Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or settings of Final Fantasy VII. They are the sole creative property of SquareEnix. I do however own my insanity and perversity. Nor do I make a profit from this endeavor, I will however gain carpel tunnel syndrome eventually.
Title: Wish
Warnings: shounen-ai (it's warm and fuzzy but angsty?) One-shot.
Rating: T for Tch
Summary: With so many leaning on him, who can Tseng lean on?
Wish
Can we pretend that airplanes in the night sky are like shooting stars?
I could really use a wish right now, a wish right now, a wish right now.
Tseng climbed to the rooftop of the presidential quarters at the Healen Lodge, seeking some solace from the unsettling sights in the rooms below. Leaning down, he placed his left palm on the rough surface of the roof and pushed his legs out from under him so that they rested, dangling over the edge of the building.
Slowly unzipping his suit jacket, he reached inside and pulled out his flask. Twisting the carbon fiber object in his hand, his thumb ran over the small indentation in it then the smoothed out engraving off to the side of it.
~ When all is said and done, you are a hero to someone. –R.S. ~
It was barely ten years ago, Rufus was still the Vice President, when the assassin got close enough to shoot from a point blank range. If Tseng didn't throw himself bodily in front of the teen… Tseng couldn't, wouldn't let himself think of that. He HAD thrown himself in front of the bullet, fully prepared to die for his leader. Fortunately for Tseng someone was smiling down at him; the bullet lodged into his hidden flask, saving Rufus, saving himself.
Now, the teen had grown into a strong man. A strong man that was being cut down in his prime and Tseng couldn't save him. Not this time. Not from Geostigma. Tseng choked back a sob at the thought.
"Tseng," a distinct deep baritone, raspy from years of disuse called out in the darkness. The Wutain violently wiped tears from his eyes when he was startled out of his maudlin thoughts.
"Vincent," he replied, glancing sideways as the enigma of a man moved towards him. The slight clanging of metal shoe coverlets added to the symphony of sounds of the wilderness surrounding the lodge. Tseng closed his eyes and let the sounds wash through him, calming him as he meditated momentarily.
"You're early," Tseng stated as Vincent sat down beside him.
"It appears that I've come at the right time," Vincent murmured as he tilted his head to study the man next to him. "You're upset."
"He's dying," Tseng said in a barely audible whisper.
"Humph. He's strong…"
"How can you be so sure?" Tseng interrupted irritably. "It's Geo-fucking-stigma! He can't die, I won't allow it. He's the only family I have," Tseng murmured as he rubbed the mark on his forehead. The mark had been there since birth, a stigma proclaiming him a bastard. A son of a whore.
"You're sounding like a father worried about his child."
"A father?" Tseng scoffed. "This coming from the man that doesn't give a flying fuck that all of this is happening because of his son-turned-science experiment lost his fucking mind and wants to destroy the world."
As soon as the words flew out of his mouth, Tseng wished that he could take them back.
"I'm so…"
"Don't be. He's not my son but he is part of the sins I have to atone for," Vincent muttered before ducking his head back into the high cowl of his cloak, drawing the ragged crimson material around him. "Sephiroth is dead," he added.
"Rufus, he seems to have a theory on this. We were approached by three young men. The resemblance to Sephiroth is eerie; they may be clones or bits of him reincarnated. Who knows," Tseng sighed as he ran his hands through his hair.
Vincent eyed Tseng. The years had suddenly caught up to the young Wutain man. He was showing the strain of being the Director of the Turks on his face, drinking more, swearing and verbalizing his doubt in Rufus' will to live. It seemed that from the moment Sephiroth stabbed him back in the Temple and was left for dead, a part of him did die that day.
Since Meteor Fall, Vincent had sought out Tseng time and time again. He couldn't rationalize the initial reason for it, why he felt drawn to the other man, but he just was and that was enough for Vincent. Tseng's presence calmed down the beasts raging inside him. The Wutain never asked him about his past, partially because he read Vincent's old Turk files and partially because he knew Vincent would ask him to open up about his own past.
The men sat in companionable silence for a spell, each deep in their own thoughts. It was Tseng's slight chuckle that broke the spell.
"Hm?"
"It just figures."
"What does?" Vincent asked as he turned slightly to face the other man.
"The first time I go to wish on a star since I was a little boy, it's an airplane," Tseng laughed mirthlessly.
"You can still pretend," Vincent offered. Tseng shook his head at the thought. He wasn't one to rely on wishes; he relied on cold hard logic. Relied on making ones desires come to fruition by cunning, planning and the precise execution of the mission. Not fanciful wishes. But oh how he wished he had someone to lean on when his men and Elena needed him to lean on.
Vincent, sensing the despair radiating off of Tseng decided to act on what he never intended to happen but had grown over the recent years. With his heart pounding in his chest, he cautiously reached out his human hand, gliding it over Tseng's. Ever so slowly, he intertwined their fingers, squeezing slightly. A silent reassurance from one to another.
"I'm sorry," Tseng sighed. "I don't really feel up to our nightly chess match. We are set to leave at first light. Rufus wants us to go search for any remains of Jenova at the Northern Crater."
"I see," was all Vincent could say as he went to withdraw his hand. He was startled slightly when the fingers that were wrapped around his tightened and Tseng's other hand landed on his wrist to still him.
"But… I would, that is," Tseng paused, searching for some reassurance in the bright vermillion colored eyes. "Stay with me, just for tonight."
The gunner ducked his head into his cowl, hiding the smile that broke upon his face. He must have waited too long to respond because the hopeful light in Tseng's eyes dimmed and the man began to withdraw from him.
"I will stay with you," he muttered before raising his head and leaning forward to press a brief kiss against Tseng's lips. "I will stay with you tonight," he kissed the Wutain's closed eyelids. "I will stay with you tomorrow," he kissed Tseng's marked forehead. Leaning back, he waited for the younger man to open his eyes.
"I will stay with you always," he said before pulling Tseng to him in a tight embrace, giving up his soul in the kiss.
A/N: Just an FYI on this, I SO changed the ending of the story mid-stream. I was going to go with an idea I read way back when on some FF7 for stating the idea that Tseng could be Vincent's son. *GASP!* I let this sit for a few hours before I came back to it and just couldn't bring myself to make Vinny be Tsengbird's daddy. Well… maybe his daddy in the bedroom. *wink*
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