InsaneJournal

Tifa follows quietly right behind Master Zangen. She'd been so happy when her mother had over-ridden her father last year and allowed her to learn from Master Zangan on her fifth birthday. She'd recently turned six, and for the first time he was taking up into the mountains for a practical test on her beginning herbal skills. He would ask her to identify various plants, rocks, and crystals and tell him the applications of them in the brews and tonics he had been teaching her. While she knew it was dangerous up there she completely trusted Master Zangan and knew to listen to him.

Cloud tails his mother down the mountain path towards Nibelheim on the way out of the mountains. They'd had another weekend practice session and his back was beginning to throb. He knew he shouldn't have landed that way, but he'd thought that after his seventh birthday and three years of practice he would at least have gotten landing down.
The blond did not want to go back to a village that hated his mother and himself, but they really didn't have anyplace else to go. The only members of the village that were okay with them were an elderly couple, the mayor's wife and... the man that was coming up the path with the mayor's daughter behind him. All four of them stopped and the two adults began quietly speaking in a completely different language. The two children look up at their respective adult and then shyly look at each other. Cloud notices that the girl has long dark hair tied back in a loose ponytail and red brown eyes. Her clothes consisted of a red vest and skirt over a black turtleneck and pants. Her gloves were black and her boots were also the same red as her vest and skirt.

Tifa peered curiously from behind Master Zangan at the two blonds. The woman had long and shiny blonde hair in a braid, dark gray eyes, a nice smile and was dressed conservatively in blue jeans and a black jacket and boots. The boy, she assumed he was the woman's son, had long blond hair in a spiky ponytail. His bangs were really spiky and wild and seemed almost like a chocobo's crest. She wondered if it stayed like that when it rained. He had bright sky-blue eyes and a more serious face than the woman's. He had on blue jeans as well, brown boots, and a chocobo yellow shirt on. Around his waist was a brown jacket tied in a knot. The boy looked older than her and she didn't remember seeing him in any of her classes. Her teacher and the woman finish their conversation and the woman bows to her. “Miss Lockeheart, I am Ms. Cirra Strife, and this is my son Cloud. It is a pleasure to meet you.”

Cloud bows and Tifa bows back, “Hello, I'm Tifa, this is Master Zangan. I agree, it is a pleasure to meet you.” The girl says quietly.

“Do you mind if the two of us come along, Miss Tifa?” Ms. Strife asks politely.

Tifa tilts her head and looks to Cloud, who, she decided, looked mildly hopeful. “As long as Master Zangan agrees I would love to have you come with us.”

The three look to the man, “Of course,” he says.

Over the next few years Cloud and Tifa would go up into the mountains many times. While most of the times involved them going with the two adults, they would occasionally go off on their own and explore some of the smaller trails that were less stable for the older people that trained them. Occasionally the other children would ask Tifa why she hung out with the loser and outcast of the village and she would respond, 'He's my friend and the only other kid besides me willing to go into the mountains.' Then she would stalk off and not talk to most of the others for a while. Cloud would ask her later on those days, 'Why do you defend me? No one else has.' and she would blink and say, 'But that's what friends are for.' Then she would hug him and drag him off to practice or explore.

Her father did not like that she would go off with the Strifes or Master Zangan or Mother's parents but he also could not go against mother and she always allowed Tifa to do what she wanted. Occasionally, she would go over to Cloud's and he'd be out, but this was usually because his mother would take him off to train away from the villagers. Likewise, she was sure that Cloud had knocked at her door only to find that she had gone with Master Zangan for her practical tests of the local fauna, flora, and rocks of their mountains.

A few months before she was to turn thirteen and Cloud fourteen, a cold swept through the village. While most of the villagers had a mild case, her mother was one of the ones that was hit the hardest. For two weeks Tifa sat at her mother's bedside and read to her, but one morning her mother would not wake up and as the day passed into the evening hours the woman breathed her last breath. Almost immediately after her mother's funeral her father tried to forbid her from seeing her grandparents and friends, or to even leave the house. She snuck out through her window and got Cloud from his mother's house. The two of them headed up in a direction that none of them had ever gone, towards the old bridge that led to the defunct reactor. When they arrived at the bridge, Cloud took one look at it and said doubtfully, “Tifa... are you sure you want to cross this rickety old thing? It doesn't look all that safe.”

“I want to see the Materia cave that is supposed to be somewhere over there. This is the only way I know how to get there.” She looks at him, “Do you know another way?”

“Nnnn... Mom never took me there, said it was dangerous.”

“So? We're old enough to go into the mountains alone, we should be able to go to one little materia cave, doncha think? Let's go, we're little, it should hold our weight.” Tifa starts across the gap and Cloud follows closely but nervously after. Halfway across they hear a loud groan and crack and they watch in horror as the end of the bridge begins to fall.

Cloud grabs her around her waist and says, “Please don't scream, I swear we'll be okay but I need a bit more room to move, alright?”

“'Kay...” she squeaks.

“Jump up... Now!” The two of them jump as their section of the bridge collapses under them. Cloud angles the two of them so that they face down. Once they clear the falling debris Tifa hears ripping and the older boy gives a pained grunt. Their descent quickly slows and turns more horizontal.

“Cloud? What's going on?”

“Er... Let's just say that I'm in trouble with mom's family now, 'kay? Can you point me to where you think the materia cave is? We may as well get that accomplished.”

Tifa points to a crack in the rock far below them, “It should be over there.” Cloud maneuvers them towards where she pointed slowly. Eventually, they land before the cave and the girl is released. She quickly turns around to see the blond looking sheepishly at her and beautiful blue wings that match his eyes. “They're gorgeous...” she breaths.

“Ummm... Thank-you,” the boy says shyly. The wings seem to shrink and eventually disappear. His shirt is ripped up, so he takes it off and rubs it across his back... it comes back red and bloody. “How's it look?” he queries as he turns around. Tattoos of blue wings span across his shredded back.

She swallows, “There doesn't appear to be any blood but your back looks horrible. Do the tattoos store the wings?”

“Mmhmm,” he nods and shrugs, “Come on, let's go explore the cave, okay?” They walk in and find a mako fountain with materia that had solidified from the glowing liquid. Everything around them was glowing in a rainbow of colors. There were spheres, crystals, and what appeared to be icicles of materia all around them. Cloud goes around touching various spheres and crystals, and occasionally he would pocket one.

A few minutes pass before Tifa stops staring at the beautiful sight and looks at her companion curiously, “Watcha doin'?”

“Finding materia,” he says blithely. “I've got two cures, a fire, an ice, and... an all so far.”

“Youngling Strife. Get out here.” A tenor voice calls out to the children from the cave entrance.

“Drat. Come on, Tifa. We're coming, she's with me!” Cloud pulls Tifa with him to the entrance of the cave. There are three people standing there, two men and a woman. The boy bows, “Elders Morgana, Elios and Ezikial, I introduce Tifa Lockeheart to you.”

The woman, Morgana, with long blonde hair and gray eyes, peers at the girl. “Youngling Strife, you have not been given approval to show others. You were also not approved to release your wings today. Where is your mother and why is she not here?”

The teen scowls, “First off Morgana, she's my friend. Secondly, I wasn't planning on taking out my wings, but I'd rather have both of us relatively unharmed, than unconscious or dead. Mom's at home, she's let us come up here alone before.” Bright blue eyes flash as his scowl deepens, “I don't care about the approval process, it was an emergency and those are perfectly allowed by any of the laws.”

Ezikial glares right back, he had brown hair and light gray eyes and when he spoke was proven to be the one who'd called. “Soooo,” he drawled condescendingly, “What was your so-called 'emeeergency'?”

Tifa responds quicker than Cloud, “We were on the bridge when it broke. We would have fallen into the ravine from the top of the cliffs, with nothing to slow our fall,” she says heatedly.

Elios, the eldest of the three, with silvered hair and dark gray eyes, nods in understanding. “Stand down, Morgana, Ezikial. I am proud to have this child know our secrets. Lady Tifa, you do understand that Cloud would not have told you if he had not had to?”

“Yes, sir.”

“You must realize that Cloud is not like most of our people. His eyes and wings are vibrant colors. Most of our people have those features in shades of gray, the better the person the closer to black they are. We cannot say what his ancestry is, but it is above our own. He has a bit more freedom because of this, but until he is twenty-two and a half, our people will be able to sense when he releases his wings without prior preparation. It is why we arrived so quickly to your location. We sensed Cloud's panic as he released the wings.”

Tifa's eyes widen in understanding as she nods. Cloud had been glaring at Ezikial during Elios' explanation and the man sneered back at the two children. The girl notices that Morgana had started eying the younger man warily partway through the exchange. Ezikial suddenly snarls and launches himself at the blue-eyed boy who yelps and tries to leap backwards. The boy stumbles over the rocks and cobbles, and the larger man slams into the light body. The other three stare in shock and can't react for a few seconds allowing Ezikial to wrap his hands around the slim neck and begin to squeeze. Cloud's terror filled eyes look into the man's insane white irises. Morgana and Elios cry out in anger and pry their third off of the panic stricken boy, Tifa recovers right after. She kicks the crazy man in the shin and kneels down to check on her best friend. He smiles at her as he rubs his bruised throat. The woman, meanwhile is snarling right back at Ezikial, “What the fucking hell is your problem asshole?! You're a complete waste of space and I have no clue why the fuck you were allowed to tag along!” Ezikial's response wasn't intelligible and Elios shakes the younger man.

The elder mutters a few words that bind the struggling man and then informs him, “You may not leave our village ever again. We had hoped to have a balanced triumvirate for clan matters, but you are obviously too immature and rather insane.” The silver haired old man bows to the children. “I apologize, I had assumed he would keep his temper in check. Thank-you for being so understanding Miss Lockeheart. Stay out of trouble, tell your mother Strife, and good luck to both of you young ones.”

“S'no problem, Master Elios,” Cloud rasps. “It was an honor that you and Lady Morgana were the ones to officiate.” The boy winces towards the end and bows deeply to the two elders.

Tifa also bows, “It was an honor to meet both of you.” She looks around, “You, uh... wouldn't happen to know a way out would you?”

“Besides flying?” the blonde haired woman asked wryly, the girl nods. “Sorry, kiddo. It was great to meet you. Keep an eye on our chocobo child, yeah?”

“Of course,” the brunette smiles.

“I'm not a chocobo and can take care of myself,” Cloud's voice proves otherwise to that last part.

Morgana ruffles the boy's hair, “Say hello to your mother for me too?”

Cloud nods, “Sure, Aunty. Sorry about falling.”

The woman grins, “That old thing would have come down sooner or later, it's just unfortunate that it decided to go with you on it. I'll see you around, kid, and take it easy.”

“Tell your mother if she has any questions to make a call, and drink warm liquids for the next few days to help heal the throat, youngling. Miss Lockeheart, help him out as much as possible. Also, add these herbs to two of your drinks until the throat is better, preferably one dose in the morning and one at night. Try to rest as much as possible, though I know you help your mother out and don't like to give her more work than necessary,” Elios hands a bundle of herbs to the boy, who nods at each bit of advice along with Tifa.

The boy grins at the last bit, and says, “Orders of the medicine doctor?”

The old man chuckles, “Orders of the medicine doctor, brat. We will see you around, do not go looking for trouble.”

Tifa mutters, “We find trouble well enough on our own obviously.” Then she says louder, “Of course sir.”

“Sure, it was good to see you again, and nice to meet you.” Morgana and Elios wave as they settle Ezikial in between them and allow their wings to slowly come out.

“Nice meeting/seeing you, too,” The two kids call out as the three fly away towards their far more isolated village.