You know, I'll probably end up having a 3 day delay instead of a 2 day delay. Sorry, people.
knell \NEL\, verb:
1. The stroke of a bell tolled at a funeral or at the death of a person; a death signal; a passing bell; hence, figuratively, a warning of, or a sound indicating, the passing away of anything.
intransitive verb:
1. To sound as a knell; especially, to toll at a death or funeral; hence, to sound as a warning or evil omen.
Rating: K/PG
Pairing: I don't think there is one. Maybe Zack/Cloud if you tilt your head to the right and squint a bit.
Word Count: 319
Summary: Zack's death was never remembered by anyone but Cloud. (AC hilltop scene rewrite.)
Warnings: Angst. Yeah. Me + boredom angst. If you read To Cry, my crappy free verse poem, you know this already.
Dedication: I did say I'd write a fic for Zack! Only he still doesn't get any. And he's dead. His death totally ruined the Crisis Core ending song for me. If he hadn't died, I might actually like that song. As such, whenever I hear it, I start crying and writing things like this. Or it could be that my muse happens to be Vincent Valentine. Yeah, that could definitely be it.
Disclaimer: If I owned them, FFVII would have been remade in high-res already, Zack would not have died, Hojo would have died a far more horrible death, Sephiroth would not have gone insane, and the entire compilation would have had a much higher rating than just T. But I don't. I gain nothing from writing this except feeling good about myself. All characters belong to Square Enix. I just own the angst.
Zack never had a funeral.
Of course, only five people knew that he had died. Three of them were the ones that killed him. One of them always knew when people returned to the Planet. The other...
Cloud stood upon the bluff overlooking Midgar, repositioning the Buster Sword yet again.
Why did Rufus still think he was capable of helping them? He couldn't do anything. He'd failed so many people.
Tifa had fallen into a coma after the bridge had broken.
Sephiroth had gone insane and burned his hometown.
Aerith had died at the hands of an empty shell of his former friend.
And Zack...
Zack who had singled him out and wished him luck. Zack who had broken them out of the Shinra mansion's labs. Zack who had secured them safe passage to Midgar and thought of a way to make their living. Zack who had been his first close friend. Zack who had saved his life.
Zack who, up until falling in the Lifestream, he had forgotten.
Cloud stepped back slowly and bowed his head, saying a silent prayer to no one in particular. Lifting his eyes back to the huge sword, he let the memories carry him.
"I said I'd live for the both of us..."
The words were out before he realized he'd been speaking aloud.
He had made that promise, hadn't he? As his best friend handed down the Buster Sword, a symbol of his honor, his dreams, Cloud had promised to be his living legacy. And he had forgotten. He had failed.
His next words were sardonic, to hide the growing pain. "Well, easy to make that promise..."
As the Geostigma overwhelmed his senses, he grasped the sword like a talisman to fight the pain, all the while repeating the same silent prayers of rememberance and redemption.
It was the most he could do.
It was the only funeral that Zack could have.
I gave Genesis to the first signed review I got on , but I still have the rest of the bishies here! I can still tie them outside to die at the hands of rabid fangirls if you don't comment!