Let Me Assist You

Human and Flipping

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7.

A/N: A new Final Fantasy 7 story… Uh…I shouldn't be doing this, but the idea's been with me since before school started. I finally could write the first chapter, so I got it out while I could. Please don't be mad. And, please, read and review!

It only took a matter of moments; one minute, Red XIII was attacking a frog, and the next thing he knew, he was enveloped in smoggy, yellow-green light. He felt a tingling sensation all on his body and his good eye widened. It felt like his bones were…changing?

This all started when he, Yuffie, and Cloud were out searching for monsters to kill for gil. While these weren't creatures that normally actually gave off worthwhile gil, they found themselves here anyway. Mainly because Yuffie mysteriously demanded it – for whatever reason, the Gi had no clue; that girl always had strange, unknown ulterior motives. He could only hope that this time it didn't include stealing all of his materia and running off and getting kidnapped by a creepy old pervert.

Thankfully, or maybe not, that didn't turn out to be it. Instead, one moment, Red XIII is attacking a monster that should give minimal trouble – and the next, he is engulfed in magic. Magic that Yuffie cast.

His bones finally stopped…moving, and the Gi doesn't know whether to be thankful or just more worried. Obviously he just endured some type of change. And he wasn't sure he wanted to know. The fog was beginning to clear, revealing his form to his two companions.

Yuffie gave a startled, 'Holy shit' while Cloud couldn't contain a gasp. "…Red…?"

The red Gi warily stared back at his two-person audience, "W…What is it?"

Blond spikes bounced as the blue-eyed man shook his head in disbelief, "No way." By now, Red XIII was getting a little anxious, Cloud turned to Yuffie, "What in the world did you do?"

Nanaki wasn't too happy that no one was telling him what was going on, "U-um…I wanted to see what happens when you use transform on a frog…?"

Red XIII frowned – wait, frowned? - "Kindly inform of what's going on."

Yuffie swallowed loudly, "Just look in a mirror, Red." Cloud looked sharply at her and raised a brow, "Er, if there was a mirror…Which there isn't."

The blond Ex-SOLDIER rolled his eyes, "Just look down, Red."

And Nanaki did; at first, it didn't quite click – then, after really seeing skin, considerably less hair, and fingers – he realized, something was very wrong. He was human. A gold eye widened, thin, pink lips opened up and he released a loud yell. "YUFFIE!"

The Wutian ninja ran as fast as her legs could carry her.

"Cloud, why won't you just tell us what happened?" Aerith was prodding the quiet, blonde leader, "Really, with Yuffie running here, alone, like a madwoman and then you coming in alone…We're all really worried." The brunette glared, green eyes sparkling, clearly saying, 'talk, or face the consequences'.

The rest of AVALANCHE was staring at the pair; Tifa was sitting with Aerith and Cloud at a round table, but she wasn't questioning him verbally, instead she was staring unrelentingly at the blonde. Barret was tinkering with his gun-arm parts absentmindedly, but it was obvious that he was more interested in the topic at hand. Cid was snoring in the back of the sitting room that Cloud had rented, and Cait Sith was staring in utmost interest and fiddling with a pair of dice. The last person, Vincent, was silent, face unreadable, and unnerving crimson gaze fixed on the three at the front of the room.

"Where is Red?" Aerith asked.

Cloud sighed, "In his room."

"Huh? I didn't see him come in."

"It was right before me."

Tifa and Aerith exchanged odd looks, "We didn't see him – only a really clumsy, drunk person in a beige, hooded cloak."

The Ex-SOLDIER shifted awkwardly, "…"

"Hey! '…' is NOT an answer!"

A red-cloaked figure slipped out of the sitting room and towards his room.

Nanaki was shaking, eyes filling a strange, annoying, water-like substance. But with one taste, it was obviously not water, as it had a salty flavor. The former Gi's lips were pulled downwards in what he had identified as a frown; he frowned deeper, it felt weird. He didn't like it. He didn't like any of this! He was human! He could barely make his way to this hotel room, and he mostly had to run awkwardly on his hand and feet to do that.

"Grandpa…" Red XIII wailed, not at all in the mood to hold in his childish emotions. Normally, he was embarrassed by such things, but now – he didn't feel like acting grownup. He was 48 in Gi years, but 16 in human. He was human now, so he at least deserved to act like his age!

He also looked that age; Nanaki had seen so in the mirror in the inn's room – before he had toppled over and was forced to crawl into a corner and curl into a trembling ball. He looked as young as Yuffie, if even a little younger. He had wild, spiky red hair, golden-tan skin, one amber eye, and a scar over the other. From the short while he had stood up to his full height, he had identified that he was nowhere near being tall. Maybe 5'7, not daunting for a male.

Just as he had been a small Gi, he was a small human.

How is that fair?

The least he deserved was at least to be tall, strong, and handsome as a damn human!

Human.

Nanaki choked on a sob, "Damn it!"

There was a quiet knock on his door. "GO AWAY! I don't feel like seeing anyone."

For a moment it was silent, then, "I'm afraid to tell you that this is my room as well." Vincent. Nanaki frowned, sniffling. He wasn't keen on kicking someone out of their sleeping place. Everyone had a roommate (except for Cait Sith, Yuffie, and Cid who had to share the largest room) so if Vincent couldn't sleep in Nanaki's room, there'd be no space for him. Unless he slept on his cloak on someone's floor.

It was rare that they got the comfort of a soft bed, so it would be cruel to not let him in. Still. To let anyone else see him like this…Nanaki wasn't ready. "Please go away, Vincent…"

It was silent, and for a moment, he believed that the man had actually gone away. Then, "You're going to have to face it sometime soon."

What? How could he possibly know? "…"

There was a clicking noise as Vincent fiddled with the door, Nanaki tensed up. The door was locked, but that didn't specifically mean that the enigmatic man couldn't find a way in. And he was right, the door's lock unlocked and the door was pushed open. It didn't stay that way long, as Vincent quickly shut it once again.

Nanaki flinched and curled further into a ball, wrapping the beige cloak he found earlier around his sickeningly human frame. "Nanaki." Vincent was one of the few people who actually called him by his birth name. Grandpa was the other, and Aerith did so occasionally.

"Don't look at me…"

Vincent paused, "Why are you ashamed to show yourself to me, of all people?" he continued, "I myself change every day, multiple times."

The former Gi froze; all of that was true - But still… "I'm so out of sorts." And just like that, he had to let it all out, "I can't balance myself properly without my tail, I'm freezing without my fur, I can't see well in the dark anymore, and I just feel weak in general!" Nanaki sniffed, "It's a disgrace…How will I ever protect Grandpa and Cosmo Canyon with this weak form?"

Crimson eyes stayed fixed on the trembling figure on the ground, "I hold no answers for you." He stepped towards the red-head, "But, if you need assistance in getting used to this new form, I wouldn't mind helping you."

Red XIII looked up, but still kept his face hidden by his hood, "…Thank you."

"I imagine the floor isn't exactly the most comfortable place to lie; do you need help up?" Nanaki wasn't exactly thrilled about asking for help for such a simple (normally) task. However, he didn't want to make a fool of himself trying to do it alone.

"Please."

The tall, ebon-haired man approached the red-head swiftly, picked him up much too easily in Nanaki's opinion, and dropped him on the bed on the right side of the room. All gently despite the shocking speed.

Red XIII clutched his cloak together, not desiring it to fall off and show all of his naked, human skin. "T-thank you."

Vincent merely inclined his head before turning his back and heading into the small bathroom attached to their main room. Nanaki was left to sigh and attempt to get comfortable in his new form, actually slipping under the blankets for the first time in his life.