Dissidia 012 [duodecim] Final Fantasy © Square Enix

Oh, crap.

How was she going to get out of this one?

Tifa caught sight of Ultimecia over her shoulder, dark magic sparkling and growing at her fingertips. The best she could do was dodge... Tifa prepared to roll her weight onto her toes-

And suddenly, she was dodging something completely different, and Ultimecia was metres away.

"It seems we are not alone."

She turned in the direction of the interruption, somehow knowing she wouldn't need to run. "Kain!"

He'd angled his body toward Ultimecia, but she could see that he was checking on her in the corner of his eye. That darned helmet didn't obscure everything. "You're safe," he assessed, relief flooding his tone.

"I'm fine- thank goodness, you are too!" she told him earnestly. She had to admit she was afraid that what Ultimecia had said earlier - that there were so few Warriors of Cosmos left - had applied to him. But of course he was fine. He stood between Ultimecia and her like a solid wall, his impressive lance in hand.

"Delighted to see the traitor to your cause? Oh, you poor child," the evil woman condescended. She glided back and forth, presumably looking for a hole in Kain's defense. His weight shifted with her, tracking her movement.

Still, Tifa couldn't ignore her words. "Traitor?"

Ultimecia snapped on the end of Tifa's sentence, like she was anticipating the reply. "Oh, I'm sorry," - she didn't sound sorry at all, Tifa noted, eyes narrowing - "had you thought him your saviour? If I were you, I'd be more worried about him than me." She laughed with a black humour and directed a question at Kain, "Isn't that so?"

Tifa tensed as Ultimecia moved from spot to spot invisibly. She heard the slight squeak of armour and knew that Kain was on guard, as well. She was glad he hadn't honoured her with a response. She glared at the woman, biting back, "What are you talking about? You're not making sense." Kain a traitor? What could he possibly have done in the past days that would make him a traitor? Moreover, she seemed to know deep down that Kain wasn't like that. He was the strong, silent type, but his actions and those few, rare words made his loyalty to their cause clear to her - the toss of a potion, a few murmured words of advice. Tifa clenched her jaw, ready to strike the Warrior of Chaos for lying. Her eyes were already trained on the spot she'd punch first.

And then Ultimecia said, "Look at that fallen warrior behind you. Surely even you won't dismiss evidence like that."

Brushing aside the cruel attempt at her observational skills, Tifa turned-

The shock of blonde hair and tiny figure gave it away. "Zidane!"

"Do you want to know what befell him? Ask your knight in shining armour," Ultimecia crooned.

Tifa's brow knitted, but she refused to believe the woman. She was a Warrior of Chaos, anyway. She wanted to make them question their allegiances.

Ultimecia waited a beat, looking Tifa in the eyes, searching for doubt. Then she smirked and disappeared in a puff of feathers.

Once Ultimecia was gone, Tifa's mind immediately shot to her fallen comrade. "Zidane!" she called. Was he awake? No response. She and Kain could carry him back-

"Wait."

Tifa whirled on Kain. "Wait? He's hurt, we have to help him!" She started toward Zidane.

"No!" Unbelievably, Kain put his lance out to block her way.

"What?" How could he- She grabbed his lance, ready to shove it aside.

Kain leapt at Zidane's unconscious form and bundled his small figure into his arms. Then he jumped straight up and away.

"Kain! Zidane!" Gods, what was Kain doing? She shook her head, as if trying to dispel all that happened, like clouds obscuring her vision. What should she do now?

Kain continued to leap away from Tifa and toward the desert, where he was keeping his sleeping comrades. He hoped she wouldn't follow. He didn't know if he could do to her what he did to Zidane.

Arriving at his destination, Kain set Zidane down on the floor of the entrance to a cave. He grunted slightly with the effort of moving the large rock he'd selected to block the opening. Then he took Zidane in his arms again - how small he was, the size of a child, and Kain felt the tiniest twinge of guilt - and ventured farther into the cavern.

This place was a remarkable formation, and Kain found it hard to believe that these tunnels could have been carved naturally. But he'd staked this place out for nearly a day before he'd decided it was uninhabited. And his other sleeping comrades had yet to show any indication of being disturbed.

He arrived at the end of one of the passages and knelt. He laid Zidane flat out on his back. When the boy woke for the next cycle, he would know there was only one way to go, and hopefully he would meet his other allies upon exiting. He would wake among friends.

Kain shut his eyes and breathed deeply. His brow rumpled, knowing the next logical choice for slumber. She probably wasn't far, and he knew he could cover a lot of ground quicker than she. But then, Ultimecia had warned her against him. Maybe... maybe she would avoid him. Maybe she was running to Cosmos now, the knowledge of his apparent betrayal ready to be shared.

Tifa was a stubborn woman though, he knew. She was sure of her actions. Once she did something, it stayed done. She was also sure of her comrades and their strength to a fault. He remembered once that she had taken point, and charged forward to battle a manakin, not even considering that Vaan hadn't had her back properly covered. He'd had to dive in. The abomination was just too close, and Vaan too far...

That incident. It was then that he'd realized that he'd gotten too close to her. The feeling that had saturated his senses then, knowing that harm could have come to her - it was too desperate, too possessive.

He wanted to avoid entanglements, especially of that kind. Somehow, he had a sense for what could hurt him emotionally. Perhaps the ghost of a memory, exerting its influence over him, even in this world? He had been hurt before, and by a woman. Maybe by a woman like Tifa. A strong, stubborn, beautiful woman. A woman who smelled fresh, who had eyes with depth...

Kain let the feelings flow over and around him, still breathing deeply.

But nothing could come of this. He would not pursue her. There was no point to it - they were not even from the same world, and besides, this battle was coming to a head. There was little time left.

He stood, the torrent of his revelations lapping around his ankles. He walked out, drew the stone over the mouth of the cavern, and hoped his feelings locked inside of it with his comrades.

He surveyed the earth beneath him and clenched his fingers around his lance. Tight, too tight. Because he saw a figure running, calling his name, and she was getting closer. She hadn't spotted him quite yet, so he took off in the other direction, hoping he could lose her.

"Kain!"

He'd underestimated her. She sounded closer than he could have predicted. Had she seen him? He couldn't turn to check without vaulting into a cliff-face. He kept on jumping.

He spotted a portal and entered without a second thought. He would lose her here. He'd loop and weave, and exit before she could get ahold of him.

"Kain!"

Curses.

Her voice was genuinely relieved. Of course she'd chosen to be stubborn and not believe Ultimecia. "Oh, good. I found you!"

There was no way to avoid this now. He gripped his lance and held it defensively in front of him, as if to block an oncoming attack. He sunk into his knees as well, and lowered his head. He knew how menacing his armour could make him seem.

She didn't even step back, and it only served to show him how pathetic his efforts were. Now, her voice was bewildered. "What are you-"

But then he was falling, and he could only lower himself onto a knee harshly, his armour scraping the ground. His lance clattered noisily by his side. He... had grown weaker than he'd thought. In hindsight, it was no wonder she'd caught him so quickly.

"Kain? What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Her concern was so obvious that he had to supress the words bubbling in his throat that would betray him- I'm fine, take care of yourself, I couldn't stand to see you hurt.

Instead, he opted for a more conservative answer. One that would hopefully spur her in the right direction, and simultaneously hide how deep his feelings for her had become. "The manikins will be upon us soon," he worked to keep from wincing at the pain in his body, and finally knew how tired he really was, "Return to Cosmos."

She watched him try to stand. Though she asked what about you, it sounded to him like she was saying that he was clearly in worse shape than she. What she must think of him...

He fell onto his one knee again, almost a mockery of a marriage proposal. "Sparing thoughts for a traitor?" he said, reminding her of his villanous acts, of the danger he posed to her. Never mind that he was doubled over in pain, and couldn't lift a finger against her if he tried.

"Stop it!" she commanded. And then there was a splash, and he was soaking wet.

He looked down at his arm, one of the spots where the liquid had landed. His eyes widened. Potion.

The potion acted mercifully quickly, easing the ache of his muscles, then evaporated in a sparkle of light.

"You know I trust you," she asserted. He lifted his head to look at her, not sure of what he was hearing.

Her eyes were fiery, practically searing away any trace of reserve he had left. That look... it made his breath come faster, deeper.

"All this time you've been helping us, and then you just up and change sides? Yeah, right!" she nearly yelled. "I mean, even if you hadn't helped me out before, I still wouldn't fall for that."

He didn't know whether to smile or to shake his head at his own helplessness. There was no fooling her. She would uncover his self-imposed mission soon.

"We're friends, aren't we? Just tell me, what happened? Where's Zidane? Have you found anyone else?" her train of questions proceded. "Why... why did you... point your weapon at me?"

She obviously didn't believe he'd turned on them, but maybe she thought he'd turned on her. How far that was from the truth... But he had to carry on, now. He needed to leave and find the others, so they could win this war. And he'd put her off for as long as he could. He remained enigmatic. "Forgive me, that's not for you to know."

She sighed, blustery. Then suddenly she mused, "Well, I guess I'll just have to tag along."

His stomach dropped. "What?"

She pivoted gracefully to face him. Her decision was made, that was clear. "No choice. I used my potion. Girl like me... who knows if I could make it back to Cosmos all alone?"

She was obviously appealing to his chivalrous side, and damn, it was working. Girl like you, indeed. He peered up at her, glad his helmet covered his eyes.

"As long as I have a friend along, I'll be okay, right?"

Friend. The word stuck him in the chest like a dart. He knew that now he had no choice. He would escort her back to Cosmos. That, or keep a watchful eye on her as she powered her way through the terrain. Either was possible. "Tifa..."

She thought he meant to disagree, and beat him to the punch. "Listen. I trust you. We're friends."

Another dart. He just caught a glance of her determined face and resigned himself to his immediate fate. He nodded, then stood and led the way.

They had been traveling for five minutes or so, and Tifa could hardly believe the utter lack of conversation. She knew that she talked a bit more than most people, but if that were true, Kain talked significantly less than most people.

He also seemed to have a strong military mind, insisting on covering her back as she walked ahead. It was safer, she supposed, but the landscape was so flat they could see miles out in every direction. She would've preferred a friend to talk and walk by her side rather than a knight at her back.

She grimaced at improperly calling Kain a knight. (Dragoon! He was a Dragoon.) It was because of Ultimecia - Why don't you ask your knight in shining armour?

Truthfully, Tifa had had her fill of getting rescued by strong, cool-and-collected men. First that Warrior of Chaos, and now Kain. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate getting rescued, it was just that-

She wasn't weak! She shouldn't have to be rescued, much less twice in the same day. These Warriors of Chaos were really something to necessitate all this.

The sound of a heavy footfall behind her made her whirl.

Nothing. Except for a paranoid Kain, leaning forward on one leg.

"Kain," she began as if they had been talking all along, the lecture already evident by her tone, "You're really not talking to me? You don't care if you're thought of as a traitor?" Her hand was on her hip.

He ignored her questions, pretending some threat was on the horizon. Honestly...

"Am I supposed to think that you don't think of us as friends? Is it better to think so?" she tried to goad him into saying something. Of course we're friends, Tifa, he might say. Or, Don't think we're not friends, Tifa. She snorted internally. He wouldn't say either of those in a million years.

Unless he didn't think they were friends? They were allies, for sure, but she supposed being friends was a different thing from being allies. Had she mistaken all those half-smiles and shared elixirs as friendship when they were, in reality, simply concern for a comrade in arms? That stung more than she wanted to admit. She thought her and the other Warriors of Cosmos were really getting through to him. She knew that he and Lightning had good conversation, about things more lasting than the weather, at least.

She latched onto one of her swirling thoughts and voiced it. "Then, who are your friends? Only the people you remember from your homeworld?" She waited a beat, then asked, "You don't want to remember this world? You don't want friends from this world?"

His reply was quick and very quiet. He didn't look at her as he answered. "You are free to think what you will."

She kept her frown small, not wanting to play the part of pouty kid. He didn't want their friendship, then? He was fine just keeping to himself and Cecil... "So you get your memory back, you know something, and that's it? Come on!"

It may have been her imagination, but he could've breathed a sigh.

"It might be good for you, but if I lose my friends in this world... I'd be all by myself." And you don't even want to be friends, so that means I'm down one, she thought cuttingly to herself. Ugh. No, that didn't sound like her. She couldn't give up on him. She was no quitter!

A new determination wound its way up her spine, straightening her posture. That's right. She'd win him over! He was going to soften up sometime, be it from her friendly overtures or from her cooking... she could teach him how to throw a good punch... something!

He surprised her when he turned to face her. From this angle, his eyes were hidden. His lips were turned down though. "There is nothing to discuss."

She just grinned, new plans shooting through her mind one by one. "Well, aren't you stubborn?" And then she balled her fists tighter subconsciously. "But I'm pretty stubborn myself, you know."

And then- definitely not her imagination- he smirked.

A/n: As you could probably tell, a lot of the dialogue from this chapter was lifted straight from the game. Future chapters (if you want them, of course) will not be quite this heavy on game-dialogue. Also, I'm trying to think of a name for this couple. Opinions? (I was thinking Highhart?) Feedback is welcome!