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Empress & Concubine, Part II	By : tinkerheck Category: Final Fantasy VII > Het - Male/Female Views: 1723 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VII from the Final Fantasy Universe, or any of its forms or related media. I do not own these characters. I spent money to learn about this series, and I make no money in borrowing it.

Chapter List
- 3
- 4
++++++++ Please see disclaimer & story notes in chapter one ++++++++
My thanks to mihoyonagi, especially because she tried really hard to give me something that would work for the materia scene in this chapter. I have a feeling that if you played the game, what I’ve done here maybe isn’t going to sit well with you. It’s not correct or perfectly accurate to canon, but, I haven’t played the game, so that’s how it goes.
Fiction, bending rules, using it my way, no flames please, all that, thanks.
I fly beta-less. Please forgive the typos.

+

Empress & Concubine II
Chapter Four

Surprises

+
“Oil excavation has bridged the gap between Mako use and so-called ‘greener’ alternatives, answering Gaia’s ever-present need for energy.
“Our oil comes from all over the Planet, such as from the newly-formed Shinshuro Oil Company, with the bulk of Gaia’s oil-based energy now coming from Wallace & Highwind Oil.”
“Hey! That was Barret and Cid for a sec – did you see, Cloud?”
Tifa watched, very amused, as Rufus Shinra glided effortlessly from one end of the bar’s television screen to the other, looking much like a highly seasoned game show host. He was framed by a backdrop of cheesy file footage – which in fact had featured Barret and Cid for a few moments, trying their best to look like respectable businessmen.
“How much do you think Rufus Shinra pays the networks when he does this crap? I hate informercials…” Cloud groused.
The retired swordsman sat on the edge of a booth seat, looking relaxed with his legs crossed. His head was slightly hunched down to get eye-to-eye with their second-born daughter, Ariel. She was turning out to be even more of a handful than Elise, and she squirmed in her highchair as Cloud tried to get her to eat some mashed peas.
“C’mon baby girl. Please?” he muttered pathetically.
“Are those canned peas?” Tifa never took her eyes off the TV screen as she spoke. She opened a small refrigerator and took out a sealed container. “Try these instead,” she said, tossing it over her shoulder to Cloud with every confidence that he’d catch it. “Those were delivered special from her Auntie Yuffie. I mashed ‘em fresh this morning. Ariel’s already got better taste than the rest of us, so she’s never gonna eat that canned crap.”
Cloud opened the container and gingerly took a sniff, eyebrows raising. “Wow. What a difference… I want to eat these.”
“Feed your daughter, Cloud.” Tifa grabbed the remote and turned up the volume on the television.
“However, oil-based energies still require major sacrifices from the Planet… sacrifices that it can no longer afford.
“Better solutions are now within our grasp! The Wutai nation helps supply twenty-three percent of the Planet’s fuel through crops used for biofuel production, and because of this, our neighbors to the West have led the mission for Gaia-friendly energy.
“While the Wutai crops have provided, and will continue to provide, one step towards solving Gaia’s energy troubles, the question was raised – why waste such rich and valuable soils on plants that don’t need it?
“Switchgrass, the plant that is used for Shinra Biofuel, is practically a weed, and it doesn’t require great soil to grow. Seeing another opportunity to help the Planet, the Shinra Company recently began working closely with Empress Kisaragi and W&H Oil to help other nations extend Gaia’s biofuel production to lands outside of Wutai – where the soil is not so great, but the space to grow is plentiful. The perfect combination for Switchgrass.
“Which brings us to the main topic of this message – what is the best use of Wutai’s unique, rich soil?
“The answer – Food! Did you know that over eighty percent of Gaia’s foodstuffs now come from Wutai?”
Rufus moved to a map of Wutai, overlaid with clips of ranches and farms. Friendly, happy people smiled and waved at the camera, laden with sweat and hard at work.
“In less than one year – just one single turn of Gaia’a seasons – Wutai has established itself as the agricultural center of the Planet, with her hard-working farmers and ranchers supplying every major city outside of Wutai continent with meat, fish, dairy, grains, vegtables, fruit… and liquor! Naturally, this includes Gaia’s famous resort town the Gold Saucer, where the graciousness of Empress Kisaragi Yuffie and Wutai’s citizens has transformed…”
Cloud laughed for a few seconds while Rufus Shinra prattled on with praises for Yuffie and all things Wutai. He was still one who rarely smiled, and when Ariel caught sight of her father’s unguarded face she stopped fidgeting and looked at him, gurgling happily with mashed peas decorating her precious face.
“Oh man. Yuffie’s gotta be cringing, all that personal attention.”
“I know, right? It’s so bizarre!” Tifa laughed, wiping a tear away.
Cloud gazed at the last of the Wutai peas, half-tempted to eat it himself, but he resisted and hovered the bright green spoonful of deliciousness in front of Ariel’s mouth. The baby leaned forward with eager eyes and swallowed it greedily.
“That’s my girl,” he said, standing up and removing Ariel from the high chair. “Rufus totally worships the fertile Gaia Yuffie walks on.”
“I bet Reeve directed that little gem.”
“Hell, I bet he wrote it.” He kissed Ariel’s forehead and turned to Tifa. “Can you clean this, please?” he begged, holding the little girl out towards his wife.
+
“Empress, we are just thinking of the future. That is all.”
“Okay, okay, I get that. But I’m only twenty-four!”
“…Soon to be twenty-five.”
That came from Chekov. Yuffie turned and glared at her. “There’s still a lot of time.”
The council suddenly decided to bring up children again – more specifically an heir to Wutai’s throne – and Yuffie was getting antsy trying not to care. She was glad Vincent wasn’t present, because he would have been thoroughly uncomfortable.
“If not now, when?” One of the newer council members, a young woman from a ranching family, added her two gil quietly. “You are fortunate to have a happy marriage. You and your husband, the Prince, are obviously quite fond of each other – and I doubt I need to point out to anyone that your children would be beautiful. So why wait any longer?”
Vincent was not there, but unfortunately Hiroyuki had accompanied her to council in his stead, and Yuffie could practically feel him bristling behind her.
She sighed. “Like I said, I get it. And I’m… we’re going to make a buncha babies, okay? But we’ll decide when, and that time is not right now, okay? Can you all please just lay off?”
Father Oleg had volunteered to fill a council seat as well after the split. He noticed Yuffie’s stress during the meeting, which did not make him happy. He came up to her afterwards and suggested they take some tea together in the library and have a private chat.
“Now, you know you can come to me for anything, Empress. Not just advice on matters of religion or law.”
Yuffie eyed him as she picked up a teacup. “Umm… You wanna talk about sex, Father?”
“Yuffie Kisaragi.” He tried to sound stern and not to laugh, which didn’t work. “Yes, if need be. Just not in any sort of… detail. But if something upsets you, I am, of course, concerned.”
She nodded. “I know. I’m sorry for teasing. I’m just a bit…”
“Freaked out?” he offered, and she laughed. “Is this about Vincent? Because I sent for him to join us, so, we could wait.”
“Um… yeah, it’s about him a little bit. He really wants kids, you know. But he’s still worried about them comin’ out looking too much like him and not enough like Hiro. Red eyes, super tall, all that.”
“And are you?”
“Nope. I don’t give a fuck. Concubines have often become consorts, so that’s well enough accepted. And even if Vince isn’t Wutai… with the split and all…” she faded off, looking at the fire for a moment. Oleg patted her hand, and she smiled at him. “Sorry. I’m better, really… but the whole thing is still a bit fresh.”
He sat up, scrutinizing her mood as he’d often done when she was still just a child. “You feel that since the split, breaking an old law such as having only a pure Wutai bloodline on the throne will be seen as, ah… not a ‘big deal’, as you say?”
“I hope for that, at least. But what I really want is to overturn that law.”
He smiled. “I think you are right about that, child. The only thing that concerns me is the public’s perception of you and Hiroyuki. At present, they think you are happily married. That you are living together as husband and wife. So, if Vincent were to suddenly be revealed as your consort… that might be a bit hard to explain.”
She bit the inside of her lip. “I’d come clean about it right away if I needed to. To the Planet, even.”
“I know you would. But it may not make some Wutai happy, learning that you deceived them.”
“I only lied to save myself from having to marry Shinshuro.”
Oleg sighed. “And they’d see that, and in turn see through to reason - eventually. But, it will be difficult at first.”
Yuffie nodded, sighing deeply, and didn’t notice as Vincent entered the library. “Well, we’ll just have to cross that bridge when we get to it. Cuz… we’re gonna get to it, you know.”
“What bridge is this, if I may ask?”
Yuffie and Oleg both turned to look at him as he came closer and poured himself a cup of tea.
“That’d be the bridge where you knock me up, sweetie.”
The cup stopped an inch from Vincent’s mouth, and he stared at her before answering.
“To our silver-tongued Empress,” he said, bowing his head and raising his cup to her before taking a sip. She snickered as Oleg shook his head, laughing. Vincent continued. “I take it the council is back to pressuring you to become pregnant?”
“Yep.”
He sat down, sighing. “You know my concerns on that.”
“Yeah, and I know you want a kid, too, Vinnie.”
He nodded. Taking a deep breath, he said, “Then we’ll have to send an invitation to Reeve to come to Wutai.”
Yuffie smiled, crossing her arms. “Golly. That was easy.”
Vincent set his cup down. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’ve learned to stop dragging my feet as of late.”
“How delightful! I adore babies. But, what do you need Mr. Tuesti for?” Oleg asked, confused.
“He needs to remove Yuffie’s Shinra birth control device, so that I can… knock her up.”
+
“Cold storage? Not cryogenic?”
“Yes, and anti-static as well, but only because there are some sensitive microchips in it, on top of the formula.”
Nadja frowned. “I’m not sure we have what we need to do that, Mr. Tuesti.”
“Just Reeve, if you please, and I’ve not come empty-handed.” He nodded at his WRO assistant, who left with a palace ninja and headed back to the helicopter. “Dave there will bring you a rather expensive piece of equipment that Rufus is donating to your facility. And I am sure, as there is room in it for much more than just the Empress’ device, some of Wutai’s female citizenry may want to take advantage of this technology as well.”
Nadja balked. While she loved the idea, she knew perfectly well that neither she nor her facility was up to the task. “Well, that’s a generous offer and all, but I don’t have the lab equipment, or the computer know-how to make these–”
“Oh, not to worry. We can make a deal, same as always. You send us the blood and tissue samples, we create the devices. Sooner or later Rufus will come up with something beneficial that Wutai can do in exchange… Yuffie?”
“Oh – yeah! Sounds great to me. It’s one step closer to abolishing the purity test, right, Nadja?”
The nurse nodded, sighing. “I’m having trouble keeping up with all this, but yes… this is truly kind of you, Reeve.”
“Not at all. And don’t worry, please. Technology such as this is useless unless people share it.”
Reeve proceeded to show Nadja the task of removing the device under Yuffie’s arm and adjusting it for dormancy, and before anyone could blink, the Empress was sporting a small, moogle-printed bandage and was suddenly faced with her own fertility.
The nerdy intellectuals in the room moved away from Yuffie and Vincent as they took the device over to a workbench and continued chattering about microchips and blood work and delivery schedules. Now alone, Empress and bodyguard were quietly staring at each other - and trying very hard not to give anything away as they were, technically, still in a public place.
Their faces bore a mixture of fear and excitement, and their minds were racing with thoughts of the future… and the potential it now held.
Yuffie was leaning back on an exam table with her arm still resting over her head, looking relaxed and happy. “Changing diapers,” she finally whispered. She wrinkled her nose, and Vincent turned to face her, narrowing his eyes at her playfully.
“First words,” he added, taking one step closer to her.
“Tantrums.” Despite her choice of words, Yuffie’s face was filled with longing, and whether it was for him or this as-of-yet imaginary child, she couldn’t tell.
“Watching her grow into a beauty, like her mother.” Vincent gave her a very small smile, and had to force his hands to remain at his sides.
“Dealing with his colic at three in the morning,” she quipped, smirking, and sat up to close the distance between them just a bit more.
“Good or bad, I look forward to all of it,” he whispered, with more emotion than he’d intended to use in such a setting.
She smiled at him, and didn’t even care who saw it.
+
Reeve wasn’t scheduled to leave Wutai until the following morning, so Yuffie suggested a little sight-seeing before dinner.
“Does Wutai still do that?” Reeve teased. “Here I thought the new Empress was against such things.”
“Oh, well, not the plastic leviathan figurine and tacky postcard version of it, no. But we still like to entertain foreign dignitaries.” She tugged on his wrist as they entered the village, looking back at him and grinning. “C’mon, I’ve got something super cool to show you.”
Vincent and one ninja escort followed behind them, along with the new addition of a Royal Guard – which was nothing more than a young officer of the Wutai military. The young man was more than happy to be selected for this duty, as those in the military who had remained behind after the split were eager to align their forces with the ninja again, and even more eager to prove their loyalty to the Kisaragi house.
Yuffie dragged Reeve into a new building that was located not very far from the palace and still under construction. It was obvious that it was going to be a very traditional structure, similar in style to the pagoda itself. They watched from safe distances as the builders worked, with some of the older men and women stopping to bow and pay their respects to the Empress.
Yuffie was positively glowing with happiness.
“Yuffie, dear, what is this place going to be? Another banquet room?”
“No, no! We don’t need another one, the one we got is fine. This is something much better.” She grinned, bouncing on her boot heels. “I’ve commissioned a museum! A Wutai history museum, the first of it’s kind,” she added gleefully, “foreigners will be welcome to visit, and there will be no white-washing of our past!”
Reeve tilted his head, smiling. “Are you telling me that ancient Wutai secrets are going to be… publically immortalized?”
“Yep! Ain’t it cool?!”
“Well my goodness. I never thought this day would come.” He nodded, taking in the meticulous Wutai craftsmanship, which was visible even at this early stage. “But, are you sure that’s such a good idea, Yuffie? Secrecy and intrigue has always surrounded Wutai. You would be losing some of that appeal.”
“We’re already losing it, though. There have been enough outsiders, both of the interfering and the influencing sort, that have come through Wutai in just this past decade. We can’t remain cutoff anymore. Rufus is the one that pointed that out to me – and it wasn’t just because he wanted those contracts. My country as a whole has gotta move forward, and in all sorts of ways.” Yuffie paused and glanced back at Vincent, who was staring at her. His face was impassive but his eyes told her everything she needed to know.
She turned back to Reeve and smiled. Briefly she put a hand to her tummy, saying, “There’s no reason why we can’t hang on to the traditions that make us who we are, but there are some things… some laws that have to be changed, or we’re not going to survive.”
Reeve eyed her. “Well spoken, Empress,” he whispered, bowing at the waist.
She sneered at him for a moment before swatting his arm and said, “Oh, just quit it with that silly shit.”
Reeve was introduced to the foreman, who delighted in showing the WRO’s famous Reeve Tuesti how the construction crew was utilizing generators from Shinra in order to speed up certain parts of production. They were just about to be taken to a round annex room on the side that was nearly complete, when a ruckus caught their attention.
“What the hell…” Yuffie’s narrowed her eyes. Screaming was heard in the street outside the unfinished structure. She bolted towards the door, but didn’t get very far when Vincent grabbed her arm and pulled her back roughly.
“No,” he said, shoving her into Reeve’s arms. “Stay put.” He nodded at the officer, and the young man positioned himself in front of Yuffie and Reeve.
The screaming going on outside got much louder in a hurry. Vincent, the ninja, and several construction workers began to jog towards the front of the building, when an unbelievable sight burst through the unfinished foyer, reducing it to scrap lumber in mere seconds.
Yuffie recognized it immediately, but she had to convince herself that it was actually there.
The creature sniffed the air once, and looked around. When it located Yuffie, all hell broke loose as it completely destroyed the front of the museum in an attempt to get at her.
The ninja immediately threw several stars into his hide. They hit their mark, landing like studs across its chest and neck, but they barely even penetrated the thick hide. The thing stopped and swatted at the gleaming metal as though it was nothing more than a few insects bothering it.
It hesitated, as though it wanted to turn and run, shaking its head and howling. It slammed its fists on the ground and roared so loud the floor shook. But to Yuffie’s ears the noises it was making sounded more like pain – more like suffering, than anger.
Reeve pulled her back further, shoving her entire body behind his, his intention to use himself as a shield if it came to that.
Vincent aimed Cerberus, but the group of men who had gotten it in their heads to defend and protect advanced on it as a group, and he quickly lost the shot. The thing swiped both its huge arms out in an arc to knock the men out of the way, and their bodies flew to the sides. They were all unconscious and lying in various piles of broken lumber all over the structure.
Now faced with defending Yuffie on his own, Vincent was out of patience. Steely eyes focused on the beast, and he raised Cerberus with the intent to kill.
“Gods, no, don’t kill it! Please, not if you don’t have to!” Yuffie pleaded. He glared at her, but she continued. “Look at it! Something isn’t right, I’m telling you!”
Vincent swore under his breath, but he did as he said. The creature was staggering and clutching at its head, but however clumsily it was still advancing towards them. It looked terrified, with large, albino-like eyes that were fixed on the Empress as though it saw nothing else.
He switched ammo, quickly loading his Thunder Materia into the slot, and took aim.
He hit it one time, and the beast roared and stopped in its tracks. It shook its head as if to clear it, then it growled at Vincent and began moving forward again, sharp teeth bared and thick streams of drool pouring from its mouth. Vincent stood his ground and shot it two more times. The magic reverberated off of every surface within fifty feet and any person who was still awake covered their ears and screamed from the sensation.
The beast howled in misery, and fell to its knees, yet it was still moving, and it tried to get up.
Vincent cursed, and fired one more round into the thing’s chest. Finally, mercifully, it went down, and it stayed down.
Her ears were ringing, and she was still fighting to focus through the din of all that spent magic, but Yuffie leaned out from behind Reeve’s side and took in the scene.
“Is it–”
“No, it is not fucking dead,” Vincent yelled at her, done with protocol. “So stay the hell back!”
She offered no argument and slunk back behind Reeve, finally taking notice that she was clutching at his jacket so tight the wrinkles were bound to be permanent.
+
The beast remained in what Reeve could only assume was a coma. He contacted Rufus, who barked at Reno to get a chopper to Wutai ASAP, with one of those portable holding cells leftover from Deepground in tow. Reno took three Turks with him, and they were armed with large-animal tranquilizers, just in case.
Yuffie maintained her stance that it not be killed. Until the help from Shinra arrived, the ninjas and soldiers did the only thing they could to keep it from going on a rampage again should it wake up – by tying it up with steel cables and rope from the construction site. Everyone seriously doubted it would hold for very long, but they did it anyway.
Three hours later, between the Wutai army, the Turks, and the construction workers, they managed create a crude ramp and got the snoring creature loaded into the cell – and luckily, it just fit. Reno fired up the chopper again and hoisted it to the landing pad on the pagoda, and there it stayed for the night.
The beast never woke up, and Reeve was having serious doubts that it ever would, when he got into an argument with Yuffie as to what they were actually going to do with it.
“Yuffie, I’m being honest with you when I say of course I want to study it. This is unprecedented! But even if I didn’t, we cannot ignore the fact that it came after you, specifically, and that is a thing that begs our attention. Yes?”
She bristled.
“Yuffie, let Reeve do what he does best,” Vincent urged.
“All right, already! But I still say something weird was going on with it. I don’t think it wanted to attack. You won’t… hurt it, will you Reeve?”
“We’ll have to keep it in a secure environment, obviously… but I assure you, there won’t be any experimentation or anything unsavory like that.”
“No exploitation, Reeve. I mean it.”
“Empress, I give you my word.”
She nodded, consenting, but still clearly unhappy. “Dammit, this doesn’t make any sense. Attacks have been reported, sure, but that only happened when idiots who thought it would be fun to mess with them went exploring in their caves. Damn fools got what they deserved, I say… But these things, well, everyone knows they’re shy. And they’ve never been known to stray from their own lands.”
“It makes sense when you take a leap,” Reno offered.
Yuffie frowned, but then her eyebrows shot up. “What – Shinshuro?” Reno shrugged. “That’s a pretty big leap, Turk.”
Vincent frowned, feeling uneasy at the implications of Reno’s theory, but it had a lot of merit and he’d already been thinking it himself. “Once a quisling, Yuffie.”
She nodded at him, if reluctantly. “I admit that that’s a perfectly reasonable suggestion. But… politically, I’m not really in a position to think that way.” She sneered. “Not out loud, anyway.”
Reno and the others that had arrived on the scene were given meals and guest rooms for the night. Fascinated with the new discovery, Reeve monitored the creature’s stats from outside the pen for a couple hours. When he was convinced that nothing was going to change, at least until he made things change, he left it there and retired to his own guest room.
Yuffie and Vincent were finally alone in her chambers, both of them frustrated and preoccupied with this latest development.
“I’m too tired to make a baby tonight, okay?” she joked, but her voice wavered. He frowned, stepping up to her and sighing.
“I’m sorry for snapping at you at the museum.”
She gave him a weak smile. “Oh, that’s okay. I deserved it. And everyone’s ears were ringing so bad, I doubt anyone even heard you. Um… thanks for saving me… again.”
“This brings the count to thirty-eight, does it not?” he asked, brushing some stray hairs behind her ear.
Yuffie laughed, but only for a moment. Then she covered her face, grumbling into the palms of her hands. “Fuck!” she finally spat, sounding disgusted with herself.
She started crying in earnest after that, and having no other recourse, Vincent quickly pulled her close. She leaned into his tall frame, crying her eyes out in the arms of her bodyguard, her concubine – her soon-to-be consort – safely out of sight in their room.
+
“Gods, don’t kill it! Please, not if you don’t have to!”
Slinking back into the woods, the tall, slender woman laughed as she remembered Yuffie’s loud, panicked words. She’d had no trouble hearing the young woman’s screams from her hiding place in an alley across the street from the unfinished museum.
She’d positioned herself close enough to see what would happen, but remained carefully out of the sight of Wutai’s innocent citizens as they screamed and stumbled in the street. Holding a glowing orb of Manipulate in her hand, she watched as the creature advanced over the rubble that used to be the foyer of the building, intent on killing Yuffie Kisaragi, just as she’d instructed.
She was still amazed at how easily the thing had responded to her orders.
It’d followed her obediently all the way from Shinshuro’s new country, never uttering a sound and carrying out her every command like a submissive, beaten cow. And when she saw the perfect opportunity to test out her theory, she turned and eyed the creature coolly, projecting the image of the Empress of Wutai into its thoughts. She told it to kill what it saw. Initially, it resisted, but she’d anticipated that. She focused the magic and pushed the idea into its mind, hard, causing so much pain in the poor thing’s head that it almost started weeping. When it finally gave in, she set it loose on the village and watched, silent and completely undetected, as mayhem unfolded in the street.
She watched as the Empress’ bodyguard attacked it several times over with his own magic, a material whose effects she recognized as Thunder. He’d utilized it by way of a gun, of all things.
Weakened, frightened and disoriented, the creature finally dropped to its knees and she actually felt the fight slip right out of it. She released her magical hold on the beast, and it fell over as the glow of her command materia quieted. Satisfied, she pocketed the orb, wrapped her dark cloak tightly around her shoulders, and disappeared into the shadows of the woods with no one the wiser.
As she traveled south, she went over what she had seen in her head. There was a lot of information to present to Shinshuro when she got back.
She preferred being alone, and it wouldn’t have been such a bad hike if the bite wound on her arm hadn’t started itching like mad. She shook her head. It was hard to believe that such shy creatures, herbivores on top of it, would need teeth that sharp. But since the beasts had proven themselves to be somewhat docile over the last several weeks, it made a kind of sense – the sharpness of their teeth insured any bite would be quick and nearly painless… making it a very non-violent way to deliver the substance in their saliva into their victims – if you could even call them that.
She was just glad that Shinshuro had finally ditched his poison-making plans, because the distillation process was dangerous and nasty. Thankfully, he had agreed to her suggestion of using the creatures themselves instead of their spit.
She also wanted the damn money that Shinshuro had promised her for this first task. There was this nagging feeling that if she didn’t bring it up, he’d find a way to stiff her. She didn’t know much about the previous woman that had done this type work for him, but at least she wasn’t stupid enough to trade cold, hard cash for cheap sex and phony proclamations of love.
+
“Man… We haven’t really had a chance to catch up this time. How ya been, Yuffs?” Reno scratched the back of his neck and gave her a casual leer, but his heart wasn’t in it.
His visit had been very short, too short for Yuffie’s taste. Between being called there on an emergency and then the race to get the creature secured, there hadn’t been much time for visiting the night before – save to discuss unpleasant theories. Breakfast had barely been digested and now they were all chatting on the landing pad, preparing to say goodbye once again.
“Well, I do have some news, but you gotta keep it quiet.”
“Not a problem, you know I’m good for that.”
“Yes,” she grinned, “Nasty hip scars and all, boy do I know it.”
“Oh… so you finally found out about that, huh?” Reno winced.
“After I dragged it out of him, yeah. No worries, Turk.” Yuffie thought better of telling him just exactly how she got that story out of Vincent, and moved on. She shrugged, all charming and bubbly, then just blurted out, “Vincent and me are trying to get pregnant!”
Momentarily, Reno seemed shocked, as though he’d been told something that was expected, just not necessarily at that moment.
“Well damn, Yuffie!” He brightened, recovering quickly - but not before she’d noticed his odd reaction. “That’s great,” he nodded. “You’ll make a really great mom.”
He turned towards the chopper and took a few steps – very slow steps. To Yuffie’s eyes he wasn’t blatantly trying to walk away or blow her off, it was more like he just didn’t want to look at her right then.
But she wasn’t having any of that. “Hey…” She wrapped her fingers around his wrist and pulled, stopping him. Reno turned back to face her, hoping that Reeve would come rescue him soon. Really soon.
“You okay?” she asked gently.
Suddenly feeling doomed by his own emotions, he grinned automatically. “I’m good, yeah. Of course - I’m always good!”
Reno’s smile was genuine. He wore his emotions on his sleeve, just as she did. But he was covering up something as well, and Yuffie couldn’t help but try to force it out of him.
Reno grew quiet at her insistent gaze. He looked down at her, staring back a bit longer than usual. She frowned.
“You’re not worried about me… are you?”
The Turk glanced over at Vincent, who was still chatting with Reeve. Reno half-expected to have seen the jealous gunslinger watching him carefully, as he was standing close to - and alone with - her. But Vincent seemed to be completely unthreatened by his presence, and for some reason that stung even worse.
“Nah, why would I worry? You got an entire army, albeit a small one, a menacing fleet of ninja, and The Mighty Valentine watching over you.” He grinned, but somehow the expression did not reach his eyes.
She squeezed his wrist and took a tiny step closer. “What aren’t you saying?”
Looming above her, he frowned. Fuck, he thought, Why does she do this? An’ why do I let her?
He bit the inside of his lip before answering. “I’m happy for you Yuffie. You’re gonna make babies with the guy you should be makin’ babies with.”
“Reno…”
“Look, Yuffie,” he began, “I gave you up. Not that we were committed or anything, but… still. It hurt some, you know? I know it was the right thing to do, but… every now and then…” When he paused, she stopped glaring at him and her face crumpled a bit – into sympathy, and that he simply could not take.
“I’m okay. I’m fine, yo. I just… miss you. And I’m allowed to, okay Mrs. Nosy Empress Leader of a Nation?” He laughed quietly, but when she didn’t laugh with him, he wasn’t able to stop himself from reaching out and stroking the side of her face for just a moment. When he took his fingertips back and straightened, she let go of his wrist, and looked down at her feet.
He regretted having told her anything, but he never was able to lie to her – not once she started asking questions, anyway.
“I miss you too, you idiot,” she muttered suddenly.
Reno frowned. “Hey,” he said, putting a finger under her chin so that she’d look at him again. “You ever need me, you know where to find me.”
“Ready to go?”
A pleasant voice cut through their reverie like ice water, and they both realized that Reeve and Vincent had walked up to them while they were preoccupied with each other.
“You got it,” Reno chirped. Without another glance or a parting word, he turned on his heel and headed for the chopper. Yuffie frowned, watching his dark Turk suit billowing in the breeze as he jogged across the pagoda’s landing pad… and away from her.
Reeve gave Yuffie and Vincent his best wishes for a speedy conception, and promised Yuffie one more time that he’d take the best care he possibly could of “her creature”. When everyone was securely aboard, Reno began their ascent, which had been made that much more dangerous due to lifting off with the creature’s holding pen attached to the chopper via cable. But he’d done it perfectly last night, just as he’d done the same kind of thing many times before. Reno maneuvered the chopper with practiced accuracy, and within moments Yuffie and Vincent’s visitors were on their way home.
Vincent turned slightly to look at Yuffie. She was standing next to him on the landing pad, gazing at the chopper while it faded from view.
“Are you all right?”
His voice was quiet, and not at all jealous. She waited a moment, then turned to face him.
“You heard every word we said, didn’t you?”
He didn’t answer, save for a quiet “Hn.”
“Thanks for not intimidating him. I think he needed to say that.”
“I think you needed to hear it, too.”
Yuffie balked, waving her hands in front of her, denying any wrongdoing. “No no no! That’s not what I meant! I don’t… I don’t want him like that anymore, I’m just-”
“Stop that,” he said, slightly irritated. “I never thought you did. I have someone in my past too, remember?” Now alone, he put his arm around her shoulders and began walking her back to the stairwell. “It’s very difficult to figure out how you are supposed to feel about someone like that, especially when there was never really a break-up involved,” he said. “You love him, Yuffie. I understand that. And it’s okay.”
“It’s… really? You’re good with it?”
“Yes.”
“Oh. Okay…”
He paused, then added, “Just don’t ever play naked with him again, or I’ll be forced to kill him.”
“Vincent Valentine!”
He smiled to himself, tiny and smug, then pushed her gently through the door of the roof.
+
“And the bite?”
“Itched some, but I got over it. It’s not getting any worse if that’s what you mean. It’s already started to heal. And the effects have worn off completely. I walked right past their cages before coming in here and I didn’t feel anything.”
Shinshuro nodded, taking down a few notes. “We’ll have to keep that in mind. If it’s that temporary we may have to up the dose.”
“As long as it’s just the raw stuff, I don’t think that’d be an issue. But we need to try it with a group of them next time.” She crossed her arms. “Look, General, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’d like my first goddamn payment now.”
Shinshuro looked up from his notes. “All right,” he said smoothly. He opened a safe under his desk and quickly pulled out a sack of gil.
Setting the pouch on his desk, he slid it forward, but only so far, making it so the woman had to lean over to take it – which gave him a nice view of the tops of her breasts.
She straightened and began counting the payment, making sure he wasn’t ripping her off. Shinshuro eyed the coins fondly. He really hated paying anyone anything, feeling that they should just work for a position in his government. But, mercenaries like this one had become a necessity.
He rose and came around the desk, sidling up behind her and placing his hands on her shoulders. He pressed the front of his body into her back, making his intentions all too clear.
“Lea Ann, are you sure there isn’t some other arrangement we could come to?” he asked, trying for a purr as he stroked the palms of his hands up and down her bare arms. “Something other than money? Something that will be gratifying for us both?” He let his knuckles slide against the sides of her breasts, and she laughed rudely.
Stepping out of his embrace, she turned and glared at him.
“What, sex? Please, old man. You’re paying me with gil, not dick.” She sneered at him. “Besides, I like girls.”
+
October and November came and went without much fuss that year, and both Vincent and Yuffie were grateful for it. Chekov arranged a small, private party for Vincent’s “thirty-third” birthday – what was actually his sixty-sixth, although he wasn’t really counting anymore – and there was the normal public fanfare for Yuffie, who turned twenty-five.
They were too busy concentrating on the private business of trying to get pregnant to even be concerned about their birthdays.
Yuffie wrote him another letter on October thirteenth, as it’d become a private tradition between them. Vincent’s birthday had marked their first anniversary as a couple, and they’d wasted no time in celebrating that, with Vincent scrounging the palace for some ‘new’ recycled pillows.
“Vincent… Do you remember in Deepground, when we were attacked in that transport, and I hit my head?”
“Which time?” he laughed, his head resting against her lower body. She looked down to see the firelight reflected in his red eyes as he stared at the flames, completely at ease.
Sighing, Yuffie continued to play with his hair. “I said when we were attacked, not when I jumped up and hit it on my own,” she said tartly.
“Yes, I remember. Vividly,” he drawled. “You were unconscious and of no help to me in fighting off those droids.” She scoffed, swatting at his shoulder, and he laughed again.
“Well, excuse me for being clumsy.”
“I’ll excuse you for being unconscious, not for being clumsy.”
“All right, all right. I have a question.”
Silence.
“Vince?”
“Ask it, Yuffie.”
She sighed. “When I woke up, you were gone, and…”
She paused, chewing the inside of her lip. He turned his head and his eyes scanned the length of her bare torso all the way up to her face. It was a bewitching angle. When he was able to focus, he noted the pretty blush high on her cheeks.
“Yes,” he said, but it was not a question.
She looked down at him.
“Yes. After I defeated the droids, I put the pillow under your head. I put the blanket on top of you. I put the headache remedy and the bottled water next to you, and I locked the transport securely before I left you there alone.”
She smiled, smug.
“Satisfied?”
“Not yet,” she whispered, “But… I’m sure you’ll see to that as well.”
Fifteen minutes later she was smiling unabashedly and catching her breath as he crawled back up her body to lie next to her on the pillows.
“Now are you satisfied?”
“Yup.”
“Glutton,” he teased. Vincent stroked a rigid nipple with his thumb absentmindedly, and she hissed through her teeth.
“Sorry, it’s just… That actually hurts a little bit.” He frowned, covering her entire breast with his human hand. She wrapped her own hand over his, keeping it in place, willing the heat of his palm to sink into her skin.
“Don’t apologize. You seem to be sensitive all over tonight… In fact, I lost count how many times you came just now–”
“All right, Captain Ego, that’s quite enough of that.”
“Hn. You’re a few days away from getting your cycle, I think.” She frowned. They were trying, Gods above and below were they ever trying, but she still wasn’t pregnant.
“Probably,” she sighed, looking away from him. “I try not to think about my damn period anymore.”
Vincent knew that was her way of saying because I don’t want it to come, but, he let it go.
He stood up and stretched, then gave her a hand up. Keeping her fingers entwined in his, he pulled her away from the fire and pillows and over to the bed, where they got in together.
“Happy birthday, Yuffie,” he said, kissing her cheek.
“Thanks,” she said, kissing him in return. He could tell she was preoccupied with the talk about babies, though, so he tried to make her feel better.
“Do not forget what Nadja said.”
“Yes…”
“Sometimes it just takes a couple a bit longer to conceive.”
“Mm-hm.”
“I want a child. I do, but…” He paused, weighing his next words. He wanted to make sure she understood him, but his sudden silence made her look over at him. He shifted, moving until he was half on top of her.
He pulled her close. “If you don’t ever get pregnant, I won’t care.”
She smiled. “Liar,” she whispered, kissing him again. When she finally released his lips, he smiled back.
“All right, I’ll care. My point is, it won’t matter.”
“Why?” she asked coyly, tugging on a chunk of his short hair.
“Because I love you.”
+
Yuffie looked up suddenly, and her face paled until she was as white as a ghost. Vincent dropped the papers he was reading right on top of his breakfast of eggs and mushrooms. He leaned in closer towards her, grabbing her hand.
“Yuffie? What is it?”
She opened her mouth once, but didn’t say anything, then she stood up on shaky feet, holding her stomach. Vincent felt the terror welling up as he remembered how Shinshuro had tired to poison her once before. He was on his feet in a flash, standing in front of her with his hands on her shoulders, yelling, panicking.
“What is it? Yuffie, answer me!”
Yuffie gave Vincent an apologetic look. She covered her mouth and bolted to the bathroom, nearly stumbling over all the pillows that were still strewn in front of the fireplace from where they had been laying around the night before.
He ran behind her, following her into the bathroom, and was able to pull her hair back just in time before she retched into the toilet bowl. Everything she had eaten that morning, which hadn’t been much, came up quickly. That was followed by bile, then saliva, until there was nothing left.
“Easy,” Vincent urged, rubbing her back with his human hand. “You’re having dry heaves. Just try to breathe.”
Yuffie forced herself to calm down. She breathed in and out, shaky at first, but eventually she relaxed. She sat down with her rump on her heels and closed her eyes, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
“It’s okay, it’s all out. I’m okay.”
“Not if you were poisoned, you’re not,” he said sternly, making sure she wasn’t going to pass out and fall over. When he was satisfied, he went to the sink and got her a glass of cold water and a hot, wet washcloth.
She rinsed out her mouth twice, leaning over to spit into the toilet each time, then drank what was left in the glass. Vincent flushed the toilet and took the glass from her hands, then he kneeled next to her on the hardwood floor and gently wiped her face with the soft cloth.
He checked her out meticulously while he cleaned her off. Yuffie didn’t look green, and her pupils were neither dilated nor contracted. Her temperature was normal, and her heart was beating a bit fast, but it was steady and consistent. He refreshed the washcloth with more hot water, and resumed wiping her face and neck, watching her carefully.
Yuffie cracked an eye open and looked up at him. He still looked very worried. “I don’t think it was poison,” she finally said, loathe to interrupt him because it always felt so good when he tended to her.
“How can you be sure?” His voice was quiet, but dark, as though he was angry.
“Because you’re just fine. We ate off the same plate, Vinnie. I wasn’t touching my food, I mostly stole bites of yours. And you’d be sick too because you don’t have that much defense against poisons anymore, right?” He stopped wiping her face for a moment and she shrugged. “Your eggs just looked way tastier than my oatmeal.” She laughed, closing her eyes and leaning into his hand when he began wiping her skin again.
“Fair enough, but I’m still going to call Nadja and have her look you over.”
He tossed the cloth into the hamper and helped her to her feet. Vincent continued to look down at her face, and the worry was etched deep.
“Don’t look like that,” she said softly, putting a hand to his chest. “I’m okay, really.”
“No, something’s wrong. Or you wouldn’t have vomited like that.” Vincent’s gauntlet came to rest in the crook of her waist, instinct taking over and telling him to keep her close. Keep her safe.
Yuffie’s hair had fallen loose across her neck and face. As he tucked it behind her ear, he frowned and continued to scrutinize her face. “I can’t help it, Yuffie. It terrifies me when I think you are being threatened in a way that I am helpless to fix.”
“Vincent,” she said, smiling weakly, “I love you for that. But not everything needs fixing, okay?”
“What do you mean?”
She paused, biting her lip. “What day is this?”
Her question took him by surprise, then he said, “Thursday, the nineteenth. Why?”
She looked down slightly, thinking. Nodding, she sighed and smiled. “Because I think I’m pregnant.”
He looked at her for a long time, body rigid and expression unreadable, then he finally moved. Vincent got down on his knees in front of her and turned his head to one side. He placed his hands on her hips and hugged her, with the side of his head against her lower stomach.
Yuffie smiled down at him. He’d grown very comfortable expressing his feelings for her behind closed doors, and he was no slouch when it came to being affectionate, but he didn’t get this romantic too often. She decided to enjoy the moment. She tangled her fingers in his soft hair and stroked his scalp. Taking a breath, she was about to speak when–
“Hush,” he commanded, very gently. “Stay still. And hold your breath for a moment.”
She did as he asked. Yuffie’s fingers stilled as she continued to hold his head in her hands. He pressed his ear to her just a bit more, moving a bit lower down her abdomen, and closed his eyes. As she looked down at him, watching his expression, his face looked stern while he concentrated.
Yuffie didn’t know how long they were like that, it could have been days before Vincent finally shifted. As she exhaled slowly, he loosened his hold on her hips and looked directly up at her.
Her breath caught in her throat. There were tears in his eyes.
He whispered, “I can hear a heartbeat, I can hear it–” before he closed his eyes, tears falling from their corners. “Gods… Yuffie.”
His head went to her body again, this time to rest his forehead against her tummy as he gripped her hips in his fingers just a bit tighter. Yuffie smiled, running her fingers through his hair again and stroking the back of his neck. Then he sobbed – just once, and the choked sound paralyzed her where she stood.
It was a noise that she never, ever thought she’d hear come out of him, and she honestly didn’t know what to do.
Is he upset about this? Is he crying?
Vincent’s breathing became harsh, and she could tell that he was, in fact, crying – but he was trying really hard to hide it, too. By this time he was sitting on the floor and practically sagging, but his hands had snaked around her back, and it almost seemed like he was afraid to let her go. She slid down until she was on her knees, her head just above his. She hugged him hard, wrapping her hands around his neck and cradling his head on her collarbone.
He stilled, then pulled back just enough to look up into her eyes. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be crying–”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
Her directness surprised him, and she wiped the tears off his face before he could object. She smiled, adding, “Remember when you told me I could tremble all I wanted?” He huffed, suppressing a laugh. “I swear to Leviathan’s tailfins, Vincent, if you ever apologize for crying again I will punch you.”
He laughed at that, and she smiled at him sympathetically.
“So… I take it you’re not ready?” she asked, her hands still at his face.
“No… no, that’s not it.”
She raised her eyebrows. It came out more emphatically than he’d meant. He closed his eyes, trying to compose himself. When he continued it was in a more gentle tone.
“I’m…” he took a long, shuddering breath, “After everything that I’ve been through, I never even thought I’d be able to have a life, and now I have you… and a child.”
He did smile at her, finally, and she was forced to swallow another gasp. The expression transformed his face, like someone had flipped on a switch underneath his skin.
“I’m very happy, Yuffie. That’s all.”
“Aw, Vinnie, stop that, yer gonna make me cry now.” She kissed his forehead, letting her lips linger on his warm skin.
“I love you. More than I ever realized was possible.”
“I love you too, you great big emo, but you can’t kiss me yet because my mouth still tastes like crap.”
They both laughed and settled for hugging, safe and secure in each other’s arms. They stayed that way for a long time, sitting on the floor in their pajamas with tousled hair and swiftly beating hearts, feeling warm all over as the bright morning sun streamed in through the bathroom windows.
“Vincent, you are going to be the best dad… like, ever.”

+

tbc

+

++++++++ notes ++++++++
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Empress & Concubine, Part II