Past Recollections
By Crystal Snowflakes
Author's Notes: This one-shot can be tied in with Chapter 11 of 'Forever Lost', about the part with Tseng, or it can be read as a one-shot. It can also be tied in with my other one-shot called 'Sector Seven'. This story changes what happened in Sector Seven just slightly. Oh, and it's slightly vague... More of a sudden thing I wrote than what I've spent hours on perfecting. Slightly edited.
Disclaimers: I do not own Final Fantasy 7 in any way.
-
Yuffie looked below her, the city of Midgar shining brightly below her... Houses and apartments had their lights on, having family dinners with their loved ones... Restaurants with their candles lit, couples and family dining happily inside... I miss my family...
She glanced upwards at the stars, her eyes jumping from star to star...
"What are you doing here babe?"
She turned around, and smiled. "Just thinking."
Reno wrapped his arms around her, "About what?"
"A lot of things." She whispered. "About my life, about the Meteor Crisis... About our lives and the lives of the people around us." She paused, "About family."
"Family?" He questioned.
She nodded, "I thought about my family and how happy we once were..."
Reno sighed, "Unfortunately, I wasn't as lucky as you. I never had a family... Well, I did, I guess. It just was pretty fucked up." He looked up as well, "The Turks were the closest family I had."
"Were you close with Tseng?" She asked out of the blue.
"Tseng?" He looked in surprised, then a smirk formed on his lips, "Former lover?"
Yuffie laughed softly, "No." She shook her head, "What makes you think that?"
"He was Wutain too..."
"No. He wasn't my lover..." She smiled fondly. "Ironic how two members of the Turks have a sibling in AVALANCHE, no?" She looked at him, "Tseng was my brother."
He raised an eyebrow, "Interesting."
She nodded, "Tseng Ichiro Kisaragi, heir to the throne of Wutai."
"Why did he leave?"
She diverted her eyes to the city once again, "Godo, Tseng and I... We always argued. We were all stubborn, but despite that, Tseng and I formed a bond."
-
"How can you do that Tseng?" Godo asked, his anger barely concealed.
Tseng glared at his father, "What? What did I do this time, Father?" He spat the name out in a disrespectful manner.
"How dare you ask!" The Lord of Wutai stood up from his position, his eyes burning with raw anger. "How can you ask me what your mistake was?"
"I did nothing wrong Godo." He growled out.
Godo slapped his son across the face, "Nothing wrong? You impregnated the daughter of Takagaki. How can you tell me that you did nothing wrong?"
"Daddy!" Ten year old Yuffie Kisaragi entered the room. "Maybe Tseng didn't do anything!" She looked at her older brother, "He always has his reasons..."
Tseng shook his head, "Yuffie... Please, leave daddy and me alone. We're just talking."
"But... Tsengsie..."
Tseng's lips lifted up slightly. "Go Yuffie."
"Hai..." The little girl crawled out of the room.
The future heir immediately shifted his gaze to his father. "I did not make Kasumi pregnant. Think what you want."
"Think what I want!" Godo bellowed, "You are a complete disgrace to the Kisaragi family! Complete disgrace to Wutai! Kasumi should be married within a week! Now that they know she is pregnant... Who will want her!"
Tseng shot him a look, "Complete disgrace?" He growled. "Complete fucking disgrace? I'm not the one that's a fucking disgrace. Look at you Godo. You are."
"Your mother would be shameful to see you like this."
The future Turk grabbed his father's collar and pushed him against the wall forcefully. "Don't ever." He gritted the words out, "Ever bring up Mother's name in this manner. She deserves so much fucking more than you and whatever you gave her." He let his father go. "Don't ever let me hear that you've been treating Yuffie horribly. I swear on my mother's grave that I will fucking kill you." Tseng gave another glower, then left.
-
"The next morning, he left." She sighed quietly, "There were rumors that he joined Shinra and was one of the most feared Turks... I couldn't believe that my brother would join Shinra, the company that had completely destroyed Wutai, but I understood why. I understood why he would do such a thing. Perhaps he just didn't care about Wutai anymore..."
She smiled forcefully, "At the age of sixteen, I followed his footsteps. The second child of Godo Kisaragi left Wutai. Only I wasn't leaving permanently. I left to find materia for Wutai..." She gave a shaky sigh, "I never saw him again... Until we went to the Temple of the Ancients..." She shook her head, "I stayed behind... I couldn't go on... I told Cloud and the others I would catch up, but I never did. I talked to him for the last moments of his life... I told him about Wutai and how I missed him for the past six years of my life and how I'd love to see him rule over Wutai..."
"I told him that I was sorry Godo called him a disgrace..." She shook her head yet again, "Tseng didn't lie. He didn't lie at all. All he ever did was for the good of Kasumi, but in return, he gained his father's hate. Apparently, Kasumi had gotten pregnant one night when she was spending it with her lover... She was trying to hide from her arranged marriage... But because she didn't want her father to find out who, she asked Tseng to help him, seeing that he was the future Lord of Wutai..."
"I see..."
"I always blamed Godo for his death. If it wasn't for Godo... Tseng would probably still be in Wutai, maybe ruling over it now..." Yuffie sighed again, "What about you and Jessie?"
Reno looked up, "Where should I start?" He closed his eyes, "Jessie and I... as siblings, we were very close. Closer than most siblings were..."
-
"Mommy! He's being a meanie again!" A little girl with reddish-brown hair and blue eyes yelled from the doorway.
"I am not being a jerk!" A slightly taller boy with flaming red hair and green eyes stuck his tongue out at the young girl. He was wearing a tattered blue sweater with torn jeans.
The woman sighed, "Please Reno, please Jessie..." She approached them and patted them both on their heads. "Play nice? Mommy has something to make dinner right now..."
Jessie crossed her arms crossly, "B-but Reno!" She huffed at the sight of her brother, "He's being mean."
"Reno..." Carmilla Chalmers warned her son, "You know your father is going to be back soon." As she gave him a look.
Reno's eyes darkened at the thought of his father. "Come Jessie, let's go play in our room." Jessie, not really knowing what was happening, followed her older brother.
There is no doubt he's a very intelligent child... Sometimes, even I forget that he's just eight... She thought to herself as she turned back towards the worn kitchen counter. Sighing as she grabbed some vegetables from the grocery bags, she hoped that one day, they would be able to get out of this hellhole.
-
Reno played with her little sister halfheartedly as he paid attention and listened for any noises coming from outside the room. He loved his life, or at least, he loved his family. He loved his father because of the way he used to treat them, he loved his mother, who slaved day and night for them, he loved his little sister because she was so innocent in so many ways and he wanted to protect her.
But then, one day, his father was fired from Shinra, Inc. and it was just never the same again. His father came home drunk every night. On some days, he'd just go straight to bed. On other nights, it was when Reno had really wanted to beat his father and kill him. Dave Chalmers would beat his wife up, yell at her, tell her how useless she was and how much of a dump they lived in. Then if he was in a bad mood, he'd proceeded to chase the two young ones around...
Reno shook his head angrily, then looked at his sister, who was staring at him with those wide naïve blue eyes.
"What's wrong Ree-ree?" She asked.
He hugged her, "Nothing." He grinned, "Let's go to the park tomorrow!" He said, attempting to change the topic.
Smiling, Jessie nodded, "Okay!"
-
The door slammed open, making both Reno and Jessie straighten out in their sitting position. The younger one looked at his brother with a slight frown, "Papa?" She asked.
He nodded, "I think so..." He crawled to the doorway and studied his father's figure. He was drunk, there was no doubt about that. But he seemed like he wasn't in too bad of a mood. He was laughing crazily, of course, but it's better than him being angry. Signaling to his sister that they should go to the dinner table, he stood up and started walking out.
"Reno! Jessie!" Dave grinned at his two kids that were coming out of their room.
Reno smiled slightly. It was great to see his father back to normal, even for a short time.
Carmilla walked out of the kitchen and set down two plates of vegetables on the dining table...
The young redhead boy's steps flattered slightly as he caught the glint in his father's eyes. This caused Jessie to stop right behind him. "Daddy?" Reno asked worriedly.
Dave looked up at his son and his daughter, then at his wife. "Two fuckin' plates of fuckin' veggies?" He spat at his wife, "VEGGIES? Where the fuck's the meat?"
Carmilla
looked down at her feet, "I... I didn't have any money for meat
tonight."
He glared at his wife and approached her slowly and threateningly, "Not. Enough. Money!" A loud slap rang out, "NOT ENOUGH FUCKING MONEY!" He growled and slapped her again.
The young woman glared at her husband, "You didn't give me enough. What was I suppose to do!"
Reno started backing up, hoping he wasn't drawing attention to himself and Jessie, who was now cringing behind him.
Carmilla looked at her babies and gave Reno a look. She then turned back to her husband, "I didn't have enough money!" She yelled.
Reno's eyes narrowed. Mom wants to buy us time to get to our room... He thought. Backing up again, another thought crossed his mind. No. Mom doesn't want us to go to our room. Dad can get in within a second. She wants us to leave. But where? With what money?
Dave grabbed his wife by her arm, "You work, don't you woman? Where's your money?"
The woman raised her remaining arm and pushed his husband away, "I'm using it as well on groceries. I don't make that much! What about you? Maybe if you weren't such a dumbass and didn't attempt to get into a fight with one of the Turks, you wouldn't be fired now!"
"That fucking shit deserved to be hurt."
She shook her head, her long wavy brown hair following her head movements, "Just because he said crap doesn't mean you had to land a punch! He was someone important and you got fired because of that."
"Shut the fuck up Carm." He slugged her on the side of her face. Hard.
-
Reno closed the door quickly, surveying his and Jessie's room. Everything was in perfect order... Then he spotted the bedside table, the lower drawer slightly ajar...
-
"Reno..." Carmilla patted her son on the head motherly, "If anything happens, look in this drawer, okay?" She kissed his forehead, "Don't tell your daddy. It's a secret between you and me."
Reno nodded while smiling. "Okay mom!"
-
Eyes widening in acknowledgment, he scrambled towards the drawer and pulled it open. Inside was a sac full of something. Opening it up slightly, his eyes widened yet again. So much gil... A note was inside. Reaching in with his tiny hands, he grasped it.
Reno... Run.
He scuttled onto his feet, then held his sister's hand tightly. He looked into her blue eyes, "Jessie..."
"Reno..." She imitated cutely.
He glanced at the closed door, not knowing how long his mother would be able to buy. "Look... We're going to go play a game of hide-and-seek with mommy and papa, okay?"
Jessie looked thoughtful for a sec, then she nodded, her soft curls bouncing up and down cutely. "Let's go." She proceeded to open the door, but her brother stopped her.
He shook his head gravely, "Mommy and papa are outside. We need to sneak out so they won't see us. Okay?"
Her head bounced up and down again.
Reno lead her towards the window, stuffed the sac of money in his sweater pocket then opened the window and helped Jessie up. When she was sitting on the windowsill, he too, climbed up. He jumped down to the grimy street and looked up at his sister. "Jessie. Jump!"
She leaped down without hesitation as her brother caught her. Barely.
"Now." He glanced at his surroundings, "We're going to go."
"Okay Ree-ree." Jessie giggled softly.
"Shh..." He whispered, "Come on now." They walked from Sector two, to somewhere they have never been in their life.
Two
blocks away from their house, a gunshot was heard. It was a normal
occurrence, but it didn't stop Reno from turning around and looking
at it with watery eyes...
A few moments later, Jessie yawned. "Can we go home Ree-ree? I'm tired of this hide-and-seek game."
Reno shook his head, "Not yet... We'll hide first, then I'll let you sleep on my lap."
Her smile lit up the darkened streets, making Reno smile as well, "Okay."
-
Thirteen years old Reno glared. "Fuck off man." He spat at his so-called-friend. "It's my sister. Don't fucking touch her."
Devon snorted, "So? She's just going to end up being a fucking whore anyways."
"She's fucking ten."
"And? You're thirteen. Doesn't stop you from stealing and killing people."
Reno shook his head, angry at his friend. "Just don't touch her. If I fucking find out that you did, you're a dead man."
-
"Ree?" Jessie asked, waving her hand in front of her brother's face. "Are you all right?"
Reno shook his head, "I'm fine." He sighed as he glanced at the alley. It was their home... Newspapers were gathered on the ground as a bed, a threadbare blanket folded neatly. "It's your twelfth birthday kid. What do you want?"
Jessie smiled softly, "I want you to be happy."
He sighed again and opened his arms, "Come here Jessie."
She moved forward as her brother engulfed her in a hug. "I don't mind living like this, you know. I just want you to be happy..."
"I'm not happy."
"I know..." She touched the twin scars under his eyes, "Someday, we'll get away from here." She smiled, "Someday, we'll leave Midgar and we'll see the sun."
He nodded, "I'll do anything to get us the fuck out of here."
Jessie pressed her finger to his lips, "Nuh uh Ree-ree." She winked, "No swearing." She kissed her on the cheek softly, "I really do want to get out of here... But whatever you do... You should be careful."
Reno nodded as he touched his own scars, "I know. I've got these two to remind me."
-
Reno, at age sixteen, was already the leader of a gang. He was abnormally intelligent, fast and silent, which made him a deadly killer. Along with those, he had quick reflexes and a killer aim.
Silently, he crept against the walls, his body shadowed by the dark alleys, his green eyes glowing faintly. When he saw his friend, a cold malicious smirk formed on his face.
Devon was grinning madly, his gun aimed towards a man in a suit. By the looks, the man was extremely wealthy...
"I've given you everything!" The man whimpered slightly, his forehead coated in sweat.
Reno raised his gun, three shots rang.
One through his head, two through his chest.
Devon's sweater was soaked in blood in mere seconds as his body fell.
Reno approached the man calmly, then looked down at his so-called-friend. "I told you to never fucking mess with my sister."
The man had his hands raised, a look of fear and dread in his eyes.
The redhead shook his head, "Get away from here. I don't like killing innocents."
He blinked, "You're not going to kill me?"
"No."
He cleared his throat, "Well... Thank you for saving me..."
"There's no need to thank me. Whether I save you or not, someone dies."
"That's surprising to hear from a slum kid." He immediately shut up after Reno glared, "Not that I have any problems with slum kids..." The man held his hand forward, "My name is Dan Huxley."
Reno raised his eyebrow, "Why tell me your name?"
Dan shrugged, "You're different from the whole lot of them." He glanced at the corpse at his feet. "For saving me," He grabbed a business card out of his pocket, "I'll do a favor for you."
"Favor eh?"
"Yeah." Dan nodded.
"You rich, right?"
Dan looked around wearily.
"I won't hurt you. Answer the question."
"I guess you can say that. I live on top of the plate."
Reno's eyes widened, then he gave a grin, "Great. Can you bring someone up to the plate with you? Can you pay for them to go to school, do things normal kids do?"
"You?" Dan asked.
Reno shook his head, "No. My sister."
-
"Hello Jessie." Dan said as he patted the thirteen year old on the head.
Jessie looked at her brother, "What's the meaning of this Ree?"
Reno looked at her, "He's promised to bring you to the upper plate. He'll pay for your tuition and everything."
"What about you then?"
Reno shrugged, "You can't expect him to bring both of us. He's doing this as a favor Jessie."
"No way! If you're not going, I'm not going."
"Jessie..." Reno warned, "Go with him."
"But..."
He hugged her tightly, "I'll come up to find you once I get a job. Soon. I promise."
Dan put his hand on Jessie's shoulder, "It's for the best."
Jessie nodded hesitantly, "All right then..." She looked at her brother, her eyes starting to water. "You promise you'll come visit, right? And you promise you'll come after you get a good job, then get rich and buy me a house outside of Midgar, all right?"
Reno nodded, "I promise. Love ya Jessie."
Jessie smiled softly, tears already threatening to fall, "Love you too Ree... I'll miss you."
The older of the two children glanced at Dan, "Thank you... Treat her nicely."
"I will."
-
Reno stood in the middle of the alley, glancing at the bloody corpses that lay in the darkness. He wiped his blade on the sleeve of his sweater. It's my eighteenth birthday today... And here I am... Killing. He snorted. I wonder how Jessie's doing... It's been two years...
"Reno Chalmers?"
The redhead turned around, his right hand reaching for his gun right away.
"Don't bother." A voice behind him said.
"The fuck?" He glared at the Wutain man in navy standing in front of him. He glanced behind him. There stood a bald man, in the same suit, his built intimidating Reno slightly.
The black-haired man approached Reno, "My name is Tseng. The one behind you is Rude..." His movements were graceful, his eyes indifferent... A certain commanding aura made Reno stiffen with distrustful. "We're not going to hurt you. We need you to do something."
"What?"
"We'll pay a hefty sum of money, of course..."
-
"This was a fucking test, wasn't it Tseng?" Reno looked up from the corpses, then glared at the Wutain that was standing two foot away from him.
Tseng nodded slowly. "You passed it, of course."
"So? The hell do I care?"
The Turk leader's lip lifted up slightly, "Welcome to the Turks, Reno."
"...Maybe if you weren't such a dumbass and didn't attempt to get into a fight with one of the Turks, you wouldn't be fired now!"
"The Turks?" Reno lifted his eyebrow. Of course he's heard of the Turks... The Shinra assholes that everyone in the slums were scared of... The Shinra assholes who were feared...
"You don't have a choice." A black convertible stopped at the opening of the alley, "You either join us, or I get to shoot you."
Glancing at the car, then at the leader, he walked towards the car, then climbed into the backseat.
Tseng had a barely visible smile on his face as he climbed into the seat beside Rude.
-
Officially a Turk after years and years of hard training, he was twenty-one, looking like someone over thirty. He had tried finding his sister, but without much success. Dan Huxley passed away the year he had joined the Turks. He only hoped that she was fine... And got out of Midgar.
Tseng had earlier that day, told him that they were going to go out to a bar and that he had a surprised to show him. Reno can only assume that it was another bar, or maybe waitress...
The three of them, wearing their Turk suits, walked through Sector seven. In the middle of the sector was a wood built building, a little run down, but it looked decent, especially with the bright lights illuminating the place and a bright sign that said 'Seventh Heaven'. Reno whistled a random tune and stuffed his hands inside his jacket and was about to enter into the bar when Tseng pulled him back.
Reno scowled.
"Don't say anything inappropriate. There are members of AVALANCHE in there, the rebel group..."
"Yeah, yeah, Tseng."
Rude almost rolled his eyes at his friend's antics.
Reno, not waiting for the two Turks behind him, opened the door loudly and sat at the corner of the bar. Tseng and Rude entered just a few seconds later, seating themselves beside him.
"So what's the big surprise?" Reno asked, his eye moving quickly, once again studying his surroundings, subconsciously planning an escape if anything happened.
Tseng shook his head, "You'll see, won't you?"
The redhead snorted, and continued glancing around... Until his eyes laid eyes on a dark haired beauty... Tight shirt, short skirt, pouty lips... He whistled appreciatively.
Tseng sighed, "No. That's not the surprise."
"She might as well be." He continued looking at her.
As she looked up, her eyes caught sight of the new customers and her eyes narrowed slightly. Walking over, she raised her eyebrow. "We don't want any trouble here, so just order your drinks and leave."
Reno, being the womanizer he was, stood up and ran his hand down her forearm. "What's your name babe?"
She glared, "Tifa Lockhart." She was about to throw a punch when he caught her wrist.
"Tsk tsk tsk..." Reno scolded her lightly. He brushed his lips against her softly and heard her gasp in surprise. He smirked, "Three beers please, babe."
Tifa pushed him away and walked back towards the bar.
His smirk remained, then looked up at a beautifully stunning girl. Her hair was auburn, her eyes blue... He felt a pang in his heart when he saw her, but he didn't know why...
Her blue eyes widened in recognition. Then walked over slowly...
Tseng gave him a small smile. Rude, as if knowing what was happening, stood up at the same time as Tseng and sat at the barstools.
The young woman looked up at him, her lips trembling, her eyes watering... "...Ree-ree?"
His own eyes widened in surprised, "Jessie..."
-
"When Dan passed away, I moved back down on the plate... Perhaps it was because I was born under the plate... But it feels like home here." She looked around, then at the plate above. "Then I met Barret and Tifa... And I knew that this was what I really wanted to do."
Reno grinned, "I see..."
"So a Turk now, eh?" Jessie looked him over, her eyes shining with pride.
The older redhead wrapped his arm around her shoulder, "Yeah, a Turk. I thought you hated them?"
Jessie smiled softly, the same gentle smile that had brightened Reno's life... That had kept him going... "I did. But it's different when you find out that your brother is one of them... Especially when you used to be a slum kid... In just a few years, you're one of the Turks..."
Reno sighed, "Yeah... I love being a Turk, in a way... It doesn't mean I like Shinra though." He looked at her, "I know what you guys do, what you're part of... Sometimes, I think only the Turks are the sane ones in the company. Half the people are mentally deficient, the other half mad. I just work for them because they pay well."
"I don't get paid all that much..." The younger redhead smiled, "But I like this. I like helping out people... I like feeling that I'm helping the world. I like feeling useful..." She leaned her head on Reno's shoulder, "I missed you, you know."
He held her closer, "Yeah, me too."
"When are you going to visit again?" Jessie asked as she looked up.
He kissed her on the forehead just like he used to when they were younger. "Whenever I can." He sighed as he glanced at his watch, "If I asked you to move out of Midgar with me right now, would you?"
She shook her head, "Nope." She smiled, "But you knew that already."
He chuckled, "Yeah... The way you talked about your so-called-work... It's a hint."
The door to the bar slammed open. Tifa looked disapprovingly at Jessie. "Jessie... Maybe you should come back in."
Jessie nodded, turned around, then gave Reno a peck on the cheek, "Love you."
He nodded, then whispered quietly, "Love you tons too."
-
"Jessie..." Tifa said quietly and worriedly. "I don't want to boss you around and be a control freak... But please... Be careful of that Turk? We all know Turks are bad people. They work for Shinra."
Jessie looked down at her feet, "I know... I promise it won't affect anything I do."
"Just be careful." She warned in a motherly tone. "I just worry for you."
"I know..." She smiled, "Thanks Tifa."
"No problem."
-
"Why'd you do that for me?" Reno asked as he sat in the chair across from Tseng's desk.
He looked up from his stack of paperwork, "Do what Reno?"
The redhead raised his eyebrow, "Let me see Jessie... Bring me to her."
The Wutain remained indifferent, then a small smile bloomed on his face, "I once had a sister I had to leave too... I loved her, but there was no other way." He sighed, "I don't want someone to have such a depressing ending as I do."
"Well, you're the head of the Turks, Tseng. I think you can find her."
The leader shook his head, "I know exactly where she is. I just can't go to her... There's a lot of things you won't understand."
Reno raised his eyebrow, "Try me."
Tseng's mouth lifted up, "I'd rather not."
-
Reno clenched his fist as he opened the gate and climbed up the stairs to the pillar of Sector Seven. He hoped that Jessie wasn't here and he hoped that Tseng had had the time to warn Jessie and the rest of her friends of this... Slowly, he climbed up, each step more difficult than the last... He watched as some members of SOLDIER ran up in front of him.
"RENO!"
He turned around in surprise and watched the four familiar rebels from the Seventh Heaven bar. He stood still, awaiting them... Hoping that they'd manage to kill him and perhaps stop Shinra from blowing the Sector Seven pillar up.
The dark skinned man that he knew as Barret snorted, "Reno of the Turks." Barret glanced at Jessie, "Told ya he wasn't a good guy."
Jessie shook her head, her eyes hidden by the auburn bangs. "Go Barret, Wedge, Biggs... I'll take care of him."
Reno's hand clenched even harder. She's no match for me...
Barret grunted in response then continued on. "Be careful Jessie."
When they disappeared up the stairs, she looked up and readied her gloves. "Come on Ree..."
The Turk shook his head furiously, "Are you fucking joking here Jessie? There's no fucking way I would fight you."
"Fight me."
"Are you insane Jess—"
Her eyes hardened, "I SAID FIGHT ME DAMNIT!"
"No."
Jessie's eyes narrowed in anger. "Fine. You won't fight me..." Readying her gloves again, she threw the first punch. It hit Reno in the guts squarely. The second one landed on his cheekbone.
"What the fuck are you doing Jessie?" Reno blocked the next punch.
Jessie stopped as she looked at her gloves. "There is no other choice for us, Reno... Either you die, or I die. You know that." Her hair covered her eyes once again, "Neither of us can stop fighting. I can't stop fighting because those are my friends up there... Those are innocent civilians that are going to suffer... And there's no way I'm just going to stay here and watch." She shook her head slightly, "You are under order to do so. If you don't fight me and blow this place up, you are getting executed."
"I know that."
"Time is short." She said curtly.
"Just run away Jessie..."
She readied her gloves, "No." Her eyes glinted with determination as she looked up. She threw another punch to his torso, then one at his cheekbone again. She then attempted to kick him in the side.
Out of reflex, he stuck his arm out and punched her in the stomach head-on.
She collapsed on her knees, her right arm wrapped around her body.
"Jessie!" His eyes were widened, "Fuck! I'm so fucking sorry."
She shook her head slowly, "I... It's all right." She said difficultly. "I'm fine."
He shook his head, "No... You're not all right. That was a hard punch."
"Quick reflexes Ree..." She coughed.
"How are you?"
She looked up, her eyes slightly damp. "I'm fine. Do your job Ree..."
"I'm getting you out of here."
"Do your job... We don't need two Chalmers dying on the same day."
"Fine. But you need to get out of here. You know where the Sector Seven exit is. It's less than ten minutes away... I'll make sure to make that time for you."
Jessie attempted to stand up, then her brother helped her up. "I will... Please... Take care."
"I will." He embraced her gently, "Love ya Jessie..."
She smiled that smile of her softly once again, "Love you too Ree-ree."
-
Reno glanced at Yuffie, who had watery eyes. He sighed, "To this day, I don't know why she didn't try to get out... Perhaps I hurt her too much, mentally and physically. Or perhaps, she felt like she was betraying those around her... I never saw her again, of course... But my memory of her still lives on, the pain of her death diminishing a little everyday."
"I still can't believe Barret and Tifa didn't know..."
"They always thought we were dating." He snorted, "Dumbasses."
Yuffie chuckled, "Like you're any smarter."
"Let's go home." Reno said. I've remembered enough for the night...
She nodded, "Okay. I'm tired anyways." She gave a peck on his cheek, then ran to the stairs of the roof.
Reno chuckled as he followed her footsteps.
-
Author's Notes: Hoped you enjoy that and will go read 'Sector Seven'
-Crystal Snowflakes
Wednesday, February 09, 2005