“Sir! The signs clearly say no flying inside!”

Tifa looked out from the back to see the new girl, Sunshine… something, yet again trying to convince the gryphon and his friends to stay out of the air.

“You’re blocking the other customers' view of the screens! Please sit back down!” Sunshine insisted, finally coaxing him back to his seat. She avoided his pegasus friend’s grope and moved off the help the other patrons of the ‘fine establishment’.

Hops’ 6th Gate sports and karaoke bar, just a block off the Wall Market main strip; also the current work place of one Tifa Lockhart. She didn’t particularly like serving families and drunken idiots in a tight shirt and hot pants but she felt it was at least still better than working down at the Honeybee.

‘He is a gryphon right?’ she pondered, studying the patron as she rested her feet. She had figured out the differences between all the races for the most part, but still had to double check sometimes.

She had learned that apparently, a long ass time ago this and a parallel human world had collided and merged or something. She had no idea how but it meant that this world had both colorful humans and colorful ‘ponies’ that looked just like the humans, just with horns and wings. Occasionally she’d see one with a horse tail or ears, but not often. Apparently it also meant it was possible for someone to find an alternate self in extremely rare cases, though she had only heard rumors about that.

‘Yeah he’s a gryphon,’ she concluded; they’re the ones with ‘normal’ skin tones and different colored wings, even if they still usually had weird hair sometimes filled with feathers. This one had kind of olive-tan skin and brown wings, a sharp contrast to his lime green and cobalt pony buddies.

“TIFA! Break’s over! We need you back on the floor!” Hops called. Hops was a tall and rather round earth pony and was almost never seen without a greasy apron. He also always carried a rather jovial outlook on life and had a definite 'appreciation of owls’, if you get the meaning.

“Here, take over seven” he said handing her an already full tray “I’m pretty sure they’re Shinra, so be nice and don’t be afraid to flaunt a bit; they can be real good tippers.”

“Thanks boss” Tifa said dryly as Hops just smirked and continued cooking. He was actually a pretty decent boss. Despite the skimpy uniforms and primarily female staff, he did seem to genuinely give a crap about them. And Shinra employees did tend to tip a lot better than the slum dwellers, so the extra bits would be nice.

Sure enough she came upon a quartet in upscale black and blue suits emanating a definite aura of authority. She put on her best fake cheer and approached the group.

‘Be nice, be nice, be nice- Big fake smile!’

“Hi there! I hope we haven’t kept you waiting too long! So I have a Canterlot strip, a double bacon burger, a veggie burger with extra tomato,” She listed off as each signaled which was theirs “And that’s means you must be the Celestia Salad. And of course here’s the basket of wings for all of you.”

She placed the salad in front of the blueish-gray girl with twin pig-tails before taking the wings off the tray, trying to ignore her staring at her chest. She had also learned this world was at least a bit more open and tolerant of same sex orientation, and she was still getting used to the 'gaze' now coming a little more often from her own sex.

“You have sauce on your under-boob; you’re carrying the trays wrong.”

Tifa was immensely proud of herself; her only tell was a single twitch of the eye. She didn’t even loose her fake smile.

‘Bitch’

“Thank you so much for telling me! It would have been pretty embarrassing to have it there the whole night!” she ‘thanked’ the… ‘human?’. Humans and earth ponies were particularly difficult to tell apart. Earth ponies tended to be more physically strong and durable but lacked much natural affinity for materia.

‘Not that such knowledge made a visual guess any easier…’

“Is there anything else I can get you for now?” Tifa asked and was largely ignored as they began eating; not an uncommon occurrence.

“No we’re fine, thank you” the group’s only male, a large tanned man with a shaved head told her quietly.

‘Well, at least one of them is polite.’

“Well then, I’ll be back to check on you in a little bit. Enjoy your meal!” she concluded and strode away, face dropping in exasperation as soon as she left eye sight. She moved back through the kitchen toward the sinks when she spotted a familiar mane of green hair.

“Hey Zest, thought you had tonight off” she commented as she moved next to the pink girl bouncing and swaying to her head phones. She kept washing and bobbing until the darker haired female reached over to pull off one of the phones “I said Hey Zest! Thought you had tonight off!”

“Oh Hey Tif! Yeah, Starry called me to cover; something about her aunt or something” Lemon Zest explained, moving her headphones to her neck “And it’s just a half shift here in the back, no problem.”

The music lover grinned at her, of course it wasn’t a problem for her; dishes and bussing were her favorite assignments. She could just sit back here listening to her headphones and usually didn’t take them off when bussing either. It wasn’t as generous with the tips but she was hardly hurting for cash, not with her parents.

“UGH!” Sunshine stormed in and dumped a bin of dishes in off to be cleaned “I just had to get the gropers didn’t I? Meanwhile you get the big tipping Shinra mooks… why did I ever leave Dodge Junction?”

“Oh we’ve got more Shinra types in?” Zest asked “Don’t worry Shine, Hops has us pool the tips remember?”

“Yeah and besides, I’m pretty sure they’re Turks,” Tifa added as she tried to lift and adjust to find the stain “Not sure you’d want to deal with that kind of pressure right away.”

“Turks?! Down here!?” Sunshine exclaimed.

“Again?” Zest asked “Group of four with a big bald guy? They were here last night too.”

“That can’t be good…” Tifa muttered as she was trying to angle the sponge right with the sink back’s distorted reflection.

“What could they be doing down here?” Sunshine asked.

“They actually come down here pretty often, more than up on the plate at least. They like to hang out down at the Wall Market Pub a lot during their down time... Maybe they’re just getting tired of it and are giving us a try” Zest mused, reaching a gloved hand out of the soapy water and taping the underside of Tifa’s chest. A quick strobe of magic sparkled and the stain dissolved.

‘Prestidigitation, gotta love it’ She thought as Zest gave her a quick wink.

“Thanks, and I guess you would know Canterlot girl” Tifa teased, now leaning against the sinks rim.

“Canterlot?” Sunshine looked confused “As in topside of the plate?!”

“Yep! Her parents are real big wigs up there, very respectable” Tifa smirked as the green haired girl shot her a look “She’s got a trust fund and everything!”

“Why the Stream’s name would you live down here then?!”

“Because it’s too fake up there, everything’s too easy” Zest grumbled “I want something real, to actually DO something. Not just flutter about fretting about appearances and reputations that don’t even matter.”

“Ah the classic independent princess shtick” Tifa jested “You want real you should just go to the Under City.”

“I don’t need things to be THAT real” she chuckled earning a laugh from the other two.

“CAN’T WORK THE FLOOR FROM BACK HERE LADIES!” They heard Hop’s call from the kitchen.

“Sorry Mr. Hops!” Sunshine scurried back out to the bar, giving their boss a quick bow as she passed.

“Don’t let him catch you using that materia” Tifa whispered as she passed. Hops held the belief that materia contaminated the food; it didn’t but he was the stubborn type.

“Don’t piss off the Turks” Zest shot back, advice Tifa wasn’t hesitant to take to heart. She only made it a couple steps through the door when the clatter of shattering dishware grabbed her attention.

“Oh don’t play hard to get now sweet cheeks, you’ve been flirting with us all night!” one of the gryphon’s drunken buddies was holding Sunshine by the wrist. She wrenched herself free and quickly retreated a few steps “Come on! We can afford the cover!”

“This isn’t that kind of place! You want some plot then the HoneyBee is just a few blocks over!” Sunshine snapped.

‘Huh, the girl has more bite than I thought’ Tifa admitted. The drunken pegasus sauntered forward still believing himself to be charming.

“I think you can make an excepti-huh?” a hand suddenly on his chest stopped him. His gaze began following the arm, hitting her shoulder but quickly detouring from his destination.

“Eyes are up here dumbass” he glanced up “And the lady said no.”

“Well, then how about I just get a feel of y-AH!” the drunk ragdolled back into the table, sending his friends sprawling to the ground as it tipped. The gryphon leader sprang back up, wings unfurling to make him look bigger.

“Oh you wanna throw down little girl?!” he taunted, his tough guy act cranked up to eleven as his pegasus and earth pony buddies took up positions behind him “We ain’t afraid to fight mares!”

“Oh good, neither am I” it took their intoxicated minds a couple extra beats to register the insult before the gryphon piped up again.

“Get her!” he called and the trio charged; Tifa just rolled her eyes.

Twenty seconds later, passersby outside had to dodge the bruised and bloodied trio bursting through the doors and frantically scrambling away from the woman calmly following them out. She stood in the doorway a moment longer before turning to see their bouncer for the night, a broad shouldered earth pony named Chunk, giggling behind her.

“And where were you?!”

“Like you really needed any help,” he smiled “Why do you think we love working during your shifts? It’s like free money!”

A heavy, aggravated sigh escaped her with another eye roll. She shoulder checked him as she passed to help Sunshine clean up the overturned table, unaware of the gazes of four pairs of eyes’ studying her.

“Not bad” one of the women with red hair under goggles commented, lounging in her chair “She barely even broke anything too.”

The one with the shaved head just grunted his agreement, calmly watching the martial artist.

“She seems more capable than we predicted, or at least notably stronger” the spectacled grey girl added plainly “This could be difficult if she proves uncooperative.”

“We’ll see…” the first Turk returned, pausing a moment to consider “See if we can call in the priss, she’s good at convincing people.”

“And if she doesn’t show up?” the last suited agent asked.

“Then we improvise.”

“Oh come on Lock! You can’t say that didn’t work out at least a little tension” Zest claimed as they walked toward their apartments. Zest lived just across the hall from Tifa, she’s actually the one who let her know the unit was available.

“Knocking around a few drunks in what couldn’t even be considered a fight? Yeah, not so much.”

“Well then I suppose you just need to get laid” She concluded as they reached their respective doors.

“Oh ha ha” Tifa replied flatly.

“I’m serious! Plus I doubt you’d have any trouble finding takers” Zest added “I know I wouldn’t mind a little T-L-C.”

“What?”

“Some Tifa-Lockhart-Contact?” Zest smirked.

‘God, just any contact sounds absolutely divine after so long.’

“Another time maybe.” Tifa returned plainly, wresting a sigh from the pink hued girl.

“You gotta learn to let yourself go Tif, express a little y’know?!” Zest sighed, letting it drop with a shrug “But fine, whatever. Suit yourself.”

“Have a good night Zest” Tifa chuckled walking into her apartment.

“I’m right across the hall if you change your mind!” Zest sang.

“GOOD NIGHT ZEST!” Tifa repeated, hearing the girl laugh as she closed the door.

‘Wild child that one’ she thought, already removing her uniform and headed toward the shower ‘Still, don’t know where’d I be if it wasn’t for her help.’

One shower later Tifa changed into a tanktop and skirt before flicking on the TV, she did find them unusually comfortable.

‘Another inherited preference I guess’

She didn’t much care what was on, she just liked background noise while she worked on her form; she had dropped her elbow a little early against the second drunk and it was bothering her. She didn’t really get a lot of opportunity to use the martial skill she inherited but that didn’t stop the irritation that came from getting sloppy with it.

“We’re here with the leader of our fair city and the CEO of Shrina Electric Power herself; President Celestia!” The unicorn woman on the tv announced.

‘President Celestia’ She thought, already losing focus on her choreography ‘That still sounds weird.’

She had figured out pretty quick after her arrival that this was some kind of My Little Pony world, however screwed up of one it was. That unfortunately didn’t help her much. Like the block preventing her from using her old name, there was something keeping a lot of her memories of the show suppressed.

‘I can’t remember what it is but I remember it’s important...'

'Isn’t that a bitch?'

She remembered Celestia was actually a princess and not a president, there were a lot of rainbows you didn’t want to mess with and that there was a lot of affection connected to the name ‘Derpy’; that was about it. Oh, and that Liv was way more into it than she was.

‘Hardcore pegasister that girl’ she thought and ended up making herself sad; she still had no clue what happened to her friend. To further complicate matters her memories of Final Fantasy VII and it's universe were spotty at best too; she remembered a lot more of that then the show though, so that was still something.

“So I am sorry but of course the first question I must address the shoopuf in the room; what is your response to certain groups’ allegations that harvesting Mako energy is harmful to the planet, that we’re literally draining its life force?” The interviewer continued.

“Such claims are completely unfounded. As we have said several times; we take every precaution and devote significant time and resources in insuring that very thing is not the case” the strikingly beautiful woman replied with a slightly tired smile. Her exceptionally fair skin seemed to shine in the studio’s lights as a long horn and flawless wings accentuated her majestic appearance. “Not that we do not understand their concern, but I assure you and all the viewers, there is no need to worry.”

Celestia was one of the few 'ponies' Tifa had seen who's color wasn’t perfectly aligned; her skin was just a few shades more tan than the pure white of her horn and wings. Eventually she reasoned that she might actually be white but, as one of the few thing she remembered being that she was the sun princess, maybe she was just tanned. She was actually a little proud of herself for figuring it out.

“And their insistence of using the illnesses of the Under City as examples to the contrary?” the hostess countered, a small, regretful sigh escaping the president in response.

“We have urged the citizens of the ‘Under City’ to relocate countless times; The cave structures alone make the area inhospitable but unrefined Mako crystals and exposed Hamony Stream wells can be exceptionally dangerous without any interference. The effects those groups claim are our fault would happen to anyone exposed for so long” The alicorn explained “We do what we can to support them, but we can only do so much without needlessly exposing even more people and ponies to unacceptable risk.”

“There have also been several reports of increased Shinra security activity in Midgar between them and us” the interviewer added.

“That is merely a precaution; I’m afraid we’ve received some… concerning reports about some the area’s organizations and we’re simply taking the first steps to prevent any future problems.”

“Organizations like AVALANCHE? Rumor has it they’ve been causing the company a good deal of grief lately.”

“I’m afraid I can’t disclose any more information, as it could compromise our sensitive investigations. You understand.” The company leader apologized.

“Hm” the interviewer hummed disappointed “Well then perhaps you could tell us about this new Wonderbolts project you’ve been teasing the public with-”

Her choreography already long forgotten, Tifa was leaning on the back of the couch watching the CEO talk when something suddenly bounced off the back of the martial artist's head. She spun to find no one there.

“What the hell?” she asked, thoroughly confused. She looked down to see what looked like a tiny cardboard box lying flat on the ground. She picked it up and immediately her phone beeped an alert.

-New App Available!- flashed on her screen. She looked back and forth between the phone and tiny box before tapping the notification. An instant later the box jumped out of her hand, constructed itself and snapped to a size big enough to fit someone inside. The next instant the phone's camera flashed and the box was gone.

She stood staring wide eyed at the empty air the box once filled, her phone still beeping and vibrating in her hand. She finally blinked and looked down to see the new alert -You have 1 new token!- with a picture of the vanished box. She continued staring until-

“Fuck it!” she exclaimed, dropping the phone and walking away with her hands up “Whatever! Too much weirdness!”

She cracked her neck on her way to the fridge, trying to ease her sudden tension. She dug around for some leftovers and plopped them in the microwave. First the reminder of Liv and now her phone, her own phone from home mind you, was doing crazy things. The hum of the microwave calmed her mind as she drifted back to when she discovered she still had it.

Tifa eventually stopped crying and regathered herself, sitting back up on the bed trying to figure out what she was supposed to do now.

‘A shower could be a good start.’

Groggily rising, she walked to the small bathroom and waited for the water. It was an interesting and unsettling experience cleaning an entirely new body; it almost like she was washing a stranger except she could feel it. She eventually got over the odd sensation and after bumping her new chest and hips several times, was finally clean and at least a little more relaxed.

She turned off the water and began to step out before stopping, sighing, and stepping right back in. She turned the water back on and lifted her new additions enough to rinse the new area she never had to worry about before. THEN she got out of the shower and unfortunately only then had the realization of,

“I don’t have any clothes do I?”

Sulking back into the room in nothing but a towel she began thinking of options. The top and panties she was wearing were now a little too damp from the shower and she still couldn’t very well go out in public in just that anyway. She checked around, not seeing anything in the drawers or closet. She was about to give up when she saw something sticking out from under the bed.

‘MY BAG!’ she dropped down and quickly ripped the large duffle from its hiding spot. She immediately noticed the difference however; for one it was a good deal fuller than it was before and a reddish-brown pair of reinforced boots, Tifa’s boots, now hung from the side. Right on top over the zipper was a simple note.

~Yeah I was a bit late to the draw, so here… Because moxie.~

She turned the note over and saw that’s all there was. She frowned at the paper, but set it aside and opened the bag all the same. Just like her, her things inside were now very different.

All of her clothes were changed and Tifa couldn’t help but notice they were mostly comprised of tank tops and skirts, there were a few other things but that seemed to be the running theme. There was also a few large and very sturdy looking bras and sports bras, as well as a decent number of panties for which she was very grateful.

The clothes however, were just beginning. Several slightly glowing spheres were found beneath them next to a cellphone, a heavy bundle of paper currency she didn’t recognize and finally a small sack of what felt like coins.

‘Is this how I supposedly paid for the room?’

She left the money and marbles alone for the moment and picked up the cell phone. It was hers; the familiar Fenrir emblem on the cover gave that away. She quickly turned it on to find all her contacts missing; she still tried to manually enter one of her parents’ numbers but wasn’t terribly surprised to not get an answer. In fact it didn’t even complete the connection; they apparently used a dialing different system here.

'Or I just didn’t have a carrier anymore.'

She checked the media and was surprised to find that a good bit of it seemed to still be intact. Pictures, music, and movies; however most of it seemed blocked by a password she couldn't remember. Some of it was completely missing though, and it didn't take her long to figure out it included all the stuff with any trace of her in it.

‘Guess who I was really is just gone now huh? Even if I didn’t actually die, I’m still effectively dead…’ she thought, face dropping as she tossed the phone back in the bag.

She sat there staring at the floor, occasionally glancing at some part of her new body. What the hell was she going to do now? What could she do? She was in an entirely new world, alone and afraid. She didn’t know how to handle this! She worked in a damn practical effects workshop for goodness’s sake! She-

‘Tsuru, Tsuru, Tsuru, Tsuru...’

A quiet voice whispered from the back her mind, the onomatopoeia breaking through her second break down before it started. She stopped and sighed with a small, if tired smile.

“Dilly Dally Shilly Shally…” she muttered, feeling at least the tiniest bit calmer.

She gathered herself and decided it was finally time to leave the room. She got dressed, pocketed the phone and found what must be the room key on a hook by the door. Grabbing a few bills and coins of the unfamiliar currency and putting on a brave face she actually felt more than she expected to, she took her first step in exploring this strange new world.

‘Whether I died or not, I’m alive now and I won’t get anywhere dragging my feet here forever.’

She snapped out of her remembrance when the microwave beeped at her. She grabbed the food and headed back to her, as Zest put it, ‘rescued’ couch. She had just gotten back up to toss the plate when there was a knock at the door.

'Three distractions in just an hour? When did my life become so active?’

She approached the door cautiously; she only knew like eight people and only half of them knew where she lived. She peered out the peephole to see a pair of women in nice suits.

‘Aw crap.’

“Miss Lockhart we know you’re there, we can see the light flickering behind the peephole” she heard the same opal haired bitch from earlier declare.

“What do you want?” she called through the door.

“I suggest you open it,” she rounded to see a pair in black suits, the sloppy girl with red slicked back hair and the tall tanned guy still wearing his sunglasses “They’ll just do it themselves otherwise.”

She backed away from both the door and the two intruders; as to how they got in she didn’t have the slightest, but it wasn’t really important anymore. A second later the door clicked, slowly swinging open as the other pair entered. She bumped into her small dining table, already out of room before the turquoise girl with streaked purple hair stepped forward.

“Miss Lockhart, My name if Sunny Flare; this is Rina, Rude and Sugarcoat” She said “And you have something we need.”

“And this is how the Turks operate? You break in and make demands without even asking any questions?” Tifa stalled, leg slowly sliding behind a chair leg “I know the SOLDIER recruitment stuff you feed the media is bullshit, but I still thought you lot had a bit more style than this…”

“We find our patience in the matter has grown rather frayed. We’ve spent a lot of time and resources looking for-*GASP*”

The chair shattered against the turquoise Turk's face, sending her to the ground as Tifa was already closing on the next agent. Sugarcoat couldn’t even draw her gun before a fist drove her head back and left a sizable dent in the wall as she fell to the floor.

A sparking baton shot in front of her face as she leaned back just in time. She swung an high kick against her attacker only for them to dodge back as well while her partner charged in with a straight punch. Tifa redirected the attack and tried a low jab just to rebound off a guarding elbow. She slammed forward knocking him off balance with her shoulder and followed through with elbow strike turned back hand that forced the larger Turk to back off.

Rina left her no reprieve however as she launched forward again, electro rod sparking as she swung at the buxom human relentlessly. Tifa caught the Turks wrist on the cross of her arms during her next down swing, kicking straight out against Rina’s own counter. The displaced’s strength won out as she launched the suited female across her apartment and crashing through her coffee table.

Sunny and Sugarcoat tried to rise again when a heel swept across both faces. She completed the ark into an axe drop against the charging Rude, a quick snap kick following and catching him the chest, staggering him nearly enough to fall pry to the other foot flying up as the girl flipped backward. She just barely grazed his glasses, knocking them into the air as she continued her rush.

‘The other pair I got the drop on, but these two…’

The pair blocked and countered each other into a brief stalemate until the unmistakable sound of a shotgun cocking made the room freeze.

“BACK THE FUCK DOWN!” she heard a wonderfully familiar voice shout behind her.

‘Oh Zest I could kiss you!’

Tifa stood straighter and quickly stepped back, making sure Zest could have a clear shot against any of the disadvantaged group. She picked up the Turk’s sunglasses, putting them on and sticking her tongue out at him as her friend circled the group to stand next to her.

“Nice timing” she complemented the music lover as the floored Turks slowly rose to their feet. Zest was about to reply with something undoubtedly witty when the apartment’s windows exploded inward with blinding twin flashes.

Two pairs of Shinra security troopers repelled in and at least half a dozen more burst from the hallway flanking the pair, every one of their rifles leveled at the two women. They slowly raised their hands as Zest dropped the shotgun. The Turks regained their footing and moved toward them smugly but halted confused when half the troopers redirected their aim to them. Their bewildered expressions quickly grew worried when they heard somepony storming down the hall, complaining loudly.

A pure white and very pissed off unicorn strode into the room, glanced that the two women holding their hands up before glaring as the quartet.

“REALLY!? You couldn’t wait Five Minutes?!”

Tifa and Lemon were now seated at the small kitchen table, surrounded by the troopers as they all listened to the unicorn tear into her colleagues in the hall.

“-Completely Unprofessional! What was the point of even calling me down if you were just going to try and pull this! AND YOU TWO! This pair has the excuse of being new but I know that the two of you know better! Ohhh, when Sweetie Drops hears about this!-”

They could just barely see the one called Rude shifting uncomfortably and avoiding her gaze in the hall.

"Y'know Me and Rude are technically your superiours-" Rina tried.

"ALL THE MORE REASON-"

“I actually know those girls, we used to be friends,” Zest commented quietly “We were at Shinra Prep together; Sunny Flare, Sugarcoat and Rina ‘Indigo’ Zap. I had heard they’d become big shots at Shinra, but I didn’t think they were Turks.”

“Indigo?”

“It’s the color she used to dye her hair all the time… Or maybe it was the color she was always dying over? I don’t know; I always put my headphones back on during the less interesting conversations.”

“You always have your headphones on.”

“I don’t find a lot of interesting conversations.” The pair chuckled before the unicorn stopped yelling.

“Ms. Lemon Zest?” The woman came back into the room and walked up to the table as the other four Turks hung around the door looking dejected and, in the case of the newer two, a little bloodied “You’re free to go. You don’t have to worry about any legal repercussions for your actions; You were merely aiding a friend against an Unprovoked attack. Your shotgun has already been placed back in your apartment and you have my apologies for any inconvenience.”

The unicorn shot the unprovoked bit back over her shoulder at the gathered Turks while Zest glanced at Tifa unsure.

“Go on Zest, I’ll be fine. Thanks for the backup” Tifa consoled her, only to be caught off guard by a sudden hug.

“You be careful here girl” Zest whispered before letting go.

“Um… Yeah” Tifa replied awkwardly as Zest gave her a worried look and made her way out of the damaged apartment, one of the troopers closing the door behind her. The unicorn then moved to sit across from the displaced woman. Tifa couldn’t help but notice her suit was exceptionally well-tailored even compared to her colleges, and that her hair was impossibly maintained.

“Now on to you Miss Lockhart; on behalf of Shinra Incorporated, I sincerely apologize for the unauthorized and frankly Asinine methods of my colleges here. They really should know better,” She offered, glaring back at the group as she spoke before turning back to her “I assure you the company will comp any and all repairs required from this incident.”

‘They damn well better.’

“Just what is this all this about?” Tifa asked.

“Well, we recently learned that a very rare and rather unique materia somehow made its way into your possession within the last six months. A materia that may prove absolutely vital in ensuring the success of our mission” the woman with fabulous hair explained.

'Wait she doesn’t mean-'

“It is a very rare combination materia; one that’s bridged the gap between types and abilities. Such a feat is a very difficult thing to achieve for even just two abilities, let alone the several we believe this one to possess. Not even our current level of materia fusion can produce them predictably or with any kind of frequency.”

‘Oh no...’

“Among other notable additions, this one managed to create a particularly unique melding of both the Enemy Skill and Mime abilities; creating what we theorize is a new method of duplicating and imitating abilities unlike either base skill, perhaps even absorbing power in the process. It’s this feature we’re so intent on utilizing.”

‘Aw crap…’

“Materia that bridge types tend to have a mixture of the types’ colors in a kind of swirling pattern, opposed to a mere blending of colors. This one in particular appears to of had a primary base of Yellow Command materia with swirls of either blue or-“

“Yeah, I know the one you’re talking about… it’s just, well… you see…” Tifa interrupted, sucking her lips in for a moment as she searched for the words “Um… I uh, I kind of…”

“Why the hell won’t it fit!? The other ones shrunk into the slots just fine! Why is this one bigger!?”

“Some Materia are just different Tif, this one definitely is. We can just get you an adjustable slot for it later. Stop freaking out.”

“Well… maybe if I just hold it real tight”

"I don’t think that’s such a good-"

*CRUNCH*

“…”

‘SHIT!’

“You… You broke it!?” the horned agent stared at her in disbelief.

“I didn’t mean to!”

“Lady even if you are freakishly strong enough to crush a materia, you wouldn’t have an arm anymore if you did” Rina snarked from behind the woman. The well coiffed Turk was about to respond when Sugarcoat strode forward and jabbed Tifa’s hand with something.

“OW! What the fuck!?”

“Sugarcoat!”

“...She's absorbed it, permanently it seems too; we may not be able to extract it” she stated after dropping the needle into a small tube of solution “The ‘internal slot’ is a very advanced technique; you shouldn’t try it if you don’t know what you’re doing.”

‘It’s a damn good thing this bitch is cute or someone would have stabbed her in the face with an ice pick long ago’ Tifa scowled at the girl while grabbing a napkin for the new hole in her hand.

“Okay!” The purple haired Turk rose quickly, waving them at to the door “All of you! Out!”

They quickly complied with only Rude faltering a bit upon reaching the door and glancing back at Tifa, or rather at the sunglasses perched atop her head.

“You’re not getting them back.”

The bald man frowned, flipping open a spare pair from his coat pocket and exiting with an annoyed grunt.

The unicorn gave a heavy sigh and pinched the bridge of her nose. She let her hand drop to look up upset but suddenly she seemed to almost swallow the frustration, perking back up with a forced smile before taking out her phone.

“…Yes Hello Ma’am… Yes we found her Ma’am but there have been some complications… Yes with that but also with the team… Well, you see they took it upon themselves to-”

While the senior Turk reported to her superior Tifa looked down at the tiny wound, the bleeding had already started to slow but that wasn’t what was concerning her. The Rina girl was right; when a materia breaks the result is often quite explosive. She absorbed it though and never even noticed; and she certainly hadn’t used any magic or special abilities without actual materia.

‘Then again she said it was primarily a command materia, and I think the other color was blue meaning support… both usually need a deliberate attempt or are just passive effects’ she mused, those would certainly be easy to overlook ‘But Enemy Skill mixed with Mime huh? That’s not too bad actually.’

“Yes Ma’am, I understand… Of course, I’ll report when there are any new developments” Tifa watched the Turk hang up and sit down again “So it seems we have a new direction to take here Ms. Lockhart, one that now requires your cooperation.”

“I don’t suppose I have any choice in this, do I Miss…?”

“Oh where are my manners?! I’m Rarity,” she answered, shaking the human’s uninjured hand “And while I would so like to say you do, I’m afraid this has become a matter of national security. As much as I deplore the use of such tactics they would virtually freeze your accounts, relieve you of your employment, seize your apartment, probably threaten deportation and do I really need to continue this distasteful list Darling?”

“You really don’t” Tifa sighed, head thumping down on the table.

“You will of course be compensated for your cooperation and we will be able to rectify the… inconsistencies in your citizenship” she confirmed “We wouldn’t force you to comply and leave you out in the cold. In fact I dare say your situation will improve quite a bit afterward. ”

“Can I at least know what I’m being forced to do?” her words muffled against the wood.

“Yes of course dear,” Rarity answered warmly “We’re going to save the world.”

Tifa’s head shot up from the table.

‘Say what now?’

A blue and pink haired Turk gave the smallest of sighs after the call ended, a mildly irritated expression on her otherwise collected appearance.

"Hmmmm… Well this certainly complicates matters" she addressed the woman on the screen above the phone.

"Perhaps, but not to a degree we can't handle," the alicorn replied, absently looking out the tinted window as the limo passed through the city "As it was, the materia was merely a failsafe; the primary plan is still our best option.”

“Should we bring he in for testing then?” the agent asked, the president looking pensive for a moment before finally responding.

“I don’t think so, not yet… if what agent Rarity said is accurate then this Lockhart may in fact prove to be a potent ally after all” Celestia decided “Integrate her into the effort and make use of her abilities, at least until more develops.”

“Are we to tell her about-“

“No.” she abruptly cut the Turk off, a focused intensity in the president’s eyes as she continued staring out at her city “No, she doesn’t need to know. Until the time comes the fewer that know, the better.”

“She’s almost certainly started asking questions already; she may be more cooperative if she knows what she’s doing” Sweetie Drops offereded.

“By all means Agent Sweetie Drops, have your Turks explain what she’ll be doing as you’ve already instructed,” Celestia answered more understandingly “Just don’t tell them why. We don’t need this getting out and spreading confusion or panic. I'm afraid the masses wouldn’t understand until it’s already upon them.”

“Very well Ma’am, of course” Sweetie Drops acquiesced before shifting the discussion to another pressing matter.

“Now what are your orders regarding AVALANCHE?”

Author's Notes:

And there's Chapter one! Yay!

For those that don't know, the 'Tsuru' bit is actually what they say in the original Japanese of Advent Children instead of 'Dilly Dally Shilly Shally'- It's the japanese onomatopoeia for 'dragging' and can be used to point out when someone's dragging their feet. Sorry for any that looked at it wondering just what the hell I was writing about lol.

So quick question readers; Music or No Music? Some authors, including myself in my other story, often provide links to songs to accent the scene; be it for action, suspense, comedy or what have you. In this story I believe it would be mostly limited to action unless truly called for. But let me know what your opinion is; I'm personally on the fence as to whether it would add emphasis or distract from immersion.

As Always readers; Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed the chapter and I hope to see you for the next! Have a good one!