Disclaimer: I do not own any of the FFVII characters, places, etc.

Chapter 10: Favors

Reeve tossed aside a recent report and hunted for his official stamp. Where had he put it again? It was to the left of those reports on Edge, somewhere around his inbox. Wait, where had his inbox gone. He peeked beneath a precarious tower of information, and was only aware of how precarious it was when it tumbled to the ground. Sighing and falling back in dejection, he gazed vacantly across his office.

When had it gotten this way? He couldn't remember the last time he'd actually socialized with anyone, or attended an annual Christmas party or holiday gathering. Hell, he couldn't remember the last time he'd eaten lunch with someone on something other then a business meeting. Passing a hand over his eyes, he glanced towards the wall with a picture of the red mesas in Cosomo Canyon. Enlarged he could tell that the angle was a little crooked, and taken by an inexperienced photographer. The brilliant glare of light to one side was a giveaway.

Marlene had taken that picture for him when she was much younger, after a visit to his office with Barret, who was there on business. The child had been appalled that he had no windows and only glaring fluorescent light. Marlene and her father had been on their way to visit Red in the Canyons, and while the girl had despaired at there being little greenery, Reeve had assured her it was just the window he needed.

The phone shrilled for attention. Reeve pinched his nose bridge and drew two meditative breaths. Reaching out, he braced himself for whatever was on the other end.

"Reeve," he said evenly.

"What the hell kind of original answer is that?" snorted a woman. Reeve hesitated a moment. "It's me! Hello in there! What, did you forget me already? It's only been five years!"

"Yuffie!" Reeve instantly smiled. "I haven't talked to you in three months! How are you doing?"

"Well, all my body parts are workin', so I guess things must be okay," her voice intoned the shrug he couldn't see. He laughed.

"I'm glad to hear it. And your sons?"

"A bundle of energy as usual. How about you? Any girls?" Yuffie prodded. Since being married, she had an insistent prod that he should look to settle down now too. He suspected it was because he was coming up on forty and still didn't even have a steady girlfriend.

"Not even a nibble."

"Uh huh, and how long are you spending in the office every day?"

"Yuffie…"

"Really. How many hours?"

"Around fourteen…"

"See, that's your problem right there. You only have ten hours in a day left and eight of that should be sleeping, except you're probably working at home late into the night. Come on, tell gramma Yuffie," she made her voice hoarse with age.

"Yes mother. You should save all your hounding for your sons. They won't be so easy to manage as they get older. Look at their mother," he cautioned.

"Oh, trust me. I'm ready for some excitement. My whole world is an office," Yuffie bemoaned, her voice dramatic. "In fact, that's part of the reason I called. I know, I'll eat my words. Neither of us can get away from work."

"Mm. What's happening in Wutai?"

"Nothing good. The usual mess. But I did have a favor to ask."

"I'm at your disposal," Reeve almost made a regal bow. "You are an Empress after all."

"Yeah, well, don't make me order you on two weeks of vacation. It really wouldn't benefit me right now," Yuffie sniffed.

"Your wish is my command."

"I need you to send someone underground here in Wutai. The elite ninja are all being wasted around here, and they couldn't find anything if it hit them in the face," she groused.

"Hey, I'm an elite," complained a voice on the other end.

"You're royal. We're not allowed to leave the castle," she said back. Reeve thought he recognized the man as one of Yuffie's many half siblings.

"Let's see who we have here," Reeve said, immediately going through potential spies for Yuffie. He dug through the pages on his desk and found his keyboard, managing through another miracle to locate the mouse. "What sort of underground are you looking at?"

"I need a man," Yuffie said. "Someone who could fit in as a sort of nasty tourist…I'll have him investigating the sex trade here," she explained. Reeve nodded. There were still lingering problems there with former Shinra clients and stockholders using the completely defeated Wutai as a land of paradise and pleasure. Many ugly trades had been brought there.

"Okay…I'm looking through my male operatives now," Reeve told her, skimming through their records. His eye caught on an e-mail popup from one Reno. "Hold on for just a moment, Yuffie."

"Take your time. I'll just rot over here."

"Great, now you have time to drink your tea. Come on, down the hatch," insisted the brotherly tone. Reeve smiled as he opened the e-mail. The content surprised him.

"Yuffs, have you seen Elena out there recently? I just got e-mail from the Turks, saying she was supposed to be headed out there to talk with your husband about some international relations between Shinra and Wutai. This was apparently a week ago."

"She'd been in the south," Yuffie answered. "My husband conducts all business during the winter in the south. I haven't seen or heard about her, no. If you want to hold on for a minute, I'll see what I can find. Shuya, gimme my cell phone. I left it in my bag over there," Yuffie instructed, pulling the receiver away from her face.

Reeve waited patiently, sifting through operatives in the mean time. Yuffie set the receiver down and seemed to be pawing through documents as she spoke to her husband, using rapid fire Wutain. Reeve caught a number of questions in her voice as she spoke, and then she hung up.

"I'm going to check with the police for you briefly. Give me another minute." Yuffie sounded mildly disconcerted in her update to him. In about fifteen minutes, she came back on. "The hotel she was supposed to check into says she didn't come back for her luggage on the third day," Yuffie told him grimly. "They filed a missing persons report for her. I'm sending you the report right now."

"Thanks. I'll forward it to Reno."

"Hmm…same M.O. as all the others…have Reno call me. Tell Shinra I'm willing to cooperate in the investigation if they'll help me bring down the organization that's doing this," Yuffie instructed. Reeve frowned.

"Are you sure that's wise?" he heard the question mirrored by her brother. Yuffie just laughed.

"Well, Reno and Rude are sure to upset things enough for me to get out of this fucking tower long enough to investigate these boils in Wutai society," Yuffie said almost maniacally. Reeve had no doubt that she was anxious to leave. As far as he knew, she hadn't left Wutai in five years.

"Alright," Reeve nodded. "I'll have them do that."

"Thanks, Reeve. I've got to go and see what else I can get done around here," Yuffie sighed, suddenly sounding a might tired.

"Are you doing alright?" Reeve asked. Yuffie laughed.

"Sure, Reeve. I'm dandy. Thanks for your help. I'll talk to you later," she hung up before Reeve could protest. He hated how false she could be, but knew better then to say anything about it. Yuffie was an Empress, and there was nothing he could do about that. Her burdens were much like his, except she couldn't resign.