After recess, Marlene sat at her desk, her legs aching and her head boiling. She had a CRT today, as her usual teacher was unwell due to an influenza outbreak that had spread across the city of Edge. As the CRT and everyone else came back to class to sit, Marlene started to drift in and out of reality as the CRT spoke but stopped abruptly when she noticed something was wrong with Marlene. The little girl tried to shake out the pain put to no avail, as it spiked through the muscles of her legs. What really put the CRT off however was that her face was pale like a ghost which led her to believe this student was sick.
"Marlene dear, are you alright?" the CRT asked.
"My legs hurt," Marlene said, "and I feel sick too,"
The CRT touched Marlene's forehead. Immediately, it felt like directly touching a hot kettle. Inside Marlene's body, a war raged between her immune system and invaders attacking her body. Marlene coughed some of them out but blocked their path to a new victim on her elbow, which she made very sure not to touch a clean surface with.
"Do you need to go to sickbay?" the CRT asked warmly.
Marlene lightly nodded and left the class with a classmate who took her to the sickbay where there were two beds, as well as a fridge and freezer by the door. The nurse came out to greet Marlene who sat her on the bed as she took her temperature.
'39° Celsius,' the thermometer read. Marlene's classmate was dismissed, and left, with the nurse asking Marlene for her symptoms which ranged from fever, runny nose, chills and sweats, coughing, and muscle aches. Immediately after listing her symptoms, Marlene laid down on the bed, the nurse asking for a parent's phone number.
Cloud Strife stopped Fenrir in the middle of the road when he heard his phone ring, the vibration tingling in his thigh. Cloud answered and heard a woman's voice saying: "Hi, are you Marlene Wallace's father?"
"I'm her guardian," Cloud said, "why?"
"Marlene has come down with a fever and she says she feels sick. Could you come and pick her up?"
"I'm on my way!" Cloud said, before hanging up. Cloud started Fenrir up again and rode towards the city of Edge at top speed, with the journey only taking around ten minutes, before stopping in the car park. He reached the main office of the school where he was asked to sign in to take Marlene home.
"Thank you very much," the office lady said, "please take a seat and we'll bring Marlene out in a moment."
"Thank you," Cloud said. He took a seat by the door and checked his phone for messages, of which he had none and snapped his phone shut. Only a moment later, Marlene was brought out and went up to Cloud, hugging his abdomen, whilst concealing a cough to be saved for her elbow.
"Hi, Marlene," Cloud.
"Hi Cloud, I'm sick," Marlene said, "Let's go home"
"I'm really sorry to bother you, sir," the office lady said, "You're probably aware that there's been an outbreak, so we've had a lot of students absent lately."
"That's alright," Cloud said, "I'll take a few days off work to look after her. I'm a courier and my partner's a bartender, so I'll be fine."
"I see," the office lady said, "I hope she gets better soon."
"Thank you," Cloud said, "so do I."
"Take care," the office lady said.
"You too," Cloud replied. He picked Marlene up and left, mounting Fenrir with Marlene behind him.
It was a short drive between the school and the Seventh Heaven bar, where Cloud parked and carried Marlene inside where Tifa Lockhart, Cloud's romantic partner was still working, serving and preparing drinks. Cloud approached her at the counter.
"Hi Cloud," Tifa said.
"Hey, Tifa," Cloud replied kissing her lips, and continued, "The office called me to say that Marlene was sick, so I'm back early. I'm going to put her to bed now,"
"Thanks, Cloud," Tifa said. Cloud went upstairs behind the bar, up to the children's bedroom, where he laid Marlene down and tucked her in, checking her temperature. She was warm still and fast asleep, facing Cloud's side, with him holding her hand in his, and her breathing audible.
Cloud stayed there a while longer, staring at Marlene, who peacefully wandered the warm realm of rest, where all was silent, enough for her immune system to ambush the enemy. After those minutes, the door quietly creaked open for Tifa to enter, as she approached Cloud and Marlene. She felt the force fighting the enemy in Marlene's forehead, as her eyes flickered open to see her guardians.
"Cloud, Tifa," Marlene said, "am I going to be ok?"
She coughed in her elbow as she said this, with Tifa assuring the girl "Yes, Marlene, you'll be fine, Cloud and I are here for you. Why don't I get you some water?"
"Yes please," Marlene said.
Tifa gave Marlene a hug before she left the room, leaving her alone with Cloud who chatted to her about his time at Shinra, and meeting Zack Fair, the man whom Aerith Gainsborough loved. Tifa came back up with a glass of water which Marlene gulped down quickly and left on the bedside table next to her.
"We'll leave you alone to rest now, ok," Tifa said.
"Ok," Marlene said, coughing into her elbow. Cloud and Tifa left Marlene to dream and went back down to the bar, where there were luckily complaints about her brief absence, and business continued as normal.
Cloud gave Tifa a kiss on the lips as he went out to do some shopping, he told her, and on Fenrir, he drove slowly down the streets so as not to make too much noise. As he drifted, he spotted a mysterious man, staring at him suspiciously. The man was tall with lots of muscles and a black crewcut which led down to a full beard but was by no means attractive. The man somehow looked familiar to Cloud, but he couldn't grasp where he'd seen him before, perhaps whilst he was working for Shinra, he thought, or during his childhood in Nibelheim.
His care about who or what the man was soon ceased from Cloud's mind as he continued slowly driving towards the shopping centre. It was an in and out trip, where Cloud rushed in to buy some medicine, to reinforce Marlene's immune system, and a whole chicken and stock for dinner.
On the way back, Cloud noticed that the same mysterious man was making his way towards the shops, but this time wasted no time on him and drove straight home where he knew Tifa was waiting.
Back at home again, Cloud sat on the couch in the living room where he drank a small glass of whisky that Tifa served him. He began to think about the stranger on the street. Who was he? He wondered, and why did he feel so familiar?
He was taken off his train of thought by Tifa who sat next to him, a look of concern on her face.
"Cloud, are you alright?" Tifa asked, "You look concerned,"
"It's nothing," Cloud denied, "Just thinking,"
"I see," Tifa replied, "You're concerned about Marlene, aren't you?"
Cloud lightly nodded, for it was partially true; Marlene was like a daughter to him, even if he knew her real father, who was still not her biological father. She too must have thought very highly of him, Cloud thought, having known her for over three years.
"Don't worry Cloud," Tifa said, "I'm worried about her too, in a way. I hope she hasn't spread her sickness to anyone. Maybe we should isolate her…"
"That was recommended, I think," Cloud said, "We should let Denzel know about this when he comes home. He may have to sleep on the couch,"
Tifa chuckled as he said this, before saying, "I'll let him know…"
Tifa left Cloud to sit there as she went back to the bar and continued to work. As minutes faded to hours, Cloud heard Denzel come home and stopped him as he began to walk up the stairs.
"Um, Denzel," Cloud said, with Denzel turning to him, "Marlene's sick, with the flu. She's resting up there and I don't think she'd want anyone to disturb her. Therefore, I'm taking a few days off work."
"Oh, ok," Denzel said, "So that's why she wasn't with me. Does that mean that she has to be left alone?"
"Unfortunately, yes," Cloud told Denzel, "And you're sleeping on the couch tonight."
"Don't worry, I can manage," Denzel said. He hung his satchel on a hook next to the stairs and asked, "What's for dinner?"
"Chicken soup," Cloud said. Denzel smiled and went upstairs, where he silently creaked the door to his shared room with Marlene. He peered to see her cuddling her toy chocobo, a gift from Barret, in bed. Her eyes were slightly gaped open and staring right across at Denzel who stood like a statue before he waved and left. He then told Cloud and Tifa that she was alright, with Tifa sending up another cup of water to her.
After closing, Tifa began to prepare dinner from the ingredients Cloud bought, with Cloud and Denzel getting the table and utensils ready. The soup could be smelled from the living room, like walking through a restaurant at the peak hour. The aroma of chicken danced around the room as Cloud and Denzel waited patiently for dinner, sometimes checking on Tifa, who progressed smoothly.
When dinner was ready, Cloud brought in a bowl for Marlene, which he had to help her eat. Marlene ate slow, her brain commanding her not to eat too much or both soldiers and invaders will be replenished. After around a few minutes, Cloud left Marlene to eat alone, and back down to Tifa and Denzel, whom he gave his report.
"Marlene's doing alright," he said, "I only needed to feed her a little."
"I see," Tifa said, "Let's hope she didn't spread her flu to anyone at school."
"She told me that her usual teacher had it," Cloud said, "Who knows who else got it..."
The family went back to eating. The soup was still warm, with the aroma strong, and the taste flavourful. Cloud peacefully drank, and his mind relaxed, as he shifted his attention to the woman next to him who too drank peacefully, as did the child brought to them both by an old friend.
After dinner, Tifa washed up, and Cloud made the effort of setting up the couch for Denzel to sleep the night. Once done, Denzel was tucked in tight, with Cloud and Tifa returning upstairs into their own room.
Cloud stared at the wall leading to Marlene's room and listened in for any worrying sounds, as he lay in bed beside Tifa, who gave him a pat on the arm in assurance. There were no worrying sounds to be heard, only the serene silence of the night and the calm rhythm of Tifa's breath. Cloud started to relax and let the gentle wings of sleep take him from his waking state.
The couple slept well and woke up in each other's arms. For a long time, Cloud let Tifa stare into his mako blue eyes as he stared back into her rose-red ones, of which he'd seen only one other like them. There were no words spoken at this time, as Cloud reached in to kiss his partner.
"Good morning, Tifa," he said in a soothing voice.
"Good morning, Cloud," Tifa said, stroking his cheek.
"Did you sleep well?" Cloud asked. Tifa silently nodded and smiled at Cloud who got up to take a shower, whilst Tifa wandered into Marlene's room. There she found her sleeping peacefully in bed with a stuffed moogle in her arms. Silently, Tifa crept towards Marlene and felt her temperature, still on fire, as she shivered much more and woke up to see her foster mother.
"Tifa," Marlene said, coughing, "I don't feel well…"
"I know, Marlene," Tifa said, "Don't worry, Cloud and I will take good care of you. I'll go down and make you some breakfast, ok?"
"Ok," Marlene said. Tifa kissed the girl on the forehead and left the room where she ran into Cloud who had his towel around his waist. Shyly, she blushed but shook it off, as Cloud began to speak.
"How's Marlene?" he asked.
"She isn't well," Tifa replied, with a hint of sadness in her tone, "So I'm going to get her breakfast, after a shower."
"I see," Cloud said, "I'll get dressed and check on Denzel."
The two went their ways, Cloud got dressed and Tifa had her shower. Downstairs Denzel still slept on the couch but had his blanket higher than he did last night. His skin turned much paler, which caused Cloud to worry, as he came to his side to shake him.
"Denzel!" Cloud said. In response, Denzel opened his eyes slightly, his vision out of focus from Cloud's face. He felt his foster father's hand on his forehead, which conjured a worried expression on Cloud's face.
"Cloud, I feel sick," Denzel said, "I think someone in my class might have had the flu, I mean there were five kids absent."
"I see," Cloud said, "I guess you'll need to stay home too. I'll tell Tifa, and you can go back to your room if you'd like."
"Thanks, Cloud," Denzel said. Cloud left Denzel and went into the bathroom where he told Tifa about Denzel's condition. She told Cloud she wasn't surprised and after drying off, made breakfast for everyone, with Cloud bringing Marlene down in his arms.
Marlene and Denzel ate their oatmeal breakfast like snails, having both lost their appetites from the malevolent invaders within them, and were only two thirds through once Cloud and Tifa finished. Barely any words were spoken between them during that time, with the void only being filled by the water they drank.
After breakfast, Tifa washed up and the children sat down on the couch, a blanket around them, whilst Cloud stood and watched silently. The bar was opened after Tifa finished and set up, and customers slowly started coming in. Amongst them was the same familiar face that Cloud had seen only yesterday, the same unattractive man with bulging muscles and tall stature. He appeared to sit at a table closer to the counter where he caught a good view of Tifa.
This time, Cloud had a better view of the man. He had a massive scar running across almost the entirety of the right side of his face from his temple to his chin like he'd fought a behemoth or a great warrior. His eyebrows were thick with his right having a clip, and his eyes were dark green.
What made Cloud gag was when the man gave a Tifa a suggestive look. Tifa paid little to no mind to him, but when she did, Cloud observed that she looked to shudder slightly. Who was this man? They both wondered, and why was he here in Edge?
As the day dragged on, they received a visit from Reeve Tuesti, an old friend of Cloud and Tifa's. Cloud shook his hand awkwardly, as Reeve patted him on the shoulder.
"Cloud, what are you doing home from work today?" Reeve asked.
"The kids are sick," Cloud said, "the teacher gave me a call to say that Marlene had to be taken home. Denzel got sick this morning,"
"I see," Reeve said, "and you and Tifa?"
"We're alright," Cloud said, "for now,"
"And you haven't told Barret?"
"No,"
"I see,"
"What are you doing here?"
"I came to get a drink, and to visit,"
"You're always welcome," Cloud said sincerely. Reeve went to Tifa and ordered, with Cloud's focus now returned to the dark-haired stranger. The Stanger's stare seemed to focus on him as well, if only very subtly. Cloud nonetheless shifted his focus from him to Tifa and Reeve who spoke casually to one another about the recent work of the World Regenesis Organisation, then back to the living room where Marlene and Denzel sat with some warm milk, and snuggled in one blanket.
Reeve left half an hour later, leaving Cloud to make a shopping list. Tifa informed Cloud that there was left-over chicken soup to last them a while but requested some ingredients for other homecooked meals for customers. With the list complete, Cloud kissed Tifa's lips and left on Fenrir.
This time, Cloud spent much longer shopping through the corridors of food and produce. He was interrupted by Johnny, Cloud's old rival, who spoke nonsense in Cloud's ears, and asked many questions left unanswered by the blonde-haired hero, who only told Johnny:
"The kids are sick, and yes it's from the flu, and that's why I'm not working, ok,"
Johnny stepped backed, squeaking his shoes on the marble floor, and looked as though he were afraid of something. Cloud shrugged and continued shopping through the supermarket, where he'd collected his ingredients and other supplies Checking out, Johnny tried to physically distance himself from Cloud as he checked out and slowly walked away, out of the supermarket.
When Cloud returned home, he'd encountered the dark stranger by the doorstep. Cloud felt him put an eye on him as he walked past and down the streets. Cloud's head ached, a burning sensation that struck him, but ended just as suddenly as he went back inside and gave the bags to Tifa.
At dinner, Tifa saw something was wrong with Cloud but didn't bother him, instead waiting until after to ask. After putting the children to sleep and changing, Tifa sat next to Cloud in bed and tried to speak but no words were produced until Cloud said her name.
"Is something wrong?" he asked.
"At dinner, you seemed worried, was something the matter?" Tifa asked.
"I just had a bad feeling about someone, that's all," Cloud said. Tifa looked at him in confusion, with the look in his eyes informing her that 'someone' was neither Marlene nor Denzel. No more words were spoken between the two that night other than 'I love you,' and 'goodnight' before sleeping.
The next day was like the day before, Cloud helped Marlene and Denzel out of bed, Tifa made breakfast and opened the bar, and Cloud once again saw the dark-haired stranger, this time standing within earshot of Tifa. Cloud looked on but was distracted by the former turks, Reno, Rude and Elena who bored him with their conversation about Rufus Shinra's slow recovery.
After a drink and meal, the turks left and Cloud once again kept his eye on Tifa. She was watched by the eyes of the stranger, the man who set a fire within Cloud, a premonition as to what would happen next. Tifa at one stage looked at him but turned away once she'd given him his drink and turned her attention to Cloud with whom she shared a smile.
Marlene and Denzel were no better than they had been, as they barely came down at all that day. This was no black swan event to Cloud and Tifa as the flu sent most of its slaves to bed frequently, with Cloud and Tifa eating by themselves at lunch, whilst Marlene and Denzel ate in their room.
The next day, as Cloud watched the man, he started to ache in his thighs. He felt his forehead - he was on fire! Swiftly he ran into the bathroom where he had his temperature checked, clocking in at 39 degrees.
Cloud looked at his results in dismay as he washed the thermometer and came downstairs, facemask on. He peered over to Tifa, who looked at him in worry. Briefly, she came to his side and felt his temperature.
"You have it too?" she asked.
"Yes," Cloud said.
"I suppose that I'll get it too then,"
Tifa got back to work, whilst Cloud looked towards her. The stranger had seemed to have slightly fixed his gaze on Tifa, and Cloud shuddered. He sat in the living room and got under the same blanket used by Marlene and Denzel.
They too learned Cloud had the virus and snuggled up with him in the blanket, like a kangaroo holding two joeys in her pouch. That night, Cloud still slept with Tifa, only he kept his distance, facing away from her and wore an extra blanket, as a border to a war zone.
At last, at six in the morning when not even the sun was awake, Cloud heard Tifa complain and turned towards her. She was holding onto her thighs and tried to kick out the pain, and Cloud took her in his arms and felt that she too was on fire.
"Tifa, you're sick too!" Cloud said, coughing.
"Cloud, we're all sick now, aren't we?" Tifa said, "I guess that means we'll have to close the bar for a few days. I'll put a note up."
"Get some rest first," Cloud said, "Oh, and here,"
Cloud opened the blanket that was wrapped around him, an invitation for Tifa to join him. She shuffled into Cloud's arms as he closed the blanket around her and held her close. Tifa relaxed as Cloud did this and fell back into the sweet currents of sleep, for a couple more hours' rest.
Once up again at nine, Cloud and Tifa went downstairs together with the blanket surrounding them. They were planted on the couch where they were joined by the children who too sat within the confines of the blanket.
"Good morning, kids," Tifa said, coughing.
"Good morning, Tifa," Marlene said, "Are you sick too?"
Tifa nodded and asked: "Are you getting any better?"
Marlene and Denzel both nodded, coughing. The four snuggled together under one blanket in their pyjamas and chatted about plans after recovery. Tifa left the blanket and found a piece of paper and sharpie. On it, she wrote: 'Warning, plague house, 4 people sick with the flu, enter at your own risk!'
Cloud read this and laughed, with Tifa putting the sign on the front door for customers to see. Their day at the closed bar of course lacked any sort of diversity, with them sitting down, eating meals and watching television together under the blanket, where some of the sound was muffled by the symphony of the coughs.
Dinner was the same as usual, Tifa's chicken soup. It was still as good as the day it was first made as the family all ate together at one table and chatted. Marlene and Denzel were the first two to finish, followed by Cloud.
The children drifted off at the table, whilst Tifa still ate. Everyone was still in their pyjamas, for the flu sadistically exhausted his victims, and with his men attempted to take control of more land within its host. Cloud, therefore, carried both children in his arms up to their room, where he laid them down gently and tucked them in. Back downstairs, Cloud started drowsing but resisted. Back in the dining room, Tifa finished dinner but unlike Cloud, she had submitted to her flu's advances.
"Tifa," Cloud said quietly but coughing. Tifa gave no response, being lost in the sleep that overtook her. Cloud came closer and secured an arm around her back, and let her rest her head on his shoulder. With his other arm hooked under her knees, Cloud picked Tifa up off the stool and carried her upstairs, cradling her in his arms as they reached their bedroom. There he laid her down next to him, and fell asleep beside her, with their blanket over them, and held her in his arms.
The next day followed suit in routine: everyone was sick, they had breakfast, slept in, watched television, chatted, ate lunch, had dinner and went to sleep, which only took less than a minute under their conditions. The only difference was how sick everyone was, with Marlene and Denzel nearly recovered.
The day after that was different. This time, a knock came on Cloud and Tifa's door. After a 'come in', the door opened to make way for Marlene and Denzel who ran into Cloud and Tifa's arms excitedly, and full of energy.
"Cloud, Tifa, guess what!" Marlene said.
"What is it?" Tifa asked.
"We're all better!" Denzel announced, excitedly. Cloud and Tifa both coughed at first, but then gave the children a squeeze and told them: "That's wonderful!" before Cloud's phone started ringing. In almost an instant, Cloud picked up and could hear the familiar accent of Barret Wallace, Marlene's father.
"Hey Spikey, how is my Marlene?" Barret asked.
"Ah Barret!" Cloud said, "good news *cough, cough* she's just recovered from the flu."
"What? My Marlene? The flu?" Barret yelled, over-worried, "Why didn't you tell me? I swear, you gonna need some explainin' to do!"
"We knew you'd be upset," Cloud said, "But she's right here. Would you like to talk to her?"
"I sure as hell would," Barret said. Cloud passed the phone to Marlene who started by saying: "Hi, Daddy! How's work?"
"Marlene, my angel, are you alright?" Barret asked.
"I'm fine!" Marlene said, "up until yesterday, we all had the flu. Cloud and Tifa are still sick though, but they're getting better,"
"My Marlene, growing strong," Barret said, "Making Daddy proud. You goin' back to school?"
"Yeah," Marlene said, "Tomorrow,"
"Well, you be good, Marlene, and take good care of Cloud and Tifa," Barret said before they both said goodbye to each other. Marlene snapped the phone closed and put it back on Cloud's bedside table.
"Hey Cloud, since you and Tifa are still sick, how about we make you breakfast?" Marlene asked.
"Why Marlene, that would be lovely!" Tifa said, coughing, "Thank you."
Marlene and Denzel left the room and closed the door. Cloud and Tifa lay down beside each other and stared each other deeply in the eyes. Cloud put his hand on Tifa's boiling forehead where the war felt as though it was her immune system winning, but not by much. He then moved his hand to behind her shoulder and touched his blazed forehead against hers.
"Are you ok, Tifa?" he asked. Tifa nodded and Cloud continued, "we'll get through together, the kids already have, ok…"
"Mmm…" Tifa said. She came in closer to Cloud's arms, starting to feel more chills, and Cloud closed his arms around her. His arms were warm, and acted as a barrier, protecting her from the monsters within.
The children came back up with breakfast: an omelette, large enough for both Cloud and Tifa. The two shared between each other with the children mentioning that because of their loss of appetite, they would want something to share. Cloud gave both the children a pat on the head and let them stay a few more moments before finishing. Cloud and Tifa both got up and took the tray back to the kitchen, where Tifa leaned on his shoulder.
"So, what do you want to do today?" Cloud asked.
"I don't know," Tifa said, "What is there to do today?"
"Oh," Cloud said, "Then we should plan something to do once we all recover. How about we have a chat with the kids?"
Tifa nodded and sat on the couch where the kids sat next to them. There they discussed and thought. Cloud was keen to go out, as was Tifa, and the children suggested the Golden Saucer where they shared many brilliant memories. Cloud and Tifa too shared many great memories there, such as a date they had after meteorfall, in which they were the 100th couple at the wonder exhibit and thus played the knight and princess in the play, though that time dressed in costumes, unlike Cloud's date with Aerith the time before.
"It's settled then," Cloud said, "We'll take you to the golden saucer after school this Friday and hopefully get home by Sunday. Maybe we could visit Barret in Corel even."
"Yay!" Marlene said, giving Cloud a hug. The morning was boring, but by midday, when Cloud checked the pot, there was no chicken soup left. Cloud tried to think, and then started to feel different. His fever was gone, as was his drowsiness, and he felt hungrier suddenly.
Cloud calculated all these factors into just one possibility. He ran back into the living room and called "Tifa!". Only to find her sleeping on the couch with her blanket around her. Cloud leaned in and whispered her name.
"Cloud, what is it?" Tifa asked.
"Tifa," Cloud said, "Tifa, we're out of chicken soup, but I've recovered."
"Oh, Cloud!" Tifa said. Tifa reached her arms out to hug Cloud and Cloud picked her up, carrying her to their room with the blanket around her. Up there, Cloud had a shower and got changed, then told Tifa he would go out and get some food.
For the first time in more than a few days, Cloud saw him again, the dark stranger who visited the bar and saw outside the shops. Cloud watched him with even more suspicion, as the man was now looking through a notebook. As the lights changed, Cloud shifted his focus and continued to the shops. The shopping trip here was quite quick, with Cloud buying another whole chicken and other ingredients for the soup.
Back home, after seeing the stranger again, Cloud put down the ingredients and then went up to check on Tifa. She kissed him on the lips and asked for him to cook for her tonight.
"Tifa," Cloud said smoothly, "It will be done." And cuddled her. He kept his promise that night and cooked for her, and with a bit of practice up his sleeve, he was successful, accordion to judges Marlene and Denzel. Cloud served them dinner and went up to serve Tifa and took his up with him.
Tifa ate and smiled. She turned to Cloud and told him: "Thank you, Cloud, you did a very good job, I love it."
Cloud shuffled to her side and kissed her cheek. Tifa cried, tears of joy and told him, "I love you so much Cloud, thank you,"
Cloud stayed by Tifa's side all night before he went back to the kitchen and returned the bowls. He immediately went back up to bed and changed into a fresh set of pyjamas, then laid down beside Tifa, his arms around her. Tifa turned to his side and hugged him, as she lapsed into the land of dreams from being stroked by Cloud.
Cloud woke up with Tifa in his arms. He stayed there for several minutes as he too held her, and kissed her hot forehead. Tifa woke up more than a few minutes after and held Cloud closer.
"Morning, Cloud," Tifa said.
"Good morning, Tifa," Cloud said, "did you sleep well?"
Tifa nodded and kissed Cloud's lips. Cloud stayed with her for a few minutes more and then went down to get breakfast. The children, with the war over within themselves, had gone back to school, as Cloud wondered when the closed sign would be down again and more importantly, when he could go back to work.
All day, he'd been alone with Tifa whom he talked to and fed some fruit. He never left her side, except to get her something on request or when either of them wanted to be alone, such as Cloud's walk where he once again spotted the stranger on the streets, this time right next to Seventh Heaven. They still spoke no words and went their separate ways, and when Cloud came back, he'd returned to Tifa's arms and held her. The children came home at half-past three and checked on Cloud and Tifa who were cuddling in their room and talking. Dinner was the same, with Cloud, serving and bringing his and Tifa's up to their room.
Tifa again rolled into Cloud's arms that night and had wonderful dreams about the two of them, where he'd taken her out to a beautiful place in the continent northwest of Midgar. This was made even better by her waking up in his arms with him stroking her cheek and looking into her eyes. He felt her temperature, and it felt normal again.
"Good morning, Tifa," Cloud said, "How are you feeling?"
Tifa tried to put his words to thought. Her congested nose was gone, as were her coughs, her muscle aches and her loss of appetite.
"Cloud, I feel better again!" Tifa said. With this, Cloud hugged her tight and told her, "Tifa, you're all better, thank Gaia!"
That day, the warning sign was taken down and the status sign was changed to open, and business resumed. Cloud's too resumed, as he made deliveries at top speed, after apologising to customers about his sickness.
That Friday, Cloud picked Tifa up to collect Marlene and Denzel and at top speed, drove to the Golden Saucer where the fun never ended. They went on rides, watched chocobo racing and even played mini-games, and visited Barret who gave Marlene a squeeze of love, and told her how glad he was of the family's recovery.