Chapter 1: London Bridge is Falling Down


The Twice Saviour of Gaia stood in shock and confusion as to what had happened. A moment ago the bar had been noisy courtesy of the ever annoying Marlene and poor Denzel who was her common target, after the obvious Cloud Strife, and now, all that anybody could hear was the sound of water dripping from a nearby tap.

Thank goodness the bar is not open today otherwise, it would have been uncomfortable on so many different levels, was all that the blond could think of at the moment.

"Hey Spike, you there? Answer me? Where are you lost? Did you just see Tifa in her towel? *chuckle* I should have warned you about that habit of hers. Yo Spike you do know that she is still unaware as to why you came ba-" There was a thud and the sentence was left incomplete as Cloud's phone hit the floor and the warrior came out of his trance. A deep blush now adorned his usually pale face and from his peripheral view, he noticed Tifa in the same predicament although in shock too, her jaw about to hit the floor.

"Close your mouth lady, you'll have enough opportunities to see that in the future," Tifa heard a cocky young voice say that. Cloud noticed that his companion's blush was more pronounced now and realised that Zack must have said something pointedly embarrassing to her. It was the only logical explanation he could find for her blush since he had known for some time that Tifa was aware of Zack's and Aeris' presence.

Honestly Zack sometimes was too much to bear and had a knack for coming in at opportune moments and the knowledge that their guardians knew a lot about his weaknesses had made him more self-conscious. Who knew what that SOLDIER could blurt while talking to her!

His was the only presence that was missing to witness this scenario, thought the blonde as Zack guffawed at Cloud's situation and turned to make fun of him, confirming his suspicion about Tifa's blush.

"Honestly Cloud, in this situation, if you went out in public, you'll be arrested for indecency," said a soft voice such that both the adults in the room heard it.

Oh gee Aeris, I don't think he is ready to go out in public and give a show. I think that Don Corneo's mansion and the related incidents must have scarred him for life, mused Tifa and both girls were now in fits of laughter. Cloud could easily guess why they were laughing. They'd never let him live that one down.

"I must say Cloud that I always knew you were never the one for modesty," Zack chuckled.

Oh god, why don't these two disappear and somebody cast Darkness on Tifa for just a few moments, thought Cloud. He had finally gotten over all the initial reactions and shock. He must have woken up on the wrong side of the bed today, Or, Barret's phone call must be a curse to wake up to. Yeah that must be it. How else would he explain all that had happened?

He had woken up to his cell phone ringing incessantly. Noticing that it was Barret, he rubbed his eyes, picked it up flipping it open and started walking downstairs while talking to him. It turned out that little girls are a bane for trousers when they hear their father's voice on the phone and Cloud learned it the hard way.

The moment he entered the bar and announced that Barret called, a bouncing Marlene came and started tugging at his trousers, shouting, "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!" excitedly about her Daddy calling. Her excitation got the best of his trousers; one minute they were on him, the other, they were halfway down his legs leaving his boxers for the world to view. It was Magic! And no materia was required too!

When he had decided to come back to live with Tifa and the kids, he had not envisioned this happening. All he was looking forward to was some time to get used to a family life, find a romantic moment (or create one) and then sieze the day by proposing to Tifa. After all, he had realised that day a week ago, standing in the pool that he was not alone because of that one constant in his life, the martial artist with her heart of gold and the patience of a saint.

It was only when the said martial artist cleared her throat that he came out of his reverie and proceeded to pull up his trousers, blushing all the more and making an important decision. No more wearing trousers at home without a belt. Or belts, whatever seemed to put Marlene at bay. He must have muttered that out loud unconsciously because he heard Tifa chuckle beside him and remark, "It will take more than belts to keep Marlene at bay. Just be glad that it was one of her better mornings and she was not on a sugar rush."

Oh great, now I am losing control over my conscious stream of mind and blurting out stuff which should be kept to myself, Cloud thought as he rubbed his hand over his face and groaned, and what did she mean by better mornings, what more could she have done if she were on a sugar-rush. Hadn't she already made a debacle of me by giving a view of my boxers to Tifa! Oh, the shame...

"Hey, Cloud?" Tifa said breaking the silence, causing the blue-eyed warrior to face her, "Go get changed and I'll make some breakfast for you, hmmm?" She said and put her right hand on his cheek and smiled at him. This gave him another shock, albeit a better one and he felt himself smiling in response.

"Hmmm," he nodded in reply and turned around to leave. Climbing the stairs to the floor above, he seemed oblivious to the fact that Denzel had a camera in his hands and Marlene was busy calling somebody on the phone. Little did he also know that this was the beginning to another adventure, an adventure that would change his life.


A/N: I haven't written anything apart from literature reviews and reports in 7 years so if my style is a bit too factual/cold, my apologies. Also apologies on the name of the story but I was in a serious dilemma over this one and had to opt for a cliche one for now. If along the novella, a new name comes, I might change it. Anywho, read and enjoy! Don't forget to review please! I look forward to your constructive criticism :)