Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Paint The Town ❯ Window Shopping ( Chapter 8 )

Paint the Town

 

Window Shopping

 

Sephiroth would never be sure how he ended up looking at draperies with Zachary. He supposed it made sense, after getting his actual furniture and the much-needed book shelves, that he set about `decorating', so to speak. He never did understand what the fuss was about curtains though. The blinds that came with the apartment kept the light out just fine. But Zachary was a stubborn one and he insisted. And kept on insisting. Sephiroth knew he had better give in or he would never have peace.

 

So here he was, roaming through a fine selection of window treatments, with Zachary babbling alongside him, as usual. Sephiroth was beginning to forget what silence sounded like. At least he was learning things about curtains on the way.

 

“How wide is your window, Sir? You'll need to make sure you get the right length of curtain rod. Do you want a narrow or wide? And how about those fancy end finial thingies? Don't go with sheer drapes. That's girly. I don't know what kind of curtain really goes with black leather upholstery though. My mother's mostly a paisley or floral print type of woman.”

 

Sephiroth rubbed his forehead and thought about it. “The window's about ten feet wide.” He was not sure about the rest.

 

Zack nibbled a lip. “Okay, then spring tension rods are definitely out. You didn't have any brackets that I noticed, so we're going to have to drill. I can come over in the morning with power tools and help you.” Sephiroth wanted to refuse the offer. Heaven forbid he give up the peace of his Saturday morning to a dark-haired menace with an electric drill. If he had realized curtains were this much work he would have grabbed Zachary by the collar and cut the little shopping trip short.

 

Then he spotted it. A window straight out of the Good Homemaking magazine he had been reading in the doctor's office. Ever curious, he wandered away from Zachary to inspect the thing further.

 

It was a simple looking thing with a large checked pattern in blue and yellow. There was an extra frill on top that managed to hide the curtain rod. In the magazine, this curtain had perfectly framed the pie cooling right next to a large, chipped blue jug full of daffodils on the window sill. Sephiroth sighed silently. Even if his window had been conducive to pie-cooling, he had no idea how to make one. And he didn't have that big chipped jug either.

 

He shook his head. Why would he want pie and cracked crockery? He could order pie whenever he wanted. Using the oven would just warm the apartment up. Halfway through his musing, Zachary realized he had been talking to empty air and came over.

 

“Uh, I don't think checkered goes with your living room.”

 

Sephiroth turned. “Zachary, exactly how and when did you become such a master of design?”

 

Zack grinned and shrugged. “Hey, the ladies love a man who has his wardrobe together. Without Mama's help.” Sephiroth only stared. Zack was not discouraged. “Okay, then. Come on. We'll find the perfect drapes for your soon-to-be den of sex around here somewhere.”

 

“Den of-” Sephiroth sputtered. “Is that what you had in mind for my apartment the entire time?”

 

Zack knew the warning signs. He saw his General's fingers flexing. He kept the grin plastered on his face and started edging backwards. “No…I thought that was what you wanted. You know, all the black leather and all. It's a pretty big turn-on for some people. I thought maybe…you had a fetish.”

 

Sephiroth felt a flush creeping up his face. He spun on his heel and stormed away before Zachary could see it. Fetish indeed. He did not even know if he really should have gone with the leather set. It was just the first thing he had blurted out, without even really thinking about it. Now he had a comfortable couch on the way and no idea what else to get with it. Why did he even need anything else? All he needed was a place to sit.

 

He heard Zachary following behind him and performed an evasive maneuver. He turned a corner and slid behind a thick satin curtain panel until the man had passed by. Curtains were good for some things, apparently.

 

He slowed his wandering now that he was not being closely followed. The satin drapes seemed nice enough, but they were a bit shiny for his tastes. They did not have that light, airy feel he suddenly found himself longing for. Satin curtains would not look right around a freshly-baked, homemade pie.

 

He wandered past the blinds section, no longer remotely satisfied with that particular window treatment. He roamed past lace, silk and some rather frightening concoctions in pink poofiness. He even found leather panels in various colors. He paused and considered it for a while. Then he thought of his uniform and his boots and his shoes and his couch and the very coat he was wearing. He'd had enough of black leather for the time being. He walked on blindly, suddenly despairing of finding anything at all. How could he find the right drapes when he had no idea what he wanted.

 

Something soft and sheer drifted before him. He turned as he pushed it aside and found himself staring at a beautiful window. It was something straight out of a magazine, a seamless blending of dark, heavy fabric with light and sheer, in various layers and lengths. It would probably go well with his furniture. And the breezy sections would go well with pie.

 

“Found ya!” Zack bounced up behind him. “You really know how to throw a guy off your scent.” Sephiroth did not turn, but he could hear Zack shuffling a bit behind him. “Look, I didn't mean to jump to conclusions or anything. You want what you want and your reasons are your own. I know that. How about we get back to finding what you want.”

 

“This is what I want,” Sephiroth said quietly.

 

Zack turned to look at the window in question. “Are you sure? I mean it's nice and all, but sheers, you know, kind of makes it look like you have a woman's touch in your life already.”

 

“It's what I want, Zachary.”

 

Zack shrugged. “Okay. You're the boss.” He stepped in to examine the setup. “This is going to be some installation. We'll need at least two kinds of rods. I hope they have that light, shallow kind in the right length. Well, they've got it here so I suppose it's got to be around somewhere. Remind me to bring my level over in the morning. You wouldn't want to end up with all your fancy cloth hanging on a slant. Are you sure you understand which panel wraps on which rod, though? I never could figure out these things out.”

 

Sephiroth was about to tell the man that he could handle his curtains when he became aware of someone staring at them. He turned slowly to glare at the intruder.

 

It was Reeve, pushing a shopping cart full of blinds, brackets and rods. He swallowed. “Hello, uh, General.” He glanced wildly back and forth from Zachary to Sephiroth. “You two, uh, shopping for curtains?” Zack grew wide-eyed and began to splutter.

 

Sephiroth stepped forward. “Yes, we are.” His expression dared anyone to challenge him. Reeve decided he was not up to the task. The General usually carried a six foot sword around. What he did with his men after hours was his business.

 

“Ah, good then. Very good. I'll, uh, I guess I'll see you around then.” The man's voice broke a little and he tried to hurry away.

 

“Reeve!” Sephiroth called out. The Shinra Head of Urban Development froze and slowly turned around. If the General wanted silence, he could have it.

 

“Reeve, I need your advice on some business matters. I would like to make an appointment to discuss things with you, if you don't mind.”

 

Reeve nodded. “Yes, absolutely. Have your people call my people and we'll, uh, arrange something.” He nodded again and hurried off, bursting at the seams with what he had just seen.

 

Zack found his tongue. “What the hell did you have to go tell him that for?”

 

Sephiroth could not understand the man's ire. “Tell him what? Reeve understands matters of finance. I have more money than I know what to do with so I thought it would be time to start investing for retirement.”

 

“Not that! The first thing!”

 

Sephiroth frowned. “We are shopping for curtains, are we not?”

 

Zack cringed. “Oh, Gods, yes, but don't you have any idea what that means? I only dragged you here because you need some style in your life but…shit.” He saw from Sephiroth's blank expression that the General clearly did not. “Did you grow up totally isolated from the real world or something?” Sephiroth did not answer. Zachary buried his face in his hands and groaned. “Dammit. Well, at least this wouldn't really affect my night life, since I'm going steady now. Oh man, I hope this doesn't get back to the barracks.”

 

Sephiroth had no idea what Zachary was going on about. He had always considered the Shinra grapevine to be a source of imaginative, even farfetched entertainment, hardly a serious problem. He rubbed his stomach. He felt vaguely hungry. Maybe there was a nice café nearby where he could get some pie. He was in the mood for blueberry.

 

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Time: 1hr 53 mins

Music: Like Glue - Sean Paul

Notes: I have plans for Seph's longing for homey things. ;)