Somewhere on the Wutai continent…
Cloud's eyes opened to darkness almost as complete as that in his sleep, broken only by the small flicker of his campfire. It must still be night, he thought as he slowly sat up and rubbed his eyes. It had been that same dream again, the one that had visited him almost every night since he had defeated Sephiroth. Since I touched her hand after the battle.
Sighing, Cloud lifted his arms and removed the necklace he was wearing, setting the two things attached to it on his palm so he could look at them by the fires' light. The first was the White Materia, which he had recovered from where it had fallen when Aeris had died. No, Cloud thought, not died, murdered. It glowed softly with a colorless light, showing that its power was not in use.
The second item was even more painful to look at, and more beautiful. A wedding ring; a band of gold topped by a flower crafted out of rubies with a diamond in the center. It was so well made that it seemed to be real, not just cut gems. Cloud had seen it in a shop in Wutai, and had bought it without hesitation.
As he gazed at the ring Cloud felt his eyes start to well with tears. He had planned on giving it to Aeris after they beat Sephiroth, but then he…he…he killed her! Murdered her in cold blood right in front of Cloud's eyes.
But with this, he thought as he gazed at the White Materia, I might be able to fix that. I might be able to help her.
Cloud continued to look down at the items in his hand, but his mind was seeing a different thing, a different place, a different time.
Yes, he thought, this was when I first realized that I loved her.
Cloud was in his hotel room in Costa del Sol. He was having a hard time falling asleep, despite the soft sound of the sea drifting in from his open window. He heard a quiet knock on his door, and when he opened it Aeris was standing there, dressed in a light blue night gown and looking very distraught.
"Um, do you mind if I come in?" she asked tentatively. "I'd like to talk to you."
"Sure," he responded, "come right in." He walked over to the bed and sat down, motioning for her to sit next to him.
Aeris nodded her thanks and sat next to him. Several times she looked about to speak, but each time she remained quiet. Eventually she took a deep breath and began to talk.
"When I saw Hojo today at the beach I was terrified," she began in a trembling voice. "Seeing him again, I remembered all of the horrible things he had done to my mother and me when I was a child, before we escaped. Then I remember how mom died. When I think about those times I just…I just…" At this point she burst into tears, reached forward and embraced Cloud. "I just can't take it!"
Cloud returned her embrace awkwardly, not really sure what to do, all the while thinking, these things happened to her before she was even five years old. And she never let it show; always put forth a cheery exterior, never let others see how terrible her life was growing up. Why did she have to suffer so much? Why does she continue to suffer?
"I'm just so scared of him!" Aeris sobbed into his shoulder. "I was lucky that you came to rescue me before, but what if he captures me again? I don't want to go back to that lab; I don't want him to use me again!"
He continued to hold her, letting her cry into his shoulder. As he let Aeris release her grief, a strange feeling came over Cloud.
What is this, he wondered, what is it I'm feeling?
Finally Aeris stopped crying and wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry, Cloud," she said. "This was a bad idea. These are my problems; I shouldn't burden you with them." She rose from the bed and turned to leave, but Cloud grabbed her arm and pulled her back down to the bed.
"Don't say that Aeris," he told her quietly. "You've got a right to share your feelings with someone. You've suffered more than anyone should, it's ok for you to wanna talk about it." He shook his head slowly and looked into her stunning green eyes. "If you ever got anything that you wanna talk about, or just need a shoulder to lean, or cry, on, just come to me. I'll be here for you."
Cloud leaned forward slowly, and before he knew what he was doing, his lips were pressed against Aeris's in a kiss.
Yes, he thought as he felt Aeris relax into the kiss, this is love. I love her.
After a moment Cloud leaned his head back and gazed into Aeris' beautiful face, now seeing it filled with happiness, instead of the misery that filled it when she had walked in.
"And don't worry about Hojo," he reassured her, "I won't ever let him, or anyone else, harm you again. I promise."
A smile crept over Aeris' face, and she embraced him again; softly whispering "thank you" into his ear before letting go of him.
Aeris looked around and suddenly said, very sheepishly, "I should go." She stood up and began to walk out of the room.
"Just remember, come to me if you ever got anything you need to get off your chest," Cloud said as she walked off.
"Thanks a lot Cloud," she replied as she reached the door, "I will. You just remember to do the same."
Yes, thought Cloud; that was when I fell in love with her. He let his mind continue to wander, remembering how Aeris had made him feel; the few precious moments they had spent together, her smile, her laugh, her…
"You're thinking about her again, aren't you?"
Cloud hurriedly hid the necklace as he looked up to see Tifa sitting by the fire, tossing branches in to bring the flame up.
"Tifa?" Cloud asked, trying to sound unflustered. "What are you doing here?"
"Don't change the subject Cloud," warned Tifa softly. "You know I mean Aeris. You were thinking about her again." This was a statement, not a question.
Cloud stood up and slipped the necklace back over his head, then sat down across the fire from Tifa. "You're right Tifa, I've been thinking about her," he said in a sad voice. "I just miss her so much. Before, I had thoughts of vengeance to keep me going, but since we beat Sephiroth I've felt…well…empty. No matter what I do my thoughts drift back to her."
There was a slight pause before Tifa spoke again. In a soft, barely audible voice she asked, "You loved her, didn't you?"
The unexpectedness of the question was enough to cause Cloud to snap his head up in surprise. He was hesitant to speak, but one look at those big brown eyes that seemed to be on the verge of tears and he knew that he could not hide the truth.
"Yeah," he said, his voice no higher that hers had been. "I loved her, and I still do. I just wanna help her, tell her how I feel. I want her to forgive me." By the time he was done speaking his voice was no louder than a whisper.
There was another long pause before either of them spoke again. Finally it was Cloud that broke the silence. "So how did you find me anyway?"
"Oh come on Cloud, it wasn't that hard," chirped a voice off to the left. Cloud looked over to see Yuffie perched on his motorcycle, a pride-filled grin plastered on her face. "At least," she added, "not for a great ninja like myself."
"Climb down offa your damn high-horse Yuffie," said a gruff voice accompanied by a puff of cigarette smoke as Cid stepped out of the darkness. "It was me and my Highwind that got us here and you know it!"
"You're just trying to hog all the credit." Yuffie replied as she stuck her tongue out at him.
"Like you weren't you little $#&?"
"Would you two please stop fighting?" asked Red XIII as he stepped into the firelight, followed by Vincent and a very irritated Barret.
"Cloud, I'm gonna kick your spiky ass for makin' me deal with this again," said Barret in mock threat as he took a seat by the fire.
"What are you all doing here?" Cloud asked as he looked around the fire at his friends.
"We were worried about you," Replied Tifa. "Why are you out here in the middle of nowhere?"
There was a pause as Cloud thought about what to say. "I'm here," he said finally, "because I think I can bring Aeris back."
And enter the clifhanger! So, what did you think? It has potential, right? Anyways, it will get better, this was really just to set up the plot. And I appologize for the uber-fluffiness of the flash back, I'm writing a sepperate oneshot that's a better version of that scene. I'm keeping this version in here because I wanted to make sure you KNOW that this was when Cloud fell in love with Aeris. The next chapters will be better, I swear. But that won't happen if I don't get some feedback. Praise, criticism, flames, whatever, jut comment ok? I need to know that you're paying attention. Also, I'm looking for a beta tester, so if you're interested, contact me and we'll work something out. Thanks.