In the weeks that followed Vincent's recovery there were celebrations for his return. Yuffie's mood brightened considerably and she as always happy to organize another party. The rest of the group soon realized that wherever Vincent happened to be, Yuffie would not be far behind. They also noticed that whenever Yuffie thought she was alone or thought no one was looking, she would get a far away look in her eyes. The longer she stayed that way, the more subdued and grim her mood became until someone came along to snap her out of it.
Vincent found her in such a state one day, three weeks after his release from the hospital.
"Yuffie?" He tapped on the bathroom door lightly. She'd been in there for over an hour now and he was starting to worry.
"You can come in Vince." Came her voice from inside. "It's not like it's something you've never seen before." Her voice was soft and sounded rejected.
Vincent pushed open the door to find her sitting in the tub, legs drawn to her chest and arms wrapped around them as she stared blankly at the wall, a neglected washcloth hanging from her fingers. Vincent walked over and knelt next to her, placing his bare hand on her back. "Are you alright?" He asked, dutifully keeping his eyes on her face.
She looked at him then lowered her eyes to the water. "I got a letter from my father this morning." She said softly.
"And?" Vincent questioned as he lifted the washcloth from her hand and ran it over her back in soothing, comforting circles.
Yuffie shook her head. "I won't be going back to Wutai. He disowned me; just like I knew he would."
Vincent was slightly surprised at this, having thought that since Yuffie was his only daughter, Godo would show a little more compassion and sympathy. "Did you explain to him what happened?"
Yuffie nodded slowly. "Yeah, not like he cares though." Her fingers curled into fists on her knees. "He…he sent me other news as well." She looked over at him, meeting his garnet eyes. "My little brother, Yahiko, was born yesterday morning." She looked back to the water and Vincent spotted tears in the corners of her eyes as she squeezed them shut. "I'll never get to see my little brother Vince. He'll either grow up thinking he doesn't have a sister or he'll know he has a disgrace for one; an outcast."
"You are not a disgrace." Vincent said firmly. "It wasn't your fault, if it was anyone's..it was mine. They were after me."
"Actually it was the bastard-that-raped-me's fault and Brookes' as well." She looked over at him again. "What happened to him?"
"The WRO executed him this morning."
She nodded. "Kinda wish I could've done it myself."
Vincent shook his head. "You don't need to taint our hands with his blood."
"Why? I've tainted them with everyone else's." She muttered so low that Vincent barely caught it.
"Yuffie?"
"I think…I think I understand how you felt now." At his confused look she continued. "You told me once, about your days as a Turk. You hated the fact that you had to kill whoever you were told to, whether they deserved it or not." She tilted her head back to look at the ceiling. "During the Deepground battle, I had no choice but to kill. But in the recent battle…I killed without mercy, even if they begged. Looking back on that battle, I realized that I was nothing more than a monster, a killing machine."
"You are not a monster." Vincent said almost harshly, taking her chin in his flash hand. "Never say that again. You were angry and the hatred and rage took over. It happens to every warrior at least once." His eyes clouded over with an old pain. "I have done it myself."
"But you probably didn't kill as many as I did." She said as he released her chin.
The gunman slowly shook his head. "No." he stated softly. "I did something far worse." He stood and turned away from her. "You should get out before the waster gets too cold and you get sick." He rested his claw on the door and was about to pull it open when she spoke.
"Vincent." He stopped and looked over his shoulder at her. She was standing now, wrapping a towel around herself as she stepped out of the tub. She stepped forward and rested a hand on his back. "Vinnie, what could you have possibly done that was worse?"
He looked away again. "I killed a child." Then he was gone, leaving a shocked Yuffie behind him.
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Vincent sighed as he stared out the window at the stormy night, arms crossed as he stood there watching the pouring rain. Images of that day flashed through his mind like a movie on repeat. He saw the girl lying in his arms that rainy night; the gunshot wound through her chest. He closed his eyes in an attempt to banish the painful images.
The door opened behind him and he opened his crimson orbs again. He knew who it was instantly when the scent of jasmine reached is nose. His shoulders sagged; she wouldn't want anything to do with him now, he might as well brace himself.
He didn't expect the two arms that wrapped themselves around his waist or the face that was now buried in his back.
"How did it happen?" She asked gently into his back.
"What?" He looked over his shoulder at her and she looked up at him. "I know you would never willingly kill a child. I want to know how it happened."
Vincent turned his gaze back to the window as lightning flashed and thunder shook the glass window pane. He was silent for a few minutes and Yuffie tightened her hold. "Vinnie?" he sighed and turned, pulling from her arms and going to sit on his bed. He indicted the empty space next to him and Yuffie climbed in to join him.
"It's been thirty-five years." He started slowly, Yuffie listening intently. "It was one year before I was assigned to Nibelhiem. I'd only been a Turk for five months." He looked at her. "My attitude then was so different from what it is now or even what it was during Nibelhiem. I was young and headstrong. I thought I could take on the world." He shook his head and Yuffie leaned against him. "But I was a fool; foolish and rash. And I paid the price for such foolishness."
"What happened?"
"I had just received a letter that morning containing news that my father, Grimoire, had been killed in a lab accident. So, naturally, my mood was less than bright. But I had been given an assignment and had no time to grieve.
"My assignment was to take down a Shinra executive who ran a whore house. It wasn't so much the fact that it was a whore house, it was the fact that the man didn't use just adults, but children as well."
Yuffie gave a sound of disgust and Vincent nodded in agreement. "This was before the company had risen to an empire and the executive was giving it a bad name. When he refused to cease his activities the president ordered him assassinated. So I was sent in.
"My comrades knew I was not in the best shape to carry out the assignment, with the death of my father, but the leader of the Turks had faith in me so I was sent anyway." Yuffie lightly rubbed his shoulders as he stopped for a moment, then continued. "To put it frankly, I had a short fuse that night. I let my emotions rule me which is something a Turk should never do. The minimum security the man had was easy to take care of and when I finally confronted him he had children with him, I assume he was getting them ready for a 'client'.
"When I pulled the gun, the children ran. I thought they had all gone, so I wasn't as cautious as I normally was.
"The executive knew about my father and tried to use that to his advantage. But he only succeeded in enraging me. I brought my gun up to shoot him but he moved out of the way…just as I pulled the trigger. In that split second I thought I'd just hit the wall and have to shoot again but then I saw a child had been sitting on the table behind him."
Vincent dropped his face into his hands as he remembered. "The bullet went through her chest. I shot the executive and caught the child as she fell. I called for backup and a medical aid but the medical team took too long. My comrades were at my side within minutes, having not been too far off. But the girl, who I found was named Rachael, died in my arms because she didn't get medical aid fast enough. The last words she spoke were "it hurts daddy…" It made me wonder if she was delusional in her pain.
"I found out she had a younger sister among the children, a five year old, only a year younger. Her name was Marilyn. I went against Turk regulations and brought her back with me. I made sure Rachael was probably buried and then looked up any living family I could send Marilyn to. Turned out her parents were live and had filed a missing persons report two years prior for their daughters. I had them contacted and they came for Marilyn a week later. By that time, she had started calling me 'Uncle Vincent" or 'Uncle Vinnie'. That's why I always 'withdraw', as you like to say, whenever Marlene addresses me in such a way.
"When her parents found out about Rachael, they ordered me away from Marilyn and, being a Turk, I could have refused that order. But I followed their wishes; if they did not want me to see her then so be it. But that did not stop me from making sure she had a comfortable life ahead of her. I had an account set up for her and had half of my paychecks sent to it every month. She should have been allowed access to it at eighteen."
Yuffie sighed as he finished his story. She wrapped her arms around him and rested her head against his shoulder. "There's nothing I can say to take that kind of guilt away." She said softly. "Just as you can't take away mine. But it was an accident. And you helped her sister. You gave her sister a better life. That counts for a lot, especially in the world we live in.
Vincent returned her embrace and sighed heavily, sensing something else in her body movement. "Yuffie?"
"Hm?"
"something else is troubling you, what is it?" He pulled back to look at her, his hands on her shoulders.
She was silent for a long moment and looked up when he squeezed her shoulder comfortingly but questioningly.
"Vince…do you…do you think I'm…used?" Her voice was barely a whisper.
"Used?" He asked in slight shock, understanding now.
She nodded. "My dad obviously thinks I am. And my country will as well, when they find out."
Vincent pulled her back into his arms for a tight embrace. "I could never, ever, think of you in such a way. What happened to you wasn't your fault and your father is a fool for not realizing that."
Yuffie smiled slightly against his chest as a few tears filled her eyes. "He always was an old fool." She chuckled.
Vincent laid them down and Yuffie snuggled up against him, pillowing her head with his chest. She yawned and closed her eyes as Vincent ran his fingers through her hair gently and soothingly. "If I could have anything in the world right now," she said quietly. "I would want my dad to forgive me."
"You've done nothing that needs forgiving."
She yawned again. "I have," Her voice grew fainter. "In his eyes." She slipped into a deep sleep and Vincent sighed, kissing her forehead before sliding out from under her, laying her gently on the bed. He watched her for a few moments then turned wit a swish of his cloak, walking out the door.
It was time he paid the Lord of Wutai a visit.
A/N: I'm so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so so Sorry!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I really really am! It's been so hectic lately and your lucky you got this before Thanksgiving! I have to decorate for Christmas on Thanksgiving because a work the day after. (Oh yippee for me. I'm a cashier so my life will official suck this Friday with all the mean irritable people who will probably come through my line) (Growls) And also I have hurt myself AGAIN! I sprained my wrist somehow so I'm really making it hurt typing this and I have to get it in a brace later today (I'm submitting this at around 7:45) which is when I need it because I am working at our local charity Metropolitan Ministries so I hope ya'll are grateful because I just went through a lot of pain to bring this to you. (sigh) And this was supposed to be the last chap but I cut it in half so I could get it up to you. The other half isn't done yet. And don't ask where Marilyn and Rachael came from because I have no idea, I just started writing.
Ok now that that rant is over (if you can call it that) Thank you all who reviewed and were patient for this chap, I fully expected to receive hate mail for taking so long, instead I got reviewers telling me not to rush so I hope ya'll enjoy it and sorry I haven't put down the reviewers who reviewed last chap, my wrist hurts too much right now and I'm now typing left-handed so if there are any spelling mistakes, I'm really sorry. (bows in gratitude)
