Silmeria - Happy reading.

Disclaimer - I claim no rights to Final Fantasy VII

Chapter Eleven - Can You Hear the Cries of the Planet?

The Book of Minerva was heavy in his hands, but Cloud minded little, too enthralled in the musty smelling pages that told the origin of the Fair Family and their link towards the Cetra. He was quite surprised, however, to see Dragoon and Healer ranks in Zack's rather large and intricate family tree. If this wasn't proof that Zack didn't have natural magic then he didn't know what would.

"Enjoying it?" Zack asked, watching him from the other side of the table. The restaurant, Minerva's Serenade, was one of the more expensive restaurants and personally one of Zack's favorite. He had originally planned to go to the newer place, Ifrit's Flame, but decided that his favorite was a good way to introduce Cloud into his life and what he liked and didn't like. It was a comfortable spot and the people and staff were rather good in minding their own business-a definite point in his book considering that the media had a constant field day with his life and decisions-

"This book is amazing." Cloud flipped the page again, his eyes practically devouring the text. "Your family tree is amazing and you're related to so many important figures-wait." Cloud stopped, his blue eyes widening at the small discovery at the top right of the family tree. "Wait, you're related to the Shinra Family?"

"Eh," Zack shrugged, as if the little fact hardly mattered in the grand scheme of things. "On my mother's side, yeah, but we don't exactly get along as much as we should. Rufus Shinra, the Alpha of Junon, isn't exactly a pleasant person to be around and his organization isn't exactly friendly with outsiders. So, we tend to ignore the fact that we're related-six times removed, of course-"

Cloud nodded, agreeing that there are those types of relatives that you don't want to claim even on a really good basis. Then again, he remembers that he doesn't have any relatives to claim at this point.

Zack stared at him for a long moment before leaning over the table with a smooth smile, closed the book with a quiet snap, drawing Cloud out of his down spiraling thoughts and forcing him to meet Zack's eyes and a small, shy smile to pull at his lips.

"Why don't we put the history lesson away? Just for a little bit?" Zack gently placed the book on right side, giving him free roam to reach over and take Cloud's hands in his own. "And we can get to know each other?"

Cloud felt his cheeks heat at the murmur. What could he say to Zack that was interesting? The man was descended from the Cetra and Dragoon Generals and Healers for Minerva's sake. And what did Cloud have to offer?

The ability to cast magic and have children. The epitome of an Omega.

"What do you want to know?"

"When was your first time?" Zack questioned, the curiosity making his eyes brighter. "When did you find out that you could cast magic?"

Cloud's brows shot up at the question-honestly, the last thing he was expecting. "Well," Cloud lowered his eyes, looking at the pristine tablecloth before lifting them again and meeting Zack's across the table. "I-well, I froze a Nibel Dragon."

Zack blinked, as if he didn't hear the answer and leaned in closer. "What? You did what?"

"I froze a Nibel Dragon." Cloud repeated, his lips stretching into a morose smile at the thought. "It was actually after Tifa's mother passed away. She came online and went into a zone out." Cloud's bitter smile dropped at the thought. He could remember, clear as day, the day Tifa's mother died and the screams from Jason that followed. Back then, he had been too deep in his grief to notice Tifa's Sentinel senses come online, but Cloud didn't and noticed her one day going towards Mt. Nibel, her reddish brown eyes glazed as if she was in a daydream.

"I followed her to make sure she was okay and to Guide her back home, but she went into the mountains, so deep that her friends turned around and left her there."

"But you didn't?"

"No." Cloud looked and felt appalled at the thought. "How could I? When I loved her so much back then?" Cloud smiled, feeling a sudden press of jealousy against his shields and sent out a wave of reassurance. "It was true, I loved her back then, but now? She's like a dear sister to me."

Zack nodded, satisfied, and urged him to continue, his stare enraptured. "What happened next?"

"I followed her to the old bridge." Cloud shook his head at the thought of it. "That damn thing was probably older than the mountain, but when I tried to follow her across it collapsed."

"You fell!?" Zack stared at him, his eyes wide with shock and concern. "How are you-?"

"The fall wasn't that far and we landed near the exit that lead to Rocket Town, where, coincidentally enough, was where a hidden dragon's nest was located." Cloud let out a grimace, his cheeks flushed in embarrassment, as if the whole incident was his fault and Zack wanted to assure that it wasn't. No one was to blame.

"We were unconscious until sunset and I was the first to wake and with a broken wrist." Cloud reached over to touch his left wrist and it was then Zack noticed that it looked slightly crooked. "It was never set back right. Anyway, when I tried to see if Tifa was okay, the dragon showed up and it wasn't exactly happy that I woke it up." Cloud looked back down at the table, his shoulder slumped. "I honestly thought I was going to die and never tell Tifa how I felt, but the morbid thought entered my mind was that if I didn't get to tell her how I felt, then I would at least die at her side. And at that moment, I felt happy, truly happy since the first time I became a Guide and all of those emotions entered my mind that was when it happened. My magic activated."

Cloud looked down at his hands, clenching them tightly. "I remember a bright light and being cold and when I looked up, the Nibel Dragon was frozen solid, like a statue made of pure ice. My emotions were so out of whack I don't remember casting the magic let along freezing a dragon. I fell unconscious again and when I woke up, my mother was watching over me and she swears that I cost her a few more gray hairs that day."

"What happened with Tifa?"

"She was at the edge of a sense shutdown by time the townsfolk found her." Cloud responded, all too aware of the sharp intake of breath coming from Zack. "Thankfully, my mother managed to bring her out of it but she slept for days and we are wondering if it was too late. But, on the eighth day, she woke up and she was diagnosed as a Beta. But, I think that incident is the reason she can't bond with Guides. I don't think its genetic at all."

"You believe her grief and the zone out was so strong that blocked out her ability to connect with a Guide?" Zack reached over and placed his hand over Cloud's, giving it a tight squeeze. "Or maybe, you believe that it's gone all together?"

"Yes." Cloud blinked back the sting of tears. "I think it was that incident that forced the fledgling bonding gene to malform and all but vanish. You know that when a Sentinel or Guide comes online, their instincts are like an infants, forming with time and training, but Tifa? The grief was so great that they formed pre-maturely and died just as quickly. She is what I would call an incomplete Sentinel. No greater than a normal one, but missing that vital piece."

Zack leaned back, a somber expression making his face dark. "I was aware that she wasn't able to bond, but never the reasoning behind it. At first, I thought it was because she had warned off Guides or bonding in general, until she told me she couldn't, at all. If the matter wasn't so private then I would apologize, but it's best that she tells me herself one day." And just as quickly, the somber expression vanished, leaving an interesting light in Zack's eyes. "So, that's how you activated your magic? Quite a story if I do say so myself."

"What about you?" It was Cloud's turn to lean forward, his attention on the Sentinel and not on the obvious onlookers. "When did you learn?"

Much to his surprise, Zack's cheeks burned a bright red before the older man reached up and scratched the back of his head with a sheepish grin. "Well, it's not as intense as your story."

"So?" Cloud smiled, watching with amused eyes as Zack turned his face away from him, that blush still present on his cheeks. "C'mon!" Cloud nudged his foot against Zack's in an attempt to earn the man's attention. "Tell me. I told you."

"Alright, alright." Zack turned back, his expression still sheepish. "I accidentally set the bed on fire when I was six."

Cloud sat still in his chair, staring at Zack for a long moment before his lips began to twitch and his shoulders began to shake and he was quick to slap his hand over his mouth but it was too late when a chuckle escaped his mouth.

"Ah, dammit, I knew you were going to laugh." Zack leaned back and crossed his arms behind his head, staring at Cloud with a fond expression as the younger man tried and failed to quell his laughter. "It was a complete accident."

"You make it sound like you were wetting the bed or something." Cloud continued, his tone filled with laughter and it increased when Zack groaned at the comparison. "How did it happen? I mean, did you just cast a fire spell?"

"Nah, I got grounded for going outside the city." Zack responded. "The guards caught up to me before I reached Kalm and my mother grounded me. I was so mad that I just set the bed on fire when I slammed my hands on the blankets and poof, there's smoke filling my room and then there's the fire. I screamed as loud as could and my dad came in and put it out. After that, well, Angeal, one of my council members, taught me how to control it."

"That's an amazing and funny story." Cloud stated, trying to catch Zack's eyes when the man found the table cloth very interesting. "It's nothing really embarrassing, you know? I have plenty of embarrassing stories, but none I'm going to tell you now." Cloud finished, watching Zack open his mouth to ask. "If it'll make you feel better, then I can tell you a secret?"

"A secret?" Zack raised an eyebrow, brushing off his embarrassment by leaning forward again. "I can use this as blackmail, right?"

"Not exactly." Cloud shot back playfully. "But, I suppose that this secret is more of a confession." Cloud tilted his head, his eyes growing dim and Zack immediately attempted to make the look fade when Cloud spoke again, his voice soft and forlorn.

"I miss the stars."

Oh.

"Oh." Zack murmured, his own eyes softening at the confession. "Is...Midgar not enough for you? Kalm is more peaceful and has less buildings-"

"Silly." Cloud interrupted softly, reaching across the table and taking Zack's hand in his own. "It was a mere confession, nothing more. Midgar has become home and well, I just miss the stars that's all. You could see them so clearly in Nibelheim. Zack, you'd really, really love it, you know? The whole sky lights up and it looks like the stars will go on forever."

Zack looked down at their intertwined hands and a thought entered his mind. He grasped the hand in his own tightly before looking up with a grin as he called the waiter over to pay for the meal and pack up the remainder.

"If that's the case, then I have a perfect place to show you."

"I don't remember this road." Cloud commented out-loud, a scant two hours later. They had abandoned Midgar and headed for the plains outside, but instead of taking a car, they found themselves walking east towards the ocean and the hills that overlooked the piece of water. Cloud had no idea where they were going, but he trusted Zack enough to lead him there safely.

"It's the old road leading to Midgar." Zack glanced at him over his shoulder before returning his eyes to the road ahead. "This leads to an old Guide Sanctuary. It-it was my mother's."

"Your mother's?" Cloud breathed, wanting to stop and stare into Zack's eyes, but he felt the sadness of the statement hit his shield and he pressed his lips together in an effort to remain quiet. Zack was doing this for him, unveiling this hidden part of him and the least he could was remain respectful.

"Uh, yeah," Zack finally came to a stop in front of pair of white, broken stairs. "She took me here all the time when my grandfather came too much for her to bear. Became too much for either us to bear." Zack grabbed his hand again and started climbing, his voice taking on a somber tone. "After she died, my grandfather used this place to hide weapons and materia, each powerful in their own right. My father's sword was hidden here, a reminder that an old man like him could still kill a Sentinel that was as powerful as my father had been."

"Zack..."

"I found the cache near the end of the war." Zack continued, still climbing, but the pace had slowed, forcing them to climb a stair at a time. "I came here to give my last regards to my mother and father. This is the place where they met, named me, and died. This is their legacy and mine."

They reached the top of the stairs and Cloud's nose was hit with the scent of roses. The Guide Sanctuary was destroyed, but Cloud could see the remnants of the white columns and the water fountain of the Goddess Minerva in the center. And near the edge, was a small white bench that overlooked the hill. Zack tugged on him again and led him to the bench, sitting him down before taking a seat close to him and wrapping an arm around his shoulder.

"I still come here once a year to talk to them." Zack continued, once they were settled. "Also," Zack scooted closer, reaching up and nudging Cloud's chin upward. "I come to see this."

Cloud raised his eyes and his heart stuttered to a stop at the sight that greeted him.

Stars.

Millions upon millions of stars.

"Zack." Cloud breathed, unable to take his eyes away from the sight. Stars littered the sky, forming constellations from Minerva's Bow to Odin's Divine Sleepnir and Leviathan. He blinked when the scenery started to blur and realized that he was crying. He blinked, allowing the tears to fall unheeded as memories of his mother and father and home came rushing back. Cloud reached up to wipe them away when Zack beat him to punch, turning him to face him again.

"Good?" Zack asked softly, cupping Cloud's face in his hands to wipe the remaining tears away. "I didn't mean to make you cry. I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Cloud reached up and grasped Zack's hands with his own. "Thank you, Zack. For showing me this."

Zack smiled, the gesture even brighter underneath the night sky full of stars and memories and it took Cloud's breath away "You're very welcome-hmmph!" Zack blinked when he found Cloud's lips pressed against his own and he was quick to return the gesture and groaned when Cloud pulled away, the Guide's soft lips mere inches against his own.

"I'm sorry-"

"Cloud?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up and kiss me again."

Cloud sighed in fond exasperation before leaning again and pressed his lips against Zack, his senses taking in the softness of the Sentinel's lips and the taste of the wine drunken earlier. Underneath the stars of the Guide Sanctuary and Zack's protection, Cloud felt at home.

Truly at home.