PART III:

" Sometimes I Think It's Best If I Hadn't Known. "

She saw a silhouette. A figure that she had known for years.

It was the person that she had been waiting for.

But then, why...

"Who..." she breathed, slightly out of words to speak. "...are you..."

The black-clad figure turned around upon hearing her voice, slowly turning his body a hundred and eighty degrees so she could see the face clearly.

And she nearly fainted from shock from what she had seen.

"No!"

"Miss! Miss! Are you alright?! ...Tifa. Tifa!"

She heard it again. Shuffling of footsteps, something thundering, making its way up.

But she didn't want to wake up. She didn't want to.

That dream was the answer to everything she was looking.

No.

Don't.

Don't go!

Don't-

"Hey!"

Her body shook. Someone was trying to wake her up. Someone was trying to wake her up from this nightmare.

She opened her eyes.

"Are you okay?"

She was almost breatheless. She was wide-eyed, sweat making her clothes clung to her like a second skin.

For a moment, she still believed she was in a dream.

That dream, again.

"Hey. Are you alright?"

She blinked her eyes. Once. Twice. Three times. Four.

She almost couldn't registered everything. Almost not recognizing the face who had saved her from death before.

She blinked her eyes again, her gaze softening.

"...Yeah. I'm-"

She could easily lie, for once, knowing that she didn't recognize them and they didn't recognize her. Strangers in the same room, not even knowing each other; yet that same stranger was the one who asked if she was alright, her eyes consoling.

She pursed her lips, deciding what to say in her head.

"...I'm fine."

"...That's one straight lie."

She learned not to be too surprised by this kind of easily-detecting person. After all, for more than half her life, she had lived with, and learned to adapt, that kind of people.

"I get that a lot."

"Where are you going?"

She had swung her legs to the side of the bed, not waiting for a second more to think; she remembered her true purpose and she wanted to find and finish that purpose, or lose everything dearest to her, again.

She hesitated at the last minute, though; not telling the generous 'lady of the house' was not her way of doing things. Yet, in the military, courtesy was only for the higher ranks, and no one. She was used to abusive words, torturous treatments, as being one of the few only ladies in the army. She might break some times, but this was one of those moments she just couldn't oblige.

So she replied: "I have something to do. On my own."

"With you being as sick as you are? I won't allow it."

This woman was persistent, she saw it now. But she wouldn't have it her way.

"I have to do it. I can't leave it without doing anything. Let me go."

She started going for the door.

But apparently, the woman wouldn't have it her way either.

"You're staying here until you have yourself fixed up or I won't let you go."

It other words, she would stay whether she liked it or not.

Eve nearly slammed her face on the doorknob, infuriated by the woman's persistence.

Didn't she knew how important this was? Her only connection to life?

The woman was now blocking her path out of the room, as Eve grabbed her gunblade, and strapped it on her thigh.

"If you're smart enough, I advice you to stand out of the way."

"If I say I'm not taking that?"

She fingered her way to the hilt of her weapon, thinking of taking it out. "I'll have to resort to harsher measures."

The woman grimaced. "Is that a way a guest would thank the lady of the house?"

"Lady or not, I don't give a fuck. Get out of my way." She's losing all of her courtesy now; anger, instead, welled inside her, and she was certain she could lose her sanity in a few more moments. "Don't stand in my way like you care for anything."

Her words angered the other woman, however.

"I care for everyone, you badmouth of a bitch," her voice sounded like hissing, her tone sounded threatening. "Unless if you agree to and get yourself healed, I will be the one whom you'll have to face."

"Fine. If it could get you out of my way."

The girl girl behind her was now looking up at them with tearful eyes, grabbing the darker-haired lady's arm. "Tifa!"

So her name was Tifa, Eve registered in her mind. A nice name for a nice lady. Unfortunately not nice enough to make her stay and be good.

She unsheathed her gunblade, shape-shifted it to Shoot Mode, and pointed the barrel of her gun to Tifa's face.

"You gave me no choice." She pulled the trigger, and it clicked loudly in the silent room. "Be prepared, woman."

She pulled out a pair of gloves, put them on. Got herself into a fighting stance. "I'm in for anything. If it could save you."

' If it could save you. '

If it could save you.

Those words shot through her like a bullet through flesh. It hurt her, just as much as the rash on her hip had felt now.

She grimaced, winced, felt the side of her hip with one hand. She touched wet liquid. Brought her fingers to her eyes.

It was blue blood.

She remembered nothing else after that.

xxx

"Maria. What are you doing?"

"Oh, this? I'm making this for Robert. He likes this kind of stuff when it comes to his birthday presents."

"Robert?... I heard you and him are going at it now, if I'm not mistaken."

She had giggled them, looking certainly happy about her new relationship.

"The science staff has been talking about it for some time now. You should be careful."

"Oh, don't worry. We're planning something at the moment. You'll be the first one that I'll tell."

"I'm waiting for it."

"Be patience, Eve. It's not going to be long... Oh, see? I've finished it!"

"Robert'll love it, I suppose!"

"He will! See how it clicks! It's so adorable! I might get a baby chocobo for his second present soon, too."

"...Isn't that pushing it too far for his liking? I don't remember Robert liking cute animals..."

"Don't worry. He likes what I like. I think I should buy him two baby chocobos, you see, and name them with our names..."

She laughed. "Sounds fun."

"...Too bad, though..."

"What?"

"...I can't enjoy life just as much as I want to..."

And she snapped her eyes open. Fully awake now.

Her face was wet and sticky with sweat. The shirt she was wearing had clung to her body like a second skin.

She heaved herself up, putting herself in a sitting position. She was in the same bed, again.

"You're up earlier than I thought."

It was a male's voice, this time, though it sounded more intimidating, more reclusive than Tifa's. She turned her gaze to meet a pair of ocean-blue eyes, shining blue and green in the dim light filtered from the window. His hair, blond and gravity-defying, spiked in every direction possible, though in a graceful manner. The curve of his nose, his face, his brows.

Even his grimace.

She wondered if she had seen him before.

"What..."

"I was told to wait here and guard you, just in case if you're trying to escape again."

She winced. Felt her hip again. She felt no liquid anymore; the rash had been neatly tied and bandaged. She felt a soothing sensation coursing through her body, which greatly surprised her.

"Is this..."

He looked away.

"A temporary cure." His voice sounded muffled, uncertain, flustered. Laced with anger, still. "It's not going to give you complete remedy... but it's all I- we have."

She touched her bandaged hip again. Felt some kind of strange feeling swelling inside her. She closed her eyes, winced again. Trying to get rid of it.

"Have we ever met?"

He suddenly turned to her, stared at her with a hard gaze. Crossed his arms over his toned chest. She saw his lips thinning slowly, his brows wrinkling, his muscles flexing slightly. She sensed his anger, as well, and a strange fear coursed through her body, deep into her heart.

She suddenly pictured a man in her mind; a man from two years ago, the same man with the spiky blond tresses, zipped-up tightskin vest, huge sword.

She was reminded of his words before.

' You think you're fighting this in the name of peace? You think if you achieve this goal, all would be well for everyone? You think about it, didn't you? Well, I'll tell you what. You're wrong. Everything you did was wrong. Everyone who was with you was wrong. Everything in the name of love, peace and hope... That's totally bullshit for people like you. '

' You think these people will give up after what you did to their homes? You think they will succumb to your orders like others did? Well, think it over again. One day, you'll realize what you've been doing. One day, you'll see that you've been on the wrong side. One day, you'll see the consequences of your own actions. One day, you'll see... You'll see what will happen. '

She took one huge, forced gulp. She immediately removed her gaze from his. She didn't feel like looking at him any longer.

Somehow, that same feeling swelled again inside her, bigger and more forceful than before.

She didn't want to feel it. She didn't want to.

"So you've remembered, huh? Former Sergeant?"

She closed her eyes and nearly shook her head, fighting back the tears that had welled up in his eyes.

He had been true. All this time, all this while, he had been saying the truth.

And she had been blinded from seeing it.

It's best if I don't remember.