Fáin laid underneath the moogle slide in the Sector 6 playground. A place with a tall slide shaped like a moogle, a big round mound also shaped like a moogle and a swing set. He laid there underneath the slide curled up and shivering from how distraught he was. Yesterday, Sector 3 had been quarantined and many of its citizens had been purged. Many of them had been decent people that although he had not been close to, they had treated him fairly. Fáin laid there not believing it. It was because of the ever growing issue with the monsters that ate people. Shinra had believed the rumor about the cannibals and ordered for Sector 3 slums to be quarantined. And many of its people were now dead. This thought echoed in his head again and again. " Hello there!" The soft voice of a young woman called out in greeting. Fáin gasped and turned to face a young woman with emerald green eyes smiling back at him. For once his first reaction wasn't to flee or try to. He stared back, his eyes betraying wonder before he shook his head and wiped his tears away with the back of his gloved hand.
" Sorry." He said very quietly. The woman simply smiled. She crouched down. She was wearing a pink dress and a red jean vest with ankle boots. A woman with emerald green eyes and long light brown hair who continued to smile at him with a friendly warm face. " Take your time." She said calmly. She stood up and for a moment Fáin thought she had left. But instead she had climbed up on top of the moogle slide. The boy took a deep breath and crawled out to look up at her. She just sat up there looking as if she was enjoying her nostalgia. Fáin considered if it would be rude to speak to her or if he should politely leave. "So you lost people you cared about." She stated, almost as if she was trying to reassure that she was correct, but knew already what she said was true.
Fáin looked up at her then away before nodding. She gave a understanding smile. Fáin stared down at his feet. " They were important to you?" She asked very simply. Again, the boy nodded. He wasn't close to them, but they were kind to him. The only people of a place he called home that was truly kind to him. The woman nodded and smiled sadly. " I see. Please, don't be sad." She said and slid down and started to walk off towards Sector 5. She stopped as if reconsidering something she was going to say before she turned back to him. "I know it probably isn't right for me to say, but maybe you should go visit some of the people you still know." She said and turned away. Fáin looked up towards where she had been walking towards, but she was already gone. He thought about it. This must be how other people felt when he suddenly disappeared.
Fáin sighed. Who did he still know? No one still from Sector 3 liked him. Actually they only called a 'truce' because of the tragedy. If he went to visit them they would try to kill him. Or they would try to use him for things he would not want. Things that might get him killed. Or make him miserable. He thought about the other Sectors. There was the nice old lady from Sector 1. He felt bad for visiting her because she was always trying to give him food and things. He didn't feel like he deserved any of it. He was just happy that her grandson looked after her and kept her from being taken advantage of. He had an embarrassing moment when he thanked the grandson for looking after her not knowing who he was at first. She was visiting family on the plate.
Then there was that younger lady from Sector 2 that flirted with him... But she had a boyfriend now and that guy... Well actually he was nice when Fáin took him aside to be upfront that his girlfriend's affections was very one sided between her and the mysterious boy with yellow eyes as she called him. The man was the 'Go To Person' if he wanted to sit down and have a cup of coffee so long as Fáin would tell him of his adventures, and promise not to flirt with his girlfriend... He felt guilty for not learning the young man's name for a long while. He recalled he slept during the day and was more evailable late at night. Sector 4... Well it wasn't that bad. There was an old man who was in the Wutai war and lost his leg. He would offer Fáin some cake and tea if the boy would listen to his war stories. Fáin really enjoyed the stories about how he fought alongside the Wolf of Shinra or got to see the SOLDIER members in action. He was in the hospital.
Sector 5 was a nice place. But no one offered him food or much conversation. They didn't chase him away either or give him any issues... So that was good. He mostly visited there because of the flowers. He remembered that the girl just now smelt like flowers. She must be from around there then. He was surprised that this was their first meeting. Sector 6... Well he mostly avoided there other then to visit the playground. Sector 8 was out of the question simply because most people there would try to get him to join some fan club or buy something that was LOVELESS related. It was an entertainment district and he couldn't afford to visit, let alone get to know anyone. So Sector 7 was the only one of two left. Fáin sighed. He didn't want to face the big gun armed man and Tifa. He remembered, the man's name was Barret. Fáin stood in the park and frowned. Last was Sector 0, which he avoided like the plague because it was the main area for Shinra's headquarters. It was dangerous staying around there for him. So that wasn't an option. Sector 7 it was then.
And so Fáin made his way there, weaving through the slum's polluted mazes. Eventually he stood in front of the 7th Heaven and considered if he should go in. Before he knew it he was up at the entrance just to the side peering in. Tifa was there cleaning beer mugs. She had noticed him but pretended that she had not. Fáin felt like maybe he should maybe make a new home in Sector 5 and avoid this place. That was when he decided he should probably just turn around and leave. Before he could he heard the foot steps of a big man trying to be sneaky. Fáin couldn't get away before the big man snatched him up from the back of his coat. The kid dangled in the air like a pup or kitten. He had hoped they had forgotten him. Well that wasn't exactly true... "Welcome back Fáin." Tifa said with a smile but then glared at him angrily before going back to washing mugs.
"You look even worse for ware then when I met you. It has been months!" She said before she walked from behind the counter and stood eye level with him. She was angry. But Fáin looked surprised. She was the first person who genuinely and outright show any sign of real worry for him. Or to meddle with him with good intentions... He didn't want to look at her in the eye but she grabbed both sides of his head to keep him from looking away. She really was strong. He looked everywhere but her eyes but she stood there like that for a long moment just glaring at him. "I'm not doing this all day you two." Barret said bluntly and dropped Fáin, who collapsed on the ground. Tifa crouched down and looked him in the eyes.
"It has been a full month Fáin! Where have you been? Why did you leave? I'm sorry about your home in Sector 3, but where are you staying now?" She asked. She looked genuinely worried about him. The boy shook. A thought in his head came to him. This wasn't right. No one really cared about him. No one SHOULD care about him. He was just a street rat. Some kid who lived on the streets. Like a cat that goes from one 'master' to the next... She shouldn't- But then she hugged him close to her. His mind went into overdrive until he couldn't think at all. Fáin sat on the floor with a woman hugging him. And he started to tremble. He wanted to push her away. He wanted to escape again, but he couldn't move.
Tifa let go of him after a while and stood up. She then turned away for a moment before she turned back around again and faced Barret. " How about we give him a job? The one we have been talking about for a bit?" She said with a smile. Barret sighed. Apparently they had had this discussion for a while now. Fáin simply sat there staring blankly into the distance. What was going on? Why? Tifa placed a hand on the top off Fáin's head and found that he had suddenly disappeared and reappeared on a table on all fours. His yellow eyes were the only thing visible of his face. But with a closer look, he looked terrified for a moment.
Tifa stared at him. He was crouched on all fours as if to pounce. He was fast, skittish and she could now see his pupils contracting into thin slits like a cat's would. She backed away and watched him. " Hey kid, calm down. We aren't going to pull your hat off or try to strangle you... Stop being so damn jumpy before I knock a nice lump in that head of yours!" Barret said gruffly. Tifa calmed herself and stared Fáin in the face... Towards his face. It was obvious now what he was trying to hide. He wasn't human. Or at least, he wasn't a normal human. She sat down at the table furthest from Fáin. Barret however walked away from the entrance and through a doorway to go upstairs. "I'm going to go check on Marlene." He said before leaving. He apparently thought there was no point in blocking Fáin's way anymore. He would run if he wanted to run or stay if he wanted to stay.
Tifa sighed and waited for the boy's next move. He stood stock still staring her down. " What happened to your rifle?" Tifa asked after a few minutes of nothing-ness. Fáin finally sat down on top of the table he had stood crouched on. " I 'de-equipped' it." He answered simply. Tifa raised an eyebrow. Fáin sighed reached his hand out into empty space and barked, "Equip!" And not a second later, his rifle was grasped in his hand. " Carrying a weapon around all the time can be a bit inconvenient. " He said and shrugged before barking 'de-quip' and watching it disappear. Tifa stared at the bangle around his arm. That was probably a command materia that allowed him to do that. "So, are you interested in a job?" Tifa finally asked him.
She needed to get to the point before he tried to run away again. Fáin considered her for a moment, his eyes still cautious. " What is it about?" He asked. Tifa smiled, which made him even more wary. " First, how do you stand with Shinra?" She asked. The sudden question made Fáin cock his head. " They destroyed the only home I ever knew and killed the few people of my home I was at really good terms with there. I don't have any love for them." The boy answered straight forwardly after a pause to think about it. He couldn't bring himself to hate anyone, but if given the chance he would want to hurt Shinra. Tifa nodded. " Would you fight them?" She asked. The boy looked at her puzzled. Was she reading his mind? He nodded. And she smiled more.
" Would you fight against Shinra with us and kill their forces if it meant stopping their tyranny and saving the planet from their life sucking reactors? "She asked. The boy chuckled. " So you all are AVALANCHE huh?" Fáin asked. And then sighed. " Boy do you guys have a hefty price on your heads." He said and shrugged. She looked at him critically. " Don't worry, I won't say anything. But I don't want any of you hunting me or trying to expose me... " He said waving his hands defensively. Tifa closed her eyes and then opened them only to continue glaring at him critically.
"So I just need to help you guys and I get paid?" He asked trying to push the focus of the topic elsewhere. Tifa relented and nodded. " That's the gist of it." She confirmed. The boy sighed. " My only conditions is that if I join I want all of you to give me some space. I don't like being so very close to people..." He said bluntly. Tifa looked unsure of this. She looked at him worried but he just simply stared back at her like a cautious animal waiting for her next move. She took something small, flat and box shaped from the bar after she got up and walked over to it. " SO are you going to join us or not?" She asked impatiently.
Fáin thought about it for a very brief moment. " Yes... So when do we start?" He asked. He really didn't have any love for Shinra Electric Company. But he didn't really want to be close to these people. He didn't want people to worry about him, or try to learn about things he didn't want to show them. Tifa threw the object that was in her hand and hit Fáin dead chest. It was a cellphone, and the boy almost dropped it. " Don't loose that. And answer it when we call you. Once we have a mission ready for you, Barret will give you a call. I know he doesn't want to come looking for you and neither do I. So pick up the phone when we call, got that?" She said suddenly turning bossy.
Fáin simply nodded and slipped the phone into a pocket. " You can get out of here now." She said turning her back to him. The boy nodded and waved goodbye. And then he was gone. Barret came back down stairs and crossed his arms. " Happy now?" He asked Tifa. She nodded and smiled. " Now we can at least keep track of him." She said and went back to cleaning mugs.
It wasn't long before he had a phone call. He fumbled with it and missed the first call. He tried to call back but had no idea how the phone worked. Eventually he managed to answer the phone after someone showed him that the green button was for answering and the red was for ignoring or hanging up. " I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I don't know how this thing works!" He said nervously and feeling embarrassed. Barret growled. "Well remember how to answer the damn phone for now on! Where the hell are you?" Barret yelled.
Fáin looked around. He was in Sector 5. " Sector 5 Slums." He said as he sat down on some rubble. Barret was quiet for a moment. " Wait, what? How the heck did you get all the way there that quickly?" He finally said after the pause. The boy chuckled. " Through the train graveyard. Not too many people can do that though. So it makes it easier." Barret sighed in annoyance. " You are going to give me a headache. I called to make sure the phone worked and to make sure we know your location. No missions as of right now. Stay ready and be on standby. You are free to do whatever you want otherwise. Just don't do anything stupid!" Barret said and then said goodbye before hanging up. The kid sighed. Now he just needed to find a place to stay and a way to recharge his new phone. He could remain independent and not have people know his secrets. And now he had a job. Things were looking a little bit better.
