Rejoice: Final Fantasy VII may be copyright Square, but Kaga and Travyn belong to me!

Scarlet swallowed dryly as the words reached her ears. That was the downside to her accomplishments - she'd have to be the first to walk onstage in front of a thousand eyes she didn't know, and smile as if she didn't care. Tradition be damned - what was the point? The work was done, the marks were hers. What difference was it going to make if she didn't accept a symbolic piece of paper from the hand of a man she'd impressed long before, and cared little about?

Well, for one, it was going to irk the princess behind her, and as attractive as the prospect of further annoying the girl was now that she'd never see her again, it wasn't worth it. She'd finally proved herself better than them, after all, and that in itself was sweet enough revenge. Smoothing down the uncharacteristically-dark cloth that enveloped her form, she stepped through the curtain.

One foot in front of the other. It isn't hard. And there's really no reason for you to be nervous. These people don't give a damn about you, you don't give a damn about them, and that's the way it should be. Still, though, she couldn't shake the sudden fear that gripped her as she approached the Dean.

They're all looking at me, and it doesn't matter, because Trav's not here. Her throat tightened with the realization, and her steps faltered as her concentration shifted to fighting back the tears that sprang unbidden to blue eyes. I won't cry. I will not give these fools the satisfaction of seeing me cry.

The distance between herself and the head of Midgar Tech was closed numbly; the hand that clasped around her own unfelt. Some compliment was uttered; some meaningless praise that went unheard as she took the rolled parchment from his grasp. Would she say a few words? Doubtless, her emotion would be attributed to joy if she faced the crowd, but there was nothing for her to say - or, rather, no one to hear it. The woman shook her head and turned away.

Dark eyes, dark hair.

Startled, Scarlet paused halfway to the dais of chairs that waited at the back of the stage, her own gaze lifting to sweep across the crowd. Yes, there he was; seated in the first row behind the orchestra - and that cold feeling of apprehension assailed her again; coursing through her veins to gather in the pit of her stomach.

He rose abruptly, picking his way toward the door. She knew the man too well, however, to believe that he'd simply vanish now that he'd seen what he came for - he'd never appeared without some vague pronouncement that would turn her world upside-down one way or another. Somewhere, sometime, he'd be waiting for her.

This time, she didn't intend to make him wait.

It was easier for her to retrace her steps to the front of the stage than it had been to take them the first time around, ignoring the protests of the Dean and the indignant squeal of the princess in the limelight as she brushed past them. The black robe was shed as she made her way down the steps at the far side of the orchestra pit; abandoned in a puddle of heavy fabric to leave the woman clad in the gown she'd planned to wear for the banquet after the ceremony's completion. So much for that - just another item in the long list of plans that were inevitably altered when Kaga paid Scarlet a visit.

By the time she pushed through the crowd to exit the building herself, he was gone from sight. Her eyes narrowed as she paused again to catch her breath - he couldn't have gotten far. When a cursory glance around her produced no results, she inhaled deeply and called out.

"Kaga!"

Her reply was silence.

"Kaga! Get back here, you bastard!"

"I'm right here, my dear," he remarked smoothly as he stepped around the corner. "You don't have to yell."

"Yes, I do," she assured him, scowling.

"If you want something to yell about, you know I'll be happy to provide it." Arms enfolded the woman warmly, pulling her close.

"What do you think you're doing now, then?" Scarlet retorted, shoving him away.

For once, he allowed her to win the mock-battle and released the embrace. "My, my. Such gratitude for the man who made this all possible for you." His eyes moved over her form slowly; fixing at last on the scrap of paper in her hand.

She growled softly; arms crossing over her breasts as if the gesture would dissuade him from leering at her. "What do you want?"

A brow arched. "What, I can't come watch the girl I've put so much time and money into finally prove that she was worth it? Though," he added as he approached her again, "if you're dead-set on me wanting something more..." This time, he stepped behind her; encircling her waist as his lips dropped to murmur the promise against her ear.

Again, she jerked away. "Oh, shove it, Kaga," she snapped, pivoting on the ball of a foot to face him once more. "You and I both know that didn't you come here to watch me, or praise me, or even to fuck me. So why don't you spill it and save us both the trouble of playing this game for once?"

His lips pursed; the expression meant to hint that she'd wounded him with her words. "Why, Scarlet," he purred slowly. "I thought you enjoyed these little games."

She was silent; her head bowed. "Please, Kaga..."

"Alright." The man nodded quietly. "Would you like to talk over dinner?" He extended his hand.

"That would be nice," Scarlet agreed. Her gaze rested for a moment on the outstretched appendage. As she reached forward, his fingers closed over her own, and he smiled.

* * *

The limousine was waiting as they rounded the corner; its engine still humming softly to indicate that it hadn't been turned off. As always, Kaga opened the door with one hand and ushered Scarlet in with the other; then slid in himself.

There was another man in the car this time; one with dark eyes and lengthy hair so similar to her stepfather's that her composure was lost for a matter of seconds. As she curled into the seat, she had to force herself not to stare at him; her gaze focused instead on the roll of paper in her hands.

You have to get over this, Scarlet. Travyn's dead, and you can't go around thinking every guy you see with dark hair and brown eyes is him. You'll go mad.

I know, I know. The woman sighed. She did know, but it was so hard to let go...

"Are you even listening to me, Scarlet?"

Scarlet jumped as the words cut through her reverie, and peeked up nervously. "Sorry, Kaga...I got distracted for a second. What were you saying?"

Kaga rolled his eyes. "This is Tseng," he repeated, indicating the man on the other side. "He's a...business associate of mine, you might say."

No, he wasn't Trav; but now that she had a reason to study his appearance, she could see that the resemblance was close enough to be painful. Tseng was her age, she guessed, give or take a year or two; and she found herself wondering if this was indeed what Travyn had looked like when he was younger. She'd never been able to fault Rebeka for being attracted to him, as she had some of her mother's other paramours. If he hadn't become her father, she might have -

That train of thought was interrupted as she caught both Tseng and Kaga staring at her expectantly. Stumbling over a "Hello," she forced a smile, and settled back into the lush upholstery of the car's interior.

Tseng nodded politely, and returned his attention to Kaga.

* * *

Despite her efforts to the contrary, Scarlet was again kept waiting by Kaga. The man had been more-or-less silent for the entirety of the meal; the only words to pass his lips being the sort of inane small talk normally exchanged over filet mignion. Now, the restaurant had begun to empty out; leaving only the three of them still seated at the tables along the glass wall.

The Galaxy View was located on an upper floor of one of the numerous business towers in Midgar, and the skyline visible from the window was one of the prime draws for its clientele. Darkness had fallen hours before, and the lights of the city spread in three directions to form an artificial reflection of the stars overhead. It was this that Kaga's eyes were fixed upon as he leaned back in his seat and lifted his hand to summon the waitress.

"Another round."

There was nothing else said as they awaited the woman's return. Even after the drinks had been delivered and privacy resumed, the silence continued for long moments. Scarlet stared into the bottom of her glass, watching the ripple of her reflection in the crimson liquid.

Red. The colour of wine. The colour of blood. The colour of me.

"What are you going to do now, Scarlet?" Kaga's voice, kept low to prevent the conversation from carrying, insinuated itself easily into her thoughts.

"I don't know," she replied quietly, not looking away from the wine. "My instructors said that I could likely go on to get my Master's and Doctorate without trouble."

"What are you going to do with it, though?" he pressed. "Hell, Scarlet, I'd wager that you knew more before you came to the plate than they could ever teach you that would be any more useful than what you know now."

Her head snapped up, a few golden tresses falling from her coiffure to dance around her cheeks. "Why did you bother enrolling me, then?" she demanded. "I could have saved four years of degradation and gone straight to something worthwhile."

"You were untrained." He shrugged, admiring the sparkle of the lighter liquid in his own glass as he held it up to the light. "Tseng was practically born into this life - he's been readied for the day when he takes over our department since the day he could walk and talk. You, on the other hand..." His hand lowered, and he shifted to face the woman fully. "You were a chance, Scarlet. A lucky chance. If your mother hadn't remarried, no one would have even known you existed. We had no way of knowing whether your skills were a one-time fluke or genuine aptitude, let alone whether or not we could shape them - and you - into what we were looking for.

"We weren't going to waste our time on a girl from the slums who might turn out to be nothing more than the whore she passed herself off as," he continued. "If you failed early on, we'd know that we could send you back with nothing to fear. Had we taken you straight into the fold and allow you to fail there, we'd have been left with a woman with no real use and too much information." The man straightened, unbuttoning his jacket with one hand as nimbly as he had the night he'd met her; the whore in the slums. Light glinted off metal as he held one side of the garment away from his body; just enough to allow Scarlet to see the weapon tucked into an inner pocket. Still there, after all these years.

"So you decided to test me," she murmured. "With something that didn't matter, so that you wouldn't have to kill me. Because you knew that if I couldn't make it through Tech, I'd never be able to handle...whatever it is that you have planned for me now."

"I always told you that you learned quick," he agreed, closing his coat. "Though you shouldn't take that to mean that I wouldn't have done it anyway, had it become necessary."

"Or that you still won't," she noted dryly.

"Exactly." Across the table, Tseng mirrored Kaga's smirk. She shot him a glare, then looked back to her benefactor.

"So...what are you saying, then?" She shook her head, another lock of hair coming free of the pins. "That you want me to give up everything that I've earned for myself because I've passed your little test, and now you want me to come work for you? "

"Not for me, Scarlet." He reached into the lining of his coat again, and she shrank back - though it was silly to think that even Kaga would have the gall to shoot her in the middle of the Galaxy View - right?

When he placed the small, laminated card on the table in front of her, Scarlet could do little more than stare uncomprehendingly at the words printed beneath the plastic coating.

Shin-Ra, Incorporated
Access Authorization
-
Scarlet Kirana
Dept. of Weapons Development
563-A7

"Shin-Ra wants you, Scarlet," Kaga said softly. "Shin-Ra needs you, far more than any task I could ever find for you would. I told you the night I took the gun that you'd have the means to create and perfect as many as you wanted. This is the means." He tapped the card, pushing it toward her.

"I don't understand," she whispered finally. "If I'm not working for you, then why did you go to all this trouble? What are you, the Shin-Ra talent scout?"

Kaga simply blinked at her, then began to chuckle quietly. "That's a rather apt description, actually."

"We're Turks, Scarlet," Tseng interjected smoothly. "Shin-Ra pays us to take care of things they don't want to be bothered with doing themselves; either because they're too insignificant, or too underhanded to be good for their image. At times, if we find a promising candidate that might be an asset, we give them a hand in getting there."

Scarlet simply nodded, studying the card silently for a few seconds longer. At last, she lifted it from the surface of the table to be clutched tightly between her fingertips. "Thank you, Kaga," she murmured as she rose.

Dark eyes blinked again as the woman's arms curled around him; though if he was truly surprised by the action, he gave no other sign of it. He drew her into his lap, his lips sweeping once more along the edge of her ear.

"You're welcome."

Author's Note: I was not, originally, planning on putting both chapters up the same week, but Chapter Eight is really too short to leave on its own. Nine, coincidentally, is the last chapter I have pre-written, and as it closes one arc of Scarlet's life, it seemed fitting to close out the year with it as well. There will be more, but tonight, I can't tell you when. I'm sick and depressed, and my Muse is being a right little bitch when it comes to this fic. Too, I've been considering working on some of the other fics I've got set aside before I come back to this one, just as a change of pace. I don't know when those will go up, either, but rest assured they will eventually. I, of course, will be lurking nearby at all times, demanding well-written madness and yaoi goodness from all! ^^-v- (Leaving with a threat is always such fun...hey...why are you looking at me like I'm insane? What are you going to do with those restraints? And will I like it?)
Ato de, min'na-san.
~Scarle