House Arrest

Disclaimer: All Final Fantasy VII related characters and ideas are copyright to Square-Enix, and only them. Any other characters are copyright to the author.

Chapter One – Moving In

The suburban neighbourhood. Lush with green grass, various flowers and thick trees, as well as extremely nosey neighbours, it wasn't the kind of place a city girl would ever find herself, especially not Riley Willows. It was only a month ago that she had purchased her own house in such a place. She had no idea what made her decide on such a quiet place—no, she did know. It was not something she felt like remembering.

Finally, she drove into the neighbourhood in her old Ford Mustang—a complete rust bucket on wheels—cruising down the small and curvy street before she passed a rickety old house, and then backing up into its driveway. It was a three-floor property (basement included) with a front and back yard. The paint was peeling off and the entire place looked like it was in dire need of a complete makeover, or rather, a do-over. Riley had chosen this place simply because it gave her a huge project to do. Ever since the real estate agent showed it to her, Riley knew the place had tons of potential. A little (a lot of) money and elbow grease, and the place would be good as new, and she could call it home.

Suburbanites in their yards were already looking over at their new neighbour, taking in her rather plain appearance. Her long chocolate brown hair was tied back into a ponytail with layered bangs framing her fair face. She moved her small, round, vibrant orange sunglasses to the top of her head, revealing icy blue eyes. Average height for a twenty-three year old woman, she also appeared as if she had kept in somewhat good shape, maintaining a healthy weight thanks to the fact she spent some time playing a bit of soccer during her youth, among other things. All she wore was a white tank, blue overalls that were stained with paint, a blue jean zip-up jacket, and bright blue All-Star Converse sneakers.

Walking around the car, she reached in to grab a box before going straight for the front door, the floorboards creaking under her weight as she unlocked the door and pushed it open with her hip. The inside had a musty smell she would have to get used to, and the wallpaper was peeling off like the paint outside. Wallpaper is lame anyways, she mused. Boxes were piled on top of each other everywhere, though she didn't have a lot of furniture as she planned to buy new furniture.

She put the box down in the living room, squeaking as she saw a spider skittering across the floor. Her foot instantly stomped it into its inevitable abyss of death. Sighing, she walked into the kitchen that looked like she was visiting her grandmother's house. Shuddering, she went to her fridge and stopped in mid opening that she had no food. Her stomach growled and she huffed. She didn't have the phone line hooked up either. The only option left was to eat out. She would go grocery shopping afterwards.

Keys jingling, she opened her door to find the neighbours on their way. Crap. Food was calling for her, and these people would be delaying her much needed sustenance. She was dying for some McDonald's. The first pair looked like a couple of typical housewives, carrying food as 'welcome to the neighbourhood' tributes. The two men following them, Riley could only assume they were the husbands.

The first woman to speak had semi-short, stylishly curled blonde hair and pale green eyes, wearing a short sleeved white shirt and beige dress pants. The woman was sickly thin, her chin too pointed. "Hi there, you must be the new neighbour."

"Yeah, I am," she responded as politely as possible while maintaining a slightly bored expression.

"My name is Debbie Johnson. This is my husband, Carl," she said, pointing to the taller man. He looked like a disapproving individual, with his combed back brown hair and grey eyes, thick moustache, a white button-up dress shirt and grey slacks. Riley could tell he worked out.

"Hi," she said lamely. Did his moustache twitch?

The other woman was a slightly shorter lady, and more rounded, though she looked completely down-to-earth with her long dark brown hair, brown eyes, and a light grey plaid dress with a white shirt underneath. The man standing beside her was possibly just as rounded. He wore a dark blue bowler shirt and dark grey slacks. His hair was thicker than Carl's, a light brown and he had blue eyes.

"Hello there, my name is Ellen Adams, and this is my husband, Paul," she said with a kind smile. Her cookies looked too inviting for Riley's own good.

Paul gave a small but slightly enthusiastic wave as he smiled. "Hey there!"

She almost forgot to introduce herself. "I'm Riley Willows." Done. Can I eat now?

"Riley? That's a boy's name," Debbie declared in a way that gave Riley the impression that the woman assumed she considered herself a know-it-all.

"Oh, how rude Debbie!" Ellen said. "I think it's a lovely name."

"Well, it's different for a girl, I suppose."

Riley leaned on the door frame, crossing her arms, keys clutched in her hand. "Believe it or not, but Riley is a unisex name. Not to be rude or anything, but I was about to go out to eat and shop."

"Well, we don't wish to hold you up," Ellen said. "We just wanted to come by, say hello and welcome you to the neighbourhood. Also, if you need anything, just let me know. I made these cookies after I found out somebody bought this place. They're my own recipe of triple-chocolate-fudge."

Riley smiled. She didn't like Debbie, but Ellen was difficult not to like. It was the cookies. "Thanks, I'll definitely eat them up, and I appreciate the welcome."

Paul spoke up, "Maybe you can come by later for dinner! I'm having a barbecue this evening, you can meet the rest of the neighbours!"

"Paul, we can't just give her steak," Ellen exclaimed.

Riley's stomach growled at the mention of the meal. "Actually, I love steak. I'd love to come over later if you'll have me."

"Oh, that's fantastic," said Ellen enthusiastically. "Barbecue starts at six. We'll let you get back to what you were doing. Bye bye!"

Riley smiled, waving to them with her free hand. She liked the Adams' already. She looked at Debbie and Carl who seemed unimpressed that the Adams' were already making friends. "Uh," was all Riley could say.

Debbie snapped out of her small trance and forced a smile. "Well, I also made you something. A salmon casserole. I do hope you enjoy it. We do have to get going though. We will see you at the barbecue."

With that, she and her husband sauntered away to their overly-elegant house. Riley glanced at the fish...thing and grimaced. She hated fish. She didn't even like them as pets. Sighing, she brought the food inside, storing them before resuming her previous task, starting the car and heading straight for the shopping district of town. She found a small diner that had the most mouth-watering looking burgers, stepping through the doors that caused a small bell to ring. Seating herself at the counter, a waitress walked over.

"Hello there, my name is Tiffany, but you may call me Tifa if you like—most people do—is there anything you fancy today?"

"I'm new in town actually, so what's good here?"

The dark brunette with rustic brown eyes thought for a moment. "Well, we have our special today, which consists of tomato soup with milk and a side of caesar salad, as well as a beverage of your choice. Or, you can also pick the classic meal with is a hamburger with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes and onions, with a side of fries and also with a beverage of your choice."

"I'll go with the special. I'm eating light for today."

Tifa nodded, smiling. "Big dinner later?"

"Yeah, I was just invited to a barbecue."

"Oh that's nice. Are you liking the neighbourhood so far?"

"Mm, not bad I guess. I'm from the city, so it'll take some getting used to."

Tifa nodded, giving the order to the chef before coming back. "What would you like to drink?"

"Um, got any root beer?"

"We do. Ice?"

"No thank you."

Tifa walked off, coming back with the glass of root beer, a pink straw sticking out. "Where are you from originally?"

Riley took a sip before answering, "I used to live in New York."

"So what brought you to this town?"

"The silence," she replied.

"Ah, typical city girl needing a different change of pace?"

"Something like that."

"You look like you just got out of college."

"So do you." They both smiled before laughing. "I'm twenty-three."

"I'm the same. Whereabouts do you live now?"

"Uh, in the suburbs, on Mountain Grove Street."

"Oh, I know where that is! You live across from the Johnson's, right?" Riley nodded. "Watch out for Carl, there's a rumour going around that he's cheating on his wife."

"With Debbie's attitude, can you blame him?"

"With barely legal girls."

"Ouch." Tifa nodded. "Well, it's not my problem. It's only a rumour, right?"

"Well, he harassed the florist down the street from here. If Cloud didn't show up, Aerith could have been in trouble."

Riley arched a brow. "Cloud?"

"Well, his real name is Claude, but he didn't like it. He works for the post office here," she explained, getting a wispy look on her face.

It didn't go unnoticed as Riley listened. "This...Cloud. Do you have a crush on him?" Tifa visibly blushed. "Oh ho! So, you're not going out with him, but you want to!"

"Hush, hush! If my dad found out, he'd get so mad!"

"Is he here?" Tifa shook her head. "Then what are you worried about? Don't worry, I'll keep it a secret."

Tifa seemed relieved. "I don't want Cloud to found out yet either. Oh, I never caught your name."

"It's Riley. Is my soup done yet?"

A bell was rung and Tifa smiled. "It is now."

Riley smiled, happy to have food now. Once she was done her meal, she looked at the clock, paid, then waved Tifa goodbye before heading out for the grocery store. It took less than an hour to go crazy with groceries and taking them home, putting them away. After that was dealt with, she went upstairs to her private bathroom. The whole place needed renovations, but she'd need an inspector first before hiring a contractor. Once her bathroom supplies were put away, she checked her clock, realizing it was half an hour till the barbecue. After a quick shower, she found her clean clothes. She put on a pair of blue denim capris and a grey and blue striped hooded sweater that reach halfway down her thighs.

She felt like it seemed weird not to bring anything to the barbecue so she looked through her newly obtained food stash, pursing her lips in thought. Rather than put a lot of thought into it, she grabbed a couple bags of chips and the dip jars from the fridge, placing them in a plastic bag before finally heading over. No answer came when she knocked on the front door. She tried the doorbell next, getting a better result as Ellen came to the door.

"Hi, Riley! So glad you could make it."

"Hey, I didn't have time to make anything, so I hope chips are okay."

"Chips are fantastic! Come in, come in. Everyone's in the backyard already."

Riley followed her, putting the bag on the kitchen counter before going out back. She was shocked to find there were so many people. There wasn't anyone here around her age. It was rather depressing to discover. It was either people in their thirties and older, or kids.

"Would you like a drink, Riley?"

"Uh, sure."

"We got beer, water, um, fruit punch."

"I'll take the punch, thanks."

The evening went by rather slow, and Riley was bored out of her mind. She could have been unpacking right now and looking at interior design magazines she had collected. Eating the steak she had looked forward to in the first place, she was close to saying good night before Debbie sat beside her in the lawn chairs.

"Where are you from, originally?"

"I lived in New York."

"Where are your parents?"

Riley hesitated, refusing to look at the nosey woman. "My dad is currently in Massachusetts. Glouchester, specifically."

"What's he do?"

"He does a little carpentry, and auto-mechanics."

"What about your mother?" Riley didn't answer. "You're a rather strange girl. You don't dress very femininely."

"I'm a tomboy," Riley explained lamely.

"Well, that's no good. You could be very pretty if you put on a bit of makeup, did something with your hair, wear a pretty little dress."

Suddenly this woman irked Riley more than she thought possible. "I'm sorry you don't approve."

Debbie smiled slyly, as if she had won something. "I'm just trying to be honest."

No wonder Carl is possibly cheating on her. She's driving me crazy! Riley sighed, before giving the offending woman a hard stare. "Then allow me to show the same courtesy. I don't effin' care what you think. I never cared what anyone thought. So, respectfully, take your makeup kit, and shove it down your throat."

Debbie was baffled by Riley's claim, looking completely insulted, especially while Riley gave a deceptively sweet smile. Unable to make a comeback, the woman walked away embarrassed that she had been outwitted. Riley snorted and nearly sighed when Ellen took Debbie's place.

"I heard the whole thing. I'm surprised you stood up to her!" The woman looked as if she was staring at Riley with awe. It was frightening.

"I don't let those who think highly of themselves to walk all over me." She paused, finishing her fruit punch. "I should go. I still got a lot of unpacking to do."

"Well, you did look a little bored, so I suppose I'll let you go," she said, giving a soft smile. "Have you tried the cookies yet?"

"I had one, they're awesome. I'll see you later Ellen. Tell Paul the steak was good."

"Will do! Goodnight!"

Bidding farewell, Riley walked off to her house, leaning against the front door when she got inside. There was so much to do, she realized. Tomorrow was going to be extremely busy. Going upstairs, she got her laptop and printer set up and started working on her resume.

The room was dark, with only a single light bulb barely bright enough to show a person sitting against the furthest wall from the steel door. The man wearing the orange prison jumpsuit barely heard the sound of footsteps echoing towards his cell. The locks were released and the door gave out a deafening screech as it slowly swung open. Standing there was the guard, and a man in a dark blue suit.

"Vincent Valentine," he greeted.

The prisoner barely glanced up. "You here to try and take my head again?"

"No..." was all he said.

"Bullshit."

"I assure you, you're far too valuable to have eliminated."

"Tseng, the price is the same, dead or alive."

Tseng watched Vincent, though he could not see his face. "Hojo believes you have some use."

There was a pause that made a chill run up the agent's back. "Hojo is dead."

"You failed the last time."

"Then I'll have to try again," he said darkly, violence very evident in his tone.

A/N: First chapter of a new Vincent story with my OC Riley, though I changed her last name from Tombs to Willows, because it seemed so cliche. Now, for those of you subscribed to my writings, I apologize that I haven't updated FFVII: Rhapsody of Chaos in a few months. I haven't been in the mood to write it, though it's still an ongoing story, so don't worry about that. I felt like I needed to write something new, and this idea is partly inspired by the movies The 'Burbs, There Goes the Neighbourhood, and Fido. No, there won't be zombies XD. Go watch Fido, it's awesome. Anyway, might write this for awhile before I return to writing for Rhapsody of Chaos. I'm brought back at least one OC from RoC, being Riley, not sure if I'll bring Shamus and Mona into it. And yes, there will be some AVALANCHE cast cameos, at least that. Overall, Vincent MIGHT be a little OOC, because he's going to be slightly more...assholish, but still sexy. I'll try to keep him his old self but considering the nature of this story, that's going to be difficult. Anyway, hoped you enjoyed the intro-chapter. Next one will be much more action-oriented, or at least more exciting. Consider this story as an appetizer for all you lovely RoC fans. This story will be considerably shorter too. But ANYWAY, R&R, thanks.