Note: the following is to serve as a "what happened?" to accompany the ending

of FinalFantasy7.  If you have not beaten the game, then READ NO FURTHER!!!

This is basically for anyone who wanted to know what happened after the

beautiful CG renderings of FF7.  If the FF7 ending was equivalent to Cecil

and Golbez on the moon--then this fanfic is the equivalent of Cecil and

Rosa's wedding.  I hope you enjoy this....and without further ado:







                             FINAL FANTASY VII: Epilogue

                             By: Tomm Hulett, Kupan@aol.com

                             Dedicated to: my Tifa





     The noon sun was at full height, and casting its rays down on the world.

Ringing through Nibelheim was the sound of exploding clangs.  Metal on stone,

over and over again.  A small bird flew to a high branch as to watch.  The

ringing continued at its semi-constant rate.  The sun's warmness spread

through the fields, reaching its golden arms across the tiny blue planet.

     The clanging continued.  Clash after clash, time after time, it

continued.  A breeze gently blew through the abandoned streets of Nibelheim.

A puff of dust lifted from the ground and dissipated as it was scattered on

the wind.  The sun's rays caressing the soft yellow clay caused the ground to

blaze like fire.

     The ringing clangs were briefly joined by the sounds of a creaking door which soon after slammed shut, and the fast approaching footsteps of a friend.

     "Cloud!" the woman called over the din, rushing to her friend.  "What

are you doing?"

     Glancing at Tifa as if to tell her to wait, the young warrior hefted the

Buster Blade back above his head, leapt into the air and then brought down a

blow of concussive force.  What was left of the rock he'd been using as a

dummy was cleaved in two.  "Practicing."

     "Practicing?" Tifa placed a hand on her hip and shifted her weight.

"What in the world for?"

     Cloud ran his fingers through his hair as the Buster Blade was returned

to its place on his back.  "Dunno," he sighed and looked into the cloudless

blue sky.  "But unless I'm active, my body gets sore."

     "You just miss the adventure," Tifa quipped as she bumped into him

playfully.  "You'll get used to it."

     The man pondered.  "I was okay when we were helping all the people move

out of Midgar."  Both of the companions remembered their final act in the

quest for the planet; evacuating the citizens of Midgar before the near

destroyed city collapsed on them.  "But now that I'm not doing any physical

labor, if I sit still for too long I get really sore."  Cloud stretched as if

to add to his statement.  "I need something for my body to do."

     "I know something your body could do," Tifa grinned flirtatiously and

winked.

     The object of her affections chuckled slightly.  "I was being serious,

Tifa."

     "<So was I, Cloud,>" Tifa thought while pouting.  She tried to make her

expression appear as playful as possible, so as not to give away her

feelings.  "So..." she swivelled her foot in the dirt.  "What were you

thinkin' about?"

     "Stuff."  Cloud's answers had always been blunt when he didn't want to

talk about something.  Or when he was protecting one of the others from

something that had to be said.

     "You know you can tell me," Tifa worried that her tone gave too much

away.

     "We need to burn Nibelheim," the blonde man turned away from the girl;

he knew her response.

     "W-why?"

     Cloud sighed before continuing, turning back to look at Tifa.  "Because

it's NOT Nibelheim."  He swept his arm in the direction of the buildings.

"The longer we live here, the longer we perpetuate the lie.  This is just a

mock replica of our hometown."  Cloud reached down for a rock he had chipped

from his practice target earlier.  Pitching it at a window, the warrior

remained resolute as the shattering noise rang through the empty village.

"This town is dead--the Shinra 'actors' left once the Corporation itself was

shut down.  We're the only ones here and it's not even REAL."

     "But...it's as close to our home as we can have," Tifa looked longingly

at the replica of her house.

     "It's fake," Cloud responded coldly.  "And you know that we have to

destroy it."

     "You're right," the young woman hung her head.  "This is the last

remnant of Shinra....do what you need to do."  She sniffed sadly.  "But I

won't be able to watch...it'd bring back memories of--"

     "Don't expect me to watch, either," Cloud answered.  "But it does have

to be done."  Seeing a nearby tree, the man's muscles tensed.  In the blink

of an eye he had unsheathed his weapon and cleaved the tree in half.

     "Once a SOLDIER, always a SOLDIER," Tifa said, regaining her composure.

Cloud's harsh glare reminded Tifa he had never truly been in the elite force

of Shinra.  "It doesn't matter," she answered his silent complaint.  "You

were able to do far more than anyone in SOLDIER even could have dreamed."

     "Tifa," Cloud protested.  "I hardly think..."

     "Hush," the girl grinned.  Then her face changed as her eyes reflected a

distant memory.  "Remember when you gave the Black Materia to Sephiroth?" she

asked.  "You apologized for not being able to live up to 'being Cloud'."

     The warrior nodded, shoving his blade deep into the earth and sitting

down on a stump.

     Tifa sat down next to him.  "I've been meaning to tell you..." she moved

closer.  "You've done more than enough."

     Cloud grinned as the sun wore on in its journey across the skies of the

blue orb.



          *          *          *



     "Papa!" Marlene ran to the door as Barret arrived home.  "Did you get me

something?"

     "Heeeey, girl," the large man welcomed his daughter into his arms.  He

lifted her to his shoulders and handed her a small stuffed bear with a

missing eye.  "He followed me home."

     "Oh, Papa," Marlene hugged the toy and happily swung it side to side in

her embrace.

     "Oh, hello, Mr. Wallace," Mrs. Gainsborough walked into the small

entryroom.  "We weren't expecting you for a couple hours, yet...I'm afraid

there will be a small wait before dinner can be served."

     "If it's just as well with you, Mrs. Gainsborough, me 'n Marlene were

gonna' be on our way."  Barret placed his daughter back on the ground.  The

young girl ran upstairs to get her things.  Ever since the destruction of

Meteor, Barret and Marlene had lived in this house in Kalm.  Aeris' step-

mother had offered her hospitality.  House guests can only stay so long,

however, and Barret had decided their stay would have to come to an end.

     "Where are you going?" the kind woman asked.

     "We be headin' to North Corel," the man answered as his daughter came

running back with her things.  "I got a debt to pay there, and I'm gonna'

make sure they find a new mine and get back on their feet."

     "Why don't you at least stay for dinner...?"

     "Sorry, miss," Barret hefted his bags over his shoulder.  "We be needin'

to cover as much ground before tomorrow as possible."  The large man and the

little girl started off, but soon Barret nudged his daughter; who had

forgotten something.

     "Oh..." Marlene turned around to face Mrs. Gainsborough.  "Thank you for

your hospitatly," the child said with a small curtsy.

     "Why you're very welcome," the woman smiled.  "Aren't you a polite

little girl?"

     "Just like her old man," Barret whispered to himself with a proud smile.

     Marlene turned around.  "Oh, Papa!" she ran into his arms.

"You're silly!" the two laughed together as they left the village of Kalm.



          *          *          *



     His crimson cape flapped in the gentle breeze generated from the gushing

water that acted as a curtain; concealing this secluded cavern.  Vincent's

long empty eyes stared at the sight in front of him.  His love, Lucrecia, was

experiencing her last hours in this realm.  "Because of you," she smiled.

"The Jenova in my body has been exorcised.  I'm free."

     "But," he answered.  "You're lost to me forever."

     "That's not true, we'll be together in the afterlife."

     Vincent lifted his steel claw and gazed at it.  "There is no afterlife

for monsters."

     "You're the most beautiful person I know," the woman's spirit

reprimanded.  "Don't talk as though you were a monster."  At Vincent's

silence, Lucrecia continued.  "It's strange...when you first discovered this

place, you were the strong one and I was the one who worried.  Now it seems

our roles have reversed."

     "Perhaps," Vincent's tone was devoid of life.  "However, last time when

I left, I came back.  This time, you will not have a return."

     "At least we'll be together after death."

     "Thus I'm forced to live a piteous existance and wait for the dark mist

to overcome me."  The man seemed to withdraw into his own shadow.  "My life's

quest was to bring justice to those who wronged us...I've done that.  I have

no purpose any longer but to be with you."

     Lucrecia shook her head and decided to switch to a less morbid topic

than their seperation.  "Where are you living?" she asked.

     "Gongaga," the morose man was again staring at his mechanical arm.  "The

people there are absorbed in their own tragedy.  I can be absorbed in mine

and they won't ask questions."

     "You need to help them," the angelic woman realized.  "That is to be

your quest; your purpose."

     "I can't help others until I've atoned for my mistakes..."

     "You HAVE atoned," Lucrecia said as she began to fade away.  "You've

brought the wrongdoers to justice and have given me the greatest thing you

could have..."

     Vincent reached to his love as she disappeared from sight.

     "You have given me peace."

     The sound of gushing water roared behind the man.  Tears streamed down

his otherwise lifeless face.  The wish of his lost love had become his new

purpose.  He would sooner die than fail...



          *          *          *



     The girl charged into the pagoda.  "Dad, Dad!" she was holding a variety

of colored orbs.  

     A paper door slid open and a man stepped out.  "Yes?  What is it?"  He

quickly recognized his daughter and smiled.  "Yuffie--did you find the..."

she held it up.  "THE MATERIA!!!"  He threw some of the gems into the air,

catching them upon descent.  "Where's the rest of it?"

     "Um...yeah," Yuffie looked off to the side, embarrassed.  "They kinda'

only let me keep MY materia...."

     Godo's face became red with rage.  "WHAT?!?"

     "Well," Yuffie sighed.  "They DID find it, afterall."

     "IT'S OURS!" the man in the blue kimono shouted.  "GO DEMAND THAT THEY--"

     "WOULD YOU SHUT UP ALREADY?" Yuffie growled at her father.  She waved

her shielded arm around threateningly.  "THEY SAVED THE WORLD--IT'S THEIR

MATERIA--SHOW SOME RESPECT!!!"

     Godo clenched his teeth before finally calming down and turning his

attention back to the materia in his hands.  "Well...we can still get rich

off selling this stuff..WOW!  Mastered 'All' materia..."

     "Um...DaoChi to Dad...we aren't selling it, remember?"  Yuffie darted

past the man and grabbed her Materia.  "We're using it to re-establish the

Wutai as a powerful warrior clan."

     "Like hell," Godo darted past his daughter and grabbed his materia.

     "That's MINE--YOU PROMISED!"  The enigmatic ninja-girl stole her materia

back.

     "GIMME!" once again, the man in the kimono held the crystals.

     "YOU try fighting LostNumber to get that Odin summon," the materia was

again in the female's possession.

     "OBEY YOUR FATHER!" he shouted, leaping at her.

     "I'VE BEATEN YOU BEFORE!" Yuffie retorted, drawing her shiruken.

     "MINE!"

     "NO!  MINE!"

     The cries of father and daughter echoed throughout Wutai that day.  All

the citizens knew, that for better or worse; Yuffie was home.



          *          *          *

     The pounding of a hammer accompanied the sunset in RocketTown.  Near the

rusted supports that had once held a rocket, an aging man hunched over a

stout metal cylinder, pounding away with his tools.  A woman approached him.

     "What are you doing, Captain?" she asked.

     "I'm building something, what does it look like?" he answered crossly.

Then, looking back at her, "for Mog's sake, call me Cid!"

     "Sorry Mr. Highwind," Shera replied.

     "Cid."

     "Cid..." the woman figited nervously.  Something was wrong with the

Captain; he was being strangely nice.  "So what is it you're building?"

     "I've been meaning to tell you something, Shera," Cid started, ignoring

her question.

     The assistant sat down on a rock nearby to listen to what Cid had to

say.  She didn't remember doing anything wrong recently, and was puzzled as

to what Cid would say.

     "I need to apologize," the man grumbled.  "You cared only for me all

those years since the accident and I treated you like crap.  Then you saved

my life, Shera...thank you."

     "M--Mr. Highwind....er..Captain...er..Cid...  I don't know what to say."

The woman looked about frantically, as if the perfect thank you line would

present itself garnered with ribbons and bows.

     "How bout 'thank you', you git?"

     "Thank you."  She smiled widely.  Then, shaking off the happiness, she

composed herself again.  "So what is it you're building."

     "Well I figger man's got this planet pretty much covered," Cid

reflected, taking a puff of his cigarette before continuing.  "With Junon

sending out ships, Fort Condor sending out land forces, the excavators of

Bone Village researching the Ancients in the Shell Village, and lastly,

Mideel being the center of the study of lifestream...there's no

groundbreaking left to do.  So I'm making another rocket."  Cid Highwind

clanged his hammer on the cylinder another time to prove his point.  He

smiled proudly.  "My new co-pilot and I will make sure that we're the first

people to explore space."

     Shera's eyes widened.  She wondered who the co-pilot would be.  No doubt

the luckiest person in the world, to go with the Captain on such a mission.

"Who is it?" she asked.  "Who's the co-pilot."

     "You dimwitted.....It's YOU!"

     "Me?" the woman was in hysterics.  "ME?!?  REALLY?  Mr. Highwind..THANK

YOU!"  Without thinking, Shera planted a large kiss on Cid's cheek.  

     "Instead of gettin' all mushy, how bout you move yer butt and get the

rest of my damn tools?"  Cid wiped the kiss off his face.  As his new co-

pilot scampered off to do her duties, the old man muttered to himself.  "Cid,

ol' boy...you're turning soft on me..."



          *          *          *



     "I won't do it and that's final," Nanaki prowled away from the bonfire.

     "B-but.." Elder Hargo of Cosmo Canyon followed.  "You're the guardian of

our village...it's only right that YOU become the Elder."

     "The Elders we have right now do a perfectly good job," replied the one

sometimes called RedXIII.

     "But," the man continued.  "You were taught by Bugenhagen...you know the

secrets of the world."

     "So do you," Nanaki pointed out.  "He taught you, too."

     "Haven't you figured it out yet?" Elder Bugah approached the

conversation.  "The reason he sent you out into the world?"

     Nanaki growled quietly and lifted an eyebrow.  "What are you talking about?"

     Elder Bugah scowled.  "Bugenhagen sent you into the world so that you

would find yourself and learn about the world around you."

     "An elder must know about both himself, and how the world works."  Hargo

wiped some sweat from his face; Cosmo Canyon was hot, even in the evening.

"That is why we have two elders right now.  I'm wise in the ways of the

spiritual world..."

     "...and I'm wise in the ways of the outside world."  Bugah looked at

Nanaki.  Would the cub finally understand?  "You now know of BOTH worlds.

You are the wisest of our tribe, and the guardian of this canyon.  It is your

duty to ascend as Elder."

     Nanaki shook his head from side to side.  He opened his eyes and let out

a mighty roar before charging up the large staircase in the side of the

cliff.  Hargo watched him go.  "It's not responsibility he has a problem

with," he noted.  "It's knowing what his responsibility is."

     The crimson beast slowly crept to the top of the cliff.  Reaching the

crest, Nanaki sat down near a statue of a creature looking not unlike

himself.  The 'statue', however, was once alive.  It turned to stone

protecting Cosmo Canyon--protecting its family and its tribe.

     "Father," Nanaki sighed.  "What am I to do?"

     There was no answer.  The wind moved a few pebbles along the ground;

nothing more.

     "If Grandfather were here...then he could tell me..."  The beast's tail

swished sadly against the stone.  "If he were here, he would say 'Nanaki...

you need to fulfill your responsibilities to the tribe.'  Actually....if he

was here he'd probably just say 'Ho Ho Hoooo!'"  The animal missed his family

very much, he felt very alone.

     A question brought itself into Nanaki's head.  "Grandfather?  Father?"

he asked.  "Were you in the lifestream?...did you help stop Meteor?"  There

was still no answer.

     Nanaki looked at the last remnants of the sun as it dipped behind the

horizon.  The flames of the light projected across the night sky.  "Red,"

Nanaki noted.  Everything was finally clear in his mind.  "...Red is who I

once was.  Now I am Nanaki, son of Seto.  I am the guardian and protector of

Cosmo Canyon!!!"  His great roar echoed throughout the night sky.



          *          *          **



     "Hey, Elena," Rude asked, sitting down in his seat.  "You want cotton

candy?"  He held a pink ball of fluff out for her.

     "Yeah, thanks," she smiled and took it.

     "Reno, here's yer popcorn," the bald man gave the yellow snack to his

friend.

"Thanks, man," the red-haired figure also sat down in his seat, handing

drinks to their respective recipients.  "The Gold Saucer rules."

     Fireworks exploded in the dark night sky.  They lit up with sparks of

red, green, yellow, and blue.  The perfect backdrop to forget about one's

self and have fun.  Booming colors, riotous music, and laughing children

could all be found at the Gold Saucer at any given time.  The three remaining

members of the Turks were just sitting down to enjoy a show at the

'EventSquare'.

     "AND NOW!" the announcer blared.  "PRESENTING THE VENTRILOQUIST STYLINGS

OF REEVE!!!"

     "Hey," Elena leaned over to Rude.  "Didn't that guy used to work for

Shinra?"  A man in a blue suit came onto the stage with a stuffed black cat

seated on top of a stuffed moogle.

     "Would you give it up?" Reno harshly whispered back to the young woman.

"The company is dead, gone...stop talking about it."

     "Yeah," Rude agreed.  "All you've wanted to talk about since Shinra fell

was...Shinra."

     "Well that's cause we haven't talked about it at ALL," Elena retorted,

almost breaking a whisper.  "Can't we talk about it just once?  Then I won't

mention it again...promise."

     "Fine, fine," Reno sighed.  "Yeah..that Reeve guy was head of City

Developement.  As far as I know he's the last remaining member of the

Shinra."

     "What about Palmer?" Rude asked.  Reno thought a moment and then nodded.

Rude continued, "Palmer was the head of Space Developement.  Rumor is that he

ran off to Costa Del Sol where he's suckin' down worm cocktails."  Elena

nodded in acknowledgement.

     "Now," Reeve said, continuing his act.  "Cait Sith will talk to you

while I'm drinking TWO glasses of water!"

     "Wow," Reno muttered under his breath.  "This is amaz--"  A small white

chocobo leapt onto the Turk's lap, then bounded off again.  Reno's popcorn

was launched into the air and then rained to the ground.  "This kid is

pissing me off..."

     The owner of the white chocobo was a small boy who insisted on running

from seat to seat, jumping on the cushions excitedly, and then continuing

down the row.  Reno chased the child down and picked him up by the neck.  The

Turk brandished his nightstick menacingly as his sunglasses fell down in

front of his eyes.  "I don't know what kinda' sugar problem you got, kid,"

the man's shaggy red hair waved about his face.  "But if you don't SETTLE

DOWN then me and my pal Rude are gonna' be yer new chiropractors."  Reno

pointed at Rude with his weapon.

     "S-sorry, mister," the boy stammered, struggling to free himself.  "Me

'n my chocobo didn't mean nothin'.  It's just we were excited to be here and

all...we've been saving up the money for months an--"

     "Just sit down and shut up," Reno growled.  He placed the boy back on

the ground before pulling his fallen sunglasses back above his eyes.  "Stay,"

he emphasized.  Pulling slightly on his untucked shirt, Reno returned to his

seat.

     Elena looked mysteriously at Reno, "was that really necessary?"  The

crimson haired Turk was silent.

     "NOW," Reeve grinned largely on stage.  "I will talk through Cait while

he talks through Stuffy the moogle!"

     "Wow," the female Turk sighed.  "Three-way ventriloquism."

     "Cait Sith will speak while I drink COLA!" Reeve moved his arm around

elegantly before taking a sip.

     "And Stuffy will speak while I drink water through this megaphone," the

cat did the same arm movements as his master before sipping in the same

manner.

     "Hey everybody!" the stuffed moogle spoke and danced about the stage

waving his arms.  The audience cheered.

     "This reminds me," Reno stood up.  "I'm gonna' head on over to

WonderSquare and play a few rounds of 'MogHouse'."  He reached into his

pocket and pulled out some credits.  "Here's a few GP for you, Elena."

     "Thanks, Reno!" the woman smiled happily.  "I figured I'd head over

there myself later to do a little snowboarding.  Maybe I'll see you there?"

     He shrugged.  "Laterz," he waved to his teammates and then sauntered

off.

     Rude stared at the ventriloquist act.  "<How in the world do they do

that?>" he thought to himself.  "<It's amazing.>"



          *          *          *



     Cloud took a deep breath of the cool air.  Turning back to the campfire,

he threw another log on it.  Tifa was a few yards away, feeding Boko--the

Chocobo they'd rented from "Chole's Sage-Bred Chocobo Emporium".  "Hey,

Tifa!" Cloud called.  "Come sit with me."

     The girl walked to the campfire and sat down with her companion.  She

smiled.  Somewhere around eight years ago, the two had spent a starry night,

not unlike this one, together.  "You'll always be my hero," she sighed.

     Cloud smiled at the remark and continued on his own train of thought.

"I think I'm starting to understand," the warrior began.  "Why the people of

Midgar stayed on their land, even though Shinra ruined it."  Tifa gave him a

confused glance, so he continued.  "Remember?  They wanted to stay on their

land no matter what?  Well I figure we kinda' did the same thing when Meteor

was going to hit earth."  He chuckled.  "We'd do anything to save our homes."

     "I've been wondering something," Tifa started, looking up into the stars.  "You said..you said you could find Aeris in the Promised Land."  Cloud nodded.  "Why haven't you gone to find her?"

     "Oh," Cloud's brow wrinkled in thought.  "What I meant was that when I die, if I go to the Promised Land then I think I'll see her there."

     Tifa pondered.  The brunette had very strong feelings for Cloud, and she

wondered if he had the same feelings for her.  She always told herself she

was being silly, and to stop thinking about it.  Then she would remember when

she had journeyed into Cloud's mind.  His shattered personalities showed her

his innermost thoughts and feelings.  She would think about how the "young"

Cloud revealed to her that he only had thoughts for her.  He liked her but

was too nervous to show it.  Much like she felt about him now.  "<I know I'm

in his mind,>" she thought.  "<But is Aeris somewhere more sacred?  Is Aeris in his heart?>"

     "What's bothering you, Tifa?" Cloud asked.

     "D...do you love her?"

     The man stared into the flames of the campfire.  They popped and

flickered, licking up at the surrounding blackness.  "I don't really know what

I feel," he sighed after a silence.  "Sometimes I wonder if she didn't come

with us just to help me find myself..."  He shook his head clear before

continuing.  "After we left the temple...when she was in my dreams...she kept

reassuring me of who I was.  'Don't be too serious or you'll go crazy....

Cloud' she'd say.  She said she wanted to know ME."  Cloud looked at the

woman next to him.  "I think she knew the truth."

     Tifa's eyes flickered.  She trembled as she started to speak.  "Cloud,

I--"  The young woman shut her eyes as tears came to them and turned away.

She couldn't say it.  Then she felt Cloud's hand grip her shoulder.  The same

hand that held the sword that had saved her life so many times.  The same

grip that had pulled her up from the gaping chasm of the Mako pit.

     "What's wrong, Tifa?"  Cloud slowly turned her around.  "You can tell me."

     She looked into the man's eyes.  The big blue 'Mako eyes' she had

admired since Cloud had arrived in Midgar.  But..he had always had beautiful

eyes; even before leaving his home to join SOLDIER.  Eyes are a window to the

soul--and Tifa was gazing into the most beautiful soul she had ever beheld.

Her lips parted as she again spoke.  "I love you."

     Cloud's grip prevented the woman from turning away, so she shut her

eyes.  She felt the warrior's hand slide from her shoulder, up her neck,

until it rested behind her head.  He pulled Tifa closer.

     Before the two kissed in a passionate embrace, Cloud smiled and

whispered.  "I love you too."