Keep Kalm and Carry On
I felt so comfortable, like I was lying over something soft, when I opened my eyes, startled.
The cries of the planet had withered away, my nightmare gone. It took me a moment to breath steadily, noticing a wooden beam ceiling above. There was soft light falling in through a diamond-patterned glass window behind translucent white curtains, almost too bright to enjoy. Birds chirped somewhere outside, making me wonder where I actually was. Slowly, I sat up. A soft floral quilt fell into my lap, exposing me. I gasped and gathered it up to my chest when I found myself with no clothes, and scanned the environment, blushing.
It appeared like a cottage, with two made beds in different quilts next to me. I was apparently in the third bed, closest to the window, with the walls painted baby blue. The floor was unpolished wood, with two large wooden dressers in the room, and two unfamiliar bags on top of them. The room was cozy, with two more windows on the other wall to light it up with the natural daylight.
My next thought then wondered: am I still in Midgar?
I glanced to a small night stand next to me, with a water basin, wash cloths, bottles of ethers and my bracer. My face twisted at the sight, wondering how long I had been out, and lastly, where did everyone go?
My eyes searched for my clothes, or any really. I think I had only a lab coat and a bodysuit, but none of those could be spotted.
I wrapped the quilt up around myself and sat at the edge of the bed, a bit dizzy, but otherwise, restful and perkier then I've been in a while. My legs were strong when they lifted me up, and I stepped over to the closest window to gaze out through its diamonds, seeing multiples of whatever existed outside.
Many gable roofs with dark painted wooden shingles took to the view. Chimneys with small slithers of smoke, swirled up into a hazy blue and grey sky. I averted my eyes to the street below, cobblestone, and many people walking around freely, some with baskets looped over their arms, others pushing carts of produce with those large birds, chocobos. Shadows of an either early morning sun or late afternoon darkened half the street, but it was still lively with a group of children running through, and a couple of chickens clucking and loitering around freely without anyone caring.
This was definitely not Midgar.
Across the room, a door abruptly opened, and I gasped as I twirled around in nothing but a quilt for cover, only to find Aerith enter. Her eyes grew when she looked at me from beyond the three beds, mouth open. Whatever she had in her hand, it slipped through her fingers and fell to the floor at her feet with a loud thump. The last I saw of her, she was injured and covered in ash, her eyes closed to the sky when she laid on that cracked road. Now she seemed to be vibrant just as I first saw her, with emerald gems eyes, and pink dress clean. Over her shoulders laid a new garment, a white robe with red triangles sewed into its sleeves, and a hood she pulled back to reveal newly cleaned hair, though a bit frizzled in its long braid.
Neither of us spoke for almost a minute, tears in her eyes until I too had them.
With a parched throat, I sounded a lot scratchier than anticipated when I called her name, "Aerith?"
Aerith put both hands to her mouth, tears over her fingers as she shook her head slowly.
When she dropped her hands, she gasped, "Aqua," and ran to me with open arms. I felt trapped under the quilt, afraid to expose myself, so I fell into her arms, wrapped in tight with her face buried over my shoulder.
"Oh, thank goodness! I can't believe you are awake! I knew you would! I knew it!"
Aerith was tearful, squeezing into me as she fell into gasps with trembling breath.
I wrapped my blanket arms around her small hips, smiling to the returned floral smell along with old rain, and silently wept.
"I'm so glad you're okay," I breathed, eyes shut tight.
We held each other for a long moment, getting familiar again. The room had darkened to black, and once more, together, we bathed in a gentle layer of green light, like two lost puzzle pieces finally back together.
I could feel Aerith's feelings swell up inside me, much of it peaceful, but there was also slight pain, guilt, and lastly, deep love. It made me wonder what she felt from me, my feelings and my inner conflicts. There was this deep longing to dive into her soul, to her core, but she kept herself locked up, nice and tight, not ready yet to let me in.
We pulled away, back into the room, and sat on the edge of the bed.
So many questions mulled my mind, the first being, "what happened?"
Aerith looked to the window when she replied, "you fainted when you over exerted yourself. Using magic twice like that, draining the Materia to nothing, we were all afraid you wouldn't make it."
"How long have I been out?"
"Two days."
"Two days?!" My mouth fell, and Aerith dropped her eyelids a little.
"I've never seen that happen before. So, that's what happens when a full Ancient uses Materia? You drain it of its magic, using all of its potential at once? I suppose that explains the great magnitude of your casting, but…."
She eyed me, hands squeezing mine, and advised, "You need to learn to use your own magic, Aqua. It isn't safe for you to use Materia."
I looked down and nodded, knowing this was coming.
"You're right," and I smiled, lifting my gaze back to her.
Aerith stood up, her fingers brushed away from mine as she exclaimed, "I got you an outfit! Will you try it on now? Please?!" She rushed towards the door and picked up what she dropped earlier, a large package wrapped in brown paper and string.
"Of course! Oh, where are we by the way? It doesn't look like Midgar," I asked, waiting for Aerith as she brought over the package and told me to drop the quilt. My face turned red when I let it fall to the floor, and hid my breasts with my arms.
Aerith giggled, "we're girls, silly. Don't be shy!"
I ignored her invitation, watching her untie and peel back paper to reveal a dark blue cloak. She hung it up for me against the light and I took its material in my hand. So soft, and yet durable. There were copper stitchings along its collar, and blue ribbon to tie it into place around one's neck.
"We're in Kalm, a small town just seventy miles away from Midgar. We're in the clear from Shinra for now, so Cloud insisted we hang here for a few days, hoping you would wake up," Aerith explained. She took out another piece of clothing from the package while my thoughts drifted to Cloud, wondering how he and the others were doing. It sounded like a nice break, one that was desperately needed. Restock, eat, sleep, get healthy for what was next.
"What are we doing now? What's the plan?" I asked, and bug eyed at the clothing Aerith hung in the air.
"I think we should all get together and talk to Cloud about that, don't you think? He's been meaning to tell us something important, about how he knows Sephiroth, but decided to wait. Oh, everyone is going to be so excited to see you awake!"
I crossed my arms, sulking at the window.
"Everyone except Tifa."
Aerith sighed, dropping the clothes on the edge of the bed.
"I'm afraid you're on her bad list again."
"Again? I don't think I was ever off it," I joked, though I didn't laugh. Aerith didn't giggle either, though when I looked at her, she made a goofy smile, hands behind her back.
"I think there's going to be plenty of time to make up. So get dress, and then we'll go out and find the others," she urged, but then her smile faded when her eyes caught something on me. I followed her gaze and traced it to a fresh red scar above my pelvis.
"Where did that come from?" Aerith asked very quietly, already knowing the answer, but maybe she wanted to be sure, to hear it from me.
I traced a finger across the small red line, fading to brown, and frowned at it.
When I mentioned "Hojo", that was enough and Aerith didn't need to hear it anymore.
She bit her lower lip and apologized.
"It's okay," I reassured her. I couldn't tell her it didn't bother me because I wasn't exactly sure. When I saw it, sure, it reminded me of being in that lab, the needles in me, and that brought me into an uncomfortable place. But I was alive, and safe here with Aerith, away from all that nightmare that laid in Midgar. There was no need to dwell on it anymore.
I got dressed in the clothes Aerith picked out for me, and followed her downstairs. As it turns out, we were staying at an inn with two floors. Downstairs nested a small tavern with a dinner crowd, every table filled up when we strolled through. The smell of ale and sizzling fat food made me drool, eying at a fat piece of chicken leg on a skew, but Aerith tugged me along into the late afternoon sun.
Dark clouds had dispersed, and that old rain smell was delightful, mixed with burning wood and cooking when I inhaled the fresh air. I awed up at the sky, the smell, everything that told me we were no longer in Midgar. No more garbage musky smell. No more plate to stare up at, or more gangs and piles of junk.
I spread my arms around, spinning in a circle to let my blue cape disperse like wings, my tall new leather boots clanking over wet cobblestone. Aerith picked out a strapless leather bodice for me, its laces tied tightly down the back, followed by a short skirt with vertical stripes in white and baby blue, blooming out like a full flower. Tall boots up to my knees, the cloak tied around my shoulders, and my hair made up in a long silver braid like Aerith's, I felt reborn and spun around some more, bare arms in the air.
"I've missed the fresh air so much!" I sang, smiling up at the sky.
Aerith hugged herself, her posture disagreeing.
"I don't know. I miss the metal sky. I've never left Midgar before, so this is something for me to get used to," she explained, and looked down, her eyes as far away from the sky as possible.
I found it surprising that anyone would miss the slum life of Midgar, but then again, Aerith has been there since she was a baby. The city was a nightmare to some, but to her, it was her cocoon, a sheltered place to keep her safe from the unknown world. The actual sky was going to give her some anxiety for a while. Every time she looked up, she may expect the plate, and gasp to only see nothing but a massive expansion of an unknown place that went on to infinity.
My ears picked up the sound of a trickling water fountain closer to the center of town, and there was Red, sticking his tongue in it for a drink. When we got closer, his ears perked up, and he turned around, yellow cat eyes large.
"Aqua, you're awake!" Red chirped, and he galloped his four legs up to meet me when I squatted down to wrap my arms around his neck. His fur smelt like fresh grass, rain and smoke, moist but soft. I nuzzled into it, glad to see he was still around.
"You came with us?" I asked, pulling back to gaze down at his scarred face.
"I'm going until I get back to my home, Cosmo Canyon. That's as far as I will go," he explained. I rubbed fingers across his head, making him purr.
"And how far is that?" I asked, unsure where this canyon place was.
Red raised his head, eyes up to the sky while he lost himself in thought.
"On the next continent, far West of here."
"You'll stick with us for a while then!" Aerith cheered, sitting along the fountain's edge, and relaxed in her new white robe.
"Have you seen the others?" I asked, standing again.
Red gladly stretched his claws across the cobblestone, leaving behind a trail of lines, and flicked his tail, its little flame still burning brightly.
"Last I saw, Tifa and Barret went to the town pub. And as far as Cloud goes…." he thought for a moment, and then got distracted, eyes lingering on one of the wandering chickens before shaking his head to himself to snap out of the distraction.
"It's not always a blessing having to fight the impulse of a dog, wanting to chase these chickens around," Red muttered, and he glared at the lonesome chicken.
"Red, where's Cloud?" Aerith asked, just as curious as I was.
"Oh yeah," Red snapped back to our conversation, and looked up at us, focused.
"Cloud mentioned something about taking care of a herd of monsters infiltrating Kalm's chicken farm for a good amount of Gil, so he went to take care of that. Which explains why many of the chickens are all running loose around town, with nowhere to go for the time being."
Aerith giggled from her funny thoughts and mentioned, "I can just picture Cloud hacking his large sword around inside a barn, chickens flying everywhere, feathers in his hair."
Red and I laughed with her, the image pretty hilarious.
"If it puts food on the table," I added.
"And a few chickens, I hope," Red finished, and we all laughed some more.
When we were done, Red suggested towards me, "let's find Barret and Tifa to tell them you're all right,"
Aerith and I followed him around the rest of Kalm's square. Food stands began to shut down, the produce put away and locked up for the next day. Aerith luckily bought me a couple of apples, which I gladly chowed down, the fruit almost too sweet for my tastebuds. Apple juice slipped down my chin, and I licked it gladly, my fingers sticky with more of it, until I began to chew on my third one. Florists stuffed flowers back into carts, and the streets thinned out. In the middle of town, where there was probably once a water well, laid a small reactor, mako hissing and pooling around it. Next to it, stood a tall watch tower, with no one up there. I noticed Kalm had high stone walls, as well as the high watch tower, and it made me wonder what they were all for.
What were the townspeople being watchful of?
Shops stayed lit, lanterns lighting up the insides as I watched them flicker behind glass windows. I was amazed at the change of environment compared to Midgar, and wondered aloud, "so there's a reactor here too, to keep the lights on? Are there reactors everywhere then, to run electricity? Not just in Midgar?"
I thought I was in some eighteenth century village, women in shawls and skirts, the men in trousers and hard hats.
Aerith shrugged as she replied, "I don't know Kalm's history, but I think Shinra bypasses this place because there's really nothing here worth fretting over. There's definitely hardly any Shinra involvement here now since they are all heading to Junon for Rufus' welcome ceremony. This is just a small-town run by normal people and old miners."
When Rufus was mentioned, I shuddered at the thought of bumping into that disturbed young man again. There was going to be a parade for that creep? Goose bumps covered up my arms, and I rubbed my fingers across them to bring back warmth. Just even his name brought in a chilly air to me.
"So odd for such a place so close to Midgar," Red mentioned, still in conversation as he headed straight towards a two-story white cottage. A wooden door was hinged open, letting cool air slip inside the pub. A swinging wooded sign creaked, displaying the name "Drink to Stay Kalm Pub".
I broke into a grin at the name, its pun well intended.
Red stopped before going in, his head turned back to me and Aerith.
"You two go on ahead while I wait outside. I've already been kicked out of these establishments more than once for being a so called 'pet' and I don't want to go through that again," he grumbled. He took to a spot in the sunlight beside the door, and curled up, his tail resting over his back.
Aerith and I continued into the bar, all the tables occupied. Glasses clinked, drinks poured out of barrels, people chatted and laughed, and someone in a far corner with a light over his head was playing an acoustic guitar gently.
I could spot Barret easily, his half giant form slumped over the bar. He sat over a tiny stool, Tifa next to him, and they were in deep conversation, a mug of half drunken ale in each hand.
I hesitated to bother them, but Aerith insisted, and pulled me in between the tables before she shouted, "Barret, Tifa!"
Barret turned his whole body around, peeved for being interrupted, and I froze in place, afraid he would throw his mug. But when he saw me, his brown eyes grew big, and he made a gigantic smile.
"Hey!"
He jumped off his stool and wrapped his thick arms around me till I couldn't breathe.
"You made it, kid! We were worried sick!"
Tifa slid off her stool, her smile not as big, but she gladly hugged me when Barret stepped back.
"Thank goodness. We didn't know when you would wake up," she said, smelling like rain and beer. She wore a new piece of clothing, a denim vest with a black hood.
Barret had his eyes down like he was embarrassed when he asked me, "Uh, are you feeling okay now?"
My smile widened, flattered that he was a little worried, and replied, "much better."
And then I saddened, thinking about all the worrying I might've caused and quickly corrected with, "and I'm so sorry."
Barret and Tifa could translate that to whatever they wished: the fire in Sector 7, the worrying and waiting for me to wake up, the trouble I've caused them, all of it if they wanted to.
Tifa put her hands to her hips, her mouth ready to say something, but she hesitated. Behind her smile, her eyes flared rage, but then she buried it down, and then, she made a noise between a scoff and a click of her tongue.
"Never mind," she muttered, looking away.
"What, you still mad?" Barret asked her out in the open.
Tifa's cheeks turned red as she crossed her arms.
"Well, its water under the bridge now isn't it?" Her face didn't match with her words, clearly whatever it was, it still bothered her, but she didn't want to share it, at least not here in the pub.
Aerith let out an uneasy chuckle and quickly rescued with, "why don't we all head back to the inn and talk? It's far too busy in here. And who knows, Cloud should be back by supper? We could all talk before we eat or during? Right?"
All eyes fell to Tifa, the decision maker in this scenario, and she didn't look at either of us, her eyes down, hurt. I could feel her in pain, her home in Sector 7 still fresh in her mind, and instead of blaming Shinra, she blamed me. She was easy to read, even with her face often in that small smile, her aura was a long-lasting flame, encasing her in its heat that may have ignited a long time ago. What flicked that match to flame that is Tifa's anger? I wished she would let it out more often, instead of in tiny batches as pent-up force, but she may have been raised in a household that shaped her to hold her feelings inside. Raised by a father instead of a mother? Grew up with only brothers or had only guy friends? I could see how it may have made her into who she was today.
Tifa nodded quietly, and forced a smile when she looked to the three of us hanging on to her decision.
"Good idea, let's go back to the inn," she perked, but then she gulped down the rest of her beer like she was going to need it. She then let herself fall back, almost like she wanted to be invisible when we all left together.
Red lifted his head up when he heard us leaving. Barret waved his gun arm up and told the creature, "yo, Red! We're heading back to the inn to discuss the next move."
"Finally. I dislike staying in one place for too long," Red barked, trotting next to us.
"I thought the next move was going after Sephiroth?" Aerith questioned aloud as we made our way back through the streets. I didn't notice it till now, but there were no cars on the roads, only people and a few chocobos pulling at carriages and carts. I watched the tall yellow birds squawk, ruffling their feathers after turning their beady little eyes up to the sky, knowing what's coming. It darkened, clouds herding in above us, more rain on its way.
"Yeah, but why are we after the guy? How is he a threat to the planet?" Barret asked.
"He's after the Promise Land," Aerith answered weakly, unsure of it.
"And besides, we need to get Aqua back home too, don't we?" Tifa unexpectedly chimed in. All went quiet, except Barret going, "oh yeah, that New York place."
I had forgotten that Tifa still doesn't believe that I'm not from this world, so she may think my home was as far as Red's, the idea of dropping me off along the way a delight to her. I hated to disappoint her again. Oh, sorry Tifa. I'm actually not from this world, so I'm going to stick around probably till I die. How do you feel about that? No one still believed me except for Cloud. Even Aerith didn't believe me…
That was a whole other can of worms I didn't want to open, not yet. I'd like to think I would never have to, but I had a feeling it was going to creep up sooner or later, and smack me in the face wonderfully.
Rain began to fall in specks, until it came as a light spray. Everything it touched, moistened and glistened behind a descending sun, its glowing orange form taking refuge behind the enormous clouds. I closed my eyes and smiled up to the sky, letting the drops fall on my cheeks freely. Tifa and Aerith took to their hoods, hiding away their hair.
No one else mentioned me going back to New York, maybe because it was a too heavy of a topic to carry on, and Aerith seemed uncomfortable, arms to herself and eyes down.
The inn came into view, just before two metal gates to leave Kalm. Two Shinra guards began to close them, spinning out the gears and letting the chains pull in the mighty doors between the high stone walls.
Tifa gasped, "wait, Cloud isn't back yet, is he?" She ran ahead to bother one of the guards.
"Hey, he may already be at the inn," Barret whined, not wanting to run.
The doors kept closing, despite Tifa's arguing with the two Shinra men, just boys in blue uniform really. They didn't even recognize us, which made me wonder if word got out about our escape from Midgar or not. They didn't seem interested in us.
"If you haven't seen him recently, then could you just wait a little longer?" Tifa begged to them.
"Sorry ma'am," one of them mumbled, "it's just part of curfew, to keep the monsters out."
I went up to the doors in between them, hands gripping along the inner edges, when they stopped closing. A small gap remained, small enough for a human to squeeze through.
The guards didn't want to crush my hands and shouted, "hey, get your hands off the door unless you want to lose your fingers!"
I looked over my shoulder at Tifa and randomly asked, "he can just jump it, can't he?"
Tifa gawked, eyelids fluttering like I've made an insult, and said nothing. Maybe I was missing the point, but I've seen what Cloud could do. I don't think a gate and a wall could stop him if he wanted to get in.
But before that had to be proven, I suddenly saw a flash of his hair when his face squeezed in through the gap as he mumbled, "just in-" and then he stopped short, like he just saw a ghost. We both froze, the gates in between us, and Cloud looking down at me with his eyes a glow. I unintentionally swam in them, diving into a tropical sea, not distracted by the rain nor the chicken feathers still in his hair. Cloud's face had healed, the burnt marks and blood gone since I've last seen him. Two days felt like two years, and I fought the impulse to jump into his arms, the restraint almost taking my breath away. Instead, I stepped back for him to slip through, and the gates banged shut, a loud thud echoing into Kalm like thunder.
Cloud kept staring, words all jumbled into nothing when he tried to speak. He blinked, his trance finally broken, and then he dropped his gaze.
"Aqua, you're okay?" He spoke so quietly, I almost couldn't hear him.
I also didn't know what to say, struggling to even find the right set of words until Aerith took my arm and quipped, "she finally woke up!"
Cloud crossed his arms, not looking at either of us, or anybody for that matter when he decided to turn his back to the group, muttering, "good then," and then he cleared his throat.
"Hey, leader!" Barret shouted, eyes narrowed at Cloud's back. "Now that your late ass is here, let's finally eat and talk about the plan."
Cloud had to rub his hands across his face before turning back around, clearing his throat again and muttered, "yeah, sure."
Tifa approached him and took a feather out of his hair. "How did it go at the chicken farm?" She asked, trying not to laugh at the sight of him. Cloud seemed taken aback by the question, like he made a misstep somewhere and had to think of what Tifa was talking about. He had already forgotten about it.
"Uh, fine I guess," he muttered. I noticed Tifa laid a hand on his shoulder, and he didn't seem bothered by it. I wondered if they actually made up.
"It's starting to pour! Let's talk more inside!" Red barked, his fur already drenched. Barret charged ahead, with Red gladly behind him to get out of the rain. Tifa stayed near Cloud, asking him about the monsters, getting no more than his usually one word monotone replies.
I didn't know why I was so distracted by those two, unfazed of the rain falling on me until Aerith mentioned, "hey, use your cloak," and put it up over my hair for me. I had forgotten about it and whispered to her, "thanks", still a bit distraught.
She made a face like she was displeased with something, hands to her hips.
"Stop that."
"Stop what?!" I looked at her, and she only narrowed her beautiful eyes at me.
"Stop pretending you aren't in love with him."
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