Lost in the Shadows

by Tishannia

aeriseph&cloti&yuffentine&relena , An unexpected reunion throws Avalanche back into the fray and they try to regain the world they once knew, amidst dealing with unexpected arrivals, friendships and relationships.

35. Denique Tripudio

Lost in the Shadows

Chapter 35 - Denique Tripudio

Disclaimer: I do not own FF7, its characters, settings, etc. These words, however, are mine.

---

Anger, sorrow, regret... The screams of millions of souls rang through the air like nothing they'd ever heard. They had failed, they had lost once more with the humans who twisted everything pure to their evil desires. Devastation and destruction. Life and death.

'My children... My children I am sorry...'

'My child, my child... I love you, I love you, I'm sorry...'

No... No... Careening, they screamed in unison.

Our world, my world... It is broken.

Broken...

---

A harsh cough from Cid got Yuffie's attention, but not Shera's. It effectively broke the sweet silence she was so enjoying. She looked up at him, pointedly questioning him. He merely shook his head, motioning to Shera slightly. With great reluctance, Yuffie passed the newborn back to her mother.

"Sorry Shera, I need to talk to this old man alone." She said in mock cheerfulness. Cid glared at her, just bursting to say something, but the pilot held himself back. Surprising.

Shera, understanding as always, nodded and moved so she was lying against the headboard. She watched the pair leave the room.

"Just make sure to get those wounds healed, Yuffie." She called after them. When they were gone she continued on with the cooing and coddling of her dear baby.

Cid led the teen down the stairs and into the kitchen silently. Yuffie thought over in her head many different scenario's of how this might play out. What was he was going to say? In the end, she could honestly come up with nothing to suit the look on his face, which she was starting to feel more than a little uneasy about.

"So... What is it?"

Cid regarded her solemnly for a minute before he spoke and Yuffie felt terror coil around in her stomach when the words poured out. "Something's happened to the others..."

"What is it?" She repeated, visibly preparing herself. She closed her eyes wearily. God, did she ever feel tired... How she longed for a single night of rest, without nightmares or billowing ghosts whispering words of caution and future happenings.

"There was a... a fire." Her eyes flew open in shock. He was angry now, speaking forcefully and with volume. "That fucking Toyori blew Costa del Sol to ashes and flooded everything. Nearly got a hold of Aerith. And..." He seemed to hesitate then, but Yuffie gave him her 'tell me or I'll stick my weapon where the sun don't shine' look. He sighed. "Somethin' came out of the water, something real huge."

She was entirely focused on the drapery behind Cid now, which she could see just over his shoulder. It was an almost fluffy pink (she didn't know how else to describe it), with spiraling designs splaying outwards in a very pretty emerald green. The thought of Cid actually agreeing to such a thing was suddenly very strikingly obvious and hilarious. He loved this woman more than he showed. She felt like grinning at the subtle hints the group hadn't noticed on their very first visit here.

"We need to get fucking moving." He continued, shattering her zoned out state.

A silence stretched long and deep between them.

"But," she started, a panicked edge to her voice. "Do we even know where they are? Are any of them hurt?"

He shrugged. "Nobody was hurt -- they found a kid in the fire though. God damn it, why're you spouting off stupid questions? We have to go, now!" He walked to the edge of the stairs and hesitated. "I just, uh..."

Yuffie waved him off dismissively. "Get your ass up there ya old fart."

He glared at her for the second time in five minutes but walked upstairs without a comment. She was left with herself, her thoughts and her worries.

She hoped, dearly, that Vincent was alright. That he wasn't hurt. She closed her eyes and felt fatigue wash over her. She was also becoming aware of the pain in her side now that she was standing still again. How had she not noticed it before? She shook her head and looked around the room; luckily, Cid had left the cure materia he'd picked up on the table. She walked over and took it in her hand, feeling its power seep into her bare skin already and wondering if she had the strength to even cast a spell.

She needn't have worried though. That moment, someone barreled through the door. She fell back in surprise, but calmed whatever nerves had made themselves known as a tall, dark figure walked through the doorway. The pair of glowing red eyes that were watching her intently were looking at her kindly and concernedly, not aggressively.

She called up to Cid, just so he wouldn't come downstairs ready for battle. "It's just Vinnie."

She had to wonder if he'd even thought of coming down in the first place. She smiled.

Vincent watched her steadily for a minute. His nostrils flared once or twice, and she assumed it was because he could smell the blood beneath the haphazardly wrapped bandages. Eventually, she had to avert her eyes. She couldn't look at him for reasons she couldn't fathom. Suddenly, things just seemed awkward. Her feelings were running amok inside her and she couldn't decide what to say, how to act.

"Are you alright?" His voice was velvety smooth as always, but it held something indiscernible.

She nodded mutely, bringing her eyes level with his. "How did you..." She trailed off at the sight of his torn clothes. "Oh. Chaos?" She questioned, looking up at him.

He nodded and moved forward. The sound of the metal on his boots and the swish of that cape sounded depressing to her at the moment.

She tried to lighten the mood.

"Jeez Vinnie, how nice of you to come at this hour, right after you'd have to deal with my sticky blood. Don't worry though! I recovered like a ninja would -- quickly!"

Tried. Keyword right there.

"You're still bleeding?" It wasn't really a question, but a statement. He pried the cure materia out of her hand and placed his claw on her side. She flinched a bit -- not so much at the contact alone, but because the skin was just so sensitive there. He cast it effortlessly and she glared at him when it was over and turned, walking to the living room.

'God, god, god, Yuffie you idiot.' She groaned internally. 'What am I gonna say!? Think, think, think!'

She felt much better now, she admitted. For some reason though, bitterness was pushing at her. She just felt the need to be angry at him. But... Something was different in the way he looked at her now. It made her nervous, killing off any other emotion.

"So Vin-Vin, why'd you come here?" She said, keeping herself busy by rearranging things in the cluttered room. It made no difference really -- it was simply a distraction from his prying and captivating eyes.

He was silent for a long time, watching her with some amount of amusement. Then, slowly, "I came to check on you." He said, adding hastily afterward, "and Cid."

The way he said it and how easily he said it surprised her. She had to turn and look at him. "What, you didn't think we could handle ourselves? The Great Ninja Yuffie is standing in front of you!"

He didn't look particularly amused then.

She knew now was hardly the time for joking and saying meaningless words, but she didn't want to deal with it right now. It would have to happen sooner or later, obviously, but not now. Now right now. She needed time. She needed to sort out what to do, how she felt... She had quite a package waiting for her back in Wutai that she had to escape from anyways!

All those thoughts and the question that always sent her into a fit of anger and sadness pushed at her mind.

Without even thinking, she voiced it.

"Vincent, what happened back at that waterfall?"

His face went completely blank. Whatever emotion had been playing on his features was completely gone, replaced by his unreadable mask.

Her heart broke at the thought of having caused it. She hadn't seen that face in a long, long time.

"Nothing happened."

"Don't bullshit me, Vincent." She said. How could he stand there and deny it!? "I saw the way you acted after you took so long to walk in after us. Something happened. Have your sins caught up with you again, Vincent? Is Lucrecia the center of your life again? Has her memory forced some idiotic tendencies back on you now?" As usual, things just fell out of her mouth without her thinking about it and she was momentarily stunned inside herself for what she'd just said to him, accused him of.

He was in front of her in the blink of an eye. "Don't speak of what you don't understand."

"Oh, I understand perfectly." She whispered, seething. She walked around him forcibly, her body shaking. "I understand what she's done to you in the past and you don't seem to see how stupid it is that you keep beating yourself up over it! It was not your fault, Vincent."

He stood, motionless. She watched him through narrowed eyes and as the anger slowly slipped away, her eyes softened. She didn't regret anything she said, but she was scared now. Really scared. Funny how your emotions could just come and go like that. They'd worked so hard to get this far and now, was it all just going to blow up in their faces? Her head was buzzing with any and all thoughts of what could happen now. What would he say? What could she say? Nothing would matter to him at this point, she'd blown her chance and his trust.

He turned to face her, ever so slowly, and his aged eyes met her aged eyes.

It was ironic, she thought, how two broken souls couldn't find what they needed in each other. How two people who'd suffered so much and could sympathize with the other could be at odds so often, especially in that very department.

Their eyes met and held for several minutes. If they couldn't say anything, surely they could express something through their eyes. The mirrors to the soul.

Only did they break away when Cid pounded down the stairs, yelling and cussing about something or other. "Get yer fucking asses moving! Nice to see ya, Vince, but we don't have all fucking day!" He was out the door in seconds with his luggage of items, weaponry and materia.

Vincent was the first to walk away.

She followed shortly after, all the while wondering when this relationship, this friendship, had started to fall apart.

---

'Do you even know where you're running to!?'

No, she didn't. She didn't know where she was running to, but she knew she was going the right way. Something was tugging at her, pulling her forward in a blind chase. Everything rushed past her in a blur as she ran with a speed she'd never known herself to possess. Maybe it was the combination of desperation and hope that was being strung through her entirety or maybe it was just a simple want for everything to just end.

Because along with desperation and hope, there was a newly forming feeling of foreboding in the pit of her stomach. And as her head became too full of meaningless thoughts and her heart churned, fluttering mercilessly in her chest, she knew that unless something was done now, she might lose something ever so dear to her.

She didn't want to wait to find out if that was a person or an object. A piece of herself, even.

So she ran, not stopping to listen to her friends' callings.

"Aerith, wait, what are you doing!?" Tifa yelled after her, pleading and confused.

"Aerith!" Cloud snapped, followed by a string of curses from Barret standing beside him.

Everyones voices were a chorus of shouts and pleas.

But it didn't matter, really. She heard it, understood what they wanted and were saying, but it went through one ear and out the other, unheeded.

The ground beneath her feet was still trembling and the entire world was feeling it. But now, she couldn't have felt the ground so steady. Tree's swayed in plentiful forests and fiends and animals panicked and ran to a safe haven. She just ran straight for the source of the motion.

She prayed to whatever Gods were watching over her that Sephiroth wouldn't stop her. She knew it was stupid to even begin to think about him actually letting her go on by herself, to face this on her own. Because she knew that he was either right behind her or right beside her.

Eventually, she couldn't deny that she needed to rid herself of her clunky boots. They were simply getting in her way, and so she stopped and moved to kick them off. A voice hissed something in her ear then, abruptly, and she could feel his breath on her cheek and his looming presence right behind her. At first, the words hardly registered in her mind but when they did she turned to the speaker and stared at him dumbly.

"What are you doing?"

"What do you mean, what am I doing?" She paused after that, forgetting to continue on with what she felt the need to say to him. Nothing in the world could've stopped her more than the look on his face. "I'm doing what I have to Sephiroth..."

She could see her vision waning, the world spinning darkly in front of her, but it all seemed so insignificant. The look on his face -- anger, confusion, wonder... It was all so breathtaking. The thought of what she needed to do was niggling at her at the back of her mind though. Kicking her boots off, she listened to his voice as impassively as she could.

"Where are you going? Do you even know?"

She knew she looked uneasy then and she didn't try to hide it. He would have known anyway. "I don't know where I'm going." She answered truthfully. He gave her a skeptical look. "No," she continued, shaking her head. "I really don't. But... Something is just..." She tried to find the words to describe it. "Something is just pulling me. I can't ignore it, it's like... If I don't, my body will move for me. I don't know! Surely, when she was a part of your life, you heard Jenova and felt... Compelled to go wherever she asked?"

Silence.

So maybe that wasn't the right thing to bring up, but how else could she make him understand the need?

Her body was shaking now -- from the earth beneath her? Maybe. She didn't know. From that drive to move, to keep running? Maybe.

When he took a step toward her, she took a step back. Something akin to hurt flashed across his face, but it was gone as quickly as it had come. She hated herself then, for making him feel that way. She wanted so much to just walk up to him and look him dead on in the eyes and tell him everything she felt for him, how he shouldn't be hurt by her movements or her words.

But, obviously, she couldn't. She was rooted to her place, her eyes darting everywhere in impatience and worry.

Instead, he spoke and this time it was to interrogate her on where she was going. "What if it's on another continent?"

She tilted her head. "Then you can get me there."

"Why do you think I would do that?"

She glared at him. "Because this is important. If we don't do it now, who else will die? What other town will be burnt to ground?"

He just stared then and while she was sure she should have been unnerved by the look she was being given, she couldn't say she felt much at all. She was set for this goal and she would reach it, with or without his help.

She would not be responsible for another death.

"What is it you think you need to do?" The was an undertone of anxiety in his voice that she picked up on. What was he so worried about?

"Destroy it."

"How?"

"However I can."

He was silent again. "And why are you going alone?"

She lowered her eyes and to the ground and turned on her heel. She walked and she heard his footsteps tracing hers.

There was so much feeling inside of her. She'd been through so much and she knew she wasn't the only one. But this situation, their situation, it was her fault. She's lost the materia and thus lost their guiding voice. She'd put her friends into a situation where one of them had been killed. She'd made the group endure so much because of her mere presence. Rude would never have died had she not been there -- Toyori had been after the White Materia after all, which had been inside of her. Maybe if she'd reconsidered and listened to Sephiroth about not finding Avalanche then...

Maybe things would be different. Maybe there would still be life in Rude's eyes and happiness in Reno and Elena's lives.

And between the Planet having used her body for it's own purposes, her own sickeningly apparent ailments and her inability to keep her emotions in check, well... She was more of a hindrance than a help.

These feelings she was having for Sephiroth and the conclusion she'd come to only this last week about him weren't exactly helping her case, either.

Love made you do stupid things.

Was this one of those times? Was she not seeing the whole picture? Should she stop running for whatever it was she was heading towards? Should she just stop and listen to her friends, listen to Sephiroth, just wait for everyone to assemble themselves?

But would that cause an irreversible event to occur?

Was it really worth it?

'So many questions and so many answers,' she thought.

And what was with this blackening vision?

"Look Sephiroth, we have to do something. I can't just stand by and watch them destroy more lives." She looked up at him sadly, smiling. "I'm not asking you to come with me, but I have to ask that you not stop me."

He gazed at her silently, wondering if she knew something more than she was telling him. He wanted to stop her, he did, but something in her eyes told him to let her go. Not alone, of course, he was most certainly going with her. Just... Their was a spark of determination in her eyes. She knew what she was doing and nothing he said would be changing her mind.

He sighed in defeat. "We need to find out where it is, first."

She smiled, grateful. Closing her eyes, she rubbed her forehead wearily. "I just don't understand how it could've moved that fast, in water no less. If it's at another continent... It's just a lot to think about." She turned and started walking and felt her heart clench painfully when he moved quickly to walk beside her and kept in stride with her.

She wanted him to come with her... But she didn't want to lose him. It was such a strange feeling she had inside of her... She knew she was in love with him, there was no doubt about that little fact. She'd thought twice she'd been in love with someone before and with Zax it may have been true. With Cloud... She thought now maybe she'd been pursuing the need to have that somebody beside her, with the loss of Zax still eating away at her.

But never had she felt this strongly. She knew with absolute certainty that Sephiroth had captured her heart.

She wondered if she had his.

She chanced a glance at him and saw some semblance of worry and sorrow gracing his features. She glanced away uneasily, wrapping her arms around herself and lowering her eyes to the ground.

"What's wrong?"

She choked on the words. She couldn't force them out. Her fears, her thoughts, her worries...

'Are we going to stay together after this?'

'Do you love me?'

'Am I going to be alright?'

'I don't want to die again.'

"Um, I was just thinking..." Say it! a voice in her head said, hissing. "I was just thinking about what's going to happen after this. You know, if we're going to stay together after all of this or if you're going to want to go somewhere else. Enjoy your second chance, free. Finally."

He seemed genuinely surprised for a second but it was gone before she could fully see it. "Well..." He seemed a little shifty now. "Did you want to stay together after this?" He couldn't understand why she would want to. He was, after all, the man who murdered her. Sure, they'd grown closer, closer than he could've imagined, but... He always thought she'd want to stay with Avalanche when everything was over and done with. They were her friends, after all. He was merely the help she'd needed to save her Planet.

She blushed, despite herself. "Well, yes." She admitted. "You've grown on me." She added cheekily, winking at him, trying to lighten the mood and rid the air of the tension.

He looked away.

They were quiet for a bit afterwards, until Aerith, reluctantly, suggested something. "Why don't you fly above and try and see if you can find anything?" She didn't really want to be left alone, but they were kind of wasting time just walking around aimlessly and Avalanche couldn't have been too far behind them by now.

He nodded and closed his eyes, concentrating. Within seconds, he was in the air and out of her sight. She sighed and frowned, poking her bare foot into the long stilled ground. Was it just her, or was that awkward? More awkward than usual?

He seemed almost... Embarrassed by her question. Like he'd wanted to dodge answering.

Why?

Did he not want to stay with her after?

True, after everything, she wanted to settle down. She wanted a normal life.

Maybe he knew that and it just wasn't what he was looking for. Wasn't what he wanted.

Her mood was dampened by this thought. Sadly, her spirits went way down.

She was extremely tired, she realized. Her limbs felt heavy and her body felt overused. Her vision began to blacken again, poking sharply at the back of her mind, trying to get her to submit to the darkness of sleep. Her head still hadn't stopped throbbing -- it never had since she'd woken up after fainting. It was dully painful right now though, unlike before when it had began to reach an almost unbearable temperament. She shook her head and started to walk in a large circle, waiting for Sephiroth and trying to keep herself awake and alert.

And suddenly she was looking into glowing green eyes.

Glowing green eyes that belonged not to her aforementioned partner, but to a mako fiend.

She stumbled back, startled, but the fiend didn't move. It just sat in front of her and studied her.

'What is it doing?'

It titled it's head quietly, before it stood and started walking towards her. She didn't move. There was something different about this one...

It didn't want to attack her, she thought. She let it walk right by her and didn't flinch when it's body made contact with hers as it brushed steadily by her. Was it even aware that she was there? She turned slowly, non-aggressively and watched as it walked away without a second glance back at her.

She was very aware of a presence beside her then and she looked up at Sephiroth, clearly confused. He didn't look too sure either.

"What was that about...?" She asked anyways.

"I don't know." He replied, turning her his to look down at her. "It didn't even try to harm you?"

She shook her head no.

"What does it mean?" She wondered aloud. "Did you see anything?" She added as an afterthought.

"I saw a large shadow on the northern continent."

Her features became unreadable then and he thought he saw a ripple of sadness in her eyes. Her mouth was drawn tightly and she seemed to tense up.

He barely caught her whisper.

"Always there..."

From then on, she seemed withdrawn, though not immediately noticeably. He could tell she didn't want to go there, to her home city and her previous deathbed, but she walked steadily on, never once uttering a complaint. Several times, he watched as her steps seemed to slow and she would wince, in pain or memory he didn't know, but when she noticed he was observing she straightened and walked forward without a word. He was worried, but he didn't say anything about it. Instead, they carried on pointless conversations.

"But it would look so pretty, Sephiroth."

"You will not be braiding my hair."

"I wish I had your hair."

"I wish you did too, then you might stop speaking of it."

"Don't be such a..."

He smirked when she trailed off.

"A what?" He challenged.

"I don't know."

"I see."

"You know what?"

She took his silence as confimation he wanted to know.

"Did you ever know about Cloud... Crossdressing?"

He sputtered at that and she laughed.

She went on to tell him all about it. He grinned manically at the end of her story, no doubt planning his next jab at Cloud. She smiled all along, happy that for once both of them could talk about something without it pertaining to their quest or their impending future.

Eventually, they reached the northern part of the western continent. For a moment, at the edge, they simply stood and looked at the mountainous northern continent they could now just see in the distance, a welcome silence flowing easily around them. Aerith let her eyes wander over the splashing waves and the twittering birds.

It never ceased to amaze her, really. Even when the world was in grave danger, you could always rely on the familiarity of the crashing ocean and the happily oblivious animals. Slowly, she waded in the water, closing her eyes and smiling at the coolness of the water. She let out a sigh when Sephiroth moved in beside her. She wrapped her arm around his and leaned against him, savoring the moment.

"This planet really is beautiful..." She murmured quietly.

"It is." He agreed.

They looked the perfect picture of happiness.

The weight on their shoulders pressed down on them still and it couldn't be ignored any longer. Aerith shuddered slightly and turned to face him completely.

"I guess this is it..."

He nodded, silent. He watched her intently until she smiled, as always.

She quietly leaned into him and no words were needed as his lips met hers softly. Love and passion overwhelmed her and she almost felt like crying as how right this was and how uncertain she was of their being together for the rest of their lives.

They pulled away slowly and Sephiroth wrapped his arms around her protectively. She buried her head against his chest and breathed in the scent of him. She relaxed in his embrace and before she knew it, they were in the air.

Once again, she was bound for the place that would decide the destiny of not only herself, but everything dear to her.

---

"What is she thinking?" Tifa asked aloud as Avalanche and the Turks slowed their run after Aerith and Sephiroth to a walk, accepting the fact that they wouldn't be catching up with them easily. They'd debated on whether or not to sit and wait for Cid to get there, but in the end decided to keep walking and just let Cid know that that was what they would be doing and to fly over in the general direction.

Denzel was shrunk against her, scared and confused. His hand was encased in hers and she offered what comfort she could but she didn't know if it was any good. She sighed and looked down at the boy, who looked up at her, aware of her gaze on him. She smiled and he smiled back hesitantly, but they rarely exchanged any words. He didn't seem to want to and Tifa enjoyed the silence.

"Fuck, that girl jus' up and runnin' of like that!" Barret cursed.

Tifa turned and glared at him. "Barret, language." She snapped, immediately irritated with him.

He looked at her apologetically and continued on his rant with a much more mild vocabulary. "I jus' don't get it. Why don't she jus' tell us what's wrong wit' her? And that Sephiroth runnin' after her without a word!?" He growled and Tifa knew he was wishing to hit something. Hard.

"I don't think you give them enough credit, Barret." Red said quietly, his one eye looking up at him thoughtfully. "She knows what she's doing, I'm sure. She's our friend and I do not believe she would put us in any danger. In fact, she is probably doing this to keep us out of danger." Wise words, as always. The group listened to him quietly, mulling over everything in their heads. "As for Sephiroth... You know how he feels about her."

"They can't just do this alone. We're all here, we're all involved." Cloud said angrily.

"I think," Elena piped up, earning herself looks from everyone. "That she feels responsible for a lot of this."

Cait nodded, jumping up and down. "Me too."

Cloud shook his head. "Why?"

Reno fixed him with a look that clearly said he thought he was a total idiot. "Well dumb ass," he started, ignoring the look he got from Tifa and Elena. "She was the reason Toyori came after all of us."

"Wasn' her fault." Barret supplied and everyone silently agreed.

"Come on, you all know her better than I fucking know her. I've known her for a long fucking time and from what I've seen her do, she doesn't care if people forgive her, she still feels what she feels." He shook his head as though he was disappointed in them. "She's a stubborn little..." He trailed off when Elena moved to deck him.

"He's right." Tifa sighed.

They kept quiet for a long time, thinking over everything and waiting impatiently for Cid, Yuffie and Vincent. The silence was cut short when they heard a distant buzzing from above them. A few raised their heads to look, but they couldn't see anything. Shrugging, they moved on.

Again, they heard it.

"What is that damn noise!?" Barret yelled to nobody in particular.

"I think it's a god damned airship." Reno shot at him, sarcasm sugar coating all of his words.

"No way, asshole."

"Would you both shut up!?" Elena screamed, exasperated.

"STOP." Cloud yelled above them all, sucking in air in obvious anger. "This is not the time to be fighting amongst ourselves. We need to band together now, we have something we need to do, something important." Cait jumped up onto his shoulder and sat there, nodding along with them. Tifa's features softened at the sight and she smiled. "You all have something or someone to protect, right? Focus on that and nothing else." He sighed tiredly. "Now, let's mosey."

"God damn, Cloud--"

"Can't you say anything better than that!?"

"He's right, you know."

"Yeah, yeah, let's go..."

Above them, Cid's airship was lowering itself to the ground, prepared to land. It whirred gently and stirred the dust around them. Quickly, they group moved out of the way so the ship could land. Distantly, they could hear Cid yelling through the sound system of the engine. "Yuffie, you fuckin' brat get back in here or I'll--" He cut himself off abruptly. "Shit!"

Tifa watched as Yuffie appeared over the railing of the deck and smiled a huge smile. Effortlessly, she threw herself over the railing, flipping skillfully to the ground. Landing on her feet, she sprang up from her crouched position and flew into Cloud. Hugging him, she screamed loudly, "oh Cloud, I'm so glad you're alright, you worried me so much, gawd, what did you do without me here, huh!?" She moved from person to person, hugging everyone (even Reno and Denzel) happily.

"Yuffie," Tifa laughed, wrapping her arms around her as she threw herself at the older woman. "I'm glad you're alright. Why didn't you answer your PHS when we called you?"

Yuffie looked up at her thoughtfully. "I, uh..." She glanced around nervously as all eyes became trained on her. "Can we talk later? In the airship?" She whispered, pleading.

Tifa merely nodded.

Yuffie looked around then, suddenly aware of something. "Hey, wait! Where's Aerith and Sephiroth?"

She noticed how everyone avoided looking at her and started to panic. "Hey, no, wait, tell me!"

Cloud stepped forward. "They're not here."

"That's obvious, Cloudy!" She said in a sing-song voice.

He rolled his eyes. "Aerith ran off and Sephiroth followed. We think they're following Toyori." He said and told her of everything that happened since she'd left. She listened and surprised everyone when she was eerily silent afterwards.

"So, are we gonna go find 'em?" She finally asked.

"Yeah, but we were waitin' for you to get yer ass out here!" Barret said.

Yuffie stuck her tongue out at him and turned on her heel, walking past everyone into the airship. "Then let's get moving!"

Cid, who was standing on the ramp of the airship, caught Tifa's gaze and held it. Something passed between them: there was something wrong with Yuffie. Tifa titled her head at him and nodded. The two of them needed to find out what that something was. Everyone else was oblivious to the exchange as they walked up after the young ninja.

She was the last to walk up and she stopped beside Cid. "I'll talk to her first?" She asked. He nodded and motioned for her to go in ahead of him. He followed shortly, pushing the switch on the wall beside him to let the ramp up.

Vincent was nowhere to be seen.

The group walked, listening to Yuffie's generally excited and happy rambling. They all split off once they reached the cockpit and Cid took the wheel. Tifa glanced at Yuffie and walked over, tugging on her arm. "Come with me, okay?" She asked, but she didn't wait for Yuffie to answer. She dragged her off to a secluded room, locking the door behind her. Yuffie went and lay down on the bed and filled Tifa in on everything that happened without preamble, anticipating this from the older woman. Tifa listened intently, only once interrupting when Yuffie started talking about being bitten. When she finished, Tifa let a silence lay between them for a few minutes so they could both soak everything up and sort it out in their head.

Yuffie felt like a great weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. She turned her head so she could look at Tifa and waited.

"So... Vincent? You said that to him?"

Yuffie swallowed deeply and rolled over onto her stomach, fiddling with the edge of the blanket on the bed. "Uh, yeah. It just kinda... Came out of my mouth and I couldn't stop it. I felt so bad after, Teef..." She sighed and laid her head on her arms. "What am I gonna do?"

Tifa watched her sympathetically. "Oh Yuff. I don't know what to say. He didn't say anything afterwards?"

"Nothing... He didn't even look at me." She said, her eyes filling with tears. "He must hate me now, gawd... I screwed up so bad this time."

Tifa stood and walked over to sit beside her. Yuffie sat up and hugged her tightly, crying. "No Yuffie, he doesn't hate you. Nobody could hate you. You just need to give him a bit of time and then you need to go and talk to him. Work things out..."

"What if it doesn't work?"

"You've still got to try." She soothed. "Nothing is going to get better if you don't try."

A knock on the door had Yuffie springing up, wiping her eyes furiously. Tifa rubbed her arm and stood quietly, unlocking and opening the door. Cloud stood on the other side. At the sight of Yuffie trying to make herself presentable and trying to get rid of all traces of tears, he rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably. He was acutely aware that he'd just walked in on something important.

"I, uh... Sorry Teef, Yuffie."

She shook her head. "It's alright. I think we're done anyways." She turned to look at Yuffie questioningly. Yuffie nodded and stood. She gave Tifa one last hug before she walked out of the room.

"Thanks. See you later."

Tifa sighed when she was out of earshot and sight. Her shoulders drooped and she felt like falling over, but the bed was on the other side of the room so she refrained. Cloud held his arms out and she fell into them gratefully. He held her tightly and rocked her back and forth lightly. "Are you okay?"

She nuzzled further into his chest and breathed in deeply. "I am now."

She felt him grin against her hair. She lifted her head and looked him in the eyes, smiling wearily. She kissed him chastely and he smiled back down at her. "I love you, Teef."

"I love you, too." How long had she waited to be able to say that to Cloud? So long. Now, it felt like they'd been saying it to each other for their entire lives. She felt giddy just thinking about it. Feeling jumpy, but in a good way, she took hold of his hands and led him down the hallway. He laughed.

"What now?" He asked suggestively.

She giggled. "No, Cloud."

He huffed, let down.

"I just want to spend some time with you, you know... Before..." She couldn't finish her sentence she found and she looked at him apologetically at how morbid she must've sounded. He shook his head; he agreed with her. You never knew what could happen.

"Well then." He said, pulling his hands out of hers and placing them on her sides. "Let's spend some quality time with each other." He started to tickle her and she writhed, trying to get away, squirming futilely in his grip.

"Cloud, stop!" She laughed uncontrollably. She went limp when he finally did stop but her eyes widened when he picked her up off her feet, bridal style. Much to her dismay, she let out a surprised squeal and her arms went around his neck faster than she could think about doing it. He merely chuckled at her antics.

She laid her head on his shoulder and sighed, happy that they could still have fun like this.

"Teef, I want you to promise me something..." Cloud said after minutes of carrying her out to the deck. He let her slide down onto her feet and made her face him, putting two fingers under her chin to make sure she was looking at him. "Promise me you'll be careful."

Tifa watched him sweetly and placed her hand over his, trying to be comforting. "I promise, Cloud. But you need to promise me too." She cupped his cheek when he rolled his eyes and looked out at the moving scenery instead of at her. "No, really Cloud. I know you're strong -- you are, but... You're not invincible, okay? So promise me. We're going to both come out of this alive, no matter what."

The atmosphere surrounding them was suddenly very serious. They both looked at each other, determined to reach the goal Tifa had unknowingly set out for them just now. He nodded and she smiled. "I promise, Tifa."

"Good. You better keep it." She said, leaning into him again.

He moved so he was standing behind her and wrapped his arms around her stomach, placing his chin on the top of her head. "Only if you do."

"Deal."

---

"They're coming..." Toyori stated, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

"Don't get too happy just yet." Hiei cautioned, stepping up beside his comrade. "There's still a battle to fight and win. Getting cocky will only get you killed. Keep your head out of the clouds for now."

Toyori merely glared at the man beside him. "You're a cold bastard, you know? Always ruining my fun."

"Always. I simply can't help it."

"Yeah, well, whatever. Don't get yourself killed like..."

"Like Kayana." Hiei finished for him.

They lapsed into a long silence.

Do not despair over that failure... Their boss' voice cut through their mourning and memories like a knife. Toyori clenched his fists, enraged. Hiei merely stiffened. Regardless of how they acted and what they were doing, they had feelings. Growing up with these people, trapped in a lifeless abyss with these people, especially Kayana and Hiei, had been an experience in itself. The threesome had become close, no matter how they acted towards each other.

Sure, there had been other people with them, but only the three of them had survived.

How could this... This person tell them to forget her?

They both fell to the ground as pain coursed through their bodies. Hiei screamed out pleas, that they would never think it again and after too long a wait they relaxed as they were freed from the intrusion to their minds and bodies. Toyori panted heavily and stumbled up onto his feet.

That was something this person had always been able to do. That was the only reason he ever listened to this person. They could somehow inflict pain on you until you groveled and they could read and intrude on your thoughts. He closed his eyes wearily.

They'd felt pain before, but always... Always, this was the worst. It got more and more unbearable each time.

He glanced at Hiei and they held a gaze for a moment, silently asking the other if they were alright. As usual, they both looked away, satisfied that the other was fine.

Now, do not waste any more time thinking things that will get you killed. You have a mission and if you do not complete it, you will die. From what I can tell, all of them are coming and they are coming to destroy us once and for all, so be ready. If you fail... They trailed off, not needing to tell the two what would happen if they did. Kill the Cetra first.

Toyori didn't need to be told to kill the lady first. He smiled grimly at the thought of the look in that soldier's eyes as his beloved Cetra suffered a long and painful death...

"Toyori." Hiei said sharply, hitting the man in the arm. Toyori looked at him and looked over to where his eyes were fixed. He smiled and unsheathed his weapon. Hiei did the same and they took off quickly, running hastily into the distance.

Let the games begin...

---

The only thing she could see still, was a shadow. A huge shadow, about the size of a Weapon situated in the middle of the Northern Continent. There wasn't enough light to illuminate it completely and it was getting darker still. She frowned. "Seph, can you see it?" Aerith asked.

Sephiroth looked up at her, confused as to what she was talking about. "The shadow." She clarified. "Can you see it in detail?"

"Not entirely, but yes, I suppose I can."

"And...?"

"And?"

"Well, what does it look like!?"

"Can you just wait? You wouldn't believe me if I told you anyways."

"Try me."

"We're almost there."

Aerith crossed her arms over her chest and stopped in her tracks. They'd long since stopped flying. Once they'd reached the shores of the Northern Continent near Bone Village, they'd begun to walk, even though flying was faster. Her stopping like this and their walking were just some of the ways for them both to delay the inevitable. However, Aerith couldn't deny that Sephiroth seemed excited to be going into a hugely important battle like this. She couldn't blame him though -- he was born and bred a soldier. She would have to deal with that. "Why can't you just tell me?"

"I already told you why." Sephiroth said, still walking.

She pouted and ran to catch up with him. "You walk way too fast, you know."

"I'm walking slower than usual, as you can't seem to keep up with me when I walk normally." He glanced at her, one fine eyebrow raised. "What's that saying?"

She blushed and narrowed her eyes. "It's saying you're a soldier and I'm a flower girl of Midgar."

He merely shrugged.

She let it go.

They walked silently through the forest leading to Bone Village. They encountered a few small fiends on the way, but Sephiroth took care of them with skill and grace. It seemed too easy for him and he looked so beautiful in battle, for a moment she felt jealous. She could take care of herself, she knew, but she had to admit that these fiends would definitely be something difficult for her to deal with. It took him only seconds.

When they reached Bone Village, Aerith took it upon herself to stop their journeying. She walked around the small excavation site and gathered materials they might need. Items and armor, helpful little trinkets and anything she could find laying around in the dirt. Sephiroth had to drag her from the site and into the Sleeping Forest.

"So... Where is this thing?" Aerith asked, confused. "Every time I think we're getting closer we're farther away."

"It's in a mountain crevice. Not in the City of the Ancients but not near the Crater. Just a secluded area of the mountain."

"Why do you think that is?"

"I don't know."

She thought about it as much as she could until she felt her head hurt. Too much thinking in one day, she thought.

They were halfway through the City of the Ancients when both became aware of the sound of an airship -- the Sierra, most likely -- above them. Aerith looked up and saw her suspicions to be accurate. Cid was bringing the airship down as close as he dared and yelling through the intercom for the pair to get their asses on the airship. She was both happy and unhappy at this development, but she and Sephiroth acquiesced. Sephiroth flew them up without a word.

Both Sephiroth and Aerith were embraced by a very happy Tifa.

"Oh my god you guys, don't ever run off like that again!"

Aerith chuckled. "I'm sorry, Tifa."

Sephiroth merely looked, and felt, awkward through the entire ordeal. He patted Tifa's back, unsure of what to do in his current predicament.

"I'm sorry to all of you, actually." Aerith said, lowering her head and watching the floor carefully. "I know we shouldn't have run off like that, but..." She shrugged, feeling more than a little uneasy. She smiled when everyone muttered that it was alright but they'd better never try anything like that again.

Cloud spoke up and glared at Sephiroth. "Especially you. Don't run off again, alright?"

Sephiroth scoffed. "Yes sir -- I mean, ma'am." He grinned when Cloud's expression went from angry to confused to embarrassed. He rounded on Aerith then.

"You told him!?"

Aerith laughed. "I'm sorry, I couldn't stop myself."

Cloud mumbled something and walked away from everyone, who were all by now snickering to themselves.

"You all saw the shadow in the distance?" Aerith asked. Everyone nodded. "So... We're headed that way, right?" Again, everyone nodded.

Cid's voice rang out through the intercom for the third time that day. "Alright you fuckers, get your asses up here before I come down to get you." There was some rustling in the background and they heard Cid fighting with someone before he turned back to his task. "We're almost there and Vince thinks he sees those two shitheads in the distance -- Toyori and Hiei."

Aerith's throat constricted at the thought. They were coming for them?

"We need to land quickly." Elena said, voicing Aerith's thoughts.

Aerith moved quickly through all the compartments to the cockpit. When she got there, she walked up the few stairs to stand beside Cid. "Can we get to somewhere near that shadow to land before they can get to us?" She asked.

Cid shrugged. "I can try, but it doesn't look too good."

He was surprised then, when both Toyori and Hiei both seemed to back off and head back to the large spectacle. Cid managed to make a landing a fair distance away from the it. By now it was past sunset and they couldn't see anything.

"Not good..." Reno muttered.

Tifa grunted in acknowledgement and agreement. Seconds later she was on the ground, the breath knocked out of her. Nobody knew what had just happened, but they reacted accordingly. As she hunched over in pain, everyone was situated on the battle field with their weapons drawn and all their senses on alert. Cloud tended to Tifa, getting her to stand and casting a low cure spell to negate the pain.

Aerith stepped forward. This thing in front of them was... Huge. Fear gripped her and everything inside of her turned icy cold with anguish.

The moment she stepped forward, a bright sheen of light encased a large path of land in front of them. "A... Barrier?" Aerith asked aloud as a light shimmering case of particles enveloped whatever was situated there.

The barrier grew brighter with each passing second and eventually became bright enough for the group to see everything around them and inside the barrier. The night sky was filled with stars, but anything directly above this monstrous machine was entirely wiped from their vision.

Aerith was astounded.

Behind the barrier was a fiend that looked similar to a Weapon. It was shiny silver in colour and had destructive looking eyes. They were blood red and they reminded her of Vincent, except these eyes held something akin to... Death and terror. She could hear everyone behind her gasp and had she looked, she would've seen everyone but Vincent, Sephiroth and Cloud looking away, trying to avert their gazes as its eyes whipped their way over the group. Aerith looked deep into its eyes and she knew, in the instant that its eyes flashed toward her, that this battle would be one like they'd never fought before. It was hell bent on killing. That was what it had been made for.

It's entire body was scaly, shimmering in the light of the barrier. It's body was huge. It's arms were probably the most terrifying thing about it though. They were thick and meaty looking -- she didn't know what this thing was made of though -- and at the end were large hands with claws that... Couldn't be called claws. They looked like extremely elongated knives, five on each arm. There were curved blades bending backwards on the top of each arm, a defense mechanism. The rest of the body was just like a Weapon's though. Large, bone crushing feet, jaws full of a very nasty looking set of teeth that could rip through anything and a long, swiping tail.

But after the eyes, the only thing that caught Aerith's attention was the sphere in the middle of it's stomach.

It was glowing brightly and it was pure white. It looked like there was something swimming beneath the surface and when she moved closer still, she could see...

White puffs?

Her eyes widened as something in her mind clicked. Was this why they'd wanted...?

"This is why you wanted the white materia!?" Aerith said, loud enough for everyone to hear. Something coiled around in her stomach, making her feel as though she was suffocating. Her vision blackened almost completely and she swayed on her feet.

There was laughing coming from above her.

Toyori.

"Do you see now, little Cetra? Do you understand now?" He sneered. He was standing on the shoulder of the fiend, Hiei on the opposite shoulder looking rather bored.

They'd taken the white materia to gain access to the Planet, she realized. It hit her like a blow to the stomach. When the white materia had been with her, before her death and in her body, she'd been able to minipulate the Planet's surface, the lifestream, utilize plants to her liking and needs... Now they had it. They'd infused the white espers that connected the Cetra with the Planet that had escaped when it had been smashed into a thousand pieces with this monster. That gave this monster a control she didn't even want to think about.

"You... You can't do this." She stuttered lamely, so completely engrossed in her thoughts of what could happen next to care to put up any particularly good conversation or argument.

"I'm afraid we already have." Hiei said, jumping down from his place on the shoulder of the fiend. He landed silently on his feet, not a blade of grass or flurry of snow around him disturbed.

Aerith tried to compose herself and failed. She couldn't believe how clueless she'd been. This could have been avoided, in two ways. Either she could've destroyed the materia herself, when Toyori and Hiei hadn't been around or she could've kept herself more alert and hidden and not have let them get a hold of it. She sighed and closed her eyes.

She had failed.

"Toyori, you..." She struggled with her words, trying to speak and tell everyone around her and more importantly, in front of her, what she'd found out and what she found so appalling. This is what she'd come here to say, hadn't she? "You said you hated the man named Kiyoku."

Toyori's face became blank and the twisted in rage. "I do hate that son of a bitch."

Aerith lowered her face to the ground and squeezed her eyes shut. He doesn't know, she thought sadly. Breathing in deeply, she looked up at him with grief clouding her eyes.

"Then why are you helping him?"

---

Toyori glared at the woman standing on the ground below him. "What the hell are you talking about?" He asked sharply.

The group she travelled with were looking at her like she'd grown another head and, honestly, he felt like looking at her like that too. What was she saying? Helping him? There was no way in hell he would help the bastard that had condemned him to this life.

"Toyori..." She spoke up. He winced at the pity in her voice. "Toyori, something happened when Kiyoku did whatever he did to you..." She paused. "What did he do to you?"

Logic and common sense told him she was prying for unneeded information but the words spilled from his mouth before he could stop them and when he became aware of what he was doing, he didn't want to stop. Each word he said made him more and more infuriated with that shadow of his past that had haunted him, Hiei and Kayana for years. "That bastard and Hojo went around looking for candidates for a research project years ago. They said it would change our lives. We never asked for the better or for the worse." He laughed hysterically at that and his eyes were wild.

"We should have! They injected us with various amounts of Mako and when we were stable enough to survive in large quantities, they forced us into those damned Mako pools they managed to find around the world." He was shaking now.

"How many of there were you?" Aerith asked, not really caring for the actual details of how and why they survived.

He narrowed his eyes. "At least forty to fifty of us. Only twenty survived the Mako inducing process." Toyori's eyes became saddened. Hiei watched him with pain and remembrance in his eyes. The fiend sat still as ever. "Eventually, the others died in the Mako pools. The three of us -- Kayana, Hiei and I, were left. Along with one other who... Arrived after us." He frowned and calmed a bit. "We never did actually see him."

"So... You survived living in the Mako pools. It's like the Lifestream, I guess." Aerith prodded.

Hiei nodded. "If you are stable enough, then yes, you can live in Mako like the Lifestream. Our bodies were so filled past the maximum, I'm surprised we didn't all die when we were showered mercilessly in it." He shrugged. "But we did. And we spent a good many years there, with no help from anyone. We were prisoners within the Planet."

"So, this other person who joined you... You never saw him?" Aerith asked.

"No." Toyori shook his head. "But why does it matter?"

Aerith shook her head. She kept her eyes closed when she asked her final question. "Is there someone with you now?"

Yes, there is, a voice snapped harshly.

"'Coming forth as godly beings, unable to be harmed, the world will plunge into darkness as those lost in the shadows reveal a monstrosity, one provided with powers by the great entity. May he rise without fail alongside.'" She said, quoting the documents Cid had found not too long ago. "Hojo didn't write those documents, his writing didn't match the writing of those words."

The voice laughed suddenly. You are a smart young woman, Cetra...

"Hojo didn't write them and if he didn't write them, Kiyoku must have. They were the only ones who knew about the experiment, right?"

Hiei nodded uneasily. "Yes..."

"'Coming forth as godly beings, unable to be harmed, the world will plunge into darkness as those lost in the shadows reveal a monstrosity, one provided with powers by the great entity.'" Aerith repeated. "Those words refer to you, 'godly beings' and the Planet, 'the great entity'. This fiend," she motioned her head towards the huge being in front of her. "Is one of the 'godly beings' as well and is the one with the most channelled power of the Planet." To be honest with herself, she'd figured some of this out before, but not all of it. Things were slowly piecing together in her head and she spoke as they came to her.

Both Toyori and Hiei stood in disbelief and shock and Hiei seemed to be the first to realize what the rest meant. He narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth, but all that came from him was a deadly scream as pain ripped through him like fire.

"'May he rise without fail alongside.'" Aerith said, trying to tune out the dreaful screaming. "That must mean Kiyoku?"

"Why?" Toyori asked.

Aerith shook her head. "Kiyoku wrote it. It was meant to be a prophecy of some sort, the way it was written. At least, I think so."

The voice rumbled with laughter again. You are right, Cetra. Hojo meant all along to stab me in the back. He couldn't take sharing the glory of the project.

"Wait, wait." Reno said, stepping forward. "Aer, however you figured this all out... Bravo. But if it's true, why didn't the idiot try to get away while he could? Why would you do that to yourself?"

When I realized he was coming for me, it was too late for me to get away... So I devised a plan. He was going to send me into the abyss with these people and I'd long since enabled myself to have powers of the mind... I knew I could fulfill it.

By this time, Toyori had rounded on the large fiend as well and was ready to attack and kill. He too, fell to the ground in a writhing heap.

I wrote it, quickly, and stored it away... I put up no fight against Hojo.

"How did you know you could get the white materia? How did you know there was another Cetra?" Sephiroth asked, stepping up beside Aerith.

Why Sephiroth... This was all happening when Hojo had begun to torture Lucrecia and when he found out that Gast's Cetran wife Ifalna was pregnant. I do remember you, Vincent Valentine. Vincent tensed when he heard his name. Yes, I remember you... I was still around when he tortured you. In fact, I helped. I don't imagine you would remember me?

"Your name was familiar to me, but that is all." He answered, a mere growl.

But enough talk... Kiyoku said. The fiend's eyes flashed dangerously and it took a step forward, but not enough to cross the barrier, not even to make it closer to it. You can all die knowing how and why I managed to get here. I assume Hojo is dead? He took the silence as confirmation. He laughed, loudly and satisfactorily. All the better.

Beside him, both Toyori and Hiei were on their feet in a flash. Their eyes were haunted looking, dull and dark.

"He's possessed them..." Tifa said.

Cloud shook his head. "Let's end this."

Toyori smiled with humour. "You think you can win?" He voice was raspy and echo-like now. He snapped his fingers and there was suddenly at least a dozen Mako-induced fiends crouched behind him, waiting for the signal to attack. There was but a moment of silence before he said the one word needed to launch the battle.

"Iku!"

It had begun.

---

'I'm not ready for this.'

That was her first thought. She had lapsed into a world of her own after Toyori and Hiei had stood, eyes darkened with power and the hunger to kill. She stood stock still, unmoving as fiends raced towards her and everyone that still stood behind her, waiting for the first clash of a weapon against gnashing teeth. They were ready to sink their teeth into her flesh and all she could think about was how she couldn't possibly do this any longer.

Whatever had led her here, was gone.

She didn't understand now, why she felt so compelled to come here.

Had she drawn everyone to their deathbed? Had she completely destroyed their one and only chance?

Cid and Barret had people to go back to. Had she just completely crushed five people's worlds?

'Child--'

Her eyes snapped open -- when had they closed? She looked around her frantically, searching for the voice she'd just heard. It hadn't just been a hallucination, had it? Surely something like that she wouldn't make up? Wishing for it to be there and having it actually occur were two very different things.

It was a very ghostly but soothing voice. 'Child, please.'

'Hear me.'

She opened her mouth to speak and then she noticed Sephiroth standing beside her, his fingers digging painfully into her skin as he yelled at her. "Why the hell are you just standing here!?" His eyes were blazing with fury at her idiocy.

She looked up at him stupidly for a second. She looked forward and saw that the fiends were getting increasingly closer with each passing second. Titling her head upward, she found the eyes of Toyori and Hiei. They were both now situated on the shoulders of the fiend that was still hidden behind the barrier. Her heart clenched as she reminded herself that they would need to be killed -- and why? No fault of their own. They had no control over this situation. They were simply prisoners in a choiceless world.

'Hear me!'

Aerith scrunched her face up sadly. "What!?" The gently blowing wind carried her words into the distance. Given that she hadn't been looking at, thus speaking to Sephiroth, he looked the perfect picture of confusion and worry. She could just see the question in his face -- had she finally snapped?

'Child, break the barrier...'

It was being droned out, slowly. Its voice was fading and she panicked as she recognized the voice.

No!

"How, tell me how!" She screamed back. Sephiroth, seeing that she wasn't listening, stood in front of her and raised his blade.

He was frozen in shock when the fiends change their course, choosing to run around them instead of straight at them. He was further bewildered when not one of the fiends came back around to attack either of them. They all ran by the pair, unfazed as they left possible and very dangerous opponents alone. Aerith watched them and, as if in slow motion, they, as a group, crouched and pounced on Avalanche and the Turks. Everyone raised their weapons and fists in defense.

"No!" Aerith cried.

She watched as Cloud's sword swung forcefully straight through the body of one of the fiend's. Her eyes widened as he moved to dodge the claws that were being aimed at his throat. He just barely made it by before he had to swing himself around to avoid a pair of snapping teeth.

They weren't able to land any hits, any of them.

The creatures were, for the moment, untouchable.

'Child, listen... me!'

Aerith tried to concentrate, thinking she was missing some of the Planet's words, but found the voice was merely being broken up. Their connection, however there was one, was being broken.

'You... Powers of Cet... Use... They are with you... Forget?'

Aerith turned to look at Sephiroth. She addressed his questioning gaze first. "I... The Planet, I can hear it. I think it's because we're so close..." She trailed off, focusing on the white sphere that was so prominently sitting in the middle of the fiend's stomach. It was giving off a slight glimmer of light now and it beckoned to Aerith, pleading. She could feel words pouring into her mind. "We have to break the barrier." Aerith continued.

"The fiends..." Sephiroth started.

Aerith looked over at her friends, dodging attacks coming from all sides, trying to stay alive.

"I... We can't help them by going over there and getting caught up in the fight." She said, but even so, saying the words bothered her and she screamed internally to ignore it and go anyways.

But what help would they be?

"Then how do we break the barrier?"

"I don't know. The Planet said I could... But it didn't tell me how."

Sephiroth looked up at Toyori and Hiei, who were both watching them intently, never once blinking or averting their gaze. He narrowed his eyes and the pair smiled without humor right back. Toyori was fixated on Aerith and that alone sent adrenaline and rage pumping through his blood like wildfire.

Aerith caught his gaze and followed it, but looked away once she saw her onlooker. She muttered something that sounded like 'creepy' and Sephiroth rolled his eyes; only she would resort to a word so mild.

"Try connecting with the Planet." Sephiroth said, glancing down at her. Her face lit up and she brought a finger to the corner of her lips, tapping it thoughtfully.

"That's not a bad idea. Why do I always miss these things?" She said jokingly, before she breathed in deeply, composing herself.

On the other end of the battlefield, Avalanche was quickly becoming tired and drained of all energy. Cloud swung himself around forcefully in the millionth attempt to evade the fiends' sharp talons. He growled deep in his throat, aggravated. This was absolutely insane! They wouldn't be able to put up a fight when they were able to hit them the way things were going now! To top it all off, in the back of his mind the only thing he could think about was Tifa.

Was she safe? Was she hurt? He could hardly take a second to look around for her to even see her.

"Aaaagh!" Yuffie cried out, charging forward at a group of fiends. "Why can't you just die!"

And that was when Cloud felt his first spark of hope. The fiends dodged her attack.

Vincent was the next in line, throwing his claw out in front of Yuffie to intercept the fiends before they managed to hit her. They dug their feet into the ground and quickly shoved themselves backwards, but not before Vincent was able to land a small, but still visible, hit.

And in that moment, all of Avalanche sprang at the fiends.

---

"What is she doing?" Toyori asked Hiei, flashing his eyes darkly over to where his partner and friend stood silently. He didn't answer and they simply stood stoicly as Aerith walked towards the barrier, slowly and cautiously.

"When are we going to move?" Hiei asked instead.

You will move in time... Kiyoku said sternly.

They all lapsed into silence.

---

"God fucking damn! I'm too --" Cid began, cutting off to swing his spear at a charging fiend. "Fucking old for this! Grahh!" The fiend let out a sharp yell as the man's spear tore through its flesh and became lodged just below the rib cage. It let out a droning moan and fell to the ground in a heap. Cid grabbed the spear and wordlessly yanked it up and out of the bloodied mess.

Avalanche had been fighting for only a few minutes and already the count of monsters was down to a dozen. Everyone's strength from the months before, when they had been fighting who was now their ally, was showing through as they hacked mercilessly at the monsters.

Tifa and Cloud were standing silently, watching the rest of the group finish off their fiend they were fighting, having just finished with their own. They shared a meaningful look.

Barret let out a battle cry and shot a round of bullets into the last one and Yuffie pranced around unabatedly, slashing at each and every one of the broken bodies. Blood mixed with glowing mako sprayed into the air and around her, onto her, but she never once flinched. Her excuse was, "just making sure, guys! Don't wanna walk away only to find Cloud's getting his ass bitten off!" The group turned to face each other, breathing laboured and their bodies already bruised from the hits they'd taken.

Red sat on his haunches, Cait laying neatly on his head and they both began to recite the incantation for a powerful cure spell. A shimmering green mist encircled them all as their minds and bodies were rejuvenated.

"That was some fight." Tifa said, brushing the side of her mouth with her fist to get rid of some blood that was staining it. Cloud shook himself thoroughly and closed his eyes, letting out a great sigh.

"And it's not over..." Elena added, turning to look at the large monster still sitting in front of them behind the seemingly unbreakable barrier. Toyori and Hiei were both visible, just sitting behind it, watching them.

"Creeps." Yuffie said.

"God damned foo's!" Barret yelled, shaking his arm in the air madly. "Cowardly bastard's."

Tifa sighed and her eyes were filled with a sudden surge of emotion. "I... You guys." She began, speaking quietly. "Be careful, alright? I want each and every one of you to hug me at the end of this okay?"

Silence.

"What're they doing, guys?" Yuffie asked, pointing to two moving figures; Aerith and Sephiroth.

Tifa shook her head. "I guess we should go and find out."

They walked an endless walk, filled with a large and draining silence. Barret thought about Marlene and Elmyra and wondered what they might be doing. Were they smiling right now? Were they keeping each other happy as always? Or were they worrying about him... He shook his head, restless. God, he hated just leaving them. Over and over again, he left for some reason or another. For Corel, for a journey, for a meeting with his friends...

Yuffie looked at Cid as they reached the end of their walk, coming up behind Aerith and Sephiroth. "So. Did you tell Shera what we're doing?"

Cid shook his head and looked wistful for a moment. "Not the whole god damned story, no. I don't need her worrying her ass off."

Yuffie nodded, understanding. And she wondered if Godo wondered about her, whether she was safe or if she was dead. And even if he did wonder, did he really even care? It was one thing to think about it but it was another to give a damn about what you were thinking about.

'He probably just wants me to get back there to...' Yuffie couldn't finish the thought and blinked back tears bitterly. It didn't matter. She didn't need to think about it. She glanced at Vincent but quickly looked away when she found she couldn't hold her gaze, even when she wasn't looking in his eyes.

That didn't help either.

"Aerith?" Red started the conversation up when they were close enough.

The two spun around to look at the group, startled. Aerith broke into a grateful smile. "You're okay, thank the gods. I'm so sorry we didn't..."

Cloud shook his head and waved his hand in the air, dismissing her guilt. "Don't worry about it, it was fine." He motioned towards the barrier in front of them. "What're we going to do about that? They can attack us, but we can't attack them unless this barrier is gone."

Aerith honestly didn't think that they would attack unless they broke the barrier as they hadn't made a move yet. In fact, the Weapon look-alike had been sitting motionless the entire time, only taking a single step forward.

It... Brought many questions to her mind but she settled for thinking about how to break their defense.

"I... I could hear the Planet for a moment. It said I should break the barrier, but didn't tell me how." She looked up at Sephiroth. "We have an idea though...?" She trailed off into a question.

Tifa swung her hair back from her face and smiled. "Go for it then."

Aerith nodded but she looked unsure.

"Just try to connect with it." Sephiroth said.

"I heard you."

Aerith swallowed deeply and closed her eyes, concetrating on her pulsing heart. She delved deep into her mind, losing all focus and connection with the outside world, only seeing the inside of her mind. Complexities like this were certainly something new to her, but she figured she knew where to find what she was looking for. She searched herself, the recesses of herself, trying to find the voice.

It took her a few minutes, but she eventually found it. Still, she could hear nothing but the steady beat of her heart and now, the words and emotions conveyed through the external link between her and her dear Planet.

'We can help...'

'Here for you...'

'Take this power, Cetra...'

'My child, concentrate on my voice, listen to me...'

'Save us...'

Save us.

She felt like she was floating when she opened her eyes. She felt conpletely devoid of anything else but the energy that was coursing through her body. She didn't look down at herself, but simply walked forward, ever closer to the barrier. Had she looked down, she would see the Lifestream entangling itself around her body, rising upwards with each movement she took.

The Planet called to her, whispering silent words.

'You must listen to me...' The Planet spoke quietly and calmly, soothing Aerith's growing anxiety. 'You must all be careful... This decides your fate.'

'Just a single touch... Single touch... Touch...'

The Planet's last line echoed through her head and she could've sworn she fell into a trance. She walked almost sleepily, swaying and her hand reaching forward steadily but entirely too gracefully.

'Touch...'

And in the very second her fingertips brushed the barrier, all of the energy was swept from her body and into the barrier. It growed brighter, steadily brighter in the course of a few seconds until it was almost unbearable to look at.

And it shattered like glass, into millions of little pieces.

Arcing outwards, it dissolved through their bodies and faded slowly away.

Their was a stunned silence that passed slowly, until Toyori laughed.

"You have condemned yourself!" He yelled, his voice mixing with Kiyoku's. The fiend's eyes flashed and walked forward, its teeth bared and its claws flexed, ready to kill.

Aerith stumbled as the Planet's voice was washed out of her mind and she returned to her own mind and body. She looked up and was met with the image of Hiei and Toyori flying towards her.

She side stepped their attack and all of Avalanche flew forward, some breaking off towards the fiend and the rest falling into a battle with the two very dangerous and possessed madmen.

"Cetra, Cetra, you never do learn!" Hiei yelled, throwing himself at her. She blocked his attack with her staff but fell back a few feet as she tried to concentrate on a powerful holy spell.

Sephiroth and Toyori's blade clashed and Tifa's battle cry pierced the air sharply. Cloud and Yuffie sprung into the air and somersaulted back down from either side of Toyori. Being that he was entirely surrounded by the four, he only managed to evade Cloud and Tifa's hits, but Yuffie and Sephiroth both hit him in the side, leaving large gashes. He didn't seem to even notice it and continued to hack away like crazy, his eyes wild.

Aerith raised her hands into the air and her staff wavered steadily as she released her magic. Hiei got the brunt of it, but some of it managed to get Toyori. Again, neither seemed to notice or they simply didn't care, as neither flinched or gave any sign that they were even aware that they were being attacked.

They five could hear the clanking of weapons from the others, at they blocked and flew themselves at the hard and scaly monster. Landing a hit was difficult, as its skin seemed unbreakable but they, as a group, kept trying to break through a particular area while dodging swipes of the bladed limbs or otherwise being kicked harshly off of it as it tried to manage to get them into a position to severely damage.

It went on for a while, with neither side really becoming more weakened then the other.

Then, the first person was struck down.

In the midst of a rather hectic frolic, the fiend stopped all movement and stood stock still. It raised both its arms abruptly and fixed them on the group it was fighting. It happened in slow motion for all of them -- the blade-like claws sprung out of its upper extremities and flew toward the group. Vincent, Reno and Elena were the first to spring away, hastily turning back around in apprehension. Red sprang underneath its huge body, Cait tumbling down after him. Cid cursed and ducked, barely managing to miss being impaled and iliciting a gasp of horror and mixed relief from Elena.

Barret's eyes widened and before he knew what was happening, blood clouded his vision.

His blood.

---

Time had stopped for Aerith.

She could not, for the life of her, draw in a breath.

Her heart was absolutely pounding and her vision was tainted with the sight of Barret lying on the ground, struggling to breath and move, impaled by an inhumanly large claw. His blood was already pooling beneath him and they only thing she could think of was whether or not he was going to survive.

'Marlene, Elmyra...'

'Oh my god...'

Toyori and Hiei had stopped attacking for the moment, thoroughly enjoying seeing Tifa crying out and running over to the fallen man. They both smiled sadistically at Aerith, who was standing still in an insane amount of shock, trying to absorb what had just happened.

Not only was the monster, moving forward to destroy the rest of them, but it had new claws.

Barret was... Dying.

Her heart clenched.

She swayed on her feet.

And her vision darkened.

Come... Kiyoku boomed.

That snapped Aerith right out of her trance. She watched Toyori and Hiei both crouch and flip backwards high into he air, landing on the fiends shoulders. They glanced over the group aimlessly and laughed. "Prepared to go a second time, Cetra?" Toyori asked flippantly.

'This is not happening...'

"I... Dear Planet..." Aerith whispered. She focused her gaze on the glowing sphere as she fell into the black abyss of her mind once again. She reached deep, trying to salvage a power she knew she could find. She was suddenly filled with that tug again, that familiar beckoning she had felt so strongly before she'd been compelled to run here.

She found what she was looking for, but she was stopped by the Planet's panic-filled voice.

'Child, no!'

Images passed through her mind in seconds, the Planet's hope in trying to get her to change her mind. It hardly fazed her.

'We can't win this anymore.'

The Planet didn't say a word to that.

More images and emotions filled her mind and Aerith took them all in head on.

'See, you know that we can't... So why stop me? And why shouldn't I, when it will make no difference to me...' She paused. 'But it will make a difference to them.' Her friends voices, smiles, faces only coaxed her into completing the task.

'My child, I'm so sorry... I'm so sorry...'

'Planet--'

'You will--' It argued.

'Planet--!'

"No, you--'

'PLANET, dear Gaia, please.'

'My Cetra, my last Cetra...' It sent ripples of sadness through Aerith's entire body. 'I'm so sorry...'

Another shatter was heard and Avalanche gasped. Tifa cried in pain for Barret, watching him slip away as she tried to heal him over and over again. The espers swimming silently in the white orb seeped out through the cracks and Kiyoku gasped.

What is this!?

The espers flew right through Aerith, trailing out of her back silently, wisps floating away into the darkness.

Aerith opened her eyes and she moved forward quickly. But Aerith merely watched, she could not control. Her eyes were a dark bluish-gray in colour, devoid of life and emotion. Her body was surrendered to the Planet's will.

Toyori, Hiei and the fiend made no move.

"Cetra!" Toyori hissed, jumping towards her.

Aerith stood impassively, looking defeated. Weary.

Sephiroth was in front of her suddenly, but Aerith pushed him aside effortlessly. He made no move to stand in front of her again, watching helplessly. Toyori threw his blade out in a ferocious act of anger and strength. Aerith's eyes closed as Toyori swung and hit a glowing white shield.

He was flung back into the fiend with a stinging impact that was punctuated with a loud crack.

Aerith watched with anguish as she jumped, no, flew into the night sky, her body becoming enshrouded in a light mist of colour. A circle of silver formed in front of her and she flew through it, only to fall back with a whoosh, landing silently on her feet, standing upright with perfection. Her hair was flowinf gently behind her and she felt the slight breeze flowing onto her skin as she closed her eyes.

And she danced.

She knew she was being looked upon with shock, by all present.

Gracefully, effortlessly, lithely, she spun, twisted and moved with emotion as the lifestream and puffs of light were emitted from the earth beneath them. Everything in the vincinity glowed heavenly and she could feel Barret surrender himself.

Tears spilled from the corner of her eyes as the Planet allowed her emotions to flow freely. She cried silently, letting out no sound of her misery, only dancing for absolution and taking in Barret's life force to strengthen her attack.

She could hear his whisper in the wind.

No regrets, girl...

"No regrets..." The Planet allowed Aerith's whisper and she could hear it speak with its mind, calling for Sephiroth.

He was there within the second as she slowed her dance until it was completed. Lights filled with life and power hung around them in the air, illuminating Toyori and Hiei's shocked faces, showing them the stillness of the fiend before them.

Kiyoku was frozen with undeniable fear but stunning admiration and fascination. He was immovable.

Aerith's eyes opened and she was looking into the uncertain and fearful eyes of Sephiroth. Sephiroth, the untouchable and the unbreakable. He looked so broken and she mentally cringed and cried out for it to all just end, to be over so she didn't have to look into his eyes.

She didn't want to see the knowledge of what she was doing mirrored in him.

"Sephiroth..." The Planet whispered. "I..." It cut itself short and seemed to stammer, something Aerith had never known the Planet for doing. "Sephiroth, to win this we need power. Power only you can give us..."

He blinked a few times and lowered his head.

Aerith's hands slipped into his and she could feel energy pulsing through her body as the Planet hastily took control of the situation, feeling Aerith's need for peace. "To save us..." The Planet spoke, its voice ringing out into the silence.

Sephiroth fell to his knees as he was drained dry of everything. Aerith willed the Planet and her body to let her hold onto him for a moment longer. He must've known, for he looked up into her eyes.

Then, he was falling.

Down, down, down to the ground, the wind blowing through her hair and over his face. The silver circle reformed itself and Aerith moved forward, but this time with all of the light being sucked towards her hands, creating large balls of light.

Clasping her hands, the Planet uttered two words.

"Denique tripudio."

The second the words were uttered, Sephiroth landed on top of Cloud, Reno and Vincent, who had readied themselves to catch him.

The second he made the imapct, his eyes shot open.

He watched then, with utter horror, as the woman he loved gave herself away for the Planet once again.

---

She turned her face to the side and let her arms fall down limply beside her. With a final twirl, she raised her arms strongly, letting them fall outwards to the side at the last second. She was encased in a blazing light as a huge ball of life and power flew from her hands. Several followed, all twisting and joining together to strike the final blow.

An explosion like none ever heard before resounded through the night.

Voices exploded through the air, the life of those lost fighting to keep their Planet alive.

Barret's voice rang out louder than the rest for all of them.

They faded, slowly, as did the light.

Anger, sorrow, regret... The screams of millions of souls rang through the air like nothing they'd ever heard. They had failed, they had lost once more with the humans who twisted everything pure to their evil desires. Devastation and destruction. Life and death.

'My children... My children I am sorry...'

'My child, my child... I love you, I love you, I'm sorry...'

'No... No...' Careening, they screamed in unison.

'Our world, my world... It is broken.'

'Broken...'

The fiend, Toyori and Hiei dissolved in the intense holy light. The voice of Kiyoku screeched, fighting to be heard.

And like that, everything was gone.

Light billowed around them, slowly falling.

And amidst it all was Aerith, falling slowly to the ground, the light surrounding her flying away behind her.

Looking the true fallen angel.

---

Those last moments were so clear in his mind.

He would never forget them.

Whatever the cause and whatever the source, Sephiroth was filled with incredible strength and desparation as he watched Aerith fall silently, her eyes closed and her body swirling in the air... The light waved out behind her, creating the illusion of wings on either side of her body.

Standing, he walked as slow as he dared until he was beneath her, waiting to catch her.

When he did, he fell to the ground with her, taking great care not to injure her further.

No, no, no, no, no...!

Her friends, his friends, all stood back silently, tears streaming and their sobs muffled.

All he could hear, see, feel... Was Aerith. He brushed back her bangs and cupped her face gently after laying her out on the ground softly. He whispered her name once, twice...

He closed his eyes in grief when she didn't respond. He could hear her heartbeat gradually slow, becoming fainter and fainter with each passing second. In a last act of hope, he took her hand in his and quickly chimed the words for a cure spell. It was weak, but it was all he could manage.

Her eyes fluttered open and she breathed in deeply. Her eyes darted around guardedly until she met his gaze. She instantly calmed. He muttered another cure spell but her finger on his lips stopped him.

Her eyes filled with tears, but she smiled.

"Sephiroth, no..." She spoke softly, her voice sounding weak and raspy. "I can't..."

Sephiroth shook his head. "Aerith, this... Why did you do it?" His voice was equally as soft, but demanding, pleading.

She tilted her head and smiled brighter still. Her tears spilled down her cheeks as she looked up at him thoughtfully. "It was... All I could do." She breathed deeply and her eyes slid closed. Sephiroth felt his heart leap into his throat in sudden panic, but she quickly squeezed his hand in reassurance and opened her eyes once more, seeming to sense his dread.

"Aerith..." His voice broke and she herself crumbled into a mess of tears and sadness.

"Sephiroth, I had to do it. It was for you, for all of you." She continued and her heartbeat slowly began to fade again. She rubbed circles on the top of his hands soothingly. "You have to promise me something..." She cried, feeling her time slip away.

Sephiroth swallowed and his heart broke into a million pieces. "What?" He forced out.

She smiled and reached up to stroke his cheek lovingly. "This is your second chance. You have friends now and you have a life."

He closed his eyes.

"Live for the both of us."

With that, she leaned up and captured his lips in a searing kiss, filled with all the passion and love she felt for him.

It lasted not long enough for Sephiroth. She went lax in his arms and he quickly lowered her gently to the ground as every negative emotion possible to feel overwhelmed him. He didn't want to lose her, not now, not like this! Her eyes were just barely open and he watched her as she looked at everyone around the pair.

Tifa cried over Barret's body, her own shaking uncontrollably with pain and grief for her last father figure and for her dearest friend. Cloud couldn't and didn't look at Aerith, instead holding Tifa as she broke down completely. Yuffie was being supported by Cid and Vincent as she watched the scene unfolding before her in familiar horror. Red and Cait looked on sadly, Red's ears drooping and Cait having his faced turned away, unable to watch. Reno and Elena stood together on the side, both in shock.

Her eyes met with Sephiroth's last.

He would never forget the look in her eyes.

Her heartbeat stopped and her eyelids rippled closed as she whispered her final words.

"Seph, I love you."

With that, the only good thing in Sephiroth's life was ripped away from him and he fell into a familiar void of despair. One last breath was emitted from her body and he watched numbly as her body slowly dissappated into puffs of light, flowing into the air, dancing sadly.

With that, Sephiroth, for the first time in a long time, cried.

I love you, too.

---

AN: Oh my god. I can not believe that its over. I'm really just shocked. When I finished this chapter last night and sent it off, I was just... XD

First off, I have a couple thanks to give. My first and foremost thanks goes to GeneralDragon, Impolite and, for this chapter, Turtlerad17. Your continued work on these chapters or otherwise being their to motivate me to start this story at all and complete it is just... This entire thing wouldn't have been done without you. I owe you all. Secondly, thanks to all my reviewers and readers. Your words kept me going and you've made me entirely too comfortable with writing now! I love ya'll.

Thank you, all of you. I hope this entire story worked out to your enjoyment and standards.

I hope you all enjoyed -- I sure as hell did.

---

.The End.