Tengoko: Moving the Unmovable was the first Final Fantasy fan fiction I'd ever written. I really was surprised by the number of people that grew to like it. This story spawned the creation of the Storm Series which consists of this story's sequel, Project Manning, and a prequel, Transcending Chaos. I am currently working on edits and revisions to improve the story.

Update 3/21/16: I know I've sort of stepped away from my fan fictions in recent years. I won't bore you with the reasons (excuses), but I am going to honor my commitment to finishing these stories and the series that they are a part of. I will try to do this expediently, but with work and other writing projects I am currently working on, I can only promise to do my best when I can. I apologize to those of you who have been waiting for updates. I am going to go through the first few chapters to edit for grammar and style. Please be patient with me as I make the necessary adjustments to this story. I will focus on finishing this one before

Staple Disclaimer for the Story: The only thing that I own as far as Final Fantasy 7 is concerned is the actual video game and various compilation installments that followed. Otherwise, in relation to the series, I am literally nobody.

Chapter 1: Caught

She sat on the edge of her bed, her fingers digging into the sheets while pulling at the egg crate that she had put over the mattress because he had once complained about it being too firm. As he spoke, her tear-filled, wine-colored eyes remained fixed on the picture that had been taken not so long ago. The image, as only celluloid could deliver, captured a moment in time when everything was all right. They were all together. Cloud was okay.

"That's why I have to go," he said, his tone of finality being what shook her out of the memory. She swallowed hard, trying to moisten her dry throat. It was a feeling she disliked; not having words to say. "I don't mean to hurt you, Tifa. That's the very last thing I want to do. But… you can't come with me. I'm sorry."

She blinked and slowly pushed herself up. The room was dark, but her eyes were perfectly adjusted to it. Crossing her arms against her chest, she allowed herself a nod. Still, her stomach was tumbling uneasily, her heart pounding loudly, and her legs were too unsteady to depend on them to carry her towards him. So she stood in place. When she opened her mouth to speak, a strange sound came out, not unlike the sound a balloon makes when it is being deflated. She swallowed hard and found her voice. "After everything that happened," she began, managing to sound stronger than she felt. "After everything that we have been through, you can just say that to me? I understand that you have battles that only you can fight. That your demons are something that only you can tackle. But, I thought that you would have learned by now that your friends, people who care about you, won't slow you down or stop you. I can help you, Cloud. This is something you don't have to do alone."

Cloud put his hands on the back of his head and let his body fall against the wall. He was irritated. That was plain to see. And for a moment, she almost felt sorry about that. He had a way of doing that to her without actually meaning to. Of making her feel like she was responsible for all that was wrong in his life... All that was wrong in his head. But for once, she realized quickly that this time it wasn't her. It usually wasn't. When he was pining for the little flower girl (and that she resented her for it caused no small amount of guilt), she bowed out because all she had wanted was for him to be happy. When he had lost himself after discovering the truth about his past, she had sat with him, willing him to recover. When he faced down Sephiroth the first time to save the planet from Meteor, she had gone with him and fought at his side. When he battled Sephiroth again while fighting Geostigma and his own uncertainties... she tried her very best to be his anchor. She had waited. Through it all, she was always waiting... And now, he was asking her to do it all over again.

"He told me, word for word that he will never be a memory. If there is a way... It is just a risk I cannot take. I have to be sure that he can't come back. Why is this so hard for you to understand?"

"I understand it!" she insisted. "Don't patronize me, Cloud. I understand that you want freedom to handle it your way. But, I don't understand how you would be willing to sacrifice what we have all because you are afraid of something that we could both handle together."

"I'm not afraid of it!" he shouted, standing up.

"Sephiroth is dead, Cloud. He's dead, just like Aerith is dead. They are in the Lifestream and neither of them are coming back. I'm sorry Cloud. But you have to accept it."

"Shut up!" he said, pounding his fist on the wall. "You don't know what you are talking about?"

She stepped back as if she had just taken a physical blow. "You are not the only person to have ever fought him. Did you forget? I saw him slaughter my father and my friends. I have felt the edge of his blade and nearly died from it. I was at that battle in the Northern Cave too, so please stop acting like you are the only one who has suffered by his hands. Spare me." She took a deep breath and, curling her hands into fists, lowered them to her sides. "She was my friend, too, Cloud. Even though..." She looked away. They both knew what she meant. "I cared about her. I would rather she be here with you than suffer the fate she was given... But, that's not what happened."

Cloud's shoulders slumped. "Tifa, I don't want to fight with you."

"Well, if you thought you could just walk out on me without a fight, then that's your fault. You'd have been better off just walking out like Barret did when he took Marlene and Denzel. Just like Cid and Vincent and Yuffie. I just wish... I wish you could accept that you don't have to live in the past anymore. Why can't you accept it?"

"Because if I just assume that you are right and you turn out to be wrong…" he didn't finish the sentence. He didn't have to. "If there is a way to come back, Sephiroth can and will find it."

"If!" she said. "If! If! What if! Is that the best you can do, Cloud? Really? Don't you think you owe me more than that?"

"You are right," he said. Those words made her eyes light up with hope. Had she just gotten through to him? Was he going to let her come along? Better yet, was he going to stay? "I should have just left without telling you anything."

It was the way that her heart felt like it was dissolving slowly that carried her across the room before she even realized her feet were moving. She slapped him as hard as she could, her mouth letting out a savage cry. "Fine… Go!" she screamed. "Just look one last time! I'm not waiting for you anymore! I did enough of that!"

He stood up again, having been knocked against the wall by the force of her hit. His eyes did not meet hers. "I hoped that you would. I still love you, Tifa. I always will."

"What good does that do me when you are never here?" she asked bitterly.

Cloud didn't answer. After a moment of just standing there, the silence so consuming that it felt like a separate entity in the room, he finally moved towards the door and out of her life for what would be the last time.

There were a few thoughts that went through her head when she woke up. The first of which was just a slew of curses that resulted from a dull pain she couldn't quite place yet. The second was the question of where she was, because this most certainly was not her bed. The third was of how she had gotten where ever she was because there was a substantial chunk of time she just could not seem to remember. There were a few more thoughts, but those ones really weren't as important as the first three. Her burgundy eyes darted around, trying to take in her surroundings. All she saw were crates. "Great," she thought. She tried to sit up a little, and that's when she realized that her hands were bound. She stared at the ropes for a second as though she thought there was some possibility that she was only dreaming they were there. It took a few seconds more for her to realize that this was not a nightmare, that the ropes were, in fact, quite real, and that she was in a bit of a predicament as far as predicaments went.

"Don't panic," she told herself, though she didn't really have to. She wasn't scared. In fact, she was annoyed that this slight misadventure took her away from the bachelorette party of her best friend. They were all meant to be celebrating in Costa del Sol, and as that was the last place she could remember, it seemed it was a good place to start. Focus. She gathered her thoughts and then instantly regretted it because it made her very aware of the headache that she had. Shaking her head and trying to ignore it, she did everything she could to think clearly. She recalled going to the store and picking up some wine coolers, chips, dip, and a dirty party game. She smiled a bit when she recalled the look on the young store clerk who looked at it and then at her, or rather, her chest, and then appeared as though all of his dreams had come true.

"Getting away with yourself. Focus," she scolded. All right, so she had gone to the store and was heading back to their beach house. She'd opened the door and then… "Oh… right," she groaned, remembering being face to face with a certain blonde Turk. She'd shrieked upon seeing Tifa, obviously not expecting to see her so soon. Tifa dropped the bag and raised her fists just as Tseng said, "So, you are the one who purchased Rufus' beach house." That was all she remembered. And now she was here. Damn, how had the Turks been able to subdue her? In the past, she'd never had trouble with them.

All right, so now she knew how she had come to be here. The 'where' was still a mystery. No matte. She now knew who her enemy was and had nothing to worry about. That secure thought fresh in her mind, she began to struggle against the ropes. She wouldn't be able to facilitate her own escape if she didn't have her hands.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," said a man with a wily voice. She recognized it right away.

She turned her head to the side quickly, but then doubled over, her eyes squinting shut. "Son of a bitch," she groaned, the pain in her head now throbbing. "Reno? What the hell?"

"Are you always this eloquent, babe?" he asked. She stared at him angrily. There was something about the way he was standing that pissed her off. Maybe it was because he looked so damned haughty; like he'd already won. He was holding a cigarette in his hand as he leaned back against the metal wall, his knee bent, foot pressed flat against the siding.

"Babe?" she snapped. "Cut the crap. Whatever game you're playing, I want no part in it, so just let me go."

Reno chuckled. "I like you, Tifa. You get right to the point. As it is, though, I'm not authorized to do that. So, it looks like you're just going to have to get comfortable there." He walked closer to her and sat down on a crate. He stuck the cigarette in his mouth, took a long drag, and then exhaled the foul smelling smoke in her general direction.

"You, of all people, know that these ropes can't hold me for long. So, you have two choices here. You can release me and I won't beat you within an inch of your life. Or, you could sit there and keep looking like an idiot, and when I get free, I will beat you within an inch of your life. So, Reno… which will it be?"

He stared at her for a moment as if considering his response, but then started to laugh. "Well, isn't that something. Of all the people of your little group, you'd be the last one I'd peg as the funny one. I even had you right behind Cloud."

Tifa's eyes darkened. Cloud simply wasn't a name you said in front of her unless you were one of her friends, and even then, it depended on her current mood. She looked down at her hands and slowly began trying to work them loose. To distract him, she asked, "Where am I? Can you at least tell me that?"

"I can," he said. "You are currently in the cargo hold, as you are considered precious cargo of course, of a ship bound for Junon. You are here because the president seems to have taken a liking to you, babe. Can't really blame him for that, though. It's enough for him to request your company in Midgar. Does that answer your question?"

"Midgar?"

"Oh... Yeah. Headquarters are fully operational again. The city is much different now. Can't wait to show you," he teased.

She rolled her eyes. "And, where are the other infamous puppets of Rufus Shinra?"

"If you are referring to Tseng, Elena, and Rude, then I must apologize for their absence. I'm sure they'd have loved the chance to catch up with you, but they had their own undertakings to tend. Though, I must say," he began, his turquoise eyes scanning her body slowly as though trying to memorize the way she looked, "I don't envy them. Wherever they are, I'm pretty sure my view is much, much better."

She wrinkled her nose. "Gross. Gods… of all people to be with, it had to be you." She heard the way that he laughed and felt like slapping him. "I'm not a steak, Reno. Stop salivating over me. Maybe your Midgar doxies don't mind you being all skeevy at them, but I will take a pass."

"Doxies? It's not nice to call the fine, respectable women that share my bed such derogatory names. You don't even know them. I think it's unfair to judge them beforehand, wouldn't you agree? I mean, somebody of your superior morals should know better than to judge any woman for their choice."

She didn't answer. She was nearly free. Reno seemed to have noticed that now. He got off of the crate, threw the cigarette aside and grabbed her wrists. "I won't act as if I am stronger than you are. We both know better. I am aware that you can easily free yourself and overpower me. But, I do have my orders. I gave my word to the President that I'd do my job. And so I will."

Tifa looked away from his commanding eyes and glowered. She had no words to say. Nothing that would have gotten her anywhere, anyway. So, she chose to go the Vincent Valentine route and fell into a silent brood.

"There, love. That's better." He laughed when she groaned at the new term of endearment. "Well, we are almost to Junon. You slept most of the way."

"If you call that sleeping," she muttered.

"Tifa," he said, squeezing her wrists. "It's rude to interrupt somebody when they are talking." She looked at him, waiting for him to continue. He blinked. "Oh, I'm finished." He smiled at her as his eyes scanned her again.

He'd have to be careful with this one. He had no delusions about the ease, or lack thereof, where was this mission was concerned. From the moment he had been briefed, he was keenly aware that none of this was going to be a walk in the park. Tifa was tough, strong-willed, and feisty. In fact, Reno had been thoroughly trounced by her the last time they had fought. Though, he did recall that he was able to cop a feel before jumping like a maniac from the Sector Seven pillar. Still, the fact remained that she was undeniably beautiful and, Reno, having a weakness towards the fairer sex, had to keep reminding himself that she was Tifa Lockheart, and translated into most languages that mattered, that meant she was off limits.

"Stop looking at me that way," she said, feeling like a painting being appraised under his scrutinizing eyes.

"Come now, Tifa. If we are going to be spending the next few days together, we should probably learn to get along."

"I figured we'd covered that base when you helped us regain Wutai from Sehton. But, I guess that teaches me a lesson. Turks can never be trusted no matter what they do to prove otherwise."

Reno looked a little wounded by that comment. "Tifa, don't take it personally. It was just bad luck that placed you here with me. Had Yuffie been the one to walk in instead of you, she'd be the one tied up, and I'd be the one having to listen to the Great Ninja's ranting and raving."

Tifa sneered. "Had it been Yuffie, you'd be lying in a ditch somewhere as Vincent fed your entrails to his dog." Her eyes grew wide, then. Beris had been at the beach house. Why hadn't he barked? Her eyes narrowed as she silently accused the Turk in front of her of doing something terrible to him.

"Well, there you go," he began, unaware of the puzzle she was piecing together in silence. "This worked out for everybody." Reno stood up, the grin back in its rightful place.

She cursed under her breath, imagining his head exploding and wishing she had the power to make it happen. It just had to be Reno. If Elena had been the one in charge of this mission, then Tifa would have already been swimming back towards Costa del Sol. Better yet, she'd have the captain turn the ship around. But Reno had proven in the last year that he had a mind; that he could out think some of the smartest men and find unique ways to gain the upper hand. If not for him, Yuffie would have married some asshole that had been threatening her country and probably would be dead by now.

"Screw you," she said, for lack of anything else to say.

The outburst seemed to catch him by surprise as he'd been quite sure she was going to give him the silent treatment, but then he threw his head back and laughed. "Well, if you want…"

"Sir!" Reno turned around, his hand going straight for his gun as if by reflex. "We will be docking in Junon within the hour."

"Good," he said, his voice notably different than his conversational tone. He actually seemed to have an authoritative air about him. She remembered wondering how it was that anybody should take Reno seriously for any reason. He was goofy, childish, and never seemed to care about anything outside of instant gratification. But seeing how he changed now when a subordinate was in front of him seemed to clear at least some of that up. "And is there a chopper waiting for us?"

"No, sir. The president is sorry to inform you that all choppers are currently being used by Shinra employees. He can, however, have a buggy for you by tomorrow morning, sir"

Tifa laughed at the look on Reno's face. She couldn't resist herself. "Is the poor little Turk angry now that you aren't Shinra's favorite Turk anymore?"

"When have I ever been?" he asked absently. "Now shut up. I'm thinking."

"Don't hurt yourself," she said.

"I couldn't possibly hurt myself any more than it does to deliver such... embarrassingly lame insults," he said. "At least attack something that makes sense. That's bullying one oh-one. Call me a slob. Make fun of my hair or my stupid little tattoos. But to imply that I, a tactician, am not smart? Too obviously wrong to sting, babe. Try harder."

Her cheeks flushed. "You give yourself too much credit. You aren't nearly as smart as you think you are."

"You know, I hate you a lot less when your mouth is closed."

She smirked and her brow rose. "That doesn't give me much of a reason to stop talking," she said. To her dismay, he laughed. "Well, then, what are you going to do?"

"About what?" he asked, genuinely confused. She pointed with both hands at the trooper in blue. "Oh! Right. You're still here." He stood up a bit straighter and said, "Fine, fine. Just make sure we have a place to stay before we step foot off the boat or I'll... I don't know... kill you." He waved his hand dismissively and turned on one foot to go back towards his captive.

"Yes, sir," the trooper said, saluting before going to do as he was ordered.

Tifa's jaw dropped slightly and her eyes narrowed. "So, that's how things get done at Shin-Ra? You threaten people with their lives for the simplest of orders. My, what a respectable job you seem to have."

"Oh, please. I find it comical that I'm being lectured on ethics by a smutty bartender." He regretted those words the second they came out of his mouth.

"Smutty?" she hissed, ripping her binds. Her hand shot out to grab his ankle, and with little effort, she pulled him down. He landed on the ground with a heavy clank and a loud grunt of pain. Before he could react to what had just happened, Tifa was over him, her hand on his collar and her fist plowing into his face.

It wasn't as hard as it could have been. He knew that. Still, it hurt like Hell and had him finally understanding what the phase 'seeing stars' was all about. He managed to recover in time to see her fist coming back at him. He barely managed to dodge it and winced when he heard her knuckles crack on the floor next to him. There was no way she hadn't cracked a knuckle, so he figured it was over. But she raised her fist again. "Damn," he cursed, hooking his legs around her waist and flipping her over. He used the fact that he'd just taken her by surprise to his advantage and pinned her down with his knees. "Tifa… cool it!" he shouted.

"Get off of me," she screamed, twisting and writhing, hands going to his thighs, thumbnails digging in enough to break his skin even through the thick fabric of his slacks.

Reno, feeling he had no choice, removed his gun from its holster and, with one swift motion, pressed it against her forehead with enough force to slam her head against the ground. She went completely still, all too aware of the barrel now poised above her temple, and when he lifted it an inch, he could see that it would likely leave a bruise. There was a small tug in his stomach. Something that might have been guilt, but she'd left him with no other option. "Good girl," he said in a scarily calm voice. "Right. I'm tying you up again," he said, reaching for the rope. "When we get to Junon, I have to have your word that you won't pull this shit."

"You really have overestimated your intelligence if you think I'll agree to that," she said through her teeth.

"Tifa, I can't have you screaming your lungs out and drawing attention to us. I need you to behave like a good hostage," he added, his usual light-hearted humor replaced by mean-spiritedness.

"The first chance I get, I'm going to run." No sooner had the words left her mouth did she quickly turn her head, forcing the gun from her temple to the center of her forehead. She spat in his face, her head coming up, forcing Reno to remove the gun. His back went rigid and he lifted his hand to wipe her saliva off of his cheek just before an eerie sneer crossed his features. Then she saw him pull out his electro-mag rod with such a speed she couldn't do or say anything before he pressed it against her side and jolted her with enough electricity to knock her out. Well, if nothing else, it answered her earlier question.