AHH! Where have I been? Believe me, if I knew, I'd tell you. I don't, somehow, but I am ready to continue. So here we go.

"So how much longer until we get to the next town?" Yuffie complained, wanting to be out of the buggy and stretching her legs. Tifa sighed. Yuffie had been asking the same thing all morning since they'd left Cosmo Canyon. Tifa wanted to get out too, but Cloud had insisted that they keep on going until nightfall, or until they caught up with Sephiroth.

But everyone knew the truth: he was racing after Aerith.

This saddened Tifa the most. She had loved Cloud ever since they were children, though she'd never said it aloud. Then, when Cloud had left, she'd been heartbroken.

Unbeknownst to her, Nanaki could smell her sadness. He nuzzeled her arm, his silent way of showing her that he cared about her. Tifa smiled back at him, her way of telling him 'thank you'.

Cloud slammed on the brakes. It was lucky for eeryone that Tifa had made them wear their seatbelts, Nanaki as well, though it was a little hard to get it right.

"Damn it, Spikes, a little warning next time?" Barret yelled. Cloud pointed forward. They all looked ahead, but Cloud and Tifa were able to recognize what lay upon the horizon. Together, they said one word in unison:

"Nibelheim."

Then there was silence, broken only by Yuffie a few seconds later.

"Yeah, well I thought you two said it was burned to the ground?"

"I thought that you said you burned the town to the ground?"

Even Sephiroth was surprised at the sight before him. It was Nibelheim, and yet it wasn't. Sephiroth wondered if this was one for the old book of paradoxes. Possibly, assuming that anyone believed this was both Nibelheim and wasn't. They probably wouldn't, given the fact that ShinRa had probably wrapped up what had happened in Nibelheim. From what Aerith had told him, he'd supposedly died in a reactor accident, though that was somewhat accurate.

It was just that humans assumed too much and wrote it off as some sort of explosion.

Sephiroth really didn't care about it. The future was too important, especially now that Aerith was by his side. He had to admit though, that he didn't think that Aerith might join with him. She had never really been one for much violence, and there was probably going to be more. What had happened in Nibelheim was lunch; the ShinRa tower and the ship to Costa del Sol could very well be the appetizers.

The entree had yet to come.

Aerith began walking into the town. Sephiroth was quite sure that she wouldn't be hurt as long as she stayed within the main square. He headed towards the ShinRa Mansion, something he knew somehow hadn't been burned down. The gate was still squeeky and needed to be oiled badly. The door creeked as it was opened, and already Sephiroth could feel himself breathing in dust.

Everything was as faded as it had been five years ago, perhaps more so. Even then, he had believed that it had once been a place of grandeur. He could imagine equisite parties being held here in the past. It was too bad that no one had kept it up, because he was sure that it could have been just as grand today. He made his way across the entrance hall to the stairs. They, like the door, creaked beneath his weight. He was at the top when he heard a sneeze. Masamune was out in an instant, clutched tightly in his left hand while a spell formed in his right. He put on his warrior 'face'.

Looking down toward the door he'd left open, Aerith stared up at him. Her hands were up around her mouth, and her eyes were wide.

The way he looked, poised to kill, scared her. She knew that he'd never harm her, but she was still frightened nonetheless. He quickly put his sword away and stopped his spell from forming. Aerith relaxed visibly and let out a sigh of relief.

"You could have announced yourself you know." He said jokingly.

"Yeah? And you could calm down a bit too you know."

Aerith looked around, taking in the state of the old mansion. She too believed that it had been once a grand place, but like many things, it had fallen into disrepair. One thing that really captured her attention was the stained glass mirror that was behind Sephiroth. It was the one thing that stood out the most, and when she'd walked in, it had been the first thing she'd seen.

Before she had sneezed, that is.

"Come now Aerith. There are monsters crawling all over, and it would not be wise for you to stay up here by yourself." He offered her his hand and she came up the stairs to him. "This place must have been beautiful at one time." Aerith said as they walked past the window.

"Indeed, it must have been. But like most things that ShinRa owns, it is ignored once it's usefulness is over. I have heard that ShinRa had decided to leave the sector seven plate where it is, and commence the building of Neo Midgar. They plan to build it in the Promised Land. Besides the fact that doing so would be impossible, they would still leave Midgar, which would then become just like this mansion."

They were now at the stone wall, behind which was a spiraling staircase into the dark. Beyond that, Aerith knew, was the library where answers could be found. Perhaps even something on herself, or so she hoped.

Sephiroth pushed on the stone, causing it to swing open and reveal the secret entrance to the basement. Aerith peered down, barely able to see the bottom. "Um, do we really have to go down there? Are you sure that there is no no other way?"

Sephiroth grabbed her around the waist with one arm. "There is no other way." With that he jumped, carrying Aerith with him. Aerith knew better than to scream, though she wanted to very badly.

They reached the bottom within seconds, and Sephiroth began walking down the tunnel, Aerith still in him arm. It was dark and Aerith had to squint her eyes just to see the rocky wall. Sephiroth could see perfectly, though he neednt have to at all. He remembered this tunnel and what lay ahead.