FINAL FANTASY VII
You Gonna Eat That?
by Aimless
Leave at last! Zack hurriedly dumped his gear and went to collect his best friend before heading off base.
He entered the cadet's barracks and looked for a bright gold head of hair. His target was bent over his bunk sorting through his gear.
With an exuberant grin he stalked his chosen prey and with a yell...pounced!
Cloud tumbled over the bunk and landed face first on the floor. His surprised shout caused the other recruits to laugh and point.
Cloud was pinned to the floor by a heavy, giggling weight on his back.
"All right Zack you had your fun now get off." Cloud sighed and tried to buck off his unwanted guest.
"Ya know Chocobo you really need to be more alert. I wasn't even being quiet at all." Zack bounced for emphasis causing his quarry to grunt.
"Ooof...Zaaaack! It's not like I expected to be tackled on my own bunk." Cloud whined breathlessly. How could someone so slender weigh so freaking much?
“I got leave for the weekend! Come with me!” Zack decided that his Cloud shaped couch was to his liking and scooched until he was comfortable.
“Zack I’m a recruit! I’m not allowed to leave.” Cloud tried again in vain to throw his friend off his back. Damn Zack’s Soldier strength.
“Ah…ah…ah...I got it covered. Lookie here!” Zack rested his elbows in the middle of Cloud’s shoulders and leaned forward. He waved a couple of laminated cards in front of the blond’s face.
Cloud tried to focus on the little cards. Finally he grabbed Zack’s wrist and held them still. He read the words printed there and his eyebrows rose.
“Passes off base? Where the hell did you get those? You didn’t steal em didja?” He really wouldn’t put it past the ebon haired prankster.
“Cloud I’m wounded really that you would think me capable of such a thing.” Zack replied in a mock sorrowful tone.
“Yeah right and how did that transport truck end up parked outside your hotel room last time you had leave?” Cloud grunted and finally managed a lucky elbow to the gut. Knocking Zack off onto the floor.
The nimble soldier rolled to a crouch and grinned maniacally at his friend. “Ah I borrowed it? Look I was even going to return it with a full tank of fuel if the MP’s had not shown up. SO whaddya say wanna go? Come on Cloud! I got the passes from Angeal. After my last mission he said I could have a little down time. He said I could take a friend. Quit being such a stick in the mud!”
Cloud thought about it for a moment. He’d been cooped up on the base for months. Getting away for a while would be nice. Even at the threat of impending disaster knowing Zack like he did.
“Ok…but on one condition. We make sure to get back on time and you won’t drink any alcohol at all.” Cloud frowned and tried to look stern.
“That’s two Chocobo head…but ok I agree…now come on daylight’s wasting. Let’s go!” Zack ruffled Cloud’s Wild mane and jumped to his feet easily avoiding Cloud’s swatting hands.
After a brief stop to change their clothes the unlikely pair made their way into the heart of the city. Cloud for lack of a better word gawked at everything. Zack pulled him along keeping up a constant stream of chatter and pointing out anything interesting to his farm raised friend.
To tell the truth the sheer number of people made Cloud feel uncomfortable. He preferred open spaces and the freedom to move. Here everything seemed so cramped and closed in. Too many smells assaulted his nose, not all of the pleasant. Plus the clamor of the people and traffic was almost deafening. Zack cheerfully overlooked the abject poverty of the latest street they wandered down.
Suddenly Cloud was nearly pulled off his feet. Zack yanked him towards a row of street vendors.
“Hey!” Cloud tried to dig in his heels but Zack didn’t slow in the slightest.
“Ooh look! Man I missed this! Come here you have to try some!” Zack bounced over to a small canvas covered stall. Behind the little counter was a long smoking wood grill. On the grill were lines of skewers. The wooden sticks held chunks of meat being basted with a dark brown sauce.
Cloud had to admit it did smell good. The sweet tang of the sauce was drifting heavily in the smoke scented air. His stomach rumbled noisily.
Zack laughed and shook his head. “Man you are going to love these! I eat here every chance I get.” The Soldier waved to the large red faced man in the booth.
Cloud watched as Zack bought six of the laden skewers. The vendor placed them on a heavy piece of brown paper and drizzled them with some sort of red colored oil. Then he handed Zack the food as the Soldier paid for their lunch. There was a crowd gathering at the stall for lunch. Cloud worked his way to the other side of the street and waited for Zack to join him.
Zack already held one of the skewers up to his mouth as he ate the smoking meat with a groan of delight. His other hand held the rest of their dripping meal.
“Oh man…they’ve outdone themselves today! Here ya go. Take these…I’m going back for more.” Zack pushed the greasy bundle at Cloud as he disappeared into the crowd.
Cloud gingerly took the hot food and stared down at his lunch. It still smelled really good. Slightly spicy and the meat looked well cooked. He was hungry too. Cloud picked up on of the sticks and carefully bit into the very end.
Flavors of soy and sesame exploded on his tongue along with the heat from what Cloud now realized was chili oil. The meat was tender but slightly chewy. It tasted sort of like chicken. But with the sauces it was kinda hard to tell. Cloud was just finishing his first skewer when Zack returned with his own paper wrapped lunch.
Cloud shifted sideways as Zack joined him and leaned against the alley wall. He eagerly tore into his own lunch as Cloud plucked out his second meat skewer.
“So what is this? Some kind of chicken?” Cloud licked the heel of his hand before the juices could drip onto his shirt.
Zack’s mouth was stuffed full as he answered. “ Mmphfhss..”
“What?” Cloud rolled his eyes as Zack chewed his stuffed full mouth of food.
“I said its rat on a stick.” The soldier replied and took another big bite.
Cloud who had just taken another bite himself looked at Zack in horror. His eyes went comically wide and he forcefully spit the mouthful of food out with the velocity of a bullet.
“Wha…wha….ahhhhhhhhhh…gahhhhhh….pfffffffftttt…WHAT?!” Cloud spat, rubbed his mouth on his sleeve and wailed.
“Rat on a stick….those suckers grow really big down here. Great isn’t it?” Zack grinned happily at his distressed friend. Really he didn’t see what the big deal was…food was food. Just wait until Cloud was out in the field pinned down with low supplies and had to eat grasshoppers. At least this was cooked, it was delicious and quite filling. The bugs not so much and the legs tended to get stuck between his teeth.
“Ahhhhhhhh…ack…ewwwwww! I can’t believe you let me eat that!” Cloud dropped the half eaten skewer into the paper packet and looked towards the dumpster. Gods what he wouldn’t give right now for a slab of his mother’s meatloaf.
“Hey if you’re not going to eat that I’ll take it.” Zack grabbed the packet and precariously juggled the handful as he stuffed more meat into his mouth.
Cloud just stood there in awe as Zack finished off both their portions then gleefully went back for thirds.