Cloud awakened to a world tinted blue. It was early enough to slink back to camp before the others noticed his and Aerith's absence. Realizing he was holding her, he jolted his bare arm upward like a fire had seared his skin. The spasm must've stirred her awake; she sat up and stretched, her extended yawn shattering the lulling silence of the dawn.
"Mm…I slept great! How about you, Cloud?" She smiled down at him, prompting him to shift his eyes away.
"We should head back to camp," he deflected dryly.
Aerith giggled, "Hope I didn't get any drool on you. You're super comfy…soft, actually. Like a cloud!"
He snorted, rising to his feet, before starting the hike back. "Heyy! Wait for me!" She called after him.
Much to his dismay, the two returned to find Barret, Tifa, and Red already having breakfast. "Ohh," shouted Barret first, "Nice of y'all to join us! Bet ya worked up an appetite."
Red chuckled, "Hopefully, not too much of one. It's cup noodles. Again."
"Yum, anything sounds great right about now; I'm starving," replied Aerith, seemingly unphased by the blatant taunting.
Cloud, on the other hand, felt his face turning rosy. There wasn't anything to be embarrassed about. Why did he suddenly feel so… self-conscious?
Aerith sat beside Red and began slurping up her noodles. Wanting to put as much distance as possible between himself and her, Cloud chose a spot between Tifa and Barret. Tifa handed him his breakfast, which he took sheepishly, avoiding everyone's faces as he ate. "Alright, we got a long day before gettin' back to Sector 5. Hope you two didn't stay up too late," Barret chuckled while extinguishing the fire.
Cloud sighed, feeling pressured to explain their disappearance, but Aerith spoke up before he could formulate a reason. "I wanted to get a better view of the stars," she started, "y'know, away from the trees. Cloud caught me trying to sneak off, and like the dutiful bodyguard he is, he joined me to keep me safe from all the big bad monsters. Isn't that right, Cloud?"
Cloud fumbled over his words, caught off guard by Aerith's lie, "Mm."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever y'all say," Barret winked just before putting his shades on.
Red smirked, "I think if the interrogation is finished, we best be on our way. This is the first lead on Sephiroth we've encountered in quite some time—if he is lurking around the slums, we don't want to miss him."
Tifa spoke up, "True, but…why would he be hanging around Sector 5? It could just be another dead end; I mean, it doesn't really make sense, does it?"
"No, but it's all we have to go on as of right now," remarked Cloud, "we don't know what his endgame is or what exactly he needs to do to execute it."
"Feels like we're on a wild Chocobo chase…" Barret muttered. "At least I'll get to spend some time with my baby girl."
Tifa glowed, "That's right. And I can get a nice, hot shower in."
Aerith smiled, clasping her hands, "Okay then, let's get going!"
The group traveled well into the afternoon, exterminating dozens of Hedgehog Pies and Wererats. Barret led the lineup while Aerith, Red XIII, and Tifa chatted together. Cloud lingered a couple of feet behind. During the day's travels, he noticed Tifa eyeing him periodically. He caught her staring again before she slowed her pace to match his.
They walked silently beside each other for a brief period. "What's up," he eventually posed, sensing something plagued her.
She hesitated. "...You know you can talk to me, right Cloud?"
Tifa gazed at him, sincerity softening her face.
"What do you mean?" he asked, face forward.
"You can talk to me about anything. I…just want you to know that."
Cloud eyed her curiously, "Same goes for you."
She blushed, looking downward. "Right."
"Is there… something you want to talk about?"
Tifa opened her mouth to answer, but before she could say anything, Barret cursed from up ahead. "Goddammit, don't these motherfuckers have anything better to do!"
A pack of snarling Wrath Hounds blocked their path. Instinctively, Cloud unsheathed the Buster Sword and rushed past Aerith, Red, and Barret. He slashed through a duo, Barret fired a barrage of bullets into one, and Red went toe-to-toe with another. Tifa blocked a bite, eager to sink its fangs into Cloud's shoulder. From afar, Aerith cast a flurry of ice spells, causing multiple hounds to stagger, which gave the rest of the party a collective opening to wipe them out.
As Cloud sliced through what he thought was the last of them, a bloodcurdling scream seized his heart. He whipped his head around to discover a straggler clamped down on Aerith. Cloud lunged for the monster, ripping it off of her. Then Red pounced, sinking his teeth into the rabid beast's throat to finish it off.
"Is she alright?!" Barret asked as he and Tifa sprinted over to join them. Cloud clutched Aerith tightly in his arms, studying her unconscious face.
"Oh God, Aerith," Tifa cried.
"Check her pulse," Red urgently advised.
Cloud did so. "She's breathing." Everyone shared a sigh of relief.
"Cloud…" Aerith slowly opened her eyes, "You're kind of…hurting me."
He instantly loosened his grip, "Sorry."
She laughed weakly, "Aw. Were you worried about me?"
"We all were," Tifa smiled.
"Not me," Barret professed, "Girl's a badass. Ain't no dumb dog gonna take her out. I knew you'd be fine." Aerith giggled.
"Are you in any pain?" Red asked.
"Somewhat," she answered truthfully.
"Can you walk?"
"I think so."
Cloud helped Aerith to her feet, his hand lingering beneath her elbow in case she couldn't. "You worry too much," she assured him, "I'm fine!"
She winced, stepping away from Cloud. Tifa swooped in to steady her, "I think we better set up camp for the night; you need to rest, Aerith."
"I agree," added Red.
"There's an inn just down the road, as a matter of fact," Barret suggested, "if Aerith can make it."
"Of course I can!" Aerith limped forward, grimacing in pain.
Tifa wrapped an arm around her waist, "Let me help."
"We'll want to get there before it gets dark," Cloud interjected, approaching the two girls. Before Aerith could protest, Cloud swept her off her feet.
"Cloud!" She yelped in surprise.
"It'll be quicker this way," he decided, already pushing forward.
The group soon made their way to the Quartz Inn, where they paid for two rooms—one for the guys and one for the girls. Cloud, Barret, and Red settled into their respective suite. Barret exhaled, flopping on one of the beds, while Red XIII curled beside the crackling fireplace; Cloud sat at the edge of the other bed. "Man, it does feel damn good to lay in a bed," Barret sighed.
"Speak for yourself," Red muttered.
"You can have this one," Cloud offered, "I'm going to check on Aerith and Tifa."
Barret chuckled, "When did you get so considerate, soldier boy?"
"Cloud's quite the gentleman," Red commented, "especially regarding the girls." Uncomfortable with being the topic of conversation, Cloud grumbled and departed from his two taunting friends.
He crossed the hall and knocked on the girls' door. Tifa answered, her face brightening at the sight of his. "Hey, everything okay?"
"Yeah. Just wanted to check on the both of you."
The sweet smile slipped away, and her eyes dropped, "You mean Aerith."
Something about her tone felt less like an assumption and more like an accusation. There was truth in what Tifa said; Aerith had been wounded earlier, so naturally, she was more of a concern at the moment.
Aerith wasn't feeble by any sense of the word, but there was always something more delicate about the flower merchant, something that ignited a passion to protect. His determination to do so only intensified after his vision—the one he'd been having nightmares about for months. On the other hand, Tifa was a powerhouse—he knew she could take care of herself. "I wanted to finish our conversation, too," Cloud added.
Tifa lighted up some, "Aerith took a nice shower, I helped tend to her scrapes, and now she's resting. I'm sure she'll feel a lot better after a good night's sleep." Relief washed over Cloud, easing the tension in his muscles.
"Can I meet you outside, in front of the entrance? There's a patio where we can sit and talk. But I'm dying for a shower first," she laughed.
Cloud nodded, "See you in a bit."
20 minutes later, Tifa appeared. She greeted Cloud with a warm smile, sitting in the patio chair next to his. "Better?" he asked.
"Much."
Cloud waited for her to talk, but when she didn't, he began, "So, what is it?"
"Hm?"
"What you wanted to say earlier before the Wrath Hounds showed up."
"Oh," Tifa paused, "Well…"
"Tifa," Cloud groaned impatiently.
"Sorry...I just feel like it's not my place to ask."
"Ask what?"
"How do you...feel about Aerith?"
"What?" he questioned, puzzled.
"Do you...have feelings for her?"
Cloud looked away. Why was she asking this all of a sudden? "What's it matter?"
Tifa's ruby-colored eyes glistened, "I guess it doesn't."
He shifted in his chair uncomfortably, "Do you not like her?"
"What? No, no! I love Aerith," Tifa exclaimed. "She's become one of my closest friends."
"She's...my friend too," Cloud struggled to spit out.
"But...do you wish she was more than that?" Tifa pressed.
Agitation furrowed his brow, "That crap isn't for me."
"Right…" her voice cracked.
Cloud examined her; Tifa's head was angled away from him. She slouched in her seat, wrapping her arms around herself. "You okay?" he asked, concerned by her body language and bizarre questions.
"Y-yeah," she sniveled, wiping at her face, "I think I better sleep." She started speed walking to the inn.
"Tifa," he called after her, but she didn't stop.
Cloud sighed, rolling his head back to take in the starry sky. What had he done wrong? Was it something he said? Should he follow her? Maybe she needed space. Space.
He gazed up at it until his eyelids grew heavy.
The water was cold. He was cold.
She was cold.
Wake up, he tried to say. Wake up, wake up, wake up. But no sound bubbled from his throat. He shook her gently.
Wake up, wake up, wake up.
"Wake up. Cloud, wake up."
He obeyed and locked eyes with Aerith; her face seemed troubled. "Were you having another nightmare?"
Cloud sat up; she took her hand off his shoulder. "Alright, alright, I get it. You don't want to talk about it."
He changed the subject, "What are you doing out here?"
She beamed, raising her eyes toward the sky, "I wanted to see the stars again."
"You're supposed to be resting," he rebuked.
"It's not like I've been doing squats."
"Aerith."
"You're not my mommy. And what about you, mister? Why are you out here?" Cloud fell silent, recalling his earlier conversation with Tifa.
"Is...Tifa okay?" he asked.
"She was before I fell asleep earlier. I only woke up a little while ago, and when I did, she was resting. Did something happen?" Aerith asked, concern saturating her voice.
"No," Cloud answered quickly. "I was just curious."
Aerith leaned in; Cloud's pulse quickened. "You're lying to me," she deduced.
He grunted, locking eyes with her, "Nothing happened."
"Cloud!"
He caved under the pressure of her emerald-colored daggers. "I don't know. I think I upset her or something."
"What did you do?"
"I told you, I don't know."
"You know more than you're telling me."
Cloud clenched his jaw, refusing to speak anymore on the matter. Aerith sighed, refocusing on the sky. Learn to talk to her, he had advised the flowers in her garden back when they first met. What a hypocrite.
Cloud admired how the starlight from above twinkled in her eyes.
"I've been having nightmares about Sephiroth," he whispered begrudgingly. Aerith faced him and offered a small smile. She slid her dainty hand into his.
"Whatever the future holds, we'll get through it together."
Her touch soothed him; the idea of defeating Sephiroth once and for all seemed utterly believable at this moment. But the sense of comfort was swiftly plowed aside by the recollection of the other nightmare plaguing him—the gruesome vision of Aerith's murder. He pulled his hand away from hers. "I've been having ones about you, too."
"They're just bad dreams, but they aren't real. And they're not premonitions," Aerith reassured.
"This one was, at one point."
She shook her head, "Not anymore."
He stayed silent, absorbing her words. "Is that why you've been acting so weird with me?" she questioned.
He gave her a slight nod. "Oh, Cloud," she sighed, resting her head on his shoulder.
"What?"
"You should talk more. I like listening to you."
His hands felt hot; he considered slipping his gloves off. "I talk when it's necessary."
"Actually, you don't," she argued, "you spent months bottling that up. You shouldn't live life like that."
"I talked. Big whoop. Nothing's changed."
"That's not true either," she contested, lifting her head to gaze into his eyes.
He stared back, briefly glancing at her mouth as she spoke.
"I feel closer to you."