-'Flying Without Wings'
-A 'Final Fantasy VII' songfic-
=^w^=
The cool water rippled under the gloved hands as Cloud retracted them, the liquid running through his fingers like a waterfall over a cliff. It amazed him how flexible water really was; only the most sealed of barriers could stop its flow, but eventually that flow would break through the barrier and continue along a path unplanned and spontaneous. It was also very deceptive, the surface appearing calmer than the rushing rapids concealed beneath its exterior.
Cloud brushed his wet hands along his pant legs and stood up, stretching his arms above his head toward the sunlight filtering through the broken roof of the church. His tension relieved, he walked outside toward Fenrir and clambered on, the few deliveries he had to make strapped to the back of the large motorcycle. He'd been visiting the church and the plateau less and less as of late, something that had been puzzling him to no end.
BZZT. BZZT.
Crap. He'd missed a call.
"Hey Cloud, it's Tora. Tifa said you were out all day, but I was just wondering if you want to meet me out in Midgar tonight, say around eight. You know...at that place we used to frequent all those years ago. It's alright if you don't want to; I'll understand if there's too many bad memories or whatnot, but there's nothing nicer than extending the invitation, eh? Anyway, I'll let you get back to work. Justin and Nero have found the spray paint and have taken to creating murals everywhere. I'd better go turn them into murals as well, heh heh."
Repocketing his phone, Cloud kicked the cycle into life and took off back toward Edge, the message weighing on his mind. Why would Tora want to go back to the place that gave them both so many bad memories?
He supposed it had something to do with them; she was very secretive about things that concerned her on an emotional scale. Revving Fenrir, he took off faster.
=^w^=
Everybody's looking for that something
One thing that makes it all complete
You'll find it in the strangest places
Places you never knew it could be
=^w^=
Kicking her legs against the broken wall, Tora stared up at the sky and fiddled with a stray section of her hair that had fallen out of its ponytail. The stars twinkled overhead, having seen as much as she had and even more. Some days it was easy to pretend that each star was someone special that was looking down on the Planet and laughing at its inhabitants' misfortunes, other days it was easier to remember that they were balls of gas burning billions of miles away. Heaving out a breath, the gunslinger turned as lights suddenly illuminated the area.
"I didn't think you'd come." she said as Fenrir's hums died down. Cloud turned off the engine and got off the cycle, walking toward her.
"I was curious," he replied, pulling himself up onto the ruined house, "Why did you invite me?"
"Old times' sake. I wanted to see if those feelings were still there." Her gold eyes returned to the stars, throwing the two into a silence that unnerved the swordsman. It wasn't an awkward silence, it was more like the silence that ended a conversation and sat there until a new conversation was started.
Cloud hated those silences. He was normally the one who had to break them.
"What did you mean by feelings?" Case in point... Tora leaned over and placed her head on his shoulder, her breath ghosting over his skin rather nicely.
"You used to make me feel safe...I was just wondering if it was still there," she said softly, "I don't get to see you all that often anymore." The arm the gunslinger was leaning on found itself at her hip, the hand that was attached to it resting on the surgery scar comfortably while the thumb brushed absently over the clothing covering it. Closing her eyes, Tora allowed the once-forgotten security wash over her like warm water, unknowingly cuddling closer to Cloud in the process. In return Cloud rested his head on hers, his eyes up at the sky.
Maybe that feeling of security worked both ways.
=^w^=
Some find it in the face of their children
Some find it in their lover's eyes
Who can deny the joy it brings?
When you've found that special thing
You're flying without wings
=^w^=
Marlene was busy scribbling something on a sheet of paper when the gunslinger entered the room, her eyes a little bleary from waking up only ten minutes ago. Tora let out a loud yawn and walked past the small brunette into the kitchen, her goal to wake up her entire system with something that was filled with caffeine. Marlene suddenly jumped off her seat and raced in after her, the sheet of paper clutched in her hand.
"Tora! Tora!" she cried, jumping up and down, "Look!"
"Honey, calm down. Not all of us have as much energy right now as you do," the young woman replied, shushing the girl, "Besides, some people are still sleeping."
"So why are you awake?" Marlene tilted her head in confusion.
"Because I'm used to waking up now. Now what was it you wanted to show me?" Giving a little cry of surprise, the brunette gripped her paper in both hands and held it up proudly. Tora smiled at the picture she'd drawn: it was everyone she knew all crammed into one A4 space.
But something confused her. Everyone except Cloud and herself had wings.
"Hey Marlene, why does everyone else have wings?" she asked. Marlene looked at the picture in confusion, her big eyes scanning the figures present, before she looked back up at Tora with her mouth set into a line.
"You guys don't need wings to fly, because you already can." she said matter-of-factly, sincerity shining on her face. Tora suddenly found herself wanting to cry; the way that Marlene spoke was very honest, very heartfelt...she couldn't believe that a child could say such things.
Kneeling down, she wrapped the girl in a hug and kissed her forehead, smiling to keep her tears at bay. Marlene smiled back and pressed the paper into the gunslinger's hand, running out of the kitchen calling back that she needed to get ready to go visit everyone at the orphanage. Tora watched her go, then looked down at the drawing of all of Marlene's most important people. The fact that she had no wings made her a little depressed – was she really a demon? – but then Cloud's stick-like figure crept into her line of vision and she perked up.
"Morning Tora," Yuffie walked into the room, stretching her arms above her head, "What's that?"
"Oh...it's just a drawing Marlene did for me. Listen, I've got to get back to the orphanage; could you let Tifa know I'll come back to pick up Denzel and Marlene in a couple of hours?" Nodding slowly, the ninja watched as the gunslinger disappeared out the door, then shook her head; she sure was acting weird lately.
Quietly heading into the back of 'Seventh Heaven' Tora opened one particular door and peeked inside. Cloud was curled up on one of the beds in the room, Tifa in the other. Creeping in, the gunslinger quickly folded up the piece of paper and, pulling a pen out of her pocket, scribbled a note on it and left it jutting out of the blond's pillow where he could see it. She leaned down to examine his sleeping face; she couldn't remember the last time she'd seen him so peaceful. Brushing stray hairs out of his eyes, she pressed a gentle kiss to his temple before leaving the room, a smile on her face nothing could remove.
Inside the room she just left, blue eyes opened and Cloud shifted so he could watch orange and black hair flick around the corner. Pulling the paper out from underneath his pillow he unfurled it first, blinking at the picture that was signed, 'M. Wallace' before turning it over to read the note.
'I think she's found something we're still looking for.'
=^w^=
Some find it shared in every morning
Some in the solitary nights
You'll find it in the words of others
A simple line can make you laugh or cry
=^w^=
"Oh no! Gravity...too much...can't...make it..."
"Tora!" The children underneath the gunslinger laughed and squirmed, trying to get free of their caretaker as she slumped further over them. Tora laughed and rolled off them, crawling away like gravity really was getting to her. Justin was the first one to react, grabbing the gunslinger's legs and enlisting the help of Emma and Nero to drag her back toward the playroom.
"The evil tribe has captured me!" she cried, clawing at the carpet, "Now they're going to roast me alive and steal my right shoe!"
"That's right, and we're not going to regret it!" the redheaded teen cackled, looking over at the silver-haired twins. They responded with a sly grin of their own and dragged the young woman into their 'fire' – a large mound of pillows surrounded by several long blocks. The children began to dance around the 'fire' chanting in a language they'd made up on the spot, waving about sticks topped with crumpled pieces of paper that served as torches. Tora curled up in a ball in the 'fire' and watched them play, amazed at how much they'd all changed.
It may have been years since Meteor and Jenova, and a few weeks since Deepground, but the hope that the children continued to radiate never failed to keep her own hope alive.
"Tora, Cloud's here to get Denzel and Marlene!" Emma let out a loud sigh of discontent as the gunslinger stood up and headed for the main hall, where the blond was standing around admiring a flower arrangement on a mahogany end table. He looked up as the two children he looked after approached, catching Marlene before she could bowl him over. Tora smiled and folded her arms as she watched him usher them outside, a real family aura emitting from the interaction.
"What did Marlene say to you this morning?" the blond asked suddenly, turning to face the gunslinger.
"What makes you think she said anything?" she retorted. Cloud pulled the drawing from his pocket and held it up, surprising Tora. Turning it over, he read the note she'd left to her.
"'I think she's found something we're still searching for'. What did she say to you?" he asked again. Tora turned her eyes away, debating whether or not to elaborate on the note she'd left him this morning.
Ah, who cares? Who's it going to hurt?
"Marlene told me that the reason she didn't give us wings is because we can already fly." she replied, facing Cloud, "That's what I meant when I said she may have found something we haven't." Bidding goodbye to Denzel and Marlene, she retreated into the orphanage with one hand over her heart and a single tear shining on her tattooed cheek.
Children had a way of touching you heart, even if they didn't understand what was happening around them.
=^w^=
You'll find it in the deepest friendships
The kind you cherish all your life
And when you know how much it means
You've found that special thing
You're flying without wings
=^w^=
Absently nibbling on a carrot stick, Cloud glanced around nervously as he watched Tifa make sure everything was in order before straightening up and dusting off her hands. They were going to play host to all their friends from AVALANCHE tonight to celebrate the peace that reigned in Edge, as well as just catch up with everybody and see how they were doing. As Barrett's clomping footsteps alerted them to their first guest Tifa sighed.
"Cloud, can you go greet everyone please? I'll go get Marlene and Denzel." she said. The blond nodded and moved to the door automatically as the large man walked in, clapping the blond on the back.
"Yo Cloud! Long time!" he hollered as he scooped up Marlene in his mismatched arms. Cloud merely nodded, half the wind knocked out of him, then ducked as Yuffie barrelled overhead followed closely by Vincent. The ex-Turk gave the swordsman a polite nod before collecting the ninja and moving inside as Cid walked in, a fresh cigarette being stubbed out by his boot.
"Damn it..." he muttered under his breath, "Still a pansy?"
"Just mosey on in." Cloud smirked, which earned him a punch on the arm as a reward. Following Cid came Reeve, carrying Cait Sith in his arms and chatting to Tora.
The blond did a double take. When did...how did...
"Tifa invited me," Tora elaborated for the sputtering swordsman, "Even though I'm not part of AVALANCHE I still played an important role in the restoration of the Planet."
"What were you saying about Adelaide and her newest creation?" Reeve distracted the orphanage owner as they made their way into the main living room behind the bar, a bemused blond following them. Tifa tapped on her water glass to get everyone's attention.
"First of all, I want to say thank you to you all for coming tonight. I know some of you have busy schedules, and I'm really grateful for you to take time out to attend this miniature reunion," She pointedly looked at Reeve and Tora at that statement, both of them just smiling apologetically at her, "but before we can get to chatting to each other, I believe we should all name one thing that we're really grateful for." Quiet murmuring broke out in the room.
What could they say?
"May I start?" Tora asked suddenly. Everyone looked over at her.
"Speak." said Vincent. Yuffie made frenzied hand motions that encouraged the female gunslinger, while everyone else had the decency to remain silent so she could talk.
"I'm really grateful for all of you," Cloud's breath hitched a little, "You guys have been really good friends ever since I first met you during Meteor and I don't think I would've gotten to where I am today without all of your help. If I can, I'd like to thank you all individually so that you can think about what you're all grateful for." Laughter suddenly rang through the room, making the gunslinger feel better about going first.
"Off ya go, then." Cid said.
"Alright then, I'll start with you Cid. I'm grateful for your crude exterior and gold heart; best combination in the world, if you ask me." The pilot's mouth dropped as the orphanage owner moved on.
"Reeve, I'm grateful for your support in the orphanage; your robots are exceptional and Adelaide loves to play with them." The WRO commissioner had the decency to redden a little.
"Barrett, I'm grateful for your 'listening' mode; I'm sorry for making you hear my life stories, but no-one else really shuts up long enough to be objective." The dark-skinned man waved his hand in embarrassment.
"Vincent, I'm grateful that you're like a third father to me; you know my first, and I'm not repeating the name of my second." The male gunslinger nodded in appreciation.
"Yuffie, I'm grateful that we have the same heritage; it's nice to know someone else can speak my language when I don't feel like using English." The ninja gave a little gasp of surprise.
"Denzel and Marlene, I'm grateful for everything you guys do; you guys are the greatest." Both children grinned widely.
"Tifa, I'm grateful for your patience, especially with everything that's happened; not a lot of people can do that, but I'm glad you can." The martial artist fanned herself a little to stop herself from crying.
"And Cloud..." Tora looked him right in the eye, smiling, "I'm grateful for your constant presence in my life ever since I was fifteen years old. Your strength gave me the strength to fight on, and if it weren't for you then I wouldn't have anything to fight for." The entire room was silent as she rounded up her small speech, a few tears shining in the ladies' eyes. Tora sat back down beside Vincent and stared intently into her glass of water, a blush on her face that could light up Edge with its intensity. Cloud glanced out the corner of his eye at the female gunslinger all night, her words affecting him more than he thought they would.
It seemed to him that he found the thing Marlene had found within them; he'd found his reason to fly.
=^w^=
So impossible as it may seem
You've got to fight for every dream
'Cause who's to know which ones you let go?
Would it make you complete?
=^w^=
The main living room long deserted, Tora sat along one of the couches with a blanket thrown over her body to maintain warmth. Tifa had insisted she stay the night, but could not sway Tora's made-up mind about sleeping on the couch; there just wasn't enough room to house everyone, and Yuffie was a kicker in her sleep. A single candle burned on the small end table near the couch, its dim light creating huge shadows the orphanage owner was sure Lily would be frightened over. Curling into herself a little, she tried to conserve as much body heat as she could so she could sleep the night through without worrying about hypothermia or frostbite.
A pair of hands suddenly crept underneath her body and lifted her into the air, the person doing the lifting getting comfortable on the couch before setting her down on top of them. In the candlelight gold eyes could make out the glowing blue ones connected to the person who had just done that, and Tora rested her head on Cloud's shoulder.
"You should be in your own bed." she chided.
"I'm comfortable here," he replied, "I couldn't stop thinking about what you said earlier." The female gunslinger's face burned again as the words resurfaced, something she was sure he could feel against his bare chest; what made her think he slept in that black attire he always wore?
"I meant every word of it." she said lowly. Cloud gently rubbed her right arm, the one with the experiment scars on it, and brought her closer to him. Tora placed a hand on his chest and nearly jumped at his heartbeat; surely he was alright, there was no reason for his heart to be beating that fast.
"Would you like to know what I'm grateful for?" he asked.
"Besides what you told us tonight?" The blond lifted his other hand and tilted her chin up, so that sunlight gold was looking directly into mako blue, the same way she'd delivered her gratitude of him.
"I'm grateful for you," he whispered, "Every day you give me a reason to fight for my dreams and my honour. Even though I've known Tifa longer than I have you, I feel connected to you in ways that I didn't think I was allowed to be. I know now that I'm not alone, and I'm grateful that you're always going to be there to show me that." The orphanage owner bit her lip to keep tears at bay, her heart soaring with the words the swordsman had just omitted. Leaning her head forward, she pressed a soft kiss to his lips before returning her head to his shoulder and gently taking his hand in hers. Cloud pulled the blanket up over their bodies to keep them warm and relaxed into the couch, his position suggesting that he could make a break for it.
Which was sort of the case; the minute Tora was asleep he was relocating them to his bed.
=^w^=
Well, for me, it's waking up beside you
To watch the sun rise on your face
To know that I can say 'I love you'
In any given time or place
=^w^=
The silence of 'Seventh Heaven' unnerved Cloud when he woke up the next morning, the sunlight pouring through the curtains being the second thing he noticed; Tifa must've opened them when she woke up. Something felt funny on his forehead, so he reached up only to pluck a Post-It note from his hair.
'Morning, sleepyheads! As our way of showing our gratitude to you, we're going to look after the orphanage for the next three days. You guys deserve a break from it all, and what better way to do that than in the presence of each other?'
"That's nice of them." The swordsman nearly fell off the bed when the gunslinger's voice broke the sleepy silence, correcting himself by latching a little tighter to her waist. Tora tucked her head underneath Cloud's chin and sighed, her back now being cooked by the sun.
"I'm sorry for startling you." she said.
"Do you still have Marlene's drawing?" Sunlight gold eyes rolled, but Tora disconnected herself from the blond to go fetch the aforementioned paper from her things in the living room, only to discover someone moved them into the room.
"Wow, they really think of everything," she murmured, digging through her clothes, "Here it is." Handing Cloud the drawing, she sat beside him and raised an eyebrow as his eyes roamed over the lines on the sheet, curious as to why he would want to see it again.
"Look at this." Cloud pointed to something in between the drawn figures of himself and her, her eyes following. Their hands were linked in a way that could only be described as loving.
"Wow...she really did find something we were still looking for." Tora said, taking his hand, "Do you think it looks something like this?" Lifting them up, blue eyes noticed that they were intertwined much like in the drawing. Green nails stood out vividly against his pale skin, the pale olive of her own skin adding extra contrast. Cloud adjusted the grip he had on Tora's hand and brought it to his lips, kissing each digit gently then the back of her hand. He then used the grip he had on her hand to bring her closer so he could kiss her lips, the action reciprocated by the gunslinger. The touches were soft and unhurried; they had three days, after all.
"Is that as close to a verbal declaration as I'm going to get?" Tora asked lowly as they slowly parted, her lips brushing his as she spoke.
"Were you expecting one?" he replied.
"From you? No. I know you, Cloud, and I'm happy that you can express yourself in other ways besides verbally; you never were the best at talking, anyway."
"You amaze me every time you open your mouth, Tora." Her giggling was quelled by another kiss, this one more passionate and pressing than the first.
=^w^=
It's the little things that only I know
Those are the things that make you mine
And it's like flying without wings
'Cause you're my special thing
I'm flying without wings
=^w^=
"Cloud, where'd you go?" Tora poked her head into yet another room and sighed, not spotting the spiky blonde hair that belonged to the swordsman anywhere. Blowing her bangs out of her eyes she spun around and walked out, trekking down the hallways in search of the elusive man. Every search attempt ended up fruitless, so pouting she reclined into a chair in the main living room and folded her arms over her chest, her slightly damp hair tickling her nose.
Hm, that really was a nice smelling shampoo...
Boredom knocking, the orphanage owner got up and moved into the kitchen, desperate for a drink. Splashing some water into a glass, she sipped at it while opening the cutlery drawer to look for a knife. Unfortunately, she didn't know Cid had oiled the sliders of the drawer again.
CRASH.
"Ouch!" One particularly nasty steak knife decided to lodge itself into Tora's arm, blood welling up between the blade and the wound site. Gripping at her wrist, the orphanage owner held the offending wound over the sink so as not to spill any more of her blood everywhere and moved her hand to the handle of the knife.
"Gaia!" More blood slowly welled up over the top of the broken skin, telling Tora that she'd only nicked a vein; if she'd hit an artery the blood would be coming out in gushes. She turned on the tap and washed away the red liquid staining her skin and the sink, cringing at the thought of Tifa finding out she'd stabbed herself with a steak knife because of well-oiled drawers.
A hand reached under the running water and pulled her arm out, dabbing at the wetness clinging to the skin before slapping a small white gauze over the wound. Gold eyes watched as the hand began to wind a bandage around the gauze, stopping only when the bandage ran out of length and the end was securely tucked in. Cloud lifted the bandaged wound to his face and kissed the gauze, his eyes never leaving hers. Tora blushed and retracted her arm, rubbing the kiss into the bandage to help her heal.
"Thank you, Cloud." she said.
"You hurt yourself, and I was there to take the pain away," Stepping over the fallen cutlery, the blond wrapped his arms around the gunslinger's waist, "just like you do with me." Tora smiled at him, resting her head on his shoulder and basking in the comfortable silence they were in.
They had impacted on each other in ways even she didn't think was possible...and a little girl's drawing had started this revelation; Marlene was getting a big birthday present next year.
=^w^=
And you're the place my life begins
And you'll be where it ends
I'm flying without wings
=^w^=
Mosquitoes and flies buzzed around the large patio attached to the back of Lost Pathways Orphanage, annoying everyone within the vicinity. Those present included Rufus Shinra and the Turks and AVALANCHE, who had been invited by Tora to a barbecue as a break from all the work that had been going on. The children had been so receptive of everyone, too; Ethan had dragged Cid, Reeve, Rufus and Tseng into several rounds of cards that saw the sixteen-year-old grinning like a cat that had eaten an entire aviary, Emma, Justin and Nero had cornered Reno, Vincent, Barrett, Marlene and Denzel into what appeared to be extreme hide-and-seek, and Adelaide and Lily had formed a group with Elena, Yuffie and Tifa and were discussing anything that came up.
That just left two people.
"Let's eat!" Tora yelled, the resultant stampede impressing her; not even the kids could generate that much earth-shaking power. Once everyone was seated around the exceptionally large table (arguments were settled by having someone else sit in certain spots) the food was dished out and talking was abundant. Every so often there would be a loud squawk from a child which resulted in a small food fight which ended with Tora threatening to restrict privileges, but other than that the night went smoothly.
Yuffie clinked her knife against her glass to attract everyone's attention, and after several minutes she succeeded. Clearing her throat she raised her glass and grinned.
"I think some toasts deserve to go around." she said, ignoring the confused looks on some of the younger children's faces.
"What she means is that we're going to drink to something good about someone here." the orphanage owner explained, the resultant 'oh's making everyone feel better. The ninja silently thanked Tora, then raised her glass again.
"To all of us, for being so awesome during the thing with Deepground and handing their butts to them." she said. Everyone chorused with 'To us' and drank, keeping a hold on them as a few more toasts rang through the patio. Throughout the toasts Tora noticed that Cloud's hand kept sneaking into hers, squeezing lightly every so often. She fought back the urge to lean over and kiss his cheek and turned back to the congregation, where Tifa was standing up ready to make her toast.
"I'm going to toast Cloud and Tora," Both mentioned people blushed, "for the official start to their relationship tonight, even though technically it started back when they first met." More colour flared across Tora's mismatched cheeks as everyone toasted them, cheering and clinking their glasses together happily. The female gunslinger buried her face into her hand to hide her embarrassment, only to find her hand pulled away and her face pulled up to collide with her partner's. Cloud nearly smirked at the squeak that escaped the orphanage owner's throat, swallowing it as he claimed her lips over and over again.
"Oh, ew!" Justin exclaimed from beside his twin brother who was covering his eyes.
"It's so sweet..." Emma mock-cooed, before turning and mock-gagging, "Knock it off, you two!"
"Nah, let them go," Ethan waved a hand as they slowly parted, smiling at each other, "I've known for years that Tora liked Cloud. She wasn't going to do anything about it because they were too busy doing other things; him saving the world and her saving us. Don't you think they deserve a new start?" As the eldest female, Emma understood the vast majority of what the sixteen-year-old said, and as she turned back to the orphanage owner and her partner she looked away again.
Ew, kissing.
"Now that you've all thrown up dinner, who wants dessert?" Tora asked, shrugging with one shoulder as Cloud gripped her hand and followed her inside, "Please tell me you're going to let me get everyone food before you distract me." He chuckled.
"Not a chance." As they kissed again Marlene's drawing fell out of Cloud's pocket, landing beside his foot with another note scrawled on the back.
'We never needed wings, anyway; we just need each other.'
=^w^=
And that's the joy you bring
I'm flying without wings
=^w^=
DISCLAIMER: The disclaimer applies to all characters and all settings of 'Final Fantasy VII' and its associates – SquareEnix – the song 'Flying Without Wings' – Westlife – and Tora, her children and the Lost Pathways Orphanage – me.