Epilogue
Samael sat silently on a rock staring off at the field where the black building used to stand. When the power plant was destroyed and the Outcasts were defeated the black building held no more connections to Centre Time and then promptly disappeared.
The image of Charna getting Vincent's bullet in the back of the head ran through his mind a million times. He wished he could have found a better outcome for her. Maybe it was he just wished she'd never left for the now dead and gone Feardorcha. If there had been some way to keep her out of the Outcast ranks Sam would have done it, but there was no way. Charna had been a lost cause and he knew that, but couldn't or didn't want to accept it.
"You okay? You should be happy," Tifa said walking up slowly behind him and sitting down on the same large rock.
"I'm a hypocrite," Sam muttered, "I talk a lot about moving on and forgetting the past, but I can't really do it myself. It's a better idea in theory than anything else."
"Maybe we're not really meant to forget," Tifa said, "maybe your idea of moving on is a bit extreme."
"Yeah," Sam muttered.
"That Charna, how long were you two together?" asked Tifa.
"Not long enough," Sam replied.
"I know what it would be like if I had to go up against one of my friends, I couldn't do it either," Tifa said understandingly. "I'm not sure I could have let Vincent do it for me either, you're a stronger person than I am."
"I gave her a chance, I tried to…" Sam trailed off, "she believed in that lunatic's cause and it got her killed like all the other Outcasts."
"They wanted to bring back their people," Tifa said, "to them it was worth dying for."
Sam just shook his head.
"If it's any consolation you helped me," Tifa said.
"How so?" Sam asked sounding uninterested.
"You and Wymond, you both helped me move on, it helps Vincent didn't actually die," Tifa said smiling, "but you helped me try and get over Cloud and Aeris, I guess. I always realized I'd never be able to be in her place as much as I would have liked to."
"Don't pretend that was my doing, I'm no psychiatrist, you came to the conclusion on your own, I don't practice what I try to preach," Sam muttered.
"It was you," Tifa said, "whether you believe it or not, in the short, extremely short, time I've known you you've helped me with my own mind more than I ever could have alone."
"I spent a few decades consoling dead people heading toward the Lifestream, guess that's why I happen to have some skill in that area," Sam said.
"Come on," Tifa said smiling, "we just saved the world…again, don't sit up here alone come back to the group. Even Vincent isn't doing his sit in the corner alone thing anymore."
"Well, that might have something to do with the fact he's got a girlfriend now apparently," Sam said grinning.
"Depending on how long you stick around you might have one, too," Tifa said standing up and walking away.
"Wait," Sam said looking over his shoulder, "what does that mean?"
Tifa walked away.
Back near the Highwind the group sat around each giving their own version of the battle from their point of view. Sam joined them in the middle of Cid's retelling.
"Then one of those bastards chopped my cigarette right in half, would've taken my nose off if I hadn't moved," Cid said angrily, "more pissed about the wasted cigarette personally."
"Hey, Sam," Cloud said, "you alright?"
"I'll live," Sam replied.
"So what happens now, exactly?" asked Red XIII.
"Well, in the textbook answer, Aeris, Wymond and I go poof and return to the Lifestream," Sam said.
"Textbook only?" asked Tifa.
"What are you getting at, Sam?" asked Wymond worriedly.
"We just saved existence as we know it, single handedly and none of us died…well in the literal sense," Sam replied, "I say we stick around."
"You might be able to do that but Aeris and I can't," Wymond said. "If we stay out of the Lifestream too long then our connection will be severed and it'll be known we're not where we're supposed to be."
"That's true," Sam said nodding.
"It's alright," Aeris said smiling a little, "I hadn't planned on staying."
Cloud nodded, "You can't mess with the whole time/space…thing."
"Let's go Wym…" Sam raised his hand and cut Aeris off.
"Actually, yes I can," Sam said.
"Sam, I really think…" Sam waved off Wymond, too.
"Look, let's face it, neither Aeris nor Cloud want her to leave," Sam said, "so Merry Christmas, guess what, I'm Santa Claus, she's not leaving."
"Sam…" Wymond muttered shaking his head.
"Come on, Wymond, my big ol' guardian buddy, you and I both know breaking the rules isn't that hard for me," Sam said.
"I have to bring her back, Sam," Wymond said.
"No…you don't," Sam replied.
"It's my job, I can't…" Wymond trailed off hopelessly.
"Cloud," Sam said smiling, "the only way you and Aeris can see each other is to leave Centre Time."
"What?" asked Aeris.
"If you end up in a different existence you're a wild card, like me, there's no rules binding you," Sam said, "I'm a romantic guy, I like to see the guy get the girl, alright? So hear me out. You and Aeris book it out of Centre Time and set up shop somewhere else, anywhere else. Being out of your element, and being important as both of you are, there's nothing the big cheeses in Cetra-ville can do. Then you can do whatever you two want to, being you're the key, Cloud, you can come back any time with Aeris for a visit."
"Sam, doing something like this could…" Wymond began.
"…could create a super happy ending, and you know I can find a loophole to make it happen my friend, that's what I do," Sam cut him off.
Cloud looked to Aeris and she looked back.
"I don't mind breaking the rules if you don't," Cloud said.
Aeris smiled.
"Yahtzee!" Sam said. "Alright, cool, so get outta here then."
"Right now?" asked Aeris.
"Sooner the better," Wymond said reluctantly, "due to this little disruption your movements will likely go unnoticed."
"What about you?" asked Aeris.
Sam put his arm around Wymond's shoulders, "Me and guardian man are gonna stick around and do the pretending to be alive again thing. This whole fucking up of time thanks to the Outcasts means we can pretty much do whatever we want."
"You still owe me a trip through time, remember," Tifa reminded smiling.
Sam nodded and then whispered to Wymond, "Bide my time, who knows what else can come from this, eh?"
Wymond closed his eyes, "Sam, do I look like I really care what…things…you're planning?"
"No, not really," Sam said walking away from Wymond, "but that's why I say things."
"So you and Aeris are gonna be gone for a while I guess," Barret said.
"Off in whatever world they choose, but like I say, they can come back," Sam said. "Whatever you two choose to do out there is your call, it's a big wide world with a whole lot more big wide worlds in other existences, take advantage of it!"
So then it was settled it seemed, Aeris and Cloud would take a trip to another existence to defy the laws of time and space and be together. Sam and Wymond would stay in Centre Time to break the laws of time and space and pretend to live their lives a second time along with the allies they'd fought beside to defeat the Outcasts.
In more than one way, the world and all its existences were made to the absolute right and just positions they were meant to, ideally, have. Everybody was happy.
Sam looked up at the sky and smiled, "Second chances."
"I know a thing or two about those," Vincent said standing beside him, "though I feel I may be on my third or fourth."
"You can never have too many," Tifa said standing on Sam's other side.
"So," Sam said, "what do you alive people do for fun around here?"
"I wouldn't know," Vincent said, "I'm technically not one of the alive people."
"Well, why don't you take me on that longer alternate existence trip you promised and we'll see where we can go from there," Tifa said smiling.
Sam nodded, "Alright, to the end of the world of all worlds and back again."
"How far can I go?" asked Tifa.
"As far as you want," Sam replied.
"You can do that, just like that?" asked Tifa.
"I'm not really allowed to, but for you beautiful, I'll find a loophole," Sam smiled at Tifa, "I always do."
The End