Chapter 10: Returning.
The next morning, the two travellers resumed their journey and, shortly thereafter, reached the southern coast of the East Continent, and Sephiroth noticed his mistake. He stood, with Aerith beside him, staring across the expanse of water in front of him – he knew how to get across, but he hadn't adjusted his plans to account for having Aerith with him.
"So… how are we getting across?"
Sephiroth's lips twisted into a grimace, "I… am not sure."
Aerith looked to her feet for a moment, she knew Sephiroth must have had a plan – and if there wasn't one, it must be because circumstances had changed – because she was here.
"Oh…"
The two of them stared into space, wondering how this problem could be solved – the Planet had guided them this far, so there must be a way that didn't involve the trek back to Junon, or the Chocobo Ranch. So deep in thought were they, in fact, that they almost failed to notice the surge in the Planet's voice, a gentle humming that grew constantly louder, until eventually Sephiroth turned to his companion.
"What's that sound…?"
Snapped out of her reverie, Aerith heard it "The Planet i-… you hear it too?" she blinked lightly, surprised, then had her attention stolen as the ground in front of them began to glow a distinctly familiar shade of green. "What…?"
As the two of them watched, tendrils of green light, began to snake out of the ground, travelling up and over the channel in front of them, entwining around each other, moving ever faster, dropping over the horizon and, though they couldn't see so far, they could certainly guess, plunging into the earth on the other side. After a few short, stunning moments, the tendrils of Life Stream had formed a glowing green, transparent bridge, approximately three metres across. The bridge flashed once, the colour of Sephiroth's gaze, and was no longer transparent.
Sephiroth was the first to react, walking calmly to the bridge, placing one foot on the surface and leaning forward, gradually shifting all his weight onto the bridge of light. It stood firm. He turned to Aerith.
"I assume we cross, then…?" Ever calm in the face of unexpected events.
Aerith listened to the Planet, though the message was clear any way, and then nodded slowly. The two set off across the bridge, Aerith staying close to Sephiroth, keeping her gaze off of what lay below the bridge of light.
And so the journey continued, fairly monotonously, despite the recent surprise. The bridge brought them ever higher and higher from the water below, curving shallowly in the air, yet so expansive that the curve still brought them high into the air.
Aerith walked close beside, and slightly behind her companion, as far from both edges as possible, not comfortable with the idea of walking on such a narrow bridge for such a long distance, hoping that the walk would pass without incident. It didn't.
As the two companions walked, a squawking could be heard from the west, growing louder. Sephiroth turned to check what the commotion was, only to see a huge winged beast approaching. The monster was mostly dark, and sparsely feathered, with head and tongue of a snake, and bat-like wings, screeching for blood as it sighted prey in the strangest of places…
"A Zuu… stay back Aerith," Sephiroth realised the folly of his words as he said them, and corrected himself "Blast it… just stay low."
The monster drew closer, and Sephiroth drew Masamune, cursing his luck. The monster wasn't exactly a challenge – except that it could fly, and he had barely any space to manoeuvre, yes, he had his wing, but he could only glide with that, and would most likely land himself in the water below if he tried.
Well, enough of that for now. Sephiroth pushed doubts aside and focused on his approaching enemy, Masamune's hilt held close to his cheek, above his shoulder.
The Zuu swooped; trying to claw at Sephiroth's eyes, Sephiroth slashed, the Zuu pulled up and flew past, narrowly avoiding the blade. The silver-haired warrior spun gracefully and thrust Masamune toward the Zuu as it passed – the Zuu spun, another narrow miss.
The Zuu flew in a rightwards circle, to attempt another attack. Aerith, deciding to make herself useful, drew her staff and cast Protect and Haste in quick succession on Sephiroth and herself. The Zuu flew closer.
Suddenly, the Zuu swooped, unexpectedly short of the mark, aiming lower – going for Aerith's throat. Everything seemed to happen in a flash; in fright from the Zuu's attack, Aerith took a step back, even as Sephiroth stepped forward, plunging Masamune through the bird's chest, Aerith tripped over Sephiroth's leg, lost her footing, lost the bridge. Fell.
Sephiroth sheathed his sword as the dead monster faded to nothing, and –
"Sephiroth!" Shocked, hearing his name, Sephiroth spun in time to see Aerith drop over the edge of the bridge.
Without thinking, he let his single wing unfurl, and dived off after her. Feeling the wind rushing past him as he dropped, he swooped back toward the bridge, grabbing Aerith as she fell, just about managing to bring his glide into an upward curve, wondering how high he could get them before they, fell. The bridge drew closer, Sephiroth's free arm stretched out, fingers grasping, feeling his momentum slacking, gravity beginning to take hold… And then the feel of something in his hand, he grasped tightly, just in time to feel gravity take hold, pulling both their weights down against his arm.
Aerith fell, and as she fell, she screamed her companion's name, and braced for the end, eyes shut tight, trying to shut out what was happening around her. It wasn't until Sephiroth had been hanging from the bridge for a few moments, holding her, that she realised everything had stopped, and hesitantly opened her eyes, looked up, and saw Sephiroth.
A moment later, she realised she was shaking with fear. She took a few deep breaths, calmed herself down, and whispered a shaken, "Thank you…" to her saviour.
The two watched each other's eyes for a few moments, in silence until, eventually, Aerith dropped her gaze. That was twice that Sephiroth had saved her now, and she was grateful deeply, but that didn't change the fact that she couldn't hold his gaze for more than a few moments before needing to look away. Maybe it was that, despite saving her twice, he had killed her once, and tried twice besides that, maybe it was the eerie way which his glowing gaze seemed to shed light on one's soul, exposing it to him, maybe it was the disturbing way in which his physical beauty contrasted with what he was capable of, maybe it was even just an effect of everything that had passed between them. Whatever it was, part of her still feared her saviour.
Sephiroth's hand gripped Aerith's waist gently yet firmly, so that he needn't carry her weight with the rest of his arm instead, and lifted her slowly, the muscles in his arm straining with the effort – this wasn't the easiest way to carry a person, even for him, but he managed, lifting her to such a height that she could easily haul herself onto the bridge, sighing lightly once Aerith's gaze dropped from his own.
Once Aerith was safely on the bridge, he used his other arm to pull himself swiftly onto it after her, giving the arm that had been holding her a quick rest, then stretching both when he had both feet firmly on solid 'ground.'
"That was far too close… we're too vulnerable on this bridge, we should get onto the ground as quick as possible…"
Aerith nodded, casting Haste on both of them once more, a slight hint of fear still in her eyes as she looked to the walk ahead.
Sephiroth took Aerith's hand "I won't let you fall again, you have my word, Aerith. Now let's go."
Still holding her hand, Sephiroth set off at a run, just slow enough that Aerith could keep up, and Aerith, of course, followed.
In a cave, stranded in the middle of the West Continent, two figures had been waiting for a long, long time, both were tall, thin, and gave the impression of a being hovering on the edge of death, one male, one female. Then again, for Vincent and Lucrecia, two years hardly seemed like a very long time, ever since the turmoil that had come with the discovery of Jenova, Vincent and Lucrecia had done a lot of waiting.
Vincent sat quietly on the floor, Lucrecia in his arms, lightly stroking his lover's hair, thinking back…
Vincent quietly walked into Lucrecia's Cave. It was dark as ever, and Vincent was hesitant, Lucrecia, the woman he loved, had seemed broken, ruined, the last time they met, had wanted to be rid of him as quickly as possible. Yet now that everything was over, Lucrecia was all he had left, and he had just as little right to walk in the world as she did. Ruined by Jenova, both of them.
"Who goes there?" Even hoarsened and hollowed by half a death, Lucrecia's voice sounded like music to Vincent's ears.
"It's me, Lucrecia."
"Vincent? …Please, leave."
"No, Lucrecia, I came for you, because you can't stay here, alone, forever…-"
"I'm not leaving here, Vincent. Look at me! Look what Jenova has done to me…"
"I haven't come to take you away, Lucrecia. I came to stay with you."
Lucrecia watched Vincent before, trying to fathom why he would still concern himself with her, even trapped, as she was, between the living and the dead. After a few moments, she turned away, unable to bear his gaze.
"Please, Vincent…just leave me alone… I…"
The torment in Lucrecia's voice seemed, to Vincent, to grip his soul, tear it to shreds. He stepped closer and wrapped his arms loosely around her shoulders.
"Why are you so ashamed, Lucrecia…?" he knew why, he was the same, only just human, unable to die, "Jenova warped me, as well… I am… like you. I have no place left in the world," the words burned as they left his lips, the admission scarring him, yet he had to be honest. "I am going to stay, keep you company, because that is all I have left."
"I don't understand… why…-?" her voice was sorrowful, bewildered.
"Because I love you."
Lucrecia realised, then, that she would not be rid of him, and gave in. After all, why shun him, after all they had been through, when he was the only one that could understand him?
"Vincent…"
"Yes, Lucrecia?"
"Thank you.."
Vincent replied only by holding her a little tighter, and eventually the two sank to the floor, sitting.
And there the two stayed, for nearly two years, occasionally discussing the events that had brought them here, yet mostly silent. Barely alive, they didn't need to move.
"Something feels different… wrong…" Lucrecia's voice was soft, mildly curious, filled with her usual sorrow.
When one had been sitting still for two years, with nothing to do but think, a certain affinity for the Planet's mood began to develop, after all, aside from their own voices, the Planet's was the only one left to hear.
"The Planet is frightened…"
They began to focus more on the Voice, after all, it hadn't been frightened in a long time. Lucrecia was the first to notice and she gasped, tears in her eyes, her voice an entangled mess of sorrow and joy when she spoke…
"Sephiroth! My… my son is alive… then… that is why the Planet is scared…" She had long come to terms with the lie that Vincent had told her long ago to preserve her feelings.
"I don't think so… listen closer…"
For hours, the two of them sat in silence and did just that – listen, until they began to realise the truth.
"Jenova… it makes sense that she still lives…" there was a bitterness in her voice, it was that very trait – her constant survival, that had ruined their lives.
"Things must be bad, if the Planet has resurrected both Aerith and Sephiroth…" there was a short pause before he concluded, "I must go, they may need help."
Vincent gently released Lucrecia and stood, looking toward the Cave's mouth with trepidation.
"No, Vincent… stay with me, the Planet can look after itself, please…"
"I have to leave, Lucrecia, I am indebted…"
Lucrecia rose to her feet, standing in his path as she spoke, "You still feel guilt for something you couldn't have avoided, why? Look at us, Vincent, we are dead, the Planet is not our concern."
Vincent's clawed hand clenched tightly, "I could have tried harder. And we're not dead, Lucrecia," he was reluctant to be so harsh, but Lucrecia needed to see their situation for what it was, "and we never will be. We're both here because there is nothing for us out there," his hand waved in the direction of the cave mouth, "but you, you're just hiding from things you don't want to face! We have things to do, your son, is out there, Lucrecia, stop hiding and do what you know you must!"
"That was cruel, Vincent…" by the end of his short speech, tears were running slowly down her cheeks, she was distraught that he could be so blunt, ashamed at her own cowardice, and longed to see her child, "but you're right, of course."
"I'm sorry, Lucrecia, but…–"
"I know, Vincent… let's go…"
Aerith and Sephiroth stepped off of the bridge of light, Sephiroth still holding Aerith's hand, it didn't occur to either of them that it was no longer necessary. As the bridge of light dissipated into strands of spirit energy, and returned to the Planet, the companions turned and began walking toward Mideel, Aerith staying close to Sephiroth, though neither of them said a word, each in their own little world.
Sephiroth is… stronger now, I think he's right. If I stay close, Jenova won't be able to control him… but I can't stay close forever, and it's not likely Jenova will get Sephiroth to kill me slowly next time…, Aerith thought, I will just have to stay by his side until this is all over.
She also wondered, briefly, why she was so determined to save him, thinking back to the first time she had tried. Yes, part of it was duty, but thinking back to before Jenova had taken control… she had to admit, at least to herself, that part of her cared for him. As it was, she couldn't even look him in the eyes for long, without being consumed by fear, despite his physical beauty – and she would be the first to admit that Sephiroth was beautiful. Some things just weren't meant to be.
…She is quiet now. She always is with Aerith near, what is it about Aerith, which frightens she who destroyed the Cetra so? … Never mind, I will find out eventually, and as long as she stays silent, I am myself. Sephiroth risked a glance at his companion, a hint of admiration in his gaze, so small and beautiful, yet so strong, I would be ruined without her.
He knew she needed him as well, to protect her, and he knew that he would, because he owed her as much. Around her… he felt strange, though he couldn't say what it was he felt.
Before long, the companions reached Mideel. The town was in the process of being rebuilt, though neither of them had seen the town since its destruction – Aerith had never seen it at all. Sephiroth looked at the ruined town, eyes riveted to the chasm in the centre, leading down to the Lifestream, and thought back.
Sephiroth remembered almost everything that had led to his death, and knew some things that he couldn't have remembered, which he had concluded to himself was knowledge imparted on him by the Planet. He didn't remember this, though, he wondered if it was a lapse in his memory… or if something else had done it.
"Did I do this…?" Aerith didn't answer.
The two of them stayed still for a moment, staring, before Sephiroth spoke out again "Well, we came here for a reason…"
They looked around, then walked to one of the town's citizens, Sephiroth letting Aerith do the talking, after all, she was better at it than he was.
"Excuse me, but do you know a man called Cloud Strife? He's about so tall," she brought her hand up a little above her head, a little higher than Sephiroth's chin, "Spikey, blonde hair, bright blue eyes… I was told he lived here, now?"
"Yeah, I know Cloud, nice, quiet lad…" she pointed south, "If you go to the last house over there, you should find him, he's almost always home."
"Thank you very much."
"You're welcome."
Sephiroth nodded softly, noting how strange it was that, famous as he had once been, no one recognised him, just two years later. The two walked to the other end of the tiny town, around the giant hole in the Planet, to where they had been told they would find Cloud. They reached the door, and knocked.
A few moments later, Cloud stood in the doorway, facing Aerith, Tifa stood slightly behind him, and seeing the two of them, Sephiroth standing behind Aerith, his face as unrevealing of emotion as ever, Cloud reacted almost instantly.
"Tifa, get my sword…" And he charged…
-End Chapter 10-
Author's Notes:
· Well, the Vincent - Lucrecia conversation was the hardest part, not very happy with that.
· Not sure how the end came out, tell me what you think.
