Since it took me so long to update last time I decided to post the new chapter early. Just got back from KS last night and the apartments a killer mess. But instead of cleaning up, I'm writing this! Thanks to all those who are reading and reviewing, and I'm sorry if you're aggravated about the whole Seph/Aeris thing. It's supposed to be frustrating. Something to get you to hate the guy even more. So stick with me. I haven't given up on Zack and Aeris! –Annubis

The Decision Between Life or Death:

A Second Chance

Chapter 25

If there was one thing in the entire world that irritated Reno more than anything, it was the alarm clock. Whether it signified 'Get up and go to work' or not, it still was the worst sound to the man's ears. And today it screeched like an alarm warning him of his impending doom, as if a nuclear blast was heading his way. His head pounded with each wonderful blast. He barely even drank a thing last night and this atrocious, minuscule, sad excuse for a clock was threatening to blow his brain into smithereens.

Today was the weekend, yes, but Reno did have reason to get up. He had to meet with Elena. They were supposed to go out for lunch, but now there were other motives in the man's mind for not being late. After his little talk with Tifa last night, the man decided it would be best to tell Elena the truth as to why Tseng left her. Elena had loved, obsessed over the man for years and for him to pick her up and take her into his world and suddenly drop her without word was something Reno wouldn't stand for. He had never seen Elena so hurt. She truly had loved Tseng and for Reno to know the break up was over something as stupid as a Wutain tradition was ridiculous. He couldn't continue dating Elena knowing that the man she loved didn't leave her because he didn't love her back, but because someone else decided his love and life should be given to someone else, a brat nonetheless, named Yuffie. He had to fix things, for Elena. He wanted to see her happy, wanted to know that she wouldn't be sad forever asking herself what she did wrong in her relationship with Tseng.

Reno squint his eyes, the alarm seemingly getting louder. In one loud smack his hand flew to the snooze button, shutting off the maddening device. He sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes. He let out a groan as he stretched and then yawned. He scratched his head, his fingers getting caught in red tangles. He shut off the alarm clock, not wanting to hear the blasted alarm go off again once the snooze timer was up. Removing the covers, he got to his feet, grabbing the clothes lying in the chair next to his night stand. He shuffled to the bathroom ready for his morning shower.

'What about your feelings?' Tifa's words echoed in his mind. He thought about the question over the duration of the shower.

He wrapped the warm, white towel around his waist. A hand ran over the surface of the mirror, removing condensation. "I'll be fine. Nothing can take down the great Reno." The man smirked at his reflection. "I never was meant to be tied down anyway. I'm a bachelor…" he finished drying himself. "Should stay that way. It's for the better." Reno slipped on his clothes. He messed with his red bangs a minute before heading back into his room, pulling it up into his typical ponytail.

"Well…" he sighed, looking at the silver watch on his wrist. "Time to go, yo." He picked up his jacket and keys, heading out the door. Today was going to be a shitty day.

"You look cold." Sephiroth mumbled, poking the dying fire with a stick. Aeris sat up, her arms around her. She gave him a curious look. It must've been almost morning. A hint of pale orange threatened to show itself on the horizon.

"Well, if someone hadn't kidnapped me in the middle of the night, I wouldn't have had to wear my nightgown everywhere." The woman ran her hands over her thighs, trying to warm them.

"I didn't kidnap you." The man said sternly as he arose to his feet. His eyes were cold, frightening. Aeris stared up at him, fear on her face. She glanced to the side, not wanting to watch his glaring eyes. "Here." Something heavy plopped into her lap. She lifted the object. "You've been shivering all night." He simply stated, returning to his seat.

"B, but…" Aeris stood. He had given her his coat. It was still warm from his body heat. The gesture made her blush.

"Just put it on, Aeris." The man cast a fire spell over the kindling.

The woman hesitated a moment before sliding it over her shoulders. The warmth was very much welcomed to her. She bit her lip, staring at him. He was topless now. Why he never wore a shirt under that jacket, she did not know. She tried not to stare at his chest as the firelight danced over his skin.

"But, what about you? Aren't you cold?" she managed to ask. She looked up at the giant seashell homes about her. They were in the City of the Ancients. Today they would journey to the Northern Crater. Sephiroth seemed to not worry about the cold and snow they would soon be venturing into.

"I'm fine." He simply stated, watching the flames. It was quiet several minutes. Aeris had returned to her seat on the icy ground.

"Did I wake you?" her voice was soft and hoarse. She hoped she wasn't catching a cold.

"Wake me?" he asked, genuinely curious. He thought a moment before letting a chuckle escape his dry lips. "No. I don't sleep."

"Don't sleep?" her brows rose. "Why not?" She leaned forward.

"I've done enough sleeping in my time." he mumbled. He failed to mention that Jenova refused to let him rest until his mission was finished.

Aeris tilted her head, looking at his eyes. There were dark circles. The man was very pale. She saw him sigh deeply as he continued to gaze at nothing in the fire. "You should try." The woman suggested. "You do look very tired."

"I look tired?" He asked.

"Very. Do you have insomnia? Maybe you should try sleeping a bit. I know!" the woman got to her feet. "You can take a nap! You try to get some rest, what's the hurry, right? I'll gather some food from the woods and you can sleep while I do that!" she bubbled.

"Nap?" the man looked at her as if she were crazy. He stared at his long black jacket resting on her body. It hung off her body loosely, dragging on the ground. It contrasted greatly with the white nightgown she wore and the long curls of her hair. She looked too innocent to be wearing his clothes.

"Yup!" she nodded. She trotted over to him. "Lay down! It's not healthy to be up all the time. You need more than just food to live. Sleep re-energizes the body. I bet you'll feel much better once you get some sleep." She pushed him over onto the ground. He stared at her incredulously.

"I feel fine." He grumbled.

"How would you know? You haven't slept in the entire time I've been with you, and who knows how long you were awake before you took me with you!" she skipped to the other side of the fire, gathering the small plate of bark that held their fruit and nuts from the day before. "You stay here, I'll be back soon!" before the man could say a thing she ran out into the woods.

"…She's a strange one…" the man stared at the empty spot where she had previously been sitting. He couldn't help the strange feeling he had. Whenever Aeris was around, there wasn't a moment of silence. Now she was gone, the only sound being the crackle of the fire. Sephiroth looked about him and realized for the first time how long it had truly been since he had any company with him. "Sleep." He scoffed. "How am I to sleep when I know she's out there running around?" he got to his feet.

"She could very well run off." He folded his arms, thinking. "Not that she would. She's scared to death of returning to her friends."

'But what if something attacks her?' a strange voice sounded in his head, one he hadn't heard in a very long time.

"She is very weak and incapable of protecting herself. It would be too soon for her to be killed. I still need her to carry out my plans." The man sighed, diminishing the fire with a wave of his hand. How good it sounded to actually take that nap was a surprise to the man. He never even thought of sleeping himself. Jenova would probably have his head for sleeping on the job. "Not now. Once my mission is over I can sleep all I want."

Sephiroth stepped over the warm ashes, his boots crunching against the tiny pieces of firewood. He made his way back toward the entrance of the city to where the forest was to find Aeris.

"Oh please, don't go!" Shera reached out to her husband, fingers digging into his jacket. She pulled him around to face her. She wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Shera." Cid sighed.

"I have such a bad feeling, Cid. I don't want you to go." She sniffled. "You've done your job! You've already saved the planet! You've fought many times! Isn't it enough!? Why must you go back!?" the woman cried out.

"These are my friends, Shera." Cid placed his hands on her shoulders roughly. "I've fought beside them in the past, they need me. I'll help them out once again, because it's not just fer them. It's fer the planet, fer everybody on the planet." He stared into Shera's watering eyes. "I'm gonna protect this planet, I'm gonna protect you an' the baby." He rested a gloved hand on her belly.

"But I don't want you to go. What if something bad happens to you?" Shera rested her cheek on his shoulder.

"Nuthin's gonna happen to me." The man drawled. "I'm made of steel you know that."

"Cid." She rolled her eyes.

"I'll be back in no time. An' when I get back…I'll…take you shoppin'."

"Shopping?" Shera smiled a bit, forgetting her problems.

"Yup. Get a new cradle an' everything. We'll buy anything you want fer the baby."

"You mean it!?" Shera beamed. Cid hated spending money. There were only three things he ever wanted to use his money for; first, supplies for his plane, second his cigarettes and third his tea. Now that cigarettes were off the list he figured he could use that money for things for the baby, and to get Shera off his back about leaving.

"I promise." The man drawled. "Now, I really gotta go, Shera. One of my friends is missin' an' I ain't gonna sit here an' wait. They need me an' my plane." Cid kissed her on the cheek. He turned and darted for his plane, its engine running and ready to go.

"Call me, Cid!" Shera called out.

"Will do!" Cid waved behind him as he hopped into the cabin, the plane taking off.

"I love you cid!!" Shera called out, her hair and clothes blowing about her in a mess as the propellers spun quicker. "Don't get hurt." She placed her hands on her cheeks, a nervous wreck.

Elena opened the door to her apartment, giddy about seeing the man on her front doorstep. She hadn't felt this happy about seeing anyone in what seemed like years. She felt bad admitting it to herself, but she rarely got like this even when Tseng was around.

"Hi!" She giggled like a schoolgirl.

"Hey, Lena." Reno gave her a small wave.

"What's wrong?" Elena frowned.

Reno was upset; the man never greeted her like that. Usually his hellos were filled with more romanticism, or at least what Reno thought was romantic. It tended to be more sexual. To be honest she was expecting something like, 'Woah! Look at you? How bout we stay in for lunch?' Not just, 'Hey, Lena.' And he never frowned. Elena fidgeted uncomfortably.

"I…" He sighed, looking off to the side. "I need to talk to you, hon." His shoulders drooped.

'Oh my god! Oh my god! He's dumping me!' Elena felt her heart pounding inside her chest. 'But why!? What did I do now!? What went wrong!? He was so happy last night!'

"Sure." Elena smiled at him. "You want me to get you something to drink?" the woman asked as she took his jacket. She headed for the liquor on her counter top. The red head made his way to the couch, dropping into it carelessly.

"No, it's alright, Lena." The man replied. Her hands dropped the bottle loudly onto the fake marble surface.

'Shit! He doesn't want a drink!? I'm so screwed! #damn it, Reno! Don't do this to me!' the woman walked over to the couch where he was sitting. She was twirling her hair quickly messing with it, suddenly very self conscious. She sat carefully next to the man.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" the woman leaned forward.

"Um…" the man took a deep breath. They sat in uncomfortable silence for a very long time. Elena felt like she was going to burst into tears, and she hadn't even heard a word he had to say.

'It's alright, Elena. Maybe he's sick. Not feeling well. He's moving to a new place. He got fired! Oh my god! I'll kill him! No…that can't be it. Maybe…he and Rude got into a fight! He got drunk last night, slept with another woman.' Elena had a million thoughts a second. Reno looked at her sideways; he obviously could sense how tense she was. 'That would be okay. We could get through that. We can fix small 

problems like that! Just don't leave me Reno!' the woman noticed his stare. 'Oh god! He's staring at me now! Maybe I should say something. Maybe I did something. Are we fighting? Is this a fight? What happened? Maybe…ok.' She calmed herself. 'Maybe it's really nothing. I'm just a worry-wart. Or it's something good and he's just nervous! Yeah! But what? He got me a present! A necklace, or earrings, or a ring! Oh my god! A ring! Oh no! Is he going to propose to me!?' her mouth gaped a moment. She was sure she gave him the strangest look ever. 'I don't think I'm ready for that. Maybe in the future, but right now!?'

"Elena." Reno situated himself on the couch so he faced her better.

"Y, yeah!?" she shook her head, trying to get rid of the thoughts. He stared at her another moment and watched her fidget, could tell her mind was swimming in thoughts. She twirled her hair, played with her fingers and avoided his eye contact. He saw what she was wearing, a new outfit which Reno thought she couldn't have looked cuter in.

"Damn it." The man ran a hand over his face.

'Just do it, get it over with.' The man cursed himself.

"Ok. There's something important I need to tell you." He reached into his pocket.

'He is proposing! Shit!' the woman smiled brightly at him, not sure what exactly was going on.

He pulled out a cigarette. Elena felt her heart sink. He never smoked in front of her, she complained too much about it. Reno was one of those people who could smoke for five years and just quit cold turkey without another thought. The fact that he was smoking in front of her was really bad!

"I was in the bar last night. Tifa was there, of course, bartending." The man began.

'He cheated on me with Tifa!?' the woman clenched her fists.

"We talked and I came across some interesting information. Something I felt I needed to tell you." Reno lit up the cigarette.

"What?" Elena tilted her head. Now she was very confused.

"About Tseng." The man let out a puff of smoke.

"Tseng?" the woman asked, deeply interested now.

"Tifa went to Wutai. Yuffie's getting married." The man spoke with the cig in his mouth.

"Yuffie's getting married!?" Elena lunged forward, a shocked look on her face.

"Yes, ma'am." He nodded. "And you'll never guess who her husband to be is."

"…" Elena shook her head, lifting a hand.

"Tseng." Reno spat out after a minute. There was another long silence. He could tell Elena was trying to fit the pieces together.

'Tseng!? He went to Wutai on business, right? He went there…Yuffie is from there…' the woman gasped.

"WHAT!?" She screeched. "Tseng left me for that little brat!?" Elena slapped her hands against her legs.

"Now, now, that's not exactly it." Reno grabbed her hands. "It was an arranged marriage. Neither of them had a choice, which I think is Bullshit."

"No choice!? He could have said no and they'd found someone else!" Elena screamed. "Duty in Wutai!? That man!" she stood. "That man is so selfish! He cares more about his country than me!?" she stomped a foot.

"I just thought I'd let you know so you didn't always think that this whole mess was your fault." Reno stood up. "I think you should talk to him Elena. I knew Tseng would never do a thing to hurt you. He doesn't want to get married, not to Yuffie. I know he would want to be with you."

"Why didn't he tell me!? We could have talked about it, fixed it right!?" Elena paced, throwing her tantrum about the living room. "He made me think this was my entire fault! And he-…" she stopped. "Wait, what're you saying?" she turned to Reno.

"…" his back was to her. He smoked his cigarette quietly.

"He'd want to be with me?" Elena stepped forward.

'Holy shit! He is breaking up with me! All because of Tseng!' the woman gaped.

"I know he would, Elena. You two can still fix things, like you said. Talk to him. They aren't married yet." Reno said to the ceiling. He avoided looking at her.

"So…just like that?" Elena trembled. "You're giving me up to Tseng?" the woman felt her eyes stinging. Reno couldn't ignore the crack in her voice.

"Tseng loves you Elena, you know that. He would never do anything purposefully to hurt you." Reno stared at the dried mud on his boots. "You two can fix things; go back to the way it used to be."

"What if I don't want to go back?" Elena glared at his back. Her voice was barely audible.

"I'm a bachelor, Elena. I only cause trouble, would probably hurt you in the end. Like you said before, in my apartment, everything you said was a hint toward me. Why someone wouldn't date me, they are afraid of getting hurt. I'd only hurt you Lena." He took a drag. "I don't want to hurt you anymore than I'm doing right now Elena."

"…I can't believe you are doing this!" Elena hissed. "You are so caught up in Tseng's feelings! What about yours!? You can't tell me…that…"

"You'll get over me Elena. You know that. Every girl does." The man turned to her.

"So you don't care about me then? What was all this then, huh!?" Elena struggled with the words, her voice breaking. "You saw me weak and vulnerable after Tseng left…was this just one of your 'ladies' games!? Another way to score for a while until you got over it and needed a new toy!?"

"That's not it!" the man shouted. He was furious. Elena jumped back. "Damn it, Elena. I'm trying to protect you! I want you to be happy! I don't want you wasting your time on me!"

"Why do you always think you're a waste of time? You think you are so tough, resilient to everything! You're the ladies man!" she imitated him in a low voice, not caring how much it hurt him. "You're all talk and ego, Reno. When you get close to someone you shut them out, hurt them and yourself, you become a child with no confidence in yourself! What about you? Do you not feel pain?"

"I'll be fine, Elena." The man growled. "Don't worry about me."

"Nothing can hurt you?" she asked. Her brows knitted close together.

"Nope." He nodded once. His mouth was a tight, straight line.

"Then why are you crying!?" She screamed at him. Her hand pointed at his face. She could see the embarrassment on his features as he turned from her.

He was shocked; he didn't even notice the tears on his face. He wiped them off briskly as he headed for the door. He dropped his cigarette into a class of water sitting on a small table beside the couch.

"Where are you going?" Elena folded her arms.

"Home." He muttered. Elena knew that was a lie, he was going to the bar. His hand went to the knob.

"Have fun drinking all your problems away!" Elena screeched. Reno stopped. He opened his mouth, ready to say something when he was interrupted by a knock at the door.

Reno and Elena stared at the door a minute. The knock sounded once again. Reno glanced in the peep hole. He muttered a curse under his breath. Elena watched as Reno opened the door to reveal Tseng standing out in the hall. He had a flower in his hand, obviously for Elena. Tseng's eyes widened, glancing at Reno and then at Elena.

"She's all yours." Reno muttered angrily.

"Reno!" Elena screamed. He stepped to the side of Tseng and strode down the hall.

"Should I leave?" Tseng stared at Reno as he stomped down the staircase.

"No." Elena sighed. "We were just talking about you…"

"I figured…" Tseng gulped. "How'd he find out?"

"Tifa." Elena sat onto her couch in exasperation.

"Ah, Tifa…Shoulda known it would get to him soon enough. He's always at her bar." Tseng closed the door behind him. He stood awkwardly in front of it. "So I suppose you know everything then?"

"Sort of." Elena sighed again. "You can come in, Tseng."

He walked slowly toward her, handing her the flower. She gave him a small smile of thanks. "I'm terribly sorry, Elena. I should have come to you sooner. I should have never kept this a secret from you."

"I understand Tseng." Elena leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees. "You were protecting me, right?"

"I tried, but it didn't work out that way, did it?" the man sat straight, his hands on his knees.

"Not really." Elena smirked.

"I thought that if I hadn't told you and you thought I left you, it would keep you from having feelings for me."

"You wanted me to hate you?" She looked up.

"…I guess you could say that. I didn't want you to have feelings for me, knowing that I was getting married. I thought it would hurt even more." Tseng tried his best to explain but he was so uncomfortable.

"You didn't want me to love you when it was impossible to be with me."

"Yes." He nodded. "But then I thought that if I kept it from you, it would appear worse. There's no way I could hide that from you."

"Why couldn't you say no?" she asked him without hesitation.

"…It's my country." The man sighed. "I know it sounds bad. But really I owe my country."

"…" Elena was dumbfounded. Did he really just admit that to her? That Wutai was more important than her? It was very noble of him indeed, but Elena just wasn't one of those people. She would leave Edge and her job to be with the one she loved. "Wow…" she breathed a laugh.

"I know it sounded heartless of me, Elena. But it was the way I was raised. I do not want to get married. I don't know why I accepted. Yuffie's father insisted. It was a great honor. My job is to protect the empress and her country. I was so overwhelmed I accepted without thought. You know how I am with my work." Tseng knew this all sounded bad. He didn't want to leave Elena, but he took his duty as a citizen of Wutai seriously. He was just like his father.

"Yeah you've always put work first." Elena muttered. Then she realized. She and Tseng rarely had any fun. He was always at work, at Rufus' side. They had been on very few dates. He had to leave her in the 

middle of dinner countless times because of Wutai. He never really talked about it much, but his family seemed to hold a high place in Wutai. He was a purebred, Wutain bleeding man. He was meant for his country and his country was meant for him. Obviously he had no intentions of turning back now, his decision was made. Tseng wouldn't be happy with her, he'd be happy in his country. Elena smiled. She wouldn't be happy with a man who was willing to put her away because duty called. She wasn't one to be selfish but when it came to love, she wanted all or nothing.

"I'm very sorry Elena." Tseng did all that he could do. "I hope that you do not think any less of me. I really…" he couldn't continue. He didn't want to make things worse. Obviously Reno loved her and she loved Reno. He knew that for a fact, he and Elena were not meant to be. He was too involved in work and they did fight quite a bit, it always being his fault. He wasn't ready to settle down and he wasn't going to make Elena wait. "I only wish I could have loved you as much as Reno does."

Elena's mouth dropped. She felt bad about all this.

"I've never seen that man so happy and so gentlemanly. To see him like that with you last night, it made me realize…just how much you deserved so much more than what I had given you." The man squeezed her hand.

"You saw us last night?" Elena covered her mouth.

"Was coming to pay a visit. Saw him on your doorstep and decided to wait." The man gave her a reassuring smile.

"I'm sorry." Elena really felt awful now.

"Don't be. Everything will be fine, Elena. Don't you worry." The man sighed. "I can't seem to keep Wutai out of my life. I just hope that you are not too upset with me."

"You're a great man, Tseng. You know that." Elena smiled. She gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. "I don't hold any grudges. I understand completely. If it's your country you love, then you should be there no matter what."

"Thank you, Elena." The man whispered. He felt a pain in his chest. He was hoping to solve things but after seeing Reno leave like that, he just couldn't find himself capable of doing it. He wasn't going to lie, he loved Elena but deep down his country would always be first. Elena was someone he could love, but he never thought himself to be her husband. He smiled at her. "Go get Reno and kick him in the ass for me." Tseng stood.

"Maybe…" Elena frowned. "We'll see what happens."

"I'll see you around, Elena." Tseng headed for the door. "Thank you for all the memories." She smiled at him. He was such a cornball. Maybe all she really had for him was a schoolgirl crush. She loved him too, but after today, she realized she loved Reno even more.

"Good night Tseng. Take care of yourself." She leaned against the door as he stood out in the hall.

"You too." The man nodded. He turned and headed down the stairs.

Elena closed the door softly behind him. Matters weren't fixed yet; in fact they seemed even more troublesome.

"Reno, you idiot." The woman growled, grabbing her coat and keys.

"Ah! Where is he!?" Zack paced back and forth.

"Calm down! You're driving me crazy!" Cloud cursed. "Cid will be here any minute."

"Gah! I coulda ridden Hector around the entire world by now!" the man leaned forward against the window sill watching for Cid's plane.

"And you would have killed him." Tifa walked inside. "I think I can hear his engines."

"He's here!?" Zack ran outside, staring at the sky. Tifa growled in frustration, shaking her head.

"Was there room?" Cloud asked.

"Barely." Tifa rubbed her hands together. "I gave him lots of blankets and food, he'll be fine. And don't worry; your bike will be fine too."

"If that bird scratches it, he's dead." Cloud slid on his coat.

"You're a nerd, you know that?" Tifa raised an eyebrow. "Don't worry about it. I had to move some stuff but Hector fit in perfectly. He can stand, lie down and has a bit more room to move about."

"He's here!" Zack popped his head inside the door. "Come on! Come on! Co--me o--n!" he drug out.

"I'm gonna kill him if he doesn't calm his shit down." Cloud growled, stomping out into the snow.

"Aw, he's just worried about Aeris." Tifa batted her lashes. "What if it was me?"

"Tell Sephiroth to keep you." The man grumbled.

"What!?" Tifa locked the door behind her. "Strife! You best be joking!" She didn't see the smirk on his face.

Cloud was worried, worried to death in fact. He cared a lot about Aeris too, but you had to keep your cool, you couldn't panic in situations like this because that's where mistakes were made. Zack should know this, he did, he was just being his typical overexcited self, ready for action and rescuing.

They boarded the plane. Cloud and the others were surprised to see Yuffie, Vincent, Red XIII, Cait Sith, Kadaj, Shelke, and Barret on board as well.

"Barret!? Where are the kids?" Tifa asked.

"Dropped 'em off at Reeve's as soon as I heard the news. He was in the area at the time." the man pointed at the cat.

"They are safe and sound. Nuthin' to worry aboot." Cait Sith saluted.

"Almost missed Red. Saw him out running toward Gongaga. Landed the plane to tell him the news." Cid hollered to the others.

"I've uncovered some interesting news that I will explain to you. I was hoping that Aeris would be hear but seems we have important matters at hand." Red explained. "Gone through grandpa's library and found an old book stating some interesting information about the Lifestream and old Ancient rituals."

"Like what?" Zack asked, watching out the window.

"One excerpt mentioned the Ancients knew the way to eternal life. Another mentioned ritual sacrifice. I put the two together and figured there was some connection, though there is no evidence." The animal spoke.

"The Ancients are capable of staying alive forever?" Yuffie asked.

"By regeneration. You see, this is what I think. The Ancients would be sacrificed in order to be brought back by the life of the Lifestream." Red spoke quickly, very excited with his findings.

"Sacrifice?" Cloud rubbed his chin. "Aeris was a sacrifice to the planet."

"Exactly." The animal nodded.

"Then you mean, because she was murdered by Sephiroth and became a sacrifice to the plant she was able to come back!?" Yuffie couldn't believe it.

"It wouldn't have worked if she hadn't fallen through the bottom of the lake into the Lifestream." Vincent added.

"And Zack." Tifa turned to the man. "He became an Ancient after all of Hojo's experiments."

"He was murdered and thrown into the Lifestream." Red nodded.

"There's a problem." Zack spoke up. "Sephiroth and the clones. They aren't Ancients."

"That's what I got stuck on too. This could all be coincidence, the books can either be off or right on target. I'm not sure. I'll need to research some more." the animal lowered his head.

"I didn't find anything like that in Hojo's lab." Shelke thought. "It all makes sense when you think about it from Zack and Aeris' point of view, but not the others."

"How similar is our blood?" Kadaj asked. "Perhaps that's something."

"That's a good idea, Kadaj. We can look that up!" Shelke ran out into the back of the ship. "I'll look it up on the mainframe!"

"I'll come with you!" Kadaj followed.

"Those two have become good friends." Vincent stared where the two had gone.

"Jealous?" Yuffie spat.

"Should I be?" he asked. She sneered at him.

"So all we've got for sure is regeneration and sacrifice?" Cloud groaned.

"For now. We don't have any proof of any of this." Red XIII shook his head.

"It's a start." Tifa smiled. "I think it makes sense."

"We should test it." Cait Sith suggested.

"Sounds like a good idea but how the hell do we do that?" Cid asked sarcastically.

"Well…" Zack spoke up. "If anything happens to me… put me in the Lifestream." The man drew his sword.

"Don't you do anything stupid." Cloud glared.

"Do I ever?" the black haired man asked.

"All the time." the blonde nodded.

"You're a jackass, you know that?" Zack frowned. His head lifted toward the pilot. "Cid, head to the Northern Crater."

"Why the hell we goin' there?" Cid asked.

"I've got a strange feeling that's where they are." Zack stuck the tip of his sword on the ground, ready for battle. "Where else would they be?"

"Good point." Cid shrugged.

"Land before the forest. We'll go through there, then the city, and finally the crater. They've got to be somewhere around there." Zack glared at the approaching mountains in the distance.

"Full speed ahead then!" Cid yee-hawed.



Aeris carefully walked through the twisting caverns. One slip and she'd find herself falling into a dark abyss. They were leaving the City of the Ancients; soon they would come across Icicle Inn. Sephiroth cursed how slow Aeris was. He could have easily made it to the Northern Crater all himself two days ago, but because of Aeris lack of Jenova cells, she was nothing.

"You're an Ancient right? Shouldn't you be able to move faster than this?" he really didn't feel like staying in the inn. He feared Zack and the others would catch up to them in no time.

"Ancients aren't superheroes." Aeris laughed. "Besides, I'm only half of an Ancient." The woman sighed. "I wish I was full blooded." She thought of her mother and father. She missed them dearly, even though she couldn't remember much of them. She also missed her adoptive mother, Elmyra.

"If you don't hurry, I'm going to pick you up and carry you to the town." Sephiroth muttered. He was a few levels above her, obviously getting impatient.

"Do what you want, I'm not moving any faster than this!" the woman huffed.

'And Cloud thought I could be in SOLDIER!?' she giggled at the resurfacing memory. She then thought about the other man.

'I miss Zack.' She frowned. She knew it wasn't a good idea to miss that man, but she couldn't help it. Her heart was telling her otherwise.

'Zack…How can it be possible that everything I remember, all my friends, and your parents are wrong? How can you be bad? Your parents are so sweet and loving. You acted so normal around them and I. Cloud…he doesn't seem crazy. Tifa's nice. She always has been to me. Yuffie is great and so is Vincent. How can people like them all hang around with Zack, a man who's supposed to be a monster?' she shook her head. 'It just isn't right. It doesn't add up.'

The girl looked up at the never ending wall she was climbing. 'Oh Zack. I really wish you were here. I miss your jokes, your laugh, and your eyes. You can kidnap me and take me away. If you really are a monster, you can take me away as long as you never show me your scary side ever again.' She knew they were foolish thoughts, but Zack seemed perfect to her, up until that event in the forest. She sighed loudly.

'I was so sure things were going to work out alright.'

"Aeris?" A taunting voice sounded.

"Oh!" She looked up to see Sephiroth's face right in front of hers.

"Hurry it up, will you?" he asked politely.

"I'm trying." She frowned.

"Try harder…" the man retorted.



Ok…I've gotta end it here. I'm starting to lose my creativity and I don't want to give away too much yet. I absolutely love Reno and Elena. The Turks are my favorite to write about. Thanks for reading and reviewing. -Annubis