Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy or anything that has to do with Final Fantasy. That would be Square Enix, not me. Trust me I would love to own some Final Fantasy characters i.e. Cloud, Zidane, Locke, Sephiroth, Rydia, Cecil, Auron etc. But that will never happen, so don't ask me to use them! Thank you 

Cirrus of the Cetra
By: GeminiRyoko

Chapter 1 Reminiscing and the Mysterious Little Girl

It has been exactly six years since I let you die. I stood there and let Sephiroth's sword claim you very means of existence on this decaying planet, the planet you were meant to save. There is not a day that goes by that I do not think about that night…

I have been living my life to repent for letting you die, and I hope my efforts are pleasing you. I know you want me to forgive myself, and I do, but forgiving is far from forgetting. How can I possibly forget what Sephiroth did to you? How can I be completely sure all his remains are gone? I can't… Sometimes I wonder if what I saw of you that day in the church four years ago was actually you, or if it was an illusion I made from the memories I had of you.

Cloud stopped and sighed.

"What am I saying? This isn't what I'm trying to get at."

Cloud stood up from the grassy area he was sitting in. He looked into the still water of the pond outside of the Forgotten Capital, Aeris's grave. The last place he had actually Aeris, the last time he had her in his arms…

"I'll come back again when I figure out what I should actually say to you…" Cloud took a deep breath as he looked at the water one last time. After a short silent moment he went to his motorcycle and drove off through the deep glowing forest of the City of the Ancients.

I still believe you'll come back when it's all over, so I will fight to the very end…

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The sun was setting outside the metropolis of Midgar. Tifa watched from the 7th Heaven Bar as the colors in the sky turned from a light shade of blue to brilliant shades of pink yellow and purple. The locusts began to hum, signifying that the night hours were nearby. Tifa closed her eyes let out a slight sigh.

"He's been gone for a long time; I wonder when he'll return…?"

Tifa folded her arms and paced back into the bedroom looking at the picture she kept of her and Cloud by her bedside.

"He will never let the past go, so why should I even bother trying to settle down with him? It's completely hopeless; I will never be the one he truly loves."

She looked back at the fading sky; the moon was approaching, slowly emitting its nightly glow.

Ever since she died, died in your arms, you have never been the same Cloud I once knew. Six years have passed, but you still search for her. You are always searching for a way to contact her, a way to see or touch her again. You will never give up on her. You will always search until you find her. Death is the only means of stopping you; you will just let yourself die before you let her go.

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Cloud rode his motorcycle until he entered the fields outside of the Ancient Forest. He hit the break and put his foot down, putting his head up and looking at the sky above him.

"Let's see, in Midgar it would be close to nightfall… I should get home." He told himself as he looked at his watch. "I've been gone for the full day; I'll spend the next few days with Tifa. That will put a smile on her face."

The years go by so slowly, yet so quickly, it's like time has stopped…Do you really want me to move on?

Just as Cloud was setting up his motorcycle to go onto the Highwind a sound of broken branches and dead leaves being stepped on came from the forest. Cloud looked behind him cautiously and they stopped.

"I guess it was just my imagination."

He turned back around, resuming the tying of the motorcycle. Then the sound came back, this time Cloud adjusted the mirror on his Motorcycle so he could se what was behind him. The bushes at the entrance of the Ancient forest moved. Cloud slowly grabbed his oversized sword and stood up. He clenched the handle in his hands and steadily went towards the bush. The sound had stopped, but he knew there was something in there. He wasn't going to risk being ambushed by a monster while he was trying to pack up.

The Bush moved again, and Cloud cautiously pushed the bush branches to the side. A little pink fuzz ball popped out of the bush slightly startling Cloud at first. Then he pushed the branches further out of curiosity.

"Kupo!" A Mog looked up into Clouds mako blue eyes.

"Jesus Christ, it's just a Mog." Cloud let the branches sling back and walked away annoyed.

A little girl who looked about five watched Cloud from afar, relived that the Chocobo haired man with the oversized sword didn't see her and didn't kill her Mog. She crawled up closer to the edge of the forest, watching Cloud pack the rest of his into the large airship. She looked at her Mog and without a sound grabbed him and held him tight. She waited a little bit and Cloud finally went into the Airship. The little girl let out a sigh and backed away until she reached a point where no one could see her, letting herself stand up.

"Mog, Mimi said before she died that somewhere out there, my real parents lived." The little girl looked up at the airship and her big blue eyes widened. "That ship and that same funny haired man with the glowing eyes were in my dream." The little girl started shaking.

"Kupo"

"No Mog, She wasn't my real mother, my real mother died when I was born and left me with Mimi, my step mother."

The little girl's eyes sparkled as she watched the ship. The door with the motorcycle was still open. She was curious to find out what this all meant. Cloud was surely in her dream, and she dreamt she had gone on the ship and flown away into the endless sky… She wondered where he was going. She always wondered that; ever since she first saw him a year ago,

"Mog, I'm going to go on that ship. My mother is talking to me again, and she's telling me to follow him. Mother is always right Mog!" The girl took in some air and made a run for the Highwind, just making it inside just before it closed up.

"Kupo"

The little girl closed the Mog's mouth and whispered, "No Mog, be quiet! I don't want him to hear us! You saw his sword…"

The airship took off into the blue abyss and set off towards the metropolis of Midgar; the city where Tifa was waiting for his return.

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It was nightfall and there was still no sign of Cloud. Tifa stood outside of what were once the Sector Seven Slums. The stars looked beautiful from where she was at, ironically six years ago she wouldn't have even seen them from where she was standing.

"Wow a lot has changed in the past six years. I remember when this pillar fell, and Cloud was so set on saving… Aeris…" The wind blew making her hair scatter and sway with it.

Just when Tifa was about to give up on the arrival of Cloud the sound of the Highwind surrounded the area. Tifa jumped in excitement, she had waited all day for his return. She ran inside and tried to occupy herself with something so it didn't look obvious that she was waiting for him all day.

"I know, I'll cook us something to eat, I'm starving!" She clicked on the stove and looked through the refrigerator for food.

Cloud landed the ship in the field outside of Midgar and locked up everything around him. He was in a daze, exhausted from his journey to Aeris's grave. His stomach growled, he hadn't had a bite to eat since he had left for the Ancient Forest. He opened the door to the pace where the motorcycle was, which startled the Mog making it jump up and run to the other side of the storage area. The little girl gasped quietly and crawled behind some boxes without being seen.

Cloud saw the Mog and approached it with one eyebrow raised. The Mog was trembling in fear trying to crawl up the wall of the ship. Cloud picked it up with one hand by the fur and looked at it in the eyes. The little girl's eyes began to water as she started to fathom about what might happen to her best friend.

"Now how and why did you get in here?" Cloud sighed.

"NO! Please! Don't hurt him!" The little girl cried coming out from behind the boxes, running toward Cloud and falling flat on her face.

"Where the Hell did you come from?" Cloud dropped the Mog and stepped toward the little girl.

"Please don't hurt me!" She sat up and began to crab walk behind her bumping into the pile of empty boxes which began to fall on top of her. "Ahhhh!" She covered her head.

Cloud gasped and jumped towards the mess that fell around the girl. He started to throw the boxes around and he saw a green light come from the little girl. He hadn't gotten a close look of her until that very moment, his eyes widened. The little girl had blonde straight hair that was held up with a pink ribbon with a green materia in it which looked exactly like the one Aeris had.

Aeris? No it can't be…

The little girl looked up at him with her green sparkling eyes, letting out tears that ran down her cheek. Cloud moved the last box and examined the little girl that was sitting on the floor trembling.

"Please, don't hurt me!" She cried out again.

Cloud knelt down on one knee and looked into her eyes.

"I'm not going to hurt you." Cloud looked at her with an intense serious look on his face. "Who are you and where did you come from?"

The little girl wiped her tears and stood up to meet the height of Cloud who was still kneeling. She looked into his eyes and touched his face with her little six year old hand and then her own. The little girl gasped and hugged his head.

"I have seen you in my dreams, and the voices in my head talked about you a lot to me…"

Cloud tilted his head, confused with what she was saying.

"I dreamt about a spiky haired man and the voices in my head told me that the man I saw in my dreams actually existed, and that man was my father. You must be that man."

Cloud pushed her gently out of the hug and looked at her in shock and then smiled.

"No little one, I am no father; you must be confusing me with someone else."

"No I'm sure of it; they tell me it IS you!" The little girl cried.

"Who are they?" Cloud questioned.

The Mog began to squeal again and ran outside to the field. The sound of a flying monster approached the ship and the little girl screamed.

"Mog! no come back here!" She ran out of the storage area and ran towards the flying monster to try to protect her Mog.

The Flying monster swooped at her and hit her, making her fly in the air and crash hard into the ground. Cloud ran out with his sword and watched as the little girl hit her head off the ground and laid there unconscious.

"No! Hold on I'll be right there!"

Cloud ran toward the monster and with one slash he killed it, dropping his sword after kill he ran toward the unconscious girl. He shook her to try to wake her up but nothing happened. He examined her and she was breathing, so there wasn't any major damage done to her. He lifted her up and held her tight, It felt so familiar the way he was holding her.

She looks like her…

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Tifa finished cooking the meal and looked at the clock while pondering where Cloud could be.

"I saw the ship over an hour ago, he should be back by now…"

Tifa wiped her hands off and started toward the front door. As she went for the handle there was a low knock on the door, like someone was knocking with their foot. She opened the door in hurriedly thinking about Cloud not having any arms and to her surprise Cloud was holding a little girl who looked like him.

"Who is that?" Tifa questioned still standing in front of the door.

"Tifa, I need a washcloth with cold water and a package of ice and fast, this girl is unconscious." Tifa moved aside with her hand over her mouth while Cloud stormed into the room. He took a few steps and looked around and quickly turned to Tifa. "Do we have any spare beds?"

"Yes I will make one up for her!" Tifa bolted into one of the bedrooms followed by Cloud.

Tifa rushed in and out of the rooms of the orphanage grabbing wash cloths and a bucket of cold water. Cloud set her in the bed putting the wet washcloth over her forehead. Tifa rushed in with the ice pack and Cloud removed the washcloth and put the ice on the area of her head that was swelling. Tifa went on the other side of the bed and took her pulse, she was normal.

"Do you think she'll be alright?" Tifa said with much concern.

"Yeah, she'll be waking up any minute now…" Cloud removed the ice and the little girl's eyes opened.

"Where am I?" The girl sat up and put her hand on her head. "Ouch it hurts."

"You're in a safe place" Tifa answered.

"A safe place… wait where did he go?" The girl cried.

"Who?"

"I'm right here?" Cloud stood up.

The little girl blinked and smiled. Rubbing her eyes and grabbing the sheet under her. "You saved me, thank you! I know now that you have to be my dad, they said he was very strong, and you are very strong." The girl looked at him with a look of precision.

Tifa's eyes widened.

"D...D…Dad…Cloud?" Tifa looked at Cloud in shock.

"Tifa she has me confused with someone else. You know I wouldn't do something like that."

"Who are you, and where did you come from little girl?" Tifa took her small hand and held it in hers.

The girl looked at Tifa and then Cloud and then back to Tifa.

"My name is Cirrus."

"Cirrus? Like a Cirrus cloud?" Tifa questioned and eyed Cloud who was in disbelief. Cirrus nodded.

Tifa stood up and walked out of the room, not even looking at Cloud as she passed him. Cloud stood there in total disbelief as the girl that claimed to be his daughter looked up at him with her brilliant green eyes, the same eyes that she had…

"Look I don't know where you came from or why you think I'm your father… Which I'm not… But I'll try to help you find your real father. Until then you can stay here, and make yourself at home. That bump on your head must hurt, so get some rest." Cloud turned around and started out of the room.

"My mother misses you, too bad she cannot talk to you like she talks to me right now…"

Cloud stopped in the doorway and turned his head a little bit, trying to consume what he just heard. He shook his head and continued walking. Cirrus pulled the sheet over her body and fell asleep for the night.

Cloud closed the door quietly and headed to what was looking like a huge argument between Tifa and himself.

It's impossible, she cannot be my daughter. The only person I could have had that little girl with was… Its impossible, it's one big huge mistake… It has to be.

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a/n: Long time no write. I had this idea and I had to write it. Sorry if this is boring so far, it will get better. I meant to write more but I wanted to leave of with some sort of cliff hanger, and I din't want to give away the whole plot in the first chapter. Yes the intro was a bit lengthy. Anyway…

Is it possible that Cloud is the father of this child? If so is the mother who we all think it is? Is that even a possibility? How is Tifa going to react to this? Stay tuned to find out :P.