AUTHOR'S NOTE: I'M ALIVE! ... almost. XD

Anyway, I have finally gotten the time to write as I please and update, so voila! Part 5 of Lithium! I wrote this - maybe a little hastily - this afternoon, and I just couldn't resist dangling one more (maybe?) part for the suspense... the truth is, I really like this story and I didn't want it to end.

But all good things come to an end, right? And I'm sure that by now you all want to come hunt me down with pitchforks and flaming torches. I am so ashamed that I've left you guys hanging, I really am. Balancing fan fictions, my own other stories, videos (YouTube), school, chores, social turmoil and all-around life is pretty damn hard.

Anyway, enough tripe from me, I just wanted to make sure that you all knew I hadn't abandoned you (and I hope you haven't abandoned me!), so read on and find out what happens in the next thrilling chappie of LITHIUM! (Okay, I just totally sounded like a corny commercial... gawd.)

Lithium

- A Slightly Twisted CloTi FanFiction -

Cloud raced down the highway on Fenrir, the minutes seeming to fly by as fast as the wind whipped through his hair and whistled in his ears. And yet, each second away from Tifa seemed like a lifetime.

It's funny how things can seem that way, Cloud thought, barely conscious, to himself.

It was raining, and the light drizzle a few minutes earlier was replaced with sheets and torrents of water. His vision was blurry through the goggles, so he tore them off, but fared no better; he almost didn't see the truck pass in front of him.

"Whoa!" he yelled, swerving to the side at the last minute and skidding off the road. The truck driver flipped him the bird and yelled something about 'drunk kids', but Cloud was too preoccupied to even notice. The next thing he knew he was on his side in a mud-filled ditch, pinned by the motorcycle. His arm was twisted painfully underneath him, and the mud turned dark red as he realized his face was bleeding from a long cut above his eye, and a deep gash in the same arm stretching from his elbow to his wrist stung horribly.

He struggled to right himself, but the burning in his arm made him wince. He bit his lip and pulled his arm from under him, causing him to cry out in agony. He tried to move it; it was broken in several places, and the gash tore through flesh almost to the bone.

Cloud's face turned white at the sight, but he grimaced and pulled himself out from under Fenrir, and out of the trench. He staggered towards his twisted motorcycle, and picked his Buster sword out of the muck. The sword was unharmed by the fall, thank heavens, but Fenrir, on the other hand, was in a sorry state; upon further inspection, he found that the bike was still driveable, though it needed major repairs.

But he couldn't think about that now, not when Tifa could still be in danger.

He ripped off a shred of fabric from his shirt and wrapped his arm; it was shabby, but it would have to do. He heaved Fenrir out of the mud and back onto the highway, and - with a little bit of coaxing and a few death threats - it roared to life, and sped, a bit shakily albeit, further towards Midgar.

Midgar seemed so different, so alien to him, but nothing had really changed; perhaps it was because he could never recall the city so dirty, so busy, so ablaze with lights, human traffic, noise, and unfriendly streets. Perhaps it was because he could not bear the thought of Tifa alone here.

Finally, he arrived at 31st and Midgar, and parked Fenrir on the other side of the street. When he turned to look at the enormous building, Tifa was already waiting in the shadows under the overhang outside. She had wrapped her arms around herself in the chilly wind, and retreated further into the darkness when a group of men walked past, yelling obscenities, whistling and hooting. It made Cloud's blood boil. Thankfully, none of them made a pass at her; he wouldn't have been able to control himself.

When they were past, he dashed across the street. A passing car illuminated her face. His heart stopped; if he hadn't known it was her, he would barely have recognized her. She was so changed.

She caught sight of him, and ran from the safety and dry of the overhang into the street. When they reached each other, they embraced joyously, and clung to each other as if for dear life. Neither could tell if the other was crying, for they were tears in the rain; hidden, but many.

A car honked at them to get out of the road, and despite the situation they laughed - almost hysterically - at themselves and hurried back to the overhang. Once in privacy, they hugged and kissed each other's face almost desperately.

Finally, when they were both calmer, Cloud stepped back and gazed at Tifa. She wore stillettos, making her almost as tall as Cloud, black leggings (Cloud was thankful they were not fishnets), a tight-looking leather miniskirt and a bulky dark-grey sweater with the hood drawn - probably to hide her pregnancy -. Even under the sweater, Cloud could see that she was wan and thin, a fair bit thinner than she normally would be. Her frame was almost sunken and under the hood her face was drawn and pale. She wore make-up, which Cloud had never seen her do; thick black eye-make-up, shades of blue eyeshadow, and cherry lipstick. The mascara ran down her face, and she kept trying to chase it back up to her eye with her sleeve. It didn't seem to fit her face, as it was so beautiful without adornment.

Tifa bit back her tears and in turn looked at Cloud. His clothes - simple jeans and a ratty old muscle shirt - were worn, dissheveled and they looked slept-in. His face was muddy and his eyes were slightly bloodshot and red-rimmed from lack of sleep, and they looked like they had been dead a long time. His hair had lost much of its shine and almost everything about him seemed to have dulled, like water eroding rock; but she could feel his resolve and determination, and she knew it made him strong. She noticed his arm, and the cut over his eye, and caressed his face gently.

It seemed that neither of them had survived these past five and a half months unscathed.

Tifa put a hand up to his cheek. "Cloud," she said softly, her eyes tearing. "Oh, my poor, sweet Cloud. What's happened to you?"

Cloud closed his eyes and put his hand over hers. He squeezed it gently. "I'm so sorry... I should have never let you go."

"Don't ever blame yourself for my decision," she reminded him in her old, motherly Tifa-ish way. He heard her sigh; "I don't think we can survive without each other, do you?"

Cloud laughed throatily, despite the situation, and held her close. Tifa buried her head in his chest, and continued quietly, speaking to herself as much as him, "You walk around your whole life, thinking you're complete or whole, but then you meet a person, that one special person, and... and you may not know it, but that person is the true other half of you, your better half. All your life, you were just a fraction of what you really are, waiting to find your other half. And once you know what it's like to be complete, you can never be truly happy unless you're with your other half."

She looked up and into Cloud's sparkling blue eyes. "I've been walking around with my heart cut in half for a long time, Cloud. I want to be whole again."

"You... you want me?" Cloud stammered. After all I've done to you?

"Haven't you heard what I said? I love you, and I need you more than anything in this world," she exclaimed earnestly. "I want to be with you forever."

Cloud didn't know what to say. "Let's get married!" he burst out.

"What?"

"Let's get married, right now! We can go to City Hall and do it!" Cloud cried, his excitement growing.

"... just like that?" Tifa murmured.

"Yeah!"

"... you have to ask me, you know." She smiled mischeviously.

Cloud grinned - it felt so strange to him, to be smiling and laughing again; his face was rather sore already - and knelt down. He didn't have a ring, so he pulled off his own Cloudy Wold ring. He knew Tifa already had one, but he held it up ceremoniously and asked, "Tifa, will you marry me?"

Tifa looked like she was going to explode from her happiness. "I do," she murmured, then threw her arms around Cloud's neck. "I love you, Cloud Strife, and I want to be yours always and forever!"

"What the hell is this?!"

A menacing, furious voice from behind them made Cloud's blood boil and Tifa's run cold.

Adrian.

The tall, dark-haired man carried an expensive-looking bottle of alcohol, which he dropped as he ran towards them. "You cheating, whoring little slut!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. "I'll teach you!"

Tifa cringed at his outburst, and Cloud stepped in front of her, shielding her. "Cloud, no -" she cried desperately.

"Leave her alone!" he ordered.

"Who the fuck are you?" Adrian demanded, only metres from them.

"The one who's going to take her away from you!" Cloud shouted, his good arm reaching over for his Buster sword.

"I don't think so!" Adrian reached into his inner coat pocked, and pulled out a large handgun. He aimed it at Cloud's head.

Suddenly, everything seemed to be happening in slow motion; Tifa's scream "No, please Adrian, don't!" and her pushing Cloud out of the way... the loud shot of Adrian firing, missing... and firing again...

Tifa's eyes widened and bulged, and her mouth dropped open. She held a hand to her stomach, and Cloud couldn't figure out why... until he saw the dark red stain spreading. Tifa teetered on her stilettos for a moment. Her eyes rolled back as she let out a long, quiet sigh, then dropped to her knees. "NOOOO!" Cloud roared, struggling off the ground to reach her. She fell backward and Cloud caught her, her head resting in the crook of his arm.

"Tifa, please wake up, please wake up..." Cloud pleaded, his sobs breaking through. He held her close, cradling her body, but it was no use. "Please, God, no! Not Tifa... not Tifa..."

Click.

Cloud heard it as well as felt it; he looked up, to see Adrian standing over him, the gun cocked and ready to be fired. The mob boss pressed it to Cloud's forehead. "Say goodbye," he snarled cruelly.

"No," Cloud murmured.

"What?" Adrian stammered. He had expected him to beg, plead, cry; they all did, when the end came.

"No," Cloud repeated in the same cold, calm voice. "You took Tifa away from me, when I had thought that we would be together forever. I have no more reason to live; I welcome death." He didn't close his eyes; he stared straight on.

"Then death you shall get." Cloud watched, again in slow motion, as Adrian's finger hovered over the trigger, pulled...

Sooooo... enough suspense or drama yet?? Muahahaha, I can see now why Dragon Reverb called me a 'very evil person'. XD

... and don't even tell me; I admit, it was a little rushed too, but once again, I didn't want to have angry readers hunt me down.

Well, I'm almost done writing the last chapter and epilogue (I couldn't resist), and so I hope to update within the week, depending on when I get my new computer. Yes, I finally got a Mac, and it should arrive in two-three days. If it does arrive before I can finish writing, I may not update for another few weeks or even a month; I've got to transfer all my stupid data etc., but... okay, I'll shut up now. I'm infinitely boring, yes?