Chapter 16 : Waking Up
"Anything?"
Squall walked up to meet the spiky haired Soldier and shook his head. "No, not one person I asked has seen anything like a shadow creature."
Zack grinned and scratched the back of his head. "Well that's good then. If this world is about to be swallowed up by some big black thing I'd like to know about it well in advance."
The two looked over the city as they stood on one of the high roads. Compared to this place Hollow Bastion looked like a playground, even stood this high you still couldn't see the end of the city.
"Where are the others?"
"Huh? Oh right, well Cid was playing with the ship last I saw him, Yuffie had gone exploring and Aerith..." He smiled thinking of Cloud. "Well she went up to the medical bay in the ship carrying her staff."
Squall crossed his arms trying not to smile. "She's still pretty mad then."
"Yeah, when Cloud wakes up I'm bet she'll knock him right back out."
Squall couldn't help but smile this time, he knew what Aerith was like when she was mad. Once when they were young he fell onto her flowers while training, then next thing he knew she was chasing him around Cid's garden threatening to plant him into the ground.
"Well, at least it's not me." Zack still had he grin. "But I'm sure he'll be fine."
Squall looked over at the city again. "I hope he wakes up soon, we don't even know what to do now."
"Ah don't worry, I'm sure Cloud's got everything planed out."
"What about Sephiroth? Any sign of him?" Squall remembered the fight between the two, Cloud had given him a good beating in the end.
"No, still licking his wounds I bet. Though after that last hit Cloud gave him, I wouldn't be surprised if we never see that freak again."
________________________
Cloud was awake before he even opened his eyes. It was the third time he had woken up though this time he couldn't hear the hum of the engines through the thick metal walls. Instead it was quite, not a sound in the room.
He guessed that they must have landed, Cid must have been able to find Zanarkand. 'At least we managed that.' The after affects of his fight started up, the countless bruises over his body made him uncomftable in any position. 'Forget it, sleep isn't coming back for a long time now.'
Cloud lifted him self off the bed and swiveled his legs over the side, as soon as he opened his eyes he saw another pair staring back at him not 3 inches away from his face. "Whoa!" He fell back from bed and found himself staring at the ceiling, his leg in the air against the bed. Aerith's head soon came into view from over the side of the bed, she wore the same expression as from a few seconds ago.
"Aerith! ahh something wrong?" He tried to sound sincere.
Aerith continued to stare down at him, Cloud could tell that this time she was really £$&%. "You."
"Me?"
She climbed up on to the bed and leaned down, her bangs hanging down close to his face. "You."
Cloud pressed his back against the floor as the angry flower girl moved closer.
"You stayed behind to fight him didn't you." Her lips thinned as she asked the question.
"Well err you could say that... but it wasn't like before I actually had too keep him away."
Cloud forced a nervous smile as Aerith put her hands on the floor either side of his head, her legs still up on the bed. She leaned closer until her nose brushed against his. "Do you have any idea how worried I was about you? You promised me that you wouldn't do something stupid like that again."
"Well... yeah but I..." His mind went blank as he tried to think of excuses. "..I'm sorry."
He felt that his explanation wasn't good enough as Aerith's eyes narrowed, but before he could speak to try again she pushed her lips up against his. Cloud was shocked at first as he expected something more like a punch than a kiss but after a few moments he took hold of her waist and pulled the rest of her body off of the bed.
Aerith fell on top of Cloud's body as he pulled her down. She felt his hands move up around her back as she continued the kiss. Her act was unplanned up until the last moment but now she was happy with her choice, every time she had wanted to share her feelings to Cloud something had gotten in her way but now they were alone and he was all hers. Even if it meant she had to give up torturing him.
Cloud sat up crossing his legs and Aerith wrapped hers around his waist, their lips never parted for an instant. He felt a bit surprised as he felt Aerith's tongue brush against his lips, he squeezed her waist a little tighter before doing the same against her soft petal like lips.
Aerith pressed her body closer to Cloud's, as her chest pushed against him she could actually feel how fast her heart was beating. She felt Cloud repeat her earlier move and she parted her lips to so they could go further. Her heart fluttered as Cloud caressed her tongue with his own, their passion growing with each second.
Cloud wondered if he should stop, but then in his mind he remembered it had been her that had always tried to get closer. The only time he dared was when he was still half controlled by his darkness. 'Stop been so weak Cloud.' He held on to Aerith's waist and stood up, the flower girl held onto his shoulders as he put her onto the side of the bed.
Closing her eyes Aerith slowly moved her hands down Cloud's arms to his waist as they continued to kiss. Her head was spinning as she felt Cloud squeeze her body, she didn't know if she should go further but then again it was tempting to just get swept away in the moment. Her feelings for Cloud had grown larger and larger ever since the first moment they had met. She knew he had feelings for her too, the times he had protected her in the past, but how strong were those feelings?
In his mind Cloud had been asking him self the same questions, he had never gone through anything like this before. His whole life had been about Soldier, but now here he was with absolutely nothing in his life but her. What scared him the most was, he didn't care, out of everything he had achieved in his life this was what he wanted.
Aerith's eyes shot open as she felt Cloud's hand slide down her side and onto her leg, his fingers brushed along her soft skin towards her thigh. She lazily lowered her eyelids again while pushing away from his lips, her breath was slow and deep. As she looked at his face her eyes lined up with his, she couldn't help but smile at how nervous he looked.
Her hand went down to Cloud's she pulled it gently along her leg pushing up the pink fabric. Cloud swallowed hard, it took most of his concentration to keep his hand from shaking madly. Aerith kissed him once more before grabbing his arms, pulling him closer as she laid back onto the bed. The blond Soldier stared wide eyed as the flower girl looked up at him, her deep green eyes captured all his attention.
Cloud leaned closer to her but stopped as he heard a loud knock. Aerith shot up from the bed nearly hitting Cloud's forehead with her own.
A white metal door slide open and Yuffie walked threw holding a tray of food. "Hey Aerith, oh Cloud your up."
Cloud nodded while rubbing the back of his neck, he took a quick glance at Aerith and saw she was avoiding eye contact. Yuffie placed the tray on the bed next to where Aerith was sat.
"So what you guys up to?" The young ninja asked curiously.
The two exchange a quick look wondering if the other would answer.
"Is something wrong?"
Aerith pushed herself off of the bed and brushed down her dress. "Nope, I was just bringing Cloud up to date."
Cloud nodded as Yuffie looked at him.
"Oh, right. Well just to let you know, this place is soo cool. It's like a huge amusement park." She lifted the lid on the tray up reveling a sandwich. "Oh yeah, I didn't know how long you'd be a sleep so I just brought this."
"It's fine, thank you."
Yuffie nodded her head feeling a little confused at how the two were acting. "Well have fun you guys." The ninja smiled and headed towards the door, she gave them another odd look before leaving.
After the door slid shut Cloud looked straight over at Aerith who did the same. After a small silence she was the first to speak.
"Well I guess I should get going to.." She smiled slightly. "Got to go shopping for some new clothes since I had to lost my bag."
Cloud nodded slowly. "Ok. I guess I should go find Cid and plan our next move."
Aerith smiled again and began to walk towards the door. "I'll see you later then." She gave him a small wave before leaving.
"Yeah. Later." He watched the metal door slide shut, inside he felt like he could explode, his mind was still spinning from what just happen.
A few moments passed before the Soldier walked over to the bed and sat down, he leaned back placing his hand behind his head. After a few minutes of just thinking things over he couldn't help but smile a little. 'Well at least I have an answer to one question. I guess I should really tell her now I know.'
__________________
Another smallish chapter I know but I thought that was a good place to end this one. Thanks to all my reviewers including the very strange person (mentioning no names...). This was the first time I tried to write a more romantic scene so I'm not sure on how well it came out, what do you think?
"Anything?"
Squall walked up to meet the spiky haired Soldier and shook his head. "No, not one person I asked has seen anything like a shadow creature."
Zack grinned and scratched the back of his head. "Well that's good then. If this world is about to be swallowed up by some big black thing I'd like to know about it well in advance."
The two looked over the city as they stood on one of the high roads. Compared to this place Hollow Bastion looked like a playground, even stood this high you still couldn't see the end of the city.
"Where are the others?"
"Huh? Oh right, well Cid was playing with the ship last I saw him, Yuffie had gone exploring and Aerith..." He smiled thinking of Cloud. "Well she went up to the medical bay in the ship carrying her staff."
Squall crossed his arms trying not to smile. "She's still pretty mad then."
"Yeah, when Cloud wakes up I'm bet she'll knock him right back out."
Squall couldn't help but smile this time, he knew what Aerith was like when she was mad. Once when they were young he fell onto her flowers while training, then next thing he knew she was chasing him around Cid's garden threatening to plant him into the ground.
"Well, at least it's not me." Zack still had he grin. "But I'm sure he'll be fine."
Squall looked over at the city again. "I hope he wakes up soon, we don't even know what to do now."
"Ah don't worry, I'm sure Cloud's got everything planed out."
"What about Sephiroth? Any sign of him?" Squall remembered the fight between the two, Cloud had given him a good beating in the end.
"No, still licking his wounds I bet. Though after that last hit Cloud gave him, I wouldn't be surprised if we never see that freak again."
________________________
Cloud was awake before he even opened his eyes. It was the third time he had woken up though this time he couldn't hear the hum of the engines through the thick metal walls. Instead it was quite, not a sound in the room.
He guessed that they must have landed, Cid must have been able to find Zanarkand. 'At least we managed that.' The after affects of his fight started up, the countless bruises over his body made him uncomftable in any position. 'Forget it, sleep isn't coming back for a long time now.'
Cloud lifted him self off the bed and swiveled his legs over the side, as soon as he opened his eyes he saw another pair staring back at him not 3 inches away from his face. "Whoa!" He fell back from bed and found himself staring at the ceiling, his leg in the air against the bed. Aerith's head soon came into view from over the side of the bed, she wore the same expression as from a few seconds ago.
"Aerith! ahh something wrong?" He tried to sound sincere.
Aerith continued to stare down at him, Cloud could tell that this time she was really £$&%. "You."
"Me?"
She climbed up on to the bed and leaned down, her bangs hanging down close to his face. "You."
Cloud pressed his back against the floor as the angry flower girl moved closer.
"You stayed behind to fight him didn't you." Her lips thinned as she asked the question.
"Well err you could say that... but it wasn't like before I actually had too keep him away."
Cloud forced a nervous smile as Aerith put her hands on the floor either side of his head, her legs still up on the bed. She leaned closer until her nose brushed against his. "Do you have any idea how worried I was about you? You promised me that you wouldn't do something stupid like that again."
"Well... yeah but I..." His mind went blank as he tried to think of excuses. "..I'm sorry."
He felt that his explanation wasn't good enough as Aerith's eyes narrowed, but before he could speak to try again she pushed her lips up against his. Cloud was shocked at first as he expected something more like a punch than a kiss but after a few moments he took hold of her waist and pulled the rest of her body off of the bed.
Aerith fell on top of Cloud's body as he pulled her down. She felt his hands move up around her back as she continued the kiss. Her act was unplanned up until the last moment but now she was happy with her choice, every time she had wanted to share her feelings to Cloud something had gotten in her way but now they were alone and he was all hers. Even if it meant she had to give up torturing him.
Cloud sat up crossing his legs and Aerith wrapped hers around his waist, their lips never parted for an instant. He felt a bit surprised as he felt Aerith's tongue brush against his lips, he squeezed her waist a little tighter before doing the same against her soft petal like lips.
Aerith pressed her body closer to Cloud's, as her chest pushed against him she could actually feel how fast her heart was beating. She felt Cloud repeat her earlier move and she parted her lips to so they could go further. Her heart fluttered as Cloud caressed her tongue with his own, their passion growing with each second.
Cloud wondered if he should stop, but then in his mind he remembered it had been her that had always tried to get closer. The only time he dared was when he was still half controlled by his darkness. 'Stop been so weak Cloud.' He held on to Aerith's waist and stood up, the flower girl held onto his shoulders as he put her onto the side of the bed.
Closing her eyes Aerith slowly moved her hands down Cloud's arms to his waist as they continued to kiss. Her head was spinning as she felt Cloud squeeze her body, she didn't know if she should go further but then again it was tempting to just get swept away in the moment. Her feelings for Cloud had grown larger and larger ever since the first moment they had met. She knew he had feelings for her too, the times he had protected her in the past, but how strong were those feelings?
In his mind Cloud had been asking him self the same questions, he had never gone through anything like this before. His whole life had been about Soldier, but now here he was with absolutely nothing in his life but her. What scared him the most was, he didn't care, out of everything he had achieved in his life this was what he wanted.
Aerith's eyes shot open as she felt Cloud's hand slide down her side and onto her leg, his fingers brushed along her soft skin towards her thigh. She lazily lowered her eyelids again while pushing away from his lips, her breath was slow and deep. As she looked at his face her eyes lined up with his, she couldn't help but smile at how nervous he looked.
Her hand went down to Cloud's she pulled it gently along her leg pushing up the pink fabric. Cloud swallowed hard, it took most of his concentration to keep his hand from shaking madly. Aerith kissed him once more before grabbing his arms, pulling him closer as she laid back onto the bed. The blond Soldier stared wide eyed as the flower girl looked up at him, her deep green eyes captured all his attention.
Cloud leaned closer to her but stopped as he heard a loud knock. Aerith shot up from the bed nearly hitting Cloud's forehead with her own.
A white metal door slide open and Yuffie walked threw holding a tray of food. "Hey Aerith, oh Cloud your up."
Cloud nodded while rubbing the back of his neck, he took a quick glance at Aerith and saw she was avoiding eye contact. Yuffie placed the tray on the bed next to where Aerith was sat.
"So what you guys up to?" The young ninja asked curiously.
The two exchange a quick look wondering if the other would answer.
"Is something wrong?"
Aerith pushed herself off of the bed and brushed down her dress. "Nope, I was just bringing Cloud up to date."
Cloud nodded as Yuffie looked at him.
"Oh, right. Well just to let you know, this place is soo cool. It's like a huge amusement park." She lifted the lid on the tray up reveling a sandwich. "Oh yeah, I didn't know how long you'd be a sleep so I just brought this."
"It's fine, thank you."
Yuffie nodded her head feeling a little confused at how the two were acting. "Well have fun you guys." The ninja smiled and headed towards the door, she gave them another odd look before leaving.
After the door slid shut Cloud looked straight over at Aerith who did the same. After a small silence she was the first to speak.
"Well I guess I should get going to.." She smiled slightly. "Got to go shopping for some new clothes since I had to lost my bag."
Cloud nodded slowly. "Ok. I guess I should go find Cid and plan our next move."
Aerith smiled again and began to walk towards the door. "I'll see you later then." She gave him a small wave before leaving.
"Yeah. Later." He watched the metal door slide shut, inside he felt like he could explode, his mind was still spinning from what just happen.
A few moments passed before the Soldier walked over to the bed and sat down, he leaned back placing his hand behind his head. After a few minutes of just thinking things over he couldn't help but smile a little. 'Well at least I have an answer to one question. I guess I should really tell her now I know.'
__________________
Another smallish chapter I know but I thought that was a good place to end this one. Thanks to all my reviewers including the very strange person (mentioning no names...). This was the first time I tried to write a more romantic scene so I'm not sure on how well it came out, what do you think?