One
Yuffie jerked up. Consciousness slipped back as she threw off her covers and swung her legs off the edge of the bed. The ninja ran clammy hands through her short bob, letting it fall back around her face.
She seldom had her reoccuring dream since she and her companions had saved the Planet from Sephiroth. It had felt simply wonderful to be able to relax, to sleep in her own bed on solid ground without the constant nausea from motion sickness. For the first few weeks of being home, Yuffie had slept in late, stuffed her face, and laid around her father's house. Everyone was so grateful that Yuffie had been hailed town hero. Even Godo couldn't complain, at the time.
With five months past, Yuffie's seventeenth birthday had come and gone. Nanaki had sent her a card. His memory was so precise that he recalled the date she'd casually mentioned while teasing him. She was a little hurt none of her other friends had sent her anything, but how were they to know?
With the collapse of ShinRa, jobs were scarce and tourism was almost nonexistent. Several new homes that had gone up as people moved away from the wrecked sections of Midgar, but other than that the town was ever more boring that before Meteor.
Yuffie's eyes scanned her room, falling on the window. Brightness peaked around the shutter, casting a streak of light on the hardwood floor, illuminating the floating dust. She stared a moment, watching the particles drift in the air. The dull amusement soon lost its fun as Yuffie rose from her bed, shivering in her thin nighty as her bare feet touched the cool floor.
Yuffie cast open the shutters, leaning against the window seal. A morning mist hung over the town, shrouding the overlooking mountains from view. In the street below, a group of little boys kicked a ball between one another. An old lady shuffled towards the market. Hens scratched the dirt, pecking at unseen grubs. A familiar fifteen year old leaned against a post of an adjacent building, taking a drag on a cigarette. "Mornin', cutie," he shouted up at her with a sneer, waving at Yuffie.
"Up yours," she shouted, flipping him off before slamming her shutters.
Morning, surprisingly, was the busiest time in Wutai, before the mist burned off into midday heat.
Yuffie pulled on a frayed pair of kacki shorts and a faded green t-shirt. She stumbled into the bathroom, splashed water on her face, ran a brush through her disheveled brown mop, and did her business.
"About time you got up," Yuffie's father, Godo, remarked. The big man sat at the low kitchen table reading the previous day's Midgar Times.
Just ignore him, she reminded herself. You don't want to deal with another argument. She grabbed a bowl of left over rice and plopped down on a pillow. She stared at her food, eating in silence.
"You think you're funny, don't you? I know that was you who threw that cat in my pond. The stupid creature ate one of my most valuable koi. When are you going to stop playing childish games, you stupid girl?"
Yuffie clamped her hands over her ears. "Lalala, I can't hear you!" she spoke loudly, over emphasizing each word with dramatic pauses.
Godo picked up a roll from his plate and chucked it at his daughter. With her trained ninja reflexes, she raised her chopsticks to deflect the incoming pastry. Engraged, Godo picked up his plate and chucked it like a frisbi at his daughter. She ducked just before the plater shattered against the wall.
"My GAWD, old man, what are you tryin' to do, kill me?"
"We'd both be better off if I did, seeing as you lay around all day eating my food and living in my house. Why don't you stop being so lazy and worthless and get a job!"
The insubordinate teenager slammed her fists on the table. "Worthless? If anything is, this town is so damn worthless! It's so fucking boring there isn't any job to get, AND," she stamped her foot in a childlike manner. "No one seems to remember WHO saved your butts from Meteor! Why doesn't anyone appreciate me around here?"
Godo stood, arms crossed, looking bored. They'd had similar arguments nearly every day for the past few months. "Are you finished?"
"I'm finished with this whole fucking town," she wailed, biting back the tears. In with ungraceful clumsiness, the petite girl bound over the table and disappeared out the door.
An hour later, Yuffie emerged from her room.
"Where do you think you're going, missie?" Godo questioned as she passed his room, noticing her armor and conformer, complete with glowing materia carefully stored in its slots.
"Away from here, old man, and I'm not coming back!" she stated proudly. Yuffie stormed out of the house, head high. Where would she go? She could visit her friends. Maybe she'd see Nanaki. He could give her advice about her dreams. Maybe she'd even tell him about Tifa, after all she still had her little "crush" after all these months. Yes, Nanaki would know what to do. Her mind was set. She walked out of Wutai, hardly containing a bounce in her step. She didn't bother to look back as she set out towards Cosmo Canyon.
Yuffie jerked up. Consciousness slipped back as she threw off her covers and swung her legs off the edge of the bed. The ninja ran clammy hands through her short bob, letting it fall back around her face.
She seldom had her reoccuring dream since she and her companions had saved the Planet from Sephiroth. It had felt simply wonderful to be able to relax, to sleep in her own bed on solid ground without the constant nausea from motion sickness. For the first few weeks of being home, Yuffie had slept in late, stuffed her face, and laid around her father's house. Everyone was so grateful that Yuffie had been hailed town hero. Even Godo couldn't complain, at the time.
With five months past, Yuffie's seventeenth birthday had come and gone. Nanaki had sent her a card. His memory was so precise that he recalled the date she'd casually mentioned while teasing him. She was a little hurt none of her other friends had sent her anything, but how were they to know?
With the collapse of ShinRa, jobs were scarce and tourism was almost nonexistent. Several new homes that had gone up as people moved away from the wrecked sections of Midgar, but other than that the town was ever more boring that before Meteor.
Yuffie's eyes scanned her room, falling on the window. Brightness peaked around the shutter, casting a streak of light on the hardwood floor, illuminating the floating dust. She stared a moment, watching the particles drift in the air. The dull amusement soon lost its fun as Yuffie rose from her bed, shivering in her thin nighty as her bare feet touched the cool floor.
Yuffie cast open the shutters, leaning against the window seal. A morning mist hung over the town, shrouding the overlooking mountains from view. In the street below, a group of little boys kicked a ball between one another. An old lady shuffled towards the market. Hens scratched the dirt, pecking at unseen grubs. A familiar fifteen year old leaned against a post of an adjacent building, taking a drag on a cigarette. "Mornin', cutie," he shouted up at her with a sneer, waving at Yuffie.
"Up yours," she shouted, flipping him off before slamming her shutters.
Morning, surprisingly, was the busiest time in Wutai, before the mist burned off into midday heat.
Yuffie pulled on a frayed pair of kacki shorts and a faded green t-shirt. She stumbled into the bathroom, splashed water on her face, ran a brush through her disheveled brown mop, and did her business.
"About time you got up," Yuffie's father, Godo, remarked. The big man sat at the low kitchen table reading the previous day's Midgar Times.
Just ignore him, she reminded herself. You don't want to deal with another argument. She grabbed a bowl of left over rice and plopped down on a pillow. She stared at her food, eating in silence.
"You think you're funny, don't you? I know that was you who threw that cat in my pond. The stupid creature ate one of my most valuable koi. When are you going to stop playing childish games, you stupid girl?"
Yuffie clamped her hands over her ears. "Lalala, I can't hear you!" she spoke loudly, over emphasizing each word with dramatic pauses.
Godo picked up a roll from his plate and chucked it at his daughter. With her trained ninja reflexes, she raised her chopsticks to deflect the incoming pastry. Engraged, Godo picked up his plate and chucked it like a frisbi at his daughter. She ducked just before the plater shattered against the wall.
"My GAWD, old man, what are you tryin' to do, kill me?"
"We'd both be better off if I did, seeing as you lay around all day eating my food and living in my house. Why don't you stop being so lazy and worthless and get a job!"
The insubordinate teenager slammed her fists on the table. "Worthless? If anything is, this town is so damn worthless! It's so fucking boring there isn't any job to get, AND," she stamped her foot in a childlike manner. "No one seems to remember WHO saved your butts from Meteor! Why doesn't anyone appreciate me around here?"
Godo stood, arms crossed, looking bored. They'd had similar arguments nearly every day for the past few months. "Are you finished?"
"I'm finished with this whole fucking town," she wailed, biting back the tears. In with ungraceful clumsiness, the petite girl bound over the table and disappeared out the door.
An hour later, Yuffie emerged from her room.
"Where do you think you're going, missie?" Godo questioned as she passed his room, noticing her armor and conformer, complete with glowing materia carefully stored in its slots.
"Away from here, old man, and I'm not coming back!" she stated proudly. Yuffie stormed out of the house, head high. Where would she go? She could visit her friends. Maybe she'd see Nanaki. He could give her advice about her dreams. Maybe she'd even tell him about Tifa, after all she still had her little "crush" after all these months. Yes, Nanaki would know what to do. Her mind was set. She walked out of Wutai, hardly containing a bounce in her step. She didn't bother to look back as she set out towards Cosmo Canyon.