Ninja And The Demon – Chapter 20
Heartbreaking Departure
The fire cackled with a somber and hushed tone as one traveler starred at it blankly. The rest of his party was asleep, peaceful and silent despite the calamity of the situation that had fallen upon them this morning. Unknown to the man, one more of the group was awake, and clouded crimson eyes looked up into glowing green ones.
"Do you think she will be fine?" The gunman asked.
"You know her better than I do."
He looked back down at the dancing flames, the light of them not reaching his cold eyes. "I do not know." He whispered; but whether it was to answer the question or response, the general was unsure.
"Do not worry, Vincent." Sephiroth whispered back over the flames, his long hair looking like ribbons of fire. "You know that she is strong."
Vincent sighed. "That is what worries me. She will not tell me what she feels all the time… she does not even show her sadness to anyone."
The general shook his head, orange tinted silk falling into his pale face. "Talk to her, comfort her. You're good at that." He added with a small smile, "You don't even have to say anything. Just stay with her."
Vincent stood without a word, looking at Yuffie's tent. He knew that she wasn't in there – she never went in. He left the fireside, leaving Sephiroth alone on his watch.
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Making his way through the forest, Vincent found a crouched form by the lake and slowly walked toward it. "Yuffie." He said softly, sitting down gracefully beside her.
She leaned her head on his shoulder without a word, closing her tired eyes. He wrapped his claw around her waist just as silently, reaching his free hand up to play with a lock of stray hair. Only the crickets chirped for a few minutes, and the pale moonlight lit the lake like a heavenly ocean.
Just like last night.
Except the mood of that night was missing – almost like it could never be found again. The new received this morning ensured its absence.
Godo had decided that he was done playing around and sent an envoy out with a summons "requesting" their presence in Wutai. Yuffie and Vincent knew that they couldn't run forever; it was time to face their fate. The group was heading to Rocket Town so Cid could fly them the rest of the way. They would arrive the next morning, but Vincent wasn't ready. He would pay any price to stall time, just let them be before they were ripped apart. He wanted to let her know just how deep his feelings ran, but knew that there was no amount of time in the world that would allow that. The gunman's thoughts were interrupted by a soft and shaky voice.
"Vincent… I'm scared."
He wordlessly hugged her to his chest and rubbed her back. She clung to his scarlet cloak and buried herself in it as she began to cry.
"What… what's waiting for me? Us? You? Vince, if he ever found out-"
"He won't." He said firmly, referring to last night. "Nothing is going to happen to you, I promise." She nodded against his chest, content with his answer. Vincent held her as a feeling of dread overcame him. She would probably make it through… but what about him? Who knew what awaited them in Wutai…
Yuffie covered her mouth in shock as the group walked down the stone road of Wutai. The place was dark and grungy, and the sense of unrest hung in the air like a persistent stench. Haunted and desperate faces watched them pass by, envious of the life they wore on their shoulders. Vincent had never before felt such hostility from a group of people, even as a Turk. Aerith clung to Sephiroth and he put an arm around her waist without even thinking, his own nerves frazzled by the hatred coming from the natives. The gesture was almost taunting the men of the crowd to come and try to take her away. Tifa walked close to Cloud, hoping for some comfort… but none came. His glowing blue eyes were fixed upon the couple in front of the, almost as if he wanted to burn the arm around Aerith's waist.
Vincent did not reach out to Yuffie either, knowing that nothing that he could ever think of doing could ever block out the horrible and heartbreaking truth before her.
Her proud Wutai was now in shambles, and on the brink of a civil war.
The group came upon the pagoda, the largest one, and all of them were stripped of their weapons instantly. They were ushered inside, almost as if the guards were afraid to leave them out in the streets for too long. The group was admitted into a very lavishly decorated room, and it was almost pitiful. It was obvious that this room was no better than the sights outside, but there had been attempts to restore the inside to its natural glory. But one cannot change the inside when the outside refuses to change.
In the middle of the room sat Yuffie's father. He looked every inch of a dying ruler. His once fine and ornate clothes hung like sacks on his wasted body. His once stern and unforgiving eyes were now like sunken pits, dark and foreboding.
"Yuffie, come forward."
The crackly voice was obeyed and she came to kneel before him. The Lord of Wutai looked upon his only daughter and opened his mouth to speak, but she beat him to it.
"Godo, I know whom I wish to marry, and I seek your approval."
"You do not have it." He said sharply, his voice sounding like the crack of a whip despite it's wheezy sound. "You will only receive my blessing when you marry the man chosen for you."
"Godo! Listen to me! The man I bring before you is so much more than any man you could have-"
"I refuse to hear this!" Godo roared, "The only man that I would ever consider worthy of you is long dead!"
The room fell into a hushed silence. His chest was heaving from his rant, and he continued on in a more controlled voice.
"You saw what remains of Wutai, Yuffie – absolutely nothing. I've grown old, and the other clans want to see me gone, see someone young on the throne. They're so determined that they'll even revolt and put one of their own candidates where I sit. You, Yuffie, are my only hope of keeping Wutai alive. If you stay here, wed, and raise a family… Wutai will be a safe place again, and the Kisaragi family line will live on through you."
"If all I have to do is wed-"
Godo raised his hand, ""But it's so much more than that. Yuffie, you can't just marry anyone, you have to marry someone that will benefit our situation. By marrying the man I have selected for you, we form a pact between the Kisaragi and our rivals, the Zhin, and insure that nothing will happen to Wutai." Yuffie's face paled when she heard her betrothed's clan, and immediately opened her mouth to protest, but her father cut her off. "You are to be wed at the end of the week as planned, and there is nothing that we can do about it. Please… if not for me, do it for your people…"
Vincent could see the conflict occurring in his love's eyes and knew that he could not ask her to decide between him and her people. That was not a fair question, so he would not force it upon her even if he had to. He would rather die than break her heart. But he couldn't stay… not when he had to see her married to another.
That left one option: leave, and never look back.
As if reading his thoughts, she leapt up and lunged for him, but he stepped back just before she got a hold of him. She barely caught herself, looking up at him with heartfelt tears in her eyes, threatening to spill over in a nanosecond.
"Please don't leave me… Vincent…"
But he said nothing, only closing his eyes slowly and turning his head to the side, not trusting himself to keep them closed. She let out an agonized cry, lunging for him again but he stepped away yet again. She let more tears fall and stayed stock still as she watched him turn on his heel and walk out of the room. Once the screen door snapped shut before him did she fall to the floor, her sobs screaming throughout the devastated city.
"VINCENT!"
A/N: You can kill me for not updating in a while, but you cannot kill me for leaving this cliffhanger. For if you do that, you will never know what happens... I actually had more to this chapter, but I rewrote the last part of this as I typed it up, and I liked where it ended. So, I'll save the next part of it for another chapter... evi laugh
Hate me. Love me. You decide.
Note:
I. Do. Not. Write. Lemons.
Let's remember that, 'kay? Don't ask me for them - ever.
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O.o Wow there's a lot of you. Hope you liked this chapter despite the very... "mean" ending. ((lol))
NEW FLASH!!! NEWS FLASH!!!
I have FINAL FANTASY VII!!!
My friend is lending it to me, so I FINALLY get to play it! YAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!! Rejoice, you might get an ingame fic now! cheers
-Vincent's Angel of Chaos-
((Edited: 05.05.07))