Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children and PlayStation are owned by Square Enix and Sony, respectively, meaning they do not belong to me. I am in no way, shape, and/or form claiming to be the owner/creator of these concepts, though I do claim any characters not apart of the original Final Fantasy VII or Advent Children storylines (such as Rayne, Marcus, and Kale) mine. As such, I would appreciate fellow authors and readers to give credit where credit is due and not steal any of my characters and/or concepts. Thank you, and have a pleasant day.

(Reminiscing)

Astrid sighed and twisted her head sharply, the sound of her neck cracking making Misha and Dark Nation wince. Sighing, Astrid looked at the land before her and pursed her lips for a moment, then smiled down at Dark Nation.

"Welcome home, hun. Welcome back to the Midgar Area."

'Three years, nine months, twenty days… before that time, I had no idea that Gaia was a real place.'

Astrid tapped Misha's sides and the charcoal chocobo leapt forward, Dark Nation close behind.

'All I knew of Gaia… was that it was a world of fantasy, ruled by the energies of the planet and the machines of the humans… The mako, and Shin-Ra Electric Power Company.'

The chocobo's feet thumped against the ground heavily. Rhythmically.

'But to me, the world had only existed in the form of electronic media or written word. Never in actuality.'

Raising up plumes of dust.

'But then, something happened. Somehow, Gaia became my reality and my old home, Earth, just a memory.'

Dark Nation ran alongside them, her eyes trained ahead intensely.

'I was drug from all I knew into a world of fantasy, I was forced to forsake all I knew and had, and all in the name of one man…'

Both hellcat and chocobo leapt over a shallow, wide gorge.

'Sephiroth.'

They bent slightly as they landed, letting the ground absorb the force of their impact before they started running again.

'It was because of this man that I was forced to come into the world of Gaia and fight in a battle I had no personal interest in, other than one thing… one person.'

They rounded the corner of the chain of mountains, the Midgar Area stretched before them.

'My little brother, Marcus. Sephiroth had taken him from me and brought him to Gaia. So, I did the only thing that was right… I went after Sephiroth, and came to Gaia.'

They ran faster and faster, Astrid and Dark Nation feeling more and more tense the further they get into Midgar and Misha, feeling this, tensing, as well.

'It was then I was taken by Shin-Ra, and in their main building I was kept for several months as an experiment. It was during my time as an experiment that I was introduced to the other force that makes Gaia great, the force of mako.'

Then, as they got close to the heart of the Midgar Area, something began to form in the distance.

'Mako entered my body and flowed through it with my blood, changing me in many ways, some visible and some not. It wasn't until many months after the experiments began that I began to understand just how much the mako changed me.'

A dark spot… and a large one.

'Then, the day came when I left Shin-Ra and began my journey to recover my brother from the clutches of Sephiroth and his mother, Jenova.'

The closer they got to it, the more distinct the shape became. But Astrid didn't have to get very close to know what she was looking at.

'It was during that time that I began to realize something. Over the course of those long months of scouring, I began to realize that Sephiroth was changing Marcus, physically and mentally.'

Midgar… or, at least, what was left of it.

'Marcus was serving Sephiroth, helping him in his goals in resurrecting Jenova and destroying the Planet.'

Just a short ways north of the remains of Midgar, Astrid knew, there was the city of Edge; the city the citizens of Midgar had built and lived in after Meteorfall.

'Over the course several months of traveling, me and the party I was with (Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockhart, Barret Wallace, Aerith Gainsborough, and Red XIII or Nanaki) grew close and in rank, adding more people like Yuffie, Cait Sith, Vincent Valentine, and Cid Highwind. We became close, and they became another family to me.'

As they drew closer to Midgar, the grassy plains became hard, compact dirt, a result of the Shin-Ra reactors draining the mako out of the Planet.

'It was in Cosmo Canyon that the elder, Bugenhagen, gave me something… incredible. He gave me the Book.'

Astrid pulled Misha to a stop on a ridge overlooking Midgar, gazing blankly at the Buster Sword that Cloud had left there years ago. Looking beyond it, she saw something… indistinct. Frowning, she squinted her eyes.

'The Book was an unexplainable item that was documenting my journey through Gaia, writing everything verbatim as it happened.'

Moving towards Midgar was what appeared to be four motorcycles, and three of them weren't treating the fourth very nicely. Astrid frowned and shook her head, brushing them off.

'Oddly enough, the Book was written by me.'

She then turned and faced the mountains, studying them carefully.

'At first, I wanted nothing to do with the Book. Then, when it became obvious that Sephiroth and Marcus wanted the Book, I sent the others back to get it while I went off on another mission; to talk with my brother.'

At Astrid's side, Dark Nation lifted her head and sniffed the air as a breeze blew in from the mountains. The cat froze, then sniffed again.

'Marcus told me a lot of confusing things that evening. He told me that Sephiroth wanted us because we had some kind of 'untapped potential' that he wanted to use. That he wanted to train.'

The hellcat shook her head and roared, a sound that echoed across the land and smashed into the mountains. She then shot forward, leaving Astrid in her dust.

'When I refused, Marcus became angry and left, and I continued to chase after him. In Rocket Town, though, I was captured by Shin-Ra and taken back to Midgar, where I was locked away for a short time.'

Astrid leaned forward and shouted to Misha, the chocobo responding immediately and jumping forward, shooting after Dark Nation.

'It was with the help of Shin-Ra's own Turks, Tseng, Elena, Reno, and Rude, that I managed to escape and meet up with the others at the Temple of Ancients. It was there that the Black Materia, the solidified mako that would unleash Meteor, was made, and Aerith left us.'

The hellcat ran faster and faster, making it hard for Astrid to keep up.

"DARK NATION! WAIT!"

The cat slowed, but only marginally.

'We left in hot pursuit of Aerith, flying through Bone Village to the Forgotten Capital. It was in that city, before we found Aerith, that I saw Marcus again, and I began to realize that he was in grave danger.'

Dark Nation flew across the desolate grounds of the outer ring of Midgar and back onto the grassy plains and towards a small chain of mountains just south of the abandoned city. Clearly, she now knew where she was going.

'Marcus was sick… I tried to help him, but he made me leave, threatening my friends. I left and rejoined the party, and we continued the journey a short time later, just to witness Aerith's death; impaled through the back by Sephiroth. It was… one of the saddest moments in my life.'

As the mountains came closer and closer, Dark Nation went faster and faster, impervious to Astrid's calls. Astrid was now sure that they were getting close to something.

'I left the party after that, intending to go north on my own and get my brother before he met the same fate as Aerith. But I didn't go alone. Yuffie, Cait Sith, and Vincent joined me, determined to fight alongside me. Together, we braved the harsh cold of the arctic and made it to the northern reaches, where Cloud and the rest of the group rejoined us. Then, we went into the Northern Crater.'

They were at the foot of the mountains, and Astrid was immensely grateful that she had taken the time to find that Chocobo Sage and learn to make the black chococbo. As soon as Dark Nation started climbing, the chocobo's instincts immediately kicked in and she started jumping after her, completely at ease in the rugged terrain.

'…But we had arrived too late, for just moments after we had stepped through the final barrier, Marcus died in my arms.'

After climbing through the woods and cliffs for a bit, Dark Nation found and took advantage of a road, a fact that both disappointed and pleased Misha.

'The next few months were a whirlwind of confusion and suppressed pain. I was taken in by Shin-Ra, where I got to know a different side of the president, Rufus Shinra, a side far different from anything I had ever suspected him being capable of. Oh, he was still Rufus, but he was also someone a bit… different. More human and connectable, I suppose.'

The path continued on for a ways, twisting and winding through the trees and providing ample scenery. But neither Astrid nor Dark Nation, nor even Misha, were paying attention. They only had the objective in mind; whoever lay in wait at the end of the trail.

'One thing led to another and, before I knew it, I was in a relationship with Rufus… one that only lasted three weeks before he was killed by Diamond WEAPON. Before he died, though, he made me a promise; he swore he'd come for me.'

Then, abruptly and without warning, the trail ended… at the bottom of a staircase.

'From there, I went to Cosmo Canyon and turned the Book over to Bugenhagen, then went back to the Northern Crater to face Sephiroth for the final time. The team fought… and we won.'

Astrid, Dark Nation and Misha looked at the staircase, eyes following it up to the building at the top. Dark Nation became very still.

'That was two years ago. Ever since then, I've been searching… searching for any remains of either Rufus or the Turks, hoping at least one small part of Shin-Ra that I had become involved with on a close basis had survived.'

There was movement inside of the small cabin, but whoever it was hadn't noticed the three outside.

'And I think I may have just found it.'

Dismounting slowly, Astrid made to walk up the steps, but froze before she could put her first foot on the steps. The memories started coming back.

"And I take it I'll be accompanying as a prisoner on both rides, then?" Astrid asked, sighing.

"Essentially," Rufus answered, "Though you won't be nearly as uncomfortable as most prisoners." He glanced at her, smirking, "We like you too much for that."

"Aw, I'm touched." Astrid cooed, rolling her eyes, "So, what do you want from me? Information or character battle stats?"

"Marcus Cray." She jumped and turned to look at Rufus, who was staring at the tombstone, "Born unknown, died in the winter. Powerful warrior, beloved brother. 'Return to Planet and Rest in Eternal Light'." He paused, then glanced at Astrid and shrugged, "It was an old Ancient saying, I think. Seemed appropriate." When she turned to the grave and lowered her head, he patted her shoulder, "We'll wait for you."

Astrid rolled her eyes, "Yes, Mommy." She then crossed her arms and pouted, "Are you leaving me with a bedtime, too?"

Rufus quirked a brow, "Eight thirty. And I'm not your mother."

"Who are you, then? The imperialistic husband that graduated from Little Tyrant Academy with perfect marks? Fine." She leaned forward and bumped her cheek against his, the corner of her mouth brushing his skin. Beneath her touch, Rufus jumped. She giggled and put on her valley girl accent, "Good luck, honey. I love you!" She thought about it, then bowed mockingly and asked, "Or should I call you 'führer'?"

Rufus just stared at her, his face blank.

Astrid frowned, "Rufus? Hello?" She waved her hand in front of his face, "Anybody home?" When he still didn't answer, she frowned and stared at him.

"What?" Rufus asked after a moment, blinking and shaking his head.

Astrid sighed, still frowning, "Never mind."

Rufus laughed lightly and scratched Dark behind the ears, then looked up at Astrid and smirked. It slowly faded to a frown, though, when he took a look at what she was wearing. "Are those—"

"Yours?" She finished as she approached, bracing herself when Dark Nation turned away from Rufus and leapt up at her, "Yep." She knelt down and scratched the cat up and down her body, "With a few adjustments, of course. They never would have worked otherwise. What do you think, Reno?" She asked, standing and spinning as the Turks walked up, "Could I pass for Rufus in a cosplay convention? Or maybe for Halloween?" She raised her hand and dramatically flicked her bangs back, smirking arrogantly, "I've been practicing."

Astrid fiddled with her coat nervously, shooting a glare at Rufus, "I hate you."

The president shrugged, straightening the cuffs of his suit, "And I love to watch you squirm."

"Sadistic bastard."

Rufus smirked, "That pantsuit looks very becoming."

"I despise you." She hissed.

"I could always send the pantsuit back and order you a dress…"

Astrid blinked and frowned, her hand shooting out and pressing against Rufus's forehead, "Do you have a fever or something? Maybe you should go lie down." Realizing what she was doing, Astrid twitched and pulled her hand back, only to have a hand grasp her wrist and push her hand back to where it had been.

"No." Rufus smirked, holding her hand against his forehead, "I'm not sick, and that's staying there." His smirk widened at her shock, "It's good to see that you're still in there. I was concerned when you went meek and quiet on me."

"President…" Astrid muttered, trying weakly to pull her hand back, "This is terribly improper."

"And it won't stop until you put some muscle into your attempts and get me off." Rufus said, smirking, "Think, Astrid, what would you do if you weren't being pathetic?"

He somehow seemed to have seen her, though, because his eyes narrowed and he walked around the sofa, reaching out for her arm. "Yoo're no' calling Clou—" His feet got tangled on her suit jacket and he fell, knocking into her so they both toppled through the door and onto her bed.

Astrid froze, suddenly lying on her back with Rufus Shinra lying on top of her, his body (the entire length of it) pressing her against her own bed firmly. Had he not been drunk, she might have felt differently about it… might have. But, because he was drunk, she felt… uncomfortable.

"Where's your cardkey?"

"Dig around in my pants. You'll find it."

Astrid smirked back, "Life's full of choices."

Rufus nodded, "Let's hope this is the right one." And he closed the space between them, capturing her lips in his.

She heard him sigh, "You idiot…" Then she was pulled up against his chest and his mouth was pressed against hers, his arms wrapping around her back and holding her tightly.

Astrid closed her eyes tightly and wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging to him hungrily. 'Don't make me let go…'

Against her will, though, he pushed her away a moment later and looked down at her seriously, "Astrid, you have to get out of here. Go and find Tseng and tell him to take you to Cosmo Canyon."

"No." She shook her head, glaring up at him, "Not without you. You don't have a reason to stay here anymore. The Sister Ray won't work!"

"It will." He said, looking at her determinedly, "And when it does and all of this is over, I'll come for you. I swear. Now, go."

"Don't worry." Rufus said, smirk returning to its normal cockiness, "I don't plan on dying yet; I still have a lot to do in this world."

Astrid shook her head, glancing back at the chocobo and the hellcat. "Misha, stay here. Dark Nation, let's go."

The chocobo shook her head and planted her feet.

Dark Nation paused, then stood, padding over to Astrid's side.

Astrid took a deep breath, then turned back to the staircase and took the first step.