Rufus sat in the back of a half empty bar. He knew Rankin was following him. He also knew that wouldn't make Couri very happy. He let out a sigh. So I'm being following by Rankin, who's obviously reporting back to Tseng. Plus, I'm following Couri. She'll love the sudden interest in her life. Rufus laid his head on the table. "Shit..." He mumbled. "Could you have some heart and leave me alone Rankin?"
"That's not my job." Rankin said, walking out of the shadows. He sat down next to Rufas, leaning back in the chair and relaxing. "I'm getting paid to do this."
"Could you just go back to Tseng and say you lost me?" Rufus suggested.
"You're talking to a Turk." Rankin said. "I'm not about to let you get away."
"You don't get it!" Rufus said, angrily. "Tesng should just leave me alone! This is important to me!"
"You really like her then?" Rankin said.
"You couldn't tell before?" Rufus said. He looked at Rankin with a puzzled look, then let out a great, heaping sigh. "It's really important." He should his head. "She's really important."
"You've always had that weird, 'maybe I care, maybe I don't' attitude with everything." Rankin said. "Most people can never tell if there's a human underneath the monster shell."
"Who thinks' I'm a monster?" Rufus said, annoyed.
"Weren't you the man who said, 'I control the world with fear?'" Rankin said. "Most people define that as a monster."
"That monster died a long time ago, along with the Weapon." Rufus said. "I've been around the world, and I've changed."
"Into a ghost." Rankin said. "You'll have to pull off something big if you want to be head of Shinra Corp. again."
"As soon as Sector 7 is rebuilt, I'll be able to make a surprise appearance." Rufus said. "The world will be amazed by me."
"The question you have to ask yourself, is will they cower in fear, or welcome you with equal arms?" Rankin said. Rufus paused, and thought for a long moment. He sat there thinking about himself, and everything he had done in the past weeks. "That question is for the new Rufus." Rankin said, and stood. "I'll be watching."
"I bet you will." Rufus said. "Just give me an hour without your eyes on me. That's all I ask." He pleaded.
"I guess I could close my eyes and take a rest for a bit." Rankin said. "I'm due for a bit of sleep." He smirked. "Just keep that question in your head."
####
Couri sat atop a high cliff overlooking Midgar. She looked down at the city. "It looks like a group of fallen stars." She paused. "Doesn't it, Shinra?"
"It's beautiful though, isn't it?" Rufus said. He stood beside her. "They're rebuilding Sector 7." He said, looking at the machines move. Couri nodded.
"What's Shinra Corp. planning?" Couri asked. She looked up at Rufus, directing the question at him.
"They had a change of heart, that's all." Rufus said. "They're making amends for their evil deeds."
"Them or you?" Couri said.
"Maybe both of us."
"You can sit down if you want to." Couri said. Rufus nodded, and sat beside her, letting his legs hang off the edge. "It really is beautiful."
"Mhm..."
"Is there a reason you're following me?" Couri said, with a sudden serious tone in her voice.
"No, not really." Rufus said. He, on the other hand, sounded laid back, and relaxed.
"I don't have you're sense of humor." Couri said, annoyed.
"You should get one of your own." Rufus said. Couri glared at him. He looked back with a playful expression. She opened her mouth to say something, but thought against it. "Why are you always upset?" Rufus asked.
"What?" Couri said, obviously found off guard. She shook her head. "I'm not upset. I just don't like smart comments."
"Sorry." Rufus said. "I'll remember that in the future." He looked back at the cit. "It' looks so perfect from up here. It was my whole life once."
"Until you almost lost your life." Couri said. Rufus on the other hand, shook his head.
"Before that. I started losing interest in Shinra Corp. I was going to give up the company to someone if the Weapon hadn't shot me."
"You loved your work. What happened?" Couri asked.
"I realized that there was more to life than my need for power. People were suffering in my hands. I was a monster. I didn't want everyone to see me like that."
"There's another part to it, isn't there?" Couri said, taking a hard look at Rufus' sallow face. "What was the other reason?"
"Nothing. There wasn't anything else." Rufus said. He closed his eyes.
"I'll listen when you want to talk about it." Couri said. She stood, and turned her back to the city. "You'll probably find me soon." Rufus didn't say anything. He sat there, listening to her walk off. Finally, when the sound had faded, he pulled out the small rose bud.
"That didn't work the way you wanted it to." Rankin said from the darkness. His glowing eyes surfaced from the shadows, standing out even against the shine of the city.
"I might as well give up." Rufus said. "I can't tell her."
"You can't just give up." Rankin said, stepping out of the shadows. "Or am I talking to the new Rufus? The one who gives up with out even trying?"
"What the hell do you know about me?" Rufus yelled. "You meet me two weeks ago, and you think you know everything about me."
"From what I see, you're like every love-sick romantic." Rankin said. "You can't be two people at once. Couri probably won't fall for the president of Shinra Corp. who says killing executives is business." Rufus stood, and slowly turned to face Rankin.
"I'll say this to you once, just as Couri said it." Rufus said, through gritted teeth. "You get in my way, and I'll kill you." He turned, and walked off. Rankin stood there a moment, then flipped open his cell phone.