Chapter Four: Yoru Kiriganai
The day was bright; clouds like balls of cotton fluttered around in the sky, and down below silver hair gleamed like polished metal in the suns light. Yoru was getting ready to play tag with Denzel, Marlene and some other children. "What? How could you just decide I'm it?" Yoru pouted her arms crossed. "Because you started late in the game, you have to be it!" Denzel snickered running as Yoru was about to grab him to make him it. "Fine, but don't think I'll go easy on you then!" she shouted chasing after him and the other children who giggled in delight.
It had been two weeks since Yoru began to live with Denzel, Marlene, Tiffa, and Cloud. She couldn't tell whether cloud was still upset from her kidnapping the two children, or if he was just very busy-all the time. It didn't matter for the moment though, if she thought to long on the subject it would begin to affect he play time with Marlene and Denzel, and that would only upset them that she was upset.
A small blue-green truck with one main wheel and two back wheels rolled up to the Seventh Heaven bar. It wasn't unusual for vehicles to stop in front of the bar to rent the place out for the evening, or try to get an early start on their pathetic night of drinking so it didn't grab Yoru's attention. What did grab her attention is that Denzel and Marlene had stopped their play to stare at the Vehicle with astonished eyes.
Yoru stopped at Marlene's side to watch the large man inside shift around as if looking for something. "Marlene, Denzel who's that in the truck?" she didn't take her eyes off him as he continued to dig around in the passenger seat. "That's one of Tifa and Cloud's friends," Denzel was grinning hugely at the truck as the door was forced open by the man inside. Marlene squealed with delight running towards him "and he's Marlene's dad!" Denzel finished, also running towards him.
The man was very tall, built like a tank with his left arm missing, replaced by a Gatling gun of sorts. Though the man looked nothing like Marlene, with his dark skin differing from her porcelain colored skin, he acted exactly how any good father would greet their little girl after coming home from a long trip.
He listened to Marlene and Denzel chatter for a little bit smiling at them both like a father should. When he looked up, meeting Yoru's eyes, she could tell that he didn't like her already so she glanced away holding her arm self-consciously and stayed her distance. "Yoru come over and meet my daddy!" Marlene cried waving to her. Yoru shifted nervously, but strode over to where the three stood, holding her hand out to him.
"I'm Yoru," Denzel elbowed her to relax and smiled when she looked at him. "I'm Yoru, Tiffa and Cloud gave me the name Kiriganai after they sort of woke me up. I hope that any information on Sephiroth, or the children of Jenova I have will be useful to Avalanche." The man stood giving a scrutinizing look to Yoru. "I'm Barret; you're what Cloud meant when he said he'd picked up a stray cat." Barret chuckled shaking Yoru's hand with a smirk. "Any information you have for us that we don't already know will be more then helpful, the rest of the New Avalanche group will be here soon, so why don't you take Marlene and Denzel inside while I go and send out word of the meeting time?" Yoru nodded giving a weak smile, she knew there's no way he trusted her, or would trust her anytime soon. But being given something helpful to do was more then her "Brothers" gave her.
Yoru sat in the slowly darkening bar sipping lemon flavored soda while Marlene talked joyfully about her father with Denzel. It was an understatement to say that Yoru was nervous; her greatest concern was that the group would judge her for her past alignment with Sephiroth and the children of Jenova. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Tiffa placed her hand over Yoru's and asked kindly if she wanted a re-fill, which she accepted.
"Yoru, can I ask you something?" Yoru looked up at Tifa who was re-filling her glass with lemon soda. "What is it Tifa?" Tifa set the glass down in front of Yoru with a weak smile. "You drink a lot of soda when you're nervous, don't you?" Yoru looked down as if being scolded and nodding "Yes, a friend, Zack got me to start drinking soda instead of biting my thumb when I was nervous because I started getting sores on them." Tifa gave another weak smile to Yoru. "You knew Zack too?" Yoru looked at Tifa surprised and nodded. "Did Cloud tell you about him?" Tifa remained silent for a moment before nodding "You could say that." She leaned back against the shelf holding many different types of liquor, and neither spoke for a long time, as if mentally conversing about their experiences with meeting Zack.
It was dark when the first member of New Avalanche arrived. He was a tall pale man, black hair flowing over and through a red cloth used to hold his hair out of his face, though not doing a very good job. He was clad in black leather with a red cloak, on his right arm was a clawed glove, and wrapped around his waste was a red-brown gun holster belt, a slick black and silver gun slept inside. He was, to say the least, a very beautiful person.
He took a seat at the bar next to Yoru, and though he didn't say anything to her, he glared quizzically at her. Tifa walked over to him, rubbing a glass with a white dishcloth. "Good evening Vincent, You're the first to arrive." He grunted and held out a bill for her. "Right then, the usual." She set down the dishcloth and poured a deep beautifully colored red wine into the glass she was just cleaning. "Vincent, this is a friend of ours. Her name is Yoru Kiriganai; she just woke up, sort of." Tifa laughed nervously at the look Vincent gave her when she said Yoru had just woken up.
Vincent turned to her nonetheless and gave her a brief nod "Vincent Valentine." He stated taking the glass from Tifa and sipping it. "I am Yoru Kiriganai. It's nice to meet you." She stumbled over her words under Vincent's deep red eyes. The silence in the bar didn't get a chance to settle in as a girl with chin length black hair followed by a red cat with a black and white cat plush riding on its back strode in.
"Hold on their lassie! You might trip over something like you did this morning!" The girl turned to the plush and the red cat. "Shut up Caitsith!" The plush, to Yoru's surprise, crossed its arms grunting in displeasure. The girl turned back to Tiffa taking a seat next to Vincent. "Good evening Tifa! Cloud said he'd be late, so I called Cid and asked if he'd be late too, but he doesn't know. How could some one not know if their going to be late a half hour to the meeting time?" She groaned showing that she was not happy with this fact. "I don't know why they can't show up on time!" Tifa giggled at her before glancing towards Yoru trying to direct the hyper adolescent's attention away from her self. "Oh! You're new aren't you? I'm Yuffie Kisaragi!" She gave a slight bow to her and tugged on Vincent's sleeve. "Hey Vincent will you switch seats with me?" Vincent let out an exasperated sigh but moved without another words from Yuffie.
It was an understatement to say that Yoru and Yuffie where exact opposites, and even considering them being friends is a one-in-a-million chance. But the moment they began to talk and get to know each other, it was like they had been the closest of friends since childhood. "Before we continue Yuffie," Yoru began, becoming slightly self-conscious "I have to tell you something that is important to tell the group before you accept me into New Avalanche." Yuffie set her drink down and smiled gently at Yoru. "What ever it is, I'm sure that it doesn't matter now, if Tifa and Cloud trust you, then there's no reason for me to worry. You can tell me when everyone's here so you don't have to repeat yourself." Yoru smiled, relaxed by what Yuffie had said.
"You don't know how much of a relief it is to hear that Yuffie!" Yoru leaned over hugging Yuffie, who was now very giddy having gained a new friend, and returned the hug. "Oh my god, do you know what we have to do?" Yuffie suddenly yelled throwing her arms into the air. "What's that?" Yoru said taking a half-melted cube of ice and sucking on it. "We have to have a girl's day out, you, Tiffa, Marlene, and me!" Marlene squealed obviously happy with the decision and Tiffa laughed patting Yoru's back when she swallowed the ice cube making her cough roughly. "I'm sorry Yoru, are you alright?" Yuffie looked at Yoru with concern. "Yeah I'm fine, it was just so sudden!" Yuffie smiled weakly. "So you don't wanna go?"
Yoru shook her head showing that wasn't the case. "No I'd love to go!" Yuffie threw her arms up cheering again, and fell backwards into Vincent, who bumped his head on the door that had just opened revealing a tall man, probably in his forties, his blond hair was graying, and the stubble on his face showed he didn't much care for what other people thought of his appearance. To Yoru though, it looked good on him, made him look like a father.
"Oh my god in heaven." The man walked swiftly to Yoru taking her face in his large, warm hands, and examining her face like some one who found something valuable in a bargain bin. "What'cha doin' with Yoru, Cid?" Yuffie hissed, ready to swat Cid's hands away. "I thought you'd died. You've grown up so much Mily." Yoru leaned into his touch, Cid's rough hands soothing some how. "My name isn't Mily, its Yoru."
Cid seemed to ignore her comment for a moment before finally pulling his hand back. "Of course it's not." Yuffie and Vincent looked on with confusion as Cid took a seat at the far end of the bar and ordered a glass of strong liquor. "Yoru, why did Cid call you Mily?" Yoru turned to Yuffie and shrugged "I honestly don't know."