**alrighty so here's chapter 3! This one was written by myself. Chapter 4 will be written by the co-author. You can see some of her work on deviantArt her username is Rimma911. So anyways, Please enjoy chapter 3 of the Reckless desire! A bit of yummy cloti-ness in here ;)
*** Just fixed a slight inaccuracy concerning Cloud's relationship with his mother. I think my co-author forgot or overlooked the tiny mention of her in this chapter, hope no one caught it but embarrassing none the less!
Just a few hours into her slumber, Tifa abruptly awoke and shot herself up from the sleeping bag. Breathing heavily and beads of sweat on her brow. She turned her gaze down to Cloud's sleeping figure, lying on his back with his hands resting behind his head, breathing softly. Tifa carefully slipped out of the blanket and walked over to the entrance of the tent. As she stopped, she turned back to look at Cloud and took notice to the handle of a dagger peaking out of Cloud's bag. Tifa closed her eyes and took in a deep breath as she walked over to gently slip the dagger out of the bag. A million thoughts arose in her mind as her heart battled with her actions. Gripping the dagger with a trembling fist, she peered down at Cloud again, still sleeping peacefully. Although this man had both saved and spared her life in a matter of a day, he was still a Delian soldier with orders to slaughter the only family Tifa had ever known. Her entire body now trembling, she lowered herself next to Cloud with the dagger hovering over his chest, ready to strike. Before she knew it, Cloud woke, grabbing her wrist in an instant. Tifa gasped and before she could say anything, Cloud flipped her over on her back so that he was now hovering over her. Their eyes were locked into a fierce stare and Cloud could see Tifa trembling.
"Killing me will only result in your own certain death." he whispered to her. Tifa let out a couple of deep breaths and reverted from his eyes. Cloud's gaze softened as he could sense her inner turmoil. Tifa returned her gaze when she was taken back by Cloud's face being only a couple of inches from her own. Cloud's gaze went to Tifa's lips and returned to her eyes. Leaning into her, Cloud captured her lips in a gentle kiss. Tifa began to tremble as her mind began to blur. She eventually relaxed fell into him. She snaked her arms around his neck and one hand tangled into his blond spikes which, much to her surprise, were incredibly soft. A quiet groan escaped Cloud's lips as he leaned into Tifa. Resting on his elbow, he raised his other hand to Tifa's raven hair and tangled it in between his gloved fingers. Exaggerated exhalations filled the atmosphere of the tent as the kiss turned from chaste to heated and passionate. Tifa could feel his tongue graze against her bottom lip, asking for permission. Tifa welcomed him as she gently parted her lips and nervously touched her own tongue to his. Tifa let out a small groan as she could feel Cloud gently nibble on her bottom lip. She shuddered as she felt his hand on her neck. After what felt like hours, They parted and their eyes were fixated on each other.
"I will not harm you, Tifa..you have to trust me." He pleaded, still staring into her mahogany irises. Tifa let out a deep sigh and simply nodded. Cloud lifted himself off of her and sat himself up. She followed suit and sat up to stare at him.
"And my father..what is to become of him?" She told him with a voice filled with concern.
Cloud dropped his head. "I don't know Tifa.."
Tifa slightly cocked her head to the side with as a pained expression befell onto her face. Cloud could only look at her with remorseful eyes, torn between his country and the Lydian beauty that sat before him. Cloud gently took her into his arms and they lay back down, drifting to sleep once more, Tifa cradled within Cloud's embrace.
"Cloud...CLOUD!" a voice shouted from outside the tent. Cloud and Tifa both awoke abruptly with Tifa's head resting on Cloud's bicep.
Cloud reluctantly arose from the sleeping bag and walked, sleepily over to the entrance of the tent. There stood a young man, just a few years ahead of Cloud in age with jet black hair with spikes more unruly than Cloud's. A small cross shaped scar marked his cheek and he shared the same aqua blue eyes as his fellow soldier.
"Zack!" Cloud shouted, his eyes widening. He immediately turned to see Tifa and closed the tent flap to conceal her.
Zack stretched his neck out to peak at what Cloud had been attempting to hide and with a devious smirk, he pushed back the flap and saw a slumbering Tifa lying in a sleeping bag. Cloud immediately tore the flap from Zack's hands and glared at him.
"What do you want?" Cloud asked in a serious tone.
Still peeking into the tent as if to know Cloud's secret "Well, I came to tell you that the your father has requested an audience with you but now I could not give a shit." he joked.
"Concerning what?" Cloud asked
"The scrolls..." Zack replied.
Cloud turned to look at the tent and nodded at Zack. "Look after her will you?" he asked.
Zack flashed him a cheeky smile. "But of course.."
Cloud simply rolled his eyes and mounted his motorcycle to head back to Delos to confront his father. As Cloud sped off into the distance, Zack took a peek into the tent to see Tifa back to a state of soft slumber. Walking over to her for a better look, careful not to wake her, Zack couldn't help but be taken back by Tifa's appearance. 'leave it to Cloud to capture the hot Lydian girl.' he thought to himself.
Tifa's eyes fluttered open and there she saw Zack instead of Cloud hovering over her. Thinking on her feet she yelled aloud and Zack groaned in pain as he took a hard jab to the face. Rubbing the sore spot he tried to calm Tifa.
"Easy..easy! You're gonna tarnish the goods." He joked with her.
"Who the hell are you and where is Cloud?" Tifa shouted, her face red with frustration.
Zack chuckled. "Relax, he'll be back, the general requested to speak with him."
"What about?" Tifa asked in curiosity.
"I'm afraid those are Delian concerns..not yours miss..you got a name? Realizing that they hadn't properly been introduced. "I'm Zack."
"Tifa." she replied while pushing the fringe off of her face.
Tifa played around with the thought of creating some kind of small talk. Clearing her throat she decided that it wouldn't be a terrible idea.
"So..um..you're a soldier as well?"
Zack smiled and rubbed his fingernails against his sleeveless, navy blue vest in a rather pretentious manner. "Yup, been training all my life."
Tifa was eager to learn more about Cloud. She decided to pick Zack's brain, hoping that he could answer some of the questions she'd been left with from the moment Cloud Strife walked into her life.
"You and Cloud know each other well?" She asked while twiddling with a loose string on the sleeping bag.
Zack took a long stretch, reaching his arms up over his head, lacing his fingers. "Yeah..we go way back, I was the soldier assigned to train him in the field when he was 16...he caught on remarkably fast..too bad he's got no life other than being a soldier..'
Tifa pulled her eyebrows down in wonder of what exactly Zack was saying.
"What do you mean by that." she asked, careful of keeping a rather uninterested tone in her voice while she inquired about the soldier. The last thing she needed was the enemy knowing that she had taken a liking to one of their best soldiers.
Zack shrugged his shoulders. "Well, I mean, he's just so serious all of the time, he has no idea how to let loose..not much of a talker either." "All well, that's Cloud I guess." Zack chuckled and walked out of the tent, offering Tifa a cup of water which she accepted.
Tifa was a bit taken back at Zack's description of Cloud, the way he described him implied that Cloud was glacial and solemn. Tifa hadn't experienced that version of Cloud yet, with her, he seemed to have a gentleness and a calm to him, traits not typically affiliated with Cloud Strife. Zack momentarily returned with a small plastic cup of water. Tifa was just about to touch her lips to the water but stopped abruptly, unsure of Zack's intentions. Friend of Cloud's or not, he was still a Delian soldier, an enemy. Zack noticed the uncertainty of Tifa's expression.
"It is not laced with anything..just water." he said, swirling around the water in his own cup. "My orders are to simply keep an eye on you and make sure you don't try to wander off."
Tifa eyed the cup and slowly brought the edge to her lips and took a very small sip. She swished the water around in her mouth a bit, searching for any sort of unfamiliar taste. Feeling safe she swallowed the sip and took a couple more. They both continued to sip their waters and Zack got up and went outside the tent to tend to the fire.
Cloud stood in his father's chambers in Delos. He knew what he was in for as the task he was given had yet to be completed. A harsh and impatient man, Ajax was merciless. Soldiers who'd failed to carry out orders were reprimanded and although Cloud was his own son, he was no exception.
Ajax was tall and even in his early fifties, he still maintained a strong build. His face flushed with anger, veins became visible on the temples of his head which was completely void of any hair. Ajax stood tall, just a few inches over his son who he was currently scolding. The relationship between Cloud and his father in no way resembled a typical father-son relationship.. Cloud had been raised as a soldier from early childhood, never having the opportunity to know his mother, who died briefly after giving birth to Cloud.
"What the hell happened soldier!" hollered Ajax to Cloud in an enraged voice.
"Your orders were to retrieve those scrolls from Zangan and then kill him!"
Before Cloud could speak, Ajax threw the back of his hand and came in rather unpleasant feeling contact with the side of Cloud's face which whipped to the side as a result. Cloud maintained a stoic expression, eyes cast to the floor. Cloud had never let a duty go unfinished. He quickly caught a glance of his father, his chest puffed out and shoulders hiked up in a broad stance.
"We were attacked.." Cloud lied. Something in him simply felt the need to defend Tifa. He could not understand why but the thought of something happening to her or any part of her pulled on the strings of Cloud's heart, a very foreign feeling to him.
Not accepting Cloud's excuse, he continued to criticize Cloud's failure. "So you pick off those sorry pieces of shit one by one! You are a highly decorated soldier, I expect my orders to be followed!"
Ajax ran a bulky hand across his bald head, now beaded with sweat. "What of the girl..did you find her?"
Cloud's eyes widened slightly as a knot began to form in his stomach. He wanted so much to keep Tifa out of the conversation. He hung his head low and nodded slowly.
With one arm behind his back and one twisting on his long, gray streaked goatee with his thumb and index finger. He stood for a moment, the wheels in his head turning to work up a plan that could allow them another opportunity to assassinate Zangan.
"We may have use for her, I want you to hold her hostage. I will make Zangan aware that we have his daughter." "She'll be wonderful bait." in a tone as malicious as his intentions.
He was going to present Zangan with an offer he simply couldn't refuse. Provide them with the scrolls and Tifa would live. He knew Zangan to be a powerful warrior but Tifa provided the Delian army with an easy weakness.
Still with his head hanging, he lifted his head slightly to look at Ajax. "And if he doesn't.." he asked, dreading the very answer that Ajax had replied with. "Kill her.."
Cloud felt a heaviness in his chest as soon as those two words were released from Ajax's mouth. He bit his lip, attempting to conceal any emotion. "Yes sir.." with a broken voice.
"Soldier!" Ajax called as Cloud turned to exit the room. Cloud simply turned his head to the side in acknowledgment. Ajax glared at Cloud with a grave stare. "Do not fail." with that, Cloud turned back and walked out of the room.
A million thoughts were flooding Cloud's mind. What has he gotten himself into? Cloud immediately felt regret as he mentally slapped himself for allowing himself to feel anything at all for Tifa. 'Wake up soldier' he thought to himself. Tifa was now a pawn in this twisted game of war. And that is exactly how Cloud intended to view her has, nothing more.