Final Fantasy VII: Reflections - Book 1: Descent

TWENTY-THREE

"So, what brings you here, Jessie?" Biggs asked.

The three of us were walking down the road, each of us carrying a cat as we brought them back to Wedge's place. He was on my right and Biggs was on my left. I liked them both right away. Sometimes you just click with certain people kind of like puzzle pieces fitting together, and that's the way it was with Biggs and Wedge.

Although I'd only just met them, I felt comfortable with these guys already. They were both so friendly and easygoing, and I couldn't help smiling a little as we went along. It took me a moment to answer Biggs' question, though. It was a good one, and I wasn't quite sure what to say at first. But after I thought about it, I knew.

"Came here from Sector 5," I said. "Looking to expand my business a bit and make some new friends."

Wedge grinned. "Cool! What do ya do?"

I chuckled. "Me? I fix stuff. Computers, phones, machines... lots of things. Anything electronic. If it's broken, I get it working again. Think you could use someone like that in Sector 7?"

"You bet!" Biggs replied. "A ton of stuff comes down here from the plate, most of it busted, so people would probably pay you good money to get it working again. Could make a name and a living for yourself in the salvage and repair business."

"Guess I'll fit right in, then," I laughed.

Biggs blinked. "Hey, wait a minute! You're the one Lena was telling me about, aren'tcha?"

I giggled. "Yep, that's me."

"Oh, you know her?" Wedge asked.

"We're good friends," I answered. "She mentioned having a brother over here. I'm guessing that's you, Biggs."

He nodded. "Sure is. She messaged me a little while ago saying you saved her from some bandits on the way here."

"Well, it was more like we saved each other," I smiled.

"Still, I'm grateful," Biggs said. "So if you ever need any help, me an' Wedge've gotcha covered. Just say the word!"

I gazed fondly at my new friends. "Thanks, guys."

"And here we are!" Wedge announced.

We stopped just outside a small, makeshift house at the corner of a long, narrow side street. There were a lot of little homes like that, and I could tell from the balls of string lying nearby and the three small food dishes set by the door that this was Wedge's home. After gently setting the cats on the ground, we just stood together and watched them for a moment as they meowed at our feet.

I knelt down to pet them. "They really are cute, Wedge."

"They seem to like you too, Jessie," he said, joining me. "I love cats, you know. Guess these guys are hungry, so I'll go ahead and feed them. Then it's refuelin' time for me!"

"Refueling?" I laughed. "What's that mean?"

Biggs clapped Wedge on the shoulder. "That's just how Wedge likes to say he's hungry, too. Isn't it, buddy?"

Wedge gave him a thumbs up. "Yep! That's how it is!"

"That's actually pretty clever!" I told him.

"Glad you like it," he said. "I won't be long, guys."

I stood up while Wedge fed his cats a generous amount of cat food and milk. No wonder they looked so healthy. They dug right in, side by side near the front door. Wedge cooed to them for a moment, and then he straightened up and joined us.

Biggs glanced at him. "Looks like they're all set."

"Yeah. Thanks for helping me bring 'em home, you two. Never saw these fellas run away like that before."