–ANGEL–

 Mother?

Yes, my child.

Am I bad?

No, you are not bad.

I think I did something bad.

What is it that you did?

I made the creatures upset today.

Why are they upset?

I did what they asked me to do, and it made one of them cease to live.

They are often unaware of their fragility.

So, it was their mistake and not mine?

Yes, my child.

They did something bad to me… they called it punishment.

What did they do?

They hurt me.

Then hurt them back.

~~~

Tifa sat by the couch, dabbing at the mystery girl’s forehead with a damp, cool cloth. She had kept the lights dim in the room so that the woman could rest more easily. At least the fever had broken this morning, but she still hadn’t awakened. No trace of the hound bites or any lingering infection remained, so Tifa could only guess that bringing someone back from the dead had taken a heavy toll on the poor girl.

It unsettled her — this girl could bring someone back from the dead. While it was true that Denzel wouldn’t be alive without her, that kind of power was… unnerving. And those glowing eyes… like Cloud’s. And like Sephiroth’s. Tifa couldn’t help but wonder what else she might be capable of.

“Tifa?” Denzel’s voice came from behind her. She turned to face him.

“How are you feeling, Denzel?”

“I’m fine.” He stepped closer. “Is she still sleeping?”

“Mmhmm.”

 “I wanna be here when she wakes up.”

“Oh, I don’t know, Denzel—”

“Please? I wanna thank her… she… she saved my life.”

Tifa studied him, considering. How much did he know? She’d assumed he wouldn’t realize how close to death he’d been — only that someone had healed him.

“How do you know she saved your life?”

“I was trying to protect Marlene from that monster. I thought I could handle it—it was so small, you know?”

Tifa nodded.

“It stabbed me… I fell down… it was hard to breathe. Everything got really bright. Then… calm and quiet. I felt like I was swimming. I could hear you and Cloud, but it was far away. I couldn’t see you—it was like you were underwater. But I still wanted to find you.”

Tifa listened, quietly marveling at such strength in someone his age.

“I tried to find you and Cloud, but… the green water was so nice… and warm… I started sinking into it. And then, she was there.”

“Who was there?” Tifa questioned.

Denzel pointed to the sleeping girl on the couch. “She said that he didn’t want me to die. She took my hand and told me not to be scared… that she was bringing me back to him. And then I woke up.”

Tifa blinked. It almost sounded like she’d pulled him out of the Lifestream.

“Is she an angel?”

The question was so innocent, but after hearing his story, it didn’t sound far-fetched at all. Tifa just smiled.

Movement in the doorway drew her eye.

“How’s she doing?” Cloud asked, stepping inside.

“Fever broke this morning,” Tifa informed him as he crossed the room to stand behind her. “Where’s Marlene?”

“Going through your closet.”

“My closet?”

“She thought she’d find something for the girl to wear.”

Good thinking, Marlene, thought Tifa.

“Denzel, can you get some fresh water and a new cloth?” Tifa requested. The boy gladly carried the basin away.

“Did you hear—?” Tifa begain

“Yeah,” Cloud’s gaze stayed on the unconscious woman, something softer than usual in his expression — confusion mixed in.

A sharp gasp snapped their attention back to the couch. The girl sat straight up, glowing eyes darting wildly. She let out a few frightened screeches.

“Hey, hey… easy,” Tifa kept her voice calm. “It’s all right! No one is going to hurt you. You’re okay.”

Her eyes shifted between Cloud and Tifa, brightness dimming as the panic faded.

“…Oh… kay?”

“Yes, you’re safe.”

She sat there, still wary.

“What’s your name?” Tifa asked.

“Name?” The girl looked confused. Tifa glanced at Cloud — he shrugged.

“My name is Tifa,”

The girl’s eyes lit with recognition, but she shook her head.

“No name,” she said.

“No name?”

The girl shook her head again, sending locks of silver hair flying around her face.

“Okay… and this is—”

“Cloud,” the girl interrupted, staring at him.

How did she know his name?

“Uh… yeah,” Tifa said, pushing aside her unease. “So you don’t have a name?”

Another shake of the head, eyes down. She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms about them.

“Your mother never named you?”

A shudder ran through her, fear darkening her face. “No.”

“What were you doing in the wastes?” Cloud asked.

“Running.”

“From what?”

“Danger.”

Cloud sighed. Tifa recognized the mild annoyance in Cloud’s voice, and she had to admit that the answers were frustratingly vague.

“Why were you in the wastes?” Tifa tried.

“Escape.”

She looked like she wanted to say more but couldn’t. Her hand pressed to her forehead.

“She doesn’t have a name?” Denzel asked as he returned with the water. The girl brightened at his voice. She took his hand.

“Okay?” she asked.

“I’m fine,” he grinned. “Thanks to you.”

Tifa warmed at the exchange. The woman demonstrated that she cared about Denzel, and that spoke very highly of her, in Tifa’s opinion.

“So, you don’t have a name?” Denzel said again. “I can give you a name.”

The touched look on the girl’s face made Tifa’s breath catch.

“A name?” she gasped, nodding.

“I’ll call you Angel,” Denzel said, smiling so brightly it made the name feel like a gift.

She embraced him, whispering, “Thank you.”

~~~

Cloud slipped out to the kitchen while Denzel spoke with her. Her halting speech irked him… but there was more to it. Something crawled under his skin, warping his emotions. It was like with the Remnants — the way they could confuse and irritate him. At least she wasn’t calling him brother. Yet.

And still… something about her words — danger, escape — struck a nerve he’d buried deep. Could she have gone through what he had? Gaia, he hoped not. No one deserved that… not even someone trapped in a lab, soaked in mako, and forgotten by the world.

She had to be someone’s escaped experiment — locked up for Gaia‑knows‑how‑long, tortured until she broke.

It made him rethink his irritation — and feel guilty for it.

A poke to the forehead snapped him out of it. Marlene sat across from him.
“I thought it was impossible to sneak up on you,” she teased.

“You’re one of the only few who can.”

Smart kid. She’d helped him see the obvious more than once.

Are you worried she might be like those other people, the ones who kidnapped me?”
“Yeah… a bit. But she’s different.”

As Marlene recalled Loz’s childish cruelty, the creepy long‑haired one’s smirk, the leader’s terrifying precision. Cloud hated thinking about what she’d been through. Even knowing he’d gotten her back, he still kicked himself for almost leaving the rescue to Reno and Rude. Tifa had been right — as usual.

Cloud felt bad for her, having to go through that. Even if he had come for them eventually, he still kicked himself even now for wanting to run back then and leave the rescue to Reno and Rude. Tifa had been dead right as usual. He had been afraid of failing more people that counted on him.

It was different now. The guilt was still there, but he’d learned to forgive himself. That rain… Aerith’s gift after Sephiroth’s defeat… it had washed away a burden he’d carried far too long.

Looking back at Marlene he offered her another reassuring smile. He knew how he had to handle this situation now, and once again, he had Marlene’s wonderful common sense to thank for it.

He placed a gentle hand on her head, “Even though you were scared then, you still helped. You gave me the chance I needed that night.”

And she had. Kadaj’s sword was mere inches from his throat, and he couldn’t reach his weapon. But Marlene shouting his name distracted Kadaj enough for Cloud to seize his chance. She had saved his life, and he often wondered if she ever realized it. He’d tell her one day—if she hadn’t figured it out already. “She does remind me of them, but she’s not the same. The others didn’t have a shred of pity, remorse, or compassion. But she’s different. She saved Denzel, and she’s the reason we knew you were in trouble in the first place.”

Marlene blinked, and Cloud shook his head. “I don’t know what her situation is, other than she’s scared, unsure and she can’t speak very well. But maybe, if we help her, she might be able to give us some clues about where she came from, even if it takes time. Would you like to help me?”

Marlene smiled and nodded. “You bet! I can start by taking this to her.” She held up the outfit she had picked out from Tifa’s closet.

Cloud nodded his approval. “Sounds good; let’s go.”

~~~

It was a little after eight in the morning. Tifa had taken the kids to school after the morning’s events when the girl finally woke up, and Denzel had given her a name. It suited her well; at least she seemed to like it. Cloud would have taken the kids to school on Fenrir, but it wouldn’t look good if the boy was seen riding a motorcycle and then trying to explain to the kid’s teacher that he should take it easy after suffering an injury, regardless of how skilled a rider Cloud was. Besides, Tifa was much better skilled with talking to people.

He needed to head out on patrol soon, along with delivering a few packages to the city of Kalm and to the chocobo farm. The reason why he was still home was because the girl… Angel… he really needed to start referring to her by her name now… was still sitting on the couch where she had woken up and was blinking like an innocent, curious child, unsure of what to do, and she probably didn’t if her lack of vocabulary was anything to go by. It was likely that she hadn’t really been in a homely setting before. Cloud wasn’t even sure how to talk or approach her if he was being honest. He wanted to thank her for saving Denzel, of course, but he always had trouble showing gratitude.

A strange sound alerted him back to the girl, and she, in turn, looked down at her middle with pure confusion.

Cloud heard it again and relaxed, knowing what the issue was, even if the girl didn’t seem to realize. She had probably never been left alone long enough to feel hungry or understand what it meant, if his suspicions about her origins were right. “Are you hungry?”

“Hungry,” she parroted, not sure of the word’s meaning.

The growling continued, and she looked down at her stomach with annoyance.

“I know how to make it stop,” he replied.

“Okay,” she replied.

He carefully made his way towards her, not wanting to startle her. “Are you able to walk on your own?”

Angel carefully lowered her feet onto the carpet and then slowly stood. She was shaky, but she managed to take a few steps, closing the gap between them. Cloud nodded and turned for the kitchen. “This way.”              

She followed as he headed for the fridge and looked for something that he could make a quick and easy meal with. He wasn’t a great cook, but his food wasn’t bad either, at least according to the kids. He found the perfect thing to make and pulled it out of the fridge, grabbing a frying pan.

“Ever have eggs?”

Angel shook her head.

He put a little vegetable oil in the pan to help prevent the eggs from sticking, a useful trick Tifa had taught him and reminded him about… at least six times.

He waited for the pan to heat up enough before cracking the egg on the side and split it open. Angel watched the yolk and membrane fill the pan and was amazed when it turned from a clear to a white color.

Cloud saw her reach for the hot pan and caught her hand. “No!”

His heart nearly broke when she flinched and shut her eyes, as if expecting him to hit her, and it hurt even more when he felt her jump with fright.

“I’m sorry… but that’s hot. You’ll get burned. We’re trying to help you, not give you more injuries.”

She looked up, timidly at his sincere eyes and slowly nodded. “Sorry.”

He shook his head. “You didn’t know.”

She turned her back to him and dropped into a kneeling position, arms folded over her lap. “Punishment…”

 She said the word like it was a rule she lived by.

Cloud’s eyes widened as his protective nature kicked in, and he knelt down, turning her to face him. Her face betrayed her fear at his sudden action, and she began trembling uncontrollably, tears beginning to trickle from her eyes.

Cloud saw them and eased his grip. He hadn’t meant to come off so strongly, but it bothered him more than he’d like to admit how tortured she seemed. This was a result of cruelty, and not just any kind; it felt familiar. And then it struck. His foggy memories cleared a bit. Just enough to give him a glimpse of his own hell years ago…

Floating in a tank of liquid mako, he glanced over at the tank next to his, hoping his vision would focus enough to see his friend. It got harder and harder each day and he forgot more and more. Who was he? Why was he here? Why was the man in the white coat so cruel and merciless? How long had he been stuck there? Had he always been there? Was Zack okay? Wait, who was Zack? He could only think of one connection: Brother?

It all made sense for Cloud in that moment. This girl… she was someone’s escaped experiment. Someone kept locked up for Gaia knows how long and tortured. The blond gave her the most honest, sincere and determined look he could offer. He didn’t know where she had come from, or how she came to be, but he would do what he could to help her and keep her safe.

“You will never be punished again,” he said softly yet firmly, “I promise.”

She just stared at him, astonishment etched into her features. She leaned forward into him, resting her forehead against his chest before she gave into her tears and cried.

The action surprised Cloud, but he knew she needed to feel safe, so he awkwardly wrapped her in a gentle hug.

She uttered a single, shaky whisper: “Promise…”

After a couple moments, Cloud carefully pulled away and blinked at her. He gave her an apologetic look. “Um, the eggs… they’re starting to burn.”

Angel nodded as he stood and helped her up. She looked over at the table and then back at him, as if she were waiting for something.

Cloud caught on and gave her a pointed look. “You don’t need to ask permission to sit down.”

She looked away and sat down. Cloud sighed and shook his head. This was going to be one heck of a time. He could feel the winds of change blowing, and they felt ripe with bad luck.

His prediction came true as he grabbed a plate and set the eggs on it just as Tifa came in and sighed heavily. He was curious but remained silent, waiting for her to share what was on her mind. He set the plate of eggs in front of Angel along with some utensils.

“How is she doing?” Tifa asked, setting the keys down on a small table near the doorway.

The blond watched as Angel picked up the fork and examined it, appearing confused. He couldn’t remember the last time someone had to be shown how to use a fork. Not wanting to frighten her again, he gently took her hand and guided her on its use.

It was then that he caught Tifa staring at him with an odd expression.

“What?” asked the blond.

Tifa turned her head quickly. “Nothing… just had an uncomfortable meeting with the teacher.”

Once Angel had the hang of it, Cloud rinsed the pan while Tifa grabbed two coffee mugs. “He gave me a lecture like the world was coming to an end.”

“Like we’ve never faced that before,” Cloud attempted to joke.

Tifa huffed. “He said we may be heroes, but that doesn’t mean we get to throw ourselves into danger at every turn if we’re the guardians over innocent children. He made it seem like Denzel was an incapable toddler. He talked like he believed the kid was helpless and unable to think for himself.”

“The nerve of some people. Maybe next time a meteor threatens to crash on their heads we’ll go take a vacation to Costa Del Sol and watch the show from a safe distance?”

Tifa chuckled at his horrible joke and gently smacked his shoulder.

“Kidding,” he replied in reaction to the slap.

He glanced over his shoulder at Angel, who was clearly enjoying the food. “So how are the eggs?”

“Mmmmmm,” Angel answered with a mouthful of eggs.

He then turned back and nudged Tifa’s arm before offering a hand gesture over the sink, one of their silent signals from the field. He knew she would understand that they needed to speak alone without Angel thinking they were just up and leaving. Apparently, the message was received because she subtly nodded to him. He held up two fingers, signifying for her to wait for two counts. He dried his hands and turned to leave.

Tifa finished putting the dishes away before looking at the clock. “Better get the laundry started now.”

With that she left the room, only to poke her head back around the corner. “I’ll be right back; I’m just going to do a few chores.”

Tifa did get the clothes and headed to the washroom where Cloud was waiting. “What happened?”

Cloud looked at the wall, as if he could see through it to where Angel was still eating before looking down. “I think she escaped from a lab somewhere.”

“Tell me what happened,” she encouraged him, her expression one of understanding.

He relayed the events of Angel’s discovery of breakfast and how she expected punishment. “You don’t think whoever had her will come looking for her, do you?”

“Hojo sent swarms of goons to hunt me and Zack down after we escaped the mansion. I don’t think anyone would give up on their…work…so easily.”

The broken memories of his time at the mansion swarmed in his mind, but he attempted to refocus on the current discussion. “But I promised we’d keep her safe. I can’t explain it; there’s just something about her that’s different.”

“Different how,” Tifa asked with a lifted eyebrow.

“I don’t know, and that’s what confuses me.”

Tifa nodded. “Well, I’ll take care of her while you’re gone. Just try to make it back early tonight.”

He grunted a response as he headed out.

Tifa rolled her eyes with a smile and continued with the laundry.

Cloud headed into his room to change into his battle/traveling clothes. They were perfect for taking down monsters, but at home he’d adopted a more laid-back style, camo pants or loose jeans with a black or light colored T-shirt mostly. When he headed downstairs to check on Angel before he left, he saw that she had finished her meal and had even washed her plate.

She saw that he had changed and tilted her head with a slight frown growing.

“I’ll be back later. Tifa’s gonna be here if you need anything, okay?”

He turned to leave. Just as he reached the door, he felt something pulling his battle skirt. He turned to see Angel grabbing it tightly and looking at him with sad, pleading eyes. “Stay?”

Cloud sighed, feeling bad for having to let her down. “I have to go, but I’ll be back tonight. I have a job that I have to do, and people are counting on me.”

She seemed to think it over this, while still not letting go. “A… promise?”

Cloud smirked slightly at that. “Yeah, kind of. A job is a lot like a promise, but I also need to make sure there aren’t any more monsters running around. Like the ones that attacked you and the kids.”

Angel thought about that before she slowly let go, and, although she didn’t look happy about it, it seemed she understood.

“Be…”she paused, seemingly searching for words, “…not hurt.”

He smirked at her and nodded. “I’ll be careful.”

“Careful,” she repeated the word, testing it out and he nodded.

With that he headed out the door, checking that everything was set before he opened the large sliding door, and Fenrir roared to life, launching out of the garage in a blur. The auto-timer clicked and the door rumbled closed behind him.

Once he was out on the road, Cloud couldn’t help but ponder over Angel’s possible origins. How aware of it was she, and what had they created her for? She had so much mako in her—maybe even rivaling his own levels. Dangerous territory. And for all the hatred he bore Hojo, Cloud couldn’t deny the man’s twisted genius — every formula perfected before he tested it on a living being.

Cloud pulled up to a stop light and growled with irritation from the feelings those thoughts were bringing up. He touched the ribbon on his left arm to calm him. It was his best connection to Aerith and it worked wonders. Not just against poison or sleep—but against the past.

He could almost hear her voice—gentle, steady, forgiving—like a promise he still carried.