_Workout_
“Ah Ha. I thought you might be here.”
Sephiroth opened his eyes to contemplate a singularly uninteresting wall and then tilted his head to greet his unwelcome guest. It was strange to look sideways and not break stride. He paid attention to his feet a moment to make sure they could keep pace with the treadmill for a little while he glared at his distraction.
Zack simply smiled at him, lounging against one of the stationary bikes, at ease in the otherwise vacant gym. “I checked all your usual haunts and was shocked to find you absent. It was either here, or start investigating all the coffeehouses within walking distance of the tower.”
“And so you’ve found me.” Sephiroth turned his attention back to the blank wall ahead of his treadmill. It was less likely to provoke him than his conversation partner. Maybe if he ignored the man, the young officer would take the hint and go away.
“You always get your workouts in at
“No.”
“You always this antisocial when jogging?”
“Yes.” Closing his eyes spared him the monotony of the white paint, but didn’t remove the source of his irritation. He picked up his pace on the belt and the mechanisms responded silently to the new speed required of them. There was something meditative in the steady rhythm of his feet, the repetitive bunch and flex of muscle and the flow of blood.
It felt good to be in motion, even if his runs never carried him anywhere. Mentally he could distance himself from his desk, his army, the city as a whole. In the silence of running he found some comfort in the simple proof of his body’s functionality. It tended to disappoint him in other aspects, being as it was far too distinctive to ever let him blend into a crowd. Too tall, too pale, too muscled, too _odd_, he could hardly avoid being remarked upon. No wonder then that he had settled early on that he would be _remarkable_ in the eyes of others. Fighting his fate seemed a futile endeavor, whatever he might have childishly wished at first.
Still, in motion he was well content with his lot in life. Constant training and conservative diet meant that his muscles and bones moved just as he wished them to. He listened to their silent litany, fluent in their whispered language of pump and flex, the burning of calories and the production of heat. Running was the closest thing to joy he could claim to feel on a regular basis, a quiet harmony with his component cells, the sense of vitality and strength they shared with him as he loped across endless tracks of imagination. Sadly such quiet introspection was easily ruined by the presence of others, particularly talkative jungle-spawn without the sense to see when someone was busy.
“Damn your legs are almost too long for that thing…” Zack candidly observed. “Anyone ever measure your stride length when not on a machine? I bet you could pull a 3-meter if you were sprinting hard on flat track. That would be something to see.”
“I am not a sprinter.”
“True, you seem a more long-distance type.” The dark haired man pulled himself onto the bike so he was perched sideways on the seat. “I’m a runner myself, well, I try anyway, the trick is to wake up early enough to get down to the track before the cadets have to do their rounds. It’s only fun when the full field is open.”
Not really wanting to know the answer, Sephiroth found himself asking why between breaths. “Afraid they’ll insult your form?”
“Nah, I just like running on the far outsides, you know, where the long-jump pits are.”
“You-“ It was inconvenient to talk and breathe in pattern at the same time. Sephiroth decided to give up, slowing his pace until it was an honest jog rather than the short-stepped run he usually preferred. “You run in the jump pits? What if they forget to rake the surface even? You’ll brake an ankle one of these days.”
“Nah, I’m used to running uneven ground. It’s the change of surface that gives it the challenge, you know?” Zack chuckled and kicked his feet out like a kid. “Besides, I grew up running in ‘the wilds’ you know? Compared to that stuff, anything man-made is pretty weak. You ever run outside, sir?”
“Not if I can help it.”
“You should, the fresh air is good for you.”
“Is such a thing to be had in this city?”
Zack scratched his head as if giving it serious thought. “Maybe if you run far enough.” Grinning he gave up. “What’s a little smog to a ‘super’ SOLDIER. Bet you could still run circles around anyone else.”
“… Given physiological enhancements, Mr. Thomson, even the weakest of us can easily manage to ‘run circles’ around standard recruits.”
“Yeah, maybe so.” He shrugged, carefree. “You want to come running with me sometime? I’d be happy to have the company.”
The offer, unexpected, and entirely incomprehensible, almost made Sephiroth lose his stride. Trying to analyze what the officer meant by such a blatantly friendly proposal wouldn’t do, not if he wanted to maintain his composure on the treadmill. He revenged himself by not answering for several breaths as he schooled his limbs back into obedience. “I think not.”
“You’re offended?” Zack, far from looking embarrassed at his boldness, looked entertained. “I didn’t mean to insult you.”
Not for the first time, Sephiroth mourned that of all his subordinates, _this one_ was perfectly comfortable forgetting his exalted rank. He spared a glance for the man, noting the civilian shirt, the jacket casually slung under his arm. It was late. He glanced at the clock on the wall noting it was getting towards a quarter-to-midnight. Probably the SOLDIER was coming back from dinner on the town with his friends, of which he seemed to have an unending supply. Why Zack would bother to stir himself to garner _his_ good will was a constant mystery, but the young man seemed calmly determined. With a quiet sigh Sephiroth admitted his exercise was probably finished anyway, and set about slowing to a walk to cool down.
“Is there something I can do for you, Mr. Thompson?” There had to be some reason after all that the man would bother to seek him out at this hour.
“I’m here mostly out of curiosity, general.” Zack grinned merrily. “Like I said, I couldn’t find you in any of the places I’ve learned to look. So I was obliged to expand my search, learn something new.”
“And this entertains you, does it?” He pulled his towel from where it was draped over the machine’s gages and slung it around his neck before favoring his assistant with a calculatedly annoyed look. “I can hardly see what interest my habits outside of the office can be to you.”
“It’s my duty as your aide to learn your habits, so as to better anticipate you.” Zack pronounced cheerfully, seeming content to follow him as he stepped off the treadmill and moved towards the lockers. Sephiroth wasn’t entirely keen to be trailed by the incessantly cheerful man. It was bad enough he constantly second guessed the southerner’s intentions to him at work, but off duty was even more strange. By all rights the man should have been avoiding him like the plague, fearing to be put to work during hours he was not formally on-call.
Zack continued, oblivious of his paranoia, or the fact that a superior officer in the process of changing after a workout might want for some privacy. “I hate treadmills myself, I mean, it might as well be a hamster wheel, you know. All that exertion, and you’ve got nothing but a wall to show for your efforts. Running isn’t fun unless a man is _going_ somewhere, you know? It’s the wind on your face, and the surface underfoot, the goal in the distance. They say humans evolved as we did because we were runners, back in the stone ages.”
“Did they?” Sephiroth didn’t pretend to be seriously interested; trading his black track pants for an equally black pair of uniform trousers, pausing only to wipe the sweat off. Another grab into his locker resulted a uniform shirt which he pulled on, fussing with the cuffs until they disentangled themselves from his gloves. He liked his field leathers infinitely more, but they were a particularly inapropraite choice after an hour’s exertion at the gym.
“Yeah the development of flexible spine, the arches in the feet, and the long hollow leg bones are all linked to a ‘running culture’ of Neanderthals, according to this one guy who published lately.” Zack refused to acknowledge his boredom with the concept. “It’s all just a theory of course, but it’s a neat idea. Bipedal running is something rather unique to humans after all.”
“As opposed to the habit of climbing trees and communal flea-picking exhibited by our closest relations in the primate family, I presume?” He drawled cynically, tossing his towel in the hamper provided.
“Well it explains why running is so good for the body, at any rate.” His officer shrugged in his usual way. “Better for you when done outdoors, in my opinion, but still healthy just the same.”
“You have a pronounced prejudice against the gym? I’ve heard you mentioning working out with the other often enough.” Sephiroth couldn’t help but challenge his aide’s opinion.
“Well the only way to lift weights outdoors would be if we carried a set out ourselves, and I don’t think the fitness department would like that much.” Zack grinned at the pretty girl behind the desk as they left.
Sephiroth grimly wondered if the officer meant to follow him all the way to his door. “I still don’t see what this has to do with haunting me at this hour, Thompson. Is there some service you feel necessary to render me? If so I can assure you I want for nothing except that you should be at your desk in the morning.”
The dark-haired man blinked at him seeming to notice the rebuff, “No sir, I don’t mean to trouble you, I just heard a bit of gossip in town that I thought I’d run by you to get your opinion, unofficially, of course.”
“It couldn’t wait?” He turned to face the elevator doors as
they slid shut, giving them the illusion of privacy.
“I’d rather we talked outside of the office, if it’s all the same, Sephiroth. It’s about Captain Daniels.”
He blinked at the information. The SOLDIER was not an exceptional young man as far as his team went, qualified, dutiful, having nothing remarkable to commend or disservice his career. “What about him?” Sephiroth looked to his assistant, interested for the first time.
“Scarlet has picked the guy up as her latest ‘du jour’ it seems. I had gotten wind of it two days ago, but only confirmed it tonight. They’re definitely an item.”
“I see.” He tried to remember anything of interest about the young man in question. “Is there any particular reason for his selection? That you’re aware of?”
“Has he done anything to deliberately attract her, you mean?” Zack raised an eyebrow, mimicking him unconsciously. “That’s the six-hundred-gil question, isn’t it. Honestly I don’t know. I’ll keep an eye on him, make sure she doesn’t give him any stupid ideas.”
“See that you do.” Sephiroth nodded, confident in leaving the personnel problem to the man. Zack would deal with it with considerably more subtly than he could be bothered with. His feet carried him forwards when the door opened again and to his grim amusement he found his early prophesy would likely come to pass. Zack was calmly in step with him as they strolled through the lobby.
He paused in the deserted space, staring at the officer with what he hoped was justified annoyance. “Is there anything else that you need from me in an unofficial capacity?”
“Not really.”
“In that case?” Sephiroth gestured to imply that the man was still following him.
“Oh.” Zack rubbed the back of his head with a boyish smile. “Beg your pardon, general. Just on autopilot it seems. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Very good, captain.” He dismissed the man, but the southerner didn’t get far. Instead of immediately heading back to the elevator, the SOLDIER turned around and gave him a quizzical look. “Yes?” Sephiroth didn’t hide his exasperation.
“I’m usually at the track around
“I will consider myself duly invited.” He folded his arms and waited for his assistant to take the hint and leave.
“I’ll look for you.” Was all Zack replied, not saluting, but cheerfully dipping his chin at his superior before turning and sauntering back the way he had come.
Left at a loss as to what the man was on about, Sephiroth frowned at the SOLDIER’s constantly baffling behavior. The only thing that gave him comfort was the fact that Zack was consistent in his fearless regard. From the day they had met, through his retraining, and his new daily monotony, he remained very much the same. If he _was_ some sort of plant or imposter, he was far better than any of Hojo’s previous attempts. Maybe that just meant he was working for someone else.
Sephiroth shook his head as he rejected the idea. The way they had met, fallen in together, the ream’s worth of disciplinary file the man sported, all of these things pointed to a completely circumstantial acquaintance. Certainly Zack wouldn’t have been _his_ first pick for insinuating into his usually orderly and disciplined ranks.
Letting himself into his room, he automatically headed to the shower as he contemplated offer to run together. Maybe he’d take the man up on it sometime, the chance to form a less formal acquaintance could work both ways after all. Whatever Zack’s motivations were, he was certain he could discover them without being trapped himself.