Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Reintegration ❯ Part 3 ( Chapter 3 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: MikariStar 
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Comedy / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 07.22.2012 | Pages: 6 | Words: 9.3K | Visits: 221 | Status: Completed
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Comedy / Adventure | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 07.22.2012 | Pages: 6 | Words: 9.3K | Visits: 221 | Status: Completed
Reintegration
Sephiroth's Point of View
Step 17: Shopping
"I can't..." My voice is ignored as Elena finally releases me and runs to an upset Tifa. I go from thinking about what fate is about to befall me, to thinking about what fate befell Cloud. Maybe he died and that is the reason why Tifa is so upset, despite the fact that I realize I shouldn't be so happy about this. Cloud Strife is a nuisance, but a human life none the less.
I only catch bits and pieces of the conversation as Tifa growls and sobs, sad and furious at the same time. I didn't think it was possible for such conflicting emotions to show simultaneously in this great magnitude. "He's such a jerk!"
I expectantly wait for Tifa to dramatically declare 'how dare he die on me!?' in her impersonation of the tragic maiden who has lost her personal hero. I would feel sorry for her, I do hold a lot of guilt for what I put her through, but I cannot pretend I would be sad if Strife passed away.
"I agree, he's an idiot, whining so much about helping you pick out a dresser," Elena fueled the fire.
"He kept asking why I needed him to be there if the store would deliver it and it all got worse from there. Couldn't he understand that I just wanted to spend more time with him?" Tifa pouted.
"Forget him, let's go get the furniture, you don't need Cloud," Elena encouraged.
"Yeah, you're right, let's go," Tifa paused, taking a deep breath and composing herself. Then her mood did a 180 and she smiled cheerfully, "hi Seph, how are you?"
"I'm fine..." I lied and decided not to return the question because the answer had already been made clear to me.
None the less, Tifa replied as if I had asked how she was, "me too, well, let's go, Elena and I will help you find some nice furniture." I never understood the point of automatically claiming one is fine, when one is not, what's the point of asking if the answer is so predictable? Albeit I do realize I did that as well.
xoxox xox xoxox
Tifa is unaffected by Elena's reckless driving. At least I know what to expect and I'll admit I feel a little better in the backseat, while the two women sit in front, ignoring me. Tifa's mood took a sour turn after a few minutes and she began to complain about Cloud, with Elena making no efforts to contradict her. In fact, Elena has been encouraging the criticism and adding some of her own. I would like to contribute, but for several reasons, I feel it is not my place, thus I have chosen to remain silent.
Elena and Tifa's conversation shifts randomly from criticizing Cloud, to criticizing men in general, but I am too busy enjoying the Cloud bashing to feel offended by their general words of disapproval. Among such expressions, they pointed out how men are incapable of telling the difference between azure, cerulean and cyan, though I do not know where the statement came from.
Out of lack of anything better to occupy my mind, I thought about it. Tifa's tone indicated those three words were related but different. Azure is a color, a shade of blue and cerulean I think is a synonym, though I might be wrong, as for Cyan, it was the name of a knight I remember reading about in a history book long ago... except that is not related to the other two.
Maybe Cyan wore blue clothing, frankly I didn't pay too much attention to that history book and don't even remember why I was reading it. Possibly, I was trying to pass the time while being transported to a mission site.
The comments from the two women become more malicious as the car ride progressed. It makes me wonder if all females are sadists by nature. I know the seemingly innocent Aeris is, just look at what she's putting me through, because I'm certain somehow she is to blame for my return.
When we finally reach the large furniture store, I am relived by the sweet sound of silence, the talk of slavery and torture chambers was becoming disturbing, especially when Elena and Tifa began to randomly shift from sounding evil and malicious to giggling like school girls, it makes no sense to me and I desire no explanation.
I trail along, following the two women who soon start another conversation, thankfully a much more civilized one, centered around the topic of cooking. I don't know what brought that up, unless I link it to their earlier discussion of poison, other than that, it was a random topic.
As we walk down the long aisles of the store, crowded with various styles of furniture, I begin to wonder if Elena and Tifa are even aware of my presence, maybe they forgot about me. To test my theory, I step out of their shadow and start down a different isle, but I am only a mere few steps away when Elena calls, "over here Seph, this way," and makes a hand motion for me to follow.
I pause and look at them, then Tifa encourages, "c'mon let's stay together," repeating Elena's same hand gesture and I start walking towards them.
When they see me coming, they resume walking down the aisle, talking among themselves, continuing the discussion of the previous recipe where they left off. I feel like a dog being walked, one smart enough to follow his master without a leach, or perhaps too stupid to run away.
xoxox xox xoxox
Time passed slowly as we looked at one dresser after another, with the unspoken agreement that Tifa's errand would be taken care of first. The day has gone by between my earlier venture with Tseng and watching Elena and Tifa try to find the ideal dresser. Hunger became apparent as my stomach started to make loud noises, until finally, either Tifa or Elena, I was too out of it to realize who, suggested we should get something to eat.
We ended up driving to a restaurant that was a little far, because they decided they wanted wutaian food, I just wanted food, even if I wasn't asked. The three of us entered the restaurant, a few people giving me sour looks, which made me wonder if they knew who I was.
A man, some kind of yakuza by the looks of it, passed on his way out with two girls, one on each arm, a red head and a brunette. He nodded to me as if I was one of his own and I noticed how much my uniform stood out when I wasn't with other Turks or near areas frequented by business workers in suits; Elena wasn't wearing her uniform today. I shook my head instinctively, but he was already gone.
We were led to a table were I sat in the middle of the booth, with Elena and Tifa left and right, despite there being a whole other empty booth opposite to this one.
I opened my mouth to speak but Tifa cut me off, "don't worry, the atmosphere is not the best and neither is the crowd, but the food is really good."
"And perfectly safe," Elena added, "they can't afford to pick a fight with their customers.
I was left to realize in silence that the seating arrangement was apparently for my protection and I wondered what kind of place we had truly walked into.
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Step 18: Yakuza
Dinner was good I'll admit, everything was delicious, but the feeling of relief that came with a well fed stomach didn't last long. After the bill was paid, by me, as I automatically presented my Shinra credit card, just as automatically as the waitress handed me the bill, Elena, Tifa and I headed out, back to the car. We were stopped just outside by the same man I saw when we arrived, though his red haired and brunette female companions were absent.
"Over here, Mr. Omally..." He was referring to me and when I looked, before I could speak, he continued, "Clay was right, you were easy to find, light hair, dark suit and a pair of pretty ladies."
I opened my mouth to speak and in that split second, Elena and Tifa exchanged glances and simultaneously jammed their elbows into my ribs left and right, under the pretence of linking arms. "What do you want with the boss?" Elena played along.
"Be calm little lady, it doesn't concern you," the strange man replied, "come on, Clay is waiting."
Elena and Tifa led me to follow the man and I went along with it, wondering what was going on. We rounded the restaurant, entering the building from the backdoor and following some dark stairs to a basement. There, we were left in a dimly lit waiting room and the man disappeared behind a door.
Once we were alone, I finally asked, "what's going on?"
"He got you mixed up with Jay Omalley. Jay used to deal with Don Corneo in the past, but went into hiding after Corneo died. He has just recently reemerged to deal in various illegal activities. This guy is in Shinra's blacklist, he's a slippery one. I can't believe our luck that we have a chance to get a lead on him," Elena revealed. "Reno would scold me for working when I'm not on duty, but this opportunity is too good to let it slip away, besides, who cares what Reno thinks anyway, if he even thinks."
"I heard this guy is causing a lot of trouble for the city so I'm all up for ruining his plans," Tifa declared.
"I'm with you, but we need to keep a low profile until we know were the real Jay Omalley is, then we can break some bones," Elena agreed.
I was once again left without the chance to say anything, as the man from before returned. "The ladies can wait here."
"If the boss is going, we're going," Tifa insisted.
"Yeah, we're staying with him," Elena emphasized.
The man looked at me, "let them come," I tried to sound like a gangster and I believe I failed miserably.
We were led into the next room where two tall men stood left and right of the door like motionless statues. One of them dark with the shadow of shaved black hair, the other contrasting, dirty-blond hair in a low ponytail, both wearing dark sunglasses and gray suits.
There was a leather couch where we sat, facing a polished wood desk, behind which a man, wearing a matching gray suit, sat with a hard expression. A woman in a red dress with long platinum hair stood by his side, her delicate hand resting on his shoulder.
Behind them, on one side stood the average sized man who led us here, his pale green eyes watching us behind his long dark bangs, and on the other side stood another man in a gray suit, less built than the two at the door but armed with a machine gun.
The man sitting at the desk, who I assumed was Clay, spoke, "I know it's my first time dealing with you Jay, and I got some pretty good recommendations, but I won't be giving you any credit until you prove yourself to me directly."
The conversation was interrupted when someone knocked on the door. One of the guards looked through a peek-hole and glanced at the other, who looked as also and nodded to the one who led us there. Clay waited while his underling went to look as well and finally opened the door, allowing three more visitors to enter.
"Sir, it seems we might have had some confusion," he apologized.
Clay looked at the new arrivals, there was a man with pure white hair, though it was not due to age, he must have been in his mid-thirties. Two women with short black dressed and ridiculously painted faces stood left and right from him. "Interesting, who is the real Jay, I wonder."
"Get down!" Elena jumped on the desk, pushing me forward to bang my head against the surface, while Tifa, in her haste, stepped on my head. Elena shot a beam of ice, freezing the man with the machine gun so that he couldn't use his weapon. Tifa went for the man who had led us there and knocked him out before who could even aim the gun he had pulled out of his suit.
"Seph, capture Jay, alive," Elena ordered and I realized that when it comes down to the Turks, she is my senior in rank.
I easily disarmed and detained the white haired man, while his air-headed companions screamed and run around in circles, finally running into each other and bumping their heads together, being knocked out on impact. When I looked towards the two guards, thinking about how to fight them while preventing Jay's escape without killing him, they already laid crippled on the floor, their limbs twisted in unnatural angles.
Elena and Tifa were interrogating Clay, paying no mind to the frightened woman in the red dress who was crying in a corner, her long platinum hair covering her face. There was something strange about her; she gave me a bad feeling, an instinctual warning of danger.
"Mercy! Mercy!" The frightened Clay begged.
For a moment, my eyes traveled away from the crying woman, towards the man begging for his life and when I looked at her location again, she was gone. I looked towards the door, still holding on to the squirming Jay, resisting the temptation to snap his neck to keep him still. There she was, the platinum haired woman in red, her expression malicious. Then the truth hit me, she was the real leader of the operation, Clay was only there as a decoy.
The yakuza woman produced a small switch, which she had hidden in her dress and pressed it. My eyes went wide as I heard a beep from the desk, "look out!" I jumped towards Elena and Tifa, shielding them from the explosion originating from the bomb hidden in the desk.
When the smoke finally cleared out, I saw that Clay, Jay Omalley and the others were dead. The walls had been damaged, the building had caught on fire and there was a panic in the restaurant area above with the sudden explosion that made a hole on their floor. "Are you two alright?" I received most of the force from the blast, but other than the damage to my suit, I'm alright, I'm still a Soldier, even if I work as a Turk now.
"Yes," Elena looked around, taking in the situation.
"I'm fine," Tifa replied as well, "you saved us, thank you."
"Yeah, I owe you one Seph; let's get out of here quick," we all agreed with Elena and hurried to the car, soon the situation was out of hand and our presence would only create a greater disturbance.
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Step 19: Suspicions
I feel a strong sense of satisfaction having protected Elena and Tifa from harm. This must be why I'm here alive, to save people.
"That blast really came out of nowhere," Elena commented, sounding frustrated, "but it shouldn't have been like that, I should have noticed.
"I didn't see it coming either," Tifa admitted, "I'm sure the guards were unconscious and that other guy too. We had Clay surrounded and Seph had Jay."
"It was the woman in red, the one who was pretending to be scared and crying," I revealed.
"That rat," Elena growled as if her pride had been hurt. She looked so scared we didn't even think of her as a threat, but it was all an act!" The car jumped forward violently as Elena recklessly increased the speed.
I was thrown back against my seat and became concerned about the car's speed. Tifa was too busy grumbling insults about the woman in red, to pay attention to the impending danger of Elena's wild driving. "What happened to her anyway? Did she get away?" Tifa finally asked.
Tifa's words made me think, the woman was at the door, but she couldn't have made it out on time before the blast. Even if she closed the door, it was blown apart; it certainly wasn't enough to shield her. Yet the fact remains, her body was not there, she was nowhere to be seen. "I don't know."
"At least we know who our real target is now," Elena concluded, and the rest of the terrifying car ride progressed in silence.
xoxox xox xoxox
We arrived at the Seventh Heaven to see a truck parked in front, the driver and a helper getting ready to leave. They were from the furniture store; I recognized the logo on the truck. They must have been delivering the dresser Tifa purchased, which reminds me that I never got around to buying any furniture.
As Tifa got off the car, she stopped, leaning down to look into my window, gesturing for me to open the door and I did. "I just wanted to say thanks again for protecting us from that blast, your back must really hurt, you must have been burnt badly," she looked at me with concern.
"It's alright, I'll heal," I assured her, though only my uniform was damaged.
"Come by some time when you're feeling better and I'll cook something really delicious for you," Tifa gives me a kiss on my forehead, as one would kiss a child. I later realized that from Strife's point of view on the second floor window it could have looked different, not that I particularly care about upsetting him.
xoxox xox xoxox
After returning to Shinra, I exchanged my goodbyes with Elena and she suddenly realized, "we never got your furniture!"
"It's alright," I was upset about the day's ordeal before, but now that it's finally over, I feel relieved that I can rest and glad to have been able to help.
"I guess there's always next time, we can look around tomorrow," I'm not looking forward to that, but I nod anyway. I know there's no talking Elena out of this. "Get some rest; I'll take care of writing a report about what happened with Clay, Jay and the others."
"Thanks..." For that, I am sincerely grateful, as I didn't even think a report was needed and would certainly not enjoy having to write it myself.
"No problem, I'm the one who's grateful to you, I'll also have another suit delivered, see you tomorrow, have a good night!"
"You too," I watched Elena skip away to her car, her mood much lighter now. She drove off recklessly but not furiously like before, I don't know how, but I can differentiate them.
I went back to my temporary basement home, took a shower and went to bed, falling asleep easier than I had in a long time.
xoxox xox xoxox
The next day I was up early, not knowing when to expect Elena. I found a box with a suit at my door, which is great because I don't have too many clothes. I should buy some while I'm out today. However, instead of changing my pajamas for the suit, I changed into my Soldier clothes, leaving the suit to be used the next day. It doesn't matter if I look like me, no one will believe I am me anyway.
It was later that morning that Elena arrived along with an angry looking Tseng. If looks could kill, I would be back in the life stream demanding to know why I was revived in the first place. I don't know why Tseng is so upset and I'm sure that he won't tell me if I ask him directly. Elena appears to be aware of Tseng's sour mood but is purposely ignoring it. We did little more than exchange greetings and went on our way.
xoxox xox xoxox
As I hoped, Tseng is driving today, which is a calming thought and hopefully with him around and no ideal dresser side quest to tend to, we'll avoid distractions and I'll actually get around to buying the furniture I need to move into my apartment.
The car ride to the store was smooth and safe but quiet and tense. Elena looked nonchalant the entire way, sitting in the passenger seat and looking out the window at the passing scenery. Tseng looked serious and upset, glaring at me through the rearview mirror. This bothers me greatly; there is no reason that I know of for the usually calm leader to be angry at me. Whatever is wrong, I have to find...
At the store, we walked around swiftly, stopping to look at some of the furniture. I found several that I liked and the choices were soon made. Everything would be delivered later that day, through their speed delivery service. We finished faster than I thought.
"Do you need anything else?" Tseng asked sharply, his eyes cold.
"No," I was going to buy some extra clothes but that can wait, I have something to wear tomorrow, and I don't want to further upset Tseng.
"Alright, I'll take you back to Shinra then," the car ride back went in the same way as the ride there.
xoxox xox xoxox
I was dropped off at Shinra Headquarters and Tseng drove way with Elena. I packed up the few possessions I have in the basement and wondered how I should move the boxes to my apartment, then quickly decided to carry them. There were not many boxes anyway, just two, and I could easily carry them and walk the short distance to my new apartment, there is no need to ask anyone for a ride.
I was in my empty apartment, save for the two boxes and myself, when I heard someone at the door and opened it. Tseng was there, "I thought you came here," maybe he went to look for me at Shinra after dropping off Elena. I have a feeling I'm about to find out what has Tseng so upset.
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Step 20: Jealousy
"Do you like Elena?" Tseng's question came so suddenly that I hardly had time to think.
"Like her?" I don't understand, I didn't think I offended her in any way that would make her think she is disliked, "of course I do, I like all the Turks," except Reno, but I think it's best to just leave that out.
"No, not like, I mean like-like," Tseng clarifies and I finally understand.
Despite never being too involved in the playground language, I still know that there is a big difference between like and like-like. "Not like that."
"She's been really nice to you..." As Tseng goes on, I see a figure sneak behind him, finger across the lips in a sign for silence. "I just can't help it but to wonder."
I look right at the person behind Tseng, but he seems to take my apparently avoidant gaze as a bad sign. I'm only trying to warn him of our new arrival. "We're just friends," I tilt my head and finger my hair, eyes on the eavesdropper, I shift and try to think of a way to make Tseng look, but I think my gestures are being misinterpreted.
Tseng glares, "I care about her and I won't let you steal her!"
"He's not trying to steal me," Tseng jumps and turns to face Elena, who snuck up behind him in absolute silence and stood there listening.
The leader looks at me, as if accusing me for not saying anything, then finally he understands that I wasn't trying to hide a secret crush, I was trying to tell him his crush was here.
"Elena... I..." Tseng pauses, unsure of what to say.
"I like you," Elena confesses, "a lot, like-like."
"You do?" Tseng seems surprised, but he shouldn't be, Elena's liking for him is a well known fact.
"I thought you didn't like me because you didn't notice I was trying to tell you I like you," Elena admitted.
"Reno told me you liked me," Tseng recalled, "that's why I thought you didn't, because he's never right about anything."
Elena shook her head, "Reno's an idiot."
Then the romance flowed, I wish I could give the kissing couple some privacy, but they are standing at the door to my apartment. I resolved to go to my empty bedroom and wait there until they're done.
I'm sitting on the floor when my PHS rings and I answer the unknown number. "Stay away from Tifa!" The angry voice of Cloud Strife demands. He hung up before I could say anything. Given the recent happenings, I would guess that Cloud got the wrong idea and is jealous, but I don't care, I might let out some stress watching him worry. I'm going to the Seventh Heaven.
xoxox xox xoxox
I walked to the Seventh Heaven as soon as Tseng and Elena got out of my doorway. I arrived to find the place occupied by an average crowd and headed towards the bar, glancing in amusement at Cloud, who was playing waiter for one of the tables. I sat at the bar and Tifa cheerfully greeted me, my presence still unknown to Cloud.
I was making polite small talk with Tifa, hoping Cloud would look at us and get jealous, when Reno popped out of seemingly nowhere, "yo, Seph! You're not -hic- still mad at me, right?"
I am still upset by the red haired nuisance, but I decide to let it go. "No, Reno, I'm not mad at you."
"You don't sound too happy, but you know what? -hic-I got into trouble for messing up a WRO job," I don't know why Reno is telling me this but I do know why he started laughing like an idiot at the end, he's drunk.
Tifa shakes her head, "it was on purpose, so I heard, he messed up the deliveries and the WRO had to get all the materials to the right places, of course they were late. What an annoying and stupid joke, the WRO is trying very hard to help people."
"Not my fault, I'm not a delivery boy, but Cloud is, you know what the president told me? -hic- You know?"
"No, I don't," but I know he's going to tell me even if I don't care to hear it.
"He said that the WRO's like our little brother and we have to be nice to it," Reno laughed as if it were the most amusing thing in the world.
"That's a good analogy," Tifa agreed.
"But that means I can pick on them!" Reno argued.
"That's not nice," Tifa disapproved. "Would you pick on your little brother?"
"Don't have any younger siblings," Reno laughed again, as if that made it all alright.
"You know what else the president said, he told me not to pick on the WRO and I asked if I could pick on Cloud instead and he said -hic- he said... he said I could if it kept me out of trouble," Reno grinned like an idiot, not realizing that telling all of this to Tifa is a very bad idea.
"Rufus said that?" Tifa frowned, "I need to have a word with him..."
"So Seph? You want to join the fun? Tseng and Elena are not cool, they don't want to help me play jokes on Cloud, Rude wasn't sure, but I think I can talk him into it. I always talk him into doing stuff, ever since we were little kids. Rude's been my best friend for a long time... -hic- Anyway, are you going to join the fun? Are you? Are you? Are you? Cause you know, it'll be fun and stuff," Reno continued drabbling incoherently.
"Best customer or not, I won't let you hurt Cloud," Tifa pouted.
"Come on Tifa, Reno's just drunk, I'm sure he doesn't mean it, and Rufus must have been kidding, if he even said anything. Besides, Cloud is a capable adult; he can take care of himself. If anything, he might lighten up," I give Tifa my best innocent smile. I don't want her getting in the way of Reno making Cloud's life a miserable chaos, he deserves it.
Tifa dwells on it for a moment then finally agrees, "I guess you're right." For now I'll pretend I refuse to join Reno in his plans, but later, when Tifa is no longer a witness, I'll tell him to count me in.
xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox
Step 21: Ninjas
It's another day at Shinra, we do some training exercises and missions are assigned, my mission is to guard the president. I'm not sure why I'm trusted to do this if he should perhaps be guarded from me. Maybe Elena put in a good word for me after the incident in that restaurant's basement, or maybe Rufus is just curious about me.
My tasks for the day were simple; I stood guard and brought several things to the president, such as coffee, donuts, lunch, and so on. He was busy going over documents, reading and typing, occasionally talking on the phone. It was all very uneventful.
"I should have you as my guard more often, you'll take Reno's shift and he can be assigned to do something else. He gets bored and won't shut up," Rufus had told me at the end of the day.
"Thank you, sir," I muttered between gritted teeth, I was bored too.
xoxox xox xoxox
After my duties were finally done I almost headed back to the basement, only to remember that I had an apartment now and the rush delivery had finished bringing all my furniture earlier that morning.
On my way out of Shinra HQ, I saw Reno and decided it was as good a time as any to ask him about his plans with Cloud. As annoying as he can be, he's not so bad when the one receiving that annoyance is Cloud. "Reno!"
"Yo, Seph!"
"Are you really going to pick on Cloud for fun?" I wonder if it was just a drunken thought or if he will really do this.
"Sure! But how did you know? I don't remember telling you about it, I didn't think you would want to join," Reno admitted.
"You did tell me about it and you told Tifa when you were drunk at the Seventh Heaven!" I reminded him.
"I did?" Reno looked a little surprised, but at the same time not really doubtful, as if he knows it's something he would do. "Are they waiting to ambush me?"
"I don't think so, I'm pretty sure Tifa thought you were kidding, or that if you did anything it would be an innocent prank that would make Cloud cheer up."
"I suppose I could do that..." Reno mused.
I don't like where this is going, but I may be able to use it to my advantage, "why don't you let me help? I think I know what Cloud's problem is..."
"Awesome! Okay, let's do this. I don't think Rude will join in today, but give him some time and when he sees how much fun we're having he'll want to join too."
xoxox xox xoxox
Two shadows blend in with the night... I am reminded of the Wutai battles back when the nation of ninjas was resisting Shinra. I remember having a mission with Genesis one day, we were ambushed by ninjas, not that it affected the successful outcome of our mission. They snuck around, hiding in the darkness and attacked us when we let out guard down.
Genesis had been saying something about Loveless, discussing his favorite parts and I was poking fun at him, in one of my rare least serious moments. Genesis wasn't angry, he knew I was only joking, he kept repeating what he was listing something, though I seemed to have forgotten what it was. I think he was listing things that could be the gift of the goddess, but he wasn't seriously analyzing it as he often did, he was just listing things he was thankful for; yes, that was it.
If I look deep into my memories, I can remember a little of what Genesis said, the end of his long list. "...chocolate, strawberries, swords, the color red, Shinra's paychecks and my friend Angeal... Am I forgetting something? What was that other gift? I think it started with an S and ended with a y. Oh yes, I remember, there were more than one, Saturday, Sunday and Sephy!"
Then the ninjas attacked and the conversation was never continued, we were busy. Soldiers don't sneak around; they charge in strong and imposing, we don't need the element of surprise as others might count on it. But in this situation, it is imperative that we remain unseen.
I feel like a ninja attacking a soldier, dressed in black, my face half covered revealing only my eyes. It's a silly and useless disguise that Reno insisted we should wear when we climbed up the walls of the Seventh Heaven and snuck in through a second story window. I find that climbing walls is more difficult than knocking them down, though I'm sure Reno would disagree and I wonder if all Turks are this cat-like and if with training I'll turn more feline than wolf.
Either way, the point is trying to escape with our identities a secret will be pointless if we are seen, even in disguise, so we must be quiet. Sure we're wearing ninja clothes, which Reno got out of a storage room at headquarters, there's a lot of junk there, but the clothes do not hide our identities, only our faces and that may not be the easiest way to identify Reno or me anyway. It's the hair, the unmistakable flow of silver and red. Even from afar it's easy to see in the darkness of the night by the faint light of the crescent moon.
This must be why most Wutaian ninjas have black hair, it serves their purposes. However, I don't feel the willingness to wrap my hair in black to hide it, and I am certainly not dying it. We'll just have to be extra quiet, careful and sneaky, since we are the most easy to see ninjas.
Bright hair aside, we managed to make our way inside the Seventh Heaven's living area and sneak into the bathroom to sabotage the shampoo. Cloud will have brightly colored shiny hair too, but I don't think he'll like this color. Still, I assured Reno that it was for Cloud's own good, even if he was upset at first. Reno was quick to agree that blond was a dull and boring color, though he did realize that was something that Rufus should never hear.
When we sneaked back out, I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I had participated in causing mischief for Cloud Strife, though admittedly Reno could have accomplished this on his own just as well. Even so I was there, I witnessed it firsthand and was apart of it, a part of a silly revenge, a childish prank. I feel an odd sense of satisfaction and then I realize that this relief isn't necessarily because of our prank, it's because I have stopped guilt tripping myself.
Ironically, I feel a little guilty about not feeling guilty, but before I can further evaluate the oxymoron, my attention went to the moron. Reno had insisted that we sneak away through an alley shortcut and he clumsily tripped over a trashcan, knocking it over noisily and scaring a stay cat who meowed loudly before running away.
A light from a near by house turned on and we made a run for it, although I'm fairly certain we got away fast enough not to be discovered. As I ran, all thoughts of guilt were forgotten and I once again looked forward to seeing the results of our ninja mission.
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Step 22: Hair
If there was a time when I resented Aeris or whatever force revived me, that time has been forgotten. The day came to take up Tifa's offer to cook for me, I didn't even ask, she offered to cook me a free meal as soon as she saw me arrive at the Seventh Heaven. She didn't even give me the chance to politely say 'you don't have to...' in an obvious indication that I really did want the food. Tifa left Cloud temporarily at the counter and I smiled, I never thought I would be smiling at Cloud, yet I am.
"If you laugh, I'm going to separate that Sephiroth look alike head of yours from the rest of your body," Cloud growled through his teeth.
Either Cloud was louder then he intended or Tifa had excellent hearing. Her voice came from the kitchen with a warning, "Cloud, if you threaten the customers you'll be in serious trouble!"
"I was only joking," Cloud's angry response sounds like anything but a joke. He leans over the counter and glares at me with his mako eyes, whispering threateningly, albeit it only sounds amusing to me. "Stay away from Tifa."
"Why should I?" I challenge.
"Because if you don't, I'll-"
"Cloud Strife, you behave!" Tifa called from the kitchen, surprising both Cloud and I. I didn't think she could hear him this time. It's almost as if she doesn't need to hear or see what's going on, maybe she can somehow sense the tension.
Cloud remained silent from that point on, glaring at me, the effect of his glare lost due to his pink hair. Now that I have witnessed the aftermath of that childish prank, I can't help it but to be glad I agreed to it. It was silly, it was out of character for me, it was something I probably would have refused to do in my previous existence, but it was so good.
Another good thing is Tifa's cooking, this has to be the best steak I ever tasted and the side of cheesy potatoes matches it perfectly. "Delicious!" I make sure to give my compliments to the chef, because it would be impolite not to and also because I know it will annoy Cloud.
"I'm happy you like it," Tifa smiles and I can feel Cloud's glare increasing in intensity considerably. Although I came back hoping to no longer be hated, being hated by Cloud is fun.
I savored every bite of the meal, slowly, prolonging my presence at the Seventh Heaven until my stomach was satisfied, "this has been the best meal I've ever had, thank you very much."
"You're welcome, you should come more often, I would be happy to cook for you," Cloud doesn't look pleased with Tifa's offer.
"Tifa..." the sudden whine that escaped Cloud preventing my reply, was most comical, from my point of view at least.
"Stop being so cranky," Tifa gently patted his shoulder, "I kept telling you not to buy that cheap shampoo, but you wouldn't listen. Look on the bright side, you learned a valuable lesson and at least you're not bald. Look at Seph's hair, it's so shiny, maybe he can give you some hair tips."
I'm fairly certain that for once I must be agreeing on something with Cloud, even if neither of us voices it: discussing hair would be weird.
Guiding the subject away from me, but still on the topic of hair, Cloud begins to throw out accusations, "it has to be Reno's fault!" Did he see us? Did he only see Reno and not me?
Tifa shakes her head, "you shouldn't jump to conclusions, how would it be Reno's fault? It was just some cheap expired shampoo."
"When something goes wrong, it's always Reno's fault," Cloud insists. I am surprised to find that I agree with him again. At least this time I wasn't in the center of the disarray.
My PHS starts ringing while Cloud and Tifa have their little discussion and I discretely answer it. "Hello?"
"Hey Seph, it's me!" Yes Reno, I saw your name on the PHS screen before I answered. Though you are terribly annoying, you're not so bad when your chaos is directed at Cloud. Furthermore 'me' is not a very informative way to identify yourself.
I decided against voicing any sarcastic reply, frankly I don't even know where it came from, instead I inquired, "is something wrong?"
"No, everything's fine, there are no meteors in the sky," Reno joked, and I'm surprisingly, not bothered by it. It might be a sensitive subject but even if it sounds like a contradiction, I'm relieved it's not being treated as such, as if it's 'no big deal'.
"That's good to know, why are you calling?" I glance at Tifa and Cloud who are still discussing the shampoo incident, absorbed in their little argument.
"Whenever I play a joke on Cloud he assumes I did it, even if I'm totally sneaky and don't leave any proof behind. It's like I'm public enemy number one when it comes to practical jokes. Tifa's the only one who defends me, but that's probably because I'm her best customer, or because she's secretly my fan girl," Reno theorizes.
"I believe the former, ratter than the latter, is true." With Strife sponging off her, it' no wonder Tifa has somewhat of a soft spot for her biggest source of income.
"The form, later, what?" I should have known Reno would be confused.
"Never mind," I lower my voice to a whisper, "Strife is fuming and throwing accusations, keep a low profile."
"Gotcha, I wouldn't want to be decapitated," and as much as I wanted to decapitate you myself before, you might be worth keeping alive if you can terrorize Cloud. "Hey Seph, take a picture for me, will you? I can't go there now so send me a picture of the mission results, thanks a lot, bye!"
Reno didn't even give me a chance to refuse, not that I would, everyone in Shinra will see this picture and the occasion is perfect to take it now that Cloud is distracted. I've decided that I am quite fond of my discrete yet high resolution little PHS camera.
I take the picture and pocket my PHS as a voice echoes in my head, "such a naughty boy..."
I have to stop myself from jumping in surprise, fortunately, I showed no significant signs of being startled and no one noticed anything. There's no one here save for Tifa, Cloud and myself right now, and the one who spoke those words wasn't Tifa, though it was a woman.
A sudden 'ding' makes me focus on the here and now again, rather then the voice in my head. "The cake is ready!" Tifa interrupts her little hair product argument with Cloud and looks at me, "you'll try it, right?"
"I would be honored," I watch with satisfaction as Cloud's expression sours even more.
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Step 23: Punching Bag
I've been eating at the Seventh Heaven lately, much to Cloud's annoyance, though not for free anymore, I insisted on paying since I wouldn't want to take advantage of Tifa's kindness, I am still trying to redeem myself after all. I have realized that I'm more human than I thought, which is comforting but at the same time challenging.
I can't be only a legendary hero, I'm a person too and while epic heroes may be just and fair, I as a human, am allowed to have one little flaw, I hate Cloud Strife. I'm not justice, I'm not perfection, I'm not the hero who loves everyone, I'm a human and I can have negative emotions. I find that it's easier to deal with the world when I'm not trying to force myself to like everyone.
As I enter the training room, I see something quite strange and ugly. "What is that?" I stare in disbelief at the life size inflatable toy of Cloud Strife, though a chubbier version.
"A punching bag!" Reno cheers, "isn't it awesome? I got it off the internet! Apparently some random fan girl made it, said something about having moved on to fan girl someone else so she was auctioning her Cloud collection."
"People can get the wrong idea if you buy things like this from fan girls," I pointed out.
Reno shrugged, his carefree expression still present, "who cares, you worry too much about what people think. If you keep worrying you'll get gray hairs... oh wait, you already have them."
"Silver, Reno, my hair is silver!" I clarify.
He laughs, the nerve, "touchy!" Then he gives the Cloud toy a gentle push, it bobs back and forth.
I watch the Cloud toy, following it with my eyes like a cat, then give it a small punch, just enough to make it go back and forth again. This is strangely amusing, I repeat the action, I feel a little stupid but maybe I do worry about what people think too much. I shouldn't worry so much about what people think, especially with Reno as the only witness, he doesn't think. I hit the Cloud toy again, and again, until I hit it too hard and it flies away, crashes against the opposite wall of the training room and deflates indignantly.
"You broke it," Reno gives me the sad kitten eyes.
"Sorry about that, I'll get you another one," I'm not looking forward to browsing online for Cloud fan made merchandise.
"It's okay, we can still fix this one," Reno goes over to the deflated toy and observes the rip on its face, like a scar from the forehead down over the nose. "I think there's some tape around here, you know the thick gray one, not cheap beige stuff." Finding the tape is easy enough and Reno fixes the toy with it. "There, now we just need to blow it up again... I just thought of something, could you start blowing it up for me? I'll be right back."
"How convenient," I know Reno is just using me to get out of emptying his lungs, but since I broke his toy, I'll go along with it, "fine."
"Be right back!" Reno runs off, leaving me with the task of restoring the Cloud inflatable.
I take a deep breath, filling my lungs with oxygen and start blowing up the toy. I repeat the action once more then stop, Reno blew it up before me and some strange girl blew it up before him and I'm touching this thing with my mouth? "Ew, gross!" I wipe my mouth furiously and the air I had managed to get into the toy escapes when I drop it. There has to be another way to do this. I search in a near by utility closet and find my answer in the form of an air pump of some sort. I start trying to fill up the Cloud toy with air, but the pump is too fast and strong, I can't stop it on time and the inflatable explodes.
"What was that noise?" Reno returns to find the rubber pieces of his Cloud toy all over the floor.
Here I stand in the middle of the mess, with the accusing air pump in my hand. "I broke it," I confess, "by accident," I add in case there were any doubts, "I'm sorry."
Reno pouts, "I'm not letting you borrow my toys anymore."
"I'll replace it," I offer, though I'm really not looking forward to that.
"Never mind, look what I printed," Reno shows me a print out of Cloud's face with pink hair, increased in size to the proportion of the real one, taking up the whole paper. "I was going to stick it on the inflatable but I guess I'll put it over there." He walks over to the punching bag and tapes Cloud's face over it.
"Good idea," it's completely silly and I know it, but I still think this is strangely amusing. "Let's print more." Pretty soon, I'll have plenty of Clouds to punch and kick.
xoxox xox xoxox
A little later, Tseng, Rude and Elena arrived, with the leader inquiring, "Reno, why is the training equipment covered in Cloud pictures?"
"Sir," I start out a little embarrassed, okay, maybe more than just a little. Being stupid around Reno is not so bad because he will always be more stupid, but I don't feel so great about being stupid around the more serious Tseng, even less around Elena and her overactive imagination. Rude is okay, he's there, but it's like he's not there, he hardly makes his presence known so it's easy to pretend he didn't witness anything. "This is my fault."
"You don't have to take the blame for Reno," Tseng replied, certain that it was all Reno's fault and Reno's fault alone.
"Why is everything always my fault?" Reno pouts.
"It's true, it was my fault this time," I insist. I feel like a goody-goody little boy confessing his mischief to the teacher in hopes of being accepted to hang out with the bad boys, except it all backfires when the teacher won't believe him.
Tseng gives it some thought, "really?" I nod and he gives it some more thought, "well, that's alright, I suppose everyone needs a way to let out their tensions."
Tseng walks over to the controls of the training chamber to get things ready for today's session, Rude stands to the side blending in perfectly with the inanimate objects and Elena pokes the pink haired Cloud face on a nearby punching bag. Reno pouts, but his eyes show amusement and a hint of mischief that worries me, "dude, you can get away with anything."
To be Continued
Disclaimer, I don't own Final Fantasy VII. Congratulations if you caught the reference to Final Fantasy VI in Step 17, the answer was azure, cerulean and cyan are three completely different shades of blue. The part in Step 20 about the WRO being Shinra's little brother and Reno picking on Cloud instead, was inspired by Snow in the Shinra Database RPG blogs. Thanks to Kaarina Helvete for the Cloud punching bag idea on Step 23, the Cloud toy's 'scar' is a reference to Squall.
Sephiroth's Point of View
Step 17: Shopping
"I can't..." My voice is ignored as Elena finally releases me and runs to an upset Tifa. I go from thinking about what fate is about to befall me, to thinking about what fate befell Cloud. Maybe he died and that is the reason why Tifa is so upset, despite the fact that I realize I shouldn't be so happy about this. Cloud Strife is a nuisance, but a human life none the less.
I only catch bits and pieces of the conversation as Tifa growls and sobs, sad and furious at the same time. I didn't think it was possible for such conflicting emotions to show simultaneously in this great magnitude. "He's such a jerk!"
I expectantly wait for Tifa to dramatically declare 'how dare he die on me!?' in her impersonation of the tragic maiden who has lost her personal hero. I would feel sorry for her, I do hold a lot of guilt for what I put her through, but I cannot pretend I would be sad if Strife passed away.
"I agree, he's an idiot, whining so much about helping you pick out a dresser," Elena fueled the fire.
"He kept asking why I needed him to be there if the store would deliver it and it all got worse from there. Couldn't he understand that I just wanted to spend more time with him?" Tifa pouted.
"Forget him, let's go get the furniture, you don't need Cloud," Elena encouraged.
"Yeah, you're right, let's go," Tifa paused, taking a deep breath and composing herself. Then her mood did a 180 and she smiled cheerfully, "hi Seph, how are you?"
"I'm fine..." I lied and decided not to return the question because the answer had already been made clear to me.
None the less, Tifa replied as if I had asked how she was, "me too, well, let's go, Elena and I will help you find some nice furniture." I never understood the point of automatically claiming one is fine, when one is not, what's the point of asking if the answer is so predictable? Albeit I do realize I did that as well.
xoxox xox xoxox
Tifa is unaffected by Elena's reckless driving. At least I know what to expect and I'll admit I feel a little better in the backseat, while the two women sit in front, ignoring me. Tifa's mood took a sour turn after a few minutes and she began to complain about Cloud, with Elena making no efforts to contradict her. In fact, Elena has been encouraging the criticism and adding some of her own. I would like to contribute, but for several reasons, I feel it is not my place, thus I have chosen to remain silent.
Elena and Tifa's conversation shifts randomly from criticizing Cloud, to criticizing men in general, but I am too busy enjoying the Cloud bashing to feel offended by their general words of disapproval. Among such expressions, they pointed out how men are incapable of telling the difference between azure, cerulean and cyan, though I do not know where the statement came from.
Out of lack of anything better to occupy my mind, I thought about it. Tifa's tone indicated those three words were related but different. Azure is a color, a shade of blue and cerulean I think is a synonym, though I might be wrong, as for Cyan, it was the name of a knight I remember reading about in a history book long ago... except that is not related to the other two.
Maybe Cyan wore blue clothing, frankly I didn't pay too much attention to that history book and don't even remember why I was reading it. Possibly, I was trying to pass the time while being transported to a mission site.
The comments from the two women become more malicious as the car ride progressed. It makes me wonder if all females are sadists by nature. I know the seemingly innocent Aeris is, just look at what she's putting me through, because I'm certain somehow she is to blame for my return.
When we finally reach the large furniture store, I am relived by the sweet sound of silence, the talk of slavery and torture chambers was becoming disturbing, especially when Elena and Tifa began to randomly shift from sounding evil and malicious to giggling like school girls, it makes no sense to me and I desire no explanation.
I trail along, following the two women who soon start another conversation, thankfully a much more civilized one, centered around the topic of cooking. I don't know what brought that up, unless I link it to their earlier discussion of poison, other than that, it was a random topic.
As we walk down the long aisles of the store, crowded with various styles of furniture, I begin to wonder if Elena and Tifa are even aware of my presence, maybe they forgot about me. To test my theory, I step out of their shadow and start down a different isle, but I am only a mere few steps away when Elena calls, "over here Seph, this way," and makes a hand motion for me to follow.
I pause and look at them, then Tifa encourages, "c'mon let's stay together," repeating Elena's same hand gesture and I start walking towards them.
When they see me coming, they resume walking down the aisle, talking among themselves, continuing the discussion of the previous recipe where they left off. I feel like a dog being walked, one smart enough to follow his master without a leach, or perhaps too stupid to run away.
xoxox xox xoxox
Time passed slowly as we looked at one dresser after another, with the unspoken agreement that Tifa's errand would be taken care of first. The day has gone by between my earlier venture with Tseng and watching Elena and Tifa try to find the ideal dresser. Hunger became apparent as my stomach started to make loud noises, until finally, either Tifa or Elena, I was too out of it to realize who, suggested we should get something to eat.
We ended up driving to a restaurant that was a little far, because they decided they wanted wutaian food, I just wanted food, even if I wasn't asked. The three of us entered the restaurant, a few people giving me sour looks, which made me wonder if they knew who I was.
A man, some kind of yakuza by the looks of it, passed on his way out with two girls, one on each arm, a red head and a brunette. He nodded to me as if I was one of his own and I noticed how much my uniform stood out when I wasn't with other Turks or near areas frequented by business workers in suits; Elena wasn't wearing her uniform today. I shook my head instinctively, but he was already gone.
We were led to a table were I sat in the middle of the booth, with Elena and Tifa left and right, despite there being a whole other empty booth opposite to this one.
I opened my mouth to speak but Tifa cut me off, "don't worry, the atmosphere is not the best and neither is the crowd, but the food is really good."
"And perfectly safe," Elena added, "they can't afford to pick a fight with their customers.
I was left to realize in silence that the seating arrangement was apparently for my protection and I wondered what kind of place we had truly walked into.
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Step 18: Yakuza
Dinner was good I'll admit, everything was delicious, but the feeling of relief that came with a well fed stomach didn't last long. After the bill was paid, by me, as I automatically presented my Shinra credit card, just as automatically as the waitress handed me the bill, Elena, Tifa and I headed out, back to the car. We were stopped just outside by the same man I saw when we arrived, though his red haired and brunette female companions were absent.
"Over here, Mr. Omally..." He was referring to me and when I looked, before I could speak, he continued, "Clay was right, you were easy to find, light hair, dark suit and a pair of pretty ladies."
I opened my mouth to speak and in that split second, Elena and Tifa exchanged glances and simultaneously jammed their elbows into my ribs left and right, under the pretence of linking arms. "What do you want with the boss?" Elena played along.
"Be calm little lady, it doesn't concern you," the strange man replied, "come on, Clay is waiting."
Elena and Tifa led me to follow the man and I went along with it, wondering what was going on. We rounded the restaurant, entering the building from the backdoor and following some dark stairs to a basement. There, we were left in a dimly lit waiting room and the man disappeared behind a door.
Once we were alone, I finally asked, "what's going on?"
"He got you mixed up with Jay Omalley. Jay used to deal with Don Corneo in the past, but went into hiding after Corneo died. He has just recently reemerged to deal in various illegal activities. This guy is in Shinra's blacklist, he's a slippery one. I can't believe our luck that we have a chance to get a lead on him," Elena revealed. "Reno would scold me for working when I'm not on duty, but this opportunity is too good to let it slip away, besides, who cares what Reno thinks anyway, if he even thinks."
"I heard this guy is causing a lot of trouble for the city so I'm all up for ruining his plans," Tifa declared.
"I'm with you, but we need to keep a low profile until we know were the real Jay Omalley is, then we can break some bones," Elena agreed.
I was once again left without the chance to say anything, as the man from before returned. "The ladies can wait here."
"If the boss is going, we're going," Tifa insisted.
"Yeah, we're staying with him," Elena emphasized.
The man looked at me, "let them come," I tried to sound like a gangster and I believe I failed miserably.
We were led into the next room where two tall men stood left and right of the door like motionless statues. One of them dark with the shadow of shaved black hair, the other contrasting, dirty-blond hair in a low ponytail, both wearing dark sunglasses and gray suits.
There was a leather couch where we sat, facing a polished wood desk, behind which a man, wearing a matching gray suit, sat with a hard expression. A woman in a red dress with long platinum hair stood by his side, her delicate hand resting on his shoulder.
Behind them, on one side stood the average sized man who led us here, his pale green eyes watching us behind his long dark bangs, and on the other side stood another man in a gray suit, less built than the two at the door but armed with a machine gun.
The man sitting at the desk, who I assumed was Clay, spoke, "I know it's my first time dealing with you Jay, and I got some pretty good recommendations, but I won't be giving you any credit until you prove yourself to me directly."
The conversation was interrupted when someone knocked on the door. One of the guards looked through a peek-hole and glanced at the other, who looked as also and nodded to the one who led us there. Clay waited while his underling went to look as well and finally opened the door, allowing three more visitors to enter.
"Sir, it seems we might have had some confusion," he apologized.
Clay looked at the new arrivals, there was a man with pure white hair, though it was not due to age, he must have been in his mid-thirties. Two women with short black dressed and ridiculously painted faces stood left and right from him. "Interesting, who is the real Jay, I wonder."
"Get down!" Elena jumped on the desk, pushing me forward to bang my head against the surface, while Tifa, in her haste, stepped on my head. Elena shot a beam of ice, freezing the man with the machine gun so that he couldn't use his weapon. Tifa went for the man who had led us there and knocked him out before who could even aim the gun he had pulled out of his suit.
"Seph, capture Jay, alive," Elena ordered and I realized that when it comes down to the Turks, she is my senior in rank.
I easily disarmed and detained the white haired man, while his air-headed companions screamed and run around in circles, finally running into each other and bumping their heads together, being knocked out on impact. When I looked towards the two guards, thinking about how to fight them while preventing Jay's escape without killing him, they already laid crippled on the floor, their limbs twisted in unnatural angles.
Elena and Tifa were interrogating Clay, paying no mind to the frightened woman in the red dress who was crying in a corner, her long platinum hair covering her face. There was something strange about her; she gave me a bad feeling, an instinctual warning of danger.
"Mercy! Mercy!" The frightened Clay begged.
For a moment, my eyes traveled away from the crying woman, towards the man begging for his life and when I looked at her location again, she was gone. I looked towards the door, still holding on to the squirming Jay, resisting the temptation to snap his neck to keep him still. There she was, the platinum haired woman in red, her expression malicious. Then the truth hit me, she was the real leader of the operation, Clay was only there as a decoy.
The yakuza woman produced a small switch, which she had hidden in her dress and pressed it. My eyes went wide as I heard a beep from the desk, "look out!" I jumped towards Elena and Tifa, shielding them from the explosion originating from the bomb hidden in the desk.
When the smoke finally cleared out, I saw that Clay, Jay Omalley and the others were dead. The walls had been damaged, the building had caught on fire and there was a panic in the restaurant area above with the sudden explosion that made a hole on their floor. "Are you two alright?" I received most of the force from the blast, but other than the damage to my suit, I'm alright, I'm still a Soldier, even if I work as a Turk now.
"Yes," Elena looked around, taking in the situation.
"I'm fine," Tifa replied as well, "you saved us, thank you."
"Yeah, I owe you one Seph; let's get out of here quick," we all agreed with Elena and hurried to the car, soon the situation was out of hand and our presence would only create a greater disturbance.
xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox
Step 19: Suspicions
I feel a strong sense of satisfaction having protected Elena and Tifa from harm. This must be why I'm here alive, to save people.
"That blast really came out of nowhere," Elena commented, sounding frustrated, "but it shouldn't have been like that, I should have noticed.
"I didn't see it coming either," Tifa admitted, "I'm sure the guards were unconscious and that other guy too. We had Clay surrounded and Seph had Jay."
"It was the woman in red, the one who was pretending to be scared and crying," I revealed.
"That rat," Elena growled as if her pride had been hurt. She looked so scared we didn't even think of her as a threat, but it was all an act!" The car jumped forward violently as Elena recklessly increased the speed.
I was thrown back against my seat and became concerned about the car's speed. Tifa was too busy grumbling insults about the woman in red, to pay attention to the impending danger of Elena's wild driving. "What happened to her anyway? Did she get away?" Tifa finally asked.
Tifa's words made me think, the woman was at the door, but she couldn't have made it out on time before the blast. Even if she closed the door, it was blown apart; it certainly wasn't enough to shield her. Yet the fact remains, her body was not there, she was nowhere to be seen. "I don't know."
"At least we know who our real target is now," Elena concluded, and the rest of the terrifying car ride progressed in silence.
xoxox xox xoxox
We arrived at the Seventh Heaven to see a truck parked in front, the driver and a helper getting ready to leave. They were from the furniture store; I recognized the logo on the truck. They must have been delivering the dresser Tifa purchased, which reminds me that I never got around to buying any furniture.
As Tifa got off the car, she stopped, leaning down to look into my window, gesturing for me to open the door and I did. "I just wanted to say thanks again for protecting us from that blast, your back must really hurt, you must have been burnt badly," she looked at me with concern.
"It's alright, I'll heal," I assured her, though only my uniform was damaged.
"Come by some time when you're feeling better and I'll cook something really delicious for you," Tifa gives me a kiss on my forehead, as one would kiss a child. I later realized that from Strife's point of view on the second floor window it could have looked different, not that I particularly care about upsetting him.
xoxox xox xoxox
After returning to Shinra, I exchanged my goodbyes with Elena and she suddenly realized, "we never got your furniture!"
"It's alright," I was upset about the day's ordeal before, but now that it's finally over, I feel relieved that I can rest and glad to have been able to help.
"I guess there's always next time, we can look around tomorrow," I'm not looking forward to that, but I nod anyway. I know there's no talking Elena out of this. "Get some rest; I'll take care of writing a report about what happened with Clay, Jay and the others."
"Thanks..." For that, I am sincerely grateful, as I didn't even think a report was needed and would certainly not enjoy having to write it myself.
"No problem, I'm the one who's grateful to you, I'll also have another suit delivered, see you tomorrow, have a good night!"
"You too," I watched Elena skip away to her car, her mood much lighter now. She drove off recklessly but not furiously like before, I don't know how, but I can differentiate them.
I went back to my temporary basement home, took a shower and went to bed, falling asleep easier than I had in a long time.
xoxox xox xoxox
The next day I was up early, not knowing when to expect Elena. I found a box with a suit at my door, which is great because I don't have too many clothes. I should buy some while I'm out today. However, instead of changing my pajamas for the suit, I changed into my Soldier clothes, leaving the suit to be used the next day. It doesn't matter if I look like me, no one will believe I am me anyway.
It was later that morning that Elena arrived along with an angry looking Tseng. If looks could kill, I would be back in the life stream demanding to know why I was revived in the first place. I don't know why Tseng is so upset and I'm sure that he won't tell me if I ask him directly. Elena appears to be aware of Tseng's sour mood but is purposely ignoring it. We did little more than exchange greetings and went on our way.
xoxox xox xoxox
As I hoped, Tseng is driving today, which is a calming thought and hopefully with him around and no ideal dresser side quest to tend to, we'll avoid distractions and I'll actually get around to buying the furniture I need to move into my apartment.
The car ride to the store was smooth and safe but quiet and tense. Elena looked nonchalant the entire way, sitting in the passenger seat and looking out the window at the passing scenery. Tseng looked serious and upset, glaring at me through the rearview mirror. This bothers me greatly; there is no reason that I know of for the usually calm leader to be angry at me. Whatever is wrong, I have to find...
At the store, we walked around swiftly, stopping to look at some of the furniture. I found several that I liked and the choices were soon made. Everything would be delivered later that day, through their speed delivery service. We finished faster than I thought.
"Do you need anything else?" Tseng asked sharply, his eyes cold.
"No," I was going to buy some extra clothes but that can wait, I have something to wear tomorrow, and I don't want to further upset Tseng.
"Alright, I'll take you back to Shinra then," the car ride back went in the same way as the ride there.
xoxox xox xoxox
I was dropped off at Shinra Headquarters and Tseng drove way with Elena. I packed up the few possessions I have in the basement and wondered how I should move the boxes to my apartment, then quickly decided to carry them. There were not many boxes anyway, just two, and I could easily carry them and walk the short distance to my new apartment, there is no need to ask anyone for a ride.
I was in my empty apartment, save for the two boxes and myself, when I heard someone at the door and opened it. Tseng was there, "I thought you came here," maybe he went to look for me at Shinra after dropping off Elena. I have a feeling I'm about to find out what has Tseng so upset.
xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox
Step 20: Jealousy
"Do you like Elena?" Tseng's question came so suddenly that I hardly had time to think.
"Like her?" I don't understand, I didn't think I offended her in any way that would make her think she is disliked, "of course I do, I like all the Turks," except Reno, but I think it's best to just leave that out.
"No, not like, I mean like-like," Tseng clarifies and I finally understand.
Despite never being too involved in the playground language, I still know that there is a big difference between like and like-like. "Not like that."
"She's been really nice to you..." As Tseng goes on, I see a figure sneak behind him, finger across the lips in a sign for silence. "I just can't help it but to wonder."
I look right at the person behind Tseng, but he seems to take my apparently avoidant gaze as a bad sign. I'm only trying to warn him of our new arrival. "We're just friends," I tilt my head and finger my hair, eyes on the eavesdropper, I shift and try to think of a way to make Tseng look, but I think my gestures are being misinterpreted.
Tseng glares, "I care about her and I won't let you steal her!"
"He's not trying to steal me," Tseng jumps and turns to face Elena, who snuck up behind him in absolute silence and stood there listening.
The leader looks at me, as if accusing me for not saying anything, then finally he understands that I wasn't trying to hide a secret crush, I was trying to tell him his crush was here.
"Elena... I..." Tseng pauses, unsure of what to say.
"I like you," Elena confesses, "a lot, like-like."
"You do?" Tseng seems surprised, but he shouldn't be, Elena's liking for him is a well known fact.
"I thought you didn't like me because you didn't notice I was trying to tell you I like you," Elena admitted.
"Reno told me you liked me," Tseng recalled, "that's why I thought you didn't, because he's never right about anything."
Elena shook her head, "Reno's an idiot."
Then the romance flowed, I wish I could give the kissing couple some privacy, but they are standing at the door to my apartment. I resolved to go to my empty bedroom and wait there until they're done.
I'm sitting on the floor when my PHS rings and I answer the unknown number. "Stay away from Tifa!" The angry voice of Cloud Strife demands. He hung up before I could say anything. Given the recent happenings, I would guess that Cloud got the wrong idea and is jealous, but I don't care, I might let out some stress watching him worry. I'm going to the Seventh Heaven.
xoxox xox xoxox
I walked to the Seventh Heaven as soon as Tseng and Elena got out of my doorway. I arrived to find the place occupied by an average crowd and headed towards the bar, glancing in amusement at Cloud, who was playing waiter for one of the tables. I sat at the bar and Tifa cheerfully greeted me, my presence still unknown to Cloud.
I was making polite small talk with Tifa, hoping Cloud would look at us and get jealous, when Reno popped out of seemingly nowhere, "yo, Seph! You're not -hic- still mad at me, right?"
I am still upset by the red haired nuisance, but I decide to let it go. "No, Reno, I'm not mad at you."
"You don't sound too happy, but you know what? -hic-I got into trouble for messing up a WRO job," I don't know why Reno is telling me this but I do know why he started laughing like an idiot at the end, he's drunk.
Tifa shakes her head, "it was on purpose, so I heard, he messed up the deliveries and the WRO had to get all the materials to the right places, of course they were late. What an annoying and stupid joke, the WRO is trying very hard to help people."
"Not my fault, I'm not a delivery boy, but Cloud is, you know what the president told me? -hic- You know?"
"No, I don't," but I know he's going to tell me even if I don't care to hear it.
"He said that the WRO's like our little brother and we have to be nice to it," Reno laughed as if it were the most amusing thing in the world.
"That's a good analogy," Tifa agreed.
"But that means I can pick on them!" Reno argued.
"That's not nice," Tifa disapproved. "Would you pick on your little brother?"
"Don't have any younger siblings," Reno laughed again, as if that made it all alright.
"You know what else the president said, he told me not to pick on the WRO and I asked if I could pick on Cloud instead and he said -hic- he said... he said I could if it kept me out of trouble," Reno grinned like an idiot, not realizing that telling all of this to Tifa is a very bad idea.
"Rufus said that?" Tifa frowned, "I need to have a word with him..."
"So Seph? You want to join the fun? Tseng and Elena are not cool, they don't want to help me play jokes on Cloud, Rude wasn't sure, but I think I can talk him into it. I always talk him into doing stuff, ever since we were little kids. Rude's been my best friend for a long time... -hic- Anyway, are you going to join the fun? Are you? Are you? Are you? Cause you know, it'll be fun and stuff," Reno continued drabbling incoherently.
"Best customer or not, I won't let you hurt Cloud," Tifa pouted.
"Come on Tifa, Reno's just drunk, I'm sure he doesn't mean it, and Rufus must have been kidding, if he even said anything. Besides, Cloud is a capable adult; he can take care of himself. If anything, he might lighten up," I give Tifa my best innocent smile. I don't want her getting in the way of Reno making Cloud's life a miserable chaos, he deserves it.
Tifa dwells on it for a moment then finally agrees, "I guess you're right." For now I'll pretend I refuse to join Reno in his plans, but later, when Tifa is no longer a witness, I'll tell him to count me in.
xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox
Step 21: Ninjas
It's another day at Shinra, we do some training exercises and missions are assigned, my mission is to guard the president. I'm not sure why I'm trusted to do this if he should perhaps be guarded from me. Maybe Elena put in a good word for me after the incident in that restaurant's basement, or maybe Rufus is just curious about me.
My tasks for the day were simple; I stood guard and brought several things to the president, such as coffee, donuts, lunch, and so on. He was busy going over documents, reading and typing, occasionally talking on the phone. It was all very uneventful.
"I should have you as my guard more often, you'll take Reno's shift and he can be assigned to do something else. He gets bored and won't shut up," Rufus had told me at the end of the day.
"Thank you, sir," I muttered between gritted teeth, I was bored too.
xoxox xox xoxox
After my duties were finally done I almost headed back to the basement, only to remember that I had an apartment now and the rush delivery had finished bringing all my furniture earlier that morning.
On my way out of Shinra HQ, I saw Reno and decided it was as good a time as any to ask him about his plans with Cloud. As annoying as he can be, he's not so bad when the one receiving that annoyance is Cloud. "Reno!"
"Yo, Seph!"
"Are you really going to pick on Cloud for fun?" I wonder if it was just a drunken thought or if he will really do this.
"Sure! But how did you know? I don't remember telling you about it, I didn't think you would want to join," Reno admitted.
"You did tell me about it and you told Tifa when you were drunk at the Seventh Heaven!" I reminded him.
"I did?" Reno looked a little surprised, but at the same time not really doubtful, as if he knows it's something he would do. "Are they waiting to ambush me?"
"I don't think so, I'm pretty sure Tifa thought you were kidding, or that if you did anything it would be an innocent prank that would make Cloud cheer up."
"I suppose I could do that..." Reno mused.
I don't like where this is going, but I may be able to use it to my advantage, "why don't you let me help? I think I know what Cloud's problem is..."
"Awesome! Okay, let's do this. I don't think Rude will join in today, but give him some time and when he sees how much fun we're having he'll want to join too."
xoxox xox xoxox
Two shadows blend in with the night... I am reminded of the Wutai battles back when the nation of ninjas was resisting Shinra. I remember having a mission with Genesis one day, we were ambushed by ninjas, not that it affected the successful outcome of our mission. They snuck around, hiding in the darkness and attacked us when we let out guard down.
Genesis had been saying something about Loveless, discussing his favorite parts and I was poking fun at him, in one of my rare least serious moments. Genesis wasn't angry, he knew I was only joking, he kept repeating what he was listing something, though I seemed to have forgotten what it was. I think he was listing things that could be the gift of the goddess, but he wasn't seriously analyzing it as he often did, he was just listing things he was thankful for; yes, that was it.
If I look deep into my memories, I can remember a little of what Genesis said, the end of his long list. "...chocolate, strawberries, swords, the color red, Shinra's paychecks and my friend Angeal... Am I forgetting something? What was that other gift? I think it started with an S and ended with a y. Oh yes, I remember, there were more than one, Saturday, Sunday and Sephy!"
Then the ninjas attacked and the conversation was never continued, we were busy. Soldiers don't sneak around; they charge in strong and imposing, we don't need the element of surprise as others might count on it. But in this situation, it is imperative that we remain unseen.
I feel like a ninja attacking a soldier, dressed in black, my face half covered revealing only my eyes. It's a silly and useless disguise that Reno insisted we should wear when we climbed up the walls of the Seventh Heaven and snuck in through a second story window. I find that climbing walls is more difficult than knocking them down, though I'm sure Reno would disagree and I wonder if all Turks are this cat-like and if with training I'll turn more feline than wolf.
Either way, the point is trying to escape with our identities a secret will be pointless if we are seen, even in disguise, so we must be quiet. Sure we're wearing ninja clothes, which Reno got out of a storage room at headquarters, there's a lot of junk there, but the clothes do not hide our identities, only our faces and that may not be the easiest way to identify Reno or me anyway. It's the hair, the unmistakable flow of silver and red. Even from afar it's easy to see in the darkness of the night by the faint light of the crescent moon.
This must be why most Wutaian ninjas have black hair, it serves their purposes. However, I don't feel the willingness to wrap my hair in black to hide it, and I am certainly not dying it. We'll just have to be extra quiet, careful and sneaky, since we are the most easy to see ninjas.
Bright hair aside, we managed to make our way inside the Seventh Heaven's living area and sneak into the bathroom to sabotage the shampoo. Cloud will have brightly colored shiny hair too, but I don't think he'll like this color. Still, I assured Reno that it was for Cloud's own good, even if he was upset at first. Reno was quick to agree that blond was a dull and boring color, though he did realize that was something that Rufus should never hear.
When we sneaked back out, I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders. I had participated in causing mischief for Cloud Strife, though admittedly Reno could have accomplished this on his own just as well. Even so I was there, I witnessed it firsthand and was apart of it, a part of a silly revenge, a childish prank. I feel an odd sense of satisfaction and then I realize that this relief isn't necessarily because of our prank, it's because I have stopped guilt tripping myself.
Ironically, I feel a little guilty about not feeling guilty, but before I can further evaluate the oxymoron, my attention went to the moron. Reno had insisted that we sneak away through an alley shortcut and he clumsily tripped over a trashcan, knocking it over noisily and scaring a stay cat who meowed loudly before running away.
A light from a near by house turned on and we made a run for it, although I'm fairly certain we got away fast enough not to be discovered. As I ran, all thoughts of guilt were forgotten and I once again looked forward to seeing the results of our ninja mission.
xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox
Step 22: Hair
If there was a time when I resented Aeris or whatever force revived me, that time has been forgotten. The day came to take up Tifa's offer to cook for me, I didn't even ask, she offered to cook me a free meal as soon as she saw me arrive at the Seventh Heaven. She didn't even give me the chance to politely say 'you don't have to...' in an obvious indication that I really did want the food. Tifa left Cloud temporarily at the counter and I smiled, I never thought I would be smiling at Cloud, yet I am.
"If you laugh, I'm going to separate that Sephiroth look alike head of yours from the rest of your body," Cloud growled through his teeth.
Either Cloud was louder then he intended or Tifa had excellent hearing. Her voice came from the kitchen with a warning, "Cloud, if you threaten the customers you'll be in serious trouble!"
"I was only joking," Cloud's angry response sounds like anything but a joke. He leans over the counter and glares at me with his mako eyes, whispering threateningly, albeit it only sounds amusing to me. "Stay away from Tifa."
"Why should I?" I challenge.
"Because if you don't, I'll-"
"Cloud Strife, you behave!" Tifa called from the kitchen, surprising both Cloud and I. I didn't think she could hear him this time. It's almost as if she doesn't need to hear or see what's going on, maybe she can somehow sense the tension.
Cloud remained silent from that point on, glaring at me, the effect of his glare lost due to his pink hair. Now that I have witnessed the aftermath of that childish prank, I can't help it but to be glad I agreed to it. It was silly, it was out of character for me, it was something I probably would have refused to do in my previous existence, but it was so good.
Another good thing is Tifa's cooking, this has to be the best steak I ever tasted and the side of cheesy potatoes matches it perfectly. "Delicious!" I make sure to give my compliments to the chef, because it would be impolite not to and also because I know it will annoy Cloud.
"I'm happy you like it," Tifa smiles and I can feel Cloud's glare increasing in intensity considerably. Although I came back hoping to no longer be hated, being hated by Cloud is fun.
I savored every bite of the meal, slowly, prolonging my presence at the Seventh Heaven until my stomach was satisfied, "this has been the best meal I've ever had, thank you very much."
"You're welcome, you should come more often, I would be happy to cook for you," Cloud doesn't look pleased with Tifa's offer.
"Tifa..." the sudden whine that escaped Cloud preventing my reply, was most comical, from my point of view at least.
"Stop being so cranky," Tifa gently patted his shoulder, "I kept telling you not to buy that cheap shampoo, but you wouldn't listen. Look on the bright side, you learned a valuable lesson and at least you're not bald. Look at Seph's hair, it's so shiny, maybe he can give you some hair tips."
I'm fairly certain that for once I must be agreeing on something with Cloud, even if neither of us voices it: discussing hair would be weird.
Guiding the subject away from me, but still on the topic of hair, Cloud begins to throw out accusations, "it has to be Reno's fault!" Did he see us? Did he only see Reno and not me?
Tifa shakes her head, "you shouldn't jump to conclusions, how would it be Reno's fault? It was just some cheap expired shampoo."
"When something goes wrong, it's always Reno's fault," Cloud insists. I am surprised to find that I agree with him again. At least this time I wasn't in the center of the disarray.
My PHS starts ringing while Cloud and Tifa have their little discussion and I discretely answer it. "Hello?"
"Hey Seph, it's me!" Yes Reno, I saw your name on the PHS screen before I answered. Though you are terribly annoying, you're not so bad when your chaos is directed at Cloud. Furthermore 'me' is not a very informative way to identify yourself.
I decided against voicing any sarcastic reply, frankly I don't even know where it came from, instead I inquired, "is something wrong?"
"No, everything's fine, there are no meteors in the sky," Reno joked, and I'm surprisingly, not bothered by it. It might be a sensitive subject but even if it sounds like a contradiction, I'm relieved it's not being treated as such, as if it's 'no big deal'.
"That's good to know, why are you calling?" I glance at Tifa and Cloud who are still discussing the shampoo incident, absorbed in their little argument.
"Whenever I play a joke on Cloud he assumes I did it, even if I'm totally sneaky and don't leave any proof behind. It's like I'm public enemy number one when it comes to practical jokes. Tifa's the only one who defends me, but that's probably because I'm her best customer, or because she's secretly my fan girl," Reno theorizes.
"I believe the former, ratter than the latter, is true." With Strife sponging off her, it' no wonder Tifa has somewhat of a soft spot for her biggest source of income.
"The form, later, what?" I should have known Reno would be confused.
"Never mind," I lower my voice to a whisper, "Strife is fuming and throwing accusations, keep a low profile."
"Gotcha, I wouldn't want to be decapitated," and as much as I wanted to decapitate you myself before, you might be worth keeping alive if you can terrorize Cloud. "Hey Seph, take a picture for me, will you? I can't go there now so send me a picture of the mission results, thanks a lot, bye!"
Reno didn't even give me a chance to refuse, not that I would, everyone in Shinra will see this picture and the occasion is perfect to take it now that Cloud is distracted. I've decided that I am quite fond of my discrete yet high resolution little PHS camera.
I take the picture and pocket my PHS as a voice echoes in my head, "such a naughty boy..."
I have to stop myself from jumping in surprise, fortunately, I showed no significant signs of being startled and no one noticed anything. There's no one here save for Tifa, Cloud and myself right now, and the one who spoke those words wasn't Tifa, though it was a woman.
A sudden 'ding' makes me focus on the here and now again, rather then the voice in my head. "The cake is ready!" Tifa interrupts her little hair product argument with Cloud and looks at me, "you'll try it, right?"
"I would be honored," I watch with satisfaction as Cloud's expression sours even more.
xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox xox xoxox
Step 23: Punching Bag
I've been eating at the Seventh Heaven lately, much to Cloud's annoyance, though not for free anymore, I insisted on paying since I wouldn't want to take advantage of Tifa's kindness, I am still trying to redeem myself after all. I have realized that I'm more human than I thought, which is comforting but at the same time challenging.
I can't be only a legendary hero, I'm a person too and while epic heroes may be just and fair, I as a human, am allowed to have one little flaw, I hate Cloud Strife. I'm not justice, I'm not perfection, I'm not the hero who loves everyone, I'm a human and I can have negative emotions. I find that it's easier to deal with the world when I'm not trying to force myself to like everyone.
As I enter the training room, I see something quite strange and ugly. "What is that?" I stare in disbelief at the life size inflatable toy of Cloud Strife, though a chubbier version.
"A punching bag!" Reno cheers, "isn't it awesome? I got it off the internet! Apparently some random fan girl made it, said something about having moved on to fan girl someone else so she was auctioning her Cloud collection."
"People can get the wrong idea if you buy things like this from fan girls," I pointed out.
Reno shrugged, his carefree expression still present, "who cares, you worry too much about what people think. If you keep worrying you'll get gray hairs... oh wait, you already have them."
"Silver, Reno, my hair is silver!" I clarify.
He laughs, the nerve, "touchy!" Then he gives the Cloud toy a gentle push, it bobs back and forth.
I watch the Cloud toy, following it with my eyes like a cat, then give it a small punch, just enough to make it go back and forth again. This is strangely amusing, I repeat the action, I feel a little stupid but maybe I do worry about what people think too much. I shouldn't worry so much about what people think, especially with Reno as the only witness, he doesn't think. I hit the Cloud toy again, and again, until I hit it too hard and it flies away, crashes against the opposite wall of the training room and deflates indignantly.
"You broke it," Reno gives me the sad kitten eyes.
"Sorry about that, I'll get you another one," I'm not looking forward to browsing online for Cloud fan made merchandise.
"It's okay, we can still fix this one," Reno goes over to the deflated toy and observes the rip on its face, like a scar from the forehead down over the nose. "I think there's some tape around here, you know the thick gray one, not cheap beige stuff." Finding the tape is easy enough and Reno fixes the toy with it. "There, now we just need to blow it up again... I just thought of something, could you start blowing it up for me? I'll be right back."
"How convenient," I know Reno is just using me to get out of emptying his lungs, but since I broke his toy, I'll go along with it, "fine."
"Be right back!" Reno runs off, leaving me with the task of restoring the Cloud inflatable.
I take a deep breath, filling my lungs with oxygen and start blowing up the toy. I repeat the action once more then stop, Reno blew it up before me and some strange girl blew it up before him and I'm touching this thing with my mouth? "Ew, gross!" I wipe my mouth furiously and the air I had managed to get into the toy escapes when I drop it. There has to be another way to do this. I search in a near by utility closet and find my answer in the form of an air pump of some sort. I start trying to fill up the Cloud toy with air, but the pump is too fast and strong, I can't stop it on time and the inflatable explodes.
"What was that noise?" Reno returns to find the rubber pieces of his Cloud toy all over the floor.
Here I stand in the middle of the mess, with the accusing air pump in my hand. "I broke it," I confess, "by accident," I add in case there were any doubts, "I'm sorry."
Reno pouts, "I'm not letting you borrow my toys anymore."
"I'll replace it," I offer, though I'm really not looking forward to that.
"Never mind, look what I printed," Reno shows me a print out of Cloud's face with pink hair, increased in size to the proportion of the real one, taking up the whole paper. "I was going to stick it on the inflatable but I guess I'll put it over there." He walks over to the punching bag and tapes Cloud's face over it.
"Good idea," it's completely silly and I know it, but I still think this is strangely amusing. "Let's print more." Pretty soon, I'll have plenty of Clouds to punch and kick.
xoxox xox xoxox
A little later, Tseng, Rude and Elena arrived, with the leader inquiring, "Reno, why is the training equipment covered in Cloud pictures?"
"Sir," I start out a little embarrassed, okay, maybe more than just a little. Being stupid around Reno is not so bad because he will always be more stupid, but I don't feel so great about being stupid around the more serious Tseng, even less around Elena and her overactive imagination. Rude is okay, he's there, but it's like he's not there, he hardly makes his presence known so it's easy to pretend he didn't witness anything. "This is my fault."
"You don't have to take the blame for Reno," Tseng replied, certain that it was all Reno's fault and Reno's fault alone.
"Why is everything always my fault?" Reno pouts.
"It's true, it was my fault this time," I insist. I feel like a goody-goody little boy confessing his mischief to the teacher in hopes of being accepted to hang out with the bad boys, except it all backfires when the teacher won't believe him.
Tseng gives it some thought, "really?" I nod and he gives it some more thought, "well, that's alright, I suppose everyone needs a way to let out their tensions."
Tseng walks over to the controls of the training chamber to get things ready for today's session, Rude stands to the side blending in perfectly with the inanimate objects and Elena pokes the pink haired Cloud face on a nearby punching bag. Reno pouts, but his eyes show amusement and a hint of mischief that worries me, "dude, you can get away with anything."
To be Continued
Disclaimer, I don't own Final Fantasy VII. Congratulations if you caught the reference to Final Fantasy VI in Step 17, the answer was azure, cerulean and cyan are three completely different shades of blue. The part in Step 20 about the WRO being Shinra's little brother and Reno picking on Cloud instead, was inspired by Snow in the Shinra Database RPG blogs. Thanks to Kaarina Helvete for the Cloud punching bag idea on Step 23, the Cloud toy's 'scar' is a reference to Squall.