Chapter Four – Recognition

The bar was empty as the tired figure finished washing the remaining dirty dishes. She was exhausted from the days work, and the lack of sleep. It had been merely a month since the bar was opened, and Tifa was surprised at the number of customers that came by within the first week. It had been her idea to turn the two story house into a bar, but if it wasn't for Nicholas and his generosity, she wouldn't have been able to do it.

Tifa had been living in Midgar for two whole years now. It was a busy town, slowly expanding. She remembered the events all too clearly. She remembered Nicholas moving her here to start a new life, not once seeing her as a burden. Tifa remembered sitting in his car as he pulled up to a double story house, telling her that it was where she would stay. All Tifa did was agree, and within a year and a half, she managed to renovate the ground floor, turning it into a bar.

Nick had helped her immensely; he had provided the money, and the patience in listening to her plans. Every tiny step of the way he was by her side to support her. Eventually, Tifa's dream had finally come true, and now she was standing in her dream place washing the dishes with a smile on her face. She felt so satisfied and content, and for once, stopped thinking about remembering the past and focusing more on the future. It was funny, just two years ago she was a girl who had nothing, and suddenly she was blessed with everything.

During the two years, Tifa had been working with Nick and his mother who owned a weaponry store. It was the only one in the large town called Midgar, and it was there that Tifa had first discovered her ability. Nicholas had taken her to the store to introduce her to his mother, after the introduction Tifa had spotted the boxing ring. It was a tiny arena where Nick trained with new shipped in items.

As Tifa stared in a trance, Nick spotted her sudden interest and half dragged her to the ring. The two of them both stepped in, as Nick taught Tifa a few self defense moves. When he acted as an offender so in order to train Tifa the two of them discovered that she needed no training. Swift, complicated moves were tested on Nick as Tifa continued to kick, jump, and punch as he blocked. She seemed to be flying, and appeared to have been a professional in martial arts. When the two of them finally stopped, Tifa knew she had trained in martial arts before, her precise moves, and the adrenaline rush all felt familiar. After that day, memories slowly returned to her.

Now as she placed the last cup down onto the rack, Tifa headed upstairs for a shower. Loud screeching from the tap handle echoed in the bathroom. Stepping under the pouring warm water, she closed her eyes. Many flashbacks had been seared into her mind ever since she remembered them. They were always scenes of her and a shadowy figure. She could never really see his face, but his voice was ever so clear. The mysterious man's voice always made her react in a very different way, a way in which was different to every other emotion she ever felt in this new life of hers.

Getting out of the shower, Tifa dressed and headed into her room for a goodnight's rest.

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The two cardboard boxes were full of empty bottles as she carried it down the streets. Nick was gone again to bring back some new parts for his car, and he wasn't to return until the end of the day. As Tifa trudged up the street, she struggled to see properly since the boxes were blocking her view. She had to take the bottles to a nearby store in order for it to be recycled since Nick was out of town.

Continuing walking blindly, Tifa averted her gaze to her side where she could see names of stores to ensure she didn't miss the recycling shop. It was early in the morning, approximately two hours before the bar was to open, and she had plenty of chores to do. And the first thing on the list was to get the bottles recycled.

Twisting her head back around, Tifa fell into 'work mode', making mental notes to herself in what she had to do today. With her mind somewhere else, she bumped into something as her two cardboard boxes went flying in the air, plummeting to the floor. Cans and bottles went in the air as she took a couple of steps back from the rock hard force. When gravity pulled all contents to the floor, Tifa crouched down to retrieve the bottles.

Minutes passed as bottles were repacked into the boxes. Her eyes locked onto a stray bottle as she reached out for it only to find a masculine, gloved hand already rested there. Her eyes traveled up the hand, up the arm to find a pair of ocean blue eyes gazing right at her.

It then suddenly occurred. Flashbacks of the same pair of mako blue eyes entered her mind; the shadowy figure that always appeared in her premonitions suddenly grew clearer. The hooded, dark eyes was now visible and full of life, shining at her, no longer shadowed but fully revealed. Breaking out of the sudden flashback, Tifa remembered seeing those pair of eyes somewhere before, but couldn't recall where. Shaking her head to clear her mind, she grabbed the offered bottle and this time, instead of being lost in the person's eyes, she managed to look the person squarely in the face to study all their features.

"Thanks," She grinned and froze.

The image before her, the face that was staring right back at her made her heart skip a beat. She didn't understand why she had reacted this way but those eyes, and the blonde spiky hair with the long smooth nose, and lightly shaded lips made her feel like it was déjà vu.

"Tifa?" Came the man's voice and all Tifa did was draw in a deep sharp breath. One thing was certain, this voice; his voice was the very tone she'd been hearing throughout her flashbacks.

Her brows furrowed as she stared at him again, "D-do I know you?" She breathed in confusion. She felt a small bond between her and this man but then stomped down the feeling. From what she could remember, she was sure she'd never seen this man before which made the bond she felt impossible to have.

The man's eyes widened, "Know me?" he whispered in puzzlement. Was she pretending?

Yet again, his voice sent waves of emotions through her body, and then the flashbacks commenced. In her mind there was a scene of her and the shadowy figure fighting another long silver haired man holding a long thin sword. With the shadowed figure in her head, it began clearing up, changing into the form of the blonde haired man. Then, like a tape, her various flashbacks she experienced throughout the two years came flooding into her mind as all pictures of the shadow was replaced by the blue eyed man.

Everything was a blur for a few moments, and then suddenly a word escaped her mouth.

"Cloud."

A/N: Wow! It's Chinese New Year :D Celebrations, and more celebrations, and I'll be celebrating too! So I posted this chapter up a little earlier cause I simply couldn't wait! This chapter is dedicated for the readers and reviewers for your constant support! I'm sure the story will start heading off at a smooth pace from now on... So don't forget to review, it's always appreciated! Cheers!