The soldier found it while hiking through the mountains near Nibelheim, searching through the cave systems for the anomalies that were reported by other soldiers that had been stationed nearby. It was slightly glowing green, mostly black. She almost didn't see it in the dark as she shone her flashlight over the rocks and boulders it had been snugly crammed between. Moving the light away, a faint green glow had caught her eye.
The cave was dark and cold and wet and the Materia was slimy with mud. It seemed to have been pushed through the earthen floor. She showed it to her supervisor who in turn called the team out. They flew back to headquarters and the whole time she felt as if a magnet was in her pocket instead of the strange Materia. The cloth from her uniform's pocket seemed to stick to her chair and she passed it around, hoping to escape the weird feeling it gave her the further away it got.
Finally, they landed on the roof of the WRO headquarters. Her supervisor had her escorted to the labs, where the head scientist Shalua was stumped. No one had ever seen Materia like this. It wasn't manmade like most Materia, and things seemed to gravitate towards it. Pens, pencils, paper, letters from keyboards, everything moved towards it.
"Maybe the Planet made it," a scientist offered. Everyone looked at each other with uneasy looks on their faces.
"No, it takes centuries for Materia to form. And it wasn't found in a Mako Spring," Shalua said, narrowing her eyes at the Materia as it sat faintly glowing in the thick plastic case they eventually had to confine it in. After a while of sitting on a table while everyone speculated what it did, a computer and a chair rocketed towards it, nearly hitting a scientist and their service dog. Avah had some issues from the war as well as a prosthetic leg and her dog helped her move around her workspace with ease. No one wanted to be hurt by other flying appliances, so they found the plastic casing, hoping that the thick clear plastic would keep it calm for a while.
"Someone call Max," Shalua finally said. "He'll know what to do."
"Why?" The soldier asked. The scientists looked at each other and then at her.
"Max worked for Shinra, with Materia, classifying them and making sure the manmade ones weren't defective," Shalua answered.
The hospital ward's halls were cold. The AC was blasting to beat the horrible heat outside. Thankfully, Rosso kept her room comfortably cold, so that it was at least warmer than the halls. At least that's what Lyra was told.
Lyra tried to be excited to finally meet Rosso without worrying about getting a metal arm in slashed in her face, but she couldn't shake her anger and the feeling of betrayal. Her smile came off as uneasy as Lyra and Tifa approached her room. Tifa noticed.
"You don't have to do this if you don't want to," Tifa said. Lyra wanted to ignore her, only acknowledging her with a nod. Rosso was talking with a nurse when they got to her door. They seemed to be a bit flirtatious, and Lyra didn't blame Rosso. The nurse was cute. He had dark hair and dark eyes. But he was nothing compared to-
Lyra pinched the inside of her arm. Kadaj had jumped into her mind to finish that thought and she hoped that she wouldn't run into him for once. She wouldn't be able to keep a straight face. What was she thinking anyway, comparing how cute Rosso's nurse was to how cute Kadaj was?
Okay, pinching her arm wasn't working.
"Hey Rosso. How're doing?" Tifa asked as she knocked on the doorway. Rosso shot her a smirk and waved for them to come in.
"I'm doing fine. Owen here was just giving me my breakfast," she answered. She gave him a quick wink and he winked back. He told her that he would be back later with her lunch and left. Rosso watched him leave and spotted Lyra as she moved out of the way.
"Little mouse! What a pleasant surprise," Rosso exclaimed. She stood and moved her empty food tray to the side. Lyra took a step inside and forced herself to smile without grimacing.
Sure, she had forgiven Rosso and was willing to be friends with her, but the hair on her neck rose when Rosso was near. No matter how well Rosso was doing, Rosso was still dangerous.
"What's on the agenda today?" Tifa asked, noticing Lyra's discomfort. Rosso turned her attention to her. She looked down at her white hospital clothes, simply long-sleeved shirt and white sweatpants.
"I was told that clothes have been donated and that I am free to pick from them," Rosso replied. "I've done well, and I was given the OK to get new clothing."
Tifa smiled and nodded. "Sounds doable. We can do that."
"Let's go then," Lyra said. "I'm feeling antsy in here."
The elevator ride was silent. Rosso didn't like it. She froze the second she entered and clenched and unclenched her fists. Tifa reminded her to take deep breaths as they made their way down.
"I don't like small spaces," Rosso said.
Rosso's anxiety was contagious. Lyra could feel the ice making the elevator cold. Finally, the elevator stopped. They left it and a group of WRO employees boarded after them.
The donation room Tifa brought them to was simple. Many boxes of clothes sat on long tables, each one neatly labeled with the designated clothes folded inside. Racks of hangers hung on the walls and those clothes on the hangers were covered in plastic to ward off dust.
Rosso carefully went through each box. Occasionally she would pick something out, but she would click her tongue and place it back in. She wasn't very good at folding the clothing and Tifa followed close behind, patiently waiting for Rosso to throw the shirt or the pair of shorts or whatever she was examining back into the box in a bundle. Lyra went through a few boxes of jeans and shirts and found a few plaid flannels that were miraculously her size and stood back to watch the chaos.
"No, no, none of these shirts are the right color," Rosso muttered. She had an armful of shirts and Lyra couldn't help but notice that they were all red or black. Rosso had one dark purple shirt, but she steered clear of the happy yellows and calming greens and blues she came across. Finally, she placed the clothing she wanted from the boxes aside and went through the hangers. She gasped and pulled a black tube dress from the rack.
"Where could I wear this?" She turned to Tifa with a large excited grin on her face. Tifa chuckled.
"It's a club dress. I don't think you're ready for that," she said. "Too many people."
Rosso shrugged and put the dress back, hardly able to hang the dress up properly. She went down the line and found a few shoes her size underneath the racks. She set them aside with the shirts and pants and continued to search through the hangers.
"What are you looking for specifically?" Lyra asked. Rosso looked back at her and then continued.
"Something pretty, I guess." Rosso made an excited screeching sound as she pulled a blood red evening dress from its hanger. Tifa laughed, but Lyra didn't see anything funny about it. Instead, the second she laid eyes on that red dress, her stomach dropped and she was filled with dread.
"No, Rosso. You won't be able to wear that."
"But I like it." She shook it from side to side, making it swing. "Look, it even has slits in the sides! It'll make it easier to kick someone's butt if they try anything?"
"But where would you wear it?"
"What do you mean where would I wear it? I'll wear it whenever I want."
Whatever Tifa said, it was drowned out by Rosso's arguing. Lyra came closer on shaky legs and suddenly felt as if she couldn't breathe. Her stomach was in knots as if she was waiting for something horrible to happen.
"Lyra? Are you okay?"
Lyra knocked Tifa's hands away. "I need to sit down. I don't feel so good."
Lyra turned away, but she didn't make it out of the room. She sat on a crate and focused on her breathing. Rosso was quiet for once as she bundled her clothing and draped the red evening dress on her arm.
Lyra squeezed her eyes shut. A horrible laugh filled her memory. It was an annoying laugh, but it filled her with the worst fear imaginable. Icy blue eyes filled with all the malice and spite in the world. The woman's hands filling her face with makeup and her head with horrible words.
You are a horrible little girl. The worst girl in the world.
Lyra hugged herself and desperately tried to focus on something else.
Horrible little girl. What a lovely little weapon. My little weapon.
"Lyra? Can you stand? We're ready to go?"
Lyra slowly opened her eyes. Tifa looked down at her with worry. Lyra forced herself to stand and followed Rosso and Tifa to the elevator. Rosso was strangely silent, still a bit freaked about the elevator but even more freaked about Lyra's panic attack. Lyra tried not to stare at the red dress but she couldn't help it. She almost cried when the elevator door opened and they went back to Rosso's room.
Lyra sat on the edge of Rosso's bed as Rosso threw her clothes inside the large dresser and sat back on her bed, pulling a chocolate bar from underneath her pillow. Lyra caught a glimpse of the dress from the cracked-open dresser drawer.
Lovely little weapon.
"Want some?" Rosso offered her a piece of chocolate. Lyra took it and nibbled on it. They ate in silence. Tifa had gone to the bathroom, and she was taking far too long. Lyra knew she was talking to Cloud or someone else about her and her little freakout. She had no energy to feel pissed about it.
"So," Rosso started. "This mind block…"
Lyra sighed. "What about it?"
"Is it gone yet?"
Lyra shook her head. Rosso snorted.
"That's too bad." She took another big bite out of her chocolate.
"I don't think they're trying to help me," Lyra whispered. Rosso stayed silent for a moment as she finished her chocolate bar.
"Well that sounds like a load of bullshit," she finally said. "Even if they know what happened before you were given the mind block, they would still help you. I mean, they helped me and I've done horrible things."
Lyra frowned at her. Rosso licked her fingers, making sure that she had eaten every bit of chocolate.
"What do you know about me?"
Rosso shrugged her shoulders and grinned. The grin wasn't malicious at all, just mischievous.
"You weren't there often, in DeepGround, but you were there enough times."
"Enough times to what?"
Rosso's grin dropped. "Failures go to DeepGround, but I remember being told that you were being punished."
Lyra let this sink in.
"Do you know why I was being punished or were you not told?"
Rosso nodded, her crimson eyes growing wide. "You weren't cooperating. But you were too small and quick to be caught in Cat and Mouse."
"Cat and Mouse?"
"A war game. The mice were all caught and killed."
Lyra shivered, though nothing that Rosso was saying brought any flashback or memory to mind. It was as if her body was remembering something her brain couldn't. It remembered to fear red dresses and knew enough about Cat and Mouse that she didn't like it.
"Who sent me there?"
Rosso snorted again, rolling her eyes in disgust. "The Head of the Weapons Department. She made weapons and you weren't working with her like she wanted."
They jumped as Tifa came back. She didn't seem to have heard them talking. She had some fast food containers for them to eat and Shelke.
"So, what is it?"
Max flashed Shalua an annoyed look. "I just got here. How would I know?"
Shalua rolled her eye. Max crouched again to study the new Materia, his dark brown hair hanging in his eyes. The plastic case hadn't worked. A maze of chairs almost kept Max from observing the new Materia.
Eventually, Max lifted the plastic case, moving very slowly as he did so. He placed it aside and immediately the chairs shot at him. He snatched the Materia into his hand and lifted it above his head, probably hoping that the chairs wouldn't hit him. Shalua gasped as the chairs and various objects stopped moving. They formed a circle around Max as if there was an invisible shield around him.
"What the absolute-" Shalua started.
"I don't know," Max snapped. "We need to test it out. Is there a safe room I can try this in? You know, so I don't ruin million gil equipment or hurt someone?"
Shalua nodded and made her way to Max. They opted for using the stairs instead of an elevator. It would be stupid to use an elevator with the way the Materia reacted to, well, everything.
Max held the Materia in the air, sometimes switching arms when his arm fell asleep. The room Shalua took him to was a small office area. No computers, no giant lab equipment, nothing expensive or heavy aside from the tables.
"This doesn't look-"
"I know, I know. But it's empty and I don't feel safe walking around with that thing," Shalua said. She nodded at him a took a step back. "Try it out."
Shalua watched Max close his eyes and close his fist tightly on the Materia. Suddenly, the tables and chairs flew towards him, as well as chunks of plaster from the wall and ceiling tiles. Shalua gasped and backed into the hallway to avoid being hit. Max dropped his arm and stared at the objects floating around him. He was untouched, but he looked spooked.
He turned to Shalua as the objects fell to the floor. He stared at her with wide eyes.
"Gravity Materia," he said. Shalua blinked.
"What?"
"We should call it Gravity Materia," Max answered. He stepped over the plaster and chairs as he made his way out of the office. "While I was using it, it felt like it was messing around with gravity. Gravity Materia!"
"Stop saying that. I get it. It's Gravity Materia." Shalua rolled her eye and they made their way back to her lab.
Shalua almost peed her pants when she saw Lyra organizing folders and notebooks in her lab. Lyra was alone, Shelke and Tifa were nowhere to be seen. And the look on Lyra's face…. It made Shalua reach for her concealed gun without meaning to. Lyra looked so angry.
"Hey kid," Shalua called. She held her arm out in front of Max, who looked as if he was about to pee his own pants. "What are you doing here?"
Lyra jumped and the angry look disappeared. Her mouth opened and closed and she gestured at the folders and notebooks.
"Just organizing. Sorry," She said. "Was I not supposed to clean this section?"
Shalua shook her head. "No, but it's fine. What's wrong?"
Lyra cocked her head to the side. "What do you mean?"
Max whistled through his teeth. "Girl, you looked like you were ready to murder someone."
Lyra's green eyes widened, and she shook her head. "No! Nothing's wrong! I was just worried that I would get in trouble."
Shalua decided to drop it, but she made a mental note to tell Cloud and Tifa about this. Those notebooks and folders were filled with Shelke and Shalua's notes from Lyra's own files. Though Shalua's handwriting was messy and mostly indecipherable, Shelke's handwriting was neater. Anyone could read Shelke's handwriting after studying it for a while.
"Right. Well, I'm gonna go find Tifa," Lyra said with a bright smile. "I'll come back later to finish up. See you guys later!"
Lyra ran from the lab. Shalua let out her breath and took the Gravity Materia from Max.
"I think I can find a place in here for this," she said. Max stared at the lab doors. He pointed at them with a shaky finger.
"Aren't you- that was- aren't you worried about whatever the heck just happened?"
Shalua rifled through the cabinets until she found a hard plastic gun case. The foam inside was hollowed out with round holes for Shelke's Materia. Shalua emptied the Shields and Cures and placed the Gravity Materia inside.
"Of course I am." She shut the case and placed it in the desk drawer. She locked it and placed the key in her lab coat's pocket. "Lyra's usually sweet and calm. That was just disturbing."
"Did you see the look on that kid's face?" Max asked as he backed further into the room. Shalua frowned.
"Of course I did. But there's nothing I can do about this now." She looked through the notebooks. "Might as well go home, Max. Nothing we can do now."
Shalua breathed a sigh of relief, completely ignoring Max's protests. The notebooks were in Shalua's handwriting instead of Shelke's. If Lyra had seen anything, she likely couldn't read it.
Author's Note: AND THE PLOT THICKENS! Lol, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! It was a lot of fun to write. Please feel free to leave a review and a favorite/follow! Thank you so much for reading my fanfic and liking it so far!