Chapter 5: Bat in the Cave

"I think we need to find a bathroom, Yuffie."

Yuffie goggled at Tifa. "Again? You just went, like, five minutes ago!"

Tifa gulped. "No, I think I'm going to get sick."

Yuffie grabbed her friend's hand and began pulling her in the direction of the nearest public restroom. She was more at home downtown than Tifa would ever be, and she knew the layout of every store for miles around. "It's probably those five truffles you ate. You know, I go shopping with you specifically so that I can not be a mother for a couple hours. I shouldn't have to tell you not to eat so much chocolate that you get a tummy ache."

Tifa stopped abruptly, releasing Yuffie turning to grip the metallic edges of the trash can they were passing. Her stomach gave one last warning gurgle before her binge of truffles made its reappearance. Yuffie sighed and patted her back as Tifa heaved into the can.

"What are you looking at, jerk? Yeah, that's right, move along," she sniped at the curious man who stopped to stare. He gave her an irritated look and continued walking.

Tifa coughed and spit into the can one last time before standing up straight, wiping her face with the back of her hand.

"You ok?" Yuffie asked.

"Mm," Tifa sighed. "Yeah, but I just need to sit down for a few minutes."

Yuffie eyed her critically as they made their way to the bench at the corner of the block. "Are you getting sick or something?"

"I don't know. Maybe," Tifa sighed. "I've just been so tired lately." She plopped down on the metal bench and let her head fall back.

"Uh huh," Yuffie said. She remained standing, looking down at the brunette. "So…craving chocolate…getting sick in the…" she glanced at her watch "…morning…tired all the time. Sounds to me like a very specific kind of sickness," she said, one eyebrow raised.

"Huh?" Tifa barely raised her head. "Is there something going around?"

Yuffie snorted. "You could say that. Although it's been going around forever."

"Could you please stop being so cryptic?" Tifa groaned. "I'm too tired to figure out your riddles right now."

"Well jeez, I didn't think it was a tough one, Teef." When Tifa didn't respond, Yuffie sighed impatiently. "Sounds an awful lot like there's a bat in the cave."

"A…bat? What?"

"You know…the rabbit died? In the pudding club? Bun in the oven?"

Tifa finally raised her head. "Is this supposed to be some kind of weird sex slang?"

"Gah! Tifa! Quit being so obtuse! It's so obvious you're pregnant!"

Tifa stared at her blankly. "Pregnant?"

"I'm so proud of you, girl! You finally smacked some sense into that boy, huh?"

"Uh…Cloud? Well, not exactly."

"So you decided to go for the sneak attack. Even better! You should've just done that in the first place! You know my plans always work out in the end."

Tifa eyed Yuffie skeptically, deciding against pointing out the numerous spectacular failures on Yuffie's record. "No! Yuf. I'm not pregnant! At least…I don't think I am…"

"Ohhh kay. Let's think through this," Yuffie said patiently. "When were you supposed to get your period?"

"Not for a few more days…although…it has been more erratic lately." She chewed her lip thoughtfully. "I guess…I mean…it's possible…"

"Haha!" Yuffie howled triumphantly. "Congratulations, Tifa!"

"Yuff—"

"The easiest explanation is usually the correct one," Yuffie said promptly.

Tifa's eyes shifted from side to side, flipping through her memory book of the last few weeks. "There was that night in the woods…I missed a couple pills around that time." Could it really be that simple? Could she have gotten pregnant without even trying?

Yuffie was now dancing around the bench gleefully.

"Would you calm down? You're making a scene!" Tifa hissed, pulling Yuffie back down on the bench by the wrist. "We don't know anything yet. But…I've probably put off talking to Cloud for long enough. I need to figure out how to bring it up, you know, just in case."

"This will be so perfect, Teef! We'll have a new little spiky baby and our kids can have playdates and—"

"One thing at a time, Yuf," Tifa said wearily. "I'm not sure how Cloud is going to take it."

"You worry too much," Yuffie said, stretching her arms across the back of the bench. "He'll have to accept it eventually. It's not like it's going to go away. I mean, what's the worst he could do?"

Tifa felt hollow. She stared at the pack, with the odd missed pills dotting through the plastic. She hadn't missed a ton. There were a few groups of two or three in a row. It didn't seem that important at the time. She wasn't getting pregnant after all those months of inconsistency, and it didn't seem that likely. She wasn't even really watching the days of the month anymore, half scared and half hopeful that something might happen. By the time Yuffie had pointed out her symptoms, it hadn't even occurred to Tifa that she might be pregnant.

So she went to the doctor, still telling herself that Yuffie had no idea what she was talking about. When the doctor came in with a big smile on her face, Tifa still didn't accept it. It was only now that it had sunk in, as she stood in their bedroom and stared at the pack with its protruding pills.

This is really happening. I'm…going to be a mother. Cloud…is going to be a father. The first thought made butterflies jump around in her stomach. The second made them fall to the floor, dead.

Cloud didn't want to be a father. He was scared of some Sephiroth-flavored abomination, but Tifa truly didn't understand. Of course she knew what Sephiroth had done. She saw the ashes of her hometown. She saw his sword in her father. She felt the unbridled rage as she charged at the most skilled swordsman on the planet with a weapon she could barely lift, let alone use.

But time and space had given her perspective. Her life was divided into "the before" and "the after". Her recovery in "the after" had taken a long time, and she had been supplied with more books than she could read in a lifetime. She became obsessed with understanding why. Why would he kill all those people he didn't even know? How could a human be so awful?

The first books she found didn't answer any of her questions. They were all about Sephiroth, the war hero. Sephiroth, the legend. Sephiroth, the most amazing being to ever walk the planet.

It took some digging before she read about some truly awful things being done by Shinra laboratories (mainly rumors in little-known publications) and it didn't take her long to figure out what must have been done to Sephiroth. When she was reacquainted with Cloud, years later, she learned of even darker secrets.

It didn't justify what Sephiroth had done, but it helped her understand how he might have gone so wrong. He just snapped.

But these cells Cloud was carrying hadn't corrupted him, had they? These cells – this baby – weren't inherently evil. It just needed proper guidance, and who better to guide this child than one who knew exactly what they were dealing with?

Tifa rested her hand on her toned stomach. "It will be ok," she whispered. Cloud might take a little time to get used to the idea, but he would adapt. He would be a wonderful father. She was sure of it.

"We need to talk."

Cloud looked up from his calculations, but kept his finger in place on the receipts. He scratched his head absently with the eraser of his pencil. "Can it wait? I'm in the middle of reconciling last year's receipts for—"

"I don't think so," Tifa said softly. "We've put it off for too long already."

He frowned, looked back down and scribbled something on the papers before closing the ledger. He set it aside and leaned back in his chair. "Ok. What's up?"

Tifa pulled out the chair across the table and seated herself. "I…I'm not satisfied with…the answer you gave me."

Cloud raised his eyebrows questioningly.

Tifa swallowed. "About…why you don't want kids."

His face dropped. "Tifa—"

"I know you love kids," she interrupted. "You were great with Denzel and Marlene, and Yuffie's kids adore you! Can't we at least talk about it?"

Cloud pinched the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes for a moment before responding. "It's not that I don't want kids." He sighed heavily. "It's just that they can't be mine. Biologically, I mean. If you want to look into adopting, we can talk about it." His eyes went distant and he smiled slightly. "You know, I actually like that idea. I wouldn't mind having little ones around here again. We might have to tighten up some things, financially, but we can probably afford it better than we could when Mar and Denz were little. In fact—"

He was actually starting to look a little excited about the idea, and Tifa had to stop him before he got too excited about planning. "I'm…really glad you're ok with that, Cloud. Adopting again would be nice, but…well, I really want one that's…us. Half you and half me. Can't you imagine? A little boy with dark hair like mine, but spiky like yours? Beautiful blue eyes with red flecks?"

Any trace of a smile was now gone. "Well, sorry to disappoint you, Teef." He abruptly stood and started to walk toward the kitchen. Tifa jumped up to intercept him. No matter what, she wouldn't let him run away from it this time. They were going to have this conversation, even if she had to tie him down to make him listen.

"But what if we could?" She caught his arm before he could get any further.

He stopped, turning to look at her. There was something different in his eyes this time, something she couldn't quite identify. "We can't," he said flatly, and turned away again.

He made it two steps closer to the door before she worked up the courage to say it. "We did."

Cloud froze. He turned around slowly. "What…do you mean?" he asked. It was clearer now, that look in his eyes. She could easily identify it. Fear.

Her confidence faltered, but she stiffened her back. They could do this. He would see. Everything would be fine. Her smile was full of hope. "I…I'm pregnant."

She had played out this conversation a hundred times in her head. When she was in an optimistic mood, she imagined that he was happy when he heard the news. When she was feeling less dreamy, he was worried and nervous, but she was always able to reassure him that everything would be ok. She had imagined many scenarios, but in none of them had his face completely drained of color. Never had he looked so pained, so hopeless, as he stumbled back and sank slowly into a chair. Never had he whispered, "Oh fuck," and then, louder, "FUCK!"

Tifa tried hard to keep up her smile as she knelt down in front of him. He was staring through the floor, and it was the only way she could get in his line of sight. She put her hands on his knees and squeezed, but he was somewhere else entirely. He wouldn't focus on her.

"Cloud, listen! It'll be ok. I know it will! We'll get through it together, just like we always do. This…this is a gift. It will be wonderful! You'll see."

"How…did this happen?"

She wasn't sure if he even knew she was in the room anymore, or if he was talking to himself.

"You were…taking the pill. It wasn't supposed to happen."

Oh. So he was addressing her. Tifa felt a nervous flutter in her stomach. "I—I was, yes. It doesn't work one hundred percent of the time. I mean, it—"

Suddenly, his eyes focused sharply on her. "You have to get rid of it."

"What?!" He had definitely never said anything like that in the conversations in her head. She didn't even know how to respond to that. "Cloud, how could you even…I would never…"

He stood up abruptly, pulling her up with him. "Let's go. There must be somewhere—"

Tifa planted her feet, but he seemed completely oblivious to her protests or her struggles as he dragged her toward the door. "Cloud! Stop it! Let go of me!" She pried desperately at his fingers, trying to free her arm, but his grip was like an iron clamp.

"It's ok. We can fix this." Now that he had a plan of action, he seemed fully in control of his body, although maybe not completely connected to reality.

Her shoes dragged against the floor as if she were no more significant than a piece of paper. "Cloud, STOP!" She pulled back her fist and slugged him in the head with all her strength.

Cloud released her as he fell to his knees, his hands clutching at his head. He seemed confused when he looked up, wincing. "Tifa? What the hell?"

Tifa was breathing heavily from the rush of adrenaline, gently shaking her arm. It had been a long time since she'd put that much power behind a strike. Her wrist hurt. Her hand hurt. The other arm where he'd been gripping was an angry red, soon to be black and blue. It only added to the number of reasons she wanted to cry. He was supposed to be happy! He was supposed to be supportive! She needed him, and this was the worst possible time for him to have one of his head episodes.

She swallowed hard and stood up tall. "I'm not getting rid of him, Cloud. I can't believe you would even suggest that!"

He sagged brokenly on the floor. "Teef, I can't…I can't lose you…fail you…too…"

Her anger ebbed slightly. "Hey. You're not going to lose me. I'll be fine." She knelt down next to him. "Look, I knew this would be hard for you to accept. It was hard for me, too! I had no idea I was pregnant. But I think if you take a little time to process it, you'll realize that this is a miracle. You didn't think you could even have kids, right? And…and I was taking the pill, so I shouldn't have been able to, either. This is something special, Cloud. This is you and me, our love, that created a child. I know we didn't expect it, but I won't give it up for anything."

He didn't seem to react to her speech at all. She reached out and lifted his chin, wincing at the pain that shot up her hand and wrist. Cloud did react to that.

"You're hurt." He gingerly took her forearm and examined her swelling wrist.

"It's just a sprain," Tifa said. It was her own stupid fault for hitting him so hard in the first place.

His eyes landed on her other arm, where finger-shaped marks were starting to appear. "Shit," he breathed.

"It's ok," Tifa said quickly.

"No it's not," he said, looking pained. "Hang on, let me get some materia."

"Cloud, it's fine, I—" He was already across the room, pushing open the kitchen door. Tifa sighed. She didn't care about her wrists at the moment. They needed to talk about this. She needed to make him understand. She needed to know he accepted it.

It should have taken him only a moment to get the Heal materia. They kept it close at hand. The fact that he was gone for several minutes was starting to worry her, but when he came back into the room, he seemed to have put himself together.

"Got it," he said, showing her the green stone. He approached her and put his hands on her shoulders. "Tifa…you know I love you, right?"

She knew, although he rarely said it outright like that. She smiled hesitantly. "I love you, too. Everything's going to be ok, Cloud. We'll get through this."

He pulled her to him, and she sank into his familiar warmth. "That's right. We will. Because we're going to take care of this right now. Sleep."

Yuffie had just finished putting the kids to bed and was trying to come up with an excuse to get Morty to leave her alone when the universe supplied one. The doorbell rang. She gleefully pushed him off of her and snatched her shirt from the bedpost. "I have to get the door."

"Baby. Come on. Just leave it," he begged.

"It might be important," Yuffie said.

She walked across the expansive kitchen, the plush dining room, and into the domed foyer, already happy to see whoever had given her a reprieve from her husband. She pulled the door open with a big grin on her face, but it faded almost instantly.

"Tifa?"

Her best friend looked up at her with eyes reddened and puffy from crying.

"What happened, honey? Come on, come inside." Yuffie grabbed her hands and pulled her gently over the threshold. "Is it Cloud? Did that bastard say something bad when you told him about the…b-a-b-y?"

"I can spell, Yuffie," Morty said dryly from behind her. "Cloud and Tifa are having a baby? That's great news! Congratulations, Tee—"

Yuffie spun around to snap at him. "Morty, not now, ok? Tifa and I need to talk alone. Just…go watch TV in the bedroom or something."

Morty pulled his robe tighter around his wiry frame and scowled. "Fine. Tifa…anything you need, you just let us know, ok?"

"Morty!"

"Alright, I'm going. Jeez," he grumbled as he retreated.

Yuffie turned back to her friend. "Come into the living room. I'll make us some tea and you can tell me what happened, ok?"

Tifa nodded and sniffled. Yuffie got her settled on the couch with a box of tissues and went into the kitchen to make the tea. What had that bastard said to her? Cloud could be pretty thick sometimes. At times like this, she didn't understand how Tifa put up with him. Well, that wasn't entirely true. Even though she thought of him like an annoying older brother, Yuffie had to admit the boy was hotter than hell, and judging by the little details she was able to pry out of Tifa, he was amazing in the sack. Still, there were limits to how much a woman should be expected to put up with, and Cloud Strife had a knack for pushing those boundaries.

Take their wedding, for example. Tifa had stuck by him for ten years without even a hint of a ring, despite Yuffie's frequent hint-dropping in his presence. And then, out of nowhere, he decided they should get married. It was anti-romantic to the extreme. Yuffie would have turned him down just on principle until he could get it right, but of course she never would have stuck around that long in the first place.

Yuffie sighed. She had a hard time understanding Tifa's patience in general. 'He's been through a lot, Yuffie. He has to do things in his own time and his own way, and I'm ok with that.' Of course, he hadn't been the one to sit on the phone with her for hours after he got Geostigma and just disappeared without a word. He hadn't listened to her fretting and worrying and wondering what she had done wrong for months. He wasn't the one who had to force her to accept a donation from her friends so that she could feed herself and the kids.

Tifa was so hopeful when he came back, so convinced that he was healing and would learn how to behave like a normal human being, but Yuffie never looked at him the same way again. She was glad he was back and everything, happy to see that smile that only he could put on Tifa's face, but he had hurt her best friend deeply. Yuffie could forgive, but she wouldn't forget.

She had gone into the kitchen partially to give herself some time to get into supportive mode, but thinking about everything from the past, she was only succeeding in getting more worked up. The tea kettle shrieked on the stove. Yuffie reached over to flip it off and gave herself a little pep talk. "I will not jump to conclusions. I will be supportive and understanding and just listen to what she tells me. I will not verbally tear him down because eventually they will get back together and everything will be awkward when I see him again."

As she carried the tea into the living room, Tifa wiped her nose and straightened up, but Yuffie hadn't missed the slumped, defeated posture. "All right, what did that asshole say to you? Was he not supportive? I knew he wouldn't be. You shouldn't have let him touch you in the first place."

Tifa looked up as she accepted her tea. Her eyes were dry now, but the redness remained, pulling out the reddish tones in her irises, reflecting harshly in the light.

"Not…supportive?" she said faintly. "No. I knew he wouldn't be supportive. I expected him not to be excited. But it was…so much worse."

Her face crumpled again. Yuffie took the teacup from Tifa's shaking hands and placed it on the coffee table, then pulled her sobbing friend into a hug.

I'm going to kill that bastard.