"Sure are underdressed," the man at the counter commented.
"The cold does not bother me," she replied simply.
"Then why're you lookin' for a jacket?" he wondered.
"It is for a friend." She found a long black coat trimmed in places with white and red and pulled it out for closer scrutiny. It looked warm enough. She could still feel the shopkeeper's eyes on her, but did not glance his way.
"Twenty-three, huh?" he asked.
She froze for an instant before draping the article of clothing over one arm and moving on. She did not bother to reply.
"I remember that was some kinda fad in Midgar some years back, getting number tattoos. That where you're from?"
"Yes." Minerva picked up a heavy jacket for Reno, then looked around to see if the store carried blankets.
"You look a little young, though, to have been old enough to get one back then..." the man went on.
She nearly sighed in annoyance, but merely shrugged instead, striding across to the other side of the shop to pick up a pair of blankets. She wondered if the man was bored. Perhaps he did not get many customers... Of course, she supposed her appearance was rather odd, with her pale skin and paler hair, her scant clothing--considering the temperature--and her tattoo.
"I hear Sephiroth started the whole thing. Had a number 1 tattoo, apparently. Dunno quite how anyone found out about it, but maybe they just made it up..."
Minerva walked up to the counter, dropping her things down on top of it. "How much?" she asked brusquely, her tone implying that she hadn't been paying him the slightest bit of attention.
The man stared at her for a moment, then started to ring the items up. "Come to think of it, you look sorta like Sephiroth, too, if you don't mind my saying so... That'll be 1500 gil."
With a wry smile, she plunked down the coins, gathered her things, and left the shop. Hopefully no one else would be quite as curious, she thought as she stuffed what she could into a bag and draped what she couldn't fit over one shoulder.
Actually, it wouldn't hurt to try to blend in a little more, she decided, pulling out the black coat and putting it on. The warmth felt surprisingly good. But it was more important that she look less 'underdressed' and that no one else commented on her tattoo. The number was probably the only thing that could make her self-conscious. She stuffed the other blanket into the bag and entered the next shop.
This one was somewhat larger than the other, having several aisles and a number of people shopping there, some with baskets over their arms. A middle-aged woman leaned against the counter, chatting with the shopkeeper. A girl who couldn't be any older than Minerva herself stopped to stare at her as she walked past. Minerva quirked an eyebrow, slowing.
"Okay, you're not an albino," the girl decided, looking her over with furrowed brows, "so what's with the white hair?"
"You are not an alien," Minerva replied softly, "so what is with the brown hair?"
The girl stared at her, then laughed. "Okay, okay, so I'm not the politest person in the world. You new here?"
"Yes," she answered, eyeing the girl warily. She had hazel eyes behind a pair of black-rimmed glasses, and a floppy, narrow-brimmed green hat pulled on over short, nearly-black hair. She had on a black sweater beneath a long brown coat, and a pair of dark jeans and sneakers. Neat, practical, comfortable.
"Where'd you move in?" the girl continued.
She shrugged.
"Haven't got a place yet?"
Minerva shook her head. "Actually, I am only here for supplies."
The frowned in confusion, pushing up her glasses. "So... you're headed for Snow Village?"
She shrugged again.
"Well, you're forthcoming."
"Excuse me for not giving information to a complete stranger," Minerva said dryly, turning away.
The girl followed. "Sorry, sorry. I'm just curious and trying to be friendly--without succeeding, I guess. Anyway, what's your name?"
She hesitated. What harm could it do? "Minerva."
"That's a cool name. Better than Delphine anyway. That's mine."
"Delphine is an interesting name," the silver-haired girl responded tentatively.
"Interesting? I guess I should take that as a compliment."
She shrugged absently, mind more on the items she was buying. She was glad she had spent some time watching the humans at Cosmo Canyon; otherwise she would have had no idea what they needed as far as food went.
"Do you mind my asking where you're headed?" the girl asked, more timidly this time.
Minerva glanced at her. If people bothered--or rather, dared--to go to the City, Aeris likely would not have chosen to go there... or perhaps she would have. She did not seem to mind having some company, as long as no one worried about her. That had always seemed to be her main concern. "My friends and I are staying in the City of the Ancients," she said finally.
Delphine blinked. "You're kidding, right?"
She shook her head.
"You're staying in those old ruins? And you have to trek through the Sleeping Forest just to pick up supplies?"
"The Forest is not that wide," Minerva commented.
"But people get lost in there. People die in there."
"...I seem to be all right."
"Well... yeah..." Delphine faltered. She frowned, searching for some reason for this exception.
Minerva decided to offer one. "Of course, it probably helped that my friend woke the forest for us."
"Oh, did she have a Lunar Harp? There aren't that many of those, but I suppose she could've found one..."
"No, she didn't."
There was a pause. Minerva headed for the counter. The girl trailed after her. She did not wait for her, but paid for her own items and exited the shop. Some moments later, Delphine trotted up to walk along beside her. Minerva had to wonder why she bothered; she had not thought herself that intriguing or her personality particularly appealing.
"Who's your friend?" the girl asked. "I mean, she's gotta know something special to wake the Forest. I've never seen anyone wake it."
The silver-haired girl shrugged. "The trees just seemed to like her."
"Weird. What made you guys decide to stay there of all places? It's so remote."
"Exactly."
Delphine blinked. She seemed to have just caught the sense of Minerva's desire for solitude and appeared uncertain whether or not to continue. "So... how long are you staying?" she asked finally.
"I am not sure."
"What are you doing there?"
"Living."
"Just living? Won't you get bored?"
Minerva looked at her in surprise. "Why should I be bored?"
The girl blinked. "Well, I mean... What is there to do there?"
"Explore," she answered simply. "Besides, I have my friends."
Curiosity entered Delphine's voice, overcoming her desire for concrete facts and things that made sense in her world inhabited by humans alone. "What's it like there?"
Minerva blinked. She had never had to give this kind of description before. She faltered. "Colder than here... with a strong wind..."
"No, I mean, what's it look like?"
They had walked to the Northernmost part of the town, where the Forest began, thick even at the edge, as if to ward off any who might wish to pass through. As if to keep the humans away from the more sacred and almost haunted ruins of the Cetra's ancient city. Minerva paused at a wide gap between two trees that might once have been the start of a path and turned back to Delphine.
"It is... in the center of a lake of ice, but no snow. The ground there is frozen, almost glittering. There is a large circular building in the center, looking almost like some kind of living plant, and around it are smaller buildings Reno described as 'shell-like,' though I would not know. Everything is in tones of blue and gray and white..." She fell silent, feeling that the rest of her impressions carried far too many emotions. She had already said more than she had intended.
Delphine smiled, asking no more questions. "Sounds pretty," she said wistfully. "Wish I could see it."
The silver-haired girl felt something of her regret. "Perhaps you can visit someday," she suggested.
"Yeah. Maybe."
She faltered. "Delphine--thank you."
The girl blinked. "What for?"
"For caring," she replied. And for letting lie what I would rather not explain to a stranger. She turned and stepped into the forest, the roots and sparse underbrush not seeming to slow her fluid pace.
"See you, Minerva!" Delphine called after her.
Minerva nearly surprised herself as she raised a hand in farewell, though she did not look back.
She lay beneath the blanket, cold, so cold. She curled up tighter. She felt someone lay another blanket on top of her and smiled slightly. "Thanks, Seph..." she murmured sleepily.
"Seph?"
Aeris's eyes snapped open, and she looked up to see Reno standing at her bedside, looking half-amused, half-concerned. "Oh... Reno... sorry," she fumbled, memory returning in a painful flood. There was no way Sephiroth would be covering her with another blanket.
"It's okay," he said, shrugging it off and sitting down on the hard mattress.
She sat up, clutching both blankets tightly around her. Gods, it was cold. She looked around. "Where's Minerva?" she asked.
"She left for Bone Village to pick up some supplies about an hour ago," the redhead replied.
Aeris nodded, then hesitated. "Are you sure she'll be all right on her own? I mean..."
Reno snorted a little. "Min's not clueless. Maybe she's never been in many stores before, but she'll figure it out."
She shook her head. "No, that's not what I... well, maybe a little... but I was more concerned about the Forest. But I suppose she'll be all right finding her way through it. I think it just doesn't like humans. She'll probably confuse it. Or it will remember she was with me."
The redhead was incredulous. "Are you trying to say that the Forest has a mind and memory?"
"Well, yes, though not in the same sense as we have them. You didn't think that was possible?"
He shook his head dumbly.
"When you think about it, it makes more sense than some things... Trees at least have souls, Spirit Energy, but... the Planet, for example--what does it have? Its consciousness doesn't stem from the Lifestream. It has no soul, or at least, nothing that any Cetra can recognize as one. It has no mind. It has no body. And yet, the Planet is incredibly wise, retains a detailed memory, and even offers hints of the future."
"It does seem kinda weird," Reno agreed. "Almost as if having a brain and body is completely unrelated to intelligence."
"But that's not true," Aeris stated. "I don't know about the Planet--it's probably beyond my understanding anyway--but the Forest, while aware, is not necessarily intelligent. There's a difference between the two."
The redhead nodded.
The Cetra was rather surprised at herself for contemplating something so intellectual so soon after waking. She let her gaze wander the room, and it inevitably fell on the inert form of Sephiroth. She stared at it for a moment, then bowed her head and whispered, "Sephiroth?"
Good morning. His voice was as a gentle caress in her mind. He sounded faintly amused.
She smiled. "Saw my little blunder earlier, did you?"
Yes. And I did not know you could think so clearly first thing in the morning.
Aeris laughed softly. "Neither did I."
"Aeris?" Reno queried, obviously confused.
She looked up. "Oh, sorry... I suppose I should explain..."
Good luck.
"Thanks," she murmured, then took a breath. "Well... you see, Sephiroth is part Cetra himself... The Jenova in him is far stronger, but he is capable of hearing the other Cetra, and of entering the Promised Land. I think... maybe with practice he could hear the Planet, but I'm not sure. Anyway... Because the deceased Cetra can speak to the living, he can speak to me."
Reno stared at her, blinking, as he tried to process this. "All right... so he really is an Ancient afterall? That's kinda... ironic."
She smiled faintly. "It is, isn't it?"
Quite.
"But that helps you, doesn't it?"
Aeris nodded. "It is a wonderful comfort to hear his voice."
"And does being part Cetra score him any points?"
She hesitated.
Perhaps a few see it as a good thing, but most of them are revolted and angry to discover it. They will probably condemn me doubly for being 'one of them' and acting cruel in spite of it.
"No, not really," she said to Reno. Aside, she remarked, "It's disgusting to hear that they place themselves that much higher than humans that they expect every one of their kind to behave purely..."
You think so...?
"It's hypocritical," she replied, forgetting to lower her voice. "They claim to be pure and in condemning others, they defile that so-called purity. Surely some of them are more understanding...?"
Like you?
"Yes, I suppose."
Well, there is your mother. She is much more accepting of me than she was when I first met her. Aside from her, I have seen only a few other Cetra... most of them were angry due to my presence here. Only one, Ifalna's friend I think, allowed me a chance to speak. She seemed fairly neutral, which is good, I suppose.
"Yes. As long as she is keeping an open mind." She remembered she was not alone when Reno fidgeted. She looked up at him. "...I'm sorry, Reno," she said sheepishly. "I should go outside or something..."
He shook his head. "No, that's all right. I'll leave." He got up before she could argue and was already halfway to the ladder. He flashed her a grin. "Tell him I said hi."
Aeris watched him start down with a smile. "He can hear you, you know," she told him.
Reno paused. "Oh." Finding some imaginary point above him to wave at, he said cheerfully, "Hi, Seph! Be not dead soon, will ya?" Then, nodding as if he heard some response, he disappeared into the lower level.
He is certainly a good choice if you wanted someone to cheer you up, Sephiroth commented, amused.
"Yeah, he is," the Cetra agreed.
...did you really mean what you said, about me being able to hear the Planet eventually?
She nodded. "I think maybe you could. The Planet doesn't sound anything like the Cetra. It doesn't actually have words of its own, just ideas, images, feelings. So, to really hear it and understand it, you have to teach your mind to translate those into words. My mother taught me how when I was little, but you never learned."
So you think you could teach me how to listen?
"Yes, I think so." Aeris smiled. "It would probably like that."
Sephiroth seemed perplexed. Why?
"So it can have another friend. It's quite lonely. No other living planets nearby to talk to, me as the only living Cetra... I don't know how much the others talk to it, but it must not be often enough."
...you are quite confident that I will live again, aren't you?
"Of course. Surely they couldn't be so cruel as to condemn you after you saved the Planet."
But I also nearly destroyed it...
She wanted to embrace him. But she could not. She tugged the blankets tighter about her body. "They should understand. Even Cloud couldn't keep hating you once I explained everything to him. You just have to be brave and tell them some of the things you've told me."
But those are--
"Too personal? Secrets? You wanted to share them with me and me alone? You don't have to let them see so deeply, but they have to know you have emotions. They have to know how lost you were. Otherwise..."
All right... I will try. I hope I am strong enough for that. To bear even a little of my soul to wolves is... frightening.
"Don't be afraid of them, love. I know you. You're strong enough to bear anything they say. It's more than I can do."
At first all she received in return was the impression of a frown, but after a moment passed, he murmured, I hope you are right.
"I'm always right," she joked.
Indeed you are, he agreed more seriously.
"You always tell me so anyway..." Aeris said. Hearing voices down below, she guessed that Minerva was back. "I'm going to go say hello."
All right.
Reluctant to leave the warmth of the blankets, she stood, keeping one wrapped about her like a shawl, and hesitated. "...talk all you want," she told Sephiroth. "Even if I don't reply."
He seemed surprised. What for?
"I just want to hear your voice."
Does it really sound that wonderful? he asked in amusement.
"Yes," she replied, laughing. She moved to the ladder, climbing down to join her friends.
"Hey, Aeris," Reno greeted. Minerva merely nodded silently.
"Hi," she replied. She noted the two full bags that the girl was carrying, and the black cloak she wore. "I hope you have something for me," she said. "It's colder than I remember it being."
"I bought this for you, actually," Minerva said, removing the coat and handing it to Aeris. "I only wore it to reduce the number of strange looks I was receiving."
The Cetra took it gratefully, removing the blanket from her shoulders to put on the garment; it felt blessedly warm. "Thank you."
The girl shrugged. She seemed a little uncomfortable.
Aeris smiled. "Why don't you two come on up? Until we get an actual door, it'll always be colder down here."
Reno nodded. "Min may not care, but I'm startin' to freeze."
She herded him up the ladder, making certain he was above her this time, then followed him up, Minerva coming last. Reno sat down on his bed, leaning back on his hands. Aeris quickly made her own bed before sitting down upon it. Minerva simply leaned against the wall.
"So how's Sephiroth doing?" the redhead asked.
"He's... all right," the Cetra replied, aware of how ridiculous it seemed to talk about the well-being of a dead man. "A little nervous, though."
That is putting it lightly, the swordsman commented.
"Sephiroth's nervous?" Reno asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Would you not be nervous, too, if you were to face all those you had killed so that they could decide whether you lived or died?" Minerva asked him.
"Heh. I guess so."
"But he has the Planet on his side," Aeris said. "He should be fine."
The Planet? You mean to say that the Planet will take part in the trial and speak for me?
"Of course, silly," she whispered. "Afterall, haven't you both harmed and helped it? Of course it's involved. And it told me it would do what it could for you."
That is comforting to know.
She looked back at Minerva and Reno. "Sorry," she said. "It really is hard to hold two conversations at once, when you both can hear everything I say, but you can't hear him..."
"Can't you speak to him in your mind?" Minerva asked. The redhead glanced at her, looking surprised that she had taken in the fact that Aeris could hear Sephiroth without question. Perhaps the swordsman had told her.
The Cetra blinked. "I... I don't know, actually." Sephiroth? she called uncertainly. No answer. She shook her head. "Apparently not."
"In any case..." the girl went on. "Do you have any better an idea of how long it will be until he... wakes up?"
She shook her head. "We're not even sure when the trial will be..."
The girl sighed and slumped back a little.
Aeris decided to try to lighten the mood. "You two can't get married until he gets back, of course," she said.
"Married?" Minerva queried, blinking and glancing at Reno.
"Oh, I'm sure that will be somewhere in your future. You've become practically inseparable."
Reno grinned and threw the girl a wink, then looked back to Aeris. "Actually, she's already said yes," he confided.
The Cetra smiled a little as Minerva blushed. "Then congratulations to you both. But... you've no idea what it's like to miss your best friend's wedding. Even if you're able to watch it. You can't laugh with them, or cry with them, or reassure them at those sad lulls in their joy, when they remember you and regret the fact that you're not there..."
She shook her head quickly. She hadn't meant to say that much. "I'm sorry. I'm rambling..."
Was that what it was like for you, when Cloud married Tifa? Sephiroth asked. You must have felt terrible as well, because it was not you he was marrying...
She wished she could reply.
"No," Reno assured her. "We don't mind." His grin returned. "And we'll be sure not to get hitched until he's back."
Aeris managed to smile again. "I'm sure he'll appreciate it."
I have never been to a wedding...
She nearly laughed at this. "Well, you'll get to go to two at least," she told him in a murmur.
Two?
"We'll have one someday, won't we?"
She could imagine Sephiroth blushing faintly. I hope so... He paused. I suppose I should consider myself lucky that I did not have to ask. I have heard proposing is a difficult task.
"Asking Sephiroth to marry you?" Reno asked in jest.
Aeris looked up. "I suppose you could say that," she said. "Though... I'm not sure you can be engaged to the dead..."
It is a rather strange concept, isn't it? And even stranger to be able to see my own body there.
She glanced involuntarily towards it. "I know what you mean," she murmured. "I wish I could bring you back right now."
Even if the Planet would let you, the amount of energy it would drain from you would probably send you into a coma...
Reno and Minerva, sensing that she was talking about something rather serious with Sephiroth, had taken their attention away from her, and both now sat on the middle bed, talking softly.
"How so?" she asked.
First there would be the matter of dragging my soul back all the way from the Promised Land, and then you would have to figure out how to heal my wounds before I died again, and give me enough energy to sustain myself...
Aeris nodded, sighing. "You're right... So I suppose the Planet will be the one to revive you."
I suppose, Sephiroth agreed. I wish I could speak to this protector of mine.
"You may yet," she told him. "If the Planet can find a way to drag living humans into the Promised Land--which I think it is doing at this very moment, with some level of consciousness anyway--then it can find a way to communicate with you, and you can learn to understand it."
So the living are judging me as well? he asked uncertainly.
"Don't worry. Cloud, Tifa, Yuffie... they'll help you. Hopefully, they'll let me say a word or two. But I've a feeling they think me too strongly biased and too persuasive." She smiled faintly.
Of course, Aeris. If you were here, you could make them understand. You can do anything.
"I'm no goddess..." she said sheepishly.
No, Sephiroth conceded. Just an angel.
"Hey, Dad, I'm home!" Yuffie called as she stepped inside her house. She pulled the door shut and added under her breath, "Just in case you care." It was cruel of her, she knew; Godo cared about her, to some degree. The two of them had just never gotten along very well... She thought part of it was due to the fact that while he had allowed himself to be subdued by Shinra, she had not. She was stronger than him. And the thought shamed him. She offered a brief prayer to the Gods that someday he would be proud of her instead.
She walked down the hall to her room, sliding open the door and setting down her pack. Yuffie paused, then silently made her way back down the hallway to her father's room, standing to one side of the door and debating. Finally, she slid it open.
Godo looked up from where he sat on his futon and smiled in that very faint, slightly condescending way he used when he was not really paying attention. "Hello, Yuffie."
"Hi," she replied, not taking another step into his room. "I just wanted to let you know I'm back from saving the world again."
"Are you now?" he asked coolly.
Yuffie nodded, switching to a much more serious tone. "The Planet is free now, of both Shinra and Jenova. By the grace of the Gods, it will flourish again."
He studied her for a moment, then simply nodded. "That is good." She wondered if he even knew what Jenova was.
It was frustrating. Here she was, the leader of Wutai--considering her father did little besides sleep--in her home, with her father, and she was speaking in Common. She missed the clear sound of Wutain and the beauty of its words. She wondered if perhaps she could teach Nanaki, though she doubted the language would sound quite as precise and clean in his gruff voice. Still, at least she could speak it to someone and have them understand and bother to reply. She wondered if his kind had their own language as well, one that he never got the chance to use.
What was worse, though, were the limited responses Godo gave her. Not a word of curiosity, nothing to indicate he cared, not even a simple 'good job' or 'nice work.' Just 'that is good.' He might as well have been stating that the Da-chao Mountain was still standing. That probably would have been less pointless.
Yuffie stopped herself from sighing and pressed on. "How has Wutai fared this past week?"
"It's done well," he answered. She nearly cursed, but he went on. "The merchants had a better week than usual in their trade with foreigners. Many of the villagers were quite curious as to where you had gone, but I couldn't tell them much."
Was that it? Was he angry because she hadn't been able to tell him much about what she was doing or where she was going without spending hours explaining? Well, sorry, she thought angrily. It's not my fault you never wanted to listen to my stories from five years ago. She tried not to let her bitterness show. "It's good that trade's picking up," she said. "And as to where I went... Well, I guess if anyone's really curious, they'll stop by and ask."
Godo nodded sagely.
"It was really nice to see my friends again..." she offered.
"Was it?" he asked, but this time the simple question held a hint of eagerness.
Yuffie nodded. "Especially Nanaki. He's the quadruped from Cosmo Canyon. I used to tease him a lot, but he's really nice, and wise, and more mature than I'll ever be." She faltered for a moment. "Anyway, I got a chance to change his opinion of me. We're really close now."
She sensed he really had nothing to say to this, and she expected him to drop the line of conversation. "What about your other friends?" he asked, surprising her.
Progress! She held back a grin; that would seem obnoxious. And anyway, it wouldn't fit the mood of what she wanted to say at all. "Well, there was Aeris--this is kind of a long story, but... You see, Sephiroth killed her five years ago, but he regenerated or something a month or so ago, and he revived her, sort of to atone, I guess. But it didn't stop there. The two of them got involved in this whole mess with Professor Hojo--one of Shinra's old scientists--and they fell in love! How ironic is that? But it was really kind of sweet... only... Sephiroth died fighting Jenova. Aeris is convinced he'll come back because apparently he promised her he would. I really feel sorry for her, though, because she has no idea how long she'll have to wait."
Godo nodded a bit, processing her story. She realized with some embarrassment that she had been talking too fast again. "That is tragic," he commented.
The ninja faltered. "Dad, do you think... Aeris says Sephiroth is being judged somewhere. I asked her to tell me if there was anything I could do to help him out, and I was wondering if maybe you'd be willing to help, too, if we could..." Stupid, she told herself.
"Help Sephiroth...?" he asked, the strengthening emotion in his voice a mixture of incredulity and anger. She recognized the tone from when she had tried to convince him to stand up to Shinra. From when he had been deeply ashamed to have her as a daughter; he was no longer ashamed, but he was not proud either. "Help the very man who led the armies against us? I thought you hated that even more strongly than I."
"I did," Yuffie answered. "But I've learned to give people second chances, to refrain from truly condemning them until you know them. Afterall, where would I be if no one did that for me? And I know Sephiroth now. He's capable of being cold and precise, yes, but he's not heartless. He's actually really vulnerable, shy, compassionate. And even if I didn't believe all that, I'd still want to help him, if only for Aeris's sake. She's the closest thing to an angel you'll ever find."
Godo frowned, saying nothing for a long moment. He closed his eyes and looked away. "I will think about it," he said.
A sign of dismissal. She inclined her head and slipped back out of his room. She doubted he actually would give it any thought, much less come to a decision to aid Sephiroth, but the fact that the reply left these two possibilities open was more than she could have hoped for. It used to be that when they disagreed, they'd turn to shouting...
Yuffie strode back down the hallway, pausing just outside her room. She glanced to her left, but did not enter the shrine; whatever she wanted to say to the Gods could wait. Right now what she wanted was sleep. She had woken up far too early that morning. True, normally she could get up even earlier with little complaint, but she had come too close to death for her liking in the battle with Jenova. And Aeris's healing took a lot out of the both of them.
She shoved aside the doors to her room, flopping down on the futon without bothering to change into something more comfortable for sleeping, or even to take off her sneakers, which she should have done at the door. Pink... she thought distastefully as she caught sight of the blanket's fabric. I must not spend much time in here. Should really get that changed... Yuffie decided, drifting off.
Despite his earlier anxiety to get home, Cid was reluctant to go straight to his house. He shuffled along the street, annoyed that there weren't any distractions on the way home. And it was late enough that this street was empty. He sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets, feeling the little ring box in his left one.
He frowned nervously. He didn't have to ask her tonight, did he? Of course not. He could just say he was tired and...
No. If he kept up that kind of thinking, he'd just keep putting it off until the next night, and the next night, and the next night. Surely it could wait another day. Hell no. He wasn't about to get into that cycle again. He picked up his pace determinedly, practically kicking open the door.
Shera jumped up from where she had been sitting at the kitchen table, looking startled. Damn, he thought. Have to stop being so fucking loud. Her expression quickly changed to joy, but she only clasped her hands and smiled. "Welcome home, Cid."
He grinned, trying not to show his disappointment when she didn't run up and hug him or anything. "Thanks, Shera." ...afterall, why should she, when all he'd ever done was push her away?
She blinked. "R-right..." she faltered, and fell silent.
"Sit down," he said, waving a hand as he shut the door and plopped down in a chair himself.
She sat quickly and quietly, watching him uncertainly. When he didn't say anything, she began, "How did your, er, mission go?"
Cid leaned back. "Well, I came out of it okay. Most of our crew did, too. But Aeris's going through hell..."
"She was your friend who had been dead, wasn't she?"
"Yeah. I told you Sephiroth brought her back. She kinda fell in love with him, which is really screwed, and he's dead at the moment, which is worse."
Shera nodded a bit. "It sounds like a lot happened... Do you think she'll be all right?"
"She may not look it, but she's tough. 'sides, who's to say he's gonna stay dead? Certainly didn't the last two times."
"For her sake then, if for no other reason, I hope the pattern holds." She paused. "Though from your earlier stories, I don't quite understand it."
"He was sane this time," Cid said. "Guess he's nicer than he looks or something." He shrugged.
"I suppose..."
He frowned; this was getting nowhere. He shoved one hand into his pocket. "Hey, Shera, I, uh..."
"Yes, Cid?"
"Gods, I should've done this years ago," he muttered, getting to his feet. He forced himself to meet her gaze; she was watching him uncertainly, with no apparent idea as to what he was doing. He pulled the ring out of his pocket and got down on one knee. "Shera, will ya marry me?"
She stared at him in disbelief for a long moment, and he started to feel like an idiot. "W-what?" she asked.
"Will you marry me?" he repeated, flushing in embarrassment. Damnit, he was an idiot.
"Oh, Cid!" she exclaimed, clasping his hand rather than taking the ring. "You really mean it, don't you? Of course I will!"
He grinned, relieved, and freed his hand enough to slip the ring on her finger. "You were startin' to scare me there," he told her, getting to his feet and pulling her along with him.
She blushed and lowered her head. "I'm sorry. I just couldn't believe it... After all these years, I thought you--"
He lifted her head and claimed her mouth in a kiss, cutting off whatever she'd been going to say. Oh yeah. Should've done this a long time ago.
Cid suddenly realized that there was not a single bed in the house. He himself slept on a couch in a cluttered back room. He didn't know where Shera slept. He'd asked her once, she'd gestured vaguely, and that had been the end of it. He cursed himself for not pressing further.
He broke away, taking her hand and leading her towards his room. Sure, what the hell? "Shera, I don't know where the hell you've been sleepin,' but the couch'd better be big enough. We're buyin' a bed tomorrow."
She laughed as she followed him into the room and shut the door behind them.
Ifalna stood in the doorway for a moment, watching her guest. She remembered the time, weeks ago, when her daughter had sat in the very same place, watching as her killer rose from the dead and wandered blindly into a blizzard, watching him blink in confusion as children fled from his gaze, watching even as he knelt by her still body to bring her back to it.
Now Sephiroth sat on the cushioned sofa, leaning forward with chin in hand as he watched Aeris talking to her friends. He wore a slight, wistful smile that almost looked boyish even on his delicate features. The love in his eyes was obvious.
The Cetra smiled and turned away, climbing down from the treehouse and leaning against the thick trunk that held it. She was glad the two could talk to each other. It would make Aeris's burden easier to bear, even if they decided against Sephiroth.
Unless... Her smile faded. Unless they decided to expel him from the Promised Land. In fact, that was probably what Narsa and others like him wanted.
Saerni came to join her, and the two gazed silently at the sloping green landscape and cloud-streaked sky.
"How is he doing?" Saerni asked finally.
"He is watching her quite intently," Ifalna replied. "I doubt he would even hear if anyone tried speaking to him."
"Just like Aeris was, yes? Only it wasn't him she was watching."
She shrugged lightly. "He was dead when she was watching. Until that last week anyway. She watched him then."
"Which strikes me as rather odd."
"Wouldn't you be curious if your former enemy came back to life? A bit worried perhaps, and wanting to keep an eye on him?"
"I suppose so," Saerni conceded. "How much can he hear anyway?"
"Only what she says aloud, I think," Ifalna said with a glance upward. "If he can see her mind, he hasn't tried it. Somehow I don't think he would want to."
"Why not?"
"And do to Aeris exactly what Jenova did to him?"
"But Aeris loves him."
"Yes, but the concept is still the same. He would have no wish to invade the privacy of her mind any more than he already has."
Saerni nodded, her mannerism, as always, implying that she already knew what Ifalna had been going to say before she said it. "And then, there is always his hatred of himself. He holds back sometimes, even with her."
"It will pose some difficulty in defending him..."
"I suppose then, that this is what you intend to do?"
"Yes."
She closed her eyes. "My friend, you are taking on a very difficult task indeed. The others already have set their minds on doing what they can to make certain he does not live again."
"All of them?"
"Those who want him to live fall silent when the others are within hearing range. They will not stand up for him."
Ifalna sighed. "But the Planet has chosen to exclude those who are not included."
Saerni shook her head. "Narsa spoke to it and convinced it to allow a few of us speak in the trial. He argued that we are involved because he is staying now in our Promised Land, and it is partially our choice whether or not he stays."
"So... how many, and who?"
"Three," Saerni answered. "Narsa is one of them. The other two... the Planet says one should be in his favor, the other neutral, but it has not chosen as yet."
"You should be one of them, my friend," Ifalna told her.
"I requested as much," she replied.
She nodded. "I will go speak to Narsa. Will you keep watch here?"
"Of course," Saerni said. "I'll make certain no one bothers him."
"Thank you." Ifalna straightened and walked off to find Narsa. She did not have to look far; it seemed he had been on his way to see her.
Narsa had been the last of his family to die at Jenova's hands. He had barely lived to reach his twenties, had never gotten the chance to fall in love or raise a family. One would think he would be grateful to Sephiroth for finally killing the parasite, but instead he seemed to hold a deep grudge against the swordsman both because he carried her cells and because he had aided her in killing. Apparently he thought helping Jenova an unforgivable act, and killing her no more good an act than healing one person's broken arm.
His lack of consideration for the Planet in all of this angered her, and it must have shown on her face.
"I suppose Saerni told you the Planet agreed to let me have a voice in the trial," he said. "You don't seem very pleased."
"Of course I don't," she replied. "Sephiroth doesn't need any more voices speaking against him. He'll have plenty of them as it is."
Narsa scoffed. "I know you, Ifalna. Your voice alone will count for far too many of the opposing side. And you have your daughter to use as leverage as well."
"Leverage!" she exclaimed indignantly, but he went on before she could get in another word.
"Sephiroth has had enough lives, enough chances. We should let his will diffuse into the Lifestream, rather than letting Aeris revive him or keeping him suspended between life and death until the Jenova cells in his body generate enough energy for him to return to it. He has served his purpose; why let him live again?"
"But he has done something greater than any of us here," Ifalna said. "Surely that deserves some reward."
Narsa shook his head. "It was only repayment for his earlier deeds. Now that he has atoned for most of his actions, we can let him die without wont for a greater punishment."
"Death would be more punishment than he deserves, and a punishment for Aeris as well."
"She was given a life again. That should be enough to repay her for what she did."
"But we did not give her that life!" Ifalna said sharply. "All we have ever done is taken from her. She died for the Planet, she was forced to remain here, apart from her second love, and now you want to take her third, her truest, love away from her? Hasn't she lost enough already?"
"This is not about your daughter, Ifalna," Narsa told her coldly. "This is about Sephiroth."
"It is about both of them. Sephiroth is tied to Aeris. His fate is tied to hers. You cannot treat them as separate."
He raised an eyebrow. "So what then, are we to try them both as a whole? Their actions all balanced together? That would surely earn him a life again, one he does not deserve."
"Why does he not deserve it?"
"After he killed so many, you have to ask that? What vexes me most is that we are debating over his life, while no one even raises a question about the lives of his victims! Are they to remain dead, when so many of them are perfectly innocent, while he, so terribly guilty, is allowed a fourth life?"
"His fourth?" Ifalna queried. "I should think it to be his first real one. He has never truly got a chance to live."
Narsa frowned. "I lived for a shorter time than he, I did nothing in the slightest to deserve my death, and still I never asked for another life."
"He has someone waiting for him, Narsa," she replied, her voice sounding surprisingly gentle even to her, "someone who deserves a marvelous life more than any of us, and without him she cannot have it. Everyone who cared about you was already here."
"Again you bring your daughter into it. Have you no better argument?"
"Why shouldn't I bring her into it?" she asked. "Whether you like it or not, she is part of the equation, and you refuse to listen to any other argument. If you want me to leave her out of it, though, fine. He still deserves another chance at life. To live for himself and not anyone else. He saved the Planet, and without the Planet, no one else would live. Even we would lose all awareness. Besides, if he was alive, there is no chance that you would have to put up with him here. Does that answer satisfy your selfishness?"
Narsa snorted. "If he lives again, Ifalna, then eventually he will die again, and where will he end up? Here. Because he'll have earned the Planet's favor, and everyone else's favor."
"Well. Then I don't see what you're so angry about, Narsa."
"What do you mean?"
"If he earns everyone's favor, he'll have earned yours as well, won't he?"
"Very amusing," he told her flatly. "I don't want to have anything to do with him."
"No one said you had to."
He made a vehement gesture towards the direction of her house. "But everyone knows he's there. You can't ignore him."
Ifalna was tired of this pointless argument. He simply refused to listen to her. Well, perhaps he would listen if others agreed with her. People who had every reason to hate Sephiroth and chose not to. "Then you'll just have to learn to like him, Narsa," she told him. "I have a feeling he'll be back here again, permanently."
"I seriously doubt that," he replied.
She shrugged lightly. "Anyway. Who are the other two representatives going to be?"
"Saerni and Ishiri," Narsa answered, frowning. "Both ones who helped defeat Jenova the first time. I have to say I doubt that Saerni is really 'neutral.' I think the Planet's biased."
Ifalna smiled in amusement. "Well, of course it's biased. Sephiroth saved its life, and Aeris is its dearest friend."
"If he didn't have so many victims to speak against him, I'd be starting to think this was a one-sided argument."
"With stubborn people like you on the opposing side? Of course not."
Narsa smirked wryly. "Probably the closest thing to a compliment I'll get from you, Ifalna. At least you agree I can put up a good argument."
She nodded. "Yes, you can. But so can I."
"We'll see. The Planet says it's almost ready."
Ifalna hesitated. "I'll go tell Sephiroth," she decided. "He might want to know how much time he has with Aeris before the trial." Turning away from Narsa, she headed back to her treehouse. She could feel his eyes on her back, penetrating, contemplative. She hoped Sephiroth would be able to stand up to that accusing stare in addition to all the others.
She wished Aeris could be here; her daughter had always been better at helping people than she had. Better at understanding them. Ifalna had no doubt that Aeris and Aeris alone could have understood Sephiroth. But why did she have to fall in love with him as well? If he died, Aeris, too, would die. And despite her words, Ifalna wasn't sure how well she could defend the swordsman.
She floated curled up in the black nothingness that seemed to pulse around her like the heartbeat of some great beast. She did not open her eyes; she knew there was nothing to see. She did not call out; she had never had a voice to speak with, and who would even care? They all hated her, all of them, everyone hated her...
And she was tired, so tired. This seemed like a nice place to rest. To sleep. Even though it felt as though going to sleep would mean forever. Maybe it did. She did not care. Was this what death was like? If she could just go to sleep, she wouldn't be lonely anymore. She wouldn't feel their hatred anymore, particularly his.
Not yet, almost-child, a voice that was not a voice told her gently.
Jenova tried to open her eyes, and found that she simply did not have any. She had only imagined having a body because she had never been without one. Not yet? she asked this stranger.
I want you to do something for me... For the only one you ever loved, really.
It couldn't possibly mean... Sephiroth? When has he ever needed me to help him?
Since always. But you took advantage of him. Should not have.
Who are you? Jenova wondered. The voice did not have the quality of a human's, nor a Cetra's, nor even her own kind's.
Most know me only as the Planet. It suits me just fine. She thought she detected a faint trace of amusement along with the words.
The Planet...? But how can I hear you? I am certainly no Cetra.
No. But I struggled with you a long time before I brought you here. It is a non-space, just between the Lifestream and the Promised Land.
The Promised Land... that place which Sephiroth had tried to seek out. Jenova had always thought it such nonsense. It was strange to find it real. Strange to be here in this... this 'non-space,' talking to the Planet. What do you expect of me, then?
He killed you, but you also killed him. I wanted to give him life again, but others did not agree. So many voices in tumult over his life... What I have decided to do--the Cetra are calling it a trial. He needs all the help he can get. I do not want to have to kill him. I do not want to leave my last child lonely. I know you hate her, but please...
You want me to speak for him? she asked, surprised that she was being given a chance to be heard.
Yes. It sent its equivalent of a smile. I am letting all those involved have a word, if they wish it.
Even the Cet--even Aeris? Jenova asked. She would have frowned in displeasure if she had had a mouth.
Yes, even she will have her say. It faltered. I do not understand 'jealousy,' but I know it is strong. I had hoped you were stronger... So far you have not shown it.
It felt like a challenge. It also felt... like a chance. Give me a voice, and I will speak.
Author's Note: My thanks to Slivers7, who gave me the idea for this last scene. And thanks again for the lovely reviews. I never expected to make it past fifty. O.o Anyway, I'm doing my best to get this finished as fast as I can.