[The return of the Harvard Cantab Theater Review! What is a Cantab,
anyway? That's right, Michael, I'm asking you....]

Andrew: Yo. Hey, Mark, since it took me so long to actually review this, I
decided to make it an MST.

Nanami: Wow. This isn't EVA, either.

Andrew: Sh'up.

Gaspode: Woof.

***********************W*A*R*N*I*N*G************************
NOTE: This fic contains spoilers. If you have not finished
Final Fantasy VII, this fic may spoil some or all parts of
the end of the game. Please read at your own risk.
************************************************************

Andrew: Nanami, do you know what happens?

Nanami: Yep. Wasn't going to make that mistake after what happened with
EVA. I'll know the source material before I review.

                     Final Fantasy VII:
                      Childhood's Love

Andrew: Now, before I begin, I should tell you all--Mark has intended this
to be a shift in style: this piece is meant to capture your imagination as
you read it--something along the lines, I'm guessing, of Chris Davies'
Raye Trilogy. Hi, Chris. [waves]

Gaspode: So, it's supposed to get you by the, wossit called, jugular.

Nanami: Emotionally, so to speak. Let's see how it does.

        As I open my eyes to a new day and rise to greet the
opportunities ahead of me, I look over to my left. There she
is. I never dreamt a day like this would come about. But it
has. I am now able to live out my fantasy of waking up next
to an angel. My angel.

Gaspode: I'd say I was goin' to be sick, but--

Andrew: You're diseased enough as it is.

Nanami: Shut up, you two.

        Content just to watch her sleeping form, I role onto

Andrew: That's "roll onto".

my side and take in her beauty. Tifa Lockheart's true beauty
is on the inside. Her outward appearance is pleasing to the
eye, and, in its own rites, is breathtaking; however, this
wouldn't count for a whit had the beauty of soul which she
possesses not been there.

Andrew: Ergh. Wordy. A bit too much. Plus, I'm having some difficulty
imagining Cloud talking like this.

        She has been my childhood fantasy for as long as I
can remember. Joining Shinra wasn't to fulfill my dreams of
becoming the next Sephiroth... those dreams weren't what I
wanted. Nay, becoming powerful would only have been for her.
Almost like everything I've done. All for her.
        And now, here she is. My Tifa.

[Nanami kicks Gaspode.]

Gaspode: Wot?!

Nanami: Pre-emptive strike.

        Rising from the bed, I slip into a pair of pants and
silently pad from Tifa's bed to the door. Opening it as
quietly as possible, I try my best to avoid making any noise
lest I wake my slumbering goddess.

Nanami: "goddess"?

Andrew: "lest"?

Gaspode: "pants"?

[Andrew kicks Gaspode.]

        This morning begins much like the past few have. I
retire to the bathroom for a good many minutes whereupon I
methodically go about my hygenic preparations; thereafter
retrieving my favorite sword and heading outside to
practice.

Andrew: Hmm...now, when I wrote up my analysis of three types of good
fictional writing, I did say for the "mood shaping" type--the effect Mark
is going for, here--that small details are important, for building an
image of the scene...but words like "hygenic preparations" just don't...
er, help. Somehow. I dunno.

        Only, this morning I'm not there for practice. A
strange nostalgia has set in and I'm feeling the effects of
it now. Looking around at Nibelheim and the crisp blue sky
above it, I can't help but think back to when I first kissed
her. Nostalgia, love and a mixture of memories always seem
to lead me back to the time when I first touched heaven. To
the time when Tifa and I came together.

Andrew and Nanami: Flashback time! Woo-hoo!

-------------------------

        We had recently been invited to Cosmo Canyon in
remembrance of the late Bugenhagen. Partly out of respect
for the passing of a great man, and partly out of respect
for that man's adopted grandson, Nanaki, Tifa and I decided
to accept the invitation.

        Besides, Nibelheim is only a short distance away and
this would be a wonderful opportunity to gather with our old
companions of times past.

        Truth be told, I'd have thought our tight knit, stay
together until victory or death group would have kept in at
least some semblance of touch after such a major feat as
saving the world, but obviously I was mistaken. In all
actuality, Tifa and I were the only ones who saw much of
each other anymore. This was in part because we each lived
in the same place, Nibelheim. Our... rather empty hometown.

Nanami: Good detail, about the gang not hanging together much anymore.

        This did tend to make Nibelheim lonely. No people
but us two inhabited it. The destruction of the town 6 years
past had rid the area of its original inhabitants and after
the nosedive Shinra, Inc. took shortly after the onslaught
of the Diamond Weapon, the actors who lived in the current
facsimile of Nibelheim left as well.

        To cope with the loneliness, Tifa and I had moved in
together and were living at her house. One does need human
interaction, and the best way to fulfill that requirement
seemed to be shared quarters. Naturally, I had no problem
what so ever with this.

[Andrew and Nanami turn slightly red.]

Gaspode: I expected somethin' like that from you.

        Now, while explaining about our living arrangements
I neglected to mention what the rest of the gang was doing.
The main reasons we hadn't kept in touch had been that they
had been too busy. Go figure. Tifa and I were rather bored
and had, several times in fact, tried to visit one of our
old friends.

Andrew: Hmm? Too busy? Why would that be a strange thing?

        Aeris was dead. Nothing would ever change that fact
and, having to accept her death as a means of saving the
Planet, we laid her memory to rest. I can safely say that
Tifa and I, at least, have only fond remembrances of her.

Nanami: *sniff* Poor Aeris. I couldn't ever forgive Sephiroth for that, no
matter how cute he is.

[Andrew, about to hand her a Kleenex, drops it.]

Andrew: [mechanically] Whoops. I'm. Sorry. About. That.

[Gaspode yawns.]

        Barret had moved in with Elmyra, Aeris' adopted
mother, and Marlene, Barret's own adopted daughter, shortly
after Meteor had been averted. That group had since moved
from Kalm back into Midgar where, along with the other
inhabitants of the Midgar slums and under the leadership of
Barret, everyone was banding together to rebuild Midgar from
the inside out.

Andrew: One might ask if Midgar is even worth saving....

Nanami: Well, it's their home, no matter what, right?

Gaspode: Hmph. Homes are overrated.

        Cait Sith, controlled by Reeve, became Barret's
honorary second in command and was currently helping the
former AVALANCHE leader to rebuild Midgar. Reeve himself,
is, to the best of our knowledge, lounging around La Costa
Del Sol sipping Pina Colada's and making good use of Villa
Cloud. After a few more payments towards his 300,000 gil
debt I expect Villa Cloud to be renamed Villa Reeve.

Andrew: [grins] That bit about Villa Cloud was one of the sillier things
in the game.

Nanami: It was pretty cool, though, owning your own residence, even if it
is a game.

Gaspode: Like wot I said, homes are overrated.

        Vincent had managed to take up residence in North
Corel, near the cave where he had encountered Lucretia's
ghost. With the help of a golden chocobo, fondly named
Terra, Vincent made a bi-weekly visit to this area in
remembrance of his lost love.

Nanami: Why bi-weekly?

Andrew: It does look a little weird.

        Cid had returned to Rocket Town to rebuild his dream
from ground up. Tifa and I recieved word of his marriage to
Shera a short while later. Poor Shera. Also included were

[Andrew and Nanami snicker.]

his plans for a new rocket which would take him and his
spouse into space. As far as we know, he's still working on
building the neccesary equipment.

Andrew: Hmm...the foulest mouth in space. Should be a first.

Nanami: [poking Andrew a bit] I think he's kind of funny.

Andrew: Yeh. Bet he lights his cigarettes with a few cusswords.

        Yuffie, to the best of our knowledge, had gone back
to Wutai wherein she had promptly begun growing materia.
Returning Wutai to its time of conquest has been her mission
all along and finally, her dream may be fully realized. We

Andrew: Heh. Yuffie's a cute character.

Nanami: [raised eyebrow] What?

Andrew: [quickly] That is, the way she keeps on trying to rip off the
others is hilarious. She's rather singleminded.

Nanami: [unconvinced] Riiiiight.

Andrew: [thought] Damn. Foot in mouth disease.

gladly donated our remaining materia, including our Master
summoning and magic materia to her. If I don't see another
Mako spawned object again in this life, it will be too soon.

Andrew: Now that's a good detail.

        Red XIII, or more acurrately Nanaki, had returned to
Cosmo Canyon where he had been made an Elder. As far as we
knew, he was peacefully carrying on Bugenhagen's dreams and
ambitions. If any man were to be credited with leaving a
legacy, Bugenhagen would be that man.

        You may now be able to comprehend our immense
excitement at the chance to reaqquaint ourselves with one of

Andrew: "reacquaint"

our old companions. We promptly made our preparations and
traveled, by land rover, to Cosmo Canyon.

-------------------------

        Upon arriving at Cosmo Canyon we were met by Nanaki.
Bugenhagen had been buried nearby and after a short talk
with our friend Tifa and I accompanied him to the grave.
A greater scientist had not lived before, and probably never
would again. I remember shedding a tear at Bugenhagen's
grave.

Nanami: That last sentence doesn't sound right. It's not sympathetic
enough, at all. You might want to try it again....

Andrew: Right. You're trying to convey a sense of sadness there, right?
Problem is, that remark comes too much in passing. It's almost overlooked.

        We returned to Cosmo Canyon, and after another short
conversation, Nanaki showed Tifa and I to our room. Nodding
and wishing the busy feline good dreams, Tifa and I found
ourselves with nothing to do.

        I felt a tad grungy from the days antics. Running
around in the world's largest litterbox will do that to a
man. Wishing to remove the dirt from the countless places it
had become lodged, I announced that I would be taking a
shower and headed off.

Andrew: Yeek.

        The water was relaxing. Having spent the day under
the sun, I turned the cold water up so as to cool my system.
After exiting the shower, I toweled off and went in search
of clothing. Finding some, I called for Tifa but received no

Andrew: Nanami, you seem to be rather interested in this scene.

Nanami: Ah, heh....

Gaspode: I still haven't figured wot you humans see so much in clothes.
[scratches himself idly]

reply. I hadn't any idea where she had spirited away to so,
after dressing, I bent out the window of the inn and had a
look to see if I could locate her.

        Locate her I did. She was standing behind the Cosmo
Candle, looking out across the horizon at the setting sun.
Had I not broken myself from her bespelling visage, I might
not have had the gumption to join her. Fortunately, however,

Andrew: Again, I just can't see Cloud using these words.

I was able to tear my eyes from her form and hence descend
to ground level where I quietly made my way to the Cosmo
Candle and the object of my affections.

-------------------------

        I must have stood there for at least ten minutes,
just watching her watch the sunset. She must have known I

Andrew: Now _that_ works very well. "...just watching her watch the
sunset." I like it.

Gaspode: Sunsets are overrat--

[Boot to the posterior.]

Gaspode: ORF!

Nanami: Shut up, you.

was behind her, too, because she looked to the ground and
then whispered my name.
        
        "Come closer, Cloud," I heard her say. How could I
refuse?

Nanami: [rounding on Andrew slowly] And why, do you suppose, could he not 
refuse?

Andrew: [without hesitation] I have no opinion.

Nanami: Cop-out.

        Moving closer to Tifa, my nose was suddenly filled
with her scent. A gentle mixture of fruits, it seemed, and
something else, something distinctly female. Intoxicating.
That, to this day, is the only word I can come up with that
does justice to her sweet fragrance.

        Females are funny that way, I suppose. It's as if
each and every pore of their body secretes a perfume of
sorts. And if not, then there is certainly no explanation
for the phenomena of their aroma. After a hard day of labor,
pick any sort, a man would return smelling rather gamely.
Tifa, or any other female for that matter, smells like a
rose. And if it wasn't enough that they smelled so
intoxicating to begin with, then you must also remember
that they somehow trail that smell in a tantalizing path
behind them.

Nanami: I remember something like this in another one of Mark's works.

Andrew: Yep. From "It's Just Been One of Those Lives", when Shinji is
waking up to Asuka pounding on him. One of the first things he noticed was
the scent of a woman.

Nanami: And what about me?

Andrew: [again without the slightest bit of hesitation] You smell
wonderful.

[Nanami raises an eyebrow and smiles slightly.]

Gaspode: I can smell that Klatchian Hots pizza yoo had. Wif anchovies.

Andrew: You eat anchovies too?

Nanami: [frantic] Um, nonono...wait, "too"?

Andrew: I love them.

Nanami: Wow. Never thought I'd meet someone else who liked them too--

Gaspode: We have somethin' to review here, right?

Andrew: Well, you brought up the anchovies....

        I soon found myself overcome by Tifa's fragrance
and thus sought a method through which to clear my addled
brain. Looking at her soft, silken hair was decidedly not
the way to go about such a thing.

Andrew: Another good detail, that bit about her hair.

        Another mystery of femininity is their hair. More
accurately, how they keep it so beautiful all the time? Even
when mussed it's pretty... sometimes moreso.

Andrew: [nodding rapidly] Oh, yes, definitely.

[Nanami vigorously ruffles Andrew's hair.]

Nanami: Hmm. Must not work on males. You just look goofy.

Andrew: Hey. Stop that.

        I suddenly found my hand brushing a few strands of
Tifa's brunette hair off her neck. This action must have
suprised her to some extent because she suddenly went rigid,
as if she was tensing up in preparation for an oncoming
battle or some other such thing.

Andrew: Well, it's true that touching someone's hair _is_ a very personal
gesture. [looks sideways at Nanami]

Nanami: Er, what?

        "I.. I'm sorry, Tifa," I barely stammered out. My
actions had evidently surprised me as much as they had her.
Relief washed over me when she relaxed.

        "It's... fine, Cloud. I just wasn't expecting it,
that's all." I nodded at her answer, although what good it
did from behind her I haven't a clue. She couldn't have been
expected to see my agreement, let alone my face, annointed
with relief as it was. Upon further reflection, I'm glad
she wasn't facing me at that time.

Andrew: The use of detail has been steadily improving throughout this
piece. Very nice.

        Resting my hand back to its original position at my
side, I continued looking on as the sun sank lower and lower
into the Cosmo Canyon area, painting the surrounding dunes
and plateaus with a wash of red. Surreal as the scene before
me was, I again found myself losing concentration as a
pleasant haze began clouding my mind. My focus was on the
portrait around me, and the girl I had cared for since
childhood in front of me. Cared for? Nay... loved since
childhood.

Andrew: Cut the "nay". Again, it just doesn't seem like Cloud to use that
wording.

        Realization swept over me, like a warm light of
understanding piercing the fog in my mind. Everything
suddenly became clear to me, as if I was finally beginning
to comprehend a profound fact. In essence I had actually
comprehended something I had denied myself before. I loved
Tifa Lockheart.

Gaspode: [brow wrinkling in concentration] Oh. How...tangy. No...how 
sweet. [looking up] Well? How did I do?

Andrew: Getting better.

        Astounded at my own narrow mindedness, I almost
missed what Tifa was saying completely. Thankfully, however,
it registered in the back of my mind and I was able to
catch her words, softly spoken as they were.

        "It's beautiful," she very nearly whispered. I
couldn't help but think of how correct she was as I stared
at her, taking her in with my eyes. Basking in her beauty.

        I _was_ basking. The setting sun splayed against the
brown tones in her hair, lighting them up with an ethereal
luminance. The rays also played against her soft skin,
highlighting and accentuating the gently sloping curves of
her face, and coming to rest on her beautiful neck.

Andrew: Again, good use of detail. You should play this sort of thing up
more. Here is where you are putting the story into the mind's eye.

        I must have lost touch with myself yet again,
because the next thing I remember was placing my lips to the
side of her neck in a light kiss. Brushing my lips softly
against her skin as if they were rose petals. I'm not even
sure if I really thouched her. But I must have, because she
tensed up again.

Nanami: [blinking] Wow.

Andrew: [blinking] Wow.

Gaspode: [scratching] Yoo missed somethin' there. "touched".

        Raising my head from her neck I caught her searching
gaze as she slowly turned to face me. The red of the setting
sun reflected in her eyes, adding to the already crimson
color they held. I found myself sinking into those eyes.

        "Cl-Cloud..." she whispered, and I couldn't help but
smile in response. Had I tried to speak, I probably would
have croaked a reply.

        Craning my neck slightly, I slowly bent foward and
pressed my lips to hers. I felt her arms go around my neck
in response. Wrapping my arms around her waist, I brought
her closer and deepened the kiss, revelling in the warmth I 
could feel spreading through me, originating in my chest.

Nanami: [blinking again] Wow.

Andrew: [also blinking again] Wow.

Gaspode: Wot, haff yoo lost the rest of your vocabulary?

        Growing bolder, I gently ran my tongue along the
outside of her teeth and felt her open her mouth to my
probings. My heart soared. She wasn't rejecting me! I had
never known such a wonderful day.

Nanami: [now nosebleeding slightly] Wow.

Andrew: [grabbing the Kleenexes] Wow.

Gaspode: [rolling eyes] Humans.

        Reluctantly, we breathlessly seperated, searching
each other's eyes. She began to say something, but I placed
a finger to her lips and gently whispered, "Shhh... just let
me hold you."

        And there I held her, my childhood love, while the
sun dipped below the horizon behind us in Cosmo Canyon.

Nanami: Very nice....

Andrew: Yes, indeed. [tosses a slightly bloodied tissue] There's still a
lot of potential there, though. Try describing the kiss in even more
detail. That'll really get your reader's mind working.

Gaspode: Zzzzzz....

------------------------------------------------------------
                          THE END
------------------------------------------------------------
Fanfic Notes:

        To the best of my ability I have tried to write this
as a thought provoking piece that, if I've accomplished what
I set out to, hits you right there. Yes, you know where I'm
talking about. The heart. Anyhow, just to let you all know,

Nanami: Well, it fell short in the beginning, but definitely improved.

Andrew: It's a matter of choosing the right thing to describe. What's
necessary to develop in detail, and what's...not.

this is my first attempt at a first person piece and I would
very much appreciate any comments and criticism anyone has
to offer. Flames will also be considered, although such
things as "Tifa sucks! Long live Aeris!" will proptly be
trashed. I prefer Tifa. ;)

Andrew: Now, Aeris is a nice lady, too....

Nanami: Geez. The way you defend everybody, like how you say Akari is also
a really nice girl though Ukyou and Ryouga belong together, I'd think
you'd never take a clear favorite anywhere.

Andrew: Hey, I do say that Ukyou is my favorite female from Ranma 1/2.
Plus I put up that shrine to you, didn't I?

Nanami: [blushing slightly] Um.

Gaspode: He's just buttering yoo up--

[Boot to the posterior.]

Gaspode: ORF! Again....

Special thanks go to:
-Square Soft (ie, Square Co., Ltd.) for creating this
 utterly addictive and wonderful gaming legacy, as well as
 for their past Final Fantasies.

Andrew: Oh, yes. I can't wait until they release FF4-6 on PC CD-ROM.

-Numerous authors of RAAC and the FFML for planting the
 seeds of inspiration in my head, a few of whom as follows:
 White Wolf, John Walter Biles, Andrew Huang, Joseph Palmer,

Andrew: Thanks!

Gaspode: Mister Andrew, your ego is swelling.

Andrew: Boot to the pos--

[Gaspode runs.]

 Caroline Seawright, Zen, Frank Casper, Happosai, Mike
 Noakes, Nicholas F. Toledo Zu, Krista Perry, Richard
 Lawson, Gary Kleppe, and Todd Hill. To anyone I left out,
 these are the first few that came to mind.
And to:
-White Wolf and the FFML for being a place wherein I may
 "publish" my works.

Thank you for reading,

Andrew: Of course.

Nanami: Polish up the introduction part, and it'll be really great. Later.

>From Andrew Huang, brought to you by his computer, Oddzilla
Oddzilla says, "Mmmmm...Evanjellydonut...."
http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~alhuang/
Harvard Anime Society, President