It started on Tuesday.

It was, naturally, the most innocent of the four who came to him first, and therefore the one Sephiroth should have been the most suspicious of, if he'd had any sense. Unfortunately, "Cloud" and "sense" rarely went together.

"Your hair looks really great."

Sephiroth paused in the act of pouring himself his fourth cup of coffee that morning. Like most drugs, the caffeine had little effect on him, but the new Mideel special blend was proving to be somewhat addicting. He would have to drink it all before Genesis returned from his mission and hid it away for himself.

"It looks the same as always."

"Yep!"

His brow furrowed. He allowed Cloud to scoot him back so he could slide in between Sephiroth and the counter, despite there being ample counter space for all five of them to use at once, if they'd so wanted. That had been one of Angeal's only demands when they'd searched for their new location.

Cloud took his own mug off the cup rack and proceeded to steal Sephiroth's beloved coffee. Sephiroth let him. Cloud was small and unenhanced. He couldn't drink that much. Surely. Cloud filled his mug to the brim, forcing him to slurp up the excess or risk spilling it when he moved. Then he repeated the action.

Sephiroth would set up a surveillance perimeter around the coffee.

"I just love the way it moves when you're fighting," Cloud said, drawing Sephiroth's attention back to the unusual topic of discussion. "It's so beautiful and graceful. Though, I guess that's true about all of you, huh?" Baby blue eyes found his as Cloud looked up at him.

Sephiroth stepped back. It would be best to increase the distance between them if they were going to continue this conversation. "So I've been told."

"Have you?" Cloud tilted his head in a move eerily reminiscent of Zack's confused puppy look.

"…In a way."

Specifically, he'd been given Hojo's test results, which had indicated a high level of controlled fluidity during battle which could be considered synonymous with "graceful." And he'd once overheard one of the scientists remark that his ability to find a mate would be high, and they should be wary of unregulated breeding. Sexual attraction was undoubtedly one of the first draws when one was looking to engage in intercourse, so he extrapolated from there that "beautiful" had been implied.

"Hmm," Cloud said, his tone suggesting that Sephiroth had just proven his point. "Well," he continued, "I don't think we've said it enough. You're wonderful. And not just when it comes to fighting either. Sometimes when I think about you, I have to take a second to remind myself that someone as amazing as you is actually with someone like me, and it's not just some elaborate dream I made up after getting knocked out during a training session."

"Cloud-"

"Nope! No words." He pointed his finger at him.

Sephiroth shook his head, amused. While there were four people with the means to silence him at any given time, only two of them could be so blunt about it and get away with it.

"Is there a reason for this sudden praise?"

Cloud looked back at his coffee, each stir adding to the lazy whirlpool that had formed in his cup. "Does there have to be a reason? Maybe I just wanted you to know."

"Know how great my hair looks?"

"And the rest of you."

The compliment added to the rest: more kindling for the arousal that had begun to burn inside him. A low level fire, not yet insistent enough to require attention. At least not until Cloud's next words.

"Also, you fuck me the best. The way you hit that spot inside me just right is the kind of thing I daydream about. The others are good, but you're the best at it."

Cloud gave him a smile far too innocent to actually be innocent as he looked up at him again. "Don't tell the others."

Cloud picked up his mug and slipped out from underneath Sephiroth's arms, leaving Sephiroth aching as the unexpected praise did things to him that were almost magical. You'd think Cloud had cast a spell on him with how needy he felt after only a few words, but there was no materia that could accomplish such a task. None that Sephiroth had ever heard of, at least.

Sephiroth glanced towards the direction of the bedroom. Cloud needed to leave for drill in half an hour, but Angeal had the morning free…

After a moment's debate, he settled on handling the issue himself. He'd needed the shower anyway, and it saved him from Angeal's teasing.

Overall, an odd encounter, but one which he likely would have forgotten if it hadn't been for Zack, a few days later.

Sephiroth was not always the most knowledgeable when it came to social interactions. While he'd tried to remedy the problem whenever possible, he'd long ago accepted it as one of his (rare) faults and gone on with his life as best he could. But that didn't mean he was oblivious.

"…and the way you took out that monster in one blow was so cool! But not as cool as the time when…"

A great deal of battle strategy hinged on understanding your opponent: reading physical cues, recognizing patterns in their style, learning which tells meant what and what tells meant nothing at all: bluffs just there to trick you into making the wrong move. He couldn't pick a spy out of a group of dozens based solely on their manner of speech, as Genesis could, or pinpoint the troublesome recruits within moments of introduction, as Angeal could, or even find just the right thing to say to make anyone smile, as Zack could.

But he could tell when this particular Second Class was up to something.

"Oh, have I told you how hot you look in your uniform?" Zack didn't wait for an answer before gushing on about Sephiroth's "awesome ass."

Sephiroth's hands trailed up and down Zack's hips, content to pet him while Zack rambled on about anything and everything that came to mind. Anything relating to Sephiroth, that is. He shifted, but it did little to alleviate the result of Zack's high praise. It didn't help that Zack had decided that the best possible location from which to deliver said praise was Sephiroth's lap. Zack sat facing him, his mako-blue eyes bright with the kind of pure excitement only Zack could produce.

Zack was up to something, but, like Cloud, it was difficult to deny him.

"Hey Seph."

"Yes?"

"You know you're awesome at other things too, right? I mean, I know I've been going on about your fighting abilities-" And Sephiroth's "hotness." "-but you're great at other things too. Like, you're really smart! Everyone always talks about what a great swordsman you are, or how unbelievably gorgeous you look-" Everyone always talked about that? "-but not that many people mention how smart you are. I guess I just wanted you to know that I think it's impressive. And sexy."

Sephiroth allowed himself a moment of silence as he attempted to get his flush under control, before giving it up as a lost cause. There was wisdom in knowing when you were defeated.

"Thank you."

"There's nothing to thank!"

"Thank you anyway." He pulled Zack in for a kiss.

Zack rocked his pelvis against his, and Sephiroth was made unbearably aware that Zack's praise hadn't gone unnoticed. The grin Zack sent him when they parted put even Genesis' most lecherous smirk to shame.

"Bedroom?"

"Bedroom," Sephiroth agreed, picking him up.

Cloud was already waiting in bed when he opened the door. Naked. Zack proceeded to act surprised and Cloud acted surprised in turn. Sephiroth believed neither of them.

But it was Zack and Cloud, and so he allowed them to pretend.

Angeal didn't get nearly the same leniency.

"What are you doing?"

Angeal paused. He'd been in the middle of describing Sephiroth's prowess in bed - with much embellishment, Sephiroth was certain - and as much as Sephiroth enjoyed the topic of conversation, there were limits to the amount of suspicious activity he could stand.

"Doing?"

"If you'd wanted to play innocent, you should have sent Cloud in your place." He laid his pen across the top of his keyboard, the pretense of work no longer needed now that he'd chosen to address the situation, rather than hope that Angeal would grow tired of his praise and leave before Sephiroth was forced to stand.

Angeal shrugged. He made no attempt to hide his grin: caught but not at all apologetic. "Maybe I just like seeing what it does to you."

"Does to me?"

"If you'd wanted to play innocent, you should have sent Zack in your place."

They shared a silent moment of acknowledgment about the absurd amount of leeway given the other two of their group.

"It's an unusual reaction," Sephiroth conceded, after the moment had passed. He rose and made his way around to the other side of the desk. No reason to deny that which both sides already knew.

"Maybe. But it suits you." Angeal lifted him into the air, and then Sephiroth was sitting on the edge of his desk, legs splayed wide as Angeal guided them open.

Sephiroth's lips quirked. Always so gentle, Angeal. While Genesis would have gladly thrown him down onto the wooden surface and shoved his legs apart as if Sephiroth needed to be physically subdued at every step, Angeal took a different approach. It did not make his orders any less clear, however.

Sephiroth stayed silent as Angeal rubbed his palm into his erection.

"You make me so happy. You're perfect. And not in the way that Hojo means when he says it."

Yes. Hojo's perfect creation. It was praise of Hojo's work, but not of Sephiroth himself: the title ready to be snatched from him the moment Hojo created a new level of "perfection."

Angeal popped the button on Sephiroth's pants, but the sound of the zipper was lost in Angeal's continuous adoration.

Hopefully he'd remembered to lock the door this time.

Genesis was, of course, not to be outdone by anyone.

Cloud spoke of his beauty, his grace, his fucking. Zack: his skill, his intelligence, his "hotness." Angeal: his unending perfection.

But Genesis…

Genesis pushed him against a wall and told him tales of his very being, his warm breath hitting Sephiroth's ear even as his words hit something deep inside him that craved the worship apparent in each sentence.

"I would have you here in this hallway were it not for the potential gawkers. I would be driven mad by their ignorance. Their unworthy eyes wouldn't be able to comprehend how truly stunning you are, and their ears are too clogged to hear how breathtakingly glorious your every whimper is. As if they fell from the lips of the goddess herself."

Sephiroth did whimper then. For Genesis to compare him to his beloved goddess…

A firaga would have burned less as Genesis continued. With each new utterance, his skin felt more scorched and more raw and his insides ached in a way that wasn't physical. Desire ran amok through his system, shutting down everything of importance and leaving only this Gaia-forsaken need in its wake.

"Legend shall speak of sacrifice at world's end," Genesis said, his voice dropping into a whisper that commanded you listen, "My sacrifice is this: I would give up the planet to keep you, for it is not nearly as lovely."

Sephiroth closed his eyes.

So this is how he would die: death by praise.

Acceptable.

AN: Let me know what you thought! :3 All reviews are loved and constructive criticism is more than fine.

Also, feel free to follow me on AO3 if you also want to see my explicit fics (username pt_tucker).