Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Fragments ❯ Chapter One ( Chapter 1 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Trick Sparrow 
Yuffie tries to push aside her unexplained feelings for Vincent, while Cloud meets a familiar face on the streets of Midgar.
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 10.09.2001 | Updated On: 12.28.2001 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.3K | Visits: 349 | Status: Completed
Yuffie tries to push aside her unexplained feelings for Vincent, while Cloud meets a familiar face on the streets of Midgar.
Non Anime: Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 10.09.2001 | Updated On: 12.28.2001 | Pages: 2 | Words: 2.3K | Visits: 349 | Status: Completed
Chapter 1
"Geez, Vinnie, can't you take a joke?!" exclaimed Yuffie Kisaragi. She gazed up at the dark man, who strained to look dignified even with raw egg on his face.
Vincent glared back at her, for once showing emotion on his pallid face, even if it was anger. "I'm quite sure," he said dryly, wiping his face with a handkerchief, "that you would not retain your humor if you had been splattered with chocobo yolk."
"Then you don't know me too well, do you?" she said playfully. Finally she had played a prank on Vincent Valentine! The man who never divulged in humor, and most likely didn't even know the meaning. She had to admit, it was more than fun dumping egg yolk on him as she hid in the loft of Cloud and Tifa's chocobo stable.
He turned away from her harshly. "You are correct about that, Yuffie. I hardly know you, and I don't care to start getting acquainted with someone who is immature enough to play practical jokes on their seniors."
*Man,* the young ninja thought to herself, *That was practically a speech for Vincent! Maybe I should apologize... But it was so hilarious!*
She sighed emphatically. "Ohhh-kay, Vinnie. I'm sorry. I won't do it again. If you promise to smile, that is."
He turned around to stare back at her, his garnet red eyes penetrating her to her very core. She shifted uncomfortably under his scrutiny. She had always been slightly intimidated by the shadowy gunslinger. His colorless palor, his wicked-looking brass claw, and most of all his glowing ruby eyes. They were quite arresting; she could even venture to say they were beautiful, but they were also the eyes of a dark, haunted man.
He spoke, finally breaking the staring match. "And why, Yuffie, would I have any reason to smile?" he said quietly.
"Well, you know, I mean," she stammered. "You *should* smile, Vincent. People smile because they're..." She trailed off, realizing fully why the man never even raised the corner of his mouth. "Happy," she finished, sighing. "Sorry."
"Now you know," he replied tonelessly. "We'd better go back to the house now. We don't want to get snowed in."
She nodded silently as he opened the stable door. Yuffie waited for him to walk through, but he simply stood there. It took the ninja a while to realize he was holding the door for her.
*Oh, yeah. I keep forgetting he's such a gentleman.*
She walked through the door out into the snow, mumbling a thank you to the tall gunman. He followed her to Cloud and Tifa Strife's humble little cottage on the outskirts of Sector 6.
Yuffie raced up the stairs toward the front door, only to realize that the steps were coated in a thick layer of ice. Her arms pinwheeled as she started to fall backward down to the bottom. She squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for impact, but they snapped open again as she felt two muscular arms grab her around the waist and snatch her off the porch. She looked up and saw Vincent coolly staring down at her. She blushed madly and quickly averted her gaze down to his chest, whereupon she began to blush even more deeply as she found her hands resting against the hard muscles of his torso.
"Whoops," she said dumbly, yanking her hands off his chest.
Vincent released his hold around her waist and stepped away. "I apologize, Yuffie. I should have warned you about the ice."
She laughed sourly, trying to get her cheeks to stop burning. "You're apologizing for my stupidity?! You really are a gentleman, Vinnie."
He took her hand wordlessly in his claw and helped her up the stairs to the front door. Once again, he opened the door and waited for her to enter the house. Insantly, she threw off her coat and gloves and collapsed next to the warm, crackling fireplace. Vincent, however, automatically went up the stairs to the second floor, brushing past Tifa as he went.
"Hey, Vinnie, where are ya going so fast?" called Yuffie.
"I'm going to take a shower," he replied flatly. "No doubt I still have egg imbedded in my scalp."
Tifa lifted a dark brown eyebrow as she sat next to Yuffie at the fireplace. "What exactly did he mean by *that*?"
Yuffie shrugged innocently. "Vinnie just can't take a joke, is all."
"I should have known," said Tifa, laughing. "Poor Vincent."
"Yeah, no kidding. That chocobo yolk will probably take a long time to come out. Oh, well, it'll make his hair shiny." For some reason, Yuffie got a mental picture of Vincent, shrouded by steam as he washed his long, silky, black hair, the hot water running off his taut, rippling muscles...
"Yuffie, what's up with your face? It's all red."
"Wha!?" she blurted, blinking furiously to dispel the unprovoked and insanely inappropriate image. *Gawd, Yuffie! What in the name of the Holy Materia are you thinking?! This is Vincent Valentine here. You're not supposed to be thinking about him like that!!*
"Anyway," said Tifa slowly, "Cloud went to the takeout restaurant in Sector 5 to get something for dinner. He should be back pretty soon, so we're on our own until then."
Yuffie nodded. "Mmkay, what do you want to do?"
"Can I braid your hair?" asked Tifa, grinning.
"Uhhh, okay." In the year that Yuffie had been living with the Strifes, her chestnut hair had grown past her shoulders. She still wore her headband, but she hadn't bothered to get her hair cut again. She was secretly glad.
Tifa sat behind the young girl and separated her hair into three sections. As she began to weave them together, she laughed. "Now don't scream if I pull too hard. Vincent will probably fall in the shower."
Yuffie laughed nervously.
Vincent breathed deeply as he let the blazing hot water warm his chilled body. The cold weather outside had gotten to him more than he cared to admit. As he absently ran his human fingers through his wet hair, his mind went back to the moment he had arrvied at Cloud and Tifa's house.
He had come all the way from his apartment in Junon to return the materia he had acquired during the time of crisis on the Planet to Cloud. He had only visited the Strifes once since they had gotten married, and it was only to offer belated congratulations since he had missed the wedding.
Vincent had been surprised to say the least to find that Yuffie Kisaragi was living with them. Apparently Yuffie had run away from Wutai to escape the duties of being Lord Godo's daughter. Cloud and Tifa didn't approve, but they took her in when no one else had. Vincent had knocked on the door, expecting Tifa to answer since Cloud worked at a weapon shop, but was completely taken aback to see Yuffie swing the door wide open to greet him.
"Why, Vincent Valentine, what a pleasant surprise!" she cried, wrapping her arms around his waist in a death grip. Vincent struggled to break free, but gave up after it became swiftly evident that she enjoyed this embrace. He sighed inwardly and rested his hands on her shoulders.
He would never forget her face as she felt cold metal against her sleeveless shoulder. She instantly withdrew from the hug and backed away. "Uhh, hey Tifa, Vincent is here!" she called nervously. "Come on inside, Vinnie!"
Afterwards, she tried to mask her discomfort, but Vincent could plainly see she was extremely intimidated by him, especially his claw. She looked at the hateful appendage with obvious fear, and he was ashamed to instill so much apprehensiveness in her. Now, looking down at his claw, the hot water forming shining beads on its surface, he realized that that must be the way everyone looked at him.
He turned off the faucet and stepped out of the shower. Wrapping a towel around his slender waist, he wiped the fog off the bathroom mirror and gazed reproachfully at himself.
*No wonder Yuffie's frightened to death of me,* he thought bitterly. *I'm a bloody mutant.*
He was indeed an imposing creature. At a full six feet, he was all lean muscle, with glowing red eyes, skin as pale as a winter moon, and long, flowing black hair to complete the fearsome ensemble. And that was even without the hideous claw. Truly, if any woman was ever to look at him straight-on for more than five seconds, it was credited to paralyzing terror.
Not that it mattered one bit to Yuffie after she had discovered the purpose of Vincent's visit. Once he had explained that he was there to return Cloud's materia, including Neo-Bahamut, Ultima, and Knights of the Round, Yuffie instantly slid next to Vincent on the living room couch and batted her eyelashes up at him.
"Aww, Vinnie," she cooed. "Cloud doesn't need materia anymore! He's got a wife, a weapon shop, and a cozy little house. He's happy with what he's got. Why don't you just hand that crappy old materia over to me, hmmm?"
Cloud rolled his brilliant blue, mako-infused eyes. "Don't pay any attention to her, Vincent. She's materia-dependant."
Yuffie grinned and stuck her nose high in the air. "I can quit anytime I want!"
Since then, the young ninja had hung onto Vincent like a leech, evidently no longer bothered by his intimidating appearance. She had even gone far enough to play a practical joke on him. Materia was enough to bridge the gap with anyone.
But Vincent still recalled her frightened face when she felt his metal claw on her skin.
"Four bowls of shrimp curry, with extra sauce on one, please," said Cloud. The waiter behind the desk at the takeout restaurant nodded and scurried off to inform the cook. The blonde, spiky-haired man edged closer to the radiator and unconsciously pulled his overcoat tighter around him.
He mentally smacked himself on the head when he realized he had forgotten to ask for an order of yakisoba. He remembered that it was Vincent's favorite dish, and he always found it more than amusing watching the calm, stoic man try to slurp the noodles out of the bowl. He was surprised that his dark companion had stayed almost four days at their house. He usually shunned the company of others. Maybe it was because Yuffie was...
He shook his head as the waiter rang the desk bell. "Four shrimp curry!" she proclaimed, as if the whole Planet had a right to know.
"Wow, that was fast," said Cloud. "Actually, could I have an order of yakisoba, too?"
She nodded. "Oh, for boy out back? He love yakisoba. Only thing I get him to eat."
"Boy? What boy?" he asked, baffled.
"Boy behind restaurant," she said slowly, as though Cloud must be daft. "Very sad. He maybe has a few screws loose. ONE YAKISOBA!!" she blared.
Wincing, Cloud looked out the back door, which had been carelessly left open despite the biting cold. A small, defeated figure dressed in rags sat huddled next to a dumpster. Though the downfall of snow obscured his usually sharp vision, the young man outside looked disturbingly familiar.
He continued staring until the waitress brought out a covered Styrofoam bowl. "Here," she said cheerfully, setting it on top of the curry. "Eight gil please, have a nice day!"
Cloud absently fished the correct money out of his wallet and took the food. He walked out the back door toward the shivering boy. The closer he got to him, the more convinced he was that he had known him from somewhere. Even though he was sitting down, Cloud could tell he wasn't very tall, and he had blonde hair that was frozen against his head. Not until he got close enough to see the young man's ocean blue eyes did he fully realize why he looked so familiar.
"Rufus," he breathed.
The boy looked up at him, bewildered. "Why... w-why does everyone keep calling me that? Who are you?"
*What the...?* Cloud thought. *Why wouldn't I be calling him that? Why is he even alive, for that matter?! And why doesn't he recognize me? He has to know who I am! Unless he can't remember...*
"My name is Cloud Strife," he said, cautiously moving toward Rufus, who grew more suspicious. "We used to know each other... a few years ago. Don't you remember?"
He narrowed his eyes. "No... But why did you call me Rufus? That's not my name." He encircled his dangerously thin arms around his knees and hung his head.
Cloud decided to try a different tactic. "Then tell me, what *is* your name?"
"I... I don't know." His fragile voice was barely above a whisper.
Cloud took a risk and sat down beside him, still holding the packages of food. The boy did not stir. "Do you remember anything?"
Rufus sighed, shaking his head. "Not really. Just... fragments."
*This is frickin' unbelievable! Not only is President Rufus Shin-ra still alive, he has amnesia!*
"I want to help you, kid," he said gently. "I don't know how I can, but I'm going to try. Will you come with me?" When he did not answer, he insisted, "Please. You don't have anywhere else to go, right?"
He looked at the older man warily. But maybe he saw something in Cloud's eyes that convinced him he meant what he said. "A-all right," he said softly and stood up. Cloud got to his feet as well, and concealed a smile of wonder as he made his way back to his house in Sector 6, the boy shuffling along after him.
*Who would have thought I would be showing kindness to the head of Shin-ra, Inc.,* he thought in amazement. *What's even scarier is that I actually DO want to help him.*
White cottony snow drifted down to cover the shabby streets of Midgar as the once-despised Rufus Shin-ra followed the Planet's greatest hero Cloud Strife off into the frosty winter night.
"Geez, Vinnie, can't you take a joke?!" exclaimed Yuffie Kisaragi. She gazed up at the dark man, who strained to look dignified even with raw egg on his face.
Vincent glared back at her, for once showing emotion on his pallid face, even if it was anger. "I'm quite sure," he said dryly, wiping his face with a handkerchief, "that you would not retain your humor if you had been splattered with chocobo yolk."
"Then you don't know me too well, do you?" she said playfully. Finally she had played a prank on Vincent Valentine! The man who never divulged in humor, and most likely didn't even know the meaning. She had to admit, it was more than fun dumping egg yolk on him as she hid in the loft of Cloud and Tifa's chocobo stable.
He turned away from her harshly. "You are correct about that, Yuffie. I hardly know you, and I don't care to start getting acquainted with someone who is immature enough to play practical jokes on their seniors."
*Man,* the young ninja thought to herself, *That was practically a speech for Vincent! Maybe I should apologize... But it was so hilarious!*
She sighed emphatically. "Ohhh-kay, Vinnie. I'm sorry. I won't do it again. If you promise to smile, that is."
He turned around to stare back at her, his garnet red eyes penetrating her to her very core. She shifted uncomfortably under his scrutiny. She had always been slightly intimidated by the shadowy gunslinger. His colorless palor, his wicked-looking brass claw, and most of all his glowing ruby eyes. They were quite arresting; she could even venture to say they were beautiful, but they were also the eyes of a dark, haunted man.
He spoke, finally breaking the staring match. "And why, Yuffie, would I have any reason to smile?" he said quietly.
"Well, you know, I mean," she stammered. "You *should* smile, Vincent. People smile because they're..." She trailed off, realizing fully why the man never even raised the corner of his mouth. "Happy," she finished, sighing. "Sorry."
"Now you know," he replied tonelessly. "We'd better go back to the house now. We don't want to get snowed in."
She nodded silently as he opened the stable door. Yuffie waited for him to walk through, but he simply stood there. It took the ninja a while to realize he was holding the door for her.
*Oh, yeah. I keep forgetting he's such a gentleman.*
She walked through the door out into the snow, mumbling a thank you to the tall gunman. He followed her to Cloud and Tifa Strife's humble little cottage on the outskirts of Sector 6.
Yuffie raced up the stairs toward the front door, only to realize that the steps were coated in a thick layer of ice. Her arms pinwheeled as she started to fall backward down to the bottom. She squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for impact, but they snapped open again as she felt two muscular arms grab her around the waist and snatch her off the porch. She looked up and saw Vincent coolly staring down at her. She blushed madly and quickly averted her gaze down to his chest, whereupon she began to blush even more deeply as she found her hands resting against the hard muscles of his torso.
"Whoops," she said dumbly, yanking her hands off his chest.
Vincent released his hold around her waist and stepped away. "I apologize, Yuffie. I should have warned you about the ice."
She laughed sourly, trying to get her cheeks to stop burning. "You're apologizing for my stupidity?! You really are a gentleman, Vinnie."
He took her hand wordlessly in his claw and helped her up the stairs to the front door. Once again, he opened the door and waited for her to enter the house. Insantly, she threw off her coat and gloves and collapsed next to the warm, crackling fireplace. Vincent, however, automatically went up the stairs to the second floor, brushing past Tifa as he went.
"Hey, Vinnie, where are ya going so fast?" called Yuffie.
"I'm going to take a shower," he replied flatly. "No doubt I still have egg imbedded in my scalp."
Tifa lifted a dark brown eyebrow as she sat next to Yuffie at the fireplace. "What exactly did he mean by *that*?"
Yuffie shrugged innocently. "Vinnie just can't take a joke, is all."
"I should have known," said Tifa, laughing. "Poor Vincent."
"Yeah, no kidding. That chocobo yolk will probably take a long time to come out. Oh, well, it'll make his hair shiny." For some reason, Yuffie got a mental picture of Vincent, shrouded by steam as he washed his long, silky, black hair, the hot water running off his taut, rippling muscles...
"Yuffie, what's up with your face? It's all red."
"Wha!?" she blurted, blinking furiously to dispel the unprovoked and insanely inappropriate image. *Gawd, Yuffie! What in the name of the Holy Materia are you thinking?! This is Vincent Valentine here. You're not supposed to be thinking about him like that!!*
"Anyway," said Tifa slowly, "Cloud went to the takeout restaurant in Sector 5 to get something for dinner. He should be back pretty soon, so we're on our own until then."
Yuffie nodded. "Mmkay, what do you want to do?"
"Can I braid your hair?" asked Tifa, grinning.
"Uhhh, okay." In the year that Yuffie had been living with the Strifes, her chestnut hair had grown past her shoulders. She still wore her headband, but she hadn't bothered to get her hair cut again. She was secretly glad.
Tifa sat behind the young girl and separated her hair into three sections. As she began to weave them together, she laughed. "Now don't scream if I pull too hard. Vincent will probably fall in the shower."
Yuffie laughed nervously.
Vincent breathed deeply as he let the blazing hot water warm his chilled body. The cold weather outside had gotten to him more than he cared to admit. As he absently ran his human fingers through his wet hair, his mind went back to the moment he had arrvied at Cloud and Tifa's house.
He had come all the way from his apartment in Junon to return the materia he had acquired during the time of crisis on the Planet to Cloud. He had only visited the Strifes once since they had gotten married, and it was only to offer belated congratulations since he had missed the wedding.
Vincent had been surprised to say the least to find that Yuffie Kisaragi was living with them. Apparently Yuffie had run away from Wutai to escape the duties of being Lord Godo's daughter. Cloud and Tifa didn't approve, but they took her in when no one else had. Vincent had knocked on the door, expecting Tifa to answer since Cloud worked at a weapon shop, but was completely taken aback to see Yuffie swing the door wide open to greet him.
"Why, Vincent Valentine, what a pleasant surprise!" she cried, wrapping her arms around his waist in a death grip. Vincent struggled to break free, but gave up after it became swiftly evident that she enjoyed this embrace. He sighed inwardly and rested his hands on her shoulders.
He would never forget her face as she felt cold metal against her sleeveless shoulder. She instantly withdrew from the hug and backed away. "Uhh, hey Tifa, Vincent is here!" she called nervously. "Come on inside, Vinnie!"
Afterwards, she tried to mask her discomfort, but Vincent could plainly see she was extremely intimidated by him, especially his claw. She looked at the hateful appendage with obvious fear, and he was ashamed to instill so much apprehensiveness in her. Now, looking down at his claw, the hot water forming shining beads on its surface, he realized that that must be the way everyone looked at him.
He turned off the faucet and stepped out of the shower. Wrapping a towel around his slender waist, he wiped the fog off the bathroom mirror and gazed reproachfully at himself.
*No wonder Yuffie's frightened to death of me,* he thought bitterly. *I'm a bloody mutant.*
He was indeed an imposing creature. At a full six feet, he was all lean muscle, with glowing red eyes, skin as pale as a winter moon, and long, flowing black hair to complete the fearsome ensemble. And that was even without the hideous claw. Truly, if any woman was ever to look at him straight-on for more than five seconds, it was credited to paralyzing terror.
Not that it mattered one bit to Yuffie after she had discovered the purpose of Vincent's visit. Once he had explained that he was there to return Cloud's materia, including Neo-Bahamut, Ultima, and Knights of the Round, Yuffie instantly slid next to Vincent on the living room couch and batted her eyelashes up at him.
"Aww, Vinnie," she cooed. "Cloud doesn't need materia anymore! He's got a wife, a weapon shop, and a cozy little house. He's happy with what he's got. Why don't you just hand that crappy old materia over to me, hmmm?"
Cloud rolled his brilliant blue, mako-infused eyes. "Don't pay any attention to her, Vincent. She's materia-dependant."
Yuffie grinned and stuck her nose high in the air. "I can quit anytime I want!"
Since then, the young ninja had hung onto Vincent like a leech, evidently no longer bothered by his intimidating appearance. She had even gone far enough to play a practical joke on him. Materia was enough to bridge the gap with anyone.
But Vincent still recalled her frightened face when she felt his metal claw on her skin.
"Four bowls of shrimp curry, with extra sauce on one, please," said Cloud. The waiter behind the desk at the takeout restaurant nodded and scurried off to inform the cook. The blonde, spiky-haired man edged closer to the radiator and unconsciously pulled his overcoat tighter around him.
He mentally smacked himself on the head when he realized he had forgotten to ask for an order of yakisoba. He remembered that it was Vincent's favorite dish, and he always found it more than amusing watching the calm, stoic man try to slurp the noodles out of the bowl. He was surprised that his dark companion had stayed almost four days at their house. He usually shunned the company of others. Maybe it was because Yuffie was...
He shook his head as the waiter rang the desk bell. "Four shrimp curry!" she proclaimed, as if the whole Planet had a right to know.
"Wow, that was fast," said Cloud. "Actually, could I have an order of yakisoba, too?"
She nodded. "Oh, for boy out back? He love yakisoba. Only thing I get him to eat."
"Boy? What boy?" he asked, baffled.
"Boy behind restaurant," she said slowly, as though Cloud must be daft. "Very sad. He maybe has a few screws loose. ONE YAKISOBA!!" she blared.
Wincing, Cloud looked out the back door, which had been carelessly left open despite the biting cold. A small, defeated figure dressed in rags sat huddled next to a dumpster. Though the downfall of snow obscured his usually sharp vision, the young man outside looked disturbingly familiar.
He continued staring until the waitress brought out a covered Styrofoam bowl. "Here," she said cheerfully, setting it on top of the curry. "Eight gil please, have a nice day!"
Cloud absently fished the correct money out of his wallet and took the food. He walked out the back door toward the shivering boy. The closer he got to him, the more convinced he was that he had known him from somewhere. Even though he was sitting down, Cloud could tell he wasn't very tall, and he had blonde hair that was frozen against his head. Not until he got close enough to see the young man's ocean blue eyes did he fully realize why he looked so familiar.
"Rufus," he breathed.
The boy looked up at him, bewildered. "Why... w-why does everyone keep calling me that? Who are you?"
*What the...?* Cloud thought. *Why wouldn't I be calling him that? Why is he even alive, for that matter?! And why doesn't he recognize me? He has to know who I am! Unless he can't remember...*
"My name is Cloud Strife," he said, cautiously moving toward Rufus, who grew more suspicious. "We used to know each other... a few years ago. Don't you remember?"
He narrowed his eyes. "No... But why did you call me Rufus? That's not my name." He encircled his dangerously thin arms around his knees and hung his head.
Cloud decided to try a different tactic. "Then tell me, what *is* your name?"
"I... I don't know." His fragile voice was barely above a whisper.
Cloud took a risk and sat down beside him, still holding the packages of food. The boy did not stir. "Do you remember anything?"
Rufus sighed, shaking his head. "Not really. Just... fragments."
*This is frickin' unbelievable! Not only is President Rufus Shin-ra still alive, he has amnesia!*
"I want to help you, kid," he said gently. "I don't know how I can, but I'm going to try. Will you come with me?" When he did not answer, he insisted, "Please. You don't have anywhere else to go, right?"
He looked at the older man warily. But maybe he saw something in Cloud's eyes that convinced him he meant what he said. "A-all right," he said softly and stood up. Cloud got to his feet as well, and concealed a smile of wonder as he made his way back to his house in Sector 6, the boy shuffling along after him.
*Who would have thought I would be showing kindness to the head of Shin-ra, Inc.,* he thought in amazement. *What's even scarier is that I actually DO want to help him.*
White cottony snow drifted down to cover the shabby streets of Midgar as the once-despised Rufus Shin-ra followed the Planet's greatest hero Cloud Strife off into the frosty winter night.