Yup, two chapters. I'm on a roll.

If you have any time after reading this, let me know what you think. Characters in character, or at least consistent in the way they behave? Story fairly smooth-no major "wait, where the heck did that come from?" moments? Writers live for reviews. Or maybe it's just me...

Reno awoke to find Si'ara still snuggled down in his arms, asleep. He disentangled himself from her, drawn by the scent of food and slightly bothered by the fact that someone had been able to bring it into the room without waking him up. He shrugged it off—he'd been exhausted, and had slept better than anytime in his recent memory—and dressed.

There were two plates of cold food on the other bed. Some kind of roast meat, potatoes, bread, butter, and beer. He sat and ate, watching Si'ara sleep. She'd rolled over into the spot he'd vacated, but showed no signs of waking up.

What would he do if she'd known of the attack? He didn't want to hurt her—he'd done enough of that already. But if she had information that could have prevented this tragedy… He was relieved that the girl he had hidden there was alive, but it was just good luck. He'd arranged for her to get a job at the new plant when it had opened, confident that working for Shinra was safe now, not the hazard it had been years before. Other than that, he'd done what he could to make North Corel in general a safe and prosperous place. That had fit in with Shin-Ra's plans, so it hadn't been too difficult. Nothing like this attack should have happened.

At that point in his rather circular line of thinking, he realized that his PHS was flashing its "Message Waiting" sign. He flipped it open with a sense of resignation.

Reno. A chopper will arrive mid-morning to transport you and Si'ara to Midgar. Give the guard flying it the location of the buggy-he will see to its disposal. Bring Si'ara directly to Shin-Ra headquarters.

That didn't sound good. He sighed, and set down the plate, then went over to wake Si'ara up so she could eat.

Si'ara glanced at Reno when she heard the sound of the approaching chopper. He moved closer to her, seeing the panic flash in her eyes as she realized that this was her last chance to run.

"They're nice people, Si'ara," he said softly. "Don't do it."

She stared at him, stunned. "You're kidding, right?" She glanced behind them at the farmhouse, where Mirana was hanging clothes on the line while the baby rolled around on a blanket and the toddler chased birds and butterflies. "Reno, tell me you're kidding."

He looked away, watching the chopper's approach, then turned back to her, eyes cold and professional. "Babe," he said softly, "I don't bluff. Ever. I have to get you to Midgar, and if that's what it takes to get the job done, that's what I'll do. Don't test me."

"Have you…?" She trailed off, then wrapped her arms around herself protectively. "Have you done that before?"

"You were there when I dropped the Sector 7 plate, doll. You know I have."

"That's not what I meant. That was … that's different."

He looked away with an angry scowl. "Yeah. I've killed men, women, and kids, right up close and personal. Puppies, too, if you're curious. That what you wanted to hear, yo?" He bit the words off angrily, wishing she hadn't made him say them.

"Oh, Reno." She whispered the words, and to his shock, reached out and touched him, not quite a hug, but she lay her hand on his back and stepped closer, pressed her cheek briefly against his shoulder.

He stared down at her, caught off guard by her response, but the chopper was landing now in the field, and they couldn't just stand here like this. He didn't want to upset her by pulling away, or make her think he was upset by her actions, so he brushed his lips across her forehead and squeezed her arm gently. "C'mon, sweetness, that's our ride," he murmured. Why was she so completely unpredictable? Yeah, in many ways all women were, but half the time she did exactly the opposite of what he expected, and it threw him off balance, something he wasn't used to.

Si'ara followed Reno to the chopper, thinking back to Cissnei's words—her implication that Reno didn't like doing the things that he did. He was so laid back about it, so quick to joke or toss out a witty quip, that she'd never realized there was any more to him than the Shin-Ra lackey she'd thought him to be. But she understood what the former Turk had meant now. His feelings might not stop Reno from doing his job, but that didn't mean he enjoyed the pain he caused. For reasons she didn't want to dwell on at the moment, the realization pleased her.

Reno opened the door to hand Si'ara up into the helicopter, and she allowed him to do so without any fuss. However, as he was about to let go, to step away and close the door, her hand gripped his suddenly. "Reno?" She had to yell to be heard over the sound of the slowing rotors. "Tell me you won't leave me." Her hand trembled slightly, and he knew that she was genuinely afraid of what might await her in Midgar.

"Babe, you know I—" Yeah, she did. She knew he'd have to leave her if they told him to. So, she wasn't asking for a promise, she was asking for… What? Not a lie, exactly, just something to get her through until the truth became an undeniable reality. He tossed her a crooked grin as an old memory stirred. "You know I gotcher back, yo." He squeezed her hand, then pulled away and closed the door.

They spent the trip back to Midgar watching the scenery below. Si'ara watched Reno fly with practiced ease, noting how relaxed and at home he seemed in the pilot's seat. He hadn't given her a headset, so she wasn't able to talk to him, but he pointed at sights of interest on occasion—a flock of chocobos racing across a plain, fog filling a small valley in the mountains they'd flown over, a field of blue flowers that seemed to stretch for miles.

All too soon, however, Midgar loomed before them. Si'ara tried to tell herself that everything would be okay, but she knew for certain now that it would not. She had told Reno the truth, but only part of it. She didn't know much about the terrorists coming and going at her bar, but she knew who did. Her assistant, Kyli, had invited them there, met with them, provided them with shelter and supplies. Si'ara had warned her against such actions, but Kyli's family had been killed years ago in Corel by Shin-Ra's attack, and she hated them with a passion. She'd asked Si'ara what right Si'ara had to tell her not to associate with them, when Si'ara had once made the same sort of decision herself.

So, Si'ara had introduced her to Barret, hoping that he could talk some sense into her. She'd thought that he'd overcome his hatred of Shin-Ra, as she had. But she'd been wrong. He'd talked to Kyli, and had asked Si'ara to keep her safe, but he hadn't talked her out of her associations, in fact, she was pretty sure he'd introduced her to a few like-minded people that he hung out with. But Barret was her friend, and she felt like Kyli was her responsibility, and she wasn't about to betray them to a company she knew would kill them without hesitation.

Reno contacted Shin-Ra headquarters as he approached Midgar. He refused to speak to anyone but Tseng, and in Midgar, Reno generally got what Reno wanted.

"Yes?" Tseng's voice indicated a combination of irritation, impatience and amusement. Mostly impatience, though, so Reno didn't waste any time with pleasantries.

"We'll be touching down in less than two minutes. I don't want any guards, in fact, I don't really want to see anyone there when I land."

"You have a reason for this, I assume?"

"Yeah." What was it? Oh, right. He didn't want to upset Si'ara. How could he phrase that so that Tseng would go along with it? "Uh, I don't want to upset Si'ara, yo. She's been through a lot." Bahamut's balls! He'd meant to come up with something clever that Tseng couldn't argue with…

"Understood. Bring her directly to my office." And once again, Tseng cut off the transmission before Reno could respond.

"I hate when he does that!" Reno shook his head, then realized that his scowl would probably worry Si'ara, so he tossed her an encouraging grin. Tseng had agreed to his request pretty easily, so maybe things would go better than he'd expected.

Si'ara wasn't fooled by Reno's quick grin, but she pretended to be. There was no point in starting a fight with him now—he was the closest thing she had to an ally here. When he landed the helicopter, she looked around for any sign of the guards she'd expected to be waiting, but the landing pad was empty. Reno cut off the engines, climbed out and walked around to open her door.

Si'ara looked down at him for a minute as he offered her his hand. He waited patiently while she scanned the area for any options she might have, then helped her down when she finally put her hand in his. "It's almost over, babe," he said as he shut the door behind her. "Just tell them what they want to know, and I can get you home in time for supper."

"Sure." She didn't smile, just pulled her hand back, then let him lead her to a door and through it. "Where is everyone?"

"I'm taking you to Tseng's office. Elena and Rude are still out keeping busy, as far as I know. And I told Tseng to keep anyone else out of our way. I don't know where Rufus is." That was something he hadn't considered. For the last couple days, Tseng had stayed between them and Rufus. But Rufus was unlikely to stay in the background now.

Si'ara felt trapped, knew that she was trapped. Whatever chance she'd had to avoid coming to Midgar, she'd missed it completely. She probably couldn't fight her way out of Shin-Ra headquarters alone, and as far as she knew, no-one was going to help her. The situation wasn't to her liking.

Tseng rose as they entered his office, inclining his head politely and indicating that Reno should close the door. "Miss Ravenscar."

"Tseng." His tone had been polite, hers was entirely without emotion. "I would like to know just why you've abducted me in this manner." She looked around his office, a spacious room with no ornamentation, just a large desk and a glass wall looking out over Midgar, sheer curtains covering it in layers.

"We have some questions to ask of you. Answer them, and you will be free to go."

"You didn't seem to be in a question-asking mood the last time I saw you." Now there was a trace of anger in her voice. "More like a shooting-people-in-the-head mood." She looked away in disgust and walked over to the window to see if he would stop her.

"I was not aware of the questions to be asked at that time. I was simply told that your presence was required in Midgar. And here you are." He walked out from behind the desk, moving to a spot near her, gazing out the window as she was doing, but making no threatening gestures.

"I like to think that I have a right not to answer questions if I choose not to. That doesn't seem likely here." She flexed her hands and cracked her neck, working out the kinks from sitting in the helicopter for so long, in case she needed to move suddenly. "You could have just called, you know."

"The questions we have require answers." Tseng noted the way Reno moved close enough to defend Si'ara if necessary. Not, judging from his pose, to subdue her, but to defend her. Interesting.

Si'ara shrugged. "You're wasting time. I want to go home, so ask me your damned questions."

"I know that you are familiar with the men who have been frequenting your bar. I know that you are aware of their nature." Tseng turned his head slightly to look at her. "Are you aware that they attacked the power plant in North Corel yesterday, killing seven people and injuring dozens more?"

"I'd gotten the impression they'd done something along those lines. It has nothing to do with me." She didn't look at him, but continued to stare out the window.

"Will you give us their names? Any information you have on them?"

"No." She turned her head away from him, then abruptly turned to meet his gaze. "I don't have any information on them."

Tseng nodded. "So I see." There was no trace of deceit in her eyes. "But such lack of information cannot be anything but intentional."

She looked away immediately.

"Babe, just tell him what he wants to know, yo. These guys are bad news. You can't like what they're doing, can you?" Reno took a step towards her, and she glanced over her shoulder at him, clearly unhappy.

"Reno, no. It's— I don't approve of what they're doing. But I can't tell you anything I don't know." She turned back to the window, clenching her hands at her side.

Tseng shot Reno a warning glance, and the other Turk stopped where he was. "Miss Ravenscar," Tseng said softly, "are these men associated with Barret Wallace or Cloud Strife?"

Si'ara shook her head. "I haven't talked to or seen Cloud in ages. I don't know or care where he is or what he's doing."

"And Wallace?"

She scowled. "Tseng, if you want to know what Barret's doing, why don't you go abduct him?" She rounded on him suddenly, and Reno stepped toward them, this time facing her, a warning in his gaze.

Tseng noted both Reno's response and her reaction to it, as she flinched and glared at both of them. "Is it because I'm just a woman, old and out of shape? An easy target for your little gang of thugs? I'd love to prove you wrong, but hell, I can't, can I?" Bitterness dripped from her words, and Tseng knew from Reno's expression that she was throwing words he'd spoken back at him.

"If we knew where Barret was, we would have taken him as easily as we took you." At Tseng's subtle gesture, Reno stepped aside. "We do not have time for verbal sparring, regrettably. Will you tell us what we want to know?"

Si'ara looked out the window for a long minute, then shook her head. "You're not people I can trust with that information. Unless you can tell me that no harm of any kind would come to my friends?" She shot Tseng a sidelong glance, and he could see that she knew the answer was no.

"Very well. I'm sure you understand that I have no choice but to obtain this information, regardless of your state of cooperation."

She moved back a little bit, giving herself room to maneuver. "I'm sure you think you can," she agreed, flipping her hair back over her shoulder and watching both of them warily.

Tseng moved to the desk and tapped a button. Half a dozen Shin-Ra guards entered the room from three different locations. "I am quite certain of it," he said calmly. "Reno, if you would escort Miss Ravenscar this way?" He exited through yet another door.

Si'ara looked at Reno and knew that he would do as Tseng had asked, either alone or with the aid of the guards. She knew also that it was tearing him up inside, having to treat her this way. She wasn't sure why she hadn't been able to see it before, but now that she could, she felt had no choice but to let him take her arm and guide her through the door and down a winding corridor. After all, she was the one who'd made the choices that ultimately put her in this position, not Reno. She couldn't justify making him suffer for them.

After the second turn, she stopped, shaking her head when he dropped the EMR into his hand. Without speaking, she slid her arms around him and lay her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat and surrounding herself with his presence. He tensed, then stroked her hair carefully with his right hand before pulling her close with a sigh.

She pulled away far too soon, knowing that Tseng was unlikely to wait for long. Neither of them spoke, and after a few more turns, they came to a door with Tseng waiting outside.

"Tseng, I can do this, yo." Reno's hand was white around the EMR, and his jaw was clenched. "Just tell me what you need to know."

"That won't be necessary." Tseng unlocked the door.

"Tseng, you know I can." Reno scowled. "What's the problem here?" Anger radiated off of him in waves. "I've never failed before, have I?"

Tseng looked at Si'ara, not Reno. She met his gaze this time, and he could see the raw pain in her eyes. This was certainly an interesting twist. "Reno, you will report to Rufus Shinra's office and tell him you have delivered Miss Ravenscar to me." He turned his gaze on Reno now, and his expression, serene as it was, left no room for argument. "If Rufus has no further need for you, read the report on North Corel."

Si'ara couldn't look at Reno. She knew what he would do, no matter how he felt about it. Yeah, maybe the two of them could take Tseng if it came down to it. But Reno was a Turk, which meant that wouldn't happen. And frankly, she'd think a lot less of Reno if he would turn on his boss, even for her. So she stared at the wall behind Tseng instead, and wished she'd gone anywhere but home the night she'd started her vacation.