Square stuff belongs to Square the rest belongs to me.
Hope you guys enjoyed last chapter, I wish I had gotten more reviews, which would help me build this chapter. Oh I'm sorry Cloud lovers this chapter does not put him in the best light. This story if far from over, as always I welcome comments or suggestions. I love compliments they make me update faster! ; )
Remember you won't know heaven until you have seen hell.
Cloud stood in the radiant grotto the Lifestream all about him, flowing slowly through the rocks. This was the Promised Land.
'Nothing. There is nothing here, so she really has continued on without me. I should have known she was kind of fickle.'
He looked one last time at his magical surroundings calling out in a futile attempt to summon her. He finally turned to clamber up the grey mundane rocks back to what he had really wanted.
'I can't believe I left her like that. Sweet mako the way I treated her, I hope she can forgive me. I should have stayed with her all along instead of running from her love. At least hers was real. Aeris, her love was light hearted and cheerful, but I couldn't count on her forever. Not like Tifa, she's always waited for me. No doubt she has waited again. C'mon I made love to her, how could she not be waiting to run into my heroic arms.
It was a morning in the middle of summer; it was already warm but not quite at that unpleasant sticky heat. Tifa stretched and yawned in a very cat-like manner she turned to nuzzle Vincent.
"How is my girl this morning?" Vincent ruffled her hair as she grinned. "It took you quite some time to awaken."
"Are you always so formal?" She stepped out from under the light covers.
"But of course. Why is it that you are always so casual?" He countered reaching for her; she jumped lightly out of the way.
"The bring balance to your universe." He snatched her and pulled her down on top of him kissing her. The fiend hunting could wait a few hours for now their only concerns were each other.
Tifa sauntered through the town that evening the stars had just begun to peek in the night sky. She would be meeting Vincent at one of the restaurants in the now growing town.
'It's kind of funny when I was a kid the common room in the inn was the only place to eat, now there are several restaurants, stores, and many residents. Dad would have been proud.' Tifa felt the fist pangs of sorrow she had felt in months. She looked at her surroundings; the water tower was near to her. On a whim she climbed to her old spot on the top. She longed on the smooth planks worn down from years of thoughtful youths. She traced the eerie words some one had carved on the tower years before she was born.
'Remember you won't know heaven until you have seen hell.'
'How can such creepy words be so comforting? Well I guess I have seen hell already so I do deserve a taste of heaven at least. It kind of reminds me of something Vincent would say.'
She giggled at her thoughts. The last few months had been the best time of her life; finally she was being loved and looked after. It had been so many years of pining and taking care of everyone else. Vincent had also found peace, at last forgiving himself for his past sins. They could both just be happy; there was nothing left to fret about, with the occasional exception of a monster up on the Mount Nibel trails. Tifa watched the stars as she tried to kill some time blissfully unaware of her surroundings until some one called out to her.
"I thought I would find you here. I told you I would return." Tifa sat bolt upright at these words, and at the familiar voice. She gaped as she saw the blond spiky haired young man. "Did you miss me?" He said as he crossed his arms looking up at her.
"What are you doing here? You're not supposed to be here." Tifa said as she hopped down.
'Pleased let this be a bad dream. Make him go away. Alright just relax he no longer has any power over you he is nothing to you now. Just a bad memory.'
"I told you I would come back as soon as I found what I was looking for." He gave his usual cocky half smile.
'Wow she hasn't changed a bit. She looks just like she did almost five years ago, well a bit stronger and more confident though.'
"Did you find her?" Tifa said her voice was frigid.
"No. She had already moved on probably to her next life. I realized how much I missed you and I decided to come back."
"Well it was nice to see you Cloud, but I have somewhere to go." Tifa tried to leave, but Cloud held her there with his hand on her shoulder.
"What after all these years of waiting you're just going to leave me hanging?"
"Cloud I haven't been just sitting around waiting for you. I've moved on I don't need you. It was nice seeing you Cloud, but really I'm late now I have to go." Cloud's grip tightened around her shoulder forcing her to stay put.
"What do you mean you haven't been waiting? I thought you said you would always be waiting here for me to rescue you. Tifa I've come back to you, by the Lifestream I love you."
Vincent approached the charming little restaurant where he said he would meet Tifa. His heart was racing and he felt fidgety, he let his fingers rest on the little box in his pocket. This was far more terrifying than any monster or the end of the world, if she said no it would be the end of his world if not worse.
'I hope she likes it, it seems far too simple, but I can't see her in anything extravagant and impractical. Hurry Tifa I think the anticipation will kill me.'
"Of course I didn't wait for you. You used me than dropped me like a hot rock. Cloud listen I have found someone else, my life has moved on. I'm sorry but that life does not include you." She smiled a sad smile.
'There I did it! He has no control over me I'm free I can be my own person and live my own life.'
"What's his name?" Cloud let go of her, he looked distraught.
'I'm too late, I can't believe it I'm too late. Wait there must be something I can do to change her mind, she has loved me longer and that love must be stronger.'
"You know his name already. It's Vincent." Tifa grinned at the thought of him.
"Vincent!" Cloud was appalled "But he… he can't be trusted"
"That's not for you to decide Cloud. I'll see you around." Tifa began to walk away.
"Tifa how can you trust a monster! He has no control, he's like those psychopaths who hide bodies in their basement and sleep with beasts." Tifa whipped right around at those words.
"Cloud don't push me! I won't take your abuse one more word against him and I'll thrash you to Mideel and back." Her pulse was racing her veins filled with adrenaline. It felt like the seconds before a limit break.
'I…am…going…to…annihilate…him'
"Great so what, you finish sleeping with me and before you even catch your breath hop into bed with him? I know you lived in the slums Tifa, but you didn't have to whore yourself out."
Tifa screamed as her flesh began to change, she held her head in her hands and let out a throaty growl. Cloud stumbled back terrified of what he was witness to. She opened her mouth and roared, it was a sound her tiny body should not have been able to make, cloud saw her gleaming fangs.
'I wonder what is keeping her; she is usually here before me. Perhaps she went home to change first.'
Vincent shifted his feet outside the restaurant; he had been waiting for ten minutes and was not worried yet. It was beautiful out the air was pleasantly warm from a long summer day. Sweet smells of flowers and grass mingled with the flavoursome aroma of the restaurant's cuisine. Vincent's reverie was shattered when her head the scream from the water tower. He, without delay, darted towards the sound.
'That was Tifa, please let nothing have happened to her!'
He rounded the bend to the water tower and halted immediately with his gun in hand. Cloud was pinned to the ground by her. Her form was somewhere between feline and draconic. He body was lean and long limbed covered in a fine dark fur, her spine, forearms. And shins were covered in metallic plates. He cat-like head was crowned in a double set of spiralled horns and small spikes dotted her brows. Her draconic wings flapped as her hybrid tail whipped back and forth.
'No! It has happened! I thought we could avoid it!'
"Vincent! Get her off of me!" Cloud screamed as she mauled him.
"Tifa! Tifa stop please, my love stop." Vincent called as he walked towards her lowering his weapon. She tuned to face him she stood on two legs clenched her clawed hands and roared at him. Before Vincent could get any closer to her she leaped and flew off into the night. As Vincent gathered his thoughts Cloud cast a Full-Cure spell on himself.
"What did you do to her?" Vincent snapped.
"What do you mean I just came back and talked to her?" Cloud stood and began to dust himself off. Vincent strode up to Cloud and seized him by the throat with his clawed hand.
"Tell me what you said!" Vincent bellowed showing openly his rage.
"Shit Vincent! I just told her I loved her and that I came back to her. I should ask what you did to her. Now she's a bloody monster like you!"
"You are the monster foolish boy! You did this to her! She is no monster she is a survivor, unlike you she managed to survive titanic amounts of mako with out going comatose or insane. She was just fine until you came along. In fact she was finally happy." Vincent was shaking with rage.
'How dare he do this to my love? I should eviscerate him alive. Damn, I have to find Tifa first, I am her protector now.'
He suppressed the growing urge to change forms and destroy the man before him. Instead he tossed Cloud to the ground. "If you ever go near her again I will finish you."
"Why? Are you scared she will choose me over you?" Cloud scrambled up as he spoke those words. Vincent turned away from him and began to walk away.
"No Cloud, she loves me. I will not kill you I will let her do it." Vincent did not look back as he went to search for Tifa.
'Pain…agony…helpme…Vincent! Where are…you? So scared…blood? WhereamIsoscaredneedhelp.'
Her thoughts where a jumble as she writhed on the cool grey stone allowing her body to adjust to this new form. Unbeknownst to her as small blue aura began to glow about her.
I hope you like this chapter and seeing as it is Christmas break I will post another very shortly. Thanks for reading. I love you Falkon.