PART 2

"Way to go lassie! You sure gave 'im a lesson he won't forget." Cait Sith exclaimed just as Tifa smacked the monster with her impact. "Hey Cloud, look!" Yuffie shouted for she saw six shadows on the roofs in the depths of the night. Cloud replied with an urge to look at the view. He took a long glance and indeed saw the shadows in the darkness. "What do you want from us?" he asked. "Are you the ones who sent these monsters to destroy our city?" The numbered men rushed downwards to the ground. "We come in peace," nearly his mid-20's, a man holding a sword with a resemblance of an inscription of a lion, trotted towards Cloud and his team, "we hail from Balamb Garden, and we are here to ask for your help." "Who are you and how did you travel across the globe to here?!" Barret asked with a loud voice. "Hey, don't you dare speak to SeeD members like that!" Another one spoke with somewhat of a girl's voice. "Selphie stop it…" Another woman with a bladed-wheel in an arm holster attached near her hand spoke as if she wants this 'Selphie' to keep Cloud and the others from knowing that they were SeeD soldiers.

Marlene and Denzel's room

"Marlene," Denzel said quietly. "Yeah?" the girl replied. "I was wondering how those creatures got in here." Denzel added as he tapped his feet on the wooden floor while sitting on the bed. "What do you mean?" Marlene replied once again and focused her sight on the moon. "I just don't know how those, the ones Cloud and his gang fought with, reached Edge City." The girl diverted her head and looked on a picture frame with Cloud, Tifa, their friends, and Denzel and her in it. She thought of such too. "Maybe…" At the dawn of her speech, loud banging of the floor below began, then the staircase, and into the hallway. They've arrived. They reached the short vicinity and started knocking on the door of where Denzel and Marlene's room is with an agile movement. The children got stunned with fear. "Wh… Who is there?" Marlene asked with coercion evident in her way of speaking. "Hey Marlene, is that you? Where's Denzel? Are you alright in there?!" A man with a frisky voice exclaimed from the other side. "Reno, stop scaring the kids!" Rude added. "Denzel, I'm scared." The Marlene ran towards the other child and didn't dare to inspect the door at a second time. "Stay here, while I check on it." Denzel replied. He slowly grabbed a baseball bat and made a posing getting ready to hit someone with it. And while on the other side… Rude sighed with a somewhat humiliated expression at covered his face with his hands. "Reno just let me handle this." The Turks member said sluggishly. Denzel on the other hand, opened the lock and Rude held the doorknob.

As trouble was arising for both kids at 7th Heaven, there was also a discussion being held outside.

"Please, I'm asking for your help. I am Squall Leonhart. We aren't the ones who summoned those monsters. The others and I were supposing it was Edea, our Matron at Balamb Garden." Cloud made a look telling the one speaking that he needs further information about what he was saying. "She was once possessed by an evil sorceress, named Ultimecia, from the past. When her spirit was absorbed by Ultimecia's powers, she also wanted to absorb one of our team mates to gain control over time and space to compress it to make her the only living person in history," Squall added. "Who's that team mate of y…?" Cloud asked but was then halted by a nearby person. "It's me," the girl who spoke to Selphie said with a low and concerned voice. She sighed. "My name is Rinoa Heartily. I am the one chosen by 'her' to be the next target to gain powers until one day, we stopped Ultimecia for good. But I think, her soul was revived once again and took control of Balamb's Edea." Everyone stared at her and serenity filled the air. Another woman in her 20's walked near the throng. "Squall," she spoke. "Irvine and I have finally verified that the Dark Hounds were sent by our mistress Edea. I believe we must save her, master Cid, and Balamb with immediate actions." the woman spoke while her left hand was holding down on her waist with a whip clung onto it. "Oh, pardon me for being rude, I am Quistis Trepe. A SeeD member and past…Balamb instructor." "Thanks for the quick help you've given us, Quistis, Irvine." Squall, their leader said. "Hey, were you referring to me?" Cid asked the woman. "No. You're not the Cid I'm talking about. It's our headmaster at Balamb Garden. His name is Cid Kramer, Edea's husband." Quistis replied with a cool voice.

7th Heaven

There was a deafening silence all over the hallway. Reno was standing near the wall and Rude was halfway to open the door. The kids heard the movement of the doorknob and tension worsened for both Marlene and Denzel. "Denzel, hit him!" the girl shouted. "Yeah, I know. I'll hit him!" Denzel answered. Rude turned the knob rightwards and spoke, "Hey kids. How are you?" Then Denzel suddenly waved his bat and hit the tuxedo-clad man in the stomach. "Ohhh!" Rude exclaimed of pain and then fell to teak the floor. "Whew. Now I bet'cha not to open that." Reno said as he brushed his coat. "Oh no. Denzel, you hit Rude!" Marlene implied. "Uh oh…" Denzel replied.

While some things were still on the kids, on Rude, and on Reno, Cloud and his gang were finally getting things clearer.

"So, will you help us?" another one spoke. Cloud's team mates alertly looked on another person shrouded with dim light dark alleys of Edge.

Sorry to interrupt you guys. I'm Zell Dincht. Also a SeeD member." "Hmmm…" Barret murmured to himself as he was looking at them with a serious face. "Tifa, I don't think we should believe these people." Yuffie whispered to her. Everyone stopped. Selphie Tilmitt made a shrugging gesture. "Please?" she asked. Cloud paused a little while and had a flashback several years ago before he joined AVALANCHE.

Flashback:

Telephone rings. Cloud took a glimpse on someone holding the phone.

"Hello, who is this?" a man spoke. It was Zack Fair, Cloud's best friend and a co-member when he was a SOLDIER of Shinra. "Oh hey! Sir Cid, it's you." The man spoke happily. "Huh? What? But… What is really happening there? I am very pleased to help you about that concern but, I think it's really hard to enter your Continents. The guards are onto asking and asking stuffs. They're pressuring foreign nationalities. Yes..." He looked on the clock, "Ok… Bye." Zack put back the telephone with a sad and worried feeling. Cloud asked, "Hey what is that about?" "Nothing." Zack replied. "Oh come on. What's that?" Cloud insisted that he'd answer him. "Umm… It was Cid Kramer, the headmaster of a far away settlement called Balamb Garden; he just told me that a Galbadia Garden was invading the kingdom of Dollet Dukedom, and they, Balamb Garden officials, were asked to help the country to stop their enemies."

The flashback ends. "Yes. I and my comrades will help with all that we can." Cloud said instantly. "What?!" Yuffie, Barret, Cid, and Cait Sith were surprised on what Cloud said. Tifa and Red XIII just looked at the others with a very neutral expression and merely thought of some other things. "Cloud, we'll help them just like that?!" Barret said to Cloud as they walked a little further from the two groups. "Yeah! Their looks aren't to be trusted. Maybe they are Sephiroths' newest minions!" Yuffie said in a low yet storming voice. "Yes I know you aren't gonna be convinced on them but I know they are not enemies." Cloud answered as his team mates are giving him too much pressure. "Oh alright…" Yuffie's face turn from frown to a 'defeated' one and sighed. "Just be sure you won't get all of us into trouble." Cloud then looked back at Squall's team. "So... When will we start?" He said. "Alright!" Zell exclaimed and jumped. "Thank you so much." Rinoa said. Squall just smiled back at Cloud and the others.

Meanwhile, inside 7th Heaven…

Reno grabbed Rude's hand. "Come on. Get up. Maybe the fight's still there." He said with laughter. "I'm so sorry Rude." Denzel said in a silent speech as he dropped the baseball bat. "It's alright. It wasn't your fault kids. There's a lot of trouble down there and you don't know what could happen to you too." Rude said with a gentle voice telling the kids that he's just fine. Reno checked what was happening outside through the window. "Aww man! The fun's all gone and now they're talking to some other people." He disappointedly said. Marlene followed and gazed upon from roofs. "Cloud! I'm so happy you weren't hurt." The girl yelled. "Huh?" Irvine Kinneas looked at the rooftops and saw a little girl and a man standing in front the windowpane. "Who's that?" he asked while on the background, Barret and Cait Sith also looked up and shouted with greetings. "Oh, they're friends.' Tifa answered and smiled back.

END OF PART 2

Things to see on Chapter 3:

1. Cloud and the gang travels to Balamb Garden

2. Cid's newest airship is now fully field-operational!

3. Finally… Tifa's feelings for Cloud, now revealed on him!