Disclaimer: Final Fantasy does not belong to me...however much I may like it to. I own no characters, places etc. etc. so please don't sue me! I'm a nice person :)
Author's Note: Chapter Seven...PLEASE review as I really enjoy reading your views and they inspire me to get better! It would make me very very happy! Anyway stop reading this and get on with reading the fic! Hope you enjoy! :)
Chapter Seven: Morning Shocks and Things Concealed
The brunette's sighed as her mind slowly awakened, though her eyes remained shut, her body seemingly still not wanting to rise from its deep slumber.
She turned slightly upon the warming mattress, gently allowing her left arm to instinctively reach out and tuck itself behind the pillow, drawing the comforting head rest closer, and acting as a sort of light blocker, letting her forget, at least for a few moments that the pale, grey light of morning was peering through her curtains.
She stayed like that for quite sometime, though how long exactly she couldn't be sure, after all, as soon as sleep took over, time just became a meaningless notion that she only suddenly become aware of once again, when her eyes opened and her mind was forced to relocate back to reality.
Though when she felt a sharp twinge in her right calf muscle, the brunette bolted up right, the pain all to familiar and all to unbearable, to ignore or shrug off, ''Ow! Ow, ow ow...'' She clutched the aching leg with both hands, her grip firm so firm that it would have probably felt slightly uncomfortable, were it not for the much more uneasy and unrelenting cramp she was currently experiencing.
Eventually the pain subsided, but as it did so, it opened a whole new door of annoyances and irritations to keep her away from her restful relaxations, as a dry, dull, rumbling thump crawled ever so tauntingly, across her head.
Tifa growled softly to herself, almost in an attempt to threaten the torturing headache, in the supposed hope that it would disappear in fright and she would be left in peace once again.
Though of course, people's bodies rarely do what they want them to, and the young brunette's was no exception.
She groaned silently as she rubbed one finger across her temple, enjoying the cooling sensation, and closed her eyes, taking a few moments to collect her thoughts and made sure she felt awake enough to pull herself from the bed and stand without experiencing some kind of horrid, dizzying head rush.
When Tifa did finally manage to drag herself from the room, the first stop she made was to the bathroom cabinet, in to which she dove two desperate hands, commencing them to search for the small white packet of tablets, that would be sure to put an end to the constant banging and clattering that was swimming around inside her tired skull.
Luckily it wasn't long before she came across the box clearly marked 'paracetamol' and within seconds she had popped out two of the pale pellets and swallowed them down without the aid of water, her body not willing to wait any longer for their relief.
Tifa couldn't be sure whether it was a normal headache or a hangover, after all, she was pretty certain she hadn't consumed that much wine at the meal, but then again she was also pretty certain she'd heard him say something along the lines of 'I want to make it up to you...for all those terrible things I did' so in hindsight it was highly plausible that either she'd gotten absolutely pissed and had misread him completely, or, she'd finally gone crazy and could no longer tell apart reality to dream induced hallucinations.
After a few moments of light musing, the brunette decided to conclude that she'd imagined the entire conversation and that, of course, he was still an arrogant, conceited jerk, who she, most definitely, did not find attractive in the slightest, no sir.
It was only when she left the bathroom, and proceeded down the corridor, that she began to hear a rather ominousness rumble of muffled noises from the bar downstairs, which should have been empty and closed.
The idea of burglars didn't seem very likely, as it was morning and she would have most definitely heard a forced entry, so dismissing that, the only other candidate that Tifa could come up with was a pack of wild, ravenous, alcoholic wolves that just happened to have been able to unlock the door and had come to empty her bar of all beverage supplies.
She made her way closer and closer to the stairs, crossing the living room in the process, in which she scanned the space for a possible weapon, before proceeding quietly down the stairs, Television remote in hand, ready to fling at a moments notice.
As her feet collided with the cold surface of the steps, she became more and more aware that she was dressed only in a pale blue nightshirt, the thin fabric barely reached her knees, and was more than a little bit see through if viewed in the light.
Great one Tifa...you're gunna flash the intruders before you die horribly...
As the brunette gave a self directed sigh of exasperation, a flash of something, or someone suddenly caught her eye, the supposed threat, lingering at the right of the stairs, the form too concealed to identify at the present moment.
Deciding speed would be her only advantage in this attack, she crept further and further down the steps, until she was literally standing beside one, of the possible many, intruders.
Her heart felt like it was doing somersaults, though her mind remained steady and clear, the fear only radiating in her body rather than her psych, Ok...gotta be quick...ok...breath and...one...two...three!
In one swift motion, Tifa reached round and grabbed what she found was a suited arm, which she immediately twisted in an attempt to gain the upper hand, though within moments she came to the realisation that this person seemed to be stronger and quicker than her, at least right now, after all she was still newly awakened and her head was still gently buzzing.
The leg that shifted her heels so easily and the arm that twisted her around before wrapping itself over her shoulder, and across her chest, was most definitely male, and it only took her one breath, to become aware that she was familiar with the deep scented, yet also softly alluring cologne that hung around the man, whom she could not see, and whom had slowly enveloped her.
Though Tifa only stayed within the man's arms for a few seconds, it seemed like an eternity, her captors grip not overly firm, but tight enough for her to feel caught, almost wanted, and there was no denying that it felt good to be in the arms of another.
When she realised her train of thought, she wasn't sure whether to be disgusted or intrigued, but either way she chose to struggle within her unknown captors arms, to which he reacted by giving a firm tug, pulling her ear in line with his mouth.
His breath was hot against her skin, the sensation causing ripples of tingling pleasure to shot up inside her, though the moment the man spoke, her blood chilled a little, not out of fear, but shock, after all, there was no mistaking that cold, silky smooth voice, that seemed to drip with authoritative arrogance, ''Good morning Miss. Lockhart.''
The light, downy hairs that lay upon the soft nape of her neck stood on end, and her body stiffened just enough for the young man to feel it, and a small smirk crept across his lips, before lessening his grip slightly.
Noticing this small release, the brunette came to her senses and twisted on the spot, using her right hand to push back against her captors chest, who in turn, took a few steps backwards in an attempt to steady himself from the blow.
When she had composed herself, the young woman shifted her eyes over the blonde with suspicion, as he straighten himself to once again return to his authoritative posture, every thread and every detail tailored to perfection.
For once he was not in his pristine white suit, his new style so surprisingly different, that when Tifa had first caught the glint of his form, for a fraction of a second, she thought maybe she'd presumed to soon the identity of her captor.
The young man was clad in a deep, jet black suit, the material so crisp and pure in colour, yet also broken up with silken black pinstripes, that shined and reflected against the light just enough to make the look so unique. Beneath the loose hanging jacket, he wore a dark, navy blue vest upon a lighter shaded sky blue shirt, with a silver, almost whitened tie.
Holy Shinra... There was no denying he looked good.
The blonde smirked as the young woman's face dawned with the realisation that she'd been staring at him for a good minute, and he held up an arm, resting it against the wall on which he'd been previously leaning before the supposed attack, giving a swift flick of his silver blonde hair.
Tifa's mouth popped like a fish out of water, not sure what emotion she should be registering, the candidates ranging from anger to fear to frustration, but soon with the number of questions that were running through her mind, she found confusion to be the number one prize winner, ''What...what are you doing...why did you do that for!''
Her voice was both accusatory and yet soft, breathy, as if still trying to recover from the contact that they had both just shared, and the young man picked up on this instantly, and made sure to keep his voice as straight as possible, but there was no hiding the teasing glint within his ice blue eyes, ''Do what?''
''You know...'' Her eyes shifted around his form before falling to the floor and barely muttering out the rest of her unfinished statement, ''...hold me like that.''
''You attacked me, you needed to be restrained.'' He spoke as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, his tone condescending and more than a little patronizing, ''Why else would I touch you?''
Tifa's face fell, and for a moment the young man thought there was a look of hurt disappointment behind her deep, warm eyes, but he soon dismissed the idea when she muttered venomously, ''Jerk.''
Jerk...? Rufus felt one of his eyebrows raise in a gentle contempt, at this blantent lack of respect for his authority.
The brunette was slowly beginning to get over the shock of the President's sudden presence and was now, slowly giving in to the angered curiosity, the evidence of this shining through in her voice, ''How did you get in here anyway?''
His answer was as simple and as arrogant as ever, ''I'm the President.''
The brunette let a sly, sarcastic smile creep across her lips, her face radiating with a fury induced heat, ''Oh right, well that explains it then...'' She shook her head softly, before returning her gaze in direct line with the blonde's, ''Why are you here...?''
''I needed to accompany the workers.''
Tifa coughed with surprise, before holding her head further forward, as if she didn't quite trust her hearing ability, ''Workers...?''
The blonde just raised a hand towards the door, parting the open corridor by the stairs, from the entrance to the back of the bar, and shifted aside to let her pass, as she took a few tentative steps forward, and through the door which had been left a jar.
Her entire face seemed to widen, and whiten, What...the...? There, inside Seventh Heaven, were a mass of what looked like builders, slash cleaners, slash decorators, and all of them seemed to be on their own personal mission to destroy her bar completely.
The place was already void of her old furniture, and the dark wooden floor seemed to have been sanded, as if in preparation for a varnish, How the hell did I sleep through this?...He must of slipped something into my wine...so he could come here and wreak my place! He poisoned me...with sleeping pills! Reno was right...oh my God, Reno was actually right.. Damn, I was hoping they'd at least be a few more years till the apocalypse...
''Rufus, what is this?''
Rufus... Again his face contorted, the use of his first name by a young woman, who technically, was below him in so many ways, ''You agreed to this.''
''Huh?''
''It only occurred last night, I must say I am surprised at the poor quality of your memory.''
The brunette held up an accusatory hand, and started waving it about in protest, ''Wait a second! I did NOT agree to letting you break into my bar and start...messing it all up!''
''You agreed to let me help you, and this bar...well...'' The blonde scanned the space with some disgust, ''...it needs my help.''
Tifa opened her mouth in a supposed need to shout obscenities at him, but stopped short of uttering a single word, as she noticed his icy, wandering eyes, now viewing her with a rather unreadable expression.
She didn't have to wait long for an explanation for his observations, as he flashed his cold gaze back up to meet hers, ''Now go...clean yourself up...and put some clothes on...the workers don't need such cheap distractions.''
The brunette's cheeks filled with a light red hue, a mix of embarrassment and anger, letting her hands creep down and subconsciously cling to the bottom of the pale material, in an attempt to collect some remains of her modesty.
''Fine...fine! But...this isn't over!'' Tifa suddenly found herself feeling very much like a provoked child, and before she knew what she was doing her tongue had escaped her pale pink lips and was waggling it's self at her unwanted guest.
It darted back as quickly as it came out, and before Rufus could respond in anyway, the brunette swivelled and ran up the stairs, muttering to herself as she went.
The President watched as she scampered away, a smile tugging at the corners of his thin lips, the young woman's tantrum amusing him to a strange sort of enjoyment, and helping him take his mind off the way that nightshirt had hung off her curves ever so delightfully.
After taking a long, steamy shower, in which she managed to drop an entire bottle of shampoo on her foot, through her lack of concentration due to her self ranting, Tifa pulled on a bathrobe and headed for her bedroom in search of clothes.
She raided the contents of her wardrobe, and was almost half way through when she noticed how many perfectly fine outfits she'd passed by on the account that the blonde might not...enjoy them.
Thoughts began to edge slowly into her mind, like waves creeping up the shore of a clear beach, gently littering it with foam and pebbles.
Am I?...I mean...no...no...there is no way I would wanna look good for the jerk! That, arrogant, power hungry, devious, extremely infuriating... oh good God he is attractive...No! Bad Tifa! You've just been deprived of male attention for to long...that's it...Anything else...that would be weird...and wrong...and just...ergh!
Tifa shook her head softly, giggling silently at her own silly ramblings, before proceeding to grab a plain black shirt dress from the nearest hanger, slipping off her robe, and pulling on the piece of clothing, buttoning it up and then wrapping the waist tie around her, firmly enough so it defined her figure, making it appear as though the piece was tailored especially for her, and her alone.
She decidedly didn't glance at her refection before leaving the room, in some attempt to prove to herself that she didn't care what she looked like, and she most certainly didn't care what he thought of her apperance.
Tifa walked once again down the corridor, and soon arrived at the living room, though when she entered, she found there was no need to proceed any further, for the young blonde was already situated sitting on the sofa, legs crossed and hands riffling through the various magazines lying on her coffee table, his face lined with a certain disgusted amusement at the quality of the articles.
Guess this guy really hasn't ever heard of respecting other peoples' privacy...
The brunette gave a forced cough, so as to alert him to her presence and it worked, as the President raised his head swiftly and allowed his eyes to scan over her now dressed form, and he couldn't help but notice she now somewhat matched with him, and a part of him seemed to like it.
''Did I say you could come up here?'' Her face was straight, though her tone showed hints of deep annoyance.
Rufus pulled himself up to his full height, his motion, so smooth and graceful that he seemed like some kind of bird in flight, though his answer soon brought him back to the arrogance, to which Tifa had become so acquainted with, ''No.''
A smirk of amused disdain played across her lips, as the young woman muttered to herself, ''But you came up anyway...''
The pair remained standing there, in complete silence, for what seemed like a never-ending moment, the atmosphere tense and uncomfortable from Tifa's perspective, but from the blonde's relaxed composure, the lack of conversation didn't seem to be affected him in the slightest.
When the brunette could no longer stand it, she automatically went into host mode, ''Can I get you something...cup of tea maybe?'' ...Why the hell did I just say that...oh course he's not going to want a cup of tea...idiot... Her face contorted slightly as she waited for the mocking refusal that never came.
Instead he drew closer to her and said, without a hint of condescension, ''Why not.''
The young woman clicked on the kettle button, the red light glowing lightly to signify it was in the process of boiling the cold, clear water within.
She shifted her gaze to the young blonde leaning against the wall, his eyes glazed over, as if deep in thought, ''You can sit down you know.'' Tifa tried to smile, but only managed a small curl in the corner of her mouth, before turning away again and reaching up into the opposite cupboard in the search for mugs.
When she turned around once again, this time mugs in hand, she saw he had moved, and now was indeed seated by the breakfast bar, one arm resting on it while his slender fingers tapped and rippled upon the surface subconsciously.
How does he manage to stay so calm...doesn't he ever get nervous? Or scared?...
She thought about asking him, but dismissed the idea almost immediately, As if he'd admit it...as if he'd admit it to me...
A familiar smirk began to form upon the young blonde's handsome face, leaving Tifa to indulge in her curious streak, ''What is so amusing exactly?'' Can't be the lino...
''Earlier, downstairs...you acted like an angry child, threatening me, and yet here you are, less than an hour later, perfectly calm and offering me cups of tea.''
A very light pink hue edged across her cheeks as she fumbled with her explanation, as if just figuring it out herself, ''I just...I don't like the thought of my bar being invaded by strangers...''
The kettle's climatic rumblings ended with a click as it turned itself off, this time signalling its job was complete and Tifa made quick work of pouring the boiling liquid over the two tea bags, and picking two crystal white cubes from the bowl across the counter and plopping then into her own mug before airing her tired inquiry, ''Do you take...sugar...milk?''
''Neither.''
The brunette smiled as she went over to the fridge and got out the white cartoon, she had somewhat expected him to say that, and it amused her for some reason, as if she enjoyed this small opposite between them, even if it was just over tea.
When she handed him his mug, he looked at it with an almost sneering suspicion, the china beverage holder so plain and common to his eyes, and his body almost refused to let him pick it up, as if not wanting his hands to be contaminated by something so cheap and ordinary.
Eventually he managed to lift the rim to his thin, parted lips and took a tentative sip, making sure not to take in to much of the steaming contents.
In spite of herself, the young brunette found she was somewhat unknowing desperate to receive his approval in this, such a basic act, ''Is it...good?''
He paused as he let his eyes observe the darkened brown liquid, swirling within the mug like a miniature whirlpool, before saying quite simply, ''Yes...surprisingly so.''
For a moment Tifa was sure she had misheard, his tone warmer, and somewhat unnerving, so, quickly, she decided to change the subject, ''Speaking of surprises...you're a...well you're an impressive fighter...''
A deep, yet short lived chuckle escaped the President's lips, and was proceeded by a half smile, that wasn't exactly soft, but it didn't seem as sharp or threatening as some of his others, though his response was something completely new and unexpected...a compliment..., ''Well it's not everyday I get to defeat such a formidable opponent.'' Well a compliment of sorts anyway.
Tifa let out a disbelieving sigh, her voice a whisper, almost teasing in tone, ''Flattery...''
The pair locked eyes for a few moments, and although both remained straight faced and focused, each could not deny the playful glint deep within one another's eyes.
The brunette was the first to break the untouching contact and took a sip of her tea, ''So...why are you still here? Haven't you got anything better to do?''
In an instant his eyes returned to their icy depths and his tone changed completely once again, and he spoke without a hint or a smidgen of gentility ''Yes, in fact, I do have better things to do.''
Rufus raised from the stool and held out his hand, awaiting for the brunette to take it in a parting gesture, which she did so within seconds, though her movement was somewhat hesitant.
Both of their hands had been warmed by the mugs which they had held, and although the hand shake was short, it was strangely comforting, ''Goodbye Miss. Lockhart.''
And before she could utter the same he had fled the room, leaving a slightly intrigued and yet very confused brunette to finish her tea alone.
The moment the blonde was through the bar entrance he delved his slender hand into the pocket, hidden within his jacket and pulled out his mobile phone, quickly finding the wanted name in his address book and pressing the correct button, proceeding to hold the contraption up to his right ear.
A muted beep sounded from the receiver, signalling the chosen recepitant had answered and was now awaiting his news with eager patience, to which the President supplied with a cold, yet confident air, ''TLAS is in place...we're in.''
A/N= Ok, I myself, am unsure whether I like this chapter or not...but hopefully it's ok!
Oh and I just wanna say, thank you to 'Maurelle' for the suit idea XD
The next chapter should be out by the end of the week!