Chapter 16

Tifa scowled from the helicopter as they flew back over the ocean to Junon. On one hand, she was relieved that she didn't have to force a confrontation with AVALANCHE just yet, but on the other hand, she knew it had to happen eventually. An hour earlier, they had arrived in Costa del Sol and were forced to wait on the ship in the captain's quarters for an undetermined amount of time. AVALANCHE had slipped through their fingers once more and jumped ship nearly as soon as the boat had docked. The Turks were supposed to meet the ship in the harbor via helicopter but hadn't arrived yet, and when they DID finally show their faces, it was moments after Tifa and Rufus were finally allowed to leave the boat. No one she talked to explained why they had to stay on the ship, just that it was imperative to their safety. She couldn't help but feel a little resentful with how much coddling of her and her husband everyone seemed to be doing. Did they not understand that they could take care of themselves?

The little ray of light from this situation was watching her husband chew out Heidegger for his tardiness. The close relationship the head of the military had with the previous President Shinra was nonexistent with Rufus, and the portly man had to start all over for his little transgressions to be forgiven. Tifa couldn't help but smirk at the dressing down before Rufus swept her into his arms to lead her to their ride home.

What frustrated Tifa most was the fact that she and Rufus had been holed up in the Captain's Quarters while action went on below deck. When the intruder alert went off, it never sounded in the Captain's Quarters. Later, he had nervously explained that he had deliberately disabled the warning sired in his quarters so he didn't have to be disturbed. He had utmost faith in his first mate, and knew that whatever happened, they would be alright. Upon an ensign coming to update them on the situation, Tifa grilled him mercilessly for any and all information. She couldn't help the pang in her heart when she heard about the casualties.

Jenova had attacked, and AVALANCHE took it down.

Tifa sipped her cocktail as she stared out over the ocean. The terrorist cell did them all a service, and her mind whirled in the attempt to see if she could somehow control AVALANCHE's actions to a point. If AVALANCHE went after Jenova and uncovered what was going on, then the Shinra company could focus more on fixing the mistakes of the last Shinra president, and to improve their world.

"Mr. President! Lady Shinra! We're flying over a pod of whales right now, if you'd like to look to the west!" the pilot called out over their headsets and the two of them paused in their internal musings to look out the window and down. A small pod of whales surfaced, spewing surf into the air and one seemed to playfully dart in and around its fellows. Tifa relaxed marginally.

"Aren't they endangered?" she asked absently, and Rufus reached across the space and held her hand.

"They are. We should add that to the list," he replied, and she looked at him curiously. "A list of endangered animals that we need to strive to protect. The humans come first, of course, because nature can sustain itself and survive in its own way, but we need to change our overall impact first before we can move onto anything else." Tifa nodded, agreeing with him before turning her attention back to the pod of whales, who slowly dove beneath the waves once more.

"We'll save them all," she vowed to herself, and Rufus lifted her hand up to kiss the back of it.

"We will," he agreed, and the two drifted back into silence for the rest of the helicopter ride to Junon. They had plans to make. They may be hated in the future, but what they would be doing, they were doing it for them all.

It was only by luck that the group was able to sneak through the port to safely make it to Costa del Sol. With everyone spreading out after the unanimous decision of spending a day on the luxury beach resort to rest and relax, Cloud headed to the beach. He needed some fresh air to collect his thoughts after their last battle. Knowing that Tifa was also on the ship with them but unable to rejoin them tore at him. His chest felt tight and his head hurt as he searched for a possibility for her to stay with Rufus. But.. he started to doubt himself. Was he remembering incorrectly? Was that not actually Tifa, and just someone who looked like her?

He wasn't certain.

With eyes for nothing but the horizon, Cloud stood at the edge of the water, the waves gently lapping at his feet, the wind tousling his hair. Bringing a hand up to move a choppy piece of hair from his face, Cloud froze when he heard a horribly familiar laugh. Almost as if in slow motion, Cloud turned and stared in horror at Dr. Hojo lounging on a beach chair in his full lab coat, surrounded by beautiful women who giggled at whatever he was saying. He took a step forward before he realized what he was doing, and caught the attention of one of the women attending the scientist.

"Ugh, what do you want? Don't you see the doctor is busy?" she groused. Hojo looked over and grinned widely.

"Oh, long time no see, Cloud," Hojo sneered. The blond growled back at him, and was ready to start up a rant when Hojo interrupted him. "Sometimes you just have to do something like this." Hojo laid back down and pulled the tanning tray closer to him. The women around him tittered lightly. Cloud had to pause a moment to let his brain catch up.

"Wha...what are you doing?" he asked incredulously.

"It should be obvious. I'm getting a tan," Hojo replied, giving a little chuckle.

"Answer me!" Cloud suddenly roared, anger overtaking his features. He took a step closer, causing one of the girls to back up and let out a little shriek of fear. Cloud paid her no mind. Hojo sighed, annoyed, and sat back up to address the blond, scanning the ex-Soldier with a critical eye.

"I believe we are both after the same goal," he sneered after a moment. Cloud's mind raced to think of what they had in common and his breath caught.

"You mean Sephiroth?" He asked. Hojo's sneer slowly morphed into a grin, his teeth showing in his glee, as a hand came up to adjust his glasses.

"Did you see him?" The doctor's voice turned probing, and Cloud couldn't figure out why it felt wrong as he reared back in surprise. Hojo barked out a laugh. "I see!" Hojo stood up, the women stepping back to allow him up. "I just remembered a hypothesis!" He turned to look at Cloud intensely, his sneer back in place. "Haven't you ever had the feeling that something is calling you? Or that you had to visit some place?" Cloud instantly felt sick at how those questions hit the nail on the head of what he had been feeling ever since they left Midgar. He almost wished some of the group was with him now to help deflect while he recovered.

"I'll go anywhere Sephiroth is at!" Cloud proclaimed, and instantly he felt himself feel sicker. This...this was his whole objective though, wasn't it? To take revenge at what that monster did 5 years ago? "T-to beat him and put an end to all of this!" Hojo didn't look convinced, but nodded nonetheless.

"I see...this could be interesting." Hojo began to chuckle. "Were you in Soldier?" He began to laugh harder, the women around them adding their own laughs in. "Would you like to be my guinea pig?" A sharp pain from his headache suddenly lanced through his temple as a memory suddenly shoved it's way to the forefront of his mind. Darkness, liquid, a tube closing over him…

Without even thinking, Cloud's hand drifted to his sword handle and Hojo's laughter abruptly cut off, a laughing lilt of his lips giving away his amusement.

"Oh now what? Are you going to draw your sword?" he sneered. Cloud's hand jerked away from his weapon as if burned and Hojo laughed again. "If you really want to find answers, head West. I'm sure you will encounter your destiny there." Hojo dissolved into chuckles again, and, as if sensing his dismissal, the women around him closed ranks, forcing Cloud away.

Shaken, Cloud swiftly left the beach and headed straight to the inn he knew they got a room at. Barging into the bathroom, he abruptly turned on the tap and splashed cold water into his face. Taking a few shaky breaths, he looked up into the mirror, and for a half second, he saw black hair brushing his forehead. In a single blink, golden hair was there, it was always there. The light must have flickered, that must be it. Everything was fine. It was just the headache affecting him again. He'd just go lay down for a few hours and then he could venture out and enjoy his mini-vacation.

Everything was fine.

A few hours later saw Cloud waking in a dark room, slightly disoriented. The ceiling fan whirled above him lazily, a soft chopping in the air as it spun. There was noise penetrating the walls from outside, but it was low and calm, as if the busy street of a Costa del Sol day had transitioned into a bustling Costa del Sol night. Cloud couldn't pick out any individual voices, but the low murmuring was soothing to him. His headache seemed to be gone for now. Gingerly sitting up, he just let his gaze fall wherever.

The room was silent.

A loud pop cracked outside and jolted him. He immediately tensed and went to go grab his sword, but when a second pop sounded and the noise of cheers filled the air, he calmed slightly.

Fireworks, not gunfire. Fireworks were okay. They won't harm anyone. Well, they could, but-

"Focus," Cloud murmured. Getting out of bed, he meandered back outside to find a crowd of people gathered on the beach, watching fixated as fireworks burst over the ocean. He wandered over to join them, his eyes scanning to find no lab coat among the masses. His muscles relaxed a bit, a small sign escaping his lips.

"HEY! What's going on?" a voice screamed in his ear and Cloud jumped, jerking to the side to see Yuffie standing there with a giant grin on her face. "Welcome back from the dead, sleepy head!" she exclaimed, before giggling at the sour look on his face. "Did you have a good nap?"

"Sure," he replied as he turned back to the fireworks. With a widening grin, Yuffie stepped forward til their arms brushed.

"Don't worry. We'll get the bad guy eventually," she assured him. "Ooo, but look! I sold a lot of Materia! We got at least 20,000 gil!" Cloud nearly choked on air as he whipped his head around to look at her. "Psych!" she replied grinning. "But we did get 2k and that will be enough for several stays at the inn if we want to stay longer. You know, in case you need more rest. You've been pushing yourself hard, lately. It's not good for you." He couldn't help but send a small smile at her before reaching out and messing up her hair.

"Hey!" she called out, scowling.

"You're a good kid, Yuffie," he replied, looking back at the fireworks spectacle.

"I'm not that young," she grumbled back before doing the same. They just stood there in silence for the remaining 15 minute of the show, calm surrounding them. Maybe, just maybe….

Maybe they could spend another few days here.