Chapter 01

"Push!"

Tifa held Cloud's hand in a lethally tight grip, and the ex-SOLDIER, dressed in hospital attire, winced. He looked down at Tifa's sweating face.

"It's okay, Teef, just listen to the doctor..."

Tifa responded by screaming murder in Cloud's ear. He squeezed his eyes tightly shut and looked away from her.

"That's right, Miss Lockheart, you're almost done," the doctor said.

Tifa gave a final push, accompianied by a loud yell, just as Rufus came into the room, also fully dressed in the sterile hospital wear. He stared at Tifa wide eyed, feeling a bit queasy.

"There we are, Miss Lockheart!" the doctor exclaimed. "It's a girl!"

Several nurses rushed to scoop the baby up from the doctor's arms and clean her off. In the meantime, Tifa sighed and wiped her forehead.

"You did great, Teef," Cloud encouraged her. "You've got a baby girl."

Tifa smiled, a warm feeling rushing over her body. She glanced up.

"Hi, Rufus."

Cloud turned around, not having noticed Rufus come in.

"Yeah, nice of you to come by," he spat. "Four hours late."

Rufus frowned. "I apologize," he said to Tifa. "I had a meeting that ran over, and there were a lot of problems at the office."

"Whatever," Cloud said, massasing Tifa's hands in his. "It would have done you better to wait outside."

Before Rufus could reply, the nurses came back, the first one carrying the tiny baby, wrapped in a pink blanket, in her arms. Tifa instantly reached her arms up to take the child.

She cradled the child to her chest and smiled. The little girl had big blue eyes, and wisps of dark golden brown hair. Her skin was still pink, and Tifa was amazed at how fragile the baby was.

"She's beautiful," Tifa said.

Cloud looked at the baby, feeling somewhat jealous that he wasn't the father. It didn't matter, knowing Rufus he suspected he'd be playing that role more so than the real father would.

Rufus gawked. "That's... my daughter..."

"It sure it," the doctor laughed. "What did you pick out as a name?"

Rufus brushed off his white coat nervously, after taking off the hospital wear. "I... uh... I didn't... uh..."

"Jewel," Tifa answered, rocking the baby in her arms. "I'm naming her Jewel."

"Sephiroth!"

Sephiroth dropped the Masamune, which he had been polishing, bare chested on the couch in the sizeable Midgar apartment he and Tayeko now lived in. He walked upstairs to see his pregnant wife.

Yes, pregnant.

Tayeko had become pregnant shortly after the wedding, and it was no surprise to anyone. She was already six months into the pregnancy.

Sephiroth pushed open the bedroom door, and Tayeko was standing there, her purse in hand.

"It's time to go," she said. "Put a shirt on."

"Go where?" Sephiroth wondered.

"To the doctor!" Tayeko answered. She pulled a dark gray button down shirt off of a hook on the front of the closet door and tossed it at Sephiroth. "Put it on, I don't want to be late for my appointment."

Sephiroth shrugged and pulled the shirt on. "I have to start training the new SOLDIER recruits at four o'clock," he said.

Tayeko glanced at the wall clock. "Don't worry, you have plenty of time. Come on."

Sephiroth led Tayeko to her doctor's appointment in his new black car, which was complete with fully tinted windows and leather interior. It had been an added bonus he'd been given after joining SOLDIER again.

Sephiroth helped Tayeko, now with her swollen belly, into the doctor's office on the other side of Midgar. He sat down in the waiting room, and a doctor's assistant came in and led her into the office.

Sephiroth picked up a weapons magazine and peacefully ignored the other patrons that seemed to take a liking to staring at him. He had interested himself in reading about the new models of swords for about twenty minutes when Tayeko and her doctor came back into the room.

"Sephiroth!" Tayeko squealed. "Guess what!?"

Sephiroth looked up at her bright, smiling face. "Yes, what is it?"

"We're having twins!" she raced towards him.

Sephiroth blinked, standing up to catch her embrace. "Twins?"

Tayeko nodded. "Yes, that's right, Sephiroth! Twins!"

Sephiroth stroked her hair. "That's wonderful..."

"Come on, let's visit Vincent and your mother," Tayeko suggested. "I'm sure they'd love to hear the news."

Sephiroth nodded. "Alright, let's go."

Lucrecia stared out of the kitchen window of the small Midgar apartment she and Vincent shared.

Vincent sat on the living room couch, a small table pulled in front of him, and an abundance of bullets and shells dumped on it. He had various guns laying out on the couch, and currently he was inspecting his silver rifle. He'd been making a living by working on weapons for any customer who so asked, while Lucrecia had been hired by Rufus and Reeve to work in the scientic department of the new R&R Shin-Ra.

Lucrecia sighed and walked to the doorway, staring at Vincent. He wore his usual attire, except for his cape, which he always did without while he was in the house, for the sake of it being overly dramatic. The living room was dark, as Vincent would usually have any room he was in. No matter how happy they were, she couldn't seem to get him out of his dark, dank, need to be shrouded in such. He'd even insisted on black sheets for their bed. To make matters worse, he always seemed to sleep with the dark, heavy covers way over his head, which she figured was a side effect of his sleeping in a coffin for thirty years.

Sensing her eyes on him, he stopped fooling with the gun to turn and look at her. She wore a soft blue tank top, accommadating the hot summer weather that had been plagueing everyone in Midgar, and a pair of white jeans that hugged the lower half of her body nicely. Vincent smirked slightly.

"Why must you sit in the dark, Vincent?" Lucrecia asked. "Wouldn't you like some light while you work? The sun is so bright today, it wouldn't hurt to open a window."

Vincent shrugged. "I'm just not used to it," he said.

Lucrecia rolled her eyes and walked over to the living room's window. Reaching up, she pulled up the huge blinds, and the raging sunlight tore into the room. Vincent held up his claw to block his burning red eyes.

"Too much sun, Lucrecia," he pleaded.

Lucrecia put her hands on her hips. "What are you, Vincent, a vampire?" she asked. "It's just sun."

Vincent squinted, trying to adjust his eyes to the bright light she had invited in. "Now it's getting hot in here," he said.

"You'd feel much better if you didn't wear all black," Lucrecia insisted. "Why don't you change your clothes? And tie your hair back into a ponytail."

Vincent stared up at her. "Change my clothes?" he repeated. "Ponytail? No, Lucrecia, I'm afraid you will not get that much out of me."

Lucrecia shrugged. "Fine, have it your way," she said just as the doorbell rang."

"I'll get it, I'm already up," Lucrecia said, keeping Vincent from getting up. She walked over to the door.

Opening it up, she saw her son, Sephiroth, standing there, perspiring from the heat. Tayeko stood next to him, smiling anxiously.

"Sephiroth, Tayeko!" Lucrecia exclaimed. "What an unexpected surprise! Come in!"

"Mother," Sephiroth acknowledged, kissing his mother on the cheek. Tayeko did the same, and Lucrecia shut the door behind them as they stepped in.

"Hi Vincent!" Tayeko said. Sephiroth nodded his greeting.

"Hello," Vincent said, eyeing them before turning back to his guns.

"We have wonderful news," Tayeko exclaimed. "I'm going to have twins!"

"Oh!" Lucrecia squealed. "How wonderful!" her hands flew to Tayeko's swollen belly.

"And listen, one girl and one boy," Tayeko added. "How awesome is that?"

"Oh, that's lovely!" Lucrecia said. "Vincent, did you hear that?"

"Yes," Vincent mumbled from the couch, though it didn't sound as though he cared much.

Lucrecia waved him off. "Oh, have you decided on any names?"

"Not for the girl," Tayeko answered. "But for the boy, we've agreed to name him Shen, after my father."

Lucrecia was bubbling. "How sweet!"

Sephiroth took a seat on a stool that sat by a grandfather clock in the living room and wiped his forehead. "It's brutally hot in Midgar," he said. "This doesn't usually happen."

"It is unusually hot," Vincent said, turning, finally engaging in conversation.

"Just be glad you're not in Mideel," Lucrecia said, referring to the rebuilt town which still sat on a Lifestream hotbed. "The news said they've got temperatures over 115 degrees."

Tayeko sighed loudly. "I couldn't stand it," she said.

"Yes, especially since you're pregnant," Lucrecia added. "Pregnant women are always hot."

"Lucrecia, if it's so hot, why don't we close that window and get rid of the sun?" Vincent suddenly said.

Lucrecia rolled her eyes. "That window is staying just like it is," she said. "But if it makes you feel any better, I'll fix you some lemonaide."

"God, it's so hot,!" Tifa wheezed as Cloud pushed her wheelchair out of the Midgar hospital, her newborn baby in her arms.

"Yep, it's summer already," Cloud agreed, pushing the wheelchair to where he parked the white sedan he and Tifa put their money together to purchase and shared. He helped her stand and opened the passenger door for her as she slid in with the baby, then rolled the chair back to the rack by the hospital.

He set up the child seat in the back seat of the car and under Tifa's instructions, carefully strapped Jewel in. He kissed the baby on the cheek and climbed in the car, sticking the key in the ignition.

"My birthday is next week, he said as he pulled off.

"What?" Tifa questioned. "It's already August?"

Cloud nodded. "Yeah. I'm gonna be twenty - two on the 19th."

"Wow," Tifa said. "Where's the time going? I guess we'll throw you a little party at the bar."

"Oh, don't worry about all that," Cloud said. "Just worry about your baby."

"It's fine," Tifa said, turning to look at the sleeping Jewel, laying in the baby seat."

"Teef, when do you think we'll be able to have children of our own?" Cloud asked, his jaw setting slightly.

Tifa turned to look at him. "Gosh, I don't know, Cloud," she answered. "One kid is enough for now, but soon, of course..."

Cloud gripped the steering wheel tightly in his gloved hands as he pulled up towards the new, rebuilt Tifa's Seventh Heaven Bar in Sector Four of Midgar. He and Tifa lived upstairs in an apartment above the bar, which had been bringing in a lot of money for them lately. Cloud still classified himself as a mercenary, but not many calls had come in as of late, so he left himself to help his wife in her bar. It had become popular almost overnight, and many of Tifa's old customers from the Sector Seven slums, those who had made it out of the doomed sector before the tragic drop of the plate, began to flock there once they heard of it's reopening.

Cloud parked the car and helped Tifa carry her things, and pulled Jewel out of her car seat. He looked down at the little girl which was only a little over a day old and thought sadly how this child was not his blood. Shaking off the thoughts, he handed Jewel to Tifa, and they went inside the bar through the side door.

Cloud immediately sent Tifa upstairs to rest, despite her protests to go to the bar and make sure her hired help was running things smoothly. She soon fell asleep, and Cloud himself put Jewel to bed in the crib they'd set up by their bed, as they hadn't completed work in the baby room they'd made from the extra bedroom, and Tifa wasn't too comfortable with the idea of the baby sleeping in a separate room from her.

Cloud sat on the bed, next to where Tifa slept deeply, their flannel sheets thrown askew, being it was much too hot to use them. He lay back on the bed and ran his fingers through her hair.

I want a child of my own, he thought painfully, closing his eyes.

"Come on, Striker, please?!"

Striker frowned, looking down at the ground. He, Yuffie, and a Wutain friend of hers were in Wutai, sitting together on a old swingset that sat in front of the temple of the Five Pagodas. Yuffie sat next to him, pulling his arm, and her friend, Naoko, was sitting besides Yuffie, holding her knees on the swing.

"I don't know, Yuffie..." he said.

"Yuffie's right, Striker," Naoko said. Naoko was Yuffie's age, but had perfectly straight, long, jet black hair that was pulled up into a high ponytail that traveled down her back. The base of her ponytail was held together with a braid wrapped around it, and two chopsticks where stuck across her hair. She had perfectly cut, straight bangs that lay across her forehead. Her eyes were black like her hair, and her skin was white like milk. She wore a pair of tight, dark blue jeans, sneakers, and a thin strapped tank top.

"You have to meet my father soon," Yuffie continued. "We've been dating for months, Striker. He's planning to betrowth me!"

Striker shuddered. "Can't we just get married then?" he asked.

Yuffie nearly fell off the swing. "Are you nuts? I'm too young! I don't even turn seventeen for another four months!"

Striker shrugged. "I don't know, it's just that, well... your father is kind of intimidating..."

"Don't let Godo get to you," Naoko said. "He is kindhearted deep inside."

Striker smiled at Naoko's rich accent, one Yuffie had either lost or never aquired.

"I guess..."

"You have to ask my dad if you can court me in the eyes of the five gods of the Pagoda," Yuffie explained. "Otherwise, we will have to keep sneaking around like this and if he finds out, he will have your head."

Striker touched his neck. "Yeah.... I guess I'll meet him..."

"Great!" Yuffie threw her arms around Striker's neck and kissed his cheek. "I love you, Striker, you're the best!"

Striker blushed.

"Yuffie! Striker!"

Yuffie squinted her eyes and looked ahead on the path. "Kat! Kat, is that you?"

Kat came racing towards the swings, dropping her single bag on the ground. Yuffie and Striker lept off the swing, and Kat wrapped her arms around Yuffie.

"Hey! It's great to see you!" she said.

"You too!" Yuffie agreed.

"Hey Kat," Striker said, hugging the red head as well.

"Kat, this is my friend Naoko," Yuffie said. "I've know her since I was four."

Kat and Naoko shook hands.

"What are you doing here, Kat?" Yuffie asked. "Why aren't you in school?"

"Um, duh, Yuffie, its summer!?" Kat said. "Has it been that long since you've been to school?"

Yuffie thought for a moment. "Gee, I guess it has. How long are you going to stay here?"

Kat shrugged. "Rufus wants me with him for the whole summer, but I managed to get him to let me get away for a few weeks this month. After all, I spent nearly all of July with him."

"Oh, so how are things going with you and him?" Yuffie asked.

"Things are fine," Kat answered, blushing.

"Well come on," Yuffie said. "Striker's gonna finally meet my father and ask him if we can date."

"About time!" Kat said.

"No, god, not right now!" Striker begged.

Yuffie pulled his arm. "No excuses. Let's go!"

Rude entered the Junon Inn, smiling at the girl behind the desk as he set down his gil. She had a high ponytail full of bright, burgandy colored dyed hair, and her nose was peiced. She had light gray eyes, dark lipstick, and wore a gothic black fishnet shirt over a black tanktop. She smiled at him, popping her gum loudly.

Rude had admired this girl every time he and the Turks stayed at the Junon inn. Seeing her face those many times made him get over never hooking up with Tifa. Deciding to be bold for once, Rude swallowed his pride and opted to ask the girl on a date.

"Thanks," she said. "Enjoy your stay."

Rude looked at her through his dark glasses. "What's your name?" he suddenly asked.

The girl stopped chewing her gum, a bit stunned. "Eh, Faiza," she answered, twirling her fingers, with their black polished nails, around each other.

"Faiza," he repeated. "A very pretty name. Would you like to go out sometime?"

Faiza blinked. "Eh, sure. Why not?" she started chewing her gum again.

Rude smiled, running a hand down his goatee. "How bout dinner, tonight? Eight o'clock."

Faiza smiled brightly. "Sure, why not? I'll be hear."

"Good," Rude said. "See you tonight, Faiza." He started towards the steps, leaving the goth girl amazed a Turk had just asked her for a date.

Rude went upstairs and found his room, pushing the door open. He walked inside to see Reno sitting on the edge of one of the beds, shirtless, a cigarette handing out of his mouth and a beer bottle dangling lazilly out of his hands.

"Reno, what in the hell are you doing?"

Rude's deep voice shook the thin walls of the inn, and Reno shuddered, looking up at his friend and co-worker.

"Nothing, really, just sitting here..."

Rude sat on the other bed. "Reno, somethings going on with you. You haven't slept with many women lately, and that's saying alot..."

"So?" Reno questioned defensively. "Is there something wrong with not fucking chics and breaking their hearts the next day?"

Rude was about to respond when the door swung open. Randy stood in the frame.

"Hey guys," he said. "Want to go grab a drink?"

"Its never just one drink anymore," Reno said miserably, sipping his beer.

"Not yet, Randy," Rude said. "Reno's going through some stuff and I think we should sit down and talk."

"Hey man, can I get a puff on that cigarette?" Randy asked, pointing to the cigarette that was collecting ashes between Reno's fingers.

"Sit down, Randy," Rude said.

Randy shrugged and took a seat next to Rude on the bed. Reno continued to stare down at his bare feet.

"Reno, I don't know what's the matter with you these past weeks," Rude said. "You're not the same. Tseng gave us a few days off, why don't you try to enjoy them?"

"Yeah," Randy said. "I've been freeloading off Faiza for the past week just so I could see you guys here in Junon."

"Faiza?" Rude wondered.

"Yeah, the chick that works downstairs," Randy said. "We've been, like, best friends since, well, we were kids back in Midgar. She lets me hole up with her whenever I'm in Junon."

"Interesting," Rude said. "I've just made a date with Faiza."

"Really?" Randy gasped. "Cool! But you better take care of her, she's like, the sister I never had."

Reno sighed loudly.

"Reno, what is it with you?" Rude asked. "Is this about Yuffie?"

Reno lept up. "Yuffie? Yuffie!" He paced barefoot across the wooden floor. "Yuffie, ha! I could care less about her!"

"Reno, I can't believe you'd get so worked up over her," Randy said. "I mean, she was cute, but she wasn't all that-"

Reno tossed the beer bottle across the room, smashing it into the wall and sending the shattered glass soaring in every direction. The remaining beer that was in the bottle ran down the wall.

"That's not what it's about..." he argued. "Yuffie meant something to me, I just don't know what... and... I don't have that now." He fell back onto the bed and held his pounding head in his hands.

"You dropped the cigarette," Randy pointed out quietly. "Someone ought to put that out..."

Rude got up and stomped the cigarette out with his heavy boot. He then kneeled down in front of Reno and grabbed his shoulders.

"You've got to forget about all this nonsense," Rude said. "Reno, she isn't worth it. I've never seen you get this way over a girl."

Reno shook Rude away from him.

"Whatever, whatever," he said standing up. "Let me get my shirt on, and we'll go to the bar. Enough about Yuffie."

Reno grabbed his shirt and suit jacket from where they lay crumpled up on the other end of his bed. Rude looked at Randy for support, who merely shrugged.

"This would be perfect for the center," Dion said, sheilding her eyes from the sun.

She, Barret, and Marlene were in Noth Corel, where Barret had been quickly appointed as mayor soon after returning to his home. He'd been working hard to clean up the town, and the next step was transforming this abandoned warehouse they stood in front of into a youth center.

"What's this gonna be, Daddy?" Marlene asked, pointing up at the dilapitated building.

"Dion's gonna make a nice youth center here," Barret explained. "Kids of all ages can come here after school to hang out and have fun, and she's gonna have her own theater program."

"That's right," Dion said, smiling, envisioning in her mind what the completed building would look like. "I've already got a bunch of kids from the neighborhood who want to sign up and are even willing to help fix up the place."

"Oh, Daddy, can I come here, please!" Marlene begged, pulling on his pants' leg.

"Sure honey, when its' finished," he answered.

Barret's PHS chirped.

"Damnit, hold on," he cursed, reaching into his pocket to take out the phone. He flipped it open and answered it.

"Yeah, what is it now?"

"Mayor Wallace," his secretary's voice came on. "There's two men here to see you, and -"

"Wanda, didn't I tell you not to call me on that bullshit right now?" Barret yelled. "I told you to hold my calls! I don't care who's there, tell 'em to come back some otha' time! I'm busy right now!"

"Sir, I'm so sorry," Wanda squeaked, her voice shaking. "But they are very persistant! They refuse to leave, I tried to get them out, but they won't listen. They say they must speak to you right away, it's seems to be very important..."

"Goddamnit!" Barret cursed, animated by stomping his foot hard on the ground. "I'll be there in a minute."

He violently snapped the phone shut and turned to Dion. "You stay here with Marlene and keep checking out the building, and map out what you want to do. I've got to go back to the damn office."

Dion nodded. "I understand," She said. "We'll be fine."

Barret turned and started heading back down the road to the Town Hall. "Got to do every goddamned thing around here myself," he mumbled as he went along.

Barret stormed into the waiting room outside his office, slamming the door so hard he frightened his secretary Wanda into dropping a file folder filled with papers. He glared at her.

"Where are these foos?" he barked.

Wanda pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "They're waiting inside your office, sir," she answered.

Barret growled under his breath and shoved open the door to his office, finding two men in his office. One was standing beside the doorway, a young, Wutain with straight, spiked up black hair and dark, shadowy eyes. He had a long scar across his right cheek, and he wore black pants, a white tank top, and black leather jacket. He merely leered at Barret as he came in.

The man sitting in the chair oppisite Barret's desk was another story altogether. He was obviously older then the one who was standing, probably in his late twenties. He had dark brown hair that was cut nicely and combed over, and wore a dark blue, pinstripe business suit. His blue eyes were sly and fox like as far as Barret was concerned, and he didn't like the looks of these two characters one bit.

"Alright, what in hell's name is this all about?" he demanded.

The man sitting stood up, giving Barret a practiced, flashy white smile. He shoved out his hand, which was impressively adorned with a gold ring and bracelet.

"My name is Jonathan Ross," he said. "President of Ross Energy Corporation. Oh, and that there is Ryu, a bodyguard of mine, if you will. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mayor Wallace."

Barret shook Jonathan's hand warily. "Yeah, I've heard about ya'll in the paper," he said. "You trying out some new Energy methods way out in Icicle Inn, ain't you?"

Jonathan nodded. "Yes, and the people out there are very pleased with it indeed," he said. "We've been looking to spread to other cities and continents. Bone Village relies on us as well now, and we've been working out a deal with Mideel's Mayor this past week. Why, even Lord Godo of the great nation of Wutai is considering switching over to us."

Ryu cracked his knuckles for no apparent reason.

Barret frowned skeptically at Jonathan. "Can you tell me why the hell you're in North Corel, Ross?" he asked.

"No need to be hostile, Mr. Wallace," Jonathan said. "I've only come to ask if you'd like to negotiate using Ross Energy to power North Corel.

Barret waved his gunarm in the air. "We use R&R Shin-Ra," he said.

Jonathan thirftly raised an eyebrow. "Ah, yes, Shin-Ra, the monopoly of Energy source. What are they running on, electricity?"

Barret nodded.

"And before that, it was Mako, correct?"

"What are you gettin' at?" Barret nearly hollered.

"Nothing, nothing," Jonathan said, putting his hands up. "It just seems odd that such an untrustable corporation... one that, I might add, nearly destroyed this town, would be used by a smart fellow such as yoursel. How do you know they aren't up to some sneaky tactics right now? Ross Energy is a dependable, safe energy solution that can effectively help bring North Corel back to what it -"

"Now listen here," Barret interrupted. "Shin-Ra may have been nothin' but trouble before, but they've got new management and I've got my eye on them. How do you run your power anyway?"

Jonathan grinned. "Oh, that's a secret let out only to you once you sign our contract," he said. "But I assure you, you will not be dissappointed."

"Well, I ain't signing a damn thing," Barret said. "Now you can just take your advertising mumbo jumbo and the next karate kid right on out of my office."

Jonathan made a sympathetic face. "I'm sorry to hear that, Mr. Wallace," he said. "Well, there is one more matter of business I must bring to your attention before I leave."

"What is it now?" Barret asked, impatiently stomping his foot.

"If I'm correct, there is an old warehouse a couple miles up the road that is abadoned, right?"

Barret snorted. "Yeah, but we using that to build a youth center," he said.

"I'm sorry," Jonathan said. "But I forgot to mention, the Gold Saucer wants to connect to our power as well. However, there's no place to set up our energy base there, and the nearest location is North Corel. We're thinking of utilizing that warehouse as the power source and connecting it to the Gold Saucer.

"No you don't," Barret warned. "I told you that's for Corel's youth center!"

"Who owns the deed to the building?" Jonathan asked nonchalantly.

"The realtors," Barret choked on the words.

Jonathan nodded. "Very well, I must be on my way to contact them." He nodded at Ryu, who opened the door. "Thank you for your time, Mayor Wallace. I'm sorry we couldn't reach an agreement."

Barret was fuming as the door closed behind Jonathan Ross and that Ryu guy. He slammed his gunarm violently on the desk, and cursing, picked up the phone.

Rufus spun around in his chair, looking out the glass window of his office. the old Shin-Ra building had been renovated, now home to the business he restarted along sideReeve, R & R Shin-Ra.

Rufus frowned when the phone rang. He had been enjoying the simple peace and quiet of his office. Dark Nation lazily lifted his head at the chirp of the phone.

"Yes?" Rufus huffed into the phone.

"It's me, Reeve," Reeve's anxious voice came through. I just recieved a phone call from Barret."

"And?" Rufus prompted, somewhat annoyed.

"He's asking to borrow a large sum of money from us," Reeve said.

"What for?" Rufus asked.

"Some new energy company wants to buy a warehouse in Corel that he was planning to use," Reeve explained. "He seemed very upset, and he said that the president of that company was very adamemt about getting the building."

Rufus put his pen to his lips. "What has that got to do with us?"

Reeve sighed. "Come on, Rufus," he said. "Don't you think we ought to help him out?"

"How much money is he talking about?" Rufus asked.

Ree ve made a humming sound. "Well, it is a warehouse, so it will probably go for a lot. I'm thinking a few million gil."

Rufus whistled. "I don't know, that's way more than I care to spare. And how does Barret propose to pay me back?"

"It's not about that, Rufus," Reeve said. "It's about helping the guy and his town out. Besides, this is an energy company we're talking about. If you let them expand, they'll pose a threat to us."

"You certainly are right, Reeve," Rufus said. "Who is this new company you speak? I've never heard of them."

"Neither have I, till today," Reeve answered. "Barret told me that they are located in Icicle Inn."

"Ah, yes, Icicle Inn. The only city that refused to rely on Shin-Ra after Meteor."

"That's right, and Bone Village uses them too. Even Mideel signed a contrat earlier this week, and Barret tells me Godo is considering switching over as well."

"Is that so?" Rufus said, becoming a bit angry. "What is the name of this company?".

"Ross engery," Reeve answered. "Led by some young fellow named Jonathan Ross."

Rufus slammed his fist on the surface of his desk. "Did you say Jonathan Ross?"

"That's right," Reeve answered. "Why, is something wrong?"

Rufus let out a sardonic laugh, one that Reeve hadn't heard since the days of Shin-Ra before Meteor. "Jonathan Ross was the son of the president of one of the old mining companies Shin-Ra erradicated when I was young," Rufus answered. "He was a rival of mine growing up. He was so bitter that our company had taken over his father's."

"Seems as though he's trying to take his revenge now," Reeve said.

Rufus rubbed his hands together. "He can try all he wants," he said. "In the meantime, call our friend Mayor Wallace back and find out how much he wants that check written out for."

"Early to rise, Zachary," Elmyra sang, letting the morning sunlight stream into the room as she pulled the curtains wide. "Time to get up."

Zack groaned and covered his eyes with his large hands, angry that Aeris' mother was waking him at such an hour. It hadn't been since his days in SOLDIER that he'd awoken so early, and he certainly grew out of that habit quickly.

"Sheesh," he muttered, sitting up. "What for?"

"Breakfast is ready, downstairs, and you need to get back to looking for a job," Elmyra said gruffly as she headed out of his room. "Come on."

Zack was living with Aeris and Elmyra in their Kalm home. They hadn't married yet, though they had engaged, yet Elmyra refused to let them sleep in the same room, much less the same bed. She wasn't too happy about letting Zack live with them at all, but she couldn't turn down her daughter's pleas. Zack would often sneak into Aeris' room when Elmyra was sleeping late at night.

After climbing out of bed, Zack crossed the hall and went into the bathroom. A quick shower, change of clothes, and brushing his teeth led him acceptable to attend the breakfast table, one of the many rules Elmyra set down when he first came to live with them. He treaded down the stairs, and saw Aeris seated at the table, her smiling face giving off a warm glow. Elmyra wiped her hands on a dish cloth and took a seat.

"C'mon, Zack," Aeris prompted. "Your food will get cold."

Zack smiled and sat, ready to dig into the scrumptous meal Elmyra had prepared.

"Zachary, I'll bet you didn't know Tifa had her baby," Elmyra announced as she passed the tray of scrambled eggs to him. "She called me last night before you came home. A beautiful baby girl, whom she named Jewel."

"No, I didn't know that," Zack said, smiling at Aeris. The truth was, he did know. Aeris had told him when he visited her room last night."

"I'm so happy for her," Aeris beamed, sipping her orange juice. "We should visit her soon."

"That's a wonderful idea," Elmyra agreed.

Zack grinned through chewing his food. The prospect of getting out the house away from Elmyra with Aeris was just as good an idea as any.

"Oh, Zachary, I almost forgot," Elmyra spoke, setting down her fork. "You recieved a phone call last night as well. From a young fella named... Ryu, I beileve."

Zack stared blankly at her. "What?"

"Are you deaf, boy?" Elmyra said angrily. "I said you got a phone call from someone named Ryu. I wrote his number down and left it on the stand by the telephone in the living room."

Zack dropped his fork and pushed away from the table, nearly leaping up and dashing into the living room. Elmyra shook her head and rolled her eyes. Aeris giggled.

Zack nearly tripped on the oriental throw rug and fell into the couch, snatching the phone's reciever of the hook. He noticed a small peice of paper next to it, with the name "Ryu" written on it, and what was obviously a long distance number.

Zack punched the numbers into the phone, his heart pounding as it rang. Ryu was an old friend SOLDIER. Quiet, strange, and powerful, Zack never saw him again after they joined the War. If this was the same Ryu, it certainly would be great to speak with him.

"Ryu," was the answer on the other line.

"Ryu?" Zack repeated.

"Yes," the thick but young Wutain accent came through. "This is Ryu."

"This is Zack," Zack identified himself. "You called me?" "Zaaacckk," Ryu sang. "I missed you greatly. Remember me, from SOLDIER?"

"Golly, Ryu, it's really you?" Zack said. "I haven't heard from you in years! What's going on?"

Ryu laughed on the other line. "Oh, not much, my friend. But I did call you for a reason."

"Oh?" Zack said, curiously. "What might that be?"

"I have a job for you, a good one. You interested?"

Zack grew quiet and thought for a moment. Elmyra had been on him for the longest to find work, and things weren't exactly working in his favor.

"What kind of job?" he asked.

"Oh, high paying, with a new business," Ryu explained vaguely. "We need people. How bout I fly you to our office in Junon and show you?"

Zack scratched his head. Junon wasn't that far. If the job was nonsense, he could be back by dinner. Besides, he wanted to see Ryu again.

"Sure," Zack agreed. "Why not?"

"Good," Ryu said. "I'll send a helicopter now. I hope you are dressed."