The rain battered down on Tifa as she arrived at the Chocobo Farm. It was dark, and a storm was brewing over Junon. She had chosen a bad time to come. She shivered and drew her coat around herself tightly and rushed past the paddocks towards the stable.
Thunder roared in the distance. Tifa shut her eyes momentarily. The huge chocobo stable was dark and, Tifa suspected, probably empty. She knocked once on the heavy door. No reply. She pushed it open gingerly and poked her head inside.
"Hello?" she called into the darkness.
She could see a lamp shining in the far end of the stable. "Is anyone there?" she shouted, and went in. The stable looked deserted apart from the six chocobos in the stables. Tifa pushed the door closed behind her and took a few steps forwards. "Who is that?" she called.
There was noise coming from the far corner. Tifa stared towards the light, but she couldn't see anyone. "I'm just here to get my chocobo," she said quietly.
"Okay," said a voice. The voice was young and female.
"Chole?" Tifa guessed. "Are you crying?"
"No" came the reply from the darkness. "I'm just looking after the chocobos. They get all upset whenever there's a storm."
Tifa moved slowly towards the source of the voice. "Where are you? Why is it so dark in here?"
"I was about to go to sleep."
"But you were crying, weren't you?"
"No," came the reply. Tifa heard some shuffling in front of her. She moved forwards instinctively and frowned.
"Chole? Please could you turn the light up so I can see?"
"Suppose so." Tifa waited in the darkness. She heard somebody moving and saw a shadow pass in front of the small lamp. After a few seconds the lamp flared and illuminated the stables. The stables were much the same as she remembered, apart from the bundle of bedding piled into the corner. Tifa turned her attention to Chole.
"Are you alright?" Tifa asked, wringing her hands nervously. The young girl looked like she hadn't slept for a week, and her face was stained with tears. As Tifa looked, Chole rubbed her eyes desperately but stayed silent. She was wearing faded blue dungarees over a mucky T-shirt and she frowned at Tifa from her place by the light.
"You should tell Grandpa if you are going to come visit," she told Tifa reproachfully.
"I know," said Tifa. "I just came to pick up Sable. Cloud wants to race her at the Gold Saucer tomorrow and I stupidly volunteered to fetch her. She probably won't want to go out in the storm"
"Oh. Now what're you going to do?"
"I could stay at your Grandpa's house until the storm passes. Cloud seems to think that racing Sable tomorrow is vitally important," Tifa said, and it was impossible for Chole to know exactly what she meant.
"I don't know. I think all the beds are full. Grandpa might be able to squeeze you in"
There was an awkward pause.
"You could stay here for a while," Chole said quietly. "Until the storm calms down enough for you to take Sable out."
Tifa smiled. "That's very kind of you, Chole." She sat down on a quilt next to Chole awkwardly. "How long d'you think it's gonna last?"
"I don't know. It moved fast though. It's gonna be right on top of us soon."
"Is the storm headed for Midgar?"
"Probably," Chole said. "You get a lot of storms over Midgar."
Tifa nodded, and they sat in silence for a while. Chole sniffed, making Tifa stare at her intensely for a while. The little girl didn't look well. Her blond hair had a few pieces of hay stuck in it and her skin was grubby. Tifa frowned. "Are you sure you are alright?"
"Of course I am," Chole snapped.
"You look like you've been crying."
"I don't want to talk about it," she replied, looking away. Chole sighed, and stood up. "I'm just gonna check on the chocobos," she muttered. Tifa nodded and made no attempt to follow her. Chole wandered forwards quietly, her back to Tifa.
She had been crying, although she didn't want Tifa to find out. Tifa was a warrior, brave and strong, she wouldn't just burst into tears every time she remembered her parents. She sniffed quietly. Tifa's parents, they were dead, weren't they? But Tifa seemed perfectly happy, she thought bitterly. Still, Tifa had had a lot more time to cope with it.
Chole wandered aimlessly towards the nearest stable. She peered over the bar and stared inside. There was a chocobo inside, although it was impossible to see any of it apart from its gleaming green eyes. The chocobo was black, the only one of its kind that Chole had ever seen.
No, that wasn't true, she had seen a black chocobo before.
She turned round suddenly. "Tifa?"
Tifa glanced up. "Yeah?"
"Do you ever miss your parents?" asked Chole.
Tifa paused. "Yes. All the time. But is that why you were crying? You miss your family?" Tifa leant back. "Yeah I miss them."
"I always thought that you had gotten over it," Chole said quietly. "You act so cool and you never get upset"
"Not entirely true," Tifa said, a small smile on her face. "When I'm alone, I tend to brood over things. Little things, that aren't really important. That's when I think about them and get upset. It wouldn't be natural not to miss them. Is that what you were worrying about?"
Chole nodded. "I was looking at Sable, and I thought that I had never seen a black chocobo before, but I have. Would you like me to tell you about it?"
Tifa nodded, slightly taken aback.
"Alright," Chole said, sniffing loudly. "I was on a visit to the Gold Saucer to see the Chocobo Tournament grand finals"
William laughed heartily at the act. Every year they put on a show in the event square before the grand finals of the Chocobo Tournament. This year it was a troupe of clowns.
Not just ordinary clowns though. These clowns were actually Touch Me's, and they were putting volunteers to sleep and turning them into frogs. William laughed again, and glanced down at his children to make sure that they were all right.
"Come on, Billy!" he cried. "What's the matter?"
Billy pointed in front of him. "I can't see!" he snapped.
William frowned for a moment, before bending down and hoisting Billy onto his shoulders. He glanced at Chole, who was sitting quietly in her seat. "Can you see the frogs?" he asked.
Chole nodded. "I just wanna see the chocobos."
"That's my girl," William said proudly, and turned his attention back to the performance.
Chole sat restlessly, fiddling with the silk ribbon in her hair, looking along the rows at the audience, all watching the frogs as if under a spell. Maybe they were, she thought nervously. Maybe the frogs hypnotise you and then who knows what. Chole couldn't really see; the frogs were so tiny and far away, but she didn't care. She had eyes only for the chocobos and their brave jockeys.
She yawned quietly, and turned round in her seat. There was a huge clock at the back of the room. She peered at it, then sighed and slid back into her seat. They still had half an hour of performances before the races were starting.
As she glanced around she realised that everyone was looking at her.
William bent down. "The frogs want you to volunteer," he whispered in her ear.
Chole's eyes opened wide in shock. There was a frog standing in the aisle nearest to her, gesturing frantically. "But I don't wanna" she whispered.
William stood back up. "She doesn't want to go," he announced, folding his arms. There were a few sighs from the audience. The frog appeared pretty agitated.
It was then that Chole realised that something was wrong. She stared at the frog in the aisle. It was jumping up and down and the audience was all laughing at the display, but Chole realised that the frogs were doing something they didn't want to do.
The man in charge had left his seat at the back of the hall and was sprinting towards the strange frog. Chole frowned and moved closer to her father. "Daddy," she whispered, "I'm scared"
William quickly pulled Billy down from his shoulders and onto the floor. He pulled Billy and Chole towards him immediately. Then he slotted two pieces of materia into his armband, which he always insisted on wearing.
"Don't be," he muttered. "I'll protect you."
The man had reached the frogs now. "What are you playing at?" he snapped. "Get back onto the stage, all of you!"
The frog nearest to him waved its tiny arms in the air, and uttered a few low notes. The man took a step backwards. "No!" he roared. "What –" he broke off, enveloped in a thick white mist. The audience was silent now, not sure how to react.
When the mist cleared away, the man had vanished, and in his place was a tiny green frog, lying on the floor with its legs in the air.
"They're attacking us," Billy breathed.
In what seemed like a second, all the frogs were scampering along the aisles of people and chaos ensued. Screaming began, but most of them were cut off. As William, Chole and Billy watched in horror, people fell like corn. Some became panicked frogs, who began to hop desperately around the aisles, while others became enveloped in the thick mist and reappeared as sleeping frogs.
William leapt up into his seat, pulling his two children up behind him. "Come on, look straight ahead and stay calm," he told them firmly, and hoisted them both up into his arms.
He stared around the theatre for a moment, before clambering awkwardly over the back of his seat. "Nearly there," he told them, kicking out at a frog. Most of the audience had fallen to the ground, but there was still plenty of screaming echoing throughout the arena. William hit another frog hastily, and scrambled over another row of seats. It was a good job, he thought, that Chole had wanted to sit near the back.
He leapt down from the chair and ran towards the aisle. A frog appeared in front of him, singing mournfully. A mist suddenly enveloped William and the children, but William continued to dash forwards, fighting his way through the fog, clutching Billy and Chole tightly.
Chole started to sob silently, her brilliant blue eyes taking in the scene with considerable horror. She turned her head and stared at the rest of the theatre. There weren't many people left now, she thought, most had been changed into frogs and-
In an instant Chole and Billy fell to the ground.
"Where's Dad?" Billy whispered.
Chole looked down, dreading what she might see. William wasn't there. In his place was a tiny green frog, its eyes closed in sleep. Chole let out a sob. "Daddy!" she cried.
Billy made a decision and picked the sleeping frog up. "C'mon, Chole! We gotta run! There's one behind you!" he shouted.
Chole scrambled to her feet and pressed forwards anxiously. She wasn't fast enough, and she felt the frog jab the back of her legs. She shut her eyes, waiting for the inevitable change. Nothing happened. Chole opened her eyes. She was still human, she realised, and somehow the frogs didn't affect her.
"Hurry up, Chole! We have to get Dad outta here!"
"Right!" she said nervously, and caught up with Billy who was still holding William. "Where are we gonna go?"
"Dunno," Billy replied, and together they dashed out of the event square. "Why didn't the frogs affect you?"
"Maybe Dad did something," she said, but she had no more idea than Billy. "Let's go to the Chocobo Square. There'll be people to help us there," she said, heading down the pathway.
Billy was hovering near the event square still, clutching William tightly. "The frogs – they're all coming!"
"Why d'you stop?" Tifa asked.
"I have to feed Jade. She just ran out of greens."
"Oh." Tifa moved aside politely for Chole to get up. "So where does this black chocobo come in?" she asked.
Chole turned and stared at her shrewdly for a moment. "In a minute." She grabbed some Gysahl Greens from a shelf and placed them carefully in the green chocobos feeding tray. "I know that you lot are supposed to pay for the greens but I can't let her go hungry.
Tifa reached into her pocket. "I have a few gil somewhere, I can pay –"
"Don't bother," Chole said, sitting back down.
"Thanks. That storm's getting worse. Are we gonna be okay out here?"
"I hope so," Chole said. "I can't remember the last time there was a storm this bad. Do you want to hear the rest of my story?"
Tifa nodded.
"Well," Chole began nervously, "we arrived at the chocobo place, but it was deserted, so we went straight into the jockeys' lounge place, thankfully the frogs didn't know how to open doors, so we were safe."
"Was your Dad still, um, a frog?"
"Yeah. Anyway, this guy came up to us. You probably know him. His name's Joe and he rides a black chocobo called Teioh. He knew what we should do"
Joe stared at the two panic stricken children. "What is it? What are you doing here? Forgive me for saying this but you two don't look like jockeys! And why are you holding a frog?"
"The frogs who were in the clown show, they attacked everyone! This is the only safe place! Everyone in the event square has been turned to frogs!" Billy gasped, out of breath.
Chole took a few steps forwards. "Please help us, sir, we don't know what else to do!"
"How do I know this isn't some prank?" Joe snapped, but his heart wasn't in it. "If these frogs are psycho then why have you got one?"
"This is our Dad!" Billy cried.
Joe's eyes opened wide. "You, girl, what's that on your head?"
"A ribbon, sir, but –"
"Take it off," he ordered. "Now!" Joe waited impatiently for Chole to unwrap the ribbon from her hair and she snatched it from her.
"Hey" Billy began.
Joe knelt down. "Let me see the frog," he snapped. Billy lowered William towards Joe slowly. Joe took the ribbon and wrapped it around the frog's tiny ankle. "There," he said.
"Are you sick, mister? We wanted you to help him, not accessorise him!" Billy shouted furiously.
"Billy!" Chole cried. "Please, you don't know what's gonna happen!"
Joe said nothing; he just stared at the frog. After a few seconds the same white mist the children had seen before seemed to filter out of his skin until the frog was completely covered in mist.
"We've met," Joe grunted.
"What's happening?" squealed Chole.
The mist started to spread, expanding and billowing out constantly. Chole took a step backwards nervously, grabbing Billy's arm. Joe just stood there, frowning as the mist wrapped around his ankles.
Chole shut her eyes to block out the sight, dreading what she would see when she opened them.
"It's all right, Chole, Dad isn't a frog any more," she heard Billy whisper after a few seconds.
She opened her eyes, but kept her hands pressed against her face as a precaution. William was sprawled on the floor in front of her, his eyes wide in shock and confusion. Chole breathed out deeply. She noticed her ribbon tied around his ankle with a small smile.
William pushed himself up until he was sitting on the floor and then embraced his two children in silence. He couldn't remember a thing after the fog had engulfed him back in the event square.
"I'm so sorry I scared you like that," he murmured.
Joe leaned towards him, worried. "You all right?" he asked.
William stared at Joe for a moment. "Wait, you're that chocobo jockey, ain't ya! Good to meet ya, the name is William, and these are my children, Chole and Billy."
"Daddy," Chole said quietly, "we had to run away from the frogs and we took you here, an then this guy took my ribbon and tied it round your foot."
"I had wondered how that had got there," William began, grinning broadly, "but I didn't dare ask."
Joe stood up straight and began to turn away.
"Wait, Joe," William called, letting go of his children and standing up shakily. "I wanna thank you. I had got this materia but it didn't do me any good. Say, I keep getting' this urge to hop. I sure hope it wears off soon," he said.
"What materia did you have?" Joe asked.
"I equipped transform and cover, too protect these two," he said, glancing at them. "I guess it was stupid though, as I could get turned into a frog pretty damn easy. Lucky that Chole insisted on wearing this here ribbon," he said.
Joe nodded. "I am going to round up some guys and we'll go sort out the frogs. You wanna come help? Now you have the ribbon, you'd be pretty helpful."
"What about the kids?" William asked, casting a nervous glance at his children. "I'm not leaving them, especially now Chole doesn't have her ribbon."
Joe thought hard. "It would be too dangerous to take them with us"
Chole glanced at Billy while the conversation continued. Surely William wasn't leaving them when they had only just got him back!
"Teioh can look after them. She's the fastest sprinter in the races so I think she can handle a few frogs," Joe said.
"What if she can't?"
"Let me show you," said Joe, walking away.
"Where's he going?" Billy asked suspiciously. "I know he helped you an' all, but do ya have to leave us?"
"I have to help everyone else who fell victim to the frogs," William said slowly, as if debating the fact.
Joe reappeared through a side door, clutching some leather reins. "This is my chocobo, Teioh," he said warmly, his affection for the bird made obvious from the tone of his voice.
"Wow," Billy said breathlessly. "It's beautiful!"
Teioh was a magnificent black chocobo, its long neck arching elegantly, coated with feathers of pure black that sparkled when the light fell on them. Teioh's perfectly proportioned head moved sharply, her keen green eyes flashing at the children. She let out a deep harmonious sound, a sound so different from the squawks of the chocobos Chole and Billy were so accustomed to.
"I know Teioh," Tifa interrupted. "Joe is still racing her. She is a wonderful bird, isn't she? What did your father do? Did he go with Joe?"
Chole nodded, and shivered as thunder cracked overhead. "They argued for a while, but then Dad put us on Teioh and he and Joe went off to help everyone else. Teioh took us onto the chocobo tracks and we hid there for ages. Teioh is very clever," she said proudly. "Soon dad came back with Joe, and they had saved everyone, and they were both given a little medal of achievement by the manager."
"Dio?"
"Yeah. Dad wasn't too happy. He said that he didn't need the medal and he had just done what came naturally to him, but Dio would have none of it. They gave him a gold ticket too. Grandpa still uses it occasionally," Chole said in a whisper. "When he needs to get something for the chocobos, he says, but we reckon that he just goes to bet on the chocobos. We found some betting stubs recently, and he always bets on Joe, even though your Cloud always beats him."
Tifa said nothing.
"Jade hasn't eaten her greens," Chole pointed out, and scrambled to her feet.
"No, let me," Tifa said, and strode past Chole towards one of the stables. "I'll pay this time," she added.
"There is no need to feel guilty about Cloud winning," Chole said shrewdly, causing Tifa to blush slightly. "I suppose you want to know how they died," she said.
Tifa gasped and nearly dropped the Krakka greens she was clutching. "Well," she said quietly, "if you want to talk about it then it is fine with me. Say, do ya think your grandpa will mind me staying here?"
"Nah. He won't know. You better not fall asleep though, or he'll charge you a fortune. He does that now"
"Yeah, you mentioned that a while ago. I didn't think the prices were that expensive, but then I wasn't the one paying," Tifa said, watching Chole sympathetically.
"Do you want to know or not?" she snapped.
"Sorry."
"Right." Chole said nothing for a while, but Tifa didn't complain. "Mum and Dad had gone on a business trip to Icicle Inn. They had to do some research about the wonderful chocobos that lived nearby. It was when they were on their way back that it happened. We were staying with Grandpa at the time, cos Dad didn't want us going that far North. He said that it was dangerous. He was right, when you think about it," Chole said bitterly.
William hugged Marcia closer. "Here," he said. "Take my jacket."
"No, I'm all right. I'm not cold. Are the chocobos all managing?"
William turned his head and stared at the six chocobos trotting easily behind their carriage. "Yeah, they're fine," he said, shaking his head in amazement. It had to be below freezing, probably by a long way.
"What time will we get to bone village? The boat leaves tomorrow morning, right? So we'd better get there soon."
"We'll get there before dark. We have too. Vladrakoras' come out at night."
"We would be all right though, if we ran into one?"
"Yeah, of course," William said uneasily. He didn't know what would happen if they ran into one of them. Rumour had it that you couldn't even sense their weaknesses and health, because they were too strong. Still, they were near Bone Village now, he almost thought that he could see the ribcage shape that formed the skyline of the village.
"I'm kinda bored," Marcia said sadly, turning to face William, "but I know that these new chocobos and our research will help the business a lot. I miss Chole and Billy, and Bill too."
"Heh, things must be bad if you miss Bill," William said, grinning.
"Tell me about it. I never thought I would stoop so low," she joked, flashing him a dazzling smile.
Even now it amazed William how he had persuaded this angel to marry him. She was beautiful, he thought, watching her enchanting blue eyes dance over the mountains, searching for a landmark they recognised.
William reached over and plucked a yellow feather from his wife's blonde hair. "You had a feather in your hair," he whispered.
"Oh!" she cried, reaching up and patting all over her head. "They're hard to find as well," she said thoughtfully. "It's like the feathers are camouflaged against my hair. This wouldn't happen if we only bred blue chocobos," she moaned.
"Ahh, but then," he laughed, "your stalker would creep in at the dead of night and dye your hair permanent blue!"
"Oh? I have a stalker now?"
"Yeah. He's kinda shy about it, but he is desperately in love with you." William leaned closer. "I think his name is William," he whispered, "and he works on a chocobo farm!"
"Hmm. Sounds familiar. Y'know, I might just run off with this Will guy, he sounds like he's just my type!" They both laughed for a long time, the chill mountain air silencing them eventually.
"Next time we come here we'll take Billy."
"And Chole too," Marcia said.
"You think she's old enough?"
"Yes. How are we supposed to tell Chole that her brother can come but she can't? It would break her heart."
"I suppose so," William said. "Look over there." William pointed into the distance, across the snowfields.
"What- Oh! It's Bone Village! Good job too," Marcia sighed. "I'm exhausted. Give me the chocobo farm any day, the North sucks."
"Tell me about it," William grimaced. "That crater up there creeps me out. Dunno what caused it. Luv, when we get back we'll teach the kids to ride. We have left it too long. I want Billy to be one of the top jockeys! Nobody will be able to beat him – until Chole enters the race, that is," he laughed.
"What was that?" Marcia said suddenly, sitting up straight. She turned her head and stared out of the back window of their tiny carriage. "It sounded like a roar."
William barked a command to the chocobos pulling the carriage to make them speed up. "We are almost there," he muttered. "Don't ruin it now."
Marcia kneeled up in her seat and pushed the window open. "C'mon, chocobos," she called, but softly. She leaned down and tightened the knot that tethered the six chocobos to the back of their carriage. It was primitive transport, but all that had been available at Icicle Inn.
"D'ya think it's a Vladrakoras?" Marcia asked, her fear showing plainly in her pale blue eyes. "But we can manage, right? You still have that shotgun don't you?"
"Yeah," William said. "Only wish I knew how to use it."
"You don't? God, it's a good job that I do," said Marcia grimly. "You should go get it. That's a reason to thank Bill."
"Why?
"Oh, he taught me when you were away on a trip somewhere. He said that I was the best student he had ever taught. Pretty good, huh?"
"Humph. He wouldn't let me near a shotgun. He said I'd probably blow my own head off. Typical of my Dad, isn't it? He teaches you, but won't let his own son"
"Are you jealous?" Marcia teased, smiling.
"Me? Jealous? Never! Ha of course I am! Damn, I wish I knew how to shoot them things. To me they're just metal tubes with bullets in em. You'll have to teach me."
"I dunno It's a little dangerous, and you" she trailed off and looked away.
William's mouth fell open. "Just what are you trying to say?" he gasped. "That I'm mentally unstable and –"
"Quick to take offence," she said, turning her head back to him. "I'm kidding! Jeez Of course I'll teach you. Now steer those chocobos while I get the gun."
Right," he muttered sheepishly, taking up the reins. Marcia scrambled amongst the baggage until she found a huge silver coloured shotgun.
"Aha!" she said. "I knew it was here somewhere –"
Something huge rammed into the side of the carriage, rocking it violently. William reached out to steady Marcia and move her back into her seat. "Marcia, quickly, it's a Vladrakoras! Shoot it!" he roared.
Marcia slid into her seat and looked around. "Where is it?" she screamed. The carriage rocked again, accompanied by squawking. "The chocobos have got out!" she gasped. "We spent so long finding them – they'll be killed!"
"We've got more important things to worry about right now!"
"I know!" Marcia moaned. "Where is it? Where the fuck is it?"
William climbed down from his seat. "C'mon Marcia, get out - it's not safe!" He grabbed her by the waist and lifted her to the ground. Her feet sank into the soft snow just as the carriage was knocked onto its side by the unseen monster.
"Shit!" she yelled, and they set off at a run. Not wanting to turn around and see the creature, not wanting to know where it was or what it had done to their carriage. The shotgun hung limply from Marcia's hand.
Bone Village loomed in the distance. "We can make it," William called to Marcia, who clutched his hand and nodded grimly. "Just keep running," he added desperately.
Marcia looked back. She gasped, and stopped running.
William skidded to a halt. "Marcia? The hell have you stopped oh." Three huge monsters were loping towards them, roaring almost lazily. With every stride they seemed to cover huge distances, gaining every second. They were Vladrakoras', great dinosaur like beasts with orange scales and long legs.
Marcia's mouth fell open. "We're gonna die," she whispered. "What about the kids? And Bill? Oh, man"
"Marcia run! Get outta here! Oh, for fuck's sake!" He dashed backward and grabbed Marcia's arm. Her hand fell open and the shotgun fell into the snow. William took a step backwards. She couldn't do this, he thought. Not at a time like this
His foot fell on something hard and smooth, making William shoot backwards and land in the snow. He stuck his foot out and struck the shotgun. It fired, and in the silence that followed, William got to his feet and picked the gun up. He turned to face the Vladrakoras', who had stopped their advance for some reason.
Marcia looked down at the gun, and her eyes traced a passage through the snow towards the beasts. "Shit!" she muttered, making William jump. "I never knew my gun was that powerful," she said, "look what it has done!"
William glanced at Marcia. "You okay now? You aren't gonna freeze again?"
"Sorry. I was scared. I've always been a coward," she explained.
He turned his attention to the snow where Marcia was still pointing. "Oh," he said thoughtfully.
When he had kicked the shotgun, the bullet had ploughed through the snow until it struck the foot of one of their pursuers. "Pretty good," he snapped, "but we don't know how long they're gonna stand there, so run!"
"Right!" she agreed, and picked up the gun. She took aim and fired a shot at the nearest Vladrakoras. The bullet thudded into its belly, and it gave out a sickening roar.
"Well done," William told her. "Now we can run."
"Just one question," Tifa put in. "How do you know all this?"
"That my parents died?"
"No, I mean what they said and did, word for word."
"Oh." Chole rubbed her eyes and yawned. She stood up and stretched and picked up the greens Tifa had dropped. She waved them in front of a cage with a frown. She made a few soothing noises and a moment later a large beak shot out and took the greens from Chole's outstretched hand. "My Mother made it to Bone Village."
"They couldn't save her?"
"No, and she probably wouldn't have wanted them to. She was devastated. Well, she had just seen my Dad getting ripped to pieces" Chole's eyes filled with tears. "They managed to find out what happened, she told them while they were treating her. They say that she would go from perfectly calm to raving mad in a moment. They didn't tell me much else. All I know is that one of the monsters shot a bolt ball at her and Dad leapt in front of it. He made her run while he held them off, but one ran past him and got Mother from behind" Chole let out a small sob.
Tifa pulled Chole towards her and hugged her tightly. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I really do know what it's like. I went through it all, and I'm still going through it. Not a day goes by when I don't think about my parents, and miss them." She trailed off, and watched the clouds rolling across the mountains. "Look," she said, turning Chole around gently. "The storm is trapped in between all the mountains. It can't get out."
Chole watched the black skies silently. "It looks like the storm is nearly over," she said.
"Why don't you go back inside, Chole. You must be tired – I know I am. Bill will be worrying."
"I dunno," Chole muttered. "He's probably fast asleep."
Tifa stood up and was about to say something when the stable doors crashed open, revealing a very wet Cloud.
"Tifa!" he cried, "where did you get to?"
"What do you mean?" Tifa asked.
"I was waiting at the Gold Saucer for you for over an hour! I thought something must have happened to you so I came here."
"To get the chocobo yourself?" Tifa snapped.
"No," Cloud said shaking his head. "I came here to find you and see if you were all right."
"You had better come in," Chole said, "and be sure to shut the door behind you." Cloud did as he was instructed without protest. His hair was plastered to his neck and a puddle had formed on the floor around his feet.
Tifa smiled cautiously. "Sable hates storms, remember? I didn't want her to get sick or something before her big race."
"No," he agreed. "Thank you."
Chole looked up at both of them, frowning. She couldn't understand why Tifa was suddenly so nervous, and why Cloud, who was normally cheerful, was so quiet and sad. If she asked someone, they would probably tell her that she would understand when she was older.
"You can stay here tonight," Chole told Cloud.
Cloud hesitated, and glanced towards the door. "I didn't bring that much money with me, only enough for the entrance fee to the Gold Saucer" he began.
"Free of charge," Chole said. "Please, Cloud. It isn't safe to take the chocobos out in this weather." She glanced at Tifa who was staring at Cloud with a strange expression on her face.
"It's not just the money, is it?" Tifa said coldly.
"What?"
"You don't wanna stay here with me, do you?"
"That's ridiculous!"
"Oh?" Tifa asked. "Is it? Or do you just want to avoid some awkward conversations? If it matters that much to you, I'll just rent a bed from Bill! Maybe you want to tell me why you've been so cold with me ever since meteor hit Midgar!"
Cloud looked at the floor. "I'm sorry, Tifa," he said after a while.
"Is that all you have to say for yourself?"
"No," Cloud said. "I'm just, confused. Such a lot has happened; it's so hard for me to adjust. I don't really know how to say anything to you sometimes. I can't help it. I keep remembering the past; it's getting clearer every day. I just think about when you fell from that bridge and I- I just break down."
Tifa was silent, but her expression softened.
Chole bit her lip. She didn't know what was going on, but she could sense the tension building. "Can we please get a little sleep?" she asked.
They both looked at her, as if they had forgotten that she was there. "Of course," Tifa said quickly.
"There are blankets over there by the door," Chole said, pointing to a row of shelves.
"I'll get them," Cloud said immediately. He hurried to the shelves and picked up the pile of blankets. He handed two to Tifa, with a strange look on his face. Chole recognised it. It was sadness. She had worn that look countless times. Cloud gave Chole two blankets as well, and he managed to force a little smile as he did so.
Chole took them rather guiltily, and she turned to the corner where she had been when Tifa had arrived. "I don't need these," she said, and handed them back. "I've got loads already."
Cloud nodded, and eyed Chole's makeshift bed suspiciously. "Alright," he said. He took one blanket for himself and he sank gratefully to the floor against the wall.
Tifa was standing up awkwardly. She watched Cloud as he wrapped the blanket around himself. After a few seconds she marched to the other corner of the stables and threw her blankets down. Cloud sighed.
Chole pulled a blanket over herself and shut her eyes tightly. It was strange, sleeping in the stable with two of the people who saved the world. They didn't look much like heroes. They looked like normal people, which was even stranger. She let her mind trail off and settle on images of her mother and father.
She replayed the conversation again and again in her head, a contented smile on her face. "Here, take my jacket." "No, it's alright. I'm not cold"
Bill woke up. He scratched his head, trying to remember what had woken him up. He groaned when he saw that Chole's bed was empty. She must be in the stables, he thought. A crash of thunder made him jump. It reminded him of what he had just been dreaming of.
His son being torn to pieces by a great big bloody dinosaur.
It was the same thing every night.
He climbed down from his bed and checked that Billy was asleep. He pulled his boots on and wandered towards the door, but a photograph caught his attention. He smiled and picked it up. Strange, but he had never really noticed it. It was a picture of William and a heavily pregnant Marcia, standing by Joe's chocobo Teioh.
He stared at his son, thinking of all the missed opportunities, the things he should have said and done. He would take the children to the northern continent one day, to show them what it was like, when he had enough money.
He decided that he would leave Chole in the stable until the morning. She liked to be alone.
Chole opened her eyes wearily. It was still dark, but the lamp was on next to her. She leaned over to turn the lamp off but she stopped. Cloud and Tifa were both up, and they were standing close to each other, arguing.
"Look, Tifa, I don't know, it's ever since Aeris died"
"You just have to bring her into it, don't you? Bullshit, Cloud. Now you're just using that as an excuse. You said it yourself, we have to let go of her memory, but how can we do that if you keep bringing it back up?"
"That's not true. I can't help it, you know, but I can't just forget about such a close friend like that, and I don't know why you can't accept that!"
Tifa put her hands on her hips. "You think Chole here," she said, and Chole hastily shut her eyes, "won't talk to anyone, won't tell other people about how she's feeling, because her parents were killed? You think I'm having trouble getting back to reality too?"
"No! Now you're just twisting what I say! After everything we've been through, I thought you could show a little more understanding!"
"Low blow, Cloud. I'm trying as hard as I can!"
Chole tried her hardest not to cry. She hated it when people fought over silly things, and even though she couldn't see what the problem was, she liked Tifa and didn't want to see her upset. She shut her eyes tighter and tried to block out the angry noises.
When Chole next woke up it was still dark, and she let out a sigh. She couldn't hear any fighting, so she assumed that Tifa and Cloud were still asleep. She leaned over and turned the lamp down, and a noise made her jump. Tifa and Cloud were still awake. Chole stared into the gloom, trying to see what was going on.
She could just make out Tifa's voice. She was saying something calmly and quietly, while Cloud listened.
"I can only imagine what she has been through, and is still going through now," Tifa said. "It puts our troubles in perspective, doesn't it"
Chole heard heavy boots approaching so she shut her eyes and lay back against her blankets quickly. The boots stopped, and a shadow fell over her. "We never even asked about it," Cloud muttered above her. "Strange, we knew that something must have happened to the parents, but we didn't ask what. We were so wrapped up in our own problems"
"Don't be so hard on yourself, Cloud. We were trying to save the world, you know."
Cloud straightened with a sigh and moved away, so Chole opened her eyes again. "Tifa"
"Forget about it," Tifa said. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said those things." She sounded happier than she had done before.
"Tifa, would you like to ride Sable in the big race tomorrow? He likes you better than me anyway and I bet it would really tick the other jockey's off."
Tifa laughed. "Yeah, they must have thought that I had retired from the racing business, but now I'm back to kick their asses! That's so nice of you Cloud, I would love to."
Chole grinned and lay back, confused, but content.
Chole opened her eyes a third time that night, to see the suns early morning rays shining through gaps in the wood. She sighed happily. She couldn't remember having any nightmares. Normally she had a nightmare every night. It might be because she had woken up so many times, but maybe
"Good morning, Chole," said Cloud.
Chole whipped her head around. Cloud was sitting on the floor and leaning against the wall, wide-awake, smiling. Tifa lay asleep in his arms, her head resting on his shoulder and her hair draped over his arm.
"You didn't get much sleep last night, right Cloud?"
Cloud looked at her, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Not really," he agreed after a while. "You are a very shrewd child," he added unexpectedly.
"Hard not to be if people wake you up arguing."
"Sorry you had to hear that," he said. "I would rather not have heard it myself." He carefully dug into his pocket and tossed Chole a small bag.
Chole opened it. "What's this?"
"Money," Cloud told her.
Chole frowned. "Grandpa always said: We may be so poor that slummers look like kings in comparison, but we're still too proud to accept charity.' So"
Cloud laughed. "It isn't charity," Cloud said, "it's what we owe you for our stay, plus expenses, plus the cost of heating and greens for the birds, plus compensation for us waking you up."
"If Grandpa found about your bill system," Chole said, sifting through the bag, "I suspect he would take you prisoner and force you to stay in our house forever!"
"Oh, and I'm sorry about your parents."
"Heh," Chole said with a tired smile, "I already knew that."
"Right," he said. "I forgot."
Well it was original I guess. Please review!