12.29.06 Version 1.2 Data File: Dawn of Beginnings
Data File 0.1: Chapter 1
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16 years ago...
Cloud felt wise about his decision, and thoroughly thought it over before taking any action. He loved Tifa now more than ever, especially since he lost everybody else special to him. He didn't love that ninja Yuffie... Imagine how many nights he'd be up if he married her, and how hyper she'd get, and how she'd talk about her gross dreams of having enough kids to build their own little anti-ShinRa army. Tifa was mature, she was beautiful, and it was time to move on now that his true love died. He'd never forget her... He put flowers at the Forgotten Capital and prayed at the temple for her, and he felt like this was the correct decision.
He came down on one knee, and flipped open the satin black box. Inside, a golden ring with a green Mako crystal - it was actually the healing Materia his true love used - surprised Tifa when he said those lovely words, "Tifa, will you marry me?" A hundred times, yes! Tifa did not just hug him, she tackled him to the ground, and they kissed like holy heck. Let's just say that ninja Yuffie was pretty ticked off, and said they were disturbing her view of the beautiful city, even though it was a pile of rubble - all that was left of Midgar.
Cloud and Tifa were engaged for six months, where they continued 'private and extremely personal business'. Yuffie called it 'sex', but Tifa punched her out each time she mentioned it. All of their friends were glad that they were together... Cloud and Tifa, to be brought together in holy matrimony, for the rest of their lives. The sooner they were together for the rest of their lives, the sooner life would be over with, which means Cloud could see her after he died... Her. The woman he truly loved. Cloud never intended of telling Tifa his plans, but as their wedding day approached, he decided to get one deed done...
"Tifa and I are getting married today, this romantic sunset..." Cloud said. He was at the Forgotten Capital, sitting by the cool holy waters, and looking at his reflection. "I'm not sure if I'm doin' the right decision, but... Ever since you died, I thought my life was over. Now I've discovered that my childhood friend, Tifa, she's a nice woman. She'd make a great mother, a great companion, plus she's been my best friend since I was a little kid, and we know each other pretty well... So who else to spend the rest of my life with? Doesn't mean I won't spend the rest of my afterlife with her... That'd be with you, and you know that. I gotta do what I gotta do. I won't waste my life any longer. I'm lettin' you go, 'cause I love you... Good-bye."
He placed another rose by her grave, and this one blossomed into a beautiful red lily; grass sprouted around it, and the lake lit up with plantlife. Cloud and Tifa got married at Nibelheim, their childhood home, where they had married a year after Cloud's announcement that he wanted to get engaged, meaning their wedding was fifteen years ago. It was a year before Tifa screamed with shock, and Cloud had to come home from work; they were traveling around the Planet as mercenaries, so he had to arrive at the little inn she was staying at Wutai, while he was taking care of business with monsters.
Cloud was wondering why Tifa was apologizing so much, and screaming as if Sephiroth had revived once again. "Honey, I'm pregnant!" Well... that was a little bold, but cut to the chase. Cloud fainted. Yeah...
The twins were born accidentally in Kalm, a small quaint town, while Cloud was on a mission, Tifa reported that she was going to give birth. It had been over nine months, which was odd and extremely rare. At a quiet inn, Tifa gave birth to two healthy identical twin boys. Cloud and Tifa had to name them something appropriate, and something they liked... There was a blonde baby and a brunette baby, perfect matches for Cloud and Tifa's personalities. Cloud named the blonde son, Suna, because it meant 'gold' in the Cetra language. Tifa named the brunette son, Sora, because it meant 'sky' in the Cetra language.
Their birth took place fourteen years ago... Strictly after the day they were born, Cloud was injured in a monster battle, and Tifa feared for his life. The monsters raided Kalm, and attacked the room Tifa was in. She couldn't hide the twins, they were a day old, and any quick movement might snap their fragile nerves. She was weak from yesterday, giving birth to twins, but she guarded the crib that they shared. She wouldn't move... Even if the monsters killed her, she wouldn't move.
Cloud arrived at the inn, horrified to find Tifa half-collapsed in the room... Why was she fighting? She was in no shape to fight, she had to recover! Cloud dragged down the monsters with his hands, and stabbed them verociously. Tifa fainted, lying beside the crib, but she was breathing. Cloud drove the monsters out of the room, and out of the town. He got so angry, he used all of his strength and power, so he was too weak to make it back to the inn... What about Tifa? She had fought all of her strength protecting their twin sons.
From that moment on, Cloud decided, he would never tell his sons that he was a hero of the Planet. Everything would be kept secret... They moved back to the quiet town of Nibelheim; Cloud and Tifa knew that not much news was spread in a tiny town like this, which would be convenient for them. He put every single piece of evidence that he was a hero in his closet, including his Buster Sword, even though it was so hard to watch it disappear behind the heavy doors. He locked it up, nailed it shut, and put up warning signs. He hadn't seen any of his hero evidence since that moment fourteen years ago. The twins grew up... And they never knew that Cloud was a hero. He did not regret the decision he made.
Life is all about decisions... Some are for the better, some are for the worse... However, the decisions you choose might benefit you and might destroy you. Sometimes you hope that your decisions will be wise, especially if you've got a family to raise...
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It was rather silent this morning. Tifa wondered why the twins hadn't aroused yet. She shrugged, and tied back her dark hair, which cascaded down to her hips like a waterfall of dark chocolate. She wore a black leather crop-top, which exposed her stomach, and black leather shorts that came with matching boots. Her dark hair was beautiful and comforting, and it perfectly suited her crimson-tinted hazel eyes. She looked just as young and lively as she did fifteen years ago, before the twins were born. She owned her own bar here in Nibelheim, newly opened when they moved in here when she was pregnant with the twins.
She sighed, wiping the greasy counters, serving early-bird customers. She'd beg them to hurry up; she had twins to feed. Finally, her hero entered the room... Cloud Strife stood silently at the door archway, looking impressed at the immense amount of customers cramped into the tiny space, all here for Tifa's to-die-for cooking and awesome drinks. He gave Tifa a soft smile, and she looked back at him, almost shouting so he could hear her meek voice through the loud ruckus of hungry people, "Darling, you're home!"
"I'll take over for you..." Cloud said. He wrapped one arm around her waist. She smiled, put one hand on his cheek, and gave him a quick "good morning" kiss. He smiled, patted her shoulder, and watched as she left the room. He sighed, and took her position at the bar. After living fifteen years with Tifa, she taught him several things of managing a bar... Cooking happened to be the most expertise option here. Cloud didn't mind cooking, he just minded the drunk men in his property that sometimes were hitting on Tifa. He definitely did not like his twin sons entering the room at this busy early-morning time, especially since the smell of coffee was strong. It burns the nose of a young teenager.
It was an adult world in there, as Tifa entered the personal kitchen in their house. Even though they provided a bulletproof door from the bar to the house connection bridge, the noise was still very audible. They put in a bulletproof door after a major shoot-out when the twins were four years old. The incident had never been repeated, but better safe than sorry. Plus, it was her flesh and blood she was talking about! She wanted to protect that.
"Tifa, there's somethin' I wanna talk to you about." Cloud said. He walked through the doors, and they looked at each other in a glance that almost seemed like a show-down glaring contest. The first thoughts that went through Tifa's mind was... Why is Cloud out here? and Isn't he supposed to be helping out at the bar?
"What is it?" Tifa found herself saying. It wasn't really a time to ask questions. She was just wondering what Cloud had to say at this time. He walked to her and came nearly as close as possible. Tifa looked down, staring at the black leather belt worn around Cloud's waist, and she started blushing... Why was she blushing!? Cloud looked to the side, with cool-looking narrow eyes that emitted a green glow from its blue texture, and then he observed Tifa's red-hazel eyes. She blinked with curiosity. "Why are you staring at me, Cloud?"
Cloud gave a "heh", and ran his black leather-gloved hand through his blonde, spiky hair. He gave a mischievious smile at Tifa, which made her think of the word 'bishounen', also known as 'bishie'. Cloud was pretty hot, very handsome, the man of her dreams, her gorgeous husband, and the father of her twins. He finally answered back, "Why are you staring at me, Tifa?"
Tifa laughed. It was funny how Cloud sometimes tried to avoid conversations, even though he was the one that started them. Cloud was always like that... Even as a little kid. Tifa knew this because they always played together, and whenever their parents would ask if they would get married someday, they'd both reply with a "Ew, gross! We're just friends!"
"Well..." Cloud said. "Y'know I told you never to talk about hero business again, right?"
Tifa nodded. "You locked everything up and --" Her eyes widened. "I hope the twins aren't listening in to this."
"They're not." Cloud said. "It's before nine, and they're fast asleep."
"Okay, good." Tifa sighed with relief. She smiled back at Cloud. "Okay, so what were you gonna say about hero business...?"
"Well..." Cloud began again. "I told you never to talk about it again, but we have'ta talk about it again RIGHT NOW, Tifa."
"Right now?" Tifa asked.
"Yeah, now." Cloud replied.
"Uh... okay?" Tifa said. Cloud was acting rather strange, nervous, and very alert. It was almost as if he was intently scanning the room for any little danger that would pop out. His eyes were darting back and forth, and he'd react to every little noise, which was annoying since there was a lot of noise coming from the bar. Without any sense of warning, Cloud grabbed Tifa by the wrist, and literally dragged her outside. "Hey! Hey! Cloud!" she called out in effort to get his attention.
Cloud didn't respond, and just kept running. Tifa tried to figure out where they were going, but it was no use. Hey, at least she tried, and a girl can try her best to get her husband's attention when he's running at twenty-five miles-per-hour and if not faster, dragging her by the wrist, kicking up dirt, and scaring the heck out of passerbys, right? They arrived at the entrance to Mount Nibel, which was a good twenty minutes walk, but at Cloud's speed they got there in ten minutes.
"Cloud! What the he -" Tifa said, or at least tried to until Cloud held up his hand as if asking her to be silenced. "Why -" Cloud then put his index finger to his mouth as if to ask her to "shh". "Cloud...?"
Cloud had a very serious look on his face. He finally looked at Tifa and said, "Nobody's here, so I can tell you."
Tifa looked irritated. "You dragged me at twenty-five miles-per-hour, if not faster, by the wrist, kicking up dirt, and scared the heck out of passerbys to Mount Nibel... to a desolate place, rid of all humanity except for us, just to talk to me!?"
"Yeah." Cloud said. "To talk to you about somethin' serious."
"... Hero stuff?" Tifa frowned and crossed her arms when Cloud nodded. "I don't get it... First time in fourteen years you've brought this up, y'know." She whispered under her breath, "Men these days... Can't do a thing with 'em!"
"Tifa, listen to me." Cloud said. "I'm at the state of shock right now."
"What...?" Tifa said softly. "Did the impossible happen?"
"Yes." Cloud looked scared. That was the first time in her life that Tifa had ever seen Cloud scared. He was never scared as a child, he was more bored and serious, although he did get scared once, and his facial expression was just a startle, not an actual scare. He looked terrified. He looked like he'd seen demons rise above the ground and threaten to destroy the Planet and all humanity.
"..." Tifa was silent. There was nothing to say! What was the impossible that happened? So many impossibilites...
"He's alive." Cloud gasped.
Tifa's eyes widened. Suddenly, without warning or any chance of resisting, Tifa let out a blood-curdling, ground-shaking, ear-piercing, window-shattering, monkey-killing, loud-and-long scream. Cloud plugged his ears... Okay, this meant she knew who he was referring to. "The twins!" Tifa shouted, and began taking off toward the town. "What're we gonna do if he's attacking the house, and the twins --!"
"Tifa!" Cloud shouted. He instantly grabbed her forearm, and she found herself unable to move. Cloud's grip was strong and bone-crushing, and her forearm was going numb. The only way she could take off was if she left her arm behind, meaning Cloud ripped it off... She was going to take that chance. She began tugging and pulling with all her strength. "Tifa, calm down!" Cloud said again. "Duncha wanna know how I found out that he's alive?"
"... Yes!" Tifa instantly said. "How did you find out?"
"Yuffie." Cloud shrugged. "Apparently, there's trouble in Wutai."
"Oh no." Tifa said. She looked back at the town, which looked like a mere speck in the distance. She glared at Cloud and said, "We're gonna evacuate the twins, and take them somewhere safe. Nibelheim is too close to Wutai... Much too close."
"But... then they'll discover we're heroes when we go to seek the problem!" Cloud said.
"So be it, Cloud!" Tifa shook her head. "They are fighters, warriors, heroes... It's in their blood by both of their parents, they have every right to know their fate, and they'll be heroes just like us someday!"
"Tifa, no!" Cloud growled as she took off. "They nearly died that day, and so did you --!" He hissed. "I promised myself... I'd never... resume hero work..." Tifa was already gone. "Fine, then, Tifa! Evacuate the twins! Freak 'em out!" Silence came.
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Author's Note:
Phew! Yesterday, I worked on this chapter from 1 PM to 8 PM with a few breaks in-between. I was glad how this chapter turned out until I noticed... That's too much information crammed into one, so I put it through a major re-write by breaking down the chapters. I decided the twins wouldn't find out that their father's a hero on chapter 1... They'll find out later on, and we'll find out who 'he' is. Yes, today I finally decided to break it down after chapter 1 draft production was finished. Hope this version's better... especially since the rest of the info will be spread out through chapters. Constructive criticism is STILL very much needed.
Oh yeah, guess what! When I put up this chapter yesterday, there were 21 hits so far on the story... 21 hits on the prologue! Then today, I checked it out, and I got 74 hits... 74 hits! 54 of them focused on the prologue! Oh, and I got 2 reviews... They're people I already know, but I gotta give HUGE credit to them! I thank them, they're the reason I'm never bored, and they're really close to me (plus, very encouraging!). They are... The Only Tomorrow and Xigbar Rules... I love you guys! Here are the comments I have on the reviews...
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The Only Tomorrow, a huge fan of Cloud X Aeris and my sibling, said:
"omg! I thought this story would be kinda boring. But now that I read it, it's so awesome! Please write more!! I was trying to imagine Cloud and Tifa getting married... and now I like Tifa X Cloud pairing! Maybe you should make a love-y scene with them, and the twins would say, "... O.o.. mayb we should leave the room..." XD
"o.o... and make it all cool when the twins figure out Cloud's past... and make Cloud act all cool! I hope they carry on Cloud's legacy! O.o... and maybe work at the bar... XD"
My response:
"Yeah, I actually also thought this story would be kinda boring. Now that I'm writing it, I'm liking it! Don't worry, lil M (nickname), I'll write more!! I also had a hard time imagining Cloud and Tifa getting married... Especially since in the game, they're more like friends, Tifa said so herself. But in Advent Children, Tifa urges Cloud to move on and forget Aeris, too, remember? She tells him to stop living in a dream. And you know what? You've inspired me. I WILL write a love-y scene with Cloud and Tifa, and the twins WILL freak out! You genius, you.
"I can't wait to get to the part with when the twins figure out Cloud's past. It will be all cool, I promise! Will they carry on Cloud's legacy? We'll see... And yeah, they manage the bar for Tifa time-to-time XD"
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Xigbar Rules, my best friend in the whole wide world, said:
"Hehehehe i'm addicted to your story Pris! (don't kill me ..)
you know who I am... COUGH stormy COUGH
xD xD
"I loved the story! and damnit... I can NEVER put THAT much detail in my story.
"...your gunna be famouse some day.
"Hugs Sora he's adorable ;;"
My Response:
"Yo Stormy!! Thanks for getting addicted! XD XD I won't kill you for it... just hug you . Me, famous? OO I wish. Yes, Sora's adorable... Keep on reading, my friend, it gets a lot better... THANKS FOR THE REVIEW!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!! . You rule!"
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I hope people really do like this story... Especially since it'll go on for a very long time as a huge series. I'll always answer questions here, and I'm constantly updating, I'm obsessed with updating, and I have nothing to do but update. This is my only story I'm working on. I promised myself not to work on another story until I complete one, otherwise all my stories will be incompletions, and that'd suck. Here are a few comments in case you're wondering...
Cloud married Tifa since Aeris died... sorry Cloud X Aeris fans... I happen to be a Cloud X Aeris fan myself, but I decided that Tifa would actually make a better mother than Aeris. Also, Aeris died... so Tifa's the only live person capable of marrying Cloud. Do you recognize Sora? He's from Kingdom Hearts, yes, I'm aware of that. Suna is a character I own, who's the youthful spitting image of Advent Children Cloud.
Also, originally in the chapter 1 draft that I put up before, the chapter was based on Tifa and the twins... and Cloud came later, where they attacked the random guy at the taco bell drive-thru... That's how they found out that Cloud's a hero. Then Suna runs away... yup. Well, I decided to break it down, and who knows... Suna might and might not run away.
Originally, Cloud was going to have just one son, Sora. But then I decided that wasn't good enough... And I certainly can't imagine Cloud OR Tifa with a daughter... ew. So I decided that one boy wasn't enough, so I made Cloud and Tifa have twin sons. I'm really happy with the outcome. However, I'll be constantly editting. Any typo that's spotted will be DELETED, and redone. Whee, this is fun to make a flawless story.
I included the entire past and marriage, although there's a lot more the twins will reveal for us. Expect to see the twins in the next chapter... and a lot of randomness. Randomness is what I do... I'll delete it if there's too many complaints, though, such as immaturity, even though I specialize in it... ha-ha.
If there's anything missing or that needs to be added, please review, comment, and I need need NEED constructive criticism. I thrive and live off of constructive criticism. I am in desperate need to know how good or bad I'm doing, or what I'm missing. Please tell me if this is a good story or if I should crawl under my bed and never write again.
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