InsaneJournal

The first time Cloud met Zack, she broke his nose.

He’d surprised her during a sparring drill, and she reacted instinctively; her hand had snapped out before she’d even registered what had happened.  Next thing she knew, he was hunched over next to her, cupping his face and groaning.

She apologized to him profusely, trying to help staunch the blood flow and wound up having to serve two weeks kitchen duty for assaulting a superior officer. (Coincidentally, this was the best two weeks of food that the regiments had ever had at Shinra.)

Zack, in turn, was intrigued.

After a quick, low level Cure, he’d set out to meet his attacker.  It wasn’t exactly hard, though- women were a rare breed in the Shinra army.

Unfortunately, he was waylaid by an urgent emergency mission- one that lasted nearly a month.

But, his first destination upon his return was the female barracks- called the Valkyries’ Roost since the days of lore- and as soon as he said the words, “Blonde and blue-eyed,” they were immediately able to tell him that, the one he sought was currently on a mission with her own troop.  Cursing his rotten luck, Zack resolved to wait this out.

For once, the Fates decided to smile down upon the young man, and he was shipped out two days later to help a platoon curb the rising monster population.

Meanwhile, Cloud was nearly waist deep in shit- literally.

They’d been wading through the swamps near the coast south of Fort Condor for over a week, and had had little chance to dry off since they‘d first arrived.  Already, it’d rained three times, and they had been lucky to avoid flooding.  They were finally reaching the main camp after nearly three days of separation, and Cloud was looking forward to being on dry land, away from the humid waters and carnivorous insects.

She’d kill for a hot shower, right about now.

The sergeant dismissed them when they arrived, him leaving to give a report, and so Cloud trudged off to the women’s tent, noticeable by the banner with a single feather hung in front.  Immediately after entering, she stripped off her dirty clothes, washed as much of the grime and muck as she could off, and then dropped onto her chosen bunk with the intent to sleep the day away.

Zack grumbled to himself as he swatted a low tree branch out of the way, his eyes scanning for signs of monsters.  As soon as he’d arrived at the outpost, he’d immediately been sent out to patrol and hopefully take out a few monsters.  The entire affair was uneventful, and by the time he arrived back at camp that night, he was ready to go eat and sleep.

So it was with some surprise, that in all the hustle and bustle of the camp, someone bumped into him.  The figure seemed just a disoriented as he was, stumbling back and few paces as though dazed.

Holding out a hand to help keep the other steady, Zack looked down just in time to meet pale blue.

Cloud probably had the worst luck ever.

Or at least, that’s what she thought after being harshly awoken by her superior to be told that they had to help set up tents for the new arrivals.  Being one of the few women in camp, she was designated to make beds, and she’d been on her feet since.

And now, she had just run into the one person she was most embarrassed to see.

She watched with trepidation as he looked down at her, his violet eyes glowing steadily with mako, and tensed as she saw the realization dawn across his face.  Suddenly, a smile blossomed across his face, one that didn’t promise pain, and it was all she could do not to stare.  Wasn’t he angry with her?

Zack felt pleased as he spied the young woman- almost a girl, really- and he grinned at her in reassurance when he sensed her nervousness.  Holding out his hand, he introduced himself, “Hey, I’m Zack!  You’re Cloud, right?”

For a minute, he thought she wouldn’t respond and just continue to stare at him, but she managed to visibly gather herself, and gripping his hand, nodded with a bird-jerky movement of the head while choking out, “Y-yes.”

He let his grin broaden into genuine happiness as he replied, “Man, I’ve been looking all over for you for the past month!  Because, damn, girl, you’ve got a mean right hook!”  Noticing her wide-eyed look, he slung a friendly arm around her shoulders, steering her towards the canteen as he continued to chatter.  “Seriously, I don’t think I’ve ever seen an un-enhanced person move that fast before!”

As she allowed herself to be led away, it was all Cloud could do to not unhinge her jaw.

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Hopefully, this'll shut up Zack!muse for a while.

On another note, my Vincent!muse wants some girl!Cloud too... girl!Cloud!muse just wants a harem...