Summary: She loved once, but he left her with nothing but an empty promise, his memory, and unwanted powers. A KH Reffie, the first I've ever written. Yuffie angst. One-shot, I fear.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters mentioned except for Derek, who is not based off of a friend, but shares his name with Remy Le'beau's identical twin, G.U.L.P.

Back By Mornin'

RayZor

Her eyes held timultuous storm clouds as tears threatened to fall. She had known that he would not come back for her. His promise had been made to keep her smiling for him. He had known that his mint green eyes would never again see her porcelain face.

He had kissed her, like every night before, and walked out the door to hunt down the beings which hunted him even as he did so. She had wanted to go, but lacked the physical strength to be anything more than a burden to her boyfriend. So he had left her with an empty promise and false bravado as he disappeared into the night to destroy the shadows. But this time was different.

The shadows had found their way into her home. Her mother and father had been dead for years, but her brother... Derek Kisaragi fought them off with his katana until his friend arrived. Fourteen-year-old Yuffie Kisaragi threw kitchen knives, decorative daggers, and anything else sharp at the creatures. Her aim was slightly off, but she did well enough to help her brother and his tattoo-faced blonde friend.

The three of them made it to the entrance of the castle before their trek was halted. She watched him fall to her brother's girlfriend. Long red hair spilled around him almost as red as the blood that poured from so many wounds. She called out his name and achieved Lulu's attention. Yuffie, however, could not think straight. Her fifteen-year-old boyfriend was dead! She felt the jarring sparks of a thunder spell, but was too dazed for it to hurt her. She heard Derek and Zell fall, heard their last breaths, but could not convince herself to move.

"Yuffie!" a voice called out. She saw Squall's girlfriend - Rinoa, was it? - running toward her. She was a sorceress, Yuffie knew. As a matter of fact, she had inherited Amaya Kisaragi's powers... She had inherited Yuffie and Derek's mother's powers... At a young age.

An ultima spell made the young teen's eyes widen. Rinoa blocked it with her body. The twenty-three-year-old had saved Yuffie? Why? Why not let her die like Zell? Like Derek? Like Reno? Why not let her join the rest of her family in that blissful thing disguised in black called death?

The two sorceresses, Lulu and Rinoa, battled.. But Yuffie had collapsed by Reno's body, pushing strands of blood-caked crimson from his face. His minty eyes were glazed and open, looking as if they were watching her in an eerie, un-moving way.

"And I would drive unto the end with you," she told him in a soft whisper, closing those perfect green eyes one final time, her favorite song playing numbly in the back of her mind. She looked up to see Lulu standing over a battle worn Rinoa. Grabbing her now-deceased boyfriend's night stick, she threw it with all her might at the dark sorceress's head. Lulu turned and snarled in anger, but Rinoa struck with a fierce Thundaga spell that rendered Lulu unconcious.

Yuffie went over to help the ragged and bleeding Rinoa, but knew the sorceress would not last much longer. Rinoa, it seemed, knew that her time had come as well.

"Yuffie," she said with a soft smile, half-lying, half-sitting on the marbled floor in front of the open door. "I have your mother's powers... and I need to rid myself of them before..." She trailed off, but the teen knew what she needed and nodded, somewhat fearfully. Rinoa let out a small sigh of relief. "Give me your hand," she instructed the girl in soft tones.

Electricity shot through the aspiring ninja as she placed her hand in Rinoa's. She awoke some time later in a cafe. A duck was leaned over her and she let out a blood-curdling shriek. Her shriek alerted the two men in the alley, who had also arrived a night before and were looking for their friends. Cid Highwind and Leon Leonhart rushed to the source and found their youngest friend staring wildly at the equally bewildered nephews.

"Yuffie!" Cid had blurted - along with numerous choice words - and rushed to his "niece". Although the older pilot was a chain-smoking, swearing, and, admittedly, a downright rude old cuss at times, he had always thought of Derek and Yuffie Kisaragi as his own flesh and blood.

"The ducks are talking, Cid," she said in a loud yet whisper-esque tone.

The blonde man had chuckled. "Yeah, kiddo. It's Huey, Dewey, and Louie - the nephews."

She narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, I can kinda see a resemblance between you and the ducks."

Cid's face lit up quicker than the sky during fireworks. "Kid, I'm gonna-"

She tuned him out, standing warily and looking at the man she knew as Squall Leonhart. Memories washed over her and she gasped unconciously, a hand flying up to her right temple.

"What?" he asked, albeit rather coldly.

"N-nothing," she replied; they had always left it at that. No one ever knew of the powers locked within the ninja and she merely passed off her natural ability to learn spells as a trait that must have been passed down from her mother.

So, as she stood upon the shoreline of Destiny Islands, her eyes searched the horizon for a red head who had made a promise. She knew that he was dead, six years after the fact did not change that. They had gone back to Hallow Bastion only for her and Leon to decide they could not live there as they once had. He went back to Traverse Town and she travelled continuously, looking for her light... Looking for someone who would not return to keep his promise. Yet every morning she awoke expecting to see him there.

She finished tying the side of her orange bikini bottoms and waded into the water. Cool, salty waves lapped her porcelain skin, wanting desperately to carry her away. And she would have gladly allowed them to take her to her red-haired Reno, but knew that it would solve nothing. For if she left, who would annoy the living daylights out of Squall "I-said-it's-Leon" Leonhart? She had to stay for Cid. For Aerith. And Cloud. And Sora. And Kairi. And Sq-er, Leon. For, as much as she disliked admitting it, they were her only family.

So, she closed her eyes and felt the sun plant gentle kisses along her skin, leaving a familiar, sweet taste on her lips. She could practically feel his embrace once more as she stood there in chest-deep water, eyes closed, smiling softly.

"I'll be back by mornin'... Promise."