.:: Chapter 2: The Meeting ::.
I paced in my church, the flower garden was beginning to wilt. "Oh, dear.. Even if Cloud is going to smoosh you, you all look so sad." I reached over and touched one, the petal fell right into my palm. I sighed and began to water the garden. No sooner had I gotten the flowers moist, I heard a loud scream from above. Quickly I tucked and rolled to safety. Cloud crash landed onto the flowers, right where I had been standing. A sigh of relief escaped my lips, Cloud sat up clutching his side with an extreme look of pain.
"Urgg," he winced, then saw my standing there smiling, and his hurt eyes turned to shocked anger.
I frowned, feeling bad for smiling. "I'm sorry, are you ok?! I'm just glad you aren't dead from that fall. Amazing, you fell from the top of the reactor!"
His eyes softened, "I'm ok, your flowers saved me.. Errr... Your squished flowers. I'm really sorry. That was your livelihood, and my big butt killed it!"
I laughed. "It's ok, I've a feeling I won't need this garden anymore." I helped Cloud up.
"My name is Cloud Strife. Sorry I didn't tell you earlier."
"Aeris, Aeris Gainsborough." I smiled, and he smiled back. "Well," I said dusting my hands, trying to get some of the dust from the fall off me, "Shall we head somewhere else, where we can talk?"
"How about.... Oh I don't know.. Hojo's Lab so we can finish testing you?" Cloud and I turned around to see Reno and a handful of Shinra Guards walk into the Church towards them.
"Testing you?" Cloud glanced at me, then back at Reno. "Who are you?!"
Reno laughed, "I'm Reno, of the Turks. I'm here to take Aeris back to Tseng and Hojo."
"Turks?"
"The Turks, Shinra's personal.... 'Problem Fixers'. We take care of what Shinra's President can not. Such as taking Aeris to the labs." Reno laughed, glad to have come up with a nice way of describing his job.
"So in other words, you kill, cheat, lie, steal, and kidnap?" Cloud slowly reached for his Buster Sword, spoke, practically spitting the words. "I mean, that's all the things the President can not handle on his own, but can afford to handle. So am I right?! Your his little lapdogs right?!"
"Yes."
I grabbed my Wizer Staff quicker than anyone could have time to react, "Healing Wind!" I yelled, orange light submerged from the ground around me, I waved my staff in circles and then above my head. Healing magic shot out of it and circled Cloud and I, suddenly we felt the warmth and love of the magic. No sooner had it come, it left, and Cloud was much more swift and calm.
"C'mon Aeris! Go to the back!" We ran, Reno and the soldiers did not follow. In the back room, the giant vacuum Cloud had defeated on the top of the reactor was in ruins. "Shit..." he muttered angrily.
"It's ok! Look!" I pointed to the rubble, it had built a semi-staircase leading to the ceiling. At the top of the ceiling were some old barrels and a hole to the roof. "Come on Cloud! Climb!" I ran up towards the top, as did Cloud. Bullets began to wizz by our heads, "Cloud help!" I yelled. I'd lost my balance and fell down to the bottom of the floor. Cloud kept running, trying to get to the barrels.
"Hang on!" He yelled down to me. 'Hang on!? Hang on! There are guards coming at me with automatic guns and he wants me to hold on?!' Frantically I scrambled to my feet, and push the large piece of wood in front of the path leading to me.
"Nah!" I stuck my tongue out at one trying to climb over the wood. "Take that!" I whacked him in the head with my Wizer Staff and ran. Giggling, I began to climb back up to Cloud.
"Aeris!!" I turned, a guard was right behind me, his gun to my head. I gulped. "Aeris! tuck and roll!" Without thinking, I did just that. I heard a loud thud, and a muffled yell for help. I sat up dazed, and smiled. The soldier was stuck, Cloud had knocked a barrel on top his head.
"I'm coming up!" I yelled, too late, Cloud lept down from the ceiling, next to me. "Well, ok, works both ways I guess." I smiled.
I paced in my church, the flower garden was beginning to wilt. "Oh, dear.. Even if Cloud is going to smoosh you, you all look so sad." I reached over and touched one, the petal fell right into my palm. I sighed and began to water the garden. No sooner had I gotten the flowers moist, I heard a loud scream from above. Quickly I tucked and rolled to safety. Cloud crash landed onto the flowers, right where I had been standing. A sigh of relief escaped my lips, Cloud sat up clutching his side with an extreme look of pain.
"Urgg," he winced, then saw my standing there smiling, and his hurt eyes turned to shocked anger.
I frowned, feeling bad for smiling. "I'm sorry, are you ok?! I'm just glad you aren't dead from that fall. Amazing, you fell from the top of the reactor!"
His eyes softened, "I'm ok, your flowers saved me.. Errr... Your squished flowers. I'm really sorry. That was your livelihood, and my big butt killed it!"
I laughed. "It's ok, I've a feeling I won't need this garden anymore." I helped Cloud up.
"My name is Cloud Strife. Sorry I didn't tell you earlier."
"Aeris, Aeris Gainsborough." I smiled, and he smiled back. "Well," I said dusting my hands, trying to get some of the dust from the fall off me, "Shall we head somewhere else, where we can talk?"
"How about.... Oh I don't know.. Hojo's Lab so we can finish testing you?" Cloud and I turned around to see Reno and a handful of Shinra Guards walk into the Church towards them.
"Testing you?" Cloud glanced at me, then back at Reno. "Who are you?!"
Reno laughed, "I'm Reno, of the Turks. I'm here to take Aeris back to Tseng and Hojo."
"Turks?"
"The Turks, Shinra's personal.... 'Problem Fixers'. We take care of what Shinra's President can not. Such as taking Aeris to the labs." Reno laughed, glad to have come up with a nice way of describing his job.
"So in other words, you kill, cheat, lie, steal, and kidnap?" Cloud slowly reached for his Buster Sword, spoke, practically spitting the words. "I mean, that's all the things the President can not handle on his own, but can afford to handle. So am I right?! Your his little lapdogs right?!"
"Yes."
I grabbed my Wizer Staff quicker than anyone could have time to react, "Healing Wind!" I yelled, orange light submerged from the ground around me, I waved my staff in circles and then above my head. Healing magic shot out of it and circled Cloud and I, suddenly we felt the warmth and love of the magic. No sooner had it come, it left, and Cloud was much more swift and calm.
"C'mon Aeris! Go to the back!" We ran, Reno and the soldiers did not follow. In the back room, the giant vacuum Cloud had defeated on the top of the reactor was in ruins. "Shit..." he muttered angrily.
"It's ok! Look!" I pointed to the rubble, it had built a semi-staircase leading to the ceiling. At the top of the ceiling were some old barrels and a hole to the roof. "Come on Cloud! Climb!" I ran up towards the top, as did Cloud. Bullets began to wizz by our heads, "Cloud help!" I yelled. I'd lost my balance and fell down to the bottom of the floor. Cloud kept running, trying to get to the barrels.
"Hang on!" He yelled down to me. 'Hang on!? Hang on! There are guards coming at me with automatic guns and he wants me to hold on?!' Frantically I scrambled to my feet, and push the large piece of wood in front of the path leading to me.
"Nah!" I stuck my tongue out at one trying to climb over the wood. "Take that!" I whacked him in the head with my Wizer Staff and ran. Giggling, I began to climb back up to Cloud.
"Aeris!!" I turned, a guard was right behind me, his gun to my head. I gulped. "Aeris! tuck and roll!" Without thinking, I did just that. I heard a loud thud, and a muffled yell for help. I sat up dazed, and smiled. The soldier was stuck, Cloud had knocked a barrel on top his head.
"I'm coming up!" I yelled, too late, Cloud lept down from the ceiling, next to me. "Well, ok, works both ways I guess." I smiled.