***Warning: this is the final chapter in this story. I'm done! Somehow, that makes me kind of sad…***

Chapter Nineteen – Reunion

They burned the secret lab before leaving the caves and getting aboard the airship. When Lulu had awoken and learned she had been rescued, she requested to be taken to the chocobo ranch. Evidently, Lucrecia had been the niece of the man who owned the ranch, and she hoped he would be willing to take her in.

They were nearing the ranch when Vincent's mobile started to ring. It was Tifa. He nearly ignored the call, then realized Tifa would probably be calling to update him on Yuffie's status.

"Tifa," he said calmly into the phone.

"Vincent. Did everything go okay? Did you find Lulu?"

"Lulu is safe, for now. Unfortunately, at her current rate of degradation, she most likely only has a few months to live.

"That's terrible… Does she know?"

"I explained everything to her. She's decided to stay with a relative, the owner of the chocobo ranch. I've decided to stay there as well, at least until she…" He let his voice trail off. "How is Yuffie?" he dared ask.

"She's expected to make a full recovery. She's a tough little thing. You know, she's been calling your name in her sleep all day. Godo finally got pissed off and left."

Vincent nearly chuckled at the image – nearly.

"So, then, you're really not coming back?" Tifa said, her tone growing serious again.

"It's better this way."

"Better for whom?"

"Yuffie deserves to be safe and happy. She has a bright future – a future I only tainted by selfishly entering into her affections. One day she will step forward to rule Wutai. She will marry a worthy man who will keep her out of danger and make her happy."

"Are we talking about the same person? Yuffie doesn't want to be protected and tied down, Vincent. She's like you: a self-reliant wanderer. To be honest, I was surprised when I first found out about you guys… But now it makes sense. You balance each other out perfectly."

"Perhaps in another lifetime, we might have had a chance. But not in this one. I won't let her make one more sacrifice for me. Best to end this now, before it gets carried too far."

"Don't you think you're a little past that point already? Vincent, she's in love with you. And I think you're in love with her."

Vincent remained silent on his end of the line.

Tifa sighed, knowing she was fighting a futile battle. "I hope you change your mind, Vincent. At the very least, you should tell her all this in person."

"If I do that… She'll only ask me to stay. And I will, because I can't seem to make myself act against her will. I can't allow that to happen."

"I just think you're making a mistake. For Yuffie's sake, and yours, I hope you change your mind. When you love someone, I don't think you should let anything stand in your way of happiness. You fight through the bad, and grow stronger together."

Vincent knew she was referring to her own relationship with Cloud.

"Tifa… I have to go now. Please continue to watch over Yuffie."

"Think about what I said Vincent."

"…Goodbye, Tifa." He snapped the phone shut without waiting for a response, then clutched the railing tightly, trying to push the conversation from his mind.

Lulu was welcomed by Lucrecia's uncle at the chocobo ranch, and Vincent stayed with her, as he'd planned. For the first two months, little changed. The degradation was kept under control and Lulu seemed happy on the ranch. When she finally weakened to the point of being bedridden, Vincent stayed at her side and cared for her as best he knew how. It was difficult to watch her slip in and out of consciousness, to watch death steal her away slowly and relentlessly.

When, at last, she slipped away, Vincent kissed her forehead gently and carried her body to a place near the ocean. He buried her there and stood by for several hours before finally leaving her to rest.

It had been five months since she'd been shot in Wutai. Yuffie now sat on the steps in front of the Seventh Heaven, holding two envelopes. One contained the letter Vincent had asked Tifa to deliver when she'd woken up in the hospital. The other was from Lulu – though it was written in Vincent's elegant cursive – stating she had been living happily on the chocobo ranch southeast of Midgar. The letter was sad, because it was clear she near the end when she dictated it. In a way, knowing Vincent had been there with her all along made it easier. At least she knew he was somewhere, and at least Lulu died with a friend nearby.

But he wasn't there now. She knew this because the moment she'd read the letter, she had gone to the ranch herself to find him. The rancher had informed her he'd left only a few days ago and had not stated where he was headed. That was so typically Vincent, she thought.

Inside the bar behind her, she heard laughter. Everyone had gathered to celebrate her twentieth birthday – everyone except the one person she really wanted to see. She knew he wouldn't be there. He'd made it clear in his letter that he had no intention of seeing her any time soon.

Yuffie glanced back over her shoulder toward the sound of the laughter. She sighed as she noticed the sign posted on the door, written in Cloud's sloppy print. Closed for private party.

She felt bad for slipping outside, for avoiding her guests. Tifa and Cloud had worked hard to make the party a success, and she felt ungrateful of their kindness. Things had all but gone back to normal – normal being the time before she and Vincent had admitted their feelings for one another – although, in truth, Yuffie was having a more difficult time dealing with his absence than she let on. It wasn't in her nature to mope, and usually she didn't.

It was mainly when she saw other happy couples that her heart felt empty and the loneliness drifted in. Cloud and Tifa had been smooching and holding hands all afternoon and, finally, Yuffie had broken down. She'd gone outside for a break from the sappy romance scenes and was actually somewhat enjoying the solitude. Somewhat.

When she'd woken up in the hospital, Tifa had given her Vincent's letter and explained Vincent's need to know she was safe, even if it meant losing her. She had, of course, called him immediately. He didn't answer, so she'd left a voicemail pleading with him to come back. He never answered, of course.

Damn you, Vincent Valentine, she thought. Why did you have to leave me like this? It's not fair… You've made it impossible for me to enjoy my birthday party. You've… broken my heart.

She let her head fall into her hands then and the tears came at last. It wouldn't do any good to hold in the sobbing, she knew – better to get it all out now, then get back to the party and pretend to have fun. A dark shadow fell over her then and she froze as she traced its outline with her eyes. Don't get your hopes up, Yuffie. Probably just some idiot trying to get into my VIP party. She turned back around then and gasped when her eyes fell upon the flowing crimson cape. She slowly allowed her gaze to drift up to his face, her heart drumming in her chest.

There was a sadness in his eyes greater than any she'd seen before. What was he doing here? Had he come to say a proper farewell? Oh, he brought me a present. Indeed, the gunslinger had a small gift-wrapped box under his right arm.

"Vincent…"

He did not move; did not even blink. His eyes continued to gaze remorsefully into hers.

"What are you doing here?" she asked carefully.

Finally he stirred, taking the gift in both his hands. "I brought you some material."

"Oh," she muttered. "Thanks." She stood up and reached for the box which he handed her from a distance.

Yuffie fingered the bow on the box nervously, trying to think of something to say. "So, I guess Lulu is… gone."

Vincent nodded mildly. "She went peacefully."

"Good. I'm glad you were there with her… for her sake."

Vincent said nothing, but kept his crimson eyes on her. What was it in his expression that made her feel so blue? Was it Lulu's death?

"Are you, y'know, okay? It must have been difficult for you to watch Lulu degrade."

"Yes… It was."

She waited a moment and he seemed to be doing the same. He didn't move or speak, but continued to stare. This was starting to get uncomfortable.

"Vincent… What are you doing here?" she asked, finally.

"Would you like me to go?"

"No!" she answered – too quickly. Her heart felt swollen in her chest, as though it might burst any moment. "I mean, you don't have to go if you don't want to."

He nodded with a familiar, "Hmph."

"Seriously, Vince!" she almost shouted then. She hated suspense more than anything – unless, of course, she was the one causing it. "Why are you here? You said in your letter you weren't coming back!" She waved the envelope in his face and again felt the tears coming. They burned her eyes and she whipped away from Vincent so he wouldn't see them.

"Yuffie, I…" he sighed and she could hear him stepping closer. "I don't know how to ask you to forgive me. The reason I am here… is to apologize to you. You must hate me – I deserve nothing less. But I couldn't live another minute without knowing for certain that you've moved on. If you tell me you no longer want me, I will go and never disturb you again."

Yuffie turned slowly to face him, her expression a mix between fear and disbelief.

"Vincent…" She approached him warily and noticed he started to lift his arms to her, then quickly dropped them to his sides again. Part of her wanted to reach up and slap him across the face, and curse him for hurting her. The other part – the stronger part – only focused on doing whatever it took to get him to stay. And so, she set the box containing Vincent's gift down and bolted toward him, arms wide. As she reached him, she felt his hand and claw under her arms as he lifted her into his. She found his lips quickly and wrapped her fingers into his black mane.

Even their first kiss had not been this magical. Yuffie could hardly contain her joy as Vincent wrapped his arms around her tightly – still supporting her weight so that her feet dangled near his knees – and kissed her more passionately than before.

Five months had passed, but nothing had changed. When at last their lips parted, Yuffie pulled her face away to look at him. The sadness was gone from his eyes and had been replaced with an adoring glow. She guessed hers reflected roughly the same sentiment.

"Vincent," she whispered.

"Yuffie," he whispered back.

"Don't leave me again."

"I don't know how I'd ever find the strength to do so."

She beamed at him. "Thank Leviathan for that!"

Vincent half smirked. "Does this mean you forgive me?"

"Can you forgive yourself?" Yuffie retorted, raising an eyebrow.

He gave her a look, and she gave it right back.

"Yes," he answered, finally, nodding once.

"Then of course I forgive you."

Vincent smiled a little and leaned in to kiss her softly.

"Oh!" Yuffie shouted. "I have to tell you something. You know that whole business about me having to take over when my old man croaks?"

Vincent nodded slowly, expecting bad news.

"Well, you don't have to worry about it."

"What do you mean?"

"I gave it some good hard thought. And, in the end, I decided that the right thing for me was a compromise."

"A compromise… What exactly did that entail?"

Yuffie grinned. "Dad is going to elect a regent – someone to rule in my place when he kicks the bucket. The cool thing is, I can take over any time if I choose to. Genius, huh?"

"Indeed. Why hadn't such an option been considered before?"

"Well, to be honest, it wasn't an option until I got Godo in a headlock and made him sign the contract I drew up. I'm such a genius, he had to give in! Muah-hah-hah…"

Vincent couldn't help but chuckle. "Very clever of you. I hope you father wasn't seriously injured."

"Nothing the acupuncturist couldn't fix. He deserved worse, though, the way he talked to you."

Vincent cocked his head to the side and set Yuffie back down. "How did you hear about that?"

"I was still conscious when he started yelling at you. It's the last thing I remember before I blacked out. I was thinking about how I was going to force him to apologize to you first thing when I recovered… Then you were gone when I woke up." She sniffled and wiped quickly at the single tear forming in the corner of her eye. "I wish you had been there, Vincent."

Vincent touched her face gently and she looked up at him through red-rimmed eyes. "I was there, Yuffie. I came to see you at least once a week in secret. Sometimes I'd come into your room if you were asleep, but the rest of the time I just watched from a distance."

"You… you did?"

He nodded slowly. "I couldn't stay away, despite my resolve."

Vincent was there with me… all along, she thought happily. It was a good feeling; one she couldn't help sharing. She threw her arms around him then and snuggled her face into his chest. "That makes me feel so good," she whimpered.

"The last time I visited, I watched you through the window in the hospital. Your father had just left and I saw you looking at the photo I'd given you…"

"I looked at it every night. It was all I had."

"I know," he sighed remorsefully. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright, Vince. We're together now. Just promise me you won't leave again, no matter what happens!"

"I promise, Yuffie. Never again. Not unless you ask me to go. Even then, I can't guarantee I'll stay gone."

"Sounds good to me!"

"There's something else I wanted to tell you, Yuffie. And I hope it doesn't change your feelings toward me. It's about my lifespan."

"Vincent, please… It's too depressing. The idea of you staying young and beautiful while I get old and nasty is just… grotesque."

"Hmph. That's just it, Yuffie… I'm aging."

"Say what? But you're, like, fifty-something, and you only look twenty-something."

"Evidently my metabolism and aging process slow drastically when I sleep – and I slept for thirty years without waking. Now, however, I am awake for eighty hours at a time, and require only a few hours of sleep in between. I've been told I should age normally if I don't go into hibernation again."

"Then… you mean we get to be a grumpy old couple together?"

Vincent nodded seriously, though the idea amused him. "It doesn't bother you, does it?" he asked carefully.

"It does make me a little sad," Yuffie admitted. "As much as I hate to admit it, there was always something so comforting in knowing you'd always be around, long after I was dead. I always thought of you like the eternal guardian of the planet, or something."

Vincent chuckled. "You really do have some strange ideas about me, Yuffie. Sometimes I don't know how you come up with these things."

Yuffie threw her hands onto her hips then. "Hey! I'm giving you a compliment, and all you can do is make fun of me?"

"I'm not making fun… it just feels good to have someone think so highly of me, even after all I've done."

"We all make mistakes, Vincent. Your only sin is in not letting yourself move past yours."

He nodded. "I know… Deep down, I know you're right. And I'm working on it."

"I know you are, Vince," Yuffie replied sweetly.

For a moment they took each other in. The thrill of their reunion was still present and, after a moment, Yuffie leaned against him again. As his arms folded around her, she closed her eyes tightly and smiled.

Vincent kissed her forehead and whispered, "happy birthday, Yuffie."

~*~ *~The End~*~*~

Well, I hope you all enjoyed reading my story as much as I enjoyed writing it. I'm sorry if at times the writing or plot were poor. This being my first ever completed fan fiction, I did struggle a bit at times to move the story along. I did almost no editing, either. There were many nights when I was up WAY past my bed time because I couldn't stop writing. So, now it's complete. I may write another one someday but I think I'm going to focus on my other fanfic and my book for a while now. Thanks again for reading!