Aerith examined the girl in the mirror, peering closely at her irises. Swollen blood vessels infringed on their emerald hue, so her eyes needed to be treated first. She squeezed eye drops in each one, blinked the solution in, washed her face in the sink, and applied a light blush to regain her natural glow. Although nothing could remove the haunted look from her eyes, most traces of her breakdown were now concealed.
She stepped out the bar's cramp, single restroom and found Cloud standing outside with her shopping bags at his feet. His eyes reflected her trauma, but only the puffiness around them proved he gave way to tears earlier.
She smiled wanly and handed him the tiny eye drops bottle, figuring he could use it. Then on a whim she cupped her hands, set them against her cheek, and with a winning smile, batted her eyelashes. "How do I look?"
Cloud huffed, amused and heartened by her attempt to lighten the mood. "Ten out of ten, technique could use a little work though."
She giggled and playfully shoved him towards the restroom. "Okay, Mr. Judge. Let's see you do better."
His mouth quirked up as he went in and shut the door. Seconds later Aerith's smile fell.
That vision had been awful. No, atrocious. Imagining Zack's death was one thing, but actually seeing it was beyond horrifying. Zack wasn't meant to die under bleak storm clouds, he was a creature of light, and if he was to die it should be under crystal blue skies. And his pain, his helplessness as he lay dying was wrong. Zack was always strong, Aerith's shield and knight, yet in the end he was hardly able to speak.
What did he think as his breaths slowed to a stop? Of Cloud? His parents? His tragically short life? ...Or could it be he thought of her?
Aerith's PHS beeped and she jumped, tossing a hand over her heart. The bartender wiping the counter gave her an odd look, but she ignored him as she checked her inbox.
Subject: I have a surprise!
From: Zack
Hello, beautiful! I know it's getting late, but could you meet me at the Sector 7 station in ten minutes?
A maelstrom of despair struck her, and her efforts nearly went to waste as she clamped down on a fresh wave of tears. Just reading his words, so merry and carefree, wounded her. It ached like a dagger to the heart seeing Zack live a life fuller than most, knowing it would end sooner than most too. It was utterly sickening. So much so her insides churned and she clutched her middle, teetering against the nausea.
"Aerith?" Cloud was suddenly holding her shoulders and peering into her face, the embodiment of concern. "What's wrong? Are you hurt?"
Her lips parted, but bile threatened to rise up her throat so she sealed them and shook her head. Cloud hovered over her while she took a deep breath then released it slowly. She repeated the process a few times until the sickness passed, and he let her go as she straightened.
Averting her gaze, she admitted. "Zack messaged me, and I..."
Comprehension and sympathy lit up Cloud's expression. Grateful she didn't have to go into detail, she continued. "He wants to see me and I can't say no."
"Are you sure?" Cloud frowned, aware of her fragile state.
"Mhm." Her head bobbed. Then she whipped out her PHS and told Zack she was on her way before she could talk herself out of it.
"If you want, I can go with you." Cloud rubbed the back of his neck, looking off towards a television playing at the back of the bar.
Aerith's lips curved into a small smile. The boy clearly didn't want to be a third-wheel and likely wasn't prepared to see Zack yet, but he would if she asked him to. What a sweetheart.
"Zack was right." Cloud turned back, face scrunched in confusion. "You are like a chocobo chick."
His eyebrows shot to his hairline. "W-what?!"
Aerith giggled. "Zack said he has a friend who reminds him of a chocobo chick, cute and spirited."
Cloud face-palmed, cheeks reddening as he groaned. "Are you sure he meant me?"
Her eyes flicked to his hair. "Zack called him Spiky."
Cloud grumbled about the spikes running in his family and Aerith patted his shoulder in commiseration.
Lowering his hand, he sobered as he assessed her. "Do you want me to come?"
Aerith shook her head. "No, it's okay. I'll be fine." She bent over to grab her bags and held them out to him. "Could you drop this off at the church when you pick up your uniform? I'm the only one that goes in there so it should be fine."
He accepted the bags, yet bit his lip and pleaded. "Don't be a stranger, Aerith."
She beamed. "Of course I won't, we're friends."
His whole body jolted, eyes widening and fluttering rapidly, but soon his face melted into a timid tenderness. "Call me if you need anything, anything at all, even if it's just to talk." His voice was kind yet stern.
"Okay," she nodded, equally serious.
Cloud gave her a parting look before turning and striding out the bar. Aerith watched him go, a chill creeping over her skin as her sole support vanished from sight. Cloud hadn't abandoned her, was merely a call away, but she still felt bitterly alone as she walked to Sector 7.
Aerith ended up being a few minutes late, so wasn't surprised Zack already stood among the cluster of people at the train station. His back was to her as he glanced around and she mentally steeled herself, locking up tight the image of rain hitting his battered body. The bullet holes riddling his chest as his very life seeped out in scarlet rivers. His smile's radiance outlasting even him as his eyes fell shut forever.
"Aerith!" Zack hollered upon seeing her, waving high above the people milling about as if he thought she would have trouble finding him. Knowing him, he forgot his SOLDIER uniform stood out in the slums.
She started giggling, but it was borderline hysterical so she cut herself off while Zack jogged over. Plastering on a coy smile, she met him in the middle. "Did I ever tell you I love a man in uniform?"
"Did I ever tell you I love a girl in pink?" He smirked, leaning down to peck her cheek, and her mental wall cracked as she spotted water drops rolling down his forehead. His hair must have gotten damp in the rain, exactly like as he died. Vision suddenly overcoming her, Zack's smiling face blurred with the memory of his smiling corpse because of course Zack's final act was to smile.
"Ready for your surprise?" His voice was light and melodious, and she savored the sound. It blocked out the whisper in the back of her head saying Zack was already dead, his fate sealed.
She didn't believe it, and didn't wish to hear of it anymore. Aerith was tired of premonitions. She just wanted to exist in the here and now, to simply enjoy being with Zack. No worries or fears weighing her down, just a boy and girl cultivating the love between them.
Aerith grinned, baring her teeth. "That depends, is it my flower wagon?"
Zack deflated, put out by the reminder he yet to build the long-awaited wagon. "Uh, no, it isn't." He chuckled nervously and straightened, rubbing the back of his neck. She narrowed her eyes, hands on her hips, but he hastily waved her down. "But it's better than that, waaay better!" He rocked on the balls of his feet, body humming with enthusiasm.
"Oh, alright." She relaxed her stance, excitement trickling into her tone as she asked, "Where is it?" She looked around him.
"Not here." Zack turned halfway and pointed to the train people were boarding as others slipped out. "It's above plate." He grinned like he offered her the world gift-wrapped with a bow.
Yet her heart stopped. Her brain burned out like an old lamp. The world lurched and swayed, a rowboat adrift a stormy sea. She should have known. He asked to meet at the train station, something he had never done before, and this was later than usual for a date.
Now it made sense. He was going to show her the sky. Today, now, right now. She wasn't ready, her emotions were all over the place and she was a mess. It didn't matter that she asked him to. It was the sky she would be facing, the enormity waiting to swallow her up and never return her. She would fall up higher and higher until the clouds drifted below and her pink was lost to the blue.
"Aerith?" Zack reached out to her, lips slanted down and brow furrowing, but she couldn't ruin this. It was supposed to be a happy day, and who knew how few of these days they had left. She wasn't going to ruin what might be their final day together. No, she rather be like Zack.
Go out smiling.
"I'm nervous." She latched onto his hand and reeled him in with it, making him stumble. "So hold me tight, okay?" She placed his hand on her waist and his arm instinctively twined around her while she hugged his side and leaned her head against his chest.
His heartbeat thrummed loud and steady, telling her Zack lived, he was here with her and together nothing could hurt them. The sky was no match for the might of Zack's heart.
"Are you sure about this?" His voice was pitched low, a sweet and tender timbre reserved solely for her. "We don't have to if you don't want to." His grip tightened, negating his words. He wanted her to go up, longed to show her a whole new side of the world, and she would not disappoint.
Aerith raised her chin so he could see the resolve burning in her eyes. "I want to."
His expression became carefully blank as he examined her, and she fretted as the seconds passed. If Zack's protective instincts kicked in now she would not be seeing the sky today, perhaps she never would.
Zack looked away, expression unreadable, and she already saw him insisting they stay below until he asked, "Did I ever tell you I gotta thing for brave girls?" Zack turned back with a toothy grin and hope bloomed in her chest while he grew serious. "I won't let go for a second." His free hand slipped over hers, lifting it off himself as their fingers threaded and they shuffled aboard the train.
The clamor of people made her ears ring as they situated themselves in a corner and the overhead lights bleached the world white. That, or she was about to faint. Her heart was pounding against her ribcage and she was sure everyone could hear it. If not, they certainly heard her squeak when the train started moving.
Zack, mercifully intuitive, caressed her palm while she cowered into him. His featherlight touch settled her somewhat and she scowled at herself for needing it. To think he called her brave when here she was panicking before they even arrived.
Hoping to salvage her reputation, she said, "I haven't ridden a train in years." Her voice quivered and she despised it.
"I understand." Zack said, tone purposely placid, and the lack of accusation soothed her. "I remember the first time I rode a train. I'd just arrived at Midgar, and everything was so big and loud. The trains were the worst 'cause they screeched like banshees every time they stopped, and for a while I avoided the stations 'cause I thought some sort of screechy dragon was on the loose there." He laughed at himself and she smiled, picturing a young, lanky Zack hiding from a train.
"But I wanted to join SOLDIER and the only way to reach the Shinra Building was by train, so I got on, and boy was I mess! I must have fell over a dozen times. I even tripped into some lady's lap, and she got so red, would have gave me an earful if I hadn't ran into the next car."
Aerith started shaking and Zack tensed before realizing it was from quiet amusement, her chortles warming the spot over his heart before dwindling into a final sputter. Then her head angled up and her smile gleamed gold as the sun saturated her in light. He had seen her under the spotlight in the church before, but this was the first time he viewed her under the full ray of the sun. Golden halo shimmering around her, Zack truly thought her an angel.
However, when the train stopped and people herded out, Aerith instinctively tracked them to the doors and terror overtook her expression as she glimpsed a slither of sky. Gasping, her eyes slammed shut and she burrowed into Zack hard enough to make him totter.
"I'm sorry, but I-I can't look. Just give me a minute." Her high-pitched plea was embarrassingly adolescent.
"That's okay." He squeezed her, ignoring the curious looks people entering the train were giving them. "There's a specific place I want to take you anyway. So how about I guide you for now and once were there, I'll tell you to look up?"
Aerith nodded her face against him, feeling like a shy child hiding behind her mother's dress. Zack snickered, clearly amused by this, and she scowled, swatting his back.
"Hey!" Zack squawked. "It's not my fault you're acting all cute." Aerith huffed, swatting him again, but that only made him laugh harder until her own laughter chimed with his.
Together they shuffled out the train doors, and though her eyes were screwed shut, Aerith felt the full scope of the sun hitting her. The warm sensation made her grin until she remembered the sun was in the sky, meaning there was no plate or ceiling, nothing except open air above her. If she slipped out the ring of Zack's arms, she would fly up and up eternally, never to be found.
"Why did you join SOLDIER?" The question hurtled off her tongue in a desperate attempt to find a distraction.
Zack froze, and she would have tripped if she hadn't been hugging his torso. "Sorry, I just haven't been asked that in a while." He resumed walking, albeit at a slower pace. "Eh, there were a lot of reasons, but you know me, I can't stay cooped up for long. One day my hometown felt too small and I wanted some excitement in my life, to see more of the world, go on a real adventure." His voice rose, past excitement resurfacing.
"So the usual country boy dreams?" She asked to keep him talking.
Zack shrugged. "I guess, but it wasn't just that." He straightened, squaring his shoulders. "My dream is to become a hero."
Genuine passion colored his tone and Aerith wasn't surprised. "I guess you're living the dream then." SOLDIERs were hailed as heroes by the general public.
"Not really." Zack sighed, taking her aback. "I mean I've saved people, battled monsters, and swept a pretty girl off her feet." His tease got a giggle out of her. "But doing heroic stuff doesn't make me a hero. To truly be a hero, I have to do something amazing, go above and beyond for something really important." The strength backing his words hit her hard as the image of him lying dead sprung to mind.
This is why he dies.
Cloud. Zack died saving Cloud. He really meant it. He would go above and beyond, lay down his life for someone he cared about. Zack would become a hero and it would cost him everything.
Suddenly she wanted to tell him it was stupid, a dumb, foolish thing to dream about. Even if it hurt him, even if it hurt her, she wanted to scream and shout until he gave up because his dream wasn't worth it. Not if it meant living in a world without her Zack.
"That's a nice dream," she lied instead.
He chuckled. "That it is." He came to a stop, and she noticed the sound of people and cars zipping past had dimmed. Understanding what this meant, her knees wobbled and her nails dug into his shirt.
"I know you're scared."
That was an understatement. Frightened beyond all reason was more appropriate.
"So don't feel the need to look if you're not ready. I can wait-"
She whipped up her head and her eyes flew open while Zack gasped.
Blue. The sky was a brilliant blue dotted by clouds ranging from snow white to ash gray, and she was crushed by its enormity. Her lip trembled and her breaths quickened as there was no end. No lines, edges or corners, the sky just kept going and going as far as she could see.
Zack said something, but the blood pumping through her veins was all she could hear. Her legs were rubber and a scream was bubbling inside. She wasn't as brave as Zack thought and shame burned within until she noticed an arch of colors above an apartment building.
"Is that a rainbow?" Her eyes widened and jaw slackened as she stared at the spectrum. Behind the translucent red to orange to yellow and beyond laid the sky, but the rainbow made her forget. It was just such a wondrous sight, such luminous colors adorning the air.
"Yes, that's the surprise!" Zack flashed his pearly whites at her and she realized she was doing the same. "I haven't seen a rainbow out here in ages, but when I did, I thought about how you can't see the sky below plate and figured you probably never seen one. It's nice, right?" He was practically bouncing in place, glad to have pleased her, and Aerith laughed, utterly delighted.
She really did it. She faced the sky with Zack and life went on. Even though the sky still beckoned her, wanting to carry her off to the heavens above, she was safe in Zack's arms.
"Yes, I love it!" Aerith cheered, hopping up to kiss him. He smiled against her lips and looked blissfully dazed as they pulled apart, pink dusting his cheeks. She probably looked the same, light and giddy with a gigawatt smile.
Her PHS beeped, however, and both were crestfallen as she pulled it out. It was a message from her mom, asking where she was and if she was okay because Aerith was never late to dinner. Realizing she forgotten to let her mom know she was running late, she quickly typed a reply.
"You have to go home?" Zack pouted, wearing his finest kicked-puppy expression, and her lips curved up.
"Yes." He deflated and her smile turned wicked. "But you can come with me if you like."
He jerked up ramrod straight. "Huh? Really?!"
"Silly," she giggled and placed her hand on his unscarred cheek. "Of course, my mom always cooks more than we can eat. I hope you like barbecue."
Zack's face split into a jubilant grin and she cried out as he suddenly scooped her into his arms. "This is the best date ever!" He cackled, spinning them round and round while Aerith squealed in unbridled glee and clung to his neck. Above her Zack's laughter rang out to the heavens and all the world's colors blended. For one perfect moment there was simply Aerith and Zack, whirling in a kaleidoscope, alive as ever.
It happened again. Cloud woke up slick from sweat with a bad case of vertigo. He flopped back in his bunk bed, shadows swirling above and a voice echoing in his head.
It wasn't the Planet's voice this time. Although the dream resembled the ones the Planet sent him, containing no visuals and audio constantly cutting out, the dialogue was clear enough for him to identify a different speaker.
"What are you going to do once we get to Midgar?" Zack asked over a truck motor's roar.
"We're friends, right?" Zack's smile shined through his gentle tone.
Zack never asked him those questions before, yet a part of Cloud felt like he had. Almost like he remembered Zack saying these exact words not in a dream or vision, but in his memories.
Cloud swiped his PHS out from under his pillow. He hissed when the light hit his face and squinted at the time. It was five-thirty, an hour before he needed to get up, but he doubted most people were awake. Therefore he sent Aerith a message hoping she would wake up and see it by at least ten.
He didn't relate the latest vision to her since the dialogue wasn't connected to Zack's death. It seemed more like the Planet's way of reminding him what was at stake, how his closest friend might die.
Though it was strange how Zack asked what he was going to do in Midgar when they were already employed by Shinra. Even if the vision took place years in the future, there was no way Zack would ever quit SOLDIER and neither would he. Especially not after the first vision showed Cloud wearing First class uniform. He really was going to make SOLDIER one day, was going to become a hero like Sephiroth. He'd go home and his mother would hug him tight while Tifa's smile lit up the world.
It should have made him happy, but that vision also showed Zack dying and Cloud helpless to stop it. All the power of SOLDIER and Cloud still would be too weak to protect his friend. If he couldn't even save Zack, how could he ever expect to keep his promise to Tifa?
Sighing, the blond ran a hand through his bangs, but shot up when his PHS beeped. Blanket sliding off his shoulders and pooling in his lap, he blinked owlishly at the text.
Subject: RE: Planet Visions
From: Aerith
Good morning! Don't worry, you didn't wake me. I was already up writing in my journal. Besides, you can call me anytime too.
He blushed, pleased and embarrassed Aerith was extending the same courtesy he granted her. However, his face fell as he read on.
You're right. When I really think about it, the Planet's vision felt like a memory. It wasn't like I watched my future self, it was more like I slipped into her body. I felt what she felt and thought her thoughts.
Cloud nodded, relieved she experienced the same thing. At the same time he was puzzled. The future hadn't happened yet so how could a vision of Zack's death feel like a memory?
It wasn't necessarily an important question since the answer wouldn't help them save him, but it was curious. Aerith must have thought the same because his phone buzzed and her message held a new topic.
Could you tell me about Nibelheim? What is it like? Is it peaceful there? What types of monsters are native to the area? Is there anything special about it that stands out to you?
Cloud recalled the Planet's third message and the severity of her questioning wasn't lost on him. Somehow his little hometown would play a role in Zack's death, and his mind whirred with the possibilities. Nibelheim was like most small towns, generally calm and quiet. Its most dangerous creatures were Nibel dragons, but they never bothered the town and a First like Zack could handle the likes of them. Location wise, the only place of interest was the mako reactor, but those were in every small town these days.
Cloud pinched the bridge of his nose, stress rising with each passing second. He remembered Aerith's cries, her sorrow mingling with his, and he desperately yearned for a lead.
He didn't want Zack to die. Cloud would give up being SOLDIER, pack up and go home right now if it would save him. He didn't want Zack to hold him close, his blood staining Cloud's face as his life slipped away. He dreaded the moment Zack would push the Buster sword in his hands, confident Cloud could shoulder his legacy.
He didn't want Zack to die for him. Cloud was nothing special, just some nobody who couldn't get into SOLDIER. Zack was the amazing one, so amazing he thought a nobody like him was worth dying for.
Tears pricking his eyes, Cloud bowed his head. He needed a lead for Aerith's sake, for his own, and for his only friend at Shinra. Wait, Shinra. The Shinra Mansion!
He quickly compiled information on the mansion into a message, though it wasn't much. Non-Shinra personal weren't allowed inside the place and everybody heard the rumor about the mansion being haunted so tended to avoid it anyway.
Seconds later his phone chimed and read: The Shinra Mansion sounds like a good place to start. Do you think you can investigate it today? Maybe ask someone at Shinra about it?
Cloud mulled it over. He didn't know many people at Shinra and didn't want to ask a stranger about the mansion. Really the only person he felt comfortable bringing this up to was Zack. At the very least, the First was on friendly terms with more people and could direct Cloud to a trustworthy source.
He told Aerith as much, and after a moment, added that she should get on the mailing list for Zack's fan club. They tracked the SOLDIER's every move, so could help them keep an eye on the First. If Zack got an assignment at Nibelheim like they were expecting, his fan club would know practically the second Zack did.
His phone lit up with a new message and he blanched as it read: Cloud, how do you know so much about Zack's fan club? It couldn't be you've already joined...or is somebody a fanboy?
Flustered, he couldn't think of a reply before the next message said: Don't worry, your secret is safe with me ;)
Thanks for all your help. To repay you I'm sending you cookies through Zack. Talk to you later, Cloud!
A familiar nervousness knotted his stomach and it took him a second to recognize it as the same feeling he got around Zack whenever the First roped Cloud into one of his half-baked schemes. Those of which ranged anywhere from spying on Turks for the irony of it to using Cloud to lure in wild chocobos. As for the first, he was pretty sure the Turk noticed them immediately and simply ignored them while the second was an event he liked to pretend didn't happen because somehow Cloud's fake warking actually attracted one chocobo.
Cloud laid back, rolled over, and stuffed his face into his pillow. No wonder Zack and Aerith were a couple. They both were going to be the death of him.
Zack's day was off to a great start. He awoke to Aerith's gorgeous face bidding him good morning because her mother let him stay in their guest room after he wowed her over dinner. This was a major achievement considering Ms. Gainsborough didn't seem too keen on Shinra and his eyes were a dead giveaway he was SOLDIER. Yet his natural charm and country boy manners eventually won the woman over. It helped that Aerith kept steering the conversation to things like him helping that boy get his wallet back, reuniting a lost child with his mother, and promising to build Aerith a pretty flower wagon by hand. After being painted a saint, Aerith's mother practically adopted him, which was fine as long as his own parents never got wind of it.
Now Zack stood in the kitchen, Aerith at the counter packing dinner leftovers in a picnic basket while he thought over last night and asked if she thought him a saint.
"Maaaybe." Aerith's back was to him as she arranged last night's dessert, a variety of sugar cookies, in the basket.
"Well, that's nice to know." Zack sidled up to her, tossing an arm around her waist and leaning down to whisper huskily in her ear. "Because I heard a saint with an angel is a match made in heaven."
"Oh, you!" Aerith shoved him off and he let her because the distance let him see her blush better. After all, pink was a lovely color on her.
"Here, it's all packed." Aerith handed him the basket and caught his other hand, leading him to the front door. "Remember to share the cookies with your friends." She said as she opened it.
He cocked an eyebrow, but couldn't keep the grin off his face as he asked, "What's that supposed to mean? You saying something about my weight?"
"Silly," Aerith giggled and brought him down for a kiss. "Have a nice day!" She waved as he headed out, and he couldn't help but recall his own mother doing the same as his father went to work. When did they become so domestic?
Zack entered Shinra Headquarters certain his day was going to be perfect after the wonderful morning he had. He believed this up till he got off the elevator, turned a corner and narrowly avoided colliding with an infantryman.
He was all set to apologize when he recognized the guy's short stature and lithe frame. "Cloud?"
The infantryman flinched, stepping back, and Zack frowned. He was sure it was his younger friend under the helmet, but received no verbal confirmation before the infantryman fled, and boy, the guy could run for an unenhanced individual.
This only solidified his belief it was Cloud, which begged the question of what Zack had done to spook him. Cloud wasn't scared easily. His shyness stemmed from a lack of self-confidence, not fear of others. Yet Cloud had ran. From him. This needed correcting immediately.
First, he tried calling Cloud, but he didn't pick up so Zack decided to wait for the blond outside his target practice class. However, Cloud must have noticed him on the other side of the glass window because his gun aim went from hitting dead center on the target board to hitting the wall beside it. The Second teaching the class started reaming Cloud out and Zack felt so guilty he left.
It bothered him how little sense this made. Cloud messaged him earlier this morning, sounding normal as ever, but now he was avoiding him. He knew Cloud was because the blond had a routine when stationed at Headquarters, one that included eating his lunch at noon in the cafeteria.
However, once Zack sat at a cafeteria table by his lonesome for thirty minutes, he decided a new plan was in order. One idea was to search each floor for Cloud, but the infantryman might have left the building. Therefore, Zack instead messaged Kunsel, and was only mildly disturbed the Second retrieved Cloud's exact coordinates in under a minute.
Basket in hand, Zack pushed open the stairwell door and feigned surprise as Cloud's helmeted head jerked up from the top step. He was sitting with a half-eaten sandwich on his knee, water bottle by his feet and mouth parted in shock.
"Hey, Cloud!" Zack swiftly went up, perching right next to the infantryman and hating how he tensed. "What are you doing here? Don't tell me you forgot where the cafeteria is again." He smirked, watching what little he could see of Cloud's skin shift from paper white to scarlet.
"That was one time, Zack!" He snapped, glaring through his visor.
"Okay, okay." He raised his hands in surrender. "You're right, I won't bring it up again, promise." He clapped Cloud's shoulder and felt the muscles beneath gradually relax.
He might have thought his mission accomplished if Cloud wasn't still wearing his helmet. That thing was like a sauna for heads according to Cloud, which was why he took it off every chance he got. The fact he still wore it like a turtle hiding in his shell, was telling enough.
Although Zack maintained his grin, his heart plummeted to the earth and kept falling. His little buddy was hiding from him, wearing armor like he perceived Zack a threat, and he didn't understand. He hadn't talked to Cloud since yesterday prior to their near collision, so it couldn't be anything Zack did to instill such fear in Cloud.
Meaning someone else had. Someone said or did something to make Cloud afraid of him. Perhaps Cloud overheard a nasty rumor- No, the guy was smarter than that. Then maybe...maybe he was threatened?
Cloud did mention once the other infantrymen were jealous he knew a First like Zack. He played it off like a joke, but Zack could read between the lines. Sometimes the other guys messed with Cloud, and while Zack was happy to stop any form of bullying, Cloud wouldn't give names and Zack couldn't hover over him each day. Even if he had the time, shadowing Cloud would only escalate the animosity. Still, if somebody threatened his little buddy to stay away from him he was gonna-
"Um, Zack?" He turned to Cloud, but sensed the blond wasn't meeting his eyes, which was a good thing since Zack was boiling inside and his eyes were glowing sapphire with his rage. "Did you find anything on the Shinra Mansion?"
Zack frowned, wanting to demand Cloud admit who hurt him, but knowing a raging First was not what the kid needed. Cloud needed a friend, someone he could talk to about anything, even uncomfortable topics such as someone threatening him.
"Yes and no." Zack shrugged, forcing himself to act casual. "I asked Kunsel about it, but he couldn't find anything in the Shinra database except a copy of the deed. It really made his day."
Cloud cocked his head. "It did?"
Zack laughed. "Kunsel loves a good mystery and according to him, Shinra only documents the boring stuff. The top secret things don't get records."
"So he thinks there's actually something important there?"
"Yup." He patted Cloud's back. "And here I thought you came from a boring little town like me."
Cloud snorted right as Zack's PHS started ringing. He saw Aerith's number and grinned before it hit him that Cloud still needed his help. Someone had threatened his friend and Zack still didn't know who the culprit was or the exact nature of the threat.
"Going to answer that?" Cloud asked, and Zack was torn. He didn't want to leave his pal hanging, but lunch break was almost over and Cloud would leave soon anyway, so Zack admitted defeat for now.
"Yeah." He shoved the basket in Cloud's arms, accidentally pushing Cloud back in his rush. "They're cookies my girlfriend told me to share with my friends, and we're friends, right?"
The blood drained from Cloud's face, but Zack was already heading out the door and speaking into his phone. He never noticed Cloud tremble behind him, sandwich and basket hitting the floor as he took off up the stairs.
Cloud ran up and up towards his namesakes, seeking asylum from the earth, but when he burst onto the roof he realized his error. Wings were needed for flight and he was only human.
Aerith wore the biggest smile as she rolled the prettiest flower wagon in the world down the street. It was precious, absolutely gorgeous. Sunny yellow edges, bubblegum pink bows lashed around the vanilla white cart, and within her finest flowers dancing in the breeze. She didn't know how Zack built, painted, and decorated the wagon to perfection without her input, but she was more than pleased by the craftsmanship. For some reason she had been certain he would roll a cross between a motorcycle and wagon into her church, boasting of its awesomeness, or present a wagon so bland she would have to cajole him into building a better one.
Yet her flower wagon was beautiful and amazing. It awed her so much she didn't bat an eye when Zack led her to the train station, saying they should test out the waters above plate to determine which area was more profitable. It didn't matter to Aerith one bit. As long as Zack was with her she couldn't be happier.
Arm-in-arm with him under the twilight sky, they were ironically the picture definition of lovers as they settled on the street corner in front of a theater playing Loveless. The sky didn't really bother her as long as she kept her head down and Zack close. Maybe it was because the hazy orange sunset hardly resembled the unending blue of the daytime sky. Maybe it was because she trusted Zack to keep her safe.
Or maybe Aerith was braver than she thought.
"Ooh, another customer!" Zack's fact lit up as his eyes locked onto a businessman standing away from the crowded sidewalk, likely waiting for a ride.
Aerith was barely given time to pluck a bouquet out her wagon before Zack was dragging her along to corner the man. She didn't speak as Zack haggled the guy over the cost, content to simply drink in the sight of her Zack while she still could. Soon he needed to return to the Shinra Building lurking in the distance, a priority mission stealing him away from her for a while. She would have asked where he was going, but knew it was confidential and Zack was loyal to her, but he was loyal to Shinra as well.
The businessman was beginning to look annoyed by Zack's refusing to take no for an answer, so Aerith took her chance. She leaned forward, pushing the bouquet beneath the man's nose and displaying a polite smile. "Are you sure there isn't a special someone you want to give this to, mister? It sure would make my day if a handsome guy gave me a bouquet." She giggled, ducking her head as if to hide a blush.
The man stared at her speechless. Zack gawked at her. Aerith kept smiling.
Seconds later the man walked briskly across the street, her bouquet in hand. Meanwhile Aerith tucked gil away in her little money pouch and Zack continued to gape next to the flower wagon. She smiled and pecked the corner of his mouth, jolting him to awareness. "Now the score is two to one, I'm in the lead."
Zack blinked twice before he whined. "But Aerith, that's cheating! You used your cuteness to charm that man outta his gil."
Aerith giggled and raised a brow. "How is that any different from you hounding people until they buy?"
Zack puffed out his chest and pointed his thumb towards himself. "Bartering takes skill." His fingers drew an invisible circle around her body. "That beauty is all natural."
Aerith smirked. "How would you know?"
Zack blanched, shock and horror warring for dominance on his face until she burst out laughing and he scowled. "Don't scare me like that!"
Her laughs petered out, and taking pity on him, she cupped his cheek. "Okay, if you think I have an unfair advantage, let me even the playing field." She angled his head down and slipped the stems of a pink, white, violet, and yellow daffodil into his hair. The bundle of flowers contrasted his dark hair like the brightest stars in the night sky, but the grin on his face matched their radiance.
"So I'm cute and pretty, huh?" Zack crossed his arms as she released him. "I don't know, Aerith. Maybe I'm the one with the unfair advantage now."
Aerith stuck her nose in the air and crossed her arms. "You wish."
A chuckle erupted from Zack until he was outright laughing and soon she was too. Nearby people eyed them like they were insane, but they were together and that was all that mattered.
They sold two more flowers and a bouquet after that, tying their scores, but then Zack admitted his mission couldn't wait. She wasn't too bothered by his leaving once he walked her to the train. She was used to him disappearing on assignments. Just since he returned to Midgar he visited her practically every day and she was spoiled by all the attention. Now it felt kind of wrong waving him goodbye through the train window until he was little more than a speck fading in the twilight.
Strolling her wagon through Sector 5, Aerith comforted herself with the fact Cloud was still in Midgar, though his presence was as precarious as Zack's and he could be called away any second.
Her head bowed as she entered the church and her movements were sluggish as she left the wagon by the garden and took a seat in the front pew.
The place was quiet, empty, abandoned. The silence was daunting, emphasizing the dreariness permeating the air. Even her garden's aroma failed to sweeten the sour stench, and her money pouch sat like a lump of coal in her lap. Her phone rang beside her, but she was in no mood for talking so ignored it.
However, when she sensed a familiar presence manifest behind her, Aerith forced herself to perk up and pat the bench in invitation. She wasn't certain the Turk would accept until he silently seated himself beside her.
"Good afternoon, Tseng." False cheer littered her tone, which he likely saw through.
"I believe 'goodnight' better fits the hour."
Aerith tried to laugh, but every breath tasted like ash and laughter required too much of it, so she settled for smiling instead. "That's true. I guess time flies when you're having fun." She sighed, ignoring her beeping PHS and fiddling with her money pouch.
"Midgar's full of flowers, your wallet's full of money!" Zack's voice cheered so loud and clear she could have sworn he was right beside her, but there was only Tseng.
It seemed she was going to miss Zack more than she expected. Maybe because the Planet's messages and vision made it feel like their time together was fleeting. Her time with Zack had an expiration date and every tick of the clock brought her closer to the feeling he would never return. Every time he walked away the chance to show him love and be loved in return slipped through her fingers, lost to the wind.
"I have twenty-three tiny wishes... I put them all together into one: I'd like to spend more time with you."
Did he know what she meant when she said that? How dearly she cared for him? Already she longed for his safe return when he probably yet to leave Midgar.
If only Aerith did more to express the depth of her feelings. If she didn't then he might lie on that cliff one day thinking of her and feeling little more than regret. While under the rain Aerith would mourn the lost opportunity, their averted happy ending.
Her phone vibrated, but she was busy saying, "I've felt different lately and I can't tell if it's because I'm getting older or it's something else." She turned to Tseng, whose gaze rested on her garden. "Maybe you've noticed. What do you think it is?"
Tseng closed his eyes, thinking, then said, "That depends on what you've been feeling." He opened them and his brown briefly connected with her green before flicking away.
Aerith tapped her chin. "It's hard to describe. They aren't bad feelings, just strange." She looked down to her feet. "Maybe it's something I need to sort out on my own."
"When it comes to matters of the heart, I believe that is what most people do."
Aerith's lips pursed. It almost sounded like Tseng knew something she didn't. Sure, there were lots of things Tseng was privy to which she was ignorant of. His words, however, sounded like he was trying to convey something personal to her. Whatever it was, Aerith decided not to address it since what little talking she done left her exhausted.
"I should be getting home." Aerith stood and Tseng did the same while she put her money pouch away and grabbed her phone.
It rang, startling her as it vibrated in her hand, and she remembered all the calls she ignored. Someone was being oddly persistent, and curious, she flipped it open to answer.
"Aerith!"
The anguished gasp alarmed her and Tseng looked to her with concern as she asked, "Cloud? What's wrong?"
"I've been trying to call you for twenty minutes, but you wouldn't pick up and I thought something was wrong, but I need you because I don't know what to-"
"Slow down," she begged, eyes wide and heart pounding. "Tell me what's wrong."
"It's Zack." A viselike grip caught her heart. "We're being sent to Nibelheim." The phone clattered to the floor, a numbness spread from her fingers down to her toes, and the Planet said one thing.
Run.
So Aerith did. She ran down the aisle, ignoring Tseng's call, and barged out the door. She didn't stop for anything, not the crowds or the Market or her body begging for air. Even when she clipped her shoulder turning a corner, she kept going until she reached the train and hurtled in.
Her foot tapped a mile a minute as other people boarded while her thoughts collided and warped as they scraped against each other. Nibelheim, Nibelheim, Zack was going to Nibelheim, and he was going to die. Die, die an inevitable death unless she reached him now and got him to stay. But where was he? Where was Zack leaving from? How was he leaving? By helicopter? Truck? Plane?
"Aerith." Tseng stood in front of her, having just boarded or there all along. She didn't know, didn't care, not when Zack's life was at stake. "There's a very distraught young man asking for you." He held her phone out to her and she snatched it eagerly, barely remembering to thank him as she placed it against her ear.
"Cloud, I'm coming." Her voice was even and strong, worlds different from how she felt.
"A-Aerith?" Cloud's voice was quiet and shaky, like he was on verge of tears and trying to be discreet about it. "They're almost done packing the caravan. We're going to leave any minute and I can't s-stop him. I'm j-just an infantryman."
"It's okay, Cloud." She softened her tone, covering up her anxiety for his sake. "I know you did your best and I'm sorry I didn't pick up earlier." Her shame seared her from the inside out, for it would be all her fault if Zack died, until she noticed the train slowing. "I'm almost above plate. Can you tell me where you are?"
Cloud released a shuddering breath, composing himself before saying, "We're at the Shinra Building, in the garage by the highway."
"Okay, I'll be there soon."
The train stopped and she forced her way to the front, flanked by Tseng, which was probably the only reason people made room for her.
"Please," his voice cracked. "Hurry."
Aerith scowled in determination, snapping close the phone and marching out the second the doors parted.
"Would you like an escort?" Tseng asked while matching her stride, and she paused. She didn't know what to say. Zack needed her and a vehicle would be faster, but Tseng would ask questions she couldn't answer.
She was still weighing her options when a black car with tinted windows pulled up beside her, and pressured by the sight, she said, "Yes."
Tseng opened the back door for her and she stepped into the dark interior, leather chair freezing her bare arms as she leaned back. Up front a familiar bald-headed Turk was in the driver seat while Tseng slid into the passenger. His sunglasses hid his eyes, but when he angled his head back she sensed him looking at her in expectation.
"The Shinra Building garage where the Nibelheim group is departing."
Aerith stiffened, chilled to the bone as the car rejoined traffic. Tseng knew what she was doing and knew Nibelheim was the reason for her actions, otherwise, he wouldn't have called it by name.
He wanted her to know he knew.
She wondered if he overheard Cloud and her the day they met, if her phone was tapped, or if Tseng was just that good and put it together himself. It wasn't even clear how much the Turk understood, but she hoped he had nothing substantial. It would make it easier when the inevitable confrontation between them occurred if Aerith held more cards than him. Although, that might not help much when his poker face beat hers by miles.
"I called so you don't have to worry about them leaving before we arrive." Tseng spoke without looking back, but she nodded as he was probably observing her in the rearview mirror. Even if he wasn't it felt like everyone was watching her.
She sat in a Shinra-owned vehicle driving to Shinra Headquarters, surrounded by Turks, and it made her sick. It was too much like her worst nightmare, the Turks finally taking her in to be locked away forever. As if she was some object to be shipped and delivered, not even human.
A paranoid part of her screamed this was all a trap, but then the car stopped in front of a caravan where three infantrymen sat on crates inside. Her eyes darted around the parking garage until she spotted raven hair bobbing up and down as Zack performed squats beside the van.
Aerith threw open the door and pulled out a tiny velvet box as she ran to him.
"Hey, Tseng, what's with the hold up?" Zack ceased his squatting to greet the Turk stepping out the car, not seeing her until he picked up movement in his peripheral. "Wha- Aerith?!" He recoiled while the silver-haired man behind him remained unfazed, but then she used both hands to present the velvet box to Zack and his catlike eyes narrowed.
"Zack Fair." She smiled wide, cheeks flaming and legs wobbling. "Will you marry me?" Her thumb snap opened the box to reveal a silver wedding band inside.
Zack choked, the silver-haired man's eyes widened, and all three of the infantrymen leaned out the caravan to gape at her. Tseng, however, looked away while somewhere outside the rain started to pour.
Thanks for all the favorites, follows, and reviews! I hope you enjoyed the read!
Just remember you're free to comment or ask questions. I don't mind ;)
