Work Text:
Every day brought new information. Every employee interaction with an Abnormality had to be meticulously logged, analyzed, and redacted.
Yesod watched the contents of the morning's observation logs scroll up past him on the wall-mounted monitors of his office. The contents of his stomach threatened to scroll the same way. Would the order to redact the names and dates come again today, would they be allowed to linger until the next disaster? Once more, he wished for the chance to stand face-to-face with his designers. Perhaps they could be convinced to sever his emotional drivers.
Then came the sound of rustling paperwork behind him.
“You alright there, Yesod?”
He knew who it was before he turned around.
“James.”
James was perched on Yesod’s desk with no cares given for the documents and files that he was sitting on. Their precise order, ranked by both size and importance, meant nothing to him.
“You’re looking a little extra purple today, bossman. You feeling ok?”
Yesod took a deep breath as he wondered why James had to shift so when he said that – it disturbed his files even further, among other things. Now that his brooding had been interrupted, it felt like he’d lost control of his office to the intruder.
“You are sitting on my paperwork.”
James tutted in response. “Always such a stiff. Y’know, it’s rude to talk to me from so far away. C’mere, why don’t you?”
Yesod knew that he was more than within his rights to tell James to leave. Moreover, he should do so – James’s attitude was not appropriate for speaking to a superior or for the workplace in general, and he had been trouble since day one. And if any other employee spoke to him like this, he might have done it. Although, there was no other employee that spoke to him like James did, so perhaps he couldn’t be so certain.
He approached until he stood in front of James, face-to-face, jaw tight, hands at his sides.
“That’s more like it~” James hummed as he gave his Sephirah a once-over.
“Let’s see. Hair combed, tie straight, slacks ironed, and no dust on you. You pass inspection today, Mr. Yesod.” James reached out like he meant to pet Yesod’s hair. But, just as his fingers were about to touch those first stray purple hairs, Yesod’s hand slammed into his wrist and seized it firm.
Yesod’s gloves were cold and his grip was tight enough to stop James’s breath in his throat. For a few moments, the only sounds in the office were the hums of the computers and the ventilation.
James wondered if the Viper was about to bite him.
“… Your sleeves are unbuttoned.” Yesod’s voice was flat. “I will be adding a demerit to your file.”
His grip held tight for another moment before James finally let out a nervous laugh.
“Geeze, you know how to give a guy a heart attack. I thought you were gonna eat me! But, d’you think you can call off the demerit on account of you’ve just raised my stress levels? That extra stress could impact my performance.”
Yesod’s fingers loosened as he began buttoning up the offending sleeve.
“It is regulation that all uniforms be properly done. Any loose fabric, hair, or accessories could be grabbed by an Abnormality during a critical moment. This is all detailed on page 11 of the employee manual,” Yesod lectured as he worked.
“Are you sure you don’t just have a fetish for immaculately done suits? – kidding! You know me, I’m always kidding.” James’s smile was crooked, somewhere between fond and worried, as he looked down at his Sephirah.
“And you’re always such a stiff.”
Yesod said nothing as he finished and took a step back from the desk – there was still new information that needed his review, waiting for him.
“But that’s what I like about you.” James looped his arms over Yesod’s shoulders, stopping him where he stood.
“This is…” Yesod’s distress manifested most strongly in the crease between his eyebrows. “…we are at work.”
He put a gloved hand against James’s arm, but didn’t push it away.
“I’m about to clock out for the day- is it really worth givin’ me a demerit after I’ve met my quota? What if I fall asleep hating you?” James looked into Yesod’s brown eyes. He knew that the human forms of the Sephiroth were rumored to be a mask over something more horrible – something created by the cognition filters in the facility, meant to make it easier for the Sephiroth AIs to work with their rank-and-file. But the anxious tremor in Yesod’s eyes as he couldn’t decide where to look (from James’s eyes, to his nose, to his mouth, and back again)… That felt real. That felt human.
“… why are you here if you have met your quota for the day?”
“Why? Why to see you, Mr. Yesod~”
If there was a limit to the cognition filters, it was that the Sephiroth lacked human warmth. James could feel the weight of Yesod as he steadied himself on Yesod’s shoulders, but the man was cold all the way through.
“… I will reconsider the demerit.”
“You’re the best! I’ll see you tomorrow.” James released Yesod.
Yesod said nothing as James slid off his desk with continued disregard for the files and papers he’d been sitting on. He continued to say nothing as James walked, so light on his feet, out of Yesod’s office, sparing Yesod one last little wave goodbye.
The hum of the ventilation was once again the dominant force in the room. James had knocked a blank employee name tag to the floor during his exit. It seemed to sit there and stare up at Yesod.
He was going to give himself five seconds, and then he was going to straighten up his files again. And then, he was going to get back to the work he’d been interrupted from…
Although, he couldn’t quite remember what that was just yet.