The ride out of Corel had been much less eventful than their earlier travels. The group had reached Costa del Sol as the sun touched down in the mountainous west, and Tifa gasped at the beautiful scene as they came down the rolling foothills into the city. Corel had been a hotter and dirtier version of Nibelheim, but this place was like an alien landscape she had to explore.

It was too late for the ferry to Junon, and so the group went to a hotel on the beach side for the night. Tifa left the others after getting prepared for the long journey ahead, buying some extra clothing with Aerith as Genesis tsked at whatever outfit Zack was trying to purchase. The older Esper ended up matching clothing for him as Angeal chuckled quietly to himself.

She hadn't been particularly hungry, her mind and emotions taking her attention as she walked along the white sand beach in the twilight. The sky was a deep violet and the sea looked as if it were giving birth to the moon. She stopped to watch it on a lonely patch of beach, stars twinkling into existence in the night sky as the silver orb slowly rose. It was breathtaking.

"Enjoying the view?"

She quickly turned her head towards the voice, and felt her mood quickly spoil. "Cloud," she plainly greeted.

He was standing next to her with his hands behind his back, watching the scenery. "Tifa."

"What do you want?"

"I...figured right now would be a good time to talk. You have a lot of questions," he said as he turned his head to look at her. "Don't you?"

Tifa licked her lips, then faintly nodded. She needed to know whatever he would divulge. Cloud situated himself on the sands, letting his legs stretch out in front of him as his arms propped him up. She followed suit, her legs crossed and her hands in her lap. Tifa sat there for a while, composing herself as the god patiently waited on her, the gentle sound of the waves soothing her nerves. She decided to start with that which was wrapped around her neck. "Why did you do this to me?" she whispered.

"I told you, you completed a geas."

"I think I would have remembered that," she replied sharply.

Cloud sighed, then looked upward as he remembered back. "You were eight, so I suppose I can understand..." His eyes met hers again as he lowered his gaze from the sky. "There was a plague that hit Nibelheim right before summer."

Tifa's eyes lit up as she remembered, then grew sorrowful. "Yeah. My parents..."

"A lot of people died that year. I was in the area, of course. I reaped the too far gone to limit their pain." He let out a sigh. "It was because of Kadaj's influence in the area, since he was sealed nearby. Every once in a while a terrible illness hits the Nibelheim Valley because of him."

"I see." Tifa ran her fingers through the soft, glittering sand. "So...where do I come in?"

"When your parents died, you insisted on saying goodbye one last time. So, you traveled up the mountain and into my castle. I have no idea how you avoided monsters, or falling or...anything bad that could have happened.

"You came into the antechamber and asked Rapha if you could see your parents. He took you to my throne, and I was...surprised, to say the least." There was a wry smile growing on his face. "A little girl completed a geas I set up that was supposed to be difficult for an adult to do."

Tifa scratched her head. "What was the geas?"

"Travel up to the castle while I was in it, while ill with a deadly illness."

"I was sick?" she gasped.

He nodded. "Just the beginning stages. But there you were, boldly asking a god for your parents." Cloud paused for a moment to appreciate the horizon, then continued on. "I took you back down the mountain and brought you to your bed as your grandparents looked for you. I tucked your relic under your pillow, and that's how you became my Esper.

"I wasn't looking for an Esper. I wasn't looking to do this to you. But, it happened, and you really aren't a bad candidate for it."

"I'm not?"

"Well, you...have qualities I would have wanted in an Esper if I was in the market."

She cocked her head. "What kind of qualities?"

A little blush creeped into his cheeks, and he looked away. "Um...You're...kind, but you don't take any crap. Not even from a god. It's important to be strong if you're dealing with death."

Tifa snorted a little at the casual slang used by the god of death, but became somber again. "I...I wish we met under different circumstances. I mean, the festival..."

He turned back and nodded. "I didn't know that was going to happen, Tifa. My family died in a similar manner...But their souls weren't saved at all."

She looked down and into her lap. "You said those demons would devour everyone's souls, so you..."

"I'm sorry."

Tifa wasn't actually expecting him to apologize. Rationalize it away, or tell her how it meant little in the long march of time, but there it was. A meek apology. Her ears perked as he continued to speak. "I have a duty I have to do, and I know. I know it hurts to lose people you care about, I've felt it. I understand if you hate me for it. But it's my duty to relieve the dying of their suffering, and it's also my duty to keep souls intact."

"Was it really the only way?" she murmured softly towards the ocean.

"I hope I don't seem the type to kill when there's another way," he responded lowly.

She shook her head softly. "No. I don't think so. I just...miss them."

"I understand. You haven't had a chance to mourn yet."

Tifa frowned as she watched the moon's light ripple on the waves. "I don't...know. I thought I'd feel sadder," she shyly divulged. She felt guilty saying it out loud, but this was the god of death she was speaking to.

Cloud nodded slowly. "That's not as strange as you'd think. People mourn in different ways. Some do it right away, others take a while. Some never cry, but the pain is all the same. Maybe when we're done with this quest of ours, you'll be ready."

"Maybe." Her warm eyes watched Cloud as he looked back. She felt a little better, to her surprise.

He pointed at her relic. "And maybe you're ready to know how to really use that now," he stated.

Tifa looked down at it with some trepidation. The last time she had used it on accident and turned into a ghost of all things. She looked back at Cloud when she heard him stand, and she did the same. "Why did you lie about it?"

"Hm?"

"You called it a talisman. Why? Why did you hide from me?"

"Oh." Cloud looked up at the starry sky, then down at her again. "I was trying to ease you into it. Maybe I went about it the wrong way..." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, let me teach you about your relic."

"Espers are given a small portion of their god's power, you see," he began. "It's why you saw Zack as a wolf that one night. His relic let's him become a wolf."

"Wait. That was Zack?" Cloud nodded in answer to her question. "...What about the zombies? Did I...?"

He chuckled. "That was me. You can do that too, once you learn how."

She shook her head and glanced down at her necklace. "I don't know if I want to." She thought back to that night. "The fear I felt..."

"You can do that also."

Tifa stared at him. "Do what?"

He motioned with his arm. "Strike fear into others. You're working under the god of death, remember? Life fears the grave."

Her brows scrunched together. "Was that you?"

"Mm." Something changed about Cloud. His face looked more menacing than it had a second before; hollow eyed with a threatening glare that sent a terrifying tingle down her spine and into her hips. It looked as if the space he was occupying had grown darker, all the while keeping his eyes bright and dangerous looking.

And before the urge to flee overcame her he was just Cloud again, unassuming and not at all someone that would be suspected of being a deity at all. "It's occasionally useful. Wanna try?"

"How?"

So he showed her. He showed her simple techniques first, things that were easy to master. Fear, speaking to the dead properly instead of the way she had been doing it, how to create will o' wisps. She would need actual experience doing these things, but knowing how to properly use her relic's power was a good start in her opinion.

"It's getting late, and I've only showed you a little bit," he gently groused. "Death's Espers should know how to speak to the dead, how to soothe the dead, and how to bind the dead." A sardonic smile formed on his face. "They should also know how to become undead."

Tifa furrowed her brow. "How come?"

"Because it comes in handy," he said simply. "Sometimes powerful magic keeps the living out of a barrier. Or, maybe you have to make a quick escape...or, not die from an illness."

Her face grew serious. Cloud was insinuating something. "Don't tell me that was how I survived."

He nodded. "Did you think I was gonna let you die? Anyway, there's different forms of undead. There's corporeal, like zombies and vampires, and incorporeal, like ghosts and banshees."

Tifa put a hand to her chest. "Why would I wanna turn into a zombie?"

"You don't have to, you just can." Cloud put a hand on his hip. "Let's start with turning into a ghost, since you've done that before."

She looked down at her relic, then shyly glanced at him. "But I don't know how I did it."

He chuckled a little bit and took a step towards her. "It's easy when you get the hang of it. Learning how to move is a little harder, but...You did better than my first time," he admitted.

"Oh." She remembered that Cloud had been an Esper at one time; this was something he had to train for a long time ago. "You'll have to tell me how that went sometime."

He looked away. "Maybe." Again he looked at her. "Just let your relic's power flow through you, and focus on being...ethereal."

"Ethereal...?" Tifa closed her eyes and frowned. Was it that desire to get away when she was held against her will? She just wanted to be free. Free to fly away from three crazy Espers...

She meant to breathe, but there was no need or ability to; she opened her eyes in puzzlement. Cloud had a smug look on his face. Tifa looked down and noticed she looked the same as she did that night she activated her relic. Her ruby eyes went wide in amazement, and just a little unease. "Oh!"

"That wasn't so hard, was it?"

Tifa shook her head. "No, but...how do I turn back?"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, here. You need to learn how to move." Cloud walked away from her and towards the sand dunes. Then he turned back towards her, and beckoned with his hand. "Will yourself to move to me."

She floated in place. "How?" her voice asked with an eerie echo.

"You have to want to be near me."

She had to want it. Tifa looked at him. Cloud was standing there, his arms crossed over his chest and a brow raised on his face as he waited for her. Did she want to be near him? There were still some raw feelings that would take time to smooth over, though her frank talk with him had helped. Tifa stilled her mind, and decided she wanted to be floating above that patch of sand near him. She wanted to be by that sand.

Slowly, she began to move. It wasn't too difficult, though her trajectory had her a bit more to the side of Cloud than she had meant to. She moved a little further, right behind the god before stopping. He turned to her. "Whew."

"Not bad." Surprisingly, he caught her hand in his, and he gently tugged her a little closer to him. "I think I've shown you enough tonight. Alright, to turn back just focus on your relic. It'll give you back your life force."

Tifa tilted her head. "It's holding it?"

He nodded. "Keep that in mind. If your relic is too damaged, there's a chance it won't release it back into you."

She didn't like the sound of that. Still, she saw the uses of the technique. Tifa closed her eyes and focused on her relic, willing it to give her life back. It wasn't long after she found the death god holding her as she stumbled from where she floated, her head resting on his shoulder. She couldn't help but blush.

Cloud chuckled lightly. "You're a quick learner, Tifa. I—"

"Someone is coming," she murmured into his ear.

He gently let her down before turning to see who was approaching. He narrowed his eyes at the three, then crossed his arms while putting himself between them and Tifa. "Evening. A little lost?"

Cloud knew there was the risk of running into more Espers, but he had been hoping to have been able to leave the beach with Tifa before any showed up. Almost always in threes, and rarely by themselves or in a duo. As a god, he could identify whose Espers they were.

One was an older man that towered over the other two, built like a biker and carrying a lance. His light colored clothing showed underneath the black leather vest he wore and a thick greying beard made him look like he had the face of a dwarf. A relic in the shape of a silver whale nestling a light blue orb hung about his neck; he would belong to the local church of Bismark.

Another was shorter but still taller than Cloud. His hair was auburn and swept upward with a red bandana. He was lanky and wore metal bracers on his wrists and billowing, deep purple pants with a yellow shirt. His relic was two iron horns holding a fire red orb, a telltale sign of Ifrit's Esper.

The last was about as tall as Tifa, if not a decade older. She had tawny hair in the moonlight and a blue blouse. Black pants covered her legs, as well as matching boots that covered her calves. The golden rays holding a rich blue orb identified her as an Esper of Lakshmi, one of the goddesses of healing and deity over love and marriage.

The large man spoke up as he stood front and center, his lance pointing at the two. "Damned necromancers, coming to shit up the beach."

Cloud scoffed. "We were just having a nice little conversation on the beach," he said innocently. Tifa couldn't help but roll her eyes. "But it's getting late, and we need to get some sleep."

She had to wonder if he thought that was going to work, or if he was being an ass on purpose.

"Are you mouthin' off to me, you slime?"

The younger male gently knocked his comrade's arm. "Enough talkin' to the heretics, more purification."

Cloud shook his head. "You really don't want to mess with us. Just go on your way, and I'll forget about this little encounter."

There were flames spouting from the hands of the Esper. "Three against two, total cakewalk."

Before he could throw the fire at his opponents, before his comrades could spring, the very life was choked out of the air. It was suddenly very chilly, and even the moon's light was dimmed. The immediate area seemed greyer, duller. In Cloud's place was the reaper Tifa had seen in Nibelheim and had confronted while standing in front of his throne.

The god of death towered above them all.

"You have no chance against a god," said the dark voice all around them. "Leave."

"S-Sephiroth..." The woman took a step back. "This can't be."

While the older man braced himself, looking unsure as to what to do in such an impossible situation, the auburn haired man tsked. "Ifrit doesn't fear you and neither do I!"

The woman's violet eyes widened in horror. "Jatks, no!"

Two bouts of flame shot out at Cloud, but harmlessly faded before hitting the black robe that covered him. He shook his cowled head, then raised a bony claw upwards. Faint green tendrils began to wrap around it, originating from the three Espers. One by one, they fell to their hands and knees. "All bow to death."

He felt a tug on his robe, and he looked back. Tifa was giving him a pleading look with her round, red eyes. Cloud let out a sigh, then turned his head to observe the Espers. They had been woefully unprepared for this. "Let this be a lesson to you."

The tendrils unraveled, and reentered the Espers. They would be dazed for the time being, their souls halfway sucked out of their bodies not a moment ago; that would take a while to recover from. Cloud looked back at Tifa, and beckoned her to follow him towards the sand dunes and out of sight of the three. Until she mastered her abilities, he would have to watch her escapes in case any other Esper crossed their path.

As soon as they were out of sight and on a sidewalk close to their hotel Cloud changed back. "Well, that was a surprise."

She pursed her lips. "You weren't going to kill them, were you?"

He shook his head. "No." Though perhaps, he thought, he may have held onto their souls longer than was needed.

"Hm." Tifa kicked a stray pebble as they came towards the more well lit section of the sidewalk, the hotel's tower looming close now. "I suppose I'm lucky it was Zack's posse that I met in Nibelheim."

Cloud turned his head enough to look at her through his blond side bangs. "Oh?"

"Yeah. Genesis was too busy gloating and talking to do anything."

He couldn't help the grin that was spreading across his face, nor the quiet laugh that came out of him right after. "Yeah. He seems to be a real drama queen."

As they entered the hotel and then the elevator Tifa asked, "won't the Espers be on high alert for us now?"

Cloud let out a mildly annoyed grunt. "I guess it can't be helped. I'll keep them occupied, though."

"How?"

"As if you have to ask," he said sardonically.

When they entered the room they noticed Zack doing squats in front of the window. He waved at them, then walked over. "Feelin' any better?"

Tifa smiled in a bashful fashion, then slowly nodded her head. "Yeah, I do. Thank you, Zack."

Zack grinned, then looked at Cloud and winked. He chuckled when the god of death had color grow on his cheeks. "Had a moonlit walk on the beach, eh?"

"What? How—" Cloud looked at the sand dusting his boots and pants. "Oh." He shook his head, then cleared his throat. "We had company."

The Esper's face grew serious. "What kind of company?"

"Espers," Tifa replied.

"You didn't...kill them, did you?" Zack's face grew worried.

Cloud shook his head. "No, scared the hell out of them though. They'll probably be after me tomorrow, after they've prepared at the temple in town." A casual shrug lifted his shoulders. "Nothing new."

Zack visibly relaxed. "I bet. Well, I guess we can talk it over in the morning. There's not that many Espers at any given place, y'know."

"I know. I'll probably tease them through the night. Just focus on getting on the boats tomorrow, okay? If they're occupied with me, they aren't going to be a threat to you."

"Right." Zack blew a breath out and slapped his hands together. "Well, I'm gonna hit the hay. Be careful out there, Cloud."

The god seemed mildly taken aback, then nodded. "Thanks." He looked at Tifa. "...Have a good night."

"Thank you," she said quietly with a small smile. "And come back to us safe, okay?"

He scoffed. "I'm the god of death, I'll be fine," he said with some bravado. With that he disappeared from the hotel room and back onto the beach, watching the three Espers as they made their way through the sands as quickly as they could. It was time for the longest night of their lives.