Aeris's Resurrection Part 4
* * * * *
Tifa woke the next morning, stretching. She looked over at the clock on the stand near her bed and groaned when she saw the time. 9:15? Why hadn't anyone woken her? She yawned as she walked into the living room.
She first saw Prett sleeping pacifically on the floor, the blankets kicked down to her feet. The sight that surprised her was Vincent sleeping on the couch. Aeris was nowhere in sight. "Mostly everyone's probably asleep," Tifa said softly, her eyes flickering from Prett to Vincent. If Vincent was in here, where was Aeris? Wait, let's back up a little. Why is Vincent in here?
Pondering these thoughts, Tifa walked back into her room to brush her hair. Fifteen minutes later, Tifa's hair was perfect and she was ready to go. When she walked back into the room that Prett and Vincent were in, she saw Prett awake, sitting on the floor.
"Is everyone still sleeping?" Prett asked Tifa increduously. "I don't usually wake this late."
"I guess so," Tifa replied, and her eyes flicked back to Vincent.
Prett followed her line of vision and blushed when she realized that Vincent was still in the room. She tried to imagine what Tifa was thinking and found that she couldn't bring herself to. "It's a long story," Prett told Tifa, but offered no explanation. "And it's not what you think."
"O...kay." Tifa looked around the room and wondered how close they were to Alamsy. "Want to go to the control room? I wonder if Cid's up yet." Tifa just decided to let the subject of Vincent drop.
"I guess," Prett replied, glad that Tifa didn't ask her any follow-up questions about what Vincent was doing in the room that she and Aeris should have been sleeping in. She didn't feel like making up any lies today, and she knew that it would embarrass Vincent if she told the truth.
Tifa led Prett into the control room. Cid was already up and steering the plane towards Alamsy.
"Hi, Cid," Tifa said. "How long have you been up?"
"Around 7:00," Cid replied, never turning to face Tifa while speaking to her. He was too busy concentrating on flying the airship.
"Oh good!" Prett said enthusiastically. "We should almost be there!" She ran up to the huge (semi-) wrap-around window and looked down. The view that faced her was beautiful-grassy green valleys shadowed by towering majestic mountains. "It's just over this mountain," Prett informed Cid.
Now Cid expertly manuevered the plane past the mountain. He landed it with practiced perfection next to the large town.
"Well, here we are," Cid told Tifa and Prett.
"Wow, it took all night to get here," Prett said to herself. "I never realized that it would take so long." Louder, she told Cid and Tifa: "Maybe we should wake up the others!"
"Yeah, let's get this show on the road!" Tifa agreed.
"Damn straight," Cid also agreed.
The three of them left the control room to wake the others who hadn't already waken up on their own.
After everyone was awake and ready, which was about half an hour later, they all went to the deck to exit by the ladder.
"Who's coming?" Yuffie asked nonchalantly, inwardly wondering what types of materia were in this town.
"How about everyone comes as long as we all travel in different groups?" Cloud questioned, searching for approval. After he found it, he assigned groups: "Aeris and Prett will come with me; Tifa, Cid, and Barret will all go together; Yuffie, Vincent, and Red XIII; and Cait Sith can go with...Tifa's group." Once Cloud was done speaking, he turned and began to climb down the ladder.
After everyone had exited the airship, Tifa led her group after Cloud's into the town of Alamsy. This town wasn't as beautiful as Svenson Hills; it looked more like a tourist trap or a resort town. Carts and stores selling souveniers were everywhere. People cluttered the streets. Many skyscraper hotels were located on the eastern border of the town. This is where her mother lives? Tifa wondered in disbelief. Sure, there were a few houses here, but still...this wasn't exactly the perfect place to go unnoticed.
Prett's voice interrupted Tifa's thoughts. "Follow me," Prett said as she carefully weaved her way through the crowds.
After a while, they were in a back alley. "I forgot to tell you how crowded it is this time of year." Prett smiled apologetically.
"You're telling me!" Cait Sith replied. He had been knocked off of his stuffed Moogle more than once. People apparently didn't watch where they were going, and almost certainly did not look down!
"Thank God Mother's house is through the alleys. No one ever bothers to come back here." Prett motioned for them to follow as she continued through the alley.
Prett made a sudden stop in front of a stack of crates. She hoisted herself up, then climbed onto the roof of a building.
The building she was standing on finished about a foot before a large mountain. Prett watched to make sure that everyone had climbed onto the building, then motioned for them to remain low so as not to be seen. Once this task was completed, Prett positioned herself in the center of the roof, took a running leap, and grabbed a nearly hidden ledge in the mountain. She pulled herself up, barely visible in the shadows.
"Hurry!" Prett yelled as quietly as possible. "Before someone sees you!"
Tifa looked fearfully over the edge of the building. She groaned as she backed up, then ran and jumped. For a second, she thought that she wouldn't catch the ledge and it slipped under her fingers, but Prett helped her up. When Tifa was standing again, her legs would barely support her.
After seeing Tifa make the jump, most everyone was reassured and also leapt to the ledge.
Aeris, Cait Sith, and Red XIII all doubted if they could make it, so Prett "lifted" them and hurriedly brough them to the ledge.
"Okay, it shouldn't be much farther now." Prett spun on her heel, then led them through a twisting rock corridor.
She veered left into an almost invisible tunnel, then got to her hands and knees, searching for something. It took a while, but Prett finally found the small rock and pushed it. The wall in front of them opened like a huge door, and the path it revealed led into a wide corridor.
In this clearing was a small house. The cottage looked as if it were made of the same type of rock as the clearing, and blended in perfectly.
Prett walked over to the cottage door and knocked on it. The door was opened by a young girl in a long white robe.
"Prett!" the girl shrieked. "Mommy, mommy, Prett's here!"
"My little sister, Stacie," Prett explained after Stacie had run off to get Sage Katrina.
A woman with graying hair came running at Stacie's shouts. She, also, was dressed in a flowing white robe. She had high, aristocratic cheekbones and warm, blue eyes.
"Meet my mother, Sage Katrina," Prett told Cloud proudly. "If anyone can help you, it would be her."
Sage Katrina smiled at Cloud, a little surprised to see other visitors in this remote area. "How can I help you?"
"Are you going to invite them in?" Prett asked impatiently.
"Oh, how silly of me! Won't you all come in? Stacie, go get more chairs for me, will you?" Sage Katrina said.
"Yes, Mommy," the little girl replied and rushed off to complete the task at hand, bringing ten chairs into the room, and plopping down into one.
Cloud and the rest of the group also sat down. Cloud was beginning to wonder what would happen next when Sage Katrina asked him a question:
"So, tell me, how is it that I can help?"
Cloud again retold the tale of Aeris's death, how they had avenged her death, and how Prett had tried to raise her from the dead, and how Aeris couldn't remember anything.
Sage Katrina nodded solemnly. "You did well to bring them to me," she told Prett. "Alas, Prett was right. You must battle the one you call Sephiroth to save this girl's soul. Two battles must be fought. One of the mind, and one physically. One person may only fight one battle. I will fight the first one for you." She looked at them sharply. "And do not interfere."
"No!" Prett practically yelled. "I will not have you fighting, Mother! Now if you'll just listen-"
"Pretticina, it must be done." With that, Sage Katrina removed a bottle from a nearby cabinet. She threw it onto the floor and yelled a few words in Latin, raising her arms to the sky. A few seconds later, Sage Katrina's body convulsed, as if she was having a seizure. Her eyes rolled back, showing only the whites. Her head lolled backwards, then snapped forward in a sudden jerking movement. Sage Katrina let out a choked gasp.
"MOMMY!" Stacie shrieked, on the verge of tears.
"He's killing her!" Prett yelled frantically, lunging towards her mother. She caught Sage Katrina's arm. The air between them rippled, then a shudder ran through Prett's body. Unlike Sage Katrina, Prett held firm, not swaying or giving in.
Sage Katrina fell to the ground, moaning, and Stacie ran to her, now weeping for Prett's safety.
"What happened?" Vincent demanded, fearful for Prett's safety. Why had we gotten innocent people involved in this anyways? He wondered.
"That man," Prett's mother gasped. "He's in her mind now."
* * * * *
Prett found herself facing a man with long silver hair. She was in a void, surrounded by black empty space. Standing at 5'10", she was taller than most women, and was not intimidated by Sephiroth's height.
Sephiroth laughed at her. "A little girl like you expects to beat me, the powerful Sephiroth?!" he asked increduously. "Don't make me laugh."
Prett angrily glared at him with her hands on her hips. "You tried to kill my mother, you bastard," she spat at him. "And for that, you must die."
Sephiroth just glanced at her calmly. "I may not have succeeded with your mother, but I will kill you." He launched into his attack.
* * * * *
"Can't we do anythign to help her?" Tifa asked as Prett winced.
"We can only pray she'll be all right," Sage Katrina answered solemnly, trying to comfort her younger daughter.
"What happens if she…if she dies in her mind?" Vincent asked, not wanting to think about things like that but unable to help himself.
"Then her body will die also and her soul will belong to Sephiroth for all eternity," Sage Katrina replied sadly.
"But that won't happen!" Stacie yelled confidently. "I know that Prett can beat him! I just know she can!"
* * * * *
Prett rolled to avoid Sephiroth's attack with his powerful masamune blade. As she did, she grabbed her small dagger out of her boot. She aimed for Sephiroth's heart and threw it with all her force. Prett expected it to kill him as it traveled in a straight course towards Sephiroth's chest. One hand fluttered to her mouth as she realized that she had just missed him. But not just missed. The weapon had traveled right through him, and Prett could not see even a single drop of blood.
* * * * *
They all saw the look of terror pass over Prett's face.
"What's going on?" Cloud asked nervously.
"She…she doesn't know what to do. She's attacking him physically," Sage Katrina said slowly. "But physical attacks won't work in this battle. She needs to use her mind to win, but she doesn't realize that."
"I'll tell her," Stacie said calmly, almost serenely. Stacie closed her eyes, shutting off all sight and sounds of the outside world. Her brows furrowed in concentration. Stacie cleared her mind of everything and envisioned Prett. Prett, Prett, can you hear me? She was directing her thoughts towards the image of Prett in her head.
* * * * *
"Yeah, Stacie, loud and clear," Prett replied as Stacie's voice reverbrated through the black nothingness. Prett ducked, then kicked at Sephiroth. Her foot, like the dagger, went right through him.
"Prett, physical attacks won't work on him." Stacie sounded as if she were standing right next to Prett in the void. "You have to use mental attacks, Prett."
"Mental, eh?" Prett mused out loud before Sephiroth's fist came flying into her face. She was thrown backwards and she could feel that her nose had began to bleed. "Goddamn!"
Prett quickly got to her feet. She would pay him back for this. She planted her feet firmly in the ground and closed her eyes. Prett envisioned fire. She imagined forest fires to get the mental image that she needed, then imaged Sephiroth. Sephiroth with his high and mighty attitude. She would burn that attitude away. Prett grinned and thought of how good it would be to watch him burn. She opened her eyes.
Prett's eyes seemed to be on fire. Sparks flew from her lashes and dispappeared into the void. Suddenly the air around her rippled as she directed this flamethrowing attack towards Sephiroth. Twin lines of flames flew from her eyes and made their own separate beelines towards Sephiroth.
Prett heard him scream as his clothes caught on fire. He frantically beat at his hair, which had also been ignited. The bitch had actually hit him! This, Sephiroth found hard to believe. And for this, she would pay with her life.
An ominous smile passed over her lips as she once more closed her eyes. This time she imagined icicles. Freezing icicles were formed in her mind. Sephiroth also occupied a half of her mind.
Now when Prett opened her eyes, they were colder than ice. Five icicles formed in front of one outstretched hand. She looked at Sephiroth screaming in agony. "Poor baby," Prett said mockingly. "Don't worry, soon it'll all be over." She launched the icicles. They flew into Sephiroth's cape and pulled him backwards. When Prett brought up a wall using her mind, the icicles pinned Sephiroth to the wall and held him there.
Prett looked towards Sephiroth before closing her eyes for what she hoped would be the final time in this battle. All of this was beginning to tire her out. Prett quickly summoned images of lightning in her mind. She directed this towards Sephiroth. His body convulsed and his head lolled forward. Prett knew that he was dead, and, surprising herself, smiled. Then, with no one to hear her, Prett started laughing hysterically into the black void.
By the time that she returned to the real world, Prett had managed to stop herself. She hadn't wanted everyone to think that she was psycho like Sephiroth was. She shuddered, but smiled when she saw the others watching her.
"You beat him?" Stacie asked her sister.
"Of course I did." Prett smiled radiantly, then gave her younger sister a hug.
Sephiroth now appeared in front of them all. He glared at Prett angrily. "You may have won the battle, bitch," and now he directed his gaze upon them all, "but don't expect to win the war."
Sephiroth pulled out his masamune. "And you will be the first to die!" Sephiroth charged Prett, masamune raised.
"NO!" Stacie shrieked as she saw what would inevitably happen if someone did not intervene. Stacie telekinetically "lifted" a chair and threw it at Sephiroth. It hit him in the back and he uttered a groan of pain before falling to the floor.
Cloud drew his sword and ran towards Sephiroth. He brought his sword down, but Sephiroth rolled over and deflected the blow with his masamune before Cloud could do any damage. Then Sephiroth was able to catch hold of Cloud's sword and spun his masamune, wrenching Cloud's sword from his grip.
Sephiroth raised the masamune high above his head, ready to bring it down upon Cloud, wanting to end that miserable little freak's life right on the spot.
As Tifa saw all of this happen, Tifa knew that she needed to help Cloud. He needed her again. Tifa laced her hands together and brought them down on one of Sephiroth's arms, causing his aim to veer drastically. He missed Cloud by more than five inches.
Seeing his beautiful plan ruined, Sephiroth lashed out at Tifa with his masamune, slicing her arm.
Aeris shrieked as she saw the blood flowing from Tifa's wounded arm. Not thinking clearly, she grabbed a vase and threw it towards Sephiroth. Luckily for her, Aeris's aim proved true, however, and the vase shattered on the right side of Sephiroth's face, lodging some sharp clay fragments into his skin.
Around this time, Barret and Vincent opened fire on Sephiroth, but they only managed to injure him.
Now Yuffie decided that it was her time to help. She jumped forward, holding her shuriken confidently in one hand. She swung it towards Sephiroth's neck, but he turned unexpectedly at the last second. Instead of his head, only part of his hair was chopped off.
Sephiroth roughly threw Yuffie out of the way and turned towards Prett, raising his sword high above her head. It was all her fault that he was in so much pain, and he would make her suffer.
Vincent watched as Sephiroth brought the masamune down. At the last second, he leaped in front of Prett to protect her. He couldn't let her die. She was the only person who he felt could really understand him, and he knew that he needed to talk to her more. Maybe even needed her to help him recover from the guilt.
Sephiroth drove the masamune through Vincent's side, but Vincent was able to fire the fatal shot that passed through the center of Sephiroth's forehead.
Prett screamed and reached for Vincent as he and Sephiroth fell to the floor. Sephiroth would most certainly die-was probably already dead-but what use would that be if Vincent died also? He would never have a chance to redeem himself from the guilt and start a new life, and the one person who could relate to at least part of her pain would be gone forever. But Vincent couldn't die, could he? Prett couldn't think straight and slapped herself, surprising the others. She would be no help to any of them if she went on being hysterical like this.
From the ground, Sephiroth let out a last choking gasp, making a final lunge for his masamune, but he was unable to reach it before he died.
Prett knew that Sephiroth was dead. Yes, she could feel it. You bitch, she thought miserably. I hope you die a thousand deaths, and suffer an eternity of horrors.
"Quickly, Stacie, fetch the herbs!" Prett heard her mother's voice. It seemed distant. It didn't matter anymore. Nothing did. Vincent was dead. She sighed sadly. What had she done to be forced to watch all of her friends die right in front of her eyes?
Cloud saw Stacie run from the pantry, pale as a ghost. Cloud recognized the herbs that Stacie silently passed to Sage Katrina. Those were the same herbs that his nurse had used on him back at Nicholstown. Maybe Vincent did have a chance, after all. Cloud didn't want to have to watch another ally die, too.
Stacie watched as Sage Katrina yanked up Vincent's shirt, revealing the wound beneath. That made Stacie sick. Will the herbs actually heal him? But Mommy said they would, so they probably will. Mommy's never wrong, Stacie convinced herself.
Sage Katrina rubbed the herbs over the gash in Vincent's side. His body began regenerating at once. The broken blood vessels began to knit themselves together. The muscles reconnected. Vincent's skin formed a mesh over the wound, then filled up.
Tifa heard Vincent let out a little groan. She could see that he was in a lot of pain, but Tifa knew that he would survive. That was good. Tifa didn't want to lose another of her friends. Tifa saw Vincent begin to sit, but he fell back to the floor, unconscious.
"Is he going to be okay?" Aeris asked, concerned. Once Sephiroth had been defeated for the second time, her memory had returned. She now had a throbbing headache, but she was more worried about Vincent than about her headache.
"He should be," Sage Katrina replied confidently.
"He better be," Prett replied coldy. "Or I'll have to bring Sephiroth up here and kick his ass again to bring Vincent back." Her eyes narrowed. "And I would."
"What about you, Tifa?" Stacie asked, ignoring Prett. She held up the herbs.
Tifa started at the mention of her name. Tifa offered her injured arm to Stacie, and Stacie spread the herbs over Tifa's cut. Tifa watched in rapt fascination as she watched her arm regenerate itself. That was so weird, yet cool.
"I'm going to head back to my airship," Cid announced. "It's already late. Seems like defeated that bastard took longer than we thought. And I don't know what the goddamned tourists might have done to her." With 'her', Cid was referring to his airship.
"Are you sure you can find your way out?" Prett asked Cid.
"Of course," Cid replied. "Now is anyone else coming with me?" Cid wanted to return to his precious airship as soon as possible.
"Cid, I is comin' witcha," Barret told him.
Red XIII and Cait Sith also wanted to leave, and the four started walking off.
"H-hey, wait up!" Yuffie called, running after them.
Aeris, Cloud, Tifa, Prett, and Vincent had all elected to stay behind. Well, for Vincent, it wasn't really a conscious decision; Sage Katrina just thought that it would not be wise to move him in case anything else happened.
Sage Katrina looked worried. "I'm not sure if I have enough rooms for all of you. I suppose Stacie could come sleep in my room with me, but there would still be only three rooms."
"That's okay; I probably won't be able to sleep anyways. I'll clean this room." Prett looked at the blood splattered on the floor and walls and the broken vase pieces on the floor. Yes, she didn't think that she'd be able to sleep tonight. "Put Vincent by himself. I may check up on him, but if I do get to sleep, maybe I can stay with Tifa."
"Yes, and I'll stay with Aeris," Cloud said.
Aeris giggled. "Yeah, we have a lot of catching up to do. You can tell me what you all have been doing since I died."
Cloud agreed, and they all went off to their rooms.
Tifa shut the door behind her. She held one of Stacie's teddy bears to her chest and cried silently. She knew now that there was no chance that Cloud would ever fall in love with her. Why would he when he had a girl like Aeris?
To hell with him, Tifa thought viciously, unconsciously squeezing the bear tighter. She sighed softly, now able to stop the tears flowing from her eyes. She decided that she would just have to let him go.
Tifa released her death-grip on the teddy and let it slip out of her hands to the floor. She would always have his friendship, and trying to take his love might ruin that for them. She would just let him go. Flush all of her love for him down the drain.
She sobbed. But that was easier said than done, wasn't it? It would take time, she knew that much. But then again, she had all the time in the world, didn't she? He would be spending all of his time with Aeris now; when would he ever have time for Tifa?
Tifa buried her face in Stacie's pillow and wept. Each tear released a tiny bit of her love for him. How could she love a man who made her cry this much? Tifa knew that even with these thoughts, she'd never be rid of all her love for him, but she'd have to try.
An hour later, Tifa had cried herself to sleep.
* * * * *
Tifa woke the next morning feeling considerably better. There was only a tiny reminder of the pain for which there was no known cure-the pain of a broken heart.
She knew that she could live without Cloud as the main object and idol of her life. Tifa was a survivor, and a strong on at that. She smiled to herself as she glanced into the mirror. It was a weak, feeble smile, but it was a smile nonetheless.
The beginning of a smile, she thought. For the beginning of a new life.
Tifa walked into the living room of Sage Katrina's house. Prett was asleep on the couch, but the room was clean now. Tifa's stomach growled and she wondered what time it was. Tifa patted her stomach.
When Tifa looked up, she saw that Prett had woken up by now. "Morning," Tifa greeted her.
"Where is everyone?" Prett asked, yawning. "I need to go wake up Stacie or someone so they can make breakfast." Prett got off of the couch and walked to Sage Katrina's room.
* * * * *
Cloud woke up, yawning. He was surprised and horrified to see that Aeris was no longer next to him. He sat up quickly and his eyes frantically searched the room for her. He felt sorrow mixed with dread. Had everything been a dream? But it had all been so graphic and realistic. And why would he be in this strange place if it weren't real? It was probably still a dream, though. Cloud was sure of it. Then doubts came with that thought. How could this be a dream?
Aeris walked into the room, assuring Cloud that this was indeed not a dream.
"Aeris!" Cloud cried out in mixed relief and surprise.
"Hmm? Oh, morning, Cloud." She smiled sweetly at him, then sat next to him on the bed.
"Where were you?" Cloud asked.
"Well, I had to freshen up!" Aeris retorted. "Why?"
"I thought I'd lost you again," Cloud replied softly. "When I woke up alone, I thought that you were gone forever. With how close I came to losing you the first time, I don't know if I could hand that again."
"Oh, Cloud!" Her eyes brimmed with tears for him. "You'll never lose me again," she said solemnly and hugged him tight.
Cloud hugged her back when they heard a knock on the door. Stacie was calling them all to breakfast.
Cloud grabbed Aeris's hand and they walked to the kitchen, where they were served toast, bacon, and eggs.
"I made it," Stacie announced proudly.
They all quickly finished their breakfasts (Vincent, by now was recovered, and was also at the table) and then Cloud announced that they must leave.
"Why?" Stacie asked.
"Others need our help," Cloud explained.
"Fine, but you have to promise to visit," Stacie ran off to tell her mother.
"We'd better get going," Cloud said. He stood up and prepared to leave. Aeris and Tifa followed him out. "If we wait to thank Sage Katrina or Stacie, they might want us to stay longer, and Cid'll kill us if we get back to the airship late."
Vincent began to follow them out and was surprised when Prett only followed them all to the door. "Aren't you coming?"
"I can't," Prett replied, glancing back towards the house. "You saw Mother; she's not doing so well right now, and…and I don't think that she has very long to live. If…If she dies out here in the middle of nowhere, who'll take care of Stacie? I…I have to stay."
"But I need you," Vincent told her. "You're the only one who can understand me, the only one who can help me."
"For now I have to stay here. I know that I can trust you to keep Sage Katrina's home a secret, can't I? You're my friend, the first one I've had in years. Maybe someday we'll meet again." Prett looked into his eyes and he saw that she was telling the truth.
"Don't worry; I'll protect her secret," Vincent replied. "Goodbye for now, and…good luck."
Prett smiled at him and Vincent began to walk away. Only when he arrived out of the city did Vincent look back. He remembered her words: 'Maybe someday we'll meet again.' "Maybe we will," Vincent told the town. "Hopefully under better circumstances. For now, thank you." Then Vincent turned and headed back towards the airship, preparing to tell the others that Prett would not, in fact, be joining them on their journey.
The End
By: Kris
TurnipGirl27@aol.com