Some warm fuzzies are floating around in this chapter. You have been warned.

Disclaimer: I don't own FFVII

[Edited on 4/23/20]

No real changes made to this chapter other than correcting some spelling errors and rearranging some sentences. Carry on.

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Chapter 8

How did one go about approaching a teenage girl about a sensitive topic?

Matt sighed as he pondered the question, taking an appreciative sip of his coffee while he watched the sky slowly lighten with the sunrise. He had woken about an hour ago, and had been unable to fall back to sleep despite the wonderful comfort of the bed and the peace he always felt when with his wife (even after the fact, associating Skye as something so intimate still sent a rush of joy through him). So, he'd gotten up and made his way to the kitchen, hoping to pass the time until his family awoke by making breakfast (he was sure it would come out better than last time), but ultimately found himself sitting at the table wondering where the years had gone.

A small, shivering figure clung to him tightly as he walked away from the wreckage...and two people whose death seemed very, very recent.

"It's okay...You're going to be alright."

Sure, he'd been hesitant at first. Despite coming to the decision to take care of her, he'd had doubts. Who wouldn't? But, looking back, he knew he'd made the best decision of his life by choosing to stay in Nibelheim.

What was he even doing here? Skye had been a wonderful help, but he couldn't impose on her any longer. He had a future waiting for him in Junon, one that he wasn't sure how to make work with a child, but he would have to find a way. It wasn't like he couldn't leave now that things had settled down...and yet...

"Matthew."

It was a light, warm voice that had snared his attention even then- just like the bright blue eyes of her son and the tentative smiles of the young girl he'd found tugged at something in his heart.

"Yes?"

"Have you thought up any names?"

Something kept him here...

"Well...I really like the name Castalia."

And he realized that he didn't really mind.

Despite that, he felt like he'd been cheated somehow. Like he'd blinked and suddenly, it was ten years later. He wondered if it was normal to feel this way.

"What's all this?"

Castalia smiled sheepishly up at him from the floor of her room, papers and books haphazardly scattered around her. "...Homework?"

He bent down to pick up one of the books, his brow raising as he read the title. "Uh-huh. So...mind telling me why A Beginner's Guide to Materia is here instead of in my room? I'm pretty sure they don't teach that in school."

"It's a project?"

He snorted. It figured that he'd get a bookworm for a kid. He just knew that this was payback for his own childhood. Oh, how his parents had tried to make him spend some time outside... "I love how you're making all of your answers a question."

She smiled again, and darn if it wasn't a bit mischievous. "Okay, then I'll ask a question for real. How come you have so many books on Chocobos? Are you a secret Chocobo smuggler?"

He couldn't stop the bark of laughter that escaped him. "I like Chocobos. Besides, how in the world would you smuggle one and why?"

"I dunno. You're the criminal mastermind, you tell me."

It was only now, with a baby on the way, that he noticed just how much time had gone by. His daughter (blood relation be damned, she was his and no one could tell him otherwise), had pretty much already flown the nest, and returned only because she had nowhere else to go...At least, not then.

"Hey, Da?"

"Yes?"

"What did you use to do? Before you met Ma, I mean."

He set down the book he'd been reading and looked at her with a brow raised in question. "What brought this on?"

She fidgeted, and it was then that he noticed her grip on a sheet of paper and an envelope. "I got this letter today..."

Now even more curious, he gestured to the empty couch space beside him, a smile spreading on his face as she bounded over and made herself comfortable against him.

"So, a letter, huh?"

She nodded and handed it over. "It's from the guy in charge of Junon University's science department. He says they've been keeping an eye on me since I finished my first year of extended studies...and that they would really like it if I finished there-"

"-Because you have potential and it would be a shame to lose it, seeing as I never made it there after graduating myself," he finished for her, having skimmed over the letter as she'd been explaining.

"Yeah."

He sighed, an uncomfortable pit of ice settling in his stomach at the thought of Castalia going to Junon. It was funny how something that would have filled him with pride before he'd settled down now only filled him with dread. Then again, Junon- and ShinRa by extension -had lost a lot of appeal since he started making regular trips to Cosmo Canyon.

"I did extended studies too, in a little town north of Gongaga, only I was studying in engineering instead of item synthesis. I was actually already signed up for a position in Research and Development, but since the cost for traveling by boat was more expensive, I was heading up to Rocket Town in order to catch a flight to the other continent."

"And that's when you found me."

"Yes, that's when I found you," he affirmed.

Castalia stared at the letter he held for a moment, a strange expression on her face, before she surprised him with a tight hug and a quiet murmur so full of relief that it tugged at his heart. "...I'm glad you didn't go, Da."

He could feel his expression soften as he returned the embrace and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "I'm glad I didn't too..."

It would have meant never meeting Skye or Cloud, and more than likely messing up tremendously when it came to raising the wonderful child in his arms, and that was something he never wanted to think about.

He had thought it would be fine after that. He should have known that things were never that simple. ShinRa would practically be knocking at the door with their visit, and he wasn't so sure that she would refuse the offer again- especially after seeing the letters. She was too curious about the world- too smart and independent -to be confined to Nibelheim forever...

"D-Da? What're you...doin' up so early?"

He was brought out of his thoughts at the question, and chuckled as he saw Castalia at the doorway, sleepily rubbing her eyes- the chocobo sleeping cap she wore only making the scene cuter. Maybe she wasn't quite that grown up yet...

"I couldn't sleep."

She blinked a few times, awareness coming into her eyes even as she yawned again. "Is everything okay? Nothing's wrong with Ma, right?"

He smiled. Just how he had managed to raise such a caring, sweet, intelligent girl was lost on him. It was probably all Skye's doing. "Your mother's fine. But you know, now that you're up...you want to help me with breakfast?"

"Sure, Da!"

For a moment, he'd debated on telling her that he knew about the letters. He was confident in the fact that, although she might be a bit upset about the breach in privacy, she would still hear him out and be reasonable about it. It was that same surety, however, that made him decide against it. If he knew his daughter at all, then she would make the choice to remain here.

Besides, it wasn't like Nibelheim didn't have its own shares of dangers to keep her from getting bored.

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I'd forgotten just how creepy the room we'd found Vincent in was until I saw it again.

"Are you sure about this, Vin?"

Of course, knowing that Vincent was going back into that damned coffin in a little less than a week wasn't helping.

"I doubt Hojo will bother to check if I'm still there with everything else that he'll be doing, but it's better to not take any chances."

"Yeah...but..."

"Do you remember the plan, Castalia?"

"Make sure the coffin looks like it's locked, follow the tunnel to the side entrance so that I don't mess up all the dust you've spread around- something I'm still annoyed about, by the way. Do you know how long it's going to take to clean that up? Where did you even get that much dust?"

"Castalia."

I sighed. "Right, right, I know it's necessary, but it's still annoying. Anyway, once I make it out, I just have to pretend to be an innocent, but intelligent, fifteen-year-old girl who has no interest in ShinRa- other than exchanging letters with Mr. Tuesti -for however long they're here."

My version was overly simplified, of course, but Vincent had spent so much time drilling the entire thing into my head that I was admittedly tired of it all. I just wanted this whole thing to be over with.

And of course, Vincent managed to hit upon all of my insecurities with almost frightening ease. "You'll do fine, Tali."

I made my way to the couch and let myself fall heavily onto the cushions (and the fact that there even was a couch in this room said a lot about Hojo's depravity, didn't it). "How can you be so sure? Vin, even though you had me practice, there's still times when I have to stop and force myself to make noise when I'm walking. Everyone here wrote it off as a result as my training with Zangan, but that's not going to work with them. If they send any of the higher ranking Turks- which they will considering what's locked up in the reactor -they're going to recognize the movements."

It was kind of funny- at first, anyway. I had thought it would be impossible to learn how to move like Vincent. Now, I felt like tearing out my hair because I couldn't stop.

"You have mastered it to the point that any Turks who come next week will not find it suspicious enough to warrant investigation. You will be fine, Castalia."

I was about to protest before considering the statement. Instead, I just sighed and nodded. "Sorry, Vincent. It's just-...I'm scared, y'know?"

There were already changes between what I "knew" and what was actually going on, and more changes were sure to come. We could plan for what I'd told Vincent was going to happen, sure, but we were going to need inside information from ShinRa if we truly wanted to be prepared for the future. Reeve was the best choice, and for that, we needed to establish a good relationship with him. The thing was, so many things could go wrong while ShinRa was here that it wasn't even funny. The worst part of it was that most, if not all, of those things started with me. I was the biggest risk, and that was terrifying. If I wasn't able to pull this off, it wouldn't just be us paying the price, but my family too.

Despite my growing anxiousness, I couldn't help but smile a bit when Vincent sat down next to me and didn't protest when I immediately made myself comfortable against him.

It had been a week since I told Vincent the truth, and it was startling how little had changed between us. Shortly after I had stopped crying, he had begun asking me about what I remembered, and not just subjects related to the game. He had asked me about my life on Earth- how big it was, what it was like, the technology...my friends and family. Anything that he could think of, he asked. I answered every single one, vaguely aware of the fact that I had taken hold of his hand, but hadn't been willing to let it go. Maybe in my last life, I might have been a little embarrassed or ashamed of how clingy I'd been, but...Vincent had stayed. He accepted me for who I was and what I had done in this life...

That meant more to me than I could ever say.

"I...apologize for asking so much of you. Both now, and when I was asking you about your last life."

I shook my head, smiling a bit at the warmth his concern brought to me. "You're not asking a lot, really. It's just that this is the first time I've done anything like this before, so I'm nervous. And actually...I'm happy that I told you everything."

It was true. All of those people who likened keeping a secret of that magnitude to carrying an enormous weight on their backs weren't joking. I hadn't realized just how cornered and panicked I was becoming until it all came pouring out in an emotional mess. Now, while I was still worried about the future, I was actually more at peace than I had been in a long while. I felt...safer.

Protected.

Even once I'd gotten used to my new life, there had always been that pressure- the additional weight of a looming threat. I knew that there was a possibility that I might be dragged into things whether I wanted to be or not, especially since I was close to Cloud, but it was hard to come to terms with that. It still was, but I felt much better about it all knowing that Vincent would be with me. He was easily one of the strongest people on Gaia next to Cloud and Sephiroth, as well as one of the most intelligent. Now that I couldn't avoid ShinRa entirely, I didn't doubt that I would have been running around in a panic without him here to guide me.

I shivered at just the thought of what it would be like if I had to go through this alone, and immediately buried my face into his chest and tightly wrapping my arms around him.

"I don't know if I said this already, but thank you for trusting me. And thank you for being the best, most amazing friend I've ever had."

He didn't say anything, but I felt his arm wrap around me in response.

And really, that was all I needed.

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Vincent sighed softly as he shifted on the couch in order to make himself more comfortable, a small smile slipping onto his face at the fact Castalia's hold remained firm even in sleep. He found that he could not begrudge her the comfort she found in hugging him, since she no doubt still needed assurance that he wasn't going to leave her. His hand settled atop her head like so many times before, but this time, he also allowed his fingers to gently thread through her hair as his thoughts continued to drift.

In many ways, Castalia was a child, despite having experienced a previous life.

She was more mature and intelligent, of that there was no doubt, and what knowledge she had retained of the events to come gave her a distinct advantage over many, but...there was still a lingering innocence in her. Perhaps it had been the loving family she had been part of in both lives that had helped her keep it, or maybe it was a physiological reaction to her now younger body. Regardless of the reason, the fact remained that for all that she knew, and for all that she had lost, she was still so naive to the ways of the world- or this one, at least. It made it difficult for him to see her as the adult she claimed to be. Of course, her behavior and the years that he had thought she was as young as she looked had not helped.

So, it really was understandable that he still felt like he needed to protect her.

They would not be able to avoid the coming conflict despite their best efforts to the contrary, and he could see that Castalia was beginning to realize it. In order to truly make a difference, something needed to be done differently- and the only ones capable of such were the two of them. Avoiding ShinRa would be impossible, but he could not be the one to interact with them at the risk of anyone recognizing him. No, he would have to remain in the shadows while Castalia drew attention to herself.

He hated it.

Child. Adult. It didn't matter what she was or what she considered herself to be. In the end, she was still younger than him. She had still found a place in his heart so deep, and latched on so tightly, that he couldn't imagine his life without her anymore. In just a few years, she had changed everything...and he found that he didn't really mind.

It had been a long time since he'd felt so at peace.

One day, he knew she would have a better understanding of this world. One day, she would be helping him with the planning instead of entrusting everything to him. One day, she would have to fight (although he was certain that circumstances would have to be dire for Castalia to ever find herself without his support). But, for now, he was content to handle things if it meant keeping that burden from her for just a little more.

He would protect her smile.

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I winced as my fingers hardened, and added a curse for good measure before reaching for the Remedy bag I'd prepared especially for this.

"I hate making Soft," I grumbled.

Unfortunately, there was an increased demand for it over in Wutai, which meant I would have to endure while I finished with the orders.

It wasn't that it was difficult to make Softs, exactly. It was just that the process was best done by hand, and said process required some unfortunate contact with the petrifying poison of various monsters in order to make an effective cure (this particular venom soaked through leather/fabric gloves anyway, and don't even get me started on the rubber ones). So, the fingers of everyone involved in item synthesis had to suffer for the good of all.

Well, at least I'd never have to worry about my hands being too delicate for whatever reason.

"You sure are making a lot of those."

I jumped at the sudden voice, but relaxed when I turned to see Cloud sitting at the end of my work table. He had his head resting on his folded arms, curiosity in his expression as he looked at the Softs I had already prepared and packaged.

I smiled teasingly, happy to have an excuse to take a break. "Shouldn't you be in class?"

Cloud grimaced, and I couldn't help but snicker a bit at his expression. To Ma's great consternation, Cloud's attitude toward school after the accident was one of the things that seemed to be a permanent change.

"They're talking about boring stuff."

I warily eyed the Remedy in my hand for a moment before sighing and popping the deceivingly plain looking sphere into my mouth. When I bit down on it, I couldn't help but give a grimace of my own at the taste. At least the texture was okay...

I still swore my next project would be how to make them palatable without sacrificing their effectiveness, though.

"Yeah? Wut kin' of stuff?"

It was kind of funny that, for all Cloud seemed set on rebelling on certain things, he shared Ma's disapproval whenever I spoke with my mouth full (which was only really when I felt like messing with them)- he even had the same flat stare! A stare he was giving me now, might I add.

"Just stuff," he said after a moment, rolling his eyes when I swallowed theatrically and grinned at him.

"You don't even know what today's lesson is, do you?"

He huffed, a slight tinge of pink dusting his cheeks as he looked away.

I laughed. "You might want to start thinking about what you're going to tell Ma when she finds out you skipped again, Chicky. Because you know Tifa's going to come looking for you after school."

"I know," he sighed, lacking any real irritation in his voice.

As the only other child her age who was getting lessons from Master Zangan, it was a given that Tifa would be closer to Cloud now than in the "story" I remembered. Whenever she had a free moment, she was either talking his ears off or beating him to the ground (and hadn't that been a funny sight the first time I'd witnessed it). It was a wonder that Cloud hadn't gotten annoyed with her yet, like most little boys probably would, but he seemed to enjoy her company regardless of what she was doing. Cloud was just awesome like that, I guess.

Or, it could have been the fact that Ma would kill him if he ever made her cry, but I liked to think it's the first one.

"Anyway," I began, with a tone that clearly indicated a subject change, "-to answer your curiosity, this is an order that Cole got in about a week ago. Seems like Wutai got ahold of something that lets them petrify others, and since the war is far from any natural source of that, the soldiers didn't have too many antidotes on hand. Needless to say, there's been a crazy demand for it."

Cloud frowned a bit before reaching over and grabbing my hand. He then proceeded to inspect it so carefully it was amusing.

"Your fingers are still kind of hard," he pointed out after a minute. "Isn't Remedy supposed to fix that?"

"It's a side effect of repeated exposure to the poison," a smooth voice cut in, badly startling the two of us (and I really needed to start being more aware of my surroundings when I wasn't fighting or pulling ninja moves). "It should go away in time once she stops working with it."

I looked up and practically felt my heart stop when I realized just who it was that had spoken.

"M-Mr. Tuesti!"

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Cloud didn't like Castalia's tunnel vision tendencies. It didn't happen all of the time, but it was still a dangerous habit to have at all. If anyone with the intent to injure her- or worse -were to sneak up on her while she was working on something...Well, maybe Minerva would have mercy on them, because he certainly wouldn't. Still, he couldn't help a slight rush of relief this time, since those same tendencies made her completely miss his gaping expression.

Not that the same thing could be said in reverse.

For instance, Reeve's 'oh, don't mind me, I'm a nice guy' smile was just as disarming now as it had been in the future. "I'm sorry if I interrupted anything, but since you told me you worked here in your letters, I thought I'd check to see if you were in before trying your home."

How in Gaia's name did he know where they lived? Hell, how did he even know Cast-

'...He's the one she's been writing to, isn't he?'

Okay...he could deal with that. Reeve was probably the best person Castalia could have ended up in contact with, all things considered. He was honest, and he genuinely cared about the people's wellbeing. He wouldn't have to worry about anything too bad happening if she stuck to him while ShinRa was in Nibelheim.

"I-It's fine. I was almost done, anyway."

His smile softened. "Really? If you're sure."

...What he had decidedly more trouble with was the fact that Castalia seemed to be blushing.

When she nodded and shyly tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, he knew he was scowling. She wasn't allowed to look cute- not when there was a guy involved, anyway. And that red on her cheeks? Yeah, that had to go. Now, preferably.

"In any case, it's nice to finally meet you in person, Miss Allen. I've been looking forward to speaking with you."

Castalia seemed to collect herself, looked up, and beamed. "Same here!"

'He's a friend. He helps me fight Sephiroth, so killing him isn't going to do anyone any favors. Besides, it's just a puppy crush. Nothing serious...'

He was actually dreading the day his sister had anything more than a puppy crush, if he was already having this much trouble with it.

That thought managed to give him pause, and cleared his head enough so that he could look at Castalia with a slight, almost unnoticeable smile of his own.

'When did I accept you completely as my sister, I wonder? It wasn't recent...but I don't think it was that long ago, either. All I know is that before I even realized it, I let you get so close that I would do anything for you...'

It scared him, to be honest. Just like he'd been scared when he'd realized just how much he cared for Tifa, Marlene, and Denzel. It was a sort of paralyzing feeling, knowing that someone could use those same connections to hurt him in ways he didn't even want to think about. Part of him didn't ever want to be hurt that way again.

Green haze giving way to grey rain and redredblood-

"My pride and dreams...I'm giving them all to you."

But...as much as they hurt, it was those same connections that made everything worth it. He could smile again because of them. He was alive again because of them. So, while the risk would always be there, he would protect the ones that held his heart until his very last breath, because...

"Cloud? Hey, you okay?"

He blinked and turned to Castalia, who was looking at him in concern.

"Where's that guy?"

She smiled with a hint of fond exasperation. "His name is Reeve Tuesti, Cloud. He's the Head of Urban Development in ShinRa, and I told him to go on ahead when I noticed you were zoning out. Now come on, you know Cole doesn't like it when you're here alone."

Because to give them up without a fight was to stop living, and he was nothing if not stubborn.

"Okay."

OoOoOoOoOoOoOo ~Chapter End

...Ta da?

Ha, anyway, there was chapter eight. It took forever to finally get something I was okay with posting, so I hope it was okay for the rest of you.

So, yeah, no plan survives contact with the enemy. Reeve and the rest of ShinRa have arrived a few days ahead of schedule, which really threw Castalia off since she had still been mentally preparing herself for it. What this will cause remains to be seen.

Umm...I know there's something else I wanted to add, but I keep looking at the clock and counting down how much time I have until I have to start getting ready for work, so I keep forgetting. I guess I'll just have to respond to the reviews and the like instead, since I really want to get this up before I go.

So...again, hope you enjoyed. Take care and until next time!