Chapter 11: Night Lights

For days, Zack remained convinced that Angeal would come back, and everything would return to normal. He spent almost every minute checking his phone for messages, and asked anyone he could if they had heard from him at all. His temperament was shorter than usual. At times he would still be his bubbly hyper self, but other times he was as cold as Sephiroth. I did what I could to raise his spirits, but I lacked the energy myself to keep anything upbeat. Slowly, I was coming to terms with the fact that Myrna was a deserter, and abandoned me to follow Genesis. I had so many questions for her. After our years of friendship, why did she choose to leave with a man she doesn't even know? Why did she try to kill me back in Wutai? What was with those Genesis copies? Those questions and more fluttered about my mind every day. I spent more time in the Training Room than anything. There wasn't anything specific I was working on, I just wanted to punch out some frustration without causing actual damage to the things around me. It was surprisingly therapeutic.

The emptiness of floor 49 never got easier to deal with, it was too quiet and too open. I didn't even enjoy sitting in the lounge during my free time anymore. If I wasn't training, I was in the cafeteria with Cloud and Noctis, or by myself. Sephiroth has been more distant than usual, if that was even possible, and wasn't around much to supervise my training like he normally does. He seemed to be taking Angeal leaving even worse than Zack was. What a mess anymore. Everything was falling apart around me to the point where nothing seemed familiar.

"Here. You look like you could use this." Cloud set a paper cup of coffee in front of me and sat down on the chair next to mine.

I graciously took the cup and huffed a small laugh.

"You're too nice to me Cloud." I smiled at him and took a sip, "I'm starting to feel bad for not spoiling you on the daily."

"Don't worry about it. With all the rumors going around about SOLDIER, I'm surprised you're in the building so often. I thought you'd be gone half the time."

"Is that your way of saying you don't want to spend time with me anymore?" I joked.

He chuckled in response, "No. Not at all."

I shook my head and smiled.

"So what are we doing tomorrow?" I asked, taking another sip of coffee.

"It's a surprise." He teased.

"Ohh?" This was a perfect opportunity to use my famous puppy eyes on him. I welled up my best fake tears and pouted, "Can't you give me a hint? Please?"

Cloud only laughed in response. Not the usual response I get when I break out the baby blues, so I was slightly surprised. Zack can never resist my puppy eyes, hell I even got Noctis with them before when I didn't feel like paying for my own food. It seemed that Cloud was immune to the childish charm of my trunk card.

"No hints. You'll like it though, I promise."

I huffed and wiped the fake tears from my eyes. Cloud's phone started ringing in his pocket and he quickly scanned the message.

"I gotta go, but I'll talk to you later. Bye Senna."

"Bye Cloud."

With one last smile, he took off. Probably last minute orders from his superior. I sighed and leaned back in my chair, rocking it on the back two legs. Right now, I wished Myrna was here. I've never been on a date before, and didn't have the slightest clue on what I was supposed to do, or how to dress. She would have been right on top of everything, from picking out my clothes to styling my hair. That was always something she enjoyed doing. Dressing me up for special occasions, because I had no idea how to do it myself. I shook my head before the sadness could take over me. No, I won't think about her today, I won't miss her, and she won't ruin the serenity that I've finally gotten to. Maybe I could fit in one more training simulation before going home.

It was pretty late in the afternoon, so generally nobody should be in the Training Room. Technically, I shouldn't be heading there either because I used up all my time for the day, but who was going to stop me? Sephiroth has been MIA most of the week, so he wouldn't be around to tell me to go home. Zack was just as bad as I was with training anymore, so he wouldn't care. I could stay here all night and nobody would even notice. The door opened with a hiss from the airlock, and there wasn't a soul in sight. Perfect. I leaned my sword against the thick glass of the simulator and as I started punching in my simulation, the airlock hissed, and the door opened. I sighed, and turned to explain why I was still in here to whoever just walked in.

"Senna Fair. Just the SOLDIER we were looking for." Alexander smiled from his usual perch next to Professor Hojo.

My expression sank to a look of disgust at the sight of the two scientists.

"Don't ever say my name like that again." I warned.

The two only chuckled and walked towards me. Hojo practically shoved me out of the way of the computer and started typing in his own codes.

"We require you for a quick test, if you don't mind." He said without looking towards me.

"I do mind, actually, and I was just leaving so if you'll excuse me."

Alexander blocked my way to the door, his scrawny arms crossed over his chest, and a wicked smile across his face. He knew I could push him out of my way like a dry leaf in the wind, but with his boss with him, it seemed like he thought he was invincible. I struggled to restrain myself from punching that smile off his face.

"That wasn't a request." He sneered with amusement.

My upper lip twitched as I glared at him.

"You're not my superior. Now get out of my way." Every word was laced with venom, but still he didn't move from my path. I wasn't a violent person, but the sound of his nose breaking under my fist would be the greatest thing to hear right now.

"As it stands right now, with SOLDIER being so short handed, I am your superior." Hojo finished entering his codes for the simulation and gestured to the door, "Now if you would please, this will only take a minute."

I turned my attention away from Alexander to Hojo, and in that second there was a quick pinch on my arm.

"Ouch!" I yelled. I looked down just in time to see him pull a syringe away from my bicep, traces of a green liquid dripping from the needle. A red haze clouded over my vision and I shoved him against the wall with my arm pushing against his neck. "What the hell was that?!"

He choked under my hold, rapidly tapping my arm to get me to let him go. I only applied more pressure.

"Release him, Senna." Hojo ordered, "It's just a stimulant required for the test. That's all."

I pushed a little harder on Alexander's neck before dropping him from the wall. He fell to the floor in a heap, violent coughs shaking his body. I grabbed a headset from the wall and stomped into the simulator.

"Let's get this over with." I huffed and put on the helmet.

Alexander regained his composure and limped over next to Hojo by the computer. They pushed a couple of buttons, and the world around me shifted to the simulation in a series of flashing lights.

The simulation opened to the streets of Midgar, empty and open, with only the street lights buzzing around me. I looked around the area for enemies or an objective, but didn't see anything except my reflection in the nearby windows. Putting my hands on my hips, I sighed.

"What's my objective here?" I asked dryly.

"Tell us what you see." Hojo said through the speaker.

I didn't hide the rolling of my eyes. If this was all the test was that they needed, why couldn't they have just pulled someone else?

"I see Midgar. Sector 4, judging by the buildings. There's some street lights, some small shops that are closed, cars parked by the curb, and that's about it. Am I done now?" I said with annoyance.

"Not quite." Alexander said with a rasp to his voice. That was enough to give me some small form of pleasure. "Wander around, tell us what you see."

"Wander around, tell us what you see." I quietly mocked while walking down the brick road.

What were they expecting me to see? They put me in a simulation of Midgar! It's nothing they haven't seen before, well… maybe they haven't seen much of Midgar since they're always in this building. Alexander probably doesn't even know what the sun is. I chuckled to myself at my own jokes. My amusement halted when the streetlights around me began to flicker on and off. I gave a bored stare to the lights.

"Is this an attempt to scare me?" I asked to the void.

"What do you mean?" Alexander chimed in. I could hear the smile on his face. He knew damn well that I knew he could see what I was seeing.

"The lights going on and off? What is this, some kind of old school horror movie?"

The lights stopped flickering and turned off completely, leaving me standing in the dark.

"What do you see?" Hojo asked.

"Not a damn thi-" I stopped mid sentence as my eyes adjusted to the dark, but this wasn't normal. A normal adjustment would be just barely able to see the street and buildings enough to walk through and not run into anything. This was like putting on night vision glasses for a tactical mission. Everything was so clear that I could even make out the sculpting around the window frames of the apartments near me. Through the windows, I could see heat signatures of the people inside. I could see everything as if it was daylight and more. "What the hell…"

"What? What do you see?" Hojo asked impatiently.

"Everything." I said in awe, but also in fear.

"Everything? What does that mean, everything?"

I didn't answer. How could I ever describe what I'm seeing? It was like having the eyes of a nocturnal predator. Was it that stimulant Alexander injected in me? Is the Science Department coming up with new ways to create SOLDIERs? Way too many questions flew through my mind, and I wasn't sure if I wanted the answer to most of them. In the distance, I saw several heat signatures running towards me. There was the beat of metal on the brick road, soldiers. I reached behind me for my sword, but found my back completely empty. Shit. My sword was still outside the simulation chamber by the computer. I was in such a rage when I got in here that I never thought to grab it. My item pouch was void of materia as well. There was nothing for me to fight with except my fists, but there were too many enemies approaching for me to take them all on with no weapons.

I retreated into the shadow of a nearby alley. A feeling of protection wrapped around me like a warm blanket, almost like the darkness was pulling me into it. The approaching enemies swarmed into the street. Shinra soldiers, only they didn't look human at all. Their exposed skin was green and covered in bumps and boils, and they smelled of rot and decay. Zombie soldiers, how adorable coming from the Science Department. They looked around in fury, sniffing the air for traces of any scent they could catch. I stayed in the safety of the shadows, watching, waiting for them to either spot me, or leave. Thankfully, they ran off to the next part of town, shrieking the entire way. Before I could exit the alley, a series of flashing lights blocked my vision and I was back in the Training Room.

Hojo and Alexander stood shoulder to shoulder, mumbling to each other and scribbling on the documents on their clipboards. I returned the helmet to its proper place and grabbed my sword as I exited the simulator. Neither of them said anything to me, or even acknowledged that I was still in the room with them.

"Am I done now?" I asked impatiently.

"What are you still doing here?" Hojo said without so much as glancing at me from his clipboard.

I raised an eyebrow and turned to the door.

"I'll take that as a yes." I mumbled as the airlock opened, and I walked out of the room.

When I got home, I sat dumbfounded in front of my closet. Why did I own so many clothes? There were far too many options to choose from on what to wear tomorrow, and I didn't have the first clue about fashion. Myrna was always the expert for this situation. No. No, I refuse to let the memory of her ruin what could be a fun day with Cloud. I would just have to figure this out for myself. Though it would be easier if I knew what he had planned so I could dress accordingly. There had to be something in here. If I didn't buy it, Myrna had let me borrow it, and I never returned it because she was just as bad with buying new clothes and losing closet space. I shook my head to clear the image of her, and searched through my clothes. Eventually I decided on a simple long sleeve, blue lace top and black leggings. Why go all out right? Being myself seemed like the better idea, and I'm a simple person who likes to be comfortable. I gathered up my clothes and set them on my bedside table. Before I crawled into bed, I felt a quick jab to my chest, like someone had punched me. Instinctively, I put my hand over the area with the pain, feeling raised bumps that were warm to the touch.

What the hell? I thought, and stood in front of my mirror to inspect the area.

The scars from my encounter with the Nightmare looked like they were infected all over again. Angry red veins protruded from the scars that were now swollen and white as snow. I poked at them, pushing them down and watching them swell back up like nothing had ever happened. Maybe they were having a reaction to whatever Alexander had injected into my arm. Hopefully it cleared up by tomorrow afternoon, otherwise I would have some very choice words for the Science Department. With a final poke to the swollen scars, I crawled into bed.

It was still dark when I woke up, only feeling like a few hours had passed since I closed my eyes. There was a heavy weight on my chest, like someone had put a metal box on me full of steel bricks. I struggled to breathe under the pressure. Finally I managed to open my eyes, and in the darkness, I saw a pair of golden eyes staring at me. I blinked rapidly to clear the sleep from my eyes and adjust to the light level. My eyes didn't deceive me. Sitting on my chest was the Nightmare from the cave, a smaller version of her at least, about the size of a child. She sat cross legged, her elbow resting on her knee, holding up her head. She smiled down at me, showing a pair of razor sharp, white fangs.

"I was wondering when you would wake up." She said with amusement, "You humans waste so much time sleeping. How do you ever get anything done?"

I realized at that moment that I couldn't move anything except my eyes. My breathing quickened, hyperventilating at my immobility. The Mare noticed my distress and put a comforting hand on my cheek.

"Relax, dear. It's only a bit of sleep paralysis so we can have a little talk." She said, caressing my skin.

She stood from my chest, moving to the edge of my bed, and sat next to me.

"I don't appreciate having my powers exploited like they were today." She started, "Those scientists are quite the meddling creatures. Sealing me in your body with whatever serums they injected you with. I had only meant to remain temporarily, regain some of my strength by feeding on your fear through nightmares, and return to my home in the mountains."

She sighed heavily and pushed her long white locks over her bare shoulder. Her gaze stayed fixed on me, her golden eyes full of hatred and malice.

"Your friend shining that light on me forced me to retreat to the nearest dark place, which just so happened to be you. Possessing a body is an exhausting practice you see. I was only a few days away from being able to disconnect myself from your life force when those white coats took you and did all those experiments in a day."

Experiments? In a day? What was she talking about? It couldn't have only been the training simulation from today. The way my vision changed, and how the shadows wrapped around me to protect me from the oncoming enemies… that was her powers?

"Oh that's right." She dipped her head into her palm and laughed, "You were out cold for the majority of it. Lucky for you, I never sleep, and I saw everything. I'll show you someday what they did to you in that lab of theirs, but they've been awfully clever about keeping my strength at bay. Give them a couple more months and they'll require you for another test and inject you with another stimulant. You humans and your technology, thinking that you own everything that breathes because you have the means to capture it. It makes me sick."

Her eyes shadowed and I heard the taring of my sheets beneath her growing claws. In one quick movement, she was back on my chest, her sharp razors grazing my throat. She bared her teeth at me.

"If I wasn't tied to your life force, I would kill you right here and now for making me go through this! I'd destroy every household in this city, one by one, until Midgar was nothing but dust and rubble. Starting with that friend of yours who shined his light on me!"

I gulped down air, my throat was dry and sore from my heavy breathing. The Mare sighed and retracted her claws. She began caressing my cheek again, like a loving mother to her child.

"Unfortunately, I'm stuck with you for the foreseeable future." She pinched my chin between her thumb and pointer finger and shook my head from side to side, "I'll allow you to use my powers for now, girl, if only to appease those scientists and avoid more tests, but don't get used to them. I'll only release enough to keep you, and myself, alive. So don't get greedy and do anything stupid."

The darkness from my window started to change into a pale blue as the sun began to rise. The Mare noticed the change in light and glared at the window.

"The darkness never lasts long enough." She sneered at the growing daylight, then refocused her attention to me, "Until next time, girl. Sweet dreams."

She dissolved into a black mist. The weight lifted from my chest and I took in a deep, desperate breath of air. I rolled to my side, clutching my chest, and gasped loudly for more air. My bedroom door flew open, slamming on the wall behind it, and Zack rushed to my bedside.

"Senna! What's wrong?!" He asked in a panic.

Still I violently gasped like someone had been choking me for the last few minutes. Zack sat me up, keeping a reassuring hand on my back.

"It's alright," He said softly, "Calm down. Deep breaths. That's it. In through your nose, out through your mouth."

He coaxed me through my breathing until it was normal again. Suddenly I felt exhausted.

"Another nightmare?" He asked as I laid back down, "It's been awhile since you had one that bad."

"Something like that." I said breathlessly.

Zack softly rubbed my back, like our mother used to do when we had a bad dream as kids. I miss her right now. She would know what to say.

"Want me to stay here with you?" He asked.

"No. I'll be alright."

He didn't seem convinced, but he stood up anyway, stopping in my doorway.

"I'm right down the hall if you need me." He said sincerely.

I nodded, too tired to give a verbal response. Before he closed the door, I was already asleep.

It was after noon by the time I woke up. Thank God Sephiroth has been less than attentive. He would murder me if I ever missed training with a poor excuse of over sleeping, well the old Sephiroth would. This one seemed very distracted and lost in his head. It had to be because of Angeal and Genesis.

Crawling out of bed, I inspected the scars on my chest first thing. They had gone back to their normal tone, no signs of the angry red infection. Still though, I poked at them to make sure I hadn't imagined anything last night. The encounter with the Nightmare left my brain spinning. I couldn't separate fantasy from reality. Was she really there, talking to me? Or was she just a vision my brain made up in my paralysis state? It had been years since I had sleep paralysis that severe. When I was a child it would happen almost every night, as I got older it happened less and less until I had completely forgotten what it was like to be awake before my brain. Some of the things she said though… I couldn't put them out of my mind. I needed answers, but how could I go about getting them?

My phone started ringing.

"Shouldn't you be in training right now, big brother?" I sighed.

"I'm entitled to a break here and there. Just wanted to check up on you. See if you finally rose from the dead."

I pulled my phone away from my ear and noticed the 4 missed calls notification on the screen. Oops.

"I did wake up before you left with a craving for brains, but the only option was you and sadly… I would have starved."

"Ok. Rude. I'll remember that the next time you need comforting." I could hear the smile in his voice, "Glad to know you're feeling better."

"I'm too old to be traumatized by a simple nightmare."

"But you'll always be my baby sister."

I rolled my eyes and smiled.

"I gotta get going. Don't have too much fun today."

"I hope I do considering I'm going on a date today."

"Wha-! With who?!"

"Have a good day, bye Zack!"

"Sen-"

With a quick laugh, I hung up the phone. What fun would having an older brother be if I couldn't rile him up every now and then? Honestly, it's his fault for being so damn protective. He makes it way too easy. I haven't told him much about Cloud. Actually I haven't really told him anything. If all goes well today, I'll have to tell Zack about him. I tapped my phone to my bottom lip a couple of times before flipping it open again.

'I don't recall setting a time for today. When and where?'

Cloud was probably busy right now, so I didn't expect a quick reply. He was usually one to surprise me though as his message popped up before I could even close my phone.

'I'll come get you. Is a couple hours from now ok?'

I examined my reflection in the mirror again, noticing the severe bed head I had going on. I was by no means an expert on properly caring for my hair, but maybe with a couple hours to myself, I could figure it out. If it went horribly wrong, I could always just toss it into a bun and claim that was the plan all along.

'Works perfectly for me. I'll see you then, Cloud.'

I tossed my phone onto my bed and went into the bathroom to take a shower. The smell of sweat practically rolled off my skin. Gross. Afterwards, I stood in the cloud of steam with a towel wrapped around me. Zack always leaves his hair products laying around the sink in an unorganized mess. Only the best for my brother's hair. He had shampoos, gels, you name it. My tiny corner of the sink consisted of just a hairbrush and maybe a hair tie or two. Which one of us was the sister again? It couldn't be me.

With one stroke, I wiped the lingering steam from the mirror. My face looked so worn and tired. The dark circles under my eyes made them look sunken in. They've always been there, but this was the first time I ever felt self conscious about it. The middle shelf of the medicine cabinet housed some makeup products that Myrna would store here for when she forced me to get a makeover. I stared stupidly at the bottles neatly lined up. Primer, foundation, concealer, bronzer, and highlighter. I didn't have the first clue what any of these were for, or how to use them. Concealer made sense considering I wanted to hide the circles under my eyes. I grabbed the bottle and read the directions on the back label. Seemed simple enough to understand. I twisted off the cap, put a dab on my finger, and smeared the liquid under my eyes. The dark circles disappeared, but it was painfully obvious I covered them with something. Maybe if I just put it all over my face?

I spent a good hour playing with the different products, mostly trying to fix what each one did to my face. These things work in perfect harmony somehow, but I could not figure it out. Eventually I just gave up and washed my face off. Why was I worrying so much? I just had to be myself and that was it. I dried my hair and pulled half of it back with a ribbon. Simple. Just like I was. I didn't need all that product on my face to feel confident.

Cloud should be here soon, so I finished up in the bathroom, put on my clothes, and waited in the living room. I sat straight and stiff like I had never been in my apartment before. Stop being so nervous! It's like any other time you hang out with Cloud. Just relax and have fun.

Three quick knocks on the door, and every pep talk I've given myself flew out the window. My chest tightened as I walked to the door and opened it. Cloud stood there, the perfect example of calm and collected.

"You look nice." He said sweetly.

"Thanks." I said with blush creeping on my cheeks, "You clean up pretty good yourself."

He smiled in return and gestured to the outside. "Ready?"

He still hasn't told me any details of what we were going to do. We had an idle conversation sitting between us while we walked towards the train station. Interests, hobbies, and such.

"I don't believe for a second that you can scale a mountain on your own!" I exclaimed after listening to his story.

"Is that right?" He argued, "I am from a mountain town ya know."

I scoffed at him, "That doesn't mean you can actually free climb a whole mountainside. I call bullshit."

"Now why would I lie about something like that?" He asked.

"To impress me." I said wittingly, "This is still a date right?"

Cloud looked away from me, but I caught the pink on his cheeks. He cleared his throat.

"Just cuz it's a date doesn't mean I have to lie to impress you."

I shrugged my shoulders and shook my head.

"Whatever you say, Cloud." I chuckled, "So where are we going?"

We approached the train station, the screens reading the next arrival. He led us over to an empty bench and we sat and waited for the train.

"You asked me that at least four times since we left your place, and my answer isn't gonna change." He leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees.

I huffed and sat next to him, crossing my arms over my chest and one leg over the other.

"I'm starting to think this date is just us walking around the city and having a pleasant conversation."

"Hm. Would that be so bad?" He teased and smiled over at me.

My breath caught in my throat. The angle of light from the sun illuminated his features perfectly. The soft angle of his jaw, his soft skin tone, and the reflection in his blue eyes. That tight feeling in my chest engulfed me, and finally I was able to breathe again.

"No." I said while fighting the blush heating up my face, "You've just been hyping me up about this surprise that I'm kind of expecting something spectacular."

He leaned back and crossed his arms, that smile never leaving his face.

"You'll see when we get there." He said, and closed his eyes.

"Could at least give me a hint." I pouted, earning another chuckle from Cloud. He had no idea the level of annoying I could get to when I really wanted to know something. I was the child always asking "are we there yet?" when my parents would take Zack and I on a hike through the forest near our house. Any gifts I got for my birthday were never a surprise when I opened them because I would pester Zack for weeks until he told me. Yes, I am that childish. It comes with the territory of being the youngest sibling. I always get my way. Cloud just doesn't realize that yet. Although I was starting to think he had the patience of a saint. The whistle blew for the train. We got off the bench and boarded when the doors opened.

"Will you tell me now?" I asked when we finally got off the train at Sector 8. I bothered Cloud the entire ride about what his plan was. Pestering him for a hint didn't work out, so I resorted to trying to guess what we were doing. My ideas ranged from sitting at a nearby cafe to watching a performance of LOVELESS. Cloud remained calm as ever, never faltering once, and stayed annoyingly quiet after every guess I made.

"Just follow me." He answered, "We're almost there."

I followed behind him as he led the way through Sector 8. I was expecting him to go towards LOVELESS Ave, but he turned towards a back alley behind one of the few cafes here. My steps slowed as he ventured to the dim light. He must have noticed that I wasn't close behind him anymore as he stopped and turned back to me.

"You're not afraid are you?" He joked.

My cheeks flushed in frustration.

"I'm not afraid. I'm just a little confused why you're going back there. Shady things happen in these alleyways."

Cloud looked into the alley, and then back to me. Taking a couple steps towards me, he held out his hand.

"I guess you'll just have to trust me." He smiled.

There was no chance that Cloud was involved with the criminals and smugglers that hang out where Shinra can't see. That didn't help my hesitation of going back there, but I took his hand anyway. There was a slight tremble in his fingers as they closed around mine, and he resumed leading me into the alley. He knew every turn to make like he had been back here over a hundred times. Rats and stray cats would make an occasional appearance from the trash bins left unguarded. Roaches and other vermin crawled from the sewer grates, crawling onto the walls and disappearing into building walls. I wasn't a greedy or materialistic person by any means, but a part of me was really hoping there was something clean at the end of this journey. Cloud stopped, causing me to walk right into his back. He gestured to a ladder leading to the rooftops.

"After you." He said.

My mind was still trying to take guesses at where we were going. I was running out of options that I knew about already. Eventually I just settled on some new rooftop restaurant that I never heard about. Why the entrance to it was deep in the back alleys, I'll never know, but beggars can't be choosers. I climbed up the ladder, Cloud following after me.

"There's two more sets of ladders." He said when we neared the top, "just keep going up."

"I gotta say, Cloud, this is the strangest date I've ever been on." I started the next ladder climb.

"Oh? And how many dates have you been on before?"

"Well." I stopped halfway up the ladder and looked down to him. "This is actually my first."

"Guess that means I don't have much to compete with then."

I smiled, and continued my way up the ladders. There wasn't much when we got to the rooftop, just two wooden chairs sitting near the ledge. Close by there was a metal door that read in bold red letters "employee use only".

"Are we allowed to be up here?" I asked.

"Noctis has a friend who works here." Cloud sheepishly scratched the back of his head, "He called in a favor."

"Ohhh, so this was planned by Noctis?" I teased.

His face flushed, "No it was my plan. It just required his help was all."

I giggled and gave him a kiss on the cheek, making his face turn even more red.

"That's sweet of you. So now that we're here, what's the plan? I think I deserve an answer now, don't you?"

Cloud looked out to the city and sat down on one of the chairs.

"We have a couple of minutes yet, just be patient."

I groaned and sat down next to him. He really does have the patience of a saint. The sun was starting to set over the horizon, casting an orange glow on the rooftop. It was a beautiful sight to see.

"So Cloud, was joining SOLDIER the only reason you had for coming to Midgar?"

He hesitated before answering. "Basically yeah. I wanted to be a hero like Sephiroth. It was a big kick to the ego when I wasn't chosen though."

A hero like Sephiroth. Ha, that sounds like someone else I know. Zack's only goal in life was to become a hero. It was all he ever talked about. I wonder if Sephiroth knew he was such an inspiration to people.

"What about you?" He asked, "What was your goal for coming here?"

"I wanted to help people, protect them from danger and all that. I could have accomplished that in the Security Department, or even by joining the Turks, but I was partially following my older brother. He joined SOLDIER for the same reason as you. To become a hero." I rattled on without a thought.

"Your parents must be really proud of you both." He said solemnly.

I looked sadly at him.

"Eh… that's a complicated tale. Getting a decent job at Shinra is a great thing anyway, whether you're an infantryman or SOLDIER. I'm sure your parents are proud of you as well for making a life out here."

"You think so?"

The sadness in his voice made me feel guilty, like I had brought up a memory that he would rather forget. I didn't know much about his childhood or how he grew up. For all I knew, I could have struck a nerve by bringing up his parents. I wanted to make it right, but I didn't know how. I gently grabbed his hand, lacing my fingers through his. His face flushed red again, and mine did too for how bold I was to just act on a thought.

"I know so. It takes a lot of bravery to leave behind everything you know to make a life somewhere else. Even if you didn't accomplish your main goal yet, you're not giving up. You're fighting to get there, no matter what it takes. That's something to be proud of, and damn anyone who thinks otherwise." I gave a reassuring squeeze on his hand and smiled brightly at him.

That seemed to have brightened his spirits a little bit. The sadness left his eyes, replaced with that sparkle that I've grown to adore.

"Thanks, Senna." He smiled and looked back out to the city, "Hey, it's starting."

I looked back to the city. The sun took its final moments in view before disappearing behind the horizon. The orange glow in the sky turned into shades of blue and purple, some stars peeking out over the dusk. A sight like this made me wish that I was a painter. Then one by one, the city lights illuminated the growing darkness. From how high we were on the rooftop, I could see the lights for miles. Street lights, buildings, spot lights, neon signs, everything popped against each other in different shades and colors. I stood from the chair and leaned on the ledge.

"Wow." I said breathlessly, "It's beautiful."

"I knew you'd like it." Cloud said next to me.

"I love it." I sighed and faced him, "How did you know about this?"

He only smirked and lightly shook his head. Bastard with his secrets. I just ignored his smug smile and looked back to the city lights, soaking in the view. If I could, I would pause time right here if only to see the beauty of Midgar forever. All of my troubles washed away with the daylight. The only thing left was the calm serenity of the night.

"Senna."

"Hm?"

I turned to see Cloud standing closer to me. He looked at me with an expression I hadn't seen before. Lightly, he held onto my fingers, his thumb brushing over my knuckles. My heart beat harder and faster with each stroke. He got closer, his face mere inches away from mine. I could feel his breath on my lips. His hands trembled as he moved closer and closer. The thundering of my heartbeat moved into my throat, and I closed my eyes.

Hi all. It's been awhile since we had a chat huh? I hope I'm improving the story from how I originally wrote it. Now that I'm actually inside the Crisis Core storyline, things should progress rather nicely. I'm aware that my chapters are slower to come out (Not comparing this to the 3 years it took me to update the original chapters.. yikes) but I'm actually taking the time to reread and edit them before I release them. Look at me, starting to own my craft instead of rush it out. Go me! Feedback is always appreciated. I'd love to hear some opinions from you all. Until next time!