CHAPTER SIX

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

It was late in the afternoon when they reached Wutai area. Halfway toward Wutai Kadaj, Yazoo and Loz refused to proceed any further on their bikes, something to do with protecting their identities, and decided to walk the rest of the way on foot, to Yuffie's annoyance. They hid their bikes in a cave somewhere up the mountains and traversed the rocky and mountainous paths leading down to Wutai, with Yuffie most of the time stumbling on the way and throwing sour looks at the three silver-haired brothers, neither of whom paid her the slightest attention if she found difficult surmounting a particularly treacherous path or toppled to the ground when her feet collided with a rock jutting out from the ground.

After four long torturous hours, they finally reached Wutai, with a disheveled and sweating Yuffie trailing behind. Judging by how dark it already was Yuffie suspected they had planned to arrive at exactly this time so as not drawing too much attention to themselves. Well whatever their intentions were, she hoped they'd find somewhere to stay for the night. Her stomach was gnawing with hunger (she hadn't eating anything all day except some rations Kadaj had given her during their journey) and she felt so dirty she was in desperate need of a bath.

"Are you sure this would turn out to be the right place?" Kadaj asked frowningly, as they made their way through the town.

"I don't know. The children here might still remember us but we'd be able to keep undercover if we don't come out in the open during daylight," Yazoo said simply.

"Unless under a disguise, I guess," Loz provided.

"Still I don't think we can stay here for long. So, where are we staying?" said Kadaj.

"We'd stay at the inn temporarily until Loz finds us an accommodation. Fortunately, we didn't lodge there the last time we came to Wutai."

"And why does it always have to be me?"

"Don't complain, Loz. Anyway, you're good at that kind of stuff."

Loz looked disgruntled but he didn't reply.

Yuffie, who was walking slowly behind them, was not paying the slightest bit of attention to what they were saying and was busy surveying her homeland with absolute dread. Whatever had she done to merit this? She had run furiously from Wutai, only to be brought back forcibly by three dangerous, or better still, evil silver-haired creatures. She shivered visibly at the prospect of meeting her father. Perhaps she should run away now while the others weren't paying attention to her. But one look at Kadaj and the others she knew it was futile. They were unnaturally sharp and she knew instinctively that they was aware of her every move even though their backs were turned to her.

Yuffie sometimes wondered how Godo must have felt the day he discovered that she run away. Not that she cared that much but she couldn't stop thinking what his reaction would be if he saw her come back with this people. Just thinking about it was depressing. What's more, she was beginning to feel sick again and her legs were becoming heavy to walk with. She was impatient for them to get to the inn.

On their way to the inn, Yuffie had the uneasy feeling of being watched by unseen eyes but when she turned around to check for any odd looking person, she saw only a few people ambling up and down the street looking supremely unconcerned. Probably it was just her imagination playing tricks on her.

Yuffie was highly relieved when they finally located the inn and moved inside. It was somewhat different from what Yuffie remembered, a bit antediluvian but with a more homely aspect. The foyer was arrayed with pot plants, flowers and antique ornaments and old a few paintings depicting nature. The furniture looked old but well care for.

Yuffie and Kadaj waited by the entrance while Yazoo and Loz moved towards a middle-aged woman wearing a kimono with iron-grey hair and a permanently kind smiling face standing behind the counter. Yuffie had never seen the woman before. It seemed she was the new innkeeper.

The woman looked up at their approach and unconsciously closed the magazine she had been reading. The smile on her face widened slightly.

"Welcome, Sir. How may I be of service to you?"

Yazoo looked momentarily at Loz, who gave him a curt nod. "We'd like a room for our entire party."

She looked over at others. "I see. I'm sorry but we don't have any more rooms large enough to accommodate all of you."

"Fine, then we'll have two rooms."

"Would you like the traditional setting or the modern setting?"

"Modern, please."

She took a registration form from the neat stack on the counter and pushed it towards him, together with a pen.

"Please fill this, sir."

Meanwhile, while Yazoo was busy filling the form, Yuffie's eyes drifted over the place, a small frown forming on her face.

"Why didn't you simply make a reservation? It would have been faster."

"Like we had the time," Kadaj snarled.

"The inn looks nice though I think it's a bit old fashioned, don't you think?"

Kadaj didn't say anything. He looked sulky for some reason.

Yuffie's searching eyes came to rest a large rectangular paper fixed to the wall. It looked very old and tattered around the edges. An ancient poetry was scribbled on it and the illustrations looked prehistoric though fairly fascinating.

Meanwhile, Yazoo had finished filling the form and handed it back to the innkeeper. She glanced over it then made a small notation.

"You'd be staying for about a week I presume. That's 500 gils a night for both rooms. They aren't that big but very comfortable and both rooms have adjoining bathrooms."

"It would do."

She turned towards a board fixed to the wall where several keys were displayed. After a short search, she picked two silver keys.

"I'll accompany you to your rooms. This way please." She came around the counter and moved towards the door on the right. Yazoo motioned for Kadaj and Yuffie to join them.

They ascended two flights of stairs and moved down a narrow hallway to the last two doors. The woman stopped at the door to the left and inserted the key into the lock. She opened the door and gestured them inside. The room wasn't that large but it was warm and cozy and had two medium-size beds.

The woman gave the keys to Yazoo. "The other room is just opposite. If you're hungry, we have a restaurant downstairs and it's open from eight to eleven everyday. You can always ask for room service if you prefer to eat in private. If you want anything, my assistant, Yuka and I are always available. Just call the reception with the phone over there -" she pointed to the phone on the bedside table in-between the two beds, "- There's a card with all important phone numbers by the phone. Enjoy your stay."

She bowed respectfully and turned to leave but Yazoo stopped her before she reached the doorway.

"Can I have a word, outside?"

"Yes."

Yazoo gave his backpack to Loz and went out of the room with the innkeeper. Loz dropped his and Yazoo's bags in a corner and sat down on one of the beds. Kadaj went over to the window and began talking to Loz, leaving Yuffie standing awkwardly near the door.

Yuffie looked longingly at the unoccupied bed. It looked so soft and comfy she wished she could just flop down on it and go to sleep.

After only a few minutes Yazoo returned. Kadaj and Loz's conversation stopped abruptly and they looked inquiringly at Yazoo.

"You told her about our request?" Kadaj asked, stepping away from the window.

"Yes. I think she understands our demands."

"Then we're secured?" said Loz, smiling.

"Maybe."

"As long as she doesn't admit anyone there's no need to worry, right Yazoo?" Kadaj grinned.

Yuffie stared at them in utter confusion. Whatever were they talking about?

"By the way, Kadaj," said Yazoo in a sudden drawling tone, "Loz and I are taking this room. You and the brat can have the other." He tossed the key over to Kadaj.

"Brat, huh?" Yuffie mumbled angrily under her breath.

"Fine. Come, let's go," Kadaj said to Yuffie.

Yuffie followed Kadaj out of the room and saw Loz talking animatedly to Yazoo, who was rummaging through his backpack, before the door closed.

"Say, when are you guys ever going to use my name. It's Yuffie you know," said Yuffie crossly, as Kadaj unlocked the door to their room.

Kadaj simply ignored her and went inside but Yuffie didn't follow him. The room was much the same like the previous one except that it was smaller and decorated with artificial flowers.

Kadaj dropped his backpack at a corner and was about to unzip it when he noticed Yuffie standing by the doorway with no intention of coming in.

"What are you waiting for?"

"I just realized that we're really going to be sleeping in the same room."

"Looks like it, doesn't it?" he replied coolly.

"Don't you think it's inappropriate?"

"And why is that?" Kadaj frowned.

Yuffie shrugged. "Simply because girls and boys don't share the same room."

"So, what were you expecting?"

"Well, I thought I would be having a room of my own, see," said Yuffie sheepishly. She didn't know why she sounded selfish, if not downright childish.

"You expect me, Yazoo and Loz to share one room while you have one all to yourself?"

Yuffie turned slightly pink. "But isn't it a basic that girls don't sleep in the same room with boys?"

"Well, isn't this an exception," he replied sarcastically.

"But we can't -"

"Whatever."

She glared at him. "Fine, have it your way then."

Yuffie marched purposefully across the room. Kadaj stared at her.

"What are you doing?"

"Obvious isn't it? I'm going to have a shower," she replied snappishly, pulling open the door of bathroom.

Kadaj stared at her for a few seconds, and then looked away indifferently and resumed what he was doing. Yuffie felt her hackles rising.

"And don't bother to rescue me if I'm drowning," she yelled and stamped her foot.

"I wasn't going to," Kadaj replied nonchalantly without looking at her.

Yuffie was so full of rage she couldn't find the words to express her anger. She gave Kadaj a look of utmost loathing and, with an angry noise, marched furiously into the bathroom and slammed the door with such force the windows rattled.

oOoOo

A mysterious figure lurked in the shadows, his eyes focusing intently on the inn's entrance where three unusual silver-haired men and a skinny black-haired girl had walked through moments before. He'd been watching the group since their entrance into Wutai where he had station himself in the hope of getting any clue for his investigation. And it seem he'd finally found it.

He pulled out a black and white photograph from his overcoat and looked at it. It looked alike but he wasn't certain. They might resemble but be utterly different. He had come across such situation before. And there was nothing unusual or suspicious about the group. He looked back at the inn where the new innkeeper emerged out of the inn with an elderly couple.

There was no need to contact his employer about his suspicions for the meantime. He would supervise the inn closely from now on and if he was lucky, he'd find the evidence he needed.

It was useless supervising the inn today. It was already late and there was no chance that anyone of the group would be coming out again. He disappeared into the shadows, determined to be back the next day.

oOoOo

Aiko waved the aged couple goodbye as they ambled down the street towards their home. They were old family friends and had come over for a visit. When the couple had disappeared from view, Aiko surveyed the area suspiciously. There was nothing unusual about illuminated street or the frequent passers-by but she had a niggling suspicion that someone had been watching her. She peered into the shadows but she found nothing peculiar. Perhaps it was just her imagination…or was it?

Pushing the thought to the back of her mind, she strolled back into the inn and closed the doors firmly behind her.

oOoOo

It seemed a good idea, at first. The invigorating hot spray felt so good and relaxing on her tense muscles but Yuffie had only finished soaping herself when she began to feel really weak and dizzy. She placed her hands on the wall to support herself because her legs were quivering badly and felt heavy to stand on. She closed her eyes for several seconds and wished the sick feeling would disappear but it only seemed to worsen. Something thick was rising rapidly in her throat and before she knew it, she fell on her knees and emptied the contents of her stomach right there in the bathtub. It left her trembling horribly. She closed her eyes as she retched again.

After a while, she got to her feet and wiped her mouth with back of her hand. She felt a little better. She didn't know why she was beginning to feeling ill all of a sudden. Perhaps she hadn't recovered fully as she had originally thought.

Yuffie finished shampooing her hair then turned off the shower and got out but she had only finished toweling herself dry when she began to feel sick again. Not having the energy to put on her clothes in the basket by the door, she quickly put on her underwear and slipped into one of the bathrobes hanging on the wall before stepping out of the bathroom.

"You're finally out," Yuffie heard Kadaj say the instant she walked into the room. He was sitting crossed legged on the bed and staring transfixed at her. On the bed before him was a set of clothes he'd evidently gotten out of his backpack.

"I was beginning to worry that you had actually carried out you're threat and was drowning in there," he said mockingly.

"How touching," said Yuffie acidly.

She wondered why he was peering oddly at her. Anyway she was too tired to guess what was going on in his mind. All she wanted to do was go to sleep.

Yuffie wandered to the other bed and flopped down on it with a sigh. She buried her face in the pillow and ran her hands over the sheets aimlessly. It felt so soft.

"Are you hungry?" Kadaj asked unexpectedly. He didn't want to feel any concerned for her but seeing her looking so pale and unhealthily lean made him feel that the long journey had actually taken its physical toll her. She was a human after all and unlike him and his brothers her resistance and physical abilities were very limited.

Yuffie's reply was muffled in the pillow and she waved a dismissive hand at him. Her desire for food seemed to have evaporated entirely.

Perhaps she needed to rest more that anything, Kadaj thought. He picked the clothes on the bed and headed for the bathroom.

oOoOo

"Do you think it's okay for them to share the same room?" asked Loz, toweling his hair dry.

"Kadaj wanted to keep her so she's his responsibility," replied Yazoo disinterestedly. He was already in his black silk pyjamas and skimming through the magazine on Loz's bed.

"Do you know the reason why Kadaj wants to keep her?"

"Hm, I would really like to know," said Yazoo pensively.

"Probably he'd get rid of her once he has what he wants. You know how kadaj is," Loz grinned mischievously, slinging the towel around his neck and grabbing it by the ends.

"I'm no longer sure about that," Yazoo sighed. He threw the magazine aside.

"Say, aren't you going to order dinner?" Loz asked suddenly, looking away.

A slow smile spread over Yazoo's face. "Are you hungry?"

"No," Loz retorted quickly, tugging the ends of the towel nervously. "I was just asking."

At the wrong moment, Loz stomach growled loudly. He turned slightly pink as Yazoo laughed softly.

"So you are hungry."

"Yeah, whatever. And it's not funny," he said angrily at Yazoo's prolonged laughter.

"Okay, I'd order something," said Yazoo gaily, reaching for the phone.

Loz beamed. "What of Kadaj?"

"Well, he'd simply have to fend for himself…and the brat."

oOoOo

Kadaj stepped into his and Yuffie's room, drying his wet hair with a towel. He was shirtless and wearing only the pants of his pyjamas. Yuffie was already fast asleep and hadn't bothered to change out of the bathrobe, probably because she was just too tired…or she didn't have anything thing else to wear. The only clothes she had were skimpy and worn out. Maybe he should take her to a dress shop.

He walked quietly across the room towards her, absent-mindedly discarding the towel on a chintz chair. His eyes roamed over Yuffie's sleeping form and though he wasn't willing to admit it a small part of him thought she actually looked adorably innocent curled on the bed with her jet-black hair falling all over her unusually pale face. The bathrobe she was wearing had ridden up to her thighs and had slipped off her shoulder to expose more of her chest. Yuffie moaned in her sleep and twisted restlessly on the bed a bit, and then remained calm again, making the bathrobe slip open even more.

Averting his gaze and feeling very uneasy, Kadaj tucked her in properly as gentle as he could without waking her up. Despite himself, he brushed the hair strands away from her sweaty forehead. Yuffie stirred and he drew his hand back instantly. She mumbled something unintelligible and grinned dreamily but didn't wake up.

Somehow he'd grown used to having her around. She was sort of amusing and a bit too boisterous but the reason why he'd kept her with them was getting vaguer. At first, he had thought she would prove useful to get information about Cloud and probably use her as bait if necessary. She was also a perfect study to see where humans got that indomitable power they seem to possess when they were in a group united by a strong friendship, but it seemed nothing of that really mattered to him anymore. He just wanted her to hang around, at least for now.

Kadaj stepped away from her, a feeling of mortification settling in him. Maybe Yazoo was right. He should have gotten rid of her when he had the chance.

-0-

Finally done with chapter 5 & 6. Could have posted it a long while ago but by some bad luck, both my computers crashed and...welll...you know...anyway expect a lot more action in the coming chapters and please, please, please review.