Chapter 2: Wind
It was warm for mid-February.
"Is it a plant?"
"Nope."
It was nice to be out and about again, or at least less on my own than before. To be simply put: it was nice to have company, even if Vincent wasn't the greatest conversational partner out there.
"Is it materia?"
"Nope."
He was also pretty bad at Twenty-Questions, but since he wouldn't let me sing he was stuck playing.
"Is it an animal?"
"Oh, his first yes!"
His good hand was wrapped around my waist, his fingers resting gently on the outer part of my upper thigh. The up and down motion Rhu made as he ran beneath us was uncomfortable but expected. Travel by chocobo was quick, and not in the least bit luxurious.
"Is it a bird?"
"I'm not dumb enough to pick a bird while we're riding a bird."
"Apologies. I haven't played this game in... since I was very young."
"Careful, Vinnie," I playfully chided. "You might just give away your real age."
He quieted at that, though it's not unusual for him to go quiet. "Is it a mammal?"
I liked it when he let himself out a little. Our conversations would get awkward because, halfway through them, I'd say something strange or thought-provoking or both and he would just kind of drift away. The time span for his little inner-turmoil sessions grew smaller, which made me think that he was slowly growing used to company, my company, human company.
He'd been locked up with those demons of his for a long time.
"Nope." He'd never guess this one.
"...Is it an amphibian?"
I could see the Gold Saucer, a tall beacon against the mountains in the distance. We'd be there soon, if the weather held.
"Yup."
"...Is it pink?"
Oh, shit- he was on to me.
"Yes."
"Does it have spikes?"
"...Maybe..."
"Hedhog Pie."
"You're too good at this game. I want to play something else."
He made a movement behind me, and it took me a few minutes before I realized that Vincent Valentine might have actually... chuckled. The thought was slightly unsettling. Regardless, I'd let him have his little victory. Keep up his moral and all.
"How many summons must we speak to for you to find the answer to your questions?" Sober change of subject, but it was better than silence.
"As many as I need to. One more; ten more; half of them; all of them."
"You're committed to this." It was a statement of an obvious observation.
"My love for my homeland nearly destroyed me, Vinnie. I'll be damned if I let this slip through my fingers. We're a lot alike, you and I."
"Oh?"
"There is something in our past that we can't seem to let go of. We think we have, we've convinced ourselves we have, but I don't think we, humans as a whole, really ever let go of the past. I ran away from home, gave up my life, to fight for what I believed in, no matter how silly it was. I know that Wutai won't ever be what it once was, no matter what I do, so I've moved on. And yet I still hoard materia when I get the chance because, deep inside, I want nothing more than to restore Wutai to what it was."
"You gave back Reno's materia."
"I'm a thief, not an asshole."
"You are truly obsessed with this, aren't you, Yuffie?"
"Vincent, you just don't get it; we're exactly the same. There is something on the inside that keeps driving us, that can't rest or we'll go mad. We're always on the move, always keeping our minds and hands busy. You can't see it, can you? Our journey is the same, but our destinations are different, that's all."
For the briefest of moments, I thought I felt the hand around my waist tighten.
I let it pass and pointed to the horizon. "Almost there."
"Indeed. Have you any idea where to start looking for Bahamut?"
"Not a one!" I heeled Rhu and set him to a gallop, whooping and thrusting my fist into the air. "Go, baby, go! Show Vincent who the fastest chocobo in the world is!"
Turns out it might as well have been Rhu because ten minutes later, just a stone's throw from North Corel, I was vomiting. So much for being able to ride a chocobo without getting sick.
Vincent walked around me, useless and without the sense to leave me the hell alone while I dry heaved and made noises humans shouldn't be able to make. "I don't want you supervising my puking!" I managed between wretches. He'd already seen me naked. Covered in pee, too. One more weird thing and he could call "gross Yuffie bingo." I didn't want his only visual memories of me to be so horrific.
He strolled away as I finished spitting and gasping in the tall grass. After a little while of silence, he called over his shoulder, "Are you well enough now?"
I rinsed out my mouth and spit in the dirt. "Yeah, I think so. The gondola ride isn't going to help much, though."
It didn't. It really didn't. Vertigo on acid is a good way to describe how I was feeling; the ground wouldn't fucking stay still under me, the sky wouldn't fucking stay still above me, it felt like I'd spun around and around on an office chair until I couldn't walk upright, I had a splitting headache, and some asshole in a chocobo suit came prancing toward us as soon as we'd stepped off the moving-metal-cage-of-doom that was the gondola so that all I saw was a fat yellow blob bobbing up and down, growing larger and larger in my vision until...
Vincent was kind enough to put his arm on my shoulder to steady me, and wrap his cape around me to save me from the onslaught of visual stimulation that was making me do anything but feel better. Navigating the tunnels was hard like that, but it was easier than, oh, I don't know, lying in the middle of the catwalk and dying.
"I'm taking you to the hotel, and you can rest as long as you need to."
I mumbled something and was relieved when Vincent recognized it as a 'thank you.'
"It's alright. I know how you are with motion sickness."
And suddenly I was really glad that he was with me, not just to help me out with the whole 'finding out who I really am by traipsing around the world like an idiot and talking to god-like-creatures who, by majority vote thus far, are all jackasses,' but also because it was nice to have to rely on someone for a change.
I'd been alone a long time. Not as long as he'd been alone, but poor Vincent has been alone longer than I have even been alive, so I think I'm given a little leeway in that respect. It was refreshing to have someone to help me stand after I threw up everything I'd eaten, and, well, I sure hoped it was alright for me to depend on him. I didn't really care if it was okay, but I at least hoped I wasn't too big of a pain in his ass.
It was a little strange; Vincent didn't look like he'd normally be a nice guy. Menacing red cape, black leather, a claw for an arm, and a gun? He wasn't winning any awards in the 'I don't give children nightmares' department. But, that's the thing- judging a person on their outward appearance is asinine because how people dress isn't reflective of who they are on the inside at all times.
Sure, Vincent was broody and his outward appearance didn't help to deter the thought, but he was... Well, to be honest, he was one of the nicest guys I've ever met. Yeah, he's got a mean streak in there, I'm sure, but without me even asking him for help he decided to tag along on my journey to find myself. Not a lot of people out there will drop what they're doing to help another person so selflessly.
"Thanks."
"I can't leave you like this."
He thought I was thanking him for helping me walk and not throw up at the same time. I'd let him keep thinking that for a while, yet. Me and gratitude, we don't always get along. That problems stems from the fact that I, too often, put my damn foot in my mouth and speak before I think.
Take me or leave me, that's how I am.
Vincent helped me to bed and took off my shoes. He actually took off my shoes. I've never had a man do that for me, and I've dated some real sweethearts.
Yeah, that's right- I totally have a soft spot for sweet guys. Can you blame me? The only type of man I want in my life should be sweet- I got enough sour vindictive douchebaggery from my father, thankyouverymuch.
"Is there anything you can stand to stomach when you're like this?" He asked as he pulled the bed covers up over me.
"No meat. Fruits, veggies, sometimes bread, like toast; nothing processed. Why?"
"I'm calling room service. We have time enough to take the night off for you to recover."
"Room service? I'm not made of gil, Valentine." It came out a little harsher than I had intended; sarcasm is difficult to deliver properly when you're sick to your stomach.
"My treat." And before I could protest further (yes, I'm -that- frugal), he'd already picked up the phone next to the bed and dialed for the kitchens.
By the time the trolley had come up, the room had stopped spinning enough for me to actually be propped up into a half-sitting position on the bed. The hotel worker, complete with what appeared to be a fake arrow through the neck, botched makeup job included (man, this hotel was fucking weird), dropped off the cart with the copious amount of food Vincent had ordered and left us to ourselves.
We ate in relative silence, for which I was thankful. Damn, I loved pineapple. I'm glad it wasn't a native fruit to Wutai- I'd never eat anything else. Pineapple wasn't exactly the best thing to eat on an upset stomach, but I didn't care in the slightest. I moaned, rolling my eyes back as I took another bite.
Vincent apparently caught on. "I take it you enjoy pineapple?"
"Was that sarcasm I heard in your voice, just now? Careful, Vincent- any more of that and I'll start thinking you're normal."
"I'm perfectly capable of making jokes. My sarcastic quota, however, is used up easily."
I smirked and ate a piece of banana instead.
"May I ask you a question, Yuffie?"
"I think you just did, but you're more than welcome to ask another."
He rolled his eyes ever so slightly. "It's about this whole summons business."
"Yeah? And?"
"You're Wutain. Why haven't you called on Leviathan?"
It was my turn to roll my eyes, but I was sure to be dramatic about it. "Gee, Vinnie, I never thought of that." I ate another slice of banana. "Because it would be weird. Because I grew up praying to and worshiping the water-snake. Because when I was seven, I promised to be good forever if I got a new kimono for my birthday. Because, even though I've met Ifrit and Phoenix and they were complete dickbags, I still pray to Leviathan, still hope against hope that he's perfect and awesome and just like I picture him."
"Dickbags?"
Really? Did the rest of my little speech go entirely over his head?
"Yes. Dickbags; adjective- an infantile insult, named after burlap sacks full of dismembered wangs."
He went quiet and I studied his face.
"Are you... Are you blushing, Vincent?"
He sighed and turned away from me. Under his breath I heard him mutter something along the lines of, "like a child, I swear." I laughed, ate some mango, and flipped on the shitty little television that sat on the dresser across the room.
This whole trip was going to be so much fun.
I'm glad we rested for the night, because the next day was aggravating to the extreme. "In the tree of lights. Really, Phoenix? That's all we fucking get? How can something so pretty be such a-"
"Don't anger them. Be thankful we at least managed that much."
"That's it, I'm asking someone."
"Yuffie, don't. I-"
"Hey," I shouted to the kid picking up trash off the tables in the food court. "Is there any kind of materia kept on show or offered up as a prize for the fighting arena?"
The kid looked surprised at first, like he wasn't actually used to talking to people while on the clock. He stumbled with his answer at first. "There's, uh, some, uh, materia as a prize for the roller-coaster. You have to beat the current-high score to get it, though. It's been up for nearly a year and no one's managed to get it, so if you're thinking of trying you might want to think twice."
"Thanks." I turned back to Vincent who had a slightly annoyed look on his face. "See how easy that was?"
"Are you not aware of how unbelievably lucky that was?"
"And what were you going to do all day? Hunt around on the floor with a magnifying glass?"
He just glared at me, but that's not much different from what he normally looks like, so it was hard to tell. "Keep your face like that, Vinnie, and it'll freeze that way." I turned and headed for the tunnels.
I'd been standing in front of the coaster for a good ten minutes before he showed up. There were six people in line in front of me. Thank goodness it was off-season.
"About time you showed up," I chided, motioning him over. "I can't ride this thing, so I've been saving your spot."
"I'm supposed to ride it?"
"No, you're supposed to beat the high-score. I'd ride it, but unless you want to watch me puke again I'd suggest taking my place in line."
He did, and he didn't look happy about it. Well, what other choices were available to us? I wasn't getting on that vomit-inducing death-trap.
His first run didn't go so well. When I asked how he managed such a pitiful score, he scowled at me, which means his face became somewhat darker, and he retorted with a quick and bitter, "I'm trying. The gun in the middle seat doesn't work that well."
On his second run, he got marginally better. I still, however, teased him about it.
"You care to give it a go?" He motioned toward the line.
I merely smiled up at him, cheeky.
On his third try, angels only know how, Vincent managed to beat the high-score. The attendant, as Vincent was climbing out of the seat, tried to make a big deal out of it, but my gloomy friend was having none of it. "May I just have my prize, please?"
A bright red summon orb exchanged hands, and I giggled delightedly.
Vincent, however, was having none of it. As soon as the materia was in his hands he made a straight shot toward me, grabbed my arm, and hurried me out of the area.
"What's the hurry?"
And then, from down the hall as we entered the tunnel area, I heard, "The ride is on fire!"
"Holy shit, Vincent! What did you do?"
All he had to do was flash Cerberus in his hip-holster and I knew.
"Oh, you didn't."
"You wanted the damn thing, didn't you?" he sounded upset. "The laser gun wasn't working, and I didn't want to ride it again."
I couldn't help it. I laughed. I laughed good and hard.
"Keep it up, Yuffie, and they'll catch us. We're leaving. Now."
And that's the story of how Vincent and I were no longer welcome at the Gold Saucer. Well, to be fair, they never actually -caught- us, but it's not like either of us were willing to go back and give them the chance to.
We made my cave hide-away our home-base thereafter. It was easy, considering it was the perfect area to call out the summons where no one else could see us. And, seeing as how I was awesome, it was filled with all the accoutrements of any normal home. The only real difference was that most houses had wallpaper where I had stalactites.
My couch was of the most hideous decor, but it was as comfortable as a fluffy cloud so I decided to forgive the vintage light-brown background with blue flowers and strange vine design. It folded out into a bed, too, which is where Vincent took to sleeping while we stayed.
"Don't do any more talking, dammit. I don't want you to get in trouble." I felt like a mother scolding my child, but if I didn't tell him to keep his finely-sculpted, perfectly-shaped nose out of it, he'd shove it right the hell in.
"I promise nothing," he answered, completely unruffled. "If I think you're in danger, or if you can't handle yourself, I'll do what must be done to keep you safe."
I should have thanked him. Instead, I lowered my eyelids and glowered, setting to work on the arcane symbols about the floor.
"You're doing this all from memory?" He sounded impressed.
My ego puffed up, but I played it cool. "Yup. I used several books when I called Ramuh, and had to piece most of it together out on paper, but now it's all up in my head. Bet you didn't know I had such a good memory."
"The fact that it seems you use any of your brain in even a part of its capacity is astounding in its own right."
"You need to work on the sarcasm. It doesn't sound right when you're so damn monotone all the time."
"Who said I was being sarcastic?"
I threw a piece of chalk at him, galled by the insult he'd flung at me but somehow proud that he made an attempt at being humorous. I must have been rubbing off on him.
We lit the candles, knelt on the floor next to one another, and began the ceremony.
"Bahamut, father of destruction, heed our call." I bowed my head, Vincent following my example.
The flames of the candles flickered.
"We seek your help- lend us your knowledge, speak with us, and we shall grant you whatever is in our power to grant."
Phoenix and Ifrit had come forth in a bath of flame. Bahamut was, surprisingly for the king of dragons, much less showy. One moment there was nothing in the space between Vincent and I and the wall, and the next there was a giant winged beast hovering there.
Bahamut stretched his wings, knocking things off the counter-top and tables around him. His wingspan was huge, yet he was just short enough that only the top of his head bumped the ceiling.
He looked down at Vincent and I, his black eyes looking as though they were on fire from the reflection of the candles strewn about the room. "It's been so long since I was called out like this, so long since I've been able to stretch my limbs. Some means of thanks are in order. What do you want?"
I elbowed Vincent, glaring at him and silently screaming for him to shut his mouth- his jaw was practically on the floor. "Excuse my companion's gawking, dragon-lord. Those summons we have spoken to before you were not nearly as-"
"Courteous and laid back, yes, yes. Phoenix is stuck up, and Ifrit is a turd."
It was my turn for my jaw to drop, but I closed it quickly, hoping it merely looked like I'd forgotten what I'd tried to say.
Bahamut loomed over us. "Thanks for letting me out, sure, but I'm not here for free. You want something from me, then I want something from you."
Vincent bowed, having regained most of his composure back. "Anything that is within our power."
Bahamut thought for a few moments, scratching his scaly chin with his claws. "I want a book."
"You want a book?" I echoed, dumbly. Ifrit had me answering riddles, Phoenix took my happiest memory, and all the the giant dragon in front of me wanted was for me to pick something up at the damned library for him?
"What kind of book? Is there one you have in mind?" I'm glad Vincent spoke before I did, because I was just going to ask if he wanted a book again.
Bahamut tilted his head, momentarily lost in thought again. "It's an old book. I don't know if it's around any longer, but a few hundred years ago, the last time I was called to visit a mortal, she let me read a book she'd been writing. It's wrapped in red leather, and it was a most... romantic play. It has a very sad ending, too. And there's the most magnificent hero and-"
Oh. Oh, angels above me. The dragon-king was a sap. "Do you know, uh, who wrote it, or what it was called?"
"It was a long time ago," Bahamut shot back, somewhat defensive. "I don't even know if it will still be around. Do your best and try to bring it to me and I'll answer whatever questions you have."
In a puff of smoke, he was gone.
I stood up, picked up the summon orb from the floor, and threw it at the cave wall. It bounced back and down the hallway, clinking the entire way. "You asshole!" I griped. "A book about a hero and some romance! That's all we get? That's, like, half the damn books on the planet! You're-"
"I know what he's talking about."
I turned to Vincent, letting the rage wash past. "Yeah?"
"Loveless. The play itself was written by a woman, and is several hundred years old. It became popular not too long ago, right around the time Cloud joined soldier."
I narrowed my eyes. "And how do you know about it?"
Vincent stood. "My father had a copy. It was bound in red leather. I recall, very clearly, him donating his copy to the library at Cosmo Canyon."
"It's worth a shot. It's better information than when I came to you and asked about your Phoenix materia." I snuffed out a few of the candles that were still burning.
"...You never told me how you knew."
"And I'm not going to, either. A great ninja never reveals her secrets."
He flipped a switch and the gentle hum of electric lighting filled the silence as the lights turned on. "It had something to do with my family, didn't it?"
"You really want to know? You're not going to make fun of me for it?"
He merely gave me a cautious look.
I sighed, resigned. "Shake, one of the fighters in the pagoda, had been leaving the library unlocked at night for me. I'd been doing research, since materia used to be something that was handled on a daily basis and passed down from generation to generation. The summons were the ones that were recorded carefully, and weren't really given away unless there was a huge celebration. When your dad married your mom, Phoenix was given to your family as a gift from my family. I knew it was a long shot when I went to ask if you had it, but I couldn't imagine something as valuable as one of the minor deities of Wutai being passed around like a party favor."
He studied me for a long time, making me feel like I was some kind of specimen behind glass. "What? It wasn't like I had any better ideas." I turned and began to pick up off the floor the things that Bahamut had knocked over.
"That idea, your plan, was surprisingly... well-informed. I would have never guessed to look in old record books. Even if I hadn't had Phoenix when you asked me, I would have known about it. My mother prayed to the same orb when I was young, so even if I no longer had it, I would have known of it, or at least might have had some idea where to go looking for it."
My ego having been inflated, I allowed myself a small, smug smile. "Yeah, well, it was better than a straight shot in the dark, which was the only other alternative I had."
"Shall I call Red and tell him to expect us?"
I opened the fridge and took out a juice box. "You're not going to tell him why we're visiting, are you?"
Vincent raised an eyebrow at me, flashing me a look of disbelief and amusement. I think it was the most emotion I saw on his face for any elongated period of time. Yup. I was rubbing off on him.
The conversation was short and lacked details, which I was thankful for. When Vincent flipped his phone shut, I asked him if I could borrow it.
He tossed it to me, only asking what I wanted it for afterward. "I've got an idea."
I logged into a popular GaiaNet site where people the globe over could trade whatever junk they had for whatever junk someone else had. I'd used it a few times before my phone had broken (long story short- I will never ride a bike and store my phone in my pocket again) when I'd needed random supplies and lacked funding yet had an overabundance in useless, replicated materia and hi-potions. Shops on the road, in the middle of nowhere, often charged double for their supplies and paid only half of what you wanted to sell your own for, so in the long run the site had come in handy during my travels.
"I'm posting up an ad on the Net for us. 'Seeking mastered summon materia. Willing to haggle price. Email with any information.' I figure it might be another shot in the dark, but even if it helps us once it won't be a complete waste of time."
"Logical thinking. I'll keep an eye on my inbox for any replies."
We ate dinner as if, ten minutes before, a giant dragon hadn't been hanging out in our kitchen and half of the living room. I pulled out the hide-a-bed for Vincent, offered him a clean bedspread (washed by hand, thank you very much- a washing machine would be too much of a hassle to drag to the cave and hook up, not to mention the fact that it would end up being too much on my poor, hand-fixed water heater) and said good night.
My bedroom was weird. The room, before my cave had been my cave, had obviously been some kind storage facility. I'd kept some of the shelves that lined the wall, and had taken to collecting strange things that only really had meaning to me. I had a bag of chocobo down from Rhu's last shedding season (come May and I would have enough to make a nice, comfy pillow), a jar of buttons, a little box of of seashells, some unique glass bottles, a few stuffed animals. For being a cave, I'd made my bedroom surprisingly... homey. I liked it. It was entirely my own space.
I read for a few hours before bed, some old book I'd picked up in Mideel a couple of years ago and never bothered to actually open before. I was asleep before the seventh page. Vincent woke me with a gentle knock on my door in the early morning. "I've already packed our supplies."
"Don't you sleep?" I asked, opening the door and rubbing the sleep from my eyes.
I watched him weigh his answer. "Yes and no. I need far less sleep than you. My body is augmented, remember?"
I shot him a skeptical look, mostly due to my lack of fondness for chit-chat in the morning. I'd give it more thought and pester him about it later.
We were on the road again not long after. That's the nice thing about short hair- it's easy to wash and it dries in no time. Plus, I'm not really the type of girl to dabble in makeup. Sure, I have some because I do like to use it every once in a while, but usually, when fighting monsters that would sooner tear your face off, how you look really doesn't make it on the list of priorities.
I was behind Vincent for part of the ride, and I secretly reveled in being able to wrap my arms around him. I'm sure it made him extremely uncomfortable, but, ever polite and stoic, he didn't say shit about it. Which was good, because I wasn't letting go. Heavens above, he was sculpted by the powers that be.
I wondered what he'd look like with his shirt off...
"We're almost there."
I peered around his side. Sure enough, Cosmo Canyon was hardly a stone's throw away. Red met us by the gates. I jumped off Rhu's back and threw my arms around my furry friend. "It's good to see you again, fuzzy-butt."
Red made a big show of sighing and rolling his eyes, but I knew he loved the attention I lavished him with. No one else scratched him behind his ears in such a perfect way that his back leg went crazy. "We've been worried for you, Yuffie. You hardly check in any longer."
I stood, dusting my knees off. "I lost my phone a while back, and have just been too busy to get a new one. Vincent here is going to travel with me for a while, though, so if you need to talk to me you can call his phone."
Red didn't seem too satisfied with my response, but he let it be. He knew, thankfully, that he wasn't going to get much else from me and, unlike the rest of my friends, to just leave it alone. "Vincent said that you two were searching for a book?"
"Yup. We need a first edition of Loveless, if you've got it."
"I must warn you that I'm not sure what we have right now. There was a fire recently, and while it was contained before much could be damaged, we had to move all of our books to the back store room while we fix the library. The elders and I welcome you to look through it all, though."
Most people wouldn't guess it – in fact, I'm sure most of my friends would laugh and try to change the subject – but I'm a book person. I like the way books smell, the crinkle of the paper under my fingertips, both new and old. Books didn't judge me, they'd always been there when I needed them, and I could rely on them to remain forever unchanging. I wasn't a collector by any means, but I did have a secret stash of my favorites hidden away in an air-tight chest in the basement of my dad's house.
It took us two agonizing days to get through all of the boxes in the library, and we still ended up empty handed. "Oh, piss it!" I kicked an empty cardboard box. It sailed toward Vincent who caught it without looking up. "What are we going to do?"
Vincent rubbed his temples and sighed. "Let's sleep on it, and come up with something in the morning."
I tired to sleep, but I was too pissed off. Stupid Bahamut. Stupid book.
The door creaked open and I sat up. "Vincent?"
He paused on the threshold. "I didn't know you were awake. Apologies."
"... You're dressed. Where are you going?"
I was met with an elongated silence, broken only by a heavy sigh. "I think I may have an idea where we can find our book."
"In the middle of the night, by yourself?"
"Yuffie, it's in the Shinra Mansion."
I tossed the covers off and sprang up. "You're positive?"
He was only a silhouette, illuminated from behind by the lights from the hallway. "No. Not at all. But that is where my father worked, and even if I recall him donating the book to Cosmo's library, that doesn't mean it might not have found its way back to him."
"And it can't wait until morning?"
"...No. And you can't come with me."
Before I could call him on his bullshit, because I would go with him whether he liked it or not, he was gone. Bastard moved fast. I jumped out of bed and dressed, shoved whatever belongings I had back into my backpack and raced out of the canyon. I'd have to call Red when I caught of with Vincent and properly thank him for letting us crash and look through all of his books.
Navigating the plains in the dark was a pain in the ass, but I was more determined to follow Vincent than the darkness was to slow me down. The moon, nearly full, helped only slightly. I nearly twisted my damn ankle twice, but that was mostly due to the fact that I was running and not being overly careful.
Man, it's a good thing I'm in decent physical condition. I'd learned to travel light early on so my backpack was hardly a few pounds extra weight I had to worry about, but it still was almost sunrise before I made it through the desolate streets of Nibelheim.
Just like I knew it would be, the front doors of the Shinra Mansion were wide open. I raced to the secret spiral staircase and, screw the steps, I jumped.
Fuck, fuck, fuck- I knew he was an idiot, but I didn't know he was -that-big of an idiot. The guy could hardly talk about his past without becoming upset; what made him think he could confront his demons in the basement he was nearly killed and then tortured in?
He was bent over a table that had, more likely than not, been used for experimentation in the years before. Most likely his, too. "I told you that you couldn't come." His voice was deep, gravely, and remorseful.
"Bullshit," I spat, standing in the doorway. "You poked your nose into my business, so I'm taking the same liberty."
I knew Vincent was strong, but what I knew of his strength was a rough estimate. I'd seen him transform in battle, I'd seen him move faster than any other human could ever managed, but when he raised his fist and slammed it down on the table, effectively breaking it in half? I snapped to attention and tried to slow the sudden hummingbird-like drumming of my heart.
"I thought... I thought I could take it... And even if I couldn't, you weren't supposed to be here to watch me break."
"Break? Vincent, you're far from broken..." I took a step toward him, my hands and knees shaking.
"Perhaps not broken to you, but I'm twisted and undeserving."
I took a deep breath and pressed my hands against his back. "No one is perfect."
Stilling at this, he looked over his shoulder at me. "You don't think me a monster, do you?"
I smiled, trying to lighten the mood. "Not at all. I think you're easily the nicest, most caring and kind person I know."
Vincent's eyes narrowed slightly, as if I'd just insulted him.
"It's true. I don't know any other man who would have, when he found me battered, bruised, and unable to move, covered in my own piss, bathed me, fed me, and not take advantage of the fact that I was helpless."
His eyes softened. "You're my... friend. I couldn't just leave you like that."
"Yes, you could have. The fact that you didn't lets me know that you're better than most."
He sighed.
"Plus, look at all the help you've been. I would have never been able to figure out the book Bahamut was talking about was Loveless, not to mention I didn't have any idea where to even start looking for it. Besides, I wouldn't have managed to get Bahamut without you. I mean, you did use a real gun on an amusement park attraction and set the damn place on fire, but you still managed to get it."
He straightened, a I took a step back. "I'm sorry for being... difficult."
"Like I said, no one is perfect."
I watched as he ran a hand through his already mussy hair. "No, but I must keep a better handle on my anger."
"Look, Vincent; it's hard. Moving on is hard. Changing yourself is hard. Everything is fucking hard. But if life wasn't hard, our little victories wouldn't be worth it. We saved the world and what do we have to show for it?"
"Pride."
"And pride isn't worth shit unless you let it be. You had a hand in saving every living thing on this planet from a horrible end. You don't have to be ashamed of your past anymore because it doesn't matter."
"How can you say that?" He turned on me, his voice raising. "The past is what shapes us."
"No, it's what we let shape us. Take away a man's past and he will still keep going forward. I said it once Vincent, and I'll say it again; we're a lot alike. There is something in our past that we can't let go of. The difference is that I don't let it enslave me."
I turned away from him and walked toward the library. I was thankful for his help so far on my journey, but he was welcome to leave if he didn't promptly remove his head form his ass. My capacity for taking bullshit had reached its quota.
Loveless, a first edition, was sitting snug between a book so old that the cover had worn off the binding, and a book that held the most interesting name of, 'The Unusual Mating Habits of the Green-Scaled Three-Horned Miasma-Breathing Dragons of the Inner Sanctum of the Upper Rivers of Gongaga' on the third shelf next to the door. The binding was a bright red, the color of freshly-split blood, and I vaguely wondered what kind of monster hide it was made from. Regardless, I swiped the red book I'd been searching for off the shelf and began back toward the staircase.
"Don't... don't go."
I turned and Vincent was behind me. I hadn't even heard him move. "I have stuff to do. Either you're with me, or you're not, but I'm done with this shit. I know your past is part of who you are, and maybe it's a little bitchy of me to tell you just to let it go, but you're not even trying to move on. I'm heading back, and you're welcome to do whatever the hell you want to. Thanks for all your help."
I turned, and that was the end of it.
I may have totally had a big-girl crush on Vincent – in some respect even loved him as a fellow comrade and member of some weird messed up family I'd gained when I'd joined up with he and the others - but, call me angry, bitter, selfish, or all three, I had my own life to live and I owed no one anything. I'd watched Vincent's back just as much as he had watched mine while we'd been up in the crater, but, when it came right down to it, none of them remembered my birthday or called me to invite me over for supper. No one asked if I was alright, even though they bitched if I went missing. They were my friends, they were my family, but they were not my keepers.
Long story short, I, Yuffie Kisaragi, have come to terms with the fact that I will most likely spend the greater portion of my life in solitude.
And, as depressing as it was, I really wasn't going to fight it. Other people and me? We just didn't get along. I know I'm noisy and loud and I like things that others think are weird, but I am, completely and in my own right, an individual. I don't let the thoughts and judgments of others bother me. Well, most of the time. I hated to think that Vincent thought me a little cruel, true, but I'm not strong enough to carry the load of baggage his fine ass comes with. Besides, it's not like he'd even give me a second look in that respect; I'm sure he saw me as the annoying little sister of the group, forever spouting curse words and getting into mischief.
Perhaps I was better off without him in the long run. I'd made it twenty years well enough, and nearly half of my life on my own. What was another few decades?
Okay, yeah, that was really depressing.
Whatever.
The ride home was somber. Even Rhu seemed a little depressed over the fact that we'd lost his new friend. Yes, Vincent had made friends with my chocobo. It wasn't hard. Rhu liked anyone who fed him more than once. Then they weren't strangers any longer. He was a good bird, I'd give him that, but he was also a little dumb.
I took my time getting back home. Feeling a little down, I tired to cheer myself up by picking a bunch of moon-lilies in the fields near the sea outside of my cave. They were closed, as moon-lilies are during the day, but come sunset they would open up and make my dank little home smell a little less like cave-stank. I tired to cover up the smell of mold and moss as best I could, and cleaned on a regular basis when I was around, but whatever had fucking died in my cave a million years ago had left its smelly funk behind forever.
Better than fish-smell, but not by much.
I penned up Rhu and walked to my kitchen for a snack. There, on the table, was a bulky little envelope with my name written in Wutain on the front. Before I'd even touched the package I knew it was from Vincent. I sighed and opened it. A brand-new cellphone plopped into my hand. There was a little red light blinking on the outside, and when I flipped the phone open I was promptly notified that I had a new voice message. I hit send and pressed the phone to my ear.
"I bought you a phone so you can keep track of the ad you put up on GaiaNet and... and so you can call me if you need me. I was hoping to catch you, but you weren't home and it didn't feel right to wait for you. I apologize for my behavior, for any cruel words. I was not myself... Stay out of trouble. I... I hope you find the answers you're looking for."
"Vincent Valentine," I growled to the phone as I flipped it closed. "You're a Grade-A ass-wipe."
I tossed the phone on the table, crossing my arms in anger. Then, feeling bad I'd thrown the phone in the first place, I picked it up and slid it gently into my pocket. Even when he was hung up about all of his own problems, Vincent was still kind enough to worry about me. I regretted what I'd said to him now. It felt like weeks, not days, since I'd last seen him, but I was too arrogant to give him an apology this early on. I'd give it a few more days, call him back and-
My phone beeped. An e-mail? I flipped it opened and checked my messages.
'I have a mastered Shiva materia. I was hoping to trade for an Amulet. Please reply if you're interested.'
I jumped, pumping my fist in the air. "Finally, some luck!" I replied back as fast as my thumbs could type. 'Very interested, have Amulet. Can meet you to make transaction easier.'
Practically skipping to my bedroom, I kicked open the door and began digging through the chest at the end of my bed. I knew I had an Amulet in there somewhere- no way would I toss out a battle accessory that boosts luck. I hadn't used it in Bahamut-knows-how-long, and-
"Oh, fuck- the book!" I'd totally forgotten to give Bahamut his book! I'd been so caught up in being pissed off at Valentine that I wasn't thinking! I raced back to the kitchen and dug through my backpack, finding the book tucked safely away at the bottom.
Candles lit, arcane circles drawn on the floor, blah blah blah- I was going to need more chalk and candles after this summon. Dammit, I hate spending money.
I didn't bother with introductions this time. I placed the red orb on the ground and merely said, "I've got your book, dragon-king."
He appeared in front of me, one moment empty space and the next filled, with a toothy grin on his face. "Yes, yes, let me have it."
I handed it to him, but his big dragon paws were too large to do much with it. He frowned. No, wait, he-...
The king of dragons was pouting.
"Is that not what you wanted?" I asked, cautiously.
"No, no, you did well. This is what I asked for... but... I can't read it. My hands are too big."
I sighed and held out my hands. "I'll read it to you. How's that sound?"
He took a seat on the cave floor, folded up his wings, and leaned forward. And, for the next several hours, I read a giant dragon a beautifully tragic play about heroes and love and loss and by the end of it even I was fighting off tears. And I'm not sure how many people know this, but ninja-princesses don't cry.
Bahamut sighed. "That was nice. Thank you. Now, what is it you want from me?"
"I need to know who I am. And none of that cryptic crap Ifrit threw at me."
He chuckled. "Like I said, he's a turd. And, as for you question, I hate to say it but I can't answer it. All I know is that you're not completely human."
"Figured that one out."
"What about your parents? Have you asked them?"
"My mom is dead and my dad and I... Well, to put it simply, scouring the globe and finding summons to talk to is easier."
Bahamut gave me a look that took me a minute to interpret. He grimaced. It looked weird on a giant scaly face. "Thanks for going through all of the trouble to get me my book, though. I can at least spread the word that you're planning on calling out the others, and to treat you a little better than Ifrit did."
"Rahmu was nice. You know him?"
"We used to play cards, but he caught me cheating once and won't any more."
"Play cards?" I blinked in outright disbelief.
"Well, how else are we supposed to pass the time between dimensions? Can I ask you a question?"
"Uh, yeah, I guess."
"Where did you find me?"
I flapped my mouth up and down a few times, not completely sure I should share that information. "Uh, you were a prize for a roller-coaster game at the Gold Saucer."
The cave went quiet. "And you'll tell no one else of this, correct?"
I brought my hand up and saluted him. "You can count on me; my lips are sealed."
He was gone in the blink of an eye, but I could just barely hear his voice whisper, "If the others find out, I'll never live it down..."
I smiled, despite myself. After snuffing the candles out, I went back to my bedroom and finished digging through the chest at the end of my bed. I found the Amulet at the bottom, tucked away in a corner, wrapped nicely in a little scrap of fabric so it wouldn't get scratched from the multitude of other crap I'd shoved in the trunk over the past few years.
Without anything to do, as I was patiently waiting for this mysterious person with Shiva to message me back, I made myself something to eat and plunked down on the couch. I had a TV, but there was no way I could manage cable in a cave, no matter how awesome my rigging job with the hot water heater was. I had, however, found an old Shinra movie-player, circa way the hell before I was born, that still, somehow, managed to work. Another junk-yard find, for the win. Most of the movies I owned were junk-store finds, nearly all of them in black and white, but they had sound and were entertaining enough when there was nothing else to do.
After stuffing my face, I laid down on the couch. I didn't much care if I fell asleep while watching this particular movie – The Count of Costa del Sol – as I'd seen it a bafrillion times before; it was easily one of my favorites. Action, love revenge; what more could a girl ask for?
How about for her couch to stop smelling like Vincent Valentine? I sat up, suddenly put-off of the movie and being in the general vicinity of the living room. His scent isn't easily forgotten, that much is for sure. It's one of those smells that you never really notice when you're around him, but it lingers when he's gone. He must have sat here earlier, when he'd dropped off the phone he'd given me. It was a deep, heady scent, two parts sweat, one part darkness, and a little cinnamon and vanilla.
It made me miss him
Alright. I admit it. I could try and hide it all I wanted to, but the only person I was fooling was myself. I totally loved him. He was an asshole, he didn't put up with my bullshit, he was strong, kind, caring, tall, dark, handsome, and I fully admit that I wanted in his pants. Okay, I guess love was a strong word. I lusted after him. I wanted him. I wanted him to think of me.
But I'm Yuffie, and that pretty much sums it up. I'm nothing a man needs and everything a man doesn't want to take home to his family. I'm a good lay, or at least I think I am, but after the third or fourth month they get a little bored of me. Reno was the only man I ever left after we'd done the horizontal nasty simply because we hadn't been dating before and, well, I wanted his materia. My previous boyfriends? They tried to hide it, they all did, but I know when I'm not really welcome any more (despite many people stating otherwise- I simply like to piss off those who piss me off).
So to think that I could ever entertain the stoic demi-god that was Valentine for more than a few minutes with anything other than twenty-questions or the definitions to dirty slang words was, well, stupid. I was stupid. His pretty face was stupid.
I wanted to throw something, but I didn't; everything in my reach was breakable, and I didn't want to clean. I curled up in my bed, hugged my pillow close to me, and pretended that, just for a moment, I mattered.
How is that for fucked up? I save the world and the world ignores me.
I didn't cry. I wanted to. I really did. But I didn't, because one of the definitions of 'bad-ass' is 'doesn't cry' and I was a bad-ass so I didn't cry.
A crash in the middle of the night made me jump out of bed and into a fighting stance. The cave was quiet beyond that, and even Rhu, who normally flipped out over strange things, was silent.
Not good.
I slowly crept through the hallways, and while it was dark it was, after all, my home, and I knew the exact locations of any dips or bumps on the ground which means that I crept through the night as a ninja should; without making a damn sound.
I keep a little nightlight in the kitchen. Mostly because, when I get up in the middle of the night and want a drink of water, I don't want to break any dishes that I've placed on the counter before or something.
And that's where I saw her. Right on the counter, eating off of the plate that had the leftovers of my sandwich; a poor little kitty-cat with a gigantic belly full of babies.
When I sighed from relief, the cat looked a me, obviously frightened.
"It's alright, kitty-kitty," I tired to make my voice soft and kind. I like cats; I have a soft spot for them, most likely stemming from the fact that they, like me, don't need anyone else. Cats are solitary, but affectionate when they choose to be.
Slowly, I made my way to the counter opposite where kitty stood, tail bristled. I fished out a can of tuna, pun intended, and peeled back the poptop. The smell of fish got kitty's attention right away, and she went from being frightened to hungry and loving in half a second flat. I let her eat out of the can, gently petting her neck and back while she chowed down.
"You're welcome to make this your home, too, cat. Just don't have your babies on my bed, okay?"
She just purred.
I went back to bed, hoping she'd stick around. I felt so lonely...
At least one thing was looking my way; when I woke up in the actual morning, I had a new message from the Shiva-person. 'I live in the north, in Icicle Inn. My name is Twisp, and the innkeeper knows where to find me. See you soon?'
My reply was simple and to the point. 'Be there in two days.'
Kitty was gone by morning, the tuna can empty and on the floor. I hoped that she would come back.
Rhu was happy to be getting so much exercise. I was glad to get out of my cave, off the couch that smelled like Vincent. I did make it to Icicle Inn within two days, mostly because the Wutai Continent isn't too far from the Northern Continent, and mostly because I wanted that damn summon orb worse than ever. Vincent had been a distraction – a sexy one – but it was time for me to jump back to my own world, to my own goals and what possibilities the future might hold.
Sure enough, the inn keep at the Icicle Lodge, a shady-looking bear of a man, knew this 'Twisp' and directed me toward the old airplane factory a mile outside of town. Airplanes? In this shitty weather? Weird. The minerals in the north were easy to mine, if you don't mind losing your fingers and toes to the cold.
The place looked abandoned. It was obvious that hardly anyone had set foot inside the buildings for years. It must be cheaper to mine the minerals and ship them other places than to run an operation this far north.
An ominous feeling grew in the pit of my stomach. I didn't like the look of the building, I didn't like the sudden heaviness of the air. My instincts were screaming at me to run the hell away, but I wanted, no, I needed that materia.
I dismounted Rhu outside, in the forest, out of sight of the building. Stroking his neck, I pulled down his rigns and gave him a kiss on his feathery cheek. "Be good. If I whistle, you come in running and screaming and pecking and scratching, you hear?"
He tilted his head at me, and for a moment I had to remind myself that chocobos don't understand human tongue.
Taking a deep breath, I ventured toward the building.
Good thing I had the sense to dress warm. It was colder than Shiva's left nipple – maybe I shouldn't say that anymore, considering I was going to meet her – and my nose started running like crazy. At least it wasn't snowing.
The hanger of the main bay was open. "Hello?" I called, my voice echoing throughout the empty steel building.
He came out of a side door, what was most likely an office when the building had been functional. "You here for the materia?" He was a wispy little fellow, hardly taller than me but skinnier than a twig. Blond, shaggy hair fell to his shoulders, hiding bright, calculating eyes behind them. He was dressed to move, lightly, like the cold didn't bother him.
"Yup. I've got your amulet, just like you asked." I took the accessory out of my pocket and showed it to him.
We traded objects.
"Hey, why are you looking for mastered materia?"
"Oh, I'm collecting them for research." Not really a lie, but it was all he was going to get. I dug in my pocket, trying to find my choco-whistle. I wanted to leave, yesterday.
"What ones do you have?"
"Not many." Lie, stall, just keep blathering long enough to find your whistle and get the fuck gone.
"Well, I'm curious, because I'm looking for a few, too."
Another trade? "Do you have any other mastered summons?"
"Well, I've got a few, but tell me what you've got so I know what we can trade."
Nice try, asshole. I could smell his trickery a mile away. "I don't have any with me, actually. I could go home and message you back with the ones I have."
He sighed, obviously aggravated. Before I could pull out my Conformer, he held a gun at arm's length, aimed at me.
Shit shit shiiiiit.
I've fought some big monsters in my time, but I'm human and a bullet would still kill me from a close distance.
"Alright, I'm done pussyfooting around, girly. You're going to give me back the Shiva I just gave you, and then you're going to take off your nice warm jacket and give it here."
I swallowed, hard. He was close enough to kill me in one shot, but I wasn't close enough to knock his gun from his hands without being shot first. I held out the Shiva orb for him. He smiled as if he'd read my thoughts. "No, no, you throw it here."
Without seeing another option, I did as I was told.
He caught it, easily. "Now your nice, warm coat."
The moment I shed my coat I began to shiver, my teeth clattering together in the cold. Damn him. Damn me.
Twisp smiled. "How 'bout the rest of your clothes, too? Might as well have a little fun while-"
And then, something amazing happened. The high-pitched sound of metal on metal echoed, loud and clear, and Twisp's gun was flying out of his hand the next moment. I advanced, not caring what the hell had just happened; all I knew was that I was going to beat the piss out of the little jackass who dared to hold a gun pointed toward me.
He was quick. Quicker than me, but just by a fraction of a second. I swung at him, and he flipped backwards. "Stupid little cunt!" he spat at me.
And then, when the materia in his hand flashed red and lit up the place, I knew I was in even deeper shit.
Goddamn my luck!
"Kill her!" His voice was high-pitched, dripping with frustration.
"Oh, fuck you!"
I did my own set of back flips and dodged out of the way of Shiva's ice shards. I landed, dropped into a horse-stance, and prepared to get the shit kicked out of me.
But Shiva, tall, pale, and elegant, looked startled for a moment, like I somehow wasn't what she was expecting. Well, I hadn't exactly marked on my calender to fight a summon when I woke up, so the feeling was mutual.
"Yuffie!"
Seriously? As I stood before death, I heard Vincent calling out my name. That was awesome. Just goes to show how hung-up over him I am and-
"Catch!"
I hardly had a second to spare. I dodged another of Shiva's attacks, this one veering to my right and I leaped to the left. Hearing the familar 'whrr' of metal cutting through the air, I held up my hand and caught my Twin Viper, a weapon I hadn't used since I'd been in the crater.
A blur of red and suddenly Vincent Valentine was standing hardly three feet away from me.
"When the hell did you get here?"
He ignored my question as we both dodged an array of icy bullets. "You distract Shiva! I'll get Twisp!"
Easier said than done. Shiva looked both pissed off and nervous, which didn't make a damn drop of sense. If anything, she should have looked smug; she had elemental advantage.
We looked like a kung-fu movie as we fought, she I and. I threw my weapon, she dodged then charged, I flipped and her attacks missed, caught my weapon and threw it again, rinse, repeat.
Then, she held her hands up above her head and disappeared in a shower of diamond dust. Not before shooting me a rather dirty look before, mind.
I turned and saw that Vincent had Twisp by his scrawny neck, Cerberus nestled against the creeper's forehead. "Give me one damn good reason I shouldn't kill you."
I froze at that. In all the time I'd spent in the company of him, I'd never heard Vincent sound so... angry. It was like a dark aura had surrounded and suffocated the Valentine I knew and replaced it with something dark and sinister.
Twisp cried like a little bitch.
I had to remind myself to breathe. "Vincent, let him go."
Red eyes met mine and, for just a moment, I understood what true terror was like. I'd looked death in the eye on numerous occasions and felt fear for my life, but when I made eye contact with Vincent, I knew what it was like to fear my my sanity, to fear being overwhelmed.
Maybe this was what he meant when he talked about his inner demons...
"Let him go." Scared or not, I would stand my ground. Twisp was an awful little shit, but as I looked at him dangling from Vincent's grasp, his pants thoroughly soaked with his own pee, I felt pity for him.
Vincent turned from me and looked back to the blubbering fool. Then, he dropped him. Cerberus still pointed at the general area of Twisp's head, Vincent growled. He actually growled. "If I ever seen you anywhere near her again, I will kill you without hesitation. Do you understand?"
The stupid idiot passed out.
Vincent pried the summon materia from the twit's unconscious form and began toward me. For a fraction of a second my body reacted to how dark and terrifying he'd looked hardly a moment before, and my heart hammered in my chest. I felt adrenaline pump through me, making me slightly light-headed, and the urge to fight or flee kicked into over-dirve.
'It's just Vincent,' I reminded myself, over and over. 'He's your friend. Stop freaking out.'
His eyes were glowing. Vincent, by default, has crazy colored eyes – I mean, really! Who has red eyes? – but the glow in them made my heart jump up to my throat. He held out his hand, palm up, and presented the materia to me.
I forced myself to take a deep breath before I reached for it, our hands touching for the barest of moments. Vincent's hand went to his head, his middle and forefinger pressed up against his temple as though he was suffering from one hell of a headache. He closed his eyes, squishing his face up slightly.
"I apologize for..."
"Everything?"
He opened his eyes. They were no longer glowing, but he had a curious look about him. I could easily tell he was studying me.
"It's alright," I shrugged. "I forgive you. I guess I'm sorry, too. What I said back in the basement was... well, kind of bitchy."
"I deserved it."
"No, Vincent, you don't deserve my bitchiness. No one does. But, we're human; we can't help it sometimes. We let our emotions get the better of us."
This placated him.
"Thanks for the phone. And, well, saving my ass back there."
"I forwarded the message to you, and I apologize for reading it without your per mission. I... I didn't trust what was written. It bothered me."
I smiled, holding my new materia up toward the sun. "I'm glad you trusted your instincts. I didn't, and it nearly got me killed. Wanna call her up right now?"
He tilted his head, obviously still studying me. "I suppose we might as well."
I put back on my coat and emptied the pockets. Only a few candles this time, but seeing as how Shiva was the deity presiding over ice, I figured she would be alright with it. I was on my last bit of chalk, and by the time I'd finished drawing the symbols on the hanger floor, I was down to less than half an inch.
"I'm still amazed that you can reproduce these arcane glyphs purely based on your memory."
Impressed or not, it still sounded like a diluted insult. I let it slide, based off the week poor Vincent seemed to be having, and perhaps a little because I was glad to have him with me again. Whether or not he would stay was a different matter all together, but a girl can hope.
"Come. Sit down. Let's get this shit over with."
He did as he was told, sitting on his knees on the cold concrete floor next to me.
We bowed.
"Shiva, sister to all the children of Gaia, heed our call."
Like always, the candles flickered.
"We seek your help- lend us your knowledge, speak with us, and we shall grant you whatever is in our power to grant."
Shiva was showy. Bright lights, glitter, the whole shebang. She looked pissed off, too, which wasn't a good look for the ice queen. "Bahamut told me you might bother me. What do you want?"
She was pretty, for a bitch. Pale skin, flawless complexion, sharp eyes- it was a pity she opened her mouth and ruined it.
I bowed my head to keep from spitting verbal poison her way. "We seek answers, Queen of the Frost. We only ask that you listen to our questions."
She crossed her arms. "My counsel comes at a price."
'It always does,' I thought bitterly. "Anything that is within out power to grant, Lady of the North."
She looked at me in such a way that I felt like chocobo shit on the bottom of someone's shoe.
"I want a necklace made of ice that never melts."
I wanted to punch her in her smug mouth.
Thankfully, Vincent spoke before I could. "Yes, my lady. We will call you once again when we have found what you ask of us."
And then she was gone.
I stood and spat. "Stupid bitch. I totally just kicked her ass in combat and she has the balls to act like a cantankerous thundercunt."
"Please, don't elaborate on the definition of that word. Come. We'll go back to to the village. I have an idea on what we can give her."
I let my anger seep the ride back. Rhu, faithfully stupid bird that he was, came the moment I blew the whistle. He was happy to see Vincent again, which in turn made me happy because I wasn't the only one glad to see him.
"A jewelry store? Really?"
He looked over his shoulder at me. "Do you have a better idea? Her fighting style is called Diamond Dust, after all."
I could already tell it was going to drain my wallet.
"I wish to see your finest selection of diamond necklaces, please."
Listen to Vincent, all formal and proper and not filled with rage. I was too angry to pay attention to most of the transaction. The necklace that we purchased was silver chained, and, well, actually kind of pretty. I'm not the type of girl to wear jewelry, just like how I don't really wear makeup; because when you fight for a living, it's really not something you should be wearing in the first place. Rings can get caught and break fingers, necklaces and get caught up in hair or claws. It just wasn't worth it in the long run.
It came time to pay and I pulled out my wallet. Vincent, because he was just like that, stilled my hands with his, then took out his own wallet.
"Oh, no you don't, Valentine. This is my problem. I can't let you pay for it."
"Consider it my apology for losing control, then. For leaving you on your own."
The jeweler had a confused but patient look on his face while he awaited payment. He had no idea what the hell we were talking about, thank the moogles, and with as hefty of a sale as ours on the line, it was no wonder he waited patiently with his trap shut.
I rolled my eyes, trying to be dramatic. "You already apologized, but whatever. Spend your money." What? I wasn't going to fight it. If he wanted to drop that kind of cash for me, I wasn't going to stop him. It's not like I was going to be wearing the necklace, anyway. It's not like anyone ever buys me jewelry in the first place. Or asks me if I want some. Or even thinks about me looking nice.
Bitter? Me? No, of course not.
The point was moot; I didn't even own a dress, much less a skirt. What would I do with a diamond necklace? (If anyone answers that rhetorical question with something like, "she'd hock it," I will punch said offender in the mouth).
We bought more chalk and some new tea candles on the way out of town, too. I bought a pack of jerky, just to put something in my tummy. Near brushes with death and I have been coming a little too close of friends for comfort.
More circles, more candles, more bowing. I was getting real sick of this shit. What did I have for an alternative, though? Yeah, pretty much nothing.
Vincent presented the box to her, bowing respectfully when he placed it in her outstretched fingers.
Interesting. She had an extra joint on all of her fingers.
She held it up and her face softened. "You're smart, I'll give you that." We waited while she put on her new trinket. "Now, ask your silly questions."
"Who am I?"
Shiva crossed her arms while she looked down at me. "I know, but you're not yet ready for the answer."
"You say you know. Is that why you pulled your punches when we fought?"
She stiffened. "You could tell?" There was genuine curiosity in her voice.
"I've been a martial artist my whole life- I can read body language better than most people can actually read. Why were you going easy on me?"
Her eyes glided up and down my frame. She was measuring me. "That is part of what you're not ready for. Let's just say I owe someone a favor."
"Can you guide us to our next destination, Lady Snow?" There Vincent was again, being polite and acting like a gentleman.
Shiva took a real shine to him. She was taller than Vincent, easily by at least a foot, but she didn't let that deter her. One of her pale hands cupped his cheek. "You're a handsome one, aren't you?"
"You toy with me." Was that... what that shyness I heard in his voice?
She smiled. "For you, I will share at least one of my secrets. Ten miles north of here, and two miles east from there, you will find a cave. In in it lies who next you must seek."
Flashy to arrive, flashy to depart; Shiva was all glitter and bright lights.
Attention whores usually were.
"What a"
"Yuffie, be nice."
"Fine, fine. You're no fun."
I called Rhu again.
"You're leaving for the north already?"
I shrugged, getting ready to climb on Rhu's back. "I don't really have many other options, if you haven't noticed."
He sighed. "Yuffie, your bird won't make it."
"It's, like, twelve miles. It's not a big deal."
"No, Yuffie, I mean your bird won't make it. There are monsters that come down from the hills just to eat chocobos."
I eyed Rhu. He tilted his head down at me, not a care in his feathery little head.
"Well, fuck."
"I... I might have a solution. That is, if you'll permit me to travel with you."
I made a big, dramatic deal about rolling my eyes. "I guess I can permit it." The sarcasm was lost on Vincent. It usually is, so that's no surprise. Or, to be fair considering I couldn't read minds, he might have got the joke, and simply lacks a funny bone. That wouldn't raise suspicion, that's for sure. "What's your plan?"
"I can teleport."
I started at him. "No shit?"
"Is very limited, and it's drastically draining on my strength, but I'm able to do it."
"What about me? I can't just wait here for you and do nothing."
"So long as we're touching, I can take you with me. I've managed it once before, in the crater with Nanaki and Cid. Part of the cave collapsed and I reached out for them before I really understood what I was doing. The next moment we were about twenty feet in the opposite direction."
"Wait. Only twenty feet?"
"I've had nothing but time to practice since." The look in his eye was almost smug. "How do you think I got to your cave to give you the phone so quickly?"
Well, that actually explained how he so easily followed me back in the first place, back when I'd been summoning Phoenix.
"And you're sure it'll work?"
"Yes, but I will be... drained afterward. Nauseous."
I knew how that felt. "Can you get us back?"
"If I rest for a small while, yes. Do you have food in your bags?"
"Uh, yeah- some dried fruit and stuff."
"Good. Food speeds the healing."
"Well, should we get going then?"
"Tend to your chocobo first."
I pulled Rhu's reins down, making him eye level with me. "Go home."
He chirped. Sure he was a little dumb, but he was a good boy and easy to train. 'Go home' was one of the first commands I ever taught him. He doesn't really actually go home, because he doesn't like the cave unless I'm there with him, but he hangs around the outside, near the cliffs, and simply grazes and does bird stuff until I come home. Rhu took off running.
Vincent raised an eyebrow. "You taught him to go home?"
"More or less. This shouldn't come as a surprise, Vincent. After all, I am awesome."
He had no response to that other than to ignore it. He'd taken off the glove on his good hand and held it out to me. "Shall we?"
"Let's do this." I put my hand in his. The air shimmered as if were were in the desert in the middle of heatwave, but the snow didn't melt around us. And then, we were ten miles north. And, despite having just teleported, we were then two miles to the east. I didn't know how perfect Vincent's calculations were, but the man just teleported us so I really wasn't going to bitch if we ended up having to walk for a little while.
He fell against me, gasping for air.
"Shit, Vincent; are you alright?"
I was helping him stand, but mostly because I'd given myself good grounding against his weight with my footing. His hands grabbed my shoulders, and he stood there, against me, panting for a moment. "Yes. I'll be fine. Just too much at once, that's all."
"You mentioned food helping you; can you stand long enough for me to dig something out of my bag for you?"
Slowly, methodically, he inched away from me until he was holding only my shoulder for balance. His eyes were clouded and he seriously looked like he needed a nap. As quick as I could I rummaged through my pack and brought out the first thing I got my hands on; dried pineapple.
What? I said I loved the stuff.
I tore the top off the plastic and opened it for him. He carefully took a piece, chewed it slowly, and then sighed. "You really have a thing for pineapple, don't you?"
Unable to help the smile that drifted across my face, I giggled. There was really nothing I could say to counter his witty remark, so I simply let it be.
And, because lady luck would totally get off by kicking me in the balls if I had any, trouble began to stir. I knew it was only a matter of time; I mean, after all, it had been at least a few hours since my last brush with death, looking down the barrel of a gun and having to fight a bitchy ice-queen.
The ground beneath us rumbled, and the trees around us shook. I heard Vincent suck in his breath, I heard the fear in his voice. "Yuffie. RUN!"
He took my hand and we began hauling ass. "What the hell is going on?"
"Avalanche! Keep running! I can almost teleport us again and-"
Seriously, Gaia; what was your problem? One moment an we were running from an avalanche and the next were were falling through a hole in the ice. I'd say it was bad luck, but at this point it was just the world trying to fuck me over.
The ground was coming up fast, or what I hoped was the ground; the cave we were falling into was dark and obviously deep, so I really had no idea what was below us. Vincent, because he's crazy fast, pulled me close to him and flipped us over. I knew what he was doing; he was trying to protect me from the fall.
I thought I was falling for hours. It turns out I'd passed out. When I woke up, my head was resting on Vincent's lap and there was a small fire build in front of us.
"You're awake." I don't know how he knew, but he did. I carefully sat up, making sure I hadn't hurt anything.
"Are you well?"
"I think so. Shit, that was crazy."
"Indeed."
I looked down and saw his foot was lying in... well, to put it politely, bones don't bend that way. "Oh, angels, Vincent- your foot!"
"It's broken."
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! It's all my fault! If I-"
He held up his hand but when I wouldn't shut up he put a finger on my lips. "You did not cause this. Being sorry does not change the fact that I willingly put myself in harms way to protect you. Had you hit the ground first, you likely would have died, so it is better my foot than your life."
I whimpered, feeling useless and bothersome.
"There is, however, something you must do to help.
"Anything," I pleaded, under his finger.
"You have to break it again."
I felt myself pale. "I have to what?"
"I heal faster than you. My bone is already knitting itself back together. If I leave it in such an... inauspicious position, I'll likely walk with a limp for the rest of my life."
Forcing myself to take a deep breath, I calmed my nerves. A gunman with a limp wasn't really dignified, especially when he would have to tell the story of how he managed to get it. No monster fighting, no duels. No, he hurt his foot falling into a cave and saving my scrawny ass.
"Help me."
"I'll walk you though it."
It was the most disgusting thing I'd ever done, re-breaking someone's bone. The snap and crunch, the grunt Vincent made when the bone snapped. I leaped away and vomited in the corner, trying to calm myself the hell down.
"You did well." He sounded pained, like he was saying it to himself instead of to me.
I dry heaved in response. Not the most dignified things to retort, but I really couldn't help it given the circumstances.
"How did you managed a fire?" I asked when I was finished.
"I am able to see in the dark, somewhat. I did nothing but use fire magic; the fire pit was already there."
"Already there?"
"You can't see it, but we're in a... a temple of sorts, it looks like."
"...You're weirding me out. A temple?"
"Yuffie, we're in the temple of Alexander."
My heart did a little victory twist inside my stomach. "Can you stand?"
"If you help support me."
I managed to him standing, and he draped an arm on my shoulder for support. He was strange seeing the almighty Vincent Valentine hobble about on one leg, but he'd saved my life so I owed it to him to not crack a joke.
At least until he was feeling better.
He navigated us through the dark, a surprisingly patient feat for him considering we were moving at a painstakingly slow pace. But, he was hurt, and no matter how impatient I was, I wasn't going to rush him. Which means, basically, that I kept my stupid mouth shut.
I couldn't see shit, which really sucked, but Vincent was kind enough to let me know when there was a hole or a rock in my path, so it sort of evened everything out. Like I mentioned, it was slow-going, but eventually we made to to... Well, I'm not really sure what we'd made it to, as it was pitch black and the fire he'd started was a speck of light behind us.
"If I hold a solitary flame up, can you draw your circles?"
I leaned him against what I assumed was the cave wall and began through my pockets for what felt like the millionth time that day. "I've got those tea candles in here, so those might help a little, too."
They didn't. Note to self; pay a few gil more for the nicer candles. You never know when you'll be stuck in a giant cave with no light and needing to draw complex symbols on the floor.
True to his word, Vincent held his fire up well enough to guide me through most of the art. It was difficult, obviously, but mostly because I had to face a certain way when I was drawing so that I wouldn't block the light.
"Here we go again," I sighed as we started the ceremony.
"Alexander, guardian of light, brother to all those on Gaia; heed our call."
What normally happens at this point, or at least to the other summons that I've called out thus far, the lit candles would flicker a little. Nope. All fire, even the campfire on the other side of the cave, went out.
I took a deep breath. "We seek your help- lend us your knowledge, speak with us, and we shall grant you whatever is in our power to grant."
Where Phoenix, Ifrit and Shiva had been all show before, Alexander was a true sight to see. It was as if someone had opened a hole in the ceiling and let in a single shaft of light from heaven.
Alexander slowly appeared.
He want gigantic. He hardly fit into the cave. I leaned back, hoping to get a better look, but Vincent's hand on my back prevented me. The look he shot me was coarse, letting me know I needed to put my polite face back on. I leaned forward without a word and suddenly felt silly.
I mean, can I really be blamed for wanting to get a look at him? He's a giant fucking castle thing.
He let out a sigh – at least, I thought it was a sigh; I'm not an expert on the vocalizations of giant fucking castle things, but that's what it sounded like. "Ahh, yes," his voice echoed throughout the cave, the air around him gushing out and blowing my hair back. "The others told me I should expect you."
"Oh, holy one, we-"
"Now, now, child, I'm not like my brothers and sisters. No formalities with me. I've been stuffed in a cave for hundreds of years; none of this propriety for propriety's sake."
Well, that was like a breath of fresh air, let me tell you what. Even Vincent had it in him to slouch even the slightest bit in relief.
"They others say you have questions for me, yes?"
"And what payment do you seek?" I still couldn't -quite- cut the formal speech. Shiva and Ifrit had put my hair on end. I was still expecting Alexander to roll his eyes and say something bitchy (to be fair, I didn't even know if he had eyes, but the point is still solid, dammit).
"I am not completely positive of what I want out of you, if anything at all."
Oh great, he was indecisive.
"Ask your questions, little one."
"Alright. Who am I?"
A thunderous sound echoed through the cave, and Alexander moved up and down slightly; the bastard was laughing at me. "You are no more or no less than who you choose to be. You are Yuffie, you are of the Kisaragi clan, you are a seeker of materia the world over, and you are kind even though out of your mouth often spills the venom of a thousand lamias."
Gee, thanks asshole. You're a giant castle with a stick up your butt.
"I mean what am I? Ifrit told me-"
"Ifrit gave you more information than he should have, despite not knowing. If I told you now, the repercussions would simply strike you numb. No, you still have a bit of a journey before you, the both of you, together, before any real answers will make sense."
So, what he was saying was that he knew me, but he was going to pull a dick move and not tell me. Great. Just great.
"Where, then, should we go next?" Vincent asked, and I'm glad he did because I was really tired of all the cryptic shit these summons liked to throw at me and was just about ready to tell them all off. I just survived a gun being pointed to my head, a fight with the biggest frigid bitch on the planet, an avalanche, and a fall into a giant cave; cut me a freaking break. Seriously.
"In the depths of Cosmos lies dormant the king of the earth. You will find him where the sun and the moon can both be seen."
I wanted to hit something. Hard. I'd already played the riddle game with Ifrit; I didn't need this.
Vincent to the verbal rescue, which was becoming, thankfully, more common than not as of late. "Thank you, Alexander. How may we repay you for the information you've shared with us?"
Alexander didn't have eyes, but somehow I knew he was looking at me. "I wish you to share your thoughts, child."
Oh, shit. Please tell me he couldn't read minds. Please please please tell me he couldn't read minds.
That weird laugh of his rang out again, and I knew he could. "Not with me. With him. Share with him the one secret you would never, on your own, come to speak."
"...No."
"I'm not giving you a choice. Tell him, or I shall tell him."
"No."
"I shall tell him, then."
"No. No you fucking won't."
"And what do you think you could possibly do to stop me?"
"I will punch you in the fucking face. Or something."
"This is your payment. Tell him, or I shall tell him. You already promised me whatever it is I seek that is within your power to grant, and it would, after all, be better coming from your own lips."
Fuck.
I turned to my red-clad comrade. "Vincent Valentine?"
He turned to me, and eyebrow cocked.
"I am hopelessly in love with you."
It turned back to Alexander. "You're an asshole. Thanks for the help."
But he was gone.
"Yuffie?"
I stood. "I want to go home. Is your weird power back online, or do you need some more fuel?"
"I'm not a damn machine, and don't change the subject."
"I'm cold, I'm tired, I don't have any food in my stomach, I'm angry, I'm embarrassed beyond all hell and you won't answer my question. Can you please take me home, Vincent?"
I didn't have the heart in me to look at his face. My own face was red – I could feel it. In fact, I'm fairly sure that my face was inventing several new shades of red. I didn't care. I wanted to go home, eat something that was horrible for me, curl up in bed and never look at Vincent Valentine ever again.
He must have felt my distress. He quieted, took off his glove, and sighed. "I will need to rest at your home; I must stay off my ankle until it heals properly."
"Fine. You were sleeping on my couch before, weren't you? A few more days won't be that big of a deal." I was blabbering. I needed something to fill the space between us, and verbal-diarrhea was all that I could muster.
"Take my hand."
Easy for you to say.
Still, I did what I was told and the next moment I blinked I was in my cave-home, with all of my cave-home miss-matched furniture and that covered-up cave-home stank.
The breath he took was one laced with pain. He grabbed his chest and shut his eyes tightly, trying to catch a breath.
"Shit, shit- what do I do? Tell me what to do."
"I'm fine," he sighed after a moment. "I just need to rest. Help me to the couch?"
I pulled his arm over my shoulder and helped him up, like we had in the cave, and he hobbled, gingerly, over to my atrociously-upholstered couch. I tucked pillows behind his head, threw a blanket over the rest of him, and made him something to eat. I didn't feel like I could stomach food, no matter how hungry I was.
He looked helpless, lying on my couch like a child sick at home with a fever. His eyes were heavy, with dark circles coloring underneath.
"I'm going to bed. I have my phone. If you need anything, just call."
"Thank you."
I didn't say anything, just dimmed the lights, made sure there were a few decent books sitting on the coffee table next to him in case he got bored, and went to bed.
