„So you're going to the festival tonight?" Aerith rested her chin on her curled fists, eyes opened wide and innocent and kept locked on the frame of the other girl in the room.

Tifa was currently standing on the tip of her toes, on one of the high stools, looking for something in the storage units that were right below the ceiling. She was set on cooking a rather fancy meal today, and with the festival taking place she wanted to make it special. The inhabitants of Edge continued the old Midgar tradition of having a feast in the end of the winter season, with live music and dancing in the market place, some games for the children and a firework display in the end.

"The kids want to go…"

"All three of them?" the was a cooing sound in the soft voice and she smiled as Tifa threw her an amused look over her shoulder.

"Hush you, if Marlene overhears you I have no idea to whom she will repeat it to! I already had Barret giving me the looks for Uncle Zack I'll let you know, and I still haven't found out how she came up with that one…"

"I told you Tifa, tried to warn you…" Aerith smiled, as the bartender wrinkled her nose slightly.

"I'm not complaining you know… Troublesome as he is, he keeps me entertained during the days, when Cloud's away on his deliveries"

"Entertained, huh….?"

"It's still snowing outside Aerith. All the children running around , throwing snowballs, building forts and such…? It would be pretty boring inside with them gone all day long, and with Cloud being on the road. It can get .. empty and lonely here" Tifa left out a sigh, resting her forehead against one of the cabinets.

"Oh Tifa, I'm so sorry" the Cetra's cupped hands pressed to her chest, more of a habit than the need of actually praying right now and she slipped out of her chair and walked up "I know it had to be hard hard, and I'm so sorry I wasn't here for you…"

"But you were. You always were…" she allowed herself a soft smile before changing the subject " So are you going to the festival tonight?"

Aerith shuffled her feet lightly, a pinkish blush appearing on her cheeks as she nodded gently. Tifa threw her an amused glance, one brow raised slightly.

"Well… I am planning to go" she stammered slightly on her words, the action so unlike her.

Why, oh why did she had to blush right now….? The Cetra brushed off some invisible dust of her dress, and met the amused look.

Tifa couldn't help herself and grinned under her nose. She wondered when Aerith and Cloud would just admit openly into having a more intimate relationship then just being friends. After their trip to Costa for vacation the air between the two got so heavy it wasn't a surprise that the gentle Cetra was all edgy and jumpy. It was rather cute to see her all flushed and giddy.

"So… Marlene's all better now?"

"Yeah… she's given me quite the scare at first, you know, but as soon as Barret came she got back to health in record time"

"Heard Zack helped you out. And some gossip about you starting a hotel here…?" green eyes sparkled.

"Where do people get these ideas?? I let Vincent sleep over and suddenly the whole of Edge tries to get a room here!"

"Well, look here, my favorite flower girl is in!" a cheery voice interrupted the peaceful atmosphere of the kitchen.

"Hey Zack" Aerith smiled brightly as he gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head appearance "Heard you're taking really good care of Tifa nowadays?"

The martial artist turned her head lightly, her hands still elbow-deep in the cupboard, as Zack chuckled making his way towards the fridge.

"As much as I let him" the bartender said flatly.

"I try at least, it sometimes gets a little hard between flying glasses and bartenders throwing her customers out" he pulled out a cold pancake and stuffed it in his mouth "I just sit there and look all mighty, unless of course she needs someone to show her where her place is. That's when the real action begins!"

"I TOLD you Tifa! He's good for nothing ,always up to something and steps on flowers!"

"Hey at least I look good!"

The brunette gave out a short chuckle, that soon changed into a grunt as she tried to pull out something that was blocking her access to the pot she was looking for, both sets of bright eyes fixed on her. Keen on getting out the missing cookery equipment (she had a reputation to live up to after all and Aerith stayed for dinner), she still managed to catch in the corner of an eye how Zack pulled out a few more pancakes and literally devoured them in a blink.

"Got it…whoa!"

The old kettle suddenly came loose, and Tifa found herself falling backwards, her feet loosing contact with the chair. She closed her eyes and managed to prepare herself for the bolt of pain she was about to feel in the radius between her backside and her head.

She only heard a soft "PLOP!" sound and Aerith's gasp.

But the pain never came. Instead, she felt two strong arms catch her, press her into soft and warm material that smelled like her own washing powder. Hold her so close she could hear the other person's heart beat in the same fast rhythm as hers.

Her eyes fluttered open, slightly scared and wide like those of a caught deer, looking straight into dazzling blue eyes mere inches apart. Those eyes shone with fear right now, same kind that surely had to be reflected in her own.

Zack…

A somewhat sweet, yet unnerving feeling rose at her very core, before she promptly ignored it and told herself it was just because of the fall she almost took. You felt like this before ,a little voice inside of her head whispered, but she brushed it aside, as always when it appeared. That was before, she mentally scolded herself, still doing nothing. She ought to cough or to say something, that much she knew, but she suddenly found herself unable to look away right now, seeing how violet mixed into sky blue only to blossom into the poisonous green in Zack's eyes. And she knew that look, even if she pushed away all the memories which involved it. As she saw the fear in the dazzling depths already changing into something very different…

Then the old kettle, the main cause of all this, fell on his head.

With a loud hiss coming from the usually smiling lips, the strange moment was gone, and Tifa felt solid ground beneath her legs, Zack's hands flying to his head to inspect the sure to form bump there.

"Oh gods, Zack, I'm so sorry" she immediately picked up a small cloth and made a rush towards the sink, dampening it in ice cold water.

"It's ok…" he muttered under his breath, picking up the half-eaten pancake he dropped just seconds earlier.

"Let me see that"

Aerith scratched the tip of her nose slightly, hiding her soft grin from their eyes. They made an awfully cute scene she decided, Zack with his knees bent lightly so the smaller girl could see the forming bump and dab the cold cloth gently on it. There was genuine guilt swimming in the depths of Tifa's eyes as her fingers treaded jet black hair, blue eyes squinting with discomfort every now and then as the pale tips brushed against the broken skin.

The bartender was really careful in her moves, her touches soft and gentle, yet she did not hesitate even once to smack his hand as he tried to eat the pancake from the floor.

Tifa was right.

Zack sure did keep her entertained during the days.

"So Tifa what will you wear tonight?" The flower girl asked, sitting on the clean counter, her boots tapping lightly against the cupboard as she swung them lightly, hands neatly placed on her thighs.

"What?" crimson eyes blinked from above a mass of black head.

"For the festival of course" green eyes sparkled slightly "You HAVE to wear something for that event!"

"What festival?" Zack muttered under his nose, playing with the fingers in his lap, as he felt the throbbing pain on his head come and go, like in rolling waves of discomfort and numbness

"Well Tifa?"

"I'm not… wearing anything special…"

"WHAT festival?? Hey that hurts…"

"You remember the Midgar festival held annually?" Aerith chirped "Well it's being held here!"

"Does it look bad?" Zack murmured to Tifa "I always liked that festival…we're going?"

"Yes you are" the Cetra swung her legs lightly.

"The skin broke, and it bled a little" the brunette said in the same time "Other than that it's ok I guess…"

"You should kiss and make it better"

All three turned around their head so fast that there were three little snaps heard, and all three winced slightly at the sudden pain in their necks.

Marlene, with her face barely visible from between her warm cap and scarf, stood in the kitchen doorway all flushed and covered in snow.

"What did you just say?" Zack said, his voice slightly strained.

"Papa always says that when I'm hurting" she said "So maybe you should do the same… or wait till Papa comes back with Cloud so maybe he'll help you!" there was a face splitting grin on the child's lips.

The image of Barret kissing the top of Zack's head and the possible reaction of the younger man popped into Tifa's head. It was suddenly too much and she made a mad dash towards the stairs, one hand pressed to her mouth, sock-clad feet making little noise on the wood. There was a slam heard upstairs and something that reminded them of a muffled howl.

"Oh chucklepufs!" the little girl sighed, turning around "I guess that means no sandwiches until proper lunch!" she ran away, her little feet tapping on the floor, already yelling her foster-brother's name.

The evening was a cold one, yet despite the fact it seemed like all people of Edge have gathered in the market, round the reconstructed Meteor Monument. The steel scaffoldings and modernized buildings were all decorated with hundreds of amber lights that illuminated the darkening sky with golden hues. Everyone was there – street vendors, cotton candy makers, musicians, comedians…

Aerith pulled a very reluctant Cloud behind her, the blond mumbling something about being tired, but as suspected it fell on deaf ears and the flower girl was all excited and bubbling with the urge to squeeze out as much as she could of the colorful event. Her green eyes were all starry and shining, and her wide smile not once seemed to falter and Cloud came to realize that maybe it wouldn't be that bad that she had such a firm hold on his hand.

Denzel was neatly seated on Zack's shoulders, looking around with mouth slightly opened. It was his first festival in which he could participate fully, for once not down with high fever or squirming in pain. He would point to some building and decorations all the time, asking the man that carried him millions and questions and not even waiting for an answer.

Marlene was holding hands both with Barret and Tifa, sometimes swinging happily, sometimes skipping, never taking a normal step. Her cheeks were flushed and she chatted away, her father looking at her tenderly from time to time.

His eyes however, were mostly focused on the spiky haired youth in front of them.

It's been three weeks since they all came back from their vacation in Costa del Sol. And while Barret saw how much she and Cloud needed a break, he also felt the strange tension that wasn't there before. It was a kind of angered frustration, so many times surfacing in Zack's eyes. And a pained resolve in Tifa's and that was exactly the thing Barret didn't want to see.

"He's been givin' ya trouble?" the dark skinned man finally asked.

Merlot eyes turned to him, slightly dazed as their owner was somewhere away with her thoughts.

"Sorry?"

"Spike's hedgehog friend"

"Barret, he has a name…" Tifa scolded him gently "I know you disapprove of our current living conditions, but you could at least call him properly"

"Spike number two that ok for ya?"

"Oh for heaven's sake…" she sighed heavily.

"Uncle Zack is nice" Marlene looked up at her father "He needs you to…"

"Marlene, don't you want to run to Denzel now?" the bartender asked quickly, inwardly horrified of what the little girl could say that would get her into any trouble "You wanted to go to that magic show"

"Right!" a wide smile blossomed on pouty lips "Denzel..! Denzel!"

And off she went. And if Tifa could ,she would give herself a nice pat at the back.

"He needs me to do what?"

"Forget it, you don't really want to know"

"I'm serious Teef, if that punk is up to anything funny I'll…"

"It really is ok Barret. He keeps me up on my toes as much as Denzel and Marlene do, but it is fun to have him around…" her voice suddenly was drowned by the loud music as one of the bands present in the market started to play a lively song.

She couldn't help but grin as she saw Aerith drag Cloud into the middle of the market, the flower girl looking absolutely brilliant and the blonde awfully flushed. Some things sure didn't change, she thought, as her Nibelheim friend was still obviously infatuated by the Cetra, who caused him to stutter on his words and get all nervous.

"Wha'cha thinking about so intensely, hm?" they came to a stop and Barret ruffled her hair a little, as she pocketed her hands. Zack was only a few feet away, his face full of child-like glee, blue eyes sharp around the edges but shining.

"Cloud and Aerith" she said with a smile.

"You ok with that?"

"Of course, why shouldn't I be?" crimson eyes widened slightly for a moment.

"You and Spikes had quite a history… With you always believing in him, supporting him.."

"Isn't that what ALL friends do?" she threw him a suspicious look, then turned her attention back to the dancing couples.

"Well, hate to break it to ya lass, but we almost got to make bets whether you loved him or not" he grumbled, obviously ashamed of himself.

"Who got the bet that I did?" she grinned, obviously not moved by the fact that she was a speculation subject.

"That bloody depressive vampire twerp, why?"

"Barret I … " she took a deep breath, as talking about her own feelings probably was sometimes still as difficult a task for her as it was for Cloud… with the small exception that she actually understood them "I loved Cloud. And I still do, and probably always will"

"Then…"

"Let me finish" she cut him off, a determined light in her eyes as she looked up, the stars twinkling in the ink sky and reflecting in the merlot depths "I know Cloud loves me. And I know he loves Aerith, but those are completely different kinds of love. And the same goes for me… And I will always support him, no matter what. It might have been romantic back in the old days, when he left Nibelheim even if we barely understood what we felt." Her eyes softened as she spotted them in the dancing crowd "It's different now"

"I don't get ya Teef… but .. lemme say this, that if I see one tear slip…"

"Don't worry Barret" she grinned at him "We're going to be ok"

"As ya say… now, I'll gotta find my lil' girl and offer her a real dance!" Barret gave her a quick hug and disappeared in the crowd.

Tifa smiled softly, as he saw the bulky man picked up his little girl and twirl her in his arm, a pearly laughter of the child heard even over the music. Then she noticed Denzel twirling Lini around, a blush on the boys face, before her eyes once again found the flowing couple of pink and blue.

Funny, she never realized Cloud knew how to dance.

She suddenly felt the little hair on her neck rise, an evident sign of someone watching her. It wasn't completely unpleasant, yet in unnerved her, making her fumble with her hands inside her pockets.

It happened a lot lately. And she wasn't sure she could take it much longer.

"Hey you" Zack's arm brushed lightly against her shoulder as he came up, his eyes locked on the dancing crowd.

"You heard, didn't you?"

"Was hard not to… " he looked down at her, noticing the soft way her lips curved, and decided not to dwell on the subject "So…"

"Hmm…?" she turned to look at him, one hand outstretched in an inviting manner.

"Dance with me" and there was that grin again.

"I…" Tifa bit her lower lip slightly "No, I don't think so"

"Come on Teef, I never been turned down for my dancing skills, so please don't start a new trend here"

"Thank you Zack, but really I'd rather skip this…" she was cut off when he moved in front, both of his hands placed steady on her shoulders.

"What is it?"

Tifa blinked, her face tilted upwards, her eyes wide with surprise. She was already used to Zack being completely opposite to what she was usually dealt with, walking around with his heart on his sleeve, easy smiles and cheerful air around him. She was used to him giving her a hard time, asking exactly those questions she didn't want to answer. What she wasn't used to however, was when that openness was right there in her face, making her feel all tense and edgy, her defenses rising without realization and when she knew she would answer him sooner or later. She could handle grief, despair, crushed hopes and broken dreams, she could support and push people, give them something to lean on and to fall back onto. But she alone couldn't do that. She couldn't allow herself to do that..

Especially now, when she felt her complaints and protest fall on deaf ears, and his eyes filling her vision.

"Tifa?"

"Sorry" she shook her head slightly, trying to ignore the strange panic like feeling that started to rise deep in the pits of her stomach.

"So will you?" he looked very puppy like right now, with big eyes and tilted head.

"I can't dance" it came pass her lips quickly, before she managed to stop herself, and she felt heat rise to her cheeks as he gave her an incredulous look.

Apparently, it was not only in Costa where she couldn't keep her mouth in check. Tonight, however, it also included making herself look like a klutz, judging by the incredulous look he gave her right now.

"You're kidding, right?"

Long tresses danced around her shoulders, their tips brushing against his palms as Tifa shook her head.

"I'm a fighter, not a dancer…" that flush just got stronger, as her mumble barely reached his ears, her eyes focused on the snowy ground beneath their feet.

One of those hands left their resting place and she felt one finger tilt her head up.

"I'll show you" he offered with a small smile, reaching for her hands.

"No, no, thank you Zack…"

Tifa suddenly found herself being pulled away from the crowd, into the brink of a shadowed alley that had just enough light not to trip over each other , but it was dim enough not to be spotted by anyone else.

He guided her left hand to his shoulder, her fingers all tingly as they brushed against the soft fabric of his shirt there, the warmth of his body radiating through it. Her right one was gently held slightly to the side, her small palm literally drowning in his bigger one. A steady, solid warmth at the very base of her back, as he pulled body closer, not too much, not too little, just enough to feel each other.

"Zack I don't think…"

"Just move with me, ok?" he poked the top of her head with his nose, feeling her back as tense as a twig ready to snap.

Tifa could feel every single muscle in her body all stiff and tight, that hand at the small hollow of her back burning her skin. Dancing never was Tifa's thing. It was the closeness and that peculiar intimacy that really freaked her out. Now more than ever.

She stepped on his foot as he pulled her gently with him.

"I'm sorry, I…"

"Come on, I don't bite" those blue eyes twinkled with mirth "You can relax"

He never thought someone could be so tense… Zack wondered briefly if even her fingers, those pale long fingers curled around his, were as stiff. He could see that her teeth were clenched, the sharp angle of her jaw bone perfectly visible even in the dim light.

"Remember the first time we fought in your backyard?" he said, leaning slightly and his lips mere inches from the soft tip of her ear.

"Yes, what about it?"

"You used to dance back then…" his thumb moved gently at the hollow of her back in a circular motion "So light and swift on the fresh snow, dodging my attacks with great ease and grace"

"It was a fight" Tifa protested " You know, dodge, attack, retreat, punch… it's so much easier" her back loosened up slightly at the warmth and the softness of his touch.

"It's the same here…look" he stopped her gently "When I attack, you dodge…" he took a step forward, and she took one back "Pivot… back…"

His fingers kept brushing her back, slowly causing her to relax and she actually found this rather nice. There were those soft spoken commands washing over her ear, and she felt at peace pressed against his warm frame. Zack was right, in a way it was a fight… Not a bloody or tiring one, but more subtle and complicated. And a one that cost her much more than any physical one she's ever been in.... Sure she did step on his feet a couple of times more, and sometimes he swirled her around a little bit too quickly and she would stumble lightly, but when he would pull her back to himself gently, her frame fitting nicely in his arms, she felt flashes of child like joy.

The music then abruptly stopped, all dancing couples in the market coming to a halt, and looking around with surprise. She found herself pressed close against him, eyes locked and breaths coming out in heavier puffs than they should…

"Thanks" Tifa smiled up at the taller man, slipping her hand out of his, taking one step back, already putting some distance between them.

Zack shook his head lightly, a small smile on his lips and an amused glint in his eyes.

"You're terrible, Tifa" he allowed himself to brush her cheek with the back of his hand.

"I told you I can't dance" slender shoulders shrugged as she wrapped her arms around her, feeling slightly colder than just a moment ago.

"I wasn't talking about that" that glint vanished and those blue orbs became more serious.

Plush lips formed a thin line as crimson eyes were turned towards the black sky. Before she even thought of any reply to that, colorful, fiery flowers blossomed on the starry canvas, accompanied by smoke and cheers of the people in the market.

Tifa watching the beautiful display in the night sky, while Zack watched her.

He watched her a lot lately.

She was a handful, that stubborn bartender he came to live with. He watched her eyes flicker with the brilliant lights she observed, the orange and red hues complimenting her face, charcoal lashes casting shadows onto chilled cheeks.

"I'm scared of you" she suddenly said, not once moving her eyes from the bright fire flowers, her arms still wrapped around the slender frame "Of what you do"

Zack blinked. Sure he saw she was all tense again, that fine jaw again clenched hard, and he was sure she would say something that would throw some more light upon her persona. Like she did to Barret not such a long while ago… like she did all those days ago… The last thing he expected was her saying that he made her scared!

"What?"

"You make me feel…" her voice faltered there slightly.

"Feel what?"

"Too much" she finally looked at him as her hands fell to her sides, deep red eyes slightly dimmed.

Strangely, it reminded Zack of mist rising on a bloody red morning. Rich and warm, with a strange mix of emotions swirling in the crimson depths.

The last of the fireworks died in the night's sky, and it all darkened again, only the lamps providing the soft glow that reminded him so much of a rich piece of amber. And that brightness in her eyes dulled as well, the alluring hue turning into a calm, soft color of the earth.

And it came to him, that it wasn't what he wanted to see. Not the small tints of spices, not the dim shades. He wanted that brilliant fire back in her eyes, with no restrains. With no more barriers around her. Without her always giving and giving, without others always on her mind and in her heart.

Zack suddenly wished he could see her act only for herself, just for once, for even short while.

His hands curled into fists and his eyes sharpened.

"Why do you keep doing this Tifa?" his voice harsh and soft in the same time.

She not once looked away, wine red meeting dazzling blue with a steely resolve painted in them.

"Because it's so much easier that way"

Tifa held his gaze until Marlene appeared, wrapping small arms around the bartender's legs. She laughed then and picked up the girl, small feet dangling in the air, catching Zack's heated gaze over the girl's head.

He clenched his teeth as she slipped further away, even if not really moving for an inch.

And heaven's must have hated him, as the only thing in his mind was a promise to himself to break every goddamn wall and shield she had.

Author's Note:

Ah.. Zackary is starting to feel frustrated....;)