Revive

Dangerous

Cloud opened his eyes. Tifa stood in front of him, hands on hips. She bent down and said something with a smile. Cloud couldn't really hear anything, but she quickly left waving. Cloud's eyes slid back down again.

Cloud awoke again to the sound of metal clashing. It sounded like a bell ringing against the brick walls of the 7th Heaven. After a couple of consecutive rings, it falls silent again and Cloud gets comfortable. Shortly after, the rings stared again. Cloud groaned as he got out of bed, pulling on his shirt and grabbing the closest sword he found.

As he stumbled down stairs, he shouted Tifa's name in every room he passed. When he entered the bar, Cloud noticed that everything was cleaner than usual. The floor was swept, tables were polished with the chairs stack upside down on top. The bench was sparkling and at the end was a few washed glasses on display. Even the taps glowed under the dim sunlight.

"Tifa!" Cloud shouted again, only getting his empty voice bounce back at him. The metallic noice started again and it sounded close by. Cloud repeated the calls and this time he got an answer.

"Out here."

Cloud couldn't really hear the voice but he was definite that it was male. He cautiously moved to the garage and peered around the corner.

When Cloud turned, he found Chase standing with a strong stance, facing the brick wall. He held two large weapons in his hands, both swords. They were short and curved with a soft red tint on the inside of the sword. The blade had newly made scars, being obvious in the sunlight.

"I guess I'm not your precious Tifa," Chase teased.

Cloud tried to compute the situation, after just waking up from a morning nap. He was sure that Tifa was going to have the kids. Why was Chase here? With swords?

"What are you doing here?" Cloud asks.

Chase looks confused, until he musters a laugh. He casually swings one of his swords over his shoulder and gives his famous smile.

"Well, I called Tifa last night. Just for a small chat. And she says that she wanted to take the kids out for tomorrow. You know, today, but tomorrow when we were talking. Anyway, she thought it'll be a good chance for me and you to bond since she has the kids and all..."

He talks a lot. Cloud thought. He mentally frowned at Tifa for meddling, but maybe it was helpful to understand Chase a bit more. As subtle as possible, Cloud made a small gesture to Chase's swords.

Chase eyed his swords and his grin got wider. In a sudden lunge, he lifted his left sword and slammed it into the brick. The sound resembled the wake up call Cloud received earlier.

"I call them Blood and Rose. They're my twin blades," he explained. "

Cloud smiled back at Chase. He didn't know anyone else who used swords, but he knew that Chase knew how to handle them properly. And the fact that he named them, showed that their extremely precious to him. Cloud finally has a lead.

"Nice," Cloud said casually. "Twin blades. How long have you been using them?"

"Ever since I was 10 years old. Dad got them for me when I was six but I wasn't big enough to carry them. He taught me everything I know about a sword. Used them to be a SOLDIER, though I wasn't chosen. Oh, well. Me and these swords have been through it all. There was this time ..."

Cloud stared at Chase as he explained the rest of his stories, only thinking about Chase's father. It's pretty bold to give your six year old son a pair of sharp blades. He thought about what his father was like, then he looked up at Chase, laughing at himself as he explained how he almost turned his friend bald.

Cloud sighed. He is such a spoiled kid.

"So do you live with your dad still?" Cloud interrupted.

Chase looked taken back by the question. He glared at Cloud for a split second, but immediately smiled. "No. I have my own apartment nearby,"

Silence. Cloud found it unusual, especially for Chase, but the way he reacted when the question was asked was weird. Odd.

"Well he must be pretty great, getting your swords." Cloud added, lifting the mood.

"Well, I don't know..." Chase said bashful. "Two swords compares to soooo many. I mean, you have a ton. When'd your dad give them to you?" he asked with a great smile.

Cloud looked down at his hands. "He died, quite a while ago."

Even more silence. "Oh." Chase replied.

The way he replied irritated Cloud. It was like he knew he was dead. As if he was happy, or appreciated the fact.

Cloud glared, slowly turning towards him. He opened his mouth to speak but Chase was quick to stop him.

"Yeah, my mum passed away a while ago too," he said to Cloud's disbelief. "Miss her heaps but you can't help it. But my dad, he was the support to many people but me mostly."

Cloud, speechless, curiously listened to him. He thought about Chase, how he used to think that he was annoying, arrogant and fortunate. But the man he saw was like Cloud. Like him.

"Well," Cloud sighed. "We all need the support. It builds the lost person inside, right?"

Chase smiled. "Without it we can't survive."

They both laughed. Cloud had judged Chase completely wrong. He was glad to talk to him and, for once, he was glad Tifa meddled.

They continued talking for most of the day, Chase leading the conversation and Cloud nodding and sighing in response. By sun down, they spotted Tifa with Denzel and Marlene walking down the street smiling.

All, except Cloud, walked into the bar. He was still recounting the words that Chase was saying about his childhood. It was incredible of how much he reminded Cloud of Zack.