Author's Note:
AAAARGH!! I'm so sorry for how long this took! Urgh. Finals, Anime Boston, work… stuff piled up. Anyway, here we go (finally). The last chapter. Thank you, everyone. People were still bugging me about this, so… Yeah. Anyway… I think I have an epilogue for this.
Cid Highwind on The Art of Seduction
Technique
Yeah, I know this's th' part all yeh fuckers were waitin' fer. Fuckin' pervs.
Okay, anyway, so yeh finally got yer beloved in th' right fuckin'- hah- state 'a mind. But if yeh don' make damn sure they're enjoyin' 'emselves teh, yeh'll be sleepin' alone after that.
Fuckin' amazin' technique takes more th'n a big cock an' balls, but they help. But jus' teh reassure yeh poor bastards who ain't built as fuckin' good as me, yeh can do fine teh. Yeh jus' need teh fucin' try harder.
An' yeh need teh do more 'en jus' shove. Take notes, yeh damn idiots.
Talk helps a whole fuckin' lot. If yeh love this person, tell 'em th' damn truth. Yeh'll be amazed as hell. If yeh don' fuckin' love 'em, then I hope yeh die, yeh damn jerk. Stop fuckin' takin' advantage 'a people.
…Alright, I used teh have sex fer fun teh. But I fuckin' know better now.
Nothin', an' I fuckin' mean this, can replace lovin' from yer one special person.
Cid had found a secluded area, separated from the spot the airship occupied by a small wood. There was a slight breeze, and the air was cool this far north. It was getting cooler as the sun set, setting the horizon on fire.
He smoked pensively, watching the sun go down.
Find out what you're fighting for. I won't hold it against you if you don't come back tomorrow.
Tomorrow they were to battle Sephiroth. If they won, Gaia would be saved. If they lost, they would probably never know about it.
Cid already knew what he was fighting for. He did not need to go back to Rocket Town, the way Yuffie had gone to visit Wutai for the evening.
The sun went down, and Cid's heart sank at the same rate. It was stupid to hope. It really was. But he'd hoped anyway.
And he was still sitting alone, watching the sunset.
"Fuckin' Sephiroth," Cid muttered. "Life used teh be so damn simple." But not as good. Even as he sat there, knowing that it was likely the last time he'd ever see the sunset.
Knowing that tomorrow might be the last time he'd see…
The sound of a twig snapping behind him made Cid spin, pointing his spear but not bothering to get up. Then he settled again, unable to contain his relief. "It's yeh."
"I am aware," Vincent said dryly. He sat gracefully on the grass next to Cid.
Cid grunted and blew smoke. "Thought yeh'd be at th' cave. With her." It hurt even to mention Lucrecia. Even without using her name.
Vincent was quiet for a moment. He brushed the grass with a fingertip. "I'd rather be here."
Joy! Cid's heart rose once more.
"And you? I thought you'd be visiting your home tonight."
Cid shook his head. "Nah. If we win, I can go back. 'Til then, I'd rather fuckin' not."
They sat in silence for a few minutes, but it was a comfortable silence.
"Jus' seems fuckin' strange," Cid finally murmured.
"Hm?"
"Think' 'bout death. I don' fuckin' do that much."
"I see."
Cid turned to face his companion, and his heart ached. What would he do if Vincent were to die tomorrow?
"Hey, Vin? We might fuckin' die temorra. If yeh could do one thin' before that, what would yeh do?"
Vincent sighed. "I won't die tomorrow, Chief."
"Yeh confident as hell, ain't yeh?"
"No. Sephiroth may be able to defeat me, but he will never be able to kill me."
"'M not followin'."
Vincent sighed again. "Pass me the Venus Gospel."
Cid gripped his weapon. "Why? I'm not gonna let yeh do somethin' fuckin' stupid."
"I won't. I promise."
Cid held out the spear. Vincent, instead of taking it, drew one of his fingers along the blade.
"Now watch," he commanded, holing out his hand.
Not content to do just that, Cid held onto that hand. He was struck by the sudden desire to kiss that cut, to lick the blood away.
He did not have to. Right before his eyes, Vincent's finger was healing. Cid's mouth fell open, and his cigarette dropped unheeded into the grass. "Th' hell?"
"It goes fast because it is a small injury," Vincent said as he drew his hand back. Cid refused to let go. "Even if I receive what would normally be a killing blow, I would survive. And I would be well again in short order."
Cid turned Vincent's hand over, savoring the touch while Vincent remained passive. "Tha's jus'… Well, tha's fuckin' awesome."
"In theory." Now Vincent's voice was bitter. "I survived thirty years in a coffin with no food and no water. What is eternity to me? When all humans are gone and the planet finally dies?" He tugged his hand free. "I will be seeing it all. I have no choice."
Cid's heart hurt. He'd never thought about immortality like that.
"So no last requests for me," Vincent said, after taking a moment to pull himself together. "I will survive tomorrow. One way or another."
There was another silence. The sun was almost gone.
"What about you, Chief? If you were to die tomorrow, what would you wish for now?"
Cid answered with the truth. "Vincent." He reached out and brushed one of those cheeks, which had gone from snow white to flaming red in seconds. "I'd wish fer yeh, yeh silly bastard."
And then they were kissing, Cid cradling that head of beautiful black hair in one hand, the other rubbing Vincent's back up and down. And that feeling in his lips and tongue… Melting. Sweet. And the feeling of Vincent's lips… Vincent's tongue…
Vincent moaned, and Cid felt the movement as the sound was released. Oh, god, he was goin' teh hell now. Cid could feel parts of himself tightening with pleasure. And- someone was smiling down at Cid that night- Vincent was practically in his lap, and the heat was there, throbbing.
Oh, god…
But then Vincent was pulling away, pushing at Cid's chest. Cid let him go with no small amount of reluctance, already missing the taste of him, and wanting, wanting to taste more.
And now that he could see Vincent's face, those desires only became stronger. Vincent had a bedroom face, his cheeks pink, his eyes half-lidded but blazing, his lips parted. It took more self control then Cid thought he had to stop himself from jumping the other man.
"I can't," Vincent finally breathed. Cid shivered. Vincent was still in his lap.
"Why th' hell not?" Too much feeling… Vin, yer gonna have teh get off if yer gonna refuse me…
Vincent looked away. His right hand was still on Cid's shoulder. "I couldn't do that to you."
"Yeh wanner know what yer fuckin' doin' teh me now?" Cid growled. His whole body was on fire. That kiss, Vincent seated where he was, Vincent holding him, Cid's hands on Vincent's waist… Cid was aroused almost to the point of ignoring Vincent's words. Almost. Which was probably better for everyone's health.
"I don't want to hurt you," Vincent murmured. Cid began to rud the thin waist under his hands.
"An' who fuckin' says yer on top?" He demanded. It was meant partly as a joke, and mostly to relieve Vincent of his worries.
Vincent's back arched. Cid bit back a moan, and his rubbing sped up without the intervention of his brain, which was on hold at the moment. There was no way he could take this much longer.
"Not physically," Vincent insisted. "Emotionally."
"Yer th' one who's th' fuckin' wreck," Cid pointed out in a rather snarly voice. Either say yes, er get th' hell off my dick, Vin…
"I mean… I'm not whole, Chief." Vincent tensed, making Cid grit his teeth.
"Say again?"
"I'm… broken…"
That hit Cid like a bucket of cold water. The hairs on the back of his neck rose. Vincent often mentioned that he was "no longer human." That he had "sinned," which was all bullshit, to Cid's mind. But this felt different.
"Not whole." "Broken." Cid heard the word that Vincent was desperately trying to avoid.
Rape.
Cid growled, this time in anger. He wrapped his arms tightly around Vincent, as though he could hide him from things that were long in the past. "An' fer some fuckin' dumb ass reason, yeh think I'm jus' gonna toss yeh away?! Gimme some goddamn credit, Vin!"
An arm snaked around Cid's neck. His skin burned where it touched him.
"C'mon, Vin," Cid murmered. His body was remembering what it wanted to do. "If yeh don' want me, jus' fuckin' say it." Don't say that. "But quit makin' excuses. I'll never fuckin' abandon yeh, an I'm never gonna stop fuckin' lovin' yeh." If you'd let me.
Vincent grip on Cid tightened.
"Yeh've had jus' about th' crappiest damn life I ever hear 'a, Vin. But no matter what th' hell yeh say, it ain't yer fault." Vincent stared to protest, but Cid cut him off. "Shut up. It ain't yer goddamn fault. We fuckin' went through this."
By themselves, Cid's hands returned to Vincent back and continued their circling. He was still wearing his gloves? Why was he still wearing his gloves? Dammit, why th' hell was he wearin' anythin' at all?
"Hojo's a fuckin' bastard, an' I finda wish he was still alive son I could send him teh hell again." Cid felt Vincent wince.
"I was drugged," was the quiet reply to the question Cid hadn't asked.
"Vin, yeh tell me teh stop, an' yeh know I will." Don't tell me to stop. Cid stripped off his gloves.
Vincent released Cid and sat back. Cid nearly screamed.
"There's one last thing," Vincent said.
"Vin, I can handle it. It's yeh."
Ina sudden move, Vincent grabbed his claw and yanked. The polished but dented metal slid off, revealing an arm. As far as Cid could tell, it matched Vincent right arm (except that it was the left one); nothing appeared to be wrong with it.
"Th' hell yeh wear that for?" Cid demanded. He investigated the newly revealed left hand.
"Protection."
"Uh huh." Cid kissed the palm. Vincent shivered, sending another wave of heat through Cid's lower regions. "'M sure yeh do." My hissin' kitty.
"Doesn't anything bother you?" Vincent asked, sounding slightly put out. After thirty years of telling himself that he was a monster, he was a bit miffed that not everyone agreed.
"Nope. Not 'bout yeh. I fuckin' love all 'a yeh." Carefully, Cid unbuckled Vincent's cape and let it slither to the ground. He then set to work on the buttons of Vincent's shirt collar. "Every inch 'a yeh." The milky skin of Vincent's throat became exposed. "Every. Fuckin'. Inch." Cid punctuated each word with a kiss on that graceful neck.
Vincent shivered again. Hesitantly, he put his hands on Cid's chest, sliding them under the jacket. Cid's skin prickled and heated.
"No fuckin' bastard'll hurt yeh while I'm around, Vin," Cid groaned. "Ferget Hojo. Ferget yer past. Tehnight I wanna be selfish. Tehnight, jus' think 'a me, Vin." Forever…
There was another burning kiss. Somehow, Cid wasn't entirely sure how, they ended up lying on the grass. Cid didn't care. All he could think about was his hands on Vincent, Vincent's hands on him. Fierce kisses, lips, throat, chest. Burning skin separated by only a thin layer of fabric. Soon, not separated at all.
"Don't let me go."
"N'ver."
Alright, sit back down, yeh animals. Damn pervs. We're doin' some fuckin' censorship here, 'cause th' things that happened ain't fer yeh bastards teh know.
Not that yeh ain't all imaginin'. Sheesh. Freaks.
Then it was calm.
For a few moments, Cid was content to sit, hold Vincent- his Vincent- and pant. Vincent seemed to be equally placid, but his grip on Cid did not lessen.
Eventually, Cid roused himself. "Vin? Yeh okay?"
"Mmm." Vincent tightened his arm about Cid's shoulders. He brushed his lips against Cid's cheek, before resting his head in the cook of Cid's neck.
Well, that message was clear. "Good." Cid brushed at Vincent's hair with his free hand. The hand that Vincent was holding hostage remained in custody, and Cid was not in any real hurry to get it back.
Another craving struck Cid. He'd taken care of one, but now…
Vincent shifted. "Are you smoking?"
"Yeah."
Vincent shifted again. "I want a bath."
Cid grinned. "Yer outta luck there, Vin."
"I just feel-"
"Wet an' sticky? All filled up?"
He felt Vincent's nose wrinkle against his neck.
"That's disgusting, Chief."
Cid laughed. "Yeh didn' have a damn problem with it 'til now."
Vincent made a vague noise of complaint and began struggling to escape Cid's hold. "I cannot take you any longer. You are the most-"
"Wonderful? Handsome?" Cid teased.
"I was going to say crass and rude."
"Ouch. That fuckin' hurts." Cid got a hold on Vincent's wrist. He tickled, and Vincent squirmed. "Now, what should I do teh get back on yer good side?"
Vincent looked down at Cid. His eyes softened. "Kiss me."
Eventually, it occurred to the two of them that the sun was fully down and it was quite cold. Fortunately there was a lot of spare fabric lying around, and no one seemed to want to claim it (though Vincent muttered something about killing someone if his clothes developed grass stains). And it was warm when they snuggled together.
The next day, as they were making their way into the depths of the Northern Crater, Cloud blinked at Cid.
"You're pretty relaxed, aren't you?"
Well, we fought that bastard Sephiroth. An' we all fuckin' survived. But y'all knew that already.
Anyway, that's how yeh do it. Remember all this crap I fuckin' taught yeh an' yer chosen one don' stand a damn change 'gainst yeh.
Heh. Vin stuck with me ever since, jus' provin' that I am that fuckin' good.
So no worries fer all yeh damn jerks. Yeh'll never have love problems 'gain, not if yeh follow my advice.
Th' last fuckin' think 'for yeh go…
Eh…
…
Fuck.
How long yeh been standin' there, Vin?
End.
Oh boy, life. Too much of it. Anyway, Anime Boston rocked majorly. We stayed all three days this time, and it was the best experience of my life! They fixed the Pre-Registered line problem, so instead of taking nine hours to pick up our badges, it only took about thirty seconds! Bliss. Yes, Rufus timed us.
A special shout out to Shadow of Phantasia, who we saw at Boston, and who was very awesome indeed. And who jumped at us as we were leaving the Dealer's Hall. Hee. My friends were all like "who was that and how does she know you?" after you left. It was fun.
I got my photo taken with a Cid and a Yuffie. I'm the shortest one in that picture. Sheesh.
There was an ORIGINAL GAME CID there too! I was amazed. You don't see him around all that often. Sadly, I did not get his picture.
Muraki Sensei (of Yami no Matsuei) was there. He stabbed me. Four times. I was terrified, but amazed. It was a wonderful costume, with a great vest and a magnificent coat. And a whole nuch of props, not the least of which was THE BLOODY KNIFE I WAS STABBED WITH. I'LL GET MY REVENGE, DOCTOR!! JUST YOU WAIT!
Anway, I'm already mostly done with a new cosplay. Vocaloid Kaito. He's adorable, and I actually own the software. It was a problem tracking it down, not to mention registering my copy on the Japanese website. I don't know what I'd do without Google Translate.
And I know what my next costume will be! Sebastian from Kuroshitsuji. I've always loved Victorian clothes, and Sebastian gets great props as well as a great costume. Not to mention that I can reuse my Vincent contact lenses for him.
Wow, those two are strangely quiet…
Cid: ….
Vincent: …
Chibi Koun: The best part is, of course, that this is actually the abridged version. When I wrote the first draft, the sex scene was a whole lot longer. But when I reread it I felt sleazy. Besides, it was pretty poorly written, like a bad romance novel. A shame, really. Well, no.