The sound of running water surrounded her.
Where am I...? The ninja opened her eyes to find darkness.
She could feel her heart beginning to race as she frantically looked around but there was only darkness still, everywhere.
She brought her hands up to touch her face, and noticing she could feel them against her cheeks, she brought them into her field of view. They were the same, at least save for the silky sleeves falling up her arms as she raised them. She felt the sleeves, followed them up to her shoulders, across her chest, pinching the fabric between her fingers and pulling it up to view it, to find the silky white garment adorned with (what appeared to be) hand-sewn flowers.
Confused, the ninja leaned forward to find that she was wearing one of the decorative gowns that were popular for special events in her village.
Guess I'm dressed for my own funeral, she thought dryly, remembering the previous events hazily.
As she looked over the garment, inspecting the flowing reds and whites and the encumbering layers, she noticed she was standing on the only visible ground in the vast sea of inky blackness. She bent down to feel the earth; the grass was slick with dew, and the sandy soil ran through her fingers like water. She stretched her hand out farther, to touch a bit of the blackness directly in front of her to find that it was solid. As her fingertips waited, more buds of dewey grass grew around them.
"Yuffie!" She heard the voice of Nanaki call. "You're going to be late!"
She straightened and took a few steps into the nothingness. Ground continued to sprout around her, granting her a feeling of limited safety. She let out a soft sigh before giving into the pressure to travel forward. Her gentle strides dotted the darkness with paint drops of color and scenery, but she made the mistake of glancing behind her to find that the path she'd come from was now faded away.
She stood for a moment, arms crossed, exasperated, upset.
Is this how I go? She asked herself, emotions building within her chest, fists clenching themselves into tiny, tight balls. Quiet? Scared of the dark?
"NO," she declared, seething, breaking into a run.
With tears streaming down her face she kept sprinting so hard she outran the color—it chased her, meters behind, filling in the river she could hear and the thick forests of her homeland.
In the distance she could see only one thing: the towering red topmost roof of her father's pagoda. At the sight of it she knew her mind had placed her on the cliffs above Wutai, even if it no longer had the energy to fill in all the details...
Just a few more steps and—there—her foot didn't touch ground as she brought it down in front of her and she tumbled over the imaginary edge. She sucked her surprise back into her lungs and kept it there, falling and silently sobbing, her long sleeves and tears stretching upwards and whipping around her
Color rushed over the edges of the apparent cliff; large mountains filled out around her, but she didn't see them. She was watching cerulean swirls dye the sky, imagining white, fluffy clouds into being with birds swooping through them, trying hard to convince her heart that the wind rushing through her hair was her flying, too.
She stretched both arms above her head like she could swim into the sky, opening her hands as if she could grab and hold it. Her fingers relaxed in understanding the gesture was futile, but they closed around a hard, familiar smoothness. Yuffie didn't have to look at what she was holding—she brought the orbs close to her chest and hugged them like precious, cherished friends.
Two materia, one white with flecks of crystalline blue, the other a gentle green.
Icy and Healy, you came back to me... I'm sorry I left you. I didn't want to.
The tightness around her heart was getting harder to bear. She knew it couldn't be much longer now, but feeling the weight of sorrow for too long was making the moment feel like forever. The heaviness was shaking her shoulders in small waves, and the tears kept flowing even though she tried her hardest to will them away.
I wish I could see my friends again. She closed her eyes, picturing Cloud's fluffy hair, Tifa's scolding face, Aerith's smile, the feel of Nanaki's fur between her fingers. She remembered the way Cid's veins bulged in his temples when he got angry, and how Barret started checking to make sure there weren't any kids around before he cussed, wanting to be better for Marlene. Yuffie never counted as a kid to him, though—she always made him so mad he couldn't stop himself from blowing his top at her.
She wondered if Reeve would bring out Cait Sith for the funeral or if he'd go as himself—if he even had time for either. Vincent probably wouldn't even know what happened for a few weeks, and her dad... She didn't want to think about that. It made her feel worse.
"Found you, thief!" A voice called from somewhere close-by. Yuffie opened her eyes again to find she'd stopped moving. At first she was afraid to look away from the sky, but when the voice asked her what she had to say for herself, she forced her head forward.
She was hovering in place just above the rocky ground at the bottom of the mountains, near the waterfall where she and Yuri always used to play. Before her was an angry Cloud with a readied Buster Sword, surrounded by allies looking equally pissed.
"Yuffie," he said harshly. "Give us back our materia!"
It was as if time was standing still, waiting for her to choose. She looked upon the faces of the ones she loved, and even as they were ready to kill her she felt joy. She wiped the tears away from her cheeks with her gown's sleeves and resolved to make the wrong decision, one last time.
As soon as she felt the vibrations of the bottoms of her shoes touching the stony earth she crouched low, then lept just high enough to graze the tip of Cloud's sword with her feet. She slid down the back of the blade and into the surprised mercenary's arms. "You can't have the materia back, but you can have this!" She cackled as she planted a kiss right on his lips. "I used to have the biggest crush on you!" She said as she gripped his shoulders and pulled herself up to hug him.
"G-Get off me!" Cloud protested. She wriggled free of him by kicking off the back of the sword and sailing completely over his shoulder, rolling across the ground in a tight ball.
"Just who do you think you are, kid?!" Tifa's voice sounded to the left of her. Yuffie noticed the woman coming in for a kick with just a second to dodge. As she rolled out of the way she heard Tifa let out a frustrated grunt.
"I was always really jealous of how pretty—and good at everything you were," Yuffie admitted between breaths. "I'm sorry I annoyed you all the time," she squeaked as Tifa targeted her with a mighty swing of her fist. The ninja ducked, then ran.
She only got a few feet away before Cid and Barret blocked her path, the former pointing his spear right at her belly and the latter aiming his intimidating gun-arm at her face.
"Ain't nowhere to go this way," Cid started.
"'Less it's ta' hell," Barret finished.
Yuffie took a few steps back, hands raised but still tightly clutching both materia, trying to calculate a way out of the situation while appearing non-threatening.
"Quit fooling around, Yuff," she heard Nanaki's voice call to her, and the world once again stood still. "You're just getting later by the minute," he continued, impatiently. She peeked around Cid to find Nanaki waiting for her, tail swishing methodically. She was happy to finally see him, but the heaviness was creeping across her heart again. She straightened up and walked past her frozen foes.
When she reached Nanaki she finally willed the materia away, watching as it dissipated into shards of glitter right in her hands before she released it into the wind. She bent down to Nanaki and used both hands to smoosh his cheeks together, scratching deeply behind his ears. "You're my best friend, Nan, and I love you," she said, focusing all her strength on keeping her voice even. She gave him a kiss on the head.
When she released him, he didn't look amused. "Are you ready?" He asked, still impatient. "You've been keeping Kasumi waiting long enough."
"My mom?!" Yuffie squeaked. "Why didn't you say she was here before?!"
"Why wouldn't she be?" Nanaki asked, incredulous.
Yuffie hurried ahead of Nanaki now, as they traveled along the worn path through the forest to Wutai.
Once the path turned to stone, she chanced a glance behind her to find that everything else was gone. The mountains, the trees, the birds, the angry mob... Everything had vanished into the darkness, as if nothing that mattered had ever been there to begin with.
Yuffie felt Nanaki rub against her legs, urging her forward. She looked ahead; in the middle of town she spotted her mother wearing her finest floral gown, smiling and beckoning Yuffie to come, quickly. The ninja sprinted forward into her mother's waiting embrace.
"My dearest daughter, how much you've grown," Kasumi cooed, stroking Yuffie's hair as the young woman shook in her arms. "But what has you so upset on your happiest of days, sweet one?"
"I'm happy to see you, I missed you so much," Yuffie sputtered, voice muffled by the layers of her mother's dress. "B-But I'm not h-happy to be here," she forced the air that was caught in her throat out and another sob worked its way through.
"My sweet Yuffie," Kasumi comforted. "Every woman is afraid to confront her future, but we face it like our warriors face their battles."
"I don't—have—a future anymore, mom," Yuffie sniffled hard, her voice squeaking and wavering with each word.
"Oh Yuffie, you're messing up all your makeup," she heard another voice say.
Yuffie peeked above her mom's shoulder to find a pair of warm, familiar green eyes staring back at her.
"We worked so hard this morning and now we won't have time to fix it," Aerith lamented, hugging the pair from the side. Yuffie grasped her arm to pull her closer to find Aerith was also wearing a decorative Wutainese gown, in white and soft pink.
"WHY am I supposed to care what I look like at my funeral??" Yuffie complained, sinking back into Kasumi's chest.
"FUNERAL?!" Aerith gasped, then cackled, pinching Yuffie in the side. The ninja flinched and swatted her friend's hands away. "Oh, that was funny," Aerith stressed, trying to catch her breath. "I—I promise I won't tell Vincent, but I will tell everyone else," the woman tried hard to control her persistent giggle, but it crackled through the edges of all her words.
"What the fuck is wrong with everyone...?" Yuffie whined, still burrowed into Kasumi's chest.
Her mother reared the hand that was stroking Yuffie's hair back and gave her daughter a firm smack on the back of the head.
"OUCH!" Yuffie screeched, pushing away her mother to escape the potential of future pain. "What the FUCK, mom?!" She yelled, eyes still teary but now focused on Kasumi in rage.
Kasumi gave her daughter a stern glare. "That language is unacceptable, Yuffie—whether you're six, twenty-six, or a ripened fruit at sixty-five, a woman must always maintain her grace. If this weren't your wedding day, I'd drag you to the river and wash out your soiled mouth."
Yuffie growled, the growing flames of anger and pain baking her heart and lungs and heating the tears in her eyes to what felt like a boil. "YOU DON'T GET TO TELL ME HOW TO BE A GROWN-UP, OR A WOMAN. YOU DIED AND LEFT ME ALONE WITH DAD..." She paused only to viciously wipe the tears welling in her ducts away. "You weren't there, and you—YOU DON'T GET A SAY NOW." Yuffie turned away from her mother and wiped at her eyes again.
I never lived a life that would have made either of them happy, or proud, but...it was mine.
The ninja flinched as a pair of arms wrapped themselves around her waist. She glanced over her shoulder and felt relieved that it was Aerith. She turned towards her friend and gave her a proper hug, wrapping her arms tightly around Aerith's shoulders and burying her face in them.
"I missed you a ton," Yuffie said, trying her best to sound composed, fighting hard with the anger and sadness filling her heart up.
"I'm always around, Yuff," Aerith chuckled. "Even if you can't see me. Speaking of seeing, lemme see your face."
Yuffie loosened her grip and stepped back, but still kept her hands firmly planted on her friend's shoulders as Aerith inspected her. Aerith turned Yuffie's head from side to side, licking her thumb and occasionally scrubbing around the ninja's eyes. The ritual seemed to go on for a long time, but the silence helped Yuffie regain control over her breathing, cooling the heat within her chest.
"There," Aerith announced, proudly. "Perfection again! Here, look," Aerith spun a shiny golden brooch on her dress towards Yuffie. The ninja had to lean down to see her reflection, but it was there. She hardly recognized herself with the thick and smoky lines around her almond eyes.
"It's past time we go, Yuff," Aerith said after a few moments.
"Will you come with me?" Yuffie nearly begged.
"Of course, silly," Aerith chuckled again.
The two of them walked arm-in-arm through the remainder of the town to the area where Godo's pagoda waited. To the ninja's surprise, every face that wasn't in its usual place in town was lined up to the door of the building, staring at her. They moved to both sides silently, making a path for Yuffie and Aerith to walk through.
Special makeup and clothing matching the ninja's own was adorned on every person; men wore their hair in braids and buns and decorated themselves in polished military uniforms and armor—the women looked gorgeous in red and gold, with bright earrings and painted faces. Even the children were dressed in the finest silks, playing with the beads and runes carved from the rocks of Da Chao that encumbered their necks.
The crowd was laser-focused on Yuffie as she passed; some people bowed, others touched her shoulder, softly saying blessings and words of love. The anxiety in her stomach compounded as she reached the top step of the pagoda. She turned to face the people expecting them to be gone like everything else had been, but the whole crowd remained, watching her and waiting.
"I-I'm happy," Yuffie hesitated. "I'm happy that I could see you all today. It—means a lot to me that you came." She gave them a quick bow. Some members of the crowd smiled at her, others bowed back, all of them mumbled amongst themselves.
"Yuff," Aerith whispered, tugging on her arm. "Time to go!" She pointed her head towards the pagoda's mighty doors.
Yuffie closed her eyes, released her grip on Aerith's arm, and threw herself at the doors to force them open. She froze as she inhaled the stale indoor air. The outside crowd filtered around her to enter, and Aerith followed them. Yuffie's heart was pounding even as she tried to breathe slow, emotions were flooding her even as she tried to beat them back.
"Daughter," she heard her father's voice say.
"I'm here," she responded, slowly opening her eyes. As her vision adjusted to the dimly-lit indoors, the image of her father wearing his own polished armor cleared, as did the tall figure beside him.
Vincent was clad in a formal Wutainese men's gown, white with accents of red petals and shiny black trim. His right arm was covered by the gown's long sleeve, but his entire left shoulder and gauntlet were exposed, allowing a proper view of his firm chest muscles and skin so pale it nearly blended into the gown. His headband was gone, and most of his long hair was tied into a loose bun, with some smaller strands falling across his neck and over his shoulders. Yuffie could feel her blush rising as she gawked at the man, and she could almost swear he was giving her a smirk.
"Yuffie," the men spoke in unison, Vincent's velvet voice against Godo's harsh tone.
Her father motioned for her to come closer, visibly loosing patience with her stalling.
She walked, slowly, stiffly, unable to look away from Vincent's face. As she grew nearer the man's gentle smirk became more defined, propelling her ever-forward, driven by equal parts shock and awe. Eventually she was close enough that she had to look up at him, but still his expression remained.
Satisfied with her progress, Godo faced the crowd and began reading from a scroll he had prepared, but his words were turning to mush in the ninja's ears. Vincent peered down at her from his height advantage and as soon as his crimson eyes locked with hers, Yuffie forgot to breathe for what felt like minutes. Her knees fell weak and she must have faltered, because the man placed his hand firmly against her waist and it sent a shiver through her body.
Vincent pulled her close enough that her head pressed against his chest and she shivered again, this time visibly.
He leaned down to whisper in her ear, "Are you okay?"
Yuffie, meanwhile, was now hyperventilating enough hot breath against the bare skin of his chest that it was starting to condensate.
"Yuffie," he said, louder but not loud enough to interrupt her father.
Feeling Vincent breathe her name into her ear made her body swoon, but before she could fall he pulled her even closer to him, now leaning her entire body weight against him with just his gauntlet.
"I—I'm sorry," she whispered into his chest. Yuffie laid a shaking hand against his skin.
He covered it quickly with his human hand and laced their fingers together.
"Why?" The gunman asked, low, soft.
"I-I-I didn't mean for this to be my last memory of—of you," the ninja sputtered. "I was—I guess I was sad you weren't going to my funeral," Yuffie buried her face into his robe, hoping it would absorb her welling tears.
"What in Gaia are you talking about?" Vincent sounded as close to bewildered as his voice was capable of, while still being respectfully quiet. He scooped Yuffie up to sit on his metal arm and lifted her so he didn't have to lean into her ear. "Of course I'll be there, I'm your husband," he purred, sensually. Yuffie reached out a shaking hand to touch the side of the gunman's face, tracing the sharp line of his jaw with her fingertips.
She'd never actually kissed anyone before, only just imagined it.
She guessed that was still true.
And Vincent was handsome...
She coaxed his face closer, so close their noses touched.
"Yuffie," Vincent started, locking his eyes with hers again. "We're going to ruin the ceremony if we do this," he finished, but didn't move away.
"I don't care," Yuffie whispered back. She briefly glanced into the audience and saw Aerith grinning at her. "It's my funeral."
She leaned closer to him, and Vincent closed the distance to kiss her deeply.