Update 8/13/17: This work has been edited and beta'd by the lovely and awesome ChaosBalance over on Ao3 who has been an amazing help throughout this journey.
Tifa listened to the ringing of the phone as she waited for it to be answered. It didn't take long.
"This is Fair," a cheerful male voice answered.
"Hi my name is Tifa. I'm calling about a lost chocobo that I found of yours. It wandered through Nibelheim. I tried to keep it here for you but it wouldn't stay. It's currently headed towards Rocket Town." She was trying so hard not to laugh. If Cloud knew he would be so pissed.
Zack was quiet for a minute as he let it sink in. Laughing he answered, "Yeah, that one doesn't like to stay in one place. I usually let him make deliveries for me but he wanders back eventually. I do need to track him down though. You've been a great help. I've tried putting a tracker on him, but he always finds them. Maybe I can invent a Chocobo PHS?"
Tifa couldn't hold back her laughter any longer. "Do you really think he would answer it though?" She remembered Cloud not liking to answer the phone in their other life.
"Well, it's me! Who wouldn't answer the phone for me? I'm all kinds of fun!"
"Well you'd probably be the exception then."
"Maybe. Well I guess I have a trip to Rocket Town to make. Maybe do a bit of Cloud-gazing while I'm out of Midgar," Zack said wistfully. Oh, how Cloud would kill them if he could hear their conversation.
"Well good luck with that. Look I have to go. It was nice talking to you and I'm glad I was able to help you out." She said as she looked at the midday sun. "I hope you're able to find your chocobo."
Zack sniggered and answered, "Thank you again. I enjoyed our talk as well."
With that they both hung up.
Tifa shook her head and closed her phone before turning around and heading back into the mansion. Zack was exactly as she remembered him to be, with the added benefit of being alive and healthy. She was also glad that she was able to talk her dad into buying her a PHS as soon as she realized what was going on.
As she walked through the doors, she spotted Cloud staring up at the ceiling. The way he held himself spoke of the life he had carved out for himself. He might have been slim and a bit on the shorter side, but anyone looking at him properly would label him as a predator. The softer side was reserved for those that were close to him. For Tifa, he was a safe place to turn to, to protect her when she needed to let go of everything. It was nice seeing his spirit back in him after everything that they had been through.
After her breakdown and getting over the fact that yes, she was in the past, it was easier to cope with everything. He was her best friend and like a brother to her. Knowing that she could make changes that would keep Cloud from suffering was a big factor in accepting her new reality as well.
Tifa took a look around the foyer as she headed to the stairs. She noted the open doors and cabinets and the slowly vanishing monster remains. It must have been hard for Cloud to not be the one to call Zack. At least she knew that this part of the mansion was relatively safe now.
"You ready to go check in on the resident Vampire?" Cloud asked as he listened to Tifa navigating her way up to the second floor.
"I can't believe he lets you call him that! I remember the one time that Yuffie thought it would be funny to call him that. I don't think she ever got those Materia back from him." Tifa shook her head as she came up besides Cloud.
"That's only because she stole that Materia off of him first anyways. He just used that as an excuse to get it all back from her. Also," Cloud paused as he held up a key and an Odin Materia in his left hand as he started walking towards the secret stairs. "Already took out the Lost Number while you were on the phone."
He hadn't wanted to be nearby to only here Zack's voice and not be able to talk to him. Instead he cleared out the mansion ahead of Tifa. He had also cleared the mansion of all its other items that belonged to the rest of the gang. Like Cait Sith's Silver M-Phone and Yuffie's Twin Viper.
It was a good thing that he could now summon his weapon at will. It would have really sucked having come back without a weapon. Of course Tifa had found her Premium Heart gauntlets at her mother's grave when she went to visit. She had also found her Platinum Fist laying around her house. He was hoping that would mean that Fenrir was somewhere nearby. With his childhood memories back, he had new places to look as well.
Cloud headed to the basement as he heard Tifa following him.
"You think he's already awake?" Tifa asked as she caught up.
"Probably. He didn't like to rest much after we woke him up." Was his only reply as he stared straight ahead. The effort to keep his thoughts clear of flashbacks, and memories that he didn't want to remember, was not easy. Cloud clenched his fists in anger and he tried to push the thoughts away.
"As strange and crazy as all of this is, I'm happy," Tifa started as a way to get Cloud's mind away from where she knew it was. "I mean, my dad's alive and your mom is too. On top of that, there were so many times where I felt guilty that I was able to be happy with my soul mate. I hated having to watch you suffer every time you saw soul mates together. I am happy for you that he's still alive and that you will be able to be together soon." She knew it was helping when she saw his fists unclench and his shoulders relax.
"It was hard. It was an ache that never went away. We didn't even get to really be together in the first life. We didn't find out what we were to each other until after Hojo had got his hooks in us. Even so, I never begrudged anyone finding their mate. It is a precious occasion that I would not take from anyone. Sure it made it harder knowing that I'd never have Zack back, but it always reminded me of how lucky I was to have him." Cloud looked over his shoulder and smiled in an attempt to reassure her that he was okay both then and now.
"That second life helped. It was a shock at first. I thought it was all a dream like you did. I broke down crying in the barracks and that's how Zack found me. It was nice to be by his side. I even got to befriend Sephiroth before he lost his mind. It was a little surreal. We were able to keep him sane for a bit longer, but Hojo had a backup plan." He knew he was talking a lot. It was either keep talking or being lost in painful unwanted memories, Cloud chose to talk.
Tifa was quite while she listened to Cloud. He had told her that things were already different this time around. She could see the little changes all around for herself. The only thing that bothered her was that she didn't know what those changes would do for their plan to save everyone. "So the first step to fixing things is waking Vincent?"
"One of the first steps," he said as he stepped off the last stair before freezing in place. Nothing looked to be out of the ordinary, but there was a feel to the air. "Either Vincent is awake or something is wrong. Stay close."
Tifa knew better than to argue about being able to take care of herself. She had started her training routine but her body was not like she remembered. Since Cloud had Mako running through his veins, it was no surprise that his body was already primed for battle.
As Cloud easily picked his way through the basement to the door that blocked their path from Vincent's coffin, he pulled out his sword to be better prepared for anything. The air around them was stale with mold and must from the conditions, but under it all was the heavier smell of Mako and blood. It was a smell that stained the mansion in a way that it would never leave no matter how many times someone tried to get it out. From the corner of his eye he even caught Tifa scrunching her nose up in disgust. He hadn't realized the smell was so strong for the unenhanced as well.
When they reached the door they both just stared at it for a minute. Tifa was the first to break the silence.
"I don't think you needed to get the key."
Cloud blinks before he turns to look at her fully for a second and then turning back towards the door. "What gave you that impression? It surely wasn't the claw marks that look to have pried the door open." He shook his head as he reached out and pushed on the already open door.
The site that greeted them had Tifa running past Cloud into the room. There in the middle sat the remains of Vincent's destroyed coffin. Cloud let Tifa explore the area as he felt no danger in the room. It was the sounds of thuds and creaks that were coming from deeper in the basement that had him on edge. Tifa turned to him with a comment on her lips before it died in her throat as her eyes grew big and all she could do was point at a spot behind Cloud.
