I blame Lurker for showing me an Omake from FF7 for this fic. 

WARNING: A bit of the following is rather lemony.

________________________________________


Amid the darkness, a 24 year old Tifa Lockheart gasped and threw her 
head back in pure, uninhibited ecstasy. At last, her edge had come and 
now she felt as if every one of her body's cells were on fire. Her 
lover, whom she was mounted upon, gently grasped her, slim and sweat 
covered waist, as his seed flooded her inner chambers. 

Breathing heavily and almost devoid of any more endurance, Tifa moved 
forward, settling herself upon him when she fell forward. 

At last, when the gentle afterglow of her and his lovemaking finally 
subsided. The guilt came flooding into her soul and she started to sob. 
Her lover noticed this, looked up, raised her chin, and asked gently, 
"What's wrong? Are you alright?"

Between sniffs, she shook her head. Saying, "No Sephiroth. I'm not."

_____________________________________________


It had been a long four years after Sephiroth's defeat at the hands of 
Cloud Strife. And ever since the epic battle, Tifa was been living 
alone. She told everyone that she wanted to improve her ability. Knowing 
that there was more she could master and someday teach to her own 
student. 

She chose to live in the mountains, in the cabin just below Gaea's 
Cliff. After the man who had lived there finally decided to move out, 
she had taken to living alone for the past few years quite well. 

Everyone, including Vincent and Yuffie, had visited her once in a while. 
But soon, their visits became farther and farther with her not even 
bothering to leave her abode. 

She had her own personal demons to keep her company and fight for all 
those lonely times. 

She was surrounded by candles, dressed in only a sports bra and bloomers 
to allow her the greatest amount of mobility, with her eyes closed. 
Meditating with controlled breaths. 

Her eyes flew open, she hopped up and began to strike the air just short 
of every candle. Blowing them out with the displaced air pressure. Yet, 
she began to snarl at seeing a face behind the candles. 

Aeris Gainsborough. <Little miss perfect, the selfless flower girl, the 
real savior of the planet. > She thought resentfully. Tifa knew she and 
Cloud went on the lift together at the Gold Saucer, went to the theater 
and danced and acted like a pair of lovesick idiots! 

With the last of the candles out, the snarl never left as she screamed 
and threw her fist through the floor. She noticed the tears falling to 
the ground as she wondered. Why? She was the one who saved Cloud when he 
returned to Midgar, she was the one who gave him the motivation to kill 
Sephiroth at Nibelhiem all those years ago, she stayed by him when he 
couldn't even move, she saved him from the Lifestream. 

And yet, SHE was the one who was able to get his heart first. The little 
innocent flower girl who could turn the world on with her smile. And 
that made Tifa hate her all the more. 

________________________________

Walking up the face of the cliff, she saw the giant expanse of the 
crater where the final battle took place. Now sealed with solid 
lifestream that would soon turn into Materia someday.  

She held the scarf around her neck even more as she bundled the heavy 
jacket and pants she wore. Then, a glow in the distance caught her eye. 
Hopping down the inside of the crater, she kept her eyes on the position 
where the glow was. 

Five minutes later, she found the large transparent crystal in the exact 
middle of the crater. Wiping off some of the snow, she gasped at what 
was within. Sephiroth, naked and curled in a fetal position. Only 
instead of the serene face she had seen the first time that she'd been 
here, it was more fearful and pain-ridden. 

It was that face that had suddenly changed her mind about leaving things 
as is. With some strength she had gained over the years, she carried the 
stone back to her home with extreme difficulty.

Feeling about the stone, she searched for the breaking point all rocks 
had. Finding it, she stepped back, and threw her fist at that point, 
shattering the rock. The man within, started to shiver with his freedom 
from the prison. 

So, she stood her ground as Sephiroth regained consciousness. Blinking, 
he looked at her and said, "Who are you? Where am I?" Tifa blinked as 
she saw him take a look at himself, he then blinked and said again, 
"Who am I?" 

"Cut the act Sephiroth, I'm not buying it!" she snarled. Sephiroth 
looked around, looking for the person she had been talking to.   

He blinked his brown eyes and said, "Who?"

___________________________________________

Despite all attempts by Tifa to get Sephiroth to cut the innocent act, 
he still persisted with the same question. Who was he? She was 
considering throwing him out right then and there. 

That was when she realized the possibility that... his memory was really 
gone. If so, he couldn't do any magic. She even used a Sense materia to 
see if he had any magic ability. There was none. He was devoid of magic 
as a stone was of blood. 

With the days that followed, she could see that he not only had his 
powers wiped from his soul, but even his ability to fight as well. 
Despite any and all kinds of attacks made by her that would show some 
kind of response, he showed none.

_____________________________________________

A month had passed since he had 'arrived'. Even though he had earned his 
keep by getting firewood from the forest, Tifa still kept that extra eye 
on him. If it turned out that it was indeed an act, she had no clue as 
of what to do.  

After several strenuous katas, she want down to the basement where the 
hot spring that had been there for a while, to relax. 

Folding up her gi, she stepped into the hot soothing waters slowly. 
Letting the gentle touch of the spring's warmth cover her body little by 
little. When it came up to her neck, she let all the discomfort ease 
into the waters as she sighed contently. 

She had no clue as to how long time had passed as she heard another pair 
of footsteps enter. Not even knowing of the spring's first visitor, 
Sephiroth came down, his only clothing a towel on his shoulder. 

Tifa screamed, heaved a rather large rock from the side of the spring 
and threw it at him. In response, he screamed and jumped back into the 
hallway leading back to the cabin, using it as a shield as he stated his 
case. 

"I... I'm sorry! I didn't know you were there!" he said with evident 
fear. 

Snarling and covering herself, she forced herself to calm down. "I guess 
I over reacted a bit." She turned around and said, "If you want to take 
a bath, just wait a minute. I'll be done then."

She heard him enter the room again and kept her back turned as she heard 
him stutter. "Well, if it not too much trouble... could you please 
stay?" She turned to see him look away from the spring, but not 
bothering to cover himself up. 

She turned back, huffed and quoted Vincent, "Do as you wish."

Sephiroth slowly entered the spring and kept his distance from the woman 
who could well break his neck like a vegetable. 

"Um... I never really... thanked you for saving me from that place. I 
don't know if I wanted to stay there forever. Thank you." he said 
simply. She remained with her back to him as he continued. 

"There's a reason why you hate me... because of what I most likely did," 
he seemed to grow more fearful as he went on, "but what did I do?"

Tifa turned as her belief that this was all an act fading, to face him 
and asked, "You really want to know?" He nodded. 

For the next hour, she retold virtually every crime that this man's 
namesake had committed. From the death of Nibelheim and to his attempt 
to destroy the planet using Meteor. 

He looked into the water, racked with guilt over what the other him had 
done. All the innocent people he had killed, lives he had ruined, and no 
way for him to repay for all the pain he caused. 

It seemed wise that he stay here, because everyone knew and despised his 
face in the outside world. And with no ability to fight or use magic, he 
was even more helpless. He had no hope of changing his name and starting 
over. They both knew that. 

"I'll... I'll leave you alone now." He said as he stepped up from the 
spring, left his towel for her, and walked back to the cabin. 

She couldn't help but feel her heart break. Seeing this more innocent 
and blameless Sephiroth, not even being able to have a life outside of 
Gaea's cliff. In fact, she knew how he was feeling. Loneliness. 

Her own self hatred for not showing how she felt about Cloud had taken 
it's toll on her. She hated herself even more when she discovered her 
body was crying for something that she wanted as well. That the 
Sephiroth here, could easily provide. But she only wanted it from Cloud, 
because she loved him. 

Once more, her dark passions cried that he would never love her and she 
saw the truth in it. The longer the battle within her raged, the more 
she felt compelled to... NO! She wouldn't do such a thing. 

Not only that... it was most likely the others would brand her a 
traitor. She mentally slapped herself again and figured they all had 
better things to do than worry about her. Getting up, she left the 
spring, got her clothes and his towel, dried herself off, dressed and 
returned to the cabin. 

___________________________________________

Another week had passed. And Sephiroth, dressed in a pair of brown heavy 
cloth pants, and white shirt, stared outside his window to the moon. 
When he saw it, he couldn't help but think of Tifa's beautiful hair, red 
eyes, and the gentle curves of her face. 

He sighed at the fact that he was indeed attracted to her, but because 
of her suspicion, it would most likely go no further than this. 

He heard the door to his room open and he closed his eyes and pretend he 
was asleep. He once more, pretended that he was waking up, but his eyes 
widened when he saw Tifa, wearing a loose robe that showed just a little 
too much skin. 

"Tifa... what are... I mean." he stuttered as she walked up to his bed 
and sat beside him. 

"Sephiroth... I have no clue why I am doing this... but, I can't stand 
being alone any more..." she whispered, leaning closer to him. 

His resistance soon faded as her passionate and gentle kisses arose the 
desire in him as well. 
______________________________________________

The morning after, Sephiroth cradled the sobbing Tifa in his arms. Not 
at all wanting to see her like this, he kissed her tears away. She held 
onto him as she felt like she had betrayed all of her friends for a 
single night of passion. 

Words didn't come as he tried to console her. But he was just as guilty 
of the crime as she was. For the rest of the day, he did nothing but 
stay by her side as her pain finally showed itself. 
_______________________________________

The next day, Tifa had packed some supplies and walked all the way to 
the Cetra City. She then walked to the pond where Cloud had given Aeris 
her burial. She screamed to the city, hoping that Aeris would hear.

"ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?! NOT ONLY DID YOU TAKE HIM FROM ME, YOU MADE SURE I 
CAN NEVER FACE HIM AGAIN! I HATE YOU AERIS GAINSBOROUGH! I HATE YOU!!! I 
HATE YOU!!!!!! FOREVER!!!!!!!"

Sephiroth, hidden among the rubble, winced at her words, glad to know 
that it wasn't he that was facing her wrath. 

"That is rather narrow minded if you ask me." said a voice emerging from 
the waters. Tifa growled at the faded image of Aeris that appeared. 

"What do you know!? You don't know what I've been through."

"Nor do you I. Tifa, I knew from the very moment when I was born, I knew 
when I was going to die. I too, wanted a chance to live and love."

"YOU TOOK HIM FROM ME!"

"HE MADE HIS OWN CHOICE! IT IS NO FAULT OF MINE THAT YOU SAID NOTHING!" 
Aeris screamed back, the structure beginning to rumble.

Tifa bit her tongue, as Aeris' words struck true. 

"Besides, the Planet chose you for a reason. The reason to bring this 
different Sephiroth into the world. To give him another chance, as it 
did with the rest of you. Had you and Cloud been together, the planet 
would have chosen me, but since things do not always happen the way life 
wants it to, we just have to roll with the punches. Even if they hurt to 
the point where we want to die."

Aeris began to fade as her final words reached into Tifa's mind. "It is 
your chance to give redemption to one who sought it in his heart. If you 
do not, more will suffer. Be strong, like you always were, Tifa 
Lockheart."

When the remaining Cetra vanished, Tifa began to cry and turned to the 
nearest pillar where she punched it into oblivion. Aeris had once again 
shown that Tifa could never truly hate her, and Tifa hated herself for 
it. 

She collapsed to her knees and sobbed with no control. She felt a hand 
tap her shoulder and saw Sephiroth kneeling beside her. His gentle brown 
eyes offering compassion. 

"If you'll let me... may I help?"

Between sniffs, she smiled and nodded. 

The End.

Well, what do you think?



Teknos WarHammer-
"You will be terminated... with extreme porkchops!"
                          -- Fat Man, from Overdrawn at the Memory Bank

http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Garden/4853/index.html

-Knight of the True Fiancee. A.K.A. Akane Tendou
-Fanfic writer of Teknoman and other great manga and anime.
-Self appointed Guardian of Kiyone Makibi.
-And so much more!



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