(A/N: Well, hi there! It's kind of been about 4 or 5 years, but I've decided to try my hand at writing again. This particular piece is a sequel to my friend Alexis (midnightcherryblossom)'s story, Red Dream (Story ID 2536671 )

In another fun twist, Alexis may *also* be writing a sequel, so you'll have two different versions of Alathea and Alexia's next step in their journeys! (Confused yet? That's okay, me too. Enjoy the ride.) I'm really looking forward to seeing where this goes. Oh, and I own NUFFINK of the Final Fantasy sort. Not even Alathea, who is shamelessly based on my likeness.

Also! You'll occasionally see a song title in italics. I'm plugging these in intermittently to give you a general feel for the "scene" at hand, either in regards to the lyrics or the energy that the song brings. Feel free to plug them in YouTube while you're reading to take a step into my brain region. Or just completely ignore them! The freedom of choice is yours, my friend. Anyway, ONWARD!)

Prologue

In a short, soundless burst of light, two girls in their teens fell gracelessly on the 50 yard line of a football field in a little-known town. They landed with a grunt, flattening themselves onto the moist, chilly grass; around them, the world carried on as if nothing had happened.

Minutes passed, and finally the brunette sat up with a groan. She blinked rapidly, waiting for the area around her to come into focus; her stomach still churned from whatever mystery journey had gotten her here. The ferry….that strange man… it seemed like ages ago.

Finally, it occurred to her; she was home again. In front of her stood the gargantuan bleachers that proudly proclaimed their hometown name – turning behind her, she noticed the chainlink fence that seperated the field from the residential area; namely, Alathea's house.

As if on cue, the blonde form next to her wiggled to life.

"Did we make it?" she moaned, spitting out a rogue blade of grass. Alexia sighed and helped pull her to a sitting position.

"It would seem so."

Alathea shook the dizziness out of her head, then paused to take in her surroundings. Her heart began to race when she noticed a familiar red house across the fence.

"Let's go!"

She shot up, fumbling a little under her weak legs, and took off towards the field's exit. Alexia scrambled up next, shouting in protest.

"Alathea, wait!"

She sprinted as fast as she could, eventually catching up with her best friend near the street's entrance to the stadium. Gently grabbing Alathea's arm before she could round the corner, she pulled her to a stop.

"Alexia, what's the problem! We have to go see our families!"
"It's been months, Thea! Our faces have probably been on the evening news…they may even have presumed us dead at this point!"

As was the usual circumstance, Alexia's logic weighed out Alathea's impulsiveness. Both girls stood there, panting, letting the situation fully ripen.

Almost a year ago, they'd been captured against their will (at the time) and sent to Gaia in order to help in the fight against Jenova and her new army of clones. They'd gone through an immense amount of changes, emotionally and most notably physically. In fact, it had been brought to their attention that they'd never really belonged to earth in the first place. Their true race had been long extinct, and their parents had sent them to the planet at birth in a frantic attempt to save them. It was their race that truly helped in the recent epic battle – no human girls could have aided that much. The Lillyous, upon fighting to the point of exhaustion, came to tranform into their ultimate form – towering and monsterous. In the time leading up to the final battle, Alathea and Alexia had inevitably found romances with Kadaj and Yazoo, but found it too much to handle in the wake of everything happening; an information overload in the form of a potential new needed to come home, and home is where they now were.

"Dead…..?" Alathea tasted the word with a look of discomfort on her face. Suddenly, a wave of grief hit her; her mom, her brother, Mark…it would have destroyed them to think her dead. Alexia seemed to be in the same headspace as the color drained from her naturally tan complexion. She bit her fist for a brief moment, shaking her head.

"What do we tell them we've been doing for the past few weeks?" Her eyebrowns knitted as she did the mental math. "Months?"

The silver haired men barely had furniture around, due to their inability to stay in one spot for very long without being chased out. Naturally, they didn't have wall calendars with kittens on them hanging around the kitchen, so it was difficult to tell how much time had really passed.

The world swirled around them. When they'd been sent to Gaia, it never occurred to them that a trip back could or would happen. When they did 'book' the trip back home, what to do once they got there had been the last of their concerns. Typical. Never living outside of the moment.

Alathea sunk into a squatting position, burying her face in her hands while she thought about the situation.

"Long night last night?" laughed an oddly familiar voice. Her eyes shot open between her fingers and Alexia nearly fell over.

"Linda!"

Alathea shot up. Surely enough, being led down the sidewalk by their faithful family dog came her mother, looking…normal? She sprinted over to her, nearly tackling the small grey-haired woman in a huge hug. Her mother laughed and returned it with one arm.

"Surprised? I got to come home from the business trip a little early ; got in late last night and tried to make you breakfast this morning, but you were gone! I figured you'd gone to Lex's old place."

Over her mother's shoulder, Alathea's mouth fell open as shock registered all over her body. She stared at Alexia, who was reeling from the same realization. The business trip…she was on a business trip when they left. That in addition to the lack of shock at their disappearance…

They broke the hug, and Alathea's mom trotted on.

"Thea, do me a favor and wash up the rest of the dishes, would you? We've got company tonight. Good to see you Alexia!"

Alathea and Alexia stood perfectly still until Linda was out of sight, and at the same time, broke into a sprint towards the house. Stumbling in the front door, the familiar smells of the home enveloped them. Alexia stole a glance at the back door from the living room.

Just as the two were getting comfortable, motorcycle engines roared and halted in their driveway. Alathea felt the fear creep over her body as she awaited the familiar sound of the door being blown off. Alexia was out. The blast came a moment later.

She shuddered, remembering how terrified they'd been that night. Then, just as quickly, she remembered that their 'scary' captors had a tendency to walk around in their boxers and thin grey robes, and got mad when Alathea stole all their candy. She giggled softly to herself at the memory.

"Lex!"

Alathea stood at the top of the stairs, motioning for her to follow. Alexia jogged up to meet her, and the two opened their bedroom door.

It was like walking into a waking memory.

The blinds to the left of the room were haphazardly pulled up, revealing a perfect view of the football field from a sniper's point of view. The bunk beds were unmade, showing slight signs of a struggle from where they'd been picked up. And then…

The two girls simultaneously glanced to their right at the television mounted on the wall. Staring back at them were three silver haired men, sitting atop their motorbikes at the peak of a canyon. As Alexia and Alathea seemed to walk through this memory, tears welled in their eyes as they peeked at a still frame of their newest.