Do you really think I'd leave all of you hanging for too long? If you have not read Killing Them Softly (the first part), nothing will make sense to you from this point on.
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A young woman's stiletto heels crackled against the porcelain tile floor as she made her way down the bright hall. Her short, black strapless dress was well covered by a lab coat, but failed to hide her cleavage. Safely, she tucked a manila folder underneath her arm, as if she were protecting it.
She stopped in the middle of the hall, in front of a double entrance door. With her fist, she gave the doors a good rap, and a voice beckoned her to come in. Unceremoniously, she opened the door, and was greeted by a middle-aged gentlemen.
"Ah, Miss Lucy," he said. "Do you have the status on the Becton brothers?"
"Yes, sir," Lucy replied.
Lucy hesitated to answer her superior. The gentleman leaned forward in his desk, looking at the scientist with question in his eyes.
"Well, Miss Lucy?"
"They failed sir. Miserably."
The gentleman scratched his nearly balding head in anguish. He leaned back in his chair and sighed, chuckling at the same time.
"Sir?"
"Do not fret," the gentleman replied. "It was my mistake. Not a waste, but a mistake still. Andrew was a fool; obviously, he confronted Project Ultima alone, who is clearly a superior BEAS. And Jerald...immature and overly sadistic. I thought about ridding them of the Mafia once. Maybe that's why a chose them to go first."
Lucy stood before him, emotionlessly, without saying a word.
"What course of action shall we take next, Mr. Gerald?" asked Lucy.
Herman Ferris Gerald rubbed his chin and thought.
"I'll sleep on it," he said. "I'll make a decision tomorrow."
Lucy bowed her head, turned around, and strolled out the door.
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Tifa reluctantly paced behind the strange blonde woman in the back alley. Her walk was no longer in confidence; it was meek and distrusting. Tifa looked at the back of the woman's head, then down to her feet, and then back at the woman's head again. Her eyes were filled with suspicion.
This 'woman' who was Cloud, or at least claimed to be him, leisurely walked on, as if everything was normal. His and her walk were exactly the same, except for the light sway of the woman's hips.
The woman turned back to Tifa with concern.
"Miss Lockhart," she said. "Are you alright? Can't you walk beside me?"
Her accent was the same as Cloud's too. Authentically British.
Tifa refused to look at her. The woman's eyes shrank with empathy and sadness. She stretched out her hand to touch Tifa's shoulder.
"I'm sorry for what has happened," she said quietly. "But after all...I did tell you not to follow me..."
Tifa stepped back abruptly to avoid her hand.
"You're NOT Cloud!" Tifa yelled. "You hear me?! YOU ARE NOT!"
"Miss Lockhart..."
"You know as well as I do that it's absurd and not physically possible!"
"Then how do you explain the leather-clad wonder back there?" the woman retorted. "A trick of the light perhaps?"
Tifa didn't have an answer.
"I understand that you have very little reason to trust me now..."
"When did we first meet?!" Tifa interrupted.
The woman stared at Tifa in confusion, as if she were staring at a leper.
"Answer the question!"
The woman sighed and said, "We met at my nightclub on a Friday, a little over a week ago."
"And what was I wearing?"
"A red halter dress that stopped in the front at the middle of your thighs. It suited you well."
Tifa swallowed nervously and finally found the courage to look her companion in the eyes. The tone of her voice became less harsh and less frightened.
"Do you live in New York City?" Tifa asked.
"No, my estate is in New Jersey. I hate the noise there at night."
"And what's your occupation?"
"Dance instructor, Miss Lockhart. Are you done questioning me?"
Tifa's left eye began to twitch involuntarily. She burst into a nervous fit of laughter, and walked to the side of the nearest building. The newly redeemed Cloud Strife followed with a weary expression on her...er...his face, unable to figure out what to do.
"I'm too tired for this," he mumbled.
Tifa continued to laugh as she leaned on the brick wall and slid down on her backside. Cloud continued walking and went around the corner, away from Tifa. Tifa hardly noticed him come back, and he crouched down next to her as the man that he really was. He put a supportive arm around her.
"Go ahead," Cloud said. "Get it all out of your system, Miss Lockhart."
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Cid drove along the streets of the small town of Geneva, car window wide open.
"You better not be in trouble again! I hate bailing you out."
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Tifa found herself sitting alone on a public bench in a small district of shops. Amongst the bustle of late night pedestrians and cars, all she could think of was one thing:
"I wish I had hair like that..."
She spotted Cloud coming out of the drugs store with a paper bag in his arms.
"Sorry. Did I make you wait too long?"
Instead of answering him, Tifa looked him up and down with an incredulous look on her face.
"Will you stop looking at me that way, Miss Lockhart?"
"You'd look at yourself this way too if you were in my shoes," Tifa replied. "Should I call you Miss Strife or Mister Strife?"
Cloud sat down beside her on the bench.
"This is why I didn't want you following me," Cloud mumbled. "I knew that you wouldn't let me live it down."
"You had pretty, long, blonde hair," Tifa cooed. "And big, blue eyes! The American boy's dream!"
Tifa stopped teasing when she realized they were now in public. Cloud sighed in relief.
"But really, Cloud," Tifa said. "What was that... back there? It was like we stepped into a Twilight Zone or ...something..."
"Later," he said. "I'll tell you ...when I've a clearer head."
Cloud pulled a plastic bag out of the paper bag and dropped it in her lap. Tifa looked at her teacher for an explanation.
"I didn't want to embarrass you by asking so..."
Tifa looked into the bag and saw pads and tampons in the bag. Her face went beet red.
"What the heck is this?!" Tifa shrieked.
"The men who delivered your things to my estate neglected to get your...feminine supplies," Cloud answered.
"And you're buying it for me because?"
"You started your...ehem...monthlies just before you got attacked by your friend, the leather-clad wonder. Shapeshiftingisn't the only trick up my sleeve..."
Tifa went as pale as snow before shifting herself away from Cloud.
"Be nice to me," Cloud continued slyly. "Don't tell anyone my little secrets and I won't tell yours. You wouldn't want the rest of the crew to find out that God's curse struck you at the wrong time..."
"Go to hell," Tifa replied.
Cloud got off of the bench without responding to her comment.
"We gotta find a taxi and get the heck out of here," Cloud said.
Tifa stood up, and a sudden pain hit her abdomen. She hated it when he was right...
"And I almost forgot."
Cloud pulled out a bag labeled Godiva and handed it to Tifa. She opened it up and found a chocolate lollipop in the shape of Hello Kitty.
"I thought you might have wanted that," explained Cloud.
A warm, grateful smile appeared on Tifa's face. Before Cloud could protest, Tifa planted a big thank you kiss on his cheek before diving into the treat. Cloud opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by the sound of one very angry man.
"What the heck, Cloud?!" Cid yelled. "Where have you been?!"
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Good-bye for now...