Disclaimers on the characters of Final Fantasy VII, who rightfully belong to SquareEnix, because I really don't have the money as a college student to get sued.
AN: This is a series of one-shots, with a lot of variety, which comes together as a story. I mean, it is chronological… it just doesn't exactly have a linear plotline… But I guess you can call it a sequel or side story of sorts to Pieces of Happiness.
Dawn,
By Winterwing3000
An owl hooted lightly as he soared through the sky covered in navy and fading twinkling lights. In his claws was a dead mouse from the docks, the dinner for his hatchings. The feathers on his head ruffled as he dipped into the dark forest. He weaved in and out of the tree branches silently, gliding smoothly in the air that caught his wings. The other birds and animals were asleep in their homes on the ground and in the trees. Nothing stirred. The large tawny eyes blinked once as he gave a silent flap and landed with ease on the branch leading to the hole in the great pine that stood at the top of the Da Chao San range that created the northern borders of Wutai. Just as he was about to enter his nest, he heard rustling to his left and curiously twisted his head in that direction.
Two figures appeared from one of the stone palms of the magnificent Da Chao Statue that was carved into the peak of mountainside. One of them skipped with a lilt in her step while the other silently followed at an even pace. They were only dark outlines in the still night. The tall one had a slight hunch to his shoulders and his silhouette frayed at the edges. The other was significantly shorter with a bulky object swinging in windmills from an outstretched arm. With a practiced flick of a wrist, the object was dispatched. The four-point shuriken spun merrily above their heads before piercing deeply into the dirt next to a large rock a few feet ahead of them. The polished blades glanced off the remaining starlight and soaked in the oncoming rays of dawn.
Yuffie threw her arms into the air and clasped her hands before she folded them backwards in order to stretch out her shoulders, the length of her two arms and her upper back. After hearing the satisfying cracks of the pressure releasing from her joints, she sprinted a short distance before flinging herself into a series of cartwheels and ended in a vertical-one split right next to her weapon. A smile, bright and wide, appeared on her face as she stood up from the ground. She waved him over impatiently.
"Whoop!" she cheered with a bounce. "C'mon Vinnie!"
Vincent didn't bother to hasten his steps at her urging and she pouted. With a quick tug, she extracted her shuriken from the ground and swung it at him. It boomeranged around his body before spinning back into her hands. The pink ribbon tied to one of the blades fluttered when it flew. Her companion didn't even flinch. In fact the only thing that moved was his cloak flaring behind him from the vacuum of the space that the weapon sliced.
Rolling her eyes, she quickly gave up and set aside her weapon. Finding a cleared spot, Yuffie flexibly pulled one of her legs back, almost touching the back of her head with her foot, and perfectly executed a standing split. After shaking out the muscles on that stretched leg, she did the same for the other. When both of her feet were firmly planted on the ground, with a nod in content, she began her morning routine of kata.
Picking up her large shuriken from the ground, Vincent sat down on the large rock and placed it next to him. He readjusted his position, moving one foot to rest firmly on the rock as the other stretched out, in order to stop from sliding off the slanted surface. He wore none of his firearms on his person and left them all in his room. He leaned forward into his particular hunched posture with the gauntlet across his knees and half his face hidden behind the collar of his mantle. His focus, from the beginning, never strayed from Yuffie.
He knew she knew that he was watching her. Yet she had no trace of embarrassment or discomfort as she executed each move gracefully and powerfully. It was like watching water, Vincent noted like he did the past few times he came up to Da Chao San with Yuffie, and rightfully so since their superior god was the serpent summon Leviathan, also known as the King of Seas. Her movements were sometimes wide and violent, surging with the ferocity of a tidal wave. Other times, they were subtle and calm, rippling the air like a stone dropping into a still river. As always, they were silent, no more than a quick whirl in the wind. It was the same for her breathing. Each breath was carefully coordinated with a certain turn of her body, a sweep of her foot and a slice of her hand. Her form was controlled and her concentration was not wavered as she transitioned from her warm-up solo exercise into disarming and dispatching an invisible enemy.
Yuffie picked up her momentum, adding spinning kicks and flips every now and then. She pulled jabs and hits in the air, at times lodging into more cartwheels and launching off the ground to perform nose-dive kicks. She felt the blood pumping in her ears and the adrenaline rushing through her veins. She became completely absorbed at the imaginative opponent she was fighting. Visions of strong blows and kicks echoed in her mind as she tried to return each she was dealt and if possible, twice the amount. Her body slipped in and out of the unseen attacks all while trying to maintain a strong defense without loosing power and swiftness in her offense.
The darkness in the sky gradually receded during the process. Pastel blues, oranges, whites and reds appeared slowly. Vincent watched as the contours of Yuffie's body glowed from the lights breaking from the edge of the horizon. Her black shadow danced in tandem with her on the ground, matching punches and kicks and spins. She started to retreat, losing footing with her imaginary foe, as her offenses began to overwhelm her defenses. Occasionally, when she was cornered to the edge of the cliff, Yuffie would perform a high jump, and land without flourish in a crouched position in order to bring the battle back to stable ground.
Vincent could feel his battle instincts rousing from its sleep as Yuffie started to lose her concentration from the dullness of her morning routine. In his mind's eye, he easily predicted where she was going to land her next attack and where her openings were. He clenched his fists as the itch for a good physical spar tingled through his hands. Although he was not entirely trained in hand-to-hand combat, he was trained to a proficient level during his days as a Turk. All those employed under ShinRa's Turks Division were given a well-rounded education in firearms, fights fights, vehicle operation, stealth and undercover performance. Deciding that it was time, Vincent unbuckled the leather belts of his red cloak and discarded it on top of the steel weapon. Then he jumped into the middle of her battle.
Yuffie blinked in astonishment when Vincent suddenly appeared before her without his trademark mantle and literally swept her off her feet. With a practiced sweep of his right foot, Vincent tripped her just as she reflexively brought up one leg to kick at his face. With a groan, she landed flat on her back. She sat up and rubbed the back of her head. Then she looked at him with one eye opened and exclaimed, "What was that for, Vince!"
Vincent didn't bother to answer or to offer her a hand up. Instead, he took a slight step back and with a debonair tilt of his chin, he said, "Spar with me, Yuffie."
Now with a grin on her face, Yuffie launched off the ground and to her feet with renewed vigor. A barrage of punches came immediately at his torso, which he easily blocked with his arms. She continued to attack him despite the fact that half the time one of her fists made contact with his brass gauntlet. When they sparred previously, Vincent debated between extracting the gauntlet since he viewed it as a handicap for Yuffie. She, however, outright told him to keep it on with the reason being that there will be times where she will be at a disadvantage in battle and going easy on her would only give her an even greater handicap in true battle. She also added, if his memory served him correctly, that she can 'totally kick Vincent butt any day, any way in hand-to-hand combat.' And although she failed to do so the past times that they sparred together, she was persistent in proving her statement true.
Sometimes, she came at him with wide attacks—a side kick of her leg, a spin kick, or a dashed punch—and he easily evaded them. By the time she broke through his defenses, Vincent went into offense and started to aim for the openings that she had left wide open. He was about to side step her incoming punch and reached to grab her other arm in hopes to disable parts of her movements when she quickly pivoted on the soles of her feet. Yuffie spun in a clockwise direction with her left leg lifted in mid-air and her knee made contact with his side but she was grabbed by the ankle and pushed to the side before she could get her foot back. Not to mention Vincent's own knee was coming rapidly at her stomach.
She scrambled to flip to the side and aimed her swinging foot at him, but he blocked it with his brass arm. Momentum lost, Yuffie flopped to the ground and looked up. There was little recovery time as Vincent reared his arm back to slam his gauntlet down at her. Instinctively, she rolled over a few times and barely got to her feet as he came closer to where she stood. She cautiously eyed the dent in the earth that Vincent created with just the force of his metal arm. The grooves of each knuckle and joint were impressed on the ground. Three ninja stars appeared in her hand and Vincent merely lifted an eyebrow with interest. He still couldn't figure out where she kept those on her person.
Before being able to further pursue that train of thought, they flew at him. He ducked and brought his metal arm up in defense. Metal clashed against metal and the stars ricocheted. When he looked back up, Yuffie was no longer in front of him but he saw her shadow on the ground. Tilting his head, he nearly got a foot in his face. Jumping out of the way, her foot collided against his shoulder and he grunted at the contact. Just as she was about to strike him on his chest with her other foot, he held on to the foot that slammed against him. Yuffie yelped and swung her arms in a windmill motion as her upper body was pulled down by gravity. Her free foot jerked in midair and rather clumsily, she tried to kick him again. She expected him to release her other foot, instead he grabbed her incoming one with his other hand, causing her to just fall with her hands dangling past her head. Her fingers were just inches from touching the ground.
They stopped all movements. Only their rise and fall of their chest showed that they were moving. Yuffie, the more impatient one of the two, huffed.
"Vinnie! I'm going to vomit all over your precious gold pointy shoes!" she threatened while being suspended in the air. With her knees bent at perfect right angles, she couldn't help but wonder how awkward and horrified her four guardians would feel if they saw their empress in such a position. "And stop staring at my ass!"
"If I recall, I was not the one who constantly said that the only 'ass' that I should only be allowed to look at was yours," Vincent deadpanned. He could almost hear her roll her eyes and her cheeks puff out.
Heaving in a deep breath, Yuffie strained all the muscles around her midsection and managed to pull herself into a crunch position with her arms wrapping underneath her knees. She silently thanked Staniv for the past rope lessons that strengthened her core muscles. Too bad she didn't have washboard abs with it. Oh well. She placed her chin on top of her knees and stuck her tongue out at him. "I, on the other hand, recall no such conversation."
She lightly slapped at his hands still holding onto her ankles. "Now let me off."
He obliged her request and lowered her down so that as she unfolded from her huddled position, she could easily perform a handspring to get back on her feet.
The moment he released his grip on her ankles, he knew that something was not quite right. Yuffie gave him a wicked smirk before she shifted her entire weight to her the bottom of her feet and pushed against his body, sending them into opposite directions—Vincent was falling back toward the ground as she sprung into the air. Just as she thought she was free, he caught her again in mid-flip by her right calf and redirected her center of gravity toward him.
The owl who observed them as a silent audience this entire time visibly winced with his head tucked under a wing. He spread the tips of his wings, peeking with one bright eye at the scene. When the dust settled below, he shook his head and feathers and hopped into his cozy nest, where his mate was already waiting with her own prey and his chicks hungrily chirping. If he were able to speak and enunciate his thoughts in a profound manner, one couldn't help but wonder just what he would say from observing the dynamic pair. Instead, he clucked a few times with his beak and hooted before retiring formally.
"You know, I thought we spent enough me-on-you time already, Vince. Didn't think you're that much into skinship," Yuffie commented with a teasing lilt in her voice. She flicked away his bangs from his forehead for good measure. Then she sighed and leaned down, resting her forehead against his left shoulder. "I almost beat you that time, you know?"
Vincent looped his arms loosely around the span of her waist. He normally didn't perspire during an early morning spar, but he felt the excess body heat radiating from her body. He took in the subtle shiver that traveled through her body when he brushed the pointed golden fingers on the exposed skin of her lower back. His eyes were focused on the sky above them. Dusty reds and dark blues shrouded the white clouds that he faintly traced.
He hummed in agreement. "Almost."
They lapsed into a content silence. Their breathing fell in sync. Their hearts were pressed against each other, only separated by the layer of their clothing and flesh. His was beating slower than hers, but drummed heavily against her breast as if to lull her heart into a pattern that fell into a rhythm with his. The cool night air of mid-summer started to give way to the humid winds. The animals once resting began to stir from their nightly rest.
"It is about time we head back," the gunslinger murmured as he moved his gloved hand up her back and slipped it through her dark coarse hair. The strands slithered through the gaps between his fingers. The ninja snuggled more firmly into the man underneath her.
"I don't want to…" she complained. "Chekov's waiting with a new tailor in my study today. She still hasn't forgiven me for cutting through my other robe. And…"
He shifted his gaze from the view above him and found himself almost nose-to-nose with the young woman sprawled along the length of his body. An eyebrow rose elegantly, prompting her to finish her thought. "And?"
"They want to talk about you. And me. And the wedding."
AN: Just so you know, I think half of this entire spar session defied physics. It just amazes me what a writer can do to twist reality. Muwahahah.
Hope you enjoyed the first part of this series. Please tell me what you think of it in a review! Next up: Sunrise.
Have a wonderful New Year!