To Act the Hero

Fandom: Final Fantasy VII

Word Count:1199

Rating:G

Summary: After two years, Cloud is finally back in Nibelheim, but failing the SOLDIER exam has him hide his identity from the townspeople. As he leaves his mother’s home, the water tower stands imposing in front of him, reminding him or a promise he once made—a promise he now wonders how he could keep.

Note: A piece I wrote for @theclotizine! I also wrote a prequel of sort for this fic titled As Long As You’re Safe that explores how Zack accompanies Cloud to visit his mother. You can find it here.

Read on AO3.

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The stars hung low that night, a myriad of white spreading as far as the eye could see, blinking against the blue-black vastness. Cloud stepped out of his house and drew a lungful of the cool evening air: pine, mixed with a distant hint of rain, rolled down the mountain. He was home.

“Thanks for having me, Mrs. Strife.”

Zack’s voice drifted out from inside. Cloud had invited his friend over to try his mother’s cooking. It was an excuse; Zack probably knew. His mother had sent him off with such zeal that when Cloud failed his SOLDIER exam, he hadn’t had the courage to put pen on paper and inform his mother of the results. Letting her think he’d made it big in Midgar had sounded like the better option. A misconception on his part—one he’d realized after seeing the panic in his mother’s sky-blue eyes when Zack knocked on her door and mentioned Cloud’s name.

Their voices grew louder as Zack stepped over the threshold and joined his side. Cloud’s mother followed closely behind, chuckling and asking Zack to come visit again. Zack promised that he would. He gave her a quick bow, then nudged Cloud on his shoulder. Take your time, his eyes seemed to speak. Cloud didn’t get the chance to respond before his friend crossed the village toward the inn.

“Great friend you found there,” his mother commented once Zack was out of earshot.

Cloud fastened his helmet over his head and turned around to face her. Claudia Strife had been all smiles and laughter throughout dinner, talking about everything and anything with an overabundance of joy that had felt almost palpable. Even Zack had been swept up in her enthusiasm. Yet now, a quiet melancholy overshadowed that elation, reminding Cloud of how she’d embraced him tight and whispered, it’s been two years.

“Have you met everyone else?” she asked. “What about Tifa? I think she was asking about you.”

His fingers twitched at the question. No one would want to see him—a nobody kid like him with no friends. Just one of the boys who’d gone looking for a job and never came back. Not like Tifa. Everyone adored Tifa. While he was floundering in Midgar, she’d learned martial arts and become the village’s best guide. Lovely, friendly, hardworking—even his company had appreciated her efforts for keeping them safe throughout their journey to the reactor. Tifa wouldn’t want to see him.

A gentle squeeze to his shoulder brought his eyes to his mother. His heart clenched at her tender smile. She’ll understand, she seemed to say. A lump formed at the back of Cloud’s throat.

He waved goodbye and headed back to the inn. But when the door clicked shut and with his mother out of sight, his purposeful stride gradually ground to a halt. The water tower stood imposing in front of him, with its proud wooden beams and the ladder leading to the top. He’d sat there before on a cool night like tonight, legs swinging down from the ledge, as he’d waited for the girl with ebony hair and ruby eyes to appear.

When we’re older, and you’re a famous SOLDIER… if I’m ever trapped or in trouble… promise you’ll come and save me.

Back when the dream of becoming a SOLDIER was still within reach. Back when he had easily agreed to a lofty promise he now wondered how he could keep.

Cloud pursed his lips to a thin line. He dropped his gaze, then made to move, but as he did, a shuffling of feet drew his attention to the other side of the water tower. Cloud spotted a shadow leaning against the beams—a shadow he recognized so well. Tifa stood with her back to him, her round-brimmed hat hung from her neck down her back, kicking her boot against the dirt as she gazed at the star-strewn sky.

Cloud froze. The last time he saw her had been at the reactor, barring her way as she’d tried to enter. She’d huffed and pouted with hands on her hips, and Cloud had wanted to laugh at the familiar sight. But he’d stood his ground, then stood in front of her as hordes of monsters came their way. He’d meant to protect her, to act the hero, but in a twist that had only deepened his sense of failure, she had ended up protecting him.

Tifa pushed herself off the beams, jerking Cloud to attention. He should have moved—looked away before Tifa noticed him—but just as she rounded the tower and stepped out of its shadow, her eyes found his. Time slowed to a passing crawl. One moment, two… Under the moonlight, her ruby eyes widened, a small, relieved smile blossoming on her face.

“Figured it was you.” Tifa was suddenly in front of him.

Cloud blinked, startled. He took an involuntary step back.

“I was coming back from the inn and you weren’t there. Have you rested? Are you well now?”

Cloud should say something, anything, but if he spoke—

“Thanks.” Her smile grew, concern mingling with gratitude and a hint of shyness. “For protecting me.”

I’m sensing some issues here. Zack had told him that morning, after Cloud had woken up from his rest and his friend had asked about Tifa. Shouldn’t you do something?

He should, but what could he do? Cloud wasn’t the hero he had promised her he would be.

Tifa fidgeted on her feet, hands behind her back. A question seemed to brim behind her lips as she lifted a half-expectant gaze at Cloud. But when she opened her mouth, no voice came out.

“Nothing,” she said after a while, her lips parting into a weak crooked smile. She gave a little shake of her head, biting her lower lip as she cast her eyes down. Her shoulders shuddered under a faint scoff. “Zack doesn’t know him,” she added, her voice barely above a whisper. “You probably don’t either.”

Cloud drew his brows in confusion, but before he could ask what she meant, a door opened behind them. The unmistakable voice of Brian Lockhart rang out, calling for Tifa. She had to go.

“Well, glad to know you’re alright.” She turned to leave.

Wait—

“Nice talking with you.” Even though she was the one who had done all the talking.

Stop!

Her hat swayed like a pendulum behind her back. Farther and farther away she moved, his chance slipping out of his grasp. But before she disappeared—

“Hey!” He hoped his helmet masked his voice. Tifa looked back. Cloud gulped past the growing lump in his throat. “Thanks for helping me get down the mountain.”

The silence stretched for one second longer, then there it was—the smile that always made his heart skip a beat. Bright and warm, like the ones he would see when they were kids and their eyes made contact. Tifa gave a quick wave, then disappeared behind her door.

Cloud stood there, staring at the two-story building beside his house. It looked as enormous as he remembered it.

Shouldn’t you do something?

Cloud blinked back at the stars, exhaling a quiet sigh into the night. Easier said than done.

~ END ~