For Apathy Laevatein Moon. I might have never written this pairing if not for your request. I hope it meets with your expectations!

A note of caution to all those FFVII fans out there: This is AU with a SF/Fantasy twist on it. There is no question about it. Anything that does not match up, from timeline to characters to plotline, is intentional. That said, the characters and universe will not be exactly as they are in canon, more a reflection of them. On the other hand, I don't ignore canon, either. If you're still curious, read and find out. This is my first attempt at writing Scifi-ish/alternate reality in this way; I hope I got it right, and thank my PR for the invaluable suggestions and feedback.

The necessary disclaimer: I neither own nor profit from ffvii or its characters.

Thank you for reading and reviewing.

Enjoy.

fire mystic

Reality of Dreams

There was something wrong with Tifa, Sephiroth was sure. Her face was paler than usual, her cheeks drawn, her eyes sunken with dark rings around them. That could all be blamed on her recent lack of sleep, he knew, but she was behaving strangely as well, avoiding him, refusing to talk to him, becoming hostile at the least provocation, which could be as simple as him shifting the blankets on the bed or making too much noise at any given moment.

It had been three weeks since he could remember things being 'normal', and he had finally, at the end of his tolerance, confronted her directly about it. He had dinner waiting for her when she came home, having taken care of every chore he could possibly think of to make sure she had as stress free a night as possible, and he had waited until they were curled up in front of the fire to ask her if she would tell him what was bothering her.

She had refused.

Now, as he was dressing, buckling his plackart and boots in place, sweeping the length of his hair aside so it wouldn't get caught under the long black leather duster, he turned to find her looking at him, strangely, something far too close to contempt glowing in her eyes.

"Do you always have to wear that?" She asked.

He glanced down his body. Did she mean the duster? Or the whole uniform? He didn't know and decided it better not to ask.

"It's the standard required SOLDIER uniform," he answered simply. It had never bothered her before.

Hoping to get some kind of explanation, he was disappointed. Instead, his mind reeled as she suddenly switched subjects.

"Do you know a SOLDIER named Zack?"

Where had that come from?

"Zack Fair? He works closely with Angeal. Why?"

"What about Cloud Strife?" She ignored his question. "Do you know him?"

What was this all about?

"I believe he's friends with Zack."

She was staring out the window at the morning sun, refusing to look at him.

"I knew him. Cloud. We were friends when we were growing up. He always wanted to be in SOLDIER."

This was news to Sephiroth. Tifa didn't speak much about her childhood. What a small world that one of the trainees was a childhood friend of hers.

"Do you still talk to him? Would you like me to invite him to dinner, perhaps?"

"Oh. No." She sighed wistfully. "It was so long ago. I doubt he would remember me."

She stood, approaching to kiss his cheek, careful not to touch his uniform and avoiding his lips as he turned to her.

"Have a good day." She dismissed him, turning to go into the bathroom and closing the door behind her.

Showered and dressed, Tifa sat at the kitchen table sipping her coffee and pouring over the newspaper, looking for any information she could find about Neibelheim. Nothing. There was, however, a plethora of information about Shinra, and even a couple of mentions of Sephiroth. But nothing bad. The world wasn't going to hell, after all. Not yet, anyway.

On a whim, she grabbed the phone book and flipped through, looking for a name that had been haunting her, half expecting not to find it.

Yet there it was.

Reeve Tuesti. Public advocate.

She picked up the phone, cradling it to her shoulder. Should she? Did she dare?

She dialed quickly. She could always hang up. Or use a different name.

A woman answered the phone, or maybe a girl, given her bubbly personality. She was so cheerful that Tifa was distracted momentarily, forgetting why she called. There was a breath of uncomfortable silence.

"Miss?" The girl asked, and then it sounded like she snapped a piece of gum. "Can I help you?"

"Oh." Tifa swallowed. "Yes. Is Reeve Tuesti available?"

Miss. Bubbly giggled, lowering her voice to a conspiratorial whisper.

"Well, of course he's available!" Her suggestive tone was unmistakable. "But he's in a meeting right now."

There was shuffling on the other end of the phone, what might have been a door closing, and Tifa heard Miss. Bubbly squeak. Then a man's voice, distant from the receiver.

"Who is it, Yuffie?" Some more shuffling as the phone switched hands, and then that voice again, muffled. "And how many times have I told you not to chew gum when you're answering the phones?

Hello?" Nice and clear this time. "World Rights Organization. Reeve Tuesti speaking. How can I help you?"

Breathe, Tifa, she reminded herself.

"Mr. Tuesti, I'm a concerned citizen who was told your organization looks into the ethics of businesses. Is that true?"

"Well, it is only part of what we do, but yes, the WRO does investigate businesses for ethics abuse."

"Are those reports available to the public?"

"Not in detail, miss, but I can tell you if a business has been investigated and whether we support that business."

Tifa sat forward in her seat. Here was the moment of truth.

"I'd like to know if you can tell me anything about Shinra Electric Power Company. And SOLDIER."

There was a pause on the other end.

"Well, since you've asked, Shinra is one of our clients, and therefore, SOLDIER as well. We check their quality control and give them recommendations for their continued public success. We've never come across anything questionable. Is there something you would like to report?"

Tifa looked down into the receiver before putting it back to her ear.

"No. No, I don't have anything to report. Thank you and I'm sorry to have bothered you." She clicked the off button and stared down at the phone book.

"Maybe I should be calling a psychiatrist. I think I'm going nuts."

Sephiroth presented quite an image as he strolled down the halls of Shinra Headquarters. He paid no attention to those lingering in his wake; he was used to being stared at and fawned over, but people generally knew enough to keep their distance.

Into his office, he read the reports that had been left on his desk, not that there was anything worthy of reading. Outside of security for Shinra, their only purpose was to help with civil defense when it was necessary, which was never. SOLDIER had been created by Shinra during a time of war, and had served its purpose well, but once the war was over, there was nothing to do but maintain.

There was a tap at his door even as the door opened without permission. Sephiroth knew there was only one person who would enter his office in such a manner.

"Genesis. Are you ready?"

"I've been ready for an hour. I think you're getting old."

Sephiroth shrugged him off. SOLDIERS didn't age; or if they did, it was a very slow process which had yet to be seen through. It was a result of the Mako treatments, which were used very sparingly. Genesis' comment was taken as it was meant; a ribbing between good friends.

As they walked out to the training grounds, Genesis asked about Tifa.

"How is she? Things any better?"

Rubbing at the tense spot above the bridge of his nose, Sephiroth shook his head, frowning.

"No, and she won't talk to me."

"Did you take my advice and ask her?"

"Yes. Nothing."

Genesis clapped him on the back as they exited the building.

"Give it time. She'll talk when she's ready." He took a minute to put on his gloves. "In the meantime, you might want to think about tougher armor. She's got some right hook."

At least that brought a proud smile to Sephiroth's lips.

Tifa tossed and turned in her sleep. Flickers of images crossed her vision, some too fleeting for her to capture, like the gunman in red, but others vivid and leaving a lasting imprint on her mind. Neibelheim going up in flames, flashes of her father sprawled on the ground. A blond man, Cloud she was practically sure, getting run through with a sword, and a dark haired man on the stairs near her, motionless.

There was one person at the center of her dream; one person responsible for the mayhem and death.

Sephiroth.

His image appeared within the flames consuming her home town, and she woke with a start, clutching at her chest, unsure of where she was. It took a couple of harsh breaths for her to get her bearings and for her brain to kick back into gear.

How could it be? It just wasn't possible. She knew Sephiroth; had known him since that day long ago when he had come to Neibelheim to assess the security at the Shinra facility. He had been charming, and as young as she was, she thought her feelings might simply be a schoolgirl crush, but as time went on, they only became stronger. That trip was the first of many to Neibelheim to visit with Tifa, and finally, on one special day, he had asked her father for permission to marry.

The rest had been history, as they say. And it had been a happy history until the nightmares had started. Now she doubted everything.

Picking up the remote, she turned on the television, and there on the screen was the news she had been dreading and looking for everyday. She didn't wait to see the end of the report. She turned the television off, and ran for the phone, trying to call her father.

Tifa was nowhere to be found when Sephiroth came through the door that evening, but he could hear her. He followed the sound of what seemed to be rage to their bedroom where she was tearing apart the dressers, after having emptied all the closets. While he stopped just inside the doorway, stunned, his appearance spurred her to new heights of rage.

"IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT," she screamed, throwing the contents of one drawer, blinding him, and then following it with a hard spinning kick, throwing him back into the hall. He fought against her assault enough to catch his balance, and finally managed to grab her wrists in his hands. Her ramblings weren't making any sense. He knew about the fire in Neibelheim, but her father dead? What was she talking about?

"Tifa! I don't know what you're talking about." He spoke calmly, using his superior strength to hold her away from him.

Huffing at him, desperately trying to get her hands free, Tifa blew her hair out of her face and narrowed her eyes at him.

"There was a fire in Neibelheim today. And my father is dead, and it's your fault. How could you do this?"

"Tifa." He wondered if she would listen to him. "There was a fire in Neibelheim today; something to do with bad circuitry, which Shinra is investigating. But no one was injured. It's all right. I'm sure your father is fine."

She pulled as far back from him as she could, eyes wide and filled with disbelief and accusation.

"Fine?" Her voice was shrill. "You killed him! Things will never be all right again." She collapsed to the floor, weeping, and Sephiroth, in his shock, released her hands.

This was certainly a new experience for him. He was a general; part of the reason he had risen so quickly in the ranks was his ability to make decisions and take action quickly. Watching Tifa fall apart in front of him over something that wasn't real was something he had no idea how to handle.

Taking off his duster and dropping it to the floor, he crouched next to Tifa and put an arm around her shoulders, lifting her from the fetal position she had curled into. He cradled her to his chest, holding her close as he picked her up and brought her into the living room to lie on the couch. The bed would have been more comfortable, but it was out of the question with the mess that was left in there. Holding her close, he supported her smaller body as it was racked with sobs, pressing kisses to her hair, trying to quiet her. He had to get her to calm down; the rest he could deal with later.

When she sagged in his arms, the energy of her outburst finally exhausted, he lowered her to the couch and put a pillow under her head, and reached for the phone, dialing the number from memory. Tifa watched, curious, and listened as he said hello and spoke a few pleasantries before he held the phone out to her.

"Who is it?" She asked in a hushed, ragged voice.

Sephiroth's smile was bittersweet.

"It's your father, Tifa."

She eyed the phone suspiciously, and took it from him as if it might burn her hands.

"Hello?"

Sure enough it was her father's voice that answered her back. She dropped the phone into her lap and met Sephiroth's concern with eyes filled with fresh tears.

"I think I'm losing my mind."

Tifa talked with her father for a long time. Sephiroth kept an eye and ear on her as he straightened the bedroom, and when he was finished, he carried her to bed, undressed her with gentle care, putting her in one of her favorite nightshirts, and tucked her in. Removing his own clothes and tying his hair back, he pulled the curtains opposite the bed, opening the room to the view of the night sky through the large picture window. Curling up with him in the bed and looking at that view was one of Tifa's favorite comforts, and he hoped it would have that effect on her tonight.

Climbing up on the bed, he sat with his back to the headboard and shifted Tifa to sit between his legs, leaning back against his chest, and together they watched as the first stars appeared in the sky. By the time the moon rose to dim the stars, Tifa's breathing had softened into sleep, and Sephiroth watched the glowing sphere drift across the sky long into the night.

The images bombarded her mind. Zack was dead. Cloud had survived, but was so broken he might as well have died with Zack. And there was a girl Tifa didn't recognize who kept appearing, very pretty, very feminine, and…impaled through the chest on a sword that Tifa was all too familiar with. The focus of her nightmare changed, and she was staring into the eyes of her husband.

But there was something not right. Something different in his eyes, void of sanity, filled with darkness. He was Sephiroth, but he wasn't.

When she woke, she managed to keep her tears silent as the strong body pressed to her back warmed her fear-chilled skin. She tried to convince herself that nightmares were simply bad dreams, and that they weren't trying to tell her something.

She managed to get herself under control, but sleep refused to return for a long while.

Rays of sunlight filtering into the room woke her, and she rolled over, automatically reaching for the remote to watch the morning news and weather, a ritual that was normal and, she thought, might make her feel better.

The images on the screen were not helpful.

The pictures were of two SOLDIERS, lost during a desert mission. Shinra had already launched a full scale search for the two men. Tifa didn't need to wait to hear their names. She recognized their faces from her dreams.

Zack Fair and Cloud Strife.

Sephiroth woke beside her, pushing loosened strands of hair from his face as he gazed up at her, totally missing the report on the television.

"Good morning, Tifa."

But it wasn't a good morning. He knew it the second she turned to him; that panic, fear, and anger were back, and when she spoke, it was yet another accusation.

"You're lying to me."

"Tifa…"

"He's going to die out there, isn't he?" She hissed. "Shinra's sending men out to kill him, both of them, but Cloud's going to survive."

Sephiroth's attention was now on the news report, and within seconds he was on the phone with Shinra Headquarters.

"Tseng." He demanded when someone picked up the phone. He waited, and when the call was transferred, he issued his orders.

"I want them found and returned safely…I know Shinra has sent troops out; those grunts couldn't find water in the ocean. I want your best on this, and I want a report the second they're located."

Tifa was looking at him when he hung up; it was clear she didn't believe him.

"We'll bring them home, Tifa. Alive. And then you have to tell me what's going on."

She glanced away and he tipped her face back to his with a single finger.

"Promise me, Tifa. Promise that when they're home safe, you'll talk to me."

Stubbornly, she nodded.

It was early afternoon when Sephiroth's cell rang. The morning had seriously tested his nerves; he didn't want to leave Tifa alone, yet her anxiety was a palpable force in the house, and nothing would make it better. She had convinced herself that she was right. He answered, aware that Tifa was watching every move he made.

It was Tseng, reporting to him that Reno, his second in command, had found both SOLDIERS and was on his way back to Shinra Headquarters, and had confirmed that both men were alive, if a little worse for wear. When Sephiroth expressed the need for a public follow-up to the earlier story, Tseng assured him that the press was already on the scene waiting for the chopper to land. After thanking Tseng, he hung up and switched on the news, bringing Tifa to the couch to wait for the report. Tifa fidgeted as they waited for the live report, and when the cameras panned on the helicopter that had landed on Shinra's air pad, Tifa sat forward in her seat, expecting the worst.

The first to get out of the chopper was Zack, smiling and blushing in the face of the cameras. He turned back toward the chopper, waiting. The next person to get out was a red-head that Tifa recognized from her nightmares as Reno. He was not nearly so bashful, giving a cocky nod to the cameras before he also turned back to the open compartment. Together, Zack and Reno helped another man out, his blond hair and stockier build unmistakable. Cloud Strife. And he was alive; apparently, though, he had been hurt badly enough to require assistance. As the reporters closed in, Zack reassured them that everything was fine. They had been separated from their unit on training, and his fellow SOLDIER was experiencing a disorienting reaction to a recent Mako treatment, but he was already feeling better, and everything would be fine.

Sephiroth watched Tifa as the report went on, as tears traced down her face and a sob of relief escaped when Cloud Strife stepped out of the chopper.

By the time the report was over, Tifa had slumped back into the couch, tears still flowing, but quiet. Sephiroth waited, knowing instinctively it wouldn't be a good idea to pressure her. She would speak when she was ready.

She wouldn't look at him, head held in her hand as she took a deep shuddering breath.

"I've been having dreams. Nightmares. But they're so real, it's like I'm in them. Some of the people I know; Cloud, my father, and some I don't, like Zack, some girl, even that pilot that brought them back." She waved her hand at the television. The next breath sounded like it hurt, and she began sobbing again around her next words. "And there's you. But you're not you. You destroy and kill everything around you. You're…inhuman. Evil."

Sephiroth mastered his features, tried not to show his hurt surprise, as Tifa finally looked up at him, sobbing openly, clenching a fist to her chest.

"I can't get the images out of my head, and I'm not sure I can tell what's real anymore."

He wrapped his arms around her, held her close, and rocked her gently within his embrace.

"These dreams; you've been having them for three weeks?"

"A little longer than that, but that's when they started to get really bad."

"Do you think we should get help?" He was sure they needed help, but he wanted to make sure she knew it was her decision.

Tifa nodded against his chest.

"I don't know who to call, though."

"I know someone. Will you let me call him, talk to him, see if he will see you?"

He didn't hesitate when she agreed, picking up his cell and punching a number he already had on speed dial.

"Dr. Hojo, please. Tell him it's General Sephiroth and that it's urgent."

He waited the few seconds it would take to see if the eccentric doctor would take his call, and was profoundly relieved when he did.

"Thank you for taking my call. My wife is having a bit of difficulty; she's having nightmares that seem to be blurring the edges of reality, causing fear and…"

He stopped speaking to listen, confusion registering on his face.

"Right away?...We'll be there." Hanging up, He took Tifa's hand, helping her from the couch.

"He says he can see you if you come in right away," he explained, making it sound as if he were simply lucky to get her an appointment so quickly. He did not, however, mention the concern and urgency that had been in Hojo's voice. Clearly, the symptoms were familiar and important enough to cause concern. Tifa didn't need to know that.

Half an hour later, Sephiroth led Tifa into Dr. Hojo's office. Hojo was waiting for them, and immediately sent Tifa with an assistant for tests. In the meantime, he ushered Sephiroth into his office and into one of the plush leather seats, taking the one opposite instead of the one behind his desk.

"I sent Tifa for tests to be sure of my suspicions, but I have heard of and seen these symptoms before, and I'm pretty confident I know what the problem is. I want to warn you that if I am correct, we need to get her treatment right away."

He paused to give Sephiroth time to digest that information.

"So what do you think it is?"

"If I am correct, it is a form of Mako poisoning, a hypersensitivity, if you will."

What?

"Where would she get Mako poisoning from?"

Eyebrows met a graying hairline.

"You. If she has the type of sensitivity that others have experienced, exposure to you would be enough."

"And what does this…sensitivity do? What does it cause?"

"Nightmares, as you said. A blurring of the lines of reality. Hallucinations, paranoia, extreme anxiety and fear. The SOLDIER that was lost the other day, Strife? He had it; kept telling his friend, Fair I think it was, that he was going to die out there. And kept talking about a young woman named Aerith, and…"

"And?" Sephiroth prompted.

"He kept mentioning you, that it was your fault. He kept going on about the Jenova project as if it were something evil, and even mentioned Niebelheim, as if anything incredibly important ever came from there. We were able to get to him in time. But there are others: We have a young man down in stasis that was working with Tseng. We couldn't risk allowing him to be conscious for the treatment, and he's so far progressed that we're not even sure it will work. He started to have delusions that all he needed was a red cape and he would be able to practically fly. He even had a gun custom made for him, and was ranting about being indestructible because he was possessed by Chaos. He became a threat to himself and those around him, and we had to put him in containment. We still don't know how much Mako he was exposed to, but it only took a few weeks after the symptoms appeared for him to lose touch with reality."

Sephiroth stared at a spot somewhere on the front of Hojo's desk.

"Tifa started acting strangely three weeks ago, but she said the dreams started before that."

"Then we need to get her treatment started right away."

"There's something else you should know. Tifa's nightmares…sound much like the ones Strife was having."

Hojo was leaning forward, intense.

"She mentioned Zack dying as well; said that Cloud was the only one that would survive that trip out of the desert. And she knew about the fire in Neibelheim before it happened. She also blamed it all on me."

Hojo sat back in his chair, rubbing his thumb against the pads of his fingers.

"This is a very interesting development. I'll have to look into it." He remained lost in his thoughts for a few moments. "In the meantime, your wife takes priority."

As if on cue, there was a soft knock on the door, and Tifa came in with the assistant. Hojo stood to meet them, reaching for the test results.

"What did we find, Lucrecia?"

"Exactly as you suspected. A slight elevation in Mako levels." She smiled at Tifa. "Perfectly normal for being married to a SOLDIER. And an extreme hyper-reaction to the Mako, much as we've seen before."

"And that would cause all these…visions?" Tifa asked hopefully.

Motioning for her to take the seat he had just deserted, Hojo went to sit behind his desk.

"This is not the first time we've seen this, Tifa, and I can assure you that if we get you treated as soon as possible, everything will be fine."

"What does the treatment consist of?"

"It is a type of materia, very weak, but extremely effective. It will take a while, maybe a couple of weeks, in which we would like to monitor your progress, but it will slowly balance out the effects of the Mako."

"What if it doesn't work?"

Frowning, Hojo leaned on his desk, rubbing his hands together.

"I'll be honest; I'm not sure. We're still learning about Mako, and this is a relatively new development, but it has not failed yet. If it doesn't work, we can take it from there, but it is imperative that we take this step now."

Tifa looked to Sephiroth, who nodded.

"Okay. When do I start?"

"Lucrecia? Will you get the materia from my lab?" She exited the room and Hojo turned back to Tifa. "I want to emphasize to you that the nightmares and subsequent paranoia and shifts of reality will not end right away. You must keep in mind, as much as you can, that they are not real, no matter how convincing they may be." He turned his attention to Sephiroth. "You must stay home with her. It is imperative that she be reminded of whom you really are and what you mean to each other, and that you are there to reassure her of reality verses realistic nightmares. I will speak to President Shinra. I'm sure he will understand."

Lucrecia came back through the door with the materia, handing it to Hojo, who inspected it to confirm it was the correct shade before handing it to Tifa.

Tifa took a deep breath before absorbing the materia. She could feel it, the power swarming through her, over her. It left a prickly heat in its wake and left her skin feeling slightly tingly. Hojo put a hand on her shoulder, drawing her from the strange sensations.

"Now go home, get some rest, and let me know if your symptoms get worse. I will see you in a few days."

Sephiroth took Hojo at his word, making every moment with Tifa count, doing everything he could think of to remind her of his love, to assure her that he was not the monster her dreams portrayed him to be. He took out picture albums, flipping through the happiest moments of their lives caught on film; photos of their wedding and the candid moments before and after, Angeal and Genesis as much a part of those photos as Tifa and Sephiroth, and they were all happy, all smiling. He made her dinner and they ate on the back lawn, lying on a blanket afterwards and finding shapes in the stars and watching the moon come up and cross the skies while they talked and laughed as Sephiroth held Tifa and told her stories of his childhood. Genesis and Angeal joined them frequently, and at one point suggested a night out. Tifa was thrilled at the idea of getting out of the house, and suggested they see the newest rave in town; a play called 'Loveless', but changed her mind immediately when she saw Genesis' reaction. When asked, he explained that he had seen it, and that he would rather go entirely gray before ever seeing it again. They had decided on the opera instead.

Zack and Cloud made an appearance as well, upon Sephiroth's invitation. Zack, whom she had never known outside the visions, was charming and charismatic, always with a smile on his face, and on his arm was the pretty, very feminine girl Tifa remembered from her dreams, whom Zack introduced as Aerith. Quiet and soft-spoken, she was obviously as very much in love with Zack as he was with her. Accompanying Cloud was a young blond woman he had met after his fiasco in the desert with Zack; as far as Tifa could gather, Elena worked with the chopper pilot that had brought them home, and it was their good fortune that Reno had introduced them. The friendships that formed that evening would prove to be long-standing and true.

Through the nightmares and the negative reactions that followed, Sephiroth stayed with her, remaining calm and patient, making every effort to reassure her and provide the evidence she needed that her visions were not going to come true. As promised, within a couple of weeks the nightmares were becoming less frequent and less violent, and Tifa was managing to sleep through most nights, finally getting the much needed rest that she needed. Her mind left behind the images of blood, death and sadness as the nightmares slowly morphed into dreams once more, erotic scenes reflecting her newly charged passion with Sephiroth, from which she woke short of breath and trembling, this time in need instead of fear and horror.

She woke one particular night from an exceptionally vivid dream in which she was locked in a passionate embrace, tangled against Sephiroth's body by the length of his hair. Glancing up at his sleeping face, she admired the long lashes that shadowed his cheeks gently, and a small smile played across his sensual lips when she smoothed back a strand of hair. He shifted slightly, strong arms grasping her tighter before his body once again relaxed back into sleep.

Tifa waited for his breathing to even out before carefully working her way out of his arms. Climbing off the bed slowly, trying not to wake him, she made her way to the bathroom, closing the door behind her. As she turned back to the room, illuminated by the silvery blue light of the full moon, she caught a flash of herself in the mirror.

But not really.

Moving closer, she studied the image of the woman reflected in the glass. There was concern etched in her eyes, combined with a depth of sorrow that was heart-wrenching. But there was also hope, balancing things out, along with a strength that Tifa was familiar with; she had something very similar to it.

The woman in the mirror raised a hand to touch the glass. It took a moment for Tifa to realize she hadn't moved. She pinched herself, determining that she wasn't stuck in another nightmare. No. The image was moving on its own. And talking to her. Leaning close, she could just make out the words being spoken in an incredulous tone.

"You can see me."

Tifa reached out, placing her fingers against the mirrored image, and for a split second, those fingers were as real as hers, warm flesh and blood, and then it was as if the mirror solidified between them, and the image began to fade back into her own awestruck features.

She was vaguely aware of the door opening behind her, and then Sephiroth's arms were around her, his face nestling into the crook of her neck, silver and sable hair meshing in the moonlight.

"Are you all right, Tifa?"

She could feel the warm tears trace down her face as the true sadness of what she had just witnessed settled into her heart. Leaning back into the warm, well-defined chest, she found solace in the man who had seen her through this, who she loved deeply, and who loved her in return.

"Everything will be fine now, Sephiroth." And of that, for the first time in a long time, she was sure.

Epilogue

Tifa stared at her image as the glass solidified in front of her, an image that was her and not her, a Tifa that was happy and satisfied, who felt safe and secure in her world.

"Tifa? You okay?"

In the mirror, she caught sight of Cloud behind her, leaning against the doorjamb, Mako-blue eyes brilliant in the moonlight, hair mussed more than usual.

"Hey Cloud. Tell me something? Have you ever thought of what it would be like if Sephiroth had never lost his mind?"

He blinked slowly, shaking his head, lowering his gaze to the floor.

"Strange you ask. I've had dreams like that lately. Zack was alive, and we were both in SOLDIER. And…" he locked gazes with her. "You don't have a crush on Sephiroth, do you?"

She barked disbelieving laughter at him.

"Don't be ridiculous! Why would you even suggest such a thing?"

Head tilting, he studied her closely.

"Because in my dreams, you were with him." There was no doubt about what he meant by that. He rubbed a hand over his face, through his hair. "I'm tired. I'm going back to bed. You sure you're okay?"

Tifa nodded, staring out the window at the blood-red tinted moon.

A crush? On Sephiroth? That was so ridiculous it was funny, and she chuckled into the dark room lit with that eerie red aura.

The chuckle faded.

How strange would it be, really? If Sephiroth had stayed sane, would it have been so hard to fall in love with him? She had seen him, in a world where he was still a General, powerful, well-respected, and honorable, but also a family man, caring and loving.

She sighed wistfully. Yes, if she were the Tifa in that world, where her father was still alive, as well as Zack, and Cloud was happy, healthy and whole, as was she, she could very well imagine finding happiness and love in the arms of a silver-haired SOLDIER.