Chapter 43: Sealed with Greatness

September 30, 0002

After weeks of practice, Tifa and Miranda found themselves at a dress rehearsal on the stage in the auditorium.

That was when the trouble started. Tifa was in the middle of a dance when she failed to expect the unexpected.

"You suck, Julie!" shouted a voice.

Tifa immediately fell down, landing on the floor. The distraction hit her harder than she thought.

"Are you okay?" Miranda asked, running to her side.

"I think so," Tifa answered as she helped herself up.

"Julie fell on her ass!" called the voice from the seats.

"Who the hell's that?" Miranda sighed.

Tifa immediately recognized the voice as Lynn's.

A patch of green hair was peeking from behind one of the seats.

"Lynn," sighed Tifa. "Who else here has green hair?"

She then looked down.

"Don't let it get to you!" Miranda insisted.

"What if she does this during the performance?" she sighed. "I'll make a fool out of myself in front of Cloud."

Just then, Lynn got up from her seat, and made her way across the auditorium with a smirk on her face.

Miranda noticed that Lynn's lips were chapped.

"I think I have a solution," she said.

THAT NIGHT….

Miranda entered the science lab.

She was soon followed by Tifa.

Both girls were dressed in black sweats.

It was pitch black, and the room was only illuminated by Miranda's cell phone.

"What are we looking for?" Tifa whispered.

"You'll know when you see it," Miranda answered.

Miranda went straight to the cabinet and opened it. Inside, there were varied vials of equally varied chemicals.

"Bingo," she whispered as she pulled a vial from the cabinet.

Tifa looked at the label.

"What's ethyl 2-cyanoacrylate?"

"It's what they put in superglue," Miranda replied. "Now logic would denote that anyone who used that as chapstick….is going to be in for one unpleasant surprise."

THE NEXT NIGHT….

October 1, 0002

The auditorium was packed to its full capacity, as attendance of all cultural events was mandatory at Bolton.

Lynn was seated front row center, a few feet from Cloud, Riggs, and Milton.

Tifa and Miranda did not dance until the end of the performance, but everyone was awed by Tifa, whose talents even surprised herself, and, to a lesser extent, by Miranda, who was also an incredible dancer, though not as good as Tifa.

And then, Lynn saw her chance.

Tifa was mid-air.

What a perfect time to make her fall on her ass, Lynn thought.

She began to yell that she sucked at full volume.

And then, to her horror, Lynn noticed.

She could not open her mouth.

She tried to do so, but her lips would not part.

She checked her chapstick, but it appeared ordinary.

She was completely unaware that Miranda had sabotaged her.

And then, a huge applause roared from the audience.

Lynn was defeated.

A few minutes later, she was able to pry her lips open.

"You suck!" Lynn shouted over the applause, but it was too late.

A moment later, she ran out of her auditorium.

LATER…

Miranda walked past Rigg's dorm to hear the sound of crying inside. She knew right arm way that it was Riggs; his roommate had just been released.

She immediately stopped in her tracks. She immediately felt hurt; he was the first person who had taken pity on her during that first shaky year. She wanted to help him, but realized that he might need some time to himself for a while.

So she waited.

An hour went by before Miranda decided to knock on his door.

Riggs answered it a few moments later; his eyes were red.

"What's wrong?" Miranda began.

"Nothing," Riggs dismissed.

"Don't lie to me!" she protested. "I heard you crying. I know you're hurting. Please, tell your friend."

Riggs sighed and led Miranda to sit down next to him on the bed.

"I miss my family," he sighed.

"I know," she replied with empathy. "I remember you saying how close you were to them."

"It was not worth hacking into the Shinra network," he continued.

"You're seventeen now," Miranda assured him. "Four more years to go. It'll go by fast."

"A lot can happen in four years," he said.

He immediately regretted the comment, knowing his friend almost certainly did not have four years.

Miranda placed her arm around his shoulder and pulled him in for a hug.

"On your twenty-first birthday," she assured him, "you will walk out of here a free man. And your parents and sister will be waiting for you. I promise."

MEANWHILE…

Cloud waited outside the dressing room for the star of the show for over half an hour. The wait did pay off, however, as she soon emerged.

But she looked slightly different from what he had been expecting.

She was dressed in a lavender tank top and a skirt, something she usually never wore. She was also wearing heels, and more jewelry and accessories than usual.

"I wanted to stay a little girly for a little while longer," she giggled.

And Cloud almost never heard her giggle, either.

"You were amazing," he complimented.

"Thanks!" she replied as she kissed him.

Cloud appreciated that; it assured him things were slowly getting back to the way that had been after half a decade of uncertainty.

Then, Tifa broke the kiss, and smiled at him.

"Pick me up," she commanded.

Cloud wrapped his arms around Tifa's waist and lifted her into the air.

Tifa squealed in delight and kissed him on the cheek.

"Take your girl for ice cream?" she requested.

"Of course," he agreed.

He reached out to take her hand, but, instead, Tifa took his arm with both of her hands and rested her head on his shoulder.

Miranda was right, she thought. There's nothing wrong with being feminine. I'm actually feeling closer to him, and I know he feels the same way.

They got their ice cream from the small truck that was always parked on campus. They then retired to a nearby bench, eating it rather quickly.

And then, Tifa made her move. She climbed up on the bench and straddled him, kissing him deeply and pressing her tongue against his.

"I love you," she whispered.

Cloud kissed back, yet something struck him. He felt he had done something similar before, perhaps in a previous life. He had trouble remembering; it all seemed years ago, although it was technically in the future.

And then, a familiar, blond figure appeared next to them.

Cloud spotted her out of the corner of his eye.

It was Amy.

"I incest….um….insist you take your PDA indoors," she said.

"Don't ruin my night," Tifa snapped as she turned her head. "Didn't you see me dance?"

"Yes, Julie," Amy sighed. "Let it be known that Julie Lane can dance. Let it also be known that you'll be too old for professional training once you get out of here."

"Whatever," sighed Tifa. "Can I go back to making out with Matt now?"

Amy grunted.

"If I had my way, you'd both get time added for this," she said. "You and Miranda had your time in the sun. Your fifteen minutes of fame will be up before the week is out."

"So when are cheerleading tryouts?" Tifa asked sarcastically. "Miranda and I are interested."

"I am not having you perverts on my cheer squad!" Amy snapped as she turned around and marched off.

"I thought you didn't even think I was really Julie Lane!" Tifa called.

"I don't!" Amy called back.

Cloud and Tifa continued to make out on the bench for two more hours. It was passionate, with their tongues wrestling continuously. They ran their hands over each other's backs, though they stayed above each other's waists, and over each other's shirts.

Then, they made their way, hand in hand, back to Tifa and Miranda's dorm. Halfway there, she turned to him and gave her a flirty smile.

"Can I have a piggyback ride to my dorm?" she asked.

He complied until they arrived at the door.

"Aren't you going to twirl me around and kiss me?" she requested when they arrived.

Cloud twirled her around and kissed her.

Tifa then closed her eyes.

Tears began to stream down her face.

"What's wrong?" Cloud asked.

And a moment later, he remembered.

"Do you know what today is?" she asked. "What's going on in Nibelheim as we speak?"

Cloud nodded.

Today was the day of the Nibelheim Reactor incident. Where Sephiroth wounded all three of them.

"Our lives were ruined that day," she sighed.

"Not anymore," he pointed out. "We're making that up right now. Look, we're in high school together!"

Tifa smiled.

He had a point; they were sharing their adolescence, which was something they had both regretted not doing.

LATER….

Tifa entered the dorm room and flopped on her bed, burying her face in her pillow.

"You okay?" Miranda asked.

"No, I'm horny!" Tifa replied truthfully, as the make out session had its consequences.

Miranda gave her a look.

"I like you as a friend," she quipped.

Tifa burst out laughing.

"I didn't mean that!" she replied. "Cloud and I made out for a couple of hours. We stayed over clothes, and from the waist up, but I'm still a teenage girl full of hormones."

"You are husband and wife, you know," Miranda reminded her. "If you need your privacy, I'm cool with it. I don't mind being sexiled."

Tifa shook her head.

"I'm not sure I'm ready," she admitted. "I'm only fifteen."

"Wrong again," Miranda dismissed. "You were twenty-four when you were turned into a child. Nine, to be exact. Six years went by. Technically, you're twice that age. You're thirty."

"If you take that into account," Tifa began. "I'm actually considerably older than that."

"You're thirty-four?" Miranda suggested.

Tifa shook her head.

"Older," she replied.

"You're thirty-seven?" Miranda then guessed.

Tifa shook her head again.

"You can't be forty!" Miranda guess again.

"I'm thirty-nine, actually," Tifa said. "When you add up all my memories."

"So this isn't the first time you time traveled?" Miranda asked.

Tifa shook her head.

"I came back to 1996 from 0011," she informed her. "But before that I came back to 0007 from 0016."

"Wow," Miranda said. "But anyway, you're a lot older than you look. So I wouldn't be irked by sex with your husband."

"I don't know," Tifa sighed. "I still see my fifteen-year-old self in the mirror. But it feels kind of weird being technically married and saying I don't have sex."

"Neither do I," Miranda continued. "Nor will I. I'm the one who's going to die a virgin."

Tifa was silent.

And then, Miranda's lips began to quiver. Her eyes became wet, and tears began to flow.

"Hell, I'm going to die a minor," she sobbed. "I'm not even going to see my eighteenth birthday!"

Tifa immediately got up, ran to her friend, and hugged her.

"I'm sorry," Miranda apologized as she dried the tears from her eyes. "This isn't about me."

"It's okay," Tifa assured her. "But you said you outlived your life expectancy. Maybe you'll just make it through."

Miranda shook her head.

"It's progressing slowly, but it's still progressing," she explained. "It will happen eventually, and without warning."

Tifa was not ready to give up.

"Are you sure you really have a fatal heart condition?" she asked. "Couldn't it be a misdiagnosis?"

"My parents sent me to thirteen doctors," Miranda sobbed. "They all said I did. Without exception. It's just progressing a lot slower. Call it a medical anomaly."

Tifa lowered her head in sadness.

"I'm good, I think," Miranda said as she dried the rest of her tears from her eyes. "You can go masturbate now."

Both girls laughed in unison as Tifa got up and headed for the bathroom.

But, late that night, Tifa had one last thought before she fell asleep.

There has to be something that can be done for her.