Author's note: Much hilarity in this one, with a few serious comments. I know this is a little silly. But the family dynamics have to be explored as the story progresses. This isn't your typical family, though they are truly a family in every sense of the word.

Summary: A wild morning commences as Cloud and Tifa prepare to leave for Mideel, with Kera coming to the rescue. And Marlene manages to remind both parents she is truly as observant as Denzel claims.

Expectations

Chapter Three of the 'Denzel Chronicles'

By Ivy Tanté

By Friday morning, the Strife-Lockhart household was in utter chaos. Although Cloud and Tifa's duffel bags were packed and neatly stacked by the front door awaiting Cid's arrival on the High Shera, the kitchen was a shambles, Marlene was doing laps on the stairs, and Denzel sat in the middle of bedlam laughing his head off.

Cloud, holding an empty bag of his favorite -and very sugary- treats, looked highly put-out. Normally about as neat as anyone could expect for a guy with absolutely no fashion sense whatsoever, his hair was decidedly rumpled and smashed flat against his head on one side. The normal black cable-knit vest was unzipped, the black cargo jeans zipped but not buttoned, no shoes on his feet and all accoutrements -belt, pauldron, weapons harness, dust skirt, gloves- were missing in action. The slightly vague look on his face hinted broadly that he'd yet to consume anything with a caffeine content.

In complete contrast, Tifa was perfectly groomed with every hair in place. She wore casual clothes for the trip; a deep crimson shirt edged with black lace at cuffs and hem, and a pair of comfortable jeans that outlined what seemed to be mile-long legs. Boots nearly the same shade as her shirt graced her feet, a nod to her vivid red shoes of the past. Nimbly dodging the bullet she called her daughter that was currently bouncing around the kitchen, she stood on tip-toe and pecked Cloud's cheek.

"Are you holding that bag for a reason?" she asked, mischief in her eyes as she headed for the coffee pot, drawn by the enticing scent of the brew.

Sighing, Cloud eyed the teenaged girl that zipped by him and said in an exasperated voice, "I just bought it last night. I thought I'd hidden it behind the flour container, but someone found it." He shook the empty bag for good measure. "Tifa, this thing held five pounds of candy. All of which is currently residing in that speeding blur that just flashed through here." Feeling a tap on his shoulder, he turned to confront the mug held out to him, fragrant steam wafting forward to tickle his nose. Letting the bag drop, he snatched the mug and downed half the contents in one desperate gulp.

"She didn't eat all of it," Denzel informed him, finally able to breathe. "I caught her after the first pound or so and hid the rest in Fenrir's left rear compartment." Wrapping an arm around his aching ribs, he continued, "I moved all the sugar cereals to the top shelf and snuck the orange and apple juice out to the refrigerator in the garage. Then I called Kera and told her what happened. She'll be here in a few minutes to help coral Marlene and get her ready for school."

Kissing the crown of his head, Tifa laughed softly, "Thank you, Denzel. That was really thoughtful of you. Although if someone had hidden the candy better, it wouldn't be necessary." She gave Cloud a look that spoke volumes.

The guilty party winced and took another gulp of coffee.

A knock on the kitchen door sounded, and before anyone else could even twitch in that direction, Marlene tackled the door and yanked Kera inside all in the same motion. "I'm so glad you're here!" she said, wrapping her arms around the older girl's waist in such a way Kera's hands were trapped at her sides.

"You weren't kidding about an emergency, were you?" she asked Denzel dryly. Before he could answer, she somehow managed to shimmy out of Marlene's hold without any apparent effort and dared, "You can't catch me!" Then she was through the kitchen and up the stairs, Marlene in hot pursuit.

Eyebrows raised, Cloud let loose a low whistle. "Denzel," he said very seriously, "you have met your match with that one. I've never seen anyone escape Marlene's bear hug with such ease."

Denzel couldn't quite hold down the blush, and turned back to his own breakfast of cheese toast to keep from answering.

Tifa took Cloud's empty coffee mug from him and pushed him towards the stairs, "Go on, finished getting dressed. And please do something with that hair!" She had to laugh at his affronted look, and refilled the mug. "The quicker you get ready, the faster you get this…" And she waved the mug at him just enough to make the steam even more tempting.

"Okay, okay," he grumbled, running his hands through the haphazard spikes. He turned to head upstairs and nearly ran into Kera, just coming back down.

Kera honestly hadn't realized Cloud and Tifa were even in the kitchen when she arrived to help with the crisis, since Marlene had taken up all her attention the second she walked in the door. It was hard to miss Strife now, however, as she was almost nose to chest with him. Bouncing back, she nearly vaulted the table in her desire to get out of his way. She said not a word as Cloud disappeared around the corner.

Once he was safely out of earshot, however, Kera muttered a very soft and awe-struck, "Wow! I mean, seriously… wow!" In the five years since meeting Denzel, she had never seen his father in such a state of dishevelment. And she had to admit -reluctantly- that all her friends that drooled over the ex-Solider were correct; he might be slim, but he was definitely well made. Blushing, she forced such thoughts from her head and turned to Tifa. "Marlene let me pick out her outfit, and she's getting into it now. What do you want her to have for breakfast?"

"Would you mind scrambling some eggs? She normally wants toast with jam, but I don't think that's a good idea this morning," Tifa's voice was amused as she picked up the empty candy bag from the floor and tossed it in the trash can. Looking at Denzel, she asked, "In case she heard where you stashed it, will you hide the candy in some other place?"

"Sure thing, mom. I'll put it in the bottom drawer of dad's tool chest. I know she won't go in there."

And Tifa had to laugh, knowing Denzel was right. The last time Marlene attempted to mess with Cloud's tools had been traumatic - he'd made her sit down and memorize the name of every piece of equipment in it. It had been way too much like school, and Marlene had never, to Tifa's knowledge, laid a finger on it since.

Said sprite bounced down the stairs several minutes later, dressed in a soft pink wrap-around skirt and a white t-shirt with pale pink flower petals embroidered on it. Her hair was in its usual braid, with the pink ribbon securing it's length. The outfit gave her cheeks a soft glow and emphasized her developing charms. Though she'd always been cute, that cuteness was beginning to blossom into seriously pretty.

Denzel, just returning from the garage, sat down at the table again and grumbled under his breath, "If that Tyson tries to walk you home again today, I'm cutting him off at the kneecaps." Eying his little sister, he gulped down the last of his orange juice while trying to ignore the snickers from his mother.

Still hyped up on sugar and excitement, Marlene jammed her hands to her hips and warned, "You'll do no such thing. He walks me and his sister home every day, Denzel! There's nothing else to it." She even stomped a foot to emphasize the statement.

Denzel started to say something when Kera leaned over to put the plate of scrambled eggs at Marlene's place at the table. "If memory recalls, you walked me home every day for nearly five years, Denzel Strife," she murmured softly in his ear.

Smirking at him over a forkful of eggs, Marlene nodded, "So there!" Outnumbered, Denzel very wisely shut up.

Cloud reentered the kitchen, looking much more his usual self. "Marlene," he said softly, smiling at her as she continued glaring at Denzel, "what argument would you use if I threatened to cut this Tyson off at the knees?" He was still smiling as Marlene rounded on him, anger flashing in her dark eyes. Winking at Kera, he leaned against the counter with his second cup of coffee and waited for his daughter to do her worst.

She did. Without a single hesitation, Marlene turned to Tifa and asked her innocently, "Do you want to know what really happened to that purple blouse of yours? The one Cloud claimed the washer ate?" Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cloud wince as the shaft hit home.

"I know what happened, scamp," Tifa assured her, then pointed to her breakfast. "Eat! We'll be leaving soon and I want to know that breakfast ended up in your stomach and not decorating the walls."

Grumbling, Marlene plopped into the chair and chomped down a forkful of eggs. "I can't believe he actually told you what he did," she muttered around the mouthful.

Tifa reached out to stroke a finger across the faint red gracing Cloud's cheeks. "He didn't have to. He acted too guilty for it to be anything but an accident. Trust Cloud to make a washing machine go rogue." Leaning forward, she gave him a tender kiss. She had to smile as his arm snaked around her waist to pull her closer, deepening the kiss.

"Eew." Marlene wrinkled her nose at her parents. "Would you mind not ruining my breakfast?" She turned back to find that Kera had taken advantage of Cloud and Tifa's distraction to kiss Denzel. "Gross! Don't any of you know how to keep your lips to yourselves?"

"Deal with it, brat," Denzel suggested as he rose to rinse off his plate and put it in the dishwasher. Dusting off his hands, he then rounded on his sister. The intent was plain on his face, but despite the sugar-high, Marlene wasn't fast enough to stop him from planting a sloppy kiss on her cheek.

Cloud, Tifa, Kera and Denzel all watched as Marlene hopped about the kitchen, scrubbing her cheek with a dishtowel while wailing at the top of her lungs, "Gah! Gross! Ick! Germs!"

The kitchen door opened and Cid Highwind stepped in without knocking, as was usual with the often-profane pilot. Observing the one-girl parade marching through, he asked, "Is this a good time to say the ship is waiting? Move your arses, kiddies!" And he turned around and went right back out, refusing to immerse himself further into the insanity of the Strife-Lockhart household.

"Smart man," Tifa said softly, causing Cloud to laugh.

Releasing his wife, Cloud headed for the bar, calling over his shoulder, "I'll grab the bags." He didn't quite make it to the door when Marlene stopped her act and turned to her parents.

"When is the baby due?" she asked softly. Four pairs of startled eyes latched onto Marlene, and she fidgeted under the intense stares. "I'm not an imbecile, you know. I do know how babies get made."

"But how- " Tifa started, then stopped at the look on Kera's face. "You didn't know." It was a statement, but Kera nodded all the same.

"It wasn't my place to say anything," Denzel muttered.

Cloud considered his son for a moment before coming to a decision. "You can tell her, Denzel. From the way everything is going, she'll be a member of our family soon enough anyway." He had to grin at the fiery blush evident on both teens. Then he knelt by Marlene's side and took her hand in his. "I'm sorry, Marlene. I should have told you right away, but I wasn't thinking. Men forget to do that all the time, right?"

"Right!" she agreed, and threw her arms around Cloud's neck. "Do you think I'll get a little sister?" she whispered hopefully.

Whispering back, Cloud confessed, "I sure hope you do. But will you be really disappointed if it's a little boy?"

Marlene took a moment to think about it. Decided, she stated, "It won't be so bad, cause I'll be a big sister."

"Mores the pity for him," Cloud added, and both of them laughed. Straightening, he sternly told her, "Do as Denzel and Kera asks you, imp." Turning to his son, he clapped a hand on his shoulder. "It's really okay to tell both of them everything relating to this, Denzel. They should both understand why this trip is necessary."

Then he fetched the bags, shocked everyone by kissing both his children and Kera goodbye, and hustled Tifa out the door.

Leaving poor Denzel to handle the two females who looked at him so expectantly. His one word summary of the situation was quite to the point. "Crap!"