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8. Naifu – Pickpocket
"S'all your fault."
"My fault?"
"Yeah. If you hadn't invented the stupid things in the first place –"
"Hey, kid, I didn't ask you steal one. I especially didn't ask you to fall on your ass, let it roll outta your pocket, and watch it light itself on a discarded cigarette."
"Do you know how much paperwork I have to fill in now? I hate paperwork!"
"You hate everything."
"Do not! Just paperwork. And your stupid cherry bombs." Naifu folded her arms. "And being left in Tseng's office like some naughty little kid sent to see the principal."
Legend snorted. "This is damn humiliating. I can't believe a pipsqueak like you lifted one of my bombs without me noticing. You couldn't be more careful where you drop stuff? You damn near killed your partner and half a block of slums. That should've got way more than the 'whoops' you said at the scene."
"How do you know about that?" She eyes him warily. "You weren't there. Were you?"
"News travels fast. Bad news especially, but bizarre bad news is light-speed." Legend still hadn't stopped scowling. His arms had to be cramping, being folded so tight like that. "Damn humiliating," he reiterated.
Naifu waited for a few moments before saying, "Impressive though, right?"
Legend didn't reply.
"Aw, c'mon. You have to admit, it was pretty good how I got it away from you without you noticing."
"What were you planning to do with it afterwards?"
"Um …" Actually, the challenge had been the theft itself, she'd forgotten she had it in her top pocket, which was how she'd gotten into this mess after tripping over while on patrol with Rod.
Rod, who had come away from the scene with three broken ribs, a fractured wrist, several gashes and a very strange expression on his face. Since Naifu had been knocked unconscious she wasn't sure what had happened to make him look that way. Something told her it hadn't just been the fireworks, but whatever it was, Rod wasn't telling. Instead he'd withdrawn into himself, leaving her to take the flack without his support. Legend had been dragged in when it emerged where the tiny explosive with the big boom had come from.
He stared at her now, his one good eye boring into her with the force of a pneumatic drill. "You're a little punk, you know that?" He sighed and shook his head, as if being that mad drained him of all energy. "An impressive punk, but still a punk, and a pain in my ass."
Naifu smiled as the tension finally broke. Then her expression switched to alarm as Tseng came in and the entire situation was put on hold at the reason for his lateness. Suddenly a lot of thing became less important, as Youhei, whom he'd sent as reconnaissance for the Nibelheim mission, sent back word that things had suddenly gone to hell in a big way.
"Sephiroth's dead?" Naifu echoed in disbelief.
Legend whistled, but his face had paled. He'd served with Sephiroth during the Wutai war. He knew exactly how tough the guy was. Anything that could take out the Silver General was even tougher than that, which was a scary thought on so many different levels. "Well … fuck."
Since Tseng would never say it, Naifu did. "You said it, buster."