Disclaimer: Don't own.

Yes, I should be updating Children (rest assured I am dutifully working on part 6 right now), but this just needed to be told. I'm in the middle of playing the game, and I had a brainwave for a really cute story for Vincent and Cid of course. This will be multi-chaptered, so if it doesn't make sense now just wait a bit. Pre-game, Vincent is a Turk, and Cid is 2 years old (just roll with it please).

Bird in a Cage

Vincent Valentine was a Turk, and a damned good one. He was twenty seven, and he had a good career ahead of him. Love played no part in Vincent's life, not anymore. You see, for the past year he had been completely in love with a beautiful woman called Lucretia, and he had thought she loved him back. He had been wrong. He had discovered she had been having an affair, or rather, he had discovered that he was her affair. She had apparently been in a committed relationship with a Dr. Hojo for years now, and after a fight with him she had started her affair with Vincent. Vincent had found out by complete accident after arriving earlier than planned to meet her at the mansion in Nibelheim. He had never before felt so betrayed, and in that instant he had sworn off love.

But it was late, and as much as he would prefer to leave immediately, he was tired, and the idea of spending another night sleeping under the stars was not pleasant. So he made his way to the local inn, angry and disappointed. Yes, he would bury himself in his work, and live his live for it and it alone.

"Cidney please! He's only a baby! Please just let him go, please. I'll stay, I swear, just let him go!"

Vincent was reluctantly drawn to a halt when he heard those words, cried out over the wailing of a child, desperate and fearful. It brought back memories from his own childhood, his mother screaming at his father, begging him not to hurt her, while Vincent had curled deeper into bed, unable to help. That was one of the reasons he had joined the Turk's, to help people like his mother. So despite his tiredness, he forwent the lure of the inn, knowing he would be unable to sleep if he walked on leaving this poor woman and her child, and besides, perhaps it would be a good thing to work out some of his anger over Lucretia's betrayal.

He made his way to the closet window of the house the cries came from, a little concerned when he heard the child's cries die off abruptly. He looked in, taking stock quickly. A tall brunet man stood baring the front door, a small boy, who looked no older than two years, held tightly, one hand squeezing at the little throat. A much smaller blonde woman was on her knees, tears streaming down a bruised face.

"What the fuck makes you think I want you woman?" the man spat, seemingly unconcerned with how the child's movements were becoming sluggish in his grip.

"Oh god, Cidney please, he's your son, just let him go." The woman pleaded, her eyes fastened on her son.

The man spat out a bitter laugh. "This little bastard!" he demanded, finally letting go of the boy's neck and shaking him roughly. "Huh, if he really is my son like you say then I can do whatever the hell I want with him."

Vincent did not wait to see more, he moved around the small house until he reached the front door, he could still hear the desperate pleading of the woman, and the sounds of the mans abuse, but he tuned them out, and expertly picked the simple lock on the door. He made his entrance loudly, startling the man, who let the boy go, Vincent inwardly winched at the extra bruises the little one would have, but at least Cidney would no longer have a body to hide behind. Vincent pulled his gun and trained it between the mans eyes.

The man froze, his mouth open as if to say something, but it got lost when he had seen the gun, so Vincent spoke. "I think you should maybe get out of the lady's way if she wants to leave." He looked at the woman, who had gathered her son up and was staring at him in shock, but she seemed to gather her wits quickly and got shakily to her feet, lifting a bag that had been dropped to the floor beside her, and holding her son close she made her way to the door. Using the gun Vincent threatened the man into moving back a few steps, and allowed the woman to leave.

When she was outside Vincent turned smoothly and closed the door, and he never said another word, holstering his gun, turning back and sending a fist flying into the man, knocking him back and to the floor. An eye for an eye was a rather apt phrase for what Vincent dealt the man, before he too took his leave of the house.

He was surprised to find the woman hovering at the road, still cradling her son close, watching Vincent warily. Vincent studied her, she was not the prettiest of women, the bruises that marred her face made her almost ugly, but there was something in her eyes that made up for that. He glanced back at the house and back to her and asked. "Did you want to go back in there?"

Her eyes travelled over him, seizing him up, before she shook her head. "No."

Vincent remained where he was, wondering why he couldn't bring himself to move past her. "Have you anywhere to go?" he found himself asking, surprising himself.

She chewed her lip thoughtfully, still gazing at him with a look he couldn't exactly explain. "Junon." She replied quietly. "I have a sister there."

That was a long way to travel, alone with a child. Getting to Costa del Sol to catch the ship would be fraught with danger. Vincent frowned at himself, what on earth was he thinking. He only just met this woman, and already he was considering escorting her to her sisters. This was ridicules. Shaking his head he made his way past the woman, intending to leave the conversation at that, get a room at the inn and lament the loss of Lucretia, dwell on the hurt of that betrayal, swear off love once again, and leave in the morning for Midgar and Shinra headquarters.

"Will you at least tell me your name?" she called after him, and he paused, glancing back at her. Her little boy had unburied his head from her shoulder and was looking at him too, too big blue eyes blinking a little confused, and a little wary.

"Vincent Valentine." He responded, unthinkingly.

She smiled then, and it brightened her whole face, and despite the bruises she looked almost beautiful.

Vincent looked away, angry at himself. Here he was, freshly hurt by a woman and already he was looking at another. Not only that, but a woman who had obviously been given the wrong end of the stick. No, these thoughts would end now; he would not allow them to continue.

"I…" she stopped, and he turned his eyes back t her, to see her chewing her lip again, glancing back at the house she had left before squaring her shoulders and meeting his eyes determined. "Karen, Karen Highwind." And she nodded, pleased with herself. "And this is Cidney jr." she hefted the little boy up a little.

Cidney jr gave a grimace of distaste, and Vincent didn't blame him with a name like that. "Mama." He complained quietly, though the bog blue eyes never left Vincent.

Karen gave him a soft squeeze. "I know baby. We'll come up with a better name for you now, I promise."

Vincent knew then that he should move on, before he got any deeper into a problem that wasn't his. He had rescued the woman and her son from her abusive husband; he didn't have to do anything farther. He moved on a few steps, and heard the woman gather her things together and move also, but not in the direction of the inn.

Surely she didn't intend to leave the town tonight?

He stopped and looked back, tracking her movements in the dim light by her blonde hair. Yes, it did appear she was intending to leave tonight. Did she not know about the dangers out there? Vincent shook himself again. This wasn't his problem; he had already done more than enough. He had his own problems to worry about. But watching her move away from the safety the town presented he couldn't seem to stop himself.

"It isn't safe to travel at night!" he called after her.

She stopped and turned to look at him again, before smiling slightly. "I don't know what you did to Cidney, and I'm grateful you did anything at all, really, but we need to be far away from here by morning." The 'or we'll be caught and be made to go back' went unsaid, but was clear.

Vincent cleared his throat a little. "Well, if you wait for morning… I'm going back to Midgar. I can take you to Junon if you'd like."

Despite the darkness moving in on them he could see the surprise on her face. "Aren't you staying to see your lady friend?" she asked.

Vincent frowned, annoyed, did everyone in this town know what a fool he had been?

"I've seen you a few times in town. There are only two reasons a person comes here to visit, either you have family, or a lover." She explained, hurrying to cover any mistake she may have made.

"No." Vincent said slowly. "No family, nor lover. So, are you going to wait for morning?" he asked.

Cidney jr chose that moment to yawn widely. The silence stretched on for a long moment, and Vincent was almost convinced Karen Highwind was going to leave tonight anyway. But when she moved again it was towards him, and he waited for her to catch up before turning back towards the inn.

Ok, first things first, don't be mad at me, yes, I messed up the history of Vincent, but this idea bounced in my head so much since I played the game that it needed to be written, and I think it just night work. Give my OC a chance (I can't believe I just said that! Oh dear God what am I thinking!), anyway, this is going to end up a love story with a significant difference, which will become clear in time. I'm hoping it won't be longer than five or six chapters. And yes, Cid is a little tiny baby boy in this, but just trust me on this, it will work, I promise.