DISCLAIMED: (08/26/09)
EDITED: (09/16/09)

Characters: Cloud/Yuffie, Godo, mentions of Rufus, eventually all of AVALANCHE
Rating: M – and if you're this far along already, you know why.
Summary: Cloud is on the road again, his inability to tell Tifa how he felt sending her into Reeve's arms. Now his only contact with the rest of the world is Rufus for a job and Yuffie, because she could. All games/movies compliant.

A/N: Ah! So sorry! Totally lost my internet a couple days ago and spaced it. Good thing it was already loaded on my account=P This is for FFX.


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Chapter 十一

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Cloud and Yuffie wake up outside the Temple of Ancients in a rather compromising position which leads to more...compromising situations. Afterward, they pack up and head for the next 'delivery'. Cloud also learns more about Zurui and his group the Saosin, whom wish to take over Wutai from the Kisaragi family, even if it means marrying Yuffie.

Cloud tamped down his anger as they rode the quick distance to the Temple. Once they reached the edge of the woods, he dismounted before helping her and started trudging the last part of the way. Both kept their hands on their weapons for encounters though, despite him having No Encounter materia equipped.

He briefly wondered at Yuffie's silence as they walked. He supposed she had a lot to think about considering recent events. Despite the urge to talk to her, he knew she wouldn't appreciate it and kept quiet. He just hoped she wouldn't talk herself out of anything he couldn't reverse.

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Yuffie was indeed lost in her own thoughts. She watched the man in front of her as she walked, deferring to his leadership as was custom to her. His fit, toned body moved fluidly and confidently and she wondered at the thought that she'd been writhing under it only this morning. She lowered her head, a blush heating her cheeks as she remembered his head between her legs. She still couldn't believe the size of him and was seriously doubting it would fit. His fingers had felt filling enough.

But he'd made it known he had every intention of following through with her. Did that mean he felt the same as she did about him? She knew they hadn't discussed it because of her, but she was really scared to hear his answer. For so long she accepted Cloud being that unattainable thing and convinced herself his friendship was enough. He seemed content enough to simply roam the continents and with her responsibilities to her people, anyone that was with her would essentially be tied down.

Maybe he only thought he was having feelings for her, because of her predicament. She was his only real contact with the real world and men did have needs – or so Tifa told her – so maybe his pent up lust was just focusing on her. She bit her lip. These doubts were enough to make her keep her thoughts to herself and avoid having "the talk" as long as possible.

And what was this business about the first time hurting? Yuffie'd never had a mother growing up and no one had ever discussed the birds and the bees with her. But from what she'd walked in on a couple times while staying with Reeve and Tifa over the years, it sounded like it did anything but hurt. She'd have to give Tifa a call as soon as she was alone.

They made it to the 'Temple' and stopped. Of course, it was still gone, having been shrunk down into the Black Materia that it was all those years ago.

Yuffie bit her lip, looking confused. "There isn't anything left."

Cloud didn't say anything, but he was just as unsure. Trudging along the perimeter, he tried to find the least steepest path down. Yuffie caught up to him quickly. When he started down, he turned to offer her a hand and she took it, not wanting to knock him over if she slipped.

When they reached the bottom he let go of her hand in favor of peering at the ground in the very center. Squatting down, he rested on one knee as he brushed dirt and debris out of the way. Yuffie knelt next to him, looking curiously at what he was doing.

"What is it?"
His palm was laid flat on the ground. "It feels different here."
She frowned. "Let me see." She batted away his hand so she could feel the ground. She jerked her hand away after a moment, feeling it tingle with numbness. "Ah. What is that?"

Cloud only shook his head and started digging. It wasn't getting them very far, so Yuffie made a noise of impatience and stood up. Cloud turned to look at her and she gestured him out of the way. Standing, he took a few steps back as she checked her materia. She started to glow green as she summoned one.

"Quake 3."

As the ground started to shake, a large divot open up before them. With supreme concentration, she halted the spell before it could close back up with a well-timed Stop. Cloud blinked at her in surprise, not knowing it was possible to cast two spells at once. She was even more skilled with materia than he thought.

The hard surface the hole revealed caught his attention then and they both stepped forward to peer down. It looked like stone, and not merely natural rock. She followed Cloud as he hopped down to kneel on it.

He smoothed a hand over it, again feeling the strange tingling.

"Maybe it's a door?" She shifted from foot to foot, feeling the strange numbness reaching them through her boots. "Did Rufus send you the password?"

Cloud stood, pulling out his cell and flipping it open. She leaned over to watch as he checked his messages. One was from Rufus and the other from Tifa. He checked the one from Rufus. It simply said:

Younin.
Koi wa moumoku

"Acceptance." Cloud turned to glance at her as she muttered. She glanced back and then flushed as she realized how close they were. She made to move away but he caught her as he put away his PHS.

She turned back to find his gaze attentive on hers and felt heat rush through her.

"Cloud?"
He merely kissed her in response. When he lifted his head, her eyes slowly fluttered open. He looked at her questioningly.
"You ready?"
She nodded.
"Alright. Stay behind me, okay?"
When she nodded again, this time with a roll of her eyes, he moved them back to higher ground. Making sure she was at least partially behind him, he called out 'younin'. Nothing happened.

Cloud frowned. He turned to see Yuffie was frowning up at him like he was crazy. This immediately made him frown back.

"What?"
"What was that you just said?"
"Younin."
She rolled her eyes, annoying him further. "First of all, 'U-nin' is not a word. In Wutai or Gaia. Well, maybe to Barret it is. Second, it's 'YO-oo-nin.'"

Before Cloud could respond to that the ground started to shake again, this time more violently. Yuffie stumbled and grabbed onto Cloud. He covered her hand with his as he pulled his sword out with the other. Getting in stance just in case, he watched tightly as the stone floor started rising up from the ground. It was a good sized chunk of light maroon brown, a square rectangular prism in shape, five feet in length and one foot thick.

Yuffie tried to press past him to get a better look as it continued to rise, but Cloud held her back. Something wasn't right about that stone. It shouldn't have tingled when they touched it and it took very powerful magic for it to float up on its own accord. He didn't trust it.

When it finally stopped moving and merely sat suspended high in the air above their heads, Yuffie tried to move again, but Cloud stopped her. She glared up at him in annoyance.

"What gives?"
"There's something different about the stone."
"Well, yes I know. Most stone doesn't fly. What's your point?"
"We don't know what it'll do."
She looked up at him in askance. "It's a door."
"Maybe that's what it wants us to think."
She looked at him like he was crazy. "My, haven't we gotten paranoid in our advanced age."
He gave her an annoyed look over his shoulder. "That amount of magic is not to be trusted."
She huffed. "Well, what do you propose we do? Just stand here all day looking at a rock?"
"I propose we think about this first before you get hurt again."

She stepped back from the bite in his tone. He saw this and immediately softened. Sighing, he turned away rubbing his neck.

She stepped up tentatively next to him. "Cloud?"
Resigned, he glanced to the side at her. But she was staring sightlessly at the ground in thought.

"I remember something from the stories." He tilted his head, simply waiting. She looked up at him with round eyes. "They said the farther along the warrior got, the more dangerous it became, obviously. It said only the truly cunning could manage the tests." She shook her head as she rocked back on her heels. "My ancestors were sly and manipulative. Their magicks extended to illusions for the most part."

Cloud's eyes twitched side to side in confusion. "What are you saying?"
"Well, that brick," she pointed up at the suspended stone, "may just be a trick."
"A trick?"
She nodded. "A trick designed to keep the truly cautious from entering."

Cloud's expression was hard as he thought it over. She peered up at him cautiously, gauging his reaction. Finally, he turned to her.

"You stay here." He held up a hand when she started to protest. "Just until I get inside and see it's okay."

Yuffie's mouth closed, but she crossed her arms and gave him an annoyed look. He bit back the twitch in his mouth as he turned away.

Slowly, he walked back down into the divot. The brick shuddered above him and he froze, looking up. Yuffie, despite her words, eyed it uneasily. When it didn't do anything else, Cloud continued to the opening it had left. As he reached the edge, his booted foot shuffled dirt over the side and into the inky darkness below.

A whoosh and Yuffie's startled shout of his name were the only warnings he had. He leapt out of the way just in time before the large stone slammed into the ground with a loud boom. They covered their faces as a cloud of dust and dirt billowed outward.

Yuffie coughed as she tugged on Cloud's arm, seeing the stone brick rising back up. "Are you okay?" she asked as he got to his feet. He nodded.

"Get back."
She allowed him to push her behind him as she got out her weapon. Cloud pulled his sword. They watched as the stone once again lifted over the heads. Yuffie muttered Big Guard and Haste 2 around them as it moved directly overhead.

"On my count, move." Cloud was staring straight up, watching it tensely. When he saw it about to drop, he shouted, "Now!"

They both rolled different ways, clearing the area right before the stone could strike. A puff of dirt exploded from the impact. But the stone was quickly rising again.

Coughing, Yuffie called out to him. "Cloud. Your sword."
Straightening, Cloud leapt at the rising stone and slashed at it. It glanced off the surface.
"It's not working."
"You need the stone's infusion."
"The what?"
"The package. We have to go inside."
The stone had rose high in the air by now and was moving over Yuffie. Cloud saw this and raced towards her. As the stone stilled overhead, Cloud wrapped his arms around her middle, both staring upward, waiting for the stone to strike.

It didn't wait long. When it dropped, Cloud yanked them both out of the way, rolling towards the large opening in the ground. His arms tightened on her as he fell backwards into the dark.

About thirty feet down, he landed on his feet, still clutching Yuffie to him. Setting her down, he quickly clicked on his bracer as the stone above slammed over the opening, blocking out all light. Bolts of yellow light shot out from the edges of the square opening, blocking the way out even if the homicidal stone wasn't already doing so.

Yuffie called out 'Fire' and they both quickly searched their surroundings in the light.

It was a cavernous space, the surfaces rocky and glinting in the light. Cloud knelt, pulling off a glove with his teeth, and felt along the surface. Yuffie bent over him, peering at the metallic smooth rock.

"Fool's gold."

Yuffie wandered the space as Cloud straightened. He didn't see any other exits, but they weren't suffocating so there had to be one.

"Ah, here it is!"

Cloud turned towards Yuffie's voice and strode around a metallic support. She turned her head as he stopped beside her. In the wall was a rectangular indention. Pulling the package from his pack, he stepped forward to fit it into the space. It immediately began glowing and Cloud stepped back.

They shaded their eyes as a bright flash of light exploded from the wall. Lowering their hands as the light receded, they saw the glowing imprint of blue Wutainese characters.

"Acceptance." Yuffie breathed the word, catching Cloud's attention. She turned to look at him, her eyes deep with emotion. He took her hand, squeezing it in reassurance. She knew then he'd more than accepted everything she was and the role he'd have to play to stay in her life. Hopefully, forever.

Bright beams shot out of the wall then, slamming into Cloud and infusing him with renewed energy. The force of the power left him breathless and he squeezed Yuffie's hand to stay steady on his feet.

"Cloud! You okay?"

He gulped with difficulty before nodding. A loud clang caught their attention then and with effort, Cloud pushed her behind him, pulling his sword in the same motion.

The sound of gurgling had them frowning.

"What is that?" Yuffie followed her words with sending a large fireball to brighten the other end of the cave. Through the crack in the metallic walls oozed a translucent substance. Yuffie gasped and spun as she heard the same slurping sound behind her. She saw it was the same substance and it was during multiple colors.

Cloud saw it behind them too and dragged her away. Now in the center of the cave, they watched as the goo convalesced into a single large blob, floating in mid-air several feet in front of them.

"What the hell?" Yuffie's hand tightened on her Conformer. Cloud did likewise on his buster sword, despite doubting it would be much help in this case.

"Yuffie. Try 'fire' on it."

Yuffie nodded quickly wanting to have something to do because staring at the watery blob like an idiot. Closing her eyes, she called on fire and sent a flaming ball at the unknown mass. It made a loud noise as it swirled in pain. They both frowned, noting it turned a red color as it morphed before fading back to pale sea green.

They glanced at each other. "Try it again." Yuffie nodded and cast fire again. But it only seemed to heal it. "It turned red. Maybe that means it changed elements. Try ice."

Yuffie did so and the blob gargled in pain. It morphed to a light blue then, causing Yuffie to glance at Cloud. "That mean its element is water now?"

Cloud shrugged. "Try thunder."

Yuffie turned to do so, but the water blob was changing shape now as it shifted overhead. Cloud tensed as he watched it. It was forming a perfect rectangular prism directly above.

"Yuffie. When I say move, move."

Yuffie gulped as she too watched the liquid mass. It halted right overhead and the second it started to drop, Cloud shouted, "Move!" as he rolled backward out of the way. Yuffie leapt forward, rolling to her feet as she faced the liquid monster. It slammed down right where they'd been standing before slowly rising back up, morphing back into its shapeless form.

Yuffie, now snapped out of her dazed shock at the strange fiend, cast Big Guard on Cloud and then herself. She ran back towards him before casting Haste 2 on them both. "You have any magic?"

He nodded. "Some. And the Huge Summon materia you gave me."

Yuffie fought back a blush, remembering that after she'd given it to him, she'd realized she would only have given away the precious materia he had so kindly donated to her and Wutai after meteor was because she fancied him. It was probably the first clue Godo had about her feelings for the gaijin swordsman. To hide it, despite the darkness of the cavern, she turned and cast Thunder on the blob. It really didn't like that and quickly formed a tall rectangular prism over her head.

It came down faster this time and she got splashed a bit as she jumped back.

"Yuffie!" Cloud's voice was panicked. She knew it was because getting wet at all in the dark cave wouldn't help her predilection for cold.

She shook her head. "I'm okay." She watched it float away as it morphed, turning shimmering yellow briefly. "Cloud, cast Leviathan."

Nodding, his face set in determination, he sheathed his sword and called on her homeland's water serpent. Right before they disappeared, he grabbed her hand. Yuffie and Cloud appeared above, watching as Leviathan's water attack rained down supreme over the seemingly water-based fiend.

As Leviathan left, the blob shuddered in pain before morphing furiously. It headed for Cloud, who pushed Yuffie away as he watched it tensely. Yuffie was watching it too and saw it morph a deep dark blue. Before it could strike, she cast Fire 3 on it. That certainly made it mad and it decided to come after Yuffie instead. It moved with lightning speed this time though and Yuffie watched in horror as it headed straight down on top of her, before Cloud swooped her out of the way.

As it crashed, they rolled a few feet away, Cloud taking the brunt to save her bare legs from painful scrapes. Lifting up, Yuffie stared down at him with big eyes. "What the hell, Cloud! You could've gotten hurt! Are you okay?" Her voice turned concerned when she saw him wince as he sat up.

He rolled his eyes. Only she would yell at him and ask him if he was alright in the same breath. "Just landed on some loose rocks. I'm fine. You're the one who could've been hurt."

"A shower in green goo or rug burn. Gee, how does one decide."

Cloud rolled his eyes as he got to his feet.

They both quickly stood to see the blob was a shapeless mass. Neither had seen what element it had morphed to this time so Yuffie cast a low level fire on it. Didn't hurt it much but it morphed colors again, this time another dark blue. Yuffie cast Scan and saw its HP was low. She grinned in anticipation.

"Cloud, try Neo Bahamut."

He didn't argue. However, this time he grabbed her around the waist and tugged her back against him before they faded away. She held her breath as they watched from above, Cloud watching the spectacle from over her shoulder. She still wasn't used to the touchy-feely thing, what being an only child and not having her mother during her formative years. But that it was Cloud just made it all the more confusing and an immediate sensory overload. He seemed perfectly comfortable doing so and with a narrowed look, she suspected it was because she was so not. He always did like to make her nervous, she noticed. Of course he was the only one she'd allow to get away with it.

Neo Bahamut's Giga Flare was a long drawn out summon, so she had time to summon her own nerve to turn her head and peck his cheek before straightening again. Her cheeks still burned as she felt his head shift to look at her. She kept her profile to him though. "Thanks." She cleared her throat. "For saving me down there."

After a brief moment, he tightened his arms around her. She felt him kiss her neck and shuddered. "You're always welcome, Yuffs." Gawd, when did he become such a smooth talker! Yuffie felt like she was going to melt right there, and not because of the intense heat from the summon below.

The liquid blob's gurgling in pain caught their attention and it was only a second later that they were again standing on solid ground. Cloud released Yuffie and immediately drew his sword.

Yuffie tightened her hand on her weapon, watching the mass continue to morph through all its colors as it grew louder in its pained noise. It looked like it was trembling then and instinctively, Yuffie ducked away right before it exploded in a rain of liquidy goo. They both were covered in the disgusting mess as the cave went silent.

Cloud looked at Yuffie. "You okay?"

She nodded with a grimace, flicking her arm out to get rid of the goo."I just wish Neo could've hung around and caught the finale instead of us."

Cloud walked over to the exit, where the glowing gate of beam still blazed. "Younin." Yuffie heard him speak the word with unnatural fluency for a gaijin, and since he hadn't known how to pronounce it in the first place, before lifting her eyes to watch the yellow bars dissipate. He turned his head to her, nodding her over. "Come on."

As soon as she was next to him, she heard him take a deep breath. "Here goes," he muttered right before unsheathing his sword and leaping straight up. Like it was butter, he slashed through the stone blocking their exit. She blinked and figured it must be the sudden sunlight that had her seeing Cloud covered in black veins. She blinked and it was gone, so she figured it was just from her retinas being burned in the bright light. Leaping straight up, she landed outside next to Cloud. She looked at the wreckage of the stone amidst the small earthquake she made to get to it. Pulling Cloud out of the way, she muttered, "Koi wa moumoku." Cloud watched curiously before widening his eyes as the halves of the stone lifted into the air and reformed as if it were never broken before slamming back down over the opening. Yuffie released her stop spell and the stone was once again covered.

She turned to see Cloud watching her. "What? I don't want anyone else getting in so easy."

He frowned. "Anyone else?"

She nodded, turning to climb back up the slope. "Not that I expect many to try. I've made no secret of what I think of the losers in my town."

Cloud followed close behind, blinking in confusion. "You mean warriors? Competing for your hand?"

She rolled her eyes even though he couldn't see it. "This whole thing is sooo archaic! 'Competing for my hand.' Yech."

"Do you know how many?"

"Uh, no."

"So they don't have to ask you beforehand?"

"They have to go through a set of trials beforehand to prove they're up to it. Some no name with no battle experience at all isn't allowed to go willy-nilly on his own, but that's it." She rolled her eyes again. "Apparently, if they haven't completed their quest, they aren't 'worthy' to even ask for my hand, or some such bull like that."

"And you have to marry whomever makes it through?"

She shook her head. "Not technically. The choice is still mine. But the pressure to do so is enormous. Not to be chosen after completing the quest is the greatest dishonor. Sometimes more than one warrior makes it through and then she, or me in this case, can decide or if she is being retarded and can't make up her mind, the survivors fight it out amongst themselves. Sometimes, they do so anyway, to prove her choice is the right one."

Cloud took this all in, his brow furrowed. Besides Zurui, he could very well have more competition. Despite Yuffie scoffing at having many suitors, he was pretty sure she was more desirable to her home's warriors than she thought.

"How exactly does this whole quest thing work?" He asked as they reached level ground and could walk side by side.

"Uh, well…"

"Is there a time frame or can you start it whenever there is a princess up for grabs?"

She rolled her eyes at his choice of words. "No, you can only start a month before said prince or princess's coronation as the next emperor or empress." She rolled her eyes. "Lately, with all the advanced technology in getting around, the Five Masters have been thinking about shortening it to two weeks."

"Aren't you one of the Pagoda Masters now?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but I've been letting pops handle the official business stuff. Makes him feel useful." She hopped over a root, hiding a blush when Cloud caught her hand to help her over the rest of the uneven terrain. Clearing her throat, she continued. "Anyway, the packages we've been getting? Yeah, those are in small Wutai Shrines all over Gaia – every Wutai hito learns of them from birth and are raised knowing where they are." She glanced to the side at him. "Since obviously that was a major disadvantage to you, along with the language barrier, Godo decided to set up 'deliveries' from towns or outposts that you would know of which happen to be really close to their respective Shrine."

"And these…packages just appear?"

"The Five Pagoda Masters have to do a special ceremony to call them before a coronation. And there will always be enough for whomever chooses to complete the quest. They won't appear after this month is up until they are called upon again. And yes, I'm told they just 'appear'."

"Does your father have any way of keeping track of how many warriors try?"

She frowned and shook her head. "I don't know. I don't think so. But then, he was hiding stuff from me since he didn't want me knowing you were one of them." She tilted her head at him. "Why?"

He shrugged. "Be nice to know what else to expect. Zurui can't be the only other one competing."

Her frown deepened. "Why not? I told you, I'm not that popular at home. At least not with the men."

"Why not?"

She gave him an absurd look. "Uh, I ain't exactly a man's idea of a wet dream here. And being the fighting Master of the Pagoda makes me less desirable. No man wants to be beat by a woman." Her tone showed exactly what she thought of that.

Cloud gave her a bizarre look. "How do you know what a wet dream is?"

Her cheeks heated annoyingly. "Doesn't matter. Look, Zurui's the only one we'll have to deal with and since you are the savior of the world several times over, he'll be trying to trip us up."

Cloud decided not to argue with her. He would be keeping an eye out for others though.

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A/N: Fans of FFX will notice where the monster in this chap came from. Junon is next. Reviews are always appreciated;)