He sat on the table, his legs not reaching the floor and instead dangling helplessly into the air, his arms crossed defiantly across his chest. Rufus Shinra tossed his hair back with one flick of the wrist and glanced balefully around the room he found himself in with apparant disdain. "Where the hell is this?"

"Cosmo Canyon." Red's voice was proud, his tail flicking back and forth with its scarlet flame bright. "Home of the most knowledgeable men of the universe, and the Study of Planet Life."

"You sound like a travel brochure," Rufus muttered. "Why am I here?"

"The elders here may be able to give us a hint to what... happened to you," Reeve explained from his spot, leaning on the wall at the far side of the room. "They of all people should know."

"Hmm. Wonderful. First vampires, now witch doctors. What a crew."

"Vincent is not a vampire," Cloud Strife said warningly, his eyes burning Mako at Rufus. "And these elders aren't witch doctors. If you had half of-"

"Cloud!" Tifa shook her head at him and frowned. "C'mon. He's just trying to make you angry. Just ignore him."

Rufus scowled down at the floor, then set his face to a stony blank and sat, regarding the others with a countenance as hard as rock. They had treated them as their prisoner all right, never letting him out of their sight for the past weeks. He couldn't eat, he couldn't sleep, he couldn't even breathe, without one of them staring over his shoulder and watching his every move like a hawk. They didn't trust him, he knew, almost like they expected him to disappear one day and immediately take control of the world again. Or perhaps it was just the malice they bore for him, that wanted to make sure he wouldn't get his blessed relief. The constant nagging of these people, along with the passing waves of sickness and weakness that overcame him once every long while, almost made his previous visit to Hell seem utopian.

"Where's Elder Bugah?" Cloud muttered, glowering at Rufus. "He's late."

"Where's the rest of your little 'club'?" Rufus sneered in rebuttal. "Eaten by the vampire or shot by the terrorist? Or maybe annoyed to death by the Ninj-"

"Rufus!" Red barked a warning, his yellow eye gleaming menacingly. "Be quiet!"

"Secondhand smoke gave them cance-"

"Enough!!!"

"Cid flew Barret, Yuffie, and Vincent home," Tifa supplied quickly, frowning. "We've put off going back long enough, and they all had things to take care of. They'll be back as soon as we find out anything."

"What gives you the right to know?" he asked haughtily.

She fisted her hands on her hips and furrowed her brow. "Look, you've got a real attitude problem, Rufus. I'm sorry you have to be here, sorrier than you, but if I was in your place, I would want to know what happened to me!"

Rufus stared at her in hardened dignity. "I want to know what happened, but what makes you think I need your help?"

"So you'd rather I leave, then?" a voice rang out from behind Rufus. The boy started and swung around, leaping to his feet to behold a smiling, amiable-looking old man in about his mid-80s, propping himself up with a rather large walking stick and nodding slowly. An aura of peace surrounded him, and utter relaxation, as though the ground could give way under his feet and he would continue to stand stronger than an oak. "They are the ones who brought you here, boy, which means you owe them a favor."

"I give no favors," Rufus replied curtly, shoving his hands in his coat pockets.

"I see." The Elder never took the warm smile from his face. "So I hear you were once President of Shinra."

"I was once and I will be again," came the reply through clenched teeth.

"Sir..." Reeve began, but Cloud cut him off with a sharp glance over his shoulder. He instead brushed imaginary dirt off his blue suit and leaned against the wall once more, staring at the floor. Rufus shot a warning look at him, but the glare was lost when Reeve didn't look up.

"I think what Mr. Reeve wants to say, is that there may not be a return of Shinra, Incorporated," the elder said softly, taking Rufus's chin and turning his head until they were staring straight at each other. "I'm sorry."

"Reeve doesn't know anything," Rufus interrupted, tearing his eyes away. "He has no idea."

"Neither do you."

"Nor you."

"No." He laughed. "Nor I."

Rufus paused, unsure of how to answer, so simply remained still, regarding the elder intently. They stared at each other, wordless, looking one another up and down for a sign of weakness, assessing and composing within their minds the analysis of the other. But neither appeared to be wary or even tense, perfectly at ease in lying in wait.

Red coughed lightly in the background, venturing to break the silence. "Elder Bugah, something happened to him after Weapon attacked Midgar. His office was destroyed, and it was thought that he died in the blast. Next thing we know, he showed up in Kalm half-dead after Meteor destroyed Midgar, so Reeve took care of him from there. No one knows how he would stay alive through all that."

"I, too, thought that he died." Bugah pushed gently on Rufus's shoulders until the boy was sitting on the table again, and then began to gently touch his face, turning his head side to side to peer closely at his wounds. "He is in remarkable shape for having been through an explosion."

"I cast about five Cure3 spells," Reeve supplied, not looking up. When Cloud, Tifa, and Red all turned to peer at him, he shrugged. "With Cait."

"And?" Bugah looked over his shoulder at him, waiting for Reeve to continue.

Reeve glanced up and found all eyes on him, a bit flustered under the cold gazes from all sides. "And... And that cleared up most of the burns. The bad ones, though, are the ones you see. Cait ran out of Magic before I could heal him completely, and potions didn't seem to be working."

"By remarkable shape," Bugah continued, shrugging and turning back to Rufus, "I also meant that it was very surprising that you are even alive."

Rufus grimaced as the old man gently touched a burn on his forehead. "Would you mind unhanding me?"

Bugah ignored him. "People don't survive those things, Rufus."

"He says he thought he had died," Reeve noted. "And he was asking me a lot of questions, like 'Am I alive'. I thought he had fallen into the Lifestream or something, but that's impossible in the Shinra building. It doesn't come to the surface anywhere in Midgar but the reactors."

"Check out his eyes," Tifa added. "He must have absorbed some Mako from somewhere, too. What would this mean, Bugah?"

"Well, normally, this would be an impossible occurance." Bugah pushed Rufus's hair back with both hands and stared straight into his eyes, locking his vision completely with the youth. "Once a person returns to the Planet, he cannot come back."

"Then how did it happen." Rufus's voice was calm, but it startled the four members of AVALANCHE in the room in its anger. Bugah was unfazed, continuing to stare deeply into him, as though reading the boy's mind through his Mako-burning eyes.

"As you might have noticed, the Planet has had many great traumas within the past few weeks. The Lifestream has felt a great deal of disturbances."

"I know."

Bugah nodded slowly, taking his hands off of Rufus's head and turning to the members of AVALANCHE. "This is all very exceptional."

"Bugah, can you help him?" Red asked, padding elegantly towards the elder. "Can you find out what's happened?"

"If he will let me." Bugah smiled down at the lion-beast and nodded slowly once more. "Look at you, Nanaki. Bugen would be so proud of you."

"He is, Elder Bugah," Red replied slowly. "I know it."

"Yes. Don't forget that." Bugah turned to the other AVALANCHE with a strange smile on his face. "I don't know as much about the Lifestream as our former Head Elder did, but I know that to end Meteor in the manner it did, it caused a lot of disturbance and unrest. For a soul who only recently returned to the Planet, it might have-"

"Lifestream? What do you mean Lifestream finished Meteor?" Rufus scratched the back of his head and slid off the table to his feet. "How would it do that?"

"It came out of the Earth," Cloud replied, crossing his arms over his chest and staring up at the ceiling. "From all corners of the planet, it surrounded Meteor and... just destroyed it."

"Surroun-..." Rufus shook his head and closed his eyes, putting a hand to his face. "I'm not feeling well all of a sudden."

"We have rooms for you." Bugah patted him on the back of the head, but Rufus ducked it and backed away, rubbing a temple warily. The old man continued unwaveringly. "Nanaki, if you wish you may also stay in Bugen's home."

"Perhaps," Red murmered, scratching the back of his ear with one paw. "We'll see."

"Wait, wait... I don't want to stay here," Rufus protested, looking helplessly at Reeve. "I was never willing to come, and I have no intention whatsoever of remaining."

"And you can let Mr. Shinra go off on his own, he probably will wish to," Bugah finished, completely ignoring the boy's words. "Our people have been instructed not to let him leave the Canyon."

"I'm being held here!?!" Rufus's violent explosion startled Reeve, and he swung around to see the former President clenching his fists and seething with rage. "Of all the nerve! I've been treated like a prisoner ever since I woke up, and you feel my being here gives you the right to guard me as though I were... were a convict?"

"Rufus, calm down," Reeve started, taking hold of his arm, but the enraged youth would have none of it. Pushing him aside, he tore open the door and slammed it behind him, the loud clomp of his boots on the stairs gradually fading as he hurried away. The five stood in shocked silence, shooting confused looks at each other, no one quite sure of what to do.

Reeve was the first to speak. "This is probably very hard for him."

Bugah nodded. "Yes. He was once a very powerful man."

"And he's weaker now," Tifa added, glancing down at her hands. "Something happened to him, and he's... he's more fragile."

"Elder, how are you going to find out what happened if he won't talk to you?" Red wondered aloud, his tail swishing. "He doesn't seem to want to share anything."

"He will." Bugah nodded slowly again, a smile playing across his face. "He will want to share, Nanaki. He's very unsure right now, and very insecure about what's happened."

"What is it?" Tifa asked.

"I can't be sure yet. I don't know if I will ever be able to know. But my first concern is that he receives help. The scars he has received are not all on his face, my friends."

He couldn't understand his own anger, his own bitterness, but he was unable to control it somehow, as though as soon as one drop seeped out the cracks, a whole waterfall would come crashing down on him. He knew how he must have seemed, especially to these people, who must have hated him in the first place. There was no excuse for conducting himself in such a manner.

But he couldn't help it.

He stood outside in the dry Cosmo Canyon air, breathing deeply, hands stuffed in the pockets of his overcoat. The sun was setting to the west, the already crimson skyline exploding into a breathtaking array of magnificent color, the yellows, blues, and oranges streaking across the sky. Rufus regarded it stonily, absorbing it all in, but not really paying attention. He had too many things on his mind, too many problems that he couldn't explain. What he needed was the chance to forget these things, to simply leave everything behind him. Or go backwards to the point where they simply weren't there.

"Rufus."

He bowed his head, shutting his eyes, trying hard to ignore the throbbing migraine seeping into his skull. "Yes?"

Elder Bugah put a hand on his shoulder. "I know you must be feeling a lot of pain."

"No." Rufus looked up again and held firm, not flinching a muscle. "I'm not."

"Don't lie."

He didn't answer.

"The AVALANCHE are not here. You can be honest now."

"I don't know what you mean."

Bugah once again ignored an obviously useless statement and took his hand off of the young man's shoulder. "I came to ask you a question."

Rufus turned slowly, regarding the old man with glimmering blue eyes. "Alright, then."

Bugah's face melted to a wistful, sad smile, almost startling Rufus. "Do you know if Professor Gast survived the Meteor? I've been worried about him for the longest time, wondering how he was doing." He held onto his walking stick with both hands, and sighed dejectedly. "He used to come here very often and tell me about his experiments, and the work he was doing with an Ancient he found named Jenova. But he stopped coming a while ago. Do you know where he went?"

There was an uncomfortable pause. "Professor Gast died many years ago." Rufus didn't let emotion seep into his voice, didn't change expression, though he felt pity creep into his heart. His eyes weren't looking at Bugah's face, but instead on his gnarled hands, gripping the stick so tightly, the bony knuckles, the gauntness of the fingers. "On the Northern Continent. He had kidnapped an Ancient and tampered with many Shinra files. He resisted arrest, and was shot."

"Oh? Oh-hh..." Bugah's face held a little surprise, but he shook his head. "That's too bad. He was a great man."

"Yes." Rufus didn't know; he had never met the Professor. Only heard of him from his father, whenever the old tycoon had felt it necessary to pass on business knowledge to his future Vice-President. Future President. "I suppose."

"He was." Bugah nodded and turned away, still shaking his head. "He really was. That's too bad."

Rufus watched him slowly shuffle away, as though he had just suffered a small defeat. A strange feeling of sorrow and pain swept over him, inexplicable in its strength and agony. For a moment, he felt truly sorry for this man.

"Wait," he called, holding out a hand.

Bugah turned around, smiling brokenly. "Mmm?"

"Did... Did you know the Professor well?"

"Yes. We were good friends." The Elder sighed and stared at the windmills of Cosmo Canyon, then glanced up to the tallest point in the area, Bugenhagen's machinery. "He donated many things to our Canyon. He was a great man."

"I'm sorry." He was about to turn away, but thought of something else. "This... this Ancient. Jenova...?"

"She wasn't really an Ancient, though. The last time I saw him, he came here dejected because he realized he had done something horrible. It was the same Jenova who was Sephiroth's mother."

"Jenova..." He felt it slide over his tongue, giving him a bitter taste, though he couldn’t understand why. He had an ominous feeling when he said it. "I... Oh, never mind."

"Yes?"

"It's-... It's nothing."

"If you feel like talking, I am available anytime." Bugah bowed low and disappeared into the doorway, leaving Rufus staring after him, the problems on his mind roaring within him and leaving a hollow too large to be answered.

Cloud looked ready to punch the wall. "Dammit!"

"Cloud..." Tifa smoothed her black mini-skirt and fixed her eyes on him, trying to keep her voice calm. "Cloud, he's been through a lot, he's probably really upset-"

"That #$(&%@!"

"How would you feel if you woke up and everyone was telling you that you were dead?" Reeve reasoned adamantly. "He's been under a lot of trauma. You didn't hear him when he was dilirious, he was shouting things-"

"Reeve, I went over a week telling myself that I was constructed in a laboratory," Cloud snapped, rounding on the executive. "And I still... Well, I didn't act like that."

"If I recall, you gave Sephiroth the Black Materia when that happened," Reeve hissed. "And now you won't forgive Rufus for just being a little angry?"

Red growled a low warning to Reeve, but he took little heed. "Besides, like I was saying, there was something else besides the fact that he was a little injured. Something happened, Cloud."

"Reeve, giving Sephiroth the Black Materia was something completely different," Tifa interjected. "He was being controlled by Jenova."

"That-... That's not even the point, Tifa! The thing is, I don't know what's going on, neither do you, or Cloud, or Red, or anybody else for that matter."

"Shut up, Reeve," Cloud sighed bitterly. "Just... Just go help him out, will ya? Watch him for us. Just go."

Reeve bit his lower lip and stormed out of the room, muttering to himself and stomping off in the direction of the Inn. Tifa listened to him go with a pained expression on her face, twisting a lock of hair nervously.

"Cloud, don't-" she began, but the blonde-haired mercenary cut her words short with an angry snort.

Red licked his gleaming white fangs and gave Cloud a withering look. "Let him be, Cloud. We're all confused."

"Yeah. But I'm just worried. Why the hell is Rufus Shinra still alive? He should have been dead. We practically watched him die."

"I don't know, Cloud," Tifa answered, putting her hand on his arm. "I-"

"And why is this all so confusing?" Cloud tore himself away from her and rounded on the young bartender, his eyes flashing Mako and fire. "Reeve was our friend, and now he's keeping our enemies safe from us, when he knows full well all he wants to do now is restart Shinra!"

"Don't blame Reeve," Tifa pleaded. "Come on, Cloud, calm down, please..."

Red yawned and stretched, padding softly towards the door. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going to be outside. I need to visit some of my friends here."

"Alright," Cloud and Tifa snapped together, but Red was already out of the room and loping down the stairs, following Reeve and Rufus. That left the two childhood friends facing each other angrily, frowns creasing both their faces.

"Oh, stop it Cloud, we're being childish," Tifa said finally, turning away. "Let's just forget about it."

"It bothers me," Cloud replied sullenly.

"It bothers me, too. C'mon, lets go see the Elders or something. Or check out Bugen's hologram machine."

"No, thanks." Cloud shook his head slowly, turning and heading for outside. "I'm not in a very good mood. Sorry, Tifa. I'll see you tomorrow, alright?"

She stared after him, not even telling him goodbye, but he was already too far away to hear it, anyway. She watched as he strode down the stairs, the sound of his feet descending fading until she was all alone, listening to the silence.

Well, she told herself bitterly. Alright. So that's how it is.

She knew she was foolish. Tifa was just a friend. Just his friend. That's all she would ever be. She told herself this, but she didn't want to believe it. Everything that had been said that night more than a month ago... It was all in the moment, words that would probably never be repeated. Gratitude for putting together his life for him, probably mixed with the desperation in knowing it could have been their last night alive... Well, it was into both of them like wine, and Tifa didn't know if Cloud had ever been telling the truth. And now he walked away from her without even saying goodnight.

But she had lasted the entire journey like that. He was that kind of guy, never saying anything, infuriating her completely. She didn't know why now was any different. It shouldn't have been. It wasn't.

She stood there for a long time, finally giving a final sigh and brushing back her hair, treading slowly out the doorway and into the warm canyon air.

"I... I don't remember all of it," Rufus murmured, head bowed. "But... Some of it's still there. Just before Weapon hit. Afterwards... it's too hazy."

"Too painful," Bugah replied, folding his hands on the table in front of him. The candlelight of the bar they were sitting in fell across his face, accenting every wrinkle and every line. "I understand. You can tell me anything when you're ready."

Rufus took a deep breath and closed his eyes, picturing his office in the Shinra building, the desk lit up by computer screens, his top department heads crowded around him, the lights of Midgar shining through the huge window. Then, with the glow of the candle's flame flickering over his features, he began his story.

Reeve stood with his head bowed, thinking hard, his mind racing furiously. The man was readable like a book, every worry and doubt written clearly across his face. This was convenient for Rufus, for every thought of rebellion against Shinra could be quickly remarked upon and put down. Reeve was perhaps the most manageable of the Department Heads. Not to mention he was the only employee that Rufus didn't foster a distinct dislike for.

"That's why it's your job to control the output of the reactors, Reeve," Rufus finished his speech with a pointed look at the goateed man, crossing his arms finally. "There could be a lot of damage if anything's done wrong. You most of all would want to prevent that."

"Yes, sir. I know." Reeve bit his lower lip and nodded faintly, looking somewhat queasy. "I'll make sure everything's running to plan."

"Cheer up, Reeve," Scarlet giggled, resting an elegant finger on his shoulder and leaning all her weight on one foot, so the slit in her dress revealed as much leg as possible. "The only damage done is going to be to Sephiroth in the Northern Crater. Midgar will be fine."

"Yeah..." Rufus sensed Midgar wasn't what Reeve was worried about, but he ignored it. The guy was anal about a lot of things, and got silly notions into his head regarding Shinra's actions, but it was all talk. He would never step up and start any riots; no, not Reeve. He was smarter than that.

"...Don't forget, Mr President, it was my idea to use Mako-powered shells in the first place," Scarlet was saying when Rufus snapped back out of his reverie. "Which is why it should be called... the 'Sister Ray'!"

"Sister Ray. Alright, fine, whatever." Rufus flicked back his hair and nodded coolly. "Just see that it gets the job done, Scarlet. Then you can call it the Kyahaha for all I care."

"Kyaha-... Oh, sir, you're too much." She giggled appreciatively, but kept her laugh down to a minimum, her eyes darting back and forth rather nervously. Rufus shot a glance over at Reeve, who was grinning practically ear to ear with amusement. No, Reeve wasn't such a bad guy most of the time. He was smart.

Heidegger fingered his long, bushy beard and coughed loudly. "Sir, I understand that with the cannon- er, the Kyahaha-"

"Sister Ray!" Scarlet yelped.

"I mean, Sister Ray so plainly visible, the terrorists may try and attack. Do you want me to mobilize the Turks against them?"

"Yes. Do that." Rufus shrugged and flashed a disarming smile. "Though I don't see why they should be a problem at this stage, Heidegger."

"Well, sir..." The Colonel's eyes flashed with anger and embarrassment. "Sir, they've been evading us since-"

"I don't want to hear it. No more excuses, Heidegger. If they arrive, kill them. This is your last chance."

"But-"

"That's an order. Or else next time there's a public execution, it will be yours. And Scarlet won't be allowed to mess this one up."

"Oh, sir." She laughed weakly again, but immediately stopped. Heidegger shot her a hard glare. Reeve suppressed a chuckle.

"Alright, you three. Enough. Ready the cannon." Rufus turned his back on them and dismissed them with a curt nod over his shoulder, standing still to listen to them trudge out of the room. Heidegger was muttering silently to himself, but when Scarlet tried to admonish it for him, he cut her off with a swift, "Shut up, slut."

Rufus suppressed a laugh and continued to stare out the window, absently flicking back the lock of hair hanging over his eyes. Before him stretched out the huge muzzle of the Mako cannon they had been preparing for weeks, transporting every piece they could from Junon, reassembling it as soon as possible. And below lay Midgar, its lights twinkling far up at Rufus, smaller than insects, miniscule and puny under the thick blanket of smog that enveloped the city.

"Sir! Sir!" An operator's frantic voice tore him out of his reverie. "Sir, another Weapon has just surfaced out of the sea and is heading for Midgar!"

Rufus absently pressed the intercom button, running his fingers through his red hair. "How close is it?"

"It's coming straight from the North, sir, about a hundred or so miles away and closing."

"North, eh?" Rufus scratched the back of his head and pondered a moment. "Alright. How long until it gets here?"

"About ten minutes, sir."

"Oh." Rufus scowled dismally. "How much longer until we can fire the Sister Ray?"

There was a pause. "Twenty minutes, sir."

Rufus nodded and bit his lower lip, leaning with one hand flat on his desk. "Tell Scarlet, Heidegger, and Reeve to start working. Make sure Reeve's got the reactor rate fixed. It's imperative."

"Alright." The intercom beeped, and the operator was relaying the messages, with Rufus staring out the window of his office, at the grey smudge on the horizon which he guessed was Weapon, deep and ominous through the blackness.

It was to be his last word.