Even Demons Can Be Saved

Truce?

The next morning Eve was headed to her meeting with Ruluf when she ran into him in the hallway. She raised a brow and looked up to find a clock. When she noted it was still early, she gave him a curious look. "I know the Turk motto is be early or you're late, but this is excessive, isn't it?"

He chuckled at her question. "I figured I'd catch you on the way. After our last lesson, Tseng told me to drop it down to twice a week. You'll be workin' with Rude instead."

She didn't bother holding in a groan as she looked up at the ceiling. She was scowling slightly when she looked back to him. "Thanks for passing on the message at least. When will our next lesson be?"

He shook his head with a smile. "You know it could be worse. Rude has a hidden soft spot for pretty girls. I doubt he would do anything that would permanently scar your face."

She raised a brow and rolled her eyes at him. "If that was supposed to be reassuring, you suck at it."

He laughed at her before patting her shoulder. "You'll be fine. I'll see you the day after tomorrow."

She scowled and watched him walk away until he turned the corner. She sighed as she made her way to the smaller room where she had her first lesson with Rude. She was thankful when she found him there alone. She stood in the doorway and watched for a few minutes while he used one of the large punching bags. She repressed a shiver at the thought that with the way the bag was moving, Tseng had been correct in that Rude had been going easy on her. She raised a quick prayer that he would keep doing so as she moved to catch his attention.

After a few brief explanations, he quickly had her running through several drills. By the time they were done, she definitely needed a potion again. She felt better about that fact when he told her that she was already improving, but she needed to work on her speed. For the rest of the morning, he had her working with learning to throw a proper punch and increasing her speed. They used the punching bags for the rest.

By lunchtime, Eve was already exhausted. She knew she didn't have the luxury of taking a nap, so she hoped Genesis wouldn't push her too much. She was afraid that if he kept up with his typical stunts that she might actually try to do him harm, and that would not end well for either of them.

She thanked Rude and waved as she headed to eat. When he gave her a small smile, she had to repress a grin. The memory of what Ruluf had told her came back at that moment. She realized that he must have been on to something as Rude never did aim for her face.

By the time she made it to the Soldier floor, she felt better than she had. Eating and taking a short rest had helped with her energy levels. She was surprised to see that Genesis wasn't waiting by the elevators, but she knew where his office was and headed that direction. He surprised her when he was coming down the hall as she turned down the corridor. At least she didn't have to track him down.

When he drew even with her, he gave her a polite nod before he spoke. "You did bring your materia, correct?"

Eve gave him a curious look since his greeting was succinct. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate it, but she hadn't expected it. Not even after their talk. She found herself smiling at the thought that he finally listened as she responded. "Of course. Learning materia usage without it would be difficult."

Her expression turned back to a frown when he merely gave her a nod and turned toward the VR room. She shook her worry off. He was being professional, and that was precisely what she had asked of him.

They started with a recap of what she had already shown him before he pulled out a half dozen different materia and had her identify them without touch. They then went back to casting. Before they were halfway through, Eve was glad that she had thought to grab an ether. He gave her a sharp look when she downed it but didn't reprimand her. She knew he wanted her to build up her reserves instead of using the quick way, but that would take time, and he would just have to deal with it for now. He must have realized the same thing since he didn't say anything to her.