It was Monday morning, and Rufus was sitting on his lounge, immaculately dressed, waiting for Tseng to show up and escort him to the ribbon-cutting ceremony. And even now, his mind gave him no peace as he contemplated the implications of this new Memorial Museum. It was meant to highlight the significant achievements that Mako energy has paved the way for by spotlighting the department heads and their contributions to Shinra. What it was, in reality, was a glorified monument of his father as depicted by the tactless gold statue of him. And quite frankly made Rufus sick. His father was a leecher and fed off the adoration of his Directors and the unenlightened populace. The funny thing, though, was none of them realized just how well the Old Man had manipulated them, and that made Rufus snicker—fawning over his father bowing to his every whim while he lavished in the fruits; of their labour, they indeed were pathetic! Yet, each believed they were essential and integral cogs in the wheel propelled Shinra forward.
The extravagant display of wasted money spent on this project irritated Rufus to no end. But that his father insisted that he be present for this unveiling, as Rufus was not included or spotlighted in any of the displays, unnerved him. Rufus probably wouldn't have given it a second thought if Veld hadn't given him that watch the other week. Or if Tseng hadn't unexpectedly shown up the other evening to go over the safety protocols for this event with him in person. But they had, and now Rufus was getting bouts of foreboding and wondered if there was something afoot? But try as he did. Rufus could not get Tseng to reveal anything beyond stating that the location warranted the extra protection.
Feeling restless, Rufus stood, mimosa in hand, and walked over to the set of bay windows that overlooked Sectors Four and Five and, deep in thought, Rufus stared pensively over the city. As he sipped his drink, his left hand restlessly fidgeted with the ring he had secured to the chain he wore around his neck. It was his mother's wedding ring which he had found lying on his pillow a week after his mother had been found dead. Rufus had no clue how it had got there, but intuition had told him never to mention it to his father. So Rufus had hidden it in the small jewellery box his mother had given to him for Christmas that year. Along with the cuff links and tie pin she had gifted to him for his sixteenth birthday. And there it stayed until he had left Midgar for school and arrived in Costa-Du-Sol where he had purchased a large necklace of flattened Mythril and had slipped the ring onto and had worn ever since, hidden, under his shirt.
Looking at it now, he saw the once clear gemstone was still mercy in colouration. But there had been two very stressful times while he was at school where the gem had been as clear as it had been when his mother had worn it. The first had been near the end of his first year of school, and Daiki, his first and only roommate and first lover, had casually ended their relationship before returning to his homeland. Being Rufus's first real intimate relationship, the breakup had devastated him. Outwardly he had shown a calm and relaxed visage as he bid his ex-lover goodbye. But internally, he was tearing himself apart with accusations of unworthiness, doubt and insecurities. And as Rufus watched Daiki walk away, he took out the ring and held onto it as the storm of emotions tried to take him over. He had been so angry with himself for believing that there was more to their relationship than just sex. But as the minutes ticked by, Rufus felt the ring begin to warm in his hand, and as he looked at it, the stone started to clear. Shocked for words, Rufus had stared into its depths for quite a while as strangely, it felt like those times his mother would hug him and soothe him after being chastised by his father. And Rufus had been able to calm himself and move forward from that painful lesson.
The second came in his fourth year of school when two of his friends, Viviana and Xavier, had approached him about meeting members of an Eco group they thought Rufus might be interested in. Being two of his closest friends, they both knew Rufus's vision for the future of Shinra was not the same as his father's. And as Rufus learned what the Lifestream was and having lived in Midgar and seeing first hand what refining it into Mako energy was doing to the region. Along with the strangely haunting dreams of fire and destruction on a mass scale he had been getting periodically throughout his life. Rufus had begun to take some extra credits, unknown to his father, about eco-friendly methods of producing clean and efficient energy and ways to turn them into profitable ventures. So the pair knew that Rufus, and his financial backing, would be a beneficial addition to the group's mission statement.
The first meeting had almost been a disaster. Being held in the bar in Costa-Du-Sol, Viviana made introductions and Elfe, Avalanche's leader, learned who he was. She almost smoked Rufus right there on the spot with a master fire spell. But the bar was packed with customers that night, and Viviana begged Elfe to hear Rufus out before passing judgment. It had taken close to three hours of not stop interrogation before the women had been satisfied that Rufus was sincere in his desire to usher in a new era for the company. And that he was willing to do whatever it took to see it come to fruition. Elfe's only stipulation had that no innocent lives were to be involved.
After the party members had left, Viviana and Xavier took a stroll along the beach and Rufus had stayed behind nursing a drink and wondering what the hell had just happened. Had he thrown his lot in with what he now realized was an Eco-terrorist group? Granted, staying behind the scenes gave him a certain amount of protection. But if he were ever found out, it would mean certain death! As he mulled over the ramifications of the situation he had just put himself in, Rufus began to panic and doubted himself. But as he withdrew his mother's ring and saw that it was clear, Rufus was overcome with a feeling of approval that he had made the right decision. And so began his venture into the world of espionage and essentially Eco-terrorism.
So lost in those memories, Rufus hadn't heard Tseng knock or door buzzer. Not even DarkNation, head butting him seem to pull him out of his rever.
Tseng stood outside Rufus's apartment, waiting to answer his door. But when five minutes had passed, Tseng became both worried and angry. They had agreed to meet at Ten Oclock, so either something had happened to Rufus, or he was pulling a suck fit. Sighing, Tseng used his key card and unlocked the door. Stepping into the apartment, Tseng heard D whining in the living room. So he headed in the direction first. Upon entering, Tseng saw Rufus standing in front of the window. A, now empty, glass in his right hand while his left appeared to be holding something in front of him. Rufus was staring at whatever it was. And D looking between the two men as if to say 'I tried.'
Tseng firmly called out to him, "Rufus!"
Startled out of his thoughts, Rufus quickly let the ring fall back inside his shirt and gave himself a moment to compose and school his features. turning, "Tseng, you have arrived!"
Baffled by Rufus's behaviour, Tseng replied. "Yes, like five minutes ago! Is something wrong?" He inquired carefully.
"Not at all. I was just wool-gathering." Rufus replied in an off-the-cuff manner.
Tseng nodded and refrained from inquiring what had been in his hand moments earlier. "After you, Sir!"
Rufus chuckled. "Always the professional!" He countered in a slightly mocking voice. "Sorry, girl. You have to stay here today. Daddy dearest doesn't want you scaring any of his friends!" Rufus reluctantly added as D proceeded to follow them. Dark whined, but the touch to her forehead combined with the hand signal to lay down convinced her that Rufus would be alright without her. But before laying down in her bed. She shot Tseng a look that clearly said, 'You had better keep him safe!"
Tseng nodded to the hound, his lips twitching slightly. Who would have thought that these animals possessed this kind of intelligence? But Tseng had witnessed on many occasions that Darknation, at least, exhibited a higher degree of thought and communication than one might expect. And as he followed Rufus out the door, he pondered what might happen to the person who either harmed or let harm come to Rufus, should Dark find out about it! It was a sobering thought.
Having again dawned in her Ethan disguise, Evelynn sat comfortably on the couch, reading the Midgar Times. She was still baffled at how Miranda had convinced her to stay, but the arrangement suited Evelynn perfectly. She would now assume the role of Helen's care during the day. Only needing overnight support for the foreseeable future, allowing Evelynn to remain safely in Midgar without rousing any suspicion. The two women soon reestablished the close bond of friendship they had had so many years prior.
It had taken a few visits to catch up on all that happened. As neither of them felt it was safe to deviate from the schedule that Miranda had already had in place. But by the third visit, Evelynn was more than convinced that something was afoot within the cesspit her ex-husband called a business. There were rumours, many of them, about citizens from the slums being hired to work for Shinra only never to return. Mostly un-noteworthy people, like those with a history of substance abuse, homelessness, and prostitutes. People who wouldn't be missed right away, if at all. And this was worrisome as Evelynn knew, from careful investigations, that some of the genetic research being conducted for the SOLDIER program was trialled on human specimens and through less than moral methods. The images that came to Evelynn's mind were nothing short of horrific and sent chills down her spine.
Evelynn wasn't what one might call a clairvoyant, but the ability of precognition did run in her family, and she would get flashes of images running through her mind. Only to see these events come to pass at a later date. It was this ability that gave her the forewarning of her husband's plans of ridding himself of her. The subtle warning she had received about her son becoming dangerously distressed led her to the small resort town of Costa Del Sol. Here she had found Rufus attending university and was delighted to realize that she, fully disguised as a local, could be this close to him without raising suspicions.
The first time Rufus had needed her had been at the end of his first year as she witnessed the ending of what she assumed was Rufus's first real experience with a romantic relationship. Seeing the heartbreak and devastation on his face has torn Evelynn's heart out. But she projected thoughts of comfort and condolences his way, which seemed to not only calm him but let him move forward. The second was when Rufus decided to join a group fighting for Mako independence. But, after the fact, his uncertainty and indecision sent him into a chaotic spiral of doubt and suspicion that had him second-guessing himself. But just a few minutes of Evelynn mentally assuring her son that he had made the right choice calmed him enough and let him carry on with his plans. It was this that convinced Evelynn of the strength of the Mother and Son bond they shared, even if Rufus wasn't aware of it. Because through that bond, she knew Rufus planned to dethrone his father and take the reins of Shinra into a new era.
Discontented with not being able to go Top-side and keep a direct eye on Rufus, Evelynn turned on the T.V. only to see Rufus standing beside his father, both of them flanked by a Turk, as her Ex-husband's voice almost boomed out of the speakers. Turning the volume down, Evelynn listened and watched as Reginald droned on about how Mako had improved the people's lives and how he and his directors would keep advancing the technology to continue to meet the needs of Midgar and its citizens. Evelynn felt like she was going to hurl. The excessive insincerity she heard spewing from her husband while the multitude of people gazed on if rapt adoration was sickening.
Looking at Rufus, though, made her laugh. He stood in an almost mirrored position of the Turk standing behind and right. Legs slightly spread and hands clasped behind their backs. But the look on his face was about three seconds from an eye roll and a deep groan. Rufus did not look impressed in the slightest. However, Evelynn did note how striking the two looked standing together. Rufus, dressed in a white suit and tie. Black dress-shirt and shoes as accent. His short, now platinum blonde hair-courtesy of the bleaching rays of the Costa sun, combed and styled elegantly while the right side of his bangs was left to hang gently. While the Turk, one whom Evelynn did not recognize, was dressed in black, the exception being the dress shirt of white. His long ebony hair reached past his shoulders and was pulled back into a partial tail from the sides and top. Evelynn wondered if perhaps they might be lovers but discarded that thought, knowing the Turks never got personal. A job was a job!
Sighing, Evelynn began to study the Directors. Veld, now the Director, stood behind Reginald, hadn't changed too much. His hair had more grey, and his face looked more careworn, but he still held himself with every inch of Turk professionalism. Heidegger and Scarlett, she knew as they had been a part of her husband's company from the very beginning. And both looked as slimy as ever. The short, portly, balding man was a recent addition. And if her reports were accurate. This man was Palmer and head of Space Development. The raven-haired man with the beard and mustache must be Reeve, the Head of Urbane Development. And the smirking, rat-faced weasel dressed in the lab coat could be none other than Hojo. And staring at that man gave Evelynn extreme chills and a deep sense of foreboding.
In the next instant, two gunshots rang out, causing pandemonium to break out in the crowd. People were screaming and running, terrified for their lives. The camera got a quick shot of both Turks covering their chargers before the live feed was cut, and the newscaster came back with letting everyone know that they would be following up with the breaking event as more information was released.
Evelynn sat there, staring at the banner that slid across the screen in stunned silence. Her heart had plummeted into her stomach and was now beating a hundred miles a minute. "Oh Goddess Bless! Let Rufus be alright," She silently cried.