Chapter Two

Tifa was sitting at the kitchen table when Cloud found her. She looked up, seeing he had something on his mind. "What is it?" she asked. "Is everything okay with Sephiroth?"

"Huh? Oh. Yeah, he's fine. Well, I mean, not fine-fine, but he's getting better." Cloud sat down near her.

Tifa smiled a bit. "You two and Zack looked really cozy earlier."

Cloud blushed. Even though he had known the other residents had likely seen them like that, it still seemed embarrassing. Yet on the other hand, if even Sephiroth wasn't embarrassed by it, maybe Cloud should take a page from that and feel the same. Still, he couldn't help asking, "It probably looked pretty weird, huh?"

Tifa looked slightly amused by the question. But unlike Aerith, she wouldn't consider that open season for a little tease. She just shook her head. "It looked like you were all really happy," she said. "That's what I want for you, Cloud—to be happy."

And it wasn't a completely unselfish wish. She knew that if Cloud wasn't happy, she would start losing him again. That was what she had felt last night, first when he had come home with selective amnesia and then later on when he and Zack had brought Sephiroth back dead after the fight with Kefka. It was as Zack had said—Cloud could never take it when someone he loved was hurt or worse. Tifa had found herself losing Cloud after Meteor, as Aerith's and Zack's deaths had really sunk in for him and he had started to grieve as well as to blame himself. Last night it had been about Sephiroth instead, but the pattern had been the same.

Cloud relaxed to see that Tifa was accepting. "Yeah," he said. "You're right—we were happy. Still am."

That was an immense relief too. Tifa could see it in his eyes and his smile, so unlike how dead he had looked last night. She never wanted to see that haunting look from him again.

"So what's up?" Tifa asked. "You looked pretty serious coming in."

Cloud slowly pulled out his tablet. "I was talking to Reno and I saw this going on in the background." He showed the picture and Tifa gasped.

"Fluffy?!"

"Maybe," Cloud said. "Reno said Rude found this whole family of cats the other day and was feeding them."

Tifa stared at the picture. "Fluffy . . . and her kittens all grown up. . . ." She smiled. "They all stayed together. . . ."

"Sephiroth said it's okay if you have them," Cloud said.

She started at that. "Really?" It was hard to picture Sephiroth being alright with so many animals in the house, or any at all, really. But Zack had his beloved chocobo Pala in a stable built on the property, and there was the happy little animal Sephiroth and Zack called an Eevee that they had brought back from . . . somewhere. The Eevee, whom Zack had named Lucy, adored Pala and the kids and was often playing with them when she wasn't cuddling with Sephiroth or Zack. Tifa had seen Sephiroth holding the little animal at times, and although awkward, he clearly loved her very much. Even though Tifa knew Sephiroth was a kind and good man when sane, it still seemed almost surreal to see him being so gentle with Lucy.

"Yeah. He . . . said it was his fault you haven't had Fluffy, so . . ." Cloud set the tablet down. "Do you want to go over and see them?"

Tifa nodded. "I do. It has to be them. . . . Fluffy looks the same, and the kittens do too, just grown up. They all have the same markings as when we saw them." She smiled a bit sadly. "Maybe she won't want to come with me, though. . . . They seemed pretty settled when we found them before."

"This is a whole new world, though," Cloud said. "They're probably pretty confused."

"Rude might already be attached," Tifa remarked. "He seems so tough, but he's such a softie, really."

Cloud shrugged. "Won't know until you try."

Tifa nodded. "I'll go over after lunch. Will you come?"

Cloud had expected that request. "Yeah," he said.

Tifa started to get up to check on the food. "Does Sephiroth feel like eating?"

"I don't know," Cloud said. "I'll have to ask him. He's a lot more alert than he usually is right after being so hurt he gets stuck in the Safer form, but he's still in bed."

"He'll probably need to rest a lot more," Tifa said. "But if he's still awake, you should ask. And . . . thank him for me."

"Sure." Cloud got up too and headed for the stairs.

It wasn't really a surprise to find Angeal and Zack quietly leaving Sephiroth's room, with Zack pulling the door shut.

"He's asleep again," Angeal said.

"Thought so," Cloud said.

Zack nodded. "I'll check on him again after lunch, but he's pretty peaceful." He smiled in relief and joy.

Cloud smiled too. "Good."

Angeal looked back and forth between them. There was a haunted horror in their eyes in spite of their smiles. They would not forget how it had been to see Sephiroth so still and cold and not peaceful for those terrible hours. They couldn't, of course, but hopefully in time the memories would at least fade and not be at the forefront of their minds.

And Angeal wished again that he had been there for them . . . yet at the same time, he couldn't deny the relief that he hadn't been there and hadn't seen Sephiroth laying dead. He had seen it that other time and that had been more than enough.

He prayed that Genesis was alright wherever he was and not laying somewhere in the same condition.

"Hey, Angeal, are you okay?"

Angeal started back to attention when Zack spoke. "Yes," he assured. "I was just thinking. But let's forget about that and get something to eat."

"Fine with me!" Zack said.

xxxx

Tifa was deep in thought as she and Aerith finished fixing lunch. Aerith quickly noticed. "Is everything okay?"

Tifa started. "Oh. Yeah, it is." She smiled. "Sephiroth's getting better, so Cloud is happy again. And Reno and Rude found some cats that must be Fluffy and her kittens."

"Really!" Aerith smiled too. "Are they coming to live with us?"

"I hope so," Tifa said. "I'm going over after lunch. Sephiroth said it's okay to bring them here."

"He's very thoughtful," Aerith said. "That's not a small thing to welcome in several new family members all at once."

"No, it's not," Tifa agreed. She smiled more. "He is really thoughtful and kind."

"After all we went through, it's amazing we can all live here happy," Aerith said. "But I'm glad we can."

"Yeah," Tifa said, and sincerely meant it. "I am too."

They set the table and watched as most of the home's residents gathered to eat. It felt wrong and sad to see the empty place at the table, but at least they had the assurance that the place would be filled again. Sephiroth would be alright. Last night there had been no such assurance, despite Zack's and Cloud's desperate hopes.

Marlene looked sad but not surprised. "Is Sephiroth still asleep?" she asked. She held the sweet little Eevee Lucy on her lap. The animal made a concerned sound, looking up. The two of them had only seen Sephiroth briefly last night before he had fallen asleep then, and although Lucy had wanted to stay, she had been gently lifted away and handed to Marlene. It would be better, Tifa was sure, for Sephiroth to not have to worry about possibly harming the little animal moving around in his sleep. And Marlene would like some comfort too, Tifa had added. That was an important job, to look after her following such a nightmarish experience. Lucy had been very agreeable to that.

Tifa nodded. "He was awake for a while but fell asleep again," she said.

"You remember how it was the last couple of times," Cloud added.

"Yeah," Marlene said.

It was strange that Sephiroth had not died fighting that last battle with Jenova, when Cloud thought of it. He had feared Sephiroth was dead, blown up when the White and Black Materias' powers collided, but Sephiroth had fallen back to earth, alive and badly hurt. Did that mean that both the Ancient's Amethyst and Kefka were more powerful than Jenova, that Sephiroth had died going up against each of them?

That was a disturbing thought.

Denzel was quiet as he ate. Cloud's hateful feelings towards Sephiroth when their memories had first been restored had affected him very deeply. He had already felt he hated the man, and Cloud giving in to those feelings had made Denzel feel justified in feeling the same. Now that Cloud no longer hated Sephiroth and even clearly downright loved him, Denzel just did not know what to think. The turmoil of last night didn't help in the least.

"Are you okay, Denzel?" Tifa asked, breaking into his thoughts. She and Cloud and the others were very aware of Denzel's struggles and worried about him, but they did not know what to do other than to be there for him and offer listening ears and support. Tifa had also suggested a child psychologist might be able to help, but Denzel had outright refused that. There was always the concern too that bringing in someone on the outside might result in them learning about the group not being from Earth, but hopefully given that they were recognized as the real people on whom a popular gaming franchise was based, that wouldn't be an issue. Still, they were leery and Denzel was very aware of that. He would refuse a psychologist on those grounds even if he wanted to talk to one—which he didn't.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Denzel said then.

"Well, I'm going to see some cats Reno and Rude found that might be my cat Fluffy and her kittens," Tifa said. "Would you and Marlene like to come?"

Marlene beamed joyously. "I would!"

Lucy exclaimed in glee too.

Denzel's reaction was much more muted, but at least he said, "I'll come." Then, after a pause, "Are they coming to live with us?"

"If they want to," Tifa said. "Maybe they'll want to stay with Reno and Rude."

"Sephiroth would really be okay with it?" Denzel still looked skeptical.

"He is," Tifa said. "Cloud talked to him about it before he fell asleep."

"Maybe he'll change his mind," Denzel said.

Cloud frowned a bit at that. He wanted to assure Denzel that would not happen, but he waited to give Tifa a chance to answer instead.

"Why do you think he would do that?" Tifa asked.

Denzel just shrugged. Maybe he really didn't and he just wanted to see what they would say to it.

"Sephiroth doesn't usually change his mind," Cloud finally said then.

"Except when he loses it and tries to blow up the world," Denzel muttered.

"Denzel!" Tifa said in dismay. She was at a loss. They all knew all too well that had happened. She could hardly fault Denzel for pointing out all the pain Sephiroth had caused them. But . . . everything was different now. Tifa had long ago ceased to hate him, recognizing that while sane he was completely the opposite of the warped megalomaniac they had repeatedly fought against. Cloud had come to terms with his feelings as well and had finally accepted that he loved Sephiroth. But now Tifa had to wonder . . . if Denzel had seen Cloud asleep on Sephiroth's bed last night, how had that affected him?

"Denzel . . . are you not happy here?" Aerith asked.

Denzel frowned a bit. "I am. . . . I mean, we've never lived anywhere this nice before. And I know it's because of Sephiroth we can. But . . . how can everybody just trust he's going to stay good? What if he flips out again? And . . ." He looked down. "You all forgave him, even Cloud . . . but . . . I don't know if I have or if I even can."

"I didn't know that I could either," Marlene said. "I said right to him that I hated him. But he said he hated himself too. I don't think he'll ever stop hurting about what he did."

"I don't think he will either," Cloud said. "The hurt's just too deep."

"He's very sad," Tifa said, and as she said it, she knew it was true. "I don't think he'll lose his mind again. He's really grounded thinking of everything he did."

"And he's been faced with the temptation more than once and rejected it," Cloud said. "Jenova didn't have any hold on him anymore."

Zack was nodding in agreement to everything, happy to hear them affirming Seph's goodness and sanity. "So everything'll be okay, Denzel," he said.

Denzel didn't look convinced. But he didn't offer any further arguments.

The rest of the meal proceeded without incident. Afterwards, Aerith and Zack gathered the dishes while Tifa and Cloud rinsed them for the dishwasher.

"I don't know what to do about Denzel," Tifa admitted to Cloud in concern. "We've all known he's struggled a lot more with accepting Sephiroth than Marlene has."

"And I can't blame him for that," Cloud said, staring somberly into the running water at the sink.

"I'm sure none of us can," Tifa said. "But it's not good for him. I've wondered sometimes if it would be better for him if we weren't living here."

Cloud shook his head. "He'd just blame himself for us leaving and that'd make it worse."

"You're probably right," Tifa sighed. "And . . . I don't think you could bear to leave either."

Cloud didn't answer, but that was answer enough.

"I won't ask you to do that," Tifa promised him. "You've been happier lately than I've ever seen you."

"Yeah. I am," Cloud agreed.

"I would never want to take that away from you," Tifa said. "I know Denzel wouldn't either. But what can we do, Cloud? How can we help him be happy too?"

Cloud sighed. "I don't know. I wonder if it would help if Sephiroth talks to Denzel when he's feeling better."

"He's tried before to reach out and it's gone nowhere," Tifa sighed.

Cloud nodded. "And then he just stops trying because he wants to respect Denzel's space. But what if we set up a talk between them or something? Denzel could feel free to say whatever he wants and get it off his chest and maybe Sephiroth could give him some of the answers he needs."

"And we'd be there so Denzel would hopefully feel safe," Tifa mused. She smiled a bit. "Maybe it would work, or at least help."

"It's all I can think of," Cloud said.

"I like it," Tifa said. "Maybe you could talk to Sephiroth about it when he's awake again."

"Sure," Cloud said. "Or you could. You haven't really talked to him much either. You even wanted me to thank him about the cats."

"That's true," Tifa admitted. "I should thank him myself for being willing to let the cats come here. I'll talk to him later today."

"Good," Cloud said.

Tifa hesitated. "And maybe you should talk to Denzel too, Cloud. . . . If he saw you last night, I'm not sure what he'd think of it."

Cloud flushed. "I didn't even think of that," he said in chagrin. "Yeah, I'll talk to him."

She smiled a bit. "That's the second time it's happened. But both times have been after something horrible happened, so you might mention that to Denzel if he's upset by it."

"Yeah," Cloud said again. "I'm really not planning to make a habit of it."

"It's okay if you do," Tifa said. "Sephiroth seemed fine with it."

"He is," Cloud said. "Liked it, even."

"He's a lot different than I always thought he was, even before he lost his mind," Tifa said. "I never would have pictured him so warm and affectionate."

Cloud nodded. "He's . . . something special," he said. "I always thought so in the past, when he was Shinra's hero. And I was right."

"He's getting you to be more affectionate too," Tifa commented. "It's nice to see."

Cloud blushed. "Yeah, well . . . I guess after losing so much, and almost losing more, I don't want to waste time keeping people at arm's length anymore."

"Good," Tifa said. "I'm glad. I really like this new side to you. And I'm grateful to Sephiroth for bringing it out."

Cloud looked away, but he was smiling a bit.

Tifa fell to silent pondering as they worked. Cloud's idolization and love of Sephiroth had run very deep. His fall to insanity had been devastating to Cloud in a way that had not healed Cloud's heart and soul until recently. Every time they had faced the insane Sephiroth, it had tore Cloud up a little more inside. He had wanted it to stop, to not continually be haunted by the man who had betrayed him so intensely. For Sephiroth to be sane now and to love Cloud in turn, it had apparently filled a huge hole in Cloud's heart.

Not to mention that because of what Sephiroth had done in sending them all here, Zack and Aerith had been restored to life. Two more gaping holes filled.

They truly were blessed in this new life on this planet. And they had Sephiroth to thank for much of that. Ironic, and yet somehow so fitting. He had desired to do good after all the horrors he had caused on Gaia, and he had indeed succeeded in that. He deserved to have happiness now with the rest of them, and since he had been allowed to live, it seemed that the God of this world agreed.

That was a comforting thought.

xxxx

Cloud found Denzel on the back patio, petting the delighted Eevee. "Hey," he quietly greeted.

Denzel looked up. "Hey," he replied.

Cloud sat down next to him. "I know things got really hectic last night," he said. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Denzel looked down at Lucy. "It was just . . . really weird when you came in not remembering Sephiroth and then getting so mad at him again," he said quietly. "I guess it was . . . kind of scary, even. It's not like you've been lately and you were so upset. I wondered if you'd ever be like you were again."

"I wondered too," Cloud said quietly. "I didn't even know you saw that much."

A shrug. "I think everybody in the house heard you screaming at him about Aerith and Meteor. Then you stormed out and I ran in my room. I just wanted things to be like they were. And when you and Zack came back and Sephiroth was . . . dead, you stayed there for hours grieving over his body. I knew . . . if Sephiroth didn't come back, you'd never be happy again."

"That's true," Cloud said.

Finally Denzel looked up at him. "But . . . when that creep did that to you, taking your memories, how can we know there's not someone out there who could make Sephiroth go crazy again?" Anguish went through his eyes.

Cloud stiffened. Was this the real reason Denzel had acted out at lunch? Not because he was still mad at Sephiroth—even if he was—but because he feared someone else coming in and ruining their happiness?

". . . We can't know for sure," he admitted. "But Kefka couldn't keep me under his spell. I don't think anyone could keep Sephiroth under a spell either. He's too strong-willed for that."

Denzel blinked back tears. "Everything's so good here," he said. "I don't want that to change! But . . . people keep trying to make it change. I hate them! I hate all of them!"

Cloud laid a hand on Denzel's shoulder. "I'm angry at them too," he said. "I hope we never see Kefka around here again, or any of these other people."

"We probably will," Denzel said.

Lucy warbled, placing a paw on his arm.

Cloud sighed. "I wish I could say those things won't happen," he said. "You're probably right that there'll be more trouble. And we can't know we'll always come through it. But . . . I know I don't want to live my life afraid of that. I just want to be happy there's still more time to be with everyone."

"I want that too," Denzel said. "It's just . . . it's hard not to be afraid."

"I know," Cloud said.

". . . I saw you and Zack asleep on Sephiroth's bed with him," Denzel said. "All of you looked really happy. I want that to last. I don't want to ever see you upset and sad like last night again!"

Relieved and surprised that at least that wasn't a problem, Cloud said, "I hope I won't be."

Denzel picked up Lucy and hugged her as well as Cloud.

Further surprised, Cloud hugged back. ". . . Tifa and I were wondering if, when Sephiroth's better, you'd like to talk to him," he said. "I mean, to really get out all the feelings you've been keeping inside. We'd both be there too."

Denzel pondered. "Maybe," he said. "Let's talk about it when he's better."

"Okay," Cloud nodded.

". . . I really am glad he's going to be okay, when you care about him so much," Denzel said. "Marlene loves him too."

Cloud smiled. "I'm glad you feel that way even though you're still struggling with how you feel about him," he said.

"Yeah," Denzel mumbled. "Maybe I can really love him too. I hope I can."

"It's okay if you can't," Cloud said. "It took me a long time to sort out my feelings."

"And you almost lost him because you took so long," Denzel said. "I don't think that'd ever be a problem for me."

"I thought that myself about me," Cloud admitted. "But it was really complicated with me since I'd cared about Sephiroth before he cracked up. I guess I . . . never really forgot that."

"Yeah . . . I guess not," Denzel said.

"I think our feelings for each other go a lot deeper than they would if we hadn't come through all we did to get here," Cloud said. "And that doesn't mean I'm happy about what we went through or wish it hadn't been different. It's just an observation."

Denzel pondered that. "Maybe you and Tifa wouldn't be as close either," he remarked. "You guys really went through a lot to get close."

"I'd rather not speculate about that," Cloud said. "But it's definitely true about Sephiroth."

"I guess Aerith would say it's a case of something good coming from something bad," Denzel said.

"And she'd be right," Cloud said.

"So . . . how do you feel about Sephiroth now?" Denzel wondered. "I know in the past he was like a mentor or something, but it's different now, isn't it?"

"It is," Cloud said.

"So is he a friend, a brother, or something else?" Denzel asked.

"A friend," Cloud said. "A really dear friend."

"It must've hurt a lot to forget him," Denzel said. "Even though you forgot the bad stuff too."

Cloud sighed. "I didn't forget the 'bad stuff,'" he said, "only that Sephiroth caused it. It was really weird and trippy. I only remembered him after he was laying dead." A haunted look went through his eyes. He would never forget the anguish of that moment—the veil over his memories tearing asunder as the complete stranger was finally recognized as his dear friend . . . when it was too late. He had screamed and collapsed to his knees, begging Sephiroth to wake up, to come back . . . but to no avail. And that nightmare had lasted for hours until their hope had been about spent and they had finally received the miracle they had been praying for.

Sephiroth had returned to them.

To him.

And Cloud was still trying to fully process all of his feelings about that.

"I'm sorry, Cloud," Denzel said.

Cloud nodded, pulling himself back to the present. "I hope we'll never go through something like that again," he said.

Lucy's ears drooped and she shuddered. "Vee . . ."

Denzel held her close. "I hope you won't either," he said.

xxxx

Sephiroth stirred, waking up again with the slight creak of his door. Tifa was looking in at him, her eyes flickering guiltily at the realization she had woke him up.

"Sorry," she apologized. "I wondered if you were awake and hungry."

"Maybe later," he mumbled. "Have you gone to see about the cats yet?"

"We're going to go soon," she told him. "Thank you . . . for agreeing they can come if they want to."

"If the white cat is truly yours, she should be with you," Sephiroth replied. "And apparently the kittens have been staying with her as well, so it seems to be a package deal."

"Yeah. . . ." Tifa hesitated. It never seemed easy to talk to Sephiroth, even knowing he was sane and perfectly harmless to her and everyone else good. She had thought him cold at Nibelheim even before he'd lost his mind. Now she knew that was just the foolish thought of a teenage girl who believed she was being held back by an unreasonable adult. Sephiroth had only tried to protect her in his right mind. That made what had happened later all the more tragic.

Sephiroth turned onto his left side, spreading his left wings behind him so as not to lay on them. He watched Tifa through half-open, very sleepy eyes. "Did you want something else?"

Tifa sighed. This did not seem a great time to ask him if he would agree to have a serious heart-to-heart with Denzel, especially when there was no guarantee it wouldn't result in Denzel screaming at him. The poor man didn't need to think about that kind of stress right now.

"It'll keep," she finally said with a kind smile. "You just rest, okay?"

Sephiroth looked like he was already dozing again. ". . . I hope your cat won't refuse to stay here if she remembers me," he mumbled with a frown. "I just thought of that. . . ."

Tifa hadn't thought of it at all. But it was definitely a legitimate concern. "We'll worry about that if it happens," she said. "Maybe Lucy can convince her you're good."

"Heh," Sephiroth said with a sleepy smirk. "That sounds like something Zack would say." Then he was asleep. The black wing slipped down to cover him like a quilt.

Tifa watched him for a moment. He was so powerful, the level of his abilities had made him think he was a god back home in his insanity. His previous Safer forms had looked almost angelic in twisted ways. But here he was humble, insisting he was just a man. And he was so tired now that he certainly looked more like a man than a god or an angel, in spite of all the wings.

He looked very sweet.

Smiling to herself, Tifa quietly pulled the door shut.