Title: Tending Bar
Fandom: Final Fantasy: Advent Children
Characters: Cloud, Tifa, Vincent, Sephiroth, Reno, Rude, Kadaj, Zack, Reeve (possibly others I've missed)
Prompt: 049Club
Word Count: Pending
Date finished: 07/14/2006
Rating: PG
Summary: AU. Cloud Strife stops for a drink - and finds himself with a job.
Author's Notes: Oooh... this one came from the line (that was mutated in the fic) "You know he wants you, right?" Tifa says to Cloud. I have had HUGE help from Mandie McGarry with this one!
Also, please keep in mind: I don't drink. I don't go to clubs (didn't when I was young enough to). So if it feels weird - it's because I have no clue.
Disclaimer: Characters are owned by Square Enix and Sony Pictures as far as I know.

The drink he ordered was delivered by the shaking hand of the man behind the bar. Cloud Strife took a drink and nearly spit it out. "This isn't what I ordered," he said in a friendly voice.

The bartended paled, his short black hair making him look more ghostly that he might normally. "I've never heard of it," he said, and Cloud shook his head.

"It's okay," he said. "It's easy." He began listing off ingredients and how much of each, watching as the man mixed it, then took his corrected drink to a small table and sat down. One sip, and he sighed. Ah, perfect.

"That was nice," a voice said, and he looked up into the face of a very pretty woman. Her face was framed by long brown hair she wore loose, and the black shirt and long shorts covered a well-proportioned body. She carried a tray and an aura of "hands off". Cloud grinned.

"Self-defense. Whatever he mixed tasted vile."

She glanced up at the bar. "He'll quit by the end of the night," she predicted.

"Really?" He perked up, interested.

She smiled. "New in town?"

"And running out of cash," he confirmed. "No one is hiring right now."

"No reason not to apply, then," she said, and then someone yelled something, and she turned away with a wave.

It was a good idea, actually. He glanced up at the bar, and watched the current bartender fumble through a couple more drinks.

A few minutes later, the waitress returned. "He'd like your help. You up to it?"

Cloud nodded and followed her to the bar.

The bartender looked like he was going to collapse at any minute, and Cloud slipped up next to him. "What are you mixing?" he asked.

"Mai Tai, Gongaga twist," the man stuttered. "I've never even heard…"

He stared as Cloud deftly fixed the drink and handed it to the man across the bar from him. The patron took a drink, waved his thanks, and left.

"That's it," the bartender said in relief. "It's yours." He turned and walked off.

Cloud raised his eyebrows at the woman, and she grinned. "I'll talk to the boss. You do what you do so well."

He chuckled, and turned to the next patron. "What's your pleasure?"

He spent a wonderful evening, mixing drinks, speaking with patrons, and finally finding out that the woman who'd helped him was named Tifa. There were a couple of hitches; he had to learn his way around the bar, and was upfront about it with the patrons who seemed impatient. It didn't always work, but at least fewer of them gave him a hard time. By the end of the night, he was pleasantly tired and ready to head back to his small apartment, since he had no idea where anything went. He did his best to put things back where they belonged; when he stood up from tucking the last of the glasses away, he was nose to chest with a very tall man.

Cloud blinked and took a step back. "Um. Hi."

His hair was long, very long, and an odd silvery color that could not have been natural - or at least, it wasn't the hair color he was born with. His eyes were green, and slit like a cats, and he had the face of an angel. "Tifa said you were good," he said, his low voice a caress. "I have gotten no complaints all evening since you took over the bar. Are you willing to stay?"

"Only need to know the pay," Cloud said. "And if there's any kind of test I need to pass."

"You passed," the man said flatly. "The fourth drink you mixed was mine."

The redhead had stuck out a little, dressed in a suit - even if rumpled - and asking for one of the more obscure drinks. It was from Wutai - no chance he'd grown up with it. No chance this guy had, either.

"As for pay," he named a sum that Cloud hoped was compatible - being a bartender had never crossed his mind, in spite of his past. That had been fun - this was a real job.

"Okay," Cloud said. "When do you want me to start - and can I have a little time before hand to get the procedures down?"

"Tomorrow night, 9:30, you'll start regularly at 10:00. You'll get two breaks; Reno will cover for you." He gestured to the redhead. "Tips go in a common pot, you split them with the girls at the end of the night. You get any problems, you let Reno or Rude know."

Rude nodded, a tall, bald man, eyes hidden behind sunglasses, even in the dark of the club.

"Sounds simple enough. Do you get trouble?"

"Seldom." The man turned to leave. "Take the paperwork home with you, bring it back tomorrow. Be on time." He left the room, and everyone breathed a little easier.

"Welcome to the family," Tifa grinned.

"Thanks, I think," Cloud said. "Is this okay?"

She surveyed behind the bar, and shrugged. "Leave a note for Barret. He's the early bartender. Let him know you're new, that you'll be in early so he can show you the ropes, and that you didn't know what you were doing when you cleaned up."

"Good idea." He found a pad of paper, scribbled a note, and then followed her out of the club.

His motorcycle was a block down; they wound up walking the same way, and her eyes lit up at the sight of the massive bike. "Wow. That yours?"

"Yeah. Fixed it up and restored it. That's part of the reason I need a job." He hesitated. "So… does he do that a lot? Sneak up on people?"

Tifa smiled. "Oh, yeah. Sephiroth does like to surprise people. Vincent was nervous when he started, and Sephiroth just made it worse. It's probably good that he got out when he did."

"Vincent - the bartender?"

"Yes."

"Do you want a ride home?" Cloud asked, suddenly aware of how dark - and late - it was.

Tifa smiled. "Oh, no, but thanks. I just live the next block down."

"So, that's one block you won't have to walk."

Her smile broadened. "Okay. One block of saving my feet is worth it."

Cloud mounted, started the bike, and Tifa got on behind. He dropped her off at the door to her apartment house, and went on to his own place a couple of miles away. Once inside, he changed and fell into bed. He was asleep before he could even consider what he might have done.

He woke with one of his blankets over his face and a scream caught in his throat. He batted the blanket away and sat up, half expecting to see the ruins of an old house, and outside, bodies of his friends. But no, the apartment was there, quiet, no sounds of wind through the broken window, and the bed roll was mostly under him, rather than over him. He collapsed back to the floor, pulling the blanket around his shoulders, and waited for his heart rate to go down, his breathing to calm. When they did, he looked at his small travel alarm clock.

Noon?

"Lazy bones!" Zack's voice was clear in his head; the soldier had yelled at Cloud one morning when he'd gotten up about half an hour after the rest of them had, sleepy from the activities the night before. Behind Zack he could see the others jeering at him. "Get up!"

"Go find a new mixer, then," Cloud had muttered, struggling out of the bed roll he hadn't gotten used to yet. The others had made Zack back off - even though his friend had been kidding.

Cloud closed his eyes. The nightmare - all the bad - was rarely coupled with the good memories, and he didn't know why. He missed them, the whole troop; they'd adopted him, kept him hidden from anyone who would turn him back out on the street.

He shook his head as he got up, trying to banish the nightmare, but that didn't work, and he decided something else would have to do. His mind was mercifully blank as he went through his morning routine - regardless of the time - sit ups and push ups. His shower helped wash the rest of the memories away, and he thought about his new job. And Tifa. And, oddly, Sephiroth. He shuddered and turned up the heat on the water. The man was weird, and seriously gave him the creeps.

Tifa was easier on his mind - not to mention his eyes. And nice, in spite of her "hands off" vibe. Which had vanished as soon as he'd stepped behind the bar. He figured now would be a good time to read over that paperwork. He turned the water off and got out.

His wet hair dripped on the paper as he read it, sipping at his coffee. Ah, he thought, and reread the paragraph about sexual harassment. Yeah, he'd be careful. Not that he wouldn't have anyway….

He found a pen and began filling everything out: tax forms, emergency info - yeah, like he had anyone to inform - and everything else the club thought necessary. When he finished, he went out to see about getting something to eat.

The rest of the day was slow, but that was how he liked them. At 9:30, he showed up at the club - merely a bar until 10:00 - and introduced himself to Barret.

Barret was a big black man with a synthetic left hand. He scowled down at Cloud. "So you're the new guy?"

"Yep."

"You did pretty well last night, cleaning up." He went on to explain what Cloud needed to do differently as he deftly mixed drinks for people. Cloud joined in, and even learned the local variant of some of the basic drinks, something he hadn't had time to learn yet.

And then he was alone behind the bar, and busy. It was a surprise when Reno joined him, then firmly sent him on his break.

Tifa joined him in the back alley. She tripped as she approached him, and he stepped forward to catch her. Her hand brushed lightly across his chest, then she looked up at him, one eyebrow raised.

Cloud flushed red and set her firmly on her feet, then sat down on the curb, hoping it was dark enough that she wouldn't see. She sat next to him, leaning against his arm. "How did you learn to mix drinks like that?" she asked.

He didn't want to talk about this, not after the nightmare he'd had that morning. "I asked wherever I was. I've traveled a lot, and just started asking. Most bartenders are pretty willing to tell you their recipes."

"What made you stop traveling?"

He looked down. "I… lost my companions," he said.

"They left you?" she asked, sounding affronted.

"They… couldn't help it," he said, and closed his eyes against the vision of the group, dead around him. Then he looked at her, almost desperate to banish the memory. "Are you from Midgar?"

She hesitated, looking at him, obviously wanting to pursue that, but then she shrugged. "Nope. I'm a transplant. I grew up in Nibelheim."

"Oh, really?" he asked, nearly rolling his eyes. "I was born there. We stayed until I was ten."

"What made you leave?"

He grimaced; he hadn't expected all this bad stuff to be brought up. "Mom said it was because everyone blamed my dad for the accident at the Mako reactor. He didn't even survive it. Every night, mom would cry because people were so awful."

"To her?"

He hesitated, considering asking her to drop it, then shook his head, deciding to answer anyway. "She stopped sending me to school after the first week."

She stared, horrified, then swallowed. "So you moved here?"

"No," he said. "Gongaga. We kept to ourselves. She told me not to go back to Nibelhiem, even when it came out that the reactors were flawed, not the managers."

"I remember that," she said, then her eyes widened and she gave him a good hard look. "You're the Strife boy! Oh, my…." Her hands clapped to her mouth. "They said you'd died, after Kadaj said he'd found you and burned you."

He didn't look at her, purposefully didn't rub his left arm. "Best burn doctors are in Gongaga," he said dully. "Kadaj had been my best friend. I thought I was safe."

"I know," she said. "I'm sorry."

His shoulders moved uneasily. "I made friends with a boy older than me while I was healing. He became a soldier, and he was my only family when Mom died." His voice caught suddenly at the thought of Zack. "So, why are you here?"

"I had to get out of Nibelhiem," she said. "I just couldn't stand it. I snuck away one night, just after your friend Kadaj proposed to me. No way would I marry someone who would turn on his friend!"

Cloud stood up abruptly and brushed himself off. "We'd better go in," he said, more disturbed than he wanted to admit. "Break's over."

He opened the back door just as Rude reached for it, and the bouncer stepped out of the way, letting them pass. Cloud spent the rest of the night concentrating on his work, hoping he wouldn't wake up from another nightmare in the morning.

Rude stopped him as he headed out. "I like Tifa," he said in a deep voice that fit him. "She's a good kid. Don't ruin her."

Cloud looked up into the bouncer's sunglasses, then nodded. "Not if I can help it," he said. Apparently, that was enough, because Rude let him go.

When he got home and thought about Nibelheim, he remembered her vaguely. She'd studied with the martial arts instructor that had been his mother's only friend. She'd never teased him, and had gotten some of the other kids to leave him alone, the few times he'd been cornered by them. He'd never known her name, had never asked, had tried to avoid meeting anyone alone, and had succeeded until Kadaj.

He rubbed his upper left arm, feeling the scar that ran from his shoulder to past his elbow. It was faint, now, but it would never fully disappear, to sight or to touch. Irritated for even thinking about it, he pulled his sleeve back down and went to bed.

For the second day in a row, he woke up with a scream in his throat. His arm hurt, and he could hear Kadaj's laughter as he ran away. He's spent four months in the hospital in Gongaga, and then years getting his arm back to what could be considered normal. He wore long sleeves, no matter the time of year, because he didn't want people asking.

And he'd nearly blurted it all out to Tifa - who actually knew who'd done that to him.

They thought he'd died? Probably his mother's doing; she'd hated Nibelheim with a passion that had only increased when they'd found out his father had done what he was supposed to.

Cloud moved sluggishly through the day, the lethargy from that morning making it hard for him to get up the energy to do anything, even the routine he'd picked up from living so long with Zack. By 9:30 that night, he left his apartment, started up his bike, and headed for work. First thing to do was to apologize to Tifa for being so… stand-offish after their first break last night. After that, he'd worry about getting through work.

His life settled into a comfortable rhythm, something he hadn't had for a very long time. Once a week or so, Sephiroth would appear at the end of the day, speak to him without saying much of anything that sounded important, and leave as quickly as he'd come. After the second time, Cloud just shook his head and dismissed it - but he listened to what his boss said, and tried to figure out what it was the man wanted.

Tifa just looked at him when he told her about it. "He wants you," she said.

Cloud felt his cheeks color, and he stared at her. "What?"

"You. So be careful, Cloud." She stood up and went back inside.

And if he hadn't already considered that, he would have followed her in and demanded more details.

But some of what Sephiroth had said had sounded to him like an invitation, even if he'd dismissed the idea almost immediately. He didn't know which creeped him out more - that he had known it, or that everyone else knew it. Shaking his head, he followed Tifa inside.

The next night, though, was when it all blew up. A young man asked for a Junon daiquiri, and Cloud hadn't heard of it. He caught Reno's eye and beckoned him over. "Hey. I've got an order I can't fill. Do you think I can call a bartender in Junon for the recipe?"

Reno stared at him, then one eyebrow went up. "Lemme ask."

Cloud turned back to the waiting patron. "Give me the name of the Club, and the number if you've got it, and I'll let you know if I can get your drink."

"Here." He wrote it down, and included his name. "If you give them my name, you won't have a problem."

Cloud nodded his thanks, and tucked the napkin into his pocket, going to the next patron who was waiting.

Reno returned shortly. "Go ahead," he said. "I'll watch until you're done."

"Thanks." He stepped to the end of the bar, picked up the phone, and dialed. "Hey. My name is Cloud Strife, at the Edge of Midgar Club. A Reeve Tuesti asked for one of your daiquiris, and I don't know the recipe."

It was quickly recited; Cloud wrote it down, hung up, and turned to make the drink. He gave it to Tifa, who took it over to where the young man had sat down.

"There can't be more than one Cloud Strife in the world," a voice drawled from across the bar, and Cloud looked up.

"Don't know why," he said automatically.

"No one else is gonna have hair like that," the man facing him said. "What, don't recognize me?"

Cloud shook his head. "What do you want to drink?"

"Cheapest beer you got."

Cloud handed it to him, and moved on to the next patron. But the guy - whoever it was - had planted himself in the middle of the bar, and kept his eyes on Cloud. It was beginning to make him nervous.

Tifa paused beside the man and spoke an order to Cloud. Before she could finish, the man reached an arm around her waist and squeezed. "Ha," he said. "This is the last place I expected to find you."

She nearly elbowed him in the face. "Let go of me, Kadaj," she hissed.

Cloud went pale. "Do you want me to get Rude?" he asked, and hoped the music covered how much his voice was shaking.

"No," Tifa said. "I can take care of this. What are you doing here?" she demanded, pulling away.

"Came looking for you," he said flatly.

"Sorry, Tifa. What's the order?" Cloud asked, and she recited it again.

"My break is in half an hour," she snapped, glaring at Kadaj. "We can talk then."

Cloud had never filled an order so quickly, anything to get her away from this man. But he couldn't escape so easily.

All the time he'd spent with Zack and the soldiers paid off. For the next half an hour, Kadaj sat across the bar, muttering insults and innuendo about Cloud and about Tifa. Cloud had learned to keep his mouth shut and keep himself under control, and his hands didn't even shake as he mixed drinks for the people who ordered them. He filed some of the things away; he didn't know what he'd do, but he wasn't sure turning Rude loose on Kadaj would be fair.

Fun to watch - he'd seen the bouncers work on a guy who hadn't let the other waitress alone - yes, if not particularly fair. But definitely fun.

Maybe if he could get them to focus on Kadaj's left arm….

But when Reno appeared to take Cloud's place, Kadaj was quiet, simply glaring at the blonde. He escaped to the back room - but not to the alley. "Let me know if you need help," he told Tifa as she went past. "I'll get Rude."

"Thanks," she said. "I appreciate it."

Kadaj snorted. "You never had any manners to begin with," he said as he followed Tifa. Cloud stared after him, utterly confused.

He waited by the back door, listening for raised voices, for a yell for help or anything like that, but she'd only been out there five minutes when she slammed back in, looking furious.

"Tifa, wait…." Cloud heard Kadaj say, then she grabbed Cloud's shoulders and thoroughly kissed him. Kadaj could have said the vilest things in the world, and Cloud wouldn't have heard a word.

When she let him go, he stared at her, then gave her a smile. "Thanks," he said, still stunned.

"I can't believe you!" Kadaj said, and grabbed Tifa's arm.

That brought Cloud out of his shock, and he moved before he'd realized it, hitting Kadaj in the face hard enough that he let Tifa go, and followed it up with another hit that Kadaj blocked.

"Pathetic," Kadaj muttered, and struck at Cloud.

His practicing paid off, in spite of having no one to practice against; he fended off the punch aimed for his face, deflecting it high, and managed to get in a second punch before his inexperience showed and Kadaj's other fist clipped his ear. It stunned him more than Tifa's kiss had.

"What is it you want with him!" Kadaj demanded. "He's a nobody! Just look at this!"

He grabbed Cloud, twisting his right arm behind him. With his other hand, Kadaj ripped Cloud's left sleeve off even as the blonde fell against him, stunned and startled.

"We won't teach you to fight," Cloud remembered Zack had said flatly. "We'll be here. You don't need to know." Like hell! And even what he'd managed to learn, watching his friend, hadn't done him any good. Zack would have been able to get out of this!

His scar shone in the dim light of the back hallway. "He doesn't even know enough to keep from getting burned!"

"What did you do, hold him down? Knock him unconscious? Tie him up?" she demanded, her voice nearly a shriek. "They said you'd killed him, and you were PROUD of it! And you wonder why I won't marry you? You're an animal!"

As if by magic, Rude and Reno were there, hulking at the end of the hallway. "What's going on?" Reno asked, insolent laziness in his tone.

"We're having a private conversation," Kadaj said flatly, and straightened, letting Cloud go. He fell to the floor, unable to catch himself. He flushed and got up, trying to fix his sleeve.

"That's a lost cause," Reno told Cloud. "Go in the break room, we'll see what we can do."

"Tifa?" Rude asked, and Cloud gratefully escaped, unbelievably embarrassed.

He sank down in the corner and glowered at the wall across the room. Didn't need to know how to fight, what had Zack been thinking? He heard the back door close, then again, and a few moments later, Rude pulled him to his feet. "Here," he said, and gave Cloud a black, long-sleeved shirt.

"Thanks," Cloud said, and quickly stripped his own shirt off. Pulling the other over his head, he followed Rude back out, and took Reno's place behind the bar. The redhead clapped him on the shoulder and winked at him before leaving him there.

The rest of the evening went fine. He managed to act natural even around Tifa, in spite of what she'd seen - and done - in that back hallway. But as soon as the club was closed, he tidied up behind the bar and fled.

It was freeing, to just ride the motorcycle out beyond the city limits and really open it up; the sun was coming up before he got back to his apartment, and he fell into bed without changing.

When he woke up, it was late afternoon, but thankfully, he'd had no nightmares. He spent the time until he had to be at work doing laundry, carefully folding the shirt Rude had given him.

"Thanks again," he said, when he gave it back to him.

"Not a problem," Rude rumbled, and Cloud went behind the bar to start his evening.

But the lure of the place had paled. Maybe it was just too soon after the slaughter of Zack and the others, or maybe it was seeing people who'd known him when he was still young and innocent. He didn't know. But it was harder to work tonight, harder still to face Tifa. He wished he had someone to talk to, missed Zack so much that it hurt. He would have been able to help Cloud through this.

She cornered him before he could escape when the Club closed. "Are you okay?" she asked.

He took a deep breath. "Yeah, I'm fine," he said.

She hesitated. "Do you want to get something to eat?"

Cloud almost said no. But he needed to talk about it, to tell someone… he hoped he could trust her. "Sure," he said. "Where to?"

He parked his bike in front of a small diner a block from her apartment. She led the way inside, and had him sit down. But instead of sitting across from him, she sat next to him, her right arm pressed against his left.

They ordered and then she turned to him. "So. What happened with Kadaj?"

He took a deep breath. "It was my mother's birthday," he said slowly. "I sneaked out to get her flowers from the field behind our house. She loved flowers, and she never had time to get them herself. She was so busy," he said wistfully. "She was always working; she did a lot of sewing for people in the village, just to keep us from starving." He swallowed hard. "Anyway, I had my arms full when Kadaj found me. I was… I was actually glad to see him. At least until he hit me." His hands clenched together. "He took the flowers and set them on fire, and then he held my arm in it while I screamed. He was laughing when he ran away."

Tifa's eyes were full of tears. "I'm sorry," she said. "I would have had Rude do more to him if I'd known."

Cloud shrugged. "It's not that important."

"But your soldier friend. Didn't he teach you to fight?"

"No," Cloud said bitterly. "He said… he said they'd be there, that I didn't need to learn."

"What happened?"

"I don't know." He did not want to talk about that, and she picked up on it.

"Sorry," she said gently. "He was the one who helped you get through the treatment for your burn?"

"Yeah. I guess… I guess he'd just lost a friend in a fire or something, I don't remember, but he was in the burn ward a lot, just there for people to talk to. He told me that one day we'd go back to Nibelheim and get Kadaj back. I didn't want to go back. I still don't want to go back."

"No," she said. "I understand." Then, gently, she touched his arm. "Can I see?"

"It's ugly."

"So's Reno, but I deal with him okay."

He hesitated. "I… I don't… no," he said lamely. "No."

"Okay," she said easily.

The waitress brought their food; they thanked her as she left the plates in front of them. "Are you thinking of leaving again?" Tifa asked as she dug into her salad.

"It crossed my mind," he admitted.

"Where would you go?"

"I don't know. I guess it wouldn't matter, though."

"Why not?"

"I can't lose memories, I can't lose nightmares. Those are the only constants."

She looked at him seriously. "Maybe staying would be good."

"Maybe," he conceded.

She didn't say anything, and they ate in a companionable silence.

"Sleep on it," she advised when he dropped her off at her apartment. "And don't just disappear. I'll want to say good-bye if you decide to go."

"Okay," he agreed, and watched her inside. Once home, he dropped on his bed again, and was asleep before he could think about what she'd said.

He woke up feeling better. Well, then, he'd just wait and see what happened.

He had to admit this was a nice job; he liked what he was doing, he like who he worked with, and he definitely liked the pay. With that decided, he got up and started his day.

That wasn't the end of it, though. Three weeks later, an older man arrived at the bar, squinted at Cloud, and then said, "Excuse me. I'm looking for Tifa Lockhart?"

"What do you want her for?" he asked.

"I'd just like to speak to her."

Still wary - and certain the man knew it - Cloud caught Tifa's eye and gestured her over. She approached just as warily, and Rude shadowed her against one wall. As she drew closer, she relaxed, waved Rude off, and sat next to him. "Hi, Dad. Did Kadaj tell you I was here?"

"Yes. Did you know he was in the hospital?"

"I didn't. I'll have to thank Rude for that. Do you have some time? I have a break in about 45 minutes, and I can talk to you then."

"I have that much time."

She nodded and got up. "Until then."

"Can I get you anything?" Cloud asked her father as she moved away.

"Can you do a Nibelheim Marguerita?" The man's eyes were narrowed as he watched Cloud.

"Coming up."

The man kept looking at him, watching him as he moved behind the counter, mixing drinks, talking to people, and finally, Cloud turned to him again. "Can I help you?"

"You remind me of someone," he said. "Yes, that's it. You remind me of… Jacob Strife. A friend who died in Nibelheim."

"Ah," Cloud said, and turned away to the next patron at the bar. He didn't think anyone would consider his father a friend.

Reno was laughing as he took Cloud's place. "Go," he said, and Cloud went.

Tifa was in the break room with her father. "Wait, Cloud, come on in," she called when he backed out again, and her father stiffened, turning with narrowed eyes at him.

"You are Jacob's son, then," he said.

"Yes. I didn't think my father had a friend in Nibelheim."

"He did," Tifa's father said, and paused. "We never heard from your mother," he said carefully.

"She died, about two years after we left. She hated everyone there, as far as I could tell."

"She told you not to come back, I suppose."

"I never wanted to."

Tifa's father looked at him for a moment. "Perhaps you can help me," he said. "Help me understand why Tifa refuses to marry a good boy who asked me for her hand."

Cloud stepped farther in. "That, I can do." He closed the door behind him, and sat down.

"He's not a good boy," Tifa muttered, and her father threw up his hands.

"It was just a rumor," he said, with the kind of tone in his voice that meant it was a long-standing argument between them.

"What?" Cloud asked.

"That Kadaj had killed you."

"That he'd burned him," Tifa corrected him.

"That's true," Cloud said flatly.

Tifa's father stared at him. "He burned…."

"He set a pile of flowers on fire and held my arm in it. My mom heard me and came running, and she got us to Gongaga and the burn ward as fast as she could." Cloud rubbed his arm, realized he was doing it, and made himself stop. "He was laughing as he ran away."

Tifa's father looked like he was going to be sick. "I see." He turned to Tifa. "I apologize," he said. "I will see that this is made public."

"No," Cloud said sharply. "If no one remembers me there, it's just as well." He got up. "It was good to see you," he said. "Excuse me."

He closed the door to the break room behind him, and leaned against the wall. He was just so tired of this; couldn't it all go away?

"You look tired."

Cloud started so hard he nearly fell down, and his eyes flew open. "Um. Hi."

Sephiroth leaned against the wall across from him, arms folded across his broad chest. "Is everything all right?"

"All right?" Cloud stuttered.

"Yes," Sephiroth said soothingly, moving closer. "Is everything all right?"

"Oh. Yeah, sure," Cloud said, and pushed away from the wall, confused. "Sorry. I'll get back to work."

A hand wrapped around his wrist, stopping him. "Reno can cover for you as long as necessary," Sephiroth said quietly. "Until you're steady again."

"I'm fine," Cloud said, turning to face his boss, although he didn't feel particularly well.

"You don't look fine." Sephiroth released him.

Cloud managed a smile. "Work is good for that," he said, and this time he made out to the bar.

Once back in his apartment, he sat against the wall, knees to chest, and just shook. The last thing he'd expected was to come face to face with Kadaj, and then with someone who claimed to be friends with his father. Was something like that going to happen with Zack, too? He should have known better than to make friends after they'd left Nibelheim - Kadaj had taught him an important lesson: friends are not to be trusted.

Zack had only reinforced that.

If he was smart, he'd just leave. Or at least put in his notice, so he could. He had enough money saved to keep going for a while.

But where would he go? Not every place was so big he could avoid memories; Zack had gone through basic training here, which was why he stayed away from anything military. The club was on the opposite side of town from the base, too far for most soldiers. Exactly what he needed. Junon was not that big. Kalm - maybe. No chance in Wutai. He hadn't been to Cosmo Canyon yet - maybe there?

Tomorrow he'd get an atlas and see what kind of plan he could come up with.

And he discovered, the next day, when he'd marked where he could go, that the urge to leave wasn't quite as strong. Just having an idea was so soothing that he set the atlas on the kitchen cupboard, closed, of course, so he could check it whenever he felt he needed to.

Tifa noticed the change, and smiled at him at a break in the crowd. "You look a lot happier than you did last night," she said. "Or is it this morning?"

He grinned at her. "I feel better."

"So, staying?"

"Yep."

"Good," she said, then turned away before he could ask her why that was good.

Then he started to notice things. Like… she winked at him when he filled her orders. He caught her staring at him once, across the floor. She always seemed to be there when the club closed, and she held tighter than necessary when he took her home. Sometimes, she brought him dinner, leftovers that they shared during their break. He had to admit - she was a very good cook.

But Rude's warning was not something he could lightly ignore. And while he knew there couldn't be anything between the bouncer and Tifa - it had been plain that a relationship with a bouncer would not be tolerated - Cloud wasn't sure if Rude would allow her any kind of relationship.

On top of that - he wasn't sure he really wanted to be more than friends anyway. Having friends was enough of a risk; having a girlfriend was opening you up to more hurt. So he kept her carefully at arms-length.

Although he didn't think that was going to work very long.

All in all, since he'd woken up with a headache and a pile of bedrolls over him, his life was looking up. He was sure it wouldn't last; it never did, but he'd enjoy it while he could.

One evening, Cloud saw someone he was sure was dead. He paused a moment, then finished the drink he was mixing and rubbed his eyes, but by the time he looked back, the ghost was gone.

And then he kept seeing them. For the next three nights, he saw someone he'd known before he'd come to Midgar, and it was beginning to drive him crazy. Maybe that was it; he'd finally snapped, and he was seeing things. So he quit paying attention, even when he spotted someone so familiar it brought him up short. He dismissed the spiky black hair the same as he had the others when the person wearing it vanished, as the others had, in the mass of humanity on the dance floor.

But then Reno showed up at the bar with an order. "Wutai Splash and Mai Tai Gongaga twist lime."

Cloud froze, staring at Reno in pure shock. "A what?" he demanded.

"You don't know it?"

"Yeah, yeah, I do, but…." He couldn't explain, really, so he didn't try, turning to mix the drinks. He hesitated over the lime twist, then very carefully placed the lime slice just so - it looked good anyway, but if this was what he thought….

Reno's eyes were narrowed as Cloud handed him the drinks. "You okay?"

"Good question," Cloud said, and turned away to fill the next order he had to.

But his heart wasn't in it, and Tifa could see it as soon as she appeared with an order of her own. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I don't know," he said stiffly. "Sorry. Explain at break?"

"Best time," she said. He filled the order - a simple one - and he watched her walk away, wishing he didn't have another hour before his break.

He didn't quite make it that long. Filling a patron's glass with beer, he looked up and stared in utter disbelief at what could only be a ghost walking toward him with spiky black hair. He had to look away, just to make sure he didn't waste the liquor, set the glass in front of the patron, and….

"Cloud."

He flinched at the voice, but looked up because he couldn't ignore a voice like he could a vision. "Zack," he said, his voice sounding cold. "Did you like your drink?"

"Of course." He opened his mouth to go on.

"Hey! Barkeep!" someone yelled, and Cloud turned automatically to find the person who'd yelled. He worked on autopilot, ignoring Zack, until Reno came to relieve him. Then he stumbled from behind the bar and headed for the back hallway and the cool air of the alley. He staggered to a stop, and then Tifa took his arm, gently.

"What happened?" she asked, pulling him around to look her in the face.

The door banged open, and Cloud turned toward it, eyes wide.

"Cloud, let me…" Zack started, but that was all the further he got.

Cloud stepped forward and punched him in the face, hard enough that the dark haired soldier actually stepped back. Cloud was surprised at how much that hurt.

Zack rubbed his jaw, an amazed look on his face. "Where did you learn that?" he asked. Cloud glared at him as he rubbed his hand, shaking it to ease the sting. Zack's jaw was harder that Kadaj's.

"Who are you?" Tifa demanded.

"I'm an old friend." He was smiling, the same, cocky smile he always seemed to wear. Had always seemed to wear?

"The last old friend he met was one he didn't want to see again," she snapped.

Zack's eyes found Cloud's, and he was suddenly serious. "Who?" he demanded.

"What?" she asked, confused by his sudden change.

"It's okay," Cloud said, finally. "He's in the hospital, last I heard. He won't come back."

"So you are talking to me," Zack said, his posture easing a little. "Look, Cloud, I'm sorry. I couldn't do anything."

"You know him?" Tifa asked, looking up at Cloud.

He sighed. "Yeah. Tifa, this is Zack. Zack, Tifa." He sank down on the curb, hands clutching the sides of his head. "I don't think I can take any more of this."

Tifa hesitated, then touched Cloud's shoulder. "I'll go tell Reno you might be a while."

The alley was silent until the door shut behind her. "Where did you go?" Cloud asked dully.

"When we finished fighting, General Shinra showed up," Zack said, and he moved closer. "He wouldn't even let me take care of those who'd fallen. I couldn't… He knew, Cloud, somehow he knew you were with us, and he wanted to make sure you weren't around any more. When we got back to take care of everyone, you'd gone."

"He tell you that?"

"Not in so many words, no," Zack admitted. "He thought… well, it doesn't matter what he thought."

"He probably wasn't the first one to think it, either," Cloud said, and crossed his arms, resting them on his knees.

Zack sat on his left. "I wouldn't have even known you were here if you hadn't twisted the lime like that."

"I know."

"How did you end up here?"

"It's where I stopped running," Cloud said. "I stopped here for a drink before moving on, and ended up with a job."

"The others will be glad you're still alive."

"The ones left?" Cloud asked, and was surprised at how bitter it came out.

"Yes," Zack said after a minute. Then, "Sephiroth said you were fighting."

Cloud snorted. "Not very well," he said.

"First Class stuff."

"I had to learn somehow. You wouldn't teach me, so I watched and learned that way."

"Who was it?"

"Kadaj."

Zack stiffened and brushed his left arm, hard enough that Cloud could feel it. "This Kadaj?"

"Yeah. He came looking for Tifa. I guess he wanted to marry her."

"She knew you?"

"She knew of me."

Zack leaned over and bumped his shoulder. "I'm glad you're okay. I actually came here to ask Sephiroth for help finding you."

"How do you know Sephiroth?" Cloud asked.

"I served under him," Zack said. "He was one of the easiest to keep you out of the way of, actually. Which was good, because he was the first." Then he looked closely at Cloud. "Are you sure Kadaj isn't coming back?"

Cloud shrugged. "Talk to Rude. I didn't see it happen. We only knew he was in the hospital because Tifa's father told us." He hadn't looked once at Zack, shoulders tense, waiting for him to say he had to leave. Because isn't that what friends do? Turn their back on you when you need them most?

"I will. Rude is a good guy. Sephiroth picks the best."

Cloud didn't have anything to say to that, so he said nothing, and after a minute, he got to his feet. "Speaking of Sephiroth, I'd better get back to work," he said lightly. "See you around."

He got halfway across the alley before Zack caught him. "Cloud. Really. I'm sorry. Shinra's kept me so busy I couldn't even see straight. As soon as I got some time off, I came here for Sephiroth's help to find you."

"That's what you said," Cloud said.

"Why don't you believe me?"

Cloud shook his head. "I've got to go to work," he said, pulled his arm free, and went inside.

Because he knew how Zack thought, he made sure - as well as he could, without the benefit of Zack's training - that he wasn't followed when he went home. He took long rides after he got off, all of which served to clear his head of smoke and the smell of beer and alcohol - and some of the regret, as well.

Not that he thought it would keep Zack from finding him; he had no illusions about that. But at least he wouldn't make it easy for his friend.

Maybe he was overreacting, but it didn't help that he woke up daily from those same nightmares. He was short to everyone when he got to work because he couldn't get back to sleep afterwards. Sometimes he didn't even try. There were days he wanted to just curl up and hide - or leave, and those days he opened the atlas and actually started figuring which would be the best place to go. But then something happened, a lightening of the tension, and he resolved to stay a little longer.

Then one morning, he woke up with a real scream. The nightmare had been worse than usual; this time he'd looked at the bodies around him and seen….

A hand fell on his shoulder, holding firmly when he tried to jerk away. "You didn't tell me you had nightmares," Zack said gently.

"I d-didn't have them until y-you came back," Cloud stuttered. His heart was pounding, feeling like it was going to break right out of his chest.

"What do you dream about?"

"When I woke up after you knocked me out," Cloud said. "No one was there, only the pile of bedrolls and the bag of gil you set next to me. And then I went out… and everyone was dead. I just grabbed a bed roll and the money and ran, in case they came back."

"Which was exactly right," Zack said flatly. "That was exactly what you were supposed to do."

Cloud took a deep breath, letting it out in a sigh. He'd calmed down a little. "How did you find me?"

"Sephiroth's employment records," Zack said. "I finally had to ask him. You did not make it easy."

"I know."

Zack finally let him go and leaned against the wall. "Tifa thinks you're getting ready to run."

"It's crossed my mind."

"I noticed." He gestured to where the atlas lay open on the kitchen cupboard. "You've thought it out."

"I learned well."

Zack grinned at him. "You did that," he said, then sobered. "Why would you want to leave? Tifa - even Sephiroth - thought you were happy."

"I was," Cloud admitted. "And then Kadaj showed up. And then… and then you did. I thought you were dead." He sighed. "I need to go away, become a monk or something, where no one cares. Family all dies on you, friends betray you…."

"I never betrayed you," Zack interrupted firmly, eyes glinting.

"No," Cloud said dully. "You died."

Zack said nothing. Cloud got to his feet. "I just can't… it hurts too much, to care for someone."

"You'll break Tifa's heart."

Cloud shrugged, moving toward the kitchen. "I'll tell Rude I'm going to, and he'll beat me to a pulp. That'll help her, I bet."

Zack got to his feet. "Are you happy here?" he asked.

Cloud shrugged. "I like it here," he said. "I like working, I like… knowing I'm not useless baggage."

Zack snorted. "Overheard that, did you?" He made a dismissive gesture. "Shinra's a bastard. You never were useless baggage."

"All I did was learn to mix drinks!"

"You were thirteen when we started," Zack said flatly. "And because you were that young, I had to be careful. I had to make sure I didn't get into trouble. And eventually, everyone else was doing the same. I told them you were my little brother - half of them didn't believe it, not at first - but eventually, you were like… you were everyone's brother, something for them to know they were going to come home to. You were… what we'd joined up for. Because of you, we didn't lose control. We were probably the only troop to actually come out of that last battle even partially intact, because we weren't sick with something we'd caught from the women, or too drunk to even think. Did you notice how you often you told us we'd had enough? That saved us, that you'd made us leave that bar early. We only lost a few of the troop - most of the others involved lost half or greater, because they were so hung over."

Cloud shook his head. "Well, I'm glad you didn't lose so many," he said.

Zack scowled. "You are the most stubborn person I know!" he snapped, and grabbed Cloud's shoulders. "Look at me. I'm sorry, Cloud. I know you weren't as prepared as you would have liked. But look at how well you did! You're seventeen, you've got a good job, a boss that'll leave you alone now, and a girl who thinks the world of you. I have to say - it's a dream for any soldier."

"Even you?"

"Especially me!" Zack threw his hands up and stepped back. "I've got two more years, and then I'm out. But I am not going to luck into a job like you did, Cloud. I don't have the skills, the personality - the self-control not to move on someone like Tifa," he added ruefully. "You handled Kadaj with the best you could do, and hey, I don't even win all the fights I get into."

Cloud gave him a disbelieving look. "I don't," Zack reiterated. "There is always…"

"Someone better than you," Cloud chorused with him. "So, now what?"

"Well, if you'll forgive me, I'll stop spending my time trying to find you and actually have a friend to spend time with. And you can regale me with your tales of wooing Tifa." He winked, and then laughed as Cloud flushed.

It hit him then, how much he'd missed Zack, and he gave up. Stepping forward, he gave his friend a hug, and Zack laughed as he returned it. "Good. That means I'm forgiven, then?"

"Yes." Cloud stepped back. "How long were you sitting there?"

"A few hours. You're still lazy."

"I go to bed at four - unless I'm out riding so you can't find me, and then it's six," Cloud responded, and suddenly yawned.

"Go back to sleep," Zack said.

Cloud contemplated the bedroll on the floor. "I don't know if I can."

"Why not?"

He gestured aimlessly. "The nightmare usually comes back," he said.

"It won't if I'm here," Zack said. "Try it."

Cloud hesitated, then lay back down, curling up under his blankets. In seconds, he was asleep.

When he woke up, Zack was gone, but he'd left a note. Got called in. Shinra needs me for something that's probably useless and that even a Third Class can take care of. Call me. I'll talk to you soon. He'd left his number, as well.

Cloud hesitated, then dialed. "Hey. Zack here. Sorry I can't come to the phone, leave your number and I'll get back to you." The beep was loud and irritating. Cloud left his name and number, and hung up. Now Zack knew how to get hold of him.

Feeling better, Cloud completed his morning routine, showered, and headed out to get some food to fill his fridge. After all, if he was going to stick around, he might as well start acting like it.

Tifa noticed the difference immediately and gave him a quizzical smile. "You feelin' better?" she asked.

"Yeah. Finally got enough sleep."

"Is that all?"

"No." He hesitated. "Tell you at break?"

Her smile was radiant. "I look forward to it." His spirits rose even more. The time until his break flew, and Reno smirked at him when he showed up to cover the bar. Cloud didn't respond as he headed for the back hallway.

Tifa was in the alley already, sitting on the curb, and she looked up as he left the building. "Hey," she said, and patted the curb on her right. He sat down and smiled at her. "You do look a lot better."

"I feel better." He shrugged. "I talked to Zack."

"Ah," she said. "Good."

"Good?"

"Yeah." She laughed. "That means he'll leave me alone."

"He was bugging you?" Cloud demanded.

"Well… not, not really," she said, and nudged his shoulder with hers.

"Good."

She laughed again, and he just smiled at her.

"My dad called," she said as they went back inside. "He says Kadaj is back home."

"So he's out of Midgar. Good."

She grinned. "Apparently, his brothers are angry about his trip here; he wasn't supposed to go, and he stole gil from them both to get here. And then, of course, they had to pay for his stay in the hospital. They're giving him a hard time."

"Even better," Cloud said. He vaguely remembered Kadaj's brothers - they were older and they'd mostly left him alone.

Tifa shook her head.

When he took her home that morning, he'd made a decision and stopped her before she went inside. "Hey, Tifa," he said. "Would you like to take a longer ride with me? Maybe get out of the city, take a picnic lunch or something?"

She smiled. "I'd love to. When?"

"About four?"

She nodded. "Sounds good. I'll see you later, then."

"Night."

He drove home, unable to wipe the smile from his face.

Advent Children Table | Challenge Main

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