Beyond Good and Evil [Aerith]

[Aerith]

Light isn't complete misery and doesn't come with terrible side-effects.
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Aerith had a response. She did. Then it was stifled by a joy that was discordant against the backdrop of her recent worry.

There was nothing alien about the emotion itself. She had already told Jericho that helping people produced this within her. But considering that she could sense the darkness moving through him, she understood what was happening.

With a soft gasp, she took an involuntary step backward and put a hand to her heart. No. The darkness wasn't touching her, but it felt that way.

Why does something so voracious feel so good?

It had been a small break in her composure, and she recovered quickly. "I see..."

She lowered her hand back to her side and looked straight at Jericho. "But you are a special case, aren't you? Is that what Nadia feels, too?" If so, no wonder Nadia had chosen this, especially if it was true that her family had rejected her.

"It might feel good, but that doesn't mean it is good. And I mean for you as an individual, not in general. It's known for a fact that too much darkness will turn someone into a Heartless. Won't that happen to you? And if not you, simply because of your special state, what about her? How can you stop it from happening to Nadia?"

[Slash]

Yes and no.

[/center]

He smiled. "If Nadia and I were to become Heartless, we would have already. The sheer amount would cause a heart not prepared for it to collapse entirely. I can stop it from happening in a sense, introducing darkness in such a way that someone's heart can become immune. It takes a very strong will to keep the darkness from consuming one's heart during this time, though. Nadia had the ability. I doubt more than a handful of others would."

In fact, Jericho doubted if there were more than 4 or 5 others who could take it. And he certainly wasn't going to go around handing it out, no. Aerith might have cared about people, but to Jericho it was preferable for them to become Heartless. The darkness grew stronger that way.

"So they become Heartless. That makes the darkness stronger. I know exactly how monstrous this seems, but I will not lie to you. I'd rather they did lose their hearts. You want a resolution in which the minimum amount of people are harmed, perferably none. I want the opposite. You want everything to return to normal, I want everything to change forever. Great forces are moving at full speed now, and the result is going to be bloody, destructive chaos. You will abhor it, and I will thrive in it. Such are our natures. You would not kill. I would not stop."

Two people- rather, inhuman vessels of great forces- sitting on opposing sides, completely irreconcilable. Yet despite her nature being as different from his as day from night, he did not hate her. Did not hold her in contempt. She represented everything he despised, yet he would destroy anyone who hurt her.

It was interesting, confusing, and frustrating all at once. He kept trying to grasp why, even though he had figured that doing so was a futile effort.

[Aerith]

It doesn't have to be like this. I know it doesn't.
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"Why? Why does it have to be this way?"

Aerith looked at Jericho with a hurt expression. For as long as she could remember, darkness had always been the great consumer of everything she loved. People and worlds were hurt and destroyed by its very touch, even the mere whisper of its presence. By all rights, she should despise Jericho for what he represented. He wanted nothing more than to see everything under the light gone.

So, why could she not hate him? Saying he was still a human being did not work. He might have worn the guise of humanity but beneath that thin veneer, he was nothing more than a monster, an extension of the darkness.

"I suppose I must sound incredibly naive to you, but this is how I feel. I know that what I want is impossible, but that only makes me hope for it all the more. Even if I wasn't supposed to be some guiding force for humanity, I would still work for this. Just because something has always been a certain way, that doesn't mean it has to stay that way forever."

She looked away. "Yes, both darkness and light want to eradicate each other. But don't they both have to work through people to accomplish that? If people's hearts can change... If people can learn to respect each other and master themselves, then maybe there won't have to be any fighting. Darkness and light will always be there, but there won't be a war for domination. Because people are the instruments through which the two forces work."

Putting a hand to her cheek, she pondered. "I don't think humans belong to the darkness. I think they are capable of living in the light. It might be easier to live in darkness, but the more effort required makes the reward greater in the end."

[Slash]

Now I see what you are.

[/center]

Jericho looked surprised for just a second, then happily resolved. So that was it. That was the role she had, and its relation to his. That was why he didn't hate her.

Nadia was close to him, closer than anyone else had been or would ever be. But Aerith...Aerith was like...

"I see. I think I understand now." He nodded.

"Two halves of the same thing. You are the ego, I am the id. Devil and angel, reason and instinct, whatever metaphor you prefer."

They were almost like siblings in a sense, an idea reminiscient of the old "brother against brother" bit that had been used so much...or in this case, brother against sister.

"You're not naive. You've seen light and you've seen darkness. What I want is different from what you want, but that doesn't make either of us stupid. We are simply different. Irreconcilably different, but not stupid."

He sighed. "Or perhaps there is a point of reconciliation. If it does come to the point where the door is opened, I will not harm you. And it will be to you to take in as many as you can, and teach them- create a haven. Maybe what you want can come to pass, but not while I exist. I will disappear through the door when I can. Then everything is yours."

[Aerith]

I always wanted an older brother, but perhaps not quite like this.
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Aerith's expression softened further than usual. Why hadn't she thought of this before? Perhaps because now, here in this place, it was so strikingly obvious. Polar opposites they might be, yet they had a strange and fascinating sort of kinship. Always at odds and yet so closely intertwined.

"So. This is what it's like to have a brother."

She had been an only child and had always dreamed of having siblings. This wasn't exactly how she had imagined her siblings might be, but the sentiment remained the same, regardless.

"And I'll do what I can, as long as there is something left for me to save. Just... do me one favor."

Moving closer, she reached for one of his hands without hesitation, even knowing how stained with blood they must be. When her fingers laced through his, she simply held his hand in silence for a moment, marveling at its warmth.

"Don't lose this." She tapped the index finger of her free hand against his chest. "Or this." The same finger gently tapped his forehead.

"If not for me... then for her. She needs you, Jericho. She needs you like a flower needs water. As much as I may not like to admit it, if you leave her now, in any form or fashion, I don't think I'll be able to help her."

[Slash]

That was intentional.

[/center]

Aerith took his hand, telling him not to lose his heart or mind. Well, she was a little late on the mind part, but he could keep his heart, at least.

He nodded. He wasn't going to lose himself any time soon, not while there was Nadia to look after. He had made her dependent on him, after all. It was only fair that he stay in return.

"I won't. I'll be sure of it. And I'll make sure she stays safe, too."

If Nadia died, he wasn't sure what would happen. All he knew is that it wouldn't be good for anyone.

"Here." Jericho created a Corridor. "This will take us back. We should probably get moving..." He smiled.

"...little sister."

The title of a little sister fit her somehow.

[Aerith]

Let's go, then.
--------

Satisfied with that answer, Aerith nodded in return.

Jericho opened a Corridor. The term of endearment caught her by surprise, and she smiled faintly.

"All right... big brother."

How strange, feeling so safe with him. She had no way of knowing what the future held, but as long as she stayed connected to him, perhaps she could figure out just what to do.

She went through the Corridor ahead of him, relieved to be leaving this world behind.