"Rufus said you need help," I announce, stepping into Reeve's office. He jumps, sitting at his desk and staring hard at his screen.

"What was that?" a voice calls. "Cait?"

"System malfunction," he says quickly, taking his headset off and standing. "At least knock. Please."

"Sorry. Didn't know you were busy." I shove my hands into my pockets, closing the door with my foot. "Do you always have to talk for him?"

"Of course not." He glances back down at the screen. "They're headed for the Temple of Ancients. Are any of your people going to meet them?"

"Yeah. Tseng and Elena." I look around the dark office, searching for anything I might actually understand. I don't find much. "What'd you need?"

"Nothing much at the moment. We're headed to the Gold Saucer to get the Keystone. Tseng will meet me there."

"Won't they know you're a spy?"

"I'm hoping they don't catch me." He sighs, shaking his head. "They probably will, though."

"And you don't have any leverage?"

"Well…" He leans forward, staring at the floor. "We do have an option that I don't like too much."

"And that is?"

"Aerith's mother. She lives in Sector Five and she's currently caring for Barret's daughter."

"Barret has a daughter?"

"Yes. Marlene. She's four years old." Reeve looks tortured when he sits up. "It feels dirty."

"Sometimes you can't play fair." I offer him a half-hearted smile. "I'll get on it."

"Alright. I'll need them brought her calmly, and preferably sooner rather than later."

"On it," I repeat, heading out the door.

I take my truck down to the Sector Five slums, puffing my way through two cigarettes to calm my jitters before parking far enough outside that no one should mess with my vehicle. Reeve texted me directions and I follow them easily. Every single person along the way stops to stare at me, though they all know exactly where I'm headed. Turks have been heading to this girl's house every month for as long as anyone can remember. Tseng, usually.

I knock twice, standing back and looking around the garden. The smell of overflowering flower baskets and bushes easily overpowers the scent of the slums' garbage; I can't help but smile. The place feels like an enchanted garden from a storybook. It's beautiful. A woman in a green dress and a white apron opens the door, frowning. Her grip tightens on the doorknob when she sees what I'm wearing.

"Hello?"

"You must be Elmyra." I step closer and she backs away. "I'm Kat."

"You new?" she demands. "Your people already took Aerith."

"She's been gone for a long time," I shrug. "I'm not here about that."

"What do you want?"

"… Can I come in?" She scowls, staring at me for a moment longer before stepping aside. I don't bother closing the door behind me, looking around the small house. Looks a lot bigger on the outside.

"I have a question."

"I'm sure you have a lot of 'em. The garden's beautiful, by the way."

"It's Aerith's." She sizes me up with sharp eyes, resting her hands on the back of a wooden chair. "Are you related to Tseng?" I frown.

"How'd you know?"

"Your eyes." She raises an eyebrow. "And your walk."

"My walk?"

"Somehow, even when you're slouching, you're standing straight."

"Okay…" I shake my head. "Look, I'm here for Marlene."

"What is it with you people and taking others' children," she huffs, tightening her bun and crossing her arms. "You can't take her."

"I have to."

"Why? Is she an Ancient too?" she demands, standing her ground. I press my lips together.

"Do me a favor—"

"I don't do favors for Shinra."

"Listen, Mrs. Gainsborough. There are a few ways we could do this." I cross my arms, cocking my head to the side. "I can have a whole troop come down here and take her by force. I can have Tseng take Aerith into his personal custody across the world. I could even kill you and take her." I shrug. "And as a child of trauma myself, I'd rather Marlene not have to witness any of those things."

"…" Elmyra shakes her head. "You can't kill—"

"But I can. I was told to retrieve Marlene by any means necessary." I come closer to her, forcing her to look at me. "Listen to me. I swear on my life that we won't harm her. We just need her for leverage."

"Leverage?"

"We have a spy within Aerith's group." I hope they don't mind me spilling the beans. This lady's a pain. "In order to keep him alive and well, we need a reason for Avalanche to care. If we have Marlene, we can convince them to let him live."

"You want me to help Shinra spy on my daughter?"

"No. I want you to make this easier."

She presses her lips together, hanging her head as she thinks. I wait impatiently, eyeing a photograph of her and Aerith that hangs on the wall. Happy families. Who needs them? I shake my head. Shinra likes to ruin everything. Finally, she looks up.

"Fine. I go with her, though."

"That's fine."

"Marlene!" Elmyra calls. A door upstairs opens and a small girl in a pink dress hops down the stairs, pausing when she sees me.

"Miss Elmyra? Who's that?" Her eyes are sharp, cautious. Her father taught her well.

"My name's Kat."

"Kat? Like a kitty?"

"Sure." She giggles and turns back to Elmyra.

"That's a funny name."

"Yes, it is." Aerith's mother kneels, smoothing the girl's skirt. "We're going to go with her."

"Is she Shinra?" she whispers. Elmyra nods. "I don't like Shinra," Marlene tells me, eyeing my uniform.

"I'm taking you to see the flower lady."

"Aerith?"

"Yes."

"Okay…"

I keep a sharp eye on them in the backseat on the drive back to the Shinra Building, but I doubt they'd fight back. Elmyra knows the Turks. She knows full well I have weapons on my person and an army at my disposal should I need it. I take them up in the elevator, happy that no one's there, and lead them to Reeve's office. He looks up sharply, standing.

"Hello. I'm terribly sorry to inconvenience—"

"Sit," I command, pointing to the leather couch on the other side of the room. Elmyra obeys, taking Marlene's hand, and Reeve frowns. "Don't get up unless I say so, got it?"

"Don't worry about us," the woman answers quietly, watching Marlene swing her legs.

"My name is Reeve Tuesti," Reeve says, offering a smile. She only scowls back. I conceal a smile, turning my back to her. "I—"

"Are you the man that's spying on Aerith?"

"Not just on Aerith, ma'am. All of Avalanche." He sighs and sits, eyeing his screen. "And it seems Cloud and Aerith are busy. It's time to go."

"Go then."

I sit on the edge of his desk, watching from Cait Sith's perspective as he snatches a black, round stone from Cloud's room and races out of the hotel. Marlene squirms in her seat and Elmyra strokes her hair in an effort to calm her. Cute kid.

"Go, go, go," Reeve whispers when the robotic cat pauses to admire the stone. His phone rings on his desk and we all jump. "Hello? Who is this?" he demands, eyes never leaving the screen. "Oh. He'll head over now." He hangs up quickly.

"Shit," I huff when Cloud appears with Aerith, both of them eyeing the stone in Cait's hands.

"Not around her," Elmyra snaps. I raise an eyebrow.

"Have you ever heard her father speak? She'll manage." I turn back to the screen, watching Cait Sith scramble away from Avalanche as they chase him around the Gold Saucer theme park. "Where's Tseng meeting you?"

"Outside the chocobo races," he murmurs, forcing the bot to a stop once it reaches the base of a long set of stairs. Quickly, he waves for Marlene to come over. When the girl hesitates, I stand and rest a hand on her shoulder, guiding her to the desk.

"Look who it is," I whisper, pointing to the screen. Her big, brown eyes light up and she grins.

"Papa! Tifa!"

"Hey, that's Marlene!" Aerith cries. Her mother stands quickly, but I shoot her a look to keep her quiet.

"The flower lady!"

"That's all we need," Reeve murmurs. I nod and take her back to the couch. She looks over her shoulder, trying to catch another look at her father. He wraps up his conversation with Avalanche before turning his screen off and leaning back in his seat, taking a deep breath.

"So… What do we do with them?" I ask, jerking my head back to our new hostages. "We can't bring them back to Sector Five."

"And why not?!" Elmyra cries. "We gave you what you wanted!"

"What if we need you again?" I shrug. "If Barret begins to doubt, he'll start pushing boundaries. We have to keep them in line."

"This is ridiculous."

"It always is," Reeve murmurs. "Where to put them…" He sits up abruptly, pressing a buzzer. "I can have my assistant provide a place in Kalm for them to stay."

"Kalm?"

"Yes. They can't return home, but they won't be far."

"I guess that's okay."

"I'll ask Tseng for you. For now, keep them under wraps."

"Where?"

"There are holding cells on lower floors, but they're hardly prisoners." Reeve frowns. "Keep them with you?"

"With me?"

"To rest and get something to eat."

"Right," I scoff, looking back at the pair. I frown. "Fine. You guys are staying the night in my apartment and then we're heading to Kalm tomorrow."

"Fine," Elmyra repeats.

I lead them down to my apartment, happy that no one's out to see me keeping our "hostages" in my own home, and open the door. Marlene walks in slowly, wide eyes taking the place in. Elmyra doesn't spend much time looking around, frowning when I lock the door.

"Bedroom's down the hall and to the left. Bathroom on the right. I'm sleeping on the couch."

"It's your home—"

"I can't have you sneaking out into a fully armed building in the middle of the night. No one knows you're here; you'll get yourselves killed." I shake my head, loosening my tie. "Use whatever you can find to feed yourselves."

"Okay."

Marlene follows Elmyra to the kitchen as the woman digs through my cabinets for something edible. She frowns at the number of bottles I've accumulated, eyeing my large collection of crackers and pasta with disdain. Then, she pauses, pushing a box aside and pulling out a slip of paper. I frown, taking off my shoes at the door.

"What's that?"

"It's… you. And Tseng."

"What?"

I cross the room, taking the picture from her hands. It's a lot more than two people. My heart skips a beat, and suddenly, I can't breathe. Our family…

There are eight smiling faces in total. A man with bright red hair, my father, sits beside a thin woman on the stained couch, his arm resting across his wife's shoulders. At his feet sits a row of five children. I can't remember their names, but I know their faces. My brothers and my sister. Twin boys dressed in matching overalls stick their tongues out. I sit beside them, legs crossed in a baggy pair of jeans. On my other side, a small girl in a baby blue dress and blonde pigtails sucks her thumb. Behind the couch, Tseng stands next to a teenage boy, his hair pulled back into a tight ponytail. He was still training back then. The boy at his side beams, arms crossed and legs spread wide.

Taavi always hated Tseng's uniform. She hated his profession. Despised the fact that he worked for Shinra despite their family's descent from Wutai. She hated my father for furthering the research that ended the war with her homeland. Tseng hated her inability to remain with her family. He hated cleaning up her messes while she ran around with other men as my father hid behind a bottle. Why can't I remember their names?

"Your family?"

My stomach twists and I force myself to take a breath. "Yeah. It was."

"… I'm sorry."

"Don't be." I fold the photo in half and shove it in my pocket. I'm angry that Tseng left that there. I don't care if he meant to taunt me or to simply remind me of who we are. I hate it. "Feed her and get to bed."

"Alright."

I head to my room and sit on the edge of my bed, pulling the photograph back out. What are your names? Huffing, I dial Tseng's number in my phone, not caring that he's working. I just need to know why.

"Kat?"

"Yeah." I sigh, crossing my legs. "You guys at the Temple yet?"

"Almost. Why?"

"I found the picture in my kitchen."

"… I see."

"Why the hell did you leave it?"

"I thought it might help you recover your memories in a more positive light."

"I…" I pinch the bridge of my nose. I can't deny that he honestly meant well.

"You what?"

"I can't remember their names, Tseng." Frustrated, I fall onto my back. "Why can't I remember? Marx didn't even remove those memories."

"I don't know."

"I'm fucked up."

"Yes, you are."

"Thanks," I scoff, smiling. "Well… Good luck."

"To you as well."

I hang up, letting my phone bounce on the mattress I lift the picture back up into the light. My mother's dark eyes meet mine, as hollow as her cheeks. Why did it happen to us?