Some immeasurable time after the six had returned to the Highwind, he heard the door to the deck open, and footsteps, and then the door closed again. He did not have to look to tell that there were five of them, and it only took him a moment longer to determine who they were, from the weight and speed of their gaits. Cloud, Tifa, Cid, Reeve. The fifth, however, was unfamiliar to him. The steps were faint, barely perceptable, slightly uneven. Perhaps it was Minerva, still somewhat weak and tired.
Likely they were heading out to retrieve the explosives needed for the lab, he thought. And their weapons. Minerva had insisted that she was strong enough to aid them. And of course she was a more preferable guide than him, even if he could get them there more quickly. He kept his back to them. Yuffie turned beside him, then stepped out of his vision.
"You guys going back to the lab?" she asked.
"Yeah," Cloud replied.
"You can stay here, though," Tifa added, "unless you want to come. I don't think we need any more than the five of us." There was an uneasy pause. "Has he said anything?"
"Oh, yeah," Yuffie answered casually, voice not catching the tension the others' held. "We talked a little bit. He seems all right. You want me to keep an eye on him, anyway?"
There was another pause. "If you don't mind."
"And make sure no one messes with my airship," Cid put in.
Yuffie laughed a little. "I'll try. ...hey," she said after a moment, directing her words to someone else. "Looks like you were strong enough to fight it afterall."
"...apparently," Minerva replied, unable to hide a faint uncertainty.
"Welcome to the group!" the ninja said cheerfully.
"Thank you..."
"Anyway..." Cloud interrupted, somewhat impatient. "Let's get going. The sooner we leave, the sooner we get back, and the sooner we're rid of him."
No one bothered to ask who 'he' was. There was no need, of course.
"Well, goodbye then," Yuffie said awkwardly.
There were replies from all but Minerva, followed by footsteps and after several minutes, he could see them making their way back towards Midgar. Minerva appeared to be limping slightly, which would account for her strange gait. He watched them for a moment, then looked out at the remains of the city. Yuffie returned to her place by the railing, but closer to him this time.
"Cloud doesn't know about your plans to kill Jenova, does he?" she asked.
"No," he replied.
"Does Aeris?"
"...yes."
The ninja frowned. "And she wants to help, too, doesn't she?"
He nodded.
"Well, I guess that makes three of us anyway."
He glanced her way in surprise. "You plan on fighting as well?"
She blinked. "What, you thought I was just going to sit back and watch? Of course I plan on fighting."
He turned away. "...but you are only human."
"So what? There's nothing wrong with being human."
He grunted softly.
She looked out at the view. "The sun's getting low," she commented. "Never seen a sunset from here."
He did not reply.
Yuffie sighed. "I guess you don't feel like talking, then. I'll leave you be."
Glancing at her briefly, he nodded to show his appreciation for the gesture, and returned his gaze to Midgar. The sun was sinking inevitably towards the mountains, sky beginning to glow.
Flames licked at the sky at sunset, then grew in their intensity, and finally the colors bled away after the falling sun, reluctantly drawing a curtain of darkness after them. It was flames, he thought, flames at Nibelheim. Yuffie slipped away with the sun, but Sephiroth hardly noticed. The stars showed their bright faces in the darkness, shining and twinkling, diamonds laid on black silk. It did not seem like Midgar; Midgar he remembered as a place of shining metal, silver and black, clean glass, the green haze of the sky, and the brilliant red of Shinra's logo.
This place was not Midgar. It had the metal, but the metal did not shine, and the black, but the black was of ashes. The sky's beauty was no longer hidden, and the red logos were gone or faded or torn. Certainly not new and bright as they had been. Gone, too, were the people who used to pack the streets, always hurrying somewhere. Now, there was no one, save the few who had taken it as their job to clean away the debris and build a new town where Midgar had once stood.
An explosion drew his gaze to Sector 7... The reactor-and the lab-enveloped in a bloom of fire, opening, spreading outwards, rising up... Smoke followed the flame, as always, and added a grey haze to the sky. The dimmer stars were gone, and the brighter ones faded, but Sephiroth kept his gaze on the flames. He wondered briefly if anyone had bothered to retrieve Talya's body so that it could be buried. He doubted anyone cared.
He heard her before he saw her... No, he felt her before she came... And he stiffened, not sure if he wanted her to come. If she stayed long... what if you hurt her? He heard the door to the deck open, then close, and featherlight footsteps moved to his side. He dared not turn his head and look at her. He kept his eyes on the flames and the smoke. Burning the lies, like Nibelheim...
"I thought you'd be out here," she said softly, leaning against the railing beside him and looking out at the flames. He did not respond. She went on anyway. "...that much of it is over, I suppose. You don't seem very happy about it, though."
"I am rarely happy," he replied flatly, keeping his gazed fixed on Midgar. "Why should I be now?"
Aeris turned to look at him. "...you haven't gotten over what you did to Hojo, have you?"
He turned his head away, so he would not see her concerned expression out of the corner of his eye. "I am fine."
"Perhaps that answer has satisfied others before me," she said, "but you're not fooling me with it. Talk to me. Tell me what you need so I can help..."
"I shouldn't need your help anymore," he murmured. Aeris, Aeris, what are you doing? Don't you know who I am? What I am? I am a killer! Stay away, lest you get hurt...
"Do you still hate yourself?" she asked him. The question sounded abrupt, but he thought he knew where it was leading.
He lowered his head. "...yes..."
"Well, then I'm not about to let you be," she said, smiling. "I want you to see what I see when I look at you."
"And what do you see in me, Aeris? What could you possibly see?"
"Someone kind and gentle and-"
He snorted, interrupting me. "I am a soldier, a warrier, a killer. I was always trained to be cold and efficient. I am neither kind nor gentle. Just weak and trying to hide it."
"You say that, but I remember when you were little, you-"
"I am not little anymore," he snapped.
She laid a hand on his arm. "Please, just listen."
Sephiroth glanced at her, and found he could not look away. He frowned, but nodded silently.
"When you were little, you didn't hide your kindness as you do now. You did not show it much perhaps, but it was there. You cared about me and my mother, I know, for you to have risked helping us as you did... and to stay behind hoping that would help us as well. I can't imagine the punishment you received for that.
"But now... you seem afraid to be kind. As though you'll fail somehow. Are you afraid you'll end up hurting someone? Even if you never lay a finger on them, you're afraid of getting close and not measuring up? Or of pulling away and breaking them? Keeping your distance is your way of being kind, though. You try to protect everyone else by staying away, as though you were a flame, and everyone you touched got burned."
He scoffed a little and turned to look away. How could she know so much? How could she see through him like that?
Aeris lightly laid a hand on his shoulder, and he stiffened. "...I'm no exception to that, am I?"
"No..." He sighed. "It's harder with you, to..."
She withdrew the hand and look at him. "What?"
"Nothing..."
"...I suppose you can't tell me everything," she said ruefully.
He stared down at the railing. He could see his own gloved hands gripping it tightly. He looked slightly to the side, and saw, not far from his left hand, Aeris's slender fingers resting lightly on the rail. Her hands looked so tiny in comparison. "...if you asked, I could," he murmured.
The Cetra looked over at him, blinking. "And why is that?"
"Haven't you noticed, Aeris? No one can deny you anything, least of all me."
She kept her gaze on him. "...why not?"
Sephiroth sighed. "Because you are... perfect in every single way. You're you, and that is a wonderful thing. And I..."
"And you," she continued for him, "aren't any less perfect."
"You are determined to ignore what I have done, aren't you?" he asked, casting her a sidelong glance.
Aeris shook her head. "It's just that... you weren't yourself when you did those things. They define your insanity, but they don't define you. And they can't flaw you unless you let them."
Part of him wanted to argue with her, to tell her she was wrong about him, to list in detail what he had done, to... to yell and shout and... What if you hurt her? But he only shook his head slightly. "You certainly have a unique way of thinking..."
She smiled. "If you don't think highly of yourself, and everyone around you, how do you expect to live happily? At least, that's what I've come to think..." She looked thoughtfully at her hands. "I just can't seem to be content when someone near me is suffering. And you are certainly no exception there."
"You feel it, don't you?" he asked, then winced slightly. He had not meant to say that... Surely his assumptions were wrong, surely he was being foolish... surely, she would laugh at what he thought, if she discovered it.
Aeris blinked. "Yes... I suppose you could say that."
Sephiroth nodded to himself. "So, of course, how could you expect to be cruel, when you would feel their hurt..."
She tilted her head. "It sounds like you've thought about this before."
"I have," he replied. "I used to wonder as a child, because I read about it in books... But they were mere fiction, certainly."
"Wonder about what?" she went on, curious.
He avoided her gaze, lowering his head further so his hair fell forward to hide his face. "...I used to think that you were an empath... Foolish, I know. Laugh if you wish."
"...I hadn't thought of that," she said. Her tone was serious, with not a trace of laughter.
He lifted his head slightly and glanced at her uncertainly. "What do you mean?"
The Cetra met his gaze and he quickly looked away. "Well, I don't have anything to disprove it... which I must say makes me wonder, too."
"...you mean to say you think it possible, rather than laughable?"
She smiled gently. "Yes. You said it seriously, so I took it seriously. And I do think it possible..." The smile faded to a slight frown. "...would it make you think any differently of me, if you knew I was an empath?"
He shook his head. "I know that is not what motivates you."
The smile returned. "Thank you." Aeris stepped back from the railing. "Cloud wanted to go as soon as the reactor was blown. They'll be back pretty soon, I should think."
"Are you going back inside?" Sephiroth asked, noting the movement. She hesitated, and he cursed himself for asking. You are supposed to stay away from her, not keep her with you.
Aeris shook her head. "No, I think not. If I stay out here, I can greet them when they come back. You don't mind, do you?"
He sighed. "No, not at all."
"I'm not afraid of you," she said, leaning against the railing once more, "even if you are."
"You should be," he replied.
"Why? You haven't hurt me, only protected me."
"I killed you," he said forcefully. "I killed you. Why aren't you afraid of me?"
She smiled. "Because I know you would never do it again."
"How can you be so sure, when I am not?"
"Because I believe in you, as does the Planet."
Sephiroth blinked, lifting his head. "The Planet?"
Aeris smiled and nodded. "Yes. I spoke to it some days ago and asked it if it was afraid of you. It told me that it held the same beliefs in you as I do."
"It wishes me to rid it of Jenova, doesn't it?" he asked.
"The path is yours for the choosing. It wants you to, yes, and you want to, I know, but no one will force you."
He nodded to himself and turned to look down at Midgar, but Cloud's returning group caught his attention and he watched them make their way to the ladder. They were carrying their weapons, retrieved from the lab no doubt, as well as those of their companions who had not gone with them. Minerva must have felt his gaze, for she looked up at him, then straight ahead once more.
Aeris looked down also, smiling. "It looks as though they're back..."
There was no need to reply.
She did not move away to meet Cloud as he stepped onto the deck, simply turned slightly, one hand sliding off the rail. "Welcome back!" she greeted.
He nodded, but his eyes slid behind her, and he frowned. "Aeris, why do you insist on hanging around him?"
She took a moment to smile at the others as they came up behind him before replying. "Many reasons, Cloud. If you ever bothered to speak with him, maybe you'd understand..."
"What could I possibly have to say to him?" Cloud asked, glaring at Sephiroth. He stared back coolly, if somewhat guardedly.
"More than you think you do," Aeris answered. "And I suggest you try talking at least."
"What for?" he went on, turning his gaze back to her. Sephiroth glanced her way as well, frowning minutely. What was she doing?
"It's not healthy to hate someone so much," she said quietly. "And it might ease your fears some."
Cloud did not look convinced. "You think that talking to him is going to make up for what he did? Aeris, there is no way that I am ever going to forgive him!" Tifa, standing slightly behind him, looked as though she agreed.
"But you do fear him," Minerva said calmly and softly, causing the others to turn to her in surprise. She started forward, towards the door, continuing as she brushed past Cloud. "If you continue to avoid knowing him, that fear will remain in your mind as long as he lives."
"You know she's right," Aeris said, eyes trailing after the girl as she disappeared inside.
The blond muttered something under his breath.
"Shit, Cloud," Cid commented, "it's not that hard."
Cloud shot him a glare, but sighed. "All right, all right..." he agreed finally, glancing grudgingly at Sephiroth. The swordsman turned away, frowning still. He doubted their conversing would accomplish anything, but if Aeris thought it would, perhaps he would try.
The others left, the Cetra favoring each of them with an encouraging smile as she did so. Cloud did not move any closer to him, and Sephiroth did not expect him to.
"I don't know what she wants from me," Cloud muttered.
"Neither do I," Sephiroth agreed quietly.
He felt the younger man's suspicious gaze, but kept his own on Midgar. "You sure have her convinced you're all right," Cloud said. "What've you been telling her?"
Sephiroth glanced at him, saying dryly. "Nothing positive, and no lies, I assure you."
"Then what does she see in you?"
"I honestly do not know."
Sighing in exasperation, Cloud strode over, peering at him. "You may not look insane, but you're even colder than you were before. What the hell is she doing, talking to you?"
He turned away, keeping his gaze lowered. "Trying to help me, as is her nature."
The blond snorted. "Help you? What do you need help with?"
"Many things," he replied levelly. "I hate myself as much as you do, and you know what she thinks of that."
"You mean you actually condemn what you did before?"
"Of course I do," Sephiroth said, somewhat angrily, turning now to meet Cloud's gaze. "I should have been stronger, should have known not to believe Hojo's lies, but I did, and hundreds are dead because of it. You think I condone that?"
"You seemed to think you were right before," Cloud retorted, but could not hold his gaze for long, and looked away to Midgar.
"I did then, but I do not now."
"You think I'm going to trust your word?"
"No. I do not trust myself, either. Why should you?"
Cloud blinked. "Then you... You think you might go mad again?"
Sephiroth averted his gaze. "Perhaps..."
"What does Aeris think she's doing!? If you're that unstable, we should kill you!"
He glanced sideways at the blond. "Try if you wish, but not yet."
"Not yet...?"
The swordsman nodded. "I have things to attend to before I die. A mission from the Planet..." At Cloud's supsicious gaze, he added, "I must kill Jenova."
"First you follow her, now you're gonna kill her?"
Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. "I hate her for what she made me do. And though I know that nothing I do can ever compensate for what I have done, still I feel I must try..."
"Are you gonna do it on your own?" Cloud asked, some of his suspicion fading to simple curiosity, and perhaps a mild anxiety.
He shook his head. "I had wanted to, but Aeris and Yuffie have both volunteered their help..."
"Aeris?" the blond asked, frowning worriedly and leaning against the railing. "She always puts herself in so much danger..." He sighed. "If she goes, then I will, too."
"To protect her?" Sephiroth queried, one eyebrow raised. "She is stronger than you, I think, though not as strong as she believes."
Cloud fixed him with a wary gaze. "If you ever hurt her, I'll kill you."
Sephiroth met the glance coolly and nodded once. "And I would thank you for it."
"She cares a lot about you, and she believes in you, but does she mean anything to you at all?"
The swordsman looked away once more. "More than you would believe," he admitted softly.
Cloud eyed him uncertainly, then scoffed a little. "You're probably right; I wouldn't believe it. Not of a killer like you..."
"I assume then, that our conversing has done you little good."
He hesitated. "Well... some. You do seem sane, and... different somehow. But I don't have any high hopes like Aeris does, and I'm not about to trust you, even if she's almost always right about people." He took a deep breath and went on. "And... as much as I hate to see her with you... I guess it's safe enough..."
"There is little you could do against me anyway, if I wished to fight you," Sephiroth said. "Aeris has a much higher chance of defending herself. If it makes you uneasy, however, Minerva would be the best guard for me..."
Cloud hesitated, frowning. "She seems a lot like you..." he said doubtfully.
"But she has never killed anyone," Sephiroth said. "She is still young, and more innocent than she pretends to be. There is no evil in her that would bring her to aid me should insanity take me again."
The blond nodded. "I'll.. think about it."
Sephiroth glanced at him briefly. "I believe everyone would be anxious to leave here," he prompted.
Cloud nodded again, frowning slightly, as if annoyed to be agreeing with him, then disappeared inside. Sephiroth sighed and looked out at Midgar, half-hoping that Aeris would stay away, half-hoping that she would return...
Tifa watched Cloud uncertainly as he stepped inside. He was frowning faintly, but any other emotions he was doing his best to hide. He often looked that way when he was troubled, but she wasn't always sure what to tell him. "How did it go...?" she asked.
He stopped and turned to her. "He's sane all right, but... I still don't like it. Aeris being with him, I mean... What if he snaps again, and she gets hurt?"
"Why don't you talk to her?" she suggested.
Cloud shook his head. "I'd try, but she'd just end up convincing me that everything's all right. I'd feel better for a while, but..." He sighed.
"I'm sure Aeris knows what she's doing."
"I can still remember the last time I saw her, before she... died. 'Let me handle Sephiroth,' she said. And then he killed her... I should have been there to protect her. If I... if all of us had been there, it never would have happened." He turned away. "I can't let that happen again, Tifa. What if she's alone with him and he...?"
"She's not a child, Cloud," Tifa said. "And she's proven that she can take care of herself now."
"Tifa, he's a killer... and she doesn't seem to see that. I..."
Tifa laid a hand on his shoulder. "She was one of his victims. She died by his hand. And if she's seen him worthy of forgiveness, that's her decision."
He sighed and turned back to her. "I guess you're right..." His deep blue eyes were still worried, though.
"If you want," she went on, "I'll talk to her about it. I've been meaning to anyway... Even if it is safe for her to be around him, I can't understand why she would want to."
"He said she wanted to help him somehow..." Cloud muttered.
Tifa nodded. "So I'll ask her about it, and see what's going on. Is that all right?"
He nodded.
She put on her best smile and said with mock reproach, "Now you had better get on down to the bridge. Cid must be getting pretty impatient with you. And I know the others are anxious to leave here."
"Right," he said, hesitating, then heading down the steps and towards the bridge.
Tifa watched him go, and then made her way to Aeris's quarters, knocking softly on the door.
A cheerful "Come in!" answered her, and she turned the knob. Aeris was sitting on the bed, and she looked up, smiling, as Tifa entered. "Hi, Tifa."
She smiled back. "Hi, Aeris..." She hesitantly closed the door behind her.
The Cetra tilted her head, some concern entering her expression. "What's on your mind?" she asked.
"I wanted to talk to you about Sephiroth... I... a lot of us are worried about you."
Aeris nodded, and though the smile remained, her face was somehow serious. "Sit down, then," she invited, patting the space on the bed beside her.
Tifa sat, frowning slightly as she wondered how best to start this. "Well... you seem to be around him a lot lately, and given his reputation, you can understand why we're concerned..."
"I'll be all right, Tifa," the Cetra assured her. "Sephiroth's changed-or, rather, he's back to the way he was before, just not as confident."
She shook her head. "But Aeris... I can understand why people followed him as a leader, but his personality never attracted any friends. He's so cold... I can't understand why you would even want to be around him, even if you knew he wouldn't hurt you."
"I suppose you would wonder about that..." Aeris agreed. "But... you don't know him. He's not cold at all; he just pretends to be so others will leave him alone."
"If he wants to be left alone, why are you bothering him?" Tifa asked, confused. She had never understood Aeris very well. Her ability to sympathize with anyone, even-maybe especially-strangers, was something she hadn't seen before in anyone. And what was more, everyone who knew her, loved her...
Aeris sighed. "He doesn't want to be left alone, Tifa... It's just that he never learned how to deal with people, so he always pushes them away. It's his way of protecting them. But I know he wants friends, deep down... and that he cares about people, even if he doesn't show it."
"I haven't seen any evidence of that," Tifa said doubtfully.
The Cetra was looking down at her lap with a faint smile on her face. "You should have seen him when Minerva first captured me... No matter what I said to pursuade him otherwise, he wouldn't let them take me away. He didn't want me to be subjected to laboratory life again, he said... Even though he hates it so much, he went back to it for my sake. You're telling me that's not even kindness?"
"Aeris..."
Aeris turned to her, voice more confident now. "But he thinks so poorly of himself after what he's done. He wants desperately to make up for it, but he doesn't think he can. And he doesn't think anyone else will ever forgive him. So he does his best, even so... He's told me so much about himself, without asking for anything in return. I... he hates himself, and I can't leave him that way. Not when I can help him."
Tifa nodded. "You've always been like that. I just never thought Sephiroth capable of... well, caring, in any way at all. Even when he was sane... You remember in Cloud's story, when we lost one of the troopers on Mt. Nibel, and he didn't even care. We moved on without even looking for him."
"He was trained to be logical, not emotional," Aeris reminded her. "He seems to think that showing emotion is showing weakness, so he avoids it. When I think about all the things he's missed out on... it nearly makes me cry."
She looked uncertainly at Aeris. "You care about him a lot, don't you?"
The Cetra nodded without hesitation. "And he cares about me, as absurd as that may sound to you."
She could hardly believe what she was hearing. Was Aeris actually in love with Sephiroth? Or did she just think of him as a friend? Granted, she would say that about any member of the group, but still... something about her tone of voice and her expression startled Tifa. The thought was alarming.
Aeris glanced at her, laughter on the edge of her voice. "Is it really that hard to believe, that Sephiroth cares about someone?"
Tifa shook her head and quickly composed herself. "No, that's not it... I'm just..." She took a deep breath. "The way you're talking, it sounds like you might be... more than just friends..."
The Cetra actually did laugh now. "No, no, don't get the wrong impression. It's just friendship. I admit, I feel very close to him, and I may be the only friend he's ever had, but it's nothing more than that."
"All right..." Tifa said, watching Aeris's face closely. Was it just her imagination, or did Aeris seem just a little unsure of herself? No, you're definitely imagining things.
"Anyway," she went on, still smiling, "enough about me and Sephiroth. How are you and Cloud doing...?"
Tifa looked away. "He says he loves me... and I think we're closer than we used to be, but I'm still not sure..."
"Cloud's always done his best to guard his emotions..." Aeris said, trying to be reassuring.
She shook her head. "No, he's still holding on to you..."
Aeris sighed. "I'm sorry."
"No, that's all right, Aeris. It's not your fault. None of it." She looked up and smiled to hide her own insecurity. "I don't know why I should be unhappy about it. We're very close, and we're married, for goodness sake!"
The Cetra looked up, smiling, too. "I'd tell you to forget about me, but we're friends, right?"
Tifa nodded. "Yes, of course, Aeris. Even if you did tell me to, I couldn't forget you. I should be the one to ask you... how are you doing, without Cloud?
"I'm all right," she said, and Tifa thought she sounded very convincing. She probably wasn't hiding anything... "I seem to have no shortage of things to do. No time to think about him, really... But I think I'm letting him go... Slowly, yes, but it's fading. I still miss him sometimes, but I don't wish for his arms around me anymore..." She shook her head, laughing at herself. "I'm not making much sense, am I?"
"No, I understand."
"Really?"
"Yes."
Aeris smiled. "I'm glad."
Tifa flopped back, putting her hands behind her head. "We'll have to find you someone else, of course," she said, a playful grin on her face.
The Cetra looked down at her, shaking her head. "Don't tell me you want to play matchmaker..."
"Sure," Tifa replied. "Now, let's see... who might you know that's interested in you...?"
"Tifa..." Aeris said reproachingly, blushing faintly.
"What?" she asked innocently.
"No offense, but if I'm going to find a new boyfriend, I'd rather do it on my own." She smiled a little at the sound of her own words. "Besides... I've got enough to do right now without throwing love into it. I'd rather wait until things settle down a bit."
"What do you mean, you've got enough to do?" Tifa asked her.
Aeris hesitated. "Well... Jenova's still alive, for one thing. Sephiroth and I have to find her and destroy her... And then there's Sephiroth himself. Mending his self-esteem is going to take a lot of time and hard work." She thought a moment. "There are still people I want to see again, and I haven't had much time to talk to all of you and catch up with what happened while I was dead..."
Tifa nodded. "I see..." She frowned slightly. "You and Sephiroth are facing Jenova alone?
"Unless anyone else volunteers, yes. I expect Minerva will want to help, but..." She shrugged. "I don't expect anyone else to help unless they want to. It was hard enough on all of us defeating Hojo."
"When Cloud hears about this, he'll want to help," Tifa stated, sitting up. "And anywhere he goes, I go. So I'm helping, too."
Aeris smiled. "Thank you..."
"Well," she said, reluctantly getting to her feet, "I'm going to head off to the bridge; Cloud's probably wondering what's become of me." She turned to Aeris. "And you get some rest. You still look a little tired."
Aeris nodded. "I will in a little while."
She smiled. "See you."
"Bye."
Tifa left, closing the door behind her, smile fading. Aeris and Sephiroth as friends... While it seemed perfectly safe, and Aeris was quite into the friendship-if that's what it was-Sephiroth made her uneasy. She looked towards the door to the deck, wondering if she should try talking to the man herself. She shook her head after a moment. Aeris is an adult, she chided herself. She can take care of herself and make her own decisions. She doesn't need everyone looking after her like this. Besides, Cloud already talked to him.
This made her feel a little better, and she nodded to herself, putting on a smile before she walked into the bridge. The others greeted her, and she took her place beside Cloud at the front of the airship.
Vincent lay on the bed in his quarters, awake, though he kept his eyes closed. He had slept little, both because he did not need to, and because he had too many things on his mind. But it had been a dreamless sleep, which was a great relief from the nightmares he was accustomed to. Perhaps it was because she was alive again...
Lucrecia... He felt the airship start to move, and he opened his eyes to stare anxiously at the ceiling. He would be returning soon, going back to her. Going back with news that he had killed Hojo. He wondered how she would react to that... She had seemed to think it a good thing, however, that his life ended. The Lifestream would cleanse him, she said.
Even so, his death would probably pain her some... He frowned. But saying the same of Hojo? How could he possibly have loved her? And yet Lucrecia had to have seen something in him, and he doubted Hojo was capable of so great a deception. It was disconcerting, to think that he might have had feelings... The same could easily be said of you; you never showed your emotions to anyone but her either.
He grimaced at the comparison and turned his thoughts back to Lucrecia. What would she say upon seeing him? Would she smile and welcome him home? Ask him what happened? Ask for her son first? Though it was somewhat easier than before, he still had difficulty thinking that she loved him, though he knew it to be true. Despite her words, he saw little for her to be in love with... Yet he knew he loved her, and if she wanted to be with him, at her side he would remain, for as long as it pleased her.
And she would get to see her son, Sephiroth... That was a reunion he wanted to see, though he thought perhaps they would want to be left alone. Mother and son, together at last... How would Sephiroth react to finally meeting her? How would he react to seeing someone who loved him, who had always loved him? Had anyone told him she was alive? he wondered suddenly. ...even if no one had, he might have inferred it. He knew Aeris had been going to try at least.
He turned to his side. He hadn't properly thanked Aeris, had he? For returning Lucrecia to him, for giving him a second chance at protecting her. But what could he possibly do to repay her? He thought a moment, thoughts wandering down this new path. Sephiroth seemed quite taken with Aeris... He had seen the way he had looked at the Cetra, and it reminded him of his feelings for Lucrecia. He wondered if Sephiroth even knew how he felt. Without having had friends before, it would have been hard for him to differentiate between friendship and love...
Vincent shook his head, silently scolding himself for letting his thoughts wander that way. He resumed his pondering, trying to think of somehow to pay Aeris back for what she had done for both him and Lucrecia... He finally remembered a promise he had made to her, to record what he had seen in the tapes at Snow Village...
Sitting up, Vincent looked around, frowning slightly. He had nearly forgotten that. It was not much, but it was a start... But he had no paper, nothing to write with. He sighed, wondering who might, and how exactly to go about asking for it... Having little idea as to a solution to either problem, he stood and slipped out of his quarters, knocking lightly on Yuffie's door.
There was a startled pause. "Um... come in..."
He hesitantly opened the door, stepping in a little.
Yuffie was sitting crosslegged in the middle of her bed, a book in her lap, a place marked with a pen. She blinked in surprise as he entered. "Vinny!" she exclaimed. "Almost the last person I was expecting." She hopped up, setting the book aside. "Well, come on in, don't just stand in the doorway."
Vincent stepped inside, closing the door behind him, but awkwardly remaining near it.
"Gawd, all of you need so little sleep," she commented. "Reno's the only one still sleeping, I think."
"Reno was the only one among us that was human," Vincent commented.
"I guess that would make a difference, wouldn't it?"
He did not reply.
"So," she said, "what did you need? Or did you-for some incomprehensible reason-actually want my company, so you could talk to me?"
"I was actually wondering if you had any paper..."
Yuffie blinked. "Oh, sure thing... What do you need it for?"
He hesitated. "...I told Aeris I would write something down for her, and only just remembered it."
She only nodded and said, "Okay," retrieving the book she had had before and ripping a couple pages out of the back. "This enough?" she asked.
He nodded, taking the pages, but eyeing the book uncertainly.
"My journal," she explained, frowning slightly at his expression. "Say it's girly and I'll kill you," she warned.
Vincent looked back to her with mild amusement. "No, I was not thinking that... I did not know you liked to keep records in that manner."
She shrugged, retrieving the pen also. "When you're trying to revive a country and save the world, life can get pretty hectic. Sometimes I need to write stuff down so I know what's going on."
He nodded in understanding and took the pen with a soft "Thank you."
"Need anything else?" Yuffie asked.
Vincent shook his head.
"Nothing you need to get off your chest?" she persisted, head tilted.
Again he hesitated. "...Lucrecia is waiting for me in Cosmo Canyon," he said.
"Oh," she said. "So whatever you need to talk about, you'll talk about with her."
He shifted slightly, feeling an unexplainable need to apologize. He said nothing.
"That's okay," she said, grinning. "Go on and write whatever you need to."
He nodded gratefully and slipped out the door without a goodbye.
Nanaki paced the bedroom, every now and then casting an annoyed look at the doorknob which he found himself unable to open. He had tried several times, but paws were just no good. He had opted to share the room with Minerva, but she had left before he awakened, and now he was stuck here until she came back. He considered laying down on the bed again and catnapping until she returned, but decided against it.
And again, he considered scratching at the door or trying to get someone's attention, but that would be rather embarrassing... He sighed and sat back, tail swishing back and forth.
Finally, the door opened and Minerva returned, glancing down at him uncertainly. She closed the door behind her, then an oddly amused expression crossed her face. "You cannot open doors, can you?"
"No," he said with some annoyance.
The amusement faded. "I am sorry. I should have considered it."
Nanaki shook his head, his annoyance rapidly disappearing now that she was back. "It is all right. You are tired."
For some reason, she did not seem to like this, and frowned minutely. "Do you wish to leave now?" she asked.
He hesitated, watching her with his one eye. "...not just yet."
Minerva shrugged, walking over to sit down on the edge of the bed.
Padding over to her, he hopped up onto the bed, settling down beside her. "...you did not say much to her, but I was curious-did Talya mean anything to you?"
She glanced down at him, then shook her head slightly. "She was my mother, but she meant nothing to me. Nothing at all."
Nanaki tilted his head. "Oh?"
"She lied to me, many times. We spoke little besides. Why should I have cared for her?"
"It seems to me that you may be in denial," he said softly, a slight growl in his voice no matter what he did. "I hated my father for some time because I believed him to be a coward. But I was lied to in order to be protected from the sorrow that truth brought... Seto was a great warrior, you see, and he protected our home from the Gi tribe. However... their arrows turned his flesh to stone. He is frozen there for eternity..."
Minerva eyed him for a moment, then scoffed and looked away. "There was nothing great about Talya. She was a Turk before she worked for the Professor. A Turk. No great warrior. And she never disobeyed the Professor, though she had no reason to follow his orders."
"Perhaps she kept secrets from you," he reasoned. "She must have felt something for you..."
"But that does not mean I have to like her," the girl said curtly.
He nudged her side gently with his muzzle, but moved away slightly when she flinched. "I do not think you that cold."
"Perhaps I am. You do not know me."
He hopped off the bed. "True. But still... Your emotions seem the same as mine. I can understand them."
She frowned minutely. "I have no emotions."
"But you do," he replied with a slight grin. "I have a very good sense of smell. You cannot hide them from me." The smile faded and he looked to the door. He heard her stand behind him. "In any case... there may be things about her that you do not know, and perhaps in learning them, you would find it in you to forgive her for lying."
She opened the door for him, and he paused, glancing back at her. "Do not be so closed minded..."
Minerva averted her gaze. "...I will speak to Sephiroth about her. You may be wise, but you do not know what you speak of."
Nanaki laughed a little. "Wise? Me? I am too young for wisdom."
"Why must youth and wisdom be mutually exclusive?" she asked.
He tilted his head slightly, let out a thoughtful growl, and, nodding, turned to go. She closed the door behind him and he paused once more to glance behind him. She was certainly a strange girl... But he knew the denial she felt all too well. She was ashamed of Talya, just as he had been ashamed of his father. Both of them had insisted that they did not like their parents, but Nanaki knew he had loved his father. Minerva had to have felt something for her mother...
Shaking his head, he padded down the hall. A door opened and Yuffie stepped out, closing it a bit loudly. Turning toward him, she blinked in surprise. "Hey, Red."
"Hello, Yuffie," he greeted, nodding slightly. Though he knew she had matured, he could not help feeling a bit wary around her.
She bent down to scratch him behind the ear. "Hey, relax. I'm not going to try and tie bows in your mane or anything..."
He grunted a little, sitting back on his haunches and turning his head slightly so she could reach better.
"I was a kid back then," she went on. "Can you blame me?"
"I don't. We were both children, and I still am..." he admitted.
"Nah," Yuffie said. "You're too mature to be considered a kid, no matter how long your lifespan is."
Nanaki looked up at her. "Thank you, Yuffie."
She grinned. "No problem." She sat down, legs folded beneath her, stroking his cheek before lowering her hand. "Say, do you think we could just talk for a bit?"
"Certainly," he replied. "But... in the hallway?"
The ninja laughed and hopped to her feet, opening the door to her room. "You're right, as always. Come on in then."
He padded in after her, settling down on her bed. She came to sit beside him, cross-legged.
"I've been wanting to apologize," she said, studying her hands intently. "You know, for how I acted back then. I was so immature; I must've been annoying as hell."
"That was five years ago," Nanaki replied, eyeing her with some surprise. "It does not matter."
"But... I still feel bad," she insisted. "Because I... I resented how mature you were, and how that made me look like a child. But I admired it, too, and what did I do? I picked on you, instead of trying to make friends or something..."
"It is quite all right, Yuffie," he assured her. "I have long since forgiven you for your teasing. And... I did not mind as much as I pretended to..."
She looked over at him, face brightening somewhat. "Really?"
He nodded. "Really."
She smiled broadly. "Thanks..." She looked back down at her hands, thoughtfully. "...I've been meaning to ask you, about that other, um... the other one like you. Where did she come from? I thought you said you were the last of your kind..."
Nanaki nodded. "That is what I thought. What both of us thought, actually. Her family travelled to the Junon area some years before she was born... Because of the Shinra, they were unable to return to the Canyon, and eventually her parents died to protect her. She lived on her own, keeping away from the Shinra until she could travel to the Canyon, after Meteor."
"So, are you two...?" she trailed off hesitantly.
He chuckled softly. "We are both too young for that. We are merely children, both pretending to be older than we are. But I suppose she will be my mate in the future. Though I will not rule it out, I doubt there are any others of our kind left."
Yuffie nodded. "Must be kinda... weird, that way."
He shook his head slightly. "Not really... We view things differently than humans."
"I guess."
He looked up at her. "Is something bothering you?"
The ninja flopped back and stared up at the ceiling. "I dunno... It just seems like everyone else has at least the beginnings of a relationship, and I've barely even stopped to think about it until now..."
"And that bothers you?" Nanaki asked, concerned, but a bit confused. Human relationships were so strange. Friendship, he understood for the most part. Love, however, always managed to surprise him whenever he thought he had figured it out. And humans seemed to think it so important...
"Well, yeah," she stated. "I'm gonna end up being the only one still single out of all of us, or something."
"I do not understand why finding a mate for you should be so important..."
She sat up. "It's important for you because you wanna continue your race, right? Well, I want to continue my blood line. But... I guess that's not what's most important to me. Love is supposed to be wonderful, isn't it? Everyone's falling in love with someone or other, and I'm just on my own. I don't know how it feels." She sighed. "And the boys in Wutai are all losers anyway. Not like you or Cloud or Vincent."
He bumped his head against her arm. "You are only twenty-one, Yuffie. You are still quite young. And if you dislike those in Wutai, perhaps you should look elsewhere."
"Maybe..." she said, stroking his mane. She shook her head and smiled. "You're right, Red. I don't know what I'm so worried about... It's just a little hard, I guess, being with people who are older than you. You want to do the things they do, but you're still too young for them."
Nanaki nodded his agreement. "That, I can understand."
"I mean... you're young, but you're not human... and Minerva's actually younger than I am, but she's... I dunno. I haven't known her long, and she's different somehow."
He shook his head. "No, not so different. I believe she just grew up too quickly, and in the wrong kind of environment."
Yuffie frowned. "What's that like, you think, growing up in a lab?"
"It does strange things to the mind, that is for certain... And it does not allow one to easily relate to anyone either."
"Why, though?"
Nanaki laid his head on his paws. "You have to build walls around yourself, so it does not hurt as much."
"So what doesn't hurt as much?" she asked.
"Hojo's cruelty, the loneliness, the knowledge that you are indeed different..."
She stroked his cheek gently. "You went through it, too, didn't you?"
"Yes," he replied, lifting his head. "But it's effects on me were not nearly as severe as on Minerva or Sephiroth, for I did not stay for very long, and I had already matured quite a bit."
"It doesn't seem like it changed Aeris at all, though," Yuffie commented.
"If you say that, you aren't looking close enough," he told her. "Aeris keeps many secrets from us."
"What about her kindness?" the ninja asked. "Sephiroth and Minerva are both very cold, but she's nice to everyone. How did that happen?"
"She had a different reaction to her situation, because she did not go through it entirely alone. Instead of simply keeping her emotions bottled up, and staying away from others, she sympathizes with people, because she knows what suffering is like. I think she does hide her emotions, even so."
Yuffie blinked. "But she's always so cheerful."
"And that is what she would have us think, so we do not worry about her."
"...I guess you know her better than I do. She really is nice, though, if she does that just so we won't worry..."
Nanaki shook his head slightly. "That is her nature, afterall..."
There came a knock on the door.
The ninja started and looked over. "...come in," she said after a pause.
Vincent opened the door, standing in the doorway, glancing at Nanaki, then back to Yuffie. He seemed rather uncomfortable.
Yuffie got up and went to meet him. "You finished...?" she asked.
He nodded briefly and handed her something.
"Thanks," she said.
He shook his head. "No, thank you."
She shrugged. "Whatever."
Vincent turned to go, seeming eager to leave.
"See you," she called after him. He did not reply. Shaking her head, she closed the door and returned to the bed, flopping down.
"What was that about?" Nanaki asked.
"He came to ask for some paper and a pen earlier," Yuffie replied, showing him the writing utensil. "Just came by to return it, I guess."
Nanaki nodded. "I see."
"If you're surprised he asked me, I was, too," she said.
He shook his head. "It is only logical... You spent some time with him on our last mission, yes? So it is likely he would feel somewhat closer to you than some of the others."
"Why not ask Aeris first?"
"Perhaps he did. I doubt she carries paper around; I have not seen her purchase any."
"I guess not," Yuffie agreed. "Anyway... did you hear that Sephiroth was going to fight Jenova?"
He lifted his head, ears perking slightly. "Is he now? Well, I suppose that would be his battle..."
"I said I'd help. Are you going to?"
Nanaki shook his head. "No. It is Sephiroth's fight, not mine."
"What do you mean?"
He tossed his head, mane swishing. "Some battles are very personal, and I see fit to leave them to whoever has the highest score to settle, if they can handle it, which I believe Sephiroth can."
Yuffie frowned minutely and looked down. "Do you think I shouldn't help, then?"
"If he does not mind, and you want to, go ahead and fight. Simply because my views prevent me from joining it, does not mean you have to sit it out as well."
She nodded. "All right." She stifled a yawn and got up to put the pen into her pack, along with a book that had been lying on her pillow.
Nanaki hopped down off the mattress. "It is late. Perhaps you would like to get some rest?"
"Yeah," she agreed, turning around and opening the door for him. "Good night, Red."
"Good night, Yuffie."
Aeris waited some time after Tifa was gone, then stood finally and walked to the door. Hesitating, she opened the door, and walked outside to the deck. Sephiroth was still there, as she knew he would be, still leaning against the rail and looking out at the passing landscape. He did not look her way, but she knew he had heard her come out, and likely knew it was her.
She walked over to stand beside him, folding her arms over the railing, watching with him, a smile on her face. They were over the ocean now, but Midgar was still visible behind them in the distance. She glanced up at the sky, seeing that the stars were just as brilliant as they had been the night before. The tips of the waves below them glimmered faintly, whispering of untold depths below them.
"It's a lovely view, isn't it?" she asked.
Sephiroth nodded slightly.
She looked over at him, then back out. "...I always wanted to ride this airship, ever since I saw it at Junon, but I never thought I would, even though Cloud promised to take me."
The mention of Cloud earned her a brief glance.
She smiled sheepishly. "And I never thought I'd be riding it with you."
He shrugged and turned away.
"I'm sorry. You don't feel like talking?"
Sephiroth hesitated. "...no, I don't mind. But I have nothing to say."
"You could ask me some questions," she said with a slight smile. "It seems I've been asking all the questions, and I haven't told you much about myself."
"Again, I do not mind." He paused. "But if you have stories you wish to tell, go ahead."
"I wouldn't know where to start," she admitted.
He was silent for a long moment, then finally asked, "What was it like for you, growing up...?"
"Well, you know what it was like in the lab..." she began.
"Yes. What about afterwards? What happened when you left?"
Aeris looked down at her hand. "...I don't remember where we ended up, exactly, only that the ground seemed more barren than in Nibelheim. Mother held my hand and led me along. I think she knew where we were... There were a lot of monsters, but she somehow managed to fend them off, though she was no fighter. I was frightened, and ashamed because I couldn't help her..."
"You were only a child," Sephiroth put in.
"I was seven," she confirmed, glancing at him. "But you could have managed on your own by then, couldn't you?"
He frowned slightly. "I am different from you..."
She shook her head. "You had no one to teach you, and I did... yet you knew more than me. You still know more than me."
"I can try to teach you, if you wish... but I am not sure how much is Jenova and how much is......"
"Cetra," she finished, tilting her head slightly. Though he seemed to have accepted it, he still seemed to feel as though he was not worthy of such a title as 'Cetra.' She shook her head a bit and smiled. "That's all right. I'll learn what I can."
He nodded, then looked down at the ocean. "I am sorry. I interrupted."
She shrugged. "I don't mind. In fact, I'd appreciate interruptions." He cast her a glance before she went on. "We reached Midgar finally, I don't remember what sector. We made it as far as the train station... Mother was badly injured by then, and though I did my best, my little healing spells weren't nearly enough. A woman was nearby, and she came over when she saw us. Mother told her to take care of me for her, and then she died..."
She saw Sephiroth frown slightly, and wondered what he was thinking.
"The woman said her name was Elmyra, and she took me home with her... Her husband was fighting in the war, she said. He died some years later... I knew before she did, of course, because I felt his spirit return to the Planet. So I told her, because I thought she would understand..."
"But she didn't, did she?" he asked.
Aeris shook her head. "No... She didn't believe me until she got the notice from Shinra... No one really understood me. I would try to play with the other children, but as soon as I mentioned something about the Cetra, or the Planet, or the Lifestream, that's when they would start with the teasing. They'd call me crazy, or a freak, or any number of things. The first few times, I ran back to Elmyra in tears, and she would comfort me, even though she didn't understand any more than they did..."
She felt Sephiroth's gaze on her, and turned to meet it. His eyes were that beautiful, pale blue, and quite concerned. "Were you lonely, Aeris?"
She nodded and looked down. "...I spent a lot of nights curled up, staring at the wall, and wondering if there was anyone who knew how I felt... You know what that's like, don't you?"
"...I do," he replied softly. "...I spent many nights in a similar fashion. People only saw me as a great warrior. And their words of praise and awe only seemed to make me... more lonely. I was too much of a legend for anyone to get close to me." He looked slightly disgusted. "Women only wanted me for my looks and my fame. They made little effort to get to know me once they saw how cold I acted."
"They didn't understand," Aeris said, moving closer to him without noticing. "They couldn't see how kind you were beneath that. They didn't bother to look beyond appearances..."
He sighed quietly, then met her gaze once more, and she was surprised to see a slight smile there. "You understand, though. You know what it is like..."
She smiled back. "And I can say the same of you... No one can figure out why I want to be with you so much. But... how couldn't I? You may have many deaths on your hands, but that was in another life, another time... You went through so many of the same things as I did, and no one else knows what that's like."
Sephiroth nodded, then looked away, with apparent effort. "...I've interrupted again. Please, go on..."
Aeris looked back down, this time to the sea. "...I learned to hide it after a while. I didn't talk about the Planet anymore. But I think most of them remembered still. I did make one friend, when Tseng's family moved to a house nearby. I don't know where from. He was a good bit older than me, but if he noticed I was different, he didn't mention it, and it didn't bother him..."
She sighed. "Of course, he got a job with Shinra after a while, and I didn't see him again until he was a Turk and they sent him to see Elmyra and me. He was polite, but cold... I think now, that he might have been told to use force, but didn't because we'd been friends. But he never said anything to indicate he cared..."
"He was a Turk," Sephiroth stated. "It was not his job to care."
"I guess..." she said, frowning slightly. "Anyway... I had a garden for as long as I can remember, and when I was maybe fourteen or fifteen, I decided to start selling flowers... Sometimes, I would take the train up to the plates, and sell up top, where people could afford to buy more. I met Zack on one of those times. He was very friendly, and I'd gotten very good at hiding things. We ran into each other a couple times-I don't think it was by accident-and eventually... he asked me out." She glanced at Sephiroth uncertainly, but he made no comment.
"Zack was my first boyfriend... He was a real ladies' man, and immature at times, but he was nicer to me than anyone else had been, save Elmyra. He was training in SOLDIER, he said. He made it to first class. That's when he started getting more serious missions. And finally, there was that mission to Nibelheim, which he never returned from..."
"I am sorry," Sephiroth said quietly. "You must have been worried..."
"That's all right," she told him. "He lived through that, I think..."
He blinked. "I did not kill him?"
"You injured him... I don't know if he died from it or not. But you hurt Tifa and Cloud badly also, and they lived..."
He thought a moment, then said slowly, "I believe Hojo gathered the survivors for an experiment. That is how Cloud became injected with Jenova. Zack may have gone through the same thing. As for Tifa... I do not know how she escaped it, but she must have."
Aeris shook her head. "I don't know either."
"Anyway... continue. You were seventeen then, yes?"
She nodded. "Yes... That's when Shinra started hunting for me more violently. They sent Reno instead of Tseng most of the time. But... he's a strange one when it comes to girls. He came by once when I was in the garden, and said he was off duty and just wanted to talk. I had nowhere to go, but he just stood a ways away and talked to me, like he said... I guess you could say we were friends, though he still followed his orders when he was on duty and tried to capture me. I'm not sure how I managed to get away all the time..."
"Perhaps he was being lenient," Sephiroth suggested.
"Maybe..." she agreed. "Anyway... five years ago was when I met Cloud in Sector 1, after the reactor was blown. He told me everything was all right, and asked about my flowers, even bought one... He came crashing through the roof in the church a day later. The Turks decided to look for me at the same time, so I asked him for help... I got involved in his life rather quickly." She smiled sheepishly. "You know how I like to help people...
"I said I'd help him get back to Sector 7, but we saw Tifa when we were nearly there, heading for Sector 6... I wanted to help her, too. You know what kind of place Sector 6 is... I won't go into detail." She giggled a little in spite of herself, earning her a raised eyebrow.
"What is so amusing?" he asked.
"Nothing," she replied, shaking her head. "I wouldn't want to embarrass Cloud by telling you. In any case... When we finally got to Sector 7, Shinra was trying to destroy the pillar, and of course Barret and the others were trying to stop them. Tifa and Cloud went to help them, and I stayed behind; Tifa wanted me to get Barret's daughter, Marlene, out of the sector. So I did... but the Turks caught me on my way back home. They took me back to the Shinra Building, and Cloud came after me... I think you know most of what happened afterwards, considering we were following you..."
He nodded. "...I saw you there, in the lab," he murmured.
"You did?" she asked, surrpsised.
"Yes. I was already in the building, waiting for the right time to strike at Shinra... I saw them bring you in. Part of me wanted to free you, but I decided it was a bad idea; Shinra would be put on alert, and it would be harder to move about unseen. I did not want to create a commotion just yet. I am sorry..."
"It's all right," Aeris replied. "You were the one who let us out of the prison cells anyway, weren't you?"
"Yes, I was," he answered. "But I only did it because of Cloud. Because I thought I would be able to use him."
"...that explains a lot of things."
He did not reply.
"......Cloud seemed so much like Zack," she murmured quietly. "He's more serious and guarded, but... I don't know. I thought they seemed the same. I think that's one reason why I was so willing to help him... But he's different, I learned. I was actually able to tell him things, because you had told him about the Cetra, and he was willing to listen." She studied her hand again. "...but even Cloud didn't understand me well..."
She felt Sephiroth's tentative hand on her shoulder and blinked a little in surprise, turning to look at him. He met her gaze uncertainly, slowly removing his hand and looking away. She reached out to take his retreating hand, smiling.
"Thank you," she said. "That was hard for you to do, wasn't it?"
He glanced at her, then looked down at their joined hands and nodded minutely. "But... I am not the only one who needs comfort, am I?"
She shook her head. "...the others don't usually notice, though. And I... I never thought I wanted them to."
His eyes sparkled knowingly. "...and yet, you always wanted them to know. You wanted to let down your guard, if only for a moment, and let them help you."
Aeris nodded, feeling tears in her eyes, though whether from joy or sorrow she did not know. She let go of his hand and slipped her arms around him before she realized what she was doing. He started a little, but made no protests, nor any attempts to break away. She buried her face in his chest, a few tears escaping her eyes and trickling down her face and against his skin.
After a long moment, she felt his arms around her, holding her close, and she smiled through her tears. The only person who had ever truly understood her... She held him closer, remembering what Tifa had asked. More than friends? ...yes, they were closer than friends, but she wasn't in love with Sephiroth...
Then why don't you sound sure of yourself? a small voice asked her. She pushed it out of mind.
She pulled back slightly, sniffling. "I'm sorry..." she murmured.
"I don't mind," he replied just as softly, keeping one hand about her waist and gently brushing away her tears with the other. She looked up at him, meeting his shining blue eyes. He leaned down, pulling her closer, and she closed her eyes as their lips met. She felt herself slipping her arms around his neck, as if to bring him closer, and suddenly, he released her, hurriedly taking her hands from his neck.
"I... I am sorry," he mumbled, blushing, quickly pulling away and striding out the door.
Aeris stared after him, a slender finger resting on her lip and a blush staining her cheeks. "Oh, Sephiroth..." she whispered, voice audible to no one.