Very long chapter, and a twisty tie!
Devil-Angel - Rufus is a man of honor... he just doesn't show it. Hey, he's human. He's a narcissist, though. I mean, who the hell would wear white two-piece 24/7? I bet the budget for dry-cleaning is astronomical.
Nee - Yes, the secret is out. Uh oh. Reno hasn't figured out geostigma yet, because remember, it's on Arien's scalp! If Arien was a blondie, he might have noticed it, but she has raven hair. So not yet.
ODST girl058 - Lol. Sephiroth is perfect... too perfect, and that's why I didn't make a Sephy romance. Reno's more human... Sephiroth is so perfect he's borderline Gary Stu for me. Rufus is human... but very rarely.
cookiekitten - yes. Hopefully. I'm planning on more Vincent and Yuffie and other people, namely Cid, Barret, Denzel, Cloudpuff, and Tifa. Since I can't really speak Cait-Sithish, I wouldn't know if he's making an appearance.
RaspberryPolarBear - LOL. Sephy is a ghostie right now. He doesn't have a body, so he can't beat the crap out of Arien and get the info. I am definitely not going to give Arien a wedding anytime soon, because I can't imagine Reno in a tux.
Insanity - I liked the ending too. Arien is so... dunno, fighter-ish all the time that she never lets herself off the hook and be lovey-dovey, and this is one of the rare moments that she does that. There will be sequel coming!
Announcement: Due to my school starting in a month, I won't be able to post as often as before. But I will keep posting!
Chapter 18: When Things go WrongTime passed with agonizing speed. Days turned into weeks without either of them realizing; and they began to talk of the future, unlike before, of living space, making permanent changes to welcome a new life into the world.
Neither of them ever expected that anything would go wrong. They should have known, in their lives which more things turned askew than not.
They should have known, but they didn't.
All of a sudden, the world shattered around her.
Ultimatum.
Damn it, goddamn it, what could I have done to prevent this from happening?
"I'm sorry, but I believed you lost the fetus," the physician said, not looking very sorry. Arien could not even cry. The pain was slow, but it was hitting her like waves.
Her baby. Gone. Barely three months in her.
Tears did not come out; instead, a voice of despair. A wail. Reno wanted to shut his ears; the cry bit into him like some bad karma. It chased him, accused him, sounded purely miserable.
"Arie, it's okay, yo. Really." He laid a hand on her arm, who was shaking. "Let's go home, Arie. Let's go home."
She did not respond. Trying his hardest not to let his tears spill, Reno helped his partner up. She felt limp and lifeless as they walked out the door together. It was raining outside, the sky grey, the water splashing onto the streets like a quiet requiem for the lost baby.
The virus in your body can react with Geostigma, spreading a new infection to everyone, dear sister. Heed me, Arien. I can relieve you of both maladies. Just tell me where Mother is.
Sephiroth, my answer is final. And it's a no.
So be it, then.
Hours turned into days with Arien lost in a dazed oblivion. Two things were on her mind: one, the infant, her hope for the future, was quite dead and gone; two, if she stayed here, Reno would be in danger. She believed Sephiroth. He was a villain with no blood or tears, he killed people, but he was honorable in a sort of a sick, twisted way. She trusted his warnings about the viral infection. She also assumed that he said that to target Reno. And she was not going to allow that.
It was two weeks later when Arien finally snapped out of the daze. She did not smile, but she talked, she moved around, did her work. Perhaps not too willingly, but she couldn't lie around all her life, and there were piles of work to do. Chasing Kadaj's group, taking care of Rufus, trying to rebuild Shinra Company – the Turks were grumbling that they better not get any position and still get the highest paychecks if Shinra was re-established. Rufus just smirked and watched his subordinates work.
This life can't go on. I have to get out of here. The words kept nagging at her, and Arien tried to ignore it. It was comfortable here, and she was happy here. But…
Sephiroth is going to come after one of them, Reno most likely. Then it's going to be your fault.
Her conscience was always right, and she hated it.
You can't involve them in your troubles.
The conscience kept nagging her, and she was getting pissed off at it, but what could she do? The conscience was right. She would involve others in trouble.
But where would she go to if she left here? She could not rely on her friends; they'd spill the beans to Reno, and he'd chase after her no matter where she went. She had to keep low profile wherever she was going to be.
She knew the answer already.
Passione.
"Boss, there's someone outside who wants to see you, says you met her in Costa del Sol… what the fuck?" The young boy turned as the commotion got louder. Giorno sighed; after there was a battle between the former boss and the group, the boss was killed, peace was reestablished, but somehow he found himself as the new boss. The job was not fun, and he personally wondered if Rufus Shinra went through the same thing. Bothersome subordinates who really could not do what he wanted. But then, Turks were top class, carrying out the orders with brutal efficiency. So maybe not.
"Alright…" he sighed again, brushing his golden hair out of his face. Just then, he heard an alto voice, quiet but threatening.
"I said, I am in dire need to see your superior, dunce. Now if you don't want to end up like your little friend next to you, I suggest you move now."
"No!" Someone screamed, and Giorno was pretty sure it wasn't the owner of the alto voice. Gunshots sounded, and entered a woman, dressed in a navy pant suit and a white shirt. She looked furious. Her raven hair was still long, but unlike the last time they encountered each other, her blue-green eyes were flashing in fury, and a long gunblade was held in her hand, still smoking from the nozzle.
"Hello, Giorno." Her words were terse, no nonsense. "Are you the leader? I find that hard to believe."
Despite her obvious bluntness and her challenge, Giorno controlled himself from leading into an altercation. "How can I help you?"
"I need to see the leader."
"My former leader is dead. I'm the leader now."
"Is that so? Congratulations." She re-sheathed her gunblade, sarcasm in her voice. She raised her arm and tapped onto her wrist with the other hand. "I hope you haven't forgotten this. I'm calling in for a favor."
"Depends on what, Miss," he replied, while signaling his friends to get ready to attack if she moved in a threatening manner. Arien pretended not to notice. Not a lot escaped Turks' eyes.
"I got that stupid hook in my wrist, thanks to you, and now I know what you meant by 'being different'. I need that virus out of me, and I'm looking for an antidote."
"What power did you gain?" Giorno asked.
"This." In an instant an entire wall had disappeared, and the metallic being with vivid red eyes was slowly dissipating into the woman's form. "I don't need this. It's entirely your fault I'm plagued with this, I think it's your responsibility to get rid of it."
The entire hall became completely silent. "You want what?" Fugo managed to stammer out.
"I want this ability gone completely," she repeated. "As soon as possible."
That was impossible. Giorno shook his head. "I'm sorry, Miss. DeVir. I'm afraid that's impossible."
"And why is that?" She asked without missing a beat.
"Because the only cases which stands got destroyed rendered the users unconscious, without any possibility of recuperation."
Fuck.
"There is no antidote."
"The only antidote means that you won't be conscious for the rest of your life."
Double fuck.
Evidently fate was trying to piss her off, and it was succeeding very well. Everything she tried to do, fate was trying to antagonize her by stopping her every evacuation route.
"Well, this is one jolly news," Arien said bitterly. "Thank you very much for messing up my life, you fucking bastard. I really appreciate it."
"What did you just say to Boss?" One of the lackeys cried out shrilly, but Arien ignored it. She turned on her heel, and started walking toward the exit without further ado.
"Shall I go erase her, Boss?" She heard one of them say. But the blondie probably prohibited it, seeing that she didn't hear anyone screaming vengeance and running after her. It was only after she stepped out that she touched a wall and leaned onto it, and felt tears run down her face.
"Reno?"
"Hmm?" He shivered as she ran her tongue down his neckline, nearly got tangled in the shirt he was taking off, and managed to keep his balance and let the white material fall onto the floor. "Feeling horny tonight, missy?"
"Mm-hmm." She finished it off with a kiss, then looked up. He took her upper lip in his mouth, sucked on it. Her mouth latched onto the lower lip. He felt her tongue run a line. His hands were moving into her shirt, unhooking her bra, letting it fall onto the floor. His fingers played with her breasts.
"Oh my god," she mouthed as she hooked her fingers on his belt. His right hand moved down, releasing her waist and her hips from the jeans she was wearing; he hooked his finger onto her lacy underwear, pulled it down. "Gods, Arie, what happened to you? You used to be prudish."
"And now… I want you." She pulled him down onto the bed. Her raven hair fell on her white breasts as she pulled up the covers. "Yep."
"You want me to fuck you?"
"Uh huh."
"Say it."
"Yeah Reno, I want you to fuck me. There."
"I'll think about it." He pretended to start getting off the bed, and got whacked in the face.
"Reno!"
"Okay, okay. Sheesh." He leaned onto her, stuck his tongue in her mouth. "You want my other tongue too?"
Reno was trying to sate his pleasure when Arien sat up. She pulled on her underwear, then her jeans.
"Hey, where ya goin'?"
"It's over, Renaldo." She playfully kissed his forehead. "It's over."
"What?"
"How slow can you get? Oh right, you have an IQ of an octopus." She snapped on her bra, and started buttoning her shirt. "It's over, dumbass. OVER."
"What's over?"
"Did you honestly think I was in love with you?" She cackled. "Please. You? Yeah right."
Reno sat up, trying to deny what was happening.
"I was playing with you! Jeez, for a ladykiller with traipse of lost-virgins and pregnant women behind, you really are dense." She giggled as she threw on her jacket. "I let you fuck me because I heard you were the best. Didn't want pain the first time, and you really fucked me good. Loved it. But did you really expect some smut like love? Big chance. You aren't my type, sorry."
"Arien, if this is a joke…"
"This isn't a joke. You're starting to bore me." She strapped her watch onto her wrist. "Thanks for the nice sex, dude. You turned out to be a nice toy."
"Arien!" He jumped off the bed.
"I played you, retard. And I'm done." She winked playfully. "See ya later."
She pulled out her packed bag from the closet, hoisted it on her back.
"Arien! You can't be serious, you fucking liar!"
"Au contraire, Renaldo. I'm dead serious." She looked into his eyes, and nearly felt tears coming down. She blinked couple of times. She couldn't cry right now. Not now. Maybe later. Maybe much later, when she'd be thousand miles away from him. She pulled off the aquamarine ring on her finger, the ring that had been on her finger ever since Reno had given it to her. Well, it wasn't hers now. She placed it on the night table with a small click. "Well, that's that." She blew a kiss, made a little pouty face. "Sorry, Reno. It's over."
"Arien!" Reno was shouting. Tseng and Rude stormed into the corridor, where Reno was shouting his head off. "Arien! Jesus fuck, you prick-teasing bitch!"
Arien peeked from the door, where she was halfway out. "Bye Reno!" She waved. The door slammed.
"Yeah, you cunt! Thought you could play me, huh? Well, fuck you!"
"Reno, explain why you're up at this ungodly hour, shouting DeVir's name and spouting all the conceivable profanities in existence," Tseng commanded furiously, wearing pyjamas and walking into the hallway. It was five in the morning, and Tseng thought the world was going to end. First, Reno was up. At five in the morning. Already an apocalypse was coming up. Second, Reno's shouts were going to wake Rufus up. And that would ensure that the world would end.
"Arien's gone!" Reno hissed. "She's gone! Fucking dick-tease."
If it was any other time, Tseng would have dismissed it as the girl walking off. But Tseng could discern no reason why Arien would walk out on him. Yes, he could guess what was going on, but Arien just walking out like that? Something was up. They were almost going out for two and half years and counting. No reason to just walk out. Besides, knowing Arien, she would spit out the ultimatum before walking out. There was something else.
"What is this commotion?" Rufus was trudging through the hallway, stretching and yawning. "By Holy, it's five in the morning…" another yawn. "What is it, Tseng? Who's hurt?"
Tseng silently gestured to the redhead, who looked like a very confused chocobo.
"Alright, Reno, what is it?" Rufus asked, a little crossly. He was still hazed after being rudely awakened with a shout and a yell.
"Arien's gone."
Rufus immediately knew why. Arien was going through stress. Geostigma, pregnancy, losing the fetus… even a Turk could take only so much. Being ripped apart by phantoms, nearly getting raped, hole through the wrist, sister dying, to add to the list. No wonder Arien walked out. Even as a Turk her life wasn't easy.
"Let her go," Rufus said. He knew why she had left, and in his mind Arien was a Turk. But he didn't really see any particular reason why Reno should know that. So he did not explain.
"What the fuck did you just say, blondie?" Reno demanded. Tseng tried to intervene.
"Reno, that is hardly the way to speak to…"
"Shut the fuck up!" Reno shouted.
"Let her go, Reno," Rufus repeated quietly. "Whatever the reason, she had her own. And knowing her, it was a good one."
Reno was beyond tears. His eyes looked like the time when he suddenly decided that children were evil, they must be exterminated… what happened was he grabbed a machine gun that spat out 1200 mako-tipped rounds per minute and pulled the trigger in the street. Shinra had to do a lot to cover that up afterwards. He had a diabolical, maniacal look that was thirsting for blood. Not particularly his blood. Any blood.
Rufus sighed. "Get Reno out of here."
"Not your problem, you fucking kiss-ass dick," Reno snarled. "I'm not gonna shoot anyone." With that, he shook Tseng off, entered the bedroom, and slammed the door shut behind him.
Tseng and Rufus looked at each other. They both shrugged.
"I didn't exactly imagine Reno would be like that," Tseng commented sourly. "I thought he had enough sense not to get romantically involved with anyone."
"Reno, of all the people," Rufus echoed Tseng's thoughts. "Rude, perhaps. I can even believe it from you. But Reno did not exhibit many hints that it might be like this. He was always take it and leave it."
"I'm sorry, sir," Tseng apologized. "It was my mistake."
Rufus shook his hand in a light dismissal. "Don't worry about it, Tseng. He'll come around." There was no way on earth that he would mention that he would miss Arien DeVir. Throughout the days when others were gone and he felt alone, she was somehow around, taking care of him with an efficiency of a trained nurse. She was oddly humane in this cruel, amoral world of Turks; it was almost as if she had not yet lost the tears. She had Geostigma, so perhaps he felt some empathy and affection for the woman who had the same fate as him. Perhaps she was the last reminder that there was still something human and sincere in the bleak, desolate world.
Unbeknownst to the two, Reno was sitting down on the ground, holding a ring that matched the one on the chain around his neck, biting back tears.
"Why, yo…? Why…?"
When Reno was screaming that his woman was quite gone, Arien was walking through the forest that led to the City of the Ancients. Unlike the last time she was here, she was not in her uniform, nor was she in her spiffy car. Her hand felt oddly light. Her uniform was in the closet in Healin, sitting complacently next to…
She shook her head. She refused to think about a certain person. It hurt too much. But his red hair, his crooked grin, his aquamarine eyes, his hands on her, his voice when he moaned, his awkward walk…
"God! Get out of me!" Couple of birds took off in fright in the distance. Arien shouted. She hurt him. She saw that. She lied through her teeth, gave him a fatal wound, then left him. She wanted to tear her hair out and scream. She nearly broke down. She would turn, run back to Healin, apologize to Reno, explain, then…
"No. No, no, no." She told herself. "I'm not going back. I can't."
And she couldn't. Going back meant not only Reno in danger, but everyone else as well. And while she, Arien DeVir, was Reno's mental support, he would never forgive her if she was part of the reason for Rufus' demise. Believe it or not, the Turks loved Rufus. It wasn't an offered love, oh no. But throwing their lives away repeatedly for one man did create a strange attachment. And Reno was the one who went through most dangers for Rufus Shinra.
She walked faster; the backpack on her shoulder seemed lighter, now that she had made up her mind. The jacket she wore was dark brown and light and warm; her jeans fit well, giving her no discomfort. Left foot, right foot. Left foot, right foot. Left, right. Left, right.
She had a goal. She gave a call to Reeve, telling him that she was no longer in Healin; she didn't exactly help the WRO, but Reeve had liked her as a friend and she him, and she did not want to lose touch. Besides, Reeve's mother, Ruvie, had been kind to her when she was a small child. She did not leave a call to Shiv or Zen or Ivana; most likely they'd leak where she was to Reno, and she could just imagine Reno coming after her with a net and a noose. She did not want that. He'd never listen, he'd never understand why she left.
Her current target was a certain Turk. Well, ex-Turk.
She walked, her gun at the ready, her shoes crunching the leaves. She didn't even know if he was there. Left, right. Left, right. Then she'd just camp here for the night. Left, right. Left, right.
She loved this forest. It was filled with memories; when she walked here with… well, a certain person. When she had first met Vincent, who, over the months, became like her brother in her memories. Vincent was quiet, with few words, and rumor had that he hosted an army of demons inside his head, but she could see bitterness – no, not bitterness, sadness – and kindness in his crimson eyes. She had liked him as someone she could trust. You didn't get those a lot these days. The wind tousled her hair; the sunlight made the place turn into a nature palace of molten gold and bronze. The air was cold, it hurt her nose, but it smelled of things she liked; leaves, water, wind, earth. She breathed in. Left, right. Left, right.
She saw something red in the distance. She rubbed her eyes, wondering if the light was playing a trick. No, it was definitely red. Not blood-red, but scarlet.
He was here.
She did not exactly jump in joy. She just breathed again, kept on walking. She did not need comfort. She needed someone to listen, to give her guidance. Someone who could understand what it felt like to be a true mutant. Because that was what she was.
"Vincent Valentine," she called out.
"Who calls my name?" A deep voice called out in reply. She heard someone move, gun at the ready. She raised her hands as she approached. "I'm not sure if you'll remember me, but…"
"I do remember you," Vincent replied quietly. "Arien DeVir, is it? Turks?"
She nodded. "Can you put that gun down? I can't shoot you. You're too fast."
"Thank you for the compliment." Vincent replaced Cerberus back in the holster. "What brings you here?"
"Well, you," she returned bluntly.
"Me? Why is that?"
"I needed someone who… I don't know how to say this, but… can at least pretend to understand me, as who I am." She gestured vaguely. "Mind if I sit down?"
"Of course not."
"Thank you." She sat down. She did not seem to mind the dirt at all. Her hair was bound in a long ponytail, and she looked a little more relaxed. Her backpack was large, almost too large for someone of that frame. "Let me take that," Vincent said.
"I'll just put it down." She shrugged out of it, then pushed it to her left.
"Now, why did you think I'd understand you?" Vincent asked curiously. His red eyes were freaking her out a little, but she saw an attempt to understand her. She shrugged.
"I'm not normal."
"None of the Turks are."
"I'm not normal compared to my fellows."
"Oh?" Vincent now looked interested. "Care to explain?"
So she explained. From the beginning. How she had an enhanced nightvision and those gave her killer headaches. How apparently she was related to the psychotic killer general. How he talked to her right when she had Geostigma attacks, trying to get the information about 'Mother'. How a hook went through her wrist, and how she now seemed to be a carrier of some unknown virus, which, combined with Geostigma, could endanger the entire building. How she was pregnant, how she lost the child. In the end, she was in tears, grief washing over her like gentle waves.
She felt a human hand touch her forehead, and felt Vincent cradle her like a small infant. His shaggy hair touched her eyes as she closed them, sniffling. His red coat was oddly soft, his hand, no longer gloved, very human and warm.
"I'm so sorry," Vincent whispered. "You're different. Like I am. I do not know if it will turn out for the best, so I will not say that. But there are meanings to all suffering, and if you think you did the right thing, then indeed you did."
"I'm not sure if I did anything right. I made… a mess of things."
"We all do, Arien," Vincent said. His tone was quiet, not explanative. "Get some sleep. You must be tired."
