Chapter Two
A/N: Another chapter! I'm so proud of myself. The first chapter and the first part of this one are still pretty similar to the original, but then you will see a drastic change occur. I hope ya like it!
Tifa wearily stepped off the Ocean-liner that had just docked in Junon Harbor. She had been traveling around for nearly two weeks, searching for a place to call home. Everywhere she had been so far had caused too many memories to flood her head. Even then, staring up at the immensity that was upper Junon, the pain made her dizzy. But she had to stay somewhere and she figured that at least in Junon she could lose herself, blend into the anonymity of the city and went to find the nearest hotel.
* * * * * *
Looking around the modest hotel room, Tifa sighed and forced a small smile. The carpeting was matted down and stained and the furniture had seen better days. At least the bedding seemed fresh. "Home sweet home," she said as she dropped her belongings to the floor. "Well for the next few days or so."
The first thing she did was make a bee-line for the bathroom, which was surprisingly quite clean. She was desperately in need of a shower. Traveling constantly was not conducive to good hygiene, a lesson she had already learned during the quest to save the planet. After she was finished, she wrapped herself up in the complementary terry-cloth robe. She figured it had probably been white at one time, but was now a dingy gray.
Plopping herself down on the double bed in the center of the room, Tifa sat and thought about her options. The lady at the front desk had told her the TV was busted, so that was out. It was too late to go hunting for more permanent living arrangements, but also too early to go to bed.
Her mind began to wander off a bit, thinking about what she would be doing at the moment if she had still been in Wutai. She'd probably be hanging out with Yuffie, Cloud, and perhaps even the reclusive Vincent up at the Turtle's Paradise or something, laughing and having an all-around good time. Instead she was sitting in a decrepit hotel room, all alone. She started to regret her decision to leave, just a little bit. Things had been painful, especially because of Cloud, but at least she had friends she could count on to be there. Now she had nothing.
Nothing. That word repeated itself over and over again in her head. Did she really have nothing? She fought hard against the tears that started to form. Shaking her head, she made a decision.
"I am NOT going to sit around here and feel sorry for myself, wishing for could haves and might have beens. Screw it," she said out loud to herself. Standing up, Tifa quickly shed the robe, grabbed her bag, and rummaged around for something to wear. "I'm going out. I will find something."
* * * * * *
While many lives had been lost in Midgar and the surrounding area that fateful day, many more perished around the planet in the months to follow. If the WEAPONs had succeeded in what they had been designed to do, most life would have been purged from the planet. This would have replenished the Lifestream so it could heal the massive wound and start life again anew. But the planet's children had evolved beyond its control. Due to the lack of Lifestream, they were suffering the consequences.
Materia no longer functioned. Crops that year had failed; the harvest meager at best. People and livestock starved to death. The mako reactors had run dry. Many of the old coal plants had been fired up, but they could not supply the power demanded. Coal had fast become a hot commodity, driving the price of power through the roof. The only place that had not suffered was Wutai, but then again they had never used mako power. The Wutaian gods must have spared them from the punishment inflicted upon the rest.
As Tifa walked the streets of Upper Junon's main commercial district, she saw that Junon seemed to have fared worst of all. While it had appeared unchanged on the surface, the city had deteriorated just like the rest of the planet. The once proud harbor city had become like the slums of Midgar. The downfall of the city had been rapid as even the most rich and powerful fell victim to the planet's decline. Without Shin-Ra, control of the city came into the hands of the sorely inept mayoral government. It had tried hard to preserve the integrity of the city, but when the world goes to hell, there is little anyone can do. Crime was rampant and civil unrest vast. There was even talk amongst the former elite that they longed for the days of Shin-Ra's power.
Tifa wandered about the vagrant and garbage-filled streets with no particular destination until a flickering neon sign in the window of a rundown bar caught her eye. She stared that the blue letters displaying the bar's name. Cloud Nine, she thought, ironic in so many ways. Shrugging indifferently, Tifa pulled open the rickety door and went inside.
* * * * * *
A man with dirty hair and tattered clothing raced down an empty alleyway, looking behind himself periodically. Stopping abruptly in front of a rusty metal door, he fumbled hastily through his back pocket for a key. As he reached down, his fingers found a gaping hole in the bottom.
"Shit!"
The sound of footsteps echoing off the brick walls of the surrounding buildings reached his ears. In a panic, he abandoned his efforts to gain entry and took off running again. He leaped over debris that littered the ground, desperate to reach the other end.
Once free of the alley, the man swung a hard left, narrowly missing a sleeping vagrant huddled against a building. His eyes darted about searching for a place to hide. He did not have much time before his pursuers would reach the street, leaving him as open and easy prey. He ran across the street to a small, non-descript bar and ducked inside.
Mere seconds later, three more figures, two men and a woman, emerged onto the street. They were far different from the first man. Each was dressed in an expensive looking suit, a rarity in those hard times. Frightened whispers could be heard from those who had ever had a run-in with them. Even after everything that had befallen them, the Turks still commanded fear from the hearts of those that dared to cross them.
"Where'd that sonofabitch go?" Reno spouted angrily.
Rude's eyes quickly swept the street. He shrugged. "….."
"Real helpful, ya big asshole," Reno retorted. Not one to waste time when on the job, the fiery red-head grabbed a nearby man by the collar and jerked him up to his face.
"The man who just came out of the alley, where'd he go?" he demanded.
Too frightened to speak, the smallish man cowered in Reno's grasp. After being shaken a few times, he eventually pointed to the bar their target had just disappeared into. Reno threw the man to the ground. "Thanks." He turned back to Rude and Elena. "Let's go."
* * * * * *
A young girl stood with her back against the wall, trapped there by an extremely drunk, heavy-set man. Desperately looking for a route of escape, she could find none. His face was inches from hers, the stench of his breath was abominable as he breathed on her.
"Come on, baby. How's about a little kiss." The words were slurred.
"Please…just leave me alone," the girl whispered in a small, frightened voice.
The man grew angry. "What, I ain't good enough for ya? A little slut like you…" He pressed himself up against her. His hand ran up her thigh to roughly tug at her skirt. She tried to push him away, but this only succeeded in fueling the man's anger. His other hand came up and smacked her hard across the face, eliciting a high-pitched yelp.
There was a tap on the man's shoulder. He swung around clumsily to face the interruption, knocking the girl to the floor in the process. "What the fuck do you want?"
Tifa stood with her hands on her hips, staring up at him with a venomous expression. "I think it's time for you to leave, if you know what's good for you."
Laughter burst from the man. "I'm not gonna take orders from some bitch." He moved to shove her away, but Tifa was much quicker. She dodged him with ease.
"Can't say I didn't warn you." In an instant the man was slammed into the wall by Tifa's punishing right hook. He tried to counter, but his movements were slowed by his severe inebriation. Tifa blocked his fist, then delivered a sweeping crescent kick to the side of his head, sending him to the floor. He struggled to stand up, profanities spilling from his mouth, but Tifa was not going to give him that chance. She grabbed the man by the front of his beer-soaked shirt and dragged him to the door. In one smooth motion the door was flung open and the man tossed into the street. "If I ever catch you doing that again, I promise I won't go so easy on you!" she screamed, slamming the door shut.
With the threat gone, Tifa turned her attention to the petrified girl now curled up on the floor. She was trying to hold back her sobs, but was failing miserably. Squatting down, Tifa placed a compassionate arm around her shoulders.
"Are you alright?" she asked softly.
The girl looked up at her savior with wide, tear-filled eyes. "Y-Yes, thank you." Her voice trembled as much as her body.
"Why don't you sit down and I'll get you a glass of water."
With a small nod of her head, the girl allowed Tifa to help her up lead her over to a nearby empty table. Tifa tried her best to ignore the slack-jawed stares of the other bar patrons. I must be a glutton for punishment, coming to live in the slums again, she thought with a sigh.
As she walked over towards the bar, the door opened with a crash. Tifa was instantly in a fighting stance once again. "I thought I told you…" she started to say, but stopped mid-sentence when instead of the drunken slob she saw a raggedy looking man come tearing across the floor. Tifa watched as he ran behind the bar, shoved the bartender aside, and disappeared into the kitchen. The sound of a few glasses crashing to the ground and breaking followed by a heavy door opening and closing was heard. She stood there, dumbfounded.
"That was strange," Tifa mused. Losing interest quickly, she continued towards the bar and ordered two waters. She started to return to the table where the girl was sitting, but then the door opened once more. "Now what?"
Three people walked in and the entire bar went silent. Tifa froze with shock. Standing there were the last people she thought she'd ever see again, but there they were, blue suits and all. "Turks," she muttered under her breath.