Cloudarella

I do not own Final Fantasy or Cloud, Sephiroth, or Zack…etc.


I am grumbling because school had kept me from this but now it’s summer so, please enjoy. I realize it might not make all sense to you, but just bear with me and we’ll get there together!!! Hmmm, thought I do feel as if my writing has changed slightly since I started this, but I am doing my best to keep it somewhat the same for you all.


Chapter 13

The Rescue Part I
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Cloud swallowed as he was pushed further down the hall. He couldn’t even look back to see around the guards because they were too big and bulky for him to see past. One thing was for certain…this wasn’t good. The light he’d previously thought he felt in his heart seemed so frighteningly distant now that tears almost ran down his cheeks again, but he forced them back. What use were tears when they did nothing to help the situation? He was a fucking baby if he was going to cry, yet his heart was more then broken. Hearing that he was accused of breaking contract was horrifying news. He knew what that meant and couldn’t hold the constant shudder back that ran through his body. The last thing he’d heard was Sephiroth calling to him, but he hadn’t come for him.


That was when Cloud lost hope again, well, maybe just a little. Sephiroth had promised him he’d protect him, so if only, if only he could just hold out until then.


“Sephiroth….” he whispered.


Remaining silent and doing his best to keep pace with the larger men, he still stumbled over his own feet as he was ushered down four flights of stairs into a much darker, damper, creepier area of the castle. The dungeon, it just had to be the dungeon. The walls were old stone blocks, some covered in moss and some dripping with water precipitation. The smell down here reminded him vaguely of dirty clothes that hadn’t been washed in months, with the tinge of dirt earth and wetness lingering in the scent. It was also dark, too dark, and it took his eyes a few minutes to adjust so that when he was shoved into a large room he literally fell on his face, landing on his hands and knees.


Cloud winced and tried to get up, but this room was even darker than the candle lit hall was. He barely got his footing before he was grabbed again and hoisted over to a nearby wall.


“Wait…wh-what are you doing…?” he asked in panic as his arms were thrown against the wall, spread out on either side of him and chained to it. His ankles were next, rendering him completely immobile. As the guards backed off and headed for the door, Cloud struggled…but it was useless.


“I am innocent! I didn’t--!” he yelled after them, getting nothing but a the door slammed shut as his only reply. Cloud let his chin fall to his chest as he fought the rising fear welling up in his stomach strong enough to make him feel ill. The large room was cold, damp, and so dark. There was a single square of light shining on the floor, but from where he was, he could only see a hole in the wall. It was probably a skylight that was too deep into the thick stonewall that he’d barely be able to see the surface from here…but it was the only light he had. And in the silence, he closed his eyes and silently cried. He was a damn baby. He didn’t mean to be a wimp. He didn’t mean to be so, so weak. Cloud was utterly disgusted with himself. Where was Sephiroth? Where was Reno?

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After several hours of trying and more then a few tips of wings singed, Reno gave up on ever getting out of this prison. He’d been alone for longer then he could count and had stopped after it had been well over two hours. He’d been fine for the most part, (save for the fact that he wanted out of this damn box) and only felt genuine chills crawl over his skin when that dark haired, lanky glasses wearing man stepped before the window looking into his room and began scribbling on his clip board, that was when Reno felt his nerves skyrocket. There was something about that human he didn’t like and he had no idea how right his instincts were.


“Don’ have a good feelin' 'bout him, and further more, I got a feelin' things jus' ain’ right…Cloud? I hope yer okay, yo…” he whispered to himself, though he was sure his feelings were dead on that things weren’t alright with the blonde. He had no way to get to him and that made the fairy more then a little angry and frustrated. Whatever he was placed in was something none of his kind had came in contact with; otherwise he was sure they’d have a spell or some way of getting out. They had too; he had too, because getting found out like he was now, wasn’t good at all. It put his people at risk, which was something Reno didn’t need right now, especially with his track record. He’d had too many screw ups already and Cloud was his first God-child in years and now look at him…he was botching this up big time and he hadn’t really been with him that long.


“This is jus' fuckin’ great….” he grumbled aloud, coming to an abrupt halt when that man appeared at the window again, only this time with three others. Reno instantly recognized them, especially the one with shoulder length silver hair. They’d been the ones who’d captured him.

His blue eyes narrowed at the four of them, and for one thing, the creepy dark haired dude was grinning in a fashion that was pretty darn scary. The others were just staring through the glass at him, one with a nothing sort of expression, one with a blank one, (maybe it was something like blissfully uncaring about what he was doing) and the last, well he just seemed a little slow to Reno.


He saw their lips moving and watched the creepy one nod to something and then the door clicked open.


Reno jumped back a little. “Shit…” he cursed softly. If he’d only had his powers, he wouldn’t feel so damn helpless. He needed his wand, but that thing was nowhere in sight. The four entering the room must have had it. And that was another bad thing of course. Oh, man, if he did get out of this mess, he was sure the leaders of his society would permanently ban him from the human realm for a million centuries…even if this wasn’t his fault at all.


He cautiously watched the four of them saunter into the room and approach the box like cage he was in. He took a once over, scanning each of them before he snapped, his snarky scowl forming immediately because of his frustration. Fuck, he had no idea what he was in for, but he wasn’t giving up without a fight. Hell, it couldn’t hurt, considering he was already in enough trouble as it was.


“You fuckin’ idiots have no idea who yer messin' with…” Reno hissed, crossing his arms over his chest as his wings fluttered both with anger and nerves.


Kadaj smirked while Hojo merely raised a brow and scribble something on his papers.


“Cause when I get outta here I'm gonna make sure ya'll pay…” he continued.


Kadaj laughed and took a step forward, touching the exterior of the cage and lazily tracing it with the tip of his finger, “That’s if you get out.”


The fairy’s wings ruffled, “Whaddya mean if?”


Okay, so they could understand him.


“It’s just what I mean. There are some things I want from you first, but that doesn’t mean that if you give me them, you’ll remain alive after you do…” Kadaj started to say.


“I do believe I have the authority to keep him,” Hojo interjected, not even looking up from his persistent scribbling even as he spoke. “The King might decide to keep him…of course, for supervision and research,” he stated flatly.


Reno bristled again, “Not gonna happen, creepy guy. If I had m' powers--”


“But you don’t, and so right now we have the power,” Kadaj interrupted smoothly, flattening his palm against the glass, “and I have so many questions.” He purred smoothly in a very eerie, all too extremely creepy soft tone.


Reno shivered at the sound of it, hiding it as he shot back, “Who gives ya tha' right? I ain’t answerin' so y' might as well not even ask, yo.” The redhead spat back, tightening his arms around his chest in defense and pointedly looking away.


“I say so,” the younger brother hummed, tapping the glass with his fingers.


What’s with all the creepy guys? Reno thought. Okay, so this dark haired dude was creepy but this one, with his eerie voice that was cocky as all get out, and those green glowing eyes, (Reno could see them even when he was turned away) was so much worse. He lost a little bit of confidence then, and set his jaw defiantly.


“So if you aren’t going to play nice, we won’t either,“ Kadaj stated, tossing the brunet a look and a nod. Hojo simply shrugged, seeming annoyed that his scribbling was interrupted and tucked his clipboard under his arm as he moved over to a stationary device with lots of buttons, something Reno had noticed earlier but hadn’t thought anything of. The other two were still quiet and regarding the redhead with those same eerie green eyes—it was hella creepy, seriously.


Reno had only a moment to turn his eyes that way before the entire inside of the cage was lit up with the same energy that covered the lid and what had hurt him when he’d tried to escape. The fairy stilled as his entire body burned with a heat that was terribly excruciating, and he didn’t realize that he was the one screaming in pain until it rang in his ears. Reno shook all over, trembling and unable to hold still as the power moved through him until he thought he couldn’t take it anymore.


“Sss-ssstop….” He cried, his blue eyes bulging and filling with tears that he couldn’t control.


He could smell his skin burning and Gods did it fucking hurt worse then anything his society could come up with if they had to punish anyone. Reno pulled his eyes shut tightly and bit down on his tongue, but that didn’t work, he was still scream in murderous pain. And just when he thought he couldn’t take it anymore or that his lungs would explode because of his fierce outcry, it all stopped. Reno let out a whimpered cry and instantly fell onto his side, panting heavily as his skin actually had smoke coming off it.


“W-what…wh-what did y-you do?” he breathed in a shaky dry tone, his confidence shattered all around him, and he felt even weaker then before, well, he practically felt drained.


Kadaj laughed and walked along the outside perimeter of the cage until he was standing face to face, (somewhat) with the redhead. He couched down and touched the glass with both hands, moving them in a mock comforting petting motion.


“Doesn’t feel very good, does it? To have your very life sucked away like it was nothing.”


Reno’s eyes opened and he regarded the silveret with a wary look. What had he meant by that? Fairies couldn’t die. They were immortal. But somehow, whatever this energy was, it could actually harm him, and that scared him beyond reason. The redhead shook slightly, and was unable to pull his arms away from his body to do anything but just lie there, staring helplessly at four individuals he knew for sure, that if he didn’t cooperate, could possibly kill him.


Kadaj’s smirk widened. “So, you feel up to being a good little fairy and answering my questions now?” he asked. “Yes, that’s right, we know what you are, so there is no reason in denying it.”


Blue eyes blinked at the impossibility of those words. Reno wanted to fight it. He wanted to beat this human’s brains out. He didn’t want to give up and he certainly didn’t want to sound as fearful as he did when he spoke. “…y-yeah, alright, fine….” he replied, his quivering words giving everything away he didn’t want to.


After what seemed like endless minutes, but certainly not long enough, he was allowed to recoup a little so he could sit up. Reno felt weak and sore, but he did manage to get himself up so he was leaning against the side of the glass cage again before he lifted his eyes in silent question of what was going to happen next.


Hojo had his clipboard back out, the other two creep-o’s were still silent and patiently waiting, and the forth one was now pulling up a chair to sit before his cage. The smile reappearing on his face was no more comfort to him.


“I think we are ready,” Kadaj informed and Hojo moved back towards the device button again, causing Reno to shiver in response.


“Name?” He asked.


“Huh? What has that got to do with anything?” Reno whispered back.


“Name?” Kadaj asked again in warning and Reno noticed that Hojo had his finger hovering over the button and he panicked.


“Reno…it’s Reno, yo…” he stuttered quickly, curling his arms around him and pulling his knees to his chest. He watched and waited as the brunet scribbled that on his notes then rolled his eyes back towards the silveret.


“… and for the record, what are you?”


Reno sighed, he did not want to give in, but, “'M a fuckin' fairy…”


“Good,“ Kadaj smiled, then proceeded to lean forward on his knees, his eyes lighting in excitement that made the redhead more then wary. “…and what is Cloud Strife to you?”


Reno’s eyes widened and he swallowed heavily. So they knew that too, which could only mean his instinctually feelings that Cloud wasn’t okay, were pretty much dead on.


“I’m, well, a friend, he’s my friend…that’s all…” Reno lied, hoping that the firm set to his jaw wouldn’t give away that fact. It failed though, because the next second he was hit by a bolt of energy not as strong as the first time, but it was enough to make him groan in pain and slump back down on his side.


“Just your friend? I don’t believe you…” Kadaj sneered, narrowing his eyes. “…unless you want to feel what you did the first time I think you’d better stop trying to lie…”


Reno’s now pale blue eyes darkened in defeat and he closed them again. What was he to do with no strength and no power to fight them? Cloud was in trouble and he couldn’t protect him, and wasn’t that he was supposed to do? Protect his assigned child until he didn’t need him any more? Though Cloud meant more to him then just an assignment now….but if a fairy couldn’t do that, then what was the point? Never in his entire existence had he ever felt so… so…useless.


So he gave up again. “Cloud is my God-child…” he stated, his tone stale and flat, almost as if he were going numb.


The younger brother smirked and then laughed out loud, shaking his head. “That is so pathetically lame. I never thought a dim-witted thing such as fairies were even real until you, let alone be anything close to the actual tales told to children. So you must be his fairy godmother, well, hmmmm, his fairy sissy friend is more like it,“ he belittled, laughing again almost hysterically while his brothers chimed in slightly, Loz more so then Yazoo.


“Okay then…” he continued, the laugh still in his words, “…so you were the one that helped him leave his room without permission, you healed his wounds, and YOU introduced him to the Prince?” he asked, his tone taking on a chilling turn.


“Y-yeah….so what, it’s m'…m-m' obligation t' do as 'e wishes, y-yo….” Reno breathed, keeping his eyes closed. This was bad, really bad, and he had nothing to fight with them again. If he just had his wand, him might be able to contact someone from his world…but…it was useless.


The person questioning him didn’t seem to care one bit about him and somehow he understood that he cared even less about Cloud.


“He is your obligation, really? Well, didn’t do so well, considering you aided in him breeching contract, which is illegal, you know. I am sure you understand that, and you also only served to have him sold into permanent captivity to the King. Cloud Strife will never see the light of day again thanks to you, so some fairy you turned out to be,” he taunted, rising from his seat and heading for the door.


“What? NO!” Reno gasped, but he was completely ignored and as much as he wanted to kick and fight his way out of his cage, that last jolt of energy had drained him to the point he couldn’t even get his body to move other then how it was already shaking from the hot electric heat still running through his veins.


Kadaj snapped his fingers for his brothers to follow but paused as he passed by Hojo. “I am done with him now, do whatever King Rufus wants to,” he said as he left.


Now alone with just the creepy brunet, the redhead shifted his eyes towards him and just stared. They looked weak and unbelievably sad, but Hojo wasn’t paying attention, nor was he looking because he was back to scribbling even as he followed the three brothers out and closed the door behind him.


For the longest time, Reno didn’t move. He didn’t breathe, make a sound, or blink. He was stunned, cold, sore, and heartbroken. A failure. He’d failed Cloud and right now, that was all that he could think of. He would have had no idea that anyone in this place even had a heart, save for Sephiroth. Or that his savor would come from the most unlikely creature he could ever have expected. Or that he wasn’t alone in his room and that Hojo was too fascinated by his new subject to give the creature any thought that it might be intelligent.


The soft jingle of a collar would go missed as the small grey and black creature padded its way out through a small flap in the door and made its way down the hall.

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“Pomegranate juice?” Zack offered, stepping back into the Prince’s room and leaving the door ajar behind him.


Sephiroth grumbled. He did not look up. He did not give Zack even a passing glance. He could never remain angry with the man for long, but he simply couldn’t face him until his anger had cooled a little and it was already quickly lessening. He just needed more time. Zack was already sorry and he knew it, but the simple fact was…he’d been the one who had helped take Cloud away from him. He understood it was an order; so he supposed he was more upset about the act rather then at the person…but still…


“Come on Seph…it might make you feel better? It’s your favorite?” The brunet offered sweetly, holding out the glassful of the Prince’s favorite drink. For a moment the Prince didn’t respond (nothing would make him feel better unless he had Cloud in his arms) and remained sitting, facing the window, continuing to stare outside. Zack tried again, “We’ll get him back. You know I had to corporate or else something worse might happen. I would never have--”


“I know…” Sephiroth finally cut in, still not looking at his Butler but reached for the glass he held anyways. “…and I have no doubt we will,“ he stated flatly. His emotions felt so raw right now, like every wound he’d ever had was cut open, left there to rot.


Zack perked up a bit and stepped around the Prince’s chair to seat himself on the bay windows edge and placed a hand upon the man’s knee. “Sephiroth, I…”


“I understand it wasn’t your fault Zackary,“ he said coldly, “But whatever the risk, Cloud must be safe, and if Rufus wants me out of the way as well to ensure he keeps his throne, then so be it. Even if I have to become like my father, I will do it to save Cloud.”


Zack was nodding thoughtfully up until the state of his father was mentioned and then the brunet paled, “No, Sephiroth. Don’t give up your life like that. It’s…”


“My father made the same sacrifice for me. I would do the same for Cloud. I would risk everything my father did for the man that I love. You would do the same for me Zack and you know it. “


“That is true, but if you let that happen, what good will come of this Kingdom? Your father gave up his living life to ensure you survived. You know that this is what Rufus wanted all along…for you have to that same fate. If you don’t fight him…who do we have, Sephiroth? Losing you would be a great loss to everyone,” Zack said softly, dropping his eyes to the floor as he spoke. He was almost in tears.


Sephiroth paused and finally lifted his gaze a bit to regard his dear friend. The way the man cared for him completely softened the Prince’s anger and he leaned forward to embrace his Butler, wrapping his arms around his shoulders and pulling him in for a hug. Zack squeaked into the embrace, stiffening at first, but then finally giving in, slipped his own arms beneath Sephiroth’s and returning the hug.


“I don’t want to serve anyone but you Sephiroth,” Zack whispered, “and if we haven’t figure out how to get your father freed, what makes you think that I alone could help you both?“


“You would find a way, Zack; even without me, you would find a way,” Sephiroth answered simply, showing his confidence in his long time friend and Butler.


“That’s not the point!” Zack whined, pushing the sliveret away from him so he could meet him eye to eye. “You could do all this to save Cloud and it still may not work…” The brunet started to say, when he caught something moving out of the corner of his eyes. “…um, I think we have a visitor?” he murmured, grinning and pulling away from the Prince.


“Huh?” Sephiroth questioned, turning his head over his shoulder to see what Zack was talking about, only to groan and turn right back around. “What is that thing doing here?” he growled.


Zack cooed as he lifted the small grey and black dog into his arms and kissed its head. “Oh come on, Seph, it’s not his fault he’s owned by a bastard creep. You are a good little boy aren’t you?” Zack cooed again, rubbing his nose into the dogs, which caused the small furry creature to bark and whine in pleasure for the attention it was given and so lacked on a day-to-day basis.


“You don’t know where that thing has been or what Hojo has done to it, and you kiss it and nuzzle it? Gross!” Sephiroth hissed, waving Zack off. “Get it out of here…” the silveret ordered in a clipped tone.


Zack chuckled, “There isn’t anything wrong with him, he’s perfectly normal! Aren’t you, you little cutie?” He cooed, ruffling the dog’s fur again. The dog barked excitedly suddenly and squirmed its way out of his arms. It leapt to the floor and started throwing a barking fit, yelping and running towards the door and back to Zack’s feet. This surprised the brunet, but rightly pissed off Sephiroth.


The Prince rose and stepped around his chair and came at the dog, kicking his foot out to get it to leave. It wasn’t that he hated animals; he just hated the animals owned by that creepy yuck of a man. “Get outta here pup….don’t make he hurt you.“ He growled.


The dog continued to bark and dodge Sephiroth’s attempts to shoo him. He ran past him and barked at Zack’s feet then ran right over to the door again.


Sephiroth frowned while Zack laughed. “What the fuck is wrong with him?” he hissed again, rolling his eyes as the creature continued to run back and forth.


“I dunno, but it’s cute…hey! You think it’s trying to tell us something?”


“No, and do I care?” Sephiroth muttered, hissing and shooing the dog each time it came running at them. But the dog was relentless, ignoring the Prince and barking in earnest at the brunet’s feet.


“Well I think he wants us to follow him, so come on, Seph,“ Zack stated, reaching for the Prince’s wrists and yanking him towards the door. When they reached it, the dog bolted down the hall pausing at the farthest door on the left and jumped and barked at the door. “See?” Zack announced, releasing the grumbling Prince’s wrist to run down the hall after the animal.


Sephiroth rolled his eyes, and he didn’t know why he did, but he decided to follow both his friend and the annoying pup. It wasn’t that he was curious though, at the very least he just didn’t want Hojo’s mutt of an animal getting Zack into trouble. But he wasn’t curious. No sir. Not even…well, maybe a little. He would never admit that.


The two of them continued to follow the yelping dog as it lead them down several stairwells to the basement area. The creepy, damp, dark, cold basement area. They followed the dog down two long halls until the both of them paused to the entrance of the creepy guy's ward area. Zack seemed careless as he reached for the door that would gain them entrance, but Sephiroth couldn’t ignore the chills that ran up his spine.


“Zack,“ he warned, whispering into the damp, dimly lit hall, “I don’t feel good about this.”


Zack didn’t turn around but threw his hand back to wave at the Prince to hush up. The dog had stopped barking but was still running back and forth to them in order to make sure they followed. Zack opened the door and stepped in, leaving Sephiroth behind to grumble under his breath, though he still followed him in. The dog headed down one last hall with Zack right on its heels, while Sephiroth kept his eyes open for anyone in the area. He was slightly unsettled that it was so quiet and that no one was around even when a part of him was glad for that fact. He just didn’t want to run into Hojo. Nuh-uh! When he looked back over to see where his Butler had gone, he saw him ducking into a room and grumbled again softly, taking a rushed step to catch up to him. He was about to make it clear they the shouldn’t be down here, not because he wasn’t permitted, just that he didn’t like it, before he stopped short and froze completely.


Like Zack, who stood there gawking, Sephiroth found himself doing the same thing next to him. His green eyes widening just like his jaw did as he stood there shocked beyond belief. Before them, sitting in a glass box like cage, sat the oddest thing either of them had ever seen, and before either of them could speak, this thing, or human, or, well, they didn’t know what to call it, spoke for them.


“What th' fuck d’ya'll want now?” Reno growled, rising to his knees within the glass cage as his wings beat angrily behind him. He was wary that someone had once again come to torture him like they’d done before and he wasn’t about to give up unless he had no choice again. Further more, where he was, what he was in, was bright and he couldn’t make out the faces of the two that had entered at all. They were merely dark shadows at this point and what he could see, was that one was definitely taller then the other.


Sephiroth was speechless, while Zack’s gaping mouth turned up into a grin, and the both of them looked at each other once, before staring back at the thing before them.


Reno seemed to notice something then, well, more like sensed it. These two didn’t feel like the guys that had come in earlier. They were different and obviously neither of them worked down here, so he assumed.


“Yeah…what?” he asked again, relaxing a little when he realized they weren’t going to cause him any harm.


Zack was the first to speak up, and what he said told Reno that these two really weren’t anything to worry about.


“Hey, you have wings?”


“No shit, Sherlock! Y' think I dinn't know that?” Reno snapped, his frayed nerves loosening up a bit. Okay, so, yeah, he was in no danger here.


“You… you really have wings?” Zack repeated excitedly. He was amazed at what he saw before his eyes and if he’d been just like the real dog padding around at their feet, his own ears would be perked and his tail would be wagging with excited curiosity.


“We know that, Zack,” Sephiroth cut in, giving the brunet's shoulder a shove to break him out of his repeat mode. He took a step forward to peer at the winged human with interest, murmuring, “So, I have to ask: why?”


Reno instinctively tensed when the taller one stepped closer, but as soon as the light in the cage hit him, he realized who it was speaking to him. “Sephiroth?” he breathed, crawling over to the glass wall with excited wings fluttering behind him. It was the Prince! He could find something out about Cloud and if he was doing okay!


The dog suddenly barked excitedly at the Prince’s feet. “Zack, pick this thing up and shut it up,” he ordered, giving the animal a glare before returning a surprised glance back at the winged redhead. “Do I know you?” he asked curiously, while Zack hummed in response and dipped down to gather the excited animal up in his arms. He stepped forward next to the Prince so he could better hear what was being said.


“He knows you? Of course he does, you're the Prince. Your face is everywhere,” Zack whispered.


Sephiroth waved him off and hushed him silent without looking at him. “Who or what are you?” he asked.


Reno couldn’t hide the eagerness within him to know that his God-child was okay, so he came right out with it, “I'm Cloud’s fairy….um, yeah, it sounds real weird but I am, 'm his fairy-god-friend, in a sense. Ya know, like th' fairy tale thing, fairies an' wishes an' shit. Umm, is he okay? Is Cloud okay? Are y' still with 'im? 'M really worried, cause I got this feelin’, a feelin' he might be in trouble. Please tell me he's okay? Sephiroth, tell me he's with ya an' 'e's safe?” the redhead asked, his questions too quick for Sephiroth to get a word in edgewise.


Zack looked away, feeling guilty, and kept his mouth shut. The Prince frowned, his brow furrowing in response to the rampant firing of questions, but he slowly shook his head. “I don’t understand this at all, but no, Cloud was taken from me…” he said, his voice growing painfully softer as he spoke, completely fading as he finished his sentence. The thought of what Rufus might do to Cloud pained him.


At the Prince’s words, Reno’s wings stopped moving and they lowered, following the slump of his body against the floor of the cage. He fell to his hands and knees and sighed, “Then I failed 'im….I was s'posed t' keep 'im safe. That’s what we fairies do, an' I…f-failed…” he groaned in defeat, shaking his head as his words turned into softer mumbled sounds of defeat.


Zack’s face fell at the redhead’s statement and he turned a questioning glare to Sephiroth, “So this whole story thing about fairy godmothers really does exist? I thought it was just a myth…”


“No, it’s true. Ya'll have met me b'fore, I jus' wiped yer memory away th' las' time b'cause only th' ones we're assigned ta are s'posed ta be able t' see us an', y'know, t' know we exist…” Reno sighed, lifting his blue eyes to regard the two before him again, “I c'n assure ya that 'm real an' that'cha ain’t seein' things. I jus' need t' help Cloud….he’s not okay…Y' need t' help me get out of here!” Reno demanded, his wings pumping impatiently behind him again. He looked between the two, eyeing the brunet then the silveret with more then just hope in his eyes. It was fate that they were here. They could help him get out!


Sephiroth was listening to all of it, but he was also in deep thought. The redhead before him was familiar, but the memories were just a bit hazy. He couldn’t deny what was before his eyes, so it left him no choice but to believe that this fairy was indeed sitting right in front of him and that his claim to be Cloud’s fairy was also true. It was all just…just so odd. He shook his head at the unbelievable thought, but the moment Zack spoke up and Cloud was mentioned again, he snapped out of his mind meanderings.


“Wait a minute. Hold on! I need to think….” Sephiroth mumbled to himself, raising a few fingers to rub between his eyes as he turned and walked a few steps away as he continued, “So, regardless of how weird this whole thing is, we have a mutual purpose, and that is to get Cloud back. Now, whether I fully believe what you are is truly real is irrelevant, and I just want to know one thing though before anything else. How, if you are supposed to be only seen by Cloud, can we see you now? How did you get here, and why didn’t you do a damn thing to stop what happened?” Sephiroth asked. Sure that last question was more irate than it should have been, but if this fairy was for real then the fact that he hadn’t been there for Cloud when he should have was starting to rub the Prince the wrong way. Thankfully, he was still able to keep most of his cool at the moment. His anger would be put to better use on some other little blonde.


Only a few words description from Reno made it all clear. “Some creepy dark-haired guy trapped me, yo…” the redhead said, and Sephiroth understood it all. He and Zack both made a face.


“I see….so, if we break you out of here, you can help us get to Cloud?” Sephiroth asked.


Reno nodded and rose to his knees again, “Yeah! Yeah I can, but how can ya? I can’t even touch this energy top or whatever,” the redhead noted, reaching a finger up to show them and instantly pulling it back with a hiss when smoke was actually produced by touching the energy field that held him captive.


“There’s gotta be controls somewhere!“ Zack pointed out, dropping the dog back to the ground and walking over to the large paneled contraption next to the cage. “This doesn’t look to complicated but I sure don’t see a red and green button for off and on…” he muttered.


Sephiroth followed him over and looked over the display of buttons. All of them were lit and the various colors didn’t seem to lead him to think that there were any certain ones that would be used to designate an on or off button. He fell silent and scanned the panels again until his eyes caught sight of one blinking one, “Well there is only one blinking one, so unless this isn’t idiot proof, maybe this one?” he said.


Zack shrugged, “I dunno, but it’s worth a try right? What could happen?”


“Um, it could fuckin shock me, yo! That’s what happened th' las' time that creepy guy was in here!” Reno cried, worried now and though he couldn’t remember which button they pushed (he had been in dreadful pain then), the worst that could happen was that pain. “Go on an' give it a try. If it’s th' zapper thing at least we know t' look fer another button.“ Reno gave them both a wary look as Sephiroth cast a his own eyes over his shoulder back at the redhead before turning back and lifting a finger over the blinking button. He let his hand hover for a moment and then he pressed it.


Zack and Reno both had their eyes closed but Reno was the only one waiting for the searing pain to take over. When a few seconds passed and nothing happened, the fairy slowly opened his eyes and grinned. The energy field was gone! Reno cheered far to loudly than was appropriate and bolted up out of the cage to hover in the air before both Zack and Sephiroth.


“Well that was too easy!” Sephiroth stated.


“It sure was…but…ouufff!” Zack of course was cut off by a blur of red before a body was pressed tightly against his with arms swung around his neck in a hug.


“Aw, you two're fuckin’ awesome. I love ya both!” Reno exclaimed, planting a kiss on the brunet’s cheek making Zack chuckle, then releasing him to go after Sephiroth. But of course he was stopped.


“I don’t think so,” The Prince said. He was smiling even as he held two hands out to prevent Reno from getting close, “I might believe you are real but I am not ready to hug you. Maybe if we get Cloud back; then I might consider it, but for now, I think we should get just out of here.”


“Sounds great to me!” Reno chimed in.


All three of them including Hojo’s dog left the creepy room, but none of them more thrilled about it then Reno.


“Good, now if we c'n just find m' wand, we’ll be in business, yo!“ Reno whispered once they were out into the hall, prompting both Sephiroth and Zack to stop.


“What?” they both breathed in unison.

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((Cut off ending…I know!! Please be kind * winks * ))((Thanks to my lovely beta—Muah))