Just a quick update before I leave the city for a small trip. Thank you so much for such a positive response for chapter one and hopefully chapter two won't disappoint. Prepare for language and angst so…
And yay! The whistle from The Hunger Games is my new ringtone. I should be reading the books this week for springbreak, so prepare for fic sometime soon! Go team Peeta! Now… fangirl moment is over.
Random fact... My birthday is on Monday so give me some love!
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Chapter Two
…
She stared down at her legs dangling over the side of the hospital bed. Tifa had helped her lace up her boots, and had also commented on a different choice of footwear while her arm remained in a cast. Yuffie had narrowed her eyes. Tifa had asked her to change her style, and well, she was too cool to use sneakers. She grinned to herself and shook her head, deciding that she would go barefoot if she had to.
After debating with fellow doctors, hers had decided that for now it wouldn't be safe to use materia to heal her wounds, since they didn't know what kind of negative effects it would have on the Mako that had invaded her system after the explosion of the reactor.
She would be in a great deal of pain for the next few weeks, or at least until the next test proved that the Mako had gone down to a safer level or something. This also meant that breathing and walking at the same time would be a problem.
She'd been walking since before she had turned one, and then running and bouncing all around the pagoda… Yuffie couldn't remember when she had been so severely injured that she'd been forced to stay in bed for weeks. I'm a ninja, damn it. I can't stay still for more than ten minutes!
"Are we going to have to talk you into sitting in the wheelchair until we're outside?" Tifa asked from the door.
Yuffie shook her head and offered a small smile. "Nah. I won't try to act like I'm too good to be wheeled out. My ribs hurt too much to try that right now," she said, slowly sliding off of the bed and sitting on the chair before Tifa could even think of helping her. The little move had her gasping a little in pain and Tifa glared anyway.
"Cid said that he had some really important errands to run, so he couldn't be here to fly us back to the bar," Tifa said casually.
"Cid's an asshole," Yuffie muttered.
"Yuffie…"
"No, Teef. He bit my head off after I tried to cheer him up," Yuffie muttered. "Don't make excuses for him."
"Yuffie, we were so afraid that we had lost you. Can you really blame him for his behavior? Cid doesn't respond well to stress and we both know it," said Tifa quietly, handing her the bag with items they would need to clean and bandage her wounds at home.
"What about the flowers?" Yuffie asked, motioning to the variety of blooms many of her friends had sent over. Curiously, one yellow lily from Aerith's church had been sitting at her bedside table, and Tifa hadn't known who'd set it there. The ninja would've assumed Vincent, but then again, he wasn't the sentimental—or romantic—type…
"Reeve said that he would have them transported for you later in the day," Tifa replied, beginning to wheel her out of the room.
To Yuffie's surprise, Vincent was the one who had been speaking in quiet tones with her doctor, waiting for her discharge papers. He was also nodding along to what Yuffie could now hear as things she needed to avoid. Narrowing her eyes, the ninja listened on as well, hating the fact that the one time she needed it, her precious materia was failing her. She wouldn't be allowed to walk up and down the stairs on her own for a good week, and she couldn't practice her ninja training until well after the cast was off, and she needed to take all of the pills that would make her sleep for the majority of the day to help her heal.
She also had her wounds to worry about, and the one burn that would need to be cleaned daily on her shoulder. She wanted to cry in frustration and anger, and still Tifa, Vincent, and Reeve wouldn't tell her how many of her unit had been killed.
Well, she'd find out soon enough once she was back at the bar. She hoped that Reno stopped by eventually, since he was one of the very few who always told her things straight. It was too bad that she couldn't count on her closest friends to do that for her.
"We'll see you back here in a few days, Miss Kisaragi. If you feel dizziness, nausea, or a lot of pain, please return immediately."
Yuffie nodded and shook the man's hand. "Yeah, thanks doc, for saving my life and all."
"We're happy that you were willing to fight to survive," he replied. "Otherwise we would've had plenty of powerful people angry at us."
Tifa offered a smile while Vincent simply crossed his arms over his chest. Yuffie could see what the doctor meant; her friends could appear pretty intimidating. Not to mention that Reeve, the-boss-man, treated her like a little sister, too. Most of the time.
She waved as Tifa pushed her chair and sighed quietly to herself, wondering what she would do with herself the next few days. She was so used to wandering whichever direction she felt like on that particular day, but she would now be confined by four walls and various powerful heroes.
Once they arrived at the hospital's entrance, Yuffie noted that there was a Shadow Fox waiting for them, Barret at the wheel. He got out and gave Yuffie a salute. "Good to see you alive, kid."
"Thanks, Barret. Were you part of the group watching over me?"
"I don't have the patience for that, girl, but I did come around to give vampire a break or two during the day. I'm glad you're still with us," he said gruffly.
Yuffie nodded and took his hand when he offered to help her stand. She grimaced when her ribs continued to protest, and started in surprise when Vincent took her other arm.
"Would you like me to carry you?" he asked, tone neutral.
"N-nah, don't worry about me, Vinnie! I can make it by myself," she muttered, hoping that she wasn't blushing too horribly.
Tifa tried not to giggle and returned the chair to the nurse who had walked out with them.
"Besides, the quicker I get back on my feet, the better," the ninja muttered, squeezing Vincent's arm and Barret's hand as she took slow steps.
"Yeah, well, just don't rush it. The last thing you need is to screw up your ribs again. I know from personal experience that shit like that hurts like hell and can be dangerous."
"Yeah, yeah. It's not like I'm going to try jumping off of the roof." She shrank a little at the glare in Vincent's eyes. "I promise I won't!"
"Reeve had this one fixed up for you," said Barret, opening up the back of the truck and showing Yuffie that a sort of gurney type of bed had been installed for her. Before she could protest though, Barret released her and moved over to push a button that would allow the bed to shift into a reclining position.
"Remind me to thank Reeve for everything he's doing for me," Yuffie said as Vincent led her to the bed and helped her sit back.
"I'll ride up front with Barret if you don't mind," said Tifa as she winked at Yuffie and closed the doors before either she or Vincent could say a thing.
"So…" muttered Yuffie as the truck took off and silence stretched between her and the gunman.
"How is your pain?" he asked.
"Manageable. You forget that I'm a ninja, Vince. I can handle some pain," she said with a small smile.
He nodded once. "That's good."
"Look… why won't you just tell me how many of our guys were killed?" Yuffie asked softly.
"I think Tifa explained things to you quite clearly. Besides, you will need to be debriefed first and Reeve is waiting for you to recover to do it."
"If you won't come out and tell me then it means that a lot of them," Yuffie said, voice shaking slightly.
"Yuffie—"
"Vincent, I had twenty guys under my command when that reactor went off. I was walking ahead with five of them. The reactor was off and everyone had been ordered to touch nothing until the tech made sure that it was completely off line. What the hell happened?" Yuffie asked, frowning.
"Reeve has people investigating whether or not it was purposely turned back on. It might've been some Deepground stragglers; it might've been someone else. He doesn't know for sure yet."
"Who could've turned it back on?" she asked, eyes narrowed. "It's a restricted area."
"We can't be sure yet. Reeve will tell you all he knows as soon as your week of forced bed rest is up," said Vincent.
"Are you friggin' kidding me? This is bullshit," she snapped, sulking back like a child.
"I will be staying at Seventh Heaven to make sure that you don't do anything foolish," he commented.
That's bullshit, too! I don't need a babysitter! She glared and wondered if Vincent was a mind reader, since his eyes had gone frosty. "I hate this," she muttered, closing her eyes.
"Stop and consider how many people would've been hurt with your death, Yuffie. Always think of them when you feel that this is all too difficult to bear," said Vincent seriously.
"Gee, Vinnie, you sure know how to cheer up a girl," she said, smirking.
He grunted—his equivalent to a shrug—and sat back in his chair. "I try my best," he said in a low voice.
Yuffie smiled to herself and remained quiet for the rest of the trip.
…
Barely a few hours into her stay at Tifa and Cloud's home and already she was going crazy. Denzel and Marlene had stopped by to see her for a while and Marlene had showed off her fluency in reading, while Denzel had commented on how he would've changed the story to make it better.
Tifa had ushered them out when Yuffie had started to laugh and cry at the pain in her ribs, telling the children that the ninja needed to rest for the next few days before she could spend more time with them. Yuffie wanted to break into tears of boredom as she stared at the window overlooking what was left of the ShinRa building.
Her thoughts ran in circles as she remembered the mission Reeve had sent her on. They had received report that some patrol soldiers had seen some movement near one of the less damaged reactors. Reeve had sent her out to investigate with a squad of her own, telling her that while he trusted her skills, he would be less worried for her safety if she had some back-up.
They had arrived to what would've been the Sector 1 reactor and had set up a perimeter to make sure that no one was around. Then she and her group of five had gone into the reactor, confident that it had not been powered.
There was a small gap in her memory after this, but she could've sworn that at the time of the explosion no electrical power had been going through the reactor. Then… why had it exploded? Had it been some unstable reserve of Mako?
She sighed and rolled onto her other side, rubbing her nose as a sneeze threatened her. She had her pain pills—which would help with the sudden, pulsating ache in her ribs—but then she'd be out for about three to four hours.
"Yuffie?"
The ninja lifted her head and glanced at her friend. "Yeah?"
"Would you like something sweet to cheer you up?" Tifa asked, smiling.
"Depends on what your definition of sweet is. Last time you got me good when you tried to feed me sugar-less pudding," Yuffie muttered.
The brunette looked slightly offended as she crossed her arms over her chest and glared. "I was just trying to promote healthy snacks," she muttered.
"Healthy stuff usually sucks balls."
"Yuffie!"
"Sorry. I'm a little cranky," Yuffie supplied, rolling over to face her with some difficulty.
Tifa looked worried again. "Are you in pain?" she quickly gathered the prescription pills the doctor had given Yuffie and removed one.
"Those knock me out for too long!" Yuffie complained.
"Well, I'm baking a chocolate fudge cake topped with strawberries. Now, if you take this pill, then I promise to give you a nice big piece when you wake up," Tifa cajoled.
Yuffie grinned. "You've become a pro at the negotiating thing."
"I've had plenty of practice."
"I don't think I want to take the offer just yet."
Tifa looked thoughtful for a moment. "What if… I have Vincent deliver it to you?"
The ninja would've giggled but her ribs were starting to feel as if they had been set on fire… "I'll take that offer," she said, accepting the pill and the glass of water.
Tifa smiled brightly and nodded. "Get some rest and the cake should be done soon."
"Yeah, yeah. I'll have it with a tall glass of milk, too, please!"
Tifa waved as she walked out of the room, trying to figure a way to rope Vincent into delivering the cake to Yuffie later on…
…
When next she opened her eyes, her room had gone completely dark and for a moment her heart nearly shot out of her chest in alarm.
"Yuffie."
She bit back a scream and chucked her spare pillow at him, groaning as her muscles reminded her that they weren't quite healed yet. "Why the hell are you hiding out in the dark?"
"…I wasn't hiding."
"Then what are you doing?" she hissed, turning her bedside lamp on and squinting as the light hit her sensitive eyes.
"Waiting for you to get up. Tifa left this for you," he said, pointing toward the napkin covered plate on the nightstand.
So she didn't get him to bring it, Yuffie thought, narrowing her eyes. Still, she'd never been one to say no to chocolate… or strawberries… or Vincent eye-candy. Slowly she pushed herself to a reclining position and reached for the plate with her good hand, only to find Vincent already holding it out to her.
"Thanks," she said quietly, placing it on her lap and taking a self-conscious bite with Vincent watching. It felt like she hadn't had something sweet in years... and it tasted amazing. Tifa had outdone herself; probably because she felt sorry that she had been confined to a bed for a week. The cake was soft and spongy, almost too much to take in after the bitterness of the medications… and the sterile taste in the back of her throat from the hospital.
Yuffie swallowed the bite in her mouth and sighed heavily, feeling sad. Suddenly she didn't feel like eating the cake anymore and after another two small bites, she placed the plate back onto the nightstand. What right did she have to enjoy something sweet and delicious when there were families mourning their dead loved ones? The same people she had been in charge of…
Vincent watched curiously as she grabbed her glass of water and sipped quietly, her gaze avoiding his and he wondered what had come over her. Yuffie had never been one to give up something sweet. "Would you like to be alone?"
His soft voice startled her a little, and more so when she realized what he was asking. If there was anyone who would understand when she needed to have some solitude, it would be Vincent. But no, she didn't want him to leave. His presence was comforting and it meant so much to her that he was still around, that he had come to spend time with her instead of brooding off on his own.
"No," she said, smiling slightly. "I just don't feel too hungry, I guess."
Vincent nodded once but was not convinced by her words. After all, this was the girl he had once seen eat an entire cake on her own for a previous birthday—well, she'd generously shared with Denzel and Marlene but with no one else. She'd had the mother of all stomach aches afterwards but she'd been pleased with herself.
"Cid is here," he said after a long moment of silence.
Her eyes slid to his and she shrugged.
"Would you like to see him?"
"Does he even want to see me?"
The gunman made a small sound. "He was by your side many of the afternoons when Tifa was not able to remain here for too long."
"That doesn't give him the right to yell and curse at me," muttered Yuffie, pulling her blankets higher around her.
"As opposed to the way he usually speaks to you?"
Yuffie smirked. "You're right. But I don't think I have it in me to hear him cursing right now. I need my rest, you know," she said, turning slowly to her other side and staring at the window and the dark sky.
"Then… I don't suppose that you will mind if I remain here and read my book?"
A secret smile curled her lips. "Just try not to breathe too loudly."
"I will do my best."
Yuffie bit back a small giggle.
…
When she next awoke, the sun was barely rising and her body felt cramped. Vincent was gone and her body immediately let her know that she needed to use the bathroom. She hadn't been allowed to walk on her own for a while, but she was very much against the idea of calling someone to come and help her.
Swinging her legs over the side of her bed, Yuffie slowly stood, wincing as her muscles cramped and throbbed with the sudden movement. She was okay. She'd been trained from a very young age to withstand pain and this wouldn't defeat her.
Letting out a slow breath, she moved toward the door, breathing deeply to try to control the pain. She made it to the doorway of the bathroom before she very nearly face-planted with the floor, and was grateful that no one had heard her. She went about her business and even found the strength to brush her teeth, since she didn't want to talk to Vincent with dragon breath.
As she was making her way back to her room, quiet voices caught her attention from down the stairs, probably the kitchen. Standing at the top of the stairs, she wondered if she'd be able to make it down to see who it was. They'd probably lecture her, but she needed to get some walking done.
The first few steps were a breeze, but half-way down she could feel her knees begin to shake. Sitting down before she fell down the stairs and woke everyone up, she took a few quick, shaky breaths and put her head between her knees when a wave of nausea swept over her.
Despite her discomfort and the ache in her muscles, she could recognize the voices now. Tifa was one of them, and the other… was Cid. Huh, so the old pilot had stayed over. Yuffie wondered how Shera was doing, and why the old man was still around after all this time. Hadn't he gone home?
Convinced that she wouldn't stumble or hurl, Yuffie got to her feet and finished the rest of the stairs, making her way toward the bar. Tifa would probably give her an earful, but it would be worth it when she saw the look on the old man's face.
"…this is bullshit, Teef. The brat shouldn't be left in the dark after this long," Cid was saying in a low voice. "I get that she almost died, but if I were in her place, I'd want to know what the hell is going on."
"It can wait a few more days, Cid. Then the Mako will be out of her system and we'll be able to heal her so that she can see Reeve. We just want what's best for her. I thought you'd want that, too."
"I do. You sure as hell know I do," said Cid. "Still, she'll be pissed that kept important shit from her."
She started to open her mouth to ask what exactly they were keeping from her when Tifa answered her question unknowingly.
"It's not her fault that only two squad members survived," Tifa murmured sadly. "The reactor was supposed to be offline, especially after we bombed it during the whole Omega incident."
Yuffie covered her mouth with shaky fingers and took a step back, away from the doorway. This—this meant that eighteen of her squad were dead! Eighteen! Her heart was pounding erratically in her chest as she thought of their faces… their names. She had known each and every one of them. Had gone out for drinks with more than half, and had met the families of the other half.
Her eyes blurred with tears as she backed toward the stairs, unwilling to let them see that she had heard them. As she turned to force her weak body up the flight of stairs, she slammed into a warm wall, and had he not been there to catch her, she would've gone down awfully loud.
As it was, her breathing was coming in small gasps and she didn't know why she was so affected. She'd seen death left and right since she'd turned sixteen. She should've been able to deal with this.
"Yuffie—"
"Just—just get me upstairs, please," she said in a small voice, shaking her head.
Vincent didn't say another word as he easily picked her up and carried her silently to her room. She was shaking in his arms, and it made him anxious to think that she would burst into tears, especially considering that he wouldn't know what to do with her in that condition.
When he made it back to her room, he placed her gently onto her bed and watched her curl into a small ball. "Thanks," she muttered. "You can go now. Just… don't tell Tifa and Cid that I was eavesdropping, okay?"
"Yuffie, we should talk about this."
"About the fact that I killed eighteen people?" she asked blankly.
Vincent shook his head once. "That is not what happened and you know it, Yuffie."
"Doesn't matter," she said with a long, shuddery sigh. "Will you call Reeve and let him know that I'm ready to know everything now? If you don't, I'll find a way to get out of the bar and hitchhike my way to the WRO headquarters."
He narrowed his eyes at her threat. "In a houseful of people who lived in constant vigilance for years, do you believe that it would be easy for you to escape?" In top condition, yes, but not the way she was now.
"Get out of my room, please."
"I will stand vigil outside your window if I have to."
She shrugged and closed her eyes. "I'm not a child anymore, Vincent. I hate being kept in the dark."
"Then gather your strength before you attempt to see Reeve. You will need it."
Her body felt heavy and her heart even more so, weighed down by guilt and anger, and disappointment in her friends. Yuffie knew that they wanted to protect her, but had they told her everything in the hospital, she wouldn't have felt the blow of the news so badly.
Vincent walked out of her room before the first sob tore through her chest. The rest she tried her best to muffle into her pillow. Tifa would be up to check on her soon and Yuffie didn't have the strength in herself to talk to her friend. Not now.
When she finally regained her breath, she reached into the nightstand and removed a glowing orb. Materia had never failed her before... Maybe it wouldn't this time, regardless of what the doctor had said.
She needed answers now and she wouldn't sit back and let her friends coddle her anymore.
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Please excuse any typos or grammatical errors. They usually escape me when I read through, and I know that a beta would come in handy, but I'm too impatient for one. And Valk doesn't do this pairing… But anyway, I hope everyone enjoyed, Yuffie is being particularly difficult when her friends are trying to help, so she might not be making the smartest decisions... Anyway, hope everyone has a great spring break!