"What do you mean you don't know how long! How we gonna run the bar?!", exclaimed Barret.
It wasn't like I wasn't expecting this type of reaction, Tifa thought. But does he always have to yell anytime he's emotional? She had closed the bar early and had everyone wait until Barret came back to give him the news.
"I've already made arrangements. Between Johnny, Petra, and Jaclyn, we should be covered", she said calmly.
Her friends were having trouble digesting this news. A younger sister left with her parent's best friends to live in another city for the past five years. Jessie had asked four times the same questions about whether it was her sister was older or younger.
"This is all coming out of the left-field, Tifa. But you have never mentioned having a sister. Now I'm being selfish, but we're getting close to being ready for the next phase of our plans and the planet needs your presence to whup up on some Shinra ass.", Barret gestured emphatically.
"We are still months away from being ready, Barret. And honestly, I don't think I can focus on anything else right now. I'll be back as soon as I can."
"Are you sure you'll be back?" Tifa didn't respond to his question. Honestly, she didn't know if she wanted to be a part of this anymore. The possibility of hurting innocent people weighed heavily on her.
Wedge spoke up "I support you, Tifa. If my brother was in her shoes, I'd come running. We'll hold down the fort!" Barret shot Wedge a menacing look.
Jessie rested a hand on Barret's shoulder. "We got ya, Tifa.", she smiled widely before giving a wink. Barret sighed.
"Yeah, do what you gotta do and we'll be here when you come back," said Biggs with a thumbs up.
With that show of support, Barret shrugged knowing that his argument was no good. "Alright, alright, alright. Not gonna have you leave on bad terms.", he said nodding.
Tifa smiled with relief. "Thanks everyone. I promise I'll be back as soon as I can." She started to get up from the table. "Now, I have to go pack. Not sure how to pack for a trip I don't know how long will be", she said nervously as she started to walk out of the bar.
Then a little body bolted from behind the bar, grabbing the back of Tifa's thighs. "Can I go with you please!", said Marlene. "Daddy, I want to go with Tifa. You always say that we gotta help people and Tifa's really sad so I gotta help her not be so sad." The little girl was too good at reading into people's feelings.
Turning around, Tifa bent down and brought Marlene in for a hug. "I won't be sad because I get to see my sister. You don't have to worry."
"That's a great idea, Marlene! You can watch for Tifa for us!", Barret yelled.
Everyone turned to look at Barret with shock. "I mean she's safe going with you." He shrugged. "Your godparents are billionaires, right? Gotta have some crazy security in their home. And I heard Seoul would give the upper plate a run for the money on extravagance. Plus you can't stay gone for too long if you take her with you!"
This caused everyone to laugh. Barret's true ulterior purpose.
"Well, looks like that's settled", Tifa patted Marlene's back. "Why don't you have your dad help you pack and get some rest early tonight. We'll be leaving early tomorrow morning".
Marlene nodded, grabbing Barret's hand. "Daddy, come help me pack! I'm gonna make Tifa's sister a present too. We should give someone a present when we're staying at their home. Especially when you meet them for the first time", she said as she leads the large man towards the back.
"Alright, sweetie. I'll help ya."
"Will we see mama again? I miss her." The little girl hugged the young Tifa tightly. She tried her best to console her little sister. But inside she was hurting just as much. She stroked the hair on top of Sophia's head gently. "One day, we'll all be together again. Let's get some sleep. I'm sure mama won't be happy to hear that we stay up all night when we see her again." Sophia looked up at her sister and nodded, quickly falling asleep. It was a few days later that Tifa tried to climb Mt. Nibel to see their mother again and bring her back.
Laying in bed, Tifa looked at the time knowing she had to get up soon. Truth be told, Tifa was relieved to have Marlene tagging along. The child's cheery disposition had a calming effect, relieving part of the stress of thinking about her sister.
Sophia was confident, aspiring, and brilliant from a very young age. A natural-born leader that could gather the support of those around her. Having a knack for technology and gadgets, she would figure out how to use anything when given a few minutes to play with it. That ability and her curiosity would get her into trouble more often than not.
She would have left Nibelheim eventually even if things didn't happen as they did. Her sister was destined for great things. Being the adopted only child of rags to riches to Tech founder and the heiress to a machinery and supplier conglomerate would solidify her future. Or so Tifa thought. If there was someone who could get in the way to Sophia's bright future, it was Sophia herself.
Getting up, she quickly showered and got dressed in a pair of dark jeans, a grey and red patterned sweater with a loose neck, exposing part of her shoulders, and short grey boots. Grabbing her suitcase, she made her way out to the bar where she found Barret and Marlene watching a cartoon together.
"Mornin, Tifa!" - Barret
"Good Morning, Barret. Are you ready for our trip, Marlene?", she asked with a smile.
With the added effect of a thumbs up sign, "Ready for operation bratty little sister!" Barret laughed uncomfortably. "Marlene sweetie, that was between me and you. "
She looked up at her father. "Oh, sorry I forgot", she said with a shrug.
This only made Tifa chuckle. Well, the word "bratty" probably isn't that far of an exaggeration for Sophia's behavior sometimes. "You guys want some breakfast? I was going to make some pancakes and eggs."
"Sounds great, Tifa. I'm gonna miss your cooking. Be lucky if Wedge and Biggs don't burn the bar while you're gone trying to takeover that job." He was genuinely concerned by this.
"Hmmm.", Tifa was also nervous at the thought. Maybe she should ask Johnny to take care of some of the meals while she's gone…
She mixes enough batter for seven people. Wedge is the first to walk in. Tifa decides to make scrambled eggs, hash browns, and bacon. The latter two were favorites of Wedge. Biggs comes in next, with Jessie following shortly after.
Blake was the last to appear. He had apparently picked up a more causal gear of a red fleece sweater and jeans. "Thanks for the outfit yesterday", he said to Biggs, handing a bag to him, "I had the chance to wash them this morning."
"Yeah, it was no problem at all, I'm just happy to help however I can. My name is Biggs by the way."
Exchanging looks with Tifa, unsure of how much she had told them, he went on "My name is Blake Underwood and I'm a family friend of Tifa's parents."
"He's my godfather.", Tifa corrected. "Him and his wife took us in like family when my father was killed."
This caused a wide smile on Blake's face. "I had little to do with bringing Tifa up. She's always been independent and self-sufficient."
As she put down a plate of pancakes, "I could always depend on your help when it counted. After all, the bar is all thanks to you."
Jessie snapped her fingers. "Now that makes sense. Always wondered how exactly you got the money for this place! Used to think that maybe you were secretly a merc going around doing jobs for other people. Or maybe working at Wall Market…."
"Oh Jessie, always coming up with great stories…"Tifa cut off. She did not want Blake to hear whatever would come out of Jessie's mouth next. After introducing him to the rest of Avalanche, they began eating.
The conversations which followed were light in nature, free of awkward questions or ones that would need a lot of explanations. That came as a surprise as Tifa was for sure that Barret or Jessie would try to dig into her complicated past.
Blake masterfully engaged with her comrades, using his natural charm to quickly win them over. Even the distrustful Barret appeared to find him decent as evident of the lack of fists pounding on the table or raising his voice in the conversation.
When everyone was done, Tifa began to gather plates as Jessie volunteered to help. "So you're saying that everyone who lives in Seoul is anti-Shinra, huh? Never heard of any fighting between the two ." Barret said.
"The last thing the city wants is an all out war like with Wutai, especially since we're not too far away. It's more like a Cold War. We stay independent and out of their way and they keep out of our city. " Blake explained.
Jessie and Tifa made their way to the large sink in the back. "Just leave the dishes, Tifa. Don't worry I'll get the boys to clean them later", she said with a devious smile.
Tifa nodded, not having a doubt that Jessie would.
Jessie put a hand on Tifa's shoulder and gave a squeeze. "You're ok, right? We've all been worried about you for a while. The break off from the rest of Avalanche didn't seem to be the only thing that was troubling you. So you were worried about your sister?"
"Yes, I've been worried about her. But I'm so happy I get to be with her for a while. Even with the circumstances.", with a nod, "Yes, I'm good."
"Good", Jessie said with relief "Just make sure you holler at us if there's trouble. Teenagers these days…more stubborn than a wild Chocobo. And your sister sounds like a real stubborn one."
"Yeah, you would probably rather deal with a dozen wild Chocobo before Sophia", Tifa said with a smile "She's always been a bit of a handful."
As they walked back to the front, Marlene was putting on her pink backpack while Blake had rounded up her and Tifa's suitcases. She tried to grab hers when he stopped her "I don't think so my dear. You can be useful by properly saying goodbye to your friends and taking the little lady's hand while we walk to the station."
There was no point in arguing. It was a bit uncomfortable for the shy Tifa, but she gave each of them a warm hug.
Marlene had plenty of questions about their "trip" as they started their short walk to the train station all the up to topside. She tired out as soon as they got to the Midgar Lux, a condo building that housed many of the wealthiest people in the city.
One of the condos was owned by Blake which he had initially bought for Tifa to live in when she made the decision to stay in Midgar. She used it for a few weeks while she set up her life in the slums, to the dismay of him and his wife. They ended up keeping it for housing when the sisters reunited on weekend trips.
They made it up to the rooftop where Blake's helicopter was parked in a landing pad. Putting all the luggage in a storage compartment, he looked over at Tifa who was carrying the sleeping Marlene in her arms, "I need to make a pit stop in Juno for a meeting. But we should make it back to Seoul in time for a late lunch."
Tifa nodded her head. "Ok, sounds good." She got into the passenger's side of the copter, carefully fastening Marlene who was on her lap into the seat.
"And we're off! Fair warning, I'm a little rusty with the flying so you might want to close your eyes too.", he said jokingly. Tifa chuckled at that. She always loved being around the couple who took them in so readily. The reasons why her parents had endeared them so much was apparent.
How would her life have been different if she had stayed? Would Sophia had been better off growing up alongside her? She shrugged those thoughts out of her head. It was too late for regret.
