Note: This part, and most likely the next, are based on Lucas’ past. If you are offending by swearing, I don’t suggest you read this.

Part Two-The Beginning of the Lies

As Lucas spoke, he relived his memories. So distant and far away they seemed now.

****

Seventeen-year-old Lucas walked in the front door, dropping his backpack onto the floor. He walked into the kitchen, looking for something to eat. His little sister, who always reached home before he did, was in there, munching on an apple. He poked her and flashed a quick smile before greeting her. "Hey, Zo. Please tell me there’s something other than that disgusting health food.

She glared at him, swallowing a bite of her apple before replying, "Yes, you pig, there’s some of that disgusting junk food left. And don’t poke me."

Lucas grinned at her. "Hey, don’t take it personally." He walked over to a cupboard, pulling out a bag of chips. "So," he asked, through a mouthful of chips. "how was school?"

"It was fine. Some guy tried to pull one on me, but I whacked him."

He laughed, displaying a full mouth of chewed chips. "Ewww, nasty."

Lucas swallowed, then commented, "That’s my little sister."

They launched into their daily chatter and banter. Zoey got dinner ready, and Lucas helped a bit, while doing his homework. "Jesus Christ, this stuff is stupid! Who care how long one side of a triangle is? Why the hell do we have to listen to some idiot teacher babble about dead people?"

Zoey didn’t take him very seriously, since he complained like this every day. She put the meatloaf in the oven, and joined him in homework. "So, Luke." she started a conversation. "Broke any new hearts? Got any new girlfriends?" Zoey loved to tease him, knowing that he was a heartthrob amongst a large portion of the female attendance of the high school.

He grumbled. "Shaddup."

His little sister only grinned wider. "Ooh! Luke! Lemme guess…some girl’s actually putting up resistance! Gasp, wheeze, this must be a first!"

Lucas tried to continue frowning and ignore her, but she kept at it, teasing him relentlessly. Knowing that she was trying to squeeze more information out of him, he held out for at least seven minutes, which was quite impressive, considering how annoying Zoey could be. Finally, he cracked. Breaking out into a grin, he shook his head. "Fine, you win again. I’ll give you something to fuel your fire, you little gossip queen!" Zoey smirked and leaned forward in anticipation. Lucas blushed.

"Ahhhhhh!!! _My_ brother? The one who is impossible to embarrass? I cannot believe this! He blushed! Oh no! The world is going to end! We’re all gonna die! All of us!!!!"

Lucas had forced the blush away. "Are you quite done?"

Zoey suddenly stopped raving. She replied, calm and dignified. "I should think so." At that, Lucas burst out laughing.

"Okay, okay, Luke, so I’m a little weird. You’re not exactly the picture of normality, either. So, spill already."

Lucas calmed himself. "Fine. I…er…that is to say…there’s this girl, Nina…I…she…uh…"

Almost as if she read his mind, Zoey took a guess. "She’s the first one not to swoon and fall at your feet?"

"Ha, very funny. Pretty much, actually. Plus…um…I really like her. I think."

"Oh, this is precious! You’re getting a girlfriend? That…that’s just amazing, Luke. Finally, there’s a girl that you like, who isn’t one of those idiots who practically worship you. I like her already."

Just then, the timer for the oven went off. She got up, and took it out. Going around the kitchen, she pulled out various plates and such. She went to the fridge, pulling out some vegetables, etc.

Twenty minutes later, just as she was finishing up preparing dinner, the front door flew open. Lance, their older brother, burst in, kicking Lucas’ backpack to the side. Just as Lucas opened his mouth to complain, Lance shot him a dirty look, and his father, Dirk, came up the path a few moments later.

"Dinner better be ready, Zoey! Your mom’s on assignment." her father bellowed as he stepped in the door.

"Yeah, and I’m starving! Hey, you little shit, get your stupid school crap off the table!" Lance yelled, leering first at Zoey, then at Lucas.

"Calm down, father. Dinner is ready." Zoey said, expressionless. She was the only one of the three to call him father. She explained to Lucas, once, that ‘dad’ is an affectionate name, and she and her father were not close at all. And, since she needed some title for him, he would be known as ‘father’.

Lucas gritted his teeth, wanting to punch Lance so hard that he landed in Midgar. Instead, he just shook his head and started to clear the table.

"Hello, Lucas. How did you do in school?" his father wanted to know.

Lucas knew he was asking if Lucas had beaten anyone in sports, or perhaps even fought someone. He sighed, blowing his bangs out of his eyes. "I led in the mile run, I was chosen captain of the winning soccer team in PE, and during lunch, my basketball team crushed the our opposition."

"That’s nice. Keep it up. One time isn’t going to do any good."

"Yes, I know."

Lance interrupted suddenly, "Well, that’s all nice and dandy, but can we eat now? I’m starving. The SOLDIER drills were really tough today."

Lucas knew that Lance was purposely reminding his father that _he_ was the better son, that _he_ was the success. And his father ate it up. "Yes, of course. Zoey! Is dinner ready yet? Hurry it up!"

["Now that I think of it, I can’t even see why I wanted that pig’s approval. He treated Zoey like shit."]

["Come on, don’t give me that crap. Everyone wants their parents’ approval, especially if you have an older sibling who always out shadows you.]

Life went on as normal, Lance playing the charming son, Zoey, as always, the oddball, and Lucas, who was left with the role of the one who blended into the background.

A week or so later, Lucas finally was able to gather the wit and nerve to ask people out. Nina, pretty, somewhat popular, but at the same time, shy, couldn’t believe it! Lucas Cabral, the guy most girls would kill to go out with, the sweet-talker, was stuttering and stumbling over her? For a moment, she gaped at him, but agreed to the date.

Weeks passed by, and then months. Nina and Lucas were going steady, to the disappointment to many girls in the school. They gazed on Nina with envy, wishing they were in her place.

Zoey had a boyfriend, Josh, and she was really in love with him. Unfortunately for her, the same couldn’t be said for him. Finally, one day, he apologized, saying that he couldn’t pretend anymore. After many tears, they broke up.

When Lucas came home after going out with Nina that Saturday afternoon, he arrived at a somewhat silent and empty house. He wondered where Zoey was, with some apprehension.

He went upstairs and entered Zoey’s room. There he found her, sobbing into her pillow.

"What the fu--?" he exclaimed at the sight of her in tears. "Zoey, what the hell happened, and who did this to you!? I swear, I’ll rip their f-cking head off!"

She tried to talk, tried to explain what happened, but she kept on breaking her speech with hiccups and sobs. Lucas shushed her, and hugged her, comforting her, letting her cry on his shoulder into his shirt, and just all around being a big brother. After an hour or so, just sitting there with her, Zoey fell asleep. After gently laying her down on the bed and covering her with the snug blanket, Lucas headed downstairs, cursing under his breath. When he went into the front room, he stopped in shock. There was a figure dressed in black, just letting herself into the house. "Mom?! Mom, are you home?!"

"Lucas! Oh, my little ray of sunshine!" Lucas raced into her waiting arms, all dignity and coolness forgotten. She had been gone for about five months.

"Mom…" Lucas pulled away from her loving hug. "Mom. Somebody hurt Zoey real bad…not physically, mentally. I don’t know what happened. She’s upstairs sleeping. She cried herself to sleep."

Lucas noticed his mother’s face grow angry and cold, as only a mother’s face can be when her child is hurt. She always got extremely mad when one of them was hurt, especially Zoey, because they all knew that Zoey was often teased and picked on. Nobody really dared to hurt her physically, though, mostly because of Lucas. "Alright, Luke. We’ll just let her sleep it off for now. Now, c’mon, it doesn’t look like your father’s been feeding you right."

He rolled his eyes. She knew very well that his dad wasn’t very good at the whole parent and taking care of the house thing. That’s why Zoey and he were usually stuck with the chores and cooking when his mom was gone. After one try, Lucas just left the cooking to Zoey. He really didn’t want to burn the house down all that much.

Entering the kitchen, Marie immediately began preparing food for him, adding a little of this, a little of that. "So, Lukie, what’d I miss this time?"

Sighing a little in exasperation at his mother’s other pet name for him, he spoke up, filling her in. "Um…me and Nina are steady now…"

"Nina and I, dear." his mother corrected automatically. "And that’s wonderful!"

He shook his head, amazed at the thought of his mother, his caring, sensitive mother, spending months carefully tracking someone, making sure the crime couldn’t be traced back to the company, and then killing with no mercy. Sometimes entire families, but she would never kill a young child. She wouldn’t, so the company didn’t force her. It was unbelievable. "Oh, and Zoey has a boyfriend named-" Lucas stopped suddenly. Something clicked in his mind.

His mother turned, setting a plate down. "Named what, Lucas?"

"I just realized something. Awhile ago, I heard someone saying something about him…" he trailed off, trying to remember. It came back to him, and suddenly, he was blazing with anger. "That son of a bitch! Little piece of shit bastard! The little fu-"

Marie cut him off. "Excuse me! I don’t think we need that kind of language in here. Now, what is it someone said about this young man."

Lucas was slightly miffed, knowing for a fact that both his parents swore often at work. "They said he was going behind her back, and stuff like that. Like, he didn’t really like her, he just thought she was kinda cute and, plus, I had all these connections and stuff, in sports and in the city."

"They said, Lucas. You don’t know if it’s true, you just know what they said. Calm down. When she wakes up, I’ll talk to her about it."

"But, ma-"

"No buts. Now eat. You look too skinny for your own good."

He sighed. "Okay."

["It was odd, doing something so mundane as eating, when what I really felt like doing was finding Josh and bashing his f-cking head in."]

["Lucas!" Kat was shocked. Lucas rarely swore. He had cussed much more in his youth.]

After finishing up, he went to his room. As he passed Zoey’s room, he noticed his mom was in there. He listened in.

"Mom…*hic* He-he said that he’d been seeing another girl for-for…three months! He said that it was too pathetic, watching me love him…and-and he sa-said that h-he wasn’t *hic* going to waste any more t-time on…on m-me…and he…he…" here her voice was cut off, tears and sobs blocking her ability to speak. Lucas saw something that he hadn’t seen in a long time.

He saw red.

Just as he was about to go and beat the crap out of Josh, he caught Zoey’s voice in his ears again. "M-mom…please d-don’t tell L-Lucas…h-he’s bound to do s-something h-he’ll regret. Please, ma, it’s f-for his…his own g-good."

He sank against the wall, and whispered to himself, "Why did you have to say that Zoey, why? Why couldn’t you let me just go and inflict on him nothing he doesn’t deserve for hurting you? Now…now that you don’t want me to, that I can’t do what feels natural, I feel inadequate as an older brother…I feel like I failed you…"

"Don’t even think for a moment you are inadequate or that you failed me, Lucas Cabral!"

He leaped about three feet in the air, and spun around, gasping and holding a hand over his heart. He leaned over, bracing himself against his knees. "Hell! Jesus…don’t ever do that again! You nearly gave me a heart attack! And I’m seventeen! I’m not even old enough to get a heart attack! And you nearly gave me one! Sheesh! Too bad coach wasn’t here. He would have loved to see me jump that high in basketball."

She almost looked like she was going to burst into tears again. "Aw, jeez, Zo. Don’t take me seriously, I was just babbling again."

"Luke…don’t ever think that you’re failing me, okay? You’re the best big brother that I could have asked for. Well, aside from the fact that you’re a pig, and you are a complete slob…but that’s beside the point."

"Zo…I’m your older brother, like you said. I’m supposed to tease you, comfort you, and protect you. And beat up anybody who hurts you. I…I feel like I’m abandoning you."

"Think about it, Luke. What good would it do?"

"It’d give me personal satisfaction."

"If the school found out, which it would, it would screw up your eligibility for any teams."

"Shit! You think I care?"

"No, but father does."

"…good point."

"And, honestly, it would not look good on your record. You should be going to college in a year or two. It most definitely not be an asset if they knew that you once beat the hell out of someone two years younger than you."

"…*sigh*…fine, you have my word that I’ll stay out of it. But not for any of those reasons. I’ll stay away from him because you want me to."

"That’s good enough for me."

"Lucas," his mother interrupted. "Let Zo get some rest. It’s been a hard day."

"Alright." he hugged Zoey and ruffled her hair. "I’m gonna head up to my room, too. It’s great to have you back, mom."

Zoey hugged them both, and headed into the bathroom to take a shower. Lucas turned, and was about to leave, when his mother inquired, "Do you know when Lance and your father are going to be back?"

"I think they said they’d be back around ten, or something."

"Okay. Thanks, Luke. It’s great to be home. I missed you."

"I missed you, too, mom."

"What’re you going to do up there?"

"Probably call Kaz."

"Tell her I said hi."

"’kay."

Lucas headed up to his attic room. He was lucky. They had fixed the three attic rooms into a bathroom, his bedroom, and a rec. room. This gave him a great amount of privacy.

As he headed for the phone, he had to move aside various bits of computers and such items. It was the one area in which his skills exceeded Lance’s. He made his father proud, in that aspect at least.

["You should pretty much know what happened then. I called you, and told you what happened."]

["I remember. Since you couldn’t go kick the crap out of him, I helped you cuss him out. It was kinda fun."]

["Actually, it was sort of fun…Look, I’m gonna take a break, okay? This is…kinda hard…remembering her…and Nina…and my family…I just gotta stop for a bit.]

["Go ahead. Rest. I can wait."]

****

In the present….

Lucas got off the couch, stretching much like a tiger would. He sighed. "Look, Kaz, I’m going to take a walk, okay?"

"Sure. I have a few chores to take care of."

"When I come back, I’ll finish the story. I’ll tell you what really happened."

"Bye!"

Just as he was about to step out of the door, she called out, "Wait!"

He turned around, just as he was bopped on the head. "That was for calling me ‘Kaz’!"

Lucas rolled his eyes, but he smiled and started to walk out onto the porch. "Pick me up some cookies, will ya?"

He called back into the house. "Sure!"

Then, he muttered to himself, "Cookies…cookies…where am I supposed to get cookies?"

In the house, Kat smiled to herself. Seeing Tifa and Lucas sitting next to each other had sparked some old memories. She remembered how she always used to try and set Lucas up. She knew he needed to get on with his life, and maybe, just maybe, Tifa was going to be the thing to help him do so…

"Cookies! Duh. The general store." Lucas suddenly realized something. That’s where Tifa was helping out.

Just in the short time that he had talked with her, she awakened something in him that he hadn’t felt since Nina. Something that he thought he’d never feel again. He couldn’t and wouldn’t deny it; he was attracted to her. It’s just cookies. I’m just going to get my best friends some cookies. The fact that the person who is managing the store right now is incredibly and amazingly attractive, inside and out has nothing to do with it. Nope. Nothing at all.

****

Tifa fiddled around behind the counter. This was boring. Practically everyone was at home, not shopping. Besides, either way, running a general store, she was sure, was quite different than running a bar in the Sector Seven slums. She sighed, and for the billionth time, straightened up the counter.

The bell tinkled delicately, breaking the silence. She looked up. "Lucas? What are you doing here?"

He flashed a grin. "Hey, can’t a guy come into a store for no reason in particular?"

She gave a small laugh, shaking her head. "Actually, Kat bullied me into getting her cookies." he sighed dramatically. "She’s a real meanie. Jeez. I insult her once, and she makes me come outside into the very, very cold weather and get her cookies. Does she specify what kind of cookie? Noooo…. Of course not. Then again, I was going for a walk, anyway, and I know that she only likes two kinds of cookies. Oatmeal raisin when it rains, chocolate chips when the sun is out. Don’t ask why. I have no idea whatsoever."

Tifa laughed. "What about you?" she asked. "Do you eat cookies based on the weather, too?"

His turquoise eyes twinkled mischievously. "Of course not. I’m much more normal. I eat chocolate chip when I’m on the coast, oatmeal raisin when I’m in the mountains, butter cookies when I’m in a valley, and when I’m in the central part of a continent, I eat brownies."

She bit her lip, suppressing the welling laughter. "Oh? And what if you’re in the air? Or in the ocean?"

He laughed. "Then I’m usually trying not to spew my cookies all over the place, so I normally don’t eat cookies while I’m moving."

Tifa burst out laughing. For some reason, the thought of the sturdy man in front of her barfing all over the place like Yuffie did was hilarious. "You get motion sickness?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

He told her about the time when he was really young. His parents took the family on a fishing trip and there had been no fish. Lucas had gotten seasick, and retched over the side of the boat. All these fish came streaming to the surface, and they’d gone back with a bunch of fish.

She laughed and wrinkled her nose in distaste. "Ew…nasty." Then, she imitated Cid swearing at Yuffie while she puked all over the Highwind.

She looks really cute when she does that, he thought offhandedly. He shared a bunch of stories about times he’d gotten sick on a trip.

Tifa laughed as she listened to Lucas telling her about the time he accidentally threw up all over his brother. He mad stories…sort of just come alive. He was so animated and emphatic with his words, it really changed the story. Wow. He really brightened this stupid shift up. Why’d I agree to this anyway? Hmm…Lucas’ eyes look really beautiful when he flashes that grin…what am I thinking?!

He looked at his watch. We’ve been talking for forty-five minutes?! "Shoot…Hey, Tifa…I gotta get those cookies and bail, otherwise Kaz’s gonna kill me."

"Oh! Sure, just hang on a sec." She rummaged around, finally producing a box of oatmeal cookies.

"Thanks…um…how much do I owe you?"

"Oh jeez…look, just tell Kat that it’s on the house, ‘kay?"

"You sure…?"

"Of course I’m sure!"

"Okay, then…thanks again."

Just as he turned to leave, she spoke again, "Oh, and I’m sure you can eat those since we’re close enough to the mountains."

He looked at her. She just smiled slyly. Lucas smirked, and replied, "It’s just a good thing we’re not moving."

He left. Tifa looked at the ceiling and collapsed onto the counter. What are you doing, Tifa? Flirting with someone while Cloud’s out there, missing? The other half of her argued, He’s not missing! He’s gone on his own volition. Anyway, it’s not like he owns you, jeez. You don’t have to feel guilty!

After thinking about it, Tifa had to agree with her latter argument. Cloud didn’t own her, and it’s not like she was thinking of marrying someone. She was just kind of confused. She nodded to herself, and set about closing up the store.

****

Cloud gazed at the faint stars. They were just coming out. The sun’s rays still licked at the horizon, igniting the creamy clouds for which he’d been named. His mother said that when she’d first seen his bright, twinkling blue eyes, it had reminded her of the sky. Crickets were just starting to chirp. He sighed, rubbing his eyes. Every night, he gazed at the stars, and every night, he cursed himself for leaving Tifa behind. He missed her so much…too much.

God…I’m so confused. If she’s just my friend, then why do I miss her so much? And if she’s something more, how could I have left in the first place?

He sighed again, concentrating on the stars. He’d just let whatever was going to happen go on with it. He wasn’t going to do anything about it. Face it, Strife. There isn’t a damn thing you can do about anything, ‘cause you have no idea what the hell you’re doing with your life.

Whatever. He was tired. Cloud adjusted the jacket under his head, and within a few minutes, he was asleep. Night fell, but no monsters dared bother this young man, this savior of the planet.

****

Lucas walked in through the unlocked door. "It’s about time, Luke!" Kat admonished him. "What took you so long?"

"We were talking."

"Who was talking?"

He sighed. Kat always insisted on being specific. "Me and Tifa."

"Tifa and I."

He rolled his eyes and repeated after her. "Tifa and _I_."

She nodded in satisfaction. "And where are my cookies? You remembered to get the right kind, didn’t you?"

He held up the box of cookies as proof. "Unless you changed your strange tastes, I think I got the right kind. Oatmeal raisin when it rains, right?"

She grinned. "You didn’t forget!"

"Of course not. You’re my best friend."

"Cool. Put them in the kitchen."

He complied, and came back out munching on one. "Hey! Those are _my_ cookies! Don’t touch them!" she yelled mockingly.

He stuck his tongue out at her. "Too bad. If you want me to continue with the story, then you’d better let me have a cookie."

"Fine, you butthead."

"Look who’s talking!"

"Shut up."

Lucas polished off the cookie, and sat on the couch. "Okay, I’ll get on with it."

Suddenly serious, Kat leaned forward. "Just take it a little at a time."

He nodded. "I was so angry at Josh…I knew he’d been trashing Zoey at school in the following couple of weeks." Here, he smiled grimly. "Of course, he didn’t even think about dissing her in front of me. He knew very well that the only reason that I hadn’t come after him was Zoey, and he didn’t want to push his luck. I was still dangerous back then I was really reckless. You were basically my logical side. Now, when I fight, I control myself, but back then, I wasn’t as well trained as I am now."

Once again, he sank into the memories of the past, wishing he could have done something, anything, to alter them…