Title: Scars of Friendship
Chapter: 1/??
Comments: First chapter of Scars of Friendship and one that will feel a bit scatty I'm afraid. I apologise for the POV jumping, but there are a lot of fingers in the Shinra Company Pie, and you need to know what's going on with all of them.

Chapter One:

Mako Reactor

"C'mon newbie, follow me!" Barret yelled. Cloud jumped off the train, Buster Sword in hand. He grinned. It was so great to be back in Midgar, back where he belonged and where he'd trained. He followed Barret forward and cursed when two guards in red uniforms appeared.

Cloud frowned at the difficulty he had with the Buster Sword. No matter how hard he tried to swing the sword in moves that he could picture so clearly in his head, his muscles protested and he found himself going wrong. He used slightly too much force and accidentally cut one of the guards in half. Wrinkling up his nose in disgust he dispatched the other with a blast of Fire materia. Looking down at the blade confusedly for a moment before flicking it against the ground to get the blood off and running after AVALANCHE's leader.

AVALANCHE were all waiting together at the main gate to the reactor. Cloud rolled his eyes as he approached. Jessie, a mousey-haired woman who was a computer specialist, was busy hacking into the gate. Beside her, a protective boyfriend called Biggs stood, watching her work. Wedge stood to the other side, looking nervous and glancing around suspiciously. Could they get any more obvious?

"You used to be SOLDIER all right. Not every day you get one to join AVALANCHE!" Biggs said, his voice obnoxiously loud. Cloud grimaced. If any Shinra guards were listening up they'd know who he was now.

"SOLDIER? Aren't they the enemy?" Jessie asked, without looking up from her control panel. "What's he doing with us?"

"He was in SOLDIER. He quit and is one of us now," Biggs said proudly. Cloud allowed himself to smile crookedly. Yeah, something like that.

"What's his name?" Jessie asked, wincing as a spark leapt from the console in front of her.

"I'm Zack Fair! You better not forget it! First Class!"

"...Cloud..." he replied, folding his arms before him. He really didn't like being talked about like he wasn't there.

"Cloud, eh? Funny name if ya ask me," Wedge said, his gaze fixed on Cloud.

"And Wedge is better?" Jessie asked, poking the console before her exasperatedly with a screwdriver.

"My name's-" Biggs began.

"I don't care what your names are. Once the job's over, I'm gone," Cloud interrupted. This was a favour for Tifa. If he was honest with himself, something didn't sit right with him about it. He felt that it was wrong to turn against his employer so much that he would blow up their property... But then, he guessed that if he left SOLDIER eventually he was going to have to fight some Shinra guys, so it was probably better to be active rather than passive.

"Well, ain't that just-" Wedge began but at that moment Cloud caught someone coming out of the corner of his eye and drew his sword. He lowered it again when he saw it was Barret, their leader for the time being.

"The hell y'all doin'!? I thought I told ya never to move in a group?!" Barret shouted. Cloud thought there was some irony to be had here, but decided to stay quiet all the same. Barret continued to give out even more information. "Our target is the North Mako Reactor. We'll meet at the bridge in front of it."

Hm... There's going to be something nasty waiting for us on that bridge... Cloud was a little amused by how amateurish they all were.

He wiped the look off his face when Barret turned around to him. The man regarded him suspiciously, his dark eyes scanning Cloud's face. His gun-arm was transforming between fingers and gun barrels as he thought.

"SOLDIER, eh? Don' trust ya," he said, to Cloud's eternal surprise. "You stickin' with me, ya hear?"

Cloud nodded and at that moment the door to the reactor opened. Jessie looked relieved and got to her feet. She, Biggs and Wedge all ran into the reactor. Barret remained staring at Cloud for a long moment before Cloud made a curtseying gesture of 'after you'. The man snorted and ran into the reactor, leaving Cloud to follow. It wasn't too hard, not with Barret's rather slow pace.

Inside they came to the initial bridge and Cloud frowned slightly. It was all typical to the layout he remembered from somewhere but-

"I'll secure the escape. You concentrate on the mission, Cloud," Wedge said. Cloud scowled, not liking being told what to do by someone who had been so amateur outside. "We're gonna blow this furnace up! This is gonna be something ta see!"

Cloud shook his head and left Wedge to his delusion of grandeur. A lot of people were going to die today. It wasn't right to be so enthusiastic about it, even if you were fanatical about saving the Planet.

The main control rooms were empty, something that surprised Cloud. He had been expecting the place to be swarming with guards. It was almost too easy for them. Jessie was pressing something on the door that was making plenty of 'blips' but not much else. Cloud began to wonder if she was just trying to guess the code.

"Yo! This yer firs' time in a reactor?" Barret asked him as he walked towards them all. Cloud put his hand on his hip.

"No. After all, I worked for Shinra you know," he replied.

"I wasn't sure at first, but you'll make a pretty good Turk. If you were in my own division I'd have definitely made you my partner."

"The Planet's full of mako energy. It's used every day-" Barret was waffling with his nerves. Cloud didn't blame him but he wished the man would stop treating him like an idiot. "-its the Planet's life blood. But Shinra keeps suckin' the blood out with these machines."

Well, that's your theory, anyway...

"I'm not here for a lecture on mako energy. Let's just hurry and get out of here," he said, glancing over at Jessie again. She was nervously tucking her hair behind her ears as she pressed the last button.

"Code deciphered," Biggs announced and Cloud watched the door open. Jessie beamed and turned to smile at him but Cloud ignored her, walking past and into the next room.

The next few codes were a lesson in patience for Cloud. He glanced down at his watch. There was only a certain amount of retardedness he could take in a day, and he was reaching his limit. When it came to the final code and Jessie wavered she stepped forward, leaning around her and clearing the code she'd put in.

Without knowing what he was doing he entered a code he vaguely remembered. The doors opened with a cheery "HELLO!" running across the screen. He stepped around the stunned AVALANCHE members and walked into the lift.

"How did you know the code?" Biggs asked, looking at Cloud with a mix of hero worship and suspicion. Cloud shrugged.

"Employee override code," he said. Jessie stepped into the lift with him pressed the red button, causing the lift to descend. He was aware of everyone's eyes on him.

"Only top personnel are given the override codes..." Jessie said, eyeing him warily. Cloud shrugged.

"I was a First Class SOLDIER," he pointed out. She nodded, but her eyes were still troubled. Biggs put his hand on her shoulder and the two began to confer in whispers that Cloud pretended he couldn't hear. Beside him, Barret was still nervously switching his gun arm on and off.

"Little by little the reactors'll drain all the life. An' tha'll be that," Barret said, almost to himself. Cloud put his hands in his pockets.

"It's not my problem," he replied, keeping his eyes on the door to the lift. If they were going to be attacked, it would be the moment the doors opened.

"The Planet's dyin' an you don' care?!" Barret asked, looking outraged. Cloud was a little amused by it all. Did the man really think he cared for the cause? He'd worked for Shinra after all.

"The only thing I care about is finishing this job before the security and Roboguards come," he replied, not wanting to mention that security should have been here already.

The elevator stopped and Cloud drew his sword. Biggs and Barret looked alarmed but Jessie nodded to him and kept her finger on the close-door button. Cloud made his way to the front and gave her a swift nod. The door opened and Cloud wasn't met with a barrage of bullets. He looked around suspiciously and then lowered his sword.

"It's safe," he announced and stepped out into the more dangerous area of the reactor.

Cloud quickly climbed down the reactor, ignoring the others who stationed themselves randomly through the place, or Barret who hulked down the ladders with the grace of a baboon. He walked across the bridge and stared at the heart of the mako reactor. He'd seen something like this before, though it had been different some how...

"When we blow this place, it ain't gonna be more than a hunk a' junk," Barret said, smiling. Cloud just nodded absently, waiting for the other to place the bomb. When Barret didn't move he looked at him questioningly.

"Cloud, you set the bomb," he said, holding it out. Cloud looked down at Barret's hand and then back up at the man's face.

"Shouldn't you do it?" he said, pointedly. There would be no passing the blame onto him if this whole thing failed. He really didn't want to be responsible for anything that Jessie had rigged up.

"Jus' do it! I gotta watch an' make sure ya don' pull nothin'!" Barret said. Cloud wondered what Barret thought he was going to 'pull'. He certainly didn't intend to do anything ridiculous like pushing Barret into the pool of mako below...

"Watch out! This isn't just a reactor!"

"Wha's wrong?" Barret asked. Cloud shook his head, pushing the bomb to the reactor and setting it ticking. He straightened as the alarm began to ring. He sighed. Just great.

"Heads up! Here they come!" Barret said, sounding exhilarated. Cloud drew his Buster Sword, wishing he felt more confident as the Guard Scorpion landed on the bridge in front of them.

*

Reno stared at his phone. The longer he left it, the worse it would be, he knew. Even so, orders were orders, and that was all he'd been doing. He didn't want to end up like Fair, murdered by a company who thought that he'd outgrown his use. He was just a dog who followed orders, after all.

He glanced down at his bandaged hand. He hadn't allowed them to heal it with Potions or materia. It wasn't right. He deserved the wound. It was almost a love tap for Rufus anyway.

Rufus... He was in Junon, happily pretending to have no part or knowledge of the events of a few weeks before. Reno gritted his teeth. There was evidence in his hand that Rufus had been involved, evidence all over the dirty stained bandages...

He lifted the phone to his ear and pressed dial, taking a deep breath to try to get rid of some of the useless anger he felt.

"This is the voice mail service for Rufus Shinra. Please leave a message after the tone..."

Reno considered hanging up, but instead he closed his eyes and ran his good hand through his hair tiredly.

"I'm sorry, yo."

*

"Barret! We need to get out of here!" Cloud said as the man fired a few more shots into the twitching but definitely immobilised Guard Scorpion. The man didn't appear to hear him. Cloud snarled and whacked the man lightly on the back of the head.

"Barret! We only have ten minutes to evacuate everyone!" he snapped. Barret seemed to come out of Berserker Mode then and turned around and started running towards the exit. Cloud followed him, climbing up the ladders and platforms. He saw Jessie was stuck and sent Barret on ahead, helping her get her leg out from where she'd caught it in the grate. Her smile was bright as she ran on in front of him. He purposefully didn't stare at her ass.

They quickly passed through the rest of the reactor and Cloud glanced down at his watch. They had plenty of time before-

An explosion knocked him off his feet.

*

"Sir! There's been an explosion at Reactor 7!" A panicked attendant said. Reeve looked up from his desk tiredly. It was too late in the day for this kind of crap. He brought up a virtual map of the city on his computer, noting that it was showing complete destruction of Reactor 7 and its surrounding area.

"AVALANCHE?" Reeve asked, looking up at the attendant. The man looked shocked that he couldn't say for sure. Reeve sighed and dismissed him.

They were growing bolder, AVALANCHE, that was for sure. He couldn't say that he didn't sympathise a little though. Seeing Shinra from the inside, it was rotten. He could only imagine what it looked like from outside.

*

"That should keep the Planet going... a little while longer..." Biggs said. Cloud just looked at him. It might have kept the Planet going a little longer, but it hadn't been good for their health.

"I don't know what went wrong..." Jessie said softly. Cloud noticed that she was about to blow another hole in the wall for them to escape from where they were trapped. Cloud swiftly took it off her.

"I'll use a normal grenade, thanks," he said, without looking at her. He reached into his pocket, taking out the grenade and putting it on the ground near the wall that was least likely to have the roof come down on their heads. A small, controlled, explosion later and they were running out into the square.

Immediately the others began to run off in prearranged directions, Wedge still smoking from where he'd got singled by the first bomb. Barret caught his eye.

"We'll talk about money back at th' hideout," he said. Cloud nodded and began to run, opening up and using his mako enhanced muscles to outrun all the others. He loved the feeling of speed, the tirelessness of his body... He eventually got far enough away that he could slow down.

It was a posher area of the slums, although still pretty rough. There was graffiti and an over-turned car near the fountain. Gangs of street kids were roaming, eyeing him up to see whether or not they could pick his pocket. Once glance from him sent them scattering the word 'SOLDIER' on their lips. As they ran they knocked over a woman with a flower basket. She attempted to pick up her flowers.

Cloud walked towards her. She was pretty, in a delicate way. Her hair was a warm chestnut and it ran down her back in a long, thick plait, apart from two curls that hung by the side of her face in perfect ringlets. She dressed modestly for a slum girl, although her clothes did show evidence of wear and tear and were heavily repaired.

She finally turned her face up towards him when his boots came into her line of sight. Green eyes widened upon seeing him-

Green eyes... So familiar...

-and then she seemed to wipe her expression, standing up and brushing off her clothes.

"Do I know you?" Cloud heard himself asking. The woman smiled at him.

"I helped you a little when you first came to Midgar..." she said. Cloud frowned. He was a little fuzzy on the details and Tifa was always reluctant to talk about it. He supposed he could know her from then.

"What happened?" she asked. Cloud blinked.

"Nothing..." he said automatically, then realised that she was definitely going to remember seeing him if she was questioned by Shinra... He needed to sweeten her up a little.

"D-Don't see many flowers around here...?" he said. She smiled at him looked down at the flowers in her basket.

"No... You used to see them a lot though," she said. Cloud wasn't sure he got what she meant. "Would you like one to take with you? They're only one gil," she said. Cloud nodded and held out his hand for one. She lightly passed one over to him.

"Thank you," she said and for some reason her eyes filled with tears. She turned and ran away. Cloud was confused but decided not to chase after her. He had a train to catch after all.

*

Herta looked up at the night sky. There was a strong sea breeze that had blown away the smog today. The sound of the city was behind her and the sound of the sea in front.

She felt free, even though there was a heavy sadness weighing in her gut.

"Herta, you'll catch a cold out here without a coat."

She turned to see Rufus Shinra. He was holding out his own coat for her. She slipped into it, noticing it was still warm from his body. Rufus was such a good boy. Apparently, when in his coma, he'd been able to hear Herta's voice and had been grateful to her. She noticed that, now he was well enough to be up and about without support, that he sought her out more often than not to relax.

"Today, my Cloud would have been twenty-five," she said, feeling old and tired. "I was wondering what he would have been doing now..."

Rufus' arm wrapped around her shoulder. He looked troubled. "Herta, you should go back inside with Annie," he said. She sighed and looked up at him. So many features inherited from his mother, but still so much of his father in him. His father from when he was younger, of course.

"How old are you, Rufus?" Herta asked. He didn't seem to mind the question, though he looked a little wary.

"Twenty-seven," he replied.

"That would make Reno thirty, yes?" she asked. Rufus looked slightly surprised before his eyes narrowed.

"And what has that Turk got to do with anything?" he asked. Herta patted his cheek, smiling.

"I listened to your voice mail," she replied. Rufus looked alarmed causing her to laugh.

"Don't worry, dear, I didn't hear anything too private. I just don't want you to watch your chances pass by. Reno is in a dangerous job. One day, you'll turn around and he won't be there for you anymore," she said. No, there was one thing that she consoled herself with. Cloud had died in love with someone and happy. Even if that person had eventually killed him, she was certain that Cloud would never wish away those moments of happiness. A foolhardy love, but love all the same.

"Reno Sinclair drugged me and carried out various heinous missions for that inept bastard who calls himself my father," Rufus said disdainfully. Herta wrinkled up her nose. Whatever Rupert Shinra had done to his son to make him think like this must have been terrible. It wasn't the man she had known.

"Reno Sinclair got over his pride and apologised to you," Herta reminded him. Rufus shook his head, looking vaguely amused despite himself.

"Get inside, Herta. I'm sure we can continue to discuss my love life in the warm," he said. She allowed herself to be steered inside, looking up at the man she had hoped Cloud would become.

*

Cloud cursed. There were too many of them. For some reason he thought that he could take them all on unscathed, but then when he'd tried, he found himself struggling. His muscles ached and his grip on the Buster Sword fumbled.

I must be out of practise...

"Enough babbling! Grab him!" One of the Guards yelled. Cloud turned his back on them all. He could hear the train coming under the bridge. If timed just right he would....

He landed with both feet onto the roof of the train, grinning as he felt the wind rush through his hair. He turned around and waved to the guards cheerfully before starting to climb down the side and kicking the door open to the carriage.

He loved the shocked faces that surrounded him. Barret looked like he was going to blow a fuse, he was close to shooting him. Jessie looked like she was high on something. Biggs and Wedge were staring at him like he was a monster that had jumped into the carriage.

"Looks like I'm a little late."

"You damn right, you're late!" Barret snapped. "Come waltzin' in, makin' a big scene! Stupid flashy Shinra bastard."

Cloud smirked. "Ex-Shinra bastard you mean. I don't know what the fuss is about, this is what I always do."

"Aw! Angeal. C'mon man. I was just getting warmed up!"

"Shit! You had everyone worried but you don' give a damn abou' no one but yerself!" Barret yelled. Cloud wondered if he was about to start beating his chest in a minute. He tried to stop smiling, aware that it was winding the other up.

"You were worried about me, big guy?" he asked. Barret's eyes bugged in his head.

"Wha?!" He didn't seem to know if Cloud was hitting on him or not. "I'm takin' this outta yer money hot stuff!" he replied, unaware that Jessie was snickering into her hand at what was being said and how it could be construed.

With that Barret ran off into the other carriages with Biggs and Wedge. Cloud watched them go, more than happy to wait in the cargo hold. They were less likely to get noticed in here after all. Jessie got up and closed the door to prevent the draft and then got out a white handkerchief. He leaned away when she tried to wipe his face.

"You're all black," she said. Cloud wiped his arm across his cheeks instead. He didn't want the girl to get to close for some reason. He felt a little uncomfortable with contact.

"Well... You can use the hanky," she said, forcing it into his hand. It was then that she saw the flower peeking out of Cloud's pocket. She blinked at it for a moment before looking up at his face. Seeing his stony expression she quickly looked away and followed Barret into the train.

*

Tseng sighed. Elena wasn't shaping up that well at all. She just wasn't Turk material. However, they needed a replacement for Cissnei for honey traps and Elena was going to have to do.

Tseng's thoughts went to another blond Turk he'd trained. Strife had been excellent in comparison. Level-headed, a sharp shot, tight-lipped and appropriately jaded for the role he had chosen. By comparison, Elena was chipper, naïve and useless with weaponry.

"I can do better, boss, sir," she said. Tseng doubted it but he nodded, folding his arms.

He wished Nibelheim had never happened.

*

Hojo growled. His attempts at recreating Sephiroth were failing. The SOLDIER, the last of his kind, was puking up green liquid all over the lab and his assistants weren't strong enough to restrain him.

"Dump him in the Slums. He's of no use to me," he said, side-stepping a puddle of puke. He almost missed Strife now. He hadn't shown signs of changing into Sephiroth, but he'd at least been powerful. No one else had been so receptive and still remain a certain amount of physical stability. Okay, so the man had lost his mind, but that didn't matter so much so long as he would follow orders.

"Find someone else. Someone younger this time," Hojo ordered, turning away from the scene.

*

Cissnei hurriedly pushed back her veil. It was too hot in the Costa Del Sol to remain under one for long. She didn't want her wedding pictures, however rushed they were going to be, to have make-up running down her face. The marriage was a cover, mostly, to protect them from Shinra's searching eyes. They wouldn't be looking for a couple. They wouldn't be looking for a Mr. and Mrs. Sergeant either.

"You aren't the girl I thought I'd be marrying," her husband muttered, quiet enough that the priest didn't hear. Cissnei looked up into his warm eyes and didn't even both to look ashamed.

"Sometimes, you've just got to make do. Now don't forget your vows. You're meant to be happily in love with me. Say the wrong name and I will kill you."

*

Cloud stepped out onto the train platform and looked around. He could almost smell Tifa's cooking from here. He was going to have to stuff himself silly when he got back to Seventh Heaven. He was about to get going when he noticed Elfé lurking at the edge of the platform. When she saw him her eyes widened and she turned on her heel, walking swiftly away.

Elfé was weird, but he'd grown used to her. She refused to work on missions with him, wouldn't speak when he was there and generally seemed to take offence at his presence. Cloud didn't mind so much, but it was unnerving to have her brown eyes watching him constantly, as though waiting for him to make a wrong move.

He hoped that this would convince her that he wasn't whatever it was she thought he was.

He sighed and looked up at the Plate above his head. It had been a long night and it still wasn't over yet.

*

Somewhere in Midgar a black mist began to gather, swirling along the eddies of the wind and creeping closer to the Shinra Building.