Disclaimer: I don't own it.

Note: Thank you SO MUCH for all of my wonderful reviews and "Happy birthday" messages!

Second Note: I ALMOST HAVE 100 REVIEWS! OH YEAH! HEE! SQUEAL! And no, I'm not taking any type of drugs or medication. The fact that I could get 100 reviews on this story before chapter 20 just makes me ecstatic…

Chapter 14: The Date

She regained her consciousness after sleeping but didn't want to open her eyes, even though she could tell it was light outside. She felt so wonderful; it was as though she were floating.

Then she realized that someone was carrying her.

Tifa's eyelids snapped open immediately and she looked up. Crimson eyes met hers and she blushed.

"Um…did I oversleep?" she asked timidly.

"Is that really a question you have to ask?" Vincent replied, his voice smiling. "Don't be worried; it is not that big of a deal. If you wish to walk, though, I will set you down…"

"Well…as much as I just love walking, um, I do have to say that this is my favorite way to get from place to place," the dark-haired woman sighed shyly, giggling. "But if your arms get tired, I'll walk."

The red-eyed man continued walking. "Don't worry. I don't mind carrying you in the least."

Tifa smiled. "That wouldn't be fair though. I'll walk…"

The ex-Turk shrugged and gently set her down, then handed her the bag he'd given her with her belongings in it. She dug through it, found her comb, and skillfully untangled her hair while walking.

"So, last night…you said my name but I fell asleep before you could say anything else. Were you going to ask me anything?" Tifa asked, not because she wanted him to ask her anything specific but because she just wanted to know.

"Well…"

"Oh, come on!" the woman pressed, sticking her comb back into her brown bag. "You know you can tell me."

Vincent clenched his teeth together. No, he wasn't aggravated—it was just that since he couldn't bite his lip, he had to find a substitute.

"I was wondering if maybe, you'd, um…like to…like to…"

Tifa silently, patiently waited for the man to ask what he was going to ask.

"Well…what I'm trying to say is, as we're close to the Gold Saucer, would you like to, perhaps, go on a date…? As a couple, and not captor and captive…" he managed to say awkwardly.

He thought he had been rejected when his offer was met only by her silence, but when he turned to look at her, Tifa was beaming.

"YES!" she squealed, flinging her arms around his waist.

Vincent was slightly taken aback by her response, but was happy nonetheless.

"Wonderful," he said softly. It was another one of those moments where he wished he could smile. "When we get there we should probably clean up a little bit first but then we can go on our date…is that alright with you?"

"Of course! Why wouldn't it be?" the wine-eyed woman asked.

"I was merely making sure."

It hadn't been long since their last visit to the amusement park, but it had already changed a lot. There were a lot more attractions, and a lot more shops—in fact, if it weren't for the fact that the only type of housing there was in the place was the hotel, it could have been a city. Well…a city for the rich people who could be able to afford the lifestyle there, anyway.

"With all of the changes they made," Tifa observed, glancing around their hotel room, "couldn't they have at LEAST made the hotel less…cheesy?"

"It's an amusement park, Tifa. It's going to have something cheesy somewhere in it…besides, the room's nice enough," Vincent responded nonchalantly. "You go ahead, go out and do what you need to do to get ready—what I mean is, if you want to, say, buy a new outfit or something, go ahead and do that. I'll be here, getting myself ready."

"Okay, but I don't have any gil…"

"…And you think I'm not going to give you some? No, you don't have to pay me back. Don't pay me back, in fact. You don't have to give me your change, but if you wish to, you are most certainly welcome to," he said, hinting that he wanted his change.

Tifa giggled. "Okay, I'll give you your change."

She gratefully took the money he handed her, hastily ripped her comb through her hair once more and darted off to the park's shopping center.

The woman didn't care that she hadn't taken a shower since before they left. I look okay for shopping, she thought, glancing at herself in a mirror. Besides, there's a LOT of people who look a LOT worse after not showering.

They had several clothing shops, so Tifa randomly entered one of them and began looking around. Their selection wasn't very wide, but she still had a hard time deciding and finally chose a lilac-colored shirt with thin straps for sleeves and a pair of jeans that, though very similar to the ones she had on at the time, weren't so loose. That was okay, though; she didn't anticipate having to kick anyone's head while on her date.

After making her purchase, she headed back towards the hotel. Vincent had, somehow, already gotten ready. He looked the way he always did, minus the headband and cape—probably because he wanted to blend in a little more. He would have done a great job, too, if it weren't for his large, golden claw.

"I'm gonna get ready now," said Tifa.

She turned on the shower, then scowled. It seemed that Vincent stole most of the hot water. Gritting her teeth together, she ignored the iciness of the water and hastily washed herself off.

That done, she cut the tags off of her new outfit, got dressed, brushed her teeth, blow dried her hair, and exited the bathroom.

"Hot water stealer," she teased, sliding one arm across Vincent's shoulders.

The man raised one eyebrow. "I could have told you, you know…well, are you ready?"

"Yep!"

Cid steered the Highwind over the Gold Saucer and scowled at it unhappily.

"Think they're there?" asked Yuffie hopefully.

"Why WOULD they be there? There are too many people, and it would be easy for Vincent to be caught if we were to go there…just wait in the room that leads to all of the other places, and eventually they'd show up. That'd be a stupid place for them to go," Cloud sighed. "Let's not even waste our time there."

"But you never know!" Yuffie shrieked.

Cloud shook his head. "If we can't find Tifa anywhere else, we'll stop there…"

"So what are ya gonna to do Vinnie once you find him?" the hyper young ninja asked.

The spiky-haired leader's blue-green eyes narrowed dangerously. "I'm not sure what I'll do yet, but I promise you it will cause the man great pain…"

"Uh…EW, I don't think I'll watch his punishment then. Blood's icky," Yuffie gagged. "So then what're ya gonna do with Tifa?"

"…I'm not sure, but I know I'll make sure she's safe," the blonde man said.

"Well, I know what I'M gonna do!" said Yuffie. "Everyone else's hair is either too short or plastered together with that stupid hair gel, so I hope she doesn't mind having her lovely long hair braided into a zillion braids!" she said, cackling evilly. Then she continued cackling, and cackling, and cackling…

"Damn, she's a scary girl," Barret grunted, stepping away from his Wutainese comrade.

Despite Vincent's lack of love for immense crowds of people, he had to admit he was enjoying himself—even on the rides. He hadn't ridden any type of amusement park ride thirty years, and he'd forgotten how fun it was…he couldn't scream, laugh, smile, or anything like that (Chaos absolutely refused to let him), but Tifa could still tell he was having fun.

"So what now?" she asked as they exited another ride.

Vincent glanced at a clock that was displayed above the ride. "It's 7:23 p.m. Do you want to go somewhere to get some dinner?" he suggested.

"Sure, where do you want to go?"

"We passed a restaurant a while ago…I do not know what it is called or what sort of food they serve there, but do you want to go there?" Vincent asked.

"Okay," the dark-haired woman said, shrugging.

It was somewhat small, but it looked nice on the inside. It had a generic name—something along the lines of Gold Saucer Super Diner—but it seemed like it would be okay. There was music playing in the background, and some couples, along with other people, were dancing in a cleared space with no tables. Some people were dressed fancy, while others were just dressed in plain clothing so the two would fit in fine.

Tifa followed Vincent over to a small table and they examined the menu.

"They have a lot of stuff," Tifa muttered, frowning slightly as she scanned the menu. She wasn't too good at picking out food to eat. "They even have Wutain food…but they don't tell you what it is! Do you know what any Wutain food is?"

"I know some. Tell me one and I could be able to tell you what it is," Vincent offered.

"Okay then…What's unagi?"

"…That would be eel."

"Oh. Wow. Um…what's tako?" she asked, placing her finger over another food.

The red-eyed man chuckled. "That would be octopus."

Tifa's wine-colored eyes widened. "Gah. Is there anything on here that isn't made of anything that wouldn't pass my lips if I were back home?"

"You know, I've had all of those before and they weren't bad…they have spaghetti here, do you just want to order that?" Vincent asked.

"Well, what are you ordering?"

"Grilled chicken," he answered simply.

"Ok, I'll have spaghetti then."

Once the waitress came, they placed their orders and waited.

"So," Tifa started, wanting to break the silence. "Um…have you ever been on a date before?"

"Yes, several. Once I asked Lucretia—you know who that is, right?" asked Vincent, remembering that Tifa didn't know everything about his past.

"Wasn't she Sephiroth's mother?" Tifa mused.

"Yes. Well, I asked her to go on a date before, and she said no, that I'd hold her on the date and that holding another makes you look weak. But I later heard her telling Hojo…" He gave a short, bitter laugh. "But I later overheard her tell Hojo that it was because she didn't want my filthy arms around her, and that she couldn't be caught dead in public alone with me."

"Ouch…" Tifa whispered.

"Yes. And Hojo said that if I ever dared to touch her, he'd chop my good arm off."

"You were left-handed?" Tifa asked, somewhat awed that he'd learn to use his right hand so well.

"No. Well, somewhat…I was ambidextrous, but I mostly told people that I was left-handed. Hojo thought I was left-handed, and so, he amputated my left arm…"

"I really hate that man," the dark-haired woman seethed.

"We all do, even though we don't have to worry about him any more."

"True. Oh, and…well, never mind," she sighed.

Vincent shrugged and didn't press what she was going to say out of her.

"So have you ever been on a date before?" the red-eyed man asked, not wanting to stop the conversation.

Tifa gave a somewhat laugh. "I don't suppose my 'episode' with Sephiroth counts, does it…?"

"How did that come to happen, anyway?" he wanted to know.

The woman sighed. "I was fifteen, okay? I was stupid when I was fifteen. I regret what I did to this day, even though I didn't lose any of my innocence. He wanted to know things about the Nibel Mountains…I told him…I was about to leave…I think my mistake was turning around to tell him bye," she said.

"Why is that?" asked Vincent.

"Well, when I turned, our eyes met and…I was scared of him, Vincent, and at that age everyone wants a little romance…I was scared he'd kill me if I told him no," she confessed.

"So why did he let you live when you started crying?"

"He said that I was just a little girl, let me get dressed, and said he'd come back for me when I was a woman. Of course, when he lost his humanity he probably forgot all about me. You know what? That's a good thing, because I'm perfectly happy with you," Tifa sighed, smiling at the end of her small rant.

"…And I am perfectly happy with you."

The food came then, ruining the little moment that they were going to have.

"Later," Vincent mouthed to Tifa after thanking the waitress.

His date blushed.

They ate in a comfortable silence, watching the other couples dance, listening to the music. There wasn't much more to say at that time.

"I love this song," Tifa squealed as a new song, a slow, romantic song, came on after a while.

Vincent stood up, walked over to her side of the oaken table, and offered his good hand smoothly. "Would you like to dance?" he offered. If silk had a sound, it would have been the man's voice when he asked the question.

His partner's insides fluttered. Smiling, she nodded and took his hand, his palm soft and warm in hers. He led her to the dance floor and slid his arms around her waist as she, at the same time, slid her arms around his neck.

Tifa was close to the man and took in his scent as they slowly twirled around the same place over and over again. They occasionally gazed into each other's eyes, speaking without using words. Vincent leaned in, his lips brushing against her ears.

"You're beautiful," he whispered.

They were slightly disappointed when the song ended, replaced by silence as the people in charge of the music searched for another song. Sitting down, Vincent paid the bill, tipped the waitress, and beckoned for Tifa to follow him.

It was near midnight when they reached the hotel room again.

"…I had fun," the dark-haired woman murmured as she entered the deep red room.

"So did I," Vincent replied, closing and locking the door behind him.

Tifa sat on the edge of the scarlet bed, the quilt wrinkling slightly under her lightweight body. "…I sort of wish that you didn't have to kidnap me in order for us to be together like this, but at the same time, I'm sort of glad…I do miss the others though. A lot…"

The red-eyed man nodded and sat next to her, wrapping his metal arm around her waist to pull her into his warmth. "I know you do. I shouldn't keep you like this for much longer. I have the feeling that we are going to run into the others soon…and as much as I wish for you to be happy, I am also afraid of not being able to see you any more…"

"Why wouldn't you be able to?" Tifa asked, frowning.

"You know that the entire team is very fond of you, Tifa. You are more precious than the Keystone or Materia…I do not anticipate a light punishment," he said quietly, bowing his head somewhat.

"Well, because you sent them away when they tried to rescue me, don't you think that your punishment's just going to be even worse?" she sighed, frowning sadly.

"Yes. I regret that. But I had to! If I didn't, Chaos would have killed you. He still wants you dead."

"What about your other demons? What do THEY think about me?" Tifa wanted to know.

"Hellmasker is Chaos's right-hand man. Anything Chaos says, Hellmasker agrees with him. Death Gigas doesn't care about my personal life at all. Gallian Beast is the only demon I get along with well. He wants you to live…but he is not as strong as Chaos and therefore cannot stop him from taking control of my body," Vincent explained, rising his head from its droop.

"No offense is meant by this, but you have one screwed up mind," Tifa sighed.

"I know."

The wine-eyed girl scooted to the back of the bead and leaned against the headboard, kicking off her shoes. "I'm tired," she yawned, sliding down so that her head rested on one of the crimson pillows.

"It is midnight, so I suppose that would make sense," said Vincent, sliding out of his boots as he moved back to join her. "So are you sure you had a good time…?"
"Yes, I'm sure! It was the best night I've had in a long time…" She moved a bit closer to Vincent and examined his torso. "Do you have scars?"

"Yes…why…?"

"Just wondering…um…can I see them?"

Vincent clenched his teeth in the way another person would have bit their lip. "I'm not sure that would be a good idea…"

"Why not? It's just your torso. Besides, you're a man so it's not illegal."

The red-eyed man gave in and, somewhat reluctantly, he removed his shirt.

"Oh my gosh," Tifa said quietly, her wine-colored eyes scanning his many scars. "What happened to you…? This is all because of Hojo, isn't it?"

Vincent nodded reluctantly. "It's hideous, isn't it?"

She bit her lip. The abundance of scarring was definitely not pretty, but she shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Scars or no scars, you're still a wonderful person."

She rested her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his natural arm around her, allowing her to come closer. He didn't want to go too far—he knew they'd both regret that, but he was completely in control for now.

Tifa traced his scars, her fingertips kissing his torso softly as she did so. The man held back a moan, and it took every single ounce of his self-control to stop from pouncing on her to find and explore what was really beneath her outfit, even though what she was doing was very gentle.

Finally, part of his control snapped somewhat and he rolled over, capturing her in a very passionate kiss.

Yumesuta: So, that's a nice, long chapter, no? I hope you all liked it! Please review!