-Disclaimer- I have to disclaim my own life…? Well, and the song too, I guess… Oh well, here's your disclaimer.

Wow, didn't expect everyone to compare Zack to everyone else… Yeah, we all know what a good fighter Zack is; he was just protecting Aerith. I don't remember him ever beating Sephiroth… I know in your game, Crisis Core, you beat him twice, but only to advance; I don't think that he actually ever won in real life. I think only Cloud has defeated Sephy… Which is understandable, of course, based on the circumstances. But hey, if I'm wrong, you can't exactly blame me, can you? After all, I was kind of… Well, you all know, yeah? And also, yes, Genesis was defeated by Zack even while Genesis was super-Genesis, so Zack is more powerful than him. Oh, and he could beat Angeal too, of course, most of the time. Weird… It doesn't capitalize 'time' for me… Oh well. Also… we brought some of the Lurkers out! Yessssssss! Hi everyone! Oh man, doing the author's note solo is so empowering… Yeah, sorry, forgot to say, Guen – the real one – is off doing… I don't know, goddess stuff I guess. So I get to write the author's note! Just don't tell her that I basically flat out told you who I am… Oh, and sorry about the wait on the last chapter, we kept on forgetting to upload it… Anyways! To the story! Man, that's fun…

Start Again

Cloud just kind of stared at his old friend, who stared right back at him. Yeah, this was definitely Zack, unless it was someone pretending to be him, which Cloud could tell it wasn't. And Aerith was on the ground behind him, passed out. She didn't have a cloak and, unlike Zack, was wearing a different outfit than just a repaired version of the one she had died in. Her dress was now white without designs. The top part of her new outfit was like a normal tank-top - not exactly loose but not really tight either – while the bottom half was like a normal long skirt, even though the entire outfit was one piece. Her shoes were just like her old ones, except they were white as well. Also, Aerith's hair wasn't tied back for once, which made sense because her bows had fallen off when Cloud had put her in the lake. Why had her hair been tied back in the Lifestream, though…? Oh, right, as Cloud had learned, a spirit could look however they really wanted in the Lifestream.

Zack stared them all down, looking cornered as he probably tried to figure out the situation. He held up the Buster Sword, pointing it at all of them but focusing on Cloud. "Cloud?! Why are you helping Sephiroth, now?! Since, I could be wrong, but he doesn't seem to have amnesia anymore…"

Genesis smirked. "I'm here as well, you know…"

Zack quickly nodded. "Oh, uh, yeah, hey Genesis… Seriously though. What's going on here?!"

Cloud shook his head, trying to figure out what was going on. Zack and Aerith were… alive?! Which meant Chaos must have brought them back… but why? "Well… It's quite a long story… Basically, yes, Sephiroth has his memories. He never lost them in the first place, actually."

Zack looked at Sephiroth, looking like he had just found the answer to all life. "Oh, so that's why you seemed so annoyed with me when you were unconscious…"

Sephiroth smirked. "Yeah. Honestly, you should have realized that I said your name without you telling me it…"

Zack actually looked quite embarrassed. "Oh, you did…? I didn't even realize that…"

Sephiroth rolled his eyes. Then, he glanced at Aerith for a moment, and sighed, walking away. "Anyways, it's best if Cloud explains…" He stood over in the shadows, looking deep in thought. He probably just didn't want to face what he'd done…

Zack rolled his eyes. "So he kills her, and now that he can possibly make up for it, he just… walks away?" he muttered, sighing and turning to Cloud. "So? What's the rest of the story? We're not enemies now… right? Or… are we?"

Cloud shook his head. "No, we're not. Genesis is trying to protect the Planet now. And Sephiroth… well, I think he's helping us, because he obviously hates Jenova since she apparently takes her anger out on him…"

Sephiroth sighed, dropping his head. "Did you have to mention that…?"

They all looked over at him, and Cloud shrugged. "Why not? The more he knows, the better." The three turned back to face each other again.

Genesis nodded. "Yeah. Now, before we say anything else… How are you back?"

Zack thought for a moment, reluctantly lowering the Buster Sword. "Oh boy, that's not going to be an easy one, but I think that I've figured it out by now. You know that demon-dude… Chaos? Well, apparently, he brought a bunch of people back."

"Yeah, we know that."

"Oh, alright then. Well, I was one of the ones he brought back. I don't think he even knows that he brought me back. He said that he had brought us back because we had been important in the past, and some of us were going to be important again."

"Oh, so that's what he said…" Cloud said. "I remember that there were two people that were standing away from the main group when you all left. One of them seemed to be observing the others, and I'm pretty sure that that was Hojo. The second one, though… Was that you?"

Zack stared at him. "Hojo's back?! Great… Anyways, no, I stayed with the main group since I knew that he had resurrected me on accident and I couldn't risk being found out."

"Then who…?" Cloud sighed. "And what about Aerith?"

Zack nodded. "Oh, yeah. Well, you see, Aerith wasn't with us. I think that Minerva – that's her name, right? – was the one who resurrected Aerith, by using the strength of Chaos's spell. Since even the Lifestream itself would probably have a pretty tough time bringing people back now. Anyways, I came here immediately to get the sword, since I knew it was here and I knew I'd need it. And I found Aerith passed out next to the holy water. I left her like that for a while because I wasn't sure if she was there for a reason, until I heard you guys talking outside – I hadn't known it was you – and quickly carried her into the back. And, well, you know what happened after that." He looked over at Sephiroth. "Sorry for attacking you… I just saw you back looking like you, and I kind of assumed that you were back to the evil you again…"

Sephiroth shrugged. "No problem…"

Cloud looked back down at Aerith again. "So she's been unconscious for a while, then…?"

Zack nodded, his eyes showing just how worried he was about Aerith. He knelt down next to her again. "Yeah. She seems alright, but… why hasn't she woken up yet?!"

Genesis was the one to answer. "Because she was trapped. By Chaos. Hidden deep within the tainted part of the Lifestream. Because she was able to use the White Materia and tap into the Planet itself, Chaos is worried that she may do so again to either disrupt his plans or weaken the Guardian greatly, which would affect his plans as well. And so, since she was in a part of the Lifestream that Minerva no longer had control over, Aerith had to use more energy than she really had to break out just enough so that Minerva could save her and revive her with the residual power from Chaos's spell." He noted Zack's questioning look. "Minerva says so, at least. If you haven't figured it out yet, she talks to me at times."

Zack smirked. "She talks to the one who tried to kill her…? Eh, never mind…" He sighed, dropping his head. "She'll live, though, right? Since I doubt she'll be able to come back again…"

Genesis nodded. "Yeah, she should be fine quite soon." He paused, nodding. "Minerva thinks we should take her back to Cloud's place. Cloud, you have extra rooms, right?"

Cloud paused. "Yeah, one that used to be Tifa's storage room, but since we expanded 7th Heaven itself, we turned the room into a guest room… So yeah, sure, she should be fine there."

Zack glanced at them all. "I'm not so sure that's a good idea… I think I should probably take care of her for now, until I know I can trust you guys… Because, let's be honest here. Two of you have tried to kill her, and one of you succeeded. And the third of you tried to kill me before. So…"

Cloud knew that he was right. He remembered how, back at the Forgotten City, he had nearly killed Aerith because of Jenova's influence, right before Sephiroth had killed Aerith anyways. And Genesis, of course, had tried multiple times to kill Zack.

Genesis shook his head. "That's not a smart move, Zack Fair. Minerva is the one that brought Aerith back to life; if she tells you what to do, you should do it."

Zack glared at him. "And how do I know you're even talking to Minerva…? For all I know, you're actually talking to Chaos, and this is all just a trap…"

Fine, then you tell him. He does not seem to realize that if you do not get her back to your place, she will die…

Cloud jumped at the ethereal voice, looking around. Genesis smirked. "You heard her, huh?"

Cloud nodded, looking at Zack. "Yeah; she seems a bit annoyed, which probably isn't something you'd often see…" He paused, worried "She also said that if you don't get Aerith back to my place, she's going to die. I don't know how getting her to a different place would help, but…"

Zack sighed unhappily, obviously worried. "Fine, fine, sorry… But how are we all going to get back to your place, Cloud?"

Cloud thought for a moment. "Well, Fenrir has enough space for two people, so you can come with me. But someone's going to need to carry Aerith…"

Genesis nodded. "I will. I doubt Sephiroth wants to…" They all looked over at Sephiroth, and he simply smirked, walking over to them.

"Yeah, whatever… Let's get going…"

Genesis nodded, walking over to Aerith and very gently picking up her limp form. Zack winced slightly, but didn't say anything. They all walked out to the front of the church. It had started raining, and the clouds in the sky were quite dark. But none of them really cared.

Genesis was the first to go, since they all agreed that he needed to get Aerith to 7th Heaven quickly so that nothing went wrong.

Sephiroth took off without a single word, which just made Zack roll his eyes. Then, he and Cloud started back towards 7th Heaven themselves. On the way there, Cloud did his best to describe the situation, from Chaos, to Hojo, to the Guardian. Zack just kind of listened the whole time.

Finally, they reached 7th Heaven. Genesis and Sephiroth had stayed alongside them most of the way, so they landed at about the same time as Cloud pulled up. Sephiroth and Genesis banished their wings and walked into 7th Heaven which, luckily, was now closed. Cloud quickly matched their pace, and Zack followed right next to Genesis.

Tifa was at the bar by herself. Denzel was already upstairs; probably thanks to Marlene, who had been watching the door expectantly. Tifa looked absolutely stunned, but Marlene nodded.

"Finally. Come on, quickly…"

Tifa shook her head. "What's going on here?! Zack? And Aerith? How?!"

Cloud sighed. "Long story. Basically, Aerith is passed out, obviously, even though both she and Zack are alive now. Can we let her rest in the spare room until she wakes up?"

Tifa nodded. "Uh, yeah, of course… But still, how…?"

Zack jumped in. "Chaos. Accident. Rebound spell. Long story. We gotta let her rest, though, or who knows what will happen…?"

"Oh, right…" She quickly led them upstairs. Marlene and Sephiroth stayed downstairs for whatever reason; Cloud was slightly worried that the building would explode, but he had to leave them be… for now.

The room wasn't overly large, but it wouldn't be cramped. It looked slightly dull, but that was because nobody really ever went in there. There were two beds on opposite sides of the room, as well as a chair and a desk. There was also a large window, like the other rooms had.

Genesis gently set Aerith down on one of the two beds, sighing. "I need to get out of here and back to my friend, before he thinks something happened to me… Contact me if she gets better, alright?"

Cloud nodded. Then, though, they all heard Sephiroth downstairs. They couldn't tell what he was saying, but his tone was dangerous. Genesis glanced back at them, then walked out of the room.

Tifa sighed after a moment. "I'll go make sure that Marlene's alright… I'll see you guys in a minute." She headed out of the room as well, leaving Cloud and Zack alone with Aerith. Now all that was left was to wait and see if she would ever wake up…

-I-I-I-I-I-I-

Sephiroth watched them take Aerith upstairs, and sighed. It only took him a second to realize that Marlene was watching him, so he smirked, turning to face her. "What do you want…?"

She shrugged. "Are you alright?"

"Me? Of course," he quickly lied. Too quickly…

Marlene had a knowing smirk that would probably be able to rival one of Jenova's. "Uh-huh. Suuuuure… I won't judge you, Sephiroth. I know that you probably feel differently about finding that they're alive than the others do…"

"Why? Because I killed Aerith? And because I set in motion the events that led to Zack's death as well?" he said bitterly, unable to stop himself. Marlene nodded, and he shook his head. "Maybe so. Why would it matter?!"

She just calmly looked at him. "I know that neither were your fault. You shouldn't blame yourself."

"Shouldn't blame myself?!" he all but growled, his tone telling her not to continue with her questions. "Perhaps not for Zack's death. Perhaps. But Aerith? It's pretty hard to say that I shouldn't feel guilty for that!"

"Is everything alright…?" Genesis suddenly said, coming downstairs and glancing at the two of them.

Marlene smiled gently at him. "Yeah, everything's fine. You're leaving?"

"Yes." He glanced at her. "If Aerith gets worse, you know how to get the word to me, right?"

Marlene nodded. "Yes, of course. Good night, Genesis."

Genesis walked out; he obviously had something on his mind. Marlene turned back to Sephiroth. "It wasn't your fault. Jenova-"

"Forced me to? You don't think I know that?!" he snapped back at her. Yes, it had been Jenova that had forced him to kill Aerith. But what he still remembered the most – and what he definitely would not tell Marlene about – was what she had done afterwards… and what he had nearly done… "It doesn't matter whether or not I killed her of my own free will; I still killed her."

"Actually, it does matter. Quite a lot. It wasn't your choice, and as such, you shouldn't take the blame. Sephiroth, trust me: you aren't the first person to be in this situation. This isn't the path that you chose; it was forced on you. Viciously. And I mean that both literally and figuratively. Nobody could face what you've been through and still stay perfectly 'good'. In a universe with so much Darkness, it can be hard to find a Light; especially one that is willing to stand up and fight back. And when that Light is found, the Darkness will seek it out and corrupt it by whatever means necessary. If the Darkness wants you, it's impossible to fight back and remain sane; the best thing to do, in my opinion, is to whether the storm. Play along. And when the time comes, strike hard and without mercy at the Darkness that condemned you. The real Darkness. Sometimes, that Darkness isn't what – or who – you think. Do you understand me?"

Oh, he understood her perfectly. In fact, that was what he had tried to do multiple times, but Jenova was just too quick. She somehow knew the signs of betrayal, and would always try to make sure that he wouldn't consider it again. She didn't seem to realize, though, that by doing that, it only turned him against her even more… But that wasn't important now. "No matter what you say, Marlene, I'm still the one who killed her, alright?"

Marlene glared at him. "Well, she's alive, now. So maybe you should stop acting like Cloud, and instead of focusing on the past, focus on the present." She smiled slightly, and he sighed, sitting down across from her.

"Yeah, maybe you're right…"

Then, Tifa came downstairs, looking at both of them just like Genesis had. "We heard fighting… Are you both alright?"

Marlene laughed. "Yes, yes, we're fine. Sorry if we worried you." She thought for a moment. "Although… I should probably see Aerith. I need to give her any slight bit of energy I can…"

Sephiroth glanced at her. "How can you do that…?"

"Just give me a moment…" She stood up, nodding at Sephiroth, and he understood that she wanted him to follow her. So the three of them walked upstairs and into the room where Aerith was.

Marlene sighed. "Alright, there's not much else that any of us can do… We should all just get some sleep and see if she's any better in the morning…"

Cloud rolled his eyes. "Seriously…?"

"Yes, seriously," she snapped, and he looked at her with surprise. She sighed. "Just trust me on this, alright?"

Cloud sighed. "Whatever…" He and Tifa left, and Zack looked at Marlene.

"What about me…?"

"Well, there are two beds in here, so you're going to have to use the other one for now."

"Oh, alright…"

Marlene nodded at Sephiroth. She glanced at him. He felt a strange change in her aura, and immediately listened into her thoughts.

Good, I didn't think you'd know to do that. Wait for me on the roof; Aerith's life is in our hands, now.

He glanced at her, still quite surprised by how mature she could be, even with the Lifestream's aid. But there was no point in arguing, so he sighed. "I should get going… I need to see if I can find Jenova…"

Zack paused, obviously worried. Sephiroth tapped into his thoughts, but didn't even need to to know that Zack was worried about Sephiroth double-crossing them. That was good, though. Let him fear Sephiroth; perhaps then, he'd be more prepared than the others for what would doubtlessly happen soon…

Sephiroth quickly turned and walked out, leaving the building and then just as quickly jumping up onto the roof. A minute or two later, Marlene came up to him. She nodded. "Just wait for a minute; the others need to fall asleep first."

He glanced at her cautiously. "What are you planning on doing…?"

"Just letting her be a bit closer to the Planet for a minute, so that she'll regain her energy much more quickly."

"And how do you plan on doing that…?"

"Don't you remember who I'm friends with?"

"Oh, right…"

They sat there in silence for a few minutes. It had started raining again, which wasn't too odd, since clouds had been gathering and getting darker ever since the day before. Neither of them really cared, though; Marlene seemed to be perfectly warm in her grey sweat-pants and hoodie, with her boots on. And Sephiroth didn't mind the cold; in fact, he preferred it.

Finally, Sephiroth broke the silence, asking something that he'd been wondering for quite a while. "By the way, Marlene… Why do those Cetra trust you so much…?"

She shrugged, not missing a beat. "Easy. I'm a human empath, which is rare. I have a bond with the Planet that most humans don't. But I am still, unfortunately or not, definitely human…"

"Oh… And, one last thing… How's your friend doing?" He knew that one of her 'Cetra' friends was actually the Guardian; it was finally time to confront her about it. He needed to know more about why Jenova hated the Guardian so much, and Marlene would probably be the one to answer that. Probably.

She glanced at him. "What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean," he said, looking her directly in her eyes and not breaking eye contact, so that he would know if she was lying. "Your 'Cetra' friend, the Guardian."

Marlene smirked. "Is it really so obvious…?"

"Yes, it is."

She sighed, looking away. "Well, I wish I knew. Trust me. Unfortunately, I don't. And I doubt I will until sometime tomorrow at least."

He shook his head unhappily. "I just can't believe that they would hurt someone that's innocent; at least, not nearly as bad as them."

"Only Chaos is hurting her. But yes, you're most definitely right: she doesn't deserve it; he does."

He nodded. "Yeah, definitely. Jenova deserves it, too, even if she is just watching. I just hope that she gets what she deserves, when the time comes… Chaos too, of course…" But no, he mainly meant Jenova. After all, he had faced her wrath far more than he should have. And if she was that ruthless and sadistic with him, someone who was actually on her side in this battle, he couldn't even begin to imagine what she did to her enemies. And her enemies were probably the actual 'good guys' in this, so they didn't deserve that…

Marlene looked strangely sad. "Oh, Jenova's been paying for her existence every day of her life. You can trust me on that. It doesn't matter right now, though." She sighed. "We should go take care of Aerith. Come with me."

Wait wait wait, what?! She couldn't just say something like that and then continue on like she hadn't said it! Unfortunately, though, she didn't seem interested in explaining. She led Sephiroth downstairs, and then quickly headed into the guest room. It was quite dark in the whole building, but neither of them really had much of an issue with that.

Marlene knelt down next to Aerith, pulling something out of her bag and placing it in Aerith's hand. Sephiroth had noted that Marlene hadn't been wearing the necklace she normally had on, so he assumed that that was what it was.

After a second, Aerith's breathing became steadier. Marlene pulled back, stealthily slipping the necklace back into her satchel. Sephiroth wasn't able to see the necklace, but he wanted to, since Jenova might know something about it if she ever came back…

After another moment, Sephiroth saw Aerith's emerald-green eyes open. Before anything, Marlene put her hand over Aerith's mouth. Aerith looked over at her for a moment, and Marlene nodded at the door, pulling her hand back and standing up.

Aerith glanced at Sephiroth, worry showing in her eyes, but she quickly did as Marlene said. The two of them quietly walked out of the room, and Sephiroth followed closely behind, closing the door behind them.

Marlene walked up to the roof, and Aerith followed her without hesitation. She did, though, keep on glancing back at Sephiroth, who always just smirked or rolled his eyes.

Finally, all three of them were up on the roof. Marlene grabbed Aerith and hugged her, much to Sephiroth's surprise. Hadn't they only known each other for a few minutes, back when Marlene was only four or something…?

Aerith finally pulled back, smiling. "Hello, Marlene! It's… good to be able to feel, again… Good to be alive again, really…" She glanced at Sephiroth for a moment, and then back at Marlene. "How am I alive again…?" She paused, then spoke again before Marlene could answer. "The goddess… I remember her trying to call out to me. I was held captive by Chaos, in the tainted Lifestream…"

Marlene nodded. "Yeah, I know. I'm glad that you're alright. Minerva said to everyone who needed to know – including me – that she reached you and you exerted more energy than you had to get out of the tainted Lifestream."

Aerith thought for a moment. "That is… sort of how it happened. Yes, I tried to get out, but I didn't make it all the way. Someone else got to me… I don't know how their power could survive in the tainted Lifestream, though…"

Marlene paused. "The Guardian. It has to have been. She's risking herself way too much…"

Sephiroth smirked, speaking for the first time. "Yeah, and it sure isn't turning out well for her, huh?"

Aerith jumped, her body tensing, but Marlene only smiled sadly. "Yeah…"

"So that must be why Chaos was so angry with her; not only did she protect us, but she went against him and saved Aerith…"

"Yeah, you're right, that makes sense…"

Aerith shook her head, her tone very, very cautious. "The… Guardian? Of what?"

Marlene nodded. "Oh yeah, you don't know what's going on, do you…?" She sighed, and quickly explained who the Guardian was, and that she was Chaos's prisoner of war. Then, she went on to explain that Chaos had brought back former antagonists, and that he and Jenova were trying – and succeeding, so far – to destroy the Planet, but nobody really knew how.

"Oh…" Aerith said unhappily. "Well… What can I do to help?"

Marlene looked up at the clouds. The rain had stopped, if only for now. "Well, for now, you need to rest. You're still exhausted, I can tell."

Aerith nodded. "Yeah…" She paused. "Oh! And, um, Zack? How's he? He was brought back as well… right?"

Marlene smiled at her. "Yes, he's alright. If you don't mind, the two of you are going to have to share a room for now, until we get everything figured out…"

"Oh, of course! Thank you, Marlene. For everything."

Marlene nodded. "Of course. Now, before anything else…" She glared at Sephiroth. "You haven't said anything for nearly ten minutes. Don't you have something you want to say to Miss Aerith…? You know, for killing her and everything?!"

She just had to bring that up, didn't she…? Anything he said wouldn't matter; Aerith would still hate him, would still fear him. But she should; after all, no matter what anyone thought, he wasn't on the good side, even if he secretly wanted to be. "There's nothing to say. I can't change the past; we all know that much. It doesn't matter whether or not I was forced to do what I did; I still did it, alright?"

Aerith looked at him, stunned. "You… were forced?" she said quietly.

He smirked. "Yes, I was."

"By… Jenova, right?"

"Yes. But that doesn't change a thing, now, does it? I still did what I did, and that can't be changed."

He started to walk away, but she grabbed his hand. "Actually, it does change… quite a lot. You can't be blamed for something that wasn't your fault, alright? You may not have been controlled or anything, but if you were forced, it's alright. I understand." She smiled at him. "And I forgive you. Can we just… start again?"

He looked back at her, surprised. "Oh, um, yeah, sure?"

She nodded, letting go of him. "Thank you." She smiled at Marlene. "Alright, then. We should probably go back inside, hm?" She laughed gently. "Before it starts to rain! Oh, how I love being alive…"

Marlene nodded, smiling at her. "Oh yeah, sure! Come on; I'll show you back to the guest room." She walked inside, leaving Aerith to follow her.

Aerith paused, turning back towards Sephiroth. She smiled at him. "I'll see you later, okay?"

Sephiroth nodded at her, and she turned back around and quickly followed after Marlene.

Sephiroth sighed. The rain was starting again, so he decided it would probably be best if he went back to where he was staying. He took off, heading towards Midgar. Start again, huh? Well, if nothing else, he could probably try; at least, for now…