AN: Hee! I'm so glad I finished this. I'm ridiculously excited about this piece. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please let me know if you do! Reviews make me all warm and fuzzy.

Disclaimer: I claim only the birds. :)

SOLDIER's Lessons

To say that Zack Fair was excited would be a gross misuse of the term. He wasn't merely excited. His zeal had reached such levels that it could no longer be physically contained and he bounced around the stable like a spiky-haired rubber ball while his companions and the stable's inhabitants looked on with varying degrees of interest and amusement.

The cause of Zack's uncontained enthusiasm was the tall silver-haired man standing casually by the door, a small amused smile on his lips. It was his announcement only moments earlier that had set off this bout of joyful madness.

"I glad you're looking forward to this, Zack, but if you'd like to finish expending energy then perhaps we could get started?"

Finally coming to a rest, breath a little heavier than usual, the dark-haired teen answered with a huge grin, "Ready when you are! You coming too, Cloudy? You have some free time, right? Come on, it'll be fun!"

"Okay," the blond agreed readily. Not that anyone could refuse Zack when he was being so charmingly adorable anyway. The older teen gave a cheer and quickly collected what he needed. Then the three released Aerith and Cloud into the paddock, making sure they had plenty of food and water, and set off, Sephiroth on Sephiroth and Zack and Cloud on Angeal. (The dark-haired teen had been concerned about the extra weight on the bird – even though Cloud wasn't exactly a behemoth – but the chocobo adjusted admirably and moved swiftly and surely.) They headed out across the fields to a small lake where the day's fun would be taking place.

About two months ago, Sephiroth – the chocobo, not the general – had received an injury and Zack was forced to take him to the veterinarian, thus exposing the birds' existence which the three conspirators had done their best to conceal. Thankfully the vet, Phi, was an understanding woman and much more concerned with the health and well-being of the birds than her duty to ShinRa. But she had warned them that continued secrecy of the birds' presence would not only be more difficult to maintain but could possibly be detrimental to the chocobos. Therefore Sephiroth had begun the tedious process of informing ShinRa that he had obtained seven chocobos and making sure that they would only ever be used by him and him alone, unless he specifically deemed another fit.

During this time while birds were shuffled around – Sephiroth being moved to one of the ShinRa stables and Cissnei taking Reno … somewhere – Zack and Cloud had continued the riding practice they had begun, but it was limited at best as they were even more careful to avoid discovery. Luckily there were no more injuries to anyone making it unnecessary to risk bringing them to Phi for care, although that didn't stop the vet from coming out to their stable and checking on them herself. Plus, as she told Zack, she wasn't about to miss the opportunity to "hang out with a bunch of beauties" (the teen was pretty sure the tiny brunette was referring to more than the birds there).

Finally all the paperwork had been shuffled and all the wheels properly greased and they were free to do as they wished. Genesis and Tseng were moved to one of the ShinRa stables for use by Kunsel and Luxiere – with Zack promising to visit them, of course – leaving Zack and Cloud with only three birds left to care for in their private stable. The dark-haired teen had a distinct feeling of empty nest syndrome but took comfort in the fact that his birds were safe and cared for and still within his reach.

That had been only a few days ago and today Sephiroth had showed up with "Sephy" to tell Zack that if he was up to it they could begin water training. This was what the teen had been looking forward to. Of course he loved riding Aerith – she was an excellent steed and would probably always secretly be his favorite – but he was truly excited to see what the blue Angeal could do on the surface of water. So he'd immediately assented and gone into his routine of mania.

They finally arrived at the lake and dismounted, leading the birds to the edge of the water. Cloud hung back, finding a boulder to sit on and watch, knees drawn up with his arms clasped loosely around them.

"This is something that should come naturally to them," Sephiroth explained. "But it seems that sometimes they are nervous on their first attempt with something unfamiliar. Often, seeing another they trust performing the feat first will alleviate this."

"Uh, okay. 'Cept I can't walk on water and I know you're all sorts of amazing and kick-ass but I'm pretty sure you can't either." The silver-haired man raised a brow and looked as though he just barely suppressed an eye-roll at the young SOLDIER's deliberate obtuseness.

"I have already done this once with Sephiroth – he performed well. I believe if I go out first with him it will be an encouragement for Angeal. If you were to show him the water is safe that would probably be encouraging as well." Zack gave an irreverent salute in acquiescence and while Sephiroth mounted the black chocobo and led him slowly out onto the surface of the lake, Zack sat down to take off his boots and roll up his pants legs. When the pants were secured above his knees he hopped back up and waded a few feet into the lake.

"Hey, Angeal! Over here, babe. See? Fun, right?" The bird peered interestedly at Zack as he splashed around, bending down and flicking the water with his hands. Making an inquiring sort of chirp, Angeal took a couple steps forward. "That's it. You wanna come in with me?" The chocobo chirped again and approached the teen. "That's my boy." A little awkwardly Zack climbed into the saddle and leaned over to point past Angeal's head. "See Sephy out there? Why don't we go catch him?" The two Sephiroths had gone out quite a distance and seemed to be having no difficulty navigating over the gently waving waters. Like his master, Sephy had an inherent grace that made everything he did appear to be effortless.

Angeal trilled and then began slowly moving forward, a little unsteady on the shifting surface under his feet. But with noises of motivation from Zack he soon grew more confident and started stepping lightly, easily keeping his balance. The teen looked down, fascinated by the sight of the large chocobo feet treading on the water which left spreading ripples but otherwise appeared no different from walking on solid ground. Grinning widely, he let out a delighted chuckle. This is awesome!

And then Angeal suddenly stopped. "Angeal? What's wrong?" Zack frowned in concern, leaning forward to peer at the bird's face. Ignoring the teen on his back, the bird tilted his head, staring intently down into the water. Zack followed his gaze but could see nothing on or below the surface that would be alarming the chocobo. "There's nothing down there, birdbrain. What—" The question was cut off as Angeal suddenly let out a jubilant "Wark!" and plunged into the lake. Zack had approximately one nanosecond to be completely blindsided before his head went under. Spluttering and flailing, he found his feet and popped back up, the lake deep enough at this point to come halfway up his chest.

"The fuck was that??" he shrieked at the chocobo who continued to happily ignore him. The reason for his actions was all too apparent, though: Angeal was taking a bath, gleefully fluffing his feathers and shaking his wings, ducking his head under and throwing sprays up into the air. Truth be told, after the initial shock and irritation Zack's strongest feeling was that of fond amusement as he watched the chocobo's display. However, his pride wouldn't allow him to remain unruffled at the sight of the smirk on Sephiroth's face or the fact that Cloud was laughing so hard he'd actually fallen off the damned boulder. Taking a brief moment to decide upon whom he should exact revenge first, the dark-haired teen struck out for shore with powerful strokes and then sloshing steps.

Too late Cloud realized the danger he was in and managed no more than a peep before Zack grabbed him by the back of his shirt and pants – taking care not to pull anywhere that would cause choking or other … discomfort – and hauled him off the ground.

"Your turn, Featherhead," Zack told him before heaving with all his might. With a squawk of surprise Cloud went sailing through the air in an impressive arc before descending headfirst into a thorough soaking. Or at least that's what would have happened if not for Sephiroth. The silver-haired man galloped over to intercept and made a truly impressive catch, grabbing the blond around the middle just before he hit. Wide-eyed, Cloud dangled pitifully, limbs flailing involuntarily. He twisted as best he could to look up at the general, surprise and gratitude warring in his eyes.

"S-Sephiroth. Thank you, s…." The teen trailed off as the man suddenly smirked. The bad smirk. Wordlessly and without warning Sephiroth opened his arms and let Cloud drop. The blond surfaced a moment later, spluttering much in the same way Zack had, but this time Zack was the one laughing his butt off. Still grinning madly, he sloshed back out into the lake to where Angeal was. The bird had finished his bath and was somehow once again on the surface of the water. With a heavy water-logged leap, Zack got back into the saddle and led the now-compliant chocobo to Cloud. He reached down and when Cloud took his hand, pulled him up behind him.

"I think it's Sephiroth's turn now, don't you?" Cloud's otherwise innocent expression took on an oddly feral look as he grinned and nodded. The man in question made no response though Zack caught a glint in his eyes before he turned Sephy and took off. The chase on, Zack urged Angeal as fast as he could go while Cloud clung tightly to his waist. Sephiroth definitely had the advantage of speed as his chocobo wasn't carrying two wet people so instead Zack relied on curves and angles to gradually close the distance between them.

Ever-s0-slowly they caught up, only a few paces behind the two swift creatures. Zack took only a moment to come up with a half-assed plan which was really less a plan than an excuse to send Cloud hurling through the air again.

"Okay, Cloud, go for it!" Once again the unfortunate blond had only a second to let out a confused and alarmed noise before Zack reached behind and grabbed him, chucking the younger teen with extreme imprecision in the general direction of the Sephiroths. Somehow, despite the poor toss, Cloud's trajectory actually put him on a direct course to knock the general off his steed. Cheering, Zack grinned in anticipation of his impending victory and even the airborne Cloud let a smile cross his lips as he just reached….

And then Sephiroth was gone. Just gone. The blond teen landed across an empty saddle, somewhat painfully if the noise that issued from his mouth was any indication. In the same moment Zack felt a distortion just behind him and next thing he knew up was down and down was up and he was headed straight into the lake. When he emerged a few seconds later, treading water and spitting like a fountain, it was to see a triumphant Sephiroth now astride Angeal. The son-of-a-bitch had teleported!

"You are such a freaking cheat, Sephiroth!" The man merely smiled and turned his attention to the other teen who had righted himself and was now sitting properly in the saddle. He also appeared, weirdly enough, to be whispering in Sephy's ear. Catching Zack's eye, Cloud winked then sent a look of challenge to Sephiroth before turning Sephy and directing him into a run. The silver-haired man immediately gave chase, closing the distance much more rapidly than Zack and Cloud had managed earlier. Still treading, Zack watched it all with interest, wondering what the hell the other teen had planned.

A split-second before it happened Zack realized what Sephiroth was going to do and called out, "Cloud!" just as the man teleported a second time. Then the dark-haired teen watched in amazement as, spurred on by some command of Cloud's, Sephy performed a strange leap, effectively moving out of range just as Sephiroth reappeared. The look on the general's face as he plummeted into the lake rather than back onto his steed was absolutely priceless and Zack was determined to hold it crystal-clear in his memory for the rest of his life. Laughing heartily, he pumped a fist into the air and cheered for the blond who twisted in the saddle to beam brightly back at Zack.

Then Zack noticed that Sephiroth had not yet surfaced. A little concerned he began swimming toward Cloud and Sephy, hoping he wouldn't find that they were now standing on the general's watery grave – after all, the man was strong but also heavily weighed down. He should have known better. When the dark-haired teen was just a few feet away, Sephiroth suddenly leapt up, looking for all the world like some kind of nymph, his silvery hair like a streaming sheet of water created by the lake. He reached up and snatched an astonished Cloud off of his mount, dragging him back into the depths. Chuckling, Zack paddled the rest of the way, halting to tread just beside the point where the two appeared a moment later, Cloud gasping and spitting and Sephiroth wearing a satisfied expression. Zack noted that the silver-haired man kept an arm around Cloud's waist – unlike SOLDIERs, infantrymen generally weren't trained to swim under the full weight of clothing and armor and as they were now at a rather deep section of the lake, that could pose a problem for the blond. Then Zack noticed something else.

"Are you even treading?" he asked incredulously as his own legs continuously kicked and his hands gently moved side-to-side.

"No, not really." Zack rolled his eyes at the casual response. Leave it to Sephiroth to be wearing armor, heavy boots, a leather coat, not to mention all that sopping-wet hair and yet not have to tread to keep himself above the surface. While holding someone else up. "I swear …" he muttered. Amazing bastard.

"That was not exactly the lesson I had planned," Sephiroth stated as though it weren't the biggest understatement of the year.

"Nothing wrong with being flexible. Expecting the unexpected. Rolling with the punches. Letting loose." Zack's grin blazed with charm and Cloud let a giggle escape. Sephiroth retaliated with a brief dunk. "Besides, I think they learned a lot, didn't you, babes?" The two chocobos were standing nearby, interestedly observing the humans' play. Sephy ignored the teen's question while Angeal trilled curiously. Behind Zack's back, Sephiroth made a gesture with his head. The blue chocobo stepped forward until he was right in front of Zack. Then he leaned down and gently but forcefully pushed on the top of the teen's head, dunking him under the water. When Zack reemerged a moment later he sent a shocked look at his beloved blue chocobo.

"Angeal! You traitor! You're supposed to love me best, remember?" The bird tilted his head and warked in a distinctly "Huh?" fashion. "Ugh, you've been brainwashed, haven't you?" Zack let out a histrionic moan and melodramatically threw the back of his hand against his head, letting himself sink a few inches. Then he turned to Sephiroth with an exaggerated glare, springing forward and snatching Cloud out of the man's grasp. "Just you wait!" he declared. "Cloud and I are going to raise an army of chocobos with the sole purpose of bringing you down!" The blond just shook his head and chuckled lightly.

The smile that crossed Sephiroth's face was one of the biggest Zack had ever seen him display. The silver-haired man made no response to the teen's wild threats, instead drifted over to Sephy and made another unnaturally graceful leap out of the water and into the saddle. Then he reached down with both hands. After a moment of blankness Zack realized what he wanted and lifted Cloud up out of the water so that Sephiroth could take the younger teen and set him aside Angeal. Now Zack followed suit, leaping out (with a great deal less grace) and taking his place in front of Cloud.

Just before he galloped back to shore, Sephiroth looked over his shoulder at Zack, eyes glowing through the curtain of damp bangs, lips quirked in a half-smile.

"I believe I would like to see that," he finally responded.

Originally written 23 May '08