Disclaimer: Not mine.
Barret: The Root of all Evil
To Barret, Midgar was a starting point. It was the home of ShinRa, and ShinRa had to be destroyed at its root, cut out and burned and the ground where it had stood salted.
It would also be a starting point for Marlene. The poor girl wouldn't be able to remember her birthplace, North Corel. And Midgar was a piss-poor place to grow up. Marlene wasn't Barret's daughter, but he'd be damned if he thought Dyne wanted his daughter to grow up in a tavern, wiping down bars and mixing drinks.
But then, he had never wanted to lead a revolution until now. Perhaps Marlene would grow used to it. He'd start setting aside money for her schooling, so she would at least be able to choose a career she wanted. With any luck, his politics would not be an issue.
He did not visit the top of the plate, instead choosing to stay in the slums, where security was looser and sympathisers more common. And there were a few of them around. People who could see how dark, grimy and poor the slums were.
One of them, a young woman called Tifa, let him use her tavern as a base. This was the real starting point. This was where the plans to destroy ShinRa would be formed. What happened in this tavern's basement would have repercussions for the rest of the world.