Sephiroth looked down at Cloud, tears still dripping out of his eyes while he kept a tight grip on the caregiver's arms.
"Let's see," Cloud muttered, looking at the little, and deciding to start with his boots, "why don't you sit down here for a moment."
The caregiver closed the lid of the toilet and was glad that sephiroth sat down, even though the man was looking very unsure with all of his movements.
Cloud kneeled in front of him, and eased of the wet boots, putting them to the side for now. Standing up, he went for the shirt, just leaving the general in his wet pants.
"Still okay?" Cloud asked, seeing the mako eyes blink at him, the man having gone eerily silent. Sephiroth stared a little longer, making the caregiver feel a little nervous.
Cloud didn't know if he needed to continue or not, scared that he would make a wrong move and that the man would suddenly lash out, or worse, cower away. The man suddenly lifted his hand, and Cloud flinched, taking a step back, but all the little did was put two fingers in his mouth.
"Uhm, yeah," Cloud said, trying to relax and took the step closer, "You're going to have to stand, to get those pants off."
"Okay," Sephiroth said, his voice deep. He carefully stood, definitely unsure of his balance, but Cloud was glad that he could stand on his own.
He removed the belt and opened the button and the zipper before pulling the pants and underpants down, feeling the little put his hand on his back when needed to step out of them.
"There, now we can go shower. Not far now," Cloud said, grabbing the arms again, guiding Sephiroth in the shower, "Uhm, perhaps you best can sit down?"
"Okay," Sephiroth said, lowering himself a little quickly, and Cloud nearly hurt his back trying to slow the movement down.
"Easy there. You don't want to hurt yourself," Cloud said, a little concerned.
"Sorry," Sephiroth said, blinking up at Cloud. So far the little had been very silent and nearly unresponsive to Cloud, ever since he had calmed down from crying. It was a little unnerving, but Cloud guessed that there had to be a reason Sephiroth asked him, a lowly grunt of all people, to help him out.
So, that meant that he just had to try his best. Of course it would take time for the little to warm up to him. He was practically a stranger.
"It's okay. You just need to be careful with yourself," Cloud said with a smile, grabbing the shower head and turning it to the side so he wouldn't need to douse Sephiroth with the cold spray.
Once it was warm, he carefully made sure the man was completely wet, seeing the little shift a little when the spray was above his head and close his eyes in a tight squeeze, clearly not a big fan of it.
"It's okay. I'll be careful," Cloud said, softly, turning off the spray and grabbing the bottle of shampoo, frowning a little when he noticed it was standard issue.
"Is okay. No need," Sephiroth said, making Cloud look at him with a frown.
"No need?" Cloud asked, wondering if the man meant that he didn't want to wash his hair.
"No need careful," Sephiroth said, wanting to proof to the caregiver that he was more than capable of enduring things. He wanted Cloud to be with him for a while, and that meant not being a nuisance. So far, Sephiroth didn't think he was doing a good job of that, but perhaps it wasn't so bad yet.
"There is always a need to be careful," Cloud said, taking a dose of the shampoo and starting to wash the hair, making sure to massage the scalp with his fingertips.
"Am strong," Sephiroth said, feeling his body relax when he felt those hands on his head. That felt nice, so nice.
"Yes, but that doesn't mean I should hurt you," Cloud said, glad that the little was finally talking.
The man hummed while Cloud continued with washing him, eventually rinsing him off.
"Uhm, can you get up again?" Cloud asked, holding out his hands. Sephiroth grabbed them but getting up from the ground proved to be a little more difficult then standing up from a chair.
The little eventually managed to stand, his long legs looking a little shaky until he found his balance, clinging to the tiny caregiver.
"What now?" Sephiroth asked. Normally, he would still be in his big headspace for this part. He should have made sure he had been in a diaper before Cloud was here, and he should have been dressed again.
Would the caregiver now just leave him naked?
Sephiroth frowned at the thought. He was already feeling rather cold right now, the heat of the shower quickly dissipating. He could deal with it, but he'd rather be nice and warm. Perhaps he could just snuggle into his blanket, but if he had an accident, then it would be wet.
"Let's get you dried first. And I got some disposable diapers with me, if you don't mind wearing them. They're easier for me," Cloud said, seeing the frown on the face, "of course, if you like the cloth ones better."
"No, Cloud choose," Sephiroth quickly interrupted the man, determined to do everything to make it easier for the caregiver.
"Ah, okay, right," Cloud said, not thinking that he should be the one to have the final say in this, but not knowing if he should fight it either, "let's get you dried first. Here, sit down again, and I'll grab a towel."
Cloud let Sephiroth sit on the toilet again, quickly draping a towel over his back and starting to dry the long hair. It reminded Sephiroth of Angael, the same gentle movements.
It felt pleasant to let someone else do the work, and he made a small sound of surprise when he felt Cloud take a brush through his hair, being extra gentle when he teased out some tangles.
"Can I put it into a braid or something?" Cloud asked.
"Yes," was the simple answer.
"Alright, there, that's your pretty hair done," Cloud said, making Sephiroth suddenly flush at the words.
"'S not pretty," the little said, looking down at his feet, his face passive. His hair was a trademark, something that stood out and when the enemies saw him, struck fear in their hearts. Hojo had always told him that.
"Well, I think it's pretty," Cloud said, smiling softly, "let's get you to the living room for the diaper. My stuff is still there, and I think the carpet will be a lot softer to lie on than the bathroom floor."
"I guess," Sephiroth said, letting the caregiver guide him to the living room. He was still feeling a little flabbergasted that the man did find his hair pretty. It was such a weird term for him. No one ever said he was pretty.
Lying down on the carpet, he saw the small man taking some stuff out of the bag and looked at him curiously. He hadn't thought the man to be so pro-active. He had seemed nice, during the training helping everyone up on the obstacle, but he didn't seem to be the brightest.
"Let's see. I got diapers with pictures on there. I got one with a chocobo, a cactuar or a moogle," Cloud said, showing three disposable diapers, and Sephiroth felt a little enthusiasm in him when he saw the pictures.
"That's pretty," the little said, pointing at the diapers, so that the caregiver knew that his hair wasn't pretty, but the pictures on the diapers were.
"Yeah, they are," Cloud said, smiling and feeling pleased to have gotten that reaction from the little, "is there one that's prettier than the others?"
"Oh, uhm," Sephiroth said, putting his index in his mouth while he took a good look at all the diapers. They were all pretty, but he would only need one, he guessed. It was a difficult decision though, "chocobo."
"The chocobo it is," Cloud said, putting the other two on the coffee table before he unfolded the one Sephiroth had chosen.
Putting it under Sephiroth's bum, the man was surprised that Cloud didn't immediately close it. Instead the man took out a bottle of something and shook it over Sephiroth.
"Hey!" the little said, surprised at the action.
"It's just some talcum powder," Cloud said, surprised at the reaction, "it's to protect your skin."
"Oh," Sephiroth said, looking at the white layer on his genitals. A curious hand came to feel it, "soft."
"It is," Cloud said, hesitantly reaching out and spreading it over the diaper area, making sure that there was a layer over the man, "and now, let's close the diaper, so we're safe from accidents."
He folded the diaper over the front, and carefully closed the tabs, making sure that it sat correctly.
"Done?" Sephiroth asked, sounding a little surprised. The cloth diapers normally took a lot longer to get on correctly, especially with the pins and he sometimes had to redo them a few times until they sat well.
"Yes. All done. Now, what do you normally wear when you're in headspace?" Cloud asked, helping Sephiroth sit up.
"Uhm, sleeping clothes...." Sephiroth said, trailing off. It was still the middle of the day, and it was slightly embarrassing to say that he wore them when he still would be awake.
"I'll go get them," Cloud said, getting up, no judgement on his face. Going into the man's room, he quickly located the wardrobe with the clothes in it, looking unsurprised when there were only boring grey pyjamas in there.
Nothing colourful or with pictures on it. Just boring dark grey short-sleeved shirt and dark grey shorts.
Returning to the living room, he saw the little sitting up and looking with interest at the diaper, a hand pressing on it and making it crinkle slightly. The little had never worn something like that before.
It didn't feel bad, and it made some noise when he moved. He did like the picture. He never got stuff with pretty pictures on there.
"Here's your clothes," Cloud said, helping Sephiroth get dressed, glad that they were soft at least, even if they were boring and, according to him, not suited for a little.
Now that he was dressed, Sephiroth awkwardly sat on the carpet, and Cloud looked awkwardly down at the little.
"Uhm, so, what do you normally do when you're in headspace?" Cloud asked, thinking that the man must have something with what he occupied himself, "where are your toys?"
"No toys," Sephiroth said, never having been allowed something as frivolous as toys. Even when he had been a real kid, he had always been focused on his training and Hojo didn't want him to waste his time with toys.
"Oh, uhm, that's, well," Cloud said, feeling a little shocked at that, even though the signs had all been there, "so what do you do?"
Sephiroth bit his lip, not knowing if he should confess to the caregiver what he normally did to keep occupied when he was small. But, Cloud was just a grunt, so he couldn't steal the things he used to play a little.
"Come Cloud," Sephiroth said, going to his hands and feet and crawling to a lowcut bowl standing on a side table.
"Wow," Cloud said, recognizing the orbs in there, all Materia, and some of them looked expensive.
Sitting on his knees, Sephiroth carefully lifted the bowl and put it on the floor, before he went to sit in front of it, his long legs open and to the side of the bowl.
Looking through it, he grabbed one and Cloud recognized the fire Materia immediately.
"I don't think this is safe," Cloud said, his eyes wide when he saw the little start to cast a spell, alarmed that he would set the place on fire, but before he could take the Materia, a small flame appeared, making him blink.
"Pretty," Sephiroth said, making it slightly bigger.
"I've never seen anyone use Materia like that," Cloud gasped, looking at the tiny flame with wide-eyed interest, already forgetting the danger it could pose in the hand of a little in headspace, "can you do more?"
"Yes," Sephiroth said, looking pleased at the attention and immediately grabbing another Materia to show Cloud all the tricks he had learned whenever he needed to occupy himself when he was in headspace.