A/N: Rated M for language and sexual content. Standard Disclaimer applies.
Updated 7/1/2020: Massive edits throughout to stop Reno from being a narcissistic abuser.
Chapter 12:
Upon landing in Nibelheim, Vincent and Tifa were immediately greeted by a pack of Nibel wolves. Tifa groaned as she readied herself for a fight, while Vincent began firing his weapon. Cid took off in the Highwind, promising to return the next day. He would have stayed, he said, but worried about leaving the airship alone overnight without the safety of the electric fencing he had built in Rocket Town.
When Vincent and Tifa were finished with the wolves, they entered Nibelheim, walking beneath the town sign that now hung lopsided from an apparent monster attack. The streets were quiet, eerily so. Tifa wondered if it was due to the constant threat of monster attacks or if it was still the same quietness they had experienced when they first discovered the town had been rebuilt.
Yet as they walked deeper into the town, Tifa realized there were no monsters in the town square. She turned around to examine the path they had just taken. She could see fiends back on the grassy plains outside the town, but they seemed to be avoiding the village itself. She couldn't blame them. With everything that had happened in this town, she wanted to avoid it, too.
She looked around at the weathered buildings and the old well, neither her nor Vincent saying a word. The buildings looked just as they had when she was a kid, which still creeped her out since Shinra had rebuilt the town. Tifa could never figure out how Shinra managed to get every detail exactly right except for the poor acting skills of the Shinra employees hired to be townspeople. The air was chilled as they made their way toward the manor and Tifa wrapped her arms around her chest to keep warm. Vincent stopped just outside the inn.
"We should get a fresh start in the morning," he said.
Tifa readily agreed. She was exhausted from her fight with Cloud in The Forgotten Capital and just wanted to fall asleep to forget this day ever happened. She couldn't believe she had been so stupid as to follow Cloud. She felt like a fool and she was humiliated. She thought he was sick; but he just didn't love her anymore. He missed Aerith too much and would apparently rather live alone next to the lake where she was buried than with living, breathing Tifa. She had been battling tears ever since she left him earlier in the day. Thankfully, neither Vincent nor Cid asked her what happened.
She tried to focus on why she was back in Nibelheim, the absolute last place on Gaia she wanted to be – well, second to last, now. She remembered how many monsters lurked inside the Shinra mansion years ago and could only imagine how many were there now.
She cringed. AVALANCHE's first journey to the manor was like something out of a horror movie. The floors creaked, dust and cobwebs covered everything, and monsters jumped out to scare them at every turn. She recalled how much they struggled to solve Hojo's riddle to get the key to find Vincent. On far too many occasions, she had considered begging Cloud to give up, but he was determined. If Aerith hadn't been there to keep them healed, Tifa didn't think any of them would have survived.
And… her thoughts were right back to Cloud. Tifa hadn't felt like a third wheel when they were in the Shinra manor two years ago, but she now realized she had been. She must have been the third wheel a lot.
She dreaded returning to the manor, even though she was now so much stronger than she had been back then.
She and Vincent entered the inn and approached the clerk's desk.
"Two rooms," Vincent said, holding up two metal fingers for emphasis. The clerk was visibly nervous in Vincent's presence. His voice wavered as he spoke.
"I'm sorry… we only have one room available," he said, mentally bracing himself to be attacked by the frightening man standing before him.
Vincent looked at Tifa, who shrugged. It wasn't like she hadn't had to share a room with members of AVALANCHE before. Vincent turned his head back to the clerk and nodded in acceptance.
The Nibelheim Inn had never been full when they visited before. The whole team had always been able to fit comfortably within its walls. The room she was now relegated to had two twin-size beds with just a nightstand separating them, and a small bathroom. There was barely enough room to walk from the door to the other end of the room, a far cry different than the rooms she had usually stayed in while traveling.
She now realized that other members of her party may have stayed in this very room when they visited Nibelheim the first time. She, Yuffie, and Aerith always roomed together, and now that she thought back, the boys always did allow them to take the best room they could rent. She scrunched her eyes closed as she learned she had been privileged – if that was the right word – during their adventure.
She and the girls always talked long into the night about what had happened during the day. Yuffie usually focused on whatever new materia she found while Tifa and Aerith discussed the fights and newly learned information, each sure to stay away from the subject of their interactions with Cloud. Tifa missed those nights with the girls.
Vincent was predictably bad company. As soon as they entered the room, he plopped down on the far bed and seemed to disappear into another world. He sat back against the headboard and closed his eyes while crossing his arms. Tifa didn't think he was sleeping, but he didn't seem awake either.
She checked her PHS – several messages from Yuffie, because the young ninja couldn't just type everything in one text – and placed it on the nightstand between the beds. She hadn't told her former companion about her interaction with Cloud. For one thing, she didn't want to have the conversation over text messages and for another, she didn't feel like calling her friend right now. She wanted to try to hold off crying as long as possible, though now that she was alone with her thoughts – Vincent didn't seem to be totally conscious – she found it difficult.
The thought of telling members of AVALANCHE that she failed to keep Cloud's attention formed a pit in her stomach, a void she dreaded. Cid and Vincent knew now, and Yuffie knew from before, so the information would probably spread rapidly throughout the group. She felt embarrassment creep up through her core.
Tifa removed a novel from her knapsack and settled into bed to read but her mind kept returning to what Cloud had said.
I am the danger.
She flittered between anger and depression as she lay in bed after throwing the book across the room. Vincent didn't even stir. The martial artist climbed under the covers and pulled the blanket over her head, finally giving in to the tears that had been burning behind her eyes all evening.
The next morning, she and Vincent reached the gates to the manor without interference. Again, Tifa noticed that the fiends weren't coming into the village. She saw a pack of Nibel wolves standing at the entrance, stepping in place and barking as if there was a wall keeping them from entering. After a few minutes, they turned and walked to their right, behind the buildings on the outer edge of the town.
The metal gate of the Shinra manor creaked as Vincent pushed the doors open and walked through. They were so rusted at this point, Tifa was surprised they didn't just break at the slightest touch.
If anything, the mansion was mustier than it was before, if that was possible. Maybe it was just because she hadn't been here in two years and had managed to push the memories of this place out of her mind.
A ghirofelgo swung at them from above, cutting a path between Vincent and Tifa, his bladed lower body narrowly missing her shoulder. Her hair blew backward in the wind caused by his swing. Vincent removed the Death Penalty from its holster and fired a shot square between the monster's eyes, killing it instantly.
"We don't have time to waste," he said.
He kept his hands on his gun, poised to shoot, as he led Tifa up the staircase and to the right, into the bedroom with the secret wall door to the basement. A couple of mirages were waiting for them inside the hidden room, but the seasoned fighters dispatched them quickly and continued on.
As they reached the bottom of the spiraling ramp, a colony of bats flew out of the basement corridor and up into the secret room, frantically flying in circles as they searched for an exit.
Vincent ignored them as he stepped into the basement. Tifa looked up at the ceiling and the swarm of bats before following him. A few of the bats were separated from their group and attacked. Tifa was bit on her shoulder and swatted the animal away. Vincent took a few swipes with his clawed hand since they were too quick for his pistol. When they succeeded in getting the bats to leave them alone, they began walking toward the library but were stopped by a ying and yang.
Tifa had once been terrified of this particular creature, but now remembered a conversation she had with Cloud during happier times in Edge where he made a crude joke about how their heads looked like two uncircumcised –
Ying slapped her upside the head. She retaliated with a swift kick to the face, causing it to fall backwards and die. Vincent cast fire on yang, who joined ying in death.
"What's so funny?" Vincent asked grimly.
Tifa's face turned red. She couldn't let Vincent in on her and Cloud's inside joke.
"I was just thinking about how much easier it is to walk through here than it was two years ago," she said innocently.
At least she could find amusement in some memories with Cloud.
They reached the door to Hojo's experimentation lab and Vincent paused with his hand on the doorknob. Tifa sensed his hesitation and decided to spare him the embarrassment of having to ask.
"I'll take this room, why don't you check out the library?" Tifa asked. Vincent nodded.
Tifa had never been in this room before but knew that it existed and what had happened to Vincent here. She didn't think he had ever come back and though he was usually emotionless, Tifa could tell he still hurt when he thought back to his time as a Turk.
The experimentation room was filled with lab equipment and machines. A large island in the middle of the room contained a cutout desk with a microscope in front of it. The rest of the island was the resting place for beakers and petri dishes. In the back of the room, still recognizable, was the containment vessel where Vincent had been kept while Hojo ran his experiments. Tifa shuddered at the thought. Vincent and Cloud had both been experimented on by Hojo, and Aerith spent her first few years of life in one of his labs and was nearly another one of his victims in Midgar. Tifa thought about how she may have lost everything due to Shinra – twice – but she still felt lucky not to have been one of those that fell into Hojo's grasp.
She walked slowly alongside the island, running her hand gently on the countertop and leaving finger trails in the dust that had collected over the past 30-some years. When she reached the work area, she leaned forward to peer into the microscope, knowing full well she would have no clue what she was looking at.
She heard what she thought sounded like the door opening behind her and spun around to see if Vincent had gathered the courage to enter. All she saw was the lab equipment and a closed, unmoving door. Her nerves must be playing tricks on her.
The microscope still contained a slide, possibly of Jenova, possibly of Chaos or who knows what else. She bent back over to take a second look. She fumbled with the knobs on the side of the device, trying to focus the blurry red splotches she could see on the slide. When she did, nothing really changed, they were now just focused red splotches.
"Long time no see, Lockhart," a familiar voice said as she felt a hand on her shoulder.
Tifa nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of his voice. She flailed her arms for balance, but lost and fell onto her backside, Reno laughing all the while. She quickly recovered and stood back up, muttering a few curses at him and adjusting her skirt.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed, still trying to get her heart rate under control. "I told you not to sneak up on me!"
"I didn't mean to this time! I swear!" Tifa rolled her eyes. "You're not happy to see me?" he teased, keeping the distance between them minimal.
"Not particularly, no," she said, backing away from him. At least now she could focus on something other than Cloud.
"Well, that's too bad, yo," he said, that impish smile returning to his face. "Because I'm certainly happy to see you."
"Whatever" Tifa said, turning her head to look toward the back of the lab.
Reno's enthusiasm waned. He thought she would have reacted differently given their last encounter and the last text he sent. Something was wrong. She wasn't responding to his attempts to be charming.
"Something wrong, babe?" he asked, his eyebrows knitting in concern that went unnoticed.
He put his hands in his pockets and started to slowly walk toward her. He led with his hips, his shoulders hunched over and his eyes inspecting Tifa. She winced at the word "babe."
This one was definitely a challenge.
"Don't like 'babe'?" he asked sheepishly. "How about sweetie?" Tifa shook her head. "Kitten?" She shook her head again. "…Sugartits?"
Tifa shot him a look that said she wanted to snap his neck for that last one. Maybe he could cheer her up with his particular brand of humor, or at least snap her out of whatever mood she was in. The look on her face was quickly replaced with one of utter sorrow. He expected a snappy comeback from her like he would usually receive at the bar. Maybe he had been gone too long?
No, she was completely different, like she was during the first couple months after Cloud had left.
"Seriously, yo, did something happen?"
He saw it in her eyes immediately, though it was clear she was fighting. Her arms were straight at her sides and her fists were trembling. She looked down at her feet and Reno could see she was about to lose it. He wasn't used to this and didn't know what to say or do. He wasn't good in these situations. He was more the "wham, bam, thank you ma'am" kind of guy. He didn't stick around to talk about feelings or problems.
But seeing her the way she was made him want to comfort her, even though he didn't know how. He thought his odds were about 50-50 that she would either attack him or cry if he approached her, but he took his chances anyway. She had seemed to be doing much better these past couple months. She had laughed with him and Rude and given as good as she got from them. She no longer cried in the storage room or faked all her smiles. He found himself suddenly wanting to help her get back to that state. He knew she hadn't regressed because of him disappearing for a week, but she still hadn't answered him.
He closed the distance between them a little more and noticed her whole body was now shaking and tears were falling to the ground between her feet. He rubbed the back of his neck and looked around to make sure they were alone, as if he hadn't known already. He wasn't ready for his reputation as a badass to get tarnished and he worried Rude might be mad with him if he caught them, but he couldn't just leave her now. Reno raised his jaw and took the last step toward Tifa, tentatively reaching his hands out to rest them on her shoulders.
"Hey, you alright, Lockhart?" he asked, bending his knees so that he stood at her eye level.
She still didn't answer, but he heard her sob and then sniffle before suddenly lurching forward and wrapping her arms around him, burying her face in his chest and crying harder.
Reno's hands fell from her shoulders and he held his arms in the air for a moment, stunned by her actions and unsure what to do next. He heard her sobbing as she tightened her grip around him. Their friendship was tenuous at this point, vaguely established but walking on a razor thin wire that could snap without much weight. He didn't know whether touching her at this moment would be the feather that broke the wire.
He remained motionless and confused for a moment before slowly reaching out to wrap his arms around her. When she didn't object, he started gently stroking her back to comfort her. He couldn't remember the last time he had held someone like this.
No, he could, but he didn't want to think about that.
Tifa was reminded of the first time Cloud comforted her in the flower garden outside Aerith's home in Sector 5. She was crying into the chiseled chest of a man who didn't quite know how to respond, only this time, the strong, trepid arms that eventually wrapped around her bore no armbands to dig into her spine, and the owner was experienced enough to know his own strength and how not to crush a woman.
"I saw Cloud yesterday," Tifa finally said into the part of his chest exposed by his unbuttoned shirt, which was now moist with salty tears.
Reno closed his eyes as his nostrils flared in brief disgust. Of course this was about Cloud, what else could upset Tifa this much? He tightened his hold on her ever so slightly, struggling to reconcile the fact that her closeness was releasing something from him he did not understand and didn't want to acknowledge. It didn't help that her sobbing caused her body to throb against him in a most tantalizing way. He snuffed the urge within to make a sexual comment at that moment, opting instead to just stay silent. He had "comforted" Elena before, but that consisted of teasing her or telling her to "suck it up and get back to work," and he didn't think either approach would end well with Tifa.
Mister First Class had done some real damage to her, this much Reno could tell, but at this moment he wasn't sure he wanted to be "that guy" – the one that listened to her complain about another man.
She would have laughed when he gently patted her on the back as if to say "there, there," were she not so distraught over what Cloud had said. She didn't even know why she reached out to Reno in a way she didn't with the two members of AVALANCHE with which she had traveled. Maybe it was precisely because Reno wasn't a member of AVALANCHE who had always assumed Tifa and Cloud would end up together. Or maybe it was just because he was there.
"Ya know," he said when she didn't elaborate, "I always thought that guy was a jagweed."
Tifa made a noise into his chest that sounded half like a sob and half like a chuckle. She didn't let him go, and he might have tried to continue to release his complaints about Strife if it made her feel better, but as he opened his mouth again, the front door of the room opened abruptly and Rude flew inside backwards, struggling to stay on his feet. Vincent walked forward, pointing his gun at the Turk.
Tifa didn't give them time to notice the compromising position she was in, instinctively shoving Reno's chest to send him flying backward as well. Even though she had become friendly with Reno and Rude, Vincent didn't know that, and she quickly fell into her old fighting stance as the ex-Turk approached the current Turk. It was all too easy for her to return to the familiarity: If there was AVALANCHE and Turks around, there was fighting.
Reno didn't seem surprised or angry by her move, as he had accepted the possibility that they would have to fight due to their opposing interests. What surprised Tifa, however, was the half smirk on his face as he was thrown back, noticeable for only a second or two, but present in its truest form. An expression she hadn't seen in the alley due to the lack of light, and one he quickly wiped from his face as if he hadn't intended for her to see it. He had a look in his eyes that she had only seen once before. It was the same look Cloud had in his eyes when he removed her shirt for the first time under the Highwind. Reno was looking at her as if she were naked before him.
Oh God, he's turned on when I hit him!
Reno's back slammed against the wall opposite Tifa; 30 years of dust falling on top of him and several bricks dislodging on impact. Everything happened so fast, he could still see Tifa's arms raised from her powerful shove – the same arms that were just wrapped around him seeking comfort.
He looked toward Rude, who was defending himself from Valentine's bullets, then back toward Tifa wish a shrug and a look that seemed to say, "guess we should join them." He moved his left hand down to unhook his EMR from its clip on his belt and with one fluid flick of his wrist, extended the weapon, his thumb discretely moving the intensity dial all the way down to the left.
During a romp with one particularly sadistic woman – God, rest her soul, if she actually had one – Reno discovered, through trial-and-error, that lowering the setting on his mag rod (he had never done that before) would drop the voltage to within range of the electric wires typically set atop fences for chocobos. The shock would bite, but not enough to keep someone down; it was just enough to warn the chocobos not to reach over the fence. That wasn't particularly interesting to Reno, but what was interesting was when he figured out that aiming his weapon – at the lower intensity – at a woman's lower abdomen, atop a particularly sensitive cluster of nerves, could send shockwaves of pleasure throughout her body.
Reno now slowly approached Tifa with his weapon set at this lower setting, his eyes trained on her without any malice. He leapt toward her with his weapon outstretched, but she easily dodged his telegraphed attack. She didn't know what he was planning, but the look in his eyes told her he didn't want to follow through.
She had fought him before and never seen that earlier primal look in his eyes, making her wonder whether she had really seen it at all. Of course, she couldn't really tell what his expression was through the yellow-tinted (and rather opaque) walls of the pyramid he kept placing around her atop the Sector 7 pillar. The only other time she had fought him was outside Gongaga. His expression wasn't that savage, but at the time she figured he just enjoyed the thought of killing her and her friends. She never thought that his inhuman smile was because he was sexually aroused from fighting.
She gagged at the thought as she backed away from him. He was just casually strolling toward her, tapping the shaft of his mag rod on his shoulder, his eyes shifting to the sides to check for Rude or Vincent before he mouthed what looked like the words, "I'm sorry." She continued to back away, somewhat confused by his actions. He didn't seem to want to hurt her or even fight her, caught up in his partner's battle just as she was, but he was brandishing that mag rod. Even if it was just for show, she feared its sting.
Tifa had been shot, stabbed, punched, slapped, and set on fire, but nothing compared to the electricity from that mag rod of Reno's. Hours after their fight in Gongaga, she could feel the electrical charges pulsing in her veins. Each time the pain would flare up she thought she was having a heart attack, and no amount of cure spells could make it stop. The pain stopped when it wanted to stop.
She ran toward Reno and performed a somersault kick to his chest, causing him to stagger. Like him, she was in a mode to protect her friend, though she currently had no grudge with the Turks. She landed a few feet from Reno and he motioned with his fingers for her to come at him. She shook her head and prepared to kick him again, not at full strength, but even still he caught her foot and held it until she lost her balance and fell against the nearby wall. He turned back to see that Rude had just gotten a few shots in on Valentine, and though both of the other men were focused on their own battle, they could easily see Reno and Tifa.
Reno sighed and closed the distance between him and Tifa, pinning her to the wall. "Sorry for this, Lockhart," he said, somehow both sincere and feral at the same time. Tifa couldn't believe that a Turk, especially this Turk, had apologized to her twice in one day.
They both knew the fight wouldn't look real if the mag rod didn't spark, but when he brought it to her lower abdomen, she just looked at him, frightened and confused. Tifa had tensed up in preparation for the jolt but hadn't expected it to feel…good? She shook her head. No, that wasn't possible. What had he just done to her? Her belly felt warm but not like she had just been electrocuted. She stumbled along the wall to get away from him, realizing this pretend fight was having a strange effect on her.
Blood rushed to her face as she turned beet red. This wasn't how the mag rod was supposed to feel. She must be going crazy. She must be weird. This couldn't possibly be a normal reaction to getting thousands of volts pumped into one's abdomen.
She had backed herself into the corner of the lab now, with Reno still in mock pursuit. He must know.
There was no other reason why he would have targeted her so specifically. The last time they fought, he had lashed out at various pressure points on her body and none of them felt as good as her abdomen had a second ago. Reno kept looking over his shoulder to see that Rude and Vincent were still fighting as he approached Tifa, again positioning the mag rod and preparing to lower it to her, his face letting her know he wanted this to stop. Tifa decided she would make it so.
"Vincent! Rude! Stop!" she yelled to the front of the room, causing the two men to turn toward her abruptly, weapons still raised. "Vincent, the Turks aren't our enemy anymore."
Vincent tilted his head in confusion as his eyes narrowed, continuing to hold the Death Penalty in Rude's direction. Tifa passed Reno and moved to the front of the room, the heartache she was experiencing earlier replaced by the determination to stop more bloodshed between AVALANCHE and the Turks.
"They're here for Hojo's information," Vincent calmly informed her.
Tifa shot Rude a questioning look before she turned back to Reno, who placed his hands in his pockets and averted his gaze from her as he started to whistle.
"I should have known," she said dismissively, shaking her head. She hadn't really thought Reno was just stalking her, but with everything else on her mind, she hadn't put together the obvious.
Reno turned away to hide the smirk that had crept onto his face again. Just that little bout with Tifa had been exhilarating, and the noise she made when he pressed the mag rod to her abdomen wouldn't stop repeating in his head, as brief as it was.
Maybe he had gone too far, but he knew the sound Tifa made wasn't a cry of pain. He had seen her in her most intimate and vulnerable state. He had wanted that for years, but it wasn't enough. It was one thing to do that to her with his mag rod, but he wanted to see her like that while using his other weapon. No, not the pistol (cheesy, he knew).
He had to regain his composure before the thoughts of making his own attempt at her started up again. She still hadn't answered Rude's date request, and even though Reno was fighting this strange addiction, he was loyal to his partner.
"What do the Turks want with Hojo's notes?" Vincent asked.
"Official Turk business, yo," Reno said with a smirk and wink in Tifa's direction.
Tifa stifled a groan.
"It's Shinra property," Rude explained.
"Why now?" Vincent asked, his deep-set eyes narrowing in suspicion.
"The monster attacks are increasing. Shinra wants to do its part to save the world," Rude said.
Reno laced his fingers behind his head and puffed out his chest.
"Can't let AVALANCHE get all the glory again, you know?" he said, rather sarcastically. Tifa didn't notice.
"Glory?" Tifa interjected bitterly. "It's not about glory! It's about doing what's right! Ever thought about that?"
It was Reno's turn to look away. He suspected her sudden outburst wasn't really directed at him, but he couldn't argue with her words. He was tempted to say they were just following orders, but he remembered her reaction the last time he said that. He figured he would be pushing his luck after his stunt with the mag rod. He had long since given up wanting to see her angry for his own gratification.
"Why does it have to be a competition?" Vincent asked.
Everyone turned to look at him. No one had an answer. There really was no reason why Shinra and AVALANCHE couldn't work together to help save the world this time. But orders were orders, and Rufus wanted Shinra to get the credit.
"It doesn't have to be, but that makes it more fun," was all Reno could offer. "Besides, we have scientists who can decipher this junk, what were you gonna do? You understand Hojo's notes? Hmm? Gonna give em to your dog? Maybe the little ninja's been hiding a science degree?"
"We've out-maneuvered you thus far," Tifa responded quickly. "And if I recall, Shinra scientists are the reason we're all in this mess anyway!"
Reno scoffed, again suspecting her attitude wasn't meant for him and that her dig at Shinra was about something other than the current situation. He found himself a little bitter that he had tried to comfort her not 10 minutes earlier and now she was lashing out at him.
"You know what, Rude? I don't feel like fighting over some scribbles, let's let them have a look first, we probably already got everything we need from the Shinra building," he said. "Might as well head to the bar."
"Nibelheim's a dry town," Tifa informed him snidely.
Reno groaned loudly and stormed out of the room with Rude close behind.
"What was that all about?" Vincent asked, though his voice indicated he did not actually care for an answer.
Tifa watched Reno leave in a huff and felt guilty. He had been so kind to her earlier, and she didn't intend to work herself up and take out her anger on him.
Without another word, Vincent turned on his heels, his ragged red cape sweeping the air behind him, and left the room to return to the library. Tifa took one last look around the room she was in, but there were no documents or anything else of use.
She stood up, still a little shaky from her brief stint with the mag rod, and joined Vincent to inspect the room next door. They remained there for hours, searching and reading and gathering what they thought might be of informational value.
Though it would not help them in their current mission, Tifa spent some time reading Hojo's detailed notes on Cloud and Zack's imprisonment and the experiments run on them. Cloud had told her what he could remember from the years he spent in that tube. Hojo's handwriting left something to be desired, but Tifa managed to make out what she thought he had written.
It didn't give her any additional insight into Cloud's persona or give her any answers to the questions he left unanswered in The Forgotten Capital.
She depressed herself – again – with thoughts of him as they continued to search the library. When at last they had checked the last few books and were thoroughly covered in dust (and more than a few spiders), they gathered what little they had found and returned to the hotel.
Tifa showered first, letting the hot water cleanse her body of not only the dirt from the mansion, but also of Reno. There were just two small red welts on her belly from his EMR instead of the usual burn marks. Her insides quaked with the desire to feel that kind of physical pleasure again – she just hoped it wouldn't be in the same situation. Maybe Shinra sold mag rods for home use?
It was dark when she finished bathing. She dried herself off and dressed in her typical midriff-baring tank top and miniskirt. She looked out the window to see a full moon atop a sky swirling with shades of blue. Even with all her travels, the Nibelheim sky was still her favorite, so she left the inn to climb up the old well where promises had been made once.
She sat at the top of the well, the moonlight illuminating her skin as if she were made of pearl. She looked up at the sky and crossed her legs, which were hanging over the edge of the structure that seemed so much taller when she was a little girl.
She brought one of her legs up to hug her knee to her chest. This was where it all started. It all started with a promise. One day, when she was trapped, her hero would come save her. Cloud had told her he had broken that promise many times, but she always thought he followed through. He had been the one to move her off the stairs after Sephiroth slashed her and rest her against one of the experiment tanks in the reactor at Mt. Nibel. He had come for her, just like he promised. It didn't matter that she had already been sliced up; he was there, even if she didn't know it at the time. And he was there for AVALANCHE, though he hadn't wanted to help at first. He saved her countless times during their last adventure, and she knew he would have saved her from the gas chamber if he hadn't had Mako poisoning. He was there for her when no one else was, and it was he who caught her in the Northern Crater and got her to safety.
As she gazed up into the twinkling galaxy above her, her lips curled into a slight smile, the same smile she always had when she looked up at the stars. She was at peace, despite everything going on in her heart. The night sky reflected in her eyes as she became so lost in her memories that she didn't hear the rakish young Turk scaling the well in the twilight.
"Whatcha thinkin' about?" Reno asked as he plopped down next to her.
She startled.
"You wouldn't understand," she replied flatly.
"Try me."
Tifa let out a breath and leaned back on her hands, continuing to look upward instead of at Reno. He took the opportunity to examine her figure in the moonlight. Her shoulders were back, raising her chest; her back was slightly arched, accentuating her taut stomach, and her bent leg let her skirt rise up just enough to give him scandalous thoughts.
"It's just that…" she trailed off, snapping him back to reality. "I've just always liked watching the stars."
Reno nodded and looked up as well. Growing up in the slums, he didn't see the real sky until he was a Turk. After that, he was out on missions and never really cared to just sit around doing nothing, nor did he find beauty in sunsets and nature and all that girlie shit. Metal and power, that's what he loved. Looking up at the sky now, even though it was so different than he had ever seen before, still offered him nothing in the way of clarity.
"Why?" he asked her. "What's so great about them? They're just balls of gas waiting to explode."
Tifa scoffed and shook her head. "Told ya you wouldn't understand."
Reno smiled to himself and let his legs dangle over the ledge of the well, his hands clasped in his lap. "Hope I didn't hurt ya back there, thought we were tryin' to make it look real, yo."
Tifa's expression was stern when she shook her head. She released her leg and crossed it over her other one.
"Of course you didn't, I'm pretty tough, you know," she said simply. Reno could swear he detected a note of sweetness in her voice.
"Yeah, you are," he said, staring directly at her until she met his gaze. She sensed he wasn't just talking about their fight earlier.
An awkward silence fell between them. She didn't know how to respond to him, her mind clouded with angst over Cloud and the growing familiarity with Reno. Somehow his presence was comforting in this moment. She had rarely shared her stargazing with anyone else, preferring to take quiet time to reflect. Aerith had joined her once, and of course the flower girl figured out exactly how the stars enamored Tifa without even having to ask.
Sometimes Cloud had worried Tifa was depressed whenever she watched the stars, but after she explained to him why she loved to look up at the night sky, he began leaving her alone or occasionally bringing a blanket to wrap her in on cold nights along with hot cocoa. Every once in a while, he'd sit with her and she'd rest her head on his shoulder as they sat in comfortable silence.
"So, uh, how'd you like my mag rod this time?" he said seductively, testing the waters as to where her mood was currently.
Tifa snapped her head back to look at him. Her move was so intense Reno thought she might get whiplash. Her expression told him she had suspected he knew what he was doing with the weapon back in the basement. Reno chuckled.
"I think you liked it," he said matter-of-factly.
"I can't believe you."
"Who can? I'm a pretty unbelievable guy," he said, leaning back against the well with his hands behind his head, an air of smugness settling over him.
Tifa tightened her lips into a slight smile and stuck out her jaw. With one hand she pinched his side, hard, and with the other she pushed Reno off the well. He flailed and yelped on his way down, causing her to finally laugh openly. He scrambled back up next to her.
"Hey! What was that for?"
Tifa cocked her head to one side and looked at him with one cheek puffed out from sucking in the side of her lips.
"How did you even figure that out, wait—" she said, immediately holding up a hand before shaking her head. "I don't want to know."
"You wanna go again?" Reno asked, this time leaning over to look into her eyes with a grin on his face.
"No!" she protested.
"Had to try," he said, leaning back on his arms and looking up at the stars. "So, you wanna tell me what happened back there?"
Tifa brought her knee up to her chin again and wrapped her arms around her leg, her face dropping along with her mood.
"He didn't leave because of the headaches or nightmares, he just didn't want to be with me," she admitted, holding her breath to keep from crying. She still didn't know why she was opening up to Reno, of all people, but he seemed like the best option at the moment, sad as that was. Neither Vincent nor Rude ever had much to say, and she knew that if she were to pour her heart out only to get a grunt in response, she would totally lose it. Reno at least offered a potential conversation or smart aleck remark to take her mind off her anguish.
With everything going on in her life – the attacks, Cloud – she just wanted a little comfort. She just needed something stable. That certainly wasn't Reno, but at least he was here with her right now. She leaned her head against his shoulder, letting the fact that he was a Turk and her former enemy disappear for a moment.
Reno looked down at her, surprised by her action. He had come out here to bicker, have a little fun, and go back to his room. He hadn't expected her to seem so amenable to his presence.
He decided to take a chance and put his arm around her shoulders.
Well, this day had taken an odd turn. He never thought that he'd find Tifa Lockhart in his arms on this mission – twice. Elena had once called him the "Rebound King," though he dismissed her accusation. He didn't take advantage of drunk or sad women – he actually avoided them. No fun in the hunt if the prey is already wounded. Yet now he found himself truly wondering if Tifa was only seeking his embrace because of Cloud.
He couldn't deny the heat he felt throughout his body when he held her, even if he was trying to avoid it. Rude could leave the inn at any moment and catch them. Reno was finding it harder and harder to defer to his partner when it came to the woman beside him. It might have just been his ego, but she seemed to be warming up to him in a way she wasn't with Rude.
He only cuddled with women long enough for them to fall asleep or think they might have a future with him, then he'd disappear into the night. Sometimes he didn't even fake it and just rolled over and passed out or made an excuse to leave right then. Holding Tifa, however, was some new kind of feeling to him.
Get out now man, before she casts her spell.
Nah, he would stay awhile longer. He straightened up his back to reaffirm his dignity.
"Where were you?" she asked softly, referring to his prolonged absence from her bar. Her question delighted him.
"Official business, yo," he offered. "You know, 'Turk stuff.'"
"So, how many people did you kill this time?" Tifa asked, lifting her head suddenly and looking at him accusatorially.
"You cut deep, Lady," he responded. "This is 'Turk stuff'; information gathering, non-violent. Like I said, we don't do that 'Turk shit' anymore."
"Right," she said, rolling her eyes.
She eyed him skeptically but kept the distance between them. Maybe he didn't kill people as part of his job anymore, but could he ever truly atone for what he had already done? She sat back up to look at the stars again, leaning back on her hands and crossing one leg over the other as another awkward silence filled the air.
"You know, I thought about you the whole time," he said, his voice heady. He was close enough for Tifa to smell his cologne – that musky scent that reminded her of the businessmen she would watch when she was a teenager, how they looked so confident and important. The scent was tainted with the stench of cigarettes, but it all added to his mystique to create something that was distinctly Reno.
Reno again chided himself for his lack of control around the barmaid. He couldn't say these things to her, even though he wanted her. Rude had dibs. He knew he needed to just walk away from her so that he would stop whatever it was he was doing, but he couldn't. Not yet, anyway.
"Oh yeah?" she asked, searching his eyes for confirmation that he was lying.
She knew how he operated, how he filled women's minds with ideas that he had eyes for only them when he didn't. She wasn't about to get sucked in, no matter how hard up she was or how much she missed Cloud and wished he would tell her these things.
"Oh yeah," Reno repeated, without the question.
She sighed and looked back up at the stars. Reno wasn't going to weasel his way into her pants just because she was heartbroken and vulnerable from Cloud. She wouldn't forgive what he had done to her and her friends in the past so easily. Begrudging acceptance was all he would get from her.
"Gil for your thoughts, Lockhart?"
She didn't answer for a few moments. When she did, she kept her eyes fixated on the sky.
"Everything. The past. What's going on with all the monsters. What's going to happen…" she said.
"A little vague, Lockhart," Reno responded. "We'll figure out the monster situation. The Turks are on it."
That didn't provide her any comfort.
"What then?" she asked softly, as if she were trying not to cry.
Reno suspected they weren't talking about the increase in monster attacks. Somehow it always came back to Strife. Maybe he should let her use him as a rebound, just so she could be more open to Rude. Nah, that was a selfish thought.
He hoped she wouldn't return to her question. He knew he should leave her now. He could tell she was in a "mood" and this just wasn't his department. Rude would probably be good with this stuff. He was a good listener. But Reno didn't want to leave Tifa right now. For one thing, Rude could come out any moment and take over. For another, being next to her felt good.
It was a strange feeling to him. He would have much preferred to be doing something else with her instead of sitting next to her while she wallowed in misery.
"I should go…" she said after another prolonged silence.
Reno had to resist the urge to ask her to stay. He had already gone too far today and needed to figure out how to get her out of his head so Rude would have a chance. Going cold turkey might not be possible, but if he could refocus his efforts into pushing her toward his partner, maybe he could keep their friendship intact.
Tifa hopped off the well when Reno didn't object and walked toward the inn.
"Good night, Lockhart," he said in a tone she wasn't used to from the Turk.
"Good night, Reno," she said before entering the inn.
Reno stared after her a moment, his thin legs spread wide and dangling over the edge of the well, his hands clasped together between his knees. A smile graced his lips – not his usual smirk, but a genuine smile. He looked up at the stars, trying again to glean from them whatever knowledge and inspiration Tifa was able to receive. He came up empty.
Meanwhile…
Tifa opened the door to her hotel room to find Vincent in his half-awake, half-sleeping state on the bed. He was there, but something was missing: All the documents they collected that day from the Shinra mansion. They had been sitting on Tifa's bed since there was no desk in the room, but they were gone.
"Vincent!" she yelled, snapping him awake. "Where are the files?"
Vincent looked around for a moment, unconcerned.
"I thought you took them."
"What?"
"They were gone when I got out of the shower, thought you went somewhere to study them."
"Why would I do that?"
Vincent shrugged. He could really be dense sometimes.
"You didn't hear anything?"
"No. I was in the shower."
Tifa rubbed her forehead. The Turks. Reno was acting sort of sweet just to distract her while Rude stole the information. She wondered why Reno was the distraction instead of Rude. Maybe the quieter Turk was still too nervous to be around her.
How could she think for one minute that Reno was being sincere? Everything was an act; a ploy to get her into bed. He had acted like he might actually care about her out there on the well and when he held her in the basement of the mansion.
Of course it was a ruse. Nothing about Reno was honest. He wanted to sleep with her and nothing else; his loyalties still lay with Shinra.
Her phone vibrated.
"1 text message from Reno."
She rolled her eyes and checked it.
"Sorry, about this, too," was all it said.
He was a rat, alright. A scoundrel. He wanted her? Well, he wouldn't have her.