Disclaimer. Don't sue me I don't own the ff7 characters.
Story Synopsys.
Cloud has done a lot for tifa including playing dress up with yuffie. In spite of all of this he feels he has not done enough. However as he plans to finally give up a life of freedom for the one he loves a stranger from another land appears. After only meeting the enigmatic stranger once cloud harbors an innate sense of jealousy. Have his plans become ruins due to this mysterious visitor? In the previous chapter tifa followed this man whose past remains largely a mystery, to a world far from her own. Tragedy however awaited her as the people she met were mercilessly slaughtered by a mysterious beast and the lithium mercs. Now tifa returns with the now broken koty in tow. What will happen read and review?
Within the maw.
"Cloud don't be rash"
"Vincent…… I'm sorry it's just…… who the hell…… is he?"
The strange man seemed to emanate an aura of disaster as he neared their location. Cloud however was only concerned for the woman whom so direly clung to him.
"Man she doesn't look so good. Come on Vince" yuffie directed him towards the door with a rare display of concern painted on her face. "No" she stopped cloud in his tracks "I know what you're gona do……. So you stay here and don't come out until you chill."
"But tifa…." He was cut
"She'll be fine spikes….. We're not letting anything happen to her……… now try to calm down I know what you're thinking I can see the look on your face…. He's not like that I'm sure otherwise I might have had a piece of him by now…… and trust me he does not seem the type….. Cloud….. That means tifa's fine….. We'll keep'er safe….. Okay….. Now chill."
He found the word 'chill' to be very hard to follow. The simple sight of tifa's pale face in such agony was enough to drive him into a fit of rage. He watched them in this silent torrent of emotions for a few minutes before noticing something.
Tifa looked like she was choking. She was on her knees. And this stranger was the only one who seemed to know what was going on. Vincent also displayed a sense of disdain for the man as the Turks hand was notably reaching for Cerberus with a cautious momentum.
"That's it…." Cloud growled to himself as he griped his sword and rushed outside.
The stairs posed no problem and the door slammed itself against the wall as he kicked it open. The sidewalk fled from his footsteps and the mako burned his veins as his emotions raged out of control. His eyes displayed both an air of sadism and a sense of determination as his focus was directed toward the stranger. He was obviously out for blood.
"Ahh…. Young strife….." the strange man who sounded too young to refer to cloud as such called in knowing as the enraged swordsman closed the distance quickly.
"Shut up…." Clouds blood was boiling and noises from every direction seemed to fuel the fire in his soul. "What did you do to tifa…" he shouted as he swung his sword with an unprecedented violence.
"CLOUD….uhn….. No cloud….. STOP!!!!" tifa attempted to rescue her newfound friend from her hero as she continued to recover from her sickness.
"Cloud!!" Vincent shouted as he tried to stop the ex soldier from attempting to destroy his opposition. "Cloud….. Stop…. Uraghhh……" Vincent was stricken by the giant blade of clouds sword as he tried in vain to intervene.
"Stay out of the way….. He's mine……" clouds voice was angry and cold as he continued to pursue his prey whom oddly didn't even try to block or dodge the attacks.
"Strife cool it…" yuffie said as she tackled him to the ground and pined his shoulders with a surprising force. Given her size she actually put up a decent struggle but was to her dismay simply to light to properly restrain the infuriated cloud.
"What did you do to her…" he had traded his sword for fists as he pushed yuffie aside and ran headlong into the still ever silent stranger. "What did you do….. ANSWER ME!!!" he pummeled the man over and over again.
He rose to his feet but the beating didn't cease. He instead lifted the man by the shirt and continued to pummel him with a relentless aggression none of the surrounding party knew he was capable of.
"Speak damn you……" he continued to hit him over and over until he was suddenly drained of all of his strength. "You'll pay….."
"Cloud…." Yuffie's voice displayed a hint of aggravation as she again rammed the much larger cloud. "Stop it you moron……" she flipped him to his back and wrestled to hold his wrists down. "knock it off….." a straight punch found its way to clouds face and the man almost completely stopped struggling " that's for tossing me" she panted as she continued to hold the now more manageable ex soldier "and this is for being an idiot and not listening to me" she punched him again and his eyes which glowed vibrantly with the aura of mako subsided and returned to their former blue hue. "You are not a murderer…… and I ……" she panted as she pushed him hard into the ground "I don't wana ever see that …. Again. If I do so help me I'll give you the biggest beating of your life……… that's not you…….. Your cloud strife….. Hero of meteor fall and one of my best friends………… not a murderer….."
Cloud stared into yuffie's dark eyes. He had never known she felt this strongly over him. He had always regarded her as a child and for the first time ever she was speaking to him as though he were more of one than herself. True if he had wanted to he could have thrown her off and continued the assault. But some part of him felt that yuffie was right. He wasn't a killer. He couldn't stand the thought of being the bad guy. The imagery of what Denzel would have thought if his father figure cold-bloodedly murdered someone stung his senses, and the gravity of the situation sank in.
"Vince how's tifa." Yuffie said as she looked back to see the ex Turk lying on the ground in a rather disturbing prone position.
"I'm fine…. Vincent's out cold….. But at least he's not hurt bad….. I'll take him to the house….. Come on koty…." Tifa responded as she picked her newly strengthened body from the ground and motioned for the stranger to stand. "Don't let him up just yet" she was scared which greatly bothered cloud.
He had frightened the one person he meant to protect. After this idea sank in he discontinued to struggle. He lay there and allowed yuffie to pin him. He didn't honestly have the strength to fight. His will had been completely drained.
"Cloud….." yuffie said as she calmed her own body. "I know how you felt….. But he didn't hurt her…… see she's moving around now….."
"I'm sorry" he felt the weight of the event slam into his chest. " I only…. Wanted to……" he was cut short as yuffie allowed her body to relax and her head to land upon his chest.
"I know you love her and you only wanted to be her savior, but that was reckless. He could have killed you…. Or worse you could have killed him."
"Gee thanks now I feel so much better…."
"If you killed him tifa would have never gotten over it. She's never seen you like that and honestly if you could have seen the look on her face just now. Trust me it was bad……"
"I'm sorry…… I just thought…."
"Shut up and just promise you won't do it again……. I've lost enough friends……. I don't feel like losing any more……… we love you, you idiot, and that's why I punched you….. It wasn't because you tossed me…… it's because I was scared……….. you're still hurt and in no condition to fight" she began to cry and cloud felt more along the lines of joining than he felt he should admit to. "And not to mention that guy can take down six people with no weapons and stop bullets midair…… he isn't your normal fighter…….. The freak even chomped on one of the guys from earlier according to Vincent……. He's not normal if he wanted to he might have killed you………."
Her slender body became limp as she folded upon his chest. He felt like he was playing the part of a stuffed animal that a little girl would cry into when kids picked on her, and he couldn't describe the internal struggle over the decision to hold her. He had never thought that maybe it wasn't just tifa who would worry for him.
He silently wrapped his arms around the now convulsively weeping ninja. Her tears dampening his shirt and penetrating his skin, left a mark like none he had ever known on his already marred heart.
Suddenly and as if out of the blue a random image of zack appeared and cloud realized that yuffie felt the same way he had when zack had died. When aerith had died everybody felt the pain, but not zack. That was clouds burden.
"Yuffie please……. Don't cry….." a silent tear formed in the corner of his eye as he embraced the small girl. "Please don't cry……"
The ninja continued to weep even at the rarity of clouds consoling attempts. He supposed that maybe it was because she was still young and very emotional, but it also occurred to him that he wasn't exactly aged to perfection himself.
"Is he okay….. Yuffie…" tifa spoke quietly as if attempting to reserve her strength. "Yuffie…. Are you okay hun…." Her best attempt at being as motherly as possible ended in disaster as yuffie ignored it.
"Take her inside…." Cloud said still lying as still as possible.
"What about you? Are you going to be alright?" tifa responded nervously to cloud as she lifted the young girl from the ground. "Are you hurt….. What about your wounds?"
"I'm fine tifa……….. I just need to be alone for a while……. I'll be okay…" he wanted to say much more, but he couldn't muster the courage.
Noting that the conversation had come to a screeching halt, tifa ushered yuffie inside, taking only a small moment to look back at her hero who had refused her assistance. As she left cloud felt as though he should have apologized more for his rash nature. He had never felt more embarrassed than he did at this point. He had no idea what had come over him. He just suddenly felt extremely angry and desperate. He never let emotions like that effect him especially when tifa could have been harmed.
He thought to himself for a long time before he once again let a single tear fall and he had half decided to sleep outside when the concrete called his name.
"Gota go…… I'll be back soon I promise." He whispered into the sky as he stood. It would be a long night.
The keys had stayed in his pockets and he knew without question why. Fenrir his trusted companion would be his chauffer to a place of peace. This in mind he quickly acquired his sword and hopped aboard the obsidian bike.
The road was a forgiving mistress, always there and always eager for his attention. Both a lover and a whore, she was his solace in a moment of self disdain. But for all of her favors cloud had a mission. He needed a friend's advice. The advice of a friend long sense gone. Zack.
His arrival at the area felt wanted and he immediately noted the buster sword jutting up from the final resting place of his long lost friend , and former hero.
"It's been a while." His words came out as though he were speaking to a tangible being.
Back at the bar tifa worried for Vincent as yuffie reassured her that he had recovered from much worse.
"Teefs he's fine he just got the crap knocked out of him…. That's all…… you should have seen'em when I got his ass out of the manor at nibelheim…. Man he was lucky I was there….. If the great ninja yuffie hadn't come along at just the right moment our poor little emo king would have become guard hound food…." She gloated as she struck a heroic pose. "Trust me he's fine."
"I don't know…… cloud hits pretty hard……. Keep an eye on him just in case……" tifa's motherly quality was almost once again present as she turned to yuffie "what about you are you okay….. You seemed upset earlier."
"Oh I'm fine….. Just needed a moment…… any way so how's the dog guy……"
"What?" tifa was baffled as to who yuffie had so affectionately named 'the dog guy'
"You know mister chomps that likes to bite and sit on boxes…… the dog guy…"
"do you mean koty?" she asked scratching her head before being hit with a deep sense of guilt "ahhh I almost forgot……. Poor koty…….. I forgot to ask him if he was okay. Here watch Vince I'm gona see if he's alright…"
The nod from the slightly too enthusiastic yuffie signaled that Vincent was either in the best hands or the worst. Not having time to be concerned as to which tifa quickly made hasted to the room where she assumed koty had disappeared to.
"koty……. Are you in here……"
"he is angry with me….." a somber voice spoke as if heartbroken by clouds anger.
"no he was….. just…."
"he has left…… do you wish me to bring him back….."
"………. Again………." Her words sounded hurt as she allowed her eyes to close. "I think I'm going to go to bed now……… gnite koty…….."
"he reminds me of Jonah…….. but ……."
"it's okay…… any way I'm tired I'm gona go to bed.. nite…."
"good night tifa……" he whispered as she closed the door…..
Her heart was shattered in a matter of seconds. She had thought that cloud would be happy to see her but now he had again abandoned her. Her walk about the house brought her back to the bar, where the unusual site of yuffie fondling a sleeping Vincent ,peaked her curiosity.
She watched as the generally clumsy ninja, moved her hands gracefully along the gruff natured mans unconscious form. For a moment she had forgotten that cloud had once again departed from her as she watched the girl's fascination build. Her hands traced his face lovingly and her eyes bathed him in an attention tifa never thought she had the span of within her. She was completely lost in the moment.
"am I interrupting something…." Tifa said after briefly clearing her throat.
"uh" yuffie was instantly snapped from her train of thought and she nervously spun in a quick fashion to meet the smirk that was plastered on tifa's face "this …. Is….isn't what ya think I was….. just…uhhh"
"pawing Vincent while he's asleep….. wow you're a dirty little thing aren't you…." She teased
"tifa don't say that…. I was not…… uh… change of subject…. How was dog boy…." She was embarrassed by tifa's comment which only served to intensify the teasing girl's already preemptive strike on yuffie's ego.
"oh no you're not getting off that easy……. But he's fine…… now why were you groping him?"
"I was not….. uh …..I was checking him for injuries…….. yeah and all of that stuff……."
"sure and this is in what way believable?"
"alright enough so you caught me coping a feel of the god of antisocial behavior….. do you blame me……"
"now why would I do that" she teased more using again fake innocence to humiliate her friend.
"he's hawt….. and I mean in a bad way too………. Oh teefs you don't know……." The young woman's confession was not exactly what tifa was prying for but it was still interesting "he's so dark and well to be quite honest kina scary….. but he's so sexy………. Everything he does is sexy……. The little flicking thing he does with the cape…… the way he broods over things we don't even consider before we do them…… even the way he hides himself in that cloak…… and the eyes do I need to say it……….. he's hawwwwwt."
"yuffie oh my god he's old enough to be your grandfather……… eugh" she faked being disgusted to further irritate her "why not one of the other guys…. Hell hitting on rude wouldn't seem that strange but Vincent."
"oh come on….. it's not that gross and I'm not a little kid ya know……. And damit he's so sexy"
"who is" Vincent said as he raised up apparently still sore from the massive blow he had received "where's cloud"
Vincent had unintentionally just ripped tifa's heart back out. His phrase reminded her that her hero had once again left. This also served to remind her of the events that took place in koty's home world. In turn this did more damage than she had previously noticed to the now extremely fragile heart that still beat defiantly in her chest. For a moment she wanted to carve the injured organ out and crush it just to stop its incessant throbbing. It hurt too much to talk after Vincent's simple question so tifa turned a deaf ear and walked to the kitchen.
"what did I say?" Vincent asked quietly to yuffie as he attempted not to alienate tifa any further.
"it wasn't you she just needs some tifa time……. Don't move you big lug…….. you got pummeled pretty hard….. now you chill I'm gona check on tifa….."
Her eyes stared mindlessly into space as the thoughts of his face passed her. Jonah had looked too much like cloud for her comfort. Granted that he wasn't cloud , the look of the dead man's glazed over eyes and pale limp form was enough to force tears to her now already sore eyes.
"teefs…… tifa…… are you gona be alright……. Tifa come on baby….. talk to me…… yuffs has your back…." The ninja girl whom was always a form of distraction was now trying in her best effort to console her despairing friend. "did cloud do something to you……… cause I can kick his ass for ya….. "
"it's not that…… but no don't………"
"then what is it…….. you can tell me…."
Vincent sat on the couch and tried to gather his head. Clouds blow had addled him at worst but still managed to knock some of his concentration out of him. His eyes panned the room in an attempt to take in his surroundings and with almost celestial assistance he noticed the man he had known as wraith standing at the exit of the bar.
"so your name is koty" he said recalling the word from the nameless babble he collected in his unconscious state.
"now you know……. This is my fault……… if tifa goes to check on me tell her I will return before dawn. And if I do not, then I am dead and you need not worry." His words were heard clearly but Vincent gave him only a nod in response.
"you're going to fight him aren't you……." He said as he stood
"no………. he is important………… to me"
cloud knelt at the buster sword. As if he were saying a prayer he called the name of his fallen friend.
"zack……. I don't know what to do………… I'm trying so hard……… tifa I know she means well but I love her too much to sit idly and watch her suffer. What's worse is that I am the reason she suffers so much….. she's terrified of me…… I know it….. what should I do……. I can't let her become a victim…….. but I don't think I can keep playing the hero…… I need some help….."
"go home and you'll find your help lying in a pool of tears made by your absence." A strange yet familiar voice echoed in his ears
"its you……. I'm sorry I didn't mean….."
"don't fret over me my injuries are minimal. Tifa on the other hand has an emotional wound that only you can mend…….."
"why don't you attack me…… if anyone else had received that beating they would have at least fought back or went looking for a little revenge." Cloud spoke breaking the mold of the conversation.
"your important to tifa……. And to me…."
"you…… I don't even know you……… you don't know me and I sure as hell aint eager to share your ideas……. So what's your reason……. Tell me the truth…."
"a friend of mine died today…… actually all of my friends died today…….." koty spoke "and you are whether you like it or not a part of them….. you and tifa are all I have left even if you don't know me…… you are my last hope………. My last shot at redemption………… shall I tell you a story of a man who became a monster……."
"stow it with the formalities……… just tell me a name…….. if tifa trusts you I guess I will…….. but I still don't want to get involved….."
"I'm afraid whether or not you want to be you are already involved……. I'm sorry…… my name is koty…"
The men looked at each other for a moment with a small glare. The glare lasted with a prominence until cloud allowed his eyes to lower. Thoughts of zack and aerith invaded his mind and the man in front of him seemed to be the reason.
He watched him for a few minutes more before the man suddenly took on the appearance of zack. His friend had completely eradicated any thought of the stranger.
"zack" he almost allowed himself to cry at the sight of his friend who now looked alive and well.
"follow your dreams….. you gota have dreams if you wana be a hero………."
"zack……. I've been trying…… what if I don't have a dream……. I'm not like you……. I can't be a hero!…….. zack …….. zack… ZACK…!!!!!" his screams seemed in vein as he ran to find the man had shimmered into non existence. "zack……."
He looked up to notice that he now stood at the front of seventh heaven and fenrir lay toppled on its side next to him. His thoughts however were soon drowned out by a quick but severe sense of nausea and a heavy vertigo. The memory of zack however slowly allowed him to recover.
"hellooooo" the ever familiar voice of aerith invaded his ears as he snapped to attention. "you're not doing it right silly…. Here let me help……." Her voice materialized as he looked up to see her holding a hand out.
He reached a hand up to the flower girl and suddenly found himself in tifa's room. Tifa however lay on the bed, her face portraying deep sorrow.
"what….. are you trying to say….." he said his voice still scratchy as if he weren't speaking.
"like this…… and" the girls voice echoed and cloud instantly felt himself hurled unto the bed and found his arms acting of their own accord as they wrapped their length around tifa's slender waist.
"I don't understand…… what do you want me to do….." he forced the words from his mouth.
"please….. be happy……. Come back…" aerith's voice came from tifa's mouth as the young woman's body shuddered. "I need you…. Please come back…."
"tifa……" all suddenly went black and he was hit with a sense of loss "I can't be your hero if I can't save myself…………….."
The bar filled itself with and awkward aura as yuffie proceeded to scream with a disgusted tone.
"YOU DID WHAT……" she let a shocked tone take over her.
"you heard me….. but it wasn't like that…… I didn't want to it was like taking a lukewarm shower or taking medication when your half asleep……….. it was like I wasn't doing it……… I didn't want to but it felt right…….. you know like giving to a homeless guy…… or buying a crying kid a teddy bear…… but then everything went all…… whooo…… and koty showed up..... that's when it happened."
"tifa baby" yuffie embraced the barmaid as her friend began to cry and gently led her into a resting position on the floor. "shhhhhh…. I know it was bad………. Shhhhhh"
"will she be okay……" koty's voice could be heard as if he had done something to make her cry.
"shell be fine……. She told me what happened…….. I'm really sorry about your friends………" she attempted to reassure the man that someone cared when she noticed no one was present.
"yuffie I think we may need to go looking for cloud tomorrow. I've got a bad feeling………."
"oh no…. you and koty are gona stay inside……… Vince will be happy to help I'm sure but I'll go tomorrow….. so don't worry about spear head….. okay." Tifa nodded to her calming offer appearing content to lay against the young woman's chest that seemed like more safe a place to hide from the nightmare of the day than a bed . "will you be alright…… you want me to make you something to help you sleep……."
"……….." she didn't respond but instead tightened her grip on the young girl.
"alright alright ill stay……. Man tifa……. Was it really that bad……."
"……… he looked too much like him……… I can still see his face…….. oh yuffie he was so……." The young woman choked as she was suddenly overpowered by her emotions. "I can't take it….. what if it were cloud there………. I couldn't live with myself……… and that girl……… and koty………. And all those people……. It was all my fault."
She sobbed uncontrollably in spite of yuffie's words of encouragement. The scene she had witnessed playing over and over again.
"send…me….. out…… with honor….." the voice of the now deceased Jonah replayed in her mind and she felt her body become tired from the tears that flowed so feverently from her eyes. "so this is the price to pay to be free."
She felt her body become numb with fatigue and soon she fell asleep aware of yuffie's ever-present form but unable to move . the young ninja was at this point her life line signifying that the nightmares that she experienced at this time were only dreams and that she was indeed alive. The soft cooing of her voice silenced the screams and gunshots. Her breathing broke the feeling of stagnant hopelessness. Her soft but strong form held tifa together and the blackness of a dreamless sleep settled in.
"thank you yuffie…" she thanked her dear friend from her deep subconscious "thank you."
Her dreams subsided and she lay there for what felt like hours listening to the soft breathing of the ninja girl and allowed the repetitive motion to lull her as she slept. She had hoped that the fear that had plagued her would subside in the morning, this in mind she allowed the sleep to completely consume her.
"is she okay." Vincent spoke as he walked through the door
"yeah ….. hey Vince.." she asked quietly
"hmmm" he acknowledged trying not to wake the obviously exhausted woman.
"can you get me a pillow……. I think its gona be a while." Yuffie spoke running her hands lovingly through tifa's hair.
Vincent understanding of the situation complied to yuffie's request as he returned to the couch to retrieve the pillow he had been resting on. He thought to himself on the matter at hand as he returned to find yuffie still coddling tifa's head neatly against herself.
"here" he whispered. "she must have been tired."
"she's exhausted……… you should have heard the story…….. she's really messed up but I don't understand it myself….. she sounded drunk when I first listened to her……. But she wasn't drinking……… you know how she is………. I doubt she's lying its just a little hard to believe…….. whatever the case I think we need to talk to this koty guy real thoroughly. He seems to be a real trouble maker…….. well maybe not but he reeks of disaster. Like he's a time bomb just counting down until we all get blown to hell."
"should we make him leave though…….. I have this feeling ……… like if we do something bad will happen." Vincent was speaking with an air of omniscience that told yuffie that it was a base instinct.
The young ninja thought on the matter briefly before placing he pillow under her knees. "I don't know what if those guys come back……. He seems to know how to deal with them and clouds in no shape to fight…….. we could use the extra man power……. Well monster power…….Vincent can you make sure the kids don't come in here in the morning……. I don't think we should move her for a while……… she's really freaked out……."
"sure" Vincent rises from the floor without question however he was slightly irritated that the whole situation had been thrust upon him.
The sun would be up and the children would want to come down stairs thinking this he decided to distract his small followers with a day out of the bar.
"yuffie it seems like a good day to take the kids shopping……. Tell tifa not to worry…."
"gotcha Vinnie" the young ninja said as she repositioned tifa's head to the pillow and cautiously lowered herself into a cradling position next to the sleeping barmaid "I've got melons here…… you take care of the ankle biters…" she chuckled as she pressed herself to the young woman's body with a careful motion.
The hours passed quickly and Vincent finally if not grudgingly excepted his fate as the children came down stairs. He waited as he heard them collecting themselves with what sounded like a morbid form of energetic hyperactivity. The they came down the stairs to see the surprise of Vincent waiting for them.
"you two….. come with me" he said in an attempt not to startle them.
"where are we going?" Marlene asked shyly as she hid an obvious grin.
"mmmmm…" he growled at the simple thought of the day ahead "shopping….."
The two children both shared a puzzled look but without hesitation ran for the door. Vincent following with a look that spelled defeat.
He had never been one for public appearance as it often led to unnecessary rumors of his origins. He bore his countenance with dignity despite the agonizingly awful stares he received as he stayed in close proximity of the children. He was going to find this to be an unappealing trip.
Yuffie had never seen tifa so upset. The buxom barmaid had never been one to be easily overcome by emotions. This only served to add to yuffie's questions to be sure but the young ninja had learned from Vincent that some things are best left alone.
She sat for a long time cradleling the broken young woman before hearing sobs coming from upstairs. She had thought that the children had gone with Vincent .Giving tifa a tight embrace she rose and found her way to the main room.
The sobs were gentle but obvious, like someone trying to hide them.
"Vincent……. Denzel……… Marlene…… are you guys here……." No response came as the sobs continued "dog gu…….I mean uh….. Katy …. Kory cami…… ah what the hell is your name……."
"koty……." A voice echoed from directly behind her startling her enough to make her jump.
"fuck….. don't do that to me" the odd phrase from the rather small girl made the stranger retract in surprise "if that's not you then?"
The stranger gave no inclination that he knew what she was talking about and simply stalked away. His gruff behavior beginning to irritate yuffie he shrugged his shoulders in a manner that attested to the fact that he knew more than he would tell.
"gee thanks you're a lot of help…….." she understood why Vincent wasn't fond of him.
She ascended with caution. The sounds were quiet but not subtle, as if they had been held back for an extensive time.
"hello…… is someone here" she followed the noise to tifa's room where she saw clouds trademark spikey blond hair sticking out over his shoulders. "cloud…….." no response "cloud are you okay……… cloud…."
She could hear the sobs clearly. It was cloud that was crying. But his body didn't seem to move like someone who was crying. He seemed to sit too still.
"cloud I didn't hurt you did I……. gawsh I'm sorry I must have overdone it…….." she attempted to talk to him but he never responded.
After several failed attempts to find out what was wrong with him she sat upon the bed. She tried multiple times to come up with something to say but fell short as she noticed his eyes were closed. He was dreaming. Yuffie looked upon her friend whom now lay curled into a fetal position, and she felt a constrained sense guilt and a feeling of being pulled too far.
She couldn't help either of them. They both needed something she couldn't give them and they were too proud to reach out and take. Each other.
"I wish earth were here…….. shed know what to do……" she began to cry as images of the flower girl clouded her judgment and she rested her head upon the crying mans shoulder. "please just say something to her…….. I've watched you two get pushed and pulled and taken from each other too many times………… its time for you to be the bull……. Say something please……. I'll stop teasing you…… ill even put on a dress just please…….. say something……" she cried for a long time until she realized that it wasn't just her friends within the maw.
She also had things that she needed to say. But for the time being cloud and tifa needed her she had to help them for herself, for them, and for the sake of all true lovers everywhere she would throw herself into the maw.
back and forth the struggle consumes us all. trying to keep a levle head. in the most unsettling of times, today i become the bull.: atreyu becoming the bull.
