hello, all. Well, some friends finally convinced me to attend a con myself so this past weekend was spent in Orlando, Florida, hanging out with friends, plotting evil and hunting down cosplayers for pictures. A good time was had by all, or at least the three of us (sorry, hunted down cosplayers). We did have one incident in which I was dressed as Tifa and while I was in the process of glomping a Squall, a passer-by yelled: "Bet Cloud never saw that coming!" After the laughter one of the friends with me commented that things sounded suspiciously like my story. I was torn between chortling and cackling evily. But it was okay. The Cloud/Naruto got his glomp time too. Anyway, to anyone that was there - wasn't it fun? and if I'd been thinking I would have posted something to say I was going to be there (even though I did get dragged into some interesting fanfic discussions with various fangirls while there anyway). Oh! And there was the most adorable Zack - who had to be barely to my shoulder he was so young. I'm definitely going to have to go to more cons. And now that I've rambled - on to my best beloveds. Well, here we are, my loves, coming down the home stretch. I hope I manage to hit all the right notes and avoid any bad ones. OCV - this week has been insane but I have not forgotten your story. I shall review! Just as soon as I get some sleep ;) In the meantime, my, my, you're a blood thirsty one - lol. But fear not, we're not done with Aerith yet! I like that - Red as a fuzzy pillow. He'd probably prefer that to being called a cat. Ding! point one for both Scooby and Wiz of O. Yuffieese? LOL! That's great! I'm SO using that term from now on! We will defiantly have to get you both more Cloud plushie stuffing and chocolate - stat! cherrypudding - wow yourself. The whole thing in only five days?! Holy wow, batman! that's amazing. I'm so glad you're enjoying it and will probably squeal like a little girl over the impending giagantor review. It's reassuring to know that it reads well all together since I've been posting it in bits and pieces and wondered how it held up as a whole. Welcome to the party! ladywisdom - You recognized the story!!!! Tackle hug! I loved The Princess and the Goblins as a kid. And Curdie and the Princess too. I wondered if anyone else would pick up on it if I mentioned it. George MacDonald rocks! :D And yeah, I thought it was somehow fitting that after all the angsting, Yuffie would have had the answer all along 'like... duh!'. also - thank you about everyone sounding their age. I don't intentionally think about it but I do try to keep the right mind set so they talk the way they 'should'. That you noticed - and think I did it right - thank you, thank you. ding two for Wiz of O! lexi-yeesh - glad it all made sense. and - yeah - I find Yuffie too much fun to write. It's a pity I don't get to more often. the Turks got a call from a missing agent (or operative, I can't remember what I put and can't check at the moment). I actually don't go back and mention it again but I will say, the 'agent' had a penchant for cape flares and likes his gold armor. ;) osiris' consort - yeah, every time I let Yuffie open her mouth in my story I'm never sure what's going to come out. She's a trip to write for. vanilla - oh, hang on to your seat ;) ding two for Scooby. And - you want a battle? fairheartstrife - You want Cloud? well... okay. But remember you two asked for it ;) skykhanhunter - everyone seems to have really enjoyed Elmyra and Yuffie. I'm glad I could insert a smile into the situations and I'm also glad that characters I haven't had much time to pay attention to are still getting enjoyed. Makes me happy to know 'cause I really love both of them as well. mystic 777 - YES! someone finally mentioned Cloud's '...' I LOVE writing those in, it so drags me right back into the game. I have no idea how it would sound either but I just can't resist putting it in. You're awesome and some for commenting on it! Right on about Vincent and wow, good call on Cait. I always feel bad when I read a story that doesn't get finished too. I promised my readers that I wouldn't start something that I didn't finish and I mean to keep that promise. Now let's just make sure ffnet keeps holding up and we'll finish this ride in style. mc - thank you so much. I worry sometimes about how well or badly I may be balancing Tifa. Anytime you write a female lead there's always the threat of a Mary Sue popping up and not only would I be impossibly embarrassed but even more, I would be mortified if I did that to my readers. If Tifa is relateable, than I'm reassured. And if Yuffie isn't one dimensional or comic relief with no other purpose than I'm doing my secondary characters justice too. Thank you because even though I try, it's always heartening to hear. And - here's at least part of the answer when it comes to 'what happens next?' :'D - I so wish I could have sat nearby while you read it and listened to the vocalizations - lol. I'm sure they would have fed my author's soul for weeks! and - yes, I couldn't imagine Aerith not being torn and yet drawn by Zack. I don't like easy characters. They're not as much fun to write and worse, I feel as if I'm doing them a disservice by writing them flat. Aerith may be good at acting like she's fine but she's still human and a woman. and, no fear, I promise, promise, promise while I will not end the story 'and they all lived happily ever after' (because life doesn't really end like that, it keeps going on) there will be closure and answers and snuggles and a glimpse of what the future will look like (no. just no. I will not be writing a sequel to this story. that's for the readers to dream on for themselves.) But the story will have an end and it will be satisfying and 'just right'. I wouldn't bring everyone this far to cut and run. Best beloveds and gentle readers alike have put too much of their trust in me for me to ever, ever do that. Promise. vx-luna-xv - I admit, I'll miss writing this story when it ends. It's been so much fun and everyone's been so great to - what are we doing? Is this 'hanging out'? Or 'goofing around together'? I don't intend to stop writing but the ending of a long story like this is always something special to me. not so many years ago I literally couldn't finish a single story no matter how hard I tried. This will now be my third that's over five hundred pages long ;) Not too bad, eh? and - ding three for Scooby! You want Cloud - well, okay... Iskra - oh, my best beloved, wonderful, wonderful reviewer. Your comments always make me grin and glow at the same time. A Tifa plushie?! Huzzah! Much hugging shall occur, though... am I going to have to keep stealing her away from your Cloud plushies? And - if FFVII Cloud 'grrr'ed before, you might want to cover his eyes for the last two chapters this week. Just sayin'... As for 'big bro' Zack - well, they joked about it way, way back in New Corel (I think) but I think it does fit both of them and the way they feel about each other. How could we resist, right? ding four for Scooby! siiiiigh, now I need an army of Cloud plushies to read over my shoulder... it sounds like you're having all kinds of fun (though... they might all jump me and beat me down considering some of the things I do to Cloud... yeah, you'd better keep them there with you and just tell me how it goes ;) that - and I will never oppose mischief on your part - lol. and oooh, yeah... you've nailed Tifa's problem on the head, haven't you? Who does turn the tables for her? And a round of applause to my Peeka-chan for insisting on betaing even though she's about to go into crunch time. and everyone give Akuma a hug. He was without internet this past week and I think we can all relate to the pain and horror that causes ;)

Chapter 99: Time for the Cavalry

"What?!" Tifa repeated as she pelted down the hallway next to Zack, Red looping along behind them both.

"It's this weird phone!" Zack was trying to explain as they ran. "And it talks and stuff. It's how Leon's been getting all of his insider information. And it says they're in Midgar!"

"Who's in Midgar?!" Tifa asked even though she thought she knew and Zack affirmed it as they both bolted up the stairs, boots clattering on the metal.

"Cloud! Sephiroth, Jenova, those silver haired fruits! Everybody! It sounds like they're tearing the place apart!"

Tifa made a noise and almost lost her balance as the ship suddenly jerked under them and Zack reached out and caught her arm.

"How do we know?"

Zack shook his head.

"It's this weird phone with a cat face and a little dinky crown. I don't know," he answered Tifa's look. "Anyway, it's some kind of friend Leon made while he was in an orphanage or something. The guy works for Shinra and talks to Leon over the phone."

They reached the bridge at about that time and Tifa saw that the rest of the group, including the Turks, was gathered there already. Leon was standing to the side in front of the wide windows and, sure enough, he had a phone to his ear. It had little – Tifa blinked – it had little mechanical arms and legs that wiggled as whoever was on it talked and, sure enough, it had a little tin crown where its head should be. Tifa skid to a stop next to Shera and looked at the other woman. The smaller woman had her hands over her mouth.

"They're destroying Midgar," Shera told her. "They're pulling the Lifestream right out of the earth and it's destroying everything in its path."

Tifa's eyes went wide with horror at the thought. She'd only dealt with the Lifestream in that fountain Aerith had dipped into and it had been enough for her to decide it wasn't half as benign as it sounded. The thought of it uncontrolled and in flood was terrifying.

Aerith had taken the stone from the Lifestream…

And, thanks to its plethora of reactors, where else was the Lifestream closer to the surface than in Midgar itself?

Leon turned away from the window and caught sight of Tifa. Stride determined, he joined her.

"You've probably heard. Sephiroth is in Midgar. It seems as if a resurrected Jenova is as well. The reactors are blowing and the Lifestream is coming out of them. All of them. It looks like this is it."

Tifa felt her stomach clench with nerves but she nodded. The phone in Leon's hands moved and he lifted it to his ear. It really did have a little cat face molded to its earpiece. He caught her glance and, for a just a minute, his lips twisted wryly and the world wasn't ending. Just for a second.

"My…. friend enjoys mocking me. He wouldn't give me the phone unless he could design it himself."

The little arms on the phone flailed and Leon held it to his ear again, moving back toward the window to give the estimated amount of time until they arrived. The world continued ending.

And apparently they were the cavalry and were expected to come riding over the hill and save the day. From what Tifa could hear, the Shinra soldier barracks had been one of the first buildings to go.

"Five minutes!" Cid called and Tifa wondered how close to Midgar they'd been before the call had come. And how fast they had to be moving now if the clouds outside the window were any indication.

Leon shoved the cell phone in his pocket and moved to the center of the room. Tifa couldn't help but notice the way the pocket wiggled and shortly thereafter the cat face of the cell phone popped up out of the jacket and the two little arms clutched at the edge of the pocket. Leon ignored it.

"All right, people, it's time. Midgar has five reactors left operational and those are the ones that Sephiroth is pulling the Lifestream out of. If we pack enough explosives we just might be able to cause a big enough explosion to close the holes up. But that means splitting up into groups of two. From what Re- Cait Sith tells me, the reactors are swarming with those silver haired people Zack told us about earlier. That means potential Sephiroths just about anywhere we go. According to Cait though, most of the action seems to be going on near Shinra headquarters."

"Where they kept their piece or pieces of Jenova all those years," Tifa commented.

"Payback's a bitch," Cid offered around his cigarette.

Leon nodded.

"So we either concentrate on the reactors or we concentrate on Sephiroth and Jenova." He looked at his team gathered around him. "Sephiroth and Jenvoa," he stated and Tifa found herself nodding. Midgar would have to take care of itself for just a little while longer apparently. There just weren't enough of their group to take down all the reactors and hold off the clones as they channeled the great general.

Or worse…

"We can't land the Highwind. So get whatever you need. We'll get close to a rooftop and drop the ladder. We're going over the side as soon as we get within range."

Again, everyone around the deck nodded and then Reno stepped up.

"I'm goin' too, yo."

"Like hell!" Barret barked and Reno gave him a dry look from the corners of his eyes. But he focused on Tifa as he answered:

"I'm goin' cause the rest of you can't do what I can. You need me along in case things go bad."

The way he was looking at her, the apology she saw in his eyes, had Tifa's stomach starting to clench…

"What the fuck can you do that we can't?" Cid snarled.

Reno's eyes were calm and steady on Tifa's as he quietly answered:

"Kill Strife."

She felt the emotional blow to her stomach, felt her eyes go wide and the way everything seemed to drain out of her. Zack was suddenly in front of her and she'd never seen him look so tall and threatening before. His sword was already swinging free to rest in his hand. It was only when it was clear that she noticed he was also wearing Cloud's fusion sword the other way across his back. Tifa caught his arm and his eyes, blazing angry, looked down at her. She shook her head.

"He's right," she whispered and felt the way the entire group froze and strained to hear her. "He's right, Zack. All of us would hesitate. Reno won't."

Zack's eyes were suddenly young and like a little boy's as they searched hers but Reno's were suddenly ancient and tired.

"Do you think Cloud wants this? After everything he's done to make himself into someone he could be proud of – do you think he wants someone else using his body to do terrible things?" Her fingers tightened on Zack's arm and what she knew, what he knew, would be even worse for Cloud, she softly added: "Do you think he can bear someone else taking away who he is?"

Something in Zack's eyes crumbled and he lowered his head to rest it against the top of Tifa's.

"Gaia… it must be the worse kind of hell for him…"

"If we can't get him back, if he can't win… wouldn't he rather be dead than living for years and years while someone else controlled him and stripped everything that makes him who he is, who he's fought so hard to become, away?"

She was the worse kind of person in the world to say that. She must not love him the way she had thought she had. Wasn't love about protecting? Except… she'd seen what was in his eyes when he'd fallen in the Lifestream room in the ruins, behind the jade, and she could almost hear it in her soul right now. The sound of her Cloud screaming…

Zack shuddered and than straightened to look at Reno.

"All right," he decided for the group. "You come. But we get our chance if we find Cloud. We get our chance to save him first."

Reno shrugged, disheveled jacket moving carelessly.

"I got nothin' against Teef's dish washer."

And Tifa thought she just might be the only one in the room that knew… Reno wouldn't wait for them if he saw his opening.

Just business…

But he was right about being the only one that wouldn't hesitate and so they had to bring him anyway.

"If I was Jenova, I'd keep Cloud close to me. He's one of her most dangerous fighters and he'll be even worse if he's Sephiroth at the time. He's probably one of her last defenses just in case everything goes wrong," Leon stated it factually, focusing them back on the bigger picture. "We take down Jenova and Sephiroth and chances are good we end everything."

"How the hell are we gonna take down a damn ghost that swaps bodies alla the time?" Cid wanted to know and Leon turned to him with a tired smile.

"I don't know. Guess we make it up as we go."

"I fuckin' hate improvisation," Cid snarled but he didn't have any other suggestion to offer. Instead he turned his attention on Shera.

"Not you," he pointed and Shera pulled back in surprise.

"Captain?"

"Not you," Cid repeated. "You stay here and make sure this thing keeps runnin' no matter what happens. We're gonna need a pick up when it's over and it might need to be fast. You stay here an' keep track of alla us."

It was the longest Tifa had ever heard Cid go without cursing and she looked at him in surprise. So did Shera.

"But – " she started and Cid glared and pointed his finger.

"God damn it, woman! You stay put 'cause when I get back here we're gettin' married and I ain't havin' you gettin' fuckin' killed in the meantime! That's that!"

Tifa blinked. Shera blinked. Cid glared, spit out his cigarette and stomped it out on the floor and then stormed off the bridge. Everyone watched him go in contemplative silence.

"…wow…" Tifa managed after a minute and looked over at Shera. The other woman's eyes were huge behind her glasses. Slowly her cheeks started to go pink and then bright red. She made a noise and clapped her hands.

"You heard the captain. Less than five minutes. Let's go get you guys geared up."

Before she was completely sure what was happening, Tifa was darting back to the cabin to tell her siblings and Elmyra what was going. She kept it short and then headed for the deck. Marlene and Denzel came with her. Elmyra stayed with her daughter but her soft voice followed Tifa into the hall.

"I'll pray for you. All of you. Including that young man of yours, dear."

For a minute, it made Tifa's throat close and her hands tightened around Denzel and Marlene's where they were holding hers. But she bit her lip and kept moving. Next to her Marlene skipped to keep up.

"We decided," she began firmly, in her 'no nonsense' voice. "You have to bring Cloud back."

"I'll try," Tifa began the platitude but Marlene shook her head sharply.

"No. You've got to bring him back. Nobody else is going to be paying attention to him but he's family and we don't abandon family. Not for anything. Not ever."

It caught in Tifa's heart, deep in the center of her chest and the world around her suddenly went still and quiet. She stopped and went slowly to her heels in front of her siblings, drawing them both around to stand in front of her. Marlene's dark eyes were glittering with stubborn tears and Denzel had his head tipped down but he looked at her from the tops of his eyes. Very carefully, Tifa said:

"Saving Cloud will be dangerous."

Marlene's lower lip trembled and then she pressed it firmly against her upper lip. How deep did Lockhart 'family' run? All the way to death? All the way to risking that? It was too adult and too old and too horrible for little kids to deal with but the two in front of her weren't kids. They were Lockharts. Denzel just as much as Marlene no matter whether they shared the same blood or not. He understood it better than any of them and his eyes found hers. He gave a little nod and it was Cloud's, that achingly familiar single duck of his chin with eyes that didn't wavier from where they were fixed on someone else's.

"It's okay," Denzel's voice was soft. "He's family. We always go in after each other."

"Come here, both of you," Tifa said it softly and she drew them both into her arms where they hunched forward over and around her and for a very long moment the rest of the world could wait. There was only them, the Lockhart family, and nothing else mattered.

They were sending Tifa after one of their own.

Tifa filled her heart and her mind and the empty, empty hole in her chest with the feel of that and then she nodded and stood up. Her eyes were dry.

"I'm so, so proud of both of you," the weakness was only in her voice and that was because her voice wasn't enough to hold everything she was feeling at the moment. Two sets of eyes looked back up at her and there didn't need to be any more words. The speaker above them barked anyway.

"Lockhart! Get your ass up here before we decide to start the shit without you!"

It made Tifa's lips twist upward tightly and she gave her siblings a nod. They nodded back. Life had tried its hardest to knock the Lockharts out of the game and they hadn't fallen yet. They weren't about to start giving up now. With Denzel and Marlene flanking her, Tifa trotted down the hallway toward the ship's deck.

Win or lose, they were all in. All the way.