Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Tenacity ❯ Old Friends ( Chapter 4 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Strange and Intoxicating rsa 
A Sector of Terrorists...
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Adventure / Action | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 04.29.2009 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.8K | Visits: 190 | Status: Work In Progress
A Sector of Terrorists...
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance / Adventure / Action | Type: Divergence | Uploaded On: 04.29.2009 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.8K | Visits: 190 | Status: Work In Progress
Chapter Four: Old Friends
“I’m going to be doing what?” Cloud threw the chocobo shirt into the basket, dressing himself in the SOLDIER uniform Zack handed him. It was clean and wrinkle-free and sewn back together, but more importantly clean. The raven-haired man watched the boy bury his nostrils into the shirt, taking a deep breath.
Zack pondered his words for a moment before answering, “We’re going to mercenaries. You know, those people who work for hire, not really giving a shit what they do as long as they get paid? Yeah, that.” Cloud straightened out the collar of his purple shirt, looking into the mirror.
“And you’ve gotten us jobs already? Doing what?” Cloud pulled at his shirt nervously. Zack folded his arms, sitting down on Aeris’ bed.
“Well, there’s this organization called Avalanche that hired me and you--“
Cloud huffed, “Zack, spit it out. Really, what are we doing? Sure, there’s always an organization, but what do we have to do?”
Zack made a face, his lips twisting, “Ugh, fine. We’ve got to go blow up some Mako reactor. No biggie.”
The look that adorned Cloud’s face was priceless, “Holy! Blow up a Mako Reactor? Have you lost all of your common sense? That’s terrorism!”
“Well, no shit, Cloud.” Violet eyes closed. “I think the whole of Sector Five just heard you.”
The blonde grabbed Zack by the shoulders, shaking him. “Have you completely lost your mind!? They’re going to kill us! We’re terrorists. You want me to be a terrorist!?”
“Quit addling my brains, kid. And yep,” the words popped from his lips, “we’re gonna be terrorists. Well, I don’t mind so long as they pay us well.” Cloud let his shoulders go. “Anyway, get your white ass downstairs and eat something. We’ve got a long day of prepping for this job. Plus, we’ve got to get you some type of weapon.”
Cloud rolled his bright blue eyes and sat down on the edge of the bed, “And why can’t I use a gun or something? I’m sure a bunch of terrorists would have a few guns lying around somewhere.”
Zack laughed. “You, with a gun? Do you remember when you shot your commanding officer in the shoulder during target practice? You’ve got a shitty shot and there’s no way in hell I’m going to happily put a gun in your hands. I’ll go buy you a sword or something when we get to Sector Seven. There’s supposed to be some awesome blacksmith there. They might have something that you can use. Anything but a gun.”
Cloud cracked a smile, but rolled his eyes. “It wasn’t my fault, you know. I tried to shoot at the target, but the ass just got in the way. I couldn’t stop the bullet from leaving the barrel by that time.” The blonde shrugged his shoulders and stood up, exiting the pink room. Before he left, his fingers touched the roses in the vase on the dresser.
“You know, I never thought that flowers could ever bloom in the slums. The kids in Nibelheim once took a flower and dumped it into a pond of mako. It withered and died, crystallizing, a memory of a flower.” Cloud removed one of the blossoms, spinning it between his thumb and pointer finger. “They’re so small, so easily crushed.” His small hand ran over one of the petals, before tightening. The flower made a squelching noise as blood red coloring oozed from the petals, the soft silk corrupted.
“You’re weird, you know that, right, Cloud?”
Cloud dropped the destroyed rose into the pocket of his pants. “I guess I am.”
--
The walk took the better part of an hour. The train was inaccessible thanks to the check-points and Zack didn’t want to inform the whole of Shinra there were two highly sought experiments loose in the center of the Midgar slums.
“So, where is this weapon shop?” Cloud’s hands were buried inside of his pockets as he walked with a sloppy grace. He trailed behind the ex-SOLDIER, following to a three-story building made of various metals. Screams filtered from the third floor window, the sound of various machines from the first.
“Well, you’re standing in front of it,” Zack replied, pulling the door open wide to enter the shop. The smell of fuel, motor oil and sweat mingled in the man’s nose. “Come on, hurry it up, buddy. We’ve only got a few minutes before the crazies expect us to get there and I don’t know about you, but I don’t wanna piss them off from the get-go.”
Cloud’s blue eyes opened drastically at the assortment of weapons adorning the walls. Machine guns, knives of hundreds of shapes and sizes, batons and bats were just the beginning. Gloves on mannequin hands, chains, whips and swords, bullets with mako filled centers, combustible shotgun shells, staves, weapons everywhere. The man at the counter had done a good job at keeping the place stocked with the best weapons he could create from hand. He was currently working on a set of bangles. The bronze gleamed in the dim light.
“No guns?” Cloud asked as he glided his finger over a bullet case.
“I want my ass to stay firmly un-shot, thanks.” Zack threw a knife up in the air, catching it swiftly with his other hand. He continued this morbid juggle until the man behind the counter snapped, “Quit throwin’ those things around! You gonna put somebody in hospital.”
“Hey, don’t get so defensive, gramps.” The knife was placed back on the display table. “I wasn’t going to poke anyone’s eyes out. No harm done.” The man hmphed in response and went back to work on the bangles.
Zack watched Cloud touch a long staff, then place it back down. He was nibbling at his lip, softly so no blood or cuts erupted, but his brows were furrowed in concentration.
“Do you have any more swords?” Cloud asked the man behind the counter, who rolled his eyes.
“Yep, I’ll go grab some from the back room.” The man tossed the bangle to the table, ignorant of the loud thunk. He stepped behind a thick brown sheet which was meant to be a screen, disappearing for a few moments. He came back with several swords in his hands, still sheathed. “I don’t have anything like that big son-of-a-bitch on your friend’s back, but these are trusty swords. Do good damage and are probably a shit-load lighter than that hunk of metal.”
Zack gaped in outrage, “I’ll have you know this sword was made by one of the best swordsmiths in Gaia, buddy.” Zack’s violet eyes narrowed, glaring at the man.
“And I don’t give two shits. It’s a lugger of a piece and there’s no way this boy here can possibly carry something even half of its size.” The man turned to look at Cloud, sizing him up. “Now, boy, I suggest sumtin’ like this--” he pulled one of the swords from the stack, unsheathed it and passed it to the blonde.
Cloud took it from the man, his eyes tracing over the weapon. “This one won’t work. It’s too light. I trained with something a bit heavier. I won’t be able to properly balance without something that weighs more.” He handed the thin blade back to the man.
“How ‘bout this one?” the black-smith handed over a short sword with a long point. Cloud did not even take it into his hands, shaking his head. He tilted his head up, scanning the wall again for a weapon he might have overlooked. Zack looked up too, but saw nothing that caught his eye.
“That one--“ Cloud pointed to a long katana, his hand trembling, “I want to try that one.”
“But Cloud,” Zack started, “You’ve never learned how to handle one. I know you can use basics, but something like katana were solely for--“
“SOLDIER, First-Class,” the boy remarked, his voice bitter, “but I can do it. Zack, you know I can.”
Zack rubbed his hand through his spiky black locks. “Heh, go ahead and pull the sucker down.”
The black-smith pulled out a ladder, put it down in front of him and began climbing up. It took a moment for him to un-bolt the sword from its stand, but when he handed it over to Cloud, Zack saw the sparkle in the boy’s eyes.
“Go ahead an’ unsheathe it,” the man prompted, sitting back down. His hand touched the bangles and the tool, but he did not look away from Cloud. The blonde did as he was bid. Zack saw the pure pleasure run through his face. His eyes magnified, touching the weapon as if it was a small child.
“Perfect weight. Not too flashy or short.Okay, maybe a tad too short, but I think this is good.” Cloud twirled the hilt around, the metal flying, causing prisms of light to catch on the blade. “Zack, I think this is as good as it’s going to get for me.”
“Here, give it to me.” Zack took the weapon from his friend’s hand, twirling it expertly. It flashed as Zack swung the blade. ”Eh, not my cup of tea, but it isn’t so bad. How much?” Zack handed the katana back to Cloud, who re-sheathed it and placed it on the glass counter.
“Four hundred.”
Cloud whistled. “That’s way too much, Zack,” he whispered. “I can get the gun, you know.”
Zack snorted. “Like I said, like hell I’m going to let you shoot me. How ‘bout three-fifty?” The raven-haired man pulled out his wallet and placed two hundred gil notes and a fifty on the counter. “Will that be enough?” The man did not seem to notice that it was not the precise amount he had offered.
“I guess.” The man snatched the money off the counter, placing it protectively inside of the cash register.
The pair left the store, Cloud strapping the new sword onto his back. “So, where do we need to go now?” he asked, back to following the older man. His fingers would occasionally reach over to fiddle with the hilt.
“We’ve gotta get more details on the mission they hired us for. I don’t know about you, but I think this may be fun. We’d be getting back at Shinra!”
The blonde did not speak for a moment. “But, but why would we need to get back at Shinra?”
Zack coughed out the excess air that invaded his lungs. “Hey, you alright?” Cloud asked as the raven-haired man leaned against a nearby building, sputtering. The blonde stopped to pat him on the back, almost reassuring.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” Zack coughed once more, shaking his head. “Sorry ‘bout that. We should get to the bar in a minute or so. I don’t want that guy with the gun grafted onto his arm to shoot my ass.”
Cloud cracked a small smile. “Yeah, let’s go.” Strangely, he did not ask anything further on Shinra. Zack wasn’t able to keep the relief from washing over him in warm cascades.
--
The bar was empty. The two ex-Shinra workers stood out front on the bullet-hole riddled ground, staring into the bar. There was a small child, probably around the age of six, scrubbing the counter down with a dirty wash-rag. Her short hair was in pigtails, small yellow ribbons wrapped around the ends. She had a soft face, fairly plain but angelic at once. She looked up from her chore, doe brown eyes large and curious.
“I’m sorry. We’re closed right now.” The girl went back to scrubbing at the table, dipping the washrag in soapy water.
“Uh, we were told to come by. Well, I actually said that I was going to come by today, but that really isn’t important.” Zack walked forward, weaving through the misplaced chairs and tables, to sit at the bar. Cloud looked around for a moment as if he expected someone to jump out of nowhere and yell ‘Boo!’, but followed.
“Are you the spiky-headed bastard daddy was talking about?” The girl shirked away from the two men sitting on the stools.
Cloud chuckled.
“Uh, yeah, that’d be me, kiddy. So, where are they? I thought they’d be around here somewhere, but I’m kinda lost,” Zack questioned, running his hand through his hair. The girl gave a soft smile, jerking her head to a nearby pinball machine. It was bright orange but the words on the piece of paper told Zack that it was ‘Broken’.
“Huh? Kid, I’m not good at pinball and anyway it’s busted.” Zack pointed to the sign, showing the girl that it was, indeed, out of order.
“No, go hit the side of it with your foot. It’ll take you to daddy.” The girl smiled at Zack, whose violet eyes opened in disbelief.
“Uh, alright then, kiddo.” Zack looked over to the blonde at his side, whispering, “Let’s just humor the kid.” Cloud nodded agreement. They both stood up and walked over to the machine.
“So, just kick it?” Zack asked again, pointing to his foot and then to the side. She nodded her head enthusiastically. “Alrighty then, move you great big hunk of junk!” His boot smashed into the side. It was still for a moment.
“Holy!” Cloud grabbed onto the machine. One foot had not been on the platform, which had begun to move, and he nearly fell. Zack managed to stay on his feet. The two, Cloud shaking slightly, got off the platform. It was a small, secret hideout, a computer sitting in the corner and a small table with chairs towards the middle. There was a punching bag in the corner of the room and a flickering television placed on another desk. Blueprints were pinned to the walls, black pins and red marker covering the surface. Zack scanned the group of people, his violet eyes meeting the gaze of every member present.
“Well, I thought I’d seen cheesy things on the television, but damn, that tops them all.” He jerked his head, black spikes flying, to the pinball machine that was starting to return upwards to the bar. “How the hell did you manage to rig that thing anyway? It isn’t all that easy to make something like that.”
The woman from the day before raised her hand. She was pretty, her dark brown hair tied out of her way in a quick bun, a headband securing it. She had been typing something a moment before, the keyboard on her knees. “That would be me,” she said and stuck out her hand, not moving from the computer chair. Zack leaned forward and shook it. “The name’s Jessie.”
“You’re some kinda woman. I’ll be damned if many people in Shinra could do something like that, especially with the few materials people in the slums are able to get their hands on.” Zack dropped the woman’s hand and looked back towards Cloud, who was once again picking at his shirt.
“That the kid you wanted us to hire too?” Barret looked at Cloud as though he was an insect. “You gotta be shittin’ me, spiky head. Wat’s ya name, boy?”
Cloud straightened himself out, changing his stance, “Cloud Strife.”
At the announcement, a loud gasp came from the corner.
“Cloud?”
“I’m going to be doing what?” Cloud threw the chocobo shirt into the basket, dressing himself in the SOLDIER uniform Zack handed him. It was clean and wrinkle-free and sewn back together, but more importantly clean. The raven-haired man watched the boy bury his nostrils into the shirt, taking a deep breath.
Zack pondered his words for a moment before answering, “We’re going to mercenaries. You know, those people who work for hire, not really giving a shit what they do as long as they get paid? Yeah, that.” Cloud straightened out the collar of his purple shirt, looking into the mirror.
“And you’ve gotten us jobs already? Doing what?” Cloud pulled at his shirt nervously. Zack folded his arms, sitting down on Aeris’ bed.
“Well, there’s this organization called Avalanche that hired me and you--“
Cloud huffed, “Zack, spit it out. Really, what are we doing? Sure, there’s always an organization, but what do we have to do?”
Zack made a face, his lips twisting, “Ugh, fine. We’ve got to go blow up some Mako reactor. No biggie.”
The look that adorned Cloud’s face was priceless, “Holy! Blow up a Mako Reactor? Have you lost all of your common sense? That’s terrorism!”
“Well, no shit, Cloud.” Violet eyes closed. “I think the whole of Sector Five just heard you.”
The blonde grabbed Zack by the shoulders, shaking him. “Have you completely lost your mind!? They’re going to kill us! We’re terrorists. You want me to be a terrorist!?”
“Quit addling my brains, kid. And yep,” the words popped from his lips, “we’re gonna be terrorists. Well, I don’t mind so long as they pay us well.” Cloud let his shoulders go. “Anyway, get your white ass downstairs and eat something. We’ve got a long day of prepping for this job. Plus, we’ve got to get you some type of weapon.”
Cloud rolled his bright blue eyes and sat down on the edge of the bed, “And why can’t I use a gun or something? I’m sure a bunch of terrorists would have a few guns lying around somewhere.”
Zack laughed. “You, with a gun? Do you remember when you shot your commanding officer in the shoulder during target practice? You’ve got a shitty shot and there’s no way in hell I’m going to happily put a gun in your hands. I’ll go buy you a sword or something when we get to Sector Seven. There’s supposed to be some awesome blacksmith there. They might have something that you can use. Anything but a gun.”
Cloud cracked a smile, but rolled his eyes. “It wasn’t my fault, you know. I tried to shoot at the target, but the ass just got in the way. I couldn’t stop the bullet from leaving the barrel by that time.” The blonde shrugged his shoulders and stood up, exiting the pink room. Before he left, his fingers touched the roses in the vase on the dresser.
“You know, I never thought that flowers could ever bloom in the slums. The kids in Nibelheim once took a flower and dumped it into a pond of mako. It withered and died, crystallizing, a memory of a flower.” Cloud removed one of the blossoms, spinning it between his thumb and pointer finger. “They’re so small, so easily crushed.” His small hand ran over one of the petals, before tightening. The flower made a squelching noise as blood red coloring oozed from the petals, the soft silk corrupted.
“You’re weird, you know that, right, Cloud?”
Cloud dropped the destroyed rose into the pocket of his pants. “I guess I am.”
--
The walk took the better part of an hour. The train was inaccessible thanks to the check-points and Zack didn’t want to inform the whole of Shinra there were two highly sought experiments loose in the center of the Midgar slums.
“So, where is this weapon shop?” Cloud’s hands were buried inside of his pockets as he walked with a sloppy grace. He trailed behind the ex-SOLDIER, following to a three-story building made of various metals. Screams filtered from the third floor window, the sound of various machines from the first.
“Well, you’re standing in front of it,” Zack replied, pulling the door open wide to enter the shop. The smell of fuel, motor oil and sweat mingled in the man’s nose. “Come on, hurry it up, buddy. We’ve only got a few minutes before the crazies expect us to get there and I don’t know about you, but I don’t wanna piss them off from the get-go.”
Cloud’s blue eyes opened drastically at the assortment of weapons adorning the walls. Machine guns, knives of hundreds of shapes and sizes, batons and bats were just the beginning. Gloves on mannequin hands, chains, whips and swords, bullets with mako filled centers, combustible shotgun shells, staves, weapons everywhere. The man at the counter had done a good job at keeping the place stocked with the best weapons he could create from hand. He was currently working on a set of bangles. The bronze gleamed in the dim light.
“No guns?” Cloud asked as he glided his finger over a bullet case.
“I want my ass to stay firmly un-shot, thanks.” Zack threw a knife up in the air, catching it swiftly with his other hand. He continued this morbid juggle until the man behind the counter snapped, “Quit throwin’ those things around! You gonna put somebody in hospital.”
“Hey, don’t get so defensive, gramps.” The knife was placed back on the display table. “I wasn’t going to poke anyone’s eyes out. No harm done.” The man hmphed in response and went back to work on the bangles.
Zack watched Cloud touch a long staff, then place it back down. He was nibbling at his lip, softly so no blood or cuts erupted, but his brows were furrowed in concentration.
“Do you have any more swords?” Cloud asked the man behind the counter, who rolled his eyes.
“Yep, I’ll go grab some from the back room.” The man tossed the bangle to the table, ignorant of the loud thunk. He stepped behind a thick brown sheet which was meant to be a screen, disappearing for a few moments. He came back with several swords in his hands, still sheathed. “I don’t have anything like that big son-of-a-bitch on your friend’s back, but these are trusty swords. Do good damage and are probably a shit-load lighter than that hunk of metal.”
Zack gaped in outrage, “I’ll have you know this sword was made by one of the best swordsmiths in Gaia, buddy.” Zack’s violet eyes narrowed, glaring at the man.
“And I don’t give two shits. It’s a lugger of a piece and there’s no way this boy here can possibly carry something even half of its size.” The man turned to look at Cloud, sizing him up. “Now, boy, I suggest sumtin’ like this--” he pulled one of the swords from the stack, unsheathed it and passed it to the blonde.
Cloud took it from the man, his eyes tracing over the weapon. “This one won’t work. It’s too light. I trained with something a bit heavier. I won’t be able to properly balance without something that weighs more.” He handed the thin blade back to the man.
“How ‘bout this one?” the black-smith handed over a short sword with a long point. Cloud did not even take it into his hands, shaking his head. He tilted his head up, scanning the wall again for a weapon he might have overlooked. Zack looked up too, but saw nothing that caught his eye.
“That one--“ Cloud pointed to a long katana, his hand trembling, “I want to try that one.”
“But Cloud,” Zack started, “You’ve never learned how to handle one. I know you can use basics, but something like katana were solely for--“
“SOLDIER, First-Class,” the boy remarked, his voice bitter, “but I can do it. Zack, you know I can.”
Zack rubbed his hand through his spiky black locks. “Heh, go ahead and pull the sucker down.”
The black-smith pulled out a ladder, put it down in front of him and began climbing up. It took a moment for him to un-bolt the sword from its stand, but when he handed it over to Cloud, Zack saw the sparkle in the boy’s eyes.
“Go ahead an’ unsheathe it,” the man prompted, sitting back down. His hand touched the bangles and the tool, but he did not look away from Cloud. The blonde did as he was bid. Zack saw the pure pleasure run through his face. His eyes magnified, touching the weapon as if it was a small child.
“Perfect weight. Not too flashy or short.Okay, maybe a tad too short, but I think this is good.” Cloud twirled the hilt around, the metal flying, causing prisms of light to catch on the blade. “Zack, I think this is as good as it’s going to get for me.”
“Here, give it to me.” Zack took the weapon from his friend’s hand, twirling it expertly. It flashed as Zack swung the blade. ”Eh, not my cup of tea, but it isn’t so bad. How much?” Zack handed the katana back to Cloud, who re-sheathed it and placed it on the glass counter.
“Four hundred.”
Cloud whistled. “That’s way too much, Zack,” he whispered. “I can get the gun, you know.”
Zack snorted. “Like I said, like hell I’m going to let you shoot me. How ‘bout three-fifty?” The raven-haired man pulled out his wallet and placed two hundred gil notes and a fifty on the counter. “Will that be enough?” The man did not seem to notice that it was not the precise amount he had offered.
“I guess.” The man snatched the money off the counter, placing it protectively inside of the cash register.
The pair left the store, Cloud strapping the new sword onto his back. “So, where do we need to go now?” he asked, back to following the older man. His fingers would occasionally reach over to fiddle with the hilt.
“We’ve gotta get more details on the mission they hired us for. I don’t know about you, but I think this may be fun. We’d be getting back at Shinra!”
The blonde did not speak for a moment. “But, but why would we need to get back at Shinra?”
Zack coughed out the excess air that invaded his lungs. “Hey, you alright?” Cloud asked as the raven-haired man leaned against a nearby building, sputtering. The blonde stopped to pat him on the back, almost reassuring.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” Zack coughed once more, shaking his head. “Sorry ‘bout that. We should get to the bar in a minute or so. I don’t want that guy with the gun grafted onto his arm to shoot my ass.”
Cloud cracked a small smile. “Yeah, let’s go.” Strangely, he did not ask anything further on Shinra. Zack wasn’t able to keep the relief from washing over him in warm cascades.
--
The bar was empty. The two ex-Shinra workers stood out front on the bullet-hole riddled ground, staring into the bar. There was a small child, probably around the age of six, scrubbing the counter down with a dirty wash-rag. Her short hair was in pigtails, small yellow ribbons wrapped around the ends. She had a soft face, fairly plain but angelic at once. She looked up from her chore, doe brown eyes large and curious.
“I’m sorry. We’re closed right now.” The girl went back to scrubbing at the table, dipping the washrag in soapy water.
“Uh, we were told to come by. Well, I actually said that I was going to come by today, but that really isn’t important.” Zack walked forward, weaving through the misplaced chairs and tables, to sit at the bar. Cloud looked around for a moment as if he expected someone to jump out of nowhere and yell ‘Boo!’, but followed.
“Are you the spiky-headed bastard daddy was talking about?” The girl shirked away from the two men sitting on the stools.
Cloud chuckled.
“Uh, yeah, that’d be me, kiddy. So, where are they? I thought they’d be around here somewhere, but I’m kinda lost,” Zack questioned, running his hand through his hair. The girl gave a soft smile, jerking her head to a nearby pinball machine. It was bright orange but the words on the piece of paper told Zack that it was ‘Broken’.
“Huh? Kid, I’m not good at pinball and anyway it’s busted.” Zack pointed to the sign, showing the girl that it was, indeed, out of order.
“No, go hit the side of it with your foot. It’ll take you to daddy.” The girl smiled at Zack, whose violet eyes opened in disbelief.
“Uh, alright then, kiddo.” Zack looked over to the blonde at his side, whispering, “Let’s just humor the kid.” Cloud nodded agreement. They both stood up and walked over to the machine.
“So, just kick it?” Zack asked again, pointing to his foot and then to the side. She nodded her head enthusiastically. “Alrighty then, move you great big hunk of junk!” His boot smashed into the side. It was still for a moment.
“Holy!” Cloud grabbed onto the machine. One foot had not been on the platform, which had begun to move, and he nearly fell. Zack managed to stay on his feet. The two, Cloud shaking slightly, got off the platform. It was a small, secret hideout, a computer sitting in the corner and a small table with chairs towards the middle. There was a punching bag in the corner of the room and a flickering television placed on another desk. Blueprints were pinned to the walls, black pins and red marker covering the surface. Zack scanned the group of people, his violet eyes meeting the gaze of every member present.
“Well, I thought I’d seen cheesy things on the television, but damn, that tops them all.” He jerked his head, black spikes flying, to the pinball machine that was starting to return upwards to the bar. “How the hell did you manage to rig that thing anyway? It isn’t all that easy to make something like that.”
The woman from the day before raised her hand. She was pretty, her dark brown hair tied out of her way in a quick bun, a headband securing it. She had been typing something a moment before, the keyboard on her knees. “That would be me,” she said and stuck out her hand, not moving from the computer chair. Zack leaned forward and shook it. “The name’s Jessie.”
“You’re some kinda woman. I’ll be damned if many people in Shinra could do something like that, especially with the few materials people in the slums are able to get their hands on.” Zack dropped the woman’s hand and looked back towards Cloud, who was once again picking at his shirt.
“That the kid you wanted us to hire too?” Barret looked at Cloud as though he was an insect. “You gotta be shittin’ me, spiky head. Wat’s ya name, boy?”
Cloud straightened himself out, changing his stance, “Cloud Strife.”
At the announcement, a loud gasp came from the corner.
“Cloud?”