A/N: Chapter 2. :p I really enjoyed it. It was fun. And I wrote about a character that wasn't in the last story at all. Hope you like it. :)
Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII or any of its characters.
Chapter Two
Loz made his way down the road, entering the small town of Nibelheim. He walked with his head held high, a smile on his face. He wore the fact that he was not wounded proudly. No one would have guessed he had spent the night in the wild, challenging whatever creature decided to take a chance with him. His clothes were a little scuffed, and his hair was a little dusty-but either than that, he was untouched.
The workers in the town made their way to and fro, passing by him and some of them waving. Loz returned their greetings, as he made his way toward the outskirts of Nibelheim, where his new home-the only home he had ever had-was located.
He rolled his shoulders, trying to relieve the aches that had built up. A good sleep would get rid of them completely, then he would wake up late that day to do this again.
It wasn't the best thing he could spend his time on, but it also wasn't the worst. At least he was helping people by making the outlying lands a little safer.
Loz suddenly stopped in the middle of the road. He turned his head slightly to the right, listening to the noise of the villagers. Amongst their talking, their rushed footsteps, and all the other sounds they made, he was able to decipher something. It was a single pair of footsteps, different than all the rest. They were light and slow. They stopped now that he stopped, and continued the moment he began walking again.
He had been aware of it since he entered town, but he didn't think much about it. Now he definitely knew something was up.
He continued his way to the house, and quickly pushed the door open. He stepped inside and shut it quickly.
At his presence, Vincent and Kadaj lifted their heads. Vincent stood behind a chair at the table, looking like he was having a serious discussion with Yazoo, who was as uninterested as ever. Kadaj was by the stove, staring at his elder brother with wide eyes, sensing his trouble.
"Someone's following me," Loz informed, before anyone had a chance to ask any questions of him.
Vincent let Yazoo be. He urgently walked passed Loz, his hand ready on Cerberus as he went to the front door and pulled it open. His eyes scanned over the visible parts of the town, looking for anything out of the ordinary. He listened carefully.
Loz cautiously stepped behind him, the young man ready to fight alongside if necessary. The two of them stood intent and silent for a long moment. Nothing looked out of the ordinary, there was nothing suspicious. And the light footsteps had stopped.
"Go back inside," Vincent said softly.
"What?" Loz asked, shocked. "Why?"
"Just do it."
Loz stared at him, disapproving. But in the end, he turned and did as he was told. Vincent pulled the door shut after him, then stepped a few more feet away from the house. His eyes continued to look around.
"I know you're here," he announced, "Come out."
There was no immediate response. He waited a little longer. Eventually, Loz's stalker stepped out from behind the tree in the garden next door. Standing before him was a young woman, a serious expression on her usually non-serious face. Her short black hair blew in the slight breeze, her short cloak following with the same motion. She stood before him, not speaking, her shuriken held ready in her right hand.
Vincent hadn't expected to find her there, but then again, he wasn't really surprised.
"Hello, Yuffie."
"Well?" she replied, her wide eyes asking something of him.
"What?" he asked, removing his hand from his weapon. He turned back to his house, opening the door to walk back inside.
"What do you have to say for yourself?" she elaborated, walking up to him and standing less than a foot away.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
He stepped inside, finding himself immediately faced by Loz. The tall remnant stood there with his arms crossed, staring menacingly at Yuffie as she stepped in behind him. The young ninja immediately lifted her weapon, ready to strike at Loz.
Vincent reached back and grabbed her wrist, forcing her hand down. "Put that thing away," he said. He looked back to Loz, his face flat. "It's alright. She's harmless."
"Harmless?" she echoed, "I'm dangerous!"
Vincent pulled her further inside, further away from Loz and into the kitchen. Kadaj stood there staring at the newcomer, his gaze disapproving.
"Who is this?" he demanded.
"Yuffie," Vincent simply answered, "Yuffie, this is Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz." He gestured to them all respectively, and the ninja looked between them all, disbelief and disapproval on her face.
He let her go and headed for the living room, feeling a headache coming on.
"Vincent!" she called, running up and stopping him. She stood between him and the doorway, staring up at him. She lifted her hands and shrugged, exasperated, as if she didn't know what to say. And unluckily-or luckily-for Vincent, he couldn't read her mind.
"What?"
She gestured to the three remnants all gathered around the table, all staring at her with the same look. "Are you insane?" she asked, "What do you think you're doing, letting those three roam freely? And living with you!"
Kadaj's eyes told of murder, as he slid a helping of eggs onto Yazoo's plate. The drunken remnant paid no attention to his breakfast, and continued to stare ahead at the young woman.
"Those three should be locked away! At least!"
"Have you spoken to Cloud lately?" Vincent asked, crossing his arms and staring at her crossly.
"Yes. And he told me how insane you've gone!"
"It's fine, Yuffie. Settle down."
"Settle down?" She threw her hands up in the air and started to pace around the small room. "You've lost it, Vincent. I know you're lonely and have some issues you need to work out..."
He raised a brow, "Excuse me?"
"...but taking in these delinquents!"
Kadaj sat down at the table, stabbing at his breakfast while still staring at her. Loz hadn't moved, his arms still crossed and his stare still threatening. Neither of them were thrilled about being talked about like they weren't there.
"Yuffie...I'm not going to explain myself to you," he told her curtly. He grabbed her by the wrist, causing her to calm down and look into his eyes. He stooped to stare at her seriously, to make her see how genuine he was. "I want you to be quiet, now. If you refuse, you can leave. I am way too tired, and I do not have the energy for this."
"But Vincent," she said more quietly, drawing in closer to him. Her eyes flashed to the remnants for a second, before she whispered, "They're Sephiroth!"
A fork flew across the room, hitting the ninja square in the head. "Ow!" she exclaimed, holding her bruised cranium.
"Kadaj!" Vincent snapped.
His cell phone suddenly rang, the default tone cutting into the dysfunctional morning. He sighed as he pulled it from his belt and read the number.
He took Yuffie by the shoulder and suddenly turned her around, moving her toward the table. He didn't give her any time to protest, before he sat her in his spot, in front of his breakfast. "Eat, and shut up." He ordered, leaving no room for compromise.
He flipped the phone open, placing it against his ear. "Hello."
"Vincent," Reeve Tuesti's voice came over the other end, sounding neither urgent nor casual, "Is this a bad time?"
"No," he answered, eager to do anything either than have to go back to the insanity in his home. He stood behind Yuffie, keeping a hand on her shoulder to keep her in place...and to keep her from getting attacked.
The four at the table were silent, glaring daggers at each other. Kadaj ate his eggs with his hands, trying to prove he was content without his fork, even though there was under-cooked yoke all over his fingers. Loz hadn't touched his food. Neither had Yazoo, who was still staring forward. Only now he looked like he was staring passed Yuffie, beyond at nothing. Yuffie probably wouldn't have touched the food if her life depended on it.
"What is it?" Vincent inquired.
"We've come across something I thought you might like to check out. As you know, we're still doing a lot of research into ShinRa, and all the projects they had going in the past. We stumbled across a facility recently, one that the President wasn't even aware of, it seems."
"Rufus?" Vincent clarified.
"Yes. He's sent some of his men over here to help with the research."
"He's alright with you having his stuff on your hands?"
"He doesn't have much choice in the matter now," Reeve replied, "We've decided that the best course of action now is to try and uncover as much information as possible. We all know the potential risks that are out there, especially since the Deepground incident."
"Yes. So what did you want me for?"
"There are an extensive amount of files here. We found some on Choas and the work that Lucrecia Crescent performed on the project. And also some files on Sephiroth."
Vincent's eyes went to Kadaj, who was now staring up at him, either wondering what he was talking about or knowing already.
"Would you be interested?" Reeve questioned, after a pause on the line.
"Yes," Vincent answered affirmatively, "I'll be there."
"Great. Contact me when you're in Midgar."
"Alright." Without saying good bye, Vincent closed the phone. His eyes fell from Kadaj to the floor, when he finally found himself faced with a dilemma.
"Be where?" Kadaj questioned, placing his dirty hands together.
"Midgar," he answered simply, reaching down and picking up Kadaj's thrown fork.
"When?"
"Tomorrow."
Kadaj was silent for a second, before asking the obvious question, "Are we going with you?"
"We'll talk about it later," he dismissed it.
"But Vincent..." Kadaj started, before he was interrupted by Yuffie uttering the same phrase. Vincent turned back to them, about to start telling them to be quiet before his inner demons started coming out.
Yazoo suddenly fell over, out of his chair. He crashed to the floor on his side, unmoving and unconscious.
Kadaj sighed in frustration, as Vincent swore under his breath. Nothing about his morning seemed to be going right. "Kadaj...get your brother to bed," he ordered. He grabbed Yuffie by the arm, pulling her up from the chair again. "Come on. We're going for a walk."
"What?" she asked, confused.
"Vincent!" Kadaj called after him.
He ignored all the protests and left the house with Yuffie, leaving the three remnants alone.
Kadaj stood over his passed-out brother, watching the closed door for a few long second. He shook his head and gave up in the end, and went to pick up Yazoo.
A/N: Please review. :)