Jessie turned the key within the rusty lock on the stained door to Seventh Heaven, and a familiar, protesting squeak came from within the old scrappy metal. She looked about one last time before pulling out the key and opening the door, quickly entering and relocking the entrance. The rich smell of Tifa's cooking replaced the stale, metallic funk that permeated the air of the sector, reminding Jesse that it was almost time for the bar to open.

Biggs would be here soon.

Tifa ran a tight ship in her bar. There were the regulars, who usually came in after work for cheap beer and a cheap but tasty meal that the pugilist was somehow able to create with what could be found in the markets dotting the slums. Regulars could generally be trusted not to cause problems, and Biggs only ever had to kindly assist them out the door if they drank a little too much. Most of the time.

Then there were visitors, who might be in the slums for any myriad of reasons that neither she nor Tifa cared to know about in most cases. Some were random dregs; others were most assuredly Shinra spies that occasionally came down from the upper city to listen for any words of active rebellion. They shouldn't have bothered. Any talk of that in the bar was after hours or in the living area carved from the hard ground beneath the bar.

Visitors could get touchy, or violent, and when that happened everyone remembered very quickly that Tifa wasn't a helpless little lady. The last one that tried anything physical had rubbed Tifa's leg with a grimy hand, and had stumbled out of the bar with a broken jaw courtesy of the young woman's martial arts training.

Jessie felt so fortunate that Tifa would teach her when she had some time.

"Welcome back, Jessie. Find any useful scrap?" Tifa turned her head to look at her as she swirled a murky yellow fluid that boiled in the pot on the stovetop. There was a smaller pot steaming with a creamier concoction in it, Jessie noticed as she came behind the bar.

The light brown haired woman gently gave her side pouch a shake. "I found some screws and nails, some copper wire, and a motherboard I'm going to try to recycle," she said as she glanced at the pouch and then Tifa. The bartender had that always warm smile on her face, but Jessie sensed something had happened while she was gone; Tifa's brows were wrinkled ever so slightly.

Jessie pursed her lips and gave Tifa a piercing look. "Is everything alright?"

Tifa didn't answer right away. She turned to stir the broth simmering in the pot, then ladeled some into the smaller pot next to it. "Yeah." She looked back at Jessie while she stirred what looked like jūk, a popular dish imported from Wutai after the war. Cheap and easy to make, and good for people recovering from illness. It wasn't out of place in the bar, as Tifa very occasionally sold it as a simple special the few days before locals would be paid, but it wasn't the right week, and it was just a small pot.

"That's not our dinner, is it?" Jessie pointed at the small pot. She wondered if perhaps some goons had demanded protection money from the bar and Barret hadn't been around to stop it.

Tifa shook her head and huffed a small laugh. "No, of course not." She looked down, her hand still twirling the spoon sticking out of the thick rice gruel. "Um, I...I found a friend of mine at the train station." Her deep ruby eyes looked back up at Jessie, and she tucked a strand of her dark hair behind her ear. "He looked like he wasn't doing too well, so I brought him here to recover."

"Oh." Jessie looked behind her at the pinball machine. There was a strange man under there. "A friend?" She turned her head back, a quizzical look on her face.

The bartender hesitantly nodded before taking a white bowl from a cabinet above her head, wrapping a dish towel around the bottom, and filling it with some of the jūk. Jessie noticed there was a handful of barley in the pale yellow gruel as Tifa handed it to her with a ceramic spoon jutting out of it. Jessie looked from the bowl to Tifa, the look on her face belying nervousness. "I haven't seen him in years, you see. And now that we finally meet again, he doesn't look too good."

She let out a sigh and tensed her jaw, then looked Jessie in her soft brown eyes. "Could you feed him this when he wakes up? I would do it, but the bar is going to open soon and we can't miss any income."

Jessie nodded. He was Tifa's friend, so he would probably be alright. "What's his name?"

"Um, Cloud."

"Cloud, okay. I'll keep watch downstairs!" Jessie turned and walked towards the pinball machine, bowl in hand. She pressed the hidden button that worked the elevator, and she began to sink down. She looked back at Tifa as her eyes came close to level with the scrap wood floor of the bar.

"Tell me if you need anything!" Tifa called.

"Okay!"

Jessie made it the rest of the way down, then flipped the switch to bring the machine back up. She would be fine, she figured. It wasn't like they ran the elevator when the bar was open, anyway. Usually Marlene stayed down here during business hours with her, and Barret would either watch the bar or check the food stores on the upper floor with Wedge for any pests or to track what they were low on. The liquors were stored in a room behind the bar, and the two would check those last.

She made her way towards the guest bedroom she had helped set up a month and a half ago with Tifa. Barret was standing there in the hall with his arms crossed, blocking her view of the stranger. He was watching the bedridden man hawkishly. Jessie cleared her throat, and Barret looked down at her, his eyes going from Jessie, to the bowl, then back at her again.

He put his hand and gun to his hips. Jessie glared at the noisy piece of heavy metal; was he thinking he would need it? "Tifa sent yeh down to feed this pasty lil' twig?"

Her eyes traveled back to Barret's. "Yeah. The bar's opening up soon, after all."

Barret grunted. "You just watch'em. He might look weak, but his ass was carryin' that big kitchen knife." He motioned with his hand towards the living area. Jessie took a look behind her and noticed a giant, wide sword leaning against the wall. "You still got that strong taser?"

Jessie brought a hand to her side to feel the cool, ribbed plastic of her taser handle. She'd made it herself. "Yeah," she mumbled as she continued to study the sword from across the way.

She felt his large, heavy hand on her fabric shoulder pad. "You jes' call up if he starts anything, you got me? And keep Marlene away from him, too."

Her head turned and she looked up at him again, her head tilted and brows creased. "So...what's wrong with him?" Barret was protective, but he was acting like there were a thousand red flags planted on this invalid she had yet to see.

Barret shrugged. "He looks like shit, I'll give Tifa that," he grumbled. "She said he's ex-Soldier. Now, I don't trust his ass. He worked for Shinra, and that's all I need to know about him." His face grew thoughtful, while still holding a stern eye. "Mebbe he's different, like Tifa said. I'll give'em the benefit of the doubt, for now."

Jessie's eyes widened ever so much. An ex-Soldier? Soldiers were rare, and an ex-Soldier was almost unheard of, especially in the slums. Her curiosity was piqued. "I'm sure I can handle both him and Marlene," she said confidently.

He studied her with a tense jaw, then nodded slowly after a few moments. "Awright. Remember, keep Marlene away."

"Alright...Is she taking her nap?"

"Yeah. Marlene should be asleep for a few hours." He moved past Jessie and towards the elevator, flipping the switch before stepping to the side as gears creaked and metal chains grinded. She needed to oil those, she thought. "I'll be checkin' our rice and wheat reserves on the second floor once Wedge gets his ass back here."

The pinball machine returned and Barret walked onto the wood floor, the metal platform of the elevator holding it through bolts in the game machine's legs. He flipped the switch and up he went, leaving Jessie alone in the white light of the fluorescent bulbs hanging from the ceiling of the living area and the hall.

She looked at the bowl in her hand and remembered that she could finally get a good look at this stranger Tifa dragged into the bar. With one last glance at the giant sword she re-entered the hall and peeked into the tiny guest room to get a look at this man.

The room had a small cracked lamp on a bedside table, the lampshade thin and tan. It gave the light a dingy color; she was thankful that one of the fluorescent lights was hanging right outside the room. Jessie moved the old wooden stool near the door to the side of the bed and sat down, then placed the steaming bowl of gruel on the splintered top of the wooden end table.

This man, Cloud, was sleeping under the thin blue covers, his arms out and on his sides and his chest rising and lowering steadily. Jessie noted that his pale face was rather sunken in and sallow, though perhaps the tint was from the dull light of the lamp, she reasoned. He looked rather handsome despite his thinness, and she found his shock of blond spikes delightful. They spread about the pillow and framed his face, his bangs going as far as his nose. They looked a little unkempt, so he would perhaps need a haircut when he was well again. His jaw was sprinkled with patchy, dark blond stubble.

She thought he looked particularly youthful, and wondered how old he actually was if he was Tifa's friend. Then she remembered he was ex-Soldier, which meant he had to be at least in his late teens. Jessie studied his arms and frowned. Cloud was scrawny, his muscles without tone; it was as if he hadn't been very active as of late. But Barret had said he had carried that giant sword!

The young hacker bit her lip. An ex-Soldier...What had he done while he was in the military? Had he been part of the slum purges? Had he been sent to assist the Turks with a kidnapping? She had seen a Soldier up close only once, while working for her former boss. His indigo eyes glowed, burning through the dim setting of the richly embellished room he found himself in. She remembered thinking he looked bored after the initial shock and unease had passed.

That man had been quiet, cocky, and disinterested. He had given her a small smile and a wink when he had noticed her stare, and she couldn't help but feel a little flustered by the attention despite knowing what he was. Did superhumans stop being human inside? Maybe she would get her answer when Cloud woke up.

Jessie stayed by him for a while, thinking. He was Tifa's friend, so he was probably a good person despite the career choice. After all, how many people actually knew what they were getting themselves into when they joined Shinra, or someone affiliated with them? He was an ex-Soldier, and a young one at that. Did he just up and quit one day? Cloud could very well be wanted for desertion. She felt she could understand why he would.

Hadn't she done the same with her boss? Up and leave?

"Jessie?"

She turned her head to the side. Marlene was peeking her head out from the doorway, looking at her, then Cloud. Jessie stood up and walked towards the little girl; Barret's word was law when it came to his daughter. She bent down and put a hand on her back. "Marlene, you know your daddy doesn't want you near the stranger."

Marlene fidgeted. "I wanna see him."

Jessie chuckled gently and scooped the little girl up. For just a moment she thought better of it, but then moved her body to the side and revealed Cloud to Marlene. "Look, there he is. But don't tell Daddy I let you see him!"

Marlene leaned towards the sleeping man, soaking in as much of the sight of him as she could. "I wanna talk to him."

"Nuh-uh! Daddy will get mad at me," the technician said as she carried Marlene back to her room. It was much larger than the little guest room Cloud slept in. There were two beds; one was Marlene's and the other Barret's. Occasionally she would sleep with Tifa, who shared her room with Jessie next door.

Jessie strode over to Marlene's bed and placed her on it, then tucked her in. "You gotta finish your nap so you can help me repair things later."

Marlene bit her lip. Jessie knew she was torn between sneaking more peeks at the stranger while he wasn't awake and getting to watch how things are repaired. She made an indecisive moan. Jessie patted the girl's shoulder. "I'm sure you'll get to see him when he's awake."

"Oh! D'you think Daddy'll led me?"

Jessie shrugged and gave Marlene a cheeky smirk. "I don't know, but maybe if you're good he'll let you."

Marlene nodded, then enthusiastically settled into bed. She closed her eyes, and frowned before opening them a few moments later. "I can't get to sleep, Jessie."

"You just got back into bed!"

"Can you read me a story?"

Jessie sighed. "Marlene, I have to be there when Cloud wakes up..."

"Clowd? Aren't they liddle puffs in the sky?" Marlene had seen pictures of the sky in picture books Barret bought for her.

Jessie had a smile grow on her face, but her heart grew puzzled. Was Cloud even his real name? A Soldier named Cloud? "I guess he's named after them." Before Marlene could ask more questions she was unprepared to answer, Jessie pulled a book out of the small space on the lower half of the bed table and cracked it open.

She started reading Marlene a story about a man who was turned into a frog by an evil witch, and how he had to use charm and guile to get his wife to kiss him to break the curse. Marlene loved that story, and she soon fell asleep again. Jessie very carefully put the book away and turned off the lamp before sneaking out of the room.

Again she found herself sitting on the rickety old stool next to a sleeping stranger, and her eyes again traveled to his spiky hair. She wondered if she could get away with touching one. Were they hard? Were they soft? Very slowly she brought a hand close to a nearby spike smooshed into the pillow.

He wrinkled his brow and let out a huff of a grunt, his hands grabbing fistfuls of blanket. Jessie retracted her hand but not without a glancing pass of a finger on Cloud's hair; it was surprisingly soft. Cloud turned his head and stiffly stretched, his body shaking as it pulled muscles and popped joints.

Jessie quickly grabbed the still hot bowl of jūk and placed it in her lap, then stirred it as butterflies fluttered in her stomach. This was it, she was going to talk to an old friend of Tifa's from who-knows-where. She watched him wide eyed, as if he was a baby that had just been given birth to.

Cloud sat up in bed, the springs creaking loudly as he shifted about. He rubbed his face and yawned into his hands before plopping them into his lap with his head down. Jessie couldn't see anything on account of his hair framing his face, and she waited impatiently to see if he, too, held the tell-tale glow of a Soldier. She knew he did, but seeing it was what she wanted.

When he turned to look at her, they didn't seem that bright. It was probably because of the dull lamp two feet away, she reasoned. His eyes were a rich azure, and seemed...confused. They traveled from her, to the doorway, to the bowl in her lap. Then he looked at her again.

Did he lose the ability to speak?

Maybe he was waiting on her to speak. Jessie nodded and smiled a greeting at him. "Hi, I-I'm Jessie..."

"Where's Tifa?" he croaked.

She felt a little taken aback, but Tifa was his friend, not her. He just met her. She swallowed and looked down at the rice gruel she held. "Um, she's working the bar. She wanted me to give you some food when you woke up..."

Cloud didn't say anything back. After a few moments she looked back up. He held a frown on his face and his eyes were almost blank. She cocked her head. "Cloud?"

He jolted out of whatever reverie he was in, and he gave her a hard stare. "Did Tifa give you that name?"

"Well...yeah," she responded with a raised brow. Wouldn't Tifa know his real name?

Cloud grunted, but said nothing else. Jessie felt as confused as he looked. That name? Was Cloud his name? He sounded like it wasn't, or maybe she wasn't supposed to know. His frown returned as she continued to stare at him. "What?" he demanded tersely.

"Oh, I-Sorry." Her eyes drifted downward towards his partially exposed chest. His arm blocked most of his chest, but he looked emaciated. She shook her head lightly and grabbed the spoon in bowl, and scooped up some of the jūk to offer it to him.

His frown deepened. "I'm not eating that."

It was her turn to frown. "Tifa made this for you."

Cloud's eyes widened ever so much, and he looked down at it, then snatched the bowl and spoon from her hands. "O-oh. Well, I can feed myself."

He set his back straight and began eating the gruel. Jessie noticed that while he ignored her, he seemed to be trying to resist devouring the jūk all in one gulp. He would barely blow upon the spoon before placing it into his mouth and swallowing it down.

Cloud finished his bowl quickly, letting out a little sigh as he stared into the empty bowl. Jessie wondered if he would have licked it clean if she wasn't in the room. Almost as if reading her thoughts, he turned his head and looked at her, as if to ask why she was still there.

She bit her lip. She wanted to know him a bit better, despite the rudeness. He never once said thank you, but maybe he was still reeling from whatever ordeal he survived? Her eyes lit up when she remembered there was some juice and soft snacks in the mini-fridge she had set up in the living area. "Are you still hungry?"

He looked hesitant to answer.

Jessie stood up. "It's alright, I'll get you a little something more." She carefully took the bowl from him, getting a look at a hideous scar under his heart. Cloud covered it before she could look more, and scowled.

He really didn't want her looking at that scar. She wondered why. Perhaps he was a little narcissistic?

She quickly placed the bowl on the table and bee-lined for the little fridge, opening it and looking this way and that. Jessie knew electronics and computers and machines, not sick people. But if jūk was anything to go by, she had to get him something thin and watery.

There was some apple juice Tifa made from concentrate, and a few small desserts made from a local couple that used to live in Kalm. Jessie studied one; it was made from milk and most assuredly artificial berry flavors. Real berries were prohibitively expensive on the upper city, and unheard of in the slums unless someone traveled from far away to bring dried ones to their family.

It would have to do.

She snatched one out and returned to the guest room. Cloud's eyes very obviously glowed under his bangs, the weak light of the lamp slightly behind him. Jessie's spine tingled; he looked rather menacing with his head at that angle.

He let out a sniffle and raised a single, blond brow. Her hand came up and he looked at the little dessert. His lips pressed together, as if he was unimpressed, but plucked it from her hand anyway. He peeled off the plastic wrap and grabbed the spoon from the bowl without looking, then began to eat again. He took his time, she noticed.

She also noticed that the jūk bowl was clean of every smear of porridge. Maybe he was just putting up a tough guy act, and he would soften later. Still, she wondered about his name. He acted like she shouldn't know his name. But she was Tifa's friend, too. Shouldn't that count for something? He was a bit of an ass.

Jessie heard the telltale sound of little feet coming closer. Her eyes widened and she huffed. Cloud looked up at her. "If you need anything, just ask! I gotta babysit!"

"I already knew you were babysitting."

"Huh?"

He shrugged dismissively. "You've been hovering over me since I woke up." He looked down and ate another spoonful.

Before he could continue, Jessie scrunched her face up a little. "I actually have a kid to keep watch over, too." She left with a flip of her thick ponytail, and made her way towards Marlene. Yep, this Cloud fellow was definitely an ass.

As Jessie took one final look at Cloud before closing the door to the guest room, she wondered how she could get to know the person Tifa regarded as a friend.