Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Paint The Town ❯ Housewarming ( Chapter 6 )

Housewarming

The clock struck five and Sephiroth walked out the doors of his office with Zack following close behind him. The blonde secretary snapped sharply to an unnecessary attention as the General passed by.

"Have a good afternoon, Sir," Julia said smartly. Sephiroth did not reply. Zack made a halfhearted wave and fell in step close behind the other man. Julia stepped out from behind the desk. "Where do you think you're going?"

Zack resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "I'm going home with my General Sephiroth." The General grimaced at that, glad that his back was to the others. He had never okayed that. What was Zack thinking.

"What do you mean you're going home with him?" Julia scowled.

Zack pretended that he did not see it. "We have work to take care of and we can't do it here as long as the office is in that condition."

Sephiroth held the surprise from his face. That was actually a fairly good excuse, if one overlooked the fact that he had not brought any of the paperwork out with him. Fortunately it seemed that his dedicated blonde sycophant - begging your pardon, secretary was too busy grilling Zack to notice.

"And you're going to help him get his work done?"

"It's what they pay me for."

Julia tapped one foot. "It's Friday."

Zack crossed his arms, unwilling to back down to the skinny girl. "And?"

"The General works hard. He deserves his time off."

Sephiroth looked back at that. "A SOLDIER works till the job is done. The weekend is of no consequence to me." He may have been mistaken, but the expression of concern that crossed Julia's face might have been a tad theatrical.

"You can't function well without rest. And it's Friday. There are so many things you can do tonight and still have time left to finish your work."

Sephiroth looked down his nose at the woman ever so slightly. "How would you have me make use of my time?" His words were cold poison and the implication was clear. Julia fidgeted, knowing she had overstepped her bounds. Sephiroth saw Zack smother a grin out of the corner of his eyes.

Julia took a deep breath. "You could go out."

"Out," Sephiroth repeated.

"Yes," Julia began to babble. "I mean, it's the normal thing to do on a Friday night." She looked of hopefully. "Lots of people do it and I'm sure you could find somebody t-,"

"I am not `lots of people'," Sephiroth said darkly, "and I have no need to find anyone."

"Heh," Zack grinned. "As if you need to actually go looking for a date. You're practically fighting them off! I still think you should have hooked up with that redhead who was coming on to you the other day though. She had assets." Zack finished with a wink. Sephiroth frowned at the man, but then he caught on to the game. Julia was blushing and had her arms crossed over her less-than-impressive chest.

"We've wasted enough time here." The General spun on his heel and walked away with Zack following behind him. He heard Julia weakly wish them a good weekend. He did not speak until they had reached the privacy of the elevator.

"What floor are you on?" He kept his hand poised over the keypad.

Zack blinked. "What's it matter? I'm coming to your place."

"What?"

"I said I'm coming to your place, didn't I?"

Sephiroth exhaled and rubbed his brow, then looked straight up at the other man. "I thought you were only saying that to annoy Julia."

"If she hadn't been making such a pest of herself I wouldn't have said anything, but I was coming with you all along." Zack thought he saw a vein throb in the General's neck.

"What makes you think I'm letting you in?" Sephiroth took a step closer. His fingers flexed menacingly at his side.

Zack fought hard not to stumble. "You owe me for the donuts."

Sephiroth paused. "I knew there had to be a catch," he said in disgust, then sighed. "I suppose I could let you see the new place."

"They gave you a new apartment?"

Sephiroth turned to face the door. "The fire gutted the old one very badly. Shinra decided it was easier to give me a new apartment."

Zack grinned. "New place! Great! You should have told me. I would have gotten you a housewarming gift."

"Housewarming?" Sephiroth looked back.

Zack rocked back on his heels. "Yeah, housewarming." Sephiroth still looked confused to Zack kept talking. "You know, you move into a new place, your friends bring you little things to make the place feel more at home. Clocks and mirrors and pictures and coffee cake."

"Cake?"

"Yeah," Zack scratched his head. "Well, that's what I hear you're supposed to bring. When it's a guy, I usually just bring beer, but you don't drink, do you?" Sephiroth shook his head. Alcohol never had been his friend though he would not have been adverse to the cake.

The elevator dinged and the door slid open, releasing the men into a plush hallway. Sephiroth led the way, hoping that Zack would be happy with a guided tour and leave soon. The man had an active social life and it was Friday.

Zack traipsed along happily behind the black clad man. He did not have cause to visit this part of the building too often. A place like this was too good for the likes of him. The carpet was deep and the color was vibrant. There were flowers, all silk, around marble statuettes in alcoves between the doors. The whole thing spoke of opulence. Zack had an urge to make sure his shirt was tucked in properly.

"They really moved you a step up," he ventured.

"I suppose."

"Burn up one apartment and get an even better one," Zack continued. "That's some smart thinking. Hey, is this why you trashed your office?" The General ignored that question.

Sephiroth's door was at the end of the hall. He pulled off his glove to press a palm to the scanner. There was a loud click as the lock released. He pushed the door open and stepped inside. Zack bounced in eagerly after him.

The room was dim inside. "Light," Sephiroth said. The room lit up.

"Whoo, fancy stuff!" Zack looked around appreciatively then stopped short. The living room was easily twice the size of his own apartment, but that was where the grandeur ended. There were huge cardboard boxes all around. The walls were the plainest white possible, so bright it was almost blinding. There were no curtains, just plain vertical blinds. The only piece of actual furniture in the room was a black leather chair.

"Holy…When did you move in, exactly?"

"Last week."

"Oh," Zack nodded. "Good thing you got me here then." He stretched and flexed. "Let's get to the unpacking!"

Sephiroth scowled at him. "I'm doing fine on my own." He stalked in towards the chair. "I unpack a bit each day."

Zack weaved his way in and out of the boxes. "Don't be like that, Sephiroth. With two of us at it we can at least make a clear track to walk." Sephiroth appeared to be considering it.

He nodded briefly at his Second and went to put the Masamune away in the bedroom. He always kept it near the bed, within easy reach, even though a bracket had been put up to display it in the living room. He emerged from the bedroom to find Zack ripping open boxes.

"Books," Zack tackled another one. "Books." He whirled around and tried a very large one. "And even more books." He looked up at the General as if expecting an explanation.

"I like books."

Zack looked around at the cardboard box towers around the room. "I kinda figured. Which boxes have the furniture?"

Sephiroth pointed to a rather small box near the chair. "That one."

Zack blinked. "That's IT?"

Sephiroth nodded. "Everything else burned up in the blast."

Zack knelt down on the floor to open the box. It proved to be a frail-looking glass-topped coffee table. "How'd this survive? Never mind." He looked up at Sephiroth to find the man staring at him with near disinterest. "When are you planning to get new furniture?"

"At some point." The man's voice was equally bland. Zack clucked at him like someone's disapproving mother.

"That's no good, Sephiroth. You at least need shelves for all those books. And a second chair for when I come over." That got the man's attention.

"What?"

Zack grinned. "You didn't think I'd leave you to rattle around in this big place all by your lonesome, didja?"

Sephiroth sighed. "No, but I had hoped." Zack laughed.

"You're a funny guy, Seph, even if you hide it well." He got up from the floor and walked around a bit to stretch his legs. "Where are you planning to get your stuff?"

Sephiroth thought it over for a while. "I usually have my secretary order anything I need." He grimaced. There was no way in hell that he was going to let that presumptuous airhead decorate his apartment. It was not so much a matter of what the place would look like when she was done as it was of avoiding her pathetic attempts of flirtation. It would not do to encourage her.

Zack grasped the idea immediately. "Can't do that now, can you?" Sephiroth nodded. Every now and then Zachary would demonstrate some of the qualities that had gotten him his post. The General was sure it was all accidental though.

Zack whirled around. "General," he declared, "we are going shopping!"

"I beg your pardon." Sephiroth was genuinely shocked. Zack gave him a toothy grin.

"You can afford it, right?"

"I have received funds for the purpose of refurnishing," Sephiroth muttered, still shocked.

"Good!" Zack almost hopped for joy. "Go get a sensible coat and let's move. I know a few places we can look for stuff to spruce this place up"

Sephiroth did not budge. He stared at the spiky headed man as if he could will the man to disappear. When Zachary showed no sign of dematerializing, Sephiroth began to grasp at other options. A well-aimed lightning spell might have taken care of the situation, but Sephiroth did not think it wise to destroy yet another room in the Shinra building. First the old apartment, now his office. A little wanton destruction usually made him feel better, but this was neither the time nor the place.

He glanced around the living room. The stark whiteness was disturbing, a little too reminiscent of his childhood environment. It would look much better lined with shelves and maybe even a painting or two. He saw Zack's hopeful, eager look and felt something long-buried stir inside.

It was Friday, after all, an evening usually reserved for `getting out on the town'. He rarely ever had company, had been robbed of the chance in his youth. He had stopped longing for it but the chance was here now, a bit late, but finally here.

"Fine." Sephiroth took a step forward. "But only because you brought me donuts."

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Time: 4 hrs, 22 mins

Music: He's a Tramp (Lady and the Tramp)

Notes: You can probably expect a lot of Disney tracks to show up for the music. I have the CD box set and it's addictive:D