Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Twisted Compulsion ❯ 2 ( Chapter 3 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Twisted Compulsion

Ch. 2

Aerith stumbled to her knees and shivered uncontrollably, she was still wet from the lifestream. Her dress and hair had already begun to freeze. Sephiroth stood with his arms and wing wrapped around him surveying the land around them. White as far as he could see. `We could crawl back into the crater and try to keep warm but then we'd just starve to death,' he figured. “They only chance we have is to try and find a house or hut,” Sephiroth said with his back still to Aerith.

Aerith was speechless, her mouth agape. `Is he nuts?' Sephiroth turned to face Aerith who was staring at him stupidly from her crouching position. He looked at her expectantly. “What?” he said a little annoyed.

“Are you going to get up, or am I going to have to carry you?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

Aerith scoffed at him from the ground. “Arrrre yooou crazzzzy, theeeerrrreeee's n-o-oothi-nnnng in sigggght and weee doooon't knowwww whiccch w-way t-to go!” she chattered out.

“Oh, so you'd rather stay here and die anyways?” he asked very authoritively.

Aerith frowned. As much as she hated to admit it he was right. She slowly got to her feet, waiting for Sephiroth to lead. He glanced at her for a moment more then led the two down the snow-covered embankment, and on the snow plains. After a few minutes of silent walking, Sephiroth stopped abruptly.

Aerith, rather then making her own footprints, had been using Sephiroth's and nearly walked right into him because of his abruptness', in fact she stopped so suddenly that she lost her balance and fell on her butt in the snow. Upon hearing the thud Sephiroth turned around to see a disgruntled Aerith sitting in the snow. He let a slight smile cross his lip. The flower girl looked up at him and frowned, “W-what's so-o fun-ny?”

A shivering sephiroth just shook his head, “You look so disgruntled is all….”

Aerith shakingly climbed to her feet. “N-oo thanks to yo-u, why-y'd di-id you sto-op?”

Sephiroth glanced up to the sky and said after a brief pause, “I was thinking…. Why… Why did you save me…?” He asked the last part of this quietly.

Aerith looked up at Sephiroth. “I don't know… I just…” She trailed off and looked down at the ground.

He looked down at Aerith, the cold temporally forgot. She did look very pitiful right now, shivering and nearly frozen. Now that Jenova's voice was gone from his mind he couldn't remember why he had killed the girl.

Aerith let out a choppy sigh. “The lifestream betrayed me…. I can't go to the promise land to be with my mother….” Aerith than began to cry, her shoulder shaking but not because of the cold.

The former general just stared at Aerith not really sure what to do.

Aerith continued, “And then I saw you and how the life stream was trying to push up down, to kill you…. I just…”

Sephiroth watched Aerith for a bit. `The planet has turned against its savior… I wonder why…' he mused. “The snow's startling to get thick, we should move on….” Sephiroth said, he turned around and began to walk on.

Aerith sniffled and whipped her tears away. She stumbled as she rushed to catch up to Sephiroth. She was grateful that he dropped that subject. Besides the sky was beginning to darken and if they didn't get to cover soon they'd surely die.

The two trudged on, the snow coming up to Sephiroth's thighs and poor Aerith's waist. The snow blew so hard that they could barely see each other. Finally Sephiroth's keen eyes spied a large black object; a house. He looked back at Aerith, “I see a house, come on.” Sephiroth picked up the pace with Aerith right at his heels.

It was an old, abandoned looking house. It was probably just a hunting cabin. Sephiroth walked to the front and tried to open the door, jammed. With on hand on the handle and rammed his shoulder into the door, popping it open. Aerith quickly ran into the house and Sephiroth closed the door behind them. When the two enter they now knew that the place was not just abandoned, it was fully stocked. Aerith spied a large quilt covered bed in the corner and ran over to it. She threw off her small pink jacket and wrapped herself in a nice warm light gray quilt. She then climbed on to the bed and pulled her legs to her chest, trying to warm herself up as best she could.

Sephiroth shook his wing free of snow and looked around the cabin. It was one level but with a high ceiling that allowed it to have a storage loft. He could see dried meat, wood, and blankets stored above. There was a fireplace against one wall. A table and a set of chairs sat in the middle of the room. Directly across from the door was a large bed, which Aerith was currently sitting on. Next to the bed was a cabinet, which Sephiroth assumed was full of kitchen things. Sephiroth picked up a ladder the lay opposite of the fireplace and set it up against the loft. He quickly scaled the ladder and loaded his arms with firewood. He then went to work on making a fire. `I wish I had my materia on me,' Sephiroth thought to himself. Thankfully there was a set of matches on the mantel place, and bucket of kindling next to the fireplace. Sephiroth quickly and skillfully started a fire, then took Aerith example and when up the loft to get a blanket.

Aerith got off of the bed and sat down in front of the fire. She took off her shoes and socks and stuck her feet out in front of her; wiggling her toes in order to get some feeling back in them. Sephiroth sat down on the tabletop and went to work drying his hair and wing. Aerith sighed in relief and lay down on the floor in front of the fireplace, her feet still facing the fire. She tilted her head to look at Sephiroth who was taking great care to dry his great black wing.

“Where did that come from?” Aerith asked innocently.

Sephiroth momentarily stopped and looked toward Aerith. “Jenova, she wanted to win at all costs so she `evolved' my body. This wing is all that's left of her interference… “

Aerith sat up, her back to Sephiroth. “So, does that mean she's gone from you?”

Sephiroth let out a short bark-like laugh, “no, she'll never truly be gone as long as I and other's with her cells live.” He sighed and wrapped himself in his blanket. “At least her voice is gone, I can't hear her anymore…” Sephiroth trailed off, a sign to Aerith that he didn't want to talk about it anymore.

`It's strange…' Aerith thought to herself. `I barley know him but I can already read him and understand him with out words…'

Sephiroth's wet leather pants were not very comfortable so he decided to see if this cabin had spare clothes. Tossing his blanket on the table he climbed the ladder again. Some dry meat, and fruit… ah a chest. Sephiroth pulled the wooded chest toward him and opened it. Inside were a dress, 4 pairs of pants, 4 shirts, and 10 pairs of socks. `Well I guess dry socks are important' Sephiroth thought, trying to rationale so many pairs of socks. He grabbed the dress, a pair of pants, a shirt, and two pairs of socks and climbed down.

“Here,” Sephiroth said as he tossed the dress and socks at Aerith. Aerith wasn't quick enough and the garments hit the back of her head. She turned around and with a look of outraged said, “what was that for?”

Sephiroth turned his back to Aerith and smiled to him self, “It's not my fault you have a slow reaction. You should get changed or you'll catch a cold…”

Aerith turn to face the fire again, He was right again; of course. She pulled the garments under the blanket and changed. Sephiroth changed into the pants, which were too short, but at least they were dry. Aerith stood up letting her blanket fall down. Her dress fit fine. It was a village woman style of dress. She then bent down and pulled on the nice dry socks. The only thing that was we still was her hair. She gathered up her dress and hung in over one of the chairs.

When she caught sight of Sephiroth she covered her mouth to keep from bursting out in laughter. “Oh my god, you look ridiculous!” She exclaimed. The pants were so short they looked like flood pants.

Sephiroth looked down at himself and shrugged, “At least its dry….” He then looked down at the shirt in his hands, then at his wing. “Hmm….”

Aerith let a giggle escape her mouth and looked around the room. She stopped the cabinet and went over to it, rummaging through one of its drawers. “Aha!” she said holding up a pair of scissors. She then went over to Sephiroth and took the shirt right out of his hands. She then made a long cut in the back of the shirt and held it out. “Ok, put her hands over you head.” Sephiroth stared at her then did was he was told. Aerith help to slid it over his head and to pull his wing through. “Ok, there that should work…. But you still look ridiculous” Aerith said with a smiled on her face.

`Why am I being so nice to him? He did kill me… but… I'm not afraid of him anymore…. I feel… safe with him…'

“Thanks…” Sephiroth said. “I think I'll go to sleep now….”

Aerith raised her hand, “I call the bed.” She then dashed to it and buried herself under the blankets. “You can sleep in front of the fire.” She smiled again, “Who's got the slow reaction now?”

Sephiroth sighed and climbed back up the ladder and retrieve blankets. `I might as well…. Someone needs to tend to the fire….' Sephiroth wrapped him self in blankets and lay in front of the fire. Strange he wasn't tired now, too many thoughts buzzed through his head. `Things seem to be going smoothly between us… I wonder what would've happened if I never had Jenova's thoughts in my head? Would things have been different….' Sephiroth yawn and glanced back at Aerith, who was already asleep. `I can't believe I killed her…' He fell asleep.

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