A/N: Hey, hey. If you're wondering about the story, I'm letting Squall and his friends meet all of AVALANCHE before the plot will really start to thicken. And I mean really. Ta for your reviews, though I haven't been able to read them. L :-(  Here's chapter 11. WARNING: Biggest chapter so far and some very slight CloTi. Mostly centred round Cloud and Tifa.

Summary – Cloud and Tifa discuss Cloud's secret on the ship and everyone else relaxes. They've drove to North Corel and are now up at the ever wonderful Gold Saucer.

Chapter 11 – A Good Time Up High

---------------------------------------------------------------

-------------------------------

"Wow! This is Super-Duper COOL!" Selphie squealed as they entered the main hallway. There were seven chutes, each heading to different places. The all headed to either the Wonder Square, Chocobo Square, Battle Square, Event Square, Ghost Square, Round Square and Speed Square. There were so many to choose from that no one knew where they would go first tonight.

"Let's go to the Ghost Hotel. We can stay there until tonight." Cloud told them. Everyone nodded and they slid down the Ghost Square chute one at a time. Even Angelo made it down. When the last person, Zell, had landed on the ground everyone looked up at the hotel. It was shaped like a castle, and the background's special effects made lightning strike in the sky. It was quite creepy.

"Whoa, this is freaky." Rinoa said quietly. Squall couldn't help but laugh at her. She scowled at him and kicked him in the shin. He clutched his shin in pain, while she stomped up the stairs. Cloud laughed as he past Squall and headed up to the hotel. Everyone else quickly followed, Squall limping slightly. They opened the doors, which creaked loudly. Cloud went up to the counter and asked for rooms.

He turned round. "Okay, how many rooms will I get? One each?"

"Well," Rinoa started, "Me and Squall can share a room. Selphie and Irvine can have one. Zell and Quistis can have one each. Barret and Marlene will have one, and you and Tifa can have one each. So that's seven rooms."

"I'm sorry," the receptionist said, "There are only six rooms available. Another pair will have to share."

"How about Cloud and Tifa?" Squall suggested. Tifa blushed slightly and Cloud looked at the floor. Selphie and Irvine smiled at each other. They knew Cloud and Tifa were embarrassed. After a brief moment Cloud spoke.

"Well? What do you think?" he asked Tifa.

"Okay." She answered. She turned round to the receptionist. "We'll take the six."

"Yes ma'am." She said. "Here are the keys." She held them out and Cloud handed them out. It wasn't long before everyone was in their rooms.

* * * * *

Rinoa and Squall lay cuddled up on their bed. They hadn't gotten much sleep, apart from on the cruise. Zell and Quistis were also in their rooms snoozing. Marlene was awake, and was playing with Angelo. Rinoa had let Angelo stay in their room. Selphie and Irvine went to get something to eat. Tifa was in the room with Cloud, practicing her martial arts. Cloud slept peacefully on the bed.

'He must be exhausted,' Tifa thought. She was right. He had gotten up earlier than everyone else, drove the motorbike all the way to Junon, and to North Corel. He had stayed up during the cruise and let his Leviathan get some exercise. Tifa wasn't sure if he would even get up for the promotion tonight. She smiled at him as he slept. He looked like a child. He didn't snore and Tifa was thankful for that. Barret's snoring could be heard from two rooms away. Cloud hadn't changed much, look-wise, since he left for SOLDIER.

The glow in his eyes were different, he was a lot stronger and smarter than he had been. And his personality had changed. He used to be the child who would sit alone. He was always bullied because of his size, name and hair. Tifa had had a crush on Cloud since he left for SOLDIER but was too afraid to tell him. She was afraid that he would reject her, or say that he loved Aeris.

Tifa missed Aeris dearly but was jealous of her. She had always been able to make Cloud smile, even if he was miserable. All of AVALANCHE wished that she hadn't died. But they each knew that, if she hadn't sacrificed herself, they wouldn't have been able to stop Meteor. But that didn't stop Cloud blaming himself for her death. Tifa sighed and went to the window.

She watched the lightning for a while. She always thought lightning was beautiful, strange as it may seem. She heard Cloud stir behind her and looked round. He slowly opened his eyes and noticed Tifa looking at him.

"What?" he asked, tiredly.

"Nothing, I'm just surprised you woke up."

"Yeah I know." He yawned, "I'm exhausted. Why aren't you trying to get some sleep?"

"I just can't get to sleep. If there's one thing I hate about this hotel, it's the fact that I have to be totally exhausted or drunk to get to sleep."

Cloud laughed quietly and stared up at the ceiling.

"I don't think I've ever seen you drunk before." He said.

"No, you haven't. It takes a lot to get a drunk. I'm sure you're the same."

Cloud nodded. Thanks to the Mako in his body, it took around four pints just to get him slightly tipsy. Tifa shivered and rubbed her arms. The room was freezing. Cloud could feel it as well. He looked at Tifa and patted the side of the bed he was lying on. Hesitantly, Tifa walked over to him.

She lay down beside him and curled him against him. He was so warm; she couldn't help but want to lie here forever. She put her arm over his stomach and her head on his chest. Cloud wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer, keeping them both warm.

It wasn't long before they both fell asleep.

* * * * *

"Ohhh, YEEEAAHHH!!!! Time to P-A-R-T-Y." Zell shouted at the top of his lungs.

They were back at the main directory. Squall couldn't wait to look around.

"Look, this map tells you where everything is and what's there." Rinoa told them.

Apart from Cloud, Tifa, Barret and Marlene, they all walked up to the map. The others were discussing where to go first.

"I'm heading off to the Battle Square," Cloud said, "I want to see if they have any new challenges. I might even take part."

"Well, me, Barret and Marlene are going to the wonder Square. Marlene wants to try the Mog House game." Tifa explained.

"I'll see you later then." Cloud said, waving goodbye then sliding down the chute to the Battle Square.

"Come on, Auntie Tifa!" Marlene squealed. "I want to go now!"

"Okay let's go!" Tifa said back, excitedly. She stopped at the chute. "Will you guys be alright?" She asked Squall and the others.

"Yeah, we'll be fine." Irvine replied. And with that Tifa slid down the chute.

* * * * *

The group went their separate ways. Zell and Quistis went to see the Chocobo Square races, Selphie and Irvine went to the Speed Square, and Squall and Rinoa went to the Battle Square shortly after Cloud.

Squall had his arm draped around Rinoa shoulder as they headed up to the stadium. The room was filled with about a dozen competitors waiting there turn. They both went upstairs to the spectator's box. The ox was half full. Obviously, the next fighter was going to be good. Squall leaned over the banister. The arena was very large. It filled almost the whole floor. A small gap separated the floor from the wall, and inside was a strange purple liquid. He heard the door on the opposite side of the arena open. The next competitor walked out.

It was…

"Cloud!" Rinoa exclaimed. Squall was surprised as well. The crowd around them cheered. Cloud was obviously very popular. He stood calmly in the middle of the arena looking…bored.

"They better half some good competition this year." He muttered. Squall's clenched his fists. Cloud's attitude just infuriated him. Rinoa put a hand on his shoulder and he calmed down. A bell rang and the door on Squall's side of the room opened.

"Holy Shit!!" Squall shouted out loud. It was an Iron Giant. It looked almost identical to the one in his time, only BIGGER. It carried its usual giant sword, twice as big as Cloud's. Its bulky arms provided it with a lot of power behind its swing but it was very slow. Its heavy armour was thing and almost impenetrable. It towered over Cloud, who tilted his head to the side in a mocking sort of way. The Iron Giant raised its sword above its head and shifted its weight.

Cloud had time to roll his eyes and mumbled, "Typical!" before the sword was brought down, aiming for where he was standing. With cat-like reflexes, he jumped out of the way and grabbed onto the monster's right arm as it raised its sword off the ground. He held on tight and blasted a strong Bolt spell at its left side. The Iron Giant tilted its body to the left, wincing in pain. But as it leaned over, the armour on the right side was raised up, exposing its flesh. Cloud smiled before driving his Ultima Weapon through its flesh. It screamed in pain before it collapsed to the ground, dead.

Squall was speechless. Cloud had taken down it so easily. Rinoa was shocked as well. They watched in amazement as Cloud defeated an Allemagne, a large bat-like creature, a Maximum Kimaira, a three headed monster that looked like a Chimera, a Stilva, a very large cross between a spider and a scorpion, and, to Squall's amazement, a Malboro. Cloud readied for his final battle, poisoned, slowed, darknessed, silenced, and so low on energy that his sword was dark blue. He had a dozen cuts all over his body and some blood was dripping on the floor, mixed with sweat. His 'Haste' and 'Regen(erate)' spells had worn off and the poison was taking its toll, but slowly.

Squall and Rinoa watched with anticipation, before they heard lots of feet run up behind them. Everyone else had come down.

"Where's Cloud?" she asked panicking.

Squall nodded down at the arena and Tifa ran over to the banister. She saw Cloud and wanted to scream.

"Don't worry Tif. He's a tough cookie, he'll be fine." Barret comforted her.

"You can say that again!" Squall said sarcastically. The others looked at him confused. "He's already beaten an Iron Giant, an Allemagne, a Maximum Kimaira, a Stilva and a Malboro, on his own. He still has one fight left."

Everyone looked shocked. They all looked down at the arena eagerly.

"Question!" Quistis stated, "Why is Cloud's sword blue, I thought it was white."

"It usually is, but the weaker he gets the sword goes blue. The darker the sword is, the weaker Cloud is. It's good, it lets his comrades know that he needs to be healed." Tifa explained. Quistis nodded and looked back at the arena.

The door opened again and out stepped…a KING BEHEMOTH.

"Oh no!" Tifa whispered frantically. The Behemoth rammed into Cloud, with its large head, not giving him a chance to make the first move. He slammed into the wall and bounced enough, to be able to grab the edge of the arena. With some trouble, he climbed up and his anger raged through him. The rage turned to hatred and a great surge of energy flowed through his body. His sword shone a bright white as it filled with energy. Cloud ran forward and slashed at the Behemoth again and again and again and again. After over a dozen slices, the Behemoth collapsed on the floor, VERY DEAD. Cloud sighed and limped out of the arena. The whole crowd cheered except Cloud's friends. Instead they went down to the arena entrance and waited for Cloud to come out. He limped out, his head down. He held his sword loosely and his clothes were ripped. His shirt was almost completely torn off and cuts, scrapes and bruises covered his body. Tifa rushed forward and caught him in her arms as he collapsed.

"Hurry!" she yelled as she lowered him to the floor, "Get me a Remedy."

One of the medical staff rushed over to her and pulled out a small flask, containing a green liquid. She helped Cloud swallow it and pulled out another flask. Squall recognised it as an Elixer. They weren't rare but they were hard to find. Cloud coughed and almost choked as he felt his energy return to him. His cuts healed slightly but some still bled slightly.

"He should be fine. Take him to his room, clean him up and let him rest. He needs some sleep. It's been a rough night for him." With that the medical staff left and went to check on other injured fighters.

"Hey, Tifa?" Selphie asked. "You want us to help you get Cloud to the hotel." Tifa shook her head.

"I'll be fine. You guys go and enjoy yourselfs, don't waste tonight helping me. Besides, Barret's helping."

So they set off, with some guilt but they wanted to enjoy the night. So they did.

* * * * *

Tifa removed the cold cloth from Cloud's head as he slept. She finished washing up the blood from his face and torso. She secretly enjoyed it. She always thought Cloud had a nice body and she was right. He was very muscular thanks to his constant training. She placed her hand on his hairless chest and ran her hand down to his stomach, feeling his abdomen muscles. She felt his hand wrap around her wrist and heard him laugh softly.

"Don't. It tickles." He said wearily. Tifa giggled slightly and caressed his cheek. He opened his eyes and smiled. "Hey Teef."

"Hey, don't scare me like that. I thought you were seriously injured."

He raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't?" he asked jokingly.

"Oh ha, ha. Watch what you're doing next time."

"Okay Mother." He said sarcastically, earning himself a light smack on the face. "Did it work?"

"What?" Tifa asked confused.

"My OmniSlash limit." He said closing his eyes.

"Yeah, killed it in one shot."

He nodded. "Good," he yawned and fell asleep shortly after.

Tifa looked at him and realised that he was asleep. She quietly walked up to him and put the covers over him. She sat on the bed, next to him, and lightly stroked his cheek. He shifted slightly but didn't wake. Tifa made sure that he was properly asleep before kissing him on the forehead and going to her bed. She pulled the covers over her and, with one last look at Cloud, turned the light off and fell asleep.

A/N: Again, sorry for being late with this chapter but it's my biggest yet. Just under seven pages with Microsoft Word. Anyway, please e-mail me with a review then review on the site. I can't read the reviews there just yet so email me them please. See you're making me repeat myself. Chapter 12 will be here sometime this week. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Its one of my favourites 'cause I love Cloud and Tifa chapters.