Cephy (cephy) wrote in no_true_pair, @ 2008-06-06 08:12:00 |
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Entry tags: | ! 2008 twelve characters challenge, author: cephy, fandom: final fantasy 7, pairing: reno/zack |
"Unlikely Fellows", FFVII
Title: Unlikely Fellows
Author: Cephy
Fandom: Final Fantasy VII
Characters: Zack, Reno
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: None to speak of
Prompt/challenge: Zack/Reno, first time
Notes: Probably not the 'first time' you're expecting. >.>
Zack entered the room dragging his feet, zeroed in on an empty stool at the bar-- and when he got there, he almost didn't bother asking for alcohol. It wouldn't really work, anyway, or so his new squadmates had assured him-- but hell, he wanted a beer, whether or not it did what it was supposed to. Just the feel of the glass, damp and cool against his palms, was enough to soothe a few nerves.
There was some music on in the background, something bland and forgettable, not unlike the rest of the pub-- a little late-night hole in one of the Shinra buildings, more popular with the suits than the rank-and-file. Had he been feeling a bit more ambitious he could have found a more appealing place-- he'd certainly been told some stories about a few bars in Sector Six, but most of those were SOLDIER hangouts, and somehow he didn't feel like being around other SOLDIERs just then. So he just sipped at his beer, tried to ignore the odd looks the bartender kept giving him, and tried not sigh too loudly.
The guy beside him gave a little huff, not quite a laugh and not quite a snort. "Tough day?"
Zack huffed right back at him. "Something like that."
"Yeah, I hear ya."
It was too much effort to shift around enough to see the guy, really, but from the corner of his eye Zack could see dark clothes and a very familiar slumped posture. It was enough to make the social animal in him take notice, even weary as it was. "You too?"
"Something like that." There came the clink of glass on wood as the other guy pushed his empty forward and gestured for another. Zack quickly drained the last of his and mirrored the gesture, tossing down a few extra gil to cover both.
"Hey, thanks, man."
"No problem. Least I can do for a fellow sufferer." Wasn't like he didn't have the money, after all-- even a Third Class got a rather intimidating amount of hazard pay.
"Heh. In that case, I've got the next one. I just got promoted," he added with an odd little laugh, echoing Zack's thoughts. "I can afford it."
"Congratulations."
That odd laugh again. "Yeah. Thanks."
From somewhere, Zack dragged out a snort and a sideways grin. "Don't sound so enthusiastic."
"Nah, I'm good, 's just-- it's weird, the shit that happens to you sometimes, hey?"
"Hell yes," Zack answered feelingly. The cold burn of mako in your veins, spreading, and when it hits your heart--
The next laugh sounded more genuine. "Sounds like you've got a story?"
"Nah. Just been a weird day." They'd been inspected by the General. Not just a duty sergeant, not their usual commander, but Sephiroth himself. And Zack had stood there covered in mud, with everyone around him older and bigger and stronger than him, because they'd only tossed him out of the labs and into the waiting arms of his unit two days before. "Weird week, maybe."
"I'll drink to that." And Zack saw the glint of the glass as it lifted and fell.
By unspoken agreement they emptied their glasses in companionable silence and waited to be refilled by the twitchy bartender. Zack did his best to stare a hole in the wall behind the bar, chewing the inside of his lip while thinking about nothing and everything and eventually wondering if he should get back. But curfew was so bendable as to be nonexistant for SOLDIERs, and even though the others had warned him about lone SOLDIERs being hassled after hours by the Turks, he wasn't sure he believed it. It was already obvious that there was some kind of pissing match going on between the two organizations, even though he wasn't sure why-- yet another way he didn't quite fit in yet, and he knew that would probably change with time, but--
"How about you," he asked, to distract himself. "What's your story?"
"Nothing worth whining about. Too much stuff thrown at me to learn by yesterday, too many things to remember."
Zack make an agreeing sound into his glass. Weapons at half-height when facing the ShinRa tower. Half-step in parade, double-step on the march, single-step in formations. Morning inspection may come up to half an hour early, depending on the sergeant's mood that day-- "You ever feel like-- dunno, you're just completely out of your depth, and you're never going to catch up?" he asked suddenly.
"Oh, hell yeah. I mean-- shit, today I worked some ritzy party where everyone smiled too much and used too many forks. Any one of the dresses on those chicks would have bought my family's entire house. How fucked up is that?"
Zack, with an unexpected rush of nostalgia, imagined his own little house back in Gongaga, and then put that up beside the shiny glass and spotless carpets of the main building he'd been in so briefly. "The fucked-upedest," he answered, and maybe he was drinking fast enough after all, because suddenly it all seemed very funny.
The other guy obviously appreciated it, because he laughed and lifted his glass. "That sounds like a toast. To fucked-upedness, yo."
Zack grinned "To fucked-upedness." He lifted his glass, and turned--
And froze, hand in midair, as he finally got a good look at his drinking partner. In the dim lighting it had been easy to think the suit black, but it was actually dark blue-- and it was hard to mistake that particular uniform for anything else, even if the jacket was half undone and the tie long gone. And all he could think was: Shit, if I get drunk with a Turk before I do with my own unit, I'll never live it down.
It helped only a little that the other guy was obviously just as stunned to see SOLDIER greys sitting next to him, and Zack wondered if his uniform looked black in the light, too. It was just enough to let Zack find his tongue. "At least this explains why the bartender's been watching us all night like we were about to burn the place down."
The guy laughed, a sharp startled sound, and then all at once his shoulders relaxed and there was a real grin on his face, sideways and sharp. "I'd wondered about that, yeah." He watched Zack for a moment, then shrugged with a deliberate air, lifting his glass again. "To even more fucked-upedness?"
Zack had to laugh. "I'll drink to that."