~Ch. 02: Visuals~

Icicle Inn was a favorite tourist destination, especially for couples, because it gave them reason to snuggle together and enjoy the small but fine things in life - like sharing a big mug of hot cocoa together by the fire. For Zack, it made him smile as he imagined himself and Aerith snuggling together by a fire. The downside of it was, they were dead. For Aerith, it was an opportunity for her to show him more about herself, rather than present stories to him or let out her history in words.

Quietly, she led him through the happy but snow-covered roads, and into one of the abandoned cottages nearby. Effortlessly, of course, they passed through the door. Heading upstairs, Zack followed. His blue eyes caught sight of Aerith standing before sets of machinery, panels and monitors. As she reached down and around to plug in the machines, he looked around. He wanted to question Aerith about it, but decided to just stand aside and patiently wait.

After a few minutes of groping around the floors, she stood when she was done. "Here, have a seat." Aerith moved the seat before the panels over to Zack, and proceeded to punch in a few buttons. "And watch."

"A movie?" Zack said, giving a half-smile as he folded his arms.

"…Quite." Aerith, who only gave his cheek a kiss, stood right behind him and left him to watch the video on the monitor.

… … As the video started to play, Zack's eyes focused on the sight - a man in a lab coat stood in the same room he and Aerith were in now, and with him was a woman with long flowing locks and carrying an infant. The couple seemed happy; the conversation was quiet, but serious for the professor.

"…Cetra…" Zack quietly whispered to himself, echoing the professor's speech. His eyes diverted to the infant wrapped in a blanket. Aerith?…

The cadet smiled at the sight of Aerith's father and mother. The way they showed their love for each other shone and made him envy them for just a bit. "…Your parents loved you very much," he told Aerith, who stood right behind him. "Even if you don't remember much about them. Don't doubt their love for you."

Behind him, the Cetra managed a calm smile. "My mother tries to remind me everyday." She chuckled. "In the most unusual ways." Approaching the panel again, she played another video after the first ended. Zack gently embraced her waist and pulled her to his lap, wanting her to be close to him instead and not standing there behind him.

The two smiled and even chuckled as they watched Aerith's father, Professor Gast, become sweet to her mother, Ifalna.

"You remind me of my dad, sometimes."

"Eh?" Zack laughed. He nuzzled her ear, and watched the video with her. "…I don't know whether to think of that as a bad thing, or a good thing."

Aerith giggled. "I mean, the way he shows my mom he loves her." She shook her head. "You're both sweet. And flirty."

Zack pouted, all puppy-like. "Hey, I MAY have a tendency to flirt I guess, whether I know it or not, but you KNOW I'll always come back to you." He grinned. "Don't forget that."

"I think you'll have to remind me that eeeeveryday." Aerith smirked.

He snickered. "Oh, that's NOT a problem!"

After a while, the video ended, and Aerith, with a sigh, pressed another button. A third video played.

Smiles faded as soon enough, the sight of Hojo came into view. Zack's eyes widened at the sight: the mad professor burst into the house with SOLDIERs, demanding for Ifalna and the infant Aerith. Zack found himself clutching at Aerith's dress as a scowl crossed his face, cursing in his mind.

"…Hojo."

Aerith frowned, knowing what Zack had been through regarding the mad scientist. She took Zack's hands from her waist and laced her fingers with his, trying to calm him down. The video showed Aerith and Ifalna being demanded to be handed to Hojo, and in the process, Gast was… well…

"…I hate that bastard." Zack scowled. "…I'm so sorry that this happened. If I had only known, I-"

"It's alright." The flower girl faced him as she turned slightly, and gave his cheek a soft kiss. She smiled, and it relaxed Zack again. "It happened already."

"…So.. Shin-Ra kept you for a while, then, huh?…"

Aerith shrugged. "I don't remember much, anymore, but I remember seeing my mother's face for the last time before I was raised up by my adoptive mom, Elmyra…" She fidgeted with her fingers. "…I wish I knew mom more. My dad too."

"Hey…" Zack's eyes softened. He cupped her other cheek and turned her face gently to him, giving her lips a gentle kiss. "At least she keeps in touch with you." He smiled. "She's not gone forever. She's always going to be with you."

"It's not the same, and you know it." She shook her head. "…I'm sorry. I just… miss her. Time sucks." She pouted.

"Mm, tell me about it…" He leaned his forehead against her cheek, eyes closing. Zack's mind was filled with memories of the day he died, and he started feeling bad for not having been there for Aerith.

"…I'm so sorry."

Aerith blinked. "…For what?"

"I just wish I didn't have to go so soon…" He managed a chuckle, taking her hands gently. Zack looked at their fingers laced together. "I mean, when I watched from up there… when you summoned Holy… I just…" He frowned. "I felt really bad. I could have been there to help you… protect you." Zack groaned. "…GAH. I'm getting all mushy. NOT good."

Aerith chuckled. She nuzzled his cheek. "Mushy is good."

Zack grinned as he turned his head to kiss her again. "I didn't know you liked corny too."

"Oh, pfft." She laughed, breaking away from his lips. "Of course I do! Everyone needs a little corny in their lives, silly! Makes life more interesting."

He gave her a warm smile. But one thing crossed his mind. "…Hey… Do you think it was my time already then?"

"Mm…" Immediately Aerith shook her head. "Not at all. But, some things happen for a reason… and I personally think you did what you had to do, and I did what I had to do." She smiled sadly. "…You took your dreams to heart. You wanted to be a hero. And you did it perfectly. I, on the other hand, knew that summoning Holy was a calling… I had to force myself to be prepared for it. But the bad thing about what happened to us both was that our lives were at stake… and somehow we knew they would be at stake, but the way the situations arrived into our lives was pretty unexpected. It's like we knew it was time, and it wasn't time yet."

Zack realized that she was right. The day he faced Shin-Ra's SOLDIERs in the Wastelands, he knew that he'd either live trying - even if at least he was short of five minutes obliterating all of them - or die fighting… which happened to be the case. As for Aerith, he remembered watching her from the Lifestream as she knelt there, and began to pray for Holy… and she seemed to be calm, and already saw what would happen to her. Aerith had the same case of "live trying, or die fighting." Zack sighed.

"It's ALL Hojo's fault. Honestly! If he didn't do the darn Jenova Project then MAYBE the world would have been okay."

"Mm…" Aerith stared off, reminiscing on the time when she was in the labs and Cloud and the rest saved her, along with Red XIII. "…I think the whole world hated him."

… Zack managed to laugh. "News fly fast. What can we do?" He smirked. "Serves him right."

"I wonder if anyone ever dealt with him… killed him. You know, really rendered him dead. He seems to be… well…"

"Immortal?"

"Well… last I heard he scattered his neurodata into the worldwide system… or something like that. And I heard that he had to find a host body to accumulate all the fragments of himself and try to take over the world again." Aerith blinked as the video ended and she shut off the machinery. "… Oh! Vincent…"

Zack tilted his head. "Vincent?"

"…You've never met him?" Aerith smiled. "I'll introduce you to him."