"Gee wow! Thanks Loveless for uploading the next chapter!"
-bows to applause-
Okay, sorry I just wanted to be a ham for this moment. I'm going to break it to you now, there is no sex in this chapter either. You see when I first set out to write this chapter, it was going to be filled with tons of the hot and heavy smut. It was going to be creative too. Well, apparently Square's characters were not having any of that. I feel like I'm letting you guys down, but not to worry when the smut does come, it will stay. I mean Sephiroth hasn't gotten any in at least seven years... and Tifa... never in her... ... I don't even remember how old she is in this fic. Oh well read and review please.
Oh yea, as I said they are SquareSoft/Enix's characters and locations.
Four days had passed and security was still tight in Junon. Tifa and Sephiroth had only ventured out to acquire supplies, scout for security threats, and check the shipping schedules. Apparently, the town was still on high alert for the new president Rufus Shinra. She had heard rumors that Rufus was more ruthless than his father, not that it mattered, she was still going to bring him to his knees and destroy him. The high security had prevented Tifa from sneaking into the main labs, but Junon did have a few garages and secondary labs that had been abandoned. Some of the machinery she found was salvageable and quickly used to augment Jenova's life support tanks. Sephiroth had watched silently, lost in his own thoughts and telepathic communications with Jenova. He had started to wonder just where she spent most of her nights. There were their scouting missions, but other than that she would disappear when the sun went down and not return for hours on end. Not that it was his business or concern, but he still wanted to know. Never had he harbored such thoughts for another, never had he felt possessive over someone.
Four nights of being stuck in Junon did not bode well for Tifa's restless spirit. She needed action, something occupy her free time. While in Soldier and under Hojo's tutulage she rarely had free time that was not used for eating or sleeping. Reports, meetings, training, and aiding Hojo in his lab had taken most, if not all, of her free time. Now that she was on her own, there was only so much she could do. Well, there were a large number of things she could do to pass the time, but they were all things she was unsure of. She had taken to sitting on the roof of their building and watching the city below. There was a tight nook that was difficult to see from the other rooftops, but allowed her an unobstructed view of the building adjacent to the one she and Sephiroth occupied. The reason behind her location was not random, she had taken to spying on the couple she had witnessed copulating a few days ago. Their sexual relationship was fascinating, tantalizing, and something she wanted to participate in but was unsure about.
The couple did not seem to leave the bed, as this was their third time in one day. Well, third time, that she had witnessed. Tifa was losing herself in the strange tingling sensations that were running rampant through her body with a flash of red against the drab background caught her eye. Five days, four nights, she had seen nothing red floating around their building, especially not near her rooftop hideaway. Keeping her body low Tifa scrambled back to the gaping hole in the roof and dropped down to the loft she shared with Sephiroth. He did not bother to look away from the window at Tifa's entrance.
"Location compromised, we have to get out of here," she whispered grabbing her bag. She had procured a new disguise for herself while out scouting the other day. The one she had put together for Sephiroth had immediately been incinerated by the ex-general. He would not change his appearance, as he was not in hiding and would meet Shinra's forces face to face if the need arose. It would not be the path of least resistance but it would sate his ever-increasing blood lust. He eyed Tifa as she stripped down and put on her change of clothes. Though she was primarily raised by Hojo he found it odd that she behaved like a stereotypical woman sometimes. It was rather strange that she chose to change clothes in a minor crisis. In the end, he forgot any protest or words of haste as an almost nude Tifa Lockheart was a distracting sight to anyone. He might be superior to all humans and wish their destruction but he could do nothing but appreciate the short and buxom brunette as she slipped on a tight leather mini skirt with suspenders and a white halter top. It was a good thing that she had only worn her uniform while in Soldier, he would have had to discipline a lot more soldiers about their attitudes towards her. Most likely, he would have had to discipline himself.
Tifa pulled her hair into a low pony tail and slung her bag across her back. Her glowing red eyes would still make her stand out, but sunglasses could hide those. She tossed her cloak to Sephiroth meaning for him to use it in order to wrap Jenova. Tifa paused after catching Sephiroth's gaze. He looked quite different from usual. Normally his expression was blank, only little subtle quirks of muscles letting her know what was going on through his mind. When back at Shinra, Tifa was typically the only one who could tell when the general was as relaxed as he could get or when he was about to snap. She had always doubted that he had any other expressions, but he had just proven her wrong. His teal eyes were cloudy and a slight line of tension threatened to pull his lips into a smirk. It was a rather predatory look that Tifa had not witnessed in him before, especially when he looked at her. Forcing her mind to focus on the present danger, she looked away.
"I doubt I'm as high as you and Jenova on the wanted list so I'll distract them," she said brushing past him to look out the window. Tifa checked her watch, it was getting close to 5PM the time that the Turks called it a day. That shock of red fluff had to belong to the Reno of the Turks, all she had to do was run him around for another fifteen minutes and he would call it quits for the day. Unless they were directly guarding the higher Shinra officials the Turks refused to work overtime, much to the chagrin of anyone who had to deal with them; but when you had as much power as the Turks, you could make your own rules. Tifa had pulled on her gloves and was about to bound out the window when her head was yanked back. Sephiroth had grabbed a tight hold on her ponytail, using it like a handle pull her back away from the window. Whatever had been running through his mind was replaced with a scowl as he released her and hissed,
"Two hours." Tifa could only nod with a confused look on her face before flinging herself from the window. It was a good thing that her previous injuries had healed, though the was still a little sore. Her body landed with a heavy thud in a plastic recycling dumpster. The ignored the bruises and few cuts and climbed out. Normally she would have run as fast as she could, but she needed to make sure that all the Turks would follow her. The route for Sephiroth and Jenova was secured and since she was almost positive that it was Reno who was after her, his partner would sure be close by. It was not hard to feign a dazed trot down the alley as she was a little rattled from her fall and electric shock a few days earlier.
Tifa paused at the end of the alley pretending to catch her breath before wandering out into the main street. She did not get far before she collided with a solid figure. She stumbled a little before hands clasped on her wrists. Before she could even think to look at who was holding her, she brought her foot up to connect with the person's gut. It was not as soft as the average person's would be; nor was it as solid as someone with Shinra's training. Still, she heard the air vacate the person and she pulled herself free. She jogged a few steps away, ducking behind a store sign.
"Tifa?" a foreign voice called weakly after her. She dared to turn back to look, but the voice did not sound like Reno. Rude would never call after her like that. She checked her watch, fifteen more minutes. She stood up straight and continued to walk down the street. Every so often she would glance up like she was squinting into the sun, but she was checking rooftops for any sight of red hair or a shiny bald head. Even in the crowded street she could hear the footsteps behind her, doubling hers. She refused to walk any faster, as that would give her away. She would just deal with the person when they caught up with her. Leisurely she ducked down another alley and waited for the steps to round the corner.
Before her appeared a medium height and build. Pale cheeks were flushed as he had ignored his own pain to catch up with her. She waited patiently, scanning around for blue suits. The man in front of her could not have been affiliated with Shinra, so who was he. Crazy blonde hair and blue eyes stared at her, wide with wonder.
"Tifa I knew you were alive," he panted, still trying to catch his breath. Tifa gave no indication whether or not she knew who he was. There was something vaguely familiar about his voice, but that was it. "When no one back home heard from you for years, I left and went to Midgar to look for you but Shinra wouldn't let me near you." As he continued on Tifa she stared blankly at him. Apparently he was someone from her past, a past that she did not remember. He was a person she had lost and never known about until now. Or he could have been a Shinra plant. They knew that she had not memories of her past, it would have been easy to have anyone claim to be someone from her past.
"Ey Rude, looks like we got a two for one special," called the sly voice of Reno as he walked into the alley. Tifa still refused to have any reaction. This was actually a good thing, she could keep them busy until it was time for the Turks to call it quits and then be on her way.
"Three on one, sounds like Turk odds," Tifa hissed, dropping into a fighting stance. She still have five more minutes and wasting time talking was not her strong suit.
"C'mon babe, I usually save the triple team for the second date," Reno chuckled. "'Sides, this runt ain't with us." If the blonde wasn't with Shinra then who was he? He could not have been from Nibelheim, could he? He said he left home to look for her, but she did not have a home anymore.
"If you want a fight Reno we can do this, I beat you once I can do it again," the blonde said, blue eyes turning hard. From the harness on his back, he produced a large sword; not as long as Sephiroth's masamune but still rather impressive for someone his size.
"Look blondie, we'd love to play but we gotta get... Whoa Tits!" Reno exclaimed finally eyeing up Tifa's new appearance. "Yea, we gotta get Tits over there before the day is over."
"You're not taking Tifa, she's coming with me," the blonde snarled. Tifa spared a glance behind her to see Rude waiting patiently. The bald man was wearing the same expression that Tifa had seen on his face for many years, it mirrored her own, empty. He did not do anything except shrug once at Tifa, a small lifting of the shoulders.
"She has no idea who you are," Reno taunted. "She don't have any memories of before she came to Shinra."
"I don't believe you," the blonde hissed, eyes narrowed. "Turks'll say anything and do anything."
"Whatever man," Reno said, relaxing his hand where it had been tensed by his ERM. The redhead brushed some dust from his rumpled suit jacket and turned on his heels. "Yo, it's quittin' time partner. Later Tits... Oh, and if you don't believe me, ask her yourself Cloudy." With that the two Turks left and headed down the street. Their job the last thing on their minds. The work day was over and they could start again tomorrow. Cloud stood there confused.
"Did they just run away?" he asked turning to Tifa. Again he was met with a blank stare and a fighting stance. "I don't want to fight you, I just want to know what happened to you Tifa. It's been over ten years since I last saw you."
"I don't know who you are," Tifa said stoically. She started backing down the alley, she had to get to the safe house. She had two hours to get there or else Sephiroth would most likely starting tearing the base apart. Though stealth was not necessarily important to either of their goals, not having to fight a quarter of an army everywhere they went made things easier.
"Shiva, what the hell did they do to you," Cloud asked, eyes hardening with hatred. There was something Tifa had in common with the strange guy.
"It doesn't matter, I've already started my payback and divine retribution is coming," she said, a malicious smile cracking her hard features. With the Turks off her track for the night she could go, but what to do with the new character who appeared. She doubted that he could bring her memory back. She was not even sure that she wanted it back as it would only show her exactly what Shinra had taken from her. That was a rabbit hole that Tifa did not necessarily want to go down. Slowly she backed away, down the other end of the alley. She needed to get away from the blonde man named Cloud and back to the familiar. Sephiroth and Jenova were waiting for her.
"Wait, did you blow up the other reactors in Midgar and when can I see you again," Cloud asked. Tifa said nothing, just disappeared around the corner and on to a crowded street. When Cloud's muscles finally unfroze, he followed after her but it was too late. This was the third time he had lost Tifa.
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There was nothing pleasant about the Junon sewers: steam, stink, more steam, dampness, sweat, grime, filth, and vermin. For the fifth time, Tifa questioned why they had both agreed to meet in the sewers before heading to their other safe house. Granted it was a good location to check for any bugs the Turks may have been able to plant on them, but it was no place Tifa truly wanted to be. She could tell Sephiroth was of the same mindset when she saw him doing his best to not touch much. Those teal eyes were sharp and trained on her as she approached.
"A shame Buster can't be here," Tifa whispered, finding it odd that they had agreed to use the name of Zack Fair's sword instead of his real name, but that was how password phrases worked. Very few knew the name of the sword Zack's mentor had given to him.
"That incessant barking would have caused us trouble though," Sephiroth replied with the preordained words. "You just made it Lockheart."
"Had to get some supplies," she said tossing another bag to him. Sephiroth quickly opened it and peered inside. It was filled with small gadgets, bombs, and other piece of equipment. At first he thought that Tifa had found all of those to be tracking devices, but it dawned on him that she planned on taking parts from those things and working on Mother's tank. He lifted his head and stared at her expectantly. "Turks rarely lock their vehicles as they don't believe anyone would dare steal from them," she answered. "You clean?"
"Let's go," he said after a short nod to affirm that he had not found any tracking bugs on him. After another hour traipsing through the sewers the two arrived at their second hideout, a small, abandoned hotel. While there had been no real reasoning behind choosing it to begin with Tifa was glad that the place would most likely have running water. While in Soldier she could easily spend a week a swamp, but some of her tolerances were beginning to wear off with age. She wanted a shower, to get all the filth off her body. First things first though, the two split up to do a perimeter search. Tifa found the boiler and hot water tanks for the rooms. All but one had rusted through and broken except for one which barely and enough water for one person, let alone two to bathe. The pipes were labeled 'Panic Room.'
"There is an old panic room attached to the main suite, it's probably the best place to stay. Think you can disable the security systems for it," Sephiroth asked when the two met back up in the main lobby. It was true, all the rooms that Tifa had seen looked as if they belonged down in the sewer. "It's sealed up so nothing should have been able to get in."
"I can do it," she said wiping a sweat stained brow. It was unnaturally hot, but that could be attributed to the fact that half the basement was caved into the sewer and all the steam rose up to the hotel. "There isn't enough water for two separate showers."
"So we'll share."
"Boo Loveless, you're a jerk. Not again!"
-hangs head in shame-
-points at Cloud-
Hey, I would have gotten to the sex in this chapter but someone had to waste all my time chatting up Turks. How romantic, a half dilapidated hotel with not enough water. I say there isn't enough water but we all know that I'm going to write it as if there's enough water to cause another biblical flood. :)