Title: Those We Cherish
Characters: Tifa Lockhart, Cloud Strife, Marlene Wallace,
Pairing: Cloud/Tifa
Rating: Teen to Adult
Disclaimer: I do not own anyone/anything from the forum Final Fantasy. Square Enix owns Final Fantasy and its characters. There is no copyright infringement intended. I do not make any profit/money or take any credit.
Summary: Tifa's past is a mystery to many of the people she cares about. So, what happens when she is asked?
Timeline: In no order – Remake/OG/Post ACC
Warning: Family, Fluff, Smut (ofc there is smut – it is Cloud!)
Author's Notes: This was inspired by Krispy over on the FH Discord channel. I joined the channel late, so I was not able to participate in Tifa's Week and Krispy had mentioned that they had hoped to see a story between Tifa and Marle which ended up inspiring this story.
I hope you enjoy it!
The Feeling of Home
Tifa beat the pillow into submission before she laid down, her eyes looking up at the ceiling, willing sleep to come but she huffed out a frustrated sigh then looked to her left.
The spot that Cloud Strife usually occupied was empty.
Tifa turned onto her side, her hand skimming the empty spot as she remembered the phone call from Cloud earlier.
He had been offered a merc job while making a delivery. Usually, Cloud would turn down last minute jobs, preferring to be at home with her. But the Gil offered, the job had been too good to pass up.
With the Gil, he could afford to take it easy and boost their savings, as well as spend more time with her and Marlene.
Tifa had felt her heart melt a little when Cloud made his confession, wanting to spend more time with them and she wondered if it was even possible to keep falling more in love with him.
However, it came with the downside that Cloud would be home late, depending on how long the job would take.
Tifa had discovered, quite early into their relationship, that she could not sleep without Cloud Strife.
Which was just ridiculous. She had spent 20 years sleeping simply fine by herself.
Other than the time when she and Cloud had traveled with their family. Aerith had always found her way into Tifa's bed regardless of where they were, much to the amusement of the others…and the barely concealed annoyance of Cloud.
Tifa had to deduce the fact that she felt secure when she was in Cloud's embrace.
After nearly losing him so many times during their travels, it gave her the comfort she needed, the sense of security that she had not lost Cloud, that he was not a figment of her dreams.
So, when Cloud was not in their bed, it made it more difficult to sleep.
She did wonder if it could be attributed to the nightmare she had, not long after she finally got Cloud back from nearly losing him to the Mako and Lifestream.
A soft knock at her door and the sound of wood sliding brought Tifa back to the present and she lifted her eyes to see the soft brown eyes peering around the sliding door.
"Hi, sweetheart." Tifa smiled. "Can't sleep either?"
Marlene shook her head, her hair swinging with her movement as she made no further attempt to come into the room.
Tifa fixed it by lifting the cover, inviting the little girl in.
Marlene beamed brightly as she hurried into the room, pulling the door shut then scampered across the length to reach the bed.
Her stuffed Chocobo – a present from Cloud – was wedged tightly between her upper arm and body as Marlene's hands pressed down on the mattress and bounced on her tip-toes to give her the boost she needed to get up on to the bed.
Tifa moved onto her back as Marlene wiggled closer to her, draping the covers over Marlene, and sighed when Marlene shifted to make herself comfortable.
The only sounds were of Marlene shifting and squirming until she got herself into her favorite position. Her head resting on Tifa's chest with Tifa's arms wrapped around her and Marlene breathed deeply, taking in the comforting scent that was Tifa.
Marlene shifted her head, making Tifa look down and biting back her smile that the pout that was dangerously edging on Marlene's lips.
"When is Cloud coming home?"
Gone were the days Marlene used to scamper from Cloud in fear over this unknown stranger that had entered Tifa's life.
Marlene and Cloud had formed a bond that had helped Marlene cement her place in Cloud's heart and vice versa.
It never failed to warm Tifa's heart whenever she would see Cloud and Marlene conversing quietly together as Cloud helped Marlene or even Marlene just telling Cloud something from her day.
"He said he should be home hopefully later tonight." Tifa brushed Marlene's hair back. "Finding it a little hard to sleep without him in the house?"
"Yes." Marlene laid her head back down on Tifa's chest. "He promised he be back though, right?"
"Yeah honey, he promised." Tifa kissed Marlene's crown.
"Cloud's too nice though," Marlene grumped and Tifa smiled.
"Cloud's Cloud."
"Can I have a story?"
Tifa giggled as she hugged Marlene closer to her chest.
"Sure." Tifa resettled then took a breath. "Once upon a time, there was a little boy who lived in the mountains. He grew up with stories of heroes who went on adventures and wanted to be one himself. His mother supported-"
"Tifa?" Marlene cut in, surprising Tifa.
"Hmm?"
"Do you remember your mama?"
Tifa felt like her breath had been knocked from her chest as she stared down at Marlene's head before she cleared her throat.
"That's not a bedtime story," she gently teased Marlene, tugging softly on her hair, who lifted her head.
"Please?" There was that pout and it made Tifa laugh. Marlene had been spending too much time around Cloud to have picked up on his pout.
"Tifa!" Marlene whined and it made Tifa laugh harder. And there was the pleading tone she copied from Cloud.
Tifa fought back her giggled, opening her eyes to see Marlene was now staring down at her with puffed out cheeks and fought back her laugher as she smiled then slowly shook her head.
"No, I don't remember much about my mama," Tifa admitted as she stroked Marlene's hair back. "I lost her when I was eight."
"Oh," Marlene shifted some more, "I don't remember my mama too."
Tear sprung to Tifa's eyes as she nodded, pressing a kiss to Marlene's crown then bit her bottom lip.
They still have not told Marlene about Dyne. Barret had made the choice to wait until Marlene was older. Even though Marlene knew Barret was not her biological father, he was still her father in every way, and they all knew telling her about Dyne would just confuse her.
Plus, how do you tell a child their father committed suicide instead of coming home to her?
"Do you remember anything about your mama?"
"Hmm, she smelt sweet."
"Like Aerith?"
A pang shot through her heart as she thought about her best friend and Tifa closed her eyes, willing back her tears as she remembered the sweet scent from Aerith whenever they were close.
"No, Aerith was sweeter. My mama smelt more like…lavender." Tifa sighed. "She loved Lavenders. She always smelt sweet and calm. When she would hold me, it would calm me down."
"Was your mama ill?" Marlene asked.
"Yeah. She was ill for a little while. But I still got to spend time with her." Tifa smiled. "I remember her cooking. She loved cooking. She would always create these big meals for everyone, and she had a soup that she would make when I was ill."
"Like the one you make?" Marlene shifted so she was looking up at Tifa.
"Well, an attempt at it," Tifa admitted ruefully. "Daddy…he didn't keep much of Mama's stuff after she died. It was too hard for him. Her recipe book was part of it."
"What else did your mama teach you?"
"The piano." It hurt to think of the piano that now belonged to a stranger's house. She had grown up with that piano, had sat with her mother on the bench.
She remembered seeing it in her house after they had returned to Nibelheim, to see the fake village and even faker people milling around.
Cloud had sat next to her on the bench when she discovered the letter from Master Zangan, explaining why he had left her.
Tifa came out of her thoughts to see Marlene gazing thoughtfully at her. "She loved to play the piano and she taught me."
"I've never heard you play the piano."
"I don't play it very much now. Not a lot of time."
The last time she had played had been on their journey…just before they lost Aerith.
The thought of touching another key made her heart clench with pain and look away.
Marlene shifted so she was now lying on her side on the bed. Tifa followed suit, looking at Marlene curiously when she saw the seriousness on a face so young.
"Were you lonely?" Marlene asked, her eyes wide. Tifa smiled softly as she pushed Marlene's hair back before she shook her head.
"No, I had Cloud's Mama to help me when I needed her."
"Cloud's Mama?" Marlene's eyes were wide with interest and Tifa giggled.
"Yes, Cloud's mama. What, did you think Cloud came from the skies?" She leaned in, rubbing their noses together and getting giggles from Marlene as a result.
"Tifa!" Marlene gently pushed Tifa away before tilting her head. "What was Cloud's mama like?"
"Home." The word drew from her lips unbidden before she even thought about it. She paused, taking in the word that described Claudia Strife and her heart lightened. "She was home."
"Really?"
"Yeah, she smelt like sugar and spice and home. You would feel it right here," Tifa placed her hand over her heart, "when you were with her. Like you were where you were meant to be."
"Oh," Marlene placed her hand over her heart, and she smiled up at Tifa. "That's how I feel when I'm with you."
Tears filmed Tifa's eyes as she leaned over and kissed Marlene's forehead, inhaling the soft scent that was purely Marlene, hugging her close.
"I feel the same."
Marlene giggled, nuzzling's Tifa's collarbone before she wiggled in Tifa's embrace, a sign that she wanted to pull back and Tifa let her.
"So, Cloud's mama," she prompted.
"She was there for me not long after my mama died. She always found a way to make me feel better." Tifa smiled. "I used to go to her whenever I couldn't go to my dad about things."
"She sounds nice," Marlene whispered. "I wish I could meet her."
"She'd love you."
"Really?" Tifa nodded.
"She loved kids," she laughed softly, "She always held these little classes for us."
"What kind of classes?"
"Knitting and sewing. Baking and cooking. Even woodcutting." She smiled at Marlene's skeptical eyebrow rise.
"Don't knock Mama Strife," Tifa tickled Marlene's side, resulting in a squirming child as she tried to get out of Tifa's reach without losing her warmth. "She had Cloud for a child."
That made Marlene laugh, burying her face into the pillow to muffle the noise even though Cloud was not in the building.
Tifa smiled as she watched Marlene laugh. She loved hearing Marlene laugh. They all had been through so much and things had been so busy that Tifa felt she had not been able to sit down with Marlene as much as she used to.
"Was Cloud that bad as a child?" Marlene asked, turning her head. Tifa hummed.
"He was a lonely child," she remembered. "He wasn't outgoing. When he got a little older, he would get into fights. Mostly defending himself."
She remembered seeing his memories in the Lifestream. "But he loved to climb trees and run over rocks and check out the lakes."
"So, like any boys." Marlene rolled her eyes and Tifa smiled.
"I guess." Tifa shrugged softly.
"And Cloud's mama? What did she teach you?"
"She's the one who taught me how to make the cookies."
Marlene's eyes went wide with wonder, her lips parting in a gasp.
"Those Chocolate Chip Sugar Cookies you make, the ones you dunk in milk?" Tifa nodded. "They are so good."
"I know," Tifa poked Marlene's stomach, "It's a wonder you and Cloud haven't turned into sugar cookies yourself with how much you consume."
"We can't help it," Marlene squealed as she threw herself closer to Tifa, squishing Tifa's hand between them, "Your cookies are so good."
"So good that you and Cloud can't even leave a single crumb for me when I've finished baking them."
"Sorry," Marlene looked chastised but Tifa could see the mischievous gleam in her eyes.
"Sure, you are. I only slave over that oven to cook for other people," Tifa huffed.
"You're a really good cook?" Marlene inched closer into Tifa's embrace; we love your cooking that we can't help but want more?"
Tifa glanced at Marlene, quirking an eyebrow.
"You're clearly taking after Cloud more than I thought."
Marlene merely gave her a sweet smile and Tifa rolled her eyes as Marlene moved in closer, burying her face into Tifa's neck.
Both lay there in silence for a while, Tifa humming under her breath as she stroked Marlene's back when Marlene shifted her head.
"What about Cloud's daddy?" Marlene played with a lock of Tifa's hair and Tifa felt her smile fade at the question, sending her back in time.
Tifa smiled as she listened to Claudia hum under her breath as she prepared the baking sheet for the cookies Tifa was currently mixing, trying to bring it into a ball shape.
"Remember, mix it with your fingertips," Claudia told her and Tifa nodded as she concentrated. "Tifa," there was laugher in the older woman's voice and Tifa lifted her head. "Don't look so serious."
Tifa felt her cheeks heat up and she looked back down at her mixture.
"Sorry, I just really want this batch to turn out good."
"You have been doing a good job with them lately," Claudia told her as she brushed her hands on her apron before turning to look at Tifa.
"Hmm," Tifa nodded slowly as she finished mixing, the dough now shaped into a soft ball.
"Alright, time to shape them." Claudia handed her the knife and Tifa got to work, making sure the cookies were equaled as she placed them on the tray, deep in thought.
She wished she knew how to start the conversation she wanted to have with Claudia.
But no matter how many times she rehearsed, it never seemed to come out the way she expected it to.
Then again, how did one approach a situation like this?
Claudia's humming brought her out of her thoughts, and she opened the oven and the scent of the first batch of cookies filled the kitchen, making Tifa's mouth water as she stepped forward the with the tray she prepared.
"Here," Claudia placed the hot tray down on the counter and took the cool tray. "Make the drinks and I'll bring through the cookies."
Tifa nodded, turning around making up the drinks, tea for Claudia, and milk for her before she headed into the living room with Claudia following not far behind.
On automatic, Tifa placed the mugs down in their respective places, pulled out her chair, and sat down before her eyes caught sight of a picture featuring a young Cloud and she bit her bottom lip.
It was for him, she reminded herself.
"Here you go," Claudia placed the plate of cookies down on the table and a mug of milk in front of Tifa, giving her a smile as Tifa looked at her then snagged a cookie as Claudia sat down.
"You know you can ask me anything," Claudia told her. Tifa's eyes snapped up to hers in surprise and Claudia smiled. "You and Cloud have the same avoidance tactic."
Tifa felt her cheeks heat up at the mention of Cloud as she returned her attention to the cookies.
"I just…wondered about Cloud's father." She glanced at Claudia out the corner of her eye. "No-one talks about him and I know Cloud doesn't remember much of him."
"Hmm, what brought that up?" Claudia asked.
Her father's voice rang in her head, calling Cloud a fatherless bastard, made Tifa look back down at the cookies in her hand, her heart hurting.
"Just curious," she whispered.
Silence descended on the two of them as Tifa fiddled nervously with her cookie then she sighed, feeling the weight of Claudia's gaze.
"Because I never knew Cloud's father. And you've never seemed interested in other people in the village. And I know Mister Maxwell has been trying to court you."
A look flittered past behind Claudia's eyes, slow enough for Tifa to catch it but fast enough that Tifa could not make out the emotion before Claudia wrinkled her nose.
"No offense to Mister Maxwell, but I am quite happy not looking for love."
Tifa slowly nodded as she thought about the other man. It was clear that he was smitten by Claudia, but how much of it was because he wanted to be with Claudia and how much of it was because of his playboy ways was up in the air.
Tifa remembered the man pulling the same flower tricks on a few women, especially visitors to the area then realized that the man had only started pulling the moves on Claudia after Cloud had left town.
Must have known that Cloud would not have stood by and watched him court his mother, Tifa thought to herself, amused.
The sound of the chair being pushed back brought her out of her thoughts to see Claudia making her way over to the large bookcase.
Tifa tried to not look too interested when Claudia snagged something and made her way back to the table, sitting down and giving her a small smile.
"Here," Claudia slid the photograph across the table and Tifa looked at it, her breath taken at the sight of the young Cloud in the man's arms.
The man was looking down at Cloud with pure unadulterated love and it made Tifa's heart hurt to look at it.
"We met when we were kids," Claudia started. "We fell pregnant when I was 17." Tifa lifted her eyes to look at Claudia, surprised.
She knew Claudia was young but had not realized just how young she had been. Claudia smiled softly.
"When I found out I was pregnant, I was terrified. But he was the one to assure me that he would stand by me, no matter what. Our parents weren't exactly thrilled we were in a relationship together so…"
Claudia's eyes darkened with the memories and Tifa felt her heart hurt for the woman in front of her. "They were not happy when we told them that I was pregnant." She ran a hand through her hair. "So, we left in the middle of the night."
A gasp of disbelief escaped Tifa, her eyes wide, and got a rueful smile from the older woman.
"Yeah, they were threatening to keep us separated. There were even talks of giving the baby up when I gave birth. I…I was angry. I told him I wanted to leave our family, to strike out on our own."
"Wow." Tifa stared at Claudia, amazed. She could not imagine what that must have been like. To be pregnant and be on the run.
"He knew of Nibelheim, thought it would be a great place to raise our child so we both packed what little we had, and we came straight here."
Claudia wrapped her hands around her mug once more. "It was crazy, but we didn't care. We loved each other and we wanted to raise our baby together. Not have it taken away from us."
"That must have taken a lot of courage."
"Yeah," Claudia chuckled, "We knew we would be facing hard times by leaving our parents, but we felt it was the best way."
"Your mother was the first person I saw," Claudia laughed, "She was all dark hair and bright smile and she wore that purple dress that was her favorite."
Tifa smiled as she remembered the dress that her mother always loved to wear. That dress had been one of the few things her father had kept, and it was currently in her closet.
"When she saw us," Claudia's voice broke into her thoughts, "She took one look and demanded that we get into the house so she could feed us because we looked like skins and bones."
Tifa laughed softly, that sounded like her mother and Claudia sighed.
"She never judged us," Tifa looked at Claudia. "She knew I was pregnant and just asked me how far along was I. I would have never gotten through this pregnancy without your mother."
"Really?" That was news. Even though she knew her mother and Claudia had a friendship when she was younger, she did not know how close they were.
"Your mother helped me in a lot of ways." Claudia shrugged softly.
"And Cloud's father?"
"Cloud's father was killed in a hunting accident not long after Cloud was born." Tifa's eyes came up to see Claudia's stroked her thumb over the man's face. "There had been animals attack and the village was on edge. He went out hunting to get food when he had been killed."
Tears filmed Tifa's eyes as her eyes dropped down to her mug.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
"It was a long time ago,"
"But it's not easy to lose someone you love," Tifa tightened her grip on her mug, "And Cloud was so young too."
She looked down at the picture, at the man holding young Cloud in his arms.
He looked so happy with Cloud, the smile splitting his face, his eyes shining with happiness as he held Cloud close to his body.
Cloud had a hand waving in the air, smiling back at his father and it made her heart hurt.
How many times has she seen that kind of smile on Cloud's face?
"What was he liked when you were pregnant?" Tifa looked down at the photo. The smile Cloud's father had reminded her a little of Cloud and she pushed the thought away.
"He was so attentive, so loving. When Cloud kicked for the first time, you should have seen him. He was so excited that he got on his knees and talked to Cloud, just to see if Cloud would kick again."
Tifa giggled at the image.
"He was so happy when Cloud was born. A complete nervous wreck," Claudia smiled, "He did not think he could be a good father, but I told him that a child just needs to know they are loved. That they can come to their parents for anything. When Cloud was born, and they placed him in his arms…I got to see him fall in love."
"Well, Cloud makes a cute baby," Tifa remarked, looking down at the picture and taking a sip of her milk.
"I'm sure you like him even more now he's older," came the sly remark, and Tifa spluttered into her drink, coughing as she looked at Claudia with wide eyes.
"What?" She squeaked. Claudia merely smirked and Tifa covered her face. "Don't!" she whined.
Claudia just laughed, making Tifa look at her through spread fingers to see the bright smile that lit up the older woman's face, the sparkle that shone in her eyes and, even it was down to her embarrassment, she was happy to see Claudia looking happy.
Claudia sighed happily as she pulled the photo toward her, smiling down at it.
"Cloud has more of his daddy in him than he knows." Claudia ran her finger down the man's cheek before she side glanced at Tifa. "It will just take the right woman to bring it out in him."
Tifa looked away from Claudia and her knowing gaze, wishing she knew how to open her heart when Claudia's hand went to her shoulder, drawing her attention.
"Tifa," Claudia's hand came up, cupping Tifa's cheek and lifting her face. Tifa met her eyes and Claudia smiled. "Remember, you don't need to hold everything in."
Claudia leaned forward and kissed her forehead.
"We're here for you."
Tifa came of her thoughts with a shudder as a tear slipped free before she closed her eyes and turned her head to look down at the young girl, giving her a small smile.
"Cloud lost his dad when he was young."
"Oh," Marlene whispered sadly and Tifa stroked Marlene's hair back.
"He wasn't as lucky as us when it came to fathers."
"But his mama made up for it?"
"Yes, she loved him, brought him up. She kissed his scrapes and bruises and looked after him when he was sick. She encouraged him to reach for the highest star and know he had the potential to reach it."
"Cloud misses her, doesn't he?" Marlene shifted so she was now on her side, burying her face into Tifa's neck.
"Yeah. He doesn't like to show it, but he misses her."
"Do…do you think he will talk about her if I ask?"
A warm smile pulled at Tifa's lips as she hugged Marlene close to her.
"You know what, I think he will."
A soft hum came from the girl as her breathing started to even out and Tifa felt herself following suit.
"Tifa?" Marlene's voice came out sleepy, warm and contented.
"Hmm?" Tifa turned her head, her lips brushing Marlene's forehead.
"Do you think Daddy could adopt Cloud?"
Tifa smiled against Marlene's skin, a tear slipping free.
"You know sweetheart…I have a feeling your daddy adopted Cloud a long time ago."
"Good."
Both fell asleep, safe, and secure in each other's arms and knowledge of a parent's love.
A soft weight settling on the bed made Tifa hum before she felt soft lips press against her forehead then her lips and she smiled.
There was only one person who kissed her like that then she fell back into her deep slumber, feeling safe and secure.
A little while later, Tifa slowly opened her eyes, feeling the weight on the other side of the bed and she noticed that Marlene was no longer in her embrace.
She met Cloud's sleeping face first and a smile touched her lips.
She loved watching Cloud as he slept. His face was soft and relaxed. His lips slightly parted.
Her eyes traveled down, and tears pricked the back of her eyes, her smile widening.
Marlene was now curled up into Cloud's chest, her little hand clutching Cloud's t-shirt that he always wore when Marlene was in bed with them.
One of Cloud's arm was under his pillow, Marlene her head on the crook of his arm, her face buried in his neck. His other arm wrapped around Marlene, his hand covering Tifa's.
How was it possible to fall even deeper in love with Cloud Strife, Tifa would never know but she did, her heart feeling bigger each time.
She spread her fingers underneath his hand and Cloud automatically slid his fingers between hers, linking their hands.
She brought their laced hands up to her lips and kissed the back of his hand before tucking it under her cheek.
"Welcome home, Cloud," she whispered before she closed her eyes and fell back asleep, enjoying the warmth of her family around her.
Unknown to her, Cloud slit his eyes open to watch her and he smiled softly, gently squeezing her hand and tightening his grip on Marlene before he closed his eyes.
Home indeed.
TBC