Disclaimer:

Still don't own it...

Author's Note:

Wow, guys, thanks for all the great reviews! I loved 'em! Keep 'em rollin' in! My story has ten times the hits than reviews so please review! I really want to hear your opinion on this story!

Well, anyhoo, thanx everyone for your continued support and here's the next chapter!


"Unca Nanki!" Logan screeched, running towards Red XIII and wrapping his arms around him.

"Hello, Logan!" Red said, smiling, lifting his large paws up and placing them on Logan's back gently hugging him back.

"Logan!" Three small voices cried from inside the star display room. Mere moments later, three balls of red fluff tumbled out and dashed toward him, pouncing on him and tackling him to the floor.

Logan squealed and began laughing as Red's three small cubs began licking his face. He managed to sit up and gave each one a hug before they began climbing all over him. The last time we had visited, the cubs were much smaller; now they were twice as big.

Red got the attention of all three of his cubs by tugging on each of their tails gently. He waved a paw in my direction. "Aren't you going to say hello to Aunt Tifa?" He asked, giving his cubs a critical look.

All three of them looked at me and stood still for a few seconds before rushing towards me. I kneeled down on the floor and caught all three of them as they jumped onto my chest, sending me back onto my bum. Kalla squealed as I turned her over on her back and began tickling her stomach. She grabbed my hand with all four of her paws and began nibbling on one of my fingers.

I turned to Seto and Nayo who were tangling themselves up in my hair. "Hey, you two!" I said, grabbing them and setting them in my lap. "Stop that!" They tried squirming away from me as I began to tickle them as well.

I let them go and watched as they ran over to their father, prancing around him. "Can we go play outside with Logan, Daddy? Can we? Can we?"

Red laughed and nodded, waving a paw towards the front door. "Go ahead. Just don't hurt each other."

Logan got up from the floor and dashed outside followed by the three cubs. Once they were outside, I got up and brushed myself off. Red sighed, rolling onto his back and looking up at me with a goofy grin.

"So, Tifa," he began. "How have you been?"

I sighed, sitting down on the couch. "Not so good, actually."

He rolled around so he was lying on the ground facing me and cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

"I had a visit from Cloud a few days ago." I watched as Red's eyes narrowed and grew dark. He highly disapproved of what Cloud did to me, probably even more so than anyone else, including Barret. Mostly because he knew the joys of being a father and he couldn't even bring himself to imagine telling his mate what Cloud had told me.

He rose from his place on the floor and hopped onto the couch, laying his head down on my lap. "Tell me what happened."

I put a hand on the top of the red beast's head and began to slowly run my fingers through his tangled mane. "Well, when he showed up at my doorstep I was so shocked I almost collapsed. At first, all Cloud wanted to do was exchange pleasantries, sort of like the whole reason he visited was to talk about the old days."

"Well?" He said, prompting me to continue.

I looked away from Red's piercing yellow eyes, calling up the not so pleasant memory of that night. "I told him Logan's name. Then," I began, beginning to chuckle. "he actually asked me if we could pick up where we left off." I stopped and looked down at Red, who stayed still for a few seconds before looking up at me with shock in his eyes.

"You can't be serious," he said, disgust boiling in his voice.

"As crazy as it sounds, it's true. He asked me if he could help me raise Logan and that he'd be the father that he should have been three years ago."

"What did you tell him?" He asked, looking at me in the eye.

"I told him off. What else could I do? Fall at his feet and beg him to come back? He got angry and started yelling. We yelled back and forth at each other until Logan came out. I told him to leave then. I didn't want him staying any longer."

"Well, good for you, Tifa. You've really changed, you know?"

I smiled at his comment because I knew he was right. I had changed. I nodded. "When Cloud left, it hit me. I had actually stood up to the man I thought I couldn't live without."

Red half smiled and swished his fiery tail. "Well, I guess fate has someone better for you."

I nodded and looked away from him. "I hope so. It'd be nice to have someone around who can be a father to Logan."

Red nodded and stretched. "Don't worry, Tifa. You'll be fine. You've lasted three years raising a son on your own."

I smiled. "Thanks, Red," I replied, hugging him tightly. "All of you have been so helpful."

"Tifa, you're the main person that held Avalanche together when it was falling apart. You helped all of us, helping you with Logan was our way of paying you back."

I smiled and looked away from him, remembering the time that Barret and Marlene came to stay with me. At the time, I was still pregnant with Logan, only a few weeks away from my due date. Barret decided to stay with me when Logan was born so he could help me get things on track. I remember coming home from the hospital and walking into my house with my new baby. Everyone threw confetti at me and yelled 'Congratulations!' I was never so happy in my entire life.

I laughed, which caused the red beast next to me to perk his ears up. I saw his expression. "Just remembering."

He smiled and lay back down. A few silent moments passed by when Red's mate, Nairi, padded out of the star display room and looked around thoughtfully. She saw me and smiled.

"Hi, Nairi," I said, scratching one of her ears.

"Hello, Tifa," she replied in her sweet, gentle voice. "Have you seen my cubs?"

"They're outside playing with Logan."

Red opened one of his eyes and looked at his mate. "Hello, my dear," he said, licking her cheek.

"Hello, yourself," she said, playfully ruffling his hair with one of her paws.

Red huffed and swiped some of the hair away from his eyes. "Yes, I love you too," he said in a sarcastic voice.

Nairi smiled and walked out of the observatory to check on the cubs. Red sighed when she disappeared. "She really is something else. Never thought I'd find another one of my kind that acted exactly like me."

"Well, she's the only grown female of your kind left on this planet that isn't related to you. Beggars can't be choosers," I said, fixing Red's frizzy mane.

"I guess not," he said, resting his head back on my lap.

Nairi came back in with Logan and the cubs a while later. I decided since Red and Nairi were letting me stay with them I could at least do something for them so I got up and rummaged around in the fridge, looking for something I could cook.

After many protests from Red and Nairi telling me I didn't have to cook I finally persuaded them to let me. I managed to get enough beef and vegetables together to make stir-fry. Red, Nairi and all the cubs loved it. Logan had eaten my stir-fry many times before so it was nothing new to him.

After dinner was finished, I washed all the dishes and put the remaining stir-fry into a plastic bowl so Red and his family could have more if they wanted to. I gave Logan a quick bath before putting him to bed. I wanted him to get as much sleep as he possibly could so he could enjoy our little vacation a lot more.

Nairi, Red and I stayed up for a little while longer to talk. Nairi knew nothing of what had gone on during the time of Sephiroth, Meteor and also what had gone on with me. Red and I relayed as much of our story that we could until it was my turn to do the story telling.

"So, Tifa," Nairi said, snuggling up next to Nanaki. "Why exactly is your son's father not around?"

"He made it very clear to me that he wanted no part in raising our child. He acted as though it was some major inconvenience."

Nairi sat staring at me for many moments before she turned her head to look at her mate. She looked back at me with a dumbfounded look in her bright yellow eyes. "How could he say or do something like that? In our civilization, the one you mate with is your mate for life. There is no divorce, as you humans call it."

"You don't know how much I wish our society was like that."

I went to bed shortly after. Fatigue had begun to set in and getting a good night's sleep was the only thing on my mind.

When I awoke the next morning, Logan was already up, downstairs playing with the cubs no doubt. I descended the ladder and the glorious smell of fresh coffee filled my senses. I turned and looked at Red who was sitting at the coffee table, looking at the paper.

"Who made the coffee?" I asked, sitting across from him and running my fingers through my tangled hair.

"I had one of the elders prepare it for me. Help yourself."

I smiled and got up from my spot at the table. I grabbed a mug from the cupboard and filled it to the brim with the hot black liquid before sitting back down, carefully sipping at it so it wouldn't burn my mouth.

"Oh," Red said, looking up at me from his paper. "Nairi took Logan and the cubs down into town to get some breakfast. Is that okay with you?"

"Of course," I said, blowing on my coffee.

I grabbed a magazine that was sitting on the edge of the table and began flipping through it idly. Nairi walked back inside the Observatory with Logan and cubs running in behind her.

"Mommy! Mommy!" Logan cried, excitedly, running towards me and violently tugging on my pajama shirt.

"What, Logan?" I asked, turning to face him.

"Auntie Nari said we could go look at the chocobos later! Is that okay, Mommy?" He asked, bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet.

I smiled then looked up at Nairi and gave her a look that said 'you just dug yourself in a hole, so you better dig yourself back out.' She winked and walked past me, into the star display room. The cubs pulled Logan away and urged him to go outside and play with them. He obliged happily and left Red and I alone once again.

Without looking up from his paper, Red spoke. "Do you need to take a shower?"

I grabbed a long strand of my hair and toyed with it. "Yes, I do."

"You may use the shower here if you wish," he said, finally looking up.

"Is that alright?" I asked, making a move to get up.

"Of course. You are our guests." He looked back down at his paper. "We must make you feel at home here."

"Thanks, Red," I said, smiling.

I got up and climbed the ladder to the guestroom and retrieved a pair of denim shorts and a red tank top to wear, along with clean undergarments, before walking into the bathroom.

I showered and redressed, drying my hair as best as I could with the towel then carefully dragging a brush through it to get all the tangles out of it. Then I grabbed my blow dryer and stood drying my hair for half an hour. I ran my brush through my hair again before tying it back loosely and descending the ladder.

I found Logan sitting on the couch, intently looking at a book he found, with the cubs laying around him. He looked up and smiled at me, waving.

I waved back and kneeled next to him. "You wanna go ride chocobos soon?" I asked, running my hand through his hair.

He nodded. "Yeah," he said, smiling. He looked down at the slumbering cubs and put his small index finger to his mouth. "Shh, they're sleeping."

I looked down at little Seto and rubbed his back, causing him to roll over and purr contentedly. "Okay, we'll go in a little while."

He nodded then went back to looking at the book that was sitting in his lap. I rose from my kneeling position and stood in thought for a few more moments before deciding to take a walk outside. I walked out into the brisk morning air of Cosmo Canyon and leaned against the metal railing at the edge of the platform, gazing down at the small town before me.

I inhaled deeply, letting the wind blow my hair gently around my face. I was unaware of the presence behind me and jumped when the person spoke, whirling around only to come face to face with Reno. My jaw dropped and I hit him on the chest.

"What the hell, Reno?" I said, exasperated.

He shrugged. "Sorry 'bout that. Didn't know you were so jumpy."

I put my hands on my hips and scoffed. "Only when the other person has no clue that you're standing behind them. What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be in Rocket Town?"

Reno's face turned sour as he looked away from me. "Well, Elena and Rude…..we got together as planned and sat around drinking like we always used to but they left early this morning. Don't know why," he said, stuffing his hands in his pockets and kicking a small rock over the side. "Damned shame."

"So, you decided to come early?" I asked, crossing my arms and leaning against the railing.

"Yeah, guess you're stuck with me, Lockheart," he said, smirking.

I rolled my eyes and was getting ready to say some smartass comment when the door to the Observatory opened. I looked over Reno's shoulder to see the top of my son's blonde head running towards me.

I looked down at him as he stopped and grabbed onto my tank top. "Can we go ride chocobos now?" He asked, looking up at me expectantly.

I nodded. "Sure."

He clapped his hands and giggled then began to run toward the ladder that led into town.

"Hey!" Reno said, turning around and looking at Logan. "No hello for me!"

He looked at Reno, finally noticing him for his mind was otherwise occupied, then ran toward him and wrapped his arms around one of legs; catching the red headed Turk off guard. "Hi, Unca Reno!" He said, looking at him and smiling.

He smiled then kneeled down and ruffled his hair. "Hey kiddo!"

Logan looked up at me then pointed at Reno. "Is Unca Reno gonna ride chocobos with us too?"

My brow furrowed as I looked at Reno. He turned to look at me before rising then looked back at Logan. "Not today, sport. I got other things I need to do."

"Oh," Logan said, disappointed only for a second before rushing towards me. "Come on, Mommy!"

"Okay, we're going!" I said, following him to the ladder.

I looked at Reno one last time before following my son down the ladder. He ran ahead of me out of the canyon and over to the chocobo stables, jumping up and down in front of one of the stalls.

The chocobo tenant walked toward me. "Would you like to rent a chocobo?" He asked, smiling.

"Yes, actually. You can ask my son which one he wants," I said, indicating the bubbling two year old who was bouncing in anticipation.

The man walked toward Logan and kneeled in front of him. "Hello, young man," he said, patting him on the shoulder. "Which chocobo would you like to ride?"

"This one!" Logan said, pointing to the stall he was standing in front of.

The tenant rose and looked into the stall and smiled. He walked in and came out moments later with a deep fire red chocobo that was saddled up and ready to go. "Here ya go, ma'am!" He said, handing me the reigns. "Her name's Firecracker. She can have a pretty bad temper at times but other than that she's a really mellow chocobo."

"Thank you," I said, accepting the reigns. "How much to rent her?"

"Free of charge, ma'am," he said, looking down at Logan. "For the little guy here."

I smiled, Logan seemed to have that kind of charm on people. "Thank you very much."

He nodded before walking back into the canyon. I turned to Logan and helped him onto Firecracker's back before climbing on as well.

"Where are we going?" He asked, half turning his seat.

I shrugged. "I don't know. Let's just ride around."

He nodded and grabbed onto my hands so he could feel what he was like to control a chocobo. I spurred Firecracker forward and ran around the canyon. Logan was thoroughly enjoying himself, I could tell. This was the first time he'd ever ridden on a chocobo going so fast. I thought it would scare him at first but I was wrong. He loved it.

We rode around the canyon and forest area for quite a while before returning to the canyon. When I handed the reigns back to the tenant I looked at my watch and stared at it. It couldn't possibly be three o'clock. We left the canyon at 11:30. Wow, time sure flies.

I picked Logan up and made my way back up to the Observatory. Riding Firecracker around the canyon for that long had tired me out considerably and a nap sounded quite heavenly.

When I walked through the door, I saw Reno sitting on the couch, watching the cubs roll around on the floor. The cubs looked up at us and nearly tackled me trying to get to Logan.

"Can we play?" Nayo asked, putting his tiny paws on my shin.

"Of course you can," I said, laughing. "Let me put him down first."

I set Logan down on the ground and watched as he dashed outside with the cubs. I looked back at Reno who was lounging on the couch.

"So," he said, putting his hands behind his head. "How'd it go?"

"Logan had a lot of fun," I said, taking a deep breath.

"Hey, look what I found," he said, leaning forward and giving me a slip of paper.

I looked at it and read the black words on it:

Attention!

Tonight only the famous comedian Johnny "Slapstick" Capone is going to be here in Cosmo Canyon! Get your tickets while you can! They're selling fast!

I smiled. I had always wanted to see him do one of his stand up gigs. "Wow, I've always wanted to watch him!"

"Do you want to go?" Reno asked.

I looked up at him. "Of course!" He nodded and dug into one of his back pockets, revealing two tickets. "Reno, you already have tickets?" I asked, taking them from his hand and looking at them.

He nodded. "Bought 'em after I found the flyer. Figured you'd wanna got to something like this."

I looked at him and smiled genuinely at him. "Reno, you shouldn't have done this," I said, handing the tickets back to him.

"Don't worry about it," he said, waving a hand in the air. "You look like you haven't had a good laugh in a while and figured you needed it."

"Thanks, Reno," I said, smiling again. I looked at my watch. "When does it start?"

"Not until seven," he said, pulling the tickets back out to confirm what he just said. "Yeah, it starts at seven."

"Is it okay if I go take a nap? I'm kinda tired."

"Yeah, knock yourself out." He paused. "No pun intended. I'll come get ya if you sleep too long."

I nodded before climbing the ladder to get to the guestroom. I slipped the flip-flops I was wearing off my feet and slid under the covers, closing my eyes and sighing.

My initial thoughts about Reno were beginning to turn. Maybe he had changed after all…..nah.