Standard disclaimers apply to the characters of Final Fantasy VII, property of SquareEnix. I don't own them, so don't sue.

Part II,

By Winterwing3000

A sliver of moonlight peaked through the closed curtains and glowed across the two bodies lying on the bed. The checkered blanket gave them modest coverage and tucked them in securely for the night.

As they laid there in silence, Vincent could hear Yuffie's contemplative sighs. Occasionally, the pale lithe arm place across his chest would shift and the fingers of that hand would drum slow and methodical beats. She was resting closely to his side, with her head placed over his heart. He curled an arm underneath her body and idly traced the battle scars on her back, running from her shoulder to her hip.

He could see her steel lavender eyes blink in the darkness of the room. They were filled with questions, answers, hopes, sadness and fire.

"Yuffie." He couldn't help but murmur her name aloud.

She tilted her head almost cat-like and redirected her focus on his chin. "What's up?"

He prodded at her gently as his free hand caught her teasing one and held it still. "Sleep."

Yuffie blinked and he could see a thought pausing at her lips. She sighed again and smiled. "Vincent. I love you."

Something inside tightened in him but nothing sprung forth. Her smile remained unwavering, blinding and silencing him at the same time. He held down whatever was trying to escape from within and only stared at her continuously, hoping that something will tell her of that whatever that he couldn't let out.

As her eyes twinkled at him, Vincent gathered her and settled her head on the pillow. He then proceeded to throw the blanket completely over them, casting them into a darkness that only included the both of them and excluded the rest of the world.

"Do you really have to leave now Yuffie? Marlene's birthday is in a few days," Tifa said as she warmly hugged the younger woman. Yuffie returned the gesture. "Godo will have my head if I didn't go back. It was a deal and I don't plan on breaking my end of the bargain."

The ninja turned to the younger girl who looked up woefully. She knelt down to Marlene's height and patted her soft brown head. "Hey kiddo, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I'm sure you miss your home too, Yuffie." Then Marlene frowned as a thought struck her. "Will you come here for Denzel's birthday?"

The oriental woman gave a lopsided grin.

"I'll see what I can do. In the mean time…" Yuffie reached her hand behind her back and into a small black pouch. In her hand, a steel fan appeared. "An early birthday present."

Snkit. The fan snapped open with a flick of her trained wrist. The child stared at her gift in awe. Marlene took it carefully and smiled brightly as she hugged Yuffie. "Thank you!"

"No problem. Anyway, I have to go now. You know me. Ninjas don't stay in one place for very long. We're travelers!" The ninja stood up with a big smile and bid farewell to the others. Finally, she turned to the tall, stoic gunslinger who stood a bit further away from the group and closer to where the Shera was waiting.

"Well, I had a lot of fun these few months with you Vinnie!" She smiled cheerfully at him. "Drop by Wutai sometime okay? I don't want to die of boredom."

At first, Vincent said nothing. His gaze remained steadfast upon her face, soaking up the fine lines and curves and life found there. So many things raced through his mind and yet, he couldn't find the right one. Just as she was about to step away from his personal space, his gloved hand latched onto her forearm.

She looked back at him with her lips curved into a sad smile.

"You have to let go now," she said gently, prying his gloved fingers from around her upper arm. However, his grip did not slacken. Instead, it tightened as his claw suddenly appeared at her waist. She gasped in shock as he embraced her, holding tightly onto her.

"Yuffie," he murmured and he placed his claw on top of her head. He hesitated, "I…"

Smiling with her eyes closed, she slipped her arms around him middle and buried her face into the depths of his cloak. She could hear his heart beat loudly in his chest and smell the lingering scents of gunpowder. "I understand. Don't worry."

"Yuffie…" he started in protest. She silenced him as she placed a finger upon his lips.

"Shh. I have to go now. My time here is up," she told him, looking tenderly into his garnet eyes with her content orbs of steel. Lightly, she extracted herself from his arms and beamed up at him. She held out her hand. Looking down, he reached out with his claw and locked hands.

"See you later Vincent." She let go and took two steps back. With a teasing glint, she added, "Don't miss me too much Vinnie. I'm not liable for any damage you make."

At first, he wanted to retort to her bait, but refrained himself. Instead he gazed at her, saying nothing as she turned around and headed toward the Shera, where Cid had his arms crossed and was looking in their direction with a crossed expression.

"Yuffie," he said in his low timbre. He lifted his face from the mantle. Something in his heart gave and the words that were sealed last night tumbled from his lips. "I love you."

She stopped in mid-step and looked back. Her eyes softened and a whimsical smile appeared on her lips. "I know."

He knew that nothing else could be said afterwards and remained silent. So he simply watched as she walked away with the tails of her traditional headband swaying in the air. She came up to Cid and they bantered before boarding the airship. The docking closed and the ship began to lift off from the ground. Moments later, his sharp eyes caught sight of her as she stepped onto the main deck by the glass windows.

She looked down at him and enthusiastically waved to him one last time. The propellers of the Shera whipped and accelerated. Soon, a gust swept the ground and the airship was flying in the skies, toward Wutai.

He stood there staring at the sky as the shape of the bulky aircraft disappeared into the horizon. A hand clapped onto his shoulder. Cloud came up next to him. "You alright Vincent?"

"I'm fine." The SOLDIER nodded and began to walk toward the group behind them.

With a flourish of his red cloak, Vincent followed the rest of the members of AVALANCE back to the heart of Midgar.

End Part II

AN: The second part to this three shot. I'm really trying to put everything I brainstormed for this, but it never really fits. Heh, go figure.

Many thanks to my anonymous readers and reviewers, and also Ninja-Yuffie92 and Velve-Leggings-XD!