Too Late?

Aerith sighed softly as she travelled along the shore of Costa De Sol beach. Although it was dark, she was not afraid. There were streetlights on up on the path above, stretching out onto the sands below and Aerith was certain that should anything happen, somebody would have a clear view of the beach.

But her bravery was waving slightly as she kept looking over her shoulder, sure that she could hear footsteps following. However, whenever she had looked, there had been nobody there. For what seemed like the thousandth time, she turned her head back around to look in front of her. Her heart stopped as she came face to face with the cold face of Sephiroth.

She instinctively took a step back, her eyes wide with fear. The moment her foot moved though, he reached out and grabbed her wrist so tightly she was sure it was cutting off the circulation. She struggled and opened her mouth to scream but as soon as she did, he pressed a gloved hand over her mouth, cutting it off.

"I want to see the look on Cloud's face when he sees your body in the morning,"

he whispered coldly, his hand moving from her wrist to wrap around her waist. Her kicks and struggles went unnoticed as he dragged her backwards, stepping into the water.

"No!" she cried although his hand swallowed the word. He just smirked as he continued stepping into the deeper parts of the water. Aerith's eyes scanned the place desperately. Surely, Red XIII, who slept outside would see or hear what was happening. He would alert Cloud and everything would be all right.

The feeling of cold water took her by surprise breaking her thoughts as Sephiroth forced her whole body below the surface. His hand had removed itself from her mouth to push on her shoulders, holding her in place. Now the water swallowed all her screams instead. Her hands instinctively threw themselves on top of his, trying to push them away as she struggled to break free.

Please…not like this…I don't want to die!

An image of Cloud appeared before her eyes as those last thoughts swam through her mind as she slipped into unconsciousness, falling limp in her killer's hold.

"Cloud! Cloud you have to wake up! Sephiroth has Aerith!" Red cried as he burst into the hotel room. All four occupants sat bolt upright and Cloud's blue eyes could be visibly seen in the darkness, wide with worry. He threw his covers off and grabbed his sword before he, Yuffie, Tifa and Barret followed the firewolf outside.

"I would have gone to her myself but there was no way I could have taken him on!" he explained as they charged across the sands. Cloud scanned the horizon and the beach for any sign of the silver-haired man but there was none.

"Where are they?" he wondered aloud.

"Last I saw, Sephiroth had an arm around her and was dragging her away," the firewolf replied.

Yuffie suddenly screamed, followed by a similar pitched sound from Tifa. The three males turned to look and immediately froze. Aerith's limp body was floating through the waters. Cloud broke out of the trance first. He dropped his sword and sprinted into the waters, running through the waves until it became too deep and he was forced to swim. He hooked one arm around her waist and rested her head on his shoulder as he dragged her back to the shore. Yuffie's eyes were wide with shock and Tifa's skin had turned an unnatural shade of white as Cloud lay Aerith down on the sand and pressed his ear against her chest.

There was no heartbeat.

He moved his head to her mouth, praying against all things holy that he would feel her breath against his skin.

But she wasn't breathing.

"No," he whispered, pushing her damp hair from her face. He turned to the group.

"Red, Yuffie you guys can run the fastest. You two go and find help!" he commanded. "Tifa, you start CPR, Barret count her in." Red and Yuffie sprinted towards the steps, disappearing into the darkness. Tifa knelt by the flower girl's side, clasping her hands together and placing them on her chest. Barret swallowed thickly before he started counting.

"One…two…three…four…five…"

Cloud tilted her chin up, parting her lips as Tifa continued pumping with her hands in time with Barret's counting.

"Eleven…twelve…thirteen…fourteen…fifteen..."

Tifa's hands stopped and Cloud took his cue. He leaned over the Cetra, pinching her nose and pressing their lips together, he breathed into her mouth. He pulled back for a second before repeating but her chest was still not rising and falling on its own. Barret started counting again as Tifa forced herself to continue CPR through her tear-blurred vision. Each time they reached fifteen counts, Cloud took over with mouth-to-mouth, desperately trying to bring her back from the dead.

"Cloud…" Tifa whispered after ten minutes. She glanced at Cloud, the tears streaming down her face. Cloud didn't pay her any attention as he breathed for the flower girl again. "Cloud I think she's…"

"She'll make it!" he snapped though his voice was starting to break with the emotion. She stared at him for a second before clasping her hands over the woman's chest once again. Cloud unconsciously ran a hand across the brunette's forehead. "For me Aerith, come back for me."

After a further five minutes, Tifa sighed and stepped back. "She's gone Cloud," she said sadly. Barret was silent, staring at the pink-clad woman lying still on the sand below him. The blonde shook his head.

"No," he whispered brokenly. "No!" he cried, scooping her limp form into his arms. There was no point in holding back anymore; he just let his sobs be swallowed by her hair as he held her against him. He barely registered Yuffie and Red XIII returning with a doctor, not that it mattered anyway. Aeris was gone. She would never laugh, smile, cry, or get angry again.

And Cloud could never say he loved her.