Diamond in the Rough

Chapter One

Reeve Tuesti was lost. Utterly and hopelessly lost. He cursed. He'd been traveling with a group of WRO soldiers to Midgar with the intent of aiding the troops positioned there. Reports of Deepground activity and need of back up had reached him at headquarters in Junon. However, the transports vehicles had hit a rough spot –namely a group of Deepground hounds– and Reeve's vehicle had been overturned in the resulting confusion. He wasn't sure what had happened to the rest of his troops, he was confident that they were all safe and secure, but he'd somehow managed to lose himself. Three hounds had singled him out and he'd been out of ammo, his only option had been to run. Though what unseen force had urged him to run in the opposite direction of the vehicles, Reeve did not know and he felt like an idiot because of it.

He'd wandered through what he had realized with much relief to be Cosmo Canyon and could now be sure that he was somewhere near Nibelheim. As he slowly walked in no particular direction, he became acutely aware of how dark it was getting and the intensity of the encroaching chill. He had to find shelter; somewhere to stay the night. Once settled, he'd contact the others; he'd try Shalua first, she was very reliable and level headed. If anyone could help him out most, it would be the scientist. If Shalua couldn't help, he'd try Yuffie. The ninja, however eccentric, was trustworthy and no doubt would be willing to come to his aide. And, if neither woman could help him for one reason or another, there was still the WRO.

Good, good. He nodded to himself. That was a plan…hopefully his phone was still working…

Reeve walked on. Eventually a row of run-down buildings came into view and he knew he'd reached Nibelheim. As the WRO commissioner smiled slightly in relief and hurried up to the first building he came upon. Anything would do, he just needed an enclosed, quiet place to spend the night and contact help. But the first house was locked. Frowning, Reeve backed up off the cracked doorstep and moved to the next. It, too, was locked. His frown deepened. The third house was also shut tight, and the fourth, and the fifth. Even the windows were sealed and shuttered, inaccessible. He hesitated at the sixth house, hand hovering over the dusty doorknob. Slowly, he wrapped his fingers around the icy metal and turned… Locked.

Cursing, Reeve kicked the door in frustration. Never mind the houses, he pulled his phone from his pocket and flipped it open. Swiftly, he dialed Shalua's number and raised the phone to his ear. He waited. No ring graced his ear, only static. He pulled the device back and squinted at the small, illuminated screen. Shoot. No service.

Reeve sighed and shoved his phone in his pocket. Great. Nibelheim was an abandoned city and he had no service and no way was getting out any time soon. No shelter either.

He continued to wander down the crumbling street, wary eyes cast in every which way. The darkness was now upon him and Reeve could barely see where he was going. Hands held aloft before him, the commissioner stumbled down the shadow-shrouded streets. He had no idea where he was going exactly, but carried on nonetheless and hoped he might end up somewhere of use. He blinked rapidly in a vain attempt to clear the darkness from his eyes and ran his hands across his face. Upon reopening his eyes, he caught sight of a peculiar silhouette. Was that…a gate? He was positive that that a mansion he was seeing up ahead and he was certain that he could see a light burning in one of the windows.

Hope sparked in his chest. A light could only mean that a person lived in this mansion. And if a person lived there, he could ask for shelter. And maybe they had a working phone as well! Inspired, Reeve surged forward with the smile renewed on his face.

The bestial guard who'd stood by the iron-wrought gates for as long as could remember suddenly raised his head in alarm. He was certain he'd heard footsteps coming from beyond the gates…but that was not possible. Nibelheim had been abandoned for many decades and there was no reason for humans to come here. He paused. Maybe it wasn't a human? But why would any other creature come here either? Nibelheim had absolutely nothing to offer to any form of creature.

Oh. There it was again. These footsteps were rapid, slightly unsteady; the creature was running, perhaps, and probably weary as well. The guard sat up, ears perked, sharp eyes gazing past the gates. Then he saw it. Movement. A tall figure came into view. A person…a man! A man was approaching the mansion!

Leaping to his paws, the guard whirled around, the flame of his tail fluttering in the sudden motion but steadfastly burning. The guard stumbled slightly, claws scrabbling against the cobblestone path for purchase and then he took off for the front door. He didn't dare raise his voice, he hadn't encountered anything for so long! He'd practically lost his job that fateful day thirty years ago and he was unsure of what to do. He figured it'd be best to warn the housekeeper, she'd know what to do!

Rearing up on hind legs, he pressed his front paws against the curved doorknob and let himself into the mansion. He shoved the heavy door shut with a muscled shoulder and then galloped to the one place he knew the housekeeper would be…

"Tifa!" he barked, sliding into the ballroom where the housekeeper was nostalgically cleaning the grand piano located under the domed windows of the massive room. She looked up sharply at the sound of her name.

"What is it, Nanaki?" she asked, concerned. She lifted her skirts away from her ankles as she hurried towards the guard, brows knit together.

"Someone is coming! A man! I saw him, he is approaching the mansion! I…I would have raised an alarm, but I was unsure. It's been so long…"

"Don't worry, Nanaki," soothed Tifa, gently running her thin fingers through his dark mane. Usually Nanaki opposed of this, but for the moment he tolerated it; there were more important things to attend to. "It's understandable. I'll get Cloud, we'll take care of this man."

"Perhaps…" Nanaki paused, thinking. Tifa waited patiently for him to continue. "Perhaps we shouldn't tell the Master…"

Tifa drew in a sharp breath and released it slowly. She nodded. "You're right, it's probably for the best."

"I'll return to my post and keep an eye on this man," said Nanaki, slipping out from under the housekeeper's subconsciously stroking hand. "I'll report to you the minute he passes the gates."

"Very good," Tifa approved, nodding curtly. "I'll go find Cloud, he's probably in the Master's armory like always."

Nanaki turned sharply and cantered off, sliding effortlessly between the partially opened doors and taking a different route to the outside. He rushed to the kitchens and slunk past the cook, deep asleep and snoring loudly in a chair in the corner. The cook despised Nanaki whenever the guard entered the kitchen, swearing that the crimson beast would contaminate the food with fleas and the unpleasantries of mongrels. Nanaki loathed to be called a mongrel but knew better than to argue with the stubborn and temperamental cook. But the cook had yet to discover the missing stone just behind the stove. A stone Nanaki had one day found to be loose and had tediously removed, careful not to upset any balance the stone might have been apart of. Luckily, the stone was merely a stone and not at all necessary to the well being of the mansion's condition. Nanaki was proud to say he'd created a secret passage between the mansion and lawn and no longer had to use that troublesome door if he didn't want to.

Stealthily, Nanaki crouched low to the unkempt grass and crept forwards to the gates, now unguarded. He dared not get too close, with his coat he would be easily noticeable, not to mention his tail was quite bright. He looked on with narrowed golden eyes as the man halted just before the gates, hesitant to enter. The guard noticed that his gaze would often flicker to the wide ballroom windows. Aha, so that's what had drawn him here. Tifa had left a generous amount of lights on in the extravagant room and the man must've followed the light in hopes of shelter. Still, Nanaki could not be sure of how the man got to Nibelheim in the first place. But alas, the guard had the creeping suspicion he'd find out soon enough.

Nanaki shuddered. The last time someone had come here for shelter had been roughly thirty years ago and that had not ended well. Part of him was desperately hoping the man would turn and leave, that he would lose interest in the mansion and go back to where he'd come from. No such luck. The man drew in a deep breath and pushed past the heavy iron gates.

Cursing silently, Nanaki turned tail and fled; retreating hastily through his secret passage, not caring if he awoke the cook or not. His claws clicked rapidly against the dusty wooden floor as he ran, sprinting up the curving stairs to the Master's armory. The room had an ominous air to it as a result of the many weapons ranging from needle-sharp throwing darts to thick buster swords, from a simple pistol to the massive, energy-shooting Death Penalty. Once upon a time when Grimoire Valentine had been master of the mansion he'd prided himself in being able to wield every weapon in his collection with near perfect skill. His son had strived be just like him and trained daily with his father in the art of swordplay, gunmanship, and so forth. But when Grimoire passed away, preserving the memory of his father had become a greater priority than learning to wield fantastic weaponry. Thus was the beginning of the current Master Valentine's eventual downfall to the being he was now.

Presently, Tifa was standing awkwardly in the middle of the large armory; if anything, she was more a hand-to-hand fighter and wasn't quite sure what to do with such hulking weapons. She smiled wanly at Nanaki as he entered, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. Nanaki took immediate notice of Cloud's absence.

"Cloud went to the basement," explained Tifa upon seeing the guard's golden gazed cast about the foreboding room. "He's just checking on Master Valentine to see if he needs anything…just to be sure that the Master won't suddenly appear at the wrong moment…"

"A good idea, but…" Nanaki sighed. "Rather foolish. Cloud has never before gone to Master unless summoned directly. Master Valentine may suspect something."

"Oh!" Tifa gasped, delicate fingers curving over her mouth. "I didn't think of that!"

"Didn't think of what?" inquired a low, slightly monotonous tone. In the doorway stood the butler, cerulean eyes narrowed slightly in curiosity.

"Cloud," greeted Nanaki with a polite dip of the head.

"Nanaki," the butler returned formally, but a friendly smile threatened his lips. Cloud tried to maintain a cool, solemn persona, but even someone as stubborn as he slipped up every now and then.

"Cloud," Tifa hissed urgently, striding forth and attaching herself to the butler's arm. "Nanaki says the man has entered the gates! He should be here any second!"

As if on cue, there came a loud knock at the front door, resounding painfully loud throughout the mansion. Nanaki, Tifa, and Cloud cringed simultaneously, knowing full well how sensitive the Master's hearing was. Jolting into action, Tifa let out a rather high pitched yelp and released Cloud as she dashed out to the door. Nanaki and Cloud exchanged anxious glances and then ran after the panicked housekeeper.

Her slippers smacked mutedly against the hardwood flooring, muffled by the layers of dust she was guiltily unable to keep at bay after two decades of solitude. She nearly crashed into the front door upon reaching it and wrenched it open, coming nose-to-nose with a handsome man who looked to be in his late twenties. Despite her sudden appearance and probable intrusion of his personal space, she reached out and wrapped a secure hand about the collar of his shirt and yanked him inside.

"Quiet!" she hissed, eyes wide and urgent. "You'll disturb his slumber!"

The man sputtered in shock and confusion, his jaw worked to form words but now sound came forth. Tifa then gasped, appalled at herself for such brusquerie, and immediately released the poor man. She curtsied politely and offered an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry! It's been so long since we've had visitors…to tell the truth, we've never had visitors! And honestly, I'm terrified of what he might do if he finds you here!"

The man gave her a questioning look, but a sudden shout interrupted him before he could voice his bemusement.

"Tifa!"

Both looked up as Cloud and Nanaki came bolting down the stairs. The two skidded to a halt next to the housekeeper, panting for breath, and Cloud placed a heavy hand on Tifa's shoulder.

"Don't do that, Tifa!" he scolded lightly. "You nearly gave me a heart-attack when you shouted and I think Red is bleeding from the ears."

Nanaki shook his head in agitation, lifting a paw to rub his sensitive ears. "Not bleeding, per se, but throbbing indefinitely."

The man gawked at the great red beast. "Y-You…you spoke?"

"Well, yes," replied Nanaki simply, as if the man should've have known this already.

"I think we ought to explain some things to the man," Tifa suggested, looking from Cloud to Nanaki.

"I think we ought to find out why he's here," Cloud countered stoically, folding his arms across his chest.

Taking this as a cue to begin his explanation, the man sighed and described his situation to the three. "I was on my way to Midgar when my transit vehicle was attacked by Deepground hounds and I was separated from the rest of my troops. I was chased all the way to Cosmo Canyon before the hounds lost interest, but by then I was lost. I came upon Nibelheim hoping to find shelter in an abandoned house and hopefully contact one of my subordinates. My phone had no service and I saw the light in your mansion and made my way here… Please, if you would allow me to stay just for the night and possibly grant me access to a phone…?"

Tifa, Cloud, and Nanaki stared at him with equally blank expressions, before Cloud spoke up. "All I gathered was that he got chased by…something…and ended up here…the rest I'm a little unclear on."

Tifa nodded in agreement. "I'm not sure I've ever heard of a 'transit vehicle' or a 'phone' or 'Deepground' either…"

Reeve stared at them in incredulity. "Never…? Never heard of them? But how…?"

"Well…" said Tifa slowly, raking her brain for the best way to explain things. Truth be told, she did not want to explain anything to this man. This man who had forgotten to state his own name! But aside from that, she loathed to think what the Master would do if he discovered that an outsider knew of their fate…their curse. In all honesty, they –being the cook, the guard, the butler, and herself– were doomed to walk the halls of the Nibelheim Mansion, trapped in time and space; never aging or physically changing at all. One day was like another, night flowed seamlessly into day, calendars had been abandoned long ago and the daily tasks of keeping the manor in top condition had long since been forgotten. There was no point to it. The dust and cobwebs would always come back no matter what. Even mealtimes had become a minor detail in their lives. The Master only ate every once in a while and the rest of them only required a salad or sandwich when they truly hungered. Life…had shriveling into something very bleak. The petals of the rose had fallen and withered, its vibrancy lost long ago.

And the Master himself? Poor Tifa had no idea how to explain him to this stranger, or if she even dared to try! It was probably best not to, but…the man was looking rather curious and his patience seemed to be wearing a little thin.

"Well, what, Miss Lockhart. Please, do continue," a silky tone broke Tifa's train of thoughts and startled everyone in the room. The spoken voice seemed to be not one, but two voices laced together, words sown tight by needle and thread. It was chilling. One voice was deep and edgy, making the hair on the back of Tifa's neck stand on end. The other was slightly higher and manic, an air of insanity clinging to every syllable.

Nanaki lowered himself onto his haunches in a feeble display of submission, his fiery tail tucked between his legs in obvious fear. Cloud's posture straightened and every muscle in his body visibly tensed, his cerulean eyes wide and unblinking in a pitiful display of terror. Tifa cringed and brought her stiffly intertwined fingers to her chest as she turned slowly on her heel, horror shining in her narrowed wine eyes.

"M-Master Val—" she stuttered, gulped, and struggled to complete her greeting. "Master Valentine, sir."

"You were saying, Miss Lockhart?" pressed the doubly toned voice, the speaker was encased in the shadows that hung thickly about the frame of the door through which he'd emerged. "I believe you were about to explain something to our…guest…?"

"Master Valentine, if I could interrupt, just briefly—"

"Silence, Mr. Strife!" the strange voice demanded. Piercing red eyes now shone through the heavy shadow, glowing like hot embers on a fire.

"Please, Master Valentine, don't be upset!" pleaded Tifa, turning fully to her master beseechingly. "He only needs shelter for the night! He's lost, sir, he's been separated from his friends and asks only for a place to stay the night!"

"Oh?" the voice changed, subtly so, but the shift in tones was evident nonetheless. Before it had spoken harshly, icy and contemptuous; but now it softened ever so slightly, an air of bitter sarcasm seeping in. "Well then, if it's only for the night…I'll give him a place to stay!"

In a flurry of movement, a blur of red, black, and faintly silver, a monstrosity was swooping upon the poor, unsuspecting man. Long claws grasped either shoulder, biting painfully into his flesh, and there was a rush of wind as great red wings unfurled and uplifted. The man was swept off his feet and carried none to gently up the massive, curving stairs by a beast he could only reason to be some sort of demon.

Dusty hallways passed in a blur and soon, the man found himself thrown bodily into an empty room. Before he could even raise his head to catch a glimpse of his captor, the door was slammed shut, a locked clicked forebodingly, and inky blackness consumed him. The only sound was the creak of those leathery wings as the demon slunk away…

A/N: yeah..."unpleasantries" isn't really a word, but...shh, don't tell!

don't be mad at me! i warned it you it might be a while till i updated didn't i? but i hope this chapter makes up for my tardiness, i would've posted this sooner but i've been busy with all sorts of crap! ugh.

review please! maybe i'll update faster if you do! -wink-