Remembrance

Cloud had no idea where he was, there was only black all around him. He could hear the sound of his own breathing, giving him the only hint that he was still alive. (What was that, a fifty meter fall? I gotta be lucky.) He couldn't feel anything else, his body seemed unresponsive to him. "...You alright?", a voice in the distance said.

He waited for a moment, wondering if his mind was playing tricks on him. The voice asked, "...Can you hear me?" Cloud realized the voice was real. ".....Yeah....." he said blankly.

The voice seemed more relaxed now. Almost with a laugh it said, "Back then... You could get by with just skinned knees....."

Cloud became confused, (What is he talking about?) "What do you mean by 'back then'?"

As if the voice ignored him, "What about now? Can you get up?" Cloud still wanted an answer. ".....What do you mean by 'that time'? .....What about now?" he asked a little more demanding.

The voice became more authoritative, "Don't worry about me. You just worry about yourself now." As much as he didn't want to admit it, Cloud knew he should worry about himself. ".....I'll give it a try."

Once again he concentrated on making himself move. Finally he felt his body begin to respond. A different voice, one full of surprise, yelled, "Oh! He moved!"

The more he tried, the more his body began to come under his control again. The voice he had been hearing began to encourage him, ".....How about that? Take it slow now. Little by little....." The second voice called out to him, "Hello, hello?"

Cloud suddenly felt more alert, "Hey... who are you?" This time there was no response. Only the second voice was there now, repeating "Hello, hello?"

Slowly Cloud opened his eyes. The bright light made him squint until his eyes got readjusted to the light. There was a wonderful smell in the air, it took him a second to realize they were flowers he was smelling. (Flowers? In Midgar?) He looked around and saw a young woman kneeling next to him. He slowly started to sit up. He remembered seeing her before, up on the plate after the first reactor blew up. She was looking him over, making sure he was alright, the expression of concern clearly on her face. She smiled as she spoke to him. "You okay?", he quickly nodded, "This is the church in the Sector 5 slums." She looked up at the roof, a big hole was right above his position, "You suddenly fell on top of me. It really gave me quite a scare"

Cloud was still looking up at the roof, ".....I came crashing down?"

The young woman nodded, "The roof and the flower beds must have broken your fall. You're lucky."

Cloud looked around him, seeing all the nice flowers. He quickly got up and brushed his clothes off, sadly looking at the ones he landed on. "Flower bed....is it yours?" He felt really bad about what happened, "Sorry about that."

She waved it off, "That's all right. The flowers here are quite resilient because this is a sacred place." She looked toward the entrance of the church. "They say you can't grow grass and flowers in Midgar.", she paused, "But for some reason, the flowers have no trouble blooming here." With a huge smile she said, "I love it here." When she finished speaking she moved over to the other end of the flower bed and began checking up on some of the newer plants. Cloud carefully walked out from the flower bed, trying his hardest not to step on any, (I caused enough damage as it is.) She didn't look up at him when she spoke again, "....So we meet again."

Cloud knew he saw her, but he had forgotten where. After a moment she looked up at him, "Don't you remember me?" Cloud decided to take a guess, "Yeah, I remember....you were selling flowers." Her face lit up, "Oh, I'm so happy! Thanks for buying my flowers." Cloud just gave a quick nod. She decided to change the conversation, "Say, do you have any materia?"

Cloud nodded, "Yes. Some." He wondered why she asked the question, "Nowadays, you can find materia anywhere." She smiled, "But mine is special. It's good for absolutely nothing." He looked surprised, "....Good for nothing? You probably just don't know how to use it." She quickly shook her head, "No, I do....it just doesn't do anything. I feel safe just having it....it was my mother's." She looked up toward the sky, with a thoughtful expression, but quickly returned to her conversation. "Say, I feel like talking. Do you feel up to it? After all, here we are meeting again, right?"

Cloud nodded, "I don't mind." She smiled, "Wait here. I've got to check my flowers. It'll be just a minute." She quickly ran over to another set of babies and began looking them over, occasionally pulling out a weed. After a few moments she looked up, "Just a little bit longer." She suddenly realized something, "Oh! Now that you mention it....we don't know each other's names, do we? I'm Aeris, the flower girl. Nice to meet you." She once again smiled at him.

Cloud couldn't help but smile back. "The name's Cloud. Me.....? I do a little bit of everything."

She giggled a little bit, "Oh.....a jack of all trades."

Cloud nodded, "Yeah, I do whatever's needed." She begins to giggle again, he looks himself over, seeing if something ripped, "What's so funny? What are you laughing at?" She shook her head, "Sorry.....I just...."

Before she could answer him, the sound of a floorboard creaking made them both turn around. Although she still had a smile on her face, Cloud noticed that she was uneasy by the newcomer who had just walked in. Cloud looked him over for a second. The man was almost as tall as he was, with brown hair that seemed all over the place. He was in a blue suit, but part of his shirt was hanging out. To Cloud it looked like he was at a bar recently. Aeris tried to continue the conversation, "Sorry, bad timing on my part."

Cloud decided to see why Aeris' attitude changed so suddenly, he started toward the entrance of the church. After walking a few steps Aeris called out to him, "Don't let it get to you!" He shrugged his shoulders. Before he could go any further Aeris said, "Say, Cloud. Have you ever been a body guard?" She gave a little smile to him, "You DO, do everything, right?"

Cloud turned toward her, smoothing his hair with his right hand. "Yeah, that's right." She nodded, "Then, get me out of here. Take me home." Cloud smiled at her, "Ok, I'll do it....but it'll cost you." She smiled back, "Well then, let's see......" She quickly thought of something, "How about if I go out with you once?"

Cloud didn't even have to think about it. He accepted the offer, with a quick nod, and told her to stay behind him with a wave of his hand. He started toward the man, who until this point had done nothing but watch. "I don't know who you are, but...." A sudden feeling of nausea came over him. He had to refocus his thoughts, "You don't know me....?" The voice he heard earlier in his head said, "I know you..." A second wave of nausea hit him. This time he realized who the man was. "Oh yeah...I know you." He pointed to the blue uniform, "That uniform....."

Three Shinra guards, who were standing outside of the church, overheard the conversation and decided to give some back-up toward their boss. They were chuckling at what they thought would be the complete misfortune of the young man inside. Noticing Aeris they began to whistle. They laugh as one of them says, "....hey, sis, this one's a little weird."

Cloud began to get angry. He gripped the handle of his sword, "Shut up! You Shinra spy!" The guards became a bit more serious, "Reno! Want him taken out?", they asked their boss.

Reno rubbed his chin, "I haven't decided yet." Cloud removed his sword and took a defiant step forward. Aeris placed her arm on his shoulder, "Don't fight here! You'll ruin the flowers!" Cloud looked around and resheathed his sword. She motioned for him to follow her towards the back of the church. (Maybe there is an exit back there.), he thought as they started to run.

Reno began walking toward the back of the church. He knew there wasn't an exit back there, at least none that he knew of. What was concerning him now was the man with the girl, more specifically his eyes. "They were....mako eyes." During this time he had managed to unwittingly walk through the flower garden. Looking down, then back towards the detail assigned to him. They were laughing, "Yeah, all right. Back to work." Quickly he started for the door, stopping after a few steps. He yelled over to the soldiers, "Oh!" He pointed at the garden, "And don't step on the flowers....."

All three guards burst out laughing. One said, "Hey Reno, you just stepped on them!" Another nodded, "They're all ruined!" The third spoke while trying to stop himself from laughing, "You're gonna catch holy hell!" Reno just shook his head, (What a bunch of morons.)

The room they were in now, was an old stairwell to the bell tower. The bell had long since disappeared, and the integrity of the building had a lot to be desired. In some places, grass had already overgrown where the floor should have been. There was a gaping hole from the ledge they were standing on, to where the stairs were. Below was a basement, with a few rotted boxes in various corners. A small missile was standing up against the two ledges. (It must have been leftover from the war, in case Wutai managed to invade.) After a moment of examining the room, the sound of the soldiers starting to come toward them became louder. (Well it looks like this is going to be the only way out of here.), Cloud thought. Without thinking he jumped over to the ledge with the stairs. As he landed he felt the old wood crack slightly, but it held firm. Cloud motioned for Aeris to join him. She looked down into the hole below, but reluctantly agreed to jump. Getting a running start she ran and leapt off the ledge and into the waiting arms of Cloud on the other side. She smiled as he brought her away from the edge.

Hand in hand Cloud led her up the stairs and over to another gap in the floor, this one wider than the last. Cloud felt Aeris resisting him motions to move forward. From below Reno and the soldiers ran into the back. Quickly looking around, Reno spotted them on the floor above his position, "There they are, over there!"

Cloud looked down at Reno, a cruel smile was on his face, "Cloud...that one!" She didn't have to finish the sentence. With a quick nod, "I know...looks like they aren't going to let us go."

Aeris began to become frightened, "What should we do?"

Cloud quickly looked across at the other side of the gap, then turned back toward Aeris. With a confident smile on his face he said, "Well we can't let them catch us can we? Then, there is only one thing left." He let go of her hand and jumped across easily to the other side. He motioned for her to follow once again, "Aeris! This way!"

Aeris took a timid step forward, this jump was not only further away but it was higher up. She just shook her head. Cloud realized that the jump would hard for some people. He felt dumb for trying to ask her to do that. He quickly unsheathed his sword. "Alright. I'll hold them off." She nodded, "Right. Make sure they don't get through!"

Reno wasn't able to hear what was being said above him, but he didn't like the fact that they could possibly get away from him. (That's exactly what I need. Heideggar looking over my shoulder.) "The Ancient is getting away! Attack! Attack! Attack!" The soldiers immediately raised their weapons and opened fire on Aeris' position. Jumping forward she felt the edge of the floor give way quickly. She felt herself hit a pipe was heading down towards the basement below. "Eaygh!", she screamed out as she slid down the pipe. Cloud ran over to the edge, "Aeris!"

Reno laughed inwardly, "Think we killed 'em?" He looked at the soldiers with him, "They shouldn't have put up a fight, I say. " He motioned for one of the guards to check where Aeris had fallen to.

Aeris was unhurt from the fall. Sliding down the pipe was probably the only thing that made sure of that. The soldier was surprised as he saw Aeris standing in the middle of the room, her staff held out in front of her. She yelled up, "Cloud, help!"

Cloud knew he was too far away to get to her in time, "Damn!" He had to think fast, (There must be something....) He started to stare at some barrels that were on the roof rafters. "What's that?" A small smile appeared on his lips, "Aeris! Hold on a minute." He quickly made his way up the stairs and went to the rafter closest to his left. Looking down, he could see the soldier right below him. He pushed the barrel from behind, letting gravity take care of the rest.

Aeris saw the barrel coming, and stopped, making the soldier do the same. With a crash the barrel broke apart on the soldier, knocking him both to the floor and unconscious. "Thanks, Cloud." She began to run towards the stair case.

Reno shook his head with disgust at the foolishness of the soldier. "You two...", the soldiers looked over at him, "Stop them from getting out of here." Both Soldiers nodded, and Reno went back towards the main entrance. Aeris was just about at the stairs when the second soldier blocked her path. Cloud noticed it too, he ran towards the barrel on the other side, and like the first one, he pushed it over. It landed on the stairs without breaking and hit the soldier from behind as it rolled down. With a cry, the guard went unconscious.

Aeris looked up and smiled at Cloud, who just shrugged. She made her way up the stairs, quickly followed by the last guard. Because of her dress, running was much harder and soon the guard had almost caught up. Cloud found a barrel close to the stairs the two, below him were on and sent it down. As it hit the stairs and started rolling, the third guard stood there with a surprised look. Realizing that he couldn't move out of the way it hit him, sending him back to the edge of the stairs.

Aeris quickly made her way over to the ledge and closed her eyes as she jumped across. When she landed safely she ran up the stairs, to the rafters, where Cloud was waiting for her. Making their way toward the front of the church, Cloud saw the hole in the roof, that his fall had made. He pointed at it, "Aeris, this way!"

Below, Aeris saw her flower bed and the places where Reno had stepped in them. For a moment she was mad at him, but she let it go and continued to follow Cloud toward the exit. He took a moment to see if there was anyone outside; when he was satisfied he jumped through the hole and waited for Aeris to join him.

After she made it safely outside, she decided to take a quick break and sat down on the roof. Cloud sat nearby, leaving his sword out in case company came. After a few moments Aeris began to laugh, "Ha ha.....They're looking for me again."

Cloud looked surprised, "You mean it's not the first time they've been after you?"

Aeris shook her head, "....no...."

Cloud looked down below, "They're the Turks." She glanced back inside the church. "Hmmm....." He looked back in her direction, Aeris' attention was on his face. "The Turks are an organization in Shinra. They scout for possible candidates for SOLDIER."

Aeris looked surprised, "This violently? I thought they were kidnapping someone."

Cloud shrugged again, "They're also involved in a lot of dirty stuff on the side. Spying, murder....you know."

Aeris didn't want to hear any more about them. "They look like it."

Cloud scratched his head, "But, why were they after you? There must be a reason, right?"

"No, not really. I think they believe I have what it takes to be in SOLDIER!"

Cloud got the feeling she was hiding something, but considering it none of his business, he let it go. "Maybe you do. You want to join?"

Aeris looked the other way, "I don't know...But I don't want to get caught by THOSE people!"

Cloud nodded, "Then let's go!" The couple gets up and starts jumping from roof top to roof top and over pieces of large debris. Cloud decided to see how fast he could do it. Nimbly leaping from one piece to the next Cloud began to get further and further away from Aeris. Before he got too far she yelled over to him, "Wait...Wait I said!" Cloud quickly stopped.

Looking back he could see her carefully making her way over to him. (That dress must be really hard to move in.), he thought as she gave herself a three count from one jump to the next. It took a few moments but she finally caught up to him, sweating and out of breath. She tried to talk while catching her breath, "Slow...down. Don't leave me...."

Cloud just stared at her for a moment, "Funny...I thought you were cut out to be in SOLDIER." Aeris glared at him, with a angry look, "Oh! You're terrible!" Cloud started to laugh and soon Aeris joined him. After a few moments, they regained their composure. "Hey...Cloud. Were you ever in SOLDIER?"

Cloud was taken back by the question. ".....I used to be. How did you guess?"

She looked right at him, "...Your eyes. They have a strange glow..."

Even though Shinra headquarters was in Midgar, he knew not many people have ever seen a SOLDIER before. "That's the sign of those who have been infused with Mako...a mark of SOLDIER." He thoughtfully looked at her,"But, how did you know about that?"

That was another subject she didn't feel like getting into right away. ".....oh nothing."

Cloud didn't want to accept that, "Nothing....?"

Her voice became stern, "Right! Nothing!" She smiled again, "Come on, lets go! Bodyguard!" This time Cloud went slower, allowing Aeris to keep up with him.

About a quarter mile down the road from the church was where Cloud and Aeris ended up going. A civilian was walking toward the sector five gate, located just after the church, and Cloud decided to wait until he was out of range. When he couldn't see anymore, Cloud quickly made his way down toward the street below. He turned around and waited for Aeris, who was gauging her jumps carefully again. A huge look of relief came over her when she was standing on the solid road again. "Whew! Finally made it off! Now what...." She looked around, trying to get her bearings. When she found the direction she wanted to go in she pointed, "My house is over here. Lets hurry before they get here!"

Cloud stayed behind Aeris and let her lead the way. He had never been in Sector five before so that, and watching her back, were the reasons why he followed. There was the occasional thieves, and mako monsters running around. A couple tried to attack them, but soon found out that was a mistake. On many occasions the monsters ran off with some deep wounds. (Probably get attacked by their own later on.) Cloud thought. Soon they approached the entrance to the center of Sector five.

Although the buildings were made from the same materials as the ones in Sector seven there was a difference in how the place felt. Cloud was surprised by the hominess of the place. People were out talking with each other, children were playing in the streets. Aeris waved to all the people they met along the way through the center. Cloud was surprised as to how warmly she was greeted. Soon they came near a river and Aeris followed the path down the road toward the sound of a waterfall. As they approached her house, Cloud was shocked by what he saw.

Unlike the other homes in Midgar, this one was like a regular house from a small town outside of the city. It wasn't run-down, or made of scrap like the ones he was accustomed to seeing. The paint wasn't peeling, the windows weren't broken. It was almost charming. The waterfall behind the building just added to the scene. Aeris noticed his surprise and led him over to a ladder, that led to a garden. Once on top they walked over to the edge and looked at everything. (How is a house like this possible?), he thought to himself. After a few moments in silence, Aeris led him back toward the house.

The inside of the building was just as nice as the outside. There were antique plates hanging on the walls, and there was a nice dinning room set in the middle. A set of stairs were in the back. (If everyone had a house like this, the no one would want to live on the plate.) The smell of a roast in the oven started to make Cloud hungry. Aeris yelled into the kitchen. "I'm home, mom!"

An older woman walked out from the kitchen. She stopped when she saw Cloud standing by the wall. Aeris smiled, "This is Cloud, my bodyguard."

Elmyra became concerned, "Bodyguard.....? You mean you were followed again!?" She quickly checked over her daughter, "Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?"

Aeris shook her head, "I'm all right. I had Cloud with me."

Elmyra acknowledged him with a nod. "Thank you, Cloud." Seeing the motions from her daughter, she started upstairs.

Once they were alone, Aeris looked at Cloud, "So, what are you going to do now?"

Cloud's first obligation, to take her home was now done, he decided it would be best to let the others know he was alright. "...Is Sector seven far from here? I want to go to Tifa's bar."

Aeris smiled, "Is Tifa.....a girl?"

Cloud nodded, "Yeah."

Aeris took a step forward, "A girl....friend?"

Cloud looked surprised, "Girlfriend?" He had never thought Tifa was interested in him at all like that. They were just friends. He began to shake his head, "No way!"

Aeris giggled, "You don't have to get THAT upset!" She took another step forward, they were only a few inches apart now. "Well that's....nice." Taking a step back, "Let's see, Sector 7? I'll show you the way."

Cloud shook his head, "You gotta be kidding. Why do you want to put yourself in danger again?"

She shrugged him off, "I'm used to it."

He looked at her critically, "Used to it!?" He decided to change his tone, "...Well don't know....getting help from a girl...."

She gave him the same look as she did when he made fun of her on the rooftops, "A girl!! What do you mean by that?! You expect me to sit here and listen, after hearing you say something like that!?" Cloud realized he said the wrong thing. She called upstairs, "Mom! I'm taking Cloud to Sector 7. I'll be back in awhile."

Elmyra quickly came back downstairs, "But dear....I give up. You never listen once you made up your mind." She looked at the clock, "But if you must go, why don't you go tomorrow? It's getting late now."

Aeris nodded, "Yeah, you're right mom."

Elmyra looked up the stairs, "Aeris, please go make the bed." Aeris smiled and quickly went upstairs. When she was gone, Elmyra looked over at Cloud, "That glow in your eyes....you're from SOLDIER, right?"

Cloud nodded, "Yeah. Rather I used to be."

Elmyra felt really bad about saying this, Cloud knew that afterward. "...I don't know how to say this but....", she looked toward the door, "Would you please leave here tonight? Without telling Aeris." Cloud stood motionless for a moment. She added, "SOLDIER...the last thing Aeris needs is to get her feelings hurt again."

Cloud smiled at Elmyra and started for the stair case. He walked up quietly, just in time to see Aeris coming out from the room at the end of the hallway. She met him as he turned the corner. "You need to go through Sector 6 to get to Sector 7. Sector 6 is a little dangerous so you better get some rest tonight." Cloud nodded and started for the far room. As he reached for the door she called out to him. When he turned around she was smiling again, "Good night."

After she walked down the stairs, Cloud still saw her in his mind. He didn't want to take her with him; but he didn't know how to leave without her, "Oh man."

Cloud decided he should not fall asleep here, but because of the fall he felt far more tired than he realized. Soon he dozed off, letting darkness take him without much of a fight. "....seem pretty tired...." Having the silence broken by that voice again almost startled Cloud. The voice seemed content, "I haven't slept in a bed like this....in a long time."

Cloud thought about it for a moment. It had been a long time for him too, "....oh, yeah."

The voice continued without heeding the interruption, "Ever since that time." Cloud tried to remember the last time he was on a soft bed. He pictured a small house, far away from the confines of the city of Midgar. There were two beds next to each other, in the homey one room cottage. An older woman, with blond hair like Cloud's, was standing in the kitchen working on a nice meal. The rest of the house was furnished nicely, but as Cloud remembered, it wasn't too extravagant. He was laying down on one of the beds haphazardly. The woman turned away from the stove and looked at him, "My, how you've grown." With a large smile she added, "I'll bet the girls never leave you alone."

Cloud didn't look over at her, "...Not really."

She paced a little bit in the kitchen, "...I'm worried about you. There are a lot of temptations in the city." She looked over at him again, "I'd feel better if you'd just settle down and had a nice girlfriend."

Cloud sighed, "...I'm alright."

She ignored him, "You should have...an older girlfriend, one that'll take care of you." She smiled at the thought, "I think that would be the perfect type for you."

Cloud sat up a bit, "I'm not interested."

Slowly things faded away and Cloud found himself back in the guest bedroom of Aeris' house. He looked at the clock, (4:00), "...I must've fallen asleep." He slowly got up, trying not to make too much noise. Every time a board creaked on the floor he would stop and listen to see if he woke anyone up. "Sector 7's past Sector 6....I should be alright by myself..." Carefully opening the door Cloud made is way down the hallway, past Aeris' room, and then down the stairs. When he reached the first floor he quickly, but quietly, made his way out of the house, leaving Aeris behind.