He hoped so. Even if it took ten years. He wanted to see the glass skyscrapers refracting sunlight again. People bustling down the streets. Rooftop gardens overflowing with luscious green. The place had become his home, and it pained him to see it in the state the Empire had reduced it to.

As for Sephiroth's reaction to the scene. He couldn't really blame the man, but it still brought a burning flush to his cheeks. "Well, no but- it's complicated, okay? I wasn't exactly taught as a child, and then circumstances kept making it difficult. Besides, who wants to teach an adult how to do something every fledgling knows how to do. It's silly." He shook his head, fingers picking at the leather band on his wrist. The barcode hidden underneath felt heavy and hot. He wished, not for the first time, that he didn't have wings at all.