"Are you ready?" she asked, her soft features staring at him reassuringly.

"You're sure I won't remember being here?" he asked, almost saddened at the thought. She was his best friend, someone who had comforted him when he'd cried and worried for him when he'd gone missing. It was almost a cheat, the fact that he had to give up one for the other.

"I'm sure," she replied, aware of his sadness and granting him a smile, as if to relieve his concerns. "Don't worry, I'll be here waiting, watching. He needs you more than I do, and the planet, though not of the consciousness of humans, recognizes dues."

"I'll be some sort of payment then?" he asked, a bitter, mocking smile flashing across his features. Before him, her eyes dropped, her expression becoming thoughtful.

"Not a payment," she started, "but a wrong righted." Face becoming serious, he crossed his arms and cocked his head to the side curiously. "The planet is aware of everything that happens on it, around it, and inside it. It does not judge, but it knows. And it knew, at the time when you came here, what that would do to him.

"And it knew that if pushed to his limits, he was the only one that could help."

"So my death was some sort of plot by the planet to get him to do what it wanted? That hardly seems fair…"

"You attribute human emotions where there are none," she smiled again. "The planet did what was necessary, that is all. It understands pain, and knew that the injury it inflicted on him by taking you was akin to its own life-threatening ailment. That's why it kept you whole, asleep, until I woke you. So that, when the time was right, it could return you to him."

"Why I didn't become part of the lifestream…"

"Yes…"

A pause.

"What about you?" he asked. "You haven't become one with the lifestream either. What will you do? Just watch, as you said?" He shook his head. "That hardly seems entertaining."

"It's more exciting than you know," she giggled lightly. "Besides, I'm Centra, I have knowledge that you do not and the planet has many plans for me yet, even if neither of us are aware of them. I have many souls to heal, and many lives to save after everything that's happened."

"So, in other words, you'll be kept busy?" he cocked a single eyebrow.

"Exactly," she affirmed. "And my latest course of action is to return you to where you belong." She clasped her hands knowingly behind her back. "Or perhaps with whom you belong."

"Well I hope you're right," he sighed. "It's been a long time…"

"Time…" she started as she took a step toward him, "is not a relevant variable where true love is involved." She placed her hand on his chest, her touch warm.

"That's a little deep, don't you think?"

With only the slightest amount of force, she pushed him, sending him flying backwards and down, down, down. Without wings, without a helping hand, he was plummeting.

"No…" she murmured to herself, alone once more. "When Cloud is involved, nothing is too deep."

She smiled.

In a Bed of Flowers

A/N: I don't own Final Fantasy VII or anything affiliated with it.

Chapter 1: Through Time

It was as if someone had pressed the rewind button on his life.

One moment, the sky had been ablaze with white, the silhouette of those blonde spikes slowly fading as a weightless touch reached down and began to pull him effortlessly from the blood-soaked dirt.

He'd had wings; he'd been flying. Yet within moments, just as he'd thought he'd touch the clouds, he'd felt suffocated, his vision flashing only once before his wings were painlessly cut loose and he was striking back down.

The feeling of his body on solid ground knocked the air into him and he bolted upright, gasping as if drowning.

Blinking, he willed the splotches of color dotting his vision to fade, his shaking, trembling body set in turmoil as the pain and agony that had haunted it seemingly moments before was abruptly taken away – whiplash. Reaching up, he grasped desperately at his chest, at his uniform. At the places where he should have been bleeding, where he should have been dying.

Yet… there was nothing but fabric.

Twitching his chin, he glanced down at his chest, pulling the cloth of his uniform out for examination. There was nothing to see however. No holes, no rips, no blood. Nothing.

He didn't understand.

He could have sworn he'd been… gone…

Gulping, he snapped back, quickly glancing around. His instincts prepared him for an assault, convinced him that as soon as the infantryman noticed he wasn't out for the count, they'd be hammering bullets into him once again. The pain - he was tense with anticipation for it.

Yet as he turned his head swiftly from side to side, he was left gaping. Silence, that was what greeted him. An empty cliff - barren of all but himself. There were no bodies of the men he'd slain, no blood, no discarded blades and guns. No helicopters, nothing.

Clean.

He considered for a moment that perhaps he was dead, that this was heaven, but an itch at the back of his mind convinced him this was false. He was alive, of that he was certain. There was no evidence he could gather that proved as much, but he knew it all the same.

Taking a deep breath, he calmed his beating, anxious heart, closing his eyes for only a moment to gather his wits before pushing himself swiftly to his feet. His SOLDIER reflexes bore him well, his body refreshed and ready for action as he swung his arms quickly from side to side, as if shaking away sleep.

And as he did, his eyes caught the sight beneath his feet.

Flowers. Yellow and white in a patch all around him.

Like the ones Aerith had grown in the church.

Aerith.

She'd reprimanded him once for stepping on the flowers and, out of pure discomfort, he quickly hopped away from them, staring at them with furrowed brows for only the small amount of time his limited attention span would allow before surveying the cliff again. Despite the changes, he knew this to be the same place. There was no mistaking it. Yet, had he not known better, he could have been convinced that no battle had taken place at all.

So strange…

Eyebrows furrowed, he turned until he was facing the edge of the cliff, his stare dragging up the barren waste of a land sucked dry of mako until he encountered the distant movements of a city. At first, Midgar came to mind as, last he'd known, that had been the metropolis beyond this point. But just as quickly as he came to this assumption, he was dropped into confusion.

Gaping, he took a step closer to the edge of the cliff, as if he could somehow get a better look.

That city wasn't Midgar. No, it was far less developed, and open to the sky. However, behind it, he could make out the ruins of a huge capital, the burned, broken, dismembered remains of a place he'd once called home.

He didn't understand…

No dead infantrymen; no blood; Midgar destroyed…

None of it made sense…

Stare focusing again on the ground at his feet, he contemplated all he'd just discovered over and over, yet he could come to no logical conclusions. There was a reason he was a SOLDIER, why he took orders. He wasn't a Turk; he was no good at investigating or puzzling things through.

Best to just… be direct.

Reaching up to grab at the handle of the buster sword, just to comfort himself, his eyes widened when all he met was air. It was then that he finally noticed that the telltale weight of the weapon didn't hang from his back and, somewhat flustered, he swiftly turned, glancing from one side of the cliff to the other. And when he didn't find it there, he stared further beyond and up, searching everywhere until finally his eyes met the clouds.

Cloud…

"Cloud!" he yelled the name, his voice somewhat scratchy, as if he hadn't used it recently. Clearing his throat, he yelled the name again, stronger this time, but got no response.

He imaged the blonde's face, blood streaked and broken as he stared down through the rain at his dying friend. His eyes, their once pure blue, had glowed with mako, his hands clutching tightly at the hilt of the buster sword.

He'd screamed – that pretty face.

Lips pursing, he turned back towards the foreign city. He could almost imagine Cloud now, dragging that heavy sword beside his small body, hunkering towards the city. Cloud, who'd always been a little bit of a runt; too much of one to really have joined the military. But time and again he'd proven his worth and determination, putting himself in danger for the sake of the mission, his comrades and friends. A true heart.

But a runt of a kid.

Concern dropping across his features, he suddenly knew what his next objective was. Find Cloud and make sure he was alright. After everything that had happened, the experimentation, the mako poisoning, the chase… he had to make sure that little soldier had made it through. Was safe. He felt responsible for the kid, always had. His overprotective nature had bothered the blonde at times, but he couldn't help it. He just… loved that kid so much…

Find Cloud…

"C'mon Zack," he muttered to himself as he stared at the strange town, determined. "We've got our next mission."

Glancing around only quickly, he saw a path that looked like it might lead down the face of the cliff side and, pumped with resolve, he started towards it. If he wanted to find Cloud, then the first place he needed to look was the closest town, no matter how strange it appeared to him. Local hospitals, inns, those were where he'd head first.

To find Cloud.

Cloud…

oOo

So far, things weren't going that well.

Somewhat sulkily, Zack sat on a bench at the edge of… Edge, or so he'd learned the town was called. For nearly five hours, after he'd made the long trek from the cliff to the town, he'd searched, and asked, and searched some more, and come up with not so much as a single lead. Not that any of the townspeople had been much help.

The city was a bustling, busy place and no one had really given him the time of day. And when someone had, they'd cast him the oddest looks when he'd asked what had happened to Midgar, one even going so far as to spit on him as if he'd been disrespectful. So he'd stopped asking about that. Instead, he'd tried to find as many hospitals and inns as he could, which had landed him with only three that he'd come across in his wanderings.

One of the inns hadn't had any guests, so he'd ruled that one out. The other, when he'd asked if a Cloud Strife had been staying there, had kind of chuckled and said no, which had thoroughly confused him. But the strangest thing had happened at the hospital. When he'd asked if there was a patient by the name Cloud Strife, the nurse behind the counter had seemed surprised before looking into it. Coming back empty handed, she'd cocked her head to the side and asked, "Why? Has something happened to him?"

Zack, feeling helpless and lost, had shaken his head in defeat at his weird situation before dragging his body out of the hospital. From there, he'd just walked until he'd found his current bench. He could tell he was at the edge of the city because behind him, a few run-down homes scattered about, were the ruins of Midgar.

What was he supposed to do?

To be honest, the place he currently found himself in didn't seem at all like the world he'd come from. There were no soldiers stalking about, no frightened people, nothing like what he was used to. He hadn't even run into any monsters out in the wasteland, which was incredible as far as he was concerned. Everyone had seemed preoccupied with their own dealings, not even caring that he was wearing the SOLDIER uniform. As if it didn't matter…

He couldn't find Cloud, he had no weapon, and even if he did, mercenary work obviously wasn't in high demand. After what had happened on the cliff, after he and Cloud had been… abducted, he'd come to realize what Shinra really was. A controlling menace to society that brought nothing but war and despair, and hurt the planet. But this place was just so… peaceful, as if Shinra had never been.

So what was a 1st class SOLDIER to do with himself? All he knew how to do was fight… and kill… and hurt…

"This way, this way!" glancing up, he watched as a small group of people some few meters from his position headed towards the ruins of Midgar. "I know some of you are tired, but we're almost there. The Ancient Church is just beyond these ruins!" Eyes narrowed, Zack abruptly realized that the group before him was a tour group. Heading into the ruins of Midgar? Towards the Ancient Church?

Aerith…

Lips pursed, he quickly rose to his feet and jogged up behind the group, the people obviously gawking. And that woman that had spit on him had thought he'd been disrespectful. Still, perhaps he could learn something by tagging along; get a better grasp on what had happened here.

"We're now entering what was known as the Sector 5 slums. Please stay on the cleared path and watch your step. The ruins can be dangerous so don't stray." The tour guide was a gangly, skinny man with a rather arrogant air about him. But Zack kept his thoughts to himself, glancing around just as curiously as the people with him.

"Why doesn't anyone clean this place up?" one particularly overweight woman asked, and, compared to the people living in Edge, it became rather obvious to Zack that these people didn't live anywhere close to Midgar. They were all so much more colorful, and… snotty than those he'd already encountered. Wealthy tourists, those wanting to see the skeleton of a place that had once been considered a great metropolis.

Zack frowned.

"Because," the tour guide started, "when this place was destroyed, it was the planet that fought back and it is now considered a rather sacred point by some," it was apparent the guide didn't agree. "It had been argued that, much like the crater to the north, this place will eventually become a center for the lifestream as it heals the wound caused by meteor." Now Zack was extremely confused. "The heroes of the war have deemed that only the path to the church be trespassed on, that the rest of the city is off-limits because of the high amounts of mako. It is unsafe, or so they've claimed."

"If there's so much mako," on single man piped in somewhat temperamentally, "and it's so dangerous, then why not get the reactor up and running and drain some of it off? I mean, I want to see this so called magical church, but the rest of this place is a complete eyesore."

"Mako energy has been outlawed," the guide replied simply, Zack's eyebrows twitching in surprise. "You all know that."

"I don't see why," the man continued. "I mean, it was a lot more convenient when-"

"Because sucking up mako energy kills the planet," another voice chirped in, though Zack couldn't locate from where. "Do you want a repeat of what happened? We need to respect the planet and everything it gives us. It's because of the planet that the Geostigma was cured. We have no right to the planet's blood after all it does for us."

"I don't believe all that mumbo-jumbo," the man scoffed. "It's a planet, not a-"

"And here we are!" the tour guide bellowed loudly, interrupting the argument and silencing the tourists. "Just around this turn." And as they rounded the bend, Zack, thankful that he was taller than most everyone there, was left in sheer awe by what he saw, as was everyone with him.

He knew that church, recognized it right away. But the last time he'd been there, it'd been rundown, neglected, and a single young woman had been the only one to see any significance in it. But now… now it was a sight to behold.

It sat in a pool of shimmering, clear water, water that fell from the windows and cascaded down the sides like a fountain. Around it, the ground was green and littered with yellow and white flowers, and growing up the old walls of the building were vines. It was the most vegetation, centered in one place, in the entire dead wasteland of Midgar.

"See, this is proof," the previous voice that Zack hadn't spotted piped up again. "This is the power of the planet. This water is what cures the Geostigma. It comes up from the ground, from the planet, and heals." He finally located her. She was a younger woman, he eyes alight with wonder as she stared at the church.

"I heard," a younger voice, a teenager, "that this is the power of that Ancient girl, the one that died during the war…"

"Yes," the tour guide nodded. "That is what is rumored. In one of the few interviews with Miss Lockhart that she ever allowed, she explains that this place was once the preferred spot by the last Ancient and that she believes it's because of her influence that it was chosen by the planet to serve as a healing center for those afflicted with Geostigma." Zack furrowed his eyebrows, both confusion and concern dropping across his expression.

How long had he been on that cliff? And… were they talking about…

"Well, do we get to go inside?" It was that same annoying man from before.

"No," the tour guide replied simply. "It's been forbidden that anyone enter. The healing properties of the water are fully accessible from the outside. Inside is a sanctuary and memorial to those that were lost during the war, or so I've heard, and it is to remain undisturbed."

"And who decided that?" the man asked temperamentally. "Those so called heroes? You know, they have an awful lot of influence and if you ask me, things were better before they got involved. If they hadn't started stirring things up, then Shinra-"

"Then meteor would have destroyed the planet and we'd all be dead!" the young woman from before countered.

"Life for everyone has become completely impossible without mako energy," the man replied stubbornly. "I for one think that-"

"Plenty of people seem to be living just fine without it."

"Well I'm not."

"Well it sounds to me like you're just a stuck up, no good…"

Zack, his own worries and confusion crowding in, drowned out the argument, his eyes focused on the church. What had happened? When had this happened? There'd been another war? And meteor? What was that? He was just so… lost…

How much had he missed…?

SOLDIER instincts kicking in, his mako infused senses caught a flash out of the corner of his eye, movement among the rubble. To anyone else, it was probably impossible to notice, but he'd seen the barely there flash of movement, of someone, or something, creeping towards the back of the church.

The argument had now escalated, the two individuals shouting at each other as the tour guide attempted to break them up. Thankful for the distraction, Zack glanced around only quickly to make sure no one was watching him before he stepped to the side and behind a protruding stack of rubble. Careful and graceful, he silently treaded through and around the ruined pieces of the city. And he was surprised, after a few moments of picking his way through, to notice that, hidden and thin, was another path that zigzagged through the ruin. A secret trail that wove its way to the back of the church.

Picking up his pace, he was practically jogging as he followed it around, careful not to catch himself on the close confines. Within moments, he'd found himself standing at the back of the building, a simple, wooden planked bridge laying over the water and leading up to the back door, which was closing even as he watched it.

Creeping up, he was careful not to rock the unstable bridge as he approached the back of the building. Coming up on the door, he hesitated for only a moment before taking a deep breath and pulling on the rusted, loose fitting handle. Without a sound, the rotting door came open and Zack, glancing only once over his shoulder, slid inside.

Once, the church had been full of light, the sun shining in through the holes and windows littering the downtrodden building. But now, with the shimmering water cascading down the sides, everything was muted. Not dark, but shadowed. Still however, with his memory serving him, he was easily able to make his way through the back room, which hadn't changed a bit since he'd last been there. Which, when considering how long he'd been in the Shinra mansion, was a quite a while.

And based on what he'd been hearing, it could be longer still.

Finding the doorway that lead into the main room, he quietly snuck through, his eyes hungrily taking everything in.

Here, the layout had changed. Something had happened, something that'd taken out a good section of benches and some of the pillars. But it'd happened some time ago because there was a good layer of dust and vines growing across the wrecked bits. And at the middle, nearer the front, where the sun shined through the whole in the roof, was the plat of flowers. The same that had broken Zack's fall and that were now fuller and brighter than he remembered.

Near the back of this display, shining in the sunlight and thrust up behind a section of ruined pillar, was the buster sword.

Gaping somewhat, Zack walked out from inside the doorway, staring at the sword. It was apparent to him, despite how it glowed in the sunlight, that it had suffered some wear and tear, and rust, but had been taken care of and repaired to the best it could be. Like it's users, it bore scars, and hardship, and heartbreak. Yet it stood proudly, solemn, and Zack was aware that to take it from the position before him would be to sully the memory it stood for, some of which he knew and some that was a mystery.

Instead, he stared, unsure what to think.

"No one is allowed in here." Turning quickly, Zack was surprised by the youthful voice. Behind him, he spotted her. A child. He was starting up at him with suspicious, unafraid brown eyes, her somewhat tattered clothes hinting not at poverty, but the youthful destruction children brought everywhere they went.

Her brown hair was tied back in a long, twisted braid, held up by a pink ribbon.

"So I heard," he replied, folding his arms over his chest. "So what are you doing in here then?" He cocked a curious eyebrow, one of his award-winning smiles gracing his lips. Its generally infectious nature didn't seem to have much of an effect on her however, her mouth falling into a frown.

"I'm allowed," she replied simply. "But you're not." Zack, crouching down so he was at her level, cast her a questioning eye.

"And why's that?" he asked seriously. "What makes you so special?"

"I used to know the lady that was here," she replied easily. "She was very special to me…" Zack, his eyes falling to the floor only momentarily, considered his words carefully before catching those big brown eyes once again.

"Would you believe me if I told you she was special to me too?" he asked quietly, wondering to himself if they were talking about the same woman, and hoping that perhaps they weren't, that he was mistaken.

"Aerith?" the little girl asked, her guard dropping slightly. "You knew her?" Zack's heart dropped. So it was the same, this Ancient, this woman that was apparently… gone. Even if her memory was celebrated. Yet as he considered it, he felt somehow as if he'd already known, somehow, and though he was sad, he felt that perhaps it wasn't a horrible thing. Almost as if he'd come to terms with it already. The feeling was strange, but true. She'd been a good friend, and in that place, with that girl, it was almost as though she was there, with them, and he took comfort in that.

"I knew her," Zack verified. "She was a very good friend of mine. A very important friend." He paused, taking in the child's now curious look. "Tell me," he continued slowly, "what happened to her?"

His question drew a rather abrupt reaction from her.

"Don't you know?" she asked rather rudely, Zack reminded of all the odd reactions he'd gotten from the townspeople earlier. "Everyone knows the story now, since Tifa finally explained what happened in her interview." Tifa, he recognized that name.

"Well, to be honest," falling back on his rear, Zach folded his legs, never taking his eyes from the little girl before him, "I think I… I think I've been asleep for awhile." She cocked her head to the side. "Everything is different than I remember. I've been trying to figure out what happened but… no one will tell me." He smiled again, hoping he wasn't scaring her. Usually he was a rather inviting person. "Maybe you can," he started. "What's your name?"

"Marlene," she replied easily, seeming more shy now than anything as she continued to stare at him, some six or seven feet between the two.

"Well Marlene, what happened to Midgar? And what's this about a war? And the planet?" he asked, his elbows resting on his knees as he leaned forward. "Last time I was here, Shinra was in charge, and mako energy was still being used."

"Wow, you have been asleep a long time," she replied, her eyes stretching even bigger. "Mako energy is against the law now, no one uses it."

"That's what I heard," he replied with a slight laugh. "Something about it killing the planet?"

"That's right," she replied. "Shinra was sucking mako out of the planet, killing it. And so my dad got a group together and they started fighting Shinra. But there was another man too, and he hated Shinra, but he… he also hated everything." Zack furrowed his eyebrows, frowning. "He wanted to hurt the planet really bad and take all the energy for himself, so he called meteor.

"That's what destroyed Midgar," she replied, her voice quieter. "He would have destroyed the whole world, but my dad and his friends, they all stopped him, and then the planet stopped meteor. It used the lifestream as a weapon." To Zack, it all sounded fantastical, what she was saying.

"The man," he asked, mostly out of curiosity. "Do you know what his name was?" She seemed to hesitate then, as if perhaps she wasn't allowed to speak of it.

"I… I've heard them talking about him, mostly because just a little while ago, he… he came back and tried to take the planet again," Zack's eyes widened in surprise. "His name, I think they said, was… Sephiroth."

"Sephiroth…" Zack repeated quietly, stunned to realize who had done such things, but not surprised. After all, he'd seen what Sephiroth had done in Nibelheim. That his hatred and corruption would stretch to the entire world, well, Genesis had felt the same way, but hadn't had the power. Sephiroth however… he was another variable all together.

"It was… really scary…" Marlene admitted quietly.

"Well, your dad and his friends must be pretty powerful if they could take on Sephiroth," Zack replied. "I used to know him, and let me tell you, even for a 1st class SOLDIER, he wasn't exactly run of the mill." A bit of an understatement, but he doubted this little girl would understand the complexities of Sephiroth's existence. Zack wasn't even sure he did.

"You're wearing a SOLDIER uniform," she stated, gesturing towards him and taking a hesitant step closer. "Were you in SOLDIER?" He smiled at her question, though the past tense did make him slightly uneasy. Mako was outlawed, which meant Shinra was probably gone. His way of life was finished.

"I was," he confirmed with another award winning smile. "1st class."

"I know a 1st class SOLDIER," she replied, finally grinning herself.

"Really?" Zack asked in surprise. Last he'd known, he was the last of the 1st class SOLDIER's left, so unless Shinra had promoted more after… well after whatever had happened to him. "Who? I bet I know him."

"His name is Cloud," she replied easily. "Cloud Strife."

Zack's eyes bugged. He'd spent five hours trying to find something, anything, on Cloud, and here he'd ended up with this little girl, who claimed to know him. That was, if they were referring to the same person. He couldn't imagine it, Cloud being a 1st class SOLDIER. He'd never really had the build for it, despite his dreams of being one. Despite this however, Zack couldn't fathom, after everything that had happened with Shinra, that Cloud could have gone back.

"Do you know him?" Marlene asked, interrupting Zack's thoughts. He nodded, slowly, his mouth hanging open as he considered the idea. "He's really strong," she continued, speaking of Cloud with pride running through her voice. "Tifa says that without him, they'd never have been able to win. And when Sephiroth came back again, it was Cloud that stopped him. And, from what I've heard my dad and the others saying, he was the one that stopped him before."

"Cloud?" Zack questioned. "Cloud Strife?" Marlene nodded earnestly. "Not exactly the tallest guy in the world, kind of quiet, spikey blonde hair?"

"That's him," Marlene verified. "He's a hero." Zack just couldn't wrap his head around the idea. His Cloud, the little runt of a kid, saving the world. Twice. Beating Sephiroth, something not even Angeal had been able to do. It was just unfathomable to him; he couldn't even begin to imagine. "How did you know him?" Marlene jolted him back once again.

"Uh, well," Zack cleared his throat. "Back when I was in SOLDIER, we worked together. He was… just an infantryman back then, but, uh, we were… rather good friends." Which was one way to put it.

"Really?!" Marlene asked, taking another few bold steps closer to him. "What's your name?"

"Zack…" he replied. "Zack Fair." She furrowed her eyebrows then, befuddled curiosity dropping across her young face. "Never heard of me?" He asked, trying not to sound too hopeful. Hopeful, that was, that he actually had been mentioned.

"No," she replied. "But… I never hear Cloud talk about his past, or anyone he knew. He doesn't talk about much of anything actually," she sighed. "Most of everything that I know about him I've heard from Tifa and my dad, and their friends."

"Do you see him very much?" Zack asked, excitement suddenly surging through him. By the sound of it, this girl was with Cloud on a familiar basis, which meant that, maybe, she could help him find the blonde.

"Of course!" she replied, her smile widening. "My dad is head of Wallace Oil, so he's gone a lot drilling for oil fields," Zack had no idea what that meant. "And when he's gone, I stay with Tifa, Denzel, and Cloud." Yes, she certainly was close, so close to Cloud in fact that Zack didn't dare let her out of his sight. Not now.

"Really?" he asked, his eyebrows rising expectantly.

"Yeah. Tifa has the bar, 7th Heaven, and Cloud has his delivery business," she was turning out to be quite the chatterbox. Not that Zack was complaining. He was quite the talker himself. "He used to work all by himself, but since Shinra isn't working anymore, a lot of people need new ways to get their stuff around." Shinra had previously owned all the package delivery services. "So he hired in these other people and they deliver stuff now too. There's Rude, and Reno, and Elena, and Tseng, but he stays and organizes the deliveries. But Cloud is in charge. And-"

"The Turks?!" Zack really was wide-eyed and gaping now. "The Turks work for Cloud?"

"The Turks?" she questioned and shook her head. "No, they used to work for Shinra," she explained, not knowing what the Turks were, or at least not recognizing the name. "But they stopped because their boss said that Shinra wasn't ever going to be a company again, and now Rufus works with my dad trying to make the planet better."

"Rufus… Rufus Shinra is…" Zack was shaking his head. "This is all just too surreal…" Honestly, it was too much to take in. He didn't even know what to think, or whether or not to believe any of it was true. It was all just… so impossible. "Marlene, can you…" he took a deep breath. "Can you tell me what year it is?"

"Sure," she replied happily. "It's 0012. And it's March!" She clasped her hands behind her back, apparently pleased that she could answer his question so well. Zack, on the other hand, couldn't claim the same. Rather, his smile had slowly fallen away, his shoulders dropping at her words.

0012. March. Just over five years. Five years since the last thing he remembered, since that day out on the cliff. He'd lost five years of his life. Four years he'd lost, trapped in the Shinra mansion, spent another year running, and now he'd lost five more to unknown causes.

Cloud was twenty-five, almost twenty-six.

The last time he'd had a real conversation with the boy, prior to the mako poisoning, he's been sixteen. Nearly ten years since he'd had any kind of real communication with Cloud. Aside from his farewell words, when he'd thought he was a goner. When he'd sent Cloud off with the buster sword now standing as a monument behind him.

Cloud, a hero.

His Cloud, with his curious blue eyes, which had been tarnished my mako. And his pale cheeks that were always blushing red whenever Zack had looked at him too long, or in a… certain way.

His beautifully feminine features, not just a sign of his youth, but of a magnificence Zack had never really been able to define.

His Cloud…

Did he even exist anymore? Was this man that Marlene was telling him about, could they possible be the same person? It didn't seem conceivable…

Cloud was twenty-five, yet Zack still felt a young, immature twenty-three. A number that he'd never really aged to, because he'd spent a prior four years locked away. In some respects, he still, unconsciously, thought of himself as younger.

Ten years…

"Do you want to see Cloud?" Marlene asked, her innocent question causing Zack to look up, his heart beating fast at the thought. "I can take you home with me, if you want to see him." This little girl was going to take him right to Cloud? She'd lead the way? "C'mon!" she closed the distance between them excitedly. "Let's go see Cloud together!" Reaching out, she grabbed his hand.

Zack blinked at her, taking a moment to find a response. "O-okay," he finally agreed, not sure what else he could say, or do for that matter. In the five years that he'd been "gone," the world had been turned upside-down. He had no money, no job, nothing. He didn't even know if his parents…

Standing, he gripped Marlene's hand as she did his, thankful for her reassuring smile as she began to drag him around to the back door again.

"You're really tall," she said, glancing at him over her shoulder as they headed out the back door. The sunlight was bright as they exited, Marlene taking him back down the winding path and towards Edge.

"Yup," he replied easily, attempting to hide his nerves. "Six foot three. Though compared to the other 1st class SOLDIER's, I was far from the tallest." He laughed lightly, keeping up easily with the jogging Marlene as they made their way out of the Midgar ruins and back into Edge. By the looks of it, she certainly knew her way around.

"Cloud must have been pretty shor-"

"Marlene!" Stopping dead, the little girl focused her attention on the calling of her name, Zack nearly stumbling over her as she did. "Marlene!" Soon, they were both able to locate the source of the call. A young boy with shaggy brown hair was running towards them, his bright blue eyes apparent even at their distance.

Mako eyes.

"Where did you…" He slowed as he approached them, finally seeming to notice that the tall man standing beside his friend was actually with her, their hands clasped together. He glanced between the two, stopping with a few feet between. "Who's this?" Zack noticed a bit of shyness to him as well as discomfort.

"This is Zack!" Marlene replied with a smile. "He's a friend of Cloud's." She glanced up at Zack. "This is Denzel. He lives with me, Tifa, and Cloud." Zack raised his eyebrows, somewhat surprised. For some reason, he'd assumed that Denzel was an adult when he'd been mentioned previously.

"You know my dad?" Denzel asked quietly, his bright eyes searching over Zack curiously. His question, however, left Zack in a slight state of shock.

"You-your dad?" Zack scoffed out the words, suddenly finding himself comparing Denzel's features to Clouds. The eyes, the soft features… was it really possible? No, it couldn't be. He'd only been "gone" for five years. This child was clearly older than five… wasn't he?

"Yes," Denzel replied somewhat shortly, his arms crossing over his chest defensively. "I've never met you before."

"That's because he's been asleep, right Zack?" Marlene was still smiling up at him. "For a long time?"

"Uh, yeah…" Zack replied, still baffled over the fact that… that Cloud was a dad. His Cloud… no… his Cloud wasn't… "For about five years I figure…" They couldn't possibly be the same person.

"Wow!" Marlene was gaping, Denzel's eyes widening slightly. "Five years?! That really is a long time!" She didn't have to tell him twice. "C'mon," she started to pull on him again. "Let's get home. I'm sure Cloud will be happy to see you." She started jogging again, Denzel running up until he was in step with her. Zack followed dutifully behind.

"Where did you go?" Denzel asked Marlene, quite obviously pretending Zack wasn't even there. "You know Tifa says we're not allowed to just wander off on our own. The city is dangerous." Tifa, Zack remembered her. Cloud's childhood friend. He'd met her once. Quickly, he tried to pull her image back to his mind's eyes. Could she be Denzel's…?

No, he had to remind himself that the math didn't add up.

"I was just going to the Church," she replied, as if her destination somehow made it okay. "I wanted to talk to Aerith." She frowned as she jogged, Zack silently listening in on their conversation without comment.

"You can't talk to her," Denzel replied. "She's dead Marlene." It sounded like this particular conversation had happened between the two many times before, if Denzel's somewhat exasperated tone said anything. Zack couldn't help flinching at the child's blunt reference however, his heart dropping slightly.

"Just because you can't, doesn't mean I can't," she replied simply. Denzel didn't have a response for that however, instead just staring at his roommate as they whisked their way through the streets of edge. No one took a second look at them, the man dressed in dated clothing and the two children with him. Now that fear wasn't the factor driving people, they had the time to consider themselves for once.

"There's our house!" Marlene exclaimed loudly, her free hand gesturing towards a double storied building across the next street. The words "7th Heaven" were plastered across the front in a tasteful font, hinting that though the place was a bar, it was classy and that no nonsense would be tolerated. Beside that, the words "Strife Delivery Service" were also printed, though smaller.

Their house was located near the edge of the city and was small, modest, as far as homes and businesses went. And as they crossed the street, Zack felt his nerves start to buzz, the thought of seeing Cloud again, under the current circumstances, making him beyond anxious. He didn't even know how he'd react, or what he'd say. It'd been five years, five years that he hadn't been living, that he'd missed.

How would Cloud even respond to him? Where had his blonde friend thought he'd been all these years?

Yet even as he asked himself the question, he knew the answer. Cloud had thought he was… dead. Cloud thought he was dead.

Suddenly, he felt as though he shouldn't be going inside that house, not without a proper warning. Yet before he could voice his concern, before he could bail, Marlene was dragging him through the front door. It was too late.

They'd walked in on the bar, tables and chairs set up around them. The place was empty however, no one even behind the counter. Above their heads, a single fan circled slowly, but it was rather apparent that, at the current moment, 7th Heaven wasn't open for business.

Dropping Zack's hand, Marlene headed knowingly to the right where a door was cracked open. Denzel followed, Zack glancing around nervously as he inched after. But before either of the children entered, they paused, all the ears in the room perking at the sound of voices.

"Let Reno take this delivery," her tone was exasperated, annoyed, but patient. "He'll be back any minute now. You only got home this morning." Zack recognized her voice, a girl in a short skirt, cowboy boots, and a matching hat flitting through his mind's eye.

"It's an urgent delivery," was the response and Zack felt his heart bolt to his throat. He knew that voice, would know it anywhere, and his breathing started to shake as he crept up behind the eavesdropping children to listen as well. "It's only to Kalm. I should be back sometime tomorrow afternoon."

"Cloud," Tifa sighed. "You hired more people for a reason. Yet you don't seem to be home anymore than you were before. Let Reno take this one so you can be home for a few days."

"I hired more people because the workload was picking up," Cloud replied, his soft, even, velvety voice thrumming in Zack's ears. "That doesn't mean I get to take more time off. I probably need to hire on a few more employees. We're the only delivery service right now that has the capabilities to travel from one continent to another."

"Those are just excuses for-"

"For what Tifa?" Cloud interrupted, his tone slightly sharper. "I have to work, just like you do. We both have a family to support. I'm sorry my job isn't a nine to five workday and that I have to be away, but I'm not as good at numbers as Tseng, so I have to do what I know, and that means I have to be over the road.

"The majority of the world is poverty stricken, which means we can't charge very much for our services. I have to work to make ends meet."

"You also have a responsibility to Denzel," Tifa rebuked, Zack watching as Denzel's eyes dropped to the floor. "And to Marlene as well for that matter, and-"

"I'm aware," Cloud replied. "We've been over this a dozen times. Yes, I'm busy, but it's not because I'm avoiding my family. I thought you knew that." References to his difficulties after the war, a fact that Zack had no knowledge of.

"I do Cloud," Tifa sighed. "I just… I feel like you're not living your life."

"My life?" Cloud's response was quiet. "This is my life Tifa. You, Denzel, Marlene, my job. What else do you want me to have?"

"What everyone deserves to have," Tifa replied. "Why can't you just give yourself some credit Cloud. Why can't you just… take a break and… find someone…" Silence followed her statement, the three listening outside the door barely breathing for fear of being heard.

"I don't want to find 'someone,'" Cloud eventually replied. "I'm happy with my life the way it is, can't you see that?"

"No," Tifa rebuked, apparently unafraid to enter into confrontation with him. "You're not happy. Cloud, you've finally managed to move on from everything that happened. You're finally going forward. You have me, and Denzel, and Marlene, but that's not enough. You need to put yourself out there. You need to… open up to the possibilities."

"I don't have the time for that kind of messing around Tifa," he replied simply. "I have to get to work." Zack made out the sound of footsteps getting further from the door. "I'll be back sometime tomorrow."

"Agh, Cloud!" Tifa yelled after him, irritated, but all she got in return was the sound of a door opening and closing. Cloud had left the building and, despite how ashamed he was of the feeling, Zack was relieved. He wanted to see Cloud, more than anything, but at the same time, after so many years, what was he supposed to do when he did? He needed more time.

Shoulders dropping, he allowed a single sigh to leave his lips.

"So where did you two run off to?" But he snapped right back to attention at the sound of that voice. "Tifa was looking for you. You brought someone… home…" Turning, Zack watched as a familiar figure strolled out of a back room, the water glass he'd been holding slipping from his hand.

It plummeted to the floor and shattered.

"Zack… Fair…" Tseng, his perfect hair long and loose down his back, was staring wide eyed at the SOLDIER. He still had the trademark bindi on his forehead, his bangs jelled back gracefully.

He wasn't wearing his suit jacket, but sported a tie, white button-up shirt, and black slacks just the same.

"What's going on in here?" Tifa had heard the glass and come rushing in from the other room, her eyes finding the broken pieces before darting to Tseng, who was staring, shocked, at the two children and…

"Oh my god…" she whispered, her hand going to her mouth as her own red wine eyes widened in something far beyond astonishment. The children, by contrast, watched the scene in curious silence. "You're dead…" Tifa finished quietly.

"Uh," Zack let loose a rather awkward laugh, his arms crossing over his chest. "Well, apparently not since I'm… here…"

"No, she's right," Tseng agreed, Zack glancing over at him. "You're dead. I'm the one that disposed of your body." Cocking an eyebrow, Zack tried to come up with something to say to contradict him, but could come up with nothing. After all, such absolute evidence was hard to deny. "I was ordered to have your body burned," he continued, still in shock. "Your death is why Cissnei left the Turks."

"You're dead," Tifa repeated more firmly.

"How can he be dead if he's standing right in front of us?" Marlene interrupted, unaware of the situation she was intruding upon. Snapping her attention to the children, Tifa, her face paler than either of them had ever seen it, pursed her lips before going to the door.

"Outside you two," she issued sternly. "Now." Denzel and Marlene glanced only quickly at each other before darting to the other room and promptly into the backyard. They could tell, from that simple command, that something very serious was happening and they'd best do as they were told.

Once the children were out of the way, Tifa turned back to Zack, her defenses up as she clenched and unclenched her fists. Zack knew what that meant, and knew that if he wasn't careful, he'd be in for a fight. When he'd visited Nibelheim that one time, he'd heard she was being taught martial arts. No doubt she was far deadlier now.

"Who are you?" she barked sharply.

"Zack Fair," he answered honestly, tense now as Tseng eyed him warily as well. He glanced between the Turk and the leather clad, dark haired beauty, trying to decide whether he too should be ready to cast his defenses.

"That's impossible," Tseng replied coldly. "I already told you, I disposed of Zack Fair's body myself. Because of the experiments that Hojo had implemented on his physical being, his body was unable to be absorbed by the planet, even if his consciousness was. I burned all that had remained of him." A gruesome thought, but true nonetheless.

"Listen," Zack gulped, "all I know is that the last thing I remember before today was getting shot up by the Shinra military. After that, I woke up on that cliff and wound up walking to Edge. I went to the church in the slums where I met Marlene and she brought me here. Honest, I swear. As far as I know," he shrugged, "I'm Zack Fair." He was beginning to sound a little crazy even to himself.

"That's impossible," Tseng repeated, un-swayed by Zack's story.

"Maybe he's some kind of experiment Hojo did that none of know about," Tifa added. "A clone or something." She glanced over at Tseng, the two obviously completely unsure what to do.

"It's not totally impossible," Tseng replied, Zack listening with growing amounts of horror. Mostly because he feared that perhaps they were right. "We've seen the kind of work he's capable of, and I've seen tons of other classified Shinra experiments that would warrant such an understanding. I just want to know what it's doing here."

"Okay, I don't know if what you guys are saying is true or not," Zack interjected. "All I know is that I woke up in bed of yellow and white flowers earlier on the edge of a cliff. Honest, I swear. I'm not here for any other ulterior motive." At least, not that he was aware of.

"Yellow and white flowers?" Tifa questioned, her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Yeah," Zack replied. "Like the ones that grow in the church, the ones Aerith used to sell. The same exact kind actually." This seemed to silence the two, their minds working furiously as they tried to figure out what this meant.

"Those flowers have never been found growing anywhere but inside and around that church," Tifa explained. "And you woke up in a bed of them outside of Edge?" Zack nodded, still not exactly sure what he should be thinking about himself or his sudden appearance. And hoping he wasn't some messed up experiment. Though he highly doubted that. He felt very much like himself, if that was understandable.

"I'd be happy to show them to you," Zack explained. "Their on that cliff where-"

"Where you died," Tseng repeated yet again. Somewhat exasperated now, Zack turned swiftly to look at the Turk, his shoulders dropping. "Zack Fair was no Sephiroth, he's not the type to come back from the dead," Tseng continued. "You're not Zack Fair."

"Then who am I?!" Zack asked somewhat loudly, fear finally striking him as he considered that perhaps Tseng was right. That he wasn't who he thought he was. "I have all of… Zack's memories," frustrated now, he ran his hands through his spikey black hair before stomping his foot rather childishly. "I don't know any better than you do who I-"

"What's that?" Tifa didn't hesitate in interrupting Zack, her and Tseng's eyes falling to the envelope that, in Zack's flailing, had apparently fallen from his pocket. He glanced down as well, following their gaze, and shrugged when he saw it. Reaching down, he went to pick it up, but was caught off guard when, far swifter than he would have expected, Tifa intercepted the envelope before backing up again.

He pursed his lips, but didn't comment, knowing full well that he wasn't in a position to. Instead, her eyes remaining suspiciously on Zack for only a moment longer, Tifa opened the enveloped, completely unprepared for what was inside.

At first, she'd thought it was a simple sheet of paper. Yet as she opened it, Tseng coming to her side to look as well, she was surprised when, after unfolding it, to find it blank. The paper felt like nothing she'd ever held before, cold and far too smooth, and just as she was about to set it aside, a greenish sparkle caught her eye. And Tseng's as well.

Slowly, as if by magic, in a light green, cursive type font that Tifa recognized, two words appeared on the paper.

For Cloud.

And after a few seconds, just enough time for them to read it about a dozen times, the font faded away again before the sheet of paper, and the envelope, suddenly broke into sparkling green wisp's, the little sparks drifting towards the ceiling before disappearing.

And left in their wake, sitting in Tifa's hand, was a familiar pink ribbon.

Breath sucked out of her, Tifa felt herself become woozy as she pulled her fingers around the ribbon. "I need to sit down," she decided, feeling somewhat feint as she clamored backwards into one of the chairs. Tseng, though he didn't voice it, was feeling much the same, lacking his natural grace as he sank down into a chair beside Tifa.

Together, they stared down at the ribbon, neither one sure what to say. Which was actually okay because Zack was rather good at breaking silences.

"That's Aerith's ribbon," he stated, gesturing towards it. "I remember. I was the one that bought it for her." Slowly, the other two glanced back up at him, their expressions completely altered, as if they now saw him in an entirely different light.

"This isn't possible," Tseng murmured. "There's just no way." Zack wasn't entirely sure what they were talking about, his curious stare darting between them as he waited somewhat impatiently for an explanation. "Someone can't…" Tseng was whispering, "come back from the dead."

Was that what he'd done? Zack honestly didn't know.

"Sephiroth did," Tifa replied, the rising of such a horrible person the only reference she could come up with.

"That's different," Tseng shook his head. "That was because of JENOVA, and because his will was so strong inside the lifestream that… that he manipulated others infected with Geostigma to do his bidding. It… can't be the same."

"But if… if Aerith's will inside the lifestream is what cured the stigma," Tifa reasoned, "then who's to say she couldn't…" they both glanced back at the ribbon, "bring someone back…"

"Or give them back, rather," Tseng muttered.

"Okay," Zack took a deep breath. "Can one of you explain to me what you're talking about?" Glancing back up at him, the two continued to stare until, finally, Tifa found the courage to speak.

"Aerith was an Ancient, she understands the planet and the lifestream. It's because of her influence that… that certain things have happened, or so we think," Tifa took a shaky breath. "The note and this ribbon… it's as if she wants us to believe that she brought you back…" Zack, his eyebrows furrowed, considered the notion. And, much like his reaction to finding out about Aerith's death, he found that this information didn't surprise him. Almost as if it made sense, was correct, and he knew it.

"I think that you're right," he started, voicing his thoughts as he took a step towards Tifa. "Somehow," he held his hand out to her and, after only a moments hesitation, she handed him the pink ribbon, "I just know that… that she's the one responsible for this." He shook his head, feeling a rather vague headache forming in his temples as he stared down at the ribbon. "I just know…"

Silence followed his speech, everyone in the room considering his words as they stared, mostly, at the pink ribbon. The one Tifa knew had been lost that fateful day in the City of the Ancients.

It seemed so impossible, yet at the same time, now that her mind had had time to calm, she could admit that, though this was perhaps the heaviest of anything she'd experienced, it certainly wasn't the strangest. Someone coming back from the dead wasn't as hard to fathom as half of what she'd witnessed, though perhaps more taboo to consider.

"Well," Tifa took a deep breath, drawing the others attention as she leaned back in her chair, "this isn't what I would call a good thing." If Aerith was responsible for this, she dared to say she disagreed with her dead friend's judgment.

"Uh, I'd like to disagree," Zack replied rather skeptically. "Being dead wasn't exactly a priority of mine." He was rather offended by her comment, truthfully.

"That's not what I meant," Tifa replied as Zack sat down at a chair at the same table where his two companions had sat down. In his hand, he still held Aerith's ribbon. "What I mean is that I don't think this is going to be good for Cloud." Brows furrowed, Zack made it apparent that he still didn't understand what she meant.

"You do know that Cloud and I were… friends," perhaps he shouldn't admit to the true nature of their relationship. "Don't you think he'll be happy to see me?"

"Cloud is never happy," Tseng interjected, Zack somewhat offended that him, of all people, dared say what Cloud could and couldn't be. Zack had seen Cloud happy plenty of times. More than happy, excited even, on many an occasion.

Perhaps times had changed, but… still…

"You don't understand Zack," Tifa started. "You don't know… what happened to him. Whatever Cloud you knew before…" Before he'd died. "Well, he isn't that person anymore." Zack pursed his lips, seeming skeptical. Whether he'd changed or not, that didn't alter the fact that they'd been… close.

"And I mean that literally Zack," Tifa tried to reiterate. "He's really not that person anymore."

Well, now he was just confused. "I don't understand…"

Tifa sighed. "Something happened to him, something inside," she patted her own skull, trying to make her point. "It… it happened when you… died. And when he was poisoned with the Mako, with the JENOVA cells mixed in," she shook her head, sounding helpless. "He took on another identity. He was messed up so bad by everything that happened, by the trauma, that he… he convinced himself for a while that… that he was you."

"What?" Zack cocked his head to the side, concern flaring inside him at Tifa's explanation. "What do you mean?"

"I found him in Midgar, I guess a few days after you died," Tifa continued. "He'd claimed to be a 1st class SOLDIER, and when he'd explain what had happened in Nibelheim that day… he'd explain it from your point of view. It was like every memory he had of being with you - he turned it into his own and completely wiped you from his memory.

"He even adopted your gestures and your attitude, and how you talked," she sighed, Zack gaping at her. "And when… when Sephiroth explained to him what he really was…"

"What are talking about?" Zack questioned quickly. "What do you mean 'what' he was?" He was growing extremely worried now, afraid that he didn't want to hear what was going to be said.

"When Hojo experimented on you two, after the incident in Nibelheim," Tseng took over, "he had to basically put Cloud back together after what had happened. And when he did, not only did he give him mako poisoning, but he used JENOVA cells to make him whole again. He made him into a Sephiroth clone."

"A Sephiroth clone?" Zack was flabbergasted.

"Yeah," Tifa agreed. "He claimed, in the end, that Cloud was a failure, but when it came to Sephiroth taking control of the clones, summoning them for the JENOVA reunion… Cloud was the only one that actually made it. Unconsciously, he was called to Sephiroth and that was… that was where he learned the truth. About you, and about who he really was.

"It destroyed him."

She sighed, obviously remembering a very painful memory.

"I remember we both… we both fell into the lifestream and I… I had to put his memories back together for him. His whole consciousness had been spread out and broken," she closed her eyes, as if she was in pain. "Everything he'd accomplished, that he was proud of, everything he'd thought he was… had turned out to be you. And even now I think he has trouble remembering correctly what parts of his memories are his and what parts are you. I'm afraid that… that seeing you again, as a real person, as someone that actually existed… I'm afraid it'll be too much for him."

"This is all my fault…" Zack muttered, sinking back in his seat and ignoring the curious stares he was getting from the other two. "I'm the one that told him to… to make my dreams his, to live for both of us. If I hadn't said that, then…"

"That's hardly true," Tseng tried to comfort. "I actually believe that Cloud taking on your identity may have been what saved him." Both Tifa and Zack glanced over at him in confusion, not understanding his words. "You have to understand the finite details of Hojo's experimentation," he started. "He made many Sephiroth clones, a term that isn't exactly true, but gets the point across. Most of the people in Nibelheim were made into clones after the town was destroyed, but because they couldn't withstand the pressure of the JENOVA cell's influence, they lost themselves and became mindless slaves. These were the ones he labeled a success and granted numbers. Cloud, however, was saved before his mind was completely gone.

"By you," Tseng nodded towards Zack. "You broke him out and by doing so, when his mind was at its most vulnerable, saved him from fading completely. And when the Mako poisoning finally wore off, it was your life and actions that were imprinted on him, giving him more time to figure out who he truly was, to find his own memories again. Had he not become you, been reintroduced into a human lifestyle, he may have ended up like all those other clones and simply followed Sephiroth to their deaths.

"He grew strong enough, under your influence, to fight the cells, after which Tifa pieced his consciousness back together."

"This is all so confusing," Zack stated, frustrated as he placed his head in his hands, Aerith's ribbon lying comfortingly across his forehead.

"And that's only half his problems," a new voice entered the conversation, all of them glancing up in surprise as Reno made his presence known. "All that aside, he's got all kinds of guilt over all the shitty things he's done as well a rather huge inferiority complex."

"How long have you been listening?" Tifa asked somewhat sharply as Reno sat down in the last chair at their table.

"Since he came in, heard the whole story," he assured, earning a scolding look from every person there. "But, to be totally honest, I don't think you guys are giving him enough credit. Cloud I mean."

"Because you're the expert on Cloud?" Tifa asked as she crossed her arms under her breasts. Reno cast her a bitter smile, a response to her sarcasm, before clearing his throat.

"All I'm sayin' is," he paused for dramatic effect, "Cloud has proven strength in the face of adversity many time over the years." He leaned forward on the table, his long red hair falling over the shoulder of his suit jacket in the form of a long ponytail. "After he found out what a pile of bull his memory was, he still got up and went after Sephiroth with the rest of you. And just recently, when the stigma was callin' all them kids, and him, and all the other leftover clones," Kadaj and his gang, "he went after him again and got rid of him. So maybe you should quit doubting him just cause he's a little, okay, a lot, screwed up in the head." He leaned back then, satisfied he'd said his piece.

"Besides," he added, "I'm not really comfortable disagreeing with Aerith's judgment." He shrugged.

"Yeah, but…" Tifa was frowning. "I don't want to… to cause him any more pain. He's finally settled in, accepted everything that's happened. I don't want him to… to spiral into that place again. None of you saw him like that, just… gone…" She pursed her lips. "He has a family now, and…"

"And you said it yourself he's not happy," Tseng added, not seeming to be on one side or the other. "Just a little while ago you said he needed to put himself out there, find someone, feel something."

"I don't see what that has to do with Zack," she replied simply. It was then, Tseng and Reno glancing knowingly at each other, that she realized they knew something she didn't. Looking back at Zack, she noted that he was staring pointedly away from her. "What's going on?" she asked coldly.

"Well," Reno laughed slightly. "Let's just say that, back in the SOLDIER days, Zack and Cloud were pretty… inseparable." Zack cast him a glare, one that wasn't very effective due to the pouting fashion of his lips. "I remember, whenever I'd happen to pass you by, you'd be hangin' 'round that spikey haired, blonde infantryman. A little too much really, that is, for good friends."

"Yeah, well, you and Rude aren't much to talk," Zack snapped back quickly, defensively, and it was Reno's turn to glare.

"Wait, wait, wait," Tifa cut in, noticing quickly the amused smile pulling at Tseng's lips. "You and Rude are…?" she had turned her attention to Reno, her fingers twining together as she attempted to comprehend.

"Hey," Reno deflected the attention. "This is about Zack and Cloud, not me and Rude." His change in subject had worked, Tifa glancing curiously to Zack. She'd long since realized that though she'd once held feelings for Cloud, he'd never return them. Mostly because, well, she felt that in his current state, he was incapable of loving someone in that way, which was why she'd been encouraging him to try. They'd become like brother and sister, but perhaps his mental instability hadn't had anything to do with it.

Then again, he'd seemed quite head over heels for Aerith…

Maybe he played both sides.

"That was a long time ago," Zack explained, his heart beating fast in both embarrassment and excitement over the prospect of perhaps getting Cloud back again, even if he was a bucket of loose bolts. "It's been nearly ten years since there was anything… like that between us."

"So you two were really a couple?" Tifa asked, her eyes wide. "He never even hinted at it, simply said you were a friend. I never would have…" She was still baffled. Cloud, with a guy. Thinking of Cloud with a woman was weird enough, but with another man? Or perhaps it made more sense. She wasn't quite sure.

"Talking about losing ones love isn't exactly an easy thing to speak of," Tseng muttered, his tone slightly scolding at Tifa's ignorant statement. Yet, at the same time, she was the only one that noticed how his eyes fell to Aerith's ribbon in Zack's hand.

"Maybe he's the best thing for Cloud," Reno continued to argue his point of view. "Sure, it'll probably screw him up something fierce at first, but it could be good for him. Maybe he can finally get straight who he is, and who Zack is. And maybe he just might… I dunno… get some."

"Excuse me?" both Zack and Tifa said at the same time and Reno rolled his eyes.

"Oh come on," he slammed his hands down on the table. "Look at the guy. He hasn't been involved with anyone in ten years, at least not seriously. And considering his messed up state of mind, he doesn't strike me as the type for one night stands. No wonder he's so pissed off all the time; hasn't been laid in forever."

"That… wasn't exactly what I'd had in mind when I told him to put himself out there," Tifa stated, her eyebrows furrowed uncomfortably. "Though I suppose that would be pretty frustrating."

"See?!" Reno truly felt he was getting to the root of Cloud's problems. "This is your mission while you're here," he pointed directly at Zack. "Get in Cloud's pants so maybe he'll lighten up a little." Zack gaped further.

"You're just irritated because he's your boss now and he doesn't put up with your nonsense," Tseng interjected. "Getting him some 'action' isn't going to make him go any easier on you."

"How do you know?" Reno asked snottily. "It's not like you can speak from experience. I know you weren't gettin' any when you were my boss." Tseng glared at him then, but didn't comment.

"This conversation has taken an unfortunate turn," Tifa decided, here eyes falling again to Zack. "Let's get back to the real issue here, that being you." She narrowed her stare. "What exactly are your intentions with Cloud?"

"What?" Zack, leaned back in his chair and, much like Reno had, rolled his eyes. "Intentions? I don't have any intentions for him. I'd say I was happy simply knowing he's alight, but apparently he's not so I'll just go with alive." He was somewhat offended by her attitude actually. "I just woke up from… death," he continued. "After a year dragging that kid," Cloud, "around with no one else to turn to. He's kind of the only one I had going for me, so yeah, he's who I was looking for. But I don't have any… 'intentions' for him." At least, not yet. He'd have to tread carefully around Cloud, if what everyone was saying was true.

Still, he could hardly believe everything Cloud had gone through. And there was probably more he hadn't even heard yet. It broke his heart just thinking about it…

"I only happened here by chance," or so he assumed, though perhaps Aerith had something to do with it. "Mostly, I just need a place to stay until I can figure this shit out." For the first time since he'd shown up, the three at the table realized that Cloud wasn't the only one they had to worry about. "I mean, what am I supposed to do in a world without SOLDIER?" his voice grew quieter as he considered it, Tifa frowning in concern. "The only thing I know how to do is fight… and kill…" Truly, it was all he was qualified for.

"Well…" Tifa considered the options, knowing full well that she couldn't just throw Zack out in the streets. He'd never survive. People in general were hardly surviving as it was. "Why don't you stay here until you can speak with Cloud. And I guess we'll go from there. Maybe…" she shrugged, a small smile pulling at her lips. "Maybe Cloud will give you a job."

"You can have my deliveries," Reno yawned, his eyes closing as he leaned his head back over his chair.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Tseng decided. "Odds are, Cloud being introduced to Zack isn't going to go well. You'll probably need to pick up a few more shifts." Reno groaned. "That is," Tseng looked to Tifa, "if we agree that Cloud meeting him is the best thing."

Tifa was silent for a moment, Zack somewhat bothered that his opinion wasn't even asked, but supposing it was understandable since he hadn't known Cloud in ten years. She considered the idea, finally sighing in defeat.

"Alright, yes, they should meet, if only to see what happens." She turned on Zack, pointing at him accusingly. "But if you break him…" She was totally serious.

"It won't be on purpose," Zack assured.

"Well, he'll be back tomorrow," she explained. "And I think Barrett's coming in tonight, so I'll hand Marlene and Denzel over to him after I explain." Standing, she took a deep, calming breath.

"Why are you sending the kids away?" Zack asked curiously.

"Because," she started with a knowing tone. "When it comes to Cloud, one can never know what's going to happen."

A/N: I know, no Cloud in this one, well, not much, but I had to get the intro out of the way. Mostly because I know FFVII and its spinoffs can be confusing, and since I'm incorporating quite a few, I wanted the readers to have a firm grasp on what had happened. Cloud meets Zack in the next chapter however, so look forward to that!

Please R&R! I love to hear your thoughts!