It had been two days later and there was no doubt about it, MeiLin was talking. It shocked Cloud at first because he wasn't sure if it was true or not. He told Reeve that they should tell the doctors but Reeve told him no. If they had done that the doctors would have given her some sedative or something and she probably wouldn't say anything anymore, and her talking was giving them helpful hints. They had been able to make out the words Chekhov and "You're crazy," but everything else was still jumbled. But they weren't giving up that easily.

Aside from that however things had been strange at the house. Yuffie seemed distant from everyone and Tifa seemed to almost be happy that she had put doubts in the young girls mind. Cloud noticed but he hadn't really said anything because he figured it was just stress. Everyone in the house was stressed actually, there wasn't any getting around that. Tifa and Cloud seemed to talk to each other more than anyone else…and Yuffie noticed. She didn't feel upset or jealous, at this time she didn't feel anything she just felt…. numb.

"How's MeiLin?" Gigio asked.

Yuffie stared off distantly in front of her as a few kids who were playing tag in the streets ran by laughing. "The same," she replied in a stoic voice.

They were in the front of the Pagoda and Yuffie was sitting down on the steps. She had come here early in the morning and had been sitting there ever since. She didn't know why she had come to the place that had held so many bad memories. Maybe because now it signified pain and it seemed to match her mood.

"Yuffie?" Gigio asked once he noticed the blank expression on her face.

"Everything is so different now," she said in a quiet voice.

Gigio furrowed his eyebrows. There was something bothering her, but he wasn't sure what it was. He was expecting her to yell at him or walk away the minute he came across her since she didn't seemed to thrilled with him the last time at the Officials meeting. But she hadn't done either of those, she just continued sitting.

"So much has changed. And I've been oblivious to it all since the beginning," she continued as a gust of wind came ruffling her hair.

Gigio was silent. He wasn't sure what she was talking about, he just figured she was talking to get some things off her chest.

She blinked rapidly before looking up to Gigio. "Why are you here anyways?" She asked as her breath came out in cold white puffs.

The man pushed up his glasses as he gave a slight grin. He had been listening to her trying to figure out what was wrong that he had completely forgot why he had went out looking for her in the first place. "It's over," he said as his grin began to widen.

"What's over?" Yuffie asked with a confused expression on her face.

"The whole investigation. The person responsible for all this was taken into custody at about three o'clock this morning," he explained.

The girls eyes widen, "are you serious!?" She asked in a surprised tone.

"Yes Lady Kisiragi," He replied with a laugh.

"Oh my gawd!" Yuffie exclaimed as she jumped off the steps and into Gigio's arms. Her heart was beating quickly and suddenly her depressed mood was changing into a happy one.

"It's finally over," he said as he held the ninja tightly, "it's finally over."

"Her name is Kira Sasaki, she's twenty three and a full fledged Shinobi. Unfortunately her family use to work for the Kisiragi's back when you were just a baby," One of the Wutai generals explained to Yuffie. "She's been to prison twice for violence crimes. She says Wutai is the enemy, and that's all she keeps saying."

Yuffie stared deathly at the young woman behind the glass who was being questioned by two Wutai Soldiers. She was glaring evilly at the two while saying "I didn't do anything," or "You're the enemy."

"She's the one who killed Chekhov too?" Yuffie asked still never taking her sight of the girl.

"Yes," the general replied, "her fingerprints were all over the sword that was used against Chekhov."

A moment later Cloud and Reeve entered along with Gigio who was explaining everything to them. Yuffie turned to look at them as they approached.

"That's the girl?" Reeve asked as he looked through the glass.

"Yeah, that's Kira Sasaki," Gigio said with a deep sigh, "Everything points towards her. There's no way she can deny it."

Cloud walked over to Yuffie as she turned back to look at the girl. "You okay?" He asked quietly. She simply nodded as she kept her gaze fixed straight ahead.

"She'll be sent to Junon prison tomorrow morning, they'll sentence her there. But with the counts she'll have against her there's no doubt about it that it'll be death."

Yuffie didn't feel any sympathy for the girl even though she was still yelling, "It wasn't me," with teary eyes and a red face. She was glad she was getting what she deserved.

Everyone's focus turned to the door as Liana entered. She walked over to the others with a small smile on her face. She held out her hand to Reeve, "I think an apology from us is in order," she explained.

Reeve smiled before accepting her hand, "From us too," he said.

"It's only natural that under these circumstances would we be leery on who we could trust. But we should have listened to Yuffie from the beginning," Liana said as she turned her gaze to the young girl.

The shinobi smiled, "Yeah you should have," she said with a laugh.

"Cloud?" Liana asked as she held out her hand to him.

He hesitated for a moment before accepting her hand,he was still getting a weird vibe from her.

Yuffie sighed, "It's been a long, but good day," she began, "But I'm tired. We can finish this tomorrow when she's on her way to Junon right?"

"Of course, " Gigio said as he began to lead her out of the room as the others followed, "and seeing her off to Junon will be the last thing to finish all of this up."

Everyone dispersed as Yuffie, Cloud and Reeve began to go back to the house.

"Well that's it," Reeve began with a smile, "all of this finally ended because she carelessly misplaced her sword with her fingerprints all over it."

"Finally she made an airhead move," Yuffie replied with a grin. The three laughed as they continued on to the house, talking and laughing like old times before any of this had happened. Yuffie stopped when they were about a block away from the house.

"I don't think I'm going to go back just yet," she said softly.

"Maybe we should go out and celebrate," Reeve said before he saw the uncertain glance that Yuffie shot Cloud. "Or actually maybe we can do that tomorrow," he continued, "I'll meet you two back at the house later," he finished before turning to leave.

The ex-soldier gave Yuffie a questioning look. "What's wrong?" He asked her as he saw the uneasy expression on her face.

She hesitated a moment while running a hand through her hair. She knew what she had to do, but she didn't want too. "Things are going back to the way they were," she started in a soft voice, "I'm happy about that…I guess."

Cloud nodded, "You should be," he replied, still unsure of what she was getting it.

"So then this is kind of it for us," she said.

The blonde blinked, "What?" He asked, "No, Yuffie just because this is over doesn't mean we are," he explained.

"You're going back to Midgar and I'm staying here…how can that work?" She asked as her eyes searched his for an answer.

"I'll leave Midgar," he said without hesitation.

"You would do that?" Yuffie asked in a surprised tone.

"Yes," Cloud replied in a soft voice.

Yuffie's eyes began to water. She wanted it to be that easy, but it wasn't, and what she was going to do next was killing her. She shook her head, "It doesn't matter," she said in barely a whisper.

"What?" Cloud asked confused.

"I mean us, we're not going to work," she said a little louder.

Cloud's eyes widened. 'Is she serious?' He thought to himself. "Why? Just because-," he began before she quickly cut in.

"No, it doesn't have anything to do with where we live," she said, "It's just now that I think about everything…. I think we rushed into this," she lied.

"Rushed?" He asked more confused than ever.

'Please don't make this harder for me,' she thought as she looked at the confused and hurt expression on his face. "I think with everything that was going on we got together for the wrong reasons," she explained trying not to let her voice break.

Cloud was in shock. He couldn't believe she was saying this. Didn't she say that she loved him? Didn't she say she wanted him by her side? What was with the sudden switch? It was so…unexpected. He looked at the ground before continuing, "Does this have anything to do with Reno?" He asked finally while looking back into her eyes.

'NO!' She screamed inwardly. 'Gawd Reno is the last person on my mind! I love you Cloud, I do. But for so many reasons we can't be together. Right?' "Maybe," she said in a quiet tone. "Maybe it's about Tifa."

"Tifa?" He asked. 'No way, what does she have to do with anything,' the ex-soldier thought. "Yuffie I don't-," he started before she cut him off again.

"You still love her Cloud," the ninja stated simply.

"I don't love her!" he said trying to get her to understand.

"You kissed her," Yuffie replied calmly, "Cloud you obviously still have feelings for her. I don't want to get in the way of that, and I don't want you to lie to yourself."

"I," Cloud began as he thought back to that time in Midgar at the park. Yuffie had found out about it somehow, and he was pretty sure that "somehow" was "Tifa." But she had gotten the story totally wrong. "No I don't. I mean I do but they're different. And I didn't kiss her, she kissed me," Cloud explained.

Yuffie was silent as she looked at the ground beneath her.

"Yuffie," Cloud began as he stepped up to her and placed his hands on the sides of her arms, "I shouldn't have to convince you of my feelings. You know how I feel about you. You know I love you. Whatever you heard, or whatever is making you have doubts about us…don't listen too it," he explained in a quiet voice.

'Please stop,' Yuffie said to herself. This was complete torture for her, but she had too do it. She wanted nothing more than to tell him that she loved him and throw her arms around his neck and kiss him until she ran out of air. But she couldn't…not if he still had feelings for Tifa, and she couldn't hurt her friend anymore.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly.

Cloud shook his head, "No Yuffie don't do this," he said as he tightened his grip on her arms.

She continued to look at the ground as a few crystal tears escaped from her eyes.

"The only way I'm going to let you go is if you can look me in the eye, and tell me that you don't love me and that this is what you really want," the blonde said firmly as he kept his focus on the girl before him.

Yuffie looked up and into his eyes and nearly began to bawl. She could feel the love he had for her just from the look he was giving her. It was almost as if she could read him completely by looking into those glowing mako blue eyes. She knew he meant what he said, and he wasn't going to budge unless she could tell him that. Thing was she didn't think she could say a bold face lie to his face like that. But what other choice did she have.

"I," she began while still looking him straight in the eye, " I don't love you, I was…just at a vulnerable spot" she said in a steady tone as she felt Cloud's hands leave from off the sides of her arms. He stared at her in disbelief. He didn't really think she would say it…but she did…and it hurt…a lot.

She looked at him trying to figure out what was running through his head. She could tell by his body language that what she had just said was having a big effect on him, and she hated herself for it.

He took a step back from her as he nodded, "Fine. That's all I needed to hear," he said quietly before he turned and walked away.

Yuffie's breath caught in her throat as she tried to absorb what had jus happened. She let the tears she had been holding in spill freely now. She literally felt as if she had just had the wind knocked out of her. 'What is the matter with you! You're really going to let him walk away like that? How could you be so stupid!' She yelled inwardly as she clutched her head with both hands. Running a hand through her hair she tried to pull herself together, she didn't want to have a breakdown right in the middle of Wutai.

She decided to go back home and just lock herself in her room. She really didn't want to see Cloud, she wouldn't be able to handle it. But she was pretty sure he wasn't there. She trudged into the front door slowly. It seemed pretty quiet except for she could hear the faint sounds of the television and the occasional flicker of light from the screen. She turned the corner to see Tifa curled up on the couch. The brunette turned to look at her when she heard her footsteps.

"So that's that?" She asked.

'That's that? Is she talking about me and Cloud?' The ninja thought before narrowing her eyes. "What?"

"Well you guys found out who was responsible for all this right? So that's the end of it," she explained.

"Oh," Yuffie began shaking her head slightly while blinking, "Yeah that's that." She looked down the hall before speaking again. "Where is everyone?"

Tifa sat up, "Reeve went to the hospital, they called about MeiLin. Cloud was here a second ago but Reeve wanted him to come down also so he went there."

"I see," Yuffie replied in a quiet tone.

"He seemed sort of upset though," the brunette said as she gave Yuffie a questioning glare.

The shinobi sighed, "I'll be back later."

Tifa frowned, "Where are you going so late?"

'I'm not going to see Reno!' She said to herself as she rolled her eyes, "I just need to clear my mind," she said before walking out of the door. 'Does she know what I did for her? Well…. maybe also for Cloud. He'd be happier with her right? ' She wasn't sure of anything right about now. She felt as if she were walking in a dreamy haze, or more of a nightmare. It was strange because after the whole investigation was over she would think she would be ecstatic, but instead she was the exact opposite. I mean yeah sure she was glad that the murderer had been caught, she wanted nothing more than to catch the person who took her friends life. But she still had this void. A void that she was sure only Cloud could fill.

"Cloud," she mumbled to herself as she began walking away from the house. She thought back to the time when he arrived in Wutai. Gawd that was such a surprise, she thought she might never see him again at one point in time. But there he was. It was weird how things changed so drastically between them over time. It started out as two friends reuniting and turned into something great, and yet ended terribly. "Stop complaining," she said to herself. 'Just cherish the time you two had together,' she thought sadly. A moment later she found herself at Dao Chao. It really was the only place that she could think clearly at and get some perspective, and now that Kira was caught things were back to normal. She sighed as she lay back in the palm of the mountain. She looked up at the stars, they were so beautiful. 'If only Cloud could be here with me to see this. Actually I don't think he ever came on Dao Chao with me. That would be funny too see, I wonder if he could even climb it,' she thought to herself with a laugh. 'Hold on, there you go again thinking about Cloud,' she said to herself as she closed her eyes. She opened them up quickly when she heard a few rocks slide down the side of the mountain. But it was nothing, that happened all the time. And besides nobody else would climb Dao Chao at night.

" The doctors said she woke up earlier," Reeve explained with a smile as he held MeiLin's hand, "She's out of her coma, she's just resting right now."

Cloud smiled, he was glad his friend was all right. He took a seat, "I'm glad that she's better," he said.

Reeve glanced at him from the corner of his eye before letting go of MeiLin's hand. "Is everything okay?"

Cloud looked at him and then back at the woman in front of him.

Reeve sighed, "I knew something was up," he began.

The blonde shook his head, "Don't worry about it," he said trying not to talk about it anymore.

Reeve was about to speak again when MeiLin shifted in bed. The two men looked at her as she slowly opened her eyes and gave a small smile.

"MeiLin," Reeve said in shock as he took her hand again. Even though the doctors said she was okay it was still a sight to see.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to worry anyone," she said lazily as her smile widened.

"How do you feel?" Cloud asked as he moved closer to her side.

"Mm," she began as she moved a little, "Like hell," she said with a small laugh.

Cloud and Reeve smiled, it was good that she had a sense of humor considering with all she went through.

"Don't worry everything is fine now. We got her," Reeve said as he stroked her hair.

"You did?" MeiLin asked in shock as she tried to sit up, "how did you figure it out?"

Reeve eased her back down before continuing, "Her fingerprints were all on the weapon that she used against Chekhov."

MeiLin shook her head, "How could that be? She wore gloves, she wouldn't be dumb enough to get fingerprints on her weapon."

Cloud's eyes widened, "Kira Sasaki?" He asked curiously.

"Who!?" MeiLin said a little loudly, "Whose that?"

"Mei what are you talking about?" Reeve asked as a worried expression crossed over his face, "They have Kira Sasaki in custody."

"It wasn't Kira?" Cloud asked as he stood up out of his seat.

"No," MeiLin said with wide eyes, "Where's Yuffie!?"

The ninja continued to gaze up at the stars as she let the thoughts run through her mind. She was so focused on them that she didn't notice when a pair of footsteps approached about ten feet behind her. However she quickly sat up when she heard the sound of gravel falling. She spun around to see a figure draped in black with nothing visible but the eyes. This was definitely the same girl she had fought in Kalm. But she was supposed to be….

"Kira?" the shinobi said in a confused tone as she stood to her feet.

"Not hardly," the person said in a quiet voice.

'That voice sounds vaguely familiar?' The ninja thought.

'Shit come on answer the phone!" The blonde shouted inwardly as he waited for someone to answer the phone back at the Kisiragi residence.

"Hello?"

"Tifa, is Yuffie there?" Cloud asked eagerly as he exited out of the hospital in a sprint with Reeve trailing behind him.

"Oh no,she stepped out," Tifa replied.

'Damn no!' He thought as he quickened his pace. "Do you know where she went?" He asked slightly out of breath.

"Uh no all she said was she needed to go clear her mind or something like that," the brunette answered.

"Dao Chao!' The ex-soldier exclaimed to himself. If there was one thing he knew it was that that was where Yuffie always went when she needed some time to herself, or rather "clear her mind."

"What's going on?" Tifa asked in a curious tone.

"I got to go Teef," the blonde said rapidly before hanging up. 'Please be okay Yuffie please.' He had already not been there for her in Kalm when she was in trouble, he couldn't let that happen again, he wouldn't.

"But of course nobody will know that the girl in custody isn't guilty. The only people who can testify are you and MeiLin. And she's in coma and your soon to be with Chekhov," the girl continued on with an evil laugh as she pulled out her katana that seemed to shine brightly in the moonlight.

Yuffie's heart dropped. This had been just like the nightmare she had a while ago. Was it a sign? Was this how it was supposed to be? How it was supposed to end?

"What the hell do you want?" She asked through clenched teeth.

"It's obvious by now isn't it?" The girl replied in a sarcastic tone, "What I want is your blood on this blade," she said as she twirled the sword.

"Why," Yuffie asked in a low tone as she glared at the girl.

"Why?" The person asked with a laugh, "She wants to know why," she said as if someone else were around. "I'll let you know why! Because my family served the Kisiragi's for generations! If it weren't for everything my family put into this country it wouldn't be what it is today! I was there from the beginning, since I was fourteen! I did everything asked of me, even when your mother was alive I was there! I obeyed every rule and did everything to please the Kisiragi's!" She yelled as she took a step up, "And yet…that wasn't good enough! I did anything without back talking, unlike you! I was more of a daughter to Lord Godo than you ever were! But do I get recognized for that? No! I was there by his side when he was on his deathbed! Where were you? Out playing Super Hero, as your father was dying! You were out being praised for saving the world. That's all you ever wanted, just to be in the spotlight!" She shouted. She stopped for a moment as she caught her breath, " And still…he makes you "Lady Kisiragi, leader of Wutai! When you weren't even here! You could care less about Wutai! You don't have the right to be Leader! I was there! It should've been me! I was more of a daughter, more worthy than you ever could be!"

Yuffie's eyes were wide, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. There was no doubt in her mind, she knew who it was now. "Liana," she whispered in disbelief as the woman charged at her. The ninja tried to catch her balance as she stumbled back a little causing her to fall. Liana was on top of her and she was trying desperately to get her off. They were close to the edge of the mountain, one wrong move and they both would be splattered against the ground. She finally was able to kick her off as she quickly scrambled away from the edge.

But Liana was quick…very quick. She was right back in front of the ninja before she could even get up. She swung the katana at her in every direction but the Shinobi dodged them. 'Shit,' Yuffie thought, 'Fighting on a mountain isn't easy.' She was deathly afraid of falling off, and ever since her nightmare it only made it worse. She dropped down to her knees and kicked Liana knocking her off her feet. She tried quickly to grab the Katana from her, but she was serious about not letting go. Yuffie ripped off her mask in the struggle and nearly gasped. She knew it was Liana, but to actually see her face made her want to cry and at the same time beat the hell out of her. She killed Chekhov and didn't seem to care at all. That thought fueled the ninja as she got in a good hit to Liana's face. But Liana managed to push the ninja off of her with the katana still in hand as she jumped to her feet. Yuffie did the same as they stared venomously at each other.

"You're a feisty one," Liana said with a laugh as she switch the blade to her other hand.

"Burn in hell!" The ninja spat.

"I'll see you there!" Liana shouted as she ran full force towards Yuffie catching her off guard. She knocked her back while cutting her arm in the process. The two fell on the ground as they teetered on the edge.

"This is where you say goodnight!" Liana said as she pushed Yuffie and rolled back.

The ninja was hanging on the side of the mountain, the only thing keeping her from falling was the strong grasp that she had on the fingers of Dao Chao. Liana stood above her looking down. "You were such a pain in the ass, even when you were younger I couldn't stand you. I'm really not going to miss you," she said as she held the katana above her head, getting ready to plunge it at the ninja. Yuffie closed her eyes as she looked away before she heard a scream and a loud thud. She slowly opened her eyes as she looked back up to see Liana getting up off the ground as well as another figure…. with blonde hair. 'Cloud!' She screamed inwardly.

"Don't get in the way!" Liana exclaimed as she swung the katana at the ex-soldier.

"Cloud!" Yuffie called as she tried to pull herself up, but it wasn't easy.

"I'll kill you if I have too!" Liana continued shouting as she kept trying to hit Cloud with the blade. But he was quick from all the battles he had been in. He definitely had the fighting skills.

"Yuffie!" A voice from down below called.

The ninja looked down to see Reeve climbing up the mountain.

"I'm slipping!" She shouted.

"Hold on I'm coming!" He yelled back.

The blonde caught the blade between his hands as Liana swung at him. He did it so that he wouldn't be cut as he used all of his force to push her back, causing her to fall down one level.

"Yuffie!" He yelled as he raced over to the side of the mountain. She was only hanging on with one hand now and her heart was racing as she looked down below and realized how high up she was.

"Cloud!" She called out in fright as her fingers began to slip. He came to her side and grabbed her arm just as she was about to fall. He began pulling her up as she grabbed onto his arm with her other hand.

"Cloud watch out!" Reeve called from down below. Liana had gotten back up and was about to stab Cloud right in the back before Yuffie pulled herself up quickly and kicked the sword out of her hand.

"No!" Liana screamed as she raced over to the katana but Yuffie was already two steps behind her. She dived for the katana and held it out to Liana right at her stomach. Cloud stepped up behind Liana and Yuffie continued to hold the sword in front of her. That was it, she was trapped. She looked around frantically but realized there wasn't much else she could do. It was either try to attack Yuffie who had the sword, or try to run past Cloud but he would be able to grab her with ease. The only other option would be to jump off of Dao Chao.

Liana laughed, "You got me," she said in an almost crazy tone. "You seriously caught me." Yuffie walked up to her as Liana backed up, tripping over a stone so that she was flat on her back.

"I'll kill you!" Yuffie screamed as she held the katana above Liana.

"Yuffie!" Cloud and Reeve shouted.

"Don't do it," Reeve said as he finally reached the same level they were on.

"Why not!" Yuffie shouted with tears in her eyes, "She killed Chekhov! A life for a life right!?"

Liana smiled, "Exactly. Do it. I would."

'I would.' Those last two words rang through Yuffie's head. Liana would do it if the tables were turned.

"You're right," Liana continued, "I killed Chekhov and tried to kill you in Kalm, in Midgar and now here, why wouldn't you want to get rid of me?"

Yuffie's whole body was shaking in anger and sadness. Her mind was yelling 'Kill this bitch!' But the words 'I would,' kept repeating over and over in her head. And that was exactly why she couldn't do it. She couldn't be like her.

The ninja let out a scream as she slammed the sword in the ground about one inch away from Liana's head. Liana closed her eyes thinking that was the end, but slowly opened them when she realized what Yuffie had done.

Reeve walked over to Liana and looked down at her. "Just because she didn't kill you, don't think you're lucky. Once "Shinra" sentences you for what you did, you're going to wish she would have killed you," he said in a voice that neither Cloud nor Yuffie had ever heard him use before.

Liana's eyes widened as she began to laugh. She was starting to lose it, she knew Reeve was right. Her life was ruined, her plan crushed. She would never be able to have a normal life again. What was the point of living? She sat up slowly as Cloud moved next to Yuffie.

"You're right," Liana said quietly as she stood up. "I fucked up big time I guess."

Yuffie stared deathly at her as she continued to talk. Liana smiled, "I don't expect you to ever forgive me. I don't know what I was thinking to rule Wutai with this much blood on my hands. How could I ever have felt proud or lived up to Lord Godo's expectations after doing all of that?" She backed up as she shook her head with tears now streaming her face, "I don't deserve to live, you're right."

"Liana," Yuffie said as her eyes grew wide noticing how close she was coming to the edge of the mountain.

"My name is tainted now, I'll be a disgrace to my family," she continued as she neared the edge, "I only wanted to be treated like how your father and everyone treated you. You seemed so…loved. I just wanted that too."

"Liana!" Yuffie shouted now that the woman was right on the edge.

"I'm so sorry," the woman said before taking one final step backwards off of Dao Chao.

"No!" Yuffie exclaimed as she watched in horror. She couldn't believe that she had just did that. "No," she said quietly as she dropped to her knees sobbing. Cloud knelt down next to her and took her in his arms. She wrapped her arms around him tightly and cried like it was the end. It was strange, but even considering all the things Liana did she didn't want her to die. She knew she went about everything the wrong way, but she was obviously damaged and scarred. She was seeking attention that she never got, her family didn't treat her right. Or her father anyways. It all made sense, she saw Godo as a father figure and felt completely abandoned when he died. She was jealous of Yuffie and at the same time wanted to be like her. Liana had always been around ever since Yuffie was young, so for her to be gone now was…unbelievable. Things shouldn't have been this way.

Reeve sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. A second later he was on his cell phone and calling people to inform them of the false arrest.

Yuffie just stayed there crying in Cloud's arms. Her whole world felt like it had been turned upside down.