Posted originally on the Archive_of_Our_Own at https://archiveofourown.org/ works/766170. Rating: Explicit Archive Warning: Graphic_Depictions_Of_Violence, Major_Character_Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage Category: M/M Fandom: Final_Fantasy_VII, Compilation_of_Final_Fantasy_VII Relationship: Zack_Fair/Cloud_Strife, Sephiroth/Cloud_Strife Character: Cloud_Strife, Zack_Fair, Sephiroth, Tifa_Lockhart, Yuffie_Kisaragi, Vincent_Valentine, Barret_Wallace, Aerith_Gainsborough, Reno_(Compilation of_FFVII), Rude_(Compilation_of_FFVII) Additional Tags: Prostitution, Drug_Use Stats: Published: 2013-04-18 Updated: 2013-05-21 Chapters: 2/? Words: 3518 ****** Proclivity ****** by 1wildrose1 Summary He'd moved from Nibelheim to better himself. Moved from the security of his childhood home, from his mother, from poverty – only to be thrust into a world that was cruel and unforgiving. One that forced him to give up his pride for money, lie to his friends and killed any hope of a better life. But stories never end there... ***** Prologue ***** Prologue “You're this desperate for money, kid?”   Cloud had never liked the man's voice – it was malicious, dripping with oil and cruel intent. This situation seemed to intensify the dislike – with his T-shirt hiked up to his chin and his jeans undone at the front as he sat straddling the man's lap. What was worse than his voice was the chill in his fingertips as they trailed down his chest to his stomach – further still to strain against the elastic of his boxer shorts.   The boy knew exactly how he got here.   All he could manage was a nod at the question, afraid to open his mouth, else he lose his stomach or heart, both of which seemed to have taken up occupancy of his throat. Or he would scream. Cry and yell for him to stop touching him. Stop, stop, please stop!   “My clients are pretty interested in you – I think I'd be able to to get you a few customers.” The smile he gave Cloud as he caressed bare flesh with cold blooded hands was sharp – like a predator's. “They've all asked about you – said to me about 'that pretty little blond who brought me my stuff'. All of 'em have offered me a nice price for you. You'd even be able to pay for your little family to stay in that house after my cut. What do you say, kid?”   “Y-you just...” Cloud swallowed around a cotton tongue, forcing out weak words. “You said that it would just be you...”   The man huffed out a laugh, letting his other hand come into play by cupping Cloud's jaw and tilting his face upwards into the dim office light. He leant forward in his desk chair, pressing his chapped lips to the ear of the young man in his lap. “I meant that I'd want to sample you, baby – test the product before distribution.”   “B-but...” Cloud squeezed his eyes shut, willing everything away – from the sickness roiling in his gut to the steady pressure of the desk against the small of his back. He shook his head, hearing the bleak buzzing of the beginnings of panic creep down his ear canals – was there another way? Not for people like me. Shinra made sure of that. “I don't think I can...I've never even...”   Another laugh – greasy and hollow. “You're just perfect, aren't you?” He reached into the pocket of his pressed black suit jacket, bringing out a small plastic bag full of colourful pills. Something Cloud was more familiar with than he'd like. “Don't worry, Cloud.” He tucked a lock of blonde hair behind the boy's ear in a parody of affection. “What kind of employer would I be if I rushed you into something that you weren't trained for? Without appropriate preparation?”   The hand on his face slid slowly down his neck, raising goosebumps of discomfort as they continued along his shoulder, down his arm, counting each finger as he prised them out of the tightly clenched fist that they'd formed. He pressed one single pill into his palm.   Cloud parted his trembling lips, shaping his words carefully. “I don't do that shit, Boss – I just sell it.”   Boss smirked, closing his hand over Cloud's own, encasing the pill. “You know I wouldn't ever give you something addictive, baby. You're my favourite of all my boys – I wouldn't ever ruin you. This is just something to take the edge off.”   “I know what it is.”   “You don't have to take it – I just thought I'd be considerate and offer it.” Taking Cloud's other hand,  Boss pressed it flat against the boy's own stomach, his fingers just touching the edge of his underwear. “I only want a show today. You don't even have to take off any clothes. See?” He leaned forward again, breathing his stale breath down Cloud's ear. “I'll treat you well, Cloud. You can trust me.”   He'd long ago run out of options. The thought of touching himself in front of the Boss made his stomach turn, but what could he do? Cloud slowly opened the abandoned fist, staring at the mess of yellow stain that had bled from the pill onto his palm. He would never get hard without it.   He'd be able to lose this memory in the dream like haze of an X tweak.   He'd be able to convince himself that he wasn't this deep into poverty.   ...His family would have a roof over their heads for another month at least.   Ignoring his instincts, Cloud slapped his hand to his mouth, swallowing the tiny smiley face with ease. His baby blues widened in shock as the ecstasy began to flow through his veins almost immediately. He stared at Boss in question, watching as his lips stretched into an alluring smirk. Wait...alluring?   “Do you like it? I've been experimenting – it's laced with traces of Mako. Makes it work pretty fast and the effects differ a little from the normal stuff. I designed it just for you.”   His teeth bit down on his bottom lip harshly, hating how his palms were beginning to get sweaty and his jeans were too tight, even with the opening in the front. His nipples hardened from the exposure to the cold room and his skin felt too sensitive – like any touch could make him come in an instant. The hand on his stomach itched to do something – to delve into his jeans and grab his cock more than anything.   The eyes on him – icy, grey eyes – felt caressing. They added to the shocks racing down to his spine to the tips of his toes. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he began to pant from the anticipation of...of what? He hadn't done anything yet.   “Hmm...isn't it powerful?” A moan tore its way out his mouth at the whispered words.   When had he leaned in again? Before Cloud could stop himself he found his hands grasping Boss' biceps, pressing his chest closer against the other man's and gasping at the sensation as his nipples scraped against the silky fabric of the expensive suit.   Boss finally slipped from his untouchable persona slightly, groaning at the sight of this beautiful young boy helplessly turned on in his lap. He slid his hands down the back of Cloud's jeans, gripping handfuls of firm ass and pulled forward to press the boy's crotch to his stomach, eliciting a sharp cry of pleasure.   It was so surreal – like it wasn't really happening, or he was just remembering it. But he knew that he was really grinding his hips into the Boss' stomach, panting like a wounded animal. He knew that he really reached into his boxers and pumped his cock frantically until he came into his hand, moaning into the padded shoulder of his employer's suit jacket.   His head felt so light but the dirty feeling still remained. The shame and humiliation stuck to him like a second skin while the Boss pressed his lips to his ear, as he seemed to like doing, whispering disgusting compliments and making promises that Cloud feared he would keep.   “That wasn't so bad, was it, Cloud?” Boss ran his fingers through the boy's hair, staring into pupils that were blown wide. “Look at that – you just paid the rent.” ***** Chapter One ***** Chapter One   Something was wrong.   A young woman stopped tending to the flowers and glanced up at the roof of the church. A strange light filtered through the hole Zack had created when he fell through it without fail, without interruption. The light, while being odd in the fact that it should have been blocked out by the looming plate above the slums in which the church was located, was a usual occurrence here. The last time she had this feeling was when that very hole was created.   The same but not the same...a similar person, maybe? Or someone connected to Zack?Someone in trouble, no doubt.   The girl rose from her crouch, wiping her small hands on her skirt, smearing dirt across the cheap fabric. Where? Sometimes the girl wished these feelings would grow a voice or a face – anything to be more specific, to actually tell her what she was supposed to do. All of these trials and tribulations were beginning to wear her out.   The old church creaked and groaned – normal sounds from the decrepit building. Not here, then.She felt certain of this deduction and decided that further investigation was needed for this feeling – it was so...lonely...shamed?   The street beyond the church was deserted when she opened the huge doors to take a look, but she felt like she was on the right track. A brief sigh of relief flooded through her before the uncontrollable anxiety – the one that belonged to the feeling – struck again.   It was almost three in the morning and there was a crisp chill in the air, cold enough to make her rub her arms briskly and wish that she had picked up her jacket. There was a moment of annoyance at herself for ruining her own sleep cycle with these little tasks that only seemed to concern her at night, but those thoughts were soon flooded away by the torrent of feeling. She ignored the discomfort of cold and left her sanctuary, allowing her feet choose their own path. They always knew where to go.   They took her towards the more populated part of the slums, though the place was still dead at this time in the morning, where the huge mechanical elevator leading to the plate above resided. Here.   The elevator? The girl frowned in confusion, looking around for anything else in the vicinity that could be what she was looking for. Nothing but shanty constructions that were too rotten or too small to conceal anything bigger than a small dog. Her feet must have meant for her to go to the lift.   But it can't be. The elevator was hardly ever used due to the strict restriction of contact between upper and lower plate dwellers – wouldn't want to lower the rich, talented and famous to the level of below-plate scum, after all – and when it was used, it was by authorised personnel only. The feeling hadn't had a Shinra vibe – how very interesting...   Walking up to the cold metallic doors, slowly, cautiously, the girl couldn't help questioning the feeling – something she found herself doing more and more lately. If this person had connections that allowed them to use the elevator, surely they could not be trusted. Was the feeling trying to endanger her? “A greater purpose”, she could hear her mother's voice clearly – her real mother, not the kindly widow that had taken her in when her mother's life became forfeit to Shinra's 'loyalty programme' – “always follow your feet to find it.”   The girl entered a code to open the doors – yet another thing that Zack shouldn't have showed her – and waited for the ancient machine to shudder open. Zack...a contact of Shinra, yes – forbidden fruit – but he was so...blue. Blue and green and yellow. Not red, like Shinra. Not even orange. He wasn't meant to be there and he would never harm her.   She, again, pondered why Zack even began working there, but that's another story for another time – now, she just used his knowledge of the city codes. “You never know – one day you might need to get out of here quick. I can't stand the thought of you being trapped down here with nowhere to go.” He was so kind – he was not hers though. Another feeling.   A small scream left her lips as the doors shuddered open and she jumped back out of instinct, heart racing.   Her feet wouldn't let her run. This wasn't a danger...   A boy – because he couldn't have been older than fourteen or fifteen – stood directly in the entrance, palms up as though they had been resting against the doors. The sudden closeness of another person was what had made the girl jump, but now she had put enough distance between them to observe him, she wondered how this poor little creature could ever be scary. He stood there in a daze, eyes glassy and his mouth slightly agape.   “H-Hello?” The girl dipped her head and peered up at the boy's face from the lower angle – he was small, slightly emaciated, and reeking of the poverty of the slums. There were tracks in the dirt on his face, running from his tear ducts down to his chin, sliding further down his neck and disappearing into the raged black t-shirt he was wearing. He kind of looked like a neglected doll with that purely blank expression. “Are you okay?”   No response.   But the feeling had faded, telling her that she'd reached her goal. The girl watched as his arms slowly lowered to his sides and those big dazed eyes blinked, fanning his cheeks with dusky blond lashes. The boys pupils were so dilated that she couldn't tell whether they were blue or green and they couldn't seem to focus on anything. So...this boy had taken something? He seemed drugged. And lost.   “Do you know your name?”   No response.   The girl sighed – she couldn't leave him like this. “Well, I'm Aerith. You're going to come with me now so I can take care of you, okay?” Aerith reached out and took the boy's hand gently.   That made him react – his eyes flew to their clasped hands as his breathing sped up dramatically.   “Hey, I'm not going to hurt you.” Aerith dipped her head again so that he was looking at her. But...his cheeks were bright red and he appeared to be panting hotly, like he had just finished a marathon. Almost like he was aroused...Wait...His eyes did seem to have a green tint when she really looked at them – unnaturally so.   Oh...I know what you've taken...   Aerith's lips twisted into a slight frown, but she tugged on his hand anyway, causing him to step forward and follow her as she led him through the streets.   Was she angry? At someone, yes, but not this child – there was no way that he could have gotten this particular drug on his own and the tears on his face suggested that he was less than happy about it. But she knew who could have gotten it. And who would have had no problems with using a child as a guinea pig for the effects.   No wonder he was in the elevator. Maybe she should give Zack a call?   This boy was in a bad situation, she was sure – he seemed so young and innocent to the world, as much as a slum rat could be innocent. There was no way that he was mixed up with Shinra willingly.   And he was so blue.   XxXxXxXxXxX   “So, what? You find some random kid stoned out of his brains and decide to take him home?” Zack didn't seem happy with her. “For the love of...” He sighed, rubbing his temples with the first two fingers of each hand. “What's the point of me keeping you safe if you're just going to keep putting yourself in danger?”   Aerith rolled one shoulder back, gripping one arm with the opposite hand, suddenly feeling bashful – he was right, of course. This boy could have been anyone, in reality. It was actually very lucky for her that he had passed out as soon as she directed him to lie down on the makeshift bed of bundled sheets on the floor of the church. What if he had a drug fuelled turn and attacked her? He was small, but she was smaller and did not have Mako flowing through her veins.   Zack rubbed his face again and turned to face the sleeping boy. “He's completely out?” At the girl's nod, he proceeded to crouch beside the prone form. He pushed him, gently rolling him off of his side and onto his back. The kid was pretty, he'd give him that. Creamy skin beneath the layer of grime, golden hair that looked like it would be softer than silk after a good wash and large eyes that were hidden behind lids lined with long blond eyelashes. A thrill of something flashed through him, but he brushed it off quickly. “I don't recognise him.” He leaned forward and pulled back an eyelid carefully. The natural colour of the boy's eyes was almost completely obscured by a viscous green and the whites were marred by lightning strikes of red bloodshot. “It's Mako, too, like you said. If I don't know him, he isn't associated with the main body of Shinra – the only other way he could have gotten hold of it would be from the Turks.”   Aerith's eyes hardened uncharacteristically. “The Turks are using children now?”   Zack scoffed and stepped away again, rejoining his friend who was sitting on one of the pews. “They've always used kids, Aer, just not in this way – he must be one of their runners or something and took some of the stuff he's supposed to be selling.” A thoughtful look crossed the man's face. “We knew that they were playing around with the different ways of ingesting Mako, but actually distributing it with their regular stuff?” He shook his head, pulling out his PHS to start texting. “We let them get away with a lot because of what they do for the company, but this is a bit much. I'll look into it.”   Aerith nodded, frowning as her gaze was pulled back to the boy sleeping on her floor. “What about him?”   Zack looked up from his phone, lips twisting grimly. “He'll be fine. Must be the first time he's taken anything that strong – and the last, if he knows what's good for him. I hate seeing kids get mixed up in this shit, but there's not much I can do without pissing off about twenty people above me and you know what happens when the big dogs throw a tantrum.”   Aerith wrinkled her nose with distaste – yes, she knew exactly what happened when the 'big dogs' of Shinra got their feathers ruffled. If nothing else, the ruins of Sector 7 were a constant reminder for the entire populace to keep their heads down and mouths closed. “Hmm. So when do you think he will wake up?”   Pursing his lips, Zack tapped his chin in thought. “Not long by the looks of it. His eyes are bloodshot, so that means the normal drug is taking over the Mako, which wouldn't actually happen unless the Mako was being eradicated by his body anyway. The other stuff won't take more than another hour after that to come out of his system, I'd say.”   The flower girl nodded and sighed in exhaustion. “Thanks for your help, Zack.”   Zack smiled and pulled her into a sideways hug on the bench. “Any time, doll, you know that.” He sat with her for a good while, breathing in the still air and turning things over in his head, contemplating his next move. After half an hour the man glanced at his friend, about to tell her that he should be off – he didn't know how the kid would react if he woke up to someone dressed to the gills in Shinra brand SOLDIER gear, but he didn't want to stick around and find out – only to find that she had dozed off.   Not for the first time, Zack wondered why they weren't dating – she was so beautiful and kind. They got on really well and spent a lot of time together – as much as his job would allow, in fact. But whenever the subject was brought up Aerith would go quiet – she would get this sad look in her eyes like a small child whose mother had told them that they couldn't have something they really wanted – and all she would say on the matter was that they couldn't be together; we're too close, Zack, let's just stay friends.Weirdly, Zack would always get an odd sense of relief wash over him whenever she said no.   The man took a deep breath, looking one last time at the tiny blond on the floor with a surge of shame. I work for the people who did that... He stood carefully, trying not to wake his friend and crept out of the church, closing the door behind him.   The streets were just beginning to wake – shutters clanged open and children littered the place with pockets full of stolen merchandise to sell. It wasn't even light yet, but these people had to get a jump start on the day to eat. No one looked at him, but they gave him a wide berth. Any dodgy dealings were hidden from him, though Zack knew exactly what they were doing.   He was one of them in a neighbourhood full of us, but he was still seen as a danger.   One of the green eyed monsters of Shinra.   Someone to fear, because it was his fault that they had to live like this.   Something has to change. Please drop_by_the_archive_and_comment to let the author know if you enjoyed their work!