I've come to terms with my obsession with emails from Fanfic. I check it every hour or so, for new reviews or alerts, etc. I'm such a psycho.

To The Crossroads Of Fate: Chapter 4

The Escape

"This is the result of the X-ray." The doctor sat across Lucrecia, Tifa had been officially admitted to the hospital, and is resting at her ward. "In her brain… this area here…" He pointed at a black area, "and the spots here…" he pointed again. "This shows that Miss Lockheart has a severe case of brain tumor."

Lucrecia struggled to keep herself breathing. "No way… she's too young for this… what about surgery?"

The doctor shook his head. "We can't operate on her, this area is too sensitive. She may be paralyzed for life. Right now, all we can do is offer her medication to stop the tumor from growing. But soon, even that wouldn't help."

Lucrecia felt tears welling in her eyes. "Oh my god…"

"And… regrettably… From the current state of things, it is quite impossible for her to live past the age of twenty. We're terribly sorry."

xXx

Zack sat silent in his desk, browsing through the new recruitment list of SOLDIER first class. He frowned as he realized most were under the command of Genesis Rhapsodos. Two months ago, he had planned to follow Genesis to Kalm, where Genesis had recruited many new SOLDIERs, using the local Festival of Hope as an excuse. His plan failed as Lady Tifa Lockheart, daughter of his distant aunt Lorraine showed up and ruined everything.

He has to grudgingly deal with the lack of information on Genesis' sudden recruitment of SOLDIERs for now.

"It's been two months… Perhaps I will pay a visit to Lady Tifa to express my concern for her injury. As a matter of civility." He thought, only it's two months late.

xXx

It's been two months since the supposed meeting with prince Rufus, and my leg is now completely healed. Alas, the next meeting won't be long from now.

I couldn't be more proud about the fact that I've carried out the plan with Yuffie flawlessly for the past two months. Yes. We've prepared for two months.

In the past two months, Yuffie had paid for three horses, bought a small cottage in Junon, employed two martial artists as body guards, sown some underwear with a pocket in the crotch area (I used modern design as reference), many other little details, and most of all, made sure that no one would be able to stop us from leaving today. The plan has been going perfectly. Since my injury, I've suggested rehabilitation exercises every Thursday with Yuffie, and for the whole of two months, we were left alone every Thursday.

I sucked in my breath as Yuffie tightened the bandage around my chest. Man, bigger boobs are great, but not now! "Lady Tifa, please suck in deeper, it is not flat enough!" I sucked in deeper until she finally finished tying it. I looked in the mirror and I could still see the shape of my chest. "That's the tightest it could go, My Lady." I nodded and sighed, it shouldn't be that obvious…

It was easy to do it for Yuffie. We then changed into the men's clothing, it was a shirt without collars or cuffs, completed by a worn out brown vest, completed with a pair of old trousers with holes sown together with other clothing materials, and a boot that had worn out holes in the side. We tucked the trousers that were slightly too long for us into the boots. We then packed the other male clothing into a small, black backpack. Yuffie had stolen these from a young peasant's home, replacing them with gil enough for them to buy a new home.

We smeared some black dust on our cheeks to complete the peasant look.

Lastly, Yuffie tied my hair into a tight bun, covering it with a black net and made sure it could withstand the harshest of motions before she put on the beret to cover it. Yuffie had no need to tie, for her hair was short, but nevertheless, I styled it such that it looked like a man's.

We checked our appearance in the mirror, it was perfect. We may look too beautiful for peasant men, but no one should suspect us.

I laughed at the state we were in, torn clothing contrasting a grand manor.

"Alright, from now on, I am Billy Zed Crescent, Bill, and you are William Cole Crescent, Will. We are brothers, who survived a huge fire that burnt our cottage down in Nibelheim, our parents died in that accident and we now seek refuge in Junon after escaping from our cruel masters during their trading trip from Midgar to Junon. You hear? Memorise that."

Yuffie nodded and we kicked start the plan.

xXx

Zack stood alone at the gate of Lockheart Manor, a servant came by to greet him before opening the gate. He stepped in, only to find that the Manor was strangely quiet. He regretted coming here in a whim.

"Where are the other servants?"

"They are out in town to buy some medicine for Lady Tifa."

"I see. Is she not healed?"

"My Lady is doing well, sir."

"Is the Duke or Duchess at home?"

"I am afraid not, sir. They are in the Palace."

"Oh…Why is she taking so long?"

"I'm sorry, I will tell Yuffie to send your message."

He sat down by the foyer and sipped on the tea provided.

After a long while, the servant reappeared, only to look awfully pale. "L-Lord Zack Fair! My Lady is missing! Whatever should I do!"

"Your Lady has gone missing?" Zack eyed the servant before setting the tea back onto the table. "Did she leave anything?"

"No!"

"Then we have to tell Aunt Elmyra at once! You are coming with me to the Palace!"

Zack pulled the servant out only to find that his horse has disappeared. He blew a whistle but the horse did not return. Damn! It was already too far away.

xXx

I could only watch in horror as Zack stopped by the Manor. The hardest part was to get away from the Manor premises, and Zack's sudden appearance made it harder. Yuffie was already panicking by my side.

"Change of plans." I said with a scowl, "Where are the horses you bought?"

"In a stable located at Sector 7."

"Okay. We will ride Zack's horse there."

After Zack stepped into the Manor, I crept to the Manor's stable and locked it with the lock I asked Yuffie to buy and took the whip hanging by the door.

Then, I proceeded to tame Zack's horse. I stroked the beast which reacted calmly. I'm just glad it's still as tamed. Yuffie helped me onto the horse and I pulled her up to the space between the horse and I, her body was limp with fear.

Pulling the reins, the horse galloped away. Sorry, Zack, but you were the one who taught me how to ride… Especially this horse. Ciao!

We rode through the woods behind the manor and through a river. The first plan was to go through the market place disguised. But it was not too bad riding through the woods. There were a few routes to the town area of Midgar, we took the shortest possible. Even if Zack could guess our route, he'd be too slow to catch up.

When we reach the outskirts of Sector 7, I heaved a sigh of relief. Finally… half done.

I helped Yuffie down the horse, "Get the horses and the body guards. I will wait for you at the inn in Sector 5. Make sure you are not followed." I pass her a heavy pouch. "Keep the gil here safe. Do not let anyone see it. Make sure the body guards look like middle class merchants. If you find that you cannot trust them, shrug them off before meeting me in Sector 5's inn. If you can't reach Sector 5 within two hours, I will be in Sector 6's inn. Understood?"

She nodded nervously. And I rubbed my palms against her shoulders to encourage her. "Be confident, and make haste."

I rode it to the outskirts of Sector 5, where the streets are the busiest. I got down and allowed the horse to graze for a little before sending it off into the direction of Sector four through a harsh whip. I kept the whip into the pocket of my trousers and walked briskly into the busy town. Now I have to stock up on weapons just in case. Don't they do that in video games? I'm just following.

I was careful to not step into the weapon store. It had little customers, and buying weapons would only show that I am travelling. If Zack reaches this Sector, he would definitely go to the weapon store. Instead, I followed the peasants around, especially those that dressed like me. I realized most of them didn't buy from any of the stores but proceeded to a long alley by the marketplace. I followed them and found that there are roadside stalls meant for the poor. Merchandises were set on the floor where roaches roam; I swallowed and forced myself not to cover my nose as I walked in.

All the goods sold are old and worn. They accepted barter trade, and most of the peasants did that. Exchanging their clothing in bags for a basket of vegetables, or used knifes for a set of worn out suit. I looked around, and saw what I need. Two stalls sold mostly weapons and utensils the one on the right had more customers. Surrounding stalls… some had vegetables, meats, others clothing. Digging into my pants, I retrieved two one gil coins and rubbed them against the dirt on the wall before walking in, looking as if I haven't ate for days.

I need to buy something before starting off a barter chain.

I bought a torn coat using my vest and the two gils (with a lot of begging and tears – like the rest).

Next I exchanged the coat for two vests, and wore one before exchanging the other for a pair of worn shoes.

I exchanged the worn shoes for a torn blanket.

Torn blanket for a coat that was in a better condition than the previous I had.

I brought the coat to the weapon stall and changed for a set of five rusty daggers of different sizes. (Of course, I had to beg)

All that trading took about an hour. I'm glad I was conscientious enough to not let any stalls recognize that I was cheating most of them. Thank god for the crowd of peasants.

I continued to the inn located in the other corner. I scanned the surroundings and found a good spot to spy on the customers of the inn. I squatted beside a group of peasants who were sitting and smoking opium. They were too drowsy to see that I was a mere stranger. I blended in easily and waited in the corner for Yuffie to arrive.

xXx

Yuffie had previously paid the two body guards through Jessie, her sworn sister who owned a the stable, to meet her outside the rubbish dump in Sector 7, dressed like middle class merchants at noon that day.

Yuffie rushed to check on Jessie and made sure, again, that she will not speak a word about their trip. She paid her a hundred gils and walked towards the rubbish dump.

She saw two men seated in a corner, chatting. She coughed twice, too fast to be real and they turned, returning two claps. It's them.

"Hello." She feigned a male voice.

"Jessie's friend?"

"Yes."

"Right, this is Reno, and I am Rude." The bald man spoke. The other looked fidgety and kept smiling. Maybe he was high. They looked well built; the fidgety red head tied a loose pony tail and tamed his otherwise messy hair. They both dressed appropriately, with a high turnover collar shirt, vest, a simple coat reaching to the knees and bowler hat.

Yuffie followed Tifa's commands and posed one question to them.

"What do you think of war?"

They looked at each other, their eyebrows arched.

The red hair man answered first with a yawn. "Dunno, won't join em. Bothersome."

The bald man answered next, "We're partners. If he doesn't join, neither will I."

Yuffie nodded. And thinking back to Tifa's words,

"Ask them what they think about war. If they are nonchalant, they pass. That's lack of loyalty to the country. We'll be in trouble if they show great signs of loyalty towards anything but each other. We're having a business transaction, not buying servants. We don't need someone who will sacrifice themselves, like soldiers in war, but someone who will evade any of such crises before it happened, the selfish but smart types. Check their tone. Make sure they work as a pair. If not, we don't need them. Don't worry about them betraying us, which would be a problem on the go. We will acquire their loyalty while we travel."

"Very well, let's get the horses and proceed to meet my companion. Remember, you are middle class merchants travelling to Junon to settle a transaction of an estate there. My companion and I are your servants. I am William Crescent, Will, and my companion is Billy Crescent, Bill. We're brothers."

"Rude and Reno Tuesti." The bald man answered. "Sworn brothers."

Yuffie had her suspicions, but it doesn't matter. They weren't honest themselves.

xXx

I've waited for more an thirty minutes before Yuffie appeared with two males. They're acting well. Yuffie followed studiously at the back, holding a backpack. I stood and winced at my numb muscles before walking towards them, bumping into Yuffie. I purposely dropped my backpack and lowered to collect it, trying to cover up our whispered conversation.

"Where are the horses?"

"Outskirts."

"Meet me there."

I continued, making sure not to have any eye contact with them and walked in an aimless manner. Yuffie understood and did the same.

xXx

"That was my companion." Yuffie whispered to Rude. "We'll meet Bill at the outskirts. Do you have anything you wish to buy?"

Rude asked Reno and he shook his head.

"Okay. Let us go there."

xXx

Zack rode on the horse from the Lockheart's stable. Even he had trouble cutting down the lock, so he had to knock down the entire door. Unfamiliar to him, the horse galloped hesitantly.

He had ordered the servant to bring the message into the palace, while he looked for Lady Tifa. Though it may be a case of kidnapping, Zack's instincts told him otherwise.

Part of him felt responsible for this incident as they wouldn't be able to get away, or be kidnapped, this easily without his horse. Have they been planning this?

One way or another, Zack knew he had to be the one to capture bring them back home.

xXx

A/N: FINALLY! Off to the next chapter! I've been planning the next few chapters for a few days now! I'm glad I've finished the damned editing (though it's not well done).

Next chapter, our dear Cloudie will have his first appearance in this new world (actually, it's old world but whatever.)

I realise I curse too much, even when I write.

Whatever!