Chapter Text
"Mom?" Cloud stood in the doorway to his home and stared at several bags and suitcases spread out on the floor in the middle of the one-room cottage, not quite comprehending what he was seeing. Almost all of them were closed, with Sephiroth kneeling over the last open bag, carefully wriggling a few books into place so this bag, too, could be zipped closed. He could see the corner of the blanket that'd been on first their common bed, then his own, since he was little, and when he looked over, both of the beds were empty of the blankets that'd been draped on top of the duvets. Claudia Strife turned around from where she was packing food, and smiled. Tightly, yes, but happy and relieved.
"Cloud! Zack, good to see you're... why do you smell of smoke?" Her nose scrunched, and Cloud bet they smelled of worse things than just smoke. Caught Sephiroth's shoulders tensing out of the corner of his eyes and couldn't help himself as he took one step towards him, but Zack got there before him. He squeezed his shoulder while dropping the bag he'd been carrying on the floor, as they'd passed by the inn to get their things there before coming back here.
"There was a fire in the reactor," Zack said lightly, stopping by Sephiroth's shoulder and squeezing the back of his neck, thumb rubbing along the pale, slender column. Cloud had to tear his eyes away, an embarrassing amount of heat in his gut from watching that, and his mother's brief, knowing look didn't help at all.
"Good," Sephiroth said, and while he zipped the bag closed, he didn't stand up, "and we are finished here, so we're ready to leave."
"... Where?" Cloud asked, looking with a frown between the other three. Finally remembered to close the open door behind him and actually walk further inside, gaze wandering around as he caught sight of what was still left in the cottage and what had disappeared, clearly packed away.
"I..." Sephiroth stopped, ducked his head so his bangs fell forward, and shrugged. There was an uncomfortable uncertainty in that movement and now Cloud came up beside him too, squatting next to him. Uncertain what else to do, but when a long-fingered hand came up to rest on the back of his neck and he caught a slight quirk of Sephiroth's lips, he relaxed. Looked up to meet Zack's eyes, and was graced with a big grin and a thumbs up from the hand Zack still had free.
"What about Wutai?" Zack said, and didn't get further when Sephiroth snorted.
"Wutai? When I was there... we were both there, Zack, to help tear it down."
"And Wutai's still not takin' that lying down, Genesis and Angeal have both made noises of leaving, I know you know that, and you want to leave... well, maybe it'll take some convincing, but why wouldn't Lord Godo appreciate some very powerful additions to help him regain his country's independence? He'd even get a reactor in the bargain, if he wants to keep it running!" Zack grinned, but Claudia was frowning as she turned around, arms crossed over her chest.
"If he wanted to leave because he was tired of fighting, Zack, you shouldn't push him into a position where he'll just be doing more of the same at some point."
Zack blinked, bright blue eyes flicking from Claudia to Sephiroth, and then there was a sheepish smile crawling over his face.
"Oh, yeah, I guess... sorry, Seph."
"No, it's alright," Sephiroth said, squeezing his hand around Cloud's neck carefully, soft leather rubbing against his skin, right above where his collar would've rested if he'd been wearing it. He sort of wished he'd put it on before he left the inn this morning, actually. "Attacking ShinRa with no plan, as individual entities, would not do much damage. Joining with Wutai, if Lord Godo would have me... us, would."
And damage was clearly what Sephiroth wanted to do, if the way his voice dropped on the last word was anything to go by. Cloud found himself smiling tightly.
"I suppose it would be... worth it, to at least petition Lord Godo to offer our swords, and perhaps as many of ShinRa's assets on Wutainese land that we can secure." Sephiroth sounded composed again, certain and relaxed, and his presence was a stable firestorm in the room, not large enough to contain him, and yet it didn't smother anyone else in there.
"Okay," Cloud said softly, then looked over to his mother, his stomach knotting again, "but why... packing?" He gestured to the bags, then swept an arm to indicate the ransacked cottage. Claudia's smile was small and pained.
"Sometimes you need outside forces to get you to do what you should've done a long time ago, raincloud," Claudia said, coming over and bending forward so she could slide a warm, strong hand over his cheek, cradling it, "it seems ShinRa had at least one person out here keeping an eye on things, and Sephiroth isn't optimistic about my... our involvement in his desertion going unpunished."
It was not difficult to figure out what she meant, and Cloud almost surged to his feet, with only Sephiroth's hand on his neck - and Zack's soothing presence through the bond - to keep him where he was
"What happened!?"
Sephiroth laughed, a soft, dark slide of rumbling chuckles, and squeezed his neck again.
"I have taken care of that, Cloud. I would not have Mistress Strife injured on my behalf." There was dark promise in his voice, and Cloud felt both weirdly jealous and pleased Sephiroth apparently had bonded with his mother. Claudia laughed herself, then leaned forward enough to brush a kiss on Cloud's forehead.
"See, I'm fine, and will continue to be so, since I'm coming with you. We should probably warn Mayor Lockhart, however," Claudia said, glancing to Sephiroth and Zack with a frown as she straightened up.
"Nibelheim ought to be alright, but yes. Zack?"
"On it!"
All of them stood up and let go of the various parts they'd been holding, though Zack was looking between him and Sephiroth several times before he finally left, something thoughtful on his face.
Zack?
Later... not sure I can share.
Cloud stared at the closed door, then shook his head. Share? What was he even talking about..? The thought trailed off as Cloud's gaze wandered over to Sephiroth, and he immediately looked away, his stomach fluttering, feeling both guilty at the blush crawling up on his cheeks and a breathless sort of anticipation. Maybe. Would that even work? Would Sephiroth want that?
Nothing to deal with right now though, as they finished the last of the packing and then Sephiroth took a sheet from the linen closet and left, coming back with a lump thrown over his shoulder.
"Uh. What?" Cloud stared at what was definitely a body rolled up in that sheet. Sephiroth shrugged, lips pressed thinly together.
"Turk."
Turk? There'd been a Turk here? So that's what his mother had meant with their involvement not going unpunished, but... Cloud stared at it, not even aware he was gritting his teeth until his jaw started to ache, and looked up, catching his mother's frown and the slight, tight twist to Sephiroth's mouth.
"But that means they were here the whole time..."
Sephiroth nodded and said nothing, his eyes dark as he looked down at the sheet-draped corpse he'd dropped on the floor. Indeed, they would've had to have been here the whole time. Which meant there must have been something else expected from this than dealing with a malfunction in the reactor and the unexpected issue of an agitated dragon. Cloud's thoughts wandered to Sephiroth in the basement again, the empty fury with no dynamic to anchor it, and couldn't quite suppress a shudder.
Surely that, and Jenova, hadn't been the point? Cloud had to forcibly push that thought aside, helped mostly by the door opening, Zack's voice floating in.
"The mayor was sceptical, but listened. And I've shot Kunsel a message, so he can warn Aerith," Zack said as he stomped back in, snapping his PHS closed, for a moment looking very unhappy before he shook his head, "not that they have any reason to go after her right now, since this has nothing to do with her, but just in case... Even if she probably won't want to leave."
Zack sighed, and Cloud, after picking up one of the bags, came over to bump his shoulder to Zack's arm, earning a quick flash of a smile. He knew nothing about Zack's one-time girlfriend, but whatever the reason he'd have to think ShinRa would pay attention to her, he hoped she'd be okay. Zack threw an arm around his shoulders and squeezed, shooting him a quick grin before he looked up, between the three of them.
"So. We try Wutai first?"
Claudia closed her eyes and tipped her head in a nod that was simply agreement for whatever might be decided, her solid drive now folding under the uncertainty of the moment, of leaving. Cloud ducked away from Zack's one-armed hug to stand over beside his mother instead, giving her the same sort of hug Zack had given him while Sephiroth picked up the other bags he and Claudia had packed, his eyes dark and expression tight, but determined.
"We do."
***
Wutai it was, but their method was maybe a little unorthodox. Especially the way they intended to gain an audience with Lord Godo, since none of them thought it was safe to walk up to the front gate of ShinRa's base in Wutai or up the front steps of the residence of the leader of Wutai.
For more than one reason, Zack thought as he tilted his head back, peering up at the short wall and the building peeking up above, rubbing the back of his neck. They had no idea what sort of orders might have filtered through the military grapevine, if not officially then unofficially (because the the risk of Angeal and Genesis being ordered to detain them and ShinRa believing that it'd be obeyed was small). Completely aside from that, though, there was, well... the whole issue of the war, and Sephiroth's (and his own, as brief as it'd been) involvement in it. Sure, Angeal and Genesis were on Wutainese soil, but that had been the result of many long hours of negotiation. They would be showing up unannounced and without ShinRa's weight behind them.
Which might even be to their help! But they couldn't know that until they could get in front of Lord Godo and present their case, so that led to this, and Sephiroth bent over the panel of wires they'd exposed.
"Well?" Zack swayed on his feet, shooting Cloud a grin and blew him a kiss, which earned him an eyeroll and the mental equivalent of a hiss of his name over the bond, even while Cloud stood beside Sephiroth, holding some of the wires out of the way. They looked natural like that, and Zack was hard-pressed not to stomp over. He didn't as much for their current mission as for the fact that he'd more than once had the same sensation of this feels natural when it came to having Sephiroth next to him, the few times he needed to submit. Thinking about it made him feel guilty now, with Cloud right there, even when he was sure Cloud would call him ridiculous over it.
This couldn't continue like this, but for now...
"For once in your life, show some patience, Zack," Sephiroth muttered, eyes narrowed, "and be ready."
Ready, he could do, especially since when Sephiroth said that, it meant---
"Now."
Zack leaped straight upwards, chasing the tingle of receding electricity and the disconnected alarms, grunting as he slammed harder than he'd planned into the wall, fingers just gripping the windowsill of the window he'd aimed for. It was a lot of weight on a very small surface, and he also couldn't linger, so he hauled himself up, turning at the same time, and, while pressing one side of his body against the wall to keep himself in place, he pressed the fingers of his other hand against the corner of the window, hoping... the soft crack was exactly what he'd wanted to hear. The windowpane shifted away under his grip, not having shattered or even cracked, but rather popped out of the frame. With a grin, Zack hauled himself inside and threw a thumbs up out the window before he carefully fitted the windowpane back into place as well as he could.
He could hear the subtle crackle of the electricity outside coming back, and that meant the alarm was back on too. Just as planned.
The room was dark and empty of anything but furniture, neatly arranged in a curious blend of Wutainese and continental styles. It was also overflowing with plants, so that meant they had gotten the right place. His shoulders drooping in silent relief, Zack took off his boots, not so much to necessarily keep quiet (but that too), as to minimize the dirt he was tracking around, and crept deeper inside. He passed an open kitchen to his right, banora whites in a bowl on the kitchen island, and stopped by the door almost opposite the window he'd entered by. Bedroom. And if he was lucky... though why they'd be out, he didn't know, but they could be. Hell, with their disappearance, maybe Angeal and Genesis would've been called back to Midgar.
Luckily, the bedroom was occupied. Even more luckily, no one was having sex and both Angeal and Genesis were sleeping. For now, anyway. With a grin that felt tight around the corners of his lips because of the last two weeks of tension, Zack slipped inside, choosing Angeal's slide of the bed. Sidled up and leaned over him, hand coming down to cover his mouth.
"An---"
A hand clamped down on his arm, and his feet were pulled out from under him, Angeal not so much rolling off the bed as he threw himself off it, and the sudden slam of his dominant presence against him was enough to leave Zack as spiritually breathless as the slam of his back against the floor left him physically breathless.
Zack!? Cloud's startled yell over the bond, followed by a clumsy, but instinctive, rush of energy steadied him in the middle of the unexpected and completely ruthless assault of Angeal's presence against his own, and he found enough breath to groan.
I'm okay, Spike. Thanks.
"Angeal!"
"Wh--- Zack!?" The pressure eased, Angeal's hands on his arms merely bracing instead of threatening to break the bones now, as he blinked sleep out of his eyes and stared down at him.
"Angeal, what's... Zack?" Genesis was crouched on the bed, peering over the edge to stare down at Angeal and Zack, and Zack, now that he had his thoughts back in order and could actually think instead of feeling like a butterfly pinned to a wall, grinned.
"Uh, hey guys! Could I convince you to let the others in, without any fuss made?"
"Let the others---" Angeal's shoulder slumped before he abruptly got to his feet, hauling Zack with him. "Let us dress and we'll get Sephiroth---"
"And Cloud and his mom," Zack added with a grin, just to watch both of them stare at him blankly before they nodded.
"And Cloud and his mom, inside. Zack, are you okay?" Angeal's hands was on his shoulders again, but squeezing firmly, not crushing this time, and he closed his eyes, just for a moment, and nodded, firmly.
"Well, so far. It's, uh... these last coupla weeks, man." He shrugged, and it was such a relief to see Angeal's reassuring twist to the lips he almost threw himself at him. He had a little more self-control these days, though, so he didn't. "I'll let you guys dress, sorry for, uh, the wakeup call, but it seemed the easiest way to get your attention." With a wave and a grin, he went to leave, freezing in the doorway when Genesis spoke up.
"Zack? How did you get in?"
"Well, you might have to have someone pop the windowpane back in place for you," he said with a chuckle and then slipped out, closing the door behind him. Walked back to the window and peered out, giving the three shadows he could barely see another thumbs up.
Half an hour later, they were all ensconced in Angeal and Genesis' apartment. Sitting, all of them, except for Cloud, who couldn't seem to settle. Watching him from the corner of his eyes while explanations of the last two weeks were dealt with, Zack frowned. Cloud had already reassured him once through the bond that he was okay, but in that case, he would probably be sitting down and still. They were inside, they were... well, not exactly safe, but as safe as they could be at the moment... and Cloud was the only submissive in the room.
Pursing his lips in thought, Zack glanced around. Angeal was paying attention to Cloud intermittently. His mother was too, but she only raised an eyebrow at him when their eyes met. Sephiroth... Sephiroth was also paying attention, despite that all his focus appeared to be on reluctantly explaining his part in Nibelheim, for as little as anything happened. Zack was paradoxically both pleased to see Sephiroth was paying attention, and instantly annoyed. He squashed it, but sooner or later they'd have to do something about this. Talk about it, if only between himself and Cloud and what they might, or might not, want to do.
It wasn't like Cloud was wrong, in the end; what they had, he didn't have to share.
With one last glance around the room (if Genesis was paying attention to Cloud, he was doing a very good job of pretending not to), Zack slumped back in his seat.
"Cloud, you're getting me nervous, pacing like that. Come sit." He'd hesitated before he started speaking, but at the last two words he allowed just a bit of firm demand to weigh them down; not enough to be overbearing, but also to make it more than just a suggestion.
Direction, if Cloud wanted it. The way Cloud's presence in the bond warmed up and instantly melted, even if all he got from Cloud physically was a flick of a glance and Cloud frowning before he nodded, was reward enough. It was even better when Cloud, after a beat of hesitation, didn't choose sit down beside him, even if that would've been good enough for him, but rather knelt right by his legs, a strong, narrow shoulder digging into his knee. Cloud wasn't the only one who shuddered lightly and relaxed, actually relaxed, with that.
And while he could feel some apprehension through the bond, it, too, melted away when no one made any note of what he'd done. And why would they? There was nothing wrong with needing this, for either of them, after almost two weeks of things being crazy and them having barely any chance to properly touch down. In fact, it almost felt like the only real grounding they'd been able to indulge in was Zack brushing and braiding Cloud's hair in the mornings. Zack focused back on the conversation around him just as Genesis huffed, arms crossed over his chest.
"So. What do you want to do?" It was weighted, both distantly wary and with a tension underneath, Genesis watching Sephiroth through narrowed eyes. Sephiroth was staring somewhere off at the wall, but he glanced first to Cloud, and then to Zack, who shot him a grin and tilted his head in a nod, trying to project as much encouragement as he could.
"I've... wanted to leave, for a long time," Sephiroth said quietly, frowning, head tilted again so his bangs hid most of his expression, and Zack could feel Cloud leaning a little harder against his knee, but he didn't otherwise move, "and the only reason you two haven't 'disappeared' is because you're here."
The flat pronouncement made both Angeal and Genesis twitch like stung, and both of them started, at the same time, to try and say something and then both broke off, looking at each other. Zack grimaced, tightening one hand into a fist. He'd... kind of suspected, when the distance that had sprung up with Angeal and Genesis being placed on the base in Wutai hadn't just been physical, but it hurt hearing it and knowing Angeal hadn't said anything about it.
"If you had asked me---" The way Sephiroth shook his head was almost a shudder. "Disappearing would be hard, with ShinRa being so... ubiquitous. But we're not the only ones who aren't pleased with ShinRa's behaviour." Sephiroth finally straightened up, looking between them all, though the firmness of his shoulders was belied by the uncertain darkness in his eyes.
"I am... We all know what I did, here. Would Lord Godo consider listening, or should I leave?"
And let the rest of them stay, was implicit underneath, and Zack shifted in his seat, leaning forward, but Cloud got there before him.
"You wouldn't be going alone, in that case. Right, Zack?" Cloud tipped his head to look up at him, and Zack ruffled the blond spikes with a grin.
"You bet, Spike!"
"Charming---"
"Genesis." Angeal shook his head, and it was his turn to glance between them. "I think he'd listen at least, but Sephiroth... why this course of action?"
"It's the most productive one. And it seems... only right, to repair some of the damage I have done to Wutai, if Lord Godo wishes to extend the opportunity for me to do so." Angeal's question was met with a smile that wasn't a smile, and Zack knew that whatever happened, whatever they did, he was definitely not letting Sephiroth go off alone. He didn't deserve to be left to his own devices, without any anchors, and not just because he'd cause far more devastation than if he had some direction in the form of Wutai's freedom. He wanted to see a real smile on Sephiroth's face, however small, and not one to do with bloodshed.
***
In some ways he was more stable, now. The emptiness he'd experienced in the basement reading Hojo's reports, theories and 'science' was gone, replaced by the usual weight of his dynamic. Sephiroth hadn't thought of it much before - had sometimes thought it wasn't there at all, despite proof otherwise - but it was undeniable, and while he didn't know what to do with it, it was in its own way a reassurance. He may not be human in the ways everyone else was, but he was still human.
That didn't help him with what was going to happen now, after Angeal and Genesis had managed to arrange a meeting with Lord Godo late the next evening, in a room tucked away from the greatest flow of people in the palace. If Lord Godo even took their (his) intentions as genuine... And if he did not... he was uncertain the ground he'd found to stand on so far would hold him.
"Sephiroth."
Blinking, he looked down at Cloud, who'd left Zack's side where he'd been walking with him in front of Sephiroth. At the front of their little procession, Angeal and Cloud's mother were talking - something about cooking, the terms were unfamiliar to him.
"Yes?" He closed his hand into a fist and let it drop back to his side, since it'd been raised halfway to land in Cloud's hair without his intention or say-so. He could not do these things. Not without permission, and he wouldn't wish to come between Zack and Cloud either way.
"We were serious, you know. You won't be leaving alone, if this doesn't work out," Cloud said, quiet but certain, and Sephiroth frowned, shaking his head a little.
"I wouldn't want to be in the way, and Zack---"
"We're a team. Zack agrees with me," Cloud snorted, tilting his head as he squinted up at him until Sephiroth dipped his head, quietly amazed and pleased Cloud was talking to him so easily, now, compared to the beginning. Not that it meant anything. "And it's fine Sephiroth."
He didn't get the chance to ask as Cloud cocked his head more meaningfully, watching him through his lashes, and his hand twitched on its own accord. It would be... nice. And, again, it meant nothing. It couldn't. Exhaling quietly, he let his hand do what it wanted, threading through Cloud's spikes and carding in short, light movements to match the pace of their steps. The tension in his spine eased, the action providing both direction and an outlet.
Cloud, Sephiroth noticed when he glanced down, was now walking with a tiny smile on his face and his eyes closed, and the stab to his heart was sharp enough he looked up guiltily, but Zack's eyes, when they met, were warm, and he was smiling. They reached the door to the building they were meeting Lord Godo in shortly after that, which was both a relief and filled him with regret, so Sephiroth stepped away only reluctantly, but met Cloud's glance with a tiny smile.
Once, he'd have been ashamed at how much he needed something like that, because as Hojo had so often pointed out, he shouldn't need it. He was above such things. Except... he wasn't. That was as much a revelation as it was a reassurance, which was sorely needed at this point.
Cloud's gesture had been needed more than just to center him, because Sephiroth held onto the memory of the slide of soft stands through his fingers as they stood in front of Lord Godo and explained what they wanted to do. What they could do, if he wanted their (Sephiroth's) presence and assistance.
"What."
Godo Kisaragi stared at the small gathering in front of him, though perhaps understandably his gaze kept wandering back to Sephiroth, who endured it with his hands clasped behind his back and standing at parade rest, deceptively relaxed. Which was, not at all. They would need to explain how this had come about, he could tell. He did not wish to reveal anything further, for anyone who wasn't the people who had been there, or were Angeal and Genesis, but it seemed he might have to say something.
"Why this offer, and now?" The man's dark eyes narrowed, the thin moustache merely emphasizing the flattened suspicion, and Sephiroth exhaled softly, closing his eyes.
"All of SOLDIER is an experimental force, of course, that is well known. The initial knowledge came from another project, which I just found out about," he said slowly, opening his eyes to stare at Godo, clutching his wrist firmly enough it twinged in protest, "that information came from me, and it might have been meant to go further if I hadn't had assistance to stop myself."
He wouldn't implicate Angeal and Genesis in this, not without their own decision to come forward, and with how things seemed, comparing Project G with Project S, he and Angeal appeared to be the most 'successful', though by all accounts the SOLDIER creation method was probably the closest to Genesis... Which might be why Genesis had reacted so badly to having the equilibrium of his body disturbed by that injury. No matter. That wasn't the point now, and Genesis had it under control, since he was regularly engaging in dynamic play ever since he and Angeal had found out that did help, the effects of the injury kept at bay.
Like it'd helped him, if in a more mental than physical way.
"So you wish to... what, have revenge on ShinRa?" Lord Godo stared at him, and then burst out into a roar of laughter, slapping a knee before he slowly collected himself, sobering, and the amusement turning more calculating. "Why go to Wutai? AVALANCHE would probably be pleased to have you."
"AVALANCHE, no matter their vaunted ideals, are no better than terrorists using worse methods than your agents have had to sink to, Lord Godo." There was no reason to cushion it, no reason to hide that they knew there were Wutainese insurrectionists on the mainland of both continents, but aiming for Midgar the most, of course.
"And with how long Wutai resisted ShinRa's invasion, giving our strength to your forces seem like it would get the best result," Angeal said into the brief silence, adding what was both nothing but the truth and at least a dash of flattery. Clever, and not something he would have thought to add, for even if he was still as human as he could be, his upbringing had certainly been lacking in the interpersonal sphere.
Godo looked between them all again, thin lips pursing as he thought, and then a slow grin, along with something like a gleam in his eyes that hadn't been there before but instantly made the man seem to take up more space in his seat, fill more of the air around him in a way that had nothing to do with dynamic. It was now easier to see how he would have been able to lead Wutai and hold the line against ShinRa for so long.
"It's an interesting proposition. What are you intending to do about the base, though?"
"They will join us, or be made to leave," Sephiroth said, and there was no uncertainty there, no concern. It would probably be the easiest part of all this, dealing with the personnel in the base. Godo looked to him again, and then chortled, though the smile was less of one, and more of a baring of his teeth.
"Considering who you are?" A pause as he looked around their group again. "Considering who all three of you are, along with that First Class? I believe you. I might even be prepared to believe your offer. Get that base under control without losing the equipment, and we can talk further."
It was not all they had hoped for, but it was far more than Sephiroth had feared they would be given, so it wasn't hard to agree to that, all of them bowing low but not kneeling - Cloud, though, did kneel, however briefly. It'd seemed important to show the sort of respect Lord Godo hadn't exactly been given after ShinRa's victory, which was a double insult with the man being a submissive. Some of the tension that'd lingered since they'd left Nibelheim drained out of Sephiroth then and there, for while they weren't finished, while there would undoubtedly be issues with taking the base and getting it in hand, it was... straightforward.
He might even enjoy getting to flex his dynamic in a way that was usually strictly forbidden, and in a way he'd been told all his life that he shouldn't need, only utilise as needed. The distinction was razor sharp, and Sephiroth understood then how he'd been cutting himself on it his whole life, completely aside from his worries of being too much when he did allow himself to indulge in needs he was convinced he shouldn't actually need.
Except he did, because whatever else Jenova was, whatever else the presence of her DNA in him (in Genesis and Angeal) meant, he was also, undeniably, human. Which meant he would lash out at ShinRa as such, and that thought was as satisfying as the anticipation to dominate the personnel on the base so they could have an orderly dismissal of those who might not listen to their reasons, were too mired, still, in ShinRa's propaganda. There would be those who would listen, though, that was obvious enough. They only had to find those and toss out the rest. And if they could reach the SOLDIERs... that had further potential.
(He didn't allow himself to think, yet, of the fact that they could just kill the base personnel. It'd be easy, a way to soothe the angry desire for revenge, but slaughtering grunts would do nothing to the actual machine that ShinRa was. They needed to go higher.)
It'd take time to get what he wanted and he would, doubtlessly, not get all of it - Sephiroth glanced sideways to where Zack and Cloud were walking next to Mistress Strife, talking quietly about the decorations on the walls of the corridor they were walking through - but that was fine. He could live with that.
***
"There we go." Zack made one last adjustment of the collar and locked it, leaning in to kiss both Cloud's neck above the reinforced leather and the little shudder that'd followed Cloud hearing the lock engage. Such a small thing, but instantly everything else that'd happened the last couple weeks, that were happening right now, seemed to matter less. The tension from Nibelheim, from the week it'd taken them to get to Wutai, watching Zack jump the wall as they deactivated the alarms on the base, feeling him shudder over the bond when Angeal hit him with his dominant presence, wondering over how the meeting with Lord Godo would go... it all disappeared, because right then, it wasn't what he was supposed to be doing. The annoyance of being "suggested" to sit out on the base assembly, lingering despite that he'd gotten to see how it went on the cameras, melted away as well. He still wished he could've been standing beside Zack in the back room of the assembly hall's stage, but watching every single man and woman in there with Sephiroth end up on their knees, some of them looking vaguely blank, even, as Sephiroth didn't just let go of his presence, but used it like a bludgeon like what Angeal had done to Zack...
He understood then, why there were pretty strict rules about dominants not being allowed to do that except in certain situations, and why there was etiquette about obeying the dominant who's house it was, or could otherwise be considered the highest authority in the current location, if not between the dominants involved.
"Spike, stop thinking," Zack said, voice warm but reproachful, and Cloud didn't even try to fight against the reflexive feeling that squeezed his stomach. It felt pretty good, actually, even if it was accepting that he'd done his dominant wrong. The breath he sucked in wavered a little as he closed his eyes and dipped his head.
"Sorry, Sir."
Hearing Zack's own breath catch, and the way the feeling of him warmed both over the bond and the subtle shift of approval in his presence, almost made Cloud kneel right there, but he hadn't said to.
"Kneel, Sunshine." There was a large, warm hand in his hair, catching around his spikes, and it followed him down, not pressing, just a guiding weight as he let the order soak in and pull him down, leaving him resting his cheek against Zack's thigh. He felt warm, despite that he was almost entirely naked.
There were still things to do, so many things, even with the base half empty from the people who'd left, and the ones who'd stayed still needed to be vetted, explained to, but it was a start. It seemed impossible they'd even gotten this far, and Cloud was still not sure what he thought about all this, but it was better than staying with ShinRa. Even if staying would have meant a chance to become SOLDIER, which he knew it wouldn't, he wouldn't have. Not with everything that'd happened.
"So, I've been thinking." Zack hummed, his voice low and rumbling nicely, and Cloud could feel it in his chest, in the back of his head, right now tuned to Zack's voice so finely Zack could probably have stood in another room, whispering, and he would've at least picked up the intent if he'd meant to address him. Despite the warm weight in his bones, how good it felt just to be waiting on whatever Zack might say next, Cloud still grinned against the rough fabric under his cheek.
"Want help with that?"
Above him, Zack almost squawked, his hand tightening in his spikes and then sliding down to his braid.
"You fishing for punishment already 'cause you feel like being mouthy, Spike? Have I been too nice?" Zack asked, tugging on the braid until Cloud had to tilt his head back, and Cloud felt something twist in his chest at the sight of the faintly glowing blue eyes. But he tilted his head as much as he could with the grip Zack had, and lowered his lashes.
"No, Sir." So maybe that was teasing, still, but Zack chuckled and his hand slid up, allowing Cloud to lean forward again, nose almost brushing against the burgeoning bulge in Zack's pants.
"Well, that's good. We've got other things to do tonight, and while I'm sure you'll need something like that, soon, that wasn't what I was aiming for tonight." Zack sounded so relaxed and easy about it, Cloud almost pushed, to see what he might think of. He didn't, though. They did have something they needed to talk about, plus whatever Zack had planned. His fingertips and his scalp were both tingling at the possibilities. "As I was saying, I've been thinking. 'Bout what to do, 'cause I sure feel both a little greedy at the possibility and also don't wanna change anything, now that we might actually... y'know, get to just be."
Even if that would happen right in the middle of a possible war, depending on how ShinRa reacted to Wutai challenging their presence, and that three of their most famous and powerful First Class SOLDIERs, plus another up-and-coming First Class had just defected to Wutai. Maybe not the most ideal place and time to be a couple, but Cloud didn't mind. He'd fight, for Sephiroth and Zack, for what ShinRa had done, to people he knew personally and a lot of others, and for the chance to have this. It all mattered.
"We'd still have time. Just us," Cloud said, closing his eyes and daring to lean slightly further sideways, the tip of his nose now definitely pressed against a bulge. Zack huffed and shifted him back to his previous position with his grip on his hair. "And I..."
He stopped, feeling awkward and a little guilty suddenly, which Zack of course picked up on. Would've picked up on even if they hadn't been bonded and he hadn't just spilled those feelings right into the bond before he could shield them from Zack's attention. It'd be... hard, to do that right now though. The weight of the collar kept him open, and it was Zack's right to see, right now.
"You're not the only one, Cloud." Zack sounded so serious, Cloud opened his eyes and looked up, meeting Zack's eyes again. There was a small, crooked smile on Zack's face. "I did say I was feeling greedy for considering it, didn't I? But yeah, I think... there might be things I probably can't give you, and while you'd most of the time not need 'em, when you do..."
Zack shrugged as he carded through Cloud's spikes, letting go of Cloud's gaze to watch somewhere above and behind him, his vivid blue eyes going soft and indistinct.
"It'd feel kinda wrong, to drag Sephiroth into it just on the times you do. He deserves more than that."
"He does." Cloud blushed a little at the vehemence in his voice, but Zack only chuckled, and the tightening grip on his spikes was as warm as his voice was, as the weight of his pleasure through the bond, in his presence, so easily read, was.
"So, I was thinking..." Zack was now stroking his thumb up and down the thin, sensitive skin behind one of Cloud's ears, and he slowly fell into the touch as it settled in his spine so thoroughly he barely caught Zack's next words, "we invite Sephiroth in and see how this might work out, for all of us. What do you think?"
It was a question, nothing more and nothing less, and Cloud wasn't so deep he wouldn't have said no if he didn't like it, but all that bubbled up was the desire to follow that hesitant need he was feeling from Zack, to please it, and the idea to please the third one, who wasn't here yet.
"Yes, Sir."
Maybe it wasn't a literal answer to Zack's question, but it was the only answer that counted; acquiescing to his dominant's wants, because it pleased him to do so. Zack chuckled, and he could hear the brilliant smile in the sound, feel it in the weight of Zack's hand on his scalp.
"You're a treasure, Cloud. You're so good, and I feel damn privileged getting to provide for your needs."
Because that was what it was about, wasn't it? Need. All of their needs, even if, sometimes, you got what you needed without getting things you'd wanted. Maybe you couldn't have everything, but he could fight alongside Zack even if he wasn't a SOLDIER. He knew that, and he could need this without it being something that was in the way for the rest of the time.
The praise soaked into his bones, then into his mind, and Cloud smiled, a shy little twist of it.
"Wouldn't, want it any other way, Zack."
There might have been a little tremble in Zack's hand before he stilled it and cleared his throat, and this time when Cloud leaned in to brush his nose against the bulge in Zack's pants, he wasn't pulled away. Instead Zack's grip shifted to press him closer, held him there, and after a beat of hesitation, knowing the only one to see was Zack, he mouthed over the fabric. Zack's shudder was almost as much of a reward as the praise had been.
"Right." Zack hesitated then, but even as he glanced up, all he saw was his own bangs and Zack's torso. "And, another thing, which might replace the unpleasant association... when I come back with Sephiroth, present yourself. Sephiroth first, then myself."
Cloud shuddered at that, his stomach turning into a storm of butterflies at the same time as his dick twitched. Zack's easy certainty that he'd get Sephiroth to agree was hot in itself, but then the actual command...
If it'd been anyone else, even disregarding that he was now both bonded with and claimed by Zack, he wouldn't have agreed to go through with that whole... embarrassing display he'd been made to go through in front of the reassessment committee. But it was Zack, and Sephiroth... for Zack, he would do it for Sephiroth too. The realization settled him, and it was a little like flying.
"Yes, Sir," Cloud breathed as he pulled back, Zack letting go, and straightened his back, clasped his hands behind his back, and spread his knees. Glancing up through his bangs and lashes, the expression on Zack's face, as well as the warm approval he could feel, might have been able to make him come right then, if that was what he'd been allowed to do. But not yet. This wasn't about that, yet. Right now, it was about other things, and it felt good, to just... relax into it, and do them. Trust Zack to take care of him, while he followed his will. It was such a change from how he'd felt about all this when he'd first come to ShinRa, he'd have been a little dizzy with it if he wasn't halfway to subspace already.
Zack smiled, reaching out to brush his thumb over his lips, teasing it just past them, and shuddered when Cloud sucked. Zack pulled his hand back with a grin and left - physically, anyway. Through the bond, Zack could just as well still have been standing right in front of him, attention heavy on him, so there was no chance of slacking in his pose even if he might have entertained the idea of doing so. He didn't really want to, though.
However long it took didn't really matter; he felt loose and easy, his muscles warm and relaxed. Could stay like this for hours probably, if needed.
Not that it took hours, though Cloud didn't try to look for the clock on the wall when the door opened again, just sank down further as two sets of footsteps, two sets of dominant presences, approached. Settled his forehead on the floor, back arched to push his ass up higher as he spread his knees a little wider, and the soft noise of two breaths catching, the shift in his bond with Zack, in Sephiroth's towering presence, shielded him from any flustered embarrassment he might have otherwise felt from this position, from what he would do to cap it off. Or rather, what he would do to start the rest of the evening.
What mattered was how good their approval made him feel, so that was what Cloud focused on, and it didn't really matter any longer that he hadn't gotten what he'd set out for when he left Nibelheim. This was... well, he'd never thought he might either want or need something like this, but he did both want and need it.
Later, they would deal with ShinRa, and he'd be right there with everyone else to do it. Right now, all he needed to concern himself with what was his dominants wanted. At the moment that was what he actually needed.