Written for the prompt 'Stargazing'

Tifa clutched Cloud's hand as the rumbling intensified, as the walls reverberated and the deck juddered under her feet. Vibrations ran through the padded seats as she glanced at Cloud. He looked pale and stared dead ahead. The second time was not easier than the first it seemed. Or was he nervous because of that experience the first time around? Ahead of her Cid glanced over his shoulder at the two of them and smirked. "Ready for this?" His voice crackled over the headset.

"Is is too later to back out now?" Cloud asked. Despite being sat right beside her the noise in the cabin drowned out anything except the intercoms.

"Seriously?" Cid glared at him. Cloud shook his head and CId looked at her. "How about you? Still want to go through with this?"

Tifa nodded and Cid spouted some jargon on the radio channel. A confirmation from the ground crew and then pressure. The noise became louder and a crushing force slammed her back into her seat. Nothing visible ahead of them but endless blue sky. Were they moving? They should be ascending from the launch pad at Rocket Town, but from here she had no way to tell. When did the blue fade into black?

Hard to believe they were here. Two years after development resumed on the space program and the project got something close to back on track. As much as he tried to hold even this world together, Reeve had long since had his eye on a more distant future. Probably helped that Cid bent his ear back more then once about the possibilities offered by space flight and exploration. Maybe it had been Reeve's idea alone. No matter; they were here and present at the launch of the Shinra-28; the start of a new era.

A pity the rattling and shaking were not conducive to this seeming like a good idea. Shera shouted something over the headseat, the detail lost in the cacophony. Was that bad? Cid roared something back, but then both of them seemed at least calm. Nothing exploded, they did not drop to the ground, but the pressure did not slacken. Tifa tightened her grip on Cloud's hand; he responded in kind.

And then- The pressure lessened with degrees, though a new worry accompanied it; they were tipping. No longer was the rocket pointed straight up, but they were tilting back on themselves. If this continued, they would fall out of the sky or shoot right back to the ground and a messy ending.

Somehow they did not fall. And somehow the tilting stopped. The rattling faded and the roar of the engines quietened. A constant chatter between Cid, Shera and the ground crew became audible. Somewhat comforting; everything seemed to have gone as planned and as expected. If the times they quoted were to believed the experience had taken scarce moments. Tifa fidgeted as her stomach felt odd. The last time she felt anything like this had been on a rollercoaster at the Gold Saucer. More moments; the sensation did not seem to be stopping any time soon. And she was not actually sitting on her seat anymore. She was floating.

"Welcome to space kids!" Cid shouted.

Shera unbuckled herself and pushed herself over to the two of them, catching handholds with nimble grace. "You both okay?" she asked.

"I think so," Tifa said. She took a deep breath and held it, willing herself not to be ill.

Shera grinned. "You'll get used to it in no time. Right, Cloud?"

He grimaced. "Hopefully."

Shera undid their harnesses and guided them both to handholds. "Take in the view while we get things sorted." She shot them another grin and pushed herself back towards the controls. Tifa gripped the handhold as she floated. A bit like swimming. Without the water. She turned to the nearest window; the Planet floated beside them, vaster than she might have imagined. Bugenhagen had once shown Avalanche their world from out in space, but his holograms paled in comparison to seeing it for herself. Rocket Town must be down there somewhere.

Tifa pushed herself from the bulkhead, aimed at the other side of the rocket. If one side faced the Planet, then the other- Her movement was slower than Shera's; something to bear in mind for future - she needed to push with more force. The view was of a sea of stars beyond anything she had ever seen before. The skies in Nibelheim had always seemed clear contrasted to MIdgar where the perpetual haze over the city hid what little the plates did not.

But even the remote reaches of the far North had not allowed for a sight like this. Familiar stars shone with a remarkable intensity. There were far more than she could ever see from the ground. Cloud thumped against the bulkhead beside her a moment later and she took his hand again. Together they stared out into the infinite universe.