Author's Note: Okay so this is probably one of the best fanfictions I've ever written. This is set in the FF7 world, but some things will be tweaked. Lightning and any other FF13 characters I mention all have modified backgrounds and whatnot to fit the story. This is an AU after all. The story is told from Lightning's point of you and most of the time she is saying all of this to Cloud, who is dead in this fanfiction. This story is told mainly through flashbacks and is loosely inspired from the amazing play "Praying For Rain", though only a few ideas from the play were used in this fanfiction.
Also, this is a yuri fanfiction meaning girlxgirl. If you don't like it don't read.
I hope you enjoy and please leave reviews! I love getting opinions!
"Lightning! Please don't leave!" Said the voice of Tifa Lockhart as she rushed down the stairs, chasing after the other woman.
"I'm sick of it! No matter what, I'm not Cloud! Stop using me to remind you of him!" I screamed before storming out of Seventh Heaven bar. It was raining that night. How ironic. I could hear the screams from Tifa, begging me to come back. It sounded like she was crying also. Part of me wanted to turn back. But I knew that I needed some time to myself. I need the time to figure out what I'm doing with my life. And just where Tifa and I are heading. To think…if it rained like it was supposed to that night, you still would have been around Cloud. You and Tifa would probably be together. The two of you were so in love. So perfect for each other. I know…you are the one that she wants. I'm probably just being used by her. But why do I love it so much? Why am I so drawn to her? Why did you have to die Cloud? I'll never forget…the day I first met you.
September of 2002. I was an infantryman there, like you. I never felt like such a rookie before. But I wasn't alone. I remember a lot of other new recruits walking around as well. We all looked so lost and confused. Plus those First Class SOLDIERS just looked so damn intimidating also. There also were not many girls around. That should be expected though. Everyone was so surprised that I made it this far. Girls in this sort of work were extremely rare. Even today, years later, females in that field are so rare. I don't really get it. And when Serah had still been around, she called me all of the time, just to make sure that I was alright. I miss Serah. Snow took her from me. But when I first joined, I think I was trying to get away from her. I thought I needed time to myself. Like I do right now…hopefully things won't turn up the same way tonight with Tifa.
Back then, I really wanted to be a SOLDIER. But all I managed to reach was an infantryman. It seemed like every teenager back then wanted that. I was no different. But I was still happy just to be there. I looked down at the report sheet I was given. I noticed that I'd be going to Nibelheim. I had not been there before. I was from Midgar, and Nibelheim was out in the country. But if I recall, I was still pretty excited. I kept on walking along, when another infantryman came along. He seemed familiar. But he and I never had a real conversation. And that man was you, Cloud. That day would be the first day you and I met. To thin, that our first conversation had been so…simple.
"Hey…you're Lightning, right?" You asked me. I nodded my head. Lightning. That was when I had just changed my name. It was still sort of hard for me to respond to. But now…Claire is just so hard for me to respond to. No one calls me that anymore though. Tifa knows me as Lightning. Everyone knows me as Lightning. But Serah will still call me Claire, when I get an occasional phone call from her. The last time she called me was over six months ago. She told me that she had been expecting. She may have had her baby by now. I might very well be an Aunt. I bet you wanted to have lots of kids with Tifa, right Cloud?
You looked at the ground as you spoke to me. It was obvious that you were kind of shy. Maybe it had to do with the fact that this was all new to you. But it was new to me also. We were both rookies. "I came to tell you that there's been a mistake. I just found out that I'm supposed to go to Nibelheim instead…" You spoke that in such a shy tone of voice. Almost like…you felt guilty for telling me this. I still wonder if this was really a mix-up, or if you were trying to just get to see Tifa. I never did get to find out. The supervisors thought nothing of it. We infantryman were just treated like weapons. Not people. I remember being suspicious of you. But you really did want to go on that mission for some reason. The least that I could do was let you have that much. So…I handed you the information. The first thing that I noticed was a small smile on your face. I always liked when you smiled. When you and Tifa smiled it just made me so happy. And when you smiled at her, and she smiled back at you, I got jealous. I wanted to be the one Tifa was smiling at. She doesn't smile at me like she smiled at you. But that was the first time I really saw your smile, Cloud. And it wasn't just because you got what you wanted. Something more was there. I could sense it off you with ease. And I tended to be a horrible judge of emotions. Correction, I still am horrible at judging emotions. Tifa teases me about it sometimes. And that makes me smile a lot.
You looked up to me. "Thank you." You said and you smiled at me a bit. "You're welcome." I replied and I even had a small smile on my face as well, something that almost never happened. I felt surprisingly curious after this though and next thing I knew, I was asking you a question.
"You seem pretty happy about going to Nibelheim. Is there a reason why?" I asked. You looked down again before speaking. "Well…I'm from Nibelheim actually. So I guess going home would be sort of fun, y'know?" You said. I nodded my head. But even then, I knew that it wasn't just that. You wanted to see Tifa, didn't you Cloud? The girl that you love. The girl that we both love. And if I had known that I would have had the chance to see the girl I would love in the future on that day…I probably wouldn't have let you go. And if I had known what was going to happen with Sephiroth on that day…I definitely wouldn't have let you go. If I could go back to any day in time, my second choice would be going to that day when Sephiroth went mad. And I would have killed him before he had the chance. Imagine how different things would be. If only I could turn back time and do that. Tifa would still have her father. So many lives would be spared. And the whole incident with Sephiroth later on…it would have never happened. But of course, time travel is not possible. You know what my first choice would be? I'd go back to the day that you went for the drive on your motorcycle. The day it was supposed to rain. And…I'd stop you from going out. You'd still be with us today. But now that I think about it…I'm not so sure if I would want to go back in time and stop you. Because if you were still here, I probably would not have gotten Tifa's love. Even if it may all be fake and a lie, it's a beautiful lie. A lie that I'll never want to stop believing.
You glanced at a watch on your hand. "Oh I'm going to be late. I better get going. Thanks again Lightning!" You said and started running off. I watched you run and then I realized something…I didn't know your name. Someone walked by and I tapped them on the shoulder, asking if they knew you. They told me your name. Cloud Strife. A name that I'll never be able to forget. One that I don't think Tifa will be able to forget either. Though I don't think the name Lightning will gain eternity in Tifa's mind. I suddenly remembered just a moment ago, when I had yelled at Tifa. You wouldn't have yelled at Tifa, would you Cloud? You really are better for her than me. Am I selfish for keeping her with me like this? She probably deserves someone better than me. Why can't I make her happy like you did Cloud? Why?
