Reno's Rose part 1

Everyday, a young woman leaves home to travel the world to find her place in the world…That’s what my mother told me before she had to leave me.  She also told me to never be frightened of what other people might think of me, as long as I find friends who love me for who I am…nothing that anyone says will matter.  



I walk through a wasteland of rubble.  As I look around for at least a sign of existence, I view what used to be a happy living community.  “Hello!” I call as I cup my hands around my mouth.  My voice echoes through the dead stone.  No one answers.  “Where could everyone be?” I look down and get my map of the city. “Strange…this place was supposed to be a popular town,” Looking up, I continue, “And now it’s just a wasteland.” Without a care, I toss the map over my head after making a huge wad out of it.  Covering my eyes from the sunlight, I squint to see something in the distance.  “What’s that?” Taking my hand away from my head, I run forward to see whatever I saw ahead.  I come to a stone building with large wooden doors.  Above the doors, a cross is carved into the stone with an exquisite yet, worn design.  “Is this a church…?” I whisper.  Reaching out my hand, I open the large doors.  
Inside, it’s beautiful.  The stone floors have wooden benches, used to pray once long ago.  The rock walls stand strong and hold the roof.  A section of the roof has been knocked out and lets in a pleasant light of sun into the church.  I walk into the light and look down.  Beautiful white and yellow flowers blossom under the warm light.  Turning my head, I see that there is a large box with a mat, lantern, and rolled up blanket next to it.  “Does someone live here?” I quietly ask.  I walk over to the mat and sit with crossed legs.  “Hm, not too bad.  I was expecting it to be really uncomfortable.”
As I look out the roof opening in the church, the door that I left open creaks as it opens more.  I turn my head and look at who opened the door.  A guy stands there.  He has odd hair.  It is blonde and spiked in all different directions.  He wears a black vest and matching pants. Over his left arm he wears a black sleeve while the other side is bare.  I stare at him as he walks deeper into the church.  This guy doesn’t notice me because his eyes are focused elsewhere.  His face is staring at the ground.  
“Huh, he’s kinda cute.” I laugh under my breath.  Unfolding my legs, I relax on the mat.  “I wonder if he’s the one who lives here.”
He approaches and still doesn’t notice me.  Well, not until he looks up from the floor.  He notices me and his expression changes, it becomes slightly angered.  He reaches behind him and pulls out a sword…a BIG sword.  He holds it at my face.  
I stare at the blade and see my reflection.  Smiling, I look at the boy.  “This place is pretty cool.” I tell him.  “And this mat is pretty comfy.” Slowly, I lean back and put my arms behind my head.  “I could stay here for days.” I sigh.  
“Who are you?” The boy asks with a slightly demanding voice.  
My eyes travel to him, “You tell me first.”  
He draws back the sword and stares at me.  “Cloud Strife,” he answers.  
“Interesting…” I comment as I touch my chin with my right hand.  
“Now, tell me, who are you?”
“Cloud, Cloud, Cloud, don’t be so hasty.” I tell him with a laugh.  Taking my hand away from my chin, I slowly lift myself from the mat.  Immediately, I turn to him and smile.  Holding out my hand, I reply, “Rosalina Williams.”  
He stares at my hand and slowly takes it.  His grasp is firm and warm.  As we shake, I notice his eyes.  They are a true blue color, not like my eyes.  Mine aren’t human unlike his.  
“You have pretty sweet eyes.” I smile then giggle.  
He releases my hand and continues to stand.  Once again, his eyes leave me and go to the hole in the roof.  
Tired of the silence, I try to strike up a conversation.  “So…what brings you here, Cloud?  This city is abandoned.  Or, do you live here?”
He lifts his head higher and replies, “I could ask the same thing about you.”
“Well, I’m looking for my mom.” I simply answer.  “A long time ago, she left me and my father…I didn’t want her to leave.  The whole reason I came here was to find her…and to ask her questions that have haunted me for many years.”
“Do you know where to find her?” He asks.  
“Well…no.”
“Do you know what she looks like?”
“…No, in fact, the only thing I remember her is by her name…that and her voice.” I sigh.  
“What was your mother’s name?”
“Um…J…Jennet Love.” I strain myself to remember.  “Why, are you going to help me?”
“Sure, why not?” Cloud replies with almost no emotion in his voice whatsoever.  “I don’t see any harm in helping you.”
I come to my feet and clasp my hands together while asking, “Um, I don’t mean to sound demanding or anything but…” Forcing myself to my knees, I kneel at his feet and fold my hands as if I were praying.  “Could I stay with you?  I just got here and I don’t have a place to stay.”
He looks down at me with a bit of surprise.  “Do you have any family around here?”
“No, my family died a long time ago and I’m an only child.  My mother is the last family member I have.”
He closes his eyes and sighs, “I don’t think—”
“Please, I’m begging you!” I take his hands and pull them towards me urgently.  As he bends over, I stare into his now opened eyes.  “I promise not to be a burden.  You won’t even know I’m there.”
He continues to stare into my pleading eyes and sighs again.  “I guess you could stay.”
“Yay, thank you so much!” I giggle.  
“Come on, we have to go if you want to live with me.” He says as he walks past me.  
“But…” I turn my head back and watch him.  “Don’t you live here?”
“Not always.  I live in an apartment with a bar attached to it.”
Quickly, I stand up again and ask, “Do you live alone?”
Cloud stops walking and turns his head back.  “No, I live with my friends.” Then he continues to walk towards the exit of the church and adds, “Come on, let’s go.”
I laugh and run to him.  We leave the church and I see a large bulky black motorcycle parked right outside the doors.  “Whoo-wee, nice ride.”
Without a word, Cloud looks back at me.  “Rosalina, get on.”
Stopping my examination of his bike, I obey.  I sit behind him and look at the back of his head.  I notice something that all bikers should remember.   “Cloud, don’t you wear a helmet?”
He turns back and replies, “No, but I have one.” He hands me a black helmet and I stare at it.  
“Why wouldn’t you want to wear it?  It looks so cool.” I say as I gaze my reflection.  Cloud kicks off the ground and we take off as I still put the helmet on.  “WAIT!!!!!” I cry out.  Suddenly, I bring my hands around him tightly.  
“Sorry,” he replies as we ride through the dead valley.  
I look around and the dead city stretches for what looks like miles.  This city is very interesting.  Some towns where I use to live look just like this, abandoned and gray.  We ride past broken buildings and there is still no sign of any life.  Well…except for Cloud and myself.  The wind whips Cloud’s hair and it hits my helmet.  This causes my arms to come around him even tighter…and feel his abs through his shirt.  
“Rosalina, hold on.” He yells over the motorcycle combined with the wind.  
“Oka—AAAAYYYY!” We defy all laws of gravity and drive up the walls of the valley.  “HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!?!?!?!?” I cry out totally frightened.  Within a second, we come to the top of the cliff and stop.  
Cloud looks back at me, “Are you okay?”
Instead of answering, I fall off the bike and to the dirt ground.  Motionlessly, I lay on the soil.  “Mother, I’m gonna smack you when I see you…you never told me about these motorcycles before.” I whisper.
Cloud panics and gets off his bike.  “Rosalina!” He comes down to me and holds my body.  He slips off the helmet and I reveal my peaceful face.  “Rosalina,” he calls my name again.  
Slowly, I open my eyes.  I see his concerned expression.  My mouth stretches into a grin.  “That was cool.” I calmly answer.  
“You’re alright?”
“Yeah, just a little shocked, that’s all.” I sit up from his lap and stretch my arms.  “I don’t think I’ve had a thrill like that in years.”
Cloud stands and holds out the helmet again.  “Here, try not to fall off again.”
I take it and stand to my feet.  Promptly, I put on the helmet again and mount the bike.  Locking my arms around his waist again, we take off once more.  



Still riding the bike, we come to a city.  A rather large city.  I stare at the people who stare back at us.  What could they possibly be looking at?  Bringing myself to ignore the people, I look at the color scheme of the overall city.  It’s rather gray…too gray for my case.  Even the people’s clothing is based on the color gray.  Unlike them, my outfit is free and colorful.  “Geez, everyone seems so dull.” I quietly whisper.  
As I keep on glancing at the buildings and people, Cloud slams on the breaks.  SCREEEEEEEEECH!!!  The motorcycle tries to stop as it skids on the street.  “Hold on!” He tells me.  I see that we’re about to crash into a group of people.  
Without a second thought, I slam my feet to the ground and I stop the bike instantly.  Unprepared for the impact, Cloud jerks forward and I grab him before he can go any farther off his bike.  “Are you okay?” I ask.  
“Yeah…fine.” He answers as he tries to catch his breath.  
“Hey, Cloud!” A man’s voice says.  I look and see a large black man with a mechanical arm.  “You alright?” He asks with a gruff voice.  
“Seriously, that was a bit dangerous.” A girl’s voice says.  I see a girl with short black hair, a headband and with really weird yellow boots.  She smiles and adds, “Are you hurt?”
“No, I’m fine.” Cloud answers.  
“That’s good.” She giggles.  
For some reason, I don’t seem to like that girl too much.  It’s probably because I am usually the cutest one.  I glare through my helmet.  
Cloud gets off the bike and I follow.  “Say, Cloud, who’s that?” The girl asks.  
He opens his mouth to answer, but is interrupted.  “Well, well, looks who’s here.” A young man’s voice teases.  Everyone turns their heads and I see two guys in suits.  One of them is a black guy and he looks like an FBI agent with his cool shades and no hair (well, except for his face).  The other one is a white guy.  He has shades of his own (goggles actually), but wears them on his forehead.  His hair is spiky and red (but not as dramatic as Cloud’s), but his eyes don’t match his hair at all, they are a light blue…still not light-light like mine.  He seems really cute and I smile.  
“What are you guys doing here?” Cloud asks.
“We are out on patrol for our boss.” The cool shades guy answers.  
“Why, did something come up?” Cloud seems fairly interested, but still with almost no emotion in his voice  
“Yeah, actually,” the redhead replies.  “We heard that Kadaj and his gang are back.”
“What do you mean?” Cloud asks.  “I thought they died…”
“That’s what we thought too, but I guess death wasn’t enough.” The redhead answers as if it were some joke.  
“What are they after?  Are they still trying to get Jenova’s power?” Cloud’s expression deepens with seriousness.
“We suspect that they are, but we are only out on patrol to check on them.” The FBI guy answers.  
“Where are they?”
“Well, we saw them bunched outside Shinra’s headquarters, but they didn’t do anything.”
“Yep, just stood there and stared at the building like it was some boring monument.” The redhead adds.  
I stand listening to them and I’m really confused.  I raise my fist and bring it to the helmet.  “A-HEM!” I cough.  
Everyone looks at me, “Excuse you.” The redhead replies.  
“Who said you could excuse me?” I ask with a serious tone, but with a hint of sarcasm.  
“Cloud, who is this girl?” The girl asks as she looks at me.  
Cloud opens his mouth and I hold up one of my fingers to stop him.  “I’ll introduce myself.” I go over to the girl while still wearing the helmet.  “Nice to meet you, my name is Rosalina.” I tell her as I hold out my hand.  Though she’s a bit annoying, I feel comfortable around her.  
“Nice to meet you, I’m Yuffie.” She giggles as she shakes my hand.  
She releases my hand and I move to the large black guy, “Nice to meet you.”
“My name’s Barret, it’s nice to meet you, Rosalina.” He smiles as he shakes with his robotic arm tightly.  
“That’s some grip you have.” I joke.  
“Yep, hope it’s not too much for you.” He deeply laughs.  
I smile and he releases my hand.  Then I walk over to the two guys in the suits.  I hold out my hand to the cool shades guy while saying, “Rosalina Williams, it’s very nice to meet you.”
He slightly smiles, but quickly reduces it into a serious expression and replies, “Rude.”
Underneath the helmet, I give him a confused look.  He didn’t call me “rude” as in “impolite”…right?  That’s his name…right?  I look at his face and see that he isn’t the kind that would call random girls impolite or his shades would be broken by now.  “Well, you’ve got the cool glasses and everything.  Are you in the FBI or something?” I ask.  
The redhead guy bursts out laughing, “Ok, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
I turn my head, “And what’s so funny, you scrawny-looking thing?” Rude and the others can’t help but laugh or at least hold back from laughing.  
“Hey, you know what?” He says as he walks up to me.  
“Yeah, what?” I ask.  He stays silent and I watch him struggle for a response.  “Is that your comeback, complete silence?” I joke.  
“Well, at least I don’t dress like a slut.”
“Oh, you’re just jealous.” I joke.
“Give me your name.”
“Weren’t you listening?  My name is Rosalina Williams.”
“Listen here, Rosalina.  I…” He trails off as I take off the helmet.  
I flip my hair and laugh, “Whoo-wee, it’s hot in there.” I turn to the redhead.  “So, what were you saying, pretty boy?”
“I…” He is at a loss of words.  
“Sorry, this is Reno.” Rude comes in to save him.  “We work together at Shinra Inc.”
“Oh, so you don’t work in the military FBI?” I ask as a joke.  Then I turn my attention to the pretty boy.  “So, your name is Reno.  I’ll make a mental note of that.” I giggle.  My eyes then look at Cloud, “Didn’t you say you lived in an apartment or something?”
“Yeah, we should go.” Cloud replies.  
“I’ll go too.  Marlene wanted to spend some time with me.” Barret adds.  
“Come on, Rosalina.” Cloud goes over to his bike.  
“Reno, let’s go.” Rude tells the still speechless boy.
“Ok—WAAAA!” Someone grabs my arm and pulls me back.  I turn my head and see that Reno has my arm.  
“Reno, what are you doing?” Rude asks.  
“Let go of her, Reno.” Cloud replies.  
“You go ahead, Rude.  I have some questions for Rosalina.” He tells them as he looks at me.  
“Cloud, you go ahead.  I’ll catch up later.”
“But you won’t know where to go.” He answers.  
“I’m sure Reno knows where you live, he can take me to your place after he’s done with me.” I smile at him.  
Cloud takes off and Rude becomes curious of whatever Reno is planning.  “Reno, do you want me to help you with this one?” He asks.  
“Nah, you go and inform to the boss that we haven’t seen Kadaj or his buddies.  I can handle this.” Reno waves him off.  
Rude nods then leaves us there in a flash.  
“I guess I’ll just leave with you, Barret.” Yuffie peeps then she takes off with him.  
“Alone at last.” Reno laughs as he releases my arm.