Life Finds a Way

Chapter 46

When Clarissa sat down in front of Veld's desk she wondered where she should even start. As she looked at his contemplative face she remembered that it was always best to not give a Turk enough information to hang you with. She would start with the bare bones and let them ask questions. It would be better than the alternative anyway.

She had never known much about Veld, so she didn't know what to expect. When he brought both arms up to rest on his desk, she barely contained a gasp. She had completely forgotten that he had a gun arm. The sight of it was unexpected. He didn't miss her reaction either. He quirked an eyebrow up before finally speaking. "Tseng has told me that you have found yourself in a bit of a predicament. Care to explain?"

She felt her hands turn a little clammy under his raptor's gaze, but she managed to take a deep breath and calm herself enough so that she could respond. "It didn't start out as a predicament, but I managed to piss Genesis off. I am sure you already know that the Firsts will occasionally use the VR room for friendly sparring. That is how this started. I was allowed to watch the spar and it got a little heated. Something happened, and it looked like Genesis was going to be hurt, so I stepped in and stopped them all. He didn't appreciate me doing it though."

Veld's eyes had continued to get wider as she told her story. When she was finished he chuckled. "I can understand Genesis losing his temper over that. So, tell me, how did a slip of a girl like you manage to stop the three strongest men in the company?"

She barely managed to keep her glare to a minimum at his condescension. "You do realize I am in Soldier?"

He smiled at her anger. "Of course, but you and I both know that is not enough. You could combine every Soldier we have and not be able to take those three on."

At his further explanation she relented. "I used a stop spell. I was able to freeze time around all three of them for long enough to keep him from getting hurt. That's why he was still pissed enough to chase me."

At her explanation Veld finally laughed out loud. "I would have liked to have seen that. I imagine it will take some time for Genesis to calm down." He paused long enough to pick up his phone. He turned to her before dialing. "You do realize I will need to let Director Lazard know. I'm sure he will want to speak with you as well."

She couldn't hold in her groan at the thought of what that would mean since she was technically still under probation. She tried not to worry about it too much as she listened to the two directors speak.

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Sephiroth and Angeal had finally managed to drag Genesis back to his office. That was the best place if they wanted to keep him from burning things up as they spoke to him. He tended to be more careful around his own things, a fact that never ceased to give them fits.

It took time for the fiery Commander to stop pacing and sit with a huff. He still leveled a glare at the two that had been blocking the door. "Explain to me why you bothered stopping me? You should both be as angry as I am. She used magic against us all."

At his question, Angeal threw what he had been holding onto Genesis' desk. "That's why. You didn't see the fear in her eyes before she ran away from you. She was terrified, and I don't blame her. None of us were calm enough to see it, but that blade was right by your head when she stopped it. If she hadn't acted, there is no telling how badly you might have been hurt."

Genesis calmed a little, but his glare was still heated as he picked it up. He didn't get a chance to retort before Sephiroth spoke up as well. "I am sure you can understand where she was coming from if you let go of your anger at being interrupted. The whole reason you allowed her to come in the first place was due to her state of mind. Imagine how she must have felt at seeing you nearly injured."