Chapter 76: Aerith Gainsborough and the Hidden Greenhouse

I opened my green eyes.

At first, I thought the whole experience had been a dream. Or a nightmare; I guess you could say it was a little of both.

But it wasn't a dream. I could feel Sephiroth's strong chest rising up and down against my face.

I then felt his hand rub my back through my tank top, and I could tell he was awake as well.

"Good morning," I whispered as I pressed my lips against his. "Sleep well?"

"I did," he replied. "Did you?"

"With a hunk like you?" I giggled. "How could I not?"

We continued to talk and kiss for half an hour. We were locked in each others' arms the whole time. My head never left his chest except for when we kissed.

Then, I got out of bed, and trotted over to the mirror at the dresser. I felt a breeze on my lower half, reminding me that I was bottomless. I opened the top drawer, took out a cotton swab, and began to clean my ears.

"What are you doing?" asked the perplexed Sephiroth.

"Cleaning my ears," I replied. "It's the second best feeling in the world."

"What's the best one?" Sephoroth asked me.

"Tell you later," I replied with a smile.

I also wanted to give him a view of my bare butt; that should be obvious. Seriously, bottomless is totally hotter than topless.

"How's the view?" I giggled.

"Perfect," he replied.

I then finished cleaning my ears, and I raised my fists and stood on one leg, executing a move from my high school cheer days.

"How can you do that, anyway?" Sephiroth asked.

"I'm a girl," I replied. "I have the better balance."

Of course, I was hoping to do it with him again before we left for the day.

I turned to face him, and I then, for the first time, spotted the bathroom.

"What's wrong?" Sephiroth asked me.

"I just realized we have the master bedroom," I said.

The inevitable idea immediately popped into my head.

"Want to take a shower together?" I asked.

"Sure," he replied.

I didn't find the answer enthusiastic enough, so I grabbed him by the hand and yanked him out of the bed, marching him into the bathroom.

We brushed our teeth in front of the mirror.

Then, Sephiroth walked behind me, and bent me forward.

He grabbed my hips.

Mission accomplished.

LATER….

We showered together and got dressed.

Chrissy was in the hallway when Sephiroth and I exited the room.

There was no way to cover anything up; she knew right away what we did last night.

"Say no more," she casually said.

I began to blush.

"You didn't hear us, did you?" I asked.

I can be pretty loud.

"I said say no more," Chrissy repeated, without making eye contact.

The three of us went downstairs to find the first surprise of the day.

The front door was wide open. Beyond the open door was the great outdoors, and a pathway that seemingly led to freedom.

"What the hell?" Chrissy exclaimed.

"Let's go!" I exclaimed.

One of us was more skeptical.

"I don't like this one little bit," Sephiroth said.

"What do you mean?"

"The door was locked yesterday," he replied. "Whoever opened it opened it for a reason. They want us to go out there."

I peered out the door. I didn't see anything unusual.

"What loose ends could we have possibly not tied up yet?" I asked.

"My masamune," he replied. "I need to find my masamune."

"You're keeping us here over your sword?" Chrissy demanded in an annoyed tone of voice.

Sephiroth shook his head.

"If this was truly over, we would have found it by now," he replied. "Did either of you have any belongings missing?"

Chrissy and I both shook our heads in unison.

"We both came here with nothing but our bikini bottoms," I replied.

"Then I'll go out first and check," he announced. "Just to make sure it's safe."

And then, he walked out the door without a word.

Chrissy turned to me, and boy, did she look pissed!

"He just wants us to stay here?" she demanded.

"I think he's being cautious," I replied. "Or chivalrous."

Chrissy gave me a skeptical look.

"Why'd you two hook up, anyway?" she asked.

"It just sort of….happened," I sheepishly replied.

Chrissy sighed, and shook her head.

"I need to sit down," she groaned.

She led me into the family room and sat on the sofa.

And then, as I was about to sit down myself….

"Hey," Chrissy began as she stood up again. "Look at the bookshelf!"

I looked at the tall bookshelf.

I could see a crack behind the edge; it appeared to be concealing a doorway.

"Hold on," Chrissy said as she walked over to the bookshelf.

She stood beside the bookcase for a moment. She then pushed her body against it, causing it to move to the side.

It revealed a doorway, leading to a room with plants everywhere, a glass wall, and a tiled floor.

"A conservatory," I said aloud.

"A greenhouse," Chrissy corrected as she stepped in.

I followed her.

It started out as a room, but there seemed to be several rooms in this greenhouse that Chrissy obviously wanted to explore.

Then, something crossed my mind.

"You don't think they want us to go in here, do you?" I asked.

"Just be careful," Chrissy warned. "Don't touch anything."

"They're just plants," I assured her. "I sell flowers for a living."

"We've dealt with a homicidal vacuum, tear gas, laughing gas, and a hell of a lot of idiots," Chrissy reminded me. "Who knows what we're going to find down here?"

Her point was made.

We followed through the greenhouse. There were plants on both our sides, and we took care not to touch or even sniff any of them. But they seemed to be simple, ordinary tropical plants.

Soon, we came to a pit with a wooden bridge over it.

"Look out!" Chrissy warned me.

I looked into the pit.

There were hideous, long creatures crawling about. They had legs everywhere.

"Ew!" I exclaimed.

If there's one thing I can't stand, it's bugs.

"Centipedes," Chrissy muttered. "Novan centipedes. The most venomous centipedes known."

"Are they deadly?" I asked.

I know it was a dumb question.

"If you get bitten by that many, yes," Chrissy replied.

She then turned her attention to the crossing.

"I don't trust this bridge," she said.

She then pressed her right foot on the first plank, while keeping her left foot on the floor.

"This one's safe," she said.

She did the same with the second plank.

That one was safe, too.

The third plank was safe.

The fourth plank collapsed into the pit, with the centipedes crawling over it immediately.

The fifth plank was safe.

The sixth plank was safe.

The seventh plank collapsed.

The eighth plank was safe.

The ninth plank collapsed.

And then, Chrissy made it to the other side.

"All clear!" she announced.

I then safely crossed the bridge myself.

Beyond the bridge, we saw a cubical glass container. Inside, we thousands of familiar insects crawling over paper combs, with a tube leading to the outside.

"Why would anyone want a hornet's nest?" I asked aloud.

"Pest patrol," Chrissy replied. "They eat bugs that eat plants."

I scanned the nest behind the glass again.

"Aren't those the Wutai Murder Hornets?" I asked.

"You got it," Chrissy answered.

As the name implied, getting stung by too many of them would be fatal.

We took a few more steps further.

And then, I heard someone emerge from the foliage.

We both turned around to see a familiar face.

Only this was one I didn't want to see.

"Well, well," Ronaldo greeted. "If it isn't my old high school cheer captain."

"Ronaldo," I greeted in a monotone.

"I must say," he continued, "I had some great times with you, Aerith, both in high school, and afterward. But now, times have changed, and I'm afraid I'm going to have to hurt you."

"That's totally okay," I replied sarcastically. "It's not my fault you're a lying, rotten, traitorous asshole."

"Thank you," said Ronaldo as he pulled out a handgun and aimed it at us. "I take that as a compliment."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Chrissy pick up a rock from under one of the plants.

She then glared at Ronaldo.

"You're going to challenge a gun with a rock?" he taunted. "I didn't know gingers were that stupid."

Chrissy drew her arm back, preparing to throw it.

"Go ahead," Ronaldo taunted. "Five to one odds you won't hit me. And even if you did, you can't throw strong enough to hurt me."

"You're on," Chrissy agreed.

She threw the rock, missing Ronaldo completely.

Ronaldo began to cackle.

He then heard the sound of glass shattering.

He turned to see that the hornets were now free!

He tried to run, but it was too late. One hornet reached him, and stung him.

The rest wrote itself. That sting alerted the other hornets to attack. In less than three seconds, the doomed Ronaldo was covered in Wutai Murder Hornets, all stinging him. He struggled to get them off, but it was no use.

He then staggered back, and fell into the pit with the centipedes.

Soon, the centipedes jumped in, biting him all over.

"Come on!" warned Chrissy. "They'll come after us once he dies."

I agreed.

We ran like hell.