A/N: Hello my peoples...I know it's been forever but please don't flame me, this year has been craaaaazzyyy. I wanted to originally have this released for Halloween '08 but of course that's when my comp decided to let me down -sigh- So here it is, half way to Thanksgiving but whatever, I liked how this fic turned out so I wanted to share it. This was originally part of the "My Soundtrack" series since I wrote it when I was obsessed with "Don't Stop the Music" by Rihanna. I think it works better alone at the moment. Please let me know what you think ^_^ P.S. general disclaimers apply, I don't own anything FFVII, blah blah blah.
"Don't Stop"
by MakoRain
It was a night to party, a night to dance, a night to be anyone but Tifa Lockheart, barmaid and heartthrob extraordinaire. Tifa was not looking for love, for she had given up on these fancies long ago when a young man, her best friend, had left her to pursue his own dreams in the name of them. He had not yet returned, and Tifa was still young. Sure, she couldn't give her heart when it was no longer hers to give but that didn't mean she had to sit around waiting for him until she was an old maid did it? Hell no. She may not be looking for love, but there were other forms of pleasure besides love to satiate this hunger she had burning within and she needed it, needed it badly.
And so started a night she would want to either remember for a moment or forget for a lifetime. Tifa entered what was once her favorite club, a place she had no desire to go back to until this night for some peculiar reason, to the sounds of heavy bass, a mass of people, and lights hitting the angles of the room every which way. The combinations were enough to make her head spin and yet she moved forward, determined to let her body release its nervous energy it had held for far too long. The rhythm flowed through her, causing her body to move and bend to its will and she never wanted it to stop, the music like a drug she could not give up as a newly formed addict if only just beginning.
A young man in his late teens took the opportunity while she was off guard to press his body against hers, grinding to the music alongside her and at first all she could do was feel him, his figure moving to the beat with hers being the only male contact in such a way she had experienced since he had left. Tifa had to admit, it felt good…really good, and automatically her body moved closer, arms wrapping around him to pull him down for a kiss that accidentally cut his lip, moving her head down to nibble his neck… she shook her head to clear her mind and pushed him away, gaining something of her personal space in the action. At least he wasn't touching her anymore and he didn't tempt her so much as she moved through the crowd to put more distance between them. He had smelled good, which could only be bad, she reminded herself and took a moment to congratulate herself on that small victory of self restraint.
Shapes moved around her in blurs of color and brightness as she found a pulse into the music, connecting and riding it for all it was worth. It had been so long since she had connected with something this thriving, this alive, that it was hard to keep pace with those around her for reasons besides out of practice dancing in such a large crowd. It was then that something felt out of place and yet felt as natural as breathing used to feel for her. She spun around, catching a glimpse of blonde in the throng, so unnatural in a dark place where their kind preferred to subtly make their presence known to lower beings, not flaunt it by blending in so easily with them. She had always loved his defiance. But as soon as she felt it, it was gone.
Eyes focused on everything at once and she was thrown through the populace of gyrating warm breathing bodies. It was too much, too soon, not enough time to prepare and just when she thought she would break, a pair of masculine arms were suddenly around her waist, steadying her, comforting her, pulling her along the music's never-ending flow. Tifa knew who it was from the start. Her mind had not been playing tricks on her; no trick of light could make his form disappear from its current place behind her. He was truly back.
Even upon this realization, she turned slowly in his arms, her senses brushing over his easily touching his aura that was still incredible. It was a shock to her system to take it all in and his power was imminent in the taste he had just given her in the air around them. Blonde spikes moving every which way as if trying to escape his scalp, the analogy made her giggle but it was lost in the din of the crowd to all ears but his; cerulean gaze locked on hers and she could feel his energy pulling at her, even as they stood in the center of the chaos stock still, everything moving but them. And those luscious lips, smooth and porcelain pale tantalizing to the touch and devouring to the kiss.
She wanted to blame the music. She wanted to blame him, him and those lips. She wanted to blame anything but the thing she had become the night he left her to change alone, claiming protection in running away. It was for them to be together, the words taunted her mind. For him, not her, her mind had figured that out. She thought she hated him for that, but seeing him again threw everything off balance. Even so, placing the blame somewhere else besides where due is shirking responsibility and Tifa never left things unfinished, not while she was alive and certainly not in undeath.
"I came for you."
Four words said too late, her mind rang and yet she could feel her will crumbling, as his gaze never left her eyes, ruby red and hard as fire. He was trying to trick her and she was letting him; that wouldn't happen, not again. She broke his hold on her wrists and backed away. His smirk showed this as a challenge and when she did not cower for her defiance he was on her, pinning her against the closest hard surface, which just so happened to be the wall of the packed club. Her first instinct was to fight him off but then his hands gripped her wrists together above her head and his lips covered hers, cold and yet still so soft after all of these years; they made her freeze in place and he smiled into her mouth. His hands began to move once he felt her relax into the kiss, easing on her wrists to let her arms fall while his hands traveled up and down her sides, causing her body to shiver under his touch. This wasn't just any man's touch but Cloud's, her sire, and she was a slave to it in every sense of the word as one arm wrapped around her waist and the other hand traveled upwards to caress her cheek lovingly.
His voice murmured against her ear while his lips moved from hers to trail a path of fiery kisses up her jaw. "You cut your hair, Teef." His chuckle told her he approved and this was confirmed as his lips found her pulse point easier without all of her hair in the way of her neck. She had wanted this for so long, to be with him again and her body was no longer trying to fight him, giving complete submission. Before she could prepare he was piercing her throat with his fangs, a sudden prick and then coolness flowing through her veins as he took the heat from her boiling blood, being around so many humans without feeding for so long adding to the strength of her vintage for him, one could say. It didn't hurt; it never hurt with Cloud, for he didn't know how to truly hurt unless he loved you to death as he had done to her that fateful night. He withdrew before death could overcome her if she was a normal human, but that would not cause death to a vampire such as herself, even in her weakened state. Her vision was clouded momentarily until his tongue licking the wound on her neck brought her awareness back brighter than ever and she shook under the action, wanting more than to be a treat.
"I want to take you away." Cloud said in that voice so sure of what he wanted and yet held an under lacing effect of the old Cloud, her best friend before his life was taken away from her by a random act of fate. Or maybe it was something more; maybe he was destined to become a creature of the night and her with him. One could wonder but never truly know she guessed.
"You already have."
With a sudden burst of strength she had their positions switched, the remainder of that human boy's blood of earlier on the dance floor in her veins that she had laced with magic to suppress his noticing making good of its use in draining some of Cloud's power back into her. His blood mixed with her lack of anything to sate her lust made her passion feel as if she was ready to explode. Tifa's upper hand didn't last long before he realized what had happened and pulled her away, mild amusement and a glint of satisfaction in his hard mako gaze.
"I just couldn't refuse it, you left yourself open, Cloud."
The smirk was back in place even as his shoulders moved inside of his black shirt as if trying to work out some imaginary tension from between his shoulder blades.
"You're learning, Teef."
"I've had to on my own."
Old habits die hard as proved when Cloud automatically ran a hand through his blonde spikes, not disturbing them with the action as much as it used to.
"I told you that was for us."
His guard was not completely down in this place surrounded by human and vampire kind alike but he finally noticed her eyes full to the brim with something he hadn't seen in a long time, true burning passion. It was something he had missed from her alone, how she would always want to mate after a feeding and seeing that she had not fed in so long it was not surprising that her hand went to his belt.
"Tifa…here?" Nothing made Cloud worry but with all of these people, his steel façade was starting to crack…he almost lost all will when her hands moved under the fabric of his shirt to feel his abs and up his chest. He had received a lot of lust, pleasure, sex from women before, but with Tifa, it was something special. After all, she had been his first love.
"You know what you've started. An exchange that strong…and with you."
Her words came out huskily and before her hands slid his pants down his legs, he glanced over his shoulder again to see a dark figure watching them. Being seen with her now would be…he didn't want to think about it and instead grabbed her wrists, pulling her along a back corridor along the club.
"Cloud, don't tell me you're shy now?" Tifa chuckled softly and then stopped when she realized there was a hint of something in the air she had never noticed of him before…he was worried.
"What is it?" She tried stopping and pulling her hands free but he held on tightly, grip like a vice and continued to drag her along. There was no point anyways, she was too weak and overcome with hormones to put up much of a fight in her current state. His scent called to her and the blood underneath was so rich she brought his hand that held her wrists to her lips and tried to bite him once again but he pulled away in the nick of time.
"No time for that, we need to hurry."
"What are you so afraid of?" Her voice held more of a bite then she had intended it to but she couldn't help it, she was hungry, horny and being denied both from the love of her life…or more correctly, of her previous life.
Taking the twists and turns with ease, Cloud led Tifa to an abandoned bar far in the streets of old Midgar, parts that Shin-Ra had not yet had a chance to look over or destroy completely. He locked the main door and turned around to see her looking at the tables and chairs, worn wood with age and dust covering every corner. This had been her bar when she was human and he could only watch as she walked over and placed a pail finger along the counter, tracing it and coming back with dirt.
"I haven't been here since."
"Since that night. Neither have I."
Tifa felt Cloud once again at her back and didn't tense this time, instead letting him take the initiative in her current state but he was gentle, kissing her neck and then pulling away, leaving her wanting more. She didn't know if it was the mix of everything earlier added with his sincere look currently on his face that made her turn around in his arms and kiss him softly. Let's face it, it was all of the above as their eyes locked and all of those feelings from before, the love they had shared before they were eternally damned to share the same fate came together in spark, his hands on her body and her hands exploring his adding fuel to the fire. She felt his excitement along her inner thigh even through his clothes and giggled, causing him to pause his kisses along her neck to give her a questioning look.
"I can tell you want this almost as much as I do." She said knowingly, eyeing his erection through his jeans still pressed against her. He even had to laugh at that.
"You have no idea how long." His words were barely out of his mouth before his lips found her, hungrily devouring hers and she pulled him towards the stairs instead of the wall he was leaning her against. His groan told her he did not appreciate the change.
"No time," He growled low in his throat, wanting to be inside of her right then and there.
Her own body was fighting her, craving his hardness inside of her and yet, no, she wanted to do this right, like before.
"Come on or you'll have to wait longer."
"Why are you torturing us both?" He asked against her lips as he stopped arguing once her tongue made its way into his mouth, teasing his with tantalizing strokes. Cloud picked her up and moaned low when her legs wrapped around his waist, making him even more uncomfortable while walking up the stairs with a hard on that her legs were choking the life out of. It didn't help that she wiggled her hips, knowing exactly what it was doing to him.
"Teef." His breath came out in a hiss and she stopped, placing her feet back on the floor of the second story in front of her old bedroom. Finding the doorknob with her back pressed against the piece of wood blocking them from the bed, she turned it and was guided with ease to the mattress. Her hands automatically went to the buttons of his navy blue shirt, undoing them with ease and pushing the fabric down his shoulders to land in a heap on the floor. He smirked, catching on quickly as his hands moved to her skintight black pants first, pulling them down her legs while she quickly undid his already loose belt and black pants so both pooled around their legs.
Tifa stepped out of the pile at her feet first and pushed him onto the bed, undoing the ties of her front closing top on her own and biting her lip from the way he stared at her actions, once done exposing her full chest for him to explore.
His smirk was the last thing she saw before she felt his mouth on her chest, taking one nipple between his teeth and flicking the nub. She shuddered automatically, not having had sex since him. It was embarrassing to admit but her first time was with him and since then only him. After he left, she didn't want to feed on human blood, didn't want the lust for sex afterwards if she couldn't have him and so cut herself off from the human world.
It had been hard to live without him but all thoughts of that vanished when his ministrations to her breasts ceased and his tongue trailed down to her stomach, his hand moving up the inside of her thigh and she arched into his hand.
"Eager are we?" he looked up, wiggling his eyebrows.
"Is this payback for downstairs or what?" She hissed between clenched teeth, unable to control her body's reactions to him and frustrated for it.
Her mind didn't have time to process before her body arched again when his finger entered her slick opening, teasing her entrance and then pulling out quickly, never completely penetrating.
Her moan of lust and anger reached his ears and even as he added another finger, he explained, "I just wanted to make sure you're wet enough, baby."
Her throat held a chuckle that when came out mixed with her moaning and she tried to make it stop but couldn't, that bastard knew exactly what he was doing all too well for his own good.
"Baby? Since when-"
Tifa's words were cut off with a sharp hiss as his full member entered her, her wetness helping him along and he was completely on top of her, eyes locked with that fire they only shared together. No matter how much she blamed him for changing her, for doing this to her, for making her do this for feeding on other's lives, she would never hate him for the intimacy they had always shared.
He reached the length of her body and then pulled out, slowly at first and then entered faster, not being as gentle as their first time in that exact same bed. There was no need to. They both needed each other more than ever and it was imminent in their mixing moans and increasing pace that they still loved each other. Feeling his member moving inside of her made her feel complete, and when she looked into his eyes she saw the same thing. In that one look they admitted that they still loved each other and it was still there in him holding her after their vigorous sex, love making, whatever you call it, fulfilling a passion long left dry.
It was short lived as while Tifa lay resting in his arms with him holding her close, he sensed something wrong. He stopped moving, trying to hear the intruder downstairs and the scent in the air gave them away.
"Hunters." The whispered word tingled Tifa's ear and she opened her eyes in a flash, looking up at him questioningly.
"But why-" he cut her off with a finger to her lips, indicating they keep quiet while they get dressed and he led her to the roof ledge. In no time they came breaking through the bedroom door since neither bothered to lock it during their actions and launched a stake at the window. Cloud pulled Tifa down atop him just in time as the glass of the top section shattered and fell upon them in tinkling shards.
Quickly, Cloud kicked the red head through the shattered pane, knocking him into his buddy that was too big and dumb to not stand directly behind his comrade, both going down like dominos. Cloud sneered. Only two hunters after him? Shin-Ra was getting sloppy.
He and Tifa jumped down to the ground safely and ran, not looking back to see that their hunters did not get up in pursuit, instead calling in the incident on a two way radio. Cloud looked back at the last minute before turning down a street and saw a glimpse of red hair inside the house before losing sight.
Something was wrong, but he wasn't sure what. He would deal with that when the time came. As for now, he had Tifa to take care of, and started off with taking her hand, and leading her to someplace safe to stay with him forever, or as long as time would allow. Forever was a long time for a vampire, but with the Turks a.k.a. hunters for Shin-Ra after him, their time was limited.