Chapter 19

Aura waited until Cadan had disappeared around the end of her street. Closing the curtain, she turned and hurried to get her coat. She had been right. He had talked. Tomorrow, she would have to take what she had learned to Rufus Shinra. Right now, she had to go and check on Reno. She felt awful that she had sent him away, even more so while he was injured. The look on his face when she'd told him to go cut at her. She would go over to his place now, and make sure that he was taking care of himself. She could even tell him what she had learned, and maybe discuss what they might do about it.

Buttoning her coat against the chilly night air, Aura headed into the dark. She hadn't been to Reno's apartment before, although she had walked past out of curiosity. Walking through the gate, she headed up the stair that led to his door. Knocking, she twisted her hands as she waited. It was all dark, and she wondered vaguely if he'd gone to bed already. She knocked again and waited. After a few minutes, she sighed. Either he wasn't answering the door, or he wasn't home. Biting her lip, Aura backed away from the door. Turning, she headed back down the stairs and out on the street once more.

What if he'd been more injured than she had realised? What if he'd had to go looking for help somewhere else? She shouldn't have sent him away. She was halfway home when she had a thought. 7th Heaven. Turning down the next street, she headed for the bar. She would find him, and check that he was alright. She would also apologise for telling him to leave the way she had.

When she arrived at 7th Heaven, it was to find the place crowded and noisy. Squeezing her way through the dancing bodies, she headed toward the table that the Turks usually claimed. She found Rude and Elena there.

"Hi…" Elena looked up and Aura read the initial surprise on her face.

"Hey," She replied, "Is Reno here?" she glanced around, looking for that red hair, "He wasn't at home…"

"Uh… Yeah…" Elena nodded, her eyes looking past Aura toward the dancing crowd. "Last I saw he headed out there…"

"Was he okay?" she asked, "He was hurt…"

"He was… angry…" Elena replied, glancing at Rude for a second. The big man nodded. Aura bit her lip.

"Oh."

"I'm sure it's not that bad…" The blonde woman told her. Aura shrugged.

"I'll find him…" she murmured, turning away.

Aura had circled the room three times without luck. Finally, she stood by the bar, exasperated, and wondering if he'd gone home and she'd somehow missed him. She was just about to give up when she spotted his jacket hanging on a door. Tilting her head, she headed for it.

"Aura, don't!" Just as she pushed the door further open, she heard Tifa call out to her, but she'd already stepped inside.

Aura froze, the blood draining from her face. She couldn't move. She watched, unable to breathe, as Reno fucked Zena against the wall. The woman's legs were wrapped tightly around his waist as she cried out with each thrust, though her cries were muffled by the hand he held over her mouth. Reno's own sounds echoed around the room, and Aura shook.

Elena frowned when Tifa started gesturing wildly at her from across the pub. After a moment she got the hint and hurried toward where the woman was gesturing. She stepped into the room just as Aura spun to face her, her face practically green. Looking over Aura's shoulder, Elena felt her jaw drop as she spotted Reno and Zena. Before she could even move or speak, Aura had pushed past her and taken off through the crowd. Spinning, Elena hurried after her. She hit the door maybe three seconds after Aura did, but when she got out onto the street, there was no sign of her friend.

"Damn." Elena muttered. The girl was fast. The only other person she had ever really seen that fast was Reno, or Tseng. Running to the end of the street, she looked around and let out a sigh of relief when she spotted Aura not too far away.

"Aura?"

Aura jerked to her feet from where she'd been leaning against a wall, and spun to face her. "Elena." She said, sniffing and wiping her face quickly. "Hey."

Elena shook her head, moving closer. "Aur…"

"No, I'm fine." The girl muttered, raising her hands and backing away. "Really."

Elena just looked at her. Aura's stoic expression lasted about five seconds before a tear rolled down her cheek and she crumbled. Elena took her arm and rubbed her back gently. Aura just cried and Elena continued to rub her back. "Everything's going to be okay…"

"I…don't even know why I'm crying." Aura choked, wiping her face again. "I don't know why."

Elena shook her head again. She thought it was pretty damn obvious. "I'm sorry…"

"No…" Aura stood straighter and wiped her sleeves over her face again, "I shouldn't… I… I should have just… I just need to go home."

"That's probably a good idea."

"I'll see you tomorrow." Aura stumbled back away from her and Elena let her go.

"You will." She nodded.

Aura sniffed once more, pushing her dark hair back from her face. "Thanks…" She said softly and Elena offered a small wave before the girl turned and hurried off down the street alone.

"Sweet Shiva." She muttered, turning around and heading back to 7th Heaven. Reno was an idiot, and she was damn well going to let him know.

Elena returned to the table she had been sharing with Rude to find the big man still watching Tifa from across the room. Sliding back into her seat, Elena picked up her drink from where she'd left it and downed it in one.

"Aura got out of here fast." He said flatly.

"Mmm. Don't really blame her." She replied, turning to glance at the door that lead out the back. At that moment, Reno came out, pulling his jacket back on. Zena followed a moment later, looking rather shaky and unfocused.

"And now it makes sense." Rude commented, Elena just sighed.

Reno strode for their table and pushed his way in beside Elena before reaching across the table and picking up his partner's drink. Elena watched as he drank half of it, and then returned it to Rude who said nothing.

"Thirsty?" Elena asked drily.

"Yeah, a bit."

"You're an idiot." She said, her tone low. Reno looked at her, raising an eyebrow.

"You think so?" he asked, "I mean, you should probably be thankful that I was keeping Zena busy and away from Tseng, so if you think about it…"

Elena cut him off. "Aura saw you."

Reno froze. "…what?" He asked. Elena just nodded at him. "What do you mean?"

"She came looking for you. She wanted to talk to you." She waved a hand in the direction of the back room, "… She found you."

"No…" He said, shaking his head.

"Yes." Elena frowned at him, "How could you?" She asked, "I mean, first of all, Zena… but… here? It's like you make one bad decision after another and string them together for fun…"

Reno was shaking his head as he got to his feet. "Always have." He snapped, "Why stop fucking up now?"

Before he'd even made the decision, Reno was throwing the door open and hurrying out into the night. Then he was running. Only minutes later he was standing on Aura's doorstep, pounding on the door. At first he thought that she wasn't going to answer it, but then he heard the click and she pulled it partially open.

"Aura…" he began, but she just looked at him silently. He glanced around, trying to determine if anybody was nearby. "Can I come in?" he asked, when she made no move to let him enter. He watched her as, reluctantly, she stepped aside. He walked in and she closed the door softly behind him. Reno then turned to face her, but Aura turned away and went to sit on the couch, not looking at him. He watched her sit still, her eyes fixed on the table before her, not moving. "Aura…"

She shifted, but still didn't look at him.

"Elena told me you were at 7th Heaven…" He moved toward her, but just as he was about to reach her, she moved away, picking up a cushion and placing it on her lap between them. "Why were you there?" She still didn't speak. He resisted a sigh as he sat down. "… Where's Cadan?"

"I sent him home."

He looked at her. Her eyes were still on the table. "Oh?"

"I found out what I was after." She continued, her voice emotionless, "Then I sent him away."

"I thought…"

She looked at him then, her eyes a startling green. "You thought I prioritised him over you." He didn't know what to say. "I didn't." She said, "I… made the mistake of prioritising finding out information… I was close… I'm sorry."

"Then you sent him away…?"

"Yes."

"Don't imagine he liked that too much…"

She looked at him again, and Reno wondered just what had happened. "He left." She told him.

There was silence for a few moments before he spoke again. "What were you doing at 7Th Heaven?"

"You weren't at home." She replied, "I went to check on you." Reno's stomach twisted. "Figured you'd be at 7th Heaven."

He let out a deep breath. "I'm sorry that you saw that…"

Aura gave an indifferent shrug and fiddled with the corner of the cushion on her lap. "Not my business."

"Aura…"

"It's not." She said, "You can screw whoever you want."

"I don't." He muttered, running a hand over his face, "want her."

Aura gave another shrug , not looking at him. He watched her fiddle with the cushion for several minutes before she looked up reluctantly, "Do you really not want her?" she asked, her voice barely audible.

"Really." He replied, "You asked me that when you first met her."

"I remember."

"I told you then I wasn't interested."

"Things change."

"Not this."

"Guess I was a little confused." She muttered, "What with the fact that I walked in on you fucking her in a bar…"

Reno sighed, "That didn't mean anything."

"Not to you."

Reno frowned, looking at her avoid his gaze. Was she talking about herself or Zena? "I just needed to… vent…"

"So you chose her?"

He gave a shrug of his own this time. "She was there."

"So literally anyone would do…?"

Reno closed his eyes, not knowing how to explain it. "Look, Aur… I was hurt and I was angry… I wasn't exactly making rational decisions… and I'm sorry." He was. He didn't know what for. He supposed he was sorry that he'd actually touched Zena when she did annoy him so much. He was sorry that he would have to deal with her on a new level now. He was sorry that he'd made such a rash decision without having the real facts. He was sorry that Aura had seen that, especially with the way that he'd been. He was mostly sorry that she seemed to be so upset by it, though he didn't know why. "Aur… are you going to think differently of me…?" He asked uncertainly, "I'm not usually that… rough…" He wasn't. Especially when he had any kind of emotional connection.

Aura's green eyes flicked back to him and she blinked several times, regarding him silently. He waited for an answer, his eyes locked on hers. "I didn't think you would be." She said softly. He wanted to touch her, but twisted his hands in his lap, resisting the urge. He had been excessively harsh with Zena, and he hadn't realised until now, but that had been what had worried him since Elena had said that Aura had seen him. He had been afraid that she had seen that violent side of him and that it would colour her opinion of him. She had seen him covered in blood and she knew that he'd killed people, but to see him that way during sex; that was something different. Once he had been able to tell her that he had no interest in Zena, that had been his main concern. "It won't change my opinion of you, Reno." She said gently, "I know you wouldn't hurt me."

"Of course I wouldn't." he replied, trying desperately to not make comparisons between his behaviour with Zena and how he might be with Aura. Rude wasn't right, damn it. He wasn't. He would hold that stance even through the distinct differences he could see in his mind. The finger shaped bruises Zena would no doubt be sporting tomorrow and the careful touches that would belong to Aura. He swallowed thickly, his eyes moving back to hers which were now watching him thoughtfully. Fuck.

"You know that I have no interest in Cadan, right?"

Reno swallowed, "Okay…" Aura's eyes narrowed.

"You really thought I did?"

"Wasn't that what you were trying to make it look like?"

"Not to you!"

"Okay." He murmured, running a hand through his hair.

"I was trying to get information." She said, before adding softly "I would never prefer his company to yours…"

Reno felt stupid for his unfounded jealousy now, and now he realised that that was exactly what it had been. "I'm so dumb." He breathed.

"Only sometimes, yo."

He gave a wry smile, feeling his exhaustion catch up with him. "Are we okay?" he asked tiredly.

"Always."

He nodded, stretching a little and wincing when his tight muscles pulled. "I should go home."

"You should go and have a cold bath." She told him, "And put that cream I gave you on."

Reno got stiffly to his feet. He was beginning to ache all over. "Surely will." He headed for the door and she followed him.

"Reno?"

"Yeah?" he turned back to look at her. She was twisting her hands in what looked like a painful way.

"You don't like Zena… but, do you like women like her?"

Women like her? Reno was confused for a moment. He pictured Zena, flicking her curly blonde hair everywhere, the tight provocative clothing she had been wearing tonight that had been all too easy to get off. Then, he looked at Aura standing before him in her knee-length dress and knitted cardigan. "No, Aur." He said softly, "I don't like woman like Zena."

She nodded, glancing up at him. He wanted to hug her, but at the same time did not exactly like the idea of touching her with Zena still all over him. "I'll see you tomorrow." He told her, pulling the door open.

"Goodnight."

Reno stepped into the night, cursing himself in his head. Rude was right. He wanted her. What the fuck? When had that happened? What was wrong with him? It was a betrayal. That's what it was. They were practically siblings. It was wrong. That wasn't the kind of relationship they'd ever had. Okay, so they weren't anything like siblings, but they had still never had a relationship anything like where his mind was going right now. "Fuck."

Author's Note
Thanks to anyone actually reading this. I hope you're enjoying it.