Disclaimer: Really now, do I have to spell it out for you? I'm writing fanfiction, what do you think?
29th August: Um…I can say much until you've actually read this chappie. So read on people!
T.O.Y Version 2.0 Is Dedicated To All Those Lovely People Who Read This The First Time Round.
CHAPTER TWO
A young woman stood still, high above the city, Radiant Garden, or was it called something else now? She could never keep track for petty things like that never kept her interest for long. Her brown hair billowed out behind her in the wind that swirled around the cliff edge. Cool storm-grey eyes stared down at the city spread out below her. Often since her return to existence, she thought about jumping over the cliff, to fall to the ground feeling the adrenaline pounding in her head before she meet the ground once more. Or maybe one day she would just walk over the edge not stopping to admire the view. She'd heard of people doing that, listened to people at the bar say in mournful voices how sad it was indeed. An untimely death. Would they say that of her, once her broken body had been found, whisper over a mug of beer about how untimely it was. Act like it deeply affected them, when in truth they really didn't care, in their minds thinking at least it wasn't them.
Existence. Was it worth the time anymore? She had spent an eternity in the sea of darkness, not existing yet still alive. Floating, never speaking. There was no reason to when everything around you was black. She still wasn't sure if she'd actually lived in it or as part of it during that time. Nine long years, not that had felt them. There was no time, in the shadows were she had grown from children to woman. It had not taken a toll on her like it had with the others. She could tell by watching them it had been tough. How Yuffie's smile didn't reach her eyes and when she thought no one was watching she wouldn't smile at all. Cid was more kind, sure he still spoke profanities nearly every other word, but there was a new compassion in him. Aerith, their peacemaker, had a new toughness about her and strength that wasn't there before, and then there was Leon. He was reserved, more than before, with few words ever leaving his mouth. She knew it name for another, and that scar across his case was a constant reminder of a time they had yet to fully leave behind. Then she would look at herself and there were no scars. No changes that implied she had survived the horrors, like her friends who fought for nine years to save their home.
Then, when there seemed all hope was lost, the legendary keybearer had come with his magic and everything was okay again. Yet not quite. There were gaps in how they were living – people who hadn't return. She couldn't help when a slither of despair touched her heart, Oh Cloud, Where are you? The woman stood for a while longer at the edge of the cliff, lost in thoughts.
"Tifa," a voice cried out to her.
She turned away from the view to glance upon another young woman, running towards her. "I knew I'd find you here," she said, leaning over to catch her breathe. Tifa blinked once, ignoring the comment, before moving past the woman to walk down the path.
"Aw…come on Tifa, don't go," her companion complained, flipping her black braid over her shoulder, "live a little."
"Leave me alone Yuffie," was the response she got as Tifa continued to walk down the steep trail.
"What?! You're going back to the lab again," exclaimed Yuffie, "humph, you're no fun at all." Once again, she got no response from her companion. Yuffie uttered a small sigh, talking to Tifa is like talking to a brick wall. She followed after her friend, before I would at least have got a decant conversation out of her, but now…her train of thought faltered…but now what? We've been best friends ever since we were little, but now she keeps me at an arm's distance like everyone else. Does she even consider us friends? What if…what if she doesn't?
Tifa stopped suddenly in front of Yuffie, causing her to crash into her friend. "I'm sorry, Tif," she apologised quickly, looking up to see the castle doors in front of them. "Well…guess I'll go see Barret…now," she half-heartedly said, "If you need any help just ask."
Her only response was a nod and a simple 'yes', before Tifa walked up the stairs to the doors, opening them easily. "Fine, be that way," muttered Yuffie, as she went off on her own route, in search of something to do.
-- -- --
Tifa let the great oak doors close behind her and padded down the halls towards her destination…the lab library. Nine years had past since Ienzo and the other apprentices had disappeared the others had told her, the same time Radiant Garden had been over run by the darkness. Since Tifa's return, she had spent increasingly more time in the lab and its library immersing in the work her brothers and close friends had left behind, hoping they held the secrets to want she was looking for. An answer, to found those she had lost.
Radiant Garden and life in the city had changed drastically. Attacks from the dark creatures, now known as the heartless, came often but not in waves like they once did. This had made Tifa an adept fighter and now she helped to lead the assault against the heartless. Her time shared between that and her searching. She had no family left, her father lost to the darkness and her mother, a survivor of the attacks, dying on another world. Tifa greatly felt her loss, her mother had been greatly wounded in a battle and confined to a bed in pain and eventually had passed away. Her death came a few months before the restoration of the world, so Tifa had never had the chance to see her. She sighed inwardly to herself, as she made her way across to the library door, why was her life so harsh?
Gazing round at the walls covered in books, a smile played on her lips as she picked a book off the shelf and settled down to read in a spongy chair. Tifa opened the cover, and in saw the scrawling handwriting of Braig.
So Braig, she thought, what will you tell me today? And with that she engrossed herself in the book, sitting alone at the long table…her sanctuary.
Zexion's day had not started well, he couldn't find his note book, he suspected Axel had something to do with its disappearance, and now the Superior wanted to 'discuss' something with him and Zexion was not in the mood to be in Xemnas' presence.
But as any good nobody does, he still turned up outside Xemnas's study after breakfast, having survived the annoying chatter of Axel and his pals, Demyx and Roxas, Zexion try this, its cereal and chocolate topping. With a small dejected sigh he opened the door and entered the room.
"Ah…Zexion," the Superior said looking up from behind the desk, "take a seat," waving his had in the vague direct of the only other seat in the room – a sturdy wooden chair with a white cushion.
Zexion sat down heavily letting his gaze flicker round the spotless white room, white, why is everything white? Maybe I should let Axel loose in here with some paints one day. He smiled (call it a smirk if you want) to himself as he thought of what the disasterly but funny (yeah, he has a sense of humour) results of this idea could be.
"Yes, I'm glad that you agree with me, Number VI," Zexion's head jerked up to look at Xemnas, agree to what? His Superior continued not noticing Zexion's reaction, "We must keep an eye on Marluxia, he has become too arrogant for his own good." Zexion nodded thoughtfully, Marluxia was an ambitious fellow and not to be trusted (in his opinion) on any account.
"But that's not what I want to talk to you about," Xemnas continued clasping together his hands as his leaned over the desk, "I have been researching about hearts but there is one problem, would you like to guess Zexion?"
"I have no idea, sir."
"The most helpful notes on this topic are in the Laboratory back… there," he concluded. Xemnas stared at Zexion waiting for the information to sink in.
"So…," Zexion said slowly, thinking carefully about what he had heard, "You want me to go and get the notes."
Xemnas smiled slightly, "Exactly."
"Why can't one of the others do it?"
"Xigbar, Xaldin and Lexaeus have no interest in what happened to the dairies of those experiments, you can't blame them, they are the things that made us like this after all. As for Vexen…I'd rather not have him go, he is…unstable enough as it is," Xemnas rattled off the members and the reason he found them unsuitable, "Numbers VII to XIII have no clue of where to find the notes that I require because they were not part of the previous research. So that leaves you to acquire them, Zexion, one of the originals, so you know where to find them and I'm sure that you will get the information will help you in your own personal study." He finished, looking again at Zexion who was busy staring at the wall.
"Fine, I'll do it," the Cloaked Schemer replied, "but it will take me some time to find them all."
Xemnas' grin widened, "I knew you'd see it my way, Number. VI. You can go whenever you want, the sooner the better."
"Afternoon," was all Zexion said leaving the room. But, he though as he strode down the corridor, at least I now know what you're up too.
As soon as he had grabbed some food from the fridge making sure to avoid Axel attempts at cooking, Zexion opened a portal and slipped through the tendrils of shadows to arrive in a huge library, the private library of the castle. Hasn't changed much, he commented to himself looking around at the shelves that housed millions of books. Zexion examine the room looking at the papers that were scattered around the room collecting dust. His eyes moved along the table set up in the middle of the room covered in books and notes, and skimming over the mop of brown hair to the simple brown door a…wait a second since, when had they left a mop of brown hair in the library? Zexion moved back further into the shadows, focusing the person in front of them thankful they hadn't notice his presence, why on earth was someone here?
The figure attached to the long brown hair move their head slightly to the side, as if sensing something and frowned as they twisted their torso to look at the open door that was near where Zexion stood.
"What are you doing here?" a female voice emitted from the person at the table, it echoing around the icy room.
Zexion reeled inside, how could she know he was here? She had her back to him the whole two minutes he had been in the room. He contemplated stepping out of the shadows, if she knows I'm here what's the point of hiding? Zexion was just about to tread forward when someone else spoke.
"I could ask you the same thing, y'know," A young man strode across from the door over to the girl, "Yuffie says you spend most of your time here…doing what?" Zexion recoiled back into the shadows, how lucky he was.
"I'm researching," was all she said, "Is that wrong, Leon?"
Leon stared calmly at her, running his fingers through his brown locks, "You could help out with fixing up the city after the last attack. With the rest of us."
"What he's trying to say," a soft female voice declared from behind him, "is that we're worried about you."
The brown haired girl look at a girl in pink dress leaning on the doorway and laughed lightly, "but I'm fine, Aerith. Don't worry about me; I'm doing what I can to help. Researching. So we can find them."
"We don't want you to disappear on us too," Aerith whispered, putting a basket on the table, "here's some lunch and think about it, we care about you, too, okay Tifa?"
Tifa, as the brunette girl seemed to be called, smiled at the couple, "Okay, now leave me in piece why don't you."
Leon punched her lightly on the shoulder, "Whatever, Tifa," he said as they left the room shutting the door behind them.
Silence returned to the library, while Tifa stayed still, Zexion (yes, he is still here) shifted from one foot to the other, what is she waiting for?
Suddenly she pulled herself out of the chair, stepping round it and Zexion got his first good look at her. Her hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail with strands falling out all over the place framing brown eyes that spoke of hardship. She walked towards him, Zexion stiffened and stifled his breathing, as she stopped at the bookshelf next to the shadows he was in, looking like she was searching for a book. Zexion relaxed, she hadn't seen him after all.
Something squeezed his neck and he stared in shock at the gloved hand round his throat. Zexion looked up slowly his violet eyes meeting a pair of weary brown ones.
"Well," Tifa asked, her grip tightening on Zexion's throat, "Who might you be?"
29th August: The major changes in this chappie was Tifa's reasons for being in the Castle and the history of the world – wanted to make it more aligned with the actual KH storyline.
AN: I hope you liked the chappie, the next one is supposed to be the last one (but i might have a fourth one, ya never know) and they only just met. Well, till next time and don't forget to Review – all Reviews go towards making the author feel good (just kidding, but please still Review) What are you waiting for?!
C.Pess