My name is Mengde, and I don't own the world of Avatar or its characters. But we knew that.

This is a Christmas present for my best friend, the very talented VulcanElf (whose page you should visit if you like FFVII). I am posting it in its entirety, rather than piecemeal, because it is meant to be read in one sitting. It just happens to have multiple chapters.

The chapters begin at 0 and end at 6. The characters at the start of each chapter are simply numbers.

Enjoy.

零

Dying never seemed real to me until now.

She could feel the shrapnel, or at least she imagined she could. By this point she was beyond pain, beyond any sensation but the creeping numbness and chill of blood loss. Her vision was growing dark around the edges.

But she'd made a promise. Her legs still worked, for the moment. And if they stopped, if she couldn't walk, she would crawl.

She'd made a promise.