A/N: HA, YOU ALL THOUGHT I WOULDN'T UPDATE THIS. WELL YOU WERE WRONG, I SAY! WROOOONG!

...sorry. XD

Yeah, I HAVE been working on this here and there and I'm sorry it's been so goddamn long, but this fic hasn't exactly been on the top of my priority list. But hey, I'm actually still writing it! Isn't that awesome?

Thanks for all the reviews you guys gave me during the year-long hiatus. I really appreciate the feedback, I do.

ANYWAY. Here's the latest chapter. Enjoy!

The sky overhead was the most beautiful shade of blue.

That was my first thought upon becoming aware of my surroundings. Then I felt the heat of the sun on my skin, and the comfortable breeze teasing my hair. Tall grass tickled at my calves, swaying slightly. I was leaning up against a wooden fence, though I couldn't remember how I had gotten in this position. Not that I could complain—this beat the nasty weather back home.

...Back home. Hold on a minute.

It was way too warm right now for me to be anywhere near my house. It felt like summer, and summer didn't really kick off in New York until mid-June. Not to mention it had kind of been storming out last I checked.

The fence I was leaning against bordered an open field; I saw a barn and a few other buildings in the distance. So it was a farm? As my eyes wandered over the scenery, they finally fell upon the sole figures present other than myself. They were close to the center of the field—two adults and two children.

...Their mount wasn't a horse.

"I'm going insane," I said to myself, my tone oddly lighthearted. If I had laughed, I was sure it would've come out as an awkward, nervous titter. "Sephiroth's crashed on my couch, I'm standing here about to watch these people ride an oversized chicken, and I am losing my sanity."

"Good to see you're taking it so well," a new voice came from right beside me, causing me to almost jump out of my skin.

"Jesus Christ!" I gasped loudly, swinging around to face whoever it was. In the process I almost tripped over my own feet, and had to use the fence to hold myself up.

My first sight was a set of bright blue eyes, as vibrant and striking as the sky above. They were sparkling with good humor. Then I noticed the wild, spiky black hair, the well-built body, the SOLDIER uniform...and of course, the tiny scar on his cheek. Such a minor detail, but so important.

No way. It was really him.

I gaped for a moment, before jerking my head over in the direction of the figures. "They didn't—?"

He shook his head. "Nah, they didn't hear you. We're not really here. I mean, we are, but not in a physical sense. Know what I mean?"

"I...guess..."

The laughter in his eyes was unmistakable. "Well, now that we're on the same page...I should probably officially introduce myself. Zack Fair, at your service!" He held out a hand, and I shook it.

"Um..." My brain seemed to be MIA at the moment. I couldn't think of anything to say to this man, this...icon.

When he withdrew his hand, his smile fell a bit and he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I know we've kind of already met, but last time didn't go so well." The smile came back. "Well, on the bright side, you don't really remember it!"

"I remember the important parts," I mumbled, and then shook my head hard to clear it. "I'm Brittany Furness, and...I have no idea what's going on."

Zack leaned against the fence as well, crossing his arms as his expression sobered. "You know about Sephiroth."

I laughed weakly. "I know I agreed to help you. But I think you're really overestimating me. I'm just a clueless teenager...a clueless, scared teenager."

He lowered his eyes, a pained frown tugging at his lips. "If you're having second thoughts, I—"

"I'm not."

Those brilliant blues were turned on me again, this time filled with surprise. "You're not?"

"No," I said, wishing I felt the same resolve that showed in my voice. "I'm not naïve enough to think the problem will go away if I pass it on to somebody else. So...I'll try. But I want to know everything."

The ex-SOLDIER relaxed once more, turning his head to look back out over the expanse of field. I didn't miss the weary air about him. Knowing Zack, he was probably ripping his hair out with worry over all of this. He had sort of dumped this on me, but I couldn't bring myself to resent him for any of it. Considering who he was...it just felt safer to trust him.

"...Have you figured out where we are yet?" he asked after a short silence.

I glanced over at the barn, and then at the mountains in the distance. "Some chocobo ranch. That one near Midgar?"

"What about them?" He nodded towards the family. They were coming closer—one of the children was riding the bird, coming along at a very slow pace and being helped by the two adults.

"What do you..." I trailed off as I realized what he'd meant. As they drew near, I could make out the adults' more distinguishing features. The female was a shapely woman with long, beautiful dark hair. The man had a head of gravity-defying blond spikes.

Even closer. I could hear the teasing note in her voice as she spoke, see the too-serious look on his face. Finally he seemed to give up the cool-guy act, and a small smile touched his lips as the little girl on the chocobo laughed happily.

"That's..." I gulped. "You sure they can't see us?"

"A hundred percent," he replied with an encouraging grin.

"Marlene and Denzel," I spoke, pointing out the two kids. "The woman's Tifa. And...and that's Cloud. Wow..."

Speaking of icons...it was so bizarre to see Cloud Strife in the flesh. Almost as bad as seeing Sephiroth—except thankfully Cloud hadn't tried to strangle me.

"It's a good old fashioned family outing," Zack said, a look of contentment on his face as he gazed upon his living legacy. "The incident in Nibelheim...it changed him. The world became a darker place for him, and he hardened right up. But his smile—his real smile—that's always been the same. And he's been showing it more and more now that Sephiroth's gone."

"Sephiroth..." I murmured.

"Shinra's done. And the other two dangers to the planet, Jenova and Sephiroth...they're not here anymore. We took care of that part." Zack shook his head, letting out a sigh. "As long as they existed here...it was just going to be the same thing, again and again. Something had to change. I want to end it once and for all."

I watched Cloud lead the chocobo past us, quite close to where we were standing. Marlene was fighting to keep her balance; Denzel kept running around, eager to catch her should she fall. Tifa giggled helplessly—she had noticed the way the bird was fixated on Cloud's hair. Just as it was about to go in for the kill, the blond turned his head and gave it a warning glance. The chocobo balked, then looked away and feigned disinterest.

Strange as this all was, I knew it for sure...these were real people. I had had plenty of time to assure myself of the reality of Sephiroth, but seeing them here now was only further proof that I wasn't imagining all of this. This was another world; it existed, and I could see it with my own eyes. A world populated with living, breathing human beings—not characters.

I liked what I saw here. It would be nice to preserve that soft smile on Cloud's face. Would it be so wrong for him to stop playing the hero? For him to finally move on?

It was a difficult position I had been thrust into. If I changed my mind about the whole thing, I'd just be damning somebody else. There had to be something I could do...

"What do you want me to do?" I asked, giving Zack a sidelong glance. "I think I bandaged him up enough so that he won't die. But you want me to just...cater to a bedridden Sephiroth?"

"Bedridden?" His eyebrows flew up, and then he grimaced a little. "This is Sephiroth we're talking about. He'll be up and walking around within twenty-four hours."

"Oh..." I gaped a little as that sank in, and my legs suddenly felt like jelly.

"It's okay," Zack assured me hastily. "I'm not just tossing you to the wolves. I'm going to look out for you—and he should be more subdued if that...thing can't get to him."

The scorn in the word said it all.

"What makes you think Jenova—" I started, but lost my train of thought when I saw the look on his face change.

"Aerith?" He looked up towards the sky, eyes narrowing with concern. "I can't hear her..."

I looked up at the sky too, as if I could somehow catch a glimpse of whatever unknown thing he was looking at. But there was nothing to see—just the occasional wisp of a cloud, and a bird passing by. Nothing marred the beauty of the day. Nothing except that alarming expression Zack was wearing. The expression suggested that no, things were not under control.

"...Zack?" I tried. Part of me didn't want to know what was wrong.

He grew still for a second, listening to something that I couldn't hear. I strained my ears anyway.

Then he swore under his breath and abruptly turned to me. "You have to wake up."

"What?" I blinked, my eyes wide.

"Wake up," he repeated. And then, with a sense of desperate urgency, "Wake up!"

Feeling numb with shock and fear, I found myself looking past Zack, trying frantically to engrave the memory of this meeting in my mind. The bright sun, the happy family, Cloud's rare smile...

...He wasn't smiling anymore. He had paused where he was, staring directly at us, his brows slowly drawing together. Then he started to approach, his pace gradually quickening...

SOLDIER eyes. Zack's were lovely to look at, cheery and bright—like portals to the summer sky. Cloud's possessed the same sort of appeal, but there was a coldness, a sort of...distance there that suggested a more reserved personality. His reminded me more of the sea, ever-changing and infinitely deep.

Sephiroth's were also beautiful, but in the way a tiger is beautiful as it stalks its prey. That tense moment, the focus and concentration, the grace and poise before the inevitable pounce. Predatory beauty. His sky-blue eyes were laced with venomous green.

I had left the dream-world staring at Cloud as he approached, catching one last glimpse of our hero before Zack's yelling jerked me out of sleep. When my eyes fluttered open, for a moment I thought I was still looking at Cloud, that somehow he'd figured out what was going on and found me—but then I noticed that dangerous quality to those glowing eyes, and my heart just about stopped.

It was Sephiroth, standing tall in the center of my living room. Staring at me.

Impossible. He had been out cold—he was hurt badly—how could he be upright like that and not even look like he was in pain?

I scrambled to my feet so quickly my head spun. My first instinct was to back away, to put as much distance between us as possible, but the couch behind me halted any movements I might've made. It seemed risky to move any direction other than backwards, so I stayed put, completely petrified.

Sephiroth picked up my every movement with those catlike eyes, but his face remained unreadable. That alarmed me; I couldn't assess the situation if I had no clue what was going on with his mental state. Was he angry? Calm? About to have a mood swing and go psychotic again? My throat was still sore from the last incident.

I saw him clench and unclench one fist, and the corner of his lip twitched as if he was irked about something. His eyes narrowed the slightest bit and my heartbeat picked up.

"Where is she?"

"Who?" I blurted out before I could stop myself, and froze up in anticipation of the answer. Please don't ask about Jenova. Please don't ask about Jenova.

"The Cetra girl," he replied, and that wasn't much better. He hadn't tried to kill me yet, but the situation felt terribly unstable. Adrenaline hit my system hard, and I found myself wired and ready to make a run for it. I was expecting to make a run for it. It was stupid—there was nowhere to run to—but the survival instincts were there all the same.

"Aerith?" I asked weakly. How much longer before he'd snap me in half and be done with it? "She's dead. You were there, remember?"

"I remember," he hissed, giving me a scathing look I didn't care for. I'd have to keep my smartass remarks to myself in the future. "That foolish, meddling little girl...agent of the Planet. I underestimated her—I didn't realize she had abilities that would extend beyond death. But I put her in her place." Then his lip curled in a wicked smile. "Do you require similar discipline?"

I imagine my eyes were probably the size of dinner plates right about now. No response that came to mind seemed safe; that smile on his face wasn't quite stable, suggesting that the wrong words might send him into another blind rage. I kept my mouth firmly shut.

His eyes held me in place, pinning me like an insect to corkboard. He had neglected to put on his coat upon awakening, so his chiseled torso was still exposed—perfect, rock-hard muscles beneath smooth skin. All I could see was the raw power in that build; now that he was conscious, he was too terrifying to be attractive. One does not stop to admire the tiger whilst trapped between its jaws.

Sephiroth seemed to understand that he was going to receive no response. Maybe it had been a rhetorical question to begin with. Either way, that horrible smile remained. Had he smiled like that on Judgment Day, when the fate of countless innocents lay in his cruel hands?

I still couldn't make myself understand the reality of it. I knew this was the same man, and I knew what he had done, and I knew that world existed. But to picture Meteor, Jenova, the Shinra Headquarters...it didn't want to click in my head. That was still a fictional story to me. The images were just images, with no memories to give them true depth and meaning.

This man terrified me...but it was all of the things I knew and couldn't absorb that made me feel like I was drowning.

The silence felt like it lasted forever, but it was only a few seconds later when Sephiroth spoke again.

"The girl."

"I don't know where she is," I replied hurriedly, realizing that I had never answered his initial question. "I—I don't know why you'd think I would know. That is, I—"

He stepped closer, eyes flashing, and that was enough to shut me up. My heart leapt into my throat. I almost fell backwards on to the couch, but that would put me in an even more vulnerable position. Though my knees wanted to buckle, I kept myself upright.

"She knows were Mother is," he said in a low voice. "And you are my connection to her." He reached up as if to grip my shoulder, but then I felt the leather of his glove brush against my jugular, and his thumb came to rest in the hollow of my throat. It was an obvious threat.

Now he regarded me in a different light, his eyes calculating. "Perhaps if I were to kill you now, I could follow you back to the Lifestream."

"Th-That wouldn't work!" I protested immediately, and then realized by the expression on his face that I'd been backed into a corner. I had revealed that I did in fact know something of use. But if I told him what I did know, what more use would he have for me?

"Oh?" That brush of leather against my throat again.

"This world. No Lifestream," I blurted out, fighting to stay coherent and choose my words carefully. "It's different here. Not like where you're from." When I couldn't read the look I was receiving, I continued. "I don't know how you got here or what I'm supposed to do with you, but killing me is the worst thing you can do at this point."

"I beg to differ." But he had cocked an eyebrow, looking mildly interested.

"You don't know anything about this world," I said, trying my hardest to sound confident. "But you showed up in this specific place, so I might be your only way of getting back." It was amazing that I wasn't stuttering. "Are you really going to act without knowing everything about your situation?"

A few seconds passed, Sephiroth silently staring me down. The fear was starting to make me a little nauseous. He probably wouldn't like it if I puked all over him; hopefully he'd do something soon.

Finally he raised his hand again, but instead of closing it around my throat, he pressed his palm to his forehead and closed his eyes. That was when I noticed how pale he was. Maybe he hadn't recuperated quite as much as I'd originally thought...he looked like he had a migraine.

When he opened his eyes again, he seemed a bit calmer. Was it just my imagination, or were those eyes a little less green now?

I was surprised to see that the rage had faded from his face. Now all I could see was frustration. If only I could see into his head...

"I want an explanation," he told me abruptly, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"...I can tell you what I know," I replied slowly, "but only if you promise not to try to strangle me again."

The look he gave me at that moment told me that I should probably choose my words more carefully in the future. I really was trying, but it was hard to be tactful when you were scared out of your wits. The words just kind of fell out before I could stop them.

"...I will not strangle you," he said after a second, cocking an eyebrow once more. It occurred to me that all he meant was that he wouldn't use that particular method to end my life. Great.

I understood that that was the best I could get out of him right now. If I tried to set any more conditions, I would risk making him angry again. Besides...I had no way of knowing if he'd stick to his word anyway.

The fact that he wanted an explanation told me we might be able to talk this out. I could buy more time for Zack to figure out what the hell he was doing, at the very least.

I took a deep breath.

"Sephiroth...welcome to Earth."

One hour later, things were still just as tense, but I at least wasn't fearing for my life quite so much. The ex-general no longer looked psychotic. He seemed to be more...in control. Still not all that approachable, though.

I had explained everything I knew about the situation. What else could I do? Any chance I had to pacify him, I was going to take. I had refrained from mentioning Jenova or speculating on what Zack's plans might be, but that was about it.

Sephiroth had in turn surprised me by adding a few things he knew to the mix. The last thing he remembered was battling with Cloud—that explained the grievous injuries he'd come here with. Also, while I had been meeting with Zack, Aerith had shown herself to him. He wouldn't tell me what she had said, other than that he was now fully aware of my knowledge and that I had learned all of these things from something called Final Fantasy Seven.

I listened to all of this with some degree of incredulity. I hadn't even considered why Zack had been so casual about me knowing all sorts of things I wasn't supposed to. Zack and Aerith...they must have done their research about this world. Was that why they had picked me? Because I had more of an idea of what I was up against?

This was all so damn confusing...

After we got that necessary discussion out of the way, Sephiroth spotted my laptop sitting on the table near the couch and immediately abducted it. Now he was on the internet, reading up on who knew what. The user interface, which was probably completely different from what he was used to, didn't even seem to faze him. He seemed to have the device completely figured out in a matter of minutes.

I didn't disturb him. If he got sucked into the internet for a few hours, that was a few hours more I could live, right? There was such a plethora of information on the web that he might just stay on forever.

...Okay, that was probably too much to hope for.

The most I could do right now was keep myself occupied. If I didn't, this whole thing was going to drive me crazy. So I set about the task of brewing some coffee, knowing it was one of the few things that could make me feel better.

"How do you take yours?" I asked, leaning against the kitchen counter and glancing over into the living room.

"Black," Sephiroth immediately replied, not looking up from the screen.

So he'd been paying attention to what I was doing this whole time, too. The thought of even trying to catch that guy off guard was laughable.

Well, at least I had gotten a response out of him. I waited for the pot to finish brewing and then poured him a cup. Then I brought it over, setting it down on the table next to where he was sitting.

When I went back into the kitchen to get myself some, I noticed that he had picked up his mug and was absentmindedly taking a sip. He didn't make a face, so I guess he approved. Not that Sephiroth would make a face at anything, ever. Oh, hell...why did I keep attempting to read his expressions? It was useless.

I leaned against the counter once more, sipping at my own coffee and staring at nothing in particular. Part of me figured I should use this opportunity to sort out my thoughts, but they were about as sorted as they were going to get. I was at a loss of what to do and Sephiroth was more in charge of the situation than I was. All I could really do right now was wait for him to finish what he was doing and hope he arrived at some sort of conclusion that didn't involve my own gruesome death.

Walking into the dining room, I picked my cell phone up off the table and checked the time. Eleven in the morning. The storm seemed to have died down, and the weather app on my phone said we were bound to have sunny skies for the rest of the week.

It was almost noon and I hadn't eaten anything yet today. Now that I thought about it, I was pretty hungry. The power was back on too, so I was considerably less limited in my options.

I began going through the cabinets and the fridge, attempting to think of what I could make for lunch. Something time-consuming that would keep me busy. Finding something time-consuming wouldn't be too hard, since I wasn't the greatest cook and the simplest tasks took me ridiculous amounts of time. One time I'd had to Google how to chop an onion.

Thankfully I had an adequate amount of food in my house, so I wouldn't have to make a grocery run. I picked up my phone and looked up some recipes for soup. Eventually I settled on making sandwiches with some minestrone, and set about getting all of the ingredients together.

Everything started out great, and I immediately forgot about the source of my fears sitting in the other room and got absorbed in making the soup. Cutting up vegetables was easy enough, so naturally I immediately felt like a pro chef and started trying to do too many things at once.

The pasta was what got me. The recipe called for a certain amount of seashell pasta, which had to be boiled in a separate pot from the soup itself. I forgot about it within a record time of five minutes.

Suddenly I was startled by the sound of the lid being placed on the pot, and swung around to see Sephiroth giving me a look. The starch from said pasta had boiled out all over the counter, and probably would have continued to do so had he not walked over to correct the situation.

"Wha—oh, shit," I muttered, smacking my forehead. Damn pasta...why did I always forget to stir it?

That cocked eyebrow again. It was like he thought I was the crazy one here.

As if he'd heard my thought, he gave me a smug look. "...Is this a common occurrence when you're left to your own devices?"

I felt my cheeks turn pink. "I can handle myself just fine."

"Hmm. I'm sure." His tone was noncommittal, but I knew he probably thought I was going to blow the kitchen up.

He had the nerve to walk over, pour himself some more coffee, and then breeze on over to the living room once more to hog my laptop. I scowled. Well, it was a step up from the death threats, but—ugh.

Now I returned to cooking with renewed fervor, determined to make a meal delicious enough to wipe that smug look right off his face.

...What the hell was I doing? Hopefully Zack's task for me wasn't to be Sephiroth's goddamn housewife.

I shook my head at my own thoughts. Hopefully that much-needed explanation was coming soon...

It had been a few hours since they'd returned from the chocobo ranch, and Cloud was still moping around, looking troubled.

Tifa heaved a sigh. He'd been in a remarkably good mood earlier—she had even gotten him to smile a few times. Ever since the Geostigma crisis ended, he'd been lightening up more often. Still, though...something had changed earlier. One minute he was talking with the rest of them and guiding Marlene's chocobo along, and the next he had completely clammed up.

He had been staring at something, of that much she was sure. But whatever it was had gone by the time she tried to follow his gaze. Ever since then, he'd reverted back to that constant brooding state she knew so well. What could be bothering him? It was useless trying to ask—he never wanted to talk about these things.

She sighed again, wiping down the bar counter for the thousandth time. She could see her own downcast expression reflected in the dark wood. How many times had she stood here wiping the same counter over and over, waiting for him to come home from another one of his week-long excursions? After everything that had happened, she had been hoping all of that was over and they could finally be a family.

Footsteps. Tifa looked over to see Cloud enter the room; he exchanged a glance with her before going to busy himself with something in the kitchen.

"Cloud," she started, determined to get something out of him.

He paused. "...Yeah?"

"I—"

She was interrupted by the sudden sound of the bar's front doors opening. Her face fell—why the hell did somebody have to come at this exact moment? It was noon! She hardly ever had customers at this time of day!

"Yo," a familiar voice brought her thoughts to a halt. "Anybody home?"

Cloud and Tifa immediately turned towards the doors with almost identical expressions of surprise. The two newcomers regarded them coolly. Reno, as always, had neglected to iron his shirt. Rude neglected to take off his shades. Some things never changed.

"So you're here," Reno continued without waiting for a response. He smiled. "Good. We need to talk."

A/N: What could Reno want? Who knows! But it's the Turks, so it's bound to be interesting ;D

Review and I'll love you forever!

Next time: Brittany's cooking masterpiece (gag) and other adventures!