, giving a sharp glance to Angeal. 

“Small? Very quick. We’ve seen this ship before. They don’t have a vessel tag on radar.”

“Turks,” Genesis and Angeal say in unison.

Zack groans. “I missed my cue. Can we try again?”

Aerith slaps his arm before returning her attention to Tifa.  “Are you guys okay?” 

“We can help if needed, we just need to set course,” Angeal says, looking ready to run to the bridge.

“We got it under control, but we don’t want to lead them right to you-”

There’s sudden whooping down the line- Barret, by the sounds of it. 

“ATTA BOY SPIKEY!”

Someone whistles. 

“I think Cloud’s got it handled,” Tifa says breathlessly after a pause.

Zack’s heart stops for a second- that’s becoming a common occurrence. Cloud? What’s he doing? Is he leading the Turks off? He almost bends his spoon in half.

“Of course he does,” Aerith chirps, waving her spoon in the air. “Ugh! I always miss the good stuff.”

Another, calmer voice calls out. The red fire-lion. Red?

“Cloud says go ahead with the meet - he’ll keep them occupied and lead them out.”

Tifa sighs, clearly not happy with the turn of events. 

“Okay…okay! We’ll see you guys soon. Be careful.”

“Will do,” Angeal affirms.

The SOLDIERS all share a glance as the line goes silent. 

Zack holds his head in his hands, Aerith’s hand settling on his back.

Please let Cloud be okay.

Chapter Text

CLOUD STRIFE, STRIFE DELIVERY SERVICE- ON BOARD FENRIR, NEAR KALM

The fact that Cloud scheduled three new deliveries as of the morning was pure coincidence. Nothing to do with the impending meeting. He tells himself that until it sounds convincing, because he’s sure Tifa will have something to say about it. 

Now he guesses he has a real excuse for running from his problems. He flies at a breakneck pace around refueling stations and coffee pods, aiming for open space past Kalm. Fenrir isn’t best suited for open galaxy, but he built it to be capable of a few days of cold travel in the event he got stuck between planets. 

Right now, he just wants to open it up, put some distance between him and the Shera to shake these stalkers off for good. Shera would continue to the meeting point and Cloud would head back when it was clear. Maybe take some extra time to make sure it’s safe. 

Completely unrelated to today’s meeting.

There’s an incoming transmission request from the Turks’ ship. Cloud ignores it, corkscrewing into a cloudbank and dodging rocks as he darts through. This is not the safest place to be flying like this, but he’s gonna use it to his advantage. Hopefully they give up or crash. 

So far, no such luck. The ship is as nimble as the pilot is insane, not letting Cloud breathe for even one second. 

Cloud has a wild guess who the pilot is. 

The incoming transmission request pops up again, before accepting itself. Cloud narrows his eyes as the sneering redhead from Wall Market appears on screen.

“C’mon, don’t ignore my calls- it’s too early for that! We just met. Wait a sec- you look familiar…”

Cloud huffs, dodging an asteroid. Annoying.

“Aw, silent treatment? Ice cold bitch. Oh well! I’ve met worse. It’ll take more than that to lose me.”

“Did you have a reason for calling?” Cloud bites out, trying to swerve a billboard at the last second in the hope they’ll run into it. 

No such luck.

“Yeah, mind stopping? Pretty please? I got cuffs, if you’re into it!” 

“No thanks,” Cloud says, before the planet they’re coming up on gives him an idea. 

They’re out past Kalm now, getting near a smaller orbiting planet with low visibility and blanketed in swampy green. He’s delivered here before, and made the mistake of stopping there. 

As he starts to let Fenrir drop, he gets ready for a maneuver Cid might call idiotic. 

But he’d probably think it was really cool too.

“Crazy asshole, you think you can outrun me?” The Turk says with a manic grin, following Cloud as he accelerates into a dead run towards surface.

“Okay Mr. Hotshot, this seems inadvisable!”

A touch of uncertainty. 

“Ah whatever, it’ll be more convenient for me if you’re dead anyways.”

“Reno,” a deep voice says off screen, slightly panicked.

“Yeah, yeah, hold onto your undies Rude,” ‘Reno’ says, gritting his teeth. “I know what I’m doin’!”

Cloud’s not letting off the accelerator, the marshy ground rushing up to meet him fast.

“Reno.” Rude again.

“Hey buddy, listen, I can do this all day, but uh, you got a death wish or somethin’? Suicidal? Feelin’ low?”

Faster.

“Shit- crazy BITCH!”

Cloud waits until the other ship lets off ten seconds before impact, flinging their ship up and out to burn off the speed.

He pulls up harshly, arms locked. Fenrir rumbles wildly as he tears along the ground, water and algae blasting out in plumes behind and around him. His vision is obscured as green covers the hatch.

The algae slides off and Cloud’s heart flips as something massive shoots out of the water, meters of scaly coils rushing by as he fights to keep Fenrir on course and not embedded into a giant serpent. 

The Midgar Zolom, a species of giant snake, lives exclusively in the swamps found on this tiny planet. Cloud learned about them from a nearby chocobo farmer the first time around.

Cloud manages to steady Fenrir while leaving the snake behind.

There are at least three in this swamp, and going by the giant shadow in the water below, another one is stalking him.

He does a quick sight check- no annoying Turks following- and pulls Fenrir up just as the water underneath ripples. He books it to avoid the snapping jaws. 

Cloud cruises along, zigzagging until he sees a mountain with a craggy opening in the rock. It’ll be good to head through to avoid leaving a trail if anyone’s still following. 

Cloud’s PHS vibrates on his hip, and he grabs it as he slows down to enter the cave. Signal might be bad inside, so he stops close to the entrance. 

It’s Tifa.

“Cloud! Are you okay?!” 

“Yeah. I’m fine. Lost the tail. Did you guys get outta there?”

“Mmhm. We’re near the Beloved now, getting ready to link up.”

“Be careful. Those Shinra guys are out for blood. Are you off the radar?”

“Think so. A guy over there is taking care of it. They won’t find us. Where are you?” 

“Out past Kalm. I’ll come back after deliveries.”

There’s silence. 

“Cloud, why are you working today?”

Cloud shifts in his seat. Hates the way she sounds, like he’s sneaking out.

“It’s just some…stuff. Requests nearby that popped up.”

He doesn’t mention he posted on the Kalm work offer board in the weird hours of the night.

“I’ll be back in a few, Tifa. They’re not big jobs.”

Tifa’s opinion is audible over the dead air. 

“What do you want me to tell Zack?” she asks, softer.

“What? What about him?”

“Cloud! You can’t run away from this. I don’t…I don’t want you to let this build up. If he can help with your memories…”

“My memories are…” fucked. “Fine.”

“...we’ll talk later. Just…be safe, okay?”

“I will.”

Cloud does finish up quickly.

It’s while delivering a shipment of greens to a chocobo farm that he finally deals with his minor breakdown. He leans on the paddock fence to breathe.

Why is he so nervous? Something about what Tifa said is sitting bad in his stomach. He rubs his left arm, trying to chase away the crawling sensation. Stress makes geostigma worse, according to Aerith. 

Cloud hears the plodding footsteps of a chocobo approach, before a heavy beak starts prowling through his hair.

“Hey, come on…I look that bad, huh.”

The chocobo agrees with a soft kweh. Cloud keeps his head down.

“Could you try to get it into decent shape? I gotta meet some people later and I know it’s a mess.” He exhales a laugh.

Someone used to give him a hard time about his hair.

Chocobo head.

…was that Zack?

Cloud’s always felt like there was someone offering running commentary on his life, since he woke up. Since he can remember.

He figured it was just his inner voice- a bit mouthy, he had a tendency to come off as rude.

The chocobo nuzzles alongside his ear as he hunches over further. 

“Bet you don’t have to worry about much out here…”

Cloud can be nice.

Despite all his procrastination, when Cloud follows the beacon back to the Shera, it’s still linked up to the other ship. 

He takes a very demure and subdued path to the entry bay, trying not to draw any attention. He’s been off planet too, he should get Fenrir and himself hosed off and changed before doing anything else.

The sudden level of meticulousness in following the rules is just something he feels like keeping to. Nothing to do with the large ship nestled up to the Shera.

So what if he takes a lot longer in the shower than usual, or deliberates over which black top is better. They might appear identical, but one is older and softer, while the other is darker but scratchier. Next, the belts- also a careful decision.

A knock on the door breaks him out of his concentration.

“Cloud?” It’s Denzel.

Cloud sets a belt down and hits the button to open the door.

Denzel stands there, looking awkward as he fidgets.

“Hey. You didn’t go with the others?” 

Denzel shrinks against the hallway wall, head down. 

“Um…nah…” 

Cloud walks back to finish getting dressed. He’s not good with kids.

“Everything okay…?” he asks.

“Yeah. Um. I...I just got here, so….I thought it’d be weird to go.”

Can’t blame him. Denzel’s only met the Shera crew yesterday. A whole new group of people is pretty overwhelming. 

Even Cloud’s overwhelmed, and he’s got no excuse.

“Do you want to go?” 

Denzel shuffles, not answering. 

Cloud fastens his last buckle, tugging his leathers and pauldron into place. It always helps him focus his mind, getting all his pieces back in place. Armor for whatever happens.

 “Well, I’m just a delivery guy- but I’ll go with you if you want. Beats sticking around here, I guess. Should probably go say thanks.”

“I’d go if you go,” Denzel says, quiet like he’s embarrassed.

Cloud is caught off guard by…whatever this is. This kid is worried he’ll say no.

“Okay,” he says, striding over to Denzel. “We can go together.”

Denzel’s smile makes him feel a little better.

Some time during their walk down the gangway to the other ship, Denzel’s hand sneaks into Cloud’s. Cloud doesn’t have the heart to shake it off, so he holds it. If it helps Denzel to be more comfortable, he’s not going to be an asshole about personal space.

They pass through the airlock, and find a pretty crowded entry bay. A lot of the ex-SOLDIERS are hanging out in small groups, AVALANCHE members and Shera crew scattered among them.

One of the firsts, the redhead, is talking to Red and Cid. There’s a few guys laughing at Cid’s colorful storytelling. Tifa and Barret aren’t far from there, talking to the first with black hair and arms to rival Barret’s. Barret seems to have a line of admirers on the anti-Shinra side. Tifa does too, as one of the main AVALANCHE pillars.

No sign of Sephiroth or the other first, Zack, Cloud notes. Aerith isn’t in here either.

The first one to greet them is Marlene of all people.

“Cloud! Denzel! There you are!” she exclaims, bouncing up to them.

Cloud doesn’t even know where she came from. Denzel’s death grip loosens a bit- good. Marlene’s probably a good distraction from his nerves.

“Denzel was taking sooo long-” 

As Marlene complains and Denzel protests, Cloud sees the two firsts’ heads turning to look at him in his peripheral vision. He tells himself to calm down- these aren’t enemies.

“This ship is way cooler than the Shera! There’s so many people on board.”

Cloud can’t help but smile down at Marlene. “I’ll let Cid know he needs more tenants,” he says seriously. 

“Have you met the captains? They are very nice! But Daddy doesn’t like them too much…”

“Mmm.” Cloud sneaks a peek at Denzel. “You okay there, Denzel?”

 Denzel startles and glances up at Cloud, then lets go of his hand.

“Y-yeah.”

Cloud’s on edge, in unfamiliar territory yet again. Guess he should be used to that by now. He tries not to show any signs of unease to the kids. 

The red-headed first class is making his way towards Cloud, red leather coat flaring behind him as he strides over. The other first class is following shortly behind, parting the crowd easily due to his tall stature. 

They stop in front of Cloud.

“I don’t believe we met earlier,” the redhead says smoothly. He extends a hand, liquid and easy. “Genesis Rhapsodos, at your service. And this is Angeal Hewley.”

Angeal nods in greeting as Cloud bites the bullet and shakes Genesis’ hand.

“Cloud Strife,” he manages. “Uh. This is Denzel. You’ve probably met Marlene.”

Genesis looks down at Denzel, eyebrows furrowed.

“Your…son?” 

“What?” Cloud chokes out. 

Denzel’s frozen up, staring at Genesis with big eyes.

“Denzel’s the newest member of AVALANCHE!” Marlene explains cheerfully. “Cloud found him in Wall Market!”

“Thank you Marlene!” Angeal says with a big smile. 

“Yeah…I’m…I’m not…” Denzel is struggling.

“He’s staying with us for now,” Cloud jumps in, trying to help Denzel out.

Angeal offers his hand for Denzel to shake, and Denzel glances at Cloud before accepting it. 

“It’s nice to meet you then, Denzel. Do you think we can talk to Cloud for a second, in private?”

Marlene nods with a grave expression, grabbing Denzel.

“Let’s ‘give them space’,” she whispers loudly, sounding so much like Tifa Cloud almost laughs. He would laugh if he wasn’t so close to bolting.

The three men watch as the kids zoom off, then Genesis sets his sights on Cloud. 

“So, Cloud, was it?”

Cloud nods. 

“Your teammates say you’re an ex-SOLDIER. As you can see, former Shinra make up most of our ranks.” As Genesis speaks, he’s watching Cloud’s face intently. 

Cloud nods again, tongue not cooperating. He’s having trouble focusing under scrutiny, with everyone milling around and multiple conversations drifting in and out. Why is he doubting himself already? Bits of what Tifa said back on the Shera are filtering in.

‘They’re all former first classes, just like you, right?’

“What class were you?” Genesis asks, leaning in a little bit. 

Cloud ignores the urge to back away, put some distance between them.

“Gen,” Angeal says, like he’s scolding him. 

It breaks up the tension, and Genesis leans back with a sigh. 

Angeal turns to Cloud. “We heard you ran into the Turks.”

Cloud steels himself. He still feels like a fake in front of these men. 

“Yeah. I got rid of them, but I’m sure they’ll be back.”

“AVALANCHE really hides you away, huh? I haven’t noticed you in any of the meetings…bit of an ace up the sleeve.”

“I’m…”

Not who I think I am

“I’m not a member of the team. Just a courier. I do some mercenary work on the side.”

Cloud’s about to try and change the subject when it’s like someone drops an ice cube down his spine.

His brain tells him Sephiroth enters the room before Cloud can even see him. His left arm lights up in something colder than pain, hotter than numbness. 

And then someone is running out from behind Sephiroth, towards Cloud in a rush, a hurricane he has no hope of dodging.

It’s holding him, enveloping him like a blanket, his arm shedding all the pain as Zack Fair hugs him so hard his ribs creak.

“Cloud, it’s you, it’s really you, you’re okay-”

It doesn’t matter if Cloud’s lost because the second he hears his name out of this one’s mouth, Cloud knows exactly who he is. 

Chapter Text

ZACK FAIR, MERCENARY - THE BELOVED, ENTRYWAY

Meeting AVALANCHE is great. There aren’t too many opportunities to meet new people these days, and it gets kind of dull floating around in space for days on end with the same fifty guys, even if Zack loves them to death.

After the initial excitement, he finds himself disappointed when he doesn’t see Cloud among the group of visitors. Zack has been nervy since finding out Cloud was leading the Turks on a goose chase. He figured he'd pop up at the meet after. Then Tifa pulls him to the side and tells him Cloud is okay but out on some delivery job. 

Two hours in, Zack is giving up hope. He’s resigned to showing Aerith and Kunsel the super cool bike model he’s been trying to sweet talk into the budget using his masculine charms. 

They're interrupted by Sephiroth emerging from the security room he’s been hiding in. Seph has never been a fan of large groups.

“Zack,” he says, nonchalantly like it's totally normal to hang out in there. “Cloud’s here.”

Zack almost drops his PHS. Aerith and Kunsel glance at each other with wide eyes. They’re untrustworthy together, but Zack can’t even bother to be suspicious.

“Shut up,” he says to them helplessly, then jumps up and crowds Seph. “Where?!”

Seph smiles, which is kind of like a laugh for him. “Entry bay. We should go.”

Genesis has told Zack that if Cloud doesn’t remember him, he may need to tone it down from his usual energy. It’s all thrown out the window when they reach the bay where everyone’s been hanging out.

Unmistakable blond hair catches his eye. Zack darts past Seph, beelining straight for his goal. Seph will understand.

Cloud’s finally here. 

Zack barrels into him, scooping him up into his arms.

‘Take it slow’ , Gen had said.

Yeah well, he never thought he’d have this chance again. He’s babbling, he knows. And probably causing a scene.

“Zack,” Cloud manages. 

Zack’s world stops for a moment. Cloud’s voice is a little raspier and softer than Zack’s memories.

“Cloud!” Zack puts him back down but doesn’t let go. He couldn’t if he wanted to, stunned by the solid mass of Cloud’s shoulders under his hands, physical and present.

Cloud’s staring at him and he stares back, taking in a face he hasn’t seen in what feels like forever. The face he more often saw unconscious or in pain than awake and alive. The face that haunts his dreams and nightmares, here in front of him.

Wide blue eyes glow with mako, and that’s what Zack gets stuck on. 

“S-sorry?” Cloud stutters, and Zack’s heart drops into his stomach. 

Lifts again. He needed Cloud safe, that’s all he’s ever begged for. Anything else- he can handle.

“Sorry bud. You probably don’t remember, but- but-”

Zack swallows down the urge to cry. 

“I suggest a more private space.” Sephiroth. Zack could kiss him. Later. He’s so smart.

“Yeah, please!” Zack says, going to grab Cloud’s hand. He stops himself, and settles for his shoulder.

“We gotta talk- super important,” he says, leaning in and catching Cloud’s eyes like he can hypnotize him into believing it.

Zack’s on his knees here. If he did it before he can do it again, catch this one’s eye, even if they’re back at square one.

“Sure,” Cloud says, uncertain and guarded. That’s fine. More than fine.

Zack notices Gen and Ang watching, Gen’s expression blank and Angeal’s full of concern. He also sees Tifa, her face pale, looking like she wants to come over. 

He’ll explain later. Right now he doesn’t want to let go. 

Tugs Cloud’s shoulder a little. 

“It’s a long story,” Zack mutters as they follow Seph to a small meeting room. Thankfully Tifa stays put.  

Cloud is silent, moving where Zack puts him. Seph takes a seat, and Zack finds that he doesn’t mind. He’s greedy and protective about Cloud with everyone else right now, but Seph is… a part of this.

“Cloud,” Zack starts, once they’re settled. “Do you remember me?”

Cloud looks up at him, then his eyes dart to Seph.

“I…I remember Sephiroth. And…yeah, I do know you.” 

Cloud suddenly holds his forehead, grimacing like he’s got a headache. He pins a glare on Sephiroth.

“Why are you two here together? He…he was out of control,” he manages, so pained it makes Zack’s throat tight. Seph is silent.

“What happened?” Cloud asks. 

There were no moons or suns in the labs. Not even stars.

All Zack had was Cloud. Zack woke up and searched for Cloud first thing, every time, no matter how little sleep he’d gotten. Cloud was usually in the tube next to his, floating like he was dead.

Zack knows he wasn’t, because sometimes his eyes were open, or he was gone, or Zack was gone. And even then, he just knew. Cloud had a vibe Zack caught on to the second they met and never let go.

The worst was when Cloud was gone. It was like waking up in the middle of the night, no light to warm you. He always waited for Cloud to come back, because they only removed them for tests. They were never good. He’d learned this over the endless days he’d spent trapped. Three years.

Needles, IV bags, monitors, incisions…

It was torture for anyone, but Cloud wasn’t like Zack. Zack already had his soft introduction to this mad science thanks to the SOLDIER mako enhancement. He could endure, but Cloud was a regular infantryman.

The only reason Cloud got dragged into it is because of Zack.

So Zack searched for him every time he woke up, uneasy until he could see him.

And when he left, busted out while the Firsts busted in, opportunistic- Cloud hadn’t come back yet. And Zack hunted like a man unhinged, but Cloud. Wasn’t. There.

Zack felt like a piece of him had been left behind.

And he’s cried about it.

In front of Angeal, in front of Gen, in front of Seph.

He’s stayed up nights thinking about it, puzzling over mental blueprints and where Cloud could’ve been if none of them found him. Where did he go? Was he scared when they destroyed it? Was he awake to see it? 

And now he’s here, in front of Zack, listening to the world’s worst summary of the nightmare they lived.

He’s keeping steady eye contact as he says it all plainly. Gently. 

Boils the worst down into short sentences. 

'We were experimented on for three years after the Nibel mission.' 'The mission was a failure.' 'Sephiroth was…compromised.' 'We fixed him, fixed Gen and Angeal too.' 'A bunch of us defected, we fight against Shinra now.'

Then Zack takes a breath.

“I thought you were dead,” he tells Cloud.

Cloud’s hand tightens into a fist on the table. He wears gloves now, all covered up except one arm. Zack wonders why, wonders what the long leather sleeve hides.

To Zack’s surprise, Cloud’s response is calm. 

“I thought I made you up,” he says.

Zack freezes. “What?”

Cloud blinks and looks away. “I remember you. I think. But I didn’t think you were real.”

All three of them leave the room. No one speaks. To be honest, Zack is anxious. He expected tears, maybe yelling, at the very least an interrogation about Seph, but Cloud is impassive. It’s not something he’d expect from his old friend.

Cloud was always…expressive. Either nervously laughing or checking his equipment, enthusiastic to help, always right on Zack’s heels on the missions they shared. And Zack pulled him along happily. 

This Cloud is…calm. Quiet. A head to toe sweep of black, lean and muscular, with an air of subdued hostility. Bit of a smokeshow to be honest, with that dramatic flare of leather and stiff poise. Intense mako eyes making him razor sharp and completely unapproachable. And he's pretty, even without the makeup.

Zack scratches his head. Cloud’s hot.

He's not sure how to deal with that at the moment. Everyone is assembling in the bay again, so he decides to shelve it for now.

Angeal waves them over.

“We’re going to start planning next moves,” he says, projecting his voice so he's heard throughout the room.

Barret Wallace and Tifa stand next to him.

“You all in?” Barret says, then scowls at Cloud.

Cloud just looks back at Barret coolly. Zack doesn’t know what that’s about.

“Now that we’re all acquainted…” Genesis begins, addressing the crowd.

The ex-SOLDIERS are all lined up in an organized manner- old habits die hard. The other members of AVALANCHE are mostly up front, near Barret. 

“Our friends have been making light work of the reactors and auxiliary Shinra income sources. You’ll all be glad to hear we have handed Corneo over to his new long-term residence,” Genesis says, smiling as he glosses over the details. “I’d like to thank Barret Wallace and his team for their contributions and initiatives.”

Barret doesn’t need to project his voice, since his volume is permanently set to ‘booming’.

“No thanks necessary,” he barks, addressing the crowd. “The real thanks goes to the members on the inside-” a glance over to Tifa, then Aerith, “-who gave me very little warning about the details of this particular endeavor.”

There’s a little bubble of laughter in the room.

“Now,” Barret says. “I know you’re all hungry for what’s next. So it’s important to keep this train rollin’.”

Zack’s gotta admit he likes being busy. He sneaks a peek at Cloud, who…

Is checking his PHS.

“Bored?” Zack whispers.

Cloud jumps a little, head swiveling to look up at him. “Huh?”

Sephiroth clears his throat. Zack knows he's getting a look.

“We’ve learned Shinra has targeted AVALANCHE,” Angeal announces. “Aggressively. From now on, we are playing offense and defense. We’d like to provide help with both.”

They’re targeting Junon, a busy Shinra-controlled port.

Zack knows Angeal and Gen are going to raid a few labs there. He wouldn’t call it an ulterior motive, more like a bonus. Cleaning up the old research on specific projects under Shinra’s nose is part of dismantling the whole, after all.

Shinra’s taken enough from all of them- especially Seph, Angeal, and Gen- that Zack doesn’t feel bad at all. 

Barret and the firsts gather in a small meeting room now, ironing out details. Tifa and some of the crew had left on Kunsel’s extra-special insider tour of the Beloved.

Cloud stayed with Barret. Zack’s not sure why, since Barret just announced Cloud’s benched for Junon. He’s also not sure why Cloud seems perfectly okay with that.

“ Him? Hell no. Expensive. Unnecessary,” Barret says, knee deep in strategy.

Zack and Angeal share a baffled glance.

“I’m sorry- is he not part of your roster?” Genesis asks, clearly confused. “He’s enhanced, it would be foolish to discount him.”

“Just a courier,” both Barret and Cloud say in unison, like they’re both impatient to move on.

Barret looks around at the firsts, all dead silent, and groans. 

“Listen, we don’t got an unlimited budget, okay? I still owe him for the Wall Market shit-”

“That was my bad. That one’s on the house,” Cloud says from where he leans against the wall.

Cloud…charges?

“Thanks. Anyways, he’s expensive as fuck since he’s paid per job. Plus, it’s better to have him watching the ship. Tifa, Aerith, and Red are more than capable of holding it down, along with you all.”

Zack stares at Cloud, who doesn’t seem the least bit apologetic or bothered.

Like it’s nothing new to him.

Zack’s torn. On the one hand, Cloud’s not being reckless. That’s good. On the other…

“You’re just gonna let them go in on their own?” he blurts out. “Because of your hourly rate? ”

Zack’s never been good at holding his tongue.

Cloud’s glaring at him now. 

Barret’s arm is outstretched, like he’s gonna hold him back. “Now hang on-”

“Zack,” Sephiroth says firmly, finally deciding to contribute. 

“This…this is a big deal from now on, isn’t it? If someone feels they deserve a wage hike , maybe…maybe they should reconsider their involvement.”

Zack. Shut up while you’re ahead.

He ignores that little voice. Cloud’s gone icy and stiff now, and Zack hates it, but this isn’t the same Cloud from before. He sees Genesis pinch the bridge of his nose out of the corner of his eye.

“Sorry, I thought we left mandatory assignments behind after Shinra,” Cloud bites out, pushing off the wall. “Do I need to prove something to you?”

This isn’t like Cloud, this is…

“I’m surprised anyone believes you were a former SOLDIER with that attitude,” Zack says, staring at Cloud.

Zack already wants to kick himself by the time it falls out of his mouth.

Angeal’s hand drops heavy on Zack’s shoulder. No one says anything. 

Cloud wavers for a second, something shuttering in his expression. Then he whirls around in a flare of black leather and leaves the meeting room.

“Zack, what-” Angeal starts, but Zack’s already tearing out of his hold, bursting through the door after Cloud.

Cloud, who’s storming towards the airlock to the Shera , faster than Zack realized.

He catches up halfway down the gangway, reaching out for Cloud’s shoulder- fuck that, going straight for his hand instead-

Cloud whips around to face him, his eyes sharp like ice chips and his shoulders raised defensively. Zack freezes.

Like he’s ready to fight Zack.

“Cloud. Cloud, I’m-”

“Don’t. Don’t apologize. If you meant it,” Cloud spits out, keeping one eye on Zack as he makes to turn away again.

“Wait. Please. Listen to me. I didn’t mean it. Not the way it came out,” Zack says. 

Cloud’s hackles are still up, and he’s looking more and more uncomfortable.

Zack soldiers on.

“I spent so long trying to find you. Being angry. Knowing that I lost you. And when I found you…found out you were fighting the same fight I was, I was so happy. It didn’t…I didn’t ever think that maybe you’d be tired of fighting. That you’d been fighting on your own so long you’d grown up while I wasn’t there.”

Cloud’s ducked his head, gaze cast away somewhere, and Zack has to resist the urge to ruffle his hair and raise his head up. Like he used to.

“I’m…not tired of fighting,” Cloud says, before grimacing. “I just…it helps me if I…have a choice.”

Fuck. Zack feels like shit.

“Barret knows that. He knows I’ll jump in, do anything to keep them all safe, but…” 

Zack’s distracted by Cloud fixing a grip on his other arm. Nervous habit? 

“I don’t remember anything that happened to us in those labs. And I don’t really remember how to be like I was,” Cloud says.

Zack finally grabs Cloud’s hand, the one not holding his arm. 

Cloud jolts, but Zack hangs on. 

“You’re you. You’re good enough. You don’t have to be a certain way. I’m sorry for what I said, I can be a real dumbass, and if you forgot that, I’m here to remind you.”

Cloud relaxes in his grip a little bit, still guarded.

Zack swallows, but lets go.

“Can we…,” Zack pauses, tries again. “Can we meet up? Not a mission. Just to talk. Just us. I want to find out everything I missed.” 

“Like, go out?” Cloud asks.

Zack nods. “Please? I made the worst first impression ever. I promise I’m not normally this much of an asshole! We were actually friends before.” 

It’s tiny, but the very corner of Cloud’s mouth quirks up in a smile, and Zack finds himself fixated on making Cloud laugh again. 

“Okay. You’ll have to prove it to me, though.”

It’s hard to take his eyes off Cloud long enough to enter his number into his PHS. He walks him back to the Shera entry hatch and can’t help but watch him go.

Zack wills himself to be calm. Cloud is here. He’s different now, sure, but his smile’s still in there. He heads back to the Beloved , only to get a hell of a glare from Barret Wallace.

“Don’t. Harass. My crew,” Barret says, before pushing past Zack bodily on his way out.

Zack exhales in a rush, scratching the back of his head.

“Probably earned that one…”

“I’ll agree with you there,” Sephiroth says, emerging with a glass of water from the meeting room. “Interesting strategy.”

Zack’s almost annoyed until he catches the amused expression on Seph’s face, and sighs.

“Sorry,” he says. “Guess I got a little overwhelmed.”

“Barret is an understanding man. I trust you won’t make a habit of antagonizing his people. They seem to…operate differently.”

“It’s not that. Seeing Cloud like that…”

Sephiroth doesn’t speak for a moment, sipping his water. Then he puts the glass down.

“After Shinra, we all became protective of our autonomy. Some of us more intensely than others. We need to remember that things are different now.”

“Yeah, I guess none of us were super rational right after leaving,” Zack admits. 

Genesis attacked the Shinra headquarters, and Angeal flew the coop.

“Where are Gen and Ang, anyway?” 

“Recharging,” Sephiroth says simply.

Zack nods. “I might take a quick nap myself, how about it?”

Sephiroth shrugs, and they make their way to the sleeping quarters, passing Angeal and Genesis’ rooms, where a loud electric hum fills the hall. 

Chapter Text

CLOUD STRIFE, STRIFE DELIVERY SERVICE - THE SHERA, GALLEY

“Eat your food,” Cloud murmurs, attention diverted from his own cereal by his PHS vibrating. Buzz.

Denzel hunches over and finally takes a bite.

It’s a message from Zack…he thinks. At any rate, he doesn’t recognize the number.

‘cloud!’

Cloud holds the PHS out, considering it. What does he respond to that? He’s about to type ‘hey’ when a new message pops up. Buzz. Buzz. Buzz.

‘It’s zack, btw’’

‘sorry…’

‘hopefully the right number lol’ 

Cloud is a little overwhelmed, he hasn’t even typed out one thing yet. Was he good at texting before?

He looks up and Denzel’s watching him.

“What,” Cloud says.

“Nothing!” Denzel chirps, suddenly very focused on eating.

Cloud sighs and shoves his spoon in his mouth. 

‘Hi’, he types out, hitting send.

The galley door busts open, surprising Denzel enough that he almost spills some cereal on the counter.

It’s Tifa. “Oh! Hi you two!”

Denzel mumbles a greeting, cheeks pink.

“Those guys on the Beloved ….somethin’ else, huh?” Tifa says, grabbing a glass from the cabinet. 

Cloud hums around his spoon and gets distracted again when his PHS buzzes. Buzz.

Tifa swishes by, peering curiously as she sits next to him.

“Work?” she asks.

“No…it’s..” buzz. 

‘Whats up’

Buzz.

‘u guys docking anywhere??’

Buzz.

‘think we’re docking near midgar before heading to junon…gotta pick our guys up from wall market lol’

Cloud tries to decide if he should warn him about the Turks, when Tifa clears her throat.

“I’ll leave you to it,” she says, smiling.

“Uh…it’s just Zack,” Cloud says.

Tifa finishes her drink and glances at Denzel.

“Oh…? I’d like to know how that went later. If you want to talk about it.”

“Sure,” Cloud murmurs. 

He barely registers Tifa muffling a laugh before she leaves. 

‘if ur around we should get lunch sometime this week’

Cloud’s spoon drops out of his mouth.

The truth is, Cloud’s still thinking about what Zack said on the Beloved , even as Zack seems to text him about anything that crosses his mind. 

Talking to Zack feels so natural- but Cloud wonders if he’s failing again.

Were they closer before? Cloud thinks so. He remembers Zack’s voice like it’s his own, his comments and his opinions like a river, always running in Cloud’s brain. And the plans. The promises. 

Mercenaries, Cloud. That’s what you an’ me are gonna be. 

Was Cloud a better person before? He wasn’t that impressive- he’s sure of that, he didn’t forget everything- but Zack seemed so upset. Like Cloud disappointed him.

What he’s really thinking about is that Zack’s alive. Zack’s alive, and Cloud left him behind at some point without registering one thought about it in his fucked up brain. 

Maybe Cloud did become a worse person.

Later, they’re watching a cowboy movie when Tifa grabs Cloud’s permanently buzzing phone. She’s kind of using him as a pillow, so he can’t do much until she hands it back to him.

It buzzes one more time.

Cloud sees Tifa had typed ‘Stop hogging Cloud! We’re watching a movie. - Tifa’ 

And Zack’s reply- ‘ LMAO cloud! Wtf! next time just tell me- sorry tifa. enjoy the movie’

Tifa slaps his hand and settles back against him. 

“I’m glad you made a new friend, Cloud,” she says after a moment. “Even if he’s not...new new. Seems like he cared about you a lot.”

Cloud doesn’t answer, because he’s not sure how to. 

They meet at Wall Market a few days later. 

Zack is doing his work in the morning, and sends a message asking if Cloud will be around.

Cloud accepts a delivery job (the Honeybee Inn, big surprise) and agrees to meet.

He blames the strange case of nerves he’s got on returning to Wall Market so soon after their operation.

The place is busy, repairs well underway. Despite the ramshackle state of the buildings, there’s a lot of money circulating the area. Corneo’s estate has been pried open and his stashes distributed amongst the people. Cloud’s got quite a few boxes to drop off at the Honeybee, but a sign tells him it’s closed to deliveries until noon.

Zack’s been texting here and there, trudging through some sewers below the estate.

‘I’ll make a delivery to the honeybee around noon,’ Cloud texts, sipping from a very strong coffee he grabbed at a stall.

‘Ooh- wanna get lunch then? honeybee inn right? ill meet u there’

Cloud scrambles to type ‘no its ok’ but Zack is too fast.

‘G2g- see u there!’

Cloud sighs.

Somehow the Honeybee avoided any damage in the Corneo takedown. Andrea tells him most of the packages are for different business owners in the area, and hands over a hefty payment along with a coupon for a free drink in the bar area.

Cloud’s thrown by the large delivery fee he’s handed. He's already mentally allocating it to weapon upgrades and bills he owes Barret and Cid. Maybe a new helmet.

Zack is incoming after a quick shower, according to his texts. Cloud pushes down his anxiety and turns to Andrea.

“Do you mind if I wait outside for someone?”

“My dear, you don’t need to go outside- you have a table here with your name on it, as far as I’m concerned. Go, sit.” 

Ten minutes later, Cloud hunches over a lemonade, watching a weather radar on his PHS and trying to take up as little space as possible.

Bees in and out of uniform flutter around him, preparing for opening. 

It’s interesting to watch, and before he knows it, there’s a commotion from the lobby.

“Oooh, you’re a tall glass of water, huh?” someone says loudly, and sure enough, a bunch of bees drag a grinning Zack into the entryway to the seating.

His eyes are darting everywhere and taking in the glitz. 

Cloud sinks down into his seat, feeling like a lump of coal in a jewelry store. 

When Zack sees him, though, he lights up.

“Cloud!” 

All the bees giggle and coo, floating over to Cloud and pushing Zack into the seat across from him.

Zack looks…wet. His face is a little flushed, hair slicked back, and a nice smell emanates from his hair. You’d never guess he’d spent the morning in a sewer.

“Gonna admit, didn’t expected to see you in a place like this,” Zack says, leaning forward across the small table. 

Cloud focuses on his drink to avoid the attention.

“Not my usual haunt, that’s for sure,” he mutters, stirring the ice in his lemonade.

“I’d like to know those at some point too,” Zack says with a laugh, still too close. “So…deliveries go okay? I’m still kind of surprised- you really figured your stuff out right away, huh? ‘Strife Delivery Service’ .”

Cloud shrugs. “It seemed like good money, not too rigid. Still have bad days. Cid gave me a loan to build Fenrir, and, well…’

Zack nods, like he’s hanging on every word. “How’d you get involved with them? AVALANCHE?”

“When I got to Midgar, Tifa found me, helped me out with some jobs that paid…I moved into the Shera and…that’s that.” Cloud frowns. He’s talking about himself too much. “Um, what about you? After…”

Zack finally leans back in his seat.

“We pretty much had our work cut out for us, once we left Nibelheim. Gen already did the hard work when he defected. Along with Seph and Ang, we had about twenty-five guys, ready to cause trouble.”

Cloud stops pushing the ice cubes around with his straw.

“Sephiroth…” he murmurs.

Zack hunches forward to catch his eye.

“He is different, you can tell, right? I…I know you, uh, shit. He isn’t the same person from that night.”

“Sure,” Cloud says, knowing it comes out sharp and short.

So convenient.

Zack levels an intense stare at him, probably irritated. When Cloud starts to look away his hand darts out to grab Cloud’s.

Cloud jumps a little, but Zack tightens his grip before he can pull away. 

“Cloud. Listen to me. Literally, he is not the same Sephiroth.”

Cloud scowls, not sure what Zack wants. “What?”

Zack sighs. “There’s…listen, this isn’t what I came to talk about.”

“What did you come to talk about?”

Cloud’s interrupted by a loud, deep drum beat, followed by more. Music, heavy bass hits shaking the entire place.

Suddenly, Andrea Rhodea is sliding in next to Cloud, and Madam M is next to Zack. 

Madam M snaps her fan open in front of Zack, fluttering it while glaring at Cloud.

Andrea draws Cloud to look at him with a brush of his jaw. Then he grabs his chin, bringing Cloud inches from his own face.

Cloud’s brain freezes He’s vaguely aware of bees hurrying around them, jumping on stage and getting in positions for some type of performance.

Andrea hums, eyes diamond sharp.

“Darling, would you happen to know why the vice president of Shinra is on my doorstep?”

Cloud frowns. “The…vice president? Of Shinra…?”

Zack lets out a cheerful ‘fuck’ from behind the fan.

Cloud tries to look towards the entryway, but Andrea holds his chin tightly. 

“Ah ah- doubt you’ll get to leave without a fuss if they see you two, I’m sure.”

Andrea wraps an arm around Cloud’s shoulders, drawing him close.

“Why don't we get you out of here, hm?”

“Too bad these two are so conspicuous, ” Madam M says, waving her fan stiffly before she snaps it shut to reveal Zack. He’s got an elaborate mask over his eyes and nose. 

“Woah!” Zack says, reaching up to touch it, only for Madam M to snap her fan against his fingers. 

“No touching! It’s decorative,” she commands as Zack shakes his hand out. 

“And for you,” Andrea says, drawing Cloud’s attention back. “Nothing so elaborate as last time, but…”

Andrea puts something on Cloud’s head with a flourish- a hat? 

Zack bursts out laughing.

“To hide the spikes!” he says with a huge grin.

“Now come,” Andrea says, motioning to them as he stands. “Follow me- a temporary disguise should more than suffice.”

Cloud tries to catch Zack’s eyes in a kind of ‘what the fuck’ way. Zack's attention is elsewhere- something’s happening in the lobby.

Andrea snaps his fingers at Zack, grabbing Cloud’s arm and pulling him towards a shadowed hallway.

“Eyes up front, soldier boy.”

Cloud lets himself be manhandled, but tries to keep Zack in his sight. Zack follows on their heels down the hall, a serious frown on his face. It doesn’t suit him. He looks him up and down with a considering expression, before he snaps his fingers.

In a snap, Cloud is wearing one of the outfits he’s seen the dancers wearing, slacks and the gleaming vest with tailcoat. The hat is still perched on his head- it feels real, but the rest of the outfit doesn’t. His normal clothes haven’t moved or changed.

“An illusion?” Cloud asks, pretty impressed.

Andrea smirks and snaps his fingers again. Zack gets the same treatment, sharp and jazzy in the streamlined suit. Cloud is stuck staring at the lines of the vest accentuating Zack’s broad shoulders and trim waist. He swallows. It's warm back here.

Zack whistles. “This is amazing!”

Cloud has to agree, still unable to gather his thoughts in the whirlwind. Andrea slaps his cheek lightly. 

“Focus. Boys, I do enjoy your appreciation, but you’ll need to take advantage of the entertainment now.”

They get hustled to what Cloud assumes is backstage. The music is deafening and Cloud is genuinely starting to panic.

“Andrea, what-” he gets out, before Andrea grabs both sides of his face and pulls him close, forehead to forehead.

“I hope you don’t mind a bit of mental assistance,” Andrea says. Their foreheads touch and images flood Cloud’s head, only to evaporate as soon as they materialize. A dance routine sears into his brain, along with visual instructions on how to get out of the Honeybee.

Cloud wobbles as Andrea repeats the move with Zack. 

All Cloud knows is that the beat goes quiet for two counts, then the trumpets kick in, and he and Zack are on.

Front handspring across three steps, then travel into a cross body lead- shadow until you get to stage right, down the stairs, past the two tables, get to the exit behind the bar. And make sure to smile.

Cloud finds himself flipping three times forward, knowing Zack is doing the same in the other direction. His body is not his own, but he trusts Andrea. The spotlights blaze down and Cloud steps until he and Zack meet again, turning sharply. Cloud manages to spot the red-headed Turk- Reno- in the audience before he distorts into a blur of black and red. 

They strut down the stairs with the other dancing pairs, twirling as they move past empty tables. And then…

He sees more Turks with Reno. In the middle of them all- a blond man in a pristine white suit scans the room with a cold, harsh stare.

“Rufus Shinra!” Andrea’s voice resonates around the room, loud over the music. “What a delightful surprise.”

The man’s expression transforms from icy to a smug smile in an instant. And then for one second, Rufus Shinra blinks and meets Cloud’s eyes.

Cloud finds his face pulled back, by Zack this time, who is smiling earnestly behind his mask.

“Ready?” 

He grabs Cloud’s arm and spins out ( not a move in Andrea’s plan), pulling Cloud with him towards a dark hallway.

They burst through a door that says ‘ do not push ’ into the smoggy light of an afternoon in Wall Market. The door slams shut behind them, leaving them in dead silence compared to the Honeybee.

Cloud startles as their disguises disappear. Zack runs his hands along his arms, mouth open in shock. All that’s left is the hat perched on Cloud’s head, which he takes off in a rush. He throws it on a crate, not wanting to steal it from Andrea.

“Gotta say, that was a first for me,” Zack says. Understatement of the century. 

“Yes, very cool. Can we get out of here?” Cloud grumbles, already heading out of the alley to scope out an escape route.

Zack catches his arm and tugs. “This way,” he says, pulling Cloud along.

Cloud frowns, but…he trusts Zack with his life. Even now.

Some things just feel right.

So he keeps up with Zack, and doesn’t attempt to get his arm back.

They stop near a chocobo stand right outside the Wall Market gates.

Zack is typing something on his phone. Cloud pets the chocobo, uneasy about waiting around. 

He can’t help but be suspicious about Rufus Shinra- what are the odds that he’d show up at the Honeybee? Would Andrea and the bees be okay?

Would Rufus or the Turks know Andrea and Madam M helped AVALANCHE take down Corneo?

A hand claps down on his shoulder and Cloud nearly jumps out of his skin.

“Sorry, sorry!” Zack says, hands up in the air. “Usually it’s kinda hard to surprise anyone back on the ship…SOLDIER and all…”

Cloud exhales, shaky. He can’t lose himself to his thoughts right now.

“No. It’s okay. I was just…thinking…”

Zack hums, all big eyes and tilted head at Cloud. Sometimes Zack’s motions remind him of Aerith.

“We should keep moving,” Cloud says, trying to rally his focus. “Don’t know who’s around or how safe it is here.” 

He pats the chocobo one more time.

Zack slings an arm around Cloud’s shoulders, pulling him close. Feels natural. Which is…not normal. Not for him.

Zack goes on, oblivious to Cloud fixating on the contact. 

“You’ve got a point. Rufus Shinra is bad news. I went ahead and told Seph and them what’s going on. Seph stopped back by the ship, then he’s coming here to meet us.” 

Cloud can’t help but scowl at the mention of Sephiroth. 

Of course it doesn’t get past Zack.

“Hey, none of that- he’s…ugh, I know I already said it, but he’s not the same guy from that day on Nibel.” 

“I’m sure he’s had a change of heart,” Cloud says darkly, starting to pull away from Zack. 

Zack tightens his arm around Cloud, drawing him close so that they’re almost nose to nose. 

“No Cloud, I mean he’s different. Our Seph is a clone.”

Chapter Text

ZACK FAIR, MERCENARY - WALL MARKET CANYONS

Even against the flamboyance of Wall Market, Seph is way too conspicuous, so Zack pushes Cloud into a chocobo carriage. They end up riding to a dusty rock corridor, one of the many crevices in and out of the main commercial area.

Cloud’s pretty silent the ride over, crossing his arms and staring at the floor. Zack can’t help but crowd him a little. He stretches his legs out across the tiny cart, setting them against the outside of Cloud’s.

Cloud’s head snaps up, a question all over his face.

“I promise it’ll make more sense if Seph tells you,” Zack says on a whim, leaning forward to see if he guessed right. 

Bingo. Cloud looks away, nodding. He doesn’t seem angry or upset, or even particularly shocked at the fact Seph is a clone. 

Zack leans back again, not quite satisfied. 

When the cart stops, he jumps off the top step and scans around the rocks for Seph. Cloud lets the driver know to move on.

A flash of silver hair under a decrepit awning catches Zack's eye. 

“Come on,” he says, grabbing for Cloud and tugging him forward with an arm around his waist.

“Okay, okay,” Cloud says, but there’s no heat to it.

Zack admires how solid and warm Cloud is. Zack’s last memories of him weren’t so…upright. 

He keeps making excuses to touch Cloud. 

They approach Seph, and Zack freezes. 

Seph is eyeballing Zack’s hand, draped around Cloud’s hip. Seph is not the jealous type, used to Zack’s shit, but Zack doesn’t want to be that asshole who oversteps just because Seph is ‘cool’. He casually lets Cloud go.

“Hello again, Cloud.” 

“Yeah. Hey,” Cloud says.

Oof. Tough crowd.

Luckily Zack is used to plowing through this kind of thing. 

“C’mon then, boys, follow Zack and we’ll find a nice sunny bit of rubble to lounge on,” Zack announces. “Did ya bring any food, Seph? I’m starving- Rufus interrupted our date before we could grab lunch.”

Cloud hunches his shoulders up at the word ‘date’, his ears gone pink. Cute. That’s more like the Cloud he remembers. Still in there.

Seph holds up a bag. 

“You’re lucky. When you texted, lunch was ready.”

“YES! You are a gem, Seph. Cloud, our food on board is really good. We have a rotation. Way better than back in the mess…”

He goes to grab for the bag, but Seph yanks it up out of reach.

“Do you know why Rufus is sniffing around Wall Market? It’s not like him to show up after one small issue.” 

Zack shrugs. “Maybe Corneo was his pet project? No idea. The Turks were there that night too.” 

He’s leading them towards a big rock he can see up ahead. Lots of room to stretch out. Sunny. Great atmosphere.

“The Turks have been tailing us for a while,” Cloud says. “It might be a manhunt for AVALANCHE at this point.”

Zack shares a grim look with Seph. The Turks are long game, black ops types, not usually prowling around unless there’s an ulterior motive.

It’s not a good time to get into it with just the three of them. 

“Here,” Seph says, pointing at Zack’s rock and subtly derailing the conversation.

Seph’s always been good at steering people the way he wants. Guess it comes with being a general. 

“No way! That’s the one I picked!” Zack says, bumping Seph’s shoulder. He loves their random mind link.

Cloud frowns and sort of squints at the sky, but then does a little hop to sit on the rock. Cute!

“It’s those sandwiches you like…with the baguette,” Seph says, gesturing to the bag.

“YES!” 

Zack hauls himself up to sit near Cloud, angling so his shadow gives Cloud some protection from the brutal sunlight. Seph settles across from them.

“Zack told me you’re a clone,” Cloud says, real casual, like he’s talking about the Chocobo races.

If Zack had been drinking, he would’ve spit it everywhere. As it is, he winces, fixing a disbelieving look on Cloud.

“Cloud, what the fuck?”

“Yes,” Seph answers, completely unbothered.

Wow. Zack doesn’t know if he’ll be able to handle these two together, actually. 

“Hm. From before or after Nibelheim?” Cloud asks, digging a thumbnail into the soft red rock. 

Zack is literally cringing, but Seph and Cloud are plowing through the awkwardness together with twin blank faces.

Maybe he should just let them do their thing. 

“After…he… I… destroyed Nibelheim. Well. It’s complicated. To simplify it, there was no more room in that body.” 

“‘That body’?” Cloud repeats.

“What do you know of my origins? Or Jenova?”

Finally, that gets a reaction. 

Cloud flinches. It’s quick, but strong enough that Zack reaches to steady him. Then Cloud’s looking down, away, anywhere but at them. 

“Jenova…?” Cloud mutters. “I don’t…” Trails off. “At the reactor near Nibelheim…”

Cloud struggling to line things up is hard to watch. Some of Tifa’s comments come into clearer focus. Zack has mercy on Cloud and grabs one of the sandwiches to shove at him.

“Eat,” Zack tells him.

Cloud seems taken off guard by the sandwich, so Zack unwraps it a little for him. 

“It’s good! Pickled carrots.”

Meanwhile, Seph unwraps another sandwich and holds it out to Zack. Also cute!

“Uhh, Seph. We heard lots of stuff about this and that from the scientists. But Cloud never got a debrief like I did, and plus he was kinda out of it most of the time. So maybe…take it from the top? Beginner’s basics on nasty brain parasites.”

Seph nods. “Jenova is a type of…symbiont. It is one of a very old, very rare species, traveling through galaxies in search of hosts. When it finds the right conditions, it multiplies and spreads its matter throughout the inhabitants. Unfortunately, the attachment is generally not beneficial. It consumes everything it touches. We know this firsthand.”

Cloud hasn’t taken a bite yet.

“It seems at some point, a scientist in our system encountered it. After many years of experimentation, humans were merged with her cells at different stages of development. Myself, Genesis, and Angeal were all results of that first round of experimentation. Later experiments with enhancement resulted in the SOLDIER program you are familiar with.”

Zack doesn’t know if he should mention that Cloud probably has the cells in him too. The time in the labs feels like a delicate topic with the way Cloud’s memory is fractured.

“Jenova…she…”

Zack’s eyes snap up, and he knows Seph is listening too. 

Seph never referred to Jenova as ‘she’.

Cloud puts a hand on his forehead, looking ill. 

“You okay, bud?” Zack asks, leaning over Cloud.

“Yeah,” Cloud grits out. “Feel fine. Keep going.”

Seph seems wary. 

“I don’t know how much you recall of the incident at Nibelheim. The other Sephiroth has the original body. Due to her cells, my…our consciousness can inhabit different vessels. The night before Nibelheim burned…I was forced out. Or rather, I left. There was a large supply of vacant host bodies, clones, below the town, in the Shinra lab there, thanks to one man.”

“His dad,” Zack translates, rubbing Cloud’s back.

“He is the one who oversaw the experiments carried out on you and Zack,” Seph continues. “Currently, he is employed under Shinra’s protection. His name is Hojo.”

Cloud perks up at that. “We’ve met him. He tried to get Aerith. And we rescued Red from one of his labs.”

Zack lowers his sandwich. “Aerith? Why…why does Hojo want her?”

Cloud is finally starting to pick at his sandwich, pulling a piece of pickled radish out to examine.

“I’m kind of surprised you don’t know,” he says. “Something about her bloodline…she’s the last of it. Red’s also the last of his kind. Hojo had some kind of…obsession with collecting? Man’s sick. I mean, I’m not surprised he was involved with ...Nibelheim.”

Zack’s at a loss for words. The idea of Hojo being anywhere near Cloud or Aerith sends chills up his spine. It must be old news for Cloud, who is busy trying the radish.

Aerith…Zack never knew anything about her background, just that she was ‘under surveillance’ by the Turks. 

Cloud’s probably known Aerith longer than she and Zack dated.

It’s a weird thought.

Seph’s hand on his leg brings Zack back to the moment. 

Cloud’s frowning at Zack. 

“She’s…she’s safe. Don’t worry.”

Zack smiles, but he knows it’s weak. “I don’t doubt it.”

“Nibelheim,” Cloud says, his eyes flitting around before landing on Seph. “I…remember killing you. I think. Was that you?”

Seph shakes his head.

“I was already gone. I thought only of myself then. Jenova is strong. I was losing control, any awareness.” 

Cloud hunches over with a little nod, looking away again. 

“Figures. You… he. Kept saying…” 

His words drop off. Back to that vacant silence.

Zack doesn’t think it’s a good idea to talk about this too much.

“Sorry,” Cloud blurts out. “It’s kind of jumbled. Now that we’ve met again, I think…my memory isn’t so trustworthy.” 

Zack watches Cloud’s fingers tense on his leg. It’s obvious Seph’s presence is taking some adjusting to. Maybe Zack should’ve waited to have them meet again. 

He idly rubs Cloud’s back again, heart hurting for him. 

“It’s okay. Don’t push anything right now. It’s taken Gen forever to convince me. Sometimes it’s not like fighting. There’s no gain in speedrunning it.” 

Cloud settles in his hold a little bit, and Zack thinks ‘ victory!!’ . He catches Seph’s knowing stare. Zack wiggles his eyebrows at him.

Cloud seems like he’s done talking, until he holds up his sandwich to take a bite.

“You’re right. This is a pretty good sandwich.”

The problem is that Zack never had time to think about it before, between their missions and the lab torture and everything else.

But now it’s hard to ignore the fact that Cloud is definitely Zack’s type.

One of them, at least.

Sure, when they first met as young and stupid teens, there had definitely been a lil’ something. Zack was one of the youngest in his division, having enlisted so young, and he had been so enthusiastic at the prospect of a friend close to his age at first. Then…well, Cloud was cute and Zack was confident. He asked Cloud out to lunch more than once. Cloud’s inability to read between the lines was a challenge.

But things were happening, then they were happening really fast. He never got that one-on-one before it all went to shit, and then it was them, alone, in the worst way, for the longest time.

Cloud’s currently leading them to his ride, mostly because Zack and Seph insisted on an escort while the Turks were around. They’re taking a roundabout way that avoids most of Wall Market. Aside from the random hostile wildlife encounters, no one is talking much now.

It’s obvious Cloud is worn out, his brain whirring loud enough to hear from where Zack is. Seph is his usual passive observant self, one eye vigilant on their surroundings.

Which means Zack is left to his own devices, which means he’s lowkey ogling again.

Cloud is so… cool now. He’s dark and brooding, carrying around his hella cool sword and being all silent and intimidating. He even has some sort of cool earring. On top of all that, he’s still got that distinctive head of golden spikes, and big blue eyes alight with a mako green glow. It’s all very edgy biker babe of him, ‘do not approach’ vibes, ‘out of your league’ vibes.  

Zack’s not intimidated one bit. He’s like a moth to a flame with danger. Always been a little stupid like that. Look at Seph. Even Gen and Ang got caught off guard by that development.

Of course Zack can also see it- Cloud’s struggling. Those prickly vibes don’t hide the way his face falls, the confusion and the exhaustion. Zack wishes more than anything to help. 

He’s always wanted to be useful. A helpful force in the galaxy. 

That’s probably how he landed himself in so much trouble, to be honest. Too helpful.

He wanted to help Seph, that night, and Tifa, and his friend Cloud. And it all got super fucked up.

Zack would love to help Cloud now, too, but he’s not sure if he’s in any state himself. He’s afraid of fucking it up again. He’s learned he can hurt people with his actions.

Zack’s not a kid anymore.

His thoughts get interrupted when he bumps into Seph, who’s stopped right in front of him.

“Sorry Seph, I- ayay… wow. ”

Cloud’s bike is amazing .

It’s a cruiser, meant for both planetside and off planet, but it’s nothing like the Shinra-issued freight cruisers Zack is used to. It’s massive, a beast of a ride, and it’s obvious from the state of the gleaming black paint that Cloud takes care of it well. Zack suddenly understands the dude magazines scattered around the ship a little more.

Cloud saunters over, flipping a latch while looking like something off a centerfold. One of the stupid ones with the model babe draped over the car.

A whole bunch of metal pieces flip outward from the main body like wings, and it takes a sec to realize they’re all sword handles. Cloud puts a small sword he’d had on his back into one of the holders. Zack might be drooling. 

“Cloud! It’s beautiful! ”

“Um, thanks. I’ve been working on it for a while.” 

Cloud does an awkward little shuffle, closing up the swords. His head ducks down, but Zack catches a tiny pleased smile on his face.

“This is quite impressive,” Seph says, eyes running along the bike’s frame. “Especially if you’ve built it yourself.”

Zack can tell Seph likes it, despite not being much of a bike guy.

“I had a lot of help,” Cloud mumbles, more flustered than Zack’s seen him all day. 

Cloud still blushes so easily.

“You gotta take me on a ride sometime,” Zack says. Tries not to sound too desperate. 

Seph laughs, but only Zack would clock it as that, the little ‘ahem’ of a laugh.

Cloud wavers, like he can’t decide who to look at.

“I’d offer you a ride to your ship but…three’s a bit much,” he says. 

Zack barely holds back from taking that the wrong way on purpose.

I think we’d figure something out, huh Seph?

They let Cloud go, and Zack’s sad before he’s even out of sight. 

Genesis would have a field day with this in therapy.

“I’m so glad you’re you,” Zack tells Seph, no context, falling against him dramatically.

Seph is a rock, so he doesn’t budge. He does hum in that specific way he has, when he’s turning something over in his head. 

“He is quite lovely, isn’t he.”

Zack jolts and swivels wide eyes to Seph, before laughing. Sometimes it’s definitely worth being the butt of the joke.

Chapter Text

CLOUD STRIFE, STRIFE DELIVERY SERVICE - WALL MARKET OUTSKIRTS

Unfortunately, Cloud’s getting used to being tailed.

He pulls Fenrir over, waiting for the vehicle following him to slow to a stop. It’s bigger than Fenrir, less of a personal vehicle and more of a utility hauler. Nondescript. Intentionally forgettable.

It’s no surprise when Reno pops out of the back, followed by two Turks Cloud hasn’t met before. The bald-headed one emerges from the driver's side. A younger blond woman, and a tall, thin man with long black hair step forward. The man seems to be calling the shots, the way they arrange themselves around him, but the door stays open. Someone else inside?

The man speaks first.

“Cloud Strife,” he says. Gives nothing away. Completely neutral.

Cloud can’t shake the feeling that they’ve met before, but he gives him nothing in return.

After a minute of awkward, tense silence, the man continues, unbothered.

“I am Tseng of the Turks. You keep interesting company.”

Cloud hunches over where he’s perched on Fenrir. 

“I work alone,” he says. It’s not a complete lie.

Tseng doesn’t react, but Reno barks out a laugh.

“Can’t lie for shit,” he says with a sneer. “Dumb blond, I guess.”

The blonde Turk swivels big, betrayed eyes towards Reno, who clicks his tongue.

“Sorry Elena.”

“Reno. Please,” Tseng chides, not taking his eyes off Cloud for a second. “Do you have some time? We’d like to talk.”

“Not interested. I’m on the clock,” Cloud says. 

“How much is your rate?” someone asks from inside the vehicle. Deep voice, lilted and noticeably uppercrust Midgarian.

“Not taking new clients,” Cloud grits out. 

There’s a soft breath of laughter, then a gloved hand grips the side of the vehicle. The leather gloves creak and the owner pulls themself out.

It’s the man from the Honeybee, pristine in a sharp white blazer. 

Rufus Shinra.

“I’ve heard a lot about you and your friends, Cloud Strife. May I call you Cloud?”

Before Cloud can spit ‘no’, Rufus continues. 

“Rufus Shinra. You already knew that, I’m sure. Pleasure to finally meet face to face.”

Cloud already can’t stand this guy. 

Rufus threads between the Turks slowly, but his stare, harsh as a spotlight, is locked on Cloud.

“You’ve been busy after military life, haven’t you?” Rufus asks, still not waiting for Cloud to respond. “It’s important to understand, though. We don’t entertain the idea of desertion. Once you’re in, you’re in for life.”

Rufus comes to a stop arms length from Cloud. Cloud resists the urge to take off on Fenrir. His arm is hurting. Has been for a while.

Maybe it’s the pain that’s putting him in a real bad mood. 

“What do you want,” Cloud says, making sure he’s ready to pop the latch that releases his swords. He’d prefer to just run, but he doubts they’d leave him alone. It’s Shinra. Who knows what the goal is. 

“Now now. No need to get aggressive. I’m not after you. Yet. You’re playing your part, and I’d rather meet your AVALANCHE friends properly than pick you off one by one.” Rufus paces around as he talks, forcing Cloud to turn to keep him in sight. 

“Sephiroth. Our wayward general…you met earlier, didn’t you?” 

Cloud doesn’t grace that with an answer. He doesn’t want to give anything up to Rufus, especially since he mentioned AVALANCHE.

“I was only curious. I’ve been very busy with other engagements, but I’ve caught up on my homework.” 

“Sephiroth, reported missing presumed dead in Nibelheim,” Tseng says blandly.

Another twinge in Cloud’s arm. He knows his bandages will be black by the time he’s out of this.

If he gets out of this. 

“Imagine our surprise when he shows up again, alive and well,” Rufus says, too close for comfort. His cologne stings Cloud’s nose, settles in right behind his eyes as the beginning of a headache.

“I don’t know anything about it,” Cloud says. 

If they’ve already identified Zack’s group, he’s not going to give them any more information.

Rufus narrows his eyes, then sighs. “You should know, since you insist on socializing with him. You’re not safe, and neither are your friends. I assume they’ll be announcing it within a day or so…Sephiroth’s killed my father.” 

Cloud’s genuinely speechless. Sephiroth…killed the president of Shinra?

“When? ” he asks.

Rufus continues on without hesitation, like they aren’t discussing his father’s assassination.

“Last night. Not that it’s bad news for you,” Rufus stops and looks thoughtful. “Or me, for that matter. He saved me a lot of time.”

“It wasn’t him,” Cloud blurts out. “It’s…”

The real Sephiroth? Jenova? Another clone? Can Cloud really say it wasn’t his Sephiroth just because Zack said so? 

He doesn’t get to puzzle over it.

Rufus is suddenly in Cloud’s space, looming over him. 

“You’re speaking to the President of Shinra now. So I suggest you stop fucking around, Cloud Strife. Your little group has served me well, but this is out of your wheelhouse.” 

“We didn’t ‘serve’ you shit,” Cloud growls, hand darting to the sword latch.

Rufus is faster, and though the Turks all pull out their weapons, Rufus signals them to stand down. 

He’s already got a gun pressed to the underside of Cloud’s jaw, after all.

“Would you like to accompany me on a ride, Cloud? I do insist.”

The hauler is big, but it’s still too crowded for Cloud’s tastes. To either side of him are Tseng and Reno. The other two are up front.

Rufus drapes himself over the opposite bench seat, pouring himself a drink from a mini bar.

“Fancy a drink? Top shelf stuff,” Rufus says, holding the decanter. 

Cloud scowls, glancing at the windows. They’re narrow and thick-looking. Probably bullet proof. Too small to get through anyways.

“Wouldn’t do it if I were you,” Reno drawls with a deadpan voice. “Only Sephiroth himself could break these.”

Cloud scowls, turns to Rufus. 

“It’s not the same Sephiroth. Whoever killed your father.”

Cloud already sounds crazy. He’s not good at this.

“I don’t care. Sephiroth, Nibelheim, Hojo’s overinflated budget, It’s all part of the same infestation, and I plan to cut it out before it gets any further,” Rufus says mildly, capping the decanter. “Whatever happened, that man should’ve died years ago.” 

Cloud isn’t sure if he means Sephiroth or his father.

“The SOLDIERs with him,” Tseng cuts in. “Zack Fair. Genesis Rhapsodos. Angeal Hewley. All declared killed in action.”

They’re giving him their kill list?

Cloud bites his tongue. What is he supposed to do?

“It won’t stop it. Sephiroth isn’t what’s causing this,” he says, trying to ignore the pain in his arm. His nails dig into his palms.

It all hurts.

Not one part of his body feels good.

“Again, I don’t care. I do hate repeating myself, so try to keep up, hm? I want to figure out where you fit in, Cloud Strife from Nibelheim.”

“One of two infantryman sent to accompany two first-class SOLDIERS on a mission to the Nibel Reactor. Declared killed in action. Reappeared almost four years later as an accessory to AVALANCHE,” Tseng says, all in the same measured tone. He doesn't look away from Cloud once. “On top of that, you take Aerith Gainsborough from her surveillance.”

“She’s got nothing to do with this,” Cloud blurts out. “She’s not a part of AVALANCHE.”

“When do you get to officially call yourself a terrorist?” Rufus asks, dripping with sarcasm. “Is there a number of operations you have to complete? Training hours?”

Cloud’s too far away to punch Rufus, but Reno’s a tempting target. He’s snickering at the joke.

“That aside, I do agree with you. I don’t share my father’s more…metaphysical goals. Ms. Gainsborough is, to be honest, not on my radar. Not like Mr. Wallace or Ms. Lockhart.”

Cloud’s heart hammers in his chest.

“Or you, Mr. ‘ex-SOLDIER’. There’s no record of that, by the way. Do your SOLDIER friends mind the act? Fair at least knows you’re putting on a show, right?”

It’s too late when Cloud notices the signs of motion sickness becoming more pressing. They must be in the air.

Sand. Cloud desperately thinks of dry, hot, desert sand. A trick for nausea he picked up somewhere.

Hot sand, burning like his arm.

Reno’s turned to ogle at it where he had obnoxiously pressed his own arm against it. Maybe it’s on fire for real.

“They don’t care,” Cloud hears himself mumble, struggling to remain in the present. “It doesn’t matter.”

Rufus frowns, leaning forward.

“Can you please stay with it? What’s the matter with you?”

“He’s like, volcanic,” Reno says. “Hey, you alright? I swear on my ma, if you get me sick…”

Through the disorientation, Cloud sees an opportunity, one that might be stupid enough to work. 

“I’m gonna throw up.” 

Rufus sets his drink down, and Cloud would laugh at his dumbfounded expression if he wasn’t a man on a mission.

Reno is scooting away. “NOT on me, oh my god. Rude! Bring ‘er down, NOW!”

To Tseng’s credit, he pins Cloud with the heaviest stare the entire time, like he already knows what Cloud is planning.

Reno grabs the door handle and opens it, scuttling backward to give Cloud some space. 

The first thing Cloud does is confirm they’re in the air. Not high, Rude’s brought them to maybe 100 feet up. He leans out, genuinely enjoying the fresh air while scanning the landscape below. 

Red dusty rocks and garbage. They’ve just been circling near Fenrir, which isn’t far off. Good. 

“Well?” Reno says behind him. Loudass. “Ya good?”

Cloud nods. He peeks back at Tseng and Rufus. Neither are readying to draw guns, like they’re confident that the altitude would be a deterrent to any escape attempt. 

Cloud’s fallen a lot further than this before.

“Much better,” he says, before launching himself out of the hauler. 

Reno’s angry squawking rapidly fades as Cloud falls with only a second to arrange his landing. He hits the desert terrain with a grunt, cradling his bad arm from the crash and rolling over his shoulder. 

Yeah, that felt like shit , but he’s up and running straight out of the roll.

And for whatever reason, no one’s shooting at him, which is a little surprising.

He books it to Fenrir anyways, feeling like he got hit by a truck and backed over. 

“Walk it off,” he bites out.

He’ll think about a cure back at the Shera- shit. He can’t lead the Turks back there if they follow. Cloud peeks over his shoulder. Miraculously, the hauler seems to be staying put.

Cloud slows down once he’s near Fenrir, starting it up and glancing one more time at the hauler in the distance. 

It’s still, like it’s toying with the idea of a chase.

He knows Rufus is watching, weighing his options.

Cloud shakes his head and kicks up as Fenrir rumbles to life. 

Whatever. He’ll give them a hell of a chase if they decide to follow.

The Turks leave him alone, but Cloud still takes a roundabout, dizzying way back anyways. Just in case.

He’s tired when his feet hit the metal flooring of the Shera entry bay. He hops off Fenrir and trudges inside.

His whole body hurts from the fall, and his left arm throbs with pressure. He can feel the bandages and leather stuck together with the black tar of geostigma. 

Shower first. 100%.

Unsticking his sleeve from the bandages is unpleasant. As expected, when his arm is finally bare, it’s ugly. The bruises are extra dark and angry, and his veins are black and stark against pallid skin.

The cool water helps, running in blissful rivulets across his furnace of an arm. Cloud waits for a while longer, before switching to hot water and washing the dust off the rest of him.

His mind wanders to Sephiroth and Nibel. 

Sephiroth said there had been many clones underneath Nibelheim. The Turks said it was Cloud’s last known location. 

Cloud remembers Nibelheim burning. It’s why Tifa fled that night as well. Zack mentioned destroying the labs there, but losing track of Cloud. There’s not much from before Tifa found him in Midgar. She said Nibelheim was gone. Was he coming from Nibel?

He lets the water beat down on his head, staring blankly at the wet shower walls. 

What was left on Nibel?

The infirmary is empty, but Cloud still locks the door before meticulously winding bandages around his arm, covering up every inch of ugly flushed skin. It feels especially wrong since his outing, like a foreign object attached to his body. He pushes down the sudden urge to rip it off, find the nearest sharp edge and get rid of it.

Cloud sits with his arm, wrapped in bandages. A crime scene.

He’s heading back to his cabin when Denzel nearly runs into him.

“Cloud! I, uh, heard you come back,” Denzel says in a rush.. 

“Yeah, I’m back for now.” 

Denzel kind of dances around, like he can’t stay still. 

“Um..Marlene and her dad were gonna watch a movie…”

Cloud watches Denzel shift from foot to foot, before shyly glancing at Cloud.

“Do you, um, wanna watch it with us?”

Cloud’s kneejerk reaction is ‘maybe later’ or ‘I’m actually really tired’. 

What Cloud should do is find Barret and tell him that Rufus Shinra and the Turks are way closer than they thought. That the SOLDIERs are less anonymous than they probably planned. That Rufus is after Sephiroth.

You don’t even know if you can trust them, his mind offers. What if Sephiroth lied?

Zack wouldn’t lie.

Denzel is still looking up at him. Nervous.

Barret doesn’t need to know right this second. It’s better to make sure the intel is accurate before he overreacts.

It’s better to check it for himself.

“Sure.”

Denzel grins and grabs his arm (the good one, like he knows), and tugs him to the little lounge.

Barret grumbles a friendly jibe from the couch, where he’s cuddled up with Marlene. She’s happier than he’s ever seen her, surrounded by her dad’s massive arms. 

Denzel crashes onto a pillow pile on the ground, patting another for Cloud to settle on. 

The movie is stupid, it’s some animated thing about magic frogs protecting their jungle planet, but it’s easy and has Cloud on autopilot. Stable. Mindless.

At some point, Red saunters in and drops down to lay between Cloud and Denzel, head smushed against Cloud’s side. Cloud lets him pretend he’s not posturing for ear scritches, and rubs a furry ear. 

Tifa and Aerith come in halfway through, when everyone except Cloud and Marlene are dead asleep. Barret’s snores are almost louder than the movie.

Tifa curls up on Cloud’s other side, solid and soft. Aerith hands Cloud a bottle of soda from where she settles with Tifa. 

“Sorry- we were with Cid and the crew. What’d we miss?” Tifa asks in a whisper.

Cloud thunks his head on her shoulder and doesn’t fight a smile.

He’ll figure it out tomorrow.

‘U get back ok??’

‘Yeah’

‘good! today was good- we def gotta hang out again’

‘Yeah..thanks for the food’

‘haha i knew i could charm u’

‘was that your goal?’

‘maayyybe’

That night Cloud dreams of a dead sky, incessantly flickering like a dying light bulb. The droning song in the air sounds like the decade bugs from Nibel, their loud call echoing through the mountains after a long sleep. 

He crawls like a bug, every part of him aching. 

Dark clouds form a gray halo over the monstrous form in the distance. Cloud gasps for air as he drags himself along strawlike grass that crackles to dust under his touch. The mountains around him are sharp needle points against the sky, threatening to fall on him and crush him here.

There’s nothing safe here- except the hum of reunion in the air.

Chapter Text

ZACK FAIR, MERCENARY - BELOVED, OFFICERS’ QUARTERS

The preparations for the Junon mission get fucked up when the announcement about President Shinra goes public.

Zack straightens up from a stretch as the news rattles from a tablet Kunsel is holding. Kunsel had knocked urgently on the door in the middle of a logistics download.

“And the president of multi-planet conglomerate Shinra Power Company was found dead in his office early this morning. Investigations are still underway. We have Rufus Shinra’s statement as new president pending-”

“What?!” Genesis spits, eyes wide. Then his face slides into something more considering, the way it always does when presented with chaos. 

Zack is more confused than anything, trying to catch more details. 

“Dead?”

“‘Killed' might be a better word,” Kunsel says. “99.5% sure he was dead last night. Heard some commotion over the lines before the whole place went dark. Sorry, I thought it was just another outage.”

“It’s fine,” Gen says, reaching for the tablet. “You couldn’t have foreseen this. Did you happen to record anything last night?”

“I’ll check,” Kunsel says. 

“So what does this mean for us?” Zack asks. “Junon’s gonna be…tight. Especially if something happened. And Rufus is back…”

“That’s already bad,” Gen says, watching the feed. 

Rufus sounds calm, not how you’d expect a grieving son to sound.

“He’s a lot more clever than his old man. Ten gil he did it.”

A knock at the door interrupts him. Ang and Seph open the door and stride in without waiting. 

“Wallace on the line,” Ang says, gesturing to the terminal on Gen’s desk.

Gen hits the button to take the call and sends it to the big screen on one wall.

Barret fills the screen before he settles back. To Zack’s delight, Cloud is there too, a few paces away. 

His body language is harsh, though, arms crossed and head ducked down.

“President’s dead!” Barret barks, and Zack has to keep a laugh from bursting out at the delivery.

“Might need to celebrate, Mr. Wallace,” Gen says with a smile. “This does unfortunately change things in terms of logistics.”

“Damn right it does- do we strike Midgar while the iron is hot?”

“Too much of a death warrant.” Gen gets up to pace along his desk. “But, it might indeed be a good opportunity to achieve certain objectives…”

Ang picks up where Gen leaves off. “The chaos of the situation could be an opportunity. But I’m sure security around HQ in Midgar will be especially heightened.”

Zack can't focus on anything except Cloud, who looks like he’d rather be anywhere else. Yeah, something’s definitely up. Cloud’s tightly held to himself, not paying attention to the screen.

“Do we have any insight on what happened, or who did it?” Seph asks.

That’s when Cloud’s eyes dart up to the screen, full of fear.

Weird. He’ll text him later. Zack’s got a bad feeling about it.

“Not yet,” Kunsel says, tapping at his tablet. “Looks like they’re keeping this under wraps. They’re not going to admit it’s an assassination unless it benefits them.”

Zack tries to focus. “Who are we thinking?” 

“It doesn’t especially matter,” Gen says with a wave of his hand. “Rufus Shinra is more thorough than his father. He’ll have contingencies for whatever we attempt.”

“Maybe that’s why we gotta move now,” Barret says. “Before those contingencies have time to get organized.” 

“What do you have in mind?” Seph asks, tilting his head curiously.

“When we were inside Shinra, down in the labs…we saw that asshole Hojo. There was something else down there too. In a big, huge drum. Seems important.”

Zack knows Seph is calculating how much information he wants to share with Barret.

But Zack’s too busy watching as Cloud grimaces and walks away, not listening to what Barret’s saying.

It’s a whole hour later when Zack escapes Gen’s office- he loves his friends to death, but they can carry on forever.

Seph thinks Hojo has a piece of Jenova. If he does…it’s worth it to destroy it. The labs were a lesson that any amount of Jenova tissue needs to be treated like a time bomb. A bubble of ooze could rapidly grow and infect the matter around it.

It’s why they had to burn the labs, to make sure nothing was left behind.

Zack’s not surprised Hojo kept other pieces of Jenova around. 

Barret didn’t seem confused by the decision to target the drum. He was in with a quick nod, especially when Gen suggested killing Hojo as a bonus. It helps that it’s where AVALANCHE found Aerith and Red XIII.

Now things are really starting to roll. Their hardest work begins now.

Zack leans against a bulwark and takes out his PHS. 

Shoots off ‘u ok?’ to Cloud.

He watches the screen avidly, but there’s no reply. Okay. Exhale. It’s probably okay. He drags a hand through his hair, his lips pressing together in a straight line. Does three squats, then decides to try Aerith and Tifa.

‘Everything okay w cloud?’

Aerith replies almost immediately.

‘What do you mean?’

Zack doesn’t get a chance to reply- a call is coming through from Tifa.

“Hey Zack, what’s going on? Sorry, things have been so hectic…”

Tifa sounds stressed.

“You alright over there?” he says, voice softening.

“Yeah. I’m okay. I’m sure you heard from Barret. This whole thing… I’m sure it’ll be blamed on AVALANCHE. The same way they did with the reactor incident.” She takes a deep breath. “Not the worst thing we’ve taken the fall for. It doesn’t matter in the end, I guess. What people think. I know that.”

Zack slumps over. He hears the hurt in her voice. Tifa seems like a nice person. Not cut out for this stuff. None of Barret’s AVALANCHE splinter seems that way. Not like the ruthless terrorists Zack’s heard of, or even the first-class SOLDIERs. These people are softer, kinder. He wonders how they all got involved with AVALANCHE. Especially Tifa, who is one of the key members.

“It’s gonna be alright, Tifa. You’re not alone. We got your back.”

She lets out a little huff of a laugh, but Zack knows that type of laugh. Laughing when you’re worried, laughing in the face of impossible odds.

“Thanks, Zack. Anyways, you were asking about Cloud, weren’t you?”

“Oh, um.” Zack feels like human garbage with how single minded he’s been. He and Tifa aren’t friends , but he’s barely talked to her or Aerith before asking after Cloud.

He’ll fix it.

“Where have you guys been staying?”

Tifa hums thoughtfully. “We’re in an asteroid belt close to Healen right now. We were planning on laying low until Junon, but…”

“Yeah. Not sure what’s happening with that. They were talking about hitting Shinra HQ instead. I think Seph just wants to stab Hojo. It’d be dangerous.”

They’re not that far from each other, the Shera and the Beloved.

“Do you guys wanna meet up before?” Zack asks. “You, me, Aerith, Cloud?”

He hopes he doesn’t sound too desperate. 

Tifa latches on.

“Yes! That’d be great! Where did you have in mind?”

Zack smiles in relief. He really wants to see someone in person right now.

“How about Costa Del Sol? Tomorrow morning?”

Still no response from Cloud, but making plans settles Zack’s nerves. Maybe he’s off brooding somewhere. Cloud’s always had a tendency to hide from his personal problems. 

At least he used to.

Zack chats with Aerith on his PHS in the meantime. She teases him about calling Tifa first.

“Nope, that one is alllll yours,” he says over speakerphone as he sorts through his gear. Might as well be ready to go, just in case.

“Zack Fair! Did you just- agh!”

Zack laughs. “I was joking! Wait- really? You? And Tifa?”

Aerith growls, though it’s way too cute to be considered one. 

“ You’re one to talk. Mr. Googly-eyes himself! How’d your date go?”

Now it’s Zack’s turn in the spotlight, and he groans.

“Not great. Rufus Shinra and the Turks showed up five minutes in.” He leaves out the dancing.

“Though we did eat lunch with Seph and talk…not a complete fail!”

“A third wheel? Really?” Aerith asks.

“What? No! I…”

Oh. He never did tell Aerith about Seph and him. 

“Aerith- um. Seph...” he starts.

“ Ohhh. So it’s like that? Zack. Come on. I get it. Sephiroth is…well, wow!”

“That’s putting it lightly. Though you’re not bad yourself-”

Aerith ignores his bullshit.

“Did you tell Cloud?”

“No…I’m..I’m not sure. I don’t want to overwhelm him. To him…Sephiroth is the man who ruined his life.”  

“You’ll need to explain things soon. Everything. Cloud’s not gonna break. But…”

Zack leans forward. Aerith always picks up on things he never would. 

“I think if you don’t tell him, he’s not gonna be able to make the right choices.”

“Right choices?” Zack asks.

“I couldn’t tell you more if I wanted to,” she says, a little sad. “Just a feeling I got.”

Zack watches his reflection in the visor he’s holding, thinking.

“But you need to tell him before things start moving too fast.”

“Yeah…” Zack says, trailing off. “I will.”

“Zack.”

Zack whirls on his heel, arms full of some extra armor he wants to put out for the guys.

Gen and Seph are in the hall. 

“What’s up,” Zack says, dumping the junk off to the side, out of the way. Someone will take it. 

Gen crosses his arms.  

“Sephiroth told me about your chat with Cloud. Mind telling me how it went? We never got the chance.”

“Sure.” Zack’s not nervous or anything, but sometimes Gen has ulterior motives Zack isn’t great at picking up on. He’s working on it.

They head back to Gen’s office (boo- Zack’s been in there too long today already, it’s so boring in there). 

Gen doesn’t sit down. He leans back against the desk, gesturing for Zack to sit on the same couch he always claims.

Seph kind of lingers near the bookcases across the room, scanning the spines. Zack smiles. 

“So Cloud knows about Sephiroth,” Gen starts. 

Zack nods. “It was the only way to calm him down. He was in Nibelheim. Tifa was there too.”

Gen nods like it’s old news. “I’m aware. It’s to be expected. What about Angeal and me?”

“Nah,” Zack says, scooting forward on the couch. “That...I don’t know, Gen. That’s your business.”

“While I appreciate your discretion, it doesn’t matter. If Sephiroth being a clone went down that easy, I doubt he’ll blink an eye at us.”

“You’re right. But I get it if you want to keep it under wraps. One more thing Shinra can use against us.”

“Speaking of…you saw Rufus in Wall Market,” Gen says. “I’ll need details.”

Zack’s pretty sure Seph already gave Gen several different tactical interpretations. But Seph wasn’t at the Honeybee. And Gen trusts Zack’s special brand of insight. He’s not first-class for nothin’.

“All the Turks were there. Standard form. I'm guessing Rufus doesn’t usually make housecalls to the Honeybee, but it seems like the owner had a plan to deal with him. He helped us out of there. Andrea Rhodea. Pretty sure he and Cloud are in cahoots.”

“...The owner of the Honeybee Inn?” Gen asks, eyebrows sky high.

“Listen, I don’t even know! I ran into Cloud the night we moved on the trafficking operation. Don Corneo. I’m pretty sure Rhodea was helping AVALANCHE. Everyone was all…dolled up.” 

Gen looks like a shark smelling blood in the water. 

“‘Dolled up’?” he asks. 

“ANYWAYS,” Zack presses forward, trying to avoid mentioning Cloud in the dress and makeup. He’s gotta stay focused.

“They’re friends. Or something. Rhodea helped us out, then I called Seph.”

“Why did Rufus personally come hunting in Wall Market…?” Seph murmurs. “The defense they sent before was insignificant.”

“Cloud mentioned the Turks have been tailing them for a while. Maybe they were tracking him?” Zack suggests. It’s all he can think of.

Gen hums, tapping a finger on his desk. “Not great, if that’s what’s going on. Rufus is very underhanded. He doesn’t approach on his own unless he has a motive.”

“Perhaps Cloud seems like the weakest link,” Seph says.

Zack bristles, despite Seph’s comment being a valid possibility. Cloud has positioned himself as a mercenary, only in it for the money. Maybe Rufus wants to buy him off? The Turks could have made a move easily. That they didn’t is telling.

“I don’t like this,” Zack says with a groan. He flops sideways on the couch. He does his best thinking sideways.

“Me neither,” Gen agrees. “Could you get ahold of Cloud? I’d like to see if there’s something we’re missing before we barge into Shinra, guns blazing.”

Zack rolls to smash his face into the couch pillow, knowing there’s been no reply from Cloud and no updates from Tifa or Aerith. 

“Yeah,” he says unhappily. “I’ll get him.”

The PHS keeps ringing until finally Aerith picks up.

“Zack? Everything alright?”

“Yeah, couldn’t wait to talk tomorrow. Hey, listen…have you seen Cloud? I really need to talk to him.” 

Zack tries to stop jiggling his leg. Something doesn’t feel right about any of this.

“I’m sorry, I haven’t seen him all day…Oh! Red is here. Let me ask.”

Aerith must cover the PHS, but Zack can still make out the conversation.

“Cloud? I saw him heading out,” Red’s deeper voice replies. “He did not seem to be in a good mood. The air of someone who is preparing to do something unpleasant. Unfortunately, he didn’t share any details with me.”

Zack waits until Aerith is done thanking him and uncovers the phone again.

“He left? Red says he seemed upset…”

“Thanks Aerith,” Zack says, running a hand through his hair. “I’ll try his PHS again.”

When they hang up, Zack’s stuck. He’s running through everything he remembers of the past few days. For some reason, all he can think of is Cloud that day at Wall Market, holding his head like he had the world’s worst icecream headache.

“Cloud…where are you headed?” he mutters to an empty hallway.

He knows he’s panicking. 

Zack’s always been a little one track minded.

If it’s good, it’s laser focus, if it’s bad, it’s flighty.

When they were stuck in the labs, it was tunnel vision.

Focus on Cloud. Stop them from taking him. Don’t stop fighting until they bring him back. Stop them from taking you. Don’t stop fighting until they give up. 

Zack thinks he would’ve broken every bone in his body to get them out of there. He almost did, trying to resist Gen and Ang dragging him away from the burning lab.

It was Seph, wearing the face of his old friend and superior, who had grabbed his arm and forced him to refocus. Set aside. Survive.

Zack had to, or the thought of Cloud trapped under burning rubble would eat him alive.

Chapter Text

Chapter Text

ZACK FAIR, MERCENARY - BELOVED, OFFICERS’ QUARTERS

“You’re going to wear a hole in the floor.”

Zack glances to the doorway, where Seph leans against the sill.

“Sorry, I just…I’m anxious, Seph.” 

Seph watches him for a moment, arms crossed, before sighing. 

“Would a distraction help?” he asks.

Zack can’t help but raise his eyebrows. He makes a show of tilting his head and tapping his chin, pretending to consider it.

“Depends. Is it a sexy distraction?” 

He grins as Seph laughs, uncrossing his arms and making his way to Zack. Seph touches Zack’s shoulder. Zack leans into it immediately, of course.

“What exactly is worrying you?” Seph asks, tone soft as his hand runs across Zack’s shoulder and down his arm.

Zack eats it up, exhaling his tension out. He’s a physical guy.

“Hoo,” he starts, “What isn’t worrying me? Can’t get a hold of Cloud. President’s dead. Rufus is out of his cage. Y’know. The usual.”

Seph hums, drawing him close. “I’m unsettled as well. But…it’s important now more than ever to keep clear sight of our goals.”

“Eyes on the prize, yeah yeah,” Zack mutters, leaning against Seph. “Guess I gotta look on the bright side- we’re one step closer to murking Hojo. That’ll be one hell of a wishlist item.”

Seph pulls Zack close, inhaling deeply.

“Truly the pinnacle of achievement,” he murmurs. Zack knows he’s not being sarcastic.

Zack hums, smushing his forehead into Seph’s shoulder. They share a breath, Seph holding the calm.

This is everything they’ve been working for. Everything they’ve wanted. Hojo would be huge.

So why does Zack feel like he’s walking on the edge of a cliff? 

“You’re scared. For Cloud,” Seph says into his hair.

“I don’t like him being out of reach, “ Zack complains. “Before it was…well, it was, but now? Now I know he’s alive and around and it’s …it’s wrong that he’s not here with us.”

“Understandable. You two were…”

Close is an understatement. Codependent? 

Cloud and he were friends before the labs, but when they were taken, all they had was each other. Cloud was all that got Zack through it. Someone to protect. Someone to keep going for.

Someone he lost. Someone he found.

Zack groans. 

Seph smiles. “Patience was never a strength of yours,” he says.

“I thought knowing he was safe would be enough, but…I miss him.”

“I am also concerned.”

Zack pushes off of Seph. “Sorry- I’m fine. I’ll snap out of it.” 

“No. You are justified in your emotions. I’m referring to Cloud.”

Zack’s alert now. 

“What do you mean?”

“Just…a feeling. As unreliable as they can be.”

“Your ‘feelings’ tend to be pretty reliable, actually,” Zack says, frowning. 

Then his PHS vibrates.

Zack hates that Seph is right so often. 

‘ I’m going to Nibel. Don’t worry about me- be back soon.’ 

This has to be a nightmare. His horror must show on his face, because Seph guides the PHS down with a finger so that he can read it.

“Nibel,” he says, uncharacteristically breathless.

“Shit,” Zack agrees. 

“Why would he suddenly go there ?” Genesis hisses, coat flapping behind him as he and Zack rush to the bridge.

“I don’t know,” Zack says, grasping at his hair as he tries not to sprint. “Maybe he remembered something? It’s his hometown, it might not be all bad-”

“Calm, Zack,” Seph reminds him.

Zack is not calm. Zack is losing his mind. Cloud’s PHS goes straight to voicemail, as it has the hundred other times he’s tried to call.

They arrive at the bridge and Zack wastes no time.

“Change of course to Nibel.”

Angeal turns from the main console, eyebrows furrowed.

“Sorry, what? Nibel?”

Genesis breezes past Zack to flop down in one of the seats near Angeal.

“Zack’s little friend, the missing trooper, went to Nibel out of the blue,” he explains, typing new coordinates into the nav. “Nothing good will come out of that.”

“Cloud?” Angeal repeats. “He’s…going back to Nibel? Why?”

“ No clue, ” Zack grits out and instantly regrets it. He’s getting sick of repeating himself but that’s not Angeal’s fault. “Sorry. I really don’t know why he’s there. Maybe...”

Maybe when he and Sephiroth mentioned it…?

“Zack. Don’t blame yourself. This has been a possibility all along,” Seph says, voice firm. “He will be okay. Everything on Nibel was destroyed.”

“Except him. He showed up after the fact, unharmed,” Genesis says. “Something is rotten.”

“Genesis,” Seph says sharply. 

Zack sighs and rubs his forehead. “Listen, let’s get going. I’m not stupid, I just don’t think we have the whole picture. I don’t know what kind of lead time Cloud’s got, so we find him first, ask questions later.” 

He catches Seph frowning at him. 

“I’m fine,” he says before Seph can fuss. “What about you?”

“Anxious,” Seph says.

Genesis turns to Seph, mouth twisted in a grimace. “What kind of anxious?”

“Like I’m being drawn towards something.” Seph doesn’t break eye contact with Genesis as he speaks.

The room is silent for a tense moment.

“I’ll get the team on alert,” Angeal says, voice grave.

Everyone in the room knows what Seph’s talking about. Zack wants to slap himself for not noticing sooner. They’ve discussed the protocol for this for hours. 

If Jenova speaks again.

Ang and Gen are safe now, and Zack never took to the additional Jenova cells Hojo injected into him and Cloud, but Seph…

Seph and the clones were built from her matter. His body isn’t safe. And Cloud…

They’d always assumed he was eliminated, but now that he’s alive, the influence of Jenova on him is anyone’s guess.

Nibel just ranked up on the shit show scale, especially if even one piece of Jenova managed to survive.

It’s definitely the worst case scenario, underscored by Rufus Shinra’s ship floating near Nibel. Worse yet, it’s equipped with a massive cannon, a Sister Ray. Zack groans. They don’t have time for this. 

Genesis doesn’t even hesitate, sending a transmission request with an aggressive slam of keys.

“Rhapsodos,” Rufus’ smooth voice greets as he and his Turks pop up on the screen. He looks like a rich asshole, as usual. Tseng’s behind his chair, and Reno is leering at the screen from the back. “What are the chances of us meeting like this way out in the boondocks?”

“You mean what are the chances of you, involved in your father’s messes again ? Fairly high, actually,” Genesis bites out. 

“Where’s Hewley? You seem to be in a bad mood.” 

Genesis’ eyes are bright with fire, but Rufus keeps talking.

“By the way, sloppy work with the disguises. I don’t want you to think it truly took this long to identify you. My team has been preoccupied with more important things.” 

“Rufus,” Angeal interrupts, stepping into view. “What are you doing here?”

“Taking care of something that’s been bothering me for quite a while. Like you said, my father left quite a few messes behind. By the way, thank you for your help with that, General.”

“What are you implying,” Seph asks, his voice cold. 

Rufus hums, a smile stretching his lips. It’d look friendlier on a tonberry. 

“Killing my father, obviously. Footage doesn’t lie.”

… shit.

Zack dives forward. “Rufus, it’s not Seph- if you saw him, you’re not safe. None of us are,” he manages to blurt out before Angeal hauls him back from the screen.

“I’m getting tired of repeating myself,” Rufus says. “I don’t really care. Though it’s funny, your friend there said the same thing.”

Zack’s blood goes cold. “Cloud? What did you do with him?”

“I put him where it will be easy to clean it all up at once. Then I can deal with the lot of you and have this all signed and sealed in a boring report where it belongs.”

Rufus told Cloud to go to Nibel. Zack is kicking himself for letting Cloud out of his sight. 

“ Sephiroth is no longer human. You won’t be able to destroy him without me,” Seph says, fixing Rufus with a stare devoid of ambiguity. “And if you can’t destroy him , you can’t eliminate her. ”

That has Rufus’ attention, and he’s more perturbed than Zack’s ever seen him. Sometimes Zack forgets that the men he shares his life with are just as smart and ruthless as their enemies. Sometimes he hates it. Sometimes he loves it.

“Seems you’re offering…an alliance?” Rufus asks, resting a cheek on his fist idly.

“Not exactly. But we might have a shared goal,” Seph says.

The alert for an approaching vessel cuts through the conversation- seems like Rufus gets it too when his eyes shift elsewhere. Genesis scowls and stalks to another console to investigate.

Who else is hanging around way out here?

“Sir- Nibel!” One of the Turks, a new one with blonde hair that Zack doesn’t recognize, calls out. 

Zack turns to look out towards Nibel through the bridge display. The expanse of galaxy is still except for the small planet, black racing across its surface, devouring the normal icy blue- like Cloud’s eyes before-

“ Zack,”  Genesis hisses, but Zack’s stuck and staring at Nibel’s rapid consumption. 

“Target locked,” Tseng’s smooth voice calls out. “Cannon charge.”

Zack chokes. “N-no! Cloud’s still-”

“Boss, do I take the shot?” Reno. Fuckhead.

“Wait, wait! ”

“Do it,” Rufus orders.

Someone grabs Zack’s arm- dragging him somewhere, but he can only swivel his head as the Sister Ray fires on Nibel. 

And Cloud.

First there’s a flash and then a gut trembling pulse as the shockwave follows, out of sync. The sound and light and energy all travel at different speeds, drawing out the awful moment as he is pushed down the hall. There’s a lot of windows in this part of the ship, so he has a clear view as Nibel collapses in on itself, pulling Zack’s heart in with it.

Zack can’t hear anything, and even with time slowing down, he can’t help but think is that really it? Cloud’s gone, just like that, again, for real this time? Zack can’t do this again.

It takes Genesis roughly shaking him to snap him out of it. 

He tears his mind away from the ensuing black hole that was Nibel to find Genesis standing next to the airlock, jaw tense with annoyance.

Zack stares at him dumbly as he jams the airlock button- who’s here? What he needs to do is go find Reno and punch his lights out, not greet whoever this is. Once he throws up real quick of course.

It’s only when Genesis barks at Zack to move, and the airlock slides open, finally finished, that his senses return fully. 

Not that anything he’s seeing makes any sense. 

“ Cloud?”

It’s Cloud alright, and Fenrir, and some guy in a red cape that’s so tattered Zack thinks it’s blood splatter for a split second. 

Enhanced senses sort the visual info out in milliseconds. A stranger- black hair, red bandanna, red eyes pinning Zack- holds Cloud, who is hanging off his arms all wrong. The stranger sets him down gently. 

“ The Beloved?” he rasps. “He needs help.”

Zack steps forward to reach for Cloud, then pulls him close. Cloud’s face is pale and drawn, as if he’s in pain.

“What happened?” Genesis asks, readying a Curaga, Esuna, anything that could help fix what’s wrong. 

Zack’s glad someone has it together because he’s doing nothing to help Cloud, trying to gather himself. He’s always been calm under pressure. Always been the guy who pushed his team through anything. But right now, looking at Cloud like this, he’s back in the labs, alone and begging Cloud to wake up again.

“Jenova. It took over Nibel. He’s ill,” the stranger says. His words are stilted, like he’s not used to speaking. 

“Zack, take him to medbay. The materia is doing nothing.”

Genesis sounds stressed, but Zack’s only got eyes for Cloud, who he notices is shaking. All he can do is grab one trembling hand in his, and hold it still like it’ll help. It does help Zack focus, his mind narrowing to only Cloud as he pulls him up and drapes one of his arms over his shoulders.

The second Cloud’s arm is pulled over, he jerks, tremors over taking his body like he’s been hit with Reno’s magrod.

The stranger straightens up to stride over as Zack tries to steady Cloud. One hand- claw?- darts out, yanking up Cloud’s leather sleeve.

Zack stares at the bruised skin, black to the shoulder.

“Is that-”

“Jenova,” the stranger confirms.

“Degradation,” Genesis says. “No wonder the materia isn’t working.”

“Geostigma,” Seph corrects, and Zack turns to find him, half in shadows near the airlock hatch. He’s staring at Cloud’s arm.

Zack scoops Cloud up, careful of his arm and adjusting his hold. 

He leaves Genesis to deal with the stranger, knowing Seph will follow him to medbay. Zack’s only goal is getting Cloud there.

“Hang in there, Cloudy sky,” he whispers, and for once he’s too scared to check if Cloud hears him.

Every step feels like it takes too long. Seph is behind them like a guard, and Zack’s so thankful because he doesn’t know what’s going on outside the steady sequence of steps and the rhythm of Cloud’s strained breathing. 

When they reach the medbay, Seph hits the button to open the door. A couple guys are in there, patching something up.

“Woa! “ Avila says, hopping off the counter where Mack was taping up his knee. “Everything alright, Fair?” 

They both drop into silence when Seph enters the room.

“I hope,” Zack grunts, unable to muster a smile as he sets Cloud down on a table.

“Can we have a minute, guys?” 

He tries to stay calm as they hurry out with a ‘sure, sure’, and he leans heavy over Cloud’s form, watching his face. A hand planted on each side of his head like he can protect him. Cloud’s still shaking, his eyebrows drawn up in pain.

Zack follows the shaking to Cloud’s arm. He reaches out, but doesn’t touch it. Doesn’t dare.

“What do I do, Seph?”

“Z-zack…?”

Zack jumps. Cloud’s eyes are open now, strained with effort.

“Cloud!” Zack says, lightly pushing him back down when he tries to sit up. “Stay. You’re hurt.” I think.

“Cut it off,” Cloud grits out, his eyes scrunching shut again. 

Zack freezes, a chill prickling over his skin. 

Cloud’s holding his arm out like he doesn't want to be anywhere near it. Seph is a few feet away, expression unreadable.

“My arm,” Cloud says. “I need it off.” 

“Cloud? You’re not making sense, bud-” 

“Zack, please cut it off, or I will.” Cloud looks over towards Seph. “Will you?”

Zack can’t help but reach out to hold Cloud’s cheek. Cloud’s eyes, now that they’re open again, are frantic and pleading. Wild.

Luckily they’re interrupted by Genesis and the stranger bursting in. 

“He keeps asking us to cut his arm off?” Zack says helplessly.

Seph comes close to Zack, and the hand that snakes around to the side of his waist is so comforting. 

“He has something in his arm. Jenova was trying to control it,” the stranger says. 

“Yeah, it’s probably the J-cells- we were- wait, sorry, who are you again?” Zack says, squinting. 

“Vincent Valentine. Cloud found me on Nibel.”

It sounds oddly familiar, but doesn’t ring any real bells. 

Genesis is squinting like it does, and Seph is…moving closer.

Staring with horror at Cloud’s arm.

“Sephiroth? You okay?” 

 Seph doesn’t answer. Cloud is trying to sit up again, despite Zack rushing to hold him down. 

“Cloud, come on, just stay-”

It’s no use. Cloud breaks Zack’s hold and sits up, grabbing Seph’s arm.

“It’s not geostigma,” he says, like Seph is the only person in the room. “It’s reunion. ”

The energy the two create in the room is truly unsettling. 

“You… he found you, didn’t he?” Seph murmurs, drawing even closer to Cloud.

Zack’s had enough.

“Can we please make sure Cloud’s okay before you guys make out or whatever?” he cries out, frustrated to death.

Genesis chokes, and Seph leaps far away from Cloud, who almost falls off the table.

Only Vincent seems unbothered by the awkward moment. 

“The nearest source of Jenova is gone, so Cloud should be feeling more like himself soon, I believe,” he says.

Cloud nods. “I’m okay.” He still looks like someone dragged him across the bad side of a planet, and it annoys Zack for some reason.

 “Cloud, please. You’re not okay.” 

Cloud looks down at his lap, clenching a fist.

“It’s time to ask for help,” Zack pleads. “We know this stuff better than anyone. This is big. Too big.”

After a moment of silence, Cloud exhales. 

“What happened to Nibel?”

“Rufus Shinra just blew it up,” Genesis says bluntly.

At Cloud’s horrified stare, Genesis whirls with a dramatic flare of his coat.

“Shall we take this to a more suitable location? I think we are long overdue for a debriefing.”

He sweeps out of the room, leaving Zack, Seph, Cloud and Vincent behind.

Chapter Text

CLOUD STRIFE, STRIFE DELIVERY SERVICE - BELOVED, MEDBAY

Cloud’s trying hard to stay in the moment. 

But green floods his vision here and there, like film being drowned in a mako pool.

He can’t help when his eyes dart to Sephiroth, who indulges it and doesn’t look away.

It helps remind him that it is not him.

Not the man in the labs, lurking beneath Nibelheim. This Sephiroth seems smaller, less monstrous. His presence is grounding.

Nibel is gone now, but Cloud knows Sephiroth- the other one- is still out there.

Or in with him.

Maybe he’s been in Cloud the whole time, waiting to jump out when the time was right. 

Cloud groans, and Zack’s arms around him tighten, bars of warmth he can’t bring himself to shrug off.

Not that Zack seems inclined to let him out of his hold.

Cloud lets himself be steered towards a room where a glass wall overlooks a starfield. In the center, a swirling abyss surrounds a pitch black void.

Nibel is gone, and so are his mother’s bones, lost to an infant black hole. 

He is guided to a seat and takes it, still staring at the void.

Genesis leans on the other wall, a sour frown on his handsome face. Angeal takes a seat while Sephiroth and Zack flank Cloud. Vincent looms by the door in a way that would be kind of funny if his claw wasn’t resting on the huge gun holstered on his hips.

“We’ve sure found more than we were planning on,” Genesis says like he’s announcing the weather. He waves a hand and the screens in the wall light up. 

“Bullet. Degradation,” he says, then taps his chin. “Sorry. Geostigma .” 

The words appear neatly on the board.

“Sub-bullet. Cloud Strife. Bullet. Baby black hole.”

That too appears, forming a bulleted list. 

“Bullet. Rufus Shinra. Italic.”

“Bullet. Jenova. Sub-bullet. Location. Question mark.”

Once Genesis is done with his little list, he glances at Vincent.

“Do you need to be added to the list of issues?”

“I wish to repay Cloud’s kindness in alerting me to the spread of Jenova,” Vincent says, not returning Genesis’ irritation in the slightest. “And the impending doom.”

“Anytime,” Cloud mutters.

“Why were you on Nibel?” Angeal asks, turning to Cloud with a searching gaze.

Cloud hunches over, trying to shake off the feeling of walls closing in that has followed him since he woke up in Midgar.

“I don’t know. Something felt…”

They all answer at once. 

Wrong. “Like I needed to go.”

“Reunion,” Sephiroth says. 

“We mentioned it that day,” Zack says at the same time, before looking incredulously at Cloud and Sephiroth. “Uh, okay, one more time, let’s take turns.”

“It’s not that,” Cloud says. “It’s not your fault. There’s something wrong with me.”

He’s frayed, the day suddenly catching up to him and gathering on his shoulders. He thinks about his mother, stuck in the rubble.

His real mother rotting in that tube, a fraction of her previous whole self-

He shakes his head.  “I need to go. Tifa’s probably-”

“Worried sick?” Zack interrupts.

Cloud scowls before catching himself. Zack’s right.

“Yeah.” 

Zack's brows furrow, returning the scowl right back at him. “Cloud, you were begging me to cut your arm off a minute ago. If you think I’m gonna let you out of my sight-”

“Aerith is the best healer I know. She’ll know what to do."

“We’ve gotten off track. What is reunion?” Genesis is like a dog with a bone, dragging the conversation back to where he wants it.

Cloud fidgets with his collar. Zack watches him, so intent. 

“I felt a call. Been having dreams. Someone calling me there.”

Vincent chimes in. “The whole planet was overtaken with a sort of growth.”

“Jenova,” Sephiroth murmurs. “There must have been a piece there.”

“Guess that’s our fault for not being thorough,” Genesis says with a frown.

Sephiroth continues. “If you hear her, the call for reunion, it means Hojo was successful with his theory.”

Zack grabs Cloud’s hand- his bad one, glove back on. He tries not to flinch away.

“It was probably nothing,” he mutters. “Aerith will know what to do.”

He dares to look up, and it’s a mistake. Zack is right there, too close and too deep, staring at him with so much feeling, concern and worry and anger. It hits Cloud like a physical sensation. 

Cloud knows he’s always reached out for this man, even though he can’t remember it. Zack was there the whole time, suffering right alongside him in that nightmare. 

Don’t close me out, Cloud.

I’m right here. 

“It’s probably a good idea to meet up with the Shera now,” Angeal says, his voice cutting through Cloud’s mess of a brain. “I’ll go ahead and call them. Genesis-”

“I’ll be making a call to Rufus while he’s lurking around. See if I can’t stop him from shooting everything with that stupid cannon, the fool.”

“Alright. Aerith can figure out what’s wrong with Cloud and we can figure out next steps with Barret’s crew,” Zack announces, still gripping Cloud’s hand.

Cloud leans back in his chair with a sigh. He ignores the burn of Sephiroth’s gaze on him, the man perfectly still in his peripheral vision.

He finds comfort in the fact it feels completely different than the man in the lab under Nibel.

“This feels wrong,” Aerith breathes, holding Cloud’s bad arm.

“You’re tellin’ me,” Cloud mutters, resisting the urge to tug his arm back. 

“He’s okay, though, right? It’s not…” Zack hesitates, perched next to Cloud. His voice gets quieter. “That stuff can get pretty bad, can’t it?” 

“If you’re asking how far along it is…” Aerith says, her mouth twisted in a rare frown. “It’s strange. Hard to say. It’s like it’s only affecting his arm. Usually at this stage it’s spread further. Yours is…different.”

There’s only five people in the room and Cloud still feels self-conscious. Like his personal secrets are exposed to the world. He shuts out Tifa and Zack, hunched so close, and Vincent, a blur of red by the door. 

Instead, he tries desperately to remember what his arm has to do with anything. It’s been bad for as long as his memory allows (not long).

“That’s good, isn’t it,” Cloud says, trying for nonchalant.

Aerith sets her jaw in frustration.

“Maybe, maybe not,” she murmurs.

Cloud and Vincent enter the bridge to find Genesis ranting as Rufus’ bored face looms on the screen. Cloud tries to avoid the camera’s sight as he posts up next to Angeal. Sephiroth sits in one of the chairs, spine ramrod straight.

“Maybe next time try sharing your creative plans with the class before you blow up a planet?” Genesis is saying, fiddling with a fire materia in his bracer. 

“With terrorists? I’ll have Tseng note that down,” Rufus says, before fixing cold eyes on Genesis. “I’m going to be honest, Rhapsodos, it is difficult to see how you failed with winning strategies like that.”

The materia pulses with a glow like an ember. 

“‘Failed’ ? I was one of your top brass,” Genesis grits out.

Rufus hums, rolling his shoulders. “You’ll be happy to know we’ve raised our standards since.”

“Rufus,” Angeal interjects, thankfully stopping the conversation before Genesis throws himself straight through the screen. 

“Was that Strife who entered?” Rufus asks, craning his neck as if he could see Cloud at the edge of the screen. “Good to see you again, Cloud. I trust you’re doing well. Sorry about the…you know. I didn’t realize you were still on Nibel.”

Rufus is steering the conversation. Cloud can tell Angeal’s pissed at the dismissal. 

“Bullshit. You followed me,” he says, stepping forward and crossing his arms. “And there was a… guy. Stuck in Shinra Manor. Sorry Vincent.”

Vincent nods.

“I’ll compensate the man,” Rufus spits out. “It all confirms a hunch I had. My father was hiding something there, and I guess we know now it was nothing good. Believe it or not, I didn’t have anything to do with the Nibel project or the lab there. I’m simply shaking all the skeletons out of my father’s closet.”

“He just died,” Genesis grumbles. “Is his body even cold?”

“He was just killed ,” Rufus says. His eyes flicker to Sephiroth. “I’m afraid I tend to trust my eyes, but I will admit we might be dealing with something slightly out of my wheelhouse. What happens if I kill you and another you pops up?”

Sephiroth says nothing. 

“It wasn’t him,” Cloud blurts out, surprising himself. “There’s…I saw him on Nibel. It’s not Sephiroth. She can imitate other people.”

There’s no response from anyone. Rufus is staring at Cloud with a mixture of fascination and confusion. 

Cloud realizes too late he sounds crazy. 

“Who’s ‘she’, Cloud?” Angeal asks, not sounding one bit curious.

When Cloud answers, he’s not alone.

“Jenova.” 

Sephiroth, Vincent, and Cloud, all watching each other as they say the name like a curse.

Zack finds him later after a harrowing ‘all hands on deck’ meeting.

The three ships hover in an uneasy triangle, out of the Nibel black hole’s radius. The void consumes the tiny moons and rocks in a slow procession. Cloud feels like his heart is a void too. He hides in an alcove to wait, glued to the window.

Zack leans against the alcove as the others argue for what is presumably forever. Vincent is…somewhere.

“Don’t they get tired,” Cloud asks, trying for a joking tone, but it falls flat. 

Silence from Zack, which is weird.

Cloud has an inexplicable urge to fill the silence, which is also weird. 

“Sorry I don’t- I’m probably not…the way I used to be, huh.”

When Zack stays quiet, Cloud chances a glance up, but what he sees has him frozen.

Zack, shadowed against the alcove frame, leaning over Cloud, blocking out anything else. Eclipsing all the light except for the bit catching and reflecting on the mako in his eyes, which are so-

Intense

He’s looking at Cloud like nothing else matters. 

“I told you: I don’t care. You’re everything that I’ve always wanted,” Zack breathes out, voice low as he sinks down. 

“But what if I’m not-” 

Zack grabs Cloud’s face with both hands and pulls him close. Cloud finds he only needs that suggestion, because he follows the pull with no resistance. 

“I’m not gonna let what’s happening separate us again,” Zack whispers. Cloud feels every word shake in the air between them. 

“I’ll save Seph, and Ang and Gen, and Aerith and Tifa and you, ” Zack says with a hitch, before he pulls Cloud into a hug.

Cloud lets him cry, caught in a rainstorm, and finally relaxes.

“You don’t have to,” he mutters, knowing Zack won’t hear him. “You never had to.”

Zack tugs at his hand.

“C’mere,” he says, and Cloud is powerless against a gravitational pull stronger than any planet, Zack’s gravity, as he pulls him through a hatch. It’s an unused level on the ship, old barracks, and the light of a massive distant star washes the otherwise dark corridor in a hazy orange. 

“Kinda like a sunset, huh?” Zack says, turning so abruptly Cloud almost crashes into him. Zack’s taken them to the bow, where the galaxy sprawls out before them. This end of the ship is facing away from the black hole, so everything seems normal. Peaceful.

Breathtaking. 

Cloud peeks at Zack, and nearly jumps out of his skin. 

Through red-rimmed eyes and still wet lashes, Zack is looking at him, like…

Like he’s something special.

“I’m so glad we found each other again,” Zack says, squeezing Cloud’s hand.

“Uh. Yeah,” Cloud offers, like an idiot.

Tries again.

“I didn’t realize what I was missing,” he says, then gets frustrated with himself. He tugs Zack closer.

Zack is so close Cloud can see the stars outside reflected in his eyes, and Cloud’s so bad with words. 

“Ahem.” 

Cloud whirls around.

Sephiroth stands in the hall with a small smile.

Cloud leaps back, his face on fire.

“Woa! It’s just Seph,” Zack says, reaching to steady Cloud. “Scare you?”

Cloud tries to get his expression under control before he clears his throat.

“I…I’m gonna get some stuff from the other ship,” he manages to get out, and starts to rush past Sephiroth. 

He’s caught by an arm, and turns to fix a confused glare at him, before he realizes how close they are. 

Sephiroth is huge. Cloud gets an eyeful of his chest before he remembers his manners. He has to crane his neck to an embarrassing degree and all he gets is a smirk. 

It’s oddly familiar, and Cloud finds himself pushing past him before he can dwell on it. Luckily Sephiroth lets him go this time, and Cloud ignores Zack’s concerned tone as he hurries back down the hall. 

“Oh, Cloud-”

Cloud almost knocks Denzel over on his way out of his room. 

“Sorry, Denzel- what’s up?”

Denzel glances at Cloud’s arms, full of a change of clothes and a toothbrush.

“Are you leaving again?” Denzel asks, unsuccessfully hiding a disappointed frown.

Cloud feels a sudden pang of guilt. 

“Last time for a while. Promise. There’s…well. There’s a lot going on.”

“Is everything okay?” Denzel asks, twisting his fingers together. “No one’s really telling me what’s happening, but Marlene said her dad hasn’t been able to play with her all day. And Red's anxious.”

“There’s a big problem we’re trying to fix.”

“Did you cause the problem?”

Cloud pauses. “…no. But it’s been a long time coming.”

“It’s not fair you have to fix a problem you didn’t even cause…,” Denzel mutters. 

“But we’ll take care of it anyways. Someone has to.”

Denzel slumps back against the doorframe, before he seems to get a second wind and straightens up.

“I know you can do it, Cloud.”

Cloud smiles. “Thanks, Denzel. It means a lot. Watch our room for me, okay?”

Denzel nods, and trails Cloud as far as the entrance to the other ship. Suddenly Denzel throws his arms around his waist and squeezes. 

“Come back safe.”

Cloud drops a hand on Denzel’s head.

“I will.”

Chapter Text

ZACK FAIR, MERCENARY - BELOVED, GALLEY

Zack’s not proud of crying, but he’s not ashamed.

Especially when he gets to cry in Cloud’s jacked arms. Zack’s just a regular guy at the end of the day, he can’t help it.

After he hunts down Cloud again, they stop by the galley to snag some sandwiches before Zack steers him back to his quarters.

While Cloud’s busy looking around the tiny space, Zack shoots off a quick message to Seph. He’s been trying to get the two in the same room, but Cloud is allergic and seems to bolt the second Seph shows up.

It’s a shame, because Zack wants them to get to know each other. 

“Sit anywhere,” he says, half joking because there’s not many options. 

Cloud kind of awkwardly perches on the end of the bed. Zack feels a little bit of his old self come back- cute guy on his bed is usually a great way to start the night.

But this isn’t any guy. This is Cloud. Cloud who’s holding his arm close to him like it’s broken.

“You okay?” Zack asks softly, sitting next to him and holding out one of the sandwiches.

“Tired. Sorry.” Cloud’s stilted, and Zack doesn’t like that.

“I’m the one who got snot all over you earlier,” Zack says with a shrug, going for casual. He jams his sandwich in his mouth. “Also,” mouth full. He swallows. “Stop apologizing.”

Cloud opens his mouth, and Zack lunges forward.

“Aht! No! Zip it!”

Cloud finally laughs a little, a tiny huff of breath, and Zack melts.

He’s so fucked. He decides to steer the conversation somewhere safe.

“So what’s next? What are you gonna do?” 

Cloud shrugs, shoulders coming up to his ears. Such a classic Cloud gesture. In the end he’s still who Zack remembers.

“I guess…fix this. My arm. My head. All of it?”

“Mm,” Zack says, uselessly, nodding. He wants to say ‘ you don’t need to be fixed’. 

“The other Sephiroth…”

Zack freezes.

“I remember him. Before all this, at Nibelheim…”

Zack puts down the sandwich and holds himself back from panicking- what do you mean? What do you remember?

“He was there. The other one. He did something…” Cloud winces, cutting himself off. 

Zack finally snaps out of it and reaches out to Cloud. 

“Don’t overdo it,” Zack says. “It’s okay if you don’t remember.”

But he’s dying to know what Cloud means.

Cloud tilts forward to rest his forehead against Zack’s collarbone, and Zack forgets how to breathe for a second.

“My arm. He did something to it. Something’s wrong with it,” Cloud’s muttering, voice so low Zack can barely hear it.

“Yeah?” He asks, adjusting as much as he dares so he can steady Cloud against him. 

There’s a knock on the door. 

Cloud almost jumps out of his skin with a curse. Zack grabs him to stop him from leaping up. 

“It’s okay, it’s okay!” he says, rubbing Cloud’s arms. “It’s probably Seph.”

The door slides back to reveal- bingo- Seph, with a grim expression. 

“Doesn’t look like good news,” Zack says, making no motion to release Cloud despite his frantic attempts to scoot away. His face is getting red. Cute.

“What would qualify as bad news?” Seph asks, taking a seat by the tiny vanity. With his height, it should be a hilarious sight, but Seph has a way of making everything look elegant.

“Rufus deciding he wants to shoot you with his cannon?” Zack offers.

“Mm. Not quite that bad,” Seph hums. “He’s rather dead set on destroying Jenova at the moment.”

Cloud tenses under Zack’s hands. 

“Wasn’t she…isn’t it gone now?” Cloud asks.

Seph glances at Cloud’s arm, before he sighs.

“J-cells. She can manifest through them, or exert her influence over just one remaining cell.

Unfortunately, they’re extremely widespread. Aggressive. Durable.”

“It’s…the geostigma, isn’t it,” Cloud asks dully. 

Zack runs a hand, featherlight, over Cloud’s sleeved arm. He feels oddly hostile.

“One form. Not a pure form, but functionally the same.”

“‘Pure’?” Cloud repeats.

Zack finally lets him go and gets up to pace. Talking about this stuff always makes him sick.

“We’re lucky there’s a difference. J-cells can augment a being, make them strong…as you see in

SOLDIERS, for example. Only three of the original specimens exist.”

Cloud frowns. He was always a smart guy. Zack bitterly watches it dawn on him.

“You, Genesis, and Angeal…”

“Yes. Luckily, we already destroyed two of those original experiments.”

“...huh?” 

Oops. Zack knew he was forgetting something.

“J-cells don’t last forever. The original ‘Sephiroth’, Genesis, Angeal…all experienced various levels of great degradation. Angeal and Genesis fled their bodies into their current android shells.”

Cloud is silent for a moment.

“Oh. So they’re…robots.”

“I didn’t realize it might not be apparent,” Seph says bowing his head like he’s apologizing.

“No, I didn’t really see that coming…”

Zack can’t help but rub his forehead with a groan. Does anything bother Cloud? These two are killing him. He guesses he should be thankful they’re getting along, finding their own rhythm.

“So this body of yours now, will it degrade?”

“The building blocks are different. My original body was built with the cells from the beginning. This is just a vessel. I found moving into it quite easy, and it’s amenable to my existence. It’s stable. The other body…I’m not sure. I know the mental structure has suffered. I can still feel it, if I try.”

“He looks different,” Cloud says, quiet.

Zack and Seph both wait for him to keep talking, Zack tapping his foot against the desk.

“The other you. He’s taller. His eyes…”

Zack aches to comfort Cloud, sees how he slips into remembering. 

Seph of all people beats him to it, getting up and standing in front of Cloud where he sits on the bed.

He reaches out, and Zack’s having a heart attack over Sephiroth, the great ex-general, sliding a hand through blond spikes.

Cloud looks like he’s having a heart attack too, staring up with wide eyes and a red face.

“I promise, we will deal with him. I will do everything in my power to exterminate Jenova. This has gone on long enough.”

Cloud’s head ducks, and Zack finds himself hopelessly charmed. 

They need to kick some symbiote ass.

“We go to the Forest of the Ancients like Aerith and Vincent say, or we go to the Drum and destroy the last of Jenova. And maybe kill Hojo while we’re at it.” Zack adds that last part just in case it’s still on the table.

“I don’t think we can destroy her that way,” Aerith insists with frustration. “It doesn’t feel right.”

“Rufus is itching to blow something up.” Gen. “It can’t hurt to let him do a little targeted damage and see what happens. Might distract him while you decide what calls to you.”

“Calls to me…” Aerith murmurs.

Cloud glances at her. 

“Geostigma,” he says. “Doesn’t that mean she can be anywhere, whenever she wants?”

Aerith nods. “In multiple places.”

“We need something big,” Zack says.

Aerith’s hand drifts up to her braid. “I might have something big.” 

Zack doesn’t expect her to pluck a materia from her hair, a white orb the size of a pearl from a big ol’ maneater oyster.

“Holy,” Gen says, leaning down to examine it more closely.

Zack whistles. "Gen's praying, wow."

“No you fool, it’s Holy. This changes…everything,” he says the last part in a rush of breath.

Zack doesn’t like it, but it’s all they got.

He’s staring at the ceiling in his room.

“The black hole- it’s small now, but it will keep growing, and eat everything around it. If we can get Holy there…”

“That’s suicide.”

“Yes. But the alternative…”

“You can’t even go that close. Once you’re past event horizon…”

“Aerith. Do you really think this will work?”

“It…calls to me.”

“I’ll get it there.”

Zack tries to swallow around the lump in his throat. Tries to focus on Cloud, who is pressed up against him, warm as beach sand, in the tiny bed. 

Neither of them had said anything, Cloud following Zack back to his room without a word after signing up for what is absolutely a suicide mission.

They were both quiet as they settled in for bed, and Cloud tucking himself close had felt so natural Zack didn’t even comment on it. 

Zack knows the road ahead is not going to be a good time. But, now that he has this, he’s not fooling anyone.

All he wanted from the start was Cloud safe, in his arms. And now he knows he doesn’t want to give that up. It’s so frustrating that it’s out of his control. That Cloud was able to volunteer so easily, like nothing was holding him back. He’s delivering Holy to a black hole, like he’ll be able to just toss it in. The way Cloud’s laying, close enough that Zack could drape himself over him and protect him from it all, and the way Zack can’t, is…

Really sending Zack into a bad place. Cloud might not remember much of the labs, but Zack does. Zack remembers every time Cloud got thrown back in their cell, out of his mind and nowhere near returning, every time they were separated, the way the tubes they were stuck into started to feel like the only safe place for miles. The only time Zack could count on the lab techs leaving them alone.

He finally breaks, and reaches out, a shaking arm braced around Cloud.

Cloud doesn’t say anything, doesn’t move, face hidden at the angle he’s turned away. Zack’s ready to back off and return to his space when Cloud runs a hand down his arm.

A bandaged hand - the arm with the geostigma- glides down and laces fingers over Zack’s, tugging him close so they fit together. An ease that’s so safe Zack chokes on a sob and presses into the blond spikes. 

Great, crying again.

Cloud doesn’t say anything, doesn’t move, doesn’t stop Zack from getting tears all over his hair.

Zack’s as ready as he’s ever going to be. 

Vincent hovers near Cloud, who’s astride Fenrir doing final checks.

Zack wants more than anything to be the one who will cover Cloud’s six, but Vincent has displayed an alien’s acclimation to open space. Everyone (including Zack) agrees he’s most suited for this job.

Seph is escort. Zack, Gen, and Angeal are all to cover from afar, keep an eye on the field while Cloud darts in. 

No one really made a solid plan for Cloud darting out , but Zack pushes the thought away. The main objective is getting Holy to the Nibel black hole. The recovery phase will come after.

He’d left Aerith staring out the window, her hands clasped tightly together, ready to activate Holy once it’s in place. He gives Cloud and Tifa a moment together, tries not to eavesdrop.

“I promised Denzel I’d come back safe,” Cloud murmurs.

Tifa tilts her head, keeping her eyes locked on his.

“Then I guess you better not break your promise, huh?”

It’s a quick goodbye. There’s danger for everyone here, even if it feels like they’re just waiting around. There’s no guarantee this is what they need to do. 

With that understanding, Tifa and Aerith convinced Barret to get back on the Shera and get the non-essential crew a safe distance away. A couple of Zack’s men went along with him, in the event the Beloved didn’t make it through.

Rufus and the Turks are dead silent on air, and Zack guesses they’ll smirk through the whole thing. Gen apparently couldn’t convince them to go do anything else, and Zack finds himself not caring. Finds himself watching instead as Cloud adjusts one of his blades before closing up the weapon compartment.

Cloud catches Zack’s eye as Vincent hops onto Fenrir behind him. Zack steps forward.

“Kind of an easy run, right? Shouldn’t be a problem,” Zack says, channeling his nerves into a big grin. He ignores Vincent’s pointed stare. 

Cloud freezes for a second, then ducks his head down, with one of those funny little smiles. Almost not one, on anyone else. 

“Yeah,” he says. “I might need to raise my rates if I keep getting hired for these little jobs, huh?”

Zack can’t help it- he laughs. “I’ll see if we can get Angeal to hire you for some more exciting runs.”

“I’m sure he can be persuaded,” Seph says dryly from his bike.

Zack whirls and lands a giant smooch on Seph’s cheek. “Be careful,” he says. “Please. I know you’re insanely powerful and very capable, but I’m gonna be sweating buckets while I’m stuck up here.” 

And that’s how he sends them off, face aching from smiling and heart aching from the way Cloud actually smiles up at him, close to the way he remembers from the labs, from before the labs. The smile that’s haunted him forever.

He watches grimly as they prepare to embark.

Chapter Text

CLOUD STRIFE, STRIFE DELIVERY SERVICE- BELOVED, DOCK

The Nibel black hole yawns ahead, still in its infancy as it expands down.

Cloud keeps pace with Sephiroth. It’s a clean shot to the event horizon for most of the short trip, but debris slows them down the closer they get. Vincent points to a small asteroid, and Cloud lets him off. Cloud waits until he’s settled into a crouch, eyes laser red and alert as he finds a good vantage point in case of trouble. He pulls out his revolver and waves them off, deathly still otherwise.

“Mind yourself,” Sephiroth says, not looking away from the chunks of planet and star dust clouds as they pick their way through. 

Cloud nods, no stranger to treacherous deliveries. 

They’ve almost made it, curving around a large rock when a familiar, tall figure looms up. Its own void eclipses the space glow and black light.

“You,” Cloud grits out, pulling Fenrir up as he slows.

“Cloud,” the other Sephiroth says, a smile pulling at his lips. He seems genuinely delighted to see Cloud, face alight with gleeful malice. “Finally. You’ve come to relive our crowning moment together? I’ve been waiting.”

Cloud unsheathes the pieces of his sword without a word. Sephiroth is tense, silent next to him.

“Nothing to say?” The other Sephiroth needles even as he steps into the general’s signature stance, holding Masamune at the ready.

“Do you remember it all? Our time in Nibelheim? Remember what I gave you? I want it back. ”

He flies at Cloud, who thrusts his sword up to shield from the blow with a screech. 

Cloud doesn’t know what he’s talking about, but he expected this fixation.

He remembers, bit by terrible bit, the labs.

Sephiroth is watching from the sidelines, hesitating. Waiting for a decision.

Cloud grits his teeth and commits.

“Sephiroth, you have to take it. I’ll hold him off.”

Zack’s Sephiroth, his Sephiroth, stares at Cloud solemnly, before nodding. He grabs the container housing Holy off Fenrir.

“Don’t die,” he says, commanding as he jets off.

A red plume of flames catches the other Sephiroth off guard before he can intervene. 

Behind him, Genesis and Angeal descend, trapping this Sephiroth between them and Cloud.

“Like we’d sit out,” Genesis says with a manic grin, charging a handful of fire. Beside him, Angeal squares up.

Genesis runs his hand along his rapier, igniting it with red hot energy. 

Cloud unlatches the smaller blade from his sword and jumps, hefting one blade over his head while he brings the other in to crush Sephiroth’s torso.

Angeal ducks in with a punishing haymaker- a mistake when he misses and finds himself off balance. Cloud has to pull one of his swords out of the way. Sephiroth snatches Cloud’s arm and tosses his, swinging back to collide with Genesis in a flash of sparks.

Cloud’s struggling to find footing on a rock when he’s tugged to a stop by his ankle. 

“Sorry,” Angeal says, righting him so he can light on an asteroid.

“Don’t worry ‘bout it,” Cloud says. He scans the struggle before them. “Hope Sephiroth’s quick. This isn’t gonna work.”

He barely gets the words out when the other Sephiroth appears inches from Cloud’s face. Angeal gets into his rhythm and tackles him, exchanging blows that have the space around them vibrating.

Cloud waits for the right moment, then strikes with a carefully aimed stab. It’s knocked aside, no surprise, before Genesis is knifing in and heating the tangle into an inferno. Cloud tries to get some distance from the heat, but Sephiroth snags his wrist, tugging with a force that should break his arm.

He’s not letting Cloud get any distance, and that’s bad. Angeal and Genesis try their hardest to separate the two, but Cloud still finds himself with new cuts as he struggles to get his arm back. The only thing saving him is that close quarters isn’t Sephiroth’s forte either. It’s like fighting a god, truly.

At some point Sephiroth decides strangling might be a good idea, and Cloud ends up scraping his nails on the soft leather gloves before he aims a punch to Sephiroth’s unprotected ribcage. 

It’s then that something rings out from the distance, and everything ripples for a second. A second that lags on, like slow motion. 

Cloud turns towards the black hole, a challenge in open space and mid-fight, and sees it.

Holy’s waves reverberate from the black hole, emanating into the universe. Cloud watches the ripples in awe, before a burning pain rips through his upper arm. Sephiroth. 

His face is warped in fury- no, pure malevolence. He digs his fingers into Cloud’s arm, yanking hard like he wants to tear it off. This whole time, he's been grabbing for Cloud's arm every chance he could find. Something in Cloud's stomach lurches.

Genesis rushes close, only to be struck with the flat of Masamune. It sends him careening into Angeal.

“ Mine, ” Sephiroth snarls, and pulls

Cloud remembers why when this happens, as the other Sephiroth wrenches his arm off and something falls out, a shiny

Black

Materia

“Safe keeping,” that Sephiroth had cooed, back in the lab, as Cloud stared up at him with eyes that wouldn’t blink, wouldn’t miss one second.

He was so desperate- to belong to someone - then. 

He still is.

“Destroy it,” Cloud gasps out, snapping out of his memory. “Destroy that materia,” he says, throat raw. 

He doesn’t even feel his arm anymore.

Genesis and Angeal descend upon the other Sephiroth in a vicious swarm, Angeal beating upon him with bone-shattering hits and Genesis with scorching jabs over and over.

The other Sephiroth is forced to parry, and that’s when Cloud grabs the void of the Black Materia and hurls it.

Hell of a throw.

It collides with the Holy black hole, and everything goes green, then white, then black.

“Helloooo~”, a familiar, bell-like tone calls out. 

Cloud squints against bright light, until a shadow blessedly falls over him.

“I thought we weren’t gonna make it for a second there, but you all did alright.”

Aerith. Aerith?

“Did he…” Cloud gets out, still trying to get control of his limbs and sit up.

“He did! I was just worried about whether Holy would work fast enough-”

“Jenova!” Cloud gasps, eyes flying open.

Aerith sits over him, holding his hand. His bad hand. 

“What happened?” he asks. 

“Don’t worry, silly,” Aerith says with a smile. “You did it. You got me where I need to be.”

Cloud takes the opportunity to look around. They’re somewhere completely unfamiliar, a landscape filled with giant pale shells, nacre spiraling up to reach towards the blinding sky. It towers above them, a washed out cathedral of brilliant light. Walkways and bridges of sunbleached cocina connect the space in dreamy, unreal ways.

“We’re in the Forgotten City. Look,” Aerith says, pointing down.

They’re sitting on a giant platform, full of water flowing around them and over the edges. Stone structures trail down in the reflection, different enough for the top that it must be a whole other city below them, upside down.

Cloud can’t understand what he’s seeing, and looks at Aerith like she can help. 

She laughs a little, still holding his hand. 

“This is where…well, this is where I’m from. My people. Holy, the Black Materia too.”

“Are we dead?” Cloud asks. 

“No! No...we’re just taking a break. Nice throw, by the way. I didn’t expect you to throw the other materia into the black hole. But it seems to have worked. I imagine Holy’s doing its job right now.”

Cloud leans back into the strangest sensation of someone holding him. 

“So…is it over?” 

“Hm. I think we have a lot of work left to do. But…how’s your arm?”

It’s then that Cloud notices the lack of pain or aches when he leaned back. 

He pushes up his sleeve, eyes wide as they run over skin without bruises or smears of ash and ichor.

“It’s…it’s gone,” he says. 

“Cloud,” Aerith says.

He finally looks at her.

“It’s time- everyone’s waiting. Let’s go back.”

He snaps back to neon green eyes, trained on his face like a serpent.

“You,” Sephiroth says, but it’s all slowed down. This is the other Sephiroth. His Sephiroth, from the labs. 

They are suspended in a void, a long unraveling funnel. Sephiroth is slow, and so is everything else.

“This isn’t the end,” Sephiroth says, and Cloud realizes his hand is still clamped around his wrist. “You haven’t won. You’re just a vessel, a puppet. Do you think that clone will help you? He’s nothing without me. Just like you.”

Cloud takes him in, all of him. Even though they are identical, he can only think of how different this Sephiroth is from the one he’s eaten lunch with, who picked a rock in the sun, who told him not to die. Who stayed with Zack, who went back to rescue him.

Not like this one, who held Cloud down in the dark lab basement.

“I’m not done here,” Sephiroth hisses in his face.

“I am,” Cloud says, as Masamune delves through Sephiroth’s body.

It stops a hair’s breadth above Cloud’s torso, and over both of them, Zack's Sephiroth- the real Sephiroth- stands deathly still, his sword back in its master’s hands at last.

“Well done, Cloud. I believe it’s time to reclaim our lives from this scourge.”

Zack is the first thing he sees when they make it back. It's only a split second before he’s smooshed into a hug between Zack and the solid wall of Sephiroth.

“I wasn’t worried until Aerith went all green and glowy,” Zack says into Cloud’s hair. 

“Is she alright?” Cloud asks, trying to push away from the deathtrap.

“She’s fine, resting in the medbay,” he hears Tifa’s voice say before they’re all crushed in a familiar hug.

“Damn, girl,” Zack half coughs, half laughs. “Hell of a hugging arm on you!” 

If they can feel Cloud leaning against them to support his shaking legs, no one mentions it. 

The only thing worse than a Monday is a Monday where Cloud has to unstick his boots from the grimy asphalt outside Wall Market.

He shoves his goggles up into blond spikes with a deep breath. Wall Market is a suffocating tangle of doors, stairways, alleys, and people people people. People everywhere, in groups and doorways and corners. Neon signs glare down on everything, gilding scuffed benches and worn railings with hot pink and molten blue. 

It’s loud, busy, and Cloud always tries to ghost through as quick as humanly possible. 

A warm weight settles right at his lower back. 

Cloud glances to Zack, who leans in with a big smile. 

“Not my cup of tea, exactly, but let’s get this done. Gen says we can drop all this off at the Honeybee, aaaand if we behave…we can have a long lunch! Go wander around!”

Cloud snorts, throwing Zack a skeptical look. “You? Behave?”

“Ha ha,” Zack says, tossing a box- the delivery- in the air. “C’mon, boss.”

“Is that marked fragile?”

Zack grabs the box and checks all sides before sighing in relief. “Nope! Have a little faith in me!” 

“Uh huh,” Cloud murmurs, leading the way. “What about Denzel?”

“Tifa and Barret took the kids to Saucer.” Zack does not have a big idea of personal space, talking right into Cloud’s ear as he follows closely.

They wind through the maze-like streets, full of people and food and noise. Zack wraps an arm around Cloud’s waist, pulling him closer when people get too close or too grabby.

The Honeybee dazzles at the end of their route, and Zack hands off the package to the doorman. Cloud frowns. 

“Isn’t it for Andrea?” he asks. 

“Don’t worry,” the doorman says, already turning to head inside. “Your receptionist was very clear- I’m taking this straight to Mr. Rhodea! He sends his regards and thanks for your careful delivery.”

Cloud’s still a little put off. He wants to insist on seeing the delivery through, but Zack’s already pulling him away. “C’mon, let Gen handle the customer service. That’s why you’re paying him, anyways. We’re officially clockin’ out!”

Zack tugs him under his arm so they can walk more comfortably. Cloud moves to check his PHS to make sure there’s no other jobs here- also, who’s watching the other deliveries-

“Cloud. Sunshine. Sugar,” Zack whines.

Okay, Cloud’s not made out of stone. He glances up from his phone to level a look at Zack as best as his position tucked into his arm allows.

“Take. A. Break! Gen has it all under control. Have you seen him?”

Cloud doesn’t give in. At least not right away. It’s at least three seconds.

“Alright.”

“Oh yeahhhh! Operation Kidnap the Boss is a success!”

“It’s kind of weird for you to keep calling me that…”

“Operation Kidnap the Boyfriend is a success!”

Cloud’s face is warm. “It’s not kidnapping…”

“Zack, I thought we settled on an operation name already,” a familiar voice interrupts.

Zack turns them around. “ Other boyfriend,” he says, mouth falling open in mock surprise.

Cloud groans. Sephiroth smiles, stepping up close to greet both of them with a peck.

“Come. I brought food."

“Ugh, really wanted a meat bun…”

Cloud buys them both meat buns because he’s that whipped.

They eat on a small balcony, table nearly falling off into the street below. Cloud is quiet, listening to Zack grill Sephiroth about some trip he’s hinted about taking. Zack keeps bumping a foot into his leg.

The fact that his tiny business has a leave officer now is pretty wild. Not what he predicted when he started delivering, just a way to get paid.

Now he’s busy- busier than ever. At some point, ‘me’ became ‘us’, then ‘he’ became ‘they’, and now they are…

Not alone. Together.