"Mum, look at that! The General's on TV again!"

Lorraine Strife had to stifle a chuckle as she watched her son, who had been glued to the television since three 'O' clock that afternoon, jabbing his finger at the screen. It was adorable really. The SOLDIER army were doing their tours over the world the very next day to pick up new recruits for their ranks and, because of that, they had been showing related broadcasts on the Shinra Information Network channel almost solidly for the past few days. However, she'd been having constant reports about it for far longer: Cloud had never stopped talking about how the SOLDIERs were going to be coming for a few months now and, as they got this tantalisingly close all he could do was stare with eyes as wide as saucers at the processions that were being shown live on air.

"Wow, look, everybody's saluting him... he's about to make a speech and everything!"

Ever since he had been young, her son had been in complete and utter awe of the General of SOLDIER, Sephiroth. Of course he was not alone in that, it was actually quite common among the youth of Gaia these days, but it seemed to grip him with more ferocity than it did any of the other children. In fact, he was the only teenager in Nibelheim who was serious enough about his ambition to actually try out for the army, the other boys all concerning themselves with city jobs and apprenticeships as they reached maturity. The girls seemed content to stay in the village for the most part, as it was a much more comfortable place to stay than any of the big cities.

"Did you hear what he just said? It's just twelve hours away, they're coming tomorrow morning!"

"I know sweetie, I know," she replied softly, chuckling once more when her boy almost squealed with excitement. The inevitability of her son's absence had been dawning on her for a while. It hurt, of course, but if he was going to be given the opportunity he'd always wanted, the opportunity to achieve his dreams, she wasn't about to stand in his way. Mothers were tough. She could cope. Lorraine prided herself on being a tough woman, more than tough enough to raise her boy in an environment that was harsh both geographically and socially. That was just another reason to wish for her son to leave. The other children had never been kind to him and if he went to the city that might actually be a chance for him to experience real friendship, the kind that she couldn't give him no matter how much she showered him with motherly love. It wasn't the same as having somebody his own age to talk to, that much she knew. Even though there was a young girl in the village who had recently shown interest, which was something that Cloud had jumped at sheerly for the chance to talk to another teenager, she was suspicious. The girl was the daughter of their next door neighbour, the mayor, and a very popular young woman among the boys of the village. No interest had ever been expressed from her until Cloud had made up his mind and decided to leave for the big city to train in the army.

That sort of thing was very suspicious.

"Are you all packed, Cloud?"

"Ah, almost. I'll finish that now, before dinner. The show's over."

With an acknowledging nod Lorraine watched her boy get up off the living room carpet, have a good stretch and whisk himself away upstairs.

"I should really start on that dinner... something big, to make sure that he has enough energy tomorrow." It would be a long day for her son. A good hearty meal in the morning would do wonders for him, perhaps even give him the head start that he needed. The events of the next day could be vital.

December 12th, εуλ 0000

My Bedroom

Packing a bag is always hard. It's even harder now that I'm leaving the only home that I've ever known. I've never even left this village before, let alone visited the big city... am I even cut out for this?

What do I even take? My toothbrush, my clothes, my diary, they're all easy enough to decide on, but what keepsakes do I bring along? I wanna remember my mother, but all I have is a photo of her in the back of this book I'm writing in. It'll have to do. The home number's scrawled on the back, I made sure of that, so once I make it to the barracks there must be some payphone there that I can use to call home.

Home...

Is it weird that I miss it, even though I haven't actually left yet? I want to go to Midgar, of course I do, but I'll be leaving Mum all alone. But, she's just accepted it. If I back out now, that'll just be selfish. It's just nerves.

Yeah. It'll pass. I've wanted this for too long to back down now. I have to meet him at least once.

I had space for one more thing. I picked this wooden chocobo figurine that's been on my bedside table for as long as I can remember. I recall looking at that little statue when I was little as Mum stroked my hair, sending me off to sleep. It was the last thing I'd see each night. Mum always told me that Dad made it for me when she was pregnant, he was carving it with a knife by the fireplace while he waited for me to give my first kick. There's no way I can leave that behind... I can't believe I forgot.

"Thank you, Mum. That was lovely." They had had a roast for dinner, a celebration for Cloud and the fact that tomorrow he would finally be on the path to achieving his dreams. "I think you may have made a little too much though," he added with a chuckle before taking a sip from his water glass. Having an abundance of food on the table was quite a common occurrence. His mother always managed to get really good deals on food at the market with her supreme haggling skills. Because of that there was always a lot of food in the fridge that needed to be cooked before it spoiled. They had probably forgotten any concept of portion control long ago. There was no chance of meals in the army being so generous.

"I suppose you're right. Perhaps I'll have to invest in a bigger freezer once you've gone, hm?"

"Probably. You won't have your human vacuum around to suck up all the food after tomorrow." The thought was a melancholy one, although the blond tried not to show his burgeoning worries about what was to come, instead smiling at his mother before rising from his seat to clear the plates away. Once he had stacked them away on the side Cloud turned to his mother, watching her with slightly unsure eyes. What did he do now? This was going to be the last meal they ate together, for he would be up far too early in the morning tomorrow to sit and eat with her. The truck arrived at dawn and he needed to be sure not to miss it, because it would be touring the rest of the continent before driving back down to Midgar for the evening. A small tupperware container of blueberry pancakes had been lovingly prepared for him that morning so that he would have a meal on the journey.

What am I supposed to say?

"I'll see you in the morning, Cloud." The decision had been made for him. It seemed that his mother was content to just treat things like normal. Was it easier that way? Perhaps, although it might hurt more come tomorrow. A gentle kiss was planted on his forehead, although the young man hadn't even realised his mum get up from her seat, so he was somewhat surprised. "You take care now, alright? Get plenty of sleep and be sure to take your travel sickness pills with you."

"Yes, Mum. Thank you. I'll see you in the morning." The words sounded slightly hollow without him even meaning for them to. There was a way for him to make up for that, even if it meant bringing down his boundaries for a second or two. That would be something he couldn't do once he made it into the military. Without saying another word, Cloud gave his mother a quick hug around the middle. "I love you," he murmured, "Goodnight." After that he shot up the stairs towards his bedroom. If he didn't go to bed now he would be up all night thinking, anticipating, worrying. There was no way he was going to let his own head sabotage his chances tomorrow.

So this is just a little thing that I'm going to be working on on and off for a while. I'm not going to set myself a schedule for updates because that way I'll just burn myself out like with my last story, and I have college to think about now as well. Still, I hope this is okay. I just had this urge to write tonight.