Chapter two
It's the second month here in the Shinra mansion along with my nemesis Sephiroth. I rarely see him now though. At times he'll come in my room to check my wrist and make sure I was eating, then leave back out. Oddly enough, I miss his company. Though, it's not like we hold exciting conversations, the fact of knowing another person was around me is consoling enough. I've become lonesome.
I sit on the stairs in the hall. My head rests against the banister while I dully viewed the chandelier. He wasn't here again. I begin to wonder where exactly he goes while I sit in my room and rot away. Maybe I'll go for a walk, like he suggested. I trot down the stairs and decide to go out through the back way. To my surprise there was a huge garden surrounding the back of the mansion. The brisk autumn air awakens my senses. It was great to be outside again.
I walk further into the garden. Someone was making sure it was being kept up. The grass was evenly cut and the flower beds were rid of any weeds. Most likely Sephiroth was the one to blame. I walk on. There was a slight clearing ahead, a Weeping Willow tree lay in the middle of it. It was stunning. The branches swayed along with the wind, as if it was telling a sad story. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply. The soft breezes filtered through me. Paradise.
I re-open them to spot Sephiroth standing in the clearing beside the tree. His Masamune held in a stealth position, his posture completely perfect for a fatal attack. He's not looking at me, I doubt he even notices me. His eyes are set on an invisible target. I crotch down behind a hedge and watch him spar with the air. His movements are fluid and fast. One would think with such a long sword, movement would be hindered. But he moves as if the sword is another extension of his body.
I stay completely still and watch in awe. He is quite an impressive person. Then, I began to think, how am I supposed to kill him now? I doubt if my Omni Slash would work on him twice. I would have to be creative… The sound of his sword hitting the ground brought my attention back on him. He's thrown away his sword and is fighting with punches and kicks. He does a round-house, flips back and lands in his usual fighting pose.
"This is where you run off too?" I speak while coming from behind my hedge. He picks his shirt up and dries his face off.
"Sometimes." With a smile he answers me. "What made you come out the house?"
I shrug. He tosses the shirt back down and withdraws something from his pocket.
"Here, lets see what you can do.." He tosses me a materia. I catch it with a frown.
"Fire materia?" I'm confused for I didn't have anything to equip it to. He grasps another one in his hand and takes a few steps back. Then, he holds his hand out extended.
"You ready?" He speaks then clutches it. The materia glows in his hand and springs forth fire towards me! I dodge the fire and land on my feet. I'm stiff and achy from not being active in a long time.
"So you can use materia without having to equip it…" I mumble and looked down at mine. Before I could say anything else, I'm forced to leap yet again as he sends more fire my way.
"You've become weak, Cloud." He taunts me. I run and stumbles to the other side of him. It was true, I became rusty. But what concerned me was how in the hell was I going to cast fire? I never really tried to use materia just by itself. I stop my running and try to mimic his actions. I stand with my feet apart and materia held outward.
"Ike!" I shout…Nothing happened. "Ike!…Go!…" I shook it a little and withdrew it. Of course I didn't have any time to examine it before I had to jump out the way again.
"Having some problems?" Sephiroth charged me and before I knew it, I was face to face with a snake of fire. My eyes grew large as instincts took over and my hand shot out. The materia I held began to glow and a bright light engulfed the whole area.
When I was able to open my eyes again, I in took a sharp breath of air. I had cancelled out his fire materia with my own. He stood there and let the small, glass-like sphere crack and crumble to the ground. I blinked a few times and looked back down at my materia. There was a single crack.
"Intriguing." He dusted his hands off and looked at me relatively surprised. He probably was expecting me to flee or drop to the ground in a defense ball.
"…Kicked your ass." I crossed my arms arrogantly. Honestly, I didn't know how I managed to pull that off. I didn't care to try it again.
"Not really…" He snorted, once again retrieving his shirt. I watched him carefully as he folded it vertically and tied it around his eyes, making a blindfold. "But here's your chance…Fight me."
"Ha!" I laughed. "You're insulting me." I'm not that weak that he can fight me blindfolded.
"How so?" He asked stretching. Clearly he thinks he can fight with no sight. Maybe this was my opportunity to kill him…
"You just are." I argued pointlessly. My enemy sighed and took off the shirt. Shoot! I've said too much! He ripped it into two parts and handed me the other.
"Fine. You wear that half. Fair and square, insult free." I looked down at my makeshift blindfold. There was one problem here: No way in the world can I fight him blinded!
"That won't be necessary…" I turned my nose to it. He laughed at me.
"Don't be scared. I'll play gentle." Was I being made fun of?
"…Good! Cus I won't." I growled and wrapped the stupid shirt piece around my eyes. Like I'd be scared to fight him this way. Some nerve he has!
"Let's go then…" Was the last vocal sound I heard. Nervously, I held my arms out ahead me. No big deal, I don't need to see the jerk to hit him, I thought. My other senses kicked in over-time. I was picking up all sorts of sounds. A bird in a tree somewhere, the wind blowing, even a slight rumble from the sky. A Thunderstorm was coming. But I couldn't hear him! And that's what I was trying to hear.
I swallowed anxiously. He must be circling me or something. I opened my eyes to see nothing but the hue of his white T-shirt. His…sweaty shirt…that smelled like him… Not a bad smell, kind of like soap and something impossible to describe. I think I might like this scent. That's it, Cloud! I smile happily. I could use his scent to track him. I tilt my head up and take a whiff of the air. Nothing but grass and the smell of a future rain shower.
Just then, my ears picked up something. The sound of something whizzing through the air. A fist? Duck! I mentally shout at myself as I ducked down right before his fist connected with my face. My hands touched the grass, then shot back up to deliver an uppercut. I felt his body leap back and his hair brush against my fist. Ah, just missed him! Wait…his hair!
"Ah!" He shouted as my fingers gripped down on a piece of his precious hair. Victory is mine.
"Alls fair in love and war." I said in a sing-song manner. My opponent grunts and seizes a handful of mine.
"True." He replied smugly. We were at a stalemate. The both of us stood completely immobilized. I pulled to make him let me go. He pulled back twice as hard.
"Y'ow..ow..ah!" I whined and let him go. My hair was shorter, so it had to have hurt me more. Now I see why girls' resorted to pulling hair. I heard him snicker triumphantly and stumble over something. Served him right. I removed the blindfold. Everything seemed a bit bright. A cold rain drop hit my face. The rain was beginning to pick up.
Sephiroth untied the shirt from his eyes as well, taking a look at what he nearly broke his neck on. I made my way over to take a look too. It seemed to be a rock or something.
"It's starting to rain. You should go in." He took his eyes off the object embedding in the grass. I looked over to him, then up to the sky. The rain actually felt good. I didn't want to go back in just yet.
My rival walked away and went to fetch his Masamune. "Hey, where did you put my sword?"
He looks to me. "I don't remember."
Bull. But I didn't question his faulty recollection. Instead, I walked past him and leaned against the tree. This will be my thinking spot, I tell myself as he walked back inside the mansion.
"Shit…" I closed the door to my room with my foot. The rain felt good, so good that I stayed out there until it stopped. I was totally drenched. But it was a small price to pay for all the thinking I did. My thoughts came in more clear out there by that tree. I take the towel from off my head and sits on the bed. My mind was still lost in deep thought, but the feel of wet clothes broke my concentration. Quickly, I tossed my shirt off and stepped out my pants. The boxers were only a little damp so they stayed on. Once again I sit back down on my bed, cupping the towel over my face.
My mind tried to come up with as many reasons why Sephiroth was keeping me alive as possible. Could it be he plans on killing me once he's sure I'm at my top energy? Or maybe he's turning back into his old self and feels sorry for his deeds…Maybe I'm his companion? God, none of this made any sense! But what really confused me was the fact that I'm still here! Why didn't I try to run away… Ok, so he'd find me most likely, other than that, I should've at least tried it by now. I'm staying here out of curiosity. I want to know what he's up to. It's my responsibility to kill him. Even though it's becoming harder and harder to keep that objective. The longer you stay with a person, the more you become bonded with them. And nothing petrifies me more than the thought of bonding with him…
I fall back and lay down on the bed. I was tried from the little sparring I did with Sephiroth. Man, was I out of shape. I hold my hand up, the bandages had became soggy and loose. It didn't matter, it time to take them off anyway. My eyes began to feel heavy with fatigue. A nap sounded pretty nice to me about now. I give in and drift away into a quiet slumber.
I awaken sometime later, I must've been sleeping only an hour or so because it was still daylight out. A sadden smile came across my face. I had a dream about Tifa and Barret. We were all back at the pub, telling jokes and seeing who could drink the most. Tifa beat us and it cost me my last gil. She gave me a hug to cheer me up, and I held her there for a while. It felt so real…I could smell the scent of her hair, feel her laugh against my chest …See her smile. Even hear Barret cuss her out for taking his money.
I sat up and beside the headboard. A tear trailed down my face. There was no denying it, I missed them all. I can only take Sephiroth's word for it when he said they were ok. Realization of my sobbing didn't come until I heard myself whimper. I'm an emotional wreck, I told myself while trying to calm down. I took a long breath and exhaled loudly, wiping the tears from my face with my hands. Can't let him see me cry! Can't let him see me cry.
The door to my room came open and I stepped out into the hall. I walked to the banister and looked over. Sephiroth was downstairs, slowly pacing back and forth, his nose stuck in another book. I must have startled him or something because his cat-like eyes immediately shot up to me. After I made it clear it was only me with a middle finger, he went back to reading.
"What a prick." I hoped he heard me.
The bathroom light came on with a click. I sighed at the reflection in the mirror. There stood a twenty-one year old man. With mako tainted blue eyes and electric blonde hair. From my face, one would be able to tell a story. Perhaps a story of a young prince rescuing a beautiful princess. Or even a hero out to save the world from an inevitable doom. I laugh at myself while turning on the water at the sink. I'm no hero. Didn't save the world from Meteor and still have yet to kill the monster who summoned it. I cupped my hands, letting them fill with cold water.
"Cloud!"
I splash my face with cold water.
"…Cloud!"
Was someone calling me? My head peaks out from the bathroom. Beads of water fall from my face.
"What!"
"You have company…" The older man called from the first floor. From his tone I could tell who it was. He was delighted to see how I would react to my friends, no doubt.
Not asking who it was, I race to my room and throw on some pants and a top. My heart was pounding just as hard as my feet were while I made a another mad dash down the stairs.
"Where are they?" I asked him breathlessly. He smiled and turned from me.
"She's right outside." With that, he walked away into another room. My legs pulled me to the door and I opened it slightly. There she was. Tifa walked cautiously through the mansion's gates. I closed the door back. What am I going to do? What do I say to her? There went my mind again, asking unanswerable questions. How was I going to explain my absence for over two months now? Better yet, how am I going to explain me staying here with Sephiroth!
A knock on the door. I freeze up.
"H-hello?" A feminine voice calls from the other side. I back away from the door. She sighs and turns the handle, opening it with a loud creak.
My eyes watch in a nervous panic. Tifa's coming in, should I run? I spot a boot step in, behind her the day's light came flooding in. I'm still standing there. She squints trying to see in the darken atmosphere that I've grown accustom to. Once she closes the door behind her, she jumps. I guess she finally noticed me standing there.
"Cloud?" her voice is low and uncertain. Another step is taken by her. I remain silent. Her hand reaches out and touches my arm. This brings me back to reality.
"…Yeah, it's me." At last I'm able to talk.
"Oh, Cloud!" She cries and falls into my arms. I hold her against me. It felt wonderful to see her and be able to touch her after all this time.
Tifa breaks our hold and steps back. I can see the tears gathering in her eyes. To think, I'm the cause of that. My arms fall to their sides as my mouth opens to explain my situation. Only, nothing came out. I wasn't sure what to tell her.
She waits for me. She wants an explanation. And I failed to say anything.
"How can you have nothing to say!" She screams at me. I shook my head. It wasn't true! I had a lot of stuff to tell her. But I couldn't get it all out. I didn't know exactly how to go about telling her. Then she hits me in the jaw.
"Tifa..!.." I spout, holding the side of my throbbing face.
"Where have you been, Cloud! What happened to you that day? Are you hurt? Is Sephiroth dead? Why are you in the Shinra mansion?" She went on and on. I placed my hands on both her shoulders, shaking her gently.
"Tifa, slow down. I'll explain everything to you." I assured her. She nodded slowly as I guided her to my chambers. Most likely Sephiroth was around somewhere eavesdropping. I wanted some privacy.
Tifa closes the door to the room behind her and turns to me. I take a deep breath and tells her to take a seat on the bed. She does and looks around slowly.
"First, what are you doing here?" I ask her.
"I went out to look for you Cloud. I mean, you disappearing and not returning like you did. You had us all worried." There was a brief pausing in her story. "We looked for you out there, but there were no signs of you. Nibleheim was one of the only cities not totaled by Meteor. So I decided to check here. You know…Maybe you survived and decided to go back to our home town or something…"
"I see…" I sat next to her. It was my turn to do the storytelling. "That day, when I went out to look for Sephiroth…I found him." Well, it was a start. My fingers began to fiddle with each other. I didn't want to let her know I lost miserably to him. She places her hand over mine. Our eyes met and I knew it was okay to let her know the truth.
"We fought and…I lost." My wrist ached dully at that revelation. But I went on. "He knocked me out and I awoke here. For some reason he didn't kill me. Instead, he's been taking care of me."
She frowned in confusion. "But…why?"
"I don't know. He won't tell me yet…"
"Why did you stay here? Why didn't you leave and come back home to us, Cloud?" Her voice cracked with sorrow. I was supposed to feel sorry as well, but I didn't. It made me bitter.
"Do you really think I can escape from him, Tifa?" Before I know it, I'm pacing the room. "It's my job to finish him off. And I intend on doing it. That's why I'm staying here. And when he tells me what he has planned, I'm going to destroy him. This time, for good." I convinced her, along with myself. She stood and I became still.
"I'll stay too." I walked over to her and placed a hand on her cheek. She blushed silently.
"No. I can't risk losing you." I quieted her upcoming protest with a kiss. True, it wasn't like me. But I grew to realize just how important she really was to me. After our kiss, she looked at me with her big burgundy eyes. I could tell she was a little shocked by my actions.
"Who knows when you'll be back. The others won't like this."
"That's why I want you to go back and tell them that you didn't find me." Tifa rubbed her arm in thought. Yeah, I know it wasn't a good thing to lie about something like this. But if she told them, they'll storm over here and try to pull me back home. That's another risk I want to avoid. She knew this just as much as I did.
"So promise me you won't tell them." I interrupted her thoughts.
"Cloud,…is this really how you want it?" I nodded. "Fine…But I don't like this."
Tifa's visit really put my mind back on track. I was too relaxed here at the mansion with my villain roommate. So after she left, I gave myself some tasks to accomplish.
First, I had to get myself back in better shape. And where else better to train then in the backyard by the tree? There I stood in nothing but my pants, staring up at the mystical tree. I was really growing fond of that damn tree.
"Alright! Warm up…" I spoke out loud to no one in particular. I draped a towel around my neck and got down on the ground. I would start with some sit ups. Clasping my hands behind my head, I began slowly laying down and rising back up. As soon as I hit thirty, my pace quickened.
"Sixty!…Seventy!….Eighty!" I shouted every decimal of ten. My stomach muscle had tighten and it took more and more effort to make a complete sit up. At one-hundred I fell out with my arms and legs out stretched. My chest heaved up and down as I tried to catch my breath. Sephiroth could probably do twice as many in half the time, my mind told me. That made my blood boil. I rolled over on my stomach and lifted my self up, immediately going into push ups. The grass tickled my bare feet, and my wrist started to ache dully. But my mind was elsewhere. I had to do better…
I had a grand total of one-hundred sit ups and one-hundred and fifty push ups under my belt. That didn't satisfy me. I wanted more. Once on my feet, I measured the amount of room around me. It was enough for what I wanted to do. I jogged to a corner of the opening, paused, and took a running start. The sound of my feet pounding into the grass gave me a rush. I leaped on one foot with my arms above my head and did a cartwheel. Then turning on the palm of my hands, I flipped into a back flip. I could only chain about four of them before I had to land on my feet. I was surprised at all the momentum I had built up as I ended up pacing a few steps backwards.
"Shit.." A hiss left me. My wrist wasn't fully healed. I held it in my other hand and moved my fingers a bit. It hurt like hell. Then I shook it in frustration. Bad move. I had to grit my teeth and squeeze my eyes shut just to hold back a howl. Just how did he break my wrist so skillfully?
"Looks like you over did it…" I turn sharply to see Sephiroth sitting by the tree.
"Spying on me now?" My response was cold, ignoring his comment about my wrist. He shrugged, ripping a blade of grass in half.
"You were watching me, so I decided to watch you." He's so smug, I tell myself while trying to move my wrist.
"What the hell did you do to my wrist!"
"It was just a simple disarming technique." My eyes watched him closely as he walked over to me. He held his hand out and I pulled my arm closer to me.
"I'm fine." A wince obviously said otherwise. He grabbed it and I sharply inhaled through a second set of clutched teeth.
"You dislocated an already broken wrist, Cloud." He examined it. If it wasn't hurting as much as it was, I would've snatched it away.
"That's my problem. Not yours." I stared up to him with narrow eyes. He was about five or six inches taller than me and a bit better built than me too. That's not a factor though. I could take him.
He returned the stare and we pretty much had a stare down. A gust of wind whipped past us, fanning his hair about and pulling the sweat from my brow into my eyes. Guess I lost this one. The sting automatically caused me to blink several times. And as soon as I did, I found myself getting swept off the ground and flipped over and on his shoulder.
"H-hey!" I kicked.
"You need a brace if you're going to train." He kicked the door opened to the house and entered.
"Put me down-!" I yelled at him until I felt a sharp pain and every one of my muscles tensed and locked. The bastard had paralyzed me with some kind of poke in the leg and rib. the only thing I could do was blink and protest.
He climbed the steps and entered my room were he flopped me on the bed like a rag doll.
"Don't worry; the paralysis will wear off in time." Sephiroth laughed and knelt beside my bed.
"You. Asshole. You're…Dead." I managed to stutter in anger. He grabbed my arm again and held the base of my hand and the area under my wrist firmly. I knew what was coming.
"It'll only hurt for a short while." My eyes grew wide. He popped my wrist back in place. I still couldn't move, but I shouted as loud as I could. Who would've thought that something as small as a broken wrist could cause so much pain? I think the fact that I couldn't move about to help coup with the pain hurt me more.
I released a long moan and turned my head the other way while the sweat gathered double time on my forehead. He final let my hand go and gently placed it on my side. I heard him get up and walk to the door.
"Stay put and try not to move your arm…when you can." He left.
My eyes slowly gazed around the room. It was getting darker out. Hey look at that. I can move my foot, I told myself. I chuckled weakly and fell asleep.