Cloud Strife, age 16, lies relaxed in the comfort of his own bed. Despite being mandated that he had to stay in his SOLDIER uniform during this deployment, it does not hinder his relaxed state. After arriving at his hometown, the one thing that was on the boy's mind was to see how his mother was doing. Claudia was as radiant as ever, and looked like she was on the verge of tears upon seeing her boy again. For the first time in two years. The second he recognized his spiky blonde hair, no matter that he was clad in his uniform, as well as the big sword clasped to his back, she'd recognize her son anywhere.

Snapped out of his thoughts and pondering, the delicious aroma of Claudia's cooking fills Cloud's nostrils. His eyes close, sighing in content.

"I didn't get a chance to ask, but how have you been?" Claudia asks, her back to Cloud. "Has the company been treating you well?"

"It's been alright," Cloud replies simply.

"Have you been eating well?"

"Yes, Mom," Cloud says, feigning annoyance. He's acting like he's annoyed by the questions and pestering but, in truth, Cloud is just happy to see his mother again.

"You know, the city is full of temptation," Claudia says, her voice tinged with concern.

"What do you mean?"

"Just.. In general. Someone could steer you down the wrong path."

Cloud is still confused by that. Is she talking about the residents of Midgar? Because he very rarely gets deployed on missions in any of the sectors. He usually gets deployed to the other continents, and the areas there; like Costa Del Sol, Gold Saucer, Junon, etc. Cloud chooses not to dwell on his confusion and he doesn't ask her to elaborate.

"Your poor old mother would feel a lot better if you settled down with a nice girl," Claudia says, a smile on her face at the thought.

Oh. That's what she was getting at, Cloud thought to himself.

"I'm fine," Cloud says and he means it. The mission and his role in the company matter more to him. Plus, he hasn't found himself being interested in romance. Not since the night he left.

"You need... an older girlfriend. One who can keep you on the straight and narrow, to tell you when you're being a silly goose," she continues.

Cloud keeps his eyes closed, not interested in the topic.

"That'd be the perfect type for you, I'd say."

In the dead of night, Cloud slowly opens his eyes. It takes him no time at all to realize that what he just saw was a dream; good memories. Unfortunately, those are of days long since passed. And his memories continue to be fragmented. This was one of the few he could fully remember.

He sits up in the soft bed, rubbing the drowsiness from his eyes. The bed in this little guest bedroom felt so much like his own from back home. It was comfortable and safe. Standing up, he quietly picks up his sword that was propped against the wall, clasping it to his back.

"Don't wanna overstay my welcome," Cloud says to himself. Truthfully, he doesn't want to leave. The young flower girl, Aerith, treated him with nothing but kindness and openness. However, he's not one to disrespect one's wishes, especially when he's clearly not welcome.

Cloud slowly and carefully opens the bedroom door and quietly steps out. The floorboards creak underneath his boots and he has to ensure that each step is filled with precision. Aerith is in the room next to his. One wrong step will blow his cover.

Cloud slowly creeps over towards the stairs, pausing to make sure he doesn't hear any movement from Aerith's room, before slowly making his way to the main foyer of the house. The kitchen light is on, but no sign of Elmyra. Chances are, she's probably asleep in her room but left the light on for Cloud so he can see where he's going. The front door is also unlocked, once again something that is undoubtedly Elmyra's doing. She really was serious about Cloud leaving and never coming back.

The ex-SOLDIER steps outside before taking one last glance up at Aerith's window. He will never see her again. He has to remind himself of that.

The Sector 5 Slums are eerily quiet at night. A stark contrast to the bustling town that it was just this afternoon. He finds a few people milling about, but for the most part, it's quiet. So Cloud swiftly makes his way through and down a dirt covered path to the East of the Slums. If Cloud's memory serves him, this should lead to the collapsed expressway of Sector 6. Past there is Wall Market, the sector's infamous red light district, so Cloud will need to start around there if he wants to make it back to Sector 7 without getting lost.

A few minutes into his trek, Cloud hears a rustling in front of him, stopping him in his tracks. To his dismay, appearing from her hiding spot, is Aerith. She doesn't look angry, but instead, her hands are on her hips and she has a sassy smile on her face.

"Well, look who's up early!" she says, her voice tinged with sass.

"I couldn't let you come along. It's too dangerous," Cloud quickly says.

"Are you done?" Aerith replies. And that shuts Cloud up.

"What are you doing here? Why are you stopping me?"

"Because I'm not sick of you yet," Aerith says, getting closer to Cloud, giggling. He feels his heart skip a beat.

"Lead on then," Cloud says, relenting. He might as well indulge her.

"Okay, so, you're heading back to Sector 7? I have a shortcut," Aerith says, leading him down the dirt-laden path.

Stopping at the crest of a hill, Cloud stops and looks at the big, metallic wall about a hundred feet ahead. No doubt, from the red lights peeking out over the top of the wall, and the music blaring, that's Wall Market.

"Have you ever been there?" Aerith asks, standing beside him.

"No. But I know people who have."

"SOLDIER?"

"SOLDIER, Turks, anyone affiliated with Shinra. For some, it's the perfect spot to unwind."

Aerith says nothing. Instead, she looks to her left before grabbing Cloud's hand. "It's this way."

Cloud looks at her in confusion. This leads through the collapsed Sector 6 expressway. It'll lead to the Sector 7 Slums, sure, but it's long and dangerous. Monsters and abandoned Shinra weaponry populate this area and Cloud can't allow anything to happen to Aerith.

"Think of it as a shortcut," she says enthusiastically. Cloud is not convinced, but he knows better than to say no.

Years ago, an accident happened that caused a large portion of the upper Sector 6 plate to collapse. Cloud is unsure what exactly happened, but it must've been catastrophic that it caused an entire expressway to collapse. The upper plate of Sector 6 used to house more than half a million people; now it's a pile of rubble. The aftermath of the incident was the most peculiar part of the story: a snowfall. That's all he has heard on the subject. Other than that, it's a mystery about what happened.

After an hour traveling through the precarious and dangerous ruins of the Sector 6 expressway, Cloud and Aerith emerge out of a tunnel. It's almost like a breath of fresh air, or as much of a breath of fresh air you can get in the polluted slums, because ahead of them is a calm and tranquil park.

This is Evergreen Park. For many people, this is a perfect rest spot because it's quiet and separated from all the Slums. This is also the perfect spot to clear one's mind. Unfortunately, it's been barren for years. The swings and sandpit are decrepit, and the slide that's shaped like a giant Moogle head is scattered with dirt and grime.

"I can't believe it's still standing," Aerith says gleefully. She runs towards the slide and looks at it as if she's been reunited with an old friend.

Ahead of them is the gate to the Sector 7 Slums, so Cloud knows that their journey is at an end. It's strange, because the former SOLDIER doesn't want it to be over. It's a feeling that feels alien to him, because this flower peddler has been nothing but nice to him since he fell through the roof of the church.

He slowly approaches her. "Are you gonna be alright getting home?"

She looks at him, a playful twinkle in her green eyes. "And if I said I wasn't?"

Cloud immediately moves to head back the way they came. "I'll go with you!" He doesn't want their journey to be over.

"Isn't that a little silly?" Aerith replies, giggling softly.

"You're right," Cloud says.

A moment passes without them saying anything. They stare at each other and both move to speak: "So," they say at the exact same time. Aerith giggles again and Cloud cracks a smile.

"Shall we take a break?" Aerith says, climbing to the top of the slide. Cloud nearly objects, but he stops himself. It's obvious that shes wanting to spend more time with him, and he can't help but smile again. So, he climbs up and sits next to her, keeping a small distance between them.

Just then, Aerith instantly closes that distance and Cloud feels his heart skip a beat as he feels flushed.

"So," Aerith says, breaking the awkward silence. "What class were you?"

"Class?" Cloud asks, suspiciously.

"You know, in SOLDIER."

"Oh, First."

"Ah," Aerith simply responds, her eyes downcast. "Just the same as him."

"Who?"

"The first guy I ever liked."

Cloud looks at her. Currently, his feelings are complex; on one hand, he can't help but feel attached and downright attracted to Aerith, even after only spending one day with her. On the other hand, his thought process boils down to "so...she went on a date with someone else here?"

"Were you...together?" Cloud finally asks.

Aerith shakes her head after a moment of thinking about the question. "No, it wasn't like that."

"I probably knew him. What was his name?"

Cloud feels momentarily afraid that he's pushing too far but those fears are evaporated by Aerith giving him a small smile. It's evident that she's putting on a front but he knows better than to push her. "It doesn't matter," she says.

Just then, the gate to the Sector 7 Slums open up with a loud groaning sound. Strolling out of the opening is a carriage being led by a big, yellow Chocobo. Cloud looks over and notices something alarming; the girl in the back of the carriage, sporting a purple dress, is Tifa.

"Tifa?!" Cloud says, standing upright, alarmed.

Aerith stands up next to him, looking at the carriage making its way down the dirt path. She curses to herself because that could only mean one thing.

"That's Tifa, huh?" She says to herself. "C'mon, we gotta go after her!" She says, running down the slide.

"Wait! Aerith-" Cloud tries to say but she's already running in the direction of the carriage.

He sighs in defeat before running after her, towards Wall Market.

A/N: I'm sorry that this took a few months. I was feeling myself getting a bit burnt out so I took a bit of a break. I'm not abandoning this project though :) I'm still having a ton of fun with it!