Chapter 7: 7th Heaven in Sector 7
(Location: Undercity Station Sector 7 slums Midgar Planet Gaia)
After a long ride around Midgar, the train finally made a stop. Arriving at their destination, Ruby and Jaune stayed seated, trying to see things on a positive note. On one hand, they couldn't return to Sector 5 because they knew that Shinra would be there waiting for them. On the other hand, they might have found a new home. Also, both of them had no clue how long it would be until they could see Aerith again.
That last one really had them down. The florist was a dear friend. Part of their mission is to protect her and not being by her side, naturally it didn't make the Hunters feel better at all. Though the youthful Ancient could look after herself, it didn't change the fact they are going to miss her dearly.
"We'll see her sooner than you expect it," Jaune said, trying to cheer the petite up.
"I know…it's just hard to think that we won't be greeted by her when we wake up tomorrow," Ruby responded as she leaned against the Arc.
They knew that they would have to make the best of their situation and try to give Sector 7 a chance to become their new home.
Not wanting to wait any longer, the teenagers got up to leave the train. The duo followed Cloud and the others to the ended up taking a glance outside.
It was similar to Sector 5, living under a plate away from the more advanced city.
Barret, Jessie Biggs, and Wedge left the train looking so calm, keeping a cool head and straight face. The Hunters on the other hand, were still in a bit of shock that they actually pulled it off. Their first mission has been a complete success. Regardless of how devastating was the destruction from the explosion was or the people that were injured and killed, they actually succeeded.
Ruby and Jaune noticed the other passengers leaving meeting with their friends and families.
They have obviously heard of the make reactor 1 explosion, and chatter about the damages done to Sector 8 was loudly voiced, but most of all, they noticed the worried and relieved expressions of the people reuniting with their loved ones.
Barret let it sink slowly. After all those months of planning since he formed Avalanche, everything they went through, the training, the drills, and all the other things they needed to take on in order to fulfill their vision.
It wasn't all for nothing, he wanted to cry tears of gratification, but most of all he was overjoyed that they managed to do something everyone said was impossible. Their first mission was completed with no casualties from their side, along with adding some potentially powerful allies.
"Hot damn, we did good boys!" Berret shouted.
"And ladies," Jessie said as she patted her leader's shoulder and pointed at her face.
"Bombs detonated: one. Members lost zero!" followed Wedge.
The Arc and the reaper had to smile at the sight. Even they couldn't deny being excited after completing mission as successful as this one was.
"And one step closer to a brighter future!" said Biggs.
"Hell yeah!" said Jessie sharing the same enthusiasm.
"Guys! Lower your voices, huh? People are listening," said the Avalanche leader.
"Says the one who shouted first," muttered Jaune while Ruby giggled.
"I heard that!" Berret pointed to the blond with his gun hand.
"Watch where you point that thing. Didn't your mother teach you about gun safety?" Jaune joked as he held his shield up.
Ruby and the other Avalanche members laughed at the blond knight's antics.
Cloud remained silent, patiently waiting for his pay for his services rendered while thinking, "Seriously haven't paid me yet. We're done, the bomb was planted, it exploded taking down the reactor, and they safely escaped Shinra Forces. What else could they ask for? If they want more they will have to double my payment."
"Now get some R and R. You've earned it. Just make sure you're ready for the next mission." Berret shouted out.
The three nodded before leaving.
Jessie stopped and looked over her shoulder to glance at Jaune. She him a sweet smile, waved, and winked while walking away.
Once more he blushed while thinking, "Is…is she coming onto me? Well, at least she isn't acting like those thirsty moms back at Mantle."
Jaune didn't mind this kind of attention because he never thought he would ever be a female magnet. He wasn't the cool suave type like Neptune, and he was no womanizer, no thank you.
The Arc would have to be very careful around her from now on.
Barret was about to go with them but stopped before turning to the ex-SOLDIER and said, "See you soon. We'll meet up at Seventh Heaven. You know, where Tifa works? Don't keep her waiting, she'll worry."
"As for you two" the burly dark-skinned man turned to the Huntsman and Huntress as he said, "You guys ain't that bad. Feel free to have a look around since you'll be living here from now on. I'll let Tifa know right away. Thanks for the maps by the way."
With that said, the Avalanche leader finally left, leaving the teenagers and the blond merc behind. It was a real shocker how nice Barret can be sometimes, considering how much he looks the stereotypical tough guy.
Jaune was happy that he was the kind of person who isn't quick to trust people, but once he got to know them, it was clear that Berret can be a real softy.
It's a good trait to have, and Jaune was pretty sure handing him the map to all eight Mako Reactors earned them some trust with the Avalanche leader. Meaning, he'll be counting on them to get jobs done, which meant more Gil to buy a new house.
As for Ruby, Jaune figured there'd be no problems. He was sure that Berret would fully trust the silver eyed petite in no time. She's very trustworthy, and with her infectious can do attitude, almost anyone can easily get along with her.
Even if the scarlet cloaked woman was still socially awkward like him, she just had this way of making people gravitate towards her.
Cloud, however, he didn't know how to socialize at all. From what Jaune learned about him, the Ex-SOLIDER likes to keep all conversations short, he was the silent type, spoke very few words, good with a sword, and would put his own life in harm's way to get the job done. So at the very least, Cloud was a man of his word.
Jaune couldn't tell if he can get along with someone like that, but that won't stop him from trying.
"Where should we start?" asked the red cloak reaper looking around the place seems to be as big as Sector 5.
"Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe asking Cloud is a better idea. You should know your way around, right?"
"I don't know," Cloud shook his head.
This shocked them because they thought Cloud would know the place, but then again, they knew next to nothing about the spikey-haired Merc's personal history.
"It's my second time here. Don't know much about Sector 7, except the Seventh Heaven bar."
"Then why don't we look around together? If we get lost, we can ask people," suggested Ruby with a pep in her step.
"That does sound like a good idea," replied Jaune as he walked beside her.
"I don't see a problem. But let's not take too long. I don't want to make Tifa worry." Cloud nodded and followed the two Hunters.
The people at the station were still talking about the reactor explosion, it was everywhere in the news, radios, and even stray flyers on power lines.
Other civilians were still looking for people that apparently weren't at the train.
Ruby didn't want to think about those people that were among the deceased or wounded from Sector 8. It was still tearing her up inside, thinking that they were responsible for the deaths of so many innocent people. Even if the number of causalities was low, it was still too big a number for the red reaper to accept.
They heard someone announcing that they have concluded all train travels for the day while they headed further down the path to the Sector 7 Slums.
There was a wide space with circular benches and people talking, a food truck on the corner playing some jazzy tunes, and more food trucks on the opposite corner.
It was really a lively place from a simple glance. Maybe more lively than Sector 5 before Jaune and Ruby became resident mercenaries. There were also more adults and kids running than there were in sector 5.
As they walked through the new slums, Jaune noticed a wall that was similar to a bulletin board. It had many papers attached listing jobs in the area, random bits of news and information, and there was even one about Avalanche,
When they thought of it, both Jaune and Ruby have seen a lot of Avalanche signs around, there was even graffiti of the group plastered on trains and other sectors.
They saw a man checking one of the papers listing information written about Avalanche and their cause.
"Hah" Mako is the lifeblood of the planet. The hell it is. Goddamn eco-warriors with their dumbass posters," he grabbed it holding it.
Jaune lifted a brow as he thought, "It's literally called the life stream, how do they not get it?"
"I tear 'em down and they're back up inside of an hour. Like I've got nothing better to do...I mean look at all that steel work...You're trying to tell me that's not progress?"
Ruby and Jaune stood in place while thinking, it was to be expected. The majority will support Shinra, even in the slums.
Cloud has suddenly felt a pain in his head. It was like something falling on him before he grabbed his head and braced for impact. However, as it turned out, it was just an illusion.
He odd behavior was noticed by the teenagers as well as the young man.
"What the-You okay, buddy?" The younger man asked.
"Mako junkie, huh? Figures…." The older man who tore up the Avalanche paper grouched.
Both the Arc and the Rose didn't take to kindly to his comment, and were about to say something in Cloud's defense, when suddenly, they gasped. A Whisper floated up behind Cloud, then another one, and another.
"Here we go again. Why do they always have to keep showing up around us," Jaune thought to himself.
Even though there were other people around, they couldn't see them, only the Hunters and the ex-SOLDIER seemed to notice their spooky presence. Aerith too of course, but she didn't count. She was an ancient, they probably see lots of things they don't on a regular bases.
They passed by the trio before floating away before they became incorporeal once more.
"Sooo, you see them too?" asked the Arc.
"Second time. The first time was when that flower girl touched me," Cloud replied as he put his hand over his wrist.
"She touched you? Was that why you able to see them?" asked the petite.
"At first, no. I saw her scared like she was running from something. Then, she touched my hand and I was able to see them."
The Huntsman and Huntress knew from Aerith that regular people can't see the Whispers but, only a few can; mainly those that are supposed to change the tide of destiny and alter the course of fate.
The two figured since they were able to see them without the florists help, then the reason has to be because they were chosen by the will of Gaia and sent to this world.
Cloud couldn't at first but could after touching her proved that.
So, they came to the conclusion that if anyone who is supposed to play a major role in saving this world, actually manages to touch the said florist, they should be able to see them.
If the ex-SOLDIER can now see them now, and that could mean he's one of the people that supposed to join them on their journey.
"That's a total of four people, for now. I wonder if there are more," Ruby mumbled.
"Ruby told me about them. Arbiters of Fate…." Cloud looked at Jaune for answers.
Jaune lifted a brow at the silver-eyed petite before she held her hands out and said, "What? You told me to tell him the short version."
"Guess there's nothing wrong with telling the rest then," the Arc chuckled while thinking that it was time to fill in the Merc on everything they know.
Biggs, Wedge weren't that far from where they stood. Ruby and Jaune didn't want to bother them after their mission success. So they waited for them to leave and relax like Berret told them to.
After going on a path filled with the usual scrap one would see in the slums, there stood the living district full of life. They spotted a few shops where there was a group of people watching the news, drinking, and others that were dancing to the music coming from a jukebox.
Just from a simple glance, and it wasn't as big as Sector 5, but maybe there was something here that Sector 5 didn't have. While Sector 5 felt like a cozy home where everyone took care of each other, this place seemed to be filled with lively people that wanted to party.
"Yang would love this place," Ruby commented.
"Yep, first place she' d be heading to is at the bar," Jaune chuckled.
"Speaking of bars," Cloud pointed to a building in the middle of an open wide area. The sign 'Seventh Heaven' was written on a bright green board with light bulbs handing around it.
"That's where were supposed to go," Ruby's eyes widened.
"Yeah, Yang would definitely love it here," Jaune said as he shook his head with a soft smile.
Now that they thought about it, they prefer to live in the slums rather than in the big cities above. The two could connect more with the people because they were needed and able to help them with problems.
While they had space, Jaune and Ruby started to tell Cloud about the Whispers.
They told him what they knew and added the information Aerith gave them. However, they decided against telling him that the florist is a Cetra, and that they're from another world entirely.
No, there was no need to tell him about that yet. Jaune was pretty sure the Ex-SOLDIER doesn't believe in Avalanche's dogma. He didn't know what they were doing was actually saving the planet by stopping the power company from draining it of all its Mako.
So, after telling him everything they could, the Hunters waited for the Ex-SOLIDER's reaction. However, there was none. Just what Jaune was expecting, Cloud wasn't impressed in the slightest.
"You're serious?" Cloud asked dully.
"Why would we lie to you?" said Ruby.
"It's no better than saving the planet by blowing up some reactors," Cloud shook his head.
"Well, the planet runs on Mako, it's called the LIFE STREAM, life being the big important part. Without it, the planet and everything on it will die. Haven't you noticed there's no plant life around these reactors? Haven't you seen the large stretch of dead land outside Midgar's walls? If Shinra is draining that Mako away everyday with bigger and bigger needs for power, don't you think it's bound to run out of sooner or later?" followed Jaune with an aggravated expression on his face.
"Keep me out of their ideals. I had enough with Barret's rants. I just want my money," Cloud held up his hand and shook his head side to side.
"That's fair, I can't force anyone to believe my words without evidence, but you can't deny the Whisper's existence. You've seen them twice now, and you will continue to see them until you do what's needed," replied the Arc.
That was something Cloud couldn't deny. Those things, whatever they are, they're real, and the rest of the people couldn't see them; with the exceptions of Ruby and Jaune, of course.
"They must have had physical contact with the florist too since they know her personally," Cloud thought before he suddenly felt another headache coming on. As he touched his head, the teenagers got worried seeing his reaction. It was clear that he was in pain.
"Is he sick or something," Jaune thought.
"Cloud, you okay?" said the worried reaper.
"You will never stop haunting me, will you?" he muttered.
"Hey, Cloud?" Jaune checked on him.
"I'm fine. I've seen enough of the place for the night. I'm heading for Seventh Heaven," Cloud shook it off and started walking away.
The Hunters saw no reason to argue with that choice and thought that they can always take a better look at Sector 7 later. They followed the blond mercenary to the bar that wasn't that far from where they were.
When they arrived, the trio saw two people waiting on the staircase leading to Seventh Heaven. One was a young woman in her early twenties with long dark hair, brownish red-colored eyes, and was wearing a white tank top with a black sports bra underneath it, like something you'd see MMA fighters wear in a ring. Other than that, she had red and brown arm bracers with silver and brown gauntlets.
Below the belt, she wore a black combat skirt with brown leather suspenders that went from her shoulders to the waist of the skirt. For her leggings, she had on long thigh high black stockings with red boots.
The second person was a little girl looking to be around the age of six or seven years old with short shoulder length brown hair, browns eyes. She was wearing a pink dress with white socks and brown dress shoes.
Ruby silently squealed at her because she looks so darn cute and adorable. She just wanted to hug her and never let her go. It was a max level of cuteness, and the reaper seconds away from suffering from cuteness overload.
"Marlene!" Berret shouted as he stepped up to the little girl.
The cute girl was overjoyed when she saw Barret walking to her. She then rushed over and jumped while the pretty black-haired bombshell called out, "Marlene! You know you're not supposed to run on the steps.
However, the cute little girl paid the dark-haired woman no mind as she shouted, "Daddy! You're home!" and jumped off the steps.
"That's right, angel, I home!" Berret said as he caught her with his normal arm and hugged her with the happiest expression the Hunters have seen him make yet.
Ruby blinked while thinking, "So, she's his daughter? That couldn't be, they look nothing alike. Well, not unless, she was adopted. Oh, my god. Berret is such a sweetheart!"
This made the reaper's smile even brighter as she saw the interaction between the Avalanche father and daughter duo.
"Welcome back," The dark-haired woman called out.
"Have you been a good girl?" Berret asked.
"Yeah, I've been helping Tifa," Marlene replied with a radiant smile.
"Oh, you did, did you? Well, well…we're going to have find some way to reward you," Berret chuckled before entering the bar.
Tifa was about to enter until she saw new people next to Cloud. They didn't seem like they were from around here.
"Aren't going to introduce me to your new friends?" Tifa smiled as she put one foot behind her and leaned closer to Cloud's face.
"They're not my friends" replied the ex-SOLDIER as he shifted his head to the side.
"That's mean!" Ruby as she puffed her cheeks up like a chipmunk.
"We met during the reactor…thing, and we ended up helping everyone out," Jaune explained.
"So, new allies, huh? I'm Tifa," said the childhood friend of Cloud as she held her hand out.
"Ruby," smiled the petite.
"Jaune," The Huntsman replied and shook her hand.
"Nice to meet you all, come on in!" Tifa said as she gave them a smile and waved them in.
Both entered the bar and it was pretty decent looking. The pinball machines caught Ruby's attention because there were similar machines like that back in Remnant.
"So they also have arcade machines here too?" Ruby shouted as she thought that she was beginning to like this bar. There was also a music jukebox with some tables, chairs, and stools.
"Where did you get that? I can't remember the last time I saw a real one," Tifa said as she stared at Cloud's chest.
Jaune saw Tifa pointing to the flower hanging on Cloud's harness. For some reason the Arc thought that if the ex-SOLDIER picked his next words wisely, he'd be in hot water.
"He did say they have known each other since they were kids so she might have a thing for him," Jaune hummed.
How curious it was that Jaune was so observant towards other ships, but clueless towards his own.
Just like Ren and Nora felt the same for each other. It was something he saw from day one, and he called Neptune falling for Weiss when the two first met.
Before he made his move, Jaune wondered if Cloud could be bold enough to tell Tifa another woman gave it to him.
In response to Tifa's question, the spikey-blond merc took it off and offered it to her.
The Arc nodded in approval, admitting to himself that Cloud's action was a real smooth thing to do. That day, the Huntsman learned that sometimes actions speak louder than words.
Tifa smiled with a bit of blush on her face. Jaune could tell she liked getting a flower from the splikey-haired Ex-SOLIDER.
"Way to go to save your bacon. Getting into trouble with women is never fun," Jaune thought, but the Huntsman wasn't sure if Tifa was the jealous type since he barely knew anything about her.
"How sweet, when did you get so thoughtful?" Tifa said as she took the flower and started walking behind the bar to put it in water.
"A guy can change. It has been five years," Cloud replied.
"Five years?" Jaune tilted his head.
"I need to talk to Barret," Cloud followed up.
The Arc decided to go check on his silver eyed friend who was having a blast with one of the pinball machines.
Thinking that it was a pretty good start at their new home, Jaune tried to get Ruby's attention, but the reaper was too lost in the game to focus on anything else. She wasn't going to pay attention to him anytime soon, but it did look really fun.
Maybe it's because he has never had the chance to, but it occurred to Jaune that he never bothered to invite his team to an arcade.
That really brought him down, but he shook it off when he realized that they did lots of other things like watching movies, playing board games, running from Nora, and telling ghost stories for fun.
Nora would always come up with the scariest of stories. She had some that made Ren hide in their bathroom tub for a week.
"Ah…the good old days…and great, now I'm feeling home sick again," Jaune shook his head.
"Daddy, the Mako place blew up. Everyone on TV's talking about it," Marlene stated with curious eyes.
"Don't you worry about all that silliness, dear. Daddy's here, and he's not going anywhere tonight. Now turn that thing off and let's get you to bed, huh?" Berret said as he turned off the television.
Cloud was about to approach the Avalanche leader when the little girl turned to him.
The Ex-SOLIDER didn't know how to speak to or how to handle Marlene. Kids weren't exactly his area of expertise. So, he went with direct approach, "Hey, kid."
"Smooth, Cloud, real smooth," Jaune shook his head before Cloud turned to the Avalanche leader and asked, "Where's my money, Berret?"
Marlene was startled by his 'direct-approach' and started running to the corner of the counter.
"Hey! The hell you think you're doing scaring my daughter like that?!"Berret growled as he invaded Cloud's personal space.
Jaune immediately got between them before things got ugly and said, "Easy, it was just an accident. Cloud is just a little lacking in the sociability department. I'm sure Cloud didn't mean any harm, right?"
"..."
Barret kept glaring at him. The man was obviously the over protective type. He won't let some stranger get close to his little girl.
"Daddy says never talk to strangers," Marlene called out.
"That's right, honey. I do say that. What a good girl you are, remembering daddy's lessons." Berret said as he flipped between angry father to doting father.
Jaune saw that Ruby was done with the pinball machine, so he thought that it was time to get into his good side again.
Jaune was used to kids, so won't to mess up like Cloud did. The blond knight slowly approached the little girl while the dark skinned man eyed him like a hawk glaring at its prey.
"Hello Marlene, I'm Jaune it's very nice to meet you."
"And I'm Ruby! You're very cute" smiled the petite.
The girl seemed to have calm down, giving a nod to the two strangers while saying, "H…hello…."
"Jaune and I are new here, so you'll be seeing us a lot from now on. I hope we can get along and become friends, that way we won't be strangers anymore."
Marlene nodded before smiling and saying, "I like your cloak."
The petite reaper giggled while showing off her red cloak like a model displaying her new dress. Ruby even put the hood on.
"I know, isn't it cool? It was a gift from my mom when I was little. It means a lot to me,"
"Daddy? Can you make me a cloak like that?" Marlene asked as she pointed at Ruby with a big smile on her face.
Berret coughed a few times before picking her up and saying, "We'll see about that sweetie. Now, off to bed we go."
"But I'm not tire! I wanna talk some more, Daddy…."
"Mmm, all right, but just this once!" Berret relented as he put his daughter back down.
"Barret, I have to say, she's so adorable!" The reaper gushed.
"Of course, she is! Marlene is one of a kind! There is no one like her on the planet!" Berret bragged with a smug smile on his face.
Ruby smiled gently seeing the little girl and the big guy being so close to one another. It reminded her when she was Marlene's age playing with her father in the backyard while her mom was baking some of her famous cookies.
The memories of her youth flooded into her psyche. Her dad pretending that he was a Grimm while she and Yang were the Huntresses that needed take him down. The nostalgia hit her strong.
Ruby took a breath and reminded herself to be careful or else she'll end up shedding tears again. Remembering the past was supposed to be a good thing, but damn it, she missed them so much, along with all her friends.
Ruby got seated in one of the bar stools next to Cloud while putting her arms over the counter.
As the blond knight got seated next to her, Tifa smiled at her two new crew members/customers, and let's not forget about Cloud.
"So then! What can I get you three?" Tifa said with a cheerful smile.
"Milk, and cookies if you have them," Ruby called out.
"Water is just fine for me," Jaune held his hand up while thinking, "Besides, I doubt you have grape sunburst soda in this world. Heck, I haven't seen a proper tasting soda since I got to this place. It's all energy drinks and that weird Mako stuff Shinra makes. Mako-cola, seriously what were they thinking?!"
Tifa turned to Cloud and tilted her head, making him shrug before saying, "My money. I'm still waiting on it. But if I have to pick, give me something hard."
"I can get the milk and the water but no cookies, and your money, right."
She left the counter before walking right to the spikey-blond Mercenary, "About that...We should talk outside. Anyway Jaune, Ruby, can you guys can wait here for your order? I'll be right back."
"Sure thing, we're not going anywhere," Jaune waved them off.
The teenagers watched as the two left the bar while Jaune leaned over and said, "Think they're a couple?"
Ruby shrugged her shoulders, "I think Tiffa might have a thing for him…but Cloud seems like a pretty dense guy. All that flirting and looks she gave him probably went right over his head."
"Hahah, yeah it's so obvious, his head would have to made stone to miss that," Jaune chuckled.
[…]
"From the sound of Tifa's tone it sounds like they don't enough money to pay Cloud," Jaune followed up.
"Ooh, he's not like that," Ruby chuckled.
But seriously, they both thought the Avalanche should cut Cloud some slack. Isn't it enough that he aided Avalanche's cause and put his head on the line? The man deserves to get paid for his services rendered. A mercenary's life blood is the check he gets from doing the job, without it, they can't live.
Jaune and Ruby understood where he was coming from, but they also knew that they are nothing like that. Money is important to them, but in the end, it's just another tool for humans to use. They care more about helping people that getting paid for it. It's just how they were brought up.
"Um, Daddy...Did the people who died all return to the planet?"
"Of course," Berret replied with a bit of a sad expression.
Jaune wanted to talk to the Avalanche leader, but he was too busy talking to Marlene. Ruby volunteered to get her attention away from him, and got up from the bar.
Being her usual cheerful peppy self, the little girl was immediately attached to the silver-eyed petite. Part of it was because of her red cloak, but Ruby was just fun to be around.
She knew stories Marlene never heard before, and spoke about her teammates and family like they were heroes in the books Jaune's mother used to read him.
Barret didn't mind one bit. He was happy to see Marlene coming out of her shell thanks to the Huntress. Though, his baby girl should be getting some sleep, any minute it'll be a half-hour past her bedtime.
Berret then recalled the way he reacted towards Cloud. The guy didn't have any ill intent to harm his little girl. He wasn't best person to hold a conversation that's for sure.
Berret then shook his head as he thought, "No, I ain't apologizing to him."
The merc may have been of great help in the destruction of Mako Reactor 1 but he wasn't sure if he Cloud had fully earned his trust.
The taller blond next to him, on the other hand, has done much better. First of all, giving him the maps to all of the reactors for free wasn't just charitable, but down right stupid.
It's the one thing that their group has been searching for so such a long time that they'd pay any price to get it.
Berret made a mental note to to inform Avalanche HQ later.
"What will you two do now? Take some jobs?" Berret asked as he crossed his arms.
"I do need to talk to you about that. We might take jobs from time to time, but not from you. That's not why were here. Being mercenaries was good at the start of our journey. However, now that we're part of Avalanche, Gil is the last thing we want from you Berret. We're in this for the planet," Jaune answered honestly.
"That's good. Paying one Merc is enough to put a dent on Marlene's schooling funds."
"You should give Cloud a break. He has to make a living too. Mercenaries don't eat if they don't get paid," Ruby followed up.
"Everybody needs to eat, Barret," Jaune nodded his head.
"Guess so. Still, you haven't answered my question. If you aren't taking pay from me, how will you make a living in Sector 7?"
"Well...first of all we want to join Avalanche. As for money, we have other skills that help us earn a decent pay," Ruby said with a bit of a nervous tone.
Barret turned to Jaune and then asked, "Is that so? You two want to throw away your futures to join us?"
"We made the decision before arriving here. We want to save the planet as much as you," Ruby said with a dead serious expression.
"Hm…." he stood in thought.
True the teenagers did more than a good job back at the reactor, they fight better than most people he's met, and he also has those maps that will become very useful in future missions.
"So, you want to moonlight being a mercenary while being a fulltime member of Avalanche, huh?"
"We'll do anything you say no questions ask…well, we're not dumb enough to not question orders, especially if they sound bad, but as long as it doesn't go against our morals, we're your guys…"
Ruby gave him a dull look before Jaune coughed and said, "I mean, guy and girl. You already know we're good in a fight, and like Ruby said earlier, we have other skills that can be very helpful in other fields."
"Oh…I'm listening," Ruby has...an interest in weapons, and she made her own weapon. You've seen her using it, so I'm sure she can maybe forge you some new weapons for the group."
"You have my attention," Berret show a bit of a smile.
"Well, let's see, she's smart, funny, is one of the best fighters I know, makes great cookies, she's…fast on her feet, like really fast…I think that's pretty much it. Oh, yeah, Ruby isn't half bad with technology, and also gets along with Marlene, so she can look after her just in case you're not around."
"That's usually Tifa's job. Though, I wouldn't mind the extra help," Berret commented as his glance drifted over to see his little girl laughing at something the silver eyed girl said to her.
"What about you? Any expertise asides fighting?"
"Me? I...I'm very reliable I can come up with quick decisions and formulate a plan. Ruby is also the same, quick thinker, and she's a bit quicker than me. But I think I'm better at the long term stuff…she's also been teaching me about crafting weapons, and I've taken in interest in building technological stuff lately…I don't have any confidence in my understanding of the stuff to make something yet,"
"Sounds to me she's more useful than you."
The Arc didn't deny it as he sweat dropped. It was true in a way.
"She can fight, she's capable of making weapons, and Marlene likes her. She's the perfect candidate for Avalanche." Jaune thought before saying, "Ruby is not going to join you unless I join too."
And it was true too. They wouldn't hesitate to leave if they both didn't get accepted into the group.
"I was kidding boy. You want to join us, you're both in. But you better keep your end of the bargain and show me what you can do than fight or I might change my mind."
"Thanks Barret we won't let you down," Jaune breathed a sigh of relief.
"You do know it's going to continue? There will be more explosions, more destruction, more people dying. Think you can handle it?"
"We know what we're getting ourselves into" the blond knight nodded.
The man gave a nod while hiding his smile. Avalanche was sure growing bigger and livelier. He turned to his little girl that was still chatting with Ruby.
"And it looks like my baby girl has made a new friend today," Berret thought as he forgot to not smile.
The one-armed man was happy Marlene made a friend. Berret was getting along with the two Hunters, and he could tell they were good kids, specially the red cloak girl.
"All right, that's enough chit-chat Marlene. Off to bed, for real this time."
"Okay daddy. Bye Ruby!"
"Goodnight!" the petite reaper chirped. She was so happy to have met Marlene, it reminded her of herself when she was the little girl's age.
Barret took the girl upstairs of the bar while the silver eyes girl got seated next to the Arc.
"So far, this place isn't so bad," Ruby said as she kicked her feet back and forth happily.
"I should be easy to adjust with Avalanche here," Jaune followed up.
However, it didn't change the fact that they still miss Aerith.
The Ancient was always seen in a positive light. She's so kind and caring, and they hung out every day for their first four months in this world. However, they also knew that the pink-themed florist was lonely, trying to fit in with regular humans, it was hard for her to make friends, and Shinra keeping an eye didn't help either.
Biggs came out after chatting with Berret and walked over towards the two Hunters.
"Are we in?" Jaune asked.
"Barret gave you two his seal approval. Congratulations, you two are part of Avalanche now," Biggs patted them on the back before heading over to the pinball machine.
"Cool. I have so many ideas to improve their weapons. There's nothing with having classics, but maybe a little touch of home will."
"Two in one special?" smiled Jaune.
"Yes. If I have the right place, the right tools, the right materials I can come up with something. Not to mention…our little experiment,"
"I already told Barret of your particular set of talents, so he might consider funding us," Jaune replied with a smirk.
"You're the best, Jaune!" Thanks for always thinking about me," the petite giggled with a bit of blush on her cheeks.
"We still have a long way to go if we want to take down Shinra," Jaune changed the subject.
The reaper nodded before she got silent, "Think Aerith's okay?"
"She is. Young grandma's stronger than we give her credit for," Jaune chuckled at the first nick name he called the florist.
The memory was still fresh in his mind.
"Why young granny?" Aerith pouted.
"Because, you're young and Ancient at the same time! You asked for a mean nickname, and I warned you, mine are particularly mean, even when I don't even try to be."
"Okay, I'll remember this, Vomit Knight," Aerith frowned as she puffed her cheeks up.
"Boo! Granny can't take a joke," Ruby jeered as she started laughing.
"Shut it, Crater Face! How many times are you blow up your lab? Jaune was right to give you that one," Aerith said before they paused, let the silence stick around for a bit, and then they all started laughing.
"She's probably thinking about us. I wonder if Ruby brushed her teeth yet, or if Jaune took a shower after his workout session," Ruby said with a vibrant smile on her face.
"Or if Ruby isn't picking her nose when no one is watching," smirked the Arc.
"Ah! I...I don' do that! Not anymore. I'm a big girl now!" Ruby claimed as she blushed and turned away.
"Never doubted you, but seriously, Aerith has this tendency to look after us as if she was our mom."
"Or a concern older sister, either way, I miss her," Ruby deflated.
"Me too," Jaune patted her back.
The doors to the bar opened as Tifa walked through. She was surprised to see that there were still people here.
"Oh, I almost forgot about you two. One cup water and a cup milk coming right up," Tifa said as she walked back behind the bar.
The young woman went to a cabinet and took out three cups.
The Arc and reaper noticed the many bottles on the shelves. There were all kinds of alcoholic beverages, one called 7th Heaven Whiskey, Shiva Rum, Ifrit Tequila, Red Bomb Scotch, and even more strange names they've never heard of.
Staring at them it reminded Ruby of her uncle. She was sure if Qrow was here, he would be drinking some of them to see which tastes better while sneaking some into his flask.
It didn't take her long to serve the two glasses. She poured the third cup for when Cloud came back in. He got a cup of 7th Heaven Whiskey.
Jaune was feeling thirsty, so he didn't hesitate to take a sip, he downed the whole glass. Cold and fresh water, Jaune was glad that it didn't taste polluted or anything. He's had to drink some a couple times in the other Sector. That was until Jaune taught them how to make rustic filters out of sand, rocks, and charcoal.
Ruby looked like she thought the milk was even better.
"How is it?" Tifa smiled at Ruby.
"Great. It will taste even better with some cookies," the petite gave a pout.
"Sorry, this isn't a bakery. You have to buy them elsewhere," Tifa chuckled.
"Did you give Cloud his money?" asked the Arc.
"I did, but not everything. Five hundred Gil is all I could give him. I am planning on paying him the full two thousand after selling some water filters."
Ruby and Jaune stood in thought. Two thousand wasn't that bad of a price for helping Avalanche take down a Mako reactor. They were supposed to get ten thousand from Shinra just for being a security guard for a day.
Ten Thousand if they did the day's work, fifteen thousand if they did a good job. Well, they still have some Gil left in their satchels, but together it only added up to about 5k. They 'were' sitting on 35K back at their house, but there was a high chance that it went into a Shinra employee's pocket.
"Well, might as well give her the good news while we're at it," Jaune sighed as he thought of their lost savings.
"We'll help you out. We're with the group now," Jaune smiled as he pointed to Ruby and himself.
"Really?" Tifa asked.
"We're in, Barret gave the okay," Ruby said as she finished up her cup of milk.
"Welcome aboard," Tifa smiled. She was more than happy to have new members joining them.
"I don't mind the additional help, Cloud already volunteered," Tifa nodded her head.
"Will he accept if we gave him the remaining fifteen hundred Gil?" asked the Arc.
"I don't know. He usually likes to earn the money instead of someone offering it to him. It's why he wants to help me. He wants to be useful," Tifa answered.
"He'll be more useful if he aids Avalanche without a paycheck," said Ruby while shaking her head.
"I've been wanting to ask him to join us for some time now, but he obviously doesn't believe in the group's ideals. Still, if it means he can fight against Shinra, he'll do it," Tifa sighed as she shook her head side to side.
"He used to work for Shinra as a SOLDIER. I wonder what happened that made him quit?" Jaune thought out loud.
"Um…that's a good question. Probably a personal one," Tifa scratched the side of her head.
"Sorry," Jaune apologized in all seriousness, "I just say what's on the top of my mind sometimes."
"It's okay. You guys are new in Sector 7, right? Do you have a place to spend the night?"
"Berret said you might be able to help us find a place. I hope it's not too much trouble," Ruby replied with an embarrassed expression.
"It's okay, seriously you two, relax. I can help with that. Come on, let's go" Tifa left the counter again.
The young woman brought them to a two-floor apartment complex called Stargazer Heights.
It was the same place where Cloud was staying for the time being, and Tifa was just a few doors down.
It made Ruby happier knowing that she was living near people she can become friends with.
She was still getting to know the spikey-blond Merc, but Ruby still chose to see him as a friend, and she figured that it would be easy to get along with the Seventh Heaven's bartender, so that was one friend in Marlene, and a whole lot of potential friends to make over their time here.
Their room will be on the first floor and currently there's only one room vacant.
"One room, one bed, I feel like we've been here before," Jaune said with a nervous expression on his face.
He didn't like it, not because he thought Ruby was sexy, because it wasn't right for a man and a woman who weren't family or a couple to share a room.
Back at their place in Sector 5 they worked hard to earn two rooms, but he was going back to only having one bed once again, his back was going to kill him from sleeping on the floor so often.
It made the Arc uncomfortable and most importantly embarrassed. Because he'd never imagined he would share a bedroom with a girl again. He thought he got through that phase of their new life.
Not to mention it was Ruby of all people, someone he has grown very close to. In addition, Jaune couldn't deny that he has noticed her curves at the age of seventeen. To top it off, she was going to eighteen in a couple of months or so, which made him even more embarrassed because that would mean two adults were going to share a room.
"I don't mean to sound rude to Tifa, but I'll have to turn down your help. I'll have to find a place while Ruby stays here," Jaune said as he scratched the back of his head.
"You two can stay in room 102, and the landlady won't charge you because she supports the cause. I hope you two can come to an agreement on who will take the bed," Tifa seemed to have ignored him.
"Um...Tifa I-"
"Sure thing, we'll take the room! We'll just sleep on the bed together," Ruby said while casually cutting Jaune off.
"What?!" Jaune's face turned red bright red before he asked, "Ruby, can I talk to you over here?"
Ruby walked over a few feet away from Tifa and whispered in a rather loud voice, "What are you doing?"
"Sharing the room, what's so wrong about it? Friends share right?" Ruby showed a puzzled expression.
"Y-Yeah but share a bed? The two of us on a bed, together?" The poor guy was still blushing to the point steam started to rise from the top of his head.
"So, what? It's just a bed? I don't see the problem, Jaune," Ruby lifted a brow ad crossed her arms before saying, "Are you saying, I'm not good enough to share a bed with you?"
"Ruby, the way you phrased that…it can be taken in so many wrong ways." Jaune said as he slapped his forehead and thought, "Oh, boy! Why she not getting this?"
Tifa smiled when she saw Jaune's expression. Not to mention, they weren't really being quiet.
It was clear to the bartender that these two are very close to each other. The blond was acting like any guy would if they heard that a girl wanted to share a bed with him. Especially someone so close to him.
"You can take the bed, I'll take the floor," Jaune sighed, seeing he wasn't going to win this debate.
"Why do you want to sleep on the floor? The bed is so much comfier!" Ruby stuck her bottom lip up as she pouted.
"Because…I'm…sure the bed is small, right?" he turned to the beautiful bartender lady.
"It's true this is the slums. So it's not exactly a five star inn," Tifa held her hands out and shrugged.
"And I think it's the right thing to do if you get to sleep on the bed."
"I don't want you sleeping on a cold floor with no covers or a pillow. It's crazy. We did that once, Jaune, and it affected out work. My back isn't built for sleeping on the floor, and neither is yours. Just sleep with me on the bed, silly."
Her comment just made him blushed even more while he thought, "If she could only understand the meaning of those words without me having to tell her. Then Yang might not kill me once we get to the afterlife…I wonder what happens if you die when you're already dead. Is like…double death?"
Tifa kept smiling thinking they would make a cute couple. Maybe she and Cloud would have been like this if he never left Nibelheim.
Tifa's cheerful expression changed for a second when she thought, "No, don't think of it. That only brought painful memories."
Memories that she won't see Cloud for a while, where she used to have people that she cared for, and where her life was changed forever.
They gasped hearing groans and the sound of a struggle coming from upstairs. They went to check it out only to see the blond merc pining someone to the ground holding his weapon.
"Cloud! Stop!" Tifa shouted.
"Get back inside!" Cloud warned.
The hooded person grabbed his right foot before Cloud let out a low growl, "Get off me!"
Jaune and Ruby saw the person on the ground wearing black robes similar to the Whispers, but it was an actual person and not a specter of fate.
A piece of his robe on his left arm was torn, revealing the number 49 in black ink over his pale skin. Neither had a clue what was going on, or what the number means. However, it was clear the guy wasn't fighting back.
Cloud eyes widened as he lowered his weapon. It was like he wasn't seeing the person same person everyone saw, but a real and viable threat.
"How…no, maybe I'm just tired," Cloud gipped his head as he back up a bit. Even in death, that man was still haunting him, his very image seems to follow him everywhere.
"What are you doing to Marco? This is his apartment. He's got a few problems but he's not a bad guy." Tifa said before she helped the robe man.
"Is being very creepy one of those problems?" Ruby felt a shiver down her spine at the sight of the man, no wonder Cloud would try to attack him. It wasn't just that, something inside her was telling the reaper there was something fundamentally wrong with that man.
"The landlady asked me to check on him and then to make sure he's okay. Can I ask you to do the same?" Tifa requested.
"Sure…."Ruby shook her head as she thought, "What's wrong with me. I don't even know the guy."
"Here let me help," Jaune volunteered as he helped the bartender take robe man back inside.
However, as they carried him through the door, Marco whispered something, a word that very familiar to the Arc.
"Reunion."
Blue eyes widened in shock.
"Reunion?"
The image of Cinder saying that word only brought him fear and anger. He and the silver eyed petite were still trying to come up with the fact that she might be in this world.
Removing the thoughts from his head, he helped Tifa put him on his bed, and left.
Closing the door behind them, Tifa gave a slight bow of apology before saying, "He won't cause any trouble, I promise,"
"Is he okay?" asked the red reaper.
"I don't know, he barely says anything. I only know he was found on the street before the landlady took him in. He doesn't eat much or sleep either."
"What's with the number on his shoulder?" followed the Arc.
"I don't know much about that either. Let's just leave him alone."
"Sorry" the blond felt bad interrogating the young woman.
"I'm glad he's on the second floor," Ruby whispered to him.
"Looks like I'm not the only one who got a funky feeling from that guy," Jaune shook his head.
Cloud sheathed his buster sword before going back to his room. He was tired and wanted to regain his strength and energy for tomorrow.
"What, no goodnight?" Jaune called out.
"Not my style," Cloud said as he closed the door.
"Yep, figured as much," Jaune let out a dry chuckle.
"Let me get the Landlady so I can give you the room key. I only told her about Cloud staying. I won't be long," Tifa waved before left taking the stairs.
"So, what do you think of Sector 7?" said the blond Huntsman.
"It's nice, I like it. I do miss our house in Sector 5 but this place...I feel it can become home," the petite smiled.
"Yeah, me too," Jaune crossed his arms and smiled.
"Hey, Jaune...Do you think Aerith knew we weren't going to return to Sector 5?" Ruby's eyes looked a bit depressed.
"I've been wondering the same thing too. I don't know if Ancients can predict the future. Maybe she just had a strong feeling."
"I want to see her again." Ruby placed her head against Jaune's arm.
The Arc nodded in agreement as he said, "Yeah, me too."
Jaune changed into his sleeping clothes and left the bathroom. He was so tired that the blond could barely think straight. Not bothering to check the time, Jaune went to the bedside wearing a white muscle shirt and blue shorts.
Sighing that the bed was indeed small, and that it didn't give him or Ruby any space between them each other, the blond knight let out another sigh of resignation.
"Forget it," Jaune shook his head. He wanted to sleep, so he went to the bed while not even giving a chance for the petite to come out of the bathroom in her sleepwear.
While he was trying to go to dreamland the Arc was reflecting of the many things that happened today. There were so many things that he didn't know where to start.
Joining Avalanche was the obvious choice. He wasn't sure at first, but after running into them back at Mako Reactor 1 it became clear to the Arc.
Helping Barret and Cloud against the Scorpion Sentinel, escaping the reactor, dealing with more Shinra forces, and the Scorpion Commando. His new summon, giving the group leader the maps, and now living in Sector 7.
Too much action for one day, but it he guessed that could tomorrow it would slow down again. They have a new home, new team, and they were still in this together.
"Great, so much for crashing and conking out quickly, I really do stay in my head too much," Jaune thought before the sound of the door opening caught his attention.
Ruby was finally done changing and walked out of the bathroom.
The petite closed the door to behind her, and with not knowing why, Jaune really wanted to glance at the silver eyed petite.
Unable to stop himself, he opened an eyelid slightly and peaked over his shoulder. The blue eyes widened at the sight.
The reaper was wearing a white tank top that showed off her belly and white shorts that stopped at her thigh.
"Why is she dressing like Yang?" Jaune blushed hard as he looked away.
Okay, so she was growing up into a beautiful woman, he won't deny it, but that doesn't mean she should wear so little.
The tank top shows perfectly her moderate bust and those shorts by the Planet Gaia, they can't get any shorter with how much of her thighs it was showing.
The blond was starting to wonder he might have a fetish for legs and thighs before he thought, "All in all her figure is amazing, and she wanted to share the bed with me? Here's hoping I don't die of a heart attack."
Jaune heard her walking over as he closed his eyes and thought, "Please give me strength not to fall into temptation. I mean, it's Ruby…and she's...Freaking hot!"
Not to fall into temptation was very right. The girl's petite body has gone through great changes thanks to puberty and working out at Jules' gym.
She has also done changes to her clothing choices. He remembered when she would wear that black dress with the combat skirt during their Beacon days. It was hard to notice her developed body back then because she wore loose clothing like he did.
Then, little by little, she started changing her attire to show more skin. Growing up led Ruby to have different preference in clothing, and that change started to frustrate Jaune in a way he didn't want to think about, and all because her current attire shows her amazing figure.
Jaune was never really one to put too much thought into their 3-sizes, he cared about looks, sure, but it wasn't the most important thing. However, the blond knight was beginning to understand that he had a preference.
Ruby's boobs were perfect size, decently big, but smaller than Yang. Her hips had nice curve thanks to the corset she used to wear, and the muscles on her weren't overly developed like some kind of fulltime body builder, but an acrobatic and speed type build. Not to mention, he fully approves her shape and weight to her bottom, what a booty. It wasn't too big, but it was fit and had more than enough to hold onto.
Basically, the Huntress has the perfect body he was looking for in a girl.
But instead of admitting his feelings, Jaune went full blown denial mode, "This can't be happening! She's my best friend. She's been with me through thick and thin, even before arriving in this world. Am I being punished? Why? I'm a good person," Jaune cried to himself.
Ruby smiled ready to hit the sack and get some rest. What a day it has been, all the fighting and adrenaline really hit the old hero itch of hers.
It was no wonder why she was starting to like Sector 7, the place looked real rowdy, like trouble was easy to find here. Not to mention after meeting Marlene, Tifa, Cloud, and Barret. She enjoyed watching the Avalanche squad leader acting like a completely different person when he wasn't working, especially when she saw him with the little girl.
Seeing Berret being such a loving father brought back fond memories of when her own father would look after her. Taiyang Xiao Long wasn't the perfect father, but he was loving, kind, and cared for his daughters more than his own life.
Ruby didn't want to let the reminders of her family haunt her. She wanted them to make her stronger, so the reminders she got about her sister from Tifa, or the fatherly side of Berret reminding her of her father, it would give her strength to move on.
"This place really can be home, the one I've been yearning for since I died," Ruby thought to herself.
It was a matter of adjustment and moving on. Though, Ruby believed that she wouldn't be able to do it on her own. If she was alone in this world, she wouldn't know what to do. She probably would have given up, but she wasn't. Jaune was here with her and together, they will face anything that Shinra throws at them.
The reaper walked over to the bed glancing at the blond before asking, "Jaune, are you asleep?"
"Not yet."
"Too much excitement, right?"
"Yeah…excitement," Jaune crossed his legs pushing something hard down between his thighs before saying, "I'm tired but I can't sleep. I hate when that happens."
Ruby giggled as she got on the bed covering her and Jaune with the covers. Her body so close to the Arc, her heart thumped hard a few times before she took a breath and calmed down.
She admitted this was a little extreme. Yang would never have allowed something like this this, sharing a bed with a boy would be so over the top. Ruby wasn't so sure about what the rest of her team would think.
Weiss will probably rant of how immoral it was while Blake could care less because she has always trusted Ruby as a friend and leader.
Ren wouldn't make a big fuss while Nora will be grinning.
A blush ran across her cheeks before tried to ignore the thoughts she was having, "We have known each other for about two years and 7 months now, and we've almost lived here for four months now…together…"
Now the silver-eyed reaper found herself embarrassed and strangely hot when she was very comfortable a minute ago.
"Great, now the butterflies in my stomach are back," Ruby's calm and confident nature ran out window when she realized just how close the blond muscular back was to her.
Ruby then blinked widely when she noticing the Arc trying to move away from her.
"What are you doing?"
"Trying to give you your space," Jaune answered as he continued to scoot further away.
"But the bed isn't big enough, you're going to-"
And then Jaune fell off while a sweat dropped from the reaper's brow, "Fall..."
Jaune grunted as he landed on his very active lower half when Ruby asked, "You okay?"
"Ugh…I'm peachy. Why I don't go out to buy some extra covers and a pillow. I'll sleep on the floor as it should be."
"You don't want to share the bed with me?" Ruby's eyes showed a familiar sparkle Jaune recognized.
"Ruby-"
"You don't want to sleep with me?" Ruby pushed out her lower lip and pouted with her famous puppy dog pout.
"That sounded SO wrong," Jaune thought as he blushed hard and tried to say, "But…"
"Stop it already and get on the bed. No ifs and or buts," Ruby pointed to the bed while holding the covers up.
"I...I-"
"Jaune, don't make me use Crescent Rose. Do what I say and get in the bed, now!"
"Okay!" Jaune shouted before he thought, "Wow, I didn't know Ruby could be so scary! That's kind of hot…okay, yeah, something is wrong with me."
The blond gave a sigh getting on the bed. It was hard to keep his distance from the reaper, and Ruby didn't make it any easier.
The silver-eyed petite didn't care what Jaune wanted as she moved her body closer to his until she ended up cuddling with his back.
The Arc blushed feeling the heat of her body along with her chest pressed up against his shoulders while her arm that was under his bicep was firmly wrapped over his chest.
She was so warm and soft, Jaune found himself unable to say a word. So, he clenched his eyes shut and tried to think of an ice bath or being out in the frozen tundra without clothes on.
Eventually, he was able to calm himself down, and both fell asleep. To their total surprise, it will be the first night neither of them would have a nightmare.
To be continued
Author: Please enjoy the Omakes, and let me know what you think. Should I do more in the futrue? As always thank you for reading, please support the original fanfiction writer and makers of RWBY and Final Fantasy.
Omake 1: Denser than rocks.
Ruby shrugged her shoulders, "I think Tiffa might have a thing for him…but Cloud seems like a pretty dense guy. All that flirting and looks she gave him probably went right over his head."
"Hahah, yeah it's so obvious, his head would have to made stone to miss that," Jaune chuckled.
[Author:…the fu…never mind, talk about the pots calling the kettle black, and I right or what?]
[Yang:Booo! You suck!]
[Author: Ahem…moving on.]
Omake 2: Yang Again!
"You don't want to sleep with me?" Ruby pushed out her lower lip and pouted with her famous puppy dog pout.
"That sounded SO wrong," Jaune thought as he blushed hard and tried to say, "But…"
[Yang: Yeah, that's not the only hard thing! Heyooo!]
"Stop it already and get on the bed. No ifs and or buts." Ruby pointed to the bed.
[Yang: Well…maybe two butts! How else do you share a bed, butts off?]
[Author: Yang we talked about this!]
[Yang: You can't stop me! The readers love me!]
