Disclaimer: Square owns me… oh, and they've got all this FFVII stuff under their control too
Chapter 3: Naughty Videos
If there were still any inhabitants in the ruins of Midgar, they would have been woken up by the raucous that poured out into the streets of old Midgar from the lobby of the abandoned Shinra building. It was a loud, confusing mess. Even those involved weren't really sure whose side they were on.
"Tifa?! What do you think your doing inviting them into our home?!"
"Hey, who are you calling 'them' you blonde hared freak?!"
"Reno! Didn't you just get mad at me for talking to them?"
"So what?"
"So now you're ready to waltz in and stay at their place?"
"Cloud, they need to use our VCR!"
"Hold on, all dis damn arguin's over a fuckin VCR?!?"
"GAWD! I came all they way from Wutai for this?"
"Quit whining, brat!"
"I'm sure Reno can find another VCR to use!"
"Stop calling me a brat!!"
"Who keeps stepping on my tail?"
Fifteen minutes later…
Reno sat behind the controls of the Turks' personal helicopter. The first ten or so airborne minutes passed quietly, thanks to Rude. He made sure Reno was up front flying while Elena was in the back seat. He hated playing the baby sitter for those two, but it was better than hearing them bicker constantly. They had both promised the tall man to not speak to each other until they got to Kalm unless they had something constructive to say. His eyebrow raised in suspicion as Elena broke the silence.
"So, Reno, why exactly are we going to Kalm?" Rude was about to quiet Elena down, but was cut off when Reno issued a surprisingly amicable response.
"We need to watch these tapes. The VCR in the lounge in the Shinra building was fucked up even before Meteor trashed the place. These tapes might be the only clue we have to who took Reeve – we don't need them getting eaten by a bitchy VCR. So, since the Shinra building is the only place in Midgar that has power, the next closest VCR is at Tifa's bar thingy in Kalm." Reno rotated slightly in his pilots seat and flashed Elena a winning smile. "Don't worry, Laney. I'm just using Tifa for her 'equipment.' You know you're the only one for me."
The only thing that kept Elena from kicking the red head right out of his seat (other than the fact that they're probably plummet to the ground and die) was her fear of Rude's reaction. The big Turk seemed happy enough with her that she controlled herself this long and she didn't want to let him down. "Don't you think it's a bad idea to just leave Midgar? It's kind of an important time for everyone."
"Which is why we need to act as fast as possible. 'Lena, we have no use in the reconstruction of Midgar without Reeve. We're Turks, not city planners. Lieutenant Palermo knows enough about what Reeve had planned, and he has the authority to act them out. He'll head things up just fine until we get back with the President."
The present members of AVALANCHE were all scattered about the main room of the Tranquillity, Tifa's new bar/inn in Kalm. Cid, who arrived just in time to see Cloud and company coming back from Midgar, and Barret sat across from each other at a table near the center of the room playing a game of cards (and occasionally yelling out an expletive or two). Tifa stood behind her bar, aimlessly wiping the already clean counter. Marlene stood on a nearby stool mimicking her favorite "aunt's" movements. Cloud leaned casually against a wall near the bar with his arms folded across his chest. He seemed to have come to terms with the Turks coming over, seeing how his face was painted with a smile as he watched Tifa and Marlene go at it with the bar. Red rested peacefully on the floor near Cloud's feet, occasionally bumped his slowly swaying tail accidentally on Cloud's legs. All in all, it was a pretty peaceful scene, until your eyes strayed over to Yuffie's corner of the room.
The young ninja figgeted anxiously in her chair. She could feel something was going to happen, but she was tired of waiting. Boredom had taken control of her. GAWD these guys are so dull! Were they this boring before? The only people doing anything are Barret and Cid, the two old geezers! At least that stupid statue vampire man isn't here. Why does everyone I know have to be so lame? And where the hell is Cait when you need him? Lost in her thoughts, Yuffie made her way to a chair next to Cid. "So, gramps, what the hell took you so long to get here?"
Cid didn't even take his eyes off the cards before him. Barret had beaten him the last three games, but this one would be his! "Quit buggin' me, ya little pest! You're gonna fuck me up!"
"Hmph! What's wrong, old man? Can't ya talk to a lil girl 'n' play at da same time?" It's very sad when Barret can successfully psyche you out with mind games.
Little pest?! I'll show you a little pest! She was about to grab the pilots goggles and rub them under her arms (which were in need of some "refreshing" after running around all day), when Red's fiery tail caught her eye. "What's up, puppy?" Yuffie happily hopped over to her canine friend and scratched behind his ears. The only response given was a low growl – Red hated being treated like a dog.
Hopping up onto the closest barstool, Yuffie turned her attention to Cloud. "Ya know, messy-head, I still have no clue what's going on here." It was true. All she knew was that Cloud told her something about Reeve being gone and that she had to make it to Kalm ASAP. She wasn't even sure what just took place back in Midgar. I really need to start paying attention more. Ooo, cookies! Yuffie was so distracted by the jar of cookies on the corner of the counter, she didn't even here Cid agreeing with her.
"Yeah, Spike. I just got here. What the hell's goin' on?"
Luckily enough, Yuffie's cookie was already in hand by the time Clound began his explanation, so she didn't miss much else. "Well, this morning we got a call from Elena. She said that the Turks thought Reeve was kidnapped last night. She told us to meet her at the Old Shinra building at 5. Unfortunately, that's all I really know." Cloud scratched his head, searching for something more to say. All eyes were still on him, so he knew he hadn't satisfied their needs for knowledge yet. "Then, uh, when we were in there, me, Tifa and Yuffie found the Jeneva files missing from the President's office. Barret and Red said they found a still fresh bloody hand print somewhere in Hojo's lab. Then, Reno, Elena and Rude informed us that they discovered that, since the power was restored to the building, the security cameras automatically went back on. So they took the tapes from this morning and last night, and now we're here waiting for them. I think that pretty much sums it up."
"Now hold on a damn minute!" Barret's voice was filled with a bit of anger, like always. "I got all dat shit, but tell my why the hell we sittin' here waitin' for dem Shinra bastards?"
Tifa sensed the tension growing. Barret wasn't happy about their decision in the least, but she couldn't let him get upset now. If he got pissed off this early in the game, there's no telling what he'd do later on. "Calm down, Barret." Her voice was filled with the disarming peacefulness that filled her whole aura. "Look, we need to find Reeve – he's our friend. And if the only clues we have are those tapes, then we all need to see them, whether or not the Turks are here."
"But do you really think it's a good idea to let Reno and his cohorts into our temporary base of operations?" Red's voice of reason caught everyone a bit off guard. Everyone was expecting another outburst from either Barret or Cid.
This time, Cloud took the pleasure of explaining his decision. "I know it may be a bit uncomfortable, but it's for the best. Reno told me that whoever broke in to the Shinra building knew about their security system and disabled it. That means that they know we're looking for them. He also said that none of the guards set up around Midgar saw anyone suspicious, and none of them were dead, so that means whoever is behind this is still in the city. We don't know who we're dealing with yet, so it isn't safe to assume we could just wipe them out without trouble. So, if we stayed in Midgar, we ran the risk of either one of us getting kidnapped too, or those tapes getting stolen."
Barret grumbled a bit to himself and turned his attention back to beating Cid yet again. "I still dunno. I don't trust dat Reno guy."
"Yeah!" Yuffie jumped at the opportunity of getting back into the conversation and relieving her boredom. "That ponytail of his kept whacking me in the face whenever I'd walk be hind him. I bet he was doing it on purpose too, that red-headed punk! I would chopped it off if I wasn't afraid of getting his dirty gross hair all over my Conformer." Soon, her rants turned into low mumbles that only she could understand, though the demonstrative motions she made certainly told that Reno should watch his hair next time he saw her. Gawd I hate that guy. He reminds me of that idiot back in Wutai. The boy that was always wearing Vans, 501's, and that dope Beastie-T… [1]
As if on cue, the front doors of the Tranquillity swung open as three blue-suited individuals waltzed in. "Well, speak o' da devil…" Barret exercised a great deal of will as he kept his eyes glued on his cards, fearing that if he looked at the three Turks, he's go on a shooting rampage.
"If you insist." Yuffie couldn't pass up the opportunity to run her mouth, even though she could see clearly how angry Barret already was. "He's this really big mean guy that's all ready and he's got horns and a tail."
"Yeah, and he's got a little daughter named Yuffie." Cid couldn't help but chuckle at his own wittiness. If anyone knew how to make Cid laugh, it was himself.
"GAWD this is boring!"
"Pipe down girl 'for I kick yer ass outta dis bar!"
"Barret, you won't be throwing anyone out of my bar, thank you."
"Will you people shut up! I'm trying to watch this. You'd figure terrorists would be able to hold their tounges better, right babe?"
"We're not terrorists! And who are you calling, 'babe'?"
"Don't tell me to shut up you red-headed do-do bird! I'm just trying to keep you all awake. I know these stupid tape thingies are putting me to sleep."
"Shhhh!" With that, everyone turned their attentions back to the TV screen and saw why Cloud had interjected. Silence fell upon the group just in time to see a Tall man with short, spiked, lightly colored (that's all they could tell from the black and white film) hair walk across the screen. Right behind him, an older man with long, slicked back dark hair followed. One hand was held to his face, holding in the blood from a broken nose. "Reeve…"
The tall man got behind Reeve and forced him up to the second story of Hojo's lab. Poor Reeve crawled up the stairs in front of the man, unable to resist. That explains the bloody hand print... Soon, the two walked off the screen, but behind the taller man trailed something that appeared to be made out of metal. Perhaps an extremely long sword? The Masamune?! Fear now took the place on interest in Cloud's mind. He was anxious to see what this man was doing. "All right, Reno, change the tapes to the next camera."
"Listen here, Spike! You might be in charge of these idiots but you're not my boss." Reno's temper was very short. He was still dealing with the fact that his President was missing; he didn't need this blond hared terrorist telling him what to do. But, despite his temper. a cold stare from Rude quickly quieted him. "Fine."
Reno paced back and forth along the side porch to Tifa's bar. They had just finished watching the tapes of the break-in, now it was time to plan their next move. Rude and Elena sat next to each other on an outside bench, watching Reno pace in front of them, awaiting what he had to say. "Ok, so we know Reeve's alive. Or, at least he was when that guy went through the building. Cloud said the guy was carrying that big sword Sephiroth used to use, but it wasn't him. His hair was too short and his skin was too light."
Reno paused in this run-down of the situation to pace a bit more, and ponder. It couldn't be Sephiroth, right? Cloud cut the psycho into little bits. And even if Spike didn't kill him, he'd be smooshed under all the rubble in the North Crater. Plus it didn't really look like him. Yeah, it can't be him… "So, then the creep stole the Jeneva files from Rufus' old office. But first he stole something from Hojo's lab, but we couldn't tell what it was. We'd need some kind of image editing do-hickie or whatever to see that shit." He stopped in mid step in front of Elena, tapping his weapon against his leg aimlessly as he sifted through his thoughts. "Laney, you were always good with paperwork and all that BS. Tomorrow we head back to the Shinra building. I'm sure that creepy ass Hojo kept some sort of inventory, he was always paranoid about people breaking his shit. You deciefer all that computer mumbo-jumbo, we'll compare it to what's still there, and we'll see what's missing. Everyone got that?"
Rude and Elena both silently nodded at Reno's plan. Elena couldn't help but wonder what was wrong with Reno. He seemed far too on edge for his, or anyone else's, own good. She could only remember very few instances I which she saw Reno loose his cool in front of others, but he seemed to be snapping left and right today. Almost as if Rude had read her mind, he spoke up. "It's getting late Reno. Maybe you should rest?" In Rude's one cold way, he really just told Reno "You don't look so good and I'm worried."
"Yeah, maybe I should." Reno made his way back into the bar, calling over his shoulder to the two he left behind. "See ya in the morning." Reno walked through Tifa's bar up to the room she had designated for the Turks to stay in. He barely noticed the strange looks he got from the AVALANCHE members still in the bar. A finger ran thoughtfully over one of the scars on his cheek as he walked up the stairs. God, I can't believe I left Reeve alone. What did I think would happen? I bet Tseng's rolling over in his grave right about now. When he entered the room, his eyes surveyed the lay of the room. Two beds, one dresser, a window, a closet, and a mirror – your standard hotel room. His eyes paused one the window as he watched the rain fall outside. When did it start raining? I didn't even notice. Am I really that out of it? He ignored his own thought as his eyes moved down to compare the two beds. He decided the floor would be his best bet. He had grown accustomed to the hard safety of a floor underneath him at night. The Turks' new home in the outskirts of Midgar only acquired beds in the recent weeks.
With one swift movement he flung his jacket off of his shoulders and on to the floor. After removing his shoes, he bundled his jacket into a makeshift pillow on the floor before settling his head on it. He decided that he could think another time – now he had to sleep. He wasn't even all that tired, but he did see the I-Want-To-Talk-About-Useless-Shit-That-I-Think-Is-Going-On-In-Your-Head look in Elena's eyes before he left. He hated that look, and would prefer to be asleep than hear her babble.
[1] – To Reno Spiegel – TOOL FANS UNITE!
A/N: This didn't turn out exactly how I expected it too, but oh well. At least it gave me a reason for Reno action so OOC. Oh, and this time, I PROMISE Vincent will be in the next chapter. And, pwetty pwease review. * bats his eye lashes *