A/N: Hello again. Sorry for the delay, had to deal with a bout of sinusitis and a bad reaction to medication. And also I'm a dirty liar as I said this would be two part. Well it actually went on longer than I anticipated and there was such a contrast between this flashback and the angst of the present that its going to be three parts. Three, and I promise no more! There are many parallels sprinkled throughout. The last arch will be ready soon. Thank you everyone for your wonderful comments, and thanks for reading!

The bright August sun moved high overhead, orbiting the planet until it was able to peek beneath the brim of 13-year-old Tifa Lockhart's woven sun hat . She sighed heavily. It was bad enough that she couldn't concentrate for all of the noise, now that blazing ball in the sky was deliberately trying to burn out her retinas. Capturing the tip of her hat she pulled it down lower in an effort to hide her face from the sun's prying eye. That was enough to fix that problem, now if only she had a pair of ear plugs to silence that high pitched droning.

"Can't you damn bugs just shut the hell up for five blessed seconds?" she yelled then quickly covered her mouth and checked her surroundings to make sure no one had heard her. That wasn't very becoming language of the mayor's daughter. Not like she hadn't heard that before. Townspeople clicking their tongues and shaking their heads. To be honest she didn't care what they thought about her. But she loved her father, so she tried her best to keep up the appearance of what they thought she should be. He had enough to worry about.

Luckily no one was around to catch her colorful remarks except for the stoic trees, the rolling grass, those damned lovelorn cicadas...and Cloud. The corners of her mouth stretched upward as she saw him beneath the tree line. Yes. Always Cloud. Always close, but never too close. Stubborn, resilient Cloud told by a hundred different people to stay a hundred yards away from his own neighbor. He didn't. And she was glad. It never made any sense to her anyway.

It did cost him, however. He was always berated by lectures and jeering from the other kids and adults alike. He came home with eyes blackened and lip busted when it became too much and he had to release his anger on some kid that pushed his last button with a word or a look. She wanted to yell, wanted to defend him, wanted to wipe the dirt and the blood from his face. But she was faced with her own scoldings and reprimands. Words alien to her vocabulary were thrown at her in an attempt to ward her away from him. Words like miscreant, ruffian, ingrate...stalker. Nothing that ever suited the bright eyed and shy boy from next door. All because of something she couldn't remember. An accident that left a crack in her skull and a permanent hole in her memory.

But across the chasm there was Cloud. The one constant thing in her life. The first set of eyes she focused on when she woke after the accident, eyes that were watching her silently through the window to her room. Since then she knew, regardless of what anyone else said, he wasn't to blame for what happened. He was a little strange perhaps, but it seemed to make him all the more endearing to her. She kept her distance because that was what was expected of her. It was the easiest way to keep from disappointing her father, and to keep Cloud from getting hurt. Though on those quiet evenings outside their bedroom windows, Tifa had tried talking to him. Tried getting him to fill in the gaps of her fractured anamnesis. But he wouldn't speak of it. He'd barely speak at all. So their odd relationship went, and strangely enough she found solace in his quiet and distant company. It was like she had her own personal cloud pulled down from the sky. Something serene and comforting but never quite close enough to touch.

She shook her head. Daydreaming wasn't going to make a mountain guide out of her. Though judging by the dogeared yellow pages of the book in her lap, it didn't seem that she was any closer studying this old tome. Must have been a thousand updates to this book already, but like everything else in Nibelheim, it remained lost to time and the modernization of the world. The girl could only hope that life saving techniques hadn't changed all that much in the last century or so.

"Chapter 2...after asking the person if he/she is okay and receiving no response...then duh, they're probably not okay," she ad-libbed, trying to keep herself amused. "Position victim so they are lying flat of their back on a hard surface. Tilt victim's head back and lift chin to open airway. Listen for any sign of breathing. See diagram 1-A, Section B, page 101."

Tifa flipped towards the back of the book only to find the diagrams were missing. Torn out by someone who obviously just wanted to look at the pictures instead of reading the blasted instructions. She slammed the book down on the ground and threw her hands up in the air in frustration. Why the hell should she even try?

It was then that her attention came back to Cloud. She rubbed her damp brow with a forearm and tilted her hat upward for a better view of the scene in front of her. He was parrying and thrusting with a stick held firmly in his hand like it was the finest sword ever crafted. Perspiration glistened on his shirtless back as his suspenders flapped uselessly unarmed on the sides of his trousers. Tifa giggled as he leaped into the air and drove it into the ground with a wild whoop of triumph. No doubt he had just vanquished his foe. This was further apparent as he tucked an arm to his abdomen and bowed low in salute to the invisible menace. An idea suddenly struck and before she could consider it further, she called out to him.

"Hey Cloud!"

The boy continued on unawares, retrieving his "sword" for his next opponent. The bugs were keeping her voice from reaching him. She tried again.

"Cloud!!"

He turned suddenly and their eyes locked. And that's when she remembered how painfully shy she was when it came to that boy. She swallowed hard, gathered her nerve and continued.

"Come over here!"

Cloud cupped an ear with his hand. "What!?"

"Here!" she yelled and made beckoning motions with her hands. "Come here!"

He looked around, clearly puzzled, then pointed to himself. "Me?"

"No, the other dragon slayer behind you!" She laughed and swore she could feel the heat radiating from the fiery blush crawling up his neck as he looked away from her. Cloud scuffed a foot against the ground and shoved his hands in his pockets, clearly mortified to discover that she had been watching him.

Tifa began to wonder if she had said the wrong thing. It wasn't her intention to embarrass him. Her lips were forming an apology when she saw him pull a handkerchief from his back pocket and wipe the sweat from his face. He returned the cloth and began the trek up the hill towards her.

She fidgeted nervously, heat flushing her own cheeks now as she picked this point to rethink her idea. Cloud was going to think she was a lunatic. Oh gee Tifa is that what you want to do with your life? Guide people up the treacherous old mountain? Yeah that's a booming market, considering there's been what? Five tourists so far this year?

You're an idiot, Lockhart.

"Hey Tifa."

She looked up to find that he'd closed the distance far too quickly for her to lose her nerve and to tell him to never mind. So she offered her best smile and the most eloquent greeting in her repertoire.

"Hey Cloud."

Their eyes met again briefly before both of them looked away, still trapped behind barriers that neither of them could lower. There was much shuffling and fidgeting and clearing of throats before Cloud finally spoke up.

"You...um...wanted to see me?"

His voice cracked and she found it adorable. Even though he was older, he still remained shorter than the other boys in the village. However, puberty did decide to strike his vocal cords and deliver his words in ever changing high and low pitches. As if he wasn't ridiculed enough.

"Cloud...I need a dummy." Well that didn't come out right at all. Brilliant choice of words. The look he gave her said as much and she had to grab his hand to keep him from walking off. "Wait...wait...that's not what I meant!" Tifa took a deep breath to just get everything out in one go before her brain shutdown completely.

"I'm studying to be a mountain guide. I know it sounds crazy, but papa thinks that tourism will pick up after they use the money Shinra donated for renovations. I'll be old enough in a couple of years to take the course. But before I can register I have to be certified in CPR and first aid. You know, in case the altitude causes some old rich guy to keel over with a heart attack. So I picked this book out of the library, but someone has torn out all of the illustrations in the back. And well, I'm a visual person...so...yeah...can you help me?"

There it was. All out. She breathed in, somewhat relieved but mostly humiliated. Cloud for his part just stood there with his head tilted slightly while staring at her. Lazuline irises went in and out of existence as he blinked a couple of times.

"You think it's stupid don't you?" she winced.

"No." he answered quickly, much to her surprise.

"Really?"

"It's not stupid at all."

"You'll help me then?" Her voice became hopeful.

"Um..." Cloud muttered as he glanced around them, scanning the expanse of the horizon. "I don't know if that's such a good idea."

"Town hall meeting," Tifa replied simply. "Papa will be there all afternoon."

He put a hand to his chin and bowed his head as if to ponder his decision further.

"Along with pretty much everyone else in town."

"Well...okay."

The young girl clapped her hands excitedly. "Thanks Cloud!"

"What do you want me to do?"

"Just lie down."

He plopped unceremoniously on the ground a good two feet away from her, the dry grass rustling beneath his weight.

"Ok."

"Cloud?"

"What?"

"You need to be a little closer than that."

"...Oh."

Tifa scooted from her position as he rolled a full turn towards her. There was a stark look of terror adorning his face as he crossed the invisible threshold of the border he'd created for himself. She gave him a reassuring smile even as the butterflies flipped and fluttered wildly in her stomach.

"You know I won't hurt you, right?"

"I know."

"Alright, all you have to do is just lie there and play dead." The boy nodded and closed his eyes.

She flipped open the book and glanced through the steps again. "First, I'm supposed to check and see if you're unconscious." Grabbing his shoulders she gave him a light shake. "Cloud! Can you hear me? Are you okay?"

"Um...yes?" He cracked open an eye.

"No, no you're not supposed to answer. Dead, remember?"

"Sorry."

Delicately she placed a hand to his forehead pressing upward to tilt his head back while nimble fingers aviated beneath his chin. He complies, even though his face has reddened a million shades deeper from the soft touch. Reading the next line she steeled her nerves to lean precariously close to his face, putting her head next to his. His voice penetrated the shell of her ear with an anxious heat as he whispered nervously, "What are you doing now?"

She giggled and rubbed her ear from the tickling sensation. "I was checking to see if you were breathing."

"Oh." he paused, eyes still shut tightly. "You want me to hold my breath?"

"No," Tifa grinned at his dedication. "We'll just use our imaginations, okay?"

"I could do it."

"I know you could. But you're doing fine Cloud, this is a really big help."

"Okay."

"Let's see...your supposed to give chest compressions to keep the blood moving through the victim. 30 chest compressions for every two breaths which equals 100 per minute. Place the heel of one hand on the center of the victim's chest and rest the other hand on top of it." She repositioned herself on her knees so that she was adjacent to his body and followed through the instructions. He immediately stiffened and sucked in air. She locked her arms and settled her weight on top of him. She made it to the count of "One." Pushing her hands down carefully so as not to hurt him.

And stopped.

Forgetting herself and everything else for a moment,she stared at her hands splayed across the slick skin of his chest. She could feel his heart kicking wildly beneath her palm like a snared rabbit trying to break free, struggling and writhing in its ivory cage. The thought made her struggle to swallow her own heart which she was certain had laced up a pair of hiking boots to ascend the expanse of her throat, yodeling the entire way. The droning buzz of the cicadas reached its apex amidst the blood drumming frantically through her ears. Her fingers tingled. There was something foreign and ill-defined by the contact that was now between them. They had crossed yet another boundary in the span of a few minutes. It was new and exhilarating, beautiful...and forbidden.

Tifa let out the breath she had inadvertently been holding, shaking her head to awaken her temporary paralysis. She looked down at Cloud, silently wondering if he had felt any of these strange emotions surging through him. His eyes were clamped tighter and she realized from the lack of movement that the breath he had hitched was still trapped inside.

"Cloud..."

"Breathe!"

She smacked his cheek lightly and he complied to her request, the rush of air from his lungs hitting her in the face before he gasped sharply. "You okay?"

"...Yeah." His voice shook as he licked his lips hesitantly.

"I'm sorry Cloud. Maybe...maybe we should stop."

"No." He opened his eyes to look at her.

"You want to learn this right? You shouldn't quit. Somebody's life may depend on it."

"But..."

"Does the book tell you to stop?"

She glanced at the contents. "No. Just says to keep going until help arrives." Her eyes narrowed at the text. "What if there's no one coming? I mean up there its unlikely anyone could get there in time. Its not like there are any communication signals on the mountain."

He put his hands behind his head and looked towards the sky. "Well...I guess you don't quit then. Not until you're sure."

"Sure of what?"

"You know...that...you've done all you can do...and they're just...gone."

Tifa considered his words and smiled. "That makes sense."

"It does?" He rolled his head on his hands to give her a dumbfounded expression. "Really?" He wasn't used to people agreeing with him.

She giggled. " Yes, really."

They spent the remains of the afternoon looking through the book together. Going through every procedure step by step, with Cloud providing his living illustrations for each one. They laughed and talked as little by little the walls between them crumbled and they became more comfortable. By the time a figure strolled over the hill, they were a breath apart grinning timidly at each other with Tifa's fingers latched onto his nose. The brim of her hat shading his face from the burning sun. She hovered over him as they hesitated on completing the course on mouth to mouth resuscitation. The decision was made for them by a shock of red hair that appeared over her shoulder.

"Great goddess Minerva! What the hell are you doing to that poor Cloud kid, Tifa?" Johnny yelled at the top of his lungs.

Tifa screamed and lost her balance. She fell on top of the blonde before flailing and scrambling off of him in a fury of movements. The color drained from her face as she turned towards the intruder.

"Johnny!"

Cloud meanwhile bolted up from the ground as if he'd been shot. The other boy threw his head back and laughed at the spectacle. "You two should see the looks on your faces!" he guffawed, putting his hands on his hips. "You'd think a meteor just came screaming out of the sky and landed in your laps!"

The boy and girl on the ground shared a nervous glance at each other.

Johnny's face suddenly turned somber. "But seriously...what are you guys doing?"

"Nothing!" Tifa defended. "Cloud was just helping me, that's all."

"Helping you? Well I might be a little backwards, but it didn't look like he was carrying your books or getting your cat out of a tree."

"What's going on Johnny?" Another boy crested the hill to join his comrade.

"That's what I'm trying to find out," the redhead responded.

The other boy looked at the scene in front of them and stiffened. "Strife..."

Cloud's eyes narrowed. "Sorrowitz."

"Did he touch you Tifa?" He pointed furiously at the blonde. "I swear if you've laid a finger on her you little punk, I'm gonna feed you to the wolves."

"How bout I black your other eye?" the older boy countered coolly, popping the knuckles on his right hand.

"Care to try farm boy?"

"Stop it! No one is blacking anyone's eye!" the young girl interjected. "Kyle, Cloud wasn't doing anything wrong...I asked him to help me."

"Which brings me back to my question." Johnny said. "It looked to me like you were either trying to suffocate the guy...or kiss him."

"What?" Kyle stammered.

"I wasn't kissing him!"

"Now Tifa," the redhead continued. "I told you that when you were ready for your first kiss, I would be more than happy to oblige." He put a fist to his chest and bowed nobly.

She rolled her eyes. "Keep dreaming Johnny." Picking the book up off the grass she tossed it in their direction. "Look. I'm studying to be a mountain guide. Before you can sign up for the course you have to be certified in CPR. Cloud was helping me learn the steps. Someone thought it would be funny to tear out all of the diagrams in the back."

"Dude." Kyle peered over Johnny's shoulder. "Is that the book with all the drawings of the naked chick in it?"

The other boy sighed forlornly as he flipped to the back of the book. "It was...till some insensitive pervert decided to steal her away for himself!" He slammed it shut. "I'll bet it was Ackerman! Wait till I get my hands on him! This book is for public viewing!"

Tifa rubbed the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "Did you guys have a purpose in coming out here?"

"Whoa, wait," Johnny said as the realization of her words hit him. "Did you just say you wanted to be a mountain guide?"

"....Yes?"

The bout of laughter from the younger boys made Cloud stir from his silence. He stood up and started to walk towards them, but was stopped short when he felt her grab the hem of his pants.

"That's the funniest thing I've heard in a while!" Johnny wiped at his eyes. "That was a joke right? For the love of Gaia please tell me that was a joke?"

"...It wasn't."

"Tifa...I can see you doing a lot of things around here...but guiding people up the mountain ain't one of them. You actually think the mayor will let his little princess do anything around here besides smile pretty and entertain his guests?"

"It's not his life," she replied sullenly. "It's mine."

"Besides, I can see you going up there, finding something nasty, and here you'd come screaming for daddy, racing down the slope with some monster on your heels."

Tifa stuck her tongue out at the boy.

"And anyway, we all know what happened the last time you tried to go up there." The other boy looked pointedly at Cloud.

"No we don't Kyle!" she shouted. "It was an accident!"

"Take back what you said." Cloud muttered lowly.

"What's that farm boy?"

"Take back what you said about Tifa."

"Cloud...don't. It's okay."

"Whoa now, lets put down the weapons you two." Johnny held up his hands. "There's no need for violence."

"Are you guys finished? Can you go away now?" The girl pleaded.

"If that is your wish, your highness." He bowed.

"Oh for god's sake will you stop that?"

"Fine, fine." Johnny grabbed his friend by the shirt collar and started to drag him away. He was still burning holes into Cloud with his eyes.

"Johnny?"

"Yeah?"

"You won't say anything...will you?"

"Babe, you know my lips are always puckered for you...I mean sealed." He waved fondly while Kyle made a gesture of pointing two fingers to his eyes and then one finger back at Cloud. She sighed deeply as they disappeared over the crest of the hill.

"They're right you know," Tifa said softly. "I don't know why I ever thought I could do this."

"Don't give up, Tifa."

She looked at him as he sat back down beside her. He balanced his elbows on his knees and gave her a small smile. "Don't listen to them. You can do anything you want, long as you keep trying."

He turned his attention down the rolling field towards the forest. "You know the cicadas have to wait 17 years underground to get their one chance to find a mate before they die. And I'm sure you've noticed, they don't give up."

The boy locked eyes with her again. "You remind me of the cicadas."

Tifa wasn't sure how to take that exactly. She wasn't too fond of being compared to those big, red eyed noisy bugs. They revolted her. But she was game, so she decided to bite.

"How's that?"

"You keep going, even when the world is telling you to stop," he stated simply, shrugging his shoulders.

"Cloud...," she started.

"I know you could save me if you had to, I don't doubt that for a second. Because you don't quit. I've never seen you give up on anything."

She smiled widely at him as the tears pin pricked her eyes. The evening bells began chiming in the distance heralding the call for the villagers to return. Cloud stood up and brushed the grass from his body. "I'd better get going. Mom's gonna wonder where I am."

"Thank you Cloud. For helping me, believing in me...for everything." She turned away shyly.

He blushed again and rubbed the back of his neck. "You're welcome." He turned to walk away, jutting his arms through his suspenders he hoisted them up onto his shoulders.

"Bye Cloud."

"Bye Tifa."

She watched him stride up towards Nibelheim. Noticing there was a slight bounce and an unseen confidence in his step. After a few feet he stopped and turned around, the smile still plastered on his face.

"Tifa?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you."

She chuckled. "For what?"

"For saving me."

Her face faltered as he turned back and climbed further towards Nibelheim. The sun casting an orange glow to his unruly locks of hair. "You don't quit, right Tifa?" He yelled over his shoulder, his voice rising above the singing insects. Tifa nodded before he disappeared over the hill into the distance.

"That's right Cloud," she whispered."You don't quit."