Tapping her fingers on the long, oak table she sat at, Jasmine lifted her head and stared into the security camera monitoring her. She sighed and shifted uncomfortably in her seat, wanting nothing more than to get out of SOLDIER headquarters and head for home.
The fun to be had at her and Noctis' apartment ended rather abruptly when Jasmine and the others were "blessed" by the presence of Tseng and several other associates from SOLDIER who had come to take the young woman in for questioning. While Jasmine had expected to be brought back to headquarters for interrogation, she had not expected to be torn away from everyone so quickly. All she literally had time to do at that time was take a five minute shower and suit up in her uniform before she was led away by Tseng and his guards.
Her head was still swirling from the events of the day but to be held at SOLDIER from that evening all the way to the next afternoon. So it was fair to say that Jasmine was a little more than exhausted.
Lucky for Jasmine, she didn't have to answer too many questions about Vanitas. Jasmine only told the officers the absolute bare minimum and, fortunately, they seemed satisfied with that. In her profession, you were only as valuable as the secrets you kept and Jasmine made sure to protect those secrets at all costs to ensure her value within the organization.
So Jasmine sat in one of her uniforms (dark blue pants tucked into her heavy combat boots, a navy, long sleeved, collared button up also tucked into her pants with a black tank top underneath it all) for hours, having been interviewed by several of her superiors and taken several lie detector tests, anxiously waiting for Tseng to arrive so that she could be dismissed. But, as she had anticipated, Tseng had taken longer than normal to see her.
The door swung open and Jasmine leaned back in her chair, cracking her knuckles that were concealed under her black leather gloves. Immediately she knew who entered the room and she exhaled. "Trying to cover your bases, huh?"
Tseng took the seat in front of Jasmine at the other end of the table, tossing an envelope down between them. "Well, considering that this was all part of Ignis' plan and virtually no one knew of it, we had to make the investigation look as thorough as humanly possible."
Jasmine rolled up her sleeves. "So what now? Have I been cleared?"
Tseng nodded. "Yes. We've taken care of everything. If you look in your file you've been fully reinstated as a 1st Class SOLDIER. If one of our own leaves, becomes ill, or is taken hostage – especially one who's been gone for as long as you have – then we put a freeze on you so to speak. But rest assured, all is in order and you're free to go on about as you did before."
Jasmine balled her fists. Still, there was one very big problem that hadn't been resolved yet: one that haunted her for some time now. "And Ignis?"
Tseng looked at Jasmine's expression and immediately knew what she meant. He ran hand through his dark hair and then spoke. "We're currently dealing with the issue as we speak. Noctis, Prompto, Gladiolus are being informed of the situation in another room. But, fortunately for you, as you were just a pawn…"
Jasmine cringed at the word, having been brought back to a conversation Vanitas had with her about SOLDIER and what she was to them. For a moment, Jasmine wondered what he was doing at the moment.
"…and so therefore you weren't directly involved," Tseng continued. "In addition, given your cooperation with the plan and how it helped Noctis and his associates, I imagine that in time all should be well within your team. We've even introduced Ignis to the group and I believe they are talking about the issue as we speak."
Jasmine was more than concerned about Noctis at this point. Truth be told, the prince was not the most forgiving person very forgiving. She wondered if he would find it in his heart to forgive Ignis for shooting him. 'But then again,' Jasmine realized, 'everything that Ignis did was for Noctis in the first place.'
"Which brings me to my next point," Tseng shifted in his seat and rested his elbows on the table, leaning on of his cheeks against his hand, "Why did you do it?"
"Do what?" Jasmine asked tiredly, knowing that she was going to be asked questions that she did not want to answer.
Tseng leaned back and opened up his arms. "All. Of. This. I realize that you have your own score to settle with Vanitas Irino but I was also told that you did this for Noctis."
Jasmine pulled her lips into a thin line. She remained silent.
"Just like you, Noctis has his reasons for being here. It's almost a miracle that you two crossed paths in the manner you did." Tseng paused and stared at Jasmine, wondering if she had even the slightest idea of how she was the one who tied everything together. She must have had an inkling, even if the whole picture had not become clear yet. Still, Tseng would let her continue to put the pieces together herself and watch her from afar as he always did.
"I've been wondering this for some time now, and I'm sure that this issue has been brought to your attention by other members of this organization…" Tseng trailed off. "I'm beginning to wonder if your relationship with him is as platonic as you make it out to be. Why else would you throw yourself into such danger? Vanitas was the one who forced you into hiding and yet when you realize that Noctis' future is in jeopardy, you eagerly throw yourself into the lion's den with no real guarantee that you would have made it out alive."
"So what are you asking me?" Jasmine's voice was laced with irritation. This was not the discussion she wanted to be having right now.
"Have you developed feelings for Noctis?" Tseng asked bluntly.
Jasmine rolled her eyes dramatically and pushed her seat back. That was part of the problem with SOLDIER. Any time a female operative and a male operative worked together, there was always questions about the nature of their relationship. There were other issues she faced as a woman within the organization but this issue was one that had been brought to the table more often than she would have liked. Jasmine, wanting to protect what little bit of privacy she had, rose from her seat and headed for the door after she grabbed her file.
"Miss Valentine," Tseng called, watching her reach for the doorknob. "You didn't answer my question."
"That's because I don't have to," Jasmine whipped around, "we have a common enemy. If I can do something for someone who has protected me, then I'm going to do it. The only reason why this is an issue is because I'm a woman. End of story."
Tseng scoffed. "Oh," he glanced at his paperwork, "…you seem genuinely upset. So you have feelings again?"
Jasmine was good at regaining her composure. That was part of the reason why she always completely her mission successfully even when things went wrong. Jasmine had so many things to say to Tseng in regards to "feelings". He had tried to break her and rebuild her, to create the perfect SOLDIER. While the organization did stand to protect the islands (or "worlds" as they were often called), there was no denying the hidden evil within.
Vanitas was right. In the grand scheme of things, Jasmine was just a pawn along with her partner and team. Vanitas was probably a pawn himself. She often wondered how expendable she truly was to them. So Jasmine kept her face in check but casually said on her way out, "You'll find out soon enough…"
Ventus finished his coffee before Jasmine did and reached for the fork in front of him to take on the giant piece of lemon cake Jasmine had treated him to.
"So this is one of your old spots on the Destiny Islands, huh?" Ventus asked with a smile, staring at her from the other side of their corner booth. "It's quaint, that's for sure."
Jasmine adjusted her dark beanie and took another long sip from her coffee cup. Ventus had been with her on the base when she was taken into custody and had elected to hang out with her for the day since Noctis and the others were tied up in meetings. They had left so fast that neither of them had the time to change out of their uniforms. She stole a glance at Ventus and smiled inwardly. Sitting her with Ventus, who was practically the spitting image of Roxas, reminded her of simpler times. Jasmine had to admit it, even though she was still saddened by her departure from the island and her friends, Ventus had helped her through it. In fact he almost served as the bridge between her past life and new life and reminded her that they were all still connected.
Before Jasmine could say anything she saw a pair of female students wearing the Destiny Islands Rising Suns Academy uniforms pass by the window they sat at. They pointed to Jasmine, having clearly recognized her, and waved. She sheepishly waved back before the two girls scurried off down the street.
"You're still a celebrity," Ventus teased, taking a big bite of his cake. "I remember seeing your music video with Demyx a few years ago. Talk about life throwing you for a loop."
Jasmine's smile completely vanished. She glanced at the name plate on her shirt and shook her head. "I never thought things would turn out this way. I still can't believe it."
Ventus set his fork aside and pushed his glasses further up his nose. "To be honest, I never thought I'd be here either. In theory," and he did air quotes then, "I was supposed to go off and be a doctor, but look at me now. I'm a fighter in SOLDIER."
"But you still practice medicine," Jasmine reminded him. "You and Aqua are both trained in medicine for the team."
The blond shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, but it's more her thing now. If you would have asked me a long time ago what I'd be doing with my life, I would've said med school. The thing is, life doesn't always go as planned."
Jasmine sat back in her seat and crossed her legs. "Who are you telling?"
"But if things are out of your control, you have to do your best with what you have and keep going, you know? If you keep chasing the past you'll never see the future ahead of you, you know?" Ventus advised her.
Jasmine found herself strangely comforted by Ventus' words. She recalled having a similar "conversation" within herself before she left Vanitas' mansion. "I'm slowly trying to come to terms with that now. It's just taking a while to sink in."
Ventus offered an apologetic smile. "I know. You landed here in a way that most of us hadn't. We had a choice but you didn't. But for all it's worth I think you're doing amazing." He took another bite of cake and grinned. "You're a total badass now. I think you take down most people. You're a tough cookie."
Jasmine felt her chest swell up with an energy she hadn't felt in a while and smiled. "Thanks, Ventus. It means a lot to me."
Almost out of nowhere, Ventus slammed his hand on the table, causing Jasmine to raise an eyebrow.
"What?" She asked, suddenly nervous. "What is it?"
Ventus swallowed the large piece of cake and pointed a finger at her accusingly. "You still need to explain the situation between you and Roxas! Why didn't you tell me that you guys dated?"
Jasmine cringed and looked away. "We had a…complicated relationship. We weren't together for that long."
He narrowed his eyes and his grin widened. "Did you love him though?"
Almost immediately she answered, "Yeah I did. I still do. But I just don't think that it would have worked out at that time. Vanitas had started coming into my life and I was dealing with a lot from my parents. And then I started dating Riku somewhere in the mix of things."
Ventus nodded his head in understanding. "The silver-haired guy, right?"
She felt a lump in her throat. "Yeah, him."
The blond poked at his cake, breaking it off into smaller chunks. "So what's the story on him? I hear that story is like, novel worthy."
Under most circumstances Jasmine wouldn't talk about her relationships this thoroughly. But she and Ventus were close. They had become friends quickly through their personalities and the various missions they went on during their time in Agrabah. Ventus shared personal things with Jasmine and her with him. So when it came to the hard stuff like Riku, while Jasmine still felt the need to hold back, she felt safe with Ventus. He was just a good guy all around.
"He and I had a love/hate relationship from the moment I entered high school – although, when I look at it now, there was more hate than anything," she added distantly, looking off to the side. "We were together but when Vanitas came around, we had to end it. Plus some girls from our school set him up so we were pretty much screwed."
"Then what happened?" Ventus gave her one of his all-knowing stares which meant that he knew there was more to the story.
Jasmine sighed. "We still talked and after the time Vanitas kidnapped me, he proposed."
Ventus nearly spit out the cake he had just put in his mouth and coughed loudly, his face turning red. When he finally caught his breath, he slammed his hand against his chest. "HE WHAT!?"
She nodded. "Yeah."
"So how many times have you been married?" Ventus asked, bursting into a fit of laughter. "So there's Vanitas – which, admittedly isn't so funny -, Riku, and – "
Jasmine put a stop to Ventus right there, not wanting to relive a particular memory. "Hey! We don't talk about that third time, okay?"
"Did we ever make up that rule where "what happens in Agrabah, stays in Agrabah"? I don't think we did. Annnnnd," Ventus reached into his uniform and pulled out a large, gold chain with a gold pendant attached. The pendant was fixed in the shape of a large key and glittered under the lights, Jasmine's eyes glued to it. "We still have some unfinished business to take care of too."
"I agree," Jasmine's frown was replaced by a mischievous smirk, "once I'm done with my nonsense, it's back to Agrabah we go."
Ventus grinned and slipped the chain back down his shirt. "You got it. Now…back to the story. I got sidetracked," he laughed.
Jasmine shook her head and smiled ruefully. Ventus truly was the perfect mixture of Sora and Roxas.
She continued on with her story though and almost immediately, her cheer vanished. "Riku proposed to me the same night that Tseng sent for me." Jasmine scratched the back of her head and felt her cheeks turning red. "We spent the night together but Tseng made me write a letter to break up with him."
Ventus cringed. "Damn. That's crazy. Well…you guys can always get back together."
Jasmine's heart sank. "I don't think that'll happen."
"Why? He knows you had to leave for SOLDIER. I'm sure he'd understand."
"Yeah, well he also drunkenly called me a slut and said a lot of crazy shit about me when I saw him on a mission with Noctis," she added, all emotion absent from her voice. "Plus right after I left, he went off to college and started dating this new girl."
Ventus' eyes widened and he pushed back his now empty plate. "Okay, so you guys have a lot to talk about."
Jasmine folded her hands together and stared at her lap, closing her eyes. "I don't know what I'd do if we were in the same room together. I know why he got mad, got a new girlfriend and chewed me out, but…" her lips trembled, unable to fight the deep sadness within her, "…I still can't believe that he wouldn't think about my issue with Vanitas. It seems like everyone – and I mean everyone – figured it out but him that I left because of Vanitas. He was still alive and Riku knew that. In the back of my mind I can't help but wonder why he had such little faith in us – in me, that he would treat me that way."
A waitress came by and collected their mugs and plates. Jasmine paid the woman, instructing her to keep the remaining change for her tip. The waitress smiled and bid them goodbye as Ventus and Jasmine went off on their way.
Once they reached the outside Ventus slipped on a slouchy beanie like Jasmine's before linking arms with her as they walked down the street to his car.
"That's tough, Jasmine," he said with a heavy sigh. "I can see why you're so hesitant. I'd be that way too. But the way I see it, if you two are supposed to be together, it will happen."
Jasmine was feeling less than hopeful. The truth was, Jasmine wanted to see everyone, especially Naminé (who had actually been her best friend). In addition to that she needed to speak with Sora and talk with him about family matters. But Jasmine had a horrible sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that she was going to have to deal with Riku if any of that took place and she was still sorting out her feelings towards him. With a heavy sigh she said, "I don't know what to do. It just seems like it'll be a conflict no matter how I go about this."
"Well you guys will have to talk and, if you want, work on a friendship before anything – if that's what you want. But if you choose to not see him again that's also okay," Ventus advised. "You have to do what's best for you. And sometimes, you can't always be with the one you love."
She tightened her grip on Ventus as they walked and let her thoughts drift towards her (eventual) meeting with Riku.
'What if he's right?' She thought. 'What if we're just not meant to be together? How do we move on after all we went through?'
Tifa and Cloud drove up to the house that evening and sighed. The pair attempted to meet with Vincent on Radiant Garden but SOLDIER headquarters was a nightmare. Apparently some investigation was going on and the entire facility was scrambling with something. Even with Tifa and Cloud's status, they couldn't find out what was going on.
They left Tifa's car and watched at Aerith, Zack, and Yuffie pulled up behind them. Once the other group exited Zack's car, Yuffie stretched her arms out and yawned.
"Man! Who knew that SOLDIER would be a mad house! Almost reminds me of the days when Sephiroth was running loose."
Zack frowned. "Don't remind me. That freakshow took ten years off my life."
All three of them joined Tifa and Cloud, who were already at the door with the key in hand.
"Tomorrow we should be able to go back to headquarters. Tseng told us that they had to retrieve someone and hold them for detainment," Aerith quietly told them. "That's why the place was in such a mess."
Yuffie rolled her eyes and balled her fists. "You'd think they'd get their butts in gear and find Jasmine. Like really? How hard could it be to find her?"
Tifa's eyes drooped low and she stared at the mat under her feet. Jasmine had gone far too long. There was no telling what Vanitas was doing to her. If she was gone for much longer, Tifa was going to go out and look for Jasmine herself whether SOLDIER liked it or not.
Cloud held the door open for the group and they hurried in before the rain fell on them. They took off their coats and hung them in Tifa's closet. However, when Zack bent down to take off his heavy combat boots, he noticed another pair sitting neatly by the door. Immediately his eyes hardened and he held out his arm, signaling everyone to stop what they were doing.
"Someone's here," Zack warned them in a low voice. "Look," he pointed to the pair of boots sitting in the entryway.
Yuffie reached into her back pocket, making sure that one of her knives was still there. "Tifa, were you expecting somebody?"
"No…" Tifa stared hard at the shoes, the size catching her off guard. "But how did that person get in here? I locked the door and you'd need the key and…"
Footsteps began to approach the group and they walked slowly from the entryway, eager to see who the intruder was. However, when the group finally reached the stairs, their eyes widened in shock and surprise as Jasmine suddenly appeared, rubbing her eyes while holding tight to a blanket covering her body.
"Oh my God," Aerith gasped.
Tifa's eyes began to water as Jasmine groggily approached them. "Jasmine?"
The young girl opened her eyes fully now, realizing that she wasn't just facing Tifa, but her entire extended family. Her heart began to race and her lips trembled, fiercely. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she stared at them all in surprise and spoke, a sheepish tone to her voice.
"I got back last night," she said hesitantly, her hands shaking as she gazed upon the faces of her family. "I went back to my apartment yesterday, but…" Jasmine's eyes began to water then, almost unable to hold back any longer. "But," she sniffed, "but I wanted to come back home when they let me go. I don't know why I didn't call…I just wanted to come back here and be in my own bed and take a nap and - "
Tifa stepped forward and approached the shaken girl. Reaching up and pulling Jasmine's hair out of her face, she offered a kind smile. She knew that Jasmine was close to breaking then and silenced her before the sobs came. "No, no, no," she interrupted her. "You don't ever have to call to come back home. Never," she stressed.
Jasmine's tears fell freely now as she stared into Tifa's gentle, wine-colored eyes, her mind taking her back to the day when she first moved in. Tifa had said then that Jasmine could call this house home if she so chose but the power of those words hadn't sunk in until this very moment.
Jasmine felt weary then, the weight of time and all that had passed practically crushing her from the inside out. She slipped to her knees and Tifa caught her before she hit the floor face first. Jasmine buried her face in Tifa's chest and, for the first time in years, felt her true age. "I just wanted," she whispered through gritted teeth, "to come back to the last place where I knew I was truly happy…before any of this happened…where my mom is…"
Tifa, now feeling the full effect of the situation once she realized what Jasmine meant, sank to the floor and held Jasmine closer than she ever had before while the group looked on, some with tears in their eyes while the others simply smiled.
"It's okay," Tifa whispered softly when Jasmine fell silent, looking so much like a wounded animal. "You're home now. You're with your family. Me, Cloud, Yuffie, Aerith, and Zack…we're here for you and we always will be."
Author's Note: Again, I got choked up a little – not only because of the story but for personal reasons as well. A huge theme of this story of family and finding your way back "home" (and this can be a great many things depending on your personal situation) and this is another one of the chapters I've wanted to do since…basically I started this story.
In any case! (Before I start crying again)
hopefuldreamer1991: I'm glad you liked it so much! I felt back for Vanitas too. He's really grown on me and to have him go through this situation really had me torn a bit. I wouldn't say it's the a lot of the old Jasmine per say, but she has let a lot of her walls down
Guest: Lol and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
meyoume: I'm glad it lived up to what you wanted!
Roxas4Ever: Thank goodness! I was so scared of messing up Ventus. I had to do a lot of research on his character. And yes, yay Axel! I missed the guy to be honest with you.
LongTimeReader: Yay feels!
GUEST: Yes! I have done my job!
NoLumostheSun: This chapter is not the finale. We have a bit more to go. I just don't want to throw out a number at this point and not keep to it. I have a habit of always going over my target. Yes, you will see EVERYONE (and I do mean everyone) very, very soon. Thank you!
Skeleus: Aww I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Sarah K.R: Seriously, you don't know how happy it makes me to know that you guys liked these chapters (and the story as a whole). I felt like I was taking such a massive risk and didn't know how well it would pan out. So thank you! I feel bad for Vanitas too but, as you know, he isn't the type to just disappear so we'll see when he decides to pop up. I'm so glad that you enjoyed all their interactions. When the side story comes out you'll see a lot of them so look out for that soon.
Sookdeo: Rivals your college graduation? *climbs to the top of the highest mountain. MOM I've made it! That seriously made my day lol. But yeah, this could honestly be the defining moment for Vanitas: whether he keeps his calm and looks at the whole picture, or whether he completely goes off the deep end and loses what's left of his sanity. It's fine line here, a really fine line. As for Jasmine's feelings, that'll be discussed in future chapters. Axel's involvement in SOLDIER is tricky. That'll be explained further and it WILL be important in regards to the last story. In addition to that I seriously can't wait for the side story. It's going to be heavy just like this one, but I'm doing a bit of experimenting with it so it'll have a different feel to it than the other stories. And yes. I will be doing multiple endings. It will serve as a stand-alone story so look out for that.
Lola: Yay! It's nice to see a new face….sort of. Thank you for reading through everything. I promise there will be more regular updates now since school is out for me.
Okay guys so the story is almost at a close but we have a bit more to go. I want to thank everyone for sticking with me thus far. In all seriousness, during the time it took to write the story (which I JUST realized was three years) I went through my own personal nightmare which is why it took so long for it to get to this point. So I want to thank you all again for reading, reviewing, the PMs, the fanart, just all that you guys do because you all are part of the reason why I was able to get through a lot of my nonsense. Seriously, you guys are amazing and I'm so thankful to have people like you guys who support me and my passion.
On another note, I have a NEW, story out called "Complex Image". I should be able to get the third chapter up some time this weekend so look out for it.
Thank you guys so much and let me know what you think. I'll have the new chapter up soon and (as a spoiler) in the next chapter we will see Sora and have an interaction with Noctis – something I've also been dying to do for a long time. So take care everyone, leave a review or whatever and I'll see you next time!
