Disclaimer: Ha. I wish. Square/Squeenix ♥
Rating: PG-13 (this chapter, anyway…); Yaoi (eventually), angst and more angst, CrazyRoth, game dialogue… very much anti-AeriSeph.
Pairing: Minor Cloud+Aeris; Sephiroth/Cloud ♥ Wouldn't have it any other way.
Part: 1 of 2 (3?)
Notes: Eh… I just felt like expanding on this part of the game, since it would be so easy… I mean, like… Seph comes in and then BOOM, fade to black. WTF? You know it didn't just end like that. …well, at least not in my head… so… yes. _; Besides, Barret said Cloud looked like he was having a nightmare, and Seph just being there doesn't constitute a nightmare to me. Ahem. Anyway.

BTW: Half of this chapter is the Cloud and Aeris part of the dream, so… bear with it. And oh yeah - I already know Cloud isn't a clone, so don't, y'know, bother to try and correct me. O_o

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There was green in his vision, nothing but green, accompanied by that usual disorienting feeling one endured when waking from a long sleep… but Cloud couldn't tell if he was even waking at all. Everything was too misty, too green for him to be in the real world.

He didn't know how he could have gotten there, anyway, if he truly was awake. He doubted they would have carried him to this mysterious place and left him alone, besides. Last he remembered, they were outside the Temple of the Ancients… where he acted terribly, he knew, but that wasn't him…

Quickly he pushed that memory aside and blinked. He felt as if he was floating; he already knew his feet definitely weren't on the ground, or if there even if there was a ground to step upon… he was in the Lifestream, maybe?

Gradually his vision sharpened and the fog lifted, and slowly shapes appeared; thick, tall trunks with lush leaves, everything around him serene, quiet. The place—wherever it was…—smelled of fresh greenery and dew… some sort of forest, he decided.

He spotted a shock of something in a very familiar shade of brown as it poked out from behind a tree, timidly. "Cloud, can you hear me?"

The soothing voice was like music to his ears, and the mere fact that she was even talking to him after what he did was a miracle in itself… "Yeah, I hear you."

Cloud paused, carefully blinking his eyes. In this place—a dream, he definitely knew he had to be dreaming this forest—he felt completely calm, albeit somewhat disoriented; sort of like he was on the outside looking in. It was strange to look at it that way, as if not really being there at all, more of a spectator than anything… still, he was there, and Aeris was actually talking to him…

But he pushed that thought aside quickly, disorientated or not. It was time for him to make amends—or at the very least, try. "Sorry for what happened…"

Slowly, Aeris wandered out from her hiding place and shrugged a little, smiling slightly. "Don't worry about it," she said, her gaze off to one side, refusing to look at him just then. Cloud didn't blame her in the least for averting her eyes… he wouldn't want to look at him, either, after that…

"…I can't help it…," the blonde mumbled, regretfully.

The girl made a face, sad and thoughtful, before stepping behind the tree once more. "Oh…" She went silent then and Cloud worried she had left him in that unfamiliar place, vulnerable and alone. "Then," Aeris said finally, popping out from the opposite end of Cloud's field of vision, and he let out a quiet sigh of relief, "why don't you really worry about it?"

He was bewildered for a moment as Aeris ran closer to him, childishly, before stopping. One petite hand went to her eye and she smiled towards him, truly acknowledging his presence since the dream began. "And let me handle Sephiroth."

Cloud wanted to snort at the ridiculous request. At bare inches over five feet with less muscle mass than Cloud had even at thirteen-years old, Aeris wanted to take Sephiroth on all by herself? True, the flower girl had generous amounts of magical ability within her small body, but the idea of her being able to defeat the former General was, frankly, more insane than the silver-haired man himself.

As if she meant it as a joke—which Cloud sincerely hoped she did,—Aeris started giggling, mouth covered by her hand, and the blonde watched with fascination as her entire being burned a bright white, filling the forest with a soft, ethereal glow.

The blonde squinted, or some equivalent of that, and when his eyes focused again Aeris was just… gone.

"And Cloud," the Cetra started, walking out from behind yet another tree in the forest, "you take care of yourself." Aeris' voice was stern, but with a comforting, motherly undertone. She turned again before Cloud could respond, walking slowly to her starting point.

As an afterthought occurred, Aeris paused and leaned back, addressing Cloud once again with a smile. "So you don't have a breakdown, okay?"

Cloud wanted to laugh at the explanation. It was so like her…

Bare moments after walking behind the tree, Cloud spotted the girl fall slowly from the forest canopy and land soundlessly onto the ground below. He would have taken the time to marvel at the display, but a sense of vertigo hit, causing his vision to shift and swirl. Cloud could feel himself falling, slowly, before gently making contact with the dirt path.

Aeris smiled warmly at him as he looked around, eyeing the forest curiously from his new viewpoint. White beams of gentle sunlight broke through the thick vegetation above, calming the atmosphere even further. The forest was so… beautiful.

"What is this place?"

Normally he wouldn't have asked, but it definitely wasn't a place his own mind could have cooked up; his own dreams were more often than not nightmares, all plagued with thoughts of him and those… clones… Cloud never dreamt of something lovely as this place before…

The girl chuckled quietly, hands clasped loosely behind her back. "This forest leads to the City of the Ancients…," Aeris started, looking up appreciatively towards the forest ceiling, "and is called 'Sleeping Forest'."

Which meant he was dreaming of an actual location, but one he never heard of before…? It was all Aeris' doing, then…? It was strange to think of it like that; of the possibility that the Cetra could do something so invasive and personal as manipulating his dreams, just as Sephiroth could… but with her it was different. He actually welcomed it, immensely calmed by the fact that someone was still able to reach him, even at his worst.

Cloud could feel Aeris tense as her gaze lowered onto him. The blonde looked over and frowned. From the look in her eyes, Cloud had a good idea what she was going to say next… but he didn't want to hear it. It had been so long since he had a nice dream, so serene and without worries; most of all, one without him…

"It's only a matter of time before Sephiroth uses Meteor," Aeris murmured, fixing her deep green eyes onto his clear blue, "that's why I'm going to protect it." Aeris gestured outwards, pointing far into the Sleeping Forest, and smiled lightly at him. "Only a survivor of the Cetra, like me, can do it."

The blonde stood mutely with his head bowed low, staring blankly at the palms of his hands, and mulled over the things Aeris had said. He didn't want to believe that she had to do things on her own… it didn't seem right—or even remotely fair—for the responsibility to be hers alone, simply because of her heritage. It was ludicrous to think that she could possibly be the only one to save it… he was there too, wasn't he?

"The secret is just up here. At least it should be… I feel it."

Cloud looked up to find the flower girl quite a distance away, looking back at him as she pensively chewed her lower lip, worried over his silence. She gave her head a quick shake and sighed, fully aware she had to give him some sort of explanation. After a short moment she shook her head once more, rolling her hand on her wrist, unable to truly describe what she wanted to. "…it feels like I'm being led by something."

I know, he had the urge to say, I feel that way all the time.

Smiling lightly, Aeris cocked her head to the side and waved, afterwards using that same hand to push the hair out of her eyes. "Then, I'll be going now." Her smile grew stronger as she reassured, "I'll come back when it's all over."

Cloud's stomach sank at the girl's words. He had a sickening feeling that she was terribly wrong… he wanted to explain his worry to her, tell her not to go, at least not by herself, just to wait long enough for him to find her in the real world so they could go together… didn't she know that her excursion was extremely dangerous? Or… that there was a great possibility she would never come back…?

"Aeris?"

Cloud knew… that feeling of dread he harbored had to be justified. He knew Sephiroth and the mission he had in mind; he knew that Sephiroth wasn't going to allow her to go through with her plans. In the back of his mind, Cloud wondered if Sephiroth would even let Aeris live long enough to try.

Giving the blonde one final wave before turning, Aeris began to jog deep into the forest, her long brown braid trailing behind her. But for whatever reason, Cloud couldn't move as he watched her go, only stood there, frozen and dumb as she retreated…

Only when the girl was a small dot of pink on the horizon did Cloud finally will his quivering legs to move. He ran after her far too slowly, as if his body was attempting to force itself through a Shield spell while simultaneously afflicted with Slow… but he still tried, pushing himself to move, just to go and stop her.

…but before long he stopped, begrudgingly aware that reaching her was a lost cause. He assessed his progress and found he had barely moved inches from his spot before… and where Aeris was, it was useless to try and catch her if he continued so slowly…

Cloud bit back a curse as he frowned, looking futilely around the Sleeping Forest. The thought occurred to him that despite the fact that Aeris was gone from the dream, he still hadn't woken up…

The blonde closed his eyes tightly, body tensing as an all-too-familiar chuckle drifted into his ears. Of course… of course that would explain it…

"Hmm…"

No, his mind screamed at him, don't stay, get out, wake up! He shut his eyes tight and told himself, repeatedly, to wake up. He had to… and even if Cloud didn't see him just then, that didn't change the fact that he was still there, waiting…

"…she's thinking of interfering?" the voice asked after a long pause, quietly amused at the idea. "She will be a difficult one, don't you think?" Sarcastic… always sarcastic, cocky, arrogant… not that he didn't have reason to be, even after all the time that passed… he was still the 'Great Sephiroth'.

A soft thud echoed on the ground behind him and Cloud didn't dare turn around. Why bother when he knew what he would find…? Nothing but this nightmare, always, taunting him, forcing him to do things he didn't want to do, act how he didn't want to act… why wouldn't that madman just leave him alone?

"We must stop that girl soon."

"…stay away from her…," Cloud managed, grounding the words out through tightly clenched teeth. The creak of leather-clad legs straightening sounded, the swish of the long coat telling Cloud that the other man was drawing near, and his jaw tightened even more, anxiously.

Sephiroth chuckled as he circled his prey, leisurely, glowing aqua eyes taking in the younger man inch by inch. "'Stay away'?" he laughed, stopping behind the blonde. "No, Cloud, I'm afraid she has made it impossible for me to do so."

Cloud shuddered, cursing the close proximity of the man at his back. He body felt numb and unable to move, unable to attack or even speak just then—surely, just as Sephiroth wanted. It was uncomfortable enough for him to simply be near the older man, but now more than ever.

His former idol's aura exuded an air of superiority and unimaginable power, all of which attacked Cloud's senses, dulling his will and causing him to tremble. It made him feel powerless and weak in Sephiroth's presence; definitely not the way he wanted to feel in front of the man he was going to one day utterly destroy, or die trying.

"You see… that girl is a nuisance." The older man stepped in front of him as he drew the Masamune from its scabbard, carefully eyeing the light reflecting off the shining blade as he went on with his tirade. "She distracts you," Sephiroth announced, slashing his blade through the air with an audible 'whoosh', "just like that other filth you degrade yourself with."

Sephiroth took a step forward in an almost calculated way and stood close to the blonde, pressing the sharp blade against the skin of Cloud's neck, nicking him as he grabbed Cloud's shirt with his left hand before he could back away. A line of red pricked from under the sword but nothing more than that, the cut a bare abrasion which Cloud's enhanced system would heal within minutes.

"And to me, that Cetra is a wrench in my plan."

Sephiroth applied a light pressure to the Masamune, slowly pushing the blade into the soft flesh of Cloud's throat. He smirked triumphantly upon hearing the blonde's suppressed groan and pulled the blade away, satisfied with the meager amount of blood it drew. With a sickening fascination he watched as the thin stream of red trickled down a short path and into Cloud's blue collar, staining the garment to a near-black.

"Therefore, she leaves me with only one true option." Releasing the hold on Cloud's shirt, Sephiroth absently traced the mark on the blonde's neck with one finger, smearing drops of crimson blood on his gloved fingertip. "That being: remove the obstacle. Surely you don't expect me to do so by staying away, now, do you?"

Cloud scowled defiantly, clenching and unclenching his fists, barely noticing the sting of broken flesh high on his neck, doing his best to ignore the fact that the man was touching him, focusing his attention solely on the words Sephiroth spoke and the mocking, arrogant tone behind them.

"Though, if you truly insist I keep my distance…" Sephiroth reached up and condescendingly tapped the pad of his bloodstained finger on the blonde's lip, "you could take care of that girl yourself."

Unconsciously Cloud flicked his tongue out to taste the substance, finding it to be coppery and sharp, with a tint of Mako just underneath. It burned and numbed his lip, and the remainder tingled uncomfortably like an itch just waiting to be scratched… though it wasn't so bad. For some reason, he half-expected it to burn a whole lot worse, but for the life of him couldn't make out the reason why.

"After all," Sephiroth continued, "that girl is a mere weakling of her race, so far removed she is unworthy even to be Hojo's specimen. She has nothing compared to the power Mother and I have…" Sephiroth cut himself off and looked down at Cloud with hardened feline eyes, a smirk playing on his lips. "Even you yourself are more."

The smirk died quicker than it came as the older man implored, "yet that's the path you believe you've chosen?"

Cloud slowly mulled over the things being said with distaste and no small sense of confusion. He was more…? Path he believed he chose? Whatever path Sephiroth was referring to, didn't he actually choose it? True, there were times when his will to stay on the 'right' side faltered and Sephiroth would win… but Cloud wanted to fight. He wanted—needed—to have revenge on the man who razed his hometown, killed so many with that disgusting ease…

"She is nothing, Cloud," Sephiroth reiterated, harsher this time, breaking the blonde from his musing. He could barely hold back the urge to shake the smaller man as he spoke, if only just to keep his attention.

A scowl etched itself deep into Cloud's face. He was angered by the things Sephiroth was implying, all he was actually saying, but most of all he was angered at himself for letting Sephiroth say them. How could he allow Sephiroth to speak so lowly of Aeris…? She was his friend… and he…

"Even so… you believe you care for her, don't you?" The older man paused, searching Cloud's blue eyes for an answer. He narrowed his own to fine slits as the mercenary turned away, impudently, refusing to let Sephiroth judge him any longer but unknowingly giving the silver-haired man what he needed.

The taller man turned, nearly snarling as he slashed the Masamune down and back up again in a vain attempt to release himself of the fury which welled up within him. That simple observation meant that Cloud was still partially free from his total control, able to think and act on his own unlike the other clones. Somehow the blonde was more human than the others, one of those vile creatures… perhaps, in that respect, the blonde truly was the failure Hojo deemed him.

If Cloud wasn't so requisite to his plans, Sephiroth probably would have gotten rid of him long ago… the boy was merely a numberless puppet living under the guise of a human. But sadly, of all the clones Hojo produced, Cloud was still the one who followed orders the best, defiance aside, still the only one truly worthy of ascension…

Yet he obviously didn't know his place, and it seemed Cloud didn't realize just where he came from, nor how he came to be… and that simple fact tried Sephiroth's patience more than anything else. Cloud wasn't just serving him, but helping others as well, leading that gang of filth in a fight 'against' him. It was sickening to see a part of himself behave in such a manner, to be acted against as if Cloud believed he hated his master…

And it was all because of her that Cloud disobeyed. She was the one trying to break the blonde's strings, to make Cloud believe he was something more than a simple tool… but fortunately for Sephiroth, that other girl, the mountain guide, hadn't yet interrupted. She kept quiet over Cloud's true self, locking that awareness away within herself; that one's perpetual lies benefited Sephiroth more than she knew. Had Sephiroth cared, he probably would have been grateful of her treachery towards a 'person' whom she wanted to consider a childhood friend.

But that Cetra…

Sephiroth turned to face the blonde, seething with anger the more he thought about his situation. He was not going to lose his puppet to a lowly being such as her. Cloud belonged to him.

The silver-haired man studied the smaller one's face for bare moments before he re-sheathed the Masamune. Without warning he seized the blonde by the collar of his shirt, pulling Cloud close to him to grab his chin tightly with a free hand.

"So you do… hmph. How terribly sweet," Sephiroth said after a long moment, his voice dangerously sarcastic.

If Cloud was more focused, he would have picked up the spite in those words, that anger, that jealousy… instead he grimaced, quickly slapping the black-gloved hand away from his face. "Don't touch me."

The silver-haired man grinned bitterly, mocking him, before taking his chin once more. "I can do as I please with you, you have no say."

"Like hell I don't!" Cloud yelled, latching on to Sephiroth's forearm and pulling the man's hand from his face.

"No, you do not," Sephiroth spat, "you owe me everything, Cloud, all that you are—your strength, your abilities, body, life…" He stared straight into the younger man's eyes, lowering his voice before he went on, curling his hand tighter into the turtleneck of the SOLDIER uniform, "even these clothes upon your back are there because of me."

The blonde glared at him as he spoke, teeth bared, feeling beyond frustrated and angry. Everything Sephiroth was saying was saying to him was utterly ridiculous, nothing but blatant lies, completely foolish and crazy even for him.

"I don't owe you a goddamn thing…"

"Such an ingrate you are," Sephiroth growled, narrowing his eyes to paper-thin slits, "deny it all you like but the fact still remains that Mother and I both have given you all of this," he made a small gesture down Cloud's self, "yet you bite the hand that feeds you. Don't you realize that without me you would be nothing?"

Sephiroth leaned close and lowered his voice, hissing quietly into the blonde's pierced ear, "without me, Cloud, you. Are. Nothing."

"Bullshit."

Abruptly he released his grip on Cloud's shirt and shoved the blonde away from him, sending the smaller one to the forest floor. Sephiroth stepped forward, towering over the prone body as he sneered, "well then, you're willing to jeopardize it all for such an inferior race, for such a worthless, pitiful girl? Would you die for that girl, Cloud?"

He lowered his eyes to give Cloud a level stare and smiled maliciously. "…but you do remember what you did to her, don't you?" Sephiroth chuckled in the back of his throat, "it's so easy to manipulate you, yet that was something you did of your own volition. I was so proud of you, Cloud."

Cloud fell into a sullen silence, unwilling to believe a word the silver-haired man had said. He couldn't have beaten Aeris of his own free will simply because he was mad at himself… Sephiroth had to have been in control of him then. He was the one who was protecting Aeris, acting as her bodyguard. It couldn't have been him who did that…

"Though," Sephiroth said, quietly musing, "it's a pity you stopped; had you not, you would have saved me the trouble of killing her later." He paused, letting out a chuckle as he shook his head. "Of course, it's really no trouble at all to dispose of a weakling…"

"…shut up."

It had taken all of his will to do it, but Cloud finally managed to growl out the words he wanted so long to say, shifting his eyes to look down the forest floor, unable to look the taller man in the face as he spoke. His fists laid heavy by his sides, balled and ready for attack, even though he could—would—never bring himself to do so; it was as if Sephiroth had some sort of hold over him, binding him from lashing out. Fleetingly, Cloud wondered if that wasn't the case.

"Just… shut up, Sephiroth…"

Instead of anger from the blonde's unlikely command, Sephiroth felt a broad smile form on his lips and a jerk low in his chest; he laughed almost maniacally, face obscured by one hand, mocking Cloud where he stood. The small fighter's cheeks burned angrily at the sight but he could do nothing more than watch, just waiting until it was all out of Sephiroth's system…

"Such childish insolence…," Sephiroth uttered upon sobering. He slowly raised his eyebrow at the blonde and sighed disdainfully, "Mother was right about you… but no matter…"

Catching Cloud's gaze, Sephiroth smiled in an almost playful way and murmured, "…I suppose it can't be helped until that Cetra dies."

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A/N: *coughs* God, I started writing this on my birthday (Feb. 18th) and I JUST finished this part? Geez. O_o;; I fear how long it's going to take to write the next…

Yes, I write a submissive Cloud. So sue me XD