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The Night	By : mewsomniac Category: Kingdom Hearts > AU - Alternate Universe Views: 1695 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: NO profit is being made off this work. Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, and Disney belong to their rightful owners, and I do not claim ANY ownership over their properties. FULL DISCLAIMER BELOW.

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The Night
Chapter X: The Interim
May 17th, 2015
            The uproar in the kitchen was the same as it always was: yelling, slamming cabinets, the occasional shriek, heavy fists and open palms hitting countertops. As usual, he laid wide awake in his bed, eyes fixed almost painfully on the ceiling, nearly unblinking.
            The moon wasn’t out that night, so the only light in the room came from the street lamps in town. The intrusive glow may have bothered anyone else, but he strangely found solace in the golden hue blanketing him as he lay motionless. Any minute now his little brother would knock, ever so gently, on his door. When mom and dad got like this, the 8 year-old didn’t ever want to sleep in his own bedroom since it was the only room next to theirs. Cloud’s loft—which is barely a loft considering it’s just a third bedroom above the other two—is nearly as large as the master bedroom belonging to their parents. Cloud was always grateful for the privacy of it, as there was plenty of comfortable space to be away from baby brothers and stressful domestic disputes.
            He never really knew who would start the fight, but it always ended with his mother laying in a crumpled mess on the floor, a new bruise to cover up in the morning. It was rare for him to ever sleep on nights like these, laying awake and staring at the ceiling until his eyes were sore and his body shut itself down from exhaustion. This torturous routine kept going on because he couldn’t push away the feeling that these fights were somehow his fault. How did it end up this way?
            Cloud was almost grateful when those soft knocks came to his door, knowing his brother wouldn’t dare say a word until he was in the safety of his older brother’s room. Quickly, Cloud went to unlock and open the door. He saw his little brother’s face was wet with tears, as it usually was when their parents fought.
            Once the boy was safe inside the room, Cloud pulled him into a hug and said, “Hey, Rox, it’s gonna be okay.”
            “You always say that…” Roxas sobs, “but it’s never okay.”
            Cloud didn’t really know what to say to that. It had been a couple years now that their parents had been fighting, and the intensity of the brawls had only grown since then. He wasn’t sure how much longer it’d escalate until something horrible happened, and he would have called the cops by now if his mother hadn’t begged him not to. There didn't seem to be much hope in sight for any of them… he’d forgotten what his parents even still fight about.
            Doing his best to find some kind of comfort, Cloud said, “I’m going to go to college, and then I’ll find a way to come back and get you, okay?”
            Roxas only sniffled before dejectedly responding, “What am I supposed to do when you’re gone?”
            He didn’t really have a response for that either. His little brother continued to cry more silent tears, so he led the small boy over to sit on the bed. Cloud took a somber glance out the window, as if the light from below would speak the answer to him. He looked back to see the golden glow creating a silhouette of Roxas on the floor, and that was when the idea hit him.
            “How about this: when I’m gone, you can have my bedroom.”
            In no time, his little brother’s face lights up; Cloud could practically see the tears drying instantly. “Really?!”
            He nodded, “You bet. And that’s not even the best part. I’ll let you in on a huge secret.”
            He crawled across the bed and opened the large window, beckoning his brother over. Then, he began to lean out of it, pulling himself out to stand on the ledge. The action put a knot in Roxas’ stomach, but he crawled over the bed and peered out the window anyway. His brother was holding onto a perfect hand-hold in the sturdy wood of the window frame, and several bricks were jutting out of the wall enough to grab onto with ease. Cloud held out his hand, and Roxas took it with unease.
            “Don’t look down, okay?”
            Though Roxas’ first instinct was to indeed look down, he forced himself not to—fixing his gaze onto their clasped hands. His brother gave him a sturdy pull up to grasp the ledge.
            “Remember that summer we went rock climbing? It’s the same thing. Follow my lead.”
            After the brothers scaled the short wall, they ended up safely on the rooftop of their townhouse. The view was magnificent: nearly the whole town—practically all the way out to the forest—was visible and shimmered gloriously under the street lamps, lit windows, and distantly bustling nightlife.
            Cloud spread his arms wide, “Welcome to my vantage point! Once you have my room, you can come here whenever you’d like to get away from mom and dad.”
            Roxas’ elated smile was priceless, “Wooow!” He cried in awe as he peeked over the ledge, “This is amazing ! I can’t wait!” He suddenly turned and gave his older brother the best squeezing hug his small arms could manage, “Just don’t leave too soon, okay?”
            Cloud hugged the boy back, “I wont.”
            “And you swear you’ll come back for me?”
            “I promise.”
February 23, 2026
            His escape was imminent, but his captor didn’t know it yet. It would be a tricky slip, to be sure… but he’d succeeded a dozen times before. He was already past his greatest foe, the squeaky door whose hinges spitefully alerted all to the coming and going of any man; whose greatest power was to make all mortals forget it needs greasing exactly two minutes after it horrendously screeches. He was halfway down the stairs, whose creaks and moans he’d memorized like a pattern in his head. Light step to the left, tip of the toe to the middle, heel toward the back… he was nearly there.
            His captor would be in the back, likely prepping things for the restaurant to be ready for later in the day. The place was always dead on Monday mornings, and it wasn’t until the evening when the crowd began to emerge: zombified workers sick with a case of the Mondays looking for a few drinks to cure them before their trek home. Every now and again the lunch crowd would surprise them, but it wasn’t anything one person couldn’t handle by themselves. Since more and more people had gotten comfortable with living in Duck City, his delivery service has mostly consisted of running food orders for the restaurant to make ends meet; even that part of his job is nearly nonexistent on a Monday, so he won’t be missed.
            Finally at the bottom of the stairs, he takes a cursory glance around the dining room and bar. The only patron is an old, comatose-looking man snoozing in his chair over a cup of black coffee. The bustle in the kitchen is audible, so now is his perfect chance to bolt out the front door. He begins his stride across the restaurant—
            “ CLOUD! ” He halts in his tracks, entire body wincing. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the old man do a little jump in his seat. “CLOUD, GET DOWN HERE,” The booming voice comes closer, “WE HAVE A—Oh!” He turns to see his captor is standing at the bar, looking pleased to see him. “I didn’t hear you come down the stairs. I just finished preparing a delivery for you.” She heaves the goods, which are encapsulated in a large paper sack, onto the bar.
            Cloud sighs, “On a Monday?”
            “Hey, no sassing me. I don’t understand the customers sometimes either, but such is the life of food service.” Cloud stomps over to the bar, moving to gently cradle the package in his arms. He’s about to leave when she catches his eye, immediately freezing him to the floor. “You weren’t planning on sneaking out again… were you?”
            “Tifa, I…”
            But the words dry up on his tongue. He can’t bring himself to lie to her… but he can’t bring himself to admit the truth either. It’s Tifa’s turn to sigh as she circles around the bar to come stand before him.
            “Cloud… I know it’s been hard with your brother and everything… but you can’t keep sneaking off to go see that guy. You’re putting too much faith in him, and you’re endangering yourself because of it.” She reaches out to touch his arm, “You have to live your own life, you can’t keep chasing ghosts.”
            How long has it been, now? Ten years since his mother brought him to live here. Tifa’s mother, the original restaurant owner, was a dear family friend and let them stay there indefinitely. It was only a few years after Aerith died a horrific death that Tifa’s mother also passed away. Despite all this time, there still have been no answers… and it aches in Cloud’s gut. The questions have been eating away at him, every single day, like maggots under his skin. A million hot pokers of rage have been stabbing into his heart, leaving him desperate for the truth. Perhaps he and Tifa are both motherless, and even fatherless, in similar ways… but Tifa could never understand this agony. Tifa could never see the true reason he won’t stop moving forward. Too much has been taken from him to back down now.
            The heat of the package is beginning to permeate uncomfortably through his clothing, so he tries to give Tifa his most convincing smile, “Chasing ghosts is a good way to lose weight.”
            Though she seems unsure of his genuineness at first, she scoffs, “I’d argue the opposite.” before shooing him out the door, “Now hurry out! Dilly-dally shilly-shally!”
            Groaning, he leaves. Despite everything, it always makes him happy to hear Tifa using his mother’s favorite saying, as if it were a little way to keep her spirit alive. After situating the package onto his motorcycle and clipping on his helmet, he roars off. Uncaring of Tifa’s concern, he decides he’ll go see Leon on his way back from delivering this order.
            Back in the restaurant, Tifa is refilling the lonely customer’s coffee cup when the phone rings. Taken off-guard by two whole calls on a single Monday morning, she hurries to the bar to answer while still holding the coffee pot.
            “Hello! 8th Heaven Restaurant and Bar! How may I help you?”
            “Hi, uh… I’m actually looking for Cloud. Cloud Strife?”
            That’s oddly specific… She thinks. Most people just ask for the Strife Delivery Service, not for Cloud personally. “I’m sorry, he just left to make a delivery. May I ask who’s calling?”
            Not in a million years would she have expected the following response. At first, she thought it must be a joke… but how could it possibly be a lie? After all this time? The shock ran through her, just then, and the coffee pot went crashing to the floor as her blood ran cold.
            It seems the ghosts have come to chase Cloud instead.

Exeunt
A/N: Hello my dears! I know this chapter is a little short, but I thought it might be a nice little addition to give you as I continue writing the next chapter. Initially, it was going to be quite some time before these scenes ever happened… but for some reason I felt compelled to write them now.
Obviously, I’ve taken a LOT of creative liberties with the Final Fantasy characters in this story, but I hope it fits just fine all things considered.
I hope you liked it and I can’t wait for you to see the next chapter!
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The Night