Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Depending on whom you asked, Nibelheim was described either as an idyllic mountain village with an absolutely gorgeous nature, or an uninteresting small town in the bumfuck nowhere.

For local mercenary Cloud Strife, it might have been a bit of both. 

Cloud was born and raised in Nibelheim. He had been living together with his mother Claudia until she had decided that it was time for her to see the world. If it still had something planned for her, it definitely wasn’t in Nibelheim, she had pointed out and moved to Under Junon where she now lived with a distant relative from Cloud’s deceased father’s side.

Cloud had briefly thought about going with his mother but he craved independence and, to be frank, didn’t really have any plans of what to do in Junon. For a merc job he had no problem in remaining in the Nibel region since Cloud had not only gained a reputation as the local Nibel merc but also as one of the best mercs in the whole Western Continent. At twenty Cloud had a steady inflow of requests for his help which made life a tad bit easier in the harsh environment of Nibelheim.

Cloud was calm and collected, meticulous and skilled with his beast of a blade. He was generally known to be a no-nonsense type of a guy who didn’t waste his energy trying to please those who couldn’t be pleased. Although serious, he was also kind and devoted to those who managed to earn his respect.

On the other hand, those who managed to anger him soon became unfortunate targets of either his sharp tongue or his sharp sword.

As for a sense of humor, it definitely existed. There were a handful of people who had gotten to know Cloud well enough to have witnessed his quirky jokes and easy laughter.

One of them was Tifa Lockhart, a local Nibel girl with a beautiful long brown hair and auburn eyes, one year Cloud’s junior.

Tifa and Cloud had been neighbors since forever, but not exactly the best of friends. Oh no. Tifa had always had a wide circle of friends whereas Cloud had pretty much had none. He had spent his time practicing his sword and battle skills, turning his weaknesses into his strengths, determined not to let his lack of friends bother him.

Although it had bothered him. Cloud just always had been very good at hiding his feelings.

At some point Tifa had become interested in learning how to fight. Master Zangan, a world renowned martial arts guru, was willing to take her as a student, seeing fire and potential in her.

During his stay in Nibelheim, Zangan had noticed a petite blond boy with a spiky hair who was always alone, relentlessly practicing his sword fighting skills, devoted to the bone. Zangan had admired his dedication and, before accepting Tifa as his trainee, made her to observe Cloud and learn a thing or two from him.

As a result, Cloud and Tifa started slowly but surely talking. Then they talked some more, until Tifa came to realize that Cloud, her neighbor-since-forever, was, in fact, a warm-hearted guy behind his slightly aloof demeanor. Cloud, in turn, was surprised to find out that after all the years he had spent on his own, he was steadily being coaxed out of his shell by Tifa’s easy conversation and light jokes.

As time passed, they also started to work together. Tifa was Nibelheim's certified guide and it wasn’t once or twice that she and Cloud were hired as a package deal, taking merchants and tourists, military men and scientists alike to wherever they wanted to go in the Nibel region. Cloud was an excellent fighter and Tifa had developed skills to punch the shit out of anyone who crossed her – or Cloud for that matter.

So deep was the bond of their friendship that many assumed they were in a relationship. Encouraged by the observations of the people around them, they tried kissing, thinking that maybe, just maybe, they were really meant to be.

When Tifa’s warm lips touched Cloud’s, he was mentally prepared for sparks and fireworks, for a feeling larger than life itself. After kissing her for a while, he pulled away. He looked at Tifa, who was frowning at him.

“Did you feel…?”

“Yep. Nothing.”

“Maybe we should try again?”

Cloud nodded. Maybe they hadn’t tried hard enough? Maybe, if he tried wrapping his arms around Tifa’s waist, if he touched his friend’s lips with his tongue… Tifa’s tongue met his hesitantly, her arms coming to embrace Cloud’s neck. Seconds had passed until they drew away from each other again.

Cloud stared and Tifa, who stared right back. Then she started laughing, shaking her head. Even Cloud let out a confused chuckle and started to play with his spiky blond hair.   

“Nope.”  

“Yeah. Sorry but not sorry.”

And that was that. They just weren’t feeling it although it sure would’ve been convenient since Nibelheim wasn’t exactly known for its abundance of potential girl- or boyfriends.

Of course, they both had their soulmarks engraved on their skin, as did all people on Gaia. Cloud had a mark on his chest and Tifa on her back. They didn’t match, but that didn’t mean Cloud and Tifa stopped planning their lives together. Growing up in a small village did that to people; you started to appreciate what you already had instead of all the could-haves and would-bes.

It also wasn’t as if they had the money to travel around Gaia looking for people whose inks matched with their respective ones.

Hence, Cloud and Tifa decided to make the most of what they already had and join forces. They were planning to leave the dusty village of Nibelheim behind and aim for a life in Midgar, the grand mako metropolis of Gaia.

They spent months talking about their plans. How should they fund their move to the other side of Gaia? What type of business should they establish? Would they be okay, just the two of them? Should they start with the slums or aim directly topside? What would it even take to make it topside?

Midgar swallowed those who came unprepared and that was the sole reason Cloud and Tifa were still in Nibelheim. They used all their free time to prepare for, plan and budget their future lives. It was a make or break it situation for them since neither wanted to return to Nibelheim as a failure.

After thinking about it for a long time, they decided that opening a bar would be a great way of launching their brand new lives in Midgar. Bars were a part of the central social infrastructure of every city. No matter the social status, people loved to gather for a drink, either with friends or alone. Everywhere on Gaia people came together to share stories, to look for company, to get wasted, to start fights, to forget about their past and to look for new beginnings.

Cloud and Tifa decided to make that their trade. They would make it in Midgar with a bar that would not only serve good food and nice alcohol, but also nourishment for souls in the need of it and a sword for hire for those who requested that instead.

Tifa came up with a perfect name for their business. It was to be called Seventh Heaven. She had also taken up a part-time job at the local Nibel bar to learn the tricks of the trade while Cloud diligently kept earning them gil to make their big move reality.

All in all, Cloud and Tifa made a good platonic non-soulmate couple, devoted to each other and the bright future they wanted for themselves.

“Cloud!”

Cloud turned to look at the direction of Tifa’s voice. She approached him with steady steps and a huge backpack on her back, smiling excitedly. Cloud felt his lips turn upwards at the sight of her.

It was mid-summer and they were about to take off for a long trip towards Costa del Sol. Cloud had packed all his belongings – and a few of Tifas – into a few duffel bags, plus a separate carrier for his weapons and materia. They also had their separate tents, not knowing what kind of lodging would be available in their destination.

“Morning, Tifa! You ready?”

Tifa nodded and showed a thumbs up. She climbed into a mountain buggy which Cloud had borrowed to take them to the Nibel air strip, where a plane would be waiting for them.

The annual Festa del Sol rock festival would take place exactly in a month. It was the biggest music festival on Gaia, attracting the crème de la crème of all regions to party together for five days straight each summer. Held in the lush outskirts of the lively resort town of Costa del Sol, people flocked there on chocoback, by boats and ships, and even by helicopters.

The Costa area provided the festival with outstanding premises with the stages located among vast beaches and hidden crooks, around small hills and tree sanctuaries. The stages hosting the bigger music acts were out in the open whereas smaller stages were hidden away from curious eyes, reserved for yet unknown indie bands for whom the Festa was a once in a lifetime chance to catapult into global success.

The Festa was, of course, not only about music. That would’ve been too boring. There were plenty of other activities and immersive experiences for festivalgoers to see and participate in: morning dance and yoga classes, acrobatics and magic shows, visual arts exhibitions and movie nights. Andrea Rhodea’s Honeybee adult entertainment venue and a battle arena managed by Dio of Gold Saucer himself provided some additional spice to the event.

In other words, the Festa was an extravaganza like no other. It was the brainchild of Rufus Shinra, the son of the President of Shinra Electric Power Company, who thought that bread and circuses would pacify people and strengthen the image of Shinra across the globe.

Rufus Shinra, of course, was way too lofty to have anything to do with the practicalities of festival production. A talented production committee was in charge of hiring a local team and finding the most suitable personnel from the Western Continent.

This year Cloud had been hired, for the first time, to both clear the area around Costa del Sol of monsters and help the production team with the building of the festival area. He would be paid a hefty sum for his efforts, and that alone would cover much of what Cloud and Tifa needed to move to Midgar.

Cloud had also negotiated a free stall for a Seventh Heaven at the Festa Food Alley as a part of the deal. The Festa provided a perfect opportunity for Cloud and Tifa to conduct a pilot study of the menu they planned to serve in Midgar. Cloud felt quite accomplished for having managed to bargain a free stall for them, knowing well that many restaurants across Gaia paid insane amounts of money to get one.

In addition, despite his seemingly serious character, Cloud felt giddy at the thought of getting to experience the Festa first hand. There was no way he could’ve afforded a ticket otherwise. Not now, not ever.  

“I brought you coffee,” Tifa noted with a smile, handing Cloud a deep scarlet thermos after he had started the engine and headed them out of town.

“Thanks.” Cloud’s voice was clear and content. Small gestures like that always made him feel special, even though he knew that there would be someone perfect for Tifa somewhere else.

As for his own soulmate, Cloud didn’t dare to keep his hopes and expectations up. He had only ever felt close to Tifa and it baffled his mind to think that there was someone on Gaia who was destined to be his.

He had zero experience in romance, not having even had a proper crush on anyone.

Unless you considered his pitiful infatuation with General Sephiroth, SOLDIER First Class and a Shinra’s de facto war hero.

General Sephiroth was a celebrity like no other. He had catapulted into greatness after playing a large role in ending the ever-lasting Wutai war. Magazines were filled with photos of him and young boys and girls alike collected Shinra trading cards to get their hands on exclusive Sephiroth cards. Older men and women just wanted to get their hands on the General himself.

Cloud, of course, only admired the General for his fighting prowess. And his tall and magnificent form, as well as his beautiful green eyes, if he was completely honest with himself, which he often decided not to be.

Cloud was, after all, very skilled in self-deception.

Being self-taught in battle, he had gone through each and every SOLDIER battle simulator video that Shinra Electric Power Company had ever released. This had proved to be a good way of learning new skills in Nibelheim, truly in the middle of nowhere.

He enjoyed all of the videos, many of them including SOLDIER Firsts in various combinations, demonstrating their skills and handing out tips. But whenever Sephiroth was on screen, Cloud just couldn’t tear his eyes away. There was something about his insanely long excuse of a sword and his insanely long and beautiful excuse of hair that made Cloud’s knees go weak and heart beat a tiny bit faster.

He always had to re-watch the videos multiple times to get the fighting tips at all, not that he minded.

Oftentimes he felt embarrassed. It was Sephiroth whose face sold the most of SOLDIER tutorial videos all over Gaia and, in his rare moments of self-honesty, Cloud hated to think that he had fallen for the same ruse.

He pulled his mind back to his conversation with Tifa.

“Hmm, you were saying?”

“I said,” Tifa looked at him pointedly, “that did you remember to take you anti-nausea meds? For the plane?”

“Yeah. Don’t worry about that.” Cloud shrugged and felt slightly embarrassed. His motion sickness really was the worst, but he had learned to live with it to travel to the destinations where his sword was needed.

“Good. Wouldn’t want you puking all over me,” noted Tifa, looking out of the window. “That one time in a mountain buggy was enough.”

Cloud made a face. “Ugh. Don’t remind me. And, still sorry ‘bout that.” Better not to dwell on the past, especially when it involved him throwing up all over Tifa’s leather skirt while disgusted wealthy tourists from Junon were ogling them during transport to Mt. Nibel hiking trail.

Tifa laughed, after which they drove in comfortable silence, finally arriving at the airstrip. A small red aircraft was waiting for them already, the plane’s pilot standing next to it.

“Oi! You the merc? What took you goddamn lovebirds so long? We’re gonna be late!” the pilot hollered when Cloud drove his buggy next to the plane to unload their stuff. He had a short blond hair, kind but sharp eyes and a bit of stubble on his chin and cheeks. A cigarette was dangling from his mouth which was turned upwards into an easy grin.  

“Not lovebirds. Friends. I’m Cloud Strife and this is Tifa Lockhart.” Cloud decided not to push the issue with the pilot’s wrong assumptions. They had a couple of hours to spend in each other’s company, after all.

“The name’s Cid Highwind and this beauty is Tiny Bronco. Welcome to Highwind Regional! On behalf of the Festa del Sol production committee, I’m pleased to have you onboard.” Cid bowed deep, put out his cigarette and hopped in to the plane, starting to fastidiously test the engines and rotors ahead of departure.

Cloud nodded and promptly loaded all their luggage into the small plane, finally stepping in after Tifa. He had made a deal with his neighbor who would come to get the buggy afterwards.

“Okay, all set. Sorry to have kept you waiting.”

Cid nodded and let out a satisfied yell as Tiny Bronco sped up the runway and set to the skies. Cloud looked at Tifa and smiled freely, feeling a rare sense of excitement squirming its way into his body.

He felt like he was finally embarking on a new chapter in his life.

In Midgar General Sephiroth was watching the morning sky from the windows of his penthouse in Sector 0, located close to the Shinra Building. He was wearing a silky black bathrobe and his wet hair was wrapped in an elegant towel turban. He absentmindedly took a sip of his morning coffee, an expensive fruity Mideel blend that his friend Angeal Hewley had brought him when visiting his home village of Banora. 

He heard a shuffling noise from his back and turned to look around.

A woman with a slender athletic build and long blonde hair emerged from his bedroom half-naked, trying to muster up a smile at the sight of the General. Sephiroth didn’t return the smile but tried to let some kindness into his eyes. He probably didn’t succeed.

“You’re free to use the shower. There are some extra towels in the bathroom. After that I’m sorry but I must ask you to leave.”

The woman’s face fell, the glint of hesitant joy disappearing from her eyes. She nodded and made her way towards the bathroom.

Gods. Sephiroth couldn’t even properly remember her name and for a moment he hated himself.  

Sephiroth turned to look at the silhouette of Midgar once more. Reactors, skyscrapers, urban decay and pleasures alike. At twenty-six years of age, Midgar was the only city Sephiroth really knew, unless one considered his missions to faraway areas, villages and towns as knowing. They more often than not were plagued by either monsters or monstrous people.

Not that he was any better.

He sighed, thinking about his company for last night. A beautiful blonde that had started to chat him up when he had been enjoying a few drinks with his fellow firsts Genesis Rhapsodos and Angeal in downtown Midgar. It had been a while since he had had company, so he had invited the blonde into his apartment and into his bed, silently cheered on by his friends.

Sephiroth had certainly gotten the physical release he had been seeking, but mentally he felt drained.

As always.

Yet another one night stand to his belt. Yet another missed opportunity of meeting his soulmate, the one person on Gaia he truly wished to meet, to love and to make his own.

Sephiroth knew, of course, that many people never met their soulmates, rather settling down with their second or third best choices, partners that could make them happy and with whom to lead good lives and even get an occasional taste of passion. In fact, it was more common than not never to cross paths with your one true soulmate, the one who would shine brightly in your heart and soul.

Gaia was full of bodies that carried empty black inks but nonetheless embodied happy minds.

Sephiroth, too, wanted to settle down. Desperately. Regardless, he absolutely refused to do it with anyone who wasn’t his destined other. He was accustomed to getting what he wanted and wouldn’t settle for less. So he kept looking for his soulmate, waiting for his one and only.

Of course, he was no saint. He relieved his physical itch with attractive men or women who were interesting enough, but there were no actual dates, no clandestine relationships, no psychological satisfaction available for him. Instead he was focused on his work to the point that he was declared an unfortunate bachelor workaholic by his friends and his fan club, the Silver Elite.

It didn’t really help the matter that Angeal and Genesis had bonded years ago, having found out about them being soulmates already in their early teens when their inks had manifested. And even Zack had mysteriously come across his soulmate, a flower girl from the slums, while on a mission.

Sephiroth was approaching thirty and felt quite alone. His endless piles of daily paperwork simultaneously annoyed him and fortunately kept his mind from wandering to the general feeling of unease he had about the state of his private life.

He heard the bathroom door open and shut, after which there was a moment of silence until the blonde whose name he couldn’t remember emerged from his bedroom, fully dressed. They looked at each other.

“I’m sorry I don’t really have anything to offer for breakfast. I must be off for work soon. You can take the elevator to the ground floor without any access key.” Sephiroth’s tone was monotonous, as if he was explaining drill instructions to his subordinates. There just was no use in prolonging the inevitable goodbyes. He offered his partner of the night a small strained smile.

“Thank you for last night. I had fun and I hope you did, too.”

The woman merely nodded, her expression sad. But she didn’t dare to argue with Sephiroth, knowing all too well that she had gotten her night with the General and that alone was more than many would ever get. She meekly made her way out of the apartment and out of Sephiroth’s life.

Once alone, Sephiroth made his way to his bedroom to get dressed for the day. He had his famous Shinra-issued leather uniform but preferred to use only the leather pants, boots and a simple black long-sleeved military turtleneck with general’s insignia on its shoulders during his office hours. He knew he was tall, intimidating and weird-looking enough to scare half of Gaia’s population even without his full battle regalia, so he opted for comfort whenever possible.

The day seemed to drag on endlessly. Sephiroth checked a bunch of fresh mission reports which always delighted him. His SOLDIERs were sent to missions all over Gaia and Sephiroth always had them write detailed reports from their travels not only for the record, but also for his personal pleasure. These reports were his window to the world when much of his current job description included staying put in front of his laptop.

Whenever there was an opportunity to get out on a real mission, Sephiroth always jumped at the chance, no matter how tedious the mission itself was. After all, these were some of his rare opportunities of trying to find his evasive soulmate.

Sephiroth was startled out of his musings by a sharp knock on the door and the subsequent blur of red that made its way into his office without waiting for a permission.

“Sephiroth!” exclaimed Genesis Rhapsodos, a fellow First with an unhealthy obsession on the play Loveless. Genesis looked at him with disdain. “I take it that your company wasn’t to your liking beyond one night? Alas, Sephiroth, the wandering soul knows no rest.”

Sephiroth huffed. “You know quite well that I’m not really into dating random people just because I sometimes give in to my more carnal desires.” He glared at Genesis. “We’re adults, we had fun and that’s it.”

Genesis sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “Whatever you say. At this rate, you’re going to become one of those grumpy and lonely old geezers.”

Sephiroth snorted and, for a moment, felt like giving his friend a finger. He didn’t, of course – he was the General of Shinra after all – instead focusing on his attention on his paperwork and clicking away furiously with his mouse.

Genesis slumped into his armchair and kicked off his boots nonchalantly. Sephiroth turned to look at his friend again, raising his eyebrow.

“Don’t you have your own work to do?”

“I sure have. I need to plan the contents of our new strategic battle video and thought that maybe you’d like to brainstorm with me.” Genesis peered at Sephiroth behind his auburn bangs, his blue eyes glinting mischievously. “Also, I bear good news.”

“And what, pray tell, might those be?” Sephiroth inquired with a mock-tormented tone. Genesis chuckled.

“Rufus has decided to gift us – you, me, Angeal and Zack – tickets to the annual Festa del Sol. Consider it a part of your annual leave package.”

Sephiroth shot Genesis a bewildered look. Festa del Sol? The most extravagant, loud, excessive, wasteful and horny music event on Gaia? The event where all who thought themselves important would be drinking booze and partying for five days straight, listening to the latest and greatest of Gaia’s music acts and participating in other acts and events just so that they could call themselves friends of culture?

What on Earth made Genesis think he would be interested in such a frivolous large-scale spectacle?

“Not going.”

Genesis smirked. “Not asking you. You’re coming. Think about it, Sephiroth. Thousands and thousands of people coming together to celebrate. A splendid chance to meet your soulmate!”

Sephiroth frowned and scratched his ear, tugging and pulling at his long silver bangs almost as if as an afterthought. Genesis did have a point. There weren’t many chances of this scale for him to try to locate his missing half.

The one who would set his soul alight.

The redhead nodded excitedly, taking in the expression of understanding that appeared on his long-term friend’s face with smug contentment.

“I offer thee this silent sacrifice, namely the will to go through the festivities with you looming around while I’d be having so much more fun with only my amazing bae Angeal.” Genesis made an exasperated sigh. “But you do realize… Costa del Sol, a lot of sun, fun and sea… meaning that people don’t wear that many layers of clothing… meaning that––“

“… I’ll have a good chance of trying to locate a soulmark that matches mine,” concluded Sephiroth. “Clever Genesis, clever. How exactly are you going to explain to the masses that the General of Shinra has suddenly turned into a creepy peeping tom?”

Genesis shrugged. “Well, that’s not really my problem, now is it? I’m merely a bringer of good news, not your fucking nanny. Figure it out yourself.” He then leered. “I’m sure that if you ask nicely, you have no problem of getting people to expose their bodies to you. You know, any part.”

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and snorted, all the while inwardly acknowledged that his friend was, in his extremely annoying and bossy way, trying to help him find happiness.  

“Okay. I’ll go. Just, don’t tell me we’ll be camping?”

Genesis let out a startled laugh. “Fuck no. Rest assured. We’ll be staying at the Shinra Villa in Costa del Sol. Rufus and the Turks will be using a chopper to stay at Gold Saucer. Elena and Cissnei say they wanna experience the Saucer as well.”

Sephiroth nodded, relieved.

Suddenly Genesis jumped up from the armchair, took his boots in his hands and headed towards the door. “But great! It’s gonna be fun! Ah, we still need to plan the video, let’s do that over lunch or dinner sometime soon.” And then he was off with a wave.

Sephiroth stared at his computer screen. Him, the feared General Sephiroth of Shinra, partying away at Festa del Sol like… a hipster?

The mere thought was so extremely confounding that Sephiroth decided not to dwell on it any longer, instead focusing his attention on work and finding solace in its predictability, as he had for years.

A sudden thought crossed his mind.

He had a great many things in his life, but he sure as hell didn’t have anything to wear for a rock festival, especially not one held in a hot and humid place like Costa del Sol.

An image of himself in a floral aloha shirt popped into his mind, completely forbidden, and he groaned, already regretting his promise to go.  

Chapter Text

The flight to Corel airstrip had gone more smoothly than Cloud had expected. He had never traveled with an airplane so he really hadn’t known what to expect. The view from the air had been wonderful, and both Cloud and Tifa had greedily drank the scenery below them as the plane steadily made its way towards Corel in the air.

There was no turbulence and the sky was all blue.  

 “Cloud. How do you think we should travel to Midgar?” Tifa said suddenly.

Cloud frowned. “Good question. Maybe we should take Shinra-8 from Costa del Sol? That’s as far as I’ve gotten.”

“Oi kids! Can’t help but eavesdrop,” their pilot Cid shouted from the cockpit. “You plan to move to Midgar?”

“Yeah,” nodded Tifa enthusiastically.

Cid gave a small laugh. “That ain’t gonna be easy! But sure, you need to chase your dreams while you still have time.” The words held a bite but Cid’s voice was kind.

“Exactly,” agreed Cloud easily. “We’ve been planning well, saving money and designing our business.”

“We even made a SWOT analysis,” Tifa added cheerfully.

Cid gave a startled laugh. “That’s goddamn brilliant! I like you kids. Lemme tell you what. You pay for the fuel and I’m gonna fly you to Midgar. It’s only a few hours as a crow flies as compared to that motherf%#¤ing tedious land journey.”

Cloud looked at Cid with wide eyes. His offer was wholly unexpected. It made him want to believe in the goodness of humanity.

“Really?” he confirmed with a surprised, quizzical tone.

“Really!” Cid grinned. “I’m from Rocket Town, I know how it feels to want to escape that backwater shit.”  

Tifa smiled. “It’s a deal.”

“We’re grateful,” Cloud added immediately. “Really. Thank you.”  

Cid merely laughed and flipped his controls, steering the plane to the left.

A red desert buggy was waiting for them at Corel airstrip with a local Costa driver. After exchanging their contact information with Cid and waving the brash pilot goodbye, Cloud and Tifa started the final leg of their journey.

Cloud had never really liked the Corel desert. Coming from the mountains covered with lush conifer forests, the desert felt too empty and barren. They passed a few small modular reactors, the latest development in mako technology, engineered and manufactured by Shinra, of course. Nibelheim, Corel and Gongaga had been installed with large-type reactors but SMRs certainly represented the future. Cloud briefly wondered what would happen to the large Midgar reactors in the future; how and when they’d be decommissioned.

Arriving at Costa del Sol felt heavenly after the drive across the dusty desert. The lush greeneries around the town, the small streams and ponds, the ziplines prompting everyone to dive headfirst into adventure – all of it felt welcoming.

Cloud had liked Costa del Sol the few times he had visited it in the past. It was lively but still human-sized and easy to navigate around. As a holiday resort people tended to be on a good mood and the overall vibes were nice. There was entertainment but nothing as fancy as Gold Saucer. Human-sized, all of it. And a nice gym outside the town with regulars who always made Cloud feel welcome to train with them.

Cloud was sure Tifa would kick their ass 100-0.  

Once inside the city walls, Tifa went shopping for some forgotten necessities while Cloud was led to a briefing with the representatives of the Festa del Sol production committee and Costa’s Mayor Kupono. The current situation with the monsters was, apparently, that apart from the normal terpsicolts, citripines and the like, a few bigger monsters had made nests around the area as well.

The Festa was a large source of income for the city of Costa del Sol and the Mayor didn’t want to take any chances of happy festivalgoers encountering nasty spooks while roaming the vast festival venue. It was Cloud’s responsibility to get rid of the normal ones, as well as the so-called special guests and their nests.

All in all, it all sounded perfectly doable.

“How long do you need for the monster extermination?” asked the Mayor, scribbling a memo into his small leather notebook.

Cloud thought about it for a while. “A week and a half, give or take. When do you need to start building the festival area?”

“As soon as possible. Maybe we can start with the areas that have been cleared first?”

Cloud nodded in affirmative and the Mayor smiled, sweating profoundly in his bright aloha shirt under the merciless afternoon sun.

“Good. You must be tired after your journey? Have the rest of the day off, we need you to start early tomorrow morning. Anything you need?”

Cloud shook his head. “No. I have my sword and materia with me.”

The Mayor nodded again with an approving hum.

“Let me take you to your lodgings. We were able to free some rooms for you and your friend from Johnny’s Seaside Inn, a relatively new property here. Johnny’s still renovating but I assume you prefer this to camping.”

“Yeah. Thank you for your consideration,” noted Cloud, following the Mayor out from the town hall and into the blaring sunshine.

He was grateful since all the hotels and hostels in the Corel region had been fully booked for ages. Some of the wealthy festivalgoers even stayed as far as Gold Saucer, flying to and back with private choppers every day. Thousands of people were also expected to use the camp site and Cloud felt happy that he didn’t need to.

It wasn’t that he didn’t like camping. He just didn’t like camping with thousands of drunken party people potentially pissing on his tent or fucking in the neighboring one.

Johnny’s Seaside Inn, no matter how under renovation it was, sounded perfect.  

The next two weeks passed by in a blur. Cloud worked relentlessly from sunrise to sunset, often exhausted to the bone from fighting monsters of different shapes and sizes. But he was able to clear all the nests and exterminate the monsters right on time.  

Some days Tifa joined him with the excuse of wanting to exercise. Cloud, of course, knew that she felt bad because Cloud had to work exhaustingly long days for their shared dream, while she had it much easier in Costa del Sol. She was in charge of receiving supplies and ingredients that were being delivered from many parts of the Western continent.

They had planned the menu for Seventh Heaven with care, trying to figure out not only what would appeal to the Costa party people, but also what could be a hit in Midgar. The high quality of their ingredients and their reliable supply chain was all thanks to the connections Cloud had forged during his recent merc years.

Cloud took a few moments to admire the pedantic way in which Tifa was writing the contents of their menu on a large blackboard.

Nibel ume beer made from fresh Nibel plums mixed with the best Nibel lager. Gongagan Cold Brew for coffee lovers, freshly ground from the best Gongagan coffee beans, bringing about a beautiful explosion of flavors from berries, nuts, chocolate, lemon and wine. Sunshine soup from sweet potatoes and carrots, served in homemade bread crust bowls. And, for dessert, chilled banana and blueberry nice cream.

Cloud felt a sudden burst of happy emotion and swallowed loudly. They had worked so hard. He looked at Tifa and felt an urge to hug his friend.

“Cloud! What’re you doing? I have chalk in my hand!” Tifa admonished him, but leaned into the hug nonetheless.

“Just realized that we’re really making it happen. Our future.” He felt Tifa smile against his shoulder.

“Yeah, we are. We should be proud of ourselves.”

Cloud nodded and gave Tifa an honest smile, the type he only shared with his very closest friends. Well, namely Tifa.

The remaining two weeks before the festival were a blur. Cloud spent all his waking hours building and constructing the festival venue with hundreds of other staff members who had been hired for the job.

Slowly but surely the stages appeared in the lush areas around Costa del Sol with the main stage being located on the Clamshell Beach. Boardwalks were built around the greeneries to protect the flora from getting trampled. Decorations and lanterns were hung onto the trees and colorfully painted stones dropped into the ponds as playful decorations inviting people to play in the streams. Food Alley stalls were brought to the area, as were all the portable toilets.

A few days before the actual start of the festival people already started to flock to Costa del Sol and the town was buzzing. Pre-parties were held all around the town, ranging from pub quizzes to sports events. The great Costa Beach Party took place the night before the actual festival with loud electro music, drunken happy people and the overall aura of excitement and anticipation all around.

Even though Cloud found it difficult to sleep, he was secretly looking forward to the festival.

And finally, after all the hard work, Festa del Sol began.

When the festival gates opened, people instantly flooded the venue, looking forward to music, partying and all other forms of entertainment that was to be expected. The production committee had, after all, gone to absurd lengths to cater for every whimsical request they had gotten from random socialites that had enough of a reputation to actually be making them.

Cloud and Tifa were already at the Seventh Heaven stall, waiting for their first ever customers to come to them. Cloud felt tiny butterflies in his stomach. He was definitely out of his comfort zone in such a customer service job, but could use some practice if they wanted to make it in Midgar.

Tifa, on the other hand, was a natural. Cloud thought that she looked perfect and blended in splendidly with her crop top, micro denim shorts, the flower in her hair and, first and foremost, her warm easygoing smile.

“Hey Tifa, how about we schedule our shifts at the stall?” Cloud suddenly suggested. “I’m sure there’s a lot we want to see.”

Tifa nodded. “Sure. But, technically it’s my duty to look after the stall since you have to be on a security standby.” She smiled wistfully. “You know, just being here, seeing all these people… Really makes me want to move to Midgar soon.”

Cloud nodded. It sure did. Experiencing the vibes and the beat, the energy and the atmosphere of the Festa made Cloud want to ditch the dusty soil and stifled overall atmosphere of Nibelheim as soon as possible.

“Okay. But just let me help here and there. It’s our dream, after all,” Cloud noted, offering his friend a smile and a brief touch on her arm. “C’mon, let’s check the schedule.”

Tifa spread open their copy of the printed schedule with the venue map on the other side.

“Shit. Just… wow.” Tifa seemed stunned at the pure enormity of the festival, finally realizing just how long the list of artists was that would be performing in the next few days.

Cloud agreed. There was simply too much to see. He looked closer and gasped in awed surprise. They were even screening Magodzilla, the classic monster film from the golden era of Wutaian cinema. Tomorrow night. Cloud really, really wanted to see that.

His experience of movies was limited to Nibelheim Night Cinema screenings at the village square, where Cloud had watched films on the big outdoors screen drinking beer, all the while being eaten alive by bloodthirsty mountain mosquitoes. Maybe he’d have a chance to enjoy more movies in Midgar? A burst of excitement surged through him at the thought and he found himself smiling. Yes. Oh yes. The future was going to be bright.

It was also with pleasure that Cloud noticed the steady influx of customers at Seventh Heaven. Tifa was so good, smiling and flirting good-naturedly with customers, offering tips on making cocktails and cleaning blueberry stains out of white shirts with boiling water. The feedback they had gotten so far was good, their customers seeming to enjoy the selection. Cloud made a few runs for supplies, enjoying the buzz of the festival and the sounds from the nearby stages as he trod in and out of the venue.

In fact, Cloud was just about to step out of the stall for another supply run when he felt Tifa furiously nudge his shoulder.

“Cloud! Fuck!” Tifa hissed. Cloud turned to look at her, frowning.

“What?” Tifa never swore.

“It’s the Firsts!”

“Shit,” he, too, whispered, unable to tear his eyes away from the direction Tifa was pointing at. Luckily he wasn’t the only one. In fact, it seemed that everyone within one hundred meter radius did nothing but stare when three distinctively tall and well-known men walked into the Food Alley, their eyes tracing the menus with calculative looks.

Cloud’s breath hitched.

Oh. That was Angeal Hewley, dressed in khaki shorts, beach sandals and a blue aloha shirt, looking as handsome as ever. The red-blue soulmark on his shin was glimmering beautifully in the sun. He had Genesis Rhapsodos, the eccentric redhead master of all materia, hanging onto his arm and looking impeccable and relaxed in his red beach shorts with wild patterns, a black aloha shirt that matched Angeal’s and cross strap sandals.

The soulmark on his forearm also matched Angeal’s.

Cloud never knew that the two were soulmates, as the videos he had used for studying only showed the SOLDIERs in their uniforms.

Study my ass, laughed his consciousness, seemingly having gotten tired of his self-deception.

And there, finally, was him.

Sephiroth.

Oh.

Cloud couldn’t tear his eyes away from the glorious sight of the General who was slowly strolling down the alley, taking in the scene around him with those shining emerald eyes. Cloud felt like suffocating and his knees felt weak.

Never had he ever supposed that he would actually see Sephiroth at the Festa.

He wasn’t mentally prepared at all.

“See something you like?” he heard Tifa ask, poking his waist with her forefinger and winking at him.

“Uhm,” Cloud was able utter as the trio made way towards their stall with the crowds around them parting to let the celebrities pass. Some asked for autographs, some wanted to take selfies with the SOLDIERs, but many just stared curiously or in awe. Cloud had never heard such collective sighs of oohs and aahs at once.

Angeal and Genesis handled the crowd easily with the redhead flirting and grinning at people around them and Angeal pretty much playing along, seemingly feeling at ease.

But to Cloud, there was simply no one who looked more perfect that Sephiroth. The General had skipped the relaxed beach style his friends seemed to be fond of, rather going for dark grey slim fit jeans shorts that hugged his lean muscular legs, cropped just above the knees. His form-fitting black t-shirt revealed his tiny waist and the stunning musculature of his upper body. On his feet he was wearing cute emerald green, slightly sparkling espadrilles.

He had his hair up in a high ponytail that really brought out the fine features of his face, the stunning otherworldly beauty Cloud had always been mesmerized by. To be frank, considering the way Cloud’s heart was thumping, he might never recover from the sight of his idol only a few silly yards away. If he was to die now, he’d die a happy man.

He heard Tifa snort next to him. She then shot Cloud an absolutely evil grin and, before Cloud could do anything, was hanging half out of the booth, waving her hand at the SOLDIERs as if they were her old acquaintances instead of the most famous men on Gaia.

“Hey you SOLDIER hunks!” she yelled with a big smile.

Cloud turned to stare at her in horror, trying to pull her inside from the belt hooks of her shorts and stop her from drawing attention to them.

“Hey! Come here! You look like you need something to drink. Our treat!”

“What the fuck are you doing?” rasped Cloud despairingly, looking as the three SOLDIERs made their way to their booth, led by an enthusiastic-looking Genesis. Maybe they liked the sound of ‘free’?  

“You can repay me later for arranging a meeting with your idols,” whispered Tifa back at him, all the while flashing her hundred megawatt smile at the approaching trio.

And then they were there. Cloud tried to look like it was business as usual for him, like he regularly met famous hot people, but on the inside he felt like he was going to explode from awkwardness.

“Hello,” drawled Genesis with a sharp smile, looking at the name plate of their booth. “Seventh Heaven, hmm. So, you angels or what?”

Tifa giggled and Cloud was astonished. Who was this girl and what had she done with Tifa?  

“Oh, you dear SOLDIER boy, thanks for the lovely compliment,” Tifa answered, batting her eyelashes. Cloud felt his mouth fall open at the bewildering scene taking place in front of him. Somewhere in the distance the singer of a death metal band was screaming into a mic about blood and pain and destruction.

Cloud, too, felt like screaming.

“You looked thirsty so I wanted to invite you to our humble little booth to enjoy some rare Western continent treats.” Tifa smiled and pointed at the menu.

It was Angeal who spoke up next with his deep voice. “Thank you. We are, indeed, thirsty.” He gave Tifa a warm smile. “What would you recommend?”

Tifa turned her gaze to Cloud, looking at him with a shit-eating smile. “Cloud, what would you recommend?”

“Uhm,” said Cloud eloquently, staring the SOLDIERs, feeling his face heat up.

“Ah, sorry about this, gents. My partner here has watched all your training videos and it seems that a cat caught his tongue,” chirped Tifa. “You sure are more handsome in reality!”

Genesis started laughing and Angeal chuckled. “You sure have guts, Miss…?”

“Tifa! And this is Cloud. We’re from Nibelheim and now at your service.” Tifa turned to Cloud again and shot him an admonishing look. “Now Cloud, what would you recommend these lovely gents?”

Fortunately Cloud had recovered some of his brainpower, finally finding his voice.  “Right. I’d go for our ume beer. It’s a flavor you probably can’t find elsewhere as both the plums and the beer are from Nibelheim. And, if you like coffee, you should try our Gongagan Cold Brew.”

Tifa kicked his leg behind the counter. Now. It wasn’t so hard, now was it? she seemed to ask. 

“Two beers and… Sephiroth, dear?” Genesis said.

Cloud, feeling lightheaded, had done his best not to stare at Sephiroth, but it was getting harder and harder as the tall, silver-haired man walked closer to the booth with a neutral look on his face.

“One Cold Brew, please.”

Genesis groaned and Cloud heard him mutter something like spoilsport under his tongue.

But when Cloud’s eyes met with Sephiroth’s, his mind completely whited out for a moment. A weird feeling of passing desire, a buzz of something in his mind. Like another universe begging to be explored.

The moment dragged on.

Sephiroth frowned lightly, all the while holding Cloud’s gaze. Cloud could only think that Sephiroth’s eyes were even more captivating in real life than on those videos and magazine articles he had seen. Pure green with alien-like slit pupils. No one else could compare.

He was the first to break their eye contact, dragging his gaze away from the General and turning around to prepare the drinks, his heart hammering in his chest.

“And there you go!” smiled Tifa, handing the drinks over. “If you enjoy these, we’d be happy if you could spread the word.” She winked at them and held her smile as Sephiroth’s friends dragged the General away, all of them now with drinks in their hands.

The last Cloud saw of Sephiroth was when he took a sip of his coffee; the way his eyes widened in pleasure as the flavors attacked his taste buds.

Then he was gone, having vanished into the crowd of people with the other Firsts.

Cloud let out a breath he hadn’t even realized he was holding. Tifa laughed next to him, seemingly in good spirits.

“And that, my dear Cloud, is what we call marketing.”   

Cloud shook his head dazedly. It was going to be a very long four days.

It was only the first day of Festa del Sol, but it had already proved out to be every bit the debauched overkill of a festival that Sephiroth had expected.

Lustrous artificial decorations seamlessly blended into the paradise-like nature of the Costa region. All roads were lined up with stalls, booths and tents, inviting festivalgoers to spend their money in the most wasteful and imaginative ways. Some sold band and artist merchandise, while other concentrated on serving food and drinks.

There were also a bunch of miscellaneous stalls that Sephiroth found the most intriguing. A small tattoo booth for ex tempore inks and piercings, a booth that specialized in selling all types of soap bubble toys, a stall for costumes, one for sex toys and another for accessories and materia that had to be fake based on the pricing. All types of luxurious goods that had absolutely no use for anyone, but which tempted people to spend their savings in pure outrageousness.  

Sephiroth felt like an anthropologist, observing how people dived deep into the pleasures of irrationality and superficial entertainment, the utter wastefulness of life around them.

It was insane. It was… brilliant. Truly.

This focus on purely sumptuous things and spectacles made Sephiroth want to try to be someone else for a while. Somebody who existed beyond his structured world of battle and strategy, of tactics and bloodbath and paperwork.

Too bad the Puppy had been pulled to a last minute mission. Zack was a walking piece of entertainment himself and surely would’ve made their experience even better.

Sephiroth’s attention was drawn away from his musings when someone hollered a catch phrase or something from a tent on his right, a local NGO preaching about preserving the ocean wildlife around Costa del Sol. Behind that he saw a tent that provided a soulmate matching service, apparently with a 99% matching rate. As if, Sephiroth inwardly snorted.   

Genesis nudged him with a wink. “Want to have a look?”

Sephiroth looked at him, appalled. “Absolutely not.”

“Wait, wait. I think they also have a more traditional meeting spot there,” Angeal noted, pointing to the direction of a large white wall on one side of the tent. People were furiously writing messages onto the clean surface with multi-colored markers. “Maybe you could write something, too? A hidden message for your soulmate, maybe?”

Sephiroth furrowed his brow. He couldn’t believe he was actually thinking about it. Must be all the champagne they had enjoyed with their brunch, although alcohol shouldn’t have that much of an effect on SOLDIERs.

But there was a seed of truth in Angeal’s words. He could write a secret message that wouldn’t give away his identity. If his soulmate ever saw the message, they’d realize they were being missed.

“Okay,” he agreed reluctantly. Maybe, just maybe, it was worth a shot.

They all approached the tent and Sephiroth could feel the stares on them. Or, rather, on him, as Genesis and Angeal’s marks were on full display. He glared at the person at the tent, who eeped and promptly disappeared inside the tent without a backward glance.

Sephiroth took a blue marker and started scribbling. He had decided to describe the details of his soulmark, a message which shouldn’t make sense to anyone else except his significant other.

Wing ardently looking for his wolf.

Genesis beamed at him but Sephiroth heard a definite undertone of exasperation when he opened his mouth. “That wasn’t so hard, now was it?”

Sephiroth rolled his eyes, an expression he only allowed his closest friends to witness. “Are we done already? I’m getting hungry.”

Angeal hummed in agreement, following his mate who was all too happy to drag them towards the Festa Food Alley.

It was hot, so hot. The Costa del Sol sun was no joke, burning brightly and making Sephiroth’s skin prickle. It was only the first day but he saw many visitors who had clearly forgotten their sunscreen, already turning a bright shade of boiled lobster.

Sephiroth idly wondered if Cure worked on sunburns. Not that he needed that.

He was proud that he had found some proper clothes to wear, after all. Genesis had dragged him to some of the finest stores in Midgar, purchasing a whole new wardrobe full of ridiculous aloha shirts and swimming shorts for himself and leaving Sephiroth to stare at the selection with a tormented look, thinking that Genesis sure did his best to look more like a surf bum than a SOLDIER First.

Well. Sephiroth wasn’t going to a beach, he was going to a rock festival with the sole aim of finding his soulmate, he had thought petulantly and gone for an all-black wardrobe: a pair of form-fitting slim denim shorts in dark grey and a couple of black t-shirts, all without any print.

According to Genesis, he had completely missed the memo about what he was expected to wear to the biggest rock-fucking-event of Gaia.

To pacify his seething friend, Sephiroth had decided to buy green shoes which now glittered in the sunshine as he made his way towards the Food Alley with his friends.

Hours passed and the day inevitably turned into night, the surrounding darkness finally revealing all the gorgeous illuminations in the trees that had been concealed by the endless bright sunshine. The Festa was a spectacle during the day and breathlessly beautiful during the night, too.

To his surprise, Sephiroth felt pretty good. They hadn’t really done anything useful, just going with the flow. Sephiroth hadn’t realized that, every once in a while, merely existing would feel so satisfactory.

Genesis had dragged them to see a few bands, some of them actually very nice. Even Angeal had had some artists he’d wanted to see. They had stumbled upon a hologram robot parade, tried one of the ziplines and walked the boardwalk that was painstakingly and beautifully constructed.

Sephiroth’s eyes were full of glorious sights and his ears rang with music and beats. He had enjoyed surprisingly good food and even a very nice cup of Cold Brew from a random Nibel food stall. He knew he was a self-proclaimed coffeephile, but he hadn’t realized how mouth-wateringly thirsty for his daily coffee fix he had felt the closer to the stall they had gotten.

Sephiroth’s head had been reeling when he waited for his coffee, served by two youngsters from Nibelheim – a cheeky girl and a flustered boy, probably soulmates. Luckily the Cold Brew had satisfied his hunger and he had felt more in control of his body when they walked away from the stall and when caffeine finally entered his system.   

There had also been quite a few serious and not-so-serious attempts to flirt with him which he had practically paid no attention to. Many had asked for selfies and photos and, while he really couldn’t give a flying fuck about photos with strangers, there was no need for him to be rude just because ordinary folks were innocently having fun.

He could sulk about his fate as the No. 1 celebrity on Gaia later. Currently he was feeling something that could almost be described as festival cheer.

A truly unknown occurrence.

After having spent the day pretty much rolling in the dust and listening the best of what Gaia had to offer, Sephiroth was feeling quite ready for bed.  

“Genesis, Angeal. I think I’ll be returning to the Villa already.”

Genesis huffed, swinging his arms around Angeal and peering at Sephiroth from under his red leather cowboy hat that he had bought from one of the stalls. “My friend, do you fly away now?”

Sephiroth snorted and Genesis blew him a kiss, wrapping himself around his mate’s body even more firmly. Angeal hugged Genesis closer and nodded with a smile plastered on his face. “Good night Sephiroth. Recharge well.” He seemed happy to let his partner lead the way further into the nightly madness of the Festa.

“Don’t wait for us,” were the last words Sephiroth heard, singsonged in Genesis’ voice.

It seemed that the atmosphere at the Festa was really ramping up, people flocking to the stalls and booths to buy more drinks and get more wasted. Sephiroth heard a distant ballad from his left and an indie rock act from his right, the sounds mixing together in a blissful cacophony.

Sephiroth wasn’t particularly disappointed not to have lasted until the main show, although he knew Midgar Madness was one of the best contemporaries. No, currently he was more interested in getting some much-needed rest. They still had three days to go.

A thought crossed his mind. After spending the day in the sun Sephiroth really felt like he could use a shower. He remembered seeing an ad in the festival brochure about a lifespring onsen in the Corel mountain range, built in the ruins of the old Valve Factory.

Even though Sephiroth had been traveling around Gaia, he had yet to test a real lifespring onsen where natural mako was filtered into bath water to create luxurious and relaxing baths of various mako degrees.

Why not today, he decided and started his short trek towards the mountains. The onsen wasn’t difficult to find and there was a festival gate just outside the trailhead, inviting people from the festival to give it a try.

However, the onsen was currently mostly empty, probably because the Festa was still in full swing. After stripping naked, washing his body and letting himself soak in the bath, Sephiroth felt relaxed.

Genesis had been right. It had been a good decision to come here and take a few days off from all the never-ending paperwork that Shinra kept feeding him. Enjoy time with his friends, enjoy the outdoors, enjoy the drinks, food and music. Yes, a good idea indeed.

Sephiroth finally rose from the bath, feeling satisfied. The other bathers gave him some looks but no one said anything, everyone focused on enjoying the tranquility of the onsen.

Sephiroth flexed his muscles as he exited the bathing space and entered the dressing room. A welcome whiff of cool air hit his skin. He had a towel around his waist and worked on wrapping another around his hair. He wouldn’t have normally washed his hair because it was a bitch to dry, but the rules of the onsen had given him no option.

With the towel turban tucked in place, he started to dress, briefly lamenting that he didn’t have any clean underwear with him. The impromptu visit was totally worth it anyway.

Focusing on wiggling his tall frame into his not-so-clean clothes, sticky with sand and sweat, he heard the door to the dressing room open and close. A queasy feeling hit him.

Oh, right. He had spent the whole day in the sun, drinking mainly coffee and alcoholic beverages, both of them powerful diuretics. And the onsen, too, had been delightfully warm. The funny feeling was most certainly a result of dehydration as he probably hadn’t been drinking enough water.

Sephiroth frowned. He really couldn’t remember any other time in his life that he had felt dehydrated. He should’ve been pumped full enough of mako for that not to happen.

With his clothes finally on, Sephiroth turned to face whomever there was in the dressing room with him. Across the room he saw a petite but muscled young blond man with a hair resembling a chocobo. Sephiroth found himself unable to tear his eyes away from the blonde. The hair looked familiar.

Oh. The Nibel coffee shop boy. Even from behind there was no mistaking those crazy chocobo locks. He was wearing black denim shorts and a simple grey tee. He definitely hadn’t gotten the memo about proper festival attire either.

Curiously, he also had a sword harness but without a sword. Sephiroth frowned. Why would a coffee shop boy need a sword harness? 

The blonde hastily undressed, his back to Sephiroth. Only wearing his black boxer briefs, he turned around.

Sephiroth felt as if all air was punched out of him, as if he had died and immediately been reborn, as if angels finally sung for him from the heavens.

On the left pectoral muscle of that beautiful young man was an ink all too familiar to Sephiroth. A fierce looking wolf entangled in one single black wing, engraved in detailed shades of gray.

The General of Shinra had the exact same tattoo on the skin of his right hipbone. The black soulmark of someone yet unmated.

The blonde looked at him curiously and nodded a small greeting. Sephiroth could only stare. He was feeling hot and it was finally clear it definitely wasn’t because of dehydration. What he felt, for the first time in his life, was such a visceral form of hunger that it twisted his gut and almost broke his mind.

He didn’t even realize he was holding his breath until the blond inhaled deeply, his pretty nostrils flaring, and turned away from him to undress completely. Sephiroth got a tiny peek of his cute buttocks before he wrapped a towel around his hips and disappeared into the bathing area.

But not without stealing one last look of Sephiroth, the corners of his lovely lips twitching inexplicably.  

Sephiroth finally exhaled, his shoulders slumping. There he was at last, in the flesh. His soulmate.

His wolf.

A young coffee shop boy from Nibelheim.

Fuck.

Sephiroth unconsciously barked a laugh, tracing the ink of his own mark beneath the layers of clothing. What was he supposed to do now?

Terribly aware of both the fact that his world had just turned upside down and the pure desire that hit him like a freight train, Sephiroth – the tactical genius he was – fled the scene.

It was only when he was out of the onsen and half-way down the mountain that he realized he was still wearing his towel turban.

Chapter Text

Sephiroth woke up in the morning feeling dazed.

He couldn’t believe he had finally met him.

More importantly, he couldn’t believe he had actually fled like a teenager with an awkward crush. With his hair still wrapped up in a fucking towel, no less.

He groaned and closed his eyes, willing the embarrassing memories of last night to disappear, which they didn’t. All these years of waiting for his soulmate to arrive and once he did, suddenly Sephiroth had no idea how to proceed. No one had given him a manual.

Breathing in and out to calm his beating heart, Sephiroth finally got out of his bed. Clad only in his boxer briefs he grabbed a clean tee and went outside to get his denim shorts. He had quickly hand-washed them after getting back, clearly having underestimated the amount of sand and sweat that had stuck to his clothes after only one day at the Festa. Luckily the morning sun was up early and his shorts were already dry.

Sephiroth looked at the clock and idly wondered whether Genesis and Angeal were still sleeping. It was half past nine already and he felt his stomach rumble. He made his way to the Villa’s large kitchen packed with high-quality groceries of various sorts. Maybe he could prepare a small brunch for them to enjoy before they headed to the festival area again. Maybe that would keep his thoughts away from a certain someone and let him behave like a rational normal human being for once.

He opened the fridge and peered inside, picking up some things. Eggs, croissants, yoghurt with granola and various types of fruit. And coffee, of course. He knew he was ridiculous but he had brought his own dripper-type coffeemaker with him.

Just thinking about coffee instantly sent his thoughts to his soulmate – Cloud, if he remembered correctly. Such and odd name for someone who was to bring sunshine to Sephiroth’s life.

Sephiroth tapped his fingers against the marble kitchen countertop while waiting for his coffee to drip, deep in thought. It was the second day of the Festa. He still had a couple of days to catch his mate before he’d be off to Nibelheim again. Luckily he knew where to locate the blonde.

Sephiroth hadn’t really known what to expect of his soulmate but he had always known he would love them from the bottom of his heart. Maybe he hadn’t thought of Cloud like that the first time he had laid his eyes on him when Genesis had pestered him to order coffee from Seventh Heaven. He had been more focused on the way his skin had prickled and senses had felt all wrong.

He had never known that being close to your unbonded soulmate could cause such visceral feelings. And then, upon seeing him again at the onsen with his soulmark visible…

Gaia, his heart beat faster even now when he thought about Cloud’s lithe, muscled body and his wild hair. His kissable lips and beautiful blue eyes that had looked straight into Sephiroth’s soul without any hesitation. And that cute little backside.

Fuck. Sephiroth groaned and gripped his coffee mug harder, willing the wave of arousal that hit him dissipate. He needed to figure out what to do and how to reveal himself to the blonde. He had waited so long, he had so much love to give. He couldn’t miss this chance.

“Good morning, Sephiroth,” he heard a deep mumble from behind him. Angeal entered the kitchen, stretching his limbs and smiling at Sephiroth. “Did you get any sleep?”

Sephiroth nodded. “Yes. What time did you get here?”

“I think around one thirty. After the Midgar Madness gig.”

“Was it any good?”

“Well, yes.” Angeal said. “Very energetic. Genesis loved it,” he grinned but his face then softened. “And I love it when Gen loves it.”   

Sephiroth nodded. The deep soulbond between his two friends had always been some kind of an enigma to him. “Is Genesis up yet?”

“Barely,” Angeal laughed merrily. “I think he’s really making the most of his holiday, sleeping in every day and all that.”

Sephiroth chuckled. That sounded like Genesis. He turned his attention to the brunch he was preparing. “I’m making us some breakfast. I’m sure Genesis will want to start with another bottle of champagne, can you check if there’s any in the fridge?”

Angeal nodded and gave Sephiroth a grin. “Sure. Luckily the Festa is only four days. I’m not sure if I could handle this kind of lifestyle any longer.”

“Yeah,” Sephiroth agreed with a laugh. “Speaking of which, I think I’m going to go early today. Catch some of the early gigs. The gates are going to open at 12:00 so I’ll be aiming for that.”

Angeal turned to look at him. “What’s the hurry? We can also enjoy our time here at the Villa. It’s not every day that we have a whole private beach to ourselves.”

Sephiroth shook his head, his silver bangs swaying with the movement. “Ah. You do that with Genesis?” He took a while to formulate his words before adding. “I liked the coffee I had yesterday. At that Nibel stall. A perfect way to start the day.”

“Seph! Why would you want to buy coffee when you have your own fucking deluxe dripper here?” A still sleepy Genesis entered the kitchen, yawning.

Sephiroth turned to stare at his friend petulantly, unconsciously clenching his hands into fists. “Does it matter? I’m going.”

Genesis gave Angeal a bemused look. “Huh. The wandering soul knows no rest.”

Angeal shrugged. “I don’t mind. The beach is nice but there’s enough to see at the Festa for a few lifetimes as well.”

Genesis shook his head and snatched a piece of watermelon from the plate that Sephiroth had prepared. “You’re such a simp for coffee, Seph. I hope your soulmate shares even a fraction of your passion.”

Sephiroth let out an amused huff. He sure hoped so.

By the time they finally made their way to the festival area the sun was already shining from high above. It was going to be another beautiful day.

After charging their e-wristbands with gil they slowly made their way to the Food Alley. Sephiroth found himself enjoying the midday vibes of the Festa. The venue seemed like a different place altogether without all the uproar and the noisy people, or the deep beat of the music around. A gentle sea breeze blessed them and made the temperatures more tolerable than the day before. Everything had been cleaned, yielding a rare moment to really enjoy the decorations and pieces of art that were all around them, integrated into the design of the venue itself. The few people who were already there seemed to be in good spirits, not really paying them any attention. Maybe the novelty of the Firsts attending had finally worn off.  

When Sephiroth saw the row of food stalls, his heart was already thundering against his chest in a way that was completely foreign to him. No amount of experience from the battlefield could have prepared him for the way he was feeling, readying himself to meet his soulmate, to look into his eyes, to make an impression, to say… what?

Indeed. What, exactly, would he say? There was absolutely no amount of words to express what he was feeling. He also probably shouldn’t overwhelm his soulmate who still didn’t know he was, in fact, Sephiroth’s soulmate.

He really should’ve come up with a game plan.

Luckily he hadn’t allowed Genesis to force him to buy any of that aloha shit. He’d be mortified if he was wearing something like that. Instead, he felt good about his slim fit denim shorts and tight tee that hugged him in all the right places. Black, of course. For the first time he felt like all the gil he had spent on these ridiculous pieces of garments was money well spent. He secretly thanked Genesis for dragging him out shopping, not that he was ever going to confess that to his obnoxious friend.

A sudden thought crossed his mind. What if his soulmate found his appearance – his odd silver hair, his taller than usual frame and slit pupils – unnerving instead of alluring? An ugly feeling made itself known in his gut and he felt his palms sweat.

When they arrived at their destination, Sephiroth let his eyes roam the stalls and, oh. There he was. Cloud. Sephiroth’s lips tilted upwards. The uneasy feeling in his gut turned into giddiness and he never felt giddy!

But as he took on the scene unraveling in front of him, his giddiness turned into desperation and his mood soured.

Cloud wasn’t alone. The girl – Tifa? – was with him. They seemed to be prepping the meals for the day and Sephiroth watched with an intensifying sense of dread as the girl smiled at Cloud, ruffled his hair and placed a kiss on his cheek. Cloud returned the favor, laughing affectionately and hugging the girl tightly, lightly stroking her hair.

Sephiroth felt a wholly unfamiliar tightness in his throat and a wave of fear surged through his body.

His soulmate already had a partner? He hadn’t waited for Sephiroth?

Sephiroth suddenly remembered thinking that the pair might have been soulmates when first seeing them, so attuned were they to each other.

“Come on, Seph. What are you staring at?” Genesis elbowed him and shoved him forward.  “We came all the way here to get you your precious cup of coffee but you look like you’re suffering from a food poisoning or something. Are you sure coffee is a good idea?”

Sephiroth let himself to be pushed to the booth, his mind still reeling.

“Hi! Welcome to Seventh Heaven!” chimed Tifa. “Oh! It’s you hunky SOLDIERs again! What a nice surprise. What can I get you today?” She looked at them and smiled warmly, leaning against the counter with a relaxed stance, palms resting against the countertop.

Cloud, upon realizing who their customers were, looked somewhat perturbed, trying his best not to stare. Sephiroth wanted nothing more than for Cloud to stare at him. I’m here! Look at me! his consciousness screamed in agony.

“Hello,” intoned Genesis lazily. “Our dear General here seems to have fallen in love with your coffee. I don’t know if you drugged it or what but please help the poor man out of his self-afflicted morning misery of not having a cup of coffee that meets his standards yet.”

Sephiroth gave Genesis a dark look. Genesis smiled pleasantly and continued. “He brought his own coffeemaker but alas, even that wasn’t enough to ensure good quality.”  

Tifa smirked. “Ah, must be the different water hardness. Aren’t you quite the snob, General? Oops, sorry, sir,” she grinned at Sephiroth, not looking sorry at all. “I’m happy that you found the taste of our Gongagan Cold Brew acceptable. Cloud, one coffee for the General!”  

Cloud stuttered and turned as red as a tomato but started to prep the coffee.

Sephiroth felt his heart flutter, finally being close enough to observe his soulmate closely. He was enthralled by Cloud’s hair, the way freckles danced on his face as his scrunched his nose, and the way his eyebrows furrowed as he was ordered around by Tifa, something affectionate to it. The way his denim shorts and tee looked much like what Sephiroth was wearing; simple, sexy and effortless.

Sephiroth felt a surge of jealousy. He needed to know if Cloud and Tifa were an item, preferably soon. He wasn’t mentally prepared for competition.

A shrilly ring sounded in the air. Sephiroth watched as Cloud stopped what he was doing and fished a PHS out of his pocket.

“What? Really? Ok. Yeah yeah, I got it. Okay, reporting afterwards. Bye.”

Sephiroth listened with fascination. It was the first time he really heard Cloud talk. He didn’t seem to be much of a talker, but gods, what his voice did to Sephiroth.

“There’s some trouble, gotta go,” said Cloud, his words targeted at Tifa.  

Tifa nodded and smiled, slightly feral, glancing at the Firsts who were looking at them with various degrees of curiosity.

Before Sephiroth had any time to react, Genesis had already opened his mouth, peering at Cloud through his bangs. ”What was that?”

Cloud smiled sharply at them, suddenly eyes alight with fire. ”Just a rogue Tonberry King heading this way from the Corel desert.”  

Genesis huffed out a startled laugh and Angeal looked worried. Sephiroth looked at Cloud, who met his gaze head on. A surge of electricity run through him.

“And how is such a small thing as yourself going to handle a Tonberry King?” asked Genesis, his eyes glinting dangerously.

”I’m security.” Cloud’s lips twitched and he started putting on the sword harness Sephiroth had seen him wear the night before. Cloud shuffled around at the stall and soon emerged with the most insane-looking beast of a blade that Sephiroth had ever seen propped on his back.  

“What…is that?” asked Angeal, stupefied. Sephiroth shared his sentiment. Here he had been thinking that his soulmate was a shy country hick from Nibelheim but based on the size of Cloud’s sword, it seemed that he had been sorely mistaken. To wield that beast would require a considerable amount of strength and skill.  

“First Tsurugi,” Cloud said. “I can’t ask you to help me since I’m paid for this but you’re welcome to watch. Consider it entertainment,” he deadpanned and started to walk away with swift steps.

“Hell yeah,” proclaimed Genesis with an excited look, hurrying after Cloud with Angeal and Sephiroth following them.  

Sephiroth used this time to observe Cloud, who had perked up as soon as he had received the call to inform him about an upcoming battle. Now he radiated confidence and Sephiroth wanted to bask in that glow all day long. Even the thought of fighting a Tonberry King, a formidable enemy on its own right, had done nothing to deter Cloud.

Cloud walked through the venue as if he knew it like his own pockets, passing stages, stalls and entertainment as he made haste. Staff members and volunteers greeted him with smiles, high fives and fist bumps. Some hollered loud cheers for him when he flippantly mentioned he was going to fight a ‘frigging huge Tonberry’.

“Cloud! Can we come and watch?” begged one sweet-looking young volunteer responsible for keeping the outdoor toilets clean.

Cloud laughed, startled. “Nope! Dio’s got a Battle Arena for that purpose here! You should be able to get a free entrance with your volunteer pass if there are any seats left.”

The girl made a face and whined. “But I want to see you!”

Sephiroth narrowed his eyes frostily but managed to keep his face otherwise neutral. Next to him Angeal and Genesis took in the exchange of words with interested expressions, no doubt trying to figure out exactly what was it about Cloud that made him so popular.

When they exited the festival area from the southwestern staff gate, there was already an emergency buggy waiting for them.

“Come on. Our unwanted guest’s on the desert side. We gotta cross this waterhole,” intoned Cloud, waving them to jump in. Cloud expertly steered them across the water to the desert, with the sounds from the festival providing an up-tune soundtrack to their little excursion.

It took a little bit of walking around, but finally Cloud stopped. “Ah, there you are,” he murmured, pointing at the enormous form of the nearing Tonberry, a crown perched on its head.

“You wait here.” Cloud flashed them a reassuring smile as he flexed his arms briefly and grabbed the hilt of his enormous sword, easily lifting it to rest on his shoulder. For a moment he locked his gaze on Sephiroth. Time stood still and then Cloud was off, charging head on to challenge the monster.

Cloud was a glorious sight to behold. He didn’t seem to have any problems in landing a steady series of blows upon the beast. He danced with his sword, the metal glimmering and catching fire in the midday sun. An uppercut, a slash and an easy rolling dodge. Sephiroth didn’t have any idea how much time had passed. He was captivated by watching his soulmate.

The pace of the battle picked up as the Tonberry frequently started using its more dangerous attacks, making Cloud to take a couple of steps backwards. Sephiroth saw Cloud grin and then his sword split into two.

“What the fuck,” he heard Genesis whisper on he left his with a tone that did nothing to hide his surprise. Sephiroth glanced at his friend, who was gripping Angeal’s arm tightly.

Sephiroth had never seen someone dual-wield so easily, efficiently and in such a deadly manner. It looked like Cloud had two chopsticks in his hands as he swung his swords around, over his head, behind his body, leaping up into the air and landing a blow, stabbing the Tonberry with one blade and slashing with another.

Sephiroth had never felt more enamored. He wanted nothing more than to run to Cloud and drag him to his bed and beg him to stay there for the rest of their lives.

A pained cry from Cloud pulled him out of his fantasy. The Tonberry had managed to nick Cloud’s shoulder with its huge butcher knife. There was blood, Cloud’s blood, and Sephiroth raised his hands to cast a materialess Cure. His hand was immediately pulled down by Angeal, who merely encouraged him to watch.

Cloud gave a forceful shout and simply tore through the Tonberry with his two blades, blood streaming from his shoulder. Once behind the monster, he – what the actual fuck here? thought Sephiroth frantically – pulled a dagger-like blade from one of his two swords and threw it directly to the back of the Tonberry King’s head. Green mist engulfed the monster as it fell and disappeared into the air.

Cloud went to pick up the third part of his blade and made his way back to the Firsts, all of whom were looking at him with shock and amazement.

“That was fun,” Cloud smiled, baring his teeth. “Needed the exercise. Making coffee and meals all day long makes your feet ache and your back stiff as heck.”

“Cloud. Your wound?” Sephiroth managed to ask, lost for words otherwise. He wanted to praise Cloud, to battle him himself, to experience the exhilarating force of nature that was his soulmate, but of course couldn’t.

Cloud shrugged. “I have a Cure on me, just didn’t have enough time to cast one.” Green light hugged Cloud’s body after which he tentatively rolled his shoulders. “Although I need to get changed, my shirt’s a goner.”

He swiftly pulled his bloodied tee over his head and revealed his upper body and his black soulmark.

“Whoa! Just wait a second! Isn’t tha—“ Genesis’ lips continued to move but no sound came out if his mouth. Sephiroth, flicking his wrist, glared at him pointedly after which he turned his attention to Cloud.

“Sorry about that. Genesis has a tendency of overstepping his boundaries,” he noted suavely, not releasing the Silence spell he had cast out of thin air on his friend. 

Cloud stared at Sephiroth with wide eyes. “Right. I’ve never seen anyone cast without materia.”

“Ah, yes. All of us can cast some basic spells without any equipped materia. I can tell you some details later, if you’re interested.”

Cloud looked at him as if he had grown a second head, eyes wide, confused. Utterly captivated. “Ah. Uhm. Yes. I’d love that. To talk. With you. About ah, materia and casting.” A faint shade of pink appeared on his cheeks and he lowered his eyes. “Maybe swords, too?” Cloud breathed out, his voice tinged with amazed hesitation.

Sephiroth nodded and preened. Finally some progress; a real conversation with Cloud!

“Swords, too. I’d like that,” he smiled at Cloud, glowing.

To his surprise Angeal joined the conversation. “I take it that Tifa isn’t your soulmate, then?” he asked with a completely placid look, pointing at Cloud’s soulmark.

Cloud hummed. “No. A good friend. Queerplatonic? We share a common goal for the future.” He then shrugged. “Haven’t met my soulmate yet. Probably never will so I’m just making do the best I can without them.”

Genesis twitched and gritted his teeth. Angeal merely smiled that imperturbable smile of his. Sephiroth wanted to reveal his soulmark right then and there, but the timing was all wrong so he just blinked.

“Anyway, I should get cleaned,” said Cloud.

“We’ll call on you later,” Sephiroth said, smiling at Cloud.

Cloud nodded and vaguely scratched his soulmark, the skin pulling and creasing as he touched it. Sephiroth felt a tugging jolt on his own. Cloud shuddered, grabbing the mark more forcefully and covering it with his hand. He gave Sephiroth a wild look and turned away to leave.

“Bye. Hope you enjoyed the show.”

“You are extremely skilled, Cloud. It was a pleasure to watch,” praised Angeal with a soft tone. Genesis, obviously, didn’t say anything, merely glared at Sephiroth furiously and gave him a finger.

“You were remarkable,” murmured Sephiroth at Cloud’s retreating back. If Cloud heard it, he gave nothing away.

As Cloud’s form disappeared, Sephiroth finally released Genesis from his spell.

“What the fuck, Sephiroth! Your soulmate!” he instantly hollered. If looks could kill Sephiroth would be a dead man.  

“I am aware,” said Sephiroth with defiance in his voice. “I saw him yesterday at the mako onsen I went to.”

“Sephiroth. It’s really not my business but what are you doing?” asked Angeal with a bemused look, the calm expression gone.

“Or rather, not doing,” sneered Genesis, clearly annoyed.

Sephiroth groaned, cradling his face in his hands. ”I just…”

Angeal reached out to pat his arm. ”Let me guess. You want him to like you. The real you and not the General. Yes?”

Sephiroth thought about it for a moment. His emotions were all over the place, like he couldn’t find neither heads nor tails of what he was feeling, but Angeal was right. He had witnessed how Cloud interacted with Tifa and had immediately known that he couldn’t settle for anything less. He wanted Cloud to look at him like that, share those affectionate touches with him, to laugh and be merry with him, too.

To love him for who he was and not just the impeccable media image of him.

“I need to know more about him,” proclaimed Genesis suddenly and pulled out his PHS. “Hi Kuns. Can you hack Festa del Sol database and check someone affiliated with it? A blonde warrior called Cloud. Mmm. Ok, just send me the info.”

Genesis ended the call and waited until his phone beeped. He opened the message and read aloud.

“Cloud Strife, 20 years. Hometown: Nibelheim. Duties: Monster extermination and construction. Additional comments: The best badass mercenary in the Western continent.” 

Sephiroth’s heart jumped with joy. His soulmate was the best merc in the Western continent?

Genesis started howling with laughter. “Trust Gaia to gift you a powerhouse of a soulmate who can probably kick your own sorry ass. There is no hate, only joy, for you are beloved by the goddess. Hero of the dawn, healer of worlds. I’ll be bringing popcorn and beer when you two spar.”

Genesis’ PHS beeped again and he looked at it curiously. “Oh, Kunsel sent us a video. Let’s see… whoa!”

Both Sephiroth and Angeal peered over Genesis’ shoulders at a tiny Cloud Strife fighting a bunch of Sea Devils in the part of the beach that clearly was the current festival VIP lounge. He seemed to be in a pinch. 

"Cloud! Hold them off for a while!" Tifa’s voice was heard somewhere off-screen. She had clearly been in charge of shooting the video. There was some shuffling and rustling, the moving image on screen shaking uncontrollably, some muttered words of where the fuck is the tripod, and then the video stabilized. A second after that Tifa, too, made an appearance, running to Cloud’s side. Once in position to attack, she took a moment to charge her body with some unseen energy field and launched a devastating chain attack of kicks, punches and acrobatic somersaults on the beasts. 

"Cloud! Omnislash, now!" she yelled, dodging a swish of a huge monster tail. 

"Aye!" shouted Cloud, standing still and closing his eyes. His whole form was engulfed in purple light as he threw his sword in the air where it split into no less than six different blades. 

"What the—" whispered Genesis. Sephiroth couldn't do anything but stare, helplessly enthralled, as his soulmate launched himself into one of the most insane limit breaks he had ever seen. 

Cloud jumped into the air and moved swiftly from blade to blade, using them all to slash through the monsters over and over and over again, twisting his body effortlessly. The purple light slowly evolved into an explosion of power as Cloud delivered his final blow, obliterating the monsters with a fierce shout. 

He landed on the ground, all of the blades falling around him to form a circle. The last one he snatched directly from the air, twirling it above his head in a brief dance of victory. 

"Way to go Cloud!" Tifa shouted and run to Cloud to give him a hug. "I'm sure you'll pass your Festa evaluations with this," she laughed. 

Cloud scratched his head. "Ah, hope so. Wouldn't mind this job next year, too. The money’s really good and we need it." He gave Tifa a small lopsided smile and started collecting his blades, putting them back together. Tifa ran to the camera and the recording stopped. 

There was nothing but silence as the Firsts recovered from what they had just witnessed.  

"What the hell do they feed kids in Nibelheim?" Genesis barked. "Mako instead of mother's milk?" 

"That surely was... something," Angeal noted, clearing his throat. 

Sephiroth didn't say anything. His mind had conjured up an image of him sparring Cloud, his Octaslash meeting Cloud's Omnislash, after which his lips would meet Cloud's and their bodies, too, would meet. Maybe their clothes would mysteriously vanish and naked skin would meet naked skin—

He coughed. The sand and the heat of the scorching sun sure made his throat dry.  

“Hey!” he then snapped when Genesis poked him in the ribs with narrowed eyes.  

“Seph. Your soulmate is magnificent. Do not tell me that ordering a coffee with a fucking smile was your idea of flirting?” Genesis’ voice was shrilly, unbelieving.

Sephiroth refused to look at Genesis. People had always approached him; he had never had the need to pursue anyone in his life. He truly had no idea as to how to strike a good flirty conversation.

“The situation led me to believe that coffee was a passion on his,” Sephiroth answered with an icy tone.

“Oh fuck. I will absolutely not sacrifice the rest of my life listening to you moan about how you missed your chance to smooch your soulmate and forge the soulbond. Now that you finally have the chance,” proclaimed Genesis. He growled at Sephiroth.

“I didn’t realize that your come hither skills are this abysmal. You’re completely useless when it comes to matters of love and that’s why you need our help.” Genesis had a determined look on his face which slowly melted into a calculative smile. “Launching operation seduce the sassy chocobo!”

Sephiroth twitched.

“Hey guys…” It was Angeal. “I think Cloud took the buggy,” he noted with a gravelly voice. “Means that we get to swim back.”

Genesis opened his mouth but for a second no sound came out.

“I’m going to kill Sephiroth’s little shit of a soulmate,” he then howled, eyes wild as he looked at the muddy waters a small distance away, full of twigs and dirt.

Sephiroth should’ve been offended but he wasn’t. Instead he burst out in deep laughter. No one else would dare to leave three SOLDIER Firsts stranded in the middle of a desert with the only escape route being that of swimming.

“Don’t worry Genesis. You look like a surf bum anyway, you’re just keeping up with the appearances,” he smirked and continued. "Come on Ang, you said you wanted a beach holiday!"

Sephiroth started running towards the water, chased on by swearing Genesis and laughing Angeal. And when they emerged from the waters, their clothes dripping with dirty water, Sephiroth felt kind of wonderful. The future was looking bright. Now he only had to ensnare his soulmate and kiss him silly. 

After a shower and a change of clothes Cloud was back at Seventh Heaven, serving customers with their food and drink orders as he had been doing for the good part of the festival. He was secretly happy that the huge Tonberry had showed up. The bonus he got for every extra job was great, definitely adding to their budget. Hell. Just the Tonberry earned them at least one month’s rent in Midgar.

He turned to Tifa, who had her customer service smile plastered on her face.  

“You go and have fun. I got this,” he said, shooing her out. Tifa smiled at him and was off with a wave.

After three hours Cloud was facing a problem. They needed to get some supplies or they’d be running out of nice cream and beer. Afternoon was turning into early evening and the vibes were definitely intensifying. There were suddenly more people, more noise, more cacophony, more everything.

More feelings.

Cloud flinched. Today had been odd. There was something about Sephiroth’s presence that made him feel weird and preoccupied. Flushed. Tingly and hot. Slightly nauseous.

It’s because you have a crush on him! yelled his stupid consciousness but Cloud, yet again, decided to ignore the annoying voice. No, not crush. Pure occupational, professional interest.

But honestly, he had absolutely no idea why he had invited the SOLDIERs to watch him fight, or why they had even wanted to come. Thinking about Sephiroth standing there had caused a momentary lapse of concentration leading to the Tonberry King stabbing him.

How embarrassing.

And then he had all but stripped in front of the Firsts, distracted by the hot twisting in his gut. Luckily he hadn’t made a complete fool out of himself with words.

Oh no. He had, though. He had suggested he wanted to talk about swords with Sephiroth. Oh Gaia.

And then, leaving the SOLDIERs behind while driving the buggy back alone… Why had he done that? A mighty prank indeed, but the truth was that he really hadn’t realized what he was doing, his behavior erratic and his mind completely preoccupied with that annoying full-body tingling nausea. Afterwards he had been too embarrassed to go back, instead hiding behind a rocky hill close to the shore, peeking as the Firsts emerged from water.

Angeal was calm and Genesis seemed to be seething. Understandable. But when Sephiroth had risen from the water Cloud had thought he might have died right there. Dripping water, his shirt had been clinging to his absolutely ripped body. His hair had been tied into a messy bun to avoid it from getting wet, and when he pulled three phones out of it, Cloud had almost giggled aloud. Just, no way.

Sephiroth was nothing but godly and Cloud’s stomach twisted pitifully. You are no one, his mind helpfully informed the rational part of his brain. The irrational part replayed the image from last night when he had seen the General in his towel turban, mentally photoshopping it together with the wet and ripped image from today.

Gorgeous. Simply gorgeous. And dangerous. Cloud knew he had to play it cool and not delude himself. It was the best survival strategy since the Festa and all the dreamstates that came with it would eventually end. All the three SOLDIERs would return to Midgar and, by the time Cloud and Tifa moved there, they would have forgotten them already.

A familiar baritone voice startled him and he almost dropped the cup of cold brew he was sipping.

“Gaia to Cloud.” Cloud turned his gaze upwards and his eyes met those of Sephiroth’s.

Shit. This was the end. He was so going to be punished for his prank. Maybe decapitated, maybe impaled. Or burnt alive by a well-aimed Firaga.

Sephiroth smiled at him, instead. A small intimate smile Cloud hadn’t seen in any of the many magazines he owned.

“How are you feeling? Your shoulder’s not hurting?”

Wait, what shoulder? Oh, the wound. “No, it’s all good,” Cloud said, gripping his cup tighter. His head definitely felt too light. Sephiroth had changed his clothes into clean and dry ones, although the style remained same. His hair was up in a high ponytail and he looked regal.

“Where’s Tifa?” Sephiroth asked, looking around.

“Seeing some bands. I hope she’ll be back soon, I really need to go get some supplies or otherwise we’ll have nothing to sell.”

Cloud watched as a small frown appeared between Sephiroth’s brows. “Maybe I can help? Just tell me what I need to get and from where and I’ll do it.”

Cloud stared at Sephiroth. Surely the General wasn’t offering to fetch supplies for Cloud? He felt confused. What was going on here? Had he secretly been transported to another universe?

“Um.” Oh, he really should try to get it together.

“It’s no problem. You saved us from the Tonberry,” Sephiroth winked at him. “So it’s only fair I pay you back.”

The logic made absolutely no sense.

“Um. Okay. If you want,” Cloud said in a voice that came out way smaller than he had intended. His mind was screaming but he somehow managed to relay the information of where to go and what to get to Sephiroth.

“And I’ll inform the security so they’ll let you pass. Although I’m sure they’d let you pass anyway. If you just asked. You know. Because you’re like, you. The Sephiroth,” Cloud mumbled, feeling his cheeks turn red.

Sephiroth laughed softly, gave him another smile and turned to leave.

It took Cloud a few moments to recover and, before long, Sephiroth was back with the supplies. Tifa, too, appeared, visibly energized by her break.

“Hi General! What brings you here?” She greeted Sephiroth as if they were old friends and Cloud felt jealous of the easy way she communicated with people regardless of their rank or status.

“I was helping Cloud,” Sephiroth said, pointing at the supplies he had gotten. Tifa’s eyes went wide as saucers. “The others should be here any minute now, too.”

Cloud stared at him. He was definitely missing something here. Did they need three soldiers to murder him after today’s shit show?

Fuck. Too late.

“Oh, there you are our sweet merc!” he heard Genesis’ voice somewhere behind Sephiroth’s back. He appeared with Angeal and gave Cloud a slightly haughty look, focusing his attention then on Tifa.   

“I’m terribly sorry, Tifa, but do you think it would be possible to steal darling Cloud here for a night of fun and dancing with us? We were all quite mesmerized by the way he was fighting and would love to get to know him more intimately.”

Cloud gaped at Genesis. The men he had grown up watching on screen, the ones from whom he had learned much of his sword fighting skills, suddenly here and wanting to take Cloud out for a night of fun? 

Surely Tifa wasn't going to allow for this to happen.  

"Sure, have him for the night," Tifa shrugged. "But I demand a refund." 

"A what?" asked both Genesis and Cloud at the same time. Cloud could only stare at his friend – the guts of that woman! 

"A refund. Your help in exchange for the company of my favorite assistant here." Tifa smiled innocently, managing to look anything but. "See, we’re planning on moving to Midgar and establishing our business there. We could use some help with influencer marketing, you know? To get into people's radar." 

Cloud heard Sephiroth let out a small surprised burst of breath. Angeal started smiling and Genesis looked absolutely delighted. Cloud wondered why they were suddenly so invested in Seventh Heaven. 

"You're planning to move to Midgar?" confirmed Genesis, clearly excited. "We'd love to help with the relocation, dears. Especially since our darling General here has become quite infatuated with your Cl— cold brew that you serve." Genesis hissed at Sephiroth who nonchalantly kicked his leg with his espadrille-clad foot. 

Cloud felt confused. The situation itself was absurd and, on top of that, Sephiroth's proximity was doing something funny to his brain cells. 

“Don’t worry. I got this," Tifa said with a wide smile, pushing him out.

“Wait, the Magodzilla…” Cloud tried to say.

“Ah, the film. It’s been rescheduled for tomorrow. Some problems with the downloaded file, a missing screening key or something,” Sephiroth noted breezily, reaching out to take Cloud’s hand as Cloud stepped out of his safe space.

The touch made a jolt of electricity course through Cloud’s body and he caught himself just in time from whimpering aloud. He felt like his brain had turned to mush, like his body had become a standing human-shaped piece of jelly, like there was nothing in his world except Sephiroth and Sephiroth’s hand in his. His ink ached.

Before he had a chance to say anything, Genesis snatched his other hand and started pulling him along. "I suggest we go to the VIP lounge to grab some drinks. Much less queues there." He winked. Cloud nodded mutely, his eyes wide. The VIP lounge? The word wasn’t even a part of his vocabulary. 

"I'm glad you could join us today." That was Sephiroth, still holding Cloud’s hand. His head was spinning even before he had even had anything to drink.

Actually, he wasn't sure if he could handle this. 

He snatched his hands free from both SOLDIERs’ grasps and took a deep breath. His skin on the hand that Sephiroth had touched tingled uncomfortably.

“Wait. I. I just,” he stammered. The Firsts looked at him. Sephiroth was frowning, an unhappy, almost fearful, expression on his face.

Ah.

To hell with it.

He was here also to have fun and if he had one shot at partying with his idols, he might as well use it and cry about his life later. With that thought Cloud returned to Seventh Heaven, and ordered four ume beers, giving Tifa a confused stare and a half-smile. Tifa grinned at him and poured the drinks with a wink. Sephiroth was there in a matter of seconds. "Let me help," he smiled at Cloud and Cloud's heart leapt so high that it was probably going to escape from his mouth. 

“Right. Let’s mosey. Cheers.” He toasted with the others, feeling excitement in the air as he let himself be led away by the three SOLDIERs, all the while feeling Sephiroth’s heated gaze on him, his own hand itching to take the General’s once more.

What had he gotten himself into?

Chapter Text

Cloud enjoyed the buzz around him as they made their way towards the VIP lounge. It was magical to see how all the immobile props he had helped to build came alive when people flocked about, talking, drinking and laughing. Having a good time and creating a positive field of energy.

The installations were pretty and all the stages, too, were spectacles in themselves. The main stage on the beach was a traditional one with all the latest sound and lighting tech to cater for the latest and greatest of Gaia’s bands. But to Cloud, the smaller ones were all the more interesting. A completely wooden hut structure that in the middle of a grove. A glittering disco ball stage close to the mountains. A sinful red tent stage guarded by raunchy-looking humanoid statues.

Cloud had helped to build them all and felt immensely proud.

He listened to the sweet cacophony of music around him, smelled the scents and memorized the sights. The Festa was everything Nibelheim was not: full of energy, utterly sinful, all about fun. People didn’t seem to have any qualms about spending their money on stupid things they most likely regretted tomorrow. Nibelheim, in turn, was all about sparsity and common sense.

“So Cloud,” Genesis said in a conversational tone, sipping his ume beer and looking like he enjoyed the taste. “You’re working here, am I correct? What are your responsibilities?”

Cloud took a sip. The beer was good. The distinct sour but light taste of ume, mixed with premium lager. A perfect summery drink. They had made the right choice of serving this instead of the traditional hearty Nibel ale.

“I cleared the area of monsters and helped with the venue construction. You know, building the stages, the boardwalk and some of the installations.” 

Genesis whistled appreciatively. “Quite the multitalent, aren’t you.”

Cloud snorted. “Not really. Just needed to learn many skills out of necessity to make it. Nibelheim’s not exactly full of exciting opportunities.” 

Angeal laughed. “I bet. Genesis and I are from Banora. Never heard of it, I assume, and that’s the point. Let’s just say that we understand you well.”

Cloud nodded with a small upturn of his lips. Definitely never heard of Banora and yes, he felt like he could get along with these skilled men who, for some reason, now wanted to spend time with Cloud.

Angeal continued the discussion with a friendly tone. “Tell us about your sword. It’s quite magnificent.”

“Ah, First Tsurugi.” Cloud smiled, lost in thought. Something in this world that was truly his. How many hundreds of hours had he put into training dual-wielding after receiving it? He had no idea. He had used the Shinra tutorials as a basis and studied the Firsts’ moves meticulously. He had crafted a wielding style that suited his slim and short build, mixing and matching their best moves with his current sword, adding some from his imagination.

“Tsurugi is a gift from a merchant in Junon. Origins are unknown.”

“We should try to find out, someday,” noted Sephiroth, listening to the tale intently with a small, interested smile curved on his lips.

“Maybe. Someday,” agreed Cloud awkwardly. As if there was another time. “Anyway. I saved him from a Malboro in Gongaga. He could’ve paid with gil but I chose Tsurugi.”

Cloud didn’t explicate how he had felt the moment he had seen his sword for the first time. He had been completely taken with it. All ridges and sharp edges and ragged teeth – it was a masterpiece. Cloud knew he’d never have an opportunity of getting a sword like that so he had easily accepted the offer of a sword instead of gil.

Sephiroth turned to talk to him. “So you’re planning to relocate to Midgar?” The smile he sent Cloud went straight to his heart.

“Yeah. As far away as Nibelheim as possible.” Cloud gave a tentative smile, testing how it would be received. The brilliant way Sephiroth’s eyes shone made him feel light-headed and queasy. Cloud focused his attention on the conversation.

“Midgar’s big enough for both me and Tifa to find work. A possibility to live more freely, I guess.” He shrugged his shoulders. Huh. Why was he telling the Firsts all this? It wasn’t as if they were really interested beyond this night.

“Tifa’s all I got, really.” Ah. He really needed to shut up, getting all emotional and shit, but his mouth just wouldn’t stay quiet. Better to drink some beer to keep it occupied.

“But now you’ve got us,” Angeal noted.

Cloud blinked. What was this absurdity he was suddenly a part of?

“Right. Thanks. I might ah, consult you about something, then. Later. When we’re relocating.”

“I hope that’s soon,” said Sephiroth and Cloud just couldn’t wrap his head around the caressing tone in Sephiroth’s voice as he spoke to him. They had known each other for a day and now Sephiroth wanted him in Midgar? The heat of the Festa must be messing with his head even more than he had previously thought.

When they arrived at the VIP lounge, Cloud really wasn’t surprised how everyone made way for the Firsts. Angeal waved them towards a free seating area with luxurious velvety bean bags and sun shades, plush carpets laid on the ground.

“And now, bubbles for all,” grinned Genesis. “To a great night!”  

As night fell, Cloud felt more relaxed and way more lightheaded. Bubbles had loosened his tongue and words came to him more easily, as did smiles and laughs. The Firsts treated him so well, he thought dreamily when he followed them out of the VIP lounge and back to the buzz of the festival. His heart ached a little bit.

“Have you already tried the ziplines, Cloud? We should test the one close to the Costa Falls,” suggested Genesis. He seemed to be in good spirits, too, although Cloud wasn’t sure if the Firsts were able to get drunk.

They certainly had made an effort of getting him blissfully tipsy, though.

“Um, okay,” he agreed because, well, why not. A thought crossed his mind.

“You know, if a job comes up now, you’ll be the ones doing the fighting. I’m too tipsy. But I still get the money,” he announced.

Sephiroth took his hand and looked deep into his eyes. “It would be my utmost pleasure to protect you, my lovely Nibel wolf.”

Genesis burst out in gales of laughter and although Cloud still didn’t quite know what to make of the man, the sound was nice. Comfortable. Friendly. For a second he felt like he belonged.

Wait. Why did Sephiroth call him a wolf? Cloud felt a pink flush creep into his face and neck. It was such an intimate thing to say, a direct referral to his soulmark. And why was Sephiroth holding his hand?

A surge of uneasiness coursed through his body like a tidal wave. He really should stop drinking. But oh, they were at the ziplines already and Sephiroth was tugging his hand, inviting him to go with him on the same pulley. His body followed involuntarily and, after attaching the safety harness, Sephiroth wrapped his large frame around Cloud to keep him close during the ride.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let you fall,” the man rumbled in Cloud’s ear, making the small hairs at the back of his neck stand up.

It was an exhilarating descent, flying through the air with Sephiroth pressed against him, his breath against Cloud’s neck. He squealed aloud and felt Sephiroth laugh behind him. Cloud blissfully closed his eyes and let the wind around his caress his heated face and ruffle his hair.

After their zipline adventure Cloud lost track of time. The Firsts dragged him around like he was their favorite mascot, pushing him around fondly with grins on their faces. They made him taste new foods and try exotic drinks, participate in silly competitions and party like there was no tomorrow.

At some point late into the night Cloud realized they were at the beach, in the vicinity of the main stage. He vaguely remembered from the program that this was the night of the Festa Electro All-Nighter.

Cloud felt the thrum of the bass all over his body, the beat prodding him to move his body to the music energetically. A female electro pop artist from Midgar was performing in an all-black attire, a mask hiding her face. Cloud was happily, deliciously drunk on life. Warm and fuzzy. He had taken off his sneakers at some point, feeling the sand with his bare feet. Soft, slightly grainy, now deliciously cool against his heated skin.

He felt so happy, his inhibitions stripped away by the generous amounts of high-quality alcoholic beverages that Genesis had kept providing. A crowning moment of the strange night he had been having was when Genesis had twirled him around and around, so many times that he had tripped over his own feet and tumbled over to the sand in a laughing heap. The heated look Sephiroth had shot him as he was sprawled on the ground made something foreign twist in his gut.

Suddenly a loud ooh sizzled through the audience and the night sky exploded into a pearly curtain of bright lasers in various colors, pulsing and moving almost organically to the rhythm of the music. Cloud felt his eyes go wide, never having experienced such extravagant, lush spectacle in his life.

The artist writhed on the stage, her husky voice singing words of desire, love, want. The night sky became a black canvas for the laser lights show, beams of multiple colors painting all kinds of shapes and forms on it, sending electric fireworks into the sky. Cloud was mesmerized. 

Had he been sober, he would’ve probably been embarrassed about the way his body kept moving to the music, foot tapping, hands weaving random patterns around him, hips swaying. But not now, not on this perfect evening. Not among all the others who didn’t care about who moved in what way, all chasing their own dance-pleasure in the dark night illuminated by the stunning laser show.

He experimentally raised his arms into the air and closed his eyes, letting the beat guide him through unknown movements, enjoying the buzz in his head and the magical feeling of freedom that engulfed his body. He felt his lips turn into a smile. He didn’t understand this feeling of excruciating happiness. Of lightness. As if he had no care in the world. No uncertain plans for the future, no money worries, no muscle aches from his strenuous job. There was nothing but this moment. He didn’t even care about his non-existent dancing skills. 

The audience went wild when the beat changed into an even more heated one and Cloud gasped when people started jumping up and down in a frenzy. The ground shook like an artificial man-made earthquake had suddenly hit Costa del Sol. Cloud never wanted the evening to end and let his eyes fall shut once more, losing himself to the beat and diving deeper into his happy ecstasy.

Suddenly there were large hands on his hips, palms splayed against his sides. He gasped, his body freezing mid-movement. He let himself be pulled against a tall, strong body and was mortified about the way his own form absolutely melted against the other. He caught a whiff of the scent of sun, sand, sweet sweat. Roses and vanilla and the tiniest bit of mako.

Oh sweet Gaia. Cloud sniffed the scent once more and goosebumps exploded all over his skin. His stomach did its best to turn upside down. He didn't want to open his eyes, instead squeezing them shut even tighter.

This had to be a dream. He had died from alcohol poisoning and gone to heaven. There was no other way in hell Sephiroth would be dancing with him.

The rational part of his brain told him to get the hell away, as quick as possible. That there would be only heartbreak for him afterwards. But the alcohol-induced happy part of his mind seduced him to forget about dull realities of life for one night, to enjoy, to take what was being offered and think about the consequences later.

For once, Cloud decided to listen to the irrational part of his brain. He brought his own smaller hands to touch those forearms that guided the movement of his hips against Sephiroth’s body and grabbed them hesitantly. The skin was smooth, slightly sweaty. Cloud could feel the powerful muscles under the skin, flexing with each tiny movement.

Sephiroth must have taken that as a positive sign since he tightened his hold around Cloud. Cloud found himself held flush against the other, Sephiroth’s hands not only on his hips but now gently touching his stomach, teasing the bare skin under the hem of his shirt – the lightest touch ever – holding him so tight, their bodies fusing together as Sephiroth coaxed them into a dance of two, the beat of the song still upbeat and quick.

Cloud found it futile to resist. He vaguely wondered how easily his head had already found a spot on Sephiroth’s chest to rest against. A sigh passed his lips and he heard Sephiroth hum.

They moved together to the bass-heavy beat, electro dance music all around them. An eternity might have passed but Cloud didn’t care. His head was completely empty of any rational thought and his ink ached, but he was too far gone to understand why.

He felt Sephiroth’s hands move to his shoulders and slowly turn him to face the other. He opened his eyes.

So beautiful, was the only thing Cloud’s brain was able to supply as he drank in the sight of his idol, his crush, who was looking at him with so much soul-searing longing that Cloud’s brain momentarily whited out. Emerald eyes glinted, lit up by the laser curtain around them, slit pupils blown wide.

Cloud should have said something but he was so pitifully drunk. It was almost insane – he hadn’t had anything to drink for a while. He should be sobering up. Had someone spiked his drink?

Spiked his drink, spiked his hair.

Oh Gaia, he was completely out of it, still moving against Sephiroth like it was the most normal thing to do. It felt like the more time he spent in Sephiroth’s arms the more inebriated he became. His heart was beating madly and his nerves were trying to escape from every pore of his skin.

A moment of clarity hit him and he was appalled to discover that his hands had moved under Sephiroth’s shirt, stroking and feeling the muscles of his back and shoulders, moving to his waist, hugging tightly. Smooth skin, absolutely ripped muscles, so soft and steely to touch.

Cloud whimpered, his body still moving in sync with the other. One of Sephiroth’s hands was touching his neck and Cloud wanted the moment to last forever.

Eventually the pounding upbeat song paved way for a mellower one. Before Cloud could say anything, Sephiroth's arms come down to hold him tight, directing their bodies to move as one to the slow rhythm, lasers still creating cascading waterfalls of lights above them. 

When one of Sephiroth’s hands cupped Cloud’s face he thought his head would explode from the sheer intimacy of the gesture. Cloud closed his eyes and concentrated on all the wondrous sensations that jolted through him like small electric shocks.

Music faded into background, as did the other people around them when Cloud felt Sephiroth stroke his cheek and trace the bridge of his nose with his thumb. Cloud’s eyes fluttered shut and he gasped when there was a light tug on the wolf-shaped stud on his ear. Then Sephiroth touched Cloud’s eyebrows, both of them, a light sensual touch that tickled a little but otherwise felt so good. And his lips. He felt them part involuntarily as Sephiroth caressed them with a feather-light touch of his thumb.

Cloud’s tongue darted out to softly taste the intruding digit. He bit it softly and heard Sephiroth gasp, felt him shudder.

What was he doing? He was too drunk. He should be ashamed.

But, to his horror, he realized he was now pawing at Sephiroth’s chest, his hands having traveled over the other man’s abs and all the way up. Cloud opened his eyes, about to apologize in panic, but the words died when he saw the way Sephiroth was looking at him; all dark eyes glazed over with something and the most brilliant smile he had ever seen visible on his handsome face.

The ballad once more morphed into a rapid dance beat and the crowd around them cheered. Cloud stumbled away from the embrace and gasped for breath, nervously wringing his hands. He really should leave. But Sephiroth quickly grasped one of his hands firmly, not letting him escape. He stared at Cloud, pulling him closer again from one of Cloud’s belt hooks, and Cloud felt nothing but the need to surrender.

So he did.

They danced like that into the wee morning hours; staring at each other’s eyes, holding hands and occasionally embracing, swaying together to the music, against each other and completely lost to anything else but their moment of happiness.

There must’ve been magic in the air, thought Cloud when he tumbled into his own bed at Johnny’s Seaside Inn just short of the daybreak with a wistful smile on his face, still feeling heavily inebriated and tingling.

Sephiroth woke up in his bed at the Shinra Villa with sunshine hitting his eyes.

He sighed contently and closed his eyes. Everything had gone according to the plan Genesis had crafted: Make Cloud talk, laugh, open up a bit and feel relaxed. Let him be happy, merry, enjoy his life without any worry of the next assignment, of money, of future. Treat him as the special person he was, the only one in Sephiroth’s heart now. Pamper him, indulge him.

Although it had been Sephiroth who had utterly indulged himself to the point of embarrassment. He had wanted to kiss Cloud so badly, and just thinking about the soft touch of Cloud’s tongue against his finger… He stopped that trail of thought immediately.

Being a soulmate was a fickle thing. Most of the time people didn’t even meet their dedicated others. And if they did, they could always choose to go their separate ways. The physical symptoms would peter out once out of reach and the bond was forged only upon a kiss – Gaia’s way of securing a consenting bond.

But there had also been cases where the bond had been forced and Gaia’s good intentions mistreated. Sweet destiny transformed into a lifetime of misery. Sephiroth refused to have that for Cloud.

He thought about last night. They had danced for hours and Cloud had been so utterly mate drunk that it had taken all of Sephiroth’s legendary restraint not to kiss him right there. Just the thought of having Cloud so close to him, pressed against his body and giving him those wide-eyed blissed out smiles made Sephiroth want to run to him and sweep him off his feet, spend an eternity looking into his eyes.

Sephiroth had been told by his friends that upon bonding with their soulmates, the world had started to make sense in a way it hadn’t before. He had known his soulmate only for two days, but he already knew he wanted nothing but to offer his soul, his half of their cosmic unity on a silver platter for Cloud to consume as he pleased. Every time he was with Cloud he could feel an echo vibrate in the other. It was a metaphysical throbbing feeling in the back of his head, an invisible thread that tried to escape and tie itself with Cloud’s soul.

Of course, being soulmates didn’t mean that no effort needed to be made in a relationship. Sephiroth was so ready to make all the effort in the world to secure their happily ever after.

Today that would include giving Cloud some time to come down from his high and to allow him to spend time with Tifa at Seventh Heaven. It was clear how important she was to Cloud. Afterwards Sephiroth would take Cloud to see Magodzilla while Genesis and Angeal would help at Seventh Heaven the best they could. Despite this having been Angeal’s idea, it was Sephiroth who had ended up promising to purchase avec VIP tickets to premieres of the next five Loveless plays at Midgar Theatre for Genesis. His wallet wept while his soul rejoiced.  

There was a knock on his door.

“Sephiroth! Are you up already? It’s half past ten already!” It was Genesis.

Shit. He couldn’t remember the last time he had slept in like this. Maybe he had been more exhausted than he had originally realized from being so close to his unbonded soulmate.

“Coming!”

He got out of his room, simultaneously wiggling into his shorts and fastening the metal button, his t-shirt in his hand.

“So,” Genesis looked at him. “Since I need to sacrifice one of my free nights – and Gaia knows there aren’t many annual vacation days that we have – for you to court your chocobo-lover, I get to decide what we do before my shift,” he gave Sephiroth a disdained look.

Sephiroth merely nodded. It wasn’t as if he could argue against that.

“So what have you got planned for us?”

“First, beach!” Genesis looked excited in his beachwear. How had Sephiroth not realized that he was already in his swimming trunks? Probably because he had been dressing up like a beach bum throughout the festival.  

“And then?”

“Gigs,” Genesis grinned. “As many as possible. What time was the film again?”

“At seven. Sharp.”

“Okay. So you need to go pick up your date at six thirty.”

Sephiroth nodded. He wanted to go to Cloud earlier – immediately, in fact – but he should probably try not to scare him with some weird-ass stalker vibes. Waiting was torture but it was likely for the best to maintain an image of him as a rational human being. Which he very much wasn't feeling like at the moment. 

Genesis must have seen his somewhat crestfallen expression as his face softened. “Don’t worry. Let’s get you coffee from them. A good chance to inform Cloud that he’s got his evening booked. Again.”

“And that Tifa is going to have some First Class help at the stall,” added Sephiroth, smirking.

Genesis narrowed his eyes. “You owe me. Like, really really owe me.”

“Yes yes,” Sephiroth agreed amiably. “I know. Now let’s hit the beach so that we can actually make it to the venue in time for you to see anything.” He slapped Genesis butt with his t-shirt that he still wasn’t wearing, making his friend yelp and toss a small Fire at Sephiroth, who blocked it with an effortless Ice. Just your average day with the Firsts.  

Sephiroth somehow made it through the day. They had visited Cloud and Tifa at Seventh Heaven and the way Cloud had blushed upon seeing him had sent a pang of desire surging all the way from the top of his head to the tip of his toes.

“It’s on the house,” Cloud had noted, giving him the coffee. But not before Tifa had snatched the bio-plastic cup and scribbled a messy C <3 S on it.

Cloud looked mortified and Tifa smiled devilishly. Sephiroth thought he might keep the cup as a souvenir.

“Cloud,” said Sephiroth, proud of the way his voice sounded confident and calm while his insides were trying to relocate within his body.

Cloud looked at him, still red. “What?”

“Are you going to see the Magodzilla?”

Cloud frowned. “Yes. The screening's supposed to be today at seven, right?”

“Do you mind if I join you.”

Cloud coughed. “Oh. Okay.” He looked a bit off and Sephiroth tried to smile at him reassuringly. “Genesis and Angeal would love to help here.”

Genesis gave a strained smile while Angeal raised his thumb.   

“Really?” Tifa inquired. “Sounds cool. I’ll handle as much as I can myself, but I might have you drag your First Class asses for some supply runs, or maybe help with the drinks during the peak hours.” She smiled. “You have to tell me everything about Midgar!”

Even Genesis’ expression finally melted into fondness. Sephiroth had a feeling that the trio would get along just fine.

And he couldn’t wait for his date night with Cloud.

Cloud basically bounced out of the screening, eyes alight and belly full of popcorn.

“Did you like the movie?” asked Sephiroth, tilting his head curiously.

Cloud nodded and smiled. “Yeah. Haven’t had many opportunities to see films in my life.”

The truth was that he had been captivated by the plot, the special effects, the music, the atmosphere. Everything. Including his company, whose presence he had felt throughout the film, a buzzing sense of something in his body, making him shiver in the middle of the summer heat.

He had felt Sephiroth’s gaze on him more than once but hadn’t dared to look away from the big screen.

Their hands had brushed against each other once, twice, when they had reached for popcorn at the same time. Each time Cloud had had to close his eyes and slowly count to ten to keep his heart from fluttering out of his chest.

“It’s only a half past eight. Is there anything else you’d like to do?” Sephiroth then asked, his voice perfectly neutral.

If it wasn’t for Sephiroth’s seemingly impassive voice Cloud might have thought that he was being asked on a date.

“I don’t know. Maybe I should go check up on Tifa?” He really should, but that would mean leaving Sephiroth and ending another of his unbelievable fantasy nights.

“I’m sure Genesis and Angeal are taking good care of her,” Sephiroth said and faced him, flashing a smile.

Cloud felt a small uneasy pang in his heart. “I don’t know. You’re all First Class SOLDIERs. VIPs. Shouldn’t you be doing something else than helping out random Nibel folks? Seeing bands, getting drunk, embracing fans, enjoying the groove and the atmosphere?”

Shouldn’t you be doing something else than hanging around a simple Nibel country boy, he wanted to add, suddenly self-conscious. He was often told that his hair was absurd. His denim shorts were well-worn, softened from loving use. His tee was clean but plain. His sneakers looked like they had seen many battles.

For a mercenary like himself, versatility of gear was everything. His body was a tool and clothes were something that had to serve the purpose. But he looked so plain. Although they seemed to share a ridiculously similar sense of style with Sephiroth, Cloud was sorely aware of the fine fabrics of the other man’s clothes, the way there were no wears and tears on them.

Immaculate like the man himself.

He was so deep in the throes of self-doubt that he almost missed Sephiroth’s voice saying something like there isn’t a place where I’d rather be. It sounded so ridiculous that Cloud doubted he had even heard it in the first place.

Great, he was becoming delusional as well. A heat stroke, maybe. Or delirium from yesterday’s bender.

Sephiroth cleared his throat. “I was saying that they can handle themselves. In addition, there isn’t anyone who is more knowledgeable about Midgar entertainment scene than Genesis. I’m sure he’s already sharing all his inside knowledge with Tifa.”

Cloud looked at Sephiroth, not really knowing what to think. Everything about the man made it difficult to concentrate, his brain completely overridden by the prickling static feeling that kept switching between nausea and bliss.

“So, unless you want to see something at the Festa, I’d like to invite you to our Villa. We have a private beach there and we can just, ah.” Sephiroth coughed and suddenly looked awkward.

Cloud stared. 

“We could just. Chat. About spells. Or, I’d love to hear more about Nibelheim.”

Cloud tried to remember if he had any alcoholic drinks today as this surely was a feverish drunken dream rather than reality.

“Chat?”

“Yes. Chat,” Sephiroth nodded convincingly, as if it was the most normal thing in the world to suggest. “Chat,” he then murmured in a tone that was much more subdued. Cloud wasn’t sure if there was a note of uncertainty to it, but most probably not.

“Ah, yeah. We can chat. At the Villa.”

He had never been good with words. They weren’t exactly flowing even with Tifa, let alone with Sephiroth, SOLDIER First Class and Shinra’s General extraordinaire, the object of Cloud’s most hidden feelings, the ones he had buried so deep that one would need an excavator to dig them up.

But the way Sephiroth’s face lit up made Cloud feel like his whole body was engulfed in a fuzzy feeling of warmth, joy, elation. Much like what he had been feeling the night before, dancing away with Sephiroth for hours.

Cloud blushed at the thought. How utterly shameless he had been. So drunk. But the feeling of Sephiroth’s body against his had made all his inhibitions disappear and he had soared the sky like a rocket lost in Sephiroth’s orbit. And to be gifted one more evening with him? It was too much but Cloud was selfish. He would take what he was offered. He knew only too well that second chances rarely existed.

“Lead the way,” he smiled at Sephiroth, small but honest. “Or, do you wanna grab something to drink or eat while we walk there?”

“Sure. I hear the Cosmo C Burger Joint is really nice, would you like to try?” Sephiroth asked. “We can also see how Tifa’s handling Genesis and Angeal, just to put your mind at ease.”

Cloud nodded and laughed. “Thanks. It’d be great. Although, now that you put it like that, I’m sure they’re groveling at her feet.”

Sephiroth grinned mischievously and it might have been the most beautiful sight Cloud had ever seen. He put the thought out of his mind as they started to walk towards the Food Alley. The night was glorious, although Cloud felt a distant chilly breeze in the air.

“I think it’s going to rain.”

“Really?” inquired Sephiroth, looking at the dark sky that was alight with the lights from various stages and installations. A mix of beats set a rhythm to their stroll.

“Yeah. The torrents here are tropical – short but super intense. That’s what makes the nature around here so beautiful,” Cloud explained, feeling a bit stupid. Surely the General knew all this already. But he was looking at Cloud like the sun was shining from his face, which made Cloud slightly uncomfortable and hot.

“I see. Well, I think we should also give Tifa, Genesis and Angeal a heads up. Genesis doesn’t take it well getting drenched.”

Cloud sputtered, turning red. Sephiroth smirked at him.  Oh boy. He was never going to hear the end of that buggy stint.

After paying a visit to Seventh Heaven, Cloud was reassured by the way Tifa confidently ordered the SOLDIERs around. As they started to make their way towards the Cosmo C Burger Joint – Sephiroth insisted on treating him a nice vegan burger – Cloud was sure he heard Genesis’ flippant ‘Don’t you worry darlings! We have everything under control and a lot of new regulars-to-be in Midgar’ echo behind them.

The burger was delicious, as was the company. Once at the Villa, Sephiroth led them to the private beach surrounded by a few rocks, getting a beach towel from the porch and placing it on the sand. Cloud watched as he sat down gracefully, folding his legs so that he was hugging them effortlessly with his arms.

“Come, sit,” Sephiroth smiled at him.

It all seemed very intimate but Cloud’s body moved on its own accord and he found himself sitting mere centimeters away from the General, who turned to look at him.

“How did you meet Tifa?” Sephiroth asked.

Cloud swallowed. To tell their story would mean revealing a lot about his childhood. How no one had liked him when he was a child.

“When I was a kid, I didn’t have many friends. Or rather, no friends.” Cloud stared at the sea in front of them pensively, refusing to look at Sephiroth. “I was sad. And angry. At why they didn’t want to play with me. So I decided I wanted to become strong. So strong that nothing could hurt me anymore.”

He knew he sounded stupid. Childish. Why was he even sharing this with Sephiroth? But when the other man looked at him, his expression was understanding.

“I’ve also been alone for the most part of my life. Raised away from the others in the Shinra labs, a test subject sent away to fight wars. A child soldier, a curiosity.” Sephiroth held his gaze. “Proclaimed a hero, doomed to a solitary existence where people only see the ideal exterior.”

Cloud felt his skin prickle at the intimate way they were looking at each other, sharing their innermost insecurities.

“I always thought you had it all.” An honest statement. “Brilliant mind. Skills. Tactical prowess. Wealth, fame.” Cloud blushed and continued, embarrassed. “Looks.” 

Sephiroth huffed a small laugh, unamused but not unkind. “Yes. I have status and fame and I’ve gotten used to getting what I want because of that. Some see me as cold and calculating, others as desirable. But what I lack is people around me.”

Cloud was surprised that Sephiroth wanted to share this with him. He listened intently as the other continued.

“Luckily I have a few good friends now. Genesis, Angeal. Also Zack Fair. I’m sure you know him.” Sephiroth suddenly chuckled. “You’d get along brilliantly, he’s also a bit of a country hick with a spiky hair.”

Gaia. Sephiroth was joking with him.

“But that’s enough about my sorry lonely life. How about you and Tifa?”

“Well, at some point she decided that she wanted to learn to fight. Her mentor sent her to watch me train. We started talking, she was one of the few who really made an effort to get to know me. I’m not bitter about how long it took, I have her friendship now.” Cloud shrugged. “We realized we both wanted to leave Nibelheim and started to work towards that goal. You could say that we became close in the process. She’s become my life partner.”

“Aren’t you interested in finding your soulmate?”

“Sure, but the odds aren’t very good, now are they?” Cloud looked at Sephiroth who stared back unabashedly. There was something about the look that made Cloud deeply uncomfortable.

Cloud felt Sephiroth shift and his thigh lined itself against Cloud’s denim-clad limb. Their arms touched and suddenly they were so close. Cloud’s heart beat erratically. His right pinky finger brushed against its counterpart on Sephiroth’s left hand. Righty and lefty, their dominant sword-wielding hands together.

There was something symbolic to the touch. 

Cloud inwardly cursed his lack of experience in any matters of romance. He felt like an idiot, not knowing what to do. His stomach twisted. He could feel the heat of Sephiroth’s body, the pure power emanating from it. Sephiroth was the most skilled swordsman of their age and now Cloud had this single strongest person on Gaia nonchalantly sitting next to him as if Cloud was special.

He felt static electricity in his head as he turned to face the other, feeling those stunning green eyes on him.

“Cloud.” Sephiroth said. Cloud stared. Sephiroth didn’t say anything else, only looked at him with an unfathomable expression. Like he was trying to drill his gaze into the deepest part of Cloud’s soul, to seek what he would find there.

He didn’t have any time to answer when he realized they were leaning closer to each other, lips tilted just so.

He felt his heartbeat in his ears, too loud, reverberating all over his head. His eyes fell shut. Cloud had only ever kissed Tifa, twice. He wanted to start crying from his pure lack of experience. Would Sephiroth prefer someone more straightforward, bold, outrageously sexy?

There was a hand on his neck, stroking the skin gently, making its way behind the back of his head and settling there, a calming pressure against his skull. He felt Sephiroth’s whole body lean into him and his own soul open up the way it never had, peeled open layer by layer in front of the other.

Sephiroth’s other hand settled on his hip and his thumb pressed oh so lightly on his stomach. Cloud suddenly wasn’t feeling so good. He was too hot, too dizzy, Sephiroth’s hands burned him where they touched him.

He opened his eyes and stopped breathing. Sephiroth was so close, looking at him with such hunger that Cloud felt like a prey that had finally been caught. He gasped when there was a small puff of breath on his lips.

Kiss me, he thought, realizing too late that the words had escaped his lips as a breathless whisper.

Sephiroth moved to close the gap and Cloud was ready – so ready – but then Sephiroth changed direction and his forehead landed on Cloud’s shoulder. Cloud inhaled sharply and Sephiroth groaned as if he was restraining himself.

Cloud’s mind reeled and suddenly he felt so small. Stupid Cloud. A wave of already familiar nausea hit him head on and he tried to untangle himself from Sephiroth. He was so embarrassed. Had he completely misjudged Sephiroth’s intentions? He was a nobody, after all.

“Cloud,” Sephiroth ground out, his voice tense. Thick with emotion. “We can’t.”

Cloud stopped wriggling. “We… can’t?” He felt like a thorn had pierced his heart, the words hurt so much. “You… do have someone in Midgar after all? A lover? Am I just,” he choked on the words. “Entertainment?”

Sephiroth’s whole body shook and his hands came to cup Cloud’s face forcefully. It almost hurt, the sheer amount of strength that was available to Sephiroth to use as he pleased. Cloud’s eyes were forced to meet the other man’s, blue to green. A shock of electricity surged through Cloud’s body, leaving small jolts in its wake.

“No!” The tone of Sephiroth’s voice was feverish. “There is only you, Cloud. You’re the only one who will ever be. No one else.”

Cloud heard the words but didn’t understand their meaning. What was Sephiroth saying?

“What?” he whispered, baffled and desperate.  

“There’s nothing I want to do more than kiss you. To have you as mine.”

Cloud blinked. A… confession? Shit, he felt like he might have a heart attack any moment now. They had barely met but it somehow felt like destiny. 

Suddenly Sephiroth withdrew his hands and stood up, signaling Cloud to do the same. Cloud felt the first few droplets of warm tropical rain land on his nose and arms as he got up. Such a meaningless thing when Cloud’s life was about to trip over the edge to absurdity.

“I will show you after which you can decide. Consent.”

Cloud gave Sephiroth a quizzical look, a peculiar sense of anticipation burning in his veins.

“Close your eyes,” Sephiroth murmured and Cloud did. He felt more raindrops, more and more of them on his skin. He heard the shuffling of Sephiroth’s clothes, after which a large warm hand took his right one, pulled him forward, placed his hand on naked skin and kept it there.

Cloud jolted. Soft skin and hard bone. By the shape of it, he was touching the General’s naked hip. All thought left him and he gasped as if deprived of air itself. Oh, Gaia, his mind whispered. The patch of skin under his hand seemed to pulse.

“When you’re ready, open your eyes and remove your hand.” A pause. “And, don’t panic. It’s alright.”  

He heard the words distantly in the rain. He didn’t quite know what all this was. A preposterous idea came to his mind. Surely, it couldn’t be…!

He took a deep shuddering breath and opened his eyes.  

Chapter Text

Cloud slowly opened his eyes. He didn’t dare to look up, didn’t dare to meet Sephiroth’s eyes. Instead he stared at his hand which covered a patch of skin on Sephiroth’s hip. The skin under him was hot to the touch. His own ink burned.

Cloud might be a backwater village nobody but he wasn’t stupid – not when the signs were this clear.

For a moment he just breathed, in and out, steady, steady. Torrential rain assaulted him as he took a deep breath and removed his hand from Sephiroth’s skin to reveal what was hidden underneath.

Sephiroth let rain fall to his face and soak his hair. The wetness and humidity mixed with warm air reminded him of his time in Wutai. Those were not happy memories. He always found it confounding that people wanted to call him a hero when he was nothing but a well-oiled killing machine.

His thoughts were brought back to the present when he felt small but strong fingers press the skin of his hips lightly. He felt Cloud’s touch on his ink and an endless yearning in his soul.  Oh, how he wanted to lean in and kiss Cloud. It was pure torture to be so close to him, to feel his touch but not be able to satisfy his hunger.

Sephiroth had almost done it, almost kissed Cloud and forced their eternal soulbond upon him without his consent. Sephiroth thought about those blue eyes that had looked at him with such a solemn look full of hesitant desire. Those lips begging to be kissed. It had been so close and Sephiroth would’ve never forgiven himself.

Instead, he had turned his face away, every cell and fiber of his body screaming furiously in frustration. It was clear that he had to let Cloud know before he’d completely lose it.

And here they were, drenched to the bone in the tropical rainfall, the weight of wet clothes heavy on them. Cloud was touching his tingling ink with his eyes closed, breath coming in small, quick gasps. So close but still a universe away. And him, anxiously waiting for Cloud to open his eyes, to remove his hand, to see that they were meant to be forever.

Finally Cloud seemed to have made up his mind and opened his eyes. He gazed at Sephiroth with an unfathomable expression. His hand was still in place, fingers twitching lightly.

It must’ve only been seconds but the moment felt like an eternity.

Cloud removed his hand and stared, his breath hitching audibly. He didn’t look at Sephiroth, only at the ink on his hip. Sephiroth would’ve given anything to know what was going on in his head. Then Cloud let out a shuddering sob and turned his back on Sephiroth, cradling his face in his hands. He stumbled away but abruptly stopped to watch the sea and the millions of raindrops that made its surface dance.  

Sephiroth felt raindrops seep through his skin and all the way into his soul, submerging it with despair. He looked at Cloud’s silent form standing in the rain with clenched fists and felt his hope drain away with rainwater. Had he truly been so delusional in chasing his own happiness that he had misread all Cloud’s signals?

For Sephiroth it mattered not if hundreds of others wanted him; if he couldn’t have his soulmate, he wouldn’t have anyone. He had always known that on a superficial level but now, knowing Cloud and having had the chance to touch him and spend time with him… Sephiroth was spoiled for anyone else.

Cloud was the only one he wanted for the rest of his life.   

He let his head hang miserably, his silver hair falling around him in messy rain-slickened strands. He was so lost in his misery that he missed the soft footsteps approaching him on the wet sand. But he didn’t miss the gentle touch of a finger on his chin, or the way a strong arm sneaked around his waist.

Sephiroth felt asphyxiated. White noise filled his head and his skin prickled all over. He stayed absolutely still, waiting. Cloud was so close and it was exhilarating.

Through the thundering roll of the rain he heard a tiny, utterly breathless laugh as the finger on his chin trailed and path towards his ear, changing into a firm hold behind the back of his neck. Sephiroth met Cloud’s glowing blue eyes mere seconds before Cloud’s lips were on his and his whole existence imploded into a glorious singularity.

Sephiroth felt his soul bleed into Cloud’s, a bond forming between them, tugging at the back of his mind, in the center of his heart and in the very pit of his stomach. There was only Cloud with his soft and hesitant lips, that summery scent and that warm body against his.

Finally Sephiroth had enough wits to wrap his arms around his soulmate’s slender body and to pull him closer, only to gasp and break free from their kiss.

Cloud stared at him with wide eyes, clutching his chest. “Ahhhhh,” he moaned and Sephiroth watched with fascination at the way Cloud’s eyes fluttered shut as he panted, unconsciously massaging his soulmark. Sephiroth felt it, too, his ink coming alive, burning like someone had poured molten lava on him. It was the most exquisite pain he had never felt and he would gladly soak in it forever if it meant that Cloud was his.

He couldn’t restrain himself anymore, grabbing Cloud and hoisting him up, encouraging him to wrap his legs around his waist and his arms around his shoulders. He held Cloud tightly and kissed him; deeply, passionately, forcing Cloud to accept his tongue in his mouth, reveling in the glorious breathless gasp that escaped Cloud’s lips as Sephiroth thoroughly explored his mouth. Cloud had tangled his hands in Sephiroth’s hair, pulling and tugging it instinctively, making Sephiroth shudder involuntarily.

He carefully carried Cloud to the porch, trying to get them away from the surrounding wetness. They were still kissing passionately, both of them absolutely soaked. Sephiroth wanted nothing more than to rip all the drenched clothes off Cloud and to reveal his naked form for him to worship, but he would restrain himself, he absolutely would.

Once under the roof of the porch, Cloud broke their kiss and struggled for breath. Sephiroth slowly put him down but didn’t release his embrace.

“Hey you,” Cloud said with a soft voice, looking into his eyes, gaze filled with wonder.

“Hey,” Sephiroth answered, giving Cloud a small, tentative smile.

And then they were kissing again, unable to stop, the bond between them pulling so hard it was difficult to concentrate on anything else.

“Let’s get inside,” panted Sephiroth and Cloud merely gasped an affirmative into one of their never-ending kisses, allowing Sephiroth to lead him inside. Sephiroth’s heart was hammering in his chest and by the look of it, Cloud wasn’t exactly faring any better, his lips swollen and eyes wild.

“Wow,” Cloud breathed out and Sephiroth had to utilize all his years of military training not to steal those lips again and just ravish Cloud right there. Instead, he entwined their fingers tightly. A tremor surged through his body.

“Cloud.” It seemed to be the only thing he could say, so he said it again, feeling the soft sound on his tongue. “Cloud.”

It should’ve been downright embarrassing how he, the General of Shinra and the company’s most prized weapon, had been reduced into a puddle of sap in Cloud’s arms. Sephiroth huffed with slight annoyance and Cloud looked at him, a small contemplative frown forming on his forehead.

“So, we’re bound together now?” Cloud’s voice was timid.

“Yes,” Sephiroth whispered, all the annoyance bleeding out of him in an instant. “For eternity. As long as you’ll have me.”

Cloud looked at him with wide eyes and shook his head. “I still can’t believe this. You knew all along?”

Sephiroth nodded, squeezing Cloud’s hand. “Yes. Ever since I saw you and your ink at the onsen. I knew you were mine. The only one I could ever want.”

"Why didn't you say anything before?" 

Sephiroth sighed and stared at the wall instead of looking at Cloud. "All my life, I've been waiting for you. My soulmate. I always thought it obvious that they’d be waiting for me, too."

He turned to face Cloud, who looked at him with a soft expression. Sephiroth hummed. 

"But then I saw you with Tifa and… I think it never really crossed my mind that my soulmate might have had other plans already. Plans for future that didn't include me." 

Cloud was silent, digesting the information and letting Sephiroth do the talking. 

"And, witnessing the affections between you, even though you weren't even soulmates… It made me realize that it would never be enough if you’d be with me just because I'm your soulmate. Out of obligation, or something.”

Sephiroth drew in a deep breath and continued.

“Watching you and Tifa made me realize that I would never be satisfied if you only wanted to be with me because I'm General Sephiroth." 

The feeling of Cloud’s fingers around his was solid, grounding in a soothing way. Sephiroth sighed.

"I want you for who you are, and I hope you want me for who I am, too." 

Cloud stared at him for a long moment and blushed, his whole face turning red.

“I’ve, ahh, kind of had the hots for you. Since, forever. Since I started training using the Shinra tutorials.”

Sephiroth watched, slightly amused, as Cloud squirmed and blushed even more. But then Cloud’s face fell serious, his hand coming to stroke Sephiroth’s cheek. The touch felt heavenly.

“But of course I didn’t know you. So.” Cloud looked determined. “I’m very much looking forward to getting to know you. Better.”

Sephiroth felt a smile tug at his lips. The way his soulmate was looking at him hooked something delightful in his belly and he pulled Cloud to yet another full-body embrace.

“We have the rest of our lives,” Sephiroth murmured, inhaling the scent of tropical summer rain Cloud’s hair. Then he came to his senses, realizing how they were still standing in puddles of rainwater in the entrance hall of the Villa, looking like drenched rats. So much for romance there.  

“Come on, let’s get you dried off,” said Sephiroth, leading Cloud to the master bathroom that was packed with clean towels. “I’ll get you some dry clothes.”

He left Cloud to dry his hair and went to his room. He picked up clean boxers and one of his t-shirts for Cloud. The shirt was long enough to keep Cloud decent even without shorts. Then he got his own clothes and made his way back to the bathroom where Cloud was waiting.  

Sephiroth’s breath hitched when he saw Cloud. He had stripped off his shirt and his soulmark was clearly visible. Sephiroth stared, inching closer, the clothes falling from his hands to the floor.

“Can I…?”

Cloud nodded with a brilliant smile on his face, taking Sephiroth’s hand and placing it against his chest. The soulmark was shining in brilliant shades of gold and silver, the colors intermingling beautifully, bringing the wolf and the wing to life.

“It’s beautiful. You’re beautiful,” Sephiroth whispered, wincing inwardly. When did he turn into such a simp? But Cloud only laughed affectionately and reached out to tug strands of his wet hair.  

“Come on, let me wrap your hair,” Cloud said. “But first. Clothes off.”

He then turned around, giving Sephiroth some space to strip. Sephiroth picked up the clothes he had dropped and changed his soaked clothes into dry ones. He gave the rest to Cloud, turning his back.

Gaia, he wanted to peek, though. He silently admonished himself.

Once they were both dry and comfy, Cloud grabbed a towel from the shelf next to them and turned to Sephiroth. “Head down for me,” he murmured and Sephiroth obeyed, letting his head hang downwards, his damp hair falling all the way to the floor. He felt Cloud shuffle around him, drying his hair off with the towel – a lovely pressure here and a little shake there – and finally wrapping it into a turban. Sephiroth answered by pulling Cloud to him and kissing him with all the passion he could summon.

Cloud gasped. “Bed?” he uttered, flushed and out of breath.

The burning sun of Costa del Sol paled in comparison with the heated look Cloud gave Sephiroth. It burned through Sephiroth's body and shed light on his soul, a promise of a future together. Sephiroth chuckled softly and pulled Cloud by his hand, leading him to his bedroom and closing the door tightly after him.

"Come here," he whispered, pulling Cloud to him and maneuvering them to lie on the bed with Cloud beneath him. The towel was still securely wrapped in his hair. He traced Cloud's distinctive cheekbones, his cute nose and his soft lips with his fingers. Cloud's eyes closed as Sephiroth gently touched them, then his blond eyebrows, his temples. He stroked Cloud's hair, tugging at the bangs framing his head and finally cupped his head and pulled him for a kiss. 

Now that the bond was active, kisses with Cloud felt insanely good. Sephiroth didn’t have the nerve to think about what would come after kisses and caresses since he already felt like bursting out of his skin at every smallest touch, as if all his nerves were alight with some mysterious deep pleasure. Merely kissing Cloud was better than any sex he had ever had. It made his head explode into a frenzy of fireworks and pleasure boil in his stomach. He groaned into the kiss, bearing his weight on Cloud with the full intent of not having one millimeter of space between them. 

Cloud gasped for breath under him, his body going still for a moment. Sephiroth peered at him.

“Sephiroth. I’ve never… been with anyone,” Cloud then confessed and the words made Sephiroth’s mind black out for a moment. He had no idea what he had done to earn such a gift from Gaia. He looked down at Cloud, who was staring at him with a sharp look, clearly refusing to feel ashamed about his inexperience. Sephiroth adored it.

“We’ll take it slow,” he murmured, resuming his ministrations.   

Yeah, slow was good. Just kissing Cloud made him feel like he was going to come in his pants. Sex with Cloud would probably be explosive to the degree that Sephiroth would need to search for the pieces of his soul across the universe, and there was absolutely no way he was going to explore that possibility while they were still playing boyscouts with Genesis and Angeal. Not when someone could barge in any given moment.

Absolutely no way in hell.

But, in the meanwhile... He caught Cloud’s lips once more. The night was still young and Sephiroth would have his fill now that he had Cloud exactly where he belonged.  

Cloud woke up in the morning in an unfamiliar bed with unfamiliar arms around him. Unfamiliar, but yet so familiar. He squirmed a bit to free his arm from under his body and the strong arms around him tightened. A content sigh escaped his lips and he felt a soft kiss land on his head.

The events of the previous night came back to him little by little. The drama, the confession, the kisses. The bonding.

Shit.

He really had soulbonded with Sephiroth. His crush of all these years, the object of his deepest, hidden yearnings. His soulmate.

Cloud couldn’t believe he was in bed with Sephiroth. In fact, he couldn’t believe any of it.

But what was supposed to be an unreal illusion definitely seemed very real, turning him around to meet those amazing emerald eyes, those alien slit pupils and that handsome otherworldly face. He sighed once more, a content smile playing at his lips. He felt the bond between them sparkle, a constant pressure of another that should’ve been worrying and annoying, but which only good and natural. All the nausea and the prickling of his skin was gone, leaving behind only a deep feeling of euphoria.

Sephiroth smiled at him and Cloud’s soul burned bright. His mate drew him to a kiss, morning breath and all. A slow tangle of lips and tongues, a hand on his waist and another stroking his cheek, drawing abstract patterns on the flesh of it. Mapping his freckles and the tiniest of wrinkles around the corners of his eyes.

It felt so good, being in Sephiroth’s arms. Cloud’s whole universe was centered on this moment.

Cloud let his own hands lazily wander under Sephiroth’s shirt, feeling the planes of the other’s body. He felt like screaming – he couldn’t believe he had a permission to do that. In fact, by the way Sephiroth deepened their kiss, he was commanded to do more, touch more, caress more, explore the whole body of his mate until no place was left untouched.

Cloud blushed. Gods, he wanted more but wasn’t quite sure what this more would entail. He certainly had entertained some scenarios during his years of loneliness, always ashamed of his thoughts. It was clear that he wouldn’t need to be ashamed of them anymore.

“Good morning,” said Sephiroth between their butterfly kisses, pulling Cloud flush against his body and tangling their legs together.

“G’morning,” Cloud rasped. Oh. He had meant to sound more enthusiastic. Sephiroth smiled.

“How are you feeling?” He looked at Cloud with an assessing look, his face suddenly neutral and lips drawn to a thin line. “You don’t regret anything?”

Cloud watched with fascination how Sephiroth’s Adam’s apple bobbed when he swallowed. He removed his hands from under Sephiroth’s shirt and brought them to cup his face.

“Regret? How could I regret something this perfect?” It came out as a whisper, as if the words were too fragile to say out loud. “I still can’t believe this is true but there’s nothing I want more.”

He placed a small kiss on Sephiroth’s lips and felt his soulmate relax in his embrace. His own heart exploded with happiness.

“Good,” Sephiroth sighed, his voice deep and content. Happy. Filled with emotion. “I only want you.”

Once more, Cloud felt heat creep up his face.

“You’ve got to stop saying shit like that,” he grumbled. It melted into a yelp as Sephiroth grabbed his ass and grinned at him mischievously, kissing him yet again and yeah, Cloud was already becoming greedy; he couldn’t possibly ever live without Sephiroth’s kisses again.

“I will never stop saying shit like that,” promised Sephiroth, murmuring into their kiss. “Never. I’ve waited for you too long to keep my mouth shut.”

Cloud moaned softly. Things were definitely heating up.

Until there was a knock on the door.

“Sephiroth!” Cloud recognized Genesis’ voice. “Infinite in mystery, are you still sleeping? Wake up, it’s already past nine!”

Sephiroth groaned and Cloud buried his face to his mate’s shoulder, letting his hands fall away from Sephiroth’s body.

Sephiroth touched his face and looked into his eyes. “Cloud. Would you feel comfortable telling them?”

Cloud thought about it, but only for a moment, and nodded. “Yeah. They deserve to know.”

Sephiroth huffed a small laugh. “That they do. You know, all this… flirting and wooing and… ah.” He stared at Cloud, at loss for words. Cloud felt a grin tug at his mouth and he pecked Sephiroth’s lips, unable to resist.

“You mean to say that Genesis was the mastermind behind everything?”

Sephiroth nodded, a slight shade of pink on his cheeks. Cloud pinched his nose and kissed it afterwards.

“I loved every moment. Thank you. Thank you for gifting me with so many precious memories.”

“We’ll create many more,” whispered Sephiroth, looking at him with deep sense of devotion.

Cloud couldn’t believe he was the object of that gaze but the steady pulsing of his ink confirmed everything. This wasn’t a dream. This had somehow become Cloud’s reality. 

He felt Sephiroth tug at the hem of his shirt. “Take this off. I want to see their faces when they see your ink.”

Cloud stared at Sephiroth. “No way I’m going to walk around only in my boxers.”

“You can borrow my beach shorts.”

“You have aloha shorts?” Cloud raised his eyebrows and Sephiroth laughed.

“Yes. I just left the beach bum look for Genesis. He handles it much better.”

Cloud laughed. Well. Why not. They were bound to find out anyway and Nibel people weren’t known to be very body-shy. They got up from the bed and the moment their bodies separated Cloud felt like he had been crushed by a mountain.

“Sephiroth,” he whimpered and then his mate was there, taking his hand and blessedly touching him again.

“Nnn. I had no idea it would feel this horrible to be physically apart,” Sephiroth said with a low voice, a slight tremor to it.

Cloud nodded. “It must be the bond. It’s still new, I hear that it can take a week or two to settle. Although the worst should pass in hours, or so I’ve been told.”

Sephiroth frowned but then his face lit up and he looked at Cloud with a smile. “Shinra gives its employees two weeks of bond leave. I’m filing for my leave today, it’ll be effective immediately.”

Cloud stared at Sephiroth. “You… will?”

Sephiroth nodded and pulled him closer.

“Yes. I’ll come with you to Nibelheim if you want. I want to see where my soulmate grew up.” He then kissed Cloud. “We’ll create happy memories of Nibelheim to replace your unhappy ones. And then you’re ready to leave for Midgar.”

Cloud nodded, grateful. It sounded like a good plan.

When Cloud finally, after many more kisses, emerged from Sephiroth’s room wearing only Sephiroth’s shorts, his ink visible for Angeal and Genesis to see, he couldn’t help but to burst in laughter at the utterly floored way they both were looking at him.

“CLOUD! What are you— Holy fuck your ink! SEPHIROTH!” Genesis howled, all but stomping his foot angrily. Cloud had never seen the man so agitated, not even when he had emerged from the murky desert waters drenched to the bone.

“There is no hate, only joy, for you are beloved by the goddess. Hero of the dawn, Healer of worlds,” Genesis continued, reciting Loveless with wide eyes. Cloud snorted.  

Sephiroth came to the room as well, already fully clothed in his t-shirt and denim shorts. He grabbed Cloud’s hand and entwined their fingers.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Sephiroth noted nonchalantly, addressing his friends but nodding towards Cloud’s chest. The contours of his face softened. “Genesis, Angeal. Meet Cloud, my soulmate.”

Cloud blushed and yelped when he was suddenly embraced by two sets of strong arms.

“Welcome to our circle of friends,” said Angeal, sounding satisfied. Genesis proceeded to kiss his cheeks with so much gusto that Cloud swatted at him with an exasperated huff.

“Cloud! Thank Gaia, finally!” Genesis proclaimed with a fake sniffle. “Sephiroth has been insufferable. Thank you for letting us out of our misery and welcome to the family!”

Cloud melted into the arms of the two SOLDIERs. Friends. Family. Not only had he gained a soulmate but also friends who welcomed him with open arms. He felt his eyes burn and turned away. It was too much, way too much happiness before even 10am!

“You got anything to eat?” Cloud said, trying to distract his own treacherously happy thoughts. He was not going to cry, for fuck’s sake!

Sephiroth’s arms encircled his waist. “We’ve got everything. What do you want? Eggs, croissants, bread, yoghurt and muesli…”

“Let’s have a celebratory bond brunch!” Genesis exclaimed. “I’ll send a message to Tifa.”

Cloud looked at him incredulously. “You have Tifa’s number?”

Genesis only laughed and typed in a message on his PHS. Sephiroth used the time to type in his announcement of a bond leave and to send it to Shinra.

It didn’t take long for Tifa to appear at the Villa. She was slightly out of breath and wearing a huge smile on her face, clearly having run as fast as she could.

“Cloud! Congratulations!” She shot Cloud a wide smile and hugged him tight, placing a kiss on his cheek. “The ink is absolutely beautiful!”

Cloud’s chest felt tight. Gaia – all his loved ones, old and new, gathered together to celebrate. What had he done to deserve this?

“Genesis and Angeal told me everything,” Tifa whispered into his ear, still hugging him. “I’m so happy for you.”

Cloud couldn’t hold it back anymore. He sniffled audibly. Genesis warbled and Tifa hugged him even tighter. Then Sephiroth was there, pressing his large form against his back, pulling him against his strong chest while Tifa still had her arms around his front.

”Sephiroth.” It was Tifa. “You treat him nice or I will personally kick your sorry ass all the way to the Northern Crater,” she said, her voice stern. Cloud felt Sephiroth’s large hands move behind his body to engulf Tifa into their weird three-way sandwich embrace as well.

“Duly noted,” Sephiroth said with an even voice, surprisingly serious.

Gaia. They really needed to move on or Cloud would melt into a puddle of sentimental goo on the floor.

“Okay guys, off. Let’s eat,” he said, embarrassed.

“And toast,” added Sephiroth, blessing them all with a wide smile, the type Cloud had never seen before. He couldn’t wait to see all the yet unknown expressions on Sephiroth’s face in the years to come.

“And toast,” he mumbled, his voice breaking as he watched his circle of friends and life partners – one romantic, one platonic, all equally dear to him.

He finally had so much to look forward to in his life. He couldn’t wait.

The rest of the festival went in a buzz for Sephiroth. After their brunch they had ventured out to the festival area, their inks hidden behind their clothes.  

“Let me hold your hand,” he had suggested.

Cloud’s eyes had gone absurdly wide. ”People will see.”

”Let them,” he had whispered fervently. “Let them see that I belong to you.”

The way Cloud had blushed had been adorable. It had made Sephiroth want to devour him whole. Fortunately, now he knew the time would come. He and Cloud belonged together in every imaginable way.

Cloud had promised to stay at Seventh Heaven, giving Tifa a chance to see the last of the gigs and shows. She had been lenient enough with Cloud and Cloud wanted to give her a chance to unwind before they’d have to dismantle Seventh Heaven, pack their belongings and travel back to Nibelheim. Genesis and Angeal, too, were somewhere catching the final gigs of the festival.

The air was fresh after the rain and people around them seemed happy and satisfied, the extravaganza finally drawing close to an end. The venue was still filled with music and sounds, but the overall atmosphere was chilled and subdued as compared with the earlier party boogie days.

Sephiroth was content to stay at Cloud’s side, as close as possible to his newly-bonded mate. Despite being enhanced, even he needed some time to get used to the static, pleasurable tug and pull of the bond he shared with Cloud. Whenever he strayed too far, his soul bristled with unhappiness and he felt a powerful urge to return to Cloud’s side. The longest he was able to resist the pull was when he went to get supplies for Cloud.

Needless to say, General Sephiroth casually lounging around Seventh Heaven while drinking their coffee and eating their banana blueberry nice cream did wonders to the reputation of Cloud and Tifa’s business. The first thing that day, Genesis had even gone as far as to erase half of the menu from the blackboard, replacing it with the text “Soon also in Midgar!” in capital letters.  

“When do you intend to relocate to Midgar?” inquired Sephiroth during a chill off-peak hour, lazily leaning against the stall and letting his fingers rest on the counter. Cloud was absentmindedly playing with them, tracing the shape of the long digits with his hands as if trying to learn every curve and crease of skin there, every shape of his nails and what the soft pads of flesh under his fingertips felt like.

Cloud frowned. “I don’t know yet. We still need some money, but not much. Hopefully an assignment, or two… And yeah, we don’t have any place for Seventh Heaven yet.”

Sephiroth nodded and hummed. “I’m sure we can help.”

Cloud turned to look at him. “And we’d appreciate that. But still, this is something we gotta do by ourselves. And we definitely don’t want any money.” He huffed and Sephiroth hid his grin at how adoringly proud Cloud was.

Sephiroth had more money than he could spend in a lifetime and he wanted nothing but to spoil his soulmate who seemed only to have known sparsity. He just had to figure out a good way of doing it in a way that didn’t offend Cloud.

“Also, I’m not leaving Tifa.”

Had Cloud said so a day or two before, Sephiroth would’ve been jealous. Now he only held Cloud’s hand tighter. 

“I don’t expect you to. We’ll get both of you settled in Midgar.”

Even though it would have been lovely to have Cloud permanently stay at his place already, Sephiroth understood Cloud’s fierce need to be independent. And they had just met; they would take it slow. Sephiroth was in no hurry, he had the rest of his life to wait now that the bond between them made sure they would always stay together.

“Hi Sephiroth,” he heard Angeal’s voice and waved a greeting at the approaching forms of his friends. “We got a message from the puppy. He sends his congratulations. Oh, here’s the video.”

Both Sephiroth and Cloud leaned in to watch the small video greeting from Angeal’s PHS.

Zack’s dark spiky hair appeared on the screen together with his customary grin and sparkling eyes.

“Seph! Congrats! I hear you found your sweetheart and that he’s a badass country bumpkin just like me! I can’t wait to meet him. Heeey, Cloudy? Are you there too—I can call you Cloudy, right? Or Spiky, I hear you have an awesome hair! You take good care of Mr. Grumpy, ok? Can’t wait to meet ya, we’ll be the bestest of friends! Ngghhh, Lazard’s on me, gotta go, byeee!”

Cloud stared at the screen. SOLDIER First Class Zack Fair. “Is he always this… energetic?” 

Genesis grimaced. “This was him being subdued. Just you wait and see.”

“Umh,” said Cloud eloquently, seemingly not really knowing what to say. Sephiroth grinned at him. “Welcome to Midgar.”

“Speaking of which…” said Genesis with a suspiciously excited tone in his voice. “This just appeared in the Silver Elite mailing list. You might want to take a look.”

This time it was Genesis’ PHS that was shoved to Sephiroth and Cloud’s face.

Festa del Soul for the General <3

It has been reported that our beloved General Sephiroth, the most eligible bachelor of all Gaia, has filed for bond leave. According to the rumors, the General has found his soulmate from Festa del Sol, a four-day music and events extravaganza held annually in the lovely holiday resort town of Costa del Sol.  

Sephiroth’s alleged soulmate is Cloud Strife, 20, from Nibelheim, also known as the most badass mercenary on the whole Western Continent. As a proof, Silver Elite has the pleasure of presenting you the following photos of the couple and a video of General Sephiroth's soulmate in action. The video also features Cloud Strife's friend Tifa Lockhart, also from Nibelheim. 

Further announcements:

• Cloud Strife and Tifa Lockhart are moving to Midgar in the near future to establish a drinks and food business and provide mercenary services. We will keep you posted about the location and the exact opening date – go and show some support to our beloved General's soulmate! 

• Launching Sefikura Soulmate Spars! Come see Sephiroth and Cloud Strife in action! Date and place: TBA. For preliminary ticket bookings, contact Cmdr Genesis Rhapsodos, [email protected].

Sephiroth stared at Genesis’ PHS and slowly, very slowly, turned to look at his friend.

"You didn't..."

Genesis smirked. "You owe me. Really owe me."

Cloud, too, looked at the screen, appalled to see his small form launch into an eloquent Omnislash. “Oh gods, that video…” He groaned and Genesis patted his head.

“Don’t worry, you look magnificent,” noted Sephiroth, giving his soulmate a look that instantly made Cloud blush and stammer.

“Aww you two. And oh, look at the photos. Filthy,” whispered Genesis with glee.

And true, there were two photos of Sephiroth and Cloud dancing, completely immersed in each other, hands exploring each other’s bodies unabashedly. Cloud had his eyes closed, head tilted just so and his lips parted, and Sephiroth was peering down at him with a lustful look, hair in a high ponytail.

“I’ll never live this down,” groaned Cloud.

“Live what down?” Tifa had returned to the stall and before Cloud could do anything, Genesis had already showed her what they were looking at. Her eyes widened.

“Cloud, you dirty, dirty boy,” she whispered with a dangerous twinkle in her eyes. “This is excellent promotion material!”

“Yes, I suggest you use the momentum and move to Midgar as soon as possible,” noted Angeal, laughing silently.

“I agree,” Sephiroth said and smiled at Cloud. “The sooner the better.” He leaned in to kiss Cloud, just to make a point.

After the final night’s party at the Festa, Genesis and Angeal had returned to Midgar immediately, already placed on the SOLDIER roster. Genesis had moaned and groaned something along the lines of “you owe me so much” and “there are already 728 preliminary bookings for the Sefikura Soulmate Spar and if you fail me now I will fireball you all the way to space.” Angeal had merely winked and disappeared with a lewd-sounding “have fu—n!”

Sephiroth, instead, found himself enjoying the nothingness of Nibelheim. He had returned there with Tifa and Cloud, shocking the town out of its peaceful everyday proceedings. He didn’t know everything about Cloud’s past, but he felt an immense sense of satisfaction watching as people literally groveled at Cloud’s feet now that he had brought his soulmate, the General of Shinra, SOLDIER First Class Sephiroth, with him to Nibelheim.

Cloud deserved nothing but respect and Sephiroth would make sure that was the case in the future as well.

They spent their time in Nibelheim planning Cloud and Tifa’s upcoming move to Midgar, regularly calling the other Firsts who had already scouted a few suitable locations for Seventh Heaven both in the slums and topside. Of course, the ultimate decision regarding the location was left to Cloud and Tifa, who had decided that they’d be off in two months.

When they were free, Sephiroth and Cloud roamed the Nibel mountains, fighting monsters side by side, having instant coffee and sharing passionate kisses whenever possible. Cloud always tasted heavenly, as did the Nibel instant coffee in the wild. Sephiroth couldn’t have been happier.

One night they were returning from their evening hike, slightly out of breath from fighting and defeating a Nibel dragon. The night was beautiful with the full moon shining beautifully.

Suddenly, a few hundred meters before the village, Cloud stopped and turned to look at Sephiroth. Sephiroth smiled indulgently when Cloud grasped both of his hands, linking their fingers but keeping some space between their bodies.

“Sephiroth.” Cloud’s voice was serious.

“Hmm,” he answered, not worried but rather intrigued. Cloud swallowed.

”In Nibelheim we have this belief that soulmates who consummate their bond during the full moon will be blessed with everlasting happiness.”

Sephiroth stared at Cloud, who stared right back with dark eyes. Sephiroth’s breath hitched.

"You're pulling my leg, aren't you?" he asked, his voice hopelessly hopeful and his heart beating fast, erratically. He felt the bond between them sizzle and crack.  

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not,” said Cloud very slowly, not turning his gaze away. “You wouldn't want to risk a lifetime of happiness, now would you?" He pointed at the brightly glowing moon above them. 

Sephiroth managed to shake his head, the tiniest movement that made Cloud laugh softly. The sound went directly to Sephiroth’s core. Then, just like that, Cloud led Sephiroth into his house, into his life, into his heart and into his bed.

Sephiroth soon found out that sex with Cloud was every bit as intense and soul-shattering as he had expected. His lost his consciousness and his soul exploded into million tiny shards that spread across the universe, the moon laughing at him from high above, reaching out to parse the shards of his soul together again. Only that it wasn’t merely his soul that was returned to him. No, in between there were pieces of Cloud’s soul, the fragments of his soulmate’s very being making their home in Sephiroth’s heart.

When Sephiroth regained his consciousness and stared at Cloud’s flushed and blissed out face under him, he instantly knew Cloud had experienced the same. And when Cloud pulled him to another kiss, eyes glinting dangerously with pleasure, it indeed felt awfully lot like a promise of everlasting happiness.