Chapter Seven: Baiting the Trap

Yuffie and Vincent thought better of the dramatic entrance they'd planned the previous night. This wasn't the time for distractions; someone was watching Vincent, and until they found out why, nobody was safe around him – not even himself.

And so, they reluctantly parted hands before entering the bar, one ahead of the other. Yuffie couldn't help but think everyone in the bar was staring at them, though she told herself it was only her imagination. Only she and Vincent knew the truth, and so it would remain, at least until this crisis was over.

Barrett and Cid were playing cards at the large table reserved for Avalanche reunions, while Cloud and Tifa could be seen standing very closely together in the store room behind the bar. Yuffie smiled awkwardly at her friends, though the paid of gamblers scarcely noted her existence. Vincent, she noted with some relief, was playing his part perfectly. He took a seat in his usual fluid way and rested one arm on the table, never once meeting Yuffie's gaze. He was so convincing, she couldn't help be slightly hurt by his ignoring her.

Cid leaned over to Vincent just as Yuffie took a seat between the old pilot and Barrett. "Hey, man, did ya see what's goin' on over there in the kitchen? Looks like Cloud got a little hanky panky before work this morning." He laughed wickedly and, although nobody else joined him, it didn't seem to dampen his humor.

Yuffie let her eyes wander back to the very private scene taking place behind the bar. She could see Cloud and Tifa laughing at some secret joke just between them. They looked so happy together. It was a shame they'd never gotten together before now, but she was glad for them just the same. She stole a sidelong glance at Vincent and realized she could say the same about her own love life.

When she returned her attention to those present at the table, she saw that Vincent's eyes were on her, though his face was turned away. Her stomach fluttered when she realized he was having as difficult a time ignoring her as she was pretending nothing was different between them.

She sighed longingly; he really was something spectacular to behold. The wild elegance of his jet black hair, matched with his pale skin and those intensely red eyes were enough to make most of his fan girls swoon. But Yuffie had more than just his gorgeous outward appearance; she knew Vincent Valentine, probably better than anyone else in the world. And, she was the only person in the world he'd been romantically involved in for over thirty years.

She fantasized momentarily about adding a new segment to her fan club newsletter. Dating Vincent Valentine had a nice ring to it. Stealing another look at him, she noted a look of questioning concern on his face. He seemed to know she was scheming.

She decided against revealing her private life with Vincent; it wouldn't be fair to him to share their intimate secrets, and it certainly wouldn't be fair to all the jealous fan girls of the world who would likely die of heart break to know Vincent was no longer on the market. Maybe she would just tweak one little detail of his fan page; she'd change his relationship status to 'taken.'

While she was daydreaming, Red XIII had approached the table. He greeted everyone in his usual, quiet manner, then situated himself beside Vincent. He whispered something to the gunman, and Vincent replied just as inaudibly. She raised an eyebrow, but Vincent did not meet her gaze again before the meeting began.

Tifa and Cloud took their seats at last, and things got underway.

Vincent carefully explained the situation to those out of the loop. Yuffie felt Tifa's hand rest on her shoulder a moment when he got to the part about her being shot with the dart. "I'm okay," she announced awkwardly when everyone turned to look at her. "Vincent…" She bit her lip, just before spilling the beans about Vincent picking up all her favorite snacks and movies while she rested their shared room at the inn. Instead, she simply said, "Vincent got me to the hospital right away. It was no biggie."

When he was finished filling everyone in on the situation, Vincent let Cloud take the stage. The spikey-haired swordsman produced a few sloppily folded sheets of paper from his pocket and flattened them out on the table. "Reeve sent this to me this morning. It's Shinra's dossier on Doctor Minos Orias. He was an intern assigned to Professor Hojo right around the time the real Sephiroth was… born."

Yuffie looked at Vincent; his face was paler than usual, but otherwise completely expressionless. That was a bad sign.

Cloud continued skimming the dossier. "He was suspended briefly for inappropriate conduct concerning a coworker… Hojo filed the complaint, but the coworker in question… was Doctor Lucrecia Crescent." Now everybody was looking at Vincent, waiting for a response. He sat like a statue, his eyes glued to the creased pages in front of Cloud.

"Please," he muttered stiffly, "continue, Cloud."

Cloud cleared his throat and moved on to the next page. "It says he left Shinra shortly before Sephiroth's birth. He was accused on two occasions of trying to terminate Doctor Crescent's pregnancy, but these rumors were never substantiated or confirmed by Shinra, Inc. Shinra lost tabs on him after he left the company and nobody has heard from him since."

"Well, now, ain't that a shame?" Cid said, lighting a cigarette and leaning back in his seat. "Guess we'll just have to find him ourselves."

"Think you can do it, Cid?" Barrett asked hopefully. He seemed to have every confidence in the half-mad pilot.

"Hell, who do you think yer talkin' to? We'll find him, alright."

"How?" Red asked. "If even Shinra doesn't know where he is, how can we hope to locate him?"

Cid scoffed, blowing a huge cloud of smoke across the table. "We lay a trap." Yuffie didn't like the way he was eyeing Vincent. The gunman, however, seemed unconcerned.

Cid spelled out the details of his very dangerous plan. As Yuffie suspected, the bait for his trap was to be Vincent himself. She nearly jumped from her seat in protest, but gritted her teeth and kept silent for Vincent's sake. Vincent and several others – dressed to look like him – would be dispatched throughout Edge, while the rest of the team would act as scouts for unusual behavior in the vicinity.

"That's not going to work!" Yuffie shouted, able to contain her distaste for the ridiculous plan no longer.

"Yuffie?" Cloud seemed surprised at her outburst.

"And besides… Vincent could get hurt. We should be looking for the bad guys, not helping the bad guys find us."

"Kid's got a point," Barrett said thoughtfully. "But I don't see no other way."

Even Tifa seemed to be in on it. "I hate to say it, but I think they're right, Yuffie. We have no clues to follow except a name that even Shinra couldn't trace. Besides, it's not Vincent they're after – it's the runaway clone. I don't think they'll hurt him."

"We don't know that for sure," Yuffie whined. Was she letting too much emotion show? Did she really care at this point? "Look," she stated, more composed now. "I'm not saying it's a bad plan. But Vincent shouldn't be involved. Go ahead and dress some people up if you want to, but Vincent can't be put in danger."

"It's alright, Yuffie." Vincent wasn't looking at her, and instead was staring at the table, his arms now folded casually across his chest. "I can handle myself. Besides, I think Tifa's right. They're not really after me."

"But-"

"Then it's all settled!" Cid exclaimed, slamming his palm down on the table, causing his stack of poker chips to wobble and fall. "Damn."

"But something's bothering me," Tifa said then. "This clone they're looking for… Maybe we can help it."

"What makes you think it's the one who needs helping?" Red XIII philosophized. "The clone could be dangerous. Perhaps we should make an effort to capture it and return it to its creator."

"I have a feeling that's not the case," Tifa insisted. "But, you're right. We need to be careful at any rate."

Yuffie sulked in her chair, her eyes glued on Vincent's. Why would he endanger himself like this? It was crazy. Too crazy for Vincent, who was always so well-planned and cautious.

The group stood as a whole after Cid and the others worked out the minor details of their plot. Yuffie was silent for the remainder of the meeting, and remained seated while the others said their goodbyes.

Vincent had agreed to travel with Cid to a nearby tailor where they could have the Vincent-costumes made. Once Barrett and Red XIII had left, Yuffie shuffled toward the bar and took a seat on one of the tall stools. "Tifa, I need a drink."

Tifa jogged over and grabbed an empty glass. "Beer?"

"Naw. Something strong."

"Is everything alright, Yuffie? You seem agitated."

Before Yuffie could answer, Vincent appeared silently beside her. "Will you be joining us?" he asked.

She hesitated before shaking her head. "I've got some stuff to do."

Vincent looked sincerely hurt. That was a first, she realized. She nearly changed her mind, but before she could speak, Cid slapped a large hand onto Vincent's shoulder. "Hey, that's cool, man. We don't need chicks tagging along with us men-folk, anyway."

"Why, you sexist-"

"I'll see you tonight then, Yuffie." Vincent seemed not to notice Tifa and Cid's shocked expressions, but Yuffie could feel their brains working away to decipher Vincent's statement. She blushed.

"Yeah, tonight. Later."

Once the men-folk had taken their leave, Tifa's face burst into a wide grin and she leaned forward against the bar, halting just inches from Yuffie's face. "No… freaking… way."

"What?" Yuffie played innocent.

"You and Vincent?"

"…Dammit, Tifa," she whispered. "Is it that obvious?"

"Just to me," she smiled. "Don't worry. I won't say anything."

"Thanks… I'm not sure it's really a secret, though."

"So, tell me. How did this happen? I've never seen Vincent so much as look at a girl, except for… Well, you know."

"Yeah, don't remind me."

"Oh no. He still has feelings for Lucrecia?"

"I dunno. He never talks about it. I guess it's not really an issue…"

"Good. So, seriously, tell me everything."

"It's no big deal," she lied. It was a huge deal to her. "We just both realized we liked each other, and took off from there."

Tifa rolled her eyes. "Alright, I'll let you off for now. But one of these days you're going to tell me every detail of this morbid relationship."

"Morbid?" That was offensive.

"I'm just joking. You know I like Vincent. He's just kind of… dark."

"I like it," Yuffie admitted. "He's not like other guys I've dated. He's… special."

"So are you. Vincent's a lucky guy."

"He seems to think so… But what about you?"

"Me?"

"How did you and Cloud finally get together?"

Tifa blushed and looked around to see if Cloud was within hearing range. "Well, you know how he is… but after the Geostigma was cured, he really worked at it. I think he felt like he didn't deserve to be happy… But he realized he had a family who loves him and needs him around. He started spending more time around here, and… well it just happened."

"That's so awesome," Yuffie breathed. She'd always hoped Cloud would snap out of it and realize he and Tifa were meant for each other. When she'd heard the news that they'd officially become a couple a few months back, she'd been envious.

"Yeah…" Tifa sighed dreamily. "Well, let me see about getting you that drink."