Close Your Eyes - Chapter One : Who Are You?
"Back then, you could get by with scraped knees."
Cloud struggled to open his eyes and take a look around. Mostly everything was blurred or hazy, but there were still quite a few things that shocked him so much that he could make them out. Like seeing his own body from where he was lying. Yet, he was not inside himself, but rather just watching the sequence unfold and was helpless to prevent it from happening.
He was sitting on a few oddly shaped boxes and dressed in an odd blue uniform along with another man. He could vaguely make out the form of someone with long, gray hair that was dressed completely in dark clothing. The teen guessed that it was an older woman, except the build of the person's body, the muscles and height, suggested otherwise. Along with him, stood a young man his own age, wielding a sword and in baggy attire. His black hair looked hard and spiky and there was something strange about his eyes . . . they seemed to almost glow. He might have said the same for the gray-haired person, had he been able to clearly make out its facial features out.
They were all inside a vehicle that was roughly bumping on a road. Outside, rain poured down from the heavens and sounds of a storm were audible. Strong gusts or wind seemed to almost threaten the unstable mode of transportation and he guessed that it may be blown over. This had a bad effect on the image of him sitting on boxes, and the other Cloud keeled over, trying not to let nausea overpower him.
"Are you alright?"
". . . Hanging in there." He heard himself say.
"You might as well brief us on the mission now." The black-haired boy gestured to the other person whose gender he could not define.
"We're travelling to Nibelheim."
Finally, it was uncovered. The person clad in black spoke at last and he realized that it was a man. Though not a teen, the gray hair definitely didn't mean he was a senior citizen. This man possessed a certain aura and his voice convinced Cloud that he couldn't be over the age of thirty. It was as if one could tell that he was strong, agile, and intelligent, just by being near him.
Nibelheim? I AM in Nibelheim, aren't I? What happened. . . ? Where's Tifa?
"You and Tifa went up the mountain, remember?"
No I don't. Who are you?
"It will come to you eventually. Everything will come back."
You haven't answered my question.
"We'll be going to Nibelheim to rid the surrounding area of monsters that have been appearing recently. Then, we're to find out the nature of the problem." The gray-haired man said.
Before he could find out whose voice he had heard inside of his head, his attention was drawn to the conversation between the people. They were talking about something called "Mako" and an organization named SOLDIER. That name sounded so familiar to him, however he could not put his finger on where he had heard it before. The words "Materia" and "Reactor" came up as well but, no matter how much he wracked his brain, they all registered as being foreign.
He KNEW where they were from. It was all related to Shinra, even the uniforms. Except, it was impossible to summon up his memories due to the blurred nature of this odd dream. He was amazed that he could hear them talking and make out their features at all, even though he was limited to doing so little of both. But why was he with them? What was the point of all of this? He certainly wasn't working in Shinra and he had never seen these two people before.
"I have to be dreaming..."
But his normal dreams were so much more vivid and usually came from his experiences. However, this dream was odd. Not only had he never seen these people before, but he had no affinity, no desire to work at ShinRa. These men were obviously on a mission, but he had never heard of any monsters around his hometown. And why was he so much older. . .? Was this the future? Perhaps it could be a premonition, some kind of warning . . .? In any case, he couldn't understand why he was being shown this and why he hadn't woken up yet.
The storm outside had gradually mellowed to a drizzle. The lightening & thunder ceased and only a soft breeze was what the hurricane-like winds had been reduced to. He noticed, through the window, that it was likely around midnight. Though there were no stars because of the gray clouds that covered them, the darkness of the sky told him that it was late.
"Cloud?"
Where's that voice coming from? Who does it belong to? Where did everyone go . . .?
The gray-haired man and the other officers had all suddenly disappeared into thin air. He looked around for them frantically but could see only the darkness. There was another voice though now, not the same one that had spoken in his mind a few moments ago. This one belonged to a female that was obviously frightened.
"Help!"
How can I help someone that I can't see and don't know. No, I just can't recall who it is. . .
"It's coming at me."
A girl? I know her from somewhere.
"Look out!"
For what? Why are you screaming like that? What the hell is coming at you?!
"It wants to kill me . . . a monster. You've got to wake up before it-"
A monster? A frantic cry for help . . . rocky ground beneath me. . . the snapping of rope. . . The storm had finally cleared when I came to, didn't it? You were trying to keep me awake because I had hit my head. But my eyes just closed and then I couldn't open them. I could tell that you were trying to drag be somewhere, but by that time it was impossible to wake up. You were tired, hurt, and about to pass out, yet you kept on going.
But something was wrong. There was someone else following us. You're right, it was a monster. You weren't able to hear it until it was too late and so you couldn't defend yourself when you finally set me to rest a few minutes, hidden the bush . . .
"Aaahh!"
Tifa!
Suddenly the darkness cleared and he saw another version of himself getting up from behind a bush. He was bleeding, bruised and covered in dirt, but that didn't matter. Without even thinking, he leapt out from behind the shrub and leapt in front of Tifa. He saw the dragon coming at her, knew that it would surely kill her, and could not let that happen. With a burst of speed, he hurled their bodies to the ground a few meters away from the giant beast. It's gargantuan claw came slicing through the air only to be met with empty space.
They both landed with a thud and rolled down the path. Tifa scrambled to get to her feet and Cloud forced himself to stop tumbling.
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *~ * ~ * ~ *
"Still not awake, eh? Well, you were hurt pretty bad." He heard Tifa's voice and emerged from the dream, "I wish you'd just get up though. You're starting to worry me."
He grunted out some kind of response to her request.
"You should have never followed me up. Now look at you. I can't say I'm not grateful though, you saved my life." She admitted.
He felt a cool cloth against his forehead and opened his eyes to see the familiar brunette holding the piece of fabric and tending to his wounds. He noticed that bandages covered his arms and legs. They were stiff, but he was still able to move them when trying to figure out how much damage he had taken. Cloud guessed they were at the Inn but still could not contemplate on how they had gotten there. Especially since they both had multiple wounds a lacerations from the fall and the monster. However, he was simply grateful to be alive after an excursion like that.
The sky had finally cleared and now the sunlight shone through the window that overlooked the small town. He reckoned that it was Monday morning since many of the women were rushing to get to the market place set up in the center of the town. The men were up working inside of the mountain or managing the numerous shops. He wondered where his mother was.
"I guess we scared a lot of people when we can tumbling down the hill. We're both lucky to be alive because the chances of us surviving that fall were pretty slim. There was a kind man named Zangan who just happened to notice us and called for help. It's a good thing that he was there at the time or else who knows what might have happened if they hadn't fought off the monster." She said, half verbalizing her thoughts and half explaining it to him.
"So how come you're up and at 'em, but I'm still lying here in bed? How long have I been out for?" He questioned.
She shook her head and rolled her eyes, taking the cloth off and dipping it in a bowl of blue liquid. After ringing it out a few times, she placed it on the bed side table and yawned, rubbing her eyes. He bit his lip and wondered how long she had been up watching over him. She brought up her knees to her chest and hugged them, moving closer to him on the bed.
"Jeez, you must've been asleep for at least a week. We were all worried that you were in a coma. It wasn't until the doctor came in yesterday and told us your condition had improved, that everyone was relieved you wouldn't die. I was only passed out for a day or too, but you with that bump on the head..." She trailed off and sighed, "Just consider yourself lucky because I got stuck listening to five hours worth of lectures. I know it was my fault for going up there, but I'm surprised i didn't go deaf after all those adults scolded me."
He sat up and leaned against the wall, placing a hand to where the cut was on his head. Miraculously, it didn't feel as bad as it did before. It still stung to the touch and felt swollen, but at least it wasn't infected or still bleeding. The teen wondered if it would leave a scar. That didn't really matter though, he was just glad that they had both made it back alive. Even if he got punished, he would much rather do a few hours of housework and listen to a few lectures over being stuck in bed because he was paralyzed or still in a coma.
A few of the bandages had blood stains through them and they looked quite fresh. He guessed that the fall had left him quite battered. Even so, when inspecting Tifa he noticed that she only wore one or two and had nothing compared to any of his wounds. Oh well, he thought, better him then the girl. Besides, they weren't even that painful. His head didn't throb and he could breath fine.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" She arched an eyebrow, "You're gazing at me like I have three heads. Are my bruises really that bad?"
She rubbed her arms self consciously and ran a hand through her hair. He saw that she was fidgeting with her clothes - tugging down a bit at her skirt, adjusting her top, folding and unfolding her hands. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out why she became so nervous when all he was doing was looking at her. She became nervous about her appearance and there was something that she didn't want him to see. He wasn't even concerned about her skirt length or what she was wearing, it was her fatigue that made him unable to tear his eyes away.
His friend had never used to do that before. She didn't seem to give a care at all if he stole an occasional glance at her or casually brushed against her when they were walking. He shook his head defeatedly and figured that he would never be able to understand girls. Even if this girl was his good friend, she was still of the opposite sex.
"Ahh...I must look like hell." She stammered, then stood up.
"No..." He cocked his head to the side, "You just look really tired. How long have you been here looking after me?"
"Hmm? Oh it doesn't really matter. I don't mind. I just didn't want anything to happen to you." She responded, avoiding his question.
"Thanks, but you shouldn't have done all this. How long have you been awake?" He inquired.
"Does it matter? I'm fine. In fact, now that you're awake, I'm gonna go call your mom and get some rest." She smiled, "It's not like I really need it or I'm dying on my feet though, so don't worry about me."
Realizing that she wasn't going to give him a clear response, he just nodded and didn't bother to argue with her. At least that way she would get to bed sooner and then he could find out what had been happening while he was asleep.
"Back then, you could get by with scraped knees."
Cloud struggled to open his eyes and take a look around. Mostly everything was blurred or hazy, but there were still quite a few things that shocked him so much that he could make them out. Like seeing his own body from where he was lying. Yet, he was not inside himself, but rather just watching the sequence unfold and was helpless to prevent it from happening.
He was sitting on a few oddly shaped boxes and dressed in an odd blue uniform along with another man. He could vaguely make out the form of someone with long, gray hair that was dressed completely in dark clothing. The teen guessed that it was an older woman, except the build of the person's body, the muscles and height, suggested otherwise. Along with him, stood a young man his own age, wielding a sword and in baggy attire. His black hair looked hard and spiky and there was something strange about his eyes . . . they seemed to almost glow. He might have said the same for the gray-haired person, had he been able to clearly make out its facial features out.
They were all inside a vehicle that was roughly bumping on a road. Outside, rain poured down from the heavens and sounds of a storm were audible. Strong gusts or wind seemed to almost threaten the unstable mode of transportation and he guessed that it may be blown over. This had a bad effect on the image of him sitting on boxes, and the other Cloud keeled over, trying not to let nausea overpower him.
"Are you alright?"
". . . Hanging in there." He heard himself say.
"You might as well brief us on the mission now." The black-haired boy gestured to the other person whose gender he could not define.
"We're travelling to Nibelheim."
Finally, it was uncovered. The person clad in black spoke at last and he realized that it was a man. Though not a teen, the gray hair definitely didn't mean he was a senior citizen. This man possessed a certain aura and his voice convinced Cloud that he couldn't be over the age of thirty. It was as if one could tell that he was strong, agile, and intelligent, just by being near him.
Nibelheim? I AM in Nibelheim, aren't I? What happened. . . ? Where's Tifa?
"You and Tifa went up the mountain, remember?"
No I don't. Who are you?
"It will come to you eventually. Everything will come back."
You haven't answered my question.
"We'll be going to Nibelheim to rid the surrounding area of monsters that have been appearing recently. Then, we're to find out the nature of the problem." The gray-haired man said.
Before he could find out whose voice he had heard inside of his head, his attention was drawn to the conversation between the people. They were talking about something called "Mako" and an organization named SOLDIER. That name sounded so familiar to him, however he could not put his finger on where he had heard it before. The words "Materia" and "Reactor" came up as well but, no matter how much he wracked his brain, they all registered as being foreign.
He KNEW where they were from. It was all related to Shinra, even the uniforms. Except, it was impossible to summon up his memories due to the blurred nature of this odd dream. He was amazed that he could hear them talking and make out their features at all, even though he was limited to doing so little of both. But why was he with them? What was the point of all of this? He certainly wasn't working in Shinra and he had never seen these two people before.
"I have to be dreaming..."
But his normal dreams were so much more vivid and usually came from his experiences. However, this dream was odd. Not only had he never seen these people before, but he had no affinity, no desire to work at ShinRa. These men were obviously on a mission, but he had never heard of any monsters around his hometown. And why was he so much older. . .? Was this the future? Perhaps it could be a premonition, some kind of warning . . .? In any case, he couldn't understand why he was being shown this and why he hadn't woken up yet.
The storm outside had gradually mellowed to a drizzle. The lightening & thunder ceased and only a soft breeze was what the hurricane-like winds had been reduced to. He noticed, through the window, that it was likely around midnight. Though there were no stars because of the gray clouds that covered them, the darkness of the sky told him that it was late.
"Cloud?"
Where's that voice coming from? Who does it belong to? Where did everyone go . . .?
The gray-haired man and the other officers had all suddenly disappeared into thin air. He looked around for them frantically but could see only the darkness. There was another voice though now, not the same one that had spoken in his mind a few moments ago. This one belonged to a female that was obviously frightened.
"Help!"
How can I help someone that I can't see and don't know. No, I just can't recall who it is. . .
"It's coming at me."
A girl? I know her from somewhere.
"Look out!"
For what? Why are you screaming like that? What the hell is coming at you?!
"It wants to kill me . . . a monster. You've got to wake up before it-"
A monster? A frantic cry for help . . . rocky ground beneath me. . . the snapping of rope. . . The storm had finally cleared when I came to, didn't it? You were trying to keep me awake because I had hit my head. But my eyes just closed and then I couldn't open them. I could tell that you were trying to drag be somewhere, but by that time it was impossible to wake up. You were tired, hurt, and about to pass out, yet you kept on going.
But something was wrong. There was someone else following us. You're right, it was a monster. You weren't able to hear it until it was too late and so you couldn't defend yourself when you finally set me to rest a few minutes, hidden the bush . . .
"Aaahh!"
Tifa!
Suddenly the darkness cleared and he saw another version of himself getting up from behind a bush. He was bleeding, bruised and covered in dirt, but that didn't matter. Without even thinking, he leapt out from behind the shrub and leapt in front of Tifa. He saw the dragon coming at her, knew that it would surely kill her, and could not let that happen. With a burst of speed, he hurled their bodies to the ground a few meters away from the giant beast. It's gargantuan claw came slicing through the air only to be met with empty space.
They both landed with a thud and rolled down the path. Tifa scrambled to get to her feet and Cloud forced himself to stop tumbling.
* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *~ * ~ * ~ *
"Still not awake, eh? Well, you were hurt pretty bad." He heard Tifa's voice and emerged from the dream, "I wish you'd just get up though. You're starting to worry me."
He grunted out some kind of response to her request.
"You should have never followed me up. Now look at you. I can't say I'm not grateful though, you saved my life." She admitted.
He felt a cool cloth against his forehead and opened his eyes to see the familiar brunette holding the piece of fabric and tending to his wounds. He noticed that bandages covered his arms and legs. They were stiff, but he was still able to move them when trying to figure out how much damage he had taken. Cloud guessed they were at the Inn but still could not contemplate on how they had gotten there. Especially since they both had multiple wounds a lacerations from the fall and the monster. However, he was simply grateful to be alive after an excursion like that.
The sky had finally cleared and now the sunlight shone through the window that overlooked the small town. He reckoned that it was Monday morning since many of the women were rushing to get to the market place set up in the center of the town. The men were up working inside of the mountain or managing the numerous shops. He wondered where his mother was.
"I guess we scared a lot of people when we can tumbling down the hill. We're both lucky to be alive because the chances of us surviving that fall were pretty slim. There was a kind man named Zangan who just happened to notice us and called for help. It's a good thing that he was there at the time or else who knows what might have happened if they hadn't fought off the monster." She said, half verbalizing her thoughts and half explaining it to him.
"So how come you're up and at 'em, but I'm still lying here in bed? How long have I been out for?" He questioned.
She shook her head and rolled her eyes, taking the cloth off and dipping it in a bowl of blue liquid. After ringing it out a few times, she placed it on the bed side table and yawned, rubbing her eyes. He bit his lip and wondered how long she had been up watching over him. She brought up her knees to her chest and hugged them, moving closer to him on the bed.
"Jeez, you must've been asleep for at least a week. We were all worried that you were in a coma. It wasn't until the doctor came in yesterday and told us your condition had improved, that everyone was relieved you wouldn't die. I was only passed out for a day or too, but you with that bump on the head..." She trailed off and sighed, "Just consider yourself lucky because I got stuck listening to five hours worth of lectures. I know it was my fault for going up there, but I'm surprised i didn't go deaf after all those adults scolded me."
He sat up and leaned against the wall, placing a hand to where the cut was on his head. Miraculously, it didn't feel as bad as it did before. It still stung to the touch and felt swollen, but at least it wasn't infected or still bleeding. The teen wondered if it would leave a scar. That didn't really matter though, he was just glad that they had both made it back alive. Even if he got punished, he would much rather do a few hours of housework and listen to a few lectures over being stuck in bed because he was paralyzed or still in a coma.
A few of the bandages had blood stains through them and they looked quite fresh. He guessed that the fall had left him quite battered. Even so, when inspecting Tifa he noticed that she only wore one or two and had nothing compared to any of his wounds. Oh well, he thought, better him then the girl. Besides, they weren't even that painful. His head didn't throb and he could breath fine.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" She arched an eyebrow, "You're gazing at me like I have three heads. Are my bruises really that bad?"
She rubbed her arms self consciously and ran a hand through her hair. He saw that she was fidgeting with her clothes - tugging down a bit at her skirt, adjusting her top, folding and unfolding her hands. For the life of him, he couldn't figure out why she became so nervous when all he was doing was looking at her. She became nervous about her appearance and there was something that she didn't want him to see. He wasn't even concerned about her skirt length or what she was wearing, it was her fatigue that made him unable to tear his eyes away.
His friend had never used to do that before. She didn't seem to give a care at all if he stole an occasional glance at her or casually brushed against her when they were walking. He shook his head defeatedly and figured that he would never be able to understand girls. Even if this girl was his good friend, she was still of the opposite sex.
"Ahh...I must look like hell." She stammered, then stood up.
"No..." He cocked his head to the side, "You just look really tired. How long have you been here looking after me?"
"Hmm? Oh it doesn't really matter. I don't mind. I just didn't want anything to happen to you." She responded, avoiding his question.
"Thanks, but you shouldn't have done all this. How long have you been awake?" He inquired.
"Does it matter? I'm fine. In fact, now that you're awake, I'm gonna go call your mom and get some rest." She smiled, "It's not like I really need it or I'm dying on my feet though, so don't worry about me."
Realizing that she wasn't going to give him a clear response, he just nodded and didn't bother to argue with her. At least that way she would get to bed sooner and then he could find out what had been happening while he was asleep.
