Chapter 3

Wall Market had to be the absolute worst place in the slums. Tifa knew with certainty that it was the worst place in Sector 6; she'd take the abandoned scrap heaps full of monsters over Wall Market. It wasn't a good place for women, and it wasn't a good place for women to do the sort of work they did there.

So she couldn't understand why Aeris was so excited about it.

"You do know what kind of place Wall Market is, don't you?" she asked as she pulled her only dress out of her closet.

"Of course I do," Aeris said, and she seemed to catch Tifa's confusion. "It's not that part I'm looking forward to. I'm just happy to be part of the team."

"Are you looking to join AVALANCHE?" asked Jessie as she dumped the armful of clothes she had brought up from the basement across the back room's cot. Marlene followed her, helpfully topping the pile with a hat.

"I don't know," said Aeris. "Are you recruiting new members?"

"Always," said Jessie. "And you already won a lot of points with Barret for catching that guy."

"You should make sure you think it over first," Tifa added. "Obviously there's a lot of risk involved."

"I know," Aeris said, her expression sobering. She looked as though she wanted to say more, but she didn't.

"Everybody's real nice," Marlene put in. Now that Aeris had Barret's approval, Marlene was warming up to her, too.

"I've noticed," Aeris said, smiling at her. She looked to Tifa. "I am hoping we can all be friends."

"Friends, huh?" said Jessie thoughtfully. Before joining AVALANCHE, Tifa didn't think she'd had many friends besides Biggs.

Tifa had gotten her gloves off, and when she started to pull off her shirt, Aeris hurriedly turned her back. Tifa exchanged glances with Jessie, who shrugged. They'd banished the boys to the basement while they were getting ready, but otherwise there wasn't much room for modesty in such a crowded living situation.

"Tifa doesn't mind if you're a girl," Marlene informed Aeris. "You just can't ask about it."

"Ask about what?" said Aeris, and Marlene drew a line down her chest with her finger. Aeris glanced over her shoulder, noted the scar, and turned back around. "I see," she said.

Tifa didn't say anything. She pulled on her blue dress and, reluctantly, the heels that went with it. She gave her sneakers a longing look, but they were too big to fit into her purse.

"I could carry a bag," Jessie offered. Once they'd lifted the membership card off of their captive, Jessie had opted to go a different route, and had dressed herself in the nicest clothes Biggs owned. They were a little loose on her smaller frame, but that would help to disguise her gender. She was pulling her hair up now to fit under the hat Marlene had brought her.

"No," Tifa decided. "It'd be a little unusual, and we don't want to do anything unusual if we can help it. You can turn around now, Aeris."

Aeris turned back around, stared at Tifa, and said, "You look really nice."

Tifa tucked her hair behind her ear. "Um, thanks. But what about you?"

"Hmm." Aeris glanced at the closet, but anything Tifa owned wouldn't have fit her very well. Instead she shrugged out of the red jacket she wore over her dress and undid the end of her braid, loosening it so a mass of curls fell down her back and about her shoulders. "How about this?"

"Looks good," Tifa managed.

"No one's going to be looking at your shoes," Jessie agreed.

Marlene, who'd been watching the exchange very intently, came up to Tifa and tugged at her arm. When she leaned down, Marlene whispered into her ear, "I think Aeris likes you."

Tifa felt her face heating as she glanced at Aeris. She'd experienced plenty of male attention in her life, but someone like Aeris? That was new. "You think so?" she whispered back.

"Uh-huh."

"What's the verdict?" Aeris asked. She made it sound like she was expecting Marlene's opinion on her outfit, but her knowing expression suggested otherwise.

"I'm not sure," Tifa admitted. "What do you think, Marlene?"

Marlene looked between the two of them and announced, "Maybe!"

Aeris shrugged. "I guess that'll have to be good enough."

Their attire earned them a suspicious look from the neighborhood gossip as they passed, but there was no helping that; just about anything piqued her interest. Sitting on the front stoop next door, Johnny's cousin wolf-whistled at them, prompting Johnny to smack him in the back of the head. Tifa didn't even have to do anything.

As expected, Shinra soldiers had been deployed to the slums following last night's bombing. Biggs had noted a few patrols, and several men now guarded the way to the support pillar. Useless, Tifa thought. Of course Shinra would station them outside the last place anyone in the slums would ever target, instead of having them help with any real problems, like the monster infestations. The company didn't care about monsters as long as they weren't hurting profits.

One of the soldiers tapped his wrist as they walked by. There was a curfew in place, but Tifa knew it would never be enforced in Wall Market. Too many Shinra execs liked to come down there after work. Another reason to hate the place: it was just scum catering to scum.

"So," said Aeris, "maybe I'm missing something obvious, but can I ask why one of the guys isn't playing the part of the, well, guy?"

"Because all of our guys are a little afraid of being inappropriate with Tifa," Jessie answered, "even for pretend."

Aeris threw Tifa a look of appreciation, and Tifa shrugged. "A useful talent in any other situation," she said.

They passed out of Sector 7, and soon into Wall Market on the other side of the wall that divided them. It wasn't far from the south entrance to the Honey Bee Inn, but they still managed to get catcalled at least three times before they reached it.

The building was as gaudy as they came, plastered with pink neon signs and flashing hearts. Tifa had never understood the appeal, but she wasn't exactly the target audience. A few men loitered outside, and a pair of bouncers blocked their path to the door.

"Hey, hold on," said the first man. "You a member?"

"Sure am," Jessie replied in the manliest voice she could muster. Tifa thought she was putting some sleaze into it, too, which was fine. She offered the bouncer her stolen membership card for inspection. "Got me some new broads and I figure, what better place to break them in, if you know what I mean?"

Tifa felt a hand on her ass. "Jessie," she whispered.

"Overselling it?"

"Mmhm."

The bouncer looked over the card and eyed Tifa and Aeris with interest. "Well, I hope you talk to the boss while you're at it. He'd pay a fortune for these beauties."

"Thinking about it, thinking about it," said Jessie.

The bouncer handed her back the card. "You can head on in. Enjoy yourself."

"I definitely will."

With a hand on each of them, not too low this time, Jessie maneuvered them between the bouncers and towards the door.

Behind them, Tifa heard the second bouncer ask his companion, "Was that a woman?"

"Maybe," said the first. "Don't matter to me as long as they pay the dues."

The inside of the brothel wasn't quite so gaudy as its exterior. There was a heavy gold motif, but the lighting was dimmer, not so harsh on the eyes. A woman in one of those unfortunate bee costumes approached them. Why bees? Tifa always wondered. Did men really find this enticing?

"Hello and welcome to the Honey Bee Inn," said the woman. "Please let me know if I can be of service."

"We just need one of your rooms," said Jessie. "106?"

"I'm sorry. 106 is reserved tonight for one of our regular customers."

"I know. He's a business partner of mine, you could say. He called me up earlier and asked if I could get him something real special for tonight."

"Oh, I see. Right this way then."

"Actually," said Tifa, "is there somewhere I could freshen up first? I want to look my best."

"Of course. We have a dressing room just this way."

"Thanks," Tifa said. She leaned in close to Jessie to whisper, "I want to check in with some of the girls here, see if they know anything. I'll catch up with you."

Jessie nodded and gave her a conspiratorial wink. "Oh, that's real dirty," she said.

Tifa winked back and walked off to the dressing room as their hostess led Jessie and Aeris to the room.

There were only two women in the dressing room touching up their makeup, and Tifa was surprised to recognize one of them as a woman from her own neighborhood.

"Nance?" she said. "What are you doing here? I thought you got out."

Nance swivelled in her chair to look at her, and then she dropped her eyes. "You know how it is. Dad got sick."

Regrettable, but understandable. Real doctors cost money that was hard to pick up as a shop clerk. "No judgment," said Tifa. "But you know you could be making twice as much at some other brothel."

"Sure, on the other side of the city. I don't have ID for the trains, and I've heard about two people already today who got caught with fake ones. They're not working anymore."

Tifa nodded, reaching into her purse. "I heard about that from Jessie. They just implemented a new system." She pressed a few hundred gil into Nance's hand. "Here. It's not a lot, but it's something."

"Thanks, Tifa. But what are you doing here? The bar's doing fine, isn't it?"

Tifa glanced at the other woman, who pretended not to pay them any mind, but who had clearly noted the exchange of money. "I'm meeting someone," she said, "after a fashion. Do you know the regular in 106?"

Nance scrunched up her face. "I forget his name, but he's one of those Shinra suits. He's a real creep, Tifa."

"His name is Branson," the other woman put in, "or something stupid like that. He's in here all the time, and I've heard about him stalking one of the other girls. You want to be careful with him."

"Thanks for the warning," Tifa said with a smile. She fished a few more coins out of her purse and held them out. The woman took them cautiously.

"Thanks," she said, "but if you've got money to throw around, then you shouldn't be here in the first place."

Nance nodded in agreement. "I don't know what you're up to, Tifa, but you take care of yourself, all right?"

"Don't worry. I've got it handled."

Leaving the dressing room, Tifa made her way down the hall to room 106. The door was unlocked, and she let herself in.

"Learn anything?" asked Aeris.

"The guy we're waiting for is some Shinra sleazebag named Branson," she said. "The girls here do not like him."

"What a surprise," said Jessie, rolling her eyes.

Aeris moved as if to sit down on the bed, and then thought better of it. "What happens," she asked, "if the Shinra do know where your base is already?"

Tifa exchanged glances with Jessie. It was a possibility they'd discussed a few times, but they'd never reached a definitive plan. "I guess we'll have to consider leaving Sector 7," she said. "At least for a little while."

"Weird thing to think about," said Jessie. "I've lived in Sector 7 my whole life. You know I can remember when it still had a sky?"

"Really?" Aeris asked in surprise.

"Sure. People act like the plate's been there forever, but they only started work on it about thirty years ago. We watched that thing go up as kids. Biggs used to make-believe it was an alien spaceship, come to invade the Planet. I wonder if aliens would've been nicer."

"I don't know," Aeris said, considering it with more solemnity than the prospect really warranted. "I get the feeling that... that wouldn't have been so great either."

"You think about aliens a lot?" Tifa wondered.

Aeris shrugged, looking sheepish. "Anyway, if it comes to it, I know a place in Sector 5 where you could hide out, at least for a little while."

"I don't think your mom would be up for that."

"Oh, no, I don't mean my house. There's an abandoned church nearby. No one really goes there except me."

The door opened before they could discuss it further, and a balding, middle-aged man in a suit stepped through. His eyes fell on Tifa and Aeris, missing Jessie where she stood closer to the door, and she easily slipped behind his line of sight.

"Oh, wow," he said, looking them each up and down. "Mm, excellent. They've really outdone themselves tonight, finding you two for me."

He shut the door behind him, and didn't notice Jessie until she clicked the lock shut.

"What-- Who are you?"

"We have a few questions for you, Branson," Tifa said. There weren't any chairs in the room, so she shoved him backwards onto the bed.

"Well, this could be fun, I suppose," he said. He grinned, but he shot Jessie another confused look.

"It won't be," Tifa assured him.

"You came here to pick up a message, right?" Aeris asked, approaching the bed to stand beside Tifa.

"Message?" The uneasy grin vanished. "No, that's silly. I came here to have a good time with you girls."

"Cut the crap," Tifa said. "You sent spies to look into AVALANCHE. I want to know what you learned."

"I don't know what you're talking about. And if this is some sort of game, then I don't care for it."

He was inching backwards on the bed, and Tifa caught his wrist and pinned it down, making sure he felt the strength of her grip. "How attached are you to your balls?" she asked. "Because that could change real soon if you don't start talking."

"They'll hear you," he said. "If you do anything to me, they'll hear you, and they'll get security in here."

"Man, they must hear a lot of weird noises around here, don't you think?" She glanced at Aeris, who nodded in agreement. "Especially coming from your room. I've heard rough is how you like it, and I bet you scream like a girl."

He swallowed, but didn't say anything.

"You'd better start talking," Aeris said, "or I'll rip them off."

She sounded serious about that, and Tifa would have to applaud her acting later. She wouldn't have thought Aeris could be that intimidating.

"A-all right. Okay. But it wasn't my idea, all right? I'm just following orders."

"Whose orders?"

"Heidegger's. The Head of Public Safety."

Tifa snorted at the title, but that was higher up the chain than she had expected. They'd really caught Shinra's attention this time. "And what have you found out for him?"

"The leader of AVALANCHE, they say he's a man with a gun arm. He and his crew hide out in Sector 7. The message I was picking up tonight was supposed to confirm where, but it won't matter."

"What do you mean?"

"I- I can't tell you that. They'll disappear me."

Tifa tightened her grip on his wrist, coming closer to breaking it. "You think we'll do any less to you for keeping quiet?"

Branson grimaced, and his body jerked back reflexively. "It's the plate," he said through clenched teeth. "They're dropping the plate."

"What?"

An ugly smirk crossed his face. "I hear they're doing it tonight. They wanted to wait until curfew was in effect."

"No..."

Her heart sank into the pit of her stomach, and she let go of Branson's wrist. If she'd said she couldn't believe it, it would have been a lie. This was how Shinra dealt with their problems, wasn't it? They crushed them, ruthlessly. They didn't care how many lives it cost, as long as they saw more gil in it in the long run.

And with the curfew, they were guaranteeing as many people would be at home as possible, the greatest loss of life. It would be devastating, the worst disaster in living memory. No one would dare cross the Shinra after that.

Jessie had come away from the door. "How are they doing it? You can't drop the plate just like that."

"You can if you destroy the main support," said Branson.

"It'll still take time," Aeris reasoned. "Won't it? Curfew's only just hit."

Tifa nodded. "We still have time."

"What do you want to do with him?" Jessie asked.

Tifa looked at Branson for a beat, and then bent down to grab his foot.

"You're stealing my shoes?"

"Can't run in heels."

She tossed her pumps aside and stuffed her feet into his business shoes. Not ideal for running, but better than barefoot. Jessie and Aeris were already halfway out the door, and Branson got to his feet as Tifa did. He opened his mouth to shout, but she clocked him in the face, and he fell back into the bed, clutching his now broken nose. He started to whine something through his hand, but she didn't stay to listen.

They were out of the Honey Bee Inn too fast for anyone to even realize they should attempt to stop them. Tifa's mind was racing.

"Jessie, Aeris, I want you evacuating everyone you can. Get Marlene out of there. And get someone to Nance's house; her father's sick and I don't know if he can make it out on his own."

"Got it," said Jessie.

"What are you going to do?" Aeris asked.

"I'm headed for the pillar. The only way we save everyone is if someone stops this."

"I'll send Barret your way," Jessie promised.

They split up just past the entrance to Sector 7. Two soldiers still stood guard on the way to the pillar, but they didn't react in time to draw their weapons before Tifa's fist struck the first guard in the jaw. She disarmed the second and hit him with the butt of his own rifle. Bending down, she searched them for a key into the compound around the pillar.

Above them, things looked quiet, for now. But would there be any commotion, if no one knew what Shinra was planning? They controlled the pillar, and so they could send a team to plant explosives without anyone being the wiser.

Tifa slung the rifle over her shoulder and made for the fence. She didn't like guns, but she might need the range. She unlocked the gate, pushed it open, and looked up at the stairway attached to the side of the pillar. She could do this.


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