Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ A Welcome Burden ❯ Sephiroth's POV ( Chapter 2 )

Disclaimers : : I own none of the characters. All belong to Squaresoft.

A/N : : PWP, Cloud x Sephiroth---Seph's POV this time.

"word" - speech

~word~ - thought

Garnet Eyes

A Welcome Burden

Tired… Everything amounted to that one fact. The silver haired man curled down farther into himself, trying to conserve warmth. The soft glow of the fire a few feet away did nothing to warm him, and he shivered again.

Heavy-lidded jade eyes turned over to the fire, staring into the deadly beauty of the flames jumping and whipping about, calling out to anyone to try to tame them as they screamed of their own death. A small sneeze ventured forth from cold lips and the Mako glowing eyes closed briefly as the man attempted to pull himself up. The large furs draped over his pale body fell away as he awkwardly stood, unused to the movement.

With slow, careful steps, he made his way to the small woodpile huddled into a crevice in the cave wall. The hard, stone floor froze his bare feet, but he needed to bring the fire back to life. Picking up two of the smaller pieces of wood, he carried them to the fire and carefully placed them in, prodding them around until the fire jumped them, revived and ready to consume its next meal.

The same tired steps took him back over to his bedding-a wide bear fur with five or so other furs with much longer hairs as blankets. He took a few more blankets from the bedding beside his and crawled down under them all, curling into a small ball in the center. He was much too tired to think, much less with any clarity, so he cleared his mind in an attempt to welcome sleep.

Unfortunately, after everything was cleared his mind supplied him with one last thought-the one question that bothered him. He didn't know how long he had been here, and he had forgotten much of what was before here anyway, but that hadn't bothered him much. It was the one that tended to him. The blonde warrior. He knew the face, but could not place where it was from. The form had changed a lot from whatever skewed memories he could fit together, but for some reason he felt that the man should not be here, and moreover he shouldn't be here. Wherever here was, anyway. He had a nagging feeling that he really should be dead by now, but he couldn't place why.

His stomach growled, bringing him out of his thoughts, and he groaned inaudibly. He was tired, hungry, and thoroughly confused. Plus the blonde was not back yet, and he was, as much as he hated to admit it, too weak to find anything on his own. Sleep was his only escape at the moment, so that's what he set himself to do.

"Wake up, or you won't be getting dinner."

He began to respond to the voice that called him, but as soon as his mouth opened a yawn worked it's way up his throat. His leg had fallen asleep, so the silver one shifted underneath his mound to stop the tingling sensation. That brought into full view the blonde warrior crouched by the fire, beginning to set up for dinner.

"…Cloud…?"

The silver haired man didn't even recognize his own voice then. It sounded so… pathetic to him. The blonde obviously noticed it as well, because his head turned to look back with those wide azure eyes of his, azure locking jade in place.

"Are you feeling worse again, Sephiroth?"

No. No, he wouldn't be that weak. He remembered a long time ago, when he was strong and able and everyone had looked up to him. He wanted to be that again. Closing his eyes briefly, he steeled himself to stop showing so much weakness and pushed himself forward, craning his neck out of the bundle he was in.

"…Better…"

"You're lying."

The pale man flinched, hating the fact that he still looked weak to the other. The strong, bronze-skinned, wonderfully built blonde that was taking care of him and didn't need anyone's help. The man was actually very beautiful, with his rugged, outdoor appearance and defined body. Every muscle showed just slightly from under the copper skin, but the form that carried those muscles was lean and lithe, with such a lovely height and weight.

Pale cheeks flushed at the thought. The only reason he knew the feel of the other's weight was because the man would often sleep against him or on top of him so that the silver warrior stayed warm. His body just couldn't keep a good temperature for him to stop shivering, and he suddenly felt it coming. Those god-awful coughs that left his throat sore for hours afterward.

*Cough* *cough* *cough*

He curled up tightly, covering his mouth with a slender hand and clenching his throat muscles tightly until he couldn't feel the coughs anymore. When he was certain he wouldn't cough again, he started to drag himself up again to move to the fire. That was proving to be difficult, as he never moved this much in such a small timeframe.

Suddenly strong arms wrapped around him and picked him up as he started to protest the help. Very gently, the blonde placed him down on a thin fur in front of the fire and wrapped a thick one around his shoulders. He scowled, turning his head away from the blonde slightly and pulling the furs closer only to hear a soft chuckle. Delicately, he turned jade eyes back to watch the blonde intently. There was just something about the man he couldn't place.

"Think you can hold down dinner tonight?"

A small shiver worked its way up his spine as Sephiroth nodded, but he tried to ignore it.

"Cold?"

Angry with himself for not controlling his body, he nodded again.

"Want me to warm you up?"

His eyes widened then, but he knew what would happen. The blonde would take care of him well, but that didn't make it any easier on him. He forced another nod, though this one was very timid and he could feel heat rising to his cheeks.

The blonde smirked and turned his attention to the fire. Sephiroth watched curiously as azure eyes looked into the fire intensely, reflecting the orange flames off of their glowing Mako surface. With a sudden move, the blonde brought his shirt off to show the strong muscles in his torso and the heat in the pale cheeks increased as he realized he was staring.

Cloud stood up and stretched, giving a beautiful flex in the process and the jade eyes fixed on him widened. He looked so virile. The blonde turned his head down and winked, kneeling down and gesturing to the furs that Sephiroth now had clenched in his hands. He wanted Sephiroth to open them, but the silver one couldn't. He knew his state well enough to be ashamed of himself. He didn't have nearly the build of the blonde one, and all of his body looked so delicate-even to himself. His muscles weren't defined in his body; he was soft curves alone. To make it worse, he had no way to cover himself-he was completely bare under the furs.

Blushing badly, he turned away from the blonde god in front of him and let go of the furs, awaiting judgment. Cloud opened the furs and pressed his chest into Sephiroth's, shifting around him and then pulling him back into his lap while the silver one stayed limp in his arms. When he was settled on the lap, he curled up to the heat radiating out of that copper body. It felt so good. Everything felt good when he was with Cloud. He felt good. …And right then he felt sleep calling him away. He gladly accepted.

Twitching slightly, he began to awaken to something that smelled very good to him right then. Unwilling to wake up if it wasn't really for him, he cracked open one jade eye to see a nice piece of meat proffered in front of his face. His stomach then decided to announce itself and he tilted his head, opening his mouth for the meal. Feeling the meat at his lips, he took it in and grinned mentally. Cloud always cooked it just right and it was wonderful to have food again. Especially his new favorite from the wild.

"..Rabbit…? We haven't… had this in a… while."

Sephiroth saw the frown forming on Cloud's face and immediately felt bad. The man did all he could and Sephiroth still made it seem useless, he knew. He couldn't help how his body reacted.

"Still cold?"

Sephiroth shook his head negatively, desperately trying to stop making the blonde feel like he needed to do more, but a chill zipped up his spine and he couldn't manage to suppress a shiver. He grimaced both inwardly and outwardly at that and glanced up at Cloud again, worried jade eyes reflecting his fear that the blonde would be angry about it. The man had the oddest breaking points, and they all seemed to revolve around whether or not Sephiroth himself was doing well or poorly.

The frown did not leave Cloud's face and Sephiroth turned away in embarrassment.

"Why do you keep lying to me when I ask you how you are doing? I want you to get better you know."

Just as he feared, Cloud's voice was tinged with anger. Why did he always manage to upset the man?

"I… sorry."

The other visibly hesitated then, and Sephiroth took a chance glance back at him.

"Just don't keep doing it, okay?"

Sephiroth nodded, trying to please the man for once.

"Promise me."

Why did he care so much? He never remembered having anyone care about him this much. After a small pause, he nodded his head again.

"Promise."

He wants safety; he's willing to consent to it, so he nods resolutely.

"Then say it out loud."

After a small hesitation, in which the silver warrior willed his vocal cords to work, "I… I promise, Cloud."

"Good. I only want you to be okay."

Heat came into the silver man's cheeks ten-fold and he nodded, curling down into the warmth of the body next to him with newfound warmth in his heart. He finally stopped feeling cold and began to drift off to sleep again.

When darkness began to take him into its warm embrace, he suddenly felt something that didn't register in his mind. Curious, he cracked a jade eye to see bronze and blonde right over him and noticed a light pressure to his lips. Shocked, his eyes flew wide open and his entire body froze. The mouth over his own left and the face receded to look down at him again.

"Wh..what…?"

Cloud… Cloud had kissed him. He'd never been kissed before in his life. He didn't even know what it felt like. Well, now he did. It wasn't a bad feeling; he didn't want to say he liked it either. This was his caretaker-a man much stronger than him at this point. If… if he wanted anything Sephiroth knew he didn't have a chance in hell to stop him. He didn't even really know what Cloud could want. He hadn't even had a girl/boyfriend before. He had no experience whatsoever in the area he was now petrified the one person he trusted was heading into.

"-"

…What had he intended to say? Oh gods, he is going there; he's going to… why is he looking so contemplative? What is he thinking? What does he want?

The azure eyes above him turned a soft gaze toward jade, almost caressing him with the compassion in those blue depths as a gentle smile made its way to the blonde's lips. Before Sephiroth could process even that much, a bronze cheek was delicately rubbing across his own pale cheek. Neither of them had ever acquired the makings of a beard, not even stubble, so the caress was very gentle. When he felt something wet touch the heated skin of his ear, Sephiroth gasped and arched into the contact. His body acted against his will as his eyes fluttered closed of their own accord and his head lulled backward onto the arm behind his neck. A soft nibbling on his lobe made Sephiroth gasp again.

~Oh gods this feels good. …No… no this has to stop…~

"C-cloud… uungh."

Gasping inwardly, jade eyes snapped wide open. He could not have really just moaned out like that. There was no way he could lose that much control over himself. His chest constricted in a mixture of fear and something he couldn't quite place… something that just urged his entire being to continue this… as he felt the other nipping down his jaw back towards his mouth. When the blonde got to his destination, his eyes rose to search into jade, and he seemed to hesitate before his eyes turned into compassionate azure depths and he made a cooing noise.

"Shh… I want you to feel this, Sephiroth. Feel it, and enjoy it."

He then seemed to pause, unsure of something, before his face hardened just barely with a decision.

"After all, you only kiss those you care about."

Sephiroth's eyes widened impossibly as the blonde's words hit him. ~He couldn't possibly mean…~ All coherence was lost and pink tinted bronze lips came down to softly caress his mouth again. His body again acted on its own and jade eyes shut, allowing him to savor the gentleness. No one had ever been so gentle with him; it felt so new and so… wonderful. Now he was beginning to see what all those horny little recruits had been so adamant about. But he wanted to feel more.

With a very hesitant move, he carefully pushed back against the soft lips over his own. The blonde seemed pleased with the movement and pressed a little more himself before his mouth opened over the silver one's and he felt his bottom lip being taken into the warmth of the man's mouth. When the sucking sensation started, Sephiroth felt his body completely melt into the blonde's. It felt so good. Everything Cloud was doing felt good. Including the soft caresses with bronze hands across his pale skin. He whimpered when the hands moved too close to his groin, feeling his blood coursing through his veins like liquid fire. Cloud's hands obeyed whatever wish he was trying to get out and avoided the area, only to find a deliciously sweet spot on his left shoulder.

He hissed at the sensation of the hand rubbing that spot and the blonde then starting focusing his attention on that point. All the blood in his body heated up and rose lips parted in a gasp. These sensations were so incredible. The blonde's tongue ran along that spot and he groaned, letting the opposite arm lift to curl around the other's back. As the ministrations continued, Sephiroth felt himself becoming more and more sensitive to the touch. He began groaning and gasping with each movement the blonde made until every whisper of air across his skin made him moan.

He barely noticed as the mouth and hands above him shifted away from that spot, still wholly caught up in the sensations they had given him when there. The thumbs rolling in circles over his chest made his nipples pucker in anticipation and he went limp again, arm dropping back against the ground in a nearly futile attempt to support himself as his groans turned into harsh pants. It was agonizingly slow, the circles the blonde was making. Somehow Sephiroth just wanted them somewhere else, but he didn't even know where.

Finally realizing he was in a very uncomfortable position, he made to move himself. He wanted absolutely no distractions to this absolute torture that he only wanted more of. When he felt the part of himself he had wanted Cloud to stay away from rub up against the blonde, giving him a jolt, he whimpered in fright, unable to understand the pleasure that gave him.

The blonde stopped moving and Sephiroth pleaded to himself that he hadn't done something stupid. Gods, he needed this; he wanted it. But it would be just like him to screw up something like this-something involving people. Why couldn't he handle others? He could almost feel the blonde sneering at him, telling him that he should just shut the hell up and take everything without whining.

"It's okay, Sephiroth. …Doesn't it feel good?"

That definitely didn't sound like a sneer to him. Afraid that if he opened his eyes, the tenderness in the voice would be replaced by what he heard in his mind, he barely cracked an eye to look up at the blonde. The face was still tender and kind, so he nodded, just barely visibly.

"Of course it feels good. I'll make it feel even better, if you want."

Better…? It could even feel better? The silver warrior let his head drop back as his arms gained a little strength to support his weight. He couldn't really think of much he would lose if he let Cloud do whatever he was planning. All he could really think about anyway was the tightness in his groin, and he had no idea how to relieve himself of it. The silver one finally nodded consent and almost immediately his arms lost all power. He collapsed on his back with tightly shut eyes, moaning lowly as he felt those long bronze fingers wrap around his shaft. It was such an agonizing combination of pleasure and torment to his body. It was wonderful.

But the voice in his head came back, the snide remarks making him want to cry almost as much as the hands on his member. It told him not to cry out, not to show such a weakness. He didn't want Cloud to think he was weak; he wanted Cloud to care about him. No one could care about a weak fool, so he bit his lip to keep the moans down in his throat and suppress all urges to cry out.

When Cloud shifted, adding to the pleasures coursing through Sephiroth's body, he almost lost it. The tip of his erection rubbed back and forth across the hard planes of the blonde warrior's stomach to match the movement up and down the shaft. The silver man was going insane with pleasure.

Just as he felt lips back against his own he pushed up into them. Some escape-any escape-he just needed some way to deal with the intensity of his pleasure. Feeling another moan surge up in his throat, he held it back and pressed up harder. He couldn't breathe anymore, and he knew he needed air, but damn if he cared. He didn't want air if it would take away from what he was feeling then. Just when he was beginning to feel light-headed, the blonde pulled away and, before he could close his mouth from his lungful of air, all of the pent-up groans surged out in one deep moan spurring his hips to buck up into the hands against him.

Panting again, his head twisted back and forth as his body sought for some relief to the pleasure. He felt like he would burst at the seams. He needed relief now. Then a hand pressed to his lips and he opened his mouth, drawing two fingers in with his lips and tongue to start sucking on them as hard as he could. Gods… anything to relieve the feeling built up inside him. His loins tightened harshly and he bit the fingers in his mouth to keep himself from screaming. Finally the pressure was just too much and he shrieked, body arching high off the ground as white light sparkled around his vision, blinding him. Nothing could even describe the pure bliss he felt, much less compare to it.

When his vision finally cleared again, he realized the vulnerable position he was in and tensed. He wasn't sure about what was going to happen, but all he had ever heard from Hojo about having a male partner was that he would be in pain if he was on the bottom. He didn't even know what that meant, but he could guess that he was the bottom right then. He'd always heard horror stories from that insane scientist about the bottom… uke, if he remembered right. But then again, Hojo was downright paranoid about same-sex relationships and made that blatantly clear when dealing with some of the men. The conversations he had overheard from the recruits always made everything sound good, now that he thought about it. But that didn't make him feel any better about being spread-eagle with a hand rubbing the cleft in his butt.

"C-cloud…? What… what are you d-doing…?"

He hated how scared his voice sounded. He was being weak again.

"Seph… it's okay… I promise you that what I'm going to do will feel even better than what just happened, okay? Is that alright with you?"

Better is not possible; it can't be. The silver-haired warrior guessed that the smile that graced the blonde's lips was due to his face, which he was sure looked as incredulous as he felt.

"It's okay, Sephy. It's alright. I won't hurt you."

~Hurt me?~ That was impossible. And where did that blonde get off calling him these abbreviations? No one had ever dared call him anything but General, Sir, or on occasion Sephiroth. Cloud pulled back slightly, he was guessing from the glare his powerfully glowing Mako jade eyes were giving, when suddenly the blonde just smiled, letting azure rake over pale curves. Self-conscious, Sephiroth's thighs tensed as he began to pull his legs closed but stopped. Cloud said there was more pleasure, and as difficult as that was to believe, the silver warrior knew he wanted to experience it.

A warm, wet finger pressed against his entrance and he fought down a gasp, keeping his body tense even as the finger began massaging him and two pressed delicately to his lips, caressing them.

"Relax, love, just feel."

The silver one had never done anything like what he was being commanded to do before. He didn't know what to do, where to start. Deciding that he wanted whatever he was being given, he started with the simplest form of what he was being asked. Relax.

It took some effort, but he managed to get his body to calm. Once the blonde seemed to feel that he had calmed himself enough, the massage against his entrance became a little harder. An involuntary gasp escaped the silver man as a finger penetrated him and he fought the intrusion. It didn't feel bad, but it wasn't the best feeling he'd ever had.

"Don't tense… you'll hurt yourself, love, and I don't want that to happen."

With a shuddering exhale, Sephiroth released the tension in his body and gazed up at the blonde above him with hooded eyes. It seemed to please the man above him, as he smiled quite beautifully then. Letting himself think about the pleasure he had felt and the promise of more, the jade eyes shut and the pale man accepted the digit, almost wanting to groan as it moved farther in. He still couldn't guess where this was going, but that finger was starting to feel downright pleasurable inside him. It was moving around in an almost searching pattern, but when it grazed a spot inside of him, the reaction was immediate. He thrust back against the finger with a high mewl, feeling all his veins reawaken and pulse with a new fire.

His vision clouded as the blonde attacked that spot inside of him and he found no release to the pleasure bubbling inside. He could only cry out in pleasure, unable to recognize his own voice but unable to care when all he could feel was intense, soul-shattering pleasure.

The pressure inside increased and his broken mind brought forth the knowledge that there was another finger inside him. It increased his bliss tenfold. When the fingers ceased torturing his spot and just began to lightly tease, he groaned in protest. All that his mind could process was that he wanted more and he wanted it now.

Unconsciously, he took the two fingers still rubbing his bottom lip into his mouth, sucking again to relieve the tension in his loins. He started at the coppery tang and realized that he must have bit Cloud hard enough to induce blood before. But that just became an even greater turn on when he tasted the sharp after bite of Mako. It was such a sweet flavor in Cloud's blood that he almost wanted to find a way to wound him more to taste more of the sweetness.

When the third finger penetrated, Sephiroth's eyes widened and fell to nearly cover all of his vision. He did not want those fingers moving back out. With a deft movement, he reached for and grabbed the blonde's forearm, pulling it towards him and pushing back against it. Distractedly he made out the soft coo of the blonde and felt the bronze cheeks brush up to his heavily reddened pale ones. The finger's slid away from his mouth and the silver one reluctantly gave them up, choosing to keep the fingers in deep rather than go after something that kept his mouth busy.

However, head lulling to the ground and back arching fiercely, he realized that he couldn't get the fingers in deep enough to satisfy himself. With a hoarse cry, he dropped back to the ground and bucked in one last attempt to get the fingers in farther.

"It's not enough!"

Unbidden tears glided down from tightly closed jade eyes and into the mat of sliver hair under him. The blonde warrior was literally purring in his ear by then and he almost wanted to whimper when he felt the blonde's gentle kisses across the pathway of tears.

"I'll make it more…"

The voice was tinged with a groan and Sephiroth whimpered softly when he felt the fingers retract. Even if they weren't enough they were much better than nothing at all. The cool air surrounding him now pricked at his hot, sensitive flesh and he slit one eye to see what the blonde was doing and why it wasn't being done to him.

Seeing the blonde rubbing his… very large member almost made the silver warrior cum right then. The sight of the bronze god touching himself sent all blood straight to his groin and his eyes hooded even more. Azure moved up to his gaze and held it, moving closer until the heat radiating off of the man above him mingled with his own and Sephiroth suppressed a whimper of delight.

`I love you.' The words were mouthed carefully and echoed in Sephiroth's mind as he felt the beginnings of pressure to his entrance again. No one… no one had ever said that to him. Even if it was only mouthed, it was still the three words he had waited his whole life to hear. His heart was bleeding with joy. He was wanted. He was… loved.

The shock of the length pressed against him pushing past his entrance and driving out his inner walls sent small tremors through him. It hurt. God, it hurt so much. The pressure was unbearable and he whimpered, hating himself for letting this happen. He should have known by now that anything good was always short lived.

"It's okay baby; you're doing great. C'mon, just a little more, baby. Just a little more and you got it. Relax, beautiful, just relax and let me take care of everything. You won't be hurting long, that I promise you."

Sephiroth started; he hadn't realized Cloud had bent down next to his ear. The distraction dulled the pain and he reached his pale arms around the blonde's broad shoulders, letting his arms rest and bringing a hand through soft gold. For the angles Cloud's hair made, it was incredibly soft to touch. The length inside him pushed a little further and he couldn't suppress a whimper.

"Love, you're doing so wonderfully. I'm so glad you aren't hurting too bad, and I'm sorry you're hurting at all, baby. I'll make it better soon; real soon, sweetheart."

The soft mantra of the blonde's voice calmed the silver warrior tremendously; he liked being called "love" and "sweetheart" and even, blushingly admitted, "baby." He liked the reassurance and, for once in his life, he absolutely knew that he wanted to be dominated; he was tired of being the lead, and the blonde was most certainly capable of taking control.

Feeling hands caressing his hips, he realized that the blonde stopped moving- was waiting for something. Unsure of what, Sephiroth waited patiently for whatever was to happen before his body finally gave out. The pressure inside him gave him a dull throbbing that wasn't at all bad. His patients quickly broke down and he wrapped his long, slender legs around the other's hips to pull him closer and inadvertently pushing himself down onto the shaft inside him.

With a small groan, Cloud began an agonizingly slow rhythm in and out, just the barest movement inside. This had to be what heaven was like; he was now sure that nothing could feel better. He never really heard himself, but obviously his… lover was reacting to the noises he was making. Well, if he wanted the noise, there was plenty Sephiroth was willing to give him. The mews worked up harder from his throat, he knew, and it would normally make him feel like he was a weakling- losing all his control- but he needed to lose his control and he felt safe losing it to the blonde.

A feral grunt echoed in the cave as the blonde pressed back a little harder, angling himself for something. When his shaft drove into Sephiroth's prostate, the silver one arched and almost screamed in pleasure.

~Oh gods… oh gods I want more of this… I want more, and I want it hard.~

A whimper caught in his throat as he bucked just barely, seeking the friction of the hard stomach above his aching and as of yet still untouched shaft. It suddenly pressed down against him and he was momentarily paralyzed in bliss.

"Love, if I'm doing something wrong, tell me. I want you to feel good, baby. You gotta tell me what you want."

He could barely understand the blonde, feeling the delicious pressure both inside and out. When his member was released from the confines of between their stomachs, he whimpered again. The angle the blonde was moving into him changed and he struggled to control himself. He wanted it harder, damn it. Gods… he didn't want to say that out loud. It was embarrassing enough to think it.

His body, however, could have cared less about whether he wanted to keep from humiliating himself and his voice worked by itself.

"Harder!"

He couldn't believe he actually had said it. And the rocking had stopped. Gods, he didn't just say something stupid, did he? Embarrassed beyond belief, he shoved his face into the furs under his head and lifted his hips in a silent plea that he hadn't just done something really, really idiotic.

The hard thrust into him told him otherwise.

"How much harder?" The voice held unhidden passion, and his body didn't let him reclaim control before it acted again, searching for the pleasure that was ingrained inside its depths to find.

"Harder!!"

He had shrieked, he knew, but that was because the blonde was deliberately going after that pleasure point inside. The next thrust was deep- deeper than the others had been and filling Sephiroth so completely that he momentarily couldn't breathe. His voice recovered before his mind did, letting out a scream of ecstasy.

The blonde growled above him, obviously enjoying his vocalizations. To Sephiroth, however, screaming was all that was keeping him from going insane with pleasure. Cloud was lunging into his pleasure spot with every thrust, making every vein, every cell, sing with joy. When lips touched his hot cheek, he unknowingly searched for lip-to-lip contact. Lips molded together as he lifted his pale arms back up to the bronze shoulders of his lover. The blonde tasted so good, he just wanted to feel the kiss as long as he could. Then a strong tongue lapped at his lips and he lost it, groaning to all of the combined feelings of his shaft rubbing between a very defined stomach and his own, the soft caress across his lips, and the sensation of being taken. The tongue slid into his mouth, tasting him as he in turn tasted it, wanting this new experience as much as he wanted everything else that was happening.

Being so inexperienced at this new type of battle the silver warrior could easily tell that he was losing; he didn't care. The saliva slipping out of his mouth and down a trail to his jaw and down his neck didn't bother him either. This was all a wonderful experience to him. And every breath that escaped vocalized it.

All too soon, his loins seized again and he could feel the beginnings of the end. He fought it. Nothing could make him want this to end. But when the blonde took his member-so very sensitized from all that had happened- in his hands, Sephiroth knew he couldn't hold it. Only two little tugs and he arched hard, shrieking loud enough to echo as he came. The force of his orgasm overcame all his senses and he was momentarily shut off from the world.

Sephiroth barely felt the light kiss to his nipple, but the words spoken afterward managed to make it through his jangled system.

"Good night, love."

He'd never known how good it felt to just be near someone until that moment. Someone who loved him and wanted him no matter what state he was in. Someone who he loved. It just gave him a warm glow as the blonde wrapped them up together and snuggled into him. A tired yawn made its way up and he couldn't find the strength to hold it back, smiling contently up at the azure eyes above him. Azure returned the smile readily and pressed tightly chest-to-chest.

"Love you, Seph."

"..Love you, Cloud."

His cheeks grew hot to the admission, still somewhere ashamed and afraid that Cloud was only kidding him somehow.

Cloud grinned, seemingly unfazed by the hesitation in his voice.

"You do realize that I'm not letting you go now, right? You're mine for good now."

Gods, life was turning out so well. He would never forget this; no matter what. But he was so tired now… he just wanted to sleep for days. His head managed to weakly nod and he suppressed a yawn.

"Yours forever…"

He blinked when Cloud took his pale hand and placed it on bronze, right on top of his heart, while placing his own bronze hand against Sephiroth's pale chest. Not understanding, he turned his gaze upward to search azure for the answer. He found a dazzling smile and the most meaningful words he'd ever heard in his entire life.

"No, not just mine, Seph. We're each other's. I'm yours too, and I always want to be yours. Just as long as you're always mine."

He couldn't have been happier in a million years. Not ever. And he could feel the tears bunching at the corners of his eyes. Bronze arms lovingly surrounded him and he cried. One of the crappiest days in his life turned into the most wonderful memory he would ever hold.

"Forever."

He could barely choke out the word, but he needed to say it. He wanted to be claimed, heart and soul. He wanted all that Cloud was offering and he took it, savoring it in his heart. He had a lover, and even more than just the physical type that the recruits had talked about. This was one for the soul. His treasure.

~I love you, Cloud.~

Sleep claimed the silver man to bring him dreams of love.