Muggy day in Midgar. The air remained stiflingas night fell. At least there was a chance of a breeze on the Upper Plate; already a few stirrings of wind shifting litter around the plaza in Sector Eight. But when the breeze died, the heat followed instantly. And there was little more Aeris could do about it; her skirt already opened high on her legs, the cut of her dress already low. She could ditch the jacket, but the musculature in her arms might diminish the flower girl persona.

No. She could suffer a bit longer. A few more hours and the plaza would be clearer and the chance of selling anything would be baseless optimism. Sweat beaded her forehead, but she still smiled and played her part, trying not to shuffle closer to doorways where stray blasts of air conditioning washed over her, or think too much about the fan in her bedroom, the socks full of rice in the freezer.

Wait. The plaza was getting noisier, the crush of people not diminishing or varying as expected. The noise was increasing, a growing roar of questions, speculations and worries. A chill ran down her spine. People were too confused, too unsure for there to be something planned here she had overlooked.

She barely smiled at the next customer, they too distracted to realise something was wrong, her too wary to get into character. Get to the station and hopefully away from this – whatever this was.

Her slighter size let her slip in and between chattering groups, though others were trying to move like her, streams of people pushing past others, heading for the road into Sector One. Shinra infantry ahead. Nothing to worry about; her fake ID was still valid (if implausible; Lunafreya Nox Fleuret). Red-suited commanders more of a worry. What was going on?

A murmur through the crowd; an odd mixture of hostility and elation. The whispers passed over Aeris's head. SOLDIER. SOLDIER was here. Where though? Nowhere in sight – at least not yet. Hard to spot in a hurry; look for the glowing eyes, or check for some overly elaborate sword? Was it Sephiroth?

Others in the crowd certainly leapt to the conclusion; the famed elite. Aeris elbowed her way past another group, still moving however slowly. The murmurs would have started with Sephiroth. This was something else. Sephiroth was for big events or seemingly to end conflicts. For him to be here was troublesome. For other, nameless SOLDIERs to be here, was much more alarming.

Chatter seemed divided on where they were, flashes of purple, black and blue seized on as possible location. The crowd was stalling more and more, Aeris fighting past people no longer moving. A murmur; SOLDIER right there. Eyes ringed with Mako met hers and moved on, surveying the crowd.

SOLDIER. He had black spiky hair, the hilt of over-sized sword over his shoulder. He was looking across the plaza. Not at her. Good. She followed his gaze; another man, his hair cropped short, a similar sword hilt protruding over his shoulder. Same glowing eyes.

What were they doing? The nearby SOLDIER blocked the route out of the plaza. Aeris would have expected cold indifference, but instead found an expression of pained discomfort. Some murmurs to someone out of sight, casting around and finding no solution. Odd.

Some disruption behind her, angered voices, panic and terror. Something was coming closer and it was not prepared to wait. Almost to the front of the crowd, and still with infantry and a SOLDIER to deal with. No plan to get out of this but she could not stay.

His voice chilled her. Until today she might have insisted she could never remember what Hojo sounded like; she had avoided dwelling on him as much as possible. And yet, his voice seemed to cut through her, her teeth on edge, spine shivering. She had to run. Oh, to whack him with her staff would be wonderful, but would not going to end well. Not with infantry close by. Not with the SOLDIERs.

Aeris shoved forward between the waiting people, ignoring angry retorts and threats. Another shove and she was between the crowd and the infantry. "Get back," one of them said, his voice a snarl. Could she hit him and scramble past without retaliation? She dithered-

Hojo snapped something, calling for assistance. The infantry pushed past and into the crowd. Leaving her with the SOLDIER. A glance, another. "Are you okay?"

Another outburst from Hojo, a struggle somewhere behind. Shouting. Aeris shook her head. The SOLDIER licked his lips and stepped to one-side. "Quick." She darted past, out of the light and into the dark. "Wait."

The SOLDIER straightened up, Aeris pressed against the wall, his body blocking the light. A flash of white. "Any sign of him?" Hojo's voice so loud, so close. Aeris closed her eyes.
"Nope," the SOLDIER said. Aeris held her breath.

Hojo muttered something. "Keep everyone in. He's in here somewhere."

Nothing but people shuffling, the outburst before calming, the crowd annoyed but quieter. She was outside the cordon. Not far from the station. Whether the trains were running was another matter, but she was at least free. She let out her breath.

"Bad experience with Hojo?" The infantry back in place behind the SOLDIER, their attention on the plaza.

"You could say that." SOLDIERs didn't know it seemed. Good. "T-thank you."

"Wish I could do more, but orders and orders." He shrugged. "I figure one person slipping through can't hurt." Another shake of his head. "All this for a lab tech he got suspicious of."

"Hojo?" The SOLDIER nodded. "Reckons one of them's trying to sell out to Wutai. Sorry you got caught up in all that." He glanced back towards the plaza. "Are you going to be okay? Want to keep an eye on the situation. Make sure it doesn't get out of hand."

"I'll be fine." And she would. Monsters and people she could cope with. Hojo was something else. She dithered again. "You're not what I expected from a SOLDIER."

He grinned. "I am the only one I know of who wants to quit."

She frowned. "Why don't you?"

A falter in his smirk. He pointed a thumb at his chest. "Company property. Never made that clear before and now-" He shook his head. "My problem."

"Didn't get your name?"

"Zack. Zack Fair."

An impulse. Stupid. But it came again. He had already helped her, already proven different. To perceptions of SOLDIERs, to Sephiroth, to Shinra in general. "Say hi if you're in Sector Five." He blinked at her. "If you get a chance." She hefted the basket. "Just ask for the flower girl."

He nodded slowly. "I… I think I might."

She smiled and headed for the station. Likely she would never see him again. SOLDIERs were rare in Midgar anyway. But if he did drop by; she wouldn't mind seeing him again.