Ficcie: Hush little baby, Chapter Two
“Seph?”
A somewhat put upon sigh emanated from the other side of the room.
“Yes Zackary?”
“Will you do me a favour?”
The General looked up sharply from his desk. Not because he was reluctant to carry out a favour - quite the opposite. It was because he was worried. He was worried because Zack usually had such a jesting tone to his voice; especially when he was asking for a favour. Normally he would put on that ridiculous, innocent little boy’s tone whenever he wanted Sephiroth to do something for him. But this time his tone was devoid of any such thing. He sounded completely serious.
“Under normal circumstances, Zackary, I would tell you to stop being delusional, but since you sound so sincere, I will let my curiosity run away with me, and say - and may lightening strike me down for my foolishness - yes. Now what do you want.”
The General said, leaning forwards slightly, curious and beginning to get the tiniest bit concerned.
“I want you to observe my class of cadets.”
Sephiroth blinked in surprise. What an odd request for Zackary. He had imagined something outrageous, like ‘can you please give me a year of paid leave?’
But this?
“Of course, Zackary.” Sephiroth replied slowly, narrowing his eyes. “Is there any particular reason why? Any particular cadet that I should be watching?”
Zack squirmed a little, formulating an answer. Technically, he was not allowed to say yes. That would be construed as favouritism by the book, and they both had to be careful what they said.
“Oh no; no one in particular. It’s the group you’ve seen before, you know, the one with the Jenkins and Marsell and Skinner and, oh god what was his name….the blond, spiky haired kid.”
Zack hoped that Sephiroth would get the picture from his extreme hinting.
“And I’d just like to get your opinion on whether you think any of them have changed, or seem a bit…off. I don’t want my teaching standards slipping.”
Sephiroth rolled his eyes at Zack’s extremely over the top hinting. Really, did his friend think he was stupid? He had realised what the man wanted the minute he said ‘blond, spiky haired kid.’
It didn’t take a genius to work it out.
“Alright Zackary; go and prepare for your lesson then, and I’ll come and observe.”
Zack smiled at his commanding officer; a soft, sincere smile, not the normal mischievous grin that was plastered on his face.
“Thanks.”
***
Zack gritted his teeth as he caught sight of Cloud wandering into class, that glazed look that was practically omni-present these days in his blue eyes.
But it was not merely the look in his eyes. It was something that was a little further down.
It was the darkening area of skin on the boy’s jaw that shadowed to just the top of his neck.
He was suddenly aware of a set of eyes burning into his, and looked up to see that Cloud had caught him staring. Oh well, might as well go over and ask about it now. There was no point in trying to hide his staring.
“Hey.” He greeted quietly once he had jogged up to the boy.
“Hey.” Cloud replied, mustering up a small smile.
Zack smiled disarmingly and tried to make himself seem as unimposing as he could.
“I uh, I don’t suppose you fancy telling me where that bruise came from, huh?” He asked quietly, ducking his head nearer to Cloud’s, so that none of the other Cadets would hear him.
Cloud froze, and it seemed that the colour drained from his face. He clenched his fists, and Zack actually moved back slightly, in case Cloud got it into his head to get violent.
“It came from practice.” Was all the boy said, his voice cold and detached, looking away from his instructor.
Zack shook his head. He wasn’t letting Cloud get away that easily.
“Nu uh, no way, I’m not letting you slide with that. I didn’t see that bruise yesterday in practice. You’re gonna have to do better than that.”
He tried to make his voice stern, letting Cloud know that he shouldn’t lie to him about this, but gentle at the same time, as he didn’t want to scare the boy away.
“Well did it ever occur to you that maybe I got it during practice? You know how bad I am, why are you so surprised?” Cloud snapped, not caring that he drew a few stares.
Zack drew back, a little shocked. Cloud thought he was bad? No friggin’ way. Yeah, his standards had dropped since he had become so reclusive, but he was still better than a lot of cadets his age. And when he was up to his best, he was a skilled little guy.
“Cloud, you’re not bad…” Zack began, but trailed off with a sigh as he saw that Cloud was beginning to turn away. “Okay, okay, look I’m gonna leave you alone now, so just calm down, yeah?”
Cloud nodded briefly and wandered off.
Zack turned around and started a little when he found Sephiroth standing there, staring impassively at him.
Zack quickly shouted out orders for the cadets to begin a normal round of sparring, and went to join Sephiroth.
The reason he had asked the man to check on Cloud was that he wanted to be sure that he wasn’t just imagining Cloud’s odd behaviour. And Sephiroth was probably the most observant man in existence, and besides, he had seen Cloud and the rest of this group in action before. He would know for certain if there was something disturbing the blond. And Zack was hoping that the older man would also be able to help him knock some sense into Cloud. After all, Sephiroth was something of an idol to Cloud, so if he wouldn’t listen to Sephiroth, there was definitely something awry.
“Alright Zackary, you have peaked my interest. What is troubling him?” Sephiroth finally asked after around ten minutes of watching Cloud.
Although the General was speaking to Zack, he never took those piercing eyes off of Cloud’s form.
“So you think there is something wrong with him then?” Zack asked intensely, staring at Sephiroth, eager for an answer.
“Most definitely; his form is off, his reflexes are dull and he doesn’t even seem to be putting in any effort. Nor does he seem to care about much going on around him. None of these traits belong to Cadet Strife.” Sephiroth paused and raised an eyebrow at Zack. “You mean you don’t even have a hunch as to what ails him?”
Zack sighed as he watched Cloud fall to his opponent and then simply blink up at the other boy with dull and listless eyes.
“No. I just want to make sure that there was actually something wrong with him before I do anything. Though god knows what I’m gonna do.” Zack sighed, raking his hands through his hair.
Sephiroth raised an eyebrow slightly.
“I do realise that this is a course of action rarely taken, but if you really don’t know what to do, you could force him into a session with a counsellor. That is why we have them, Zackary. And I think you have ground enough to force him, according to the book.”
Zack sighed again, and looked down at the reclusive blond. He shook his head.
“It’s a good idea, Seph, but to be honest, I think it would freak him out more than help him right now. Besides, even if we manage to get him there, we could have difficulty keeping him there. I mean, what are we supposed to do, strap him down?” Zack asked, a frown forming on his features. “He’d just wanna bolt. I’ll have to deal with it myself.”
Sephiroth nodded and turned back to watching the class, who were unaware of the General’s presence.
Zack stayed silent for a while, watching Sephiroth, trying to gauge how agreeable the other man was.
“Speaking of dealing with him…I was hoping that you could help.” Zack spoke up tentatively.
Sephiroth turned sharply to face Zack, an amused look on his face.
“And how could I help, Zackary? I barely know the boy, and surely he would feel more comfortable talking to someone who knows him better…you, for example.”
“That’s a point, but I have a counterpoint; I have already tried talking to him, but he just won’t listen. I don’t think he wants me to see him as needy. And besides, you’re kind of a hero figure to him - Hell; you’re a hero figure to just about everyone. And you’re his commanding officer - as in, top dog, can’t get any higher, sort of thing. And Cloud, unlike some of the little bastards here, respects that. I want you to try kind of shocking him into talking.”
Sephiroth sighed, turning once again to the blond haired recruit who was not showing any where near the skill that Sephiroth knew he had.
“Alright, Zackary. I’ll talk to him. But I really do think that you should keep at it - you’re the one he knows best. He trusts you. If you persevere, you are the one he is most likely to talk to.” The General told the brunette, although he already knew that Zack wouldn’t just give up.
“Oh, and by the way, where did he get that bruise? In practice yesterday?”
Zack gave a half hearted, almost frustrated shrug.
“No. It wasn’t there yesterday, and I went to ask him about it at the beginning of the lesson, but he wouldn’t talk to me. Told me he got it in practice yesterday, but I find that highly unlikely. We only did the physical for the last ten minutes, and he didn’t get hit in the face.”
Sephiroth nodded, storing that information away for later.
Zack turned around and walked back down to the class, wandering around and giving advice.
When the training session was over, Zack once again yelled to the cadets that they should pack up all their equipment and then leave.
He approached Cloud, and leaned in to talk to the boy quietly.
“Listen, I need you to hang back for a minute, okay?” He murmured into Cloud’s ear.
The boy glared at him.
“I told you, I’m fine, and I got this bruise from practice. When are you going to give it up?” He smiled to make it look as though he was amused that Zack was worrying over nothing.
But Zack had fallen for this trick previously, and he wasn’t going to do so again. Besides, he now had Sephiroth’s opinion backing his.
“Look.” He said firmly, gripping Cloud’s arm. “I know that you didn’t get that bruise from practice the other day - what do you think I do during practice, sit around, not paying attention to my own cadets? Not bloody likely, I know what happens during training. And I also know that you are not fine, your behaviour is telling me that, clear as day.”
Cloud shook his head stubbornly and tried to twist away from Zack’s hold.
But the other man held on and drew the boy back, clasping onto both his arms, lightly stroking one to try to calm him down.
“Please, I’ve got someone that I’d like you to meet.” He told the boy quietly, whispering in his ear.
“Well whoever it is is wasting their time - there’s nothing wrong with me!” Cloud snapped, still wriggling, trying to escape from the other man’s hold.
“Do you not trust me to organise my own time productively, Cadet Strife?”
Cloud whipped around and his eyes widened at the sight of General Sephiroth standing before them, his face placid.
“N-no, Sir, that’s not what I m-meant…” Cloud replied, cursing his nervous stuttering.
The General moved forward, waving off Cloud’s formality and salute.
“Very well then. In that case you can trust that I am not wasting my time by coming here to talk to you, and you will listen to what myself and Zackary have to say.” Sephiroth said in a tone that was mild, but nevertheless rooted Cloud to the spot and made him obey.
Sephiroth nodded at the boy’s silence, then continued.
“I am not wasting my time here, Cadet, because I am concerned. I am concerned about you as an asset to SOLDIER, because you are a skilled cadet, and your recent troubles are affecting your work. Work that I know can be of a very high level. But your standard of work is slipping. And this is not only a disadvantage to you, it is a disadvantage to SOLDIER.” Sephiroth said in a slow and measured tone, watching the cadet carefully.
Cloud was doing his best not to flinch at the words, but Zack - who still had one hand on the blonde’s arm in case he decided to run - could feel the boy’s muscles go tense.
But Sephiroth went on regardless.
“I am also concerned about you as a person. The military is supposed to be tough, but not unbearable. There is a difference between developing a tough skin and being tormented. People who victimise others are not needed or wanted in the Shinra army.
And I know that you are not behaving in your normal manner. So as your chance to do something about whatever is troubling you…is there something you wish to tell me?”
Sephiroth’s piercing, soul weighing green eyes locked onto deep blue, and all else seemed to be forgotten in that moment. Time seemed to slow and there appeared to be nothing other than those two intense eyes as silent, tense, restless thoughts seemed to reverberate between the three people in the room.
This strange sense of almost unbearable conflict continued to stretch out until Cloud said in a quiet voice that nevertheless seemed to echo around the whole building;
“No sir, nothing.”
Zack shivered.
TBC