Disclaimer: I don't own so don't sue me!
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"So you see, She wasn't very happy when she heard that you should watch over her ranch. Actually she tried breaking a chair over my head afterwards." Rufus leaned in to his car and watched the red-haired man on the black chocobo. Reno leaned forward with a wide smirk on his face. His aquamarine eyes glittered.
"Heh, I guess I should have expected that sort of reaction." Reno chuckled and then straitened up in the saddle. "So how are the sisters then?" He leaned forward again. Rufus put his hands in his white trench coat pockets and stared at the mountains.
"The middle sister is still at the ranch, she took her first best chance to stay there, she's scared to life and it looks like she has ran into someone's fists."
"An accident?"
"I don't think so, she has an ex husband home in Kalm. He has been punished for women abuse before."
"Bastard." Was the only comment Reno could come up with at the moment. "So how is the other then?"
"She's the classy one, snobbish, has a gold watch and expensive designer clothes, she's from Midgar and is royally pissed of by the though of spending a year here. She's back in Midgar right now to pack her things; she should be back in the end of this week."
"Great, I'll be over there by the end of the week then to check them out, but hey Rufus, I'd love to stay and chat but actually I have to go up the mountain, we still have some cattle up there. Mom has made coffee, so if you like it's just to go in and get some." Reno touched his hat in a salute and then turned his chocobo.
"Thanks Reno but I have to go, I still have some paperwork to do, I shall be going" Rufus got into his car and started the engine and drove of just as Reno rode away with his chocobo.
Reno let his chocobo Ghost walk slowly as he crossed the grassy field towards the mountains at the horizon. By his side his Dark Nation ran, the large black creature was sniffing the ground for traces after rabbits or liking. Reno fastened his pace and soon he was at the edge of the mountain and was soon slowly but safe riding through the thick forest. He could smell the snow in the air even though it still was September. Soon the rocky tips of the mountains should be covered in thick cold snow.
He looked up when he heard the sounds of a plane engine above him and waved when he settled his azure eyes on Cid's tiny bronco. Rude, who was steering the little plane, tipped the wings in a return greeting and then turned to fly in another direction. Reno chuckled and hastened Ghost's pace a bit as he thought about his half brother. Two years older and he already had a kid and wife, it made the age difference to seem like twenty years instead of the just two. He shook his head and urged the chocobo into a trot.
He entered the forest before the mountains and was now looking more relaxed than before. Dark Nation had wandered off a few meters away sniffing and randomly growling as she caught up the scent of some animal. The peaceful forest was suddenly interrupted when a loud scream and a fierce roar broke through the calm wood, then the sound of lightning and a roar in pain, then... nothing. Reno had his chocobo in motion at the first roar and was running and turning against the noise. The first thing he saw was Yuffies chocobo Shadow bound to a low branch, it seemed that it had been tied up real fast because the knot had almost loosened up completely, and second the chocobo was shivering. He came into a small clearing and saw a huge bear dead on the ground reeking in the cold air. (It was colder here than before) Beside the bear stood a small figure that Reno recognised as Yuffie, she was shaking violently while holding her conformer in one hand and a piece of materia Reno figured was a lightning. She was staring at the ground beside the animal but looked up when Reno came closer and she got a hard expression on her face. Reno jumped off Ghost and slowly made his way over to Yuffie, Dark Nation by his side, she was looking at the dead bear with hungry eyes and looked up at her master with pleading eyes whimpering and tripping forward towards the reeking corpse, but one sharp commando from Reno silenced and stopped the big black animal.
"Are you okay Yuff? I came as fast as I heard the noises." Reno kept his voice low and concerned which only made Yuffie growl and narrow her eyes.
"Can't you see I'm okay? Of course I'm okay, I'm not stupid enough to get hurt by a stupid bear you moron. Now get away before I cut you open" She threatened him and just as quick as the lightning she brought up a hunting knife and held it steadily in her hand. Reno looked at the knife and mentally rolled his eyes. He could take that knife from her whenever he wanted to but choose to ignore it for now.
"By the way why are you here Reno? I saw Rude fly by a few minutes before the bear attacked and I figured that you should be at your home." Yuffie spat and then stepped away from the other. Reno coolly replied.
"I have some of my men up here and some cows to. But that doesn't explain why you are here." He glared at her and she glared back with eyes cold as a glacier.
"Same reason you are here, Reno, I to have men up here and now if you'll excuse me I have a bear to take out before I continue" She turned her back to Reno and walked over and sat beside the dead bear while clutching her knife harder. Reno sighed and then walked after her and sat down on the other side, he too with a hunting knife ready to start the bloody work. Yuffie narrowed her eyes and growled.
"I know how to take out a bear by myself Reno now go away." She said coldly.
"I know you can Yuff, but I figured since it's such a big bear I'll help you." Reno retorted just as cold and started to slice the bear open and began to take out every organ he could find before they started to swell. Yuffie soon followed his moves and started to slice out pieces of meat, trying to avoid blood and blood levers as far as she could and bit her tongue when she couldn't. Soon they had taken out every piece of meat that was eatable and had given the vital organs to Dark Nation who sat beside Reno munching on them while purring in a very un Dark National way.
It was a half hour later and Reno and Yuffie was riding next to each other not talking. They had both taken their winter coats on now since it was much colder up here. The snow lay kind of thick on the ground and their breaths clouded in front of their mouths.
"I'll give you half of the meat from the bear; it's only fair that way." Yuffie turned her head to meet her gaze with the red head. Reno smirked.
"Thank you, I'm very grateful." Yuffie quickly turned her head back forward.
"That's the problem isn't it? Being grateful, none of us wants to be it." Her voice was now cold again.
"I guess so" Was all Reno said and Yuffie turned back to him again.
"You can take the bear coat, I don't need any trophies, but you men always seem to like them."
"Yeah, They are nice to look at sometimes, yourself should make a very nice trophy." He smirked but the smirk vanished when Yuffie quickly grabbed his coat and pushed him off his chocobo into the snow. He quickly stood up and glared at her.
"What the hell what that for?" He spat and dusted the snow off his coat.
"You being an asshole that's what it was for, I don't like you and I don't want to be you're trophy." She spat back and found herself being dragged down to the ground to.
"You know what Yuffie? I don't like you very much either and I can assure you that I don't want you as much as you don't want me." Yuffies eyes burned holes in Reno and he let go off her and she walked back up to her chocobo and sat up before looking at Reno again. The humiliation burning in her soul.
"Go to hell Reno." She hastily poked her chocobo in the sides and it started to walk. Reno soon got up to her on Ghost with Dark Nation at his heels. None of them said anything more for a long time. Soon they saw the smoke coming from one of the many cabins that could be found out here in the wilderness and Yuffie sighed with relief. 'Finally other people, I hope it's my own staff' Yuffie thought while watching the smoke rise from over the trees.
Then a faint yet familiar smell reached her nose and she jerked in surprise and her chocobo came to a quick halt. Reno stopped beside her looking at her surprised and curios why she had stopped.
"What's the matter Yuff?"
"Can't you smell it?"
"Um... what? No I can't smell anything besides the snow. What is it?"
"Something has died." Yuffie turned and started to lead the way through the trees until they saw what Yuffie had smelled. It was a dead chocobo, a green one, at least it had been green before now it was sliced and diced open and the blood was everywhere. Green feathers was laying all around the bird covered in blood. Yuffie and Reno jumped off their own chocobos and approached the dead one. By a closer observation they noticed that one of it's feet had been chopped off.
"Who could have done this to such a beautiful creature?" Yuffie growled and scanned the nearby area for clues. Reno had walked closer to the chocobo and was now sitting next to it's head looking at a red tag.
"It's one of yours Yuff." Yuffie's head snapped back to look at Reno
"It doesn't matter whose it is, it's cruel to do such a thing either way." But she noted the number on the tag anyway; the death had to be recorded. "Can you see how long it has been dead?"
"At least 24 hours. It's cold. There's nothing more we can do here. It was snowing last night so the traces are gone. Let's proceed to the cabin." Yuffie only nodded and followed Reno back to their chocobos.
Yuffie slammed the door to the cabin wide open and stalked inside. Zack and Barret who had been sitting in there talking looked up at her but said nothing.
"Do you two know that one of our 'bos has been murdered about a kilometre from here?" She said quite calm but in a cold voice.
"What do you mean it has been murdered? Hasn't it just been attacked by a mountain lion?" Zack leaned back in his chair with a frown and with an everlasting smirk on his face.
"Not if the lions have started to use shot guns and knifes nowadays." Reno spoke up from behind Yuffie while he pushed the girl inside the warm cabin and closed the door after them.
"You must have been mistaken Highwind" Barret spat and lightened a cigarette.
"Then why don't you go look for yourself then Barret?" Yuffie said calmly. "Just walk about fifteen minutes east and you'll find it."
"I'll do that" Barret growled and took his had and coat and walked outside, "Start making the good damn food before I come back Zack." He said before shutting the door.
