Something Worth Fighting For

Chapter 1

Barret

            When Cloud Strife had decided that everyone should go home and try to discover what they were truly fighting for, there was but one thing for Barret Wallace to do. He went home to his daughter Marlene.

            The word 'home' brought about controversial feelings, though. Barret wasn't sure if he even had a home. He had been born in Corel Village, but when the Mako Reactor had exploded, his wife had been killed, and he had been pronounced a failure and an outcast. He had been living in the industrial city of Midgar ever since, in the secret basement of Tifa Lockheart's 7th Heaven in the Sector 7 Slums, which had become the headquarters for the underground resistance movement AVALANCHE. He became a recluse from the world, appearing only now and then to put an end to the devious actions of Shin-Ra, Inc. But with the arrival of Cloud, the mercenary, and the return of Sephiroth, the top ranking SOLDIER officer turned unmistakably evil, he had left it all behind.

            Marlene was not in the Sector 7 Slums, however. Shortly after a confrontation with several members of the Shin-Ra that had turned out to be a trap for the members of AVALANCHE (how long ago that now seemed!), Aeris Gainsborough had taken Marlene to her mother's home in Sector 5 for safety. Barret had never known Aeris very well, though he was grateful to her for protecting his daughter. Then again, Aeris was dead now, and there was no reason to dwell on the past.

            He walked through the streets of Midgar cautiously, always on his guard. He knew that Shin-Ra had promised a considerable amount of Gil to whoever brought them his head (was it just a few days ago that he and Tifa had nearly been executed?). Not much was left of Shin-Ra after their recent raid, but he was sure that there would still be guards and members of SOLDIER out there seeking to find him.

            Thus, Barret proceeded with caution. He bought a hooded cloak to hide his well-known features and then boarded the train to Sector 5. He avoided confrontation as much as he could, doing his best to control his frequent mood changes and sudden bursts of energy. He exited the train when it arrived in Sector 5, and with the help of some of the area's residents, he eventually found his way to Aeris's old home.

            The door opened before he could knock. The people inside seemed to have been expecting him.

            "DADDY!" Marlene yelled, flinging herself into Barret's arms. "I missed you!"

            "I missed you too, Marlene," he told the little girl, lifting her up holding her close.

            An aged woman approached them from inside the shadows of the house. Barret assumed that she was Aeris's mother. He set Marlene down and shook hands with the lady.

            His voice no more than a hoarse whisper, he said, "Thank you for taking care of my daughter, Mrs. Gainsborough."

            "It was my pleasure. Marlene is a very sweet little girl," she replied, smiling. "Come in. It is nice to have visitors. It has been so quiet since the passing of my daughter…"

            Following her inside, Barret stared at his shoes. He did not know what to say. He was not a very compassionate man and did not know how to react where Aeris was concerned. He knew it must have caused the lady a lot of grief when she learned about her daughter's fate. He was not the kind of man who could console her, though.

            Then again, Aeris had not actually been Mrs. Gainsborough's daughter. But she was the closest thing to a child the old woman had had. Neither should he be talking, for Marlene wasn't truly Barret's daughter either. She was the young child of his best friend Dyne, whom he had cared for ever since the latter's disappearance. They had all presumed Dyne dead. However, they had met again several days ago. It was then that Dyne truly died.

            Marlene did not know of Dyne. For a fleeting moment he considered telling her everything, but then he realized that she was too young to understand. And even if she did, it would probably cause her much distress to discover that he wasn't really her father. Therefore, he chose to keep the truth from her.

            Mrs. Gainsborough asked suddenly, "Would you like some tea?"

            "Huh? What?" Barret murmured, startled, realizing both she and Marlene had been staring at him for several minutes while he had been lost in thought.

            "I asked," the woman repeated, "if you would like some tea."

            Gruffly, he accepted, in his awkward manner. He and Marlene sat down at the living room table while Mrs. Gainsborough went into the kitchen, filled the kettle with water and put it on the stove. She then opened one of the cupboards to try to find some treats for her guests. After a few moments, she found some cookies. Arranging them neatly on a plate, she set them on the table and returned to the kitchen, where the kettle was whistling. She poured the hot water into the teapot and added some fragrant tealeaves. Carefully, she set the teapot on a platter along with her best China teacups, and transported them to the living room, where she, too, sat down, and they all had tea together.

            The two adults conversed quietly, mainly on the topic of Marlene and both making sure to steer clear of the topic of Aeris's death. When she had finished her tea, Mrs. Gainsborough excused herself and went upstairs, leaving Barret alone with Marlene. He lifted up the little girl and set her on his lap, asking her about her stay with the kind old lady. She seemed to have enjoyed herself, and though he did not say so because that was simply not his nature, he was glad.

            He stayed for dinner and accepted Mrs. Gainsborough's invitation to stay overnight, but mostly Barret was thinking about the task at hand. Being together with Marlene again reminded him how much he loved her. She was the one thing keeping him alive these days. For a while he considered not returning to Cloud and the Highwind, wanting to stay with Marlene and live in peace. Shin-Ra was gone, his wife's death had been avenged, and he thought he had no real reason to risk his life fighting Sephiroth. One less member in Cloud's team didn't matter…did it?

            He thought the matter over again and again, and eventually, he kept getting at the same conclusion. One member could make a difference. He could mean the difference between saving the world and causing its destruction at the hands of Sephiroth. If the latter came to pass, a lot of innocent people would die. People like Marlene.

            Marlene could die.

            And in the end, that was all that really mattered to him. Marlene's life was worth more to him than his own. If he had one chance to save that life, he would, even if there was the possibility that he might lose his own.

            He realized he had already made up his mind.