Cloud Strife was not someone who needed to be comforted.

He was a former SOLDIER and an infallible combatant on the battlefield. He had faced countless horrifying monsters and humans alike, and came out the other side generally unscathed. Cloud was convinced that there wasn’t anything for him to be afraid of anymore, after everything he had encountered.

Except for this. Except for his nightmares.

His hometown—Nibleheim—was burning down around him, as vivid as the day it happened. And, as it had been before, he was helpless to stop it. All he could do was watch flames engulf his childhood home, and the town along with it. He had been having this nightmare for weeks, though he was never able to feel the fire like he could now.

Cloud awoke, a hoarse shout tearing itself out of his throat as he shot up in bed. The heat of the burning embers licking across his skin was quickly replaced by the cold air of his bedroom. Cloud blinked, bleary-eyed and gasping, as he tried to bring himself back to reality.

I’m better than this, he chided himself internally.

But that didn’t stop his feet from taking him to his roommate’s door. His hand was on the doorknob before he knew what he was doing, twisting until the door gave way. The light from the bedroom window bathed Cloud and the hallway he stood in, leaving him squinting to adjust his eyes.

What was he even doing? He barely knew his roommate. They weren’t friends; they were just two people sharing the expenses of this house. Contractually obligated to share a space. There wasn’t any reason for him to seek their comfort.

He was about to turn and force himself to go back to sleep, until he heard his roommate’s voice. Much to his chagrin, he had woken them up. Maybe it had been the creaky floorboards, or the sound of the door opening; or, Gaia forbid, his terrified scream a few minutes prior. Whatever it was, he was as good as caught.