"I wish there was something that would happen that would make this day more interesting…" Aqua said to herself as she stretched.

It was fanciful thinking to say the least. Nothing interesting ever happened here. At least not the kind of interesting that Aqua was looking for. She was sitting on one of the nearby hills as Ventus and Terra were sparring, their Keyblades throwing out sparks and the magic they cast tore up the courtyard. It was just another typical training day and Aqua was already done with her match for the day.

She massaged her own shoulders as they still burned from the sound trashing she had been given from Master Eraqus. At least she had been able to return the favor and had won the sparring match between her and her master. Everything felt like it was on fire though and she had to resist the urge to make sure her outfit really wasn't on fire.

Aqua leaned back on the hill and looked up at the sky over The Land of Departure. Aqua sighed as she swore she saw a light flash in the sky and dismissed it as an after-image of one of Master Eraqus' fire blasts. She shut her eyes for only a moment before she was suddenly awoken by the sound of something slamming into the ground just inches from her.

The ground tore apart and Aqua was up on her feet, Keyblade in hand without even thinking. A second object hit the ground, but this one was obviously a person and that person had a wickedly long sword. Aqua caught and parried what to her eyes was only a couple swings but the trembling of the impacts against her Keyblade told her that there were far more than her eyes saw.

"This is my fight! Get out of the way." A calm voice said from behind Aqua. A woman who looked like she was in her late teens walked by Aqua, black cloth swirling around her legs, a leather short sleeved jacket covered her top.

Aqua looked over at her assailant and was immediately put back on guard. A long black leather cloak and long silver hair hid eyes that Aqua couldn't stand the sight of. There was evil behind them, but she couldn't tell why she knew that.

"This is hardly your fight. After all, you know what I seek." Came the silver haired man's voice.

Aqua shuddered at the silken tone of the man's voice but managed to say, "Leave us alone and take your search elsewhere. What you seek is not here."

"I know it is not here, but that woman there knows where the man I seek is hiding."

"Aqua is right. You should leave while you still can." Master Eraqus said from behind the man, his Keyblade ready to strike.

"I have no time to quarrel with a Keyblade Master. This is not over, Tifa. I will come back for him."

With that, the silver haired man vanished into the air. Master Eraqus looked at both Tifa and Aqua and said, "Are you two all right?"

Aqua slumped into the ground, exhausted from everything. "I'm fine, just a little overwhelmed is all."

Tifa smiled at Eraqus and said, "I am fine. Thank you, Aqua. Even though I did not need the help."

Aqua stared at Tifa and couldn't help but think about how pretty she was. Aqua found herself staring at Tifa as she walked off, being led by Master Eraqus back to their home. Her mind was in a million places as she just sat there, wondering just what it was that had caused her to do that.

"I may not know much about things like this, but damn if that doesn't look like you've got a crush on that Tifa woman." Terra said with a joking tone in his voice.

"Shut up Terra. Aqua's just out of it is all." Ventus said, defending her.

"All right, all right. Let's go back inside. We could all use a shower and some rest after today. Plus I want to know where our mystery woman comes from." With that, Terra turned and headed back inside.

Aqua stayed outside for just a moment longer as she watched both Ventus and Terra head back inside. Her mind kept going over the same question and she couldn't shake it.

'Who is that woman…and why can I not get her out of my head?'

Aqua shook her head and headed back inside and without pause, headed straight to her room to change and shower. She just about walked into someone as she walked into her room. She looked up and just about jumped back when she saw Tifa in front of her.

"Master Eraqus thought it prudent that we share a room seeing as we are the only two women here. I don't really care where I sleep as long as I get some rest. I was hoping to try and get back home tomorrow, but Master Eraqus has informed me that my world has been destroyed by the darkness and he does not know how that is possible. I blame Sephiroth for it. Him and his damnable search for Cloud."

"Wh-who's Cloud…and who's Sephiroth?" Aqua asked, trying to hide a blush of embarrassment.

"Sephiroth you've met. He was the man who followed me here. He lives in the darkness, and it wouldn't surprise me if that's how he managed to leave this world. Though…I have to admit, there is something here that interests me now." Tifa said, her eyes glancing over Aqua's body.

"Oh? And what would that be?" Aqua said, curious as to what had caught the raven haired woman's attention.

"Someone to talk to and spar with." Tifa said simply, hiding something from Aqua, not wanting her to really know exactly what had her attention.

"Sounds like sparring with you would be fun. I'll look forward to it. If you'll excuse me, I would like to go shower. "Aqua said, trying to find some way of getting out of her room for a moment to think.

Tifa watched as Aqua headed over to the shower and once out of sight, Tifa sat down on Aqua's bed and sighed. 'Such a pretty young woman and I have no idea how to tell her I like her. Plus I feel like I Owe her something for saving me from Sephiroth. 'She thought to herself.

Tifa stretched out on the bed and let her mind fill with thought of how Aqua had stopped the attack and how quick it had all happened. One minute all Tifa had known was that she was falling through the darkness as she fought Sephiroth, the next thing she knew was that she was being saved by a gorgeous, blue-haired woman. She knew in her mind that she had no chance of surviving against Sephiroth, but she needed to draw him off Cloud's scent.

"You look lost in thought." Aqua said as she stood there in her pajamas.

"Just thinking about home…and how I got here." Tifa said quietly. "I don't feel like I properly thanked you for saving me earlier."

"It was nothing. I'm just glad you're safe." Aqua smiled to herself as she sat down on the bed.

Tifa did her best to hide a blush and quietly excused herself to go use Aqua's shower.

Aqua sighed as she laid back on her bed and stared at the ceiling. Why was it so hard to get Tifa out of her mind? Maybe it was just the instinct she had when Tifa showed up. That singular thought of 'I have to protect her no matter what the cost is.' It was the only thing that had gone through her head when she first saw Tifa.

Tifa stretched as she came out from the shower in nothing more than a towel and said, "Umm…do you have anything I can borrow to sleep in?"

Aqua turned bright red when she saw Tifa and couldn't help but stare at her chest. Aqua fumbled around for a moment before handing Tifa a set of pajamas. "Here you go. Hopefully they fit well enough for you."

Tifa thanked Aqua and disappeared into the bathroom for a moment before coming back out in the pajamas she was borrowing. Aqua couldn't help but notice that Tifa's chest was making the top a bit tight and that the top few buttons were completely undone to make it more comfortable.

Tifa didn't say anything as she cuddled next to Aqua and just drifted off to sleep. Aqua however found it nearly impossible to sleep. If tonight was an indication of things to come, Aqua had a feeling that there were going to be a lot of thoughts that she wouldn't be able to get out of her head.

But there was one thought that entered Aqua's mind as she drifted off to sleep. 'What if I WANT to think about Tifa that way?'

(Author's note: So someone gave me the idea of 'Hey do an Aqua yuri story. My mind went, sure but who to pair her with and I settled on Tifa. Their personalities match in an odd way and I'm going to enjoy seeing where the story goes from here. As for the title, the idea comes from falling in love when you didn't mean to and the only thought you have is, "do I want her out of my mind or do I really want to face what I'm thinking and admit something to myself that may not be what I had imagined for myself?" Please read and enjoy and thank you to all the readers who have stuck with me over the years. I hope I make the waiting worth it.)

Shinobi of the Onyx Sands