Hi folks! I went to Disneyland the other day (I celebrated my first year of marriage woo!) and it inspired me to write this. Yeah. This has a connection with a previous chapter of this anthology. Read on to find out which. Love you guys! ~Zeldafreak701

Prompt: Tifa tries her best to wiggle her way around the Gold Saucer unseen, but things don't go as planned.

Rating: T

Although she knew about the date for a while now, and continually told herself that it didn't bother her, Tifa was still agitated when Aerith came in and all but pushed Cloud out the door, past Tifa who gave them a fake smile. Secretly she was hoping Aerith would forget about it. It had seemed like such a long time ago since it was mentioned. But no, she made sure to get Cloud right where she wanted him. She sulked at the fact that even if Aerith had forgotten, Tifa wouldn't have the confidence to ask him herself. She looked out the window of the Ghost Hotel and saw the lights dance about down below.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and she excitedly turned around, but was slightly disappointed to see that it was only Yuffie. "Hey Tif! You're coming down with us right?" the young ninja asked excitedly.

"Us?" Tifa asked.

"The guys and I are going out for Enchantment Night. We're going to see the races, go to the shows and play all the games!" Yuffie shouted. She definitely was a teenager.

"O-okay. Sure."

She reluctantly followed the group down, all of them talking about what they wanted to do first. After making it to the first floor, Tifa perked up. She wasn't going to be down because her two adult friends decided to go out and enjoy each other's company. She found herself smiling when the group, sans Cloud and Aerith, started at the Arcade. Cid wanted to kick at the snowboard game that kept tossing him, Barret was engrossed in a shooting game, Yuffie was having fun with the punching bag and Red was pawing at the whack-a-mole style game while Vincent watched silently. Tifa tried her hand at the claw machine and, in her concentration, forgot all of the troubles that plagued her a few minutes earlier. With great effort, and more gil she wanted to admit to spending, she managed to win a small chocobo doll with a keychain attachment.

She pocket her useless bounty when she saw Yuffie jump up, waving her phone in the air, and shout to her friends amidst the arcade noise: "Guys! Cloud and Aerith are going to be in the dragon show! We have to see this!"

Everyone excitedly tore themselves away from their activities, intrigued with the idea of Cloud being on stage. Everyone was able to get seats relatively close to the front to the stage. Cloud was clearly wasn't into it and Aerith huffed but played along. Cloud's unenthused attitude did little to dampen the crowd's mood, and everyone laughed and cheered for the 'knight.' When it was all over, the group all stood up and clapped. They greeted the two of them off stage.

"You guys are so dorky!" said Yuffie.

"I'd rule out a career as an actor, kid," said Cid.

"Oh Cid," said Aerith, "Cloud is handsome enough to be a stage actor. And that was fun wasn't it?"

Cloud nervously scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah I guess it was fun."

Before anyone could say anything further, Aerith said, "Well we'll see you guys back at the room. Cloud and I are still on our date you know."

Everyone waved them off. As Aerith put her arm through Cloud's, Tifa heard her say to him, "Let's go to the gondola next."

Everyone in the group discussed going on the roller coaster next. "Come on, Tifa, let's go," said Yuffie.

Tifa bit her lip. "I'll catch up soon. I just remembered I left something in my room. I'll be right back!" she turned and ran up the stairs and out the door, different from the one which Cloud and Aerith exited. She didn't know what the hell she was doing. It was wrong to spy on the two of them, but Tifa wanted to know how their date was going. She spotted Cloud's spiky hair in the crowed and followed a good distance behind them, making sure not to be seen. She followed them to the gondola line. She meant to leave as soon as they got in line, but unfortunately found herself sandwiched between eager rider couples and was forced to wait in line. She wanted to say she changed her mind, but she wasn't that far from Cloud and Aerith, only four people stood between them, and she could hear bits of their conversation. She decided to stay.

The line moved quickly enough, there were two different lines, each leading to their own loading station several yards apart. Cloud and Aerith didn't turn around even once. Tifa listened as Aerith talked mostly about herself, Cloud being the more reserved type she remembered so well. She talked about her flower business and how Shinra had a strange interest in her since she was young. Tifa felt like a loser the entire time. Here she was eavesdropping on her friends' date, for no particular reason other than her own insecurities, and to top it all off she was alone amidst couples who were fawning over each other. She heard them talk about their plans to see the world together, and reminisce about their first kisses and how they met. Each time she heard a romantic story she wanted to crawl in a hole and hide from the world forever. But she felt invisible enough already.

They began nearing the gondola ride and saw Aerith and Cloud get on and take off out of sight. "She's probably going to kiss him when then fireworks go off," she thought. She had dreamed of Cloud being her first kiss once upon a time. But that opportunity was long gone, all thanks to...

"How many?" the guy operating the ride asked again. Tifa jolted up. She was at the front of the line, face to face with a frazzled worker.

"Oh uh...just one."

"Just one?" he asked. He turned to the other loading station and shouted to the attendant a few yards away, pointing at her, "We have a single rider here!" The worker in the distance gave him a thumbs up and the attendant turned back to her. "Just wait and we'll get you paired up." Tifa flushed bright red, suddenly feeling so many eyes on her. So much for being invisible. She wanted to deck the jerk for calling attention to herself. Why couldn't they just let her ride alone? Before she could answer, the gondola appeared in front of her, door open, with only darkness inside. "There you go," the worker aggressively waved her in.

She didn't want to argue, having already been humiliated in front of a bunch of strangers, seeing her crush go off with her new friend and being alone when she could've spent time with friends. She decided she would just get it over with and make a beeline back to the hotel room after this was over. She jumped in and hastily shut the door behind her, taking a seat, burying her face in her hands and letting out a muffled, frustrated scream behind her clenched teeth into her palms.

After a few seconds to recollect herself, the ride began to move from it's dark resting spot, into a more well lit altitude. The streaks of light shined inside the dark interior and Tifa looked up to glimpse the poor person that had to see her in such a state. The thin light streaks started from the top and swiftly moved to the bottom,disappearing behind the wooden wall, in quick strokes, not fully illuminating his face. Tifa eyed him up and down, the ever familiar white coat and piercing blue eyes...the image invaded her mind like claws seeping into her memory.

The gondola finally reached a height where the whole cabin was dimly lit at once, "Bad day?" he said at that very instant. Tifa saw the young president's face staring back her, arms folded.

"AHH!" Tifa screamed, sitting all the way back in the chair. Her eyes darted back and forth about the interior of the cabin. She tried to open the door hatch, but it was locked. She looked over the sill of the open window. They were so high. This all happened in a matter of seconds until Tifa assumed a defensive stance: Her arms were folded across her chest. "Wh-what're you doing here?"

Rufus hadn't moved an inch and watched Tifa's quick movements with an amused expression. "Enjoying the view," he said, eyeing her up and down, a smirk curled on his lips. His face had healed since his skirmish with Cloud.

Tifa knew he wasn't talking about the Gold Saucer. Tifa felt his gaze on her and she felt so exposed and vulnerable. Her skirt felt shorter, her cheeks felt hot and her breasts felt heavier. She tightened her closed legs to hide their shaking. The images came back to her in still flashes. His shotgun pointing in her face. His arm on her shoulder. His devilish smirk. His kiss. His kiss! How dare he? She just had to follow Cloud and Aerith! This was the absolute last place she wanted to be. "You-you bastard!" was all she could say.

Rufus laughed as he slowly shook his head. "Such fowl language. Though I can't expect much coming from the mouth AVALANCHE scum."

Tifa frowned and exhaled hard through her nose. They were alone. What happened was between them. "But you kissed this mouth," she replied disdainfully. "Why?"

"Because I could," he said simply.

Because he COULD? She wanted to lunge at him but remembered he could be armed and stopped herself. What was he going to do with her now? What was he even doing here? She decided to keep him talking, keep him distracted so he couldn't call for back up until the ride stopped and she could make a break for it, warn the other too. "Don't they know who you are? How do you walk about so freely? Your face was all over the news during that saccharine parade back in Junon!"

Rufus unfolded his legs and switched their positions. "Well aren't you inquisitive, miss foul mouth?"

"Answer me!" Tifa bit out.

Rufus sighed but still held his playful expression. "My face and style are all over the place. There's tons of imitators. Me, alone, at the Gold Saucer on this night of nights, no bodyguards near proximity? It's easy to pass off as a fake."

"A likely story, I guess. But foolish."

"No, what's foolish is that you think you're hiding how scared you are and that you can distract me with your motor mouth."

"What's with your fixation of my mouth?" She stomped her foot. He only gave her a hard stare in return, but still held that arrogant smirk; the same smirk that his bloody face greeted her with that fateful night. "I'm not scared of you, Shinra."

"Is that why you're huddled up like a pretzel and shaking like a leaf?"

Tifa looked down and saw that she was indeed still in her scared, huddled pose. She relaxed more and forced her clenched hands on either side of her, still holding her legs tightly together. "You're up to something. You wouldn't be here for no reason."

He tilted his head, "And you would be?"

Tifa bit her lip. "Mind your own business." She looked away toward the opening in the cabin, letting in the exploding lights for their view.

Rufus laughed. He uncrossed his legs and leaned on his elbows, closer to Tifa's face. The interior of these cabins sure were small! His attitude then turned serious and the smirk was no longer visible. "Your business is my business. You best think twice before trying to cross me."

Tifa felt a shift in her demeanor. For some reason, seeing Rufus not have the same facade of playful arrogance he displayed when he kissed her, she felt a fire spark in front of her. "Oh? Or you'll what? You'll crush my home?" She looked him in the eyes. "You'll try to steal my friend's plane?" His nostrils flared. She stood up slowly as she said, "Or maybe you'll point a gun to my face and steal a kiss from me." Rufus held her gaze as she moved up from her seat. The cabin ceiling was too low for her to stand up straight but it did little to deter her. Her aggressive stance would surely warrant him drawing any weapon he held on his person, but he didn't. Tifa then knew that he probably didn't have one. There was also a wonderful sense of power that she felt, knowing she was able to keep him still with just a few words. She wondered how far she could take this. There would never be an opportunity like this again. She was done being humiliated.

She leaned over him, and to her delight, Rufus drew back slightly. The closer she moved, the further back he leaned. She leaned forward enough to place her palms on the seat in between his legs. Despite the dramatic shift in power play experienced in the small place, Rufus still tried to hold his ground. Tifa leaned in so close they shared breath. She was not feeling herself. Somewhere in her mind, she wanted to still make a leap out of the window. "That's right, Shinra, you can try and take us down as much as you want...but we'll keep coming back." She stopped leaning in. "Every time." Tifa let a smile tug on the side of her lip.

A slight jolt shook the entire cabin, signaling that it had made its round. Tifa pulled away slowly and turned to the door, which opened with perfect timing, to step off the landing. Tifa walked hastily to disappear into the crowd in a daze. She didn't realize how fast her heart was pounding or how sweaty her palms were. She felt so exhilarated but she couldn't dwell on that now. Shinra was here and she needed to find her friends, fast.

He watched her get away. He couldn't believe he let her get away, but he sat still in his seat, glancing at the spot which she sat and the remnant she left behind. He stepped off a few moments after her, too late to see where she went. Reno approached him then, blending in with the crowd with his usual unkempt clothing. "Yo boss, hope you enjoyed your break. Tseng told me the informant has acted," he said. He saw his boss was still looking off into the crowd. "Do you want me to go get her?"

Rufus shook his head and then looked at Reno, twirling the chocobo keychain on his finger until he stopped and looked at it in his palm. "Not necessary. They'll come to us soon enough," he said, crushing it in his hand.