Chapter Ten

Elena led Aura through the doors to 7th Heaven. "You'll like this place," She said over her shoulder to the dark haired woman. She was given a smile in return. Elena let her eyes sweep the place. Good. No sign of her workmates. She had figured it would be fairly unlikely they would come out tonight after Zena had been on everyone all day to come with her. With a sudden thought, Elena cast her eyes around again for the Doctor. When she couldn't see her anywhere, she gave a relieved sigh and turned to take Aura toward a booth by the wall.

Before long both women were nearly finished their third drinks and were surveying the bar with interest. Elena was wondering if she could get Tifa's attention without having to get up and actually go over to the bar. She was feeling a bit warm and fuzzy and was more than comfortable sitting where she was.

"You do it." She said to Aura who whined and shook her head.

"I don't wanna, yo."

"Neither do I."

"Well, then we have a problem."

"You just do it." Elena whined.

"Nu-uh."

Elena looked around, hoping to find someone else she could make fetch her a drink when she spotted Tseng. Blinking, she noticed that he, Reno, and Rude were now standing before their booth. The fury in Reno's eyes as he looked from Aura to Elena sobered her right up and chilled her to the bone.

"Elena…" Tseng said, and Elena forced herself to tear her eyes from Reno to focus on the dark haired man speaking to her. "I didn't think you would be feeling up to this…"

"I…I… feel okay…" She managed. She glanced at Aura who looked slightly panicked. Looking back to Reno, Elena swallowed thickly, hoping that he wouldn't kill her right here. "Guys… this is … my friend, Aura…" She said, gesturing toward the other woman. "Aura… this is my boss, Tseng." She said, "And this is Rude… and Reno…" She swallowed again and looked toward Aura.

"Hello…" Aura said gently, looking from one to the next. "Nice to meet you…" Elena watched the girl's green eyes catch on Reno and she knew they were doing that weird silent communication thing again. Elena silently hoped that Reno would go with her story of Aura being her friend. If he did, there was no reason for Tseng to find out that she was actually his friend that he had hidden all these years. It could totally work.

"I… I was just going to get us some drinks…" Elena got to her feet and fled toward the bar. She braced her hands against the wooden top and let out a slow breath. It was then she felt him step up beside her.

"What do you think you're doing?" Reno's voice was low and dangerous. Elena did not want to turn around and meet the terrifying look she knew would be in his eyes.

"I didn't know you'd be here…" She said, trying to keep her voice calm. "I figured everyone would be at home."

"Well, we're not."

"I had no way of knowing that!"

"Why here?" he demanded, "Come on, Laney."

"… I knew it was safe here." She said, "Tifa never lets fights get out of hand… I thought it was a better option than some random bar I don't know." She turned then to look at him. He looked frustrated. And scared. "… They think she's my friend." She told him, "They'll never know."

"ELENA!" A high-pitched scream startled her.

"… Zena." She replied evenly when the blonde woman came running toward her. "You came after all."

"Yeah." Elena collected the drinks she'd ordered and headed back to the table, Zena following behind. Resisting a sigh as Zena slipped into the booth beside her, she moved closer to Aura who looked questioningly at her. "This is Zena. We work with her." She told the girl.

"Oh. Hello." Aura smiled at Zena who looked her over and smiled widely.

Elena watched as Reno took up a seat on the other side of the table. She bit her lip, wondering how angry he was with her. She wasn't really able to tell as he appeared to be avoiding her gaze. She watched him play with the condensation on the outside of his glass as he glanced toward Aura and then surreptitiously at Tseng. Shaking her head, Elena resisted a sigh and nodded when Zena nudged her. She hadn't heard what the woman had said to her, but agreeing seemed to be the best tactic.

"Right, then." The other woman grinned, "Come on?"

"What?"

"We're going to dance!" Zena exclaimed, "You just agreed. Bring Alice."

Elena blinked. Who in the name of Shiva was Alice? It was then she realised that she meant Aura. Casting an apologetic look toward the dark haired woman, she got to her feet. Aura followed her. Zena led them across the bar to the corner where people were gathering to dance to the loud music. The instant they were among everyone, Zena began shaking her hips and flicking her curly hair about the place. Casting a look over her shoulder, Elena wrinkled her nose. She saw Aura give a light laugh and knew that the shorter woman understood what she had meant. Perhaps claiming that Aura was her friend hadn't been a complete lie, she thought. She could definitely see herself being friends with the woman.

Aura grinned, seeing Elena's reaction to the other blonde woman. She wondered vaguely what Zena did for ShinRa. She would bet just about anything she had that the woman wasn't a Turk. Elena lasted for only a few minutes of dancing before she excused herself for the bathroom. Turning back to Zena, she smiled politely as the woman danced closer to her. "So how long have you known Elena?"

"Uh… a little while…" Aura replied, waving her hand slightly.

"You know what she does?"

"Yeah."

"You know the other guys?"

"Never met them before, yo." She answered, glancing back to the table they had been sitting at. Finding Reno looking straight at her, she bit her lip. He was clearly uncomfortable with her being here. She had to admit that she had liked Elena's cover, saying that she was her friend. She thought that it worked well. She wasn't a Turk, however. They were used to lies. Maybe Reno's people would see right through it.

"Pretty good looking aren't they?" Zena asked, swaying her lips to the music as she also looked toward the booth.

"Mm, sure…" Aura nodded.

"I totally need a piece of that Tseng." Zena continued. "He's so pent up, I'm sure he'd be wild when you really get him going…"

"Oh…" Aura looked from Zena to Tseng. He did look very… official.

"Yeah… Or Reno." Zena continued. "You can just tell he's wild." The woman bit her lip, her eyes locked on Reno across the room. "Mmmm I'm sure he'd be something you'd never forget, if you know what I mean…"

"Oh… I…" Aura blinked, taking a breath to try and keep herself steady, "I…"

"Ah!" Zena laughed, "Did he strike your fancy?"

"I…"

"Hm." The blonde's eyes looked her up and down, "No offence, sweetheart." She grinned, "You're not really his type. You're a little too… cute. He needs a real woman."

Aura just looked at her. A real woman? What in the name of Shiva did this bitch think she was? "I think I'm done dancing, yo." She said flatly, before turning and walking away from Zena and back to the booth, sliding easily into her seat and picking up her drink from where she'd left it. Reno's slightly narrowed eyes told her he knew she was annoyed.

"Where's Laney?" Reno asked her.

"She went to the bathroom." She answered, taking a sip of her drink.

"Do you and Elena come here often?" Tseng asked her.

Aura looked up. "This is my first time." She answered. It was the truth.

"Have you met Zena before?"

"Don't think so."

"You don't think so?"

"Pretty sure I'd remember her, yo." She muttered. She would have sworn then that she had seen amusement flicker across Tseng's face for a moment.

"Here you are." Elena said to Aura, sitting beside her again.

"I got tired of… dancing."

"You got tired of Zena." Elena replied, "It's fine." Aura looked at her.

"We all go through that from time to time." Reno put in.

"I… I thought…" She looked from one of them to the next. "She's one of you…"

"She is." Rude nodded.

"Zena is good at her job." Tseng replied.

"But that doesn't mean she's not annoying, yo." Reno picked up his drink. "And here she comes…"

"Oh! Reno, you should come and dance with me…" The blonde woman said, stopping by him.

"I'm not drunk enough for that, yo." He replied simply.

"No fun." She pouted, sitting down.

Aura watched as Zena pouted again and met her eyes, before smiling in a way that Aura assumed meant the woman thought the two of them were sharing a secret. Looking away, Aura tried to keep her face neutral. She had only met this woman not even a half hour ago and she already didn't like her.

"Aura…" It was Tseng who was speaking to her and she looked up at him quickly. "What is it that you do?"

"I… I'm a sort of Apothecary." She said, "I make potions and salves… and … things… It… It's not very impressive… I haven't been doing it all that long and … what I can do is probably very limited, really… It's silly."

"It's important." Reno said, and Aura's eyes flicked to him. "People need that sort of thing." He continued, meeting her gaze. "Especially now."

"Very true." Tseng agreed, "Would I be correct in assuming that you have seen a lot of people recently with Geostigma coming to you…?"

"Yes." Aura nodded, "I can't help them…"

Tseng was nodding slowly. "Is that how you met Elena?"

"Uh… Yeah…"

"It was." Elena cut in. "I was looking for something new for… Uhm.. I had…"

"Headahces, wasn't it?" Aura glanced at Elena.

"Yeah."

"I have this sort of… cream…" Aura said, "You just put a bit on… and it alleviates pain. It works both for headaches and some other pain…"

"Sounds useful." Rude commented. "Maybe we should think about getting some…"

"You do know I have painkillers…" Zena said, raising an eyebrow. "Perfectly effective medicine…"

"There is more than one way to do something." Rude replied easily.

"My way is perfectly effective."

"Relax Zena." Tseng put in, "Nobody is disputing that."

"Well, fine." Zena smirked, looking across the table at Tseng. "After all, you do know the extent of my talents…" Aura watched as the woman smirked again and Tseng raised an eyebrow at her comments.

"You know, I'm pretty tired…" Elena put in with a slight yawn. "Think I may call it a night…"

Aura glanced at her to see the woman push her hair behind her ear. "I agree…" she told her lightly.

"Yeah, alright. I'll see you guys tomorrow." Elena said, getting to her feet and pushing out past Zena. Aura followed her quickly.

"Nice to meet you all." She added, turning to face them before following Elena toward the door.

Outside, Aura drew a deep breath in the cool night air. Hurrying to catch up to Elena who had continued up the street, she reached a hand out to touch the woman's arm.

"Sorry." The blonde said, slowing her pace slightly.

"No… are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"Elena…" she said gently, "We're friends, aren't we?"

The younger woman turned her head to look at her. "Well, I'd like to think so…"

Aura smiled at her, "Then you can talk to me."

With a sigh, Elena nodded. "Okay… It's just… Zena…"

"I figured as much..."

"It's silly."

"Bet it's not, yo."

"Zena has her eye on Tseng…" Elena whined, "I didn't think she'd really be his type… He's so professional and efficient… and I really thought that no matter how much she tried to get at him, she wouldn't stand a chance, but… the other night they actually went on a date… and … and…" She flailed her hands and made a hopeless noise.

"You like Tseng?" Aura asked softly. Elena looked at her, hopelessness in her eyes.

"Pathetic, I know."

"Why is that pathetic?"

"He's… my boss… and he's so much older than me…"

"Well, isn't President Shinra really your boss…"

"Yes, but then Tseng… He's my superior… and he's just… way out of my reach…"

Aura bit her lip, walking silently beside Elena. "Does he know?"

"I have no idea." Elena murmured. "Probably thinks I'm some kid… and then Zena struts in all sexy and … ugh…"

"Well, maybe she won't really go for him…" Aura told her, "She also apparently wants a go at Reno."

"Yeah, I know… She was telling me the other day." Elena replied, rolling her eyes as she looked over at Aura. Aura made a face.

"So, they've never… then…?"

"Not as far as I know." Elena said. "Think Reno finds her annoying."

"He's not the only one, yo."

"What did she say to you earlier?"

Aura made a dismissive noise. "That I was too 'cute' and not a 'real woman'."

"What does that even mean?"

"Beats me." Aura shrugged, turning up the street her house was on.

When she had unlocked her door, Elena said her goodbyes. The younger woman had then hugged her and told her that she was glad that they had met and that they could be friends. Aura had agreed. It was interesting to her. Now she knew the faces and names of people that Reno had worked with. And they would know her. She didn't know how much this would change things, or what it really meant. She didn't know what Reno thought of the situation. She was sure, though, that she would find out.

Sure enough, not long after she had showered and gotten into her pyjamas, there was a knock on her door. When she answered it, Reno walked in and headed straight for her couch. Aura locked the door and followed him. Sitting gently on the end, she looked expectantly at him. Reno was looking at his knees, his fingers tapping them rhythmically, as he drew one deep breath after another. She shifted closer. "… Reno?"

Reno looked up at her quickly and Aura moved closer again, her hand reaching out for him. He took her hand in his and just held it tightly.

"Aur…"

"I'm sorry." She murmured, "You've worked so hard to make sure they didn't know about me."

"It wasn't your fault." He replied.

Aura squeezed his hand. "But now it was all for nothing… What will happen?"

Reno looked at her, his eyes flicking back and forth across her face. "Things are different now…" He told her softly, "ShinRa is… well… there are less of us… The dynamic is different… I'm not sure…"

"I'm sorry…" She watched him, not knowing what else to say. Reno pulled her closer and wrapped an arm around her.

"Honestly, Aur…" He said gently, "I'm thinking now that the danger isn't what it used to be." He stroked her hair softly, "If Tseng and the others think you're Elena's friend… then that will work for us… But, really, with things in Edge as they are, and with people turning on ShinRa… You don't really want to be seen with a bunch of Turks all that often." He ran his fingers through her hair, "7th Heaven is generally pretty alright. We go there a lot and nobody gives us trouble… but if people see you with us… You could get hurt." Aura leaned against him and he continued to comb her hair with his fingers. "Did you have fun, though?"

"I like Elena." She replied quietly.

"Yeah, Laney is pretty good."

"I can be friends with her, can't I?"

"…Mmm." He murmured, "As long as she makes sure never to come here in uniform and is careful not to be noticed…"

"You know Zena wants you…?"

"Who wouldn't, yo?" She heard the smile in his voice and glanced up at him.

"She's… gross…" she frowned.

"She's annoying… and kind of a tramp…" He agreed, "But she's a good doctor."

"Are you … into her…?"

Reno snorted. "No, yo."

Aura nodded, a little placated by that. She didn't like that she had been rather irritated since Zena had told her she had an interest in Reno, but knowing that he wasn't interested in her made Aura feel better. Not that she thought he hadn't had women like that before. She was sure he got lots of attention from all kinds of women. Smart, attractive, successful women; there had to be loads of them at ShinRa. Undoubtedly there had been a few of those he'd been with. She had considered it from time to time. He had never talked about it, at least, not to her. She wasn't stupid, though. Reno had always gotten attention like that. Mostly, she tried not to think about it. It was what it was. Zena was different, though. Aura didn't like her.