Author Notes: I fail at updating, I know. Life in general bit me in the ass. Things have been sorted out, but this fic has gotten no easier to write. Enough of my woes, though. Hope a two chapter update makes up for the wait.

These lovely flashbacks will over around chapter six, I promise. By then, we'll be in the main plot. Yes. These chapters are all setup.

And Afficiando...once again, your praise makes my day. Dude, you rock, and I truly hope you're still keeping an eye on this.

Camping that night outside the Mythril Mines, Aeris had come to a conclusion that both reassured and unnerved her. Whatever they were tracking merely looked like Sephiroth; it wasn't the man she loved. While this eased her mind on how he could have possibly come back to life, and it somehow made the wanton violence (the Zolom impaled on the tree was going to give her nightmares for days to come) easier to explain. Somewhere inside her, she knew her perception of Sephiroth's personality to be skewed, but still...thinking about what happened in Nibelheim made her feel ill. And yet...whatever the thing they were following was...it looked like Sephiroth, had his strength... Not having an explanation made her nervous. Worse, no matter how many times she spoke with the Planet, pleaded and begged with it, it gave no word of explanation for current events. A night of sleep hadn't made things look any better, either.

Sighing loudly, she leaned back against the grassy ground, staring up at the morning sky. She wanted to return home, back to her flowers and her simple life, where mysterious warriors who looked like her love didn't exist, and couldn't trouble her. The sound of paws on grass alerted her to Nanaki's approach, and she smiled softly as the big cat curled up next to her. Even if life was frustrating and confusing right now, she loved her new friends. She relaxed, trying to pick out the constellations in the evening sky.

The silence was broken by Nanaki's quiet voice. "You are troubled." A statement, not a question. Was she that easy to see through? Or had Tifa been talking to the others? Somehow, she doubted that; Tifa was the kind of person you could trust, like a sister.

She blew out another sigh. "I'm fine, Nanaki. It's just...", she waved a hand in a vague gesture, "everything lately, it's so...confusing."

The feline sat up, peering at Aeris with his good eye. "It is upsetting, knowing that a hero is not what he seems."

Was that a note of bitterness in the cat's tone? Aeris sat up, glancing at Nanaki. "Nanaki? Are you alright? You sound a bit odd."

Turning his head towards her, Nanaki gave her a feline smile. "I'm fine, little sister." Glancing back at the camp, he ruffled his ears. "It seems we will be on the move again soon. Across the ocean, hmm."

As the feline padded back to the camp, Aeris stayed where she sat. Yesterday in the mines, the group had run into the Turks, and thanks to a new Turk (a girl whose hair was just as blonde, if not as spiky, as Cloud's) they knew Sephiroth was heading for Junon. Cloud and the rest of the group had finally agreed that Sephiroth's destination had to be somewhere on the western continent.

She glanced again at the rising sun, then back at the camp, where the rest of the group had just begun to stir. She had a little while yet before they got on the move again, she reasoned as she stretched out on the grass. Time enough for a quick fifteen minute nap, surely.

--

"...and there's the Big Dipper. I don't remember any of the others."

Aeris smiled and leaned back against Sephiroth's chest, feeling safe and content as the SOLDIER adjusted the blanket wrapped around them both. The wind had picked up some, and even on the lee side of the tent, the chilly sting could be felt. The blanket he'd wrapped around them helped keep them warm, though Sephiroth suspected Aeris preferred the heat from his body rather than the scant warmth of the blanket.

Silence fell over the camp, broken only by the crackle of the fire. She finally broke the silence, speaking just loudly enough for Sephiroth to hear. "Thanks Seph. This is the best present, ever." She meant every word, too. He'd brought her out of town for a camping trip, after a lecture from her mother about bringing her home safe, (Aeris still wasn't sure if it was more hilarious or embarrassing, the way Elmyra had lectured the General), and they'd spent a wonderfully quiet evening together. And he was doing it just because it was her birthday, and she'd complained about not being able to see the stars because of the plate.

"Aeris? You're not falling asleep, are you?" A hand on her shoulder, the gentle touch bringing her attention to the handsome man she'd fallen so in love with.

"No. Just daydreaming." She smiled as he slipped an arm around her waist. She supposed it would never cease to amaze her, how incredibly gentle Sephiroth could be. ...She liked him this way, though, even though he was so different from Zack. This felt different, in some way she couldn't quite define. It was a good kind of different though, and she didn't want anything to ever change.

"Good. I, uh, wanted to ask you something." The hesitation made her look back up at him, faintly surprised to see the light blush on the SOLDIER's cheeks. They'd dated for a year now, she thought he'd stopped stammering a long time ago. "I love you, very much, and I want to keep you safe. I... Aeris, I want you," he stopped for a moment, hesitating, and shook his head. "I'd like you to be my wife."

She was silent, trying to wrap her mind around what he'd said, as he continued talking, his smooth voice reassuring her as always. "Wife of the public's beloved general... Hojo wouldn't dare take you from me. I could keep you safe, and I'd never hurt you, I swear. Will you, Aer?" She turned around in his embrace, winding her arms around his shoulders as she kissed him.

"Yes." Somewhere in the back of her mind was the part of her insisting that she speak to the Planet first, or even Elmyra, but this felt so safe. Surely nothing could ever go wrong.