Chapter 6

Tifa released a sigh as she left the small pawn shop situated between two residential houses, turning around in the doorway to bow to the shop owner. It was a small quirk that she had picked up from the good doctor over the time she had been living with him now. Finding a job was turning out to be harder than she had imagined.

That was already the fifth time today.

Nobody wanted to hire a barely 16 year old girl, especially if she was from some backwater town. But she couldn't just sit around and rely on Dr. Hiragi's kindness forever. She had to stand on her own two feet eventually.

But not today, she thought, and she deflated a little as she wandered the streets of Sector 3.

"Sorry, kid. But in a business like this I need someone with experience," the owner had told her. Experience. That was exactly what she was lacking. Back home she had been in charge of the household and had been on her way to becoming the resident mountain guide, but she doubted anyone in Midgar was in need of a guide.

As Tifa was mulling this over, she was distracted by something blinking from out of the corner of her eye. Turning her head, she saw a large neon sign reading Frosty Delights, and a much smaller one reading Ice Cream underneath.

Ice cream. She only had heard about it in the past; that it was a delicacy that was popular in some place called Costa Del Sol. But she never would have thought that someone could get it in the slums of Midgar as well.

Maybe… Her hand went to the pocket of her jacket where she kept her money; a little pocket money that the doctor had provided her with. She knew it was wasteful, but she could do with a little pick me up right now.

She heard the jingle of a bell as she opened the door and walked inside. The place was small, with only a handful of tables to sit at, but it was clean and held a sort of homely feel to it.

"Just a sec!" came a voice from the back, soon followed by a heavy-set man with a small goatee. He stepped behind the counter and gave her a friendly smile. "Welcome, young lady. What'll it be?"

"I..." she hesitated for a moment, not really sure what to say, partly because she never had any ice cream before and partly because his friendly attitude had caught her off guard.

"I don't really know…I've never had any ice cream before," she admitted.

"Well now, we can't have that!" The man chuckled and leaned on the counter. "Sadly, I can only provide simple flavors, but I assure you my ice cream'll beat any of the fancy-shmancy ones you'll find on top of the plate."

She looked at the assortment of flavors, holding a finger to her lips as she debated with herself. Finally, she pointed at the one that she was most familiar with.

"Never can go wrong with chocolate. One or two scoops?"

"Uhm..." she didn't want to pay too much money, but the part of her that was still a child just couldn't refuse. "Two."

"Cone to go, or you wanna eat it here?"

"I'd like to eat here, please." She wanted to sit down and rest her feet, if only for a couple of minutes.

He gestured to one of the tables. "Take a seat, I'll bring it over."

Following his instructions, she sat down at one of the small tables, releasing a sigh through her nose as she rested her arms on it. This day really could have gone better.

"You're not from around here, are ya?" the man asked suddenly, while picking out a clean glass bowl.

Blinking, Tifa looked at the man. "Is it that noticeable?"

He looked up from his work and gave her a wink. "You don't have an accent from around here. You from the western continent?"

"Yeah I'm from Ni—" she caught herself, almost letting it slip where she was from. "I'm from the western continent."

"Hmm, thought so. Lotsa folk from there come here to seek their fortune," he said, scooping up the ice cream into the bowl. Fetching a clean spoon, he carried it over and placed both in front of her. "Though I could swear I've heard your accent before..."

Tifa looked at him quizzically. Maybe he had run in with one of her friends?

Shrugging, she thanked him and took a spoonful of the ice cream. Her taste buds screamed in delight as the rich, chocolate flavor touched her tongue. It must have been noticeable, because the man just gave her a knowing smile. "Good?"

"Yeah." She nodded and took another spoonful. The man looked at her for a moment, then sat down opposite of her.

"Say, you look a bit down. Something happened?" he asked her out of the blue. Taken aback, Tifa didn't know what to say, just staring at him. Her first reaction was to ask him "What's it to you?" , but that would have been rude, especially with how nice he had been so far.

Looking a bit down was putting it mildly when one considered that her entire world had been turned upside down not even a year ago, and that she had awoken in a strange place far away from what she had once called her home. But no matter how nice he was, she couldn't tell him that.

But she could tell him about today's concerns, she supposed. Those were harmless enough. "I was asking around for a job."

"I'm guessing no luck so far?"

Tifa nodded, eating another spoonful. "Guess there's no market for a girl from the sticks in the big city."

"Nonsense! There's no shortage of work in Midgar, but also no shortage of jackasses. So, what are you good at?" he asked her, and Tifa had to smile at the man's attitude. It reminded her a bit of simpler times.

"Back home I used to be a guide for travelers. No need for those around here." She shrugged. "I'm also good at simple cooking, I guess."

"Oh I wouldn't be so sure. I could've used a guide during my first few months in the slums," he chuckled.

"You're not from around here, either?"

"Nope!" he grinned. "I'm from the plains down south. Family owns a farm near the Chocobo Ranch. Could've stayed there and live a quiet life. But, that wasn't for me."

He leaned forward a bit. "Let me tell you a little story. When I arrived in Midgar I had nothing but the clothes on my back and a few Gil in my pocket. There were times when I had to squat inside an empty building to sleep, and the only job I had was washing dishes in some seedy place at Wall Market. Saw a lot of crap that had me wanting to turn back and run home. But I didn't give up. And now I'm sitting here in my own ice cream parlor, talking to a pretty little lady enjoying my ice cream."

Tifa giggled in spite of herself. "But it didn't come easy, did it?"

"Of course not! Nothing worthwhile comes easy. You have to work for it, through the pain and sadness. But at the end it's all worth it. So never give up, little lady." He winked again. "Maybe you'll have your own shop someday, too. No ice cream though; I don't think I could handle the competition."

Now Tifa had to laugh. He was right though, she couldn't give up. There were things that she could do, even if it was just peeling potatoes in a kitchen. She would keep trying and maybe, like he said, she would one day have her own shop.

A restaurant maybe. Or maybe a bar. She was always fascinated at how Mr. Douglas had managed his pub.

She finished her ice cream, spirits very much lifted, and gave the man a smile. "Thank you, for the ice cream. And the kind words—Ah!" her hand went to her pocket. "How much do I owe ya?"

The man just held up his hand.

"Keep it." He shrugged and picked up the bowl and spoon. "We all need a pick me up once in a while, and you looked like you really needed it."

Tifa looked at him, slightly dumbfounded, his continuous kindness shocking her yet again. Why?

"But if you want, you can tell people that Frosty Delights has the best ice cream in Midgar!" He grinned and started to walk back behind the corner.

Tifa, not knowing what else to do, gave him a smile. "I will."

The bell jingled once more as she left the ice cream parlor, leaving her with much to think about. As she walked the streets back into the direction of the clinic, she found herself looking at the people close by; construction workers heading back home from their shift, a mother and her child walking hand in hand, an elderly couple doing their grocery shopping, all minding their own business. Yet, here she had encountered not one, but two kind people in a place that put self preservation over everything else.

It was bizarre. It didn't make sense.

Tifa was startled out of her little reverie when a hand placed itself on her shoulder, and she whirled around, instinctively raising her fists into a fighting position to defend herself against this unknown assailant.

"Tifa?" she heard a familiar voice ask.

"Jeremy?"

Dun Dun Dun!

On another note, those of you that read Post Crisis will understand the reference from there a bit better now.