6.

Tifa was wary. She couldn't say she disliked the stranger standing stiffly in the bar, shoulders and lips tightened, hand near her weapon. She knew nothing about her and yet…maybe it was the hostility with which the woman had just attacked Cloud, even if she'd only seen the last part.

Denzel seemed to share her reserve and stayed behind the bar, watching the newcomer as inconspicuously as he managed while fiddling with the dirty glasses. She made a mental note to ask him about that scene just now. Marlene kept her distance too but there was no inhibition of her usual childish curiosity as she remarked, "I've never seen anyone with that hair colour."

The rose-haired fighter just sized up the girl with an irritated glance. She didn't give an answer, leaning on one of tables instead and letting her eyes travel around the room. Tifa had the sudden urge to put a protective hand on Marlene.

The few customers that were already here at this hour also sent glances in their direction when they noticed the surveillance. One of them poked his seat neighbour to look, giving the woman an appreciative onceover and muttering something to his friend. He was rewarded with an icy glare and a more than obvious tap of her weapon's hilt. The men at the table quickly turned away.

But Tifa also noticed the way she stayed close to the door with her body angled so that she had a vantage point from which she could keep them all in her sight. As though she was preparing to fight or flee at a moment's notice if necessary. It confused her, there was simply something off about this demeanour.

It was in the woman's silence, the stony gaze and rigidness of her stance, like she was on dangerous territory instead of a half-empty bar filled with civilians. This was Edge – the monsters were outside the city gates. Tifa caught her eye and found it difficult to discern anything but hard resolve. That and annoyance.

"What's going on?" she directed the question at Cloud, who had just closed the door. He didn't seem too concerned and she trusted his instincts to know where a threat lay. He'd kept this armed fighter at bay and ended the conflict with persuasion, so apparently she wasn't enough of a risk to be worried.

"She picked a fight with Reno and Rude about where to find Rufus," was his explanation and despite the fact that she had no particular liking for the Turks and their misplaced obedience in the past, she couldn't fathom why they would voluntarily clash with this (evidently not helpless) stranger. Unless they'd felt personally provoked, which was very easy with that duo.

Cloud settled behind a table in the far corner of the room, just beside the bar and away from the regulars. He made an open gesture to the empty chairs. The woman gave him a measured look, threw another glance around the room and reluctantly followed the invitation. Although she still wasn't comfortable with this, Tifa got back to work again, indicating for Denzel and Marlene to head upstairs. Since the initial excitement seemed to be over, they didn't protest too much and she was left to keep an eye on the conversation.

Cloud got straight to the point, voice low, "Why are you looking for Shinra?"

The woman lifted an eyebrow and countered swiftly with her own question. "Why does that matter?"

"Because if you're willing to beat up Turks over it, he's either on your kill list or you want to get something from him. I just want to know what I'm walking into before I help you."

She huffed, crossing her arms as she leaned back into the chair, still defiant. When he didn't budge, she did give a vague answer, "People around here say he's someone who might be in charge. I figure he'll be the most informed on what happens in this place."

"If you want someone in charge, Reeve Tuesti might be the better option," Tifa remarked as she returned from pouring another round of drinks. She slipped onto the free chair beside Cloud, "The WRO is handling everything in Edge now."

"The WRO?" the woman repeated, questioning. Behind the defensive attitude, she appeared lost at the explanation. Her reactions were slowly confusing both of them – where did this stranger come from if she hadn't heard of the WRO at this point? The organisation had been growing in strength and influence for the last year and as far as they knew, there were outposts in several areas of the Planet now.

Tifa was the one to lean forward, fixing a curious look on the woman. "Where exactly are you from? It has to be far out if news hasn't travelled about what they are doing. The Shin-Ra company hasn't been in power for a while now, not since Meteor."

The stranger swallowed, a distant expression crossing her features at the question. She looked like she was struggling with a decision and it didn't take a genius to figure out that she wasn't sure whether to trust them. That went both ways. To be fair, Cloud had just stood up to her in a fight, meddling in her plans. But from what Tifa had seen, this woman was trained and someone that possibly had ties to the military, maybe even SOLDIER, showing up here…well, she could have any kind of intention.

Ice blue eyes snapped back to them and when she spoke again, her voice was a little softer than before, a touch of vulnerability in the tone. "My home was Cocoon, but it was destroyed. Yesterday I ended up on Gran Pulse with the other survivors that made it out. But when everything seemed like it was finally over, something pulled me away. I don't know what – some curse, dark magic, maybe even a fal'Cie. All I know is that I ended up here this morning, in some church. That's it."

Cloud perked up at the last bit. "A church?"

She nodded, flicking her eyes out the window as indication. "West from this city or whatever you want to call it. Full of water, pretty run down. I found someone that gave me a ride but he didn't know much so I figured I'd find someone that has intel on what happens around here. A government figure, police, anyone that knows how to explain this and can get me the hell out of here."

While Cloud still seemed to be contemplating why the newcomer had surfaced in Aerith's church, Tifa was hanging on to entirely different words. This was bigger than big – if this story was true, then they'd just encountered someone from an entirely unknown place. Somewhere outside the currently known continents of the Planet. Despite her suspicions, she was growing curious.

"I've never heard of these places. Pulse, Cocoon… are they islands? And what is a Falcie?"

The woman barely covered an indigenous snort at the idea. "No. They're worlds. Planets. Cocoon used to float above Pulse until the disaster. We always assumed underneath it was a dangerous, backward place and were told to avoid Pulsians at all costs...turns out most of that was lies. The fal'Cie were our rulers, with great powers but they decided to use Cocoon for their own benefit. Humans were just their puppets. But destroying them came at a price - two of my friends from Pulse sacrificed themselves to cast a spell that stopped Cocoon from crashing down. They saved everyone and now, those people are refugees on a planet they are still afraid of. It'll take a lot of rebuilding. They need me there."

There was a beat of silence in which the two drank in all that information. Then Tifa found herself bursting out, amazed, "Incredible! And you don't know how you turned up here? Cloud, do you think…?"

"The Lifestream," he finished the sentence, eyes trained on the fighter opposite him, "It has to be. Why else would you appear in Sector 7? The church is the only place that has a direct connection to it. If magic is responsible, then that is the best explanation. Unless you were summoned."

"From a different world?" Tifa shot him a doubtful look, "All this sounds crazy enough, who would have the power to summon a person just like that?"

They both lapsed into a brief silence at the question, knowing fully well the one person who might be capable of that. A person Cloud had banished from the world again only days ago. It couldn't be him, not after that ordeal. Jenova's remains were also destroyed; they had made sure of that in the aftermath. What was going on here?

It was the newcomer clearing her throat that brought them back to the present. She looked like all of this was going way over her head. "I don't know what any of that means, so, is this Shinra someone that can help or not? Because I'm not wasting my time on useless leads."

"I don't know," Tifa answered truthfully, "We've never seen anything like this before. I think your best shot is the WRO. I can contact Reeve and see if he has any research on something like this. But Cloud knows how to handle Rufus, it could be worth a shot."

The rose-haired woman blinked, surprised and nodded gratefully. "So you believe me?"

Cloud shrugged, as if it was obvious. "You're not from around here. I might have guessed Wutai but your fighting is completely different. You can't be part of SOLDIER either, otherwise you would know about Shin-Ra. And this world you describe - none of it adds up if it's not the truth."

"Well, you know more than the first guy I asked," she acknowledged.

"Lucky you found 7th Heaven then," Tifa noted, throwing a smile over the table, "Coincidence or not, I think we might be able to figure it out. Do you have a place to stay?"

She shook her head. "No. But I don't think I'll get any sleep before I know what is happening."

That was all Tifa needed to know. Ever since opening the bar here in Edge, interacting with people daily and seeing their struggles with Geostigma, she wasn't able to refuse anyone who needed help. Although she knew little about this stranger, she sensed the same need for support. Sure, the woman refused to show weakness in front of them but getting stranded in a completely foreign world alone - she would be terrified and behind that hard exterior, she was sure this was no exception.

Tifa stood up as some customers trailed into the bar, settling on barstools. "Right, then you might as well stay here. Cloud can fix you up a mattress for the night and you can make a decision in the morning."

This time there was a definite widening of the eyes, as though she couldn't believe this readiness to help out, let alone to offer her shelter. Cloud also threw her a look that betrayed he didn't see that one coming. "Teef, are you sure?"

"We don't turn away those that need help," she emphasized, "And if you trust her to stay, I don't see a problem."

It took him a moment and she wondered if he was thinking about the kids. She knew this was a gut-decision but she didn't think this person had it in her to hurt Denzel or Marlene. None of them, actually. She was on a search for answers. A determined, battle-hardened search maybe, but still not exactly out looking for trouble. Cloud nodded his agreement.

The stranger stood up then, holding out her hand. "Thanks. You're doing this for someone you don't even know… that's generous."

She accepted the firm grip. "We can start with a name. I'm Tifa."

"Lightning," was the reply, the smallest of smiles tugging at her lip.

"Welcome to Edge."