A.N: Hello friends! So, I've always wanted to write a self-insert fanfiction where my friends/family get transported into a Final Fantasy world and have to work together with our dearly beloved characters to change the outcome of Square's already awesome and kick-ass plot lines. So, this story was born as a Christmas fic to my beautiful friends and family! I have omitted surnames for obvious reasons, and refuse to transform my the inserted people into Mary Sues and Gary Stus. I mean, we all have flaws and major issues and as a strange and cruel friend I am going to use this story as a means of exploring my friends' amazingly authentic and real personalities in the midst of many unknown scenarios and hopefully do justice to their existence in my beautiful reality *hearts*!

I don't expect many people to read this, nor do I encourage chance readers to feign interest just for a high review count- all I will say is: Read at your own discretion and enjoy the ride! And if you have anything to say about the story, feel free to PM me or drop a review! If you actually want to follow the adventures of these beloved characters, feel free to follow the story (haha!) and if you really adore this story for whatever reason, be it my portrayal of the FFVII cast, my writing style (LOL) or your connection to my loveable friends *hearts again* then feel free to favourite this story! :)

Also, just quickly, this story will involve fluff- but will not entail any major romance (unless it's canon). I'm all about the friendships and hilarious moments BUAHAHAHAHA!

Okay... this A.N. is long- but it will probably be the only A.N. I post in this story, other than replies to guest reviews! Hopefully I'm not breaking any rules. If I am, let me know and I'll remove this- or make it shorter.

So, let's begin...

Merry Christmas, my lovely friends and family! :)

Prologue- The Beginning

Location: ?

All Michelle could see was red and black energies surrounding her as she stumbled through an unknown, barren landscape. In the distance, she could see a small speck of green light that seemed to coax her towards it. Brushing her messy dark brown hair out of her eyes, she reached back and tied her long hair back into her usual pony tail before taking a deep breath and continuing forward. She didn't know where she was, or how she got to be standing in the dark void that seemingly stretched out into nothingness. All she could remember was being on a train back home from an evening in the city with her closest friends, Rebecca, Ilona and Hannah.

Michelle choked back a frightened sob as she thought about her friends. She hoped that they were all alive and well. She hoped that they were being awkwardly silent together.

Taking in the dark and eerie scenery around herself, she took in a deep breath and wiped her eyes hastily. Forcing a small smile onto her lips, she began her long journey towards the light, her eyes flickering about the red and black mist around her apprehensively.

It always helped to keep a positive mindset when things looked bleak, for if one had already reached rock bottom, there was no other direction one could go but upwards.

Location: Sector 5 Church

The pleasant perfume scent of flowers and nectar wafted into Hannah's nose, and it was at the instance that she knew she wasn't on a train bound into the Sydney suburbs. That, and she was lying face down in what she thought was a patch of flowers. Moaning in slight discomfort, the coffee haired dancer slowly sat upright and began to stretch her arms and legs. After regaining feeling into her limbs, she hastily stood up and surveyed the area around her.

Her eyes widened comically as she took in the dilapidated state of the church. The pyres were crumbling, some had already fallen. The wooden floorboards were eroded with age, with some of the pulled out completely to make way for the small garden she had landed in. The numerous benches were haphazardly stretched out before her, and yet, they still looked organised. Overall, the environment she was in was peaceful and surprisingly soothing.

That is, until Hannah realised she was in the unknown Church all by herself.

Gasping loudly, Hannah did a three-sixty turn, quickly checking to see if any of her friends were lying around. Unfortunately, it was only her. Slumping her shoulders, Hannah felt her heartbeat begin to speed up. Her breaths came out in short, raspy gasps as the despaired reality began to sink into her heart.

"I'm alone…" As she spoke quietly to herself, the church doors were slowly pushed open. Letting out a surprised squeak, Hannah dramatically clutched at her chest and huffed as it was only a girl dressed in a blue and white summer dress armed with a small brown basket. Gathering her wits, Hannah wore a cheery smile on her face and waved enthusiastically at the approaching girl.

As the girl approached, Hannah couldn't help but take in her angelic appearance. Her thick, hazelnut coloured hair framed her face in two sides up to her chin, the rest of her wavy locks cascading down her back. Her pale skin complimented her feminine facial features, her forest green eyes shining and cherubic lips smiling happily at her. Her smile quickly turned into a worried frown as she caught sight of her crumpled flowers and residual petals stuck to Hannah's knitted sweater. Hannah blushed at the girl's scrutiny. Before she had the chance to apologise for the property damage, the younger girl was cheerfully smiling again.

"You're not from here, are you?" The kind girl asked. Her voice was soft and airy. Hannah shrugged, relaxing in the girl's presence. At least she wasn't alone any more.

"I don't really know where 'here' is…" Hannah frowned slightly. Realising she was frowning, she gasped sharply and shook her head quickly from side to side. "Oh man, these negative vibes are really getting me down!" Making eye contact with the patient girl in front of her, Hannah offered her hand to her. "Hi, I'm Hannah!" The girl grinned and placed her basket down on the ground beside her before taking the dancer's hand into her own.

"Hi Hannah, my name is Aerith! It's very nice to meet you," tilting her head towards the flowers, Aerith continued to speak. "No one usually comes here, so I tend to hang out here and look after the flowers. They only grow here… and it looks like you fell on them." Hannah nodded, dejectedly.

"Yeah… I don't really know how I wound up here, but I woke up in the flower bed. I'm really sorry!" Aerith shook her head, raising her arms up in protest.

"No, no! Don't be sorry! It's not your fault. The flowers here are very resilient. They'll be back to normal by tomorrow!" Aerith giggled. Hannah smiled at the younger girl's bright personality.

"That's good to hear!" Hannah began, however the dancer realised that she still didn't know where she was. Although, the young girl's name sounded very familiar…

Straightening up, Hannah gestured towards the door of the church.

"So Aerith, where am I, exactly?" Aerith gasped, raising her hands to her mouth in surprise.

"Oh, sorry! We're in the Church in the Sector 5 Slums. In Midgar…" Aerith trailed off, keeping her dainty finger on her chin in thought. "So, you said you're not from around here?" Hannah nodded, avoiding the younger girl's gaze. She willed herself not to start panicking in front of the girl. That would be too embarrassing. However, the names of the places… the locations… they all reminded her of Michelle's favourite hobby and passion: Final Fantasy VII.

Keeping her mouth shut, Hannah turned to Aerith and spoke before her common sense could catch up with her. She was transported to a world she was barely familiar with and she had no one she knew or trusted with her. And yet, this cheery girl standing before Hannah presented herself in such a way that Hannah seemingly had no choice but to trust her.

"No… I'm alone." She choked back a hysterical sob. She didn't want to look like a complete softie in front of the gentle, smiling girl before her. Aerith gasped and started forward, wrapping the distressed girl in a comforting embrace. Hannah inhaled and snuggled into the girl's shoulder. She smelled like fresh flowers and home-made cookies. Definitely not a dangerous smell.

"Oh Hannah, you're so silly! I'm here, aren't I? You can come and stay with my Mom and I while we look for your friends." Hannah gasped, pulling away from the kind girl.

"I don't want to impose on you!" Aerith shook her head vigorously, grasping gently at Hannah's forearm as she pulled the newcomer out of the Church and towards her Sector 5 home.

"Hey, we're friends now! I'm not going to let my friend stay all alone in the slums." Pulling enthusiastically at the older girl's arm, Aerith grinned brightly, her flower basket laying forgotten in the midst of her lively, colourful flowerbed. Hannah offered the girl a small smile as her heart beat began to calm down, her panic slowly fading as she quickly scampered along the dirty pathways, debris and junkyards before seeing a quaint, cottage-like home sitting peacefully in the distance.

Aerith was silent throughout the whole trip, but beaming happily as she enthusiastically tugged at her new friend's arm, urging her forward. Hannah's small smile widened, her dark, thick lashes brushing against the top of her pink flushed cheeks as she walked in step beside the young flower girl.

"Thank you for everything, friend." Aerith whipped her head to look in Hannah's direction and frowned slightly in jest.

"Hey, don't get all formal on me! There's no need to thank a friend. And it's my pleasure!" Hannah nodded, grinning brightly, her mood lifting despite her strange predicament. Even amongst all the chaos, she managed to find a good friend. She only hoped her other friends were safe and had the same fortune as she was blessed with.

Location: Sector 8 Main Plaza

Rebecca groaned as she came to, slowly opening her eyes as her ears registered footsteps approaching her. Using her hands as leverage, she pushed herself up off the floor and dusted herself off before taking in her surroundings. The sun was setting and throngs of people were littered about around a magnificent looking fountain. Tall buildings loomed about around her, creating multiple alleyways around the dreary looking city. One building in particular rose above the rest, a sign clearly displaying the identification of the building. Although, without her glasses Rebecca couldn't make out what the distant sign said.

As she surveyed her surroundings, her thick, curly blonde hair made its way over her eyes and face, obstructing her view. Huffing in annoyance, Rebecca yanked off the spare black hair tie she kept on her wrist and violently twisted her hair into a make-shift bun. Some of her hair spilled out from what was supposed to be a neat do. Groaning in annoyance this time, Rebecca threw her hands up into the air and cried out.

"Where is everyone and where am I?" Hearing a familiar light cough originating from somewhere behind her person, Rebecca whirled around and came face to face with… the other side of the alley way. Shaking her head, the tall woman composed herself and turned back towards the fountain. As she was turning though, the familiar voice chose to speak again.

"Rebecca, down here!" Blue-grey eyes widening in realisation, Rebecca turned around and shifted her gaze to the hard, paved ground and found her best friend laying sprawled on her side. Her glasses were sitting askew just above her nose and her soft hair was splayed wildly around her face as she used her elbows to lift herself up off the ground painfully.

Rebecca chuckled dryly at the display.

"Looking fabulous, as always." Ilona looked up to her closest friend with an embarrassed smile on her face.

"Oh, stahp it!" Blinking a few times to clear her vision, Ilona frowned slightly as the blinking did nothing to defog her visual field. "Hey, is it just me, or is there a thick smog around us?" Rebecca looked at her shorter friend incredulously.

"Your glasses. They're dirty." Ilona gasped immediately and whipped she glasses off, rubbing the lenses onto the edge of her knee length summer dress.

"Don't say a word, Rebecca." Ilona warned as Rebecca's eyes filled with mirthful tears from holding back on laughing at the strange girl before her.

"Yeah, whatever you say," sobering up immediately as she turned back around to take in the city around her, Rebecca spoke. "We're obviously not on the train anymore. Any ideas about where this place is?" Ilona stepped up beside Rebecca and shrugged, her eyes glistening with curiosity with regards to her surroundings.

"I have no idea, to be completely honest. Maybe we should go and ask around?" Ilona looked up at Rebecca who was now staring up at the tall building that stood out amongst the others.

"Yeah… let's go over there. Someone's bound to know what's going on. Maybe Michelle and Hannah are there too." Ilona nodded, biting her lip in worry. Rebecca was the bravest and most resourceful out of the group, and though she didn't want to doubt Michelle's ability to fend for herself, she was worried about her slightly older friend's penchant for procrastinating on everything she was to do when she became anxious. Being thrown into a strange location, presumably with Hannah who was also a naturally anxious person, wasn't going to help calm her friend maintain her positive thought pattern at all. But then again, Hannah and Michelle were the most positive people she knew… they could survive through any chaotic mess and still be able to flash a cheeky grin at the end of the day. Though, whether that positiveness stemmed from ignorance or strength, no one really knew…

Rebecca cleared her throat, snapping Ilona out of her worried thoughts.

"Do you think Hannah and Michelle are together?" Ilona sighed softly before stepping forward, starting their journey towards the building. Spying the large sign, Ilona's eyes widened at the familiar name.

"I hope so… it would be scary to be in an unknown place by yourself. I'm just really glad you were right there next to me when I woke up!" Rebecca nodded in acknowledgement at Ilona's thankful exclamation. "Oh and I think I may know where we are- but it's impossible!" Rebecca turned her full attention to her blabbering friend and cocked one eyebrow in amusement.

"Yeah… where do you think we are? And don't say something stupid like Luna Park because then I'll take your dignity. And you won't get it back this time.." Ilona rolled her eyes at the childish threat, but still rubbed at her nose before answering Rebecca's question.

"You see that sign? It says 'ShinRa Electric Company'. Michelle always talked about the ShinRa and SOLDIER and the Turks and she despised some guy called Hojo… something about some SOLDIER deserving better…" Ilona trailed off. Rebecca nodded.

"Final Fantasy?" She stated calmly. Ilona nodded solemnly.

"I also remember this fountain from the small amount of Crisis Core I played on the train with her after that drug dealer incident." Rebecca barely contained her amused snort.

"She's such a doormat… I'm kind of worried about them." Ilona hummed in affirmation.

"Well, standing around here won't help them! I say we head on over to the ShinRa building and ask for some help!" Ilona chirped. Rebecca remained rooted on the spot, fidgeting with her hands.

"Is it such a good idea to go and ask an evil corporation for help finding our lost friends? What if they take us into custody?" Ilona turned around to answer Rebecca's questions with a sarcastic retort, but stopped short as she spied a familiar red head wearing an unkempt suit step out of the shadows in their alley way.

"Ilona… what's wrong? Your face looks all spastic." Ilona ignored Rebecca's concerned insult and continued to stare at the gorgeous man lazily making his way towards them, a feral grin taking over his sharp, picturesque facial features.

"Tseng I found them, yo!" Reno drawled into a hand-held device. "They've been callin' themselves 'Ilona' and 'Rebecca' for the past ten minutes." Rebecca whirled around and nearly crashed face-first into the man's chest. Flushing in embarrassment and shock, Rebecca took a few quick steps backwards and stood in front of Ilona protectively.

"The f**k are you?" Rebecca demanded forcefully. The intruding red-head merely chuckled as he stared apathetically at the two girls before him.

"Reno of the Turks. Watch that tongue, cat, or I'll shock it off." Reno flourished his electro-mag rod as he winked flirtatiously at Rebecca. Feeling sick, Rebecca conjured up a mental picture of herself kicking the cocky bastard in the family jewels. She fought down the satisfied smirk that wanted to make its way onto her lips. Instead, she stared up defiantly at the man. Ilona cleared her throat behind her friend, gaining the attention of the Turk.

"Um… you were looking for us? How did you know we were here?" Reno flashed Ilona a cheeky grin as he shrugged.

"That's classified info, yo. Although, I think you'd be happy ta know that your friend Hannah is safe and technically under Turk protection." At this piece of information, Rebecca and Ilona let out a sigh of relief. They were both relieved that Hannah, the youngest of the four, was safe and well. However… that left Michelle…

"What about Michelle? Where is she?" Rebecca questioned, shifting her stance into a more relaxed position. Reno raised his free hand up to the back of his head, scratching nervously.

"Look, I dunno about any 'Michelle'. All I know is that your friend Hannah is at a safe and established location and that you two need to follow me." Rebecca looked back to Ilona, her brow furrowed. Ilona was still looking at Reno incredulously.

"How do we know we can trust you?" Reno smirked at this.

"You don't." Ilona gulped as Rebecca took a step forward, looking livid.

"Don't play games with us, you bastard. Or else I'll shove that rod up your ass." Reno raise his eyebrows, wriggling them suggestively.

"Oh, so you're the kinky type- I can handle that, yo!" Rebecca almost lunged at Reno, aiming for his neck, but was held down by a wide-eyed Ilona. Reno merely chuckled as he put his EMR away, shoving his hands into his pocket as he slowly led the way towards the ShinRa building. "You two… you're gonna be interesting additions to the team, yo!" Rebecca and Ilona exchanged looks, Rebecca still a little peeved as they both reluctantly followed the cocky Turk out of the alley way and towards the ShinRa building.

It was the only chance they had at being reunited with Hannah, after all.

Location: ShinRa Infirmary

Sean felt a dull ache in his head. The cheery voices talking loudly around him were not helping with his terrible headache. Cracking one eye open, he immediately regretted his decision as his visual system was assaulted with bright, white artificial lighting. His hands shot up to grasp at his head as pain seared through it.

"What the hell? Am I in hospital?" Sean questioned, his voice coming out croaky from lack of fluids. The last thing he remembered was being on the treadmill at the gym, running like it was nobody's business before everything just blacked out. Now he was laying down on some cot in a room that smelt like his sister's insulin and surrounded by loud men.

Splendid.

"Hey man, you okay?" Sean heard a familiar voice ask him. He shrugged his shoulders refusing to open his eyes.

"I'm alive so I guess I'm okay. This headache though… what happened?" An amused snort resounded in Sean's ears and he turned towards the source, slowly opening his eyes. Squinting, he came face to face with a man wearing a helmet and… a purple SOLDIER Second Class uniform.

"Welcome to the ShinRa infirmary man. I thought you were dead or something, the way you were sprawled across the floor with your skull cracked like that!" The guy wearing the helmet exclaimed. Sean turned his head and nearly fell off his bed as he came face to face with SOLDIER Second Class Zack Fair. Literally nose to nose, Zack Fair blinked, his bright blue eyes momentarily disappearing before re-opening again and grinning ear to ear at the injured man on the cot.

"Yeah, dude, you kind of just showed up randomly! Lazard said he was interested in recruiting you into SOLDIER since you seem to have an abnormally high pain threshold. The fact that you survived… whatever happened to you… is amazing!" Sean nodded, not really understanding what was happening. All he knew was that he was having one screwed up dream that was resultant of too much Final Fantasy talk with his obsessed little sister.

Sean decided to humour his imagination and have a conversation with the SOLDIERs in his presence. It couldn't do him any harm anyway- he was trying to get into the Defence Force in real life. Who better to ask about the military life than Zack Fair and his friend?

"Sounds good. I'm Sean, by the way." Offering his hand to the grinning SOLDIER Second Class, he winced in pain as his arms, shoulders and upper torso protested against the movement. With a gasp of realisation, the SOLDIER wearing the helmet shot up out of his seat and out of the room, muttering something about a Restore Materia and a nurse. Zack shot Sean an apologetic look and tilted his head to the side as he shook the newcomer's hand thoughtfully.

"Heya, I'm SOLDIER Second Class, Zack Fair." Sean nodded, relinquishing his grip after a few moments.

"I know…" Zack's eyed widened in surprise, the sky-blue mako eyes shining with confusion.

"Uh… you do?" Sean repressed the urge to groan at his idiocy, shaking his head and weakly lifting his arms in protest.

"Oh, it's just that… you've earned quite the reputation for being such a friendly guy and what not," Sean's voice nearly cracked due to his nerves. If he really found himself in the world of Final Fantasy VII, he couldn't be a complete idiot and screw up his flimsy cover. He'd heard of enough self-insert fanfictions from his kid sister to know that the inserted character should under no circumstances tell the characters of the fantasy world that he had no idea where he was, how he got here or why he was here…

Sean sighed quietly, feeling his nose itch.

"Oh, well, that's cool I guess! Kunsel will be back with the nurse soon, so like, I'm gonna have to leave you here to fend for yourself my injured friend! I'll be back later with Director Lazard to authorise you for SOLDIER tests and stuff." Sean nodded, feeling a little wary. Wasn't this all happening a little too fast? Wasn't he supposed to be a cadet first before he gained a rank in the army? Sean was confused as he watched his new, self-proclaimed 'friend' cheerily walk out of his infirmary cubicle-thing.

Something wasn't right here.

It was almost like… Zack knew Sean wasn't from Gaia… that Sean didn't belong to his world.

And he was okay with that.

Sean gulped, feeling a sense of dread creep over him just as a smiley, short old woman walked into his cubicle-thing with the faceless Kunsel in tow. In her hand she held a glowing green orb.

"Oh you poor darling! You took quite a fall, hit your head pretty hard too! I don't know what you were doing hiding in the Training Room, but you're lucky Mr. Hewley was concerned enough to stop his lesson and bring you here." Sean raised an eyebrow at the mention of SOLDIER First Class Angeal Hewley. So, he just randomly showed up in the Training Room? Sean shook his head slightly, wincing at the pain that shot through his skull. The smiling nurse tutted and eased a warm hand over Sean's forehead and beckoned him to lay on his back while she worked on healing him. Feeling a comfortable, warm sensation encompass him Sean sighed in contentment before Kunsel's coughing brought him back to his strange situation.

"So… Zack told me your name's Sean," Sean nodded, affirming Kunsel's statement, so Kunsel continued speaking. "I also know that you know my name. I heard Zack tell you. So, I'll just cut to the chase- how did you sneak into the Training Room undetected?" Sean gaped, shocked at Kunsel's frankness. What was he supposed to say now? Kunsel was expecting a good answer, apparently, as he stood with his arms folded and his faceless, helmet covered head tilted in a questioning manner. All in all, his stance wasn't hostile, but Sean still felt intimidated. Maybe it was the knowledge of the Second Class' mako enhanced… everything that kept Sean on edge.

Sean had no answer for Kunsel's question, so he did the only thing he could think of, hoping desperately that his solution to his current predicament was sufficient. However, even he knew his hastily formulated answer sucked ball sack. Still, he had no other choice.

Looking Kunsel in the eye (or where he estimated the man's eyes should be situated), Sean shrugged.

"I dunno… your guess is as good as mine." Kunsel stood silently for a few moments. Sean frowned as he realised that the nurse finished her healing and was now leaving the room. There were no witnesses. Kunsel could kill him in all the creative ways he learned to do so in SOLDIER school and no one would ever know.

Well they would… but who on the Planet would bother speaking on behalf of a stranger?

Did this world even have a criminal justice system?

Sean took in a shaky breath, waiting for Kunsel to act on his response.

He expected yelling, shouting, ass-kicking.

He did not expect a loud laugh, the revelation of a youthful, boyish face under the helmet and sparkling, warm brown eyes glowing in mako and unrestrained mirth as a companionable hand descended warmly onto his shoulder as the SOLDIER shuddered with amusement.

"You, I like you! You, Zack and I- we're gonna be good friends!" Sean couldn't help but grin in return, pleasantly surprised at Kunsel's reaction. Inside his mind though, his worry deepened.

They definitely knew he wasn't from this world. All this sunshine and rainbows were definitely an over active, optimistic imagination.

Sean sighed as he turned away from the still chuckling Kunsel.

Hopefully he'd wake up from this dream before it turned into a dreadful nightmare.