Heartstrings
by TacomaSquall
Part Five:
Farewells
Cloud Strife stood on a hill-side, overlooking the City of the Ancients. The chill wind from the nearby North Glacier ruffled through his hair, which streamed out behind him. This was the first time he had returned to this place since the crisis with Meteor had ended, since the night that Sephiroth finally met his end. Now, one year later, he had returned to lay an old ghost to rest.
He walked into the city, past the crumbling dwellings of the Cetra. The City of the Ancients had not weathered the return of the Weapons and the crisis that followed, as Meteor closed with the Planet. Some of the buildings that were standing before had collapsed with the tremors that shook this area. Rubble littered the roadways. Slowly, Cloud picked his way through the rubble, making his way to the Altar.
As he walked, he remembered the last time he had walked along this road. Aeris had left AVALANCHE after Cloud had given the Black Materia to Sephiroth and collapsed in the ruins of the Temple of the Ancients. Aeris had went to the City of the Ancients to stop the madman from using the Black Materia to summon Meteor, large enough to end all life on the Planet as it struck. Upon regaining consciousness, Cloud and his companions had pursued her, knowing that Sephiroth would try to kill her, if he could.
AVALANCHE had come after Aeris. They walked down this avenue, desperate to save their friend. They had made their way to the Altar that stood at the center of the city. When they arrived, they discovered Aeris, rapt in prayer. They rushed to her side. Before they could reach her, however, Cloud felt the same compulsion that had seized him in the Temple. His friends were paralyzed, as they watched their leader's struggle. Just as Cloud had regained control of himself, Sephiroth dropped down, impaling Aeris on the blade of the Masumune.
Cloud tore his mind back to the present. His feet had taken him to the lake where Aeris was laid to rest. It was here that he said goodbye to her. Now, he had something he needed to do, words that needed to be said, and a gift to deliver.
"Aeris, I miss you. Every day, since that day, less than two years ago, I have longed to hear your voice. I miss the way that you lit up the room whenever you smiled. I miss the way the light struck your hair, and seemed to linger there, turning it a rich golden brown.
"You were our soul. While I was the planner, the brain that sent us forward into action, and Barrett was our strong right arm, you were the personification of why we fought. Even in the slums underneath Midgar, you still clung to an essential optimism that made you believe that everything would turn out right. You were the one who believed the most in what we were doing. As such, you inspired us all to greater heights of courage than we would have found possible."
As Cloud spoke, a tear slowly made its way down his face, followed quickly by another. Soon his face was covered, as he let the grief he had held in for so long find release in both his tears and his words.
"Somehow, I know that you know we beat Sephiroth and Jenova. I sensed you by our side as we fled the North Crater, Holy's energies pouring forth behind us, threatening to sweep us all away in its rush. Somehow, you turned Death aside from us, and gave us the ability to escape with our lives.
"A year has passed since then, and we are facing a new world, with new challenges and tests. It has become the mission of AVALANCHE, once terrorists, to build civilization anew. We have become heroes, and are turning our lives to help everyone build a better life, post-ShinRa, post-Meteor. Barrett, Reeve, and Cid have all become leaders of communities. I still find it hard to believe that Cait Sith was controlled by the Midgar City Planner.
"Times have been tough, since Meteor was stopped. Thousands died due to the disaster, and many more were made homeless. We have been so busy, giving people places to live, helping them find loved ones. It has taken most of the year to search out all of the survivors!"
Cloud smiled at the thought. Who would have thought that the terrorists who were responsible for doing so much damage would become the architects in building a new world? To the former SOLDIER, it was almost an act of penance for the wrongs he had done. He shared complicity in the summoning of Meteor, and, no matter what, he would help the people recover from the disaster he helped to bring to pass.
"That is not why I am here, though. To celebrate the anniversary of Sephiroth's defeat, a huge festival has been planned in Kalm. We will be revealing the plans that Reeve and Barrett have conceived for settlements to house everyone who survived from Midgar. Kalm has been overcrowded for far too long.
"Cid has discovered a new power source that is clean and doesn't have the same impact on the Planet that Mako energy does. It is based on the power that holds together all matter. Cid says that he believes that every city can become self-sufficient, with one reactor providing power, even if it was the size of Midgar!"
Cloud paused for a moment. Finally, the real reason he was here.
"Also, as part of the celebration, two members of AVALANCHE will be getting married. It will do the people good to see two of their heroes moving on into their happy endings, just as in the stories."
His voice broke. "Tifa and I are getting married, Aeris. She needs me. For so long, during the crisis, she was my strength. She was the only one who believed in me, even when I doubted my own sanity. She was the one who gave me a reason to go on, when revenge wasn't enough. Since the reconstruction, she has been the reason I have given everything to help everyone else.
"Aeris, I know that I reminded you of Zack, and that was what you responded to. When we were together, all you could see was him. I'm not him, but, knowing my departed friend as I do, I know he would have been very honored by the love you bore him until your death.
"I loved you. And every day since your death, I have wished for some way that I could turn back time, to be able to tell you how I felt, before you died. Your spirit has haunted me since I was last here. But that cannot go on.
"I have to move on. Tifa doesn't deserve to have half a man as her husband. She doesn't deserve half of my love. Somehow, I think you would understand.
"I will always love you, Aeris. I want you to know that your sacrifice inspired me to become the man I am today, which is a far better man than when we first met. You gave me the strength and courage to face and defeat my demons, both within and without. I would like to think that you would want me to continue living, to not let my loss turn me away from others.
"Yuffie found this in the ruins of Midgar. I felt it should go back to you, a testimony of the last Cetra, the young woman who saved our world.
"Goodbye, my love." Cloud knelt to the ground and placed a single, gleaming white crystal of Materia on the surface of the lake. It bobbed for a second, and then sank into the lake's depths. As it sank, the gleaming light from within the gem faded from view.
Cloud turned away from the lake and began the long walk back to the Highwind, which waited for him on the hillside overlooking the city. His love waited for him, as did his friends.
* * * *
After Cloud left the lakeside, a shimmering formed in the air. There was a sound, like the rending of cloth, and a rift in space opened. The fetor from beyond the rift smelled of decomposition and decay. A being stepped out into the pale light of the northern afternoon.
It smiled. "And so you give away the best weapon you can use against me. Soon, we shall meet, Cloud Strife. Jenova and Sephiroth were but my heralds, meant to prepare the world for me."
The form stretched itself. It stood ten feet tall, basically human in form and appearance, excluding its ebon bat-wings. pale, razor-sharp talons, and the ivory horns that protruded slightly from its head. It laughed. "The Apocalypse is almost upon you. My horsemen will be here soon, and then my arrival will be at hand. Until then, I bid you enjoy the peace and joy you have. Its end, and
my reign, are coming!"