He held her close to him; as if she was his only tie to the real world. Even though she was no longer alive he felt as if he needed to protect her. His arms shook with a mixture of anger and shock.
"This can't be real." he breathed, feeling several sets of eyes on him.
"Do not worry; soon the girl will become part of the planets energy." Sethiroth replied his tone as cold as his treasured sword. "All that is left is to go north. The 'promised land' waits for me over the snowy hills." With each word that the silver haired man spoke Cloud could feel himself die a little bit more inside. "There I will become a new being by uniting with the planet. As will the girl..."
"Shut up." Cloud bit back, his teeth finally letting go of his tongue. "The cycle of nature and your stupid plan don't mean a thing," his breathing was uneven, in fact, he questioned how long he'd been going without a breath. He'd started to hold it once the sword had pierced through Aerith's torso. Now it didn't feel right. He shouldn't be the one breathing, she should. "Aerith is gone." he choked, his voice breaking at the admittance. "Aerith will no longer talk, no longer laugh, cry... Or get angry." his hand reached out and stroked her face gently, so not to damage her anymore. Her own blood was a sharp comparison to her pale face. As he spoke his mind felt as though it was starting to crack and that at any second it could break into a thousand tiny pieces. "What about us? What are we supposed to do?" he asked, bowing his head so that Sethiroth couldn't see the tears that were burning at the corner of his eyes. "What about my pain? My fingers are tingling. My mouth is dry. My eyes are burning!" Cloud's voice reverberated off the stone, he was doing his best to remain calm he didn't want Sethiroth to think he'd won.
A soft chuckle cut though the air, "What are you saying? Are you trying to tell me you have feelings too?" he raised an eyebrow as he looked to the younger male. He couldn't keep the sick smile off his face.
Cloud rested Aerith down gently before standing up. His clothes were thick with Aerith's blood, causing them to stick to him. "Of course! Who do you think I am?" he yelled, advancing on the man.
Once again Sethiroth laughed; making no attempt to move out of the way of Cloud. "Stop acting as if you were sad." He stated a look of humour in his eyes as if somehow he found entertainment in Cloud's pain. "There's no need to act as though you're angry either."
Cloud froze. Part of him wanted more, but all the rest screamed that it was best that he didn't know. He'd felt fragile for a long time, and one more sharp poke from Sethiroth could break him but he had to know.
"Why?" he asked, not able to tear his gaze away from the man he had once looked up to.
"Because you're just a puppet." Sethiroth laughed, as he elegantly jumped up and out of sight only to be replaced by a monster. Which really wasn't that much of a change.
"Cloud!" Tifa called out as the monster struck the blond man heavily in the shoulder. Instinctively he reached for his sword as he sighed, he'd have to wait for answers.
"It hurts." Cloud admitted through gritted teeth.
Tifa nodded, "Of course it does, that thing hit you hard." She explained her tone sympathetic.
"Not that," he corrected, "Losing her... it hurts... it hurts too much. Much more than my shoulder could ever hurt." He muttered, looking towards the woman that had won his heart from the moment she'd offered him a flower in the midst of danger. They still were on the plinth, Vincent had gone off to get some potions and to give them both time.
"Oh," Tifa breathed. "...I know it does. We'll all miss her."
"I want to move her... she belongs here, but not here." Cloud told her as he moved away from her and stood up.
"Your shoulder..." Tifa told him, before standing beside him, her eyes wearing heavily upon him.
His mako-infused eyes couldn't leave the woman clad in pink and red. "I don't care." he deadpanned, bending over and picking Aerith up in his arms. He ignored the sharp pain in his shoulder knowing that it would subside, eventually.
With each step he took he felt a little bit of what he knew slip from his grasp. He felt as though clinging onto hope was the only thing he had left. He knew nothing solid apart from the pain that he know felt in his heart. The guilt that was eating him up inside. He'd killed her.
The water was cold, and Cloud cold feel that Tifa had stopped following him at the water's edge. Once again, tears stung at the corners of his eyes causing him to blink rapidly. Before he knew it tear after tear was falling upon her perfect face. "I'm so, so sorry." He repeated, as his body shook with pain and grief. "I'm sorry." The water licked at the edges of her body, as if it called out for her to be let go. Cloud knew 'their' time was up. If they had any time at all. He placed a gentle kiss to her forehead, "We never did get that second date did we?" he asked her rhetorically as he gently let go of her and allowed her to start sinking below the water. "When I find you in the lifestream, and trust me I will, you owe me one. Right?" he smiled softly at her before returning to the water's edge. "Let's go." He told Tifa, as he slid the silk pink ribbon into his pocket hoping that it'd be enough to save him from himself in time.