Warmth
Note: Whoo! I'm back in the FF7 section! ^^ *waves arms around* More love-triangle-gooey-ness! ^_^; Well…a love…square. O.o ^^; Anyhoo! This fanfiction comes with a luverly soundtrack.
1 - American Hi Fi - Flavor of the Weak
2 - Enigma - Gravity of Love
3 - American Hi Fi - Another Perfect Day
4 - LFO - 6 Minutes
5 - Westlife - Uptown Girl
6 - A*Teens - Heartbreak Lullaby
7 - Pink - Don't Let Me Get Me
8 - REM - Imitation of Life
9 - P.O.D. - Alive
10 - Sarah McLachlan - Adia
11 - Enrique Iglesias - Escape
Yea, weird music mix, huh? ^^; Well, I'm a weird person. ^^; Oh well. Thank you for reading the first chapter of Warmth!!! ^^; Please read + review! Yayyy!
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Aeris Gainsborough fingered her pink ribbon absentmindedly. Her green eyes were opened halfway, sparkling from the sunset glittering on the horizon. She dropped her hand onto her lap, and bowed her head. Her eyes closed. She seemed to have fallen asleep, but her long, chestnut hair recoiled back, and slapped her back, brushing the red leather jacket she wore.
Aeris brought her head back up, blinking sleepily again. She felt the goldenrod-colored feathers of the chocobo under her fingers. The animal plodded agilely, talons padding on the soft green grass.
"Hey?" A rising voice came from behind her, "You alright?"
The woman sitting behind her had long, raven black hair. She was younger then Aeris, but taller and more well-developed. She blinked her red eyes, and tilted her head to the side. She was a truly beautiful young woman.
How pretty…
"I'm fine oneesan." She responded, turning back around.
Tifa Lockheart was not going to let Aeris go so easily. "You look like you're gonna fall over. Are you sure your all right?"
"I'm fine, I mean it." She smiled gently.
Aeris and Tifa were best friends, Aeris was older, but looked up to Tifa more as an older sister referring to her maturity rather than her age. Though Tifa had only met Aeris a few months earlier, but they had become fast friends. They were friends because they were the opposites of each other.
Tifa comfortingly patted little Aeris's head. "Be careful, you. Worry our lives out, huh?"
She smiled, and closed her eyes again. The aching of her sunburn across her arms stung harshly, and her muscles were sore from fighting, everything relaxed as she rested her weary eyes.
* * *
Sephiroth slid his fingers through his snow-touched silver hair. His emerald eyes searched the clean forest carefully. He continued, a solitary warrior, but at a odd peace with the things around him. For these things belonged to the planet, which he reigned. He drew his Masamune, and gracefully planted it into the stone nearby with his tremendous power.
He sat on one of the rocks, brooding carefully in his mind over his thoughts. His palms sweated under the thick black gloves, not from nervousness, or fear, but from intellect, and morose. Leaning back against the trees, he closed his eyes and thought. He yawned thoughtlessly, and blinked. He rose his hand to his cheek, longing to feel his icy-cold skin, but only feeling the inside of his glove.
His body ached with cold, yet he longed to feel the ice against him. It would sooth his brooding mind as it would a wound. Sephiroth laid his head back on it's side against the cold tree behind him, and heaved a sigh.
Sephiroth fingered his hair absentmindedly. How long it was! In his journeys he took care of the beautiful, odd-colored hair, but had failed to notice it's startling length. He smiled gently, and let his hair fall back down smoothly.
The forest bore silence into his ears, the tranquility pleased him. The planet seemed to pet his ravaged body like a mother to a child, the energy inside of him seemingly rising, but his body wanted to stay glued against the cold weather-beaten rocks. He sighed blissfully, content against the Planet's environment.
An itch arose on his neck, he scratched at it without a mind, but then, he glanced to it's location.
01.
That was the brand on his neck. The brand that marked his slavery. And his freedom.
* * *
Cloud Strife yawned, eagerly waiting for the sun on the horizon to set so they could make camp.
He was a thin twenty-one year old boy, who was strong, but not bulky. Cloud's eyes were the color of daybreak, the soft blue hues turning a beautiful shade. He relaxed his weary muscles, shoulders slumping. He tilted his head skyward, blinking at his own namesake.
Snowflakes?
The snowflakes dipped on Cloud's goldenrod hair, breaking at it's sharpness. They fell to his face, where they quickly melted on his warm face. He closed his eyes for a moment. He sighed, and turned around.
He watched the girls on the yellow animal with scrutiny. The snow melted easily on Tifa. She seemed to enjoy the cold water trickling down her face. He glanced towards the flowergirl in front of her. The snow lingered on her skin, accumulating. Her eyes were gently sealed, and she looked ready to tip off of the back of the bird.
"Hey--" Cloud said verbally, "Why don't we go ahead and stop. It's late."
Aeris, relieved, slipped off the chocobo and onto the soft dead grass. The sun set in the distance, she laid her head against the dirt, exhausted. Cloud slid off his bird, and knelt by her.
"Whoa, kiddo! Just fall off, why don't you?" Tifa said agressively, pulling Aeris back up with one arm. "I know you're sleepy, but please try and stay awake long enough to set up camp?"
Aeris nodded, and laid her bag of belongings down. She fingered the opening until it opened wide enough to draw out a very pretty dagger. It bore inlaid materia, which were unable to tear out. Luck materia, and speed, but it was more of a good luck charm, intricately carved. Aeris slid it back in the sack. She pulled out what she needed, and closed up the bag again. She smiled, and fell to her side.
She looked sideways, up at the snow falling onto her faded pink dress. It had already coated her lovely hair, and chilled her metal wristbands to the core.
The ground was frozen- It was definitely winter.