Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Ephemeral Existence ❯ 05: Sun ( Chapter 5 )

Ephemeral Existence
A C/S Story

Warnings: YAOI, kinda AU
Disclaimer: I don't own. Phooey.

Chapter 05: Sun

Two weeks had passed and Cloud's so-called relationship with Sephiroth was an unsettling peace; they didn't talk much, and Cloud would wander the house under the restrictions the ex-General had placed on him. From time to time, he would question his god, which Sephiroth answered either with a threat, or a snort, or an exasperated stare, or he would just ignore him completely. He was amazed on how Sephiroth looked utterly calm compared to his lack of sanity in their final battle.

What startled him even more was how he had actually surrendered-- no, trusted the silver-haired man's words about the materia, not that it mattered to him as much, because he had a feeling that Zack had intended for them to get caught. He still didn't know what the ex-SOLDIER's real intentions were, except that he was going to help Cloud somehow and was going to rebel against his one best friend for the other.

The game between them was finally set; he didn't know if he was one of the players or one of the pieces, or better yet, one of the obstacles. It reminded him fully of chess, and he mulled over about which piece he would be if he were in there. This also reminded him of the Planet, which made him sigh in grief. It was hard not to mourn over his loss, and he knew that it wouldn't help the situation. He had enough of mourning though; he couldn't even cry for his sake.

He snapped out of his thoughts as a strange light infiltrated the windows of the mansion and poured into the floor. He gasped, eyes widening. Sunlight! he thought, running after it hurriedly. This could be a hallucination or an illusion or merely just Sephiroth messing with him, but he wanted to see for himself. He stopped in front of the window and tilted his head to see where the sky was supposed to be.

The world of the Promised Land was bright; there was whiteness, and there was no sun in sight.

He sighed in disappointment, his shoulders slumping. He stuffed his hands in his pants pocket and walked away from the window, planning to explore the elaborate mansion for the twenty-something-ith time. Maybe he would be able to find a way out of this place if he was lucky.

“You wish for the sun?” someone whispered softly, though the tone of his voice remained intimidating.

Cloud turned around and gasped again. “Sephiroth.” That's all he had to say to convey his shock; he was always surprised when Sephiroth would randomly talk to him even though he didn't like to be bothered. He was really a strange, yet interesting man.

Wait, he didn't just think that.

It was true that Sephiroth was and will be forever his enemy; it was also true that he wanted to negotiate with him before regarding the restoration of the Planet, thus for him to say that Sephiroth was a strange yet interesting man was somewhat reasonable.

Also, despite what Sephiroth had done to him, he couldn't bring himself to truly hate - with deep passion and a grudge - the man; he had his reasons, though that didn't exactly justified some of his goals fully. In addition, after asking all those rather annoying questions to the ex-General, being able to comprehend his motives was the second step to understanding his enemy.

He was once more drowning in disillusionment; sometimes he didn't know what to believe anymore, and if anything, even after his adventure, he was less idealistic and optimistic than he used to be. Still, he had his hope and sometimes, when he would dine with Zack and listen to his stories about Sephiroth, he could still somewhat smile.

“Well?” the silver-haired man inquired, holding out a hand. Was this an invitation to something?

Cloud gazed at him, puzzled. “I don't know how you would be able to give me something like that. But,” he shrugged carelessly, “all right.” He made his way over to the other man, his countenance brave and confident. He wasn't afraid of him; he never was; he didn't have the time to cry and whine and be afraid with the game in motion.

“Hmm,” Sephiroth said softly, leading the way. They walked for a while, going through the decorated hallways. They stopped on a bronze-colored door and Sephiroth unlocked it. He nodded his head to the blond to signal that he could enter, and the other man complied, stepping into the room.

There was only whiteness, similar to the world of the Promised Land, which made Cloud nearly sulk.

Sephiroth raised an eyebrow at that and waved one of his hands majestically.

The whiteness disappeared, replaced by enormous and fluffy clouds. The sun in the room revealed itself, shedding its rays upon Cloud, who shouted in joy at the sheer feeling of the heat on his pale skin. He wanted to run around like a little kid; he hadn't seen the sun - real or not - in weeks, but he knew he couldn't live in this illusion forever, because he knew what reality was.

“Sephiroth?” Cloud questioned, feeling the texture of the grass under his feet. “Why did you do this? I thought you wanted us traitors to wallow in our despair?”

The god smiled in amusement in his presence for the first time this week. “I'll be honest with you, I was… not as rational in that final battle like I am right now.”

Cloud grinned. “So you're admitting your faults then?”

The ex-General snorted, rolling his eyes sarcastically. “Cloud, you are one of the most peculiar people I've encountered in my life.” He paused and gazed at his creation thoughtfully. “For the past three weeks, all you've done is question me on certain aspects on what I do, and even the experiments I have for you, yet you never truly bothered me to the point that I would lose my… temper again.”

Cloud tilted his head to the side in question, wondering why his once-idol was calling him by his first name. Usually, he would call him `Strife' or by his full name. “Meaning?”

“I'm impressed,” Sephiroth said, heaving his shoulders slightly to indicate a shrug. “Even though I caught you with Zack, you actually followed my orders and surrendered.”

“I didn't surrender,” the other man said gently. “I yielded because I trusted you, which confuses me, actually.”

“Hmm, on odd thing, that is,” Sephiroth said conversationally. “Why would you trust the very person who put you through Hell?”

The blond man stuck out his bottom lip and shrugged again. “God only knows.” Sephiroth laughed at the irony of the statement, and Cloud flushed slightly. “Ah… yeah. I guess I better get going and leave you alone to whatever experiment or project you have to work on. I still think that with you overworking, that's going to affect your health a lot.”

He put his hands in his pants pocket for the second time today, a slouched and lazy pose, and headed to the exit of the room. However, a warm hand grabbed his wrist and he was pulled back.

“Cloud,” the god muttered, disturbing the other man by the tone of his voice. “Do you think I am…insane?”

Said man froze, astonished by that question. He knew that it was bound to come up sooner or later. He did something he never thought he would do; he put his hands on Sephiroth's shoulders and shook him. The other man didn't react, but his silver eyes were filled with confusion and utter despair.

He opened his mouth, words already prepared, but a moment later, his mind blanked; he was speechless. He blinked, closing his mouth and attempting to speak, yet, he lost his chance for a different reason.

Sephiroth pulled him closer, wrapping his arms around his waist. He pressed his lips against Cloud's, surprising the other man for the -- he didn't even know how many times the ex-General had shocked him; all he knew was that Sephiroth was unpredictable. He was doing something considerably forbidden and Cloud didn't even know why; he started kissing him back.

And the sun continued to shine, representing his hope for the future.

--

Um…err, I so didn't plan to end it this way. O.o No seriously, I sort of had an idea like this, but it was originally gonna be Clack; ah well, I'll just baffle you readers with my stuff. I'll explain more later.