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The night was unusually quiet in Seventh Heaven, the tavern and inn that had been opened to replace the destroyed bar. Tifa had convinced Cloud to take her out for the evening, with Aeris's objections, of course. Cid had left in a hurry to go see Shera. Barret took Marlene to an amusement park for her birthday, accompanied by Cait Sith who wanted to see some old friends in the area. They wouldn't return until tomorrow. Vincent and Yuffie had walked out the door arguing over trivial matters, specifically the television line-up for later in the evening. Red XIII lay on the couch down in the basement, eyes glued on the Discovery Channel, but his mind was elsewhere. A sigh escaped him as he stretched his long lithe figure. Even with his acute hearing, his preoccupations made him oblivious to Aeris quietly approaching the couch from behind.
"Are you all right?" Aeris asked as she seated herself beside him.
"What? Oh, I'm fine..." Red responded instinctively.
"Are you sure? You look a little down."
"I was just thinking." He hoped she wouldn't go any further with this string conversation, even though he knew she was only concerned about his well-being.
"Is it the same thing that has had you in less than good spirits for quite awhile now?" She hated to pry when she could tell he didn't want to talk about it, but it wasn't good for him to bottle up everything. 'He is such a closed person, and I know...from personal experience that can really get to a person over time,' she thought.
Reluctant to reveal anything to her, he simply said, "Yes, it is."
"Do you wanna talk about it? It'll make you feel better if you do. Maybe I can give you some advice, if you would like. You can trust me. I won't tell anyone."
'This is the perfect time,' he thought. 'Tell all now and hope that nothing changes. Really, it is all you can do.' He sighed and turned to face her. "You're right, but I don't know if you will want to hear this. I'll stop at any time if it begins to make you at all uncomfortable."
"Don't worry about making me uncomfortable. You won't. I've heard a lot living in the slums. There isn't much left that bothers me." She assured him to the best of her ability, but knew that if he said it could make her uncomfortable, it probably would.
"I will start at the beginning...do you remember back in Hojo's lab before the rest of AVALANCHE rescued us?"
"Mostly...it has been some time, though."
"When we were supposed to be unconscious in the lab, I was simply feigning it. I heard everything Hojo said about us and his plans. Do you remember hearing anything?"
"No, I don't. What was he saying?" She wondered where all of this was leading. It had been many months since they had been in Hojo's lab. It was a memory she would rather forget completely.
"Hojo said we were the last of our kinds and with our end, a species would be extinct." He paused to calm his tone and made eye contact with Aeris again. 'Don't back down now. What happens will happen.' "He wanted to continue both species. He proposed that our species be bred. Then, AVALANCHE rescued us from the lab."
She was silent for a moment. 'I don't want to make assumptions, but I think I know where he's going with all of this. What do I say to him?' "Oh. I didn't know that was what Hojo intended to do."
"It was at that time I...first found myself thinking about you in the aspect of a...lover. More and more I began thinking about it as I became a true part of AVALANCHE. I have very strong feelings for you, Aeris." He looked down at the floor shamefully.
"Red...I had no idea." She was in shock and speechless for several minutes after that. All she could do was stare at the obvious heartbreak that was consuming him. This hadn't been something she had ever thought about before now. Compelled by a force she couldn't identify, she moved closer to him and embraced him tightly. "It's okay," she whispered.
The tears began flowing from both of their eyes. They remained there, unmoving, for what felt like an eternity. They both spent the time deep in thought and reflection, wondering what course of action would unfold next. Unlike most extended silences between people, this was a comfortable silence that felt natural.
Aeris moved back to look into his eyes. She could sense how much he cared for her now and smiled at how close she had been to him yet hadn't seen it before. She leaned forward and kissed him. 'This is right...more right than anything else,' she thought.
Red was nothing short of astonished by the kiss. He did not respond to it, only submitted himself to her. He broke the kiss suddenly and looked at her. "Are you sure that you want this and it isn't out of pity for me? If it is, don't be hesitant to tell me. I will understand."
"I'm doing this because of how I feel for you...how I've always felt for you but just never realized it. The best things are often right under your nose, but you overlook them. I can't believe I could overlook you, though, Red."
"Call me Nanaki." This was the first time he had ever allowed someone outside of those he had called his family use his given name.
"Nanaki...such a beautiful name."
"Thank you." He yawned and arched his back. Crying had depleted his energy significantly, and it was getting very late.
"I'm tired, too. Why don't we go to my place and talk for awhile? There's a lot we need to talk about, Nanaki."
"Yes. We do have a great deal to talk about."
With that, the pair left the inn and tavern for Aeris's home. There was indeed much to be discussed...
To be possibly continued...
Please review! Should there be a sequel?
The night was unusually quiet in Seventh Heaven, the tavern and inn that had been opened to replace the destroyed bar. Tifa had convinced Cloud to take her out for the evening, with Aeris's objections, of course. Cid had left in a hurry to go see Shera. Barret took Marlene to an amusement park for her birthday, accompanied by Cait Sith who wanted to see some old friends in the area. They wouldn't return until tomorrow. Vincent and Yuffie had walked out the door arguing over trivial matters, specifically the television line-up for later in the evening. Red XIII lay on the couch down in the basement, eyes glued on the Discovery Channel, but his mind was elsewhere. A sigh escaped him as he stretched his long lithe figure. Even with his acute hearing, his preoccupations made him oblivious to Aeris quietly approaching the couch from behind.
"Are you all right?" Aeris asked as she seated herself beside him.
"What? Oh, I'm fine..." Red responded instinctively.
"Are you sure? You look a little down."
"I was just thinking." He hoped she wouldn't go any further with this string conversation, even though he knew she was only concerned about his well-being.
"Is it the same thing that has had you in less than good spirits for quite awhile now?" She hated to pry when she could tell he didn't want to talk about it, but it wasn't good for him to bottle up everything. 'He is such a closed person, and I know...from personal experience that can really get to a person over time,' she thought.
Reluctant to reveal anything to her, he simply said, "Yes, it is."
"Do you wanna talk about it? It'll make you feel better if you do. Maybe I can give you some advice, if you would like. You can trust me. I won't tell anyone."
'This is the perfect time,' he thought. 'Tell all now and hope that nothing changes. Really, it is all you can do.' He sighed and turned to face her. "You're right, but I don't know if you will want to hear this. I'll stop at any time if it begins to make you at all uncomfortable."
"Don't worry about making me uncomfortable. You won't. I've heard a lot living in the slums. There isn't much left that bothers me." She assured him to the best of her ability, but knew that if he said it could make her uncomfortable, it probably would.
"I will start at the beginning...do you remember back in Hojo's lab before the rest of AVALANCHE rescued us?"
"Mostly...it has been some time, though."
"When we were supposed to be unconscious in the lab, I was simply feigning it. I heard everything Hojo said about us and his plans. Do you remember hearing anything?"
"No, I don't. What was he saying?" She wondered where all of this was leading. It had been many months since they had been in Hojo's lab. It was a memory she would rather forget completely.
"Hojo said we were the last of our kinds and with our end, a species would be extinct." He paused to calm his tone and made eye contact with Aeris again. 'Don't back down now. What happens will happen.' "He wanted to continue both species. He proposed that our species be bred. Then, AVALANCHE rescued us from the lab."
She was silent for a moment. 'I don't want to make assumptions, but I think I know where he's going with all of this. What do I say to him?' "Oh. I didn't know that was what Hojo intended to do."
"It was at that time I...first found myself thinking about you in the aspect of a...lover. More and more I began thinking about it as I became a true part of AVALANCHE. I have very strong feelings for you, Aeris." He looked down at the floor shamefully.
"Red...I had no idea." She was in shock and speechless for several minutes after that. All she could do was stare at the obvious heartbreak that was consuming him. This hadn't been something she had ever thought about before now. Compelled by a force she couldn't identify, she moved closer to him and embraced him tightly. "It's okay," she whispered.
The tears began flowing from both of their eyes. They remained there, unmoving, for what felt like an eternity. They both spent the time deep in thought and reflection, wondering what course of action would unfold next. Unlike most extended silences between people, this was a comfortable silence that felt natural.
Aeris moved back to look into his eyes. She could sense how much he cared for her now and smiled at how close she had been to him yet hadn't seen it before. She leaned forward and kissed him. 'This is right...more right than anything else,' she thought.
Red was nothing short of astonished by the kiss. He did not respond to it, only submitted himself to her. He broke the kiss suddenly and looked at her. "Are you sure that you want this and it isn't out of pity for me? If it is, don't be hesitant to tell me. I will understand."
"I'm doing this because of how I feel for you...how I've always felt for you but just never realized it. The best things are often right under your nose, but you overlook them. I can't believe I could overlook you, though, Red."
"Call me Nanaki." This was the first time he had ever allowed someone outside of those he had called his family use his given name.
"Nanaki...such a beautiful name."
"Thank you." He yawned and arched his back. Crying had depleted his energy significantly, and it was getting very late.
"I'm tired, too. Why don't we go to my place and talk for awhile? There's a lot we need to talk about, Nanaki."
"Yes. We do have a great deal to talk about."
With that, the pair left the inn and tavern for Aeris's home. There was indeed much to be discussed...
To be possibly continued...
Please review! Should there be a sequel?
