Chapter Eight:

Today Cloud was finally learning how to use Materia. His whole class was buzzing with excitement. Their schedule was altered to have less time in the classroom learning theory and tactics to accommodate the new course. The instructor was a small woman named Emilia Scarpa. She barely came up to Cloud's chin and had gray hair with well-defined wrinkles on her face. Most of the boys were pointing and laughing when her back was turned. She was their only female instructor.

"Materia," she spoke loudly, silencing everyone. "Is not about brute strength. You can be as physically strong as General Sephiroth himself, but not be able to cast any more than a basic fire spell. Materia is all about will and mental discipline."

She opened a box with three glowing Materia inside. One was red, one blue, and one green.

"Can anyone identify these? You."

She pointed out one of the students who stood at attention. "The red is fire."

"Correct. Now you."

"The blue is blizzard."

"Correct. And you." She pointed at Cloud who saluted.

"The green one is cure, ma'am."

"Correct. And because you were the only to address me respectfully, you get to go first."

Cloud stepped forward excitedly.

"Chose fire or blizzard, we'll save cure for last."

Cloud took the fire Materia into his hand. It was warmer than most Materia and hummed with life. Scarpa stood aside and closed her box. She pulled out a weak piece of armor that only held two Materia and gave it to Cloud.

"Does anyone know why we use armor when casting? You!"

The boy she pointed at jumped, startled to be called on. "So you can carry more than one at a time. Uh, ma'am."

The old woman shrugged. "True, but not the answer I was looking for. Anyone else?"

One of the top students in the class volunteered and Scarpa nodded at him. "You can cast Materia without armor or a weapon but you risk hurting yourself, ma'am."

"Correct!" Scarpa said. "Come up here, you'll try the blizzard."

While Cloud and the other boy quickly put on the armor, Scarpa addressed the class. "Materia does what you tell it. It draws on your energy to cast a spell. The stronger your energy, the more powerful your spell. The spell will come directly from the Materia and if you are holding it in your bare hand, it will hurt you. That is why we use armor, to protect us from our own magic." She turned to Cloud and the other boy. "Ready, gentlemen?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Reach out with your mind. Focus on the orb in your hand and its purpose. Imagine it in your mind and when you have it, hold it out and shout the activation word."

The boy next to Cloud struck his hand out and shouted, "Blizzard!" A weak blast of ice came from the Materia but fizzled out before it reached the target.

"Give yourself more time to focus," Scarpa said. "This is not a race."

Cloud stared at the Materia in his grasp. Doing what he was told was easy. When they were children, Harry had taught Cloud how to focus his mind, hoping that Cloud could use magic one day too. Though Cloud was never able to use Harry's wand, it did give him an advantage now. He held out his hand.

"Fire!"

A blast of fire whipped out from the Materia and struck the target. Cloud accidently put too much power into the spell though and the target next to his also went up in flames.

"Excellent!" Scarpa congratulated. "A natural if I've ever seen one. We'll have to focus on teaching you control but well done. Now give your armor and Materia to the next student."

Most of the students were able to cast a spell of some sort but no one came near to Cloud's level. A few of the weaker boys asked for his secret and Cloud just shrugged.

"I just know how to focus my mind," he explained. "I don't let anything distract me."

By the end of class everyone was exhausted but excited. They were released for the day and Cloud hurried off to find his brother. He couldn't wait to tell Harry about his success.

*!*!*

Cloud ignored the Turks staring at him as he moved through their floor to Harry's office. Well, technically it was Rude's office; the bald man was simply forced to share it with Reno, and now Harry. The door was ajar and Cloud knocked before slipping inside. Harry was resting his hand on his chin with a bored expression while Reno was completely reclined, his feet on the desk and his head hanging back.

"This is what you switched out of Soldier for?" Cloud teased. "Staring at a wall?"

"Hey, what're you doing up here?" Harry asked.

"The fuck you think this is, yo?" Reno yelled. "We barely let full-fledged Soldiers come up here, let alone stupid Soldier-wannabes."

"Tell me you're doing something important and I'll get out of your way," Cloud challenged.

Reno scowled unhappily.

"We're waiting on Rude," Harry explained. "He's meeting with Cissnei about our next mission. It's taking longer than we expected."

Cloud took a seat next to Harry, which made Reno glare unhappily. The blonde ignored him and held out a fire Materia to Harry. The instructor had allowed him to hold onto it for the day to get used to carrying it around.

"Is that a fire?" Harry asked curiously. He took it, feeling cold, dead weight in his hand.

"Yeah, apparently, I'm a natural," Cloud grinned. Harry smiled.

"You're a natural with magic?"

"That's what they say."

The brothers couldn't help it and laughed. Reno looked between the two curiously.

"Why's that so funny, yo?"

"It just is," Harry dismissed. He handed the fire back to Cloud. "Well good, maybe you can teach me. I don't know why I can't get Materia to work."

"It is really strange," Cloud mused. "Especially since…" he trailed off, aware that Reno was listening. He wiggled his fingers discreetly instead.

"Right?" Harry frowned. "If anything, you'd think I'd be amazing with it."

"Why don't you two just say what's on your mind?" Reno demanded. "What, you think I care about your stupid backwater secrets?"

Harry whipped around to glare at him. "If you're so interested in talking, why don't you tell me why you kissed me two days ago?"

Cloud made a face while Reno didn't react at all. Harry waited a moment before sitting back, looking smug.

"Yeah, I thought so."

"For once I'm on Reno's side," Cloud mused. "I'm much happier knowing that you two aren't talking about… it."

Harry shot him a look and Cloud fake gagged. The door opened and Rude walked in, his arms full of classified folders. He raised an eyebrow at Cloud.

"Guess that's my cue to leave. See you back at the barracks?"

"Yeah, don't wait up though." Harry eyed the folders unhappily. "We'll probably be here late."

"Okay, see ya."

Cloud left, feeling bad for his brother and all the paperwork about to be heaped upon him.

*!*!*

Late into the night the Turks poured over classified files, trying to find connections between them and the Death Eaters. They dissected every word, studied every picture, and discussed all possible traces to Death Eaters. Harry's brain was fried and the words were starting to blur together.

"So we all agree on these four files?" Rude said, setting the four in mention together. "They all describe instances of a skull with a snake through its mouth."

"Not the most reliable of people, though," Reno grumbled. His head was resting on the desk and he was poking at the papers unhappily. "The so-called eye witnesses were all either insane or emotionally compromised at the time."

"Compromised or not, there is something here. All of them described the same thing even though they have nothing to do with each other. No connection whatsoever."

"And I still think we should add this one to the pile," Harry spoke up, waving a folder around. "I know it doesn't say anything about snakes or skulls but I still think something's here."

"All of these files are connected because everyone in them was murdered," Rude pointed out. "And all the murder victims were found with a snake and skull hanging in the air. The file you hold has no snake and skull and no murders. It doesn't fit."

"But it does have people disappearing into thin air," Harry argued. "And you said yourself that the death eaters vanished from Kalm without trace—as if into thin air!"

"You're grasping at straws, yo."

"So are you!"

"Stop," Rude yelled before Harry and Reno could truly start to fight. "Harry, right now we have plenty of leads to work with. If nothing comes of these, we will look at that file as a last resort. For now, let's call it a night."

Harry sighed and tossed the papers onto Rude's desk, defeated. He wished he could explain himself better and why he thought they would find something. But if Harry went into any detail beyond saying he had a gut feeling, he would be revealing the truth about himself.

Rude began gathering their work and tidying his desk. "Reno, walk Potter back to the barracks so he doesn't get into trouble for being out past curfew."

Harry was in the middle of rubbing his eyes and stopped, staring at Rude in confusion. Getting back to his room without getting into trouble had never been an issue before so why was it important now? Reno seemed to have the same thought and was about to protest but stopped when Rude pinned him with a stare, his dark eyes just visible over the rim of his glasses. The redhead lifted an eyebrow in surprise but before shrugging.

"Whatever yo."

"Did I miss something?" Harry asked.

"Let's go, you annoying little twat."

"What'd you call me?"

Fuming, Harry left first, so he missed the wink and playful kiss Reno sent Rude. The bald man rolled his eyes and switched the light off. Harry was tapping his foot impatiently at the elevator and Reno smirked, purposefully slowing his stride. Harry huffed and crossed his arms.

"Why you so eager, yo?" Reno teased. "You miss your precious big brother?"

Harry rolled his eyes and entered the lift, pressing the button for the barracks. He sat heavily on the floor and stretched his legs out. Reno leaned against the wall, lighting a cigarette and smirking at the no smoking sign.

"For the record, I'm the older one," Harry declared. "And no, I'm not eager to see him. I'm eager to get some sleep."

"How does that work?" Reno asked, blowing smoke up into the vent. "You two are always going back and forth about who's older."

"Cloud was eight when he found me," Harry explained. "I don't have any memory before that day so I don't know how old I am or my birthday. I looked just like all the other eight-year-olds in town, so we just assumed I was eight too."

"Complete amnesia is pretty rare. Like, one in a million, rare."

Harry smiled bitterly. "Yeah well, I'm a one in a million person, I guess."

Reno turned suddenly, standing over Harry with his legs spread. Harry got an eyeful of his crotch and tilted his head back to stare at Reno with an unimpressed face. Reno grunted at him. He knelt and Harry had the absent thought that Reno was very flexible.

"You shouldn't smoke in the elevator."

"Shut up."

Reno leaned in and just before their lips touched, Harry smirked. The redhead paused.

"You're so predictable."

"Excuse you?"

"You love to do the exact opposite of what everyone tells you. The moment my brother said he was happy we didn't kiss again was the moment you decided to do it."

"Think you got me all figured out, do you?"

"More than you'd like to admit."

This time it was Harry who made the first move. He pushed forward, closing the small distance between them. Reno tasted heavily of cigarette but Harry ignored it. He darted his tongue out and licked the soft lips, wondering again how someone so hard could be so soft. Reno let him play for a minute before deciding to take control. He grabbed Harry's hair firmly, but was careful not to hurt him, and pressed closer. Their lips slipped over each other, wet with spit. Harry managed to pull back enough to gasp in a breath before Reno was on him again. The redhead nipped at his lip and Harry gasped in pleasure.

The elevator dinged loudly and Reno pulled away. Harry felt slightly lightheaded and didn't move as the redhead stood gracefully and stepped out.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Harry called out.

Reno smirked. "Don't think so much. Just shut up and enjoy the ride."

The doors closed and Harry cursed. In the end, he was the one who got played.

*!*!*

When Cloud woke up Harry was sitting on his bed, staring at him. It startled Cloud so badly that he jerked up and kicked him, making Harry groan in complaint. The blonde stared at his brother before resting a hand on his racing heart.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"Thinking."

"On my bed? While staring at me?"

Harry shrugged. "Well I was going to wake you up and then had a thought, so I ended up sitting here instead."

"Right…" Cloud stretched and rubbed his face, looking over at his alarm. He had seven minutes before it went off. "Ugh… so what are you thinking about? And what time did you get back?"

"Pretty late. And I was thinking about this."

Harry pulled out a folder that he had stolen from Rude. It had Classified printed in large red letters but that didn't stop him from sharing with Cloud.

"You know the three of us are investigating Death Eaters, right? Well we have four cases to consider that all describe murder victims and the Dark Mark but this file has magic in it too. The only problem is I can't convince Reno and Rude about that without giving myself away."

"What's it say?" Cloud asked, taking the papers.

"It describes an act of terrorism by Avalanche. They blew up a Shinra controlled facility here in Midgar, down in Sector Five. But not a single person was killed. A few were injured but everyone survived."

"Maybe they did it at night?"

Harry shook his head. "No, it was during the middle of the work day. Thousands of dollars of damage were accrued but no one died. Avalanche took credit for the attack but eye witnesses said they saw multiple people appear just before the explosion and then vanish into thin air right afterwards."

"The vanishing trick," Cloud said. "You did it twice when we were kids."

Harry nodded. "I think Avalanche tried to blow this building and wizards stepped in to protect the people from being killed."

"But Death Eaters are evil, they kill everyone. Why would they save these people?"

"I don't think it was Death Eaters. Remember in my vision, Nanaki said there was another group, The Order of the Phoenix, that was nothing but good? If they were there that day, they could have been the ones to save those people."

Cloud crossed his arms in thought. "I guess it's possible. So what do you want to do about it?"

"I want to interview the eye witnesses and go investigate but Reno and Rude won't let me."

Cloud glanced at the file. "We would need a pass to go to the lower plates. My next day off is Sunday."

"Do you have training with Zack?"

"No, he's got a mission."

"Okay, then I'll figure out a way to get it off too."

*!*!*

Sunday came quickly and found Cloud and Harry in street clothes at the train station. Cloud had begged Zack for permission to go into the city and the Soldier hadn't been able to say no to his pretty blue eyes. Harry forged his own permission to leave Shinra, just as Reno had taught him. They told their friends Harry had saved up enough money to go an amusement park in sector five and since he and Cloud had never been to one, they wanted to go together.

After stopping by the park to buy tickets and get wristbands, the brothers left, making their way to the industrial side of Sector Five. The buildings grew larger and less distinct as they walked. Factories lined the roads, their smoke stacks blowing pollution into the sky. The air was foggy but not enough to obstruct their sight.

"The Slums are worse," Cloud said. "It smells down there."

"You've been down to the Slums?"

"Yeah, Zack took me to meet a friend of his. Didn't I tell you?"

Harry shrugged. "If you did, I don't remember."

They arrived at their destination around noon. Harry pulled out his folder and flipped to the page naming the eye witnesses.

"Okay so most of the people have left, but three are still here. Amanda Wallace, Berry Turner, and Christian Lodge. We need to find them and hope they remember what happened a year ago."

"How do we get inside?" Cloud asked, looking at the tall fences that surrounded the factory.

"You're joking, right?" Harry teased.

He flicked his wrist and his wand appeared in his hand. Harry cast a spell on himself before running and jumping effortlessly over the six-foot-tall fence. Cloud grumbled as he jumped on the chain links, climbing over as quickly as he could. When he landed on the other side, Harry was playfully picking his nails.

"Oh, did you finally decide to join me?"

Cloud shoved him.

The two hurried into the building and ducked to avoid being spotted by the yard supervisors. The plant was manufacturing parts of some sort and everyone worked on assembly lines. Cloud nudged Harry and pointed at some lockers.

"We should blend in."

Harry nodded and used his magic to break into the lockers. They quickly put on the blue uniforms and walked down the line of workers. Harry spotted one of people they were looking for and tugged Cloud down to the line. They each took an empty spot on the line and Amanda looked up in surprise. She was a thin woman with a pointed nose and plain face.

"Are you new?" she asked in surprise. "I didn't know we were taking on newbies."

"We're temps," Harry explained. "We're only here for a day before we'll be switched out."

She nodded. "Oh. I used to be a temp. It was fun for a while, learning new things all the time but I got sick of always being the new person. Well, here, let me show you what to do."

She directed Harry and Cloud on how to use the machine and the two picked it up quickly. They made small talk with her while they worked and Harry even flirted a little bit. It wasn't long before the lunch bell rang and Amanda invited them to join her.

In the break room, Cloud excused himself to the vending machines and Harry sat with the woman.

"So how long have you worked here?" he asked politely.

"Almost three years."

"Then were you here back when it was attacked?"

Amanda seemed surprise by the questions and nodded slowly. "Yeah, those fools, Avalanche, tried to bomb this place. They thought we were manufacturing parts for mako reactors and wanted to put a stop to it."

"That's not what this place does?"

She shrugged. "We make parts for all sorts of buildings and machines. Where they end up after leaving my line isn't important to me."

"Was it scary?" Harry asked, trying to sound and keep an innocent face.

Amanda nodded, looking away. "It was so loud. The bomb going off nearly blew out my eardrums."

"You were that close? How did you survive?"

Amanda shrank away and Harry quickly pulled back, afraid she wouldn't talk to him.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to bring up bad memories."

"It's okay. I'm not sure how I survived, to be honest. I must have a guardian angel or something. I remember seeing the truck with explosives drive through the gate and then it exploded. I was with a couple other people at the time and we all should have died."

"What happened then?"

She shrugged. "To this day, I'm not sure. I remember grabbing Berry –he was my boyfriend at the time— and then… nothing. The explosion was loud and the fire passed over all of us harmlessly. The factory was in ruins and everyone was screaming but we were perfectly fine. Not a scratch on us."

"Did you see anyone?" Harry asked eagerly. "Maybe someone used Materia?"

She shrugged again. "Your guess is as good as mine." She hesitated before leaning closer, gesturing Harry in as well. "No one believes me but…"

"I'll believe you," Harry promised. "Or at least, I won't make fun of you."

She smiled. "There was a person standing in the heart of the explosion. An old man with a long beard. He looked so sad but before I could think, he vanished. Right into thin air! I blinked and he was gone."

"Did anyone else see him?"

Amanda frowned. "The other two with me, Berry and Christian, said they did. But after people started calling us crazy they changed their minds. They figured it was the trauma of the explosion. But I don't believe that. I know what I saw. An old man with a stick protected us somehow and no one will ever change my mind. I don't care how crazy I sound."

"I believe you," Harry assured.

"Really?"

"Sure! I mean, we carry around little glowing balls that let us shoot fire. Why can't there be people who vanish from sight too?"

Amanda was so happy that someone finally believed her story that she nearly started to cry. Harry sat with her for the rest of lunch before the bell rang, signaling them back to work. Cloud found him just as they were walking back to the main area.

"Where've you been?" Harry asked.

"Found one of the other guys, Christian."

"What'd he have to say?"

"Not a lot. He wouldn't talk about it in detail and when I asked about seeing someone vanished he got mad. Said that he never saw a person and had just been imaging things. Stormed off after that."

"That's fine, I got the story from Amanda. She saw an old man with a stick cast a spell to protect them before vanishing."

"So it was a wizard then."

Harry nodded. "We're done here. Let's go."

They slipped from the factory the same way they had come in and tossed the uniforms away.

"So we've confirmed it was wizards who saved these people but how do we find out who those wizards are?" Cloud asked.

"I'm not sure…" Harry admitted. "An old man with a stick isn't much to go on." This was why Harry wanted Reno and Rude to come. They had more resources and a better feel for this sort of thing.

Cloud suddenly stopped walking and tilted his head, peering down a poorly lit alley. Because of all the smog created by the factory the afternoon sun was dim. Even so, Cloud spotted something and paused.

"Aerith?" he called in shock.

The person in the alley stopped what they were doing and turned. A girl with brown hair and a pretty blue dress smiled at them.

"Cloud? Is that you?" She hurried forward and wrapped the blonde into a hug. "What are you doing down here?"

"Me? What are you doing? This place isn't the safest to walk around alone, you know."

Aerith dismissed his concerns with a wave of her hand. "I was trying to sell flowers but my wagon broke." She pouted unhappily.

"Who are you trying to sell flowers to down here?" Harry asked.

Aerith seemed surprised by the question. "Well anyone, of course. This place is perfect for selling; it needs more life, more color. It's so dreary."

Harry agreed it was dreary but still didn't see the point. There weren't any potential customers on the street. Everyone was in the factories working.

"Aerith, this is my brother, Harry. Harry, this is Zack's friend, Aerith. I met her when we went down to the Slums."

"Nice to meet you," Harry said.

"You too! I don't mean to be a bother but could you help me with my cart?" She sent Cloud a pointed look. "Really, you should take responsibility for it breaking, since you helped build it."

"Zack did most of the work while you and I goofed off."

"So then this is Zack's fault!" She made a playful fist. "I'll have to get him for this!"

Cloud laughed and gestured towards her cart. "Let's take a look."

Aerith cheered and latched onto Cloud's arm. Harry frowned in disapproval but didn't say anything as he followed the two.

"How did you get up here, anyways?" Cloud asked.

"Well ever since I got my cart, I was able to register as an official merchant. That got me permission to go to different Sectors, so long as I'm selling." They stopped before the wooden cart covered in bright, healthy flowers. The wheel had popped off and Aerith couldn't lift the wagon to try and get it back on.

"Harry, grab the wheel and put it back on when I lift," Cloud ordered.

Harry did and could slide the wheel back on easily. Cloud lowered the cart and shook it gently. The wheel tipped partly sideways but didn't fall off.

"It's hinge is gone," Harry pointed out. "There's nothing holding the wheel in place."

"Is there any way to fix it?" Aerith asked, kneeling and pouting.

"It's not hard, you just need the piece," Harry shrugged. He could flick his wrist and use his magic to fix the wagon in a second. Cloud knew it too and gently touched Aerith's elbow.

"Let's go look for something over here," he suggested. "Harry, stay with the cart."

Harry nodded and leaned so he was partly covered by wagon, out of sight. Aerith followed Cloud.

"Your brother's adorable," she commented happily. "He's different from you, though."

"We're adopted," Cloud explained, pretending to look around.

"That's not what I meant." She frowned in thought. "I mean… you both feel different. Harry's not like anyone else, is he?"

Cloud paused and looked up at the girl. "What does that mean?"

"I'm not trying to be rude!" she assured. "I'm not like other people either. I'm different. It's nice to meet someone else like me."

Cloud hesitated before asking. "Are you a… wizard?"

Aerith shook her head. "No. Just different."

Before Cloud could ask more, Harry called out. "Hey, I fixed it!"

Aerith hurried back the cart and Cloud followed with a frown. The wheel was fixed, as good as new. The brunette laughed, jumping up and down happily.

"Oh thank you!" she exclaimed. "This is much better than before! You're amazing."

"I found the piece—" Harry started but Aerith wasn't interested in his lies.

"Okay, now back to business! I lost too much time and need to hurry to catch up! Oh but first." She plucked a blue flower from the wagon and handed it to Harry. "For fixing my cart."

"Thanks."

"And for you Cloud." She handed him a yellow daisy. "For distracting me." She winked playfully and ran around the other side, lifting the cart easily. "It feels so much lighter!" She giggled. "Nah, I'm just getting stronger."

"Are you going to be safe by yourself?" Harry asked.

"Of course! Don't you two worry about me! You just get back safely."

Aerith skipped away happily with her wagon and the boys watched her go.

"Is she really going to be okay?"

"She lives down in the Slums so I think she can take care of herself." Cloud turned him. "Did you make it lighter?"

He shrugged. "I thought if it was lighter it would put less weight on the wheel and not break as easily."

"Well now what do we do?" Cloud asked. "Start looking for a strange old man?"

"I don't know how well that will—"

Harry's words cut off as they were suddenly surrounded. Appearing out of thin air were five men, all dressed in black cloaks and white masks. They appeared without warning and the brothers were caught off guard. Harry tried to reach for his wand but a jet of light slammed into his chest before he could grasp it.

"Harry!" Cloud screamed.

As a Cadet, Cloud wasn't allowed to carry a gun when off duty. All he had was a small knife Zack had given him. He reached for it but never got the chance to use it as he was hit with a spell. Cloud collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Harry felt his world going dark and ground his teeth, fighting to stay awake. One of the cloaked figures stood over him.

"Stupify," he whispered and Harry knew no more.

A/N: Because there are big gaps in between when I write these chapters they sometimes feel disconnected. I try and make things flow as smoothly as possible.

I had a lot of fun with the side characters' names in this chapter. Nerd points to whoever recognizes where they come from.