Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ A Yuffie & Elena Story ❯ A Yuffie & Elena Story ( One-Shot )

A Yuffie & Elena Story

By Al Kristopher

Yuffie couldn't believe it. How did she get herself into this mess?!?! One minute, she was happily running around Wutai, chuckling and cackling madly with a sack of Materia in her hands, and the next, she was… she was…

"THIS IS SO HUMILIATING!!!" she screamed. "I THINK I'VE LOST THE FEELING IN MY ARMS! WHAT KIND OF SICK NUT DID THIS TO ME, ANYWAY!?!??!"

"You think you have problems?!" grunted the other woman hanging next to her. "What a fool! You're just a little snot-nosed punk, who probably got what she deserved!"

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!?!"

"But I'm a Turk!" screamed the other woman, as if she didn't hear Yuffie. "I can't possibly be captured like this! These restraints… it should be easy for me to break free of them!! I… I can't! This is so… so…"

"Humiliating?" offered Yuffie. The other woman hanging next to her, Elena, snarled as her face turned a dark red.

"Yeah… Humiliating…"

**Several Hours Earlier…**

It was true that Yuffie had been sneaking around Wutai a lot, and it was true that she had a bag of Materia in her hands. Yuffie was never 100% honest all the time, but there was no lying this time. The sneaky thief had stabbed more than one person in the back and made off with their large collection of Materia, and had it all hidden away in a most secretive place where even they would not look. Once freed of her possessions, Yuffie hid out in Wutai, and waited until the anger her "friends" had vanished.

Of course, she expected them to come after her, and bully her around. She had been with them long enough to know that these were not some brainless slobs she was dealing with--every one of them was sharp-minded. She even figured that she would get caught, so of course, she set a few nasty traps in her house just in case such a scenario presented itself. Yuffie acted like an immature little brat most of the time, but she was crafty beyond her years. The Shinobi were resourceful and swift, and she would never dare to shame their name or the name of Wutai by being completely stupid.

Alas, even her skills could have a limit. Yuffie did not expect to run into him while she was in Wutai, so she was caught completely off guard when it all happened. If she thought about it well enough, she could recall it all…

"What a bunch of morons!" she cackled wildly, holding her tiny gut in as she scampered away from her house. "I can't believe they fell for the old 'pull the switch and the Materia will show up' gag! HA! They must be dumber than I thought!" The residents of Wutai, slightly surprised to see the mischievous Yuffie running around again, just figured that she was up to her usual tricks and that the unfortunate recipients of her cunning wrath were now locked up in some steel cage. Having the benefit of the doubt on her side, Yuffie scurried into a nearby shack, one below the sacred bell just south of Gordo's pagoda, and lost herself in the darkness.

And then lost herself in the darkness--but the second time, it was hardly her fault. She slammed into some fat old geezer, knocking herself backwards, and got a squealing cry jammed into her ears as she recovered.

"Wheeee! Well, lookee what just bumped into me! A super-cute girly! She's so fit and trim, I'm in love already!"

"Oh, barf!!" gagged Yuffie, though she had no idea who was talking or even what the person looked like. "Whoever you are, you'd better not touch me, or I'll rip your fingers off and force them up your throat!"

"Whee-hoo, and feisty! Take her, boys! I'm gonna see just how many honeys I can round up in this dusty old town! Wheeee!!!" Yuffie screamed, but was silenced as a gag was stuffed in her mouth. Her hands were bound, and darkness fell over her eyes once again. But it really wasn't her fault, really…

----------

"Some just might say that it's poetic justice," muttered Elena as she hung next to the unfortunate ninja. "After all, what better way to punish a thief for her crimes than to have her be kidnapped by some dirty old slum Don?"

"You watch your mouth!" screamed Yuffie, tugging at her restraints. Being tied up against the Da-Chao statue was not exactly her idea of fun. She had a thing against heights--the high altitude just didn't agree with her senses--and the bitter wind that blew across the stone faces didn't help her queasiness one bit.

"I can get outta these binds and be off on my way whenever I feel like it!" snapped Yuffie, aiming all of her animosity at the blonde next to her. Elena gave the younger woman a very bitter stare, powerful enough to burn through any cord.

"So do it and do us both a favor." Yuffie pursed her lips, and once again looked down at the immense drop below her. A human's skull would shatter into a hundred pieces of it fell against the ground below, and the thought of her skull and bones and sixteen year-old body smashing up against the surface was not a very pleasant thought. Besides, Elena didn't need to know that Yuffie had been stripped of all her weapons and escape devices, including the pins she kept in her hair. So, she bluffed.

"…I'm just staying because I'm concerned for you," she said haughtily. "I mean, I don't know you and I don't like you, but nobody deserves to be subjected to the jollies of that sick perv. So… I figure I could stay around for awhile, make sure that neither one of us gets stuck with him."

"Your care and concern for me make the situation much better," snorted Elena. So much sarcasm was in her voice that it could have filled a swimming pool. Yuffie snorted and raised her nose at the other woman, but considering her situation, even forging an alliance with the annoying Elena sounded like a good idea.

"Well, let's try and help each other out," she insisted. "Neither one of us wants to end up as that creep's pinup girl. I know you'll agree with me when I say that!"

"Yeah," grumbled Elena huskily. "By the way, I'm Elena, Elena Benedic, of the Turks."

"Oh yeah, Cloud and the others told me about you guys!" exclaimed the ninja. "So you're with the Turks! Gee, I wonder how a 'skilled' woman like you got caught!"

"I'd rather not say," muttered Elena bitterly. "Anyway, would you mind telling me who you are? I can't help you much if I call you 'Stupid Girl' or 'Annoying Brat' or 'Hey You'." Ignoring the other woman's sass, Yuffie paused darkly and grumbled her name out.

"Yuffie. Yuffie Kisaragi. It's a displeasure to meet you, Elena."

"And a displeasure to meet you. I have a feeling that this will be the beginning of a beautiful enmity between the two of us."

**Several hours earlier…**

With her eyes rolling and her irritation at a new high, Elena left Turtle's Paradise and resolved to spend her vacation days away from annoying men. To be specific, the men she needed to avoid were her coworkers, Reno and Rude, and since she didn't see them run off after her, she just assumed that they were going to let her go. She let out a relieved sigh as she escaped the confines of the bar and her coworkers, and resolved to slip into a change of clothes as soon as she found a swimsuit shop. Wutai was a fairly good resort town--nowhere near as lavish and popular as Costa Del Sol or Icicle Inn, but it would do if one had resources.

Elena walked through the dusty down, her nose in the air at the sight of the place. Before the war with Shinra, Wutai had once been a marvelous place, where the people were proud and bold, and where they clung stubbornly to their old beliefs. In those modern days, Elena could easily scoff at the face of the Da-Chao statue or the legend of the Leviathan, and wouldn't receive a bit of anger from the people around her. It was an age of electronics, Materia, progress, and power, and she was along for the ride.

I am the only female Turk, she reminded herself again. The only one. There was a certain ring of power and pride that came with that thought, a ring that made Elena smile inwardly and outwardly. Her coworkers and employers viewed her as incompetent or mediocre sometimes, but she had not gotten to her position through underhanded means. She had worked to get that high, and had earned the right to wear the suit of a Turk. So, of course she had every right to boast and smile, and remind herself of her accomplishments every now and then. As long as they didn't distract her…

Elena turned a corner and found herself looking at a very attractive man. He smiled at her in a charming way, and beckoned her over with his finger. Thoughts of power and pride still ran through Elena's mind as she approached him, and so she was partially distracted to the area around her.

"Yeah? You need me for something?" she asked of him. The man kept his charming smile and nodded his head.

"Actually, yes. How would you like to make a few extra Gil? It's not very hard, and all you have to do is whatever comes natural. It's an easy job, lady, and the pay is really great." Elena smiled smugly, crossed her arms, and used her full height to stare back at the man.

"Y'know, buddy, five years ago I would have taken that offer. But I'm with the Turks now, if you can't tell, and I probably make more money than you do! So, thanks but no thanks."

"The Turks?" he repeated. She nodded her head, and the charming young man's face lit up in amazement. "Oh, wow! The boss has always fantasized about doing it with a female Turk, and here's one of them!"

"What?! What do you mean, 'fantasizing with a female Turk'!?" Elena growled out a portion of her rage, crossing her eyebrows and glaring at the young man in disbelief and rage. If this was leading where she thought it was leading, then…

"Oh, nothing," shrugged the man. "Nothing at all. Say, are you feeling sleepy?"

"NOO!! What kind of--"

Pssht! A quick hissing sound filled the air, like a dart being shot from a gun.

"Quest… ion… is… tha… t…?" Elena mumbled out wearily, and slowly slumped to the floor, a sudden drowsiness taking over her mind. She never recalled being sleepy all of a sudden--how odd that the man would ask her that--but now, it felt like she could snooze and not wake up for hours.

---------------

"That's pathetic!!" shrieked Yuffie in between her fits of laughter. "You got hit with a sleeping-dart while some stranger was hittin' on you?"

"Yeah, real funny," spat Elena angrily. "Well, it's no less humiliating than what you went through. I swear, Yuffie, I thought that a ninja was supposed to be a little more careful."

"I WAS careful!" she screamed. "I just… I just… accidentally went into the wrong room! I couldn't see, for Kami's sake!"

"Yeah, ahuh… it sounds like you were completely in control."

"SHUT UP! At least I didn't get snagged in by some strange guy off the street! And I would have known about the sleeping dart! A Shinobi's ears are extremely sharp!"

"So's your head," blurted Elena. Yuffie screamed, and if her restraints had not been so tight, she would have freed herself from the face of Da-Chao by her rage alone. But Don Corneo and his men had been meticulous and careful, and bound the two "treasures" to the statue with unprecedented security. Only the Don would be able to let them go, and from the way he smiled as the two ladies were presented to him, it didn't look like they would be released anytime soon.

Yuffie calmed down a few hot minutes later, so much so that she let out a weary sigh and even a moan. Elena found herself to be completely annoyed by both the girl next to her and the situation they were in currently, but she was not completely heartless. She let Yuffie pout and moan for another minute or so, and called out to her not as an annoyance, but as a fellow trapped comrade.

"Hey, listen… We're both stuck up here, and fighting isn't going to get us down. At least I don't think it will. There's little chance of us getting out of this bind by ourselves--neither of us has that power--but I think if we put our heads together, we can make some sort of break for it once we're freed." A pause.

"How do ya figure?"

"Well, Corneo's bound to come around here eventually," reasoned the blonde. "He may be a pervert, but he wouldn't leave us here forever. When he comes back, he'll chose one of us as his bride, and that'll be our chance to escape."

"Ugh, disgusting!!" snarled Yuffie, making a hideous face. "That's sick!! How do you know that?"

"Our mission was to locate the Don, once our vacation was over," she replied. "Therefore, we were given as much information on him as possible. I learned that he had been in the habit of choosing a bride while still in the Sector 8 slums, and old dogs like him never learn new tricks. He's going to free one of us, so when he does, then the one he chooses will be able to free the other." Yuffie stared at Elena in disbelief first, then in mistrust.

"Oh, yeah, sure. If he chooses you, then you'll just leave me here, and if he chooses me, then I might just run off!"

"Then we're just going to have to trust each other if that's the case," said Elena calmly. "But I doubt it will come to that. This man is sick, and he treats women like cattle. I'll stake my next paycheck that he ends up taking us both: one to be his bride and the other for when he needs a little extra 'help' around the house."

"Vomit!!" groaned Yuffie in disgust. "That's horrible! Jeez! I wouldn't give that fate to my worst enemy!!"

"Nor would I," agreed Elena. "So that's why we're helping each other out, at least until Don Corneo is… well, shall we say, 'put away'." Yuffie nodded her head, and an odd alliance was formed that very hour.

"So what's the plan?" she asked. "How do we escape once he frees us? And what do we do if he only chooses one?"

"Well, the Don can't be a tough fighter," pointed Elena. "I'm sure either one of us could take him down if he chose us. Disable the Don, then find out how he freed us. Do that, let the other girl go, and we both go our separate ways."

"Okay, sounds good. And I guess if he picks us both, we take him together."

"Exactly." Elena smiled, and Yuffie shared the smile. She did not realize it at that time, but she and Elena really had quite a bit in common. They both worked hard for their passion, they were both exceptionally cunning and manipulative, both were quite pretty (of course), neither one was completely reliable, and both worked on the shady side of businesses. They would make a great pair, if ever they got their act together.

It turned out that their plans were not needed. The people that Yuffie had robbed came to save her--apparently, for the sole purpose of repossessing their Materia--and surprisingly, the Turks teamed up with them. It was a bizarre battle between the two forces and the Don, but in the end, it was no surprise who won. The Turks accomplished their "mission" for the day and disposed of Don Corneo for good, and Yuffie was forced to eat many slices of humble pie as she returned everybody's Materia. She was always good at sneaking her way out of tight situations, and she was sure that once more important things popped up, everyone's anger at her would blow over.

And so, a brief alliance between two unusual women ended--

Or did it?

----------

With a swimming suit on and sunglasses over her eyes, Yuffie took a big happy sigh as she rested on the beaches of Wutai. Resort towns like that were prime areas to tan and rest and swim, and since Yuffie had gotten a little pale, she figured it would be best to catch some rays. For the most part, she was alone on the beach, as everyone else took some time off in the town. Yuffie would sometimes see one of her allies stroll down the sandy shores (she wasn't sure if she could call them "friends" yet), but other than that, she was left to be by herself.

A shadow blocked her view of the sun, and as Yuffie removed her shaded glasses to see the obstruction, her relaxed face withered up into one of disdain and disinterest.

"Oh. It's you. Well, what do you want?"

"A tan, like you," replied Elena. As if it was the most ordinary thing to do, the older woman set up a lawn chair next to Yuffie's, and laid down on it to get said tan. Yuffie sat up and stared as Elena plucked out a pocket book, and nearly balked at the woman's cheek.

"…What?"

"Uh, why are you sitting right next to me?" Elena didn't move a muscle, except to turn a page in her book.

"I can't sit here?"

"Uh, well, uh, I guess you could, but why sit next to me? Our business is over! I'm part of Cloud's gang--sort of! I hear the Turks and him are enemies, or whatever!"

"They are," stated Elena casually. "But we're all on vacation today, so chill out." Yuffie frowned heavily, snorted, but decided to lay back down on her lawn chair. She had not been lying when she said that she didn't know and didn't like Elena, and for the record, she didn't want to know or like her. The feeling was mutual, and so it seemed logical that after the incident with Corneo, the two didn't have to see each other again.

"If you really want to know," said Elena suddenly, "I'd like to hang out with you. You're the only person on this beach I know, and I need a break from hanging out with Reno and Rude. Don't get the wrong idea; I just don't like being by myself."

"Oh. Well…" Yuffie considered the woman's presence, but since she honestly had nothing personal against Elena, there was no discord. "Well, okay, I guess we can hang out together or whatever." And with that, the young ninja plopped back down on her chair, sighed, and took in the rays of the sun. Elena secretly smiled, and turned another page in her book before putting it away. She rested her arms behind her head, and did the one thing that Yuffie wished she hadn't--small talk.

"So I guess you come from here, huh? I could tell--you look like a Wutai native. I guess you hate the Shinra for what they did to your country, and by rule of association, you must hate me."

"Yeah…" Elena's smirk grew, a little, and she turned her head so she was looking at the ninja.

"Well, that's all right. But at least we were both able to see past our differences and work together, despite the fact that we never had to do a thing."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean that we have to be chummy about it." Elena's smirk became a smile, and she agreed with Yuffie.

"True. But at least we were sociable for a little while."

Silence. Yuffie had no response.

And seeing that she didn't have anything to say either, Elena simply relaxed and let the sun bathe her fair skin. She revolved herself after ten minutes, and allowed her backside to be toasted slightly. The surf was a ways away--the beach was a large one, with banks that stretched out long and wide--but the sound of crashing waves was a good background noise. Few other people were there at the beach, so the two women had it all to themselves. Yuffie sighed and wished that she had brought something to read.

"I am so underappreciated," she groaned suddenly. Elena's attention was diverted, a little. "I mean, I know the others see me as a nuisance, and this strange little girl that has no use, other than bugging everyone, but they really don't know me at all. I guess it's Karma, because I don't know any of them either. I have a feeling that even before this event, what with me stealing their Materia, they didn't trust me at all."

"You stole their Materia?" asked Elena with a smile. Yuffie nodded her head.

"Yeah, while your Shinra buddies were keeping them busy. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be--I figured they'd have it guarded better--but it was a cinch. Yeah, I'm a real class-A thief, but even the best of us get caught sometimes." Elena chuckled lightly and lifted her glasses so she could get a better look at Yuffie.

"Well, Miss Kisaragi, I must say that I'm impressed. It's extremely hard to steal Materia, especially if it's worth something, and considering the size of your party, I'd have to say that you must live up to your claims."

"Yeah, that's me," sang Yuffie with a proud smile. "But… I mean… that's not why I'm underappreciated. I'm not a bad fighter, and I'm probably the fastest one there. Of course, nobody in that stupid group likes me. I don't have any friends, not even that many in Wutai, and I don't know why that is!!"

"No friends?" mimed a surprised Elena. She rolled over, sat up, and dangled her legs over her chair so she could really pay Yuffie some attention. She couldn't quite explain why she was suddenly so interested in what the ninja was saying--maybe Yuffie just needed somebody to listen, or she wanted to pour her heart out to somebody--or maybe Elena was just tired of the silence.

"Nah, not really," sighed Yuffie, but not in a way that was particularly sad. She actually sounded rather apathetic, as if she could have been better off without any comrades, or else was proud of it. "Well… I think Tifa and Aeris more or less endure me, and I guess if we were closer, I'd be friends with them. Oh, and I also like Cait Sith. He's the only one in that group that really seems to like me as a friend. We're both a couple of little traitors--he's the guy that gave Tseng the Keystone thing."

"Ah, yes…" Elena nodded her head and recalled Tseng saying something about all that. As a matter of fact, once the Turks' vacation was over, they were all ordered to report to the lost Temple of Ancients, which had much to do with the Keystone.

"So," she concluded, "you do have friends." Yuffie shrugged.

"I suppose. If you call a friend 'somebody who endures me or hangs around me voluntarily', then yeah. But most people avoid me. It's not bad--I guess they just can't trust a pretty ninja/thief girl life me." Elena offered a smirk, and gently kicked Yuffie's lawn chair.

"I can't blame them. You're an irritating, immature brat whose mouth is almost as big as her ego."

"Speak for yourself, blondie!" spat Yuffie with a chuckle. "You're a brown-nosing Prima Donna and you know it! Narcissistic little witch, too… And let's not forget how you got captured by the Don!"

"Actually, I would rather if we did," grunted Elena as she gave Yuffie's chair a harder kick. The ninja almost fell off, and she would have if her balance was worse. She countered with bitter silence, and for a very long time, there was nothing said between the girls.

Awhile later, Elena and Yuffie were interrupted by the sudden appearance of Reno and Rude, who had been searching everywhere for their coworker. They stood at a distance, Rude silent as always and Reno having a commanding presence (and knowing it).

"Elena, our vacation's over," announced Reno blandly. "Time to go. New orders from H.Q." The bikini-clad woman let out a weary sigh that sent her short yellow bangs billowing. She cursed, and told them that she would be joining them as soon as possible. The two male Turks left nonchalantly, and without Yuffie saying anything further, Elena quickly put on a shirt and some shorts and left the area.

"Hey, uh, Elena?" She turned around, and saw Yuffie watching her.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for listening to all my crap." Elena's eyes widened in surprise, as the ninja was actually smiling at her. "I know I can get boring and negative, and I complain like it's a God-given right, but I'm really glad you listened to me. Nobody else has really done that before. I just… wanted to thank you, that's all." Elena returned Yuffie's genuine smile, nodded her head, and bade the girl a quiet farewell. Seeing as how she was more or less part of Cloud's entourage, the two women would most certainly meet up again.

--------------------

With the world tumbling and her body bruised, Elena felt sick enough to throw up. She faintly recalled rolling and stumbling somewhere, and her suit had been covered with snow, and the only reason she was not rolling currently was that she had been stopped by something hard, and tall. The entire world was still spinning, even if she was not, and her equilibrium was completely out of whack as she tried to determine sky from ground.

"Hey! You all right? That was a pretty wild ride!" Elena heard a voice giggling out at her, and though she wanted to slug whoever was talking, she couldn't see straight. She opened her eyes and found a sickening sky, and the whirling ground, and several familiar young girls grinning down at her. They wobbled and shook, but the longer Elena took to gather her senses, the more stable things seemed. She stopped seeing double, and the world stopped moving just long enough for her to see who had been annoying enough to pay her that visit.

Yuffie. Only Yuffie.

"Oh, it's you," groaned Elena wearily. "What are… you… doing here?"

"Oh, it's a long story," sighed the ninja. "But hey, you had a really nasty fall! What, did you decide to go sledding and forget the sled?"

"Shut… up…" moaned Elena as she tried to stand, but the ground still shook underneath her. Yuffie let out a yelp and supported the woman before she had a chance to fall into the snow, and with a reverse lurch, she plopped up against the tree she had smacked into. Oh, that's right. That horrible man avoided my punch. I must have tripped and fell all this way!

"Ugh, my head…"

"Yeah, no wonder," agreed Yuffie, who appeared to be genuinely concerned (then again, Elena was still dizzy). "Seriously, though, what happened?"

"I tried to kill Cloud," spat Elena bitterly. Yuffie let out a little chuckle.

"Oh, I see. That suddenly explains everything. Yeah, I really don't blame you, though--HEY!!" For some odd reason, Yuffie's girlish voice became blurred and muted, and a gust of air flew past Elena as she fainted on the ground. She felt the snow sink into her face, and some shaking sensation--most likely the ninja robbing her--but other than that, she was out.

-----

Elena came to half an hour later, inside the famous Icicle Inn. She was in a bed, but quickly released herself from her prison of blankets once awareness came back to her. She shook herself to her senses, took a deep breath, and discovered that other than a very small queasy feeling, her balance and perception had returned. Her hunger was back with a vengeance as well, and since Yuffie was nowhere to be found--whether or not that was a good thing remained debatable--Elena left the room in search of the lobby.

She was in the northern regions of the world with the rest of the heads of Shinra, minus her esteemed leader. Tseng had been discovered in the jungles surrounding the vanished Temple of Ancients, with a critical wound threatening his life. Elena didn't know whether he was still alive or not, but seeing as how Cloud was usually involved in those sorts of things, she had used her sojourn to the Icicle town to exact some revenge.

Yes, it was all coming back to her, as she descended down into the lobby. She remembered it all. Cloud was probably long gone by that point (with Yuffie and most of Shinra with him), but the Turks would have remained until further orders came. Elena wanted to make her meal brief just in case, and asked for some thick soup and a roll to whet her appetite. No sooner had she gotten it did her uninvited guest reappear.

"Hey, you're looking better!" called Yuffie. Elena turned around, scowled once, and retrieved her meal. She carefully took it to a table and began eating; Yuffie, rude as ever, joined her without a sound.

"Go away."

"You're welcome."

"Shut up."

"Up yours!!" A pause. The soup was good and hot; the girls were just hot-headed.

"Thanks… for bringing me here… but somebody would have done it anyway."

"My displeasure. May I please join you?"

"No… I would really rather be alone."

"Why's that?" Elena stopped eating, looked Yuffie square in the eye, and decided to give the girl some good old-fashioned reasoning, instead of the hateful words and extreme mistrust they usually harbored for each other.

"On an impersonal level, I'm in a bit of a hurry. I assume that since you're still here, Cloud and his friends have remained, but Shinra will have moved on for the Promised Land no matter what. I'm a part of their organization, ergo, I need to eat quickly. I don't want any distractions."

"Ooooooh, that's not what I heard," sang Yuffie darkly. Elena looked up from her meal and saw that the ninja was in a very serious mood. Her inquiring face pressed the thief onward. "No, no-no. I was snooping around in disguise, and I head that Shinra's going to leave a small garrison of troops behind. They're gonna need somebody to supervise them, so you have a good chance of staying behind."

"How did you--"

"I would bring shame to the Shinobi warriors if I could not do something as simple as that!" exclaimed Yuffie proudly. Her call gathered the attention of many more people in the lobby, some who stared longer than others. Elena made a nasty face and quietly ate her soup.

"Whatever. I don't see the point in them doing that, unless there's something of use in this town or else there's been some violence. I guess with the appearance of Avalanche, it's to be expected. Hey, you wouldn't know who they picked to supervise these soldiers, would you?" Yuffie gave Elena a silent smile, and looked directly into the older woman's blue eyes. The Turk picked up on the unsaid message very quickly.

"Me? Well then, I guess I can just take my time, can't I?"

"Yeah, and I can hang out with you while Tifa does some shopping. Cloud's learning how to snowboard from some kid--don't ask--so I might be here awhile." Yuffie was smiling as if she was looking forward to it all, but Elena was far from happy. She drained half her bowl in silence, watching as Yuffie pulled out some magazines and comics she had attained. The girl seemed content to occupy herself with reading, but Elena wanted a few questions answered.

"Hey, wait a second!" she snapped, jabbing at the air with her spoon. "Why do you wanna hang out with me anyway? I thought you detested me! Isn't that what you said in Wutai??"

"Well, yeah, and I still do." A confusing pause forced Elena to make a confused face. "But I'm also grateful for you listening to me while I was ranting. I guess I sounded pathetic, but at least you didn't blow me off like so many other people. And…… well… I kinda need an older woman to hang out with now…"

"Why's that?" asked a suspicious blonde. Yuffie hung her head sadly, perhaps one of the few rare times she ever did so. She was usually upbeat, angry, or conniving, but sadness and gravity were foreign.

"A good friend of mine… I mean, a good person who endured me, and liked me, and didn't get very mad when I stole her Materia……… A very good, good person was… killed recently… She was six years older than I am, kind of like a role model, and there's been a void in everyone's hearts ever since. ……I guess you can tell that I'm kinda tomboyish… well, okay, I'm very tomboyish. I never had very many female friends, and I was too young to remember my mother, so I never really had a woman to… well, you know, be a mentor to me. But this person… she was… I feel… like a mentor to me… And it's funny, because I never knew about this until…… until it was too late…"

During the duration of Yuffie's somber speech, Elena had not interrupted in the least. She could never boast about having very many manners, but she knew when somebody was pouring their heart out. Yuffie seemed eager to get everything off her chest in the company of a woman who was a detestable stranger to her, and as surprising as this was, Elena let her. There was a nobility and vulnerability in the girl's words, and they struck a small chord in the Turk's callous heart. A part of Elena wanted to reach out and comfort Yuffie--a rather small part, maybe--but most of her just continued eating soup.

"I'm sorry for your loss," murmured Elena after a long pause, though she really didn't know why. "I probably knew who this person was, unless you found another woman to travel with you. It wasn't Tifa, since you said she was going shopping, so it must have been…" Yuffie quietly nodded her head to affirm Elena's unspoken guess, and although the Turk didn't exactly like the dead woman in question, she was not heartless enough to say anything hurtful. Yuffie was just too vulnerable to insult. It would only be fair to mock her at her strongest, when she could fight back.

We may be Turks, but even we have our codes of honor.

"It's okay," said the ninja after another long pause. "I'd like to think that she didn't die in vain, and a part of me really encourages this thought. I miss her, though, and I really feel like we could have been good friends, her and I…" Elena didn't have anything to say after that moment, and finished her soup. She left the bowl on the counter, and quietly rose so she could assume her position as supervisor over the troops that would be stationed in the town.

"I'm gonna leave now, for my post, but are you gonna be okay?"

"Are you concerned for me?" asked Yuffie, though her face was still downcast. Elena shrugged, but didn't have the heart to sink the girl any lower.

"I still think you're an annoying, immature, big-mouthed little brat, but I'm not heartless. You try to take care of yourself, Yuffie, and when I see you again, I hope you're strong enough to fight. We are enemies now, remember?"

"Yeah…" Elena thought that she could spy a little smile beginning to form on the thief's lips, but since she was leaving the inn, it was hard to tell. Yuffie did smile once Elena left, and waved an unseen farewell.

Thank you for being there for me when I really needed it… on both accounts. But I guess, after what I did for you, it's the least you could do. After all, what are… "friends" for?

--------------------

It was a dark place, but oh! there were fireworks above! Meteor was a-falling, the entire world was in chaos, and Midgar was in mortal danger. As anarchy reigned supreme following the destruction of its young president, heads of power scurried for the highest position like sharks to a kill. They cared little of their boss; it was either kill or be killed in the world of Shinra, and though Rufus had not gone down without a tremendous fight--he took WEAPON with him--his death was barely even mentioned, let alone mourned.

Heidegger, Scarlet, and Hojo all seemed to have their individual agendas and goals up above, but Elena, Reno, and Rude had a longstanding score to settle with a certain spikey-headed jerk and his assembly of "heroes". Like the rats they were, they crawled into Midgar through the sewers, intent on destroying it from the inside out, or so it appeared. The world was coming to a slow end, but they did not seem to care--and neither did the Turks. They had a job to do as well--"The Pride of the Turks", they called it--and even if all of Midgar should crash down on them, they would die as they lived, fighting to the bitter and glorious end.

However, said bitter and glorious ending was completely ruined as two old "friends" saw each other.

"Oh, hey Elena!" shouted Yuffie, waving at the older blonde. Elena smirked and crossed her arms, but all the discord and hatred in the world couldn't weaken her happiness over seeing the ninja there. Elena couldn't explain the welling in her stomach. It was almost as if she was glad that Yuffie had made it there, and that the peppy young woman was missed. God forbid? Or was it simply the truth, and Elena had slowly accepted Yuffie as a good person, and not some annoyance?

"It's your girlfriend," noted Reno rudely. Elena's smirk turned into a scowl.

"I don't have a girlfriend, idiot. She's just some stupid young punk that kept on following me around in Wutai. I can't help it if all the little snot-nosed morons in the world look up to me or something!"

"Hey, Narcissistic freak! Yeah, you! I'm TALKIN' to you, Elena!"

"She knows your name," muttered Reno slyly. He gave his female comrade a laugh, and spat out a cigarette. "So, what's the deal? You makin' friends with the enemy?"

"She's not my friend," muttered Elena bitterly, though her welling stomach told her otherwise. Yuffie growled out and said a nasty word, one that would've made Cid proud, but deep down inside, Elena knew that the girl didn't mean it. She swiped the hair from her forehead and shoved her way past the two men, and challenged all of Cloud's friends at once.

"You all will finally get what's coming to you!" she shouted. However, before Reno and Rude advanced, Elena held them back, and whispered something unimaginable: "Oh, leave the kid alone. She's cool."

"Say what?"

"Just do it, Rude," sighed Elena. "She's not worth our trouble. She's just some loser from Wutai. It's Cloud we're after anyway, right?"

"…Well, yeah…"

"So we don't need to kill her. She's more on our side than she is on his, so just… don't bother her, okay?"

"Fine…" The bald man sighed, loaded a gun, and prepared to fight Cloud's friends, minus Yuffie. Elena smiled and joined her comrades, and across the brief distance, past the confused looks of the warriors before them, she could see the gentle smile that was on Yuffie's mouth.

Thanks… You know, you're not so bad.

No problem. We annoying Prima Donnas have to look out for each other.

Gotcha. But don't you dare go easy on anyone else!

I won't. Stay alive, Yuffie. Believe it or not, I've actually grown rather fond of you. I'll kill you later, of course, when we're just by ourselves…

Oh, of course! I'd never have it any other way!

-----

"Well, they sure taught us a lesson…" Wounded physically and egotistically, Reno and Rude limped away from the battle, and limped all the way out of Midgar. Suddenly, the capitol of Shinra, Incorporated had become rather unworthy of their time and skills. To Hell with it, considered the rogues. If they want it so badly, let them fight their own fights! We don't need to waste our talents with these losers. Just move on from one loyalty to the other… from the weak organization into the strong…

"Don't be long," said Reno as he left Elena behind. She turned around and nodded her head, then looked back at Yuffie. Everyone else had scattered away, leaving the two unlikely companions to themselves. Cloud, Tifa, Cid, Barrett, and everyone else had given Yuffie a very confused look as they ran off, but seeing as how they really didn't want an explanation, they just left her by herself (again).

"So what're you and your buddies gonna do now?" asked Yuffie as she and Elena sat down. The area of the sewers they were in was dry, though a bit of hero blood and Turk blood was scattered across the metallic ground. Elena sat uncomfortably, but didn't think she'd be there long enough to complain.

"Well, now that Shinra's going down the tubes, I figure we can be drifters and mercenaries until we all find a good job--or until the world ends. Whatever happens, happens, but we're going to be true to ourselves no matter what. You may think the Turks are all villains, Yuffie, but we each have a code of honor that we follow."

"Pretty shallow code," regarded the ninja. "I hear that Reno blew up one of the Sectors in Midgar, and Rude nearly hijacked the Shinra Rocket that Cid was using. Tseng went to use the Temple of the Ancients, and you…" She laughed briefly, but the smile was not insulting. "Well, you were just a great big pain in the butt."

"But we do have honor behind all the dark doings," the blonde said in her defense. "Even the most depraved member of our gang had morals and honor. We'll always remain true to ourselves, even if the world is about to die. Nobody can deny us that, and besides, we're all too stubborn to do otherwise."

"Ya got that right," agreed Yuffie. The two women shared a brittle smile, and stood up to go down their individual roads in life. Yuffie would follow her allies into Midgar, and later, the North Crater, and Elena would wander the world in search of her destiny and her self. Odds were that the two would never meet again, but fate and coincidence were unusual concepts. Only time would tell.

"Well, I guess this is it," sighed Elena. She walked over to Yuffie and extended her hand, and the ninja did the same. "I'm gonna miss you, you stupid overdramatic manipulative nuisance."

"And I'm gonna miss you, ya ugly whorish scum-bucket!" The women smiled, and though it seemed that on the surface they detested each other, in truth, they were beginning to feel like friends. Elena drew Yuffie in for a brief hug, and slapped the girl gently as they shared a final farewell. The ninja had the last laugh, however, and kept on having that last laugh as she caught up with her friends with Elena's Minerva Band in tow.

One year passed.

Yuffie Kisaragi, coming closer to her eighteenth birthday than most people were aware of, sighed forlornly as she perched herself on a cape. She could overlook the large Wutai beach from there, and the setting sun in the western distance, and just behind her, there was Godo's pagoda, and a lifestyle that was slowly reviving itself up from its former slough of stagnancy. But Yuffie's thoughts were in the distance, as she squatted on the outlet of land and drew images on the crumbly dirt.

"What a strange year it's been…" she murmured to herself. Her voice had a more womanish quality to it, though she was still an official tomboy. Her body had matured as well, a little, but everything else was still caught up in her early teenage years--everything, that is, except for one person who was always in Yuffie's thoughts.

"Elena…… I wonder where you are now, and what you are doing… I suppose… you're up to no good, as I am… You know, I never thought I'd say this, but I kinda miss having you around. I don't have anybody to talk to, and nobody will listen to me blab on about everything. Darn! You sick pig…! How dare you do this to me…!" She stood up, defiant against the sky and the distant waves, and stuck a middle finger in the sky, hopefully aimed at Elena. Yet, all the brashness in the world couldn't hide her inner feelings.

"…It was fun while it lasted, blondie. Wherever you are, whatever you're doing, I hope you're thinking of me, and wishing that we could scrap it up together, one last time, like we did so very long ago……"

I miss you, my friend.

The End