Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Legend of the Final Materia ❯ Chapter 9

Chapter 9

By the time Reeve rapped on the door, her bags were stacked by the door and ready to go. He walked in the door and scratched the back of his head. "You're ready to go already?? I thought Sephiroth said you didn't want to go on this trip??"

Shukera sneered, "You shouldn't believe everything he tells you." She avoided his gaze trying to hide her watery eyes from him. "Bring my boxes to the car. I will be out in a minute."

Reeve nodded and began loading her boxes. He could sense something wrong with Shukera but he dismissed it as the severing of emotional ties.

Shukera stood in the back bedroom of her apartment. She pulled out Seifer's picture and gazed intently at it. She reached out gently grazing the picture with her fingertips. "Shinra will not get you if I have anything to do with it." She touched the picture once again when the pc device she had in her pocket beeped.

She stuffed the picture into her pocket and pulled out her pc. The red light blinked indicating she had a message. Shukera opened the screen and quickly read over it. The message from her friend said he was getting more and more worried about his best friend. He said his friend was beginning to lash out at people violently and his mannerism was beginning to get unbearable.

She typed out a message telling him to keep an eye on his friend while she could figure out something for him to do about it. She told him to take care and that she was going on a trip. When she finished typing the message she pressed the send button and sighed. "Poor guy. I wish there was something I could do for him. He seems really upset about his."

Shukera turned and walked out the room. His problem will be something for her to think about once she was on her way to Balamb. For now, she had to worry about the trip. She went room to room making a final sweep of the place, making sure everything she needed was packed. All that was left was for her to turn the lights off and say good-bye.

Reeve stood in her living room waiting for her to leave. "Everything's ready to go."

Shukera picked up on the hint. "I am counting on you to handle everything on your end for me."

Reeve nodded, "I know. Don't worry about the weather. Storms are on the horizon."

Shukera laughed. Reeve had a funny way of explaining things.

He became serious, "Shukera its time to go. And by the way, where is Sephiroth? Isn't he going with you?? We definitely can't have him showing up here unexpectedly." Reeve's concern about the trip was beginning to show. He worried about everything he needed to do in Shukera's absence. "I'm concerned about you though. That man has changed a great deal within the last 5 years."

Shukera shook her head as she inwardly agreed with him. "Maybe."

Reeve handed her a shoulder bag. The bag slipped out of his hand and Shukera bent down to catch it. Seifer's picture slid out of her coat pocket and fell to the ground. Reeve leaned over, picked it up, and gazed at Shukera. "I knew you took this."

Shukera gazed back at him as she took the picture from her brother's hand. "He's in danger Reeve. His eyes have maco in them." She gazed at the picture as a strange feeling came over her and once again she became confused. Angry at the emotions that had suddenly found their way into her heart, she thrusted the picture into her pocket as she mumbled, "I don't have time for this shit!"

Reeve smirked, "Time for what?? That Seifer guy??"

Shukera rolled her eyes at him. "Get real ol' brother of mine!"

"I think you have a thing for him", Reeve replied laughing a bit, relieved that it wasn't Sephiroth.

Shukera snapped, sticking her finger at Reeve, "I don't have time for foolish things! WE ARE IN THE MIDDLE OF A WAR HERE!!"

Reeve grabbed Shukera by her shoulders and became serious. "Look Shukera. Don't let your stubborn pride get in the way of something you know you want. If you have a thing for him, then you should tell him. You close yourself off too much. I can tell by the look in your eyes that you really like him."

Shukera stood silently not moving for a moment. Maybe he was right. But, even so, it was not the time for anything that would take her mind off of the mission at hand. She knew any ounce of distraction and people could get killed.

"I said I don't have time for this!" She pulled away from her brother. "Now forget about it. You should be concentrating on what you have to do here!!!" She snatched her bag off the floor and threw it on her shoulder. "Let's go. And I don't want to hear anymore about this!" She shoved Reeve through the door and slammed it behind her.

The car was parked outside the apartment's lobby. Shukera stormed down to the car and threw the door open. She said nothing as she plopped down into the seat and slammed the door shut. Reeve walked quietly down the hall leading to the lobby. He knew he hit a nerve with Shukera and as usual, she was protecting herself with her cold exterior. But she couldn't hide behind that wall of ice she built around herself forever. Someday, someone was going to smash through that wall of ice and sweep her off her feet. "Hopefully", Reeve thought. That would be the day Shukera would be able to put all this behind her and live her life in peace.

Reeve slid behind the wheel of the car and started the engine. "Well, this is it. Time to move on." He drove away from the curb, carefully guiding the car into the rushing traffic. Since Midgar had been rebuilt, the highway system was redesigned. The railways of before were gone, replaced by roads of tar and asphalt. Everyone drove to where they wanted to go. Gone were the days of waiting for hours for the next train to take you were to where ever you were going.

Once at the ship, Reeve unpacked Shukera's bags and handed them to the man who was loading their luggage into the ship. Sephiroth greeted them with a smirk, "Well, well. I was beginning to think you had backed out of this."

Shukera mumbled, "Don't you just wish I would."

Sephiroth lowered his mako filled eyes down at her. "What?"

Shukera smiled mocking his expression, "I said I wouldn't think of it." She nodded at Reeve and boarded the ship.

Sephiroth became preoccupied with his thoughts as he went over his mission in his mind. He toyed with the possibility of Shukera actually becoming his enemy. Scarlet ordered him to execute her immediately if she showed any signs of betraying Shin Ra. He knew deep down that if he really had to, he would not hesitate to do it. The ball had been thrown into play, now it was time for the sides to prepare for the outcome.

Sephiroth bid farewell to everyone and boarded the ship. Inside, Shukera was seated and was getting comfortable. She slipped the shoulder bag next to her in a special compartment that was made for loose items, out of Sephiroth's reach. She then laid back in the seat, strapped herself in, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Moments later Sephiroth was seated and strapped in. He gazed at Shukera as she slept and thought back to when she had first joined Soldier. She looked at him with excitement in her eyes and held a lust for learning. He took her in and trained her himself because of her will to become a great fighter. And, he had to admit, that is exactly what she had done. Shukera had become second only to himself in the ranks of Soldier.

His mind drifted towards Seifer. Just thinking about him made his blood boil. Sephiroth gloated in the fact that Seifer had a maco signature in his picture, which meant he was already tainted. Getting him to join Shin Ra was going to be easier than he had first thought. The maco, coupled with his lust for power, was going to make him a pushover for Shinra.

Shukera shifted in her seat and opened her eyes half way and saw he was still awake. Weakly she whispered, "You should get some rest. You are going to need your strength once we get there." She quickly fell back asleep without giving him a change to reply. Sephiroth obliged her by lying down his head and slowly allowed his eyes to close. Moments later he had given in to a deep silent slumber.