Chapter 2: Resurrection
Cloud awoke to the sun shining on him, and with Tifa's arms still around him. He dressed, while looking at the still sleeping Tifa with her long, straight, dark brown hair covering her pillow. He had noticed the sunlight bursting through the open window, and was at awe in the midst of the new morning's beauty. Even though he now had a greater attraction to Tifa more than ever, he had something to do so it wouldn't feel in his heart that he did not betray Aeris' love. As he put on his shirt and equipped his sword, Tifa awoke.
"Mmmm.hi Cloud.", she said kind of groggily. "Where are you leaving to? We're not leaving for Mideel until tomorrow. Wait, was it the-"
"No." Cloud interrupts. "THAT was great. I just realized I had something to do." She smiled and fell back asleep. Cloud left for the stables and found that Choco was doing just fine.
"Hmmm, it seems like it's not just me doing well this morning." He jumped onto Knight, and left for the sector 5 slums of Midgar into the church where he met Aeris and the patch of flowers he landed in. A little boy and girl were sitting there, taking care of the flowers as he entered.
"Hey there, I'm Cloud. What are you doing?"
"We're taking care of the flowers until Aeris comes back.", said the little boy.
"Yeah, they're so pretty we don't mind.", adds the little girl.
"Hey mister, do ya' know where Aeris is?", asks the little boy. Cloud didn't have the heart to tell them what happened so he lied.
"Yes I know where she is. In fact, I'm taking one of these flowers to her."
"Well when you see her, tell her Mike and Jenna said hi, okay?", said the little boy.
"Sure I will.", says Cloud. He then picks up a flower and then leaves the church. He hurries Knight to the City of the Ancients to where Aeris' resting place lay. He strode over to a place where he could see Aeris, still lying there unchanged as if she were only asleep. Through the clear water, Aeris' whole body was visible, with the wound still a horrible memory slicing through his mind. His heart ached to see her like this.
"Aeris.", he began, "I'm sorry if you think I'm responsible for your death. I'm here trying to seek your forgiveness. I'm also here because.because I realize I can't be happy if I'm always dwelling on the dead. I can't keep dwelling on you if nothing can change so.I'm here to say goodbye. I just want you to know I will always love you and I will never forget you. Goodbye Aeris." He dropped the flower in the water and watched the ripple fade. With the weight of sadness on his shoulders and tears welling in his eye, he had left the City of the Ancients.
As Cloud left the City, the pool Aeris' body lay in was emitting a strange glow.
The next day Cloud woke up to a loud humming sound. He looked out his window and saw the Highwind landing just outside of Nibelheim. He quickly got dressed and saw the hull of the massive ship as he left the house, as well as the entire group waiting for him.
"Ha ha!" laughed Barret. "Can't wait for those hot springs!"
"Barret, you're the one who scheduled this trip. It's about the strange tremors, remember?", said Tifa.
"Aww.spoil my fun."
"So Cid, how ya' been doin' lately?", asked Cloud. "I hear you don't use this airship as much as you used to."
"Yeah well, Shera didn't exactly like the condition of the engine so she makes me use this a lot less. Until of course, I get it fixed.."
"Hey, she's just lookin' out for you.", commented Cloud.
"Yeah well it's gettin' on my nerves! It's annoying how she'll always be double checkin' on everything."
"Well me thinks you just like her.", said Cloud, grinning widely.
"Knock it off or you're gonna make an emergency landing on the ground!"
While Cid and Cloud talked, Tifa assisted Yuffie to her normal spot on the ship, because of Yuffie's airsickness.
"Unk.", moaned the great ninja, "How're you and, ugh.Cloud getting along?"
"I finally told him how I felt. I guess I feel better now but he was out most of the day taking care of something"
"Hurp!.well it was probably something important. He seems rude sometimes, hold on.BLECH!.but he's not one to ditch somebody."
"Yeah if you can just mull over a dead person for months like he did, you just might get that impression."
Cid piloted the ship to the hot springs town of Mideel where a large green pool of water, the Lifestream, sat in the center of the town. They landed close by and entered the village, asking the inhabitants about the recent quakes. The team was scattered about doing their job when a large group of birds flew out of the forest in the horizon.
"Everybody! Brace yourselves!" yelled Cid. A sudden earthquake began shaking everything around, and the wooden huts and houses around them were wobbling everywhere. One began to collapse with a person, trapped and screaming, still in it on the top floor. Yuffie jumped into a tree, and then into the window of the building and saved them, but another was still trapped.
"I'll get them!", yelled Cloud as he ran into the collapsing structure. He heard the cries coming from a room with debris blocking the door. He threw it out of the way, then ran into the room where a young girl sat shivering in the corner. Cloud grabbed her hand then they both jumped out of the building as it fell. The tree Yuffie jumped in was then about to crush them as it came crashing down, when he barely jumped away.
"Cloud!" screamed Tifa. When he had jumped out of the way, the young girl was safe but he himself landed in the Lifestream.
Inside the Lifestream, everything was pitch black, yet he could see himself, as if it were just a black room.
"Cloud." said a soft voice.
"Huh?" Cloud had no idea what was going on.
"Cloud! Remember me!?" said a familiar voice that came from right behind him.
"It's Aeris! Get it now?!" she said with a distinct smile.
"A-Aeris? Where am I?" he asked, clueless.
"The Lifestream of course.", she replied.
"Then." Cloud realized something. "I'm dead?"
"No." she said. "It's the LIFEstream. You're still alive.kind of."
"What do you mean, 'kind of'?" asked Cloud a little worried.
"Well, it's kinda like you're in a deep subconscious state. But not a coma because you'll definitely have a better chance of waking up."
"Wait! Does that mean you're.alive?"
"Close enough to it."
"How?"
"You see, I was partially revived after you visited me." She began to walk around a little. "There was some force that brought me back."
"So.it was my.love that brought you back?"
"Not even close." she said with a tiny smile. "It was the flower."
"The flower?" he said with disbelief.
"Yes. It was from the church. It had a holy power to it. I guess it combined with the restorative power of the water and my wish to come back and see you, I guess maybe that revived me. That and maybe the Planet."
"What do you mean by being close enough to being alive?"
" I heard the Planet.", she said gently. "To bring me back completely, whomever I wished to see must mutually want to see me also. Note that nobody unwanted returns anyway. So Cloud.what do you think?"
"Consider it done." He replied as he put his hand on her shoulder.
"What about Tifa? Does she want to see me?"
"Sure. She said you were always like sisters."
"I'm glad she thinks that. Did she ever tell you she loved you.?"
"Yeah."
"Good. I didn't want her life to come off as a sad soap opera. It wasn't healthy to keep holding it in. She should be happy. Especially with you."
"Ummm.actually for most of the time I've been in the mansion trying to find a way to bring you back.", he says a bit hesitantly. Aeris spun around looking slightly angry with him.
"Cloud! Had you no idea she was trying to get it out then? I swear, when you focus you don't look at anything else!"
"Sorry. I guess I missed you too much. Have I ever told you I love you?"
"Not directly. I wasn't even sure you liked me back." She walks within two feet of him. "I still mean what I said.back on our date.", she trails off. She looks back at him intently. "I still want to meet the real Cloud. Something like 'Cloud the Romantic' not 'Cloud the Fighter'."
"Well in case you're wondering, I'm not a romantic," He drew nearer. "What you see is what you get."
"Hmm...", she grins. "I'll take it." They look at each other and slowly grow closer. Slowly they kissed each other, taking in all time, all feelings that they had missed together.
"Cloud?! Wake up!"
"What?", he muttered. "Who's there?"
"It's Yuffie! You've been asleep for seven days!"
"Well, I feel better." He looks around and realizes he's on the Highwind. In the bed next to him was Tifa, who also seemed unconscious. "What happened to Tifa?" asked Cloud.
"She dove in after you. We thought the same thing had happened to her because a few moments passed, but she managed to save you before she blacked out like you. Of course, that's the second time she saved your butt in there."
"Yeah, I guess I owe her."
"Well I gotta go back to my 'reserved seat'. They're starting the Highwind back up again. Urp!" Yuffie runs out of the room.
Cloud moves over to Tifa's bed and sits down next to her. He brushes back her hair and begins stroking the smooth skin on her cheek.
"Hi Cloud.", she mumbles, with her eyes barely open. "You okay?"
"I'm good.", he says a little soothingly. Tifa moves a little closer and manages to sit up.
"They ought to put up barriers around the Lifestream. I keep falling in." Tifa laughs at this a little.
"Come on," she urges, "we should move to the front of the ship."
"Okay, but first, I owe you." He kisses her out of both spontaneity and love.
"Uh, guys?" They look back and see Yuffie standing in the doorway. "If, ulp.ya' don't mind."
"Ahem! Right! The front of the ship!" they both say while pulling away from the embarrassing moment. They headed towards the front where the rest of the crew was, as they hoped Yuffie wouldn't say anything.
Cloud awoke to the sun shining on him, and with Tifa's arms still around him. He dressed, while looking at the still sleeping Tifa with her long, straight, dark brown hair covering her pillow. He had noticed the sunlight bursting through the open window, and was at awe in the midst of the new morning's beauty. Even though he now had a greater attraction to Tifa more than ever, he had something to do so it wouldn't feel in his heart that he did not betray Aeris' love. As he put on his shirt and equipped his sword, Tifa awoke.
"Mmmm.hi Cloud.", she said kind of groggily. "Where are you leaving to? We're not leaving for Mideel until tomorrow. Wait, was it the-"
"No." Cloud interrupts. "THAT was great. I just realized I had something to do." She smiled and fell back asleep. Cloud left for the stables and found that Choco was doing just fine.
"Hmmm, it seems like it's not just me doing well this morning." He jumped onto Knight, and left for the sector 5 slums of Midgar into the church where he met Aeris and the patch of flowers he landed in. A little boy and girl were sitting there, taking care of the flowers as he entered.
"Hey there, I'm Cloud. What are you doing?"
"We're taking care of the flowers until Aeris comes back.", said the little boy.
"Yeah, they're so pretty we don't mind.", adds the little girl.
"Hey mister, do ya' know where Aeris is?", asks the little boy. Cloud didn't have the heart to tell them what happened so he lied.
"Yes I know where she is. In fact, I'm taking one of these flowers to her."
"Well when you see her, tell her Mike and Jenna said hi, okay?", said the little boy.
"Sure I will.", says Cloud. He then picks up a flower and then leaves the church. He hurries Knight to the City of the Ancients to where Aeris' resting place lay. He strode over to a place where he could see Aeris, still lying there unchanged as if she were only asleep. Through the clear water, Aeris' whole body was visible, with the wound still a horrible memory slicing through his mind. His heart ached to see her like this.
"Aeris.", he began, "I'm sorry if you think I'm responsible for your death. I'm here trying to seek your forgiveness. I'm also here because.because I realize I can't be happy if I'm always dwelling on the dead. I can't keep dwelling on you if nothing can change so.I'm here to say goodbye. I just want you to know I will always love you and I will never forget you. Goodbye Aeris." He dropped the flower in the water and watched the ripple fade. With the weight of sadness on his shoulders and tears welling in his eye, he had left the City of the Ancients.
As Cloud left the City, the pool Aeris' body lay in was emitting a strange glow.
The next day Cloud woke up to a loud humming sound. He looked out his window and saw the Highwind landing just outside of Nibelheim. He quickly got dressed and saw the hull of the massive ship as he left the house, as well as the entire group waiting for him.
"Ha ha!" laughed Barret. "Can't wait for those hot springs!"
"Barret, you're the one who scheduled this trip. It's about the strange tremors, remember?", said Tifa.
"Aww.spoil my fun."
"So Cid, how ya' been doin' lately?", asked Cloud. "I hear you don't use this airship as much as you used to."
"Yeah well, Shera didn't exactly like the condition of the engine so she makes me use this a lot less. Until of course, I get it fixed.."
"Hey, she's just lookin' out for you.", commented Cloud.
"Yeah well it's gettin' on my nerves! It's annoying how she'll always be double checkin' on everything."
"Well me thinks you just like her.", said Cloud, grinning widely.
"Knock it off or you're gonna make an emergency landing on the ground!"
While Cid and Cloud talked, Tifa assisted Yuffie to her normal spot on the ship, because of Yuffie's airsickness.
"Unk.", moaned the great ninja, "How're you and, ugh.Cloud getting along?"
"I finally told him how I felt. I guess I feel better now but he was out most of the day taking care of something"
"Hurp!.well it was probably something important. He seems rude sometimes, hold on.BLECH!.but he's not one to ditch somebody."
"Yeah if you can just mull over a dead person for months like he did, you just might get that impression."
Cid piloted the ship to the hot springs town of Mideel where a large green pool of water, the Lifestream, sat in the center of the town. They landed close by and entered the village, asking the inhabitants about the recent quakes. The team was scattered about doing their job when a large group of birds flew out of the forest in the horizon.
"Everybody! Brace yourselves!" yelled Cid. A sudden earthquake began shaking everything around, and the wooden huts and houses around them were wobbling everywhere. One began to collapse with a person, trapped and screaming, still in it on the top floor. Yuffie jumped into a tree, and then into the window of the building and saved them, but another was still trapped.
"I'll get them!", yelled Cloud as he ran into the collapsing structure. He heard the cries coming from a room with debris blocking the door. He threw it out of the way, then ran into the room where a young girl sat shivering in the corner. Cloud grabbed her hand then they both jumped out of the building as it fell. The tree Yuffie jumped in was then about to crush them as it came crashing down, when he barely jumped away.
"Cloud!" screamed Tifa. When he had jumped out of the way, the young girl was safe but he himself landed in the Lifestream.
Inside the Lifestream, everything was pitch black, yet he could see himself, as if it were just a black room.
"Cloud." said a soft voice.
"Huh?" Cloud had no idea what was going on.
"Cloud! Remember me!?" said a familiar voice that came from right behind him.
"It's Aeris! Get it now?!" she said with a distinct smile.
"A-Aeris? Where am I?" he asked, clueless.
"The Lifestream of course.", she replied.
"Then." Cloud realized something. "I'm dead?"
"No." she said. "It's the LIFEstream. You're still alive.kind of."
"What do you mean, 'kind of'?" asked Cloud a little worried.
"Well, it's kinda like you're in a deep subconscious state. But not a coma because you'll definitely have a better chance of waking up."
"Wait! Does that mean you're.alive?"
"Close enough to it."
"How?"
"You see, I was partially revived after you visited me." She began to walk around a little. "There was some force that brought me back."
"So.it was my.love that brought you back?"
"Not even close." she said with a tiny smile. "It was the flower."
"The flower?" he said with disbelief.
"Yes. It was from the church. It had a holy power to it. I guess it combined with the restorative power of the water and my wish to come back and see you, I guess maybe that revived me. That and maybe the Planet."
"What do you mean by being close enough to being alive?"
" I heard the Planet.", she said gently. "To bring me back completely, whomever I wished to see must mutually want to see me also. Note that nobody unwanted returns anyway. So Cloud.what do you think?"
"Consider it done." He replied as he put his hand on her shoulder.
"What about Tifa? Does she want to see me?"
"Sure. She said you were always like sisters."
"I'm glad she thinks that. Did she ever tell you she loved you.?"
"Yeah."
"Good. I didn't want her life to come off as a sad soap opera. It wasn't healthy to keep holding it in. She should be happy. Especially with you."
"Ummm.actually for most of the time I've been in the mansion trying to find a way to bring you back.", he says a bit hesitantly. Aeris spun around looking slightly angry with him.
"Cloud! Had you no idea she was trying to get it out then? I swear, when you focus you don't look at anything else!"
"Sorry. I guess I missed you too much. Have I ever told you I love you?"
"Not directly. I wasn't even sure you liked me back." She walks within two feet of him. "I still mean what I said.back on our date.", she trails off. She looks back at him intently. "I still want to meet the real Cloud. Something like 'Cloud the Romantic' not 'Cloud the Fighter'."
"Well in case you're wondering, I'm not a romantic," He drew nearer. "What you see is what you get."
"Hmm...", she grins. "I'll take it." They look at each other and slowly grow closer. Slowly they kissed each other, taking in all time, all feelings that they had missed together.
"Cloud?! Wake up!"
"What?", he muttered. "Who's there?"
"It's Yuffie! You've been asleep for seven days!"
"Well, I feel better." He looks around and realizes he's on the Highwind. In the bed next to him was Tifa, who also seemed unconscious. "What happened to Tifa?" asked Cloud.
"She dove in after you. We thought the same thing had happened to her because a few moments passed, but she managed to save you before she blacked out like you. Of course, that's the second time she saved your butt in there."
"Yeah, I guess I owe her."
"Well I gotta go back to my 'reserved seat'. They're starting the Highwind back up again. Urp!" Yuffie runs out of the room.
Cloud moves over to Tifa's bed and sits down next to her. He brushes back her hair and begins stroking the smooth skin on her cheek.
"Hi Cloud.", she mumbles, with her eyes barely open. "You okay?"
"I'm good.", he says a little soothingly. Tifa moves a little closer and manages to sit up.
"They ought to put up barriers around the Lifestream. I keep falling in." Tifa laughs at this a little.
"Come on," she urges, "we should move to the front of the ship."
"Okay, but first, I owe you." He kisses her out of both spontaneity and love.
"Uh, guys?" They look back and see Yuffie standing in the doorway. "If, ulp.ya' don't mind."
"Ahem! Right! The front of the ship!" they both say while pulling away from the embarrassing moment. They headed towards the front where the rest of the crew was, as they hoped Yuffie wouldn't say anything.
