Title: Alive
Author: Enide Dear
Rating: cute. Shounen-ai if you want it to be
Pairing: Valenwind
Summary: ummmm…..no.
It was a wonderful day. The sun shone from an almost too-bright blue sky down over the Highwind where it was speeding over the Southern Sea, fast and sleek like a tern on its wings. Beneath the airship the sea spread out, a glittering expanse of water that seemed to go on forever.
Vincent felt…at peace. No, it was more than that, it was a giddiness in his blood, an eagerness for new horizons, and urge to embrace the suddenly beautiful world around him.
It was, he realised with a bit of a shock, the joy of being alive, something he hadn't felt in so long it was starting to get to his head, like fine wine.
Sitting alone on the high deck of Highwind he could see his fellow Avalanche members walking around, but the speed wind tore away any words then might have uttered. He waved back down at them, but looked away again. It was just him up here, him and the sky and the sun and the sea below, the wind ripping in his hair and cloak, making his cheeks blush.
Feeling reckless, and for once not caring what anyone though about him, he stood up and spread his arms, taking in as much of the sun and wind as he could, wanting to ride this feeling of being alive forever.
Something short and blonde came hurling out of nowhere, tackling him to the ground and pinning him down.
"Oh, no ya don't!" Cid growled, grabbing a firm hold of Vincent's shoulders and keeping him on the deck. "Ya ain't committing some sort of melodramatic suicide on *my* airship, ya hear me?"
"Highwind, what the Hell?!" Vincent wasn't much for swearing but this sudden, unexpected and much unwanted change of situation called for some profanity.
"I said...uff!" Cid gasped as Vincent kneed him in the belly and twisted them over so that he was sitting on top of the pilot. Cid struggled, but couldn't get free. "Hey, get off me! Attackin' a captain is called mutiny, ya know!"
"And attacking a passenger is called assault. What do you think you are doing, chief?" Vincent didn't release his grip.
"Yuffie…" Cid started and Vincent rolled his eyes.
"Oh, I already don't like where this is going…"
"She said ya'd been sittin' up here all alone fer hours, not answerin' anyone tryin' ta talk ta ya, jest starin' out over the sea, lookin' all weird. And then suddenly ya rise up, right here on the edge, fer all the world like ya think ya can fly or somethin'!" Cid scowled up at him. "And I'm tellin' ya, ya *aint* jumpin' off my Highwind! Suicides are real bad fer a ships reputation, ya know."
Vincent leaned over Cid until his nose was almost touching the captains. Cid swallowed nervously as he saw the light glowing in the red eyes.
"I was *happy*, chief. Something I haven't been in a long time! And now you come along, with your stupid heroics and really bad excuses about your ships reputation, and you….and you…." Vincent felt strange twitches running over his face, his eyes seemed to want to narrow, the corners of his mouth wanting to do something they weren't used to. Deep in his belly something tickled.
*Oh, dear Gaia, I'm going to…*
Cid turned even more red-faced as the long, pearly laughter broke out of Vincent. Still not letting go of the captain, Vincent tossed his head back and laughed and laughed like he hadn't done in ages, a deep, throaty, earnest, body-shaking laughter that made something old and cold break inside of him.
He laughed to be alive.
He laughed to be here, in the sun and the wind.
He laughed to have friends that cared enough for him to pester him like they did.
He laughed because, for the first time since he was a child, he felt like he could.
"Um….Vince?" Cid asked carefully as the gunman, his slim body still rattled by giggles, sank down exhausted on his chest, wiping tears of joy from his face and onto Cid's t-shirt. "Eh….ya ok there?"
"You know, chief," Vincent smiled against the cloth. "I think I finally am."