Alright, now that I've finally got a working laptop again, it's time to get cracking on one of my new fanfiction projects. I wrote this FOREVER ago and now I'm finally able to type it out! (The whole thing is in like two notebooks XD) And now I'm uploading it for you guys! Hope you enjoy it!

Unclouded (Sequel to Unarmed)

Prologue: In Pursuit

"Tell me what you cherish most."

…

Now I have to admit, who would have ever thought, when all this started, that I'd end up getting involved so deeply in this whole struggle to save the Planet?

Not me, that's for sure.

…You're probably wondering what I'm talking about exactly. (A/N: If you haven't read my prequel to this story anyway…lol) Well, it's probably one of, if not the most famous video game—No, wait, so-called "video game storylines" of all time.

Now I know that probably sounds completely insane, not to mention unbelievable.

Hell, I'm still not sure if I even believe it myself.

But somehow me—and my best friend—got involved with the world of Final Fantasy VII…

…Or should I say we got involved with the characters? Oh well, it doesn't matter; all I know is, I sure as hell didn't know how far this whole affair would go.

…It's definitely not exactly what I had in mind when I agreed to come here. Especially not what I expected when we first found Cloud in that Gamestop that day.

…But I couldn't just leave two of my closest friends to fend for themselves, could I? Especially after what my best friend Lindsey had told me before she left…

*flashback*

"You know you shouldn't do this."

"I don't care, I'm going after him." Lindsey started towards the front door, car keys firmly in hand and fully determined to follow after Kadaj. I quickly stepped in front of her. "Dude, what are you doing? Get outta my way," she demanded, trying to push past me. I stood my ground, not letting her through to the doorway.

"Are you freakin' crazy? You heard what Cloud said; he's a Sephiroth-clone. Sephi-roth-clone! You know what that means! You go after him and you'll REALLY screw yourself over. You could end up dead." She pushed past me.

"I don't care! I'm going and that's that! ," she yelled, throwing open the car door after stomping her way to the vehicle. She swung into the front seat, slamming the car door behind her. I ran up to the vehicle, putting my hands on the edges of the rolled-down car window.

"You're crazy if you do this! Why would you throw everything away? For something this insane?! It's just not you, dude, " I reasoned, slamming a palm on the car window edge.

She looked directly at me as she spoke again, a pleading and desperate look on her face.

"I'm sorry Christina, but…I-I love him!"

My eyes went wide with shock.

I had known for a while that she had had a crush on him, but… Love? Really? I mean, they hadn't known each other THAT long, but…

She glared slightly at me as she continued, "You of all people should understand." I swallowed hard, looking down at the gravel in the driveway, feeling my face heat slightly.

I know, I really hadn't known him in the flesh that long, but…she was right. I knew exactly what, or should I say who, she meant.

Cloud Strife, the spiky-headed hero of Final Fantasy VII, my personal favorite video game character of all time.

Who I happened to be completely and totally in love with.

…Now don't get me wrong, I know I sound like a TOTAL fangirl, but…that hardly matters to me.

After all, no fangirl in the world knew the blonde-haired warrior like I did…

I felt the car jerk forward suddenly, pulling me from my thoughts. "Dammit…..Lindsey, wait!, " I yelled as I watched her pull out the driveway, heading down the road.

Sonofvabitch, I thought, kicking the ground in frustration. Gravel flew across the yard.

"She really went after him, didn't she…" I heard Cloud sigh as he came out from the house. I shook my head.

"Unfortunately." I put a hand to my head, sighing heavily, for heaven's sake…I can't believe she pulled that one on me! She must be serious…but still…I should have stopped her…

"Don't," Cloud told me sternly. I turned toward him; he was facing the edge of the driveway. "I don't think…you could have stopped her from going after him. So don't worry about it."

My eyes widened slightly. Damn…is he trying to make me feel better…? Was my guilt that obvious? I shook my head again. "Either way, I gotta go after her. Can't let my best friend do something so stupid without trying to stop 'em, at least." He chuckled slightly, turning back to the house.

"…Somehow I knew you'd say that." He walked forward to open the front door, turning back to look at me. "But there's no way you're going." And with that he went inside, the glass door shutting quietly behind him. My eyes widened again, then I ran back inside the house, following Cloud to the stairs.

"What?! Of course I'm going! ," I shouted after him. He stopped in his tracks, turning back to me once more, a worried look in his eyes.

"I couldn't…can't let you do that. It's way too dangerous and you know that. I couldn't let you…" He trailed off when he noticed me glaring fiercely at him.

"I don't care. Like I said, I have to at least try and change her mind." He shook his head, then turned away from me to head upstairs.

"No. It's too dangerous." He started up the stairs before I grabbed his arm slightly, causing him to stop and turn back to me, an unreadable look in his eyes.

"Please Cloud, you have to help me save my friend. I'm begging you." He studied me for a long moment before sighing.

"It's gonna be dangerous."

"I know."

"And you know you may not come back here." Though I admit that DID scare me a bit, I wasn't about to let that deter me. Not when my best friend needed my help.

"…Yeah." He shook his head a bit at my answer, then chuckled slightly.

"Then you know there's no way in hell I could let you go alone." I blinked, slightly stunned, then grinned slightly.

"I figured as much." He turned back and headed up the stairs, grinning a bit as well.

"Then we're gonna have to get you some weapons."

(Still flashback) *One week later*

I set my music player down by my small bag, tying it on the back of the motorcycle Cloud had gotten a couple of days earlier. I leaned away from the bike, hands on my hips as I stared at the huge hunk of metal.

When we went to pick out my weapons (which he insisted I have; he didn't want me going without being able to defend myself…mainly because he didn't think he could protect me. I knew better than that but I didn't argue), the motorcycle caught his eye…and five days later, after sneaking my 'emergency' credit card out from under my nose, he came home with the thing, a giddy grin spread across his face. Somehow, despite how much money that thing had cost, I couldn't be mad after seeing him smile like that…

But I will admit I almost freaked when I saw it. God knows my father didn't set up that emergency account for THIS… And, to be honest, I was kinda nervous about riding on a motorbike. Cloud, however, reassured me that riding it would be fine, saying he "had experience with motorcycles"…

Then again…

I shook my head firmly, trying not to let fear get the better of me. He wouldn't do anything to endanger us, I'm sure of that much.

"You got everything?, " I heard Cloud ask as he came up behind me. Spinning on my heel, I turned to face him.

"Let's see…pistol, check…extra ammo, check…sword, check…yup, I'm set," I informed him, patting each item in turn. He nodded, walking up to the bike.

"Alright…" He opened the side of the motorbike, revealing a set of larger-than-life swords. Apparently he had had that part constructed onto the motorcycle specifically for the purpose of holding weapons. He picked up one and studied it for a second.

…Then he spun around suddenly and swung the humongous sword at me. I quickly parried with my own; our swords locked for a moment, each of us glaring the other down.

After a few moments he grinned at me, then let his sword drop to his side. I relaxed, sheathing my sword and grinning as well.

"I'm thoroughly impressed," he informed me, putting his blade back in the holster on the bike, closing up the sides. My smile widened significantly.

"Really?! Ah, I-I mean…," I stammered, slightly embarrassed at my ecstatic outburst. He blinked once, then laughed.

"Yeah, you've learned a good bit in the past week. I'm honestly impressed with how fast you picked up swordsmanship." I shook my head and laughed as well.

"Well, I had a great teacher," I told him, grinning broadly. He looked away, clearing his throat a bit as his cheeks reddened slightly.

"Y-yeah, well, a-anyway…" He turned back toward the bike. "We really should get going," he concluded, pulling out a pair of sunglasses (A/N: Yeah, you know what sunglasses I mean; those things are BADASS! XD) and putting them on. I nodded.

"Yeah, you're probably right," I agreed, walking up and grabbing my music player off my bag, placing the headphone cord around my neck. He swung a leg over the bike; I quickly sat behind him. After a moment he looked back over his shoulder at me.

"Are you sure…you want to do this? You know…you may not ever come back here." I looked around at the surroundings for a minute, taking in the familiar sights…

…For what could be the last time.

Honestly, I didn't want to believe that it may be the last time I'd ever see my home, but…I couldn't let Cloud go alone after Kadaj and Lindsey.

…Regardless if I I had to abandon my whole world to do it.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Let's go," I told him firmly. He nodded, turning forward once more and starting the engine. I wrapped my arms around his waist as he nudged back the kick stand. Suddenly the bike lurched forward, causing me to grab onto him for dear life. He stopped it again, laughing heartily at my slight panic attack. I glared at the back of his head. "Very funny Strife."

"Sorry, I just couldn't resist…," he said, still laughing. I smacked his shoulder slightly. "Ow…ha, ha, sorry," he apologized. I stuck my tongue out at him, trying not to laugh.

"Uh-huh, whatever," I stated, amused, "we should go now." He nodded again, then slowly started the bike forward, running it to the edge of the driveway. I rested my head against his back as he turned onto the road, watching as the world started to fly past me at high speed. I closed my eyes, letting the ride take me off to dreamland.

Besides, my entire world's sitting right in front of me…

*end flashback*

And even now, as I watch this fierce clash between two of the most well-known characters in video game history, I still don't regret that decision, but…

Hmm…somehow it always seemed right…

*flashback, two months earlier*

I woke up a couple hours later to Cloud shaking my shoulder. "Where are we?," I asked, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.

"Not sure," Cloud answered, "but I think we found a clue." He held up my laptop, presenting the screen to me.

"Oh, the GPS," I stated simply, grabbing the laptop from him. It really wasn't that hard to pick up Kadaj and Lindsey's trail. Really, all we had to do was link up to her car's GPS signal (thank GOD her parents had installed that thing!) and follow it using my computer.

It worked better than either of us had hoped. It had, apparently, taken us through a large portal-like thing, according to Cloud. "You sure…this is the right place?," I asked, my eyes still on the laptop screen. Cloud tapped me on the shoulder, causing me to look up at him. He pointed in front of us, where a very familiar vehicle was parked.

Lindsey's car.

I shut my laptop after shutting it down, hopping off the motorbike and standing beside Cloud. "I can't believe she just left it behind…" Cloud walked up to the vehicle, peering through the driver's side window.

"Hm…doesn't look like she left anything behind in the car. And the doors, they're unlocked," he commented, pulling on the door handle to demonstrate. I crossed my arms, tilting my head to the side.

"So does that mean…that she caught up to Kadaj?" He nodded.

"Most likely." I hmm-ed for a second, walking over and leaning against her car.

"Then do you think he let her follow after him?," I asked, looking towards Cloud, who blinked before looking away.

"…Probably." I nodded slowly, turning my gaze to the ground.

"Oh." I just hope he doesn't do anything stupid, like with Jenova cells or something…,I thought somberly. A moment later I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Don't worry, I promise you we'll save your friend," Cloud said with determination. I looked at his hand on my shoulder, then up at him, giving him a reassuring smile.

"Of course! Who do you think you're talking to; I've saved the world multiple times, I'll have you know," I informed him, shaking a finger in his face. He chuckled, walking back to the bike.

"In video games you mean."

"Hey, it still counts!"

"I suppose it accounts for something," he retorted, still chuckling. I blew a raspberry at him.

"Whatever," I concluded, grinning slightly. I noticed then that Cloud was getting something off the bike. "What are you doing?," I asked, watching as he pulled out a hose and a gas can.

He gave me a look. "What does it look like? I'm siphoning her gas tank." My eyes went wide.

Holy crap…now THAT's something I never thought I'd hear him say…

Hope you guys enjoyed the prologue chapter! Please leave a review!

-Catalyna Christopher