Lost in the Shadows
Chapter 7 - Reunion
Disclaimer: I do not own FF7 and its characters, settings or the like. These words, however, are mine.
Yuffie was... What word could describe the intense feeling forming in the pit of her stomach?
Dread. Disbelief. The feeling that she was DEFINITELY going insane.
She looked over at Vincent, who, despite saying he could feel no emotion, was standing there, his jaw looking like it was about to hit the floor.
The uneasy looks coming from the two standing across from them was almost enough to let Yuffie know that this couldn't be them. They were just cosplayers or something, they had to be. But the nagging in her head, the constant barrage of those green eyes were just overpowering her brain to the point where she couldn't take it much longer.
She turned to Vincent. This was the only way...
"Vinnie?" She asked.
He looked at her for a second before quickly looking back at the two standing in front of them.
"Yes?" He replied, monosyllabic once again.
Yuffie frowned.
"You know. I think what everyone's been saying about me is true. I AM crazy Vinnie! I'm craaaazzzzyyy!" She half said, half yelled.
Vincent looked at her with what looked like... Amusement?
"VINNIE! THIS IS NO TIME TO BE SILENTLY LAUGHING!" She screeched.
Several people stopped to look at them. It was then that Yuffie began to wonder. Why on Gaia weren't these people RUNNING? The man who had tried to destroy the Planet and the people on it was standing in the middle of a rather crowded street.
"Yuffie, calm down. I can see them too." He said.
Yuffie's eyes widened and she gasped for something to say.
"Oh. My. GAWD. I'm affecting you too! Oh my gawd, oh my gawd, oh my gawd!"
It turns out, the 'cosplayer' in the pink dress with the stunningly familiar emerald green eyes decided to end it right then and there, despite her promise to the man standing behind her.
"Yuffie, calm down." Aerith said, slowly walking toward her.
Yuffie was surprised when Vincent relaxed. She looked up at him and he nodded to her.
It couldn't... She was... No...
"Yuffie it's okay. I'm back.." She said, holding out her hand.
Yuffie's eyes brimmed with tears and she ran into Aerith's open arms. 'Gawd, how I've missed her...' She thought. The unexplainable reason behind Aerith and her murderer showing up was completely wiped from her thoughts as she sobbed silently into Aerith's shoulder.
"Yuffie. I need you to listen to me." Aerith said, sparing Vincent a glance.
"Why... How... You can't be... Here? I mean..." Yuffie stuttered.
Aerith took her arm abruptly and Yuffie became silent once again.
"I know this must be... Difficult to grasp, but Sephiroth and I are back. We're back for a reason. I need you to listen." She said.
"You and Vincent need to call the others and tell them to meet...?" Aerith started.
"Cosmo Canyon?" Vincent queried.
"That's fine. All of you need to be there. There's something very wrong with the Planet right now. Sephiroth and I will meet you all there, alright?" She pleaded.
Yuffie took everything in. She looked to Vincent after a moment and decided she needed to do something first.
"Uh... Vinnie and I need to have a short chat. Just wait a sec, k?" Yuffie said. Without giving Aerith a chance to say anything, she turned, grabbed Vincent by the arm and walked a short distance away.
"Vinnie, what're we gonna do!" Yuffie asked. Quickly sparing a glance at the two, she continued on.
"What about Cloud? Tifa? Barret? They seem to have some problems with that dark and brooding dude over there. How're we, no, how're THEY gonna be able to talk some sense into our lovely little friends?"
Vincent thought for a moment before sighing.
"Yuffie, we have no choice. If they are here, it must be important." Vincent said.
"Alright..."
They walked back over to Aerith, who was now conversing with Sephiroth.
'It looked like a pretty heated conversation too, you tell 'im, Aerith!' Yuffie thought. She tried to stray from his gaze and stood the farthest away from him.
They stopped their conversation immediately when Vincent and Yuffie had made their way over to them after a few minutes.
"Alright, we'll do it..." Yuffie whined.
"We will meet you at Cosmo Canyon." Vincent said.
Aerith gave them one of her cheery smiles and bid them goodbye before looking at Sephiroth. She had known he hadn't wanted to converse with any Avalanche member so soon and she was sure she'd be getting the brunt end of it now. To her surprise, no such thing happened.
"So... Are we still going to get something to eat?" Aerith asked.
Sephiroth looked at her for a moment, contemplating on whether or not they should. Eventually, he sighed, knowing she'd probably complain about it later on.
She squealed and ran into the diner with Sephiroth following closely behind.
Vincent wasn't sure of anything now. This explained his and Choas' uneasiness earlier in the forest. Those fiends they had encountered had something to do with it too, he was sure of it. Both he and Yuffie hadn't really bothered to be wary around Sephiroth, he was after all, back here with Aerith.
-Heheh... You know, you're pretty slow.-
'What?'
-Well.. Took you long enough to figure out what you were so uneasy about. And the Sephiroth.. Do you really think this is right? Safe?-
'It's hardly my decision. Now, quiet heathen.'
All he got in response was a slight mumble from Chaos before he moved back into the recesses of his consciousness.
Yuffie had been dragging her feet behind her the whole time after they had left Kalm. It was going to take them long enough to get to Kalm and here she was, making it an even longer trip.
"Yuffie." Vincent said, turning to face her.
She looked up and narrowed her eyes at him. It took him by surprise for a minute.
"Why are you dragging your feet? And why are you so... Angry? Aerith is back, you should be happy about that." He asked.
She shot him a glare before running up to him. She sighed.
"It's not that I don't want her back here. But, if she's back, Sephiroth too, that means there's definitely something wrong with the Planet! I figured after the defeat of the psycho dude we'd be able to settle down..." Yuffie rambled.
Vincent sighed. She certainly had a point. What could possibly be so wrong that the Planet would have to send Aerith, the last Cetra, mystical magic user and Sephiroth, the strongest human to have ever lived, back to the land of the living?
"Not to mention the fact that my wonderful materia is at risk! I mean, what if someone tries to steal it? Vinnniiieee!" Yuffie whined.
Vincent resisted the urge to roll his eyes. How could she be worrying about materia when the Planet was once again in danger.
"Yuffie, how could you possibly worry about your, no, AVALANCHE'S materia at a time like this?" Vincent asked.
"Oh my goodness, Vin-Vin! You should know by now that materia rules us all! Especially me!" She said, winking.
Vincent continued walking on without her, Yuffie following shortly after. A thought suddenly struck him and he stopped mid-step.
"Yuffie, why is it that nobody feared Sephiroth when he was standing in the middle of Kalm's busiest streets?" Vincent queried.
Yuffie thought for a moment. Now that she thought about it...
"Yea! I know. It was weird. I mean, he practically had the label, 'MASS MURDERER, BEWARE' taped on his face. Did you see how he was smirking at us. Ugh!" Yuffie said.
"You did call everyone, right?" Vincent asked.
Yuffie was taken aback for a moment at the sudden change of topic but quickly regained herself.
"Yup! Everyone's gonna meet us there! They should be there in no time." Yuffie declared, running ahead of Vincent.
'I wonder how everyone is going to react? I kinda wish I didn't have to be there..' Yuffie thought.
"You know, they didn't greet you very well. In fact, they didn't look very happy to see you. That girl started crying." Sephiroth sneered.
"They were shocked. And YUFFIE. Yes, remember her name. Yuffie was... Well, she's just a teenager you know." Aerith said. "She was happy. We were really close once, sisters almost."
"Suree..." Sephiroth shot back.
Aerith fixed him with a glare before walking forward.
'So, someone finally knows. I wonder how Cloud's going to react when he finds out... When we see each other.' Aerith mused. She felt bad because she knew that Tifa may end up hurt, but she couldn't help it! She'd always had feelings for Cloud. Although, it seems her interest in men was taking yet another turn...
"Cetra... Cetra... Cetra!" Sephiroth shouted.
Aerith snapped out of her reverie and looked at Sephiroth. He was smirking at her.
"What?" Aerith asked, confused.
"A few more steps and you'd have been walking in water." Sephiroth said.
True to his word, Aerith looked out and saw water spreading out into the horizon. They had left Kalm a little while ago and she found herself wondering how they'd walked so fast. She frowned.
"Oh."
"Yes."
They stood their in silence for a bit. They were finally going to go and meet Avalanche, to tell them everything. Sephiroth wasn't all that fazed. 'If Strife were to start anything, he'd get what was coming to him,' he'd said. Aerith on the other hand was anxious. She wasn't so sure that her meeting up with them could result in a good or bad way.
"Well. I guess we should leave." Sephiroth stated, grabbing Aerith. Once again, they were flying across an endless abyss of blue water.
"Why did you call us here, Yuffie?" Cloud asked, annoyance seeping through his usually calm voice.
"I TOLD YOU chocobo-head! There's something important you need to hear... And see." She said.
"Yuffie is right. It shouldn't be too long." Vincent added.
"Sure as hell better not be too $& long!" Cid cursed.
"I'm with the foo' here! We have places we need to be, Spike!" Barret said, pacing around the Cosmo Flame once again.
"Maybe we should all just sit and relax." Red said, obviously fed up with his team members' behavior. 'Honestly. They're supposed to be adults.' Red thought.
'Although...' Nanaki thought, watching as Yuffie stood behind Vincent with some tape. 'One of us truly never will grow up...' He smiled when she unrolled a bit of it and caught Vincent of guard (surprisingly!) and wrapped tape around his forehead.
Tifa was the first to notice a figure walking through Cosmo Canyon's entrance. A strikingly familiar pink dress and red jacket came into view followed by the green eyes and ribbon of a long lost friend.
"W-what?" Tifa half whispered, half screamed.
Everyone stopped their bickering and chatting at once and followed Tifa's gaze.
Cloud's jaw hit the floor. Barret and Cid cursed violently. Red stood there and cocked his head to the side. Yuffie and Vincent wore neutral expressions.
Before anyone said anything, Yuffie ran up to Aerith.
"Aerith.. They may not take this too well... Where's the mass-murderer?" Yuffie asked, remembering her earlier statement.
Aerith gave her a short glare due to Yuffie's nickname for him but answered none the less.
"He's... he's coming once I'm finished with them." Aerith said, sidestepping Yuffie and walking forward. Yuffie watched her retreating form with a new sense of dread. Something was bound to go wrong.
"Aerith... Oh my god, this can't be..." Tifa managed to gasp. She took a few slow steps toward Aerith before running over to her. They both embraced in a sisterly hug and Tifa started crying.
"It really is you..." Tifa sobbed.
Aerith pat Tifa on the back and whispered in her ear, telling her to calm down. Her attention never left Cloud's face though. She could see that he was in pure shock of the situation presented to him.
"You... No." Cloud started, suddenly spinning on Yuffie. "You knew? Why didn't you tell us, we had a right to know!" His shock had turned to anger fairly quickly.
Vincent decided to step in before Aerith could speak.
"Cloud. This is not Yuffie's fault. We were discreet on Aerith's wishes." He said.
Cloud sent an apologetic look towards them and mumbled a sorry. He walked up to Aerith.
"You... You came back? But... How? Why?" Cloud asked.
Aerith let go of Tifa and walked up to Cloud. She looked him in the eyes for a second before turning her attention to those behind him.
Cid and Barret were at a loss for words and she figured they were questioning their state of mind. Red wasn't all that surprised, like he had known something was going on.
"I... Will explain all that in a moment. First..." Aerith said.
"Uh... Guys, gimme your weapons!" Yuffie chanted.
"Yes. Give Yuffie your weapons for now. Please." Aerith pleaded.
Cloud obviously didn't like the way the conversation thus far was going.
"Why?" Cloud asked, skeptical.
Aerith gave him a look and he sagged his shoulders. He turned to everyone and nodded. He unstrapped his own weapon, the Ultima Weapon, and handed it to Yuffie.
Everyone did the same and stepped back to where they had originally been sitting.
"Alright... I'll only be a... amoment." Aerith said, turning and walking toward the entrance.
Once she reached it, she saw Sephiroth pacing. She threw him a questioning look but he hadn't caught it. He was too busy doing what he was doing to notice.
"Sephy?" Aerith said.
He turned to her like he'd been slapped.
"Oh. It's you."
'How did she get here without my hearing her? Just great... I'm losing my touch..'
"It's... It's time. Come on." Aerith said, holding out her hand.
Sephiroth eyed her hand for a moment before walking right past her. Aerith felt a sudden pang of disappointment and sadness inside her and she frowned. What was this?She shrugged to herself and quickly followed after him.
The gasps of horror and disbelief from the others were enough to make her cringe. It seemed like they bounced right off Sephiroth though. His usual stoic façade was implanted on his face and he walked with his usual authority.
"Yuffie! Give me my sword, now! Aerith, get away from him." Cloud yelled, instantly springing into action.
Aerith shook her head and continued to walk forward, Sephiroth now trailing her.
"Dammit foo's! Move outta' the way!" Barret said, aiming his gun arm at Sephiroth. Aerith immediately stepped in the way though, causing him to lower it. A look of confusion crossed his face.
"Damn girl! What the $& do you think you're #$& doing!" Cid yelled. His cigarette had long fallen out of his mouth.
"Stop it you guys." Aerith said.
Everyone was silent.
Yuffie pitched in.
"Yea! Shut yer holes!" She said, smirking at Cid's red face.
"Aerith! What are you doing, what are you thinking?" Cloud said. To say that he was angry, would be an understatement. He was furious.
"Listen to what Aerith has to say, Cloud. Barret. Cid." Vincent said. He was extremely calm despite the tension in the air.
Cloud spun on him.
"You SHOULD have told us about HIM! There is NO excuse for this one." Cloud shouted.
"Cloud--"
Aerith's reasoning was beyond him now. How could Vincent and Yuffie betray him? Betray all of them?
"How could you do this to us, Yuffie, Vincent. We trust you with our lives and yet you didn't tell us that our greatest foe is back in the land of the living!" Cloud continued.
"HEY, CHOCOBO-HEAD! Back off! It was for your own good, telling you anything wouldn't have helped the situation." Yuffie clipped.
Cloud spun on her and moved towards her. The anger he was feeling was coming off him in great waves. Yuffie stood her ground none the less.
Cloud didn't get very far.
"Strife, stop acting a fool." Sephiroth's voice cut through the air.
"Seph--"
Again, Aerith's reasoning was beyond any of them.
"What? You have no right to be here." Cloud snarled.
"You have no choice in the matter." Sephiroth replied.
"Stop this. Please." A feeble voice sounded.
Everyone's gaze moved toward Tifa. She looked deathly pale and Cloud's anger was immediately doused with worry. Aerith also looked apprehensive.
"Tif...?" Cloud asked.
"Cloud. Just stop. Just listen to what they have to say! They wouldn't have been brought himback for no reason, right?" Tifa said, her logic silencing all doubts once again.
"Cloud, I believe she's right." Red said. He walked forward a little before sitting down again. "I also believe you have some apologizing to do. You know that Yuffie and Vincent would never put us in danger like so."
Cloud's face was filled with resentment and disgust at his own words. He turned to face them but before he could even utter a word, both Vincent and Yuffie shook their heads at him.
"It's alright Chocobo-head." Yuffie said.
Cloud looked apologetic and was once again about to say something when Vincent's voice sounded once again.
"It would be wise to listen to them. Your outburst is of no consequence." Vincent said.
Cloud nodded and turned to Aerith.
Aerith watched them for a moment before deciding to open her mouth.
"The Planet decided to send both Sephiroth and I back. Why, we are unsure of at the moment, though... Not completely, I guess." She started, looking to Sephiroth for a bit of support.
"It seems... That there are creatures roaming the Planet's surface. Creatures that shouldn't exist here."
"Hey! Those two foo's ova there were spoutin' some crazy assed ideas about them things too!" Barret said, pointing to Yuffie and Vincent.
Sephiroth nodded and continued. Aerith was thankful that they were setting their personal problems aside for a moment.
"They seem to be mako-infused." Sephiroth said, looking to Aerith. There was really nothing else to tell.
Aerith picked up on that and nodded.
"That's more or less it. We have to stop it before it gets out of control. This is worse then Meteor, mind you. The Planet isn't telling me anything. In fact, the last I spoke to it was... Four days ago?" Aerith said.
"Maybe we should all just sleep on this... Revelation. Before we decide anything else." Red suggested.
Cloud eyed Sephiroth with a glare earning one right back back him.
"Alright..."Aerith said, stepping between them.
"We'll see you guys tomorrow then?" Aerith queried.
Cloud looked to everyone and they nodded.
"Aerith... If Sephiroth..." Cloud began.
"Cloud. Don't worry. I'll be fine." Aerith said, flahsing them one last smile before taking Sephiroth's arm and leading him to the inn.