Disclaimer: Nope, still not on Squenix's payroll. Working on it, tho.
Chapter 3:
It was a nice day for a walk, Tifa was happy to report. The sun was shining brightly overhead, but a light breeze kept her from overheating as she strolled along the busy streets of Edge, looking over the various reconstruction projects as she went. They were finally starting to get this place looking like something other than a ruin, and with any luck, it would stop resembling the slums of Midgar over the next few years. The familiarity was nice to an extent, but it would be much nicer to live in a city that didn't look like it'd survived a nuclear war.
She turned down a street that almost looked like it had never faced the wrath of the ShinRa corporation...new shops had opened up, and colorful displays in the front windows had Tifa turning her head to look. She paused in front of a few of them, but didn't enter, until she drew to a full stop, blinking at one particularly blad display in shock.
"Zangen's School of Martial Arts," she read aloud, as if that would somehow make it seem less like she'd just strolled into the Twilight Zone. She's thought her old teacher was dead...no, he had to be. But how many Zangens could there possibly be in the world?! She was still gaping at the sign when the door swung open and someone came outside, and dimly she looked towards them with unseeing eyes.
"...Are you okay? Miss?" It was a man's voice, and shaking herself out of her reverie, she focused her eyes on him, and forced a small, reassuring smile.
"Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that." She apologized, looking over the newcomer as though she expected Zangen to suddenly jump out of his skin and yell 'surprise!' He didn't even remotely resemble her teacher, though, with his short, light brown hair and bright baby blue eyes set in a cheerfully handsome face with a body no doubt sculpted by years of martial arts.
"Do you need a drink or something? You looked a little...out of it, there." He asked sympathetically, and Tifa shook her head, still smiling.
"Oh, no, I was just thinking." She rationalized, and it occurred to her...this man wasn't just a student of the martial arts. He had to have done it for years, to look as he did, and likely, he was qualified to teach. Maybe he was a teacher here, maybe he knew how the place got its name. It couldn't hurt to ask. "Um...do you work here?" She asked, and pointed. The stranger smiled and nodded.
"Yeah, I'm the owner. Why, you looking for lessons?" Tifa blushed as she felt his eyes raking over her, now that he had an excuse. She supposed she should be used to this by now, but she still folded her arms over her chest before she replied.
"No, nothing like that. The name is...um, unusual."
"Yeah, well, it was the name of the man who taught me martial arts, so I thought it was fitting." He explained, and Tifa had to fight to keep her jaw from dropping. "I'm surprised that caught your eye, though."
"That's the name of the man who taught me martial arts, too! That's why I noticed." She told him, astonished that it probably was the same man. She knew Zangen had students in towns and cities all over the world, but she'd never actually met any of them before. "A wandering shishou, right? Went from town to town, teaching those who were interested, and who could afford it?" Tifa's father decided she needed something to distract her after her mother died, and after having her try every activity under the sun, Zangen finally offered the solution to his dilemma when Tifa loved martial arts.
"You can't be serious." He blinked at her, and then broke into a wide smile. "Wow, that's amazing! I never thought I'd meet anyone who knew the old coot." He laughed, and she with him, at their newfound bond. "Hey, I was just about to go to lunch. Why don't you come with me, we can reminisce, swap stories and the like?" Uncertain, Tifa considered for a moment...she really should get back soon, the kids would be done school soon, and Cloud would want-
Then another voice erupted in her mind; who cared what Cloud wanted? Obviously he didn't care what she wanted, so why not just do as she liked, for once in her life? He could look after the kids on his own for one afternoon.
"You know, that sounds like a lot of fun. I'd love to." She grinned at him.
"Great! And, oh yeah, I'm Calden. Calden Stratus." So caught up in the mystery of his dojo, Tifa had forgotten completely about introductions.
"It's nice to meet you, Christopher. I'm Tifa." She brushed a lock of hair behind her ear, and nodded as he suggested a diner that apparently made the best egg salad sandwiches this side of Wutai.
"...and then, you're gonna love this, he told him that it was HIS camel!" The pair burst out into hysterical laughter, earning them the reproachful looks of the few other people situated around the diner, but it didn't stop Tifa or Calden from carrying on until their eyes watered.
"Sounds just like something he'd do." Tifa remarked, brushed a wayward tear from her eye, then taking a sip of her water.
"And did it he did. Crazy old man, he was never afraid of anything." Calden heaved a nostalgic sigh, and Tifa smiled. Zangen really had been one of a kind.
"I remember one time-" she started, but made the mistake of glancing at her watch mid-sentence, and did a double-take, eyes widening. She blinked, and looked at the clock on the wall. "Have I lost my mind, or have we actually been sitting here talking for two and a half hours?" Calden's eyes widened, and he checked his own watch.
"Well, if you are crazy, it's going around." He looked towards the waitress, "check, please." By the speed by which she slapped it down on the table, it seemed like she'd been waiting a while to do so. Tifa started to pull her wallet out of her purse, when Calden shook his head at her. "It's on me, and don't argue...you'd be threatening my masculinity."
"No, really, you don't have to-" She continued pulling out some gil, but a hand on her arm stopped her.
"You're right, I don't. I want to." She blushed, and placed her wallet back in her purse, bringing a smile out of him. "Speaking of things I want...can I see you again?" Eyes widening, Tifa found herself nodding without really thinking about it. "How's Friday night sound? Or...Saturday?" He added the second option when she didn't reply to the first.
"Evenings on the weekend don't really work well for me, I run a bar...they're our busiest days." She explained, and he nodded in understanding. "Is Wednesday okay?" She suggested, and he smiled.
"Wednesday sounds great. I'll pick you up around eight?" Tifa gave him directions to her place and they exchanged numbers before hurrying off...if she was quick, she could probably make it home in time to put together something for dinner before the kids (and Cloud) started to complain of how hungry they were. What she wasn't anticipating were the flowers. Or the chocolate. Or the crayon drawings of Cloud. Wearing a dunce cap. She was just giggling over this when Marlene poked her head through the swinging door.
"Are you still mad at Cloud?" She asked innocently, and Tifa glanced back at the drawing. Yep, definitely Marlene's handiwork. She shook her head. "CLOUD! IT'S OKAY! SHE SAYS SHE'S NOT MAD ANYMORE!" She yelled through the door, and Tifa chuckled, walking over to the fridge and securing the crayon drawing in a place of honor on the fridge, rearranging the other works of art so that they were all still visible around it. It was definitely her favorite. By the time she turned around, Cloud was leaning in the doorway, arms folded over his chest, admittedly looking a little nervous.
"Don't look so tense. I'm really not mad at you anymore." She said cheerfully, walking over to the table and picking up the vase of flowers, which of course, had no water in it. She took it over to the tap and half-filled it, smelling a pretty purple blossom as she did so. "Were the flowers your idea or Marlene's?"
"Marlene's." He said abashedly, and a smiling Tifa set the vase down in the center of the kitchen table, opening the chocolates and taking one out. "The chocolates were Denzel's idea." Tifa chuckled, taking some hot dogs out of the fridge. "Um...is there anything I can do to help?" His voice was meek, as though afraid she might explode again.
"You can set the table." She suggested, grinning as he did as he was told. Maybe she should blow up at him more often, if it made him so well behaved. But she supposed that it would lose its effect if she overdid it. She didn't notice she was humming as she filled a tray with crinkle-cut fries.
"So...to what exactly do I owe the good mood? I notice you didn't buy anything new..." She rolled her eyes. Shopping wasn't her ONLY outlet for undue stress.
"I forgot to take your credit card." She shrugged, teasing, and looked over her shoulder to smile at him. "I...met someone. Oh yeah, I need you to watch the kids on Wednesday night." She didn't notice the lack of response until after she'd finished dropping the last of the hot dogs into the pot and turned to look at Cloud, who was standing stock still, staring at her with a cocked eyebrow. She laughed. "Why are you looking at me like I just sprouted a third eye? It's not that unlikely that someone might pay attention to me."
"Oh, uh, of course not...I have a job Wednesday night." He replied, setting down the plates around the edge of the table with a clatter. Tifa frowned.
"Since when do you work nights?"
"Since the employer requested it." There wasn't a hint of emotion in his voice, and Tifa furrowed her brow...why was he being so difficult?
"Fine...I guess I'll get a sitter, then." She turned around to face the stove again, poking the cooking hot dogs with a fork.
"So who is this guy?" He asked suddenly, and Tifa looked back over her shoulder at him, then shrugged when she only saw his back.
"He's another of Zangen's former students...we got to talking, and he's a really nice guy. Interesting, funny..."
"Good-looking?" Cloud supplied. Was that a hint of anger in his voice?
"Yeah." Tifa didn't understand it...she hadn't had a date, a real date, since before Nibelheim had been burnt down. Shouldn't Cloud be happy for her? Wasn't that what friends did?
Her mind flashed back to her dreams, the ones where Cloud's hands were everywhere they would never be, but she bit her tongue to stop herself. Cloud was not jealous. He couldn't be. He'd never expressed any type of emotion for her, other than friendship, so he wasn't going to start now. He was probably just doing that annoying protective thing Barret usually had covered, and sighed. Men.
"Our plan seems to be working." A smooth, silky voice came out crackly over the aged speaker, and the scientist scoffed at it.
"Of course it is! I knew it would." He stroked a length of tentacle, coated in slimy, florescent goo, as he hissed into his microphone. "You are putting together the other necessary parts for my experiment, yes?"
"As long as you deliver your half of the agreement, we'll deliver on ours." The reply came, and the scientist cackled maniacally.
"Of course, of course...you'll have your little pet. And, ironically enough...I will have mine." The cackling continued. The disembodied voice cleared its throat.
"Don't screw this up, Professor. If you do...it may be the last thing you ever do." The line went silent, and a look of cold fury washed over the scientist's greasy face. The tentacle he'd been caressing now lifted, to touch his cheek in what seemed to be a soothing, albeit creepy, gesture. The scientist calmed down.
"Yes, my darling, you're right. We can't risk the project over these fools. First, we'll complete you...and then we'll worry about dealing with the incompetents." Yet more maniacal cackling followed.
A/N: No one has any idea how close Calden's name came to being Cumulus. -laughs hysterically-
Because love triangles are SO much fun!