Chapter 5
oOoOo
Tifa spent the rest of the afternoon with Rufus in his study after having briefed by Sephiroth and Vincent about her further assignments for Rufus, and interrogated because of their "escape" from Shinra. After shopping online for a gown, they spent the rest of their time together conversing. She wondered what they were even doing, talking about various things. She even met, for the first time, his pet Dark Nation, a big black panther-like animal.
Near sun-down, Tifa was just seated by the window with Dark Nation's head resting on her lap while Rufus checked his email in his desktop computer.
"How do you find my cat?" Rufus asked proudly with a smirk.
It was obvious to Tifa that he loved the cat dearly. She smiled. "She's very lucky to have you, and you're very lucky to have her." She remarked.
He switched off his PC and leaned back against his chair. He just looked at her, observing her quietly as she petted Dark Nation's head. They both heard the loud purring of the big cat.
"I had a pet cat when I was a little girl. I had her until I was 15." She narrated.
"What happened to your cat?" he asked.
She smiled sadly and stroked Dark Nation's black mane. "She went to the mountains and was never found again." she answered.
He looked away. He did not really know how to express his sympathies for other people no matter how close they are to him. He just decided to change the subject instead. "My father talked to me today." He began.
She looked at him quietly. He had a solemn look on his face but he did not say anything else. She tilted her head to the side. "Well? What did he tell you?" she asked.
He smiled smugly and just flipped his hair as he got up. "Come on, let's see if your gown has arrived." He answered as he went to the door.
Tifa decided not to ask about what he had talked about with his father anymore. "If I insist, I'll just make him angry." She thought silently as she and Dark Nation followed after him.
oOoOo
By 6pm, while Tifa was preparing for the party, after bathing, she was surprised to find Mrs. Shinra in her bedroom.
"Hello, dear." Mrs. Shinra greeted her pleasantly.
Tifa was relieved that she decided to wear a bathrobe instead of a towel; otherwise, she would be embarrassed in front of the First Lady. "Uhm… Good evening, Mrs. Shinra, ma'am." She greeted weakly.
Mrs. Shinra was already dressed in her black evening gown and her hair and makeup had been done too. "I see you're preparing for the party? Let me see your gown." She told Tifa gently firmly.
Tifa nodded before walking over to the bed, showing her gown that was spread across the bed together with its gloves, shawl, stockings and camisole.
Mrs. Shinra studied it carefully. It was black and made of expensive silken fabric. Its straps had very small diamonds sewn onto them and its flowy skirt had shiny sheer fabric over the silken one. "Did my son choose this for you?" she asked skeptically.
"I chose the gown myself; but I never knew he had those diamonds requested to be sewn onto the straps." Tifa answered shyly. Somehow, the presence of the First Lady intimidated her even though she knows how nice the older woman is.
Mrs. Shinra sighed heavily and smiled slightly. "That son of mine. Class and elegance would always matter to him." She said, contented. She turned to Tifa. "I like the design. You have eye for the same things that he adores. Maybe that's why you have good chemistry with him, and I'm happy about that." she explained with a pleased look on her face.
Tifa's eyes were wide, staring at the First Lady curiously. She did not know what to say.
Mrs. Shinra picked up the camisole and the stockings. "Well then, dearie, better run off to the bathroom and get dressed. I'll help you with the gown, I'll fix your hair and I'll even be glad to do your makeup." She said gently as she handed those things to Tifa.
Tifa got the camisole and the stockings. "I… think I can manage, thank you." She said shyly.
Mrs. Shinra shook her head. "No, dearie. I insist. This is Rufus's welcoming party and you are his honorable guest for tonight. I'm sure he would like you to be the most beautiful girl in the entire ballroom, more beautiful than any other female guests." She said proudly.
Tifa blushed upon hearing that. "How come she sounded like I'm already Rufus's girlfriend?" she was thinking quietly before smiling shyly. "Y…yes, ma'am." She said before going to the bathroom.
…
After fully getting dressed, Mrs. Shinra sat Tifa in front of the dresser and began to brush her hair. "Like I said, I'm sure my son wants you to be more beautiful tonight. I do to." She admitted.
Tifa was surprised. She felt embarrassed that the First Lady was even bothering to fix her up as if she was a doll.
The First Lady noticed her discomfort. "Are you alright, dearie?" she asked, concerned.
Tifa smiled weakly and swallowed hard. "I'm just nervous about tonight's party, that's all… I mean, I'm not really used to these sort of very formal gatherings." She admitted with a shaky tone.
Mrs. Shinra smiled gently at her as she began to put spray-on serum on Tifa's long black hair to make it shinier and lessen the frizz. "The atmosphere of the ballroom and the high-society people around you, plus the girls who will definitely envy you because you are close to Rufus might make you want to act like them. But you don't have to act like someone you're not. Just be yourself, dearie. No need to worry about what other people would think about you as long as you're comfortable with yourself and with who you are. You may even have the impulse to please everyone just to gain their approval. You don't have to do that. I'm sure my son likes having you around because you are unlike those other girls who try too hard to please people You, my dear, I deem, are true to yourself. Being around the rich and famous will take a little getting used to at first, but I know you're a smart girl; you can easily find your way around any crowd." She explained.
Tifa thought for a moment, taking into consideration what the First Lady had told her. She smiled at her. "You seem to know so much about dealing with people, Mrs. Shinra." She remarked.
Mrs. Shinra chuckled lightly. "Oh, I was once just like you, dear: A simple girl. I believe I still am. It was much harder for me during my time because I was a struggling theater actress from Nibelheim when I met my husband." She explained.
Tifa recalled that the First Lady's hometown is Nibelheim and that she is friends with her parents too. "My parents told me wonderful things about you. You're all friends from your childhood, right?" she asked.
"Oh yes, dearie." Mrs. Shinra told her.
Tifa fell silent, looking at the First Lady with a gentle smile on her face.
Mrs. Shinra smiled before making Tifa face her so that she could start applying the makeup on her face. "The natural look will do you good, so I'll be applying not too much." She told her.
Tifa smiled slightly. "I wonder why they call it natural when you still have to put makeup on your face anyway." She said.
Mrs. Shinra laughed. "Well that is funny, dear." She remarked, realizing Tifa's point.
Halfway in applying makeup on Tifa's face, Mrs. Shinra asked her, "How do you find Rufus?"
Tifa was surprised by the question. "R…Rufus?" she repeated the name before answering, "He's been really nice. I never thought he'd be someone so different from everyone else in school. I realized how down-to-earth he really is when I got to know him better."
Mrs. Shinra noticed the blush forming on Tifa's cheeks. She smiled. "I guess I could be proud on how I raised him." She said proudly.
After applying the finishing touches, Mrs. Shinra made Tifa stand up and face the full-length mirror just beside the dresser so that she could take a good look at herself.
Tifa eyed her reflection with a look of awe on her face. "Whoa." She said breathlessly.
Mrs. Shinra stood behind Tifa placed her hands on the girl's shoulders, squeezing them gently. "You're a very beautiful young lady inside and out. You're like the daughter I never had." She said softly with a gentle look on her face.
Tifa smiled at the First Lady and faced her. "Thank you very much." She said.
Mrs. Shinra embraced her. "You're very welcome, dearie." She said softly. "I owe you a great deal for protecting my son and for being friends with him." She revealed.
Tifa breathed in, closing her eyes for a moment, thinking about Rufus. "You must love him dearly." She said.
Mrs. Shinra let her go and held her hand, squeezing them gently. She smiled gently at her. "Well then, it's time to go and meet Rufus. I suppose your parents are already in the ballroom by now." She said.
oOoOo
As soon as Tifa and Rufus entered the ballroom walking after the President and the First Lady, all eyes turned to them. Women immediately scrutinized Tifa with their envious and curious looks while the men eyed her as if she was the most wonderful creature they had ever seen.
Her right arm was hooked onto his left arm, and she moved closer to him as she bowed down her head, avoiding the scrutinizing stares of several upper-class strangers around her, while he kept his head held high and eyed the men looking at her with a proud but passive look on his face. "Relax, Tifa." He muttered through clenched jaw.
President Shinra walked towards the center of the ballroom with his wife, son and Tifa. "Everybody, I would like all of you to welcome my son. He just arrived home this morning from Junon." He announced proudly.
Everybody applauded.
Rufus tried his best to stop himself from rolling his eyes in sarcasm. "I feel silly," he muttered to Tifa.
"Well I feel sillier." She muttered back, trying to keep her gaze on the floor.
President Shinra raised his hands to silence everyone. "Also, please welcome my son's honorable and beautiful guest. Miss Tifa Lockhart." He announced.
Tifa wanted to shrink as the people applauded for her this time. "I know they don't like me, Rufus." She muttered to him.
"Just fake a smile and nod in gratitude." He muttered.
She smiled weakly but shyly and took a quick glance at everyone in the room.
After further introductions and announcements done by the President, classical music began to play again and Rufus led Tifa to a corner of the ballroom where his friends were waiting.
Tifa saw Sephiroth, Cloud and Zack eyeing them in amazement; she also noticed that the three were wearing black suits.
"Whoa. Lookin' good, you two!" Zack complimented.
Tifa just smiled shyly.
"You were too stiff back there, Tifa." Cloud told her.
"Well you should've been Rufus's guest instead so that you'll know how it feels like to be in the spotlight." She answered rather haughtily.
"It's alright to feel that way. You'll get used to it." Rufus told her with a reassuring tone before turning to Sephiroth. "Any after-party plans?" he asked.
Sephiroth smirked. "Finally you've come to your senses!" he said.
"Just make sure it's a classy bar." Rufus told him.
Sephiroth grunted. "You're such a spoilsport." He said.
"Well I'm taking Tifa with us. I'd like to show her what the nightlife in Sector 1 Midgar is like." Rufus answered, giving him a hint on what bar he would like to go to.
Sephiroth rolled his eyes. "Fine. The Penthouse Bar at the Emerald Hotel just a couple of blocks away you want, you'll get." He said before pulling out his mobile phone to start making reservations.
"Splendid." Rufus said, smirking before turning to Aerith and Yuffie who were approaching them.
Tifa smiled at Aerith. "You're here!" she said happily.
Aerith smiled sweetly at her best friend. "Tifa, I'd like you to meet Yuffie Kisaragi. She's the Princess of Wutai." She introduced.
Yuffie offered a handshake and smiled nicely at Tifa. "So pleased to meet you!" she said cheerfully.
Tifa smiled, sensing that she is going to be good friends with Yuffie too. "Same here." She said as they shook hands.
"Would you like to join me and Yuffie over there by the buffet table?" Aerith asked.
Before Tifa could answer, Rufus already spoke up, "Pardon me, ladies, but Tifa is my guest."
"So, what's your point?" Yuffie asked airily before snatching Tifa away from him. "We would just like to borrow your guest so that we could socialize with her!" she said before dragging Tifa with her, following after Aerith.
Rufus grunted, watching as Tifa went with Yuffie and Aerith.
"Come on, let her be with the girls. She needs new friends," Zack said, nudging him before turning to Cloud, "Right, Cloud?" he asked cheerfully.
Cloud just stood still; his other friends could tell that he is eyeing Aerith.
"Somebody make a move for him." Rufus muttered, looking at Cloud glumly before turning his gaze to Tifa who was chatting gaily with Yuffie and Aerith.
For the rest of the hour, he just observed her as he stayed in one corner with his own group of friends pretending to be interested in the topics being discussed by Sephiroth, Zack and Cloud about various things that interest them. He also wondered who the older adults approaching Tifa were, but judging from the facial features of both adults combined, Rufus realized that those were Tifa's parents. He wondered what they were doing at the party, until he saw his own mother approaching the Lockhart family who were so happy to have seen one another once again after how many months of being apart.
"My mother knows her parents?" Rufus asked out loud in awe as he eyed the way his mother socialized with her parents, as if they had been friends for a very long time already.
Sephiroth, Zack and Cloud all turned their attention to the First Lady and Tifa's family.
"What are they doing here?" Cloud asked in confusion.
"Beats me…" Zack answered, shrugging.
Sephiroth just kept quiet, observing Rufus with a skeptical look on his face.
Aerith and Yuffie excused themselves from Mrs. Shinra and the Lockharts before going to Sephiroth, Zack and Cloud.
Rufus breathed in and ignored the presence of the two girls as he made his way to his mother and Tifa's parents.
Aerith and Yuffie turned around to look at Rufus as soon as they reached the boys. "There he goes." The former said in a singsong voice.
Sephiroth smirked. "Just keep your mouth shut, ladies." He said.
Just when Rufus finally reached Tifa's side and flashed a friendly smile to her parents while greeting them, the lights flickered and then the electricity died.
The guests wondered what was going on, but the SOLDIERs and the Turks in the area could already sense trouble.
As for Tifa, she moved closer to Rufus.
"What's going on?" they all heard President Shinra call out.
"Power failure?"
"Don't be ridiculous."
"How could this be?"
"What happened to the backup generator?"
The guests began to talk about what happened, until they heard explosions coming from the doorway, plus gunshots.
People became alarmed and some even screamed.
Sephiroth squinted, being able to see in the dark because of the Mako and JENOVA in his genes, eyeing the perpetrators entering from the balcony doors and the ballroom doors. The other SOLDIERs had been harmed, the Turks were trying to fight off the rest of the enemies, while the rest of the intruders were beginning to find their way into the ballroom as if looking for someone. With that, he instantly ran towards Rufus and Tifa.
Tifa grabbed hold of Rufus's wrist. "Rufus, we have to get out of here." She said.
"What?" he inquired in confusion.
"Now!" Sephiroth snapped at Rufus and Tifa.
It was a signal for Tifa to run with Rufus while Sephiroth them up, running from behind them.
"What is going on?" Rufus demanded as they made their way through the dim hallway with only emergency lamps hanging on the walls serving as their light.
"Rebel attack. We have to get you out of here." Sephiroth told him.
"What about my parents?" Rufus asked, worrying about the safety of his parents.
"My dad and the Turks are doing their job. Right now, we have to get you out of here." Sephiroth told him.
"Did you know anything about this?" Rufus demanded.
"Sort of. Some rebel faction sent a note this morning that they're going to attack tonight during your party and kidnap you." Sephiroth answered.
"What? Why didn't you inform me?" Rufus demanded in annoyance.
"Well you were busily painting the town red with Tifa." Sephiroth answered. "And you were basically enjoying yourselves, we couldn't spoil your fun!" he added.
Tifa could sense that Rufus was about to say something harsh to Sephiroth so she already told him, "Rufus, now isn't the right time to start a fight with Sephiroth."
They stopped in their tracks when 7 goons blocked their way.
Tifa moved much closer to Rufus and she eyed the goons threateningly. "Out of our way." She said with a low and threatening tone.
Rufus was surprised with her sudden aggression.
Sephiroth brought out his Masamune. "Listen to the lady." He said with a low voice before quickly slashing the goons.
Their blood splashed against Rufus's white tuxedo, staining it, but Rufus did not seem to mind. He was beginning to get confused.
"Go! I'll hold them back!" Sephiroth told Tifa when he saw more of them approaching.
With that, Tifa dragged Rufus with her. SOLDIERs were following after them as if securing the area were they were supposed to go.
Rufus could hear some SOLDIERs communicating with their squad leaders through their two-way radios as he and Tifa continued to run along the hallway until they reached the emergency stairs. They quickly made their way to the hidden garage, with SOLDIERs still securing them.
They reached one of the cars and Cloud was already inside in the driver's seat.
Tifa opened the door to the back passenger seat for Rufus and shoved him inside.
Rufus looked at Tifa surprisingly and was about to move aside to give room for her to sit, but he froze when she shut the door without even coming in.
Cloud instantly started the engine.
"Wait! Tifa is…" Rufus began, but he trailed off when he saw her bring out a two-way radio and heard her communicating with Sephiroth. "Secure." She said.
"No time for that, boss!" Cloud said as the garage door opened and he drove off with Rufus in the fastest speed possible to get away from the Shinra HQ.
Rufus was stunned. He felt the blood draining from his face as he stared at Cloud with a devastated look on his face. But he could not speak.
Cloud took a quick glance at Rufus from the rearview mirror and saw the look on his face, but he did not say anything. Like Sephiroth, Zack, Aerith, Yuffie and Vincent, he was one of those who knew about Tifa being hired by the First Lady through her parents to serve as a secret bodyguard for Rufus. Tifa agreed to take the job so that she could help her parents with financial matters.
Rufus could tell that Cloud was wondering what he was thinking, but he could not think of what to say. "Did you know about this?" he asked his friend with a stiff tone.
Cloud was quiet for a moment before answering, "I'm not in the position to answer that."
Rufus clenched his fists. "Will you please pretend that I am not your boss for this moment and just talk to me as a friend?" he demanded.
Cloud took a deep breath before answering, "Yes, I knew it all along."
"But why keep it from me?" Rufus asked with a frown on his face.
Cloud widened his eyes. "You knew it all along too, didn't you?" he asked.
"I had doubts about it but now I know I'm right all along. I've known it ever since this afternoon when we got attacked by three hooligans in Sector 3." Rufus answered.
"You were the one who wanted only one bodyguard, remember? Your parents were only concerned about your safety that's why your mom talked to Mr. and Mrs. Lockhart who happen to be her friends. The Lockharts presented their daughter to your mom and dad as a capable undercover bodyguard for you to repay your family's kindness to theirs." Cloud told him as he continued to drive.
Rufus took a deep breath, eyeing his friend with a frustrated look on his face. He just kept quiet, thinking of what to do with Tifa and his parents. He is just so angry at that moment but confusion made him unable to think of a solution to his dilemma. He felt betrayed because his friends kept secrets from him; his parents were doing things behind his back, and he is now unsure whether the friendship he had with Tifa was genuine or not. "She could've just pretended to like me and appreciate me just so that she could do her job." He did not realize that he had mentioned that out loud.
Cloud took a quick glance at him through the rearview mirror again before turning his attention back to the road. He pretended not to have heard anything as he continued to drive, speeding up as they neared the highway to Kalm.