Author note: Hello, lovelies! We're back, hope you all enjoyed mothers day. Sorry this wasn't out on Monday, I had some things to take care of.
Chapter start
We had found Cloud and Tifa, huddled together on the other side of the mountain. Claudia had grasped around Cloud, pressing their foreheads together, relief pooling from her very being as she cried in relief. The teenage boy didn't react much, exhaustion dripping from his frozen form.
Reno hadn't wasted time. The redhead hadn't teased, hadn't cajoled or whined. Rather he'd pressed an elixir against the white lips, urged Cloud to swallow, fingers coaxing along his throat to encourage the motion. Once it was empty, the ethereal blue of it gone, Reno had ignored all weak protests, hefting Cloud up onto his back.
"Yo, ya ingratitude! I'm the one who has to carry your heavy ass, so stop bitching." He said it gruffly, his worry still somewhat there.
Elixirs and potions. I'd been rightfully shocked and confused that they actually existed. No idea why it had been those items that floored me, considering we had materia and super SOLDIERS running around, but… just really?
The thing was though, it wasn't like in game verse. Elixirs didn't heal you up to perfect metaphorical health and MP. It healed the wounds enough you wouldn't die, and certainly energized the person drinking it, much like an energy drink from earth would have. But it wouldn't bring someone back who was too far gone, blood loss being a factor, and how many and how severe the wounds were.
Cloud was freezing despite his familiarity to the harsh cold, blood had oozed and frozen along his side. The elixir could heal the wounds but couldn't retract the blood, or warm the flesh.
Tseng had handed Tifa a handkerchief, as well as an elixir for herself. She thanked him quietly, wiping at the blood listlessly. I couldn't blame her. Nothing untoward had happened to me, beyond monsters attacking, during the search. If I felt cold, I couldn't imagine how frigid she must have been feeling.
She looked so young. Like a terrified yet resigned child, fingers clutching to the ragged and soaked comforter wrapped around the slim form, face bone white. Tseng and Vergil didn't react to it, ignored the way her eyes followed Cloud. Fear and worry in equal measures. Worried for the precious chocobo who had somehow stopped her fate. Not that she'd know that.
How had she not been knocked into a coma? Even as worry tugged at my brain, causing nausea to flow through my body, pity clouded over it enough I could push it down.
With a tsk, I plodded over, awkwardly shuffling through the snow that had risen to my calves. Fuck this weather. She startled when I snatched the cloth from her fingers, beginning to aggressively swipe at the blood. It flaked off rather than wiped, making me gag.
"Men, I swear," I muttered. "Drink that. Since Cloud is out for the count, you can explain just what the hell you two were doing out here."
If she was startled by my tone, she didn't show it. I smiled with soft satisfaction when her face was clean, handing the cloth back idly, before gluing my self back to Tseng, completely content to snag his body heat. Thus began the trek down the damned mountain, Claudia thankfully knowing another way down, guiding us easily despite the darkening hour. Tifa explained everything as we went, her voice dripping in her regret.
This wasn't something I or the Turks could give comfort on. I hadn't really mourned my mother in this world, and tragically… I realized my old family, old friends, were becoming hazy and light, harder to recall. Had I felt grief? Surely, I had. But I was really an adult, far past the age to remember how death felt as a kid. I should have been in my thirties.
A career all picked out, maybe a family. Maybe the boy I'd innocently thought would be my everything at eighteen would have become my husband, or maybe I'd not have married. Waiting for the sequel to the remake of this game, playing it and knowing my life would at least never have monsters like in the game world. What a slap that has been.
It wasn't often I let myself think about it. There was still too much to do here, after all. Like wondering at Cloud, how he had evolved after only a week of Reno padding his confidence. Would he still have the same drive to become strong, to become a "hero" like Sephiroth?
When we arrived back to the town it was well and truly dark. Why did everything have to happen in the dark with these people?
"Tifa!" The mayor ran forward, grabbing his daughter in a tight hug. The girl collapsed, and we watched idly, before I waved Reno away, having him shuffle Cloud to the mansion.
A hot bath, maybe something warm to eat… then rest. Lots of rest, probably. He'd be good as new, soon. Before we could make it to the mansion gates though, a loud outcry halted us. My nerves, frayed from the cold and the fact canon had altered, ripped apart.
"What the hell are you going to do about this! My daughter almost died because of that bastard!" The mayor was red faced; his minions gathered around in righteous fury.
"Dad, no! This wasn't Clouds fault, I- "
I turned around, cooking my hip out. "What am I going to do about it? Not a thing."
"He almost got my daughter killed!" He shouted it, only halting when Boulder snarled, hunkering lower to pounce. "They've been a plague on this town, and now Shinra is endorsing it."
"As a matter of fact… who was stupid enough to tell kids that dead people were on the other side of a mountain?"
Some of the townspeople flinched. I glanced to Vergil, surprised he'd spoken up. Then again… if he was getting close to Claudia, then… made sense.
Tseng sighed, but didn't abandon the other Turk. Reno had paused as well, Cloud dangling over his shoulder as he smirked lazily. Even Vincent seemed to subtly shift, blending in with the Turk youths easily.
"My daughter," The mayor began, but I was done as well.
"Your daughter would be dead if he hadn't been there." I shifted closer, smiling slightly. "Lying at the bottom of that ravine. And you'd be all alone."
I huffed. "Then again, with a personality like yours, it's going to happen regardless of if she keeps breathing or not."
His face went red with his anger. "You can say such arrogant things, being a Shinra. All I see is a power hungry, useless brat. You think this town needs anyone from Shinra?"
I couldn't have foreseen what happened next. The mayor had halted his speech, confused, when Tseng had stepped calmly forward, his expression as always, blank. Then the shot had rung out.
Many of the townspeople shrieked, shying away from the mess. None stepped up, only Tifa doing the opposite. She'd flung herself to her fathers side, but was yanked brutally away by Vergil. Pretty sure her shoulder had popped out of socket.
The mayor was on the ground, too stung to even scream. Blood leaked onto the powdery snow beneath him from the bullet Tseng had directed into his stomach, hands weakly clinging at it.
"Tseng," I muttered. It wasn't necessarily to make him back off. But still, to coldly kill a man in front if his daughter.
The silent Turk didn't even turn to me. "The VP was very concerned for you traveling so far without your usual guards. I was instructed to eliminate any detriment to you, mental or physical."
My God, they were morons. They had to think pretty damn low of my mental state. The sigh that came out of my body could only be called tired. "And you think the voice of an overwrought Father is enough to break my heart? My hero."
"I've killed for much less insult," was his easy return.
Totally. That's a terrific way of looking at things. "Listen, he's a pig, with no manners, and a piss poor manner towards women. But he's also an idiot who just lost his wife. I assume he loved her, or at least the idea of her.
"Let it go, Tseng." I pressed the muzzle of his gun down, somewhat surprised when he let me. "And drop Tifa. The girl only has her father left, and I don't think Rufus will let me have another stray."
Vergil let her go, ignoring the way she glared at him. She dropped down to her father, the townspeople still loitering but refusing to help either side. Reno had done a job at hinting what happened to those who crossed Shinra. Tseng had demonstrated how little it took to be considered crossing the line.
"Did you, like, shoot him anywhere important?" I asked, fed up and tired.
"No. Nothing vital was hit."
"Then potion the bastard and let me go to sleep."
"Sophie-"
Seeing the frown on his face, I waved him off and turned away, stumbling in the snow. "Lecture me about my language later. I'm tired, I'm cold. Cloud needs to be in a bed, not hanging off of Reno. Get them home."
I drug Vincent to my second room, since my first was still without a door thanks to Boulder. The bitch trotted ahead of me, perfectly content to leap onto the mattress, swirling the blankets around him. What a cover hog.
"Here," I muttered.
He caught the PHS I tossed him, a spare o had nagged Vergil for. "Keep in touch with this. The other Turks numbers are in there as well. I assume… you don't want to let the senior Turks know your around?"
His head tipped. "Not unless necessary. I will guard this mansion when I'm not searching for Lucrecia. You certainly didn't win any allies with that stunt."
"Me? What do I care about a village this far out? It's pitiful they're small minded, but I can't help that. Or the orders that go over my own. Like from my brother or father."
"I saw your eyes." He responded to me with a mild tone. "You wouldn't have cared had the man been killed."
Was he… right? Being a Shinra meant I'd become accustomed to a level of violence. Even the scent of blood, so disgusting to the point I became nauseous, wasn't terrible. The times one of my boys had come back smelling of it, or covered in it. I hadn't minded then, happily grabbing them into hugs or their hands, welcoming them home. Knowing they killed innocent people as easily as I blinked.
It should have been a huge deterrent. Yet… "I told Tseng to heal him, didn't I?"
"For the girls sake. I'm no stranger to how Shinra operates. Or how everyone is twisted by it."
I smiled gently, clapping my hands lightly. "Ah, let me guess. You've killed for less, too?"
He nodded once. What drama.
The next day, I was still off balance. Cloud had somehow kept Tifa from her coma. Was the kid really so approval starved that the most random of Turks could coax out that much potential in a week? Jesus, the game hadn't touched on that much
I had requested supplies be delivered to the small town, which Rufus had done admirably. The helicopters arrived in the midafternoon, Vergil dragging me out to them. I bitterly bundled myself, trudging out miserably.
The townspeople were again all milling about, curiosity and fear. They gave us weak glares, parting as Vergil went straight for the helicopters, Tseng, Reno, and surprisingly enough Vincent and Cloud already uploading them with the pilots. Boxes of preserved food, blankets, clothes of all sizes.
It had irked me, this town. I wore the finest materials, lined with soft fur and still I was miserable. Yet I'd seen many of the adults and children running about with holes in their clothing. Or gods, barefoot. I shuddered, eyeballing a little boy whose toes curled into the snow, red and angry looking. Holes decorated his clothing as well.
I'd known, logically, Nibelheim was a poor mountain town. I hadn't known how poor, the game bit giving any indication on how hard it really was. I… hated this town, as of this moment. But I wasn't heartless, tragically.
I paused beside the child, who gazed up at me in wary confusion. He startled when I offered my hand, flinching back as though I would hit him. Pity took me.
"Come here. Everything is going to be fine," I softly cooed. My voice was perfectly pitched, smile that of an innocent angel. "We'll get you all warmed up."
He took my hand after a moment. The feel of the small fingers froze me through the gloves, shudder going through me. No parent protested. Another major issue, orphans. Death wasn't uncommon in a small town like this one.
Monsters were more than happy to take over the killing that the harsh elements didn't. Claudia had been heartbroken when she murmured it out, after I'd asked why there were children sleeping close to the houses and the mansion. It was shelter from the wind, and the hope that some of the heat would trickle out.
I couldn't exactly blame the townspeople for not taking better care of each other. They did what they could, but most of them had several children themselves, and couldn't afford more mouths to feed. They gave what they could, the mayor even going out to the wilderness himself to try and bring back more edible monster flesh for them all. His one good feature. Maybe I could have respectfully tolerated him, had he not so focused on hatred for the Strife family.
Still, that wasn't here nor there. I lifted the boy up, feeling his ribs through his too thin and worn jacket. Tseng glanced at me, then the boy once we paused beside him.
"All the supplies you ordered have arrived. Rufus adds however, he wants you to come back to Midgar."
"Of course, he does." I set the boy onto Boulder, who woofed, tail wagging. "What's your name?"
The boy looked a little afraid. But his fingers wound into the soft material of the moss green sweater I'd decked Boulder in, absorbing the incredible heat that rolled off the hound. Damn thing was a heater, making me kick covers off in the middle of the night since he slept curled on my legs most nights.
"It's Trevor."
I hummed, already kneeling to take his little foot into my hands. Loosely holding his ankle when he tried to jerk away, Tseng handed down first a pair of thick socks. I put them on the boy, making sure they were a decent fit.
"Trevor. I have an offer for you." I tried to push his feet into some boots. Too small. I handed then back to Tseng, taking a different pair. Ah, perfect. "Miss Claudia is going to be taking care of my mansion. But she's going to need help. It can be scary being all alone, in a big place like that."
I maneuvered him into a coat next, buttoning it up. "I really hope you and your friends will stay with her."
With gentle touch, Boulder laid down, letting Trevor slide off his back. The boy was frozen, tears in his eyes as the warmth hit him. Probably the first shoes he'd had in a while that fit him, or the first new thing he'd had in a while.
"Is this a bribe," he asked. There was something wrong with a kid knowing that word. My brows arched, before my head shook.
"No. I'm going to take care of this town regardless. So long as you're in Nibelheim, I'll keep you clothed and, ideally, fed. Housing though… all I have is the mansion. Which I'd like all of you Street kids to help keep safe."
"But that woman is sinful." He recited it and I almost recoiled, taking my frayed nerves out on him. Teeth sunk into the soft muscle of my tongue, biting it to keep myself in check.
"No, she isn't. She's a very kind, very warm woman. I know she's been making extra food, leaving it out for you and your friends." She could afford to now, with the exorbitant Gil dropped into her hands.
He glanced at Claudia, who had stepped forward to a different child, offering the small girl a scarf. Slowly, he nodded.
"I'll stay with her."
"Thank you. I can rest easily now."
Of course, I wasn't going to nonchalantly turn the Shinra mansion into an orphanage, leaving Claudia with a bunch of brats and adults who may react bitterly. With the helicopter of supplies, came two third class SOLDIERS, and five armed Shinra troopers, as well as a Turk. Courtesy of Rufus, who used his power to flex over Lazard and Heidegger. The Turk wasn't an issue at all.
I glanced at Vergil. Maybe he'd have a good life here. I swallowed, turning to the townspeople who were now more confused than ever.
"We may have gotten off on the wrong foot." I raised my voice to be heard. "I'll be honest. I seriously… seriously hate the cold. So I haven't been the best at taking in all I'm sure this town has to offer."
I gestured behind me. "You may feel like you don't need Shinra, and that's fine. You're welcome to turn this down. But these are supplies to help you and your families survive the winter. And if needed, they'll continue for the town in other seasons. For now, I hope you'll accept these, knowing that all I want is to see you all thrive."
Very few, in the end, turned anything down. They erred on the side of caution, thanking us in formal tones, but the relief on their faces was obvious. Mothers broke down in tears, seeing their children in decent clothing, while the rations were handed over as well, blankets draped around shoulders.
We collected the orphans, as well, corralling them, so they could be led back to Shinra manner when all was said and done. They played with and on Boulder, who took it in stride, chasing them playfully or knocking them down with his heavier bulk. One little girl with puffy, poorly done braids clung to my coat, for some odd reason. It equal parts annoyed me, as much as it stirred forgotten dreams.
She was skin and bone, reminding me sharply of Aerith when we'd first met. She even had similar green eyes, curious and always watery it seemed. Maybe it was the cold biting into her face. Since the kid seemed allergic to wearing her scarf properly. Once we were inside, I introduced them all to Claudia, and Claudia to her new "employees".
If they thought anything odd about the fact I sat in a chair with the girl in front of me, first brushing her hair neatly, as I made the introductions, they all remained wisely silent. My fingers curled through the strands, neatly creating a fishtail braid from memory.
"Tell Rufus I'll be leaving at the end of the week. I need to make sure everything runs smoothly here first."
"Of course," Tseng smoothly replied. I ignored the way he was already typing away the news.
