Disclaimer: Final Fantasy VII is the property of Square Enix. I do not own any of the characters except OCs.
A/N: This chapter gets into a little hint of Zana's past, and is unfortunately mostly angst and little action. I promise I will soon be getting back to the exciting, non-injured Cloud we all know and love. And the other main characters are soon to be introduced, so please bear with me! :)
Zana walked down the streets of Edge in a daze, too overcome by her own confusion and fear to care where she was going. Her feet seemed to move of their own accord; her eyes, although open, saw nothing. The realization that Cloud Strife had been the boy in the photo, the one she had been seeking for the last nine years, had been almost too much for her to take in. Her dreams had been filled with the glaring faces of her parents and the Turks; Zack stared down on her in disappointment as she tried to apologize to him, and yet no words would come out. Cloud Strife. He was the one she had been trying to find for so long, the one who could explain what had really happened to Zack all those years ago. But would he be willing to talk to her if he knew who she really was? Would he ever look at her with kindness in his eyes again?
"What do I do?" she whispered, on the verge of tears as she looked skyward. "Oh, Gaia, what do I do?"
As soon as the words left her lips, the world around her melted away, replaced instead by an endless white light. Delicate golden and cream-colored flowers grew in thick patches around her feet; they were sweet-smelling and earthy. Fallen flower petals danced around her and her hair was tossed by a gentle breeze she could not feel against her skin. This place, wherever it was, was soothing. Her mind felt calmer, and her body was suddenly warm.
A tall figure appeared out of the light, silently striding toward her on long legs. His deep blue eyes danced with laughter above a kind smile, and the whole picture was framed by a shock of choppy raven-colored hair. An X-shaped scar adorned his left cheek, and an enormous broadsword was strapped to his strong back, making him look even more dignified in his black SOLDIER uniform.
When he reached her, Zack said nothing, instead extending a hand and wiping a tear from her cheek. Zana hadn't even noticed she was crying. He shook his head, smiling at her before wrapping his arms around her in a strong hug as she buried her face in his shirt and wept.
"What is it?" he asked gently, patting her head and holding her tighter. "It's been four years I've been gone, and you've never called me here before. You must really need me, huh?" Zana did not answer him, but her sobbing eased a little. "It's alright. You can tell me if it's my fault. I know it was really hard on you when I returned to the Lifestream." Zana looked up at him, her eyes brimming with unshed tears, and it was almost like looking into the past.
"No…" she whispered, shaking her head. "No. It's not… I just… I miss you…" Zack smiled and closed his eyes, blinking away tears of his own.
"I miss you, too, Zana. I'll always miss you, and everyone. But look at you! You're so grown-up now!" He held up a piece of her long, spiky black hair with a chuckle. "Why'd you cut your hair like that? It was so pretty when it was long."
"Don't be silly!" Zana smirked as she gently punched his arm. "You already know why. I did it for the same reason you did – to honor a mentor."
"Oh, so now I'm your brother and your mentor? Man, if only you coulda said that in front of Mom and Dad. They probably would've died laughing when they thought of me as someone's mentor!" He faltered, then, his face sobering. "But that's not the reason you're here, is it?"
"So you think you get it?"
"I'm your older brother – it's my job to know things before you do. So, let me guess: you're crushing on Spiky." Zana blushed a little, giving Zack an impatient snort.
"Zack, I'm twenty-five. I do not crush on anyone." He laughed and ruffled her hair, like he used to do when they were young.
"Okay, okay. Anyway, you like him, huh?" The glint in his eyes said he already knew the answer.
"I think so, yes."
"So then what's the problem?"
"Well, I'm afraid if he finds out that I knew you and didn't say anything –"
"Eh, don't worry about all that. He's a little broodier than he used to be, but he's still the same old Cloud underneath. He'll be as happy to learn everything as you will. Just be a good friend to him, and he'll be one to you, too. At least that's how it worked out for me." Zana cast her eyes downward, afraid to ask the next question she had had on her mind for almost five years.
"So, Zack… Cloud… He didn't take you away from us, did he? You didn't die… because of him?" Zack's eyes widened, and he took both of Zana's hands in his and held them there firmly.
"Zana, look at me," he said sternly. She did, and he stared into her eyes with fierce, piercing clarity. "Don't you worry about that one bit, you hear me? No matter what anyone may have told you, Mom and Dad especially - they hated ShinRa, and the idea that I died to save someone who was part of ShinRa. Cloud was the best friend I had in this world. My time here was up, and I gave my life so he could live his a little longer. Understand? And someday, I was hoping to introduce you two."
"You were?"
"Yep. He's my living legacy, Zana. But more than that, I think you two would really hit it off if you gave yourselves the chance. He's really the one who's gonna have a tough time of it, but still, if you give him a little patience and accept the fact that he's dealing with a lot of demons, I think you two could become inseparable." Suddenly Zack's form became clouded, and his voice began to die away. A pair of white wings furled out behind his back, and his face was calm and peaceful.
"Zack! Zack, don't go!" Zana cried, reaching out for him in vain. The flowers were vanishing, and the shapes of buildings were dirtying the pure white light around him. As quickly as it had come, the peaceful garden vanished, and she was standing in the dirty, empty streets of Edge once again. No time had passed; her feet still kept walking until she realized it and halted. She sighed and looked mournfully up at the perpetually gray sky. "Zack…"
A high-pitched scream interrupted her reverie. Whirling around in a quick about-face, she scanned the streets for the source of the disturbance. The sound of panicked shouting and rapid, stumbling footfalls built to a deafening roar; so far, though, even her mako-enhanced vision was not able to see anything beyond the miles of steel in all directions. A cold glint of anticipation shone in the SOLDIER's icy eyes, making them stand out like a blue moon in a starless sky. All at once, a river of people burst out from between the buildings like a waterfall over a dam, shouting and cursing and nearly trampling one another in their attempts to flee. Most were adults, but from where Zana stood she could see two young children being forced along in the tide of frantic bodies; one was a little girl with a gray dress and a pink ribbon in her long brown hair, and the other was a boy not much older than her with sandy-brown hair and frightened eyes.
Zana's breath caught in her chest when she realized just what their pursuer was. Not far behind the mob was a large, black creature with a hooked tail and strangely elongated snout, its jaws dangerously close to snapping distance. A Shadow Creeper. Without a moment's hesitation, Zana leapt toward the beast, her eyes flashing and the bangle around her wrist glowing orange. She recognized the two young ones as Cloud's children, Denzel and Marlene. Now this was personal. Her long legs carried her in enormous, sprinting bounds toward the children, and she reached out a hand to grab them.
Mere fractions of a second before she reached them, the Shadow Creeper sprang. Marlene, younger and not as fast, saw it coming and pushed Denzel out of the way; he landed heavily against the asphalt, dazed but unharmed. Marlene, however, was not so fortunate – the hideous beast's jaws caught her around the chest, shaking her as it continued to run amok.
"No!" Zana shouted at Denzel as he attempted to follow them. She breezed past him and continued in hot pursuit. "Leave it to me! Stay here and stay hidden!" Denzel obeyed; Zana's presence was confident and intimidating, and he somehow trusted her to take care of it. She sprang for the tail of the beast and held on tight – the sharp, cutting tip of the appendage ripped deep into the flesh of her hip, and she hissed in pain but did not release her grip. The materia-filled bangle was shining in a trio of red, blue, and gold lights.
"FIRAGA-THUNDAGA-BLIZZAGA!" she shouted as the spells were released. The Shadow Creeper roared and dropped Marlene, trying to bite Zana as it lashed out in pain with its tail. She dropped easily to the ground and dodged its flailing body, sighing tiredly as its body dissolved into a river of Lifestream-bound energy. This simple task completed, she strode over to attend to Marlene. The little girl was dazed and had a few scrapes but was otherwise unhurt. Smiling gently, Zana knelt down and scooped Marlene into her arms, holding her tightly. Denzel was not far behind, and he looked worriedly between Marlene and Zana.
"Th-thank… you…" Marlene whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. She broke into sobs and laid her head against Zana's shoulder, weeping in both fear and relief. Zana just hugged her tighter and stroked her hair, gently rocking her and trying to console her.
"Shh…" she crooned. "It's alright, Sweetie. It's gone now, you'll be safe." Marlene looked up at her with shiny, fearful eyes.
"W-we… We were…" She couldn't finish the sentence; she was still too shaken. Zana turned an inquisitive eye to Denzel.
"We went looking for Tifa," he finished. "She left in a hurry, and we thought she sounded really angry, so we wanted to help…"
"Angry? At you and Marlene?"
"No. At Cloud." Zana felt her pulse quicken at the mention of the blond's name and hoped Marlene could not feel it.
"I see. Why was she mad at him?"
"…"
"You don't know?"
"Well, it's… He…" Denzel tried unsuccessfully to explain.
"It's because," Marlene said hesitantly, "he likes you. But Tifa doesn't like that he likes you." Zana blinked several times, taken aback.
"Likes… me?"
"Yeah," Marlene said with an innocent smile. "At least I think he does. He gets all red whenever–"
"Shh, Marlene!" Denzel hissed. "I don't think he'd like us talking about that!"
"Oops! Um, Miss Zana? Is that your name?"
"Yes."
"Don't tell Cloud I told you, okay? He'll get mad." Zana smiled brightly.
"I can't really imagine him getting mad, but alright. We'll keep this our little secret. By the way, does Cloud know you're gone?" Both of the kids' faces fell a little.
"W-well, by now, maybe…"
"That's what I thought." Ignoring the bleeding gash in her side for the moment, Zana took their hands and set off for Seventh Heaven. "Let's get you two home."
