Author: Hey hey hey folks! It's the big ten! The big ONE OH. lol. I'm so excited. It's nice to see that everyone has stuck with this story for so long. ::does a little dance:: I was kind of going for one hundred review by the tenth chapters, but I think I'm too far away. Unless thirty somewhat people review this chapter for me then I'm not achieving that goal. ::sighs:: Oh well, I love you guys anyway! ::grins happily:: Unless any of you would like to help make my 'one hundred reviews by next chapter' dream come true, then you're welcome to do whatever it takes to help me get there. I'd love you forever. (Not that I don't already :P)
Reader responses by the author who likes to babble on about random gobbledeegook:
Dragon Girl323 - ::huggles reader:: Aww, I'm cute and fluffy! Or wait, did you mean my story? ::pouts:: And yes, that's it. :P I thought it was a pretty decent length for a chapter. But if not, here's an even longer one. Or at least....I think it's longer. Meh. Anyway, thanks for your love of my story and I'll make sure to give you lots of huggles when I get your next review! :D
Raven Cactaur - Awww don't be sad. Vincent doesn't want to kill himself, his final limit break does. lol. Chaos (the demon form thingy) took over him and it hurts him and yah. etc. and whatnot. Maybe Max will start being a little nicer to Gary. I mean, they are getting drunk so maybe he wont seem like such a prick anymore. ;) Thanks for all the wonderful reviews. I love reading them. Especially jumping Mr. Flames. I must say, it sounds like a secret attraction.............a secret love maybe? Heehee. Well you can jump him if you want but I say give the guy a break. Call me a hypocrite, but he's not always a moron. (Most of the time) :P ::superhuggles:: Enjoy the chapter!
Emri - Yay! She gets to keep the puppy! No, I don't think I'll punish you. ::narrows eyes:: Yet. If I see no review from you this chapter then ::makes throat slicing motion:: Yah, you get the idea. No one seems to like Adam because.....well.....he sucks. Maybe I'll be nicer to him in the future if he's nicer to me. If Vincent doesn't come because he's dead then I guess Josef gets Tifa. :P ::blushes:: Sorry about the underwear thingie but I'm kind of strange. (As you all know) I continued! Shwee! See, I did continue! And now you must read! Mwaha! (Almost forgot your huggles) ::HUGGLES::!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The End of Infinity - ::runs screaming from rabid chocobos:: ALL RIGHT! ALL RIGHT! I UPDATED! NOW CALL 'EM OFF! ::climbs a tree and tries to get high enough that the chocobos can't peck her legs:: Here's the next chappie! Maybe Vincent will have a chance to "stumble upon them" after all. ;) I'm glad you liked my last chapter. I like you! ::huggles::
Mr Flames: Yay! Next chapter! Here it is. You know, I could insult you and tell you that it's a very 'feminine' thing to say that two of the couples are......"cute" was it? But I shan't. Oops I think I already did. ;) Thanks for your interest in my story, even if I'm mean to you sometimes it's only because you remind me of an annoying guy I know named Adam. I'm glad you enjoy my story and if I scared you into giving two line reviews then I apologize and hope to see longer more worshiping and loving reviews in the future. ::looks around to make sure no one's looking:: Um....heh heh............ ::huggles:: You didn't see a thing!
The Frogness - Yay! I'm so happy you're better from your cold! No more getting sick! ::twitches from tazor zapping:: Ow....I thought I'd at least be allowed to go near Tifa since I'm the author. ::rubs sore body parts:: No more zapping okay? Awwww, that was such a long and wonderful and heartfelt review. I practically glowed with pride when I read it. It's nice to hear that I actually am doing something right with this story. I hope you keep the same attitude towards it as I keep writing more. To tell you the truth, I think I have a different writing style now too. I find myself looking for better ways to say things to improve upon whatever I'm doing. ::superhuggles:: I really appreciate you noticing. I'm also glad you like my side plot thingy with Max and Gary. They'll be back in the main part of the story soon. ::rubs hands together evilly:: Heeheehee. Love triangles are very good for sneaky annoying cliff hanger crapola! I shall be evil and mould this story to my liking! Mwahahaha! I just hope that you'll keep reading it. ::looks nervous:: Have an extra huggles. Just to be sure. :D
Ezri-Candy - Sure sure. I'm sure it's all Sephiroth's fault.
Sephiroth: ::huggles Ezri and grins mischievously:: I'm all yours babe.
::whacks Sephiroth over the head with the spear she grabbed from Ezri:: Down boy! Hey, be nice to Josef. Even if he is going to make Tifa fall in love with him and steal her from Vincent and get her to marry him, that's no reason to hate him now, is it? Awww, I tease. There's no way to tell if those things will happen or not so I'll guess you'll just have to read it. ::rubs hands together and cackles:: My plan to force people to read my writing is almost complete! Mwahahahaha!
Sephiroth: ::whispers:: You're writing out loud, love. Shhhh. She can still see what you're saying.
Crap! Heh heh heh. Um...... ::runs hand through hair nervously:: Anyway, Cid is cute! Heehee! He's gonna be a daddy! I hope they have a girl, just to piss Cid off. :P ::random huggles:: Ooh! And guess what?! Sephiroth has won the privilege, no, the honour, of spending the night with you. You can do with him as you please. Enjoy. ;) (And please read this chapter and review before you get "started". :P)
Neko-Yuff16 - Yay! My chapter was great! ::huggles:: Or at least you think so. ::does a happy dance:: Here's an update. I hope it was fast enough for you and you'll keep reading. :: gives you puppy dog eyes:: You will right? Max and Gary are sooooooo cute! I love them together, but Max doesn't want to give in to Gary's love attempts. :P Josef might be planning to steal Tifa from Vincent so I hope you're prepared for that. Enjoy the chapter and see you soon!
Author: Back, back and back. I hope you all like this chapter. It was bugging me for a while since some things I'd like to make happen would cause all of you to go into an uproar. Such as killing Vincent or giving Tifa to Josef. ::grins:: You never know what might happen. I just hope I live to see next chapter. Please don't hurt me. I know that people are going to hate me but I just want you to know that I understand and forgive you ahead of time. :P Maybe you'd better understand what I was saying if I just let you go and read the chapter. But first, a disclaimer!
Chelsey: ::walks into the fic looking dazed:: Where am I?
Author: ::smiles and huggles her friend:: Somewhere that you haven't been in a long time. Do you remember fanfiction? You know that site where you used to review my stories before you decided that horses are more important then people?
Chelsey: Oh yah! ::looks sheepish:: Sorry about the review thing.
Author: Sure sure. If you were sorry you'd review. Anyway, wanna do the disclaimer?
Chelsey: Sure! ::grins excitedly:: Here I go! The author does not own any of the characters in this story except in her wildest dreams and disturbing fantasies! Max and Gary are kind of hers, but now they have a mind of there own and don't obey her anymore. You get the idea! They, for the most part, belong to Square Soft and what not. Don't forget to eat a pie a day for a 5% increase of YUMMY!!!
Author: Thanks Chelsey. Now it's time for you to go you procrastinating reviewer! ::turns to Sephiroth:: Pull the lever!
Sephiroth: ::pulls a hidden lever and the floor falls out from beneath the author:: Oops.......
Author: ::screams as she falls into a deep pit:: Wrong leverrrrrrrrr!!! ::comes back dripping wet with a new crocodile skin purse and a pissed off look:: Why do we even have that lever?! ::pulls the correct lever::
Chelsey: ::gets ejected from fic:: Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Author: ::waves bye:: Anyway, I think I've delayed long enough for my private jet to arrive and fly me somewhere safe where I hide out until next chapter. Come Sephiroth!
Sephiroth: Yes, dear. ::follows carrying all their luggage::
Author: Taa taa. See you all soon! Enjoy the chapter!
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Gary groaned and sat up groggily, looking at his surroundings. His eyes widened when he realized he was lying in a bed next to Max wearing nothing but his boxers. Hopefully those had stayed on and nothing more then he remembered had happened. Poor Tifa. If she ever found out they had used her bed in the back of the bar for................yah.................then she'd kill him. But they didn't have sex...............did they? He paused a moment in his panicked thoughts to lift the blanket off Max and was relieved to find that she was still wearing some sort of undergarment thingy.
"Max?" he whispered, shaking her shoulder lightly. Ignoring the painful throbbing of what was soon to be a hangover; Gary shook Max a little harder. "Max! Come on. Wake up."
Max rolled onto her side and her beautiful blue eyes fluttered open, a soft smile appearing on her lips at the sight of Gary. Then she did a double take. "GARY?!" she shrieked, kicking him hard enough that it knocked him off the bed. Gary landed hard on the floor and felt the wind get knocked out of him. A pale face peered over the edge of the bed a few moments later, watching him gasp for air.
"Gary?" Max whispered shakily, "we didn't.........you know.............did we?"
"Only..............if............I'm......lucky," Gary choked out, managing a grin.
Max eyed his half-naked form carefully. "What exactly happened here?"
"I don't know or remember," Gary said truthfully once he was to breathe again. Sitting up, he rubbed one of his sore shoulders and glanced up at Max. The morning sunlight shone down through the window and spilled over her petite form. He realized, with a double take of his own, that she was wearing black lingerie. "What are you wearing?" he asked in a surprised and slightly embarrassed tone. Max looked down at herself and let out another shriek, before pulling the blanket over herself.
"Don't look, Gary!" Max ordered, blushing fiercely, "I don't know what the hell went on here, but I shouldn't have trusted myself again. I always do this stupid messing up crap. At least you didn't......." Max trailed off and sighed, looking at the floor. Gary climbed onto the bed and sat beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder.
"Don't worry about it," he said comfortingly, "you're not the only one in your undergarments." He was extremely thankful that he hadn't worn his Scooby doo boxers yesterday. That might have been embarrassing. "Nothing happened. I'm pretty sure. Let's just not say anymore and pretend this never happened. Okay?"
Max looked into his eyes for a moment and knew what was bothering her so much. She had thought his advances were simply because he was a typical horny male, but he was different around her. He made her feel good about herself; like the things that had been done to her in the past were wrong and she didn't deserve them. He made her feel...........loved. He loved her. And she didn't mind as much as she thought she would. Max knew letting herself getting pulled into another relationship was probably just setting herself up for more hurt, but maybe..........just maybe she could fall for this guy.
Gary watched as Max's face went through a series of emotions, finally ending with a smile as she leaned forward onto his bare chest and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Thank you Gary. For understanding," Max mumbled against him. He sat stiffly, not sure what to do about the woman in his arms.
"No problem?" he asked, confused.
A soft laugh came from Max when she heard his confused tone. "Here. Let me clear things up for you," she smiled, reaching a hand up behind his neck to pull him down to her. Gary melted into the kiss and got over his surprise quickly. Max pulled away to catch her breath and Gary just stared at her.
"Max..........."
"We'd better get dressed now. You can't be serving customers in your boxers, even if they would attract more women to the bar," Max teased, finding and pulling on her black skirt, still covered by the large blanket.
Gary wasn't sure what was going on, but he decided that he'd get dressed first and worry about technicalities later. It still felt like he was dreaming. Maybe he was. That would make a hell of a lot more sense. After she finished dressing, Max left Gary in the back apartment and went to find some breakfast. Her heart was beating so fast she was worried it would hammer right out of her chest. Tifa better get back soon. Things were getting out of hand here.
Vincent's eyes blinked open and stared in the stuffy darkness. It was hard to breathe and he couldn't see light anywhere. He painfully lifted an arm and his hand met a solid surface. His eyes widened as he lifted another hand and felt the wooden box that enclosed him inside it. NO! He frantically clawed at the mahogany, ignoring his tearing fingernails and let out a strangled cry. With the last bit of his strength he pushed as hard as he could against the part above him and the lid slowly creaked open. His breathe came out in harsh pants as he hung half out of the coffin, already exhausted with the simple effort of opening the lid. A dangerous anger burned inside him. Chaos had won again.
He leaned a little too far forward and fell headfirst to the floor. A loud groan filled the room and he looked around weakly for the source of the sound before realizing it came from himself. He lay on the hard floor for quite some time before attempting to sit up. Wiping his hand across his face he was surprised to see it came away with crusted blood. Vincent tried to pull his blood soaked shirt over his head and winced painfully when it began to rip open the newly healing wounds the material had become attached to. With a growl he let the shirt stay the way it was and pushed himself shakily to his feet.
Through his mind-numbing pain a small thought managed to break through. He had to get Tifa. "Shit," he cursed, almost wishing he hadn't told the damn woman he'd come and get her. He was in no state to move much, let alone ride a chocobo all the way to Rocket Town. Using anger as his ally, Vincent stood and let the pain wash over him with the hope that it would eventually dull in intensity. Knowing he had to fetch Tifa was the only thing driving him on. He began the slow painful process of dragging himself down the hall and up the winding staircase, collapsing at the very top in exhaustion.
Finding his cape and headband lying across the bed, he managed to get them back on and made the journey to the chocobo stables. Every step caused excruciating pain to shoot up every nerve in his body and he began to wonder why he was doing this to himself just for some stupid woman. Was it really worth it? If he hadn't already promised her he'd come then there would be no way in hell he'd go anywhere. With a choked sounding sigh, Vincent tried a few times before he was able to mount Torro and gave the chocobo a light kick to get him going. Screw food and supplies. He just didn't care anymore. He'd get the girl and get on with his life once he returned her.
Tifa blinked against the sunlight shining in the window and smiled down at the little mound of fur that was sleeping at her feet. Her smile wavered slightly when the events of the previous evening flooded back into her mind. She'd have to be very gentle with Josef so she wouldn't hurt him any more then she already had. Hopping out of bed, Tifa ruffled the fur of her yawning puppy and pulled on a pair of jeans and a light blue blouse. She frowned as she buttoned up the jeans. They seemed a little tighter then she remembered. Had she put on some weight? Shrugging it off, Tifa ran a brush through her hair and made her way down the stairs while trying not to trip over an excited Kaite.
Shera glanced up from the stove when Tifa came in and continued stirring the scrambled eggs she was cooking. "Morning," Shera mumbled tiredly, "how did everything go last night?"
"Terrible," Tifa groaned, slumping down into a chair, "not only did I break the poor boy's heart, I pretty much implied Vincent and I are a serious couple. I don't even know if Vincent is planning on staying with me much longer. Plus he's late picking me up. I wonder if he's having second thoughts about me and now I've lost two great guys......" Tifa paused to catch her breath and Shera moved the eggs off the heated element so she could go to her friend and give her a hug.
"I'm sure everything will work out for the best," Shera smiled, giving Tifa another squeeze, "you just have to hang in there."
"Thanks Shera," Tifa smiled gratefully. Shera went back to the stove to finish off breakfast and quickly put a plate of toast on the table with butter and a knife.
"Butter those for me, would you?" Shera asked over her shoulder as she mixed some herbs into the eggs.
"Sure," Tifa nodded, complying with her request. Cid came into the kitchen rubbing sleep out of his eyes and trying not to trip over Kaite.
"Look puppy. You're cute, but you're gonna damn well kill me if you keep doing that," he growled. Both ladies giggled and received a glare from Cid.
"Lighten up grumpy," Shera teased, putting a dish of eggs on the table as well. Cid and Tifa eyed the food hungrily. "Here's the plates," Shera said, passing them to Tifa, "dig in."
Cid smiled and kissed Shera's cheek, pulling out a chair for his wife to sit on. "It looks delicious my love."
Shera waved away the compliment as though it were something she heard everyday. "I try my best." The three of them munched away in silence until they had all eaten their fill. Cid offered to do dishes, surprising both woman, and Shera went to relax in her chair and cross stitch a bit more. Tifa felt out of place, with no chores to do, and fidgeted in her seat.
"Um.....want any help Cid?" He grunted and shook his head, scrubbing at the egg covered frying pan vigorously. Gazing out the window, Tifa watched the flowers in Shera's window box bend gently in the wind. The beginnings of a rose bush in one corner reminded her of the night Vincent had tried to cheer her up. She missed him so much even though they had only been apart for a few days. Her need to see him had never been this strong before and it kind of scared her.
"Do you want to try a cross stitch, Tifa?" a voice asked, startling her out of her thoughts. She looked over at Shera who was holding out a cross stitch of a beautiful flower filled garden. "I haven't started this one yet if you'd like to join me." Tifa pull a chair over to where Shera was sitting and took the sewing from her with a smile.
"I'd love to. I've never made really anything before."
"You just have to follow the pattern on this paper," Shera explained, showing her as she spoke, "these symbols tell you what colour to use and this legend says how many strands of each colour you need. You just make an "x" over each little square part. Count how many squares on the pattern need a certain colour and then sew those squares onto the material." Tifa nodded and tried to absorb all the instructions at once. "If you need help don't hesitate to ask," Shera added, going back to her sewing.
Opening the small package with a needle in it, Tifa chose a green to start with, threaded the needle with the right amount of strands and began cross stitching the stems and leaves of the plants. It was slow progress at first and she had to fix a few mistakes with Shera's help, but after an hour she really got the hang of it. Cid had long finished the dishes and was lounging in his big armchair with a book on mechanics. A light knock on the door made Tifa's heart leap with joy. Maybe Vincent was finally here!
She put her cross stitch to the side and ran to the door, pausing the collect herself before opening the door. A downcast Josef stood on the other side, staring at the ground instead looking into her eyes as he normally did. "Can I come in?" he asked Tifa carefully, glancing over at Cid, then Shera.
"Um........sure," Tifa nodded with a small smile and stepped aside to allow Josef to come through the door. He awkwardly ran a hand through the back of his hair and smiled at Shera.
"So.........how are you guys doing?" he asked with a slight shakiness in his voice.
"We're just relaxing," Shera grinned, "but now that there's four of us I know exactly what I want to do." She pulled herself out of the chair and went to a side closet, pulling something off a shelf and placing it on the table. "I've been wanting to try out this board game for some time now."
Cid looked disinterested, but came and sat at the table with his wife when she pouted and asked him sweetly. "Bloody woman," he muttered fondly. Tifa and Josef sat as well, both glancing at each other periodically with embarrassment. Shera set up the board game and got everyone to pick the colour of game piece that they wanted. She handed them six cards that corresponded with their colour and were numbered one to six.
"All right. This game is called "Imagine If". Basically you roll the die and this marker here moves to land on a name we write on the outside of the board with erasable marker. Then the person that rolled reads the scenario card and 'inserts' the chosen name into any necessary spots in the question. For example," she paused to write each persons' name twice along the outside of the board and pick a card, "Imagine if "Josef's" personality was a woman's name, which would it be?
1. Bubbles
2. Judy
3. Helga
4. Mary-joe
5. Cynthia
6. Rizzo
And then we all place one of our numbered cards face down that matches the number of the answer we choose. The most popular answer wins and you move your game piece one space if you didn't roll the die and two spaces if it was your turn to roll the die. Everyone pick a name for Josef and I'll demonstrate."
Tifa giggled slightly as she laid her card on the table and watched as Cid, Josef and Shera did the same. "Okay, reveal your card," Shera smiled mischievously. Josef laughed when he saw the others had all picked one and he picked two.
"You guys think my personality is like a girl named Bubbles?!" he frowned, pretending to be angry. Tifa laughed as well and looked at Shera for what to do next.
"Well, since Cid, Tifa and I got the most popular answer, I get to move two spaces towards the finish because it was my roll and Tifa and Cid both move one space. Sorry Joe. You stay on the start." Josef shrugged and grinned.
"This game seems like fun. Let's keep going." Tifa and Cid voiced their agreement and Shera looked extremely pleased.
"Okay. Tifa, you can roll next." Tifa took the die from Shera and rolled it onto the table. It stopped on five and Shera moved the marker, landing on Cid's name. Cid looked nervous as Tifa took a new card. She tried not to laugh as she read out the card.
"Imagine if Cid were in a circus, which would he be?
1. Clown
2. Performing poodle
3. Lion tamer
4. Trapease artist
5. Ring leader
or
6. Daredevil"
Everyone thought for a moment as Tifa read out the car again and they all placed a number face down on the table. "All right. Reveal your cards," Tifa grinned. Tifa and Shera had both picked one, Josef picked two and Cid picked five.
"Performing poodle!" Cid exclaimed, glaring at Josef.
Josef laughed and shrugged. "Sorry. I guess I see you around your wife too much. She has you on a pretty tight leash." Shera patted her husband's arm and moved Tifa's game piece two spaces and her own one space.
"Now, now boys. No bickering. This game is to see how we actually view each other. Believe me, you get insulted more then once while playing this."
"He started it," Cid muttered with a hint of a smile. The game continued for quite awhile with lots of laughing and grumbling until Cid reached the end place first. He stared surprised at the game.
"I won?" he asked unbelievingly, "I won! Let's play it again!" The other three at the table agreed and they started again, back at the starting point. Halfway through the second game Shera cried out quietly, closing her eyes and Cid was instantly kneeling by her side, frowning with concern. "Are you all right, Shera? What's wrong?"
"The baby," Shera gasped softly, then smiled, "it's kicking." Tifa squealed in delight and ran to Shera's other side.
"Can I feel?" she asked excitedly. Shera laughed and nodded, placing Tifa's hand on her abdomen. Tifa let out a small giggle when she felt a light kick against her palm. "I don't think he likes me pushing on his house," Tifa observed with a smile. Cid grinned like an idiot as he felt the gentle kicks from the inside of Shera's stomach.
"It's a boy, Shera. Feel how strong those kicks are." Shera rolled her eyes and sighed happily.
"I hope the baby's coming soon. It's been kicking me for god knows how long now. I don't know how much longer I can stand the suspense." Shera leaned forward and spoke to her stomach. "Hey baby. Mommy wants you to come out now. Can you do that? Hmmm? Come on. Come out for mommy." Everyone laughed and Tifa didn't want to have to ever take her hand of Shera's stomach. The feel of the baby's kicks was incredible and it brought happy tears to her eyes. She never realized how much she longed for a family. She was just so used to being alone. Josef hesitantly came forward and stood in front of Shera, blushing.
"C-can I feel too?"
Shera smiled warmly and shooed Cid's hand from her stomach to make room for Josef. "Go right ahead." The three sat around Shera, oooing and ahhing, utterly fascinated by the small life growing inside her. After a while, Josef glanced at the clock and stood with a goofy smile still lingering on his lips.
"Well, I have to be going pretty soon. I had fun though, thanks for cheering me up a bit," Josef smiled, winking at Shera.
"Need any company walking home?" Tifa asked suddenly, blushing at the strange look she got from Josef.
His smile warmed her and gave her shivers at the same time. He nodded eagerly, "sure. That'd be nice."
Shera and Cid exchanged glances, but didn't comment. "I guess I'll see you later, hun," Shera said to the young man, "be good and come back to visit me more often. You can't pretend not to know us just because Tifa's not visiting."
He nodded and blushed at the same time. "I'll drop by more often. Don't worry. I want to see that baby of yours once it pops out."
"That's one way to put it," Cid grinned, unsuccessfully dodging a carefully aimed smack from Shera. "I think it's time for my wife to head to bed anyway. I'll see you damn youngins' later."
"Night Cid," Tifa called as he scooped up his wife proudly and carried her upstairs to their room. "Shall we?" Tifa asked, turning shyly to look at Josef. Josef chuckled and offered her his arm.
"Let's."
The pair walked slowly in silence for a little while, knowing that Josef's house wasn't too far away. "Tifa?" Josef coughed nervously.
"Mmm?"
"I was wondering.....oh! Could you stop for a minute first?" Josef halted their walk and they stood near the main town path, everything darkening as a cloud passed over the moon. "I was wondering if I could read you something." Tifa didn't want him getting his hopes up again or putting himself in a potentially awkward situation and started to protest.
"Josef, I don't think-"
"Just here me out," he interrupted frantically. He noticed Tifa's worried look and steadied his voice. "Sorry. I just wrote you something and I wanted to read it to you out here. Away from eavesdropping friends or busy-body mothers. I don't care if you like it or if you don't like it. Please...............just listen." Tifa nodded, speechless, for him to continue.
Fumbling about in his jacket pocket, Josef pulled out a small folded piece of paper and unfolded it while clearing his throat. "Tifa, this poem is for you and even though it has no name, it doesn't need one because the words speak for themselves and they need no title to rule over them. I hope this little insight into my true self can help you make a hard decision in the future." Tifa began to say something, but he silenced her gently with his fingertips.
"Tifa, I do not love you as if you were a salt-rose, or topaz,
or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
I love you as certain dark things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.
I love you as the plant that never blooms
but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers;
thanks to your love a certain solid fragrance,
risen from the earth, lives darkly in my body.
I love you with knowing how, or when, or from where.
I love you straightforwardly, without complexities or pride;
So I love you because I know no other way,
then this:
where I does not exist, not you.
so close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
so close that your eyes close as I fall asleep."
Josef looked up from his paper to see Tifa's eyes filled with tears and a sad smile on her lips. "That was so beautiful," she whispered tearfully. "You are a very talented writer, Josef Alwood. I am touched and extremely moved, but.........," she sighed heavily. "I don't know what to say. Your poem was.......incredible........"
Tifa struggled for words as the handsome man before her leaned closer to her face. "I'm glad you liked it," Josef whispered, only an inch from her lips. Someone behind them cleared their throat before Josef could go any further and Tifa jumped away from Josef like she had been burned. They both looked for the source of the intrusion and Tifa blinked a couple times to make sure she wasn't hallucinating in the darkness.
"Vincent?" she asked softly, then a little louder, "VINCENT?!" She ran to the dark form on the back of his chocobo and grabbed his hand, tugging for him to dismount. The person snatched their hand away from her, making her wonder if her assumption of the person's identity was incorrect. "Vincent?" she asked in more a cautious tone now, "is that you?"
"Yes."
Tifa sighed in relief. "Then what are you waiting for? Get down here. I haven't seen you in days and I missed you like crazy." She peered up into his tired looking face when he didn't respond. "Vincent?"
".........what?"
Tifa frowned at the harshness of his tone. "What's wrong with you? Aren't you happy to see me?"
"........"
"Well? Answer me!" Piercing red eyes met hers and narrowed accusingly.
"You seem fine with your new friend. I see no reason to get down from here and cause myself more anguish then I already have." He leaned down towards her, lowering his voice. "Don't try and deny anything. I was listening to the poem."
"But Vincent-"
"I can't believe I thought you were different. It's like Lucretia all over again."
"If you'd just listen-"
"And I was foolish enough to drag myself out of my coffin to come and get you. God I'm pathetic."
"For god sakes! Would you ?" Tifa paused and lifted a trembling hand to Vincent's face, frowning in concern. "Vincent, what happened to you? Are you all right? What were you doing in a coffin?!" Vincent pulled away from her touch and shook his head.
"If you don't mind I'll be going back where I came from. At least my demons don't run off with other guys." Wincing at the harsh tone Vincent was using, Tifa grabbed Torro's reigns and held them tightly in her fist.
"You aren't even going to give me a chance to explain? After everything we've been through together? I thought I meant something to you." Tifa felt Josef step up next to her and turned to see him glaring at Vincent.
"Hey, you." Vincent glanced in his direction. "Yah, you. Dickhead. The lady rejected me for you because you were supposedly some great guy, so unless I start seeing you showing a little respect for her feelings I'm gonna have to drag you down off that chocobo and kick your ass." Tifa touched Josef's arm lightly to get his attention.
"Josef. Please. I just need to talk to him." Josef didn't budge an inch.
"Alone." He still didn't move as the clouds passed by and the moonlight shone down on them again. "Please, Joe. I'll catch up with you later."
"I'm not leaving you alone with him. What if he does something to you?" Josef argued.
"Josef," Tifa said through clenched teeth, "you need to go now." Josef sent one last dirty look in Vincent's direction and headed for his house, stuffing his hands in his pockets. That guy didn't deserve Tifa.
As soon as Josef was gone from sight, Vincent slowly climbed down from Torro and stood in front of Tifa with a betrayed expression on his face. "Vincent," Tifa said softly, "you know I would never even think about being with another man."
"Do I?"
"You're the only guy in my life. Why can't you see that? You're just being stubborn because some chick left you for another guy before and now you're too insecure to trust me!" Tifa cried out and fell back to the ground in surprise when Vincent delivered a stinging blow to her face. He blinked suddenly and seemed to come out of some kind of stupor at the sound of Tifa's cry.
"Tifa!" he gasped, grunting with the effort of kneeling to help her sit up. "I'm so sorry!"
"Y-you hit me........," Tifa whispered with wide fearful eyes, keeping her face turned away from him.
"No. Tifa. You don't understand. Chaos still had a hold on me. I'm so sorry. The monster took advantage of my jealousy. I would never ever hurt you. Please believe me." He cradled Tifa in his arms and bit his lip to keep from screaming in rage. First him, then Tifa. Chaos wouldn't let him stop hurting people. Including himself. Vincent was just grateful he hadn't hit her with his clawed hand. That could've done a lot of damage. He could feel the woman in his arms shaking violently and wished he were able to carry her. "Tifa? Can you stand?"
Tifa nodded and stood up with Vincent still holding her arms to steady her. She was completely speechless. She had never thought, in her entire time knowing him, that Vincent would ever hit her. "W-we should get inside," she managed to get out. Nodding, Vincent held his breath to try and ignore the pain he felt from walking and followed Tifa, who was leading Torro behind her, back to Cid's house. Tifa tied Torro's reigns to a fence beside Cid's house where Torro could eat the grass and move around a bit.
Vincent sighed heavily, barely able to keep himself mobile, and followed Tifa the rest of the way into the house. Her silence was unnerving. A shrill cry came from Shera's lips when she looked up from her drink of water and saw a blood-stained Vincent in her doorway.
Tifa ran to her quickly and gestured at Vincent, looking at him as she did so. "Shera, calm down! It's just Vinc-" She stopped talking when she got a good look at him under the kitchen light. Blood had dried in streams down his face, a dark red colour, and his cloak was ripped and torn everywhere; it also was covered in blood. The worst was the way he was moving. It looked as though he had dangerously sprained every bone in his body and only given them a few minutes to heal. He looked anything, but alive. Vincent staggered forward, about to explain what had happened when suddenly his world went dark and his face met the kitchen floor.
He woke up the next morning to find a pair of concerned women peering down at him. "Morning sleeping beauty," Tifa said with a smile that told him he was forgiven for the previous night. He tried to sit up and slumped back down with a groan at the wave of dizziness that hit him. Wiping the back of his hand across his sweating forehead, Vincent felt bandages here and there, covering some of the minor cuts, and suddenly realized that bandages were all that was covering his body as well. He didn't want to know who had taken off his clothes to bandage him. A vague memory of waking up, screaming when they pulled the cloth away from his skin hovered in his mind.
Tifa dipped a cloth into a basin of water and rung it out before gently wiping Vincent's forehead for him with the cool cloth. "You're quite the mess, young man," she sighed, kissing his cheek. Shera sat on the edge of the bed tiredly.
"I think I need a nap, Tifa. Do you think you'll be fine watching Vincent on your own? This baby seems to be gaining twenty pounds a day and I get tired just standing."
"Let's hope it's not growing that fast," Tifa smiled, "or we're going to have a hell of a time getting it out." Shera laughed and leaned over Vincent, checking on some of his bandages. "I'll be fine Shera," Tifa added, shooing her friend, "go take your nap." Shera gave up with her administering and stood to go to her own bed.
"Wake me for dinner, okay? Cid's working on the Tiny Bronco 2 in the back yard right now. If he comes in, tell him to make his own damn tea." Shera winked at Tifa before heading out of the guestroom. Tifa continued changing the cloth on Vincent's forehead to keep it cool. His hand suddenly grasped her wrist, bringing her attention back to him.
"Tifa, about last night.............when I-"
"Forget it. It didn't happen," Tifa cut in, giving him a look and pulling back some blankets. "I need to check on your other bandages and maybe change some of them. Your back is the worst." Vincent raised an eyebrow, seeing that he was only bandaged from the waist up and yet, they hadn't put any pants on him.
"Um.......may I ask why I'm naked?"
Tifa shrugged off his question with a smile. "Well, Cid can't give you a bath in your clothes now can he." Vincent paled and then realized she was teasing him. "Here," Tifa smirked, tossing him a pair of pants. "Need any help?"
"Maybe," Vincent muttered, embarrassed that he actually might need help getting dressed. It just hurt so much to move. Tifa pulled away the rest of the blanket and turned away while he pulled on a borrowed pair of underwear, then she helped him pull on pants.
"I think these pants are a little too tight," Vincent commented, seeing the way the material hugged his legs.
"It looks good, trust me," Tifa said, trying her best not to drool over the sight of him in tight pants. "I think I might know a way to help you loosen up those sore muscles." She climbed onto the bed and sat on his lower stomach, one leg on each side of him.
Vincent groaned in pain and protest, trying to push her away. Before he could stop her, Tifa leaned forward and kissed him full on the mouth.
"Maybe I should've knocked," an angry sounding voice said to the side of them. Tifa shrieked as she tried to jump off Vincent quickly and ended up sprawled on the floor in a painful heap. Josef glared at the panting man on the bed. If he had any doubts to whether or not the guy actually liked Tifa they were gone now. The tightness in certain areas of Vincent's pants told more then anything either of them could say to him. "I think I'll leave now and go back to helping Cid. Unless you two would like to go at it with me in the room."
Tifa untangled herself and hopped to her feet angrily. "Shut up. You have no right just walking in here. You should realize that by trying to piss off Vincent, you're actually pissing off me!" Josef watched her passively as she scolded him and coughed slightly.
"Done yet?"
Sighing in exasperation, Tifa pointed to the door. "Out." Her love-sick admirer headed out the door with slumped shoulders, clearly discouraged. "Sorry about that," Tifa apologized, biting her bottom lip nervously and sitting on the bed beside Vincent.
Vincent slowly rolled onto his side to look at Tifa. "Who is he anyway?"
"Just an old friend," Tifa sighed, "one who assumes too much and for some reason is attracted to me." She brushed a few strands of hair out of Vincent's face and let her hand linger on his cheek. He pulled the hand to his lips and kissed it lightly, wishing that he could forget her expression after he'd hit her that was seared into his mind. "Tifa?"
Her gaze shifted to his eyes. "Yes?"
"I love you."
Smiling, Tifa kissed him again and whispered her 'I love you too' into his ear. Vincent draped his arm over her waist and sighed contentedly. "Stay with me for awhile, Tifa. And please don't let me fall asleep." She watched his eyelids drooping and frowned at his strange request.
"I need to change your bandages before you do anything," Tifa ordered, forcing him to roll over onto his stomach. He protested lightly when she carefully peeled off the white bandages covering the long gashes on his back and she massaged his shoulders to relax his tense body once she had completed her task. He went limp against the mattress after a few minutes and she took that opportunity to throw away the bloodied bandages and grab the supplies off the bed side table to re-apply all the crap they'd put on the night before.
No sound came from Vincent when she began spreading a soothing cream over his injuries, but she felt his muscles tensing again from the pain. Quickly putting new bandages on his back, Tifa kissed the back of his sweat covered neck and patted his arm. "All done."
"Ow," Vincent muttered quietly, going painfully back onto his side and pulling Tifa into his arms. She gazed at him lovingly until he drifted off to sleep and wondered what she had done before he'd become a major part of her life. It seemed so long ago. Stroking his long black hair softly, Tifa laid back against the pillows with Vincent's arms around her and closed her eyes. If felt nice to have him back in her bed, as wrong as that sounded.
Upstairs in Cid and Shera's room, Shera laid on their large bed, resting and enjoying a cool breeze that was blowing through her open bedroom window. She had been having a strange feeling all day and just wanted to stay in bed where she felt safe. The pale yellow colour of the walls made her feel warm and cozy. She could feel drops of sweat running down her back, but she didn't really feel that hot.
Something was wrong.
Shera stood shakily to get a drink of water and grabbed onto the bedpost when she almost fell from dizziness. A sudden wetness on her legs made her look down in alarm. Shera blushed, not realizing at first that it wasn't her losing control of her bladder.
"W-what the....," she gasped, feeling a harsh pain fill her stomach and lower abdomen. "My w-water must've broke," she choked out, talking to herself fearfully. She slumped down into the puddle of liquid on the floor when a harsher contraction hit her and the pain was so bad it took her breath away. "Too............early........," she growled in frustration. The baby wasn't due for another couple months. What was going on?! Shera tried to stand and found that it was too strenuous. Someone had better come upstairs right now or she was in serious trouble. She couldn't yell because of the pain. It was hard enough to breathe, let alone talk.
"Cid.................," she breathed painfully, squeezing her eyes shut.
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Inside Author's secret lair on a deserted island
Author: NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I don't want Shera's baby to die! You can't kill it! I don't even know if it's coming out a boy or a girl yet! What the hell is wrong with this author?
Sephiroth: Um.....I hate to point this out, and please don't hurt me, but........you wrote it.
Author: WHAT?! I did? I did! Oh, I did.............heh heh ::glances around and hopes no one saw her hissy fit:: Um......yes.....well ::ahem::
Sephiroth: You'll have to forgive her stupidness today because she just spent the morning teaching a group of six and seven year olds and she had to dance and sing and stuff. Plus she's hot. I mean like temperature wise.......crap.
Author: ::pouts:: You don't think I'm hot?
Sephiroth: Of course I do...........n't
Author: ::cries and runs away::
Adam: ::smacks the back of Sephiroth's head:: Now look what you did! Idiot! She'll somehow find a way to blame me for this. Thanks a whole heck of a lot you jerk.
Sephiroth: ::snarls in outrage:: WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS?!
Amanda: You tried to seriously injure the world so that mako energy would flow to the wound and try to heal it and meanwhile you'd be in the center of the wound waiting to drain all the energy for yourself and become a-
Sephiroth: OKAY I GET IT! Grrrrr..........
Amanda: I love Kuja! ::runs out of fic before Author can attack her::
Author: ::throws herself in a bush, sobbing::
Kuja: ::appears in a poof and pulls her into a hug:: Don't cry my darling. Even if you'll never be as beautiful as me, you're still more gorgeous then most men I know.
Author: I'M A GIRL!
Kuja: ..................oops.
Author: GET OUT OF HERE YOU STUPID CROSSDRESSING PANSY!!!!
Kuja: ::sighs and cringes as he pulls he forward and gives the author a long savoury kiss::
Author: OO
Kuja: Better?
Author: OO
Kuja: Okay then..............I guess I'll........go.......now............
Author: OO
Sephiroth: ::creeps over to the bush and peers into it, waving a hand hesitantly in front of author's face:: Hellooooo?
Author: OO ...............................wow! Holy crap can he kiss!!!!!!
Readers and all others in author's notes: Oo
Sephiroth: ::grins:: Why thank you.
Author: Not you, you idiot. Kuja! ::sighs dreamily:: I think I see how Amanda can ignore the "hip cape" and metal thong.
Amanda: Shwee! Told you so.
Author: ::continues with stars in her eyes:: As I was saying, poor Shera. I hope she'll be all right. I guess you'll only find out if you read the next chapter. God demands it! He shall smite you if you fail to read this, review and read the next chapter! Mwahahaha! So there. Mmmmm.....Kuja ::drools:: Crap! I've gotta get a hold of myself.
Adam: ::smacks her:: Better?
Author: ::turns slowly to Adam with a fiery look of death now in her eyes::
Adam: GOING NOW! BYE! ::runs::
Author: ::sighs:: Anyway, thank you all for your wonderful reviews and for your support and criticism. A special thanks goes out to The Frogness for her super long review! I feel so glowy and loved inside. I hope to see you all next chapter and hopefully by then I'll have ONE HUNDRED reviews! It's my dream! ::sighs happily:: If only I had thirty reviewers. ::laughs:: Like that'd ever happen. :P So yah, I hope you all review lots so I can end the suspense and post the next chapter. See you soon! Bai bai! ::throws free "I love fanfiction" t-shirts and chocolate bars to all her readers::
