As sweat trickled down her perfectly toned body, Tifa landed blow after blow against the training dummy, her feet and hands devastating the already rugged plastic figure. She could feel her muscles aching, screaming for a reprieve, but she had to fight through it. Gritting her teeth and picking up her pace for the finale, she did a perfect roundhouse kick, sending the dummy's head flying across the room and landing on the other side of it. Staggering a bit backwards, Tifa wobbled over to the nearby wall and leaned against it, her right arm resting between the wall and her forehead, while her left hand caressed her abs, pretending to soothe them.

Taking a few minutes to balance her breathing, Tifa glanced over her shoulder at the clock. Ah shit, it's already 10PM... Tifa realized as she pushed herself off of the wall and picked up her water bottle from her bag that was lying on the floor close to her. She opened it up and began drinking from it like it was the Fountain of Youth, some of the water trickling down from the corners of her mouth and down her body. Letting out a sigh of relief as the bottle was emptied, she placed the empty one back in her bag and pulled out her regular clothing.

Starting to remove the bandages from her feet first while sitting down on the floor, she took extra care to check that they were otherwise in good shape, that the toenails weren't fractured and that there was no dead skin. Tifa took pride in making sure every part of her body was as close to perfection as they could be, despite the strain she regularly put on herself. After removing the bandages, she put on her socks, black in color like usual, before standing up to remove her sporty shorts, standing briefly in her boxers before pulling on her loose jeans, similarly black in color.

Moving to her upper body, she removed the bandages from her hands next, doing a similar check-up she had on her feet and giving herself a small smile after seeing they were just as beautiful as always. Then, pulling off her short tank top, but leaving her sports bra on, she instead put on her comfortable hoodie, which was only long enough to cover her breasts, while leaving her stomach exposed and unlike the rest of her clothing so far, it was grey in color, with a picture of a boxing glove adorning the back.

Finally she finished by letting her hair loose, undoing the complex braid formation it was always in when she was training or fighting. Giving herself a good few stretches before putting on her red sneakers and tossing her bag on her back, Tifa made her way to the exit, turning off the lights and locking down the gym as she left.

Well, calling it a gym was generous, as it was only a very small house dedicated to martial arts in a far away corner of the slums, with barely anyone else using it aside from Tifa. But it was enough and Tifa wasn't one to complain about the few small good things in life.

Double-checking that the door was properly locked, Tifa did the mandatory smell-your-armpit-even-though-you-know-it-smells routine and coughed a little before starting to make her way home through the derelict streets. It was dark and somewhat cold, as her sweaty body started to cool down, making her want to shower even more badly.

The first quarter of the trip home was uneventful, the few barks and meows of homeless dogs and cats occasionally filling the evening air. Everyone seemed to be at home already, the slums having basically shutdown for the night, as they always did. That was, until Tifa heard a small scream and a bit of incoherrent shouting coming from an even darker alleyway than the main streets were. Picking up her pace a little, she semi-jogged towards the noise and leaned against a building's wall that overlooked the dark alleyway.

Peeking around the corner, Tifa saw two average looking slum thugs, wearing masks, threatening a woman who was way too well dressed to be from here. She wore a full body pink dress, not form fitting or revealing, but quite cute, at least to Tifa's eyes. Atop that she wore an open red leather jacket, similar in length to Tifa's own hoodie and her feet were covered by shoes Tifa struggled to describe, aside from being black in color and reminding her of a hybrid between sneakers and longer boots.

But what struck Tifa the most, was her face. From where she was standing, the woman was a true beauty, her skin pale and without a flaw in her complexion, striking green eyes, a cute small nose and sharp lips. Her hair was light brown from the looks of it and beautifully braided all the way down to her lower back, similar in length to Tifa's again. Tifa felt something catch in her throat for a brief moment and a bang in her stomach, before she realized she should intervene.

"Why don't you two turn around and hike back home before there's trouble?" Tifa threatened, her voice huskier than her normal tone, to evoke what dread she could, as she rounded the corner to stand in full view of the two thugs. Backing off from the lady they were threatening, they turned to face Tifa now, sizing her up, hunched a little as they approached slowly.

"And why would we do that?" One of the thugs questioned in a sleazy tone as he got closer to Tifa than the other one. Tifa clenched her fists, shooting a quick glance at the woman she was saving, who seemed to look at her both admirably and worriedly at the same time.

"Because I am asking nicely. I only do that once." Tifa answered, her voice oozing venom now. She noticed the other woman crouch down and pick up something, but Tifa didn't have time to see what it was as the second thug blocked her view now as well, both of them being too close for comfort.

"Oh is th-..." The second thug began, but Tifa had had enough, dropping her bag and uppercutting the talker in one swift motion, sending him staggering backwards, right into the other woman's reach, who now brought a small brick she had picked up crashing down on the thug's head, knocking him out. The remaining thug looked bewildered, looking back and forth between the two women before pushing past the dress-wearing one and running off into the distance.

Tifa picked up her bag again and looked at the knocked out thug briefly before turning her attention to the woman she had rescued, sort of.

"Thanks for the help, but it was all under control." The woman said with a wide smile, pulling right at Tifa's heart strings. Tifa opened her mouth a little, but nothing came out. The other woman chuckled a little, which sounded so very pleasant to Tifa's ears, she blushed a little, which was luckily impossible to see in the current lighting.

"I'm Aerith, by the way. Who might you be?" The woman said as she crouched down to check that the thug was still alive and only knocked out, which was easily confirmed by the pulse on his neck. Standing up, she took a few steps away from Tifa and crouched again, picking up her basket full of flowers from the ground.

"I... I'm Tifa. And you're welcome." Tifa finally managed to say, with a bit of a stutter as her eyes kept wandering over every inch of Aerith's flawless face. Aerith noticed it, obviously, and gave Tifa a bit of a puzzled look, forcing Tifa to avert her eyes for a moment.

"Is there something on my face?" Aerith asked a bit confused, causing Tifa to immediately look back at her and shake her head slightly.

"No no, it's just that..." Tifa trailed off, earning a light chuckle from Aerith. Looking down into her basket, she chose a beautiful white flower from the bunch and handed it over to Tifa.

Tifa looked at the flower and then at Aerith, slowly extending her hand to pick it up.

"As a thanks, for helping me." Aerith explained as Tifa took the flower and admired it for a bit.

"Beautiful..." Tifa almost whispered.

"Thank you, you too." Aerith responded teasingly, making Tifa blush furiously as she stumbled a bit backwards, fumbling to place the flower carefully into her bag. Aerith chuckled a little again as she took the opportunity to look Tifa over while she was distracted.

"You're so toned, wow. Are you a soldier or something?" Aerith inquired as she admired Tifa's stomach before focusing on her face again.

"I... no. I'm a martial artist, or so I tell myself." Tifa answered as she turned her attention back to Aerith, who gave her another beautiful smile.

"I see. I'm just a florist, as you might've guessed." Aerith stated, as she flaunted the basket in her hands, earning a brief nod from Tifa.

"You're not from around here then. Nothing grows in these parts. So what brings you here at this hour?" Tifa questioned as she motioned for Aerith to follow her off of the alley and back into the main street. Following behind, Aerith shot one last glimpse at the now "sleeping" thug before turning her attention back to Tifa.

"I was here, selling flowers, or trying to, anyway..." Aerith rambled a little, and Tifa realized that her basket was still indeed quite full, probably not having sold many, if any, flowers.

"Ah, well, don't blame yourself, people around here are not the cheeriest of sorts." Tifa tried to encourage Aerith a little and she did receive a small smile in response, which was enough for her.

"Is there anywhere you can stay the night? I wouldn't travel very far this late." Tifa asked, looking up and down the street they were on and finding it empty, luckily.

"No, not really, I kinda got lost on my way home earlier and ended up trying to find a motel or something..." Aerith trailed off, a hint of worry and sadness in her voice, which pulled at Tifa's heart strings unusually hard.

"Well I..." Tifa started and then trailed off, seeing Aerith's eyes lit up at her again.

"You could stay at my place the night. It's not much but it's a roof over your head." Tifa offered, her stomach aching for some reason as she waited for an answer.

"Really?" Aerith asked with a chipper tone, her eyes shining like two stars as she looked at Tifa for confirmation.

"Really. It's not that far, shouldn't take us more than a few minutes to get there." Tifa said with a smile of her own now as she pointed down the street. Aerith began to walk that way with Tifa right by her, as the flower lady began to hum a tune to break the silent night, both absorbed in thought for now as they made their way to Tifa's home.

After a short and uneventful walk, the pair reached Tifa's apartment on the edges of the slums; a small square block standing alone, opposite of a few other similar ones across the street. Getting her keys from her bag, Tifa unlocked the door and let Aerith in.

She was greeted by a small duo of rooms without anything really dividing them, except a couch, which faced the small TV and behind it was the kitchen area. Opposite the entrance were two doors, but otherwise the entire house was barren from decorations.

"You can get yourself something to eat and drink from the fridge if you'd like." Tifa said cordially as she placed her bag on the floor, leaning it against the couch. Aerith placed her basket of flowers next to it and they both removed their shoes shortly after.

"Thanks, I'll take a peek soon." Aerith said with a smile as she watched Tifa take out the flower she received from the bag and look around a bit puzzled-like.

"Do you have a vase or anything like that? Just needs a bit of water at the bottom and it should survive on it's own." Aerith adviced kindly as Tifa turned to look at her again. She nodded briefly and went over to the kitchen and opened one of the two cupboards there, and took out a small glass, just tall enough to support the flower if put inside.

"This'll do?" Tifa asked and Aerith nodded with a smile. Filling the bottom of the small glass with water from the faucet, Tifa placed the flower in it afterwards and put it in the middle of the small kitchen table.

"There! But now I really need to take a shower." Tifa said as she stretched out a bit, making Aerith giggle a little.

"I bet. I'll make myself at home in the meantime." Aerith decided as she walked over to the kitchen as Tifa made her way out of there, picking up her bag and taking out her sweaty workout clothes from there before disappearing into one of the rooms blocked by a door.

As Aerith rummaged through the fridge, she found a ready-made sandwich and some red juice that she poured into a glass she picked up from one of the cupboards. Sitting down at the table, she began to snack as she listened to Tifa, presumably, either wash herself or her clothes.

The sandwich was surprisingly good, making Aerith wonder if Tifa had made all of it herself or just filled it up. Looking around as she ate, Aerith came to realize there really wasn't anything extra in the house, no pictures, decorations or even carpets. The flower she had given Tifa was the only bright spot in the otherwise dull interior.

Several minutes passed until the rushing water died down in the room Tifa was in, giving Aerith plenty of time to finish eating. Soon after the rushing water died down, Tifa exited the room, with only a towel wrapped around her upper body, reaching down to her private parts, and another towel covering her hair.

Aerith eyed up Tifa's strong arms and legs and it was her turn to blush for a change. Tifa pretended not to notice, but seeing the appreciation in Aerith's eyes for her body made her smile to herself as she went into the other room with a door, right next to the one she just came out of.

"I'll be with you shortly, just getting some nightwear!" Tifa shouted from the room.

"Ah... Do you need some too? I have a spare set of... uh... Never mind!" Tifa continued to shout from the room, giving Aerith another round of giggles.

"I can wear the "never mind" too, I don't mind!" Aerith yelled back and laughed a little to herself as Tifa didn't respond. While waiting, Aerith made her way over to the couch and made herself as comfortable as she could there. Soon after, Tifa emerged from the room, holding a pair of loose shorts and a T-shirt in her hands, while wearing a similar set herself.

Aerith looked Tifa over again, from toes to nose and smiled a little. Even with the loose clothes, she was obviously blessed by more than good muscles and a pretty face.

Tifa handed over the nightwear to Aerith and pointed to the room she came out of.

"That's my bedroom, you can change there and sleep there too. You can lock the door as well. I'll just sleep on the couch." Tifa explained and gave Aerith a courteous smile, which Aerith returned with one of her own.

"I can change now, but I wouldn't mind watching some TV together before sleeping, if that's okay?" Aerith asked a bit shyly, which made Tifa realize that one of her favorite shows was on air tonight.

"Sure! The Slum Dogs is on tonight, we can watch that, if you want?" Tifa returned with a question of her own and Aerith's eyes lit up again for a moment, before she nodded excitedly.

"I'll be right back then!" Aerith remarked as she made her way over to Tifa's bedroom, closing the door behind her and leaving Tifa alone for a moment. Tifa took a comfortable position on the couch's opposite side of where Aerith had sat just a second ago. She turned on the TV with the remote that was resting on the couch and dialed to the right channel. Okay good, it hasn't started just yet... Tifa mused to herself.

"Well, how do I look?" Aerith questioned as she had snuck up behind Tifa while she was busy with the TV. Taken back a little, Tifa turned her head around to see Aerith in just loose shorts and a T-shirt, just like she was. Swallowing a bit harshly, Tifa noted how slender Aerith's arms and legs were and how the shirt and shorts hugged her feminine assets quite snugly, despite the looseness.

"I uh... you... look cute!" Tifa stumbled with words a little, her eyes being distracted enough for Aerith to notice. Luckily for Tifa, Aerith was content to just chuckle it off.

"Thanks. You're cute too." Aerith responded, making Tifa blush again more furiously than she ever could have wanted to. Giggling to herself, Aerith made her way back to where she had been sitting prior to changing clothes. There was plenty of room between them and as the show started, they both leaned relaxed into their own corners, quietly enjoying the night in each other's company.

There was an air of comfort around them, despite having met only recently, which both realized, but didn't mention, for some reason or another. Maybe it was the way they had met, helping each other out, or mutual attraction or something else entirely neither knew just yet... Or maybe all three. It was something both were thinking about, but didn't want to break this calm moment with.

For the night, this was all they wanted.