Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing. Seriously, it's jack squat. Square Enix owns the characters obviously. RenzokukenZ claims ownership to this idea and ... something else in here. I 'll let you readers figure that one out.
"Tifa?"
Not a good moment. Oh, heavens to Shiva no. The past forty-eight hours have decided to be little bitches toward Edge's famous barmaid. Bitch numero uno granted Tifa the gift of a high-grade fever that peaked at around one-hundred and four. It's companion was a nasty little bitch code-named "the crud". Such was a slang term used to describe Tifa's current condition of hanging by her elbows on the porceline throne. As an added insult to injury, mother nature dropped in for a visit too. Evil stepsisters brought along the evil stepmother. Fever, throw ups, and the rag. What a way to spend the weekend!
It wasn't exactly fun for Denzel either. The poor lad did not like one bit to come home from a sleepover to see his adoptive mom with her head in the toilet. "Tifa?" he asked again, truely worried as he saw her pale features. "Should I call the doctor?"
She forced a smile and looked at her son through half-lidded eyes. "No, honey. It's just a virus going around."
"I brought you some more sprite."
"Thank you, sweetie." She turned suddenly and heaved once more. Very bad moment. Parents, be they biological or legal guardians, were not supposed to get sick. They were the stronghold of the homestead; almost like a superhero to the child. Even worse, Tifa was just about a superhero since she assisted in saving the world's behind on multiple occasions. Who would have thought that "the crud" would be her kryptonite?
Denzel placed the cup of clear soda on his mother's nightstand before returning to the bar to finish his homework. Tomorrow may be Monday, but Tifa was in no condition to help her son with his assignments. Denzel was alone in the main bar, oblivious to the outside world and focused entirely on his pre-Algebra. Only the radio played softly in the background, as he lost his mind to a world of x's and y's. He was extremely thankful that the teacher chose to leave 'z' out of the equation for the time being. Was this crap really ever useful?
A rapping noise against the front door jarred the pre-teen from his problem solving. X and Y fell to the paper when he pushed back his chair to open the door. He paused briefly when a recognizable person appeared on the other side; a man clad in a dark blue suit and capped by a veil of flaming red hair. Denzel wasn't quite sure what to do. Tifa was ill and the son she adopted was well aware that company would not be most welcome. On the other hand, Reno was a regular bar patron and hardly considered a foe anymore. With a cautious shrug, Denzel unlocked the deadbolt and in walked the Senior Turk.
"Hey, kid." Reno flashed a playful smile. "Where's the sexy bar wench?"
Denzel scowled at the Turk's choice of words. "Tifa's sick upstairs."
"Oh." Reno glanced up the stairs and noticed the glow of the bathroom light located in the upper hallway. "She got the crud?"
"Yeah, some kids in my class were out sick with it last week."
"You got school tomorrow?"
"Duh. Tomorrow's Monday."
Emerald lenses trailed back up the staircase again. The pale light still hovered from beneath the bathroom doorframe, evidence of Tifa's sickly presence. Another glance discovered a bowl of semi-eaten ramen noodles that Denzel apparently cooked. Gee, this really sucked. Kids were sick with it and even some of the new rookies were down for the count too. This crud was hitting just about everybody. "Need me to stick around?" Reno drawled casually, "You can't stay up forever."
Young eyes darted back and forth between the assassin standing by the door and the sick woman upstairs. Tifa wasn't in much condition to do anything besides sleep or throw up at the moment. What's worse, none of her other friends were nearby. Vincent, Reeve, Cid, and Yuffie were all tied up with the WRO and Barret was with Marlene in Corel. Cloud was halfway around Gaia on a delivery. It didn't seem like Denzel had any other choice. Reno already tossed his outer jacket to the side and was in the process of lighting a cigarette.
Well, he had helped out Tifa before when Cloud and the others were away. "Okay," Denzel relented, knowing that his mom wouldn't mind if someone was at least watching out for him.
"Come on," Reno motioned as he sauntered to the phone. "I'll order a pizza for ya. My treat."
"And Tifa?" Denzel asked, as he climbed back to the bar to finish his schoolwork. "Will you keep an eye out for her?"
"Don't worry about her," Reno reassured, dialing the number to the nearby pizza place. "She'll be fine. Your ma's cool."
Early morning sunlight was never a friend to those who were recently sick. Luckily, Reno knew from experience that "the crud" could be similar to a bad hangover and closed the curtains in Tifa's room. She awoke calmly to dim light and a super-soft pillow that felt like it had been fluffled recently. An extra blanket covered her small frame to prevent any chills.
"How ya feelin', babe?"
She knew that cocky voice anywhere. It almost seemed to follow her around. "Reno?!"
"Whoa, babe," he cautioned. "Don't sit up like that. You'll make yourself sick again."
Tifa composed herself when she saw the familiar redhead sit across from her on the edge of the bed. "What ... what time is it?" Dammit, she was starting to feel dizzy again.
"About ten in the morning," Reno answered with a shrug.
"What?!"
"Teef, stop jumping like that."
"But Denzel --"
She was cut off by a finger to her lips. "What did I just tell you, yo? Do you wanna start blowing chunks again?" At her slow shake of head, he smirked in victory and continued. "The boy's at school. I made sure he got on the bus safely."
"Reno --"
She got shushed again. "Quit worryin' so much. I gave him lunch money, checked his homework ... kinda. That algebra crap always bugged the shit outta me."
"I was just going to say 'thank you'," Tifa huffed slightly. She never liked Reno's smirk. It was too sexy for her own good. What's worse is that he knew it affected her.
"Oh, is that all? Good girl."
Dear Shiva ... did he have to pat her on the head?
"Now, you go get a shower, get dressed, and meet me downstairs." Her bed creaked as the assassin stood to take his leave. "There's some Pepto on your nightstand. Don't drink too much or you'll get a black tongue and that is so not sexy."
He left before Tifa could retaliate or protest in any form or fashion. Her bedroom door closed with a soft click of the lock and she just had to smile. That's all the street fighter could think to do. She placed her chin in her hand and smiled. At Reno. He didn't have proper bedside manners, but for a random nursemaid, he'd do.
Said nurseMAN was downstairs and offered two things to the brunette when she finally emerged from the shower. One was a cocky grin and the other was a mug of warm green tea. Both were accepted with a smile of thanks. Right when he was about to congratulate himself on a job well done, the patient thrusted a piece of paper in his face.
"I take it you found my poem, yo?" Reno considered himself rather sneaky; he hid the poem underneath the bottle of Pepto-Bismal.
"You didn't write this, did you?" Tifa asked in disbelief as she sat beside him in front of the bar countertop.
"Oh, hell no," he scoffed. "Who do you think I am, the vampire? I found that on a dude's Myspace page."
Tifa used every bit of strength to smack Reno on his arm. Normally, that would be enough to break the damn thing, but since the crud drained one of both strength and energy, this whack wouldn't even leave a passing bruise worth noticing. "That's stealing!"
"No, it's not." He took a sip from his own cup of tea which was naturally spiked with a bit of vodka. "I know the guy; he's a doctor in Costa del Sol. How do you think I know how to take care of ya?"
Hm, that explained a lot. "Who did he write it for?" Tifa questioned, her eyebrow raised precariously.
"A very pretty nurse in Junon." Reno choked back a laugh as he put down his adult tea. "You know, I walked in on them once. Did you know she likes smoothing an ice cube over his --"
"I really don't care to know, Reno."
"Sorry, babe," he apologized while taking her hand. "Did you like it at least? I thought of you when I read it."
Honestly? The words in the poem melted her heart. Tifa always suspected that Reno had a soft side, but she also suspected that he carried one in his own unique way. No, he would never (nor would he even attempt) to write a verse like the poetic physician, but the assassin did know a good rhyme when he read it and he had a good feeling which one would strike his barmaid's fancy. Tifa could kickass probably better than he could (though he'd never admit it in court), but she was still an old-fashioned girl at heart. For her, a man should offer protection, a blushing romance, and kindled affection.
How did a playful, cocky, and arrogant Turk figure all that out? She would never be sure, but when she drifted off to sleep on the couch a little while later, those words replayed in her mind. Reno tucked a blanket around her and cast a gentle sleep spell to induce faster healing. Illnesses were never easy, but the least he could do was make her a bit more comfortable. Tseng could get over that his Senior Turk took a personal day to take care of a former terrorist. Frankly, Tifa was a bit more important.
Beautiful woman of silken hair
Be not afraid nor aware
Of my presence over your frame
Warming you with an eternal flame
Shielding you from harm
And always there to charm
Your whim is but my wish
No matter how devilish
Now sleep and enter the world of dreams
Where I perform with greater ease.
Tifa Lockhart had always been more important.
Mystic: (squeal) Thank you, RenzokukenZ ... Can I have a nice review, oh readers?