Disclaimer:

Still don't own it and don't think I ever will...

Author's Note:

Wow, you guys are freakin awesome! So here's a relatively long chapter packed with lots of good stuff! (Actually I'll let you guys be the judge of that.) But thanks again for all the wonderful reviews! Keep 'em coming cuz they make me joyful and encourage me to write! More reviews means more happiness means faster chapters! (If I can pump em out that fast...) But anyways, hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Stay tuned for the next one! You're not gonna want to miss it!


I received a phone call from the courthouse the Wednesday before I was to appear in court.

"Miss Lockheart, have you chosen a lawyer?"

"No, I'm going to be my own defense," I said, reclining back into my couch next to my son who was intently looking at one of his children's books.

"Well, do you have a witness to back you up?"

"Yes, I do."

"Then we shall see you tomorrow morning."

I hung up the phone and turned to my son. "Well, little man," I said, ruffling his hair. "What do you want to do today?"

He looked up at me. "Do you have to work today?"

I shook my head. "No, baby, not today. I do tomorrow though." I stopped and looked away. And you might not even be mine by that time anymore. "What do you want to do today?"

He dropped his eyes back down to his book and flipped a page before responding. "I want to be with my Mommy."

I ran my hand through his hair then placed one of my fingers under his chin and brought his head up so he was looking at me. "Well, I want to be with my Logan." I tapped him on his nose, earning myself a giggle. I rose from the couch and stretched my arms over my head. "Well, what do you want to do?" I said, looking at him.

He shrugged. "Don't know."

"Well, that really helps me," I said, sitting back down next to him. I thought for a few moments before a thought occurred. "Hey, you want to go see Unca Reno?"

Logan's expression brightened at the mention of his name and he jumped off of the couch with his book. "Let's go see Unca Reno!"

"Okay, go get the stuff you want to bring," I said, getting up from the couch and walking into my room and grabbing my cell phone off of the charger. I dialed Reno's number and patiently waited for him to answer. I remembered him mentioning that he didn't have to work the day before my court date.

He answered after the third ring. "This better be pretty fuckin' good."

I smiled. "Reno, it's me."

"Oh," he said, his voice losing its malicious tone. "What's up, Teef?"

"Well, I remember that you said you didn't have to work today so I was wondering if Logan and I could spend some time with you today. You know," I said, lowering my voice considerably. "Because Logan might not be with me anymore tomorrow."

"Hey, Teef, don't say that. I don't think Cloud has a leg to stand on when it comes to deciding which parent he goes with. You don't need to worry about anything. You'll get sole custody and then you can put a restraining order on that son of a bitch." I was silent for a little before Reno spoke up again. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I just have a lot on my mind right now." I collapsed onto my bed.

"Hey, I gotta meet with Reeve in Junon today. You and Logan can come along."

"Are you sure?" I asked, hoping I was wasn't imposing.

"Yeah, you need something to do to get your mind off of tomorrow and this is exactly what you need. I'll drop by your house and get ya when I'm ready, alright?"

"Okay, thanks Reno, you have no idea how much I need this."

"Hey, don't mention it. I'm just tryin' to look out for ya."

"And thank you so much for that." I rolled onto my side and curled into a ball, holding the phone tightly to my ear.

"Like I said, don't worry about it. I'll drop by as soon as I'm ready, 'kay?"

"Sure, I'll see you then."

"Bye." Reno hung up and I got up from my bed.

When I walked back into the living room, Logan was sitting on the couch with his blanket and chocobo looking at his book again. When he saw me he jumped up from the couch and ran over to me. "When we see Unca Reno?"

"Soon, sweetie, we're going to go to Junon with him," I said, picking him up.

"Are we gonna see Unca Barret?" He asked excitedly.

My eyebrows pinched together and I cocked my head to one side. "Maybe, he might be there."

"I can see Marlene!" He said, throwing his arms around my neck and hugging me.

"Yeah," I said, going into Logan's room.

I placed Logan on the floor and got to the task of getting his diaper bag together. Logan was using pull-ups now but he was prone to having accidents at the most unwanted moments. I placed five extra pull-ups in the diaper bag along with wipes and baby powder, along with hand sanitizer if I wasn't near a bathroom. I was getting ready to collect Logan from the floor when I heard the doorbell ring.

"Unca Reno!" Logan shot up from the floor and dashed out of his room, charging toward the front door. I heard him open it and then Logan's squeal of joy as Reno walked into the room.

"Hey, kiddo!" Reno said, causing Logan to squeal and laugh some more. "What's up, little dude?"

I finished gathering all of Logan's things and when I turned around I jumped upon seeing Reno standing right behind me. I gasped and placed one of my hands on his shoulder and the other on my chest. "God, Reno, don't do that."

He chuckled. "Sorry, Teef," he said, grinning. "Couldn't help it."

"Jerk," I said, slapping him on the chest and walking out of Logan's room with his diaper bag.

"Oooh, I like 'em feisty!" Reno said as he followed me out.

I rolled my eyes as I set the diaper bag down on the coffee table and turned to Logan. I blocked my mouth so Reno couldn't see what I was saying as I whispered something to my son. "He's crazy," I mouthed. Logan gasped and placed his hands over his mouth as he started to giggle. I smiled and turned back to Reno who was leaning on the wall. "What are we taking to Junon?"

"Well, we would have been taking a helicopter but the one they have here has a broken rudder and they have to repair it. We're going to be taking a boat." Reno ran his hand haphazardly through his hair.

I shrugged. "That's okay. Should we go now?"

"Sure. They don't leave until I get there." He walked toward the door and collected a small black duffel bag. "Let's get goin'."

I nodded and slung Logan's diaper bag over my shoulders then picked Logan up. I locked up my house then walked with Reno to the docks. We departed as soon as we boarded the boat and were in Junon in less than three hours. Once we arrived, we went into the office at the top of the Junon Tower. Reeve apparently had been appointed Mayor of Junon, much to my amazement. The last I had heard of Reeve he was conducting the reconstruction of Midgar, which was before Logan was born. Whether or not he was continuing with that was beyond me.

Reno walked into his office without knocking. "What's up, Mister Mayor?" He asked, plopping down into one of the chairs in front of Reeve's desk.

As soon as I entered, I spotted Barret standing next to the window. I was hoping in the back of my mind that he wouldn't be there. Barret could read me like an open book and he can detect the second that something is wrong with me. Tony and Reno have already threatened to induce bodily harm on Cloud; I don't need the same reaction from Barret as well.

I set Logan down on the floor and placed his blanket, chocobo and diaper bag down next to the door. Logan ran toward Barret and collided into one of his legs, wrapping his arms around him and squeezing. "Hi Unca Barret!" He exclaimed as he backed away and lifted his arms into the air as a silent plea of wanting to be picked up.

"Hey there, Logan," Barret said as he picked him up. "How's my favorite little nephew?"

"Good," he said, smiling. "Where's Marlene?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, kid," Barret said, ruffling his hair. "Marlene's at home in Corel. I came here to take care of some business with Reeve."

Logan's face fell. "Oh," he said, disappointment apparent in his expression.

Barret walked towards me and stopped in front of me. "Hey, Tifa, how ya been?"

I shrugged. "Pretty good," I lied. "How about you?"

"Well, you know, same 'ol same 'ol. Trying ta get Corel back in shape. Shit like that ain't easy." He looked at Logan who still held the same look of disappointment over Marlene's absence. "Hey, cheer up. Maybe you can come spend the night this weekend."

Logan's face immediately brightened. "Really?"

"You bet," he said, looking back at me. "As long as it's okay with your Mom."

I bit my bottom lip, trying in vain to hold back from breaking down. I didn't want Barret to find out that my son may not be mine anymore this weekend. I hastily turned around and retreated from the room. Reno went to follow me but Barret stopped him and handed Logan to him. "Hey, hold on a second," Reno said, starting to follow Barret.

"You go take care of what ya gotta take care of with Reeve. Let me handle Tifa."

Reno nodded and returned to the chair he had been sitting in earlier and got on with business. Barret caught me when I was half way down the hall. I wanted to go to the bathroom that I had seen earlier before anyone could catch me. Yeah, like me going into a ladies' bathroom would keep Barret from talking to me. He'd find out what was wrong with me come hell or high water and that's what I was afraid of.

He grabbed my arm and made me look at him. "Teef, what's the matter?" He asked, looking at me with concerned eyes.

I shook my head, trying to hold back my tears. "Nothing, it's nothing."

"Bullshit, it's nothing. You've never cried over me mentioning that Logan should spend the night in Corel with me an' Marlene. He's done it too many times for you ta get all emotional over it. What's bothering you?" He asked again, making me look at him.

I stared into Barret's eyes and couldn't hold back the tears that were threatening to spill out of my eyes. I looked away from him as two small tears fell down my cheeks. "It's Cloud."

Barret forced me to look at him once again. "You got over that son of a bitch long ago. Why the hell would you be crying over him now?"

"Because of what he's about to do."

"What's he gonna do, Tifa? I swear if he hurts you that boy will never see the light of day again."

Barret's last statement was exactly what I didn't want to hear. That only made the prospect of telling Barret even harder. I began to cry uncontrollably and Barret let me calm down some more before he questioned me again. "What's he gonna do?"

I wiped my eyes and looked at him. "He's trying to get sole custody of Logan."

Barret's hand fell from my shoulder and a bewildered look fell onto his face. "You gotta be shittin' me. That asshole ain't never helped you raise Logan since the day he was born! How could the court grant custody to that scum?" Barret exclaimed as he began to get red in the face.

I shrugged my shoulders meekly. "I don't know what to do, Barret."

"Hey, it's alright," he said, wrapping his overly large arms around my tiny frame and hugging me gently. "You'll be fine. You know I'll help ya any way I can."

I hugged him back, relieved that he wanted to help me as well. I backed away from him and wiped my eyes once again. "How?"

"Well, let's go talk to Reeve. Maybe he can get ya a good lawyer." He grabbed my hand and began to lead me back to Reeve's office. I didn't even get the chance to tell him that I wouldn't need a lawyer.

Barret practically broke down Reeve's door and almost ran Reno over who was still sitting in the chair with Logan in his lap. "Barret, what's wrong?" Reeve asked, rising from his seat slightly.

Barret's grip around my wrist tightened as he swung me around in front of Reeve's desk. "Tell him, Tifa."

Reeve looked at me warily. "Tifa, what is it?"

I bit my lip and looked down at Reno. He nodded his head and got up, walking out of Reeve's office. Once Reno had left, I turned to Reeve. "Cloud's trying to get sole custody of Logan."

"Well, then you're going to need a lawyer. I can do that for you," he said, sitting back down.

I shook my head. "No, Reeve, I already told the court that I was going to be my own defense. Reno's going to be my witness."

Barret walked up next to me and looked at me with fire burning in his eyes. "Tifa, how can you expect to win like that? You need someone who knows you and Logan and can give you a good, solid defense."

Tears started to come to my eyes again. God, when was that going to stop? "Barret, I can't do that. I can't put my son's future in the hands of someone else. If I can't persuade the judge and the jury to give me custody then who will?"

Barret looked away from me and shook his head. Reeve took this time to step in. "Tifa, are you sure? I know your habits with Logan, Tifa, and I know what kind of mother you are. I can create a solid defense that no one else will be able to come up with."

"No, Reeve, it's alright. I can do this. I have to do this. Logan needs his mother to defend him."

Reeve nodded and sat back down. "Why don't you and Barret go get something to eat? Reno and I still have some things we need to discuss. Logan can stay here."

"Thanks, Reeve," I said as Barret started to lead me out.

Reno was standing in the hallway with Logan in his arms. When he saw Barret and I emerge from Reeve's office he walked towards us and began to give Logan back to me. "No, Reno, you keep him for now. Barret and I are going to get something to eat. We'll be back in a little." I leaned forward and gave Logan a quick kiss on the cheek then followed Barret down the hall.

We went to a small café down the street. I wasn't hungry so I just ordered some coffee. Barret proceeded to leak all the information about my court appearance. He questioned if I had come up with my speech to the judge and when I told him I was just going to wing it, he just about blew up at me. After a while his banter got on my nerves and I was about to leave when he stopped me.

"Hey, I'm sorry. I don't mean ta upset ya. Let's go back now. Reeve an' Reno are probably done."

I nodded, relieved that he let the topic slide. If he had continued to talk on and on about it, I probably would have left without a word. I know Barret's just trying to look out for Logan and me but he didn't have to go off the deep end about it.

When we arrived back at Reeve's office, Reno and Reeve were just passing the time with small talk. Logan hopped off of Reno's lap and immediately ran over to me. "Where you go?" He asked as I picked him up.

"I went with Uncle Barret so Unca Reno and Reeve could talk."

"Oh," he said, squirming out of my arms and returning to Reno's lap.

Reno turned around and smiled at me. "Hey, you two have fun?"

I shrugged. "You could say that." I directed my attention at Reeve. "Are you guys done?"

"Yes, we finished a few minutes before you got back." He rose from his desk and came around to stand in front of me. "I hope your court appearance goes well."

"Thanks, Reeve," I said, hugging him. "I'll come back some other time and visit with you."

He nodded. "I'd like that very much. It was good to see you again."

I smiled at him then collected Logan's things from the back of the room. Barret came over to me and gave me a tight hug. "You take care of yourself now. Tell me how it goes, will ya?"

"Of course. You know I will and thanks for cheering me up. I needed it."

"Hey, don't mention it, Teef. I'm just tryin' to look out for ya." He gave me one more hug then backed away.

"Thanks again." I turned to Reno as he joined me at the door. "You wanna keep carrying him?"

He shrugged. "Sure, just as long as he stops pulling my hair," he said, turning to Logan and ruffling his hair.

"Was he earlier?" I asked as we stepped into the elevator to take us to the bottom of the tower.

"He wouldn't leave me alone. Does he do that to you?"

"He likes to twirl my hair around his fingers. Sometimes he attempts to braid it."

"Well, that's what he was tryin' to do to me, but it hurt," he said, scratching an area of his head that Logan had gotten at earlier.

I laughed. "Well, he seems to have an infatuation in playing with other people's hair, especially if it's long."

"Yeah, don't remind me."

The boat trip back to Costa was over fairly quick. When I walked through my front door, I looked at the clock on the oven and was shocked to find that it was almost nine o'clock. I turned to Reno who was holding a sleeping Logan in his arms. "Go ahead and go wait in his room."

He nodded and disappeared down the hall as I went into my own room. I placed his diaper bag down next to my closet and got out some red flannel pajama pants and a white spaghetti strap top. I quickly changed then joined Reno in Logan's room. When I entered, Reno took much joy in carefully examining my body. I whacked him on the side of the head and took Logan out of his arms.

"You sick, sick little boy," I mumbled as I dressed Logan for bed.

"Hey, I can't help it. When you wear clothes like that it's kinda hard to resist those manly urges."

My mouth fell open and I turned around, hurling the object I had been holding in my hand at him, which just so happened to be a diaper.

"Hey, whoa!" He exclaimed, jumping away from it. "That better not be used."

"Don't worry, it wasn't," I said, grabbing another one.

Reno stood back and watched as I got Logan dressed and ready for bed. I was surprised that he hadn't woken up and I was grateful for it. I put Logan in bed then walked out of his room with Reno in tow. "You got tomorrow off right?"

"Yep, called in last week and asked for tomorrow off early. I was surprised they even gave it to me. I've only been working there little less than a month. What time do I have to be there again?

"Well, it starts at eleven so why don't you come here in the morning and we can drive over in my truck together."

"Sure, sounds great." He turned to the door and began to open it but stopped short. After a few moments, he shut the door and turned to me, closing the considerably small gap that was in between us.

I frowned as I looked up into his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"I, uh, just want to let you know that…" His words trailed off as he brought one of his hands up to my face and gently brushed the pads of his fingers across my cheek. "I just want you to know that I, uh…care a lot about you, Teef, and that I'll always be here for ya. No matter how bad things get."

I smiled and placed my hand on top of his. "Thanks, Reno. I appreciate that."

I found myself staring into his eyes again like I did when we were in Cosmo Canyon, only this time they looked different. They seemed…gentler, softer even. He bent down and kissed me on the forehead before he backed away. "Sleep good. See you in the morning."

I nodded. "See you."

He opened the door and walked out, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he trudged off into the dark. As I watched his form disappear into the night air, I realized something, something that I never would have been able to admit to myself just a few months ago.

I wanted him.