Red XII looked up from where he was sleeping. He saw Barret heading for him. "Hello." Red said.
"What up?"
"Still no sign of Cloud?"
Barret shook his head. "Naw."
"Not much. Aeris and Tifa wandered off." He sighed.
"Damn man."
"I suppose the poor boy was killed by Rufus." He got up and wagged his tail.
"Probably. Him and his spikey ass always be getting in trouble."
"What are we supposed to do now? I did not know him very long, but he did save me from Hojo."
"He's a fool. Nice guy, but, damn."
Red nodded. "He did not deserve to die, or be captured."
"Yeah damnit."
"In either case, I must return to my home town."
"Even if he was only in for da money. Oh? Uh huh." He looked around.
Red looked around too. "Did you hear something?"
"Hear what?"
Red's ears perked up. "I thought I heard something."
"Hmm, ain't hear nothin, but den, you got them ears."
"I suppose it was just wishful thinking."
"What cha think you hear?"
Red shook his head. "I guess it was nothing."
Barret rubbed the back of his head. "Ok, damn, now you's got me curios."
Red sat down, wagging his tail. "About what?"
"About what you heard."
"Oh." He sniffed the air, then lifted his head up.
"Don't you guys have better hearing than humans do?"
"I think something's coming."
Barret looked around.
"Yes." Red confirmed.
Barret patted his gunarm. "Sumthin, like what?"
Red got up and growled. 3 wolf like creatures ran at them.
"Shit!" Barret said.
Red cast fire on all three of them. The wolves got singed and growled. Barret aimed his arm at one and fired off a shot. He hit the thing, but it still kept on coming. Red plowed into another with his headdress. The wolf went down as Barret reloaded. He shot at the other wolf again.
"Die bastard!" Barret shouted, watching the wolf die.
Red cast fire on the last one. As it died he reared up on his hind legs and howled.
"Aight," said Barret, "Now dat dat's over, where to?"
"So, you think Cloud is dead, or just captured. I'm headed for my home town."
"Hmm, der's a good chance he's dead. He'd shown his ass by now."
Red nodded. "Tifa and Aeris both seemed upset."
Barret nodded. "I think dey gotta thing for 'im."
"It seems to me that both ladies are in love with him."
"What da hell do they see in him?" he scratched his head.
"I do not know." Red scratched his ear. "I care not for two legged things."
"Oh well, I got nothin to do, should we wait for da girls?"
"I suppose."
"Oh thanks, we can all feel appreciated now."
"Unless they are not going to leave until they know what has become of the boy."
"Damn, I can't wait dat long, even if I nothin to do."
Red nodded. "I do just want to get back to my home town, but, I wish to travel with you there."
"Damn women, why da hell they do that?"
"I do not know."
"Yeah, I don't feel like hanging around with them wolf things. 'Sides, we can always come find dem later."
Red nodded. "Let us head to Kalm then and hope they catch up."
"Aight."
"If Cloud just got lost, then he will come with Aeris and Tifa, and then go to Kalm."
"Yea."
Red started walking again. "Barret?"
Barret ran to catch up. "Yea?"
"Why are you in this?" He slowed down to allow Barret to catch up.
"Ah, cause of da ShinRa. Dey messing with the planet. I can't let dat happen anymore. Know what I'm saying?"
Red nodded. "Yes I do. I'm from Cosmo Canyon. My tribe protects the Canyon."
"Hmm, I think I heard of it."
"I am the last of my tribe."
"Wow, a, whatchamacallit, endangered species or sumthin."
Red nodded and looked down the path. "Do you have a home town?"
"Uh, yeah." He looked away.
Red looked at him.
"So," asked Barret, "Are we heading there or what?"
"Did I say something wrong?"
Barret scratched his head. "Eh, naw." He started to walk
"I thought we were heading for Kalm."
He stopped. "Eh?"
"And going to wait there for the others?"
He spun around. "Oh yea." He walked back.
"Where are you going? This is the way to Kalm I thought."
"Uh, I'm following you. Dat's it."
Red scratched his ear. "I was following you." He blinked.
"Oh."
"Are we lost?"
"Naw, naw." He looked around.
Red sat down and wagged his tail. Barret pulled out a map. Red saw sweat form above his brow.
Red sniffed the air. "I cannot smell the path."
Barret turned the map around quickly.
"Must be the lack of life," continued Red, "Due to the Mako reactors."
"All I smell is grass."
Red chuckled. "How does the grass smell to a human."
"It smells green. Dat's the only way I can explain it."
Red shook his head. "You humans have a very poor sense of smell." They both looked around. "Which way is Kalm?"
"What's it smell like to you?"
"I cannot explain that to a human."
"Oh." He scratched his head. "Ok"
"Well, how do we get to Kalm from here?"
"Uhh." He looked down at the map again. "This way?"
"You said we were not lost. I think we are."
"We ain't, lost, uh."
Red laughed.
"Crap." Barret said. Red got up. "Ok, you win. We's lost."
"Yes."
"Yer da one who can smell the thing, you lead."
"Ok. I guess, since we can't find Kalm, maybe we should head back to Midgar."
"Okay."
Red sniffed the air and started to walk of in the direction of Midgar. Barret followed him. "Now, how shall we make this trip less boring. Anything we need to discuss?"
"Uh, not unless you want to."
"What is Cloud like?"
"Ugh, Cloud's.... He's hot headed. An' he's just all in for money he don't care about planet."
"Or the girls?"
"Yea, seem so." He shrugged.
"Is there anything he does care about?"
"Eh, he has dis thing about Sephiroth."
"What thing?"
"It's kinda an obsession. He's always running of, doing some fool thing that has to do with Sephiroth."
"Like?"
"Uhh, like hunting him to da ends of the earth if necessary, er something."
"Oh."
"Something to dat effect."
Red watched the sun set and yawned. "We should sleep soon."
Barret nodded. "Yeah." He looked around. "Hey, I was wondering, what did those wolf things smell like?"
Red looked at him. "Why do you ask?"
Barret laughed. "I was wondering for some reason."
"Oh."
"Since you say grass smells more den green."
Red sat down and wagged his tail. "Why do you hate the ShinRa?"
"Dey's sucking the life out of the planet wit dem big ass machines and keeping da people in poverty."
"Yes, that is a good reason."
"Dey ruined lives."
"I hate that too." Red looked down. "I was captured by the ShinRa and was being used for experimentation."
"Yeah." Barret frowned. "Bastards. I should use some experiments on der assess an' see how dey like it."
Red chuckled. "Yes. I still wonder, why did Sephiroth take out President Shinra? And, why do you hate Rufus so much? Did you ever meet him before?"
"Dat is a good question, and Rufus is the Presidents's son."
Red nodded.
"Can't say I really met him, "Barret continued, "But I've run into him before. But, like father like son."
"When did you run into him? I only ever knew his name."
"Ahh, not to long ago."
"What happened?
"Him an' his entourage. Nothing really, I didn't really move against him. I just stayed and thought evil and torturous things."
"Why?"
"Dat smug look, wanna wipe it off of his face."
"His entourage?"
"You know, the soldiers and what-not. All them guards."
"So, he's like his father?"
"Dun know him personally, but I'd say so."
"Why?"
"He's dat man's son. Sure 'nuff the man taught him to walk in daddy's footsteps."
"I wonder how."
"How wah?"
"How he was taught."
"Dunno. One hell of a mean son of a bitch probably."
Red looked at him. "Meaning?"
"I mean his father's some sicko sadist who saw entertainment an' crap in everyone suffering including himself and his son."
"What do you think he did then?"
"Well, no one seen da boy bleed or cry."
Red nodded. "How true."
"He probably whipped him good."
"I believe Aeris said that. That sounds awful to me."
"Yeah, ain't no walk in da park to me either."
"Why would anyone do that? You humans are so strange."
"I agree wit you der."
"To never bleed or cry." He looked at Barret. "Everyone cries, at least, every normal person."
"Yeah."
"What did you see of Rufus?"
"Just him in his snazzy white trench coat and black turtleneck, wit his bit, a big ass motha."
"Turtle neck, trench coat, in this heat?"
Barret plinked. "You right. Damn."
"Why would anyone wear that?"
"No clue. Maybe to hide shit."
"Hide? Like what?"
"Mm, weapons, uh, big ass injuries er something?"
"Hmmm, what type of injuries?"
"Dunno, missing limbs, gashes, scars, dat sort of thing I suppose."
"I have battle scars. My fur does not hide them."
Barret nodded. "Yeah. Same, course, I ain't got fur an I wouldn't hide mine."
"How old is Rufus any way?"
"Ahh, I'd say in his early twenties. He's too much of a pretty-boy to be any older."
"Why do you hate him so much if you only saw him that one time?"
"Cause he's a ShinRa."
"What was he doing when you saw him?"
"He was just in his nice limo looking all smug as usual. Fixing his hair and stuff."
"Anything else?"
"You ever see how women just lop all over him?"
"No, do go on."
"Anyway, he's a friggin woman magnet, and he don't give a rat's ass about them it seems."
"Oh?" His ears perked up as he listened to Barret.
"He just gives dem a smile and gets on wit it, he dun show no interest in a single gorgeous woman. Makes me pissed as hell."
"Why?"
"Er, cause..."
"Why?"
"Cause, uh, cause damn it, a pretty-boy like him should be basking in the glory of every gorgeous woman at his hand."
"What does he do?"
"He just smiles and nods."
"What do you think he should do?"
"I think he should at least be a little flirtatious er something. Show some interest. Hell, if I had women all over me like dat."
"He didn't flirt with any of them?"
"Naw, not a single one."
"What was he doing?"
"He was just ignoring them basically."
"Was he talking to anyone at all?"
"Not dat I could tell. Nothing important."
"What would you do if you were in that position then?"
"With all them women? I'd, hell, I'd be one happy motha."
"Well, maybe he's just not interested."
"Not interested in some of those." Barret whistled. "See, I don't know how ta explain this to a, what are you?"
"I am what you see."
"Well, a, you, but there is certain standards human men like to see in women. And some of them women go beyond a few of them standards."
"Oh?"
"We's talking some women here."
"And he ignored all of them?"
"Yeah."
Red wagged his tail.
Barret straightened up. "Wait a minute." Barret said suddenly. "You think dat maybe he's, ...gay or something?"
"What does that mean?"
"Uh, he prefers da same sex."
"Well, seeing that he seemed to not care for the opposite sex."
"Yeah, damn, I don't understand. Da guys who could have it all are gay."
"What do you mean by that Barret?"
"I mean, a lot of the pretty-boy types I know, who could have any woman they wanted, are gay."
"Well, maybe those who are gay are the pretty boy types."
"Could be, ahh, wait, yer confusing me now. Ok, I got you now."
Red nodded and scratched his ear. "I'm tired."
"Yea."
"I think we should get some sleep."
"I've been blabbing too much." He yawned widely.
Red settled down on his paws. Barret sat down and laid back.
"Damn," Barret said, "Most da gay guys I know are weak as hell too. What da hell's wit dat?"
Red looked over at him. "What about Rufus?"
"Naw, He sure as hell didn't look weak."
"What did he look?"
"He looked, damn intimidating."
Thinks back. "Well, I did see him on the roof."
"But, not like in yer face kick your ass rough, know what I'm saying? Just, like bam, what then."
"He mentioned wanting to control the world with fear."
"Yeah!"
"He seemed scary then. I guess I just blocked it out."
"Yeah."
"So, I did see him that one time." He yawned. "I'm tired. Good night Barret."
"Goodnight."
They both fell asleep.