(A/N) Okay. Possibly the fastest update ever! But the power was out and Fan fiction was acting funny so I decided to type. And I really like this chapter. It's a little jumpy but then again, so is Cloud. I also noticed I'd originally made him sixteen and then somewhere along the lines he'd turned into a cadet, not a trooper, and he was fourteen in my mind. So I'm going back through and fixing that through edits. Sorry. But I got too used to him as a cadet, so now he is. Anyways, enjoy it. Oh! And I also don't own Final Fantasy VII or even claim to. For if I did... Zack would probably still be alive.
--
I blinked a few times before deciding that I wasn't going to get back to sleep. And what a weird sleep it was. I would be in the pit of a volcano one minute and then stranded on an iceberg the next. Possibly one of the weirdest dreams I'd ever had. And I couldn't help but think that someone was there with me the entire time. I think it was that blonde man again. The one that always told me these weird things that I never remembered once I woke up. Come to think of it…
"Where am I?" I asked rolling around under the tightly tucked blankets. I couldn't get out. And I could barely move my arms under them. I wasn't even going to bother with my legs. I was mummified!
I panicked for all of a second before remembering I was on that airship. And surprisingly enough, my motion sickness wasn't kicking in. So either we weren't moving or this thing traveled really smoothly. I was gonna go ahead and assume the latter. Either way, I wanted to get out of this bed! It all felt like a worthless effort. No matter how much I wriggled and tried to kick the restraining blanket refused to give. I kinda wanted to call out, but if I did, I got the feeling that I still wouldn't get anywhere. But mostly if Tifa answered.
More than likely, she'd do that mother thing they all do and tell me I wasn't well enough to get out of bed. Even though I was!
I suppose I'd just have to be patient and work my way out of it. And depending on who tucked these in, it could end up taking hours. If I wanted to exaggerate. I just hope it wasn't Zack. But with my luck it probably was.
I'd also slightly lost my concept of time in here and there was no clock. So I had no idea how long I'd been asleep. I could guess and seeing as how I was fully rested, I'd say I got around ten hours maybe. That was how long I used to sleep. And in the barracks I only got half that. So I felt the best I'd had in a while. I actually felt alert and ready to take on the challenges the day threw at me. Well… some of them at least. And assuming it was day.
"Ah! Finally!" I said realizing that a few minutes of thrashing had gotten me free.
Happily, I swung my legs out of the bed and sat up. And to my dismay my feet still didn't touch the floor. Why was I so short?! I soon found that it was a good thing though because if they had, I would've stepped on Zack… who for some reason was sleeping on the floor. Why was he sleeping on the floor? He should be in the bed. Not me.
And with the full intention of putting him in the bed, I got out of it and knelt down next to him. Then I was unusually cold. And then I noticed out of the corner of my eye that my shoulder was exposed. I looked over and saw that my entire upper body was exposed as well. Quickly, I looked down to make sure that my lower half was still clothed. I was very relieved at seeing that it was, but my pant legs were rolled up to my knees right about. I was half naked!
Who did that and when did they find the opportunity to do it?!
"Why am I…?"
"You were sick with a fever. That's why." I heard a familiarly low voice say.
"Mr. Val…"
"Stop." He said walking up and covering my mouth. That wasn't necessary. "Just call me Vincent."
Call him Vincent? It'd feel awkward but if he wanted me to, I guess I could get used to it. I mean, I felt the same way when Zack told me not to address him as a superior officer, so I suppose this wouldn't be too out of the question.
He took his hand off of my mouth and then, "Vincent." I repeated back, just trying it out then made a funny face. I could tell I had a stupid grin on or something because he raised a brow at me. I couldn't help it. Saying his first name was so… so… different. But at the same time it felt so right. It kinda felt as though I'd done it a thousand times before but at the same time, not. It was a jittery sensation almost. Jittery didn't seem like the right word but I couldn't think of any other word to use. But whatever, it made Vincent happy… sorta.
At least I hoped he was happier than usual.
Then, I watched him pick Zack up off the floor effortlessly. He didn't seem to notice at all that he was being held up. Geez. He must really be out of it. That or a very deep sleeper. If that were the case then it sounded really funny to me. You'd figure SOLDIERs would be more alert than that. I thought so at least. Purely based off of things I'd heard. They say that the General could be fast asleep and be woken up by the tiniest sound… I hope that's only if he's alert and trying to hear something. I didn't really know much. And I was always too… well… I never felt like asking Zack about things like that. But occasionally I would and feel like a stupid fanboy. I couldn't really watch myself though. They always just… slipped out.
I looked back at the gunner and realized he'd put Zack on the bed. But I don't think he was going to leave him there.
And then he walked up to me, completely ignoring my personal boundaries. He even had the audacity to take a firm hold of my arm. "H-hey! What do you think you're doing?! Get off!" I stammered. And I knew he wasn't exactly on me. But… I just hated it when people got so close!
"Calm down." He said pulling me closer. "I'm just checking your temperature as instructed." I stayed quiet until he removed his glove. Then I couldn't hold in the nervous whine. He was making this more awkward than it had to be! "Honestly Cloud, you were much easier to take care of unconscious." He groaned putting his hand to my forehead. There was a moment of silence. And then he took his hand off my forehead, only to begin stroking my hair a bit too familiarly. I didn't really like it, but I'd wait it out and see if he'd stop on his own. That and I really didn't want to see what would happen if I snapped at him again. And I knew he wasn't like the boys back at the barracks. So I trusted him without doubt.
I thought that way, but after two minutes and he still didn't stop I got a little antsy.
"V-Vincent? What are you doing?" I asked in that stupid meek way.
"Sorry…" He said after a few seconds. Then he finally let me go. What the heck was that anyway? He's never done that before! Sure, he hugged me earlier, but he didn't do THAT!
"Umm… It's okay…?" I answered unsure. I didn't exactly know if I was okay with it. But I was gonna say so. As I said. I didn't feel like dumping on this guy.
And as expected, he picked up Zack again and started walking toward the door. "I'll take him to another room." I wanted to ask why but I got the answer before I could. "You shouldn't be on your feet. So can I trust you to go back to bed on your own?"
I nodded, put a hand behind my back, and waited for him to leave the room. Once the door closed and I heard him walk down the hall, I revealed the hand that I had put behind my back. My fingers were crossed. Childish, I know. But it wasn't like I was going to kill myself staying out bed. Besides, what he didn't know wouldn't hurt him. "Go back to bed, as if!" I scoffed.
So I waited for a couple more minutes to be sure that he was going to be gone. And while thinking about it, I almost felt bad. He must've trusted me enough not to come back and check. So… wouldn't this be betraying his trust? I still wasn't going to go to bed, but I kept in mind that gaining back his trust would be difficult if I got caught. Then again. If I got caught, I was gonna run. Not far, but I was determined to give them a run for their money. And if they were persistent, I guess I would just spend the rest of the day in here. Perhaps they'd even give me something to do while I was being treated like a prisoner.
--
It didn't take me long to retrace the path that Tifa had taken me through. So at least I knew my way to the airlock and the bridge. But I wanted to know what other places there were on this ship. So I decided to explore a little bit and play the avoidance game. And if I was spotted, there was the avoidance maneuver to go along with it. Soon I was almost hoping someone would see me; once I got up enough confidence to think I could outwit them. Come to think of it, this would be a good chance to show them how just how useful I was. Maybe then they'd stop treating me like a porcelain doll.
"Not likely…" I sighed looking out a window. The landscape wasn't moving. So… I guess that meant I wasn't sick because we weren't moving. Dang! I was really hoping this thing wouldn't give me motion sickness. There was still a chance it might not but it was slim.
"Wait a minute." I gasped. I could see mountains in the distance. "I know those mountains." I said trying to get a better look through the window. Yup! Those were the ones. Nibelheim was just beyond them. That meant I was close to home! Wow, this thing must've gone fast! But not exceedingly fast. By the position of the sun I'd guess I'd slept until noon today after being up until about… ten or eleven last night. That was fourteen hours of sleep! Wow, no wonder I felt so good.
There was no time to dwell on that now. I could hear footsteps coming down the hall that I'd just come from. "Crap." I whispered and pressed myself against the wall behind me. Not even daring to jeopardize myself, I sidled away from the mouth of the hall and tried to turn each knob on each door until I found an open one.
I slipped inside the room without even looking at what it was. Beggars couldn't be choosers after all.
Then I did my best to stay quiet until whoever it was passed me by. But they didn't. They stood right in front of my door and it sounded as though they were tapping their foot. Probably waiting for someone. I myself looked around the room I was in. Just to try and find some place to hide. Luckily, there were plenty of options for me. This room was just full of crates. So I scrambled around quietly and opened a few. All of them had something in it until I found a woven one that had nothing inside. There was a leather strap and buckle holding the box closed previously. But it looked like someone had already undone it. It'd have to do, even though it looked small. But that was just another advantage of mine. Because of my small stature I could hide in places the other boys couldn't. I could also cram myself into places that people would think too small for a person to fit normally. But this would be no problem.
I did have to fit myself a bit uncomfortably in order for the basket to close. But once I'd adjusted myself a bit I was completely fine with it. So then I only had to listen. It didn't take long for the other to show up. It must've been Vincent.
"Vincent…" I heard Tifa ask. So it was Vincent. "Did you fond him?"
"No…" The gunner answered.
"Oh… where could he be?"
"I'm not sure. But he must still be on the ship. Cid didn't see him go out the airlock." Vincent sighed.
"You're sure you told him not to wander off?"
"I told him to go back to bed as you told me." There was a pause. "I thought he'd listen."
"Well there's no time to worry anymore. We've just got to find him." Tifa said a bit cheery.
"You wouldn't figure a sixteen year old would play games like this."
"I don't think he's sixteen." Tifa said confused and thinking.
Uh… yeah! That was giving me two years too much credit! If I were sixteen, I wouldn't be a cadet anymore. Geez. How much of a failure did these people think I was? I was fourteen.
"Zack said he was pretty sure he's sixteen. Either way, he's too old for these games."
"Now, now Vincent." Tifa said in an almost scolding tone. "Let's try to be a bit more understanding. This might not be a game to him. He's probably scared I mean he still hardly knows us after all. I'd be a bit frightened too. Just try and remember the situation he's in."
Scared? Maybe… but not of them. I felt as though if they were going to hurt me, they would've by now. It's not like they'd have to wait until I was weaker or weaken me themselves. Besides, they all acted friendly enough. Even Vincent and if any of them were scary, it'd be him. There was no warmth about him. He certainly was cool. But he wasn't approachable. And he didn't seem like the sentimental type. Nope. His personal boundaries were widely set as well. Even if he had no problem invading others.
"Maybe you're right…" Vincent answered after some thought I suppose.
What?! I'm not afraid of them! I just don't wanna go back to bed!
"And if not, if it's a game of hide and seek he wants, it's what he'll get!"
"Tifa…" Vincent sighed a little annoyed.
"Aw, c'mon Vincent! We've done things more ridiculous than playing a game of hide and seek. And we've got to do something to kill the time." She complained. I guess she just wanted to get some feeling of nostalgia. Because if that were somehow Tifa, the one I knew anyway, hide and seek was her favorite game as a kid.
There was a loud crash as she swung the door open to the room I was in! Unfortunately for me, I swallowed a lump in my throat and that almost got her attention. I could see her through a wider hole in the weave of the basket. She was facing in my direction and looking around at the crates. She opened the first one I had selected and looked disappointed when I wasn't in it. My heart raced as she went through and got steadily closer to mine!
I panicked slightly when her hand reached for the lid of my basket. Everything seemed to slow down and I held my breath to keep from gasping. There was a thud and I could tell her hand was on it. I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes. But that didn't stop me from hearing the lid slowly being lifted. At that point I looked away.
"Tifa!" I heard the other man's voice call.
Instantly, the lid was dropped and she stepped away from me.
"Cid." She answered. "Did you see him anywhere?"
"See who?" Cid replied. I thought it might be a joke, but he sounded too serious for it.
"Never mind." Tifa sighed. "Is Zack awake?"
"Nah! Why would he be?"
"How long do you think he'll be asleep?" Vincent asked. I heard him begin to walk away but Cid must've stopped him.
"Who knows? Now why are those one the floor?" Cid answered walking into the room. I heard two more loud thuds and then he left the room shutting the door behind him. Everything else was a muffle as they walked away. I waited briefly and then decided I should switch positions and move on.
"Huh?!" I pushed at the lid with my hands and kicked it, but it wouldn't budge! "No!" Cid must've put two full crates on top of the basket! "Ahh!!!" I screamed, not caring if someone heard me, as I kicked it violently. "No! No! No!" I was trapped!
--
It hadn't been long since they'd left, but in my state of panic it felt like hours. I'd stopped screaming and kicking at the lid a few minutes after I'd discovered I was trapped in the basket. I'd even considered breaking through one of the sides. But I decided not to chance it. I didn't have the proper tools to do so and if I unbalanced anything the two heavier crates would crush me before I got out. So I went to just wondering how long it would take for them to find me. Hopefully not days.
My panic hadn't improved one bit a half an hour later. I was actually close to tears dammit! I wonder if they knew I was here and this was just my punishment for not doing as I was told. Why else would Cid randomly decide to stack those crates? I didn't like this. Maybe I should be afraid of them if they were going to treat me like this! "Calm down." I told myself. There was no proof that they knew I was in here and were simply being cruel out of spite. But there was evidence against it. The biggest example being Tifa. She wouldn't let them do that to me and she didn't stop him. So they couldn't have known.
"Maybe Zack will wake up and find me." I sighed. But that really could end up taking days! I couldn't last that long! I was getting hungry and I hadn't had a drink in a while! Three days and I was toast!
I tried with all strength not to cry, but the twinge of pain from the woven basket digging my bare back set me off the edge. Reclaiming my place as the weak crybaby. Thankfully nary a tear was shed, like I thought would happen, instead I just whimpered like a dog crying. That was either good or worse. "Somebody hurry up and find me!" I called out.
"Hold on…"
"What?" What was that? It sounded like another girl. But where was she? I looked around in my basket trying to see the entire room outside, but there was no one wherever I looked.
"Help is on the way…" She said in the happiest voice I'd heard in a while. The mere sound of it made me feel better. Her tone was very pleasant and comforting. It sounded more sisterly than Tifa's maternal tone. Either way I was content with the sound. But when she didn't speak again, all I had to go on was the memory. I wished she would speak again. I willed it to happen, but I got no response.
Feeling downhearted, I went back to waiting. If she was right, somebody would come and let me out of here. I wonder who she was talking about.
I waited, and waited, and waited… but this help didn't come as swiftly as I had hoped.
Then finally the door flew open, I looked for my savior in the streaming light from the window, but all I saw was dark. The door was open, but I saw nothing else in the room. Just black. I thought it must've been a mistake and my mind made up the noise but then I heard two familiar thuds next to me. I kicked the lid off the basket and sat up trying to see who let me out.
But no sooner had I looked that I was blinded by black once more. I saw a silhouette in the doorway for a millisecond and then strips of black attacked my face!
Once they fell to the ground I jumped out of the basket and ran to the door. "Wait!" I called.
I heard nothing but rushed footsteps down hall. Then there was silence. Whoever had helped me apparently didn't want a thank you. But, "Thank you…" I said anyway in the direction they had run off in.
I hissed a bit because of the scrape my back had gotten from a poke in the woven structure. But it wasn't as bad as the bite, the bullet wound, or the bruises of yesterday. Which, from a quick look at my arms, had not gone away; what else did I expect? I thought rolling my eyes.
When I turned back to shut the door, I paused. The black that had attacked my eyes were feathers. I giggled getting a vision a chocobo coming to my rescue. That's what it looked like. There it was; a pile of downy like feathers, and even some flight feathers. It fit… sorta. I mean, these could've gotten in my face when I kicked the lid up, making it ruffle its feathers as it ran away. The two things that didn't fit were how a chocobo would pick up crates and the human silhouette I'd seen in the doorway.
It couldn't be a bird. But what kind of person leaves feathers behind?
"Bizarre…" I sighed picking one up and putting it in my pocket. Now that was bizarre. But the feather was pretty and I wanted to keep it. Another thing that people use to compare me to a bird all the time. So yes, I like pretty and shiny things. Who doesn't? Honestly, who doesn't?
I still really wanted to know who the winged person was…
But I pushed those thoughts out of my mind and focused on my task at hand. Which was… to find Tifa and get her to make it all go away! I didn't want any of this! I just wanted to go back home! Screw the army! I couldn't do this! "Shut up, you're only a cadet!" I told myself. Sure I didn't feel ready now, but that would change once I got my full training and knew what I was doing out here in the world.
I still really wanted find Tifa though. I needed the motherly feeling that she was so good at delivering.
So I started on that first little quest. And, not knowing where to start, I walked in the direction I'd heard them leave about forty five minutes ago. Just a hall with doors, some of them open, some of them not. It looked like their search might've gotten a bit more frantic than before. I went full circle back to the bridge. That's when I saw them. I was so happy I started running, but then I stopped at the sound of an angry voice.
"Fuck, we searched everywhere! Where the hell could that scamp had run off to?!" That was obviously Cid. "I swear, next time why don't you just lock him up?! Post guards! Then you won't lose track of the piece…!"
I shrunk back a little. His words were a bit frightening and plain unnecessary. The other's silence made me think they agreed with him.
"Cid, we're all anxious…" Vincent finally spoke. "But don't talk about him in that manner."
"Damn it! I know!" The angered man answered. "Geez! I'm just so pissed! When I find him I'm gonna lock him in that room and throw away the key!"
I took a few more steps back. They hadn't noticed me yet. So I still had time to run away, but… tell them no Tifa. Please.
"Cid…" She sighed. "I think you should stay here. Vincent and I will go find him. And we're NOT locking him up." She said sternly.
"If we can't get him to stay put, we may have to." Vincent threw in. Tifa almost glared at him and so did I. "Listen, Tifa…"
"No!" She blurted out. "You have to think of him! Locking him up will only frighten him!"
"I know. But it's not to frighten him. It's for his own good." Tifa looked as though she were about to scoff but he still went on. "I mean it. If he makes a habit of wandering off… that'll be to his advantage."
She stopped and thought for a moment and then lowered her head. That told me that she thought he was right. No!
"Why the hell are you still bothering with this 'he' business?! Just say Se…"
"There he is." Vincent said cutting the pilot off. They all turned in my direction.
"Ah!" I squeaked realizing I'd been spotted.
"Grab him!" Cid shouted trying to run out. But he was stopped by Vincent, thank Gaia. After that I heard something along the lines of, 'He's gonna run off again!' But my focus was on Tifa, who had walked out and was headed right for me. Whenever I felt she got too close I would take a step back. I wanted to run to her, but I couldn't. They were going to lock me in a room. Why?! Vincent was wrong! I wasn't stupid! I was so torn I could feel my eyes warming up for it. The tears started to gather once she spoke.
"Cloud, it's okay." She said reaching her hand out to me.
I stared at her, then her hand. She didn't look like she was going to do me any harm. But I didn't know what to think. I stood still as long as she did and when she advanced, I leaned back.
"Hurry up and grab him Tifa!" Cid shouted anxiously. "We don't have time for this!"
That was enough to make me jump back. Everyone jumped actually. Not to mention both Vincent and Tifa looked back at Cid angrily. Which he responded to with an 'oh geez!' face, but I didn't feel like laughing. Or becoming claustrophobic. So I ran for it! Only difference this time being that Tifa came after me. So now I couldn't stop and find a place to hide!
I didn't want to be locked up. I didn't care if it was just in that bedroom. I hated being trapped! The guys loved locking me in rooms! Either all alone for hours, or with somebody for a few minutes. I could never get what kind of sick joke they were playing on me, but I hated it! Darn it! Just remembering it made me lose it for real this time. I could feel the warmth running down my face.
"Cloud!" Tifa shouted. "Stop! Nothing's going to happen!"
I shook my head and kept on running. She was sounding just like the guys when they ran me down. That was all I could think about now. They always caught me eventually, but why hadn't she? I figured she'd have me by now.
--
A few minutes went by when I'd reached a heavy, metal door unlike all the others. I couldn't recall how we ended up here, but I didn't waste time in opening it and running inside. I kicked it as I began to run again but I don't think it closed completely. Not soon after I could hear Tifa pushing it open again and following me inside. Gaia she had stamina! And sadly I was losing mine. I hadn't exactly calmed down yet either. I was still afraid, though I hated to admit it. So much for not being afraid of them.
"Cloud, we shouldn't be in here." She whispered slowing to a walk.
I came to a halt in front a big piece of machinery. Finally getting to breathe, I looked around. Whoa… when did we get all the way down to the engine room? This place was amazing! I'd forgotten my fears for the moment. But I was still wary of her. I was fascinated by all of the mechanisms down here, but that didn't mean I was going to let her get me from behind. And I doubt she would. Since she was so cautious she didn't dare run, and I was a few meters away from her, so I'd say I was safe for now.
"Cloud, c'mere." She said taking on a brisker pace.
As soon as she spoke I took on a greater stride as well. I wasn't so sure I'd be able to keep it up though. She didn't give me hardly any time to breathe. However, my determination was great at this point. I didn't want to relive what they called "seven minutes in heaven", and I knew being locked up in a room would send those moments flooding back. All I could say for now was: that was not heaven! So, having that in mind, I decided I would find somewhere in here to hide. It was a good spur of the moment plan. I could find a place while pretending to look around at the gadgetry. Preferably some place small, where she couldn't reach me.
I didn't even know why she was being so cautious. It wasn't like these things were unstable. If they were, they'd be making a lot more noise than this. I suppose if I bumped into to certain ones they'd start having trouble, and a few of them had the ability to scald someone's flesh. But there was really no reason for keeping a walking pace in here.
There was a place for me to crawl in to just ahead. I wouldn't stay for long, I just needed to breathe. And hopefully she would get discouraged and leave me alone. But that chance wasn't very great. She cared too much, and for someone she hardly knew. I guess that's a good trait to have in this particular situation. But… I just really didn't want to be locked up with guards posted. That was a little much considering this was my first offense.
I suppose she was confused when I got down on my hands and knees, but as soon as she saw where I was going she broke her walk and sprinted over in an attempt to catch me. She'd like to have known that she caught me, but I was already too far away when she reached her hand inside the crevice.
"Cloud, come out please." She said trying to reach further.
"No." I answered quite bluntly. If she thought I was gonna come out just because she asked nicely, she was dreaming.
"Cloud, we didn't mean any of it. We were just nervous that you'd gone." She said solemnly.
Now she was going to pitch that? "I don't believe you." Why should I? Vincent's remarks were contrary to hers. And she was still sounding just like the guys. There was nothing she could say without sounding like them really. It was ridiculous, but after the few moths or so that I'd actually been there, they'd pitched everything to coax me out of places. Not that it really mattered because nothing much happened after they got me out of my hiding places. Mostly they just wanted me to hang out with them, but I didn't like to because they didn't treat me very nicely when I did. They'd start out fine and then they'd push me around and trick me into doing things that made the Captain angry. But I always tried my best to keep my dignity through it all. I only cried in front of one of them, but I wasn't going to get too far into that. I hated that memory.
"At least come out of there and get a shirt for yourself." She sighed. I knew she was just worried about me, but I couldn't. I was thinking too much about the guys who shared a cabin with me at the barracks.
All too quickly she leaned back and steam flew out from behind me. I yelped at the small burn I received and scrambled out to get away from it. That shouldn't have happened. It was almost like someone was pulling strings to force me outta there. And in light of all that had been happening, I suppose that could be true.
"Oh, Cloud." Tifa said grabbing me. I stayed still in a daze. How did she get me? I crawled out far away from her. I didn't even here her step toward me. "Oh no, you got burnt. I thought you might've." She continued on as if the event beforehand hadn't happened. All I could think about was how I now had a burn to go along with the scrape on my back, the bite, the bullet wound, and the bruises. Why was I getting hurt so much? I knew I was clumsy, but not this bad. The bruises were because of me, but all of the others were from the craziness occurring around me.
I hissed when she brushed her fingers across the burnt spot conveniently right between my shoulder blades. It wasn't too bad though, I just wasn't ready for it. And hopefully it'd be gone in a few hours. I knew the scrape would go away soon, but the bullet wound and the bite still throbbed if someone touched them. The bruises were never much trouble. They only ever began to hurt if they were poked. Which I had done before. It wasn't because I was masochistic like people accused me of though. It was because when bruises got that way it wasn't a sharp pain, it was a dull, numbing pain that was always so interesting to me.
This wasn't right. I felt as though I didn't have as many self inflicted injuries as usual. Normally I'd get at least two accidental injuries each day. They never lasted long, but I found it weird that I hadn't tripped yet. And that made me anticipate when it would happen. I got the feeling it would happen soon.
"… Cloud?" I heard Tifa ask. I snapped away from my wound journal and stared at her. She was going to tell me that the burn was bad… wasn't she? "It's not as bad as it could've been, but we should still put something on it." She told me as though I were eight. I didn't care though. At least it wasn't going to torture me for days as I feared it would. "Do you want to talk about anything?" She asked.
"No." I had nothing to talk about. And I knew all too well that she wanted to know why I ran off like that. She wanted me to talk about all the things the guys did, I suppose, and just spill my guts to her… maybe I would when I knew her better, but now? No. I didn't want her to know about any of that. I didn't want anyone to know about any of that.
"Okay, but I think you should know that we were just anxious, honestly. I wouldn't let them do that, and I doubt they would. It was just hard having you run away and disappear."
"But Cid said…"
"Cid doesn't ever mean what he says. Not when it's like that. He just sounds… angry when he's nervous about some things." She answered.
All of this was exactly what I wanted to hear. It sounded too good to be true. But a part me believed her and I could feel myself begin to calm down a little. Some of the thoughts of the guys vanished, but not all of them. The nagging memories that liked to attack a person when they were weak lingered.
"What about what Vincent said?" I asked in a paranoid tone. Vincent meant what he said after all. He told her that himself. And he didn't sound anxious when he said it. So why would she lie to me if he was telling the truth about that? She couldn't know for sure his words were false, could she?
"Vincent's a little… hard to read. But his intentions are good." She reassured me… sorta. "He just wants to keep you safe." I suppose that was true. But his method sounded a little extreme. "I know it sounds bad, but someone has to keep an eye on you. And that will be Zack whenever he's awake. He won't allow anyone else to if he's able, trust me. And I don't think Zack would like the thought of locking you up inside a room like that."
"Zack huh?" I guess he was who I'd pick if I had to. The thought of Zack made all of the memories disappear. He always had such a positive effect on my mind.
"Yeah. He needed a little help, but he took care of you when you were sick last night. He was up until early morning watching over you. So he's not so bad, right?"
I shook my head. He really wasn't. I think I'd even prefer him over Tifa. Sure, he was dopey, but he… I dunno. "Aw man." I muttered. To my embarrassment, I could feel the blush flare up when I thought about the SOLDIER.
"You need to get some new clothes I think." Tifa said after a minute.
I looked down at the clothing covering my lower body. It had blacked from the greased metal in that crevice I'd crawled into. And I think some had spilled out onto the floor. So now the blue pants of my uniform were speckled with blackish-brown blotches. If my Captain had seen it, I'd get a whack from his nightstick for sure. It was disgraceful.
"Are there any?" I asked shrugging off the last shreds of doubt. The only thing I doubted now was if Cid had any clothes my size.
"I'm not sure. But it wouldn't hurt to check." She said helping me up. We kept a slow walking pace up until the door to the room. Along the way I even began to question myself as to why I reacted the way I did. I thought back on it and skipped over all the flashbacks. With those out of the picture, there really was no reason for the action I took. I still felt stupid for acting that way. Nothing was going to change that. I regretted it. I'd made myself look so weak and childish in front of everybody… except Zack. I think I may have died of embarrassment if I had.
Once we got out the door we took a normal pace down the hall. I had no idea where she was taking me so I had to stay close by her side or behind her. And eventually after walking almost all the way back to the bridge, she stopped. I watched as the door opened and saw piles of cloth. She started pawing through it as I watched. All the while she was sighing, probably because she was finding nothing.
"Okay, I didn't want to do this but…" She said after practically twenty minutes. I had a pile of cloth shoved at me and then I was led down the hall again to the bedroom I was in before. "Change in here." She said pushing me inside and closing the door.
I just stood there for a moment and waited to here the click of a lock… but I didn't. I couldn't believe after all of that I thought I may have been tricked. She wouldn't do that to me. So I just walked over to the bed and laid the pile on it. "What didn't she want to do anyhow?" I asked myself as I undid my pants and pulled them off. I briefly wondered where all of the belts and leather on my uniform had gone, but I saw them in the compartment under the nightstand. So I went back to my business and discarded the grease covered pants onto the floor. Once I searched for the new pair in the pile I got what she was talking about. "Seriously?" I muttered in disbelief. I sighed and slowly closed my eyes.
The pants… were girl's pants…
So was one of the tops. What was she thinking? "Oh well." I told myself and pulled on the pants she'd given me. They were black denim and kinda tight fitting. They were even boot-cut?! "Aw, c'mon!" This was so bad! But at least they weren't too, too tight in the crotch area. If that were the case I would not wear them. I still had some dignity. And since it was so darn convenient, I put my boots back on. After that I put on the woman's top. It wasn't much, just a black long sleeve shirt. It matched the pants. Now was the last piece of the ensemble left on the bed. What was it supposed to be?
"You can't be serious!" I called through the door.
"I'm sorry. It was all that would fit you." Tifa answered back.
If that was the case, I had better wear the whole thing. The last bit of it was a grayish-black vest with white thread visibly running down it in complementary areas. It was a good thing that my boots were dark brown; otherwise they wouldn't go with the rest of it… not that I cared. Then, rolling my eyes, I took my filthy pants over to the hamper and found the other missing pieces of my uniform inside.
"Are you all finished?" Tifa asked. I groaned in response, I didn't really want to come out. I was dressed like a girl. But I didn't want to stay in here either. So I grudgingly opened the door and dragged my feet walking out. Tifa just looked me over in complete silence. "I know you're unhappy about it and this is the last thing you want to hear right now but… You look really cute in that."
"Do I really have to wear this?" I asked.
"Yes. I'm sorry. But everything else was too big." She answered a bit oddly. "Now I guess we should go back to the bridge." She said walking off down the hall once more.
I trudged along behind her. The bridge?! I couldn't believe she was making me go to the bridge dressed like this where everyone could see me. That was the worst thing she could've made me do at this point! I really didn't want to follow her, but I had nothing better to do. So I walked as though I were condemned to death and braced myself for humiliation. The emanate laughter and poking fun. Why did this stuff always happen to me? I felt as though I had been previously targeted for all this. Now she was practically showing me around like my mother used to.
--
The trip to the bridge was a quiet one. I didn't really have time to talk while going through the preparations that were necessary to survive these situations. You know. The kinds of defenses that had to be enforced to block all of the awkward feelings and jokes. This was all so I may have even the slightest chance of making it through this mess with even a shred of dignity. But nothing was guaranteed. I may not live another day if I wanted to be melodramatic.
"So how is everything?" Tifa asked walking in.
Cid caught one glimpse of me and started off like a rocket. "Cloud, I'm sorry, I didn't mean all of that stuff I said earlier." He said genuinely. I don't think he'd seen what I was wearing yet. But that protection didn't last. He stopped and stared for a moment and then flung his head back laughing. "Those are Sherra's clothes!" I had to listen to him go on and on without being able to defend myself whatsoever. At least Vincent wasn't laughing. He was just looking at me like I was weird. "So! Cross-dressing again, Cloud?!" I heard Cid remark. I raised a brow at him.
"Again?" I asked. I wasn't going to count any of the times that my mother had done it to me as a toddler and, as far as I knew, this was the only other time I'd done it.
"Cid stop." Vincent finally spoke. "We don't have time for this. We have to leave if those people are going to have a chance."
We all watched Cid try and get control over himself as he went over to start the ship. As soon as the engines started and the ship jerked into motion, my motion sickness acted up and I almost puked again. Tifa put a hand on my shoulder and rubbed my back as soon as I hunched over. "Ahh…" I groaned after it didn't get better. I stumbled out the door and slumped against the wall. Nothing was helping! I figured I'd better go lie down and tried to stand up. But once I did I lost my footing and fell against the airlock. After that everything happened so fast I didn't know what to think. All I knew was I was falling!
I blacked out for what felt like a second and then I was on the ground. Quickly I pushed myself up with my arms and got into a sitting position. I looked up into the sky and didn't see the ship anywhere. My breathing quickened greatly just at the thought of being stranded. But not wanting to believe it, I glanced around to see if the ship had landed. It hadn't. I was so confused. I wasn't hurt, so I couldn't have fallen far. "W-what happened?!" I shouted.
All I could think was that I must've accidentally opened the airlock when I fell against it. "That'd be perfect for my luck!" I cried standing up. What was I gonna do?! I was a bit closer to the mountains than before, but I couldn't cross those without a weapon. Did they even know that I was gone?! If they did, why hadn't they come back for me?! What would Zack think?! No! No! This was fine! All I had to do was stay where I was and they would come and find me.
"Yeah. This is good." I told myself. There was no need to panic. I just had to wait and hope they'd come back for me before night and I froze.
And as usual, my luck wasn't going to let that happen. I could see some dust rising in the distance. But what could it be? A monster? That'd be just great. But no. It was just some men on chocobos. I squinted trying to get a better look at them and saw one was swinging something. Then he whipped it forward and something came flying towards me! "Ah!" I tried to jump out of the way but I was too late and I felt a big rock collide with my head.
I was flung backwards onto my back and just laid there. The two of them rode up and stopped next to me. Then I heard a loud slapping sound.
"Geez, Herb! It was a boy not a bird!" I heard an angry voice shout.
"Really?!" There were some scuffling sounds and then there was a shadow looming over me, getting closer. I just stared straight up at the sky. Something warm was running down the side of my face and it was coming from where the rock had hit me.
"Hhhnn…" I whimpered feeling everything getting fuzzy. And I tried to focus on the bearded face now staring down at mine. This man must've been around Cid's age because of the crow's feet around his eyes. He also didn't look groomed.
"Sorry lil' guy." He said apologetically. "Saw yer hair and mistook ya' fer a chocobo. Stupid me tried to catch ya'." He laughed. "You alright? Yer bleedin'."
"Ugh…" I groaned before everything went white.
--
(A/N) Poor Cloud. Just trouble, trouble, and oh! More trouble. Hopefully things will get better for him soon. I dunno. I suppose I could give him a break. Anyways. Hope you liked it enough to leave a nice review. I wonder if more people would review if the button was shiny and sparkly.