[A/N: YaY! Next chapter ^.^ It's a bit short, but, oh well. :p I wanna ask: What does AU stand for? I sortta kinda know what it means.. judging by the kind of stories it's in... but.. well, you know. Thanks ^^; Read on, dear reader!!]
..x.x.x.x.x..
They had all gathered at Cid's house upon request. Shera had volunteered to watch Marlene while the rest discussed what to do. Yuffie was yet to arrive, and Red XII was just walking in when Barret demanded loudly, waving his fist in the air, "Ok, now, jus' what the hell is goin' on here?"
Cid looked over at the large, distressed man and puffed calmly on his cigarette. They were all sitting in the largely remodeled living room, where they sometimes lounged on better occasions.
"Tifa's missing." He said, bluntly. "And somethin's up with Cloud that he ain't telling us."
The all looked at him, their gazes all asking the same question, waiting for Cid to continue. He breathed deeply, inhaling the bittersweet smoke into his lungs, seeking relief of stress from the thick, gray cloud. "When I talked to him earlier, he was definitely stressed out about somethin'. Wether somethin' far worse is wrong with Tifa, or Hojo has returned from the grave, I dunno."
Barret slammed his meaty fist on his lap, causing the others to wince at just the thought of how painful that might of felt. "That damn Cloud! Don't he know by now he can trust us?"
"It is something more than that, I think." Red stated, his tail twitching side to side as his mind pondered the possibilities. "It is more than likely something personal, that he would rather handle himself, or that he thinks he can handle himself, at least." His golden feline eyes flickered with intellect as he examined the faces of the others, watching them think it over.
He continued. "If it was something as bad as the return of Hojo, as you so brilliantly pulled out, Cid," Red shot a glance at Cid, (who then stuck his tongue out in defiant return,) "Then he would have no doubt contacted us. Something that great in scale happening surely could not have been handled alone."
Yuffie, who had walked in a moment ago and obviously heard Red's statement, added, "Then where's Tifa? She would have definitely gone with him, I mean, come on! She's nuts about him!" She plopped herself down on the arm of the sofa next to Cid. "She just disappeared, and Cloud's not stupid enough to just let that happen." She arched an eyebrow suspiciously. "At least I hope not."
The sound of a deep, melancholy yet melodious voice startled the group from the shadows in the back of the room. "She left him. Unexpectedly."
Everyone turned their gazes back towards Vincent, who was casually leaning against the wall, shocked at what the former Turk had just said.
"What? Don't be stupid." Yuffie piped bluntly.
Vincent stepped forward, crossing his arms. "Think about it. From the sound of it, Cloud hasn't a clue as to when, where, and why she's gone. He is also under a lot of stress from something rather personal, correct?"
He paused dramatically to let his words sink in, then continued, making his voice prominently sink into their minds. "The most reasonable explanation would be Aeris. He's still consumed by her, even in death, and Tifa possibly couldn't take it any longer." He closed his eyes for a brief moment, silently mourning over his own loss from long ago.
Yuffie's eyes widened. "But they've looked so happy here lately!"
"No, I think he might be right." Cid added, stroking his stubbly chin with a gloved hand, his cigarette already down to the filter. He'd smoke that too, dammit, with all the stuff going on right now. "I noticed a sadness in Tifa's eyes. It makes sense, too, as much as I don't want it too, dammit."
"Then we gotta find her." Barret said. "She shoulda come to one 'o us. I don't understand why she didn't." He sighed heavily, feeling helpless for only the second time in his life. "We gotta find her." He repeated.
Cid stood up and walked readily out the door. "I'll get the Highwind goin'. We'll let Cloud handle his own fuckin' problems. Meanwhile, let's find Tifa.
The group all stood up, mentally preparing themselves for yet another search, hoping it would provide to be as fruitful as the others had.
.x.x.x.
The dining room was absolutely magnificent. It's high, arched ceiling was adorned with a beautiful crystal chandelier, and the three arched windows lining only the western wall were draped heavily with velvet curtains. The large, oak table was dressed with candles and an intricate cloth, both housed with food beyond imaginable splendor.
Tadrith folded his hands and looked across the table at the astonishing woman sitting across from him. His eyes sparkled with dark interest, examining Tifa's fascination.
Tifa felt all the uncomfortable feelings she once contained drain away. The room was fairly dim, with only the light of the candles, and the food was magnificent. She daintily tasted a little of each substance, not wanting to miss out on anything before her. She retained her manners, however, and politely smiled and complimented each dish of wonderful food.
Tadrith hardly ate. He sipped at his red wine every other moment, just watching Tifa and her love for the food before her. He could clearly see that she was more relaxed then before. Perhaps it was the wine, but that was planned ahead of time. Tadrith smiled in spite of himself. Everything was working perfectly.
After some sampling of the dishes around her, Tifa paused and remembered what it is she wanted to say about leaving. She mentally kicked herself for letting herself get as side tracked as she had.
She cleared her throat and looked up into Tadrith's eyes, which sparkled with an amusement of some kind. "Tadrith, I really appreciate all of this." She started, and watched as he nodded politely in acceptance.
"Anything for you, my dear, young lady."
Tifa smiled, feeling the nervous tension rise in the pit of her stomach once again. "But I must remind you that I'll be leaving tomorrow." She watched.
Tadrith hardly flinched, hardly moved. He kept that smile, and his eyes still sparkled darkly, yet he said nothing.
Tifa looked away, feeling more uncomfortable, and decided to change the subject for the time being. "So, how did you come to live in such a beautiful place like this?"
Tadrith leaned forward a little more, smiling. "I inherited all this from my family. They experienced a.. Ah, tragic end recently, and left me and a couple others with a grand fortune. I designed this house, actually. I'm somewhat of an architect. I design many places of many kinds."
Tifa's eyes clouded with concern. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear about your family."
Tadrith smiled and closed his eyes at her perfection. She was truly an angel. "I thank you for your condolence. In a way, they deserved what was coming to them."
Tifa's expression was then overcome by confusion. Tadrith smiled even more and changed the subject. "So, you have lived in Nibelheim all your life?"
"Well, almost. When.. Something happened in my town, I moved to Midgar and spent a couple years working there. Just recently I moved back." She averted her eyes momentarily, remembering back on her life. But she moved on, remembering how Tadrith's eyes glistened when she mentioned the Shin-Ra Mansion earlier.
"So, how is it that you know the Shin-Ra Mansion in Nibelheim?" She inquired.
Tadrith's smile grew slightly at her intelligent discovery. He closed his eyes for a moment, and thought about his answer. He was prepared for this, he was very prepared. When he opened his eyes again, his smile dimmed slightly and he narrowed his gaze on her.
"I designed and built that house."
Tifa's eyes grew wide at the sudden realization. She gasped silently as the thoughts sunk into her mind, ideas racing through her mind. Tadrith paused to let her think about it.
/If he designed it, then.. He must know about the secret lab in the basement?/ She mentally scoffed. /Of course he knows, he built the damn place. He must also know about the stuff that went on in there.. The experiments of Hojo's.. The deformed bodies of people that were stored in the forbidden reactor... of... Jenova.../
"My name is Tadrith D. Shin-Ra. I am the nephew of the late President Shin-Ra's father. Which makes me-"
"Which makes you Rufus' second cousin.." Tifa trailed.
"-Yes. Rufus' second cousin. And a very high-status member of the corporation. I helped greatly in the designing of many new technological apparatuses in the Shin-Ra building, which aided Hojo quite nicely in his obsessive raise to glory. He especially liked the lab I created for him under the Shin-Ra Mansion. It pleased him so much that he used me for the first person to be given a greater life span." He grinned darkly. "He slowed the aging process within my body. I have since been able to carry out the family legacy, on my own."
He cast his gaze up at Tifa and studied her face. He expected to see horror in her eyes, but was surprised to see her composed and calm. She didn't run, or try to escape. She merely looked him in the eyes.
/I can't show him fear,/ Tifa thought to herself. /If I remain calm, maybe he won't act. Just.. Stay focused./ "That must be a lonely life.." She said, unsurely.
Tadrith closed his eyes. "Indeed."
Tifa folded her napkin on the table. "I.. I think I'll go to my room now." She said, trying to sound like she was alright, as if she wasn't disgusted. She didn't want to know this man's plans.
She stood slowly, only to be grabbed by Tadrith who had suddenly appeared behind her in a mad dash. He gripped her arm tightly, causing her to call out in surprised pain. Tadrith pushed his face close to hers, clicking his tongue in her ear.
"Now, now, my dove." He whispered softly. "You didn't think I'd be letting you leave so early, now, did you? After all that I've told you?" His voice remained deep and smooth, very calm, as if he were sure everything would work as planned.
Tifa tried to twist her arm away as her fighting instincts started to kick in, but Tadrith pulled her close to him, pressing her back against his chest and wrapping both of his strong arms around her, trapping her indefinitely. The gown she was wearing was too dammed long and tight for her to kick, and she cursed at herself for falling for the trap.
Tadrith kept his mouth close to her ear, sending disgusted pulses down through her skin. "Mmmm... You're mine now, Tifa. I'm not to be a lonely successor any more. Now that I have my dove here with me."
.x.x.x.
/Get up!/
Cloud rubbed his aching head and looked around. He and his chocobo had luckily landed on a very sandy area below the fallen bridge. If they were to have landed anywhere on the rocks, whose to say he would even be in one piece right now. Before sitting up, Cloud fumbled for his mastered restore materia and mumbled a faint "Cure3" on himself. He felt the restorative energy surround and envelope his body, and within moments, felt much better.
He looked over to Matrix, who was crumpled up next to him in a matted pile of dusty feathers.
"Matrix!" Cloud called out, hoping the bird was alright. He seemed to be breathing, but was knocked out, cold. Cloud grabbed the nearest Phoenix Down among the rest of the scattered items and cast it onto the weary broken bird, who immediately sat up in a dizzying manner. Cloud cast another "Cure3" on Matrix, restoring him back to full power.
After the quick rush, Cloud fell back onto the ground, feeling beyond lucky to still be alive. He remembered vaguely how a familiar feminine voice beckoned him to consciousness. He smiled to himself and whispered to no one in particular, "Thank you, Aeris."
After saying her name, he quickly sat up, remembering his mission. He gathered all the items and such that had fallen and scattered on the ground during the fall, and fed the shambled Matrix some of the remaining Mimmette Greens. After everything was back together, Cloud steered his chocobo to the direction of the Northern Continent, once again.
"Alright Matrix. Let's try this again."
Matrix warked happily in response, steering his sense of direction to the right place. "Wark."
"And... let's try to avoid bridges at all costs this time."
"WARK!!"
..x.x.x.x.x..
[Ah hah! Johnny Depp's look-a-like finally revealed himself!! YaY! What's gonna happen now!! Stay tuned for the next, all new exciting episode of Dragon Ball Z! (or in this case.. Strife of a Locked Heart!) ... o.0 please excuse me, I'm very tired, and very out of it. -.- ]
..x.x.x.x.x..
They had all gathered at Cid's house upon request. Shera had volunteered to watch Marlene while the rest discussed what to do. Yuffie was yet to arrive, and Red XII was just walking in when Barret demanded loudly, waving his fist in the air, "Ok, now, jus' what the hell is goin' on here?"
Cid looked over at the large, distressed man and puffed calmly on his cigarette. They were all sitting in the largely remodeled living room, where they sometimes lounged on better occasions.
"Tifa's missing." He said, bluntly. "And somethin's up with Cloud that he ain't telling us."
The all looked at him, their gazes all asking the same question, waiting for Cid to continue. He breathed deeply, inhaling the bittersweet smoke into his lungs, seeking relief of stress from the thick, gray cloud. "When I talked to him earlier, he was definitely stressed out about somethin'. Wether somethin' far worse is wrong with Tifa, or Hojo has returned from the grave, I dunno."
Barret slammed his meaty fist on his lap, causing the others to wince at just the thought of how painful that might of felt. "That damn Cloud! Don't he know by now he can trust us?"
"It is something more than that, I think." Red stated, his tail twitching side to side as his mind pondered the possibilities. "It is more than likely something personal, that he would rather handle himself, or that he thinks he can handle himself, at least." His golden feline eyes flickered with intellect as he examined the faces of the others, watching them think it over.
He continued. "If it was something as bad as the return of Hojo, as you so brilliantly pulled out, Cid," Red shot a glance at Cid, (who then stuck his tongue out in defiant return,) "Then he would have no doubt contacted us. Something that great in scale happening surely could not have been handled alone."
Yuffie, who had walked in a moment ago and obviously heard Red's statement, added, "Then where's Tifa? She would have definitely gone with him, I mean, come on! She's nuts about him!" She plopped herself down on the arm of the sofa next to Cid. "She just disappeared, and Cloud's not stupid enough to just let that happen." She arched an eyebrow suspiciously. "At least I hope not."
The sound of a deep, melancholy yet melodious voice startled the group from the shadows in the back of the room. "She left him. Unexpectedly."
Everyone turned their gazes back towards Vincent, who was casually leaning against the wall, shocked at what the former Turk had just said.
"What? Don't be stupid." Yuffie piped bluntly.
Vincent stepped forward, crossing his arms. "Think about it. From the sound of it, Cloud hasn't a clue as to when, where, and why she's gone. He is also under a lot of stress from something rather personal, correct?"
He paused dramatically to let his words sink in, then continued, making his voice prominently sink into their minds. "The most reasonable explanation would be Aeris. He's still consumed by her, even in death, and Tifa possibly couldn't take it any longer." He closed his eyes for a brief moment, silently mourning over his own loss from long ago.
Yuffie's eyes widened. "But they've looked so happy here lately!"
"No, I think he might be right." Cid added, stroking his stubbly chin with a gloved hand, his cigarette already down to the filter. He'd smoke that too, dammit, with all the stuff going on right now. "I noticed a sadness in Tifa's eyes. It makes sense, too, as much as I don't want it too, dammit."
"Then we gotta find her." Barret said. "She shoulda come to one 'o us. I don't understand why she didn't." He sighed heavily, feeling helpless for only the second time in his life. "We gotta find her." He repeated.
Cid stood up and walked readily out the door. "I'll get the Highwind goin'. We'll let Cloud handle his own fuckin' problems. Meanwhile, let's find Tifa.
The group all stood up, mentally preparing themselves for yet another search, hoping it would provide to be as fruitful as the others had.
.x.x.x.
The dining room was absolutely magnificent. It's high, arched ceiling was adorned with a beautiful crystal chandelier, and the three arched windows lining only the western wall were draped heavily with velvet curtains. The large, oak table was dressed with candles and an intricate cloth, both housed with food beyond imaginable splendor.
Tadrith folded his hands and looked across the table at the astonishing woman sitting across from him. His eyes sparkled with dark interest, examining Tifa's fascination.
Tifa felt all the uncomfortable feelings she once contained drain away. The room was fairly dim, with only the light of the candles, and the food was magnificent. She daintily tasted a little of each substance, not wanting to miss out on anything before her. She retained her manners, however, and politely smiled and complimented each dish of wonderful food.
Tadrith hardly ate. He sipped at his red wine every other moment, just watching Tifa and her love for the food before her. He could clearly see that she was more relaxed then before. Perhaps it was the wine, but that was planned ahead of time. Tadrith smiled in spite of himself. Everything was working perfectly.
After some sampling of the dishes around her, Tifa paused and remembered what it is she wanted to say about leaving. She mentally kicked herself for letting herself get as side tracked as she had.
She cleared her throat and looked up into Tadrith's eyes, which sparkled with an amusement of some kind. "Tadrith, I really appreciate all of this." She started, and watched as he nodded politely in acceptance.
"Anything for you, my dear, young lady."
Tifa smiled, feeling the nervous tension rise in the pit of her stomach once again. "But I must remind you that I'll be leaving tomorrow." She watched.
Tadrith hardly flinched, hardly moved. He kept that smile, and his eyes still sparkled darkly, yet he said nothing.
Tifa looked away, feeling more uncomfortable, and decided to change the subject for the time being. "So, how did you come to live in such a beautiful place like this?"
Tadrith leaned forward a little more, smiling. "I inherited all this from my family. They experienced a.. Ah, tragic end recently, and left me and a couple others with a grand fortune. I designed this house, actually. I'm somewhat of an architect. I design many places of many kinds."
Tifa's eyes clouded with concern. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear about your family."
Tadrith smiled and closed his eyes at her perfection. She was truly an angel. "I thank you for your condolence. In a way, they deserved what was coming to them."
Tifa's expression was then overcome by confusion. Tadrith smiled even more and changed the subject. "So, you have lived in Nibelheim all your life?"
"Well, almost. When.. Something happened in my town, I moved to Midgar and spent a couple years working there. Just recently I moved back." She averted her eyes momentarily, remembering back on her life. But she moved on, remembering how Tadrith's eyes glistened when she mentioned the Shin-Ra Mansion earlier.
"So, how is it that you know the Shin-Ra Mansion in Nibelheim?" She inquired.
Tadrith's smile grew slightly at her intelligent discovery. He closed his eyes for a moment, and thought about his answer. He was prepared for this, he was very prepared. When he opened his eyes again, his smile dimmed slightly and he narrowed his gaze on her.
"I designed and built that house."
Tifa's eyes grew wide at the sudden realization. She gasped silently as the thoughts sunk into her mind, ideas racing through her mind. Tadrith paused to let her think about it.
/If he designed it, then.. He must know about the secret lab in the basement?/ She mentally scoffed. /Of course he knows, he built the damn place. He must also know about the stuff that went on in there.. The experiments of Hojo's.. The deformed bodies of people that were stored in the forbidden reactor... of... Jenova.../
"My name is Tadrith D. Shin-Ra. I am the nephew of the late President Shin-Ra's father. Which makes me-"
"Which makes you Rufus' second cousin.." Tifa trailed.
"-Yes. Rufus' second cousin. And a very high-status member of the corporation. I helped greatly in the designing of many new technological apparatuses in the Shin-Ra building, which aided Hojo quite nicely in his obsessive raise to glory. He especially liked the lab I created for him under the Shin-Ra Mansion. It pleased him so much that he used me for the first person to be given a greater life span." He grinned darkly. "He slowed the aging process within my body. I have since been able to carry out the family legacy, on my own."
He cast his gaze up at Tifa and studied her face. He expected to see horror in her eyes, but was surprised to see her composed and calm. She didn't run, or try to escape. She merely looked him in the eyes.
/I can't show him fear,/ Tifa thought to herself. /If I remain calm, maybe he won't act. Just.. Stay focused./ "That must be a lonely life.." She said, unsurely.
Tadrith closed his eyes. "Indeed."
Tifa folded her napkin on the table. "I.. I think I'll go to my room now." She said, trying to sound like she was alright, as if she wasn't disgusted. She didn't want to know this man's plans.
She stood slowly, only to be grabbed by Tadrith who had suddenly appeared behind her in a mad dash. He gripped her arm tightly, causing her to call out in surprised pain. Tadrith pushed his face close to hers, clicking his tongue in her ear.
"Now, now, my dove." He whispered softly. "You didn't think I'd be letting you leave so early, now, did you? After all that I've told you?" His voice remained deep and smooth, very calm, as if he were sure everything would work as planned.
Tifa tried to twist her arm away as her fighting instincts started to kick in, but Tadrith pulled her close to him, pressing her back against his chest and wrapping both of his strong arms around her, trapping her indefinitely. The gown she was wearing was too dammed long and tight for her to kick, and she cursed at herself for falling for the trap.
Tadrith kept his mouth close to her ear, sending disgusted pulses down through her skin. "Mmmm... You're mine now, Tifa. I'm not to be a lonely successor any more. Now that I have my dove here with me."
.x.x.x.
/Get up!/
Cloud rubbed his aching head and looked around. He and his chocobo had luckily landed on a very sandy area below the fallen bridge. If they were to have landed anywhere on the rocks, whose to say he would even be in one piece right now. Before sitting up, Cloud fumbled for his mastered restore materia and mumbled a faint "Cure3" on himself. He felt the restorative energy surround and envelope his body, and within moments, felt much better.
He looked over to Matrix, who was crumpled up next to him in a matted pile of dusty feathers.
"Matrix!" Cloud called out, hoping the bird was alright. He seemed to be breathing, but was knocked out, cold. Cloud grabbed the nearest Phoenix Down among the rest of the scattered items and cast it onto the weary broken bird, who immediately sat up in a dizzying manner. Cloud cast another "Cure3" on Matrix, restoring him back to full power.
After the quick rush, Cloud fell back onto the ground, feeling beyond lucky to still be alive. He remembered vaguely how a familiar feminine voice beckoned him to consciousness. He smiled to himself and whispered to no one in particular, "Thank you, Aeris."
After saying her name, he quickly sat up, remembering his mission. He gathered all the items and such that had fallen and scattered on the ground during the fall, and fed the shambled Matrix some of the remaining Mimmette Greens. After everything was back together, Cloud steered his chocobo to the direction of the Northern Continent, once again.
"Alright Matrix. Let's try this again."
Matrix warked happily in response, steering his sense of direction to the right place. "Wark."
"And... let's try to avoid bridges at all costs this time."
"WARK!!"
..x.x.x.x.x..
[Ah hah! Johnny Depp's look-a-like finally revealed himself!! YaY! What's gonna happen now!! Stay tuned for the next, all new exciting episode of Dragon Ball Z! (or in this case.. Strife of a Locked Heart!) ... o.0 please excuse me, I'm very tired, and very out of it. -.- ]