Chapter 04

Cloud's PHS had been ringing off the hook for the last twenty minutes. It was seven thirty in the morning, and he was wide awake as he had been all night since the dream. He kept staring up at the ceiling, not bothering to answer the PHS as his complex mind was confused with thoughts.

Cloud noticed the PHS was beginning to disturb Tifa's much needed rest, as she groaned and rolled over. He picked up the phone and looked a the caller identification. Cosmo Canyon, he thought. What could Red possibly want this early in the morning?

Cloud searched back in the caller ID for previous calls. He'd recieved several calls from Barret and Cid, and even one from Yuffie. Why was nearly all of AVALANCHE calling him?

He finally decided to answer the phone. "Hello?" he said.

"Cloud," Red's voice came. "How are you? Vincent and I have something urgent to speak to you about."

"Vincent is there?" Cloud wondered aloud. "What's up?"

"Well, Vincent and I both had a dream I think you will find most peculiar. I beileve it means something."

Cloud sighed. "Yes, I know, Red. I had the same dream."

"About Aeris? And..."

"Yes. And Sephiroth." Cloud sighed again. "I got phone calls from Barret, Cid, and Yuffie earlier too. I didn't answer, but I bet its about this too. I'm gonna call a meeting of AVALANCHE today."

"That's a good idea, Cloud," Red agreed. "How about you have everyone meet at Cosmo Canyon? This is an excellent place for gatherings."

"Sure," Cloud said. "I'll wake Tifa up and call everyone. I'll have Cid pick everybody up in the Highwind."

"Right," Red answered. "Oh, and, Cloud?"

"Yeah?"

"Please. Do not stress yourself out over Aeris."

Cloud nodded before hanging up."Okay, Red."

Cloud sighed to himself. What did this all mean?

Sephiroth had not slept a wink that night, not that he much needed it. After racing the chocobo and waking the entire town with his appearence, he managed to sneak back into Gast's old house undetected. After shutting Aeris up, he turned off all the lights and watched out the windows, hiding in the shadows. The fools were too stupid to bother checking Gast's deserted home, and had labled the screaming man Sephiroth stole the chobobo from a maniac.

Sephiroth thought he was the first one to move about, but was surprised to find Aeris in the kitchen, admiring some old fake flowers that had been collecting dust on the sill above the sink for years.

"Aren't they beautiful?" Aeris asked when she sensed his presence in the room. "Too bad they aren't real."

Sephiroth shrugged. "Where is Tayeko?" he asked. "We should leave this town immediately before the townspeople discover I really am alive."

Aeris tried to turn on the tap water and frowned when all she heard was a squeaky wail from the pipes. "Tayeko is still asleep. I'll go wake her up. But where are we going, Sephiroth?"

"I do not know, Aeris," Sephiroth answered. "I thought you wanted to find your 'friends'."

Aeris nodded. "I wonder where they are? I guess I can sense them."

"Just go wake Tayeko up so we can leave," Sephiroth said coldly as he head out to the stables.

Aeris shook her head as she walked back to the bedroom. She'd break Sephiroth down soon enough. He was just too cold.

Cloud and Tifa were on their way out of Midgar when they saw Reeve run up behind them. Out of breath, the former Shin-Ra exec clapped Cloud on the shoulder and startled him.

"Cloud!"

Cloud turned aburptly and sighed when he saw Reeve. "What's up?"

"I had the dream too," he breathed. "But unfortunately I can't come with you to Cosmo Canyon. There's just too much work to be done here. I told Cid to pick up Cait at the Gold Saucer."

Cloud smiled. "Sure, Reeve. I understand. We love having Cait around."

Tifa snorted.

"Well, I guess I'll be going now," Reeve said. "I hope you find something out!"

Cloud gave his traditional nod and turned to walk out the gates of the Midgar slums. Tifa gave Reeve a quick wave and flashed a smile before running to catch up with Cloud.

As they left the city, Tifa linked her arm with Cloud's. "Are you worried?" she asked him.

"I'm just confused," Cloud responded.

"I can understand," Tifa said. "Hey, look! I think I see the Highwind!"

In the short distance, the Highwind landed and waited for the two to board. Cid was in the bridge, along with Yuffie, Barret, and Cait Sith.

Cid stomped over to them. "Damn fine vacation!" He yelled sarcastically. "One fucking day, huh? This sucks!"

Cloud couldn't help but chuckle. "This is important, *Captain*." He said. "Now take us to Cosmo Canyon."

Cid cursed again with a puff of his cigarette. "Jeff! Rev up those engines! We're going to that damned Cosmo Canyon!"

Tayeko sleepily followed Aeris into the stables, where Sephiroth was waiting for them, tenderly brushing the Chocobo's feathers. When he felt them enter, he dropped the brush and instantly stood up straight.

"Let's go."

The two Cetra timidly approached the bird and stared at it. "What are we supposed to do?" Tayeko asked." "Yeah," Aeris agreed. "I can't get on a chocobo by myself. Cloud always helped me."

Sephiroth sighed and mounted the bird in a fluid motion. "Listen," he said sternly. "Tayeko, you get behind me and wrap your arms around my waist. Then, Aeris, get behind Tayeko and do the same."

Tayeko scratched her head and blinked. Aeris nudged her, and she finally decided to act.

She slowly tried to mount the bird, but slid off her first try. Sephiroth looked the other way.

"Uh... can I get some help?" She asked.

Sephiroth reached out his powerful arm and pulled her up, his long fingers curling around her wrist. Aeris walked over and he also helped her on, along with Tayeko's help.

"Now we must leave. These chocobos are very fast, so hold on tight."

Tayeko had not taken Sephiroth seriously until the bird sped off, nearly knocking her and Aeris down. They both yelped.

Sephiroth couldn't help but smirk to himself as the two girls screamed behind him. "Quiet," he instructed sternly, remembering that the townspeople were probably just waking up. He raced out of the city, the choboco warbling softly as it left prints in the soft snow. "Where are we headed?" Tayeko asked, her voice shaking as she buckled beneathe the class A chocobo.

"Wherever Aeris' little friends are," Sephiroth said bitterly. Tayeko blushed as she felt Sephiroth's heartbeat through his back.

Aeris shifted behind her. "I don't know yet.. let me try to sense them."

The young Cetra closed her eyes and held tighter to Tayeko's waist for support.

"Cloud..." she began to whisper. "Where are you?"

The Highwind was kicking up red dust as it landed near Cosmo Canyon, its six passengers disembarking and making a short hike up to the Canyon entrance.

"Man, oh man!" Barret said with a shake of his head. "That dream was freaky as hell! And now I got to climb stairs!"

"Don't complain so, Barret," Tifa said with a snicker as she remembered the Shin-Ra building's emergency escape stairs.

Those were the days, Tifa thought. But were they better or worse than they are now? Cloud didn't know who he was then, and Aeris was still with them. Or was that the bad thing?

Tifa shook her head. Why was she thinking such things? Aeris had been her close friend. In the short time she had known her, she had become like a sister to Tifa, although in the beginning things were a bit rough over Cloud.

Tifa's thoughts stopped when she realized they were at the entrance to the Canyon. The guard was beginning to greet them when Red pranced over.

"Cloud!" He called. "You must come quick! I've something urgent to tell you!" Cloud cocked an eyebrow as he jogged ahead with Red. Tifa and the others followed them to the Eternal Flame where Vincent was already seated.

Red sat on his haunches near the flame and waited patiently while everyone took a seat around it.

"Not this boring place again! " Yuffie complained. "Can't we do something exciting? What's this all about, anyway?"

"Shut your hole, brat!" Cid blasted at her. "This is important!"

"Whatever," Yuffie said, rolling her eyes.

"Cid's right," Cait agreed. "What's up?"

"Aw, the damn cat!" Barret roared. "I hate this dumb peice of shit! Can't you close your mouth for once!"

"Barret, I just-"

"Fah!" Barret waved him off. "You damn Shin-Ra don't care bout nobody! Why are you even here?"

"Gawd, Barret," Yuffie grumbled. "Why are you so mean to Reeve? I mean, he's not a bad guy, or anything."

"Damn you, Yuffie! You want to go join them Shin-Ra's?"

"No!" Yuffie shouted.

"She'd probably join the fucking Turks," Cid laughed, giving Barret a playful tap. "You know she's got a thing for that red head.. uh... Renu...? Whatever his goddamned name is."

"Reno!!" Yuffie screamed, her face flushing red furiously. "His name's Reno... and I DON'T like him!"

Barret and Cid responded in roaring laughter.

Yuffie bolted to her feet and balled her fists into little balls. Her face was bright red.

"Stop laughing at me!!" she shouted.

They laughed harder.

Yuffie threw a origami bird at Cid, but he blocked it with his elbow as he and Barret fell over in more laughter. Yuffie jumped and stormed away, her eyes flooding with tears. She ran far away from the eternal flame.

Why do they treat me like this? she thought as she fell behind a nearby rock. I hate this! I don't deserve this! I don't even... like... Reno..."

Yuffie punched the rock with her bare fist in anger. It hurt, but she chose to ignore th pain for the time being. All she wondered was why everyone always treated her like a whiney, annoying brat, and teased her to no end.

"Damnit!" Cloud cursed. "Look what you've gone and done now, guys! I want to know what Red has to say!"

"It is alright, Cloud," Red said quietly.

"No its not!" he yelled back. "I'm gonna go get Yuffie. Damn!"

Cloud stormed off angrilly after Yuffie. He wanted to know about whatever was going on with Red!

Cloud found Yuffie crouched behind a rock, sniffling and cursing under her breath. He came up behind her quietly, and rested his hand on her shoulder. Her head snapped up to look at him. "Yuf.. You okay?"

Yuffie wiped her face with the back of her hand and glared at Cloud. "Yeah... just... whatever. Leave me alone."

"Listen, Yuffie," Cloud coaxed, kneeling down next to her. "I know Barret and Cid were acting like jerks. It was wrong of them to say those things and laugh at you. But you have to understand, sometimes you provoke them too."

"No, I-"

"Wait," Cloud said, holding his hand up in front of Yuffie. "I know you feel bad. That was pretty embarrassing. But Yuffie, we may have a situation on our hands. We need to stick together and be a team."

"Yeah... I guess..."

Cloud smiled as he helped Yuffie stand. "Let's go back."

Yuffie nodded as she and Cloud walked back to the Flame. She smiled. Cloud was kinda cute. But Reno's hair was way sexier.

Red nodded as the two returned the flame and took seats.

"I guess you all are ready for the discovery Vincent and I made this morning," he began. "This is very strange and I fear it could be very serious."

Cloud cleared his throat as the others began chattering amoungst themselves.

"Anyway, I will tell you first that you may be divided on this news. It may make you happy, but it can also make you scared, worried, or angry."

"What the hell is it?" Cid asked anxiously.

"Well," Red began, "There seems to be a disturbance in the Lifestream."

Cloud cocked his head. "What does that mean?"

"Well, a disturbance like this does not occur unless a soul is removed from the Lifestream and brought back amoungst the living. I learned this from grandfather.

"I have studied the Lifestream with some of Grandfather's equipment and there seems to be three separate shockwaves. Two of them appear to be weak physically but strong magically, although one seems underdeveloped and inexperienced. The third force is both extrodinarily strong physically and magically. It also seems to contain something foreign."

"Foreign?" Cloud questioned. "Like what?"

Red looked down. "Jenova."

"W,what?"

"Oh, my!" "Damnit! Not dis again!"

"Uh oh..."

"Fucking shit!"

"Oh Gawd!"

"I beileve," Vincent spoke, silencing everyone at once, "That this may be the meaning of our dreams."

Cloud scratched his head. "What do you mean?"

"What Vincent is trying to say," Red began to explain, "Is that these three forces could represent the three people in our dreams."

It became deadly silent.

Red cleared his throat. "For instance... we all know that Aeris is a powerful magic user but is also physically weak. We know nothing about the black haired woman, but its safe to say that she may be weak physically and a good magic user, although she may be inexperienced and unaware of her abilities. And we are well aware that Sephiroth is both physically strong and is a dedicated magic user. And also..."

"He has Jenova's blood," Cloud finished grimly.

Red nodded. "Its very possible that Aeris may be alive... as well as Sephiroth. Though I cannot make any guarrentees." Cloud bolted upright. "We have to find her! That monster probably has her!"

"What about the woman with the black hair?" Yuffie asked in a small voice.

"I can't be sure," Red said. I cannot even be sure if my hypothesis is correct. Although there has never been a disturbance in the Lifestream this powerful before..."

Tifa suddenly felt sick. She glanced over at Cloud. There was something in his eyes, something she hadn't seen since Aeris was alive. Now at the first mention that she could be alive, it had returned. The fire in Cloud's eyes was back.

Tifa slowly rose and excused herself. She ran towards the Cosmo Candle in search of the bathroom, her eyes flooding with tears.

"What's wrong with her?" Barret asked, concerned.

"Probably the shock..." Cloud muttered. But Tifa was suddenly the last thing on his mind. Aeris could be alive... and he had to find her.

Tifa slammed the bathroom door and fell against it, crying violently. Aeris was probably alive. When they found the Cetra, Cloud would forget all about her and run to Aeris. He'd probably try to marry her on the spot and whisk her away to some safe hiding place where they could be together forever.

Tifa shuddered. Ever since Aeris joined them, Tifa felt as though she were living in the Cetra's shadow. She couldn't get Cloud's attention unless they had a drastic emergency on their hands. When Aeris died, a part of Cloud died with her. Tifa was devastated by the loss of her friend, but deep down, in the very blackest corner of her heart, she felt relieved. Somehow, she thought she may have a chance with Cloud.

Tifa thought back to the kiss they shared the night before. When Cloud kissed her, she was sure it meant something. She knew that although Cloud loved Aeris and missed her terribly, he would be able to forget her and love Tifa. But it wouldn't be that way. Aeris would come back to overshadow Tifa, once again.

Tifa shifted her weight against the door as she slid to the floor, sobbing uncontrollably. Aeris had always been stronger than her, Tifa knew. She was able to sacrifice her life to Sephiroth for the Planet, while Tifa did nothing but watch in horror.

Tifa leaned against the unsturdy sink, trying to stand. She looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her face was blotchy and flushed, her nose red and her eyes puffy and red. Her cheeks were stained with salty tears and her lips were trembling.

Tifa tried to straighten up and looked directly into her own, burgandy-brown eyes through the mirror. Her pupils were dilated from the darkness, and the glare in her shiny eyes was minimal. She gave herself a smile that tore out her heart as she made her decision.

When Aeris comes back.... I'll leave.

Tifa turned toward the door, wiping her face clean with bathroom tissue. If and when they found Aeris, she'd know Cloud was truly happy and she'd leave them. She didn't know where she'd go... somewhere to start a new life. She couldn't bare to be around Cloud while he was with his strong, beautiful, Cetra woman.

She'd never compared. The chocobo was nearing the ocean as Tayeko slowly looked up from where she was resting her head on Sephiroth's shoulder. She began to wonder if Sephiroth was awake and tapped his shoulder.

"What do you want?"

Tayeko was a bit taken aback by his coldness. "Sephiroth... we're approaching the ocean."

"I know that."

"Well... aren't you going to stop?"

Sephiroth merely smirked. He wasn't going to tell them. He purposely kicked the chocobo's side to make it speed up, and almost couldn't resist the urge to laugh when Tayeko held him tighter and Aeris gasped.

"Sephiroth!" Aeris called, squeezing her eyes shut. "What are you doing?"

The chocobo ran in to the ocean, Tayeko screaming and Aeris' lips pursed tight together. But soon, the chocobo was gliding smoothly over the water at an incredible speed. Tayeko looked down at the ocean and saw only a blue blur.

"What...?" she said, confused. "The chocobo is running on water!"

"Gold chocobos can travel on any of the earth's surfaces," Sephiroth said. "Including the ocean."

"I didn't know there was a chocobo that could do that," Aeris said. "I've only ridden on a chocobo once before, one that Cloud caught. It could only walk on grass."

Tayeko turned to look at Aeris. "Who's Cloud, hmm?? Boyfriend?"

Aeris smiled as she pictured Cloud's blue mako eyes and spikey blond hair. "I... dunno..." she said in a dreamy voice. "I hope so."

Sephiroth became rigid at the discussion of Cloud. The final battle replayed countless times in his mind, each time more gruesome and terrifying than the last. The most painful part to Sephiroth was that he knew he deserved it.

No matter how changed I am, Sephiroth thought, that is one person I will always hate.

"So now what?" Tayeko asked, trying not to look at the nausiatingly fast moving water beneathe them.

"I have to try to find Cloud," Aeris said, closing her eyes. "I'll try to sense him..."

Aeris was silent for a long time. Tayeko was wondering what she was doing and how, while Sephiroth thought horrible things in his mind about the young "failure" SOLDIER.

Finally, after several minutes, Aeris' eyes flew open. They softened, as if she was remembering something dear to her.

"Cosmo Canyon," she whispered. "I think Cloud is near Cosmo Canyon."

Tifa had finally managed the regain control and was approaching the Eternal Flame again. However, despite her efforts to wipe away tears and clear up her puffy eyes, everyone was still able to tell something was wrong.

"What happened, Tifa?" Barret asked. "You alright?"

"Y,yeah.." Tifa stammered, taking a seat next to him. All eyes were on her, except for Cloud, who was standing up and staring at the stars. He drew his sword and held it behind him, still staring upward.

"AERIS!!" he called to the heavens at the top of his lungs.

"Damn, Cloud!" Barret complained. "What you shoutin' for?"

"If Aeris is out there, she knows I'm searching for her," Cloud answered. "And I'm going to find her."

"What about that fucker Sephiroth?" Cid asked.

Cloud's face grew grim. "I'm going to kill him myself, just like I did the last time. And God help me if he hurt Aeris."

Tifa let out a tiny sob.

"Don't worry, Tifa," Yuffie coaxed. "Aeris is probably fine."

That's not why I'm crying, Tifa thought through a fake smile.

"So what's the plan?" Cid asked.

"Tommorrow, first thing in the morning, we go out and look for her. We are going to search this entire planet high and low until we find a trace of her."

"Cloud, do not let such high hopes consume you," Vincent said. He then took off towards the inn.

"Whatever the hell that meant," Cid began, "That dark and dreary motherfucker is right about going off to bed."

"Right," Red agreed. "It's probable best that we all are well rested for tommorrow."

The other members of AVALANCHE, all but Cloud and Tifa, mumbled their agreements and followed Red off the flame toward the Inn. Tifa was about to step down, when she stopped to admire Cloud.

He was still standing up straight, one leg behind him as he stared straight up in to the night with hopeful blue mako eyes. His held his huge Ultima weapon with his right arm behind him, it's tip touching the floor and slightly leaning. Tifa never saw a more beautiful sight.

Tifa was about to leave when she heard Cloud speak.

"I'm coming, Aeris," his voice carried softly in the dry Canyon air. "I love you."

Tifa covered her mouth to keep Cloud from hearing what would surely be a sob. She turned and ran from the Flame to the inn, never looking back as she felt her heartbreak and her nightmares come true.