Chapter 11
"Stupid vent." Reno mumbled, crawling along the dusty, rusted metal material that formed a small crawling space. Everyone in Shinra should be locked up in jail and have their keys thrown away! Frickin' physcos. Honestly. He was very grateful now that he was lean and somewhat bony, making it all the more easy to crawl through this little vent, with some space to make him relatively comfy.
Right now his main concern was to find Vampy, or maybe Tifa, though Vampy was probably in worst condition. Knowing Vampy, he had probably pissed off the local residents already. Ah well, that was Vampy and he wouldn't have it any other way.
Creaking and twisting along the vent, Reno grumbled unintelligent mumbles about how these things should be more spacious, and maybe with a built in coach.
Reno gave a slight smirk. Yeah, right. He'd just have to complain to Rufus Shinra himself if he made it that far. Reno snorted a bit, continuing to place one rough hand in front of the other, trying to avoid suspicious looking brown speckles littered everywhere. He definitely didn't want to smell or be covered in rat droppings when he valiantly rescued everyone.
Suddenly, a loud creak, the vent gave way and with a loud yelp, Reno tumbled onto the ground, hitting it with a loud smack and curse. Rubbing his head to check for any potential signs of injury or just a big fat bump, he looked up. And gulped rather loudly, just staring up.
Gawking at him, were some of the uniformed rookies that he had fought before he was captured, and they didn't look very pleased that he fact that he had just crashed through their ceiling. Great, he had no weapon and he was going to die. Most likely, but at least he'd go down fighting!
He instantly hopped up from the floor, positioning himself into a battle stance, surveying them calmly. There were ten of them tops, and all of them had some form of weapon, though thankfully none of them had guns, or else he'd probably have been dead a long time ago.
With a slight smirk on his face, Reno signaled the first boy to get a piece of him with a not too nice finger. Enraged, he came toward him, swirling around his wooden pole like it was a sword, though Reno dodged him easily, snapping him on the back of his neck and taking his pole with cool precision. Before he had been a cop he had lived on the streets, and stupid moves like that were easily avoidable.
Brandishing another wooden pole, Reno guessed that it was someone's birthday and that they had been getting ready to hit piñatas, another man came running, yelling angrily about Reno being able to take out his buddy so easily. With a smirk on his lips, Reno blocked the first blow aimed for his neck with his stick, lashing out his leg to catch the man in the stomach, sending him sprawling. Two down eight more idiots to go.
Obviously intimidated by how quickly he had dispatched of their comrades, they quickly formed a tight circle around him, which Reno saw as a bad thing. Being cornered wasn't exactly what he wanted. With quick, graceful movement, Reno snapped his stick out to catch the guy behind him in the temple, then whirled around to block another incoming wooden pole that was coming from his left. With the quick ease of someone who knew what he was doing, Reno snapped right to slam a guy with the butt of his pole in the stomach, then swerved left to avoid being hit, flipping his pole up to catch another beneath the chin.
Catching a clumsy awkward blow with ease, Reno snatched it out of the startled owner's hands and smacked him upside the head with it, going into a low crouch as someone aimed for his head, whacking them at the knees. Still crouched, he slammed another pole into another man's stomach, standing up, panting loudly.
"You're pretty good." The last man standing said, shaking in his boots as his lip visibly quivered, though he tried to pull on the brave front which Reno wasn't buying a bit. He knew he was 'pretty good' and all, but these kids sucked. And Tifa said to watch out for them.
"Yup, don't you forget it. Now, c'mon!" Reno grinned, gesturing for the man to come forward, which he did timidly, swinging at him with his eyes closed. Reno rolled his eyes, blocking it without much thought, giving a loud, exaggerated yawn. These guys were all talk.
Grinning at the complete terror in the guy's eyes, Reno lunged forward and landed a hard one on his temple, sending the poor soldier flying. Dusting off his hands and surveying his handiwork, Reno grinned and lopped over to a soldier with keys hanging off his belt, still out cold. Glancing the man over, he estimated he was about his height and size. Praising whoever was looking out for him for his good fortune, he set to work.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Tifa!" Tifa's head snapped up, a positively startled look on her face. When how she fallen asleep? How had she fallen asleep? Especially at a time like this? Embarrassed and slightly angry at herself, Tifa pulled herself out of bed and swayed almost drunkenly to the door. She felt somewhat drained because of her fury at Cloud. Since when had she ever been so angry at anyone or Cloud for that matter? Rubbing her temples to ease the her headache that was pounding in her head in union with whoever was banging on the door, Tifa pulled the door open, ready to yell at whoever was disturbing her, when she stopped cold.
"Aeris?" She asked in disbelief, though Aeris put a finger to her lips, her green eyes wide with worry. Suddenly Aeris flung her arms around Tifa, who was startled at the sudden gesture, stumbled back a bit, while her friend gave a loud wail.
"I was so worried! Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Aeris inquired, and for once Tifa was glad that there was someone here who actually cared for her, even if it wasn't Cloud, though it didn't matter to her much anymore.
"Fine Aeris, but what about Vincent? Or Reno? Or Cid and Shera?" Tifa burst out, mentally slapping herself while Aeris just stood there, looking thoughtfully blank. Had she forgotten everything while she was asleep? "I mean, the people that were captured along with me." Tifa added a bit dumbly, while Aeris smiled, a tinge of recognition floating around in her green eyes.
"Oh them! The red head escaped, the whole building's on the look out for him, the black haired one is being held in the torture room. Funny, I didn't hear any screams or anything, and I know for a fact he was being beaten." Tifa's eyes instantly widened, and she grabbed her friend by the shoulder, shaking Aeris until she looked a tinge green and a little dizzy.
"Take me to him!" Tifa cried almost in a panic, while Aeris, still confused just looked at her blankly.
"Tifa, I can't. We don't even know where the red head is!" Aeris said, still a bit shaken from Tifa's outburst, rubbing her temples to try and sooth her nerves. Since when had her friend cared for cops anyway?
"Not Reno! Vincent, the black haired one!" Tifa pleaded, while Aeris blinked, then suddenly a sly look, as if she knew what was going on. Tifa just stared at her in confusion, as if to say 'what'? Without another word, Aeris crossed the room to the bathroom, taking out medical supplies and snapping them into her purse.
"We'll need these." Was all she offered as she grabbed Tifa's wrist, a mischievous smile lingering on her full red lips. "Your friend was hurt pretty badly." Aeris continued, dragging Tifa down the hall, keeping their heads low so no one might recognize them or listen in on their conversation. "Besides Tifa, I wish I had your luck! Finding a guy and getting over Cloud!" Aeris squealed in a high pitched whisper, barely able to keep her excitement in check, while Tifa just looked at her friend with a puzzled expression on her face. Then suddenly it hit her over the head, and her wine colored eyes widened as she started stuttering.
"N-N-No, you got it all wrong Aeris! It's nothing like that!" Tifa said, trying to convince her friend otherwise, though it all fell on death ears, as Aeris was no looking dreamily into space.
"I wish I could have told Zack that I loved him before he left." Aeris said a bit wistfully, and Tifa blinked, feeling the strange urge to comfort her friend overwhelm her, though she decided to listen to her friend's wisdom, hidden deeply in the mask of cheerfulness and innocence Aeris managed to uphold. "I would give anything to tell him now. I guess regrets aren't good and all, but still." Aeris snapped out of it, skidding to a halt, and Tifa was just about to ask her what was wrong, though she peeked over her shoulder, her eyes widening.
A soldier was staring at them, or more particularly, Tifa, and it unnerved both women. After what seemed an eternity of silence between the two, the soldier grinned, tipped his helmet to both ladies, and Tifa gave a light gasp.
"Reno? What are you doing here? How'd you get out? Where's Vincent?" Tifa instantly bombarded him with questions, while Reno held up his hands, giving a slight cocky grin, and Tifa quieted down.
"Whoa! Slow it down! Anyway, I escaped through a vent, which needs a coach I might add, and Vincent's cell is down this corridor. You wouldn't believe how helpful the ladies are here. I think they're nicer than the ones in the police station." Reno said with a slight grin, then turning to Aeris, gave her a slight wink. To Tifa's distain, Aeris gave a light blush and a nod, tilting her head back to Tifa.
"The redhead?" Aeris asked, though it was obvious who he was, though Tifa supposed it was better she asked instead of jumping to conclusions. How do you think rumors started so easily?
"Yes, Aeris, this is Reno, Reno Aeris. Now show me where they're keeping Vincent." Tifa demanded, somewhat infuriated that Reno could be ogling pretty girls while his comrade was being beaten. How could someone be so calm?
"Relax, Vampy is this way." Reno said casually, though there was a tinge of hidden concern in his voice, or maybe Tifa's ears were just playing tricks on her. Without another word, Reno turned and zipped down the corridor, his long lanky legs carrying him much farther than Tifa and Aeris's, both at the end of the corridor were panting a bit at the excursion, though Tifa quickly brushed off her fatigue, peeking through the iron bars of the window way.
She let out a horrified gasp as she spotted Vincent's form, lying sprawled out on the hard cobblestone floor covered like a blanket in filth, blood seeping from his reopened wound. It was like seeing him after Sephiroth's battle again, and the very site of him like this made her want to scream.
"Vampy's though, he can take more than a few cheap shots." Reno said casually, placing a comforting hand on Tifa's shoulder, who was just staring at Vincent in shock. Without wasting another second, Reno swiftly opened the door, though it was Aeris who pushed in first, setting her purse down next to him and quickly getting to work.
"This wound doesn't look knew, in fact, reopened. It looks like it was made thin and clean, with a sword. Sephiroth's sword, right?" Aeris asked, quickly getting to work as she started cleaning out the wound, taking out a needle and thread from her purse also. Tifa only nodded dumbly while Reno gave a slight whistle.
"What are you, a lady doctor?" He asked, looking quite impressed while Aeris just smiled grimly, shrugging her shoulders as if it were nothing, tending to Vincent's injuries while Tifa settled herself by Vincent.
"No, but I might as well be. Almost finished my schooling until my brother came to me for help." Aeris stated calmly, having finished her neat tiny stitches on Vincent's side and wrapping bandages around it tightly, moving onto the bruises all over his body. "Oh holy, he looks like he's been run over by a car." Aeris commented briefly, working on the still unconscious cop, while Tifa just stared at Aeris in disbelief.
"Brother? You never mentioned a brother. Where is he?" Tifa stated, while Aeris gave a slight smile, shaking her head as she finished her tidy work, cleaning off her hands with hand sanitizer that she had produced from her bag.
"That's because you've never asked. Besides, I thought it would be obvious that me and Sephiroth were related." Aeris said with a casual shrug, and Tifa's eyes widened instantly, and she took a step back, opening her mouth to say something, though Reno beat her to it.
"That physco is your brother?" Reno asked skeptically, while Aeris gave a light laugh, a small tinkling chime that rang lightly in the dreary place.
"Of course, can't you see the family resemblance?" Aeris teased, and she blinked, looking up, her eyes widening. For there, standing with a menacing glint in his eyes, was none other than the one winged angel himself, a small smirk plastered on his lips.
~*Author's Notes*~ Mwhahaha! The plot keeps getting thicker and thicker! Y'know, I've always thought that Sephiroth and Aeris looked alike, glowing green eyes, same build, same face shape, two bangs framing their face, blah, blah, blah. Well, anyway, hopefully Reno's butt kicking scene was enough for you people, and hopefully there will be more to come. Please read and review!
"Stupid vent." Reno mumbled, crawling along the dusty, rusted metal material that formed a small crawling space. Everyone in Shinra should be locked up in jail and have their keys thrown away! Frickin' physcos. Honestly. He was very grateful now that he was lean and somewhat bony, making it all the more easy to crawl through this little vent, with some space to make him relatively comfy.
Right now his main concern was to find Vampy, or maybe Tifa, though Vampy was probably in worst condition. Knowing Vampy, he had probably pissed off the local residents already. Ah well, that was Vampy and he wouldn't have it any other way.
Creaking and twisting along the vent, Reno grumbled unintelligent mumbles about how these things should be more spacious, and maybe with a built in coach.
Reno gave a slight smirk. Yeah, right. He'd just have to complain to Rufus Shinra himself if he made it that far. Reno snorted a bit, continuing to place one rough hand in front of the other, trying to avoid suspicious looking brown speckles littered everywhere. He definitely didn't want to smell or be covered in rat droppings when he valiantly rescued everyone.
Suddenly, a loud creak, the vent gave way and with a loud yelp, Reno tumbled onto the ground, hitting it with a loud smack and curse. Rubbing his head to check for any potential signs of injury or just a big fat bump, he looked up. And gulped rather loudly, just staring up.
Gawking at him, were some of the uniformed rookies that he had fought before he was captured, and they didn't look very pleased that he fact that he had just crashed through their ceiling. Great, he had no weapon and he was going to die. Most likely, but at least he'd go down fighting!
He instantly hopped up from the floor, positioning himself into a battle stance, surveying them calmly. There were ten of them tops, and all of them had some form of weapon, though thankfully none of them had guns, or else he'd probably have been dead a long time ago.
With a slight smirk on his face, Reno signaled the first boy to get a piece of him with a not too nice finger. Enraged, he came toward him, swirling around his wooden pole like it was a sword, though Reno dodged him easily, snapping him on the back of his neck and taking his pole with cool precision. Before he had been a cop he had lived on the streets, and stupid moves like that were easily avoidable.
Brandishing another wooden pole, Reno guessed that it was someone's birthday and that they had been getting ready to hit piñatas, another man came running, yelling angrily about Reno being able to take out his buddy so easily. With a smirk on his lips, Reno blocked the first blow aimed for his neck with his stick, lashing out his leg to catch the man in the stomach, sending him sprawling. Two down eight more idiots to go.
Obviously intimidated by how quickly he had dispatched of their comrades, they quickly formed a tight circle around him, which Reno saw as a bad thing. Being cornered wasn't exactly what he wanted. With quick, graceful movement, Reno snapped his stick out to catch the guy behind him in the temple, then whirled around to block another incoming wooden pole that was coming from his left. With the quick ease of someone who knew what he was doing, Reno snapped right to slam a guy with the butt of his pole in the stomach, then swerved left to avoid being hit, flipping his pole up to catch another beneath the chin.
Catching a clumsy awkward blow with ease, Reno snatched it out of the startled owner's hands and smacked him upside the head with it, going into a low crouch as someone aimed for his head, whacking them at the knees. Still crouched, he slammed another pole into another man's stomach, standing up, panting loudly.
"You're pretty good." The last man standing said, shaking in his boots as his lip visibly quivered, though he tried to pull on the brave front which Reno wasn't buying a bit. He knew he was 'pretty good' and all, but these kids sucked. And Tifa said to watch out for them.
"Yup, don't you forget it. Now, c'mon!" Reno grinned, gesturing for the man to come forward, which he did timidly, swinging at him with his eyes closed. Reno rolled his eyes, blocking it without much thought, giving a loud, exaggerated yawn. These guys were all talk.
Grinning at the complete terror in the guy's eyes, Reno lunged forward and landed a hard one on his temple, sending the poor soldier flying. Dusting off his hands and surveying his handiwork, Reno grinned and lopped over to a soldier with keys hanging off his belt, still out cold. Glancing the man over, he estimated he was about his height and size. Praising whoever was looking out for him for his good fortune, he set to work.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Tifa!" Tifa's head snapped up, a positively startled look on her face. When how she fallen asleep? How had she fallen asleep? Especially at a time like this? Embarrassed and slightly angry at herself, Tifa pulled herself out of bed and swayed almost drunkenly to the door. She felt somewhat drained because of her fury at Cloud. Since when had she ever been so angry at anyone or Cloud for that matter? Rubbing her temples to ease the her headache that was pounding in her head in union with whoever was banging on the door, Tifa pulled the door open, ready to yell at whoever was disturbing her, when she stopped cold.
"Aeris?" She asked in disbelief, though Aeris put a finger to her lips, her green eyes wide with worry. Suddenly Aeris flung her arms around Tifa, who was startled at the sudden gesture, stumbled back a bit, while her friend gave a loud wail.
"I was so worried! Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Aeris inquired, and for once Tifa was glad that there was someone here who actually cared for her, even if it wasn't Cloud, though it didn't matter to her much anymore.
"Fine Aeris, but what about Vincent? Or Reno? Or Cid and Shera?" Tifa burst out, mentally slapping herself while Aeris just stood there, looking thoughtfully blank. Had she forgotten everything while she was asleep? "I mean, the people that were captured along with me." Tifa added a bit dumbly, while Aeris smiled, a tinge of recognition floating around in her green eyes.
"Oh them! The red head escaped, the whole building's on the look out for him, the black haired one is being held in the torture room. Funny, I didn't hear any screams or anything, and I know for a fact he was being beaten." Tifa's eyes instantly widened, and she grabbed her friend by the shoulder, shaking Aeris until she looked a tinge green and a little dizzy.
"Take me to him!" Tifa cried almost in a panic, while Aeris, still confused just looked at her blankly.
"Tifa, I can't. We don't even know where the red head is!" Aeris said, still a bit shaken from Tifa's outburst, rubbing her temples to try and sooth her nerves. Since when had her friend cared for cops anyway?
"Not Reno! Vincent, the black haired one!" Tifa pleaded, while Aeris blinked, then suddenly a sly look, as if she knew what was going on. Tifa just stared at her in confusion, as if to say 'what'? Without another word, Aeris crossed the room to the bathroom, taking out medical supplies and snapping them into her purse.
"We'll need these." Was all she offered as she grabbed Tifa's wrist, a mischievous smile lingering on her full red lips. "Your friend was hurt pretty badly." Aeris continued, dragging Tifa down the hall, keeping their heads low so no one might recognize them or listen in on their conversation. "Besides Tifa, I wish I had your luck! Finding a guy and getting over Cloud!" Aeris squealed in a high pitched whisper, barely able to keep her excitement in check, while Tifa just looked at her friend with a puzzled expression on her face. Then suddenly it hit her over the head, and her wine colored eyes widened as she started stuttering.
"N-N-No, you got it all wrong Aeris! It's nothing like that!" Tifa said, trying to convince her friend otherwise, though it all fell on death ears, as Aeris was no looking dreamily into space.
"I wish I could have told Zack that I loved him before he left." Aeris said a bit wistfully, and Tifa blinked, feeling the strange urge to comfort her friend overwhelm her, though she decided to listen to her friend's wisdom, hidden deeply in the mask of cheerfulness and innocence Aeris managed to uphold. "I would give anything to tell him now. I guess regrets aren't good and all, but still." Aeris snapped out of it, skidding to a halt, and Tifa was just about to ask her what was wrong, though she peeked over her shoulder, her eyes widening.
A soldier was staring at them, or more particularly, Tifa, and it unnerved both women. After what seemed an eternity of silence between the two, the soldier grinned, tipped his helmet to both ladies, and Tifa gave a light gasp.
"Reno? What are you doing here? How'd you get out? Where's Vincent?" Tifa instantly bombarded him with questions, while Reno held up his hands, giving a slight cocky grin, and Tifa quieted down.
"Whoa! Slow it down! Anyway, I escaped through a vent, which needs a coach I might add, and Vincent's cell is down this corridor. You wouldn't believe how helpful the ladies are here. I think they're nicer than the ones in the police station." Reno said with a slight grin, then turning to Aeris, gave her a slight wink. To Tifa's distain, Aeris gave a light blush and a nod, tilting her head back to Tifa.
"The redhead?" Aeris asked, though it was obvious who he was, though Tifa supposed it was better she asked instead of jumping to conclusions. How do you think rumors started so easily?
"Yes, Aeris, this is Reno, Reno Aeris. Now show me where they're keeping Vincent." Tifa demanded, somewhat infuriated that Reno could be ogling pretty girls while his comrade was being beaten. How could someone be so calm?
"Relax, Vampy is this way." Reno said casually, though there was a tinge of hidden concern in his voice, or maybe Tifa's ears were just playing tricks on her. Without another word, Reno turned and zipped down the corridor, his long lanky legs carrying him much farther than Tifa and Aeris's, both at the end of the corridor were panting a bit at the excursion, though Tifa quickly brushed off her fatigue, peeking through the iron bars of the window way.
She let out a horrified gasp as she spotted Vincent's form, lying sprawled out on the hard cobblestone floor covered like a blanket in filth, blood seeping from his reopened wound. It was like seeing him after Sephiroth's battle again, and the very site of him like this made her want to scream.
"Vampy's though, he can take more than a few cheap shots." Reno said casually, placing a comforting hand on Tifa's shoulder, who was just staring at Vincent in shock. Without wasting another second, Reno swiftly opened the door, though it was Aeris who pushed in first, setting her purse down next to him and quickly getting to work.
"This wound doesn't look knew, in fact, reopened. It looks like it was made thin and clean, with a sword. Sephiroth's sword, right?" Aeris asked, quickly getting to work as she started cleaning out the wound, taking out a needle and thread from her purse also. Tifa only nodded dumbly while Reno gave a slight whistle.
"What are you, a lady doctor?" He asked, looking quite impressed while Aeris just smiled grimly, shrugging her shoulders as if it were nothing, tending to Vincent's injuries while Tifa settled herself by Vincent.
"No, but I might as well be. Almost finished my schooling until my brother came to me for help." Aeris stated calmly, having finished her neat tiny stitches on Vincent's side and wrapping bandages around it tightly, moving onto the bruises all over his body. "Oh holy, he looks like he's been run over by a car." Aeris commented briefly, working on the still unconscious cop, while Tifa just stared at Aeris in disbelief.
"Brother? You never mentioned a brother. Where is he?" Tifa stated, while Aeris gave a slight smile, shaking her head as she finished her tidy work, cleaning off her hands with hand sanitizer that she had produced from her bag.
"That's because you've never asked. Besides, I thought it would be obvious that me and Sephiroth were related." Aeris said with a casual shrug, and Tifa's eyes widened instantly, and she took a step back, opening her mouth to say something, though Reno beat her to it.
"That physco is your brother?" Reno asked skeptically, while Aeris gave a light laugh, a small tinkling chime that rang lightly in the dreary place.
"Of course, can't you see the family resemblance?" Aeris teased, and she blinked, looking up, her eyes widening. For there, standing with a menacing glint in his eyes, was none other than the one winged angel himself, a small smirk plastered on his lips.
~*Author's Notes*~ Mwhahaha! The plot keeps getting thicker and thicker! Y'know, I've always thought that Sephiroth and Aeris looked alike, glowing green eyes, same build, same face shape, two bangs framing their face, blah, blah, blah. Well, anyway, hopefully Reno's butt kicking scene was enough for you people, and hopefully there will be more to come. Please read and review!