Dust and Candles
By: Illusion of the Mirror
Tifa breathed deeply, trying to calm her racing heart and stop its loud beating in her ears. She was scared; no, she was terrified, and she could only imagine what was going through the other's minds; what was going through Vincent's mind.
Vincent shifted slightly as she backed away and lifted her eyes but wouldn't meet his. She knew he awaited an explanation; anything to explain what had just happened. But Tifa didn't even know herself. She lifted a trembling hand to her temple and let her lips curl into a weak smile.
"It's okay, I'm fine now," she mumbled so that only Vincent could hear.
She looked up from her kneeling position on the attic floor to see Marlene standing there with a question resonating in her light-hearted eyes. Tifa looked around to see them all wearing expressions that illustrated the same thing; "What's wrong with Tifa?"
Tifa realized that they were waiting for her to do something, although she had no idea what. So she took a deep breath and rose to her feet. She shook her head, brushed her hair from her face, and flashed what she hoped looked like a sincere smile.
"Well that was weird! Whoo!"
Cid looked at Shera, who looked at Barret, who looked at Red, who looked at Vincent. Obviously they all wanted to know what to do next. Tifa decided for them and strode past a very confused Yuffie to the armoire. She peered behind the antique piece of furniture. "So…did anyone bring a flashlight?"
Cid stepped forward and slapped a flashlight into her hand but he didn't release his grip on the other end. "What the hell was that all about?"
Tifa shrugged. "Sorry about that. You see, I've developed this raging dust allergy. It gives me this awful headache and stuff." She guessed that the others probably hadn't seen her whole…episode. But Vincent had. She didn't even brave a glance at him.
Cid raised an eyebrow and sniffed. "Dust allergy? Well, that's a sudden development."
Yuffie slapped Tifa on the shoulder with a boisterous laugh, her features split with a wide grin. "Yeah right! I bet she ran into a bunch of bats again and freaked out!"
Marlene took a step back. "B-bats?"
Denzel gripped both of her shoulders and leaned to her left. "Either that or rats."
Marlene let out a strangled sob and ran to Barret, tugging on his hand. "Daddy, I don't like bats!"
Barret immediately began to assure Marlene that bats were nothing to be afraid of while Shera scolded Denzel for insisting they were. It didn't help when Cid chimed in and added that they were good with barbeque sauce.
"That's nasty, Cid! You're nasty!"
Cid laughed and crossed his arms over his chest. "What is it, Princess Priss? Don't like bat-jerky? Or maybe some bat-kabobs."
Red cocked his head. "That actually sounds kind of good."
Yuffie made a face and huffed. "You're both nasty."
Thankful for the all the distraction from her little episode, Tifa turned gradually and clicked on the flashlight so she could see into the ominous room. She hoped that the others believed she had just been afraid of bats…even though it was kind of a sissy thing to be scared of.
The space beyond the wardrobe was not very large at all; amounting to only about seven by ten feet. The ceiling sloped with the roof and made the room even smaller. Against the outer wall stood an old desk that was scattered with papers, pens, photographs, and books; all of which was covered in a thick layer of gray dust. Tifa moved farther into the room and gawked with amazement at the oddity of it all.
"Wow," she mused. "This was here all along and I never even knew it." She stepped away from the light of the main room to examine an antique bookshelf holding notes and literature of all kinds. She reached up to pull one down and cracked it open to read the title. Boudica the Victorious, hmm, interesting.
Yuffie poked her head in the entryway and crinkled her nose. "Geez, it's musty in here. Hey!" Cid pushed past her and put his hands on his hips. "No kiddin'." He drew a finger across the desk, drawing a line in the dusty blanket that covered it. "Looks like no one's been here in ages."
"That depends on where you're looking." Both Cid and Tifa turned to Vincent who was crouching next to a stack of boxes. Wait, when did he get in here? Tifa shone her light in his direction and spotted exactly what he had. There, in the layer of ancient dust, were outlines of foot prints that were definitely not ancient.
Someone knew about this place.
"Tifa," Yuffie whined from the doorway. "Only three people can fit in there at once. When do I get to see?"
"Yeah," Marlene echoed. "But…are there any bats?"
"Hold your horses!" Cid bellowed and then knelt to inspect the prints as well with a twinkle visible in his aging, blue eyes. Vincent stood and began inspecting the wall, while Tifa leaned down to read the label on the neatly stacked, and more notably dust free, boxes.
Bordeaux Candles. She lifted one of the lids and peered inside to see the box was separated into a dozen sections; each one filled with a red wax candle. She pulled one out to discover it was actually about a foot in length and was expertly carved with a grapevine winding down its length. She gently dropped it back into place and pulled out another. This one had ethereal mermaids carved into it, their flowing tresses wrapping round their scaled bodies. They were the work of a skilled artist and were really quite beautiful. She replaced the second candle and set the lid back into place with a kind of reverence.
Unexpectedly, she heard a metallic grinding sound behind her. She turned to see Vincent standing in front of a second opening in the walls of the small room, obviously pleased with his find. He turned Cid and simply said, "Stairs."
"What?!" Yuffie shouted. "What was that sound?!"
"What's goin' on?" Barret asked from the main room. Vincent looked to Cid. "Will you tell the others what we've found?"
"Why don't you do it?" Cid huffed. He received an icy glare in return. "Okay, fine, shit Valentine, why do you gotta be so serious all the time?"
Once Cid turned away to explain to the others, Vincent looked directly at Tifa, he held out a hand to her. "May I?" Tifa nodded and passed him the flashlight. Together, they then began to descend the steep, and quite cramped, staircase; Tifa a few steps behind as Vincent led the way.
The steps were thin and Tifa nearly lost her balance more than once until she placed her hand against the wall for support. Vincent's eyes darted back to her hand, but then quickly returned to the task before him.
He then stopped abruptly and Tifa nearly collided with him.
"What is it?" She was answered by another metallic grinding sound as the wall opened up to reveal the forest and the clear, black, starry sky. The two stepped outside and blinked in the bright moonlight. Tifa looked down.
"This is where those intruder's footprints were the other night."
Vincent glanced down and then gave a nod of affirmation. He locked eyes with her. "So it appears we now know why the intruders came here."
"So whoever they are, they know about the secret room," Tifa finished. "But are they Darknation or someone else?"
Just then, Cid and Shera stumbled out of the stairwell. "Damn those are steep! I almost broke my neck!"
Yuffie, Marlene, and Barret were the next three down. It was a tight squeeze for Barret and he had nothing good to say about the experience. Lastly, Denzel and Red descended.
Red looked around and sniffed the air. "So now we know what's here…but we need to determine why it's here?"
Vincent let the door to the staircase click shut and then turned to face them. The moonlight shone on his pale face and looked almost ghostly. "Indeed. What is this room's purpose?"
Shera laid a hand on both Vincent's and Tifa's shoulders. "Well, I think we all need to get some rest. Hopefully things will be clearer in the morning."
Barret mumbled his agreement and Yuffie let out an embellished yawn. Tifa, however, was certain she wouldn't be getting much sleep that night.
-- O --
Tifa sat alone in her dark room with the curtains drawn and the ceiling fan on. She lay flat on her back amongst her fluffy pillows unable to sleep because of the over-activity of her muddled mind. She desperately needed rest, but she found it impossible to do so. She closed her eyes and laid her arm across them. Everyone had seemed appeased by her allergic reaction/bat phobia claim, but what had really happened?
A slight shuffling sound drew her from her thoughts and her eyes shot open to scan the room for intruders. She sat up and slowly surveyed the room, but she could see nothing in the inky darkness. Then a solitary car passed by on the road and the light from the headlights quickly illuminated the room to reveal a darkly clothed figure leaning in the corner. It took her only moments to realize who it was, but he had frightened her nonetheless. "Oh, Vincent, you scared me," she whispered.
Vincent slid away from the wall and seated himself in the chair by Tifa's vanity. "If you are so very allergic to dust, shouldn't you have told me before we cleaned out the attic?" His voice was cold and Tifa knew he was calling her bluff. She weighed her options and decided to tell Vincent the truth. Sure, he may not believe her, sure, he may think she was completely off her rocker, but he had had his own experience with nightmares. Besides, she desperately wanted to understand what was going on. Maybe talking it all out would help.
Tifa sighed and crawled to the end of her bed and planted herself there. "I'm not allergic to dust, Vincent." She looked down at her crossed legs. "But I think that's what you were getting at."
Vincent's voice remained cool as he spoke in a clipped manner that made Tifa wince. "Then will you tell me what really happened?" She instantly regretted lying to the others. She hesitated and played with her fingernails.
"Vincent," she began softly, "I'm…I'm sorry I lied. It's just that…I don't even really know what's going on. I've been so afraid that I'm…" She trailed off and bit her lip. "…that I'm going crazy."
Vincent sat forward and his scarlet eyes flashed in the darkness. "Why?"
Well…too late to turn back now. "I've been hearing…voices." Now that didn't sound totally insane.
"When? For how long?"
"Well, I don't know. It started during my nightmares."
"Nightmares?"
Tifa uncrossed her legs and rubbed her knees. "Nightmare actually. It's always the same one with only little changes."
Now she could tell that she had Vincent's rapt attention. "Whenever it storms, I always have this nightmare about running through the woods while someone's chasing me. I don't know who. I always trip on this same rock and then I wake up." She fidgeted with the corner of her quilt. "But each time the dream gets longer and more real; more terrifying. And then…"She paused and met Vincent's curious gaze. "Then I began hearing these noises."
Vincent's voice was much softer when he spoke next. "What kind of noises?"
"Like hoof beats or screaming or fire burning. It happened first when I found the letters and I felt all tingly like someone was poking me all over with thousands of tiny needles. Then it happened again when we were in the attic. But that time was so much worse because my head started aching and there was this horrible ringing noise that just kept getting louder and louder." Tifa sighed and set her hands in her lap. "That sounds totally crazy, right?"
Vincent sat on the edge of the chair and narrowed his eyes up at her. "No," he finally said. "Not at all." Tifa let out a sigh of relief. "But why did you not tell us of this earlier?"
"I'm not sure. I just…thought it was all in my head and wasn't important." She looked down once again. "I'm sorry."
Vincent's hard expression softened, if only slightly, and he rose to seat himself beside her. She turned to face him and then leaned forward to embrace him. "What's wrong with me, Vincent?" she murmured into his chest. Vincent stiffened but then raised a hand and began stroking the back of her head.
"I don't believe that there's anything wrong with you. There's more to this then we now know. And you are most definitely not insane."
Tifa sat back and gave Vincent a weak, yet sincere, smile. "I sure hope you're right."
-- O --
Denzel lay silently atop his bed, sporadically slipping in and out of consciousness. Light seeped through the cracks in the curtains to reveal tiny flecks of white dust floating about the room. He liked it here; suspended in a state of half-dream, half-reality. He had the sanctity of his reverie and yet could feel the real world around him. He was floating between one world and another; barely standing on the border of wake and sleep.
But it was not to last, for a very upset Marlene burst into the room and ran over to the beds. She bent to look under them and her movement caused the lazy dust particles suspended in the air to jump into action.
Now completely awake, Denzel groaned and sat up. "What is it, Marlene? I was asleep." Marlene looked up at Denzel with watery brown eyes. "I can't find Buttercup anywhere!" She stood and wiped her tearstained face with the back of her hand a sob threatening to pour out.
Denzel drew back his sheets and got to his feet. He sighed and draped an arm over her trembling shoulders. "C'mon, I'll help you look for her."
-- O --
Although it was still late summer, the air carried a chill with it that wasn't enough to make one need extra clothing, but was enough to give you that uneasy feeling in the pit of your stomach like something isn't right.
Tifa pondered this as she traversed the yard towards Seventh Heaven. It was only about 7:00 in the morning, but Tifa had woken up after about three hours of fitful sleep and decided she was sick of trying. So now she was going to check out the bar and see if everything was in order. She had nothing better to do.
She strode around toward the front entrance and suddenly felt a shiver run up her spine as a thick, dark cloud passed in front of the sun. The hair on the back of her neck stood up when she set her eyes on the front door of the bar. Something was stuck to the front of the door at about eye level.
Tifa cautiously approached and realized it was a piece of red-stained paper. It was nailed to the door with a metal spike so that Tifa had to tear it off to unfold it. The writing was carefully scratched out in thick, black ink.
Get out now. Take your friends, your children, and leave before you end up suffering the same fate.
The same fate? Tifa looked left and right. The same fate as what? She looked back down at the paper and turned it over in her hands. There was nothing on the other side although she was pretty sure she knew who it was from. But…what exactly were they referring to?
Creak, drip drip drip. Tifa turned around. Something had made a dripping noise. She looked down at her feet and discovered that the wooden floorboards were splattered with something. She bent down to get a closer look. Blood? Surely not… Slowly Tifa stood and then looked up at the porch roof. A small, red-soaked sack swung from the rafters about two feet above Tifa's head.
Creak, drip drip drip. A single drop of liquid dripped onto Tifa's cheek. She wiped it off with the back of her hand and glanced down at her feet. It had gotten on her shoes too. She looked back up and the whole world seemed to melt away from her as she reached up and untied the sack from the rope from which it hung. Her movements were automatic as though she was in a trance and even though she wanted to know what was inside, she didn't all the same. But as she got the knot undone, she lost hold of the sack and it fell to the floor, its contents spilling out.
A silent scream escaped from Tifa's lips as the unrecognizable body of a skinned and twisted kitten came to rest at her feet. Its lidless eyes stared up at her as blood pooled beneath its raw corpse. Tifa screamed again and flung herself to the porch stairs to race blindly back towards the house.
-- O --
"Sorry, honey, I haven't seen Buttercup since last night. Maybe she's hiding under the bed."
Marlene's face fell. "Oh, no I already checked."
Denzel was really starting to get worried now. They had looked everywhere and had asked everyone where the little kitten was. Marlene was battling tears. "Don't worry, Marlene. We'll find her."
Just then, there was a frantic knocking at the door. Denzel was the closest, so he rushed over and flung the door open. Tifa burst through and collapsed at the boy's feet. She looked up at him with terror in her eyes.
"Vincent…where's Vincent!?" she managed to get out between gasps for air.
"Over here," Vincent replied and stalked over to Tifa. She rose to her feet, but her knees wobbled precariously, so she leaned over to steady them.
"What is it? What happened?" Cid and Barret had already risen from their seats on the couch and were ready for a fight.
"Buttercup…bar…Darknation," Tifa managed to spit out. Vincent's eyes widened and then all three men raced out the front door. Marlene and Denzel attempted to follow, but Tifa caught hold of them.
"Let me go! I gotta get Buttercup!"Marlene squirmed in protest. But Denzel was beginning to understand. He backed away from Tifa and shut the door. Marlene looked at him with wide eyes. "Denzel!"
He only shook his head and met Tifa's exhausted, wild, and now, tearing eyes. "No, Marlene. Not this time."
-- O --
Tifa sighed as Shera passed her a steaming mug of hot chocolate. "Careful, dear, it's very hot." Tifa nodded and took a cautious sip. She had had quite the scare earlier and now nothing could seem to calm her nerves, not even a cup of hot cocoa. Now, the whole group sat in the dining room with grim faces and heavy hearts. Marlene sobbed silently into Barret's chest, while Denzel sat on the floor next to Red XIII and staring into space.
Vincent tossed the blood stained note onto the table and then crossed his arms. No one said a word. Even Yuffie was silent. What could be said? The message was cut and dry; leave now or die. Shera seated herself next to Cid and leaned into his shoulder.
Unable to stand the tense silence any longer, Yuffie pushed back her chair and leaned forward. "So what now?"
The others remained quiet until Shera responded. "We leave, of course. We can't stay."
Barret stroked Marlene's hair and looked up. "I'd say that's probably our best option."
"You mean give up?" Yuffie cut in. "I mean, why would Darknation even bother to tell us to leave? We must be on to something!"
Red flicked his ears in thought. "Yes. Until now, Darknation has been trying to kill us. Why spare us now?"
Shera sat up straight. "Why does it matter? We should be grateful for this chance to escape with our lives."
"But what if Darknation's just trying to scare us into leaving so that we don't figure out, well, whatever it is they don't want us to figure out?" Yuffie pronounced.
Tifa set down her mug of cocoa. "Yuffie's right. Darknation suddenly went from trying to kill us to being intimidated by us for some reason. We can't just run away."
Barret glanced down at the broken-hearted girl in his arms. "No way am I lettin' them hurt Marlene and Denzel again. They can't stay here."
"But what's to stop Darknation from burning this place to the ground? This is Tifa's home!"
Vincent turned to Yuffie. "I agree." Then he turned to face the others. "Darknation has already attempted to kill us once. It is obvious they do not value our lives. What we need to know is why they suddenly have lost interest in us."
Cid spoke up. "Prolly won't even spare us. Those guys never keep their word anyways." He fiddled with his nearly empty package of Chesterfields. "I'd say we must be onto somethin', although I got no friggin' idea what."
Red sniffed and glanced at Denzel. "But Barret's right. The children can't stay here." This resulted in nods all around. "Well then, it would seem we have only one option; send Shera and the children away to a place where they'll be safe."
Cid grunted. "They could go back to Rocket Town."
He looked down at Shera and she gave him a worried look. "Are you sure you'll be okay here?" Cid put an arm around the brunette's shoulders.
"Me? Nah, I'm always okay. I'd be more worried about those other pansies."
"But I don't want to leave you guys," Denzel protested. "I want to stay and fight too."
"I know," Red answered. "But it's not safe for Shera and Marlene to be alone. You'll need to protect them." Denzel glanced at Marlene as she tried to stop her tears and be strong like the others. He watched her tremble in her father's arms. He then looked back at Red and sighed.
"Okay."
Cid pushed back his chair and stretched. "Well, I'll call Parker and Talbot at the shop and have 'em watch after ya. I'll try to get Evans to come out and take ya back home." He turned to Tifa. "Ya got a phone in this place?"
"Yeah, in the kitchen by the door." Cid exited the room, the smoke from his lighted cigarette trailing behind him.
Marlene looked up at Barret with moist, frightened eyes. "Are you staying here, Daddy?" He placed a protective hand on the girl's head.
"Yeah, but don't worry, I'll be safe."
Tifa couldn't sit in there in that room anymore. She just couldn't. She rose and slipped out of the room unnoticed in the shadows. Even though it was late morning, it was dark as night outside. No doubt it would rain soon.
Once safely in her room, Tifa collapsed onto her bed and buried her face in her blankets. Things were only getting more and more confusing and it scared her. First Darknation wanted the talisman from Vincent, but then they changed their minds and wanted to kill them all. Now they were going to spare them? Why? What was going on that Tifa and the others didn't know about?
She rolled over onto her side and heard the all too familiar sound of thunder booming in the distance. Ah, so I was right. She rose from the bed and crossed over to her window. It seemed so often that she stood up there just gazing out the window. She sighed as the first raindrops pattered against the window pane and the roof. How fitting that it should start to rain now. Tifa let her forehead fall against the cool glass pane.
Poor Marlene, she had loved that kitten so very much. So had Denzel. She just couldn't get the image of its lidless, lifeless eyes peering up at her as if to beseech her for help. She clenched her teeth. Those monsters would pay for every tear they made that sweet, innocent girl cry, even if she had to see to it herself.
Just then, Tifa heard a faint buzzing noise. She turned around and realized it was her cell phone. She rushed over to her dresser and dug around her purse. Stupid receipts! Move out of the way…please don't hang up… Eventually she got fed up and dumped the contents out onto her bed. She then picked up the small, black device. The phone continued to vibrate as she examined the sub LCD. She didn't recognize the number.
She flicked open the cell phone and held it up to her ear. "Hello?" There was only silence. "Hello? Who is this?" Still only silence. Tifa clicked the phone shut angrily. She was in no mood for this. The phone began to vibrate in her hand. She flicked it open once more. "Okay, enough games, who is this?!"
"Hey Tifa, it's Cloud."
-- O --
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