tampered | Log; Complete.

Honestly, Zack just wanted to have a little fun. And what better way to have fun than to scare the shit out of Cloud while making groping motions with his hands all day.

Except when Reno tried to touch him. Which really made him feel predatory, and in the end, he got his way. He always did, in fact, and with his little mission to still cope a feel wasn't going to die down easily; Zack really wasn't one to quit. That is, unless Cloud felt the need to bring forth crocodile tears, which he sincerely doubted would happen.

So, he was on a mission. No, a hunt, even, to search for Cloud in his – no, their apartment.

Bathroom. That was the last place he came upon, which only made Zack snicker in amusement. Really, now, he didn't look bad at all. Cloud made an adorable girl, as much as he whined the whole day you'd think he was a girl to begin with. But, alas, he wasn't, which was good because Zack preferred a boy Cloud to a girl Cloud, but hey, today was a special day. Better make the most of it while he could.

Zack tried to keep quiet while he eyed the door, grinning like a madman. Or, actually, madwoman, but that didn't matter.

Fishing out a key from his pocket, the raven-haired man smirked as he twirled it between his fingers, staring at the keyhole to the bathroom. Naturally speaking, Zack would've just kicked the door down, but this was better; didn't have to pay for repairs, after all. And of course he had a key to everything in the apartment, even the bathroom. He thanked the heavens that he did, because he never had a use for them until now.

He slid the key in the keyhole, twisting the doorknob before flinging the door open, immediately spotting the blond in a corner. Didn't take a rocket scientist to find him, of course. Though Zack has a determined look on his face and an evil gleam in his eye – all for show, but he looked dead serious when he said in an eerily tone of voice: “Spiiiike.” Amusement played on his lips. “Y'better give up, kiddo.”

Shit. Heart failure was akin to what Cloud experience the moment Zack flung open that door. Cloud stared wide-eyed at him, frozen momentarily like an cornered animal (whose situation, he thought, was not unlike his own) before burying his face in his arms and shifting even further into the corner.

"Go away," he mumbled half-heartedly in reply. It was no use, he knew.

Logically, Cloud was aware it had been impossible to escape Zack's clutches unless he decided to go as far as to leave the building, which he refused to do, considering his current state. Somehow, though, he had continued to foster some pathetic, irrational hope that Zack would have given up. Stupid of him to have even thought it possible, really.

“Aw, c'mon, don't be that way.” Zack took another route after a small pause, dropping his creepy voice, 'cause really? When Cloud sulked like that he started feeling a bit bad.

...For about ten seconds, that is.

But he really couldn't help it this time, especially when the blond looked up at him with a “oh, shit” look on his face. Zack half-expected him to whimper pathetically, but that really wouldn't happen unless he was desperate. Maybe. Though he knew the reply really didn't mean to the full extreme of what it could've meant, so heck, why stop there?

Zack crouched down, squatting in front of his friend as he tilted his head to the side, craning it a little to try and get a look at the other's face, with little to no success following the movement, “Are you just insecure about your body? 'Cause I think it's cute!” A hand reached out, petting Cloud's hair to show he really wasn't going to pounce him... for now. “Besides, it won't hurt or anything.”

Cloud tensed upon contact of Zack, but relaxed a little, despite himself.

He wasn't sure about what was bothering him so much, actually. Cloud hadn't changed much, now that he thought about it. He was slimmer, maybe, and more endowed around the chest area, but the change, overall, wasn't substantial. Except for, of course, in more important areas, but Cloud was against contemplating it too much. And now that he was more slight in frame, the clothes that he had borrow from Zack looked even more ridiculous on him, and he found this highly agitating.

He still found all of it highly unnerving. Along with the fact that Zack was so comfortable with this sort of thing. Far too comfortable. Cloud wouldn't have cared about Zack touching him as a man, but as a girl, well. It was different. It was awkward.

And maybe, Cloud speculated, this was the effect of all of the hormones that girls were supposed to have. He didn't understand women too much, but now that he had become one, he was taking on a completely different perspective.

"No, I'm not," Cloud said in stubborn protest, still refusing to look at Zack. "It's nothing worth seeing."

“'Nothing worth seeing'? Aw, c'mon, Spike, that isn't true.” Zack shifted a little, removing his hand as he used it to reach back behind his own neck, scratching there a little while thinking, though tried to not show his amusement towards the blond's protest in the process. “I know it's a little weird, heck, I was even a bit weirded out for a while. But it's not like this is going to happen everyday or anythin',” I hope, that is, Zack thought in his mind momentarily, “And ya gotta be at least a little curious.”

Then again, Zack was just a curious person at heart. No matter what, he wanted more information on this or that or whatever struck his fancy then and there. Didn't matter how weird it would seem to other people, or even if it put them in an awkward situation – such as now, but he wasn't going to seriously pounce Cloud and fondle his breasts. It just wouldn't work that way.

Talking always seemed to help a little bit, especially when he wanted to get his way.

[ooc: Oh, yes, sorry about not responding when you prodded me for a tag. I totally didn't fall asleep while waiting. Nope.]

"......."

"You're right, I guess."

Now that he thought about it, Cloud realized that he was being incredibly selfish. If Zack wanted to have his fun, the least Cloud could do was indulge him, considering how enthusiastic he was. And Cloud didn't want to disappoint, even if he suspected that Zack was simply being his lecherous self.

After all, the tendency to accost anything even vaguely female was something ingrained in Zack's nature, or so Cloud's experience told him. And now that Cloud was female, Zack's instincts were apparently kicking in. It made sense, to some extent. Nevermind that Zack himself had also switched.

Blinking back his surprise, Zack nearly sputtered in excitement, “Really?” He put his hands on Cloud's shoulders and tried to get the other to look up at him. He was beyond thrilled that the blond decided to cooperate right then and there. Would've been more fun watching him struggle, but Zack realized later on that, again, Cloud wasn't a kid anymore – persuasion through words seemed to work best now. In one way or another he was sort of afraid of pushing the other too much, but then again he was Zack, he shouldn't be worrying over those things, especially if it involved Cloud.

He waited for an answer, wanting to make sure if that was Cloud's final answer, or if he was just joking and would (attempt to) make a bolt out of the bathroom.

Cloud looked up to affirm his consent, but this proved a bad move on his part.

Now reaquainted with the manic gleam in Zack's eyes, Cloud experience an abrupt change of mindset. The other man - or woman - obviously wasn't in a healthy state of mind, and any desire to submit to Zack promptly died. "W-wait, I haven't agree to anything," he said hastily, backing up into the corner again. On top of this, a livid blush was spreading quickly across his features, resulting jointly from the proximity between the two and Cloud's horrified realization that Zack was in desperate need of, well. Support.

Hating himself but driven more strongly by desperation, Cloud pointed behind Zack. "Look, Zack. It's Aerith and she has pie!"

[ ooc; Haha, er. Sorry for vague ooc-ness. I blame it on the fact that he is a girl. ]

Well damn. The look on Cloud's face when he decided to stop pouting about something as simple as Zack wanting to touch his—er, okay, so it was a little weird now that he thought about it, but hell, he wanted to! It was an honest, desperate need he was searching for right then and there. Curiosity, once again, got the better of him in this case.

And Zack was loving every minute of it.

However, as soon as Cloud decided to back up into the corner some more and blush, Zack paused and decided that, yeah, Cloud made a very, very cute girl indeed. Too bad he himself wasn't a guy, because then he'd have a reason to jump Cloud, or at least Zack found that to be a plausible reason. Though these thoughts were interrupted as soon as the blond pointed behind Zack's shoulder towards the door, saying something about Aerith and pie.

First thought that ran through Zack's mind was 'Oh shit, Aerith? She's going to kill me!' but it was soon replaced with the thought of pie. Being hungry in the first place didn't help him any (and for the fact that he fell for those tricks quite easily at times); he removed his hands from Cloud's shoulders, head twisting around after the horror melted from his face, turning into something more excited instead, and shouted: “Really?!”

Cloud was momentarily stunned by Zack's reaction. He hadn't expected Zack to truly fall for it, though apparently, Zack was as gullible as ever. Endearingly so. And he still had his insatiable appetite, as the mere mention of food was enough to distract him from anything. Life and death situations were not exempt.

Cloud knew it was cheap, but the expression on Zack's face was priceless. He couldn't resist bursting out in laughter as he leapt past Zack and made a mad dash for the door.

...Crap.

Allowing himself a moment to slap his forehead while Cloud did one of his little 'cackle-and-run's, Zack quickly jumped into action and stood, nabbing Cloud easily as soon as he took a few steps out the door. Still strong arms – though thankfully lacking the muscle branded into them – wrapped around the smaller boy's, or, rather, girl's, frame in an attempt to hold him back. Having success, Zack laughed back at him in a mocking tone, as if to say: Yeah, right, like you can get away from me.

Zack: One, Cloud: Zero.

Cloud felt decidedly like screaming. "Let go," he demanded furiously, though he knew he was in no position to do so. Girl or not, Cloud knew it was futile attempting to best Zack in strength. It really wasn't fair.

Even so, this didn't mean Cloud wasn't going to put up a fight. And he fought, struggling with all the strength his slight, girlish frame could muster. The sheer frustration of it all was threatening to drive him insane. This was, of course, to no avail.

Eventually, as was inevitable, he slackened in Zack's grip, shaking with exertion. And unbelievably, tears began to prickle around his eyes. Another girl thing, Cloud thought despairingly, wiping them away hastily and praying that Zack wouldn't notice.

The struggle was amusing at first. That is, until he gave up fighting, which was no fun at all for Zack if he didn't put up a fight that would end up with them wrestling on the floor for dominance over a certain conversation or topic at hand. Which Zack always won in the end, of course, except for those few times he called mercy to allow Cloud some kind of victory against him.

But then he slumped, and Zack craned his neck to the side to try and get a good look at Cloud's face, and then—wait, was he crying? At first, Zack was going to laugh at him and tell him to stop using that to his advantage, but the blond soon wiped them away in an attempt to hide them.

Aw, damnit, that's not fair. Zack sighed slightly in defeat, the cute girl in his arms winning his heart over once again. “Oh, come now, it isn't that big of a deal,” he said with a slight hint of amusement in his voice. Grip loosening so that he was holding him instead of pinning him against his own body, Zack stood there in silence before resting his chin on top of blond spikes, murmuring, “You're such a woman.”

"I am a woman," Cloud said sullenly, sniffing a little. Nonetheless, he relaxed against Zack, taking comfort in his firmness and warmth.

This might have been the perfect opportunity to make his escape, but somehow, Cloud was against doing so. He was content like this. So instead, he twined his arms around Zack in a tentative embrace, unsure if what he was doing but feeling it was appropriate.

Zack snickered lightly at Cloud's words, knowing from the start that he'd probably say that. Though what did catch him off-guard was the small hug Cloud decided to give him, which made Zack blink but it definitely didn't mean he wanted the other to let him go. But still, he was surprised.

Quietly nuzzling blond hair while murmuring something about how he was a cutie-pie, Zack totally forgot his objective at that moment in time. Because really, how many times had Cloud willingly agreed to hug him or hold onto him like that? It was rare, and it wasn't like Zack was going to easily pull away to grope his best friend while in female form.

So he waited for a while, allowing time to pass by in silence before he remembered what he was trying to do in the first place. Knowing this wouldn't last forever and that Cloud would either push away or feel too awkward to move in the first place, Zack chose to finally make his move.

It was a slow progression, knowing that if he did it quickly he'd regret it and be greeted with a reflexive mood on Cloud's part; the arms that were currently around the other female's frame moved, hands ghostly moving around slim hips, roaming up Cloud's ribs before they landed on what he had been eyeing ever since they both woke up in the morning. He, therefore, paused when his hands reached their destination, staying quiet in observation even though he wanted to cackle in victory and grin like an idiot.

Cloud saw it coming. He wasn't stupid, particularly when it came to Zack's one-tracked mind. He did not resist, though, when he felt Zack's hands wandering near his chest. Or his breasts. He'd never get used to calling it that. Luckily, he wouldn't have to.

It wasn't too bad. Admittedly, it was a strange feeling, and had it been any person other than Zack, Cloud wouldn't have tolerated it, but he trusted him. Zack was his best friend, and even if he was given to strange tastes, no matter how bizarre the situation, Cloud could put up with him.

Okay, very strange. Bordering uncomfortable, possibly. But at least he wasn't in a dress. He was beginning to feel very warm, though, and the blush had come back in full force.

"... You finished?"

“No, not really,” Zack murmured, trying to make it sound sort of sing-song-ish, but he was honestly staring down at Cloud like he was the most interesting thing on the planet right then and there.

His curiosity had been temporarily cured, but they were so close in proximity that he was noticing other things about him – like the fact that, despite him probably sweating constantly from being nervous/struggling/overheating from his face/etc, he smelled really nice. His hair looked a lot softer than it did when he was a boy, which was an odd thought in itself since he quite enjoyed playing with Cloud's hair to begin with, so the temptation was lingering between them to touch that as well. However, his eyes moved down to the blond's face, which had been once again lit up involuntarily, towards rather long lashes and pink lips that had just murmured words half-heard only moments ago.

Cloud's neck was next, then his shoulders, then they landed back on his own hands and Cloud's (chest) breasts before circling back up to watch him with more than curious eyes now. Zack realized after a moment that he could be giving Cloud another one of those looks, so he removed his hands rather quickly as he resisted – or more like held back with all he had in him – doing anything more, passing it off with a laugh and a very tiny grin while hands were placed behind his own head to control himself, “Yeah, m'done now.”

Part of Cloud was immensely relieved to hear this. For one thing, he felt like if he blushed any harder, he'd catch on fire.

There was also part of Cloud that unbelievably, missed that contact once Zack withdrew his touch, despite it being one of the most strange things Cloud had ever experienced. And there was part of Cloud that felt just a little sad that he'd only get this sort of attention from Zack because he was a girl, and that once he changed back, things would just go back to being normal. He knew it was his fault, mostly, but Cloud was never good with expressing himself.

"It's almost time," he observed quietly. Only a few minutes until noon.

Zack shifted his eyes towards the opened blinds, sighing rather dramatically as he made his way back into the living room. “Oh man, I'm gonna miss you guys!” He let his arms drop towards his chest, squishing rather large breasts into a tight hug. But really, he was pretty glad he'd be changing back again. It was fun and entertaining to flaunt what he had for most of the day, but he really missed his male body as he felt a little less powerful as a woman. Which, of course, wouldn't fly, as Zack was a typical guy no matter how much you wanted to not look past his usual childish self.

Releasing his arms somewhat reluctantly, Zack fell back into the sofa in a seated position, arms stretched out to flop lazily atop the back of the couch. He directed violet eyes towards Cloud and simply grinned, jerking his head slightly to the side to get the other to come over and take a seat next to him.

Cloud snickered as he watched Zack sorrowfully bid his feminine assets farewell as if it were the most tragic affair ever. You'd think it was something serious, but not so with the likes of Zack.

He was really looking forward to the change. He missed Zack as a man. And he missed being a man himself, of course.

Seeing that Zack required his presence, Cloud followed him obediently into the living room and slid into the seat next to him on the sofa. "It's almost too bad," he said teasingly. "I wish Aerith could've seen you like this."

“If she were here,” Zack began, turning his head to the side so he was directing his full attention on Cloud, “she would've scolded me all day.” A pause followed the statement, wondering about that for a moment or two. “Or she'd just flat-out agree that I made a pretty hot woman.”

You could never tell with Aerith, especially not knowing what was behind one of her smiles. Sometimes, it was just to trick you, but in a playful way, of course. Other times it could take anyone's breath away, no matter who you were. And then there were the annoyed, but sweet ones that Zack always ran away from, babbling madly that he was sorry and he promised not to do whatever it was that initiated such a look from Aerith ever again.

These thoughts lingered in his mind as Zack started laughing under his breath, controlling himself easily while fingers found themselves preoccupied with gingerly brushing over blond hair. “And she'd say you were a cute girl too. Probably would've dressed you up,” he trailed a finger down the outer lobe of Cloud's ear, only to tug it once as he grinned, “again.”

"Wouldn't you like to see that," Cloud replied with eyes downcast, feigning petulance.

He found himself leaning unconsciously into Zack's ministrations. This was like back then, before everything had happened. Cloud's memories were still mostly vague and distorted, but he knew they'd been close. Very close. And he was glad they still were.

He was also realizing how comforting it was to hear Zack's laugh again. It was deep, rich, and natural, even while he was a woman, and Cloud had missed it, all these years that they'd been separated.

Cloud had become so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn't realized that the 12:00 PM mark had passed and that the transition had been made. He wasn't sure how he could have possibly not noticed the change, but he was certain that he was male again.

Rolling his eyes slightly at the downcast look Cloud made, Zack continued playing with his hair, humming lightly after closing his eyes, feeling rather peaceful at that moment in time.

That is, until he felt the change.

Zack paused in mid-stroke, opening his eyes to look down at his chest, which was now rather flat compared to what it was like just moments ago. A minute or so passed before he let out a fake sob, using his unused arm to cover his eyes as if he were really crying. Which, actually, he was attempting not to smile throughout his small hissy fit.

But he stopped soon after and let his arm drop again, only to land on Cloud's chest, feeling around for a moment, “Great, now what am I gonna fondle?” Zack said it seriously, but serious, to Zack, in these situations, always meant it was the opposite of what his frown seemed to show. Though he grinned, placing both hands on either side of Cloud's face, craning his own neck down to plant a kiss on his forehead. Pulling back, Zack ruffled blond spiked and winked at him, “Naw, I like you better as a boy, for sure.”

"Really?" Cloud said, looking quite dazed, with honest surprise evident in his voice. It probably wasn't very intelligent of him to ask, but Cloud was in no state for rational thought. In the least.

"That means a lot to me," he murmured at length, turning away in an effort to conceal the blush on his face as well as the smile he was helpless to suppress, all the while damning himself for being so much of a girl.

Laughing at the apparent surprise on Cloud's face, Zack simply rose an eyebrow as if to ask if he doubted his words for a second. But then the blond had to blush and turn away, which only tempted Zack even more but he held himself back once again. Though he smiled widely after a few minutes and threw his arms around the other rather suddenly, ranting and raving about how Cloud was so cute and even more so when he tried to hide that he was happy; it was the typical response from Zack.

He knew this and gave a knowing smile to himself, pausing in his little cuddling routine to rest a hand on top of Cloud's head as he still held onto him, giving a light squeeze within the embrace. “Why's that?” Zack shifted slightly so he was in a more comfortable position, not yet willing to let the other go, “Did ya think I liked you more as a woman or somethin'?” He was actually quite curious, because he never expected Cloud to say that followed by a rather cheerful expression.

"That's the impression I got," Cloud replied sheepishly, feeling distinctly foolish and still unable to meet Zack's eyes. He also felt unspeakably happy, though he wasn't sure why.

Maybe it was because he knew that if Zack told him that he liked him better in his normal state, he meant it. And that he was wanted for being himself - being wanted for being Cloud. Because Zack, of all people, was painfully sincere in everything he did.

He was feeling a lot of things that he couldn't identify, and that made them all the more intense.

“Really?” Zack pulled back a little to try and look at Cloud, who still wasn't ready to look him straight in the face, studying him for a moment before resuming his position once more, “Well, that sucks.”

It never occurred to him that Cloud could be feeling a bit insecure throughout the whole day because of Zack's attempts at being a little overly friendly. But he was sincerely curious, because how many times did your best friend turn into a woman? Apparently here, only once, or so he hoped, but it was something to tease Cloud with. But maybe, just maybe, was he being a little too overbearing with his curious hunt? Now he frowned slightly at the thought, suddenly seeing a bigger picture, but wasn't completely sure just yet what to do.

So he did the only thing he knew how to do, besides keeping the other in a light embrace. “I'm sorry,” Zack said firmly, eyebrows knotted together, actually feeling really bad for a second there after he thought about everything very carefully again.

"No, please don't apologize," Cloud said pleadingly, drawing the other man into a tighter embrace, emboldened by desperation. "It's nothing, really."

He hated seeing Zack like this. It was worse knowing that it was his fault - his stupid neurotic emotional problems, and that it wasn't fair for Zack to have to feel like this on his behalf. He'd get over it sooner or later; it wasn't something worth agitating over in the first place, and he'd be damned if Zack had to be unhappy because of him.

Raising his eyebrows with a blink or two, Zack gave a knowing smile, expression softening as he could've kicked himself for being so serious again. It wasn't that rare when it was used in a sense to show he cared without going over-the-top bat shit crazy about it, but usually when he apologized it probably sounded very out of character and extremely grim on his part. Especially towards Cloud, and especially when they weren't in any sort of danger at all.

If it wasn't for the fact that the blond was literally clinging onto him, he would've brought up another topic that'd make him want to apologize again, so he avoided that for now; not for his own sake, but for Cloud's. He deserved something else right then and there.

“Na, Cloud?” Zack paused, keeping a gentle smile on his face as he tried to shift both their body weight so they both half-laid on the couch while his own legs were sprawled out, not having that hard of a time in doing such but he tried to keep his hold on the other firm, “Does this feel familiar?” He was feeling overly nostalgic, but as he cocked his head to the side to look down at Cloud, Zack only wondered all the more about things Aerith has told him over the years. Never in detail, but always short, very short glimpses into what Zack would never be able to see.

"Yeah," Cloud said simply, glad for the change in both the subject and the troubled look that had been on Zack's face.

Incoherent and disjointed as his memories were, the parts of them that remained intact were undeniably distinct.

He would have loosened his grip on Zack, since it'd seemed appropriate at the moment and in retrospect was probably a strange thing for him to do, but Zack seemed okay with it, so Cloud quickly concluded that it simply required too much effort to change their position, which he was comfortable with anyway.

“Good, 'cause you'll have to get used to it again, since I'll be doing it a lot,” he lightly chuckled and closed his eyes, leaning back comfortably in the couch's armrest and cushion. “Hope you don't mind that, of course.”

Zack knew he probably didn't, especially since he was actually returning hugs for once. Did he really miss him that much? Cloud shouldn't be lonely, because he heard he had a lot of friends now, and Zack wanted to meet every single one of them and thank them as much as he could since he couldn't be there for Cloud when he needed it the most.

"You'd do it even if I did mind," Cloud pointed out teasingly.

Despite it being scarcely beyond midday, Cloud found himself unsuccessfully suppressing a yawn; it didn't help that he was warm and comfortable, and feeling distinctly muddled and a little drowsy, considering the events of the day. Gender switching was tiring business, apparently. Particularly if Zack was involved, anyway.

"Hey, Zack," Cloud murmured half-coherently, closing his eyes. "Don't ever leave."

Zack cracked his eyes open half way to peer down at the blond resting comfortably against his own body, a half-smile appearing, more to himself than directing it towards Cloud. “I won't, kiddo,” a hand once again began affectionately stroking the other's hair, knowing he'd probably fall asleep easier with not only the gesture, but his words as well, “I promise.”

No ShinRa bastards, no stupid gunshot wounds, not even a freak accident could take me away this time around. You're safe now, Cloud. Don't worry, because I won't go so easily this time. The words were never said aloud, and Zack didn't think he could say them at the moment anyway as he was peaceful and content with what he had previously stated before already. It'd probably take some time for him to work up the courage to even question things that haven't been said yet, and Zack was somehow alright with that.

Cloud approvingly mumbled something incomprehensible before succumbing blissfully to sleep, finally lulled into complete unconsciousness.

Now, he slept more tranquilly than he'd been able to in a long time, temporarily unplagued by his own doubts and nightmares. He'd confront them all in due time, but for now, he was at peace.

[ Done! :D ]

Log; Complete.

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