Title: I Am Only One
Pairings: None.
Warnings: Character death. ANGST CLOUD IS ANGST.
Disclaimer: Final Fantasy goes to Square Enix, "I Am Only One" belongs to We Are The Fallen. Don't sue me~
Cloud was sitting in his living room, sipping a cup of chamomile tea in hope of falling asleep after a hard day at work. His house wasn't that expensive to pay for, but considering all the bills he had, they eventually added up and it was quite exhausting.
A soft scratching at the door took his attention, the blonde setting down his lukewarm tea and moving towards the door. He opened it and looked around, but no one was outside. A soft whine from below him alerted Cloud to a box placed outside his door, containing a puppy and a cat. He blinked in surprise, but at the puppy's warm gaze, he relented and brought them into the warmth of his home.
"So, what are your names? I'm Cloud, and I guess I'll be taking care of you..." Cloud leaned down, examining the puppy's collar. "Zack, huh? Nice to meet you, Zack." He smiled. The puppy was pitch black with a little white X-shaped scar on his left cheek, and he had bright blue eyes.
"And now for you." The blonde turned to the cat, looking into its deep emerald eyes. "You have pretty eyes... Sephiroth." he said, reading the cat's collar. The cat had silky smooth fur, the shade being an elegant silver.
Cloud stood up. "Well, I suppose I should give you something to eat or drink... Is water fine for now? I don't really have enough money on me at the moment to get groceries, so you're kinda stuck with that until I can get milk." He explained, moreover to himself than the animals. He ignored the stare Sephiroth was giving him, pretending as best he could that it was something cats did all the time. To be honest, he'd never been around a cat long enough to notice such a thing.
Placing down two bowls of water, the blonde then took that moment to look at the clock. "Damn, I ought to get some sleep... I have work tomorrow morning." He looked down at the animals he'd taken in. "Do you both want to sleep in the bedroom with me, or out here on the couch?"
The puppy yapped loudly, sprinting off towards the bedroom. Cloud shook his head; Zack must have done some exploring while he made the water. He looked down at Sephiroth, who had been lapping up the water neatly and was now watching him intently.
Cloud blinked. "Okay, I guess you can both sleep with me." He reached down and gently picked up Sephiroth, the cat giving no hiss of annoyance. He carried the feline to his bedroom, where Zack was already prancing around at the foot of his bed. Cloud placed the cat next to Zack, and smiled at the both of them.
"Goodnight, you two." he murmured, turning off his ceiling light and huddling up underneath the covers, falling into a deep sleep.
Sephiroth and Zack shared a look before curling up into one another, also falling asleep.
Over the course of the next few days, Sephiroth and Zack had become used to Cloud's routine. He would wake up at 5 a.m., cook breakfast for everyone, then get dressed and leave at 6 a.m. He would work 10 hours, coming home around 4:30 p.m. to clean himself up and eventually prepare dinner at 6 p.m. He would then do either household chores, read a chapter from a book he liked, Loveless, or watch a movie with his two new companions before falling asleep around 10-11 p.m.
So, Zack and Sephiroth were quite surprised when Cloud was late to get home one autumn day.
"Hey, Seph? What d'you think is holding up Cloud? I'm really worried..." Zack looked up at his friend, his tail drooping sadly. Sephiroth shook his head.
"I don't know anything, Zackary. I'm going to assume something kept him at work. It's the only logical thing I can think of at the moment." he replied.
Zack whined quietly. "But Seph, he's never late, even if work holds him up!"
"I don't know what to do about it, Zackary."
"But Seph-"
The puppy was cut off when the door slammed open, followed by his nose getting assaulted by the smell of blood. The two animals turned to the doorway, seeing a blood-covered Cloud carrying a small, silver-haired boy in his arms. The blonde ran for the couch, gentle laying the boy down onto the cushions. The animals crept closer, listening in on what Cloud was saying.
"Don't worry Hope, you're gonna be okay. I swear it, you'll be fine. C'mon, stay awake now! Please Hope, don't close your eyes-!"
The bloody child lifted his pale hand, cradling Cloud's face. "Stop pretending, Chocobo..." he rasped. "I won't make it... Not this time." He smiled sadly, emerald eyes shining with unshed tears.
Cloud, not holding himself back, had streams of water running down his stained cheeks. "Please Hope, I know you're gonna be okay!" he cried, clutching the hand on his face.
Hope shook his head slightly. "N-Not this time, Cloud. Take care o-" he cut himself off with a harsh cough that brought up congealed blood that splattered on Cloud's dark shirt. "Take care of Tidus. He needs you, C-Cloud..." The boy drew in a ragged breath.
"Live for me, Cloud. Please... I love you, big brother." Hope whispered, his eyes sliding shut as the light faded from them.
"Hope? Hope?! HOPE!" Cloud screamed, clutching the younger boy's hand. "Come back! Please, please come back!" Tears ran down his face as he held the dead child to his chest, kissing the silver locks. "Please come back to me, baby brother... Please..." He buried his face into Hope's clotted hair, crying freely.
Zack and Sephiroth stared on from the sidelines, the puppy's eyes full of tears. "S-Seph... I think his little brother just died..." Zack whispered, tearing his eyes away from the heartbreaking scene.
Sephiroth nodded, eyes solemn with grief and sympathy towards Cloud. "We have not known Cloud long, but I am feeling immense sorrow for him. We will comfort him tonight." he murmured.
Zack nodded, and their attention was taken to Cloud once more as the teen stood, carrying Hope into the bathroom. Cloud cleaned himself and the younger boy of dried blood, the blonde cleaning Hope's cuts and wrapping them in gauze. He went into his room for a moment, grabbing a set of clean clothes Hope usually kept at Cloud's house and changed the boy into them. He eyed the boy's green scarf sadly before taking Hope and putting him back onto the couch, before grabbing his cell phone.
He scanned his contacts before hitting one near the bottom of the list, putting the device up to his ear as it began to ring. When the other person picked up, Cloud sighed. "Yuna?"
"Oh, hi Cloud! What's up?"
The blonde rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Can you still perform sendings?"
Yuna hesitated, before answering with a soft, "Who died?"
A tear crept down Cloud's cheek. "It was Hope."
"...I'll be over in a few minutes."
Cloud nodded. "Thank you. And... bring Tidus with you." he whispered, before hanging up and cradling his head in his hands.
After mourning for a couple minutes, Cloud went back to his room, getting out a clean set of clothes for himself. He changed slowly, mind still numb form the recent passing of his younger brother. A knock at the door brought him out of his reverie, and he moved towards it, grasping the handle and opening it wide.
Yuna stood there in her summoner's outfit from when she had been on her pilgrimage, with Tidus standing behind her in a set of blue jeans, black T-shirt, blitzball wristguards, and yellow sneakers. They entered the house, Cloud leading them to the couch. None of them said anything, but Tidus leaned down and carried the silver-haired boy outside, Yuna and Cloud following him.
They stepped out onto the sand, looking at the private stretch of beach Cloud's cousin, Kadaj, had bought for him. The water was cool and calm, a gentle blue-green in the landscape. Cloud went over to his shed, pulling out an elegant red coffin that was stored in there since they woke up Vincent. It was a red chestnut, with a golden phoenix embroidered in the center of the wood. The swordsman brought the coffin over to the summoner and blizter, opening it so Tidus could place Hope inside.
He did so, and Cloud closed the lid. Both brothers had tears in their eyes as they looked at the wood containing their sibling. Yuna picked a couple lilies from Cloud's garden, attaching them to the coffin before stepping away. Cloud and Tidus picked up the coffin, carrying it over to the water and placing it in the ocean. Tidus pushed it off, the trio watching it float for a moment before Yuna walked towards the water. Cloud and Tidus stepped back, watching her avidly. Zack and Sephiroth had followed them outside too, and were also watching Yuna. Only the brothers had witnessed Yuna perform a sending before, and the two animals were curious.
The brunette stepped onto the water, clutching her staff between her hands. After nearly a year of summoning and performing sendings, she had perfected the dance. She twirled and swayed, waving her staff over the water as she danced. She spun in circles, her flowered purple skirt billowing around her as she rose up, dancing on a small vortex of water. She sent the feelings of Cloud and Tidus towards Hope's lingering soul, watching as pyreflies floated around her towards the sky. She continued moving even as two little pyreflies floated towards the brothers, stopping in front of each of them.
Cloud and Tidus looked at the little pyreflies, Cloud reaching for his as it went inside his chest. A warmth feeling washed through him, and he began to cry as he felt Hope's love coursing in him. Tidus did the same, feeling and reacting the way Cloud did.
Yuna finally completed her dance, watching as the last remaining pyreflies faded away, meaning Hope was at rest. She turned towards the brothers, walking off the water and going towards them. She embraced Cloud tightly, holding him like a sister would a brother. "Take care of yourself, Cloud." she murmured, kissing his cheek and pulling away. She smiled sadly at Tidus, who hugged Cloud as well.
"Stay alive for me, Spike. Can't have us separated, neh?" Tidus said, grinning at his brother even as his eyes shined with sadness.
Cloud nodded, wiping at his eyes. "You stay alive too, Tidus. I won't lose another brother." he replied. Tidus nodded, before turning to Yuna.
She summoned Valefor, who was used being called when not in a battle, and climbed onto her back along with Tidus. The couple waved goodbye to Cloud, who waved back until they disappeared out of sight.
The blonde sighed, turning to go back into the house. He paid no mind to Zack or Sephiroth, who followed him. "No one's left to be the hero..." Cloud quietly sang. "Ever after never came, and I'm still waiting for my heart to beat again..."
He punched the wall, tears running down his face once more as he continued singing. "And all the dreams I've laid to rest are ghosts that keep me, after all that I've become... I am only one!"
He collapsed to his knees, punching the ground. "Damn it all, Hope! Why did you have to die?!" He panted for breath, clutching at the carpet. "Dammit." he muttered.
The blonde stood, feeling drained. He stumbled off towards his bedroom, Zack and Sephiroth quickly following. Cloud flopped onto the mattress, curling up underneath the covers as he burrowed his head in depression. Sleep soon took him, and his face relaxed peacefully.
The animals watched him sleep, recalling the earlier events. "He's going to need some serious TLC," Zack said. "Think we can be the ones to give it to him, Seph?"
The emerald-eyed cat nodded. "Yes. We will sleep by his side tonight." he replied. Zack smiled, and the two moved over to lay next to Cloud; Zack by his chest, and Sephiroth by his head.
They wouldn't leave him all alone in the world.