Petals of the Golden Lily

Chapter One ⚘

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Sunlight filtered through a hole in the ceiling of an old abandoned church. Dust floated idly down from the decrepit beams and settled on the long since forgotten pews. The church would have been dead silent if it weren't for the humming of a young girl. Near the remains of a broken alter the child in question sat bent down on hands and knees, lovingly tending a patch of blooming flowers that had found a home in the broken floorboards.

There were no flowers in Midgar, some said it had to do with the mako pollution, others said it was a marketing ploy for the expensive imports that came in from Costa Del Sol. Whatever the reason, it was quite strange that something so lively as flowers could grow in a place so dead, especially in the slums of Midgar.

Aerith had been drawn to the church as a child, when the planet's voices had directed her to it. She didn't know why they had done this, but it had quickly become her favorite place in her tiny world. Voices she didn't recognize spoke to her and on occasion through their chatter Aerith could make out the calm voice of her mother.

The church itself was always empty and she was sure that no one ever came here; day-by-day she could plot her footsteps in the gray dust that lined the rotting floor. Perhaps the church had once been a glorious place for worship, back in the day when Midgar's citizens had cared about such things as religion and morality. Now the church was a broken sanctuary for small little girls and the occasional homeless stranger, even if she had never seen any here.

Aerith although a sweet girl, didn't have many friends. She was quiet and painfully shy, but was well liked by all of the slum citizens who admired her cheerful face and easy smile. A lot of them didn't approve of her carefree prowls around the slums, a young girl like that should always be within arm's reach of her mother, but eventually they all eased into the situation. Elmyra worked two jobs just to keep her and the child afloat, besides what monster could ever harm Aerith anyhow?

Aerith expected today to be like any other day, she'd visit the church to water her flowers, then she'd carefully face every bloom towards the sunbeams, and then she'd pluck the dead leaves from their stems. All the while ritualistically humming a song to keep the deafening silence at bay. She was never alone however; the planet would hum along with her in soothing whispers that she could never fully understand.

But today quite suddenly, they all stopped.

Aerith's features twisted into confusion, why did they stop singing? She ceased her pruning to listen cautiously around her. The squeak of footfalls sounded in the distant. Who could it possibly be? No one knew she was here, not even Elmyra. Was it the Turks again?

The huge wooden doors were slung open with heavy force, they groaned in protest from years of neglect. The piercing noise almost split Aerith's ears; she couldn't open those doors herself for they were far too heavy. In fact she wasn't even sure it was humanely possible, she'd always just use the side door near the back exit. Her heartbeat quickened under the very first realization that she might just be in some sort of danger. Emerald green eyes wide with fear looked to the church entrance.

The owner of such force was a tall slender man with auburn hair that fell artistically into bright eyes. The man moved with a supple form of grace, rather like a hunting cat that had spotted his prey, it radiated elegance and pride. He was dressed impeccably in scarlet leather, the color of murder, she thought fearfully. Even from her distance she could see the ripple of taunt muscle under his coat, most notably of all was the crimson rapier that hung menacingly from his belt.

It seemed like he was looking for something as the being analyzed their surroundings with a critical stare. Her breath caught painfully in her throat, he looked like one of those SOLDIER types from Shinra. Obviously he hadn't noticed her yet and Aerith toyed with the idea of sliding underneath a pew to hide. Carefully she lowered her body to the floor sliding one hand out to safety, the floorboard squeaked violently underneath her shifting weight. The man's head darted in her direction, like a predator sensing prey she noted with a sickening feeling. Not wanting to look like she was plotting escape, Aerith shifted back onto her knees and offered the stranger one of her bravest yet warmest smiles that she could muster, penetrating eyes of intense blue leered at her.