Hey loyal readers…I figured I should update this story. I need to be honest, though, I'm really not feeling encouraged with this story. I'm not getting many reviews, and I've lost the motivation to keep writing this. However, I will keep writing, but how often I update it will depend on how many reviews I get.

Disclaimer- I don't own FF. Shocking, I know, but I don't own a thing.

Chapter 17: Nibelheim

By the fourth day, Cloud Strife knew that there was only one place where Tifa could have been taken. He and his party had flown around the globe inspecting places that seemed suspicious to them, but now, being left with no choices, Cloud knew the truth. And what was that truth? The truth was that Kadaj had a very sick sense of humor. That's what he knew.

Tifa was in her old home, Nibelheim.

"Cid, land this ship!" he said, speaking to the pilot as the two of them stood in the cockpit. He wanted to get out and get Tifa right away. He hadn't even formulated a plan as to how he would fight off Kadaj, Loz and Yazoo while rescuing Tifa at the same time, but he knew a person could do insane things when they were in love.

And he definitely fell under that group. He was insanely in love with her. After all the years of denying it, he finally saw the depth of his care for her. After this was over, he was going to hold her and cherish her like he should have from the first time he saw her. He would make up for lost time and give her more love than any other man could.

When the ship grounded, Cloud snapped out of his thoughts. The first thing he had to do was get her back; then he could worry about the rest of their lives together. He ignored his friends' stares as he passed by them in the hall, all of them apparently wondering what they were supposed to do. It was hard sometimes, being a leader. This time, he shoved off the responsibility and left them to ponder their thoughts.

He ran down the path without hearing anyone else behind him. And then he headed right into town, knowing the first place he would check. Stealth didn't matter here; after all, it was the middle of the day. Speed and strength. That was what it would take to get Tifa back. He planned on doing just that.

The town was empty, but that wasn't anything new. The place had been that way ever since the incident where Sephiroth burned down the whole town. Even with Shin-Ra's cover up, the town was still pretty empty. These were meaningless details to him, so he didn't take anything in. Most importantly, there weren't any threats.

Not yet, anyway.

He hurried over to Tifa's old home and turned the knob with his left hand. His right hand was on the sword that was on his back, the blond ready to attack at a moment's notice.

Twisted the knob. Unlocked.

He pushed it open roughly, the door hitting the wall when he moved too quickly and too strongly. There was one thing he hadn't expected about this place: it was completely empty.

There was obviously no threat here. If Kadaj was here, he would have had at least one of his brothers downstairs to guard the door. Seeing that nobody was there, Cloud suddenly felt very desperate. Where were they? This was the one place they could have gone, and yet the place was deserted.

"Tifa?" he cried, taking a few more steps inside. The door naturally shut behind him, though he hardly noticed that. He scanned the area, but just like the first sweep he had performed, there was nothing. "Tifa!"

Ignoring the thoughts of caution that ran through his mind, he hurried up the stairs. His hand wasn't even on his sword anymore. The emotions were getting the better of him, and he was allowing them to distort his senses. None of it mattered as long as he didn't have Tifa.

He reached the top of the stairs and turned to the left, kicking open a closed door. "Tifa!"

Tifa wasn't there. He stumbled over toward her bed, his face pale with shock. "No," he muttered. He knelt down by the bed and set a hand on the sheets, despair overwhelming him. "No, no, no…" He subconsciously gripped the sheets in his gloved hand, which brought them closer to him. His eyes moved over the area, and then he noticed something on one of the white pillows: a piece of long black hair.

So, Tifa was here, he thought, sensible logic momentarily covering up his unstable emotions. He looked over everything on the bed, seeing that it had faint signs of recent use. He stood himself up numbly and looked around, his eyes landing on the piano. He aimlessly walked toward it, stopping when he was directly in front of him.

Without thought, he bent down slightly and set his fingers on the key. He had never taken lessons, but Tifa had. And there was one thing she had always played. He was so familiar with it, that he briefly wondered if he could replay it. He played the first two keys but messed up, but then went through the rest playing the correct keys.

Do…Re…Mi…Ti…La, Do…Re…Mi…So…Fa…Do…Re…Do

The moment he took his finger off the last key, he heard a clicking noise. His ears perked up at the sound, the warrior suddenly concerned that perhaps he wasn't alone. But another look around the room confirmed that he was indeed by himself. When he looked back at the piano, he saw that one of the keys had popped out, resulting in that clicking noise. Confusion swept over him until he noticed something peculiar about the key. He gripped it gingerly with his index finger and his thumb and then lifted it up, gasping when it was out of the way.

Something was hidden underneath the key. A letter.

He dropped the piano key on the ground and reached forward, gripping the paper delicately between his thumb and his index finger. He unfolded it quickly and began to read it, ignoring the racing of his heart as he tried to logically read the letter.

Cloud,

If you've found this letter, I guess that means that I'm not here anymore. I mean, what need would you have to play my piano if I were actually here in my room? I hope you read this someday soon, because you need to know what's going on.

But first, is Marlene safe? I guess you can't really answer that until you see me face to face, but please let her know I knew what I was doing something dangerous when I tried to get her back. Kadaj…he called me and asked me if I wanted her back. He told me to meet him somewhere, and when I did, he shot me with some kind of tranquilizer.

It's worse than that, though. Cloud….they're trying to recreate Sephiroth through me. They're giving me Mako injections, since I was previously immune to the poisoning affects of it. I still am for the most part, but it's really getting to me now. I'm scared, Cloud. I don't know if this will work or if they'll kill me in the process. I hope there's a third option I'm missing, but I can't see it.

So, since I'm not in Nibelheim anymore, where am I? I couldn't tell you. They've never spoken about moving me some place else. So sorry I can't help…but please, please don't stop looking for me. I need you, Cloud. Please…

I'll be strong, and please be strong for me. Maybe someday when this is over, everything will be okay.

With infinite love,

Tifa

Cloud lowered the letter in his grasp, looking down at it as thoughts invaded his mind. Tifa…Sephiroth…they were total opposites. Tifa was kind and loving while Sephiroth was evil and hateful. He could go on and on with the comparisons, but there wasn't time for that. He didn't believe she could become his worst enemy, but he still didn't want her to suffer the effects from Mako poisoning.

Not only did he not want her to suffer that way, but he also wanted her free from the pain of this situation. First, a girl that was like her daughter was taken away from her, and now she's being abused…tortured by a group of people with evil intent. But even in the face of that, she pledged to be strong. That was the Tifa that he had fallen in love with; she recognized hardship but pressed on anyway.

"That's my girl," he whispered, a very faint smile appearing on his lips at the thought. "Keep being strong, Teef. I'm coming to save you."