GHOST

GHOST

By Inarae

All characters and concepts come from Final Fantasy VII, and therefore belong in entirety to Square Soft and anyone else who owns legal rights to it, which does not include me.

Rating:  PG

C&C if you want me to write more on this idea.  Feedback is the fuel that keeps a writer speeding down the highway of inspiration!  Thanks to everyone who C&C ed my previous stories.

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            Cold water dribbled down my neck, long eely trails of slimy hair covered in dissolving mousse plastered against my forehead and seeping down my neck where it slipped inside the stiff suit collar.  Each step up the dingy, dimly lit staircase resulted in a squishy exhalation of water from my earnest leather shoes, as if my feet had become sponges and the weight of each step deformed them and pushed the water out.  I shifted the shopping bags to my left hand and dug in my pocket for my key, pausing in front of my door.  It swung open before I touched it and I stumbled in, the bags lifted out of my arms and placed carefully on a side table before I regained my balance.  And then I was wrapped in a large warm towel, the cheap kind that actually absorb water, unlike the expensive velvety type, although they only remain fuzzy and fluffy for one or two washings before they get knobby and harsh, like motel towels.  This one was new though, with only enough harshness to rub warmth into my chilled skin.  A corner wiped the dribbles from my neck and gently caressed my forehead and cheeks.  A fire crackled merrily in the rickety old black iron stove.

            "Welcome home," a male voice whispered against my ear, and I sagged back so my weight was supported by the arms that slowly rubbed up and down my body to dry me.

            "Hi Tseng,"  I whispered back, and then smiled sadly into the empty room I stood alone in.   I tossed my gun on the table and headed to the bathroom with it's yellowed tub and flickering light, to briefly soak away the chill before wrapping myself in a knobby old towel and trying to sleep under the scratchy wool blanket in a bed bought big enough for two.

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Author's note:  Ok, this was odd . . .  how come Elena never does what I want her to?  This is after 'Entering the Turks,' and after Tseng dies in the game.  However, I'm not sure if it'll actually fit into the timeline of the rest of my stories. . .