Author's Note: Hi guys! Sorry for the really long wait, but I had a really bad spell of writer's block on everything. My twin sis kept nagging me to update this, so I did, lol!!! Again, sorry for the wait and I really hope you like it!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Leeta seemed to be gone for the duration of length. Somewhere amidst the minutes since her colleague's panicked departure, Maya had slid her hand beneath Reno's neck, cradling his head on her lap and rocking back and forth gently. Where was Tseng? Normally he would have been there in a matter of seconds; he already knew that Reno had been coughing recently.
As though reading her thoughts, another fit of coughing racked the slender body of the redhead; painful sounding coughs that died almost as soon as they had arrived. His breath was raspy and sounded as though it were struggling; this bout was worse than the last few. Five months; that's how long Reno had been free of his own blood.
"Maya …"
The brunette blinked as she heard the uncertain voice; she'd forgotten Cissnei was standing in the hall behind her, watching. Glancing over her shoulder, the older Turk noticed just how young the fifteen-year-old actually looked with her confused amber eyes. Maya flashed a smile that brimmed with a confidence she wished to feel.
"It's okay Cissnei …"
Her voice trailed off as footsteps rushed up the hallway from both sides; a blur of white advanced from the elevator at one end as a contrasting barrage of black suits rushed from the other.
Medics, with the SOLDIER emblem on the breast of their white coats surrounded her kneeling frame. A rush of people and Reno was lifted from his friend's cradling embrace. A drip here and an IV tube there; the SOLDIER medics were well-used to the redheaded Turk being on their patient list.
Strong, unknown arms seemed to half-lift, half-drag her from her kneeling position as more and more newbies reached the hallway, wanting to know what was going on. Keeno and Yarth were soon on damage-control, chaperoning them back away from the medics.
"Maya, stand up …"
The arms became more forceful, pulling the young Turk to her feet as the still-unknown frame behind her started walking, pushing her ahead of him with long, purposeful strides. She recognised the voice, but it wasn't the person Leeta had run to find.
"W-where's Tseng?"
"He's on an urgent assignment to Banora with SOLDIER."
Maybe it was because of their little shouting match not all that long ago, but Maya didn't exactly feel at ease with Veld frog-marching her towards the elevators. She looked back towards where Yarth and Keeno were still directing the newbies, only to see a rather confused-looking Cissnei.
"Cissnei, stay with Leeta!"
Obviously Veld had seen her too and took the initiative to command the lost girl before the elevator doors closed. The door of the left elevator slid shut, cutting off her view of the medics. They'd head down to the forty-ninth floor in order to use SOLDIER's medical wing.
The confused banter of the Turk-hopefuls was abruptly silenced as Veld steered her into the right-side elevator and the doors slid shut. More seconds of silence as her commander pressed the appropriate floor button and the leaned against the wall with his arms folded.
The quiet of the enclosed space seemed to exceed the elevator's confines as the silence rang loudly. It was now that Maya began to regret her spiteful words concerning Veld's deceased daughter. It had seemed a tactful question at the time, but she knew her commander didn't like anyone mentioning his little girl, or his part in her death.
"I'm sorry, sir. I was out of place in your office."
A curt nod was her only answer as Veld remained standing against the wall. A slight shift of the floor indicated that they had reached the forty-ninth floor of the Shinra building; the SOLDIER floor. This floor, the next one and fifty-first floor all belonged to the SOLDIER department of Shinra; three whole floors compared the Turks' singular level. It seemed to be a superfluous sign of their funding.
Despite the bitter feelings between the two departments concerning funding, Veld had recently come to an agreement with the SOLDIER Director, Lazard; Turks were now permitted use of the holographic training rooms granted that no SOLDIERs were using them. That's where she and Reno had been when he'd accidentally given her a hair cut. The doors opened and the two Turks stepped out onto the busy floor.
The sensation of someone walking into her left side jolted Maya back to her senses; the SOLDIER floor was in complete disarray. People ran in every direction, all with purpose in their haste; medics passed with bloodied sheets and vital potions.
What had happened?
"Genesis defected from us and took most of our 3rd Classes and over half our 2nds with him."
Zack's words rang in her mind; had Genesis caused this? Veld's arms pushed her forward yet again. The man seemed completely unfazed by the panic around him; no doubt he'd already spoken with Lazard about the situation. That would explain why Tseng was on assignment with a SOLDIER.
A doctor seemed to materialise before the two suited individuals as Maya continued to take in the pandemonium that consumed the SOLDIER floor. Another push at her back, and Veld had her walking after the doctor. She thought that the white-coated man had spoken to her commander, but the brunette had been too preoccupied with watching the people flit by to hear his words.
Two familiar faces stood outside the medical ward of the SOLDIER floor; one a male and the other female. Veld halted for a few seconds and curtly issued orders to the two returned Turks; they were to stand guard and alert him if Hojo was in the vicinity. So that was why Keigo and Gun had been recalled from Junon. The two immediately nodded and stood on either side of the doorway.
The medical ward was the fullest she'd ever seen it, with almost all beds occupied by battle-weary individuals in need of something more than a Cure. One of the younger doctors approached them; the same doctor that had treated Reno in the past.
"We've stabilised him now Veld, but the poisoning was considerably more advanced than the last time. Odds are it'll get a lot worse before it gets better."
The young doctor, Josh, had been 'recruited' from Mideel due to his expertise in treating Mako poisoning; a trait that was coveted by the Shinra Electric Power Company. When Veld raised a questioning eyebrow, the young man continued his talking, eyes flitting through the medical files in his hands; most likely Reno's.
"Reno, despite being one of your best, is still a teenage boy. At his age, hormones are at their heightened peak along with various chemicals in his body's composition. With all this, it's more than likely that his red-blood cell count will decrease as the Mako infested cells will feed off of hormones. In a nutshell, we were able to stabilise this bout of poisoning, but if it gets much worse … odds are there will be very little I can do for him."
The commander's eyes didn't give away any worry he might have been feeling as he registered the doctor's words, a sharp contrast to the worry that immediately pierced Maya's. As the brown-haired teenager walked up to her friend's form lying in the hospital bed, Veld walked towards the door, indicating for Josh to follow him, which the young man did.
"Was there something else, Veld?"
"Is there anything Reno can do to prevent the poisoning becoming worse in future?"
Taking a few seconds to run through the youngster's medical history file in his hand, the Mideel-native took note of a few points and nodded his head of dark brown.
"For one, he could quit his smoking; it's hardly doing a boy his age any favours in the long-run. If he quit, it would be less pressure on his lungs. Can I ask what triggered this bout?"
"He's been coughing for a few days now, but it was most probably running from Scarlet the day before yesterday and breaking up a fight between her and Maya yesterday morning."
"There was a fight between Scarlet and Maya?"
One look at the young doctor's somewhat shocked face made Veld shake his head and let loose a long, tired sigh as he ran a hand through his dark hair.
"Don't even ask, Josh."
Another sigh as the doctor walked off to deal with his many other patients; the SOLDIER medical ward was almost full to capacity for once. Gun and Keigo stood outside the ward, guarding like suited sentinels following their orders just as Turks were supposed to. Not one word had been spoken back to him by the pair when he recalled them from Junon and explained their newest mission of guarding one of their own, just nods. Why couldn't his two best Turks take a leaf from their colleagues?
His temper had gotten the better of him earlier. Maya had had no right to speak such words, but he should have just quietly dismissed her from the office, not shouted as he had. It was true that Cissnei was very young to be recruited, but she was a talent that the Turks couldn't afford to overlook. Looking over to the limp form of Reno lying motionless with numerous drips attached to him, the bereaved father's gaze softened. Why couldn't that boy stay out of trouble for once in his life and think of his health?
Four years had done nothing to bring equilibrium to the youth's blood-Mako ratio. Being caught in that Mako explosion had wrought serious internal problems on the boy. His red blood cells were now at war with Mako-infested cells; he could go anything from weeks to months without any trouble, but when the Mako cells began to outnumber his ordinary blood cells, the redhead contracted severe Mako poisoning from his own blood.
Judging from the look on the young doctor's face, Veld reckoned he would be needed her for a while as Reno underwent a blood transfusion yet again. They needed to get his red blood cell count back up higher than the Mako cells, and he just happened to have the same blood type as the teenager. The only other person with the same blood type as the redhead was the President's son, Rufus, and Veld doubted the heir would be too keen on helping out a dispensable Turk.
As a familiar figure of blonde and red strode into the medical ward, most likely to check on the damaged weapons of the injured SOLDIERs, Veld strode over to Maya; the last thing he needed was another cat fight to break up.
"Maya, go for a walk and I'll call you when she leaves."
A confused air clouded the youngster's eyes for a few seconds before she noticed who had just entered the ward. Muscles stiffened as her eyes hardened; it was Scarlet's fault that Reno was in this state! A firm shake of her arm and hazel eyes were looking at her with a stern plea. Sighing, Maya headed for the door of the ward, trying to drown out the sound of the blonde's telltale laugh.
"Yeah, I'll tell her. Just get back in one piece!"
A laugh on the other end of the line as Zack agreed to the terms of the agreement and then hung up. Kunsel frowned as he heard the unmistakable sound of explosions in the background; just what was his friend doing in Banora?
This side of the SOLDIER floor wasn't half as busy as over by the medical wing, and one of the guys had mentioned that a Turk was now occupying one of the beds. Why exactly one of the assassins would need a SOLDIER doctor, he didn't know, but it must have been serious; SOLDIER's head doctor specialised in treating Mako poisoning.
Almost as though responding to his thoughts, the young man caught a glimpse of someone familiar sitting in the Materia room. There were no white-coated personnel currently creating new Materia as the healing of SOLDIERs was the department's top priority. That aside, it was the presence of a black pants and once-white shirt that piqued the 2nd Class's interest.
As the door slid open with a hiss, Kunsel smiled; the glimpse he'd caught through the tinted window was definitely her, but what was she doing on the SOLDIER floor?
"Maya, Whatcha doing down here?"
A shrug was his answer as the younger girl's eyes remained staring into space; her thoughts obviously elsewhere. If he had known better, Kunsel reckoned she hadn't realised his identity. Zack had said she'd been worried abut him when he told her of Genesis taking most of their forces. He'd been meaning to go up to the Turk floor but things in SOLDIER were just too hectic over the last couple of days.
"Hojo captured me and now I have three arms …"
Still no reply, just a nod of her head, as though he'd asked her a simple mundane question.
"I have to go down to the Slums and tell Aerith that Zack won't be back until late, you coming?"
Another nod, but no inclination that she'd registered his question about heading for the Sector 5 Slums to speak with their friend's girlfriend. Frowning at the young Turk, Kunsel narrowed his eyes behind his helmet's visor and sharply clapped his hands together.
"Kunsel, what the hell d'you do that for?"
Maya started with fright and trained her accusing glare up at him. Smiling happily, the 2nd Class SOLDIER looked down at the brunette.
"What did I just say, Maya?"
"Something about Hojo having three arses?"
"Close enough … now move over."
Laughing lightly, the SOLDIER sat down beside the Turk and waited for a few seconds, closing his eyes and bracing himself for an onslaught. He began mentally counting down from five, already knowing what to expect from the younger teen beside him. Four, three, two … one-
"Kunsel! Why didn't you tell me about Genesis and why didn't you ring or text or at least show up on the Turk floor to let me know you were okay? You jerk! I had to find out from Zack, and where is Zack; I haven't seen him for a few days now and did you say something about Aer-"
"Maya, breathe!"
The SOLDIER had clamped a hand over mouth and cut across her voice mid-question. How she had managed to get all that out in one breath was beyond his knowledge, but he could feel a headache coming on if she continued. When she got mad she usually just yelled, but she was worried about something. When she was worried was the only time Maya would ramble on like that without stopping for breath. Running his mind over the numerous questions she had asked, the 2nd Class answered them all, albeit in a much slower voice than she had posed the queries.
"I didn't tell you about Genesis because I was out on the battlefront near Wutai and I didn't text or ring or whatever else you said because I was in the medical ward up until last night. Zack told you I was fine to stop you worrying your butt off and coming down here. He's in Banora right now and won't be back until later tonight and I mentioned Aerith because I have to let her know that he won't be back until late. Now, what's worrying you?"
"Zack's in Banora? So is Tseng."
"Zack said everything was fine and they're on their way back now. Is that what was bothering you?"
Maya shook her head slowly; she'd heard what Josh had said to Veld about Reno. If he got any worse, then they wouldn't be able to do anything; did that mean he would die? But Reno couldn't die because … well, because he was Reno! He wasn't even supposed to be getting sick; if he hadn't pushed her away and tried to get rid of that Mako bomb, then he'd be just fine right now.
"Reno's in your medical wing with Mako poisoning."
Kunsel felt like kicking himself up the butt; of course that was what was worrying her. What other Turk would be sent to the SOLDIER floor's medical ward other that Reno? The kid normally succumbed to Mako poisoning and their head doctor, Josh, was the one to monitor the Turk each time.
Looking to his friend, the 2nd Class SOLDIER felt pity for her; she'd been best friends with the redhead since they were kids and Maya was always seen on the SOLDIER floor when the lad suffered one of his bouts, though it had been a few months since he'd last been down here.
"How is he, May?"
Smirking slightly as she heard the SOLDIER's nickname for her, the young Turk nodded her head as she looked to the ground of the Materia room.
"He's stabilised and Josh reckons he'll be fine, this time …"
"This time?"
There were loads of Materia just left in plain view on shelves, she noticed. Surely that wasn't the most secure place to leave them; someone could just walk in and pilfer what they wanted from the coloured little spheres of power. There were a few red ones aswell; she could really do with getting her hands on a Summon when the missions started up again.
"Josh said his next bout of poisoning will probably be a lot worse and, if it is, he doesn't think he'll be able to do anything about it."
"He'll be fine and you know it May; Reno would never break the promise you two made."
A wanly smile lit up the Turk's face as she nodded her head. His words were exactly what she'd been looking for; a little reassurance. Kunsel had always been a good person for advice, whether it was how to work the e-mail service on her mobile phone, or how to make the best selection of Materia for a battle, he'd always been great help.
"What happened to your shirt?"
Her brown eyes looked to the once-white shirt she was wearing; the red sauce of the shattered jar had long since dried into the fabric. That meant another shirt for the bin as she absently scraped a nail over the crusty residue. When Reno woke up, his first mission would be to clean out her cupboard.
"I got in a fight with my kitchen cupboard."
Standing up, Maya began to fist her hands in her shirt, watching happily as the stain cracked and red flakes descended to the tiled floor beneath her feet; there was a lovely pale stain left on the shirt despite her cleaning efforts. Bending slightly, she next set to work on the pants of her uniform, which had been equally attacked by the sauce, but at least the black trousers wouldn't stain as easily as the shirt. As she did so, Kunsel's eyes focused on the silver chain dangling around her neck, it's pendant responding to gravity and pointing towards the floor.
"You still wear that thing?"
A confused look before Maya realised what he was talking about; the silver necklace Reno found such entertainment in stealing. She lifted the silver pendant of the chain and studied it for a second, nodding her head. It really was an odd necklace; the pendant was the shape of a single wing with five small jewels set in its top section.
"Why? It's worthless, Maya. I was only on a 3rd Class wage back then."
"I don't care what it's worth, I like it and it's unusual; no one else I know has one."
"And they won't either; the guy that made them died a few weeks after I bought it. You'd probably get more money if you sold off the pieces of Materia in it."
Maya blinked at his words and studied what she had thought were small gems set into the pendant.
"They're a Materia?"
"Yup, probably useless though; the maker said he couldn't figure out what it did, so set it into the necklace instead. Minerva, how long ago did I buy that?"
"Three years and nine months ago, but who's counting, huh?"
Kunsel smiled at Maya's words; he'd known she would answer, just not as accurately. A whole year; that was why he'd bought her that necklace in the first place. It was a feat that they'd managed it past that milestone as young as they were back then; she'd only been fourteen when they started going out, and him sixteen.
"Hey May, I heard you and Reno are going out now. Congrats and I wish him luck."
Smiling, Maya half-hugged her ex; he always meant well. She doubted if Kunsel had a bad bone in his body and maybe that's why she had gotten bored of him and ended their relationship two months after he'd given her that necklace. It would also explain her next choice in boyfriend, but she'd rather not think of the blond right now.
"Thanks, Kunsel."
As she sat back down beside him, Maya wondered how long more Scarlet could be planning on sauntering around the medical ward. At least Gun and Keigo were stationed on guard outside; that would prevent Hojo from getting a cheap shot at Reno.
"May, I need to ask a favour."
"Go for it, huni."
Smirking, the 2nd Class SOLDIER stretched his long legs out before him, eyes trained on the tips of his boots as he wondered about how to go about his request. In the end, the twenty-year-old sighed and began speaking.
"Zack told you about Genesis taking most of our forces, right?"
"Mmmm hmmm."
"Well, the thing is Genesis and Sephiroth got into a pretty heated fight before he left and, well … when those two get into a fight, it's not as easy as separating you and Scarlet. Especially when Angeal gets in the middle and tries to calm them down."
Maya smiled as she heard this; word seemed to travel pretty fast between the SOLDIER and Turk floors these days. But still, Genesis and Sephiroth fighting didn't sound all that good to her ears.
"Go on …"
"Long story short; the blast went through the training room roof and took out most of our accommodation on the fiftieth floor. We now have about five men squeezed into rooms only supposed to sleep two. I was lucky because Zack offered to let me stay with him as 1st Classes got preference. See, I've seen your Turk accommodation and I was wondering if you'd put me up for a week or two?"
The eighteen-year-old Turk cringed as she registered what he was asking; normally she'd have no problem, but she didn't have a spare room anymore with Cissnei taking it up.
"Kunsel, my spare room isn't so spare anymore; I have a newbie Turk bunking up with me, and she's lodging there … the only thing I can offer is my sofa. I know it's not a bed but it's one of those fold-out ones if that's any good?"
Maya was surprised to see him nodding his helmeted head in the affirmative. Why he didn't want to make use of Zack's offer she didn't know. The duo couldn't have fought because he'd just said Zack was speaking to him on the phone not that long ago.
"Kunsel, why not stay with Zack?"
A sigh emitted from beneath the pointed end of the 2nd Class issued helmet.
"He's been pretty moody since Angeal left with Genesis and I don't want to be crowding him right now, especially after Banora. See, Banora is Angeal and Genesis' hometown, so odds are that Zack's gonna see one of them there and be in a sour mood. I just think it's better to leave him cool off for a bit before getting in his way."
The young Turk nodded her head of brown tresses, letting some of her side-fringe fall into her eyes; he was being a considerate friend. She'd noticed the change in Zack's attitude aswell; he wasn't as joking as he had once been, and nowhere near as carefree as his usual puppy-like self.
Extracting her mobile phone as it vibrated lowly, Maya read the text message she had just received; Scarlet had finally vacated the medical wing, and she was now heading there, but not before answering her SOLDIER ex.
"Then the couch is all your's Kunsel, just wait until later to go up and I'll introduce you to the newbie; she's kind of shy, so she could freak if you just barge in. As for now, I'm heading back to the medical wing, you going to Aerith?"
The uniformed young man nodded his head and stood, mirroring her actions.
"Yeah, but I'll walk with you over to the medical wing first; no need in Scarlet pouncing you, is there? I'd have nowhere to sleep!"
Laughing at his words, Maya walked out of the Materia room with Kunsel in tow, thankful for his tall frame beside her when Scarlet was on the loose. Frowning for a second, the girl remembered some of the words he'd spoken upon entering the Materia room earlier.
"What the hell about Hojo having three arses?"
Kunsel looked down at her and took a breath as though he intended to answer, but then laughed and shook his head, at a loss of what to say; trust her to get the totally wrong message.
A/n- Thanks, as always, for taking the time to read guys!! It really means the world to me!!!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX
Author's Footnote:
1) For anyone who doesn't know, the character "Kunsel" is from Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core. He's a 2nd Class SOLDIER with a very small speaking role, played by Crispin Freeman (Rude). He acts as a tutorial for Zack in the early game, instructing the player about how to control Zack, how to acess the e-mail and store, and telling them what the DMW is. Throughout the game, he and Zack speak in Shinra and converse through e-mails, becoming close friends. In the end of the game, he e-mails Zack, who has escaped from Hojo's lab with Cloud, and tells him of two Shinra fugitives and also of a brave black-haired SOLDIER that people speak of (Zack himself). Kunsel says that he's uneasy with the happenings at Shinra and hints that he intends to leave.
2) Just in case there is any confusion on how to pronounce her name, "Maya" is pronounced phonetically as "My-a". When Kunsel shortens her name to "May", that's spoken as "Mai" or "My".
