Hey, everyone! Sorry for the late update. I've been on an unexpected vacation, and with school starting in a couple weeks, it's been crazy. I've still yet to schedule an appointment at the salon to cut the pink ends of my hair off before school starts, since that isn't allowed. Oh well, I'm back :)

Valkera: Thanks ;) Yes, I do love Hampton Inn beds, they are nice! Too bad I stayed at a little motel on my trip, it kind of sucked. Anyways, omg! Vincent! Have you gone already?! You have to tell me what it's like!

Disclaimer: Just having fun with concepts that belong completely to other people, and I swear I'm not profiting. Cool?

The town was a sleepy little one with a sky that seemed to stretch on for miles as it blanketed the mountains in a lazy mixture of grey and cornflower blue, one that promised rain. But not the stormy, dark, hide-under-the-blankets-as-the-house-shakes kind, just the kind that left the air smelling like something sweet and refreshing and made the pebbles in the street shine.

Nibelheim looked rather quaint to the Wutai princess. It reminded her nothing of her touristy home with its ornate decorations on sloped roofs and golden dragons decorating every ivory vase. This place was not gaudy or proud, but just an existence full of humble folks trying to survive in the world.

She liked it.

Unfortunately, there probably wasn't any materia.

Now, Yuffie had heard legends of these lustrous orbs that were fabled to endow their user with certain super-human properties, but she'd never actually seen one. In Wutai, they were simply myths due to the fact that only the elders spoke of such things, and even then they said that they hadn't seen such jewels since their childhood. To Yuffie, though, materia just had to be out there somewhere. Where else would they have come up with such a story?

No offense, but the old farts in Wutai were not that creative.

"I wonder if Vinnie has ever seen any?" Yuffie mused quietly, splashing a little in a puddle. He certainly had to be old enough, at least if such a thing existed beyond Wutai. She still couldn't fathom that he'd been an actual Nibel Turk! They were the things legends were made out of (and not the boring materia kind)!

Not watching where she was going, Yuffie bumped into someone accidently. The figure was slightly shorter than average, on the extremely curvy side, and very feminine to boot. Taking a step back from the woman, Yuffie pulled the hood of her cream-colored cloak down slightly, murmuring an apology.

Normally, she would've told whoever bumped into her to shove off, but seeing as how she was attempting to be incognito and hiding from the Wutai Dragon Guard, she figured she'd let this one go.

But, of course, the stranger she'd barreled into wasn't going to let her get away. The woman stopped her by gently placing a hand on her cloaked shoulder, a deceptively gentle hand, mind. Kunoichi senses told her that this woman could kick butt if provoked.

"Hey, wait! Where are you going?" the woman asked, her voice silky. Immediately, Yuffie wanted to hug her and never let go. It was like being with her mother again.

Stopping in her tracks, Yuffie remained with her head down and answered, "I've got to grab some groceries from the market. I don't actually know where that is…"

With a winning smile, the woman knelt to her eye level (effectively shooting Yuffie's plan to hell) and answered, "Of course you don't! You must be new in town, 'cause I know everyone here and haven't seen you before. What's your name?"

Her eyes were like two stars plucked right out of the night sky at their brightest, twinkling in a pit of wine. The woman's face was something Yuffie immediately envied, but had trouble doing so because of the sincere warmth she radiated. This woman was the epitome of beauty, with her long dark locks pushed over her shoulder and her captivating features.

What Yuffie liked best about her, though, was that the woman seemed to be unconditionally friendly and loving. And she got all that in a matter of seconds; this woman had a great first impression, and the ninja got the feeling that she could break a million hearts without even knowing she was doing it.

Knowing that giving out her name was practically a death sentence, the kunoichi bit her lip, considering what alias to give this woman. But after blinking her eyes a couple of times, Yuffie cracked and confessed, "My name's Yuffie."

Then she waited for the gasp. Surprisingly, none came.

"That's an interesting name. It must not be Nibelian. I like it though! My name's Tifa, I grew up here with my best friend, Cloud. He should be around here somewhere. He usually hides in the shadows, though, so he's a pretty rare sight."

The giggle that followed made Yuffie think that this girl thought of Cloud as much more than her best childhood friend. Smirking, Yuffie asked, "Cloud? That's a cute name. Wonder if he has a cute face…"

The flushed, ghostly white look on Tifa's face brought a huge smirk to the ninja's lips. "I knew it! You like him, don't you?!"

Frowning pitifully, the woman questioned, "Wow, a complete stranger caught that? Am I that obvious?"

Shaking her head, Yuffie replied, "Nope, I'm just observant!"

"Oh, good!" Tifa gushed with a relieved tone. Watching her closely, Yuffie felt a grin forming. Something said that her dull, half-assed existence at Vincent McMood Swing's house was about to become a little more interesting, courtesy of her new friend.

"So where are you staying?" Tifa asked, motioning for the ninja to follow her down the cobblestone street. The question made Yuffie shiver, and she hoped the woman would just pass it off as the chilly, post-rain breeze.

"Uh, it's that creepy place up on that hill. I'm sure you know the one. It's kind of hard to miss, looks like a haunted house, might be if it wasn't already occupied."

This time, Tifa did gasp. Her jaw had dropped and her pretty eyes widened until they were so big, they almost swallowed her face. Grasping Yuffie's upper arm, she exclaimed, "You're staying there?!"

Nodding slowly, the ninja elaborated, "Yeah, with the servant girl and her… master. Have you ever met them?" She supposed that if Tifa had, it might explain her shock. It did seem slightly crazy for her to be staying in a house with a monster-man.

"You mean… there are people in that place?" The utter enthrallment that the older woman displayed enticed Yuffie to ask some questions of her own. It appeared that Tifa knew nothing of Vincent… So what did she know about the house?

Choosing an alternate course of conversation, Yuffie questioned, "What do you know about the manor? You said you grew up here, so there's gotta be some rumors circulating, right?"

After nodding, Tifa took a quick scan of her surroundings, seemingly to confirm that there were no eavesdroppers around. Hurriedly, she pointed toward a sign hanging over what must have been the town's tavern, the name of which was Seventh Heaven.

"Follow me," she instructed, pulling Yuffie along with her. "Seventh Heaven's my livelihood. I've owned that bar since the previous owner left it to me in his will. That's where we can talk."

The tavern radiated heat from a small fireplace in the corner, giving it a nice, homey feel. Over the fire roasted a small pot of stew, filling the air with a hearty aroma. Yuffie's stomach took that time to make its hunger known.

With a laugh, Tifa remarked, "I'd completely forgotten that you went out to buy groceries! Here, sit down at the bar and I'll get you something to eat and drink!"

"Thanks," Yuffie replied, sitting down on a stool made of wood.

When Tifa slid a steaming bowl of meaty stew in front of the famished ninja, Yuffie eyed it like a starved woman, and in all respects, she might has well have been. Then she attacked it, devouring every last bite of behemoth meat, potatoes, carrots, and beans. In seconds, the bowl was clean of any drop of broth, and Tifa stared at Yuffie in shock.

"When's the last time you ate?" she questioned sternly.

With a noncommittal shrug, the kunoichi replied, "Uh… Maybe a couple days ago?"

Tifa grabbed for the bowl, rushing over to the stew pot and slopping more of the rather delicious meal into it, all the while muttering under her breath about, "keeping this poor girl fed!"

She returned with the second helping, and Yuffie ate it appreciatively, and much slower at that. When she had her fill and had downed the glass of water her new friend had set out, she leaned back and stated, "I believe that was the best thing I've ever tasted."

Blushing furiously, Tifa waved off the comment and insisted, "Of course not! You were just so hungry!"

Giving the older woman a lopsided grin, Yuffie retorted, "Nopes! That was pretty amazing."

Having clearly decided that her obviously humble nature was best heeded, the brunette began, "Well, thank you, Yuffie. You're certainly welcome to help yourself to anything cooking here… Now, you wanted to know more about the Shinra Manor, didn't you?"

"Shinra Manor?" Yuffie repeated, the name tasting foul on her tongue. It left a sinking feeling in her stomach, one she desperately wanted to quell. "What's Shinra got to do with anything here?"

Disgustedly, Tifa hissed, "Shinra has everything to do with Nibelheim." She seemed lost in her thoughts at that point, a hidden hatred swimming in the burgundy pools that Yuffie had only ever seen compassion and kindness in. It made the ninja wonder just what the company had done to anger such a sweet person.

Finally collecting herself, the barmaid continued, "When my father was young, Shinra came into this town and destroyed it. Back during my father's childhood, a group known as the Nibel Turks came through here, declaring that this place was, 'Shinra Property,' and everyone here, 'belonged to them.' At first, no one really cared, because the Turks simply stood around the gates and questioned those who entered and exited the town.

"For a while, it kept a lot of riff raff out. The drug dealing here decreased, less women were being trafficked. Everything seemed pretty good for the townsfolk. Still, the Turks were known as bad business. They were ruthless killers with no consciences when it came down to doing Shinra's dirty work, and many of the men had reputations for ruining young ladies. Shinra never came with a good rep.

"Eventually, people started hearing strange things from one of the labs stationed on the outskirts. Rumors were flying that some scientist was experimenting illegally with bio-genetic mutations and this other crazy stuff. Possibly even something known as Dark Mako, but that was confirmed, and no one even knows really what that stuff is.

"There was one man in particular whose name always came up. I… can't remember it now, but it wasn't a very pretty name. He and this woman had some sort of morbid relationship, and they experimented on one of the men in the Turks. Soon enough, all of the Turks attacked the lab, shut the whole thing down. Every single member of the Nibel Turks died, but they never found the scientists.

"Well, the head of Shinra sent his troops in to kill all those who'd bared witness to the perverse company's ways. My grandparents and all of the other adults were murdered in their sleep. The children were sent to an orphanage up towards the mountain range, where someone from Shinra corrupted their minds with their version of the story.

"My grandfather kept a record, however, of what Shinra had done, and my father kept it as a reminder not to be tricked. Since then, the name Shinra has been considered sin in this town. That manor you're staying at is rumored to be the site of one of the worst experiments by Shinra's scientists yet. There are also claims that the place is riddled with a sense of betrayal and heartbreak."

Raptured by the story, Yuffie questioned, "Why heartbreak?"

Smirking, Tifa replied, "Because the man said to have lived there was deeply in love with—"

Wide eyed, the ninja leaned forward, hanging on her every word. Could this man be Vincent? Was this why he was so depressed and gloomy? What had happened in Shinra Manor?!

"Cloud!"

Knitting her eyebrows, Yuffie concluded, "In love with… Cloud?"

Laughing lightly, the barmaid shook her head and pointed past the ninja towards the door. "No, I mean, there's Cloud."

Mildly interested in the man who had this buxom beauty enamored, Yuffie turned on her stool, nearly dropping her jaw at the sight of a rather muscular, but not too muscular man with feathery blonde hair that poked out at strange angles atop his head. He had skin that seemed to be as white as a Wutain pearl, and eyes nearly as blue as the coast. He certainly was a beautiful man, and Yuffie could immediately tell why Tifa seemed star struck by him.

With a smile made of the sweetest honey, Tifa glided over to the man and took his arm, pulling him forward. He had made no facial expressions as of present, and though it took Yuffie aback, her friend seemed neither affronted nor deterred.

"Cloud, meet Yuffie," she began, pushing her male companion into a stool before grabbing a glass and filling it with beer. She handed it to him, watching him take a sip. When he set it down, he finally gave as much of a greeting as it seemed the ninja was going to get, and even then, it was only a slight nod of his head.

"Hi," Yuffie greeted, still bubbly although the man seemed less than thrilled about making her acquaintance. "You grew up here, right?"

His lips seemed to grow tauter at that, and he swiveled his head towards Tifa, giving her a steely glare. With an exaggerated eye roll, the barmaid swatted his shoulder dully.

"Lighten up, Cloud. That's all I told her. It's not like I threw all your personal information out there for her to know." Even though she sounded slightly stern, Tifa's face held nothing but warmth as she gazed back at her friend's glare without the slightest intimidation. Yuffie had to give this woman credit, Cloud had a scowl that would make even herself flinch.

Glancing at the clock on the wall, Yuffie's eyes widened as she realized how late it had gotten. She'd left early in the morning, and already it was well past evening. She'd spent so much time exploring the town that she'd completely lost track of time.

I wonder if Vincent's worried?

Frowning, Yuffie wondered why that flicker of thought had crossed her mind. Shaking it off, she stood and declared, "I've got to get back. Thank you so much for dinner, Tifa. It was really nice to meet you — uh — both. I'll see y'all in town some time!"

Smiling, the brunette hugged the younger woman and responded, "Of course! Come see us any time!"

When she'd said her proper goodbyes, the ninja sped off, racing back to the manor with flames at her heels.

Okay, we met Teefs and Cloud, and hopefully they can shed a little light on Shinra's involvment with Nibelheim. And just who is Yuffie to be married to? When will he appear? Where does he fit in? Think you know?

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