Ok ok, I know, too long for an update right? Would you believe me if I told you I got kidnapped by evil koalas and pandas? Didn't think so. Well i wrote the end of this in one sitting so it may not be as good as the rest because I didn't take the time to review it and think of alternatives. Hope you still like it.

Aeris was following behind Sephiroth at a far enough distance to avoid talking to him, but not far enough that's she'd lose sight of him. She was still too embarrassed to look him in the eye, or anywhere else for that matter. Thankfully he had put on his black coat so he was once again covered. Not that she was looking of course!

However in the last few minutes Aeris noticed that Sephiroth seemed to be walking slower because the distance between them was getting smaller. And she knew for sure, heck she made sure that she wasn't the one coming closer.

Maybe he was trying to make sure she was still behind him Aeris thought optimistically. Who knew, maybe he was going to try to talk to her and…

"Yeah and I am suddenly going to sprout wings and fly away," she muttered under her breath, kicking a pebble for emphasis. Quickly she glanced up from the ground to see if Sephiroth had heard her. She carefully watched his back and the swaying of his platinum hair, but he didn't seem to have heard her.

It hadn't really been weird, well any weirder between them since her little swim in the ocean. Sephiroth's last words to her were that they would visit a few stores in Costa Del before finally leaving. That had been the extent of their conversation. And then he had left her in peace to allow her to repack her scattered items.

Now as Aeris's eyed Sephiroth once again, she realized he seemed to be clutching his chest. Was it possible that his wounds were getting worse?

Embarrassment now forgotten, Aeris quickly jogged towards the silver haired man to walk beside him. Sephiroth didn't bother glancing at the little woman, but the second she was near him his hand dropped back to his side.

"Is something hurting you?" Aeris asked directly, looking at the spot his hand had rested only moments earlier. She couldn't tell if blood was seeping through because of all the black.

Sephiroth's head snapped to the woman with the big green eyes in unconcealed astonishment. However he immediately recovered and looked away.

"I am fine."

Sephiroth quickened his pace, wanting to put as much distance between him and the unusually observant Cetra. He refused to allow any sound to escape his lips as he forced his aching muscles to move faster otherwise his tiny companion would ask more annoying questions.

He had thought he was being inconspicuous but Aeris had proven him wrong. The effects of the contaminant were worse than he had anticipated earlier. There was an unusual burning sensation pulsing from his back and he knew that his immune system was losing against Magenta's toxin.

Sephiroth didn't allow his steps to falter as he gritted his teeth when a sudden burst of pain spread through his chest. However his arm shot up to clutch his chest once again in an instinctive gesture to alleviate the pain.

He hadn't noticed he had closed his eyes until he felt rather than saw a feather light hand touch his arm. That stopped him dead in his tracks. He opened his mako eyes and was taken once again by surprise for there stood Aeris, clasping his arm in her hands.

Shock and outrage soon forced all pain from his mind as he narrowed his eyes at the Cetra.

"What do you think you are doing?" he said, coating each word with layers of ice.

Aeris didn't seem phased by his cold demeanor. Instead she pointed towards a rather close tree.

"You were going to walk into that," she stated firmly, satisfied a little at his bewildered look.

"Hmph," he said as he crossed his arms over his chest causing him to wince a little. "That is impossible."

Now it was Aeris's turn to look bewildered. She mimicked the snobby General, allowing herself to cross her arms too. She smirked as she said, "The only way that would be impossible is if you could see through your eyelids!"

"I don't have time for this," Sephiroth growled under his breath as he resumed walking.

But Aeris soon stopped him as she placed herself in front of him, the set of her jaw clearly indicating that she was angry.

Sephiroth refrained from sighing out loud but nonetheless he didn't try to push Aeris out of his way. Instead he looked at her waiting for her to start reprimanding him for whatever she thought he was doing wrong. He could either fight with her and get angry or just be the passive one and conserve his energy to fight off the toxin.

"What is going on Sephiroth?" Aeris asked, a little nervous at the fact that she had used his name.

"Noth-," he began but was interrupted by Aeris.

"Of course it's nothing," she said, moving her hands around for. "I mean you are ghastly pale and your fever seems to have come back. And to top that all off, I am going to guess that you are in more pain than before and that the toxin is actually spreading. So other than that, everything is fine!" she yelled, chest rising and falling with each breath she took.

Sephiroth's eyes were visibly wider at her outburst but Aeris didn't notice as she huffed and turned to walk away. He had expected her to eventually blow up with anger and frustration but he hadn't anticipated it could have been over something as trivial as his injuries.

Needless to say, the walk back to Costa Del Sol was once again in complete silence, this time Aeris in the lead and Sephiroth walking slowly behind, his mind a little confused by his companion's actions.

Once in Costa del Sol, Aeris's anger was replaced with mortification and a little guilt. Who was she to tell the "Great General Sephiroth of the Shinra army" how to deal with injuries? He is a military man, used to all sorts of wounds and pain. The healer in her sometimes took over and she just had to help no matter who was injured, even if it was Sephiroth.

Aeris twirled the tip of her braid through her fingers as she waited for the General to come out of the item shop. She was a little nervous waiting for him outside because she didn't know where the Seraphim could be hiding.

The many people on the street barely glanced her way for they were too busy with the impressive sights and sounds of the city. For once she was glad that no one paid attention to her.

Sephiroth meanwhile was in the backroom of the store, furiously trying to stop the violent shaking of his body. It was through sheer willpower that he didn't fall to the floor. His hands gripped the exposed iron pipes on the barely structured wall. Rusty squeals could be heard as his strength was slowly ripping the metal from the wall. Finally Sephiroth let go of the support and groggily walked towards the wooden closet in the corner of the dingy room. The owner of the store and him had come to an agreement a few years ago. Sephiroth rented this single room from him to store his extra equipment and items. The silver haired man was thankful that the owner didn't ask any questions and accepted his money with a just a grunt and a nod.

Deftly, he took out the mastered cure materia and focused on its green light. He felt the magic's warm presence spread through his body but then, just as Sephiroth thought the powerful spell was working, he felt the warmth brutally recede and disappear, leaving him as he was before.

"Damnit!" he yelled before throwing the orb against the wall. The materia hit the surface violently and then loudly landed onto the floor. Sephiroth's unnatural green eyes glared daggers at the useless piece of crystallized mako. Even with his superior strength, Sephiroth barely scratched the green materia's surface and he badly wanted to destroy it for its ineffectiveness.

Mastered materia usually had usually worked at curing him of any attack by the Seraphim, including their poison. Sephiroth sneered as he realized what they have done. They had finally found a way to weaken his unique immunity.

"Those bastards!" the General began to swear wholeheartedly. How dare they do this to him? But he'd be damned if he let them win. He swore decades ago that no one and he meant no one would ever control him again. He was the only one who would control his strength, his mind, his power!

His anger began to ebb away as he tried to think of how to stop the flow of the toxin in his blood. He needed to be logical. The Seraphim must have found a way for their blue liquid to be able to infect him. Before it had barely made Sephiroth tickle, but now it was practically invading him.

There had to be a way to stop it.

A single name came to Sephiroth's mind as he wondered who had the knowledge to help him. A rare smile formed on his lips when he realized that he could take care of two chocobos with one stone. They needed to get to Cosmo Canyon fast.

Aeris kept looking both left and right to try to see if anyone was about to sneak up on her. By now a good half hour had passed since Sephiroth had entered the shop and so her paranoia has had time to grow. She could swear she had seen at least 20 Seraphs. But then again she doubted they would be wearing swimming suits, and very colorful ones at that.

"Are you ready to go?" came a voice from in front of her.

Aeris was about to yell for help when she realized it was none other than Sephiroth. Dear Planet if he could sneak up on her from the front, then she shouldn't even bother to see if anyone was doing so from behind. She rested her hand over her beating heart and nodded her yes.

Sephiroth took the lead and walked calmly in front of her. Aeris now recovered from her shock noticed that Sephiroth didn't carry anything extra from the store. So what had he been doing in there for so long?

Her curiosity begged to ask the question to the man in front of her, but her survival instincts were telling her to let it go. She didn't want to have to be stared down by him right now.

As they approached the gates, Aeris became more and more nervous, expecting at any moment to be caught in an ambush. However as she watched Sephiroth, she relaxed when she didn't see him armed or even alarmed at anything. Peacefully and silently they passed through, no one screaming bloody murder and pointing at them.

No one stopped them for papers or asked questions although there were several guards and soldiers around the bustling tourist town.

At last when Aeris couldn't see the outline of Costa del Sol did she feel her tenseness melt away. Aeris knew that they would be walking in silence again, and she didn't really mind. But the trip from Costa del Sol and Cosmo Canyon was considerable. Mustering all the courage she could, the young woman managed to ask her first question after a half-hour walk,

"Sephiroth, how are we going to get to Cosmo Canyon?"

"There is a chocobo farm not far from Costa del Sol."

Aeris smiled a little at that. It was nice to know that there were more chocobo farms around now.

"And how far is that?" she asked.

"Not far."

Sephiroth thought that if he answered her questions with a few mono-syllabic words, she'd get the subliminal message. However that hope was quickly squashed.

"And what is your definition of far?" chirped a feminine voice from behind.

Why did she enjoy talking so much, Sephiroth furiously wondered. He could go for entire days without needing to talk to anyone, why couldn't she? Maybe it was the Planet's way of torturing him for his past. Well the Planet did have a knack for punishment, almost enviable really.

"It is just over that hill, now be quiet!" Sephiroth said through clenched teeth. The pain was becoming unbearable. Aeris could tell he was trying to hide it from her, but she was a healer born and bred, and she could recognize the signs. She had almost suggested that he use his flying abilities to carry them to Cosmo Canyon at first, but she knew that he didn't have the strength to do so anymore. Something the young woman didn't think the General would want to be pointed out. His wounded pride might not be able to handle that.

The farm was indeed not far, as the duo reached it within minutes. Aeris did the talking because she wasn't sure if Sephiroth was in the mood for people. She was able to get two yellow chocobos for a good price. It had been a little weird seeing the black clad Sephiroth on such a hyper yellow bird at first but she had gotten used to it.

The large birds galloped across the plains to finally slow down and enter the forest that surrounded Cosmo Canyon. Aeris kept throwing glances at her companion trying to see how he was doing. All she saw was his impassive face as he stared ahead. How was he was he able to keep such a straight face when he was in so much pain, she couldn't begin to fanthom. Finally the deep brown sands of the canyon appeared once out of the forest and Aeris knew that they were close. A vague smile crossed her lips as she remembered the first time when she had visited this place. Such good memories.

Sephiroth halted his chocobo and deftly jumped off letting go of the reins. It was the signal the bird had been waiting for and without a second glance, turned and ran off, back towards its home. Aeris followed Sephiroth's lead and let herself slide off the bird's back. It too quickly followed its comrade.

The Canyon still looked the same. The caves were still very much there, and a few more were present to probably accommodate newcomers. There were more people around, however none seemed too worried about the two strangers who had just arrived in their village. The eternal flame was still burning bright, a good sign if she ever saw one.

"Well what now Sephiroth," Aeris asked as she looked around.

Sephiroth slowly walked towards a young man and leaned down to whisper something in his ear. The youth's eyebrows shot up as he nodded vigorously at the taller man. Suddenly he ran off towards one of the caves and entered.

Both Sephiroth and Aeris stood near the entrance as if waiting for someone. Since Sephiroth wasn't making a move to do anything, Aeris didn't feel like exploring Cosmo Canyon on her own. Aeris kept staring at the door the young man had used, expecting him to come out any minute but nothing happened.

As she was about to question Sephiroth, she noticed he was looking up, way up, at the top of the canyon. Aeris wondered what was so interesting when her eyes were attracted by movement.

A large, reddish brown beast was jumping from cliff to cliff as it came closer to the pair. Aeris was alarmed at how fast it was moving and wondered if they should get ready to fight to protect the residents of Cosmo Canyon. She wanted to scream out for them to run however Sephiroth didn't move as he continued to watch the animal approach. She wondered why he wasn't more alarmed.

Suddenly something caught Aeris's attention. The tip of the beast's tail seemed to be glowing, almost as if it was on… fire! This wasn't possible! Tears welled in her eyes as she clasped her hands together, hoping that it was who she thought.

Sephiroth watched the young woman from the corner of his eye as she smiled brightly at what she saw. He had never seen her so… happy. But why was she crying? Didn't people cry when they were sad?

Finally Aeris couldn't take it any longer and she began running. Sephiroth watched fascinated as she laughed and ran and cried towards her friend.

"Red! Red!" Aeris yelled with arms wide open.

The running animal grinned as much as he could when he saw his companion from long ago. His flame swung back and forth as he ran rapidly to meet Aeris.

Finally Aeris fell to her knees, allowing herself to be on the same level as Red. When he was within reach, Aeris didn't waste a second in grabbing him and pulling him towards her. She hugged him as tightly as she could and Red didn't really care that it almost cut off his air supply. He was just as delighted to see her as she was him. Rapidly he detected the salty smell of tears.

"Aeris, you don't need to cry," Red XIII gently whispered into her ear, putting one of his paws on her shoulder.

"I thought… you were…," she hiccupped. "All dead."

A little noise formed in Red's throat which Aeris felt rather than heard as she had her head nuzzled there. It seemed it was the Nanaki equivalent of saying in human words 'there, there'. Red moved so he could watch the young woman, his one eye looking intently into her green ones.

With a smile he said, "In a way Aeris, we are all very much here."

Aeris nodded, knowing that Red probably meant that as long as they remembered their friends in their hearts, they would always be here with them.

As delicately as he could, which took years of practice, Red swiped his paw across her reddened cheeks to wipe away all those tears. Aeris couldn't help but giggle at the gesture and felt better by it. Suddenly, a long shadow loomed over them, as if an eclipse had swiftly formed in the sky. However Red easily got up and walked over to it.

"Hello Nanaki."

"Sephiroth, it's been a while. I was expecting you yesterday," replied Red calmly. Aeris blinked several times, confusion plainly written on her pretty features. They knew each other?! Since when?

Red had his head up, black nose high up as he sniffed the air.

"You smell different Sephiroth," Red stated apprehensively.

"I assumed so," came the General indifferent reply. Red nodded his head slowly in silent understanding. They both knew what it meant without needing any additional explanation.

"So you've begun the change," the giant beast concluded, a low growl forming near the end as if the last words tasted bitter on his tongue.

Sephiroth's jaw merely tightened in response, but he nodded curtly in acknowledgement.

"What do you mean? What change?" Aeris asked, looking back and forth between animal and man, more confused than before.

Both looked at her, Sephiroth's cool gaze looking impassively at her while Red's eyes seemed saddened. Suddenly Red's ears perked up as he asked somewhat incredulously, "You didn't explain to her what is happening?"

Finally looking away from Aeris, Sephiroth shrugged his broad shoulders.

"I never got the time for some reason," he said, emphasizing the word reason.

Aeris had a suspicion he was talking about her.

"That's right," she mumbled angrily under her breath. "Blame it all on me you silver haired freak of -"

"Aeris, are you listening?" Red was asking, his paw touching her knee to get the Cetra's attention.

The young woman immediately found herself blushing. She hadn't even noticed Red approach her as thoughts of doom on a certain General's ego crossed her mind.

"Come, let us go drink tea," Red invited his new guests as he set off towards the caves. "We have much to discuss and do."

Aeris frowned her dainty eyebrows, "Since when do you drink tea, Red?"

The red animal looked at her and chuckled, "One of the few good things Cid Highwind taught me on our many travels together."

Aeris immediately lowered her head, allowing her long bangs to shadow her face as a pang of sadness crept into her chest. She hadn't thought of it before, but what had she missed because of her death? Avalanche, her friends, must have done so many wonderful and exciting things over the years she had been absent. Did they ever think of her? Had they wished she had been with them to laugh? Did they remember her years after she was gone? How had their lives been like?

No, she couldn't let herself think of that… it hurt too much. And it wasn't fair to them. She was, had been, dead. It was only natural for people to heal and ultimately forget. Had Cloud forgotten her, a little voice in her head immediately asked.

A lone tear slid down her cheek, but she furiously wiped it away. She was angry at herself for thinking such thoughts. They were her friends; they would not forget her voluntarily. It's just that it felt like everything had happened a few days ago for her, not a century. Gaia, what would she have done if she had to live through that century and see everything happen? She wasn't sure if it would have been more painful or if it would have been a comfort to her to see her friends live their lives.

She looked at Sephiroth and wondered for the first time since all this began, how had that century alone affected him? Well she assumed he had spent it alone. After all, when one wants to become a God and fails, one doesn't suddenly get social skills for the creatures he was trying to rule.

"Cetra! Will you stop staring at me?" Sephiroth exclaimed, not even bothering to turn his head. It was odd, but he could always tell when her green orbs were watching him.

"I am sorry."

It took Sephiroth a while to fully digest the few words he had heard.

"For what," he finally asked looking straight ahead as they calmly followed Nanaki through the mazes of hallways inside the canyon. "For refusing to go to Cosmo Canyon by wasting our time at Costa del Sol thus trapping us inside the city with the enemy or for calling me, what was it you said? Silver haired freak of…? I didn't catch the last part."

Aeris's green eyes widened considerably when she realized he had heard her. But when he put it that way, it sounded sort of funny. Aeris tried very hard not to snort as she held in her laughter. Sadly for her, Sephiroth noticed her struggle.

"That wasn't meant to be funny," he said, glaring down at her.

"Aeris," Red interrupted. " I took the liberty of making you fake papers to make traveling easier for you. I hope you don't mind," Red said.

Aeris smiled her thanks at the large beast, grateful that she didn't have to worry about going to jail once again. It was nice to have that load off of her mind. Suddenly Sephiroth silently fell to his knees, his hand clasping his wound. Both Red and Aeris were at his side immediately.

"Sephiroth? What's wrong?" asked Aeris, worry evident in her tone. Red was looking at Sephiroth knowing full well that they didn't have much time.

"Aeris I need you to go find someone to help carry him to one of the rooms," Red saw she was about to protest so he quickly added, "You must hurry!"

Aeris's eyes showed fear as she nodded, but she immediately set out on her task. Red watched her go for a minute, making sure she was out of sight before he spoke to Sephiroth.

"There is not much that I can do Sephiroth and I think you know that," Red said regretfully.

Sephiroth's long silver bangs covered some of his face, shadowing his eyes but Red could clearly see the pain he was in.

"I know," Sephiroth whispered as he tried to breathe evenly. "The pain I can deal with, I just need it to stop spreading… for now."

Red's eye widened as he realized what he was asking of him. He couldn't be serious? However the set of his jaw showed that he intended to go through with it. Lowering his head, Red sighed. Time had just been cut very short for their plans. Inching his face towards so that he could better see his eyes, Red began,

"You do realized that you will eventually –," but he stopped as he heard Aeris shouting,

"Come on hurry, this way!"

The eventual sound of footsteps was also heard as Aeris and two individuals came into view.

Sephiroth and Red looked at each other, no words needing to be spoken. They both knew what had to be done.

So there it is, the new chapter. Oh please be gentle!! When will there be a new update? Only the god of pina coladas knows.