I was swift as I moved expertly around the slums street corners. My boots barely made a noise as they hit the concrete and I was thankful that all those years of stealth training had finally come in handy. Finally I came to my destination and I looked down both ways before heading inside the bar, the door chiming as I walked in.

Tifa hummed a cheerful tune, but stopped when she heard me enter. Her gaze was at first wary, but once she recognized me, she smiled. I locked the door behind me and pulled off my pure white mask.

"How'd it go?" She asked softly and I held up my brown leather pouch as I approached, and set it down on the counter, a bag full of different colored materia falling out. She grinned brightly and we high-fived.

"I don't get how you do it," She said in amazement with a shake of her head. I shrugged.

"It's just something I've been able to do since I was little," I lied. The others knew of my strange gifts, but I didn't really share how I'd gotten these talents. No one knew, not even him. She pulled the bag beneath the counter, hiding it securely behind several glasses of liquor.

"You should probably go change. If anyone so much as spots a blonde with all-white clothing they think it's you and we all know the price on your head." She murmured and I nodded my agreement. Over the past few years Tifa and I had become like sisters. I guess fighting for the same cause together did that to people. Sadly, Tifa was one of the only members of our group capable of living in society instead of hiding out somewhere far off. The only others were Yuffie, Marlene, and Denzel. We all quaintly lived at this bar. The reasoning for Tifa being able to live out in the open despite having come face to face with...him, was vague. I think it had something to do with the fact that he was kind of out of his mind at that moment and doesn't really remember her.

I also think he just doesn't view her as a threat. Or perhaps he's not as aware as he thinks and doesn't even know she's here. That's all a huge possibility, considering I've been living out in the city myself, and he's never once come face to face with me.

That's not to say his stupid remnants haven't. We'd all thought that when he returned, his remnants would die off. That wasn't the case at all, and once his body was fully recovered, even Kadaj had returned. Now he'd taken control over practically all of Gaia, save for a few small villages that weren't even worth conquering.

No one knew what his end game was. In the beginning, all he'd wanted was to destroy Gaia for his 'mother'. He'd never done so out in the open, or even bothered to take control of the planet.

I headed upstairs and into the room Tifa and I shared. I ruffled my hair tiredly and pulled the pure white dress over my head and tossed it onto my bed. I opened the wardrobe and pulled on a black t-shirt. I also pulled out a pair of black leggings and took off my pure white shorts and pulled the leggings on. I pulled my hair back into a low, messy bun and headed back downstairs to help Tifa clean up the bar.

She smiled thankfully at my help and the two of us conversed lightly as we cleaned. Finally, the entire bar was clean and we both sat back and poured ourselves a small drink. It had been a long night of cleaning and working.

"Have you heard any news about Cloud?"I asked quietly, no more than a whisper. Cloud was not a subject we brought up often. After he'd lost to him at his return, he'd been severely wounded. We'd managed to recover him from their clutches before he could be killed, but we feared he'd never recover. And so far, he hasn't. Over a year and he still wasn't walking yet. She shook her head.

"When I talked to Vincent yesterday he said it was more in his head than anything. He's barely eating or sleeping, he says. Barrett's about had it with his depression too." She said quietly. Tifa put up a brave front, but I knew that she was struggling with this. She wanted to be beside Cloud, helping him recover, but we needed her out here. I only hoped that I could find some way to fix all of this. She deserved some peace of mind.

"Oh, have you had any lifestream yet?" She asked and I bit my lip. She sighed, standing up from her seat and heading to the fridge, opening it up and pulling out a bottle full of the powerful liquid. She closed the fridge and returned to our table, handing it over to me and giving me a stern look. "Drink, you know it's not healthy for you to go too long without it." She reminded me. I rubbed my temples and nodded my agreement. I opened the bottle and took a long swig, instantly finding more of my strength returning.

"Thanks, Tiff." I said gratefully and she nodded. She stretched her arms above her head and smiled cheerfully at me.

"I think tomorrow we should go to the church. Its been a while and I'm sure Aerith would appreciate some company," There was a hidden sadness in her voice but I said nothing; some wounds never closed. I knew that very well. I rubbed my eyes tiredly and stood up, taking the bottle of lifestream with me.

"I'm going to head to bed, long day tomorrow. Get some rest too." I told him sternly. She nodded, mumbling something about putting the drinks away. I hurried up the stairs and back into my room. I put away my clothes I had carelessly thrown around before and turned the lights off, slipping into bed and closing my eyes. I was out in seconds.

"Look at all the flowers! They're still blooming!" Marlene chirped happily, rushing into the church. Tifa and I smiled at each other, watching as she pulled Denzel along with her. We'd managed to get rid of the stigma and the brain-washing, but it had left a mark on the boy unfortunately.

I adorned a baby blue sundress and some brown sandals today, promising Tifa I'd go and get some shopping done today. We were running low on both supplies for the bar and the rest of us. Yuffie would be returning tomorrow as well, and the girl had a big appetite. Still, I'd hang with them for a little while, knowing the kids got a little lonely with Tifa watching the bar all of the time and my always running errands.

"Angel! Can you make the flowers grow too?" Marlene called cheerfully. Denzel shushed her, reminding her that my special 'gifts' were a secret, but I shook my head, approaching them.

"No, not really. I'm not a Cetra. Watch this though," I said mischievously, pulling a materia out of my satchel. I held it in my hand and concentrated on it. Before our eyes, the Materia melted down into its natural form. Not only was that enough to amaze them, but they both watched with amazement as the lifestream crawled up my arm and sank into my skin, glowing blue as it traveled through my veins.

"How do you do that?" Marlene asked in wonderment. Like last night with Tifa, I shrugged.

"It's something I've had since I was born. Like you and Denzel and Tifa need water, I need lifestream. Without it, I'd die. It's also how I can perform magic without materia." I said, fire flaring up in the palm of my hand. It was extinguished only seconds later but when I looked at the two of them they were awe-struck.

"Isn't it because of that you met Sephiroth?" Denzel asked. I froze, and Marlene hit his arm, shushing him.

"We don't talk about it." She whispered fiercely to him.

"S-sorry, Angel, I didn't mean too…" He trailed off, blushing at Marlene's reprimand. I recovered from my shock and shook my head, smiling lightly at him.

"No, it's alright. I met him because of my unique gifts, yes." I answered. "But let's not talk about him. He doesn't deserve anymore of our attention. Why don't you guys gather some flowers? Yuffie will be here tomorrow and she can bring a bouquet back to the others." I said warmly. They nodded eagerly and began to gather some flowers. I returned by Tifa and she smiled sympathetically.

"They're just curious. To be honest, we all are. You haven't really told us very much about your past with him," She murmured, watching over the two as we talked.

"Some things are too painful to talk about. Please understand," I said quietly. She was silent, but then she nodded.

"Just know that you can trust me, if you ever do want to talk about it." She promised. I nodded, sending her a thankful smile.

"I know, and thank you, Tifa. I'm happy that you guys decided to trust me. Most people tend to judge the second they hear about my...special relationship with him. Anyway, I still need to get to the market. Are you guys okay here?" I asked and she nodded. I opened my satchel and handed her a small, pink crystalline stone. "Remember how to use this?" I asked and she nodded.

"It'll sense my danger and send it to you. A nifty little trick." She said with a laugh. I laughed along.

"I'm going to make you all necklaces with them once I can gather more stones, so that I'll always be able to help when in times of need." I promised. Then, we said our goodbyes and I headed out. The market wasn't too far from here and it was an easy walk. I swung my satchel back and forth, humming lightly as I walked. I didn't really sing too often anymore, but it would always be something that I loved.

I arrived quickly at the market and got to work, quickly picking out and buying all of the foods needed for the next couple weeks. It was a busy day, being that we didn't get market days all that often anymore. Sure, you could go buy food, but never the fresh stuff. I turned a corner, just about to head to a fruit stand, when I ran straight into something hard. Which actually turned out to be a someone.

"Oh, I'm so sorry-" I cut off as I looked up. He had silver hair cropped to his shoulders and cold, cruel eyes. I immediately took a step back in fear. This was not happening. I'd never run into him or his brothers when I wasn't tempest before. Would they recognize me? True, they had none of his memories, but still, what if…

"You should watch where you're going, girl." He hissed in agitation, but luckily no recognition shone in his eyes.

"I'm very sorry, sir." I said, lowering my head as any meek young girl would do.

"Brother, be kind to the young woman." That one was Yazoo, I knew it. Loz did not speak with such a calm, collected tone of voice. Yazoo was the one I feared recognizing me the most. Loz was too child-like and well, Kadaj...I don't think the cruel side of him cared too much about me.I looked around, noticing we now had the attention of the market's entire population. People backed away, leaving only myself and the remnants. Everyone watched, seeming to hold their breath to see what would happen next. I looked up-bad idea. I met Yazoo's eyes, and I saw that spark-the spark that told me that even if he didn't understand it, he recognized me.

"Cerise," He murmured and my eyes widened at the sound of my name-my real name. A name I had not used in a very, very long time. It sounded so foreign, hearing it again, let alone from the voice that sounded so familiar to his.

"I-I'm very sorry to have gotten in your way," I stuttered and backed up, moving to leave.

"Stop," Kadaj commanded and my body reacted on its own, fear taking over as I froze. He watched me with narrowed eyes. "What's your name?" He asked, something truly vicious in the way he spoke.

"A-Angel." I stumbled, mentally cursing myself for it.

"Angel what?" He asked.

"Just...Angel. I'm an orphan." I mumbled quietly. Please Minerva, make them leave me alone. I just want to finish up my shopping. Can't I deal with them when I'm Tempest and not plain old Angel?

"How old are you, Angel?" Yazoo asked, voice deep in thought. I gulped.

"I'm Twenty-four," Technically. Because of the amount of Lifestream building in my body over my lifespan, I no longer aged. I was stuck at about twenty-one or twenty-two.

"What is it brother?" Loz asked Yazoo, eyeing the two of us with curiosity.

"I know her," He murmured. "We should take her to big brother." He said simply, looking to Kadaj. My eyes widened and I backed up even further, shaking my head vigorously. I was afraid, but not for the reason others may think. Everyone feared him because of his actions, and I guess a part of me did too, but my fears went so much deeper than that.

I could not face the only family I had, the only person I'd ever loved, knowing that some monster had taken hold of him. I could not look at him, because I knew if i did I would burst into tears or start laughing hysterically or something like that. The world was too cruel to allow me to simply stare blankly like I had secretly wished for if we were ever to come face to face again.

"No," I whispered, knowing I could not face him. I would not face him. "I won't!" I screamed, turning on my heel and running. It took about two seconds for the initial shock of my blatant defiance to wear off on them and for them to start chasing me. I navigated through the crowds expertly, but I dared not pause to look back; I was fast, but they were the remnants of the greatest soldier in the world-and there was no doubt in my mind that they could out-run me. Luckily they weren't used to large crowds of people getting in their way, and that was something I was quite used too.

Through some miracle I managed to escape through the crowds, successfully losing the remnants. Still, I ran, not willing to leave anything to chance. It was nightfall before I stopped, leaning up against a rock wall, breathing heavily. I slid down the wall until I sat on the pavement, leaning my head back as I tried to catch my breath. My chest burned from lack of oxygen and I started retching.

Finally my breathing calmed and I closed my eyes, glad to have at least that peace.

"You can't run forever," I turned my head away from the red-head, glaring at the ground.

"I can try," I responded flatly. She sighed. A pink dress approached and she kneeled down in front of me.

"You must face your destiny, Cerise. We all must. I did, and now it's your turn." The kind brunette smiled down at me, green eyes comforting. Tears built in my eyes and I shook my head, scooting away from her.

"I can't! I would rather die before I kill him," I whispered fiercely. There was another sigh. My chin was forcibly grabbed, and I stared back at my own expression, pink eyes fierce.

"You will destroy him or I will do it myself." She warned, eyes harsh. I glared back at her, pulling away from her hold.

"I'm in control, not you. Make your threats, Minerva. It won't change anything," I snapped. She pursed her lips in annoyance,standing. Layers of beautiful silk flowed around her as she stood, and she put a hand on her hip, scowling down at me.

"I gave you life, when all that awaited you was death. You are my champion, and your destiny is to kill him. Do it, or I will take back what I gave all those years ago." Then, she was gone. I let out a scream of anger, pounding my fist against the ground.

*sighs of relief* Okay, sorry that took me longer than I thought to publish. I was going to post Saturday (as I said I would) but I had to work and then I took a nap and I just spaced it. But hey, better late than never, right?

I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, it was a lot of fun for me to write. Um first off, this story is told in I suppose two different timelines. One is the present-which is this chapter. The second which is the first chapter is her past. Now the present chapters are pretty straight-laced, no flashbacks or skips, it's all told in order. However, the past is sporadic. I'll reveal certain events in her past not in order but on importance. So sometimes you'll see Cerise as a child other times as a teenager or an adult. You might be confused sometimes but I'll try to avoid that.

Anyway, this chapter has not been edited. I was going too but then I was already late posting it so I just decided to give you the rough draft. I'll try to keep posting on Saturdays but I work a lot on Saturdays so I may change it to Sundays. If I do I'll make sure to let you know.

Please let me know what you thought of this chapter. Constructive criticism is welcome, bitching is not. Next chapter will be a past chapter and the one after that a present chapter but I don't know if that pattern will stay forever. Sometimes you may get two or three more present chapters and then a past chapter. CIAO!