Chapter 2

The 7th Heaven is filled with decorations for Yule, the smell of food, and the laughter of the orphaned children of Midgar Tifa has taken under her wing. Today, everyone has gathered to celebrate on the darkest night of the year. People are with their loved ones, give presents to one another, and remember those who are no longer here, while the year idly moves from the old to the new.

Vincent Valentine isn't really into celebrating Yule. Right now he is almost panicky, a feeling very unusual for him. The orphans have him surrounded, after the first few moments of trying to hide from him. Vincent is used to his looks causing people to pull away from him, people not wanting to look at him, but the children are proving hard for the ex-Turk. As soon as they had decided there was no imminent danger from him, they had been utterly fascinated by his odd eyes, flowing cloak and even the claw Vincent hated so much himself. To his relief, the small Yule presents Tifa has arranged for the children soon distract them, giving him room to breathe.

As he tries to find a peaceful and secluded corner, Yuffie practically tackles him, offering him some punch. The ninja is taking a full swing on every holiday when she gets the chance, today sporting a silly party hat with a moogle hanging from the top. Vincent frowns at the offered cup, he saw Reno near the punch bowl earlier and he knows the red-headed Turk well enough by now to not trust his ability to behave.

"C'mon Vinny, try it!" Yuffie giggles gleefully, holding out a cup of punch. Vincent winces inwardly. He has resigned to Yuffie calling him whatever she feels like, it does no good trying to make her drop the nicknames. In a sudden burst of holiday spirit, the former Turk feels himself obliging.

"You know Reno has probably spiked this by now?" he asks as he takes the cup from Yuffie. The ninja nods, her head bobbing furiously, the bell inside the moogle on her hat chiming.

"I saw him do it, but it doesn't taste that bad", she grins. "Probably kicks like a fat chocobo come tomorrow though, it looked like he had some of Midgar's finest moonshine", she says as she takes another swig from her own cup.

"Better go tell Tifa so she can keep it away from the kids then?" Vincent lifts his eyebrow.

"Uhhh… you're probably right…. I'll go do that right away!" Yuffie bites her lip, then skips off to find Tifa.

Vincent examines the cup in his hand. He is slightly worried about Cloud. He doubts anyone else noticed, but he saw him slip out earlier. The ex-Turk was locked away from the world for over two decades, but he understands the regrets and memories the blonde carries with him probably better than anyone else. They both have their own burdens, who is he to judge Cloud if he prefers to have some solitude when his memories take over?

Vincent grimaces as he tastes the punch. What the hell has Reno added to it?

---

Tifa glances out of the window. It is snowing again, but the weather looks like it has gotten warmer, the snowflakes are big and sloppy, not like the fine powder that had fallen earlier that day. She places the tray of cookies she's carrying on the nearby table and leans to look down on the street. It isn't that late yet, but it is the shortest day of the year and it is getting darker fast.

The brunette fighter sighs as she strokes a lock of hair from her eyes. She has been looking for Cloud everywhere in the bar but he is nowhere to be located.

"Cid, do you know where Cloud is?" she asks the pilot as he passes by, the ever present dog end of a cigarette hanging from the side of his mouth. Cid Highwind has tried to quit smoking but with little success.

"Sorry Tifa, I don't." The presence of so many children has made Cid feel a bit uneasy, and for the first time in known history, he is watching his tongue, a feat achieved only by grim determination and the stomping of foot he got from Tifa earlier. "Maybe he needed some fresh air? I haven't seen him for a while now", he suggests.

"Maybe…" Tifa doesn't sound convinced. She has a hunch that Cloud has gone to greet Aeris. Tifa still isn't sure how she feels about the now deceased flower girl. She isn't getting anywhere with Cloud and sometimes she suspects that it is because Cloud can't let go of the Cetra, even though she has been dead for years now. She is grateful for what the girl did to help them during the Meteor and again last summer, but in her mind, the dead should remain dead.

"Maybe…" she repeats as she brushes off her apron and picks up the tray of cookies again.

---

Vincent's mantle is beeping furiously as he fishes the in the folds of it for his cell phone. He had managed so many years without one but last summer he'd finally gotten to the conclusion that he too should probably follow the modern times and join this decade, so he had bought one. He finally locates the wretched gadget and gingerly flips open the cover. "CHOCOBOHEAD" the screen blinks. Cloud had programmed his own number into Vincent's phone, under his rarely used but rather accurate nickname.

"Hello?" Vincent curses in his mind as he takes the call. He might own a cell phone but he doesn't have to like it… "Cloud, where are you? Tifa is getting worried."

"Let her worry", Cloud's voice crackles in the phone. "Vincent? I have a huge favour to ask. And you must keep it a secret. Don't tell anyone, especially not Tifa."

"You know me, Cloud, you know you can trust me. What can I help you with?" Vincent feels his brow frown. Cloud doesn't sound like his usual self. He sounds almost elated, but hasty at the same time.

"I guess you could say I have a bit of a situation here", the ex-Turk notices how Cloud is almost stumbling in the words. "I am in the church, and I have someone here who needs help. He needs to borrow some clothes but mine are too small. Do you have anything you could lend?" Vincent can tell his friend is trying to sound calm but he knows the blonde well enough to know he is excited about something. He sees no reason to not agree to help him, after all, he doesn't sound like he's done something really stupid and gotten himself in any serious trouble. Besides, most of the old AVALANCHE members have belongings stashed away at the 7th Heaven in case they ever come to town unexpectedly, and Vincent is no exception.

"I think I have a sweater and some old slacks here somewhere… Does this person need shoes too? I think there might be some Cid's boots around here somewhere that he never wore because they were too big." Vincent says pondering what kind of trouble the person in the church might be in to need to borrow clothes at such time. This mystery intrigues his mind.

"That would do fine, Vincent", Cloud's voice sounds relieved.

"You'll have to give me some time to sneak out of here", Vincent replies as he silently slides up the stairs to Tifa's guest room to ransack the closet for his own belongings.

"Thank you so much Vincent." Cloud hangs up, and Vincent sighs quietly as he pulls clothing from the shelves. He can't fight the feeling of relief for the chance to get away from the horde of orphans, as harsh as that may sound like.

Rather go out in the snow than have kids hanging from my cloak again, the ex-Turk grimaces.

Fifteen minutes later Vincent slips out of the bar and into the streets of Midgar. His departure goes unnoticed except by Reno, who just shrugs it off. Less people means more booze for him, though Valentine didn't seem like much of a drinker to him.

---

Snow has covered all previous footsteps as the red-cloaked man reaches the old church in the slums. Something in Cloud's voice has made him check several times that he's not being followed, though he scolds himself for such paranoia. Vincent stops for a second at the door to adjust his grip on the bag of clothes he's holding in his clawed hand, and pushes the doors open. He gasps at the sudden rush of heated air. The church is warm, and the pool of Lifestream glows with a soft light, making the place seem much more welcoming than he'd have expected. Still, it takes even his trained eyes a while to locate Cloud.

Cloud is sitting by the pool, leaning his back against one of the pillars supporting what's left of the church roof. He is holding something… no, someone wrapped completely in blankets, holding as if the person was the most precious thing in the world. The blonde looks up as Vincent approaches, startled by the sudden sound of footsteps, having been too enveloped in his own thoughts to hear the church door open and close. The look on his face sends the normally stoic ex-Turk reeling in his mind. He has known Cloud for over two years now, but he's never seen such pure joy on the man's face, his eyes have never shined like they do now. Even the man's hair seems to be spikier than usual, as if he has gained a new inner glow.

"Vincent… Thank you for coming", Cloud returns his gaze back to the bundle of blankets on his lap, adjusting his hold on the person huddled next to his chest. "Don't get mad, Vincent. I know you'll be shocked, but it'll be all right. He's all right", Cloud smiles gently as he looks down at the person still hidden under the blankets.

"He? Who's he?" Vincent feels an eerie shiver run down his spine. Something doesn't add up, why such secrecy concerning this mystery person that has made Cloud so joyful? The red-cloaked man steps closer to Cloud, walking around the blonde to get a closer look of the bundled form Cloud seems to treasure so much. Red eyes widen for a moment when he sees the mass of silver hair cascade down to the floor as Cloud unwraps the blanket covering the other man's head.

"Sephiroth…?" Vincent hears himself gasping. "Cloud, how – how is this possible?"

"Aeris brought him back. The Planet brought him back", Cloud sounds protective, as if he's trying to justify the sudden presence of the silver-haired man.

"But… why?" Vincent's mind is in chaos, but not a twitch on his face reveals this inner turmoil.

"Because I asked for it", the blonde smiles as he caresses the crown of the sleeping man's head, running his fingers through the silver hair as if it was the most exquisite thing known to him. Vincent wants a more precise answer but he has a feeling Cloud won't give him one, not right now. But things are starting to make more sense to him, things that had been worrying him about the blonde during their travel to stop the meteor and stop Sephiroth. I'll be damned, he hears his inner voice splutter.

"Is he okay?" he ventures, deciding it might be better not to press matters too much with Cloud at the moment.

"He has a mild Mako poisoning. You can't avoid that when you go swimming in the Lifestream." Cloud's head snaps up and he locks his gaze with Vincent's as he says: "He's not insane. Jenova is gone, Aeris promised me that. He is the Sephiroth I once knew, the Sephiroth I love, not Jenova's puppet."

…love…?

Vincent doesn't think it is any of his business, he isn't big on gossip, but this is quite unexpected.

The red-cloaked man can only nod. He too trusts Aeris. As things are, it might just be better to accept it all for now. He knows a lot more about sin and absolution than he would like to, and he senses that Cloud has reached a personal absolution for a sin he had taken on as his own, though no sin ever was committed.

"Cloud, what are you going to do? You can't stay here with him if he's got Mako poisoning. He needs a place to rest and he needs treatment", Vincent bites his lip as he thinks how the other AVALANCHE members will react when they hear that Sephiroth has returned.

"I'll figure something out", Cloud says, totally focused on the man sleeping in his arms. But a shadow passes across the blonde man's face as the reality presents itself to him. "I can't take him to Tifa's place like this. The others would kill him before I could get a word out of my mouth", he says, worry in his voice. Vincent feels bad for him, already understanding the hardships the blonde is going to face once he confronts his friends with the news.

"We could take him to the Sierra if you trust Cid enough for that. But you better let me talk to him first…" the ex-Turk suggest, rubbing a hand over his red eyes. This won't be a walk in the park but he knows that once he gets Cid on his side, the rest will be easy. He can see Cloud thinking as the blonde weighs the options.

"Yes… I think that will do for now", he agrees finally. Vincent pulls out his cell phone, mentally wincing at the idea of trying to explain this to Cid over a phone call as he punches the number in.

Cloud is oblivious to his surroundings. All that matters to him is the silver haired man pressed against his chest. He gladly leaves the problems of the world to Vincent this evening.

Author's notes:

1. Vincent. So much love. Though he frowns too much. But he frowns so cutely. Oh, squeee.

2. Um, this is the plot bunny Kirsty introduced to my mind. I had no idea how this would turn out, but then again, looks like I never have an idea what I will end up with when I start writing.

3. I don't like writing cussing, apart from the occasional F-word, a few hells and a damned. So Cid has been forced to behave! Ha, that will teach him! Maybe I'll introduce nicotine patches to him in the future…

4. Hope everyone is staying in character, cuz damn. I wasn't planning on adding so many characters.

5. Reno disaster. I can totally see him crashing an unsuspecting party. Hopefully he'll appear more if I write further instalments to this universe.

6. The airship in Advent Children is called the Sierra. Cid probably still has the Highwind, but since I'm trying to stick to AC canon, it's the Sierra from now on.