I do not own Final Fantasy VII.


Change of Heart

Chapter LV: Sharing the Good News

Tifa had been expecting a call soon. After having sent her friends letters announcing her pregnancy, she'd been patiently awaiting the flood of phone calls with questions and offers of advice. When the phone finally rang, she wasn't exactly prepared for what she'd hear.

"What the hell do you mean you're pregnant?!" The caller was Cid. Tifa hadn't thought he'd be the first to call, but apparently so.

"Hi, Cid."

"Hi," There was a pause, after some quiet mumbling – Tifa assumed Shera was instructing Cid on what to say – he was back on the line, "So…you're having a baby. Do we know if it's a boy or a girl yet?"

"Not for sure yet, but the doctor is confident it's a boy."

"Who's the daddy? It ain't that damn Sephiroth is it? Motherfu –"

"No, Cid...Cloud is the father."

There was another pause... "I don't know if that's better or worse! I swear you've got the worst taste in me –" There were more muffled voices and some obvious grappling for the phone and suddenly Shera's chipper voice rang over the line. "Hello, Tifa! Long time no see! Congratulations on your new baby!"

"Thank you, Shera." Tifa's sheepish grin was apparent in her voice.

"We'll be visiting in the spring for our annual get-together, I'm sure the baby will be born by then?"

"Probably not. I don't think he'll be here until midsummer."

"Oh, I'm excited!" Shera's voice trembled ecstatically, "Alright, we'll let you go now. We'll be seeing you in a few months."

"I can't wait. Talk to you later." Tifa smiled as she hung up the phone.

So the first one was out of the way, now she just had to wait for Yuffie and Barret to respond.

After finishing the laundry, Tifa carried the empty baskets up to each room, depositing them just inside the doors. Upon returning her own room, she was glad to set the basket aside and find a moment to flop down on her bed.

It was a rare moment when the house was silent. Everyone including Sephiroth and the kids had gone to help find furniture for Cloud and Cissnei's room, so she had the house entirely to herself. She had to relish these moments as often as she could, for they were few and far between. And after the baby is born, she would probably never have a chance to like this again.

Raking her fingers through her hair, she closed her eyes and yawned breathily. She felt like taking a nap, but she didn't want to waste her time sleeping; she slept too much recently on account of having a little one growing in her belly. Her hands found their way over her growing womb and she smiled with the sudden swell of excitement in her chest. She was several weeks along now, and though she didn't look like much at the moment, she was well aware of the changes her body was making. There was the pain in her breasts as they prepared milk for nursing, the stinging in her uterus as it stretched and pulled to make room, the unusual tightness of her skin over her stomach. She knew even before she took the home pregnancy test that she was with child, all the signs had been there in the beginning, but even as she recognized her symptoms, Tifa couldn't bring herself to accept the fact that she would be having a baby.

But that was different now, for whatever reason. She couldn't quite put a finger on it, but as the days passed, she felt more and more relaxed and content with the idea of motherhood. Perhaps it was due to her support group; her family had done well to help her physically and emotionally and now that she'd come to terms with the idea, all she had to do was wait with anticipation.

"I never really thought I'd ever have a baby." She confessed quietly to an empty room. "I never thought this could or would happen to me." Even when she was a lady of the evening, Tifa never actually considered the repercussions of that way of life and as she thought about it right then, she found it strange that she never became pregnant during that time. It was an odd sort of coincidence, if it could be considered such, that when she was having sex on a nightly basis, she never became pregnant, but only when she'd been abstinent for a couple of years and finally slept with a man she actually loved – and only once – did she find herself in the family way. Of all the men she'd ever allowed to touch her, it would be Cloud who would father her first child. One might call it luck, but Tifa called it a gift. A tear rolled down Tifa's cheek. It wasn't a sad or regretful tear; it was due to happiness and satisfaction.

Suddenly the ringing phone broke the peacefulness surrounding her. She somehow knew before she rose to answer it, that it was one of her friends, and she was pleased to hear Yuffie's voice.

"Hi Yuffie."

"Oh my gosh! I can't believe you're pregnant!"

"I see you got my letter."

"Well, duh!" She giggled before continuing, "So come on, tell me is Cloud the lucky winner?"

"Yes he is." Tifa dropped into the chair at Cloud's desk and looked at the pictures of her friends and family.

"Yes, yes, yes! Okay, so you're doing this sorta backwards, but when's the wedding?"

"Huh? Wait, what?"

"C'mon, you two are finally getting married right? I mean…with a bun in the oven, he might as well own up to it and put a ring on ya."

"Umm…Yuffie, Cloud and I aren't getting married. We're not even together."

"Huh? Wait…hold on…" There was a moment of silence before she spoke up again, "…So…you and Cloud are not getting married?"

"That's what I said."

"So hold up, if you're not even together, then how did you end up preggo? Did the two of you get wasted or something."

"No Yuffie!" Tifa suddenly wanted to laugh her head off, but contained herself the best she could, "Cloud and I just…I don't know, we just decided to spend the night together and see where it took us. Unfortunately, we ended up nowhere as far as a relationship goes, but I got pregnant all the same."

"Oh, bummer." Yuffie was clearly disappointed, but she perked up immediately, "Alright then, I'll hook you up with a guy no problem! I've got a few really cute ones –"

"Thanks, but I've already got a man I'm seeing."

"That was fast. So what's his name? Does he like materia? Is he cute or does he look like Cloud?"

"Oh, will you stop? Look, it's probably better I don't tell you about him over the phone, when you come visit us in the spring, you'll meet him."

"Uh, okay."

"I only pray that you don't judge him and give him a chance."

"What, is he an escaped convict or something?"

"Uh…no not exactly."

"What the heck does that mean?"

"Oh, I've got customers, I gotta go, love ya, talk to ya later!" Tifa quickly hung up and stared at the phone for a while before she burst out laughing.

As the day progressed, Tifa found herself lounging in the living room, neglecting everything she should've been doing. Since it was Sunday, the bar was closed and her family wouldn't be back for a while, she took this time for herself and decided to be lazy for a change. She kept the phone nearby, poised to answer should the rest of her friends decide to call with their questions and complaints.

She was almost bored as she lie on the couch in the quiet house. A part of her was growing impatient; Cid and Yuffie had called early, but it was almost two o'clock and Barret hadn't called, nor had Reeve or Nanaki. Of course there were all kinds of reasons why they hadn't: They didn't receive their letters yet, they haven't had the time…Nananki has no thumbs…

Letting her impatience get the better of her, she picked up the phone and dialed Reeve. She tapped her finger anxiously on the mouthpiece, listening to the thumping echo back through the receiver as it rang. After letting it ring for several seconds, Tifa was ready to hang up, but just before she could hit the button, Reeve answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Reeve." Tifa was relieved that he'd finally answered, but she suddenly realized she was at a loss of what to say.

"Hello, Tifa. How are you?"

"Oh, I'm alright, er, did you get that letter I sent you?"

"You sent me a letter?" So he hadn't gotten it yet.

"Yeah, I sent one to everybody."

"Ah," He paused a moment, and she could vaguely hear him talking to someone nearby, "Did you get a letter?" Who was he talking to? Tifa just barely made out Nanaki's voice on the other end…So he and Nanaki were together…Good, that was one less call she had to make."Nanaki says he didn't get one either."

"I see. So what are you two doing today?"

"I was just taking a holiday here in Cosmo Canyon and decided to go camping. It's not something I normally do, so I asked him come along. So what about this letter? I gather it's important."

"Well, you see, I'm having a baby."

"Oh congratulations!" He turned to Nanaki, "Tifa's having a baby." He chuckled a little whatever Nanaki's reply was and picked up with Tifa, "He says he's happy for you and to make sure you name it after his grandpa."

Bugenhagen…Tifa rolled her eyes and smiled, "I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

"We're excited to see the newest addition to our motley crew, when's it due?"

"Sometime in the summer, probably in early July."

"Oh, so it'll miss our annual family reunion. Well, it'll give us all reason to get together again!"

"Yeah, once a year is so overrated." Tifa giggled, "We all really should spend more time together."

"We couldn't agree more."

"Well, I'll let you get back to your camping trip. Take care."

"Thanks, and you take care of yourself. Don't go rushing into battle now that you've got a little one on the way."

"I'm sure we don't have to worry about that, but thanks."

"Talk to you later."

"Bye." Tifa hung up and sighed heavily as she rested the phone on her lap.

As she reflected on the brief but pleasing conversation, she realized that neither Reeve nor Nanaki made a fuss about who the father of her baby was. Not that it was really anyone's business, but that's what she liked about both of them; they were usually unbiased and when it came to personal affairs like this they were even more so. Even though she was never particularly close to either of them, she knew now they were truly her friends as they were happy for her regardless.

Now it seemed the only one she had left to call was Barret. Contacting him was a long shot, especially when he was working in the oilfield. If she was lucky, she could catch him while he was taking a break. This call was the one she was really dreading. She wasn't at all afraid of Barret – he was one of her oldest friends – but she wasn't looking forward to his reaction, though she couldn't figure out why.

The phone rang and rang, and like with Reeve, she was about to hang up when Barret finally answered.

"Hello?"

"Barret!" The dread left her chest and she was overcome with joy to hear his voice.

"Tifa! How's it goin'?"

"Fine. Did I get you at a bad time?"

"Not at all, I was just checkin' my mail. Looks like I got a letter from you."

"Yes, I sent them out a while ago. I was just about to ask if you got it yet."

"So what's so important that I get a letter and a call?"

"I'm pregnant."

Barret also had to pause for a moment to make sure he'd heard right, "Pregnant?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I'll be…It's about damn time, Tifa."

Tifa was a little taken aback by this but it was a welcome reaction, "What do you mean?"

"I was wonderin' when you'd finally have some kids of yer own. You been practicing bein' a housewife and mother all these years…Just about time ya make proper use of it. Besides, I know you been wantin' a real family."

"Who told you that?"

"You did. It's written all over ya. I knew from the moment I metcha. You the type a'girl that wants a good husband and a lotta babies. Don't lie now, I'm right ain't I?"

"You know me better than I thought."

"Yeah well…How's Sephiroth been treatin' ya?"

"He's getting sweeter by the day," She sighed dreamily and closed her eyes, "It still seems a little surreal though sometimes…Sometimes I'm afraid he'll change and go back to the way he used to be."

"Do you think he will?"

"No, not really…It's just a small fear that I have, I guess it's just that I'm so in love with him I'm afraid of losing him."

"You love 'im that much?"

"Yeah."

"Well…he loves you too, Tifa. When I met him, he meant what he told me and I dare say I believed him. All I got to say now is that he better be a good daddy to your baby."

"But…that's the thing…He's not the father."

"In that case, I assume Cloud's the father."

"Yes."

"I can't say I saw that comin', but I'm not surprised neither. How's Cloud takin' it?"

"He's doing better now, but when we found out he was…sort of…In a state of shock? At first he didn't want anything to do with it. However, now he's come to terms with it."

"That's good to hear. And Sephiroth?"

"Disappointed that he's not the father, but still happy about it. He's already decided to take full responsibility and raise it as his own regardless."

"Good, very good." There was a brief moment of silence before he continued, "Tifa, promise me you'll be takin' better care of yourself, aight? Don't be losin' sleep or workin' too hard; you're a real momma now."

"I promise I'll take care."

"You better. Now I'll talk to you later and make sure you call me if you need anything at all."

"I will."

"Goodbye, Tifa."

"Bye."

As Tifa hung up, she placed the phone on her chest and sighed deeply, closing her eyes and draping her arm over them. So she finally told everyone she was expecting, and while none of the conversations were particularly painful, she was glad to have them over with. She laughed quietly, wondering if it had been very wise to procrastinate like she had, or if it would've been better to call them all as soon as she'd found out the news. Either way, the outcome was the same, the only difference was that she put it off for a while.

In any case, with all that out of the way, all Tifa had to do now was to wait for the birth.


This chapter was tedious to say the very least; it was really hard to come up with everyone's reaction.