Awakened Dreams...

Damn it's been a little while hasn't it?
Alright but to continue there's some warm, fluffy, fuzziness comin', some not so suprising revelations, etc.
Hopin' to not leave disatisfaction, here we go.

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Chapter 10
Raining Heavens

Tifa sighed as the hot water ran down her body, the oil and grease required some scrubbing but it eventually flowed easily off of her body into the drain. She closed her eyes as the warmth ran down her face, she hoped Cid was alright he had definitely been out cold when she'd last saw him, but she trusted Eron to take good care of him. She then smirked to herself, as a matter of fact she trusted that Cid would be in very good hands.

Cloud was a different matter though. His temper, his reaction was so out of line, and completely out of character. Sure Eron seemed to have a weird sense for people, including their weak spots, and it seemed he wasn't below using them to irritate the living hell out of someone, but nonetheless, it seemed so sudden. Tifa found herself wondering what had been going on inside of Cloud's mind, it had to be deeper than it seemed.

She walked out of the shower, wrapping a towel around her, her hair plastered against her back as she stepped out. She looked out the nearby window at the rising sun, she smiled to herself as she thought of the two on the other side of the ship. At least they were going to have a good morning.

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{For this part I had the song Innocence by Avril Lavigne playing}

Cid's eyes fluttered open, warmth radiated against his cheek. He sighed deeply as he heard the heartbeat beneath him. All of his life he'd searched for something like this, everything in this moment was perfect and he didn't want it to go away. Eron lay on his back, a peaceful expression on his face as he slept. Cid smiled to himself, everything about this all seemed so innocent. For years he's sought what he'd lost, never knowing what it was, but now he had it, and nothing was going to take it from him.

He leaned upwards slightly the light from the rising sun beginning to peak into the window. He smiled down at Eron again, his chest spread with warmth at the sight. It seemed so unfair that everything would be thrust in his arms, that everything he had ever wanted lay sleeping beneath him, he felt like he didn't deserve it, like it wasn't his. He shook his head, who was he to argue with something like that?

"I wouldn't change a thing about it..." he whispered to himself.

"Mm, neither would I," Eron's voice broke the silence. Cid glanced down, green eyes met with his own blue eyes and he grinned again.

"Gonna finally get up lazy ass?"

Eron swung a pillow at him, "If I remember correctly you're the one who always slept longer then I ever did."

Cid dodged the blow laughing as he tackled a giggling Eron, "Ah, that's right, you always had to wait for me..."

Eron looked up at Cid and brushed the hair off Cid's forehead, "Eh, it's worth it."

Cid grinned down at Eron, "Softie."

Eron rolled his eyes and head to the side, "you sure know how to kill a moment."

Cid smiled slightly but bent his head down with serious expression on his face, he closed his eyes as he pressed his lips against Eron's. Eron sighed as the kiss went deep, he smiled inwards as he wrapped his arms around Cid's neck.

A loud knock echoed through the room, Tifa's voice cutting through the metal door, "Come on boys, we've got places to go, evil...things to kill, up, up, up!"

Eron groaned in disbelief, his head falling back onto the pillow, "Fantastic."

Cid rolled his eyes, "Ugh, great...."

"Figures..."

Cid glanced back at Eron, "So where to next oh mighty leader?"

Eron shook his head, "Don't call me that. But Mideel, it's the next logical step, then the Northern Crater."

Cid nodded again, "Alright."

"Guess we should get going, huh?" Eron asked as he picked himself up from the bed.

Cid replied by pushing him back down and kissing him, "she can wait, I'm not done with you!"

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About 20 minutes later an obviously ruffled Cid, followed by an equally dishelved Eron walked into the cockpit to meet with the impatiently waiting martial artist. She all but rolled her eyes at them.

"Are you two finished yet?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"What?" Cid asked with an innocent look on his face, or at least what he thought was innocent.

Eron rolled his eyes as he opened up the nearby terminal to a world map and began typing different things into it not even glancing up as he spoke with a slight smile, "it's obvious she knows Cid, don't play coy."

Cid glanced over at Eron for a moment and then back at Tifa and shrugged in a sort of "alright, you're cool with it, I'm cool with it," kind of gesture. Tifa all but danced with glee at the thought, "So what's the story then?"

Eron rolled his eyes again, laughing a little, "Tifa...I really don't think that this is the time to be discussing anyone's...love life."

Tifa huffed, "Oh come on! We've got some time before we reach Mideel, plus you guys took extra time, leaving me waiting here ready to go while you fucked!"

Cid coughed so violently the cigarette in his mouth fell to the ground, even the normally controlled Eron flushed with a look of shock on his face.

Tifa looked at the two of them in confusion, "What?"

Eron just shook his head, "Cid, for the love of Gaia, get us to Mideel before she says something else brash and embarissing, please!"

Cid nodded his head, "Can do!"

With that the airship was up in a matter of minutes and off towards Mideel, containing a still confused Tifa, and a flustered pilot with his stubbornly quiet lover.

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The waves crashed on the shores of Mideel as the three of them stood gazing around at the everlasting ocean. Eron sighed, he knew this was the right location, or at least the correct general location, the specifics were still a little iffy. Deep inside him he knew that Tifa was next in line for the ability, he could just sense it, and he was leaving it at that. The fourth and final person on the other hand was all but a mystery to him, and it tugged at his brain incesantly.

"So?" Tifa asked in a slight huff, her right foot tapping rapidly into the sand.

Eron rolled his eyes, "Sorry but I can't give you the specific detail of the location, all I know is that it's around here somewhere," he winced slightly as he gazed down at his arm which had flared up like a flame of pain for a moment. His eyes narrowed as he spotted a darkening mark at the top of his arm, now what in the hell could that be?

"Pfft, well that's great," Tifa strode forward in her huff, "out here on Mideel with only the whole friggin' island to search all over, and not a clue where the next damn place is!"

Cid narrowed his eyes, "Ah, fuckin' quit bitchin' if it wasn't for Eron, you wouldn't have even known where ta go!"

Tifa huffed again as she kicked at an approaching wave, the water splashed upwards, lit up brilliantly by the sun and remained suspended in the air. Tifa's eyebrows shot up straight at the sight of that.

"What the hell?" She asked aloud, her reply being the water dropping down into the ocean. The sounds of rapidly moving water met their ears as the water of the ocean swirled about in a massive funnel. The maelstrom seemed to go down to a depth that that particular depth of water shouldn't have been able to reach. With that another dozen waves crashed into one another, suddenly freezing and shooting upwards, creating a staircase, with the same pedestal atop it like the two others. A large ice crystal sat atop the pedestal, leaving the three to stare in wonder.

In unison both Cid and Tifa turned to look at Eron expectantly, he raised an eyebrow at them, "What? You expect me to walk up those stairs? Pfft, I was lucky with the air one, I don't think I'd get out of that whirlpool too easily, uh uh, Tifa this is all you!"

"Me?"

"Your the next logical choice."

"How do you figure?"

"Well it only stands that it seemed a little to coincidental that 2 out of the three people in our little group would be chosen, so logically speaking that leaves the fact that more than likely you're next."

Tifa looked nervous, "what if you're wrong?"

Eron looked thoughtful, then nodded his head as if coming up with an idea, "well then we pray you're a strong swimmer."

Cid busted out with laughter as Tifa yelled out a loud "HEY!" in protest. Tifa glanced at the stairs nervously but took a deep breath and stepped upwards, and as Eron had suspected her foot landed on a solid surface, and her foot never wavered even though the step was obviously made of ice. She breathed out sharply in relief and brought her other foot up and set it on the next ice step. She continued her journey up, as she reached close to the top, the ice crystal shattered, revealing the statue of a beautiful woman, holding a glowing blue crystal in it's hand.

Tifa reached out and grabbed ahold of the glowing crystal, a cool, watery feeling passed through her as she took the crystal from it's place. From the crystal in her hand shot out a whirl of ice and water, forming together to create the form of a beautiful, if not somewhat poorly covered woman. The woman stood tall, her skin a light blue, her long hair, flowed around her, a white that was natural instead of age induced. Her eyes pierced into Tifa's own as she spoke in a light, but singing tone.

Young chosen one, once many time protector, you are once again called on by Gaia to protect this world from destruction. Do you accept this task?

Tifa swallowed and looked up, determination in her eyes, and nodded, "Yes I do."

The being nodded, Then I, Shiva, guardian of the realm of the element Water, bestow it's powers upon you.

With that the crystal began to glow brilliantly and exploded into many pieces that shot into Tifa. The waves beneath rose up as the platform beneath her shattered, the torrential waters rose and swirled around her, her eyes glazed as her mind fell into a different state. The waves swirled around her in a fury, then suddenly iced over, encasing her completely in harsh, bitter cold. The chunk of ice fell to the ocean below, but was caught gently by the water beneath it and slowly brought it to shore. It melted almost instanly when it met with land, revealing Tifa's unconscious body.

Eron walked over and gently picked her up, holding her slumped body carefully. He smiled at Cid who glanced curiously at her and spoke up, "do you think she's seein' anything?"

Eron could only shrug as he began to walk back to the airship, "When it comes to Gaia, who knows?"

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Blond
Blue
Deep insecure
Pain

Twisted inside
Pain turned to hate
Sorrow to despair

So twisted
so twisted

Not himself
No, it's
It's her

Poor man
I want to cry for you
But I can't
Oh why can't I cry

Oh-

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"Mmm, Cloud..." Tifa whispered as her eyes opened softly. Eron's emerald eyes stared back into her's, for the first time she seen the difference between his eyes, and Aeris'. Aeris' eyes contained a soft, comforting hold to them, like a mother's voice to a child, or being surrounded by flowers in summer. Eron's held a spark to them, they were green like hers, but held an odd liveliness to them, even a bit of an sharp edge.

"How are you?" He asked with a gentle smile.

Tifa shook herself, "I'm fine...now that I know you were right...by the way how do you manage that?"

Eron shrugged, "When you spend you're entire life all but chasing down and learning about this kind of situation, you pick up a few things here or there."

Tifa smiled as she sat up, "Where's Cid?"

"Doing what he always does when he doesn't know what to do with himself..."

Tifa smiled again, "In other words he's tinkering with something as he cusses at it profusely."

Eron grinned, "Exactly."

Tifa glanced over at him, "so is now a good time to ask what's the story between you two? Besides the obvious I mean."

Eron rolled his eyes, the woman was persistent he had to hand it to her, "I think you should get a little rest after all of that."

Tifa snorted, "please, as if you let Cid rest afterwards!"

Eron reddened slightly, but grinned, "He rested!"

"Before or after you were through with him?"

"Does that matter?"

Tifa rasied her eyebrows, "Spill."

Eron sighed and sat down, lighting a cigarette as he did so, "Alright. As far as I can tell, because both his and I's memories are fuzzy, before I sealed myself in that crystal, I was...well involved with Cid. As in we were serious about one another, acutally I think crazy is the word I'd use. From what else I can gather, before I sealed myself in that crystal, considering I had planned to spend eternity in there, or at least until the time that the Mako/Lifestream energy within the crystal broke me down and absorbed me into the Lifestream, my last wish before I slept was that Cid would forget all about me and be able to go on with his life. Well the wish came true, but it also made me forget as well...it's a mess in other words," he sighed as he glanced back up, bewildered at the sudden look of tears in Tifa's eyes, "what?!?"

"OH!" She howled suddenly, "it's beautiful! It's like...like...a love story of the ages! Taken away from one another, but now you've got your chance again, oh it's just so romantic!"

Eron could do nothing but stare in complete shock, he knew that like all women, she had a sentimetal side, but this was pushing it. Tifa sensing the awkward feelings from Eron, considering she was all to use to the whole, "powerful emotions in front of people isn't my thing" bit, she looked up and smiled.

"Anyways, I think it's amazing that you both have your chance again. By the way, what's up with him how he's talking now?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing, he always had the drawl and the occasional forgeting to enunciate, but damn, he can barely form an intelligible sentence anymore!"

Tifa stared, "that's the Cid Highwind that I know, cussing, drinking, fighting, chain-smoking, and well enunciation isn't really his thing."

Eron grunted, "Wasn't like that when I was around....I think."

Tifa couldn't help herself, she began laughing at the thought, which sent Eron into his own laughter. After a few moments of laughter and wiping tears from their eyes, Tifa glanced up at Eron.

"What about the fourth?"

Eron looked down at the ground, "I know the place, but not the person...not even a clue."

"What are we going to do?"

"I don't know..."

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Holy warm fuzzinees goodness batman! (feel free to hunt me down and kick my ass for saying that)
Anyways, I know it's been a little while since I got another chapter out and I'm sorry! I really am, my personal life kinda took an interesting, (and while it's looking to be a positive turn, life is funny so I'm still hopin' it'll be good) turn and I got caught up in it.
Don't worry I haven't abadoned this, nor do I have any plans too.
Hell I'm considering a prequel and a sequel for this story....(feedback on that idea?)
Anyways drop me review, always appreciated!

*Braioch*