Chapter Text
In the Sector 5 slums, Aerith was busy. Busy busy busy. The mid-morning sun shone through the area warmly, giving just enough nourishment for her flowers. It wasn't always this nice, but once in a while, the sun was bright. With the Planet barely recovering from the ultimate devastation, she had a lot of work to do. Her peonies, her sunflowers, her forget-me-nots, they needed to be replanted and moved away from the area they were in. They didn’t seem to do too well when the local punks that somehow still remained kept running over them. She’s never caught them, but she knew that if she did, they would be getting a beating.
This was Aerith’s new ‘usual’. She wasn’t without friends, she knew of them, knew they were most likely alive. She could feel the presence of them, still on the Planet, living their lives. They weren’t necessarily happy, but they weren’t in the Lifestream, so that’s something, isn’t it?
She liked to get together with Cloud and Barret and Tifa as often as she could, but they were running around doing small things in their sides of town. Really, everything seemed small when the life of the Planet wasn’t at stake. She hummed and returned to her work. But, of course, right when she did, her phone rang.
It was a call from a number that she didn’t want to have, but nonetheless, it rang with his name lit up on the screen. Surprised, but mostly irritated, she pressed the button down and waited. She gritted her teeth in annoyance. She knew he was alive, dammit. His voice was as cold and professional as usual - a classic work call voice for Sephiroth. This would be all good and well if the circumstances were normal.
“Ms. Gainsborough. Are you in Midgar right now?”
“Hello? Oh, haha, I think that, um, you might have the wrong number - my name is actually Silva...” She paused. “The name Gainsborough is one that I do not know…”
“I see. Well, if you are Silva, then I can be Zephiroth and make it a bit easier for us.”
Aerith rolled her eyes. No escape from this guy, huh.
“Then, Silva, is it? I need a favor.”
“I’m sure we all do, Mr. Zephiroth, but mind you, I --”
“Where are you right now? Midgar, I presume?”
She looked around. Did he put cameras in the church? Either way, he probably knew, since Shinra had an eye on everything. Wait, he wasn't a part of Shinra anymore. Maybe he really was guessing.
“Costa Del Sol, actually. I’m in a cafe in Costa Del Sol. I’m having the most wonderful parfait.”
Sephiroth made something of a tsk noise. “I’m on my way, then. I’ll call you when I arrive at the airport.”
Covered in dirt and sweat, Aerith stood up. She supposed she could use a vacation - take a half day and relax.
She would take her time, of course. Time to book a ticket and take a nice shower.