Chapter Three: Secrets and Inquiries
Aralyn awoke in an unfamiliar room. The plain but comfortable bed she was on had a thick, cotton quilt, which was matted around her from her unconscious tossing and turning. The curtains had been drawn closed, but some light spilled in where the two fabrics did not fully meet. A small lamp was on a table by her head with a few other trinkets: a chocobo figurine, some stray books, and a phone. Photographs, decorative paintings, and children's sketches were tacked to the walls in no particular order, adding a homey feel to the otherwise bland room.
She slowly uncurled herself, feeling her stiff muscles stretch. Her arms unwound the blankets from her body and for a moment she sat up, dangling her feet off the side of the bed. Her head swam, and she quickly laid back down to stop the room's spinning.
Tiny, rapid footsteps sounded from just outside her door. A small head peeked in the room and wide, dark eyes examined her. "Oh, you're awake!" A little girl skipped into the room with a small stuffed moogle in tow. She reached up and wriggled her way onto the bed beside Aralyn, sitting cross-legged and smiling.
"Hi!" she chirped.
"Hello," Aralyn replied, managing a smile though she lacked the enthusiasm and energy that the girl had. "What's your name?"
"I'm Marlene," she said. "And you're Aralyn?"
Aralyn nodded her head, and that was all the confirmation the little girl needed. "Cloud and Tifa talk about you a lot." She continued. "You and Sephiroth."
The comment was made idly, but it hit Aralyn hard. She hoped the shock didn't show on her face. "What are they saying…about us?"
"They're just wondering why he attacked you. I mean, I'm not surprised. This is Sephiroth we're talking about. He wants to make everybody go away."
Aralyn quietly hummed an affirmative, sitting up in the bed again.
"Do you know him?" Marlene asked, her voice inquisitive and slightly accusing.
Aralyn laughed bitterly. She wished Marlene had asked her a simpler question. Sighing, she simplified the answer into one that the young girl would understand. "No, Marlene," she said. "But I know of him. Tell me, what's he like?"
"Bad," Marlene said. "Very bad. He's so angry at the planet that he wants everyone to die. He killed a lot of my friends. He tried to kill everyone. But Cloud stopped him twice, so it's okay now. Cloud won't let him hurt you anymore. He'll stop him as many times as it takes for Sephiroth to really die." She fiddled with her moogle's pompom, adjusting it so it fell over the forehead. She didn't notice how Aralyn had gone stark white in response to the last thing she had said.
When her friend was properly groomed, Marlene turned back to Aralyn. "What's that around your neck?"
Instinctively, Aralyn's hand flew to the chain, hiding it in a tightly clenched hand. "Nothing. Nothing at all."
Marlene frowned, then shrugged. "Okay." Downstairs, a small bell rang, and the girl jumped to the floor. "Cloud's back! Come and see!"
Aralyn did not follow. She sat and listened to Marlene and the others cheerfully greet Cloud. They sounded happy – like a family – and it created a great ache in her chest.
She sat for a long time, listening, listing to herself all the reasons why she shouldn't go down. She didn't want to interrupt, and she obviously wasn't a part of the family.
And what would they say when they saw that the wounds on her arms and face had already healed? There weren't even scars – there was no sign at all that she had even been injured. They had disappeared overnight.
Just as they did every year.
She knew she couldn't hide – not for long – but she stayed where she was to enjoy a few more moments of peace before the inevitable interrogations began.
She stroked her hand, where last night a long gash had split her palm. She knew that she had been blessed to heal so quickly, but listening to the family downstairs, she was reminded that in a lot of ways, many wounds still remained.
Two silver-haired brothers sat deftly on the windowsill of the second-floor window, the shorter of the two eagerly looking in.
Kadaj, the younger brother, laughed. "That's it? Given the circumstances I had expected someone more…well, worthwhile."
"I don't pretend to understand it either."
Kadaj tilted his head to the side, pressing his face closer to the glass. "What do you think of her, Yazoo?"
The elder brother shook his head, distractedly fingering his gun-blade. "We shouldn't be here."
Kadaj shot his brother a look of irritation. "Oh come on, you wanted to see as badly as I did." He returned his gaze to the window.
"If Sephiroth finds out you were here—"
"He won't! Stop being a spoil sport. Come on! Take a peek." Kadaj moved over a few feet, making room for his brother on the sill. When he did not come, Kadaj returned to his original place, staring in childlike fascination for a long time. "Such a plain, ordinary creature." His face furrowed, his catlike eyes flashing venom green in a burst of fury. "Disgusting," he seethed.
Yazoo leapt from the sill, landing on his feet without as much as a whisper of sound. "We have to get back." He did not wait for his younger brother to follow, and began to start up his motorbike.
The sound startled the girl in the window, and she looked around in fright. Kadaj did not try to conceal himself, only grinned widely, hoping she could see his eyes, his hair. Judging by the look of horror in her eyes, she did.
Pleased with his work, he followed his brother, getting on his own motorcycle and preparing to ride.
"She saw you, didn't she?" Yazoo asked accusingly.
"Let her think about that for a while," Kadaj laughed. "It's not like she won't be seeing us soon, anyway."
Yazoo frowned. "You speak treason," he said before he sped off into the city's alleys.
"No, brother," Kadaj purred with a smile as he watched his brother disappear. "It's you that's the traitor."