02. Seventh Heaven

Sector 7 Station was the same as the last one. The air was murky, being trapped beneath a plate. Darkness loomed in every corner, waiting to soak you whole. To Cloud, it looked like any other slum street, but apparently not for the other members of AVALANCHE.

Cloud watched as the others jumped down onto the platform. He watched as their faces lost something – a burden that he hadn't noticed before. Biggs stretched out his arms, pleasant laziness replacing the wariness. Jessie was laughing at something that Barret said as she jumped down after Wedge. Barret was last. He straightened up on the empty platform, looking bigger than usual. Biggs, Wedge, Jessie and Barret – they were at home.

Cloud watched all of this with a twinge of a feeling he couldn't acknowledge. He couldn't say that he missed home, because he didn't have one. If home meant hometown, he would have to pause before he could say – in the end, he would settle for I miss my mother.

Except that she wasn't living there anymore.

"Yo! Get over here, all'ya!" Barret called. Jessie came trotting, grinning.

"You know, I had doubts whether I'd see this station again." She sighed as they all gathered around Barret. Biggs lifted his eyebrow.

"Really? This morning?" He asked. Jessie nodded a little sheepishly.

"Quit yappin'. The mission was a success, but don't get lazy now," Barret warned. "The hard part's still to come. Don't y'all be scared of that explosion." He directed the last part at Wedge, who squirmed a little.

" … 'cause the next one's gonna be bigger than that! Awright, meet me at the hideout. Move out!" He finished, then ran off in one direction. Jessie, taking Biggs' arm, walked the other way. Biggs draped an arm over Jessie's shoulder. To anyone watching, they would look like an ordinary couple. It was practiced, cautionary, although there wasn't another soul at the station. Cloud thought about that as he walked in a random direction, thinking he'd double back to the hideout after strolling around for a bit. He thought about having to lie, to live, just a way of life in the end.

Seventh Heaven was Tifa's bar. It had a broken sign that was missing some parts of the letters, and small windows with thick curtains. The front porch steps squeaked dangerously as Cloud climbed them. He spotted a flier lying abandoned on the floor in front of the door. The same flier he'd occasionally spotted around the slums.

Mako energy won't last forever. Mako is the life of the planet. That life is finite.

The end is coming. AVALANCHE.

"What crappy handwriting," Cloud muttered as he picked up the paper. Barret or someone must have dropped it there. It was like advertising that this bar was their hideout, and sort of defeating the whole point of having a hideout. Cloud shook his head, crumpled it up and threw it aside. Then he pushed the door open. It was dark inside.

Jessie, Biggs and Wedge were already there. There were no other customers, which meant that they could actually sit and eat together. Jessie grinned when she saw Cloud walk in.

"Hiya, Cloud. Didn't come through the window this time, huh?"

Cloud shrugged. Biggs was about to say something to that, when a loud noise interrupted him. Something, no, someone, was scrambling down the staircase that led to Tifa's apartment upstairs.

"Papa!"

Cloud startled. A little girl with large brown eyes came darting into the room, a huge smile on her face; but as soon as she saw that it was Cloud and not her papa, the smile froze in place and quickly disappeared. She ran away and hid behind the curtains in front of the staircase. Cloud stood there dumbstruck, while Biggs chuckled in the back.

Then Tifa came out of the kitchen.

"Marlene! Aren't you going to say anything to Cloud?" She chided, a smile hanging from her lips. She walked over to the girl. Marlene, peeking out from behind the old curtains, quickly hid behind Tifa and followed her as she made her way to Cloud.

"Welcome home, Cloud. Looks like everything went well," Tifa smiled, wiping her hands on her apron. "Did you fight with Barret?" She asked.

"Not this time." Cloud lied, for no reason at all. Somewhere in the back Jessie made a choking sound, but Tifa didn't seem to have heard it. Her smile grew larger.

"Really? You've grown up. When you were little you used to get into fights at the drop of a hat," she laughed. Cloud didn't have anything to say to that, mostly because it was true. "Come on, sit down for a while… what's that, a flower?"

Tifa looked curiously at the flower that Cloud was still holding. He had forgotten all about it, but miraculously hadn't let it drop. Without really thinking about it, Cloud held it out to Tifa.

"For me?" Tifa sounded surprised, and Cloud had nothing to say, really, so he nodded. "You shouldn't have," she said, but accepted the flower anyway. Cloud suddenly remembered that Tifa used to love making a crown or necklace with violet and white wildflowers.

"No big deal," Cloud said. "I remembered you liked flowers."

"Thanks, Cloud. I still do. Maybe I should fill the store with flowers?" She said as she started walking behind the bar to find a vase. Biggs, gulping down the last of his drink, eyed Cloud curiously.

"Where did you get that anyway? Flowers don't grow in Midgar anymore. At least, not in the slums," he said.

"I don't know. There was this flower girl," Cloud shrugged as he sat down in an empty chair next to Jessie. Wedge, who was sitting across from him, grinned and pushed a plate in front of Cloud. It looked like a custard of some kind, golden and looking out of place in the darkness of the bar.

"Try this, Cloud. Tifa really knows how to cook."

"That she does," Biggs agreed, putting down his empty glass and picking up Wedge's.

"There's a downside, though… Tifa always lets me taste her cooking, and look at me now." Wedge gestured at himself, expression tragic. "I'm like, roly-poly. Don't know if I should be happy or sad," he sighed. Jessie put on a stern face.

"Now, Wedge. Don't go blamin' Tifa. You're as roly-poly as the day I first saw you."

Cloud broke a little piece off the custard. He recognized it; it was from home. Hometown.

Tifa came out, holding a glass jar filled with water and the flower sticking out from it.

"I couldn't find a vase," she started, but was cut short when Barret thundered in.

"Papa! Welcome home!" Marlene shot forward, giggling as Barret lifted her up on his shoulders.

"You all right, Barret?" Tifa asked. Barret grunted, but with a hint of a smile, which surprised Cloud a little. He put down Marlene gently, then turned to their table.

"Get in here, fools! We're startin' the meetin'!"

Biggs sighed, though not without affection, then got up. Jessie put down the sandwich she'd been chewing on. Soon, they disappeared down through the staircase that was hidden behind a cupboard. It slid shut soundlessly after Wedge passed through, returning to an ordinary wall. Tifa pushed the cupboard in front of the door again.

"There's another door going out through the backyard," she explained, somewhat unnecessarily. Cloud didn't say anything. "Sit down, I'll get you a drink." She walked behind the counter.

The bar wasn't big, and was dominantly dark. A few seats at the counter, a couple of sofa seats and some wooden tables. An old radio was playing in the background. The slow music seeped easily into the dimness of the bar. The light from the hanging lamp wasn't quite enough to dismiss the heavy shadows in the corners. The woods creaked and wind gushed through the cracks in the walls. Tifa was now humming to the melody of the song. Glasses clattered. She poured a glass and slid it across to Cloud. The liquid was clear gold, like sunset. Cloud recognized this too.

"Nibel Dews?" He guessed. A sip, and it brought back time; the sun, the snow that would never melt in the mountains of Nibelheim. Tifa smiled as she poured herself a glass too.

"For old time's sake. Except last time, it was illegal."

"And you passed out," Cloud said, remembering. Dizzy, merry dance, burning their throats and stomachs. He really had thought that it was apple juice, though no one believed him anyway. It got him into a lot of trouble. As if he'd needed more.

"Yeah… and my father banned me from talking to you. Again." Tifa laughed softly. Cloud remembered. He took another sip. It wasn't so dizzying now. A lot of time had passed. Alcohol couldn't really affect him. The Mako absorbed it all.

Still, it wasn't so bad. Sour, a little bitter, but not so bad. It tasted like reminiscence.

Jessie had turned on the TV in the basement. Cloud took one look around the room; papers, attack plans, maps were scattered everywhere on a big table. Wedge and Biggs sat around it, and Barret was working on a punching bag at the far corner. Cloud glanced at the TV screen: a footage of the reactor blowing up.

"… Number One Reactor has blown up, and the terrorist group AVALANCHE has claimed responsibility for the bombing. It is expected that AVALNCHE will continue this reign of terror…" the TV was saying. Biggs smirked at the choice of words.

Then came an interview with the president of Shinra. Barret's punches got more violent.

"Citizens of Midgar, there is no need to fear."

He was a plump man, and he looked plumper on the screen, Cloud noted with dull interest. Cameras flashed as the president continued. "I have immediately mobilized SOLDIER to protect our citizenry against this senseless… violence. Thank you, and good night."

Jessie turned the TV off. Barret's punches stopped for a moment, as he looked back at Cloud. He held the swinging punching bag with a hand.

"Yo, Cloud. There's somethin'… Was there anyone from SOLDIER fighting us today?"

Cloud stared for a moment to see if Barret was joking or not (he could never tell), but apparently he wasn't. Cloud shook his head. "None. I'm positive."

"You sound pretty sure." Barret narrowed his eyes. Cloud met his gaze with an unyielding one.

"If there was anyone from SOLDIER you wouldn't be standing here," he said matter-of-factly; it was true.

Except, for some reason, that seemed to send Barret over the edge. All of a sudden, he was lunging to grab Cloud, and Biggs was in front of him. Cloud took a step back. Biggs managed to hold on to Barret's arm, but only for a short while. Barret threw him off his arm.

"Guys! Calm down!" Tifa was yelling, appearing out of nowhere, running in between Barret and Cloud. Barret stopped mid-track, seething with rage. Everything happened so quickly. Cloud watched without a word. His heart was beating a little faster at the sudden rush of action.

"Yeah, you're strong. Probably all them guys in SOLDIER are." Barret spat. Cloud just stared, not understanding. What was this about, anyway? "But don't forget that your skinny ass's workin' for AVALANCHE now! Don't get no ideas 'bout hangin' on to Shinra…"

"What?" Cloud blinked. Second ticked, as Barret's words started to make sense, then fire started building up in his chest too. Slowly, he felt his head get heavy, like there was something – burning, sizzling, trying to break free.

"Staying with Shinra?" He repeated. Almost too softly, but the room was quiet. He could hear every breathing, the noise of the traffic above ground, water running next door. No matter how he tried, he couldn't not hear it. Mako. SOLDIER.

Barret had no idea what the hell he was talking about.

"You asked me a question, and I answered it. That's all," he said quietly. There was rage in his chest, like he had to explode, the kind that didn't really make sense. He wanted to take out his sword, slash everything, every piece of paper, the door, the floor, everything. Every breath he took was burning. The feeling was so intense it was almost alien.

But it was familiar, too. He knew, distantly, that this rage wasn't meant for Barret. Not really. Shinra was what had ruined him. Ruined all the things he had and cared about. Rationally, he knew; so he willed himself to turn away slowly, trying to control his breathing.

"I'm going upstairs. Pay me the wage, then I'm gone. You won't see me again."

No one said anything. Cloud briefly wondered what he looked like now. His chest and head felt hot and heavy. Also – somehow – broken. There was a large crack through the middle of his heart and nothing could fix it. The worst was that he felt the crack widening, day by day, and he wished there was something he could do.

But he didn't even know what had cracked him in the first place.

"Cloud!" Tifa called from behind him. Cloud was just about to push open the door and be gone, away from everything that hurt his head. But Tifa was calling. He reluctantly turned back to face her.

"Tifa…" He started, but Tifa shook her head.

"Listen, Cloud. I'm asking you. Please join us."

Cloud watched the amber in her eyes flicker, like he'd done a million years ago. His voice came out quiet. "I'm sorry, Tifa…"

"The planet is dying. Someone has to do something… please, Cloud?" Tifa grabbed his arms as if she was afraid he'd fly away. Cloud could have shaken her off with no effort at all. Except he really couldn't. He shook his head instead.

"So let Barret and his buddies do something about it." As he spoke, images of Biggs, Wedge and Jessie flashed and then withered in front of his eyes. They'd been nice; he had found himself beginning to like their company; but since when could Cloud keep people he liked? They all left him. Or he left them. "It's got nothing to do with me," he added.

That was supposed to be the final words. Tifa's hand dropped as if she were punched. Cloud watched her for a second longer, then turned away. He had just taken a step forward when Tifa's words cut at the back of his head like a blade.

"So you're really leaving? You… you're just going to walk right out, ignoring your childhood friend?"

"What?" Cloud turned back. To his horror, he found her eyes glistening. Cloud opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

Tifa blinked. The glisten was gone. Cloud wondered if he had imagined it.

"You forgot the promise, too," she was saying.

"Promise?" Cloud repeated, frowning. Something scraped his mind, a piece of memory, but he couldn't place it.

"So you did forget." Tifa sighed. Then she looked up at Cloud with renewed vigor. Something, maybe some brand of desperation, crossed her face. "Remember, Cloud. It was seven years ago. The… the well. Do you remember?"

The well.

The well came back first; a dry, abandoned well. No one came by, no one knew it even existed anymore. Except for Cloud and Tifa.

They went there often, especially after Tifa's father had banned her from setting eyes on the damn boy again, time and time again. They went there anyway. Nibelheim was cold, but near spring or autumn, at night, sometimes the wind was soft. There would be thousands of stars, sprinkled across the whole sky, blue and violet and silver and exploding into glittering pieces of diamond. It'd been one of those nights.

Cloud gasped at the memory as it came flooding through to his brain suddenly, as clear as if he were transported back. Right now. He didn't know how he could not have remembered. It was almost tangible now. The stars, he was looking up at them for hours and his neck hurt but he couldn't look away. He was leaning on the side of the well, thinking about a lot of things. Wondering if his future would be what he expected. If Tifa would come. After all, it was the night of the big dance that everybody had been talking about for three months. The one that Cloud hadn't been invited to. The wind was brushing the bare skin of his arms.

"Yeah, I remember." Cloud said. Tifa's eyes widened. "Back then… I thought you'd never come, and I was getting a little cold."

He remembered it clearly, now. Every word that was spoken that night. Every laughter. The amber in her eyes and the stars. Millions of stars all above and around them. Like nothing else existed. Tifa was wearing a light blue dress the color of a waterfall. The folds fell around to her knees in soft cascades as she sat down next to Cloud, out of breath. She kicked off her heels as she grinned up at him.

"Sorry I'm late. Couldn't get out fast enough."

And Cloud had smiled back, because it didn't matter how late she was.; she was here now. Watching her eyes, it was hard to get the words to come out right. So he looked up at the stars as he spoke.

"Come this spring… I'm leaving this town for Midgar."

Tifa was silent for a while. The words slowly sank in, for the both of them. Leaving the town. Leaving home, although it was only a hometown to him, and their childhood was going to end so abruptly.

"All the boys are leaving our town."

Tifa was swinging her legs back and forth, also looking up at the stars.

"I'm not just going to… find a job. I'm going to join SOLDIER. I'm going to be the best there is, just like Sephiroth."

Then no one could ever pretend that I don't exist, look at me like I'm not there. He kept the next line to himself. There was a difference between knowing something and saying it. Tifa was quiet for a long moment. They both watched the stars.

"Isn't it hard to join SOLDIER?" Tifa asked. Cloud nodded. It knotted his stomach whenever he thought about exactly how he was going to join SOLDIER, but he was going to be brave. He was going to work hard. It would be the one thing he did right in his life.

"Yeah. So I probably won't be able to come back to this town for a while. Not that anyone would miss me."

"… I would miss you." Tifa said that so softly that Cloud wasn't sure if he had heard right. It was like a whisper, swept by the wind.

"Except you and mom, of course," he added, and Tifa smiled.

"Will you be in the newspapers if you do well?"

"I'll try."

Then Tifa looked right at Cloud, something glittering in her eyes. She was grinning and shining like the stars in the sky.

"Hey, why don't we make a promise?"

"A promise?"

"Yeah! If you get really famous and I'm ever in a bind… You come save me, all right?"

"What?"

"Whenever I'm in trouble, my hero will come and rescue me. Come on, Cloud. Let a girl play princess." She laughed. A gush of wind came running at them, messing up their hair. Tifa was looking at Cloud, her gaze unflinching. The moment stretched. Cloud finally nodded. After all, what could he do?

"All right. I promise."

A shooting star flashed across the sky. Cloud couldn't tell if it was the memory, or right now; it must be the memory because there was no sky in the slums.

"You remember now, don't you? Our promise?" Tifa's voice was quiet. Cloud nodded, feeling a little overwhelmed. It was the last piece of his childhood. He had left Nibelheim that very night, and as soon as he set foot on the road with nothing but a small backpack and fierce determination, at fourteen, he had lost his childhood.

It was different now. He was broken. He wasn't that boy anymore.

"I'm not a hero. I'm not famous. I can't keep… the promise." Cloud said, not meeting Tifa's eyes. Tifa touched his arm again, much more gently this time.

"But you got your childhood dream, didn't you? You joined SOLDIER. So come on! You've got to keep your promise." There was a smile in her voice. Cloud looked up, opened his mouth to say something, but couldn't. Again. Barret had chosen that moment to stomp up the stairs. He wasn't so red anymore, Cloud noted, although he was trying to maintain his huff.

"Wait a sec, big-time SOLDIER! A promise is a promise! Here!" He threw an envelope that Cloud caught with ease. A promise is a promise. What a timing. Cloud saw Tifa break into a grin. There really was nothing he could do, was there? He sighed.

"You got the next mission lined up? I'll do it for 3000." He said.

"What?" Barret was dumbstruck, forgetting to keep up his act of rage. Tifa's smile grew wider.

"Thanks, Cloud," she said. Cloud nodded. "Come on, I'll show you where you can sleep tonight." Tifa took his arm, leading him down to the basement.

"Damn, that money's for Marlene's schooling! 2000!" Barret shouted at his back.

It was a dreamless sleep. When Cloud woke, Biggs, Wedge and Jessie were still sleeping around the room. Their sleeping quarters turned out to be the same one as the meeting room, which was apparently equipped with sleeping bags.

The morning air was chilly, and a little blue. The sun hadn't come out completely yet. Cloud climbed up the stairs, just as Tifa was coming down from her apartment where she and Marlene shared a room, as she'd told him. Barret had let her stay there in exchange for keeping the bar going and looking after Marlene. Tifa smiled when she saw him.

"Good morning, Cloud. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah." Cloud shrugged. There was a sound of something breaking at the top floor. Barret must be up.

"Good. Hey, I'm going this time, too." Tifa said, walking behind the bar. Cloud sat, frowning.

"Really?" He said. Tifa laughed shortly.

"Hey, don't be surprised… I've been learning and practicing too, you know, after you left." She said, running the water to wash some mugs.

"What for?" Cloud asked. Tifa was about to answer, when Barret came stumbling down. He brought all the noise with him.

"Our target's the Sector Five Reactor. Tifa, tell the sleepyheads to head for the station first, and I'll fill you in on the train…" Then Barret spotted Cloud. He looked surprised at finding him up and about this early.

"Yo, Cloud," he finally greeted, then walked out of the bar.

Cloud thought about Barret walking alone, in the dawn, a gun for his arm and out to save the planet. It seemed that heroes came in all shapes and sizes.