"Here's your food! Wha-- no! Prof--!"
"Ah, finally got my sword back! C'mon, Cloud, let's go."
"…"
"Hey, you okay? Damn, man, you don't look so good. Urgh--- c'mon, let's get you outta here."
He's doing better today. Still ain't talkin' much, but he's watching me set up camp, and he nods when I talk to him. Better than the creepy head-bobbing thing. He's not handling the Jenova cells well at all. No wonder he didn't make SOLDIER, poor guy.
"So Cloud, ya hungry? I've got… uh, some local wildlife that I'm really hopin' isn't poisonous!"
I look over at Cloud, who's leaning against a tree. He glances at me and shrugs, then shakes his head slightly. He mumbles something, then sighs as he gives up on trying to talk. I smile sympathetically at him.
"Don't worry, man. I'm sure your voice'll come back. You're getting better all the time!"
He nods a bit. I pull a creature I'm hoping is related to rabbit off the fire and toss it onto my pack, waiting for it to cool.
"Thank goodness for Shin-Ra survival school, eh?" I lean back on my elbows and look skyward. "Now then, where was I… did I tell you about the library yet?" I ask, looking back down at Cloud. He thinks for a moment, then shakes his head. I frown; I could've sworn I already told him, but the Mako and Jenova cells are really messing with him. "Okay then… well, after the reactor, and Sephiroth saw those Mako-humans, he disappeared into that mansion. Eventually, I found him down in this hidden basement library. He was reading somethin' about the Jenova Project…"
"Hey, Cloud, I'm goin' into town tonight. Wanna come?"
"No thanks."
"C'mon… I'm meeting with a coupla great girls-- I'll let you have the redhead!"
"That's okay."
"What? You got a girl back home or somethin'?"
"…"
"Ah-ha! I knew it!"
"I don't have a girlfriend!"
"You should. There's plenty of great women out there."
"And
you've got the name and address of each and every one."
"Damn
straight! Now, you comin' or not?"
I continue my story up to the point where Sephiroth started burning the town, then stop and look over at Cloud. He's staring blankly at the ground, but glances up when I stop talking.
"You okay, man?" I ask. I know he was in the town during the fire, but I don't know how much he remembers. He hesitates a moment, then shakes his head. I stand and walk around the fire, sitting down next to him.
"Do you remember what comes next?" I ask. Cloud nods, then shivers a little. He mumbles something, and I'm able to pick out a few words.
"Your mom?"
Nod.
"Aw, hell… you know she's…"
Nod.
"Jeez… I'm sorry, man. I really am."
He nods again, but keeps his head tucked against his chest. I put my arm around his shoulders and pretend not to notice when he starts to cry.
"Hey,
rookie, slow down and you won't run into people!"
"S-Sorry!"
"No problem, man. I'm Zack, by the way-- SOLDIER, First Class."
"Cloud Strife."
"Nice to meet ya. You tryin' out for SOLDIER?"
"Yeah…"
"It's rough, man. Rougher once ya get in."
"I know. But, uh, that's why I was running-- they're announcing the names of the ones who made it in the lobby."
"Ah, well, good luck then!"
"Thanks."
I wake before Cloud does the next morning, and set about cleaning up our camp. I know Shin-Ra's following us, and I don't wanna leave too obvious of a trail. Cloud wakes up and stares blankly at me for a moment, then drops his head back onto his chest. I sigh, shoulder my sword, and walk over to him.
"And here I was, hopin' I wasn't gonna hafta carry you today." I pull his arm across my shoulder and put my arm around his waist, then stand. "Well Cloud, let's see what sympathetic person'll give us a lift today! Maybe we can find a ride to Costa-- I've got a plan to head for Midgar. Whaddya think?"
I guess I can take his head bobbing as a yes.
"Yo! Strife! Wake up, man! We've got our briefing with Sephiroth today!"
"Shut the hell up, Zack."
"Now, we'll have none of that. C'mon, get up! This is your first meeting with your hero-- you don't wanna be late, do you?"
I walk on for a while, staying close to the road. Finally, a farmer in a beat-up truck stops and asks what's wrong. I recite my story: my pal and I were in SOLDIER, we got in a fight with some huge creature up North and got separated from our group, my friend's hurt bad, we need to get to Midgar, can you help us out? Luckily, he buys it, and says he can take Cloud and me as far as the edge of the desert around the Gold Saucer.
"Thanks for the lift, man!"
"Yeah, yeah… don't know why I bothered to stop."
I laugh and leap into the back of the truck. "Comfortable, Cloud?" No response. I shrug. I didn't really expect one anyway.
"Hey! Of course! I got a lot of brains and skill that other guys don't. That settles it-- I'm gonna be a mercenary!"
"Hey…didn't you even hear a word I said?"
"Listen, I'm gonna become a mercenary and that's that. Boring stuff, dangerous stuff, anything for money! I'm gonna be rich! … So Cloud, what're you gonna do?"
"…uhhh…"
"Just kidding. I won't leave you hanging like that. We're friends, right?… Mercenaries, Cloud. That's what you an' me are gonna be."
We make it to the edge of the desert, then to Costa del Sol, then to Junon. I'm getting nervous; I know Shin-Ra picked up on our trail in Junon, and SOLDIER doesn't treat deserters kindly. We're close to Midgar, though. If I hurry, we can make it before nightfall. Much as I hate to get Aeris and her mother involved, I've got nowhere else to go. I'm just too worn out to worry about finding my own place now.
Cloud's havin' another bad day, so I'm dragging him up the road towards Midgar. Damn, I hope Aeris is still good with healing stuff, 'cause he needs help bad. I hear gunshots behind us and curse, dropping Cloud and running back towards the troops. I ain't givin' up now, not that we're this close.
"Hey, rookie! How'd you do?"
"…I…I didn't make it…"
"Aw, I'm sorry, man. What're you gonna do now?"
"…they said I could stay on as a regular guard."
"Hey, don't sound so put out about it! You made it to the last level of testing for SOLDIER; most people don't get that far! Besides, with all that pre-SOLDIER training, you'll get really good jobs. I could probably even request you for some of my missions!"
"…Really? You'd do that?"
"Sure, man! What're friends for? I watch your back, you watch mine! Deal?"
"…Yeah. It's a deal."