FINAL FANTASY VII
AUTHORS NOTE: THE CHARACTER CHRIS MADE HIS DEBUT APPEARENCE IN 'A COUNTDOWN TO CONFUSION'. SINCE THEN HE HAS APPEARED IN A NUMBER OF MY OTHER FICS, SO YOU MAY WANNA READ THEM BEFORE READING THIS, TO GET THE FULL BACKGROUND ON HIM.
'A Countdown To Victory'
"Oh, crap! I'm fifteen minutes late!", groaned Cloud. "If I don't pick up the pace, then I'm gonna miss Tifa performing topless at Seventh Heaven!"
Cloud was wandering through the dark alleyways of Sector 6, Midgar City. He'd been working out at the gym in Wall Market all day, and was now hurrying back to Sector 7, home of Seventh Heaven, where he could take some time out and relax with a cold beer. He stopped dead in his tracks when a shadowed figure leapt out infront of him.
"Hey, got any spare change, dude?", the figure asked.
"Geez! What the hell you doing sneaking up on people like that?!", Cloud yelled. "You wanna give me a heart attack?!"
"Woah, chill out, old man! I jus' wanna know if you got any spare gil!"
"Old man?! Old man?! I'm 21 years old! 22 this August! Who you calling old?!", Cloud was madder than a pissed off Tonberry at this moment. "And yes, I've got some loose gil, but you ain't getting any, punk!"
"Alright! Fine! No need to bust a lung!"
"Wait! I know that voice! You-You're... Chris?!", Cloud exclaimed. "Chris from the Gold Saucer?! From SOLDIER?!"
The young man stepped out from the shadows. It was Chris. He looked pretty dirty and hung-over.
"What the hell business is that of yours?! Get outta my way!", Chris tried to push past Cloud, who blocked his way. "I said, get outta my way!"
"Look at you. You're so messed up. When was the last time you had a wash?!"
"I 'unno. I probably had a shower last month while I was in Cosmo Canyon. I smell kinda mountain fresh, huh?", laughed Chris.
"Mountain fresh?! Yeah, right! What you doing in Midgar?"
"I'm, uh... just visiting some friends...", he replied.
"Oh yeah? What are their names? I may know them."
"Um... Squall... Zell... uh, Rinoa...", stuttered Chris.
"I've never heard of those people. C'mon, what are you *really* doing here?"
"Okay!", Chris sighed. "I'm looking for work. Any work will do. Just something so that I can get a few gil together and go visit my girlfriend in Mideel. I haven't seen her for three months and-"
"Aw! So you wanna see your 'girlfriend' huh?!", Cloud interrupted. "Haha!"
"Why you laughin'?!", Chris growled.
"No reason! Its nothing! Hey, I think I might be able to help you. I think Tifa needs someone to do a couple of hours work a day in the bar. Whaddya think of that?"
"Is Tifa... a girl?", wondered Chris.
"Yeah. Why?"
"I'll come check the place out. And if I like it... I just *might* take the job."
"Great! I'm sure Tifa will give you a decent chance!", said Cloud. "Unless of course, you're an axe murderer or something! You're not... are you?"
Later that night, back at Seventh Heaven...
"Oh, no! No way, Cloud!", moaned Tifa.
"Aw, c'mon Tifa! He's a good guy! I'm sure he'll try his best! Think of his girlfriend! How would you feel in his situation?!", whailed Cloud.
"Grrr... Okay!", Tifa groaned.
"You won't regret it, baby!" Chris bloated. "When do I start?"
"You can start tomorrow!", Tifa snapped. "And don't call me baby!"
The next day, Chris had started his first shift in Seventh Heaven. Tifa and Aeris watched him in action.
"He moves very gracefully, don't you think?", Aeris commented.
"I shouldn't say this...", whispered Tifa. "...But I have a bad feeling about this guy."
Just then, Yuffie walked into the bar.
"Hey everyone!", she yelled.
"Do my ears deceive me?", smiled Chris. "Or is that the beautiful Yuffie?"
"Aaaahhhh!", Yuffie screamed. "Its that jerk who tricked me to sleep with him!"
"Oh, brother!", sighed Tifa and Aeris as they left the bar.
"Yuffie, how are you doing babe?!"
"I was fine! Until I saw you! What the heck are you doing here in my favourite bar?!"
"You didn't know? I work here now. Old man Cloud got me a job!"
"Hey! Only I call 'em old! That's my cue!", Yuffie flinched in anger.
"Yuffie, what say you and I blow this pop stand and go travel the world together? We could do so much!"
"Argh! I'm not goin' anywhere with you!", Yuffie stormed out of the bar leaving Chris alone.
"...Looks like the coast is clear. Time for the next part of my genius plan!"
Chris reached into the cash register and took out all the gil inside. He placed it inside a brown bag which he pulled from his pocket.
"Heh heh... Goodbye, suckers!", he giggled. "Now... next stop... Junon!"
As he ran out of the bar, Cloud and Barrett emerged from the basement.
"Hey, where's that new employee?", questioned Barrett.
"Uh, Tifa probably let him go for lunch.", gurgled Cloud.
"At 9:00am?!", Barrett retorted. "Wait-a-minute! The cash register is empty! That Chris dude swiped all our takings!"
"No way!", shrieked Cloud. "He wouldn't, would he?"
"Cloud! Barrett! Where's Chris?", asked Tifa as she and Aeris came back into the bar.
"...He left.", explained Cloud.
"WHAT?!", screamed Tifa.
"Yeah, and he, uh, stole all our money too.", Barrett added.
"Oh great! Cloud, I knew he couldn't be trusted!", Tifa yelled.
"Now, we don't know that Chris took the money for definite.", gulped Cloud. "Maybe he was overpowered and kidnapped by thieves."
"You better hope for your sake that he was!", shouted Tifa. "C'mon guys, we gotta go track him down and get to the bottom of this!"
"Well, its gonna take more than one chapter to complete this story.", coughed Aeris. "I'll have to make the best of this and live life to its fullest!"
"Alright! Let's go!", yelped Barrett.
TO BE CONTINUED...
AUTHORS NOTE: THE CHARACTER CHRIS MADE HIS DEBUT APPEARENCE IN 'A COUNTDOWN TO CONFUSION'. SINCE THEN HE HAS APPEARED IN A NUMBER OF MY OTHER FICS, SO YOU MAY WANNA READ THEM BEFORE READING THIS, TO GET THE FULL BACKGROUND ON HIM.
'A Countdown To Victory'
"Oh, crap! I'm fifteen minutes late!", groaned Cloud. "If I don't pick up the pace, then I'm gonna miss Tifa performing topless at Seventh Heaven!"
Cloud was wandering through the dark alleyways of Sector 6, Midgar City. He'd been working out at the gym in Wall Market all day, and was now hurrying back to Sector 7, home of Seventh Heaven, where he could take some time out and relax with a cold beer. He stopped dead in his tracks when a shadowed figure leapt out infront of him.
"Hey, got any spare change, dude?", the figure asked.
"Geez! What the hell you doing sneaking up on people like that?!", Cloud yelled. "You wanna give me a heart attack?!"
"Woah, chill out, old man! I jus' wanna know if you got any spare gil!"
"Old man?! Old man?! I'm 21 years old! 22 this August! Who you calling old?!", Cloud was madder than a pissed off Tonberry at this moment. "And yes, I've got some loose gil, but you ain't getting any, punk!"
"Alright! Fine! No need to bust a lung!"
"Wait! I know that voice! You-You're... Chris?!", Cloud exclaimed. "Chris from the Gold Saucer?! From SOLDIER?!"
The young man stepped out from the shadows. It was Chris. He looked pretty dirty and hung-over.
"What the hell business is that of yours?! Get outta my way!", Chris tried to push past Cloud, who blocked his way. "I said, get outta my way!"
"Look at you. You're so messed up. When was the last time you had a wash?!"
"I 'unno. I probably had a shower last month while I was in Cosmo Canyon. I smell kinda mountain fresh, huh?", laughed Chris.
"Mountain fresh?! Yeah, right! What you doing in Midgar?"
"I'm, uh... just visiting some friends...", he replied.
"Oh yeah? What are their names? I may know them."
"Um... Squall... Zell... uh, Rinoa...", stuttered Chris.
"I've never heard of those people. C'mon, what are you *really* doing here?"
"Okay!", Chris sighed. "I'm looking for work. Any work will do. Just something so that I can get a few gil together and go visit my girlfriend in Mideel. I haven't seen her for three months and-"
"Aw! So you wanna see your 'girlfriend' huh?!", Cloud interrupted. "Haha!"
"Why you laughin'?!", Chris growled.
"No reason! Its nothing! Hey, I think I might be able to help you. I think Tifa needs someone to do a couple of hours work a day in the bar. Whaddya think of that?"
"Is Tifa... a girl?", wondered Chris.
"Yeah. Why?"
"I'll come check the place out. And if I like it... I just *might* take the job."
"Great! I'm sure Tifa will give you a decent chance!", said Cloud. "Unless of course, you're an axe murderer or something! You're not... are you?"
Later that night, back at Seventh Heaven...
"Oh, no! No way, Cloud!", moaned Tifa.
"Aw, c'mon Tifa! He's a good guy! I'm sure he'll try his best! Think of his girlfriend! How would you feel in his situation?!", whailed Cloud.
"Grrr... Okay!", Tifa groaned.
"You won't regret it, baby!" Chris bloated. "When do I start?"
"You can start tomorrow!", Tifa snapped. "And don't call me baby!"
The next day, Chris had started his first shift in Seventh Heaven. Tifa and Aeris watched him in action.
"He moves very gracefully, don't you think?", Aeris commented.
"I shouldn't say this...", whispered Tifa. "...But I have a bad feeling about this guy."
Just then, Yuffie walked into the bar.
"Hey everyone!", she yelled.
"Do my ears deceive me?", smiled Chris. "Or is that the beautiful Yuffie?"
"Aaaahhhh!", Yuffie screamed. "Its that jerk who tricked me to sleep with him!"
"Oh, brother!", sighed Tifa and Aeris as they left the bar.
"Yuffie, how are you doing babe?!"
"I was fine! Until I saw you! What the heck are you doing here in my favourite bar?!"
"You didn't know? I work here now. Old man Cloud got me a job!"
"Hey! Only I call 'em old! That's my cue!", Yuffie flinched in anger.
"Yuffie, what say you and I blow this pop stand and go travel the world together? We could do so much!"
"Argh! I'm not goin' anywhere with you!", Yuffie stormed out of the bar leaving Chris alone.
"...Looks like the coast is clear. Time for the next part of my genius plan!"
Chris reached into the cash register and took out all the gil inside. He placed it inside a brown bag which he pulled from his pocket.
"Heh heh... Goodbye, suckers!", he giggled. "Now... next stop... Junon!"
As he ran out of the bar, Cloud and Barrett emerged from the basement.
"Hey, where's that new employee?", questioned Barrett.
"Uh, Tifa probably let him go for lunch.", gurgled Cloud.
"At 9:00am?!", Barrett retorted. "Wait-a-minute! The cash register is empty! That Chris dude swiped all our takings!"
"No way!", shrieked Cloud. "He wouldn't, would he?"
"Cloud! Barrett! Where's Chris?", asked Tifa as she and Aeris came back into the bar.
"...He left.", explained Cloud.
"WHAT?!", screamed Tifa.
"Yeah, and he, uh, stole all our money too.", Barrett added.
"Oh great! Cloud, I knew he couldn't be trusted!", Tifa yelled.
"Now, we don't know that Chris took the money for definite.", gulped Cloud. "Maybe he was overpowered and kidnapped by thieves."
"You better hope for your sake that he was!", shouted Tifa. "C'mon guys, we gotta go track him down and get to the bottom of this!"
"Well, its gonna take more than one chapter to complete this story.", coughed Aeris. "I'll have to make the best of this and live life to its fullest!"
"Alright! Let's go!", yelped Barrett.
TO BE CONTINUED...