All for Love

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Part 1: Chapter 6: Tissues

Scarlet laid in bed, next to her lover. Lover? She mentally slapped herself. He wasn't a lover. He was just a blackmailing bastard. She couldn't believe she'd gotten herself into this mess. Heidegger was a crafty bastard when he wanted to be. Scarlet thought she could get away with just the once. She had no idea he would be waiting for her in her office that night. He told her simple, that if she didn't keep this arrangement up, he'd tell the lovely General how the release of a certain red head came about. She closed her eyes tight and turned so her back was was facing him.

"I'm such a stupid cow." She muttered under her breath. She felt the man unconsciously move closer to her. His arm draped around her waist.

"Scarlet." She heard him mumble. She lifted his arm up so she didn't wake him. She quickly put her dress on. Carrying her shoes in one hand, she headed towards the door. She looked back for a minute.

"Like I said, I'm a stupid whore aren't I?" She whispered in the room. No one heard her. She shook her head slightly and fled the room.

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Reno scratched around the scar underneath his left eye. It itched like crazy. Sephiroth had found him a couple of hours ago, demanding how he got out of the cell. He had then stormed off to Heidegger's office. At the least he wasn't chewing the red head out for a change. He was standing guard on the executive floor yet again. Reno could hear the conversation going on in fat bastard's office. The first floor would probably hear the conversation loud and clear.

"I don't care if he didn't do it! He had this coming to him a long time ago." Came a voice from behind the door. Sephiroth's no doubt.

"I don't care about your Grudge on him! I can't keep him there if he didn't do that crime." Said a steady, calm voice. Had to be Heidegger's, but Reno had never heard it so calm and collecting before.

"Can't you remember why the bastard is here in the first place?" Sephiroth yelled equally loud as before back at the Shinra Executive.

"Yes, but god damn it Sephiroth that was a year and a half ago." There was a slam on the desk.

"So? Like I give a damn." Reno could almost imagine the gleam in the General's eyes. "I know what this is about." There was another slam on the desk. "You're sleeping with that bitch Scarlet, aren't you?" Reno nearly fell over.

"I have no idea..."

"Yeah you do." Sephiroth cut him off. "She got him out didn't she. The fucking whore spelt with you!" He growled.

"That's none of you business, Sephiroth and you know it." Heidegger growled back.

Reno thought for a minute. Did Scarlet really do that for him? He shook his head. She hates me, why would she do that? He heard the door of the blonde office open slightly. Reno looked her way. He frowned slightly. He could see she'd been crying. He walked over to the door.

"What do you want?" She tried to snap at him, but it only came out as a whimper. The door to Heidegger's office began to open. Scarlet slammed her door shut, as Reno jumped back to stand again the wall. Sephiroth walked out the office. He glared at the red head for a second before walking up to him. The silver haired General shoved Reno against the wall.

"You so much as step out of line, I'll make sure you never wish you was born. Got that?" He growled. Reno nodded. Sephiroth let go of the red head and stormed away. As the silver haired man left his sight, Reno walked back up to Scarlet's door. He opened it slightly. The blonde was sat behind her desk with her head leaning on the tabletop. He gently pushed the door open further and stepped in, shutting the door behind him. She shot up and looked at the red head.

"Was what Sephiroth was saying true?" He whispered. Scarlet just carried on glaring at him for a while.

"Why should I tell you?" She whispered back.

"Did you or not?" He asked again walking up to her desk. She looked at the desk.

"I really am I whore aren't I?"

"You really did." The red head leaned on the desk with both hands. "Why the hell did you want to save my ass for? You hate me."

"I did." She started fiddling with her fingernails. "Until you got yourself into trouble for Addy's sake. She would have probably gotten less than you did." Reno stared at the floor.

"I didn't want anything to happen to Addy." He whispered. She smiled at him.

"You proved that your not just another kid from the slums." He frowned a little. "Nothing against you or anything. I'm just overprotective."

"I know." Reno whispered back. A tear slid down Scarlet's cheek. Reno frowned again. The office door began to open. Reno jumped into a closet that was in the room, shutting the door behind him. Heidegger walked into the room. Scarlet quickly wiped a hand across her cheek.

"I suppose you heard everything Sephiroth said?" The man asked her. The blonde just nodded. "You know how much shit I've put up with because of you!" He roared, slapping the woman across the face. She fell out of the chair and hit the floor with a bang. "You stupid bitch!" She let out a sob. He bent down to the floor to look her in the eye. "I expect you at my place tonight." She nodded again. He smiled a twisted smile and left the room. The blonde let out another sob. Reno slowly opened the closet door. Scarlet just let silent tears run down her cheek.

"I really am a stupid cow." She whispered. Reno grabbed a tissue off of the desk and gave it to the blonde. He bent down in front of her.

"Why are you still doing this?" He asked quietly.

"He threaten me." She wiped her eyes with the tissue. "He told me if I stopped, he'd make up a twisted lie about what happened." She looked up at him. "I want Addy to happy for once in her life."

"If she finds out, it won't make her happy." He whispered.

"At least she has you now."

"You don't have to do this to yourself." He said quietly.

"I had to save your ass somehow." They both smiled a little. He leaned down and gave her a hug.

"Promise me you'll try and get out of this mess." She looked at him a smiled a little more.

"I'll try."

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Rufus was sat on the roof of the Shinra building, cigarette in one hand, his other hand in his pocket. He was sat behind a pillar that supported some of the upper floors. He heard a noise near the entrance of the roof and decided to have a look. He saw Reno sat on the edge of the roof, dangling his feet over the edge. The blonde decided to walk over to him.

"Bad day?" He asked. Reno kept looking over at the view. Midgar was an amazing view in a twisted kind of way. The lights from upper plate homes glittering in the night sky. Smoke from the eight reactors drifting into the air. Mingled together they looked like the dark sky above. The smoke being the clouds, the lights being the stars.

"Understatement." The red head mumbled. He turned around to look at the blonde. Rufus' eyes widened a little.

"Where did you get them?" He pointed to the red head's face. Reno frowned a little.

"Had a little trouble with the General." He mumbled. Rufus' eyes widened even more.

"Sephiroth did that to you?" He asked. Reno nodded.

"I'd say I got off lightly. He hates my guts. Ever since I killed like ten of his SOLDIER's about a year and a half ago."

"That was you?" Rufus asked. Reno grinned a little.

"You heard then?"

"Who hasn't more like." Rufus sat next to the red haired SOLDIER, dangling his legs over the side also. "It's peaceful up here."

"Uh huh." Reno mumbled.

"What's it like?" Reno looked at the blonde. "Below there I mean."

"It's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be." He said softly. "Yeah women make there money at the Honey Bee Inn." Rufus nodded. "Some kids try and sell themselves to earn money to stay alive. Or they're like me and kill SOLDIER's to get money." He chuckled a little. "Even though it's a dump, it's still home." He mumbled.

"I feel like that about Junon." Rufus whispered.

"You don't live here in Midgar then." Reno asked. Rufus shook his head.

"Nah, I grow up in Junon with my mother. I'm only here for about 5 months a year."

"You're mother still alive?"

"Not anymore." The blonde whispered.

"Oh." Reno mumbled. "At least you knew your parents." Reno said.

"It's not as if I like my father." Reno looked at the blonde. Rufus stood up. "I have to go. I'll see you around." He walked briskly over to the door and left. Reno remained on the roof, staring out over Midgar. He smiled. Even though life can look like shit sometimes, it isn't half as bad as it could be.

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