Disclaimer: I do not own FF7 or FF13.
There was hardly any room for her to stand around Lightning's bed. By the time the doctors and nurses left the room, thirteen hours had already passed and Tifa spent the entire time sitting exactly where Cloud and guided her to thirteen hours ago. In those thirteen hours, everyone that cared for Lightning came, and so the hallway was crowded when they finally got a report on her health. It was bleak. In thirteen hours, it sounded as if everything that could go wrong went wrong. Above and beyond the terrible state Aerith and Cloud had found her in, her body had gone into shock due to the stress and fatigue, and upon arriving at the emergency room, the few most important organs of her body suddenly gave up. First her lungs collapsed, then she had a sudden cardiac arrest, then as if it wasn't bad enough, brain death. They had lost her. Lightning was determined to be clinically dead. The doctors were right on all accounts, but by some miracle, Lightning somehow clung to life. The collapsed lung, the cardiac arrest, the sudden cease in brain activity, and diagnosis of brain death was supposed to be final, but to Lightning, it was like her reset button.
It was the pivotal moment where everything changed. All that looked grim suddenly brightened, and somehow, Lightning just had to go make the impossible possible. They've all taken turns labelling her as a medical mystery, or as a miracle, when she suddenly just revived. Her heart, her lungs, and her brain just restarted, matching the capabilities of a person with good health despite the weak and battered state her body was in. To the doctors, she's just sleeping now. There's no medication, no real diagnosis of some crippling fate, so the only prescription was rest. A few drips here and there to help her maintain her nutrients and a few sensors there and here to monitor her body was all that was needed, but it still looked as if countless tubes had made a well-organized nest over her body.
Now that they were finally able to see her, Serah, Snow, Fang, Vanille, Sazh with his son, and Hope all rushed in and claimed their place by Lightning's side. After all, these were the people who had supported Lightning from beginning till end whereas Tifa had only came in to play during the last few years. As they crowded around the bed, Tifa stood back. It wasn't that she felt as if she didn't belong, or that the concern she felt was subpar in anyway, but it was a respect to their two-thousand and more year-old fight. This was their conclusion, and for Tifa, she didn't mind if she came in second to such a cause. It was enough for Tifa to stand back, with Cloud standing beside her and Aerith's arm linked with hers. Even at a distance, Tifa was satisfied with seeing Lightning surrounded by the people important to her.
With Serah faithfully at Lightning's side, and the others already cracking jokes at the slumbering Lightning's expense, Tifa retreated out of the room with Cloud and Aerith following behind. "Tifa, are you… okay?" Cloud asked carefully, but the raven haired woman merely laughed. She laughed with tears in her eyes that had yet to fall. She could hardly believe that Lightning was back. She's alive, and she's back. A part of her was afraid to ask for more, and even though most people would just assume that Lightning would awaken sooner or later, Tifa wanted to be careful. Seeing everyone so happy, she just couldn't bring herself to ask for one more miracle: for Lightning to wake up. That's why Tifa was the only one that wasn't disappointed or angry when Lightning didn't wake up. She just kept on sleeping and sleeping. So Tifa was back at the waiting game, but with Lightning so tangible, she found enough joy in being able to see and touch her.
It's going to be two months soon. More accurately, it's been seven weeks and three days since Cloud and Aerith found Lightning washed upon the shores of Mideel where the Lifestream reached. It's been fifty two days since they brought her to the hospital, attached all sorts of tubes and drips to the her frail body. The days gone by went by surprisingly quickly and within such a short yet long time, reconstruction to Edge was nearly done. There wasn't much damage to begin with since most of the actual fights had taken place in Midgar, but even so, the main city center needed a facelift after their bout with Sephiroth had bled outwards from the AVALANCHE base. With a single red rose held in her hand, Tifa departed from the nearby flower shop, glancing upwards at the darkening sky, and rushed towards the hospital before she would get caught in the thunder showers slated to arrive later in the day. Now that life seemed to have picked up again without Meteor hanging over their head, she fell back into her regular routine with great ease. Strangely enough, it was a bit unsettling. It was… a little too good to be true. Half the time she's expecting another great adventure to come around the bend. Everyday she'd wake up, help the kids prepare for school, drop them off for their daily fix of education, open up the restaurant, take a short break so that she could pick up the kids again, and then re-open the restaurant and bar for the night's business. Her schedule kept her busy, and that also meant she didn't have time to visit Lightning as much as she should. Tifa's visits were growing more infrequent with every passing day, yet there wasn't a second where she felt guilty. She'd imagine that Lightning would want her to do something productive rather than wasting away at her bedside. The moment the automatic front doors of the hospital opened, a burst of sterile scented air blasted her. It brought a slight tickle to her nose, but Tifa continued onwards and through the winding hallways. It wasn't nearly as busy as it had been now that most of the patients wounded in the battles have been discharged. Approaching the private hospital room where two AVALANCHE soldiers stood guard at the insistence of Barret, Tifa ducked inside after given them a small smile.
Although everyone was once determined being all in attendance in the first few weeks Lightning had been brought back, they all had other duties and responsibilities that they could no longer put back. The appearance of another world and the spontaneous creation of land, cities, and millions of people required a certain amount of attention. Serah, Snow, Fang, and Hope were all leaders of their own faction of people in Nova Chrysalia, and even Sazh returned for his son. Tifa had her business, Cloud did too, and Aerith could finally start building her own life away from the shadows of her Cetra heritage. Still, everyone found time to visit and it was no surprise that Serah would be the one who would come with every opportunity given. Tifa moved quietly to the opposite side of the bed where Serah was sitting on a chair pulled up to the edge. Deep and calm breathes came and went, deep in sleep. Her arms were folded, resting on the bed, while her head was nestled on top. Placing the red rose on the bedside table, TIfa eased herself down on the bed and reached forward to brush her fingers against the tip of Lightning's bangs. She was sleeping soundly, eyelashes so long and pretty, and Tifa absolutely adored the healthy flush in her skin.
Doctors and nurses rarely made their presence known in the room anymore, not after they've retrieved a small blood vial as a sample for study because they thought that her blood might be the key in producing new treatments and cures. Those claims stemmed from the unnatural recovery process exhibited by Lightning's body. Even being bedridden for two months, there's no signs of atrophy in the muscles. On the contrary, she's getting stronger. Rather than deteriorating, it's like her body is somehow regenerating at an unprecedented rate that left medical practitioners stumped.
"I didn't know you were coming today." Aerith's familiar voice drew Tifa out of her thoughts.
"I can say the same." Tifa smiled, looking up at her best friend whose arrival had been given away by the opening of the door even before she spoke.
"Serah gave me a call earlier telling me that she was going to drop in for a visit, so I decided to come with her. I heard things are pretty chaotic over at Nova Chrysalia too. Apparently, they're all demanding to hear from their Goddess…"
"Well, she's the Goddess." TIfa shrugged helplessly as she lifted Lightning's hand up onto her lap. "Do you think she'll wake up soon?"
"The doctor said that she's never seen someone as healthy and fit, awake or not." Aerith hummed, "But she did have some bad news." Tifa frowned, but the brunette merrily waved off her concern, "So Light's blood is no different than anyone else's. That means no strange healing factors, so we don't need to worry that they'll turn her into some experiment. It's not Light that's healing herself. It's something else."
"Something else?" Tifa mumbled, running her thumb over the smooth skin on the back of Lightning's hand, "You think it might be the Lifestream?"
The Cetra seated herself at the foot of the bed, "I don't know." Silence fell between them, but Tifa couldn't bring herself to change that, and so they just remained quiet until Aerith began talking again, "It's not like… It's not like Light's ever been normal. She should've died stopping Meteor."
"So, it's like she… reincarnated."
"I guess," Aerith didn't sound too sure, "but count your lucky stars that she didn't reincarnate into a little baby."
Tifa snorted, "That'd be awkward."
"That'd be tragic." Aerith corrected her with a tease that made her sound like she knew better, "Star-crossed lovers till the bitter end. We could write a book on it and turn it into the next literary sensation after LOVELESS. I think people in Cocoon, Pulse, and Nova Chrysalia would buy into it too seeing that the main character is their Goddess. We'd make a fortune!"
"Nice to know that you're so concerned about my love life." Tifa rolled her eyes.
The brunette shrugged, "Just adapting to the realities of this new world. There're new people, a new country; why not reap the benefits of foreign trade before someone else does? Although there doesn't seem to be much of a market for flowers…"
"Actually…" Serah's sleepy voice startled both woman from their conversations, "ever since Tifa mentioned those blue apples to that store owner, it's gained a lot of traction. Many people call it the fruit of the Goddess now." Their conversation must've woken her earlier, or she had been awake and listened. Serah gave a small acknowledging smile to the fighter, one that was returned kindly.
"You mean Banora apples?" Aerith asked, effortlessly integrating Serah into the conversation as if she were part of it all along. "I could start an apple farm…"
"Aerith, those apples are rare. Aren't they extinct or-" Tifa began, but Aerith shot her down.
"Endangered." The brunette said while tapping her chin thoughtfully, "Not too worried about that though. If I can grow flowers in the slums, I can grow Banora trees."
"You'll be the next business mogul after SHINRA with your upcoming novel-"
"Series." Aerith corrected her once again, "It'll be a series of books. That's how you make gil."
"Right. So your upcoming series, soon to be adapted into movies and plays all around the world, and your Banora apples, which I'm sure will feature in said books and movies." Tifa listed on her fingers and announced, "Gainsborough: the next household name."
"Exactly." Aerith smiled triumphantly before all three of them burst into laughter.
This felt nice. This felt… almost perfect. With her amusement still playing on her lips, Tifa looked back down to Lightning and swore that she could see the faintest smile. "We're going to go get some food." Serah spoke up, and Tifa would've had to be blind to miss that sly look in her baby blue eyes.
"Anything for you?" Aerith asked with that same playful look.
"I'm good, thank you." Tifa rolled her eyes, watching the other two depart with fondness. It wasn't that she was ever short on some one-on-one time with Lightning, and while Hope, if he were here, would go to extra lengths to make sure that she would never be in a room alone with Lightning, Serah seemed all too willing to leave her sister in her hands. Silence fell to fill in the holes that were once ringing with Aerith's and Serah's voices, leaving Tifa alone with Lightning's heart monitor. She looked so at peace that a small part of Tifa actually didn't want Lightning to wake. On second thought… "Wake uuuuup…" Tifa half groaned, half whined, and when she received no response, Tifa pouted and stared wistfully out the window. She could see small flecks of water begin to streak against the clear surface, and with a resigned sigh, Tifa removed herself from Lightning's side. "Looks like the storm is here." There was no response, but it wasn't like Tifa really expected one. This was just like how her other visits had gone, and this would also be like how her other departures had gone.
She left after sending a quick text off to Aerith, letting them know that she was heading back to prepare for the night's business at Seventh Heaven. The rain grew heavier and heavier, large droplets shattering against the sidewalk pavement, making Tifa duck under whatever cover she could find under the shop awnings all the way home. At a block away from her destination, she heard it: the deep rumble of thunder, and felt the static buzz in the air. She looked up into the darkened skies just in time to see lightning ignite and light up the sky in the brilliant white zaps. She could feel the shift in the air all the way down to her bones, tickling her with a curious feeling. Tifa shifted on her feet, her eyes stealing glances down the path she had taken from the hospital, but she ultimately fought the innate desire to go back. It was probably ludicrous, yet she couldn't escape the nagging - the most intriguing, and most baffling – feeling that she would find a conscious Lightning upon returning. Squashing those unfathomable inklings with well reasoned arguments of logic, Tifa forced herself onwards, and it wasn't until she was her storefront did her phone ring. Aerith was calling, but unlike any of Aerith's previous calls, Tifa could feel her heart begin to speed as she tentatively answered it. There was a beat, and then Tifa exploded, "What do you mean she's GONE?!" She should've just listened to her gut.
…
Now she has to be careful. She has to painstakingly take into account all of her movements, count her every step just so she wouldn't understep or overstep. She has to move at the right pace, and live in the right bounds. She has to abide by the rules and limits: such things that she had lived under in a distant past. That's what being 'human' means, and after existing as a being that has transcended for over a thousands years, she's found that it was hard to simply go back an d live life like how she used to. It may be hard though, but it was a challenge that Lightning would gladly take. To go back to being nothing more than just a regular human; as someone that's no better or worse than anyone else, and also as someone that didn't have to carry the fate of the world on her shoulders. She already felt happier, freer, and lighter when she finally awoke from what felt like such a short rest. Her eyes peeled open slowly, slightly inhibited by the sleep that had crusted over her eyes. Light slowly bled into her field of view, soft like a dim amber distantly standing in defiance to the darkness of the night that wallowed in spite at the edge of her vision. She sees the blank white roof first, focusing on nothing in the time it took for her mind to catch up and finally take notice of her surroundings.
There was a constant beep off to her right, slow and steady, and it somehow seemed to beat in rhythm to her breaths. Her eyelids grew heavy again, and Lightning allowed for them to settle close for a restful period of indeterminate time before she lifts them to stare up at the white roof again. No matter how hard she willed for her mind to clear subconsciously, it felt as if her body itself was incapable of providing for her demands like it used to. This absence of strength and willingness to get up and move felt familiar though, tickling her mind with funny nostalgia. If she had to describe what she was feeling now, she'd probably equate it to how a child would feel after getting away with stealing a sweet snack from the cookie jar right before dinner. It was just sleep though, a basic human need but to Lightning, it was something that was taboo simply because of who she was. She couldn't sleep because her responsibilities required her to be constantly vigilant, but her mind was of human origin and thus needed a kind of reprieve aside from mere sleepiness. Half the time, she spends wondering whether she has gone crazy yet. That was why waking now was proving to be a task that was entirely too difficult and required too much effort.
She had been sleeping. Lightning couldn't remember the last time she slept, and she had just been sleeping. It was… sadly exhilarating. Her lips quirked upwards, and even an inaudible chuckle broke free from the confines of her usual stern disposition, and once again she closes her eyes to feel the burn of tears sink into her eye sockets. She felt like a rebel for sleeping; just like how a smoking addict sucked in another puff of the cigarette as if it were their last after promising to quit. It was a little helpless, a tad bit amusing in a rather self-pitying way, but the comfort in falling into an old habit that had once brought a sense of peace and serenity definitely outweighed the rest. She couldn't stay still for long though, despite the amount of amusement she was having in merely reminding herself over and over again that she had finally gotten some shut-eye after a thousand years, and she soon grew curious of her surroundings. Her head lulled to the left to see the city lights shine brightly in the dark night, the shape of them slightly construed as rain drizzled down the window's surface with a soft pitter-patter that was pleasant to the ears. Then, her eyes focused on the closer; a single red rose sat inside a vase that was as white as the room she was in. Lightning tried to reach for it, but her arm fell just shy of the bedside table and dropped lazily onto the bed when she felt a sting. That was when she noticed the assortments of drips imbedded in her skin, sensors taped to her skin, and a breathing tube sitting uncomfortably beneath her nose which stretched back over her ears and down to an air tank. Now she knows what that steady beeping before was from, with each of the high pitched rings punctuating each spike in the heart monitor.
It was annoying.
With her right arm, Lightning reached over and yanked out the drip from her left arm, then swiped her hands over herself to clean the sensors off before she pulls the breathing tube off and drops it unceremoniously onto the bed. She doesn't know where she was, she doesn't know how long she had been sleeping for, but all she really cared about at this moment was getting away. From what? Lightning didn't know, but she did know that she wanted to get out of here. The steady, single flat lined tone filled the room annoyingly, and Lightning was all too happy reaching for the plug and yanking it out from the socket. Relishing in the new found quietness, she milled about in the room, taking her time to scan her surroundings, but all too soon her attention found itself back onto the red rose she had tried to reach for earlier. Her fingers daintily caressed the soft and moist petals as if the flower was the most fragile existence in the world. It wasn't the only thing left in her room that looked to be gifts. There was an assortment of snacks, a fine box of expensive tea, new books and magazines, a bag of clothes kept inside one of the cabinets, and a pair of shoes patiently waiting for her on the bottom shelf. She took the clothes and shoes first, quickly changing out of her hospital gown and into a pair of skinny black jeans and loose hoodie. The slippers were exchanged for the pair of casual high-top sneakers. Before she left the room, Lightning grabbed one of the chocolate bars to satisfy a lethargic gnawing in her stomach; a sensation she thought she had long forgotten.
The hallways were silent for the most part, and her room was clearly located in the more remote area away from the emergency hustle and bustle. Some of the nurses she did pass though looked at her funnily, as if she had a familiar face that they couldn't exactly place and Lightning made a point of leaving before anyone could recognize her. Her first order of thought was to figure out where she was, and if the large metal lettering installed into the wall in the large admittance room was anything to go by, she was in Edge General. With the exit in sight, Lightning stepped out to meet a downpour. For a second, she contemplated of staying, but one more glance back into the hospital decided it. Pulling her hood over her head to hide her tell-tale silvery pink hair, Lightning jogged out into the rain. It took only a matter of minutes before she was soaked, and the fabric of her clothes weighed heavily on her shoulders. The chill prickled her skin, but she just kept going and going. She wasn't too familiar with the streets of Edge, but she did know her way from the hospital to the city center. The skies were gray and ominous; quite a grand welcome for the creator of the new world, but she wasn't complaining. She'd choose this over a parade and fireworks. Integrating into the bumbling crowd of people making their idle way through the streets, her dark form was eventually obscured by the multi-color umbrellas that bobbed up and down around her.
Okay! Just moving this story along~ So Lightning wakes, and... reunion next chapter? ;D We'll see.
