Title: Run In
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Characters: Zack, Cloud
Prompt: Strangers.
Word Count: 380
Rating: PG.
Author's Notes: Cloud runs into a good Samaritan. Or whatever the Gaian equivalent of the term is. And a nod to AC, because I can.


Cloud had been there for all of thirty seconds before knowing that he was going to hate Midgar.

It was noisy, dirty, crowded, and all of those nasty things that everyone complained about. That wasn't what set him on edge. Years of being the town scapegoat had conditioned him to feel a certain way to those around him. The coldness he felt from everyone was just coldness, not some organized campaign. It worried him. Not knowing how to react worried him.

Somehow he'd managed to get to the Soldier barracks alive, and somehow he'd managed to get lost.

"You Sephiroth fanboys can't tell your asses from your elbows. Can't find your way, can you?"

It wasn't only the sudden comment that startled him, but the accurate description. The messy feelings of admiration and adoration mixed inside him for months while newspaper clippings gathered in a box under his bed. The resulting piles had finally pushed him away from Nibelheim. Cloud turned towards the voice, to see a ribbed dark blue pattern stare at him.

"My eyes are up here."

Cloud looked up to meet glowing blue eyes. A Soldier. Smiling at him like he was an old friend. The combination of the strange eyes and the strange behavior unnerved him. He managed to stutter out a "Sorry, sir" before casting his eyes down again. If the coldness was worrisome, then unexpected warmth was worse. At least the coldness was familiar, even if the reasons behind it weren't.

The Soldier sighed. He probably had his arms crossed now. "You're not going to get to First Class if you act like that, you know. Got to be more sure of yourself. And if you're looking for registration, you go left at the end of this hall."

Cloud gathered up enough courage to look into the Soldier's eyes again. If he was going to be a Soldier, then he had to get used to the sight of mako eyes. "Thank you, that's what I was looking for."

"Heh, so you are going to be a Soldier, huh? Well, good luck with that. Work hard, even if you are a Sephiroth fanboy." The Soldier gave him another grin as he sauntered off.

Cloud stared at the now-empty hallway. So that was a Soldier.