Chapter 45: First Date
(4 ½ weeks later)
(Same tags apply as in Chapter 1)
The sun was shining down on the town of Nibelheim making the air warm, but nowhere near uncomfortable. Yuffie sat on top of the well in the middle of the village square, a large sketchpad was balanced on her lap as she made rapid stokes with her pencil. Gray eyes glanced up form occasionally to look at the Mansion.
The gardeners had done a beautiful job of landscaping the grounds. Saplings hearty enough for the bitter cold winters, yet bloom during the spring were planted along the wrought-iron fence that bordered the property and bushes lined the walkway leading to the door. The grass was a solid green, never faltering in color. Six large rose bushes were planted, three to each side of the entryway of the mansion and if one were to look closely, they would see the ivy, climbing the trellis on the wall of the west wing. She grinned as two children ran in front of the great building, chasing their runaway red rubber ball and began to add them to the drawing as well.
The young woman added a few more details to the children, making small letters on their clothing that represented the colors. She sat the pad and pencil down next to her while she removed the camera Vincent had given to her on her birthday and took a few snapshots. Yuffie sighed contentedly, replacing the lens cap and putting it back inside of her bag along with the pad. Yuffie leapt down from the top of the well and slung her bag over her shoulder.
"Hi Yuffie."
She turned around politely, already knowing whom it was. "Hi Jonathan."
He gave her a smile and slight bow. "I haven't seen you around lately. How have you been?"
"We've been out of town. Reeeeally busy lately." She said, not caring to elaborate on her trip to the City of the Ancients or their month long stay in Junon. "You?"
"Nothing much, just relaxing."
"Well, uh, that's good." She shifted nervously from foot to foot. "I better be going…I have some things to do." She turned to and started back for her home.
"Wait!" He blurted suddenly.
Yuffie let out a sigh. "Huh?"
"Can I take you out to dinner this evening?" He saw the hesitation clearly on her face and poured on the charm. "Come on, its just an innocent meal…I won't take no for an answer." He winked at her.
Yuffie felt a laugh threatening to escape at his cheesy line he used, but sighed. She knew that he wouldn't stop asking unless she said yes. "Okay, you can pick me up around 7:30."
He bowed to her. "I'll see you then."
Yuffie made toward the safety of the Mansion but paused, closing her eyes in irritation. It was already May and she had yet to even go on one date. She had to do this in order to say she attempted to find a husband. At the same time, she got the sinking feeling that this was only the beginning. Yuffie decided against heading back home and went to Tifa's instead and knocked on the door.
The Zangan fighter came to the door trying to pull her hair into a ponytail and open the door at the same time. "Hey Yuffs, come on in!"
Yuffie came in and sat on the couch with a huff.
"What's wrong Yuffie?"
"You remember that guy that I bumped into when we were shopping?"
"The same guy that has the hots for you and flirts with you every time he sees you? You mean that guy?" Tifa said with a smirk.
Yuffie glared at the fighter. "Yeah…him."
"Let me guess, he finally asked you out."
"NO!" The ninja said quickly. "We're just going to dinner, that's all."
"Well that sounds like a date in my book." Tifa laughed at the ninja.
She glared at the martial artist, clearly not amused at her upcoming 'date' with the guy. "Arrgh! It's not funny Teef! If I didn't said yes, he would have kept hounding me!"
Tifa laughed. "I know Yuffs, I'm sorry. It's just that I have been on a few of 'those' dates too."
The ninja covered her face with her hands and let out a growl of irritation. "So what am I suppose to do? I'm not even interested in the guy!"
"The only advice I can give you is to just go and try to have a nice time."
"Well, I guess I really don't have a choice in the matter…" She grumbled. "Teef, you wanna spar?"
Tifa nodded eagerly. "Sure! Let me get changed and I'll meet you at the mansion."
"Great!" Yuffie bounced from her seat and made her way home.
.::-o-::.
In a small grove of trees outside of Nibelheim, the sound of an intense battle could be heard.
Tifa ducked as a orange sneaker flew over her head missing her by scant centimeters and swept her foot, knocking her opponent to the ground. Yuffie grinned at the fighter. "Good leg sweep, Teef!"
"Thanks!" She said, pulling the ninja to her feet.
Both women were sweaty and covered in scratches, some of which were bleeding slightly. Tifa pulled the twigs and leaves that had found a new home in her long braid as Yuffie wiped a smear of blood off her arm.
"Wanna go again?" The ninja asked eagerly.
"I think we should call it a day Yuffs. We've been out here for four hours already and YOU have a date to go on."
Yuffie narrowed her gray eyes at the woman before her and pulled out her cure materia. "It's NOT a date!" She huffed, casting an upper level cure spell on them both.
"Okay, Okay! It's not a date!" Tifa stated, throwing her hands up in playful surrender.
"I have to go to dinner with that cheesy guy…I almost feel like gouging my eyes out with my Conformer just so I don't have to go!" She muttered.
"Poking your eyes out isn't going to help, he will still want to take you to dinner. He'd just read you the menu and he'll even feed you!" Tifa teased, poking at the ninja.
"Damn!" She muttered to herself as she looked down at her watch. "Well I still got two hours 'til he's suppose to show up. Let's get back I guess."
"I'll stop by my place and clean up then I'll come by and help you get ready."
Yuffie rolled her eyes and began walking out of the grove. "Geez Teef, you really think I'm gonna get all dolled up for this?"
Tifa smiled as she shook her head, following the disgruntled ninja back to town.
.::-o-::.
Jonathan walked into his small apartment with a grin plastered on his face as he stepped over the mounds of food cartons, beer bottles and bags of stale chips. He pulled out his cell and dialed a number as he entered his bedroom, sniffing the clothing that was strewn around the room in search of something to change into.
"Hello?" A tired male voice came over the line.
"Mike! You will never guess who I have a date with!" Jonathan said cockily into the phone.
"Aw man…you woke me up for that?! You know I have a hang over from last night!" Mike whined over the line.
"Its almost seven at night, get up and just humor me okay?!" He said, still searching for something clean.
"Fine ya asshole, but you've gotta stop yellin' in the phone! My head is killing me." The man on the phone let out a pained groan. "Ugh…who do you have a date with?"
Picking up a relatively clean pair of pants and a shirt, he went into his filthy bathroom. "You know those two chicks from Avalanche?"
"Yeah…the long haired one with the massive knockers and the cute girl with the short hair? What about 'em?"
Jonathan let out a short laugh. "Well you, my friend, just happen to be talking to a man who has a date with one of 'em! What do ya say about that?!"
"I'd say you were a fuckin' liar and I said stop yelling in the damn phone!"
"I'm not a liar you ass!" He said as he soaked himself in cologne and began donning his 'clean' clothing. "She's staying at the old Shinra Mansion…I'm going to pick her up in about fifteen minutes."
"I still think you're lying. I need to see some proof." Mike said through the line.
Jonathan spiked his black hair with his hair gel and sprayed some binaca in his mouth before walking out of the bathroom, leaving his discarded clothing on the wet bathroom floor. "Okay, you need proof? How bout you grab the guys and get to that new café in the town square in about twenty minutes?"
A sigh was heard through the line. "Fine Nate, but if you're fuckin with me and got me outta bed for nothing you will be getting your ass kicked."
Jonathan scoffed at the man. "Even sober you couldn't kick my ass. Be there." He said as he hung up. He held up the cologne bottle once more and studied it for a moment before shrugging his shoulders and putting on a little more. Glancing up at the clock, Jon grabbed his keys and left to pick up his date.
.::-o-::.
Vincent came from the basement passage, heading for the living room with a large tome under his arm. He paused as he passed one of the windows; there was a young man approaching the door. Vincent tilted his head in curiosity before setting the book on a nearby table. Before the young man could ring the door chime, the gunman opened the door, startling the man.
"Yes?" He asked in a cold monotone.
"Uh…I'm here to pick up Yuffie…"
Vincent locked his crimson eyes on the man and for some odd reason, enjoyed watching him squirm under his gaze. He said nothing, making the man extremely nervous.
'Vinnie, I think you better say something…the boy looks like he's going to shit himself.' Chaos snickered in Vincent's mind.
"Remain here and do not leave this area." He said, turning and heading up the stairs, his cloak drifting behind him.
Jonathan let out the breath he didn't realize he had been holding. 'Whoa…what a freak.' He thought to himself.
.::-o-::.
Yuffie stood behind the shoji screen and zipped up her khaki's. She pulled at her white shirt, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. She closed her eyes, feeling drained from her earlier sparring session and wished that she could just climb into her bed and sleep.
"Yuffie, hurry up! Let me see how you look." Tifa called from her spot on the bed.
"Shit." She spat tiredly before coming form behind the screen. Tifa nodded her approval as she lay on her stomach on the soft bed. Yuffie walked over to her mirror and stared at her reflection in the mirror. Both the ninja and martial artist jumped when they heard a knock at her door. "Come in."
Vincent stepped into the room and Yuffie felt guilt pang in her chest. She had forgotten to tell Vincent.
"Yuffie, someone is here for you." He said quietly.
Tifa snickered. "Yuffs, your date is here." She teased, making kissy noises.
Yuffie blushed bright red. She grabbed her stuffed Chocobo and tossed it at Tifa's head. "I don't want to go on this stupid date with him…I'm not even remotely interested in him." She fumed, forgetting Vincent was in the room until she turned to the door and saw him standing there.
"Thanks Vince." She sighed as he began to talk to Tifa.
.::-o-::.
'She has a date…' Vincent thought sadly.
Chaos let out what sounded like an exasperated sigh. 'But didn't you hear her Vinnie? She does not want to go.'
'This is something she has to do, even if she wishes not to. You are right Chaos.'
'So nice to hear you say that.'
'Heathen…'
.::-o-::.
"Hey Vincent?"
The gunman turned to the gray-eyed ninja. "Yes?"
"Do you have any sleep powder?"
Both he and Tifa looked at her quizzically. "I believe so, why?"
She gave him a slight grin. "Can you grab some and use it on me?" He looked at her curiously as she continued. "Then you can just tell that guy downstairs that I'm in a coma or something…"
The corners of his mouth upturned slightly before he walked out of the open door. "Do you wish for me to tell him you are ill?"
She walked over to a wall and hit her head on it lightly. "No…I better just get this over with." She said and followed him down the hall and to the foyer.
Jonathan was standing near the door, glancing at one of the paintings with disinterest and looked up when the dark man, the buxom woman with long hair and his date descended the stairs. He hid a frown as Yuffie whispered to the unsmiling, imposing man…it made him wonder if there was some relationship between the two, but quickly banished that thought when they stopped before him.
Yuffie looked at Jon and gave a mental smirk. 'Maybe Vinnie can scare him away.' "Jonathan, this is Vincent Valentine. Vincent, this is Jonathan."
Jon shivered slightly as his gaze locked with the bloody red eyes of the vampire like man. He brought up a shaking, sweaty right hand in order to greet Vincent properly.
Vincent, feeling uncharacteristically mischievous, nodded to the man and slightly uncovered his claw from beneath the cloak. The man looked as if he was going to bolt, but managed to remain rooted to the spot where he stood.
'What the Hell?!' He thought, dropping his hand and placing it in his pocket. "It's nice to meet you Mr. Valentine." He said with false confidence. "Yuffie, are you ready to go?"
Yuffie nodded and lead the way toward the door. "Yeah," she turned back to Tifa and Vincent. "I'll see you guys later."
"Bye Yuffie." Tifa said as the door closed. She looked up to Vincent and saw his usual emotionless mask, but knew that his was more than likely experiencing some pretty turbulent emotions at the moment.
She knew that he loved the girl, but was flustered he hadn't said anything to her yet. 'Probably for the same reason Yuffie hasn't told him.' She turned to the gunman and placed her hand on his arm in support and gave him a half smile before leaving Vincent standing in the foyer, still holding the large tome.
The gunman shook off the feeling of jealousy and continued to the living room with the book, but knew that he wouldn't be able to get much reading done.
.::-o-::.
Yuffie and Jonathan made the short trip to the small promenade of shops located near Tifa's home. He made small talk as they made the quick trip, but Yuffie wasn't paying much attention.
Yuffie stifled a sneeze and her eyes began to water as he came a little too close. 'Gawd, did he have to put on all the cologne in the freakin' bottle?! Why can't he put it on like a normal person and not BATHE in it.' She complained to herself.
She smiled at the thought of the faint but appealing scent of Vincent's cologne. He always smelled good and she knew that she would never tire of his scent. Yuffie scolded herself for thinking about Vincent right now. She couldn't hold back the sigh that escaped her lips as she thought about him, unable to pull her mind away from him.
"Here we are." He said opening the door for her.
"Thanks." She said as she walked past him.
Jonathan stood behind her and glanced around the restaurant, finally seeing Mike sitting in the corner, his eyes wide and practically drooling at the sight of Jon's beautiful date. He wagged his eyebrows at mike the waitress came over and ushered them to a booth.
'Call me a fuckin' lair…' Jonathan thought to himself.
The others hadn't made it yet so the olive skinned man placed his hand lightly on the small of Yuffie's back, causing her to jump slightly. Yuffie fought the urge to slap his hand away from her back as she slid into the booth.
"Here are your menus, I will be back in a moment to take your drink orders."
"Thank you." Yuffie mumbled slightly as she glanced at the menu and decided on a small chef salad. Placing the menu on the table, she glanced at her 'date' and saw a boyish smile on his face as he read the menu.
'Well, I might as well make an attempt to make this pleasant.' She decided. "This place is pretty nice. They were still working on finishing it when we left." She said, taking in the relaxed atmosphere of the restaurant.
Jon nodded and looked up when three men in their early twenties enter and joined the still slightly hung over Mike. He quickly turned his attention back to the beautiful brunette sitting across from him. "Yeah, I've been here once before and the food was pretty good." He said, directing a smirk more to the group behind them rather than to her.
The waitress came over and took their orders, returning almost immediately with their drinks. "So, did you have a nice trip?" He asked before taking a sip of his beer.
Yuffie squirted the lemon juice in her ice tea and stirred. She shifted slightly in her seat before answering. "Yeah, after we found what we were looking for, we had a little bit of downtime."
"Was it like a mission with Avalanche? What did you do on your downtime?" His curiosity was quite evident in the tone of his voice.
She smirked at him. "All I can say is that we had some unfinished business we needed to take care of." She said seriously before letting out a light laugh as she stretched the truth a bit. "We spent a few days at Icicle Inn, did a little chocobo riding and hiking…"
"That's cool. I've always wanted to visit the inn." He said.
The waitress came over and brought their meals. Yuffie thanked the woman and turned back to her dinner companion then frowned. The man was obviously staring at her rear as she walked away. Yuffie picked up her fork and had the strange sensation that she was being watched, but shrugged it off, thinking that she was being overly paranoid.
For most of the meal, Yuffie listened to him babble on and on about himself. He talked about everything; his past girlfriends, some of his 'hilarious' drunken antics, and how popular he was in high school since he was the captain of almost all of the team sports. She smiled though she felt as if she was going to crack if she had to listen to him gloat any longer. No longer hungry, she pushed her salad aside.
"…and after the game I-"
Yuffie slid from her seat. "Excuse me for a second."
"No problem." He said.
The ninja quickly made her way around a corner to the rear of the restaurant to escape the self absorbed man. She entered the bathroom and walked over to the sink, splashing the cool tap water on her face. "Gawd, I can NOT listen to him talk about himself anymore!"
She glanced around the small restroom and spotted the high window above the sink in the corner. Yuffie tried to open the window and with a creak, it opened. The security bars that covered the window halted her chance of escape. She groaned and hopped from the sink and headed back out to the restaurant.
.::-o-::.
The ninja's was about to round the corner when something made her stop. She peeked around the corner and her eyes narrowed a bit as she glanced at their table. Jonathan now sat on her side of the booth flirting with the waitress and four men had joined their table. Three men sat on the side that Jon recently vacated. The fourth man had pulled up a chair and was seated at the end of the table.
The waitress walked away smiling and Yuffie left her spot near the table. Jonathan smiled when he saw her approach. He slid from the booth and stood allowing her to slide in first. "Yuffie, these are a few friends of mine. They came in after you left and decided to come over and visit for a few minutes. That's Mike," he pointed to the man who sat directly across from her. "Jared, Daniel, and Jack."
Yuffie was getting extremely uncomfortable by all the eyes that were on her. She gave them a weak smile. "Nice to meet cha."
The all sat chatting for a bit. Yuffie began to get a headache as she suffered through more stories that only guys with nothing better to do but party would find funny.
"Well, we better get going." Jonathan said glancing at his watch.
Yuffie praised the great god Leviathan for ending her punishment and nodded. "I have to get back home." She stood and her date followed suit.
"I'll see you later guys." He said placing his arm over Yuffie's shoulder as he escorted her out of the door.
.::-o-::.
Yuffie never felt so happy to see to see a metal gate before. To her, the gate that enclosed the mansion grounds looked like the gates to the Promised Land. She glanced down as her watch, not listening as Jonathan babbled on about his friends. '9:30…doesn't surprise me, but it felt like it was a helluva lot longer than that.' She thought as the made their way up the walkway to the door.
The ebony haired man turned to Yuffie with an over-confident smile on his face. "Well Yuffie," he said clasping the teen's rigid hand as he moved in close. "I hope you had a good time, I know I did. Then again, what guy wouldn't…being in the company of such a beautiful woman."
'Actually no…I didn't. The fact that you were there kinda stomped out any chance of me having a good time, you slime ball.' She thought. "Uh, yeah…it was great." She said with fake enthusiasm.
"Well, maybe we'll have another chance to get together again." He brought her hand up to his lips, kissing her hand gently.
She nodded but remained silent as she resisted the urge to wipe her hand on her pants leg. The ninja also found it odd that as the night progressed, his cologne seemed to get stronger. "I have a lot to do tomorrow so I better get going." She said reclaiming her hand and moving to the door.
"Goodnight!" She said, quickly closing the door, not waiting for his reply. She closed her eyes for a moment, knowing that her action was somewhat rude, but her headache was starting to get to her.
The ninja made her way up the stairs and to her room. She grabbed some pajamas and made her way to her bathroom, showering quickly to rid herself of the lingering scent of rancid cologne. She pulled a bottle of aspirin from popped two pills, cupping her hand under the faucet and taking a few sips of water.
Yuffie made herself comfortable on her bed when there was a faint knock at the door. She smiled and called to her visitor. "Come in Vinnie." The door opened slowly as he stood at the door. Yuffie waved him over and gave a pat to a spot on the bed next to her.
Vincent was still carrying the large tome from earlier as he approached and sat on the bed. He looked up to the ninja who was propping herself up with stray pillows. "How was your evening, Yuffie?" He asked in his usual quite, yet deep tone.
Yuffie grimaced slightly and immediately his anxiety level rose. 'Had that young man done something to her?' He asked himself and heard Chaos growl.
She ran her fingers over the ancient leather-bound tome and sighed. "Oh it was super." She said sarcastically. "He spoke about himself or his friends for most of the time…so I had the pleasure of listening to him gloat about his drunken escapades."
She gave a little snort. "I even tried to find a way out of the restaurant but there were bars on the stupid bathroom window." Yuffie looked up with an embarrassed smile and saw the corner of his lip upturned slightly. "When I came back, he was flirting with the waitress and on top of that, the same friends he had been talking about, just happened to come into the restaurant while we were there…coincidence huh?"
The young ninja didn't wait for his reply as she continued her rant. "…then, the entire time my eyes were burning from his cologne! After a while, I swear, even my food began to taste like that crap smelled if that's even possible!" She let out a frustrated sigh. "I am really glad to be home."
Vincent felt an odd mix of happiness and sorrow at her words. He was pleased that she considered this to be her home. He just couldn't picture a day where he did he didn't hear her mumbling, shortly after waking, about the evils of sunlight when you're sleeping, or the looks of quiet encouragement she sends to him while he's drawn into conversations which left him feeling uncomfortable and even the pranks that she and Cloud have been engaged in as of late. The stormy-eyed ninja had told him many times that she was happy that he was finally releasing his burdens and allowing her to just be there for him. He smiled as he remembered her words as the sat on the deck before venturing into the Northern Crater…
"I told you that I would be there for you if you needed me during this change, and I will be. Hey, that's what friends are for!"
Her words echoed in his mind and he felt the smile slide from his face. She would be returning to Wutai in November…His ninja wouldn't be around anymore…
"Planet to Vincent…hello??" Yuffie said as she looked into his unseeing claret eyes. She watched in amusement as Vincent collected himself.
'I can't let her go…' he thought as his eyes locked onto hers. The gaze was so intense it made the young ninja gasp and her heart pound within the confines of her small ribcage.
"I'm sorry Yuffie," he started quietly as a plan began to form in his mind. "I was thinking…"
She gave him a nervous smile and pushed down the blush that had formed on her cheeks. "It's okay Vince, you looked like you were kinda out of it for a minute."
"I apologize."
Yuffie leaned forward and place a few friendly pats on his forearm. "Don't apologize." A yawn escaped and her eyelids felt slightly heavy. "I guess I should let you get back to your reading and get some shut eye."
Vincent nodded and rose from the bed and started for the door then paused. "Yuffie, I almost neglected to tell you. Nanaki will be coming for a visit in three days."
Her eyes lit up. "REALLY? Great! I really missed him and wished he could have come with us to the Forgotten City. I can't wait to see him!"
"He is coming to gather more information on Hojo's research for the canyon elders. They believe that the might be able to help those effected by his experiments. Rest Yuffie."
"Night Vince." She said around another yawn.
Vincent nodded and walked from the room.
.::-o-::.
Vincent went to his own room and glanced at the clock. 'Ten o'clock…he may still be awake…' He thought as he grabbed his PHS and pressed the purple button.
"Hello?" Cloud's voice came over the line.
"Did I wake you?" Vincent asked.
"Nah, just watchin' a movie, what's up Vincent?"
"If you are free tomorrow, there is something I wish to discuss with you."
"Well, we're all going to check out some sites for Teef's dojo and after that, the girls are going to lunch, so I'll be free after that. What did you want to talk about?"
Vincent hesitated for a moment as a feeling of nervousness fell over him.
"You still there?"
"It concerns Yuffie." He said tonelessly.
"Huh?" Cloud asked confused for a moment before realizing what the gunman was talking about. "Ohh…okay. We'll talk about it tomorrow."
"Thank you."
"Anytime. Night Vincent."
"Goodnight."
Vincent quickly changed into a pair of black pajama bottoms before climbing into bed, plans still formulating in his head.
o-o-Authors Note-o-o
I have no excuse other than work, but guess what? Since I no longer have a job, I have a lil more time to write. My employer suddenly filed chapter 7 bankruptcy so I haven't even been paid for the work that I did for them. Luckily, here in Oregon, we have this thing where we file forms and the state has to pay us (300 people plus) for what the crooks that are the owners of my old job failed to pay us by writing us bad checks.
I haven't worked since May 2nd, but I haven't been completely sedentary when it comes to writing. I actually had to go through all 42 chapters of AS because the timeline that I had been using to keep track of what month/day the story was in, came up missing. I did a bit of editing (which I haven't reposted yet) and figured that as of this chapter, it's May 4th, give or take a few days, one day past Tifa's birthday! I decided not to elaborate on her b-day. That's a can of worms that I didn't want to get into at the moment.
I actually have the next chapter finished, really, I do! It's a short chapter, about 2000 words, but I'm not going to post it until later on this week. I'm looking at my other fics to see what I want to do as far as the newest chapters and seeing what I want to do for Vinnie and Yuffs…well, you'll see what I mean after the NEXT chapter –snickers evilly-
I really, really would like to thank everyone how is still reviewing this. All my new reviewers who have started reading, I appreciate your kind words and in some cases, threats that have been sent to my email. I think threats are awesome especially when they from someone who is hooked to something that you created.
Thanks again and don't forget to review! Tell me how much you hate Jonathan!
Ezzy
5/27/07
PS: I don't own final fantasy 7…unfortunately.
10/05/07
Edited because of change in formatting. Also re-numbering chapters. Minor content edits.