He hadn't intended to be out so late, but as he stood by the gate that separated Sector Two's slum-dwellers and the outside world, his eyes fixed upon the faint grey-orange haze on the horizon, he realized that he had been wandering around for the past four hours. A brief glance at his watch verified this; it was now a quarter past six in the morning. He started to reach for his PHS to call Reno, but stopped short. Sure, he had never left Reno a note, as he didn't think that he would be out for so long; yet both of them had been up rather late, and doubtless, the Turk was still asleep. I'll ring him later, he thought, and began walking back toward the slums.
         He had begun this walk as a self-imposed tour of the upper sectors, a reflective stroll down streets and past buildings that he had a hand in creating, in one way or another. However, when his thoughts turned to the very first building that he had designed for Midgar, he realized he had to go beneath the plate to the Sector One slums. Upon his arrival, he was startled to find that the building was gone, and in its place, ten scrap-metal shanties had been erected. For a long time, he thought he knew Midgar better than anyone, but it was at that moment when he realized that he didn't.
         Midgar's slums were not places he visited very often, and whenever he did so, it was usually on business. During his entire stint as a Shinra employee, he never really took much notice of what types of lives people were living down here. To be honest, until recently, he'd never thought much about people at all—at least, not so much as people but citizens, or customers. "People", for the most part, were just another abstract variable that he had to contend with.
         His mind wandered back to Tifa's words aboard the Highwind the previous day: "You care about the people in Midgar, don't you?"
         Yes… and no. I thought I cared about them, but maybe what I cared about was something far more egocentric than that. The people in Midgar were what they were to me because they lived in buildings that I designed and used energy from mako reactors I oversaw the construction of. Without those people to live, surrounded by my life's work, I was nothing.
         I cared about them, but not in a good way. To me, they were animals moreso than people. And AVALANCHE—meaning you, Tifa, and especially your leader Barret—were the worst types of animals: wild beasts who refused to be domesticated like the rest of Midgar's populace. That is how I saw you, and I hated you for causing so much destruction to my city… that is, until I came to understand you.
         Thank you, Tifa. And thank you Barret, and Cloud, and Nanaki, Yuffie, Cid, and Vincent.
         And you, Aeris, wherever you are; you who were the type of person I should've been in the first place. You, who never judged anyone, unless you had good reason to. Like the time I gave you such a reason, that night at the Gold Saucer when I stole the Keystone of the Ancients. I can only hope I've since made up for it.

         It was at that moment when his train of thought was interrupted by the familiar ringing of his PHS.
         "Reeve here."
         "Hey, it's me. I've been looking for you."
         It was his old friend, Kramler. "You are? Are you in town?"
         "Sure am. Thought maybe you'd be at home, but you weren't there when I tried calling."
         "Actually, I've barely been at home these days."
         "Working hard?"
         "That's part of it. The rest isn't exactly something I can tell you over the phone."
         "All right then, let me know where we can meet up. I'm staying with a family friend in Wall Market, but I should be able to come see you within a half-hour."
         "Very well. Meet me in front of the old abandoned church near the edge of the Sector Five Slums."
         "Are you sure you want to come down here to the slums?"
         "Actually, I'm already in the slums."
         "Eh? You are?"
         "Yes. I'll see you soon."

         To get to the designated meeting place on time, Reeve caught a ride from the first chocobo wagon he came across, offering to pay the driver extra if he would make the chocobo go faster than usual. It was only after he had sat down in the wagon that he first felt the burning pain in his feet, due to his nonstop wandering around the city.
         Not only did he take this trip as an opportunity to rest his feet, he also used it to gaze out at the desolate landscape that surrounded him. The scrap-metal houses, the careworn faces of the few passers-by, the dust and the filth all got to him, reminding him once more of how blind he had been to certain realities.
         The wagon stopped before the church right on time and Reeve disembarked, paying the driver twice his usual rate. Kramler was already there, his back turned to Reeve as he admired the broken and filthy stained-glass windows.
         "Hi, Kramler," Reeve said.
         Kramler turned around, greeting Reeve with a nod and a smile. He thumbed back at the church; "This is an impressive structure you have here. Did the Shinra build it?"
         "No. It was here from since long before Midgar was built. It's actually one of the few buildings that's left from the original town that became Sector Five."
         "They certainly don't make things like they used to."
         "Heh. I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
         Kramler gave Reeve a concerned look. "Are you all right? You seem really… I don't know, wound up? I was just joking around, nothing personal."
         "I know, but… I've been wandering around here for a few hours now—didn't intend to be out for too long, but when I came down to the slums to look for a certain structure I had designed a long time ago, I got to thinking."
         "About what?"
         "How I see the world, what my work really means. It's hard to explain."
         "I'm sure."
         "Kramler," Reeve said, looking out to the western horizon, which was hazy with smog, "if we live through all this, I'm going to make sure that nobody ever has to live in a place where they can't see the sun."
         "'If'?" Kramler replied. "You mean there's actually a chance that that Meteor will be stopped?"
         "Yes there is, but that's a long story." Reeve began walking toward Sector Five's small business district; Kramler joined him at his side. "I'll tell it to you some other time."
         Kramler nodded, and they walked on in silence, past the tin metal stores toward Elmyra's house and the gardens beyond.
         "What is this place?" Kramler asked, seemingly in awe. "I never expected to see anything like this in Midgar."
         "This was where the last of the Cetra lived, with her foster mother."
         "You knew them?"
         "Yes; the Cetra, mainly. That's another story in itself." They stopped in the middle of one of the gardens, the sweet fragrance of flowers filling the air. "So I assume you're here to say goodbye before Meteor strikes."
         "Very perceptive of you."
         "A lot of people have been making similar trips these days."
         "I know. I've been making the rounds for the past week and a half, and have met some of my fellow travelers along the way. You're last on my list."
         "I'm honored."
         "Hmm. So, you said there was another reason you haven't been home lately," Kramler said, suddenly changing the subject, "and it was something you couldn't discuss over the phone."
         Reeve shoved his hands in his pockets and wandered over to another area of the garden. "I've been staying at Reno's ever since the night before. For the first night, I was there mainly to hide from someone I had intentionally deceived, but we ended up talking about a lot of things. Last night… Reno and I became closer to each other than we've ever been."
         Kramler nodded, then stepped toward Reeve and looked him straight in the eye. "Is he in the frame with you?"
         "Yes. He's been there for less than a year, but I first became aware of my feelings long before that."
         "And what happened with Scarlet? Have you two finally sorted things out with the divorce?"
         Resigned, Reeve shook his head. "No. Scarlet's dead. The mecha she and her lover piloted during yesterday's chaos experienced a meltdown."
         Kramler sighed; "Whatever it takes, I suppose. For some reason, I'm not surprised that death really did do you part." Reeve turned away from him, still feeling guilty that despite all that had gone on, some things about him never changed.
         "But," Kramler continued, "are you happy with him? Happier than you ever were with Scarlet?"
         "You have no idea."
         Kramler laughed. "I'm not so sure about that. I'm the one who wrote you that letter, after all!"
         "Yes, but I didn't even follow your instructions correctly. Even though I had feelings for him, I had to keep pushing him away from me, because I was… well, scared."
         "Scared of what?"
         "That's another long story."
         "Well, then. I certainly hope you're right about stopping Meteor, because you're gonna need the time to tell me all these 'long stories' of yours."
         "What do you mean?" Reeve replied. "You aren't leaving soon, are you?"
         Kramler nodded. "I promised my wife that I'd spend as much time with her as I could, before the end. And I intend to keep that promise."
         "But don't you at least want to see Reno?"
         "I never knew him very well, so I don't really see the point. All the same, please tell him I said hello."
         "Of course, but before you go, there's something I need to tell you, just in case we never see each other again."
         "All right. What is it?"
         "I want to give you my thanks for that gift you gave me. I know I first thanked you for it all those years ago, but I wasn't able to truly appreciate it until recently."
         "You're welcome. And personally, I wish that you'd acted on your feelings for Reno before waiting for Scarlet to leave your life, but I'm glad that my intentions weren't completely lost on you. Is there anything else?"
         "Just that I think I really did love you, back then. I was such a fool not to act on your advances."
         "Hmph," Kramler replied, smiling and shaking his head. "If things hadn't turned out the way they did, then I never would've wound up with Maria, and you, Reno. Just think about that." A pensive silence fell between them; Kramler cleared his throat before speaking again. "I… certainly hope you don't love me anymore."
         "Not in a romantic sense, no."
         "Well then, there you go." Kramler held out his hand for a handshake, but in the process, they hugged each other as well. As they parted, Reeve thought he saw a hint of regret in his old friend's eyes, but then decided that he had been imagining things. Neither of them could ever truly forget the life they had led nearly two decades ago, but it was clear that both their lives and themselves had changed so much over the years that they could never revisit that life in the present, which was probably for the better.

         A little while after Kramler had rounded the bend past Elmyra's house, rendering him out of sight, Reeve's PHS rang for the second time that morning.
         "Reeve here."
         "Reeve, where'd you go?" said Reno's voice on the other end. "I woke up this morning to find that you'd disappeared!"
         "I couldn't sleep, so I went out for a little walk, but it ended up taking longer than I'd originally intended."
         "So where the hell are you now?"
         "Elmyra and Aeris' old place. You should pack up whatever you need and meet me down here; the sooner you and the rest of the Upper City is evacuated, the better. Oh, and can you please bring my stuff along with you?"
         "That shouldn't be a problem. But next time, geez, write me a note or something."
         Reeve smiled, taking comfort in Reno's fretting over him. "Will do, and I apologize for worrying you. Onces you're down here, we'll meet with the military commanders and see how the evacuation effort's going. And this evening, we'll make our last trip to Reactor No. 6."
         "The little side platform?"
         "Where else? We haven't been there in ages, and I still have some prime Zeio to use up—pure Goblin, actually. The mako conservation effort officially starts today, by the way, so at eight tonight, most all of the Upper City's lights will be out. It'll be quite an interesting spectacle—most of Midgar blanketed in self-imposed darkness."
         "So what are you trying to say?"
         "That we'll need to bring flashlights with us if we stay there any later than eight."
         Reno chuckled. "The darkness will be nice, but it'll be a shame that the reactors won't be running at maximum."
         "Why's that?"
         "Well, no one will be able to see what we'd be doing, but if the reactor's hum isn't too loud—if it's even there at all—then there's still a chance someone might hear us, if you know what I mean," Reno replied saucily.
         Reeve did know, and he found himself simultaneously shocked and intrigued by what Reno was subtly proposing. It would be their last night in the Upper City, after all, so they might as well make the best of it. "You're such a pervert, you know."
         "Yeah well, might as well warn you now—if you want to be with me, you've gotta put up with it."
         Reeve smiled. "Believe me Reno, I wouldn't have you any other way."

*****

         With the barrier over the crater now gone, Tseng and Zack had decided to take a risk and venture northward again, this time stopping only a little ways away from the place where they had last fought Sephiroth. Ahead of them lay Aeris and Holy, waiting for someone to free them; unfortunately, Tseng and Zack, either separately or as a team, weren't in a position to do so.
         It was now the day before Meteor was expected to strike the Planet, and Tseng was more than a little worried. There had been no signs of movement from the area up ahead of them, nothing unusual to indicate that someone was doing something about the impending armageddon. As the day wore on, it was Zack who first spotted the small round thing that had appeared from the area up ahead of them, which lay directly beneath the Northern Crater.
         "C'mon, Yoshiro," he said. "Something's happening—let's go check it out."
         "I'm not sure if I want to risk another confrontation with Sephiroth. The Planet is at a critical stage right now."
         "What, are you afraid you'll upset nature's balance or something? We'll just have to be careful, that's all."
         "All right, but let's make sure we don't go too far."
         To Tseng's surprise, there wasn't anything stopping them from going further than they were able to before, and the two of them inched closer to the scene, but not too close, hiding behind whatever floating islands of stone that they came across. By the time they stopped, the small round thing was now a large round thing; a mass of flesh, organs, and scaly appendages. Next to Tseng, Zack ducked his head back down behind the top of their current island and shuddered. "Jenova…" was all that he said.
         "What?" Tseng whispered back, taking another look at the monster, which was still many yards away from them. "That's Jenova? But she looks nothing like she did back in the Shinra Building."
         "I think it's her true form," Zack replied. "I saw it many, many times in my head while I was possessed."
         "Interesting…"
         Still looking upon Jenova, Tseng noticed that three people had appeared before her. Recognizing them immediately, he smiled. "Zack… they're here."
         "Who?" Zack replied, peeking up over the surface of the island again. Tseng caught a grin on the SOLDIER's face once he saw the scene.
         "Looks like they're fighting her," said Tseng. "I wonder where Jenova's 'son' is?"
         "Probably waiting to see if Jenova will beat them, or vice versa. She's competing with Sephiroth for world domination, but she's also a bit more hotheaded than he is. She probably wanted to dispel with them before dealing with Sephiroth herself."
         "Sounds like you got to know Jenova pretty well."
         "Yeah, but… I wish I never had to."
         Soon, the space around them shimmered, and streams of blood red light burst out from ahead of them. Tseng tried to grab one as it rushed over his head, but when it leaked out from between his fingers, the red light bore a faint silver-green sheen on its edges. He lowered his hand as the pieces of Jenova dissipated into the Lifestream, staring at it and wondering what had just happened.
         Once the light dissipated, Tseng and Zack continued to watch as the three mortals ahead of them rejoined their friends to fight a mutant form of Sephiroth, then were separated from the others again to battle a second and final form. Tseng shook his head, marveling at the elaborate angelic demon who was a far cry from the commander he had once faithfully served. Sephiroth, it seemed, really did think he could achieve godhood, and had even created the appearance to match. However, the mortals defeated him, and the illusion shattered. Tseng and Zack breathed a simultaneous sigh of relief, then turned to each other and shared immense smiles that threatened to burst from their seams. This moment of theirs was interrupted when Tseng heard a pair of feet land on the surface of the island they had been hiding behind. Zack must've heard it too, as he paused in his own laughter. They looked over to see a pair of familiar brown boots.
         "Having fun, guys?" the owner of the boots asked. "And don't worry about me, by the way. I'm all right."
         Tseng and Zack both plied her with questions; again, simultaneously. "What about Holy?" "Has Sephiroth really been defeated?"
         "Simmer down. Cloud's about to take care of both things right now. I'm going to watch and make sure everything goes all right."
         "May we join you?" Zack asked.
         "It'll be better if you didn't," she replied, walking away. "This is his fight more than anyone else's, and I don't want him to have too many distractions." Then, she stopped and turned around, bending down with her hands behind her back to look at them. "But… you're more than welcome to do so once they've all left."
         "Of course." "We're there."
         Aeris smiled. "Thanks. I'd love to have such good company. See you soon!" With that, she ran off and jumped deep into the Lifestream.

*****

         Even from Kalm, Elena could feel the heat.

         The week had gone by much faster than she would've preferred. After their final drink with Reno, she and Rude split up to go to their respective apartments and pack. They met up again in the Sector Six Slums, where they proceeded to make their way to Elmyra's house, going by the directions Reeve had given them. Once they got there, she explained the situation to Elmyra and Marlene. They seemed a little wary of her and Rude, but eventually, they agreed to accompany the two Turks to Kalm. After Elmyra had packed a few things, Rude led the way toward the Sector Five gate.
         Reeve had told Elena that he would be arranging for their transportation to Kalm, but they needed to be outside the gate by a certain time. Elena had wondered why they needed to schedule a time to pick up chocobos, but as they crossed the barren plains, some loud noise overhead interrupted her train of thought. Looking up, she saw the Highwind coming down toward them.
         When the airship was close enough to the ground, a shadow-drenched figure up on the deck threw down a rope ladder, which Elena and the others climbed up, one by one. Once she had gotten on board, she saw that the shadowy figure had been Barret; he stood there on the deck with his arms crossed and a stern expression on his face, until Rude came up, Marlene holding tight onto the bald Turk's back.
         "Marlene!" Barret exclaimed. Rude bent down, and the little girl climbed off his back and ran into Barret's waiting arms. Elmyra was the last one to get on board, and once she did so, Barret pulled the ladder back up. With Marlene perched upon his left shoulder, he led them all into the body of the airship as it took off.
         The only other people present on board the airship were Cloud, Tifa, and two crew members. Cait Sith was there as well, but he was shut down, slightly drooped over his moogle carrier at one end of the bridge.
         "I'm tellin' ya," Barret said as he led the Turks and Elmyra onto the bridge. "We been doin' too many favors for our friendly neighborhood Shinra spy lately. Bringin' Elmyra and Marlene out of the city I can understand, but these two jokers as well?"
         Before Elena could snap back at him, Tifa replied, "Have you forgotten already? Reeve saved our lives and kept us informed as to what Shinra was up to. We owe him at least this much."
         "Yeah," Cloud agreed. "Besides, I think it's safe to say that we're friends now."
         Tifa smiled at Cloud, then came before Elmyra and the Turks. "Elmyra, Rude, Elena—and you too, Marlene—" she said, momentarily turning to her right, where Barret was standing, "welcome aboard the Highwind. The trip to Kalm won't be long, but still, feel free to make yourselves comfortable."
         "You act like you own this ship," Elena replied, eyeing Tifa coolly.
         "She doesn't, but Cid Highwind once did," Rude said. "He was forced to sell this airship to the Company last year."
         "Oh…" said Elena, suddenly feeling awkward. "Well… where is Cid? And all of your other friends?"
         "They're scattered all over the world," Tifa replied, "taking care of whatever they need to and thinking about why they're fighting. Whether or not they'll come back is up to them."
         "I see…"
         "Tifa," Elmyra said, speaking for the first time since coming on board, "these Turks have told me that you all plan to fight Sephiroth, and that it will save the Planet from Meteor."
         Tifa looked back at the Turks. "That's what Reeve told us," Rude explained with a shrug.
         "Well, it's true," Tifa replied. "We're going to fight him with everything we've got. We can't allow Sephiroth to destroy this world."
         Elmyra nodded, then broke away from the small group to talk to Barret. Rude was the next to speak.
         "How about you, Tifa? Where are you and everyone else who're still here going to go?"
         "We're dropping Barret off in Kalm with Elmyra and Marlene—and you two, of course. The two crewmen who're still left here want to be dropped off in Junon. And as for me and Cloud…"
         "…Nibelheim?"
         "No, not there. It's not the same place anymore."
         Rude nodded.
         Tifa lowered her head for a moment, as if thinking about something, before asking, "Hey… Rudy? Can I talk to you for a minute, before we get to Kalm?"
         Elena glared at Tifa, a glare which the latter didn't seem to notice. Sure, she had known that Rude and Tifa were childhood friends, but the fact that she was being awfully familiar with him unsettled her. "Rudy"?
         Still, Rude nodded, but not before glancing over at Elena, who simply sighed and said she'd wait for him here. Rude then left with Tifa for another part of the airship to talk about who knows what. Barret, still holding Marlene, continued chatting with Elmyra, while the two crewmen remained busy at their posts. Only Cloud stood by himself, doing nothing. With not much else to do, Elena took a deep breath and approached him.
         Cloud turned to face Elena before she reached him. "What is it?" he asked.
         She stammered, "Oh, uh, nothing. I was just…"
         "You bored or something?"
         "I guess so. Everyone else seems preoccupied. What are you doing?"
         "Just looking out the window. I never really had an appreciation for flying before, but it's actually kind of cool. Now I see why Cid loves it so much."
         Elena nodded and continued walking forward until she was leaning on the front railing, next to Cloud. It was indeed a pretty nice view. Funny that her first trip on the Highwind would only happen after it had been stolen by these rebels.
         "Hey Cloud, can I ask you something?"
         The spiky-haired young man shrugged. "Sure, go ahead."
         "Why didn't you want to fight us earlier today?"
         "I guess it was because you Turks seem to be different from the other Shinra. I could see that you guys really didn't want to battle us, but you felt you had to because it was your job. And to me, that's not a good enough reason to fight."
         "You don't think so?"
         Cloud shook his head. "No offense, but you Turks seemed to be missing something that I saw in Scarlet, Heidegger, and Hojo tonight: you didn't believe in what you were fighting for." Cloud paused for a moment, then added, "Well, either that or you guys aren't crazy like those three."
         She recalled Reno and Rude's insistence that they should just give up, take Cloud's suggestion, and not fight. It was only then that she realized that they did know what they were doing at the time. "You're right. The Company was in turmoil when you guys showed up in Midgar. We had no reason to stop you."
         "So what do you believe in, Elena?"
         "I think…" she started, her gaze focused on the landscape beyond the window, "…there's not much I do believe in right now. Save for the people close to me, of course. That's not a bad thing, is it?"
         "No, I'm pretty sure it's not. There was a point in my life, not too long ago, when I didn't believe in anything. A lot's changed since then."
         "Really?"
         "Yeah. Think about it this way: if you start from the very bottom, then there's nowhere to go but up."
         "I don't think I'm quite that bad off, but I see your point."
         Cloud nodded, then looked out the window and squinted at a small cluster of lights in the distance. "We're almost there. You guys should get ready to go."
         "Right."
         Elena walked away from the window as Cloud went to talk the helmsman, only to see Tifa and Rude coming back onto the bridge. To Elena's left, Barret was busy handing a now-sleeping Marlene over to Elmyra. Outside the window, the humble plaster walls and blue cobblestone courtyards were now not far off, and they were beckoning to her. She was home.

         Now it was a week later. Arrangements had been made for Elmyra and Marlene to stay in the guest room of one of her family's neighbor's houses while she and Rude lodged with her father and brother. Elena and Rude stayed there the first two nights, then rode a pair of gold chocobos—two of the same ones they had used for their trip across the Great Continent—to Junon to meet with Rude's family. Rude's folks were nice people, and Elena found herself especially surprised by how talkative they were. Three days later, they were back in Kalm, and Meteor filled more of the sky than it ever had before. However, nothing could've prepared her for this particular night.
         She and Rude were out in the street that evening, coming back from visiting one of her old friends, when they saw it through the town's entrance: Meteor, a massive hulk of red rock, hovering directly over the Midgar in the distance. It looked to be twice the circumference of Midgar, and although she was terrified by the sight, she was also in awe of it. She couldn't move, couldn't turn away, even though her brain was telling her she should do both of these things.
         "Rude," she whispered, "hold on to me." Silently, he did so.
         Then, a stream of bright green light rushed in from somewhere, and beneath the Meteor. Elena wondered if that stream of light was something Cloud had known would happen if they defeated Sephiroth. But then, the light stream dissipated, and Meteor continued to push through. This was when Elena finally covered her eyes.
         For some reason, at that very moment, Elena found herself recalling that conversation she had had with Tseng during her first mission under him, when he told her that being a hero wasn't in a Turk's job description.
         "But… why aren't we allowed to be heroes, sir?"
         "It's because we Turks work for Shinra. Heroes, on the other hand, work for themselves and what they believe to be right. We don't always like the work we have to take, but we do it all the same, because it's our job."
         "That sounds depressing…"
         "I'm certain it does. Regardless, I want you make the best of your time in the Turks."
         "Is that what you're doing?"
         "It's what I have to do."
         "Flower lady?"
         These words, spoken above her head, caught her attention. She looked up to see Marlene staring straight out of the town's tallest tower, her gaze fixed upon Midgar. Yet, that was not the only thing which had caught Elena's eye.
         High in the sky, thin, greenish wisps of mako floated over Kalm, very much unlike the stream of light that had come before. Looking ahead of them, Elena could see that there were many more of these wisps on the horizon far to the south, and they were all headed toward Meteor, and Midgar.
         "Do you think they're safe?" Elena asked Rude. "Reno and Reeve, I mean, and everyone else in Midgar."
         "I have a feeling that they are."
         "Yes, I think you're right," she replied, resting her head back against Rude's chest as the glowing green tendrils wafted overhead. She closed her eyes again. "Everything's going to be all right…"