Um, hi. (Hides face in shame)

I know this is a much later update than you were expecting. I. am. SO. SORRY. Seriously. My excuses: Normal life, NaNoWriMo, and the fact that I got absorbed into another fandom whose story ideas won't leave me alone. If any of you like FullMetal Alchemist, that is the fandom that captured me. Check out my stories if you like. Aaargh, scratch that. I do not deserve to ask anything from you all. I beg. I grovel.

I'm kidding, but, seriously, I'm sorry. Luckily, I'm almost done with the story that's been taking up my time. Then I can focus on other projects. :)

Alright, to explain this chapter...well, I'm out on a limb here. Pretty sure no one's done anything like this for fanfiction, so...just let me know if it sounds stupid. But no flames, please. They will be ignored.

And, I have a pretty clear picture in my head of the next chapter. I need to read the walkthrough of the game again. I haven't finished the game yet, you see...(I only got it a little while ago- do you know how hard it is to find that thing nowadays?) Oh, and in case anyone thinks that I don't like Tifa- I do. She's going to not be herself for a little while, but it all gets straightened out, I swear. I know how this story ends too, so, yeah....no Tifa bashing. Just don't like her with Cloud. Period.

Aah, I'm rambling.

DISCLAIMER: I own Final Fantasy Seven. I also am secretly the Loch Ness Monster.

Don't sue giant sea monsters. It's not nice.

Enjoy!(I promise the next chapter will be longer)

Chapter Two

Fragment

"What?" Aerith said, standing in front of Cloud with her arms out, spread like she wanted to block him from all the bad things in the world. "What do you mean, 'what have you done to his soul'?" Fear gripped her.

Bugenhagen seemed to gain control of himself, though he was still shaking. "Forgive me," He murmured. He struggled for a moment, and then formed a coherent sentence. "Is- is the rest of your party with you?"

"Yes," Nanaki said. "I will get them. But, Grandfather, what-"

"I cannot be sure yet." Bugenhagen's voice was dismissive. "But, yes, Nanaki, go and get your comrades. I- I need to gather as much information as I can. And then-" He shook himself "-and then, we shall know."

Nanaki stared at the old man for a moment, eyes glowing, and then nodded, brushing past Aerith and Cloud, his tail flickering.

Bugenhagen turned his wise, now-frightened eyes on Aerith. "Please," He said. "When did this start? What...happened?"

And so Aerith told him- told him about Sephiroth's attempt to get Cloud to kill her, Sephiroth's own attempt, how Cloud had shouted her name, pushed her out of the way, and begun to scream. She described how he could not bare to be in a room without her, or to touch anyone else. How he did not speak, but always responded to her voice. And how, though she said it many times, he didn't seem to know his own name.

Bugenhagen looked pensive, folding his hands together in his sleeves.. The others clambered in at that moment.

"What's going on?" Yuffie, Barret, and Cid demanded.

"Have you determined anything?" Vincent's voice was low.

Aerith shook her head. Cloud was nervous, moving even closer to her as the proximity of other people increased. Bugenhagen watched them for a moment, his eyebrows drawing together.

"Come with me," He said finally.

He turned, heading through a door. He led them to a large, dark room. "Tell me, miss," He said. "When you were kneeling at that altar, what were you doing exactly?"

Aerith bit her lip. "I was praying for Holy, to counter Meteor."

Bugenhagen nodded. "I thought as much." He stopped suddenly. "Sephiroth tried to make Cloud kill you? He was able to control Cloud?"

Aerith nodded. "Yes. He even made Cloud give him the Black Materia. Cloud couldn't...control himself." She felt reluctant to say these things. "But, he resisted."

Bugenhagen nodded again. "Yes, he resisted."

Aerith exchanged a look with her friends. What was that strange glint in his eyes? Her friends were equally bemused. All except Tifa, who still didn't meet her eyes. She merely stared at the floor, one hand holding her other arm.

Bugenhagen approached them; Cloud hid behind Aerith even more, clinging to her. Bugenhagen eyed them both with pity-filled eyes. "I need to test something. Can you get him to hold still so that I can touch him?"

Aerith bit her lip. "I'm not sure. He..." She trailed off, determination setting in. She had to, so that Cloud would get better. She turned around, grabbing Cloud's arm.

"Cloud, listen to me." Aerith said, bringing her face very close to his. "Cloud, you need to let Bugenhagen touch you, okay? Please..." Cloud didn't say anything, merely stared at her with something akin to wonder. Aerith sighed. This was getting frustrating.

She moved so that she was standing behind him. She wrapped her arms around his waist from behind. "Hold still..." She whispered, and Cloud became a statue in her arms. "Bugenhagen..." Aerith peeked over Cloud's shoulder. Bugenhagen nodded, approaching Cloud with two fingers held out. They pressed lightly into Cloud's stomach.

Cloud twitched, and Aerith held him tighter. He squirmed, a small wail coming from him. Aerith closed her eyes, whispering gently into Cloud's ear, standing on tiptoe so that she could reach it. He calmed, though he still tried to move away from Bugenhagen's fingers. Aerith saw Bugenhagen's arm move in a slow circle, his eyes closed. His lids twitched, and he pulled back with a slight gasp.

He moved away from them, shaking his head.

"What?" Aerith demanded, stepping around Cloud even as he grasped her hand. "What is it? What happened?"

Bugenhagen took a deep breath. "It is as I feared. His soul has been shattered, leaving only a fragment behind."

"His soul?" Aerith questioned. "How? How could that happen?" Her heart thudded in her ears, and she felt all the blood leave her face.

Bugenhagen's eyes were sad. "Because of the hold that Sephiroth had- that Jenova had-on him, his soul was in chaos. They took control, not of his mind, but of his soul. His thoughts were still his own, but his soul they began to take over completely. When you were kneeling there, praying for Holy, they tried to make him kill you..."

Aerith nodded, her eyebrows furrowing.

"And when that failed, Sephiroth tried to kill you himself. My guess is that Jenova- or Sephiroth- tried to keep Cloud from doing anything to save you, keep him still. The only reason he was able to break from that, was because as he saw Sephiroth fall toward you. And all of his body, his heart, his soul, was focused on you. But breaking away from something that had such a terrible hold on him had it's consequences- as you can see." Bugenhagen sighed before continuing. "That action literally broke him, for, a person's soul has many parts and fragments that feel different things. A person's soul is very much their emotions- their wants and desires- and strong ones at that. But Jenova had been slowly taking over all of those parts of his soul, controlling them. And when he resisted, when he saved you, he broke that connection to Jenova, severed all ties with it, because in that moment, the part of his soul that cared about you was stronger than anything else."

Aerith felt a sinking in her stomach, a horrible feeling overtaking her. Her eyes grew wide.

"And so that is all that is left. All that is left in Cloud, the only thing that remains, is the fragment of soul that thought of nothing else but you. He has no identity, no memories. All that matters, all that makes sense to him, is you."

Aerith gaped. "That- that can't be possible!"

Bugenhagen's expression was grave. "It is possible. You said that he doesn't talk, correct? I doubt he knows how. And I doubt he knows who anyone besides you is. And he cannot leave your side, because you are all he has left. If you leave, it tears at his soul again, ripping apart the only bit of soul he has. I'm sure it causes him great pain."

Aerith sank back, falling to her knees. "How...?" She whispered. "How can this be...?"

"Is there any way to...reverse this?" Tifa asked. She did not look at Aerith or Cloud, and her voice was low. It was the first time she had spoken in hours.

Bugenhagen sighed. "As to that, I do not know. A great shock perhaps...if their connection were to somehow be broken...but anything of that magnitude would most likely kill him."

Aerith's face was white. She looked at her companions, whose faces wore similar pallors.

Cloud, who had fallen beside her and looked increasingly alarmed by her distress, gave a small squeak, wiping at the tears that had filled Aerith's eyes. She stood. "What do you know, then?" She whispered, her fists clenched at her sides.

Bugenhagen looked away. "I am not positive, but...I believe that over time he may learn to speak again, learn who some of you are again...But I do not think he will ever remember who he is. He truly has no sense of self." His gaze went back to Aerith. "I will do my best to learn more on this matter, and let you know. But be warned: He will do anything to keep you from harm. Any old loyalties, his own life, won't matter to him as long as you are safe."

Aerith licked her lips, closing her eyes for a moment as she nodded, a silent tear falling down her face.

~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~(~)~

Aerith was startled by a knock on her door- by the sound of it; all of her friends were waiting outside. Both Bugenhagen and Nanaki had insisted that they stay for a few days, to see if anything else could be learned, and to decide their next destination.

Cloud looked up from where he had been sitting on the edge of her bed- legs crossed, looking almost like an overgrown schoolboy- the wide smile he had been wearing disappearing in an instant. Aerith laid a hand on his shoulder, scooting closer to him. He relaxed, but there was still an odd fear and uneasiness in his eyes when he looked at her, and then the door.

"Come in," Aerith called, and the door was pushed open.

First to come in was Nanaki, followed closely by Barret and Cid, then Cait Sith, Vincent, Yuffie, and finally Tifa, her eyes flicking over to Aerith and Cloud, and then quickly at the floor again. No one spoke as they gathered around the bed.

Cloud started fiddling with Aerith's sleeve- tracing it in his fingers, exploring all angles of it, his hand moving up to her shoulder and tracing the lines of the stitches on her jacket. Aerith shifted uncomfortably, fighting a blush. Her eyes roamed her friends' faces, meeting their eyes. For the first time, Tifa met her gaze. Her face was carefully blank- but oddly pinched and tight, wine-red eyes flicking from Aerith, to Cloud's fingers still tracing her jacket. Aerith furrowed her eyebrows, disliking the slight hostility that seemed to be hidden under the surface in Tifa's face. She really couldn't blame her, she supposed. Aerith knew that Tifa loved Cloud too, and that she didn't seem to really understand what had happened. But she would have to talk to her about it soon; Tifa was her best friend, and Aerith didn't want her to be angry.

Aerith wove her fingers into the blanket. "Well...?" She said, moving her gaze from Tifa to look at the others.

Yuffie shifted uncomfortably. "Look, Aerith-" She began.

"We can't let you and spiky come with us!" Barret blurted out. He sighed. "What good would Cloud be in a fight? And what if Sephiroth comes, and tires to control him again?"

"And if he does come, he won't have any effect on Cloud," Aerith raised her eyebrows. "Bugenhagen said that all the ties Cloud had to Jenova and Sephiroth are gone. Sephiroth would hold no sway over him now."

"Not exactly," Nanaki said. He walked closer, butting his head against Aerith's knee. He looked up at her, and his eyes were sad. "If Sephiroth put you in danger, Cloud would do anything he said, to keep you from harm."

"But Sephiroth doesn't know that!" Tifa sudden exclamation startled everyone. "Maybe we can find a way to help Cloud if he comes. We can all protect Aerith, I know we can!"

"Like we protected her in the Forgotten City?" Vincent questioned, his voice low. Tifa blanched, drawing back a little. "Tifa, do not forget that Aerith almost died there." Tifa lowered her head.

"I haven't forgotten," She whispered, looking away, hand clamped tight around her arm.

"Does this mean we have to stop hunting Sephiroth?" Cait Sith asked, wringing his hands together. He looked around at them all, waiting for an answer as they all paused.

"No," Aerith said, and her voice was firm. "We can't. I told you before: you need me. If I don't come with you, Sephiroth will seek out both me, and Cloud. Whether we are traveling with all of you will be of little consequence to him. He wants us both dead, and he will not stop, just because we aren't looking for him." Aerith met all of their eyes. "You all know that." Cloud pulled a little closer to her, pressing his face into her arm. Aerith took a deep breath to calm herself, and then spoke again, her voice very soft.

"I know...I know that there's danger. I know...that a lot could go wrong, but I...I know, that if we keep journeying together, we have a change to stop Sephiroth. None of us can do it alone, I know that now. I thought I could do it by myself, summon Holy and stop him, no matter the cost. But I can't, especially now that Cloud is this way. We all have to fight him together. We have to...there are so many people counting on us...we can't give up. We can't just let them all die. We have to do this, so that the world will go on. And..." Aerith paused, then continued. "And, so that maybe, we can help Cloud. I don't know anything else to do. But please..." She held out her hand, reaching out toward them all.

"Please, we have to all fight this together, or we don't stand a chance."

Slowly, they came toward her. One by one, they placed their hands over hers, Nanaki's paw on top.

"Together," They said, and Aerith smiled, tears pricking her eyes as Cloud clutched her ever more tightly.

END OF CHAPTER

There ya go. The full extent of Cloud's...affliction...will become clear over time. It's sort of something that can't be explained- only shown.

EDIT: Oh, man, I can't believe I forgot to do this. Reviews for chapter one:

-Ace- :Doesn't seem like I'm gonna get that cookie, huh? I'm glad you liked the first chapter so much. :)

mirrorshine: Thank you! I hope you like this chapter too.

LilyMione-chan: Thank you. I'm glad you find it creative. But what is obvious about it? Oh no, I don't want to have a readable plot...*~*

Fifth Voyager: Wow, glad you like it! Hope you enjoy this chapter too!

Frodo Silverlune: Okay, so no pressure. XD Hope this lives up to your expectations!

I love reviews, and they make me write faster. :)

Next chapter preview:

Broken: Everyone tries to fully explore Cloud's 'injury', and does their best to make him remember them, and even the basics of speaking. Can Aerith try to talk to Tifa, or will words be thrown in anger in response? And how can Aerith deal with Cloud being unable to seperate from her- having to be at her side at all times, even when sleeping, or bathing...Can this piece of Cloud still hold anything that's true? But no, Cloud doesn't love her...does he?

Till next time! The next chapter very much earns this story's 'T' rating. And not for language and violence. (Hint hint.)

I PROMISE to update faster.

~AerithHeart