Rebirth

Chapter 38 - Prelude

Cloud shook his head to try and get Tifa's last words out of his mind. He pulled her to
him and held her tight against his chest. "I won't let them hurt you or the baby, Tifa," he
whispered.

She stepped back from his embrace and looked up in his terrified eyes. She cupped his
face in her hands and gently kissed his lips and said, "This is something I have to do
alone, Cloud. You can't protect me any more," she said quietly to him.

Cloud looked wildly around to Tendo. "Give me the drug too. That way I can be with
her, I can help her fight Jenova." Tendo just smiled sadly and shook his head.

"It doesn't work that way, Cloud. It's something she has to do alone. She's right; you
can't help her with this."

"No, I won't accept that. There must be a way!" he shouted, his body trembling with fear
for the first time in his life. It was too much for Barret and Vincent to watch. They both
turned away rather than see their friend, their leader, in so much anguish. They had seen
him face down monsters conjured from the depths of evil and kill Sepiroth, the most
feared warrior the world knew, and now here he was, brought to his knees by the fear of a
loved one's loss.

Tifa turned Cloud back to him, wrapped her arms around his neck, and held him tight,
willing his trembling to stop. "It's alright, Cloud. I love you. You've made me strong,
much stronger than I've ever been. I can do this. I can. Whatever happens, you and the
planet will be safe. I won't let her win."

She turned to Tendo and looked him in the eyes. "Lets do this."

Tendo smiled at her and picked up the vial containing his counter agent. "I suggest we
set up in the bedroom. It will be more comfortable and will be easier for us to restrain
you if we need to."

"Restrain her?" asked Barret, looking from Cloud to Tendo.

Tendo stopped walking down the hall and turned to look at the others. "Yes, she will
need to be restrained to prevent her from hurting herself or us," he said simply and
continued to walk towards the bedroom. After a moment, Tifa followed after him,
leaving the three men standing in the kitchen.

Tifa paused at the bedroom door and looked at the bed she and Cloud had made love on
just an hour before. She walked over to it and felt the bed. It was still warm and smelled
faintly of their lovemaking. She smiled softly to herself at the memory and slowly lay
down.

Cloud joined her in the bedroom and sat down next to her. She smiled up at him and held
his hand. "I'll be here with you all the time, baby," he said softly. "I won't leave you no
matter what happens."

"Tie her legs and arms down to the bed with those, please," Tendo said to Vincent and
Barret. They strapped her down using the soft bindings Tendo pointed to.

Cloud looked down at Tifa, bound hand and foot to the bed and tried to smile. Tifa
returned his smile, a tiny tear escaping her eyelashes. He brushed it away and gently
kissed her lips. Tendo flipped open the hard case he had carried up from the basement
and took out a sterile hypodermic needle and syringe. He drew some of the counter agent
drug into the syringe and tapped it lightly.

"Now, my dear, are you ready?" She nodded to him. "Just try and relax," he said. He
wrapped a tourniquet around her arm and tapped her skin to raise a vein. Finding one, he
swabbed it with cold alcohol and slowly threaded the needle into her vein. He looked up
at her face and slowly pressed the plunger on the syringe, pushing the drug into her body.

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Author's Note: I have a feeling the next couple of chapters will take me a while to write,
so please be patient as I may not be able to post them for a few days. I kind of feel like
Tifa; knowing that pain and suffering lie ahead but not having the power to avoid it.