Destined to be Together
SIX
Two years passed and Aeris was sixteen before another Shinra member came into her life, though he was very different from the Turks.
Aeris knelt in the flowerbed next to Elmyra’s house.
Flower field was more like it, with Aeris’s green thumb the small patches of flora had spread to overtake the entire fenced yard, spider-webbed with little paths to maneuver around.
Aeris turned the soil over with her bare hands, preferring not to use gardening tools, instead touching and experiencing all the work of gardening. She’d transplanted a large grouping of yellow flowers from the church to brighten up the corner of the yard farthest from the house.
Looking up, wishing she had the sun and sky above her instead of a large metal plate, she sighed and rubbed her sweating forehead, smearing it with dirt.
‘Elmyra will be back from shopping soon,’ Aeris thought, ‘I’d better finish.’
She brushed her hands together, dusting off loose soil and stood, turned to head back to the house, and froze.
A young man stood watching her from the fence, close to the gate, her only escape from the yard. He had black hair, spiked up, and wore a deep red uniform that consisted of pants and a jacket which he casually wore open, revealing a shirt stretched tight over chiseled muscles. It took Aeris several moments to recognize it as a Shinra uniform, minus the armor and sword.
He smiled at her, his eyes taking her in as she was him. He leaned on the fence and jerked his head in the universal signal for her to join him.
All she could think was that she wasn’t 18 so he couldn’t be there to arrest her, she wasn’t dangerous or anything.
‘At least not yet,’ she thought with dry amusement of the metal rod on her bed that she was starting to learn self-defense with.
She casually walked toward the stranger, ‘Be calm,’ she ordered herself, ‘calm.’
The closer she walked, the harder it was to remain so. He was absolutely gorgeous, with a strong masculine jaw and muscular physique, and a boyish smile. His blue eyes positively laughed at her.
She stopped several feet away, even with the fence between them; she didn’t want to be within reach.
“Hi,” he said amiably.
She nodded in greeting.
He grinned at her and she got the feeling he was laughing at her, “Well, I was just wandering around the slums, bored out of my mind when I smelled flowers. I figured there was no way there could be flowers down here, perhaps some pretty girl wearing expensive perfume of some floral scent. Either way, I figured I’d investigate.”
She stared at his smiling face, mildly confused, “You came looking for flowers?”
He shrugged, “Or a pretty girl… I found both.” He gave her a thousand watt smile.
Aeris blinked in surprise and blushed, “Would you like a flower? I sell them sometimes; it brings people some hope in the slums. A pretty thing for a girlfriend or mother.”
“I’ll buy one,” he said, fishing in his pocket.
“A gil then,” she said, relieved to have changed the subject.
“Which color do you think do you think is best?”
Aeris bent and plucked a soft white flower from the bunch nearest her, “I like white; it seems so new and clean. A fresh, new slate, starting over.”
“Like meeting someone new,” he said, holding out the gil.
She moved toward the fence, having decided that he wasn’t dangerous and accepted the money he held out to her and offered him the blossom. He caught her wrist, took the flower from her and tucking it into her hair behind her ear.
He’d done it so quickly that by the time she’d opened her mouth to protest or thought to tug away from him, he’d let her go and stepped back to admire his handiwork.
She closed her mouth without yelling at him and took a step back as well.
“Beautiful,” he said with a grin.
Aeris walked to the gate and was heading towards the house when she heard his footsteps catching up with her.
“Look,” she said, whirling around, “I don’t know you or anything about you except that you’re Shinra and I don’t like anyone that works for Shinra. Do me a favor and leave; I have nothing else to say to you.”
“Thank you.”
She blinked at him, “What?”
“You do have something to say to me, thank you. I bought you a flower, you’re supposed to say ‘thank you’, and then I say ‘you’re very welcome’. After that is up to you because then it’s your turn to say something, but I’d hope it would be something nice and introductory like your name.”
He smiled at her and she stared at him with a mixture of confusion and annoyance, “You bought a flower from me, to give to me, so that I would tell you my name?”
“Yes, shall we try again?”
“Wha—? With amazing speed, he plucked the flower from her hair, took the gil from her and put the flower in her hand instead.
“I’ll buy one,” he said, grinning at her expression.
Aeris held the flower out tentatively, thinking this man to be crazy in some way. She’d never met anyone so… odd.
He accepted the flower; put the gil back in her hand and the blossom was once again tucked behind her ear, but this time he traced his finger down her jaw before dropping his hand to his side.
Aeris remembered she had a line and said softly, “Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome,” he said looking deep into her eyes. He’d been watching her for almost ten minutes before she’d noticed him and he’d been playing a game with himself, trying to guess what color her eyes were. Not only had he been way wrong, but the answer had shocked the hell out of him.
“I’m Aeris,” she said, a little more sure of her line this time.
“Zack,” he said, taking her offered hand and instead of shaking it, used it to pull her closer.
‘Breathe!’ Aeris’s mind screamed at her and she exhaled a breath she hadn’t known she was holding.
His eyes flicked to her mouth and back to her eyes, “You’re beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome.”
“I’m Aeris—I mean, would you like a cup of tea or something,” she stammered, embarrassed by her blunder. Why? Why was he making her so nervous, so shaky?
“Absolutely,” he said, taking her hand and linking their fingers.
She managed to free her hand once inside and left him to wander the living room slowly.
Aeris washed her hands quickly and put on water for tea, wondering all the while what she was doing.
“So,” he said, causing her to jump, “Why do you hate anyone that works for Shinra?”
She turned and found him startlingly close… way too close, and she stepped around him to set out the cups, “A Shinra grunt killed my real mother, Professor Hojo… I hate him, and—” she stopped at a point where she would have mentioned Sephiroth, or Tseng, and their childhood together.
Aeris’s shoulder’s lifted as she sighed heavily, “People work for Shinra, they change. They forget their friends.”
Zack watched her expression pass to memory and then flashed pain. His first instinct was to go and put his arms around her, but being one of the Shinra, he doubted that would be appreciated.
“I was just accepted into Soldier training, and it is my job to protect Shinra, and the people of this city.”
Aeris looked at him then, he believed what he said… and he was right. He had nothing to do with her pain.
Seeing her expression soften, he decided to keep the conversation going, “I hope when I graduate from training that I’ll be transferred under General Sephiroth, which is quite an honor. I’ve never met him, but I hear he is the best Soldier ever and…”
Aeris was carefully looking anywhere but at him, her eyes a little too wide.
“Don’t tell me you have something against Sephiroth too, I mean, I know some of the rumors are odd, but…”
She smiled softly and shook her head, “No, I have nothing against Sephiroth.”
“Oh,” Zack grinned and studied her face; she’d finally seemed to relax.
“How do you take your tea?” she asked, setting the teapot on the table.
“Sweet,” he said, cupping her chin and tilting her face to look at him.
Aeris still had one hand on the teapot and the other she placed on his wrist, “You need to stop touching me.”
She didn’t sound angry, but her tone made him think she’d said it for a very good reason.
The front door opened and a woman’s voice called out, “Aeris?”
Zack stepped back and sat at the table as Elmyra entered the kitchen, “There you are, I—who is this?”
She didn’t sound angry, simply curious, if not a little worried.
“This is Zack, Mom. He smelled my flowers and came to buy one.”
Elmyra studied Zack, obviously noticing that he didn’t have a flower on him, and turned to Aeris, who had a flower sticking out of her hair. She narrowed her eyes and look back at Zack.
“And two plus two equals four,” he said with a grin.
Aeris plucked the flower from her hair and put it in her pocket, slightly embarrassed.
“Well, if we are going to have company, I’d like for you to go wash your face, Aeris.”
“I think dirt becomes her, it’s very natural,” Zack said, eyes laughing.
Both women gave him identical looks of surprise to which he grinned back and began pouring the tea.
“I’ll be right back,” Aeris said, leaving the room. The bathroom mirror revealed a grimy version of herself, a smudge across her forehead where she’d wiped her face and sweat streaks down her cheeks.
A deep blush crept up her neck and she bit her lip, he’d let her walk around like this for ten minutes, talking to her normal… well, talking to her and all the time she’d had dirt all over her face! She was furious, humiliated, wanting to laugh and cry at the same time… it was all too ridiculous that this man walks into her garden one day and turns her world upside down.
She scrubbed and washed several times; probably taking off a layer of skin to be sure all of the dirt was gone.
Combing her hair back from her face, she studied her reflection before dropping her hands to her sides, what was she doing? Vanity was not in her blood, she never dressed any certain way unless she liked it, never dated, and never cared if men complimented her looks. What was it about Zack?
She could hear him talking in the kitchen as she headed back down stairs.
“Truthfully, I’ve never done anything except guard work. I can’t wait to start my new training and become a Soldier. Some monster harassing a town? I’ll go in and kill it, rescuing the townsfolk and their children.”
“So it’s all about personal glory?”
“Well, some, I’m young and full of energy, what else am I supposed to do? Besides, my parents still live in the small town I’m from, how would I feel if they were being attacked, their houses destroyed? I can protect them; I’ll have the training, the know-how. I’m doing this all for them.”
“That’s… that’s very nice of you,” Elmyra said, uncomfortable with the fact that she was beginning to like this cocky teenager.
“All better now,” Aeris said, strolling into the kitchen, smiling at the shocked expression Zack gave her, “What?”
“And I thought you were beautiful all smudged from working in your garden,” he said, and whistled long and low, “I was wrong; it was only the tip of the iceberg.”
Elmyra looked questioningly at Aeris who laughed, “He means that as a compliment, I think…”
“Of course I do!”
The older woman shook her head, smiling, “I’m going to take a nap, shopping always tires me… It was nice meeting you, Zack.”
He nodded and waited until she was all the way upstairs before saying anything to Aeris, “She’s nice.”
“Yes, but she worries too much about me.”
“I’m sure she has plenty of reasons.”
“Not nearly as many as you’d think.”
“I know what you mean. My parents worry all the time, about my training, about my income, about my social life…”
Aeris nodded and looked out the window at her garden.
“You really like it out there, don’t you? In your garden?”
“If you lived under the plate all the time, every day, wouldn’t you like a little life, a little hope?”
Zack got up and moved to stand beside her, “Of course, as it is, I leave the city all the time for training… but for the people born and raised here, some of them have never seen the sky. I just can’t believe that.”
“I can…”
He took her chin again and looked into her eyes for a long time, “You’ve never seen it, have you?”
“I’ve seen the sky; you can see it from the upper level. But there are so many other things I can’t see from there like the ocean, trees, and animals.”
“You… haven’t…?”
She closed her eyes, “I know what my mother has described for me, but it’s just too much trouble to get there, she doesn’t like to go far from the house because some of the slums aren’t safe… and who knows what is outside the city…”
“Come on,” he took her hand and pulled her toward the door, “we’re going right now.”
“But my mom!”
“Leave her a note, make sure she knows I’ll be with you and will keep you safe no matter what, but you are going to see something today. We have a couple hours before sunset, but we have to hurry.”
Aeris sat nervously on the train heading up out of the slums. She’d rarely been on any trains since she was young and they still filled her with the memory of that long ride with her mother bleeding on the floor of the car, Aeris crying for help… but the train had been empty and the sky black.
Now it held several people, men and women in business suits, a bum asleep at the back of the car, some hoodlums that looked like their barks were worse than their bite. No one bothered her.
Who would with Zack there beside her on the bench, his hand intertwined with hers resting on her lap? It felt warm and comfortable, oddly satisfying for her to be on a train with a handsome man, heading for the sky.
At their stop, Zack pulled her to her feet and led the way through the crowded streets. The farther they walked, the thinner the crowds became as they left the shops behind and came up to a gate. Zack walked right up and pushed it, but it didn’t move.
“What the hell?”
“Hey, what are you doing there?”
Uniformed men holding guns were running toward them and Aeris’s vision blurred. Men running after them with guns; her mother’s labored breathing, Sephiroth telling them to run while he held them off.
Aeris tensed and made as if to run but Zack caught her arm and she cringed behind him.
“Gates are closed to all citizens—oh! Hey Zack, how have you been,” the two guards stopped short when they recognized a co-worker.
“Great, you?”
“Eh, so-so… Hey, I heard you made it into Soldier training, good going,” one of them said.
“The Soldier uniform is a major babe magnet,” the other one said, elbowing the first.
“I’ve never had any problem in that area,” Zack laughed, tugging Aeris out from behind him.
“Whoa!”
“Hello Sweetie!”
Aeris tried not to glare at them and instead stood on tip-toe to murmur in Zack’s ear, “If you don’t get me out of here right now, I’m going to scream.”
He looked at her closely and found her eyes threatening to well up with tears. He searched her face and wondered what put that haunting fear in her eyes.
Zack smiled back at the guards and tapped the gate, “So no opening up?”
“Sorry man, no one in or out for a few days.”
“I don’t want to go out right now, Zack,” Aeris whispered.
“Take your girl out some other time,” one of the guards said, “It’s a good night for staying in…”
Zack shook his head, “One track mind, man. Get yourself a hobby. I’ll see you guys later.”
Gripping her hand tightly, he pulled her back in the direction of the train station.
“I don’t really want to leave Midgar…”
“We’ll talk once we’re back in your yard; don’t talk to me right now.”
Aeris glanced at Zack’s profile as they boarded the train, he looked concerned and troubled.
The train ride back to the slums was long and silent. Aeris was about to tell Zack goodbye and that she could find her own way home when he took her hand, “Come on.”
He didn’t pull this time, but let her walk with him.
“Come this way,” Aeris said suddenly.
“But Sector 5 is that way…”
“I know, but I want to show you my secret place, even better than the flower yard…”
Zack allowed himself to be maneuvered toward a dilapidated church. He stopped at the foot of the steps and looked up, a low whistle escaped him.
“Come in.”
Zack followed her inside and stopped short, “Wow.”
Light streamed in from a hole in the roof, dimly illuminating the center where the pulpit would be. In its place was a mound of hard packed dirt with a large grouping of flowers.
“So this is your secret patch of flowers, this helps the others?”
“Yes,” Aeris said standing among the buds, basking in the light that spilled down on her, “I don’t know why I brought you here; I just felt I should…”
Zack joined her, slipping an arm around her waist, “I’m glad.”
“But we should get back,” Aeris stepped back carefully, pulling away from him, emotionally and physically, “Elmyra is a professional worrier, I’m all she has.”
Zack thought of his parent’s. Normal and quiet as they were, he loved them. They were probably sitting around the living room in Gonzaga at that moment, chatting idle about the neighborhood gossip and wondering when his next letter would arrive. He’d have to write them again.
Zack tried not to be insulted by her distance and decided not to push it, “Why is it sometimes you call her Elmyra and sometimes you call her mom?”
Aeris hugged herself though it wasn’t cold, “My dad died when I was a baby and I told you that a soldier killed my real mom… I was only eight when it happened and Elmyra adopted me. She found out that her husband was killed at war shortly afterwards,” Aeris paused, thinking. “I called her mom because it was easier than explaining everything to people, and because I was still young enough where I needed to call someone ‘Mom’… it was comforting for both of us.”
She shook her head, clearing all thoughts of the past “Anyway, we should go…”
Zack took Aeris’s hand and pulled her close, “You don’t want me to apologize for what happened to you, do you?”
“It wasn’t you; you were probably at home sleeping or sitting on your dad’s knee. Why should you be sorry?”
“I am sorry.”
“Thank you, I feel so much better now,” she said, sarcastically.
“I’m glad I could help,” Zack said laughing and when she laughed as well, he swooped down and sealed his mouth over hers.
Aeris’s mind seemed to explode into all colors bright and vibrant. Her arms fell limply to her sides as if she’d been tranquilized and only Zack’s arm curled around her waist kept her standing.
The kiss ended softly, Zack fought the urge to nip at her neck with his teeth… the girl was intoxicating.
She blinked her eyes open and stared at him from only inches away, “Thank you.”
“You’re very welcome.”
“For holding me up,” she whispered.
“I know what you meant,” he said.
“And…” she trailed off as redness brushed her cheeks and she lowered her lashes.
Zack still held her close, one hand pressing her lower back, keeping her body against his. She laid a hand on his chest and meant to push him away but he lifted her chin, “Thank you.”
“What for,” she asked softly.
“For letting me kiss you again.”
“Again, but—?” her words were cut off as he slipped his other arm around her, pulling her onto tip-toes.
This time when he stopped kissing her, Aeris pulled away from him and he let her go.
“We should go back,” she said breathily.
“Not yet,” he begged.
“I’m not going to--”
“No, I just want to spend time with you.”
“Oh...”
She stepped closer to him and sighed.
He slipped his arm around her waist, “What?”
She wanted to tell him about everything, about Sephiroth but even as she thought it, her mind ran through what could happen. Zack would tell Sephiroth about her, Sephiroth would have to see her to believe she was still alive, he’d be cold and mean the way Tseng had turned… Or he’d want to know her again, laugh and hug like when they were children, Zack would disappear. Images flashing before her eyes made her dizzy.
Resting her forehead on Zack’s shoulder, she felt safe for the first time in years, “Nothing, I was just thinking how mean you are to have entered my life, shaken things up, and now you’ll be leaving for training.”
Zack kissed her hair, “I’ll be back every couple of months to visit.”
“You will?”
“Now that I have a reason, absolutely.”
“Why?”
“Because you had me caught the first moment I saw you crouched among the flowers.”
She stared at him, lips parted in surprise and he took the opportunity to capture her mouth again.
Two more years later…
Aeris sat back on her heels, wiping the sweat from her face. The church was silent except for the occasional cooing of a pigeon in the rafters. Light, artificial as it was, streamed in from a small hole above the patch of flowers she worked on, illuminating her like a soft spotlight in the dim church.
Her flowers were only an excuse to get out of the house. In spite of Elmyra's warnings about a broken heart, Aeris waited for Zack to come back from his training. He did, every few months and they spent what little time there was together. But he always had to leave again.
“Why is it every time I see you, you’re playing with your flowers?”
Aeris whirled around, standing, and brightened in surprise, “Zack!”
She launched herself into his open arms and hugged him tightly, “I missed you so much.”
“I know, six months apart is hell on both of us.” He brushed her hair back from her eyes and framed her face with both hands, “Knowing I have you to come back to helps though.”
He’d just spent half a year finishing his training for Soldier, cleaning up the area around Wutai, a town left devastated by the war, a war Shinra had induced by making Wutai part of the Shinra Empire…
Zack had seen many things in the beautiful city that had once been a place of spirituality and healing. Soon it would be just another resort town like Costa Del Sol, turning the proud warriors into a dinner show and the sacred temples would have tours going through them four times a day.
Aeris linked her fingers behind his neck and stared up at him, “What’s wrong?”
Zack gazed down at his beautiful girlfriend and forgot everything that had been bothering him for months, “Nothing now.”
She frowned as she studied his eyes, searching for the dark thoughts that had been haunting behind them only seconds before, but he grinned and it reached his eyes, as if the shadows had only been her imagination.
“Look,” he said, unbuckling his sword strap and bringing it around for her to see. She really wasn’t a blade fighter, but she could appreciate a good weapon, especially her steel rod. Many a time she’d thumped him good and hard when he was testing her skills in battle.
“It’s amazing, and heavy,” she said as her arms screamed with the weight. He took it back, resting it against a damaged pew.
“And I like your new uniform,” she said, plucking at his chest. He’d traded in the red guard duds for a blue Soldier uniform when he’d begun his training. His new uniform was a deeper blue, almost purple. His shirt was tight and sleeveless for ease of movement and his shoulders were covered with armored plates.
She deftly unhooked the plates and eased them down his arms, “Why did you get new armor?”
Zack waited until she’d put them beside his sword before picking her up and hugging her. She squealed and laughed, “What has you in such a great mood?”
“I graduated yesterday.”
She stopped laughing and stared at him, “You did? You’re in Soldier?”
“First Class.”
“Soldier First Class!”
He nodded and kissed her hungrily, knowing instantly he’d made a mistake. Now he wouldn’t be able to stop kissing her and he had to leave soon…
“Excuse me.”
Aeris froze in his arms and Zack set her down on her feet before turning to face the new voice. A man he recognized as the new head of the Turks stood watching them, mildly curious. What was his name again? Didn’t matter, what did matter was how he’d gotten so far into the church without either one of them noticing, and Zack didn’t like the tenseness he felt singing through Aeris.
As modest as she was, Zack was sure it was more that just embarrassment about being caught kissing.
The man was staring at Aeris in a way that made Zack’s jealousy flare but he checked it because she was looking at the man like a scared rabbit.
“What can I help you with,” Zack said, stepping forward, blocking the man’s view of her.
“Oh, nothing really. I was just in the neighborhood and thought I’d drop in and see how Aeris was doing…”
“You know Aeris?” Zack asked, glancing back at her questioningly.
She took a deep breath and stepped up beside him, “Hello Tseng.”
The man nodded to her and his look intensified as it shifted slowly to Zack.
That was it, Tseng. But how did his shy little girlfriend who was rarely out of the slums know the leader of the Turks?
“How are you?” she asked, face carefully blank.
“Fine, I was just promoted, and you?”
“Wonderful, Zack just graduated into Soldier, First Class.”
“Zack?”
He didn’t like the way Tseng was studying him, “Yes, I’ve seen you around Shinra HQ and I’ve heard rumors, but we’ve never actually met.”
“Rumors?”
“Nothing bad, I just call them rumors because who’s to say any are true or that anyone telling them has ever met you.”
“I can assure you they are all true. The good and the bad.”
Zack narrowed his eyes, what was this guy talking about?
“What is your first assignment?” Tseng looked at Zack.
Like he was going to tell a Turk, “I’m not sure, all I know is I was told to report to Sephiroth once I’d had some rest.”
At the mention of his new commanding officer, Tseng shifted his gaze to Aeris and Zack resisted the urge to step in front of her again.
“Sephiroth, that is quite the honor, you must have been very impressive in your training.” He was talking to Zack but Tseng only had eyes for Aeris.
She refused to fidget under his intense gaze, so she stepped closer and took Zack’s hand, “That’s wonderful.”
She didn’t sound like it was wonderful. Zack looked from Tseng to Aeris and back again, “Okay, what the hell is going on?”
Aeris shook her head, “What do you mean?”
“How do you two know each other?”
“Oh, we’re old friends, right Aeris?”
She glared at Tseng, “We were kids together.”
“Is he the one that went to work for Shinra and then forgot his friends?” Zack asked.
Tseng looked at Aeris in surprise but she ignored him, “No, he’s the one that was once a friend and let years of Shinra training rob him of his free will and thought.”
“As opposed to a hypocrite who hates all Shinra employees and dates a Soldier First Class?”
It was childish and Tseng knew it, but he hadn’t expected that after all these years she could hurt his feelings.
Zack took a step closer to his sword, “You need to leave, Tseng.”
The Turk nodded, more like a small bow, turned around and walked out of the church.
The moment he was out the door, Aeris sank weakly to the ground.
Zack sat on the broken pew and watched her, “I think it’s time you told me everything.”
She covered her face, shaking her head, “I can’t, you can’t know what you’re asking, and I can’t relive all that again. There’s too much to tell Zack, don’t ask me to, please.”
“Aeris, I’m leaving for my first assignment tomorrow.”
She peeked at him over her hands and he could see tears in her eyes.
“Neibelheim, some problem with the reactor… Sephiroth and I are going to—”
Noticing her entire body tense at the mention of his new friend’s name, Zack narrowed his eyes, “I won’t mention you to him. I haven’t told anyone about us for two years, per your request. But soon, I’m going to want some answers.”
She moved to him and sat on his lap, hugging him tightly, “Yes. I will tell you everything the moment you get back, I promise. Just know that it’s you I care for and that I haven’t seen him since I was eight.”
“So being jealous would be pretty stupid in this case, huh?”
She nodded and Zack sighed, “Okay, I won’t bother you about your childhood friendships… for now. And I’ll admit I kind of like keeping you secret from everyone I know.”
“When you get back, I’ll explain everything and then you can decide what to do,” Aeris whispered.
“And then we’ll take a trip to the other continent and you’ll meet my parents,” he said, nuzzling her neck.
“Your parents!”
“Of course, I’ve kept you secret from everyone… except them. They really want to meet you.”
Aeris blushed and Zack kissed her breathless before she could protest.
THE END