Rock Star

I love you
I have loved you all along
And I miss you
Been far away for far too long
I keep dreamin' you'll be with me
And you'll never go
Stop breathin'
If I don't see you anymore

I wanted
I wanted you to stay
Cuz I need it
I need to hear you say

I love you
I have loved you all along
And I forgive you
For bein' away for far too long
So keep breathin'
Cuz I'm not leavin' you anymore
Believe it
Hold on to me, and never let me go...
- Nickelback, "Far Away"

Yuffie awoke the next day with a feeling of dread.
Today she would be traveling to her last show, and it was in her hometown of Wutai. Where she was princess.
Where her father resided.
She wrinkled her nose. Damn if that man didn't have the ability to infuriate her beyond reason. Her father and her were both too damned stubborn for their own good.
That, and she'd left on kind of bad terms. After the incidents involving Deepground and the WRO, her dad had insisted that she had to come back to Wutai, marry, and begin her training to be the second in command of Wutai. She insisted that she didn't need to marry, and could run Wutai all on her own by the time her father died.
That was against tradition, of course, and not acceptable at all.
She wondered if Vincent would be acceptable to her father. Would he insist that they marry?
More importantly, was that what Vincent wanted?
Yuffie had to admit that she thought it was a little too soon to rush into marriage, but if both her father AND Vincent insisted, she'd probably give in - she kind of planned on sticking with Vincent for a while anyway, so it was not really a big deal.
She giggled a little bit, thinking of Vincent dealing with the elaborate Wutain wedding ceremony. He'd look so cute in a kimono. She suddenly had a flash of them - her in a white shiro-maku, the traditional wedding kimono for Wutain women, MINUS the tsuno-kakushi hood to symbolize obedience, and he in montsuki kimono and hakama pants, in crimson, of course.
In her mind, they looked very happy.
She sighed. Whatever.
She was struck by a thought - if she were to take on the duties as queen of Wutai, it would be her solomn duty to produce an heir to the throne.
Could Vincent even have kids? Moreover, could she? She'd never been to a gynocologist before, so she didn't know if there was anything wrong down there. A relatively normal menstrual cycle had reassured her, but her mother had only been able to bear her father one child before she departed this world - Yuffie. And she'd had plenty of time; Yuffie's parents had been in love and made love as much as any other couple. Yuffie thought that her mother would have had more children. After all, prophylactics and birth control are strictly forbidden between married couples in Wutai.
But not, Yuffie thought bitterly to herself, to prostitutes and mistresses. That was one thing she'd change when she became Queen - a woman has a right to be something for herself other than a mother, if that's what she wants.
And Yuffie did want. She wanted to do so many things before she settled down and had a kid! IF she could have kids.
That thought sobered her. Wutain law decreed that any heir to the throne had to be genetically pure; that is, to say, they could have no outward birth defects or congenital diseases.
If she and Vincent got married, and if they started a family, their progeny could be exiled from Wutai if they proved to be messed up genetically, and she and Vincent would suffer shame and expulsion from the throne.
Why am I thinking of this? Yuffie thought to herself as she sat up in bed. It doesn't matter right now. What matters right now is getting ready for the big show tonight. She swung her feet out to touch the ground and started packing. She'd be expected downstairs for dinner soon, and then they'd fly out of Rocket Town - she hadn't even gotten to stop in and see Cid and Shera - and go to Wutai.
Where she would be meeting up with Vincent.
That thought excited her, and so it was with a happy step that she left her room.

Vincent bode Cid farewell and stepped into Wutai. He knew that Yuffie would be arriving sometime today; Cid had taken longer than he'd thought in Rocket Town and so Vincent had stayed the night at Choco Billy's, being picked up at o-dark-hundred in the morning.
They arrived in Wutai shortly after noon; Vincent knew that Yuffie would be in town within the next few hours, and resolved to become somewhat presentable before then. He had not bathed in two or three days and stank of sea salt and chocobos, something Cid had pointed out to him on the trip over.
So with that in mind he rented a room at the inn.
Before he took a shower, however, he resolved himself in finding something to wear - his current clothing needed a good cleaning. He figured he could take them to the dry cleaners in the lobby of the inn, but he would need something to wear while that was being done.
It was not that difficult; a black pair of slacks, a black T-shirt, and a pair of socks to go with black sneakers. Vincent did not wear underwear.
So he shod his clothing and showered - unfortunately for him, he had a hard time showering because of his hair. He pondered cutting it often, but it was really too much of a bother; plus, Yuffie seemed to like it. She played with it whenever she was near him, which would be embarassing but it felt almost comforting and she took enjoyment in it. So the hair stayed.
However, he had to go to some effort to make it presentable in any form; after he got clean, he had to condition his hair, and comb the conditioner in while he was in the shower, or his hair matted up and tangled. This usually took the better part of an hour, as his hair was thick. His father had been from Corel, and his mother Wutai, both races known for thick hair. He had a head full of hair, thanks to his father, but it was all very fine, thanks to his mother - so it tangled easily.
By the time he was finished, a small pile of wet hair that had been yanked, painfully, from his head lay on the bottom of the shower stall, getting pelted by shower water. He scooped it up and opened the door to the shower stall, tossing it in the direction of the garbage can. Closing the door, he returned to his shower.
When finished with his shower, he was what he thought Yuffie might call "a prune," but he felt thoroughly disinfected.
After drying off and putting his new apparel on (he was a little uncomfortable with how the shirt showed his claw joining his skin) he wrinkled his nose while gathering up his dirty articles of clothing and shoving them into a complimentary plastic bag with the hotel's logo emblazoned on it.
From there, he went downstairs to the dry cleaners. He was told that the one-hour service cost twice the normal service.
"I will pay triple if you can have it done in half that time." Vincent said. As the company did not have a half-hour service, if the employee got it done, that extra fee would probably go into the employee's pocket. Vincent didn't care. He wanted his clothes back.
"Uh, yes, sir." The employee said, her eyes widening at the sight of his claw as he dug for gil.
He left, assured that he would be able to pick up his things shortly. The employee also assured him that she could do his boots - they were mostly metal, but the insides could use a good cleaning.
This was, literally, the first time he'd worried about his clothing. He wondered if it was Yuffie, or if he simply wanted to get the grime of several years off of him, but whatever - he would smell infinitely better.
While he waited he got a meal in the inn's restaurant, which was part of the lobby.
Halfway through that meal Yuffie walked in.
At first she almost walked right past him, not recognizing him out of his normal getup. Then she saw the claw out of the corner of her eye and turned around.
"Vinnie!" She exclaimed, dropping Hannah's bag and running toward him.
He stood up; he expected her to slow before she got to him and was he wrong. The both of them fell backward from the force of her embrace, onto the carpeted floor of the restaurant.
"Calm down, Yuffie." He said, smiling to himself as she kissed him exultantly and sat up.
"I missed you!" She said. She looked him over. "Nice threads. Very sexy."
"My clothes are being cleaned." He said, gesturing toward the dry cleaners.
"Of course, there'd be a rational explanation." She said, rolling her eyes and helping him up. "I'm just getting the guys settled; I'm staying at my place."
"I have a room here..." Vincent began. Yuffie rounded on him, eyes flashing.
"I. Do. Not. THINK. So." She stated. "I have a guest bed you can use, but I am NOT going another night without you!" She smiled and the angry Yuffie was gone. She grabbed his human hand, ungloved, and started to lead him toward the band. Vincent's hand twitched; he hadn't realized the difference in holding hands when he was minus a glove. It felt...good. Perhaps he'd have to go without the glove more often.
Yuffie got the band settled in while Vincent reluctantly packed his few belongings into a knapsack. He still wasn't sure if he found it appropriate for them to share a room, even if they did nothing - especially considering that Yuffie's father lived IN Wutai, and he would have to deal with him if anything DID happen.
Yuffie burst into his room; he had left the door cracked open for her. She grinned.
"I'm soooo happy to see you, Vinnie! I've missed you so much!" She hugged him again; this hug was less exhuberant and more gentle. He folded his arms around her.
"I missed you as well." He said. Her arms tightened around him and she buried her face into his chest.
After a short while they separated and Yuffie grabbed Vincent's knapsack. "C'mon, let's go."

He picked up his clothes from the dry cleaner and tipped the girl behind the counter another fifty gil for getting it done on time; the girl looked as if she'd rushed the machine to get it done on time.
She bowed to him in thanks and he nodded his head in acknowledgement.
He would have to get used to the Wutain custom of bowing.
That gave him another thought to ponder: Would he and Yuffie choose to live in Wutai? Or where? He pondered that until she stopped at her house and opened the door.
Cats were everywhere.
Yuffie giggled. "I'm glad I installed that cat door! Being gone for years would make them stir-crazy otherwise."
"How...do you keep it clean?" Vincent asked. The house did not smell like twenty contained felines.
"I have a maid." Yuffie said. She smiled. "I'm a princess, remember!" She threw his knapsack on a chair. "Mkay, I have to go do sound check, I'll be back for dinner." She tossed him something; a keyring. "The big silver one is the key to the house, in case you need to leave."
She left and Vincent decided that he was going to make her dinner.
He hadn't cooked in a long while but he still remembered how to make some things; he remembered his mother instructing him on how to prepare sushi and sashimi, and other traditional Wutai fare.
Vincent securely locked Yuffie's front door before heading toward the market to buy the things needed for a homecooked dinner for her.

He returned with the makings for sushi and sashimi (even if Yuffie didn't like one or the other, he did, so it would get eaten), miso soup, a small assortment of Wutain-style pickles, sake and green tea, and some green tea ice cream, which he remembered his mother giving him as a special treat once. He also picked up some condiments like wasabi and soy sauce, as he had no idea if Yuffie had these in her kitchen.
She didn't. Her kitchen was empty of food, actually; all that was there were the items to prepare food. Thankfully, she had sushi-making implements.
Vincent finished preparing the food and setting it on her low table (he assumed that her table would be sat at in the traditional Wutai style, which is, on the floor) just as Yuffie walked in.
"Oh, wow!" Yuffie said. She looked at the food and then looked at him, suspiciously. "Where'd you get this?"
"I made it." He said.
She grinned and clapped. "Really!? I didn't know you could make sushi!" She kissed him. "You're coming up with all kinds of surprises, Vinnie!"
She ran upstairs and came back with two sitting pillows, one of which she handed to Vincent.
They enjoyed the meal immensely - Yuffie exclaimed in joy over his preparation of the sushi, how happy she was to finally have some real Wutain pickles, and how yummy the ice cream was. They finished the meal drinking sake; Vincent had gotten a particularly nice variety that he remembered from his mother's ceremonies as a child. He was actually astonished that the makers were still around to make it.
"So, where'd you learn how to make this stuff?" Yuffie asked. "And use chopsticks?"
She leaned back and stretched her legs out underneath the table, sighing happily.
"My mother was from Wutai." Vincent said. He hadn't really discussed any of his childhood with Yuffie, and the subject made him a little uncomfortable.
"Really?" Yuffie peered at him. "You don't look half Wutainese."
"I am." Vincent said. He stood and began clearing up the leftovers, planning on sealing them up in some foil he'd discovered on top of Yuffie's empty refrigerator.
"Lemme help." Yuffie said, standing up. "That's really cool, though, Vincent. Why didn't you tell me?" She smiled. "Now my dad can't really object to you. You're half Wutai!"
"My mother is most likely long dead, Yuffie." Vincent said, softly. "And I have not seen her in a very long time even if she is alive. I don't...like discussing it."
Yuffie looked sad. "That's so depressing, Vinnie. How do you know if you don't look for her? Have you even tried to find her?"
"I have to admit that I have not." Vincent said. They entered the kitchen, and Vincent began putting the food away. "I did not think that she would like to see me after all of these years."
"I see." Yuffie looked kind of sad as she smiled up at him and left for the living room.
Vincent felt like an asshole. It took a 21-year-old woman to make him realized that he really did miss his mother. Shizuko Valentine had been an astounding woman, falling in love with a scientist and former miner from Corel and leaving Wutai when tradition bucked. He wondered, for the first time in many years, what had happened to her.
"Vincent...?" Yuffie's voice called out.
Vincent finished putting the sushi away and joined her in the living room. His heart skipped a beat as he saw that she was holding his file from the doctor.
"What's this?" Yuffie asked. She looked concerned; even she could recognize a doctor's file, with his name written on it. She had not opened it, respecting his privacy, but she was setting his things up in the guest room for him and it fell across her vision.
Vincent wondered how to explain it; he could not reasonably not explain it, not with her staring at him with those eyes.
"I was in Mideel." He said. He didn't move from his spot at the doorway. "Getting tests done."
"Are you okay?" She looked really worried now.
Vincent's conscience bucked at every notion he had at privacy. He swallowed hard. "See for yourself." He gestured at the folder.
"Are you sure? I mean, that's kinda personal, don't you think?" She said.
He looked away from her. "Surely, I should have no secrets from the woman I love?" He said, softly.
Yuffie's face softened and she sat down on the floor, cross-legged, and opened the file. She flipped through the pages that described the doctor's summary. "You were making sure that you're...okay to have kids?" The confusion was evident in her voice.
"Yes." Vincent said. "The thought had occured to me..."
Yuffie looked up at him. She looked relieved, which told Vincent that the thought had occured to her, as well. "Well, that's good." She said, smiling. "Look, the doctor even says that he thinks you SHOULD have kids."
Vincent made a mental note to find some form of retribution against the doctor for including that note in the file. "He said something to that effect, yes."
"And your arm..." Yuffie trailed off, reading the report. "Vincent, your arm. You could be you again."
"You said you did not want me to replace the claw." Vincent reminded her. He had an irrational urge to cross his arms and resisted it.
"Well, yeah, with a prosthesis. Yuffie said. "Because that's just replacing the claw with something just like it. But you've still got your own hand, Vinnie. Don't you want your hand back?"
Vincent did cross his arms at this point, and stared at a speck on the floor. "I do not know, Yuffie."
"Well, just...just know, Vincent." Yuffie said, getting up and walking to him, forcing him to look at her while she said this. "That if you want to do this surgery, if you want your arm back, I'll support you - and if you don't, if you want to keep your claw, I'll support you there, too."
She hugged him.
He hugged her back, resting his chin on the top of her head. She was a full ten inches shorter than he and it meant that hugging her was quite comfortable.
Despite Yuffie's whining, back then, about how he was Mr. Tall-Dark and Dreary, and how he was always depressing, she did love him - and she'd support him no matter what.
That meant more than words could say.

The show was spectacular. Yuffie felt more confident and full of energy than she had all month - now that Vincent was there.
They planned a full extra thirty minutes for the show, adding covers they normally never would have done, and adding five more slots to the meet and greet, which would be pulled at random from the audience during the show. The meet and greet would take the form of an after-tour party for the band, their road crew, family and friends, and fans.
AVALANCHE had promised to attend. Vincent did not particularly want to, as he did not like crowds of people, but he promised Yuffie - he would be there.
An invitation had also been sent to Yuffie's father. Whether he would show up was still a big question mark.
The band finished with an encore of "Sometimes." At the end Yuffie thanked Vincent for writing the words to it and demanded that he come onstage; he had not yet put his normal clothing on and refused, only to be pushed on stage by Yuffie as she walked behind him.
The crowd laughed and applauded.
"You look better in black anyway." Yuffie said, winking before she held the mic up to her mouth and thanked the crowd before the lights dimmed.
Vincent pondered that; he liked his clothes. But if Yuffie felt he looked better in mundane clothing, he would try it. He did need to get something to hold his unruly hair out of his face, however. Perhaps a black version of his normal head band.
He followed the band back to the green room, where a large group of people, including AVALANCHE and, surprisingly, Yuffie's father, was waiting.
Yuffie studiously avoided her father for the duration of the party; as he was busy talking to record executives about building a bigger concert stadium in Wutai, that was relatively easy for her. Vincent stayed at her side. She was so nervous to be in the same room as him that she was shaking.
When partygoers left, however, her father confronted her.
"Two years, Yuffie." He said, sadly. He sat down on a chair. "Two years I had not heard from you. I did not know if you were dead, if you were alive, nothing. You could have at least written."
Yuffie frowned and looked away from him, her arms crossing. Vincent stood next to her; h is arms were already crossed.
"And so imagine my surprise when, four months ago, I read an article in the newspaper about how my daughter has joined a band; how she is making a record; how she is going on tour; how she has started dating Vincent Valentine of AVALANCHE." Godo's voice became progressively louder. "I know nothing of my own daughter's life! She has started dating a 60-year-old man but will not talk to her own father!"
He threw his hands up in exasperation.
Yuffie's voice cut through his, cold as steel. "You may speak badly of my decisions to not write to you, Father; you may disapprove of my career choice all you want. But you will NOT speak ill of Vincent Valentine in my presence, ever again." She looked up at her father. Her eyes were flashing with rage.
Godo was taken aback. "Believe me, my dearest Yuffie, that when I choose to speak ill of someone, you will know." He nodded toward Vincent. "I have no control over whom you choose to be with, as you informed me two years ago. I have no control over what you do with your life; I just wish to speak with you about it, at least sometimes!" He sighed. "How I wish your mother were here, Yuffie. She would know how to smooth these things over." His voice became a little choked. "She would have been proud of you."
Then Godo sat straighter. "And as for you, Vincent Valentine." Vincent eyed him warily. "I would give you the schpiel about honorable intentions, but this is not the time for it. I received a PHS call the other day from a former citizen of ours, asking if I knew of your wherabouts." He eyed Vincent. "A Shizuko Valentine, who is currently living in Gongaga."
Vincent's eyes widened at his mother's name; it was the first time in over thirty years he'd heard it spoken aloud.
"Shizuko, it seems, is just shy of eighty years old and would like to reclaim her citizenship with the good city of Wutai." Godo continued. He eyed Vincent. "She would also like to see her son, who she has seen bandied about in the newspapers so often the past five years."
Vincent frowned at Godo and left, wishing he had his normal getup on - a swishing cape made a much better impression than a rapidly retreating backside.
"Vinnie?" Yuffie's voice radiated concern, but he kept going.
Vincent Valentine was in turmoil. What to do? Did he go to his mother, or did he avoid her? How could he, if she was going to move back to Wutai after all these years?
Did she, in fact, know what had happened to his father? She would want to know, he figured, if she didn't, and who better to tell her than her son?
He felt disgraceful. How a son could be afraid of his own mother, an eighty year old woman, he didn't know, but he was.
Perhaps AVALANCHE had not passed judgement on him, but his mother - that he did not know. It didn't matter if a group of strangers had passed judgement on him. His mother mattered.
She mattered a lot.

"Vinnie?" Yuffie's voice intruded on the darkness. Vincent was back at her house, sitting on her floor, shoeless and cross-legged, in the dark. He was contemplating nothing, just enjoying the silence and thinking of nothing.
"I am here." He responded. He did not continue.
"Are you okay?"
"I am fine." Vincent said. He wasn't sure if that was exactly true; however, there was nothing physically wrong with him so he figured it would have to suffice.
"Liar." Yuffie whispered, coming to sit next to him.
They sat in silence for a few minutes before Yuffie spoke. "Are you afraid, Vincent?"
"Of what?" He asked, being deliberately obtuse. Yuffie sighed.
"Of your mom, Vincent." She bit her lip, although it was hard to see that in the dark. "I mean, it'd be kind of understandable...after all these years."
"I don't know." Vincent said. That was the truth. He didn't know how he felt about his mother, after all these years. She was an old woman now; he could clearly remember her feeding him ice cream and playing games with him, after his father left. What he remembered of her was probably long gone to time.
"I do know one thing." Vincent said, straightening up. "I do not want her to see me like this."
"What?" Yuffie asked, confused.
"I need to go to Mideel." Vincent said. "The doctor said he could perform the surgery...to give me my hand back. If I am going to see my mother, I do not want to be a monster."
"Vincent.." Yuffie sighed. "Still on the 'monster' kick, are you?" Another sigh. "You were never a monster."
"Perceptions differ, Yuffie." Vincent said, softly. "To me, I was always a monster. My claw is all that is left of that. It needs to go."
"Fine." Yuffie said. "Cid's in town. We'll have him take us to Mideel tomorrow."
"...You'll come with me?"
"Of course!" Yuffie said. She leaned into him. "I love you! I don't care if you're being operated on or just sitting in front of the TV, I want to be there. Always."
Always.
Vincent turned to lighter subjects. "So, did your father ask my intentions after I left?" Vincent said. "I will need to convey my apologies."
Yuffie laughed. "Ohhh yeah. You should have heard him - we've only been dating a month and he's got weddings on the brain! He's happy you're half Wutainese, though."
"Weddings." Vincent said. He carefully said it with no inflection; the word brought half dread and half joy to him.
"Oh yeah. See, according to the Great Master Godo, women do not date. They court their potential mates. A courtship that lasts over a week means that there's a wedding. He's full of shit, of course, but whatever floats his boat."
"Full of shit?" Vincent didn't understand whether Yuffie was trying to say she did not wish to ever marry Vincent, or if she was just generally saying that her father was full of shit.
"Hahaha! Oh, man." Yuffie burst into laughter. "You swore!"
Vincent was silent. "Oh, come on, Vinnie. It's not immature to laugh at you swearing. You're so proper all the time." Yuffie said, giggling.
Vincent had a sudden urge to be decidedly unproper with her, and restrained himself. They needed to get through this conversation before he did anything stupid.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, my father hasn't caught up on modern courtship, is what I mean." Yuffie said. "A week isn't sufficient time to get to know someone! And even if we do already know each other, it's still, you know..." She trailed off. She didn't know what she was trying to say.
"So you mean that you do not want to ever get married to anyone, or that your father needs to update his courtship understanding?" Vincent was genuinely confused.
"No...I mean, I'd like to get married. You know, if...if I need to, or want to, or love the person in question." She said, her voice betraying a decidedly nervous expression. Yuffie was glad that she couldn't see Vincent's face in the dark; Vincent, however, could see her face perfectly clearly.
"But, you know, I don't want to be forced into it just because I've passed my father's imposed rules on courtship length, or because Wutai needs an heir. I want to get married because...you know, I'm in love."
"Are you in love?" Vincent asked her, quietly.
Yuffie didn't answer right away. "Why do you do this to me?" She said, laughing nervously.
"Do what to you?"
"Make me all giddy and nervous and happy." Yuffie laughed again. "Of course I'm in love, Vinnie. I love you. I don't ever want to be apart from you. I just don't want my dad to think that I have to, you know, justify that by marrying you. I'll marry you if I want to, not because he says so."
Vincent's heart skipped a beat.
"You'd let me know, then, if you decide that you want to." Vincent said.
"I would think I'd have to!" Yuffie said, laughing. "Marriage isn't something one person can do - I'd have to get your input. And, you know, a signature."
Vincent chuckled.
Yuffie kissed him.
It wasn't their usual kiss, which was a deep peck on the lips at most. No, this was a real kiss, tongue and all. Vincent was startled, but willingly kissed her back.
"I love you, Vincent Valentine." Yuffie whispered when they separated. This close, she could see his face, passive, beautiful. "I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. If you decide that you want to get married, let me know."
Vincent smiled and kissed her.

The next day dawned drizzly. Cid wanted out of there ASAP, he said, so they'd have to haul balls if they wanted a ride to Mideel.
"Lucky it's not too far from here." He said, eyeing the storm clouds forming above his head. "'else I'd tell ya'll to fuck off, seein' as you're damn near takin' advantage of my niceness."
"Oh, whatever." Yuffie said, rolling her eyes as she stepped on the deck of the Shera. "Ah, evil flying machine. We meet again."
"You ain't gotten sick on her in years, Yuffie, give it up." Cid said, flicking cigarette ash off his ever-present Marlboro.
Vincent thanked Cid for the ride and strapped in. Despite the Shera's feather touch and gentle ride, there would be turbulence in weather like this.
Vincent was correct. Cid had a hard time steering her out of Wutai, and swore repeatedly in language that shocked both Yuffie and Vincent. Yuffie had been hanging around Cid for most of her adult life, so she normally wouldn't be shocked - but this was colorful even for Cid.
Vincent just didn't normally hang around with the right sort of people to get used to that kind of language. He didn't really hang around with any people at all, actually.
However, once the Shera was clear of Wutain airspace, the weather cleared considerably and Cid was in a much brighter mood by the time they touched down in Mideel.
"So, just gimme a call when you're all recovered 'n shit." Cid said, having gathered that Vincent was going to go through some sort of surgery. "I'll fly ya to wherever you need to go."
Vincent nodded his thanks as he stepped off the airship.
"Thanks, Cid!" Yuffie said. She stepped off as well. "Mmm, it smells good here."
"It's the trees." Vincent said. "They mask the mako smell of the Lifestream."
"Way to be a downer, Vinnie." Yuffie said, turning to watch the Shera take off. "Mkay, let's go meet this doctor."

"Here's the deal, Mr. Valentine, Ms. Kisaragi." The doctor said. "There is a slight risk with a surgery like this. Nerve surgery is never easy, but it can be done. I can connect your nerves back to your hand from your claw, but there's a fifty fifty chance that you will lose some motor skills in that hand.
Vincent pondered this. "I do not have full motor skills in my claw anyway."
"Yes. There is, however, a two percent chance that you will lose all use in that arm." The doctor said. He leaned forward. "I cannot stress this enough - there is a risk. I want to let you know before you make a decision."
Vincent looked at Yuffie, who was pointedly looking in the doctor's direction. Well, he'd get no help there.
He thought of his mother.
"I want to get rid of my claw." Vincent said, steadily.
"Okay, then." The doctor said, standing up. He smiled. "Lucky for you, Mr. Valentine, that I have all of the equipment necessary. We can do it today, if you like."
"That...would be acceptable." Vincent said.
Yuffie would not be allowed to watch. Vincent told her to get a room for them at the inn and do something - shop, or something - while he was to be in surgery.
"I will be finished in a few hours, and then we can eat supper." Vincent said. He kissed her swiftly before the doctor ushered him into the operating room.
Yuffie smiled at the closing door and turned to go do as she was told - for once, she'd do it. Just this once. And only because Vinnie was going into surgery.

Six hours. Six hours it had been since Vincent had left this waiting room. Yuffie had gotten them a room at the inn and settled their stuff, and had indeed done some shopping - most notably getting a healthy, non-spoilable meal together for them in the room - and now she was simply sitting in the waiting room, chewing on her nails.
For once, she wished she smoked like Cid. Then she'd have something to do with her nails.
"Ms. Kisaragi?" A voice came from the door. It was the nurse. "He's unconscious, but he's finished if you'd like to see him."
Yuffie jumped up and scurried toward the door. The nurse smiled at her, understandingly, as she led Yuffie toward the operating room.
Vincent lay on the operating table. His arm was restored; it looked a little shriveled compared to his other one but the doctor explained that that would go away soon enough - the muscle enhancing hormones would reach it quickly.
"How is he?" Yuffie asked.
"Well, so far it looks like a complete success." The doctor said, coming in. "I'll have to wait for a full diagnosis until he comes to and can tell me how it's responding, but it looks good."
Yuffie smiled. "How much longer until he wakes up?"
"Not sure, it depends on each person." The doctor said. "On Vincent, I'd say any time now - well, speak of the devil."
Yuffie looked back towards the table; Vincent was stirring.
The mark on his upper arm where the doctor had cut into him to reattach his nerves was already healing - Vincent had retained the healing powers granted to him by Hojo and Lucrecia.
"Hey." Yuffie said, rushing to his side. "How do you feel?"
Vincent blinked. "Thirsty." He croaked. Yuffie giggled.
The doctor brought him a cup of water. Vincent automatically went to grab it with his non-claw hand. The doctor held up his hand.
"Your other hand, Vincent."
Vincent looked down and saw his hand. He frowned and a look of intense concentration came over his face.
Suddenly, the hand moved; he brought it up and jerkily took the cup from the doctor, bringing it to his mouth and drinking.
When the cup came away Vincent was smiling.
Yuffie hugged him, gleefully. "All better."
The doctor smiled.

They received instructions to come back if Vincent had any problems with his hand.The nerve splices seemed to be holding up well enough, the doctor said, but any sign of rejection and Vincent needed to come back to get everything fixed.
All the way back to the inn, Vincent stared at his hand. It was already healed and starting to fill out, but it was a real hand and not a mechanical claw.
"Is it ticklish, I wonder?" Yuffie pondered aloud, before reaching over and touching the palm of his hand. He twitched.
Yuffie giggled. "That would be a yes!"
Vincent grunted, but he seemed pleased. A tickle meant good nerve response.
When they got to the inn Yuffie closed the door and was accosted by Vincent, who hugged her to him. "I have never been able to hug you with two human hands, Yuffie. It means a great deal to me."
Yuffie hugged him to her tightly. "It feels great, Vinnie."

Author's warning: LEMON AHEAD

He parted from her and kissed her - almost shyly, because it was a real kiss, the kind of kiss a man gives to a woman, as cliche as that sounded in Vincent's head.
Yuffie kissed him back.
Suddenly, Vincent parted from her again and Yuffie saw something in his eyes she'd never seen in his eyes before - lust. She blushed, knowing that seeing that look to him was incredibly sexy and evoked a response in her that he had to see - and smell, considering his enhanced ability in that area.
He kissed her again, softly. Instinct prompted her to pull her to him slowly, almost seductively.
As seductively as a 21-year-old virgin can be, anyway.
"Yuffie..." Vincent murmured. She shushed him and led him toward the bed - she'd been wondering for a month if Vincent even cared about things like sex, and she was going to find out what the hooplah was all about right now.
She'd always thought Vincent would be sort of rough in bed - he seemed the type. But he wasn't, at least, so far. Gently, he lay her down and leaned over her, kissing her while he unbuttoned her shorts, breaking away briefly while he stripped her of her boots and shirt.
She hadn't been naked in front of someone for a long time - since she was in diapers. It felt a little exposing, to say the least, but Vincent silenced her by taking his own shirt off.
She flashed back to when she saw him shirtless at Tifa's motel. Damn.
Then he surprised her by kissing her again before kneeling between her legs. What...?
All quizzical thoughts flew from her brain as Vincent worked his magic on her clitoris, which she had discovered a long time ago but had never had properly attended to. His tongue was magical, too - Yuffie had long wondered what the point of oral sex was, and now she knew dammit.
There was a fluttering in her belly and she moaned.
Vincent, deciding that the time was right now, slid the index finger of his new hand inside her. She gasped - not in shock or horror, but in pleasure. He moved it in accordance with the flickings of his tongue and it wasn't long before Yuffie was gasping from her first orgasm.
It was like a wave. It built slowly, white-hot heat from her center and spread out over her, crashing down on her like a tsunami and pulsing form her core. She put her hands over her mouth to muffle the scream.
She lay panting, wondering if Vincent was going to proceed farther.
"We do not have to..." Vincent began, as if he were reading her thoughts. She told him to shut up and get on with it, already, and he laughed.
He kicked off his shoes and socks, then pulled off his pants. Yuffie had never seen a live penis before, and she was almost startled at how ugly they were; utilitarian, yes, but ugly and veiny.
Vincent leaned over her again and kissed her; she could taste herself on him and for some reason that turned her on even more.
His hair brushed her shoulders and she shuddered; overstimulation was the best kind of stimulation.
"Are you sure?" Vincent asked. He was positioned and ready to go, and awaiting landing clearance.
"Yes, already!" Yuffie said, gritting her teeth for the pain she knew was going to come. As far as she could tell, Vincent wasn't a small guy - so she was bracing for the worst.
He reached down and manipulated her clit again; it was almost oversensitive after climax and so he only brushed it lightly to get a reaction. She moaned.
A squirt of wetness told him that she was aroused enough for penetration. Continuing his ministrations of her nether regions, he pushed in, lightly.
A sharp intake of breath and Vincent stopped. He knew she was a virgin - how could she be that tight and not be? He would take it slowly, get her used to the idea, and stop if she needed to.
"Keep going." She panted. He did - slowly, again, until she gasped and he stopped. And so it went until he encountered a blockage. He waited.
"Come on, Vincent." She said. Her voice conveyed a plethora of emotions - lust, passion, fear, impatience. She pounded on his back with the ball of her hand.
He gritted his teeth and pushed, hard.
She gasped in pain, and Vincent stopped. A squirt of blood on the bedsheets - Vincent felt guilty. He'd promised never to hurt her, but what was he going to do?
He inched his way into her slowly until he was all in and she was full. Then he waited for her to acclimated to him - the waiting was almost unbearable. He'd gone over thirty years without sex, and waiting for it was killing him. But he waited still, waiting for the go-ahead from Yuffie.
Her face was tense, but it gradually relaxed. Vincent reached down again and began to massage her clitoris, so that she could have some pleasure from this - and it worked. She moaned and she flexed around him.
"Keep going, Vinnie." She whispered. He nodded and slowly pulled out and pushed in, and continued what he was doing with his hands, as well.
He continued a slow, steady pace for what seemed an eternity to him, trying to get her used to him, prepared for what was to come. Her muscles relaxed after a while, and he took that as his queue to speed up a little.
He worked his hand away from her pelvis and put them up near her shoulders, leaning down and kissing her. She kissed him back - there were tears on her face but they weren't recent.
"I love you, Vinnie." She whispered. "Go faster."
He nodded and did as instructed. She moaned - he was glad she was liking this, or else he would feel horrible.
"Oh God." She whispered. Her hands went around him, scratching down his back and tangling in his hair. She was moving under him, with him, moaning, groaning, and just generally enjoying herself immensely. Vincent was getting to the point where he was feeling like losing control and it was taking the sternest mental talking-to to hold back.
"Don't hold back." Yuffie instructed him. Had he said it aloud or was she just reading his mind again?
Then he reached the point of no return and began thrusting into Yuffie almost violently. Yuffie opened her eyes and was greeted with the most erotic sight she'd ever seen: Vincent Valentine, hair in disarray, completely naked, in the midst of passion.
If Vincent had been paying attention he would have noticed a spurt of wetness as she became further aroused at the sight of him, but he wasn't. He was a goner.
"Ahhh...ahhh..." He moaned. Yuffie felt that wonderful fluttering in her belly as she watched him lose himself in her; a few more well-placed thrusts and she was going to...
"Aieeeee...!" She screamed, not holding back this time and wrapping her legs around him. He continued pumping for a few seconds until he felt her muscles clench around him tightly. This sent him over the edge and he felt his being center into one point and explode into Yuffie, in the form of his seed.
"Oh God..." He muttered, leaning over her and resting his head in the crook of her shoulder while his climax, 30 years in the making, rode itself out. "Oh God..."
They lay there for a few moments, recovering, before Yuffie kissed Vincent's neck. "I love you...but you're really heavy." She stated.
"Sorry." Vincent said, exhaustedly rolling off her. He lay on his back, legs spread, exposing his now flaccid manhood to whomever happened to be in the room, which was luckily only Yuffie. He seemed too exhausted to move out of that position.
Yuffie groaned. She was tired too, but now her hips were sore and she knew she'd have a little problem walking tomorrow.
Instantly, Vincent shot up. "Did I hurt you?" He asked, concern coloring his voice.
Yuffie laughed. "Nothing that wasn't going to happen no matter what you did, Vinnie." She laughed. "Calm down, and go to sleep."
Vincent was already halfway there by the time she finished her explanation. She covered him up with the blanked, tucked herself in, and drifted off into sleep.
Just before she let the darkness overcome her, she felt arms - plural - wrapping themselves around her, and she sighed contentedly.

Author's Notes: Yayyy for lemon! For some reason this one came easier than most of mine; probably because I'm half asleep as I write it! This is probably the longest chapter I've written in this story so far, too. Woot for long chapters! I'm not quite sure where to go from here, though, so it may be a few days before I update. Still - three chapters in 12 hours is not bad, if I do say so myself!

Edit: To answer some questions from the reviews: I got all of the information I used from the page on Vincent Valentine on Wikipedia; in it, it says that Chaos was purged from Vincent's body and that his claw is most likely not a prosthetic but a glove of some sort. I dunno if that's true, as Wikipedia isn't known for being the most accurate source of information, but hey, this is fanfiction. :D I just took an idea and ran with it.