-Disclaimer- I do not own Final Fantasy Seven. nor do I own its places and characters. I simply own this Fic.
Author's Note: 'Angel' is soon coming to a close, but I will be back with another Tifa and Reno Fic. This is going fairly well, so I figure I may try an AU with it. Haze is far from dead, and the alternate endings for this will be posted. . .eventually. But, instead of looking forward, read this, eh? Another odd part. . .enjoy! (Thanks goes to Ann for sticking with the story and giving me, ahem, ideas for the stories without knowing it. I owe some credit to her. ^_^)
Part Seven: . . .Three Words
The day was tomorrow, when their plans would be put into action. As usual, Reno went to bed with a feeling of deception as he felt Tifa in his arms, and he wanted to tell her all of it, right then. He could do it. He could confess and sweep her off to some remote place, but the words never came.
Words and actions, however, did come this night as he laid beneath the moonlight, his arms hung loosely around her waist.
"Tiff."
She mumbled in response, but then turned over to face him, completely aware. "Yeah?"
Reno stared into her eyes, which had always seemed a bit burgandy, and couldn't force himself to say a thing for a moment. He brought a hand up and rubbed her cheek with a thumb, silently closing the space between them and pressing his lips to hers.
They stayed this way for a moment before Reno slowly backed off, still barely breathing loud enough for himself to hear in the silence of the apartment.
Tifa looked a bit surprised, but it wasn't like she was going to complain.
"I'm sorry," he said softly, his hand still resting on the side of her face.
This time, Tifa was visibly confused. "For what?" she queried, having no problem with anything he'd done so far.
"Bringing you into all this," was the reply she received.
Reno couldn't admit what he was thinking; four days ago, they had both been so shaken by Cero's gang's appearance, the night hadn't been completely. . . He couldn't even find the word to describe it.
Tifa shook her head the best she could while resting it against a pillow. "I'm glad you got me out of Kalm. I'm glad I had to stay with you, and I'm glad things worked out the way they did."
Reno wanted to scream. That was exactly what he'd needed to shift his stomach around. He'd been lying to her. He knew he never wanted her to leave. He was sure of that now, but he had a sinking feeling that Vincent's proposal was too good to be true.
Bad luck seemed to follow him everywhere.
"Promise me something," he blurted out suddenly.
Again, Tifa was taken aback by this, but nodded, furrowing her brows. Reno was acting a bit odd.
Reno couldn't believe he was about to say this. "If something happens to me, promise you won't do anything stupid."
"Reno, wha --"
"Tiff," he choked out, now on the verge of tears. He was surprising himself tonight. . . "Just this one thing, I need you to promise me."
Tifa thought on this a moment. It almost seemed like a warning, but she could sense he really wanted her confirmation on this. Why was he acting so strange, and why was he talking like this, though?
"Promise," she found herself saying. "But, why?"
"Because I love you too much." There was something he hadn't meant to say at all. And yet. . .
Tifa's eyelids looked like someone had shoved them back, but it was too dark by now to see them. Had she heard that, or was this some kind of odd dream?
Reno sighed, knowing he'd just stared truth in the eyes and then passed the look to her, if someone were to want a comparison. "I know it's a surprise. . .but it's true." From what she'd said, he doubted this would be too much of a problem.
The ravern-haired woman was at a loss for a voice. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, and from the way Reno spoke in a tone like a child being scolded, she suspected he couldn't either. Deciding she couldn't get words to form, she wrapped her arms around his neck and caught him in one of those kisses the point clear that she returned the feeling.
What they had no clue of was Vincent, who stood just inside the doorway, had heard all of it, and put on a blank look.
He now felt. . .depressed.
====================================================================
The next morning came in all its morbidity, as Reno thought of it, for the ex-Turk. He awoke once again feeling his arm had been snapped off at the elbow from the lack of bloodflow, but relieved to find Tifa had again stayed there the night.
After last night's confession -- or confessions, whichever way you chose to look on it -- he found himself wanting to close his eyes and sleep through the day, but was forced up by the pure feeling he needed to do this to get it over with. He opened his eyes after blinking a few times to meet blazing sun.
Obviously, he'd gotten more sleep than usual.
Sleeping in the suit hadn't been as comfortable as he would've been had he word just a shirt, but he had a kind of attachment to the Turks, even after years of separation from them all. Reno, having no uneasiness hanging over his head now, managed to wake Tifa by dragging his lips lazily over the back of her neck, forcing a groan and a muffled laugh.
She had to admit, it wasn't such a rude awakening.
"You're awake," he greeted as his usual morning observation.
Tifa let out what could've very well been classified as a giggle. "You're annoying. We're even."
Reno reached over his shoulder and grabbed one of the smaller pillows, lightly hitting her in the head with it. "Not funny."
"When you're finished, breakfast is made."
The two looked up in surprise to see a wide-awake Vincent just outside the door, looking at them expectantly, but especially Reno. He knew this wouldn't be easy. . .for either one of them.
Reno nodded and waved him off, sitting up, already dressed for the day. After Vincent had left, he looked back to Tifa, who was also getting ready to leave the comfort of the large bed. "Last night --" He was cut off.
"-- Happened, and I don't regret a bit of it, Reno," she finished for him, a smile spread on her lips.
Reno made no movement besides standing up and leaving the room. Unlike himself, she'd had a chance to change into something able to sleep in, so he figured she'd like to change. Once he was at the door, however, she called him back for a moment.
"Reno?"
The man in question looked straight over his shoulder with a questioning expression but no words.
Not wanting to have any attention attracted to them -- from Vincent, for example -- she simply mouthed three words:
'I love you.'
Reno nearly swooned, but grinned widely and shut the door behind him, his head feeling a bit less aching this morning. If anyone'd asked him back in Midgar, he would've admitted Tifa was way out of even his league, but it seemed like fate had finally given him a break.
"What time're we goin'?" he queried to Vincent, who had already taken his seat at the table and started on whatever he'd made.
The crimson-clad man looked up for a moment, then replied with, "As soon as possible, if it's alright with you.
Reno nodded and took a seat, stabbing his fork at the eggs laid infront of him.
He knew the whole plan by now.
Reno and Vincent would act like they were playing along, and at the last minute, turn on Cloud and Sephiroth and shoot them down. Tifa would be left unhurt, and as far as Reno was concerned, everyone would be happy.
Well, save for the dead ones.
The creaking door told them to drop the conversation as Tifa walked out to the table and took the third seat, still not having changed to get ready for the day.
She looked around in a kind of awe. "Look at this," she murmured.
Reno thought she'd gone insane for a moment, but as he looked around, he noticed how clean everything looked this morning. The kitchen was near spotless, the clothing was picked up and put in a laundry basket for later, and everything looked. . .clean.
"Vincent?" he queried, receiving no response. He took this as an affirmation. "Nice," he muttered with a whistle.
Tseng leaped from some hidden spot on the couch, which was now only five feet from them, and managed to still hit Reno's shoulder.
Vincent looked like he was going to leave his skin. "Is that not surprising at times, Reno?"
Reno shrugged and smirked at Tifa, who was trying to suppress one of her own at Vincent's question.
"Tseng's a bit different," Tifa managed to say through her teeth, her throat threatening to let out a boom of a laugh.
For the first time since he'd known them, Vincent looked surprised at something. He stared oddly at the cat, whose gaze only matched his as he questioned, "Tseng?"
Reno nodded and shoved half of a slice of toast into his mouth and then tried to speak. "Athiz ane."
Vincent and Tifa both blinked before he swallowed the toast and cleared his throat.
"That's his name, I mean," he corrected, then moving back to the eggs.
Vincent nodded slowly and dismissed himself, standing up with his plate and walking into the kitchen, where he washed the plate off. He seemed a bit different himself, but Vincent was always. . .well, different.
Despite being the last to arrive, Tifa was the next to place her plate in the sink, and Reno after that. The red-haired ex-Turk walked to his -- still, maybe their -- bedroom, stepping into the bathroom and locking the door behind him.
He still remembered the first real day Tifa'd been there.
From there, he reached in and turned the shower to its full heat setting and peeled off the suit, leaving it carelessly on the floor as he stepped into the shower. He turned the water down to as hot as he could stand it, which wasn't much of a change from full-blast, and grabbed the bar of soap from the side.
He decided Vincent being there would be a good thing for them when it came to having to keep the both of them safe, and he was actually quite glad things had worked out the way they had now.
He and Tifa apparently both returned each other's feelings when it came to emotions, and later, their only threat would be taken out if he forgot about the feds. Reno grinned to himself, no longer caring that the wall around him had most likely been torn down for eternity, but carinng more that he could finally trust someone.
Truth be told, he hadn't trusted anyone before Tifa, fully.
The water still felt hot against his back, but not to the point of any discomfort. It was more of a heated feel of comfort itself, as if it were protection from the evils of the Planet.
"You sound like a Cetra," he scolded himself with a laugh.
Shaking his head and putting the soap back, he moved onto his rat's nest of hair, knowing, however, that it was impossible to remove every tangle.
Hell, they were probably fusing together by now.
He thought back to three days ago, the feel of himself pressed against Tifa. He had to admit, he'd not felt a feeling quite like the pleasure in a long time. He could understand that, though, and he could only imagine it if it had been truly meaningful.
He wrung his hair out and pulled his fingers through it, wincing at one large knot he'd be forced to cut out later. There was no meant humor in his next thought.
He had a feeling they'd have a meaningful time like that when this shit was all over with.
Reno didn't mean to sound like a jerk but. . .damn, she was good, and for her first time, even!
He would be the one to know.
He stepped from the shower, humming a kind of tune as he grabbed a towel and dried himself off, then shoved himself lazily into his suit again. From the way it smelled to him now, he needed to do some laundry tomorrow. Reno looked in the mirror and found his eyes a bit brighter as he grabbed the electric shaver from the edge of the sink.
He gave it a few runs over his square, recruit-like jaw, before he tossed it back to its original place and patted himself down a bit.
This was a daily routine, despite how he always looked.
He walked from the bathroom carelessly, a bit relieved to see he had caught no one dressing this time, and tossed his wet towel into the basket for cleaning.
Once out near the main room, he set his eye on Vincent loading his gun and looking toward him. "Are you ready?"
====================================================================
The four walked freely down the street, not even noticing the many that paled at the leader.
Sephiroth had his Masamune hanging freely in its sheath at his belt, flanked on either side by another person and one behind him. On his left was Cero, Cloud on his right, and Kate on his heels.
The large office building was still two blocks down and over, but they could all see it as if it were the ShinRa Building itself. This had come to be a few years back as the new ShinRa headquarters, but nowhere near as insane as it had been.
Daniel Reeve had now taken over.
"Time?" came the curt question from Kate.
Cero looked at his watch, now held to his wrist by a piece of twine, and pondered it a moment. "Nine-thirty."
"Soon," Katedona mumured, raising a nod from their leader.
He was more concerned with Vincent and how strong his belief in his own words was. If he actually chose to turn his back on them. . .
The group rounded a corner and looked ahead to the end of the street. Sephiroth's lips curled into a cold smile.
The hangar.
With a silent understanding between them, they ran toward it like children who'd just seen their favorite television celebrity disappear into it. It took only moments to arrive, and when they did, it was a mammoth structure, the door a good fifty feet high.
Two guards looked at them and shifted nervously, always keeping an eye on Sephiroth. They'd read in the paper -- unknown to them, Sephiroth had managed to get a fake excuse in -- that he was back and more. . .polite, but it still seemed odd.
"Miss Touzas?" one of them finally called uncertainly.
Katedona stepped out from behind the large man, giving them both a surprise. "I need entrance and I need it cleared out."
One guard gruned and the other ran to a control panel, dialing in some unseen code. The one who'd grunted said, "Ma'am, the hangar is usually closed to the public at this time, and your presense is always welcome."
Katedona nodded and watched the door open a ways, but not fully, and watched the others go before hissing, "If you hear anything strange, call the Force and you'll be killed. Also, we have a second party joining us."
With an innocent smile, she dashed after them and heard the door slam closed behind them.
"We've half an hour. Let's get ready for their arrival," Sephiroth commanded.
All four dashed in opposite directions. From the mere feeling of it, Cloud could tell the place was huge, but completely dark. He hit his head on a few plane wings before he managed to lie in wait under one and pull out his PHS.
"Ready," he hissed into it.
Three other affirmations came, then silence from the devices in their hands.
They had only to wait now.
====================================================================
Vincent led them down the same path, his gun ready at his side, but only as a kind of precaution. If something went wrong, he was to shoot Tifa on the spot, as much as it made his insides churn.
Tifa, actually, was the only one confused as to where they were headed, and was even more awkward when they came to the hangar and the three were treated as if they'd been expected to arrive. The guards seemed awfully pale, as well, but Vincent got admittance with no more than a gaze at one.
The three walked into pure blackness and silence, leaving them to stumble around. The feeling Tifa got wasn't too good of one, and she found herself taking Reno's hand for a bit of reassurance.
"Welcome to your fate," came a booming voice, along with the lights clicking on.
Sephiroth stood high above them all on a platform, and familiar faces were perched on planes. One of these was a man who she never wanted to speak with again.
Vincent was among them, his gun trained skillfully on Tifa's form.
Reno exploded then. "I trusted you, dammit! Now you go and pull this! What kinda bullshit is this?!!"
Thes exclamations were aimed toward all five of the people in the hangar, and his mag-rod was lit already.
Tifa's throat was tight, her head feeling suddenly light. Why was Cloud with them, and why were all but Sephiroth looking at her?
Sephiroth made a jump that looked like suicide, but landed gracefully and started in a slow stride toward them, evil lurking in his emerald Mako eyes. "I can see you kept it from her. Step in the right direction, Drannor. Coming here after everything. Mistake, my friend."
Tifa looked wildly for an answer, and found it in the form of Reno. "Kept what from me?" she managed to mutter at him.
His eyes sunk immediately, but Sephiroth was, not oddly, ready to reveal it.
"Drannor's led you to your death and used you to get close to you, Lockheart. All of it was a lie. He never loved you, he just needed to win your trust so you'd follow him into the spider's web. Bravo, Drannor," he announced, clapping his hands as the sound echoed through the concrete room.
Lines of planes in a room much too large to even look real was what they were inside.
Tifa's heart broke at that statement. She looked to Reno with glazed eyes and an open mouth, looking like a pool of hate. She couldn't believe this. After giving him the one thing she could never take back, it had all been an act. A lie, and it would end in her death. He had signed with her blood, in a way.
"Aeris' last wish was to see you die, Lockheart," Sephiroth went on, his Masamune held in its natural grip and his steps lessening the distance between himself and them. "She was envious of you and Cloud, as she had put it. She wanted to see you pay for winning, and, herself being a Cetra, I was obligated to follow commands and see that the wish was fulfilled. So, I needed a pawn."
He stopped about ten feet from them, and went on. "You and Drannor happened to need help, and I offere to provide it to see my own mission was completed. I used him, he used you, and now you die. Perfect, isn't it? And this way," he started.
His eyes seemed to find Tifa's pure soul. "I get to finish what I started in Nibelheim."
"LIAR!" came Reno's booming roar before he threw himself at Sephiroth, spinning with a kick to his head.
Sephiroth easily parried the blow and clipped Reno's foot, sending him to the floor. He made it look so easy. "Foolish."
Tifa was still frozen from what she'd heard. All of it. All of it was a lie? She could hardly believe it, as sincere as Reno had seemed.
He was a Turk, though.
He knew how to deceive people.
She didn't see the blade descending on her immediately, but Reno's call gave her time to shift out of the way and plant an elbow between Sephiroth's shoulders, though it only staggered him slightly.
"You're faster, I see," he muttered, tossing down his sword. "I'll make this easy. And painful."
Reno was surprised no one had made a move from the planes yet. His mag-rod was nowhere in sight, having been sent flying when he went down, so he reached into his pocket and grabbed a kind of small club he always kept with him.
The ex-Turk leapt to his feet and sent a solid blow to the back of the Mako-fueled maniac, sending him onto his own back in mid-swing at Tifa.
A scream caught his attention and he looked over to see Katedona fall from the top of one of the Junon bombers, and in her place, none other than ViYlic.
The door was suddenly blown open and a kind of armored car drove through the smoke, tinted windows hiding the drivers and plates protecting them from gunshots.
"Up for the countin' game?!" a voice yelled from a loud speaker atop the car, while latches opened and all kinds of guns revealed themselves.
'It couldn't be,' was Reno's thought.
"Count the shells, suckadogs!!" it came again.
'Xion?'
Author's Note: Alright, I have to stop here to devote the next chapter to this. As for the returns of ViYlic and Xion, it took awhile to add that in in my mind, but I hope this doesn't seem too. . .perfect. It won't be disappointing. Next part soon. ("Count the shells, suckadog!!" is indeed Jay from Dogma. Favorite movie; favorite quote.)
-=Haze=-
.Exo. - 2003
Author's Note: 'Angel' is soon coming to a close, but I will be back with another Tifa and Reno Fic. This is going fairly well, so I figure I may try an AU with it. Haze is far from dead, and the alternate endings for this will be posted. . .eventually. But, instead of looking forward, read this, eh? Another odd part. . .enjoy! (Thanks goes to Ann for sticking with the story and giving me, ahem, ideas for the stories without knowing it. I owe some credit to her. ^_^)
Part Seven: . . .Three Words
The day was tomorrow, when their plans would be put into action. As usual, Reno went to bed with a feeling of deception as he felt Tifa in his arms, and he wanted to tell her all of it, right then. He could do it. He could confess and sweep her off to some remote place, but the words never came.
Words and actions, however, did come this night as he laid beneath the moonlight, his arms hung loosely around her waist.
"Tiff."
She mumbled in response, but then turned over to face him, completely aware. "Yeah?"
Reno stared into her eyes, which had always seemed a bit burgandy, and couldn't force himself to say a thing for a moment. He brought a hand up and rubbed her cheek with a thumb, silently closing the space between them and pressing his lips to hers.
They stayed this way for a moment before Reno slowly backed off, still barely breathing loud enough for himself to hear in the silence of the apartment.
Tifa looked a bit surprised, but it wasn't like she was going to complain.
"I'm sorry," he said softly, his hand still resting on the side of her face.
This time, Tifa was visibly confused. "For what?" she queried, having no problem with anything he'd done so far.
"Bringing you into all this," was the reply she received.
Reno couldn't admit what he was thinking; four days ago, they had both been so shaken by Cero's gang's appearance, the night hadn't been completely. . . He couldn't even find the word to describe it.
Tifa shook her head the best she could while resting it against a pillow. "I'm glad you got me out of Kalm. I'm glad I had to stay with you, and I'm glad things worked out the way they did."
Reno wanted to scream. That was exactly what he'd needed to shift his stomach around. He'd been lying to her. He knew he never wanted her to leave. He was sure of that now, but he had a sinking feeling that Vincent's proposal was too good to be true.
Bad luck seemed to follow him everywhere.
"Promise me something," he blurted out suddenly.
Again, Tifa was taken aback by this, but nodded, furrowing her brows. Reno was acting a bit odd.
Reno couldn't believe he was about to say this. "If something happens to me, promise you won't do anything stupid."
"Reno, wha --"
"Tiff," he choked out, now on the verge of tears. He was surprising himself tonight. . . "Just this one thing, I need you to promise me."
Tifa thought on this a moment. It almost seemed like a warning, but she could sense he really wanted her confirmation on this. Why was he acting so strange, and why was he talking like this, though?
"Promise," she found herself saying. "But, why?"
"Because I love you too much." There was something he hadn't meant to say at all. And yet. . .
Tifa's eyelids looked like someone had shoved them back, but it was too dark by now to see them. Had she heard that, or was this some kind of odd dream?
Reno sighed, knowing he'd just stared truth in the eyes and then passed the look to her, if someone were to want a comparison. "I know it's a surprise. . .but it's true." From what she'd said, he doubted this would be too much of a problem.
The ravern-haired woman was at a loss for a voice. She couldn't believe what she was hearing, and from the way Reno spoke in a tone like a child being scolded, she suspected he couldn't either. Deciding she couldn't get words to form, she wrapped her arms around his neck and caught him in one of those kisses the point clear that she returned the feeling.
What they had no clue of was Vincent, who stood just inside the doorway, had heard all of it, and put on a blank look.
He now felt. . .depressed.
====================================================================
The next morning came in all its morbidity, as Reno thought of it, for the ex-Turk. He awoke once again feeling his arm had been snapped off at the elbow from the lack of bloodflow, but relieved to find Tifa had again stayed there the night.
After last night's confession -- or confessions, whichever way you chose to look on it -- he found himself wanting to close his eyes and sleep through the day, but was forced up by the pure feeling he needed to do this to get it over with. He opened his eyes after blinking a few times to meet blazing sun.
Obviously, he'd gotten more sleep than usual.
Sleeping in the suit hadn't been as comfortable as he would've been had he word just a shirt, but he had a kind of attachment to the Turks, even after years of separation from them all. Reno, having no uneasiness hanging over his head now, managed to wake Tifa by dragging his lips lazily over the back of her neck, forcing a groan and a muffled laugh.
She had to admit, it wasn't such a rude awakening.
"You're awake," he greeted as his usual morning observation.
Tifa let out what could've very well been classified as a giggle. "You're annoying. We're even."
Reno reached over his shoulder and grabbed one of the smaller pillows, lightly hitting her in the head with it. "Not funny."
"When you're finished, breakfast is made."
The two looked up in surprise to see a wide-awake Vincent just outside the door, looking at them expectantly, but especially Reno. He knew this wouldn't be easy. . .for either one of them.
Reno nodded and waved him off, sitting up, already dressed for the day. After Vincent had left, he looked back to Tifa, who was also getting ready to leave the comfort of the large bed. "Last night --" He was cut off.
"-- Happened, and I don't regret a bit of it, Reno," she finished for him, a smile spread on her lips.
Reno made no movement besides standing up and leaving the room. Unlike himself, she'd had a chance to change into something able to sleep in, so he figured she'd like to change. Once he was at the door, however, she called him back for a moment.
"Reno?"
The man in question looked straight over his shoulder with a questioning expression but no words.
Not wanting to have any attention attracted to them -- from Vincent, for example -- she simply mouthed three words:
'I love you.'
Reno nearly swooned, but grinned widely and shut the door behind him, his head feeling a bit less aching this morning. If anyone'd asked him back in Midgar, he would've admitted Tifa was way out of even his league, but it seemed like fate had finally given him a break.
"What time're we goin'?" he queried to Vincent, who had already taken his seat at the table and started on whatever he'd made.
The crimson-clad man looked up for a moment, then replied with, "As soon as possible, if it's alright with you.
Reno nodded and took a seat, stabbing his fork at the eggs laid infront of him.
He knew the whole plan by now.
Reno and Vincent would act like they were playing along, and at the last minute, turn on Cloud and Sephiroth and shoot them down. Tifa would be left unhurt, and as far as Reno was concerned, everyone would be happy.
Well, save for the dead ones.
The creaking door told them to drop the conversation as Tifa walked out to the table and took the third seat, still not having changed to get ready for the day.
She looked around in a kind of awe. "Look at this," she murmured.
Reno thought she'd gone insane for a moment, but as he looked around, he noticed how clean everything looked this morning. The kitchen was near spotless, the clothing was picked up and put in a laundry basket for later, and everything looked. . .clean.
"Vincent?" he queried, receiving no response. He took this as an affirmation. "Nice," he muttered with a whistle.
Tseng leaped from some hidden spot on the couch, which was now only five feet from them, and managed to still hit Reno's shoulder.
Vincent looked like he was going to leave his skin. "Is that not surprising at times, Reno?"
Reno shrugged and smirked at Tifa, who was trying to suppress one of her own at Vincent's question.
"Tseng's a bit different," Tifa managed to say through her teeth, her throat threatening to let out a boom of a laugh.
For the first time since he'd known them, Vincent looked surprised at something. He stared oddly at the cat, whose gaze only matched his as he questioned, "Tseng?"
Reno nodded and shoved half of a slice of toast into his mouth and then tried to speak. "Athiz ane."
Vincent and Tifa both blinked before he swallowed the toast and cleared his throat.
"That's his name, I mean," he corrected, then moving back to the eggs.
Vincent nodded slowly and dismissed himself, standing up with his plate and walking into the kitchen, where he washed the plate off. He seemed a bit different himself, but Vincent was always. . .well, different.
Despite being the last to arrive, Tifa was the next to place her plate in the sink, and Reno after that. The red-haired ex-Turk walked to his -- still, maybe their -- bedroom, stepping into the bathroom and locking the door behind him.
He still remembered the first real day Tifa'd been there.
From there, he reached in and turned the shower to its full heat setting and peeled off the suit, leaving it carelessly on the floor as he stepped into the shower. He turned the water down to as hot as he could stand it, which wasn't much of a change from full-blast, and grabbed the bar of soap from the side.
He decided Vincent being there would be a good thing for them when it came to having to keep the both of them safe, and he was actually quite glad things had worked out the way they had now.
He and Tifa apparently both returned each other's feelings when it came to emotions, and later, their only threat would be taken out if he forgot about the feds. Reno grinned to himself, no longer caring that the wall around him had most likely been torn down for eternity, but carinng more that he could finally trust someone.
Truth be told, he hadn't trusted anyone before Tifa, fully.
The water still felt hot against his back, but not to the point of any discomfort. It was more of a heated feel of comfort itself, as if it were protection from the evils of the Planet.
"You sound like a Cetra," he scolded himself with a laugh.
Shaking his head and putting the soap back, he moved onto his rat's nest of hair, knowing, however, that it was impossible to remove every tangle.
Hell, they were probably fusing together by now.
He thought back to three days ago, the feel of himself pressed against Tifa. He had to admit, he'd not felt a feeling quite like the pleasure in a long time. He could understand that, though, and he could only imagine it if it had been truly meaningful.
He wrung his hair out and pulled his fingers through it, wincing at one large knot he'd be forced to cut out later. There was no meant humor in his next thought.
He had a feeling they'd have a meaningful time like that when this shit was all over with.
Reno didn't mean to sound like a jerk but. . .damn, she was good, and for her first time, even!
He would be the one to know.
He stepped from the shower, humming a kind of tune as he grabbed a towel and dried himself off, then shoved himself lazily into his suit again. From the way it smelled to him now, he needed to do some laundry tomorrow. Reno looked in the mirror and found his eyes a bit brighter as he grabbed the electric shaver from the edge of the sink.
He gave it a few runs over his square, recruit-like jaw, before he tossed it back to its original place and patted himself down a bit.
This was a daily routine, despite how he always looked.
He walked from the bathroom carelessly, a bit relieved to see he had caught no one dressing this time, and tossed his wet towel into the basket for cleaning.
Once out near the main room, he set his eye on Vincent loading his gun and looking toward him. "Are you ready?"
====================================================================
The four walked freely down the street, not even noticing the many that paled at the leader.
Sephiroth had his Masamune hanging freely in its sheath at his belt, flanked on either side by another person and one behind him. On his left was Cero, Cloud on his right, and Kate on his heels.
The large office building was still two blocks down and over, but they could all see it as if it were the ShinRa Building itself. This had come to be a few years back as the new ShinRa headquarters, but nowhere near as insane as it had been.
Daniel Reeve had now taken over.
"Time?" came the curt question from Kate.
Cero looked at his watch, now held to his wrist by a piece of twine, and pondered it a moment. "Nine-thirty."
"Soon," Katedona mumured, raising a nod from their leader.
He was more concerned with Vincent and how strong his belief in his own words was. If he actually chose to turn his back on them. . .
The group rounded a corner and looked ahead to the end of the street. Sephiroth's lips curled into a cold smile.
The hangar.
With a silent understanding between them, they ran toward it like children who'd just seen their favorite television celebrity disappear into it. It took only moments to arrive, and when they did, it was a mammoth structure, the door a good fifty feet high.
Two guards looked at them and shifted nervously, always keeping an eye on Sephiroth. They'd read in the paper -- unknown to them, Sephiroth had managed to get a fake excuse in -- that he was back and more. . .polite, but it still seemed odd.
"Miss Touzas?" one of them finally called uncertainly.
Katedona stepped out from behind the large man, giving them both a surprise. "I need entrance and I need it cleared out."
One guard gruned and the other ran to a control panel, dialing in some unseen code. The one who'd grunted said, "Ma'am, the hangar is usually closed to the public at this time, and your presense is always welcome."
Katedona nodded and watched the door open a ways, but not fully, and watched the others go before hissing, "If you hear anything strange, call the Force and you'll be killed. Also, we have a second party joining us."
With an innocent smile, she dashed after them and heard the door slam closed behind them.
"We've half an hour. Let's get ready for their arrival," Sephiroth commanded.
All four dashed in opposite directions. From the mere feeling of it, Cloud could tell the place was huge, but completely dark. He hit his head on a few plane wings before he managed to lie in wait under one and pull out his PHS.
"Ready," he hissed into it.
Three other affirmations came, then silence from the devices in their hands.
They had only to wait now.
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Vincent led them down the same path, his gun ready at his side, but only as a kind of precaution. If something went wrong, he was to shoot Tifa on the spot, as much as it made his insides churn.
Tifa, actually, was the only one confused as to where they were headed, and was even more awkward when they came to the hangar and the three were treated as if they'd been expected to arrive. The guards seemed awfully pale, as well, but Vincent got admittance with no more than a gaze at one.
The three walked into pure blackness and silence, leaving them to stumble around. The feeling Tifa got wasn't too good of one, and she found herself taking Reno's hand for a bit of reassurance.
"Welcome to your fate," came a booming voice, along with the lights clicking on.
Sephiroth stood high above them all on a platform, and familiar faces were perched on planes. One of these was a man who she never wanted to speak with again.
Vincent was among them, his gun trained skillfully on Tifa's form.
Reno exploded then. "I trusted you, dammit! Now you go and pull this! What kinda bullshit is this?!!"
Thes exclamations were aimed toward all five of the people in the hangar, and his mag-rod was lit already.
Tifa's throat was tight, her head feeling suddenly light. Why was Cloud with them, and why were all but Sephiroth looking at her?
Sephiroth made a jump that looked like suicide, but landed gracefully and started in a slow stride toward them, evil lurking in his emerald Mako eyes. "I can see you kept it from her. Step in the right direction, Drannor. Coming here after everything. Mistake, my friend."
Tifa looked wildly for an answer, and found it in the form of Reno. "Kept what from me?" she managed to mutter at him.
His eyes sunk immediately, but Sephiroth was, not oddly, ready to reveal it.
"Drannor's led you to your death and used you to get close to you, Lockheart. All of it was a lie. He never loved you, he just needed to win your trust so you'd follow him into the spider's web. Bravo, Drannor," he announced, clapping his hands as the sound echoed through the concrete room.
Lines of planes in a room much too large to even look real was what they were inside.
Tifa's heart broke at that statement. She looked to Reno with glazed eyes and an open mouth, looking like a pool of hate. She couldn't believe this. After giving him the one thing she could never take back, it had all been an act. A lie, and it would end in her death. He had signed with her blood, in a way.
"Aeris' last wish was to see you die, Lockheart," Sephiroth went on, his Masamune held in its natural grip and his steps lessening the distance between himself and them. "She was envious of you and Cloud, as she had put it. She wanted to see you pay for winning, and, herself being a Cetra, I was obligated to follow commands and see that the wish was fulfilled. So, I needed a pawn."
He stopped about ten feet from them, and went on. "You and Drannor happened to need help, and I offere to provide it to see my own mission was completed. I used him, he used you, and now you die. Perfect, isn't it? And this way," he started.
His eyes seemed to find Tifa's pure soul. "I get to finish what I started in Nibelheim."
"LIAR!" came Reno's booming roar before he threw himself at Sephiroth, spinning with a kick to his head.
Sephiroth easily parried the blow and clipped Reno's foot, sending him to the floor. He made it look so easy. "Foolish."
Tifa was still frozen from what she'd heard. All of it. All of it was a lie? She could hardly believe it, as sincere as Reno had seemed.
He was a Turk, though.
He knew how to deceive people.
She didn't see the blade descending on her immediately, but Reno's call gave her time to shift out of the way and plant an elbow between Sephiroth's shoulders, though it only staggered him slightly.
"You're faster, I see," he muttered, tossing down his sword. "I'll make this easy. And painful."
Reno was surprised no one had made a move from the planes yet. His mag-rod was nowhere in sight, having been sent flying when he went down, so he reached into his pocket and grabbed a kind of small club he always kept with him.
The ex-Turk leapt to his feet and sent a solid blow to the back of the Mako-fueled maniac, sending him onto his own back in mid-swing at Tifa.
A scream caught his attention and he looked over to see Katedona fall from the top of one of the Junon bombers, and in her place, none other than ViYlic.
The door was suddenly blown open and a kind of armored car drove through the smoke, tinted windows hiding the drivers and plates protecting them from gunshots.
"Up for the countin' game?!" a voice yelled from a loud speaker atop the car, while latches opened and all kinds of guns revealed themselves.
'It couldn't be,' was Reno's thought.
"Count the shells, suckadogs!!" it came again.
'Xion?'
Author's Note: Alright, I have to stop here to devote the next chapter to this. As for the returns of ViYlic and Xion, it took awhile to add that in in my mind, but I hope this doesn't seem too. . .perfect. It won't be disappointing. Next part soon. ("Count the shells, suckadog!!" is indeed Jay from Dogma. Favorite movie; favorite quote.)
-=Haze=-
.Exo. - 2003