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Premonitions: Uncut	By : Hippo_and_Friends_with_Benefits Category: Final Fantasy VII > General Views: 3901 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII, and I am not making any money of of this writing.

Chapter List
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Chapter 2: The Hunt Begins
The rollers of an ambulance cast a recurring red light on the walls and streets in the particular intersection in Edge. Denzel lay dead, with his eyes wide open and his mouth gaping. He was on a gurney, with blood still oozing from his wound. It was a promising, young life that had been tragically cut short.
Tifa shuddered at the sight, tears again welling up in her eyes. She would always see him as the poor little boy she took care of those many years ago. Combined with her own fertility struggles, Denzel's death gave her the idea of what it was like to lose a child. Still, she needed to try her best and put her emotions aside. Right now, she had a duty to do; she needed to identify his body.
"It's him," she softly confirmed.
"Thank you," replied one of the paramedics. Two more paramedics approached Denzel, quietly lifted him up, and put him in a body bag. One of them slowly pulled the zipper up, concealing him forever from the public view.
It was too much reality for Tifa to watch. This was a human being who was being taken away. Giving in to her urge, she turned around. As she did so, she saw someone familiar standing two yards away. It was someone she had half-expected to show up.
"Hey, Cloud, she greeted. "Happy birthday." She felt quite awkward in saying it; she had not seen or spoken to him on his birthday in years. She had almost been wondering if she would ever see him again; she would be less than surprised if she never did.
"Thanks," her old friend replied.
"I know it's not the best time," she added.
"Tell me about it," he replied. "But it is what it is."
"Agreed," said Tifa.
"What happened?" he asked. "I mean, I got the call and everything, but did they tell you anything?"
"Nothing I really want to talk about," Tifa answered. She paused. "But I will. A witness said some woman in red shot him. She was looking for the Chronus Wand." She paused again. "And us."
Cloud sighed. "I gotta sit down." He did so, and looked at Tifa. "A woman in red," he repeated. "Tifa, you know who this sounds like, right?"
Tifa nodded. "Bestla," she said softly.
"What would she want with us?" asked Cloud. It didn't bother him terribly; ever since they became famous, a lot of people were looking for them for endless reasons. That meant autographs, pictures, money, sex, and everything else under the sun.
Tifa, however, was quite bothered. "It's obvious to me. So she's starting."
"Starting what?" asked Cloud, even though he already knew the answer.
"Starting to take her revenge on us," Tifa clarified. "Honestly, I'm not at all surprised. I just didn't think it would take her this long to start."
Cloud gave Tifa a concerned look; it had finally hit him. "Why Denzel?" he asked. "He wasn't involved in it at all. It happened before we even met him. We were the ones who did it to her."
She wiped her left eye. "Bestla wants to hurt us," she answered. "The same way we hurt her."
Cloud kicked the ground from where he was sitting. "How old would Bestla be now?" he asked. "Twenty-four? Twenty-five?"
"I don't know," Tifa replied. "What would she want with the Chronus Wand?"
"And where's Bo?" asked Cloud, slightly changing the subject.
"I made him stay back," Tifa replied. "I didn't want him involved."
"Well," Cloud began, "it looks like we just got involved. We need to track down Bestla and bring her to justice. And we need to do it before she comes after us again. I don't think she'll stop with Denzel."
Tifa gazed at the wedding band on her finger. "I don't do this kind of stuff anymore," she said. "I'm married now. I've settled down. I can't help you. It might have been a nice idea seven years ago, but it's too late."
"This isn't about me," Cloud insisted. "This is about Denzel, and the other people we love. What it Bo's the next person on her list?"
Tifa was silent. The fact she was committed to Bo was a big reason she avoided Cloud. There were other reasons as well, but Cloud did have a point.
"You knew Denzel as much as I did," Cloud continued. "We both owe it to him."
Tifa sighed. She was married and pushing thirty. Still, if her life, or Bo's life, was in danger, she would indeed have to do something.
"Yo! Guys!" shouted a familiar voice.
Cloud and Tifa turned in unison too see Barret approaching with Nara. He had not looked this upset in years.
"Hey Barret," Tifa greeted.
Slowly, it was starting to feel like the old days again. And Tifa did not like that. She felt that there was a time to move on. She was a wife now, and was trying to become a mother. Her days of saving the world should be behind her.
"Who the fuck did this?" Barret continued, quite upset.
"The composite the witness provided points to Bestla," Tifa replied.
"Shit!" Barret grunted. "I was hoping she wouldn't start this now."
Cloud looked at Nara. "You might be a little young to remember her."
"Who?" she asked. "Bestla? I know who that is."
"You do?" asked Tifa, curiously.
"She's a socialite," Nara replied. "Or was. I heard her father was some sort of a weapons manufacturer. He designed the Urchin."
"Mother," Tifa corrected.
"The Urchin?" asked Cloud. "I've never heard of it."
"It was designed a long time ago to use against Wutai. Long story short," continued Nara, "anything in its path is destroyed."
"She was eventually going to take her mother's place," Tifa added. "But then, Shinra was gone."
"It was worth it!" Barret said, referring to the destruction of Shinra.
"What happened to Bestla?" asked Nara.
"Yeah," added Barret. "What did happen to Bestla, after...you know?"
"She went broke," Tifa continued. "Actually, homeless. Every foster home that took her in kicked her out within a month."
"Foster home?" asked Nara. "Her parents couldn't afford to raise her anymore after Shinra was destroyed?"
"Her parents died in an explosion," Cloud explained. "She had nowhere else to go after that."
Nara sat down next to Cloud.
"Wow," she said.
"Could that be why she's after us?" suggested Cloud.
"I would bet so," said Barret.
"Then what did she have against Denzel?" asked Nara.
"To hurt us," Tifa replied. "The way we hurt her."
SOMEWHERE ELSE...
The Urchin floated ominously through the air. It had no lights, making it virtually undetectable at night. The ship was three times the size of the Highwind.
Only one person was on board. That person was Bestla. She had just killed somebody. It was not her first human being. It would not be her last. But at that moment, none of that was on her mind.
All that occupied her was obtaining the Chronus Wand. She was certain it existed. She had made no effort to hide her identity when she murdered Denzel. She wanted to get caught. She knew it would lead Cloud and Tifa to her.
She thought about her parents. They were gone. A tear rolled down Bestla's face as she reminded herself of that fact. She remembered her days as a teenager. She remembered her dreams of becoming a weapons designer like her mother.
She even remembered when she discovered the charred remains at the tender age of fifteen. It had been after a rather bad day as well.
But that was another life. She could not focus on the past. She needed to focus on the near-future, and then the past.
And once she obtained the Chronus Wand, she would no longer have to deal with the consequences of her actions.
She also thought about Sephiroth. He had been dead for nine years, but the memories of his terror still existed. She remembered, while going from foster home to foster home, how she had heard of his foiled plans to manipulate the Lifestream, absorb it, and become a god.
She had heard the story. She had heard how he was killed before he could accomplish his goal. But she would have an advantage that he did not. She would manipulate the Lifestream. She would be a goddess. She would not fail.
ELSEWHERE...
Tifa sighed. "Where's Bestla now?"
"We have to track her down," insisted Cloud. "Wherever Bestla is, she's obviously coming after us."
"Do we have any leads?" asked Tifa. "If we don't, we don't have a trail. We'd have to wait for Bestla to come to us."
"One of the witnesses said she was asking him questions about the Chronus Wand," Cloud repeated. "Do you know what that is?"
"I do," answered Barret. "I know it's nothing. It doesn't exist."
"It's rumored to exist," Cloud said. "In any case, Bestla believes it does."
"Well, I'm in," announced Barret. "We're tracking her down, and we're putting an end to her, before she puts an end to us."
Both of them, along with Nara, turned to Tifa.
"Can we count on your help? For old times sake?" asked Cloud.
"Bo wouldn't approve," Tifa said, despite the fact she knew she was beaten.
"I'm not asking Bo," Cloud insisted.
"You should get married, you guys," Tifa replied. "A lot changes."
"And this Bestla is probably after us," Barret retorted. "Want Bo to become a widower?"
"Assuming she doesn't get to Bo first," Cloud added. "I'm sure she wants to hurt us more before
Checkmate. She was beaten, and she knew it.
"Alright," agreed Tifa. "But just this one time. If Bo finds out about this, you'll probably never see me again."
"We have to take that chance," Cloud acknowledged.
"Look," added Barret. "Both your lives are in danger, along with Bo's."
"So, " continued Tifa with her hands on her hips, "if we're going to go after Bestla, where do we begin?"
"Naturally," Cloud replied, "we should go where this Chronus Wand is located."
"But we have no idea where it's located," Tifa reminded them. "If anywhere."
"There's the most likely place," Cloud suggested. "We should rule it out first."
"The Shinra building?" asked Barret.
"Bingo," Cloud replied.
"I suppose," Tifa agreed, her hands still on her hips. "But you only have me until midnight."
"What time is it now?" asked Cloud.
"Eight," Barret answered.
"We'll have to hustle," Cloud agreed. "But no worries. You'll be back with your husband by midnight."
Tifa nodded.
Cloud would not admit it, but he was less than comfortable with the situation himself. Seeing Tifa again brought back memories, and it reopened old wounds. He remembered the days when they fought against Sephiroth and Meteor. He remembered how he was only twenty-one, and she was at the tender age of twenty. He remembered how she wanted to tell him how she felt the entire time. He remembered how she took the pieces of his broken soul and put them back together. He smiled as he remembered how they cuddled up under the Highwind, and how everyone had gotten the wrong idea about that.
He also remembered when they moved in together when Edge was built. Almost everyone had gotten the wrong idea about that, as well. Most people assumed that they were a couple, with some even speculating that they might have married, but the truth was that they were simply platonic friends that had become roommates. He remembered how he became ill with the Geostigma. The first thing he had thought was who would be there for her when he was gone. He also remembered when he briefly though Loz had killed her. A rage of emotion flew through him, and it was the kind that would only be there if such a tragedy happened to someone he loved.
Still, he had never told her how he felt, and, to this day, especially after she had gotten married, he was kicking himself for it.
If only I could somehow go back in time and change the past, he thought.
And then, attention was turned to the youngest among them.
"What's she doing here?" asked Cloud.
"I'm coming too!" announced Nara.
The other three looked at each other skeptically. They then turned to face Nara.
"Bestla wants her revenge on us," Tifa said. "Not you."
"Four against one can't be bad odds," Nara said.
The other three looked at each other once again.
"I suppose," Cloud said. "We could use someone whose still young."
Nara then looked Cloud in the eye.
"So what did you guys do to her, anyway?"
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Premonitions: Uncut