Chapter 27: Down on the Farm

September 3, 1998

Cloud Strife, age twelve, and Tifa Lockhart, age eleven, lay on deck of the boat. It had been two days since they had escaped the conflagration of the orphanage, along with the Northern Continent. They had sailed into the night and the entire next day and night as well, just in case anyone was looking for them. They continued to sail into the third day, stopping only to eat and sleep. At dusk on the third day, they spotted land, and, exhausted from their flight, decided to drop anchor.

So now they were laying on their backs, staring at the stars.

"Where do you think we are?" Cloud asked.

"I think this is the rural Eastern Continent," Tifa replied. "East of Kalm. I heard Dana Downing is from here."

"I guess that means we won't be making a landing," Cloud suggested.

"I'd rather not," Tifa admitted.

They continued to stare at the stars for a few minutes. Cloud thought about how Cid went into space, and wondered what else was out there.

"Hey, Tifa," he began.

"Yes?" she asked.

"You think an astronaut will ever land on Uranus?" he asked.

"Maybe on your anus," she replied with a laugh.

That part of her personality had not changed.

They were close friends still, even after nearly losing each other to adoption. It was an utter relief for both to get well away from that situation.

That said, it was becoming more complicated for one of them.

Cloud, now being twelve, was beginning to develop strong feelings for her. He found himself checking out her body more often, and even, on occasion, began harboring naughty thoughts.

But, at the same time, he remembered that she was nine months younger than him, and likely did not yet develop those kind of feelings.

And he had not forgotten what she had said to him when they first went back in time.

FLASHBACK….

"You're ten," said Tifa. "I'm nine. Kids don't get married. They don't even love in that way!"

Cloud felt like he wanted to fall to the ground.

"But…things will change right back, right?" Cloud asked in a broken voice. "I mean…when we grow up again."

"Who knows?" Tifa replied. "I mean, we could grow up to be very different people than we originally were. I don't know what life is going to throw at us over the next fourteen and a half years."

….END FLASHBACK

Looking back, Cloud realized it was an open answer. Right now, though, it did not look good. Tifa did not show any romantic attraction to him at nine, and, two years later, she was not showing him any at eleven, either.

Maybe someday.

Or maybe not.

The ambiguity was killing him inside.

And then, the most painful realization hit him.

If she never regained her attraction for him, he would have no choice but to move on.

And then, Cloud's thoughts came to an abrupt end as a light suddenly shone on the deck.

"Freeze!" called a loud male voice. "Stand up! And hands in the air where I can see them!"

Cloud and Tifa slowly stood up and placed their hands in the air.

Another boat floated in front of them. They could see two shadowy figures on the deck, with one of them aiming a rifle right at them.

"For crying out loud, Zeke!" shouted a female voice. "They're children!"

Zeke lowered his rifle and stepped forward, making himself visible to Cloud and Tifa. He appeared to be fifty or older, and was wearing a cap that read "Sullivan Farms" on it.

"You two on this boat by yourselves?" he inquired.

"Yes sir," Tifa replied.

"Where are your parents?" Zeke asked.

"They're dead!" Tifa answered. "Blown off the boat in a storm."

"You poor dears!" the woman said as she came into view.

She appeared to be in her forties, and had short, brown hair.

"If it's okay," Cloud requested, "we'd really like to be on our way. We didn't mean to bother you."

"I can't just let you go," Zeke explained. "One, you were trespassing in my waters. Two, you don't have parents, you live with an adult. That's the law."

Cloud and Tifa looked at each other silently. After two days of freedom, they had been caught again.

"You better come with us," said the woman. "I'm Ellie. This is my husband, Ezekiel."

"Call me Zeke," he greeted.

"I'm Kate," Tifa greeted. "And this is my brother, Kyle."

Now that can't separate us, she thought.

"Did you drive that boat all by yourself?" Ellie inquired.

"How else would we get here?" Cloud asked.

Tifa, annoyed, nudged Cloud with her elbow.

"I'm sorry about my brother," she insisted. "But we were wondering where we should drop anchor."

"We have a dock," Zeke replied. "Park your boat there until we figure this all out."

The rest of the night wrote itself. Cloud and Tifa parked their boat next to Zeke's at the dock. Then, everyone disembarked. Zeke and Ellie led Cloud and Tifa up the path to their house, which lit up the otherwise-dark area.

On the way up, Cloud and Tifa could see barns and fields, suggesting that Zeke and Ellie were farmers. This also implied by Zeke's cap that their last name was Sullivan. But when they got to the house, they noticed it was huge.

Especially for a farmer.

Zeke and Ellie led Cloud and Tifa inside. The last surprise of the evening greeted them as they entered the patio room.

A fifteen-year-old girl was sitting on the couch in her pajamas.

Zeke placed his hands on Cloud's shoulders, and Ellie placed her hands on Tifa's.

"This is Kate and Kyle," Zeke introduced.

"I'm Donna!" the girl greeted with a smile. "It's nice to meet you!"

Zeke gave his daughter a solemn look.

"They just lost their parents in a storm," he explained. "They'll be staying with us for a while."

"I'm so sorry!" Donna said as she hugged them both. "You'll be safe here. I promise."

"But just a little while," warned Zeke. "Until we figure this out."

THE NEXT DAY….

Cloud and Tifa entered the kitchen to see a familiar girl in jeans and a dark blue tank top at the stove.

"Good morning!" Donna greeted. "I made you two breakfast!"

The two children turned to the kitchen table to see three plates with pancakes and sausage on them.

"And myself, of course," she added. "Just for the three of us."

"Thanks!" Tifa said. "That was thoughtful."

"Where are your parents?" Cloud asked.

"Out fishing for salmon," Donna replied. "We also sell fish, but only the wild caught, since nobody likes them farm-raised."

The children looked at each other, quite impressed.

"Yeah," Donna laugh. "We farm everything."

The three of them went to the table and finished their breakfast.

Then, Donna smiled again.

"Since this is going to be your home for the time being, why don't I give you a tour?" she offered.

"I'd like that," Kate said.

"Perfect!" Donna exclaimed. "Let's go!"

She led them through the living-room, dining-room, and through the furnished basement (with a pool table and another kitchen).

She led them out back, showing them the pool and jacuzzi.

Cloud was amazed; he had stayed on Choco Bill's farm in his former adult life, and it was a rather large ranch, but this was beyond impressive.

"This is a real farm," Donna said proudly.

"That pool is tempting," Cloud admitted.

"We can definitely go for a swim afterward," Donna promised them. "Oh, but my parents do have one rule about the pool. No bikinis. Sorry, Kate. It's a stupid rule, I know."

She then showed Cloud and Tifa where all the animals were kept. She showed them the cows, horses, pigs, sheep, and goats.

"So," Tifa began, "if this is all rural, where do you go to school?"

"We homeschool," Donna replied.

"You mean like the Downings?" Tifa asked.

"The who?" Donna replied.

Shit! Tifa thought. I just said an anachronism!

"Sometimes I drive into town if I need something, which is almost never," Donna added.

Thank God! Tifa thought. She forgot that pretty quickly and…..WHAT?!

"Wait a minute!" Cloud exclaimed. "How old are you?"

"Fifteen," Donna replied with a wink.

"And your parents let you drive?" he asked.

"There's not a cop for miles," Donna replied. "Though I don't really have a reason to go into town. Not since I stopped figure skating."

"You figure skated?" Tifa asked.

"I did until last year," Donna answered. "When it got too competitive. I could probably try again, but I'll also probably fall on my butt a few times."

Cloud and Tifa soon found the farm a peaceful environment.

They realized it was a place they would like to stay; so far, there did not seem to be anything wrong with it.

ONE YEAR LATER…

October 12, 1999

Cloud, or Kyle, as he came to be called, finished currying the horse and stepped out of the stall. He was thirteen years old now, and had grown accustomed to living on the ranch.

Zeke had informed Cloud and Tifa that their stay would be temporary, and implied it to be short, but, a mere year later, the Sullivans had legally fostered them. It had been a difficult process, since no birth certificates could be found. But, at Donna's insistence, they decided to keep them indefinitely, potentially until they were eighteen again.

Yet, after a year on the ranch, there was something that continued to baffle Cloud. Other than the aforementioned luxuries, he noticed one difference from Bill's.

"How come we don't have chocobos?" Cloud asked. "They're a lot easier to take care of than horses."

"Because the Old World didn't have chocobos," Zeke replied. "Or moogles."

Cloud stretched his head.

"The Old World?" he whispered to himself.

THAT EVENING…

Donna sat in front of her mirror in her pajamas, brushing her long brown hair.

Tifa walked by, and stopped. She had a question to ask her, as it intrigued her as well.

"Kate!" she greeted. "You know you're always welcome here! Come on in!"

Tifa stepped into Donna's bedroom.

"Donna," Tifa began, "can I ask you something? I kind of feel a little weird about it, but it's been on my mind."

Donna smiled.

"I know what you're about to ask me," she said.

"You do?"

"That's normal for your lady parts to bleed like that," Donna explained. "It's called a period. It happens every month. We'll get you some tampons, but in the meantime you can use some of mine."

Tifa laughed and shook her head.

"No, it's about something your dad said to Kyle today."

"Oh," Donna giggled. "I'm sorry. Ask away."

"What's the Old World?" Tifa asked. "Your dad mentioned it today. He said he doesn't have chocobos on the farm because they weren't from the Old World."

"It's where people used to live before we came here," Donna replied. "Many thousands of years ago."

This is probably her family's religious beliefs, Tifa deduced. These ones are new to me.

"How did we get to Gaia?" she asked.

"It's said that a large ship could travel through space, from planet to planet. It was so big that a million people could fit in it," Donna continued. "It was on its way to colonize another planet, but it crashed on Gaia."

"So they settled here?" Tifa asked. "A million people?"

Donna shook her head.

"Only about two hundred survived," she replied. "The rest died in the crash."

"That's terrible!" Tifa replied.

"It's terrible, but a necessary evil," Donna said.

"A necessary evil?" Tifa asked skeptically.

"Gaia was a dead moon with a gray surface and no atmosphere," Donna explained. "But when those people died, their souls went to the planet, and gave it life."

"And that was the birth of Gaia?" Tifa asked.

"As it is today," Donna replied. "Or, at least what we believe."

"Do you believe it?" Tifa asked.

Donna shrugged.

"I'm not sure what I believe," she replied. "But I'm certain the Old World existed. Some songs you hear today are from there."

Something then crossed Tifa's mind.

"This isn't the reason for the 'no-bikini' rule, is it?"

Donna laughed and shook her head.

"Nah," she replied. "That's just my parents' rule. I guess they're a little over-protective of me since I was their only child. But now that I'm sixteen and can drive legally, I suppose I could buy one in secret."

LATER…

"This family belongs to a religion I'm not too familiar with," Tifa pointed out. "They focus on ancestors from the Old World."

They were in Cloud's room, playing Mouse Trap.

"The Old World's a myth," Cloud dismissed.

"You felt the same thing about the Lifestream," she pointed out. "And so did I."

"This is a little different," he insisted. "We were in the Lifestream. It was where…"

He could not finish. Their adult selves had fallen in love after ending up in there.

It was a painful memory of a life now gone; he did not want to reopen old wounds.

"I know," she admitted. "But I think the Old World has some truth to it."

"What do you mean?" asked Cloud.

"What about the mural that Zack saw on the Southern Continent?" she asked. "It had pictures of whole civilizations that existed before ours."

"It could have been painted by anyone at any time," he insisted.

Tifa sighed.

"You're a hard person to convince, aren't you."