Cloud began dreaming of Nibelheim burning once they left Cosmo Canyon. He awoke in a panic each night as Sephiroth appeared. Try as he might he could not escape the sight of the man he thought he knew standing in a sea of flames. Cloud had failed in every possible way that night; not one of his actions had lead to a saving grace. He had been unable to save his town, his mother or Tifa. Arriving too late to prevent her near fatal blow, he only reached his friend once she was bleeding on the cold metal floor of the reactor. Small wonder he had never once entertained the notion of returning, though he had not thought of his home before Kalm. But now he had no choice but to go back; crossing the mountains required following the path from Nibelheim. The pursuit of Sephiroth made it unavoidable.

Each night he stumbled from his tent, the cool air outside helping disperse the clinging memories. The devastating sight of flames rushing from his home to join the pillar of smoke surging into the night sky was still so vivid. Even as he calmed, the thought of re-entering the stuffy tent became intolerable. He had taken to relieving whoever was currently keeping watch and sitting by the fire as the night wore away. Tonight though, he found Aeris watching his tent as he emerged. It was neither her turn nor did she seem surprised to see him. Smiling, she patted the ground beside her.

He had wanted someone to talk to, someone to distract him from his worries; Aeris was the perfect choice. Their reunion in Cosmo Canyon had been so amazing, and she now took every opportunity to get them together. It felt so right, so good, and the desire to spend as much time with her as possible resurfaced. But as before he had agreed to be just her temporary bed-mate. Maybe he should just continue to enjoy it and hope for something more in the future? Was it possible their arrangement was only like this because of their journey? What would they do once they foiled Sephiroth's ambitions?

Cloud resolved to tell her how he felt when things were calmer, bracing to accept her rejection if it came to it. If she no longer felt comfortable around him they could part ways and never see each other again. The thought was unpleasant, but he had no idea how he would act if he confessed his feelings and Aeris did not return them. He frowned; did it make sense for the possibility of her rejecting him to exist when they were sleeping together? For some reason he was not as confident as he might have been once.

"Nightmares again?" Aeris asked as he approached, her gaze drifting to the flickering flames.

Cloud sat beside her and stared into the fire. Despite its significance in his dreams, the sight of it did not affect him, and to his surprise played no part in the foreboding.

"Yeah," he admitted after a pause.

"Is it about... tomorrow?"

He nodded. "I'm just... worried about what we're going to find."

"And so you can't sleep?" He shook his head. "Want to talk about it?"

"Do you think it'll help?"

Aeris turned to look at him and he found himself staring into her emerald eyes.

"I can at least try to distract you from your problems," she grinned after holding his gaze for a moment.

Cloud found himself smiling in response. "I don't think you'll have any problems." He lifted an eyebrow.

Aeris sighed. "Not like that. And it's pretty much off the cards tonight," she said, sounding a little regretful. It took Cloud a moment to catch the implication. Oh.

"I didn't mean like that," he exclaimed.

"I'm sure you didn't," Aeris said in an unconvinced tone. She leant against him, squirming for a moment until she found a comfortable position. She grumbled as he moved his arm but sighed with contentment as he slid it around her waist. They sat in silence for a few peaceful, comfortable moments until Aeris spoke again.

"You know I'm here for you tomorrow, Cloud. So is Barret, Nanaki, Yuffie and Cait Sith. We're all here for Tifa too; we'll help you both if you need us." Cloud glanced at the girl curled against him.

"I know. Thank you."

Aeris fidgeted, her fingers pulling at the ribbon in her hair and clutching at the tiny cargo within. Her braid collapsed into waves of auburn hair that flowed across her shoulders. Aeris brought both hands down to her lap, laying the ribbon flat across her legs. Lifting the small sphere of materia up to her eye-line she stared at it. It was so unusual to see materia like that. Once Cloud might have entertained the notion that the memento was nothing more than a tinted marble. But he had seen his partner in combat so many times, seen her use magic to devastating effectiveness. Aeris knew how to use materia and how to use magic. She would know if that was not a crystallized fragment of the Lifestream. With a sigh Aeris dropped her hand.

"I still can't get it to do anything," she said, sounding frustrated.

"Can... can I try?" he asked almost before he knew what he was saying. He had never dare ask before; Aeris always took great care to stow the materia somewhere safe before any of their clinches. Ever since she first mentioned her useless materia, he had wondered what it might feel like.

She regarded him for a long moment before lifting her hand up. "Sure."

Aeris kept her hand cupped and he felt the warmth of her skin as his fingers brushed against her palm. A familiar chime-like sensation ran through him as he made contact with the sphere. With any other materia he would now expect to gain some new knowledge and find it occupying his mind until he let go. But there was nothing here. No spells now hung on the tip of his tongue, no motions of his hands or mental processes came to mind as if magic was second nature.

There was nothing within the sphere. He gripped it a little tighter, searching through his mind for a hint, an overlooked idea he had not known before. This sole memento of her mother was so frustrating; to feel in every-way like a materia and yet containing nothing.

Perhaps this was a by-product of the crystallization process? Maybe Shinra produced thousands of similar dead spheres alongside the manufactured spell materia. They were useless and so wound up destroyed or discarded. And this one had found its way to Aeris's mother, who concluded it lacked someone skilled enough to trigger the spell within. No. He did not want to believe that either. It seemed implausible that an Ancient could have made such a fundamental mistake. Nor that there could be discards like this he had never heard of or run across.

He handed the sphere back to her with a shake of his head. "No, I can't get anything out of it either."

Aeris nodded, cradling the materia in her hands. "I thought maybe it's not a powerful spell and that's why it's so small. And maybe the reason it never did anything before was because of Midgar. But I keep trying it everywhere we go. I figure if it didn't work in Cosmo Canyon there's not a lot of hope of it working here. I just wanted to try."

Cloud smiled. "It might have worked. I hope we figure it out one day."

"Me too." Silence fell for a moment. "Maybe it's something like I'm not strong enough? Hojo... Hojo said something about me not being as strong. If I was like my mother, might I be able to use it?"

"The last thing either of us should worry about is something Hojo said," Cloud replied as quick as he could. Even the mention of the man's name sent a chill down his spine. "It's obviously materia, it just doesn't seem to contain a specific spell."

Aeris hummed in agreement, her gaze now flitting around the campsite, settling on a small group of flowers. "Do you know much about the flowers around here?"

Cloud followed her gaze, wondering at the abrupt subject change. "Some, but I'm no expert."

She smiled. "I've been thinking about my garden back home, well, gardens. I was thinking I should have been taking seeds or cuttings from all the places we visited."

"And start growing them?"

"Mmm. Well, if I ever can go back without Shinra grabbing me again. I just wish I'd thought of it earlier. Even some of the swamp growths would have been fun to try. And the flowers in the woods where we met Yuffie, and that field just outside Costa del Sol-"

"Don't forget the cacti in Cosmo Canyon," Cloud added, his mind recalling their previous stops.

"Yes!" Aeris's voice rose in volume, her eyes wide. "Now those would be a challenge. I'd never seen anything like them before. Well, I suppose you could say that about so many things. Thanks to meeting you I've seen so much more of the world. I'm not convinced I could have gotten out of the city before."

"Well, you're out now and miles from Midgar."

"Yep." She smiled. "Hey, Cloud? It feels kind of selfish and a bit crazy given who we're chasing, but I kind of hope we wind up following Sephiroth all over the world. Just so I can see it all. Even if it's just this one time."

Cloud contemplated her words. "That is a little crazy. But I can understand it. Though there's no reason we can't carry on after we find Sephiroth. And we can always go back to the places you missed later. Why not start collecting things for your garden now?"

"I like the way you think, Mister Strife."

He smirked. "Happy to be of service Miss Gainsborough."

"So, what is that flower over there?" she asked pointing.

Cloud squinted at the flower. "If I remember right it's called 'Glory-of-Nibelheim'. It forms its blossoms in the season before winter so its ready to bloom as soon as the snow recedes. Tough plant."

"I've never seen snow," Aeris remarked still staring at the flower.

"Unfortunately, or maybe not, it's the wrong time of year for it. In mid-winter we used to get heavy snow; getting in or out of the town was a real chore. We should be at least a month or two off the first snowfall."

"It would have been nice to see. Maybe if we wind up heading further North..."

She trailed off and Cloud was becoming ever conscious of the warm form pressed against him. Her presence was calming and restful as he listened to the faint sound of her breathing. The tune surprised him when it started, and he felt foolish it took so long to realize it was Aeris was singing. Aeris sang in an alien, yet enchanting tongue unknown to him. He did not recognize the lyrics or the tune, but there was something so familiar about it. Each note seemed to relax his muscles a little more, his eyelids becoming heavy fast. As the last note faded into silence his tongue tripped over itself as he rushed to compliment her.

"T-that was..."

She smiled, tinged with sadness. "A lullaby my mother used to sing on nights when I couldn't get to sleep. I thought maybe it might help you a little? Normal conversation wasn't exactly making you nod off."

Cloud nodded, growing distracted. Had that been magic just then? He stifled a yawn.

"I'll take that as a yes," she replied. "Come on Cloud. You can't sleep out here."

He grumbled, wanting to tell her he would be happy to sleep next to her anywhere. Resisting the impulse, he let her tug him to his feet and direct him towards his tent. Stopping him just outside, she pressed her lips to his. "Sleep tight, and don't forget. We're all here for you."

Cloud smiled, head full of fuzz as sleep started tugging him down. The ground would be comfortable, right? A hand on his back pushed him forwards and he crawled to his sleeping mat. The sound of Barret's machine-gun like snore sounded distant and unimportant. Without another thought he slipped into deep, dreamless sleep.

Aeris's eyes blinked open and she sucked in stale air, pushing herself up into a sitting position as her breathing calmed. A shiver ran through her, the vestiges of the dream departing, her senses adjusting to wakefulness. The dream had been nothing but darkness, Aeris unable to move or breath. Trapped deep inside the Planet, away from the surface, away from precious air. In that darkened prison not even the Lifestream could comfort her. The Planet's lifeblood twisted and coiled away refusing to come nearer. She had cried out, calling for help. But there had been nothing but mile after mile of solid rock between her and the surface.

Her nightmares began after they left Nibelheim and decreased in intensity as they moved down Mount Nibel. It had now been three days since Cloud had stared at the perfect replica of his town in bewildered confusion. Three days since Cait Sith doubted Cloud's story, despite Tifa's corroboration of events. Three days since the alarm, confusion, and unanswered questions. As much as the two Nibelheim residents could confirm this was their home, the sight of it still unnerved them both. A perfect carbon copy of a lost town rather than a five-year older version of their home. No new buildings, no modifications, no signs of any kind of technological advancement. Nibelheim had been slow to change, but this settlement was near anachronistic. Yet the town's timeless nature did not extend to its inhabitants; not one recognized either Cloud or Tifa. They in turn recognized no one living there. Defensive strangers were in both their former homes; unwilling to entertain talk of a fire in recent history.

They found fragments of an explanation later, learning the lengths the Shinra company had gone to. How much effort they would exhaust to hide the fate of the once mighty Sephiroth. Despite the scale of the subterfuge, one structure had at least aged in the intervening years; the Shinra mansion. Even though it allowed the freeing of Vincent, Aeris wished they had not entered the building. The laboratory below was the place Cloud watched all semblance of sanity slip from Sephiroth's eyes. The place where the silver-haired man had found his murderous purpose in life and lashed out at the townsfolk. But going there became inevitable; among the fake denizens were mysterious, black-cloaked figures. They seemed to react to Cloud's presence, offering slurred, cryptic messages. Messages that hinted at the presence of their quarry within the mansion.

In the lab two human sized containers of bubbling Mako drew Cloud's gaze in a way that seemed to both terrify and confuse him. Stained medical equipment littered the subterranean chamber, the smell of old blood in the air. Something monstrous had once happened here, something that Vincent knew more of but refused to speak.

"Being here brings back memories, doesn't it?" The voice came from around a turn in the lab. A man with silver hair stopped perusing a nearby shelf and turned to face them. Sephiroth. "Are you going to participate in Reunion?" he asked, staring at Cloud, unfazed as the group scrambled for weapons. Cloud took a cautious step forward.

"Reunion?" he asked, tilting his head to one side.

"Yes." Sephiroth sounded almost gleeful as he continued, relishing his words. "We will reunite with Jenova and she will once more become the calamity from the skies."

The absurdity of the words did not affect Cloud. "Is... Are you saying Jenova is from another world?"

Sephiroth stared at the former SOLDIER, his eyes narrowing and disdain entering his voice. "I am not sure if you have the right to take part. If you still wish to try, go North, past Mount Nibel."

Cloud's fingers darted to his sword, but it was too late; Sephiroth was already in motion. He moved upwards in eerie silence, passing through the stone ceiling of the lab leaving no trace he had even been there. In the seconds that followed, Aeris noticed Tifa's panicked breathing. She caught the martial artist's hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. They needed to get out of the town. It was now imperative; this bastard replica of what had once been Cloud and Tifa's home was doing neither of them any good.

Aeris took charge, eager to be above ground and out in the open again. Even at the top of the spiraling staircase was not far enough away. She felt strangled in the dust and more or less innocent gloom of the manor; they needed to get out. She needed to get Cloud and Tifa out. And she could not rest until they were, pausing only as Vincent stumbled in the afternoon sun. The former Turk held one clawed hand up to keep the sun's rays from his face, eyes squinting in the bright light.

There was only the briefest debate about what to do next; anywhere else they would have made use of the town's inn. In the aftermath of the mansion there was a shared uneasiness about this place; no one felt comfortable there. Aeris had misgivings about following the path North towards Mount Nibel. Did it make sense to follow the route their quarry suggested and cross the mountain? But if it were a trap, it had no skill, no subtlety about it. They set out from the town in the fading afternoon light, taking a chance.

Later, Aeris was unsure she had made the right decision as night began to fall. They made camp in a cramped fissure on the mountainside, screened off at least a little from the howling wind. The town's Mako reactor perched on the cliff-side high above them, it's running lights just about visible. Even after all these years it still sucked at the lifeblood of the Planet. But there was something different about the wound this reactor had carved into the ground. There was a greater pain here than she had felt near other instances of the same technology. Almost like an older wound the reactor's damage eclipsed; something ancient and secret. The Planet shied away from the scarring Mako extraction caused, but this area felt more empty. No matter where they had traveled before, Aeris had still been able to hear the faint whispering of the Planet. Here there was an oppressive silence.

Tifa mentioned Nibelheim's reactor was the first ever constructed. Perhaps the difference here was a result of the duration of the Mako drain? It made some sense, and yet still failed to explain the emptiness. Even with eight Mako reactors leeching at the ground, Midgar was nothing like this. Aeris feared wandering deeper into the dead zone of the Planet and yet she wanted to know what had caused this difference. But her major concern at present was for Cloud and Tifa. Her friends wished to have nothing to do with the place, the structure featuring large in unpleasant memories. Their discomfort was a distraction she was almost glad for.

Aeris was unwilling to leave either Clour or Tifa alone and stuck close by them during both day and night. Cloud had been beset by nightmares before they reached this place, and suffered more restless nights after. Tifa's continued subdued nature concerned Aeris. In crossing the mountain they had to retrace the pursuit of the madman five years ago, the conclusion agonizing for Tifa. But what had happened in the aftermath? What happened after Cloud's memories failed, after he challenged Sephiroth in that secret chamber? Where had Cloud gone after the conflict and what had befallen Sephiroth? How had Tifa made it to Midgar? It would have made sense for Cloud to be responsible, but was it plausible for him to forget that? Why would he then abandon her without a word in a strange city and begin his mercenary career? So many questions and so few answers. And now was not the time to dwell on them.

Aeris's thoughts turned again to the black-cloaked figures they had encountered throughout Nibelheim. It seemed far too plausible that they were something of Hojo's creation. Too many documents made reference to human experimentation for comfort. The thought of Hojo awoke those feelings of fear she last experienced in Costa del Sol. A little detail niggled at her, something the man had done on the beach. He dismissed her as nothing more than a sample, never bothering to learn or remember her name. She was unimportant to him and a poor substitute for her mother. Hojo also knew who Cloud was. But why? Cloud was just another operative in the Shinra army, not someone like Sephiroth. Yet the scientist knew him by name and had asked if he would be willing to be a guinea pig. Such an implication from the man was heart-stopping for her, but Cloud reacted to what should have been a toothless taunt. What could the scientist have done to him? No, she could not worry about that now; her friends needed her. Tifa needed her. Cloud needed her. Both were shell-shocked and daunted by the town; the past rewritten to exclude them and anyone they had ever known. She did her best to comfort them, singing her lullabye to both each night, trying to help them sleep. Tonight was the first time they had dozed off without it.

To her left was the sleeping form of Tifa, head cradled on her arms. To her right, Cloud, curled onto his side and facing towards her. Even thought it might wake him, Aeris could not resist stretching out her hand to stroke through Cloud's blonde spikes. Since they had left Nibelheim, he had shied away from any physical contact. It made some things difficult; he needed other people, needed contact, needed to know someone else was there. But so often she found herself unable to do much but sit close to him and talk. He could not shy away while he was asleep at least. Her hand settled into his hair, stroking through the spikes, only halting as two rings of mako appeared. Cloud was awake.

He did not flinch or move away, instead he smiled and she moved her hand again enjoying the first direct contact in days. His skin was so warm. Heat flushed through her, a warm, wonderful sensation settling into her stomach. Her own lips curled in response to Cloud's and now the temptation was there. To curl up with him right now and ignore the night-time terrors. She could enjoy the dark hours in the warm comfort of his arms and be there for him through the entire night.

The sensation was not new; she had been finding it so hard to leave him after sex and they had been sleeping together for some time now. But it had all been part of keeping the relationship physical. She taught him how best to touch her and in turn explored his body, finding where best to touch him. Now she was entertaining something more like a straight-forward relationship. She did not want to sleep away from him, did not want to get dressed again to sneak back to an empty bed.

They should go back to the Gold Saucer and take a holiday. She wanted to try a new relationship, wanted to admit to everyone that she found him attractive and wanted to spend time with him. But she could not say anything just yet. He needed time to overcome the past few days. Tifa needed similar. Now was not the time to find out if Cloud was amenable to dating and how that would change the group's dynamic. How would things be once she admitted everything? Would she be able to sleep in the same tent as Cloud, or would the existing situation stand? Would dating Cloud change how he treated her whenever they got into conflict? Would he turn into a chivalric knight, determined to rescue her from harm when she was capable of holding her own? He should at least know her better then that.

She still needed a little longer. For now she would just be the comforting friend.