a/n: The lines from the song below apply to two men; Cloud and Vincent. I'll let you guys decide for yourselves which lines refer to who. - I'm so sorry for the late review…smacks head I was just so tired with all the school work (stupid, stupid school work!) that I couldn't think long enough to actually start typing (oops, I'm rambling…sorry.) as always, rr please!

Tifa246 – He's back alright; he's just such a great bad guy Oh, and about Lucrecia…well, there's a little plot twist there, but I won't spoil it for you by telling you what it is. Anyway thanks for reviewing! Enjoy!

K14princess-ROCK – I'm sorry it wasn't very good for you, I promise I'll try to make it a little better. And about your request…there's a little of that here… thanks for the review!

spikestrife – that's ok, GTA does that to you. It's pretty addictive, isn't it? anyway, thanks so much for the review I really appreciate it. Thank you!

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned below.

Chapter 6: Calm Before The Storm

Although I was blinded

My heart let me find it

A truth makes a better man…

I didn't notice that you were right in front of me

A mask of silence we'll now put away

So we can see…

Kalm

"Lucrecia is with him…and she's helping him."

Vincent saw Cloud clench his fists, watching quietly as his knuckles turned white. He had known that the other man would be troubled by the news of Sephiroth's return, but he hadn't known how he would react. He didn't feel it was his place to ask him about that, so he kept quiet and watched as Tifa finally got over the initial shock the news had delivered and noticed that her boyfriend wasn't taking the news well at all.

Tifa took a step closer to Cloud and touched his arm. "Cloud? Are you alright?"

He turned to her but didn't answer, his eyes somewhat unfocused.

With a worried look on her face, Tifa moved to stand in front of him before grabbing his shoulders and shaking him, trying to snap him out of his stupor.

It worked.

Cloud's eyes finally started to focus, and that was when he noticed that the others were staring at him with concern on their faces. Then, deciding to try to deal with the latest bit of unpleasant news by himself, he started to walk off towards a random place, determined to find a solution to it in his mind, leaving his friends to simply stare at his quickly retreating form.

"I think you should go after him." Barret suggested gently, coming up beside Tifa.

She turned to him. "Okay." Then she turned to face Cid. "When are we leaving?"

"We leave as soon as the airship is ready, which is in a few hours at least; one of the engines needs work." Cid answered.

"Okay then. I'll come back to check on you guys later." she said, turning and walking away in the direction Cloud had gone.

Barret's house

Cloud stood in front of the second floor window, watching the residents of the small village go about their usual business, completely unaware of the new threat they now faced. "Sometimes I wish I could be like them…"

"What're you thinking about?"

He turned to see his girlfriend walking over to him with a smile on her face. "…But then I remember the good things in my life…" He couldn't help but smile back. "I was just thinking about you."

"Oh, really now?" she said, smirking.

"Really." he answered. "It's true…for the most part anyway."

She looked strangely at him for a moment, and then she looked away. "It's always healthy to think about me."

It took a while for her meaning to hit him, but when it did, he laughed. "It feels so good to laugh…I feel like I haven't laughed like this in years."

She laughed, too, but then she sobered up and said: "But…what were you really thinking about?"

She turned to face him. "Cloud?"

Cloud stared hard at her for a moment before he went back to observing the activities below them. "I was thinking how easy it is to be so clueless. For a moment, just a moment, I wanted to be like them…"

Tifa wasn't surprised to hear that. She knew that, at one time or another, all of them had wanted to have a different life, but there were some things that were harder to give up than most. "I do, too, sometimes."

He looked at her. "I guess we all do sometimes…but then I remember that I have you."

She smiled. "Thanks, Cloud."

"You don't have to thank me. It's the truth. I wanted you to know that."

It sounded a lot like good-bye to her. "You talk like I'm never going to see you again."

He smiled softly, pulling her close and hugging her for a minute before he pulled away. Then he whispered, "Don't worry, you will." before he walked back into the house, leaving her on her own again.

This time, she didn't follow.

Airship, a few hours later

He stood alone, his expression blank, his eyes looking out at the setting sun. It had taken them hours to prepare the airship for flight earlier, and he was glad they didn't need to do the same when they got to Wutai. He had never before felt such strife inside him. Vincent Valentine was, for the second time in his life, unsure of himself.

The feeling was different from when they had fought Sephiroth for the first time, because Lucrecia hadn't been involved then. He was once again forced to face his past, to re-examine his long-buried feelings.

He knew he'd loved her once, but now he was going to be forced to fight her – because he wouldn't let anyone else do it. He had to be the one to fight her; because there was still a chance to bring her back – there had to be. He still cared for her enough to want to at least save her; he knew only that much now.

"Hey, Vincent."

He turned at the sound of the voice. "Yes?"

"If you could make all this go away, would you?"

"Of course I would, but, like you, I have no choice but to accept what's happening."

"Yeah, I guess. Will you be okay, though? I mean, we might have to fight Lucrecia…"

"I think so. But you won't fight her; I will."

"What do you mean? You want to fight her alone!"

"Yes."

"I guess I can understand that; to tell you the truth, I don't want to fight her…it's just…I – I wish you didn't have to fight her either…" Tifa said, her voice tinged with sadness.

"I know. To be honest, I don't want to fight her either…I loved her…but if fighting her is the only way to save her, then…"

"I know you don't; no one in their right mind would. But I believe in you, Vincent. If anyone can save her, you can."

"Thank you, Tifa. Let's hope you're right."

She smiled. "It'll be fine, you'll see."

Vincent looked around and noticed something was amiss. "Where's Cloud?"

Tifa's smile vanished instantly. "He's asleep."

He looked at her questioningly, but she quickly averted her eyes. He walked closer to her and made her face him. "What's up? Did you two have a fight?"

She shook her head.

"So what happened? You don't look so good."

"…Nothing. I – I'm fine." she said, smiling.

He looked at her intently. He knew something was up; it was obvious that Tifa's smile was forced. He was just about to press her to tell him what was wrong when he was interrupted by Cid's voice.

"Yo, everyone get back to the bridge right now! We're going to land!" Cid yelled.

"Let's go." Tifa said.

Vincent nodded, deciding to let her and Cloud handle whatever problem they had; he had his own problems to worry about.

Wutai

Yuffie watched the airship descend with a heavy heart. She knew they were all there; and she was glad she would get the chance to see them again, but he would be there as well, and she didn't know how to act. She had been learning to let go of her feelings for him, but seeing him again so soon was a little too much.

When Tifa had called to tell her they would be picking her up in the airship, she'd been thrilled. But then she remembered that Cloud would be there, and that meant she would have to watch him from a distance; like she always had, and that took all the excitement away.

She did try to act cheerful for Tifa's sake, and she was sure the other girl hadn't noticed her melancholy state.

She watched the airship land, and she couldn't help but smile as Tifa came bounding out to greet her. "Hey, Yuffie." Tifa said, giving her a hug.

"Hey." she answered, still smiling in spite of herself.

"How have you been? Out of mischief, I hope." Tifa remarked jokingly.

"Of course! I'm the great ninja Yuffie; I never get into mischief!"

"Yeah, right. You being out of mischief is like the sun rising in the west." a voice said from behind Tifa.

She recognized that voice. It was Cloud's. Her hands were suddenly clammy, her heart was hammering wildly in her chest, and she couldn't seem to catch her breath. She hated the feeling, and it only got worse as he materialized beside Tifa and casually put his arm around her waist.

Yuffie's heart plummeted to even lower levels, but, desperate to hide the pain and jealousy she felt, she pretended to get angry. She put her hands on her hips and glared at him.

He seemed surprised at her reaction; then annoyed. "Jeez, Yuffie, calm down, will you? It was only a joke."

"He's right, Yuffie…" Tifa said, walking over to her and putting her hands on her shoulders. "Is something wrong? You seem tense all of a sudden…"

Being face to face with one of her closest friends, looking into her eyes and seeing the genuine concern in them, she couldn't hold on to her pretend anger. "I'm sorry. I – I'm just a little out of it, I guess."

Tifa's expression changed from that of concern to what Yuffie thought looked like relief as she said in her usual, cheerful voice, that they should get going.

Yuffie nodded and followed them to the airship, watching quietly as Cloud took Tifa's hand in his and led the way.

Aboard the airship, minutes later

Yuffie sat in her little corner in the airship's hold, wondering why everyone had decided to meet so abruptly. She had tried to ask Tifa about it, but her friend had just smiled and told her that Red XIII would explain everything later before walking away, seemingly lost in her thoughts.

"I wonder what's up… it's not like her to be so vague…" she thought, looking up in time to see Cloud pass by her on his way to the ship's deck, his strides long and hurried. "What's up with him? He looked fine a couple of minutes ago…"

She stood up to follow him, but she stopped when she saw Tifa follow him with a worried look on her face. "Something's definitely up…"

On Deck

Night was slowly falling as he stood on deck, reliving a nightmare he wanted nothing more than to forget. The vision of Sephiroth's sword going through Aeris' body kept repeating itself in his mind, and he felt that same helplessness growing inside him, making him doubt himself more and more…

He had someone he wanted more than anything in the world to protect now, someone he loved, but he wasn't sure he could now, and that scared the hell out of him. "I cannot lose her…if I do…" He couldn't stomach even just the mere thought of it.

As if the thought of her had conjured up the real person, she appeared beside him like some sort of a mirage, and seeing her in the state he was in at that moment made him relive yet another nightmare in his mind; the one of her lying in his arms, unconscious after Sephiroth attacked her…

He shook his head vigorously, trying to get the unwelcome image out of it. He had wanted nothing more than to forget; to move on, but it seemed fate wasn't going to let that happen. His ultimate enemy's unexpected – and unwelcome – reappearance was proof of that.

" Sephiroth is going down. This time, I'll make sure he doesn't come back; I don't care what it takes. For our sake." He turned to her, quietly looking at her profile which was highlighted by the moonlight. He suddenly felt the overwhelming need to keep her safe – and by his side – forever. He moved closer to Tifa. "Hey." he said, smiling again.

"Hey." she replied, smiling back.

His smile faded as he reached for her hand, holding it in both of his. She looked up at him, wondering why he was so somber. "What is going on in that head of yours, Cloud? Why won't you tell me…?"

He saw the expression on her face and decided to tell her what had been bothering him. "I did promise to not keep secrets from her…" "Tifa…you know I love you, right?"

The question surprised her, but she nodded anyway.

He smiled slightly. He knew he'd stunned her with that statement. "So you know I'll always protect you, right? I'll always be there for you, Tifa."

She smiled, but it was a sad smile. "I'll always be there for you, too…"

Cloud knew she was upset, so he pulled her close and hugged her. Then he took a deep breath and started to speak. "When I found you in Kalm, I was so happy…I thought for sure nothing was going to ruin that happiness. I was wrong. A lot of things changed – and none of them were for the better. But I still want to be with you – no matter what happens, and that's why I want to protect you…" He hesitated.

"What are you trying to say?"

"I'm saying I'm not sure I can."

Tifa pulled away from him, her eyes flashing with anger. "You can."

His eyes widened. "Why does she look so angry all of a sudden?"

"You can because you've done it once before; you saved all of us, we saved the Planet together, Cloud."

"I know that, but -"

"But nothing. I know you still feel guilty about Aeris' death, but not even you can save everyone, damn it! She was my friend too, and I didn't want her to die, but all I could do was watch Sephiroth kill her!" She stopped as she felt Cloud pull her close to him again, but she had to let it all out now, so she continued. "Don't you see? I couldn't help her, either. I was there! I could've done something, but I failed her, too…" she said, her voice cracking as the tears finally fell.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know…" he said hesitantly. He hadn't known exactly what Tifa's feelings about Aeris' death were before, but he knew now. She felt the same way he did.

"You don't have to apologize to me." She placed her hand against his cheek, whispering: "I believe in you. I trust you. We all do. You're not alone anymore, Cloud. We're all with you; we'll defeat Sephiroth together, just like before."

He smiled, her words banishing whatever doubt was left in his mind. It was strange how she could do that. "Thank you." he said, slowly leaning down until his lips were only inches from hers. He closed his eyes…and then he heard a loud bang which made them jump apart.

"What the hell was that!" he exclaimed, irritated.

"S-sorry!" It was Yuffie's voice.

Cloud's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Just what are you doing here!"

"U-um…you see, it was, um…"

"Out with it, Yuffie."

They heard a muffled laugh somewhere behind her, and as Cloud leaned down to get a closer look, he saw part of Vincent's red cape pinned under one of Yuffie's feet. "Vincent!"

Tifa smiled mischievously. "Oh, now I get it."

"Get what?" Yuffie asked nervously. Tifa's smile was giving her the creeps.

"Is there something you want to tell us?" Tifa asked, smirking.

"W-what? Oh you mean ? N-no! It's not like that! I was worried about you guys and…" she trailed off, noticing the expressions on Cloud and Tifa's faces.

"Oh, so you were spying on us again, weren't you?" Cloud asked, barely able to keep himself from laughing. The look on Yuffie's face was cracking him up; she looked totally freaked out.

"No! I didn't mean to -" She stopped talking abruptly, remembering that she wasn't the only one involved. She grabbed the part of Vincent's cape that was pinned by her foot and pulled as hard as she could, taking him by surprise. He ended up sprawled on the ground, half of his body on top of her, his face a few inches from hers.

Vincent was stunned. He had never been this close to Yuffie before, and it really surprised him that he actually thought she was beautiful. He blinked a couple of times, trying to get his thoughts organized. She seemed to have taken away his ability to think.

Yuffie was just as surprised. Vincent was looking at her in a way that made her feel all warm inside. She didn't know why, she just knew she liked the feeling. Then they heard someone laugh. They turned, and they were horrified to see that most of their friends were there, watching them with alternating expressions of mischief and hilarity.

Barret spoke first. "So that's what this is about. Man, Vincent, couldn't you have waited until you could get to somewhere more private? I thought the airship was falling apart; that was just noisy."

"Yeah. And here I thought you guys couldn't get along." Cloud said, smirking.

Vincent just stared blankly at them, not saying anything. Yuffie, on the other hand, was saying a lot of things.

"What! It's not what you think!" she said, the vivid blush on her cheeks betraying her words.

"Oh? It sure looks different from here." Tifa said, trying to maintain a serious expression but failing miserably.

"Aw, not you too!" Yuffie exclaimed, frustrated that no one would listen. She turned to face Vincent, and she quickly realized what kind of mess she was in. "Vincent? Could you get off of me now? Please?" she added when he didn't seem to hear her. "What is wrong with this guy?" she thought, looking at Vincent's blank expression. She waved her hand in front of his face, making him snap out if it.

"What?" he asked, not quite understanding. "Man, how could this girl rob me of my thoughts so completely?"

Yuffie was mad now. " I said, GET OFF OF ME!"

That he understood, and he stood up quickly, holding out his hand to help her up. She didn't take it.

"So what's this about?" Cid asked, walking up on deck.

All eyes turned to Yuffie and Vincent, making them extremely uncomfortable. "Well, you see, I, um, was worried about Tifa so I decided to follow her here in case she needed help, and -" she stopped, remembering how she'd gotten into this predicament in the first place.

flashback

A few minutes after she'd seen Tifa walk by her, she stood up and started making her way up to the deck to see for herself what was going on. "Something's up with those two, and I'm gonna find out what."

She crept up the stairs that led to the deck, carefully inching her way to a hiding place where she knew she wouldn't be spotted. Once she got there, she started listening in. Cloud and Tifa seemed to be having a heated argument, but she didn't know what – then she heard Aeris' name mentioned. "I know you still feel guilty about Aeris' death, but not even you can save everyone, damn it! She was my friend too, and I didn't want her to die, but all I could do was watch Sephiroth kill her!" she heard Tifa say.

"So that's what they're arguing about…" She leaned forward a little, careful not to fall out of her hiding place and making sure she was still well-hidden.

That was when it happened.

"Don't you think you should give them a little privacy?" a voice asked.

"What the !" Yuffie turned to see Vincent's face just inches from hers, making her lose her balance. That was when she fell, managing to grab hold of his cape as she did.

"And?" Cid prompted.

"Wha ?" Yuffie asked absently.

"And then what happened?" Cid repeated, looking at her queerly.

"And I fell…"

"That's it? Would you mind explaining why you fell? I thought someone had gotten hurt!"

"It was my fault." Vincent said quietly.

Everyone turned to him. "I surprised her. That's why she fell." he continued in that same quiet voice.

"I managed to grab on to his cape as I fell." Yuffie said.

He nodded. "That's right."

Everyone was quiet for a minute.

"Okay…well, everything's fine now, right? Can I, uh, go back to the hold now? I feel sick…"Yuffie said, looking a little disoriented.

The others took pity on her and decided to let her off the hook for her antics.

"Okay…hey, you okay!" Tifa asked anxiously when Yuffie lost her footing near the stairs.

"Whoa." Yuffie said, her voice barely audible. "That was close."

Tifa walked over to her friend. "I think you'd better go to one of the cabins instead. You look like you need the rest."

"Yeah…maybe I will…"

"Okay. Let's go." Tifa said, preparing to assist Yuffie.

"Let me take her." Vincent asked quietly.

"Huh…uh, okay I guess…" she answered, a little confused.

She moved away from the other girl and watched, bewildered, as Vincent took a very tired-looking Yuffie into his arms and carried her down the steps and out of sight. "What's going on here…? Those two…"

"Is it just me or did that feel weird to you?" Cloud asked, walking up to her.

She turned to him. "Yeah…that felt a little weird too…but maybe…" She grinned evilly.

Now it was Cloud's turn to look confused. "What?"

Tifa smiled sweetly. "I think something's up with those two."

"And?"

"You want to get revenge for Yuffie's eavesdropping, right?"

"Yeah…" Cloud grinned. "You have a plan?"

"Of course." she replied.

"Then let's get going." he said, taking her hand in his.

They disappeared down the steps soon after.

"Why are we always the ones left behind?" Cid asked Barret, his usual annoyed expression plastered on his face.

"I dunno."

They were quiet for a minute.

"Hey, you sure Marlene's gonna be okay?"

"Yeah. I left her with a friend back in Kalm."

"If you think so, then…Hey, where's Reeve?"

"He'll be joining us at Cosmo Canyon. He has his own ship now."

"Oh, yeah. I forgot he was president of Shinra."

"Yeah. Despite the losses due to Meteor, Shinra's still got a lot of funds."

Barret yawned. "I'm gonna go get some sleep."

Cid looked at him. "Lucky you."

Barret smirked. "Yeah. Lucky me." he said, turning and walking down the steps.

"Might as well get back to the bridge, seeing as I'M THE ONLY ONE LEFT HERE!" Cid yelled, making sure Barret heard. And, judging from the loud guffaw he heard from below deck, he'd achieved his goal.

"These guys drive me nuts sometimes…"

He smiled. "But they are a lot of fun to be around." With that thought, he went below deck and returned to piloting the airship as it made its way to Cosmo Canyon and an as yet uncertain future…

A/n: Chapter 6 done! Yay! Man, it took me weeks and weeks and weeks…(uh, I'll stop now.) to get this done…it really felt like I never would…all that dumb school work…(okay, I'll stop now…wait, didn't I just say that?) sweatdrops Sorry. I think I'm getting a little carried away here… Anyway, please read and review! (so sorry if it's not so good…it's just there are so many ideas and the ending's already done in my head…I can't think straight…Oops, sorry again. Oh, and one last thing. You know Cloud and Tifa's 'plan'? It'll be revealed in the next chapter since this one's starting to get too long for me. Anyway, tell me what you guys think, k? Thanks!