Of the end

~ Atreyu

"When Two Are One"

Lead Sails Paper Anchor, 2008

© Hollywood / Roadrunner

Reno stood outside the bar with his hands in his pockets. He sighed. The sun had gone down, but the sky was still a gray twilight that never truly left, and he could read the sign just fine. This was Edge, and yet the Lockhart babe had given her restaurant the same name as the original: 7th Heaven. Ha, ha.

Was there anyone left who got it?

Car doors slammed behind him. President Shinra got out last, not acknowledging as Tseng closed his door behind him.

With a smirk, the President swept past Reno, pulling Elena and Rude after him like a child with toys on a string. Reno automatically followed.

Partying with his boss. This was a first.

"Welcome!" Lockhart shouted from behind the expansive, gleaming wooden bar as soon as they walked in, but Reno doubted they'd be able to hear her if she said anything else. Conversations and the background music created a sort of living atmosphere that made more conversation impossible.

Even though he'd been there before, he was surprised at what Lockhart had pulled off. Like most of Edge's business district, the building's façade was a patchwork of sheet metal cannibalized from Midgar, the foundation placed by the zoning commission to artfully hide the ruins of the old city. Inside, it was a haven of cleanliness, with real wood tables and chairs, brass and mirrors, framed pictures on the white walls, fans lazily turning overhead amidst the exposed ceiling beams and ventilation system.

7th Heaven was popular with the locals, offering good food and better booze. The President had reserved the whole establishment for the evening. It was a company-wide celebration, and many of Shin-Ra's employees were already taking advantage of a Friday night and the boss's generosity.

Reno couldn't help it. As they filed past the bar and Lockhart gave them a dazzling smile, he nudged Rude with his elbow.

The look Rude gave him could have soured beer, but Reno snickered into his fist. Even after all this time, his partner nursed a soft spot for Lockhart, but there was a figure at the far end of the bar, drinking in a little island of solitude, who always had and always would stand in the way. As they watched, Lockhart leaned on the counter near the register, listening to something he said that made her laugh, and Rude, his face impassive, kept walking.

It wasn't a surprise to Reno that Strife was there. He lived above the restaurant, after all. There should be some kids running around somewhere, too. Wallace, busy in the field searching for oil, drifted in and out like Strife with his crazy, one-man delivery service. Tseng kept tabs on them, of course. Cozy setup they had. Like a bizarre family. Reno rubbed the back of his neck, hoping he'd get some of that booze, and soon.

The back area was quieter. Less Shin-Ra employees, the designers, coders, and engineers that all wanted to shake Rufus's hand, to congratulate him over and over, and more privacy. The President slid smoothly into a half booth, Reno and the others joining him.

Elena was the first to speak, fervent and star struck. "You did it, Mr. President. Congratulations." Sitting between Tseng and Rude, she looked like a doll, the top of her head below their shoulders. Not that she'd ever let her size stop her. Reno felt a surge of affection for her. For all of them. They were his family.

"Shin-Ra Electric is back in the investor's eye," Tseng agreed soberly.

Reno turned a chuckle into a cough. That one had come out of the new marketing department. Shorten the name. Change the product.

It was all gimmickry. How did the new slogan go? Imagination. Creativity. Passion. Quality. Excitement. Shin-Ra Electric. Some mouthful, but it had worked. The President would never bring the company back to the days of his grandfather when it manufactured motor vehicles, nor could he bear to have it limp along in the electric power business. He'd come up with something better. Give the people products that were meant to be fun, unique, and memorable, and were something they never knew existed until they saw one – then they had to have it. It was genius.

"Congratulations," Rude rumbled.

Reno's hand lay flat on the table. No drinks. There was something very wrong with that. He slouched back in his seat, scrubbing the back of his head. "Nice one, boss."

"Thank you," the President said, smiling.

He went on to say something else about how they'd all contributed something to their success, but Reno, tapping his finger on the empty table, wasn't paying attention.

He couldn't figure out why they were here. Why 7th Heaven? Being this close to Strife and Lockhart was making him think of her. But she wasn't there. She'd left him again. Disappeared back to Cosmo Canyon.

Damn it, where were those drinks?

He tilted his chair back on two legs, wishing he could have gone home.

Then their server breezed up. "Welcome, folks. Sorry about the wait," she said cheerily, leaning past Reno to toss napkins on the table like a dealer in a casino.

He nearly fell over backward.

Rude and Cristobel caught him, each grabbing an arm and hauling him upright. Cristobel was laughing.

"Hi," she said. Then, as if she did this every day, she turned back to the table and started taking orders. "Would you like to open a tab?" she asked, accepting a pile of menus from the President.

Tseng produced a shiny silver card that had Rufus's name on it, which she took with a smile.

Reno found his voice. "What're you doing here?"

She made a kissy face at him that earned a cough from Rude. "I work here. Be right back with those drinks."

"You – but – you –" But she was gone. Reno couldn't seem to close his mouth.

Suddenly, Rude reached over and delivered a backhanded swat that would have knocked Elena right over. Reno jumped and looked down at him, realizing that he'd gotten to his feet. Rude tilted his head at Reno's chair, his expression clear: Sit down and shut the hell up.

Even Tseng was smiling. Utterly bewildered, Reno sank into his seat. The President continued talking as if there had been no interruption.

Reno watched her all night in a daze. He didn't notice the time passing, or how many drinks he downed. Cristobel and the kid – what was his name? Denzel? – never seemed to stop moving. Or smiling. He knew that smile. She was enjoying herself, feeding on the energy of her customers. She was wearing what looked like a schoolgirl's plaid skirt, short and pleated, and a pair of combat boots. Her legs flashed as she navigated the tables with trays of food or drink. That was hot. Even better was the chain around her neck, and the ring hanging from it. His ring. Which she made sure every guy who hit on her could see.

It took the President saying, "Reno! Monday. Don't be late," for him to realize that they were leaving. Without him.

He got to his feet in a hurry. "Yes, sir."

..::~*~::..

"You okay over there?" she called across the bar.

"Yeah."

"I'll be done in a sec, just let me put this away." She upended the last chair over a table, took a swipe under it with a mop, and then vanished in the back. He hadn't seen Lockhart or Strife for a while and guessed he wasn't going to when she reappeared and flicked off most of the lights. "You ready? Let's go."

She locked up, shrugging on her patched hoodie, and then slipped her hand into his. "This way," she said, pointing down the street.

He didn't ask where they were going. He didn't question why she was there. For once, he was leaving a bar under his own power, and that whole brain-mouth filter thing was still in effect. He waited for her to speak first.

Turning down a side street, she did. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I wanted it to be a surprise. They all knew, you know."

He nodded. The night was cool. Her hand was warm.

"Anyway, after I lost my job," she said, and then paused as if to stop herself from saying too much, but he winced, anyway. Yet another thing that was his fault. "Yeah. I couldn't stay there. So I called Tifa and asked her for help. It's just up here."

She sped up, crossing the street on a diagonal into a residential neighborhood. "She gave me a job. Reeve helped me find a place. Cloud and Barret helped me move."

"You live here?" It was two-thirty in the morning. He was having an out of body experience. Or he was dreaming. There was no other way to explain this.

She jumped up the front steps to an apartment building, short skirt flouncing, and let herself into the lobby. "Yeah. Well – you'll see. Come on, stairs."

He smirked. Well, if it was a dream, it was a damn realistic one. After that one time, he'd never been able to get her back into an elevator.

So they climbed several flights together, their footsteps echoing in the stairwell. She went straight to the door marked 6B, unlocked it, and disappeared ahead of him.

Curious, he went in. Like hotels, apartments tended to all look the same. Different room dimensions and placement of windows, but not much other than that. She stood in the middle of the space that separated her living room from her dining room, her hands clasped in front of her, green eyes wide and uncertain.

"It's a two bedroom," she said, almost apologetically. "I couldn't afford bigger than that. But I sold a lot of stuff, so there's room . . ."

She trailed off, but he'd given up on trying to understand what was going on. After a moment, she took a deep breath and tossed something small and brass at him.

He caught it. Stared at it lying in his palm.

A key.

"If you want it," she said. "If you want it, then, welcome home, Reno."

He reached her in two strides, seizing her around the middle with both arms and lifting her up. She squealed, locking her arms around his neck.

"Does that mean you want it?" she asked.

"Yes." He wasn't going to put her down, even though she'd started kicking her feet. "Yo. I love you."

She giggled. "I love you, too . . . yo."

A/N: Jeez, Anne, why so long? Two scenes. Not one. Basically, I am incapable of properly ending a story. But this one is over. For reals. One happy ending, check. :3 I hope you thought so, too.

Reviewer thanks! Boingo33 (Thanks for the vote! I thought it should be in his POV too, once I started writing, lol. And thank you, again, for reviewing! You are awesome. :3), Lady Aurora Nocturne (This isn't meant to be contentious at all, but I had a really hard time imagining what Reno's place would look like! Messy, like your first thought, or . . . or just, what? lol. So my reasoning was that yeah, he has this unfortunate sloppy yanki fashion going on, but any guy who takes that much care with his hair, dyeing it and styling it, would know how to move a vacuum around. :3 I compensated with him not owning a whole lot of stuff because I figure he's just not home often. Anyway. Ramble at an end. LOL. Thanks for commenting on my exercise, and voting on POV. You guys really are the best. THANK YOU!), and Darwin (I can't even tell you the squees. Thanks for coming back to review them all! :3 Thank you so so much for all of the reviews!).

I love you guys!

Okay, time for some acknowledgments.

Number One: This chapter. I totally stole the Shin-Ra Electric new slogan and product description from The Sharper Image. I'M SO SORRY, SHARPER IMAGE! But seriously, that whole, you never knew this product existed but you have to have it thing sounds so manipulative. I thought it fit Rufus's personality. Plus, I know that becoming a household icon would appeal to him. lol.

Two: As I said before, I undertook this project to answer the question of whether Reno and Cris got their happy ending or not. The thanks for this go to the people who reviewed StCB back in the day, and more especially to Lady Aurora Nocturne, who encouraged it.

Three: To ALL of my reviewers. I am so grateful to you. Darwin, Lady Aurora Nocturne, Victoria Chrystallis, Boingo33, and BleedingHeartsoftheWorldUnite. Without you, I would never feel the excitement and wonder that comes from writing. Thank you.

Four: My thanks go once again to DeviantArt's K-Koji, for allowing me to use "Hotel Reno?" as the book cover. Love!

Until next time, Dear Readers, adieu,

Anne

P.S. I know the story is over, but won't you please leave a review and let me know what you thought? Good, bad, or indifferent, I love them all. Thank you!

By the way, I do try to return all reviews, because I like to read as much as write. :3