A/N: A couple of side stories from Chapters 2 and 3 of Doppelgangers. Again, it is really necessary to read the other story first. Stories are focused around Mary, but the others are there too. Some are a little short, while some are a little longer. The chapters will start to get longer as the story progresses. Again, still new to writing, but let me know what you think!

Disclaimer: FF7 is 100% owned by Square Enix

(Chapter 2)

Mary was the first to wake up the next morning. She got up and went to the bathroom, and then returned to her bed. She sat down, but didn't feel very tired, and so she got back up and folded her bedding. She placed it on the couch, and sat down, pulling her knees in. She didn't know what they were going to do. This was a very strange ordeal, and they didn't really have any control over what was happening. After a few minutes, Mary noticed some bottles of water and some fruit that had been placed on a table in the corner. She went over, and guzzled a bottle, and then picked up what looked like an apple. She looked at it and smelled it, before deciding that it was safe, and ate it. She nibbled on it until there was nothing else, and then threw away the core. She then went into the bathroom to refill her water bottle, and then walked around the room.

Mary kept wandering the room for a few minutes. She felt uncomfortable with leaving the room, she didn't want to run into someone or raise suspicions. So, she continued to pace, until she say a line of sunlight hit the floor. She walked over to the window, and saw that the sun was starting to rise. She examined the window sill, and determined it was wide enough to sit on, and then lifted herself onto it. She sat there, watching the sunrise, for how long, she didn't know. She had enjoyed watching it; it was different than at home. The pollution in Midgar blocked a lot of it, but it did create an interesting color. It fascinated Mary somewhat. She was always interested in new things, and could see the beauty in almost anything, especially if it was new to her.

Mary heard the door open, and Cissnei walked in. "Tseng would like to talk to everyone, individually. You should probably wake your friends up." She said.

"Why do I have to wake them up?" Mary whined. "They don't like me in the morning." She continued. It was true, they typically did not enjoy her in the morning, her joyful attitude minutes after waking would set them on edge.

"It would be better for someone they know to wake them. They may freak out if a Turk wakes them up." Cissnei replied.

"Okay, fine. But they will need coffee." Mary said.

"Will do. I'll be right back." Cissnei said, and she left the room.

Mary decided to wake up Ryu first, though she was typically a bit grumpy, she wouldn't bite off her head. "Ryu, wake up. It's morning. Tseng wants to talk to us. Coffee is on its way. Could you wake Morgan up?" Mary said, lightly shaking her.

"Huh. Yeah, okay. You get 'Lanna and Piper." She replied.

"Okay. We will wait to wake Matti until the coffee gets here." Mary said, and Ryu shook her head in agreement.

(Chapter 2)

Later that day, at around lunchtime, the group was cautious about the food in the kitchen. "Why are you not eating?" Zack asked them.

"Your foods here are a bit different than ours, we aren't really sure what everything tastes like, and our stomachs are still uneasy." Piper replied.

"Oh. Well, I'll tell you what everything is." Zack said, with an excited tone. He then proceeded to point out and explain everything in the kitchen.

"Yes, Zack, we know what an apple is." Alanna said, as Zack was explaining fruits.

"Yes, we know what a cookie is, we have plenty of those." This continued for a bit, with them regretting having ever said anything. After about ten minutes, Mary decided that enough was enough.

"Hey puppy, want to play?" She asked, throwing an apple in the air and catching it. Zack looked at her with a slightly confused face, and tilted his head. Mary then threw the apple to Matti, who in return threw it to Morgan, and then to Piper. Zack caught on, and started chasing the apple, as if it was a ball. They began a game of monkey in the middle, and worked their way out of the kitchen and into the living room. Once there, Zack was able to catch the apple, and the game stopped, and Zack bit into the apple as he sat in front of the couch.

Angeal came up behind Mary. "You seem to be really good at dealing with his antics." He said.

"I'm used to it. I worked as a kennel assistant back home. Spent all day taking care of dogs. It is helpful that he is so much like a puppy. "She replied. Angeal went to sit on the couch, behind Zack. Mary followed, and sat down a few feet from them. Getting an idea, she called Zack over. "Here puppy." She said, and he gave her a confused look. "Just come here, trust me." She told him.

Zack scootched over so that he was sitting in front of Mary, as her hands started scratching his head. He instantly melted into the couch, and really seemed to be enjoying it. "Good puppy." She said. "Your hair is really soft."

"Uh huh." Zack mumbled in response.

"I wonder if Cloud's hair is soft too." Mary said, turning to face Cloud, who was sitting in a chair across the room.

"NO." Cloud said, covering his head with his hands, and slinking down in his seat. He was turning a nice pink color. Mary decided to leave him alone, and continued petting Zack's hair. After a few minutes, Piper crawled over, making little whining noises and giving puppy dog eyes.

"Fine. Sit down, I'll pet you too." She said. Angeal looked over, an eyebrow raised, as Mary sat petting the two so called puppies. Matti was sitting next to her, not seeming to care that Mary was petting his girlfriend. Ryu and Alanna were on his other side, and Alanna was working her way closer to Ryu. Within minutes, Ryu was petting her hair as well.

Genesis walked out of the kitchen, a Banora white in his hand. He looked at the scene on the couch. "You are all very strange." He said, as he took an empty chair next to Cloud's.

"You'll see someday. It feels nice to have someone play with your hair." Ryu said.

"There will be no one playing with my hair. Ever." Genesis said.

"We'll see about that." Alanna said quietly, Ryu still playing with her hair.

"I bet it's nice and soft. Though, not as soft as Cloud's." Mary said, and Cloud got red again, and covered his head. "Too bad you won't let me see for myself. No, you know what would be even better, Sephiroth's hair. I bet it's all silky."

"You really do have an odd obsession with hair." Morgan said. He was sitting on the back of the couch, and had been so quiet they had forgotten he was there. Mary just stuck her tongue out at him as a response.

"Well, I have to do something with my hands. It's weird not having my crochet hooks and yarn." She said. She was an avid crocheter, as were the other girls. They had yet to have an opportunity to find a craft store. She wasn't even sure if they had those in this world. She was really hoping though, she had a hard time sitting still with nothing to do.

"I'm sure we will find something to keep you occupied." Alanna said.

Angeal sat with a very confused look on his face, and Genesis snorted from across the room. Mary was suddenly very aware that they were in the room. She had forgotten, and talked a little more than she was comfortable with. She blushed and looked down, while continuing to pet the two puppies sitting in front of her on the floor.

The second night there, the group found it much harder to fall asleep. The first night, they had been exhausted, and were still feeling the aftermath of whatever had brought them to Midgar. The reality of what was happening was setting in, and so they decided to talk about it.

"What are we going to do?" Piper asked, a sad tone to her voice. It seemed like she was home sick already, which didn't surprise any of them. She was the closest to her family, and it was hardest for her to be stuck in this world.

"I don't know. Whatever we have to I guess. It sorta depends on what they decide to do with us, yo." Ryu replied. A sad vibe flowed through the room. It was somewhat depressing, realizing that they had been taken from their world, and were now completely in the hands of other people.

Not being able to handle the atmosphere, Mary decided to change the subject. "Can you believe how big they are?" She asked.

"Yeah, they are huge. Did you see how tall Sephiroth was?" Alanna said. "And Masamune, that thing is much scarier in person."

"He is pretty tall. And his hair is gorgeous. They are all kinda gorgeous. It's not fair." Mary said. "Genesis is particularly pretty, don't you think?" Mary said, winking at Alanna.

"Yes, but I suggest you don't tell him that." Alanna replied. "Did you see how big Angeal is. His arms are bigger than my head."

"His arms, did you see his butt!" Mary exclaimed. Matti and Morgan both face-palmed at that.

"Could we not talk about this." Matti asked.

"Fine. We should probably get to bed soon." Mary said. Without wanting to continue the conversation, the group all rolled over in their beds, and tried to sleep.

(Between Chapter 2 + Chapter 3)

Mary lay in bed, actually having a hard time falling asleep. The group had gone out shopping, to get clothes, and had ended up getting attacked. They were all fine, but their small group had killed their attackers, and it was a bit traumatizing. Mary couldn't even remember why she did it; she guessed it was just her reflexes. At the time, she had found the blood and bits of brain to be amusing, but now it was keeping her awake. She had never really killed anything before, at least not in such a gruesome way.

As she lay there, she cuddled her new plushy. It helped, and she was glad that she had it. Angeal had bought it for her; it was a plushy of him, after all. She smiled, remembering how he looked when he gave it to her. She knew she was being silly, they had only just met, but she liked him. She would probably regret it, developing a crush on him; she usually did. She would probably set her sights too high, and get rejected, as always. But that never seemed to stop her feelings before, so she was prepared for it to happen again.

She tried to push the thoughts of the day out of her head, as she squeezed the plushy and tried to fall asleep. After an hour, she decided it was useless, and got up to stretch. She did a few arm and leg stretches, and then some ones for her back, which led to some lovely cracking. She loved cracking her back, it always felt good, and usually helped her fall asleep. She got back up into bed, and tried to clear her mind. She eventually drifted off into sleep, still clinging to her new plushy.

(Chapter 2-Chapter 3)

The next morning, Mary was more than excited. Tseng had decided that they were going to be Turks, and they were going to be starting cadet training soon. She wasn't sure how she felt about being a Turk, but she couldn't wait to start training. She had always been athletic, and enjoyed training and working out. However, she found it very hard to keep herself motivated when there was so much else going on. In college, she had found it difficult to balance working out and keeping up with her classes.

But now, they were going to be training. And they would be training with the people they had dressed as. She was a little worried. Someone as muscular as Angeal probably liked to work-out a lot, and most likely did a lot of bodyweight training. That was always her least favorite. Mary hated things like push-ups, sit-ups, and pull-ups. However, she loved running, hiking, skiing, and other various activities. She wasn't very inclined to lift weights, but she would do it, and preferred it to bodyweight training.

She preferred running above all else. She had been quite the runner, until she developed stress fractures in her ankle and both of her feet. Over the past few months, she had only been able to run a few times, and was in pain afterwards each time.

But today, they would all get to go running for a few miles, to get them prepared for cadet training. Mary, Alanna, and Ryu all looked like they were a little too heavy to jump straight into cadet training, while the other three looked like they would be okay, but could use a run or two beforehand. However, they didn't know that Mary loved to run, and was in much better shape than she looked. She was so excited that she was bouncing, and it was getting on everyone else's nerves.

"Would you stop it." Alanna said. She was definitely not excited for this, and Mary's bouncing was getting on her nerves.

"Sorry. But it's been awhile, and you know how much I love to run." She replied.

Before Alanna could respond, Cloud knocked on the door. "Everyone ready?" he asked.

"Ready as we'll ever be." Ryu replied. With that they all followed Cloud out of the apartment, and down to the track. Being the newest first, he had been the one who was assigned to help them through their first run.

When they got to the track, Cloud turned and addressed them all. "We will be doing an easy two mile run, to get everyone warmed up." He said. "The important thing is to pace yourself. You want to be running the entire time, no breaks, so if you are tired, slow down." He continued. "I will be running with you, to help encourage you if you are having a hard time." He looked over to the three larger girls. Alanna and Ryu looked to the ground, and Mary smirked. She loved when people underestimated her. "Alright, let's go." He said, turning around to start running.

Right off the bat, Matti took off, his long legs carrying him well. Mary was right behind him, trying to keep up. "I said pace yourselves!" Cloud shouted after them.

"Don't worry, they are pacing themselves." Alanna said.

Cloud gave her a confused look, and then continued running. For the first couple of minutes, Matti ran in the lead, with Mary desperately trying to catch him. Piper and Morgan were running at a more comfortable pace somewhere between them and the other two. Alanna and Ryu were in the back, running alongside Cloud. Neither one were enjoying the run, they were both having a hard time breathing. After the first two miles, Matti began to slow down, and Mary was able to catch him.

"Wanna go for three, or maybe four?" She asked him.

"Sure, I can keep going." He replied, as they continued running. By the time Piper and Morgan hit their two miles, Matti and Mary had hit three and a half, and Matti dropped back to run a lap or two with Piper. Morgan decided he had enough, and since he had done what was expected, he stopped. At four miles for Matti, he and Piper stopped. Mary was halfway through her fifth mile, as she ran past them.

"What's the matter Matti? Are you tired?" She asked, as she passed them.

"I really hate her sometimes." He growled. He didn't like being beaten by a girl.

"I agree." Alanna said, as she and Ryu finally finished their two miles. Cloud stopped with them, barely having felt anything with the slow pace they had set. He looked up, and saw that Mary was still running, and it appeared as she was going faster than when they started.

Seeing the confused look on his face, Ryu explained. "She was distance runner. They are pretty good at out pacing and then picking up speed."

"Oh. I didn't realize she could run." Cloud responded. As Mary rounded the corner, Cloud called to her. "Mary, we are done. Time to stop."

"One more lap, I'm almost done with five miles. Still have to do a sprint." She yelled, as she passed them. She continued running the last lap, picking up speed at the end. When she was finally done, she sat down and took a few deep breaths. "Phew. Haven't felt that good in a while." She said.

"You are insane." Morgan said.

"I think you ran a bit hard, you are probably going to be feeling that later." Alanna added.

"Oh well. It felt good. If it hurts I'll deal with it then." Mary replied.

It was now the afternoon and Mary was regretting the run earlier that morning. Sure enough, as Alanna said, her ankle hurt. It was red and swollen. She hadn't felt the pain while she was running, but she hardly ever did. And to make it worse, they were supposed to go running again, this time with their 'mentors'. Mary did not want to look weak in front of Angeal, so she was upset that she had hurt herself.

When the SOLDIERS and Turks, or 'mentors' as they were calling them, came into the room, they saw them all sitting on the floor. Mary had here ankle propped up on a pillow, and was icing it. The others were leaning against the couch, or sprawled on the floor. They weren't very excited about running again.

"What happened, Mary?" Angeal asked.

"I ran a little too hard, and now my ankle is swollen. It's no big deal." She replied.

"A little too hard? You ran five miles, we were only supposed to do two." Alanna said. Angeal looked over at Cloud, who nodded an affirmation. Angeal shook his head, and walked over to Mary, and healed her ankle.

"You didn't have to do that, I said it was fine." She said quietly, looking down at the floor.

"If you are going to run more, it needed to be healed." He answered. "Come on. And this time, we are taking it easy."

The group got up, and followed their mentors to the elevator to head down to the track. Once they were all in, the elevator starting going down.

"Ugh. I really hate this thing." Mary said, as she clutched Angeal's arm. Angeal gave her a funny look. "Sorry. I really don't like elevators." Mary said shyly.

"It's okay." He said. "Cloud didn't like it at first either."

"Hey!" Cloud responded.

"You know it's true." Genesis added.

When the elevator door opened, Cloud was the first out. It appeared he still wasn't much of a fan of the elevator. They all made their way out, and walked onto the track. One by one, the pairings set off running. They were starting with two miles again.

Tseng and Matti took off, with Angeal and Mary following. Angeal had to gently grab Mary's arm, and pull her back. "Take it easy." He said.

"But… Fine." She replied. Behind them, Zack was running circles around Cloud and Piper. "You keep doing that, you will make her dizzy, and she will slap you." Mary yelled to Zack.

"Sorry Piper puppy. Can't really help it." Zack said to his doppelganger.

"It's okay. But maybe try not doing it. It's hard enough to keep up with you; your legs are much longer than mine." She pointed out.

"Oh, yeah. Sorry." Zack said, falling back to run behind Piper and Cloud.

Behind them, Morgan and Rude were running silently side by side. They seemed to have a similar stride, and both seemed comfortable with the pace. Not far behind them, the two redheads were running next to each other. It appeared as though Reno was not going to take it easy on Ryu. She was out of breath, but he was refusing to slow down.

"Hey. Slow down. Your legs are longer than mine!" Ryu said in between breaths.

"Nope. If you are going to be me, you need to be fast, yo." Reno replied. Ryu groaned in response, but didn't try saying anything else. She just focused on trying to keep up with him.

Taking up the rear, Alanna was running next to Genesis, he seemed extremely unpleased to be there. Alanna didn't seem all too pleased about it either. Surprisingly, Genesis had kept his mouth shut, and wasn't saying anything, but his attitude was easy to detect. He was not really a fan of running, and the slow pace was driving him nuts. However, he didn't say anything, he just kept running.

Mary was getting frustrated. Every time Tseng and Matti passed them, she would try to speed up, but Angeal would pull her back. She had tried multiple times to pick up the pace, but he refused, and she was bored. She liked to run, but this didn't even count as running, it was jogging. With his long legs, she didn't even know how he could manage to run so slowly. After their two miles, Angeal had them stop.

"Seriously, we are stopping. That wasn't even a warm up." She said.

"Fine, you want more, let's go. I'm not sure how your ankle is, so instead how about some push-ups and sit-ups?" Angeal replied. Mary was not pleased, but at least it was something. She followed Angeal down the hall to one of the training rooms, where they started doing their workout. Luckily, the others joined her soon, and they all got to feel her pain. Once they were done, they all went back upstairs. Once they were clear of the 'mentors' they all turned to Mary.

"You couldn't keep your mouth shut, could you?" Alanna said.

"Hey, nothing wrong with a workout. We'll need to do that and more soon." Piper said in Mary's defense.

"Yeah, whatever. I'm going to go take a long shower. I feel gross, yo." Ryu said, as she made her way to the bathroom.

(Chapter 3)

A few weeks later, they had all finished with cadet training. They were caught up and in shape. Alanna, Mary, and Piper had just been given their first doses of mako. The others got some as well, but it wasn't as strong. No one had reacted too badly, but they were all still at relatively low levels of mako. They expected it would get worse each time.

Mary woke up, early as usual. She was excited. She had been able to run, but her ankle still swelled each time, and had to be healed. She had convinced Angeal to let her run her pace though, since it swelled no matter what she did. But she had just gotten her first mako bath, and they told her that with mako her stress fractures would go away. Now she would be able to run as much as she wanted.

She was extremely excited, and had gotten up early to go for a run on her own. She had her own key card now, which gave her access to the gym and the track, and she had gotten a nice pair of running shoes. She hated the boots, but could deal with them when she had to. She didn't see any need to wear them if she was running on her own however, so she and Ryu had gone shopping for better shoes. They were both awfully found of minimalists that were mostly foot coverings. They were much more comfortable for them.

When Mary entered the track, she went to the sound system and plugged in her music player. They had spent the first week trying to find ways to amuse themselves, and music was a large part of that. They had all found music that was to their liking, and similar to the music they had back home. They had also gotten portable music players, and had figured out a way to plug it into the sound system of the track. Mary wasn't being trained as a Turk, but she was pretty good with technology, as it was part of her job when she was in college.

Once the music began, Mary started running. It felt amazing. After a few miles, she stopped to see what time it was. Barely any time had passed; she must have been running much faster than usual. And she felt great, nothing seemed to hurt. Mary was very happy that she had gotten the mako bath, and couldn't wait to get more. She ran a few more miles, before deciding to head back to the apartment. When she arrived, she found that she was still the only one up. She grabbed an apple, and skipped back to her room, where she changed and showered for the rest of her day.

For the next week, Mary continued to get up early and go running. She had even begun her old habit of making coffee before she left. She couldn't figure out who was awake, but the pot was almost gone everyday when she got back. She let it go and would start another pot before heading to her room to get ready for the day.

One morning, Angeal went to look for Mary while she was out for a run. He knocked on her door, and got no reply. Ryu was in the kitchen, getting her first cup of coffee.

"Have you seen Mary?" He asked.

"If she isn't in her room, she is probably out running on the track." She replied.

"On the track? But we don't start training for another hour." He said, in a questioning manner.

"She likes to run in the morning, she gets up way before anyone else. She's been doing it for at least a week. Who do you think makes the coffee?" She said.

"But I thought she doesn't like coffee?"

"She doesn't, but she is nice and makes it for those of us who need it in the morning. Though, the first pot only goes so far." Ryu said, before leaving the kitchen and heading to her room. Angeal grabbed another cup of coffee and an apple. He would have to wait until Mary came back from her run to talk to her.

When Mary returned, she found Angeal in the kitchen. –That's odd-She thought –He usually isn't up this early-. She then checked her watch, and noticed it was actually a bit later than she thought. She had been running more and more each day, and was enjoying it so much she didn't think to check the time. When Angeal saw her, he decided to wait and see what she would say.

"Sorry I'm late. Guess I got caught up in my run." She said.

"It's okay. I didn't know you had been running in the mornings. Would you like a partner next time?" He offered.

"You would be willing to wake up two hours early to go run with me?" She replied, very much surprised. She didn't think anyone would want to go running with her. None of her friends would, so she had learned to run on her own. She had taken Matti once, but he wouldn't go again. It wasn't that she was faster; she just preferred to run much longer than anyone else. Also, when she said she would go for a short run, it was usually much less short than what anyone else would expect.

"Of course. Why not. Now, go change, and get ready for our training session. I'll be in my office when you are ready." Angeal said, as he got up and left the apartment.

The next morning, Mary was nervous as she laced her shoes. She wasn't sure why, she trained with Angeal almost every day. She got up, and left her room, and headed to the kitchen to grab something to eat. Angeal was there, and he definitely did not look like he was ready to go for a run.

"Good Morning." Mary said cheerfully.

"Morning." He said in reply.

"Not a morning person I see…" Mary muttered.

"No, not really." Angeal replied. Mary blushed, she hadn't realized that he could hear her.

"Ready to go?" She asked, after setting up the coffee and eating her usual breakfast. Angeal just nodded his head, and got up. They walked together out of the apartment, and into the elevator. As the elevator started, Mary clutched Angeal's arm, as she usually did. He didn't even respond, as it happened almost every time they were in the elevator together. When the elevator stopped, they got out.

Once they started running, Angeal noticed that Mary had become considerably faster, and found the pace much better for him than the last time they had run together. It also helped that he was wearing his heavy boots, while she was wearing what appeared to be light running shoes. Angeal rather enjoyed the run; he thought it a good pace.

But after an hour, Angeal was starting to tire. It was early morning, and he was not prepared to run for this long. "Are we almost done?" Angeal asked.

"That's up to you. I usually go for another hour. But if you are tired, we can stop." Mary replied.

"I'm fine. I was just wondering." He said, even though he was tired. They continued running for another half hour, before he started to visibly tire. Mary noticed this, and slowed the pace, before turning to Angeal.

"Let's stop. That was a little faster than I am used to, so I'm a little tired." She lied. She felt fine, but she didn't want to tire him out too much, and didn't want to hurt his pride. "I'm going to head back up now and get ready for training." She said, as she walked back to the elevator. She wasn't sure if Angeal was going back to the apartment or not, since he was in his uniform.

"I'll come with you. I will need to change my uniform." He said simply, as he followed her to the elevator.

"Will you be joining me tomorrow, sir?" Mary asked, as the elevator started upwards.

"No. I have an early meeting tomorrow, and I think I have a mission after that." He said. Mary smiled to herself. She was pretty sure he didn't have a meeting. She had tired him out, and she was damn proud of herself for it.

(Chapter 3)

Matti and Piper entered the apartment, after spending the afternoon exploring some of the stores in Midgar. Matti seemed rather excited about something, and the group of doppelgangers could tell.

"What are you so excited about, Matti?" Ryu asked. Matti smiled and opened the bag he was carrying.

"I found a little shop that sells herbs and spices. I got this huge thing of crushed red peppers. I didn't know they would have that here, but they do." He replied, still sporting his large smile.

"You and your spices." Mary said, while shaking her head. Matti nodded his head and made his way to the kitchen, to find a place for his new find.

Later that night, everyone was at the table, getting ready to enjoy the meal that Angeal had just made. After everyone had taken their first plate of food, Matti seemed to remember something. He got up and went over to the cupboard he had claimed, and grabbed his new container of spices. He sat back down, and started to coat the food with the crushed red peppers.

"Is the food not good enough for you?" Angeal asked, raising an eyebrow at him. He was always proud of the food he made, and no one had ever needed to add anything to his meals.

"No, its fine." Matti replied.

"Don't take offense Angeal, he puts it on everything." Mary said.

"And we mean EVERYTHING." Ryu added. "Didn't matter what we made at the house before we came here, he always had to add his precious crushed red pepper." The group giggled at that. That had gotten used to it. Every time they had a group dinner, he would run downstairs, and they could all predict what he would return with.

"Seriously, it has nothing to do with your food. My taste buds are just silly, and need a little more spice." Matti said, as he shoveled food into his mouth.

(Chapter 3)

Mary stood nervously, as Angeal prepared the VR room. Angeal was putting Mary through her first VR session, to see how she was doing with her training, and to get her used to VR technology. Mary took a few deep breaths, and tried to stop her left leg from shaking; it was a nervous tick that usually only showed when she would have to perform or give a presentation. When Angeal was finished, he grabbed a helmet and walked towards Mary.

"Now, this is a fight simulation. It is going to give you as many opponents as you need. I have set the simulation to continue until you are taken down. I want to see how you fight, and how you react to pressure." Mary nodded, though she was worried about being taken down. "The important thing to remember is that it is all a simulation. There is no risk of you actually getting hurt. When you are finally taken down, a slight paralyze material will take effect, but it will only last a minute, you will be perfectly fine after that." He explained. "Are you ready?" He asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be, I guess. Sir." Mary replied, taking the helmet from Angeal and putting it on. "Whoa." Mary said, as the simulation began. It was like nothing she had ever seen before. It was similar to a 3D and imax movie in her world, but much better.

She looked around, as spotted her first opponent, a third class SOLDIER just like her. Mary took another deep breath, and went for the attack. She took a step back and looked down at her sword after feeling the vibration of a hit through it. She wasn't quite sure what to expect, and the real feeling threw her off. She was quickly snapped out of her thoughts when the third class lunged at her, and she barely dodged his sword. She retaliated with a few hard swings, and he was defeated.

"Well that wasn't so bad." She said to no one in particular. The simulation continued, and sent another third class for her to fight. She confidently took him down with a few blows. She took down the next few thirds that were sent her way without much of a struggle. Then the simulation started sending 2nd class SOLDIERs, and Mary became nervous again. The first opponent took twice as long as the others, and Mary could tell that her form was starting to disappear, and she was replacing it with her brute strength. Mary was starting to become tired when the simulation became even more difficult.

"Oh crap." Mary muttered, as she turned to see three 2nd classes facing her. Her eyes grew wide, and she tightly gripped her sword, as she fought the urge to turn tail and run. She didn't know much about defending, since Angeal would never attack her. She only knew how to attack, but facing three opponents would mean she would have to defend.

Before Mary could decide which opponent to attack, she was hit on the shoulder by a fourth. "Ouch." She said, as she turned around. "Oh shit, shoulda run." She said to herself, as the attacks started. Mary didn't have time to think, she just reacted to what was happening around her. Through her dodging and random swinging of her sword, she managed to take down one of her opponents, before eventually being taken. Before she knew what had happened, everything went black, and she felt herself falling towards to floor. The next thing she felt was a hand on her shoulder.

"Relax. You are okay. You did a very good job." She heard a familiar voice say. "Breathe." She heard it continue, she hadn't realized she had been holding her breath. Mary opened her eyes as she took a few breaths, and realized it was Angeal talking to her. She tried to sit up, and found that she was sweating and shaking. She removed her helmet and saw the empty room; she had gotten so caught up in the simulation that she had truly forgotten it wasn't real.

"I did a good job?" She asked, slightly confused.

"Yes. In the end, your form failed you, but you lasted a very long time on your reflexes." Angeal replied, "I don't think I've seen a 3rd class last that long in their first simulation. You should be proud." Mary blushed slightly and smiled.

"I could have told you she has great reflexes. She can dodge an attack without even knowing its coming; makes it hard to hit her with anything." Alanna said from the doorway. "And she is very good at flailing." She added.

"I was not flailing." Mary snapped at her. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"You aren't the only one who has to go through this. I'm next." Alanna replied. She had been waiting from the observation deck, trying to prepare herself for what she was about to endure. "Only, I actually know how to defend." She added, sticking her tongue out at Mary. Mary just glared back at her.

"Let's go watch the video, and see what we need to work on." Angeal said, offering his hand to Mary. "I wouldn't want to make Genesis have to wait any longer for this room, he gets cranky." He added while walking past Alanna and Genesis, Mary trying to suppress her giggle.

(Chapter 3)

Mary and Piper sat in the living room, taking a break from their training. They were both working on crocheting projects, since they had found a crafting store in Midgar. They frequented the store at least once a week for more yarn. While they were working on their projects, Cloud and Zack walked in, after getting their lunch. The four of them all connected pretty well. They were all hyper and childish when it was appropriate. Mary would try to keep that side at bay when Angeal was around, but with the two youngest SOLDIERS, she had no problem letting it show.

As the two boys plopped onto the couch, Mary set down her crocheting, and called Zack over to her. He jumped across the couch, and amply sat at her feet, expected to get his head pet. It was something that he enjoyed a lot, and he would jump around the living room at night, begging for pets from each person. Mary obliged, and started petting his head.

After some time, Mary looked over, and saw that Cloud was engrossed in his book, and seemed to not be paying attention. She had wanted to see what Cloud's hair felt like for a while, and she figured this was as good a time as any. She shifted under Zack, who looked up at her, confused. She put her finger to her lips, and pointed to Cloud. Zack nodded in understanding, and moved out of her way. Wasting little time, Mary flew across the room and jumped on the back of the couch, behind Cloud. Before he had time to react, she grabbed his head, and started massaging his scalp.

"What are you doing?!" Cloud yelled, as he was pulled back. He went to protest more, but the hands in his hair actually felt good.

"Shhh. You will like it, just stop protesting." Mary replied.

Alanna and Ryu had been in their rooms when they heard Cloud yell. They came running out, and saw that Mary was behind him, scratching his head. If he had protested at the beginning, it didn't seem as though he protesting now. They looked over, Zack and Piper were giggling on the other side of the couch.

"Looks like chocobo likes getting pet too." Zack said.

"Zack! I told you not to call me that!" Cloud protested.

"It's okay, chocobo. It's just a nickname. We don't mean any harm." Mary said, as she continued to play with his hair. She could feel his face getting red. She looked over, and saw that Ryu and Alanna had joined the puppies on the couch, and were now petting them as well.

Genesis and Angeal made their way from their rooms; it was time to go back to work. They laughed, seeing the scene that had unfolded in the living room. It wasn't odd to see the newest additions petting the puppies, or each other. However, they had never before managed to involve Cloud. Genesis hoped that it would end there. He hated people touching his hair, and he would not be impressed if they took to petting him as well. Angeal smirked, and walked away. He didn't worry much about it. No one had ever tried to touch his hair before; he guessed it was because he was so intimidating.

"Alright, time to go back to work." Angeal said, getting the attention of the two youngest SOLDIERs.

"Aww. Do we have to?" Zack complained.

"Yes, you have a responsibility…"Angeal began.

"Yeah, Yeah. I know. Let's go chocobo." Zack said. Cloud got up, glaring at Zack, and they followed the other SOLDIERs out the door.

"His hair is soft." Mary said. "I told you it was only a matter of time. Genesis is next on the list. Although, I think you should be the one to try it Alanna. He doesn't like me very much."

"That is because you keep calling him pretty." Alanna replied.

"What? He is pretty. It's not an insult, even if he takes it that way." Mary retorted.

"But guys don't like being called pretty. Nor do we like being called cute, or adorable." Matti said, as he walked through the living room. "Okay, back to work guys." He said.

With that, they all got up, and headed out to either the Turk offices or the training rooms.

(Chapter 3…still…)

Mary stood nervously, as Angeal set up the VR room. Angeal had decided to expose Mary to a helicopter ride, as she would soon be having to take one. Because of her apparent fear of heights and dislike of the feeling of falling, he decided that the VR room was the best place to start.

"We are going on an hour long trip. I want you to get used to the feeling of flying. It will be best to learn now, so that you are comfortable for the real thing." Angeal told her.

"Yes sir." Mary said nervously. With that, they put on the VR helmets, and Angeal started the program.

"After you." He said, opening the door to the helicopter. Mary just nodded her head, and climbed in; taking a seat towards the middle of the benches, where felt she would be the most comfortable. She was unsure if she would be able to look out of the window; the view might scare her more. Angeal sat down next to her. She felt the helicopter start to ascend, and she nervously grabbed at Angeal's arm, the way she usually did in the elevator.

"It's okay. Relax. Take a deep breath." Angeal said, trying to comfort her.

"Yes, sir." Mary said shakily. She closed her eyes, and tried to take deep breaths. She felt nauseous, and she could tell her hands were shaking. She hated herself for it, but she couldn't stop it. "Sorry." She said, as she removed her shaking hands from Angeal's arm, and laid them on her lap. She felt his hand rest on her shoulder.

"It's okay to be nervous. This is new to you. It takes time, and practice. You will get used to it. I was nervous the first time I got in a helicopter too." He offered, trying to make her feel better. After a few minutes, Mary started to relax, and she was finally able to open her eyes. "There, see, it's not that bad. It just takes time to get used to it is all." Angeal said when he saw her finally relax.

The helicopter ride had started out slow, and steady; Angeal had set it that way so that Mary could get used to it. It stayed that way for the first half an hour. Then the ride became more turbulent, and the helicopter kept rising and falling through the air. It was well in control, but it was to simulate less than perfect situations.

When this started happening, Mary started to shake again, and had to close her eyes. Noticing her anxiety, Angeal decided to take a new approach. He slid off his seat, and sat on the floor, directly in front of Mary. When Mary heard Angeal move, she tentatively opened her eyes, and gave a confused look when she saw him sitting on the floor.

"Um… Are you okay, sir?" Mary asked.

"Yes. I wanted to get into a more comfortable position. You need to relax. You can play with my hair, if you would like. It seems to help you calm down, I've noticed that when you pet Zack and Cloud, or your friends." Angeal explained. Mary hesitated; she was extremely surprised that this was coming from her mentor.

"Are you sure, sir?" She asked him.

"Yes, I am sure." He replied. Mary tentatively put her hands on Angeal's head, and ran her hand through his hair. Her hands were still shaking, and her stomach was in knots, but it helped take her mind off of the helicopter ride. She continued running her hand's through his hair, it was not as soft as Zack or Cloud's, she noticed. For the rest of the ride, Mary continued playing with Angeal's hair, and relaxed considerably. She had almost forgotten that she was in a helicopter, even though it wasn't real.

The ride was almost over, and the helicopter started to descend. Mary felt her stomach drop; she closed her eyes and held her breath. "Mary, let go please." She heard Angeal say. She hadn't even realized that she had clenched her fists, with his hair still in them.

"Sorry." She said, while letting go. She placed her hands on the bottom of the bench she was sitting on, and closed her eyes again. Luckily, the descent didn't take long, and the ride was over.

"See, that wasn't so bad. Although, I think we will need to practice again before putting you in a real helicopter." Angeal said, while offering a hand to Mary as she climbed out of the helicopter. She blushed and looked down at the floor, as they left the VR room.

As they entered the elevator, Mary felt as though she had to apologize again. "Sorry, again, sir. I didn't pull any hair out, did I?" She asked.

"No, you didn't. It's okay. Just don't pull so hard next time." He answered.

"Next time?" Mary said, confused.

"Tomorrow. We will run the simulation again, maybe a longer flight." Angeal said in reply, as the elevator opened and he got off and headed to his office. Mary stayed in the elevator, and pushed the button to go up to the apartments. She wondered if he was really going to let her play with his hair again. She smiled at the memory; she hadn't thought that he would ever let her do that.

(Chapter 3)

Reno sat in his chopper, waiting for his next trip. He was taking Commander Hewley for a day mission. There was a monster that needed to be handled, but it looked like it would be a simple in and out, and they would be back by the end of the day. He wasn't the biggest fan of SOLDIERs, but he had less to dislike about Commander Hewley as some of the others. Reno heard his passenger enter, and turned to see that the Commander had brought along his doppelganger.

"Oh, great." Mary said under her breath, as she saw who was flying them. Mary had a big issue with Reno. He was loud and obnoxious, and he hadn't been too kind to Ryu in training. Ryu kept saying that he wasn't that bad, but Mary could tell that he was pushing her too hard, and not for the right reasons. She also knew of Reno's attitude, and was hoping he wouldn't make this helicopter ride too difficult for her.

After a few more simulations in the VR room, Angeal had decided that Mary was ready to take a real helicopter ride. When he got his assignment, he called her down to join him. It was not a long flight, and the weather seemed calm, so he figured it was as good a day as any for it. When they boarded the helicopter, Angeal went to the front to talk to Reno before take-off.

"Reno. I assume you have all the information you need for this mission." Angeal said.

"Yes, sir. Got it all right here, yo." Reno said, tapping on his forehead.

"Good. Can I ask a favor? This is Mary's first real ride in a helicopter. Can you take it easy please?" Angeal asked calmly, without trying to insinuate anything.

"Can do. Nothing but smooth sailing ahead, yo." Reno said in response. Mary rolled her eyes from her seat.

Mary closed her eyes, and took a few deep breaths, as Angeal took his seat beside her. She had gotten used to the VR helicopter, but she was afraid that it would be much more difficult to control her anxiety with the real thing. Also, she had gotten really nervous as she walked across the top of the building; she had never been that high up before. She took a few more breaths, as Angeal rested his hand on her shoulder.

"It's okay; it will be just like the VR room." He said calmly. Mary turned and gave him a weak smile, before taking a few more deep breaths. She felt the helicopter lift off, and gripped the seat below her.

After a minute, the helicopter leveled off and was flying smoothly, and Mary started to relax. Her breathing became more even, and she was able to open her eyes, but her hands were still shaking. Angeal looked up at Reno, who appeared to be completely uncaring that he had passengers. He decided it was safe, and so he moved to his normal spot in front of Mary. Having her play with his hair had worked really well in the VR room. It was a good method to help calm her nerves, and she was much less shaky afterwards.

Angeal had noticed that it also helped his nerves a little. He had been on far too many helicopter rides to count, and he had grown accustomed to them; but he hadn't lied when he said he was also nervous when he first started. He had begun to enjoy the head rubs, although he wasn't going to let on, he preferred to have Mary believe it was for her nerves. Because of this, he always waited a few minutes before moving there, making it seem like it was needed to calm her down.

Mary sat there, the entire ride, playing with Angeal's hair. She barely noticed when the helicopter started to descend to their destination. When they had landed, Reno turned around and noticed what was happening. He turned around again, pretending not to notice.

"Here we are, yo." He said.

Angeal got up from the floor, and addressed Mary. "I will go talk to the town Mayor, and get a little more information on the whereabouts of the monster. You stay here. I will call when I know more, and you can come and observe if I feel it is safe enough. You are making great progress, but I don't wish to put you in harm's way just yet."

"Yes sir." Mary said. She wasn't too thrilled about staying with Reno, but she would do as she was told. With that, Angeal turned and exited the helicopter. When the door was closed, Reno turned around.

"So, SOLDIERs are getting head massages now. Must be nice." He said smugly.

"What's the matter, jealous?" Mary replied. She was nervous around Angeal, but not around Reno. She knew how to handle someone as arrogant as him. She started to get an idea.

"Why would I be, yo?" Reno replied. With that Mary walked over, and massaged Reno's head with her right hand. "Oh, that actually feels good." Reno said, while leaning his head back.

"You know, if you were nicer to Ryu, she would probably do this for you." Mary said to him, still massaging his head with her right hand, and running her fingers through the tail with her left.

"Yeah, whatever. I ain't being nice to that little brat, yo." Reno said. He felt his hair get yanked suddenly, as Mary wrapped her left hand in the tail and pulled hard.

"Watch your mouth. I won't have you talking about my friend like that." Mary said, still slightly pulling on his tail.

"Ouch. Would you stop it? That actually hurts, yo!" Reno screeched, while trying to pull his hair from her hand.

"This is the only warning you will get from me. Stop being a jerk!" Mary said, giving his hair another yank. She heard her PHS ring, and let go of Reno's hair.

"Yes?" She answered.

"I'm done with the Mayor. They say the monster is up on top of the hill. I'm going to head up now. You can come, and observe this fight; it does not seem too dangerous." Angeal said on the other end.

"Yes sir. Be right there." Mary answered, as she exited the chopper, not even looking back at Reno.

When Angeal and Mary returned from the fight, they entered the helicopter without saying a word. Reno started the helicopter, and took off. He wanted to yell at Mary for what she did, but he thought better of it. Commander Hewley was intimidating, and he didn't want to piss him off by yelling at his student. Instead, Reno decided to make the ride a little less smooth for his passengers.

Mary regretted her actions from earlier. The ride back was not fun for her. Luckily, Angeal had sat back down on the floor when the ride got uneasy, and she was able to focus on that on the way back. She also kept playing the battle over in her head. She had gotten to see how Angeal fought a few times in the VR room when he trained with Zack, but seeing it for real was much more interesting. She smiled as she remembered, and continued running her fingers through Angeal's hair.