#looking @ you angeal I mean | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

esamastation · 7 months

Text

Part fifty of Shizuroth, aka, the SOLDIER General's Self Saving Shizun.

Ao3 link.

Previous parts: thirty-three, thirty-four, thirty-five, thirty-six, thirty-seven, thirty-eight, thirty-nine, forty, forty-one, forty-two, forty-three, forty-four, forty-five, forty-six, forty-seven forty-eight, forty-nine

There hadn't been all that many duels in PIDW. There was Sha Hualing's invasion, sure, but Shen Qingqiu barely even needed to fight there, he'd just let his sword fly and do all the talking, and that was fine. There'd been other fights, of course, serious fights against demons and beasts, but not that many formal duels.

Most of the fighting Shen Qingqiu had done had been sparring - and a great majority of that against his students. He was primarily a teacher, after all, not a frontline combatant, and he enjoyed sparring with his cute little disciples. There was nothing greater than seeing your student realise they were improving.

It, probably, left him with some bad habits, when it comes to duelling. He can't quite turn off the censorious eye of a master, looking for flaws in his opponent's stances, looking where they have room left to improve.

Deng Yuto is technically very good, his form is solid and his blows precise, he's clearly been taught by a good teacher. But he's very stiff and formal and puts too much emphasis on the transitions - something that can become a habit when you learn your forms in big groups.

If he was one of Shen Qingqiu's students, he'd be praising him for his efforts and telling him to let loose, to set aside the lessons and really go with the flow! He clearly has the techniques down - now is the time to learn how to apply them freely!

But Deng Yuto isn't Shen Qingqiu's student.

He's Sephiroth's opponent. And Sephiroth is probably supposed to kill him.

Blocking another technically perfect but very stiff attack with Masamune, Sephiroth considers his options. Angeal is standing somewhere behind him, radiating concern and worry and fear. Reno is hiding in the woods nearby and probably recording everything, if not on video - because cameras here are still huge and hard to lug around, thankfully - then in writing. And across from Sephiroth, behind his opponent, stands a squad of Wutai warriors, cheering for their captain and nervously waiting for the outcome.

Sephiroth wishes he had time to analyse their character design. It's delightfully mixed. Sleeveless tangzhuang shirts with more Japanese armour - what is it with this world and their disdain for sleeves, anyway? SOLDIER with their sleeveless turtlenecks, and now this. What, is everyone living for their next chance to flex their biceps or something? Don't they get cold? Tch!

Sadly, it probably means he can't find a proper Xianxia style hanfu in Wutai. Shame.

Deng Yuto steps back, swinging his spear decisively. "Fight me seriously!" he demands, and Sephiroth realises he'd fallen into a teacher's mindset after all, stepping back and letting his opponent lead.

"Ah," Sephiroth sighs. He's being insulting to his opponent. "Very well. If that's what you want."

His opponent braces himself, pale but determined. Behind him his men fall quiet, watching with expectant horror. It's painfully clear what they expect.

Aiyah, guess he better make it quick and impressive for them!

Sephiroth salutes his opponent with the Masamune - and then slices Deng Yutos gunspear into four pieces and finishes with the edge of his blade at the man's throat.

"You're finished," Sephiroth says to the man left holding the remains of his spear shaft. "Yield."

Judging by the look the man gives him, he might've as well told him to dance a jig. "What?"

Your life, man! Take it! "Yield."

Deng Yuto's hands shake and he drops his spear. "I do not," he says. "I challenged you for my men's lives - I will not yield them."

What? "I don't want your men's lives," Sephiroth says, exasperated. "And I don't want to take yours. Yield and leave."

The silence is deafening.

Then, "... Maybe the butchers at Shinra have finally given the Demon a full lobotomy?" someone in the Wutai group suggests, in Mandarin.

Which is kind of confusing for Sephiroth's brain because he kind of hadn't realised they weren't speaking Mandarin before? Uh…

"It must be some kind of trick."

"He's lost his mind…"

"Hasn't he always been insane?"

"We can't trust him - the Demon is a monster, he has no honour. They let us go and follow us to kill the lord -"

Sephiroth looks at them over Deng Yuto's shoulder, blinking slowly. For a moment he thinks of doing or saying nothing… but his drama-loving heart couldn't bear letting this go. "What thick faces Wutai warriors have, to say such things right in front of the one they're insulting."

The captain stiffens and the Wutai warriors all go very quiet. "Oh, great," Angeal mutters behind Sephiroth. "Now what?"

"Who taught you to speak our tongue?" Deng Yuto asks warily.

"No one. This one simply learned," Sephiroth answers and arches a brow. "Is this Sephiroth not allowed? Is the language sacred?"

"... Your mode of speech is archaic," Deng Yuto comments, looking confused.

Ah, well. Probably! That's what happens when you end up as a highly respectable Peak Lord in a Xianxia stallion novel for years! Though he doesn't have that big of a sample yet, the way the Wutai soldiers speak the language sounds a little rude to him. So informal!

With a scoff, Sephiroth draws his sword away and sheathes it. Behind him, Angeal breathes out a sigh of relief.

"You are letting us go?" Deng Yuto asks, unsure.

"Does Captain Yuto wish to die?" Sephiroth asks plainly and tries to be haughty. Think, big bad. "This Sephiroth will oblige, should Captain Yuto make it necessary. But as of now, this one has no interest in death."

There's a confused murmur going through the Wutai warriors, though nothing distinct enough to make out. Deng Yuto motions them to be quiet and looks at Sephiroth levelly. "Then what is… Sephiroth's interest here? Why has he come to this place?"

Sephiroth considers his answer and then decides, fuck it. It's not like he's going to fight this war, anyway! "This one is seeking seclusion and an opportunity to better himself."

There's an incredulous wheeze coming from the group of Wutai warriors. "He expects us to believe that?!"

Sephiroth says nothing to that, arching his brows at Deng Yuto. After a moment, the Wutai Captain takes off his helmet, to reveal a man in his thirties with a serious but handsome face and long black hair in a tail. He puts his helmet under his arm and for a moment looks at Sephiroth, clearly trying to figure him out and just as clearly failing.

Ah, he must be really OOC right now. It's surprisingly gratifying! Life without a System is truly great.

"Sephiroth is not here to fight?" Deng Yuto finally asks, slow and incredulous.

Ah, well. "This one can't deny he has orders," Sephiroth admits. "But as things stand, no. This Sephiroth is in seclusion and would rather concentrate on his personal cultivation."

Judging by the reaction that gets, they not only understand the word, but they also get what he means by it. There's shock, some incredulity and what's clearly intrigue in Deng Yuto's face. He looks at Sephiroth like he's seeing something new and strange.

Not that strange, though, it turns out! Whether it's based on Taoism, Buddhism, or something else, it seems like this world has some form of cultivation, after all.

Isn't that an interesting turn of events?

👀

#fanfiction #ff7 #svsss #sephiroth #shen yuan #angeal hewley #shen qingqiu

348 notes · View notes

lunargrapejuice · 10 days

Text

thanks so much, hero

sephiroth x reader with no pronouns used | 3.3k + words

warnings: hurt/comfort, jealousy, teasing, mutual pining, reader works for shinra/soldier but i didn't specify what kind of job

it doesn’t mean anything. you know it doesn’t. and even more importantly, you try to remind yourself, it shouldn’t mean anything. at least not to you.

because what reason do you have to be upset over what wasn’t yours.. what would never be yours?

and wasn’t this your stupid, stupid, idea in the first place?

yes, it was you who brought up the idea of a fan meet and greet for the first class soldier as a means to ease the tension of the citizens during this trying time in the war with wutai and yes it was you who helped put the contest together knowing very well this could be the outcome. your foolish heart had just hoped it would end up with an angeal or genesis fan winning but the gods seemed to be enjoying watching your suffering and much to your displeasure, you were giving them a show.

you want to look away, to walk away, maybe just go home for the rest of the day, because you don’t know how much of this your heart can take but your legs and eyes betray you and keep you frozen in place, unable to take your gaze from the hands that touch sephiroth like he’s some kind of coveted item without feelings or emotions or boundaries and the fluttering eyes that are undressing him without any kind of shame.

the tablet in your arms nearly gets crushed against your chest when you hug it tightly seeing the contest winner touch the exposed skin of sephiroths chest and watching her take a step closer to him, breaking out in deep pink blush and smiling shyly up at him, only makes it worse.

is it just you or does she look even more beautiful all flushed too? maybe prettier than when she first walked through the door and became the nail to the coffin of your feelings for sephiroth. whether it was sealing it or attempting to break it, you had yet to decide and right now you don’t want to think about it, can’t think about it, even if the sparkling sharp tip is digging into your chest.

thank the goddess you can’t see his face with his back facing you. you don’t think he’s enjoying being touched by this stranger but it’s not a comfort whatsoever. a part of it is your fault. each of them had agreed to it before the contest was announced but it was your idea and there’s an unswallowable lump in your throat seeing it come to fruition now and it’s for more reasons than being a cause for his discomfort, though that certainly makes the top of the list.

or maybe he was fine with it and it’s only you with the problem here. not wanting someone to touch him in ways you wish only you could and with the gentle care one should use with something precious. not like how this woman is now, on a different level than how the research and development department handles him but it’s on par all the same. had she even asked him if he was okay with this?

is it silly to think that you could protect him in that way anyways? he is the strongest soldier, with power incomparable to any other and if he truly didn’t want her to, he could stop her without using an ounce of his strength but still..

you owe him one big apology once you can get your shit together long enough to slap on an expression that didn’t scream you hated every second of this and pretend it isn’t a punch to the gut and the heart that seems to ripple through every nerve in your body.

stupid legs, just move!

“careful now. you may burn a hole right through her skull if you stare any longer.”

genesis’ voice is what pulls your eyes away and you’re equally annoyed and grateful for that devilish smirk on his lips that says he knows way too much. at least you don’t have to look at sephiroth and this woman any longer and your body finally obeys, allowing you to walk away from this tormenting sight and back towards the first class floor.

“i’m not in the mood,” you say as you walk past genesis, ignoring how unsteady you found your voice.

“are you ever when it comes to your feelings for him?” he teases, following right on your heels.

how long had he been standing there? you wonder. goddess how long had you been standing there?

“remind me to be better about not letting my guard down around you,” there’s no real bite behind your words but right now you could do without his teasing.

“it wouldn’t matter if you did, you’re terrible at hiding your emotions,” he says it so easily, as if everyone knows it to be a fact. “but i think it is not me you need to worry about showing your true feelings too.” he pauses to push the elevator button and you think he’s quite lucky when a second later a handful of 2nd class come out of the elevator right as he adds, “unless of course you’d like him to see you being jealous.”

you take in a deep inhale, hating how right he is, ready to throw your tablet at him but instead you wordlessly step into the elevator, genesis following, and press the button for the first class floor. with a silent wish, you aim to make the rest of this ride a quiet one but it wasn’t like your friend to give in so easily.

“it’s quite cute on you, i must admit.”

you really couldn’t agree. jealousy, this.. protectiveness - possessiveness - that isn’t yours to claim over sephiroth, it felt frustrating.. ugly and heavy. “genesis-”

“you know as well as i do that it doesn’t mean anything to him,” he doesn’t bother clarifying but he doesn’t need to either.

“i don’t know how he feels.”

“clearly.”

you don’t dare read into his words and feel that lump in your throat forming once more. it keeps you quiet and thankfully for the rest of the elevator ride genesis joins you in silence.

it’s too short lived.

one step onto the first class floor and angeals eyes on you, his question restarting the relentless torture you’ve found yourself in today but you think, just slightly, you prefer this over watching the man you’re helplessly in love with be ogled over and touched by another. someone who doesn’t truly know him or cares for him.

“what’s wrong?” angeal asks.

maybe you really were terrible at hiding your emotions. you hadn’t as much as looked his way but you knew genesis wore a smile and it was only you angeal could be talking to.

“someones jealous,” genesis answers for you.

hearing it again cracks your mask, makes it hard to breathe or think or care. you just wanted today to be over and then you were never ever going to suggest something at work again lest you end up in some other kind of fucked up situation where you’re left yearning and breaking under teasing you could handle had you been a little more centered. would it have been easier if you had told sephiroth how you felt? is it worth the risk of losing him when he inevitably doesn’t feel the same?

it’s not something you can think too deeply about right now.

“i. am. not. jealous.” every word is punctuated with a stride towards angeal. it feels like too much you could explode but you worry it would be you bursting into a fit of tears more than anything else and that’s the last thing you want. especially in front of these two. “she could stand to have some more tact,” you mumble under your breath, letting some of your emotions leak out, not able to care to hold it back or if they hear. you take the paperwork from angeals hands and turn towards genesis. “but what they do isn’t my concern.”

“what’s got you so upset then?” genesis asks.

“your slacking off,” you chide and push the paperwork into his chest, not meeting his eyes or angeals when you make your way towards the closed off office, thankful they seem to have gotten the hint you were finished with this conversation and that lazard is out for the rest of the day so you can sulk in peace. “get back to work.”

the office door shuts quietly behind you and you flip the lock as your back slides down the wood until you’re sitting on the floor, determined to not let anyone see the few tears escaping past your lashes that were hell bent on escaping no matter how much you willed them not to. you wipe them away quickly, like someone might catch you any moment but there’s no one to see.

you don’t know how long passes while you try to work away your frustration and guilt. the locked door handle moves at some point but it doesn’t open and you don’t look up or answer. your phone dings but you don’t pull it from your pocket. it’s not until the paperwork you had started is finished that you look up to see how late it is.

hardly anyone else is around by the time you leave the shinra building and you’re making the way up the stairs towards your apartment, deciding to make the walk up the last few flights instead of taking the elevator to try to work out the last of the lingering unease so maybe you could fall into bed and just sleep this all away. it’s not likely you’ll wake up and magically not have feelings for sephiroth, it’s a bit hard to even imagine that ever happening, but at least tomorrow you would -

your thoughts, your everything, stops in their tracks the second you step onto your floor and see a familiar figure leaning casually against your apartment door with his arms folded over his chest. there was no mistaking it’s sephiroth. you’ve never met anyone who matched his height or beauty or who captivated you as much as he does and his dark clothes and silver hair only help to give him away instantly.

the next shaky step you take, his head turns and your eyes meet. your heart skips far too many beats at the smile he offers you but somehow your legs don’t give way and you draw closer to him, your worries and woes from earlier in the day falling off of your shoulders and onto the ground behind you with each step you take towards him.

“wh-what are you doing here?” you question a bit breathlessly, blinking twice to be sure you weren’t imagining him. after each blink, every step you take, he’s still there, waiting for you.

he straightens, standing tall and taking a side step to allow you the space in front of your door. he looks down at you with mako eyes that shimmer in the dim hallway light, wearing an expression you can’t quite decipher but it’s soft, one you can’t tear your gaze from even as your cheeks warm.

he says your name and there’s no mistaking the gentle concern in his voice. “are you alright?”

it makes your chest ache and your mouth spews words that remind you of today’s uncomfortable events before you could stop them from coming out, before you could lie, tell him you’re fine with a smile that probably wouldn’t meet your eyes and would hardly convince his. “i really should be asking you that. honestly sephiroth, i owe you the biggest apology after today.i didn’t think about - i just -”

“own me an apology?” he quirks a brow at you and the confusion on his face is.. cute. boyish. you begin to feel the clouds of unease that had settled in your stomach slowly burst into butterflies. “you haven’t done anything wrong.”

“didn’t i though? if i haven’t come up with the contest idea..” you break your gaze from his, instead focusing on the patch of milky skin you had seen the woman touch earlier. your mouth feels dry, like your body is warning you to not say the words in case your jealousy also shows or he says something like he enjoyed her company and thanks you for introducing him to such a beautiful woman. you swallow it all down, hating how bitter and horrible it tastes, but push through. you know of how little others had cared for sephiroths personal space and you never wanted to be like those people, indirectly or not. this was the least you owed him. “i’m sorry if today was uncomfortable. i hadn’t considered the contest winner being so.. handsy.” goddess you wanted to cry. “fuck - sorry doesn’t even feel like it cuts it. seph, i - i -”

a touch on your arm, warm leather covering powerful fingers caressing just above your elbow, stops you in your tracks. a soft call of your name and the same gentle touch under your chin draws your attention back up towards the man that holds your very heart and doesn’t know it.

“there’s nothing for you to apologize for.” he uses a tone you’ve heard him use with the lower class soldiers, one with an unswaying conviction, leaving no room for doubt or question but with you it’s so unbelievably tender and considerate. “you don’t need to be sorry for other people's actions. i wouldn’t have agreed to the contest if i wasn’t okay with how strange someone may act around me.” he takes a step closer to you and in the same movement your hands reach for him, holding onto his coat that lingers with the same heat as his hands and as if to assure you that it’s okay, his own touch grows a bit bolder. the fingers under your chin glide along your skin beside your mouth and up to your cheek with the weight of a feather, tucking a piece of hair behind your ear and lingering there. “the contest was a great idea. you wished to help lift the spirits of others,” he smiles then, “that’s a wonderful thing.”

“b- but, what about you?” you don’t know how you spoke the words, your chest felt so weightless and yet so full. so full of sephiroth, the scent of leather and flora and the warmness of his body.

“i’m more than alright.” he sounds so sure as he closes the last bit of the distance between you, pulling you against him in a sweet embrace that allows you to wrap your arms around his slim waist before he pulls you flush against his massive and muscular body and after a silent moment whispers against the crown of your head, his voice vulnerable and soft, tugging at your heart strings and making you pull him closer still. “thank you for thinking of my comfort. not many have before.”

“i’ll do better next time,” you mumble into his chest, another apology on the tip of your tongue but before the words come out, with his strong arm still wrapped around you, sephiroth squeezes you lightly.

“you’ve already done so much. more than anyone.”

he lets go of you all too quickly, as if it was urgent that he do so and it leaves you in a dizzying spell that you want to melt into and chase after. as you blink and he clears his throat, it starts to clear, you find your bearings and can barely hear his next words over the sound of your thundering heart, asking again if you are okay.

“yeah, i’m okay,” and you mean it despite the earlier whirlwind of your emotions. but he has always had this effect on you, everything felt okay when he was around and when he held you it was like nothing else mattered.

sephiroth lets out an audible sigh of relief, like he had truly been worried you weren’t. “good, i’m glad.”

before you can stop your lips from moving, you ask what’s on the front of your mind out loud, much to your horror. “genesis didn’t say something did he?”

that adorably quizzically look tugs at his features once more. “should he have?”

“no, not at all!” you try to brush it off quickly, even if he had would you really want to hear more about how jealous you came off earlier? what would sephiroth think if he knew..? you can’t think about it right now when he’s standing right in front of you with your face burning and you can’t meet his eyes. “i was just - don’t mind me.”

“as long as you’re okay.”

“i am,” you assure him with a sweet, genuine smile. how could you not be okay with him here with you, checking on you, smiling back at you? the jealousy you felt feels a bit foolish now. genesis was right, it didn’t mean anything but this.. this felt like it meant something, even if it was just to you. “thanks for checking on me.”

“i’ll let you get inside then.”

“okay..” you didn’t want him to go but hold back your wishes for him to stay. “get home safe seph.”

“sleep well.”

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

it took nearly all of sephiroths strength to pull away from your embrace and somehow even more strength to refrain from running up the stairs back to your 20th floor apartment after he had made it outside of the building and took the first few steps back towards sector 0 and the soldier barracks.

somehow so much and not enough.. he wanted to be greedy, to hold you forever, call you his, accept your loving nature even if he was far from a man who deserved it. but tonight this would have to be enough, the searing of his skin everywhere you had touched him, the remembrance of how small and delicate you felt in his arms and the near painful longing to do it again alongside the overwhelming feeling of being cared for by you.

he’s no stranger to your kindness and thoughtfulness but it’s so foreign to him all the same.

the touch of others is all too familiar to him, and in worse ways than that of the winner of the contest today. it was something he learned to ignore, tune out, numb, but your touch was like being branded by the stars and cradled by the curve of the moon. every accidental swipe of your hands sending electricity through his entire body and the few times he had been bold enough to hold you left him basking in your warmth and gentleness and utterly aching when it was torn from him.

sephiroth feels it all over and over again on his walk back to the barracks and it snaps more of the strings on the leash of his feelings for you. it is getting so hard to hold back and today when it felt like you had been so far away, avoiding him, upset with him somehow, he could hardly stand it.

his worries are at least quelled for now and after your interaction he’s left with more emotions than he knows what to do with besides let them fill his chest and wrap around his heart. he can feel the heat of his cheeks lingering all the way through the shinra lobby and into the elevator.

should he tell you how he feels? could he handle the consequences of losing the only comfort in his life if you couldn’t return his feelings? could you love a man like him, someone who didn’t think they were even capable or deserving of this kind of love but wants to try for you, to give you everything and more.. for he would give you everything, even himself if you asked.

unusual for this late hour, the elevator stops on one of the soldier floors, stopping his thoughts and when sephiroth looks up, he sees a tired genesis step inside.

“late night?” he asks, a teasing lilt to his tone.

with a roll of his eyes, genesis replies, “it’s all thanks to you, hero.”

the first question sephiroth asks is if this is about you.

genesis only groans, “goddess help you both.”

main masterlist

#final fantasy vii #sephiroth #sephiroth x reader #final fantasy vii x reader #final fantasy x reader #final fantasy 7 #ff7 #ffvii #ff7 x reader #final fantasy 7 x reader

140 notes · View notes

trinitvii-r · 2 months

Text

VP Squared - First Class Impressions

prologue | part i

(ffvii x reader

Genesis should’ve known anyone who got on well with Rufus Shinra would be a load of trouble. Sephiroth thinks it’s a funny turn of events that his friend is the one experiencing stress, rather than causing it.

Angeal’s just happy to be there, really.)

“Dibs,” is the first thing out of Genesis’ mouth as he walks into the conference room.

You know he was referring to you, but you don’t even spare him a glance before returning to your conversation with Rufus… to make it clear to everyone in the room that your VP is and will remain your main priority.

Behind the silly little red-coat-wearing-in-the-middle-of-damn-July man, Angeal looks rightfully embarrassed and is trying to drag the man away. Sephiroth chooses to ignore them both, and makes for his usual seat.

Undeterred, Genesis walks closer to you and stretches out his arm, pointer finger raised straight at you. “Dibs,” he repeats.

You and Rufus share a look for no longer than a second, and your VP immediately understands. He has an amused look on his face as he says, “Go ahead.”

You no longer mask the annoyance you feel as you spit out the words, “Piss off.”

Genesis squeaks out, “I— beg your pardon?!”

You turn away from him, and focus your attention to Rufus once more.

The blonde flicks you on the nose, and laughs at the pinched expression you make. “I would’ve thought you’d say the more colorful word.” Translation: I was hoping you’d say the more colorful word.

You fiddle with your cup of coffee, making a point to keep Genesis hanging, knowing damn well he’s still hovering. “I thought it may offend his delicate sensibilities.” Translation: You know what I mean.

Rufus snorts. As you drink your coffee, Rufus looks up at Genesis, and explains, “They just called you a little bitch.”

You may not have SOLDIER senses, but you swear you hear Sephiroth choke on his spit.

With a mild tone, you reprimand Rufus. “I said I think he’s a wuss.”

“Creative license.”

In unison, the two of you couldn’t resist to snicker. A sight that oddly further aggravates Genesis.

The Commander bites, “That’s it! Newbie, I’m gonna have a lot of fun breaking you in.”

Excuse me?

As you rake your eyes over Genesis’s form, you hear a voice somewhere else in the room ask, “Should I call Human Resources?”

Genesis looks half-murderous, and half-flirtatious as he smirks down at you.

You give him a cheshire grin and say, “Do your worst, Carrot-top.”

Sephiroth absolutely loses it.

Or at least by Sephiroth standards. The man is chuckling, and you could see his shoulders shake as he tries to rein in his mirth.

You pop him a finger gun à la Reno, and cheekily say, “Excited to work with you, General.”

Both Genesis and Angeal drop their mouths open in shock when Sephiroth gives a lazy mock salute, and says, “The feeling is mutual, rookie.”

You turn to Angeal, and give him a wink. “Same goes for you, Commander Hewley.”

A flustered Angeal murmurs, “Thanks. I’ll do my best.”

Genesis should have known you’d have no nice sentiments to spare for him. And he’s proven right when all he gets is a lousy, “You can drop dead for all I care, Red.”

Sephiroth excuses himself, and you could vaguely hear a deep laughter resounding in the hallway.

This is the scene President Shinra walks into, and he looks completely defeated. A triumphant grin forms on Rufus’ face.

All your posturing from earlier morning seems to have faded away, and now Genesis finds himself the sole subject of your attention. He gulps as you stare up at him with wide eyes, an almost enamored expression just for him… or at least his fireballs.

“That was so sick.”

Turning his nose up at you, and in a pathetic effort to hide the red dusting his cheeks, he answers, “What a crude way to address my talent.”

He’s surprised when you don’t respond with some quip. Instead, you whine, “C’mon, man. I’ve never even said that about Rufus with his guns.”

Filing away that tidbit about the Shinra brat, Genesis couldn’t help the giddiness he feels at your words. Not the words he would have preferred, but the sentiment certainly was there. Close enough. If throwing fireballs at dummies was what earned him your respect and admiration, then that’s what he’d do.

A part of him is terrified at his outright sense of urgency to impress you. He brushes the thought away when you grab onto his coat sleeve, and beg, “Please teach me, dude.”

Again, not his choice of words, but for now, dude will have to do.

“Rhapsodos, move! You’re blocking the view.”

The mood is instantly killed by the Shinra brat.

It starts off like this.

News gets passed around that you were assigned the Rufus babysitting gig.

Hand in hand with that, news gets passed around that you somehow made it into the SOLDIER program.

Along with that, the fact you threatened Heidegger with a knife. (A velocity edit of the security feed of the moment is the top retweeted and liked tweet of the day. A bubbly filter AMV of Rufus lowering your knife for you is second.)

It only gets weirder from there.

Sephiroth’s, Angeal’s, and Genesis’s fanclubs have wildly varying takes on what happened in the meeting. Ranging from funny — You apparently had some top secret Turks-esque information that Genesis’ beautiful auburn hair was actually dyed from a bright orange that he had always been self-conscious of, and that you had called him by a mean nickname (Carrot-top) that kids in his village used to bully him with, and ended with Genesis bursting into tears. — to oddly conspiratorial — You were investigating reactors with the Turks when you fell into a vat of pure mako, and that President Shinra had decided to officially make you SOLDIER as a coverup for the fuck-up. You apparently became so powerful that you were named Sephiroth’s Lieutenant General, and that had made Genesis cry.

Genesis being reduced to tears seems to be the thread holding all these rumors together.

By lunchtime, everyone and their mother had their own theories on The Situation.

Which was why Cadet Cloud Strife had to do a double take when he saw you following after Genesis Rhapsodos, followed by Rufus Shinra following after you, and Sephiroth following after Rufus Shinra.

What.

Cloud nearly dropped his soup in surprise.

As you passed, he could barely make out the words, “again” and “just one more.”

And if Cloud knew anything about the Shinra rumor mill, it’s that they would take those words and lewdly misinterpret them. He could already hear Janice from Accounting typing loudly on her phone. Great. He wouldn’t need to open his inbox to know he’d see yet another wildly smutty Genesis fan fiction disguised as a newsletter.

Screw Zack for signing him up for those fanclubs.

Even before you leave the canteen, the winning theory is that you and Genesis enter into a whirlwind romance burning hot like the fireballs he flings onto unsuspecting targets, but alas you are a free spirit who refuses to be tied down. This theory also ends with Genesis in tears.

Cloud notes with a hint of amusement that the sight of you stacking up your and Rufus’s plates and neatly disposing of the trash is the most babysitter-like thing you’ve done all day. You even clean up for Sephiroth who reacts with a slack jaw and the most bewildered expression, and Genesis who stares at you as though you’ve just told him the secrets of the universe. The redhead could almost be described as swooning when he thanks you profusely.

You simply look at the man as if he had grown two heads. After a beat, you smirk. “Alright, hot stuff. Take it easy for the rest of the day, yeah?” You nod subtly at Rufus, who takes it as his cue to stand up, and says his farewells to the other two.

As the two of you make your way out the canteen, this bit of conversation once again throws everyone into a frenzy:

“Still think he’s a wuss?”

“Yeah, but not when he’s swinging that thing around.”

That thing in question was fireballs, but the rest of Shinra didn’t know that.

Definitely not it.

Anything but that.

When Lazard the Bastard told you you’d have to pay your dues as the newest SOLDIER, you did not expect it to be that.

“Well, what did you expect? The rest of them were cadets first. I can’t just hand everything to you.”

You tried the Rufus excuse, but Lazard brushes off your concerns. “I can assign a First on him for a couple hours.”

Like he heard you, Rufus looks up from his phone, and gives you a nod and a smile.

Gods. Right when you wanted Rufus to be a brat and demand his way, suddenly now he’s all goody.

With a scowl, you tell Lazard, “Let’s get this over with.”

Blood everywhere.

Gross.

Oh, and Angeal’s here too.

Nice.

“What’s up?”

Angeal had to admit. For someone who’s elbows deep into cleaning bloody blades, you sure had a draw to you as you hum some kind of melody. He wordlessly sits next to you, and wipes down the first weapon he could get his hands on.

A half hour later, he gets the feeling that you’ve got quite the mouth on you. Though, he’s seen you behave more casually with the other Turks plenty of times, and sometimes with Rufus himself, it’s a bit jarring to be on the receiving end of it.

“—Not gonna lie — but don’t you dare tell anyone else — if Rufus didn’t have those photos on him, and he had to get an actual SOLDIER babysitter, I would have preferred you.”

‘Wait. What.’ Clearly, Angeal was a bit distracted by how efficiently you can clean blood that he had neglected to hear some damning information on how you may have gotten this new gig. Oh well. He can try chatting with you another time. Besides, your new position would only make you more accessible to him.

Heaving a sigh, and resting your bloody knuckles on your hips, you give Angeal a grin. “Wanna hide these rags under Genesis’ bed?”

As if you even need to ask.

When Rufus drags you by the back of your collar like a cat out of Genesis’ private quarters, he can already tell this scene is only going to cause more chaos.

A wide grin fights its way to his face.

He had made the right call for his personal SOLDIER.

#final fantasy x reader #final fantasy vii #sephiroth x reader #genesis rhapsodos x reader #angeal hewley x reader #rufus shinra x reader #we are working our way thru the characters babes #as a sapphic i am distraught that i am still not able to write the women in just yet

81 notes · View notes

silvergreenseraphim · 6 months

Text

Angeal and Sephiroth (And Genesis?)—Dissidia Opera Omnia—Part Two

Hi there hello, I am terribly sorry for the wait, friends! I was pretty sick for the past week or so, but have recovered now! On that note, let’s dive in!

—

Angeal must come to terms with Sephiroth’s transformation.

We begin with Cloud meeting with Angeal after the group decided to take on Sephiroth. Cloud asks Angeal,

“Are you okay? I know I explained everything all at once…”

Angeal says,

“You mean about Sephiroth? It’s just…even though I saw it with my own eyes…it’s hard to accept when told the truth/facts. I’m sorry for slipping/showing weakness…just listen—“

Cloud stops him and says that he doesn’t mind being the one to tell Angeal everything that happened. Angeal also doesn’t need to worry about being stoic in front of someone that isn’t his direct student/cadet like Zack was.

Cloud then explains that he had become a soldier because he admired heroes like Sephiroth, though in truth, there were no heroes in the end because of Sephiroth’s transformation.

Angeal notes the following,

“Huh, just like my close childhood friend (Genesis) and Zack….all the kids my age looked up to him then, so that’s why I always thought I’d treat him like a human being…”

Edit: Small translation mistake I may have made, but initially I thought Angeal said that, “He did not want to change his own attitude/way of being” in regards to how he treated Sephiroth. However, it seems my pronouns were misplaced, and Angeal is talking about Sephiroth. He says that he wants to change Sephiroth’s attitude, as in, he wants to turn Sephiroth’s heart back to the way it was.

Cloud says that he himself can’t forgive Sephiroth, but he can’t deny Angeal’s feelings on the matter, and that he understands because of receiving certain thoughts and emotions for the old friends through Zack. Cloud also graciously tells Angeal to not worry telling Zack about how much he is struggling. Cloud will cover for him, and Angeal is grateful.

Cloud then leaves Angeal, who stands and contemplates Sephiroth once again…he thinks to himself,

“Sephiroth…did you come to know of your birth? I had Genesis at that time…but you…”

Sephiroth himself suddenly appears from a portal and begins to battle Angeal. They cross swords in the manner they once did in the training room, which shocks Angeal. He realizes Sephiroth’s fighting style hasn’t changed despite so much time passing, and wonders if they are sharing the same memory.

When they separate, Angeal appeals to Sephiroth’s honor by saying,

“Sephiroth! You surely had your pride and honor as a First….and we’ve both done horrible things, so let’s bear this despair together!”

The fight continues and the others rush to help Angeal. He is still calling to Sephiroth, saying,

“Sephiroth, what is the point in destroying this world? What would be in that for you?? If this is Jenova stealing who you are, then I’ll bring you back!!”

But Sephiroth merely laughs and says,

“I already have your answer. If it’s “me” that is here, then that means I chose it. I didn’t choose you, Angeal. All I need is Cloud. I don’t need you.”

This was a loaded statement, but in summary, Sephiroth is saying that he chose to do what he is doing, where he is appearing, etc..

His will is seemingly one with Jenova’s in this story, and furthermore, he only needs Cloud in order to be rooted to the world.

This calls back to the notion of “As long as Cloud remembers Sephiroth, Sephiroth will exist.”

Cloud and Cloud’s memories are Sephiroth’s link to existence.

He doesn’t “need Angeal” because Angeal is one of Sephiroth’s “inconsequential memories” that he cast into the Lifestream…

The next part is hard to translate, but Zack essentially tells Angeal that the person they are facing is simply not Sephiroth anymore, and is merely wearing his face, in a way. Rufus fully believes that it is Jenova, and that they are the same.

Cloud readies himself to fight and declares that Sephiroth will be stopped, who responds with a taunt like, “Come and try!”

Meanwhile, Angeal is in disbelief. He says,

“Sephiroth…are you….really nowhere (in there)? Did you truly abandon your pride as a human and embrace this power…?”

After the boss fight that takes place here, Sephiroth struggles to hold his ground and angrily declares,

“I’m not going down…”

The group responds with a power-charged Cloud, who receives an energy crystal boost from Rufus.

With his buffed sword, Cloud prepares to end the weakened Sephiroth. He strikes and a bright burst of energy surges forward, but Angeal’s heart gets the better of him.

Angeal rushes forward and jumps in front of Sephiroth, taking the hit for his old friend and falling to the ground in pain.

The others are petrified and Zack runs to Angeal, screaming that,

“Angeal!! It’s not Sephiroth! You know it’s not him!”

Angeal says,

“I know…I understand…Indeed, his form/body may be Jenova’s but his heart and will might still remain…”

With this, Angeal stands and turns to Sephiroth, finally getting his deep regrets out. He says,

“We were the same…and I’m sorry for letting you suffer alone…”

But Sephiroth has no memory of this pain and his old friend. He says he “doesn’t know this unpleasant sight” in reference to Angeal and tries to attack again, but Zack fights him off, saying,

“Sephiroth! I know my words won’t reach you…but listen to Angeal’s calls…don’t leave that to the monster!”

Sephiroth merely brushes Zack off with one of his “puppets and traitors” accusations and vanishes, but before his voice fades entirely….he says,

“You see, Angeal….dreams and honor were fleeting/not enough…”

Angeal gasps in realization and says,

“Sephiroth….so it’s true…”

Sephiroth’s real voice seems to slip through—the angry, hateful part of him that threw away his memories and aligned his will with Jenova’s. The part that rejected mankind willingly and grew cold with fury.

Angeal understands that his old friend’s pride as a human was lost and the Sephiroth he once knew is dead. All that remains is the monster.

Side Notes:

I am working on the third part to cover the third act. So far, it has been denial for Angeal and in this chapter he reached a small form of acceptance at the bitter end. Now he must prepare to fight his friend and say goodbye.

My translations may once again require some edits later, but for now a lot of contextual information has helped them make sense, even if getting them to translate perfectly has been difficult.

Angeal finally is confirmed to be the one that likely influenced Zack to treat Sephiroth as a person, another human, instead of a hero only to be admired. Angeal doesn’t want to abandon this, and clearly Zack tends to feel the same way. Angeal never idolized Sephiroth, but merely saw him as his good friend. Zack followed this example.

Sephiroth doesn’t remember Angeal, or is at least actively suppressing the memories while he tries to eliminate him. However, his agitation is evident, as he cannot fully erase his emotional state. Part of the hatred that keeps his own will alive likely includes anger and feelings of rejection in regards to his old friends. This emotion seems to bleed through his words, whether he realizes it or not.

Angeal would have taken a bullet for Sephiroth. Now we know. This broke my heart. He could have died by absorbing that energy burst from Cloud, but he threw himself in front of his friend anyway, even despite knowing that Sephiroth was not the same. Angeal loved him so much, and his line, “We were the same…I’m sorry for letting you suffer alone” was utterly weighted with regret and pain. These poor boys are killing me 😢😢

I’ll see you guys next time!

#dissidia opera omnia #final fantasy 7 #ff7 #japanese translation #ffvii #crisis core #angeal hewley #sephiroth #zack fair #cloud strife #rufus shinra #genesis rhapsodos #jenova #final fantasy vii

152 notes · View notes

e-m-ma-lmfao · 7 months

Note

HII im a huge fan of ur writing and ur one of the few final fantasy writers on here thats active 😭😭 i was hoping i could request some zack fair fluff? like before the events of crisis core, maybe he accidentally gets himself sick during work and angeal knows he'll just keep showing up for work bc he wants the promotion to first class so bad, so he gets zacks childhood bestfriend (reader) to go keep an eye on him and make sure he actually rests lol. zack keeps insisting hes ok but reader is having none of it and takes care of him, which eventually leads to a confession bc zack doesnt understand why reader cares so much and it just leads to everything coming out. i hope that made sense lol this is my first request :) dont feel pressured to do this of course!!!

Since We Were Kids

pairing : zack fair x (female) reader

summary : zack is determined to reach first class. so much so that he will push through one of the most debilitating cold's he's ever had. angeal attempts to get him home, calling in zacks childhood best friend for help.

“Angeal! Come on! You know how important this is to me..” Zack lets out a pitiful whine, attempting to persuade his superior, before his whine turns into a horrific coughing fit. He doesn’t have to look up now that Angeal’s face has made no changes, he is stoic and his decision is final, Zack will not be staying for work this week.

“You can take a week off.. Besides you're of no use to anybody with the state you're in. Go home, get some rest.”

“Fine..”

“I mean it Zack..”

“Yeah..yeah..i heard ya.” Zack crosses his arms, heavy sigh passing through his lips, eyebrows furrowing as he walks away from where Angeal stands. He was barely sick..a little cough wasn’t gonna hold him back from becoming a first class SOLDIER.

Zack barely lasts 20 minutes away from his training before his sword is back in his hands. His constant coughing fits are feeling him with annoyance but he powers through them to continue swinging away with the chunk of metal in his hands.

But why was he so tired? He usually had so much energy. Why was his sword so hard to carry? It never had been before..

And why did it feel like someone's hand was on his shoulder? “Zack!”

He jumps away when there is suddenly shouting coming from beside him, his head pounding in a way that wasn't noticeable until this moment, “Angeal! Hey pal..what’re you..uh..doing here?”

“What’re you doing here? I told you to go home.”

“I can’t go home, this is too important, I’m not even that sick..” Even Zack’s faith in the statement is beginning to falter, especially when his eyes become blurry from the dizziness pooling at the front of his head.

“Go home.”

“No way!” Zack expects Angeal to disagree again but he doesn’t, he actually doesn't say anything, he just walks away. It’s so out of character that Zack debates just listening to him and leaving so he doesn’t get demoted, but he decides against it and continues to practice while sweat pools on his skin.

It doesn’t take long for Angeal to return, Zack isn't worried when he hears his heavy footsteps from down the hallway, but he is unaware of the other pair of feet following close behind.

At this point, Zack is just staying for spite, his body is exhausted and he is barely swinging his sword, and his coughing fits are becoming more frequent to the point where he has to stop moving to take deep breaths.

“Zack. Enough is enough. Your friend can take you home now.”

“Huh?” Zack turns and almost starts coughing again, but only because the breath hitches in his throat, you shouldn’t be here, you shouldn’t be seeing him like this. It’s pitiful, his inability to stay strong for training is embarrassing, and your gaze full of pity isn;t helping in the way it usually does.

“She’s taking you home.” Zack opens his mouth to argue once more but Angeal has had enough, “No arguing. My decision is final, if I see you here again before I say you can return I will demote you myself, good luck reaching first class then..”

Zack looks defeated but he closes his mouth, and drops his sword with a loud clang, before trudging towards your side with his arms crossed tightly. His mannerisms make a giggle slip out of you, he looks like a child, but you quickly mask it as a cough when he shoots you a serious glare. Also reminiscent of a child but if you laughed again he might punch you.

He isn’t happy about having to leave, especially being escorted out by a lady half his size, but he doesn’t make any complaints when you intertwine your arm in his to keep him stable.

“I’m fine, y’know. I’m only going home because Angeal made me.” You nod along with him as he talks, hiding the disbelief running through your head. God was this kid stubborn, but it made you happy to know that his training hadn't changed the way he was when you were kids.

“Zack, you need to rest..”

“I need to reach first class.”

“How do you expect to do that if you can’t even hold your sword up, dork.” His face scrunches up, but to your surprise he doesn’t pull his body away, he actually does the opposite and pulls your arm closer to his body. He’s using you to hold up a large amount of his body weight, but you allow him as long as he needs.

When you finally reach Zack’s home, it takes more effort to get him into bed then you’d care to admit, he truly acts like a child insisting that he ‘doesn’t need to get any sleep because he feels perfectly fine’ followed by a coughing fit and him having to sit down because he feels dizzy. You promise him the soup that he likes if he gets into bed, to which he begrudgingly agrees to.

After practically forcing food down his throat, he finally allows himself to be tired and his head falls back onto the pillows. You place a cold cloth on his forehead, after feeling it with your own hands and deciding that his fever might only be worsening. How’d he keep training while being this sick?

You watch as he dozes off, you can tell he is trying to stay awake so he doesn’t fully admit that he is sick, but his body is taking over. He finally looks at peace, even though his hair is sticking to his forehead and his breathing is heavy, at least he’s getting some rest.

You plan on leaving, really you do, but you get so caught up in the image of him sleeping that you find your own eyes falling closed, head resting by his side against the bed.

When your eyes open again it’s dark outside, you can’t tell how long you’ve been sitting with him but from the darkness pouring into the room, it’s longer then you meant for. You worry for a moment, worry that you’ve overstayed your welcome and that Zack got up hours ago to sleep away from you, but when you turn the lamp on beside his bed you find him in the same spot you’d left him.

You’re greedy with how you look at him, you miss being so close to him. The proximity makes you realize how much you’ve missed him since he started his training, you hardly see him. And you wish the circumstances for finally seeing him again weren't because he was sick, and rather because he actually wanted to see you. But you’d take any time you could get with your best friend.

He stirs suddenly and you let your hand fall on top of his, tangling your fingers in his, as a way to bring him some comfort in his sleep. His skin is warm and clammy, heating up your hands, it should be gross but the feeling of his hand in yours fills your stomach with a flurry of butterflies.

Slowly, his eyes flutter open and you can tell he is dazed, the way he scans the room to gather his surroundings before landing on you once more confirms your thoughts.

“Y/n?” Zack’s voice is hoarse, causing him to clear his throat before he continues talking, “What’re you still doing here? How long have you been here?”

For a minute your heart pumps inside your chest faster than before, nervousness building in your stomach, “I’m sorry..I fell asleep a couple..hours ago I think. I didn’t want to leave right away in case you woke up again but I never meant to fall asleep.”

“Why’re you apologizing..” His fingers, which you had forgotten were tangled in your own, tense against your skin and tighten their grip on your hand.

“Sorry..”

Your second apology causes him to let out a laugh. A laugh that immediately has him sitting up because he coughs so hard his lungs hurt, and he squeezes your hand tighter in his lap while he tries to catch a breath.

When he finally catches a break, taking deep breaths while your hand slides up and down his back, he looks at you pitifully, “You’re gonna get sick..go home.”

“You're crazy if you think I'm going home. I’m not leaving, who’s gonna take care of you?”

“I can take care of myself, you know..”

“This is news to me.” You raise an eyebrow at him, to which he responds by sticking his tongue out tiredly. He can’t even retort like he usually does. He doesn't have the energy to argue and tell you to leave so you don’t get sick, Zack isn’t even sure he wants you to leave anymore.

“You don’t have to stay..”

“I want to, Zack. I care about you.” You can’t tell if his cheeks were already flushed or if they suddenly became red as you spoke to him, but either way you were sure your face was mirroring his.

He falls back onto the pillows, asking you quietly if you'll get him some water and another blanket before he gets the chills, and you happily oblige. Even while he’s sick, he is able to feel content and you’re happy to be the reason.

Zack's fingers find your hand again, squeezing gently as you sit on the chair beside him, “..Training is kicking my ass.”

“Yeah..but I’m sure it’ll be all worth it eventually,” You try not to let his spirits get down especially while he is in such a tired state, his training put on pause because of his sickness, and you ponder telling him more, “I miss you, you know..a lot.”

A small smile appears on his face, eyes puffy and bags under his eyes, and he looks towards you, “Yeah?”

You can only nod, embarrassed by his lack of affirmation that he has felt the same over the months he’s been training.

“I missed you too..” And the embarrassment flees from your body instantaneously, while his thumb rubs over the top of your knuckles.

The two of you sit in silence for a while, him playing with your knuckles as he tries to hold back the aggressive coughs that threaten to leave his mouth. His head is pounding, and he should feel like shit, but he truly can’t bring himself to when you're looking into his eyes all concerned and you’re letting him play with your hands with no complaints.

“Why’d you stay?” His voice startles you, and you try to pretend that you weren't staring at him and admiring every detail of his face.

“I already told you..” You roll your eyes, letting out a huff before leaning on the palm of your hand, in all honesty you were ready to doze off while Zack looked around your hands and face.

“No..no..why’d you stick around?” His question confuses you and you have to think about what he might mean and then it clicks. You hadn’t realized that he might be aware of how much time his training takes up. It hadn’t occurred to you that Zack could focus on anything but becoming first class.

He’d been neglecting your friendship, but when Angeal rang and asked you to pick Zack up you agreed without hesitation, you forgot instantly about how angry his schedule made you.

You’re not sure how to answer him. You could tell him the truth, that you had been madly in love with your black haired friend since you were children.

Or you could continue to lie, and claim that you had only stayed around because of your long lasting friendship that had absolutely no underlying romantic feelings that neither one of you could talk about.

“C’mon Zack..”

He stares into your eyes, right through you. He knows, he already knows, you don’t have to say anything to him. As he looks at you, he's pleading with you to admit it to him and it makes your stomach crawl with nervousness.

“Y’know I’d do anything for you..been like that since we were kids.” His eyebrows furrow at your attempt to dodge an admission that you hadn’t been prepared for an hour ago, you still weren't ready to admit to him that you were in love with him.

“Y/n..do you love me?”

Again silence fills the room and you’re unsure what to say to the expectant boy. You think, for a second, that he's joking. But his eyes are filled with such sincerity and genuine interest. He wants to know, and he doesn't seem to care if his question comes off bluntly.

When you don’t immediately respond he continues in your place, “Because I think I’m in love with you and I know I’d do anything for you. And I think you feel the same way. I can’t think of any other reason why you wouldn't ignore Angeal’s call, and tell me to deal with this by myself. I know I haven't been around like I should be. But you’re here anyway..”

“Zack please..of course I do. Been like that since we were kids,” You smile softly, repeating yourself and look down at your entangled hands.

He doesn’t let that allow that for very long before he is grabbing your chin to turn your head to face him once more, “I’m not gonna kiss you, because I don't want you getting sick. But I promise you, as soon as this sickness is gone I’m gonna be all over you..”

Even though his words, words you would've never expected to hear when you dragged him into his room just hours earlier, send a nervous shiver down your body you still find a way to tease him, “Careful Zack. Get too excited and your lungs might act up again.”

“Can I ask you to stay the night?”

How could you ever say no.

“Of course, Zack, anything for my first class SOLDIER.”

#zack fair #zack fair x reader #ff7 #crisis core #x reader #oneshot #drabble #female reader #final fantasy vii #ffvii #final fantasy 7 #zack ffvii #fem reader #final fantasy x reader

163 notes · View notes

salternateunreality2 · 27 days

Text

AGSZC Deep Cleaning the Biohazard that is Zack’s Apartment

From the @strayheartless vault <3

—

Zack: It’s not a biohazard, that would mean nothing’s living there, and look, my pets are fine! *opens a drawer with a new litter of mice in it*

Genesis: AAAAAAA! Ahem. I mean to say: Zachariah McKinley Fair, a biohazard means it is unsafe for humans, and often involves dangerous non-human organisms. SUCH AS WILD MICE.

Zack: They’re not wild, they’re my fri-

Genesis: Zachariah. If you finish that word, I will firaga them immediately.

Zack: NO! *Hides the mice with his body*

—-

After Genesis’ 5th childish scream, Angeal’s 3rd round of dry-heaving, and Sephiroth and Cloud being found twitching near the entrance, Zack concedes that maybe he has some work to do.

—

Cloud decides to body-double for Zack by riding him like a backpack.

Zack: Maybe this sock is salvageable!

Koala Cloud: Nope, put it in the bag.

Zack: But I wanna-

Cloud: IN THE BAG, FAIR.

—

Sephiroth is in full-coverage PPE to protect his hair and senses, and is excavating the fridge with gloves.

Zack: But my pasta is in that tub of whipped cream!

Angeal, working at the sink and dry-heaving: I MADE THAT FOR YOU LAST MONTH.

—

They have to set up a rotating schedule of visiting Zack's apartment so he's motivated to clean everything at least weekly, but Zack is really grateful.

He never means for it to get this bad, it’s just…he makes friends with the critters! And, well, sometimes he forgets things. And…and sometimes he just gets overwhelmed. He looks at the pile of dishes and knows he can’t do them all today, so he doesn’t do any.

Or he tries. He starts by picking up the dishes in his bedroom, but trips over a shirt along the way. He sets the dishes down to take the shirt to the laundry, but his eyes catch on the dusty blinds, so obviously he has to clean them, but then he looks up and it’s 3 hours later and he’s dismantled the whole window dressing and is cleaning the grooves with a q-tip and everything is worse than when he started.

Zack breaks down trying to explain it, and Genesis is the first to tell him he understands. Genesis and Angeal sandwich him between themselves while Sephiroth puts a hand on Zack’s shoulder and Cloud starts worming his way into Zack’s arms.

—

Zack cleans for each of them all the time, but for some reason, he can’t understand why they’d help him too.

It surprises him when Angeal comes over and just. Does all his dishes. Or when Genesis comes over and "purifies this hellhole of a bathroom" (gives it a decent clean and fills it with good soaps/battery operated candles/fresh towels). Or when Cloud obsessively sorts and folds his laundry, or when Sephiroth puts everything through the wash when he's working from home one day.

Zack doesn't GET that he's done the exact same things for them, like the time he scoured Angeal's pots for half a day, or polished every metallic surface in Sephiroth's apartment, or dusted Genesis' place so thoroughly it gleamed, or put fresh sheets on Cloud's bed, bundled him up, and did all his laundry while he was dissociating.

He doesn't realize the insurmountable task of addressing The Chair is easy for Angeal (it all goes in the wash. It's all dirty enough.), but the same man finds throwing out socks with holes hard (but acceptable when Zack does it for him).

Zack forgets that he folded all of Gen's towels into swans when Gen’s parents were coming into town and is blown away when Gen leaves a simply folded towel on the rack.

He thinks the work he puts into adding color to Sephiroth’s spartan apartment is nothing, not realizing Sephiroth’s heart is warmed by each and every little splash Zack sneaks in.

Zack doesn’t realize that Cloud would rather do all of Zack’s mopping than address the sensory hell that is washing monster gunk off his own boots, which Zack does for him often.

#ff7 #zack fair #sephiroth #cloud strife #genesis rhapsodos #angeal hewley #agszc #adhd zack fair #best boy zack fair #best pupper zack fair

109 notes · View notes

icycoldninja · 3 months

Text

FFVII incorrect quotes

Cloud: You know, I used to play back in my gory days. Tifa: You mean glory days? Cloud: Ah, that too.

Barret: A stake to the heart won't kill a vampire if their tits are big enough. Aerith : Yeah, you just catch it. Tifa: Nah nah nah, deflects it. Stake? Just bounces right off. Done. Back to doing hot girl shit. Cloud: Then I just use a spear instead. Barret: You are trying so hard to kill a vampire with big bazongas, and for what? Why would you do that to the ecosystem?

Zack, throwing a pokeball at Sephiroth: Sephiroth, I choose you! Sephiroth, not looking up from his book and catching it: You need an Ultra ball to catch this Legendary Pokémon.

Rude: Last week, Reno tried to flush a live lobster down the toilet "because it worked for Nemo".

Rufus: I taught the dog a new trick. throws ball Fetch! Dog: just stands there Tseng: He didn’t do it. Rufus: I taught him to ignore social conventions and think for himself.

Rude : Is… Is that meant to be on fire? Reno : No… not really. Rude : Are you going to do something about it? Reno : Hm… nah.

Cloud: Hey, Vincent, do you have any hobbies? Vincent: Swimming.. Cloud: Really? That’s cool. I never expected you to- Vincent: In a pool of self hatred and regret.

Genesis: Do you ever feel like exploding? Have you experienced the urge to enter the process of combustion? Has your mind created a logical idea, known as thought, to disperse your body into thousands of particles suddenly? Angeal: It’s 3 am, please go back to sleep.

Cloud: …I'm pretty sure that place is fire-proof, or something. Sephiroth, grenade in hand: Alright, but is it explosion-proof?

#Ffvii incorrect quotes #Ff7 #Ffvii #Sephiroth #tifa lockhart #Barret Wallace #aerith gainsborough #Reno of the turks #rude of the turks #tseng of the turks #rufus shinra #Funny #incorrect quotes #Lol #angeal hewley #genesis rhapsodos

86 notes · View notes

spilledquinoa · 2 months

Text

I've just realized how long it's been since I've done one of these (sorry bout that) but @rottenpumpkin13 has inspired me to do another one!

Sephiroth

"simply, communism."

"sometimes you just have to put sanity before fun"

"and I will say 'boo' and send you an email saying 'boo'" (also works for Angeal)

"watch out. he's blue and predictable"

"did you just say 'I'm vaginal'??"

"chicken<6"

"did you say 'prison' and look at me?"

"I'm so mentally unstable it's hilarious"

Genesis

"my mom has limbs you nipple spork"

"get in loser, we're going to the mortitician this Saturday"

"when Gwen Stefani dies, I call dibs on Hollaback Girl royalties"

"what's the point of a voodoo doll if you don't test it?"

"who cares about you graduating when the POLAR BEARS are getting HEART ATTACKS"

"roses are red, I might be autistic, I'm actually super gay but that's not a secret"

"so that's that. I didn't swear. like a whore."

"it's toxic but in a frisky way"

"you little piss-ants"

"what rhymes with alcoholic"

Angeal

"who is it? who's meowin'?"

"Genesis is subpar at best but he's not lame!"

"why aren't we vaccinating the chickens?"

"turkey, turkey, sociopathic turkey..."

"'I drive all night to keep her warm' (referring to Story of My Life by One Direction) man, you don't have to drive to keep someone warm? get a blanket! cheaper than gas!"

"I respect, acknowledge, and admire the grindset"

"capital mark"

Zack

"bananas are freakin weird man"

"he said he has a stommy ache"

"tomato, tomahto, ketchup, potato"

"ham means death??"

"pizza that has lost all heat and pizza that has been put in the fridge are two VERY different kinds of cold pizza"

"I feel like a dish pickle"

"while you've been running the Eiffel Tower, I've been secretly stuffing bees into pants"

"I had a dream someone was cussing me out in sign language"

"when it's 0° I wear pants"

"if you need the bathroom, go now or forever hold your pee"

*whispering* "are they stealing monkey nipple milk??"

"if it's slow, it's bisquik"

Cloud

"well that was OPPRESSIVELY offensive"

"she's Amish, not racist"

"it's educated gambling"

"no I do want scurvy, just to say that I've had it"

"ZACK SAID FREEDOM AWAITS AND I HEARD FREE THE HOMELESS"

"if you step on a crack and break your mom's back, what about orphans?"

"at your temple dipshit"

"you can't just 'dick around' at a SENATE HEARING."

*about Genesis* "wow! I never knew someone could that well versed in being a bitch!"

"I will never cease to disappoint"

Group!

Cloud: is it snowing or hailing?

Zack: snailing

Cloud: aren't you gay??

Genesis: yeah sometimes I forget

Angeal: protons have mass

Zack: I didn't know they were Catholic!

*chatter, before room goes suddenly silent*

Angeal: ...and that's how I first kissed Genesis on the mouth!

Cloud: that's a real how I met your mother vibe

Zack: I'm being killed!

Genesis: no you're being kidnapped fuckwad, there's a difference

Angeal, about Cloud: you're selling yourself out to the army?

Genesis: like a prostitute??

Sephiroth: you're offending prostitutes

Genesis: at least they get something out of it

#genesis rhapsodos #cloud strife #ff7 #ffvii #sephiroth #angeal hewley #zack fair #incorrect quotes #final fantasy vii

46 notes · View notes

strayheartless · 4 months

Text

Okay let’s torture Zack today: ADHD PARALYSIS STYLE!

Getoutlfbedgetoutofbedgetoutofbedgetoutofbedgetupgetupgetupgetuplazazylazazylazy-

This has been going on for too long now. Why can’t he just get up, huh? Why does this have to be a fight every fucking time? Just get the fuck up dude!

He doesn’t move. Instead his thumb shifts to scroll past another video. He knows Angeals about to bang on the door and demand to know why he’s not out of bed; he knows it’s going to spark a lecture, and he knows his brain is going to feel like it’s been lit up like a firework just hearing anything other than silence. He’s not doing it on purpose. He knows he needs to move.

There’s a knock at the door, and that gets him moving. It doesn’t sound like Angeals knock, it’s too hesitant. Also nobody has walked in which means they don’t have a key…

He opens the door to Cloud who’s standing there looking a little unsure. “You good?” He gives Zack a once over, closing off a little at whatever he finds, pulling his scarf over his mouth in nervous habit.

“Yeah I’m fine why?” Zack blinks. What did he forget?

“We er, we were going to meet for lunch.” Cloud looked away from him, and Zack feels like a grade A asshole. “It’s okay if you changed your mind, it’s just- a text- I mean… a text would have- it’s fine.”

“Cloud I’m so sorry!” He cried trying to stumble around looking for clean cloths from the pile of washing that’s mixed with the dirty laundry on the chair. “I completely lost track. I’m- I- I’m reall-“

He hadn’t realised he’d started crying until Cloud makes him stop with a hand on his arm, and he takes a huge stuttering breath. Why does he keep doing this!? Why does he keep forgetting these things and then upsetting his best friend!

“Zack breath,” Cloud says, kind of commands actually.Zack stops and focuses a little more on taking some breaths.

“Good, that’s good. Just… did you forget or did that thing happen again?” Cloud asks and Zack holds up two fingers to indicate option 2.

“Okay,” Cloud sighs and tries a little smile that he only ever seems to give to Zack. “Okay, that’s fine. I’m sorry I shouldn’t have put that pressure on you. Do you want to eat here, or do you think you need to get moving to kickstart something?”

Zack took another breath and struttered “m-moving.”

“Okay, I’ll leave you to get dressed then. 300 second okay?”

“Okay.”

Once Cloud closes his door again Zack moves around the room like lightning. He shoves on a shirt that smells clean, does his belt, grabs his phone and wallet and shoves his feet in his shoes.

Outside Clouds holding Zack’s coat out already and helps him into it.

“283 seconds. New record.” He bumps his elbow into Zack’s side lightly, making the other man laugh breathily.

“Cloud I really am so-“

“Don’t. I know you are and you don’t have to apologise. I get that it’s hard for you.” Cloud cuts him off.

Zack just looks at him. How can one person hold so much acceptance in one tiny body? How can somebody who’s known him for no more than a year accept and help him in ways not even his parents could.

Cloud never makes Zack feel bad for this. he never gets mad at him, when he has every right to. All Cloud has ever done is occasionally been insecure himself and even then he changes his approach when Zack explains.

“I really love you, you know that right?” He asks, wrapping his arms around Cloud. “Like, a lot,”

Cloud blushes “shut up,” he says, leaning into the side hug.

He doesn’t say it back, but he doesn’t have to. Zack knows Cloud loves him to and that makes all the difference in the world.

#oh oops this was meant to be angst #oh well #here have some fluff #ffvii #cloud strife #zack fair #crisis core #zakkura #implied zakkura #can be read as platonic if you like

54 notes · View notes

rottenpumpkin13 · 12 days

Note

What's the worse fashion trend AGSZC followed?

• Shinra had a period where they tried to make Sephiroth (purposely) appealing to teenage girls, but this was unfortunately during Midgar's emo craze. Sephiroth had several photoshoots done where he wore heavy eyeliner. This wasn't sustainable as a daily look because Sephiroth was a developing teenager who ended up sweaty and with raccoon eyes after every assignment.

• The only reason Angeal stopped wearing Hawaiian shirts is because Genesis refused to be seen in public with him.

• Genesis claims to be too original and one-of-a-kind to follow trends. "If anything, I am the trend." Which means that if you mention the deep end of his emo phase—complete with heavy eyeliner to match Sephiroth's at the time—he will deny it.

• ☆ . ° .• °:. *₊ ° . ☆

Zack: Hey, has anyone seen my jorts?

Sephiroth: Genesis found them in your closet, had a nervous breakdown, saged the apartment to, quote, "banish the entity that possessed you to purchase them" and then burned your jorts in a fit of rage.

Zack: .......

• ☆ . ° .• °:. *₊ ° . ☆

Cloud: My ponytail phase is the worst fashion trend I've ever followed.

Zack: You mean the chocobo hair is supposed to be an improvement? Hahaha

Cloud:

Zack: .....haha?

Cloud:

Zack: Please don't murder me.

#ff7 #ffvii #final fantasy 7 #sephiroth #final fantasy vii #ffvii crisis core #genesis rhapsodos #ff7 crisis core #angeal hewley #zack fair #cloud strife #headcanons

180 notes · View notes

esamastation · 7 months

Text

Part thirty-four of Shizuroth, aka, the SOLDIER General's Self Saving Shizun.

Ao3 link.

Previous parts: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three

Sephiroth feels a little better after an evening of meditation and a full night of sleep. Things look a little better in the light of day, and though the question of what the fuck he'd going to do about the war is still there, it has been put off. In favour of monster hunting!

"You seem… excited?" Angeal comments as they prepare to go.

He is! "Mn," Sephiroth answers, and carefully doesn't bounce with eagerness.

Even if the monsters of Final Fantasy can't hold a candle to the convoluted, messy and lazily put together nature of the monsters in PIDW, they're still interesting! Especially since he isn't sure what they actually are and how they work. Advent Children and Crisis Core really make it so unclear, because, like, everything turned into energy sparkles when it died? And he thinks in the movie one of the Sephiroth copies - weird to think about them now - summoned some monsters with magic? And then there was Zack in Crisis Core. Who turned into sparkles when he died!

Not everything can just disappear into energy, right, you need living things dying and rotting and composting to make up soil and stuff! If plants just disappear when they die, what do people eat, what were all these buildings made from? Plus he distinctly remembers coal being a thing in this setting, there was a whole town that got shafted because of it and everything, so fossil fuels exist, therefore stuff must leave behind physical remains! Except when it doesn't?

So! Is death like instant ascending here? Or like it descending, since all energy returns to the Planet? Sephiroth is pretty sure that Aerith left behind a body, and there were definitely corpses in the original game - but again, in the prequel it was really unclear. Enemies in combat disappeared, but cutscene death left a body. Except when it didn't!

Ah, the limitations of technology.

Still, he's interested in seeing how the creatures would look and feel and compare them to those he knows from PIDW. Final Fantasy VII had some really weird monsters, and he has a bet going with himself about how much they resemble awakened beasts or yaoguai.

Angeal looks at him and then smiles, hoisting the Buster Sword to his back. "Ready to go, then?"

"Ready," Sephiroth agrees.

"We're going to have to talk to the Colonel first, but don't worry - I'll handle the talking," Angeal says. "He's an… old-fashioned soldier."

Sephiroth arches a brow. It sounds like a warning. "Which means…?"

"He doesn't like SOLDIER, he thinks we're stuck up and get our abilities handed to us, we don't deserve our reputation, the usual stuff," Angeal shrugs. "Just ignore it and let me handle it."

"... If you say so."

They head outside together, and Sephiroth takes a moment to look around and try to be an objective observer. This place isn't really anything like the towns back home, in PIDW - the aesthetics are mixed, and though they're more like home than Midgar was, it's as if the place was squeezed through a funhouse mirror. It's just a little off.

And of course, there are no locals anywhere to be seen for a full comparison - just Shinra troops, infantry men and SOLDIERs. Who, the moment they notice him and Angeal, stop to stare and point and whisper.

Has the… incident in Midgar already spread this far, or is this really what it's like being Sephiroth all the time?

Depressing.

"Here," Angeal says and leads him to another house, apparently being used by the Colonel. "Remember, let me do the talking. You just stand there and look imposing, okay?"

Sephiroth snorts. "I think I can manage that."

The Colonel didn't look happy to see them, but then, he doesn't look like a man that's ever really happy. He sizes Sephiroth up and then scoffs. "It's about time. I don't know what kind of discipline you SOLDIER Firsts enjoy in Midgar, but this is a war front, sir, there are rules here."

Does that mean Sephiroth isn't a General then?

"Right, you're right, of course, sir," Angeal says placatingly. "Well, we're here now, and we already have missions lined up, so -"

The Colonel ignores him and comes around his desk and to Sephiroth's face. "You've been in and out of Wutai for most of this war, isn't that correct, SOLDIER?"

Sephiroth blinks at the man, slowly. "I suppose so." Behind the Colonel Angeal looks panicked.

"What was that?" The Colonel asks dangerously, narrowing his eyes. "You suppose so?"

Sephiroth narrows his eyes back.

The Colonel continues. "When talking to an officer of superior rank, you answer yes sir, or no sir. You do not suppose! Now, do you have experience in the war or not, SOLDIER?!"

Oh, someone is feeling very insecure in their boots, aren't they?

Now, Sephiroth could handle this with all the tact and delicacy of Shen Qingqiu… but even Shen Qingqiu wouldn't have swallowed that kind of spiel without biting. The original definitely wouldn't have! And Sephiroth is supposed to be a villain… well.

Sephiroth smiles - the Colonel recoils.

Last night he'd reread everything there was on his phone about Wutai, going through all his missions again, trying to get as much intelligence as he could. Funny, the things the tutorial left out.

"I'm sorry," Sephiroth says sweetly. "Who are you?"

The Colonel goes a little red. "Excuse me, SOLDIER?"

"You're barking at me as though at a private, expecting me to go yes sir and no sir," Sephiroth says mockingly. "And yet I have no clue as to who you even are."

Behind the Colonel Angeal gapes and then lifts a pleading look to the ceiling.

The Colonel sputters. "You, you - How dare -"

Ah, you gotta love zero IQ bullies.

"I was given a whole slew of missions and orders," Sephiroth says softly. "All are very vital and high priority. I'm to slay monsters that have killed your men, I'm to hunt down spies you've clearly failed to find, I'm to clear a guard station you haven't been able to get near, I'm to weaken a fortress you cannot even touch, and ten other things besides. All my mission files are very clear. And you know what they all have in common?"

He leans a little closer to the Colonel - right in his purple face. "Not a single one of them mentions you."

Then, before the Colonel can recover, Sephiroth turns on his heel with an imaginary mike drop and saunters out, feeling a whole lot better about everything. The sun is shining, the troopers are scattering at the mere sight of him, and the air is fresh and sweet with natural Qi.

Already this day is looking up.

Angeal, clearly deciding that evasion was the better part of valour, hurries after him. "We're going to pay for that later, you know," he says, sounding defeated.

Of that Sephiroth doesn't have any doubts. What good is a one-time bully? There'd either be a horrifying scene of comeuppance to bring home the realities of war, or a heartfelt discovery and understanding about how they're not so different after all, or whatever else.

"We'll burn that bridge when we get to it," Sephiroth says cheerfully. "Now. I was promised monsters."

Angeal sighs, glancing back at the house commandeered by the Colonel. "... I guess we better clear out anyway. Alright," he motions. "Right this way to the monsters."

Sephiroth grins at his bitchy tone, and together they head out.

SY can have a petty bully scene, as a treat.

#Fanfiction #ffvii #ff7 #svsss #shen qingqiu #shen yuan #sephiroth #angeal hewley

345 notes · View notes

snakegorl212006 · 1 year

Text

Sephiroth Headcanons pt 1

-----dating them includes-----------------------------------------

-Advance training Don’t you think just because your sephiroth’s lover doesn't mean you have a pass. It’s because your his lover you have to be 10X better than everyone else and he’ll make sure you do

-Rooming in with him Although it isn't a must have but he’d love for you to room with him as a sort of comfort. It’ll be like a symbol of his and your trust in each other

-Taking his missions Similarly to Zack in crisis core you do take some of the missions that were assigned to him And both you and zack agree that he is a bit spoiled

-Daily trips for hair products This man goes through shampoo and conditioner faster than he could give cloud dispair and makes italian BBQ out of mario. You have to atleast make two or more trips per week to get shampoo and conditioner and I hope you don’t mind if sephiroth uses your shampoo if you forgot to go get some more.

----How do they get your attention---------------------------------------

I honestly don't know how he can’t get your attention. If you managed to ignore him he probably would either grab your attention by doing something physical or make you look at him so he can tease you for it. Some examples would be taking off his shirt in front of you, making you sit on his lap, or just whisper a complement or two in your ear or all of the above. He would mostly do that because he’s bored or wants to get a reaction from you

----What happens when there jealous------------------------------------

-it’s very hard to get him jealous due to the Genesis and his many attempts to make him jealous before you two became a item but even he has limits - if someone was flirting with you, he’ll simply drag you away and wouldn't dare look back - if a person is bothering you, you’ll get two versions of him - “normal” :he’ll either handle it as normal as possible like dragging you away while glaring dagger at the creep - “murder is alway a option”: the creep will meet the end of his blade but fortunately/unfortunately you’ll have to drag him away before he commits a crime

--How would they react when there S/o says "I love you"---------------

-shock, just shocked -he really doesn't get many I love you’s and would most likely would not know how to react -at the same time it gives him a reality check which puts a smile on his face -he would realized that he has someone who loves him and he has someone to love -he would ask you to say it again just for that feeling as he is still new to affection -he would smile at random times just because you said I love you to him -Angeal and Genesis would question him on that but he would brush it off or tell them to guess

#sephiroth #ff7 x reader #ff7 #final fantasy x reader #final fantasy 7 #sephiroth x reader

269 notes · View notes

prismaticpichu · 3 months

Text

Posted this fic on an alt account bc I kinda just barfed it out this morning without worrying about quality/being up to snuff with regular stuff but then kinda chickened out and orphaned that account but I honestly don’t want 2.5K worth of words to go to waste so here we are!

Hope you enjoy! A little Zack & Angeal & Sephiroth nonsense for your reading pleasure <33

Unprofessionalism

Angeal was giving him a Look.

A really, really, really stern Look.

Zack Fair stood in the doorway of his mentor's apartment—the first time he had ever entered his mentor's apartment, actually, and all his initial excitement of stepping foot into one of SOLDIER's most elite living spaces had been frozen to subzero temperatures while simultaneously feeling like he was under the scrutiny of two Mako-blue heat lamps as Angeal frowned down at him with a pursed lip and furrowed brow.

Zack swallowed.

What...what did he do? He didn't charge inside the place like a bull who'd been bit in the butt (even though he really wanted to), he didn't track any dirt on the clean wooden floors...Heck, he had immediately removed his shoes the moment he passed the threshold—

"Zack." Angeal finally broke the tension with all the ease of a butterknife. "...What is on your feet?"

...

Huh?

Zack blinked in surprise, taken aback by the question, the burning radiance of those heat lamps toning down just a tad as he rubbed his neck and glanced down at his feet.

"Uh...socks?" he said, and hoped that it was the right answer. Especially given that it was the only answer.

...Surely 'Geal could see that he was wearing proper foot covering, right? Right?! He wasn't some heathen who would risk blistering his feet with the abrasive material of the SOLDIER footwear. So what gives? They were perfectly fine socks—and perfectly clean to boot. There was no dirt; there were no holes; they didn't even smell all too bad. Just two perfectly fine socks that were covering his feet, one white with blue polka dots and the other black with green stripes. Completely and utterly normal.

Zack glanced back up, hoping his (obvious) answer would be enough to satisfy.

Annnnd Angeal was still giving him a Look.

...Oh for the love of sugar-frosted corn flakes.

"What?" Zack had to finally ask. "What'd I do? Really!"

Angeal's expression didn't change.

"...Your socks."

The response was dry, slow, like the sluggish pace and molasses-coated syllables would somehow manage to make it any less vague.

"What about my socks?"

The heat lamp cranked up the heat. Angeal folded his arms, furrowed brow twitching, tilting his head slightly like he had just asked what on Gaia two plus two equates to.

And took a deep breath.

"They're mismatching."

...

Huh?

Zack glanced back down at his socks—at the stripes and dots, at the lefty and righty—genuinely and unabashedly and totally confused, before looking back up at has mentor again.

"Uh...so?"

...

The heat lamp reached solar levels.

Zack rubbed his neck.

Welp. That just earned him a one-way, non-refundable ticket to a good ol' lecture if he'd ever seen one.

"...Zack," Angeal started tightly.

Annnnnnddd there it was.

He tried not to groan.

"What do I always tell you is the most vital part of being a SOLDIER?”

"Embracing your dreams," Zack mindlessly regurgitated.

"Correct. And what else?"

"...Protecting your honor." The second part came as a sigh.

"Good. And what do you think that means, pup? To protect your honor?"

Zack once again rubbed his neck, struggling to puzzle out how this going-through-the-motions lecture connected to the apparent topic of his sock choices.

"Uh...to not cheat on exams?"

"Nope. Try again."

"Uhhhh..."

"It means not only acting the part of a SOLDIER, pup, but looking the part as well. Do you understand where I'm going with this?"

Zack was certain at this point that Angeal's definition of "SOLDIER honor" was actually made of clay and could basically be kneaded and molded to fit whatever unspoken law he managed to break in the moment. Like when he wasn't cutting his meatballs into appropriate sizes before consuming them and Angeal went on to say that the true meaning of "SOLDIER honor" meant having good table manners and apparently nothing else.

"Not really," Zack admitted.

Angeal's brows did a little dance.

"I mean, Zack, that wearing proper and appropriate attire is a clear-cut sign of your respect and appreciation towards military standards. Anything below that not only shows your impropriety, but shows you have a complete and utter lack of respect towards the SOLDIERs around you who are wearing the proper attire. Do you understand now?”

...

...Huh?

"I guess," Zack said, for the sheer sake of moving this grueling process along.

How was it that he hadn't moved from the doormat?

Angeal kept his arms folded. "Do you want to be a First, Zack?"

Zack's head snapped up, something struck, blue eyes suddenly doe-like. "More than anything!"

"Then I suggest you start dressing like it." Angeal finally lowered his arms. "Because, frankly, I do not appreciate the messages you are sending to me by wearing your..." He eyed Stripes and Dots with an unveiled, purposeful disdain. "Incongruent socks."

"But 'Geaaaal," Zack protested, actually starting to get a little offended. "You can't even see my socks with the boots on! Who even cares?”

"It's not about that, pup. It's about the principle."

Oh, the principle. It's always about the principle.

"Geal..."

"Don't argue with me, pup. It's completely unprofessional."

"But—“

"No buts. Now please go change them."

"What?”

"Go on."

"Geal!"

"Go."

"C'mon—“

"Now, Zack."

"Can I at least have a snack?"

"After you change. Now go."

"C'mon, this is totally—“

"Zack."

"But—“

"Zackary Calypso Fair."

...

Why did he ever tell him his middle name?

Letting out a long, exaggerated, petulant sign in resignation—and for the sake of getting off this stinking doormat—Zack begrudgingly complied. With a slump in his shoulders he turned around and started out the door, not even bothering to slip his boots back on because apparently they just didn't matter so long as the fabric underneath them wasn't fit for proper SOLDIER day-to-day life.

...Fooey.

The boy's eyes remained glued to Stripy and Dots as he took his walk of shame towards the elevator.

...He'd been wearing his socks like this ever since he was a little tadpole back in Gongaga. They were his, like, good luck charm—didn't 'Geal see that?! Some people plucked four-leaved clovers from the ground, others carried horseshoes with them. Well, not him. He—Zack Fair—had always held tight to the belief that all good fortune started with mismatching socks. Specifically ones with different patterns. And then there was the question of how in Moogle's magical mascara he was supposed to find matching socks—because, well, his drawer was kinda but totally a rainbow explosion of different socks that had been long ripped from their pairs and set off to marry other mates in the sea. Like, really. That's what it looked like. It would take him hours to organize them all again. Days, even. Months? Years? Centuri—

So subsumed in his sock-serious dilemma, Zack was completely impervious to the sound of the elevator dinging in front of him.

As was he impervious to the sound of a person stepping out of it.

As was he impervious to any sense of time and space as he proceeded to mindlessly walk into the open car only to be stopped by walking straight into someone's open coat instead.

Gah! Shoot shoot shoot.

Zack jolted back into his body, startled , shaking his head from the impact as a deep coral gushed onto his cheeks.

And boy oh boy did his cheeks nearly burn off as his head shot up and he caught sight of the serpentine eyes peering into his own.

...

Oh.

Frosted.

Cornflakes.

Zack's mouth opened way too fast.

"Oh—uh! I'm sorry, Sir! General, Sir! Sephiroth, General, Sir! I didn't mean to walk into your chest or anything—I, uh, I promise! I was just kinda lost in thought y'know—I can be a real space cadet sometimes even though I haven't been a cadet in over a year and erm anyway uh do you like meatballs—“

"At ease, SOLDIER." Sephiroth's voice was smooth, even, and unruffled. "Just keep your head up next time."

...

Huh. That was pretty nice, actually.

Zack nodded vigorously nonetheless, taking a step back, but was relieved to feel the blazes of tension dwindling away in his body. "Y-yes, Sir. Will do."

Anything to avoid repeating that.

...Seriously.

He was surprised to see the man tilt his head, a rather benign gesture as Sephiroth regarded him curiously. "What are you doing on this floor, SOLDIER? Do you have business being here?"

Zack's lips quirked into a smile. "Sure do! My mentor's a First Class; was just coming to chill at his place after some training."

Sephiroth hummed in understanding, straightening his look. "Ah. So you're Zackary?"

Zack's eyes might as well have exploded into stars.

"Yeah! Yeah, that's me! How'd you know?!"

Angeal would not approve of this explicit lack of "Sirring". But who cared two Chocobo nuggets about that? Sephiroth knew his name! His name! Little tadpole Zack's name!

A ghost of a smile crossed Sephiroth's lips. "Angeal's a friend," he explained smoothly. "He has mentioned having a student before."

... No freakin' waaaaaYYYYYYY YY—

Before Zack could let that sound out, thankfully, the general's expression shifted to that of confusion.

And in a matter of nanoseconds Zack was realizing exactly what he was staring at.

And the coral instantly came flooding back.

I know, I know, I'm going! You don't need to reinforce it. Mismatched socks are for squares, i've been told. I won't be a square. Just lay it on me.

He swallowed, holding his breath, and—

"...Why aren't you wearing shoes, Zackary?" Sephiroth asked puzzledly.

—let his breath go.

...

…

Well.

That wasn't exactly the question he was expecting.

Nonetheless, it was a question—a question from General Sephiroth—and for the sake of not looking like any more of a buffoon, it was one that he should answer in a timely manner. Like now.

Like right now.

Zack rubbed his neck, masking as much of his surprise as possible.

"Well, uh, Angeal...he kinda, y'know...told me to change my socks."

Sephiroth remained silent for several moments.

"...Why?"

...

Why...?

Zack could hardly believe what he was hearing.

"Well, y'know. He said...y'know..."

He was trying his best to gesture verbally to the Obvious—an Obvious that Sephiroth, judging by sheer countenance alone, wasn't grasping, which seemed completely and utterly ridiculous given that circulating rumors told of Sephiroth's collective IQ being higher than that of the entire SOLDIER unit clumped together (Angeal himself included) . And yet here he was, looking completely and utterly stumped like he was the world's most Unfair crossword puzzle.

Which meant that Zack was forced to continue.

"You know..." He swallowed. "He said that, well, he said that...Said that wearing mismatching socks was unprofessional and I was being disrespectful and showing impro-pie-ity or something and that true SOLDIER's honor was all in the dress code even though I thought he said it was about table manners and then another time he said it was about tying your laces and anyway he said he wouldn't give me a snack until I change so now I have to abandon my superstitions and conform to the SOLDIER sock wearing code."

...

Sephiroth remained silent for several more moments.

...

And when he spoke again, some five or thirty seconds later, Zack was certain he could be bowled over with a feather.

"Well..." he said slowly, turning his gaze away with a hum. "I suppose I am an activate displayer of impro-pie-ity myself.”

Zack blinked.

...

Huh?

Now, it was his turn to cock his head. "...Whad'ya mean?"

It didn't take many words for his question to be answered; it didn't take many syllables. Which, well, when Zack thought about it... may have been partly due to the fact that Sephiroth's response didn't require any words at all.

Instead, as that ghost of a smile took possession of his lips and curled into a real, true smirk, Sephiroth bent down—alllll the way to his boots, allll the way to the cuffs of his pants—and proceeded to roll up the iconic black material until the clothing underneath was visible.

And that was when the feather bowled Zack right over.

Because there, hugging the bottommost part of his legs and disappearing into the tunnel of his boots, were a pair of socks. But not just any socks: a blue sock on his right, mottled with yellow polka dots, and a plain gray sock on his left. Socks that were not matching in style, color, nor pattern; socks that were chaotic, wild, and free. Socks that were completely and utterly incongruent as they come.

Zack's mouth fell agape.

"Angeal can get more than a little carried away with his lectures." The smirk was still playing on his lips as Sephiroth rolled his cuffs back down. "Not to mention the fact that First Classes have complete freedom in regard to their clothing choices. Did he tell you that?"

Zack shook his head.

"Or course not." Sephiroth shook his own, bangs of silver swishing with the motion. "He still wears the standard uniform everywhere he goes."

The man straightened back upright, smirk still present, and bestowed upon him a brief nod of understanding.

"I wouldn't be too disheartened by Angeal's preaching, my friend. He once lectured me for shaking too much Parmesan cheese onto my dinner."

The numbing, incredulous awe that had enveloped him was finally broken by a laugh.

"...For real?! What'd you say to him?"

"I told him to back off, of course," Sephiroth replied smugly. "That I wasn't a child and could do what I want. Same as when he scolded me to change my socks."

He glanced down at Stripy and Dots, that satisfied smirk melting into something of a genuine smile.

"Very nice colors, by the way. I approve."

And then he was gone, like a silver leaf in the wind, sailing down the hallway towards his own apartment and closing the door behind him.

Zack remained silent for several, several moments.

...

Wow.

What a guy.

#sephiroth #ffvii #zack fair #angeal hewley #crisis core #ff7 #randomness #pichu writing #fanfic #writing #ff7 fanfic #just poking fun at Angeal’s ‘lectures’#dhdhdhdhhd

34 notes · View notes