A/N: I really had fun writing this chapter. I hope you have just as much fun reading it. ^_^
Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy VII or any of its characters.
Chapter Eleven
Tifa made her way along the streets, listening to the laughter of the other people who crowded the city with her that night. Music filled the warm night, the street lights and the lights coming through the windows of the shops and bars illuminated her path. The whole atmosphere of the night was calm. There were no loud people in the streets, no drunkards fumbling to get home. It was much too early for that anyway.
She smiled as she looked up, seeing the stars that were just beginning to shine. This walk was just what she needed. For reasons she couldn't quite pinpoint, she had been stressed lately. Things didn't seem comfortable anymore.
Maybe it was the time of year. It was this time four years ago, when the battle with Sephiroth began...when Aeris had been killed.
"You look upset," a voice said behind her, startling her and rattling her from her reverie. She spun around quickly, staring in confusion at the tall man who stood behind her. He wore a thin, hooded jacket, the hood pulled over his head to hide his infamous silver hair.
"Loz?" she asked, glancing around quickly. No one paid attention to the two of them. "What are you doing here?"
He shrugged, a smile lifting the corner of his lips.
"Where's Yuffie?"
He shrugged again, feigning ignorance. Tifa knew better. The young ninja was supposed to be with him at the church, and even though she scarcely went within ten yards of the remnant, she kept a careful eye on him. Tifa was curious as to how he managed to elude her.
"Aren't you not supposed to be out here?" she questioned, after not getting a response from her last words. She reached out and tugged at the bottom of his jacket, getting another smile from him.
"You like it?" he asked, "I bought it."
"You bought it?" she repeated, doubtful. She recalled when she had found him earlier that year, and how he had been stealing everything he needed.
"Yes, I did."
She decided not to push the matter. She turned back to her original direction and began walking again, the remnant now beside her. They walked for a bit, silence between them. Tifa found herself smiling again, and realized she enjoyed his company.
"So why are you upset?" he asked.
She crossed her arms, her gaze falling to the ground for a moment, "I'm not upset. I'm just...thinking."
"About what?"
"About Aeris," she answered, looking back at him with a smile. She expected him to return it, knowing how ecstatic his brothers had become over their new "mother". She figured he felt the same, and was confused when she saw him avoid her gaze, a hardened look on his face. "It's been almost four years now," she continued, not sure how to take his change in mood, "It seems so far away, yet, at the same time, like it just happened yesterday. I wish she hadn't been taken away from us, yet...sometimes it still feels like she's here. You know?"
"No," he answered bluntly, "I wouldn't know."
She didn't reply. They walked a few more steps, his eyes still ahead at nothing, as he mulled over something difficultly. She waited, and eventually, he did speak. "Mother doesn't talk to me."
"Aeris?"
He nodded.
"You've never seen her?"
"I've had a few dreams, but that's all they are-dreams. She doesn't talk with me like she does Kadaj or Yazoo."
Tifa thought over what he told her and felt sorry for him, as she saw how hurt he was over it. "Maybe she speaks to you in other ways? Sometimes, things aren't so obvious. You have to look deeper to find them. I'm sure she's there, Loz. Just try and be patient, and listen harder."
He stopped walking and turned to face her. His hardened expression softened, and he met her eyes as she stopped along side him. She offered him a soft smile, and the look in his eyes completely changed. It was look she was familiar with, and a look that was making her uncomfortable.
"You're beautiful," he suddenly announced.
She turned away from him, both awkward and bashful.
"And I don't mean just your smile, or your eyes, or your hair..."
"Loz," she stopped him, knowing what he was trying to say to her.
The sound of her phone ringing cut through the awkward moment, much to her relief. She turned away from him and pulled it from her belt, looking at the number before she answered. Yuffie. She should have been expecting that one. She looked back at Loz-and his changed demeanor-briefly, before opening the cell phone and placing it to her ear.
"Yes?" she asked.
"Where is he?" Yuffie asked, as if she knew he would automatically gravitate back to her. The ninja was clearly frustrated.
"He's here," Tifa answered, trying to hold back a chuckle.
"That good-for-nothing, over-grown...remnant!"
"What happened? He wouldn't tell me. How'd he slip away?" She looked to Loz again to see him with a triumphant smile on his face.
"He's slick!" Yuffie answered, "You wouldn't think it, but he's sneaky."
"She fell asleep," Loz clarified.
"He's here with me, he won't be going anywhere," Tifa assured her.
"I'm on my way there to pick him up."
"I don't think that'll be necessary," Tifa said. She couldn't exactly imagine the young girl coming and dragging him away. Not like he would listen to her anyway.
"And don't tell Vincent about this!" she snapped, before suddenly hanging up the phone.
Tifa shook her head as she closed the phone again, replacing it on her belt. "She'll be coming to join us."
Loz huffed and shook his head, crossing his arms as he turned from the woman. He began walking again, and she followed after him, glad the last piece of their conversation was already forgotten.
"You shouldn't ditch her like that," Tifa advised.
"She's annoying!"
"Yuffie can be a bit...eccentric, but Vincent told her-"
She was interrupted by a loud voice that disrupted the quiet night. The both of them stopped in their tracks, along with all the other people there. They looked the direction of the yell, curious and cautious.
"Hey!" the same voice called again, yelling intensely.
A man came tearing down the street unexpectedly, pushing aside anyone who got in the way, knocking over pedestrians in an attempt to get as far away as possible.
"Stop him!" the man cried from behind him, feebly attempting to chase after him, "He stole my wallet, stop him!"
The man fled passed Tifa and Loz, the remnant jumping out at him only a second after he had passed. He grabbed the man by the back of the collar, bringing his flight to a sudden halt. He was pulled back, then flung to the ground. He landed harshly on his back, the wind being knocked out of him and the wallet flying from his hands.
Loz rose back to his full height, smiling as the thief laid incapacitated on the ground. The wallet skidded along the ground, its owner running up to the scene and stopping before it all. He quickly gathered his possession, then turned his attention to Loz, a grateful smile stretching across his face.
"Thank you!" he said, "Thank you so much. You have no idea how much I need this money." He stopped himself when his need for oxygen got the better of him. He leaned forward and breathed heavily to catch his breath.
Loz didn't respond to his gratitude. He only smiled, turning his attention back to Tifa.
She returned the gesture warily, knowing he had done this act of kindness mostly to impress her. That was alright, she figured. As long as someone was helped by it. She stepped closer to him, taking his hood and pulling it back over his head. The quickly movement had caused it to fall down.
"Hey," a man in the crowd said, his voice suspicious as he stepped forward and approached Loz. He looked directly at his face, and the silver hair he could see from under the hood. "You! You're one of the terrorists that attacked our city! Two years ago."
Tifa looked between the two, her fear realized. Loz took a step back from the man, averting his gaze as he continued to scrutinize him. He didn't say anything to him. He didn't lie, he didn't defend himself. He only stood there for the crowd to see, for them to examine with their own judgment.
"You brought those creatures here. You took our children and killed all those people!"
"Wait," Tifa said, stepping forward, trying to keep the situation calm.
"You destroyed our monument," another man interjected, "You brought so much destruction to our already hurting city!"
The people around them were beginning to talk amongst themselves, many of them shooting the remnant hateful glances. Now that it was mentioned, they recognized him as well. The injustices from two years ago were suddenly brought back to their memory. The thief on the ground was forgotten. The only one who still remembered the recent theft was the owner of the wallet, who stood in conflict with himself, unsure of what all these people were saying.
"He's different now," Tifa tried to defend him. But her words were lost among the words that started to rise in anger, the accusations that were thrown around.
Loz stood silent throughout it all. He glanced around at all of them, as they called for his death and punishment. He suddenly turned from them, running away.
"Loz!" Tifa called. She immediately followed after him, leaving behind the crowd that was urging him to get away from their city. She lost sight of him among all the citizens, and in the darkness, he blended in with shadows, disappearing from her sight.
She stopped when she was convinced she could follow him no longer. She sighed heavily, the noise of the riled up crowd a murmur in the distance. The reality of their situation with the remnants made its way back to her mind. She was reminded once again of what they really were, and all the things they had done. No matter how different they had become, some things just couldn't be erased from memory.
Shelke stared at the mountains they had left behind, taking in their shape in the darkness. Midgar was far behind those mountains, the first home she had had in years quite a distance away. She wasn't bothered by this. It didn't upset her, but she knew that at one point or another, she would miss the warm bar and its warm occupants. She would miss Tifa's words of wisdom, Cloud's silent demeanor, and the smiling faces of the children she had come to think of as younger siblings.
Her thoughts of them elicited a smile. She turned away from those mountains, her smile falling away as her attention was taken by the solemn remnant. There were no smiling faces here, and no words of wisdom.
They had traveled just beyond Junon now, and were heading the direction of Fort Condor. Shelke was wondering what Yazoo intended to do once he got there. And what type of excitement was he looking for? The only excitement they had thus far was some site-seeing.
"It might actually be more fun if we had a goal in mind," Shelke advised, breaking the ten-hour-long silence between them.
Yazoo looked up at her from his place by his bike. He was carefully examining the motorcycle. It had started acting strange ever since they left Junon. "No one's forcing you to follow me," he replied.
"But how could I have refused your generous offer?" she teased, in her own flat way. She leaned against the bike, watching the remnant was he walked along the edge of the forest they had stopped beside.
They didn't say anything more. They fell back into the structure of their strange companionship. Shelke figured this would be another quiet, uneventful night. She wondered how Yazoo, who had been so restless elsewhere, was content to just drive over the world, unsure of where he was going. Perhaps it was just the freedom he longed for, to get away from his rather odd family structure.
Shelke's thoughts were interrupted when a rock unexpectedly flew through the hair, hitting Yazoo square in the head. She stared in shock as the precise hit caused him to crumble to the ground.
"Yazoo!" she called.
A/N: *evil snicker* Now the really interesting stuff starts happening...
Please review. ^_^