Cataclysmic (Final Fantasy VII)

꧁ XIX ꧂

To comfort Tifa and conserve her mana after it having been drained a little because of the blessing, Lailah transformed into her pup form. She allowed Tifa to hold her as they entered the maintenance facility. The sable-haired girl held on to the pup and stroked her fur as she followed behind Cloud and Aerith. Hearing distorted giggling, she gapsed in horror and held onto the pup tighter. "What was that?!"

Fortunately, Lailah was still able to move around in Tifa's arms even when she was clinging to her out of fear. In the train car to their left, she spotted the spectral images of children running through. Unlike her friend, she wasn't scared of the ghosts. However, she did sense a strange hostility she hadn't until now. Her fur stood on end and she growled.

"Look! Over there!" Aerith ran ahead after spotting a strange orb of light descend from above and take refuge behind a storage container. Cloud and Tifa caught up with her as she spoke. "Found you. Hey...can we talk? Just for a bit?"

Slowly, a spectral image of a boy stepped out from behind the storage container. Aerith smiled and laughed in relief to see the spirit was cooperating. The boy stopped and his body started to lift off the ground, morphing into a physical ghost.

Tifa and Cloud gasped in shock. The sable-haired girl continued to hug the pup as she backed away. Aerith, who wasn't afraid of the ghost, continued to smile as it gradually floated toward her.

Out of the blue, another ghost appeared and knocked against it. Unlike the ghost with the saddened expression, this one was hostile and ready to fight. The boy's ghost retreated upward.

"Get back." Cloud ran and stood between the ghost and the girls, drawing his sword.

Suddenly, the ghost surged forward toward Tifa. With its claw-like hands, it wrenched Lailah out of her arms and flew up into the air. "Stop!" she shouted. "Give her back!"

The ghost held Lailah by the tail and poked her side. She kicked her legs back and forth while whimpering.

Cloud glared daggers at the ghost and readied a fire spell.

"Put her down!" Aerith hollered.

Releasing the fire spell, Cloud watched it nail the enemy. It dropped the pup without hesitation as it was knocked back by the spell. Seeing her falling and knowing he wouldn't be able to catch her in time, he yelled, "Aerith!"

The emerald-eyed girl dashed forward and caught the pup in her arms. "Gotcha!" She giggled and poked the animal's wet nose. "Look at how cute you are!"

Cloud and Tifa handled the ghost while Aerith kept Lailah away from it. In no time, the enemy was gone.

"Phew!" Aerith huffed out, looking down at the pup in her arms. "That ghost really wanted you, didn't it? Too bad for it because I was there to protect you. No one will lay a hand on our sweet Lailah as long as I'm around! And Cloud and Tifa, of course."

Lailah yipped in response. She snuggled up to Aerith as a way to thank her.

Cloud and Tifa stormed over to check on the pup.

"I never expected it to grab Lailah like that," Tifa commented.

"Neither did I," Cloud responded, petting the top of the pup's head and scratching behind her ears.

A theory popped into Aerith's head. "Do you think it tried to take her because of what she did for that little girl?"

"It's a possibility. We'd better keep a watchful eye on her."

"Leave this cutie to me!" Aerith smiled. She lifted Lailah up and nuzzled her nose against hers. "Looks like I'll be taking Cloud's job for a little bit. I won't let you down, Lailah!" She returned the pup to her arms and cradled her gently.