"I really don't think a Tonberry can be red, Zack."

"I'm telling you, man, it was definitely a red Tonberry! It was so weird!"

"Are you sure you weren't just high on mako fumes?"

"...Maybe."

Cloud breathed a laugh and poked at the sludge that the Infantry cafeteria considered food, making a face at the disgusting squelching noise the food made. He slid the tray away from him with one finger, suddenly losing his appetite. Across the table from him, Zack had his elbow on the table and his chin in his palm and a sympathetically amused look on his face.

"They're still serving that gruel, huh?"

"Yeah."

Cloud was not sure why Zack was sitting with him in the infantry cafeteria. He was a SOLDIER 2nd Class, he was above both this place and him, and yet he was here.

He had met Zack a month ago, when Zack was sent on a simple monster hunt that had somehow ended up with the monsters hunting him instead, something that would probably happen only to Zack.

Cloud had been on a routine patrol in Sector 8 when he spotted Zack fighting a Behemoth that had wandered above ground. Normally, Cloud would have let the SOLDIER handle it but he had spotted three other Behemoths skulking in an alley, about to ambush Zack. He had shouted a warning to him and tried to pick them off with his rifle. Cloud was never good with a gun (Ironic, considering it was the only kind of weapon issued to infantry) but he had somehow managed to save Zack's back from being clawed.

Zack had become an almost constant companion ever since.

"Strife!" A voice called from the cafeteria doors behind him and Cloud turned in his seat to look at the voice's owner, a fellow trooper, "Ya got a phone call."

Cloud nodded in affirmation and stood from his chair, picking up the tray to throw the disgusting gruel in the bin on his way out.

"Girlfriend?" Zack asked with a sly look as he pushed himself to his feet as well.

Cloud ducked his head to hide a blush and shook his head in the negative, his blond spikes swaying with the motion, "Probably my mom."

Zack perked up, "Mamma Chocobo? Can I say hi?"

Cloud chuckled quietly as he placed his now empty tray on the stack and shrugged, "Sure."

"Yes!" Zack pumped his fist in Victory.

When they reached the phone bank, Cloud exchanged greetings with the trooper on duty behind the desk, who hurriedly stood to salute Zack, and walked over to a booth. He waited to receive the signal before picking up the receiver.

"Cloud?" His mother's voice sounded in his ear and he smiled.

"Hej mor."

Zack tilted his head with a weird look on his face but Cloud ignored it.

"How are you, valp? Have you been looking after yourself?"

Cloud huffed, "I'm fine, Mor. How have you been?"

"Bra. Spring is coming back around now so I was thinking of trying my hand at gardening. What do you think?"

"Sounds good."

Zack suddenly leaned forward and yelled near the phone receiver, "Hi, Mrs. Strife!"

There was a moment of silence before his mother spoke again, "Who was that?"

"Uh, that's my friend Zack." Cloud replied, watching Zack hold his hand out for the phone and opened and closed it impatiently in a silent request for the phone, "He wants to talk to you."

"Oh?" A pause, "Nothing bad, is it?" She asked cautiously.

"Nej, Mor. He just wants to meet you, that's all."

"Hand him the phone, then!"

Cloud sighed and held out the phone to Zack, who took the receiver from him with a grin.

"Hello?... Zack Fair, SOLDIER Second Class, ma'am! ... Huh? Oh! I met him...I think it was a month ago?" Zack glanced at Cloud for confirmation and received a nod, "Yeah, a month ago. Your son saved my hide. Literally. You should be really proud!"

Cloud looked away, fighting down the heat flushing his cheeks at the compliment.

"Do I get to hear baby Cloud stories? ... Ooooh pictures! Even better!" He grinned at Cloud who glared at him in return.

"Sure, I'll look after Cloud for you." He agreed, "I'll give the phone back to Spikey now. It was nice talking to you, Mrs. Strife!"

Zack handed the phone back to Cloud with a wink and Cloud rolled his eyes as he raised the phone back to his ear.

"Ja?"

"He sounds nice." His mother commented in their own language.

"He is." He replied in kind.

She laughed, "Spikey?"

"A nickname. I told him to stop calling me that but he won't listen."

"He said you saved his life?"

"He exaggerates, he probably been fine without me. He was going to be attacked by some monsters and I warned him and managed to distract some of them with my gun."

Zack tilted his head curiously, watching him intently.

"Still having trouble with aiming?" His mother deduced.

"I hate guns."

His mother laughed, "Don't worry, valp. You'll get used to them eventually. Go have fun with your friend. I'll call you in two weeks."

Cloud hummed in agreement, "I love you, Mor."

"Love you too, Cloud."

He hung up the phone and turned to leave the phone bank with Zack falling in line with him.

"What language was that?"

"Hm?"

"That language you spoke to your mom in? What's it called?"

Cloud frowned and shook his head slightly, spikes swaying, "I'm not sure if it even has a name. It's really old and people rarely speak it now or even know it exists. My mom and dad came from families that spoke it, so she made sure to teach me."

Zack scratched the back of his neck with a mildly confused expression, "Huh. That's a little weird. That's really cool though! It's like a secret language. Very mysterious."

Cloud chucked, "If you say so."

"Gentlemen, I'm glad you could make it."

"Of course, Director." Angeal said as he took a seat across from Tseng along with Sephiroth and Genesis.

"What is this about? I have things to do." Genesis drawled lazily, propping his ankle on his knee.

"We have received reports of some attacks on Shinra outposts in the North Corel area." Lazard informed them, "Several troopers stationed in North Corel were K.I.A. and the base was ransacked."

All three SOLDIERs looked up sharply, straightening up in their chairs, and Genesis' foot dropped back to the floor.

"What." Sephiroth said flatly, his tone icy.

"Wutai?" Genesis demanded.

"No, these were definitely not Wutainese warriors." Tseng replied, he picked up a stack of three folders from the table and passed them to the SOLDIERs. The photo attached to the file was a blurry screenshot from a security camera of five (and a half, if you counted the one cut off on the edge of the picture) tall, muscular, fair haired warriors brandishing swords, old fashioned shields and battle axes.

"They're not with AVALANCHE?" Angeal asked.

"That is unlikely." Lazard spoke up from the head of the table.

"Who are they, then?"

Tseng shook his head, "Unknown."

"Where did they come from?"

"Unknown."

"Do we know what they wanted?" It was Sephiroth who spoke this time.

"Unknown."

Genesis snarled, "What do we know, then?"

"Right now?" Lazard shrugged, "Nothing."

A/N :

Ja - Yes
Mor - Mother
Nej - No
Velp - Pup/Puppy
Bra - Good

I don't actually speak any of the Scandinavian languages so if I write something wrong, please feel free to correct me!
The italicized text is supposed to be for conversations in Nordic

Also, this story is gen mainly because i want to focus on Cloud being a badass and partly because i couldn't decide on a pairing but if you really want there to be a pairing (like really really want a pairing), let me know which one you prefer and the one that gets the most requests will become the pairing for this fic.

Let me know what you guys think!