Authors Notes: *sighs* sorry this took so long to get out! I was preoccupied *^__^* Neways this was meant to be much longer (6 pages at the least) but I just didn't feel like it…I'm lazy, I know. Well…enjoy (those of you who are actually reading this) and as always read and review!

Disclaimer: I do not own Vincent or Lucrecia but I DO own the new character that appears in this chapter *^__^*

.::Wildflower Chapter 2: Birthday Surprise::.

A pair of menacing crimson eyes peeked out from underneath the evergreen coverlet, scowling at the trusty clock with a fathomless hatred. Vincent slung his metallic arm up onto the oaken nightstand, crushing the nefarious alarm in one clean swipe. It was quick and easy, but it became expensive after awhile, especially for one who was currently unemployed.

"Damn alarms…" he growled, throwing back the sheets to reveal he had slept in yesterday's clothes.

Standing up, he thought he caught the scent of roses wafting sweetly through the morning air.

Flowers…caught in a wildfire of obsession; burning their innocence…watch them wither as the sun sets.

Breaking his private retrospect on last night's dream, he shuffled over to his closet on the far side of the room and reached in, pulling out a plain black blouse and a matching pair of cotton pants.

The sun reclines…reminds me

Grim recollections of a familiar face…

Lucrecia

Lucrecia

Lucrecia…

I see him in your eyes…

Reminds me of what I never tried

Watched you wither

Watched you burn

Watched you scream…

I see hell in your eyes…

Reminds me what to do…before I'm dead

"STOP!!" Vincent clutched his head and gritted his teeth, desperately trying to keep the voices at bay from his vantage point within his tortured mind.

That's where he could feel them, the ghosts of his past. That's where he could feel them slide their frozen hands up his spine and clutch his heart, tearing it to shreds in their eternal moment of spite.

That's where Lucrecia is confined, locked away forever in her own secret place where she can watch and smile. She is the Cheshire cat tormenting him, teasing his outstretched hands with the remnant touch of sugar coated lips, yet remaining forever out of reach.

Like a silver bird

Scratching her bloodied claws against his golden cage.

There was a short rap on the door, and the madness stopped, briefly at least. Vincent looked up, like a beast glowering at the disruption of his dinner before lazily returning his attention to the meal.

Another knock, more forceful this time, snatching Vincent away from his blood-laced reverie and compelling him to answer the door.

"Coming!" he yelled, rubbing his temples; slowly putting his thoughts back together as he jogged out of his room to the front door by the kitchen. Throwing it open, he saw a short portly man holding a package.

"Mr. Valentine?" the man eyed Vincent, quirking an eyebrow at his disheveled appearance.

"Yes?"

"Um--package for you sir." The stranger thrust a small clipboard under his nose and held out a thoroughly chewed pen for him to sign with. After Vincent scribbled his signature on the thin slip of paper, the man smiled.

"Thank you and have a nice…"Vincent grabbed his package and shut the door loudly before he could finish his sentence, if anything, this was not a 'nice day', nor was it likely to become one.

Studying the unexpected parcel, he made his way into the living room and sat down on the couch, laying the white box on the coffee table before him, right next to his gun. He eyed its cold steel chamber a moment before reaching past it for a red pocketknife.

I've killed a million petty souls

But I couldn't kill you

Oh no--not you…

Your memory is time forsaken.

He noticed a card on the bottom of the package, barely though; it was the same color as the box, and with his name being the only distinguishing mark. Carefully he slit the tape, taking the white envelope after it was released. There was a card inside:

Happy 29'Th Birthday Vincent!

From:

Your friends from Avalanche

"Great…they remembered." He thought sarcastically, quickly scanning the card before closing it, setting it beside him and picking up his present.

Inside, among the small Styrofoam peanuts, there was a small toy. The kind you turn upside-down and a long line of multicoloured balls twists it's way down a spiral. It was a pointless plaything. Obviously Cloud and the others were at a loss as what to get him and decided he needed something to stare at in his free time.

"A book would have been nice." He muttered, sifting through the peanuts to see if there was anything else worth looking for; there wasn't.

With a loud 'harrumph' he stood up, laid the opened package on the kitchen counter, along with the toy, and grabbed his black trench coat from the back of a chair as he walked out of his apartment, down the stairs and out the double paned Plexiglas front doors.

Vincent cringed as the wind hit and wrapped his coat tighter as he stepped out of the building, closing the door behind him with his free hand.

Outside it was cold, not necessarily a gut wrenching cold, merely unpleasant. To Vincent, this was perfect weather to take a walk in the park that lay directly across the street from his apartment complex, as opposed to the majority of people in the area who preferred to stay indoors on days like this, making it all the better for the antisocial man.

Without so much as a glance he started to cross the street, not exactly caring if a bus hit him dead on.

"Beside the fact that there would be mind-splitting pain, maybe it would be better for me then," he thought as he passed the centerline.

Vincent…

His head snapped up at the mention of his name, wide crimson eyes scanning the area warily, he knew that voice, and he knew it well.

Vincent…

Let's run…

Then he saw her, standing a few yards away from him, Lucrecia. She was how she always used to be, young, beautiful, with her hair tied up in a messy pony tail that fell lazily around her shoulders, honey brown contrasting with the stark white of her lab coat. Only this time there was something different about her, instead of the happy grin that he remembered, Vincent saw a longing, yet accepting look plastered to her face.

She crooked her finger at him, motioning him to follow, and he obeyed, unaware of the cars that veered around him. Although faintly he thought he heard someone shout.

"What the HELL is he doing!!! I nearly hit the dumb bastard!"

A dumb bastard?

Heh heh heh…yeah…that's right. I'm just a dumb bastard. I let you go remember?

Vincent…

Wake up!

"Wake up you fool!!" a slap hit him hard against his cheek, forcing his head to the side. "What do you think you're doin' standing in the middle of the street like that!? You retarded or something!?"

Vincent looked up and saw, Lucrecia? No, this woman was different, with her purple dyed, shorn hair moussed up in spikes. And yet, there was something familiar locked deep within her features that stirred Vincent's soul.

"Lucrecia…" he muttered. The woman looked at him in pure shock.

"How do you know that name?" she asked suspiciously, taking a step back to view Vincent in his entirety.

"N--no…I should be going" he turned to walk away, but the strange woman caught him by his arm and pulled him back.

"No, I think not. We need to talk mister--Mister who?." The woman dragged the dazed Vincent into a nearby cherry red midget* and opened the door for him to get in.

"Vincent."

"Okay then Vincent, hop in the car, I can take you over to the shop. We can talk about this there."

She smiled as the man reluctantly got in the car, accidentally stepping on a box of stale donuts on the way in.

"Ah--don't worry bout those." She said, laughing wryly as she got in the driver's side and turned the key in the ignition. The antique car sputtered a moment, but eventually it started and they sped down the busy road in the direction of the old, dilapidated Shin-Ra headquarters.

*The midget is a British car. It is very small, but they are kinda cute so I included one *^__^*