Chapter 6: Verification

Vincent set the grocery bags down carefully on the table and produced his mobile. Cloud wasn't answering. Neither was Tifa. He tried again, dialing the numbers instead of using the speed dial. Nothing.

He clutched the still open phone tightly, nearly crushing it. Then he remembered… He opened his contact list and found Denzel's number. It rang once… twice…

"Hello?"

"Denzel? This is Vincent Valentine."

"Whoa. You're actually calling me?"

"Denzel, I need your help. Where is Cloud?"

"I don't know. I'm at a friend's house right now. If you want, I can call him."

"He's not answering his phone."

"How about Tifa?"

"The same."

"Well, I'm on my way home. I can tell them you called."

"Thanks."

"Yeah, no problem, Mr. Valentine."

Vincent snapped the phone shut. Dammit. Where could they be? He cursed himself for relying too heavily on others, and started toward the door. He'd find Yuffie himself.

Just then, the toilet flushed in the next room. Yuffie came out, dragging her feet and wiping her mouth. "Oh, I feel much better."

"Yuffie?"

"Hey, Vince." She skipped over and practically dove head-first into one of the paper sacks.

"Yuffie…" He was still trembling when she reemerged with an armful of snacks.

"You got everything!" she exclaimed, bouncing excitedly.

Vincent reached out with unnatural speed and pulled Yuffie against his chest tightly.

"Vince… You're squishing me."

He loosened his grip only slightly. "I'm sorry."

"Vincent? What's the matter?"

He sighed. This was absurd. Finally he released his hold, and she took a step back warily, still clutching a six pack of soda and the bag of licorice. She looked almost frightened. That was the last thing he wanted.

"I thought… you were gone."

"I was just in the bathroom. The doctor said the nausea might last the rest of the day. I didn't mean to worry you."

Vincent rested his weight against the back of a chair and let his gaze drop to the floor.

"Are you okay, Vincent?"

"You know… I almost killed that man who shot you. It was stupid to let him go, after what he did, but I forced myself to show mercy."

"But that's a good thing. Without compassion, we're just animals."

He nodded in agreement. "But, just now, when you weren't here, I was afraid… afraid he had come back for you."

Yuffie set her snacks down on the table and stepped closer to Vincent. "But he didn't, did he? You did the right thing, letting him go."

"I'm not so certain."

"Well, I am! I'm proud of you. And one more thing! Even if he had come back, it wouldn't have been your fault. Understand?"

"No."

"Vincent…" Her tone was serious now. "You carried that weight around with you for a long, long time… And even when you realized it hadn't been your burden to bear, you still couldn't forgive yourself entirely. You're doing it all over again now." She came closer and took his face in her hands, forcing him to look at her. "Things happen. Sometimes they're bad things. That's how the world works. If you go through life blaming yourself for every little thing you might have prevented, you'll never be happy."

He didn't answer. There was nothing to say. He'd been over this in his mind a hundred times. It was in his nature to shoulder the blame, and he didn't know if he could ever change.

She smiled then, reclaiming her junk food haul. "Come on, Vince, let's watch a movie. It'll calm you down."

Grateful she had changed the subject, albeit rather abruptly, he pushed off the chair and grabbed the stack of films. "Alright. Get into bed and I'll put one on."

He sat on his own bed while the movie played, glancing sidelong every once in a while at Yuffie. Her eyes were glued to the screen as she munched happily on the snacks he'd brought home. His concentration lay elsewhere. He watched the windows and door as Yuffie was absorbed into her movie.

Nobody would touch her again, he swore, mistake or no mistake. Occasionally his thoughts would return to the mysterious Doctor Orias, whoever he was, and his fugitive clone. Something about the name seemed familiar, though he told himself it was only because it had been on his mind all day.

He looked up then to find Yuffie standing beside his bed. She wore a blue tank top and pajama pants with a repeating moogle pattern. In her hand was the bag of licorice.

"What's the matter?" he asked, noting the look of disappointment on her face.

"You got red and black ones," she pouted, holding up the candy. "I only like the red ones."

"Ah, yes, but you see…" Vincent took the bag and ripped into it with the thumb of his claw. He carefully removed a black piece and bit into it. "I like the black pieces."

Yuffie smiled. "I didn't think you even liked candy."

"I don't, much. But, on occasion, a stick of black licorice can be most satisfying."

Yuffie laughed. "Weird-o." Vincent, despite his tightly strung nerves, smiled at her. He patted the spot next to him on the bed. Yuffie crawled, instead, into his lap and leaned back against his shoulder as the film started. Vincent folded his arms over her and kissed her ear gently.

The next movie was an old martial arts flick about – what else? – a ninja princess whose skills were matched only by her incredible beauty. Despite her doctor's orders to stay in bed, Yuffie would occasionally jump to her feet and join in on the poorly choreographed fight scenes. Vincent would calmly remind her of her weakened condition and she would climb back onto the bed with him and force herself to sit still... at least until the next on-screen battle.

Finally, the action was squelched by an over-the-top love scene. Yuffie was enthralled yet again as the on-screen lovers declared their forbidden love for each other. Vincent wondered if there was some correlation between this sappy scene and Yuffie's feelings for him. It troubled him to think that he might be little more than a morbid curiosity to the still very young woman curled up beside him. He knew teenaged girls sometimes thought they wanted things they considered unobtainable. When Yuffie realized how serious relationships could be, would she change her mind?

He pushed the unpleasant thought aside just as Yuffie sighed romantically. The heroin and her secret lover were swearing an oath to remain faithful to one another, despite their inevitable parting. His own ninja princess slid her hand inside his then and leaned against him affectionately. He kissed her temple and rested his chin on top of her head, finding himself all too comfortable.

By the time the movie had ended, Yuffie was asleep with her arm draped over Vincent and her head on his shoulder. He might've fallen asleep himself, had it not been for the sudden vibration on his hip. He reached for the phone without disturbing Yuffie, and slid off the bed.

"Cloud."

"Vincent, were you trying to call me earlier?"

Briefly the anxiety he'd experienced earlier washed over him again. He glanced at Yuffie, still sleeping soundly before walking to the furthest corner of the room. He spoke softly into the phone. "Cloud, there's something I didn't tell you earlier."

He relayed what the man had said about the escaped clone and mistaking Yuffie for his suspect. Cloud was silent a moment as he put the pieces together.

"Why would he think Yuffie was the clone?" he said at last.

"Evidently, I'm a suspect for harboring their target. Why is anybody's guess."

"I think we should find out."

"Agreed."

"Let's meet up at the bar tomorrow morning to come up with a game plan. I'll see if Reeve can dig anything up about this Doctor Orias."

"Thank you, Cloud. By the way, I was concerned when you and Tifa didn't answer your phones earlier."

"Oh, uh… Tifa and I were… Driving through a tunnel. See you tomorrow, Vincent."

Vincent shut the phone and noticed Yuffie was sitting up looking at him.

"What was all that about?" she asked. "You didn't tell me anything about a clone before."

"I didn't want to worry you."

"Vincent, I'm not a baby. Tell me what's going on."

As he approached her, she settled back onto the bed. He sat beside her and, at length, explained the situation.

"I'm going, too," she said when he'd finished.

"I can't allow that."

"Vincent, don't be ridiculous. You're treating me like a little kid."

"I just want to keep you safe."

"And I want to keep you safe, Vincent Valentine. You could use my help. Don't forget I fought beside you against Weapon, against Sephiroth himself."

Vincent sighed then. "I'm sorry, Yuffie. In a way, I suppose I forgot you were the most beautiful and skilled ninja in the world."

She smiled. "Just don't let it happen again!"

"It won't."

"Then it's settled."

"On one condition."

"What's that?"

"You don't get out of bed for the rest of the night. If you're going to be fit tomorrow, you need to rest."

"Argh! Fine! Better throw in the other movie."

"As you wish. Maybe something with less action this time."

Yuffie giggled, snuggling into the bed. As Vincent went to put the movie on, however, she sat up again. "Hey, Vince?"

"Hmm?"

"I was just thinking. How do you want to play this off tomorrow? In front of the others, I mean."

"Play it off?"

"I mean, we probably don't wanna go walking into the bar holding hands or anything."

"I… hadn't really thought of it. If you wish to keep it secret, I won't do anything out of the ordinary."

Yuffie smiled. "You almost sound like you want people to know."

"I'll leave that up to you," Vincent said, approaching her. He sat down on the bed beside her again and put his arm around her shoulder. "Whatever you want to do is fine with me."

"Thanks, Vincent."

Their eyes met then and quite suddenly everything else in the room faded into an afterthought. Vincent kissed her softly at first, then moved his hand to the small of her back. He could feel her winding her fingers into his hair as they gravitated closer to one another, until they were completely entwined. He could taste the cherry flavored licorice on her mouth and decided he liked it after all.

Yuffie let her weight fall against him then, pushing him back against the bed. She leaned in and Vincent closed his eyes. But instead of kissing his lips, her mouth began moving along his throat. She worked one of the buckles of his cloak free, then started on the second.

Vincent let out an almost silent moan as he felt Yuffie's leg slide between his.

Then he reached up to her shoulders and pulled her away from him slightly.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Yuffie, I don't think we should do this yet."

She sat up and gaze him a questioning look. "But why? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, I just… You're so young, Yuffie. I wouldn't feel right."

Yuffie slid off the bed and ran her fingers through her short hair. "Oh no, you did not just pull the age card on me, Vincent."

"The what?"

"The age card, you know? Rubbing in my face how much younger I am than you."

"But… it's true, Yuffie. We're just starting this relationship… What if you change your mind in a few weeks? I don't want you to regret anything you do with me."

"You really think that's going to happen?"

"I don't know, Yuffie… Honestly, I can't imagine what you see in me to begin with. You could be with someone your own age. Someone who isn't constantly in some sort of danger. Someone who isn't-"

"Don't you dare say it."

"Yuffie… Doesn't this bother you?" He gestured at himself.

She sat down again, her face softening. "Vincent, how many times am I going to have to say this to you? You're perfect just the way you are. I don't want you to go around feeling ashamed of the way you look, or of what's inside you. It wasn't your fault, and it certainly doesn't change the way I feel about you. If anything, it makes you even more unique. You're beautiful, Vincent."

Not knowing what to say to this, Vincent pulled Yuffie into his lap and held her tightly. "Thank you," he whispered.

"I mean it," she insisted. "And I don't want you putting yourself down anymore. Promise?"

"Promise."

"Good. Now that we've got that cleared up, I guess you're right. I don't plan on changing my mind about you, but… I suppose we should wait a while. Maybe you'll change your mind."

He kissed her ear lobe and pressed his face against hers. "That's not going to happen, Yuffie."

"I hope not. Now that we're together, I can't imagine not being with you. I know it's only been a day, but this feels right… Like I'm supposed to be with you."

"I feel the same way. Odd that you and I, of all people, should pair up like this."

Yuffie laughed. "Nobody would ever expect it. Cloud and the others are going to be shocked when they find out."

"I thought you wanted to keep it a secret for now."

"Well, maybe I changed my mind." Vincent pulled away from her slightly to give her a questioning look. "I think I want everyone to know I'm with you. Especially those stupid, snickering fan girls. Nyuk, nyuk nyuk."

"Yuffie, I hope you're not planning to use me to inflict suffering on those less fortunate than yourself."

"What about you? Don't you want people to see you with the single white rose of Wutai on your arm?"

He kissed her forehead. "I'd like that very much."

They kissed once again as the movie started playing. This one included a frustrating love triangle between a man's new lover and his wife, whom everyone had presumed dead for the last five years.

Yuffie made a comment about the protagonist's obligation to his wife, no matter who had come along afterward. Vincent wasn't so certain he agreed with this. After all, he himself had found someone new after all the years of mourning for Lucrecia. Part of him would always care for her, he knew, and that was enough. Now he would focus his affections on Yuffie, and enjoy this new relationship for as long as she would have him. His loyalty lay with her.