ShinRa
By: Quistis & Xu
Disclaimer: We don't own anything but our minds and our own sanities.
Authors' Notes: This is the Sequel to "Diary of the First Lady" by General Quistis.
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Chapter 7: Rufus
Rufford went back inside but he just stood by the doorway, listening to the explanation. He bit his lower lip and leaned against the doorway as he swallowed hard. Hearing Elena's explanation was too much for him…
He never knew from way back that Reno was the one who hated Tifa.
"They hate me!"
He could still remember her statement during the dawn of the supposedly wedding night…
His blue eyes turned to Tiffany with a cold gaze, but deep within the depths of his soul, he felt so much pain for her…
***
Rufus could hear someone digging up the soil from above him. "Damn it…it's about time…" he thought miserably.
He waited for 10 more minutes until he finally saw the light of day when somebody had opened the lid of the coffin where he was lying in for almost a week already.
It was Cloud Strife and with him were Vincent Valentine and Red XIII.
Cloud carefully removed the glass and after he finally got rid of the glass, Rufus inhaled quickly. "What took you guys so long? I almost suffocated down there?" he demanded.
"Well be thankful that we came despite being late." Vincent told him.
"And be thankful that we agreed to help you with your plan despite the fact that you are a ShinRa." Cloud continued with a cross look on his face.
Rufus sat up straight and stretched. Vincent and Cloud helped him up. He could not believe that he was going through all of those, and he even resorted to deceiving every single member of ShinRa including his wife and his unborn child, just to find out who was behind every single commotion within the walls of ShinRa. "They think that I am unaware of the shit they're doing to Tifa…and they're even threatening her that if she tells on them, they'll get rid of her… well if she won't speak up, I'll do the investigation myself…" he thought silently as he turned to the direction of the ShinRa mansion, several meters away from the cemetery.
"So, what now? Remember the deal?" Cloud asked, turning back to Rufus.
Rufus shrugged and reached for his pocket. "Here," he said as he pulled out a few tablets and handed them to Cloud. "These are the remaining tablets from Hojo's lab. I got them a day before I supposedly kicked the bucket… but anyway, here they are. Just drop 5 of those in a cold glass of water and wait for it to dissolve. If there are still a few remaining grains, mix it thoroughly with a teaspoon. The liquid will appear blue, but continue to stir until it turns clear and colourless again. Drink it and after a few moments, you will be drifting off into a deep sleep. Once you are asleep, make sure that no one is in the room with you. Your body will be taken into the lifestream, yet I don't know if it's astral travel or it's in literal terms, but trust me, it will work." He explained.
"If it really works, how come you did not try it?" Red XIII asked.
Rufus flipped his hair. "Hojo kept that as a secret." He explained before turning away.
"Wait, Rufus," Vincent called out.
Rufus stopped and turned back to them.
"Why don't you join AVALANCHE for a while so that you won't appear suspicious?" Cloud asked with a serious look on his face.
Rufus turned back to the ShinRa mansion and then to Cloud once again with a slight smile on his face. "Alright," he agreed before he started back to Cloud, Vincent and Red XIII.
"After all, this is for Tifa," Vincent told him.
Rufus nodded slightly, keeping his eyes on the ground…