*OMG! I'm so sorry, everyone! It's almost been a year since I last updated. I'm such a terrible author. T_T I don't want to stop writing this story, but I have been going through some rough times. Again, thank you to those who reviewed, favorited, and followed. I hope to get more… :D*

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Cloud: About time you get another chapter going!

Me: *cries*

Tifa: Cloud!

Cloud: What? It's true.

Stella: Don't be so mean to her. She's been trying.

Cloud: *grumbles*

Noctis: Anyways, SilverIceDragon doesn't own Final Fantasy or any of the characters. Square Enix holds the copyright.

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Ch. 7 – Breakfast and Preparations

"C…Cloud…"

"Tifa! Please… stay with me!"

He couldn't believe this was happening. Cloud was down on his knees holding Tifa tightly to him as she began to fade away. He was too late… again.

"Tifa… no! NO! Don't leave me!" he screamed.

A menacing laugh was the last thing he heard before everything faded to black.

Dawn approached to welcome the new day. The sun rose above the distant mountains; touching the cityscape with its outstretched rays until it finally it embraced the Caelum citadel. Cloud was slowly awakened by the light filling his room. He rolled over on his back to stretch and yawn. Last nights' dream was far from pleasant. What did it mean? Does it have any relevance to the dream Tifa had? He would have to ask her. As he opened his eyes, what he saw gave him a bit of a surprise. The room was impressive, but it was almost the same kind of grandeur that he saw at the Nibelhiem mansion. Only the room was a little bit bigger.

As Cloud got out of bed, he walked straight to the bathroom to prepare for the day. As he turned on the light in the bathroom, he got quite the shock this time. What he saw in there was not just an ordinary bathroom. Part of one wall was adorned with a large saltwater tank with various sea life inside, wide-mouth stainless-steel sink, with a large oval shaped mirror above it, and a marble tiled, jacuzzi-sized bath tub/shower. The shower head, along with four others positioned at the sides, provided for a more thorough cleaning. Cloud also found the toilet and a urinal. To the left of the bathroom entrance was a small walk in closet that had all the necessities for hygiene not to mention it was also attached to the main walk in closet. It was filled with all kinds of clothing for each occasion and was all tailored to a male physique; preferably his. He was completely spellbound from everything. 'This is insane. I mean, just the bathroom and closet alone,' he said to himself as he got undressed and got in the shower.

Moments later, he was dressed, shaven and prepared for the day. He walked over to Tifa's room to see if she was awake.

After knocking on the door for about a minute he said, "Tifa?" Silence was his answer.

He knocked again, "Tifa? Are you in there?" Still no answer.

Cloud then proceeded into her room and found she was not there. He looked in the bathroom and the closet and came up empty handed.

Just as he walked out of her room, he saw Noctis approaching.

"Hey, have you seen Tifa?"

Noctis shook his head, "Sorry, I haven't? Did you see Stella at all?"

Cloud responded in the negative.

Both pondered where the girls could be until Cloud took in a deep breath through his nose and picked up a familiar scent. Suddenly, Cloud's eyes widened and a goofy smile appeared on his face. He looked over at Noctis who was still deep in thought.

"Do you smell that?" Cloud said as he nudged Noctis to get his attention.

Noctis looked back at him curiously, and then sniffed the air. Understanding dawned on him and he looked over to Cloud saying, "Race you to the kitchen?"

"First one there gets seconds." Cloud responded.

Noctis nodded to the terms. "Ready? Go!"

Both young men burst down the stairs hoping to be the first to win and revel in eating the delicious breakfast… and seconds.

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Tifa woke up early, got cleaned up and dressed. She practically had the same reaction as Cloud did when she got a good look at her surroundings. Once she left her room, she wandered around the castle and watched as the servants prepared for the upcoming day. Just as she was coming to the library, she saw Stella coming out.

"Oh. Good morning, Ms. Lockheart." Stella said cheerfully as she closed the door behind her.

"Good morning to you too, My Lady," replied Tifa with a gentle smile. "Please, call me Tifa."

"Alright and in return, you can call me Stella."

Tifa smiled and nodded.

After a short pause, Stella brought up an idea, "Say Tifa, have you had breakfast yet?"

Tifa responded, "Not yet. I was looking around at the castle for a moment, but I'd like to get something to eat."

"Follow me. I'll show you to the kitchen." Stella said as they made their way to said location.

Once they made it to the main kitchen, Tifa almost fainted at how enormous it was. It looked like a kitchen that was found at extravagant restaurants only ten times larger and more spacious. She also noticed that it was very nit-picky clean. Like back at her bar, Tifa liked to keep it impossibly clean.

Stella broke the silence, "So is there anything you'd like to have made?"

Tifa looked back at Stella, "Oh. If you don't mind, I'd like to make something myself."

"Not at all," Stella replied.

Tifa smiled in thanks and began to get the necessary ingredients and items she needed for her breakfast, until Stella came up with an idea.

"Hmm… you know, why don't we make something for the boys when they wake up?"

"That sounds great. I know they're going to be hungry. Especially Cloud. He loves my cooking." Tifa said.

Stella laughed, "We'll make them a meal they will never forget!"

Tifa responded cheerfully, "Let's do this!"

The girls and two cooks spent at least an hour and a half preparing this smorgasbord of a breakfast. Everything from pancakes to waffles, eggs to bacon and sausage, muffins and other pastries, fruits of all types, to coffee, tea, juice and milk. It was all made for them.

After looking at the feast, Tifa and Stella looked at each other and beamed with pride at their accomplishment. And not a moment too soon, the girls heard some hurried footsteps to their location.

'Here they come. I hope Cloud likes what he sees.' Tifa thought to herself.

Stella was a bit nervous as she thought, 'I hope Noctis enjoys what we made.'

Cloud and Noctis finally reached the kitchen and saw the most amazing meal that they ever laid eyes on. Both of them were nearly salivating from just the aroma.

"Did you two make all this?" Noctis said, looking at Stella. 'You're so amazing, Stella.'

Tifa shook her head, "Yes. We made this along with two other cooks. We needed the extra hands to make it in a decent time for you guys."

Cloud smiled and thought, 'Gaia, I love you so much, Tifa.' She lightly blushed when he looked at her.

"Well, don't just stand dumbfounded. Dig in." Stella said joyously.

Everyone began filling their plates and eating. Meanwhile, Noctis and Cloud would sneak glances at their beloved ones, while in turn Tifa and Stella would look back at them.

oOoOoOo

Once breakfast done and cleaned up, the four of them headed to the north section of the castle. Noctis took the lead, as he had to get to Ignis and the security room to see if anything happened between now and last night. Stella saw his tensed posture and it worried her.

"Noctis," she called as he stopped and looked behind him. "Is everything ok? You look a bit upset."

Noctis sighed, "I'm not upset. Just worried about this Genesis guy and his army." Then he looked over at Cloud and Tifa, who also looked at him with curiosity "We're heading to the security room. You'll be meeting one of my closest friends. The others you'll meet later today."

Both of them nodded their heads in understanding. Noctis then turned back around and continued walking, albeit in a calmer manner, so as not to worry Stella.

'She's already worrying too much. I don't want to see her stressed because of me. It's already bad enough that her kingdom was taken.' Noctis thought solemnly.

Then he felt Stella placing her hand on his shoulder in a gesture of comfort. He turned to look at her and gave her a gentle smile.

'I know he's trying hard to fix this problem. But it seems he taking too much of the burden. Please rely on me, Noctis. I love you. Rely on our new friends, too.'

After the brief interlude, everyone remained silent for the rest of the walk.

Finally, they reached the security room. Noctis pulled out a card and swiped it though a small card reading device attached to the main door. Then he placed his right hand on a scanner that appeared next to the card reader. Not a second later, the door opened and all four of them stepped inside.

What Cloud and Tifa saw was beyond incredible. A massive, circular holographic map of the entire world lied in the middle of the room. Smaller holographic screens that showed video feeds of cameras located throughout the castle grounds; others in the city. Computers set up in a corner with three security personnel with hearing devices, and a small table that showed 3D holographic images of the castle structure and other buildings. Noctis walked past the security experts and headed to a small room. He urged the others to follow him.

Noctis knocked on the door. Suddenly, it opened to reveal his friend, Ignis.

"Cloud. Tifa. This is Ignis. He's in charge of the security and is one of my best friends. We grew up together here. His father was Head of Security for my father."

Ignis nodded to the couple and shook their hands, "Welcome. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. We've been waiting for your arrival since Noctis told us about his encounter with the crystal."

"Has anything happened since last night?" Noctis questioned.

Ignis picked up his portable tablet. "We've been seeing some activity in the Tenebrae kingdom, but only from the outside. I've been trying to hack into the security system but something, or someone, keeps blocking me."

"Keep trying. I need you to get through and find out what Genesis and this Hojo guy are up to." Noctis replied.

"I will."

Once they left the security room, Noctis stopped and turned to Cloud and Tifa.

"Just so you know, in that same room, there's a hidden door next to the room Ignis is in. That room leads to the lower levels where the crystal is kept. It's currently under a high state of security. Only myself, Stella, Ignis and special security forces are allowed down there."

Cloud looked at Tifa, then back to Noctis, "We understand."

He nodded back, "I'll take you to see it soon. There's also another entrance, but that's only for me to know."

Next, they all headed to the south side of the castle. It was a bit darker than the rest of the castle and, to Cloud, it looked familiar to him.

"This area is the training facility. Myself, my friends, and my security personnel come here to train to keep our abilities on par." He paused for a moment. "We need to start training right away, since we don't know what Genesis and Hojo will do with Stella's army."

Stella looked to the ground as a tear made its way down her beautiful face. Noctis came forward and embraced her. "I'm sorry, Stella. There's no other way."

"No. I understand. I only wish that there was a way to avoid bloodshed. We've seen too much of it." She said as she buried herself further in his embrace and cried quietly.

Cloud and Tifa looked on and also felt the same way.

"We've seen a lot of innocent blood spilt too. It's not pretty. But what we can do is save those before things turn ugly." Cloud said.

Memories came flooding back to Tifa as she thought of Jessie, Biggs, Wedge… and Aerith. She began to cry as well, and Cloud also took her in his arms.

"Aww… what an adorable scene. Where's a camera when you need one?" said an unknown voice.

"You broke it remember. You and your girlfriend thought it was funny to take it and go riding and she almost fell off when you took a turn too sharp and she dropped it." said another unknown voice.

The first unknown voice replied nervously, "Oh yeah… I forgot about that… hehe… hehe. Please don't hurt me."

Cloud and Tifa sprung apart, though not far from each other, while Noctis and Stella looked to the hidden culprits with slight annoyance.

"Gladiolus, Prompto… get over here." Noctis said; rubbing the bridge of his nose in irritation.

The two figures approached and once they were in view, Noctis introduced them.

"This is Gladiolus and the one next to him is Prompto. Guys, this is Cloud and Tifa."

Prompto, while eyeing Tifa, was the first to speak, "Hey there, hot stuff! Why don't you and I take a cruise around the town someday."

Gladiolus sighed in shame, "You're really hopeless."

Cloud didn't like his tone and immediately went on the defensive. Next thing everyone knew, Prompto was slammed into a nearby wall; Cloud's hand gripping his throat.

"Don't even think of laying your hands on her!" he growled

*cough* "Okay, okay!" *cough* "Sorry!" Prompto gasped out.

Cloud then dropped him and walked back over to the others. Tifa gave him a slight scolding for being too rough with others and warned him not to do it again. Cloud apologized to her but gave an icy glare at Prompto when she wasn't looking. Noctis continued to talk about how the training rooms operated.

"When I was in Shinra, SOLDIER trainees would use VR training rooms much like these." Cloud said.

"Good. We'll start training tomorrow." Noctis replied.

The group then left the training wing and made their way to the Main Hall. Gladiolus and Prompto bid their farewells to everyone as they prepared to head out and scout for the enemy.

Each of the young warriors knew what to do and yet, they were terrified. They were afraid that any of them could possibly get hurt or worse… killed. It is imperative that they destroy this malicious tyrant before he gets his hands on the Crystal. But one thing was for certain, time was running out. If they do not stop Genesis and Hojo… their world, their future will be lost forever.