Turn Back the Clock- Chapter 2

A/N: Well, I didn't expect a bunch of attention, but you guys seem to like this. A lot. :D

Thanks to:
Carrie88: Damn, first reviewer is a very good writer for TifaXSeph. After finishing this update, go check her fics out. Thanks!
ShinobiTwin05: Thanks for the enthusiasm, thanks for the review!
ChezPez
: No worries, this is getting continued NOW. And, I think I'd be ashamed if my grammar was bad! Thanks!
Hidden By Shadow
: Hunh. Thanks!

And to all who have alerted my story, thank you! Those who have alerted, but not commented, you guys can speak to, I love feedback.

Quick note to past readers (From before 7/15), I had an 'oh shit' moment the night I posted the first chapter, and I realized I left out something. I would go back and read chapter 1, because the gift I forgot about is an important plot point.

Also, I like the before crisis characters. It's sad no one uses them more often. It's canon shit that happens, like Essai's and Sebastian's deaths are mentioned in Crisis Core…

ON WITH THE STORY


Tifa was many things as a teenager.

Fashionable was decidedly not one of them.

"I really wore this when I was fourteen?" It was far too early in the morning to be doing this, but Tifa was actually wearing her cowgirl outfit with a mild look of disgust on her face. "I. Look. Like. A bimbo." She didn't even try wearing the hat; it would only serve to make her throw up.

She tore off the offending outfit, putting the soft blue nightgown back on, and dug around in her closet a little bit. Picking up a deep red glove, she stared at it curiously before dropping it as if it had bit her. "Rokkuhāto… The goddess' gloves…." She got curious, and looked at the weapons. They were indeed red leather, but the ornaments adorning them were fascinating. Black and white crystals formed intricate patterns along them, the black ones becoming studs to emphasize power. They had two linked materia slots; inside one was the super-sleep materia.

She put the gloves down on her Nibel pine bedside table, and continued digging through her things. The two sparkling glass bottles of the lifestream, pure and only partially liquid, the smallest fraction of it actually floating in the odd way the Lifestream did at its edges. Tifa held the red bottle up to the light, as the sun was edging its way up the proud Nibel mountain range. The sight was breath-taking.

She shook her head a few moments later, it was sunrise, and that meant her…. Father…. Would be waking her up. It was like a vice on her heart, thinking, knowing that the man was alive and well, since last time she had seen him alive, it had been with Masamune in his chest, holding his hand as his heart slowly gave out on him.

Her eyes began to tear up on their own, and she wiped them away quickly, before the grief could wind its way into her chest. Her dad was alive here. Alive.

She moved back to her closet, still in her light blue nightgown, and wanting something simpler, even if it was something like she had worn back during Meteorfall. She would have preferred her black outfit, but it would probably be a bit too big to fit her now.

She giggled at the thought of her younger self in her elder selves' attire. The chest pieces would be hanging off, practically.

She gasped when she found a soft, white cotton shirt, along with a familiar leather skirt, and the straps that connected the two. When Minerva sends you back in time, she really makes sure she covered all of her bases.

Gleefully, she took off the nightgown of her youth, (She was going to wear t-shirts and yoga pants from now on, she swore) and changed into the familiar, 'let's do this shit!' shirt, as Yuffie had dubbed it. Yuffie had been rather tempted to steal all of their original outfits, the same ones that they had worn during Meteorfall, and sell them on the black market as "hero's clothes", but two things kept her from that goal.

The only thing Vincent had changed was the gauntlet- to this very day, she didn't know what was underneath it (probably didn't want to know, but still) - and Tifa refused to give up her clothes. She had bled, sweat, and cried in them, and had told Yuffie if they ever had to do it again, she wanted those goddamn clothes to do it in!

Yuffie had grinned, somehow getting it all on camera, and showing it to the others. Personally, Reeve's shocked face was the best. Yuffie had collapsed in giggles as Cait Sith had the same expression on its robotic face.

Cid was a close second, Tifa recalled with a grin. Cid had simply put his calloused hand on her shoulder, and said, "My work here, ladies, is done." Tifa had hit him for it, but Yuffie was rolling on the floor, in a fit of hysterical laughter.

Once Tifa had dressed, she stood up and gave herself an once-over in her mirror. Much better, I don't look like a cowgirl wannabe.

Tifa froze in her footsteps as she heard a familiar voice call from downstairs. "Tifa, breakfast is ready!"

She felt tears in her eyes again, but swallowed the lump in her throat before continuing. "I'll be down in a minute, Papa!" She walked over to her dresser, and then shook her head, whispering to herself.

"Cloud wasn't here. Zack was- the perv." She snorted at the memory of the overly-enthusiastic SOLDIER. Either way, Tifa reached into her dresser, and pulled her orthopedic underwear out to hide it underneath her bed.

She paused as she remembered the detail he had on her room, thinking, before speaking to herself again. "But… Zack was dying, and he gave memories of more important things to Cloud. So how did Cloud…?" She paled briefly at the thought, before shaking it away.

She had breakfast to eat with her Papa.


"Tifa, don't you have lessons with Master Zangan later?" Her dad's voice broke the peaceful silence after a hearty meal, courtesy of her Papa. She made a noise of determined agreement, and picked up both her father's, and her own plates.

She had missed this so much. Being taken care of, rather than taking care of Marlene, of Denzel, and whenever he was around, taking care of Cloud. She was forced into a role she wasn't ready for, at the tender age of sixteen, she was left to wander the streets alone, making quite a few choices she vowed to never make again.

If she had her way, she would never have to make those choices again.

But, she had to be the one to take care of things for a little longer, thinking of Gaia's orders. Angeal Hewley. Huh, seemed she had a knack for saving depressed and suicidal people. Her thoughts went dark with the idea of Cloud being suicidal, but she had to shake off the worry for a man who, technically, didn't exist.

She smiled at her father, and left the room, and then packed her bag. Inside were her new gloves, the sleep materia was still inside a slot, a tent, a t-shirt and pants to sleep in, and an extra pair of clothes.

She didn't really want to risk breaking the glass bottles, but Tifa thought that having one with her might come in handy. The Goddess had told her that she would know when, and she thought this might be the right time.

Tifa grabbed the black one, as it seemed sturdier, less prone to breaking for some reason, and just left one hidden in her closet. Tifa opened up a pillowcase with two cushions inside, and placed the bottle gingerly between the two cushions. She then placed it inside her bag, hoping it wouldn't break.

Her father didn't know that his little girl was going on an adventure to save a suicidal ex-commander.

Or was it the planet? Her head began to hurt at the complexities of the webs spun between them all.

Tifa used her sheets to form a rope, and using it she slowly lowered the bag to the ground outside, hoping to Minerva that her dad didn't see that. Once she was sure it had reached the ground, she let the sheet-rope go.

She walked back downstairs, where her father was cleaning up the dishes from breakfast. She embraced him in a strong hug, and gripped onto his shirt. Papa managed to turn around and hug her back, and she just stood like that for a long while.

Richard Lockhart didn't complain at his only daughter's sudden actions, he returned the sudden hug and stroked his baby girl's hair.

"I love you Papa." Tifa's voice was soft, and actually kind of difficult for him to hear, but he caught it. He smiled, hugging her hard, but then broke the embrace. "Sweetie, you have to go to Zangan's now." His beautiful girl nodded, and took her gloves out of her pocket. As she put them on, she stretched, and he ushered her out the door.

"I'll see you later, Teef." He smiled and waved before closing the door. Tifa smiled sadly back, knowing that she wouldn't see her father for quite a while.


The lesson ended after only three spars, and Tifa had once again been a triumphant winner, practically on top of Zangan, the elder man panting, trapped, defeated. She climbed off him, and offered him a hand to get up. He smiled tiredly, and accepted it.

Once the man was back on his feet, he brushed himself off, and smiled as Tifa got herself back into a readied position. "Tifa, that's enough. No more sparring, I'm done." Tifa was confused, but he shook his head at her, probably knowing that she thought he was done because she was a horrible student.

"You are a wonderful student, but I am afraid I have no more to teach you." Tifa was surprised; she had known the Goddess had made her stronger and that she had remembered how to fight as she had when she was older.

But she never had expected that she had no more to learn from Zangan. She smiled though, and he brought her back inside his house. "You have beaten your master on fair grounds, and I suppose that you have earned the right to also be called Master." She smiled at the man, and he groaned as she tried to pat him on the back. "Ouch, you really learned how to make it hurt." The man shook his head and Tifa giggled.

"Well, you'd best be off Tifa, your Dad will begin to look for you soon, I am going to shower." Tifa nodded, and walked off toward the door, feigning leaving, but no sooner did she hear the shower turn on did she go looking around for two things. Zangan held the keys to the only car in Nibelheim, and well, she kinda needed his wallet.

As she took both, she muttered to herself. "That's for leaving me alone in Midgar, Master."


She had taken the car, and had driven far out from her hometown, had gone north and straight through the mountains. Not bothering to stop in Rocket Town, though she longed to see the Captain, she had work to do, and very little time to do it.

The Goddess had told her that Angeal was in enough anguish he was driven to have Zack kill him. Tifa now knew this, and the only logical thing to do would be to stop him, by beating Zack there.

The truck had broken down shortly before her arrival in a small boating town, and while she was annoyed she had to walk, it was good, because she could get some money from the monsters here, nasty buggers they were, and test just how powerful the goddess had made her.

As she was finding out, punching the skull in on a monster was easy business now.

She was on par with SOLDIER.

With Cloud.

Damn.

No wonder Zangan had been out of breath after he'd sparred with her three times, her strength and stamina had dramatically increased. Was this what the Goddess had meant when she said that she wanted Tifa to be her Ebony WEAPON?

Well, Tifa hoped she would never be like those giant monsters they had to fight. They were serious pains in the asses to fight.

She wiped sweat and monster blood off of her figure, and pulled out a mirror to make sure there wasn't anything in her hair. She gasped when she saw her eyes. Mako. She had gleaming, glowing chocolate red eyes. She had MAKO in her system, courtesy of the Lifestream.

How the hell was she going to hide that!

She would have to figure that one out later, because she was running out of time. She picked a piece of flesh out of her hair with faint disgust, before cleaning up her things and setting back off to the town with a fair bit more cash than she had when she started.


By the time she arrived at the tip of her home continent, the boat was preparing to set off, and Tifa had to make a mad dash to the counter to buy a ticket, before making another quick dash to the boat.

She arrived only seconds too late, the boat was leaving the dock, but she couldn't give up!

She had to save Nibelheim, and to do that, Angeal Hewley had to live. She grabbed her bag tightly, before backing up about ten feet and placing the delicate bag on her back. She took off, trying to jump onto the boat.

She missed by a mere inch.

OhgaiaI'mgoingtofall-I'…

A single, strong, hand suddenly shot down, catching her own hand, and stopped her fall. "H-hey! Martial Arts, I need help!" A distinctly female voice came from above, another cursing before Tifa was able to see a woman with dark blonde hair and brown eyes.

"The hell are you doing, trying to jump onto a moving boat, for Odin's sake?"

"Cheya!"

"Well what am I supposed to say, Acacia? That was a dumbass move!" The blonde was annoyed, the other struggling to keep Tifa in her grasp.

"Dang, you are heavy! Cheya, just help me get her up before I drop her!" The light voice was beginning to sound strained.

Tifa didn't really want her fate in the hands of these two squabbling girls.

"Can you two argue later! I'm about to fall to my death!"

"FINE. You, girl, grab my hand." The one who was called Cheya reached over the side and Tifa grabbed her hand like she was hanging for dear life….

Well, she was.

Eventually, three women were on the ground, panting at the effort to bring Tifa on board.

"So… We just… Saved you…." The blonde with the ponytail piped up between breathing. She sat up and began speaking animatedly. "My name's Acacia, but you can call me Ace!" She grinned broadly, before speaking up again. "This is Cheya, and what's your name!"

"Uh…. Tifa?"

"Nice to meet you!" Acacia was somehow… Like Yuffie.

Did these people teach each other or something?

Cheya massaged her temples, sighing heavily, before glaring at the cheerful young woman. It was then that Tifa noticed the outfit on the two.

"You two are Turks!" Cheya threw her a look that said, 'No, Really?', but Acacia nodded cheerfully.

"Yep! I'm Shotgun, and this is Martial Arts! But she is the female version." Cheya face-palmed, but Acacia tilted her head and smiled at the teen, letting out a single chuckle.


"So… You are going to Modeoheim to save your lover's best friend from committing suicide?" Acacia's eyes began to tear up, before embracing the teenaged Tifa in an overly-eccentric hug. "That's SOOOOOOO romantic!"

Meanwhile, Cheya turned her gaze away, touched by Angeal's path- as much as Tifa knew, anyway.

"Well, I wouldn't call us lovers, but I certainly hope one day we can be together like that." Tifa's voice was shaky, but rather wistful. Acacia, Zack, Yuffie, these people were the most hyperactive people Tifa had ever met, and ever hoped to meet.

"Well, tell us his name, I certainly hope I can meet him one day, if he is anything like you say."

"Uh… He's called Seth…" Tifa blushed, and continued. "Seth Crescent. He's a SOLDIER, I never asked him the class, but he is reserved, but kind and respectful to those who've earned his trust. His good friend, however, came out of the Wutai war thinking he was a monster, and has left him with a note saying he was going to die in Modeoheim. Since he is still in the line of duty, I need to go stop him."

Acacia squealed loudly, before hugging Tifa again.

She was a Turk? Oh, Tseng was getting words about this chick.

That's if… Tseng was still the leader of the Turks…

Dang, this time travel stuff was hard! Tying enough truth into her alias had been hard enough, but reporting to someone who wasn't the head of it all anymore? (Or would it be yet…?)

Tifa sighed, she was stuck with a hyperactive chick, and a serious Turk for two days until she could get off and run for her dear life.


Cheya= Martial Arts (Female)
Acacia= Shotgun (Female)

If they are out of character, suck it up, I haven't played Before Crisis, and this is what I think of them. I like them.