Author's Note: I'm so sorry! It's been forever since I've updated! I'll try to update more often from now on, but I'm not gonna promise anything, alright?

DISCALIMER: I DON'T OWN IT, BUT I WISH I DID!

Welcoming the Light 6

Voices assaulted her ears, voices that were slightly familiar. But the throbbing pain in her temples made her want them to go away, even though memory was itching at the back of that annoyance. A warmth had also encased her hand as well, and as she tried to force herself from sleep, she realized it was a hand, warmly enveloping her own, making her feel safe enough to let herself slowly wake up, rather than force it.

Minutes later, the voices still quietly bombarding her, she let her eyes flutter open and absorb the sights. She was in a hospital room, or what looked like one, she realized with and odd sense of de-ja-vu. Machines quietly beeped or did whatever noise they were supposed to, and overall the room wasn't too intimidating despite them. In fact, it was almost homey, especially with the oddly familiar voices in the next room.

Cloud then turned her attention to the warm hand gripping her own, careful of the IV needles that stuck out of her veins at odd angles to supply her with who knew what. Slowly, she let her eyes trace upwards, lingering on the arm before finding the face of the person who so doted on her.

As soon as her eyes landed on the slumbering girl, memories flashed through her mind as fast as lightening. A pain in her chest, being submerged in water, a feeling of impeding death, and then warmth and happiness… she let her memories trail off as emotions swamped her, making her feel as though she was on a dizzying roller coaster.

Suddenly, the closed eyes snapped open, looking into Cloud's face. Emotions chased each other across the face that was so familiar to Cloud. Slowly, ever so slowly, both girls reach up to touch the other's face, both thinking the same thing as tears threatened to spill from their eyes and their hearts hammered away in their chests.

"You're alive." They both murmured at the same time, almost breathlessly. Another quiet moment was shared, and then Mitsuko leapt up and wrapped her friend in a warm hug, sobbing as Cloud hugged her back as best a pregnant woman can, sobbing her own feelings out in a rainfall of emotion.

They squeezed each other in a powerful hug, as if they'd never let go again, both crying into the other's shoulders as their eyes forced up rivers of tears. Things like 'miss you' and 'love you' were repeated over and over again, causing quite a stir, which related to the reason why the door was so suddenly opened, emitted several worried faces, which soon turned into smiles and in some cases, tears of joy.

The girls somehow managed to part from each other, their eyes clouded and reddened by tears and nose stuffed from crying so much. Cloud then looked at the new visitors and smiled, wiping the tears away from her eyes, desperate to stop them from falling. The voices now made sense in her still throbbing head, and she could place every single one of them with a clarity she hadn't felt in a long, long time.

It was like just seeing them had awakened a dormant self inside her, which pushed away the primal instinct she had been living on for who knew how long momentarily. She felt, for the first time in a long time, alive. She knew people and knew memories she had forgotten. She could remember who she was without Touma having to tell her, could remember what had happened and why. She remembered so much that it hurt, and it made her so happy she felt like crying.

"I know you." She whispered, almost to herself, I know you.. Finally I'm not asking where I'm going, because I'm here, she then thought.

TBC

Author's Note: I know, it's really, really short. But I'll update soon, I promise, to make up for it.