16
To North Corel: The Broken Town
Aerith and I gave one last look at Costa Del Sol behind us, its festive streets already filled with a morning crowd.
Aerith sighed, her hands clutching to her backpack straps over her small shoulders while she wore her floral dress.
"Goodbye, wonderful paradise," she whispered wistfully.
"Goodbye beautiful beach," I joined, in love with my long boyfriend style shirt and sunhat that I planned to wear for our trek ahead. My hands tightened around my backpack's straps, feeling like a backpacker ready for the next destination: Corel.
Yuffie grinned widely, juggling two green orbs in her hands as she leaned against a sandstone wall.
"Hello, new Materia," she snickered. I noticed she acquired new jean shorts and a fresh graphic t-shirt that said "YOFO" right across her chest.
"Uh, Yuffie," I nagged, eying her shirt. "What does your shirt mean?"
Yuffie shrugged, one Materia in each hand. "I duh know. Why? Is it bad?" She dropped her eyes to her black shirt.
I tried to hide a laugh behind my cheeks when I replied, "only if you stole that shirt from a church." I couldn't help it and broke into laughter.
Everyone just stared, not laughing with me. I didn't plan to explain that one to them, and continued to laugh until Barret chuckled along with me.
"I like it when you laugh," he revealed, letting my cackling lift his spirits.
Cloud on the other hand, sighed, crossing his arms and shaking his head.
"I don't get it," he dragged, his eyes searching ahead among the green land ahead of us.
We were all waiting on Tifa.
She was supposed to show a half hour ago, but we started to get antsy. Barret especially as he tapped his foot impatiently, groaning to himself.
Red settled quietly next to Yuffie, his head resting over his paws while his tail wagged side to side in a hyper fashion.
Yuffie occupied herself throwing a Materia up into the air and catching it like a baseball. She caught it easily, smacking it into her fingerless gloved hand, and stared at all of us.
"What if she doesn't want to come with us after all?" She asked, the question we were all pondering.
We all stared at Cloud, the one in charge, and he shrugged. His uniform appeared clean, the blood stains and marks of battle gone, and boots wiped clean as they shined under a hazy morning sun.
"If Tifa wants to stay behind, then that's fine. It would just be nice if she had mentioned it instead of leaving us to loiter around like this," he muttered.
I caught Cloud glancing at me, and he quickly looked away, as though seeing my eyes took him some place he preferred not to reach. There wasn't tension between us like last time, but each time I watched Cloud, he appeared deep in his thoughts, someplace far away and depressing every time we crossed stares.
A tiny stab hurt the bird in my chest.
I still had yet to confirm with him about my time on the beach with Isaac. Did Cloud notice? Was he watching? Or did he simply need some fresh air, and was oblivious to it all? Why it bothered me, was because it could all be taken the wrong way. I didn't want Cloud to get any wrong ideas, and it was important for me to clarify it with him.
Bravely, I walked up behind him, arms behind my back while I gathered the courage to talk to him.
"How are-!"
"Sorry I'm late!" Tifa cried. We all turned, and there she was, running down the crowded street with a raised glove in the air. Tifa was back into her fighter clothes, her shopping bags clanking together over one shoulder. She almost appeared the same as when I first saw her, but something was also different. Maybe it was her eyes, how they seemed to sparkle life into them when she ran up to us, taking a few breaths and smiling apologetically.
"I'm sorry I made you all wait," she stated. Her smile was real. It was like a whole new Tifa, and with a tan.
Cloud smirked at her as Barret chuckled, "you said goodbye to your boy toy?"
Tifa blushed as she lightly gasped, not telling.
"Anyway, are we ready?" She eyed at all of us with fresh enthusiasm.
Aerith cheered, "Yeah!" She then pumped her fist in the air. I joined her, my fist next to hers. Tifa collided hers up in the air too, and so did Yuffie. I thought we acted like Power Rangers, us ladies with fists up, while Cloud, Barret and Red shook their heads.
"Dorks," Barret mumbled.
Cloud grunted behind a hidden smile and announced, "let's go."
We left the beautiful resort town of Costa De Sol, and headed West. We neglected the well paved road, hitting through the soft green grass lands. Miles away, a hazy mound of golden peaks sat, awaiting us. The sea salt air quickly faded, replaced with a growing dry heat as we ventured deeper inland.
"We have to cut through Mt. Corel first to reach the town," Cloud explained, walking ahead with purpose.
"I doubt Sephiroth would go through there, don't you think?" Tifa asked.
But a few hours later, as soon as our whole group entered the rocky and dry terrain, a loner backpacker eyed all of us. He was an older gentleman, and headed into the opposite direction, his shoes almost falling off his filthy feet.
"You kids, too?" he asked in a crackling voice like his lungs were full of cigarette tar.
Cloud stopped short, analyzing the lone traveler.
"Too?"
The older man nodded, giving us a flash of his missing teeth when he spoke.
"Yeah. I saw a fella with a long black cloak wander through here. I told him it was dangerous up ahead, but he just ignored me!"
Cloud looked over his shoulder to gaze at some of us behind him, lastly meeting my eyes before he looked away when he asked, "Could it be Sephiroth?"
I looked around the group to analyze their expressions, everyone displaying unsureness. I don't know why I pictured Sephiroth marching up a mountain, face cold and eyes lifeless, his sword out and slicing anyone in his way. It surprised me that he let the traveler go peacefully.
"Anyway, you all be careful. Some tracks are broken," the solo traveler warned. He then started on his way again, eying at all of us ladies as he passed.
"Tracks?" I questioned when we hiked again.
Barret marched next to me, breathing heavily from his size as we went up a steep hill. I admit, I hated hills, and took my damn time, huffing and puffing along with him and Aerith. Cloud, Tifa, Yuffie and Red made it look too easy, their breathing steady and movement swift as the rest of us fell behind.
"Mt. Corel used to be good for coal. So, there's many neglected mines around here. An old railroad system was built in the mountain to help haul all the coal into town until it all got shut down," Barret explained. He had been quiet since we left Costa Del Sol, not even so much as a curse nor complaint, so it was enriching to hear him speak. But once more, the muscular man was quiet. I analyzed him as he kept his eyes low, like he was hiding his gaze.
To my great relief, the climb finally stopped, leading us to either follow a footpath along the edge of a hill, or take a tracked bridge that crossed over a wide river of rough water.
The air thinned out, cooling, and yet, the hot sun glared at us with intense heat. There was no wind to carry the thin air to relieve us. I fanned myself with my hat after that long ascend, panting like Red as he stuck his tongue out.
Cloud led us along the bridge, our steps fumbling over the tracks while white water gurgled violently below us. I stayed as far in the center of the tracks as I could when there were no rails to keep us from falling into the water.
"So, what did Sephiroth say when you guys bumped into him on the ship?" Tifa asked. I almost forgot she missed much of what happened.
Cloud decided to answer that when he spoke up first.
"He mentioned something about Reunion. Hojo hinted that Sephiroth is going to where it all began."
"Where it all began?" Tifa questioned.
The conversation made Aerith nervous, I could tell with the way her eyes darted around, her thoughts falling her into a dark place she rarely visited. I took her hand with mine, and that seemed to snap her out of it because she gazed up at me and smiled nervously.
While the group was discussing about Sephiroth, Aerith and I followed slowly behind them to fall into our own deep conversation out of reach for everyone's ears. Well, except maybe Red's ears. I just had to accept that he could hear anything we said, and glad he kept quiet.
"So, are you finally going to tell me now?" Aerith poked, her hand squeezing mine. She had been asking me all morning about my walk with Cloud along the beach at sunset, but we had to get ready in the morning too quickly. Unable to have the space to talk alone until now, it made sense she brought it up.
I glanced ahead to make sure Cloud occupied himself with discussion, his back to us, and then returned my gaze back to Aerith.
What was I supposed to tell her? She was overly excited, expecting a juicy story, but she was in for an underwhelming event.
But even as I told her, my cheeks flushed, and my chest bird flapped its wings till its vibrations tingled all over my body.
"Nothing happened, though, he did try a pinky promise. He promised to protect me until we stop Sephiroth."
Aerith blew out hot air, her hands on her hips.
"Jeez, Cloud. Why are you such a stiff," she grumbled to herself, eying his back with needles in her eyes. I grinned wider, loving her expression.
"He's supposed to do that anyway. Ugh. I was hoping for more. You two are slower than some of the kids I took care of back in Sector 5," she pouted.
My grin grew wider because I agreed but also, I'm glad Cloud was cautious. I respected him for it, even if it left me aching on rare occasions.
Aerith and I continued to hold hands, following the rest of the group off the bridge and taking train tracks that wrapped around the edge of bumpy brown and yellow hills. Not a green plant to be seen. Nothing but mounds of neglected coal as small black mountains, crumbling away slowly. And monsters. Lots of monsters.
I was very excited to be able to use magic to assist with the battles. My damaged bracer still worked.
Aerith found herself a weapon, a silver staff, and pulled it out of her pack. It could shrink down or extend just like her old rod, only this one was higher quality, with detailed vine patterns along each end. She walked along with it like a walking stick in her dominate hand.
"I'm so glad I can cast long range magic attacks again," Aerith beamed, back to our own conversation after Barret and Yuffie warded off flying creatures with their long range attacks.
"Where did you manage to find one?" I asked, curious how Aerith found such an item in a resort town.
Aerith giggled lightly to herself as she reminisced her evening with Yuffie and told me easily, "Yuffie got it for me! I don't know where or how, but after our dessert date, we were walking through the shops, and she just handed it to me!"
"She did, huh?" I threw an uneasy glance at Yuffie's back, wondering if she had stolen it or not, but there's no use scolding her now.
We all wandered for what felt like a couple of hours, until we came close to the end of the road.
But it was interrupted by another wide river, and the tracks that were supposed to cross it, were raised, so we couldn't get to the other side.
Cloud cursed, eying the small switch box to the other side of the bridge, and groaned.
"It looks like we have to take the long way around," he muttered. I watched Barret gaze out at the river gloomily, his dim eyes following it in between the mounds of gold and brown hills of Mt. Corel, to a distant giant tree.
I stood next to him to stare out at the strange structure, unsure what it was exactly.
"What is that?" I asked, like a distant titan sized tree in a cloudy yellow haze.
"Gold Saucer," Barret grumbled.
That didn't clear it up any better, as I lifted a brow up over its odd design. Was it supposed to be like Yggdrasil, the Tree of Life in my adoptive parent's Norse mythology? The many yellow branches extended out into upside-down mushroom caps. Was it a plant? An actual place?
Aerith took my arm. After she saw the look on my face, she explained, "it's basically a giant theme park."
I gawked at her.
"A theme park?!" I don't know why I was so surprised this world had such entertainment, but there I was, my eyes wide out at the far away place.
Cloud sighed, not desiring talk of Gold Saucer when he was still stuck on our current dilemma: getting across.
"We aren't going anywhere until we take reach that small hut where I'm sure the switch is located," he confirmed.
Tifa giggled uneasily as her eyes scanned all the trails through the unappealing terrain.
"Why don't you go to it, Cloud? I'm fine resting here after that hike," she suggested.
Cloud made a face as Barret sat his rear down over a rail.
"Me too. This walk is killing me," he groaned, and rested his heavy gun arm alongside him.
Cloud rubbed his gloves across his face, not at all enthusiastic with the extra walk.
"Fine. But I'm taking two of you with me, whether you like it or not," he demanded.
"I'm pooped!" Yuffie whined, and she laid down on her back, her arms and legs out like a starfish, all over the tracks without a care. Her once pale face had turned into a soft pink sunburn.
Cloud eyed Red, and then Aerith and I as the last resort to our extended expedition.
"Well, it's between you three," he mentioned, shrugging. Red snorted and hid in the shade of Barret's large form.
"I'd rather stay and rest, if you don't mind. I think the three of you accomplish a lot more than I would provide, thank you," Red replied, nuzzling his head next to Barret's thigh.
Aerith beamed, but my stomach was churning uncomfortably when Cloud gave us a tiring look like we were just going to slow him down.
-—
It felt like the hottest part of the day, the hazy sun far up in the middle of the bluish grey sky. I don't know if it was smog or just lack of wind to filter away all the heat and coal dust. I coughed into my arm, tasting the dirt of coal each time I inhaled. Cooking, I kept fanning my face with my hat, while Aerith fanned herself with her hands.
"I should've brought a hat," she uttered, sweat over her brow. Cloud, too, was sweating as he marched on ahead, his dark clothes easily absorbing the heat while he held out his large sword. For him, it must've felt like weight training in sweats in the middle of a desert.
"Well, the sooner we cross, the faster we can get out of this heat," he informed, and wiped away sweat that filmed across his cheeks and neck.
I then had an idea, and channeled energy into my bracer. I thought of ice, and the bracer glowed in green.
Aerith watched nervously.
"Aqua, are you sure that's a good idea? I know what you're thinking, but I don't know if I want a blizzard either," she gulped.
I began to grow cold as I tried to imagine summoning the tiniest of ice magic.
"I know, but I need to practice sizing my magic," I explained. I lifted my hand up to the sky, and my whole body glimmered.
Cloud paused to watch, perplexed, until my arm unfurled blasts of cold icy wind. Tiny ice shards tickled my skin, and I shivered as I watched snow and ice flurry across us like a tiny curtain of storm over our heads.
Aerith hugged herself, her teeth chattering. Cloud looked up at the snowflakes quickly becoming rain, and closed his eyes to the cold water falling on his face.
I dropped my arm, and took a few deep breaths to regain my strength. The cold vanished, the sun, once again, pounding on us.
But I felt refreshed.
Aerith sighed with relief. "That worked out better than I thought. Thank you, Aqua," she chirped, her face slightly wet. A few snowflakes quickly melted off her braided hair, leaving behind tiny trails of water across her neckline and arms.
I sat my hat on top of my head again, glad to dodge the sun, as melted ice and snow left my skin moist and cool.
Cloud rubbed his fingers through his hair and sighed happily.
"That was needed. Thanks," he murmured, and walked again.
I really wanted to talk to him, but not in front of Aerith.
She must've noticed because she took my arm with her cold hands and whispered to me.
"What's up?"
I bit my teeth together, walking with her again far behind Cloud.
"Well…" I didn't even know how to start. I should be sharing this with Cloud, but he was easily unapproachable. How was I supposed to tell him anything if he was often closed up like he was?
I told Aerith how I couldn't sleep last night, and bumped into Isaac on the beach. She gasped, and threw a hand to her mouth. We both glanced towards Cloud. He must've heard Aerith's gasp, when he looked over his shoulder at the two of us, and narrowed his Mako eyes.
"You two are a little too far back there, don't you think?" he clued in.
Aerith pressed her lips together while I cleared my throat and nodded, like two children trying to keep it cool when it was obvious something was wrong.
Cloud waited patiently.
As we closed the gap between us, Aerith snuck a whisper into my ear.
"Wow, you just get into all kinds of trouble, don't you?" she teased.
I pretend she shrunk so small, I could fit her in my hands as I curled them under my chin and squished her.
"Shut up," I hissed, glaring at her. She just smiled, like aggravating me was part of her job. She knew I could never hate her. That wasn't fair.
"What are you two talking about?" Cloud pried when we moved again. The tracks looped us around the river, backtracking half a mile into more mountain path until we found the correct footpath.
Aerith and I exchanged nervous looks. Her eyes flew to Cloud, and then back to me, hinting that I should tell him. I bit my lower lip, and my stomach began to cramp up.
Cloud sighed. "You don't have to tell me. It's fine," he grunted. It wasn't fine at all. I could tell by the tone of his voice.
Aerith pushed me to walk next to him, and I shrunk into myself, looking down at the dirt. We soon entered more tracks, and walked along them, even as high as some hills. I tried not to look down, almost feeling like I was walking along the Ghost Rider of Knott's Berry farm. No protective railings, nothing but a two-way railroad, and a long drop down.
"Well, I've been meaning to ask you something," I began, and swallowed.
Cloud kept his eyes ahead, his back straight and arms crossed. He suddenly appeared a couple feet taller than I was.
"Go on," he encouraged, sounding both intrigued and bored at the same time.
I thought back to the beach, and started with, "I had a talk with Isaac last night. It was unexpected."
Aerith stayed quiet, an audience to a discussion that may either get heated rapidly or settled. I had no idea which it will go as Cloud sucked in a deep breath. I glanced up at him, his eyes drifted somewhere else, and he frowned deeply.
"I thought I told you not to be alone with him. Or anyone with Shinra for that matter."
"I know, and I tried, but Isaac quickly laid it out that I was off the hook, since Rufus was unaware of our unexpected meeting," I quickly corrected. Even after casting that ice spell, I was already sweating, my thin t-shirt dress almost appearing translucent, and I wrapped my arms around myself to hide my soft nipples.
"Because he is just so trusting," Cloud was sarcastic, and he finally stopped to give me a hard look. Suddenly, we lost awareness of Aerith as our argument escalated.
I stopped too, and rammed my hands over my hips, reflecting his look.
"I understand that it looks bad, but why are you even asking me what happened? Weren't you watching? I saw you leave your porch as soon as I was heading back in!"
Cloud closed his eyes, collecting his thoughts while breathing heavily through his nose.
"Yeah, and that's because I wake up to any tiniest of movements. So, even when you walked quietly outside my door, I woke up instantly. It's just what I was trained to do. I was on the porch, watching you."
I growled, "isn't that a little invasive? I like my privacy!"
Cloud threw swords at me with his eyes.
"Aren't you forgetting you did the exact to me when I had my private talk with Tifa?"
I fumed silently, and knew he got me. He was just doing what I had done, and honestly, Cloud being protective wasn't a shocker. But the things he might have heard, bothered me more than anything else we discussed.
"What did you hear?" I challenged.
Cloud swallowed as his cheeks flushed red. Unbeknownst to us, the wooden tracks under his feet began to creak.
He looked down, his eyes suddenly softening.
"Everything," he whispered.
I thought I was going to break, and tried my damn hardest not to do it in front of Cloud. I shook my head endlessly, eyes burning.
"Cloud. That was all very personal," I cracked. I suddenly wanted to run, but to where? Where could I go? Where could I hide? My eyes darted all around the dry environment, searching for an escape route, but was disappointed to find none. I only found Aerith hugging herself as she kept quiet.
Cloud left the silence settle in for almost too long, until, finally, he whispered, "I know," and closed his eyes again. Suddenly, something cracked loudly, and before I had time to blink, Cloud vanished under the tracks.
Aerith and I gasped.
"Cloud!" I reached down and grabbed for his hand before he was too far. But, instead of me being able to hoist him up, his weight, along with the probably a hundred extra pounds from his sword, pulled me along with him.
Head first, my hand still gripped around Cloud's wrist, I screamed as I was being pulled with him. Nothing but a web of woodwork, Cloud grabbed anything that he could. He let go of my hand, throwing me more into a panic as wind whooshed up into my face and hair, my boots up in the air.
And then I was suddenly yanked, Cloud's arm wrapped around my waist, and he quickly pushed me against him.
I tangled my arms around his neck as he grunted, his hand holding on to a flimsy piece of wood. We hung like that, our feet dangling under us, while I was trying not to have a panic attack. I was beginning to wheeze, when Cloud said through his teeth, "just hold on to me tightly. I need both hands. Okay?"
I nodded, but really, all I heard was that he was going to let go. Regrettably, I looked down, a long mesh of wood to follow before getting squashed over dry flat earth. It took a long time before my hat finally made it to the bottom. My wheezing grew, tightening my hold around Cloud's neck until he groaned from the choke hold.
"Aqua, please," he begged, his sweat making my arms slip easily.
I closed my eyes tight and buried my face into his moist shirt.
"Please, don't let go!" I wailed, breathing too fast.
Cloud's hold tightened, and pushed me into him until I could feel his steady heart beat against my chest.
"Look at me," he demanded softly. Slowly, I lifted my numbing face up and our eyes met. I don't think I've ever been this close to Cloud before, not like this. Not with his body mashed against mine so strongly, our faces so close, his sweat jumped off his brow and landed on my cheeks. I could've sworn I could feel all of him, his hard body and sweat under his uniform, his belt rubbing against my belly, and my thighs up into his groin.
Cloud's eyes glowed tenderly, the light in them welcoming my gaze. His blond spikes tickled my cheekbones, and he whispered, "there, that's better."
I didn't even realize I had calmed until he pointed it out, and my eyes became stuck with his until my face grew heat. My chest bird flapped wildly, and I'm sure Cloud could feel it against him as he swallowed, his face, too, very red.
"Are you two okay?! Should I get help?!" Aerith cried from above. Cloud and I looked up, seeing her tiny head poke out from a white light high above us, an angel poking her head out from heaven.
"We're okay!" Cloud bellowed, my lips almost touching his neck. I threw in a trembling inhale, and turned my head away in time for his face to drop, and gripped my elbows tighter around his neck.
I could feel Cloud swallow around my arms, his chin brushing the top of my head.
"I'm going to let go. Just keep doing what you're doing, and I'll climb us out of here," he told me carefully.
I held in my breath, and shut my eyes tight when his arm disappeared from my waist. Nothing but my arms kept me up, and I gasped, feeling more air sneak up my dress as I practically clutched to Cloud for dear life. He began to let his hands lift us, using the thousands of wood boards like a ladder.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, his cheek rubbing against my forehead. I watched his lips as they moved when he spoke, his tongue licking them.
"I'm sorry I heard all of that. I didn't mean to," Cloud was saying, back to our conversation.
I leaned into his neck a bit more, and closed my eyes. I wanted to tell him that it was okay, but it really wasn't. I just wasn't certain what would make me feel better about it. Instead, I muttered, "you were just trying to protect me."
Cloud's strength made the climb easy, his breathing calm, and his heart so relaxed. I didn't want this part to end, having to be so close to him like this.
"You could've gone with him. Marry Rufus instead of going through all this shit with us," he grunted.
I shook my head, and my lips smiled against his neck, a light brush to his skin.
"No. I would never do that," I whispered.
Cloud cleared his throat, his arms continuously pulling us up.
"I can't believe Rufus pulled that on you. That explains a lot," he muttered, and I felt his heart beat faster.
I savored Cloud's growing heat against me, his chest intensifying and neck pulsing as though Mako was pumping through his blood faster at the instant thought of Rufus.
"That bastard thought of that since the beginning. I could tell, the way he looked at you. I knew he was up to something," Cloud was saying, and we were only about ten feet away from Aerith.
I held him a little tighter while still giving him the ability to breathe.
"Well, thank goodness that's over," I sighed, and then quickly added, "don't tell the others. It's just a bit awkward."
Cloud pushed me up through the broken boards, and Aerith gave me her hands. I climbed out, probably with splinters, and we both held each other.
Cloud followed with ease, with both hands pushing him up till he got to his feet. He gazed at me and Aerith.
"Aerith already knows, doesn't she?" he asked with a lifted brow.
Aerith blinked as I questioned, "about Rufus?"
Aerith then gasped, tossing her eyes back and forth from me to Cloud.
"Oh, I don't know what you mean?" she piped, her cheeks red. I giggled along with Cloud, and he planted a hand over her head to frizz out her perfect hair.
"You liar," he teased.
He gave us both a hand to help us up, and suddenly, the mood lifted. Aerith could finally talk to Cloud about the whole marrying Rufus thing, as the switch hut was finally in sight.
"Cloud, are you going to pulverize him now?" she asked, her fists pumped as though itching for more drama to unfold. But Cloud chuckled, and waved to the other group about a hundred yards away. Everyone waved back as they basked under the brutal sun.
"Only if he tries anything. Let's hope we don't cross paths and find out," Cloud replied lightly, and pressed the switch.
The railroad bridge unfolded, giving the other group a chance to cross.
"Finally," he breathed.
I kept quiet, still bothered, and didn't want to discuss more about it in front of Aerith. Rufus was a fine topic, but the other stuff, like me not wanting kids, the personal dilemma between Isaac and I, was something for another time. I'd like to not bring it up at all, but it was going to settle in my stomach, and build into my chest all day. Cloud knew something so personal, I wouldn't even have told Aerith the details of that deep talk.
We all finally met up where the tracks aligned, and it was the seven of us again.
The railroad began to descend, and the closer we got to the South base of the mountain, the more depressed Barret dragged himself.
I became nervous as I walked next to him, my hand to my chest where I held the locket under my dress shirt.
"Barret," I called, and he turned his head to me.
"Yeah?"
I fiddled with Luca's locket, and thought about holding him as he died in my arms.
"Will you help me find Gwen, and give her Luca's locket?" I requested gently.
Barret gazed at the locket in my hand.
"He gave that to you, huh?" he mumbled, and tore his eyes away. The rest of the group ease dropped when he added solemnly, "sure. I can do that. For Luca."
I detected the dreary tone in Barret's voice.
"I'll go with you, of course," I clarified.
"I know you will," Barret stated. Cloud was listening, and added, "I'll go, too. To pay my respects."
"Who the hell is Luca? What are we doing?" Yuffie asked out of the blue. I wasn't in the mood to explain it, neither was Barret.
Cloud helped when he quickly informed, "just a helpful marine troop that got killed. Some of us knew him, and we need to tell his family. I doubt Shinra will bother."
"So that's the main reason we are going to North Corel," Tifa speculated, finally figuring some of it out. Was she hoping we would graze through it? I was excited about the upcoming rest in town, picturing a fine little place like Kalm along the foot of the mountains.
But I was soon very disappointed.
How could I describe the town known as North Corel?
We took a footpath away from the tacks, and followed it into a wasted land, worse than any slums I've ever seen in Midgar. I thought we were passing through a tent city, like a refugee camp, and asked, "So, when will we get there?"
The question rattled Barret, for he growled too strongly, "This is it!" His voice shook me, and I stopped, bewildered by the town's state.
This wasn't a town. It was a camp. A filthy camp broken up into a road that was mostly buried under trash, and mounds of hills that you had to climb on foot to get to the broken down huts and brittle wooden shacks.
This couldn't be Luca's home.
The air was thick with haze, a mix of heat, coal, excess carbon dioxide, and depression. My shoulders sank, watching dirty folk eye us like we were foreigners as we passed. It broke my heart to see children sitting around, doing nothing, daydreaming, all their limbs stickly thin under loose clothes. Any few women, kept to themselves, wrapped in shawls to hide their dark skins and became watchful of Cloud and his large sword. Men glared, some of them whispering to each other as they laid their hard eyes specifically at Barret. Whispers littered the broken town, spreading easily for its size, while Barret kept quiet. He stopped next to me, and dropped his eyes to my shocked expression. He laid his massive hand over my shoulder, and sighed.
"This is Luca's home. And mine, too," he mentioned tiredly with his thick voice.
I spun to stare up at him, shocked just as much as everyone else was.
"This is your home?" I whispered, ready to fall into tears. Now I understood Barret's melancholic mood.
He did a soft squeeze and dropped his hand limply, his face sinking into the dirt.
"Yeah…"
Tifa kept quiet, but her large red eyes stayed on Barret with worry, her hands to her heart. Red pawed his way carefully around the filth, and took a seat next to Barret's legs like a man's best friend.
Yuffie made a face as people stared at her shirt with puzzled faces.
Aerith knelt down in front of a couple of children, giving them power bars from her pack while they exchanged chuckles.
Quietly, Cloud walked next to me, his hands in his pockets when he whispered, "Just like the slums of Midgar. These people have been left here on their own. You'll see it isn't just a city problem, Aqua. It's a world problem."
"Well, look who's here!" someone growled. A group of hard-looking men, most of them dark skinned like Barret, walked slowly up to us. Their vibes meant trouble, with dark eyes and teeth clenched, muscles tense under dirty old clothes and trousers. I retreated behind Cloud's arm, and watched them when they marched right up to Barret. Dressed in jean overalls, and arms as thick and skin just as dark as Barret's, the man shoved a hand into his chest without permission. Barret barely budged.
"You've got a lot of balls coming back here! Why the fuck did you come back?! To pity us?! To remind us how this shit hole began in the first place?!" the man spat. He threw a wad of saliva between his teeth, and smacked it across Barret's boot.
Barret slumped his large shoulders, staying a mute while he avoided all the gazes that preyed upon him like territorial wolves.
Another man stepped forth, his fist ready. "Did you already forget what did to us?!"
How could Barret put up with this? I've never seen him so passive before as I watched him brutally sink into himself.
"I'm sorry…" he whimpered, shrinking further and further.
Another man gestured to the rest of us and asked, "Who are these poor souls with you? I pity these folk having to hang out with a piece of shit like you."
The one in the overalls added, "Fuck man, he's not even worth our time. Let's go." They all turned their glares back to Barret.
"Leave this town before we make you," one of them warned, and left it at that.
The men dispersed, but the hateful stares lingered, even from the women.
Tifa walked up to Barret's fallen form, and laid a hand on his shoulder.
"Barret, why did you put up with that? This isn't like you?"
But Barret pushed her aside, and he swallowed down all his pride just to step forth, and called out to the leader of the group.
"Hal, I came to find Gwen. Please, tell me where she is."
The one in the overalls froze, and turned completely around with flaming coals in his eyes.
"Why the hell should I tell you?"
Barret sucked in a long and deep breath.
"I have to give her bad news about Luca," he replied deeply. All the men turned, and there were stares across the battered area. Children stopped playing, just to pause and hear more. Women froze, some of them whispering to each other while they laid their cautious eyes on the gun armed man.
Hal stepped forward, the truth already on his face when he took a good look into Barret's eyes.
"No…"
Barret nodded, and then he turned his head to me.
"Aqua, the locket."
I clutched to it, not wanting to depart with the treasure, but grew nervous when all the eyes fell on me. I emerged from behind Cloud, unclasped the chain I fixed, and settled it in my hand. Hal walked over to me, ready to retrieve it, but I pulled it back and clasped it to my chest.
"Please?" I pleaded to the rough-looking gentleman, his eyes soft on me.
"He wanted me to give it to someone named Gwen. Please let me do it," I requested.
Hal swallowed, his rugged face hard, and with so many lines around his eyes from all the years squinting under the sun. He exhaled loudly, watching how I clung to the locket.
"How do you know Luca?" he asked me, defensive.
A small jab hit me in the stomach.
"He was my friend for a minute. I barely know him, but he helped me. He…saved me," I admitted. No questions flooded out of Hal's mouth, like this was a regular thing, and yet, his eyes steamed. He looked away as he whispered to himself, "fuck, poor Gwen."
He glanced at me over his shoulder and finally said, "okay. I will take you to her."
And then glared at Barret as he jabbed a finger at him.
"But not you! Just the girl!"
Barret held his breath as Hal gestured me to follow him.
I turned around to stare at my family, meeting all of their depressing gazes with mine. Lastly, I observed Cloud, when he nodded for me to go on. I took in a deep breath, turned my back to him, and followed Hal.
It was a short trek around tents and junk. Grills were open, people cooking over fire pits and empty Mako barrels, bringing smoke into the sky to give it that hazy look.
Hal kept his hands in his pockets, silent, as he led me up a slope to a small wooden shack. He knocked on its flimsy door made up of bent steel plate.
The door opened, ringing a little dinky bell that hung over it, and a little girl's head poked out.
My heart boomed as my thoughts instantly jumped to begging that she wasn't Luca's little girl.
Hal sat his hands on his knees, and peered his gentle gaze down at the little thing.
"Hi, Sweetie. Is your mommy home?"
The little girl could've been Marlene's age, and she rubbed at her eyes as though she just woke from a nap, or maybe it was from all the smoke from the cooking fires that polluted the town's air.
"Yeah, she's sleeping," she whimpered.
Hal sank his head a moment, almost in between his legs, but lifted it up again.
"Well, you need to wake her. Tell her it's important," he asked gently. The little girl turned her large brown eyes to me, her little mouth open, and then retreated inside. Hal gave me a careful look as I nervously stood next to him while I was holding the locket in my hands like a mother would a child.
"You sure you don't want me to give it to her? She may ask you questions," Hal warned. I gave him a look, wondering what he meant by that. I felt it in his tone, how his warning told of possible questions not about Luca's death, but about why someone like me was left with his locket. Another woman.
Dear Gods, please don't run. I kept telling myself that, even as the door opened again. A young woman appeared, her form standing weakly as she leaned her shoulder against the doorway. Her skin was grey, unless it was just the smoke and dust, her beautiful blue eyes dull. Her poor hair was black and brittle under a stained pink bandana. She clutched to a blanket around her shoulders, and her tired eyes lifted to Hal.
"What is this, Hal? I can't stand much these days," the woman croaked, and she eyed me suspiciously. Before anything could be mentioned, she gasped, recognizing the chain hanging from my hands.
"The locket?! Give it to me!" she cried, trying to stop herself from prying my hands open. I handed it to her, and she swooped it into her thin hands desperately.
The poor woman wailed.
"No!"
Hal planted his hands on her tiny shoulders.
"I'm so sorry, Gwen."
She sobbed heavily into his arms, her tiny form swallowed up.
"Why?!" she cried.
I suddenly felt I didn't belong, my feet instinctively stepping me back. But the one, called Gwen, glared at me through her thick tears.
"Why?! Why did you have it?! What happened to my husband?!" Her hands came at me like claws, tears down her hollowed cheeks. Hal stopped her from unleashing the primal force that emerged from inside the sickly woman, and she crumbled into him, crying up to the sky until her voice echoed across the hills.
"Why?!"
I ran.
Vision blurred by the sudden tears, my feet tripped, and I almost fell coming back down the rough slope. I buried my tears into my hands, and bumped into Aerith with the both of us letting out gasps.
Aerith hurriedly wrapped her arms around me as I wailed into my hands, my knuckles brushing her collar bones.
"That was brave of you," she whispered, rubbing my shaky shoulders. I felt so awful, unable to do a thing as I watched Luca's wife crumble away, the love of her life suddenly gone. I had no idea what I was going to walk into, the thought easier than it really was. It reminded me too much of telling dreadful news to my patients and their families. About their tumors, their prognosis, their chances of living. It's the worst place to be in, to tell someone you don't know, that they were going to die, or that their loved one has died.
More hands settled on my shoulders. I recognized the feeling of Barret's easily, and guessed the other had to be Cloud's.
"You did the right thing," Barret whispered. I shook my head, disagreeing with him.
"It was so hard," I wept, embarrassed that everyone was seeing me like this.
I quickly collected myself, sniffing up snot and tears. Tifa handed me a small handkerchief from her bag, and I used it to dab my eyes.
"Guys, thanks," I croaked.
Footsteps crackled along the gravel and dirt. We all turned, and found the man, Hal, study us, his eyes moist. He gave a brief look at Barret, and sunk his bald head.
"Dyne's brother. I had hopes for him. Shinra are awful, but it gave Luca a job, and kept Gwen alive with the money he sent. Now I don't know how she'll manage," he said, either to us or to himself, and flashed a false smile of yellow teeth.
Barret rubbed at his eyes.
"He was a great kid."
Hal's eyes grew cold again, and he was back to hating Barret. He gave him his back, eying him with suspicion over his shoulder.
"Well, you got what you came for. More sorrow into this shit hole. You aren't going to stay, are you?"
Barret shook his head, avoiding the harsh gaze.
"No. We lookin for someone with a long black cape," he replied. Hal considered this, a thick dark finger under his rough chin.
"Oh yeah, I've seen him. Took the trolly up to Gold Saucer. Try there," he suggested lazily. We watched him take a few steps, his large boots easily crunching anything beneath him. Hal then stopped short, and sighed, his large shoulders dropped.
"I'm sorry, Barret." He left it at that and walked away before anyone saw them together. We all watched him leave, until Barret twisted around and shook his head.
"Let's go. I don't want to stay here for another damn minute," he whimpered.
We followed the sign to "Gold Saucer" and ended up at a station for a Ropeway Air Tram. It reminded me of ski lifts, the simple design of a cart with propellers, held up by rope. My eyes followed the rope all the way across a vast yellow land of nothing but desert beyond the tent city. And in the middle of all that desert, stood tall like a gigantic mountain of gold, the tree I saw earlier from Mt. Corel. The stretch of rope up to the giant city was long, maybe for miles. I wondered how long the ride would be as we paid for our way to use the tram.
Barret shook the trolly when he marched in, and sat like a large dark blob on his own bench. Yuffie sat next to Tifa, their eyes up at Barret with many questions.
The heat followed us into the cart, with fans in its blue walls whirling white noise. The floor was hard plastic, a laser cut solid piece under benches when I gazed down at it. Red peered down at his reflection on the floor, and scoffed to himself, displeased with what he saw. Cloud sat alone, quietly watching Barret from across the tram, his sword resting beside him.
A speaker crackled, and a broken voice announced, "to Gold Saucer. Welcome aboard."
The doors slid shut, and sealed.
I sat next to Aerith, noticing there were tinted windows all around the tram to get an almost 360 degree views. The propellers started, whirling to life, and propelled the tram forward at a snail's pace. Slowly, North Corel shrank away, Barret watching it disappear with moisture in his eyes.
Tifa walked across the floor, and sat next to him to take his hand with hers.
"Barret, what happened? Why were those people so mean to you?"
We all shifted our attention to him as the tram hummed, the floor buzzing under our feet. We were lifting at a very slow ascend, which meant there was time for a story. Barret sighed, sinking his head into his hands.
"And they have every right to be. It was all my fault," he crumbled.
"What is your fault?" Cloud asked.
Barret lifted his brown eyes up to the short ceiling, and behind the humming of fans, he began to tell his story.
44