Chapter 15

Tifa awoke the morning of the parade feeling refreshed and invigorated, but slightly anxious. While sleeping in luxury has been something she still couldn't get over, today would be the first 'official' time of Tifa being introduced to the public. So far, Kiani and Jean had been able to keep pictures of the couple out of the press, but had strategically released stories to get the public used to the idea that the new President Rufus was very lovingly attached. As she nursed a cup of strong coffee in the breakfast nook of their penthouse, Tifa then realized that her husband hadn't come home the night before. Reaching for her phone, she saw she had a text from him from four in the morning saying he was staying later at the office, followed by a good morning text three hours later. She really hoped that he had gotten some sleep. Returning his morning text with her own, she then shot off a group text to Kiani and Jean to let them know she was awake and prepared for her stylists' tender mercies. From their timeline, she had an hour to get ready, and with how thorough Kiani was, Tifa knew she needed all the time she could get.

Getting ready itself wasn't so bad. When she was led to the ceremony that officially swore Rufus in as the new President of the Shinra Electric Company, she stood silently by her husband's side, lending him support in just her presence. Looking at him, he looked pale and harried, though immaculate, not even a single strand of hair out of place. Once the quick ceremony was finished, however, the two were separated before Tifa could talk with her husband, being ushered away to get changed into a different outfit for the parade. They had an hour until then, the parade scheduled for an early time slot to allow all of the posturing and grandstanding to happen before they closed the door on their trap. And a trap it was. They all were expecting AVALANCHE to either crash the parade itself or somehow find their way onto the ship. Only time would tell which option looked more profitable to the terrorist group.

Tifa's heart hurt, just thinking about it. Had things gone differently, she would have still been a part of that terrorist group, and would have moved against her husband. Thinking about it, it made her slightly sick.

A light lunch was provided, and Tifa attempted to nibble on something small. Her gut, however, roiled in protest as the time for the parade drew closer and closer. All too soon, Kiani led her to a platform at the helipad where she mounted the parade float. She only had to wait a few moments before Rufus joined her, his suit and hair looking immaculate once again. Peering at him closely as she greeted him, she noticed the concealer covered darkened circles under his eyes, and the tiredness in his frame. Sliding her arm beneath his suit coat and wrapping it around his back, she hugged him to her, and felt him sag in her grasp as he rested his chin on her head.

"My old man left the company a worse mess that I thought," he spoke after a few moments. She hummed at him, and he continued on in a low voice, as people milled about them, finishing up preparations. "Apparently he had several unfinished projects that were leaking pollution and radiation into the villages and towns nearby, so I stayed up all night figuring out fixes."

"How much sleep did you get?" she murmured into his chest. His grasp on her tightened momentarily.

"That insinuates that I slept at all. I can't wait for us to get to Costa del Sol and have that vacation. Now I'm rethinking my desire to run this company," he replied, raising a hand to run it through his hair but refraining at the last moment, flexing his hand to give it something to do. It was a bad tic he had, and with such a perfectly cultivated image for the public, he couldn't mess his hair up just yet.

"And yet look at how much good you have done so far," she reminded him with a grin. His reply was cut short as the float beneath them began to move. Tifa pulled away slightly as Rufus straightened up. Astasia already took position behind them, ready to defend if need be. As they began to enter Junon proper, and the citizens cheered as they went by, Tifa put a smile on her face and waved out at them. All of this, working with her husband to rescind horrible and unsafe policies the old President Shinra put into place, the long nights going over the research given to them by the top leading scientists about Mako, Materia, and its limited lifespan, it was all for them. These shining faces looking up at them, relying on them for electricity and safety and more, was worth all of the planning.

All too soon, they were delivered to the tramway which would take them up to the port. Rufus gave a speech, Tifa smiled brilliantly, and the two headed to the final leg of their journey. Standing in the open cargo hold of the ship that would take them to Costa del Sol on the Western Continent, the two waited for the rest of the parade to finish. One unit of infantrymen were singled out to put on a special performance for them, and Tifa couldn't stop staring at one soldier who boldly returned her gaze. She couldn't see much due to the helmets they wore, but she remembered that jawline, and upon the group completing their finishing move, Tifa knew, without a doubt, that AVALANCHE had infiltrated the parade. She applauded her own acting skills as she didn't react to this revelation. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed movement and she refused to turn to look.

They took the bait.

All too soon she sat in the Captain's Cabin, waiting on her husband to finish his discussion on the main deck with the Captain and his first mate. Swirling a glass of champagne, she sipped it slowly, her thoughts a mess. She knew for a fact that AVALANCHE was on the same boat as her. This also meant there was a high chance that the monster known as Jenova would be here as well. A frown graced her lips as she swirled her glass again. It would be ideal if they could stop the monster here and now and capture AVALANCHE while they had them. Tifa had questions, and she knew that her old comrades would have the answers she needed.

Rufus entered the cabin and she stood to greet him with a kiss.

"Is all well?" she asked, curiously, and he gave her a small smile, pulling her in for a hug.

"All is going according to plan. We have confirmation that AVALANCHE is on board. I've already put in a request for the Turks to come and meet us at Costa del Sol by helicopter in order to apprehend them once we land. With them finally within our grasp, I don't want this to slip through my fingers," he said, snatching her glass from her hand elegantly and taking a sip. Tifa leveled him with a look. "What?" he asked her, and she merely continued giving him a look that insinuated that she didn't believe him. After a moment, he sighed, set down the champagne glass, and hugged her fully to him. "We might not be able to vacation on the beach right away-"

"WHAT?!" Tifa exclaimed, a scowl on her lips. Rufus held her to him, her arms up against his chest to push against him.

"With how much danger AVALANCHE presents to us, and with the monstrosity that is Jenova on board, we can't take any chances. We'll head back via the helicopter that the Turks bring, and let them go after the group. We need to refocus our efforts on figuring out if Mako is sustainable long term or not. The reports that came in last night from those emergencies that I told you about? The ones with pollution and radiation? There's more of them than we originally thought, and the Reactors seem to pose more of a problem than safely allowed." Tifa huffed. Rufus had a point, and they could do more good from behind a desk back in Junon than in front of a monster hiding in their cargo hold. Sagging against her husband, she let out a sigh, letting the tension drain out of her body. Rufus buried his face into her neck, breathing out his own sigh of relief. "I promise. Once all of this is over, I owe you a vacation. A week, no, a month of uninterrupted time at the beach, no work, little paparazzi interference, no death threats or calamities affecting the world. I promise."

"I'll hold you to that," Tifa replied, turning her head slightly to place a soft kiss at his jawline before grinning and just holding her husband in her arms. "And if you don't, I'll have to think up some punishment for you," she teased, her wine colored eyes sparkling with mischief. Rufus barked out a laugh.

"If we don't go on vacation when all of this is said and done, I'll give you the Shinra Corporation," he promised. Tifa jerked back in surprise.

"What?" she asked, unclear if she heard correctly. He nodded at her before placing a gentle kiss on her lips.

"If I don't keep my promise, you get to wrench control of the company from me and do with it as you will," he repeated. Tifa narrowed her eyes at him and laughed sarcastically.

"Ha ha. A minute ago you were just saying how you were beginning to regret taking over the company. Trying to shove it off on me now, are you?" she teased again and both lapsed into laughter, Rufus clinging to his wife. Settling on the couch, the two cuddled and talked about the day as the ship continued on towards Costa del Sol.

Cloud couldn't believe it! After days of searching for Tifa, and after finally giving up and deciding to follow the trail of Sephiroth, who else shows up in Junon but her! Her position of power at Rufus' side was unmistakable, however. Since the Sector 7 plate fell, none of them had been able to get ahold of recent news. Sure, they had heard about a new Lady Shinra, now that Rufus had taken the mantle of President, but why would Tifa be standing at his side and not this new Lady? In his mind, Cloud noticed the finer clothes that Tifa wore. For one, it was a pretty dress that he knew she probably couldn't afford on bar tips alone. Was this all part of her plan to infiltrate Don Corneo to get information out of him? Did she ensnare Rufus as well all for the sake of AVALANCHE? He knew he had to talk to the ensembled group soon, but they would have to be careful. Already, Barret and Red stood out like sore thumbs.

When he went to check on how everyone was doing, he had actually found Barret eavesdropping on President Rufus and the Captain. Cloud overheard a mention of Sephiroth, and his resolve hardened. He knew he had to stay on task, to finally catch up to the man who ruined his life.

Alarms went off on the ship, and Cloud looked around wildly.

"Emergency alert! Reports of a suspicious character found! Those not on detail, search the ship. Report when found! I repeat. Suspicious character found on board! Those not on detail, search the ship. Report when found!"

"Damn, did they find us?!" Barret asked gruffly, a scowl on his face. He frowned, thinking a moment. "Hey, that don't seem like us. Do they mean...Red and the others?!" He whipped around to face Cloud and glared at the blond. "Get off yer spikey butt and let's get going, Cloud!" The two of them ran back to the main deck to find their group gathered above deck.

"No! We can't have been discovered this quickly!" Aerith cried out worriedly. Cloud looked over his group and noted that everyone was there. Tifa wasn't, a nasty voice in his head reminded him.

"Hey, you don't think...that suspicious character is…" Barret started, trailing off as he saw the expression on the blond's face.

Cloud frowned as he looked to the entrance to the cargo hold, noting that no other sailors were out and about. It would be up to them.

"Sephiroth…" he growled before taking off to go beneath deck. With the others calling out his name and scrambling after him, Cloud made it to the bowels of the ship in no time, noting a few bodies strewn here and there. One guard stood in the doorway, his back to them, and Cloud paused, allowing the rest to catch up to him. "Excu-" he started to say, but the guard fell backwards, towards them, his torso separating from his lower body as gravity took hold of him. Aerith and Yuffie jumped back with startled yelps. Beyond, Cloud saw the familiar form of Sephiroth in the boiler room, and he snarled incoherently as he took out his sword. "MURDERER!" He rushed the other man, Barret on his heels.

Sephiroth parried his first slash with his sword, and Cloud couldn't help but feel how off the move felt. Almost as if it was someone else wearing the murderer's skin. He had to quickly jump back as the silver haired man struck, his sword cleaving the metal floor where Cloud had been standing. Sephiroth suddenly jumped back and unleashed a fire spell, kicking up smoke and debris from the impact. The whole group flinched back, and when they looked back to where their aggressor had been, a wriggly mass of flesh the size of Barret's gunarm laid where Sephiroth had stood. Yuffie approached with a wide grin.

"Wow! He actually blew himself up! I didn't know he was so du-" She had reached down to grab the wriggling mass, but it suddenly jumped at her and she screeched, falling backwards onto her butt out of the way.

"Yuffie! Get back!" Aerith called out. "The Scan Materia says that thing is Jenova!" The mass of flesh seemed to pulse, and then all of a sudden, it jumped onto the bisected guard in the doorway of the room, clearing all of their heads easily. It consumed the body before jumping to two other dead bodies they just noticed were in the room, and the flesh suddenly swelled. All of a sudden, it pulsed again, and grew in size until it towered above them. Cloud readied his weapon as it bore down on them, a scowl on his face.

They would not fall here.

A/N: Still updating older chapters. Thanks so much for your patience!