Church in slums

Cloud opened his eyes and blinked the a few times to clear the haze. He sat up amazed to be alive and looked down at the ground. He was in what looked like a flower bed. But in the slums? Slowly he got to his feet and looked around he saw the front door and was just about to head for it but a wound woman's voice from behind him made him turn around.

"Oh you're awake." The voice said.

Cloud turned around with his hand on his sword ready to fight but relaxed when he saw the flower girl that sold him the flower. She was dressed in a long pink dress with her hair in a braded tail and a pink bow.

"My flower bed broke your fall." She said looking down at the smashed flowers.

"Oh sorry." Cloud said jumping off of the flowers.

"Don't worry." The flower girl said. "Their quite resilient."

She walked over to the flowers and brushed her hand against some of the undamaged ones.

"Flowers don't usually grow in the Slums but this place is different." She said. "Something about the ground."

"Who are you?" Cloud asked.

"Oh I'm sorry." She said. "My name is Aeris Gainsborough."

"You're gonna have to write that one down for me." Cloud joked as he rubbed the back of his head. "My name's Cloud."

Aeris giggled and looked up at the door and her smile quickly faded.

"Oh no their back." She said taking a step back.

"Who?" Cloud asked.

"The Turks." Aeris said. "Let's get out of here.

Cloud had heard about the Shinra group that did all the dirty work and knew that he should take Aeris's advice and make a run for it. Seeing as there were several armed men at the front door he followed Aeris into the back of the church. It was just a store room but the decayed support beams for the roof had fallen and left an escape rout for them both.

"Come on lets go." Aeris called down at him as she headed to the roof.

'Athletic.' Cloud thought as he watched her climb up.

He couldn't help but notice her legs going underneath the dress and almost let out a whistle but thought of how badly Tifa would pound him into the ground if she found out. With that image in his mind he completely missed the view that Aeris gave him as she swung her leg over a rafter and pulled herself up. Soon the room was filled with the sound of gunfire and Aeris and Cloud took cover behind a thick wooden beam.

"Stop firing you dumb shit." A man in a suit yelled pulling a hand gun and shooting the man in the head. "We need here alive."

The others got the point and lowered their weapons. Cloud and Aeris used that moment to make a break for a hole that was in the roof.

"Shit go after them." The man yelled pushing the soldiers forward.

Cloud and Aeris bolted out of the churches roof and ran across the rooftops of other buildings until they were sure they had lost the soldiers until they stopped.

"Why are they back?" Aeris said to no one specific. "They've left me alone for over a year now."

"What's going on?" Cloud asked.

"They were the Turks." Aeris said. "They have been after me all of my life but have never caught me. But for the past year they have left me alone."

"Well I'd say their back." Cloud said looking over Aeris's shoulder to see if any of them were coming. "Looks like we lost them."

"Yea but not for long." Aeris said. "Listen I have a question."

"What is it?" Cloud asked.

"Have you ever done any bodyguard work?" She asked.

"Not much." Cloud said.

"Well I need a bodyguard." Aeris said. "Can you do it? I don't have much money but…How about a date?"

Cloud looked at Aeris with wonder in his eyes then looked her up and down and smiled.

"You got a bodyguard." He said.

"Great." Aeris said jumping a little. "All we need to do is get to my house and we'll be safe they won't try anything with lots of people around."

"Ok let's get going before they catch up." Cloud said seeing the soldiers in the distance looking for them.

Aeris led the way through the slums and right up to her front door step. She stopped and turned to cloud.

"Thanks for the help." She said with a smile.

"Don't worry about it." Cloud said. "It was on my way back to Sector 7."

"Sector 7 is still a long way." Aeris said. "Why don't you spend the night tonight then you can go back in the morning full strength."

"No that's ok." Cloud said. "My friends are probably looking for me."

"I insist." Aeris said grabbing Cloud by the wrist and dragging him through the door.

Before Cloud knew it he was standing in the living room of Aeris's house that she shared with her mother.

"Mom I'm home." Aeris called out as she walked through the living room.

There was the sound of running feet from the floor above and Aeris's mom came running down the stairs and hugged her tightly.

"I'm so glad your home." She said. "Those bastards from Shinra were here looking for you."

"I know." Aeris said. "They found me at the church."

"Are you ok?" Her mother asked.

"I'm fine." Aeris said. "Cloud here dropped in and saved me."

Aeris's mother looked over at cloud and smiled.

"Thank you for helping her." She said. 'Those eyes.'

She turned to Aeris and hugged her again.

"Can you go make up the guest room?" She asked Aeris.

"Yea sure." Aeris said and bounced up the stairs.

"You're Soldier aren't you?" She asked.

"Ex-Soldier." Cloud said. "I left the service a few years ago."

"Listen I think you should leave." Aeris's mother said. "It's not personal mind you, it's just that Aeris is a special girl."

"What do you mean?" Cloud asked.

"I'm not her mother." She said. "My husband went off to fight in a war, he was gone for a long time. Well one day I received a letter from him saying he was coming home. I went to the Train station to meet him but he wasn't there. I waited all day but he never arrived. I went back everyday but he was never there. Then one day when I got there there was a lady lying on the ground bleeding from what looked like a bullet wound. She had a little girl with her."

"Aeris." Cloud said understanding.

"That's right." She said. "Well before she died her real mother told me that she was the last of the Ancients. I didn't know what she meant but she asked me to look after her and keep her safe from Shinra. She died a few minutes later and the little girl was all alone but she didn't cry. And me being alone as well at least until my husband got home. I took her in."

She sighed and looked at a picture on the fireplace mantel.

"Well Aeris came down stairs soon after I took her in she looked at me with a serious face and said for me not to be sad. I asked her what she meant and she told me that she just spoke with my husband. She said that he said that he loved me but that he wouldn't be coming home. I didn't believe her of course, but soon after that I got another letter in the mail saying that my husband was killed in action. I never doubted her after that."

Cloud looked at her with a disbelieving look on his face and she knew that he didn't believe her at all.

"I know it's far fetched but it's true." She said. "Now I think you should go before Aeris come back down stairs."

Cloud nodded and headed for the door but just then he heard shoes running down the stairs.

"Cloud up here." Aeris called poking her head around the corner of the wall.

He looked at Aeris's mother and shrugged then headed upstairs after Aeris. She led him into a small but cozy looking room with a small one person bed that had fresh linen on it.

"You can stay here tonight then we'll get you back to Sector 7." Aeris said.

"We?" Cloud asked.

"Well yea." Aeris said. "You still have to go through sector 4 to get to Seventh Heaven."

Before Cloud could say anything Aeris was out the door and heading down the stairs. He stood in the middle of the room with his mouth open as if to say something but finally just shrugged and looked over at the bed and suddenly felt very tired.

'I'll just sneak out in the morning.' He thought as he laid down and fell asleep.