Let me explain a few things that have happened:

The FF7 world you are reading about has had a HUGE tecnological advancement. Airships are popular and of course they are run by the Highwind Family. Cid has four sons and a daughter...yeah I'm willing to spoil that for you. I plan to draw out each of the characters I have created. The more the merrier. You know I really planned to make this a very detailed story, but it hasn't turned out that way, has it? I'll work on it a little bit more though. I promise.

Chapter 14

Heritage

The crumpled up sheet of paper was held tightly within her grasp, the storm winds blew angrily about the town square. She frowned as she read the address and stared up at the buildings to her right. The street lamp swayed slighty against the wind, but it stood firmly as it's yellowish light illuminated the digits on the brick walls.

The house she was searching for was in the main square near the well. She began her trek around, her reddish eyes squinting, preventing the harsh winds and icy sharp droplets of rain from attacking. There it was...she stood in front of the large home, the windows casting golden light into the rainy paved streets. Ashes pushed aside the rickety picket fence and made her way to the front door. She paused, her fist curled up ready to knock and she took another breath before letting her knuckles rap against the door.

"Coming!" she heard someone yell, "Who could be out in this weather..." The door opened and the golden light flooded upon Ashes. The man who stood before her was an elderly man, with hair white as snow but his blue eyes still held the sparkle of life in them. A pause.

"I'm...looking for my mother...Tifa, Tifa Lockhart." she whispered. The rain whirled angrily around her, her silver hair escaping it's clutches from the braid. The man frowned and then scowled, before moving sideways to let the girl pass through.

"Thank you." she said quietly as she walked past him and into a large kitchen/dining room. She respectfully took her boots off and hung her long jacket on the coat rack. The man motiond to her with his hand to a seat as he closed the door and bustled his way slowly over to the kitchen.

"Tea?" he asked in a raspy but solid voice.

"Yes please." she replied as she looked around the home. Where was she? She looked over to the grand stair well and wondered, perhaps she's sleeping upstairs? A white cup with green leaves painted upon it's surface was placed before her. The jostling of glass snapping her mind back to teh present. She didn't even hear him walk up to her. Ashes smiled weakly and brought the cup to her lips, the steam enveloping her nostrils as she breathed it in. Mint.

The man sat opposite of her and leaned on the table, his clasped hands supporting the weight of his head. His blue eyes studying her before he spoke up,

"Tifa used to live in this house almost thirty years ago. I'm sorry to say, that she no longer lives here..." he began but was cut off,

"Do you know where she is?" Ashes inquired.

"No. She died twenty years ago during the Meteor Crisis." he explained. He watched as the strange girl before him frowned, her eyes shifting from surprise to tears to sadness.

"You're not normal are you, seeing as your hair is silver in color. I would have turned you away, if it wasn't for your eyes." he said quietly, "You have her eyes. Those wine red eyes..."

Ashes looked up at him, "Who are you?"

He sighed and looked away before meeting her reddish eyes, "My name is Zangan. I used to be your Mother's Sensei when she was just a child. She had lost her mother and that was when I found her. She begged me to teach her how to be strong..." Zangan said and whispered, "Little did I know that she would grow up to be my greatest student...and my greatest failure."

"What do you mean?" Ashes cried out, "Here I am trying to find out about her and trying to find out who I am...I don't know if Cloud is my real father..." she said meekly.

"He isn't. You should have known that by now." Zangan snapped angrily, "You two look nothing alike...It was because of him, that your mother fell to her demise. It was because of him she died!" He stood up, his frame trembling slightly and he sighed, "Please excuse me child, I got carried away."

Ashes frowned, and cast her eyes onto the table before her. Her mind registering the knowledge that this man had bestowed upon her. Then who was her father...her last name? Where was her mother buried?

"Who was my father?" she whispered.

"I don't think you want to know child." He said walking quietly over to the other side of the room. He stared out the window, the thunder rolling loudly across the town; the Mountains seemed to help echo bellows...

She jumped up, "I may have not been born ready for all of this, but whether I might not want to know or not is my decision. Who is my real father?"

Zangan turned around, his snow white hair falling gently on his shoulders, but nothing was gentle about his eyes. Cold blue.

"He is the insane legend that our old generation still fears to this very day, Sephiroth, ShinRa's greatest General and greatest mistake to come out of their labs." he said. Ashes's face twisted in horror,

"The madman who slaughtered thousands of people before Meteor's grand decent?"

"Yes. You have his genes, his hair, his strength, his iron will and power." Zangan explained, "Haven't you noticed how all your life, you would heal quickly? Or how you were so much better then other children your age at any sport or physical activity?" he prodded her.

He was right but she always brushed it away...thinking it was because she was the daughter of Cloud. The hero who banished Sephiroth not once but twice! The man who killed her mother...killed her father. This was all wrong. Why didn't Cloud tell her who she really was?

She fell back into her chair and looked up at the retired martial artist,

"Tell me everything about my mother. Please." she begged. Zangan glanced at her, his eyes gentle once more. He nodded before placing himself down into his seat,

"I was an ex-turk on the run." he began, a smile cracked on his face, "It seems all of the world's trouble was born out of ShinRa. Ironic. Anyways, I traveled the world escaping the clutches of ShinRa, posing as a great martial artist and to be honest, I was. Back then, I taught many Soldiers the art of war." he explained and sighed, "I did something wrong, I ran and I found your mother who was in need of a purpose in life. She had lost her best friend because he wanted to join Soldier and she had lost her mother, your grandmother to mako poisoning.

"So I took her under my wing. I taught her all my secrets and she caught on quickly becoming almost my equal. I made her go on missions, destroying squads of ShinRa's lower class soldiers. I pushed her to her limits and she was food, too good...then I had her try to assasinate the President. That, was my biggest mistake yet, she wasn't that ready, but she did give the asshole a good scare." Zangan chuckled,

"She managed to escape and came back home to me. I mended her wounds and ever since then, I kept her near by for a few months. That was till ShinRa made a visit, her father was taken away over seas to work for them.

"Later she was offered a job as a Turk. She accepted...stayed with them for a year before coming back home. It wasn't for her, she said and they let her go, seeing as her father was doing great wonders for them with the mako reactor up in the Nibelheim mountains. When she was sixteen, seventeen, the great General had come to do a maintenece check up on the reactor. Oh planet, would she not stop chattering about him...I think she fell in love with him." he said as he gazed off into the firestove,

"She must have...I mean you were born." he added as he looked over to the girl, her eyes and ears intent on every word that came out of his lips,

"That night though, while I was away, I heard that the village was burned down to a crisp. Your grandfather was slayed by Sephiroth and as I got there I found Tifa being carried by one of the few remaining Soldiers. I took her from him and traveled quickly to Rocket Town, where I hired a doctor to take care of her. She recooperated quickly, but I felt too guilty to stay with her. I sent her to Midgar to live with an old friend of mine. From there on, I only heard rumors of what had become of her.

"She was reunited with Cloud, their group was focused on bringing down ShinRa." Your mother fell in love with her childhood friend...but he loved another."

"Aerith." Ashes finished for him.

Zangan nodded, "Yes. It killed your mother's heart. After Sephiroth tried to assasinate Aerith, Tifa had interfered and had left with the general. She changed sides Ashes. Please understand that." He protested,

"Rumor has it that she was the reason why Meteor came crashing down, but that is only for a few select: those who fought against Sephiroth, AVALANCHE. Though I truly believe that it was mere revenge against Cloud for leaving her heart broken in pieces. I don't think she could ever mend that part of her heart, she did fall in love with your father in the months before Meteor came crashing down. That's all I know, except that you are her legacy...and his, alive an well."

"I was spawned from corruption..." Ashes mumbled. Zangan scoffed,

"Don't think that child. Listen to me, have you killed anyone? No. You are a normal human being."

"No. My father was a monster..." she began. Zangan grabbed her hands and held them,

"But your mother was human. Don't you forget that. Now come, I'll show you where you can sleep." Zangan ushered as he collected the empty cups. He lead her up the grand stairs, carved by the finest carpenter even if the dust collected on its ridges. There were pictures on the wall...but of the countryside. The first room they entered had a small twin size bed, with pink bed sheets perfectly laid out over it.

A few notes caught her ears as Zangan touched a couple keys on the grand piano. She looked over to him staring at the dusted keys and looked up at her,

"Not only was your mother a wonderful woamn, but she had a talent for playing musical pieces on this grand piano." he smiled a sad smile and paused, "Sleep well tonight."

"Thank you." she replied and dropped her back pack on the end of the bed. She plopped down and stared about her and then at the walls, her eyes leading back to the piano. So she was a good woman...but she changed sides all because Cloud had hurt her. She fell down upon her temporary bed and stared at the ceiling till sleep conquered her.

Ok another chapter finished. Hoped you liked it. This isn't the end...wait till later!