Disclaimer: Yet again, don't own Final Fantasy 7 or any of its characters. I do, however, reserve that right over my original characters.
The sound of light breathing could be heard if one were to listen by the door. The unknown girl still slept in same position Barret had put her, only having moved the night before when Tifa had bandaged up her injured head. A crash from downstairs, followed by angry voices yelling, woke the girl up. She shot up, her heart beating wildly and eyes showing her fear, clutching the comforter to her chest.
Where was she? How'd she get here? Who was she? The only thing she could remember was a sickening crack accompanied by a blinding pain that made her see white, then a blissful black. Later, that one man had found her, asked her those questions, then she remembered nothing. Her head was beginning to pound, but she refused to lie back down and instead looked around the room. It was simply furnished, with the bed she laid in, a dresser with some pictures on it, a long mirror, and a chair that had clothes draping over them.
Another crash alerted her towards the door, whereas she shakily got to her feet; with the covers not covering her anymore, she saw that she was wearing a very big t-shirt that came to her knees. She slowly went to the door and then hesitated before opening it. The noises became even louder as she poked her head out the door and she spotted the light flickering on her left side, showing there was another room below. Creeping towards it, she grasped the banister and walked down a few stairs to peer down. She saw a woman trying to break up a fight between two men, a few broken chairs laid to the side, while the rest of the bar watched. A little girl was behind the counter, watching the outcome with mild concern; apparently, this was a normal occurrence.
"Get out of my bar! Take it outside!" The woman said with her face flushed with rage.
"This little $#$ is going to get it!"
"You can't even touch me!"
"Bring it, punk!"
It looked like the fight was going to continue when the doors swung open and a big man came in the bar. The girl recognized him as the one who had most likely taken her here. In one swoop, he had grabbed both of the men; one, by the scruff of his neck, with his hand and the other, in a headlock, with, the girl realized, an arm with a gun grafted where a hand should be.
"Tifa, these guys given you a problem?" He asked while the two struggled in vain to get away.
"Yeah, Barret. Make 'em leave."
"Gladly." He smiled, turning around and throwing them out of the bar. Thuds and shouts of profanity made him laugh.
An undertone of talking began again, the two named Barret and Tifa now going behind the counter. Suddenly, as if they knew she was there, both looked up the staircase to where she sat. She swallowed nervously, one of her hands still gripping the banister, her knuckles turning white, while the other was wrapped around her knees to keep the shirt from riding up. Tifa looked at Barret and said something to him of which he nodded to. He continued to go behind the bar while Tifa started coming up the stairs. The girl sat frozen, unable to move or speak, only able to turn her head to look at Tifa who held out a hand.
"Come on. Let's go back to my room."
The girl slowly nodded and took the offered hand, following Tifa back to the same room she had been in moments before.
"All right, sit on the bed and let me check that bump on your head…mmm…well the swelling's gone done, you just have a nasty looking bruise. You heal fairly quickly."
"Uh…"
"Yes?" Tifa looked at the girl.
"Your name is…Tifa, right? Could you tell me, um, where I am?"
"You're in my bar, 'Tifa's 7th Heaven'." Tifa smiled, "It's located in the 7th Sector slums."
"Oh." The girl had no idea where that was, but it seemed to be common knowledge to everyone else.
"So, what's your name?" Tifa asked. The girl looked startled at the question, but managed to choke out,
"I don't know."
"You don't know?" This seemed incredulous, "Not even an inkling? Do you know where you're from?"
"No."
"Who your family is?"
"No."
"Anything?"
"No. I-I'm sorry, I don't remember anything!"
"Okay, okay! I'm sorry." The girl seemed on the verge of crying, "You just have a really bad case of amnesia, that's all. It'll come back to you soon."
"Amnesia? Oh…I suppose so." The girl quickly wiped away the tears that were forming in her eyes. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath while Tifa waited patiently for her to regain her composure.
Eighteen-years-old…
"Actually, I think I do remember something…at least my age I think…" The girl said slowly, looking at Tifa who gave a small smile of encouragement, "I think…I'm eighteen."
"Well, that's a start." Tifa nodded approvingly, "Until then, why don't you put on those clothes on that chair? Your old clothes were a wreck. I think these should fit you."
"Really?" The girl was so surprised to be shown such generosity from someone she hardly knew, "Well…T-thank you."
"No problem." Tifa smiled, "When you're done, come downstairs…oh, don't worry, what happened downstairs doesn't happen all the time, but just enough that we hardly care anymore."
The girl's shocked stare gradually was replaced with a trusting, though tentative smile. When Tifa left the room to give her privacy, she slowly took off the big t-shirt, her arms aching horribly from the upward motion. Putting on the fresh undergarments, she then put on some comfortable beige cargo shorts, that allowed her maximum movement, and a black sleeveless shirt that had silver threading on the v-neck, the openings for her arm, and the hem. What she really like about the shirt, though, were the beautifully embroidered wings around where her shoulder blades were. To finish off the look, she put on finger-less black gloves and sturdy leather boots that ended at her ankles. Looking in the mirror, she looked back at the person that greeted her.
She was tall and lanky, but muscles were apparent in her otherwise skinny arms and legs. She looked a little fragile, but she didn't feel fragile in the slightest, despite the fact that she couldn't remember anything about herself. She gave a little frown at her hair, though a nice raven-black with a bluish hue, it screamed bed-head. Taking a comb, she ran it through the middle-back length mess, her hair layered, making the front a little shorter so that it lay gently in front of her shoulders and framed her face. Taking closer look at her face, she saw that freckles were lightly splashed on the bridge of her nose and cheekbones. Apparently, she liked the outdoors since the rest of her skin was lightly tanned. She wasn't model material, being a little plain looking, but her eyes were what would make someone take a second look; a fiery emerald green.
Flipping a few strands from her face, she went out the bedroom and walked carefully down the stairs. The sight that greeted her made her feel nostalgic, like she had seen this room from a three person perspective. The wooden floor was smooth from the many feet that had treaded upon it, a few dents and scratches along with some stains that had never fully come out, the same care and worn shown on the circular tables and chairs that laid sprawled across the room. Light shone into the room from two large windows in the front and one on each side. The back of the room had a bar built into it as well as shelves where the various colored bottled liquors twinkled invitingly for someone to drink them. There was also an old pinball machine, but it didn't seem to be in working order. In the back of her mind, she wondered why they would keep it when it seemed to serve no purpose.
Her steps sounded a little loud in the now deserted bar. Walking over towards the bar, she stroked the smooth wood, marveling at the soft sheen it emitted and craftsmanship that must've gone into it. She peered over the side of the bar and jolted back, too startled to scream as she had just peered into large, liquid-brown eyes that seemed just as shocked as she was.
"Uh…hi." She said tentatively, "What's your name?"
The little girl had hoisted herself up from her crouching position and stared at her for a few moments before whispering, "Marlene."
"Marlene? That's a really nice name." She said, not wanting to have the ever-close silence to envelope her again, "So, what are you doing here?"
"I work here." Marlene said; a note of pride in her voice as it gained strength, "I help Tifa out since we're so short-handed. I also live here with my Daddy, he's the best.
"Oh!" Marlene looked at her with more recognition, "You're that lady that my Daddy brought in last night. Did you get into a fight with someone? You looked a wreck."
"I don't think so…" She looked puzzled at this new theory. Had someone took a swing at her from behind and landed a blow on her head?
"Yeah, Tifa said that you don't remember anything, not even your own name." Marlene gave a little giggle that sent her temper flaring; so Marlene thought it was funny, huh?
No. She cautioned herself, She's young, she doesn't know.
"It's not really funny," She began, "It's really scary. What if you couldn't remember anyone?"
Marlene's face fell a little as she contemplated, "I'd be…really sad because I wouldn't remember Daddy or Tifa. I'm sorry."
"It's okay." She said; her anger abated at the sight of the little girl's slouching figure, "Cheer up. Tifa told me that I should be able to regain my memory soon enough. Until then, I'll just have to make the best of it. Moping around isn't going to solve anything, would it?"
"You're right." Marlene brightened up, "I like you. Not many people who come into the bar pay any attention to me, even though they're always here."
The girl smiled, pleased that someone would like her within minutes of meeting each other.
"Ah, you're down. Looking good." She spun around to see Tifa walking in from outside with a broom in her hand, "I see you've met Marlene."
"Yeah." She smiled, Marlene coming from behind the counter to take the broom to the back.
"Thank you, Marlene." Tifa called to the retreating figure, looking back at the eighteen-year-old, before pulling out a chair and beckoning for her to do the same,
"Okay, at the moment, I think it's best that you stay here; you don't know where you're from and no one seems to be in a panic over someone missing. Barret's looking around right now trying to find some information."
"Thank you," She said, unsure of what else to say
"Well, I need to get back to work. We've got a group coming over later tonight."
"Okay." She smiled, before becoming lost in thought. Tracing a finger of the wood grain of the table, she unconsciously took a glance at the doorway every two to five minutes, apprehensive of what Barret would find out about her.
Chapter One Fin! Will Barret find out anything about this mysterious girl? Review!