Tifa woke seconds after she hit the ground. Yuffie was hovering anxiously
over her, and when Tifa's eyes opened again, the younger girl let out a
sigh of relief, followed by a long stream of babbling.
Tifa tuned the ninja out and flipped herself onto her feet--though she still felt dizzy and shaky. Her hands were still dark with blood, but when she wiped them off, nothing happened. She would have been puzzled (or panicky) if there wasn't a more pressing situation on the platform ahead of her.
Jenova was attacking Cloud, who was stumbling back from Aeris's body. Tifa grabbed Yuffie's arm, propelling her forward to his aid. The fight was not as difficult as it should have been, which unnerved Tifa as she struck Jenova-LIFE's fatal blow. The creature seemed to be merely a distraction, rather than a real threat, but why would Sephiroth bother keeping them alive? She shook her head. She didn't understand.
But this didn't seem to worry Cloud, or even occur to him, as he bent over the still body of Aeris. For just a wild and fleeting moment, Tifa was sure he would cry, but instead he simply stared into Aeris's empty eyes. Gently, he closed the dead lids with two fingers. Gently, he cradled her head in his arms.
Tifa moved past a red-eyed Yuffie to comfort Cloud. She touched his shoulder, and as she did so her other hand brushed against Aeris's lifeless form. She gasped and withdrew her hand--the blood which wasn't blood was slowly seeping up her hand to her wrist. It stopped when she pulled her hand away, but she felt a shiver of intense fear and something else--pain? grief?...guilt?--ran through her. She backed away, slowly at first, then faster. Cloud seemed not to notice in the least as she broke into a run up the crystal stairs.
Tifa sat huddled up against the twisted tree. She had difficulty grasping the movement of time as she sat there, alone with her thoughts. She wasn't responsible for Aeris's death, but she had wished it and it happened. A sharp stab of guilt hit her every time she thought of the young girl with the hole through her back and stomach...Tifa shuddered.
Awhile later--was it hours, or merely a few minutes later?--Cloud came up the staircase, holding Aeris in his arms and not saying a word. Yuffie was following him, looking like a lost and frightened child. Cloud moved towards the lake, but Tifa, sensing that this was somehow very important to him, stopped Yuffie.
Cloud stood alone for a few moments in the shallows of the lake, gently suspending Aeris on the sapphire surface. With a look of despair and pain contorting his cold, sculpted features, he bent over and kissed Aeris's forehead. Then he stepped back, and dropped the body into the shadowy depths of the lake.
Tifa longed to go to him, to hold him and tell him it would be all right. But she couldn't. She bore guilt for Aeris's death--didn't her hands show that? Wasn't wishing for her to die the same as taking that sword and running it through her? Also, she knew somewhere inside her that it wouldn't be all right, that this death had affected him somewhere too deep to be healed by time. She turned away, helpless and overcome with sadness for Cloud.
The team returned to the house, each of them pretending to sleep and not managing to close their eyes without replaying the night's fatal events. Early the next morning, Cloud kicked off the sheets and got the other two out of bed.
"We may never know what Aeris was trying to accomplish," he said. "But we have to continue her quest." Tifa and Yuffie nodded silently and followed him out of the snail-shell house.
Tifa sat shivering in the inn that gave Icicle Inn its name, only partly from the intense cold. She had no idea where Cloud was right now, or any of the others, for that matter. The remaining eight members of AVALANCHE had met up at Icicle Inn the evening before, and Yuffie had regaled them with a recount of the train of events that had led them there. Tifa and Cloud hadn't stayed to listen; after all, they had been there and hearing the story of Aeris's death would cause pain on Cloud's part, and guilt and boredom (though she hated to admit it) on Tifa's part. In the morning, when Cloud had left to explore the small town, Tifa hadn't even bothered to offer to go with him. She had to think things over today, by herself. Consequently, she had no idea what was going on outside her hotel room. She was getting up to brush out her hair when a soft knock sounded on her door. She opened the door, and to her surprise Vincent was standing there, framed in the doorway. She mumbled a "Come in," trying to get over her shock at Vincent's appearance there. When was the last time she had spoken to him alone? When was the last time anyone had spoken to him alone? Vincent walked into the room Tifa was sharing with Yuffie. "I noticed you didn't go with Cloud this morning," he said, sitting in the stiff chair shoved in a corner by the window. Tifa nodded. "Is there a reason for that?" he asked, looking searchingly at her. Tifa almost replied "No," but it would be such a glaring lie that she felt there was no point in saying it. Instead, she held out her hands silently. They were still stained with dark red blood. Vincent looked at them, puzzled, and shook his head. "I don't understand." Tifa laughed mirthlessly-or was it a sob? "Don't you? I do. It's guilt. It's dripping, staining, ugly guilt, because I loved her too and still I wanted her dead. I wanted her gone. But she was a friend, a companion, and so good, so good.This is her blood." She stuck her hands out again. Vincent glanced at them. Tifa heard a quick intake of breath. "I see nothing, Tifa. I'm sorry. There's nothing there."
Tifa tuned the ninja out and flipped herself onto her feet--though she still felt dizzy and shaky. Her hands were still dark with blood, but when she wiped them off, nothing happened. She would have been puzzled (or panicky) if there wasn't a more pressing situation on the platform ahead of her.
Jenova was attacking Cloud, who was stumbling back from Aeris's body. Tifa grabbed Yuffie's arm, propelling her forward to his aid. The fight was not as difficult as it should have been, which unnerved Tifa as she struck Jenova-LIFE's fatal blow. The creature seemed to be merely a distraction, rather than a real threat, but why would Sephiroth bother keeping them alive? She shook her head. She didn't understand.
But this didn't seem to worry Cloud, or even occur to him, as he bent over the still body of Aeris. For just a wild and fleeting moment, Tifa was sure he would cry, but instead he simply stared into Aeris's empty eyes. Gently, he closed the dead lids with two fingers. Gently, he cradled her head in his arms.
Tifa moved past a red-eyed Yuffie to comfort Cloud. She touched his shoulder, and as she did so her other hand brushed against Aeris's lifeless form. She gasped and withdrew her hand--the blood which wasn't blood was slowly seeping up her hand to her wrist. It stopped when she pulled her hand away, but she felt a shiver of intense fear and something else--pain? grief?...guilt?--ran through her. She backed away, slowly at first, then faster. Cloud seemed not to notice in the least as she broke into a run up the crystal stairs.
Tifa sat huddled up against the twisted tree. She had difficulty grasping the movement of time as she sat there, alone with her thoughts. She wasn't responsible for Aeris's death, but she had wished it and it happened. A sharp stab of guilt hit her every time she thought of the young girl with the hole through her back and stomach...Tifa shuddered.
Awhile later--was it hours, or merely a few minutes later?--Cloud came up the staircase, holding Aeris in his arms and not saying a word. Yuffie was following him, looking like a lost and frightened child. Cloud moved towards the lake, but Tifa, sensing that this was somehow very important to him, stopped Yuffie.
Cloud stood alone for a few moments in the shallows of the lake, gently suspending Aeris on the sapphire surface. With a look of despair and pain contorting his cold, sculpted features, he bent over and kissed Aeris's forehead. Then he stepped back, and dropped the body into the shadowy depths of the lake.
Tifa longed to go to him, to hold him and tell him it would be all right. But she couldn't. She bore guilt for Aeris's death--didn't her hands show that? Wasn't wishing for her to die the same as taking that sword and running it through her? Also, she knew somewhere inside her that it wouldn't be all right, that this death had affected him somewhere too deep to be healed by time. She turned away, helpless and overcome with sadness for Cloud.
The team returned to the house, each of them pretending to sleep and not managing to close their eyes without replaying the night's fatal events. Early the next morning, Cloud kicked off the sheets and got the other two out of bed.
"We may never know what Aeris was trying to accomplish," he said. "But we have to continue her quest." Tifa and Yuffie nodded silently and followed him out of the snail-shell house.
Tifa sat shivering in the inn that gave Icicle Inn its name, only partly from the intense cold. She had no idea where Cloud was right now, or any of the others, for that matter. The remaining eight members of AVALANCHE had met up at Icicle Inn the evening before, and Yuffie had regaled them with a recount of the train of events that had led them there. Tifa and Cloud hadn't stayed to listen; after all, they had been there and hearing the story of Aeris's death would cause pain on Cloud's part, and guilt and boredom (though she hated to admit it) on Tifa's part. In the morning, when Cloud had left to explore the small town, Tifa hadn't even bothered to offer to go with him. She had to think things over today, by herself. Consequently, she had no idea what was going on outside her hotel room. She was getting up to brush out her hair when a soft knock sounded on her door. She opened the door, and to her surprise Vincent was standing there, framed in the doorway. She mumbled a "Come in," trying to get over her shock at Vincent's appearance there. When was the last time she had spoken to him alone? When was the last time anyone had spoken to him alone? Vincent walked into the room Tifa was sharing with Yuffie. "I noticed you didn't go with Cloud this morning," he said, sitting in the stiff chair shoved in a corner by the window. Tifa nodded. "Is there a reason for that?" he asked, looking searchingly at her. Tifa almost replied "No," but it would be such a glaring lie that she felt there was no point in saying it. Instead, she held out her hands silently. They were still stained with dark red blood. Vincent looked at them, puzzled, and shook his head. "I don't understand." Tifa laughed mirthlessly-or was it a sob? "Don't you? I do. It's guilt. It's dripping, staining, ugly guilt, because I loved her too and still I wanted her dead. I wanted her gone. But she was a friend, a companion, and so good, so good.This is her blood." She stuck her hands out again. Vincent glanced at them. Tifa heard a quick intake of breath. "I see nothing, Tifa. I'm sorry. There's nothing there."
