------------------------------------------- Disclaimer: ---------------------------------------------

To the Reader and the Lawyers:

Final Fantasy VII, and all the characters, including Aeris and Sephiroth, are property of Square Enix Co, formerly Squaresoft LLC. Tell me if my disclaimer ain't good enough.

To other Fanfic Writers (This is more important!) Plagiarism Note:

There are a lot of Aeriseph fanfics around here. I've tried my best to stay as original as possible, but it's a bit hard to write this type of story without treading on someone's toes by accident along the line. Please, if you feel that I may have 'borrowed' some of your concepts or ideas by mistake, notify me immediately. Email a "cease and desist" message to me, point out where I have gone wrong, and I will act immediately to remove or modify the offending section(s). Thank you very, very much for your understanding and tolerance.

OK, enough of this @#*%&^ already, on with the story!

--------------------------------------- End of Disclaimer: ---------------------------------------

THE BANE OF THE E.D.K.

Tifa and Cloud sat down in the open – air amphitheatre of Event Square, waiting for the play to begin. The Evil Dragon King Valvados starred again as the prime antagonist, but the program flyers had promised a new twist to the story.

"Ladies and gentlemen," the announcer blared out, "Let the play begin!"

The narrator began the story.

"Once upon a time, on a Planet far, far, away, there was once a legendary hero called Sir Alfred."

A man dressed in plastic plates painted a cheap silver colour shambled out of the wings, making clanking noises as he did. He was short and stocky, and it was a wonder that he could walk with all the weird accoutrements the Gold Saucer staff had given him. Cloud wanted for a moment to snicker. That character reminded him of a video game he'd played once in the 7th Heaven Bar while waiting for a mission to assault a Mako Reactor long ago…

"Sir Alfred was the champion of the land, defeating evil monsters left and right, preserving the safety of the kingdom he was sworn to defend."

The faux knight drew a wooden sword (also painted silver) and started whacking some extras dressed in Shinra uniforms. Cloud smiled. Until a year or two ago, he had been one of those small fry…

"But one day he had a dream. He didn't want to become a knight anymore. He wanted to rule the world. He rose up and slew his king, and anyone who dared to oppose him."

It was hard to imagine a flunky like that actor being an evil man, killing equally dowdy – dressed players on the stage, but that contributed to the overall comedic effect.

"Until one day the gods themselves were angered with his evil deeds and cursed him to become a hideous monster for all eternity. He became the Evil Dragon King Valvados."

It was indeed very fortunate that the clanking knight was struck down by a short burst of confetti from above, otherwise everyone in Event Square would have died of laughter by now. The stage darkened for a second for the actor to remove himself, and when he was gone, the familiar green canvas tarpaulin that served as the villain of the story had appeared.

"But still Valvados hungered for power. He enslaved many nations, and killed many innocents in the process."

It was then that Cloud's smirk vanished and his eyes glazed over. The evil dragon king had appeared behind a girl dressed as a nun, kneeling in prayer. Valvados laughed like an old crone who hadn't put on her false teeth, devouring his 'victim' heartily, uttering the words "Delicious! Yummy!" to the extreme delight of the audience.

But Cloud closed his eyes, not wanting to take that apparently humorous scene in. And he saw again the black – cloaked man appear behind the poor defenceless girl, driving the sword through her back. She died instantly, and the villain had callously kicked her off his blade, guffawing like the insane man he had been. If there was one memory in particular he could ever erase or forget, it would have been that horrid moment when Innocence herself was murdered.

"Cloud…" Tifa had noticed his change in mood, seeing the tears form in the bluish – green eyes, "Are you thinking about her?"

The ex – SOLDIER nodded, swallowing his salty tears.

"We all lost someone dear to him," he whispered, "Our town, our parents… even Aeris." He remembered the cheerful, giggly girl who never lost her sense of humour and wonder no matter how hard things went. She had been the one who had asked him to open up. She had literally dragged him along on a date, begging him to take part in this play. She was always full of the mysteries of life, and she had been braver and more unselfish than anyone else he'd ever met.

Of all of them, the Ancient had been the least deserving of death, yet she had been the only one of their number to perish. She had saved them all by finding the secret weapon to defeat Sephiroth, but she had paid the ultimate price for using the White Materia. She now belonged to heaven, and the stars would spell out her name, but they would never forget the Rose of Midgar.

Turning towards Tifa, fixing his gaze on her, he took a deep breath and tried to continue.

"Tifa… I love you. Her death has made me treasure what's important in life, to seize it before it leaves us completely. She always said that she would come back after this was all over, and I thought I had time to come clean about my feelings to her, and now that she's gone… I don't want to lose you too." His tears ran down his blue sleeveless shirt.

Tifa grasped his hand firmly and warmly.

"What else could go wrong now? Sephiroth's dead, Meteor's gone, Aeris has passed into the Promised Land. She's happy now, and I'm sure she wants us to be happy too. Come on, we're missing the play!" She smiled, gesturing to the stage.

"The people were bowed with sadness and they could only dream of the day when there would be peace and happiness in their once proud world. Until a wise man came forward with the way to stop the monster."

An aged old wizard in grey robes, torn and darned with multicoloured patches stepped up.

"The Evil Dragon King Valvados has but one weakness… he is vulnerable to the power of true love. Only a pure hearted and virtuous maiden who promises to be together with him forever will be able to break his curse and return him to the valiant knight he once was."

"The call went high and low, but no one was willing to face the dragon or courageous enough to stay with the monster forever. Until the time when a fair princess known as Rosa came along."

A pretty girl with raven hair stepped onto the stage, proclaiming bravely, "I will go alone into the dragon's lair if no one else shall."

This was not the Princess Rosa he had known and loved and would mourn for forever. But there was already another princess at his side, and he was content.

A/N: So, without our dear Aeris around, guess who Cloudy – Woudy runs off with! If the title has not given it away by now, this play will foreshadow events to come…

Hey, remember Candle in the Wind 1997? Thought it would apply very nicely to Aeris here, wonder why no one has modified the lyrics yet to suit her in a songfic.