and if you say run, I'll run with you

[exsurgo]

Help, they’re making us

[ A message like that from Cloud would send Zack running at the best of times. It’s not technically breaking any rules to use the company data to find out where he is, and it puts him at ease a little to see he’s in one of the training rooms – until Zack gets there and peeks through the glass of the door.
The orderly lines. The fact that everybody is in PT gear, not uniform. And the fact that Genesis – who Zack is pretty sure by now is at least a little bit of a sadist – is at the front of the room.

It’s time for the lessons.

Zack panics. What kind of friend is he? Why didn’t he warn Cloud? But – it’s early! They don’t usually do this until you’re pretty high up in the ranks! It’s only used for showing off at formal events and, on very rare occasions, infiltration! It’s too soon! It’s Genesis enacting some cruel ploy, Zack just knows it. He’s not even required to instruct, he’s just doing it for his own sick glee! So Zack throws open the door, points at Cloud, and musters his very best attempt at a stern voice as he says I need an assistant. Strife, you’re up.

That, as it turns out, was a mistake.

Genesis turns to face him, the motion smooth as silk, a wicked smile curving his lips and a look of malice glittering in his eyes. If you want one of my students, he says, you will first assist with a demonstration. Which is how Zack ends up letting Genesis lead him in a paso doble in front of the gathered infantrymen. It’s… fine. It’s fine! Zack likes dancing! He doesn’t even mind that he’s not leading, except that he’s being led by Genesis, and the dance requires a lot of intense eye contact, tight turns with their bodies close, and a terrifying incident in which Genesis picks him up by the hips and spins him. But the music is loud and fast, and it’s not so bad when he reminds himself that this is for Cloud, who doesn't deserve to be dropped in a situation like this unprepared.

The dance finishes. Zack bows to Genesis, just like his own lessons hammered home. Genesis offers a sweeping bow in return, something that effortlessly communicates messages such as I know what you’re up to and don’t mess with me, you little shit. Zack straightens, and tries not to pout. ]

Can I get on with my work now?

[ The nod Genesis gives him is almost imperceptible, so Zack beckons to Cloud and hurries the both of them back outside before that maniac can change his mind. ]

What an asshole.

Comments

[meteorics]

[ it's kind of impossible to imagine zack being bad at anything. cloud's seen him in action enough to know he's one of those people who seem to be good at anything they touch -- and even when he's not the best at something, he's got enough charisma to get away with it.

but cloud? no way.

... still, he doesn't miss that. ]

-- Wait, you've eaten bugs?

[exsurgo]

[ Zack puts his foot in his mouth often enough that he knows there's no point trying to get a cat bag in a bag, so he gives Cloud a bright (if sheepish) grin. ]

Yup. Not on purpose, mostly. There's these frogs back in Gongaga that can turn you into a frog. And I was a real outdoor kid, so I got hit more than a couple of times.

[ Outdoor kid is underselling it. When school was out he was practically a feral child, out in nature as often as he could be, barefoot and in as little clothing as he could get away with due to the hot, humid weather. The jungle areas surrounding it had been ripe to bursting with plants that had bright spiked flowers or fat, glistening traps for catching bugs, streams full of darting fish and thick, lazy eels, birds that could raise a riot of song - and yes, magical frogs that were far too cute to young Zack's eyes for him to learn the lesson. ]

It's practically a Gongaga rite of passage!

[meteorics]

[ ... okay, he can't help it. and even if cloud ducks his chin and lifts a hand to cover his mouth, he doesn't entirely manage to stifle the laugh that escapes him. ]

Remind me never to visit. Pretty sure your brain is still scrambled from getting turned into a frog.

[exsurgo]

[ And that makes it worth it. Not the froggy childhood - that was worth it all on its own - but telling Cloud about it, and getting to hear that laugh. Zack watches him for a moment, affection brimming over. Cloud keeps himself to himself pretty well, and the fact that they've been close for ages now is never enough to take the shine off moments like this - when he gets to see Cloud loose and laughing, unguarded. Like it's something special, just for him.

But that is not a train of thought to entertain when he's trying to teach Cloud to dance, which is going to involve getting all up in his space. He presses a hand to his heart in mock offense, ruined by the grin on his face. ]

I would never let you get frogged. And if you did, I'd keep you safe. Nothing but prime bugs until it wore off.

[meteorics]

Wha --?! You'd feed me bugs?!

[ he's trying to sound properly offended! ... but really, despite his best efforts, more of that laughter just ends up escaping. mostly because he can see it so clearly -- zack is 100% the kind of person to 1) accidentally let you get frogged and then 2) feed you bugs and think that'll make it up to you. ]

No way am I visiting now.

[exsurgo]

You'd be surprised how much you like 'em when you're a frog.

[ Emphasis on when you're a frog. Zack had been turned often enough to get curious. Suffice it to say that dragonflies are much better admired than eaten when you're still human. But he flashes Cloud a wink, and starts the music he's settled on going through the speakers. ]

Just like you're gonna be surprised how much you like dancing when you get the hang of it.

[meteorics]

[ uuuugh. that wink does something stupid to his stomach that cloud is trying very hard to ignore, especially when he's about to be... in, uh, very close quarters with zack.

it's fine! it's cool! this is totally normal friend stuff.

(and he's valiantly fighting the urge to wipe off his sweaty palms on his pants, because there's no way zack won't notice.) ]

I think it's the getting the hang of it part that's the problem... [ said with about as much enthusiasm as someone about to be led to the gallows for their own execution. ]

[exsurgo]

That's what you've got me for, man!

[ And okay, he's not so dumb he can't hear the doom in Cloud's voice. He reaches out, squeezes Cloud's shoulder. ]

I'm not gonna laugh at you, Cloud. And if you ever feel dumb, think about what I'd look like as a frog.

You ready?

[meteorics]

[ okay, doom and gloom aside, the frog thing still gets a little snort.

but...! look. zack is, without a doubt, the best (and only) friend cloud has ever had. for some reason, zack wants to hang out with him even though he's almost definitely got way cooler SOLDIER stuff he could be doing, and he's even nice enough to act like it's cloud doing him the favor.

so if zack asks him for something? cloud is sure as hell gonna do everything he can to deliver. and if that means he has to humiliate himself with a dance lesson that's almost guaranteed to be a disaster? he's doing it!

grim determination! someone should really tell him that the first step to dancing is not looking like you're about to be burned at the stake. ] Yeah. Let's do it.

[exsurgo]

[ Despite just having said he's not gonna laugh at Cloud, the face the younger boy makes brings a smile to Zack's lips. Once he'd got on to the more advanced stuff - the paso doble Genesis had voluntold him into showing the group, the tango - Genesis had told him you should be looking at each other like the dance is going to end in fighting or fucking, nothing inbetween and Cloud sure looks like he's ready to fight something! Fortunately, Zack plans to start him on much easier fare. He stretches a little, shakes out his limbs, and moves to the centre of the room. ]

The first thing they're gonna teach you is the waltz. It's pretty basic, just one move people add flashy stuff into as they go along. C'mere and stand next to me so you can copy what I do, and then we'll put it together.

[meteorics]

[ a waltz...!

those are kind of... romantic, right? at least, cloud is pretty sure that they were always the dances featured in the kinds of stories his mom used to tell him -- about princesses with valiant knights coming to their rescue, glittering castles in lands far away. maybe knowing how to waltz might make him seem kinda cool?

... or, at least, less lame, which has got to be an improvement.

so there's a little less apprehension as he follows zack obediently over to the center of the room, expression brightening with interest. ]

I just... copy you?

[exsurgo]

[ There it is. That little spark in Cloud's expression. Zack's seen it before, and he loves it. Cloud's gonna be great. He nods. ]

Yup. It's easy, man. It's called box step, I think 'cause it's like a little box on the floor you move around the corners of. We're gonna start with our feet together, weight on the right foot. And then you step forward with your left - [ and he starts demonstrating as he's speaking, trying not to let the fact that he's going slower than the music so he's easy to watch trip him up ] - move your right to the other corner, and bring your left foot to meet it. And then the same thing, just backwards.

[ Right foot back, left sliding into the other corner, and his right foot coming to meet it. It's smooth and simple, even a little elegant, totally ruined by the following: ]

And BAM! That's it. Now copy me, yeah?

[ Just repeating the process, looking at Cloud's face and not his feet - because he knows scrutiny never helped anyone's first try at anything, and not because Cloud's face is always pretty great to look at. ]

[meteorics]

[ that sounds... easy enough. and he watches the way zack's feet move like he's fully expecting to be tested exhaustively on it later -- brow furrowed and teeth catching at one corner of his lower lip. it looks easy enough...!

and he nods distractedly at zack's invitation to copy him, already laser-focused on the task at hand. step forward with the left foot... right foot to the other corner... then the left foot comes to meet it! and by the time they've done it another two or three times, his expression is starting to brighten with just a little bit of triumph. he can do it! and --

... that's when his brain catches up to the fact that they're off-tempo with the music playing, and trying to reconcile that gets tangled up with the idea of trying to mirror what zack is doing, and. somehow, he manages to trip over zack's next step, stumbling and only just managing to catch himself by reaching out and grabbing a fistful of the front of zack's uniform. ]

Dammit. [ fervent but quiet, like he's afraid someone might overhear and chew him out for it. and then he's letting go of zack like the contact was enough to burn him, drawing in himself like a turtle retreating into his shell. like messing up is gonna be enough to make zack laugh at him, or even enough to make zack call the whole thing off and ditch the idea of lessons entirely. ] ... sorry.

[exsurgo]

[ As soon as Cloud trips Zack's arm comes down to hook around his hips - unnecessary support, as it turn out, because Cloud doesn't actually fall, but he's still pretty slow to remove it once Cloud lets go of where he'd grabbed on. The contact reminds him that the next step of this is gonna be dancing with Cloud to show him how you do it all partnered up, and the thought might bring the tiniest hint of a flush to his cheeks as he smile down at the younger boy. ]

Man, don't worry about it. First time I tried this I ate shit so bad I didn't just fall, I knocked over the guy next to me. Try convincing your partner you should be the one to lead when you started out nearly sitting in his lap.

[ He tilts his head, watches Cloud for a beat. ]

Is it the music? Tell you a secret: it's screwing me up, too. I'm thinking about this way harder than I normally do. You wanna speed up to meet it, or find something that's slower?

[meteorics]

[ there it is again! the deep-seeded belief that zack has never screwed up clashing with reality, and... somehow? the mental image is still enough to make cloud have to bite down on the corner of his lip to stifle a snort of laughter.

just like magic, ta-da! the spell of doom and gloom is broken. ]

Uh... maybe slower? Just at first.

[exsurgo]

Makes sense!

[ It does! Slow is good to learn, and then you speed it up. Not Zack's personal forte, but for Cloud? Anything. Especially when he laughs.

Waltzes are generally not his go-to music, but as Soldier he probably has access to the actual training playlists, so a little poking and... bingo. The first one on this list is gonna be the one they use first, right? He cues it up, and that's perfect. He grins at Cloud, gives him a very sloppy bow that would have had Genesis bawling him out if he'd done that back during the rescue mission, and lets the one-two-three of the music guide him as he starts again. ]

Oh man, that's better. Doesn't feel like my feet and my brain are having an argument any more. Dude, I'm a shitty teacher.

[meteorics]

[ oh!

the bow is enough to distract him from staring so intensely at zack's feet, and... geez. okay! cloud knows it's just zack kidding around, but it's still enough to make his heart do this stupid fluttering thing in his chest? and make the heat go flooding into his cheeks, so. ugh.

still! not even that is enough to distract him from his sworn and sacred duty to be zack's no.1 diehard fan and defend him from all naysayers! ] No way! You're a great teacher!

See? [ back to focusing on his feet. one step... two steps... three steps... four! and then he beams up at zack like he's just solved the mystery of life itself. ] I'm kinda getting it!

[exsurgo]

You're nailing it!

[ He really is. Zack's stories of misfortune when he learned really aren't just to make Cloud feel better - he's so used to just springing into what he wanted to do that his mind would run ahead and he's skip a step, or always try to lead with his right foot. Cloud's a lot more considering and methodical that Zack is, so it makes sense that he wouldn't make the same mistakes, but it still gives Zack a little glow of pride in him. He beams. ]

I think you might be ready.

[meteorics]

[ that... sounds ominous. ]

Uh... ready?

[exsurgo]

Mmhm. You don't waltz alone, my dude.

[ He turns to face Cloud, still grinning. Picks up one of Cloud's hands in his, moves the other one to his hip before he puts his hand on Cloud's shoulder. And - okay, wow, uh. He drops his eyes for a second, clears his throat. ]

Just do the same thing we've been practicing. I'll be doing it too, just backwards so we don't bump into each other.

[meteorics]

Oh! Oh, right, yeah.

[ okay! there's nothing to be nervous about! it's not like the steps are any harder to do just because they're, uh, totally holding hands now! and okay, maybe his face is on fire, but that shouldn't prevent him from being able to dance.

right? right.

... except, no. barely two steps into the dance, and he's already managing to trip right over zack's feet again. ]

[exsurgo]

[ Man, close like this, it's kinda... have Cloud's eyes always been that big? That blue? And with his hand on Cloud's shoulder like this, it's kinda more obvious that all the training he's doing is starting to pay off. He's filling out a little. Zack should tell him, he'd be pleased -

and then they collide, probably because Zack is paying more attention to Cloud than he is to what Cloud is doing. And probably making Cloud nervous with all the staring like a creep. Well, at least the fact that they're already holding on to each other means Cloud doesn't fall!

Time to live up to what Cloud said about being a great teacher. Rule number one: make sure your student feels relaxed and comfortable. ]

Hey, Cloud?

[ And he leans forward just a touch, like he's about to whisper in Cloud's ear but not quite closing the distance. ]

Ribbit.

[meteorics]

Sorry! [ an instinctive kneejerk. ] I just --!

[ but before cloud can even finish the thought, zack is leaning closer. closer... closer... closer...! so close that cloud can clearly see the way the mako threads through the bright blue of the other boy's eyes, so close that he can see that zack's lips are (just a little!) chapped. so close that cloud's brain has just a second to go ?! at the thought that zack might be about to kiss --

and then.

that. ]

Um. [ hang on, his brain is still trying to reboot. ] ... what?

[exsurgo]

[ Well, it didn't make him laugh -

but it did interrupt the apologies and the look of mounting panic on Cloud's face, so Zack's calling it a win! ]

Remember. I told you about my froggy past, so this is a no-shame zone. You're doing real good for, what, five minutes of lessons? Believe in yourself, man. I do.

[meteorics]

[ he's still... processing...

... and then cloud blinks. once, twice. then: ]

Did you just... [ his voice is wobbling, just a little. ] ... ribbit at me?