Nanaki was pawing the ground, nose stuck in the dirt. He was following the captain's scent, hoping they'd find Vincent with him. Thought it seemed odd he'd have the strength to carry him out of there. The lion-wolf's paw landed in something warm and sticky. He stepped back, sniffing the spot. "Blood." The other's stopped, watching him. Nanaki looked ahead to see more spots of blood, somewhat arranged in a trail. "This way." He took off along the trail, continueing to sniff the air, so as to make sure he was following the right one.

As they drew near, Tifa ran ahead of Nanaki, and dropped to her knees beside Cid's body. "Cid?" She rolled thepilot over, checking his vitals, only to find they no longer existed. "Oh, no." A hand came to Tifa's mouth, tears flooding her eyes. She bent over Cid. "No… not Cid too."

Cloud and Barret were already in the area, checking around. Reeve and Yuffie had recovered enough where they wanted to help search. But they were slow and had to lean on each other. They were both panting. Yuffie yelped, as she saw Cid, burried her face in Reeve's chest and started crying.

Reeve held the weeping ninja, staring in fixed horror. It was hard enough to try and believe Vincent was dead, but now Cid was gone too. He brushed the tears from his face, squeezing Yuffie tighter. "But, where's Vincent?"

As if pondering the same question, Nanaki was sniffing around the tree. "He was here." He sented the air a bit, then sniffed over at the mound. "And it almost seems like he still is… but where?" His paws pushed into the loose dirt. He sniffed, diggin a bit. "No… he didn't."

Cloud knelt down next to Cid. "I think he did." He held up one of Cid's dirt covered hands. "He burried him."

All eyes snapped to Cloud, then each fell on Cid in their own rate. Tifa glanced down at the lump of ground she was kneeling on. She gasped, jumping back from it.

"Can't we bring him back?" Yuffie squeeked, still clinging to Reeve.

A shy smile found Cloud's lips, and he shook his head. "No… I don't think we should."

The ninja seemed angry at this answer. "Why not!?"

"They're together." Cloud stated simply. "Cid promised Vincent's dad he'd protect him… that he wouldn't leave his side. That's just what Cid's done." Cloud brushed at his eyes. "It's how it should be."

Nanaki pawed the mound a bit. "I still can't believe he dug this by hand… in his condition."

"Wonder how deep it is." Tifa added, nearly inaudible.

Barret just stared from the pilot, to the mound of dirt. He briefly wondered if he should be ashamed that the first thing to cross his mind was that Cid couldn't help him with his arm. "I kinda wanna go get Vampy's coffin and stick 'em both in that hole."

All eyes fell on Barret, but Reeve was the first to speak up. "Wow, Barret. That's actually a good idea."

"Yea, well. What? Wait a minute, now. I ain't carryin that damn thing all the way down here."

"We could." Tifa stood, brushing off her clothes. "We can take Racer across to the cave, and carry it back on Tiny Bronco."

Cloud layed a hand on the head of the lion-wolf still pawing the ground. "Think you can dig the grave up again?"

Nanaki nodded. "I think so." He tried to smile, but the situation didn't help him.

Reeve wrapped his arms around the little ninja, who was hugging herself. She stared down at Cid, tears flooding her eyes. "Yuffie?"

Yuffie sniffed, wiping her cheeks.

"Why don't we get some shovels, and help Nanaki… ok?"

She gently nodded, letting him turn her around. Yuffie sort of agreed with the others. It would've been worse to see how Cid handled the gunman's death, but it still hurt. The brash pilot constantly swore at her, getting annoyed at almost everything she did, but he was like a father to her. He looked after everyone, and it wasn't gonna be the same with him gone.

Sure Yuffie was upset about Vincent, but really the only thing that hurt was that she never really got a chance to know him. All those long hours together in a room, she couldn't actually remember ever having an extended conversation with him. Just like she did… he looked to Cid to guide him.

Tifa placed a hand on Barret's shoulder, smiling. "That was a really sweet idea, Barret."

Barret shrugged, glancing down at the lion-wolf starting to dig through the dirt. "Yea well. Ain't right ta bury someone without a coffin. We can't just leave him out in the open like that." He jabbed a thumb towards Cid. His hand fell. Along with his eyes, back to Tifa. "And, I guess, it just don't seem right ta split 'em up, now."

Tifa just smiled, leading him back through the woods.

xXx

Deep in a lush forest, near the outskirts of Midgar, there roam two wild Chocobo. They don't seem to have any particular home to speak of. But if you follow these great birds through the trees, they'll lead you straight to a great Oak, from which you can hear the echoing sound of a nearby stream rushing across the rocks.

The two Chocobo nest beneath the tree, shadowed by the shade of the mass of intertwining branches above. Near the nest rests a large wooden cross, crumbling from years of wear and tear. Beneath this cross is a large mound of dirt, now overgrown with wild flowers. At the head of the mound, a small slab of rock. Carved from the mountains surrounding Wutai. The slab simply reads, 'Cid Highwind + Vincent Valentine Finally free to live.'

The birds guard their masters, as the lovers lay deep beneath the ground, eternally tangled in each other's arms.

--

AN:

i dunno anymore.... i wanted to write this out... i thought i knew whut i was gonna say, but then i guess i didn't. it wouldn't quite flow like i wanted it to. and if anyone can think of anything better to put on their gravemarker, i'd love to hear it