She never cried.
The last time she cried was on that late summerevening when her mother had let out her last breath. She would never forget that moment. Tifa was 17 years old.
her father had left them a year before she died, Tifa never really knew why. He just left. after that her mother became depressed and started drinking, thinking her only daughter wouldn't notice how she was drinking her problems away. Little did she knew that Tifa was always there, listening to her mother crying and asking to the dark why her husband had left them.
Every night it was the same story, her mother putting her asleep with a single kiss on her fronthead and tucking her in. Then she would go downstairs, open up a bottle of single malt wishkey and started drinking. The first weeks she cried herself to sleep, with an empty bottle lying next to her. A lovely smile on her face, dreaming of a beter time. Tifa always staid on the stairs in a dark corner, with her favorite fluffy blanket drapped around her, to keep an eye on her mother. When she knew she was sound a sleep, she would go to her, give her the same kiss she always got from her and took away the empty glass and bottle.
Then she would go back upstairs to her room and open up her window that led to the rooftop, she sat on the shelf with her knees tucked up to her chin. Her arms folded around her legs, while resting her head on her knees, still wrapped around in her blanket. Her favorite blanket she got from het best friend, that would soon come over to cheer her up just like he always did. Cloud Strife was her best friend since forever, he would come over to her place every night to be with her and comfort her. To make sure she would find peace and would sleep peacefully. They would talk about all kinds of stuff, about the good things and the bad things,
about the sun that was shining or the heavy rain that would fall from the sky. Sometimes play a boardgame or just with the cards, but mostly the went up the roof and just lay there and watch the stars. Holding hands and just talk. Cloud always made her smile, that was one of the things she loved about him and the fact that he was there for her, always.
On the evening that her mother died, Cloud was right there beside her, holding her tightly. His arms protectevely around her making soothing movements with his thumb on her lowerback. Tifa had her head burrowed in the crook of his neck, crying softly. her hands were both on his chest grasping his shirt till her knuckles turned white. Her tears rolled over Cloud's neck into his shirt, making little wet stains, but he didn't care. Cloud had his hand on her head, stroking her hair affectionatly making soothing sounds. He didn't let go of her and just let her cry for hours until she fell asleep in his arms. He carried her to her bed and laid her down slowly, carefully removing her hands that were still clutched tightly onto his shirt. Laying down himslef behind her so that her back was pressed against his chest, pulling the covers over the both of them he pulled her close to him placing his arm protectevely over her waist. One leg crossed over hers to from a wall behind her, keeping her warm. Tifa craddled herself closer to him grasping his hand that now laid over her stumach.
That was the last time she cried.
Since then Cloud never left Tifa's side, he moved in with her and together they ran the bar her mother left her. Seaventh heaven. Cloud, who had joined SOLDIER, left the company so he could be with her. He started his own little sidebussiness so he could make a little bit extra, the Strife delivery service. They had a good life going on, as good as it could be in Midgar. That was untill a groupe ended in Tifa's bar, a group called Avalanche. They heared rumors about them, that they wanted to safe the planet from Shinra. That Shinra was sucking all the life out of the planet for it's own benefits, not even thinking about the problems they were really causing. Around all their reactors there were more and more monsters showing up, flowers stopped growing, trees started to lose all their beautifull green leaves and stop making whisteling sounds in the wind.
Soon Cloud and Tifa found themselves joining Avanlanche and their fight against Shinra. They made Seaventh heaven their homebase and all of the groupe soon also lived in their home. The group existed out of all kinds of weird people, but all of them had a good heart and soul. Each of them had their own reasons for being in Avalanche. First their was Barret, a big, brainless, killermachine. With a hand that was turned into a gun. He had adopted a little girl named Marlene, who he loved with al his heart. He was the leader of the group but was soon replaced by Cloud, who was a beter leaderfigure then Barret. Everyone looked up at Cloud and followed him wherever he would lead them, without questioning or was their leader now.
Then their was Yuffie, a wicked, tiny, stealing ninja from Wutai. She soon was Tifa's best girlfriend, however she could work on Tifa's nerves (which was really difficult). You beter check your pockets 3 times after having a run-in with her, you possible lost something...
Cid, the sigaret-smoking, swearing , tea-drinking old guy who was specialezed in vehicles. He owned his own airship that he named after his wife, Shera. Who also was in Avanlanche. She was always smiling and making sure that Cid would behave himself at the right moments. She was just adorable.
And thats how Tifa ended up on this point. She was now 25 years old, a single woman who owned a bar with her best friend. They just had placed explosives to destroy another one of Shinra's reactors. They allready blow up 2, this was the tird one. And apparently the one that would cause her to let her fall one of the teardrops she never thought she would let fall again.
She watched him fall into the dark deep below her, never leaving her eyes from his, she felt that single tear slip away from her and saw it falling towards him.
Thats when reality struck and she jumped back on her feet, looking around she turned to Barret and jumped the small gab that was separating them.
She looked at the monsters and saw one of them jumping down after Cloud, the other two just stared at them with big green eyes and smoke coming out of their noses.
Together they started running, away from the dragonlike creatures, "we have to get down there Barret ... can you see a way down?" she managed to say between gasps for air.
"Tifa we've gotta go back, no way we're gonna go *jdguez% down there"
"what? are you insane? We've got to go and search for Cloud!"
"Tifa, baby, we don't have *kfsteh time for that! he's a big boy! We need to finish the job before they find out 'bout the explosives!"
"No! I'm going down there" Tifa said with a stern look on her face. Her eyes turning into a dark brown, hands turned into dangerously tinteling fists.
Barret just looked sadly at her and said in a voice that was supposed to be reassuring "Babygirl, he's going to be'kay, ya'll see. He'll come back to ya in no time"
he also tried to put on his best smile for her.
But Tifa wouldn't have it. Cloud has always been there for her, no it was her time, she needed to get down there.
"I'm going" and with that she turned around and started to climb her way down.
Barret looked back from the way they came and saw that the two monsters made a way around the gab and were now coming towards them, one of them was on his way to Tifa . He knew that Tifa wouldn't make it down in time, so he did the only thing he could do. He grabbed her by the arm to stop her from descending and looked her into her eyes when she jerked her head up feeling his touch on her arm.
"sorry babygirl, for ya'own good"
Tifa looked at him with her dark eyes witch were shooting bolts at him "don"t you dare Barret..."
That's when he hid her with a sleeping spell "you sun ... of .. a . bi..." and with that Tifa closed her eyes and became limp, hanging there with Barret holding her.
"nighty night"
He pulled her up and threw her over his back looking over his shoulder to see that the dragon was still a bit away from him, he picked one of his grenades and threw it at him.
"this will slow it down'bit" and started running to get them both to safety. Behind him he could hear the grenade go off followed by a growl that made the ground shake, looking over his shoulder he didn't see anything so he picked up his pace and ran to where they were supposed to meet up with the rest of the team.
"COME ON' stupid kids! always keep us waitin!" Cid yelled, when he saw Barret coming towards them.
Shera who stood beside him saw what was hanging over Barret'shoulder "oh my... Cid? ... is that ..."
"Tifa... WHAT THE HELL'GOING ON?" Cid yelled again when Barret reached them.
"Explain later, blow up the damn thing!"
"Where is Cloud?" Shera asked with a trembling voice, holding the detonationdevice in her hand. Trembling so hard she almost dropped it.
"Wanted to fetch a nice rock'r something from below! Just hit the damn'button" Barret said to shera.
Shera pushed up her glasses with her trembling fingers and looked at the device, then back to Barret who was staring at her like he was going to explode anytime soon.
She looked at Tifa and then at Cid, who just nodded at her and gave her a reassuring look befor yelling "hit it woman".
Turning her eyes back on to the device, she slowly closed her eyes en pushed the button with her trembling hands.
The explosives went of and they all looked at the reactor going up in flames. Parts were flying everywhere and there were explotions after explotions, everything around it catched fire and there was a rumbling noice.
They had succeeded in their mission, the reactor was completely destroyed, there was nothing left.
The three memebers just stared at it with an unconscious Tifa on Barret's shoulders.
"We should head back and take care of Tifa, she lookes like she has a bad burn on her arm and her back doesn't look so good either" Shera broke the sillence.
"If Cloud finds out we let her like this longer then necessary, he's going to be pissed" she added.
The two men turned to look at Shera with both fear in their eyes. "Right!" they both blurted out at the same time and they ran for the Shera (the airship offcourse), both very aware of what would happen when Cloud gets mad.
Both remembering that one time when a guy who was causing a rumble at the bar,broke Tifa her vase she got from her grandmother, she was devasted about it. The poor guy didn't know what happend next. Cloud had grabbed him with one hand by his collar and pushed him against the wall, his feet hanging a little bit from the ground. He let out a growl from deep inside his throath, if you didn't know beter you would have thought Cloud had turned into a lion who was ready to attack it's cutting of the man's airsupply, Cloud was ready to punch him right in the middle of his face if Tifa wasn't there to stop him.
She putted her hands on Cloud's upperarm and said it was al right. Looking up at him, he turned to her and slowly let him slip back on the floor, but still kicking the guy out of the bar.
The four of them made it back to seaventh heaven, but when they wanted to start taking care of Tifa, she opened her eyes and punched Barret right in his jaw.
" ... itch" She ended her sentence from before, eyes still a nightly dark brown.
