Well… I bet you never saw this coming. I know I certainly didn't, and boy did that last endnote not age well. Your first thought upon seeing this update might have been "Oh wow, only 8 years this time!" BUT! Believe it or not, this story is now complete! That's right, if you're reading this lame author's note, then that means I've actually finished the rest of the chapters for this story. I decided that if I was ever going to work on it again, I'd just get it all done before posting any new chapters. No, I haven't been working on it for the last eight years; I picked it up again because I was surprised at how many notifications I was getting on a seemingly dead, thirteen year old story. Of course, I realize that's because the amazingness that is FF7 Remake came out and pulled even more people into the fandom, but it's also been killing me that I've left this unfinished. The story also got its first review in five years, so never underestimate the power of telling an author you like their work. But enough of that, you're not here for this overly long author's note; you're here for the story. I hope it was worth the wait, enjoy.

Chapter 8: Cloudy Days

Cloud staggered backwards at the realization, his brain refusing to acknowledge what his eyes were seeing. Aerith would never dress like that, much less drape herself over anyone, especially not Sephiroth. But no matter how much he wanted to deny it, no matter how much it made his heart twist within his chest, as Cloud took a few shaky steps towards her, he could no longer deny what he was seeing. The girl standing there in the frilly pink crop top and short white mini skirt was, without a doubt, Aerith.

"What did you do to her you bastard?" Cloud snarled at Sephiroth, his hand instinctively reaching for the Buster Sword on his back.

Sephiroth just smirked back at him, and it was actually Aerith herself who responded to Cloud's question. "Do to me? Why does Sephiroth have to have done something to me? Am I incapable of choosing who I want to be with? You men are all the same, now you sound just like Zack did a few months ago. If anything, Cloud," she snarled angrily, "you're the one who did something. The fact that you think I'd still want to associate with a murderer like you sickens me."

Cloud felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. Not just from what Aerith had said, but also the voice she'd used; he'd never heard her be so completely and utterly disdainful before. Unable to respond, Cloud just watched as Sephiroth and Aerith turned to enter the school, leaving everyone else standing on the school steps in shock.

"So uh… that just happened," Reno finally said, attempting to break the awkward silence.

Rude only grunted in response.

"Any idea what's going on, Tif?" Rufus asked softly, glancing over at her.

Tifa was still standing there, staring at where Aerith had been, a hand covering her mouth in shock. At Rufus' question, she came back to herself and shook her head slowly. "I… I have no idea what's going on with her. We were together just yesterday and she…" Tifa let out a soft sob, unable to keep her tears back now. "She seemed just fine to me, she said that she felt a lot better, that she'd gotten over what had happened and she was looking forward to classes on Monday…" She sniffed strongly, and furiously brushed the tears from her eyes. "Cloud's right, that asshole has to have done something to her and I swear I'm going to make him pay for it." The five men standing around her all recoiled simultaneously from the tangible wrath emanating from Tifa at this statement.

Before anyone else could chime in, the school bell rang indicating that they were all late to their morning class. They quickly hurried inside and rushed to their classroom, earning a disappointing look from Reeve, but he continued on with his lecture instead of calling them out. As Cloud took his seat, he couldn't help but notice that Sephiroth and Aerith had pushed their desks together in the back of the room and were clearly paying far more attention to each other than to the lecture. He ground his teeth in anger and forced himself to focus on what Reeve was saying, doing his best to ignore the continued giggles and whispers.

"If you two have no interest in learning the lore of the Ancients, you're more than welcome to continue your little conversation in Barret's office," Reeve eventually snapped, no longer willing to tolerate the distraction in the back of the room.

In response, Aerith just rolled her eyes at him, but she did scoot her desk away from Sephiroth's, and at least pretended like she was paying attention. Cloud could see how tightly Tifa's fists were clenched, and knew that this horrible situation was hurting her just as much as him.

Eventually, the lunch bell rang, and all of the students filed out of the classroom and headed for the cafeteria. Cloud felt like he was in a nightmare, some part of him had held out hope that this was all some big joke, but the day was already half over and Aerith was still at Sephiroth's side. Even now, they were moving past Cloud in the lunch line, having already gotten their meals. Aerith ignored him as they passed, but Sephiroth stopped and leaned down slightly.

"I bet you never truly learned just how good she really tastes," he whispered into Cloud's ear.

Cloud saw red. The next thing he knew, he was on the ground over Sephiroth, his fists covered in blood and his arms restrained by someone behind him he couldn't see. He could hear dozens of voices all screaming, but couldn't make out whatever it was they were saying. The last thing he saw before blacking out was the twisted, smug smirk on Sephiroth's bloody face.

Cloud came to once more in the now familiar hospital room, rapidly blinking his eyes as his pupils slowly adjusted to the bright light.

"Well that was real fucking stupid, now wasn't it?" Barret remarked from the stool next to Cloud's bed.

"He said…" Cloud began angrily, shaking his head to help clear it.

"I don't give a shit what he said!" Barret snapped. "You assaulted a fellow student on campus. You do understand what the consequences of that are, right?"

"I…" Cloud bit his lip in frustration and looked down, realizing that there was nothing he could really say. He knew he'd screwed up, that he shouldn't have lost control like that, but at the same time he wasn't sorry that he had. "I'm expelled then?" he muttered angrily, unable to meet Barret's eyes and the disappointment he knew he'd see there.

There was a long moment of silence before Barret finally responded. "No," he said, surprisingly softly. "I was able to prevent it from going that far, although Sephiroth's parents certainly tried their hardest to force my hand. Everyone there saw him provoke you and vouched for you, even, surprisingly enough, your old girlfriend."

"Aerith did?" Cloud asked in confusion, his head jerking up to look at Barret.

Barret nodded slowly. "Look, Cloud," he said, placing his huge hand firmly on Cloud's shoulder and looking him directly in the eye. "We're not stupid. Every teacher in this school has known Aerith for almost four years now. We know this isn't like her. But we also have no proof, evidence, or explanation for what the fuck is going on. So until she gives some indication of needing help, our hands are tied. We can't just impose our will on our students, that's not what we do here."

"I understand," Cloud muttered unhappily. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry for the scene I caused in the cafeteria, and thanks for not expelling me."

"Now, now, don't think you get off quite that easily," Barret replied, his voice getting stern once again. "You're not expelled, but you are suspended for the rest of the year, there has to be consequences for your actions." He quickly raised a hand to stall Cloud's response before continuing. "I did manage to get permission for you to still attend the winter dance at the end of the week, but only under the condition that you don't go anywhere near Sephiroth, you understand me?

Cloud nodded slowly, indicating he understood. "Thanks for that…"

"Now, I have to get back to my office and make sure Marlene finished all of her vegetables. That girl just hates to eat her broccoli," Barret said, standing up from the stool causing it to creak loudly.

"I don't blame her," Cloud replied, a small smile at the corner of his mouth. "Broccoli is disgusting."

Barret just laughed and punched him softly on the shoulder. "Don't you get out of that bed just yet, Bugenhagen said he wanted to check on you before you head home." And with that, he walked out of the room, giving Cloud a farewell wave as he closed the door.

Cloud didn't have to wait long until Bugenhagen came bustling into the room, Red close on his heels, and settled down onto the stool Barret had just vacated. The old man didn't say anything as he began to inspect Cloud's hands, and Cloud was more than happy to sit in silence.

Once he finished his brief checkup, Bugenhagen leaned back slightly and let out a deep breath. "Well now, I imagine Barret already gave you a lecture about your behavior so I'll leave that alone. I do have a few questions for you about Miss Gainsborough's recent behavior, however."

"I've actually got some questions for you as well, about your work with Sephiroth's parents," Cloud responded, thinking back to the conversation he'd had with Red back at the beach.

Bugenhagen glared over at Nanaki upon hearing this, but Red appeared to be far too busy watching his tail flick back and forth to notice. The old man let out a small harrumph before turning back to Cloud. "I don't know what exactly Nanaki told you, but yes, I did work with them both briefly in the past. Quite briefly, in fact, as they were both fired shortly after we started working together. Their interests in Materia were unsettling to say the least, they seemed obsessed with pushing their research in directions better left alone."

"When you say unsettling, do you mean something like… changing a person's feelings?" Cloud asked.

Bugenhagen thought for a moment before responding slowly, "There's certainly ways of causing confusion in people, but that's very short lasting. As far as I'm aware, there's no Materia that would explain the way Miss Gainsborough has been acting. That's not to say that it's impossible though," he mused. "But please, tell me about your interactions with her over the last week, perhaps something you've noticed will help me figure out what's happened with her."

Cloud answered the rest of Bugenhagen's questions, but he was only barely paying attention. His focus was on what he'd learned about Sephiroth's parents. He knew Bugenhagen had been skeptical, but Cloud was positive that their research had to be involved somehow.

The next three days passed in a blur, Cloud spent most of his time either moping in his room or practicing with his sword. Thursday after class, the night before the dance, the rest of the guys dragged him out to all get fitted for their tuxedos, but Cloud was in no mood to join their banter about what the girls might be wearing.

Before he was aware of it, Friday had arrived, and he found himself being ushered into the school's gym by Zach and Vincent. The room had been turned into a massive ballroom, with tables around the edges to eat at, and a massive open area in the middle for dancing. Cloud did an initial sweep of the people already there, instinctively looking for Aerith, but she was nowhere in sight. Since there was nothing else to do, Cloud went over to one of the tables at the far end to claim it for his friends.

Right as Cloud reached the table, the entire room went dead silent, immediately catching his attention and causing him to snap his head to the entrance to see what had happened. As he'd suspected, Sephiroth and Aerith had arrived, but he immediately dismissed the man at her side. It felt like time had stopped. Aerith was wearing the most stunning red dress he had ever seen. It was strapless, showing off a generous portion of her cleavage, and framing a small golden necklace. The left side had a slit from the lower thigh down, allowing for easy movement, but also giving a tantalizing look at her long leg as she moved. Her lipstick was the same shade of red as her dress, fully emphasizing her lips.

Cloud was snapped back to reality as he felt an elbow jab him in the stomach. "Well, I bet neither of us ever imagined this scenario, huh?" Zack asked, attempting to lighten the mood. Cloud just grunted in response and turned away, unable to keep looking at Aerith despite how much he wanted to. He wondered what he was even doing there, if it hadn't been a mistake to come stag in the first place.

Not having anyone to dance with, and certainly not in the mood to dance in the first place, Cloud wandered over to the bar and grabbed a cup of water. In reality, he wanted nothing more than a strong drink, but obviously at a school-sponsored event there was none of that around.

After a few dances, Tifa broke away from Rufus and joined Cloud at the edge of the room. She was wearing a dark purple dress that stopped surprisingly short, just above the middle of her thigh, with a black ribbon tied around her neck. "Try to cheer up Cloud," she said with a cheerful tone that Cloud could tell was being forced. "I know that if Aerith were actually here she'd hate to see you like this. I… I know it's hard, and it's killing me on the inside too, but we have to be strong for her. I know we can fix this."

Cloud sighed in frustration, but felt the invisible hand clenching his chest loosen slightly at Tifa's words. He knew she was right, and he silently rebuked himself for the way he'd behaved earlier in the week. He could have spent the last few days looking into figuring out what was going on, but instead he'd acted like a spoiled child and locked himself away. Resolving to spend the rest of his time away from school looking into what was going on, Cloud gave Tifa a warm smile and nodded firmly. She smiled back at him before walking back to Rufus to continue dancing.

As Cloud watched her go, his attention was drawn to the sight of Sephiroth and Aerith swirling across the dance floor. It seemed like most of the room was watching them, in fact, as Cloud saw he wasn't the only one staring. As much as he hated to admit it, as much as he wished it were his arms around her waist and hers around his neck, the two of them did make a striking appearance on the dance floor.

As the final notes of the song came to a close, Cloud watched with a sickening sensation filling his gut as Sephiroth leaned down and moved to kiss Aerith's lips. At the last moment, however, her neck seemed to suddenly spasm, causing her head to jerk to the side, and Sephiroth's lips met her cheek instead. His eyes seemed to narrow slightly, and, completely disregarding the warning Barret had given him, Cloud quickly walked over and placed his hand on Sephiroth's chest, gently, but forcefully, shoving him away from Aerith. "She doesn't want your attention asshole," he snapped.

Before Cloud could realize what had happened, he felt a stinging impact on his check and found himself knocked backwards onto his ass. He looked up to find Aerith standing over him. "A-aerith?" he asked in surprise, putting a hand to his stinging cheek.

The cold green eyes glaring down at him weren't the ones he'd fallen in love with though. "Stop acting like you know what's best for me, Cloud!" she snapped angrily.

"Security!" Sephiroth shouted, before looking down with a smirk, and Cloud abruptly found himself being lifted off the ground and dragged out of the room by two men.

As he stared back at Aerith, still in shock that she'd slapped him so hard, Cloud noticed something very strange. Despite her being the one who's hit him, two small trails of blood were coming out of her nose, and a lone tear was making a slow path down her cheek.

The puppet stood in the corner. The three others in the room ignored it. It was, after all, only a puppet, and not worthy of attention.

"I still feel you're being far too brazen with this," a female voice said coldly. "You risk everything."

"I agree," an older man's voice joined in. "You acted far too quickly, you never told us you were planning to activate it so soon."

"I wasn't!" a younger male voice protested. "Yes, I cast the initial spell earlier than anticipated, but it was the perfect opportunity with more than enough time while the fool slept outside her door."

"Yes, yes, that's fine," the woman said soothingly. "We agree you placed the binding at an opportune time, the issue we have is that you activated it too soon afterwards. We warned you that the effects would be more unstable if you didn't wait the required amount of time, that's why you're even experiencing any resistance at all."

"Yes, well you failed to mention that the binding would activate immediately whenever she heard the key phrase," the younger voice snapped angrily

"Enough," the older man said. "We've already heard your excuse. It's unfortunate she happened to pass within earshot of you while you were on the phone with your mother, but that's the situation we're forced to deal with. I'm more interested in learning how the results of the spell are progressing."

"She resisted me again when I tried to kiss her," the younger voice snarled. "But it was brief, immediately afterwards, she turned and slapped that idiot so hard I almost lost it."

"Its resistance will be most strong the more you attempt to force it to do things it would never consider on its own," the woman replied in a manner that indicated she'd said this many times before. "My latest estimations place your full control around the start of the new year."

The voices slowly faded into white noise. She watched from inside her own body, trapped, unable to express her true thoughts outside of those few moments that were slowly growing ever further apart. This impostor almost had complete control. It took so much effort now to even exert any semblance of her own will and she was so, so, tired…

End Note: I do have to admit, it felt SO good to write again. Hopefully all the pieces are starting to come together and you're getting a better picture of what's going on. You may now be wondering where the next chapter is if this story is supposedly complete. The answer to that is that I'll be posting it one week after this chapter has gone up. Why? I guess mostly just to more closely mirror a regular release cadence. If you're an old time reader coming back to hear the end of the story, or a new person just jumping in, I'd love to hear your thoughts.

P.S. Broccoli is disgusting.

Next Chapter: Investigation