That Fateful Moment: Meetings Part 2 (Aeris' POV)

I haven't updated as quick as I wish I could've, however...ummm...there was some trouble..with being able to get on it and type up the story...however here is chapter 4, meetings part 2. I hope that you all like this part (and I hope that after a bit of time I'm not losing my touch (LOL))

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I stood there in the dark room, as Cloud and Barret were about to open the mysterious coffin. I held my breath, not knowing what might lie inside. They had just put their hands on the top of the coffin when it, suddenly burst open. There he stood, the man with the crimson eyes! He looked so intimidating and fearsome. He was tall, and had long black hair that almost completely hid his face. His clothing was all black, and was hidden behind a blood-red cloak. On his left arm, he wore a bronze claw which made him look all the more fearsome. He looked towards Cloud and Barret, both who were still in shock from what had jumped out of the coffin, and then his eyes met mine. They went wide with shock and I could tell that he had remembered who I was. I was transfixed onto him, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't tear my gaze, until finally I felt my blood rush to my cheeks. I turned my head so as to break the spell. He quickly turned back to Cloud and Barret, and with a very harsh voice he bellowed out.

"Leave NOW and let me rest!" I was slightly shocked to hear such a strong tone come from this man, since he was far from the size of Barret, yet it seemed he had a lot more strength. Knowing Cloud, he wouldn't let anyone order him around like that.

"Let ya rest? You should be glad we woke ya up...it's the middle of the day for cryin' out loud!!!!! How long you been here?" I was slightly surprised to find Barret being the first to speak up but nevertheless, I guess that would have been expected too. Since Barret himself was also a man who wouldn't take kindly to being pushed around.

"That's none of your business now GET OUT! And LEAVE ME BE!!" Just as I had suspect Cloud decided to make his presence known.

"Geez, that's no way to treat your guests." He began to walk closer towards the mysterious man. I had seen that a fire had begun to light in his eye as Cloud casually leaned against his coffin. "I mean the least you could have done was greet us with a hello. What's your name?" I could sense that this man had had just about enough of Cloud, so I quickly intervened before he could push this man over the edge.

"That's enough Cloud. He obviously doesn't want to be bothered!!" Cloud gave me a harsh look for a second, angered by the fact that I had ordered him to stop. But after a minute he sighed and looked over towards the man.

"Alright, Alright...we have better things to do like going after Sephiroth than wasting our time wi-" Cloud was cut off as the man nearly jumped out of his coffin at the mention of the name.

"SEPHIROTH!!!! You know Sephiroth? How?!" Cloud tried to reply as coolly and calmly as he could, I guess trying to make it seem that he was better than this man.

"Yeah, I know Sephiroth; I used to work with him a few years ago before he lost his mind." Then, it had finally clicked into Cloud that this man had also known Sephiroth. Typical I thought...too concerned with himself to pay attention to what was going on around him. His ego had gotten the best of him again. "Wait... You know Sephiroth too! Can you tell us what you know about him?!" I looked towards the man hoping that he would give us some information about our adversary. I saw as he glanced at me and for a moment, his eyes slightly softened. He sighed and sat down in his coffin.

"Alright I'll tell you. But you have to tell me what YOU know after!" Cloud quickly replied

"Yeah, sure...I have nothing to hide." The man glared at Cloud for a moment before he began his tale. I was awestruck at the amount of knowledge that he had of Sephiroth. When he had finished, we all sat there absorbing what he had just told us. As I sat there amazed, Cloud stood up and looked at the man. "That was a very interesting and informative story you told us." Cloud stood there deep in thought before he looked back to where the man sat in his coffin. "Well, I suppose you want me to say my part of the story so I won't keep you waiting. Where should I begin? Five years ago Sephiroth and I were on our way to Nibelheim. We had received word about..." When cloud had finished, he looked towards Barret and me, before looking back towards the man. "Thanks...uhhh...dare I ask your name again?" I waited for him to reply. It seemed like forever had passed until he sighed and spoke.

"Vincent Valentine." His name flooded my thoughts. I knew I wouldn't be able to get it out of my head even if I tried. I barely heard Cloud and Barret give their names; I was so engrossed with this Vincent. I finally snapped back into reality to find everyone looking at me waiting for me to say my name.

"Aeris Gainsborough." I could tell by the look in Vincent's eyes that, that was a name he was intending on remembering. Cloud spoke not too long after.

"Hey! I have an idea...why don't you come with us Vince? We're going after Sephiroth and we can sure use your help." I looked at Vincent expectantly. Surprisingly, I wanted him to reply yes. I wanted him to come with us badly. This was such a strange feeling for me.

"Thanks for your offer, but I'm going to have to refuse." I felt my hopes shatter, I felt let down. But all the same, I had to brush it off, after all, I couldn't control what Vincent wanted to do with his life.

"Can I ask why?" Cloud, as always needed his closure as to why Vincent chose not to come. I turned back to Vincent, hoping he'd give a good reason as to why.

"My own reasons." His own reasons? I was slightly disappointed to hear that, that was his only reason. Nevertheless, I couldn't do anything about it. That was his decision and his decision alone.

"Alright, if that's what you want. See ya later Vince. The offer's still on the table for a day if you feel like taking it up. Till next time...oh and try to greet us with a hello." Cloud laughed as he left the room.

"Um...have a good...sleep there Vincent." Barret shook his head and followed Cloud out of the room. I was left alone with Vincent. I looked at him and smiled.

"It's too bad you don't want to come along Vincent. Maybe I'll see you around sometime, if I'm ever back here in Nibelheim." I turned and followed Cloud and Barret out of the room. When I had joined them outside, we began to walk towards the staircase. We had gotten to the foot of the stairs when I heard a yell come from back where Vincent's room was.

"WAIT!" We turned to find Vincent running over towards us. My heart leapt, as I thought he must have changed his mind. "The monsters in this mansion will attack you if I'm not with you, the least I can do is bring you to the door." I felt my spirits drop a bit, but at least I was going to be able to spend a little bit more time with Vincent. He walked ahead of as he led us through the mansion. True to his word, none of the monsters came anywhere near us. "See? It's a lot faster this way." Once we had reached the door and gotten outside, Cloud and Barret gave their thanks to Vincent and were on their way. I however hesitated to make such a hasty, goodbye and stood there for a minute. Not knowing exactly what to say I looked towards the sky.

"Hmm...it's going to rain soon. Well, I better follow the others. See you later." I ran over to Cloud and Barret. That's all I could say? It's going to rain, see you later? As I walked down the street, I looked back towards the mansion to find that Vincent had already walked back inside. I wish he would have come. I needed to know what exactly this strange reaction I had towards him was. I thought to myself that tomorrow, I would get up early and go say goodbye to Vincent before we left. Along the way, Barret and Cloud were talking about the encounter in the mansion.

"Why do ya think he would want to stay there?" Barret looked towards Cloud.

"I have no idea, but whatever the reason, I'm sure he found it more important to stay." We walked into the inn. It wasn't too long before Tifa came Bursting in and wrapped her arms around Cloud. I sighed to myself as they walked up the stairs and out of sight. Barret looked towards me, as red came through the door.

"Alright, who wants to come to the bar? Ya don't have ta drink Aeris...it will keep ya from going to your room and doin' nothin'" I nodded as Red and I followed Barret into the bar. I couldn't help but think of Vincent as the thunder boomed outside. After about an hour of watching Barret drink shots of whiskey, I decided that I might as well go to my room. I said goodnight to Barret and Red, and walked out of the bar. I was just about to move towards the stairs when the door to the inn opened. I paid no heed to it at first but when I glanced at who stood there, my breath caught in my chest.

"...Vincent?!"

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And there's Chapter 4 I hope you all enjoyed it...I'll try to update as soon as I possibly can.