Note: Pro-Game as usual. None of the characters,
towns, objects belong to me, except John. This
one is weird and I have no idea where it's heading.
Please bear with me. Thanks. 5-28-01
This is a really rough draft. Watch out. :)
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Chapter One: A Decision Made
Instead of holding a Buster Sword, Cloud Strife held a wooden broom within his
hands, quietly sweeping the dust and dead leaves that had managed to gather on
the front porch of the garden that Tifa used to manage so well.
It's been six months after the girl had decided to walk out of his life. The memories
of her promising him her return kept replaying in his mind whenever he thought of
her. His spiky head snapped up from the ground the moment he heard knockings
on the door, as fast as he could manage, he hastily tossed away the broom and jetted
for the door. Cloud swung the door open, hoping with all of his heart to find his friend
who had promised her early return.
"Hi, Cloud. I've got you another job!"
A disgusted look masked his face as he trotted towards the back of the house once
again. He bent down and picked up the broom that he had abandoned. "What
is it this time?"
"There's a bar the government wants to clean up, and I told them that I've got the
right person in mind. Therefore, voila! I'm here!" John swept his arm in front of him,
a proud grin on his face. He was a man in his late twenties or early thirties, Cloud never
asked. He thought that if John wanted him to know, he'd tell him by himself. A very nice
man indeed. John Hukvik often kept Cloud from turning in to a potato sack by looking
for random missions for him to go on. Cloud wasn't one to complain, he was actually
quite grateful. The house was just too empty when he's the only occupant.
He sighed, twirling the broomstick like he once did with his weapon. "When, where,
how much?"
"Cloud, boy! You know you really don't give a damn about the money, I mean, look at
this house, it's drop dead gorg-" Cloud held up a hand before he could finish.
"Fine," sounding thoroughly annoyed, Cloud continued, "just where and when?"
John shrugged and shoved his hand in his left pocket. "Hold up," he said, his tongue
sticking out as he dug for the object of his desire. "Got it, got it!" He called out happily
as he pulled out a wrinkled piece of paper from his pocket. "There, all the information
you need is on this."
"It's in Junon." Cloud stated, a confused look on his face, as he read the crumpled piece
of paper. "How'd you get a deal from all the way over there?" He knew that if he accepted
this deal he would be away from Costa Del Sol for at least a week. Cloud can't be gone
for that long.
What if she decided to return within that period of time?
He shrugged, "It just came and I accepted. That's all there is to it." John punched his shoulder
lightly, "What do you care about the distance anyway? It's just a boat-ride away!"
"It's not that..." Cloud stuttered, "I-I just don't want to leave an empty house behind."
"Oh, c'mon!" John threw up his arms in desperation. "You scared about leavin' the house
for more then a few days just because of some burglars? Get real, Mr. Strife. You're Cloud
Strife! Who'd be stupid enough to steal out of your house? Plus, there aren't any problems
in stealing here in Costa Del Sol! Just calm down, and give it a go. You don't have to worry
about anything, just let go of your worries and kick some butts. I'm sure it'll make you feel
a lot better!"
Almost in a defeated fashion, Cloud shook his head. His blonde spikes waved slowly,
following the pattern of how his head shook. "It's not that, John. I'm not afraid of things
getting stolen. I've told you, haven't I?"
"About...?" Suddenly, John could feel something trigger in his mind. He held up his hands,
almost as if he was stopping Cloud from walking over to him. "Oh wait! Don't tell me, I think
I know. You're waiting for that girl right?" He sighed and shook his head, "That girl who
saved the world with ya! Man, I tell you, with your fame and money, you can get any girl
you want."
A throaty dry laugh escape from the bottom of his throat. "Although that may be true, but
it's not them that I want. I just want my friend to keep her promise."
"Alright, whatever you want, bro! So you taking on the deal or what?" He asked casually.
"She's left you for six months, how do you know she's gonna come back within the week
that you aren't here." Slowly shaking his head, John pushed back his brown bangs, "If she
wanted to come back, she would've been back months ago, she probably wouldn't have
left in the first place!"
That comment had managed to sting his pride. Cloud never got to find out why Tifa had
decided to leave. It almost seemed as if it was a spur of the moment thing.
"You're right." He said as he began folding the note.
"Wait, does this mean you're willing to take the job?" John asked, excitement filled his voice.
"Yes." Cloud answered shortly with a nod. He took a long intake of breath before speaking,
"To Junon, huh?"
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Note: This fiction is weirder then I had thought it would be. So please continue
reading and please feel free to give me some suggestions on where this series
should head. Cool. Thanks for reading this, and please drop a simple review.
chizuru