Chapter 4

(Nibelheim - Town Outskirts - December 5th)

Sarah stared at the wooden marker - across. It was engraved: "Tobias Strife: Beloved Husband and Father: d. Nov. 25th, 1988 - Rest in the heavens, oh angel of mine." The eccentric grave-maker had added that last part to make it all the sound romantic for Sarah to hear. Sarah hadn't noticed it until now.

Her heavy eyes gazed down at the freshly dug and buried earth. She could envision his body, lying in the earth, slowly deteriorating - an image that frightened her, but she could not take away. She forced herself to turn away - if she stayed any longer, she would only burst into grief.

The funeral, which had taken place only a week ago, was not a long one. Still, Sarah had been surprised by how many people had come out to pay their respects. The mayor and his family, the Alsips, the Crewes, the Berkhans, and many others, some whom even Sarah had never seen before - Nibelheim was a small community to live in, but even so, not everyone was able to say that he or she knew just about everyone in the village.

Cloud stood next to his mother, his face blankly staring at the casket as prayers and blessings were given. The casket was then lowered deep within the earth so that it would never be seen again. Sarah gripped his small hand tightly as the first piles of dirt began to be thrown onto the wooden coffin. Friends recounted stories of Tobias' strength and wisdom that he seemed to possess far beyond his years.

It was truly marvelous, she realized then, how much respect the dead received. It was as if they had descended to another plane of existence, an existence the ones left behind were not privileged to join in just yet.

"Tobias was a special boy," she continued to hear whispers such as these among the crowd.

"Such a tragedy that someone so young should die in such a way."

"I'd heard he left behind a wife and a young son. How horrible!"

Sarah could not bear anymore of this - the more people whispered about Tobias behind her back whenever she stepped out, the more heartbroken she felt. She had been tempted to lock herself in her house for some time, when she stopped to realize that doing such a thing was both idiotic and harmful. Cloud was very quiet throughout these series of events, though he seemed to be fairing better than his mother; she surmised that this was due to his youth and as such was vaguely aware of what was happening, save for the fact that he understood that his father was now gone.

She stood alone now, on the outskirts of town. It was painful for her, feeling alone like this. Her dearest friend, companion, and soul mate had been snatched from her suddenly, though she knew that such a fate was always possible with the reckless nature of Tobias's dreams. Sarah shuddered as the cold air gently swept across her body; she gripped her shawl tightly and quickly turned her gaze away from the grave and hastily began to make her way back to her home.

She opened the door, sending gusts of cold air inside the house; she quickly ran to the fireplace to warm herself up. She looked behind her to see Cloud standing in the dining room, a look of embarrassment spreading across his face, his arms tied behind his back.

She smiled tenderly; despite all that had happened, she refused to show her grief to Cloud, in hopes that she would not worry him and would be able to give him strength to move on during this terrible transition in life. "Hello," she greeted him warmly from the fireplace.

"Hello," he replied back quietly; Sarah tried her best not to laugh, as it was obvious this two-year old was hiding something from her.

"How are you?"

"Good."

"Did you like the new toy Gramps brought over?" She asked him, referring to the hand-made and painted red truck he had given Cloud.

"Yeah."

Sarah stood up, taking off her shawl. "What's that you have behind your back?"

Cloud's arms tightened. "Nothing."

Sarah began approaching her son; with every step forward, he took one back. "Come on, let me see it," she requested with amusement in her voice.

"No…" he whispered.

Sarah stopped and placed her hands on her hips. "Why not?"

"It's not ready yet."

"What's not ready?"

"…It's a surprise."

Sarah looked behind him far enough to see glimpses of a sheet of paper and colored pencils laying on top of the table. A mischievous grin took over her face. "Can I guess what it is?" The little boy thought for a moment before nodding his head. "Okay then…" She began circling around the room as she began to make her guesses, with Cloud tactfully moving in synch so as to not show his back to her. "Is it a…present? For me?"

"Yes…"

"Oh my…" She placed her fingers over her smiling mouth as she continued to circle around the room. "Did you have help making or getting this present?"

Cloud shook his head.

"Oh? You got it yourself."

"Not 'got.' I made it."

"You made it? Well, aren't you quite the artisan! Is it breakable?"

Cloud peered behind his shoulder then back at his mother. "Only if it catches on fire or gets really wet."

"Fire? Wet? …Well, can you tear it also?"

Cloud's cheeks flushed. "Yes."

"Is it…paper?"

Her son's face turned a beet red as his eyes narrowed. "No more guessing!" he yelled, running to the corner of the house inside a cupboard in a futile attempt to hide.

Sarah giggled softly at the toddler's tantrum and slowly approached him. "Cloud…?"

The little boy's body, what little of it she could see, tightened.

"Cloud…I'm sorry. I won't try to guess anymore." She sat next to the cupboard. "You can give me the present whenever you're finished."

"Promise?" His voice muffled inside the cupboard.

"I promise."

Cloud began shuffling around in the tiny cupboard so that his spiky head emerged first, with Sarah grabbing him in a tight embrace once he was half-way out. "So…while you're working on it, why don't I make the two of us something to eat?" She asked him, tenderly kissing his head. Cloud nodded after some slight hesitation.

Sarah was true to her word; while she cooked, Cloud continued scribbling on the piece of paper; she could tell that he was obviously drawing something, but of what, she did not know. Sarah made her saucy stew, the one that neighbors could smell from miles around and drool with envy over. Setting herself at the table, she broke off a piece of fresh bread and dipped it in the stew while scooping up a moist meatball. She observed Cloud quietly, but made no comment on his behavior; rather, she was amused that he was so focused and occupied on a single drawing made specifically for her. I wonder when he'll give it to me, she thought.

A thought occurred to her: In a few more years, Cloud would be old enough to begin studying. She knew Nibelheim had no official educational facility or structure. Instead, many parents chose to teach their children from home, and many would learn elsewhere from other adults and children from, books that were treasured in the town, and travelers that came to deliver supplies to the general store. Now that Tobias wasn't here, it was up to her to be Cloud's guide and teacher, as well as his mother.

"Cloud?" she asked, long after she had finished her meal. The little boy's head popped up from the ground. "Would you like to help me wash the dishes?" Cloud grinned and jumped to his feet, accompanying his mother to the sink. Sarah brought a chair over for him to stand on. Cloud stared wide-eyed at the dishes in the water and soap suds that filled the sink.

"What we have to do first is roll up our sleeves so that they don't get wet…" she rolled hers up for Cloud to see. "Like this." She watched him roll up his as she explained to him: "After we've done that, we have to make sure our hands are clean, so…" She picked up a bar of soap that sat at the side of the sink and began washing her hands before passing the soap bar on to Cloud. "This is important because we don't want any germs that we've been carrying outside or the floor to spread to the dishes and make us sick." Once the hand-washing was finished, Sarah took out two white rags, handing one over to Cloud. "I'll be washing the dishes here and place them in the black rack over there in front of you…," she gestured to the rack that lay in the adjacent tub. "…and I want you to dry them for me. Be very careful - I don't want you dropping and breaking anything." She placed her hand on the sink handle. "Ready?"

"Yeah."

"Okay…" She turned it gently and watched as water poured into the sink. Sarah worked almost effortlessly in washing each dish. Cloud attempted to follow suit and dried each dish in a childish attempt to make them sparkle. He held each dish tightly so that they would not drop. Cloud giggled at the times when Sarah made small bubbles out of the suds so that they would float towards him, in an attempt to amuse him.

The dish-washing concluded not long afterwards, and with no casualties. Sarah complimented Cloud's dish-drying ability and offered to read him a story as a reward.

The Strifes had a small but well-kept number of books, with Cloud possessing a number of children's books with story collections.

Cloud hand-picked a green book that had a picture of a chocobo and a farm: TALSO Goes Home. It was part of a series written for young children about the adventures of a young chocobo and the friends he met on those adventures. It was certainly nothing that interested Sarah anymore at her age, but young Cloud was fascinated with the large, yellow flightless bird.

Cloud snuggled against Sarah's shoulder to glance at the pictures as she began to read the story aloud. "TALSO Goes Home," she began, smiling as she opened to the first page. "Once upon a time, at the Chocobo Farm, there lived a young chocobo named Talso." Cloud pulled the book towards him so that he could get a better glance at Talso inside the stables. "Talso was a very happy Chocobo and enjoyed exploring the fields the farmer owned." Sarah turned the page to show picture of a large, angry dog chasing a frightened Talso. "One day, Talso wandered too far in the field and couldn't see the farmhouse. He was lost. A mean, old dog spotted Talso and began feeling very hungry - he began to think that Talso would make good chocobo soup - and he began to chase Talso towards the woods." She smiled at Cloud. "Oh no, poor Talso," she giggled softly.

Cloud looked at her with a perplexed look on his face. "Dogs can't make soup," he pointed out.

"What?"

"You said the dog wanted to make soup out of Talso," he explained. "Dogs can't cook…can they?"

Sarah chuckled. "Sweetie, I didn't write this book!"

"But it doesn't make sense!" Cloud complained; Sarah tried not to shake in amusement.

"Well…I'm pretty sure the author is just trying to say that the dog was so hungry, he wanted to

eat him." She glanced at the sentence for a few moments. "Actually, I don't really like that

sentence much either."

"Maybe he was just trying to be funny?" Cloud suggested.

"Maybe." She looked back to where they had stopped. "Anyways, Talso managed to run inside the forest and escape the dog, but he was alone now more than ever." The two gazed sympathetically at the picture of bright, yellow Talso in a dark, black, and alienating forest. "Talso needed to get home. He wandered through the woods, hoping that he would be able to find his way out." She turned to show other animals approaching Talso curiously. "Talso found that not all of the forest was frightening. There were many different kinds of interesting animals that were not as scary as the dog: The squirrel was a chattering type of creature and enjoyed climbing up on Talso's back. The rabbits were very shy and gentle animals and followed Talso from within a distance, but he enjoyed their company. The birds sang sweetly up on the tree branches as Talso continued his journey. He enjoyed the company of his new friends, but he still missed his home and family on the farm."

Cloud peeked at the next page that showed Talso crossing over what seemed to be a treacherous river, the animals remaining on the side where their forest was located. "Talso knew that the only way to reach the farm was to cross the fierce, ice-cold river. Talso bid his new friends farewell and began to cross. The water and its strong current crashed against Talso's body, but because of his height and weight, he managed to stand his ground and cross the river." The next page turned. "Talso was cold and hungry, and very, very homesick. Talso missed his warm bed in the stables, his family nearby, and the farmer petting him and feeding him delicious Greens…"

"Poor Talso…" Cloud murmured.

"Night soon came to the valley. The air was cold, and there was no noise except for the gentle breeze that brushed against Talso's feathers. It was a beautiful night, but Talso was very sad - he was alone again, and lost."

The next page turned, showing Talso being petted by a man carrying a lantern, smiling. "Talso laid down to sleep, his legs tired from walking all day. He sighed, closed his eyes, and soon began to dream. He heard the farmer's voice calling out his name, and he thought he could see him carrying a bag of his favorite Greens in a sack slung around his shoulders. The dream seemed so real, though. Talso opened one eye to see a man standing in front of him. He opened the other eye to see that the farmer from the Chocobo Farm really was standing right in front of him. 'Hello, Talso,' he had greeted the young chocobo. 'I've been looking all over for you. I'm glad you're safe.' Talso jumped to his feet, cried out 'WARK!' and began running around the farmer happily. 'Come on, Talso,' the farmer told him. 'Let's go back home where we belong. I've saved you some more of your favorite Greens there.'"

Sarah changed the page to show dawn breaking over the Chocobo Farm and the farmer and Talso overlooking it on a hill. "The farmer took Talso back home. Talso was excited to return home, because Talso knew that home was always where the heart was." The story done, Sarah closed the book. "Did you like it?"

"Yeah. But I think I like the other one a little more."

"You mean the one with the circus?"

"Yeah."

"Well…we'll read that one next time." Cloud nodded and began to slide off the bed before Sarah stopped him. "Er, Cloud?" Cloud turned his head. "…I think you're big enough now to sleep in the bed. If you want to, that is."

Cloud gazed puzzlingly at the crib and then back at his mother. "I can stay up here?"

"If you want to. I just don't want you to fall off, that's all."

"You're going to be sleeping here too?"

"Yes…for now. When you're a little older, we can make a bed for yourself. I just thought that, for now, you can sleep up here next to me. You see, I haven't been sleeping well lately, and I feel nervous being in bed by myself now."

Cloud grinned before wrapping himself under the covers. "Okay…"

"Okay? You want to stay up here with me?"

"Yeah," the little boy chirped, snuggling against the soft white pillow.

Sarah grinned as she wrapped under the blankets as well. "You really don't mind?" she whispered.

"No."

"Well…good night, then," Sarah patted his head and studied his relaxed, slumbering face. The smile on her face gradually faded away, as she envisioned Tobias' face instead. She blinked hard; Cloud laid before her once more, a small grin on his content face. Perhaps he was still too young to move up to the bed. Despite this, Sarah enjoyed the company. Would most evenings be like this one? What would happen as he grew older? Sarah slowly closed her eyes, her hand slipping from Cloud's head to the blanket. As she sank into sleep, she resolved that she would not worry about such things anymore until she had to face them. That was what Tobias wanted her to do, she believed.

(Nibelheim - December 6th)

The next morning in Nibelheim was surprisingly a sunny one; Sarah had slept peacefully until daybreak, when the sun rays gently hit her face. She smiled; it was still ghastly cold, but at least the fog had cleared up for now.

Sarah managed to rise out of bed and began preparations for breakfast: a small loaf of bread and cheese with some of the coldest, sweetest brands of milk in all of Nibelheim. For Cloud, she cooked up a type of cream of wheat meal, with just enough milk to make the porridge soft and rich, instead of lumpy.

Once she had finished her own meal and began to cool Cloud's own breakfast, she began to pick out several layers of clothing to wear from the closet. It was shopping day, though she noted with concern that their funds were beginning to shrink. It was her fear as a mother that kept gnawing at her: Now that Tobias was dead, who would provide for Cloud and herself? She shook her head, reminding herself that everything always worked out in the end. She opened a small box to collect a few Gil and headed out, her shawl covering over her head and ears.

The wind was as brutal as ever and pierced at Sarah's face; fortunately, she didn't have to go very far. The general store's door opened briskly with Sarah huffing as she stepped inside, taking in the store's warmth.

Mrs. Crewe welcomed her with a smile, while carrying a small wooden box with packaged

supplies. "Hello, dear. Cold outside, isn't it?"

"Yes. Very." Sarah began peering through the cabinets with different food supplies. "I'm here for some vegetables and some meat. I'll be making some of my stew."

"Mmm…warm stew in the cold wintertime. It sounds delectable."

"Yes."

"I'm terribly sorry about what happened to Tobias, dear. I know the two of you were very close, even before you were married." She bit her lip. "I don't know what I would do if something like that happened to Elliot. I mean, I'm sure I would be able to continue to run the store…but it would just be so hard!"

"I understand."

"And then there's Johnny. I don't what in Gaia I would do if he just went fatherless overnight. It would break his young heart, I'm sure. By the way, how is Cloud?"

"Cloud is…taking this as well as any other toddler, I suppose."

"Is he crying often?" Mrs. Crewe asked sympathetically.

"No, not much."

"How strange," Mrs. Crewe murmured, glaring at Sarah suspiciously. "Well then…I suppose I'd better get your supplies ready."

"If you would, please."

Mrs. Crewe set to work, pulling out a pack of carrots, cans filled with tomato sauce, a pack of frozen ground meat, spices, and set them on the counter with swiftness and expertise. These ingredients were placed in a pale yellow sack for Sarah to take home. "That will be thirty Gil."

Sarah sighed quietly and reached into her pocket to pull out the exact amount - at this rate, they would be losing money faster buying for their own needs than they would be betting on a Chocobo race. "Thank you."

"No problem. Take care now, you hear?"

Sarah nodded as she hurried out of the store, the wind biting her skin once more as she ran for home. As she rushed inside the house, she leaned against the door, happy with the fact that she didn't have anymore plans to venture back outside in the freezing locale. I just can't wait for spring to come, she thought to herself as she unwrapped her shawl and began unbuttoning her coat.

She stopped in her tracks as she realized that not only was the house still quiet, but there was no sign of Cloud. The bed had been made, although clumsily. On top of her pillow, she noticed a sheet of paper with color splashed on it - the same paper she knew Cloud was trying to hide from her yesterday. Walking up to the bed, she slowly picked it up. It was a drawing of a stick-figure version of Sarah and a little stick-figure of Cloud, holding hands, smiling. Flowers were drawn at their feet, a large golden sun hanging above them, mountains in the background. Above the two was a single white cloud, and on top of it, was what Sarah could tell, a stick-figure of Tobias, waving down at the two, smiling as well.

Sarah smiled, her eyes glistening with tears - it was a simple, childish doodle, but the thoughts behind it…the words this picture could say…

A THUD startled her in mid-thought; her old wooden broom had fallen near the closet. She glanced at the closet and noticed that it was slightly cracked open. She made her way to the closet silently, cautiously. She opened the door slowly to reveal Cloud, who was brimming with nervous excitement up at her.

"Did you like it?" he asked, sweetly.

Sarah swooped down to carry him and embraced him. "Darling, I love it." She pulled up the picture again. "It's beautiful. Is this a picture of you and me?"

Cloud nodded. "And Daddy."

"He's up here in this cloud, isn't he?"

"He's watching us from up there. Like he promised."

"Yes, dear," She snuggled him gently. "Is this present you were saving for me?"

"Yeah."

"Well, thank you. Thank you for the present…Cloud, you have no idea how much this means to me. This is very special. I think I'll frame it."

Cloud beamed shyly as Sarah ran to the closet with the picture still in her hand, digging through the unorganized jungle that lay inside; brooms and papers fell out as she dug further up the closet, where she could hardly reach. At last she pulled out a small, old wooden frame appropriately sized for his picture.

"We'll put it in this," Sarah announced as she opened the frame up to slide the picture inside. The glass shimmered in the house's faint electrical light, and the humble frame rather fit the humble drawing, in Sarah's eyes. "I think it's perfect," she said, showing Cloud, who smiled bashfully at his mother's praise. "I just can't thank you enough for this darling," she beamed, smooching his head. "I don't know how I'm ever going to repay you for this."

"You don't have to," Cloud replied quietly.

Sarah placed the picture adjacent to he picture of Tobias and Sarah holding Cloud during an outing, just after his second birthday. Another showed a younger Tobias and Sarah, several years before Cloud was even born. "It's just so thoughtful…" she murmured, gazing at he pictures. They were filled with memories, each of them - even the drawing. She promised herself there and then that she would treasure each of those special memories up until the end of her days.

(Strife Residence - 7:30 PM)

Sarah hastily opened and closed the door, tightly clutching her tied shawl, gasping heavily. I just can't stand these freezing winds, she thought. They really do bite your skin. She gingerly touched her frozen face in an attempt to warm herself up. She looked up to see Cloud standing on the edge of the sink, wobbling, with a plate in his hand.

Fear leapt itself into Sarah's heart as she rushed to the sink to carry him off. "Cloud!" she yelled. "What in the world were you thinking? Don't you know you could have fallen and hurt yourself? If I hadn't come here when I did, that just might have happened!"

"I wanted to help you wash the dishes again," he replied in a hushed voice. "I thought since you were outside a lot, I thought I could help you."

Sarah knelt down to his level, gazing into his ashamed face with concern. "Darling, I don't ever want you to do the dishes when I'm not here. Not now, anyways. You're still too little. You could break the dishes, or even worse, hurt yourself." She embraced him tightly. "After losing your father like that…I can't bear to lose you, too, even if it is as simple an accident as falling into the sink. I don't want you to be careless and get hurt." Sarah swallowed hard. "You understand, don't you?"

"Yes."

"…I appreciate the offer to help. Really, I do. But your job now is just to be a child." She picked him up and brought him near the window. "Pretty soon, spring will come. You and I will try making our own garden, if we can. And when you're a little older, you can start playing with some of the kids. Oliver, too. You remember Oliver, don't you?"

A frown spread across Cloud's face. "Yes."

"The Crewe family has a nice little boy, too. And the Lockharts have a little girl - Tifa." The two stared out the window for some time, observing the howls the winds gave and the dust rising into the air outside, like a transparent cyclone. "It's awful outside right now. Why don't we leave the dishes for tomorrow and sit by the fireplace?"

Cloud nodded slowly, placing is head on his mother's shoulder as she carried him to the fireplace and sat in front of it, cradling him. The fire burned bright, mesmerizing Cloud. Sarah brought the two of them a dark red blanket to wrap under.

"This is nice, don't you think? The two of us sitting by the fire, in a warm house, with no noise to distract us. It's peaceful."

"I'm sleepy," Cloud murmured.

"Do you want to go to bed?"

The young boy shook his head, slowly letting his head sink into her lap, his eyelids closing, though his gaze never left the warmth of the fire until Sarah could hear him breathing softly in his sleep.

Sarah grinned, massaging her son's back while he slumbered, absorbing the warmth and sensation of peace the fire brought to them. While the wind continued to howl outside, Sarah and Cloud rested comfortably in front of the fire, slumbering peacefully together well into the night, until the fire slowly burned itself out.

(Nibelheim - June 3, 1990)

Two years passed since that time, though not much had changed since then; rather, everyone began to adjust and live on as if nothing had ever happened. Sarah and Cloud attempted to grow their own garden that would help sustain their good supplies for themselves. The project was a failure; most of the vegetables did not grow aside from sprouts, which soon died afterwards. What few vegetables they did manage to grow were not as high a quality or nourishing as those bought in the general store, shipped from parts unknown.

Sarah had sighed in disappointment upon seeing the results, her mind recalling past conversations she and Tobias had in the past, about the mako reactors and the state of the wild life of the planet. She thought that might have had something to do with the failure of her garden, though she kept these thoughts to herself. When Cloud had asked why the vegetables had died, she answered that they were only unlucky and that these particular vegetables would not grow in their type of climate, in the cold, isolating mountains.

Cloud was now three years now and aside from helping Sarah tend to the garden and dry the dishes, he had learned how to sweep with the broom in the doorway and house and would otherwise help her clean up on occasion. Most of his time was spent in the corner, however, glancing at picture books, drawing, playing with toys or napping - the usual toddler recreations a child could experience in a home.

This day, however, Sarah spotted Cloud gazing out the window, quiet and still. She could hear the sounds of children shrieking and laughing around the town's well. Maybe he's lonely? She thought to herself, gazing out the front door's window at the scene. I don't see any reason why he can't go outside. The weather is nice, and it might be good for him to go play a little while.

"Cloud?" she called for him from the door. "Do you want to go walking for a little bit?" Seconds later, Cloud appeared before her, his face determined by curious. I'll take that as a yes, Sarah thought to herself, smiling. "Let's go," Sarah murmured gently opening the door to exit the house.

Cloud observed the other children hesitantly several feet away from Sarah, hesitantly watching them play, many whom were bigger than he was and were wrestling on the ground for a ball they had all been kicking around. He cautiously returned to Sarah, pulling her sleeve to go towards the opposite direction. "Sweetie, you don't want to play?" Sarah asked him gently. With a shake of his head, she sighed quietly. "Let's just go walk towards the outskirts, then."

The two left the rowdy children behind, instead waling towards the quieter portions of Nibelheim, such as the mountains and the outskirts of the Nibel plains bordering the village. Upon reaching the mountains, little Cloud suddenly pinched his noise, his features wincing. "What's the matter?" his mother asked.

"It stinks."

"Yes, it does," Sarah frowned. "That's the smell of mako, from the reactor. The town reeks of it, but it's worse here than it is back in the main center." The two stopped as the smell got worse. "It takes some getting used to - many of the townspeople hardly even notice it now. Why don't we go another way?"

Paving their way back to town, Sarah noticed Cloud's distant, almost somber demeanor. "Cloud, what's the matter?"

"Nothing," he sighed.

"Was it those children earlier?" Her voice was soft and tender, but he did not reply. "I know some of them looked rather…rough and rugged. But some of them are not so bad, once you get to know them." Cloud remained silent. "…You know, those kids are probably too old for you to play with anyways. I think some of them were around eight or nine? You should be with kids your own age."

"Most of them are still in their houses," Cloud replied.

"Yes. Well, that could be because their parents just don't understand the beauty of Nibelheim, especially around the borders like you and I do, and take pleasure in it as often as we can. They'll be out soon enough, don't you worry."

"Mom?"

"Yes, dear?"

"What about our garden?"

Sarah sighed. "We'll try again in the summertime. For now, though, think the only money I can make right now will be coming from making quilts and clothing repair."

"I wish I was bigger."

"Why is that?"

"So that I could help you."

"Oh, Cloud. Don't worry about it now; we'll make enough to manage. We'll be all right, I promise."

The town center was quiet again, the noisy children having long abandoned their play area and disappeared.

"They likely went out near the forests," Sarah explained. "It's a little dangerous to play there without any adult supervision, but that's their choice. Hopefully they'll be all right." She could see that Cloud appeared relieved by the fact that they had left. "Come on, let's go on inside. I'll make you something special to eat. Would you like that?"

An affirmative nod from Cloud sent the two of them back inside the house, where Cloud immediately sprawled over to a corner where some of the picture books were placed. Putting on her apron and washing her hands, Sarah began to work preparing the stew that she knew Cloud loved so much.

Meatballs were made first, with delicate care, and then came the think red sauce. Spices were used to spruce the flavor, and aside from being used as the soup, the sauce would be think and rich enough to be used as a dip for bread. It was a homely dish, but it kept Sarah warm and Cloud happy - these dishes were also some of Sarah's best displays of her talents, aside from her gardening and embroidery.

She glanced often at Cloud while she cooked, smiling tenderly as he flipped from one page of his book to the next, caring only for the pictures. She knew that come August, Cloud would turn four. It was about time she began prompting him to play with some of the younger children in the village. She would soon also have to begin making plans for Cloud's education; few in Nibelheim knew much aside from the basics of reading, writing, and match, along with the village necessities for maintaining civilization and life as they knew it. It was satisfactory for those like Sarah, who enjoyed the quiet and simplistic life Nibelheim had to offer. Her wish was now for Cloud to learn all that he could and someday, if she were to pass on, he would know how to care for himself.

(Strife Residence - August 11, 1990 - 8:00 AM)

Cloud awoke to the lulling sound of his mother's voice, her warm smile as illuminating as the warm sun outside, her arm on his still shoulder. "Happy birthday, Cloud!" she sung softly, smooching him on the cheek. He kicked himself up to sitting position, his sleepy eyes trying to focus after a long, restful night. "You're four years old today, hm?" Sarah murmured, patting his head gently. "My, you're getting to be quite a big boy now." She stood up from the bed. "Come on - let me help you get dressed. I have something for you."

After the two struggled in putting on Cloud's clothes and socks on correctly, Cloud sat at the table, patiently awaiting breakfast. Sarah adroitly pulled out of the refrigerator a large cake, vanilla in color with brown sauce and brown sugar, presenting a type of sweet glaze. Cloud grinned, his mouth watering at the sight of the luscious cake.

Sarah chuckled softly, reminding herself of how picky Tobias had been whenever she tired to get him to taste a sample of one of her cakes. Most children do find cakes very appetizing, she acknowledged. We shouldn't have too much at this point anyways.

"All right…" she announced once she and Cloud each had a piece of cake before them on individual plates with a fork in hand. "Let's dig in." Cloud slowly cut off a piece of cake, stabbing it with the fork and placed it in his mouth. He hummed in delight, smiling at Sarah. "Is it good?" Cloud nodded vigorously. "Nothing missing?" He shook his head. Sarah then took a piece for herself, purring in satisfaction, silently thankful for the delicious cake. Although Tobias was gone, the pain in her heart was subsiding in order to make up room for the love she had for this young boy. "Say, Cloud?" The boy looked up, stopping him from finishing the last pieces of his cake. "After we're done here and clean up, what would you like to do today?"

Cloud pondered silently, glancing at the toys in the window, the books on the shelf, and the birds singing sweetly on top of the town well.

"Is there anything you want or want to go?" his mother asked.

"…Can we go hiking to the outskirts?" he finally requested.

Sarah smiled. "Why not? It's a nice day today, isn't it? Why don't we make ourselves a birthday picnic, hm? I can cook some of your favorite food, along with this cake, and you can bring some of your toys and books. We can even go walk through the forest now, if you like."

Cloud's eyes widened; up until this point, playing in the forest had been forbidden for him, even though many of the village children used the forest to run and hide for many of their games. "Really?"

"I think you're old enough now to glance at it. But you must only go inside with me, or one of the other adults in the village. When you're a little older, I'm sure you'll be big to take responsibility and take care of yourself in there." She stood up and walked over to smooch his head. "Not that I don't trust you already, of course," she explained, beaming. "But the forest can be a dangerous place if you're not very careful, you know." Sarah set to work preparing the food and basket for the picnic while Cloud selected toys and books to bring along. Luckily the fields of the outskirts would be warm and isolated, with no one around to ruin their special time together.

Once everything was set and ready, mother and son beamed at one another and set out through the door for their precious birthday picnic together, with all the troubles of the world behind them.