Carried Away

Snow falls in gentle, puffy bunches, caking itself against the windows outside of Seventh Heaven, building tall ledges of white outside the glass. The wind whistles past, slipping between tiny cracks in the wood and steel that form the building's infrastructure.

Cloud stomps his feet free of clumps of snow on the bar's front porch before he pushes his way inside, letting the door shut quietly behind him. It is late and the bar is quiet and dark, the lights already dimmed and the tables and chairs cleaned and stacked away. He's arriving home later than he usually does - it's a bit after midnight - and he knows that Tifa has long ago sent the kids to bed and shut operations down for the night.

It's for that reason that he's surprised to find her still downstairs in the bar, curled up into a ball on the couch in front of the hearth towards the rear of the dining room. It's a cozy little space Tifa had upgraded about a year ago to give the bar a warmer atmosphere, where clients can sit and sip their drinks and watch the sportscasts or concerts overhead, where the children sit with them and watch movies together on Sundays when Seventh Heaven is closed to the public. But tonight, Tifa is laying by herself on the couch in the darkness, leaning against the arm of the couch with her chin propped up against her knuckles, the long sweep of her chocolate-brown hair piled across her back and shoulders.

Cloud isn't expecting to find her down here - it's been a long time since Tifa has tried staying up and waiting for him, and Cloud has done everything he can to put those days from his mind, knowing they were all brought on by his own shitty behavior. These days, he's usually home before Tifa has finished closing up for the night or gone to bed, or he'll find her not long after she's gone to bed, tucked under the covers reading a book while she waits for him.

But for whatever reason, even though he'd texted Tifa to let her know he was running late tonight because of the weather, seeing her laying there, he can't help the snake of guilt that slithers quietly up his spine.

He shakes the steadily melting pelts of snow from his clothing before he crosses the room to stand over Tifa, taking a moment to watch her as she breathes quietly and calmly in her sleep. Her face is serene, eyebrows relaxed over the crest of her face, her lips pulled in what he thinks is the barest hint of a smile. He wonders what thoughts she drifted off to, wonders what she dreams of.

He blushes, hoping that it has something to do with him.

He stands there for a while, letting the heat from the fire behind him warm him back and arms before he finally breathes out a soft sigh, his own exhaustion beginning to rear its ugly head. Tifa looks so peaceful that he hates to disturb her, but he's got to get her into the comfort of their bed. He bends down and hooks his arms under her back and the crook of her bent knees, carefully scooping her up off the couch and drawing her up to his chest.

Tifa shifts slightly in his hold, but she doesn't open her eyes or give any other indication that she's awoken. Cloud finds himself cradling her, and something about the sudden warmth of her body so delicately but firmly folded in his arms has his cheeks warm and his heart beating a little faster. Tifa, he knows better than perhaps anyone on earth, is strong and built like steel. Yet at the same time, she is soft and feathery light, and as easy as it would be for him to crush her into dust under the firmness of his muscles, his body has willed itself almost instinctively to handle her as if she were made of glass.

Cloud discards the wayward direction of his thoughts and focuses his attention on carrying Tifa up the stairs and through their apartment above the bar. He passes the kids' room as he makes his way, and finding the door slightly ajar, he toes it open with his boot and peers in to check on them. Marlene and Denzel are both fast asleep, deep under piles of covers, the snow that has caked over their windowsills building tall arches over the glass above their heads.

Cloud's lips twitch in an inward smile before he makes his way further down the hall to the bedroom he shares with Tifa, rounding his back against the door as he makes his way inside. The room is filled with a chill, and Cloud makes a mental note to check the oil heater in the morning before he leaves for the day. He sees that Tifa has laid out neatly folded extra blankets over the foot of the bed to help them fight off the winter's night's cold when they finally take it down.

Cloud finds his smile expanding when considers the way that Tifa always plans ahead, making sure that every one of them in their little family is well cared for. He approaches their bed and lays her down gently, frowning slightly when he realizes that Tifa is still dressed in her day clothes, sturdy leather and cotton that is built for both comfort and utility. He takes a moment to slip her sneakers off her feet, his cheeks heating up all over again when he helps her slip off her shorts.

He tosses her clothes to one side where their hamper sits, but he doesn't disrobe her any further. She's beginning to stir, and Cloud figures she can finish undressing and readying for bed on her own however she sees fit. He pulls away from the bed, straightening and turning to make his way back down the hall to shower.

He hasn't made it an inch away before Tifa has her arms suddenly around him, reminding Cloud how fast she can move, even after stirring from a doze. He is startled when her arms loop about his neck, pulling him towards the bed so that he is nearly collapsing on top of her when she falls back into the pillows.

"Cloud," she trills quietly, her voice still thick with sleep, her eyes narrow slits that have barely opened, letting only a hint of stark crimson slip out. "I missed you."

This soft sentiment serves to warm Cloud's heart, melting him into liquid. He's fallen so that his face is inches from hers, and when she licks her lips with a slow swipe of the tip of her tongue, the urge to kiss her is almost too much to resist.

"I missed you too," he says instead, willing himself to pull away. "I'm just gonna go -"

He's cut off when Tifa wraps her arms tight around his shoulders now, effectively pulling him flat on top of her. He doesn't resist but he tries not to rest his full weight on her body, especially when so much of him is covered in leather and steel that is soaked through with the dampness of snow. But Tifa's strength keeps him close, and he hears her airy sigh right next to his ear when he finally gives up and settles his torso on top of hers, relaxing the muscles in his body that have been taut all day.

"It feels so good when you hold me," Tifa murmurs against the sensitive skin by his throat.

Cloud finds himself blushing again, and without another thought, he slips both arms under her back and holds her close. She breathes out contently when he does so, and Cloud wonders what it is that has got her feeling so freely affectionate.

He tries to think of something adequate to say in response, but nothing seems quite right. Instead, he just stays there, holding onto her and letting her hold him back. She curls her body in close to his, and when Cloud tries to pull away again to make for the shower, Tifa only tightens her grip and uses the quiet power in her body to keep him near.

Cloud relents and cradles her, his chin tucked by her shoulder, his enhanced senses picking up the calm rhythm of her heart. He's long known that his embraces have comforted her, but she's never really clung to him quite like this. Long stretches of minutes pass before Tifa finally comes back to her senses, letting him pull away so that they can both finally get up and shower and change, coming back to bed where they crawl under the pile of flannels Tifa has laid out.

But when they come back to bed, Cloud suddenly finds himself under Tifa with his underwear to his knees and her legs locked around his thighs, her naked body soft and glistening in the moonlight as she climbs on top of him and sends him somewhere into the stars.

He's holding her again when the night is through.

After that night, Cloud tries not to come home too late again if he can help it, careful to check the weather and keep his ear tuned to the traffic reports. He tries to be a little more thoughtful around his planning of deliveries, taking time on Sunday night when he maps his routes to be sure not to pack too many or too few into one day and tracking the distances he has to travel and all the possible hangups he might encounter.

But despite his planning and diligence, Cloud still can't get home every night any early than just after closing. That isn't too bad, though he misses the kids' bedtime most of the time. But something strange begins to happen.

Every night, Cloud finds Tifa lying on the couch in the bar, waiting for him to pick her up and carry her to bed.

At first, Cloud thinks nothing of it. He thinks that it is sweet, Tifa waiting up for him and dozing off in front of the fire. He finds it odd at first that she falls asleep so quickly after the bar has closed, knowing that she usually spends her time working on her ledgers or restocking the liquor shelves before she retires completely for the evening. But no matter how quickly Cloud tries to get home, after that first night, Tifa is always in that same spot, waiting for him.

And so night after night, he picks her up and carries her. He knows the nights when she is really sleeping and the nights when she is not, instead feigning slumber with her forehead tipped in tranquility against his bicep. She always curls her body into his, silently encouraging him to hold her tight, and Cloud can't help but oblige, always feeling his inner stirrings of valiance percolate when she relies on him this way.

And somehow, any time that Cloud's nights unfold this way, he finds them ending with himself beneath Tifa in the softness of their sheets, her body rocking over his, her sweat covering his skin.

But after days of this begins to stretch on into weeks, Cloud begins to wonder if Tifa isn't doing all of this on purpose. He tests a theory, arriving a little earlier and earlier each night, timing his travels so that he can get home by ten-thirty, ten-fifteen, ten. It becomes apparent to him that Tifa seems to be shutting the bar down early these days, spending the better parts of her evenings folded like a kitten on the couch, waiting for him.

Cloud isn't very good at reading what's going on in anyone's mind but his own, least of all Tifa's, and he's admitted to himself that his cluelessness has gotten him into trouble more than once. But he's been working on getting out of his own head and paying better attention to others around him, especially her, and so as the days stretch on, he calculates Tifa's behavior and decides to push his theory in a brand new direction.

He comes home at nine that night.

When he arrives, he parks Fenrir and then waits outside, staring through the front windows of Seventh Heaven. The temperature has dropped even further the last few nights and the roads have begun to ice over, the air frosty and leaving white puffs of air every time he breathes out.

The bar is still open but Cloud can see the way that Tifa moves swiftly inside, clearing tables and collecting gil, ushering her patrons out. He leans against his bike, trying to ignore the frigid temperatures as he watches them vacate through the front door, hands deep in their pockets against the chills. A few take notice and glance his way as they hit the pavement, but no one stops and a few move even more quickly when they spot him, knowing exactly who he is.

He glances back up at the windows when he sees Tifa flip the bar's welcome sign to Closed, shuttering the blinds as she begins to clean up. He watches her slyly from the shadows as she goes back and forth, carrying glasses and trays to the kitchen, wiping the tables and counter down.

After a moment passes, Cloud finally makes his way up the front steps of Seventh Heaven, sliding his key into the door and turning the lock as he pushes inside. Tifa has the jukebox turned on and it is playing some light piano music, and she is humming along and cleaning to the melodies as she works, oblivious when he first walks in.

Cloud closes the door gently as he steps inside, his boots echoing heavy vibrations against the floorboards as he crosses the room. It is then that Tifa finally looks up, putting down the dishrag on the table she is cleaning.

She is clearly surprised to see that Cloud is home, crimson eyes widening into saucers. They sparkle under the swaying lamps overhead, lighting up red flames in her eyes that blaze at him across the room when she realizes he is home. She straightens her back and gives him a soft smile, and Cloud can hear his heart flutter louder at the way that it spreads across her cheeks when he draws in even closer.

"You're home early," she comments, tipping her head slightly to one side.

Cloud glances around, seeing that most of the work has already been done. It appears that Tifa has moved quickly cleaning up the bar, and all Cloud can think about is the way that he's been finding her stretched out on that couch every night, waiting for him.

"Yeah," he mutters in reply in a quiet voice, tipping his chin slightly as his eyes meet hers again. "When did you start closing the bar so early? It's only nine."

He sees the way that the tops of Tifa's cheek's redden, and she looks away slightly, her attention finding her sneakers as she twists her toe into the wood. She gives a slight little shrug, tossing her hair in a nervous, girly fashion over one shoulder.

"It's been slowing down a lot during the week at nights," she tells him, her lips pursed together slightly in a way that tells Cloud she is fibbing. "Doesn't make a whole lot of sense for me to keep the lights on and everything going when there is no one here. Besides, I feel better knowing I can make sure the Marlene and Denzel actually go to sleep instead of having to worry about them sneaking on their tablets while I'm busy down here."

Cloud isn't really sure why Tifa thinks she can get away with lying to him. He may not be able to read her mind but he knows her body and her mannerisms all too well after living so closely with her these last couple of years, and he finds himself shaking his head. He doesn't say anything for a moment, instead stops and divests himself of both his gloves, shoving them away into his pocket. He unstraps his pauldron, sliding the shield of armor away from his tired shoulder before dropping it lightly to the table behind him. His movements intrigue Tifa because she lifts an eyebrow, but she says nothing, just watches him with her thick lashes fluttering over wine-colored, almond-shaped eyes.

"Is that why you've been waiting for me every night to carry you upstairs from the bar?" he asks as he rolls his shoulder, his voice dropping several octaves lower.

Tifa is flushing a brighter shade of red and she is shaking her head back and forth, her teeth cutting into her bottom lip. But Cloud finds himself stepping closer to her, the impulsiveness that she always seems to trigger in him bubbling up to the surface and making his skin feel hot. He can't stop the way that he is soon backing her up against the wall next to the jukebox, the old machine still belting out a whimsical melody against the keys of a piano.

"No," Tifa, finally responds when her back gently presses against the wall behind her, and Cloud can hear the way that her heartbeat has begun to pick up speed. He's keenly aware of the way that her blood spins through her veins, rushing back and forth as it meets each critical organ. His proximity is burning the pheromones right out of her skin so that they light up the air between them, and when Tifa pants a gentle breath, exposing her soft, pink tongue, Cloud can't stop his body from pressing up against hers, sandwiching her to the wall as his own arousal surges.

"No?" he whispers lightly, tipping his forehead against hers so that his breath can skirt over her cheek and down the tight slope of her throat. He lifts one hand and brings it to her hair, eagerly combing his fingers through the silk that hangs by her earring and brushing it away so that he can kiss the apex of her jaw. Tifa visibly shivers, arching her back slightly so that she presses firmly up into his torso, her breasts soft against his chest. "You sure about that, Tifa?"

He can feel his temperature rise as his blood heats, and all Cloud can do to assuage the internal tempests assaulting him is feather Tifa's face and then her neck with kisses. She squirms beneath him, but he finds the hem of the tight-fitting, knit sweater she is wearing tonight and he rolls it up deftly, gently massaging her breasts over her bra with one hand while the other further tangles itself in her hair.

"I... I just…" Tifa puffs, trying to manage a response, but she seems unable to organize her thoughts clearly. She rolls her head to one side, opening up the pale stretch of her throat to more of his kisses. Cloud paints a hot stripe down her skin with his tongue before he bites his way back up again, trailing soft pecks across her cheek as he tugs gently on her hair to force her to face him again, connecting his lips with her in a sweet but harried kiss.

The heat of their lips meld and Cloud's erection is pressing like an iron weight into the softness of her squirming thigh. Her hands begin to scrabble, searching for the best leverage and purchase she can find as she grabs onto him again. The more that she reacts, the more that Cloud's thoughts muddle and he feels his bloodlust rise, and when she moans softly into his mouth, he drops his hand from her chest to find the button at the front of her jeans.

Tifa's hands have found his hair and even though they are in the middle of their bar in the middle of the night while their children sleep upstairs, Cloud knows already that they are both too far gone to stop now. His curiosity that has been pricking at him for the last stretch of days is as piqued as his arousal is, and he suddenly finds he cannot separate one from the other. Dragging her zipper down, Cloud slips his hand into her underwear, skimming over the soft, fleshy mound of her womanhood before his fingers slide between her already wet folds. He cups her gently, pulling her body tighter against his with a firm grip on her between her thighs.

"I think you started closing the bar early because you like me carrying you upstairs," he whispers against the corner of her mouth, nipping lightly into her upper lip with his teeth. Cloud hasn't been able to get the oil heater working much better yet, but sweat is beginning to drip down the sides of his face. "How much gil have you lost just waiting around for me on that couch all night, pretending to be asleep?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Tifa purrs with a coy innocence that only further overheats him, her breath hot against his lips as she leans in for more kisses. Now emboldened by her own excitement, her hands too begin to wander, unzipping his sweater and skimming over the firm lines of muscles across his chest. Cloud knows they have made love in quite a few unconventional places when things have grown heated and rushed between them, including in the stockroom and over the bar's counter, but he realizes this is the first time they have ever attempted to do it quite like this.

Cloud can only laugh at her response, but it's partly because of the way that the curve of her fingernails tickles his skin. He responds by bending his middle and ring fingers up inside of her, skimming over her clit and avoiding it when she presses her pelvis up towards his hand. She gasps lightly at his penetration, and Cloud finds himself eternally amazed at how tight and warm Tifa always is, her slippery insides clenching tightly over his fingers. He presses up and digs with a gentle back and forth motion, and Tifa spreads her feet apart, emitting a frustrated moan at the way that her jeans restrict her movement.

"Don't lie to me, Tifa," Cloud growls into her ear in a whispered scold, catching her earring between his teeth. He sucks at her earlobe, and Tifa's hands drop lower over his front, finding the buckles of his belt and fumbling with them. He lets her have at them, just as eager to be rid of his pants as she is to get them off of him. "You said it yourself - you love when I hold, don't you? Love when I have my arms around you… love when you don't have to do anything but lay back in my arms and let me carry you?"

As if to emphasize, Cloud detangles his fingers from her hair and slips an arm around her waist, pulling her impossibly closer to his embrace. It forces his fingers deeper inside of her, and Tifa moans vividly, her hips spiraling and her feet shuffling anxiously against the wooden floor.

"Cloud, please," she whines, tipping her head back in frustration against the wall. All it does is leave the center of her throat completely exposed, and Cloud attacks it with his tongue and his teeth, drawing out more desperate sounds from somewhere deep inside of her and leaving him dripping in his shorts when she slips her hand inside of them to find his length.

The combination of her touch and her reactions are too much for him to handle, and Cloud focuses the attention of his hands on sliding off her pants. He slowly pulls his fingers out of her, leaving her to whine mournfully at the loss of fullness when he draws away. He kisses her hotly on the lips to placate her, then works her jeans and her underwear down over her hips with both hands, lowering them to her knees before he bends to pull off her sneaker from her right foot so he can slip that leg free and twist it around his waist.

Tifa murmurs something unintelligible at the sloppy way that he's undressed her, but Cloud muffles her words with another kiss, her sounds evolving into a moan when his fingertips begin to run quick little circles over the ache in her clit. She bends and twirls against his body in response, and Cloud feels his pants slip past his hips when Tifa forces them away in eager reciprocation, gripping his cock in the warmth of her fist. It sends shockwaves through his entire system, and he huffs out a breathe as he feels himself twitch and jerk in her hand, unable to stop himself. Tifa kisses him harder and harder the more that he rubs her, her arm around his shoulder tightening its grip, holding him closer as he brings her nearer and nearer to the edge.

Cloud is approaching it as well, at a way faster rate than he is used to and he realizes that the sporadic passion and intimacy of this encounter has him on the verge of bursting before he's even gotten started. He breaks their kiss, meeting Tifa's lust-hazed eyes, and he pulls his hand away with a final pinch of her clit, leaving her to yelp out a whine. She opens her mouth to complain, but before she can form words, Cloud lifts her with both hands under her thighs, hoisting her up so that her legs can wrap around his waist.

He presses her into the wall, hooking his arms under her legs so he can support her weight fully. Surprised by the way he is suddenly holding her up, Tifa drops his cock and throws both of her arms around his neck, holding him tight. She buries her head into his shoulder, and when Cloud shifts his hips so that his tip is pressing against her tight, leaking opening, he feels her teeth sink into the flesh there.

"Mmmm," he hears himself moan low in his throat, rocking his hips back and forth and squeezing his eyes shut tight in an attempt not to lose himself completely as he teases her gently with just the head of his length buried in the rim of her entrance. She is soaked and so heated and eager that it is difficult to breathe, let alone maintain any semblance of control. "You like it when I hold you like this, don't you, Tifa?"

Tifa murmurs a response, shifting her hips in a rotation against his in an effort to draw him deeper. Cloud realizes that with her back against the wall, she has enough leverage that she can use the strength in those powerful legs to fight against him, working as hard as she can to fuck him the way she wants. But Cloud is in control of this situation, not like all the nights he would carry her upstairs and she would flip him over and ride him mindless.

He backs away from the wall, tightening his grip on her so that every muscle in his body is strained and working to support her, his biceps flaring, his deltoids straining. Every cord in his neck is pulled tight, and Tifa tightens her grip on his body even more when she realizes she is completely suspended in the air with nothing to rely on but him to support her from falling.

"You like this?" he teases her again, slipping in a little deeper, her walls contracting in desperation as he moves, her ankles digging into his lower back. "Me holding you, keeping you from falling? I'm the only one who could ever carry you and fuck you at the same time like this, you know that, don't you, Tifa?"

"Cloud, please," is her shaky response, and she trembles in his arms and pulls frantically at his sweater. Cloud can tell from the way that she holds him that she is both thrilled and comforted by the way that his arms have her so secure. His muscles twitch at the effort, but the enhancements in his body combined with Tifa's petite, compact frame make this one of the more low-endurance workouts he's had to endure.

"Please, what?" he rumbles, his voice beginning to break as his cock despairs to plunge deep inside of her. It is taking everything in him to fight the impulse back. He gives her another slow inch, curving his hands around the firm roundness of her ass in his grip. "Just tell me the truth, Tifa. You love this, don't you?"

Cloud doesn't realize it until now, but Tifa is sobbing gently against his shoulder, a sound of pure need and yearning. "Yes," she cries softly, twisting her hips again but unable to get any leverage with the way he holds her. "I love being in your arms, Cloud. Especially like this. Please, baby, make love to me… I need you so bad…"

Cloud isn't sure why but there is something in her cadence that shatters his heart. He's gotten Tifa to beg in bed before, but she's never sounded quite that melancholy and sweet. He's not sure what's fueling it but he can no longer teaser her, and he bends his face forward to nudge her to look up at him so that he can capture her lips again.

"It's okay, baby," he whispers. "I love having you in my arms, too."

She whimpers but he silences her with another kiss before he slams right into her. He doesn't give either of them another chance to think past that, just holds her tight in his grip as her works her hips over his, his manhood pulsing inside of her with every downward thrust he makes of her body.

The stamina required to maintain this position is a sonofabitch, but Cloud is so embroiled in the bliss of Tifa's moans and the tightness of her hot pussy and the way that she clings to him for dear life that he powers through it thoughtlessly, and after long minutes of stroking her, Cloud is elated when he hears her cry out his name again and feels her body seize up over his. He steps back to the wall and presses her against it again so that he can use all of the strength in his body to prolong her orgasm and bring him to his own with his final thrusts, sending them both into oblivion when he erupts inside of her.

Cloud isn't sure of how much time he lets pass as they both catch their breaths. At some point, he lowers her legs so she can stand on her own two feet again.

"Wow," Tifa huffs out, blowing a thick tuft of her hair out of her face.

"You okay?" Cloud can't help but ask. He bends down to help fix her jeans and slide her back into her shoe, righting his own pants. They are coated in sweat and fluids, and he knows once they make it upstairs they will both need a shower.

"Mhm," Tifa nods. "Just… you're even stronger than I thought."

Cloud just shrugs nonchalantly as he buttons his pants, but his cheeks are burning. "You're pretty light," he tosses back.

Tifa lets out a bright laugh, but then she steps closer to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and pulling him in close for a hug.

"You're so cute," she says softly, rising on her toes to kiss his nose. "But Cloud?"

"Hm?" he mumbles, taking her by the waist, too.

"I do really love being in your arms," she confesses. "I always have. It's… my favorite thing about us."

Cloud really isn't sure what to say in response to that. Her words strike him, flowing like currents of sudden electricity through his lifeblood, and the surge of emotions is pricking at the corners of his eyes.

"I'm sorry if I can't help but be a little greedy for it," she apologizes meekly.

Cloud looks into her eyes then, feeling his heart swell. His arms come up higher around her shoulders, and he squeezes her gently.

"It's okay," he reassures her. "I'm here, and I'll hold you any way you want, any time you want. Forever, Tifa."

She blinks at him, her eyes wide and scarlet-red and hopeful.

"I promise," he adds.

She drops her head to his shoulder, and Cloud takes it as his cue to tighten his arms around her, hugging her snuggly. He's reminded of the first time he held her like this, a moment that seems so long ago, shrouded in fire and ash and reunion flowers, a moment he can never forget.

Kissing her hair, Cloud knows one thing.

He'll never let her go.

-FIN