Morning
Tifa sat up in the small bed letting the blankets fall off of her chest onto her lap. Kerrie was still sleeping at her side with the most peaceful and loving expression on her face that Tifa had ever seen. She knew that she was late for getting back and that the others would be waking up soon. She slid out of the bed and got dressed.
"Kerrie, Kerrie wake up." She said kissing her softly on the lips.
"Hummm?" Kerrie moaned and opened her eyes. "Are you leaving?"
"Yea I am." Tifa said and kissed her again. "I'm gonna head up top today after work so I'll see you tomorrow."
"Ok." Kerrie said softly.
Tifa leaned down and kissed her one more time before standing up.
"I love you." She said as she headed for the door.
"Me too." Kerrie said as she fell back asleep.
Tifa snickered and headed into the living room and grabbed her jacked and just put it over her shoulders and walked out of the door making sure she locked the bolt with the key that Kerrie gave her before heading into the streets. It was early morning and the streets were almost deserted except for the few homeless people that slept where ever the alcohol told them too. Tifa continued down the street until she came to the 7th Heaven bar. She pulled her key out of her jacket and opened the door to find cloud and Barrett sitting at the bar.
"About damn time." Barrett said.
"What?" Tifa asked. "I made it back by morning."
"We thought you were kidding." Cloud said.
"Nope." Tifa said and walked over to the door leading to her room.
"Where do you thing you're going?" Barrett asked.
Tifa stopped and looked back at him and groaned as she walked over to the bar and put on a pot of coffee.
"So you want to go out on this mission with us?" Barrett asked.
"Yea I do." Tifa said.
"This is gonna be a rough mission." Cloud said. "We're going up against Shinra and might run into some Soldiers on this one."
"I don't care." Tifa said. "I want to go. I can fight just as hard as the rest of you."
"We know you can." Barrett said. "But the fact remains that if something happens to all of us who's gonna look after Marline for me?"
"Is that why you won't let me go?" Tifa asked. "You need a baby sitter?"
"Don't get me wrong." Barrett said. "I don't want anything to happen to you either."
"I'm going and that's final." Tifa said and headed up to her room.
"She's still the same old Tifa." Cloud said and headed out into the streets to look for a fight.
"Damn kids." Barrett said to himself.
Evening
Biggs, Wedge and Jessie went ahead of the others and waited at the train station. Cloud and Barrett were standing at the door to the bar waiting impatiently for Tifa to get ready. Barrett was leaning against the door loading round after round into his gun arm then unloading them again. Cloud was holding his sword by the bottom of the hilt and spinning it around and around. Up in her room Tifa was rummaging through her foot locker for her fighting gloves.
'Where are they?' She thought as she got to the bottom of the locker.
"Tifa come on!" Barrett yelled. "The planet is gonna die before your ready."
"I'll be down in a minute." Tifa yelled back. 'Ok think where was the last place you had the gloves?' She thought putting her hands on her hips. 'Ok I remember putting them on to through out some drunks that were messing with Kerrie. I tossed their asses out but then what?"
She ran through the night in her mind then it hit her.
'I went over to Kerrie's house and set them on the night stand.' She thought. 'They must still be there.'
She grunted and headed down the stairs to where Cloud and Barrett were waiting.
"Well look who decided to show." Barrett said.
"I was trying to find my gloves." Tifa said.
"Did you find them?" Cloud asked.
"No their over at a friends house. Its on the way to the station I'll grab them and meet you there."
"Just hurry up." Barrett said and walked away mumbling something about "girls on a "mission."
Cloud followed behind and Tifa closed up the bar and ran past them and to Kerrie's apartment. She rapped on the door a few times and the door opened and Kerrie was smiling when she saw Tifa.
"Back already?" She asked.
"No actually I'm just leaving." Tifa said.
"Oh how sweet you came to say bye." Kerrie said in her soft voice.
"That and I need my gloves." Tifa said slipping past her and giving her a quick kiss.
Tifa walked into the bedroom and up to the nightstand and grabbed the black leather gloves that were on the top of the stand and wondered why she didn't see them last night. Kerrie leaned against the doorway and blocked Tifa's path as she tried to get out and get to the train station.
"Babe I need to go." Tifa said.
"I'm not letting you go until I get a real kiss." Kerrie said.
Tifa snickered and licked her lips before pressing them to Kerrie's and a fully passionate kiss. She wanted to hold the kiss for much longer but she knew that she needed to hurry and had to break it.
"I got to go." She said and ducked under Kerrie's arm and ran out of the small apartment and down the stairs and into the street.
She had to run full speed to make it to the station on time and meet up with the others. The train was just boarding when she ran up to the group breathing hard and sweating.
"I thought it was on the way to the station." Cloud said.
"I got held up, sorry." Tifa said as they boarded the train.
Mako Reactor
After the group had escaped from the train after being caught by a security check they wondered through the ventilation system until they came to the reactor itself. Tifa, Cloud and Barrett ran through the maze of metal pipes and catwalk until they found the central core of the reactor. Cloud removed a small but powerful bomb from his back and rigged it with a ten minute timer then they all ran like hell. They could see the rest of the group in the distance running for the exit but suddenly a large man blocked their path. He was wearing an expensive looking suit and was holding something in his hand.
"Whoa." Barrett said with a smile. "Someone likes me up there. It's the Shinra President."
"You are quite correct sir." The President said. "I am here in person to witness your deaths."
"That would be a cold day in hell." Barrett said raising his gun arm.
The President pressed a button on a controller in his hand and a large machine crawled up the side of the reactor and jumped between the group and the President.
"Oh shit." Tifa yelled as she was thrown off balance when the ground shook from the wait of the monster.
Cloud reached out and put his arm around her waist and kept her on her feet until she was steady. They all got ready for what could be a tough fight but the controller that the President used must have done something to the bomb that Cloud had placed and it detonated prematurely. The ground shook and gave way as a wall of fire broke through sending the monster flying in several pieces through the air. The Shinra President grabbed hold of a rope ladder that was lowered to him from a waiting chopper.
"I'll see you all in hell." He said as the chopper pulled him in and flew away from the exploding chopper.
The ground shook violently in the explosion sending Tifa falling backwards onto the metal grate floor, Barrett grabbing hold of the railing and Cloud stumbling and falling into the hole the explosion created.
"Cloud!!" Tifa yelled lunging for his hand.
Just before he disappeared under the floor Tifa grasped hold of his hand. Barrett dove onto his stomach and grabbed Tifa's feet to keep her from being pulled in along with Cloud.
"Hold on Cloud." Tifa yelled as she reached out her other hand.
She swiped with her hand but only grabbed air. The hand that cloud had was suddenly free as her glove came loose sending Cloud into the darkness below.
"CLOOOOUD!!!" Tifa screamed as she watched him fall.
Barrett grabbed her shoulders and pulled her away from the hole and they both ran for the nearest exit. Barrett just about had to carry Tifa out of the reactor kicking and screaming the whole way. They boarded the train bound for the Sector 7 slums and Tifa sat down on a bench and curled into a ball.
"Do you think he's alive?" Jessie asked Barrett in the corner of the train.
"Hell if I know." Barrett said. "That spiky haired punk is a tough bastard so I'll say he alive."