Chapter Text
‘It has been raining all week, why won’t it stop already?’
Frigid rain gently fell from the dark clouds above, and the world seemed as quiet as it has ever been as night began its inevitable descent. Cloud quietly sighed to himself as he shifted into a more comfortable position on the small hand built bench he was gifted the year before. Barret always did seem to have a strange knack for picking out things that Cloud would find enjoyable. The smoothed surface of cherrywood felt slightly humid because of the ongoing rain, and Cloud couldn’t help but wonder if he needed to apply another waterproofing coat to its surface in order to keep it from warping.
Cloud sighs again, as he thinks to himself ‘Just another job to add to the list.’ He knows however, that this is what he had come to expect after building his house in the middle of nowhere. Nothing but never-ending work and maintenance. Why did he decide that building a house on the outskirts of the Forgotten Capital was a good idea again? He couldn’t help but think that maybe it had been the idea of finally being able to live in true peace and quiet, or maybe he just desperately needed to have another plan besides going to the Sleeping Forest and never coming back.
Cloud couldn’t help but grip the bench tightly, his fingers digging deeply into the wood as he tried to forget the pain he had been feeling at the time. Everything had been so dark and hopeless, one of the lowest moments of his life which was saying something. Today though, he couldn’t help but feel thankful that he never gave up on himself, and that he luckily hadn’t taken his own life in the woods ten years ago. Everything had been so overwhelming, and the darkness had almost had him. Perhaps he even truly wanted it at one point.
Ultimately though, once he had entered the forest he somehow found himself standing in front of the dilapidated dirt road leading towards the Forgotten Capital. At the time it had felt like Cloud found his way against his will, and maybe it had been.He often since wondered if Aerith had awoken the forest just so that he could find his way through to the Capital without the power of the Lunar Harp. How else could he have been able to escape the endless maze of the forest, except without some sort of planetary intervention?
Did Aerith save him ten years ago?
Was it possible that she had intervened and stopped Cloud from join the lifestream at that time? Is that why he didn’t find his end within the darkness of the forest? Cloud loosens his grip on the bench and leans forward as he sullenly thinks to himself, ‘It isn’t like Aerith has tried to visit since I defeated Sephiroth that last time. Was it possible that she wasn’t even involved with leading me here? Am I just lucky?’
The rains starts to fall a little bit faster which distracts Cloud from his rumination, and he lets the sounds of the rain clear his thoughts. It isn’t like he is going to get any answers to these questions. He has already been asking the same things over and over for years now, and he was as clueless as ever. Whatever, or whomever led him here…Cloud is extremely grateful.
‘Things are better now, no need for me to think about the past right now.’
What would he gain from torturing himself anyways? Especially since he already faced the end of the world several times over. All of those life altering events had to mean something. Overcoming the iron hold Shinra kept on the planet and finally ridding the world of both Sephiroth and Jenova should mean even more at the end, so he knew he could handle a little bit of trauma. He had too.
Time slowly passed afterwards, and Cloud continued to sit and watch the rain from the safety of his porch. It wasn’t like he had any other plans for the day. The sun had finally set, and the world around him was blanketed in the dark of night. The only light came from inside of the house, its illumination casting a soft warming glow that silhouetted Clouds frame.
Without the convenience of daylight being on his side, it didn’t take long before Clouds mind started wandering once again. This time he couldn’t help but think about his homes endless upkeep list, which had immediately become one of his new favorite pastimes when he decided to build a home here. Passively watching as the rain began to create an even larger puddle around the small but modest house, Cloud was quick to add a couple of new items to his never ending list. First, he needed to get roof gutters. Second he would have to figure out how to redirect the water so it didn’t pool around the house.
‘Would it be weird if I asked Cid for some tips on how to build a better drainage system? I mean he is technically a rocket scientist, would it be outside of his skillset, or would he laugh at me for bothering him with such a simple task? He does owe me for clearing out those monsters that were lurking around Rocket Town, so maybe he’ll help me out this one time. Maybe I can also get him to -?!?’
Suddenly pulled from his thoughts, Cloud looks around quickly as a deeply unsettling sound comes from within the dark forest that flanked the side of his property. Standing up Cloud tries to pinpoint exactly where the sound is coming from, however his hearing is hampered by the worsening rain and he can not sense where the potential threat was coming from. Growing unsure of the escalating situation, Cloud only takes a short moment to run through his back door and grab a broadsword that he had stored in his mudroom for emergencies such as this. Cloud can’t help but notice that the droning wasn’t muffled by the heavy insulation of his houses walls. What was going on, and was it getting louder?
Now armed and ready for a fight, Cloud finds his way back outside onto the porch. It quickly becomes apparent that the droning sound was gradually increasing in volume. Was he wrong, was the sound not coming from the forest? Should he check out the front of the house or should he call for backup?
‘Shit, this could be bad. I need to call Cid, he could get to the house in just a couple of hours if I’m lucky. Didn’t he say he was visiting the Icicle Inn for a few weeks this month? He can’t be too far way, can he?’
Cloud turns away from the forest fully intending to grab the phone on the kitchen counter, but he doesn’t make it. Without warning a headache beings to pulsate through his head, the sinking pain nearly takes his breath away as Cloud falls gracelessly to his knees. He can’t help but watch as the broadsword falls heavily onto the porch as it slips from his grasp.
‘This pain, why does it feel so familiar?’
Cloud desperately grips the sides of his head as his world turns into a horrific and agonizing nightmare. The droning is unbearable, and his teeth clench tightly together as he tries to stop himself from screaming. Without any warning his vision starts to glitch out, it was like he was being pulled apart from the seams. Squeezing his eyes shut, Cloud tries to shake the sound in his head away hoping that it would give him a reprieve from the shapeshifting world around him. Of course it does nothing, but he doesn’t have any other options at this point.
And then the sound was suddenly gone, and the world righted itself once more. Cloud trembled violently as he tries to pull himself back together.
‘It’s so hard to stand up…come on, you’ve got this. Just get up!’
However, no matter how hard he tried Cloud could not seem to get to his feet. Panicked breathes were coming in short and fast, the sound was suffocating after the droning died down. Feeling numb, Cloud could only desperately stare at the floor of the porch he was kneeling on. And then he heard him.
‘There you are Cloud.’
Cloud desperately tries to scream, but his world suddenly goes black.