Chapter Seven

Despite the constant noise filtering through the gapped floorboards from the chocobos in the pens below, Cloud slept in longer than he had for a while. Maybe it was a feeling of safety, maybe it was familiarity – after all, a chocobo farm in the middle of the plains was much closer to the small village setting he'd grown up in than the bustling city of Midgar. He knew that he'd lived in Midgar for some time, but his memory of it was very patchy. It was patchy full stop, but some things from his childhood just stood out. The smell of animals shuffling in a barn was one of them, although he didn't think they had chocobos in Nibelheim. In his hazy memory he thought of something… bigger. He resolved to ask Tifa about it.

Genesis was lying on his back on his makeshift bed, just a heavy blanket thrown over a pile of straw. He was staring up at the morning light filtering through the gaps in the roof above them. Whilst he wasn't making any noise, he had a general air of discontent.

Cloud stretched with a yawn, unsure of what to say to Genesis. He didn't really know what to make of the redhead. Angeal he felt a lingering affection for that he knew was born of Zack's association with the man. Sephiroth… well, that was a mess best left alone. But Genesis he drew a blank on. He didn't really have a lot in common with the SOLDIER and next to no memories of him either. Even as he reflected, something triggered in his mind… black feathers? But no, he was probably associating Genesis with the winged Sephiroth as they were both SOLDIER First Class.

The rustling from the chocobos below suddenly increased in noise and enthusiasm, with happy 'warks' called by several. The sound of the barn door opening explained why, along with a girl's voice calling out.

"Settle down! Come on, settle. That's right, you too. You'll get yours in turn." Buckets banged and the noise slowly ebbed to the contented sound of chocobos eating.

Not bothering to check that Genesis was following, Cloud headed down the old wooden stairs. The girl, that Cloud recognised from dinner last night as Chole, was pouring something from a bucket into a feed tray at the far end of the barn. It was arranged with an aisle straight down the middle, chocobo stables on either side. When he'd entered the night before there had been several curious beaks pointing out at him, but now there wasn't a sign of them.

"They're all eating," Chole told him as she walked back down the aisle. She was dressed in some form of maroon uniform, probably for a school Cloud realised. Feeding the chocobos must be one of her early jobs. "There's breakfast up at the house for you and your friend," she told Cloud, looking from him to the stairs. Genesis stood on the top two stairs, one knee bent and his arm resting on a roofing joist. "I gotta go now, but grandpa says you're stayin' the day, right?"

"Uh, yeah." Cloud answered when he realised Genesis would only glower.

"Ok, see you later then!" With a quick wave she dropped the bucket near some others clustered in a pile and shot off out through the large double doors that opened out onto the farmyard.

Cloud shrugged up at Genesis before also heading outside. Blinking at the bright sunlight, he realised Chole was talking to a young man wearing a cowboy hat who was leaning over a railing into a paddock full of chocobos. One of which, upon seeing Cloud emerging from the barn, screeched and ran at the railings.

"Whoa there!" The young man said, raising his arms to fend of the charging chocobo. "Calm down, little guy."

The chocobo stopped but didn't seem to relax, calling over and over while rustling its downy plumage.

Cloud walked over and stretched an arm into the paddock. Immediately the chocobo rubbed against it, calming almost immediately. Stretching its long neck, it reached over the paddock to grasp a few strands of Cloud's hair in its beak.

The man raised an arm and scratched the back of his neck before tilting the cowboy hat back a bit. This gave Cloud a better view of him; hazel eyes with laughter lines at the corners shone out of a tanned face, chestnut hair held back by the hat an affable expression. "Hey there, I'm Billy. Grandpa said this one was a bit fond of you, but I didn't quite believe it 'til now."

"Cloud," Cloud introduced himself, his general sober expression completely undermined by the cooing chocobo still playing with his hair. "That's Gen." He gestured towards the SOLDIER, standing a few metres away with his arms folded and a grumpy expression on his face.

"Righto! Good to meetcha, grandpa says you'll be helpin' us out today?"

"Sure."

"Well head on into the house and get something to eat first, can't be working with the birds on an empty stomach." Cloud nodded and with a final pat stepped away from the chocobo. A pained wark had him pausing.

Billy had taken off his hat and was scratching his head. "You really are attached, huh?" He said to the chocobo. "Well how about I get you something to eat while he's gone? Then you can play with him afterwards." Relieved that Billy had it in hand, Cloud continued walking towards the main ranch house.

Tifa was already sitting at the breakfast table with Bill when Cloud entered. Genesis had gone ahead of him and was nursing a mug as he leant against the counter.

"Hey." Tifa said with a smile. "Come on, it's still hot." She gestured to the plate of steaming buns in the centre of the table. Cloud nodded gratefully and grabbed a couple.

"Where's Aerith?" He asked.

"I'm here!" The brunette called as she entered. "I hope you haven't been waiting long."

Bill took a final swig and banged his mug down on the table. "Well, I gotta get going. Chole'll be off to school by now. You finish on up and come find me when yer ready."

"So!" Aerith turned to Cloud. "How was the barn?"

"Fine." He replied with a shrug. "We're nearly ready to go."

Genesis dropped his mug on the counter. "Yes, let's go and perform menial tasks for substandard accommodation." He marched towards the door, throwing it open to let in the bright light.

"Oh, someone got up on the wrong side of the bed today." Aerith sang as she grabbed a roll and followed him out. Tifa gave Cloud a quick look of fond exasperation before they did the same.

Genesis's mood didn't noticeably improve throughout the day. Bill certainly managed to put them to work, cleaning out chocobo pens and sweeping the yard before clearing out an old barn. That was particularly hot, dry and dusty work, as the barn had been full to the rafters with old farm machinery and other useless junk. Cloud and Tifa had done most of the heavy lifting – something that hadn't helped Genesis's ego and subsequent mood at all. But once Aerith had snippily told him to 'sit down and stop undoing all my hard work' he'd had no choice but to comply. Instead he was relegated to cleaning out the muck afterwards, sweeping up dust and cobwebs and all manner of other things. The arrival of an enthusiastic young chocobo with a preference for blondes, once he'd been released from his pen, really didn't help matters.

Suffice to say, when they finally finished somewhere in the middle of the afternoon, covered in dirt and sweating hard, all tempers were a little short.

"Let's stay a day and help, she said. We can afford a day here after making up so much time." Genesis thumped himself in the chest, hard, coughing at the cloud of dust that emanated. "I hope you are happy now."

"It's not what I expected to do…" Tifa grimaced as she looked at her filthy top. "But we do owe Bill something after he helped us out yesterday."

Genesis huffed and crossed his arms across his chest.

"Well, it was nice to be doing something different to walking for a change." Aerith's tone wasn't quite as upbeat as usual, as she looked around the grumpy faces. "This wasn't so bad, right?"

Cloud shook his head, a small smile threatening to break loose. "Don't look at me, I'm just a merc. No job too big – or small." The chocobo warked in agreement.

Tifa finally looked over at them both with a tired smile, giving the chocobo a gentle scratch on its neck. "So where does this rank against finding Betty's cats?"

Cloud snorted. "No comparison. I'll take this any day."

"Hey!" The quartet looked over to see Bill's granddaughter Chole headed their way. "Great job on clearing out the old barn, we'll be able to build more stables now! We've put on the boiler so you can all get clean and Grandpa's found you some old riding outfits you can use for the night while we clean those."

"Oh thank goodness," Tifa stood up and stretched out. "Lead the way."

Another hour and they were all clean and dry, dressed in loose trousers and matching shirts. The clothes were in a range of pastel shades; when asked, Chole had explained that they were from a time when the family used to race chocobos at the Gold Saucer before they started to focus on breeding for other people. Cloud didn't have a clue what the Gold Saucer was but Tifa and Aerith seemed to accept the explanation, Aerith going as far as to ask questions about it excitedly.

"The Gold Saucer?" Genesis murmured quietly, so that only Cloud could catch it. Cloud shrugged and sent Genesis a blank look, to which the redhead nodded sagely. "Something new then, I assume." Cloud privately agreed. He'd missed a lot over the last few years.

Dinner was an informal affair with just the small family, before Cloud and Genesis said goodnight to the girls and clambered back up the stairs into the barn for the night. Cloud was relieved to settle down onto the straw bed, he might be enhanced but even he had pushed it today with all the heavy lifting. The groan that Genesis couldn't quite suppress told him that he wasn't the only one.

The next day dawned misty, but it soon cleared. When Chole came into the barn to feed the chocobos, she also brought their clean clothes back for them.

"Nice to meetcha," she called with a wave as she headed back outside. "Don't be strangers. You ever need to know about chocobos, come find us again."

Billy was waiting for them in the barn, trying to hold on to an excited chocobo. On seeing Cloud, he released the bird who made a beeline for the blond. "This guy wanted to say bye." He grinned at Cloud, before scratching the side of his head. "Course, he's really fond of you. I'd let you take 'im, but he's too young to be put under saddle yet. Come back in a year or so and we'll see if he likes you just as much."

Cloud grunted as he shoved the affectionate bird away from his face. Billy laughed as he got hold of him again. "Yeah, real fond. Still, maybe it's a phase. Thanks for helping us out, yesterday." Much to the chocobo's evident dismay, they walked away into the barn.

Cloud frowned at the gleam in Genesis's eye. "Don't." He said warningly. "Just don't."

"I don't know what you are referring to," Genesis replied. "All that awaits you is a somber morrow…" He smirked at Cloud, who huffed in response.

Chocobo Bill was waiting for them with Aerith and Tifa at the outskirts of the ranch. "Now I'll show you where to find 'em birds, and how to catch 'em. But your gonna need a lure." He tossed a purple orb of materia their way, that Genesis snatched out of the air and inspected closely. "Ya'll can keep that 'un, it ain't mastered though. Just keep feeding it a bit and the birds'll come straight to ya."

"Thank you," Tifa told him gratefully. He ducked his head and tipped his hat to cover his blushing cheeks.

"Ah, be on wi' you. Now where are you wantin' to head with them birds?"

"Oh, we're going to the Mythril Mines," Aerith told him. "We need birds to cross the marsh right?"

Bill chewed on a piece of straw as he looked them over, eyes lingering on their impressive arsenal of weapons. "The mines, huh? Well, I guess you look more prepared'n most I see." Flicking away the straw, he started to walk out of the farm. "The safest route through that there marsh is at the southern tip. Head to the mountain over there, see?" He pointed south-west, to a distant range. "Go down there are then follow the mountains west, you'll reach the edges of the marsh by nightfall. But don't make the mistake of thinkin' you can cross 'em at night." He glared sternly at Genesis and Cloud. "You rest and go tomorrow mornin', you hear?"

Cloud nodded. "Sure."

"Right then. Now, to catch a chocobo you've first gotta find one…"

Finding and catching chocobos was not a simple challenge. The first, Bill managed to catch for them very quickly and easily. He boosted Aerith up onto the seat with a wink and then merrily told the others "Well now I gone and shown you, time for ya'll to do some work!"

It turned out that Bill had made it look deceptively easy. With a backdrop of his guffaws, which could be heard from where he was standing with Aerith on her mount, they first failed to find chocobos. Then, when they did find them, they failed to get anywhere near them. The first time they did get near a bird, it pecked sharply at them before running off. The second bird that allowed them within a fifty metre radius glared sharply at Genesis until the SOLDIER, realising he was outfaced, sensibly backed away.

After that, Genesis relinquished the lure materia and they sent Cloud in alone. It turned out that he had a hidden talent as a chocobo soother, able to get up close to the animals and coax them towards him. Unfortunately, he utterly failed at being able to get the halter over their necks the first few times he tried. He was so intent on untangling the rope halter that he didn't realise that he was still powering up the chocobo lure. Not until a curious 'Waaark?' from behind him coupled with something pecking at his harness made him realise that he was surrounded.

"Not a word." He ground out a few minutes later, leading three chocobos over to the others. Cloud's hair was sticking in all directions and he had some mushed up gyshall greens plastered down the side of his cheek. Aerith pursed her lips while Tifa turned to hide her laughter. Her shaking shoulders gave her away, though.

Genesis didn't even bother to pretend he wasn't highly amused. "I guess it takes one to know one."

Cloud gave him a dark glare.

"The boy's a natural," Chocobo Bill pronounced, straw back in mouth. "You ever want a job, you're welcome back here boy." He looked up at the sky. "Well times a-wastin' and you got some distance to cover today. Best be off wid ya." With a final wave, the old chocobo wrangler headed back towards the ranch.

Tifa took one of the chocobos from Cloud. "Um… does anyone know how to ride a chocobo?"

Aerith shook her head. "Nope! Not even been in a carriage."

"Well don't look at me," Genesis reluctantly took the halter of his own bird. "I can't imagine why anyone would choose this as a form of transport."

"Right." Tifa looked up at her mount apprehensively. "I guess… how hard can it be?"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"I am never riding one of those animals again!" Genesis declared, sliding off the bird and grimacing as the ground squelched loudly beneath his boots. "That was one of the most uncomfortable days of my life. And I've stayed in a warzone." His shoulder hurt, his buttocks ached and he could safely say if he never saw a chocobo again he wouldn't be upset. He hated the beasts – the constant noise, the overpowering smell. He'd had to spend two whole nights sleeping above them and then followed that with a day riding one.

Tempted as Genesis was just to throw the halter lead away and get rid of the thing, he really didn't want to have to try to catch another one to get across the marshes the next day. With an aggrieved sigh he tethered the bird to the same tree that Cloud had already attached his to. Before he could get out of range, the infernal bird pecked again at his coat. Gritting his teeth, Genesis managed to extricate it and put some distance between himself and the bird.

"You ok?" Cloud had the temerity to ask him. Genesis fixed him with a glare.

"I hate chocobos." He ground out. Cloud rolled his eyes.

"I know. You've told us often enough today."

Genesis glared at him but annoyingly the blonde looked unimpressed, merely pulling out one of the two tents they would need for the night. They'd ridden on slightly ahead of Tifa and Aerith, planning to find a decent campsite before the ground got too boggy.

"You planning to help?"

Grumbling under his breath, Genesis grabbed the second tent and began to erect it. He'd just finished when the girls finally arrived.

Tifa looked fine, but Aerith was pale. "Did you have any problems?" Cloud asked in concern.

"No, I'm just not used to this. Ow." Aerith slowly slid off the chocobo, losing her grip on the rope. Before it could run, Cloud leapt forward and snagged its halter.

"Go sit down," Tifa recommended. "Cloud and I can go find firewood."

Genesis's eyes narrowed at the thought of being excluded. "I am perfectly capable of finding wood."

Aerith patted a hummock of grass next to where she had settled. "Nope, you're going to come here and let me look at your shoulder. I haven't had the chance for a couple of days now."

Genesis only prevaricated for a moment before doing as she suggested. His shoulder was very sore, but what worried him more was the creeping numbness that was slowly enveloping his left arm. He'd lain awake on the sack of straw the night before, looking at the black lines on his upper arm that were spreading down from his shoulder. He hadn't paid it too much attention before, hoping that by ignoring the problem it might go away. But he now couldn't deny that something was obviously very wrong.

He still didn't look at the tainted flesh, though the soothing relief of whatever magic Aerith used caused him to relax a little of the tension he was carrying. However, each time it seemed to do a little less for the pain he was in.

"I'm sorry," Aerith told him quietly, touching his good arm while he grabbed for his uniform to cover himself back up. Genesis shook his head at her.

"You're doing your best." He replied. He didn't quite keep the tension out of his voice, but the brunette still smiled in reply.

Voices saw them both turn towards the east. Cloud and Tifa were returning. The blonde was carrying a large pile of wood, wearing a small smile as he laughed at whatever Tifa said. She walked next to him, gesturing as she described something animatedly. Genesis turned away, unwilling to watch further.

"You know they are good friends?" Aerith said softly. "Just good friends?"

"Not that it's any of my business," Genesis sniffed haughtily. He turned towards the closest tent. "I'm going to get some rest. Tell Cloud to take first watch, and to wake me when it's my turn."

To Genesis's annoyance, he did fall into a deep sleep. When Cloud finally entered the tent, several hours later, he had to kick Genesis's boot to get him to wake up. Grumbling, the SOLDIER left the tent and, after checking the chocobos were all still tethered, set himself by the dwindling fire and pulled out his Loveless book. The night was quiet, only the distant sounds of the large elfadunks that roamed in herds across the plains. They'd passed them throughout the day but the chocobos easily outpaced the heavy and slow creatures.

Still, the marshes to the west made him uneasy. For the first time, Genesis appreciated Chocobo Bill's warning not to try to cross the marsh at night. As the clouds began to roll in and visibility shrunk to about ten metres even with his enhanced eyesight and night vision, Genesis huddled inside his leather jacket miserably to wait out the rest of the night.

Eventually the day dawned, foggy and damp. Just perfect. Genesis flicked a strand of his hair out of his eyes, grunting when it just plastered to his face instead. Tifa gave him a sympathetic grimace, her long ponytail already sticking to her back. The tents were packed away damp, not having another choice. Even the chocobos were subdued, only calling quietly to each other as they were fed with some greens that Aerith had brought along for them.

Not wanted to hang around long – and honestly, beginning to think longingly of the probably dry mythril mines – they were heading out not long after daybreak. Visibility was bad but Genesis and Cloud were able to just about navigate using the side of the mountains as a guide. It was a tedious and disheartening journey, as any speed advantage the chocobos might have given them was wiped out by the difficulty of picking their way through the marsh. Still, the chocobos were reasonably surefooted and Genesis let the bird find its own way.

It was impossible to tell exactly when disaster struck, but they had been going for several hours by that point. Aerith was swaying tiredly in her seat and Tifa was also looking exhausted. Genesis was sympathetic, the whole left side of his torso was now throbbing painfully. It started off innocuously enough, when Tifa's mount took a false step and the ground underneath it dropped away. The bird went down with a cry, pitching Tifa over its shoulder. But then she was caught by the bird as it flailed to regain its footing, one leg bent at an impossible angle.

"Tifa!" Genesis had thrown the reins of his chocobo to Cloud and was pulling the woman out of the way, checking her over to make sure that she wasn't injured. One long scratch down her arm and a mild concussion, but nothing a quick cure couldn't fix. Aerith had also given Cloud her chocobo and had approached the injured one.

"Its leg is broken," she said grimly, soothing the bird. "I can't fix it without splinting it." The chocobo was still crying out loudly, unsettling the others. Cloud had his hands full keeping them calm.

Genesis supported the still groggy Tifa with his good arm as she stood. A noise out in the marsh drew his attention sharply. "Quiet the bird."

"I can't!" Aerith sounded upset, but then Cloud murmured quietly at her. Genesis scanned the fog but couldn't make out anything. Other than the sound of the chocobo, there was a deathly quiet now in the marsh around them. Something was wrong.

The sound of a blade cut through the air behind him followed by an abrupt silence as the chocobo's sounds of distress were cut off. Tifa gasped and hid her face in Genesis's shoulder. "We need to move," Genesis said quietly, pushing Tifa towards the chocobos. Shakily, she joined Aerith and mounted one. Cloud moved up in line with Genesis, crimson blood still running down his blade and his face set into a tense expression.

"You go with them." Cloud told him. "I'll follow."

Genesis wanted to sneer and protest that he was the SOLDIER, thank you very much. But he bit his tongue and swallowed his pride, climbing onto the third remaining chocobo.

As he did so, a roaring sound came from behind them. Genesis turned to look and immediately wished he hadn't.

"No! Cloud!" Aerith was already beginning to rein in her chocobo, but Genesis couldn't be having any of that.

"Go!" He shouted. Drawing Rapier, he leant forwards and struck Aerith's chocobo on the rump with the flat of the blade. The startled bird squawked loudly and began running at full tilt, Aerith barely clinging on astride its back. Being flock animals, the two other chocobos leapt after the first. Genesis slid from the back of his and rolled, barely holding his curse when his injured shoulder hit the ground. Checking once to make sure that the chocobos were still carrying the girls to safety, he picked up his sword and faced the monster that had emerged from the marsh.

It was the largest snake he'd ever seen, its body about four metres in diameter. It was hard to judge how long it was, as it was folded in coils as it rose above Cloud. The muscles in its long neck rippled sinuously as it struck at Cloud, the blonde barely managing to leap out the way of the deadly fangs.

Cloud struck while the snake was down, scoring a deep gash down the side of the head and through one eye. This only enraged the beast and it drew itself up, almost twenty metres high as it hissed and postured. Cloud warily wiped sweat out of his eyes and held his sword ready, waiting for the snake's next move.

Genesis did what he did best and drew on his materia, conjuring a fireball that he flung at the snake's left flank. Simultaneously, Cloud struck out at the right. The snake lunged at Cloud once more, but yet again missed as he danced out of the way. Genesis came in then, scoring a deep line across the singed marks left by the fireball. The snake couldn't twist around quickly enough to strike at him while Cloud was still poised on its other side, allowing Genesis to get in a flurry of strong strokes that were beginning to have an impact.

But Genesis had forgotten about the tail.

With a roar, the snake twisted again and Genesis suddenly felt himself lifted off his feet when the powerful tail slammed into his left side and flung him into the air. The pain of the strike was excruciating, and only the adrenaline of watching the earth below disappear helped him to keep his awareness. Even so, he knew that he would be hard pressed to survive the landing.

Another eruption of pain through his back and he was falling, falling. Around him the air whistled, and he gazed upwards at the sun that was finally breaking through the mist. Feathers rained all around him, he reached out to grasp one but he was falling too fast.

The last thing he was aware of, as he hit the ground with a sickening crunch and an explosion of black, was the surprise that he was still alive. For now, anyway.