[A/N: Welcome all who are reading! Just to let you know, I need to thank all who have reviewed my work. You're compliments, no matter how short, mean so much to me. Even if you just read my stuff without reviewing, thank you too for taking the time to read ^.^ As for this, I'm having serious writer's block for Sapphire Eyes, so I'm moving on to this story. It's a story of confusion, misled words and misunderstood feelings. This kind of some ventilation for me, so read on. I can't tell you the pairing, cus it would ruin the twisted ending I have in store. Please, review if you can. It means much. Thank you ^.~ v ]
[Ok, Enough babbling. On with the story!]
.x. The Strife of a Locked Heart .x.
x Prologue x
Tifa looked over to the window and sighed to see the hunched form of Cloud standing before it. His silhouetted form blocked out the light of the stars, casting a large shadow throughout the cozy room. The silence was overbearing.
Tifa slowly sat up and quietly slid out from under the covers of their feather bed. She padded softly up behind Cloud and slid her arms around his waist, laying her head lightly on against his back. Cloud hardly flinched; making no movement or sound in return to her presence. He was as a statue, cold and torture.
Tifa closed her eyes in understanding. She heard Cloud's breathing and the faint beat of his heart. Most of all, she felt the thoughts that were churning inside his mind and the heavy brooding in his heart. He was thinking of her again.
/But it's ok,/ Tifa always thought to herself. /I'm lucky to merely be in his presence. I'm not about to cause any more trouble in his heart.. I'll just be there for him when he needs it, and hope he feels better./ She sighed again, deeply. Cloud remained motionless, as if she weren't even alive.
/I wonder if he'll ever be whole again.. I'd really like to see him happy.. Permanently. I wonder if he'll ever see how much I really want that for him../
She pushed all other thoughts out of her mind, like always, thinking it useless to think about it now. She hugged Cloud a little tighter, wishing there was something she could do for the inner struggles he was going through. She suffered when he did; but she would never know the pain he was undergoing. He had a very tender, bitter past that he rather kept locked away in his heart.
Locked inside. That's exactly the way he acted when he thought of her. He was very out of place, and acknowledged nothing and no one. Since the end of Sephiroth, the end of Midgar, Shin-Ra and Meteor, he had forced himself to move on. For a while he accepted it all, settling to call it fate, if only to appease his mind. He asked to stay with Tifa, hoping she would help his anguished feelings.
She gladly accepted, and they had lived together in harmony for nearly a year. They had gotten along better then friends, and Cloud discovered that he was in love with her, again. It was if she had the key to his heart, and all his problems seemed to melt away when he gazed into her lovely, crimson eyes. It seemed almost like everything would finally be alright, as long as he had Tifa by his side.
Almost.
As of late, he started having vivid dreams of an angelic young girl from his past. She was always clad in the soft colors of pink, bringing her soft, beautiful features into full scale. Her sparkling emerald eyes matched her surroundings; she was always in a field of green, which swirled around her petite form like mist on a cool, moist morning. He felt as if she was calling for him. Her voice was very unlike the rest of his dream, it was always very faint and obscure, whereas everything else was always clear and vivid. As soon as she spoke, she would slowly fade out of sight.
When he awoke, she was all he could think about. He would then start to ponder back into the past, and he would remember how much he missed her. He of course always remembered her for what she had done. In that perspective, she would never be forgotten. What he was trying to forget were the personal feelings he was harvesting for her. He was hoping they would fade away, as she was clearly gone. But along with the dreams, they were coming back. He remembered what he told Tifa in the crater. He remembered saying he knew where he might be able to find her, if it was possible. Maybe these dreams meant something, maybe he -could- find her. And if he did, he might finally lay to rest all the troubles of his past, of all the blame he secretly laid upon himself.
He supposed that all this time, he was running from the past. He was running from the pain and all the things that had happened to him. At first, he was beginning to worry that he was merely using Tifa to hide his past from himself. He truly loved her with all his heart. But as the dreams were haunting him more and more, he began to worry less and less about Tifa.
She had realized this, too. He always had a piece of himself hidden away, but he began to hide even more with every passing day. He was becoming colder, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. So she stayed there, silently by his side.
But this was the first time he ignored her as he did. He had never blown her off as coldly as now.
As a silver tear slid quietly down her cheek, she began to wonder if she would ever be pushed out of his life for good someday. She had been fighting this thought for some time now, and never let it sink into her heart. But on this particular night, it nestled deep inside her being. He might someday push her away for good.
So for now, while she still could, she held her love Cloud as close to her as possible, fearing it might be the last she felt of him..
..forever.
[Next chapter is already typed and prepared. I'll post it in a couple days. Please review, I need to know if I'm getting anywhere with you guys. Fame isn't exactly my forte, so I'm begging! ^.^;;; Ja-ne!]
[Ok, Enough babbling. On with the story!]
.x. The Strife of a Locked Heart .x.
x Prologue x
Tifa looked over to the window and sighed to see the hunched form of Cloud standing before it. His silhouetted form blocked out the light of the stars, casting a large shadow throughout the cozy room. The silence was overbearing.
Tifa slowly sat up and quietly slid out from under the covers of their feather bed. She padded softly up behind Cloud and slid her arms around his waist, laying her head lightly on against his back. Cloud hardly flinched; making no movement or sound in return to her presence. He was as a statue, cold and torture.
Tifa closed her eyes in understanding. She heard Cloud's breathing and the faint beat of his heart. Most of all, she felt the thoughts that were churning inside his mind and the heavy brooding in his heart. He was thinking of her again.
/But it's ok,/ Tifa always thought to herself. /I'm lucky to merely be in his presence. I'm not about to cause any more trouble in his heart.. I'll just be there for him when he needs it, and hope he feels better./ She sighed again, deeply. Cloud remained motionless, as if she weren't even alive.
/I wonder if he'll ever be whole again.. I'd really like to see him happy.. Permanently. I wonder if he'll ever see how much I really want that for him../
She pushed all other thoughts out of her mind, like always, thinking it useless to think about it now. She hugged Cloud a little tighter, wishing there was something she could do for the inner struggles he was going through. She suffered when he did; but she would never know the pain he was undergoing. He had a very tender, bitter past that he rather kept locked away in his heart.
Locked inside. That's exactly the way he acted when he thought of her. He was very out of place, and acknowledged nothing and no one. Since the end of Sephiroth, the end of Midgar, Shin-Ra and Meteor, he had forced himself to move on. For a while he accepted it all, settling to call it fate, if only to appease his mind. He asked to stay with Tifa, hoping she would help his anguished feelings.
She gladly accepted, and they had lived together in harmony for nearly a year. They had gotten along better then friends, and Cloud discovered that he was in love with her, again. It was if she had the key to his heart, and all his problems seemed to melt away when he gazed into her lovely, crimson eyes. It seemed almost like everything would finally be alright, as long as he had Tifa by his side.
Almost.
As of late, he started having vivid dreams of an angelic young girl from his past. She was always clad in the soft colors of pink, bringing her soft, beautiful features into full scale. Her sparkling emerald eyes matched her surroundings; she was always in a field of green, which swirled around her petite form like mist on a cool, moist morning. He felt as if she was calling for him. Her voice was very unlike the rest of his dream, it was always very faint and obscure, whereas everything else was always clear and vivid. As soon as she spoke, she would slowly fade out of sight.
When he awoke, she was all he could think about. He would then start to ponder back into the past, and he would remember how much he missed her. He of course always remembered her for what she had done. In that perspective, she would never be forgotten. What he was trying to forget were the personal feelings he was harvesting for her. He was hoping they would fade away, as she was clearly gone. But along with the dreams, they were coming back. He remembered what he told Tifa in the crater. He remembered saying he knew where he might be able to find her, if it was possible. Maybe these dreams meant something, maybe he -could- find her. And if he did, he might finally lay to rest all the troubles of his past, of all the blame he secretly laid upon himself.
He supposed that all this time, he was running from the past. He was running from the pain and all the things that had happened to him. At first, he was beginning to worry that he was merely using Tifa to hide his past from himself. He truly loved her with all his heart. But as the dreams were haunting him more and more, he began to worry less and less about Tifa.
She had realized this, too. He always had a piece of himself hidden away, but he began to hide even more with every passing day. He was becoming colder, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. So she stayed there, silently by his side.
But this was the first time he ignored her as he did. He had never blown her off as coldly as now.
As a silver tear slid quietly down her cheek, she began to wonder if she would ever be pushed out of his life for good someday. She had been fighting this thought for some time now, and never let it sink into her heart. But on this particular night, it nestled deep inside her being. He might someday push her away for good.
So for now, while she still could, she held her love Cloud as close to her as possible, fearing it might be the last she felt of him..
..forever.
[Next chapter is already typed and prepared. I'll post it in a couple days. Please review, I need to know if I'm getting anywhere with you guys. Fame isn't exactly my forte, so I'm begging! ^.^;;; Ja-ne!]