Author's note: Okay, first of all, this is not, I repeat, not a fanfic…well, okay, not really. These are the particular scenes in the Highwind that take place right before Disc 2 of the game ends. These are my most favorite scenes—they are poignant, they are meaningful, and they are most importantly, turning points in Cloud's relationship, with himself, and with the rest of them. I love these scenes to bits, and I do no justice to them by writing down my own interpretation, but I try, I just want to convey to other people how I really feel about these scenes. So, there. Not an original plot, just an interpretation of how I saw the following scenes.

(The dialogue is really from the game though, and the mannerisms, etc. The thoughts and descriptions are my own, though.)

Disclaimer: Final Fantasy VII and their characters are not mine, they are the property of Squaresoft Enix, etc., etc., you know the drill.

This is the first time I've written actual fanfiction (well err, okay, sort-of fanfiction), for an actual fandom, in four years! It's good to be back. : )

2:Understanding

Dark.

Night had fallen. The Highwind had been put down for the night, and everyone else had gone their separate ways—Red, back to Cosmo Canyon, for what might have been the last time…Barret, to see Marlene…Yuffie, in Wutai, Cid, in Rocket Town, Vincent…who knew where Vincent went?

Cloud and Tifa were alone, on the bridge of the airship. Cloud noted that Tifa kept by her place the entire time, still watching the clouds go by, never making a move to leave, even after everyone else had gone. Everyone else but him.

He kept his eyes on her.

"What are you going to do, Tifa?"

Tifa turned to him, finally.

"Did you forget?" Her familiar, lilting brown eyes were searching his face, his eyes, pleadingly. "I'm...all alone. I don't have anywhere to go."

Cloud didn't speak—words weren't needed. His eyes met hers', and he held her gaze, in a silent, mutual understanding.

---

They found themselves out of the Highwind, on a nearby grassy hill, taking solace, taking comfort, in the silence, and peace, that the night brought about them. There was nothing to be heard but the faint whistling of the wind, the rustling of the grass as the wind wove through them.

There were stars in the sky, surprisingly.

Tifa stood, gazing out into the horizon—almost as if she were trying to see beyond everything that there was…it was almost as if she were searching for something. Which she probably was, Cloud realized.

"Everyone's gone..."

Her voice came out, barely anything more than a whisper, barely above the sound of the evening breeze.

Cloud stood right behind her, though faced in the opposite direction. "Yeah…we don't have anywhere or anyone to go home to."

Tifa looked down, and seemed to let out an inward sigh. "You're right..."

She paused, as though uncertain. Then she looked back up, straightening, pushing her long, dark hair back with one hand, out of her eyes, out of her way.

"But... I'm sure someday... they'll come back, don't you think?" She pressed on, the tone in her voice uncertain, unsure, Cloud noted.

He crossed his arms.

"Hmm...I wonder...?" Cloud mused out loud.

I wonder.

"Everyone has an irreplaceable something they're holding on to...but this time…our opponent..."

He trailed away, and didn't finish the thought—he didn't have to, Tifa knew.

Silence.

The wind, the evening breeze, died down, and it was absolutely quiet, once more.

Then, Tifa nodded—it was a tiny nod, but Cloud caught the affirmative movement out the corner of his eye. "Hmm...But that's all right, even if no one comes back."

Another short, uncertain pause.

Then Tifa went on again, hurriedly, stumbling over her words. "As long as I'm with you... As long as you're by my side..."—She slowed down—"I won't give up…even if I'm scared."

Cloud uncrossed his arms and turned around, to look at Tifa.

She was standing behind him, looking back at him, with that same pleading, hopeful look in her eyes, still searching, his face, searching…

He couldn't speak for a moment. "...Tifa..."

She moved her arms behind her. "No matter how close we are...We were far apart... before this. But when we were in the Lifestream, surrounded by all those screams of anguish, I thought I heard your voice..."

Tifa couldn't help it—she closed her eyes, as to try and stop the tears from running down her face, but to no avail. She cried, and sobbed softly, the hair around her face matted, and wet, from her tears.

Her arms fell to her sides, and she bowed her head, as if ashamed of her tears, as if to hide from Cloud and his eyes, his eyes on her.

She sniffed. "You probably don't remember this...but deep in my heart, I heard you calling my name...Or at least, I thought I did..."

Cloud averted his gaze from Tifa, casting his eyes to the ground instead. He put a hand over his face.

He spoke after awhile, softly. "Yeah... At that time I heard you calling me. You…were calling me back in from the stream of consciousness in the Lifestream."

Cloud lowered his hand from his face and nodded silently. "After all, I promised. That if anything were to ever happen to you…I would come to help."

I would come to help.

Tifa opened her eyes, still wet with tears, and looked up at him. "Cloud...?" She began, softly. "Do you think…the stars can hear us?"

She gazed off to one side, seemingly lost in her thoughts. "Do you think…they see how hard we're fighting for them?"

Cloud looked up at the sky.

"I dunno... But..."

He squinted, staring up at the heavens. He had never noticed that there were so much stars in the night sky before. How long had it been since he last stopped to look at the stars?

"Whether they are or not, we still have to do what we can. And believe in ourselves..." he drifted off again, for a moment. "Someday we'll find the answer. Right, Tifa? That's what I learned from you when I was in the Lifestream."

Tifa nodded imperceptibly.

"Yeah...that's right..."

Cloud stared off into the distance—into the horizon, the darkened heavens, awhile longer, immersed in his thoughts…in the gravity of the situation, the gravity of the very moment…

He turned away from her, slightly, and lowered his head.

"Hey, Tifa...I..."

His voice caught in his throat. "…There are a lot of things I wanted to talk to you about."

He shook his head, slowly. "But…now that we're together like this, I don't know what I really wanted to say..." He blinked. "I guess nothing's changed at all... Kind of makes you want to laugh..."

Tifa shook her head. "Cloud..."

He listened.

"Words aren't the only things that tell people what you're thinking..."

He looked at her. Tifa was staring off into the distance, into space, still playing with her long dark hair, with one hand.

She wasn't looking at him. She didn't have to.

He didn't say anything.

He didn't have to.