Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy. Nor do I claim any ownership to the characters or settings or anything to do with Final Fantasy. I am simply borrowing them for entertainment purposes only.
Okay, this is my first Final Fantasy fanfiction story so take it easy on me...hehe! I have had a new found obsession with Final Fantasy which stemmed form a movie night I had when my niece came over to spend the weekend. She wanted to see Final Fantasy VII Advent Children so bad so I rented it. After that, I went and bought the movie and I have watched it so much since then. So here is the first chapter of my story. I hope that none of the characters seem out of character. If they do, I apologize. I have only played a little bit of the original Final Fantasy VII game and seen the movie. Anything other then that, I have had to read on the internet. Also, this story takes place after the events of Advent Children. Not too long though. Maybe a few months. In my story, Barret is still drilling for oil. It's a different oil field though. Also, there are a few things that I have changed so bear with me, It will be explained eventually.
Special thanks to my niece for getting me back interested in Final Fantasy and to my friend Danniele who gave me tons of awesome ideas.
Spoiler Alert: If you have not played the game or seen Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, this may ruin them for you. Also, in the future, there will be spoilers for the game Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core. So be aware of that as well.
That being said...enjoy!
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Chapter 1
There was no way of knowing how things would turn out after his second battle against Sephiroth. Cloud thought that there would be another battle waiting around the corner because it seemed to be the only kind of luck he seemed to have.
On the contrary. Things had calmed down quite a bit after his confrontation with Sephiroth. Berret went back to the oil fields on his mission to find an alternative to mako energy. Not only that, but Rufus Shinra decided to go and help Berret in an effort to help fix the problem that he and Shinra created in the first place.
Cloud on the other hand, took up his place at Tifa's Seventh Heaven and resumed his duties as a delivery boy. Things were pretty much back to normal at Seventh Heaven. He, Tifa, Marlene, and Denzel pretty much went back to their normal lives.
Normal...I wonder how long that will last. Cloud thought as he sped through the barren land on his bike. Nothing is every normal. Even if it seems like things are normal, there is always something that comes along and screws everything up.
Suddenly, two loud bangs tore Cloud from his thoughts and sent hin into high alert. Before Cloud could even comprehend that both of his dual front tires had blown out at the same time, the fender dug into the dirt catapulting Cloud away from the bike.
Cloud knew things were bad when both tires blew out but at that point, it was too late. A matter of seconds later, Cloud was sent crashing to the ground. The instant he hit the ground, the force knocked the wind out of him but the tumble across the dirt after proved to be much more painful as eh managed to collide with at least three rocks that were protruding from the barren landscape. Laying there on his belly, he struggled to catch his breath when suddenly he felt extreme pressure on his left ankle. The pressure didn't last long though. Within seconds, the pressure released sending pain shooting up his left leg.
Cloud moaned in pain as he realized what happened. The bike had rolled up onto his ankle. Still trying to catch his breath, he dug into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He didn't feel so good. He could feel the energy draining from his body and his limbs developing an unsettling jelly feeling.
His scraped up hands shook with concentration as eh struggled to open his phone. Things were bad. He knew he hit his head at least once as he tumbled across the dirt and it was becoming increasingly painful to breath.
"Glad I programmed the speed dial." Cloud said to himself in a low and weak voice. His vision began to blur as he reached for the number pad with his thumb. He pressed his thumb firmly down on the number pad not knowing who it would dial. His vision began to blur again as he reached his thumb up to hit the send button. Just seconds after hitting the send button, darkness surrounded his vision and everything went black.
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"Hey Tifa...Where is Cloud?" Marlene asked as she ran up to the bar. "I wanna show him this picture I drew for him."
Tifa leaned on the bar and looked down at Marlene with a smirk on her face. "He had to make a delivery." Marlene's smile disappeared almost instantly. "He should be back soon so you can show it to him when he gets back." The smile re-appeared on the little girl's face and she ran off clutching the drawing firmly in her hand.
Tifa couldn't help but smile. Just knowing that Marlene and Denzel had a good life under her care reassured her that she was doing things right. Her and Cloud both were. She was about to grab a cloth to wipe down the bar when the phone rang. Tifa sighed and walked to the other end to the bar and grabbed the phone..
"Cloud, this better not be you making another excuse." Tifa said to the ringing phone thinking that it was Cloud on the other end.
She clicked the talk button on the receiver and put it up to her ear. "Seventh Heaven, this is Tifa." When she heard the voice on the other end, it wasn't who she thought it would be at all. It was Berret. And from the tone of his voice, it sounded like something bad happened. She weren't sure but she was hoping that it didnt have something to do with the oil fields where he had been working.
After listening to Barret explain things over the phone for what seemed like an eternity, she finally got the chance to say something. "Berret...I'll talk to you more when you get here." A few seconds after, she clicked the off button on the phone and set it down on the bar.
The smile that she wore on her face before the phone rang disappeared. After what Berret told her, she couldnt help but worry. He told her about getting a call from Cloud but when he answered, there was no response on the other end. He told her that when he found Cloud, he was unconscious with the bike on top of his leg. Tifa knew that there must have been some freak circumstance to cause him to wipe out that bad. As much as she had seen him drive his bike, she had an understanding that he was probably as good at driving as he was at fighting.
Tifa sighed and walked over to the front door of the building. Things were definitely going to be hectic the rest of the day and the thought of trying to help cloud and run the bar at the same time just seemed crazy. She flipped the open sign over so that it read closed and made her way to the stairs.
She had to explain things at least a little bit to Marlene and Denzel before Berret brought Cloud back. She needed to make sure that they knew that Cloud was going to need time to rest so that he could heal. When she got the top of the stairs, she could see Marlene and Denzel sitting at the desk that Cloud had set up for his delivery service.
"Tifa." Marlene joyfully said as she turned around in her seat to face her.
"Marlene...Denzel...I need to talk to you about something very important." She said receiving a questioning look from Denzel and a frown from Marlene. This was gonna be harder than she originally thought.
"Cloud isnt leaving again...is he?" Denzel asked immediately. The memories of the past when Cloud left were still fresh in his mind.
"No." Tifa said as she walked over to the desk where both of the kids were sitting. She knelt down and continued. "He's coming back today but he's gonna need some time alone."
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Just like Tifa had suspected, the rest of the day was hectic. Barret explained more about when he found Cloud but when she actually saw Cloud, she was shocked. His arms and hands were covered with cuts and scrapes and he had a small cut on the side of his forehead. Semi-dried blood surrounding the cut made his hair stick to his forehead. It was painful for her to see Cloud the way that he looked. So cut up...so helpless. She wished that she could help him but all she could really do was be there and help him through the healing process. The healing process...that was going to be rough for all of them, especially for Cloud.
"Tifa...is Cloud gonna be okay?" Marlene asked in a quiet voice as she walked into Cloud's room where Tifa was.
"Marlene...Cloud will be fine." Tifa said trying to reassure the little girl. It didn't work though. Marlene's expression remained the same. Tifa looked down at Cloud who was still unconscious in the bed beside her. "He's strong...he'll pull through this." She turned back to Marlene. "Just give him some time...okay?"
Marlene nodded but didn't change the expression on her face. "Can you give this to him when he wakes up?" Marlene asked as she held a folded piece of paper up for Tifa to see.
"Of course I will." Tifa said with a small smile on her face. She took the folded piece of paper from Marlene and set it on the bedside table. "Okay...now go play...I'll let you know when he wakes up." Marlene smiled, turned around, and ran out of the room.
Tifa turned her attention back to Cloud. I wish you would wake up she thought as she grabbed a washcloth out of a small bowl of warm water that was sitting on the bedside table. After ringing it out, she began to dab Cloud's forehead where it had been cut. The cut wasn't particularly large but who knew how bad the internal damage was.
A soft moan instantly stopped Tifa. When she pulled her hand back to put the washcloth back in the bowl, she was met with big blue eyes. "Tifa?" His voice was quiet and weak but it was music to her ears.
"It's about time you woke up." Tifa said in a gentle tone. She wanted to smile and jump for joy at the sound of his voice but she decided to stay calm. It was so good to hear his voice and see his beautiful blue eyes again. "We were worried about you."
Cloud looked like he was about to say something when he squinted his eyes shut tight. He moaned in pain and reached up to grab his head.
"You must've hit your head pretty hard." Tifa explained. "You've been out for hours." Cloud took his hand off his head and dropped it back on the bed.
"How did I...how did I get here?" Cloud asked in the same week voice as before. He squinted his eyes shut again as his head continued to throb without mercy.
"Barret found you and brought you back." Tifa said in a soft voice. She knew that Cloud must've gotten a big headache from what happened. "He said that he got a call from your phone but there was no answer when he picked up. After that...I guess he decided to come here and ask you about it but on his way, he found you laying on the ground unconcious."
"My bike." Cloud said as he turned his head to look at Tifa and was rewarded with more throbbing. He squinted his eyes in pain for a second. "I crashed my bike."
"I know." Tifa stated with a quick nod. "When Barret found you, your bike was on top of your leg. The weight of it broke your ankle. That's why it's all wrapped up."
Suddenly a loud sound from outside the room caught Tifa's attention. "Denzel...come on. Wait up for me!" Tifa sighed and got up. She had to keep Marlene and Denzel quiet so that Cloud's headache would not get worse.
"Marlene." Tifa called as she stepped out into the hallway. Marlene, who was chasing Denzel, stopped dead in her tracks and looked at Tifa. "Try to be a little more quieter. You don't want to disturb Cloud do you?"
Marlene shook her head. "No...sorry Tifa." Tifa smiled and gave her a nod letting her that she accepted her apology. Marlene smiled back and then ran off in search of Denzel.
Having accomplished what she set out to do, she turned her attention back to her injured friend. When she turned to walk back into the room, she couldn't believe her eyes. Cloud was no longer laying down on the bed. Instead, he was sitting up with his legs draped over the edge of the bed.
"Cloud...you shouldn't be up. You should be resting." Tifa said as she started to walk back towards the bed.
Cloud could hear the concern in Tifa's voice. He knew that what she said was true. After having that bad of a crash on his motorcycle, rest was the best choice but he didn't like the idea of laying around. Being unconscious for so long was enough laying around for one day. "I've rested enough."
Tifa walked over and grabbed the crutches that were leaning against the wall. "I figured you would say that." She said as she walked over to the bed and handed the crutches to him. "Reno will be over later with an update on their progress at the oil fields. When he gets here, I'll see if I can get him and Rude to bring your bed down to the room I had added behind the bar. That way, you won't have to go up and down the stairs with those crutches." Cloud was about to protest but decided it would be better to just agree this time. After all, she was right. The only thing that was upstairs was his room. If he wanted something to eat or drink or if he had to use the bathroom, he always had to go downstairs.
"Okay." Cloud said with a small nod.
"You gonna be okay going down the stairs with those?" She asked with a concerned look on her face as she pointed at the crutches he was holding onto.
"I'll be fine." Cloud answered.
Tifa nodded and gave his a smirk. "Okay." She walked over to the door. She looked like she was about to walk out the door when she turned back. "I'll see you downstairs." Without another word, she walked out the door leaving Cloud alone in his room.
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So there is chapter one. I hope it is okay. Please review. I would love to know what everyone thinks where this is my first Final Fantasy fanfic. To explain things, the room behind the bar is something that I changed. In this story, Tifa had it added on. I will try to explain it a little more in later chapters.