"Please, you have to let me see her. It's been five days. I just need to talk to her. Just for a minute. Please, just let me see that she's all right."

"I cannot allow you to see her, Director. I'm sorry, but I can assure you that the vice president is in perfect health, although if she continues her hunger strike, she may not be in perfect health for much longer."

This last part is spoken rather bitterly.

"You can't just keep her in a cell," Reeve protests, grabbing onto Tseng's arm as he turns to leave the office. The Turk jerks away from him, scowling as he brushes off his suit jacket, but waits to hear the rest of his argument. "That's your vice president. She deserves better than that."

"I don't give orders pertaining to the vice president's capture and detainment," Tseng replies smoothly, in a very practiced way. "I only follow them. Now, if you'll excuse me, Director—"

"Can't you give me anything?" He knows that he sounds desperate, and his voice cracks slightly, but it's been three days and no one has thought to tell him anything, nor has anyone allowed him to have contact with Charlie. "Can't you pass her a message from me? Can't you just tell her I'm thinking of her? She needs to know that I tried to—"

"When the vice president is ready to cooperate with us, then she will be released. And when she is released, I have no objection to you visiting her."

"Whatever information you need, surely I can get it from her," he counters, sure of that. "Let me just explain to her the situation, and I'm certain that she'll be willing to tell me whatever it is you want to know."

"You think she would tell you?" Tseng asks, looking skeptical. It's meant to be a cruel little jab at Reeve, and the smug look on the Turk's face nearly snaps his heart in two. "She left you without any explanation. I doubt that asking nicely about her intentions will convince her to talk, but thank you for the offer. We Turks are very practiced with interrogations."

"Interrogations," Reeve repeats breathlessly, wondering what's been going on behind Charlie's cell door while no one is watching.

"I could call it something else, if it would put your mind at ease."

Reeve scoffs, running a hand through his hair. Has Tseng always been this cold? Has he always been so painfully indifferent? The answer is yes, and Reeve expects no less from the leader of the Turks, but this is Charlotte they're talking about, the vice president, his charge, his obligation—not some petty criminal.

"What was her crime?"

"'Conspiring with Avalanche' is the official reason given by the president." The corners of Tseng's mouth twitch, like it's funny. "Whether she is guilty or not remains to be seen, but . . . well, Director, you can't deny the compromising position that she was caught in."

"She only wanted to get to you," Reeve continues, though it seemingly has no effect on Tseng, who looks very much to have one foot out the door already, eager to escape the conversation. He's put a desk between them while Reeve has been worrying. "All she wanted was for you to keep her safe, and you've imprisoned her for that. She's committed no crime!"

"Good-bye, Director."

"She trusted you!"

Tseng doesn't falter, tilting his head slightly as he braces himself over his desk, knuckles white and propped against the smooth wood. "And yet, it was you who gave away her location, was it not?"

Reeve feels the heat rise to his cheeks. He's walked right into that one and has no excuse for it. He had given both Rufus and Tseng Charlie's whereabouts, and if it hadn't been for him, Charlie might very well be on her way to Cosmo Canyon right now, on her way to her mother.

"The president promised that things would return to normal if she were brought back."

"That was before her companions attacked two of my men in the hopes of keeping her from returning to Midgar. They're lucky they weren't brought back with her for kidnapping the vice president," Tseng notes. "And, frankly, Director Tuesti, I think you're a fool to have believed that. Did you really believe the president would allow his own sister to run amok with the terrorists who bombed your reactors and not face any consequences?"

He doesn't have an answer for that. He has his own selfish reasons for wanting Charlie out of her cell, and he's willing to forget her past actions if it means that she's safe, curled up at his side, smiling at him again instead of at Cait Sith.

Tseng flashes him a small smile, but it's brief, and Reeve thinks it's slightly mocking, as well. "Charlotte has been given the most comfortable cell in the building, and is provided everything she may require. No harm will come to her, Director."

Gritting his teeth, Reeve demands, "I want to see the president."

"He's currently out of town on business, I'm afraid, but perhaps his secretary will be able to schedule a future appointment with him."

"Tseng, please," he begs, and he knows he shouldn't give the Turk this much power, and the dark eyes that regard him are completely devoid of sympathy or compassion. "I just want her to know that I haven't forgotten about her."

"That's very touching, but I'm sure romance is the very last thing on her mind right now, Director. Have a good afternoon."

Tseng moves quickly around his desk, giving Reeve another terse smile as he brushes back him and out the door of his office without another word.

"You know, if Charlie was here, I bet she'd be able to fix the buggy for us."

"Shut the fuck up! Shut the fuck up!"

Reeve knows it's not Charlotte that's upsetting Barret so much, but more so the fact that Cait Sith is right.

"We're not far now," Red informs them, leading the way. There's something eager about his voice that hasn't been so obvious before now. "We can make the rest on foot and be there by nightfall."

Everyone glances up at the sky. The sun is already beginning to set. It's not like Cait Sith's moogle gets tired, but it is a bit awkward to maneuver around the rocky cliffs they're climbing.

Their buggy, that had brought them so quickly to Gongaga and back towards Cosmo Canyon, had broken down just at the base of the red rock canyon, leaving them no choice but to take their gear and load it onto their backs like pack chocobos before climbing the slight incline that will lead them to their desired destination.

Truthfully, Reeve has never been to Cosmo Canyon and knows very little about it. He's eager to see the place (even if it is through the eyes of a toy) and eager to ask about Charlie's mother, if only to selfishly learn the truth for himself.

"It's a shame Charlotte isn't here to see my home," Red muses, his feet pattering lightly atop the dirt, kicking dust behind him accidentally. "Anyone interested in the study of the planet or life eventually make their way here, to Cosmo Canyon. The observatory there—" He gestures with his head and Cait Sith cranes his neck back to give Reeve a better view of the massive telescope atop an outcrop of rock, partially obstructed by a few jagged parts of the canyon—"is the finest on the planet."

Yes, Reeve thinks, Charlie would have loved it. She had expressed a subtle eagerness about journeying to Cosmo Canyon, and had told Cait Sith in a conspiratorial tone that she hoped one of the elders would allow her use of their telescope.

Built, literally, into the canyon and the rock faces, Cosmo Canyon seems to him a town that has stood still for a hundred years. It's odd to look around and see torches lighting their way up the crooked stairs that have been carved from the earth, leading them all straight to the gate, where a lone guardsmen stands watch, unarmed.

Reeve learns a lot through Cait Sith that evening.

He learns that Red XIII's real name is Nanaki, he's the last of a unique species that died out with his mother, and that he's only a child. The circumstances surrounding his capture (by the Turks, Reeve knows) is something Nanaki does not speak of openly, choosing to refer to it only in passing, but the villagers are ecstatic to see their friend home again for the first time in about a year.

He learns that Cosmo Canyon is not so much a town, but rather a community filled with scientists (and, judging by the muscle mass of some men here, laborers have taken up this place as home, as well) who settled here upon finishing something the locals call their 'pilgrimage', but what Reeve takes to mean 'a lot of travel and a lot of research'.

He learns about the old man who lives up in the observatory, Bugenhagen, a man floating on some type of Shinra-designed hovercraft in lieu of legs, a man that Nanaki refers to as his grandfather.

What surprises him most about this is that Reeve recognizes him, although the man has lost his hair now and his beard is growing longer and getting whiter. They had not worked at the Shinra Building at the same time together, but Reeve has seen pictures of him and has read reports in Bugenhagen's own handwriting and had heard others mention the man in passing.

He takes solace in the fact that Bugenhagen is not of the same creed as Hojo, or even Hollander, the second-rate scientist that had created Charlie's first love.

He learns that Bugenhagen can, apparently, hear the cries of the dying planet.

And Reeve learns that he, too, can hear the screams of the planet here, as well. It sounds like high-level frequency and it pierces his eardrums as it filters through Cait Sith and makes him cry out in shock at first, so loudly that someone knocks on the door to ask if he's all right.

Bugenhagen offers to show his observatory to a few of Nanaki's friends, and Cloud and Aerith agree to join the old man, but Cait Sith and Reeve have different ideas, and he can't say he really envies either Cloud or Aerith.

The last thing he wants to do is listen to Bugenhagen go on some great speech about how mako reactors are killing the planet, taking its life away, making it hurt and suffer like a human being. That had never been his intention in the first place.

All he wanted was to enrich people's lives, to help people. That's all he's ever wanted, but his good deeds have a horrible way of coming back to bite him in the ass in the most unexpected ways.

"Excuse me," Cait Sith calls after Bugenhagen, just as the old man and Cait's three friends are preparing to take their leave and enter the laboratory. He's waited until the others have left, leaving a smaller group of people to listen in. Nanaki, Aerith, and Cloud are the three people he would rather have listening, if he had to choose any at all. "I was wondering if I could ask you a question."

Bugenhagen doesn't look surprised to see him talking. After all, he's probably very used to seeing Nanaki talk. "Yes, of course! If it's about the planet, perhaps you could come back later and have another look when it's not so full?"

"It's not like that, actually. We were told we might be able to find someone here," Cait Sith continues. Aerith looks down at her feet, holding her hands behind her back. "Until recently, we were traveling for a little bit with the vice president, Charlotte Shinra."

Bugenhagen eyes him, looking almost playful. The corners of his thin lips curl upwards knowingly. "Did you?" He turns in the air to face his grandson. "And how did you find her, Nanaki?"

"Surprisingly pleasant, if not slightly vain at times," Nanaki replies, and Reeve can't help but smile to himself. "Grandfather, she showed me a picture of her mother."

"Ho ho hoo! Did she?"

"You never told me that Eleanor was the late president's wife, Grandfather."

"No? Never? I never said it once?"

"No. I would have remembered that."

"It must have slipped my mind." Bugenhagen turns back towards Cait Sith, and Reeve finds that his heart is pumping fast and hard. If she's alive, he may have good news to bring to Charlie once she's released from her cell. "Yes, Eleanor did come here around twenty years ago with no money, no status, and only the clothes on her back, and requested a private audience with me. You see, I had known her many, many years ago, before she married the president."

"So she was here?" Cloud asks curiously, leaning against the wall and listening with a slightly aloof expression on his face.

"Yes, she was. I met with her that very night and she explained to me that she had left Midgar to get away from the president, leaving behind her two small children, and it was all she could do to make it to Cosmo Canyon. She asked only for safety, protection, and a place to conduct her research."

No one asks the question that hangs heavy in the room. Reeve can't help but notice Aerith's awkward expression, eyes darting everywhere around the room.

"Nanaki said she was sick," Cait Sith finally says. "Is she still?"

Bugenhagen is quiet for a moment. Perhaps that's answer enough. "I am sorry. Eleanor returned to the planet six months ago. There was nothing that could be done, but it may help to know that she is at peace again, and no longer suffering."

Reeve exhales softly, running a hand down his face from the small office he's set up for himself inside the house at Kalm.

"If any of you come across the vice president again, I hope I do not ask too much by hoping you might return with her," Bugenhagen says sympathetically. "I have kept many of her things at her request that Miss Shinra may be interested in having. Eleanor was always certain that her daughter, at least, would make her way to Cosmo Canyon eventually."

"Was she buried here?"

"Oh, yes, of course. Please, our guide is watching the gate. Tell him Bugenhagen has asked him to escort you to her grave. Perhaps . . ." Bugenhagen sighs heavily, bobbing slowly up and down in the air. "Why don't you bring some flowers with you? It has been too long since I've visited Eleanor. I admit, at the age I am at now, the idea of death is . . . sobering.

"But I should not fear death. When one returns to the planet, they aren't truly gone. When you find Miss Charlotte Shinra, and when she seeks comfort, perhaps you could tell her that her mother is still here, watching over her."

Reeve isn't sure whether or not Bugenhagen wants them to lie to Charlie's face about her mother or not.

"Eleanor is the wind that rustles the leaves, the water that feeds the roots of the saplings and the flowers that bloom. She is heat off the flames of a fire that warms us on a cold night. She is the grass underfoot that tickles our feet, the trees that bless us with shade we may rest under, the very energy that flows under the earth of our planet. She will never truly be gone so long as the planet continues to live."

The sentiment is touching. He wonders what Charlie might think of it. Then again, Charlie has never been a spiritual person, preferring to look to science for answers.

"She was so excited . . . to see her mother again," Aerith frowns, glancing hopelessly at Cloud. "Let's hurry, Cloud. Once we leave here, we have to find Charlie. She has to know the truth."

Cloud looks hesitant, but keeps his mouth shut, choosing not to argue with her. Cait Sith takes his leave, hopping very clumsily out of the cramped observatory and sliding off the moogle's shoulders to pick some wildflowers from the garden outside.

Reeve is certain that once they leave Cosmo Canyon, Charlie will not be a priority once again, but he resolves to bring her here himself one day, so at least she won't have to be alone when she kneels before her mother's grave.

"Where are they now?"

"Nibelheim, sir," Reeve says hesitantly, shifting in his chair across from the president. He isn't sure whether he made the right decision or not when choosing to omit the fact that Rufus and Charlie's mother had passed away in Cosmo Canyon very recently.

The trip to Nibelheim had been quiet. Reeve often found himself wondering if it would be different with Charlie, making people laugh and smile.

Nanaki had decided to stay, to observe all he could of the planet and its wonders on their journey. Unfortunately, upon arriving at Nibelheim, things had taken a turn, and not for the better.

"Only . . ."

Rufus looks up from his desk, frowning and knitting his brows together. "Only what?"

There's a moment of silence between them as they look at each other. "Both Cloud and Tifa were absolutely certain that Nibelheim was burned to the ground five years ago by Sephiroth," he continues.

"And? So it's a pile of rubble now. The only thing in the area that's of importance to us is the reactor at Mount Nibel, which hasn't been working for five years now."

"But that's just it—it's not a pile of rubble," Reeve says, and this makes the president falter. "The town is completely normal, save for about a dozen people in black robes clustered around the village, in homes and shops. They're completely incoherent, most of them, and the townspeople swear up and down that no fire ever happened."

Rufus's lips part slightly and he rubs his index finger along his bottom lip, deep in thought. "I'll look into it," he says dismissively. "What else? What about Sephiroth? You mentioned you encountered him."

Reeve nods, clearing his throat. He won't deny that he feels rather guilty passing on this information, especially because Cloud and his party have been very welcoming to Cait Sith. "Sephiroth is heading north past Mount Nibel for something called a . . . I think he called it the 'reunion', but I don't know what that means. We depart in the morning."

"Good." Rufus runs a hand through his light blond hair and turns in his chair to face one of the computers on his desk. "Now, if I understand correctly, you had other intentions with this meeting?"

"Yes, sir."

"Go on, Reeve."

Reeve swallows hard, not going to be fooled by Rufus's charming demeanor this time. "It's about your sister, Mr. President," he says, trying to keep his voice from shaking. Charlie has always been a touchy subject. "You've been holding her for eight days and have made no progress and have yet to come to a decision."

"Who says we haven't been making progress?" Rufus snaps at him, tearing his eyes away from the screen again. "I don't recall that you were involved with her interrogation." He leans back in his seat, giving him a tight-lipped smile. "What would you suggest we do with her?"

"I don't know that I'm the right person to ask," he admits, wanting to be as honest as possible. "But, if you release her to me, I promise you that I'll bring her home and keep her there."

"Home?" Rufus sneers. "You mean the new apartment you've moved into?"

Reeve blushes. "I thought Charlie leaving her engagement ring behind was a very clear indication of what she wanted, or didn't want, out of our relationship."

"I want to know what you would do in my place," Rufus continues, acting as if he hadn't even spoken in regards to his previous question. "I spent years trapped within the villa at Costa del Sol at the command of my father, and I have no wish to do the same to my sweet sister, but she must be punished. So tell me, Reeve, what am I to do?"

Reeve is quiet for another moment. Rufus is looking at him with a burning intensity, not quite as angry-looking as he sounds. In fact, he almost looks desperate, and Reeve can't help but wonder if Rufus is truly struggling and seeking help. But the idea of Rufus seeking help from him is almost too ridiculous to believe.

"I'm not going to suggest any form of punishment for her," he confesses with a weak smile and a slight shrug. "I'm sorry, Mr. President, but I'm not going to do that."

Rufus doesn't look surprised. "I didn't really think you would."

"Mr. President, I am begging you to let her go. Your sister only wanted to get to Tseng. She had no intention of overthrowing you. She just wanted the Turks to bring her home safely."

"Why? Do I need to have you interrogated, as well, since you claim to know her motives?"

Reeve isn't stupid enough to tell the truth, but he gives Rufus a look that is unmistakable.

"I shouldn't have hit her, all right? Is that what you want to hear, Director?" Rufus snaps, two pink patches appearing on his pale cheekbones. "But she's been getting away with too much because no one has the heart to discipline her. Even the Turks are soft towards her. Someone had to do it. Someone needed to beat some sense into her."

Reeve lowers his eyes.

"I told Tseng to get a confession out of her the moment he returned to the city, a day after Reno brought her back," the president continues. "I told him to be quick and clean about it, and he convinced me that he could do it without having to lay a finger on her." He looks angry then, his jaw clenching tight, a muscle jumping in his cheek. "It's been eight days, and she's refused to say a single word to him. She won't tell him what Avalanche is up to, where they are, how many are in their party, why she chose to go with them."

"She won't be able to hold out forever," Reeve tells him sincerely, leaving his main question unasked, but Rufus seems to have a better read on him than Reeve suspected.

"You want to know what will happen to her once we get that information, is that it?"

Reeve hesitates, laughing nervously.

Rufus traces his bottom teeth with his tongue before chewing on his bottom lip. Charlie has the same habit. "This is what's going to happen," he begins, and Reeve feels his heart stutter for a moment, the anticipation killing him. "When Charlie finally gives up the information I want, I'm going to take her and the other executives to Nibelheim, where we'll ask around town before continuing beyond Mount Nibel to observe this . . . reunion that you mentioned."

"But sir, I—"

"All of the other executives except for you, Reeve."

He closes his mouth, blushing. He takes it as a slight, which he's sure it's meant to be.

But Rufus smiles, like they're sharing an inside joke. "I'm keeping Tseng on Sephiroth's trail, but the other Turks have been given permission to take a brief vacation, so we need more eyes and ears for the time being. The Turks have certainly earned a break, bringing back Charlie. My vice president, my own sweet sister, wants so badly to escape me, and I don't trust the other directors not to kill you while I'm gone."

Reeve is glad that Rufus has taken measures to protect him, but it's slightly embarrassing.

"I need someone to make sure the city does not burn to the ground while I'm gone, and you're the only man I currently trust for the job, so tell me—" Rufus leans forward over the desk—"are you up for that task?"

"Yes, Mr. President."

"Good. You've done an excellent job. Soon, we'll have both Sephiroth and Avalanche in our hands, and we can finally begin to rebuild the world. Are you prepared for that?"

"Yes," Reeve answers, and it's the truth.

It's getting more and more difficult to discern what information he should pass onto Rufus.

The farther they travel, the more Reeve finds himself growing attached to these people, despite them having no idea who's behind Cait Sith's eyes, watching them, taking in as much information as he can, reporting back to Shinra.

One thing he certainly doesn't tell Rufus is their newest travel companion—a former Turk that Cloud, Aerith, and Tifa had stumbled upon in the basement of Shinra Manor, a stone fortress that housed dozens of scientists many years ago and was the place where ghastly and gruesome experiments often took place.

Charlie would be thrilled, he couldn't help but think bitterly, upon first seeing the man Cloud called Vincent, half his pale and gaunt face hidden away behind layers of dark red cloth, his inky black hair long and matted from over twenty years of undisturbed sleep in the dank bowels of the mansion, only choosing to join them at the prospect of seeing Professor Hojo again.

Physically, he looks no older than Charlie, despite his claims of having been asleep for over twenty years. No one really puts him to the question, however.

Yuffie had fussed over his sabatons and the golden gauntlet on his left arm, blushing when she peered into his crimson-colored eyes. While she hadn't been very wary of him, Reeve had been.

Anyone with such a terrible vendetta against Professor Hojo (and he's certain there are others besides Vincent) is surely dangerous, especially a man who had once been a Turk.

He's forced to cut the sound when he sits back down in front of the monitors that overlook Charlotte's cell, because her dry and unreserved sobs rip right through the very core of his entire being.

They're half-screams and half-cries, anguished and tragic and physically painful, like a child throwing a temper tantrum until they're red in the face and sweating, their speech impeded by hiccoughs and a sandpapery throat.

He hadn't wanted to lie to her, but Gods, she was getting too close to him, dangerously so.

The moment he had sat down at the table with her for dinner, the moment she had pushed his plate off the table like a petulant toddler, he had known that Charlotte wasn't frightened or intimidated by him in the slightest.

She had known that no physical harm would come to her, that he would be loath to raise a hand to her, so she really had left him no choice but to come at her from a different angle, needling her about the one thing that he knows has weighed most heavily on her these past years.

Tseng won't deny that he understands, even sympathizes with her, and he feels sorry that it had to come to this, that he had to convince Charlotte of something he would never wish for himself.

She thinks he's a murderer now—which he is, and Charlotte has always known that—but he isn't Veld's murderer, and he isn't Veld's daughter's murderer.

But it's better this way. He needed to inspire fear within her, needed her to remember that crossing continents and the world to find safety with him is no longer an option. She needed to respect him again, to appreciate who he is—the leader of the Turks, a threat, a powerful man with equally dangerous operatives at his disposal.

He's not a rookie anymore, desperate for Charlotte's (and Veld's) approval. He can't be that soft boy he used to be. He doesn't have the luxury of being soft anymore.

If she recognizes him as a threat, she won't be inclined to chase after him again, seeking comfort or safety or security or whatever she thinks that he might be able to offer her. Perhaps she'll even pull away of her own accord, without needing to be reminded again that getting too close to him is a death sentence, a mistake.

Whatever broken family they had pretended to be all those years ago, when she was young and lonely and vulnerable and he very much the same . . .

Things have changed now, and Tseng has changed with the times. It's not his fault if Charlotte continues to cling to the past, a past that is long gone now and completely out of reach.

Yet, on the other hand, if Charlotte believes him to be Veld's murderer, it's very possible that he's done more harm than good. It's possible that his confession will cause her to break further from Shinra Incorporated and her brother.

And if Charlotte does try to do the stupid, dangerous, impulsive, and reckless thing and runs away again . . .

This time, he might just let her go.

Tseng can't help but think this all a massive show of strength for the president, a way for him to show his sister who gives the orders now. It took ten days to coerce from her a confession that Director Tuesti could have given for her.

But Tseng wasn't about to torture her. Veld would never forgive him for laying hands on his little princess, would never forgive him for being so cruel, for hurting her, for going back on the promise he had made shortly before the botched assassination attempt.

Rufus had been so convinced that she had ulterior motives, that her running away was fueled by a desire to sit in the president's seat behind the president's desk herself. He couldn't possibly believe that her disappearance was caused by fear—fear of her brother, fear of the truth, fear of the unknown future.

It will be good to leave tomorrow, to place distance between himself and Charlotte. Sometimes when he looks at her, all he can see is Veld, and his influence is written all over her stubborn features.

The way she had carried herself and remained silent when Tseng came to her for information, the cold expression she had worn on her face, the way her pale eyes had held such fury and rage that did not find its way onto her pretty face.

She's beginning to calm down when Rufus enters the cell for the first time in days. Out of curiosity, Tseng turns the sound back on as Charlotte slips out of bed, still wearing the same outfit she had tried to seduce him in a few hours ago.

It makes him shift uncomfortably in his seat as she approaches Rufus in nothing but her bra and underwear so confidently. It's not the first time her brother has seen her in such little clothing, and Tseng is willing to bet Rufus has seen her in a lot less than that over the years.

"Oh, Rufus . . ." Her voice is hoarse as it filters through the speakers and, to Tseng's surprise, Charlotte throws her arms around her brother's neck and holds him tight, his own arms snaking around her waist to keep her in place against him.

The president mumbles something against her hair that Tseng doesn't catch. Surely Rufus knows that he's listening, and whatever he says is something he doesn't want heard.

That makes Tseng nervous, very nervous.

Veld had mentioned in passing, of course, of the closeness between Charlotte and Rufus. Tseng hadn't thought anything of it—the two children were lonely and neglected and very close in age. It made sense for them to be attached to each other, and it was almost touching to see the lengths Rufus was willing to go for his sister, to make her happy, to keep her from crying and dwelling on things unable to be changed.

And then he had come to the villa one day to find Charlie and Rufus tangled together on the sofa, one of his hands up her shirt and swallowing her soft little sighs with his own mouth. What had shocked him most—other than the fact that the Shinra children were groping each other in full view—was the fact that it certainly hadn't been their first time doing it.

Rufus, who had been trapping her against the sofa, had been the first to notice. He had only been fourteen or so at the time, and had met Tseng's eyes with a burning ferocity that made him seem years older.

They hadn't spoken of it afterwards, but Charlotte had taken care to avoid both her brother and Tseng for the next few days.

And then, a couple of years later, he had caught them at it again, half-naked in Rufus's bed at the villa, rubbing against each other and kissing and touching and sighing and moaning.

He hadn't meant to stand and watch for so long, but it was difficult for him to settle on a proper emotion with so many fluttering through him at that moment—disgust, shock, anger, horror, and even a slight stirring of desire that made him disgusted with himself.

"Interested?" Rufus had hissed at him, gripping his sister's bare hips so tight that his fingertips were leaving little marks against her smooth skin. "Join us or leave."

That had been enough to make him blush, the very idea of climbing into bed with two of the most powerful people in the world and letting them exert that power over him.

Rufus had never once looked away from him, moving his right hand to Charlotte's neck and stroking her throat lightly, trailing fingers across the swell of her lace-covered breasts, tracing the waistband of her underwear, parting her legs with his knee, dipping two long and spindly fingers underneath the fabric covering Charlotte's center.

It had made him angry to see Rufus putting his own sister on display like that, using her right in front of Tseng's eyes as if such a sight would force him to choose more quickly. He had been so unabashed, and so confident with his efforts to please his sister.

It was a dare. The only thing Rufus wanted was someone else to control, someone else to keep under his thumb, something to blackmail him with if Tseng decided to tell President Shinra what he caught his children doing.

But Tseng had heard the fearful and embarrassed way Charlotte had whined Rufus's name into the crook of her brother's arm, and he had walked away with no intention of ever mentioning it again.

"Please, stay," he hears Charlotte plead in a hushed voice. The lights are dimmed in her cell now, offering her an artificial nightfall. "Just for tonight. Please don't leave me here. I can't bear to be alone."

Tseng knows before Rufus answers what his answer will be. "Of course, sweet sister."

Veld wouldn't be content sitting here and watching this, Tseng can't help but think to himself. But what is he to do? There's nothing for him to do except watch as Rufus and Charlotte settle into bed together, curled up in each other's arms, whispering to each other.

Rufus wipes her tears, strokes her hair, and urges her to settle and calm down and brushes aside her empty apologies for nothing in particular, suddenly a very different man. For all of his talk of torture and confessions, Tseng doesn't think the president truly has the stomach to subject Charlotte to such violent interrogation tactics.

He turns the cameras off, sighing heavily as he leaves the office.

This is what he's wanted for so long.

Though Charlie is crying against his chest, she's beginning to calm down now. She refuses to tell him why she's crying, but Rufus knows what Tseng had told her, knows that he had lied to her face about Veld in order to convince her he was dangerous.

Without Reeve, without Tseng, without anyone else to keep them apart, Rufus revels in it.

One of his hands slides up and down her bare side, squeezing gently to gauge her reaction. She sniffles, but doesn't stop him, nuzzling into his neck. Rufus's eyes close of their own accord, at the feeling of her nose brushing against his skin, at the feeling of her hand splayed over his rapidly beating heart.

In here, the world has momentarily stopped. In here—in Charlie's cell—he's offered the chance to breathe again, to contemplate everything that has happened in the past few weeks, to be someone else other than 'President Shinra'.

It's just the two of them now, and there is nothing beyond the four walls of her cell that matters more than this, than being here with Charlotte with the urge to break down in her arms. He wants to bury his face into her chest and cry while her fingers comb affectionately through his hair.

Rufus moves a hand up to her face, tilting her head back from his neck so he can look at her. The only light comes from the bathroom, spilling over their legs and making it easier to see her sharp features, so like his own. He's always loved how much they look alike.

Charlotte's eyes are puffy and bloodshot, her cheeks flushed and shadows under her eyes. He wants to tell her how pretty he thinks she is like this, but the words get caught in his throat. He's never been good at telling her how much he cares about her. He's always been better at showing it.

On the verge of tears himself, Rufus traces her lower lip with his thumb, parting her lips slightly and pushing his thumb into the warm and wet cavern of her mouth. When her lips close around the tip of it, her tongue brushing against the pad, it pulls a soft groan from deep in his chest, the blood shooting right down to his cock.

He pulls his thumb from her mouth quickly, before that goes any further and he can't control himself.

But it's too late. Rufus captures her mouth in the darkness, pleased that she responds so eagerly, opening her mouth for him. Their kisses are wet and messy, hardly any better than the childish way they used to kiss when they were younger.

She isn't the best he's ever had, but Gods, does he love her more than any of the others.

He braces himself upon his forearm, but she pulls away upon feeling his erection pressing against her stomach.

"Rufus, don't . . ." she whispers, looking even more flushed, her lips swollen from the force of his kiss. "Tseng will see."

"He's turned the cameras off. Look."

"Why would he do that?" she asks quickly, sounding afraid. "Rufus, please, I don't want to—"

"Don't you love me anymore?"

The words come out broken and desperate, and they cause the back of his neck to flush hot, his cheeks burning with embarrassment. What would people think if they saw their president in such a vulnerable position? They would laugh at him, mock him, taunt him, just like they've been doing for years.

But not Charlie. Never Charlie.

"Of course I still love you, Rufus," she breathes, brushing a few stray strands of hair out of his eyes and then dragging the backs of her fingers across his cheekbone. "You're my brother. I'll always love you."

Rufus looks down into her face, feeling her fingertips skate over his cheek. "Then why won't you let me touch you?"

Charlie blushes in earnest, turning her face slightly to hide her shame. Rufus has long since buried those same feelings of shame. He presses gently into her belly, and a jolt of pleasure shoots through his entire body.

"I can make you feel better, Charlie. Let me show you. I can make you feel better than Reeve ever did."

"I just want you to lie down with me. That would make me feel better."

Rufus hesitates, hovering above her. Her eyes show nothing but misery and despair, completely blank. "I want to . . ." He pauses again, growing more flustered by the minute. ". . . make you happy. I don't want you to leave again."

Perhaps Charlotte and Mother are more similar than he thought.

"I am happy, Rufus," she says soothingly, flashing him a weak and tired and sad little smile. "You're here now. I'm not alone."

What had he come in here to do? Hadn't he come here to punish her? How had she managed to coerce him into bed so easily? How had she managed to wiggle her way out of punishment yet again? How had he let himself fall for her sweet little words like a damned fool?

"Lie down," she insists again, her voice quiet and gentle. "Hold me. I'm tired."

Rufus finds himself obeying, albeit slowly. He settles onto his side again, slipping an arm underneath her pillow and drawing her close. It isn't two minutes until Charlie starts crying again, heartbroken and grieving for Veld all over again.

He presses a kiss to her forehead, privately wondering why Tseng had decided to turn the cameras off in the first place. "You can go home tomorrow morning," he tells her during a lull in her sobbing. "But we're leaving for Nibelheim in two days."

"What's in Nibelheim?"

Rufus thinks for a moment. "I . . . don't know." He'll have a lot of digging to do before then. "But we're going to find Sephiroth. You and I. We're going to do it together."

"Really?"

He hums, kissing her hair. "Really."

She presses her cheek to his, and it's wet with tears and warm. He closes his eyes.

"Don't leave again. Please."

"No, I won't." Charlie nuzzles closer, tangling their legs together. "I won't leave again."

Rufus holds her and weeps.