Summary: Laura was just your average woman, until a freak accident involving her television set, the Advent Children dvd, and lightning strike transported her to Gaia. And that's only the beginning of the story!

Disclaimer: Nope, still don't own FFVII or Advent Children. Just a single copy of the movie. Now put the pitchforks and torches away.

Queen's Quornor: Ok, who was expecting this? This chapter comes straight outta left field! And just to clarify, this part of the story takes place before Dirge of Cerberus. And I still need people to tell me what kind of job they could see Kadaj holding down to bring in the bacon! I might use it in the fic later on!

Beautiful Nightmare

She was standing by a sea of flowers. Petals of pink and yellow and white brushed against her legs, an endless carpet of soft, pastel colors that invited serenity and peace of mind. Apart from the flowers, the horizon consisted of hazy white purity. A sterile, dreamlike world of neverending blank canvas.

This is...the Promised Land.

"So you do know where you are."

The voice was melodious and feminine, easily recognizable. Laura turned to see a woman with brown hair and intense green eyes, kneeling only a few feet away. She was tending to the flowers. "Aerith Gainsborough."

"You know who I am. You know that I'm dead, and where you are. But you are not afraid. That's good."

"I...want to thank you. For bringing Kadaj back to me, I mean."

Aerith nodded, sprinking water across the flowers before her with a sweep of her hand. "I had watched them along with Cloud and the others. I couldn't help them fight off Jenova, but I'm glad you did. Things would have been much worse if you hadn't helped them."

"What do you mean?"

"Jenova's power is on the wane. As more of her physical body is destroyed, she loses the power stored therein. Your presence on Gaia gave Kadaj the strength and will to fight her, allowing Rufus Shinra and the WRO time to safely dispose of her body. Her head was all that was left, and due to its decayed state, the immense power it once held had faded. If you hadn't been there, everything would have been much worse. Geostigma would have been even deadlier, the three of them would have been much harder to defeat, and Sephiroth...well... Believe it or not, in that movie which mirrors reality, he is only possessed of a fraction of his true power. And with Cloud in the state he was in, he would not have succeeded in defeating him a second time."

Laura was stunned. Only a fraction of his power? Holy shit, no wonder he almost destroyed the planet!

"Language, Laura," Aerith murmured, patting the soil down around one of the plants.

"So you can read minds, now?"

"Only those to whom I have some kind of connection. In your case, it is a sort of blood link, a very, very old one. Anyway, giving Kadaj back to you is my and Zack's way of thanking you for your help. You see, despite their physical maturity and power, he and his brothers are really just kids at heart. Yazoo and Loz... Jenova destroyed them. We offered them the chance to go to you with Kadaj, but they chose to stay here. He was the only one who wanted to try living again." She stood up, a snowy blossom between her fingers. "Just like any living being, he deserves a chance to grow. And you will give him that chance. I have faith in you."

Laura toed the dirt, not looking at her counterpart. I don't need your faith... But it is appreciated. "Aerith?"

"Yes?"

"I still don't believe that they had to die. If Jenova was growing weaker, couldn't their lives have been saved?"

"Jenova drove them out of their minds. Given time, Shinra and the WRO would have destroyed her head. But there was no real way to prevent what happened. You were our best chance, and you know what happened. Jenova got desperate and roused Sephiroth from his hibernation, giving him only enough power to possess Kadaj for a few minutes. Just enough time for him to kill you, to break his host's will, before she took over. You see, Jenova is still a threat as long as a single cell exists."

"So until the last remaining Jenova cells are destroyed..."

"Jenova will still be a big problem. And by consequence, so will Sephiroth." The Ancient smiled sadly. "Did you know he used to be a good man? He sometimes snuck into the labs to see me and my birth mother; he was just a teenager then. He always seemed really distant, like he didn't want to care about what was happening to us, but he was never unkind, either. I can even remember one time when he remembered it was my birthday. He brought me a piece of candy. It was the first present I ever got." A soft sigh left her lips, and her eyes fell. "I almost thought of him as a friend, until I forgot about him after we escaped from the labs. I think I was only about three or four the last time I saw him as a kid. It's ironic that he is my mortal enemy, now."

"More sad than ironic, I would think." Laura rubbed her arms. "Does Kadaj...?"

"No. He and his brothers are fully human now. All Jenova cells have been removed. They will never suffer her influence again." Aerith walked closer to her, laid a hand against her lower abdomen. Laura could feel the warmth of the touch through her tank top - Why am I wearing clothes? Didn't I fall asleep naked? - and felt that it was soothing to her unborn child.

"It concerns me, that you became pregnant before I could get rid of the cells. I don't know if any of Jenova's power can be transferred via semen."

Laura stared at her, eyes wider than monster-truck wheels. "Are you... Do you mean that Sephiroth could live on in my child?"

Aerith nodded. "That is my greatest fear. Sephiroth had this really powerful instinct for survival; if there was another vessel for him to occupy, he would take it. Kadaj and his brothers are now totally cut off from him. Useless for his purposes. But if Jenova's cells were passed on to his son or daughter..."

A quote from the movie filled Laura's head: 'I will...never be a memory.' "When he said that he would never be a memory... Do you think he knew that he had another way to come back?"

Aerith grew pale, and her eyes dropped to the flower in her hand. "I can't assume anything. The possibility is...disturbing. But even if Sephiroth is reborn in your child, there is no way he could take over its body as he did Kadaj's. That would only happen if your child came into contact with Jenova cells, and the only remaining cells are somewhere in Shinra manor. There are none on Earth. So you and your baby should be safe."

"But Aerith..." Laura crossed her arms beneath her breasts and rubbed her arms, suddenly feeling unexplainably cold. "An accident is what took me to Gaia in the first place. What if another one takes my child there?"

"Your trip to Gaia was no more accidental than my asassination was. Zack and I were trying to come up with a way to help Kadaj fight back Sephiroth and Jenova, at least until her head was destroyed. And for some reason, Zack had fixated on the idea that a woman could help him. I don't know why he chose you instead of some native woman, or at least I didn't at the time. But he took advantage of the power generated when the lightning struck your cable line, and used that energy to bring your consciousness to Gaia. When your mind came through the warp, it automatically made a body for itself, identical to the original down to the last detail. When Jenova had you killed, the astral twin's life was ended, catapulting your mind back to Earth unharmed, along with a passenger. I don't think the conditions could be duplicated. Zack wouldn't do something like that again without a really good reason. And I don't think anyone else could, aside from me."

Unless it's a powerful madman, like Hojo, Laura thought sarcastically.

"Hojo?" Aerith clapped her hands to her mouth, looking horrified. "He would possess the necessary power and motivation to do such a thing! He already tried to help destroy the planet with the Sister Ray, and he'll try it again with Deepground in about a year or so. If he was to learn that Sephiroth could be reborn within your child, Kadaj's child, he would try to bring it to Gaia and resurrect him to destroy the planet! Why didn't I think of that? It's so obvious!"

"Why does he want to destory the planet? He doesn't have a grudge against it like Jenova or Deepground!"

"He was under Jenova's influence, remember? He injected himself with a substantial amount of her cells. But mostly, it's because he's a scientist, and a crazy one at that. He just wants to see what'll happen if the planet dies," she explained bitterly. "And I can't find him in the Lifestream to cleanse him; he keeps eluding Zack and I."

"So what am I supposed to do?" Laura asked, feeling scared.

"Tell Kadaj of the possibility. He'll need to know about it, so he can protect you if it comes to that. And don't worry about his sword; that'll come to him when he calls for it. But just keep going on about your normal life. Don't let this scare you out of your happiness. Zack and I will contact you if you need to know anything." Aerith pressed the lily into her hands. "Until we meet again, sister... Awaken."

LKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLKLK

Laura sat bolt upright, feeling the chill of the open window on her naked, sweaty skin. Kadaj's arm fell off her waist as she moved, which caused him to stir. "Ughn... Laura? What's wrong?" he asked, yawning sleepily.

She closed her eyes, willing her heart to slow to its normal rate. "Kadaj, I just had a talk with Aerith. The woman who saved you. She said..."

He stared at her, took her hands in his and rubbed her knuckles with his thumbs. "What did she say, Laura? Tell me," he coaxed.

A soft gasp was choked out of her as the full meaning of what Aerith had told her came crashing down on her mind. I could be pregnant with Sephiroth. The Sephiroth! He could be in my uterus, inside my baby, at this very moment!

She fell against Kadaj, the mixture of baby hormones and shock wreaking havoc with her emotions. He was confused as to why she was suddenly crying into his chest, as well as more than a little worried. But he put his arms around her and held her as she wept, stroking her back soothingly and murmuring comforting nonsense into her hair.

If what she told me is true... Then the things that happened on Gaia were a mere taste of disaster.

The true nightmare has yet to begin.