I spent the next two days showing Tifa around the tunnels so that she could find her way around them without my help. The tunnels could lead anywhere in Midgar but each tunnel leading off where we lived was eventually blocked or caved in.
"Who was your friend?" asked Tifa after some time.
"Who?"
"Your friend. The one who saved you. What was her name?"
"It was Keanie." I said and I looked in another direction to avoid her eyes. Tifa fell silent and we found ourselves back in the streets of the slums. So much had happened lately that seemed to bring back the past one way or another.
We entered the bar and Rian looked up. "Hey Mysty those guys asked about you after you left suddenly, well, the redhead did. The blonde did nothin' but complain."
"What did you tell them?" I asked, now realizing that they would've asked about her.
"Not much, just said your name was Mysty and that you're the cook."
I sighed happily. I couldn't have loved that nickname more. If Rian had said the whole name I would've been locked up in the Shinra building by now.
"He said he may come back tonight." said Rian "I think he likes you or something."
I felt like barfing and showed so by the look on my face. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed him relax, obviously wondering about my feelings of him.
So Reno did show up that night, but I was wearing a cooking hat. He came into the kitchen dragging Elana along.
"Hey Mysty can I talk to you for a second?" he asked.
I spun around. It wasn't like this guy to just ask for aything. If he wanted something, that self-centred pig usually got it. In fact, I think that this was the only time I'd ever heard him ask.
"I don't have anytime." I said "I've got so many orders to cook."
"Alright but stay around after the bar closes." said Reno. I nodded, already planning my escape route. I peered out of the kitchen and watched them until I saw that they were at table six.
Tifa was just finishing that order. "Wait." I said as I took the plate from the confuzed girl, spit into it, and grinned. Rian stepped into the kitchen and took the orders. I giggled and Tifa shook her head and went back to her cooking. That was one reason why I liked my job. It's so easy to get back at people you hate without them ever knowing.
That night went by quickly, and I was hurrying Tifa to finish cleaning up when Reno stepped in. I mentally swore and was very thankful that I was still wearing the hat and apron. Not much of a disguise, but it covered up a lot of me.
"I was wondering if you could tell me where I know you from, and don't say that it's because you work here because that's not the answer I want." ordered Reno.
"I'm sorry," I said "but I don't remember you from anywhere but when you come here to drink." That's what my voice said, but my thoughts were pretty much saying the opposite.
"I told you not to say that." sighed Reno, then he suddenly took his gun out of his pocket and aimed it at me. I glared at him, daring him to fire it. That would be the easiest way to lose all my problems.
"Now," said Reno "I know you're lying, so unless you tell me where I know you from, you'll be eating a nice, warm bullet.
"Hey look what's that?" I asked.
"What?" asked Reno as he looked away and I snatched his gun and tossed it to Tifa, who hid it behind her back. Reno looked back, confuzed.
"No, we don't have any beer left sir." I said as I lightly pushed him out of the kitchen "But we're open again tomorrow."
He left and Tifa looked extremely surprized. I shrugged.
"I could tell that he had drunk too much, so I just messed with his mind. It's not the first time I've done that."
We were soon all cleaned up and was headed outside, when something hit Tifa, hard. She fell to the ground and I looked around but I couldn't see anything. I turned around to face Tifa again when I saw Elana pointing a gun at me and Reno fishing his gun out of Tifa's pocket, which we had.
Tifa's eyes opened lazily, so Reno pulled her up and held the gun to her head.
I opened my arms and spread them out, screaming, "Alright, you found me. Let her go."
Reno shook his head. I guess he was a lot more sober than I assumed. "No, you're both coming with us, you're not going to pull that trick again."
"What trick?" asked Elana, not taking her eyes off me. I returned the glare.
"We caught her friend and agreed to let her go if Mystria would come with us. Well, she and her friend tried to get away during the switch so we tried to stop them and--"
"You killed Keanie!" I screamed and flew at Elana, attacking her with all the anger that built up ever since. Elana didn't fire her gun. I was too valuable to them to be dead. Reno fired a shot, Tifa screamed, and I froze.
Angrily, I looked up, expecting to see the blood, but Reno had fired the shot into the ground and Tifa's scream was of jsut surprize. Elana used the diversion to put handcuffs on my hands.
"Well," smiled Reno as they shoved us into their vehicle "I think we could expect a good raise from this."
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"Let me go!" I screamed, kicking at the man who'd dragged me out from under the slide. He put chains on me and dragged me out into the cold night.
"Slaves for sell! Slaves for sale!" he shouted into the night. I curled up into a little ball and shivered, watching as everyone gave me sympathetic looks but kept walking. I screamed out and he hit me in the back hard to shut me up, which made me cry even louder.
"Help me!" I screamed, but nobody paid attention. Why me? Why do people hurt me like this? Suddenly everything started spinning just as Keanie came into view.
I awoke in a jail cell. Over in the far corner huddled Tifa. I took off the vest I was wearing on my shirt and tossed it to her.
"What do you think they'll do?" asked Tifa.
"I'm not sure." I said "But I think they'll hold you here with me until I give them what they want to know." I looked out the window of the cell door and glared at the security guard. Suddenly the door slide open and entered a man whom I hated from the beginning of all this.
"No time no see, Mystria." said Tseng. I didn't reply. "Your Father has called for you."
"I'm not moving." I muttered. Tseng stepped out of the room and the door closed. He was obviously calling for guards to drag me to my Father.
"You're Father?" asked Tifa and the door opened again. The SOLDIERS came in and grabbed both Tifa and I.
"Hey leave her out of this!" I ordered. "She hasn't done anything!"
"No, but we'll use her to make you talk just in case you stop talking again." said Tseng and he ordered the guards to take us away.
I glanced at Tifa. Her life was in shards and I came along and made it even worse. She was looking around the place with a terrified look on her face. She'd obviously had never been in a place like this. Here there was so much discipline and order and it seemed like they'd kill you for something so simple as sneezing.
Finally we arrived. I was shoved lightly (if my father wasn't around I'd have been thrown in) through the doorway and we walked up to the large desk.
"President Shinra," said Tseng "You wished to speak to Mystria."
Tifa shot me a look. I guessed it wasn't common for the president's daughter to live like crap like the rest of his city's habitants. I looked around the room. It hadn't changed much since the last time I was here, except now I was finally recognised as the rebel and treated like a prisoner.
"Mystria," smiled my father with a false smile. I saw through his plan before he had even said my name "It's good to have you back. We've missed you."
"Then why am I wearing these handcuffs?" I asked, making it painfully obvious that I wasn't going to give any straight answers.
He nodded to the guard, and the cuffs were taken off. I looked over at Tifa and my father had them taken off too. Trying to make peace, huh Dad? I looked at him, studying him as if it were my first time meeting him, trying to find forgiveness. Nope. All I found was greed. Nothing has changed, nothing at all.
"It's been a long time, hasn't it sweetie." he asked.
"Don't call me that. I'm not your daughter."
He looked genuinely hurt. "How can you say that? I created you, I gave you a home here with me,I made sure you were well fed,-"
"You killed Mom, you beat me, you treated me like I wasn't your daughter, shall I go on? Cause I've got a pretty long list and I don't mind saying them."
He cleared his throat and I realized that only him, me, Tifa, and about three guards were left in the room.
"I can see that I'm not getting through to you. Why don't we put these things between us?" he asked. I saw an opening that I wasn't going to miss.
"Alright, than we can pretend that nothing has happened, right?" I asked. He gladly nodded. "And if we forgot everything, then I don't remember anything about any cetra.."
"Yes you do!" shouted my Father and I stepped back in surprize. "Don't give me any of that &$%#@^ crap about that! You will tell me what she told you or you'll end up just like her."
"Good!" I screamed back "Then I won't have to hide anymore! You've made my life miserable since the day I was born! I wish I was dead just like her!" I stopped, and tears ran down my cheeks. I've been waiting to say that for five years. I spoke again more quietly, "I wish you were dead."
(to be continued)
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