(A/N: Wow...woweewowwowwow...I'm so surprised...and happy. I didn't think my fic would be as well recieved as it has been, but I'm glad! And now, onto the next chapter! Enjoy!)


"Okay, need to think." Jayden mumbled, massaging her temples and squeezing her eyes shut, "Math was never my best subject. God - paper, paper, neeeeeed paper."

She started rummaging through her back pack and retrieved a rather rumpled piece of paper with a half finished doodle of a bird on the back.

Smoothing it out and flipping it over, Jayden started jotting down figures with a mechanical pencil.

Reno opened his mouth to speak, but was promptly shot down when she thrust her hand in his face.

"Awp-awp-awp!" she cried, eyes focused on the math problem in front of her, "Notta good time. Now, lessee…commuter fare…three…times…two, three, four, five…carry the two…damn, that's a lot."

"What's a lot?" Yuffie asked curiously, noticing to her displeasure that several people were taking pictures of the group as they waited for what ever mode of transportation this world employed.

"Bus fare for all of you." Jayden replied ruefully, triple checking her work, "With all of you and myself included, it comes out to twenty four dollars. Hope I have enough."

"I'm almost positive that paying the way for seven out of worlders wasn't originally on your schedule." Tifa sighed, sending an apologetic look at Jayden.

"I really am sorry about this, but we need proof of your story." Cloud said gently, patting her shoulder, making the girl noticeably twitch.

"What's wrong?" Barrett asked, perceiving Jayden's reaction.

"Sorry, I'm just…I'm…still adjusting, okay?" Jayden said in a strained voice, "I mean, game characters aren't supposed to be able to touch you, give off body heat; you're not supposed to able to smell their cologne. I'm still trying to tell myself I've gone off the deep end. But every time one of you guys touches me, it's like…like the cosmos is trying to take everything I once held true and-"

"-cosmically bitch slap you?" Reno supplied, draping an arm lazily around her shoulders, "Believe me, we've all been there and done that. Aint nothing new, ya know?"

"Yeah. I know." Jayden thought derisively as she swatted the Turk's arm off and rolled her eyes, "More than I wish I did."

Just then, the bus rolled up and Jayden crossed to the front of the group.

"Alright." She said, taking in each person one by one, "I'm going to explain this situation to the driver and pay for our fare…hopefully."

Climbed the steps and put on what she hoped was a winning smile.

"Hi." She grinned, "My friends and I are just coming from a gaming convention and I'm gonna pay their way. Is that alright?"

"Yeah it is." the driver drawled, eyeing the FFVII characters behind her, "But those weapons...?"

"AH! Th-those?" Jayden squeaked, having completely forgotten that the Square Enix characters made real were still toting their weapons in plain sight, "Their, um, die-cast plastic replicas."

"Really?" the bus driver remarked, looking over Cloud's Buster sword with a scrutinizing gaze, "Replicas or no, they'll have to be stowed in the storage compartment on the side of the bus. We don't want any accidents."

"Not a problem." Jayden said quickly, "I'll help them load up, and pay for my group after they've boarded okay?"

"Alright. It's just the group in costume right?" the driver asked, not wanting anyone taking advantage and sneaking on without paying.

"Y-yeah." Jayden called over her shoulder as she hurried down the steps and allowed other riders to board, "This should only take a second."


"Okay. Listen up, all your weapons? In here." Jayden stated, opening up the storage compartment on the side of the bus, "You can't carry them on the bus. You'll be labeled potential terrorists and be taken in for questioning."

"By who?" Reno snorted, not very willing to part with his shock rod, "Who'd label us terrorists?"

"Uhh, just the police." Jayden shot back rather snappishly, "Two years ago, on September eleventh, terrorists hijacked airplanes and flew them into the Trade Center and the pentagon. A few months later, some fucktard decided to hide plastic explosives in his shoes. The police today are unbelievably paranoid. They'll take in ANYBODY who looks suspicious."

"Okay, okay! Sorry! Yeesh!" Reno cried, throwing his hands into the air, "No need to get so pissy!"

"Well, you're getting on her nerves." Yuffie scowled, still not happy that the Turks were here in the first place.

"Enough." Barrett said exasperatedly, stepping between them, "We're holding up the bus. Let's just load up our things and go…okay?"

Without waiting for Reno to give an answer, Rude extracted the weapon from his partner's hand and tossed it into the cargo hold.

Cloud followed suit by lifting the giant shuriken from Yuffie's back and tossing it in the storage compartment, showing much more care when loading up his own sword.

"Hey!" the two cried in dismay at how badly their weapons were manhandled.

Vincent removed the Cerberus from it's holster and gave it one final, affectionate pat before setting it atop Cloud's broadsword.

All weapons loaded, Jayden slammed the door to the cargo hold shut and motioned for them to get on board.

One, by one the clamored inside, moving to the back, leaving Jayden to board last and foot the bill of twenty four fifty (she had forgotten to factor in the tax)

"Sorry about all the trouble." She said apologetically, allowing her head to droop from a mixture of shame and exhaustion.

"I've had worse. Believe me." The driver said dismissively, "And at least you're a lot more compliant than some other passengers I've had."

Tossing the driver a weak smile, Jayden moved to the back to join the Square Enix characters, Reno and Cloud scooching aside so she was sandwiched between them.


"There goes my belly piercing money." Jayden mumbled dismally, Tifa catching the muttered complaint and smiling apologetically.

"I really am sorry about all this." She said, giving the teen's hand a pat from her seat next to Cloud, "I promise, once we get everything straightened out, we'll try to find a way to reimburse you, okay?"

"We'll try to find a way to what?" Reno barked, startling a small child two seats away out of his slumber and into a fit of hysterical wailing.

"If you get us kicked off the bus Reno, I swear on the name of Rufus Shinra, I'll castrate you myself." Rude growled quietly.

"I'm very sorry, ma'am." Jayden said with a truly remorseful look on her face, "Voice-Emodulation Syndrome. Can't control the volume, ya know."

A look of surprise crossed the mother of the crying child's face, followed by one of sympathy…directed ALLLLL at a now very confused Reno.

"You poor man." She said with sensitivity, "I understand now. You can't help yourself."

"Got that right." Yuffie muttered under her breath as Tifa started to giggle and Rude let loose a snicker that went completely unnoticed by the woman who was now attending to her child.

Reno shot Jayden a piercing glare, that she conveniently chose to ignore by looking out the window.

"Grow up." Vincent said dully, laying out on the seat do that his cape pooled on the floor, "A man wouldn't allow something so meaningless to rattle him."

"I'm only nineteen!" Reno cried, throwing his hands into the air.

"Then you're two years INTO adulthood." Jayden remarked smirkingly, "Well…I guess what registers in body doesn't always register in the mind."

This last insult caused both Vincent and Cloud to involuntarily snort with laughter and bring up a hand over their mouths to stifle the sound.

"Made'm laugh. I believe that makes the score forty-love." Jayden commented, slouching down in the seat.

"Forty-what?" Barrett asked, looking slightly perplexed.

"Tennis reference." Jayden replied vaguely, eyes sliding shut, "Don't worry about it."

She then slumped against Reno, who made a move to push her off him, only to have his way blocked Rude who decided to point out the obvious: Jayden had fallen asleep.

"Come on." Reno complained, psychically willing the weight pressing against his shoulder to go away…which it didn't, "Can't I push her off? She's heavy!"

"No." Tifa scowled, folding her arms across her chest, "She's had as hard a day as the rest of us. You'll let her alone."

"Let her rest, Reno." Cloud said offhandedly watching as the skyscrapers gave way to pastures dotted with cattle, "She's in for an interrogation session once we arrive at her home anyway. We may as well let her rest while she can."

But just when it seemed as though Jayden was going to get some well deserved sleep…

Uh give me that Mountain Dew,
Uh give me that Mountain Dew,
Uh give me that Mountain Dew,
I aint playin with you,
You better give me my Mountain dew

Her eyes flew open, she rocketed forward, causing a head-on collision with a balance pole.


"AK! Shitshitshitshitshit!" she gasped, one hand flying to her forehead and the other digging around in her pocket for her phone, "Dammit Charlie, this had BETTER be good!"

Reno was laughing so loudly she almost couldn't hear Charlie Schwartz's words.

"J.D! Where th' hell are you?" her elder brother demanded to know, "It's almost ten!"

"Would you chill out?" Jayden snapped, wincing in pain, "I'm dealing with a head injury here, no thanks to you!"

"Sorrrrry." Charlie snorted back sarcastically, "Well? Where th' hell are you?"

"I had to…pick up the exchange students." Jayden said hastily after rummaging through her brain for a possible alibi, "Remember? Mom said it was okay for us to host some exchange students?"

"Oh yeah." he replied thoughtfully.

While it was true Mikayla Schwartz had agreed to be a host family for some exchange students, Jayden had lost the form early on. And, being a typical, lazy teenager, she hadn't bothered to get another one. Jayden had never been so happy for losing a piece of paperwork in her life.

"So…any of'm available?" Charlie asked hopefully.

"Charlie, another word out of you and I'm showing your toilet training pictures to the cheer squad." Jayden said dully.

"You're no fun." Charlie shot back sulkily, "Just be careful once you hit the streets alright?"

"I always am!" Jayden cried in exasperation, flopping back against the seats, "God, you get mugged one time, one-freakin'-time, and you all go totally psycho protective on me!"

"Sorry, sorry." Charlie said defensively, "Sheesh. I'll heat up a frozen pizza for you and the exchange students. How many should I make?"

"Two or three." Jayden replied, surveying the Final Fantasy characters filling the seats around her, "I got a bit more than I…bargained for."

"Sheesh. Hope mom takes it well." Charlie snorted, "See ya when I see ya, runt."

"Later, Charlotte." Jayden said scathingly, hanging up abruptly.


She stuffed the cell back into her pocket, and held her forehead with both hands, rocking back and forth.

"Owwww…dammit, it hurts." She moaned, tears forming in the corners of her eyes, "This has to be punishment for something. I don't know what the hell I did, but it must have been pretty fucked up."

"Hey, hey." Yuffie said sympathetically, "It isn't as bad as all that. I mean, you could be sick, but you're not. And as long as you're with us, we'll protect you from the Remnants."

Cloud's eyes went wide.

"The Remnants!" he cried, leaping his feet and almost pulling a Jayden as the bus rounded a corner, "They're still on the loose. I have to go back."

"Cloud, please." Tifa pleaded, "Its been a long day. We're all exhausted, hungry, Yuffie's hurt and we need answers. Please, please, let us rest. Just for the night. We need to regroup."

"That includes you." Rude said pushing his shades up the bridge of his nose with his middle finger, "You can put up as much of a front as you like man, but I know you're just as tired as the rest of us."

"Even the strongest warrior needs his rest." Vincent commented, stretching languidly and pushing himself upright.

"...fine. You've convinced me." Cloud sighed, defeated, "But only for the night. Tomorrow, we search."

"Agreed." Barrett nodded in a agreement, "We can't let them get too comfortable with the surroundings."

"Not that this speech isn't makin' me feel all warm and fuzzy, guys? But we're here." Jayden said cheerlessly, leaning over Reno to press the STOP button.

The buss pulled into the bus pick up/drop off site and came to a halt, allowing them to exit and unload the weapons. Reno had to dig around for almost five minutes before locating his shock rod, and then they were on their way.


"How far is this place from here?" Reno asked blandly as they walked along, crossing the street into a housing development named Stanton Meadows.

"For the fifth time, about three or four blocks." Jayden replied in annoyance, "Do you have short term memory loss or something?"

"No, he just has a short attention span." Rude replied with a sigh as they rounded the corner inside a housing development.

"And before you even ask, no, we're not here yet." Jayden ground out irascibly, very worn out from the days events and no longer in any mood to be accommodating and polite.

They rounded another corner and walked down a sidewalk lined with trees and neatly trimmed lawns.

They stopped in front of one and with a swoop a her arm, Jayden said sarcastically:

"Here it is. Casa de Scwhartz. Not much, but there should be room for all of you."

With that, she turned on her heel, motioning for them to follow her up to the porch, where Jayden climbed up a rose trellis and felt up onto the portico roof, retrieving a key.

"Alrighty. Here goes everything." She mumbled, unlocking the door and pushing it open…only to be hurled back by a silver-furred, slobbering blur.

"CHEWYYYYY! Not now!" Jayden cried as the Great Dane licked her face to show how much it had missed her.

"What…is that?" Reno gawked as Jayden pushed the giant dog of her.

"This is Chewbacca. My Great Dane." she replied, with a touch of annoyance mixed with affection as she held onto the dog's collar with one hand and wiped her face off with the other.

Chewbacca, or 'Chewy', seemed very interested in the new arrivals as he was lunging at them in an attempt to coat their faces with slobber too.

"Let's get inside." Jayden grunted, giving the dog a swat on the rear to send him into the house, "I'm hungry. And the sooner we eat, the sooner you can pump me for information."


(A/N: Cloud and the others get a face full of Jayden's reality, a reality in which the only place they exist is on a 3x3 laser disc and fansites. How will they take it? The Remnants launch an attack. R&R!)