Happy Friday! Last week we left Aerith and Cloud both in a bit of a tough situation, so let's see what we can do to get them out of it... As always, thank you to my lovely beta and friend Rand0mSmil3z for going through and catching mistakes, awkward language, and helping the flow of the story!


Aerith

"Are you coming or not?" Aerith asked sweetly, materialized staff held against Reno's throat while he sweated profusely.

"Aw, come on, that's no fair!" He meekly raised his arms in surrender. "Since when did you have a weapon?"

She shrugged with a devilish grin. "Since Rufus determined the people I hang around with are dangerous," she replied simply. "You can guard an empty room or you can follow me, Reno. It's your call."

Reno grumbled under his breath something about 'being told to guard a door, not a stuck up bitch,' but she chose to ignore the latter half of his anti-sentiment as she propped the staff on her shoulder and began flouncing away.

"Fine!" Reno shouted from behind her. "Go get yourself killed, see if I care!"

Aerith smiled to herself, satisfied with her successful annoyance of the Turk. Once in the elevator, she minimized the staff and stuck her tongue out at Reno down the hallway. He was crossing his arms and slouching, determined to do his job even if it meant guarding an empty room. As the doors closed, she thought he saw him stick his tongue out in return. She rolled her eyes and giggled then pulled out her PHS to message Kunsel.

Operation Escape phase one complete, she sent with a small smile as the elevator began its long, tedious journey to the parking ramp beneath the building. She began twisting bits of hair under her fingertips, feeling the basic woven plait that she had opted for to get her hair out of the way. Her trademark ribbon was still perched atop her head, hopefully bringing her the luck she felt she needed to complete her mission.

Her PHS buzzed. Phase two ready, Kunsel messaged back with a thumbs-up emoji. She smiled and pocketed the device, pulling her arms behind her and resting against the wall. In her back pocket, she felt the cap she had grabbed to help keep her identity secret once she was down below. Hopefully it would be enough for now.

An eternity later, the elevator doors slid open and Aerith cautiously stepped outside, thankful to see that before the looming lunch hour the parking ramp was relatively empty. The only soul in sight in front of her was Kunsel, a helmet under each arm and a nervous grin on his face. He stood next to an old motorbike, something she'd never ridden before and was a bit nervous to try out.

"You made it!" he said in relief as she approached, and he handed her one of the helmets. "I have our transportation. You said we're heading under the plates?"

"To Wall Market," Aerith replied with a quick nod. "I'll meet up with your contact, Tifa, there. That has to be where Cloud is."

Kunsel frowned a bit. "Wall Market is a bit dangerous," he warned. "Do you want me to stay with you down there?"

Aerith shook her head vehemently. "A SOLDIER will just attract attention," she said with an apologetic smile, and she grasped the helmet in her hands and stuffed it on her head. Her hair got in the way and she struggled with the clasp of the visor, trying to pull it up so she could move her hair. Kunsel, seeing her struggle, stepped over and flipped the visor open for her.

"Thanks," she said gratefully, tucking the hair off to the side of the helmet. Her hair would be a mess later, but that was for future Aerith to worry about. "And thanks for giving me a lift."

"Hey, anything to get to the bottom of all of this," he replied sincerely, stuffing the helmet over his own head and flipping the visor up. He walked back to the motorbike and straddled it, patting the space behind him for her join. Aerith took a deep breath, quelling any nervousness that began to arise, and slid into the seat prepared for her. Kunsel sat down and she followed, wrapping her arms around the waist of his leather jacket.

The bike roared to life under her, making her flinch ever-so-slightly. This would be her first time on a bike. "Hold on!" Kunsel shouted over the noise before flipping his visor down, and Aerith pressed in tighter, determined not to fall off as she flipped hers down too. The bike eased forward and began its descent from the parking ramp to the Midgar expressway.

Being on the back of a motorbike was absolutely exhilarating. Adrenaline pounding in her ears, Aerith kept her eyes squinted shut at first as she felt the bike pick up speed on the highway. Wind whipped the part of her braid that didn't fit under the hat, but under the helmet she felt surprisingly safe. Because of that, she slowly released the tension on her eyes and chanced a glance at the world around them.

They were going so fast. Kunsel weaved in and out of traffic like he did this for a living, following the signs to the lower plate access tunnels. Aerith stared back at the Shinra building, which stood imposingly taller and grew more distant with each second. She couldn't worry about repercussions of her actions now; she had a job to do.

When they entered the tunnels, Kunsel slowed down a bit and took the bike at a more leisurely pace. Aerith enjoyed the dark surroundings and the empty road that was there just for them today. The wind wasn't nearly as howling here, but the force of their moving through air still nipped at her tight leggings and made her legs underneath go a bit numb. Even with the sun outside, it was a bit chilly today.

After a long time riding along, where Aerith was able to listen only to the wind whistling through her helmet while she hung on for dear life, the tunnels gave way to the approaching train station. She inwardly realized it was a shame the upper expressways didn't run down below, because the tunnels weren't exactly supposed to be used by individual transportation. Kunsel slowed the bike further as they approached a familiar location she recognized as the sector five slums station. He veered off the tracks and edged the bike up onto a dirt path that led away from the bustling station and towards the underside of the unfinished plate. Aerith looked up at the plate in awe, admiring the sheer scale of the city she grew up in. While the slums had never seen the cleanliness and kindness from Shinra that the upper plates had seen, the view they had was a unique one all its own. Her eyes followed the jagged edges of metal beams that slowly worked their way into blotting the sun out; but for now, she felt the rays on her face and smiled, soaking in the light's warmth.

Kunsel drove much slower on these back roads, taking care around winding curves to avoid people and monsters alike. More than once Aerith swore she saw some creature lurking in the shadows on the path, and she hugged her SOLDIER friend tighter each time, worried she would get pulled off. Even with her new staff, she was very inexperienced in fighting and wasn't sure she was ready to start that process.

Kunsel nudged her with the back of his shoulder, and Aerith looked forward to see where he was trying to show. There in the distance were a series of quaint buildings bathed in orange and surrounded by a tall, black wall. Wall Market. He edged the bike onwards, their path descending into heaps of rock and industrial trash that was between them and their destination. Aerith stared straight ahead, trying to catch another glimpse as they dipped in and out of obstacles. Eventually, they found the edge of town and Kunsel slowed to a stop, catching the bike from falling with his foot.

Aerith stood up – legs a little shaky from the exhilaration of the ride – and removed her helmet to grin at Kunsel. "That was fun!" she exclaimed, taking a few breaths to steady herself. "Why haven't I done that before?"

Kunsel laughed, removing his helmet too. "Probably something to do with being the president's ward," he joked back with a roll of his eyes. "When we get you out, I'll take you all across Gaia on the motorbike, if you want!"

Aerith beamed at him. "I wouldn't want anything else," she sighed happily, handing him back the helmet. "When I'm free, you're going to quit too?"

He shrugged.

"There's nothing here for me anymore," he said while running a hand through his hair. "After Zack, I'm not sure I can trust anything Shinra says anymore. There are much better things I could be doing for the world than working for them."

She pulled the cap out of her pocket and fixed it onto her head, pulling the braid through the hole. She held her arms out.

"How do I look? Like a regular tourist?" she asked.

Kunsel chuckled.

"Not completely, but if you'll blend in anywhere, it'll be in this hellhole," he teased back. His eyes grew serious for a moment. "I'll wait here until your friend meets you. Safety in numbers in a sketchy part of town, okay?"

Aerith nodded, pulling her PHS out and messaging Tifa where she was.

"So Wall Market is pretty seedy?" she asked conversationally then, turning around to face what she could see. Beyond the large gate, a few ornate shops were scattered on this side of town. Farther in, she thought she could hear the distant sounds of crowds and music. It sounded bustling and exciting, not to mention it was easy on the eyes with its assortment of colors and décor. If anything, Wall Market looked like an exciting tourist destination.

"Yeah," Kunsel said absently as he stared too. "It used to be better, at least until Don Corneo moved in and took over. Now it's pretty lawless. Even Shinra tends to stay out unless there's a direct security threat."

"Wow, a place Shinra won't even reach," she murmured, looking at the town with brand new eyes. Perhaps this was information that would be useful to her for later.

"Is this our contact?" Kunsel asked then, pointing towards a young woman jogging up the path. Aerith recognized her from the footage on the news, although she was doing a great job at trying to hide herself – she had dressed in a fancy black kimono adorned with a wide, gray belt and little bows. Black thigh-high socks hid her legs and helped her surprisingly blend into the landscape she left to join them. As she approached, Aerith admired the large pink flower in her hair that sat atop a chain of smaller flowers flowing through her hair. She looked familiar, and not just from the footage…

"Heya!" Aerith said with a big smile, approaching the other and noticing her wary expression. "I'm Aerith. This is Kunsel, my friend and your contact on the message boards."

"Nice to meet you," Tifa said a bit stiffly, letting a soft smile shine through. "I'm Tifa. We're…safe, right? You're not going to arrest me or something?"

Aerith laughed. "Nope!" she said. "Kunsel and I are stuck on the inside for now, but we have our morals. Our goal is to find out what happened to our friend and then we're getting out from under Shinra's thumb."

Tifa cocked her head, eyes widening in surprise.

"Really? You can… do that?" she asked uncertainly.

It was Kunsel's turn to laugh. "Not easily, but we're doing it anyway," he said good-naturedly, holding his hand out to shake Tifa's. "Nice to meet you in person, by the way. It's unfortunate what happened to your friend. Hopefully you two can track him down."

"Thanks," Tifa replied with a sigh. "That's my hope, too. He isn't exactly the most… stable at the moment."

Aerith tilted her head curiously but didn't pursue the subject.

Kunsel strapped the extra helmet to the back of his bike before putting his back on. "I'll catch you guys later," he said with a grin through his open visor. "Aerith, message me if you need anything. You know I'll be back down if you want my help."

"I appreciate it," she responded with a bright smile. "We can do this!"

"Absolutely," Tifa added. Kunsel grinned again and, flipping the visor down, angled the bike the direction they came and peeled away. A heavy cloud of dust rose up behind them and Aerith waved it away with a cough.

"So…where do we start?" she asked her new companion.

Tifa shifted from foot to foot a little, glancing anxiously back at Wall Market. "Well, I may have done something a little stupid, but I had an idea." She stretched her arms and began walking, Aerith quickly falling into step with her. "I've managed to get an invitation to one of Corneo's special auditions tonight. Hence my getup," she added while waving at her outfit. "If I can get some one-on-one time with him, I can force the truth out of him!"

"Hmm… What kind of audition is it for? A dancer?" she asked innocently, processing the information.

Tifa grimaced. "A wife."

Aerith gasped. "Well… that's something I didn't see coming," she laughed in surprise as she looked up at the sign they passed under announcing their arrival into the lawless town. "He holds auditions for wives?"

"Apparently? I don't know much more than that," she said, her voice quiet . "I just want to get Cloud back and safe back in sector seven, and if this is the only way, then this is the way."

The two women rounded a corner and suddenly they were in the midst of the crowds and music that Aerith had heard from the other side of town. Even during the light of day, colors pulled at her attention from every angle. Lanterns hung above them, crisscrossing into seemingly random patterns that promised illumination at night. Stands advertising food, drinks, and anything else she could ever want surrounded them on all sides, beckoning her in with delectable smells of fried food and the sounds of cheerful vendors looking to acquire a customer.

"Wow," Aerith murmured, eyes wide. "This is incredible, Tifa!"

Tifa laughed a bit at her expression, taking in the view too.

"I've seen it a few times before, but I'm sure…you don't really get out much, do you?" she asked.

Aerith shook her head, eyes wide with wonder. "Not much at all," she whispered, more to herself than to her companion. "What do we need to do first then?"

"I thought we could do some reconnaissance first. Scout around, see if we can find anybody who has seen somebody matching Cloud's description?"

"Well, we'll need to be careful, since he's not exactly one to blend in and there's a bounty on his head," Aerith sighed. "But let's do that – I hope I'm dressed inconspicuously enough!" She held out her arms and Tifa studied her for a moment.

"I think you'll be fine," she said. "Just keep the hat over your face and you should be set."

Aerith nodded, adjusting the cap in question. She scanned around them, tried to take in as much as her eyes would allow, but the colors and the sights were almost overwhelming. She caught the sight of a food vendor waving at her and Tifa, beckoning them closer. Aerith grinned, keeping her hat a bit low while she approached.

"Chocobo pops!" the vendor announced excitedly. "Only 10 gil a piece, can I interest you fine young ladies in a few?"

Aerith was already fishing out gil from her pocket. "Yes please," she replied happily. She exchanged her money for two short sticks, each with a bright yellow, bulbous sweet decorated like a chocobo head on it. Tifa, accepting the chocobo pop Aerith handed her, eyed it uncertainly. Aerith looked at hers, looked at Tifa, and then bit into the head of the pop without a second thought. An almost sickly sweet flavor accompanied the soft cake, making her moan in delight.

"This is so good!" Aerith gushed through a mouthful of cake, beaming at the other girl.

Tifa, who hadn't taken more than a look at her own pop, chuckled a bit as she looked at Aerith. "Um, you have a bit of…frosting on your mouth."

Aerith squeaked and wiped her face quickly with the back of her hand. "Thanks," she said gratefully as she swallowed.

Tifa slowly led them around the main square as they ate their treats, pausing every few moments to ask a quick question of people regarding Cloud. So far, nobody had seen anybody matching Cloud's description. Aerith took the leftover sticks and threw them in the trash as Tifa wrung her hands; by now a good ten people had been questioned without any luck. They had emerged from a particularly crowded alley onto a purposefully wide stone path now, and this part of town seemed trilling with extra excitement. Aerith followed the enthusiastic gestures and bright eyes towards their fixation: a brightly decorated building halfway up an excessive set of stairs.

"What do you think is going on?" she asked Tifa, curiosity more than evident in her voice as she craned her neck to see.

Tifa bent down and picked something off the floor. "Must be the Corneo Cup," she replied, showing Aerith the paper evidence. Aerith took the flyer in fascination, her heartbeat picking up in excitement as she studied the colors and the emblazoned announcement for the tournament.

"This sounds like fun!" she said wistfully, hugging the flyer to her chest and staring longingly at the building again. "I wish we had time to go see it. I've never been to anything quite like it."

"Maybe…" Tifa trailed off, and Aerith whipped her head to study the other woman. She was squinting at the building. "Maybe there will be people in there that will know more. After all, Corneo is the one we're after here… He's bound to have people there if he himself isn't."

"An excellent point!" Aerith chimed in, barely concealing the vibrating anticipation that was blooming in her chest. While she had had many outings with President Shinra over the years, some of them even to fun events, she'd never before had the chance to simply enjoy them without the heavy weight of expectation to behave and be picture-perfect for the entourage of media that creeped after the Shinra family like a plague. This experience could be, in no less words, enjoyable for her.

"The entrance fee is a bit spendy," Tifa said, apprehension evident in her tone and in the way her fingers drummed against her thigh. "I'm not sure I have enough…"

"Don't worry," Aerith replied with a big smile, "I have more than enough for both of us! That is possibly the only good thing about my situation – I've never been one lacking in funds."

Tifa bit her lip. "Are you sure?" she asked hesitantly. Aerith bobbed her head in response. "Okay then…"

"Look," Aerith gushed as she pointed at the flyer. "We missed the first round already, but the second round is due to begin soon. Let's go get our tickets!"

"Hopefully we'll have better luck in there…" Tifa sighed as Aerith led the way to the event center. Weaving through the throngs of excited patrons, they finally fought their way to the door and into the proper line for tickets. Aerith fumbled for the gil in her pocket, grin permanently affixed to her face as she practically buzzed with excitement.

"You…don't do this much, do you?" Tifa chuckled next to her. Aerith shook her head, sending her braid swinging around each shoulder.

"Nope!" She popped the 'p' for emphasis. "First time for me! And I really hope we figure out what happened to Cloud, too," she added with a reassuring smile. "The guy seems pretty resilient. Maybe he's sulking somewhere and his pride is the only thing wounded about him?"

Tifa hid her laugh behind her hand. "You've only met him a couple times, but you have Cloud's ways down to a T," she said honestly. "That would be just like him."

Once they reached to the front of the line, Aerith handed over the gil for 2 tickets. She accepted the golden stubs with awe, and she couldn't help admiring the glint the soft metallic sheen gave when the light ran over them. Tifa gently nudged her forward and Aerith looked away from the stub towards the opening doors in front of her. She stepped through, feeling anticipation rock through her entire body.

That wasn't the only thing that physically moved her – loud, booming music blasted up through the floorboards and vibrated her shoes. The atmosphere inside was fun, festive, and absolutely contagious. Aerith's eyes were wide as she tried to take in everything at once. They were standing on the precipice of a large, open arena draped in shades of red. A large, octagonal carving was the crowning jewel in the center of the empty arena below them, the only rivals to its ornate carvings being the equally stunning doors on either side of the room.

"This is incredible," she murmured, clutching the ticket stubs to her chest in complete awe.

Tifa laughed and gently tugged one stub away from her. "It really is," she agreed, studying the stub. "We only have a few minutes. It looks like we're all the way at the top." Pointing upwards, Tifa led Aerith to their seats, Aerith's eyes trailing back to the arena every few minutes. When the found their spots, they sank into the hard bleacher seats provided to them. Aerith's gaze wandered to a special booth off to the side, where a set of three impressive thrones sat three impressive-looking people.

"Who are they?" she asked, pointing. Tifa followed her finger to the booth and her eyes widened.

"Now those people would know something," she said excitedly, leaning forward in her seat with a hopeful smile. "That's the trio. They're under Corneo's payload. The one in the middle is Chocobo Sam, he's the one getting me into the audition tonight. I think the left one is the owner of the Honeybee Inn, if I remember correctly. The right one is Madame M. I hear she has a really mean temper."

Aerith laughed nervously, eyeing them with new eyes. These people looked highly important. So did the sulking silver-haired young man behind him, glaring at the arena with an expression she could gauge even from a distance away. As she watched, he held something up to his ear – a PHS, she realized. He listened curtly for a few moments, his eyes widening slightly, and then he nodded. He removed the PHS from his ear, stabbed a few keys, and then held it up again. He talked shortly and his expression never stopped glowering.

"That guy is in a bad mood," she commented nonchalantly to Tifa, who had been watching too.

"Yeah," she replied slowly. "I don't know who that is, but he does not look happy."

Just then, a loud gong rang throughout the room, reverberating in Aerith's ears and echoing off the walls behind them. They really were in the nosebleed seats, but she didn't care. She leaned forward excitedly in her seat as two figures in green and orange strode onto the arena floor.

"Ladies and gentlemen and all variations in between, welcome to the second round of the preliminaries for the Corneo Cup!" one of the men said, his voice booming with excitement as it hit home the event of the day. The crowd roared, and Aerith cheered with them, pumping a fist in the air as she beamed at Tifa. Tifa smiled in amusement at her enthusiasm.

"We have a great line-up for you this afternoon, courtesy of the ever-generous Don Corneo himself!" a reedier voice added to the lineup, gestures drawing her attention to the large screen showing a cartoon figure of a larger, balding man with a big grin. The crowd cheered again.

"This round's winners will go onto face the champions of the great trio themselves in this evening's final rounds. And to add to the excitement, our esteemed leader here in Wall Market has thrown his own champion's hat into the ring!"

"Talk about exciting," the second man added with a flourish of his arms. "Now – WHO'S READY FOR THE NEXT ROUND?!"

Aerith joined the throng of yells and screams as the two retreated from the arena and took a hidden elevator to the announcer's box.

"First up is the candidate you're all familiar with," the man in green said as the door to their right began to slowly shift open. "Master of speed, dominator of crushing skulls! We present to you… The Compactor!"

Aerith couldn't lean forward any farther as she struggled to see the contestant that emerged; luckily, the screen captured the image much more easily. The "Compactor" was a large man wearing chainmail and thick, black gloves stained with some dark substance she didn't want to consider. He had on thick pants, probably to help him against the sharp claws of his companions. He was flanked on either side by two enormous, nefarious crab-looking creatures she had never seen before. They clicked their claws menacingly, awaiting orders to attack what was in sight.

"What in the world are those?" Aerith asked Tifa, staring with wide eyes.

"I've seen them before," Tifa murmured to her under her breath. "In the sewers. I think they're scissorclaws. Nasty things."

Aerith nodded in agreement, getting over her initial horror as the announcers began their next announcements.

"And now, for the first test by our Don Corneo's champion himself, The Compactor's opponent will be a man on a mission. Fighting for his freedom in the ring, this treasonous military man will be sure to turn heads. But can he defeat the deadly grasp of The Compactor? Ladies and gentlemen, we present…"

"THE MERC!"

Aerith and Tifa rose from their seats at the same time, jaws dropping as the door to the left slid open and a lone, completely obvious-to-them person appeared in the arena below them.

"No way," Tifa breathed.

"How?" Aerith asked back, horror flooding into her veins as the subject of their search and rescue stepped into the center of the ring and took a hesitant battle stance, painfully familiar buster sword gripped tightly in his hands.

There was nothing they could do but watch the ordeal now. Cloud was on his own.


Cloud

Cloud gripped his heavy sword tightly between both hands, trying to ignore the faint sting putting pressure on his still-healing leg was causing. Around him, the erupted roar of the crowd practically deafened his ears. The announcers were saying something, but he found it difficult to focus between the tribal beating of drums, the din of the room, and the throbbing headache that had decided to rejoin him.

How had he gotten into this mess? He huffed in frustration at the whirlwind past couple hours, how he had sat and contemplated the best means of escape from his captivity, only to be interrupted by a disgusting pig of a man, flanked by an impressive amount of lackeys, all leering up at him.

The man had introduced himself with a name that he had expected Cloud to recognize, and disappointment fell short of his reaction when Cloud did not, in fact, know him. Don Corneo had then done some typical villainous gloating, quite proud of his ability to capture terrorists for Shinra in an efficient manner. He had ended his boresome tirade with a deal: fight for him in this stupid competition and earn his freedom, or be handed into Shinra in return for the bounty on his head. Of course, Cloud wasn't stupid and didn't begin to assume he'd be earning freedom as the spectacle suggested, but at least he wasn't confined to that stupid cage like an animal anymore. At least now, he had his weapon, he had his materia, and he had a bit of breathing room to think.

Well, maybe not a lot of room to think, he thought wryly to himself as the announcers declared the beginning of the match and a gong blasted into his head from somewhere up above.

Cloud had sized up his opponent upon first entering the arena, and he already deemed this not to be much of a fight. The man looked menacing enough, but his companions – a couple of sewer crabs he couldn't remember the name of – would be easy enough to dispel. Once he was done with them, his human opponent, of whose catchy name he had already forgotten, would be a piece of cake.

Springing into action, Cloud leaped over the center of the arena, stabbing the sharp side of his buster sword into the crackled exoskeleton of the first crab, bringing forth a hissing squeal of pain from the creature. It twitched angrily and lunged out with one set of claws, and he was quick to retract his feet from where the sharp pincers stabbed at the air he'd just been in. Meanwhile, out of the corner of his eye Cloud saw the man approaching at an impressively rapid pace, arms out as he lunged for the ex-SOLDIER. Cloud dove and summersaulted underneath the outstretched grasp, landing a quick punch to the back of the man's thigh. The man yelled in anger and fell down, recovering and jumping back to his feet rather quickly. Cloud was already moving again though, this time targeting the other crab that was closing in.

Deciding to use the expansive space to his advantage, Cloud left the other two and ran straight at the second monster, hefting the sword behind him to gain momentum. As he approached, he swung the sword out in his signature move. The crab fell onto its back, kicked a couple times, and stopped moving. One down.

Cloud whirled around and prepared for the onslaught of attack he was expecting. Sure enough, both the man and the other crab were practically on top of him. Bringing his sword into a guarded pose, he waited for the incoming punch from his human opponent, feeling the powerful reverberation of the fist colliding with his sword. He reacted in turn with a swing of his sword, catching the man off-guard as the blunt end dug into his gut. He fell onto his back, momentarily stunned, and Cloud turned his focus to the staggering crab that was fast approaching.

The creature twitched forward in bizarre, jarred movements from its previous onslaught. It was mad and out for blood, that much Cloud could see now. He checked his equipped materia quickly to see what he had as it continued its lengthy approach. Fire, healing, thunder, first strike –

A hand clamped down on his ankle, pulling him down in a surprising, staggering feat. Cloud yelped as he lost the grip on his sword and landed hard on his healing leg, a fresh twist of pain eliciting a growl from his throat. His opponent was still injured and slow to get to his feet, but he had found success and stood above, fist clenched in fury as he prepared for his final blow.

Cloud knew it was now or never. He pushed his pain back with the adrenaline seeping through his body and shoved himself to the side, towards his sword and the final crab. He grasped the buster sword and stabbed one final time at the crab from his position on the ground, quickly changing tactics and rolling on his back to face his final opposition. With a twist in his gut and a deathly grip on his sword, he called fire from his weapon and sent it towards the enraged, injured man. A blossom of red-hot fire erupted and his opponent fell with a yowl of pain, taking a few deep gasps for breath before falling still.

Still on the ground, Cloud took a few seconds to breathe, letting his adrenaline work its way through his suddenly tired limbs. His leg throbbed in a screaming reminder that he hadn't been fully healed yet when he ran on it. He winced.

"He's done it!" came the resounding cry from the announcers.

A resounding cheer erupted from the crowd, startling him. Cloud had nearly forgotten where he was for a moment. Fighting was an easy distraction, and he had always found battles to be the perfect cure for too much thought. Now however, he slowly got to his feet, twirling the sword around a couple times before sticking it on his back again. He looked up at the crowd for the first time, his eyes staring in amazement at the sheer number of people waving and yelling in his direction.

His gaze landed on the obvious VIP section of the audience, and Cloud's eyes narrowed at the people who must have been invited especially by Don Corneo himself. He heard a door opening and turned his head towards the noise, realizing he had to exit the arena for the next scheduled fight to commence. He sighed and retreated back the way he'd entered, keeping pressure off his bad leg as much as he possibly could.

He was greeted in the hallway by no less than four unsurprising guys, all part of the earlier entourage that had first met him in the dungeon. He glowered but stopped in front of them, crossing his arms and not making his move. The pain in his leg felt like fire and he needed to heal up and then down an ether. He wasn't ready to escape just yet.

"Great job, SOLDIER boy," one sneered at him, pushing him towards one of the waiting rooms. Cloud chose to ignore the stares from a couple other contestants as he sulked his way into the room. The door slammed shut behind him and he sighed heavily, dropping into one of the chairs around a simple table. In the corner was a vending machine and a bench he'd gladly take a rest at, but he needed a moment first.

Cloud took in his surroundings, studying the useless items that were on the shelves and scattered on the floors. The only new additions to the room were now a few small bouquets of flowers laying haphazardly on the table. He eyed them for a few minutes, wondering why the hell people would be giving him recognition – he was just trying to get out of here.

Nevertheless, curiosity won over and Cloud scooted his chair – hissing in pain when he put pressure on his bad leg again, he really needed to heal up – over to the bouquets and studied them, looking around them for well-wishing cards or something. There wasn't anything to note except his new pseudonym of "The Merc," christened by the incredibly annoying Corneo himself. He sighed heavily and pushed off the table, walking over to the vending machine to stock up on supplies.

There was a small commotion at the door as he downed an ether, and Cloud made a quick face before discarding the vial amongst the junk piled on the floor. Curiosity got the better of him and he made his way around the furniture to listen carefully at the other side.

"…I know you?" one of the lackeys was asking suspiciously. "You look familiar…"

"Take a few moments, maybe it'll come to you." The voice that replied was sweet, polite, and firm. That voice.

Cloud almost stopped breathing as he couldn't believe his ears. Aerith was here? How?

There was a slight shuffling and a few gasps of astonishment as at least one of Corneo's men recognized her. "You're – you're the president's ward!" one of them said, barely containing the awe in their voices.

"No way, that's you?" another stuttered in disbelief.

"She's on my copy of Shinra Monthly!" another confirmed with an excited flourish in his voice. "To what do we owe the honor?"

"Well, I was so impressed with the way The Merc fought, and I wanted to offer a token of my appreciation," Aerith explained in a voice that gave away a lot more than the lackeys were probably able to hear. She was here to help, Cloud could tell. Part of him sighed in relief, part of him was annoyed – this would be the second time Aerith had saved his ass in less than a week. Not that he needed saving, no…Cloud could take care of himself.

"Well, we're not supposed to let anybody in…" one of the lackeys trailed off uncertainly.

Aerith let out a light laugh, replying, "I promise, there's nothing I can do that would jeopardize his situation. It seems Mr. Corneo found himself a good candidate, and I really appreciate watching a great fight!"

There were some murmurings among the lackeys, and the wheels in Cloud's head began to turn – he thought he had a plan, but he didn't know if Aerith was going to like it…

"Fine, but make it quick!" somebody snapped, and a key came searching in the doorknob. Cloud jumped away from the door and settled back into the chair he had recently vacated, searching quickly for the potion he'd just purchased. Downing it in one disgusting gulp, he set the vial on the table and felt his injuries begin to heal at a much more rapid pace.

The door opened to reveal one of the lackeys, a particularly ugly guy with unkempt black hair and a mischievous grin.

"Hey pretty boy, you have an esteemed visitor," he announced into the room, as if Cloud hadn't heard a single word of the conversation outside. "You better be on your best behavior now, or else."

He backed away and then Cloud caught sight of Aerith, a bouquet of flowers in one trembling hand and a cap in the other. She had a bright, excited smile on her face, and it was only because he had grown to recognize her fake fronts that he could tell she was nervous.

Aerith bounded forward and thrust the flowers at him, big green eyes bright – too bright, she was nervous. Cloud looked down at the flowers – yellow lilies, looking prime in their bloom and smelling achingly familiar – and back up to her.

"I wanted to say that you did a fantastic job today," she said loudly to him, winking as she did so. Her hand fumbled in the band of her leggings and she pulled out a PHS as she did so. "You were so brave!"

"Uh – thanks," Cloud replied, looking back down at the flowers and then watching her hands as she tucked the cap under her arm and typed rapidly. She turned the device around and he read the message on there.

Are you okay?

He nodded quickly.

Aerith sighed and deleted what she wrote. "What's your name, anyway?" she asked with a very convincing giggle. She typed furiously on the PHS, quickly waving for him to reply out loud.

"C-Cloud," he said quickly. "I'm Cloud."

"Well Cloud," she said with a big grin and her PHS held out again for him to take, "It's so nice to meet you!"

"Hey, hurry it up in there," one of the lackeys complained outside of the door, peeking his head in. Cloud met his eyes and glared, subtly taking the device from her at the same time.

"One more minute," Aerith called easily over her shoulder, sounding like she didn't have a care in the world. Cloud read the PHS again.

Do you have a plan to get out of here?

He shrugged weakly at her, handing the PHS back and straightening up. He reached up for the hilt of his sword, eying her wordlessly. She followed his action and her eyes widened a bit. She nodded quickly, and Cloud hoped they were on the same page.

That was how, a few silent moments later, a couple of the guys poked their heads in to find Cloud standing menacingly, arm wrapped around Aerith's waist and sword held to her throat.

"Woah, holy shit!" one yelped, practically bounding into the room. "Do you know who that is, idiot? The president will have your head!"

"What's going – damn it!" unkempt hair shouted, whipping his pistol out and training it at Cloud. "Let the girl go now!"

"No," Cloud said firmly. The fury he emphasized in a single word was enough to impress even himself. "You're going to let me go, and then maybe I'll consider letting the girl go and letting you live."

"Shit, man," the first one said nervously, "we can't let the president's ward get hurt."

"Corneo will have our heads if we let him go," another one pointed out in frustration.

"Excuse me, I think I'm the priority here!" Aerith exclaimed, a small squeak of fright sounding from the back of her throat as Cloud pulled her closer. He'd have to apologize later if he hurt her.

"Don't worry," a new, younger voice drawled out. The lackeys backed farther into the room to allow the new person in. It was a young man with silver hair and dark clothing, complete with a cap on his head. He eyed the situation impassively, as if he wandered into strangers holding President Shinra's ward hostage all the time. "I've got this."

"Yeah right," unkempt hair scoffed, his pistol trained with deadly aim at Cloud's head. Cloud eyed the newcomer untrustingly. He didn't seem even remotely worried.

The newcomer's next words revealed exactly why. "He's not going to do anything, now that we have his accomplice too," he sighed as if this was common knowledge, his voice low and matter-of-fact. "We caught her upstairs. She was disguised well, but it seems she was on her way to visit the Don anyway." The newcomer smirked slightly at Cloud. "Now she'll be there a bit longer."

Cloud blanched. Were they talking about…Tifa? Had she tried to come and rescue him? And with Aerith here too… Putting pieces together as rapidly as he could, Cloud wanted nothing more than to turn Aerith around and ask her what happened. Why was Tifa here? Why was she planning on visiting Don Corneo? Stuck like a deer in the headlights, he tried to school his expression into something akin to threatening. However, a nagging voice in the back of his head was telling him this was over now, there was no way he was in a good position that wouldn't put Tifa in a bad one. If Don Corneo had her… he almost shuddered as he remembered the weirdly creepy vibes the fat man had given off.

His body reacted before his mind was made up, and he loosened his grip on Aerith's waist, lowering his sword and letting it clatter to the ground as he set his jaw and put his hands up. Aerith scampered over to the other side of the room, whipping her head around to face him. Their gazes locked. She was frightened now, truly and properly. Her eyes widened and her lips parted in the slightest 'o,' worry and fear evident in every bit of her face.

"Relax," the cool, collected man told her. "You're safe now. The Don sends his regards at hearing of your presence in Wall Market. He invites you to dine with him once the tournament is over."

Cloud narrowed his eyes as Aerith cast one last terrified glance over her shoulder while being led out of the room. As he stared, he felt a heavy pain THUMP against his skull and his knees buckled in surprise. Stars swam in his vision.

"Serves you right," muttered unkempt hair as he put his weapon of choice – his pistol – away and filed out of the room after Corneo's other lackeys. Cloud took a couple deep breaths, working through the pain that threatened to show his vision galaxies. He heard more than saw the door slam, and he was once again, utterly, truly alone.

Good, a small, pleased voice whispered in his ear amidst the angry drumming of the welt forming on his head. Alone.