Disclaimer: FF7 and its characters belong to Square Enix. Adelina, however, belongs to me.

Past is Prologue

I was born on a chilly day in January, in the little town of Nibelheim. My parents were often away on their explorations, so I was left in the care of their closest friend, Mrs. Strife, whenever they were away. She was a kind woman whose husband had vanished when their son, Cloud, was only three years old. I was four years old when I lost my parents.

Mrs. Strife had been babysitting me while my parents were away on an exploration of Mt. Nibel. It was late in the day, and I had been playing with Cloud, then seven years old, in his room, when a man came and spoke with Mrs. Strife. We could hear the hushed voices of the adults from his room, but we paid no attention to what was being said and focused only on our games. But after the man left, which we heard when he shut the door behind him on his way out, Mrs. Strife came into the room with tears in her eyes.

Cloud and I had asked her why she was crying, and she had looked at me sadly. "Your parents," Mrs. Strife had choked out, bending down before me and placing her hands on my small shoulders. "They were f-found... at Mt. Nibel..." she continued, so many tears streaming down her face. "They... fell. They're gone." she had told me at last.

I hadn't understood, and I think she could tell, for she forced herself to speak again. "They're dead, Adelina... They won't be coming ho-home again..." she told me, sobbing. I had stared a her for the longest time, her words taking a while to register in my young mind. Once the words had sunk in and I had understood what she had just told me, I had cried.

I had cried for an hour, or possibly longer, until my tears had finally run out. Mrs. Strife had held me close the entire time, stroking my hair gently, while Cloud had held my hand, not knowing what else to do. There were times when I had cried out for my mother and father, although my voice cracked and sounded hoarse because my throat had gone dry. I hadn't wanted it to be true.

Part of me had thought that it wasn't true, that my parents were still alive, and yet another part of me had known that it was true, no matter how much I had wished that it wasn't. "Make them come back..." I had whispered when Mrs. Strife had tucked me into Cloud's bed that night. "Shhh." Mrs. Strife had spoken quietly, soothingly, into my ear. "I am here, dear. I will always be here for you." she had added softly.

I had sat up and clung to her as I had closed my eyes tightly shut, trying as hard as I could to escape the pain of loss that was welling up inside of my heart. She had stroked my hair, and had let me cling to her until I had become too sleepy to stay awake any longer.

From that day forward, Mrs. Strife became like a second mother to me. She had taken me in, and had cared for me as if I were her real daughter. I came to think of Cloud as my older brother. Back in those days, after I had lost my parents, Cloud and I had spent a lot of time together. It was through Cloud that I had met Tifa Lockheart, a friend of his, who has treated me like a little sister ever since the day we first met.

During the first two years after their death, whenever I would think of my parents I would start to cry. In those moments, Mrs. Strife would hold me and stroke my hair, or Tifa and Cloud would try to make me smile or laugh instead of cry.

There was one night when I dreamed of my parents and I woke with a start, crying uncontrollably. Cloud had sat with me, and he talked about his father. Cloud's father had vanished one day, when he was only three years old. Why he had left was a mystery, and whether or not he was still alive was also unknown, but Cloud remembered how hurt he had been at the time. But, there was nothing he could do to bring his father back, and he had learned to deal with his absence.

After that day, I had stopped crying about losing my parents. I wanted to be strong, like Cloud, so I wouldn't cry anymore. There are still moments when I miss my parents, but I have gotten used to the ache that it causes in my heart.

It was one day when I was ten years old when I first saw him- the most stunning man that I had ever seen in my entire life. I had been watching TV, and they had been talking about the Shinra Company's victory over Wutai, when they showed a picture of him. He was a SOLDIER, with long silver hair and striking cat-like eyes, quite muscular and with a handsome face. His name was Sephiroth. And I fell in love with him instantly.

The year following my first glimpse of Sephiroth, Cloud left home to join SOLDIER. I hadn't wanted to let him go, for I would miss him terribly, but he had made his decision and there was no stopping him. It wasn't three days later that I had announced that I would go to work for Shinra as soon as I was old enough. Neither Mrs. Strife nor Tifa had been happy about that announcement.

But, if I worked for Shinra, perhaps I would see Cloud? Maybe I would even get to see Sephiroth in person? Maybe I could even get a chance to talk with him? It must have sounded hopeless, for such a young girl to be in love with a man who must be at least ten years older than herself? Still, a girl could hope, and dream.

During the two years after Cloud had left to join SOLDIER, I spent most of my time with Tifa, and I'm thankful for her company nowadays. Some days I spent watching Tifa train with a martial artist, marveling at their strength. Other days Tifa and I would explore Mt. Nibel, despite my insecurities about traveling the place that had taken the lives of my parents.

Tifa wanted to become a guide, so that she could show people through the treacherous mountain. My parents hadn't been the only ones whose lives had been claimed by Mt. Nibel through the years, and Tifa wanted to try and prevent any more disastrous falls.

When I wasn't with Tifa, I was at home, watching the news on the TV, looking through newspapers, or rifling through mail, hoping for a letter from Cloud. We hadn't heard from him, and I had been very worried.

And then came the day that would change everything...