Costa Del Sol (the Coast of the Sun) was the third biggest tourist hot spot in the known world, topped only by the Golden Saucer and Wutai.
The town was well known worldwide for its spacious beaches, which stretched as far as the eye could see to seemingly touch the sky.
The sandy shores were known as the Bronze Capital of the World, mainly because if you tanned there, you'd lose it if you went anywhere else to keep it.
Also said to be the second-hottest place in the world aside from the Corel Desert Prison, Costa Del Sol was famous for its prime surfing capabilities.
The natural curve of the cliffs to the north pushed the wind along at high speeds, kicking up waves sometimes twenty feet tall. Anybody who wanted to look good at a certain place did it at Costa Del Sol.
Unfortunately, Cloud had no time to take part in the lavish tropical parties every evening, or sample the unique cuisine. His only interest was finding where Sephiroth had gone to, and hunting him down.
Still, he had to admit, there were a few things he liked about Costa Del Sol. And the others were certainly enjoying themselves.
Red XIII was laying in the shade of a house, since his nose was drying from the sun. Some kids were kicking a ball around nearby in the street, and once it accidentally headed straight for Red XIII, but his tail suddenly batted it back to the kids.
The children laughed, clearly amused, and kicked it in his direction again. His tail waved and batted it back again, and the ball went rolling back to the kids.
The children laughed again, and they all started to play with him, always kicking the ball to him and his tail was always knocking the ball back to them, even though Red XIII seemed fast asleep, which also amused the kids. Seeing what was happening, Yuffie walked over to him.
"Having fun?" asked Yuffie, grinning.
Red XIII yawned, and opened his good eye (his other, of course, was scarred from a previous battle he fought, several years ago), and glanced at Yuffie in puzzlement.
"What was that? Is it time to go?" asked Red XIII.
"What, you were asleep? Your tail was just rolling the ball back to the kids," said Yuffie, bewildered.
"It moves independently," explained Red XIII, as his tail knocked the ball back again. The kids giggled, and Red XIII turned his head to look at them, in curiosity.
"Oh...sorry to wake you then," said Yuffie, still rather surprised at this.
"No, it's okay. I don't need the sleep, but the heat here just makes me drowsy," said Red XIII.
"Me too, and I don't even have fur," muttered Yuffie, with a slight yawn. Cloud came running up to them.
"So, you enjoying your day off?" asked Yuffie, smirking broadly. Cloud snorted irritably.
"I'm trying to see if anyone's seen a certain man in a black cape around here. No one seems to care though," said Cloud.
"Well, this is Costa Del Sol, after all. Everyone's just here to relax and forget about any troubles, you know. Why don't you go and relax too? I heard Tifa say she was going to go to the beach and go swimming. Why don't you try and catch up with her? You may even get to see her in a bikini," said Yuffie, still smirking.
"Um...maybe later," replied Cloud, quickly, hoping she didn't notice his faint blush at the very thought of...
Just then, Cloud watched as Red XIII'S tail batted the ball back to the laughing kids yet again, and Cloud looked at him curiously.
"I'm not doing it on purpose, my tail moves independently," explained Red XIII, shortly.
Cloud nodded, and he turned to walk away just as the kids kicked the ball towards Red XIII again. It went right in front of Cloud's foot as he was taking a step, and he accidentally kicked the ball hard, straight towards Red XIII'S face with surprisingly strong force.
SMACK!!!!!
Red XIII jumped up with a startled yelp, and rubbed his aching face with his paws, growling angrily at Cloud, baring his razor-sharp teeth.
"Oops…uh…I think maybe I will go and find Tifa," said Cloud, trying to keep himself from laughing, and he turned and ran off quickly as he could, while Red XIII growled menacingly after him, his teeth bared.
"You go off and do that…" growled Red XIII, with unusual anger for him, and he laid back down in the shade again, his face still aching painfully.
"I'm going to go steal Materia from innocent bystanders here and sell it back to them for lots of money. Catch you later," said Yuffie, grinning mischievously, and she ran off.
Pushing through the crowd, Cloud spotted Aeris in front of a large green tent, shouting inside to somebody, probably Tifa. Aeris poked her head through the tent flap and sighed.
"These aren't bathing suits! They're strands of yarn with glandular conditions!" shouted Tifa.
"Just come on out! It's not like anybody you know is here or anything. Barret and Cloud are probably at the hotel planning our next move, Yuffie's stealing and selling Materia, and I saw Red XIII sleeping in the shade just a few minutes ago," said Aeris.
Making a choked groan, Tifa pushed back the tent flap and came out into the sun. Cloud gaped at her as she saw her come out. The bikini seemed to highlight Tifa's every breathtaking feature. Cloud was rendered speechless with his mouth hanging open. Aeris was suddenly aware of Cloud and she turned to face him, and grinned when she noticed what Cloud was staring at.
"Appealing, eh?" asked Aeris, grinning.
Cloud didn't remember speaking aloud, but he gave a rather weak nod and a rather hoarse sound of agreement.
Tifa pushed her thick black hair off her shoulders and turned around; ready to ask whom Aeris was talking to, and she came to an abrupt stop when she saw Cloud. Her numbed fingers slowly let go of her hair, causing it to drop down and taper over her shoulders in a great black stream.
Hoping he mistook the sudden flush of crimson that washed over her entire face for being out in the heat, Tifa quickly regained as much composure as she could, and regarded him with a nod and smiled.
"Uh, h-hello, Cloud. I-I thought that you might be at the inn w-with Barret," said Tifa, embarrassed, trying desperately to stop blushing with sheer embarrassment but failing miserably.
"No, I-I thought…I thought I'd check up on you two. Uh…you know, because Sephiroth might be…um…anywhere…" stammered Cloud, trying his best not to gape at her.
Nodding, Tifa turned around and headed for the beach. Cloud choked on his breath as she spun around, and she half-turned back around to face him.
"Is something wrong?" asked Tifa, pushing her hair off her shoulder again.
"N-No, nothing's wrong. Just be…be careful," gasped Cloud, annoyed at himself.
Grinning and giving a wink to Aeris, Tifa started off again. A moment later she was back, but she looked startled and alarmed. Cloud was immediately alert and serious at her expression.
"Cloud, come quick!" said Tifa, suddenly, running back to him, and she ran down to the beach, while Cloud and Aeris followed her. They came to the beach.
Tifa was pointing to man in a white lab coat who was surrounded by three girls on a deckchair just in front of the seashore on the beach.
"Is that…Hojo…?" asked Cloud, surprised and stunned, wondering why Hojo would be here of all places.
"Come on, go over there and talk to him," said Tifa, urgently, and she, Cloud, and Aeris all ran over to Hojo, who was lying down lazily on his deckchair, with the three girls surrounding him for some bizarre reason.
Why Hojo was wearing his lab coat in the hot, blazing sun was anyone's guess, but they wondered more about what he was doing there.
Cloud noticed several scars in the shape of claw marks on his chest, and knew that was the result of Red XIII's attack on Hojo in the Shinra Headquarters, when they had first met the lion-like creature.
"What do you want?" asked one of the girls, clearly annoyed with the interruption.
"I want to talk to Hojo," replied Cloud, coldly.
"Professor Hojo, someone's here to see you, sir," said one of the other girls. Hojo groaned lazily.
"I'm busy right now…" moaned Hojo, but when he spotted Cloud, Tifa, and Aeris, his eyes widened, and he quickly got up, stood on the deckchair, and faced them, his drowsiness forgotten.
"Oh, I remember you all now. Yes, yes, I remember now. It's been a long time, Cloud. Sometimes, you've just got to do something like this," said Hojo, calmly.
"What the hell are you doing here!?" snapped Cloud, sharply, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword.
"It should be obvious even to imbeciles like you, shouldn't it? I'm getting a tan," replied Hojo, coolly, with a snigger. Cloud snarled angrily.
"Answer me!" demanded Cloud, furiously, beginning to really lose his patience.
"Hmm…I believe that we're both after the same goal, aren't we?" replied Hojo, calmly.
"You mean Sephiroth?" asked Cloud, curiously.
"Did you see him? Did you speak to him?" asked Hojo, curiously. Cloud nodded.
"I see…Ha, ha, ha!" said Hojo, suddenly laughing insanely, taking Cloud and the others aback.
"What is it?" asked Cloud, surprised. Hojo stopped laughing and stared hard at Cloud, with a very strange look on his face, and a dark glint in his eyes that Cloud didn't like.
"Oh, nothing. I've just remembered a certain…hypothesis that might concern you. Haven't you ever had the feeling that something is calling you? Or that you had to visit some certain place? It's just a theory I've had for a while," said Hojo, very curiously, and Cloud could see that Hojo looked intensely interested to know the answer.
Cloud immediately gave a lot of thought to Hojo's words. Cloud wasn't quite sure why, but for some reason, those words just seemed to have a big effect on him…
"I'll go anywhere Sephiroth is at! To beat him and put an end to all of this!" shouted Cloud.
"I see…this could be interesting. VERY interesting…but just ask yourself this for a moment. Were you REALLY in SOLDIER? Wouldn't you really have liked to have been my pet guinea pig instead?" asked Hojo, sniggering.
At this, Cloud was extremely furious and filled with sudden murderous rage, and he took out his sword, and was just about to strike Hojo with it to kill him where he stood, when Tifa stopped him just in time.
"Hey, it's a bad idea to kill him right now. Not here, especially," said Tifa.
Cloud slowly nodded, and he reluctantly put his sword away. Hojo laughed mockingly at Cloud, then he turned away and faced Aeris. His eyes widened in surprise and recognition.
"Say…aren't you the Ancient?" asked Hojo, surprised, staring hard at Aeris.
"I'm Aeris. The very least that you could do is remember my name. I want you to tell me something, Professor Hojo. I know that I'm an Ancient. My mother told me," said Aeris.
"Your mother…? Oh…you mean Ifalna. And just how is she?" asked Hojo. Aeris stared at him in surprise, taken aback.
"You mean you don't even know…? She died…" said Aeris, miserably.
"I see that…but that's not quite what I meant. You still speak to her spirit, after all, right? So how is she?" questioned Hojo, curiously. Aeris avoided his gaze, and quickly choose to change the subject.
"Professor Hojo, is Jenova truly an Ancient? Is Sephiroth an Ancient too? Do we all have the same blood?" asked Aeris, curiously. Hojo slowly shook his head.
"Head west…" muttered Hojo, quietly and clearly.
"He's muttering slowly. That must mean he's hiding something!" said Aeris.
Hojo didn't reply, and he lay back down on the deckchair, turning away from them, apparently no longer interested in the encounter anymore.
"Hey! Answer us!" shouted Tifa.
Hojo still didn't reply or even glance at them, acting now as though they weren't even there at all.
"It's no use. Let's just go," said Cloud, frustrated.
They nodded, and they walked away from Hojo, walking along the beach together, by the shore. Cloud's fists were clenched and he was clearly seething with rage after the encounter with Hojo.
Both Tifa and Aeris looked concerned, then they both looked at each other and smiled mischievously, and they both stopped suddenly, by the shore, whispering to each other. Cloud stopped in his tracks, and looked at them, puzzled.
"Hey, what's up? What are two talking about?" asked Cloud, bewildered, as both Tifa and Aeris grinned broadly at him.
"You know, Cloud, we both agree that this search for Sephiroth really seems to make you stressed out all the time, and it's really not good for you. You really need to loosen up, you know," said Aeris, smirking.
"So we agree that it's about time you relaxed for once, get your mind off things for a moment. This is Costa Del Sol after all, where everyone goes to relax, even Hojo, and you deserve a break once in a while, you know," said Tifa, smiling.
Cloud looked at both of them, still grinning mischievously at him, and he disagreed with their words, of course, although for some reason, he couldn't get angry or annoyed with either of them, nor could he look away from their intense gaze.
"Look, we really need to find Sephiroth as soon as possible, and if we keep wasting time…" began Cloud, but Tifa and Aeris suddenly both grabbed his arms, still grinning, and pushed him playfully into the water, catching him by surprise.
Cloud let out a startled yelp as he lost his balance and fell face first into the water, disappearing under it for a moment, and then managed to resurface after a few moments, which wasn't an easy task due to the fact he was still in his SOLDIER outfit and that he still had his sword strapped to his back.
Spluttering and coughing slightly, Cloud slowly rose out of the water and stood up slightly, shivering all over, his clothes drenched and his hair a floppy mess, and he was still standing in the water, just before the shore, in front of Tifa and Aeris.
Both of them were clearly trying hard to suppress their laughter, giggling slightly behind their hands, but finally they both burst out laughing, and had to lean onto each other as they struggled to contain themselves, while Cloud just stood still, looking at them with a strange expression.
Tifa and Aeris both finally stopped laughing, and looked at Cloud, and both of them were suddenly nervous when they saw Cloud standing stiff and rigid, looking at them intently, and there was clearly no sign of a smile or any expression of amusement from him.
"Sorry, Cloud, we were just playing around," said Tifa, uncertainly, uneasy as Cloud didn't respond, just stared.
"Yeah, we really didn't mean to annoy you, Cloud, it's just…" began Aeris, nervously, when Cloud suddenly leaned forwards, and grabbed both of them by the arms, and before they could react, he pulled them towards him and pushed them into the water, both of them falling beneath it.
After a moment, both Aeris and Tifa arose from the water to the surface, both of them soaked and spluttering, having been caught by surprise like Cloud had been by them. They both stood in the sea and looked in surprise at Cloud, who suddenly grinned at them, still standing in the sea, in front of them.
"You know, another thing I learned from the ordeal with Sephiroth is that one ill turn deserves another," said Cloud, grinning with amusement.
"Well, you certainly had us fooled alright," said Tifa, who was also smiling.
"Yeah, so what do you say? Could you lighten up once in a while, Cloud?" asked Aeris, eagerly.
Seeing that this was one discussion he wasn't going to win at, Cloud sighed and nodded, giving in. He really couldn't find it in himself to be angry with either of them either, only the opposite of that. Sephiroth would have to wait a while.
"Okay, fair enough. But tomorrow morning, sunrise, we leave here immediately…deal?" asked Cloud.
"Okay, Cloud, it's a deal. And besides…as you all well know, I…I really haven't had much fun for many years, so it would be really nice if I could now…" said Aeris, quietly.
Cloud and Tifa were both silent, looking sympathetic, when Aeris suddenly grinned mischievously and grasped a Materia on her quarterstaff, causing it to glow brightly and the waves suddenly grew larger, to their amazement and awe.
Aeris waved her arm to the right, and the waves suddenly headed for Tifa, and quickly washed over her, drenching her completely, and afterwards, as they passed, more waves drenched her. Aeris giggled with laughter, as Tifa stood back up only to be soaked by the waves again.
"Hey, watch it! Cloud, help!" protested Tifa; though it was obvious they were both just playing around.
Cloud couldn't help but grin with amusement at the moment, and at Tifa's words, he made his way sneakily towards Aeris, and suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist, causing the waves to disperse and the Materia spell to wear off, as Aeris let out a gasp of surprise, and looked around at Cloud, who held her from behind, grinning at her, and she smiled at him too.
"Now you're gonna get it, Miss Aeris!" said Cloud, suddenly picking up Aeris in his arms, and lifting her over his head, surprised at how much he enjoyed this, and Aeris could feel herself blush as he held her in his arms.
"No, stop!" squealed Aeris, but to no avail, as Cloud threw her over his head, and dunked her straight into the water, and she fell with a loud splash, and disappeared below it.
Aeris rose from the water moments later, dripping wet and laughing uncontrollably, as was Tifa.
"Hey, you jerk!" exclaimed Aeris, between bursts of laughter, as she beamed at Cloud, her eyes beautifully alight with happiness.
"Now we see how Cloud Strife picks up women," joked Tifa, giggling, and Aeris laughed as well. Cloud grinned.
"That's right, I pick them up like…this!" said Cloud, and he lunged forwards towards Tifa, and grabbed her, picking her up and holding her in his arms.
Tifa looked surprised and very embarrassed, as her face flushed crimson, and Cloud looked also rather shy as well, but they both still gazed at each other, while Aeris watched in amusement.
"Well, Mr Strife, just what do you plan to do with me now?" asked Tifa, coolly, her arms around his neck, as she lay there in Cloud's arms just above the water, while Cloud stood in it and grinned at her.
"Well, maybe I could do…this!" said Cloud, and he fell backwards into the water, dragging Tifa along with him who let out a cry of surprise and laughter, as they both fell into the water and disappeared under it.
Aeris fell to her knees in laughter, and once Cloud and Tifa resurfaced again, both of them were laughing as well, and the three of them commenced to splash each other playfully and rapidly without mercy.
Red XIII and Yuffie both glanced at the beach, and they both were very surprised and taken aback to see Cloud enjoying himself like that, as he still played with Tifa and Aeris.
Red XIII actually managed a rather thoughtful smile, clearly amused and glad to see them being able to enjoy themselves, while Yuffie glanced down sharply and suspiciously at the yellow 'Illusion' Materia she held in her hand, and wondered whether it was playing tricks on her.
On the beach, sitting up slightly on his deckchair, still surrounded by the three girls, Hojo watched the three companions and friends playing happily with each other, and snorted, disliking their sentimentality towards each other.
Hojo was the head scientist of Shinra, but he knew that he didn't even have to be the head scientist to figure out the obvious truth that Cloud so dearly loved both Aeris AND Tifa, and that he would put himself on the line at any time for them, and they for him, as they loved him dearly too.
And it was also obvious that the only reason they stayed friends was that Cloud was having an extremely tough time trying to decide between the two of them, and it was obvious that this was something he just could not work out at all.
Both Aeris and Tifa knew all that as well, and as a result, they were quietly but clearly competing against each other for Cloud's affections, and yet they still remained the best of friends with each other, which was quite remarkable.
Hojo turned away from them, and lay back down on his deckchair, feeling that if he watched them any longer, he was going to throw up at this romantic triangle they shared.
As if a thought occurred to him, Hojo suddenly took his lab coat off and threw it onto the sand. Giggling, the three girls sat around Hojo on the deckchair. Hojo placed one of them on his lap, and she giggled before they kissed passionately and lustily.
Luckily not noticing this bizarre and sickening display, Cloud, Aeris and Tifa continued to enjoy themselves on the beach, and finally stopped as the sun began to set.
All soaking wet and drenched, but still happily talking with each other, Cloud, Aeris and Tifa all went back to the inn, starting to fell tired, all of them having already got dried and changed. Cloud, Aeris and Tifa all entered the inn and suddenly they heard Barret from inside the bathroom, still wearing his sailor suit and posing.
"Marlene, you okay? Daddy will wear this when I go to see you," said Barret.
Cloud barely managed to keep himself from laughing, but Aeris and Tifa didn't, as they both giggled. Barret was obviously drunk. Cloud banged hard on the bathroom door.
"Hey, damn you, someone's in here, alright!?" yelled Barret, furiously, cursing with rage.
Cloud spotted the innkeeper sitting on a snooker table nearby, groaning in frustration, his head buried in his hands.
"God, I feel awful. Hey, you! Weren't you the one with that big drunken sailor?" asked the innkeeper.
"I don't have any idea of whom you're talking about," lied Cloud, quickly.
"Listen to this then...all of a sudden, that big sailor just busts in here, and takes over the restroom. He's been in there moaning ever since. I don't know what I'm gonna do. And he hasn't even paid his hotel bill. Ah...if you're checking in, would you pay his bill, too?" asked the innkeeper.
Cloud was about to say no, when Barret suddenly burst out the bathroom, knocking the whole bathroom door off its hinges and sending it flying into a wall in the process and he ran to Cloud, and the innkeeper, who had his face buried even more hopelessly in his hands.
"Hey, Cloud! Still too early, ain't it?" asked Barret.
Cloud was about to say yes, when Barret suddenly rushed back into the now door-less bathroom, and started moaning in there again.
The innkeeper raised an eyebrow and frowned in annoyance at Cloud. Cloud felt so annoyed and humiliated that he felt like punching Barret in the face.
"What now? Call it a night? That's two hundred Gil for both you and your sailor friend. And an extra four hundred for the door," said the innkeeper.
Growling in annoyance, Cloud quickly took out eight hundred Gil from his pocket and gave it to the innkeeper. The Innkeeper accepted it and walked off.
Tifa and Aeris also paid for beds for themselves and Yuffie as well, while Red XIII would rather just sleep on the floor, of course. Cloud, Tifa, and Aeris made their way to their beds, as they all felt tired. Tifa turned to face Cloud.
"Thanks a lot for relaxing earlier, Cloud, I really enjoyed seeing that side of you," said Tifa, softly, and she kissed Cloud on the cheek before going off to her bed.
Cloud stood still on the spot in surprise and unexpected delight, reeling from it, until he noticed Aeris round on him as well, and this made him even more nervous, as she smiled at him, her beautiful green eyes sparkling happily.
"You know, Cloud, I really had a lot of fun today too. More than I ever remember having. As well as saving my life quite a few times already, that's another thing I'm grateful for. Thank you so much for everything, Cloud," said Aeris, softly.
"Look, I haven't…" began Cloud, awkwardly, but Aeris put a finger to his lips and shook her head slowly, kissing him softly on the cheek, causing his heart to race even faster.
"Don't try to deny it. You're always here for me, Cloud, whenever I need someone. Whether its saving my life or cheering me up, you're always here for me. And you know…I don't think I've ever really thanked you for it," said Aeris, softly, gazing deeply at Cloud, who seemed too stunned to move, his heart hammering inside his chest.
"You really don't need to…" began Cloud, nervously; a growing anxiety and excitement growing inside him, but Aeris shook her head again, still beaming and gazing at him.
"I want to, Cloud. I've been giving this a lot of though since you rescued me from the Shinra Headquarters, and the one thing I really want…is you, Cloud. I…I never thought I'd say this to anyone else again, after Zack, but…I'd like you to…to be my boyfriend," said Aeris, softly.
Cloud's blue Mako glowing eyes flared wide in an instant, stunned and speechless, his heart thundering against his chest, and he could hardly believe this was happening, that he was being asked this by the girl he had quickly grown to love so much since they had met.
Aeris stood still, smiling happily at him, patiently waiting for an answer, her heart beating wildly inside her chest as well as she waited breathlessly as Cloud finally replied.
"Sure, I'd…I'd really love to, Aeris. But remember, we're still continuing this journey and its objectives," said Cloud, feeling wildly excited and tense as Aeris smiled happily with sheer delight, her eyes sparkling joyfully.
"Of course, Cloud, I expected you'd say that, and it's fine with me. Thank you so much for being with me, Cloud," said Aeris, softly, leaning closer to him and gazing deeply into his eyes, and Cloud stared just as deeply back.
Feeling a sudden surge of affection for Aeris, he wrapped his arms around her waist, and pulled her close to him.
"No problem, it's my greatest pleasure, Miss Aeris Gainsborough," said Cloud, quietly; grinning broadly, and drawing his face even closer to hers so that their noses touched and they still gazed happily and longingly at each other, held tightly in each other's arms.
"Then kiss me, Mr Cloud Strife," whispered Aeris, softly, and Cloud immediately drew his lips to hers, and they kissed passionately, holding each other tightly and lovingly.
For several long minutes, Cloud and Aeris stood alone and unwatched, holding each other tightly in their arms, their lips locked tightly together as they kissed again and again, their kisses filled with deep love and passion for one another, before they realised how late it was getting, and with a last deep, long, passionate kiss between the two of them, they each left for their own beds, both of them looking longingly at each other as they left in different directions.
Heart hammering hard inside his chest, and his brain feeling numb with shock and overwhelming delight at what had just happened, Cloud quickly lay flat on one of the inn beds and lay there for a while, finding that he just couldn't get his mind off Aeris and the moment they had earlier.
Eventually Cloud fell fast asleep, and very soon, he was having a dream. Or rather…a nightmare.
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A sudden wave of heat slammed into Cloud as he raced up the stairs of the Shinra Mansion at Nibelheim, causing his skin to break out in a sweat.
By the time he had reached the top of the spiral staircase, his shirt was heavy and damp as it clung to him. Past the secret door and out into the hall of the mansion, Cloud ran as fast as his legs would take him.
Cloud let out a roar of fury and horror as he saw the town of Nibelheim completely engulfed in massive flames. Rushing outside, he felt the air grow heavier as clouds of thick black smoke filled his lungs and cut off his breath.
His eyes watering with tears at this and at what was happening to his hometown, Cloud staggered through the haze of smoke and found the flaming ruins of the old water tower in the middle of town.
As the smoke began to rise into the air, Cloud saw several surviving villagers screaming in terror as they were engulfed and burned to death in the flames.
Screams and cries of pain filled the black, starless night, echoing in the Cloud's head, before the screams and the people with them finally died out, but the greedy roaring of the flames did not, burning deeper into their flesh.
"Terrible…Sephiroth…this is just…too terrible…you bastard, I swear that you'll pay for this!!" screamed Cloud, wiping tears from his eyes.
To his right, Cloud suddenly spotted the blond haired Shinra soldier lying injured and bruised on the ground, away from the flames, the very same Shinra soldier whom he had come into town and to the Mount Nibel Reactor with.
The blond-haired Shinra soldier stirred and groaned, clutching his chest in pain, and breathing slowly and heavily, coughing slightly inside his helmet, and he seemed too injured to stand back up.
Despite the burns all over his body and some gashes on his forehead, he seemed to be alive and would live to see another day, but nevertheless, he would need help all the same.
Cloud dropped down to one knee on the ground next to the blond-haired soldier as the young man lost consciousness, and Cloud quickly pulled the tight helmet off him.
Looking down at the blond haired Shinra soldier's face, Cloud's numbed fingers suddenly dropped the helmet onto the ground in shock as he slowly stood up and began to back away from the unconscious soldier in horror.
His heart pounded hard, aching against his chest, and cold dread and panic suddenly became a solid lump of ice in his stomach and throat.
Looking down at the blond-haired Shinra soldier, Cloud saw his own pale and bloodied face beneath the helmet…
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Cloud snapped awake in a flash, jerking upright his bed, startled, and suddenly alarmed. Panting breathlessly, his stomach tight with fear, Cloud ran his hands over his face, checking for scars, but he found none.
Still feeling the sweat run down his forehead, Cloud sighed and dropped back down onto the bed. To his right, he heard Tifa stir and mumble something on her bed, but she rolled over before she had finished.
On the far side of the room, Aeris slept peacefully in her bed, still with a very wide smile on her face, while Barret lay on a separate bed between Tifa's and Aeris' beds.
Red XIII snoozed quietly with a low growl in his throat, at the foot of Aeris' bed, swishing his tail and stretching occasionally, but otherwise he appeared quite asleep.
Yuffie was still missing, no doubt stealing Materia from people in their sleep, but Cloud didn't doubt that she'd show up before they left tomorrow. He was glad that he had hid all their Materia in a safe place so she couldn't steal it from them.
"(What a dream…I must be losing my mind…)" thought Cloud, shaking his head wearily, and then he gazed up at the ceiling, still slightly shaken from the dream.
His thoughts wandered to Sephiroth again, and eventually, as the faintest grey light of dawn peeked into the windows, Cloud drifted off to sleep.
Late the next morning, Cloud awoke, groggy and bleary-eyed. Claiming he had just not slept well last night, he waved the others concern away and began to pack.
As he stuffed his clothes, supplies and other belongings into his backpack, he began to realize he had been on the road for at least a few weeks, and there was no sign of Sephiroth, only vague rumours.
Still, he had been on the cargo ship, so he was at least still alive. No other human could just appear and disappear in an instant like that.
Cloud absentmindedly pushed down his items into his backpack as he began to recall what Hojo had said on the beach, the other day.
"Haven't you ever had the feeling that something is calling you? Or that you had to visit some certain place? It's just a theory I've had for a while," said Hojo, very curiously, a strange and dark glint in his beady eyes.
Thinking about Hojo always led Cloud to Aeris, and from there, to Sephiroth, and from there, to Jenova. The only thing that Cloud couldn't seem to figure out was how Professor Gast fitted into all of this.
Sephiroth had said that Gast had produced him from a mixture of human cells, Jenova cells, and raw Mako energy, but Gast had mysteriously died later without telling anyone anything outside of a few incomplete, hazy reports that were gathering dust in the Shinra mansion.
Somehow or another, those four pieces all fit together in the same picture, but it was like trying to put a jigsaw puzzle together blindfolded.
In time, everything would be revealed, but until then…
"Are you really going to take that? I'm sure you'd look better in a pair of trunks," said Tifa, giggling.
Blinking and coming out of his trance, Cloud looked down and saw that he had his hand wrapped tightly around Tifa's small bathing suit, and his hand jammed down into his pack.
Startled, he threw the bathing suit onto the opposite bed and quickly snapped his pack shut. Despite Tifa's giggling, Cloud managed a frown and stomped out of the hotel.
Outside, the afternoon sun blazed overhead and beat down onto Cloud furiously, as if it was determined to melt him in his boots. Tifa and the others, even Yuffie, followed him outside and to the gates of town located underneath a large archway with the words, "Costa Del Sol" carved into it.
The sandstone streets came to an abrupt stop outside of the city, and the smell of coconut oil and sea water quickly faded away, replaced by the smell of freshly mowed grass and cool mountain air.