Welcome back! Glad to know that the next chapter wasn't so bad. ^^ Thanks
for reviewing, everyone!
Sarah; *sigh* I guess you're an example of the people who just don't give fics a chance... Yuffentine is one of the very main pairings in this fic, though. And who said this wasn't a Cloti?? It DEFINITELY is gonna be, if it isn't yet one. Relationships really do take time, and I tried to emphasize that, especially with the Cloti I put in this fic. I can understand why you won't read anymore, considering how awful things turned out in the last chapter. ^^;; But I have a lot of plans for this fic and the Cloti won't be let down. And who said that was the ending? O_o;; What the hell??
Er, I really shouldn't have written that, considering that Sarah won't even be returning to read... O_o;; Well, whatever, just trying to make a point...
~*~
{ CHAPTER XII ~ SECOND CHANCES }
Cherry blossoms were falling outside the window, marking the beginning of spring. So many memories... Tifa leaned against the wall and looked out, trying to remember every detail of the past year. A lot of things had happened, some negative, and some positive enough for her to move on.
Tears were threatening to burst from Tifa's eyes, but she easily resisted. She hadn't cried since Cloud abandoned her a year ago. At that time, everyone had separated. The tension between Tifa and Cloud was especially rapid on the night that he left. That night, Tifa cried all the tears that she had left inside. Never again would she be able to cry...
~*~
(a/n: This is Tifa's flashback from a year ago, if you can't tell. It all takes place on the night that they were at the Gold Saucer in the previous chapter.)
The pain ripped Tifa's heart apart. She stood there on the Highwind's dock, looking at Cloud's expressionless face, realizing that she would never see him again. It hurt more than ever. Cloud finally took his gaze off the sky and glanced at her, and Tifa could now see that he was fighting not to cry.
"I... I hate you," she whispered harshly, the tears letting loose.
Soft blue-green eyes were set on her firey eyes. "I promise, I'll be back... You won't hate me then..."
"Yes I will. I'll always hate you."
This burned Cloud visibly. He turned away and looked back up at the sky. It was all he could do to keep from crying.
"I think I get it," Tifa challenged, "You still love Aeris, don't you? That's why you're always looking at the sky. You're searching for her."
"...Things are too complex to let me explain. You wouldn't listen anyway." His words were dripping with denial of what Tifa had said, though he hadn't given her an answer.
Tifa just glared at his back. She really did understand, but her stubbornness was all that showed. Tifa knew that Cloud didn't love Aeris in any way but a sisterly one, though it was very different in Aeris's perspective. Cloud really did try to keep himself separated from others; he had never loved anyone, and probably wouldn't for the rest of his life.
Tifa trudged away from him, making her way to Cid's room. The pain was killing her, and Tifa knew that she wanted to just be -near- Cloud. She wished that things didn't have to change, that the whole party could just journey together forever. But it was time to move on, and memories were the only way to keep things preserved.
"Cid? I wanted to tell you that I changed my mind... I don't want to go to Sector 7 anymore. Please just leave me at Nibelheim." Tifa knew that the best way to remember Cloud now was to stay in the place where they had grown up together.
"Sure thing," Cid told her. Tifa flashed a slight smile and left the room. She headed to her room, where the tears simply poured out. Nothing was left, and it was time to start living in reality.
~*~
That had all been around a year ago. But right now, it was a warm May night in Nibelheim. Tifa walked away from the window and headed to the main room. When she returned to Nibelheim a year ago, her house was deserted. Everything was left as it was when Tifa's parents died and she moved out, but no one was there. Tifa immediately got to work on her house, arranging everything, making it fit for herself.
The largest modification was the restaurant she added. The main room in her house was large enough to hold a few tables and chairs, as well as a bar counter. Many of the people in town helped Tifa build the restaurant, considering that she helped save the world. Out of hope and memory, Tifa named the restaurant 'Cloud Nine'. The past year, many people came to the restaurant, looking for one of the famous heroes who saved the world. But none of the people who walked in were the other heroes.
Tifa walked into the restaurant room and turned on the light. Business had been great that day, as usual. Tifa made around 1000 gil a day, but most was spent on buying ingredients for the dishes she cooked. It was hard for a woman to keep a restaurant up by herself, but she managed.
She got to work on sweeping the floors and spraying the counter. An hour passed before the tedious work was done. Every single night it was the same. Tifa walked upstairs to her room and collapsed on the bed. Another restless day gone, another restless one to come tomorrow.
Tifa closed her eyes, and suddenly remembered. Tomorrow was different. Tomorrow was her birthday. But no one would be there to celebrate... With luck, Barret would stop by. Maybe. He was too busy with cleaning up Corel these days. A year passed, and yet the town was still trashed.
She could only think of one other party member that could come congratulate her... And that, ironically, would be Red XIII. Then again, even he was busy, ruling Cosmo Canyon. It seemed that everyone had a kingdom to control. Barret was the mayor of Corel, Red was the chief of Cosmo Canyon, Reeve was quite obviously the new ShinRa president, Yuffie was the princess of Wutai... Cloud and Vincent were traveling together somewhere in the open fields below Wutai, and Shera and Cid were taking care of their young daughter, Sora, in Rocket Town. Yes, everyone was busy.
Tifa fell asleep, trying to make herself forget about all that. Each day was filled with work, and there would never be time to waste on pointless things such as birthdays.
~*~
Yuffie sighed and propped herself up with her elbows. It was so boring in Wutai! Though she was the princess, she wasn't allowed to make laws, order people around, the such. Yuffie had to leave that up to Gorki, Shake, and the others. There truly was nothing to do now that the evil ShinRa was over with and the world had been saved.
"Miss Yuffie, are you paying attention?" Staniv questioned. He stood before her, trying to point out ways to be a proper ruler. Every day it was the same; Staniv, Yuffie, a desk, and a chalkboard in a windowless room. "This is very important. You have to learn how to become a proper young lady!"
"Shut up." Yuffie yawned and leaned her head on the table.
Staniv nearly choked. "Miss Yuffie, don't make me-"
"I'm allowed to do that," Yuffie interrupted, "I'm the princess. Remember? I have rights like that, ne?" She smiled smugly and closed her eyes.
Staniv sighed heavily. "Incredible. Well, I expect that you're ready to learn when I get back. And I hope you finally realize that you need all of us to watch over you. We're only trying to support you in being a ruler." Staniv walked out of the room.
'You need all of us to watch over you.' The phrase was stuck in Yuffie's mind, and she didn't know why. She opened the first shelf of the desk and rummaged through it. Pulling out a small square of paper, she swiftly crafted it into a cat. Of all the things that Staniv had taught her, origami was the only one that she liked.
Yuffie set the cat down and stared at it for a moment. It looked back with blank white eyes. She laughed out loud, remembering how Vincent had always had that same emotionless expression on his face.
Vincent...
"You need all of us to watch over you."
That's what he said to her. She felt so foolish when she realized that he didn't actually like her. It was as if she wanted him to say that he did...
"Wonder what he's doing right now..." Yuffie said aloud. She glanced out the window that faced south. He was somewhere there... So close, yet not close enough...
~*~
Sparks flew from the stones that Vincent had rubbed together. He was attempting to light a fire to keep himself and Cloud warm for the night. As usual, they ran out of Magic Points from training too much. Cloud was sitting by the tent and just being the lazy-ass he always was and their two chocobos were tied to a tree stump beside the tent.
Vincent sighed heavily and glanced up at the sky. What he would do right now to be in a house, in a warm bed. He was human too after all. Training was hard and pointless!
"Hey Vincent..." Cloud turned to Vincent, a serious look on his face. "I have to get to Midgar right away."
"What?!"
"Tomorrow is Tifa's birthday... I can't believe I just remembered. This is my chance to reverse all the wrong things I've done."
"You won't be able to do that."
"I know. But I can try." Cloud was silent. A pleading look came into his eyes. "Please, just let me."
"I'm not stopping you. It's been great traveling together." Vincent grinded the stones together and a fire lifted. He climbed into the tent.
Cloud smiled and stood. He grabbed his weapon and materia and mounted his chocobo.
~*~
A noise awoke Tifa. Rain, pelting on her roof. She stood up and made her way across the room through the darkness. Tifa reached the window and sat there for a moment, just staring out. She loved rain. It was like the tears of the gods and all the heavently bodies, crying for Gaia. The rain at the moment was bland and gray, unlike the usual violet rain that fell during cold nights.
Tifa glanced at the clock on her wall. It was 6:00 in the morning. What an unusual time for rain... She walked back to her bed, but hesitated. What was the point of going back to sleep? She'd have to get up and start working soon anyway.
Tifa headed to the main room and drew up the shades. The room remained dark, so she flicked on the lights. She got to work immediately, getting ingredients ready for food. She walked over to the door to unlock it for customers that came in early, when suddenly...
A shifting noise rang out softy. Tifa raised an eyebrow and looked around. She could see that it didn't come from inside the room. Slowly she opened the door and someone fell before her, ragged and dirty, their attire wet with rain.
"...Cloud?!"
~*~
Sarah; *sigh* I guess you're an example of the people who just don't give fics a chance... Yuffentine is one of the very main pairings in this fic, though. And who said this wasn't a Cloti?? It DEFINITELY is gonna be, if it isn't yet one. Relationships really do take time, and I tried to emphasize that, especially with the Cloti I put in this fic. I can understand why you won't read anymore, considering how awful things turned out in the last chapter. ^^;; But I have a lot of plans for this fic and the Cloti won't be let down. And who said that was the ending? O_o;; What the hell??
Er, I really shouldn't have written that, considering that Sarah won't even be returning to read... O_o;; Well, whatever, just trying to make a point...
~*~
{ CHAPTER XII ~ SECOND CHANCES }
Cherry blossoms were falling outside the window, marking the beginning of spring. So many memories... Tifa leaned against the wall and looked out, trying to remember every detail of the past year. A lot of things had happened, some negative, and some positive enough for her to move on.
Tears were threatening to burst from Tifa's eyes, but she easily resisted. She hadn't cried since Cloud abandoned her a year ago. At that time, everyone had separated. The tension between Tifa and Cloud was especially rapid on the night that he left. That night, Tifa cried all the tears that she had left inside. Never again would she be able to cry...
~*~
(a/n: This is Tifa's flashback from a year ago, if you can't tell. It all takes place on the night that they were at the Gold Saucer in the previous chapter.)
The pain ripped Tifa's heart apart. She stood there on the Highwind's dock, looking at Cloud's expressionless face, realizing that she would never see him again. It hurt more than ever. Cloud finally took his gaze off the sky and glanced at her, and Tifa could now see that he was fighting not to cry.
"I... I hate you," she whispered harshly, the tears letting loose.
Soft blue-green eyes were set on her firey eyes. "I promise, I'll be back... You won't hate me then..."
"Yes I will. I'll always hate you."
This burned Cloud visibly. He turned away and looked back up at the sky. It was all he could do to keep from crying.
"I think I get it," Tifa challenged, "You still love Aeris, don't you? That's why you're always looking at the sky. You're searching for her."
"...Things are too complex to let me explain. You wouldn't listen anyway." His words were dripping with denial of what Tifa had said, though he hadn't given her an answer.
Tifa just glared at his back. She really did understand, but her stubbornness was all that showed. Tifa knew that Cloud didn't love Aeris in any way but a sisterly one, though it was very different in Aeris's perspective. Cloud really did try to keep himself separated from others; he had never loved anyone, and probably wouldn't for the rest of his life.
Tifa trudged away from him, making her way to Cid's room. The pain was killing her, and Tifa knew that she wanted to just be -near- Cloud. She wished that things didn't have to change, that the whole party could just journey together forever. But it was time to move on, and memories were the only way to keep things preserved.
"Cid? I wanted to tell you that I changed my mind... I don't want to go to Sector 7 anymore. Please just leave me at Nibelheim." Tifa knew that the best way to remember Cloud now was to stay in the place where they had grown up together.
"Sure thing," Cid told her. Tifa flashed a slight smile and left the room. She headed to her room, where the tears simply poured out. Nothing was left, and it was time to start living in reality.
~*~
That had all been around a year ago. But right now, it was a warm May night in Nibelheim. Tifa walked away from the window and headed to the main room. When she returned to Nibelheim a year ago, her house was deserted. Everything was left as it was when Tifa's parents died and she moved out, but no one was there. Tifa immediately got to work on her house, arranging everything, making it fit for herself.
The largest modification was the restaurant she added. The main room in her house was large enough to hold a few tables and chairs, as well as a bar counter. Many of the people in town helped Tifa build the restaurant, considering that she helped save the world. Out of hope and memory, Tifa named the restaurant 'Cloud Nine'. The past year, many people came to the restaurant, looking for one of the famous heroes who saved the world. But none of the people who walked in were the other heroes.
Tifa walked into the restaurant room and turned on the light. Business had been great that day, as usual. Tifa made around 1000 gil a day, but most was spent on buying ingredients for the dishes she cooked. It was hard for a woman to keep a restaurant up by herself, but she managed.
She got to work on sweeping the floors and spraying the counter. An hour passed before the tedious work was done. Every single night it was the same. Tifa walked upstairs to her room and collapsed on the bed. Another restless day gone, another restless one to come tomorrow.
Tifa closed her eyes, and suddenly remembered. Tomorrow was different. Tomorrow was her birthday. But no one would be there to celebrate... With luck, Barret would stop by. Maybe. He was too busy with cleaning up Corel these days. A year passed, and yet the town was still trashed.
She could only think of one other party member that could come congratulate her... And that, ironically, would be Red XIII. Then again, even he was busy, ruling Cosmo Canyon. It seemed that everyone had a kingdom to control. Barret was the mayor of Corel, Red was the chief of Cosmo Canyon, Reeve was quite obviously the new ShinRa president, Yuffie was the princess of Wutai... Cloud and Vincent were traveling together somewhere in the open fields below Wutai, and Shera and Cid were taking care of their young daughter, Sora, in Rocket Town. Yes, everyone was busy.
Tifa fell asleep, trying to make herself forget about all that. Each day was filled with work, and there would never be time to waste on pointless things such as birthdays.
~*~
Yuffie sighed and propped herself up with her elbows. It was so boring in Wutai! Though she was the princess, she wasn't allowed to make laws, order people around, the such. Yuffie had to leave that up to Gorki, Shake, and the others. There truly was nothing to do now that the evil ShinRa was over with and the world had been saved.
"Miss Yuffie, are you paying attention?" Staniv questioned. He stood before her, trying to point out ways to be a proper ruler. Every day it was the same; Staniv, Yuffie, a desk, and a chalkboard in a windowless room. "This is very important. You have to learn how to become a proper young lady!"
"Shut up." Yuffie yawned and leaned her head on the table.
Staniv nearly choked. "Miss Yuffie, don't make me-"
"I'm allowed to do that," Yuffie interrupted, "I'm the princess. Remember? I have rights like that, ne?" She smiled smugly and closed her eyes.
Staniv sighed heavily. "Incredible. Well, I expect that you're ready to learn when I get back. And I hope you finally realize that you need all of us to watch over you. We're only trying to support you in being a ruler." Staniv walked out of the room.
'You need all of us to watch over you.' The phrase was stuck in Yuffie's mind, and she didn't know why. She opened the first shelf of the desk and rummaged through it. Pulling out a small square of paper, she swiftly crafted it into a cat. Of all the things that Staniv had taught her, origami was the only one that she liked.
Yuffie set the cat down and stared at it for a moment. It looked back with blank white eyes. She laughed out loud, remembering how Vincent had always had that same emotionless expression on his face.
Vincent...
"You need all of us to watch over you."
That's what he said to her. She felt so foolish when she realized that he didn't actually like her. It was as if she wanted him to say that he did...
"Wonder what he's doing right now..." Yuffie said aloud. She glanced out the window that faced south. He was somewhere there... So close, yet not close enough...
~*~
Sparks flew from the stones that Vincent had rubbed together. He was attempting to light a fire to keep himself and Cloud warm for the night. As usual, they ran out of Magic Points from training too much. Cloud was sitting by the tent and just being the lazy-ass he always was and their two chocobos were tied to a tree stump beside the tent.
Vincent sighed heavily and glanced up at the sky. What he would do right now to be in a house, in a warm bed. He was human too after all. Training was hard and pointless!
"Hey Vincent..." Cloud turned to Vincent, a serious look on his face. "I have to get to Midgar right away."
"What?!"
"Tomorrow is Tifa's birthday... I can't believe I just remembered. This is my chance to reverse all the wrong things I've done."
"You won't be able to do that."
"I know. But I can try." Cloud was silent. A pleading look came into his eyes. "Please, just let me."
"I'm not stopping you. It's been great traveling together." Vincent grinded the stones together and a fire lifted. He climbed into the tent.
Cloud smiled and stood. He grabbed his weapon and materia and mounted his chocobo.
~*~
A noise awoke Tifa. Rain, pelting on her roof. She stood up and made her way across the room through the darkness. Tifa reached the window and sat there for a moment, just staring out. She loved rain. It was like the tears of the gods and all the heavently bodies, crying for Gaia. The rain at the moment was bland and gray, unlike the usual violet rain that fell during cold nights.
Tifa glanced at the clock on her wall. It was 6:00 in the morning. What an unusual time for rain... She walked back to her bed, but hesitated. What was the point of going back to sleep? She'd have to get up and start working soon anyway.
Tifa headed to the main room and drew up the shades. The room remained dark, so she flicked on the lights. She got to work immediately, getting ingredients ready for food. She walked over to the door to unlock it for customers that came in early, when suddenly...
A shifting noise rang out softy. Tifa raised an eyebrow and looked around. She could see that it didn't come from inside the room. Slowly she opened the door and someone fell before her, ragged and dirty, their attire wet with rain.
"...Cloud?!"
~*~