Chapter 3: Landing

Karina grinned ear to ear as she dashed past Vincent into the port. He let her wander about from stall to stall, finally coming back to him.

"So!" she clapped her hands together. "How do we get from here to Edge?"

"You can start by calming down."

"What is this "calm" of which you speak? I don't think I've ever heard of such a thing." she grinned.

"...You're going to make me regret this, I can already tell."

"Nah. But seriously, how?"

The man sighed, motioning for her to follow him away from the crowds of the port toward a warehouse. The WRO guards outside saluted him as he passed, going inside, though Karina knew they were curious about why she was with him. She followed him toward the back of the warehouse, where some vehicles were parked.

"Normally I just get there my own way, but that would prove ineffective while you're with me."

"Oh?"

"...I'll explain later. Get in."

"7th Heaven? Your friend works at a bar?"

"No, my friends own it and live here." Vincent chuckled quietly as he opened the door to the place, allowing Karina to enter. "Don't let it fool you, these people fought against Deep Ground and Sephiroth before that."

"Whoa." she looked back at him in shocked awe before really stepping into the bar. A brunette woman looked over with a smile on her face, and came around from behind the counter when Vincent stepped in.

"Vincent!"

"Tifa, I seem to have a bit of a problem."

"Oh? Would it happen to be her?" Tifa smiled at the girl. "Hi there."

"Hi," she waved. "I'm Karina."

"Hello Karina. Vincent, where did you find her?"

"Hey Tifa can you block Yuffie's number for me?" Cloud looked, surprised, but then glanced over at the trio with mild curiosity as he came down the stairs. "Eh? Hey Vince, she an orphan?"

"Yes. I found her not far from Nibelheim, half dead yet still trying to fight off some monsters."

"Nibelheim?"

"If that's where he says he found me." Karina shrugged. "I'm from Gongaga though."

"Gon- Did you know the Fairs?"

"Oh yeah, Mrs. Fair helped me out when I decided to leave." she rubbed her neck. "Actually… she told me to try and head to Edge and look for some guy named Cloud."

"Cloud Strife?"

She snapped her fingers. "Yeah, that guy."

"Well 'that guy'," Cloud chuckled. "Happens to be me."

"Oh. Hey!"

"Hi." he turned to Vincent. "Does she have a place to stay yet?"

"No. I brought her here hoping you could help with that."

"We'd be more than happy to," Tifa frowned. "But we don't have any room."

The blonde nodded. "And it's getting pretty expensive in Edge. I don't think she could afford to live here right now without a job."

"And nobody is looking for young girls right now."

Karina scowled. "There isn't a single job in this town that a sixteen year old could do?"

"Depends." Cloud arched an eyebrow. "We're still low on parts. If you can fight, you could get a job as a scavenger. Can't promise you'll live to get any kind of decent pay though. Hey Vince, couldn't Reeve help her out?"

"The WRO isn't looking for new members at the moment. And she won't exactly be in fighting shape anytime soon."

"I'm pretty busted up, aren't I?"

"With th amount of blood you lost, I'm surprised you managed to have the strength to attempt to sneak out." Vincent looked back at his friends. "Are you sure you can't take her, even just for a little while?"

"If she's as hard headed as I think she is," Cloud put a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you take her with you to Kalm? Isn't that where you're staying now?"

Tifa nodded. "It be much easier for her to start in Kalm, especially if she can't do any strenuous work for now."

"But-"

"Sorry Vincent, we just can't help you with this."

Karina smirked, looking up at the less than happy man beside her. "Well what do you know, you get to deal with my charming personality some more."

"Great…"