Blood, Sweat, and Tears

Prologue 2
A Rose by Any Other Name

"Okay. Talk to you later! Glad to help!" Tifa snapped her cell phone shut after giving a classmate help with his homework and skipped down the stairs of her family's handsome two-story home in Nibelheim. She walked into the dining room and took her place at the table beside her mother. Her older brother sat across the table from her, helping himself to some mashed potatoes. Tifa waited patiently for him to finish and accepted the bowl from him when he was done. After scooping some potatoes onto her own plate, she covered them with the beef and gravy.

She folded her hands as her father began to say grace, "O Goddess, bless this food which we are about to receive in thy holy name. Amen."

She lifted her fork and began to eat her dinner happily. Her mother cleared her throat slightly. "So… Spring break starts tomorrow, doesn't it, Tifa?"

Tifa nodded and swallowed her food before speaking, "Uh-huh. Midterms are finally over."

Her brother smiled smugly. "I didn't have Friday classes this semester, so my break started today."

"Yeah, well, not all of us are lucky enough to be in college and living in the dorms, Genesis."

Their father cleared his throat. "Speaking of which…" Tifa's and Genesis's eyes turned to their father. "My company offered me a promotion."

Tifa smiled openly. "That's great news, Dad!"

"Except. There's a small catch."

"What's that?"

"We have to move to Midgar."

Her mouth fell open. "But…! But…! What about…! I'm just about ready to graduate! Can't we stay here until then?"

"Tifa… You're still a junior… You still have another year until you graduate. If you were a senior, I might be able to convince the company to let us stay, but I can't. Not for a year."

"But all my friends are here!"

"You'll make new friends. And with technology these days you can keep in touch easily."

"But what about Genesis? He still has half a semester to finish!"

Genesis crossed his arms. "I'm living in the dorms… I can stay here easily enough and come see you guys in Midgar over the summer."

"This… this isn't fair!" She threw her fork on the table and ran up the stairs to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

……

The following Tuesday, her belongings all packed away and her farewells said, Tifa climbed into the family car for the three-day trip. The school in Midgar that her parents had transferred her to had spring break the same week, so she had three days to get accustomed to life in the big city before school started up again. She glanced over her shoulder from her spot in the backseat and waved to Genesis, who walked over and knocked on her window. She opened it and he grinned. "You know you'll have fun in the city. It'll be an adventure you won't soon forget, anyway."

……

Monday morning, she looked in her bedroom mirror, smoothing the pleated skirt of her uniform. She fixed her blazer and sighed before shouldering her messenger bag with 'Angel' printed on the side in curlicue lettering. She trudged down the hall of her new home, a three-bedroom apartment, and walked through the kitchen on her way to the door. Her father had already left for work, so it was just her and her mother. She scooped her lunch money off the counter and slid it into her bag before turning to face her mother. The older woman smiled. "Have fun, sweetheart. Are you sure you know the way?"

"Yes, Mom. I'll be fine. 'Bye." She walked out the door, locking it behind her, and rode the elevator down to the main floor. She walked outside and crossed the street before heading down the stairs leading to the subway. She climbed on the train, riding it the five minutes to her stop and stepped off.

She continued to her school and stopped at the office to fill out the final paperwork before heading to first period. She knocked on the door and walked in, stopping at the front when the teacher told her to. The older man nodded to the rest of his class. "This is our new student… a fresh transfer from Nibelheim." He turned to her. "Care to introduce yourself?"

Not really… She put on a fake smile and spoke with her thick country accent, "I'm Tifa Lockhart."

The teacher waved his hands towards two empty adjacent seats. She walked over and moved to sit in one, but stopped when the girl behind her stuck her hand in the way. "That seat's taken… Its inhabitant isn't here yet."

"Okay…" Tifa slid into the other empty seat and set her bag at her feet. She sat through her teacher's boring lecture before packing up to head to second period.

The girl who had stopped her from sitting in the other seat paused next to her. "What room is your next class in?"

"Um…" Tifa glanced at her schedule. "Algebra, room 231."

"I'm headed in that direction. I can take you there if you want."

"Thanks. I'd… really appreciate that."

"No problem! Follow me!"

She walked out to the hall and waited for Tifa to catch up before leading her through the crowd. She led her up a flight of stairs and stopped in front of a door clearly labeled '231' before ushering her inside. "Talk to you later, Seracor!" She smiled and walked off.

Tifa shook her head before walking into the class and sitting down in a random chair near the back. The rest of the class filtered in just as the bell rang. The teacher started her lecture and Tifa watched as she went over equations she'd already learned at her old school.

Halfway through the class, the door clicked open and a boy walked in, blue eyes scanning the room before stopping on her. He wore the school uniform well out of conduct, jacket open, white dress shirt unbuttoned, and black undershirt showing. The most peculiar feature was the thin leather band, about a half-inch think, circling his throat. Hanging off of it was a broad cross about five inches tall made of shades of gold and silver with black beads falling in two loops from the top of the cross to the sides of the band. Without showing so much as a hint of a smile, he walked to the back of the room and dropped into the seat next to her.

She tried to follow the teacher's lesson, but was constantly distracted by his eyes constantly burning holes into her. She glanced over at him once and immediately his eyes moved elsewhere. As soon as she turned away, she felt his gaze on her again. She shook her head and forced herself to ignore him. Finally, the bell signaling the end of class rang and she grabbed her stuff and ran out of class as quickly as she could.

Please review!

-Valk