Disclaimer: All characters in this story belong in their entirety to Square-Enix.
Notes to the story: Okay, so I made this about ten times more romantic than it is in the game, but this is a story, y'know. And I missed out most of the date night (hilarious as it is) because it would just take too long and detract from the important stuff between Cloud and Aerith. Enjoy!
-Ludi x
PS: BTW, I know a lot of you have queries about the paradoxes and confusions in this story (mainly about Sephiroth and the identity of the true Sephiroth). The only explanation I can give is that when I wrote this (some 8 years ago after the game first came out) I didn't fully understand the whole Sephiroth thing myself. Actually, I didn't until I played the game again several years later. Unfortunately this had already been written and I couldn't be bothered to revise it. I'm just too lazy. So please forgive the plot holes and such. I apologize for them, but since this is a story that is long under the bridge, I'm not going to change it, even though there are many things I feel unhappy about and would indeed change. I have too many other projects and interests going on now to go back to something I wrote in my teen years. I hope you understand this, and I just want to say thanks so much for the continued support for this fic. It means a lot and I hope the plot holes don't detract too much from the story.
-oOo-
: Chapter Eighteen : The Cat and the Keystone
In the darkness of the bleak hotel room there were questions. For Cloud, it was an on-going struggle just to find out the answers to those questions. The fact was that since Yuffie had so contemptuously told him that all he cared about was Sephiroth, he had begun to question this very actuality with some sort of anxious foreboding. He often pondered on the what the force was that drove him on toward Sephiroth. The thing that had disturbed him most was remembering what Hojo had once asked him:- 'Do you feel as if something is calling you?'. The trouble was that Cloud had to answer yes to that question. Sometimes it was as though he could not help but pursue Sephiroth with all the hate and vengeance that he could muster, not even know why he was doing so. He had never thought himself capable of feeling such hatred. It scared him, all the more so because most of the time he did not have any idea that he was feeling this emotion in the first place.
Fear and hate. After all this time, Cloud wished that he could go back to the comfort and security of the home he had once known, to the life that he had left behind when he had begun this quest. But the wish was no more than just that: a wish, a fantasy, something that had never existed. He could not remember any comfort in the life he had had in Nibelheim, he did not even remember even being happy there. All his life it seemed there had been no escape from pain, from fear, from unhappiness.
A knock sounded at the door, and interrupted his thoughts. It was Aerith who entered. She looked somehow different, very serious and expectant.
"I didn't interrupt you, did I?" she asked him.
He shook his head. "No. Did you want me? Is there something wrong?"
"No…I was just wondering…" She reddened a little "…Since we're here, why don't we go out and enjoy ourselves?"
Cloud stared at her.
"I owe you one," she continued. "Or had you forgotten?"
"You owe me two actually," he corrected her pointedly.
"Of course…well, why don't we make tonight extra special then?"
He laughed.
"Since you put it that way, I guess we could go out for a while. It's not that late."
They went to the theatre and on the gondola ride. After all a date was a date, and going to the arcades or the Battle Square was the sort of thing that Cloud had learnt from experience to avoid in the presence of women. He would normally have been inclined to indulge in some silly fun, but somehow this was different. Tonight he wanted to be with her alone, close to her. It was more curiosity on his part than anything else. He had scrutinized their relationship for quite a while now, unable to measure it in any certain terms. He had to admit that he had grown very fond of her, but recent happenings had hinted at the possibility of something more. In a way, being with her was an exercise in assessing his own feelings towards her.
It was with these awkward thoughts passing through his head that Cloud spent most of the evening with her, and by the time it had almost come to an end he was still uncertain of whether anything had come out of it.
"Do you want to go back?" he asked her after they had left the crowds at the gondola behind.
"No." There was a queer look on her face as she said it. "Cloud's let's talk."
"Where?"
"I don't know. Anywhere where it's quiet."
They went back to the Event Square, back to the now deserted theatre. The lights were out and litter and junk had been cleared away for the next show. They walked down separate aisles, deep in their own thoughts.
"Did you want to talk, Aerith?" Cloud asked after a little while. She climbed the stage and was looking outward with a faraway expression.
"Yes; let's talk," she agreed.
"What about?" he continued, climbing the steps to the platform. She had sat down on the edge, and was swinging her legs like pendulums, like prolonged thoughts.
"Well…" she began, after a pause, "whatever you want to. I don't mind really."
Cloud stared down at her and kicked a neglected piece of rubbish off the edge of the stage.
"That sounds interesting," he noted with a stab of irony.
She laughed a little.
"I'm sorry."
"It's okay. It's just that last time we had a conversation, you had quite a lot to say." He sat down next to her. "All that morbid stuff – life, death…I didn't like it."
"Didn't you?" she was mildly inquiring.
"I don't think about stuff like that too much," he admitted, a little ashamed about it nonetheless. "It was kind of strange to hear you suddenly come out with it."
"I think about it all the time," she sighed and looked up to the ceiling. "But still, it was nice to talk to you about it, even though you didn't like it. It meant a lot to me."
Cloud did not answer. He felt peculiar about it. He was even more surprised to feel her grasp his hand, and for a moment, he was oddly reminded of what had happened earlier that morning. He felt stupid. It was all so clear to him now. He had never understood…never expected…and yet he had, he had known this was going to happen…
"Cloud," she told him softly, "do you remember when we first met?"
He nodded after a moment, his throat thick.
"When we first met," she continued pensively, "I was so afraid. You reminded me so much of…him. The way you looked, acted, your mannerisms…I think…I saw him again in you." She paused, and subconsciously held his hand a little tighter before she spoke again. "Yes, I was afraid, but I'm not anymore. You're different. Things…are different."
They looked out on to the empty rows of plush velvet seats. There were no people to watch them on this stage, to listen to their lines. For Cloud there were plenty of words that he could think but that he could not say. Who did he remind her of, whom did he look like? Was he a substitute, a ghost, an actor for her? Who was he? Who was he for her?
He had no answers to the questions, and when she next spoke he was surprised by her words.
"I'm searching for you, Cloud. I want to meet you."
It was a long time before the word could emerge from his mouth.
"…Searching…?"
She nodded.
"Yes. I know how it is. You're confused, you're on a journey, you're trying to find yourself. I want to see you through it, I want to meet the real you, Cloud."
They said nothing for a long while, but remained still, in the darkness. Somewhere nearby the sound of cheering and applause flooded in from the crowds outside. He did not know what to say to her. He did not understand her, but in that short moment she had touched him, deeper than he had ever been touched. It was as though, somehow, he had been waiting for her to say those words his whole life.
The sounds quietened outside, and then there was silence. Cloud dropped her hand and turned to face her.
"Aerith, I don't understand…"
"You don't need to understand," she assured him and her eyes were dark. "Cloud, I promise, I'll do it…even if it's only for you…"
He had said he was her bodyguard, but now it didn't matter. He'd protect her anyway, he'd do it all too, because he cared for her and he knew that she meant that much to him. He had drawn her close to him, and for the first time he caught the faintest hint of orange blossom that lingered in her hair. It was flowing peace, age-old acquiescence, timeless and yet rare in its unfolding. His lips were on hers, he could not think why he had not done it before, because he knew that they had both felt that way and that she had wanted it too. Her mouth opened against his and he tasted wonder in her mouth, something different to anything he'd ever known before: the beginnings of life, of being, of the existence of the Planet; of knowledge and wisdom and living and loving. He was awed by it, stunned. She was Aerith, last of the Cetra, and she was telling him all her secrets in one single kiss. And when at last it was over he held her against him, and they both sighed with contentment and relief.
"Aerith…"
He tried to, but he could not ask her what it all meant. The words stuck in his throat, words that she had given him, signs and symbols of a language he could not decode. This sudden wonder that they had shared with one another was more than just the culmination of strong yet ambiguous feelings. Rather, it had some spiritual meaning as well, something to be unlocked, but that had broken down barriers nevertheless. In a way, he felt chosen by her, chosen as the recipient for something wildly important and incomprehensible. She'd sent him on a secret mission, as well as telling him, quite plainly, what she felt.
"Shall we go now?" she asked at last.
Cloud did not want to go, because, for the first time in ages, he felt happy. But he reluctantly let go of her, and nodded. They stood up and left the empty rows of seats behind.
They had just about reached the station when Aerith suddenly started and stopped. Until that moment, Cloud had been lost in his thoughts. Feeling the sudden jolt of Aerith's movement, he halted and looked down at her.
"What is it?"
Aerith looked up at him, disconcerted.
"Do you see? Over there?"
He followed her gaze across the hallway.
At the other side of the entrance a shadowy figure appeared to be lurking about. As it moved across to one of the exits, Cloud recognised the lumbering figure as Cait Sith's. He took a step forward to take a closer look. At first glance there didn't seem to be anything wrong, but as Cloud looked more closely at Cait Sith's large figure, he saw that the cat was looking about him in an agitated, nervous fashion. His actions were definitely suspicious.
Aerith walked forward the few steps between her and Cloud so that she stood beside him. She stared up at him quizzically.
"What do you think he's doing?" she asked.
"I'm not sure," he replied in a low whisper. "But whatever he's up to, it sure looks suspicious."
She nodded.
"What should we do?"
Cloud didn't really stop to think.
"Let's follow him."
Cait Sith suddenly began to move the Chocobo Racing Square entrance, evidently feeling quite sure that he was not being followed. Cloud kept his eye on him, and spoke through his teeth quietly to Aerith.
"Come on, let's go. Keep right behind me."
Cloud began to move forward after Cait Sith stealthily, Aerith following noiselessly behind him. However, he should have known better than to expect not to be noticed. As Cait Sith began to approach the entrance, he appeared to realise that Cloud was trailing him out of the corner of his eye. He changed direction abruptly, entering the crowds that had been milling from the Event Square. Unfortunately, his mog was too fat to go unnoticed amongst the gathering of people. Cloud and Aerith managed to keep sight of him quite successfully as they elbowed and shoved roughly through the adverse tide of bodies. The mog and the cat wandered right through to the other side and over to the Speed Square entrance, just as Cloud pushed past the last person.
"Are you all right?" Cloud asked Aerith, as she managed to elbow her way beside him. She pulled a face and smoothed a crease in her dress.
"Yes, I'm fine," she replied. "Where's Cait Sith?"
Cloud looked up and sighed.
"The Speed Square. We'd better go before we lose him."
They walked into the Speed Square and looked around warily. Cait Sith was lumbering up the staircase, and Cloud saw that he was moving toward the Chocobo Square. He nudged Aerith.
"See that, he's going to the Chocobo races. Can we get there before he does?"
"I doubt it."
Just as she'd replied, Cait Sith suddenly noticed them standing in the entrance. Unfortunately for him, it was obvious of his chosen destination, and there was no chance left for him to change it now. Suddenly, he picked up his pace drastically, and the mog began to run through to the Chocobo Square. Cloud and Aerith followed after him, as fast as their legs could carry them.
"What do you think he's up to?" Aerith asked, breathlessly.
"I don't know," Cloud answered as they neared the Chocobo Square. "But I have this feeling..."
As they entered the brightly lit square, the sound of helicopter wings could be heard whirring unexpectedly from within. Rushing into the forum, they saw Cait Sith making his way right towards the helicopter. In the cat's hand was something, something Cloud could see very clearly as Cait Sith held it up to whoever it was in the helicopter. He gasped as he and Aerith ran down the steps towards the scene.
"Aerith! It's the Keystone! Cait Sith's got the Keystone!"
Before she could make any reply, the helicopter's occupant stepped out to the door of the aircraft. Cait Sith, seeing Cloud and Aerith approaching fast down the stairs, hastily hurled the Keystone upward. Cloud watched it sail into the air and into the hand of the man waiting in the helicopter. The man, he realised as he looked up, was Tseng. He was addressing Cait Sith in his usual sedate tone.
"Thank you, sir. That was a job well done."
Cait Sith's voice, though still speaking in his high-pitched tone, suddenly had an authoritative quality to it.
"And thank you, Tseng. You are to be commended for your dedication. Just make sure you carry out your orders."
"Of course, sir," Tseng replied dryly. He suddenly caught sight of Cloud and Aerith, who'd run up beside Cait Sith. A light seemed to spread across his face. "Here you are, Miss. Aerith! I trust you will soon be following me to the Temple of the Ancients. Well, I shall meet you there! So long!"
He disappeared back into the helicopter, and it flew away into the distance, out of sight. Cloud turned on Cait Sith, who'd been staring after the aircraft with a satisfied expression.
"So it's you!" he exclaimed. "You're the spy!"
Cait Sith turned to them both frankly.
"Yes, I was the spy. I was 'hired' by the Shinra, so to speak. I was able to relay all your movements back to Shinra Headquarters, thus ensuring that we were always one step ahead of you."
Aerith looked at him in dismay.
"But how could you Cait Sith? That's so dirty! And to think I trusted you too!"
He looked slightly conscience-stricken.
"I'm sorry. But this was the only way it could be done."
Cloud felt himself boil over with rage. So all along Cait Sith had caught them out with his cutesy act. He'd probably rigged the whole incident with the Ropeway to buy himself time to steal the Keystone. And to think Cloud had never even thought that he was behind all this.
"Right," he addressed Cait Sith in a vicious tone, "tomorrow you're out of here for good."
"No go, I'm afraid," Cait Sith replied easily. "I'm staying with you, whatever you tell me to do."
"Oh no, you're not," Cloud answered quickly, furious. "I'm chucking you out, you double-crosser!"
Cait Sith suddenly began to act tough.
"I'm sorry to threaten you like this, but there's something you have to understand here. You see, I'm afraid to say that the little girl and Aerith's mother have been taken into our care, so to speak - and the whole of Midgar is in my hands. It isn't safe to disobey me."
"You wouldn't hurt Marlene and mother and the slum people?" Aerith gasped.
Cait Sith looked irritated.
"Of course not! Do you think I'd blow up my whole creation!" He stopped abruptly, realising he'd spoken too much. Then he continued in a calmer voice. "I certainly would not destroy Midgar. I'm not like that anyway. But there are people who would. Understand?"
Cloud glared at him through narrowed eyes.
"I don't believe you'd be crazy enough to do this."
Cait Sith looked at him helplessly and shrugged.
"But this is how it is...no compromises. So why don't we continue as we did?"
Having no choice but to agree, the three walked back to the hotel silently and begrudgingly. The final goodnights were stiff and forced. Cloud waited for Cait Sith to go so that he may speak to Aerith by himself, but the cat seemed to be waiting for Aerith to go so that he could speak to Cloud privately. Aerith, seeing this, sent Cloud a vulnerable look, turned away disenchantedly and walked back to her room. Cloud stared after her angrily. He turned to Cait Sith wrathfully.
"What do you want?"
Cait Sith looked eager to pacify him.
"Listen to me, Cloud. You may not believe this, but I'm on your side. Really."
Cloud snorted loudly.
"Yeah right! All I can say is that when Barret hears that you're from the Shinra, I hope he shoots you down dead!"
"That's impossible and you know it," Cait Sith replied quietly. "This is only a toy body, it means nothing. If you do get rid of me, I could come back in any form. I could be a fly on the wall, a stone in your shoe. No - it's better this way." He paused and thought a moment "Cloud, being with you has made me think. It's your way of life. You don't get paid, you don't get rewarded, you don't get respect. And yet you go on straight for your goals, seeking to save the Planet. It's made me think about my own life. I'm not a good person, but I've realised that I can do my part in saving the Planet too. That's why I want to stay with you, and perhaps give you a bit information from Shinra H.Q.. Besides..." He spoke softly, "I don't want to have to see some of you hurt."
"You mean Aerith?" Cloud questioned, unimpressed. Cait Sith looked sheepish.
"It's not what you're thinking. The fact is, she's the last of the Cetra. What I've realised is that she's the only one who has a right to the Planet or the Promised Land, or whatever it is that we're seeking. And I'm willing to help her out."
Cloud couldn't stand listening to this any further. Sending Cait Sith a disdainful look, he opened his door.
"Well, I'm sure that's very noble of you. I hope it serves you well. Now I'm too tired to listen to anymore of your pathetic excuses. Goodnight."
Leaving the cat to stew on his words in the corridor, Cloud slammed the door shut behind him, sending shock waves through his dark hotel room.
-oOo-
Next: Aerith finally faces her destiny...