Chapter 2: The Adventure Begins

My eyes fluttered open to darkness.


Where am I?

I felt a soft mattress beneath me, a warm blanket tucked under my chin, and towels wrapped around my body. I sat up, idly rubbing my forehead. The wound was gone completely, I noted, and I was no longer sore. After a quick glance about I realized, to my surprise, that I was in my very own bedroom.

But how did I get here?

For an instant I had the fleeting thought that perhaps it had all been a horrible nightmare and none of the earlier events had truly transpired. Then someone moved by the window, startling me ouf of my reverie. I jumped in surprise as two glowing mako eyes caught my own from the darkest corner of the room.

"You've awakened. I'd thought you'd sleep longer than that." Sephiroth spoke up quietly.

"W-what happened?" I asked, blinking away exhaustion and bewilderment.

"One of your wounds had been lightly poisoned. That's why you passed out I imagine." He answered. "I took you here and tended to the damage."

"Oh." I said blankly and commenced vigorously chewing my lower lip. "Thank you."

"I suppose you expected I'd leave you there." He murmured nonchalantly.

"I don't know what I'd expected. I was kind of hoping it was all a bad dream." I sat up slowly and sighed inwardly. "It is a bit strange though. Pardon me for saying, but you never struck me as a very compassionate person. Even when you weren't a raving lunatic."

"That's because I'm not." He responded coolly. "But do bare with me milady. That is how I was made to be. It's a miracle I didn't turn out worse."

"Have you just been waiting here all this time then?" I asked, peering curiously at my bedside clock. It was 3 a.m.

"Yes." He replied.

"What for?" I asked. "Aren't you tired?"

"I have no place to stay and wanted to be sure you healed properly." He answered. "Besides, I'm bored."

I crossed my arms and looked up at him quizzically. "I see. So…how are you here? And why?"

He averted his gaze to the window, sighing impatiently as he crossed his arms over his chest. "If you'd bothered to read Hojo's journals you would have known that I was blessed with immortality through his twisted experimentation. I don't know how he did it. It probably has something to do with Jenova's cells though." He explained drably. "As for my reason for being here in Nibelheim? I'm just passing through. I spent the last 5 years waiting for my strength to recover enough so that I might be able to leave the bloody nuisance of a crater. Now that I am strong enough I've come to the surface, and I have no intention of going back any time soon."

Immortal... Somehow I wasn't surprised. My eyes narrowed. "What do you plan on doing on the surface?" I pried suspiciously.

He smirked at the uneasy waver in my voice. "Just some traveling. You needn't worry about my intentions. I assure you I have no desire to harm anyone who isn't already dead."

"Isn't already dead?" I echoed nervously. What is that supposed to mean?

He grinned. "I'd gladly murder Hojo if he were still alive, and Gods help me I'd kill him slowly too." He seethed. "You should get some rest."

The hair on the back of my neck stood on end and I shrank back into the pillows. He sounded slightly terrifying when he talked that way. "I see." I answered roughly. "Well, there's another bedroom across the hall if you want to rest here."

"I appreciate it." He nodded and walked out the door, closing it behind him.

I sat there for what felt like decades, thinking about what had happened in the last few hours. My hand absentmindedly felt along the slender scar that ran across my abdomen; the scar he had inflicted. He killed my father and burned down my village, and he killed Aeris, and yet I'd just offered him lodging in my house. What had gotten into me? That was a question I couldn't fathom an answer to. The worst thing was, he insisted on being unbearably kind, making it harder and harder to hate him.

After some careful thought on the matter, I realized that the reason I allowed him to be here was because I didn't recognize him. When he revealed his identity in the bar, I saw someone else there. I saw the Sephiroth that I hardly knew, so much like the man that I'd met before everything had gone wrong 11 years ago. Could it justify all that he'd done though? I wasn't sure, but I felt myself wanting to forgive him. Five years of having chosen to forgive the dead evidently had softened me. At this moment, I owed him a lot. So I could pretend, at least for this brief while, that he could change.

My eyelids dropped lazily and I found myself drifting off to sleep again.

The next morning, I awoke to bright beams of sunlight pouring into my room through the windows. I yawned and swung my legs over the side of the bed. My clothes had dried over night, to my delight, and I felt on top of the world.

I peeked over the edge of the bed to find my boots set neatly beside it. My fighting gloves sat on the bedside table. I slipped them on hastily and was fumbling with my shoe laces when I noticed the clock. 8 a.m.? My breath caught in my throat. The bar was supposed to have been opened an hour ago!

I scowled and sluggishly waved my hand. Forget it. I don't feel like opening the bar today or tomorrow or the next day. What I felt like was an adventure, but…adventures weren't near as fun when you were alone. God how I missed my friends and Cloud… I missed him the most. A memory flashed before my eyes.

- One month after meteor…

Cloud held me by the hand, practically dragging me through the City of the Ancients. His face was a picture of pure happiness and bliss, his lips curved into a wide smile. He knew she'd be here and that was the reason I was scrambling to keep up.

When we rounded the last corner that lead to crystal pool, we both came to a sudden stop. For a moment I couldn't believe my eyes, for there sat the flower girl herself on a nearby boulder, smiling. Her eyes brightened as we hestiantly approache, and she bounced to her feet.

"Aeris!" Cloud and I exclaimed in unison. Up till now, I wasn't completely sure she would be here. Cloud was right.

She came towards us stopping only a few feet away. "Hello." She said brightly with a little wave. "I'm so glad to see you two again. I only wish the others could have come too, but I understand."

Cloud came forward grabbing her hands in his. Love shown in his eyes like none that I'd ever seen. It shined with a brillance that shamed the very sun. That same love was in Aeris's eyes as well. It was amazing to see something so…beautiful. Despite the heart piercing pain I felt I couldn't deny that they were a match, and one that deserved happiness. I always thought that kind of thing only existed in fairy tales, but here I stood witnessing it before me.

Aeris turned her head towards me. There was a hint of sadness in her eyes. "Tifa…" She spoke softly and looked away again as if unable to look into my eyes any longer. "Cloud, there's something I want to ask you, and it might be difficult to answer."

"What is it?" He inquired eagerly..

Aeris swallowed hard. "Will you come to the Promise Land with me? I've been given permission to ask you. This will be your only chance and once you go you can't come back." She seemed to tremble with apprehension as she fell silent, waiting.

Cloud nodded silently. He barely even gave it a thought.

That was what he wanted. I knew it was, and yet he suddenly hesitated.

His deep blue eyes turned to me in question. "Tifa…" He started.

"Go on." I insisted."You have something very special and rare. Don't let it go because of me. I want the best for both of you. Just don't forget that you have a special place in all our hearts. Both of you do."

For the last time we embraced.

"Thank you." He whispered into my ear and let me go.

"We will have to go soon." Aeris said with a sigh. "I'll miss you Tifa." She pulled me into a tight hug. It was hard not to cry right then. "You won't always be alone Tifa." Then she pulled away and took Cloud's hand in hers. "If you're ever in need of help, come here.."

I nodded. "Take care."

"Goodbye." She said with a smile and waved again.

"Bye Tif." Cloud smiled.

"Bye." I said quietly as they slowly disappeared. Cloud was gone… I'd finally let him go, but I didn't feel much better. In truth, a burden had been lifted, but I'd just lost a best friend. Two best friends actually, and only a month had passed since meteor. I'd never felt so completely alone in my entire life.

As I turned away from the pool and started up the path, the tears began to flow in rivers down my cheeks. I hope you're right, Aeris…-

I pushed the memories aside and shoved myself off the bed. Thinking about that only made me feel hopelessly depressed. I collected the towels that I'd slept on over the night and stacked them neatly on the foot of the bed. At least Sephiroth was respectful enough to not undress me. I smirked dryly.

The sound of a door creaking open from across the hall caught my attention. Soft footsteps resonated from beyond my door and slowly descended down the stairs. My eyes narrowed and sprang out of the room in hot pursuit.

Oh no you don't. I hurled myself down the stairs after him, my boots hitting the bottom as his hand reached for the door. The room seemed to freeze in place at the lound sound of my landing.

"Running away?" I asked, grinning at him with crossed arms. "Tell me it isn't so, that the greatest General in the world is running from I, Tifa Lockhart."

"I suppose I am." He shrugged and turned around. "But I must keep a low profile you understand."

"Of course, but that doesn't explain why you were sneaking out." I pointed out. "You can be awfully strange, you know that?"

He chuckled. "You're giving me far too much credit." He said. "What I am goes far beyond strange. I'm not even human."

Well that rings a bell. It is said that those words were the beginning of his insanity. He'd no longer thought he was human and basically lost his marbles. Marbles…ha! Hearing him say that brought back unsettling memories though. Things that made me shiver involuntarily. It must have shown, for his expression suddenly changed into slight bewilderment.

"Is there something wrong?" He asked.

"That's where it all began, isn't it." I murmured dourly. "That's how it started. Don't you remember? You freaked out in the reactor. I never saw what happened inside, but Cloud told me later. You snapped...because you were convinced that you were just like them, a monster; not human. " Oh no, here I go.

Realization hit him and he stared at me blankly. "So it was." He answered. "However, Jenova did have her hand in it."

"Maybe if you hadn't gone crazy in the reactor you would have defeated her then and there, sparing the hurt and pain I had to suffer with so many others." I snapped bitterly. No more miss nice girl. "You're not running from me, you're running from the past. Well, you might as well not bother because it's not going to undo itself. You may not have made the command, but it was your hand that held the sword that killed my father and countless others, and nearly killed me."

His eyes flashed with anger. Perhaps I've gone too far. There's always time for him to have second thoughts about saving my life. Maybe blowing up wasn't such a good idea?

I looked away, unable to bare his heavy glare. It probably wasn't right for me to be so harsh. He had such a cruel past, which I knew very little of, mainly because I didn't want to know. It scared me. Was it right to treat him this way after all he had to go through?

I found myself regretting what I'd just said, but what was done was done. There was no one else to blame; no one left, and he wasn't supposed to be here either. Now, all of a sudden everything I thought I'd put behind me had come full circle and slammed me in the solar plexus. What could I do?

He turned around, put on his cloak and went out the door, stopping only at the last minute. "Miss Lockheart, you've hit your mark and you've hit it well. I'm sorry." With that the door slammed shut and he left.

I stood there dumb struck and hurt. He made it sound like I meant to do him harm, and I hadn't, had I? Yes, I had mean to hurt him. It was malicious of me too, and I still did it. It felt good even at first, to rub in his face everything he had done wrong and all the things that people hated him for.

The aftermath was strikingly different however. Now I felt as if I'd lost Cloud all over again and that my life was sinking into the pits of despair. It was time to make a decision. If he turns me down then…then I'll just give the bastard a piece of my mind and make him take me!

Suddenly I felt much better.

I dashed up the stairs and into my room. Under the bed was a chest and I dragged it out. Pouches plump full of gill, items, weapons, bangels, materia, and everything else we'd collected during our travels lay beneath the lid. I loaded my materia slots, grabbing some extra and a few items too, and then I slid the chest back into its hiding place.

Now, where were my belt and suspenders from the old days? The closet, I thought, and threw open the doors. After a while of fruitless digging, I finally found them and strapped them on. Then I headed for the door where I stopped to gawk at my reflection in the mirror. That would have to dealt with... I spun around and stalked into the bathroom to comb my hair.

Ok, all set. I rushed back down the stairs, skipping the last 4 steps, and bolted on down the hall. I snatched my key from the counter where it so conveniently lay, and flew out the door, being sure to lock it on my way out.

When I reached the bar, Jonathan (part owner) was there serving drinks to a few visitors. I glanced at the floor to find that it was completely clean. He looked up at me and smiled. "Hey Tifa."

"Hi." I said, staring at him bewildered. It wasn't possible. "What are you doing here?"

"Taking over for you." He replied.

"Oh." I blurted out deliriously. The momentary confusion passed and I found my voice again, "Well Jonathan, I'm going. I don't know when I'll be back, but I'm going. If you want you can have the bar. I don't want it anymore. At least, not right now."

He grinned. "It's about time Tifa. Get out of here. We pretend not to notice, but everyone knows you miss fighting. Besides, you need to find someone to take care of you for a change. Ain't gonna do that by sittin' round here."

I blushed and gave him a bright smile. "Thank you." I said and left.

Now, where did he go? A little voice in my head seemed to say 'the mountain path'. I looked back and forth between the entrance to town and the mountain path, trying to decide. I found myself agreeing with the mysterious voice and started off in a dead run towards the woods.

I stopped at a fork in the road. The path to the right was the safest way to the bridge. The left was a more dangerous way, but tens times quicker. After a moment's contemplation, I took the left path, carefully skimming along the sheer rock and gripping the crevices in the mountain as I went.

Ten minutes later I reached the bridge unscathed and sat down on a rock to wait as the sun beat down on my thoroughly sweat drenched figure. He better have gone this way, otherwise I'm going to be really pissed.

Having nothing better to do I shifted my position to stare at the bridge and fathom up all the possible worse case scenarios that could befall me for this little stunt. That bridge had a lot of history too. Mainly that it broke every time someone set foot on it. Twice I'd fallen from the bridge, once with Cloud, and once with Sephiroth and his men. Third time's a charm, anyone?

I leaned back, stretching my legs and bathing in the sunlight. It was really a lovely day. No more boring home life. I was going to travel for a while and visit my friends. Yes, I'd definitely visit my friends.

The sound of footsteps reached my ears and I turned around to meet the new comer. I swear Sephiroth nearly had heart attack when he saw me standing there. I'd even go as far as to say his feet had left the ground for an instant.

"Hello!" I piped up cheerily.

He blinked several times as he stared at me, trying to figure out if his eyes were playing tricks. He frowned deeply. "How did you get here so fast?"

"I took the left path. It's much quicker, but it can be dangerous if you're not careful." I informed him. "I know this place better than anyone though, and I've been up that path a thousand times."

"Yes, but...why are you here?" He demanded, looking thoroughly confused and more than a little disturbed by the sudden turn of events. Reality was slowly beginning to dawn, and it wasn't pretty on his face.

"Because…" I chewed my lip nervously and dug into the ground with the toe of my boot. "I don't want to stay here anymore and I'd like to visit my friends. I miss adventuring. Either I go with you or I go alone, but if you must know I'd much have some company, even if it is you."

A look of curiosity flashed behind his eyes. Our gazes locked and he watched me intently, as if searching for something.

My heart skipped a beat as he delved deeper into my thoughts and I felt suddenly naked before him. Then he turned away.. "If you wish to come, you may." He said finally. "As long as you behave."

"Really!" I blurted out unceremoniously and burst into a victory dance that would've made Yuffie proud. When I finally came back to earth and calmed down a bit, I found myself staring down the bridge again, harboring dark thoughts. "Now the bridge will probably break and I'll die." I frowned. "Or maybe not. I'm supposed to be optimistic about this sort of thing. I must be getting rusty."

Sephiroth shook his head slightly, rolling his eyes. "And you call me strange." He muttered and brushed past me. "I must be out of my mind."

"I heard that!" I yelled after him as he made his way across the bridge. I decided that it would be wise to wait for him to cross before heading across myself. At least he had the decency to stop at the other side and wait for me.

Memories came flooding back; memories of when I first fell and memories of when the bridge broke. At that point I was already half way and stopping was certainly out of the question. So I swallowed all the terror lumped in my throat and continued on.

When I reached the other side I never felt more relieved to walk on solid ground.

Then silence hovered like a plague in the air around us as we walked along, and it was starting to make me uneasy. "I think we should talk." I began. If we were going to be traveling together we should try and clear the tension that hung between us. Although, I wasn't sure just how we were going to talk about it.

"Where do we start?" He asked.

Good question. "I don't know." This was a very awkward situation. How does one start?

Sephiroth sighed. "As you said before, the past can't be changed. What happened 11 years ago was beyond my control after Jenova had defeated me." His voice twisted into bitter anger. "And yes I should have been able to resist her, but I was too weak."

"I'm sorry for what I said earlier." My eyes were transfixed on the ground. I couldn't' believe that I was actually apologizing.

"You needn't be." Sephiroth replied. "It was expected. I'm surprised by how mellow you are now. I had expected more…hostility."

I gave a harsh laugh. "I would have thought I'd be more hostile too, but when I look at you now I see someone else." I said quietly. "You aren't the same person that burned my home and killed my father. I had that same feeling 11 years ago. When I came after you with your own sword and you spun around to take it from me, what I saw startled me. It was like looking into the eyes of a complete stranger. I didn't understand it then. It seemed strange that you'd be two different people, but you were. You're the real Sephiroth and the other…the other was something terrifying and twisted." I stopped, pondering carefully for a moment a particular thought I had. "Although, I don't recall having a very favorible opinion of you to begin with."

Sephiroth absorbed what I said and seemed to lose him self in deep thought, remaining blissfully ignorant of the last comment. He continued to walk in that semi dazed state for some time and I was beginning to wonder if he'd ever come out of it.

"Sephiroth?" I echoed, searching for any hint of a reaction.

He turned his head slightly to look at me. "What?"

I looked away quickly. "Nothing really, you were just so quiet."

"I was only thinking about what you said." He replied. "Might I ask where Cloud is? I expected him to be here with you."

The words struck me like a physical blow, causing me to trip and stumble around a bit before regaining my composer. That wasn't a subject I wanted to have brought up. I took a deep breath, pushing away the bitter emotions that swelled in my throat, and became deeply interested in the ground beneath my feet. "Cloud's gone." I managed quietly. "He, uh...he went to the Promise Land with Aeris just a month after meteor."

"I see." Sephiroth replied slowly, watching out of the corners of his eyes. "Forgive me for asking."

I shook my head. "It doesn't matter." I responded. "Forget it." Unfortunately, my thoughts still hovered on the blonde haired childhood friend of mine. Cloud… He and Aeris had found something so special. Would I ever find it, I wondered? I wish they were here. There were so many things I wished. Had I made the right choice by going with Sephiroth? Was I playing at something dangerous? Perhaps, but that's why it was an adventure.

We came to a halt as three beasts trudged out onto the path in front of us. Instead of charging forward, I watched as the blur of Sephiroth sped past me with breathtaking speed, nearly spinning me around with the force of his charge. I found myself having trouble to keep up with his movements. He was so quick - unbelievably quick. All of his moves were smooth, powerful and perfectly executed. It was a wonder how Cloud managed to beat him.

My eyes widened briefly as the thought passed through my mind.

Then I snapped back to reality and found myself gaping at the three battered bodies lying on the ground at Sephiroth's feet. He stood by, complacently waiting as he dutifully cleansed the blood from his blade.

"I might as well just sit back and watch." I mumbled as I approached. "That was amazing." He seemed to know his enemy better than himself. "And I always thought I was fast." My shoulders slumped and I lashed out angrily at a rock. That hurt.

"That's because you are fast." Sephiroth replied drearily. "However, my physical abilities are greatly enhanced by the jenova cells in my body, not to mention I have the obvious advantage being male, whereas you are female."

I grunted haughtily, looking off to the side to avoid his annoying presence. So, a sexist, are we? Ok, so he has a point, but there's nothing that says I have to admit it.

A question was praying on my mind and wouldn't go away though. How had Cloud beaten Sephiroth?

"You wish to ask me something?" Sephiroth interjected as we walked.

"W-w-what?" I whirled around sharply in astonishment. "How did you know that?" My brow furrowed suspiciously.

His eyes gleamed with amusement. "I can sense and see many things that most cannot."

"Well I…I was just thinking that with the abilities you have, how did you lose to Cloud." I stammered.

He said nothing for a long time as he contemplated the answer. Finally he spoke. "There was still a small part of my sane self left that kept me from ever reaching my full potential against him, because I no longer wished to carry on under another's will."

I felt a pang of guilt in my heart. How horrible. I stole a side long glance at him. In that moment, I felt like someone had walked up to me and slapped me in the face. He looked saddened, an emotion that I'd never seen him express and never expected him to. It was startling, to say the least.

I found myself gawking at him unintentionally. My gaze trailed to his extraordinary silver hair. It never tangled and it was so lovely, though he'd probably scowl at the word. I wish my hair was like that.

I turned away, instantly realizing that I'd been watching him for quite some time. Hopefully he hadn't noticed, but knowing him he probably did. At least he didn't appear to notice me watching him. Why is it all of a sudden my thoughts are centered on him anyway? I forced the disturbing question out of my mind and tried to concentrate on something else. It was a lot harder than I expected it to be. This was going to be one hell of a trip.

Rocket Town wasn't too far away. I'd be able to visit Cid and Shera, and maybe clear my mind up of all the gunk. It had been a while since I'd visited them and their daughter Melony.

Author's notes: Hmm… How was it? I'm not sure if it's good enough. Sigh, I'm too much of a perfectionist. Enjoy and review! I appreciate every review I get! Oh and I changed my settings so that people who aren't logged in or registered can review my story. Thank you Katsuhito Sage for telling me, I didn't know that it was on!