A/N: Again, it picks up right where the other left off. Review and let me
know if that bothers anyone...
Chapter 3- Things Unexpected
Raven immediately jumped down the branches of the tall tree until her feet landed soundly on the ground besides Cloud's still form. A large, deep gash just above his eye trickled blood down the side of his beautiful face. She pulled him up so he was leaning against her, his blonde hair tickling her chin.
"Ah, what do I do now?!" she asked frustrated to no one in particular. Quickly she ripped a strip of cloth from her pant leg as her short black tube top would not be sufficient. Wrapping the piece tightly around his head over the gash, she prayed to some unknown being that he would just wake up and smile at her, showing that he was alright.
They sat there in that same position for what seemed like hours to Raven, but in reality it was only about ten minutes. Raven looked up into the canopy of the trees, trying to hold back the tears of frustration and helplessness that were threatening to spill down her cheeks.
/Why am I being so weak? I NEVER cry about ANYTHING! Why does he have such a strong effect on me?/
She blinked several times before she got her emotions under control and finally looked back down at the man cradled in her arms to see that he was peering up at her through his unhurt eye. Startled, Raven opened her mouth to say something, but he spoke first.
"D-don't worry. I'll be fine, really, I will," he forced out, wincing as he did so. Raven closed her eyes, shaking her head in disbelief. Opening her eyes once more, she looked at him as he grimaced in pain.
"No, you're not fine now," she said to his panting form. "Where can I take you that's nearby to get some help?"
Cloud winced again as he thought for a moment. "The clearing we were flying over earlier. That's where I live. W-we can go there and rest inside," he informed Raven. Surprise etched itself onto her worried face, but she saved her questions for later. Slowly, she stood, being sure not to let his head fall, and began to half carry, half drag him in the direction of the clearing. He was fairly heavy, and his boots and large jacket continually caught on the small undergrowth of the forest, but she toiled on.
Raven cursed as Cloud's pant leg caught on a bush for the fifth time. She freed him and continued on, but Cloud weakly began to struggle against her efforts.
"I will be alright," he protested, not strong enough to release himself from her hold. She shook her head again and continues against his struggles, almost at the clearing.
"You need help, so please, just accept mine." Cloud's form went limp at this and he gave up his protest with a small sigh.
"Why do I need help?" he asked, seemingly to no one in particular, but Raven, rolling her eyes slightly, answered anyway.
"Ok, you passed out, smashed your face on a rock, and didn't even have enough strength to get away from me. Why do you NOT need help?" she asked him in reply. They reached the clearing soon after this, Raven gently laid him down next to a small, clear pond in the middle of it. She studied the clearing, taking in the scene of large, strong trees fencing in the pond and a grassy carpet where they now resided.
"It's just because I've never had help before," Cloud mumbled, making Raven look back at him. As she did so, she noticed blood beginning to sep through his shirt.
/My gosh, what's wrong now? He's just a mess today, isn't he? Oh well, I'm going to do everything I can to help him, even if it means I won't be going home to Tyru tonight.../
"Well now you do," she replied softly and gently removed his shirt to see where this new bleeding was coming from. The gashes that she had seen earlier when they first started their walk were reopened and bleeding freely.
"I will be..." Cloud passed out from blood loss before he could finish his sentence.
"No, no, no! Stay with me Cloud!" Raven immediately tied his already bloody shirt tight around his torso, trying to stop whatever she could. She began to cradle him again as the tears came back to her eyes. "I wish I had something to heal you with so you could just wake up and be ok."
Cloud remained motionless, hardly even breathing. This time, Raven couldn't help the tear that trickled down her already wet face. The rain continued to fall down on them, there being no more trees to shelter them. She sat there silence, not knowing what else to do.
/He can't die, I won't let him die! I...feel something for him. I don't know what I would do if he never woke up./
Suddenly Cloud began to twitch a little and then opened his eyes. Raven quickly wiped away the few other tears that had managed to escape her and looked down at him. He began to try and get up, pulling away from her soft embrace.
"Damn, they must have used some poison this time to stop me form healing," he said as he grunted in his efforts to stand. "No, don't get up," Raven said softly but firmly as she gently pulled him back down. "What else can I get you that will help? And I will be getting it, you won't be getting it yourself."
"I-Idon't know" he breathed out, relaxing against her slender form in defeat. They sat there in complete silence besides the rain, the only occasional sound being that of Cloud's heavy breathing or distant thunder.
"I-I hope the blood doesn't stain your clothes," Cloud suddenly blurted out, looking up at her with his good eye. Raven glanced back down at him, surprised but strangely pleased that he seemed to scare about her. In truth, her clothes were ruined beyond repair. Mud and blood covered everything, turning the once perfect black into a mucky brownish mess. A strip of her pant leg was now around Cloud's head, and other holes had been torn by the undergrowth as she had dragged him to the clearing.
A grim half-smile formed on her face at his concern, and she began to stroke his wet, but still amazingly spiky, blonde hair, trying to offer him some sort of comfort.
"It couldn't matter less what happens to my clothes," she replied after a moment. "But wow, you're worrying about my clothes when you're wounded with badly."
She shook her head, still stoking his surprisingly soft hair. Taking a minute to look him over, she noted the damage done to his body. His strong muscles were tense with pain and the attempts to heal himself against the poison coursing through his veins. His large combat boots were partially covered by loose, once black pants, and his now blood-soaked shirt was tied around his well-toned torso. Black gloves adorned his clenched hands as they lay at his sides, and a black scarf was tied loosely around his neck. Over all, he was extremely handsome, Raven noticed not for the first time. Even in his state, there were few men who could match his looks.
/Stop it! There you go again, thinking about him that way. You used to think the same thing about Tyru. You used to love Tryu./
/I still love Tyru, I just can't help but also be attracted to Cloud. He's so kind, but so mysterious and distant at the same time. I want to solve the mystery, I want to know him.../
Raven was broken from her thoughts at the sound of Cloud's voice.
"I told you I would get better, my body just needs time to fight the poison." She looked down at him, still running her fingers through his blonde hair. A blush had crept into his cheeks as he realized what she was doing, making him look cute and innocent. Raven was strangely oblivious to it and continued what she was doing.
"I hope it's able to soon. Are you feeling any better at all though?" she asked him, still looking down at his red face. "Y-yeah," he stammered, pulling his scarf higher over his face to try and conceal the blush. Raven noticed and stopped stroking his hair, blushing a little herself for getting carried away.
"I-I'm sorry...I'll stop doing that then..." she said, feeling embarrassed that she showed some of her feelings for him.
/Why can I not control myself around him? And why was he blushing so much anyway? Usually nothing can change his stony face./
Suddenly Cloud leaned forward and stood up. "I-I'm all better now," he blurted out, still looking mildly uncomfortable. Raven mentally sighed at the cold she now felt where his warm body had been and stood up after him, looking at him with concern and disbelief.
"Are you sure you're ok this time?" she asked, still looking at him,.
"Y-yeah, I'm all better now, see?" He pulled the cloth off of his head to reveal only a scar where the gash had been. Raven sighed in relief, seeing that he was able to fight off the poison and was now healing himself. Cloud untied is shirt from his torso and just held it in his hand, not bothering to put the bloody thing back on.
"You still don't sound alright though..." Raven trailed off, wanting to believe that he was perfectly fine, but just not sure. He pulled his scarf off as well, holding both garments limply in his left hand.
"I'm fine," he replied as he stared directly into her eyes. "Trust me, I'm fine." Raven stared straight back, melting in the soft blue of his gaze.
"Alright, I guess I'll believe you for now," she said. Not able to hold his piercing gaze any longer, she looked around, realizing that they were still standing in the clearing, both thoroughly soaked from the still pouring rain. Cloud noticed as well and extended one of his beautiful wings over her head, sheltering her from the falling drops.
"Oh, don't worry about me, I'm fine," Raven stammered as she blushed slightly at his concern for her yet again. "But thank you...I think you should worry a little more about yourself, right now, although you're almost healed."
Cloud sneezed suddenly, almost causing Raven to jump, but she still had most of her self control and remained still.
"I told you, I'm fine," he replied, beginning to sound just the tiniest bit annoyed with her constant uncertainty.
"Oh? You're really ok? Why are you sneezing then?" she asked, also sounding a bit annoyed. She then moved right next to him, causing his wing to cover his head as well. He sneezed again, trying his best to stifle it, but to no avail.
"Ok, so maybe I have a small cold, but it's nothing," Cloud replied, trying to sound as though it really were nothing. Raven resisted the urge to roll her beautiful gray eyes.
"Something tells me it's worse than you're letting on. Maybe we should go inside." Having said this, she looked around, realizing that there were no buildings to speak of, although Cloud had said this is where he lived. Raven glanced at the blonde for a moment to see his reaction.
Cloud softly sighed. "The nearest place is my little secret building that I call home," he replied, motioning towards one of the larger trees. "And by the way, you don't need to worry about me so much..." His voice trailed off as a faint hint of a blush crept into his cheeks again.
/Wow, he really is a softy at heart. I can see now that he's just a great actor. And now I understand why I don't see any buildings.../
Raven returned from her thoughts as Cloud walked over to the tree he had pointed out earlier, placing his hand in one of the holes in the side. As he did this, a rectangular steel door appeared next to the hole. He opened this and held it for her to walk in.
Just before she stepped through the doorway, Raven paused and turned to Cloud, smiling just a little. "I can't help but worry about the people that I care for..."
As her face began to turn red, she made her way fully inside and waited for him to join her. After he did and the door was secured behind them, they stood side by side in the dark, cramped room.
"Sorry, this is just the elevator, it's mostly underground," Cloud explained, pushing a button that caused the lift to descend.
/Well, this was unexpected./ Raven had a short while to think as they stood in the elevator, neither making a sound. /It will be interesting, though, that's for sure.../
A/N: Ah, finally! I thought I'd never finish this chapter. It's a lot longer than the other two, hopefully not too long Keep reviewing and I'll try to update it every day or so!
Chapter 3- Things Unexpected
Raven immediately jumped down the branches of the tall tree until her feet landed soundly on the ground besides Cloud's still form. A large, deep gash just above his eye trickled blood down the side of his beautiful face. She pulled him up so he was leaning against her, his blonde hair tickling her chin.
"Ah, what do I do now?!" she asked frustrated to no one in particular. Quickly she ripped a strip of cloth from her pant leg as her short black tube top would not be sufficient. Wrapping the piece tightly around his head over the gash, she prayed to some unknown being that he would just wake up and smile at her, showing that he was alright.
They sat there in that same position for what seemed like hours to Raven, but in reality it was only about ten minutes. Raven looked up into the canopy of the trees, trying to hold back the tears of frustration and helplessness that were threatening to spill down her cheeks.
/Why am I being so weak? I NEVER cry about ANYTHING! Why does he have such a strong effect on me?/
She blinked several times before she got her emotions under control and finally looked back down at the man cradled in her arms to see that he was peering up at her through his unhurt eye. Startled, Raven opened her mouth to say something, but he spoke first.
"D-don't worry. I'll be fine, really, I will," he forced out, wincing as he did so. Raven closed her eyes, shaking her head in disbelief. Opening her eyes once more, she looked at him as he grimaced in pain.
"No, you're not fine now," she said to his panting form. "Where can I take you that's nearby to get some help?"
Cloud winced again as he thought for a moment. "The clearing we were flying over earlier. That's where I live. W-we can go there and rest inside," he informed Raven. Surprise etched itself onto her worried face, but she saved her questions for later. Slowly, she stood, being sure not to let his head fall, and began to half carry, half drag him in the direction of the clearing. He was fairly heavy, and his boots and large jacket continually caught on the small undergrowth of the forest, but she toiled on.
Raven cursed as Cloud's pant leg caught on a bush for the fifth time. She freed him and continued on, but Cloud weakly began to struggle against her efforts.
"I will be alright," he protested, not strong enough to release himself from her hold. She shook her head again and continues against his struggles, almost at the clearing.
"You need help, so please, just accept mine." Cloud's form went limp at this and he gave up his protest with a small sigh.
"Why do I need help?" he asked, seemingly to no one in particular, but Raven, rolling her eyes slightly, answered anyway.
"Ok, you passed out, smashed your face on a rock, and didn't even have enough strength to get away from me. Why do you NOT need help?" she asked him in reply. They reached the clearing soon after this, Raven gently laid him down next to a small, clear pond in the middle of it. She studied the clearing, taking in the scene of large, strong trees fencing in the pond and a grassy carpet where they now resided.
"It's just because I've never had help before," Cloud mumbled, making Raven look back at him. As she did so, she noticed blood beginning to sep through his shirt.
/My gosh, what's wrong now? He's just a mess today, isn't he? Oh well, I'm going to do everything I can to help him, even if it means I won't be going home to Tyru tonight.../
"Well now you do," she replied softly and gently removed his shirt to see where this new bleeding was coming from. The gashes that she had seen earlier when they first started their walk were reopened and bleeding freely.
"I will be..." Cloud passed out from blood loss before he could finish his sentence.
"No, no, no! Stay with me Cloud!" Raven immediately tied his already bloody shirt tight around his torso, trying to stop whatever she could. She began to cradle him again as the tears came back to her eyes. "I wish I had something to heal you with so you could just wake up and be ok."
Cloud remained motionless, hardly even breathing. This time, Raven couldn't help the tear that trickled down her already wet face. The rain continued to fall down on them, there being no more trees to shelter them. She sat there silence, not knowing what else to do.
/He can't die, I won't let him die! I...feel something for him. I don't know what I would do if he never woke up./
Suddenly Cloud began to twitch a little and then opened his eyes. Raven quickly wiped away the few other tears that had managed to escape her and looked down at him. He began to try and get up, pulling away from her soft embrace.
"Damn, they must have used some poison this time to stop me form healing," he said as he grunted in his efforts to stand. "No, don't get up," Raven said softly but firmly as she gently pulled him back down. "What else can I get you that will help? And I will be getting it, you won't be getting it yourself."
"I-Idon't know" he breathed out, relaxing against her slender form in defeat. They sat there in complete silence besides the rain, the only occasional sound being that of Cloud's heavy breathing or distant thunder.
"I-I hope the blood doesn't stain your clothes," Cloud suddenly blurted out, looking up at her with his good eye. Raven glanced back down at him, surprised but strangely pleased that he seemed to scare about her. In truth, her clothes were ruined beyond repair. Mud and blood covered everything, turning the once perfect black into a mucky brownish mess. A strip of her pant leg was now around Cloud's head, and other holes had been torn by the undergrowth as she had dragged him to the clearing.
A grim half-smile formed on her face at his concern, and she began to stroke his wet, but still amazingly spiky, blonde hair, trying to offer him some sort of comfort.
"It couldn't matter less what happens to my clothes," she replied after a moment. "But wow, you're worrying about my clothes when you're wounded with badly."
She shook her head, still stoking his surprisingly soft hair. Taking a minute to look him over, she noted the damage done to his body. His strong muscles were tense with pain and the attempts to heal himself against the poison coursing through his veins. His large combat boots were partially covered by loose, once black pants, and his now blood-soaked shirt was tied around his well-toned torso. Black gloves adorned his clenched hands as they lay at his sides, and a black scarf was tied loosely around his neck. Over all, he was extremely handsome, Raven noticed not for the first time. Even in his state, there were few men who could match his looks.
/Stop it! There you go again, thinking about him that way. You used to think the same thing about Tyru. You used to love Tryu./
/I still love Tyru, I just can't help but also be attracted to Cloud. He's so kind, but so mysterious and distant at the same time. I want to solve the mystery, I want to know him.../
Raven was broken from her thoughts at the sound of Cloud's voice.
"I told you I would get better, my body just needs time to fight the poison." She looked down at him, still running her fingers through his blonde hair. A blush had crept into his cheeks as he realized what she was doing, making him look cute and innocent. Raven was strangely oblivious to it and continued what she was doing.
"I hope it's able to soon. Are you feeling any better at all though?" she asked him, still looking down at his red face. "Y-yeah," he stammered, pulling his scarf higher over his face to try and conceal the blush. Raven noticed and stopped stroking his hair, blushing a little herself for getting carried away.
"I-I'm sorry...I'll stop doing that then..." she said, feeling embarrassed that she showed some of her feelings for him.
/Why can I not control myself around him? And why was he blushing so much anyway? Usually nothing can change his stony face./
Suddenly Cloud leaned forward and stood up. "I-I'm all better now," he blurted out, still looking mildly uncomfortable. Raven mentally sighed at the cold she now felt where his warm body had been and stood up after him, looking at him with concern and disbelief.
"Are you sure you're ok this time?" she asked, still looking at him,.
"Y-yeah, I'm all better now, see?" He pulled the cloth off of his head to reveal only a scar where the gash had been. Raven sighed in relief, seeing that he was able to fight off the poison and was now healing himself. Cloud untied is shirt from his torso and just held it in his hand, not bothering to put the bloody thing back on.
"You still don't sound alright though..." Raven trailed off, wanting to believe that he was perfectly fine, but just not sure. He pulled his scarf off as well, holding both garments limply in his left hand.
"I'm fine," he replied as he stared directly into her eyes. "Trust me, I'm fine." Raven stared straight back, melting in the soft blue of his gaze.
"Alright, I guess I'll believe you for now," she said. Not able to hold his piercing gaze any longer, she looked around, realizing that they were still standing in the clearing, both thoroughly soaked from the still pouring rain. Cloud noticed as well and extended one of his beautiful wings over her head, sheltering her from the falling drops.
"Oh, don't worry about me, I'm fine," Raven stammered as she blushed slightly at his concern for her yet again. "But thank you...I think you should worry a little more about yourself, right now, although you're almost healed."
Cloud sneezed suddenly, almost causing Raven to jump, but she still had most of her self control and remained still.
"I told you, I'm fine," he replied, beginning to sound just the tiniest bit annoyed with her constant uncertainty.
"Oh? You're really ok? Why are you sneezing then?" she asked, also sounding a bit annoyed. She then moved right next to him, causing his wing to cover his head as well. He sneezed again, trying his best to stifle it, but to no avail.
"Ok, so maybe I have a small cold, but it's nothing," Cloud replied, trying to sound as though it really were nothing. Raven resisted the urge to roll her beautiful gray eyes.
"Something tells me it's worse than you're letting on. Maybe we should go inside." Having said this, she looked around, realizing that there were no buildings to speak of, although Cloud had said this is where he lived. Raven glanced at the blonde for a moment to see his reaction.
Cloud softly sighed. "The nearest place is my little secret building that I call home," he replied, motioning towards one of the larger trees. "And by the way, you don't need to worry about me so much..." His voice trailed off as a faint hint of a blush crept into his cheeks again.
/Wow, he really is a softy at heart. I can see now that he's just a great actor. And now I understand why I don't see any buildings.../
Raven returned from her thoughts as Cloud walked over to the tree he had pointed out earlier, placing his hand in one of the holes in the side. As he did this, a rectangular steel door appeared next to the hole. He opened this and held it for her to walk in.
Just before she stepped through the doorway, Raven paused and turned to Cloud, smiling just a little. "I can't help but worry about the people that I care for..."
As her face began to turn red, she made her way fully inside and waited for him to join her. After he did and the door was secured behind them, they stood side by side in the dark, cramped room.
"Sorry, this is just the elevator, it's mostly underground," Cloud explained, pushing a button that caused the lift to descend.
/Well, this was unexpected./ Raven had a short while to think as they stood in the elevator, neither making a sound. /It will be interesting, though, that's for sure.../
A/N: Ah, finally! I thought I'd never finish this chapter. It's a lot longer than the other two, hopefully not too long Keep reviewing and I'll try to update it every day or so!