Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy Seven or The Story "The Darksword
Trilogy" which I got the Darksword from.
Chapter 10: Reunions and Love!
Aeris awoke in her bed, and immediately began to dress. She knew Rueben would be here today, she felt it in her bones. She had moved into their home, and straightened it up. Cloud and everyone were suppose to come there tonight. She had warned them to dress up nicely. Cid and Shera were even coming, leaving little Cloud Barret Jr.(CB) with Marlene's babysitter. Aeris didn't envy watching Marlene and CB at the same time. Elmyra and Barret agreed to come when Aeris told them it was her fiancé coming. Only Red and Vincent could not attend. Red had gone off on an adventure the Elders said, and Vincent couldn't be found. She dressed in a knockout dress she had bought and let everyone in. Yuffie was last to arrive with Reno and the Turks in tow. Aeris smiled, surprised, but let them in. Rude and Elena were surprisingly talkative and nice to everyone and Reno stayed with Yuffie except when she went to the bathroom.
The night went well and everyone was having a nice time until the door rang again. Aeris walked up and opened it to find a dressed up Vincent standing there. He seemed rather perturbed and when asked what was wrong, he replied that he had accidentally bumped a man. He was about to apologize when his Jenova enhanced smelling smelt a dangerous odor. Apparently the man smelled him too and then they got into as fight. The man began screaming at him and calling him a "Jenovous Monstrosity". Vincent shrugged and said it was over with, and he probably would never see him again. It was nearing one a.m. and Aeris doubted Rueben was going to show. She was about to apologize to everyone, when the doorbell rang. She froze and walked to the door. She could make out Rueben's hat in the outline. Grinning, she threw open the door and leaped on him, kissing him madly. Rueben grinned, and landed on his back with her on top of him. They laughed, and he got up. She led him into the living room where everyone was.
"Everyone, this is Rueben Tocnar, my fiancée." She said. Everyone stared at him, and Vincent growled when he saw him from the shadows. She introduced everyone, and when she came to Vincent the trouble started.
"Last but not least Rueben, this is Vincent Valentine. That man named Hojo, who I told you about, tortured him. He found him....OW! Rueben! My hand!" she cried and yanked her hand away. Rueben's eyes had gone wide and he had automatically clenched his fists together. Cloud stood up alarmed. Vincent stepped out of the shadows.
"YOU!" Rueben shouted, "I thought I smelled YOU again!"
"Please to meet you Rueben. I hope we didn't get off on the wrong foot earlier today." Vincent replied coolly, and extended his hand. Rueben snarled, grabbed the hand, and tossed Vincent out the window.
"Oh shit!" Cid exclaimed and stood up. Cloud instinctively reached for his sword, and remembered he didn't bring it. Tifa slipped her Premium Heart out of her purse and put it on. The others backed away, defenseless with out their weapons. Aeris sighed and stepped back knowing that tomorrow was the full moon and Rueben was a little ancy. Best to let him get it out of his system. If he tried to kill Vincent then she'd step in, but Rueben would never kill someone who she introduced as her friend. Rueben tossed his coat and hat aside and drew the Darksword, just as Vincent roared and turned into Chaos.
"@#$%ing great! Now what?" Cid asked. Barret shrugged. Chaos leapt back into the house and glared at Rueben. Tifa saw her chance.
"Final Heaven!" she screamed and swung at Rueben's head. Rueben did the only thing he could do and held up the Darksword to defend himself.
"Tifa, no!" Aeris cried but it was too late. Tifa's fist connected with the blade, and the sword did as was expected. It absorbed the energy from the blow and then sucked the power from Tifa. She collapsed on the floor, wheezing, not having the strength to breath let alone fight.
"Aeris! Come here! Hurry!" Rueben cried, and tossed the sword away. It impaled itself into a wooden beam two inches from the front of Shera's face. Needless to say, she fainted into Cid's arms. Aeris knelt by Tifa beginning to heal her. Chaos saw its chance and grabbed Rueben by the back of his shirt. It tossed him outside and they began to fight. As Tifa slowly sat up with Cloud and Aeris helping her, Reno looked at Yuffie and his fellow Turks.
"Now this is what I call a party!" he exclaimed and finished his beer in a gulp.
*****
"Ow! God#$% it that hurts!" Rueben exclaimed, as Aeris put a raw steak on his black eye.
"What were you thinking? Attacking my friend. What am I going to do with you love?" she asked and chuckled. He grinned.
"Maybe give me a kiss for defending us from a Jenovan?" he asked, smugly. Aeris had to laugh. After they had sorted things out with Vincent (with many apologies from both men), everyone had gone home to leave Rueben to board up the broken living room window and tend his wounds. Aeris sighed.
"Well you sure made an interesting first impression on my friends. I'm going to bed." She said and got up. Rueben caught her wrist.
"Two things first. First of all I didn't use my full power on your friend." He stated.
"I appreciate that. It's probably the werewolf that made you want to leap at him. And the second?" she asked.
"Can I join you in bed?" he asked with a wolfish grin. Aeris gasped and smacked him on the head with a laugh.
"No! Please Rueben wait tilling the wedding night. I fixed you up in the guest bedroom." She said and went up stairs. He sighed and went up to bed. He flopped on the bed and mumbled, "It sure is great to be home."
*****
The next morning Rueben awoke to find Aeris sitting next to him on his bed. He groaned and pulled a pillow over his head. He heard Aeris laugh and she pulled up a corner of the pillow to look at him.
"Get up sleepy head. Cloud and Tifa are here. Cloud wants to talk with you." She said, in a singsong voice. He groaned and looked at her.
"They still mad at me?" he mumbled.
"No, but they might be if you don't get up soon." she stated leaving the room. He glanced at the clock and saw it was one in the afternoon. He sighed and got dressed. He made his way into the kitchen, and saw them sitting at the table, laughing. Cloud said hello and Rueben mumbled a reply. He opened the fridge and found the steak from last night steak. He sighed in relief, and took it out. He tore off the wrapping, and promptly bit off a chunk. He heard someone gag behind him, and he snorted. He then made his way upstairs. Tifa watched him go, and glanced at Cloud, whose face was pale white.
"It's okay, he does that every morning. After he takes a shower he'll be much better." Aeris said and took a sip of coffee.
"Excuse me." Cloud said, and rushed outside. Tifa watched him go and turned back to Aeris.
"Why did he just take a bite out of a raw steak?" she asked. Aeris sipped her coffee and tried to come up with a good answer. Tifa sighed after a while and went outside to check on Cloud. Aeris went up stairs, and found Rueben just stepping out of the shower.
"You know, I wish you hadn't done that in front of my friends." She stated watching him redress.
"Sorry, but I was hungry. With tonight and all, I'm starting to get restless." He commented and combed his hair. Aeris sighed and shook her head. Rueben always behaved strangely on the day of the change. He looked at her with a grin. Aeris just shook her head and walked back down stairs. After a bit, Rueben made his way down and saw Cloud and Tifa were gazing at him in wonder. He apologized, stating that was something his people did naturally. Tifa relaxed and nudged Cloud who was still a bit pale. He shook his head and placed some papers in front of Rueben. Rueben sat down with a sigh, and glanced at them. He poured himself a cup of coffee and waited.
"These are some laws that you need to know." Cloud said, and pointed to the largest stack.
"I'll read them later. And this one?" he asked. Cloud cleared his throat.
"It's a contract. I'd like to you to work with the police force." He stated, and watched Rueben. Rueben scratched his head.
"What's a police force?" he asked, and Tifa burst out laughing. She quickly covered her mouth with her hands.
"It's a bunch of those people I told you about, the enforcers, is what you called them." Aeris said, and sat next to him to look at the contract herself. Rueben snorted and crossed his arms.
"Then, I'm sorry to say Cloud, I will not accept your offer to be an enforcer." Rueben said, matter-of-factly.
"Police officer, and I wish you'd reconsider. With the power you showed last night we could use you." Cloud said. Rueben shook his head.
"I'm sorry the answer is no. I have something else in mind." He said, and Cloud shrugged.
"Suit yourself, but the offer is still on the table. So is Aeris going to show you around Corel?" he asked.
"Yes. I came in threw the woods, and I had a terrible time last night trying to found our home. This city is huge! I've never seen a place like this before." He said, aware that the subject had been changed. Tifa stared at Rueben. If he thought Corel is huge, he should see Junon. Tifa grinned at the thought of Rueben in Junon. They sat around mostly talking a bit and filled Rueben in on how things worked around Corel. Cloud even offered to give him a guided tour, and Rueben grudgingly accepted, when Aeris said that would be nice. As they got ready to leave, Cloud noticed that Rueben glanced at the sky and then hid a pair of shackles in the back of his coat. Cloud just shook his head, and helped Tifa into her jacket. Aeris also asked Cloud to remind Rueben when it was getting dark. Cloud just scratched his head and agreed.
Rueben seemed to be like a little kid as they showed him around. For hours they did nothing but walk from one place to the next. Tifa heard Aeris laugh more when Rueben was around, but as soon as he was gone she stopped. When the guys went to get some drinks at a local bar, Tifa confronted Aeris about it.
"Aeris, what's wrong?" Tifa bluntly asked. Aeris glanced at her, and then out the window. Tifa followed her gaze, and saw nothing but the street, a lamppost, and the darkening sky.
"Nothing, Tifa. I'm just a little nervous." She said, and gave a weak laugh. Tifa just looked at her, and Aeris dropped her eyes.
"Is it something about, Rueben? You can talk to me." Tifa gently prodded. Aeris thought for a moment.
"Tifa, its just that, Rueben, is so amazed by the city I don't think he realizes how late its getting." She said. Tifa just stared at her.
"What does he go to bed real early or something?" Tifa asked dumbfounded, and Aeris shook her head.
"Not really." She mumbled. After a moment of silence, they heard Cloud and Rueben walking back over to them. Over the day, the two had become friends, and were always joking or laughing about something. Rueben put Aeris's drink in front of her, and noticed her solemn look.
"Aeris, what's wrong?" he asked, sitting next to her. She looked at him and then out the window.
"Its almost moon rise, Rueben." She whispered. He looked out the window and then back at her. He promptly burst out laughing.
"That's a good joke Aeris. It's still light out! I can see it threw the window." He laughed, and raised his glass.
"NO, YOU DUMMY!" Aeris suddenly screamed. Everyone in the bar stopped talking and stared at them.
"THAT'S ARTIFICAL LIGHT! LIKE TORCHES! GO SEE!" she screamed and hurried out the door. Rueben jumped up, knocking over his chair, and followed her. He gazed up at the sky and saw it was pitch black, with a few stars out.
"SHIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTT!" Rueben screamed and took off down the street.
"NOT THAT WAY, RUEBEN! THE OTHER WAY!" Aeris shouted and pointed in the opposite direction. Rueben skidded to a halt, turned around, and took off running back the way he came. Tifa and Cloud had come outside, and were watching this spectacle with amusement. Rueben shot past them and a mumbled, "Thank you for a nice night." was heard. Rueben soon disappeared from sight. Aeris breathed a sigh of relief and then turned around to face a smirking Cloud.
"And you!" she accused, and pointed a finger at him. Cloud's grin disappeared from his face.
"What?" he asked, innocently. Aeris glared at him.
"I asked you to tell him it was getting dark! Now did you forget or did he ignore it? If he ignored it I'll get him later, but if you forgot.." She threatened. Cloud scratched his head trying to come up with a good lie. Tifa crossed her arms, and stared at Cloud.
"Well, Cloud, she did ask you a good question. Which is it?" Tifa asked.
"Umm, well, I guess I did kinda forget." Cloud said, sheepishly. Tifa threw up her hands in disgust, and Aeris sighed.
"Great! Cloud, I swear if certain parts of you anatomy wasn't attached, you'd forget about them too!" she said, and Aeris laughed as Cloud went beat red.
"Well, I better go after, Rueben, lord knows he'll need me to get him back." Aeris said and walked towards where Rueben went. After she disappeared from sight, Cloud sighed and looked at Tifa.
"Well that was an interesting end to the day. Want to go home and try for junior?" Cloud asked hopefully, and Tifa scowled.
"Do you think you deserve that after what you did to, Rueben?" she asked. Cloud just grinned.
"UGH! MEN!"
Chapter 10: Reunions and Love!
Aeris awoke in her bed, and immediately began to dress. She knew Rueben would be here today, she felt it in her bones. She had moved into their home, and straightened it up. Cloud and everyone were suppose to come there tonight. She had warned them to dress up nicely. Cid and Shera were even coming, leaving little Cloud Barret Jr.(CB) with Marlene's babysitter. Aeris didn't envy watching Marlene and CB at the same time. Elmyra and Barret agreed to come when Aeris told them it was her fiancé coming. Only Red and Vincent could not attend. Red had gone off on an adventure the Elders said, and Vincent couldn't be found. She dressed in a knockout dress she had bought and let everyone in. Yuffie was last to arrive with Reno and the Turks in tow. Aeris smiled, surprised, but let them in. Rude and Elena were surprisingly talkative and nice to everyone and Reno stayed with Yuffie except when she went to the bathroom.
The night went well and everyone was having a nice time until the door rang again. Aeris walked up and opened it to find a dressed up Vincent standing there. He seemed rather perturbed and when asked what was wrong, he replied that he had accidentally bumped a man. He was about to apologize when his Jenova enhanced smelling smelt a dangerous odor. Apparently the man smelled him too and then they got into as fight. The man began screaming at him and calling him a "Jenovous Monstrosity". Vincent shrugged and said it was over with, and he probably would never see him again. It was nearing one a.m. and Aeris doubted Rueben was going to show. She was about to apologize to everyone, when the doorbell rang. She froze and walked to the door. She could make out Rueben's hat in the outline. Grinning, she threw open the door and leaped on him, kissing him madly. Rueben grinned, and landed on his back with her on top of him. They laughed, and he got up. She led him into the living room where everyone was.
"Everyone, this is Rueben Tocnar, my fiancée." She said. Everyone stared at him, and Vincent growled when he saw him from the shadows. She introduced everyone, and when she came to Vincent the trouble started.
"Last but not least Rueben, this is Vincent Valentine. That man named Hojo, who I told you about, tortured him. He found him....OW! Rueben! My hand!" she cried and yanked her hand away. Rueben's eyes had gone wide and he had automatically clenched his fists together. Cloud stood up alarmed. Vincent stepped out of the shadows.
"YOU!" Rueben shouted, "I thought I smelled YOU again!"
"Please to meet you Rueben. I hope we didn't get off on the wrong foot earlier today." Vincent replied coolly, and extended his hand. Rueben snarled, grabbed the hand, and tossed Vincent out the window.
"Oh shit!" Cid exclaimed and stood up. Cloud instinctively reached for his sword, and remembered he didn't bring it. Tifa slipped her Premium Heart out of her purse and put it on. The others backed away, defenseless with out their weapons. Aeris sighed and stepped back knowing that tomorrow was the full moon and Rueben was a little ancy. Best to let him get it out of his system. If he tried to kill Vincent then she'd step in, but Rueben would never kill someone who she introduced as her friend. Rueben tossed his coat and hat aside and drew the Darksword, just as Vincent roared and turned into Chaos.
"@#$%ing great! Now what?" Cid asked. Barret shrugged. Chaos leapt back into the house and glared at Rueben. Tifa saw her chance.
"Final Heaven!" she screamed and swung at Rueben's head. Rueben did the only thing he could do and held up the Darksword to defend himself.
"Tifa, no!" Aeris cried but it was too late. Tifa's fist connected with the blade, and the sword did as was expected. It absorbed the energy from the blow and then sucked the power from Tifa. She collapsed on the floor, wheezing, not having the strength to breath let alone fight.
"Aeris! Come here! Hurry!" Rueben cried, and tossed the sword away. It impaled itself into a wooden beam two inches from the front of Shera's face. Needless to say, she fainted into Cid's arms. Aeris knelt by Tifa beginning to heal her. Chaos saw its chance and grabbed Rueben by the back of his shirt. It tossed him outside and they began to fight. As Tifa slowly sat up with Cloud and Aeris helping her, Reno looked at Yuffie and his fellow Turks.
"Now this is what I call a party!" he exclaimed and finished his beer in a gulp.
*****
"Ow! God#$% it that hurts!" Rueben exclaimed, as Aeris put a raw steak on his black eye.
"What were you thinking? Attacking my friend. What am I going to do with you love?" she asked and chuckled. He grinned.
"Maybe give me a kiss for defending us from a Jenovan?" he asked, smugly. Aeris had to laugh. After they had sorted things out with Vincent (with many apologies from both men), everyone had gone home to leave Rueben to board up the broken living room window and tend his wounds. Aeris sighed.
"Well you sure made an interesting first impression on my friends. I'm going to bed." She said and got up. Rueben caught her wrist.
"Two things first. First of all I didn't use my full power on your friend." He stated.
"I appreciate that. It's probably the werewolf that made you want to leap at him. And the second?" she asked.
"Can I join you in bed?" he asked with a wolfish grin. Aeris gasped and smacked him on the head with a laugh.
"No! Please Rueben wait tilling the wedding night. I fixed you up in the guest bedroom." She said and went up stairs. He sighed and went up to bed. He flopped on the bed and mumbled, "It sure is great to be home."
*****
The next morning Rueben awoke to find Aeris sitting next to him on his bed. He groaned and pulled a pillow over his head. He heard Aeris laugh and she pulled up a corner of the pillow to look at him.
"Get up sleepy head. Cloud and Tifa are here. Cloud wants to talk with you." She said, in a singsong voice. He groaned and looked at her.
"They still mad at me?" he mumbled.
"No, but they might be if you don't get up soon." she stated leaving the room. He glanced at the clock and saw it was one in the afternoon. He sighed and got dressed. He made his way into the kitchen, and saw them sitting at the table, laughing. Cloud said hello and Rueben mumbled a reply. He opened the fridge and found the steak from last night steak. He sighed in relief, and took it out. He tore off the wrapping, and promptly bit off a chunk. He heard someone gag behind him, and he snorted. He then made his way upstairs. Tifa watched him go, and glanced at Cloud, whose face was pale white.
"It's okay, he does that every morning. After he takes a shower he'll be much better." Aeris said and took a sip of coffee.
"Excuse me." Cloud said, and rushed outside. Tifa watched him go and turned back to Aeris.
"Why did he just take a bite out of a raw steak?" she asked. Aeris sipped her coffee and tried to come up with a good answer. Tifa sighed after a while and went outside to check on Cloud. Aeris went up stairs, and found Rueben just stepping out of the shower.
"You know, I wish you hadn't done that in front of my friends." She stated watching him redress.
"Sorry, but I was hungry. With tonight and all, I'm starting to get restless." He commented and combed his hair. Aeris sighed and shook her head. Rueben always behaved strangely on the day of the change. He looked at her with a grin. Aeris just shook her head and walked back down stairs. After a bit, Rueben made his way down and saw Cloud and Tifa were gazing at him in wonder. He apologized, stating that was something his people did naturally. Tifa relaxed and nudged Cloud who was still a bit pale. He shook his head and placed some papers in front of Rueben. Rueben sat down with a sigh, and glanced at them. He poured himself a cup of coffee and waited.
"These are some laws that you need to know." Cloud said, and pointed to the largest stack.
"I'll read them later. And this one?" he asked. Cloud cleared his throat.
"It's a contract. I'd like to you to work with the police force." He stated, and watched Rueben. Rueben scratched his head.
"What's a police force?" he asked, and Tifa burst out laughing. She quickly covered her mouth with her hands.
"It's a bunch of those people I told you about, the enforcers, is what you called them." Aeris said, and sat next to him to look at the contract herself. Rueben snorted and crossed his arms.
"Then, I'm sorry to say Cloud, I will not accept your offer to be an enforcer." Rueben said, matter-of-factly.
"Police officer, and I wish you'd reconsider. With the power you showed last night we could use you." Cloud said. Rueben shook his head.
"I'm sorry the answer is no. I have something else in mind." He said, and Cloud shrugged.
"Suit yourself, but the offer is still on the table. So is Aeris going to show you around Corel?" he asked.
"Yes. I came in threw the woods, and I had a terrible time last night trying to found our home. This city is huge! I've never seen a place like this before." He said, aware that the subject had been changed. Tifa stared at Rueben. If he thought Corel is huge, he should see Junon. Tifa grinned at the thought of Rueben in Junon. They sat around mostly talking a bit and filled Rueben in on how things worked around Corel. Cloud even offered to give him a guided tour, and Rueben grudgingly accepted, when Aeris said that would be nice. As they got ready to leave, Cloud noticed that Rueben glanced at the sky and then hid a pair of shackles in the back of his coat. Cloud just shook his head, and helped Tifa into her jacket. Aeris also asked Cloud to remind Rueben when it was getting dark. Cloud just scratched his head and agreed.
Rueben seemed to be like a little kid as they showed him around. For hours they did nothing but walk from one place to the next. Tifa heard Aeris laugh more when Rueben was around, but as soon as he was gone she stopped. When the guys went to get some drinks at a local bar, Tifa confronted Aeris about it.
"Aeris, what's wrong?" Tifa bluntly asked. Aeris glanced at her, and then out the window. Tifa followed her gaze, and saw nothing but the street, a lamppost, and the darkening sky.
"Nothing, Tifa. I'm just a little nervous." She said, and gave a weak laugh. Tifa just looked at her, and Aeris dropped her eyes.
"Is it something about, Rueben? You can talk to me." Tifa gently prodded. Aeris thought for a moment.
"Tifa, its just that, Rueben, is so amazed by the city I don't think he realizes how late its getting." She said. Tifa just stared at her.
"What does he go to bed real early or something?" Tifa asked dumbfounded, and Aeris shook her head.
"Not really." She mumbled. After a moment of silence, they heard Cloud and Rueben walking back over to them. Over the day, the two had become friends, and were always joking or laughing about something. Rueben put Aeris's drink in front of her, and noticed her solemn look.
"Aeris, what's wrong?" he asked, sitting next to her. She looked at him and then out the window.
"Its almost moon rise, Rueben." She whispered. He looked out the window and then back at her. He promptly burst out laughing.
"That's a good joke Aeris. It's still light out! I can see it threw the window." He laughed, and raised his glass.
"NO, YOU DUMMY!" Aeris suddenly screamed. Everyone in the bar stopped talking and stared at them.
"THAT'S ARTIFICAL LIGHT! LIKE TORCHES! GO SEE!" she screamed and hurried out the door. Rueben jumped up, knocking over his chair, and followed her. He gazed up at the sky and saw it was pitch black, with a few stars out.
"SHIIIITTTTTTTTTTTTT!" Rueben screamed and took off down the street.
"NOT THAT WAY, RUEBEN! THE OTHER WAY!" Aeris shouted and pointed in the opposite direction. Rueben skidded to a halt, turned around, and took off running back the way he came. Tifa and Cloud had come outside, and were watching this spectacle with amusement. Rueben shot past them and a mumbled, "Thank you for a nice night." was heard. Rueben soon disappeared from sight. Aeris breathed a sigh of relief and then turned around to face a smirking Cloud.
"And you!" she accused, and pointed a finger at him. Cloud's grin disappeared from his face.
"What?" he asked, innocently. Aeris glared at him.
"I asked you to tell him it was getting dark! Now did you forget or did he ignore it? If he ignored it I'll get him later, but if you forgot.." She threatened. Cloud scratched his head trying to come up with a good lie. Tifa crossed her arms, and stared at Cloud.
"Well, Cloud, she did ask you a good question. Which is it?" Tifa asked.
"Umm, well, I guess I did kinda forget." Cloud said, sheepishly. Tifa threw up her hands in disgust, and Aeris sighed.
"Great! Cloud, I swear if certain parts of you anatomy wasn't attached, you'd forget about them too!" she said, and Aeris laughed as Cloud went beat red.
"Well, I better go after, Rueben, lord knows he'll need me to get him back." Aeris said and walked towards where Rueben went. After she disappeared from sight, Cloud sighed and looked at Tifa.
"Well that was an interesting end to the day. Want to go home and try for junior?" Cloud asked hopefully, and Tifa scowled.
"Do you think you deserve that after what you did to, Rueben?" she asked. Cloud just grinned.
"UGH! MEN!"