Aeris's Pointless Adventure

Part III: Aeris & the Mansion

written by K-chan


After leaving Nibelheim Airport, Aeris followed the directions on the paper given by Lucrecia until she came to a rather dark and spooky-looking part of the vibrant city... where upon the hill sat a tall, dark, spooky-looking mansion, complete with gloomy clouds above raining and lightning--just like a scene out of those horror flicks. She stood speechless at the edge of darkness and light, checking the paper to see if she hadn't taken a turn down to "Hades", and unfortunately that was the right place. She sighed and checked to make sure if all her belongings were there, that she needed to venture into the unknown. After seeing the place where her help would come from, she was beginning to have doubts, but for her parents and the future of the world, she would bravely push onward... with an umbrella and a staff (and an army of cuddly, forest animals--not).

Having made her decision, Aeris cautiously made her to the intimidating, front door. She swallowed hard before knocking on the door, that later gave her no answer after standing ten minutes out there. She knocked a little louder and even shouted for someone to come and get out of the wretched rain. No one answered her plea again, so she tried for a third time, having lost patience, and banged the door with both hands... And it did wonders, only to have the door creak back mysteriously, allowing her entrance.

She hesitated, but right now, she was getting wet and cold, so inside the spooky, unknown, dark, DRY building was a better deal. Gripping the staff tightly in her hands, she proceeded slowly into the mansion. Her eyes was alert and a little scared, but when one was in such a position such as this, the senses seemed to be heightened ten-folds. She stood in the foyer, scanning the area for any persons, but it appeared lifeless...

BAAM!!

Aeris screamed, jumping into the air in fright. She ran farther into the house, glancing back to realize it was just the front door that slammed shut. Now this place was really scaring and maybe the rain didn't seem like a bad option now. If she got out, she could make back into the bright city in no time flat. She went straight to the door and tried to get it open, but it wouldn't budge this time (and of course, the writer couldn't let Aeris go so soon). Seeing that she couldn't leave through the front doors, there had to be another way out, but it still urked her to even move elsewhere.

She took a few steps away from the door and then stopped, staring straight ahead with wide eyes. "Who's there?" she whispered into the darkness. Was she imagining things, or did she really hear something from above? Like footsteps? Was it from above? Or below? Or sideways? Upside-down?? Her mind spiraled into confusion at the sound bouncing from all directions, but she knew one thing: get out of there.

She started running blindly through the house just to get away from the eerie sound, swinging at anything--more like her imagination--that seemed to be after her. She had no idea where she was running to but definitely away from the shadows that danced on the walls (doing the funky chicken).

An opened door appeared ahead, and she ducked into the room, hoping it was a safe haven from the haunted-ish house. She leaned against the closed door, trying to catch her breath. After her breathing and heart rate was normal again (as normal as one defines it), she looked around the room, which was strangely wide and very spacey... And in the center of the room, there were lit candles, but that wasn't what caused her to tremble uncontrollably. The candles were surrounding what looked like a coffin... an OPENED coffin.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!" she screamed and immediately opened the door... to see someone standing there, "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!"

"Lucrecia..." came the ghostly voice, "why have you forsaken me...?"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!" Aeris screamed again in all her horror and panick, upper cutting the person to the next floor!! It took her a few seconds or so to realize the person had mentioned her aunt's name, so she ran upstairs to see if the person was all right. She arrived at the scene to see him dusting the dust and debris off himself, and even though the setting was dark, she could still make out his long hair and flowing cloak.

Having sensed her arrival, he looked over to her and said in a haunting voice, "Lucrecia..."

Aeris remained where she was, afraid to go near, but she apologize for her rudeness, "No, I'm her niece, Aeris Gast. But I came here to get your help. I'm looking for my parents and Sephiroth, and Auntie LuLu told me to come here." She could hear a heavy sigh escape his lips as he walked over to the covered furniture and sat down on a chair, but it broke to pieces due to old age (and perhaps some termites?)... So he stood up again to find another chair to sit, but that one broke as well... And he ended up standing in the middle of the room, sighing heartbrokenly.

Aeris sweatdropped, having watched this depressed person move about with a heavy heart. "Umm, but I really need your help, Mister... err..."

"Vincent," he said quietly.

"Umm okay, Mister Vincent..."

"I can't go with you..."

"But auntie said--"

"I have a dark secret," he sighed, "You will only get hurt."

"It's okay," she inisted, moving towards now that she felt he wasn't so terrifying, "Auntie LuLu recommended you, so I'll trust you with my life."

At those words, he looked at her, into her sparkling, green eyes. It had been such a long time since he talked to anyone ('cept the pizza man from the other day), and someone who had faith in him, but he shook his head, "I change... I change into a horrible monster when a word is uttered."

"It'll be okay if I don't say that word then, right?"

He looked away, clenching his fist tightly, and Aeris became nervous again, sensing some deep emotions stirring with him, and was afraid of what might happen next. He suddenly roared like an animal, scaring Aeris, but... "I DON'T WANNA GO!!" he suddenly whined, "I wanna see Lucrecia!!"

Aeris facefaulted and quickly recovered, sighing and remembering that her aunt had mentioned something close to this situation though she had said, 'If he refuses to come along, then give him this letter.' And so Aeris took out the said letter from her jacket pocket and walked over to the moping Vincent and held the letter out to him. He just stared at it and then at her... and then at it and looked away. She sighed again and said, "It's from auntie."

And in a flash, the letter was out of her hand, and Vincent was by the window in tears, reading the letter. Aeris was just amazed at the influence her aunt had over this man, and it made her wonder what happened between them and why this man lived all alone here. "All right," he said, tucking the letter into his cloak, and turned around to Aeris, "I'll go with you." Aeris nodded, pondering on what Lucrecia had written to him.


TO BE CONTINUED...