Really do apologize for the pause. I'm so easily distracted. I'll try not to add on too much. I was supposed to finish this fanfiction ages ago. Pressing onward!
I.
"Where'd ya get that?"
There was a pause before she could answer. Cid hadn't spoken much before asking. His voice was ever so slightly deeper in tone and it caught her off guard. "Don't know."
"You really don't know?" Cid had been eyeballing the dusty wooden spokes of the unearth captain's wheel since he had awoken that morning. He followed it with tired, blue eyes every time Shera adjusted it to reach more of the dirt caked crevasses with a hot, wet rag.
"It was dark, and I was asleep for the majority of the journey. I'd tell you where you found it if I could. From the look of the area while I was there though, you'd done a lot of digging." She dipped her hand back down in a pail of hot water stationed on the floor before the junk car in the open garage. Shera sloshed it around; shaking out granules of earth and turning the steaming water a darker shade of brown.
"No idea at all?" Cid pouted. Some unnatural part of himself had all the answers, and was ironically leaving him out.
"We headed through the trees..." Shera stood up straight and looked out through the metal grid of the garage door. She squinted over the early sunlight gently melting the frost from the grass, and pointed in a general direction. "There. You took me through there. We crossed the creek a mile or two ahead, and then after that, I don't know."
The Captain grumbled and chewed on the plastic rim of his cup when all of the SOLDIER's mixture was gone. His eyes were back on the wheel again. "Guess when ya get that cleaned up, I can take it down to the warehouse. We can probably chuck it up on a rack until we can find more—"
"Mm, no." Shera tilted the wheel to admire her handy work. It could use some polishing, but it looked much better.
"…no?" Cid stopped his gnawing and met his partner's eyes. He was confused.
"I'll keep it with me. Thank you very much." She decided.
"What the hell are you going to do with it?!" His brows had furrowed. Cid appeared offended; tossing his cup down onto a rusted work table and opening the new leather jacket that had been keeping him warm.
Shera shrugged her shoulders. A cheeky grin had found its way onto her face. "I don't know, but it's mine. You can't have it."
"Yours? How is it yours?!" Cid barked. He assertively placed his hands on his hips. Unbelievable.
"You gave it to me, Captain."
II.
The horizon was crisp and mute. Untouched frost and frozen puddles crunched beneath the bottom of their boots. Cid stuffed his cold hands in his pockets and cleared the aftertaste of 'breakfast' from his throat. He would have held Shera's hand, but it was well…cold, and he had given her his gloves.
"We've ah, got brackets and terraces up while we're getting the frame together." His walking pace was a meandering one. He wasn't in much of a rush to make it to the warehouse. With the overcast weather, Cid honestly felt like taking a long nap (as bad of an idea as that was).
"They approved your schematics?" Shera did them both a favor and looped her arm in his. She was warm on his side. Cid could smell her blackberry body wash.
"Yeah, on all sections. A fuckton of paper work, I tell ya. Had to go over the budget." Cid's nose scrunched "Since we're o-fficially startin' production, got to figure out how much to pay the crew. We've been contacting material supplies, n' manufactures. You know how it goes."
"Sounds like a delight." Shera quipped.
"A real fuckin' pain in my ass is what it is. When I was workin' for ShinRa, all I did was hand over the compiled blue prints, and they handled the finer details."
"Got to kick your feet back and watch?" Shera lifted the collar of her sweater to cover her mouth and nose.
"Somethin' like that. I ain't have to chat with so many air-heads. Reeve's kinda put me up in the big seat." Cid deeply exhaled. His sigh swirled upward and disappeared with the slight slice of the wind. "Guess I'll feel better about everythin' when I've got my shit together."
"If you mean getting some better sleep, I understand." Shera looked out ahead. The warehouse wasn't too far down the other corner. There were a few trucks paused at the unloading docs; passing through heavy metals beams, and other ordered production parts meant to make up the new airship's frame.
"I mean when I start lookin' like myself again." Cid rubbed his throat. "And fuckin' soundin' like myself. I look and feel all screwed in the head."
"You thought you were done with puberty? You need a good haircut. Could lose some weight, too, Fido." Shera chuckled and pulled her arm from his. She dodged his attempt at nudging her in response to her snarky comment.
"Alright, ya barefoot, ant-bite-ankle witch." Cid caught her by her collar in the nick of her retreat and lightly jabbed her side with his elbow.
Shera hissed and winced. A gloved hand snapped to her side, and she gritted her teeth until the throb passed.
"Whoa there…" Cid paused on the worn down pathing leading the warehouse front. He placed his hand on Shera's shoulders to steady her; feeling a bit guilty.
"I'm fine. Probably deserved that." She righted herself a moment later and granted Cid a reassuring smile. "Still sore."
"Still? Those bones healing right?" He apprehensively narrowed his vision on the area Shera gingerly rubbed.
"As far as I know they are. It's just sore, is all. Maybe because fellas like yourself keep bumping into them." Shera jabbed Cid back and he pretended to be in similar pain.
III.
"I know you've seen her a time or two, but I'd like all of y'all to listen up!" Cid dragged a mallet from a rack and rapped it against the side of a motored door. Most of the outsourced technicians that had grumbled in through the cold looked up from their work after being called to attention.
This here is Shera!" Mallet in one hand, Cid slapped the other on his partner's shoulder, and gave her a firm shake. "Got a problem with her stickin' around, you've got a problem with me. Mechanic with grubby paws just like the rest of ya. She's just taking a gander today. Alright?!"
Most responded in comprehensive nods and tips of the chin. Cid hooked the hammer back where he had found it and motioned for Shera to follow him over to main construction. She seemed to be pensively observing from her position beside him; gently nibbling the inside of her cheek. She didn't comment on progress until they had made it to the main casting of what would be the ship's bridge.
"How long do you think this will take to put together?" Shera pulled her phone from her lab coat pocket. She pressed the screen to keep it from vibrating, but decided not to look at the notifications just yet.
"If things go smoothly, and we can gather enough materials and man power, about two years." Ruben, or at least that's what his name patch said, offered Shera a very polite handshake. He looked like one of the younger town mechanics that had offered their help in the beginning.
"Can you all really manage two years?"
"Ain't got much of a choice. That's the projection, and we've got to follow the time line. It'd be easier if we didn't have to scrounge for sources, but everyone's been doing reconstruction since the flaming eight ball almost K. the planet." Cid had lit a cigarette. He regarded the young buck with his usual, ornery grunt.
"High demand. I see." Shera scratched beneath the band holding her pony tail in place. Maybe if she thumbed deeper in her memory, she could gather a clue to where Cid's digging site was. Whatever was there, she was sure would help.
"We're about to start recruiting more people, right, Captain H?" Ruben pressed a pair of protective glasses up past his dark hairline.
"Yep. If we can get em' to haul ass here. Some folks have been a little reluctant." Cid bitterly chewed the cigarette filter. He blew a bit of smoke from his running nose.
"Why's that?" Shera's frown was a pouty one. "Town not big enough?" Her phone vibrated again, and she shoved it beneath her arm.
"Scared of the chupacabra!" Ruben cackled. He poised his first fingers like fangs at the corners of his mouth. "Don't want it to get their goats, if you catch my drift."
"I don't want to catch your fuckin' drift. It's cold enough." Cid removed his scarf. "Quit messin' around."
"Ah, s-sorry."
IV.
"It's getting darker."
"Yeah, it is."
Cid attempted to warm his insides with a hot mug of water. For some reason coffee just didn't taste right. He didn't want to rush his lunch break, if this could be considered such, but the weather was getting colder, and the sharp breeze was a thermal thief. And so was Shera. They both sat together on the back steps of the noisy production house. She was pressed into his side; siphoning a bit of heat from him to keep herself warm.
"You think it's going to rain?" Shera yawned and pressed her glasses back up the chilly bridge of her nose. The breeze picked up again, whipping leaves across the graveled ground and rustling the surrounding trees. In the distance, the clouds were thick and heavy; draping the tops of the mountains.
"Kinda smells like a storm is headed this way. Weather report said it was gonna get real cold tonight, too. Maybe we oughta' pack it up earlier." Cid passed her his mug. He watched her sip out of the corner of his eyes. His stomach gurgled. It was something like anxiety. Overwhelming uncertainty and hunger. It was strange, but he ignored it.
"Maybe." Shera passed his mug back. She leant her hand to the back of the Captain's head and ran her fingers through the thicket of hair there. "It's a good thing we didn't cut all of this. You'd be cold tonight." Her palm smoothed over the nape of his neck and it served to lull some of his uneasiness. She granted the underside of his chin an affectionate scratch in pulling away. Cid caught her by the wrist, and brought Shera in close enough to kiss the warm top of her head.
"I love you. Ya know that?"
She smiled; small and toothy. "I know. I love you, too…"
"Somethin' wrong?" Cid felt her fidget.
"I'm just trying to reach my phone. It kept dinging while I was looking over the welding." Shera pulled it from her pocket and squinted at the screen. "Oh!" How silly of her. They were parcel notifications. "Delivery delay in anticipation of snow storm." She mumbled the text. "Looks like you may not get another tester tomorrow."
"My ass is getting sore anyway. I can do without one for a day or two." Cid pulled the carton of cigarettes from behind the band of his goggles. He pinched the opening only to find that there were no bright orange filters left. He muttered and crumbled the empty paper box into his coat pocket; lifting his mug back to his lips.
"If it were sanitary, I'd kiss it better."
Cid almost snorted hot water from his nostrils. He really couldn't believe her sometimes. "You just like sticking me in the ass! You got some dominatrix complex going on that I should know about, huh?" The Captain chugged the rest of his water before it had a chance to cool any more (or before he had the chance to choke on it).
"Captain… I'm surprised you know that terminology. Do you have something going on that I should know about?" Shera sniggered beneath her collar. Hiding her grin, she stood to her feet and brushed gravel from her bottom. Their time was just about up.
"No. I don't." Cid stood after. He dragged behind her through the facility door and into the chorus of work and racket. "You got a mouth on you, woman." He gave her a firm smack on the rear in passing. It didn't go unnoticed.
Her tone suggestive, Shera retorted with a wink. "You have no idea."
V.
TUESTI, REEVE/ Did you receive notification of the delay?
RE: Yes. Both Captain Highwind, and I are aware the package will be late.
RE:re: I'll have an alternative method of shipment arranged. They're optimistic about the formula. Be safe tonight. Stay Warm.
RE:re:re: We'll try. I'll keep my phone on in case of emergency. Thank you very much, Commissioner.
VI.
The shutters and windows rattled behind old curtains. The storm descended from the mountains in groans and drawn out grumbles. The howl the wind left behind broke to the pitter patter, and then constant drum of rain. The drum became a rush and it remained that way until the sun retired behind the darkened horizon. Cid had to turn up the volume to hear the TV. Shera turned up the heat in the house when he wasn't paying attention.
What was she going to do? With him, she meant. It was growing later, and eventually, Cid would have to go to sleep.
Wrapped in a blanket over Cid's lap, Shera surveyed the space of the living room. There might be enough room inside for him if she pushed aside the couches, and maybe the cabinet holding the TV. Would he object to being kept inside? Would he break anything…? Er, how would she feed him here? Shera's face contorted at the possibility of having to mop up blood from the floor. Maybe the porch was a better option. Decisions, decisions.
"Hey?" Cid had picked up on the disgust etched into her face. He thought maybe she was repulsed by a dumb commercial.
"Sorry, I'm just thinking." Shera sat up. She pressed her back against the arm rest and crossed her ankles over Cid's knees.
"Bout what?"
"About what I'm going to do with you. It's raining." She paused to listen. It had stopped.
"Or, at least it was." Shera was up a moment later. Her head light, and legs tired, she tugged a living room curtain aside with her finger and peered out. It was quiet because the rain had turned to snow. It stuck to the crevices of the window, and was already forming a puffy white layer over piles and piles of leaves.
"It's snowing." Shera was hushed.
"That solves that problem." Cid yawned. He peeled himself from the couch and scratched his stomach. The floor boards creaked beneath his steps in crossing the living room to gaze out behind her. "I reckon it'll all be ice in the mornin'. Give everyone an excuse to sleep in."
"Everyone but us." Shera fixed the curtain back in place and removed her glasses to rub her eyes. She puffed out her cheeks and sighed. She should have slept today. It was going to be a long night. "When are you planning to go to sleep?"
"Dunno." Cid wrapped his arms around her waist; his scratchy chin on her shoulder. His lips were warm, but the contact on her neck made her shiver. "Don't really want to. Not likin' the idea of being butt naked and freezing."
Shera snorted and gave him more space to be affectionate. She closed her eyes and rested her hands on his crossed wrists. "I thought about keeping you in here. You'd be naked and warm, at least?"
"Ah, hell. I get the feelin' I'd tear up my own damn house. Either I'll tough it out, or give up some clothes I ain't too attached to." Cid opened up his grip so she could face him. Her eyes were tired, but there was something else there that made his heart leap. "What's that look for?"
"Hm? Nothing." Shera placed her forearms up on his shoulders. Cid became level with her and tapped her forehead with his own. The recycled news report was the background to their quiet gazing. Searching each other's eyes; comfortable and direct.
"Are you going to kiss me, Captain?" Shera whispered.
"That's all you want these days." He mumbled back.
"That is all I want."
"You sure?" Because he wouldn't mind giving her more.
Shera tilted her head and connected their lips. The arms around her waist tightened. Likewise, she wrapped her arms around Cid's neck and they swayed with the cadence of tink and tat on the windowpanes.
Breaths were passed between them like hot haze. Somehow Cid's tongue found itself in a velvety tangle past her lips. The hands that were on the back of his neck massaged his ears, and snaked down to caress beneath the fabric of his shirt. Everywhere she touched caught fire, and all of a sudden the house was far too warm. Shera purred and flicked behind his teeth; gasping when she felt him nip. If he didn't know how to behave, Cid would have growled. Goddamn, could she get his motor going.
"Shh-Ah!" Shera hissed. In breaking for air, he seized her neck in his teeth and pushed her up against the nearest wall. More affectionate mouthfuls on her throat, a tongue on her collar and working its way down to lave the full gulley of her breasts. Cid wanted her clothes off and on the floor. He wanted her to chant his name. He wanted her heart in his hand, and a fuckin' ring on her finger, but goddammit! This really wasn't a good idea.
"What's wrong?" Shera licked her lips. She was working on unclipping her bra, but stopped when she felt Cid hesitate.
"I wanna, Sher, I really do." Cid groaned. He propped his forearms on the wall at either side of her head. He really, really hated to have to do this. "I don't know if we should." He had…stuff in his body fluids. The experimental physician had warned him of that. "And I mean I could er, put somethin' on. But, I don't know if I do have something, and if I did, it's probably old. Do ya understand me?"
"I understand, Cid." Shera hid her slight disappointment and smoothed stray pieces of her hairline from her face. She gave his belly a generous pat and pulled her back from flush against the wall. She gently laughed. Shera could feel him stiff against her thigh. "Maybe some other time."
"Don't mean I don't want to make you feel good, though." His voice rumbling in her throat; Cid kissed the softness beneath her earlobe. The second portion of her bangs tickled his cheek. "Cause I can, if you want me to..."
"I want you to, Cid."
VII.
If it was during the day, she might have gone snow blind. Shera's thoughts were elsewhere and her gaze blank; trying make sense of the current situation. She could only process one issue at a time, but they seemed to be piling up on her. Cid's condition had taken top priority (obviously), though, she couldn't forget about Tamar, or anyone else who might have had suspicions. And now, it was unearthing the mystery the hound was keeping from himself miles away in the woods. Her relationship. This was awkward. Okay, okay, let's rewind. Let's not think about it all for now.
The prime issue, at the moment, was keeping Cid from staining her coat with microwaved peanut butter. It was an industrial container, to be exact. She saw the enormous tub in the corner store a month or so ago, and thought he would have enjoyed it. And she supposed it did, it kept Cid in place and preoccupied. The bell at the base of his tail was an ominous twinkle that echoed with the loop whistle of the wind. He was in place long enough for a notable layer of snow to form on his back. Steam rose from his wet, peanut butter smeared nose. He eventually lost interest and turned his attention elsewhere (that, or his tongue had gotten tired). Cid shook, and Shera had to hold up her arm to keep slush from pelting her face.
"I guess you've had enough of this." She twisted the top back on the jar and placed it down in her shoulder bag. Shera could sense him moving away. She knew what that meant.
"No, Cid…You should stay here." She reached out and sunk her gloved hand into his fur. She pulled and his head turned down to her. They made eye contact and his stare was a little discomforting. He stood unnaturally still; pensive. For a slight moment (and she thought she was crazy for thinking so), he looked like he was going to speak.
"Why?"
Shera's heart leapt out of her throat in a jumble of immensely startled syllables. The size of her eyes rivaled the moon. Cid was still expectantly gazing; massive, towering over her with ears high, and breath pluming from his muzzle. He sounded like Cid, but deep and eerie. His accent was barely intact from what she could hear.
She pressed both hands to her forehead. Her heart was still drumming in her chest. At this point, she thought nothing else could surprise her, and yet, there she was, trying to drag herself out of total shock. But you know what, a thought hit her and it took another full minute for her to sputter out a cohesive sentence. Well shit…of course. Nanaki could speak.
"You understand me?"
Cid didn't answer her. Supposedly, because she didn't answer his own question. He was up and moving again with every intent of ignoring the stacking snow, and trotting off into the tree line to continue his work. He would go off a few paces, and wait for Shera to hurriedly trudge through the snow after him.
"W-wait, Cid. It's cold. You really should stay here." She pulled on the portion of the tip of his tail that didn't hold the bright blue flame. It fell with a thump; melting a hole through a slab of ice. "You're not going to be able to dig if the ground is frozen."
Well, he could fucking try. Grumbling, Cid turned in on her and hoisted Shera up in his teeth. Her coat was a thankful cushion between her and the points of his incisors. With a grunt, he carried Shera past the first layers of trees and far to a familiar bend in the creek.
VIII.
Shera didn't allow herself to fall asleep this time. She dug her fingers into the line of Cid's mane and kept herself steady on her new position on his back. Bark and thicket seemed to go on forever; the elevation and scenery shifting every other turn he took. Careful not to fall, she gazed behind them and saw the large tracks he left in the brush and snow. They'd probably be covered again by morning. That was a good thing. She'd remember the way this time.
"Do you have something else to give me?" She thought aloud. A portion of her was wondering if he'd respond to her, and most of her really hoped he would so she wouldn't feel absolutely out of her mind. There was no response aside from a low bellow that traveled from his chest, filled his gut, and rattled Shera's teeth. Maybe she was crazy.
The feeling in her toes was somewhat lost to her by the time they had arrived Cid's digging site. The hallowed out ground was covered in a dense sheet of snow and frost. It took Shera a moment to regain the feeling in her legs after sliding down the slope of his back. She paced back and forth in an overlay of Cid's paw prints to get her blood flowing, and blew air into her palms to warm her lips. Blinking a few times to clear her vision, Shera pulled out her phone and scanned the screen. It was already a quarter past four in the morning.
Tucking her phone away, Shera watched Cid trot from corner to corner of the pit. He hunkered down on his haunches and scooped snow from places only he knew the importance of. When the removal didn't reveal what he wanted, Cid moved on and repeated the process in another area. Shera looked around a time or two to nervously guard their surroundings. She blew out quivering puffs and rubbed her arms. When she looked for Cid again, she realized he had disappeared.
"Cid?!" Shera hissed. Where in the world could he have gone in less than two seconds?
She pulled out her phone again and switched on the flashlight; pointing it in the last place she had saw him. Upon closer inspection, Shera discovered he had uncovered a hole in her distraction. "Cid?!" She rasped again and squinted down the void. At the end of the dark tunnel was the flickering light of his tail. It disappeared in the blink of an eye.
"You've got to be kidding me…" She held up the light above her head and thickly swallowed. Shera teetered over the jagged opening, cautiously bent her knees, and held the dirt wall. One precarious step at a time, she pressed past the entry and into the unknown.
"Cid?" She called his name and was startled by the echo. "Cid?" Shera called again; blindly staring into the dark when her phone could no longer spare the extra energy to keep the flash light going. The thump of boots on dirt gave way to the shrill creak of metal. The dirt walls were now rusted beams. Shera wrapped her fingers around a mystery support until her eyes could adjust.
Something shifted and suddenly shrieked off to her right. Another unknown object fell with a loud clatter. Shera placed her hand over her heart. "Cid that had better be you."
Without warning, a hot torrent of air displaced her bangs and flung her hair over the top of her head. Shera snapped her eyes and her mouth closed. She felt Cid's nose brush her side and knew exactly what was coming next. He still reeked of peanut butter while he lapped the side of her head with a bristly tongue; leaving her hair plastered in places it shouldn't. Disgusting, but it eased her nervousness. "Yes, ew, thank you. I see you now." She pressed her hand on his nose and pushed him away so she could breathe.
"I wish I could see…" Shera removed her glasses and swabbed away the smears Cid left behind. When she placed them back on, he had wound his tail around to his side, lighting the space between them. She took a careful step forward. Shera wasn't sure where her steps would fall, but Cid seemed very lax in the direction he was leading her in. His Mako eyes were bright. She imagined he could see far better than she could.
"You probably won't respond," not the best time for conversation. Shera really should have been paying attention to where he was moving. "but, do you understand me? Do you know who you are?"
Cid stopped in front of a caged sphere. He placed one massive paw up on the surface, and gnawed on the metal in the awkward silence that passed. Shera was ready to confirm her madness, until he opened his mouth and pulled back over his gums to reveal all of his teeth.
"I'm Cid." The orb sparked to the life. The light was blinding. "That's what…you call me."
Hazel eyes widened. Shera refocused her attention and was absolutely captivated. The device, whatever it was, provided just enough light to illuminate the grand hull of what she had first assumed was a bunker. Just past Cid, through the space of his ears, she could see the remaining port and docking of a navigation platform. The attachments were twisted, ripped, and covered in slashes. The wheel that went there, completely missing.
"Do you know who I am?" Shera had been quieted. She made dim eye contact, but the sensation of staring into his glowing irises was a different sort of strange this time.
"Yeah." Cid shook at the withers. He pressed his nose into her hip; prickling her thighs with his stubbled whiskers. "Mine."
Another long silence. Shera was unsure of how to feel. "What is all of this?"
"Yours."
IX.
Cid's low snarl had ripped her from slumber. Shera didn't remember when she had fallen asleep. She'd been expecting Cid to leave at some point before sunrise, but he never did. He picked a corner in the belly of the anonymous contraption, crossed his burly forearms beneath his head, and laid down. Unable to move him, Shera sank against his side and laid herself in the warm crease of his neck. Maybe Cid was waiting for himself to wake. He'd finally get to see what he'd been missing.
"What's wrong?" She pulled herself out of the heat of his fur and rubbed her eyes. Shera's glasses were somewhere completely unrelated to her, probably lost in Cid's mane.
His head snapped upward and he growled again. There was a nose coming from the entry way. It was light, barely audible, and then it drew closer. Footsteps. Shera groped the line of Cid's back and pulled on the frame of her glasses. Taking a few of his hairs with her, she shoved them onto her face and prepared to confront the intruder.
"It's just me." A familiar voice.
"Vincent?" Shera could hardly hear over Cid's growl. It sounded like someone had a grudge.
"Are you alright? We were worried." He knew better than to hold out his hand. Vincent kept his distance.
"I'm fine. We're fine." Shera wiped slobber from her chin with the sleeve of her coat, and dragged herself to her feet. "How are you here?"
"I'll explain. I have a package for you."
X.
Flicking fish tails swirled in and out of his reflection in the mirror. Water rippled over the bright shimmer of scales. He placed his hands on his face and rubbed. The facial hair of his chin grated the roughness of his palms. He had just shaved, but it didn't matter.
He sighed. Cid anchored his knuckles down on the rusted counter top and blankly stared himself in the face. The mirror rippled again. The man in the reflection stopped being a man. Stopped being alone. He could see someone else there hiding in the cracks.
The flow of the creek broke into a mighty rush and the fish scrambled; becoming a blur of bright green, bright brown around the intruding scientist's head. He sneered, and Cid slammed both fists on the water's surface. It broke instantly and everything came bursting out. Everywhere that was anywhere filled to the brim with turbulence, and Cid found himself trapped beneath. Suspended in the lull of the current, while his inhuman echo emerged from the rectangular void of his mirror, shook himself dry, and soundlessly strode over the surface.
He looked down at himself from above. Reversal.
"Wake up, Highwind."
Hojo came out of the bedrock and stabbed him in his neck with something sharp.
XI.
Getting Cid to leave while he was awake was just as hard as getting him to leave while he was asleep. He woke in a stupor that concerned Shera deeply at first. It went away almost completely when he was given something warm to wear, and informed of where he was. He was giddy. Schoolgirl giddy. She had to laugh.
"Wouldja get a load of all this thing, Vince, Shera?! It's what I've been lookin' for. Holy shit!" The Captain didn't know what he wanted to look at first. This was a ship. He could feel it in his gut!
"I'm sure there's much more of it." Shera rubbed the bags beneath her eyes and yawned. She took out her phone for the first time since last evening, and noticed that Reeve had sent her multiple concerned texts in the later morning. "We can come back and take a closer look with a crew." She suggested while searching for the time. It was nearly noon and they weren't home yet. Go figure.
"We've gottah remember where all of this is. You know, right, Sher?" Cid wiped mud from his chin and came out of the dirt clad underside of a heavy duty pipe hub.
"I was awake while you took me here. I'm sure I can remember."
"Reeve may or may not have this location pinned." Vincent stood off near the exit. She could see his breath forming from behind the high collar of his cloak. "You weren't home when I arrived. We figured maybe you'd been caught out in the storm. He tapped your phone location and asked if I would search until he had enough free time to get here."
"Didn't mean to raise any concern." Shera beckoned Cid over with the wave of her hand. They had been trying to leave for a while now. She'd had enough of being out in the cold and was eager to return to the town. A hot bath and a long nap was calling her name.
"Alright, I'm comin'…" Cid sighed and minded his footing to the tunnel
XII.
"You did say you had a package, Vincent?" Shera opened her eyes. The way back was long and trying. The snow couldn't melt fast enough. She gave up halfway through the woods and Cid had to carry her in his arms. Understandably, his poor woman was exhausted.
"Yes. It's with me. Don't worry." The territory became familiar. Vincent gazed out over the tops of the frosted evergreens. The empty launch pad was coming into view. They were close. He could hear loading trucks.
"You can place me down, Cid. I think I can walk." Shera gave him her deepest thanks, and took the Captain's hand after finding her strength on the ground. The clearing before their home was a warm welcome. The absence of trees allowed the midday sun to warm exposed portions of her skin. Midday…they were going to have a lot of explaining to do.
XIII.
"Speak of the crows..." Tamar stiffened beneath the wrap of an oversized, acid green scarf. Thought they could just sneak out of the woods unnoticed? They could damn well think again!
"Mm, thank you Mrs. Patel. I've really got to shimmy off." She grinned, trying to get the old bat to shut up and give her an opportunity to slink away. The reporter had knocked on her door that morning, asking her if it was alright to take a few pictures of the snow behind her house. There were large animal tracks and she didn't hesitate to mention them running her early errands. She smelled gossip on the wind and followed the stench to the source. Minuscule compared to the juicy tid-bits of the previous months, but a few snap shots would do for her up and coming segment. Ross' punishment period would soon be up.
"Hey!" Tamar stood on the border of The Captain's home. Her camera swung around her neck; hands on her hips. She looked from her favorite love birds, to the new face, and back. Very suspicious. No one had seen them yet today, and here they were slithering out of the woods after a snowstorm of all things.
"Fuck off!" Cid called back. "And get the hell out of my yard!" This was not how he wanted to continue his day.
"I'm not in your yard, fuckwit!" Tamar snarled back. She followed them with her eyes, all the way to the back door. If she wasn't in their yard, she was now. The Reporter stomped through the snow to confront them.
"Can we help you Tamar?" Shera's tone was tired and bitter.
"Yeah, where are all of you coming from? Who the hell is he?" She jabbed her finger at Vincent. He was tall and strange looking. Her eye fell on his gauntlet, then up to try and get a good look at his face.
"None of your damn, business."
"This is Vincent. He's a good friend of ours. That's all." Shera pursed her lips. "Is there something wrong?"
"What are you coming out of the woods for? You look like trash." Tamar stomped up to the first, and then yanked her gloves off on the second porch step.
"And you look absolutely radioactive this afternoon. Your point?" Shera held out her hand. Vincent hadn't said a word, but she could sense he was ready to leave. He removed the package from under his cloak and placed it in her hand. "I'll be back with the Commissioner." He mumbled in her ear and passed Tamar down the steps without another word.
"Where is he going?" Vincent moved too quickly for Tamar to sink her claws in and make him stay. She narrowed her eyes into vicious slits at the cooled parcel perched in Shera's hand. She couldn't read the print...yet.
"He'll come back later. Get the hell off of my porch and go away." Cid glared.
"You look like the cat dragged you in, too. Speaking of…" Tamar raised the eyepiece of her camera to her brow and pretended to snap a few images. She was really zooming in and trying to focus the lenses. "Were you going to see your little friend in the woods? You have him caged up somewhere? Or did you let him out? Old Widow Patel had tracks in her yard, and it looks like the snow didn't erase the ones you have either." She stalled; tongue pressed out the corner of her mouth. Tamar could just barely make out the parcel label.
WORLD REGENESIS ORGANIZATION
BUILDING K. DEVELOPMENTAL RESEARCH
CNT. EDGE, EASTERN CONT.
CAPT. CID S. HIGHWIND
454 APOLLO CRT.
ROCKET TOWN, WESTERN CONT.
EXPERIMENTAL, COUNTERACTIVE MEDICATION. BIOHAZARD. FRAGILE. HANDLE WITH CARE.
"Nothing important." Shera placed her hand on the knob of the back door and yanked the view of the parcel behind her thigh when she realized what Tamar was doing. "We're not going to ask you again to leave."
There was a weird look in Tamar's eyes. Momentary confusion after placing her camera down was immediately replaced with haste. She backed down from the porch and stumbled into the snow. She bunched her scarf and powerwalked away in an obvious hurry. The Captain and his assistant stood in silence; watching her break into a run far ahead in the street.
"We'll have to call Ross." Shera assuaged her temple and unlocked the door to the house.