Chapter 3

The Highwind gracefully soared through the air, cutting through the storm clouds with ease. It slowed as it circled the Junon Airport, gradually coming down on the landing pad. The ship landed on the wet surface with ease. A few moments passed with no activity from the ship. Then, a giant rope ladder was flung off the side, leading all the way down to the ground. The rainfall was still heavy, coming down in huge amounts. Reeve held an umbrella over his and Tifa's head, watching the ship. Tifa hugged herself as she watched the ship.

"I wonder who'll have a harder time getting down... Red or Cid?" Tifa asked, watching two figures come down the ladder. Reeve smiled a bit.

"Well, Red has four legs, but Cid smokes an awful lot...I'll go with Cid though. I bet's he's smoking right now" Reeve said, watching the ship in the dusk. Then, a tiny flash of light went falling down the side of the ship, which was followed up by some distant but distinct swear words. Both Tifa and Reeve laughed.

"I think you got it right" Tifa said between laughs, looking over at the ship. Reeve looked over at her.

"Come on; let's go meet them. That way, they won't get soaked" Reeve stated. Tifa nodded as she followed Reeve outward onto the landing pad. She kept rubbing her arms as she walked along.

"Yeah...it's so cold out here" Tifa stated. Reeve nodded a bit, then quickly looked over.

"Tifa, I would have let you borrow a coat or something!" he exclaimed, handing her the umbrella. Tifa grabbed it as Reeve slowly pulled his coat off.

"Oh, Reeve, I'm fine, really..." she said as he handed her the jacket. She sighed a bit as she handed him the umbrella, then pulled the coat on. Reeve tilted his head a bit,

"See, is that better?" he asked softly. Tifa nodded.

"Yeah...thanks Reeve..." she said as she began to walk again, burying her hands in the coat pockets. They walked a head a bit more when they saw a small but bright light ahead of them. It went out in a few seconds.

"You're not going to be able to keep one lit" Red XIII said as his fiery tail was now in view. Tifa and Reeve stopped as the figures of Red and Cid became clear. Cid had a lighter in one hand, a cigarette in the other. He was trying to light the cigarette, but it kept going out in the rain. Red noticed Tifa and Reeve at once, and slowly jogged over to them. Tifa smiled as she went down to one knee. Red ran up to her and nuzzled her a bit. Tifa rubbed under his chin happily.

"Oh Red, it's been so long...how you doing?" she asked as she scratched him. Red smiled as he sat back on his hind legs and looked at Tifa. He then looked up at Reeve.

"Oh, I'm doing well Tifa...and Reeve? Hello to you; no one told us you would be here" Red stated, the smile still on his face. Reeve nodded a bit.

"I found them just after they talked to you guys, actually. It was a coincidence" Reeve said, moving the umbrella a bit to cover up Red as well. Cid slowly walked over, ducking under the umbrella. He stopped and silently played around with the cigarette, until finally it caught ablaze. He took a deep puff of the cigarette, then looked at Tifa and Reeve.

"Tifa, hey! And Reeve, nice to see you" Cid said, the cigarette dangling in his mouth. Tifa rolled her eyes a bit and smirked at him.

"Glad to see neither of you changed" Tifa said, hugging herself again. The jacket was too big; her hands did not even go out the sleeves. Both Cid and Red casually looked around.

"Where is Cloud and Barret?" Red asked calmly, still looking around. Cid nodded as he let out a puff of smoke.

"Yeah...Spikey and Barret afraid of the rain or something" Cid added, looking around. Tifa took a deep breath and looked down at the ground. Reeve heard her breath but did not look over.

"They're in the hospital" Reeve stated slowly. Both Cid and Red blinked, then looked at Tifa. She took another deep breath and looked up.

"We'll explain on the way" she said.


The ship steamed along the waves, cutting through the sea. The waves crashed against the ship hard, knocking it back and forth a bit. The rain was still down-pouring, colliding with the sea and joining it's brothers. Crates of freight laid everywhere in the back of the boat, underneath a tarp. Phoenix sat on one of the boxes in the very back corner. He slowly ripped the torn tanktop off his body and tossed it off the ship. He looked at shoulder. He slowly scrapped off the dried blood from his shoulder, then leaned down a bit and knocked away the dried blood from his body. He slowly rotated his shoulder a bit, rubbing it as he went. He looked back over at the shoulder again, noticing no scar or wound. He took a deep breath as he opened his backpack and looked inside. Slowly, he pulled out a new black tanktop and slipped it over his hand. He reached back in and pulled out a grey jean jacket. He stood up on the box and slipped it on. He reached into his pants pocket and slowly pulled out the materia he had just gotten. He held the oddly square-shaped rock in his hand and looked it over. He rolled it over his hand, then grabbed it tightly. He bent down and placed it in the backpack safely, then pulled out his binder. He took a deep breathe as he opened it up and looked at it.

"Two down, two to go" he muttered as he began to read. The rain kept splashing into the sea, pounding on the water like a drum. The boy just read as the ship moved along.


"Hey" Tifa said softly as she sat beside Cloud's bed. Cloud's eyes slowly opened as they adjusted to the light. He squinted a bit as he looked over at Tifa. He rubbed his eyes slightly as her form became clear.

"Hey Tifa...the others on there way...?" Cloud asked slowly. Tifa giggled a bit as she pointed to the back of the room. There, sitting on a chair was Cid, noisily chewing a piece of gum. Sitting next to him on the ground was Red. Cloud looked over at them and smiled a bit.

"Hey guys..." Cloud said slowly. Cid's mouth moved around oddly, chewing the gum.

"Damn Cloud, you're always ending up hurt and in a hospital. And you know what that means?" Cid snapped at him, spitting the gum out of his mouth and into the garbage can. Cloud blinked a few times.

"What's that Cid?" Cloud asked, his face masked in confusion. Cid smirked a bit.

"I can't smoke in these damn hospitals. So I'm stuck chewing gum and biting my tongue!" Cid said, sitting back down. Cloud laughed a bit, as well as the others. Red slowly stood up and walked over to the edge of the bed, looking up at Cloud.

"How are you feeling Cloud?" Red asked. Cloud nodded a bit and took a deep breath. Tifa watched as he exhaled, but noticed nothing. She sighed a bit. Cloud reached down under his blanket and felt his stomach.

"Well, my ribs are sore, but I'm going to be fine by tomorrow. I'm only staying overnight as a cautionary measure" Cloud stated confidently. Cid pulled out a new piece of gum and shoved it in his move.

"That's good...sooner you get out, sooner I can smoke again" Cid said as he began to chew the gum. Tifa rolled her eyes at him then looked back at Cloud, a serious look on her face.

"Cloud...Barret's gonna be in the hospital awhile. A few more days, at the very least" Tifa said slowly. Cloud nodded a bit.

"Makes sense..." he said lightly. Red waved his tail around, still looking up at Cloud.

"Cloud, how good was this boy? I mean, you're an excellent swordsman and from what Tifa told us, it was an even battle" Red asked calmly. Cloud leaned back a bit, looking up at the ceiling.

"Well, I had a huge edge in experience. This kid, though...he was so quick. So fast. His speed was unbelievable. He wasn't what I would call a powerhouse...he was weak, physically. But that speed...it was hard to keep up with him" Cloud said, looking around the room. Red nodded his head a bit.

"I see...Tifa mentioned the blast attack he did to Barret. He try anything like that?" Red asked curiously. Cloud shook his head.

"No; he really never had the chance. We kept it close when we fought..." Cloud stated. Cid spit out the gum into the waste basket again.

"Well, damn Cloud. Tifa said it's a kid and you can't beat him?" Cid said, leaning back, putting his hands behind his head.

"I was thinking the same too...but I assure you, he was good. I think I was just rusty..." Cloud said slowly, looking upwards at the ceiling. Cid slowly looked down at the ground. Tifa opened her mouth just as a nurse walked into the room. The nurse looked at Cid, then at Red, then Tifa.

"I'm sorry, but you all are going to have to wrap this up. Visiting hours are over" The nurse stated. Cid stood up and waved to Cloud while Red walked towards the door.

"We'll see you in the morning Cloud" Red stated as he left. Cloud smiled a bit.

"Ok...thanks for coming guys. Have a good night" Cloud called as Tifa stood up and walked to the door slowly. She stopped at the door way and looked back at him.

"Goodnight Cloud..." she said slowly. Cloud waved weakly at her, the smile fading a bit.

"Night Tifa..." he said as she slowly walked out into the aisle. Tifa walked into the hallway and saw the nurse. She quickly jogged up to the nurse and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Excuse me...isn't family allowed to stay the night...?" Tifa asked quickly. The nurse turned around and nodded.

"Well, sure....but Miss, you're not..." the nurse began, but Tifa's eyes pleaded with her.

"Please..." Tifa whispered, twisting her hands together. The nurse slowly nodded as Tifa quickly turned on her heels and walked into the room. Cloud opened his eyes slightly to see Tifa walking in, a huge smile on her face.

"What you so happy about?" Cloud asked as his own smile returned to his face. Tifa smiled as she sat back down on the chair next to his bed, curling her legs up underneath her.

"I'm allowed to stay the night..." she said slowly, the smile covering her face. Cloud laughed a bit as he looked at her.

"Did you threaten my nurse?" he asked. Tifa's smile faded as she gently punched his arm. Cloud just chuckled a bit as she crossed her arms and leaned back.

"You know, for all I do for you, you're just mean to me!" Tifa said, turning her head away from him. Cloud just kept chuckling, looking at her.

"Oh come on Tifa...don't be like that" Cloud said, as he looked at her. Tifa quickly turned towards him, her hair whipping in the air. She had a sneaky smile on her face. Cloud blinked as she softly put her hand under his blanket. She grinned at him.

"Say Cloud...how bad do your ribs hurt?" she asked. Cloud immediately tried to roll away but Tifa at once leapt onto the bed, tickling him. Cloud burst into laughter as he struggled to get away from her. Tifa kept on top of him, tickling him. Soon, Tifa added her own laughter at Cloud's futile struggle, and together their laughter filled up the halls of the hospital.


Suddenly, a loud fog horn ripped through the air. Phoenix jolted away, leaning up from his position in the back of the boat. He rubbed his head as the fog horn ripped again into the air. He got to his feet and walked out from under the tarp and walked to the edge of the ship. He looked outward and even through the thin fog could see that they were approaching Costa-Del-Sol. He looked at the city a moment, then turned back to his resting spot to pack his stuff up.


"So when are we going to meet Reeve?" Cloud asked as he adjusted his shirt as they walked down the hallway. Red looked up at him as they walked along.

"He said he'd be at his office whenever we got done here. He said he was going to do his best to get all the information possible" Red stated as he wagged his tail in the air. Cid looked around a bit.

"I'll be glad to get out of here..." Cid began, but Tifa interrupted him.

"So you can smoke, we know..." she said, rolling her eyes a bit. Finally, Tifa slowed down a bit and looked to her left.

"Ok, this is Barret's room..." she said slowly, gently pushing the door open. Inside, on the bed, lay Barret. His gun-arm was strapped to the gurney, but the rest of him was mobile. He smirked when he saw them coming in, and his smirk grew even more when he spotted Cid and Red.

"Well, look what the dog dragged in" he said softly. Cloud chuckled a bit.

"Well, Red alone couldn't drag Cid in here. We had to help" Cloud said, which got a chuckle out of everyone. Tifa walked to the side where Barret's arm was tied down, then glanced down at it.

"Hey Barret...what's up with your arm...?" she asked softly, her voice near a whisper. Barret turned to her and with his free hand waved a bit.

"It's nothing Tifa. They did it so I didn't smack a nurse in my sleep with it or something. It's no big deal" he said quickly with a shrug. Cid made a face as he pulled out a stick of gum.

"Damn Barret. That would be a site to see" Cid remarked as he threw the gum in his mouth. Barret smiled a bit more, then gasped one second. Everyone stopped for the moment and looked at Barret, but then he took a normal breathe. Tifa closed her eyes as she exhaled, then looked down at him.

"Barret, how are you doing? Good?" She asked hopefully. Barret slowly stroked his chin with his free hand, then looked at her.

"It hurts now and then, but for the most part it's ok. They said my skin may be a bit scarred, but otherwise I'm gonna be ok" Barret stated. Red walked to the same side of the bed as Tifa and looked up.

"I hate to ask Barret, but what did it feel like? This all sounds so unbelievable. Was it a gun maybe?" Red asked, looking up at Barret. Barret leaned back onto the bed, his breathe coming quicker.

"It was strange Red...one moment I was shooting at him, trying to blow him to hell...then out of no where, this grey light smashed into me. When I fully woke up, I was in here. I mean, I remember hitting the building and Tifa talking to me, but I really don't recall much more until I woke up here. But it was no gun. No gun a single person could use is that strong. It felt like...I dunno. It felt very powerful" Barret stated. Cid spit out the gum into the garbage, then leaned against the back wall.

"This is all so bizarre...I mean, you guys keep saying he was a young teenager. Kids don't know how to do this type of stuff" Cid said. Cloud nodded a bit as he turned to Cid.

"It is bizarre...but he's not a god or anything. And he is surely no Sephiroth or anything. He's just a kid who caught us off guard. Barret, nor me or Tifa, knew he could shot that big energy blast. Certainly we didn't expect him to be a gymnastics expert. But beyond that, he was nothing" Cloud said as he crossed his arms. Barret nodded a bit.

"Yeah Spikey...how strong was that kid? I heard he gave you a run for your money..." Barret began, but Cloud cut him off quickly.

"All speed and gymnastics. He has a lot of raw potential, but besides that it was nothing" Cloud said defensively, shifting his weight a bit from foot to foot. Barret just shrugged in the bed.

"Well, what's the game plan then?" Barret asked, looking around at them. Tifa coughed a bit as Barret looked at her.

"Well, Reeve is gathering information now. The boy attacked a materia dealer as well as two cops. We got a few witnesses to them too. Basically, we're gonna go from what Reeve finds us and see if we can see what he is up to" Tifa stated. Cid leaned off the back wall as he stretched a bit.

"Yeah, cause this punk's actions make no damn sense" Cid said as he leaned backwards. Red nodded a bit.

"Yes, it does seem like all he is doing is roaming" Red said. Cloud just sneered a bit.

"And causing a lot of trouble along the way" Cloud snapped off, then quickly looked away from them. Barret and Tifa both saw him turn away and exchanged looks.

"Well, Cloud, you were doing good alone. Together, this kid should be a snap" Tifa said encouragingly. Barret looked up at her with a huge grin on his face.

"So when did old Tifa get here?" he asked softly, causing her to blush and smile a bit.


"Daddy, come look!" a boy screamed as he run up the beach line. His father gently looked up from his book and smiled at the boy.

"Yeah, Teddy?" the father asked. The boy grabbed the father's arm and pulled him to his feet.

"Come look! Come look!" the boy screamed as he pulled his father along. The boy pulled him until they stopped in front of a sandcastle. The boy pointed to it.

"See! I did that all by myself" the boy said, a huge smile on his face. The father smiled down at him.

"That's really good Teddy" he said, patting the boy on the head. The boy kept smiling.

"Thanks Daddy!" the boy said happily. Off of the beach, on the docks overlooking it, stood Phoenix. He leaned on the railing, looking out onto the beach.

"Hey buddy, move!" a man screamed. Phoenix slowly turned his head back and looked at the man move behind the materia stand near the beach. The man slowly began to clean up his stand, then looked back at Phoenix.

"I said move it, pal, unless you plan on buying some materia" The boy blinked at him once, then turned around and faced him.

"You own this shop?" Phoenix asked bluntly. The man sneered at him a bit as he took a towel and cleaned the counter.

"What, you just land in town or something pal? I mean, it's warm as hell today. Why you wearing that jacket?" the man said at him, leaning on the counter. Phoenix walked over and looked down at him.

"Purple Materia" the boy spat at him. The man looked up at him as he picked up a toothpick and put it in his mouth.

"What kind punky? I got lots" the man said as he began to pick at his teeth with the toothpick. The boy leaned in close as their noses almost touched.

"Purple Materia. Project Re-birth. Codename Phoenix." Phoenix said to him in a low, menacing voice. The man's mouth hung open as he stared into the boy's eyes. The green eye seemed calm and calculating. The blue one seemed to imply menace. The man's toothpick fell out of his mouth as he took a step back and nodded a few times.

"Purple...Purple...yeah, Purple Materia...I know where that is..." the man said, his eyes staring into the boy's eyes.


"So, what's the news?" Cid asked he slowly lit a cigarette. They had just gotten to Reeve's office.

"Well...I got a lot of news" Reeve said slowly. Everyone slowly leaned in closer to his desk. Cloud looked at Reeve closely.

"You look nervous Reeve...what's going on?" Cloud asked slowly. Reeve took a deep breath.

"Well...we don't know. That's the problem" Reeve stated. Red looked up from the ground at him curiously.

"Whatever do you mean?" Red asked softly, looking up at Reeve curiously.

"There is no reason to do what he's done...I mean, it's totally illogical" Reeve said, his face turning red. Tifa just shook her head.

"Something has got to make sense. I mean, any connections between anything!" Tifa said, her voice shaking a bit. Reeve took a deep breath and wringed his wrists a bit.

"Well, ok...we got more information, actually. But that's even worse" Reeve said tightly. Cid blinked a few times, then let out some smoke.

"How can more information be bad Reeve? Really, if everything I've heard is true, it's just some street kid who wants to be Sephiroth" Cid spat as he took a deep breath of smoke. Reeve looked at Cid closely, then shook his head once.

"I don't think so...we had a survivor from an attack the kid did. A materia salesman from here in Junon. We got a few quotes from him. He kept babbling about the name Phoenix, and his 'Red Materia'. We looked through his inventory...not a piece of red materia in the store" Reeve stated, leaning back in the chair. Cloud shrugged a bit.

"Ok Reeve...but really, is that all?" Cloud asked slowly. Tifa nodded a bit as she gently pushed her chair over a bit towards Cloud.

"Reeve, that's odd...but not Earth-shattering" Tifa pointed out. Red's tail wagged in the air as he patiently sat on the ground.

"Is there any chance we can ask the man more questions?" Red asked calmly. Reeve just shook his head.

"The man passed away from a heart attack a few hours ago...but he DID say one more thing of interest....Project Re-birth..." Reeve said slowly, his face draining. Cid took the cigarette out of his mouth, let a puff of smoke go into the air, then put the cigarette back in.

"Well, in what context?" Cid asked as he took a deep hit from the cigarette. Reeve just turned away from them, looking down. He slowly turned around and tosses a soaking white jean jacket on the table. Reeve looked back at them.

"Cloud, Tifa, you know who this belonged too" Reeve said slowly. Cloud nodded a bit.

"Yeah...he took it off while he was fighting" Cloud stated, looking at it closely. Reeve nodded, then opened it up. He pointed to the ticket at the top of it, near the neckline. On the ticket was a very clear logo. Reeve watched as their faces all covered in questions. Then, they all turned a shade of pale, much like Reeve.

"Shinra never sold clothing; they only made it workers. More-so, this jacket is only a year old...this is a Shinra jacket. Project Re-birth may be a Shinra operation" Reeve stated slowly, as all of them just stared at the jacket.


The man dug deeper into the ground, casually looking around to see if anyone was coming or if that boy had left yet. Neither had happened yet. The man gently let the shovel go a bit and turned to Phoenix.

"So, they decided to go through with it, huh?" the man asked, wiping some sweat from his brow. The boy's eyes narrowed at him.

"Go through with what?" the boy snapped at him. The man just looked at him, then shrugged. He went back to digging.

"Project Re-birth...guess they got desperate..." the man said as he kept digging. Before the boy could respond, he heard some noise. He quickly turned and saw a small ball rolling towards his feet. He then saw two small children running for the ball, which stopped at Phoenix's feet. The small girl and boy approached him slowly. They looked almost exactly alike, except their hair was a different color. The boy pointed at the ball.

"Can we have our ball...?" the boy asked, his voice shaking. Phoenix glanced at them, then gently kicked the ball back to them. The boy bent down as it rolled to him and picked it up quickly. The girl clapped her hands together.

"Thank ya mister! Come on!" she said, grabbing the boy's hand as they went running away. Phoenix blinked a few times.

"Must be a brother and sister" he said under his breath. Suddenly, Phoenix turned and put his hand up to block. The shovel the man had been using shattered as it hit the boy's arm, sending the shovel flying into the air. Phoenix squinted his eyes a bit as the man took a step back. The man tripped when he hit the hole he had been digging, knocking him backwards onto the ground. The man's eyes went wide as he looked up and say the boy standing above him.

"Who are you?" the man screamed as he tried to crawl away. The boy just looked at him.

"I want the Purple Materia" Phoenix said darkly, glaring at the man. The man's face turned pale as a ghost as he frantically tried to get to his feet, his body and mind not working together. As he scurried to his feet, he tripped again as the purple materia fell from his pocket and landed on the ground in front of him. The man quickly reached for it and grabbed it with his hand. Just as he grabbed it, Phoenix stomped on his wrist. The man screamed as he let the materia go. He looked up into the boy's eyes.

"Who...what are you?" the man said between gasps of pain. Phoenix twisted his foot quickly as the sounds of bone-breaking filled the air.

"I am Phoenix" the boy spat down at him.


Reeve sat at the computer, typing as fast as he could, searching through files. Tifa and Cloud stood behind him while Red sat on his hind legs looking up. Cid sat off to the side of the room, reading a magazine and smoking a cigarette. Red's tail swung through the air, his eyes glued onto the screen.

"Reeve, are you sure you could find information on this Project Re-birth, if it's true" Red asked patiently. Reeve nodded a bit as he kept typing.

"If it ever existed, I can find it. It's just a matter of finding the department it was in, if there were more code-names, when it was started..." Reeve trailed off as he kept typing. Tifa nodded a bit.

"Basically, it's just going to take you awhile" Tifa asked, a small grin on her face. Reeve noticed the grin in the reflection of the computer screen and nodded.

"Yeah...basically, this is not your standard Shinra computer. This is a secret one I...um..borrowed..." Reeve said as he kept typing. Cloud chuckled a bit as he watched, trying to keep up with the screen.

"Reeve, just admit it that you stole it" Cloud said. Reeve's seriousness cracked as he smiled.

"Yeah, I know. I'm just use to not...holy...!" Reeve said, stopping in mid-sentence. Cid looked over at them, spitting his smoke into the air.

"What, you guys find something?" Cid asked, looking up from his magazine. Tifa waved her hand over.

"Cid, you gotta look at this.." Tifa said, then quickly looked back at the screen. Cid strolled over casually.

"What...?" he asked silently as he rounded behind the desk, looking at the screen. Reeve slowly read a loud as he read over the screen.

"Project Re-birth...Project Location...Midgar, Sector 4...Authorization...Classified...Start Date....Unknown....End Date....nothing there..." Reeve said slowly as he read the screen. Cloud took a deep breath.

"Ok...ok Reeve, can you get any information on this...?" Cloud asked slowly. Reeve shook his head as he typed a few moments, then stopped.

"No...that's all the information that is on this computer..." Reeve said as he slowly took a deep breathe. Cid's cigarette hung out of his mouth, dangling in the air.

"Reeve...how many projects are that secretive...?" Cid asked as he gently took a hit from this cigarette. Reeve shook his head a bit as he turned back to face the others.

"The type of project that got this much protection...man, those projects are the ones that no one talked about...all of the personal who worked on them either kept their mouths shut or died" Reeve stated. Everyone stood around a moment. Slowly, Tifa looked over at Cloud.

"So Cloud...what do we do now?" Tifa asked softly. Cloud looked around at the others as he took a deep breath. He slowly rubbed his forehead.

"Well...ok guys. Let's be realistic. We need more information before we even worry about this Project Re-birth. I mean, realistically, there are more projects that top secret Reeve, right?" Cloud asked, looking at Reeve. Reeve nodded a few times.

"Yeah, I man, there are a bunch of projects that Shinra never even got off the ground. But this is an eerie situation, to say the least" Reeve stated. Cloud nodded a few times.

"Right, good point. Regardless, we need to start to plot out a plan. Tifa, how long did Barret say he had to stay in the hospital. And Reeve, is there any chance you can find more information on this Project business. It's our only lead as of right now; better follow it" Cloud stated, crossing his hands in front of himself. He glanced at Tifa, he grinned a bit.

"Barret has two more nights in the hospital. Then he's free" Tifa stated. Cloud shifted his attention from Tifa to Reeve. Reeve shrugged a little bit.

"Well...while I can't find any more information from here, I bet I could find something out from one of the computer databases from in Midgar. In one of the laboratories that were on or under the surface" Reeve stated. Red looked up at him and smirked.

"Do you know the locations of any laboratories?" Red asked softly. Reeve smirked.

"Hey, of course I do. So yeah; if I could get to one or two of those, I bet I can find out more on this Project Re-birth" Reeve said, looking back at the computer screen. Cid slowly let out a smoke ring into the air as he looked at the screen.

"So what's the plan Cloud? We gonna go check out this project bullshit, or what?" Cid asked, watching the smoke. Cloud nodded a bit.

"Yeah. Ok, I got our plan...alight, Red, Reeve, and myself are going to go to Midgar. We're going to try to see if any of these labs are left and see if we can find some information on them" Cloud stated, looking around. Cid rolled his eyes a bit.

"And what are me and Tifa suppose to do? Wait around and make sure the Highwind stays clean" Cid asked, a touch of hurt in his voice. Tifa looked at Cloud intensely. Cloud shook his head.

"No, nonsense. I want you guys to head to Wutai. No one has spoken to Yuffie yet" Cloud stated. Tifa let out a quick laugh.

"Ok Cloud, but do we really need Yuffie? She brings a lot of headaches along with some strengths" Tifa pointed out. Cloud smirked a bit.

"Well, we may not need Yuffie, but we will need some materia. And who has most of the materia?" Cloud asked rhetorically. Cid chuckled a few times.

"Makes sense. So me and Tifa go get the materia while you guys check out Midgar. Then, we come back and pick you up, then head back here to get Barret. Am I on the ball?" Cid asked. Cloud nodded.

"Right on top of it Cid. From there, we can see what we should do. By then, we'll see if this Project Re-birth is even meaningful. We'll have materia, Barret back, and maybe Yuffie" Cloud stated, nodding a bit. Tifa grinned as she stood up.

"Sounds like a good plan to me" she stated, looking at the others. They just nodded. Cloud walked towards the door, waving.

"Come on guys, let's mosey" he said as he walked towards the door. Cid suddenly slammed his fist on the table, causing Cloud to come to a halt. Cloud quickly turned around and looked at Cid. Cid grabbed his cigarette and threw it down to the ground and stomped on it.

"Do not say mosey! Damn man, say something cool and hard!" Cid screamed loudly. Cloud gulped a bit, then grinned at Cid.

"Let's move out!" Cloud screamed.


The wind rustled softly, sending the leaves floating gently into the air. The leaves slowly descended back down to the ground. The leaves were all over the pathway, turning the path into a golden and red road.

The boy marched up the path, the leaves sticking to the bottoms of his boots as he went. He kept blinking as he walked up the path, his eyes down on the path. He stopped as he reached the top of the mountain. He slowly glanced upward, catching a glimpse at the skyline. The settling dusk caught him off guard. The sun was slowly setting down, creating an awe-inspiring twilight. The boy looked out and saw the town of North Coral. Then, suddenly, in the distance, the sky was suddenly filled with an explosion of light and sound. Loud crashes and booms hit the air as fireworks danced in the sky. All the rides were now lit up like Christmas trees. The screams of happy thrill-riders filled the air.

The boy looked at the sky in awe. His eyes reflected the brilliance of the dance in the air. He let out a sigh as he began to walk down the path, his eyes fixed on the sky.


The clouds shifted in the air, moving against the blackness of space. The clouds covered up the moon, dimming the little light the moon gave off anyways. The rain may be gone, but the dark clouds had remained. An occasional boom of thunder was heard in the air, but nothing else was happening in the sky. The darkness was almost suffocating.

Cloud looked up at the sky from the Highwind. He was leaning against the railing as he stared at the sky. The wind rushed into him, causing him to shake a little bit.

"It's such a dreary evening" Red said from behind him. Cloud craned his neck around and smiled at him.

"It sure is..." he said as he looked back out onto the sky. Red slowly walked over and sat back on his hind legs, looking up at the sky as well. Red's tail calmly settled on the ground. Cloud looked down at him.

"Thanks for coming Red. Really; you and Cid are going to a be a huge help" Cloud said as he turned and looked back at the sky. Red chuckled softly.

"It's not an inconvenience Cloud. It's my honor to help you out" Red said softly. Cloud chuckled a bit as well.

"I know, but it's still nice to get some help.." Cloud trailed off, looking up at the darkened sky. Red looked up at him and sighed.

"Cloud, what happened between that boy and you? I mean, what really happened" Red said sharply. Cloud just stared forward while Red looked up. Cloud just clenched his fist a bit more.

"He was just...Red, he could have beaten me..." Cloud said, staring off into the darkness. Red silently went back to looking outward at the sky.

"Cloud, no single one of us defeated Sephiroth. Or, for that matter, any major challenge. We did it as a team. Why would this be any different?" Red asked finally, breaking the silence. Cloud took a deep breathe as he looked outward.

"He is a boy...a mere boy...and I could not defeat him..." Cloud muttered slowly, his eyes looking into nothingness. Red took a deep breath.

"Cloud, Tifa is not the only one who is having flashbacks about Sephiroth..." Red said softly. Cloud quickly turned to him, his eyes narrowing.

"I...I..I am not!...I am...I am having flashbacks...I thought I was rid of Sephiroth forever. That he couldn't hurt me, or my friends, every again. And here comes this fucking boy, with silver hair and those same damn eerie eyes...a boy who burns down a town for no real apparent reason...a boy who shot this energy off his hands and damn near killed Barret...it's like the nightmare never went away...like it only took a few weeks off!" Cloud said, quickly turning away from Red and walking the opposite way. Red quickly ran after him, cutting in front of him.

"Now knock that off Cloud! If I did not know better, I'd say you were pouting! Pouting! So some kid is walking around, causing trouble. No matter what he is, it's not Sephiroth. He is not going to try to kill the planet. He is not going haunt your dreams! He is not going to..." Red said, but quickly cut himself off. Cloud's eyes meet Red's.

"He is not going to what?" Cloud spat at Red, his body trembling. Red looked down, breaking eye contract. He took a deep breath, then looked back up.

"He is not going to take Aeris away..." Red said slowly, his words hanging in the air. Cloud looked down at Red, his eyes trying to meet Red's. But Red would not make contact.

"No, Sephiroth already took Aeris!" Cloud screamed as he clenched his fists. Suddenly, Red's eyes looked back up at him.

"He took her from all of us, not just you!" Red responded, his teeth clenching. Cloud took a step back suddenly. He blinked a few times, then held his eyes closed.

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry Red. I know you're just trying to help" Cloud muttered, his head falling downward, facing the ground. Red took a deep breathe and sat back on his hind legs.

"Cloud, this whole situation is troubling. We are facing the unknown. But we know we can handle it if we stick together. No more fighting alone" Red said, his eyes reflecting the sudden moonlight which burst from the sky. Cloud slowly tilted his head upward a bit and looked down at Red.

"I thought I could handle it...I thought I could win Red. I really did...but I was wrong" Cloud said, slowly shaking his head. Red sighed softly.

"Well, you were wrong to think you could do it alone. But you can do it with help. Cloud, you do not need to do things alone. No one will think less of you for asking for help" Red said, his eyes glancing up at Cloud. Cloud's head stopped shaking as he eyes meet Red's. Cloud nodded once, then blinked a bit. He turned and walked back to the railing.

"The moonlight is finally getting through" Cloud stated, looking up at the moon. Red trotted over, looking up at the moon. The moonlight quickly reflected off his eyes for the first time that night.

"Indeed it is Cloud. Indeed it is" he stated, looking up as well as the moonlight reflected brightly off both their eyes.


"No loathing" the guard spat. Drips of saliva smashed into his folder as Phoenix looked up at him.

"It is no loathing if one pays for a ticket" the boy snapped back, holding up his ticket stub. The guard rubbed his chin as his face set in a scour.

"Almost closing time" the guard spat once more, then began to walk around the area. The boy's eyes narrowed on the guard, but he slowly turned his attention to the arcade exit, which was now filling up with people.

"I wanna play some more games" a young child said to his father as they walked out of the arcade. The father chuckled a bit as he looked over his shoulder, spying what appeared to be a giant floating bear.

"We've played a lot tonight Will...Will, can you help Skyler with her big bear?" the father asked. The young Will turned around and gently took the giant bear from the little girl who smiled brightly when she came into view.

"Thank you Willy!" she said, smiling brightly. Will carried the giant bear out the entrance as the father glanced over at Phoenix, whose own eyes were fixed on them.

"It's great when brothers and sisters like each other" he said as they walked out of Phoenix's view. The boy turned forward as he placed the folder on his lap and stared at the arcade. Flashing lights filled his view while the sounds of games filled his ears. He took a deep breathe as he leaned back on the bench he was sitting on. The security guard walked down from the arcade. Phoenix squinted a bit.

"What time is it?" Phoenix asked bluntly, not even turning to face the guard. He picked up his folder and slipped it into the back-pack. The guard looked down at his watch as he grumbled.

"It's 11:34" the guard stated, then walked away. Phoenix nodded a few times as he stood, slinging his back-pack on. He pushed to his feet as the breeze picked up, swirling his hair around and smacking his jacket against himself. He turned around and headed for the exits, but stopped and looked back at the arcade. There were less lights now; less sounds in the air. He looked over at the guard, who was eyeing up some older kids.

"Almost closing time" Phoenix called out. The guard slowly turned to him and nodded.

"Yeah; few more minutes" the guard called back, then returned to his watching. Phoenix nodded a few times, then headed for the exit to the arcade area.


"Well, it's better than I expected" Reeve said slowly, looking at where the entrance gate to Midgar once was. Red slowly walked forward ahead of him and looked around a bit.

"I agree. Of course, this may be one of the better areas" Red pointed out. Reeve looked over at Cloud, then bent forward a bit and looked at Tifa.

"Lucky you Tifa. You get to avoid this mess" Reeve stated. Tifa smiled a bit as she leaned forward to look at Reeve.

"I'd rather be here than flying to Wutai. It's going to be boring there unless Yuffie acts up" Tifa said, then looked up at Cloud. Cloud blinked a few times.

"What? What I do now?" Cloud asked, blinking his eyes. Tifa put her hands on her hips as she turned to him. Reeve tapped Cloud on the shoulder. Cloud slowly craned his neck around to look at Reeve.

"She wants to know why she is not going into Midgar and why she is going to Wutai" Reeve helpfully pointed out. Cloud's eyes widened as he nodded a few times and looked back at Tifa.

"Well, Tifa, Reeve gotta go. He knows a lot about computers and Shinra's systems. Red needs to go because...he's smart! He knows a lot about this stuff. And I gotta go in case we run into some monsters or trouble" Cloud stated. Tifa nodded a bit as she looked down, tapping her foot. Then she looked back up.

"And I need to go to Wutai because...?" Tifa asked, her brown eyes narrow. Cloud blinked once.

"Cid can't go alone; plus you get along with Yuffie...well, better than us. We need that materia and you have the best chance to get it out of her" Cloud said. Tifa rolled her eyes a bit at first, then nodded a few more times.

"Well...alright, ok. But you guys aren't allowed to get hurt, ok? You gotta take care of yourselves" Tifa said as she slowly took a step back. Cloud shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, we weren't planning on it" Cloud stated. Tifa looked over at Red.

"Take care of him Red" Tifa said, causing Red and Reeve to chuckle lightly. She turned around on her feet and started to walk away. Cloud suddenly got real serious.

"Hey...Tifa, that's not funny!" he screamed at her. Tifa stopped and looked back at him. Her eyes sparkled at him.

"It's not funny Cloud...it's the truth" she said. Cloud's eyes went wide as Reeve and Red went into full laughter. Tifa blew a kiss out of her hand at Cloud, then slowly trotted back towards the Highwind. Cloud turned around and faced the others. Red and Reeve slowly gathered themselves. Cloud looked at them with wide eyes.

"What's so funny?" Cloud asked a loud, looking at them. Red held back laughter as he looked at Cloud. He just shook his head as he walked towards the city. Reeve slowly followed, gently holding his stomach as he laughed. Cloud threw his arms up into the air.

"What's so funny" Cloud repeated as he followed Red and Reeve into the city formerly known as Midgar.