The Hawk's Eye
For I am always watching. AU
Decicated to Kevin Wilson: I l.o.v.e you brother man. Rest in peace, buddy.
It had been a week. Shelke had gone to the cave and came back with the material in her arms. Yuffie cried. Tifa cried. Even Cloud let a tear fall for the fallen comrade that saved their world.
Two weeks later they found the gun. Scraped and battered, the Cerberus was placed with Fairy Tail in the glass credenza at Cosmo Canyon's newest museum, The Encarta.
A month after Omega, his home was sold, his wishes filled, and his estates sealed. The little belongings he had were boxed up and given to the members of AVALANCHE that his will dictated. Of course Yuffie was given his Materia; she never used it and boxed it away. Tifa was given enough Gil to support Denzel and then any other children she hoped to have in the future. Shelke was given the cloak; since she had no place in the will it seemed reasonable to give her that.
Cid was given his finest malts, Barret was given Gil as well to kick start his family with Elmrya and Marlene, Nanaki was given the files to go into the Cosmo Encarta Library, Reeve was left unfinished paperwork that had small notes in the corner from Vincent himself, and finally Cloud was left Hades, Vincent's trusty bike.
There was no funeral held for Vincent Valentine. Yuffie found his coffin and burned it, alone. Then she left.
Two months after the coffin burning, Shelke went back to Midgar, she found his cellphone and the Cerberus relief. She flicked the phone open when she found it. The screen was cracked but she could read out his final words. Beware the Hawk's eye, for I am always watching. She tried to see who he was sending it to, but the screen faded to black, the phone's life no more.
She swore never to tell anybody that she had found those items. She believed it would only lead the others into false hope of finding a man that was long and dead.
Three months after that, a baby was born to the Highwind family. Vincent Dawson Highwind was his crowning. And a week later Tifa went into labor with Aerith Elsa Strife. Cid and Cloud could only smile they were so proud and Denzel was so happy to have a sister. Shelke swore he really was watching down.
When Vincent Highwind turned one years old, Shalua was restored. It was a miracle in all truth; they had found her minutes after the crash, which probably saved her life. Reeve asked her to be his wife. She happily accepted. Shelke was ecstatic; she was getting the family she longed for.
A few months after that Elmrya sacred the whole AVALANCHE family with news that she was to be expecting a little flower girl. Barret beamed.
When the wedding finally happened, Yuffie was seen for the first time in almost two years. Her hair longer and she no longer the perky twenty year old that AVALANCHE had known. She had grown up. Godo was dead, Shake was murdered, and Gorky had died of old age and sickness. She had married and borne a son, she had her husband put to death for laying a hand on her son. She was driven out of Wutai after that, refusing to take another spouse. Her son and AVALANCHE were all she had now.
Shelke had pulled out the phone, she restored it, when she first saw Yuffie and showed her the message of Vincent Valentine. Hoping and praying that it would bring the spunk back to this girl; which it did. Yuffie knew if he had the strength to type a text message, he was alive.
To her Vincent Valentine was alive.
Yuffie started her search in the Era of Edge (Numbered Era 00009) and left her son, Tsen Hatsumomo in the hands of Tifa Strife and Cloud Strife. The others had looked for him but not almost three years after the collision. But she didn't immediately leave. She was surrounded by the AVALANCHE members, asking and crooning for details of what had happened to her. She ignored them and deciphered the text message.
Beware the Hawk's eye, for I am always watching.
It was almost simple. Hawk was his codename in the Remnant/Advent war. Eye meant his eyes, and watching really meant watching. Then she left.
She took no Materia or a PHS. She headed straight for Midgar to look where Shelke had been.
When it happened her son turned three years old, and she had been on her trek for almost a month and a half. It happened on a dirt road, south of Vincent's old home. She looked up into the blazing sky and looked at Omega and the Moon, her vision had blurred and she was thrown into a world of white.
"Yuffie?" His voice calm and content. She looked down, she was in a field. She started to turn around, "I'll disappear if you do." A hand had slid into her's and had given it a small squeeze.
"I'm glad." He had whispered. "You came looking," His paused lasted, "I'm sorry I wasn't there…" She knew he was smiling, "For I will always watch over you, all of you." The light faded back and Yuffie had then fallen to the dirty ground crying. She barely had the strength to use Vincent's cell phone and call Cid.
Fifteen minutes later she was in Edge crying and holding the her son, the one who had inherited the Hawk's eyes.
A/N: Check out Dirge Of Cerberus: The Lost Episodes. Altered, Duet, and Before I Go are on hold. All their chapters are complete but the hard drive is being serviced, expect updates for them in February.
Kevin Wilson was a good freind of my family, he and I were in the same hospital, when I came out of the OR...he passed on. I feel like he was watching over me...with those Hawk eye's of his. This is for you.