Chapter 7

The day passed too quickly for Yuffie. Despite all her efforts of arguing, scolding, pleading and whining, Cloud remained unconvinced of Imperius' plan. He remained intent on arriving at Aquila in time for the Sacred Blessing, so that he may take his revenge on both Baigan and the Bishop with the Sword of Navarre. Yuffie was wholly exasperated by late afternoon, and began to despair that the blonde's stubborness would mean that Cloud and Aerith would never be reunited. It didn't help that winter had come early with unusual fierceness during the day, either. Yuffie didn't know which was worse, Cloud's unwavering resolve or the harshness of a drought now fueled by bitter cold.

As the last rays of light began to fall beneath the trees of a small wood about a day from Aquila, Cloud stopped to prepare a suitable campsite for the two females. He once again warned Yuffie not to say a word to Aerith about Imperius' mad plan. Yuffie merely gave him a noncommittal shrug and began pulling out a few articles of clothing.

"What is that?" Cloud asked suspiciously, eyeing a plain, if well-made woolen frock.

"I got it for Aerith." Yuffie responded flatly. "It IS cold out, not that you'd notice. I guess only warm-blooded creatures feel the change of seasons."

The blonde warrior gave her a level stare. "Is it stolen, Yuffie?"

The ninja rolled her eyes. "What does it matter? Don't you want your lady to be warm? Or are you so caught up in your little quest you've forgotten your manners!"

"It belongs to someone else!" growled Cloud, his anger not really arising from a stolen garment. All day long the kunoichi had gotten on his last nerve.

"Not to anyone who needs it more than Aerith!" Yuffie shot back, equally annoyed.

Cloud grimaced, but let the matter drop. He looked up and saw the sun had nearly disappeared beneath the trees. "Almost time again..." he muttered. He turned back to Yuffie. "I'm leaving now. Take care of her, please. And remember, not a word about that drunken fool's crazy notions."

Yuffie huffed. "Fine, whatever." She glared at him in frustration. "Is that all you have to say? No message for her?"

Cloud looked uncomfortable. Finally he sighed. "Tell her I lo... tell her that I miss her."

"Oh, you miss her?" Yuffie repeated sarcastically. "Wow, Aerith is sure a lucky girl! It's every woman's dream for her man to say he... misses her!"

Cloud looked like he might reply for a moment, but then looked at the sky in sadness once again. Without another word, he bounded off into the trees, awaiting his transformation.

Yuffie sighed again. She felt bad about arguing with Cloud, but he was just so stubborn! The truth was she had grown to love both of them, and hated what the Bishop was putting them through. What was their crime? Falling in love? It was so unfair! They had to have a happy ending! Yuffie had never felt this strongly about anything. She rolled her eyes at how sappy she had become... what would Godo think of his foolish, selfish little tomboy now?

The sun finally set, and Yuffie put the woolen dress near the hawk. "I'll just give you some privacy." she smiled, skipping off into the trees for a moment. She waited until she heard some movement back at the campsite. Cautiously she strolled back and saw Aerith starting a small campfire, dressed in the frock Yuffie had left her.

The flower girl smiled widely as the young thief approached. "From you?" she asked, indicating the dress she wore. Yuffie nodded. "Thank you." Aerith bowed her head in gratitude.

"No problem." Yuffie replied casually, cockily burnishing her knuckles against her woolen tunic.

Aerith laughed merrily. "Oh, Yuffie, I'm so glad you're back with me tonight! It's so much less lonely with you here!" She approached her young friend and warmly embraced her.

Yuffie blushed for a second, but then returned the embrace. She never realized how nice it was to have friends. Despite her tough-girl exterior, her heart just went out to this poor creature. She couldn't imagine anyone less deserving of such a cruel fate.

Aerith backed up and looked at the ninja. "He's taking us back to Aquila, isn't he?"

Yuffie nodded glumly. "He hopes to... find some way to break the curse." She didn't want to upset her new friend with Cloud's true plan. The ninja knew Aerith would worry herself to death.

Aerith sighed and went back to tending the cookfire. "Sometimes... I think that will never happen... that we'll stay this way forever..." she whispered. "I never used to be so weak... Perhaps the Bishop and his curse are finally breaking me." Her tone was full of despair.

"Hey, we're gonna end this curse and pound that miserable old priest!" broke in Yuffie indignantly. "What that monster has done cannot be forgiven!"

Aerith laughed again. "When you say it, I believe it. You remind of Cloud a little bit. You're both so brave. I just wish I could think of some way to end this!" Yuffie almost told the flower girl of Imperius' plan, but changed her mind, regretfully. She had promised Cloud, after all. But if she couldn't convince the relentless warrior tomorrow she might have to break that promise.

"Perhaps..." Aerith continued forlornly. "Perhaps my death would end this. I'm the one the Bishop really wanted to punish. Cloud just got dragged into this because of me."

"What! No!" Yuffie grabbed her friend by her shoulders. "You can't be serious!"

Aerith looked at the young ninja with tear-stained cheeks. "I knew of the Bishop's feelings towards me. And though I never returned nor encouraged them, still I brought Cloud into this hopeless situation. Perhaps my death would free him..."

"If you die, then Cloud will not be far behind." Aerith stared at Yuffie in shock. "He lives only for you. If he lost you, he would lose all hope."

"I curse the day I met him!" cried Aerith, sobbing. "All it has brought us is pain!"

Yuffie sat down next to her friend and stroked Aerith's beautiful chestnut hair. "You know that's not true. It wasn't always this way, right? You must have been happy together before... all this."

Aerith nodded, smiling beneath her tears. "Yes. We were." She looked heavenward, her eyes sparkling like emerald jewels as she remembered happier times. She laughed suddenly. "He was so shy! Sometimes I wondered if he would ever say more than two words to me! Everyone else thought him cold and indifferent, but from the first time I saw him, I knew he was a kind, loving man. My friend Zack, who was Captain of the Aquiline Guards at the time, knew how I felt and encouraged me. He was fond of Cloud as well. Hoping to bring us together he asked Cloud to protect me while I gathered flowers and blossoms for the Bishop's gardens. Not that it was necessary, Aquila is safe, I had ventured out alone many times. Though there was this one time I got attacked by a giant teddy bear..." Aerith chuckled at Yuffie's confused expression. "Sorry, inside joke. Anyways, Cloud started to open up to me. He told me how he wanted to be a knight, how he missed his mother and how different Aquila was from the small town he grew up in. I saw that he wasn't really cold, just shy. He even listened to me blather on about flowers and gardening... he must have bored out of his mind!"

Yuffie shook her head, smiling. "No way!"

Aerith placed her arm around the kunoichi's shoulder gratefully. "And then it happened. We fell in love. I was so surprised. I knew I cared for him, but I never expected it to be so strong... it was frightening but... also wonderful."

Yuffie stared off as she absorbed the words. 'So this is what it's like to be in love? I wonder if it'll ever happen to me? Without the whole evil bishop and awful curse thing, of course!'

"I wish..." Aerith breathed softly. "I wish it could be like that again..."

Yuffie gritted her teeth. Enough of this! She was going to tell Aerith about Imperius' plan no matter what promises she had made to Cloud! But before she could speak, the tramping of nearby chocobo feet sounded out through the trees. Both Aerith and Yuffie jumped to their feet as a coarse, ugly stranger with one eye rode into their camp. A second chocobo covered with wolfskins strode next to him.

Aerith's eyes widened as she took in the sight. "NOOO!" she screamed, throwing herself at the skin-covered chocobo.

Yuffie grabbed her and held her back. "No, Aerith! It can't be him! There hasn't been time enough for this man to skin a wolf since sunset!"

"Aerith... Aerith!" the ugly man laughed. "Well, well it 'as been a long time! Where is yer furry, l'tl lover, eh? Ha, ha, ha!"

"You! You killed my auntie!" Yuffie continued to hold the enraged flower girl back, she was so infuriated the ninja feared she might try to attack the fearsome man.

"Get lost, you scum!" the ninja yelled. "Before I shove a shuriken up your ugly ass!"

"Oh, please stop li'l girl!" one-eye said with mock fear. "Yer frightenin' me!"

Yuffie let go of Aerith and drew one of her small throwing stars and held it threateningly. "One more word, and it's your life!" she hollered.

The scraggly man laughed again. "I'll come back wit Sir Wolf's skin lat'r on! You ladies just wait fer me, eh?" Still laughing the man led his chocobos off and disappeared into the trees.

"Come back and you're dead!" Yuffie shouted after him. Suddenly a flash of black and pink flew past her. The ninja saw Aerith on top of Sleipnir following the hunter into the trees. "Aerith, wait!" Yuffie yelled, panicking. She brought her hands to her head as her friend disappeared as well. "Oh, no, Lord Leviathan! He'll kill me! He will kill me!!"

-

Aerith had hoped to catch the man quickly while riding Sleipnir, but he seemed to have disappeared. She could hear his evil cackle resounding through the trees, however. "Show yourself, you coward!" The flower girl dismounted and drew her knife. She began to walk slowly through the wood, peering off into the darkness. She never noticed the large trap set next to her feet, and just missed stepping into by inches.

Gustav meanwhile watched her while he lay several more traps. He planned on using the girl as bait for this strange wolf, then capturing her and bringing her back to the Bishop for a small fortune. He smiled, while licking his thick lips. And, of course, there would be fun to be had on the way back. Perhaps he could trap and punish that foul-mouthed little Wutaian as well...

Both Gustav and Aerith turned as the pained cry of a wounded animal rang out. They rushed off in the direction it had come from, but Gustav with his keen hunting senses arrived first. A black wolf lay dead, it's neck snapped by the vice trap he had set. "Come 'ere me beauty." he whispered, but felt a note of disappointment as he examined the wolf. No blue eyes on this one. He quickly reset the trap.

Aerith arrived and screamed at the scene. "How could you!" she yelled angrily.

Gustav stood and grabbed her, blocking her knife stab. "Where is he!" he cried, angrily. "Where is the blue-eye wolf ye love!" Aerith struggled against him, but said nothing. Gustav backhanded her, causing her to stagger to the ground.

"I'll teach ye!" he grunted. Before he could approach her though, a snarling black wolf appeared to the side, sapphire eyes glowing with anger.

"Cloud..." whispered Aerith.

"The' blue-eyed wulf..." muttered Gustav, grabbing a pike from over his shoulder.

"No!" cried Aerith as she jumped to her feet, slashing him across this shoulder. Gustav cried out in pain and tripped over his own feet in confusion. As he fell to the ground his neck landed in the vice, causing the cruel spiked collar to slam around his windpipe. He gasped and rolled around in agony, the device cutting off his air.

Aerith watched his suffering, making no move to help him. Though she felt pity at anyone's pain, this man she could not forgive, and even if she could, she did not know how to disarm the trap. Gustav was finished. He stopped thrashing about and with a final gasp, lay still. Aerith looked down at him without remorse. "That's for Auntie..." she whispered with satisfaction.