Disclaimer: Final Fantasy VII is the property of Square Enix. I do not own any of the characters except OCs.

Author's Note: Hey, everyone! Sorry for the long gap in updates. I just could not get this chapter to come out like I wanted it to. But finally, here it is - and I've made it about double the usual length in an attempt to make up for the inexcusably long wait. Enjoy!

The travelers' first glimpse of the mainland was surprisingly quiet, and they arrived utterly without ceremony. Everyone had returned to the sickbay to wait for the landing after gathering their possessions, seeing as Vincent had not left the room yet and they wished to stay together as much as possible. With a sudden lurch, the ship bumped gently against the dock, making the floors rock for a moment before they settled out again. Almost instantaneously, Reina reentered the room, herding everyone up toward the deck and making sure they left none of their belongings behind. Everyone followed at her heels, feeling a strange mixture of anxiety and excitement; if Reina felt anything other than joy at returning home, she masked it very well. As soon as they reached the upper deck, they were greeted by Captain Aeden, who smiled warmly and shook each of their hands before lowering the gangplank to the ground. Gathering together as closely as they could, both to save space and stay warm, they proceeded down the ramp, waiting patiently for Reina to join them on the dock.

Knowing her companions were waiting for her, the youngest Turk quickly turned her attention to Aeden.

"Thank you so much, Captain," she said in their native tongue. "You have helped me – and possibly this Planet – more than you'll ever know." The older man smiled warmly, hugging her tightly before holding her out in front of him so he could look into her eyes.

"I would have helped you even if the Planet didn't depend on it, Lass. I've known you since you were just a little girl, and your parents even longer than that. It's what friends do for each other."

"I know, and thank you. I wish you all the best. Be safe, my friend."

"And you, as well. Slán agat."

"Slán leat."

Once she had said her goodbyes, Reina ran down the gangplank to join her companions. Casting one last glance over their shoulders at the man who had risked his life to carry them through the Barrier and away from Selph's reach, they all waved a solemn goodbye – both to him and to the lives they had known on the Continent.

Everyone followed behind Reina in silence while they made their way down the docks and onto solid ground. She was the only one who knew how to navigate the area, but her entire demeanor had changed once they began to make their way toward her hometown. It was obvious she was feeling sentimental, maybe even a little guilty about being gone for almost a decade, so they left her alone to deal with her thoughts.

After they had been walking for a mile or two, the group all came to the entrance of a very small, simple-looking village – Hope Village, or Tá Súil Sraidbhaile, as Reina had said. The majority of the buildings were scattered stone cottages, many with thatched roofs and chimneys that poured gray smoke from the fireplaces within. Despite the fact that the ground was covered in snow and ice, many of the trees that dotted the entirety of the town were still green, dropping ice-encrusted needles from their spiny branches with tiny popping sounds. People of all ages bustled about in the central square, bartering their surplus crops and goods in the small market and visiting the local shops and inns. Their clothing was all very simplistic and obviously homemade, mostly in shades of brown or green, although some wore brighter colors like blues and reds. The women as a whole wore dresses, with or without bodices, and the men wore loose-fitting chemise shirts and trousers that were tucked into their worn leather boots. Everyone seemed to have long hair, and while the men tied theirs back into ponytails or braids, the women let it cascade freely down their backs or held it back with small cloths that tied at the bases of their necks.

The most striking difference between Alethía and the Continent, though, became apparent almost the second they entered the tiny burg that was Hope Village. There was not a single sign of electric energy to be seen anywhere. The roads were mostly unpaved, and those that did have some kind of pavement were mainly constructed of gravel or cobblestones. Most people walked from place to place, and if they had to go a long distance they would take a cart attached to some kind of strange four-legged, hoofed animal that only Reina seemed to recognize. Everything seemed to be heated over fires, including water, and there were lanterns attached to people's front doors rather than electric lights. Everyone stared in awe for a moment, taking in the scenery and feeling more than a little out of their element in this place that seemed to be several hundred years behind what they were used to.

"Alright, everyone, follow me," Reina called over her shoulder when she noticed their attention starting to drift. "We're meetin' one o' my old friends at the Inn here, and then we've got a little more preparation to do before we head out tomorrow."

"Head out?" Zana asked, confused. "But I thought this was your hometown. We're not staying here?"

"It was my hometown, yes," Reina answered patiently, flipping an errant red curl back over her shoulder when it fell too far forward. "But it's been nine years since I was last here. My parents moved to another town in the meantime, so we're going to their new home. They'll be better teachers than I when it comes to usin' magic without Materia."

"So, Reina," Cid began as his eyes continued to travel over everything around them. "This friend o' yers – how long've you known him?"

"Since I was born," she answered, a tone of deep fondness in her voice. Reno's eyes darkened immediately when he noticed it. "We were practically joined at the hip until the day I left here. He's been like a big brother to me for my entire life."

"Yeah, well a brother's all he'd better be…" Reno muttered under his breath. Reina raised an eyebrow but ignored his comment for the time being.

"Anyway, I think ye'll all like him. He's goin' to be guidin' us to my parents' home, since I haven't seen it yet myself."

Cloud was barely paying attention to Reina while she spoke. He was too preoccupied with the fact that he was being stared at by practically everyone they passed on the street, as were Rufus, Elena, and Cid. Some people even pointed and whispered excitedly under their breath, gesturing at their eyes while they did. Were blonde hair and blue eyes really so unusual here? Vincent was dealing with some stares of his own, although the people seemed more afraid of him than anything else. Some spat in his direction as he passed, and two women even loudly whispered the word "demon" when they mistakenly thought he couldn't hear them. Vincent took it all in stride and chose to ignore them; he was used to his appearance drawing some attention wherever he went, and calling him a demon wasn't technically wrong. Yuffie immediately came to his side and glared murderously at the whispering women, and that shut them up immediately. Vincent smiled thankfully behind his cloak and wrapped an arm around her.

"I'll b-be glad to get i-ins-side," Yuffie stuttered, wrapping herself up in the extra fabric of Vincent's cloak and clinging to him so tightly it made his recently-healed ribs ache a little. "It's c-cold out here!"

"Don't ye worry, Lass," Reina said over her shoulder. "The Inn's just over there, and we'll get all of ye outfitted for this weather before we set off tomorrow. Most of ye wouldn't survive in the clothes ye've got on now, and they attract too much attention to us." She looked down at her Turks uniform, grimacing when she realized just how out-of-place she looked even though she had been born here. Yes, it was definitely time for a wardrobe change.

A short time later, they all arrived at the door of an inn called "The Hound's Tooth" and strode inside. There were not many patrons in the bar yet, seeing as it was just barely past noon, but the few who were there looked up from their beers and cast strange glances at the pack of oddly-dressed travelers who had just arrived. Denzel and Marlene huddled a bit closer to Cloud and Tifa, not used to being stared at like animals, but everyone else ignored the other patrons completely. Reina spoke to the innkeeper in a quick, hushed version of her native language, and almost immediately turned back to the group with a grin on her face and several keys in the palm of her hand – all without exchanging a single piece of money.

"Daaamn!" Barret muttered, impressed. "This girl's got some connections!" Reina smiled and began walking toward the long hallway where their rooms would be, beckoning them after her with a wave of her hand. Zana followed right at her heels, chatting excitedly with her until they reached the door to one of the rooms and Reina stopped to knock softly on it. A few moments later it swung open, revealing a man nearly as large as Barret.

The man's skin was tanned by years of working outdoors, but it was obvious he was naturally very pale. His dark brown hair hung in a ponytail down to his shoulder blades, and the sleeves of his shirt had been cut off to make room for the impossibly muscular arms they would otherwise have hidden. He appeared to be in his late twenties or early thirties, and a few specks of gray were visible in his bushy beard. His dark eyes were kind, framed by laugh-lines, and they lit up when he spotted Reina at the front of the group. She squeaked in surprise when he lifted her up into a bear-hug, leaving her feet dangling nearly a foot off of the floor.

"Reina, my girl!" he said in a deep, soft voice. "How've ye been? I's been so long since I've set eyes on ye, I almost didn't realize i' was you!"

"Brogan! It's nice to see you, too, Lad!" Reina replied, her voice muffled since he was squeezing her against his chest. He finally set her down, and Reno slipped an arm around her and held her protectively.

"Ye seem ta have a bit o' an accent there, m'dear," Brogan said affectionately. "Been spendin' a bit too long in Midgar, eh?" Everyone in the group chuckled under their breath, wondering what accent he could have possibly been hearing; all they heard was a very strong brogue.

"Could be," she said with a shrug. "Anyway, everyone, this is Brogan Láidir, who I've known since the day I was born. Brogan, these are my comrades from Edge: Tseng, Reno, Rude, and Elena o' the Turks; Rufus ShinRa; Barret and Marlene Wallace; Cid Highwind; Yuffie Kisaragi; Reeve Tuesti and Cait Sith; Nanaki; Vincent Valentine; Tifa Lockhart, Denzel, and Cloud Strife; and Zana Zira, o' SOLDIER." While she spoke, she had gestured to each of them in turn. "They're the ones I've told ye about recently – the ones who'll stop Selph before she can harm our Planet the way her father did."

"Aye, Sephiroth… Even I've heard o' him…" Brogan said with a growl. "Yer all in good hands here, don't ye worry. We'll stop this girl from doin' anythin' too bad. We'll set off again tomorrow, but first we need to get ye all some new clothes ta wear around here. Especially ye two girls; ye'll be nothin' but ice in no time if ye don't dress a little more warmly," he said with a teasing smirk at Yuffie and Tifa. They blushed a little and nodded their understanding. "For now, though, just rest here for a bit. Reina and I need to catch up and decide what the next steps'll be, and ye must be tired." Reno stepped forward, putting himself not-so-subtly between Reina and Brogan.

"Mind if I join?" he asked casually. "I am an expert in covert operations, y'know. No plan's any good without a good dose of Reno, yo." Brogan raised an eyebrow but nodded, smiling and clapping Reno on the back with an enormous hand.

"If ye want to, then sure. The more the merrier! Anyone else want to come with us, then?" Everyone else shook their heads, relishing the idea of exploring their rooms and getting their land-legs back in peace. "Alright, then. We'll be back in a bit!"

When Reno and Reina had left with Brogan, Cloud turned to Zana, a concerned look on his face.

"Is Brogan going to be alright with Reno around?" he whispered. "It looked like Reno wanted him dead." Zana sighed, running a hand back through her choppy hair in exasperation.

"I don't know, but at this point I don't care. I'm tired and that bed over there looks really comfortable right now." With a contented sigh, Zana flopped onto the bed face-first; she was dead asleep and snoring in seconds. Cloud just sighed and sat down next to Vincent and Cid at the table in the middle of the room.

"Don't worry, I'm sure she'd know if Reno was really up ta somethin'," Cid said nonchalantly, lighting a cigarette as he spoke.

"Hmm…" Cloud grunted, looking over at the SOLDIER who was currently snoring like a chainsaw on the other side of the room. "If she's anything like Zack, then probably not." Finally, his apprehension got the best of him, and he stood up and walked down the hall in the direction the other three had gone earlier, glaring moodily as he went. "If that idiot gets us deported on our first day here, there won't be anything left of him for Selph to kill."

For anyone who is curious, "Brogan" means "sturdy and strong, sharp-faced, or sorrowful" while "Láidir" means "strong." So basically, he's sorrowful but strong. Not too clever, I know, but hey, the name sounded cool. ;)

Also, "Slán agat" and "Slán leat" are a common way for people, especially friends, to say goodbye in Gaelic. It basically translates as "be safe."

Until next time, thanks for reading, and please leave a review!