Chapter 19-

Beyond the Mountain

"In your dearest memories

Do you remember loving me?

Was it fate that brought us close

And now leave me behind?"

~Melodies of Life, Final Fantasy 9

The morning sunlight sparkled on the dewsprinkled grass, making it seem as though diamonds were embedded in the ground. It was a beautiful sight, but Reno wasn't seeing it. He kept his eyes straight ahead while he walked down the dirt path that led to the entrance of Nibelheim, concentrating on not falling over from exhaustion. He and the others had had a terrible past few days, trying to recuperate from the terrible blows Darryn's attack had inflicted. Without the airship or the plane, they had just lost access to supplies, materia and weapons. Now the only resource they had was the town itself, and stores there were dwindling fast.

Nibelheim was abandoned. All of Shinra's actors had packed up and left. There was no need for them to stay, they weren't getting paid. So, even though Cid's party had all been expecting it, it had been a little creepy to be trudging into a ghost town dripping with blood, sweat, and a good deal of tears. The good thing was that there were no town residents around to be horrified at the sight of them. On the flip side of that, there was no medical help for Adine.

The child was still alive, but in worse condition each day. Shera spent every spare moment at her side, but it was painfully clear that the Adine was dying. She shivered and moaned in her sleep, as though from bad dreams, and she asked for Tifa whenever she was conscious. Cid had decided they would stay in Tifa's house- or the replica of Tifa's house. Although the bartender wasn't there, the place really did seem to carry the cheerful, comforting air of Tifa. Reno had felt decidedly odd staying in someone's house when she wasn't even there, but it seemed to help Adine, if only a little.

Reno shielded his eyes from the sun as he reached the edge of town. He had to use his left hand; his right hung on a makeshift sling at his side. It still pained him sometimes, and getting the bullet out had been torture. (Vincent had helped him with that. Not surprisingly, the ex-Turk had been fairly knowledgeable about bullets and the wounds they caused. He hadn't been gentle with his little knife, though. Oh, no. At least good ol' Elena had had a Restore materia handy.)

Lowering his arm, he reached inside his jacket pocket and retrieved a small flask of booze. He removed the cap and put the flash to his lips, enjoying the acrid taste of the liquid. The pub in Nibelheim had been working when they'd arrived. He and Rude spent much of their time there, more time than either of them was proud of. But, as Rude had pointed out, getting wasted felt a good deal better than just waiting around for something to happen. And reality was a lot more depressing than sitting at the bar in a drunken stupor. Sadly enough.

They were stuck in this empty town until Cloud and the others arrived. Cid had come up with the idea of taking shifts to watch for them- not because it really mattered. Reno privately though Cid had been simply trying to give them something to do. Maybe get him and Rude out of the bar.

But he'd volunteered to take the first shift this morning. Hell, he had nothing better to do anyway. It was better than watching Rude drink himself drunk. Or doing it himself.

With these thoughts running through his head, he put the cap back on the flask and returned it to his pocket. Drinking in the morning wasn't a good thing. It tended to mess you up for the rest of the day, slow you down, and cloud your thinking.

"Reno!"

He looked up to see Aeris running toward him. He was a little surprised at how glad he was to see her. His face broke into a grin. "Hey, Aeris!"

She flew into his arms, hugging him tightly. At first startled, then pleased (Typical female response, he thought), he put his arms around her slender waist, breathing in the scent of her hair. Why did Aeris' hair always smell so good? Like wildflowers.

She pulled away from him enough to smile happily. He noticed with some alarm that her green eyes were unusually bright. "I've missed you."

"Is it just me this time?" he couldn't help saying. "Or all of us?"

She laughed and hugged him again. He gave an involuntary gasp as she squeezed his bad arm, but didn't say anything, as he wasn't especially eager for her to let go.

Over the top of her head, he saw the others trudging over the rise. Cloud was in the lead, walking with his head down. Nanaki trotted at his side. Some distance behind were Zack and Tifa. Zack did not look at all happy when he saw Aeris embracing Reno and made a point to glare. Tifa squeezed his arm and whispered something in his ear. He didn't reply, but relaxed.

Feeling suddenly embarrassed, Reno stepped back from Aeris. She smiled and waved to the others as though nothing at all had happened.

Last of all was a man, a stranger. Even before he got close, Reno knew immediately it had to be Sufur. Aeris was right. Maybe it was the arrogant strut of his walk, the way he seemed to be looking down at you, even from a distance, but he just felt unpleasant.

The feeling increased when Sufur came to a stop a few feet in front of him. The others were gathered round, also, but he was the first to speak. "Reno," he said, sounding amused. "How ironic."

How the hell does he know my name? Reno wondered, but didn't say it out loud. He was too busy trying to make sense of the man's appearance. His features seemed to meld together, and any attempt to make sense of Sufur's face just made Reno's head hurt. He saw a red pendant at Sufur's throat, and somehow his mind kept coming back to it. At last he had to look away, feeling nauseated and perplexed. He caught sight of Aeris staring at him insistently.

See what I mean? She mouthed.

Shaking his head to clear it, he stepped back, looking at the others. Deciding to ignore the freak, he said, "Man, I'm glad you guys are here."

"Likewise," Cloud said, although he didn't sound like he meant it. Damn, the guy looked tired. You'd have thought he hadn't slept for a month.

"Adine," Tifa interrupted, looking uneasy. "How…is she?"

Reno sighed, wishing he didn't have to be the one to say this. He'd felt bad for Cid those few nights ago. "She's hanging in there, but…look, Teef. We don't know if she's going to make it. Last night she threw up blood…" He trailed off, cursing himself for that last sentence.

Tifa was dead white. "Can I see her?" she asked in a strangely calm voice.

The mood abruptly changed, everyone remembering the seriousness of the situation. Reno looked again at Sufur (he wanted to have a little "discussion" with the guy), but followed Tifa's request and led everyone through town. He watched as the crushing silence slowly got to everyone, a grim reminder of Nibelheim's history. Cloud, especially, seemed affected by it. Reno really couldn't blame him; this was, after all, his hometown. Tifa stared straight ahead, lips tightly pressed together. Her entire façade was too calm, yet too tense. Like a rubber band stretched too tight and ready to snap. Zack seemed to want to calm her, somehow; he kept opening his mouth, about to say something, then changed his mind and closed it. Finally, he patted her shoulder, and Tifa managed a weak, if not convincing smile. Reno inwardly groaned. Things were falling apart already; he could feel it. When Tifa's smiles weren't convincing…

He led them to her house. Cid was there, nervously smoking a cigarette at the kitchen table. He jumped up and greeted them. "Cloud! Oh, man! I never thought I'd see your spiky ass again!"

"Thanks, Cid," Cloud said, trying to smile. He sank down in a chair beside the pilot. "Tell me the situation here."

Cid took a long drag on his cigarette. "Okay, well, Vincent, Yuffie, Barret and the kid are at the supply store, trying to see what they can dredge up…"

Reno left them to their leadership duties and led the way upstairs. Shera was sitting by Adine's bed, mopping the child's sweating face with a wet cloth. Tifa's breath caught sharply at the sight, and flew to the bedside.

"She's been sinking in and out of consciousness," the mechanic said quietly. "I'm glad you're here."

Tifa met Shera's eyes, anguished but mutely grateful.

Reno backed away, looking longingly at the doorway. He hated being here, hated seeing an innocent child dying because of something they couldn't fight, something that couldn't be stopped. If Jenova was actually here, reaching for the girl to snatch her life away with terrible claws, then they could fight her, or at least try. This way, things were different. Jenova was here all right, but not in fighting form. More like a parasite, sucking the life from the innocent.

It scared him. He didn't want to sit and watch Adine die. If he couldn't find Jenova and kill her, he wanted to at least be away from there. Maybe get drunk to make himself forget.

He watched as Aeris stepped over to the bed and knelt beside Tifa. "Let me see," she said, gently reaching under the blankets to extract Adine's left hand. The Sresla was still there, still blood-red.

"She still has a chance," Aeris said, smiling reassuringly at Tifa. "It's not black yet."

Tifa took the child's hand from Aeris', rubbing the back of it with her thumb, as though to remove the evil stain. "I just wish I could've done something, so that... this wouldn't have happened," she whispered, her brown eyes heavy with guilt.

"Don't say that, Tifa," Aeris said softly. "Blaming yourself is the first step on the path to self-destruction."

Tifa looked haunted. Before she could say anything, though, Adine's eyes fluttered.

"Tifa?" the child whispered. "Are you here?"

"I'm here," Tifa said soothingly, stroking the side of the girl's face. "I'm right here."

Adine gripped Tifa's hand tightly. "I don't feel good," she complained quietly. "But I'm glad you're here, Tifa. It makes me feel better…"

"You'll get well soon," Tifa promised. "I'll make sure you do."

"Okay," Adine said, beginning to cough. "I believe you. It's just-" She broke off in a fit of coughing, bringing both hands up to cover her mouth.

At this, Tifa gasped and squeezed Aeris' arm. Aeris herself felt the blood drain from her face.

The Sresla had turned black. Adine would certainly die.

At this, it took every ounce of Tifa's self-will not to start sobbing right then. She refused to show her despair and frighten the girl. With an effort, she swallowed back her feelings and merely patted Adine on the back, trying to relieve her choking spasms.

Aeris couldn't keep it in. She couldn't take the sudden realization that they were about to lose someone dear to them because of an unseen enemy they couldn't fight, couldn't resist in any kind of way. It was too much. Hurriedly she got up, shoved past Rude and Elena with a muttered, "Excuse me," and fled the room.

Reno hesitated, then ran after her. "Hey, Aeris! Wait!"

He caught up to her some distance down the hall, before the entrance to the room where Tifa's father had once stepped. She'd stopped before the doorframe at the sound of his voice, facing the wall.

He came to a halt a few feet from her. "Aeris…"

She whirled around, tears running down her cheeks. "I can't take it, Reno!" she cried. "She's doing this to torment us! It isn't fair!"

Who said anything was fair? He suddenly thought. In any kind of war, there are always those who fight dirty. And there's nothing you can do. Aloud he said, "It isn't fair. But this is Jenova we're talking about. She isn't going to play by our rules."

She looked so fragile and crushed, in that moment, that he was sorely tempted to take her in his arms again. Just to comfort her, wipe away her tears- No! Don't start thinking like that! Bad idea!

Aeris sniffed and made an effort to regain her composure. "You're right," she whispered. "But it's so terrible, what she's doing. It's always the innocent who die first, isn't it?" She bit a trembling lip.

How true. Reno shoved back bitter memories of Sector 7, memories that refused to let him go. He looked at the floor. "It bothers me, too. Sometimes I get to thinking: Oh, shit. What are we going to do about this? We can't fight. We're going to lose. We're going to die." He looked hard into her eyes. "But then I realize that that's exactly what she wants me to think, and I'm letting her win when I think like that. No matter how much it hurts…" He trailed off. He hadn't meant to say that.

She looked at him with those green eyes of hers, those eyes that seemed to be looking into his soul. "Are you saying," she said slowly, "that you're hurting, Reno?" she leaned close. "Maybe…recognizing the value of human life?"

He looked away from her intense gaze. "Aeris…" It disturbed him when she did this, trying to make him see what she saw. It was pointless, and tiresome. There was simply no reason to dig around in the disgusting depravity of his soul, to search for some spark of goodness. But he knew that Aeris wouldn't listen to reason. She was convinced that there was something inside of him, something they both had yet to see. She just had to bring it out.

Lots of luck.

"Don't do this, Aeris," he said wearily. "Not now, okay?"

She looked at him earnestly, as though ready to disagree, and Reno was suddenly struck by how beautiful she was. Her soft brown hair was coming loose of its customary braid, letting caramel locks hang free around her heart-shaped face. Her lips were slightly parted, and possessed the same pink cast as her cheeks as she tried to think of a retort. Her emerald-green eyes brimmed with an emotion he couldn't identify.

He made himself stop gawking and turned away slightly. "Not now, Aeris?" he repeated, a little harsher this time. She gave a nod and looked down, the light in her eyes fading.

"Excuse me."

They both whirled around to face Sufur. Reno saw Aeris' jaw clench and her eyes narrow. The sight startled him a little. Aeris actively showing dislike for someone was like Elena putting on Tifa's mini-skirt and going para-sailing. It just wasn't supposed to happen. "Yes?" she said shortly.

Sufur made a little bow. "My apologies," he said graciously. "Am I interrupting?"

Reno suddenly realized that it wasn't really dislike Aeris felt for this man so much as fear. She was deathly afraid of him. Her fear seemed to spread over them both like a cloak, tangible enough to touch. Without thinking he Instinctively stepped in front of her.

"Yes, you are interrupting," he said coldly. "Now do us a favor and take your apologies elsewhere."

He expected Sufur to yell or get angry, which would have been nice, because then Reno would've had an excuse to beat the shit out of him- but the mysterious man only nodded and turned, preparing to walk away. Then he stopped and looked back.

"Reno…weren't you once a Turk of Shinra?"

"I might've been," Reno snapped, not liking this at all. "Not anymore. What's it to you?"

Sufur looked mildly surprised. "Well, it's just that you're wearing the uniform, that's all. Why wear it if you're not a Turk anymore?"

Reno scowled. "Don't you have somewhere to go?"

Sufur seemed to smile. "Till next time, then." Without another word, he strutted away.

Reno stared after him, glowering. It was only when Aeris put a gentle hand on his arm did he realize his left hand was clutching the hilt of his nightstick, ready to draw it.

"You were about to let him have it," she said quietly.

He shrugged, releasing the weapon. "I could tell you weren't too fond of him."

"You could?" Suddenly she laughed out loud. "Once a bodyguard, always a bodyguard."

Reno grinned, in spite of himself. "Hey, remember back while ago, when you first hired me?" That had been when they first "met", so to speak- if you didn't count the numerous times he'd been sent by Shinra to persecute her.

"How could I forget?"

"Y'know, you never paid me back for that favor. You still owe me a date."

She looked indignant. "What?!"

"Hey, a promise is a promise," he taunted her.

She glared, although he knew her well enough to know she was fighting back laughter. "Reno, I did not promise you a date. You tricked me into agreeing with you!"

He grinned. "Whatever. Call it what you will, but you owe me, sister."

She shrugged it off, looking disturbed, and he let it drop. Something was bothering her. "What is it?"

She sighed. "Just thinking about…everything. Our fight against Jenova. Adine, the Sresla. And Sufur…he bothers me."

He looked at her sharply. "Why?"

Too late, she realized she'd said too much. Dropping her gaze to the floor, she murmured, "No reason. He's just odd, that's all."

He grabbed her by the shoulders roughly. "Dammit, Aeris, you're hiding something! I know you; you're not telling me the whole story because you think I'll overreact. Just trust me."

Something flashed across her face, something akin to the same fear she'd shown Sufur, but different, somehow. "You really think you know me?" she said softly. "You really think you know what…I…" She broke off suddenly, pulling away from Reno to hide her face in her hands. He didn't let her get away, grabbed her again, but gently, this time.

"Aeris." He looked at her carefully. "What happened to you guys, when we were separated? The whole story." When she looked like she wasn't about to answer, he added, "Please."

That decided her, for she had never known Reno to say "please" unless he honestly cared. Not looking at him, she began, telling him the whole story since she, Cloud, Zack, Nanaki and Tifa set foot in the Shinra building. Her voice remained steady while she told him of the horribly mutated Cetra in Hojo's lab…until the end.

"I killed them." She whispered tremulously. "My own people. They gave me the words in our own tongue…I performed the Ritual…and that was it."

Reno stared. Why was she so upset? "Aeris, it's no big deal. They asked you to-"

"'No big deal'?!" she repeated, looking up with green eyes flashing. "That's all you can say? Those were sentient lives I took, Reno! And although you may have never cared about lives, I do!"

She's really shaken, Reno realized. It was completely unlike Aeris to make any mention of his bloody past for fear of bringing back unwanted memories. Ignoring the unexpected hurt that stung the back of his throat, he said calmly, "So, what? You wish you hadn't done it?"

"No…" She looked away, biting her lower lip. "I did it because they asked me to…because they were suffering. Because…" She stopped. "Because there was no other way out for them," she finished softly.

He nodded. "I see." He leaned against the wall, breathing a deep sigh. Pure, untainted Aeris, taking a sentient life. He thought he should have been alleviated, but he wasn't. Oddly enough, he felt…disappointed. Let down.

"Reno, I'm sorry for what I said back there," Aeris said, misinterpreting his silence. She put a hand on his shoulder as she spoke, trying to catch his eye. "I didn't mean to say-"

He cut her off. "Aeris, do you hate me?"

She seemed appalled that he would even ask. "Reno, I could never hate you."

"Do you think I'm some kind of monster, then?" He didn't look at her.

"Reno, why are you doing this?" She sounded hurt. "You may have done some bad things in your life. I'm sure I don't know half of what you've done."

She didn't. That was probably a blessing. If she did, she'd probably run screaming in the other direction.

"And even if I did," she continued vehemently, "I still couldn't hate you. Because you're not the man you were those years ago, Reno. You se things you didn't see before. You hear things you didn't hear before. You…you feel things didn't feel before."

He finally looked at her, then. Her green eyes were locked onto his own, and he suddenly had trouble breathing. All he could think of was her…her beauty, her compassion, her unbelievable capacity for forgiveness…

The red pendant Sufur wore suddenly entered his mind again. Gripped by the intensity of the image, Reno almost cried out, but managed to stop himself just in time. He tore his gaze away and swallowed hard, trying to regain control of himself.

Sometimes things like that happened to him, visions, instincts that warded him off. He wasn't sure if it was because he was a Turk or just something that happened to him alone, but sometimes, when he was in danger of being distracted or about to make a stupid decision, his subconscious would kick in. This time, the message had been more than clear. It was one had received many times before: Don't let feelings get in the way of what's important.

"Reno? You okay?" Aeris sounded concerned.

He took a steadying breath. "Fine," he said, then changed the subject abruptly. "You know, you haven't told me the rest of the story."

Looking puzzled, maybe even a little hurt, Aeris shrugged. "All right…well, after we left the room, we met Sufur."

To his credit, Reno never said a word through her description of their encounter with Sufur. He even stayed quiet when she spoke about his 'conversation" with her and Tifa that morning before they reached Junon. But when she told of the way he'd attacked her…

"I knew it!" Reno exploded, punching the wall with his fist. The cheap plaster (Shinra had only to replicate the town. They hadn't had to do a good job of it) smashed easily, and naturally Reno got his hand caught in the wall. Cursing, he extracted it, sending slivers of mortar raining down on Aeris. Throughout it all, the Turk went on ranting.

"I knew that guy was no good! 'Voice in his head', my ass! He was lying through his damn teeth, the bastard! I can't believe Cloud didn't get rid of him right there. This is total bullshit! Why didn't Cloud get rid of him right there?!" he demanded, suddenly whirling on Aeris.

She calmly flicked a chip of plaster from her hair. "Because Cloud's no hypocrite. He's been there, so to speak, and if Sufur was telling the truth, then we would've been murdering an innocent. And if he was lying…" She paused. "Well, we have no way of knowing whether he was lying or not. Innocent until proven guilty."

Reno, suddenly calm, ironically thought of the merciless laws imposed by Shinra. Guilty until proven innocent. The Turks were a big part of that little rule.

And in his mind, Sufur was guilty.

They were going to have to have a little talk.

* * * * * *

Adine was asleep, but Tifa still kept a tight rein on her emotions. She was quite simply afraid she'd have a breakdown soon. Even though Zack was the only one who was remained in the room. The others had left to their own business- not that she minded Sufur's loss. And Cloud…well, something about him was starting to scare her a little. He was always so cold, and…different, somehow. Lately she'd been finding herself making little excuses to stay away from him. It was weird.

Standing behind her, Zack shifted awkwardly and cleared his throat. "Tifa...you okay?" He felt stupid; there was absolutely no way she was okay right now. She probably wouldn't answer; it had been an idiotic thing to say, really.

She half-turned to look at him. "I've been better," she said softly. "How about you?" Seeing Reno and Aeris together like that must have hurt him, she knew. Zack was going through such a rough time…she wished she could help him, somehow. But she didn't even have her own emotions figured out. Some help she'd be.

"Well…at least I didn't do anything I might regret…" he said ruefully, almost sounding as though he wished he had.

"You did good." A tremulous smile floated on her lips. "I'm proud of you."

His heart broke for her, seeing that smile. Here she was, practically a nervous wreck from strain and worry, and she was trying to reassure him. She had to be dying inside, but she still managed to sustain that smile. For some reason, he just felt he had to put his arms around her. He took a step forward…but she suddenly got to her feet and headed for the window. He followed, coming to a halt beside her. She was close enough, but he didn't try to touch her.

"You know," Tifa whispered, still staring out the window, "this is the room where my mom…died..."

"Your mom?" He knew Tifa's mother was deceased, but he hadn't really thought about it until now. His own parents…he hadn't seen them for so long, he'd practically forgotten them.

"I was about Adine's age…" Tifa's voice was faint. One of her hands pressed lightly on the window, as though it was the only barrier that separated reality from her memories. "I knew she was dying, but…I wouldn't admit it, for the longest time…" Was that what she was doing with Adine? Just wishing away the truth…?

Like with Cloud. For so long, she had refused to see. She shoved that thought aside; she didn't want to think of Cloud, just now. But it couldn't be helped, naturally. Just outside the window was his house…the house he'd grown up in.

"I think I went a little crazy, when Mom died," she said quietly. "And that was when…when Cloud rescued me."

His eyebrows flew up. "'Rescued you'? What happened?"

She stared out the window, but she wasn't looking at the scenery. She was seeing something else, something visible only to her. "There's an old wives tale about the dead going through the mountains." Tifa's hand traced little patterns on the window. Zack watched, fascinated. "I…I wanted to see Mom again, so I went up the trail…to look behind the mountains. That was before I knew them that well. I fell…"

"You fell?" He couldn't help it, that concern creeping into his voice. She'd ended up just fine, obviously, but just the thought of her getting hurt…

She nodded. "Cloud went after me, and we both fell off the bridge."

"Were you okay?" he asked.

"Actually, I was in a coma for a week. Cloud wasn't badly hurt, though, so everyone blamed him. He got in trouble…just because he was worried about me."

Her eyes were a little misty, and Zack's gut twisted a bit as he saw the all-too-familiar flash of hero-worship in her eyes, displacing the grim sadness there for a moment.

"That's why I asked him to be my hero." She grinned at the floor, embarrassed. "Because he already was…"

She'd asked Cloud to be her hero? Man, this was worse than he'd thought. He swallowed hard and turned away. He hated to think of what his face looked like right then. Why did he always have to like women who already had their own prince charming? Although who could consider Reno charming, or a prince...

Tifa went on. "I couldn't set foot in here for a while…after Mom died. Dad couldn't either, so he started sleeping in the study. But…" The smile was gone from her face now. "A couple of years later, I asked him to make this into my room. I thought…this was where I could still feel her presence…" She glanced over to the bed. "I wonder if she's watching over Adine, too…" Her smile was sad, but it held a hint of warmth in it, and it brought a smile to his face as well.

"You're watching over her, Tifa," he pointed out. "She's in good hands."

"But…I can't do anything for her." She swallowed hard and tried to look away, but his gaze found hers.

"Don't say that," he whispered. "You just don't know what it means to someone…just to have a warm hand. Someone who cares."

She stared at him, confused.

"You know," he began, "I don't remember it real well, but that time I got shot outside of Midgar…I thought it was all over. But someone helped me. I wasn't sure, exactly, why she bothered…but she used this materia on me, and then…she…" He focused his eyes hazily on her, suddenly realizing something. It couldn't be, could it? The woman who had helped him…she had also had wine-red eyes…

"Someone helped you?" she said carefully.

"Yeah," he replied, shaking off the feeling. "She got me to stop bleeding, and took me to some friends of hers. I was real messed up for a while, but I couldn't forget her. I always wanted to find her, to thank her for helping me…" He looked at her again, and was sure this time. "It was you, wasn't it?"

Tifa stared into his sky-blue eyes. They had some kind of appraising cast to them, or maybe…accusing? She swallowed hard. She'd remembered this, back when she'd met up with him again, but it wasn't a proud moment for her, and she hadn't brought it up. "I'm sorry. I tried to explain it to you, but you couldn't seem to understand what I was saying." Her eyes seemed to be plastered to her feet. "I didn't have a place for you to stay at the time." She felt absolutely mortified. Yeah, she'd saved him, but she'd left him in a lurch, and he'd ended up in Hojo's hands again. How many years of his life had he lost…all because she'd done such a half-assed job? Tears threatened to well in her eyes again. She hadn't helped him, and she couldn't help Adine, either.

Zack couldn't believe it. She looked absolutely gutted by guilt. He didn't know what to do…cry or laugh at the irony of it all. He tried to explain. "Look, I'm not mad at you, Tifa. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't even be here today. I just really wanted to see…her…again." He looked at her, curious. "You recognized me, didn't you? Why didn't you say something?"

"I couldn't do anything for you…so…" She still hung her head, looking like a kicked dog. She still felt guilty, despite his kind words.

"See?" He smiled at her. "You saved my life, and you didn't even know it. So…how do you know that just seeing you here when she wakes up…won't help Adine?"

She shook her head. "But there's no materia that can help her."

"But we'll help her." He tried to keep the worry out of his own voice. "We'll find a way. You guys beat Jenova before. She's just gotta hang on a little longer…"

She didn't reply, not looking convinced. He stepped close, hesitantly reaching out to cradle her face in both hands. Her eyes looked into his, and her own gloved hand reached up to touch his.

"You believe me, don't you, Tifa?" he said softly. "You just have to be strong…for her."

She nodded, mutely grateful. Something about the way he was looking at her right then- she couldn't help it. His gaze was so intense, his hands felt so warm on her face…she fell against him, wrapping her arms around him. It had been so long since she had tasted comfort like this…so long since Cloud had drifted away…

Just then, Cloud himself appeared in the doorway. His eyes were sharp; they seemed to be slicing a hole into her as she stood in Zack's arms. She stiffened, but didn't move away. She felt Zack's arms tighten around her, almost possessively, maybe even a little…protectively…

"Hey." Cloud's expression was blank, except for his hard eyes. Even his voice was emotionless, indifferent.

Tifa hid her face, not wanting to look at Cloud's eyes anymore. She listened as Zack did the talking. "What's up?"

"We're having a meeting," Cloud said coolly. "Tonight. We'll let everyone rest up till then. Just thought you should know."

"Okay." Zack sounded calm, as though he wasn't the slightest bit embarrassed. "We'll be there."

"Fine." Cloud hesitated for a moment, his eyes flickering to Tifa. "Sorry to interrupt," he added icily, then turned on his heel and left.

Great, Zack thought. More guilt was the last thing Tifa needed.

"I'm sorry." She pulled away from him a little, not meeting his eyes. "I really shouldn't…"

He wanted to keep holding her, wanted to shout, Dammit Tifa! You deserve better than him! But he said nothing, allowed her to move away. She didn't need to be yelled at, she needed space. And rest. He could see the fatigue in her eyes. His staying here wouldn't help her, either.

"I'd better go." He stepped to the door, then looked back. "You get some rest, alright, Tifa?"

She nodded. "I'll try. Um…I don't think I'll be going to the meeting. Would you please tell Cloud I'll be staying with Adine?"

Zack didn't relish the idea of having to speak with Cloud, but he would do it for Tifa. Somehow, a part of him just wanted to keep her away from the guy. It was an awful feeling, because Cloud was- or maybe used to be- a close friend of his. But, looking at Tifa, the feeling only increased. After all…she had once been a close friend of Cloud's, too. And now she was doing whatever she could to stay out of his way.

He left, closing the door behind him. As soon as he was gone, Tifa fell to the floor, shoulders shaking with silent sobs.

~And now a note from the author~

Ugh…major apologies for the length. It's mostly fluff and relationship-building, I know. *sighs* Well, some of you did remind me I promised romance, and it's either this or the gunfights. *grin* Plus V-Day was today, and it's Relinquishing's birthday tomorrow! *party horn*

Oh, and HUGE thanks goes to Zelda6 for helping me with the latter half of this chapter! (We all know she's the expert on Tifa/Zack) I'm still not quite certain what to do with this triangle…need input…*grins devilishly*

Um, yeah, there is a point to all this fluff and relationship-building, as you'll see later. Do you guys like romance? Or shall we get back to the "gunfights in the dark"?

And ONE more thing…I need help thinking of a little title for the trilogy. PLEASE help me, I'm desperate. I want something to link all three of them together…help? Please?

Luv you all! Thanks for sticking with me!

~Lila