proudsoldier | Wherein our hero finds the city. Or it finds him.

[Aerith just dropped her flowerbasket. It feels like her heart just stopped. She knew, logically, that this could possibly happen. She knew that. But seeing it in person... She's afraid to speak for a moment. Doesn't want to know what his reaction will be. Not after the last time...but...she can't help it.]

....Zack?

[Had his sword in hand, whirls around and actually drops it as he catches sight of her. This is notable, as he hasn't done that in years. His mouth falls open and it takes him a moment to find his voice.]

....I've gotta be dreaming.

[Takes a hesitant step towards her, hand out, as if he wants to touch her but is afraid she'll vanish if he does so.]

Aeris...?

Aerith. It's...Aerith, Zack. [As if in a trance, she steps closer, one hand lifting as if to touch him, like he's just a dream and will fade like mist after a sunrise. He's so tall. She'd forgotten how tall he was.]

[If this is a dream, he suddenly doesn't care any more. Doesn't register the correction at all, just hears it as a confirmation and in an instant he's there, arms around her so tightly it's a wonder she can breathe. He has his face buried in her hair and she's there and real and he is crying.]

Oh mein gott, Aeris. Ich habe gedacht-- I thought-- [can't even finish the sentence, just hugs her tighter]

Shh, Zack. Shhh, liebe, stille. Ich bin hier jetzt. It's all right. [She holds him, rocking him gently as she whispers words of comfort, the language she's speaking in long gone.]

[it's taking an effort not to outright sob, it's been so long since he's seen her and been able to touch her and he's missed her so much that it's been painful. But it slowly occurs to him that something isn't quite right.]

This . . . am I dreaming? Did I fall in the Lifestream again?

[She pets his hair, being able to really touch him is like a new experience all over again. But it can't last, and Aerith knows it.]

Zack...this place... [She closes her eyes and breathes deeply] There is no Lifestream here. This place isn't even on Gaia. I'm...I'm not sure where it is, I can't hear the Planet here, but...

This city is called Template. No one knows how they get pulled here, and no one knows how they get out. People have successfully left, and some have been pulled back after their first disappearance from the city. Those that have returned can't say how. There's...also another thing. People can be pulled from a world at any point in time on their world, or they can be pulled from an alternate version of their world. One of the doubles knows of a place on their world called Template, and the other one doesn't.

On my world...you died protecting Cloud when you were escaping from ShinRa. I...I'm sorry...I'm not...I'm not your Aeris. [She tries not to feel so crushed when she says it, but the words feel like a physical blow, and she rests her forehead on his shoulder.]

[stills, his grip loosening, and pulls back just far enough to give her a wide-eyed look.]

You . . . what? [is clearly trying to take this all in, but not for an instant does he let go of her. He does, however, raise one hand to press it to his forehead. That may be a headache coming on.] But that's crazy.

My name is Aerith, Zack. I'm not...I'm not the flower girl you knew. I'm different. Although by how much I don't know. In my world you died years ago, although...I've...been dead for several as well.

I know it's hard to understand, but please, you have to trust me. This place doesn't make much sense to anyone as it is. There's a barrier around the city that keeps us from leaving. The locals aren't affected by it, just those of us who've been pulled here from somewhere else. Once you're in, you can't find a way out if you're trying. Some people just end up disappearing without warning, probably back to their own worlds.

I'm...I'm sorry, Zack.

[slowly shakes his head, not in denial of her words so much as trying to clear it.] You're . . . If you died, how are you here? I'm not dead too, am I?

I'm here because Template pulled me here from my place in the Lifestream. As for you... [She presses a hand to his chest, feeling his heartbeat. Her eyes close, and she just listens. When she pulls her hand away, she's smiling as she looks up at him.]

No, Zack, you're not dead. And for that, I'm thankful.

Thanks to you. [smiles, then it falters] Or . . . I guess it wasn't you, huh?

[sighs and awkwardly glances around at the church] So, I'm in another city called Template that isn't anything like the one I come from, it sucks people in from all over the place, most of us are doubles, and none of us can leave. Guess I'm lucky I wasn't in the middle of anything important.

[looks at her again, and hesitates just a moment before reaching up to brush his fingers against her cheek. His tone is quiet, almost hopeful.] But . . . you sure act a lot like the Aeris I knew . . .

As lucky as anyone can be, although there are dangers here that I'd never run across before coming here, and none of them have been physical. There is something here that has power over things that I never would've imagined. Sudden blindness, loss of hearing, or the inability to speak that no remedy or magic could cure. People suddenly turning into children over the course of a night. And now...there's a series of nightmares plaguing people about a manor in the snow, and how they have these bruise-like marks that no one can see except for those that have them. I've never run across ailments that my powers couldn't cure before I came here. I...it's very unsettling.

[The touch makes her heart skip, and her eyes fall shut. For a moment she seems to be leaning into his touch, but she smiles sadly and looks up at him.] Must be a part of who we are, despite our name differences. Aerith. With a 'th' sound.

[small smile, a little cocksure, like his old self] Good thing I'm here, then. Sounds like you guys need me more than my Template does.

[sheepish grin] Sorry, Aerith. [And that sad smile shoots straight to his heart.] I think it's more than that. You're . . . you're really similar. I wouldn't have known the difference if you hadn't told me.

[Her smile widens and she almost laughs.] Maybe! You can never tell with these things.

That's..that's okay. Apparently the Zack from my world found me to be much too different from my teenage self. But then again, it'd been seven years since I'd been that age, and for him it must've been only a few months at the most. Things...didn't go so well when he and I first talked after he arrived.

[Laughing is good! He is starting to wonder whether he should let go now, but she hasn't said anything, and he's not going to until she does.]

Must've been a shock for him. Especially if he'd just seen . . . you, as . . . [doesn't even bother trying to finish that sentence, his brain still trying to wrap around the concept] This is too weird.

Yes, a lot of people say that. Although usually much more colorfully.

And here I am trying to restrain myself. [cheeky grin, then lets it fade as he leans his head against hers]

I missed you. Even if it . . . wasn't really you.

[tightens his hold a bit again]

I missed you too. [Her voice was soft, and she'd squeezed her eyes shut. This was so confusing. He looked like Zack, the voice, the smell of his clothes, the spiritual presence was a little different but otherwise she would have never known had he not mentioned the Template City where he was from.]

[quiet for bit]

. . . If I'm dead where you're from . . . didn't you get to see me in the Lifestream?

Mm. [She nods] Once I joined the Lifestream, you were there, but...it's different somehow. This is different.

[Relaxes. Wasn't sure what he was going to do if he'd found out that he couldn't be with her again even in death.]

Looks like I can't save you no matter which world I'm in. [his voice is laden with audible guilt, almost crushing] I'm sorry.

Sometimes personal sacrifice is necessary in order to save something greater. Besides, trust me when I say I knew what I was doing when I left for the City of the Ancients on my own. I was the last person that knew how to summon Holy, and I didn't want any of you in danger.

And I've had enough trouble with Cloud beating himself over it for years, so I would prefer it if you didn't start that either. [She manages a small smile]

[Quiet again, having trouble making the words come out, but feels she needs to know this for some reason.]

You didn't . . . go by yourself, in my world. We all went with you. And I still couldn't stop him.

[The guilt's enough to finally make him pull away, looking at the floor.]

It was him in your world too, wasn't it? It was Sephiroth.

Please don't blame yourself Zack, I didn't even know that would happen, there was no way anyone could've prepared for that.

Yes. [She nods, one hand moving to cover where the scar lay hidden beneath her clothes.] It was Sephiroth.

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