"So," the silver-haired man began in begrudging undertone, half hoping he wouldn't be heard, "Why haven't you gone to the Promised Land? I thought you were supposed to be a Cetra."
"Half Cetra," Aeris corrected. She twirled the stem of one of her flowers in her fingers, sitting on a short stool that seemed to have apparated out of nowhere. Sephiroth stood, because standing is always best when you're trying to impose your presence upon the company you keep.
"And I already told you why I haven't gone to the Promised Land."
"What, 'you're stuck?'" Aeris nodded and Sephiroth lifted an eyebrow. "How can you be stuck?"
"You're just as stuck as I am!"
"Yes, but the difference between you and I is that I'm not half Cetra."
Aeris lifted her head to look at him, her brows raising in surprise and then lowering in confusion. Sephiroth shifted his weight from one foot to another, apparently impatient with how long it was taking for her expression to settle on a deep frown.
"But—you know? I thought you—"
"Dying has a way of shifting your perception."
"… Huh?"
"… All the knowledge of the planet flows through this place, unfiltered. I can't parse much of it, but…"
"So, you know that you're not—"
"Yeah."
Aeris' face seemed to brighten at this development. He watched her as she pulled herself almost excitedly to her feet, his eyes narrowing. A bystander might observe that overt displays of happiness made him terribly grumpy.
"Sit down, I'm not sorry," he added hastily. Aeris' looked halfway between confused and angry as she halted her advance towards him.
"Wha… What do you mean, you're not sorry?!"
"I mean I'm not sorry."
"You tried to kill everyone! You summoned meteor!"
"Is it really such a terrible thing to want to wipe out all humanity? Even the planet--"
"They're all still alive down there, if you didn't notice! Unlike you, the planet decided not to be a jerk!"
He blinked and cocked his head, but Aeris stood defiantly by her poorly crafted insult and forced him to move on.
"I don't know why you care, you're a Cetra."
"Half!"
"Right, half. But you should still be able to see the advantages. The corruption ends, the planet receives new blood to rebuild itself—"
"—And you just happen to be at the heart of it all, sucking in just enough energy to satisfy your very serious megalomaniacal complex?"
"Someone has to oversee it all, and I might as well reap the benefits of my endeavours." Aeris expressed her furor the only way she knew how: She stamped her feet and raised her voice.
"Ridiculous!"
"How?"
"Humanity is as much a part of the planet as trees and grass and Mako! Just because some people happen to get greedy…"
"They're all selfish and greedy. That's human nature."
"Oh, what would you know? You were rich and famous and powerful. You spent your life killing people and having other people worship the ground you walk on for doing it!" Aeris paused as she considered how those circumstances might have had formative effects, but ploughed on before she could be interrupted.
"The point is, you wouldn't know what people do for one another, how they band together in times of need."
"Oh yes, desperate people are just so kind. Tell me, have you ever been to the slums of Midgar?"
"I grew up there."
"Then how did you come to believe all this nonsense about human kindness?" It was a demand more than a question. Aeris hesitated, staring down at her feet.
"It's none of your business."
"Ah, and here I thought we were sharing."
She sat down again, picking at the petals of the lily in her hand.
"You haven't shared anything I didn't already know," she muttered bitterly. He watched her sulk and shook his head minutely.
"Well then, if you tell me why you're so convinced that people are good, despite all evidence to the contrary, I'll tell you something you didn't already know."
"What, about you? What makes you think I'd want to know?" She eyed him warily, but he only shrugged under her scrutiny.
"You're curious and I'm mysterious."
Aeris snorted derisively, shook her head in disbelief, fidgeted, frowned, waited a few moments and then began her story.
"When I was a little girl, my mom… died. We were at a train station. It was during the war, and a woman was waiting there for her husband, but… she found us instead. She took me in, raised me like a daughter. Never once complained or questioned me about it. I know people do bad things, too, and I know it better than most people, but… Even with Shinra, the Turks, the slums, people were trying to help one another. You can't ignore that kind of thing. A lot of people did a lot of bad things to me before I met Elmyra, and I was angry for a long time, but… When you encounter something like that, one person's huge act of kindness, I think you just… start believing in people."
Sephiroth nodded along with her story, his arms folded neatly across his chest. He stared down at her after she had finished until she lifted her head to look up at him imploringly.
"It's your turn."
Sephiroth smirked.
"I lied."
Aeris, still sitting down, found that stomping her feet in anger was quite impossible this time, and was forced to settle for turning her back on him with a pronounced huff of indignation.
I hope none of you really thought he'd keep his end of the bargain.
Anyway! I'm glad there are people who enjoy reading this, because I'm having great fun writing it. I giggled liked a mad scientist with a syringe while writing this chapter, as if trying to keep them in character is some fiendish plot. As always, feedback is appreciated.