A/N: Once again, inspiration struck at 5a.m. and fortunately I was awake, otherwise this would have been different I'm sure. No surprise that it's a CloTi, oneshot(so far) and deals with unrequetted dreams between the two love birds. The song I used was from All Dogs Go to Heaven (fav. childhood movie) and so all credit goes to those writers, MGM I think, for that. Square-Enix gets the rest of the glory for FF and its characters that I don't own, sadly. I mean, seriously, if I owned Cloud, he would be with Tifa and all would be as it should. For now, I will only play with them in my writing and in my mind. It can be a scary place (my mind….and my writing, actually) so R&R cuz it's always great to hear from the readers. 3

In My Mind's Eye

By MakoRain

(All in Cloud POV)

A gentle breeze rustled the leaves of the surrounding trees, the movement causing a sudden sense of motion among the calm seclusion. A hammock sat under these trees, swaying in the wind with its occupant, a young man with unruly blond hair and battle beaten body in much need of rest. Cloud lazily rocked with the breeze, swaying back and forth in the cool shade out of the noonday sun and drifted between the realms of dreams and reality with his body giving in to the urge to relax.

A sudden jostling at his side made sleep elude him as the warm body pressed up against his side. Cloud felt the soft caress of silky hair against his bare arm and the comfort of warm skin under his touch. He did not have to see who it was to know that it was his best friend and soul mate.

Tifa snuggled closer to his body; he could feel her arms wrap around his waist, the angle of her flesh against his body and he reflexively wrapped an arm around her shoulder, bringing her closer still. The scent of orange blossoms and spring breeze played with his mind, along with the heat resonating to him and the millions of senses along his skin increased this affect. He finally opened his eyes to look down upon a face of true beauty, not fake and made up but genuine in its natural glory; her easy laugh and caring smile went right to his heart every time.

He felt her sigh beside him, and was lost in the ecstasy of her until she broke the companionable silence.

"Cloud? Are you asleep?"

"Maybe…"

He felt her move even closer if possible, her forehead right under her chin; she had a question and all he had to do was wait for her to get up the nerve to ask.

"What are you thinking about?"

Well, that was a no brainer, seeing as there was usually only one thing on his mind, and he said as much. "You."

He almost thought he could feel her smile as she laid her face in his chest, placing a simple kiss on the place above his heart.

"Do you remember when we first met?" he asked as the question suddenly popped into his head. Tifa moved up to his eye level to watch his face with her brilliant hazel eyes. "Of course, how could I forget?"

A smile tugged at his lips as Cloud recalled the memory with ease. "We had just moved into Nibelhiem, after my father lost work and we had to start off somewhere new. I was furious at first, worried about how much I would miss my friends and home of old. But when I first laid eyes on you, I knew things would be alright."

He stroked Tifa's cheek as he continued, a pleasant blush gracing her cheeks. "You were just a little thing, but with your long hair and big brown eyes, you caught my attention right away." Her hands reflexively went up to smooth her hair and played with it as he as well twirled his fingers in her brown locks. "When I walked by your front yard to get to my house, I saw you sneaking peeks at me through your curtains, which I'm sure you didn't know… I was watching you watching me." The shocked expression and glare she gave him were evidence enough as to she did not know this little fact until now.

"That night when you came to welcome us to the neighborhood, your mom chatted happily with mine as I took it all in…your smile, eyes, laugh…you could have taken any boys heart, and I was no exception."

"Cloud, you know this would have been something to know sooner."

"Possibly, but where would be the fun in that?"

"Fun? It was torture not knowing what you were thinking…you always hid your emotions so well."

Cloud took on an amazed expression. "Really? I never thought I could hide anything from you."

Tifa giggled at the thought. "You tried, but eventually, I got the message. Remember the fireflies?"

It was a change of subject but Cloud would let it slid as it was a very wonderful memory…it was the closest he had come to telling her how he felt before…everything.

"I always believed that catching a firefly would grant you a night of whatever you wished for if you made your wish before the moonlight disappeared with the morning sun. I usually couldn't go through with it though since I didn't want to kill the fireflies in doing so." Tifa smiled childishly at the thought.

'I know, and I didn't believe in that tale until I tried it…and guess what? It worked…I was just a little too slow to realize it at the time.

"How so?" She crinkled her forehead, which was something she always did when she was curious, and it was yet another trait that he loved about her.

"I think you know." She had better know, since it was the closet they had come to kissing when they were still kids. He could see something like recollection in her eyes but she was going to make him say it, of course.

"I'm not really sure I do."

"Well, it was a warm summer's night, just after sunset when the fireflies could be seen coming out. The twinkling reminded me of something magical out of a fairy tale and it brought back your little superstition about the creatures to me. I was young and naïve and so of course I tried it, catching one in a jar and whispering my wish to it before setting it aside by the weeping willow we climbed in all the time. The moonlight passed and the sky was lightening… I thought the time had passed…that nothing would happen, but it worked. That night, I was drawn to you Tifa more than usual…in those last minutes I came the closest to kissing you than I had before. But when our lips were only a breadth away, I pulled back…I was so nervous and I remember the hurt in your eyes and it pained me as well, to see you like that and to have caused that disappointment in your eyes."

"I remember," she said softly, "I thought I had done something wrong but when you got all nervous, you were very adorable and so I just figured it was nerves. I knew you'd get the courage, eventually. Took you long enough."

The laughter and lightness in her voice faded away as

Tifa decided to change the subject as her face took on a nostalgic expression, as if she were off in some far away place that brought a smile to her face. "The stars above, the well…the comfort of our own backyards…our promise."

Cloud smiled in return as he pictured it all in his mind's eye. "I swore to always be there for you Tifa…and I failed. I'm so sorry about that…leaving you…about Aerith…Loz hurting you…everything I promised to protect you from and never could."

Tifa put her face right up to his and gave him an Eskimo kiss, rubbing her nose playfully against his. "You just said it, Cloud. You never would have been able to protect me from something you didn't know was going to happen. I blame you for nothing."

"I know that now," he said reassuringly, finally able to believe those words he had said numbly before. They were avoiding what was to come as he picked it up with a sad sigh. "The night I said goodbye."

Her eyes shone with unshed tears until she closed her eyes and the tears were allowed to escape. "It was a night I'll never forget. I was so torn up inside that the only way I could cope without you was to make a song for you." Cloud's eyebrows shot up as this was the first time he heard anything about this.

Tifa avoided his gaze while she continued her 'confession.' "I'd lie awake at night, unable to sleep since the thought of not seeing you in the morning made me not want to go to sleep; so I'd sing to myself. I made a song about you…me…the possibility of us and it helped me get through the tuff times in my life."

She needed no prodding as the tune came to mind, humming it easily. He listened intently and was soon lulled into the scenes of her life…the ones that he could have been there for if he hadn't left for SOLDIER. She didn't blame him, after all this time, and he was grateful for it since he was just learning to forgive himself for being gone for so long.

♫ All I have is a picture in my mind of how it would be, if we were together ♪…such a simple song and yet it held so much hope, faith…love that it really hit Cloud in the depths of his heart.

♪ So let's pretend that you're far away and that you would write to me, and you'd say in your letter….You would come home, come home to my heart ♫ Cloud was finally home and a smile of happiness shone through the uncertainty of the words as she finished.

♫ If I keep dreaming of you and believing its true, soon you'll come home, soon you'll come home to my heart ♪

Tifa grew still next to him, still not looking at him until his hand under her chin made her gaze into his mako blue eyes.

Home to my heart, she breathed before their lips met in a passionate and longing filled kiss, bringing all of their reviewed emotions together in that one action.

If I believe…

The End?