The Good Life: Showgirls (ch. 105)

Slowly, Tifa opened her eyes and was greeted with the sideways view of a small field of flowers. Her mind was clouded by sleep, but she knew that this wasn't her bed back at the 7th Heaven. It took a moment for things to come into focus, but when they did, she saw the dilapidated walls and a collapsed pew, telling her that she was in a church of some kind. With a low groan, Tifa started to pick herself up, and as she did the two arms that had been holding her fell to the side. 

Her heart leapt to her throat when she looked down to see that she had been laying on someone. No- not someone. Cloud. 

He was still asleep. Or unconscious, given that he laid in a crater of his own making. She looked up to see a hole in the roof where they must have fallen through, and her stomach did a flip when she realized that they must have fallen hundreds of feet from the Plate overhead. It was a wonder that they were still alive. 

And it was then that the sleep was brushed away as her last memories leapt to her attention -- they were moving to sabotage the reactor, only to find Cloud there. Cloud, who she thought was dead for years. Cloud, who she had mourned as another victim of Shinra. Cloud, who was not only alive, but also still working for Shinra. She genuinely had no idea what she would have done if he refused to let them finish their mission, only for it to be a moot point because someone had already planted the explosives and blew up the reactor with them in it. 

Explosives that were far more powerful than what they had managed to source from Jinx. Those were meant to only be enough to damage the equipment, causing a few days worth of repairs in the central reactor. But what she felt… the explosives planted in the reactor weren't just powerful, they had been strategically placed with the intention of destroying the reactor. 

And then…

“Hn,” Cloud woke with a low groan and Tifa leapt off him as if she had been burned. His eyelids flickered before opening, revealing the familiar Mako glow and the same confusion she woke up with, though he recovered faster. Sitting up with a wince, his gaze found hers and, for a second, they just stared at each other. Neither of them was willing to make the first move -- he worked for Shinra, and she led an Avalanche cell. 

Then some of the tension bled out of him, “You okay?” 

The question was enough for Tifa to start lowering her guard, “I'm fine… thanks,” she added, knowing that the only reason why she survived the fall was because of him. 

“Made a promise,” Cloud replied, and her guard melted further at that. He stood up and glanced around before he found his oversized sword that was stabbed in the same field of flowers they landed in. “Did Avalanche plant those explosives?” 

Tifa clenched her jaw, “If they did… then we wouldn't have been sent there.” Then she frowned, “The explosion was a hundred times more powerful than what we planned. This wasn't us.” 

“That's quite the coincidence. Bombs being planted in the reactor by someone else at the same time you tried to blow it up,” Cloud returned, an accusation lurking in his tone. Just like that, her guard was creeping back up. 

But, despite his doubt, the words did stick out to her. That was one hell of a coincidence. “Maybe it wasn't one,” she accused, half reacting to his tone. 

“You're saying… what? That Shinra decided to blow up its own reactor?” He said and her eyes narrowed into a glare. 

“They wouldn't do that? Like they wouldn't slaughter a town and cover it up for PR?” She shot back, her hands curling into fists. 

They stared at each other for a long beat of silence, neither of them willing to give any ground. She just couldn't understand it. How could he work for them after what they did? 

“Someone blew up the reactor… and the only person I'm sure wasn't behind it is you,” Cloud replied, his tone diplomatic. An olive branch. The ‘not for a lack of trying’ going unsaid but not unheard. “Those explosives must have been there even before I arrived, and I was there for hours. And they only detonated them once you arrived.” 

So, what? They were the target? That didn't make sense -- not that Shinra wouldn't want them dead, but they had easier ways of getting the job done than blowing up their own reactor with them in it. No, that only made sense if they were already going to blow up the reactor… which would only make sense if they knew that Avalanche was going to blow it up. What exactly they were hoping to gain by destroying the reactor was lost on her, but she felt in her gut that it was to smear Avalache. 

She also knew that if they knew enough to frame them… then… 

“I need to get back to the Seventh Heaven,” Tifa breathed, recoiling as a revelation slammed into her like a fist to the stomach. “Our base could be compromised- Cloud, your mom is there,” she added when Cloud opened his mouth to protest. His eyes widened a fraction before narrowing into slits, offering a single curt nod before he followed behind her when she turned to leave the flower bed behind. 

It was as they left the run down and neglected church behind, Tifa felt compelled to glance over her shoulder one last time. The flowers stood in a rare ray of light in the slums, standing tall despite being crushed underneath them and framed by lush green grass. It was unusual to see signs of… life in the slums. Everything around Midgar was rock and dust these days, so it was unusual, and yet that wasn't why her gaze lingered. 

She just had this feeling that she was supposed to meet someone here… but whoever they were, they were nowhere to be found. 

Leaving her to turn away and try to get her bearings. With the church firmly behind them, they ventured into the slums, and Tifa soon recognized the signs of Sector 5. Though, the streets were emptier than she recalled them ever being, but that was quickly explained when she saw the crowd gathering around one of the TV broadcasts stations. 

A man sat behind a desk that showed a still burning reactor, and a lump formed in her throat when she saw it. Her gaze was affixed on the scrolling text underneath him: Over 150 confirmed dead in terrorist attack. 

Her gut was proven to have been right on the mark, because the man continued, reading off from whatever script Shinra had given him. “In an unprecedented attack, Avalanche detonated a large amount of explosives inside of Mako Reactor No.5, killing more than a hundred technicians. The death toll is expected to rise, however, as there are an additional three hundred workers that remain unaccounted for in addition to the debris caused by the explosion.” 

They were blaming them for this. She clenched her jaw so hard her teeth ached. And the very worst part of it was that they had made it so easy for Shinra to frame them. 

She tore her gaze away from the large screen and the whispers. The whispers of people who had once been cautiously supportive of Avalanche, but were now dripping with condemnation. Cloud, thankfully, chose not to comment on it as they traveled through the slum. There was a checkpoint that was erected around Sector 5, and all the sectors she imagined, but Avalanche had a network of secret paths. How badly they were compromised, she didn't know, but they didn't face any resistance as they left Sector 5 behind and continued onto Sector 7. 

It was in a similar state as Sector 5, with everyone gathered around the news stations and talking about the attack. About how Avalanche were just a bunch of terrorists who didn't mind spilling innocent blood so long as it meant hurting Shinra. How Avalanche was making their lives harder because Shinra had issued an ‘emergency power price increase’ to cope with the loss of a reactor, which priced the poorer people in the slums out of having any electricity at all. 

Then Seventh Heaven came into view -- a run down bar that served as the base for her cell of Avalanche. A knot of worry formed in her chest when she saw the sign on the door was still flipped to closed, but when she opened the door, it immediately came undone when she saw the others around the bar. 

“Tifa!” Wedge immediately greeted her, making the others look at her. Wedge, Biggs, and Jessie were all here. They were alive. They were fine- 

“...Cloud?” The air was sucked out of the room by a low whisper as Claudia Strife stepped out from behind the bar, her gaze falling upon Cloud, who entered with some caution, only to freeze when he saw her. 

“...Mom?” Cloud breathed, and that broke the spell that fell on Claudia. She crossed the bar in a second and threw her arms around her son, and with only a beat of hesitation born from disbelief, he returned the embrace just as fiercely. 

Jessie and the others glanced her way, looking for a cue, and she just shook her head and approached the counter. The Strifes deserved some privacy. However, no sooner than she approached, Wedge had a familiar look of urgency. 

“Are we safe here, Tifa?” He asked her, as if she would know. “I've been listening on the radio- it's bad, Tifa. It's really bad!” He said in a low whisper, shifting nervously on the spot like he was about to drop everything and start running. 

“I know, I saw the damage on the way over here,” Tifa replied bitterly. There was no recovery from a blow like this. Unless they somehow proved that they didn't destroy the reactor, their word would be worthless in Midgar. And it wasn't exactly as if it would be a simple misunderstanding to clear up -- they had been there to destroy the reactor room. 

No one would believe the bombs they’d carried into the reactor core hadn't been the ones that destroyed it.

However, Wedge was shaking his head frantically but was too nervous to get the words out. Jessie picked up for him, “No- He means that Avalanche got hit, Tifa. Everywhere.” She clarified, making her heart still in her chest. “I'm not sure how bad it is, but… all of our contacts either got rolled up or aren't answering. And the last message that we got was this…” 

Jessie slid a note to her and she read it a few times before it really sank in: ‘Reactor is false flag. Phase one. Phase two is imminent but unknown.’ 

Her mind raced hundreds of miles a minute. She tried to come up with solutions, or answers, or… or something, but she was left reeling from the message and its implications. Shinra had really blown up their own reactor, killing hundreds of their employees and injuring far more as phase one of a horrifically evil plan. But, she could feel the expectant eyes on her, so she forced herself to speak. “I didn't see anyone watching the bar. And as far as Shinra would be aware, we died in the explosion,” she half guessed, and hoped it was true. 

She swallowed the lump in her throat, “We need to discover what Phase Two of their plan is. Do we have any contacts left?” 

Biggs shook his head, “If they haven't been bagged by Shinra, then everyone inside Avalanche is going to ground. I'm not sure if we’ll ever be able to find them, much less before whatever Phase Two is.” 

Which meant that they had to look outside of Avalanche for information. Which meant… 

“Jinx,” Tifa sighed sharply, already feeling a pit of unease pool in her stomach. 

“We could find someone else,” Jessie quickly offered, placing a hand on Tifa's and giving it a gentle squeeze. 

Maybe they could, but Jinx was someone they had an established relationship with. What's more, regardless of whatever Tifa thought about the insane woman, Jinx was… reliable. She would trick, she would lie, and she would scam, but her information was always good and she always upheld her end of the bargain. She didn't know where she could find someone as well connected as her and be able to trust them. Not when Avalanche's name had been so thoroughly tarred. 

“I'll talk to her,” Tifa said, wondering if she was prepared to sell her soul. Jessie seemed uncertain, but nodded as Tifa dipped into the back to grab a second phone. Then she pressed a number that was on speed dial. 

The phone was answered on the third ring, “Tifffaaa! You're alive, huh? That's good to hear- I thought you got roasted when Shinra blew up their reactor!” Jinx greeted her with a casual cheer, her voice nearly lost in the thumping music of her little slice of hell. 

It didn't surprise her that Jinx knew that Shinra blew up the reactor. If anything, it was a reassurance, “What do you know about Phase Two of their plan?” 

“Aw, cuttin’ right to business, toots?” Jinx replied with a smile in her voice, “That ain't any fun. Or recommended. A little flirting and charming might bring the price of that answer back into your price range. As I hear it, Avalanche is donzo, and given most of your assets came from me, I know you don't have enough to pay that bill.” 

Her being so well-informed was also a double-edged sword. 

“What do you want, Jinx?” Tifa sighed, her lips thinning when she heard a decidedly evil laugh on the other end of the phone. 

“I want you to win a competition for me,” Jinx replied, the smile in her voice growing with every word. “The Mrs. Corneo competition.” 

Tifa clenched her eyes shut -- she had suspected that would be the price, but she had hoped otherwise. It was an event that happened every year, and it only got bigger each year. Jinx offered each Sector the opportunity to put forth a potential bride for ‘Don Corneo’ in a festival where women… debased themselves for a chance of winning. 

The rules changed every year. Sometimes women won in pairs. Sometimes there was a theme. Sometimes there was a competition, like singing or dancing… or mud wrestling, or pole dancing. The winners were made wives of ‘Don Corneo’, a man that hadn’t been seen in half a decade after making Jinx his wife, while the losers were forced to be servants in the massive mansion he had in the Sector 6 slums. 

The rumors that swirled around the mansion made it sound like a den of unimaginable debauchery and vice. Where the Don and his wives had every need and whim indulged endlessly. She also heard that those that lost weren't allowed to leave the mansion. 

“Maturity, Elegance, and Seduction!” Jinx rattled off the theme of her latest… contest. “You, Tifa, have my personal recommendation on account of those sweater puppies of your's, but you're gonna want to stack the deck as much as you can because the competition this year is fierce!” 

Tifa sputtered, “I didn't agree!” 

“You will, though,” Jinx said, and there was a dangerous promise in her voice. “The answer you're lookin’ to buy, Tifa? I can promise you, you'll regret it ‘til your dying day if you let this chance to get it slip between your fingers.” 

“Then just tell me, if it's that bad!” She snapped. 

“You would regret it, because you're a goody two-shoes do-gooder. I, on the other hand, am a ruthless crime boss with a non-functional moral compass,” Jinx drawled with entirely too much self-awareness. “You want those answers? You gotta earn ‘em! Because as much as I like you, that doesn't mean you'll secure the win! The next Mrs. Corneo is decided by the will of the people, after all!” 

Tifa swallowed a sigh. She already knew what she would do. “The competition is tomorrow,” she pointed out. 

“And Phase Two begins three days after that,” Jinx replied, giving her just enough to seal the deal. Four days. They had less than a week until Shinra did whatever they were going to do. “I'd hurry! Tootles!” 

The phone went dead in her ear and Tifa swallowed a lump in her throat. She was putting together a plan, but… the Mrs. Corneo competitions weren't something that she willingly paid attention to. She only knew as much as she did because it was simply too big of an event for anyone in the slums to miss, and as much confidence as Tifa had in herself, she knew that Jinx wasn't lying when she said the competition was stiff. She’d seen posters of the women that came from the various sectors to compete, who were all drop dead gorgeous, only to lose. 

Each woman received a recommendation from one of the eight sectors by one of Jinx's lieutenants, with the exception of Sector 6 as there Jinx had her own recommendation to offer, but rarely used. She knew the lieutenants got something out of the deal if their potential bride won, though she didn't know what, but that was an opening they could use. The lieutenants would want the best chance possible to win, so they could change their recommendations. 

There was just one issue. 

“That bad, huh?” Jessie ventured when she stepped back into the bar. When Tifa failed to respond, the reassuring grin slid off her face, “Worse?” 

“I… need to win… Jinx's competition,” Tifa said, struggling to even get the words out. Jessie immediately understood -- it was expected, but unwelcome. 

“Well, in that case, I'll join too. Our odds of winning are better that way,” Jessie immediately replied, and Tifa felt a surge of gratitude that was only matched by a sense of regret. Regret that she was being pushed into this situation, but relief that she didn't need to ask. “It's important, right?” 

She nodded, “Shinra is going to do something four days from now. The only thing Jinx told me was that I'd regret it if I didn't do anything to stop it… and I believe her,” she admitted. 

Wedge and Biggs traded looks that Tifa wasn't sure how to decipher. They looked like they wanted to help, but had no ability to. 

“Competition?” Cloud spoke up, and brought her attention to him. Another… problem, for lack of a better word. He was here. It was a relief to see that he wasn't dead, but him being alive had so many implications that she had no idea what she was supposed to feel. 

When Cloud came back to Nibelheim as a SOLDIER… he’d felt like a prince or a knight in shining armor that would whisk her away from that sleepy little village where nothing ever happened. 

Then everyone died, she became a terrorist, and Cloud just kept working for the people who killed everyone she had ever known and loved. 

“It's- you don't need to worry about it, Cloud,” she said, not even sure how she would explain it. Or that she wanted to. The thought of it was humiliating enough by itself, but the idea Cloud would see her- 

“I do,” Cloud replied, his tone even. Heroic. “Avalanche and Shinra aside… I owe you, Tifa. And from the sounds of things, my promise still isn't complete yet.” 

Ugh. She kinda hated the effect his words had on her -- how warmth pooled in her stomach instead of the dread she felt earlier. How lightning raced down her spine. She hated how emotion clogged her throat, and she didn't know what to say. 

Thankfully, Jessie saved her by throwing a smile Cloud's way that was entirely too mischievous. 

“You want to help? We could use it… but, tell me, Cloud… How do you feel about dressing in drag?” She asked him with a little too much excitement. 

Cloud looked at her, then at Tifa, and then at his mother.

Then he sighed loud enough to give them their answer. 

…

“Oh, wow. He's good at this. Really good at this. Too good at this- is this really his first time?” Jessie whispered, sounding awed as they watched Cloud dance with the bumble bee strippers on a stage while dressed in a prim and proper gown. Tifa didn't even respond, trying and failing to close her jaw -- Cloud looked like a princess. She was pretty sure he was prettier than she was. It was kind of unfair. And he looked a lot like his mom. 

However, she forced herself to close her jaw, “I think we have another recommendation," she remarked, feeling some relief as the musical number came to an end with dramatic flair and thunderous applause. Jessie's recommendation was easy to acquire. Jessie was pretty, but more than that, she was famous. She only landed one major league role during her brief acting career, but that movie was in theaters across the world and she was the star of it. The lieutenant of Sector 2 saw Jessie, learned that she was looking to enter the contest, and promptly gave her their seal of approval on the spot. 

Cloud was a bit more challenging, but a dance competition and a free makeover later, they had it. Just in time too, because the festival was just about to begin. 

They waited for Cloud backstage, and he wore an expression of serene suffering. “Don't,” Cloud said, walking by them with the restrained dignity of a real princess. 

“But, Cloud, you're so-” Jessie started with a giggle. 

“Don't,” Cloud stressed, shooting her an unhappy glare. Outside of the building, there was a natural flow of foot traffic that they joined with ease as it would take them exactly where they wanted to go. The Grand Colosseum, what had become the beating yet rotting heart of the slums. 

“Come on, Cloud,” Jessie continued to tease all the same. “Did you do a lot of dressing up and dancing as a SOLDIER?” She asked, and underneath that innocent question was a probe. Tifa immediately listened in, glanced at him as a dozen different expressions flickered over his face before it settled into a pained grimace. 

“A few times,” Cloud admitted with the ease of pulling teeth. “The dancing was because of Zack.” 

Tifa perked up, “He survived too?” She asked before she could stop herself, and she felt strangely guilty when Cloud glanced at her. Guilty because… she didn't know how to interact with him any more. 

He offered a slow nod of his head, “He did. Angeal did too, but barely. The three of us wouldn't have made it without Dr. Waterloo,” Cloud spoke, knowing what she wanted to hear and elaborating without prompting. She knew the name Dr. Waterloo, but she didn't know the face. All she knew about him was that both Zack and Cloud thought highly of him and he had been at the manor during that brief lull between Cloud's arrival and Genesis becoming a monster. “I've been working with them -- Zack and Dr. Waterloo. We've been… pretty much everywhere since Nibelheim, finding things to help his research. So that what happened to Genesis doesn't happen again.” 

“And you never…?” Tifa wasn't sure what she was even trying to ask, but Cloud did. 

“I thought all of you were dead,” Cloud replied quietly. 

“I joined Avalanche because of what happened,” Tifa admitted quietly as they walked, her words lost in a sea of noise and conversations. “I didn't even believe in the cause at first- it was just a way to hurt them back.” 

There was a moment of silence between them as they walked, the grand entrance looming over them like an executioner's blade. 

“I would- I was the same,” Cloud admitted to her. “If it wasn't for Zack, I would have… I have my reservations about Shinra, Tifa. I know what they do. I've seen the aftermath up close and personal. But there are good people in the company, like Dr. Waterloo. People who want to help.” 

There was a point that Tifa wouldn't have cared. They could have been saints, and she would have burned them alongside the rest of Shinra just for working with them. Two years wasn't a long time, but a lot had happened since the destruction of her home and it had given her perspective. 

Almost absentmindedly, she reached out to grab his hand and gave it a soft squeeze. He seemed a bit surprised, but they shared a quick smile. And with it, it felt like a burden had been lifted from her shoulders. It felt like she got a little piece of herself back. She just wasn't sure which one. 

To her reluctance, she was forced to let go of his hand as they arrived at the colosseum, and as soon as they did, they were spotted by those who had put forth their recommendations. Cloud walked off with a bumble bee stripper, Jessie walked off with a Chocobo wrangler. Meanwhile, Tifa was approached by a ‘Vi.’ 

She was a large, solidly built woman with dyed pink hair. She looked unimpressed with Tifa, her gaze holding a hint of scorn, likely assuming what her motivations were for the competition, but made a gesture to follow. “You're wanted backstage,” ‘Vi’ informed and the crowd parted for them as they headed down an employee tunnel. 

She looked through a window to see that the various attractions were already underway -- a blood match between champions of various sectors. The crowd roared so loudly that the colosseum felt like it was going to shake apart. She spared a moment to wish that she could be down there instead. Fighting, she knew. She could do that well. In a fist fight, there was a short list of people who she felt like she couldn't beat, and that list was getting shorter every day. 

‘Vi’ ushered her to a private room marked ‘6’ and she caught a glimpse of the other contestants getting ready. Dresses, make up, and last minute rehearsals for their acts. 

Tifa was only slightly surprised to find Jinx in her room, spinning in a chair and smirking at her with every spin. “I kinda thought you would back out,” Jinx remarked, the chair slowing to a stop so she was looking at Tifa. The door behind her was shut by ‘Vi’ with what felt like a sense of finality. 

“I'm here,” Tifa said, crossing her arms defensively. “What more do you want?” 

“Oh, you don't want to ask me that question, hun,” Jinx warned with a smile that had too much teeth. Tifa was inclined to believe her. “As for why I'm gracing you with my presence… I wanted to give ya’ some last minute advice. Your whole act is your act -- win or lose, what you do up on that stage is your call.” 

“Your advice?” Tifa echoed.

Jinx hopped out of her chair with a fluid grace that never failed to set her teeth on edge. “I happen to be an expert in hyping up a crowd, givin’ them what they want and things they didn't know they needed,” she pointed out, striding to Tifa with long legs and a cocksure smile. “Also, it's a word of warning. Two parts,” she added, circling Tifa in a way that was entirely too familiar. 

She expected the slap on her butt, and she suffered it with dignity as Jinx spoke, “Don't think you can just get up on that stage and show off some TnA to take home the prize. We've been doing this for years now. Short of masturbating on stage, you aren't going to shock anyone. Even with those puppies of yours,” Jinx continued. 

And while she had expected the spank, she hadn't expected Jinx to cup her breasts through her blouse and plant her face into her cleavage before motorboating her boobs. The act was so brazen and unashamed that it left her stunned for a second too long, and she had to swallow down her first two dozen reactions that would have left Jinx picking up her teeth and Tifa disqualified. In that moment of hesitation, Jinx lifted her head back up wearing an unrepentant grin. 

“Dang, those are nice. I'm jealous, you know?” Jinx remarked, squeezing her boobs like she was honking a horn and that snapped Tifa out of it to slap her hands away. Amusement danced in her eyes, "What's the fuss about, Tif? You win this thing you're going to be face down, ass up anyway. And if you lose? Well, you're still going to be face down, ass up -- it'll just be a bit more… extreme, and with nothin’ to show for it.” 

‘No, I won't,’ Tifa thought to herself, not daring to utter the words out loud. 

The moment that Cloud decided to help them, they reworked the plan. Winning wasn't guaranteed, even with stacking the deck, and there was the fact that they needed to leave to act on the information. They were only participating to get inside the manor -- there, Wedge and Biggs would get them their weapons and Materia. Then they would get the information out of Jinx, even if they had to torture her. 

“Secondly, I wouldn't get any ideas about double-crossing me,” Jinx warned, reaching up to trace Tifa's jawline with her fingers. “The winner gets to meet my hubby -- Mr. Corneo. And he's the one with the deets about Shinra's big and terrible plans for the slums.” 

Another detail about what Phase Two was, but it was overshadowed by the revelation of- “Mr. Corneo? Your husband is alive?” She blurted, actually astounded by the news. She, like many others, had been convinced that Jinx killed him and took over his criminal empire before expanding it into the monster it was today.

“Of course he is, silly! Why else would I be going through this whole song and dance, messing around with you hussies?” Jinx remarked as if it should be obvious. “My man deserves the best of the best of the best -- and that includes clocksleeves and baby mommas like you.” There was a dawning horror overcoming her as Tifa saw the honest and unrepentant madness gleaming in Jinx's eyes. “And speaking of cocksleeves…” 

Jinx leaned in, standing on her tip toes to whisper in her ear, “If you ruin my husband's wedding celebration, that pretty blonde you left at Seventh Heaven will be a consolation prize.” Tifa's throat closed as a lump formed. “I was hoping you'd bring her and some of that MILF energy, but bringing her daughter ain't bad. I got some family issues of my own I wanna work out, so some mother-daughter action would be a nice trial run.” 

What? 

Even if she knew what to say to any of that, she wasn't able to say a word. Tifa had always known Jinx was unhinged and cruel, but she had never aimed that in her direction. Until now. 

“So, go out there and have fun!” Jinx said, kissing her on the cheek before spinning around Tifa and sliding out of the room. 

There was a long silence that filled it in her absence. One  that was eventually broken by a single word. 

“Fuck.”