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Hey guys.

Here it is then, chapter 7. I'm churning them out now! Well the story is finally kicking of it's feet at last, because after the long getting into the story, setting the scene and what-not, now I can really get into it! There were a few points made in the reviews of the last chapter, that the body of my chapters are repetitive, character situations almost identical in each one, I realised that and cringed every time I wrote a chapter, knowing someone was bound to pick up on it, but I needed to do it because the scene is set now, and you all know exactly what is going on to detail. So lets get on with the good bits!

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"Dylon!!!!"

Johnny cursed under his breath as he continued to sprint toward the man.

"Dylon!! He's –"

Out of breath, Johnny stopped short and bent over, his hands pressed hard onto his thighs as he panted for breath. Footsteps on the cobbled courtyard of Eastern Costa Del sol sounded, steadily getting louder until they came to a stop in front of him.

"What is it? Something good at long last I hope." The deep voice stated.

A few moments of silence, save for Johnny's heavy breathing, passed. Slowly, Johnny stood up fully, his breathing steadier but still short.

"He's here...He's –" He paused for breath.

"Spit it out! I don't waste my time hiring you for this for you to just jumble your words up. Speak!" The man demanded, grasping hold of Johnny's shoulder in a firm grasp. Johnny's head snapped up to meet the deep burnt blue eyes of the man before him.

"Gimme a…minute!" Johnny shot back, shrugging the man off.

"Ok, the thing is, he's back. Here I mean, here in Costa." He eventually said, the night closing in around them as the faint light of day drew to a close, leaving the courtyard drowned in a pool of soft silver moonlight.

The man – known as Dylon – became suddenly more attentive.

"And whom exactly is here? Don't dance around the subject, if you're fooling around -"

Johnny smirked in the moonlight. "You know damn well who I mean."

Dylon's eyes widened ever so slightly, but still retained their cool demeanour.

The smirk on Johnny's face grew more distinctive.

"Seems like Christmas and your birthday came at once." The smirk turned into a sly grin.

"Strife's back."

Fear.

The one feeling that struck Cloud more than any other at this moment, as he stood on the harbour, overlooking the midnight sea. The waves were slick, moving and crashing against each other in the mass battle that took place every night when the wind was hard. Yet, the ferocity of the high sea created a calming serenity of sound. The sight was breathtaking with the moon sitting high above amongst the stars, creating a silver shine to the water.

The scene reflected Cloud's mood perfectly. On the surface, he seemed as calm as he always did, his eyes silent showing nothing but the reflection of the waves. However, inside, his emotions were battling against each other until the only thing overpowering them was fear.

Truth was, he was terrified to even be standing here.

Vincent had kept his word, and it had taken three days travelling to get to the Junon port, with an overnight crossing to get to where they were now. Well, overnight as in they had arrived here in Costa for 1.32am.

"Ready?" Vincent asked; his dark form blending in with the night so well it was hard to tell he was even there.

Cloud closed his eyes and sighed deeply.

It was now or never.

And he knew which option he wanted.

He opened his eyes and nodded.

"Let's get this over with."

Tifa woke with a start, bolt upright. Blinking and panting, she sat there in the dark for a few moments while her breathing steadied. Looking to her right, she reached over, turning her alarm clock around so she could see the bright glow of the green numbers – 1.32am. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed. This was the third time she had woken up during the night, first 11.32, then 12.32 and now at 1.32.

After each time she had woken up suddenly, she had slowly put her head back down on the pillow and drifted back to uneasy sleep, only to be woken up by the same dream, at the same time.

It was the same dream she had been having on and off ever since Cloud had disappeared. But lately she had been having it more frequently, but tonight was just too much.

Moving her hand to her forehead, she smudged the cold sweat away, her skin burning.

"What's going on with me?" She asked herself. She couldn't think of an answer. The dreams had never been this bad before. They used to end with Cloud walking away but…this time, they would end with her gasping for breath, as if someone was strangling her. Cloud was dressed in his old blue SHINRA uniform. He would stop, turn around and smirk, watching her fall to the ground, choking. Then he would say in an unfamiliar voice – 'You never were good enough.'

And then she would wake up gasping for breath in the dark.

What the hell did it mean?

She slowly managed to compose herself and threw the covers over, so she could free her legs to sit on the edge of her bed. Reaching to her side table, she picked up the glass of water there, but only took a sip before spitting it back.

"…Ergh…it's warm."

Steadily, she stood up and walked, carefully in the dark over to the bathroom and turned the light on, squinting her eyes momentarily in the new bright light. She emptied the glass and rinsed it clean, filling it up with fresh clean water before emptying the whole glassful in one go.

"Ah…better." She said to herself, and then lifted her head to look at her face in the mirror – flushed and hot. She turned the coldwater tap on again and cupped her hands under the cool running water, splashing it over her face. She cooled off as she padded her skin dry with a towel.

Pulling the cord of the light switch, she clicked it off and left the bathroom. She couldn't get back to sleep now. It was pointless. She would only wake up an hour later, and this time she might actually choke for real and maybe not wake up in time to get her breath back…

A shiver ran down her back at the thought and she returned to her dark bedroom, walking over to her window and pulling the curtains open to allow the moonlight in. her face glowed in the silver light, and she felt peace looking at the waves below. She should be out there with the sea. It was too hot in here and she couldn't keep splashing her face with water every five minutes to cool down.

A few moments later she found herself standing bare foot in the beach sand, walking West of where her bar was, down to the uninhabited areas of the beach that nobody visited. It only had the sharp rocky cliff faces behind it, no bars, no shops, just the cliffs, the sand and the sea.

Eventually she came to a stop. The beach went on for miles, but she had come far enough to where she wanted to be. Walking forward until her bare feet were surrounded in shallow water, she stopped, and dug her toes into the wet sand.

She closed her eyes and allowed the breeze to blow away her cares. The air was warm, as always here, but the breeze made the atmosphere cool at night. Though she was stood in her short, midnight blue silk nightdress she felt comfortable.

Now all she had to do was wait until the air got to the point of being too cold in the middle of the night, to turn back.

But that wasn't for a while yet.

"Ok then. We're here."

Vincent approached the deck of the bar, walking on the cladding silently until he reached the door. It was unlocked. Turning back to face Cloud he nodded for him to approach.

Doubtfully, Cloud did so, and rapped his knuckles on the door.

No sound.

He paused, and then did so again.

Again, there was no sound from inside.

He turned to Vincent. "You sure you're right about this? Does she live here?"

Vincent gave him a bored look and pointed to the plaque on the wall beside the door.

Licensee – Tifa Lockheart.

Cloud read the letters over and over again. This was her all right. Seeing her name written down made him shiver, god only knew how he would react to meeting her at long last.

"Well she's obviously not here is she?" Cloud snapped, agitated. He had never prepared himself for the fact of her not being here. What if she was unable to find? The thought scared him to death.

"The door is unlocked. I know where she will be." Vincent simply said. He opened the door and walked inside. Cloud simply looked at him. "You do?"

Vincent turned with a hand on the door. "She will have gone for a walk down the beach. West. She always did when she couldn't sleep. I remember her showing me the place back when I last saw her here. I was never one for sleeping easy. Seems like she wasn't either. Now go and find her. You're the only one who can."

At that the door slammed shut in Cloud's face. He stood in shock for a few seconds. He was the only one all right. Now Vincent had locked himself in that bar he was. Silence followed. The reality hit him suddenly like a blow from an Ultima orb. It was now. Right now. He was going to see her, just him and her after all this time. Had it really been 9 months?

"Damn you Vincent…" He cursed, delving his hands into his pockets as he walked. The only option left now was to find her. And he had to admit, as much as it scared him, his heart was thumping in his chest. He wouldn't rather be doing anything else right now.

What time is it? Tifa's mind wondered. She had been out here for a little while now, and it was getting colder. She brought her hands up to brush her arms to make herself a little warmer.

Strange…

Being here on her own just didn't feel right tonight. She had come here so many times before but…something wasn't right tonight. She felt an urge to be with someone, to just have someone come for her. Miguel, Sofia, anyone really.

She sighed.

That wouldn't happen. And she had become accustomed to her own company for so long now, this was just plain weird. In fact, everything about tonight was weird…it felt like something was going to happen. But what?

She felt edgy. It was the dream again. It was coming back to her. She had mulled it over in her mind but it hadn't made any sense. It had felt so real.

She looked up at the sky in silence. Just looking at the stars again felt normal, as if everything was back to normal. She was sitting on the well, back at Nibelheim. Her father was calling for her to come inside but she was reluctant, and kept fidgeting around the well to avoid her father catching sight of her as he walked around looking for her. He went eventually, and she knew she had another ten minutes to get home before she was in big trouble. As always one boy would brave to stay out this late, to sit with her…

"Is he gone?" the little voice would say to her. She would stand up, peek over the top and say, "Yep." The boy would stop crouching down and stand up looking back at her. She would smile and grasp the top edge of the well, the small wooden circular wall separating the two children from each other, with her little hands.

He would be quiet as usual, and she would always try to get him to talk. But, there was never enough time. There was always a time limit until she had to rush in home to avoid getting into major trouble with her protective father. Her mother didn't mind so much. In fact her mother trusted Tifa and knew exactly where she was and who she was with each night. She never objected once.

"You'll be here tomorrow?" Tifa would ask him. The little boy would nod, his floppy hair swaying slightly. She'd giggle and reach out but he always moved back before she could tug his hair. Then she'd climb down and wave back at him as she skipped into her home.

So naïve was she then, that she never realisedthat there would come a time that her little Cloud would move away and not be there tomorrow.

So naïve was she still, that she never heard his footsteps approaching. His boots coming to a stop just behind her, or his trembling hands attempting to reach out for her.

She closed her eyes and sighed softly.

"Where are you Cloud?" She asked, as if pleading for an answer.

He swallowed hard.

"I'm right here."

Tifa froze. Her body started to tremble, her cold hands started to shake, her knees threatened to give way and collapse right then and there.

Silence.

He looked at her, his eyes never leaving her. Please just turn around. He pleaded. Look at me Tifa please…

Her foot moved, turned slightly, and stepped back. Her body turned slowly with it, as if the whole thing was in slow motion. She closed her eyes as her head came round to face him, her long dark hair blowing softly around her.

She didn't want to look in case this really was a dream and there was no one there, but the gentle grip of his hands on her arms banished the imaginary and brought her to reality.

His heart was pounding in his chest as he touched her. She was cold, felt as if she had been stood waiting here for him for forever…

He couldn't speak. Could hardly breath. And she was the same.

And slowly, she opened her eyes…She looked down at the sight. His boots, unmistakable, his belt, nobody else wore. She daredn't lift her gaze further, she knew it must be him but what if it wasn't…?

He gently pinched her chin and lifted it up so her face was directly facing his gaze.

Her breathing stopped. It was him. It really was. His eyes were looking at her in the moonlight, as if silently pleading for her to never leave them. She reached her trembling hand to brush his cheek. He was real.

She caught her breath back in a rush.

"It's…you…" She whispered. "It's really you…"

He couldn't wait any longer, and suddenly he pulled her into him, clutching her body as if it was the last time he would ever be able to hold her. She felt how nervous he was, and listened intently to the sound of his heartbeat as she rested her head on his chest. Her hands slowly roamed his back and she closed her eyes.

"You're really here…I never thought you'd come back…I was starting to lose hope in you Cloud I…"

"Shhh…" He said softly, stroking her hair gently. "I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."

She clutched him tightly. She knew he meant it. But he had meant it the time before…before he left…

"What took you so long?" She asked, her voice breaking with emotion.

He too closed his eyes as he stroked her hair. "I guess I was…scared." He replied.

She could tell from knowing him this long that his short reply held a deeper meaning. And one he didn't want to tell her yet. She wouldn't press him on it now. He was here and that was all she needed to know.

After a few moments Cloud opened his eyes and finally realised how cold her skin felt.

"Tifa, you feel freezing!" He declared, holding her body closer to his, his hands rubbing her back. She had completely forgotten how cold it was at this hour, standing with him seemed to make her forget everything.

"I guess it is getting cold." She admitted, and that was an understatement. She was biting her lip to stop her teeth chattering.

Cloud noticed this, along with the fact that she was barely dressed and slipped an arm around her back, pulling her body against his, both of them facing the direction they came from, ready to walk back.

"Vincent's waiting for us, I should walk you back..." He said simply. She turned her head to face him.

She shook her head.

"Wait a minute…there's something I have wanted to know. Ever since you disappeared…it will sound stupid at first but…well, it was just playing on my mind…" She began. But when she lifted her gaze to meet his, she couldn't find the right words. Instead she shook her head and changed the subject.

"Anyway…Didn't you just say Vincent?" She asked sounding surprised.

He smiled as they began to walk down the beach.

"Oh that one…well erm…" He began.

She smiled back resting her head on his shoulder as they walked back, her arm reaching round his back, with her hand holding his waist.

"Don't ask…right?"

He smiled.

"I was hoping you'd say that."

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Aww!

I love writing CloTi moments! And that monumental one I had to just write was really hard because I had to get it just right. But I think/hope it turned out just how I wanted it. It gave the right feel, sad at first, then a relief they finally met up at last, then a happy sweet moment at the end to finish it off. Ah the days of CloTi in this fic are finally here! Hope you enjoyed this as much as I did! I would also like to add a thank you to the positive criticism I receive from people, it helps me to go over stuff I have written from you the reader's point of view and make it better.

Xx Jessie xX

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