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Chapter 6: Change
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Talons met against the hard earth in sequential stomps.
Two very different men had been traveling in silence for hours, their chocobos maintaining a steady pace. Kalm peaked ahead of them and with it, a returning sense of anticipation. They quickly arrived in an untouched town, still very alive but fiercely distorted compared to Edge. Its energy lit their confidence on fire and reminded them that their world was still far from lost. Both knew this mission was going to succeed.
Reno interrupted the comfortable moment with a harsh cracking reality in his tone. "Let's take care of this real fast." He was on the ground soon after, suavely walking into the Inn. Vincent casually kept up, unaffected by his associate's noticeable anger. Anger that felt a little targeted at him.
"The cavalry has arrived" Reno announced with a brashly opening of doors. Vincent characteristically said nothing. Instead he kept a respectable distance as the Turk crudely helped himself behind the bar.
"Excuse me!" The concierge walked towards them with judgmental eyes.
"Fuck excuses. I deserve ever damn drink in here." He knocked back a swig of bourbon and approached the accusing man without any hint of empathy.
"We got a job to do, a city to evacuate, and a rebellion to get started. Now go be a sweetie and bring us who's in charge." More alcohol downed into his mouth, and with a refreshing 'ah' he mouthed out the letters N O W as a condescending threat.
The man opposite Reno stammered and uncomfortably backed away. "Jenna's waiting upstairs. I'll get her for you." He quickly retreated as the arrogant red head sighed. "No respect."
"Is it really necessary to be such a prick?" At this point Vincent was aggravated and decided to finally voice it. He had little patience for this kind of egotism.
"So the mopey hero speaks!"
"You should really learn not to."
Reno's hot tempter took the bait and started flaring. "Hey old man, you wanna go? I'll wipe the floor with your face."
"If you don't shut up I'm going to shoot you."
"Gentlemen," a stern voice interrupted. It belonged to a woman with short orange hair, tense broad shoulders, and an unforgiving frown. She approached Reno without hesitation, standing a decent six inches shorter. "My name is Jenna and I'll be heading this operation." She was confident and blunt, a good choice to lead. "We're ready when you are. One hundred people will be leaving on boat and twenty supposed survivors will return back to Edge with you. Fake trophies for your victory." Jenna may have been statuesque but her words struck heavy with reassuring confidence.
"Well alright lovely. Please lead the way." Reno suggestively eyed the woman up and down while Vincent observed in loathing. She ignored his mild harassment and together they all headed to the docks.
It had not taken long to see through the remaining factors of their sendoff. Jenna was already set to leave. Their next destination was Wutai where more rebels would join and training would follow.
Fake graves had been filled to mask a deadly victory. Buried lies that would, for the moment, allow them to live another day.
Step one was complete.
Jenna stood at the ships entrance and approached Vincent with a moderately concerned face. "I have a son in Edge. He's with his father…" she trailed off as her voice unexpectedly cracked. "I'm aware of how improbable this request sounds but, if you could… His name is Link Mele. I would appreciate it if… if you find him… to keep him safe." The woman struggled to maintain a tough exterior after her exposed heartache; you could see the pain in her eyes.
Vincent of course nodded without hesitation, "You have my word."
"I wish for your safety." Jenna shook his hand with a hard grip and appreciative face. "My drive to succeed is one of the few things I have left; this is going to work." The man in red believed her and raised a hand out of respect, hoping their paths would meet again under better circumstances.
Jenna turned away, not acknowledging Reno as she boarded the ship.
"What a lady, huh? She seems fun," he smirked, completely focused on her hips swinging.
"She seems intelligent and capable," the gun wielder reinforced, annoyed at Reno's continued sexism.
"Vincent," the Turk suddenly interjected with a total change in demeanor. "We part ways here." His voice was harsh again, but slightly optimistic. "I'm heading with them, it's where phase two of this starts. Silver dick wants me in Wutai."
Reno's face shifted into a sudden alarming sadness, making the gunslinger uncomfortable.
Despite a serious effort to ignore reality, Reno could not forget the sparks Tifa had practically been throwing at Vincent. He remembered watching her hands linger on the gun wielder with such affection; something Reno had never experienced with her. After bottling it for what felt like an eternity, he still hung onto the question of why. Why him?
Though the answer was obvious, his following inquiry choked with fear. Reno hated himself for even asking it. "What happened to Tifa?"
"I don't want to talk about what you can already assume." Vincent crossed his arms and sulked further into his cape. "Sephiroth happened. He made me watch." The man in red became stiff at the recollection and chose to say nothing else.
Reno's stomach twisted, as did his fists. Tifa was a beacon of light. He didn't want it to be real. Frustrated thoughts clouded his mind, triggering an accusing rage of self-deprecation. Useless, he was useless. Reno desperately wished he could have done something but it was all in vain.
"Look," he began with almost tearful eyes. "I loved that tough as nails bitch. And the way she was looking at you makes me want to kill you. But c'est la fucking vie, the past is behind us. Just… watch out for Tifa."
Vincent stared at Reno like looking into a mirror. Old memories of being a Turk in one-sided, unrequited love came crashing back. He knew this anger, this rejection; it was the haunting love he bottled for Lucretia. Vincent could only remain passive as he accepted Reno's fury like a punching bag.
"She is… uniquely special to me," the gun wielder responded softly. "Though Tifa's certainly capable, I have every intention of keeping her safe."
Reno held his head high and returned to his normal confident attitude. He so badly wanted to destroy the man in front of him but countered the throbbing jealousy with his overwhelming respect for Tifa.
He took a deep-rooted breath, remembering the beautiful moments where their bodies connected in perfection. Together they used each other to forget about regret; the passion had been intoxicating. But despite the Turks want for something more, sex was all it had been.
Reno exhaled, letting go of the memories. Finally letting go of Tifa.
He walked by Vincent and onto the ship without saying anything. Reno's eyes were fixated on moving forward; it was the only thing he could do now.
The man in red accepted the unspoken agreement and headed back to the center of Kalm. A suprising wave of excitement shook his body in realizing Tifa was less than a day's ride away. They would be together soon; Vincent actually smiled at the thought and his demons pulsed eagerly.
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Tifa was standing in the rubble of a familiar Mako reactor. Sephiroth had seen to it that most of Shinras contributions were destroyed before his departure and it left the sky bleak grey with air that tasted like forgotten death.
When Loz had suggested they go for a walk she was still riding a high from Vincent's adoring touch and didn't seem phased by the request. Agreeably obliging, both remained in silence and scouted the area together.
The clone had taken a strange liking to casual clothing. The new attire of jeans and fitting polo shirt made him look human, almost approachable. When she asked why he answered, "I wanna look like everyone else." This trivial adolescent need to fit in was curious; he wanted normality in such a sad way. Through an uncomfortable realization, he was beginning to remind her more like Denzel every day. Only Loz looked at her like how the boy idolized Cloud.
"What does it feel like to have a family?" He was full of strange questions today. Questions that Tifa found surprising not to hesitate in honest answering.
"It's warm." She started while looking into the threatening sky. "When I was a kid I felt so loved; the kind of love that makes you feel like you're invincible. As I got older the people I considered family changed and it became more about belonging or a reason to keep going. But it always stayed warm and safe…"
"That sounds… nice. I wish I felt that way about Sephiroth." Loz's eyes sunk as he internalized conflicting opinions, kicking at dirt with a pouting face.
"What do you feel for him?" Tifa jumped down the rocks and moved closer to the clone, genuinely curious.
"Connected but very different. And not happy. Brother isn't warm; I'd like to be though. I would like someone to feel that way about me too." His face was sad and struggling as he wished for something that wasn't there.
Rubble unexpectedly shifted behind them and ruined Loz's almost moment of clarity. A low whining noise alarmed him and before he knew what he was doing, Loz was desperately searching for its origin. His hands lifted the ruined earth in quick movements of up and down while Tifa watched in puzzlement. A large rock held in the air froze above Loz's shoulders as the injured body of a chocolate lab staggered out from underneath it. Loz's eyes widened, throwing the oversized rock like a baseball nearly a hundred feet away. The dog limped closer to him, panting with excited eyes and a wagging tail.
"Puppy!" Loz screamed out in joy. Without hesitation he scooped the dog into his arms and began healing with materia. The animal licked his face as Loz scratched his ears. Now fully rejuvenated, the dog was lowered back to the ground and began running circles around Loz, barking with delight.
Tifa watched on in amazement. He was so different from the other clones. Emotional and caring, it was just so unexpected. After spending a decent amount of time with him, Tifa decided he had the mentality of an eleven year old. He truly had no desire to kill or destroy; his only real fault was a blinding ignorance to following whatever Sephiroth asked of him.
The silver man clapped his hands and continued with nonstop petting.
"Looks like you've made a new friend," Tifa smiled as Loz beamed at her words. "I don't think he's going to leave your side at all."
"He's family now. And everything feels warm, just like you said!" The clone was overwhelmed with a never experienced, new happiness. "I'm going to call him puppy."
"Protect him," Tifa started to say but trailed off in heartbroken thought. The returning memories of her failure cut into her like a knife as the woman's face cracked with watering eyes.
Loz's concern made him stop what he was doing. He approached her with sadness and Puppy followed, adorably jumping up Tifa's legs. "What's wrong sister?"
"Nothing" Tifa lied, wiping her eyes while kneeling to pet the dog; she was always a sucker for animals. He looked at her with understanding eyes and a happy wagging tail. It was enough to return the woman back to a neutral state of apathy as she again pushed away the haunting dead.
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Tifa was restless tonight; after her unexpectedly pleasant afternoon with Loz, she had spent the remainder of her spare time on a bizarre contraceptive hunt. It had been one day, give or take, since she ran out of birth Control. Now destroying her bathroom a second time, she was throwing laundry baskets and thrash cans with angry huffs. The fist fighter knew she misplaced a packet somewhere. "Please pleas please," Tifa mumbled as her rampage continued. But she froze suddenly, remembering her forgotten office and how she often misplaced things there.
Hurrying over to the connected 7th heaven, Tifa flipped through the junk drawers of her old accounting space. She accidentally knocked over an old coffee cup in the process and cursed loudly. The woman lifted up soaked papers with serious frustration and kicked the table covered in her liquid mess. The action knocked over a pencil holder and out dropped several pens and a full months birth control sheet.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!" Tifa screamed with irritation and mixed relief. "What the hell was I thinking putting that there?" The fist fighter eyes suddenly widened with a dangerous idea, dangerous because it involved deception and complex repercussions. It did however offer a chance to get the upper hand on Sephiroth.
But before Tifa could properly digest her catch-22, an unexpected knocking at the bars door interrupted her debatable thoughts.
Tifa's heartbeat thumped with fear at the unexpected visitor. She tried to reassure herself that it had to be Loz. And Loz was completely harmless. Nevertheless she walked towards the entrance, grabbing her hidden bat on the way just in case.
Knocking continued a second time and Tifa moved closer. Her hands hesitated at the doorknob, shaking.
With no hole to peak through, the fist fighter prepared herself for a worst-case scenario. "It's not Sephiroth," Tifa kept replaying in her head. "There is no way it's Sephiroth." With a deep breath she opened the door and stood in a defensive position.
But Tifa dropped the bat and her eyes melted.
"Surprise," Vincent couldn't help but smile as the woman's mouth dropped.
She flung herself into his arms, legs around his waist, and pressed against her gun wielder with furious relief. Vincent grabbed underneath her thighs for support, embracing together in reunited bliss; fueling an instant warmth.
"You're early," Tifa whispered with a teasing arousal as she buried her face into the gunslingers hair. "I missed you," was all he could respond with.
They were finally alone.
Vincent carried Tifa inside the 7th Heaven and his body temperature multiplied as she wrapped her legs tighter against him.
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A/N: Hey awesome people! I apologize for the hiatus but I had to rework SO MUCH of this. All the previous chapters have been completely edited and I'm hoping to have the next one finished soon. Heh, dare I say an explosive Lemon is coming up? I really appreciate the continued support. Get ready because shit is about to go down here. Hope you enjoy and please do leave a review.