A new Yuffentine, surprise! I know, I need to finish the ones I've already posted. Anyways, this first chapter goes pretty fast, but I needed to jump into the action pretty quick. I plan to only make this ten chapters or so, and not nearly as long as Single White Rose. Only two to three thousand words per chapter.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything read here!

My morning progressed much like any other boring morning at the World Regenesis Organization: I had a cup of crap-tastic coffee in one hand and a file that I faked reading in the other. Reeve had this delightfully pissed look on his face as his attention darted from one of the corporation's executives to me, and back again. His eyes kept shooting me threats, each some unspoken way of how he'd punish me (more paperwork, presumably) if I fell asleep one more time during a company meeting. Yawn. Ever since Reeve's organization had become a world economic and government empire, the meetings got progressively more boring. The general manager of the Planet, as I had dubbed Reeve, had his plate pretty full with juggling the increasingly strong corporation. He'd dragged Vincent back into the mix once more, even though the vampire had demanded that his part in the cause ended with Deepground, and shoved him into position as the commander-in-chief of all warfare power – military, navy, airforce, and so on. I actually felt sorry for the guy. On top of that, Vincent headed the department of combat strategy, a not too easy job. After about a year or so, Reeve promoted dear old Mr. Valentine to second-in-command, the vice prez!

He was so pissed off.

About halfway through Mr. Who-Cares-What-His-Name-Is-Anyways' presentation, my eyelids were just too heavy and sleep was far too tempting, and I thought, 'Screw you, Tuesti. If I fall asleep, you can shove the paperwork on me. I'll just start a rumor that you're gay. See how long Shelke sticks with you then.'

Yeah, I fell asleep feelin' puh-riii-tty smug.

"Miss Kisaragi!"

I jolted awake, my brown eyes wide in alarm. A couple of snots hid their arrogant smirks and cackles behind their fist, and I shot them a look that would've made them drop dead if I possessed the capability. They shut up immediately. A cough brought my attention back to the speaker.

"How have the espionage trainees progressed?"

Ugh. I forgot about them for all of one hour – and that had been a damn blissful hour, too. Now, staring back at the punk that conveniently picked on me, I had to talk about them. "Let's face it. They're hopeless." Vincent's eyes met mine from across the table, and I could have sworn he was smirking and a little amusement hid in his crimson eyes. Infectiously, I smirked back, full-out grinning as I continued, "Reeve, you can lead a chocobo to water, but you can't make it drink. Just ask Cait Sith, he's seen 'em! I taught the ingrates everything I know, and they don't do a damn thing. It's like they're brains are mush. It's kind of creepy, actually – they stare at me with their beady little eyes, like they're tryin' to control me with their demon-telekinesis!"

At this, the gunslinger shook his head, his long onyx hair falling in front of his face as he responded with some mirth, "Demons cannot control people with their minds, Yuffie. And, in any case, your recruits are six-year-olds, not mindless robots."

"Could 'a' fooled me," I mumbled under my breath, but the ex-Turk-turned-corporate-powerhouse-vice heard me and raised any eyebrow. Damn those advanced senses.

Reeve sighed, his eyes closed like the beginnings of a migraine were rapidly approaching. Maybe they were. He stood after a moment, looked each of us in the eyes, and declared, "You are all dismissed."

"Hell yeah!" I cried, pumping my fist in the air. These things sucked the life right out of me – hey, it was kinda like my robot-recruit-children-of-the-corn…

A finger tapped my shoulder and I turned to face Vincent, a deep blush threatening to creep into my cheeks as I fully admired him for the first time that morning. His tailored black suit with a crimson tie fit his dark hair, blood-red eyes, and pale complexion. A hint of a smile played at his lips and, confound it all, I wanted to swoon.

"Hey, Vinnie!" I greeted, grinning at him and trying not to lose my cool. "Is there somethin' ya need?"

The handsome gunslinger extended his hand, a file clasped in it. I took it and flipped it open, examining the contents. It was some garble of mess that I really didn't even bother to read. After I closed it, I looked back up to find the gunslinger regarding me with an expression that I couldn't quite place. At last, he nodded and turned, leaving the room. I watched his exit, missing his presence already. Since our time together during Deepground, Vince and I had quickly become good friends. He and I were almost as close as I was to Tifa, and that was saying something.

"May I talk to you, Miss Kisaragi?"

With an audible groan, I turned to my boss and flashed him a pseudo-smile, making sure he knew it was forced. Reeve's eye twitched, and I just knew he wanted to roll them. He led me away from the conference room toward his office, his hand on my elbow. I grinned as he shut the door and met my eyes with a wary gaze.

"So, Reevester, what's it gonna be? More paperwork? Janitorial duty? Wait, no more recruits!"

The commissioner sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. A frown made itself known on my face. Something was definitely weighing heavy on his mind. Usually, he either rose to my bait, or joked along with me. We'd come to be pretty good friends, too, so this behavior seemed rather odd to me. "Reevey, are you okay?"

"You have to leave, Yuffie. You are released from your duties as the head of espionage and intelligence."

That shocked the cocky attitude right out of me. What the hell was he doing!? He couldn't fire me! "I don't understa-"

The president raised his hand, his eyes not meeting mine as he interjected, "Please, Yuffie. Don't make this harder than it has to be."

I wanted to hit Reeve, or scream, or maybe even cry. I loved my job, even if I complained about it more than I did it. Every day I got to come in and see Vincent, Reeve, Elena, Tseng, all of my friends – and I liked to think I did my job damn well! So this cryptic chocobo crap really pissed me off.

"Give me one good reason why you're letting me go," I spat, my eyes narrowed to slits as Reeve finally looked at me, his face withdrawn. My voice held a firm determination, not to mention all of the venom I could muster under the circumstances. Which was quite a lot.

"Because your father has summoned you to Wutai to take the thrown."

Well, he had me at that.

"Another round," I ordered Tifa, my face sunken miserably as I leaned my cheek on my palm. The confrontation with Reeve had ended with my jumping up and slamming the door on my way out. My heart had hurt too much and my pride was too wounded to stick around and argue my case to the president. My hair-brained father didn't seem to get that I denounced my title as princess to live my life as I saw fit, not how Wutai did. Sure, my heart contained nothing but love for my country and people, but nothing and no one was gonna dictate how I acted and what I chose to do with my life.

The buxom barmaid bit her lower lip, wine-colored eyes brimming with hesitation. She held my glass, staring at it as if some inner-war raged in her head. After a moment, she protested, "Yuffs, I think you've had enou-"

As much as I loved Tifa, the woman had just hit a nerve that only three hours prior, Reeve Tuesti had prodded at until it festered and jolted at the slightest agitation. With a low growl, I bit back, "Tifa, don't you dare start telling me how to live my life, too."

With a piercingly guilty mien, she placed the glass on the counter and whipped around, grabbing a bottle of some amber-colored liquid before pouring it hastily into the tumbler, fumbling, "I'm sorry, Yu, I wasn't trying to-"

My hand closed over the top of my best friend's trembling one, my eyes falling on the now overflowing glass. Tentatively, she placed the bottle back on the counter, not looking at me. It filled me with a sense of guilt that I'd upset her, since I knew she only worried about me. She wasn't any happier about my predicament than I was.

"Nah, Teef, don't apologize. I'm the one who should be sorry – you're just taking care of me. Thanks, Mom, but I got it."

A small smile cracked as she finally met my gaze, sliding the glass into the space in front of me. I raised it to my lips and let the liquid slide down my throat, burning it a little. Placing the now empty glass back onto the counter, my hands still clasped around it (I had no intentions of being done after that shot), I turned to my left to find Vincent staring at me, a displeased expression on his handsome face. It took everything I had not to jump or scream. How he just appeared out of thin air never ceased to amaze me.

"Vinnie," I greeted nervously, my eyes flitting from him to Tifa. With a scheming look in her eyes, the barmaid excused herself to go clean a table at the other side of Seventh Heaven. That just left me and the ever-disappointed-looking vampire. "Sup?"

With a very decided motion, the ex-Turk took the glass from my hands and placed it to the far side of him, crossing his arms afterward. "Yuffie, you should not be drinking yourself into a stupor."

Okay, that ticked me the heck off. Here I'd just gotten through telling Tifa to keep her nose where it belonged, and she was my closest friend. No way was Valentine going to get away with the same crap.

"I don't think it's your place to say anything." He glared in return, his crimson eyes swimming with some emotion akin to anger and dissatisfaction. "I don't remember asking you."

The gunslinger stood in a fluid motion, grabbing the glass rather forcefully before slamming it into the counter in front of me, the tumbler shattering. His eyes flashed with callousness as he fixed me with one last gaze. Finally, he hissed, "If you choose to act like a foolish child and drink yourself into oblivion, have at it. I won't be attending your funeral. Goodbye, Yuffie."

With that, he whipped out of the bar, his face expressionless aside from the storm that raged in his blood-red orbs. Tifa jerked her head to look at me with a wide-eyed expression. After a moment, she ran out the door, taking off after the ex-Turk. I remained in my seat, feeling slightly shamefaced that I'd upset him, too. Vincent had a tendency of freaking out when people threatened their health – damn, Lucrecia. She did it to him. Never would he stop being so protective of those he cared for, he'd forever continue to try to 'save them'.

A couple of moments later, the martial artist returned, sighing as she leaned against the counter beside me. She cleaned up the glass mess that Vincent had made, remaining silent though I could tell she was almost bursting at the seams.

"Ugh, what, Tifa?"

"You really upset him, Yuffie." Tifa hung her head, shaking it lightly. "He came to say goodbye before you left, you know. He's got to go to Junon tonight to check up on the monster population. He… He's going to miss you, Yuffie. You're his closest friend, and you're about to take the throne. You'll be gone, preoccupied with your Wutain priorities. We won't see you for a long time, if ever again…"

As if I didn't feel bad enough as it was… "I… I was trying not to think about Wutai."

"It's all he was thinking about." Her reply came immediately, followed through in an unwavering voice. She pinned me with a very intense look, one that screamed, 'Go after him!'

With a sudden burst of energy, I tore out of Seventh Heaven, knocking my stool over in the process. Through the streets I raced, my legs carrying me as fast as my ninja-ness would permit. The ache that accompanied long distance running soon made itself known, and my legs began to burn, but still I flew across the town, trying to get to the transportation center.

After roughly ten minutes, I could see a flash of a red tie in the distance. I followed the cloth up to the eyes of its owner, almost crying out in joy as I met crimson. Immediately, the color darkened to the shade of dried blood, and a scowl broke out on the otherwise beautiful face.

"Vincent!" I shouted, feeling tears prick at my eyes from exertion. He turned, facing the ticket window, his lips moving quickly, almost like the sentence had no pauses between the words. "Vincent!" A little slip of paper was slid beneath the glass, and the gunslinger collected it, grabbing his bags. "Vincent!" His long black hair whipped in the wind as he made his way to the bus port. "Vincent Valentine, please wait!"

The door to the bus opened, letting out a stream of people as I closed the distance. The gunslinger seemed to grow anxious, shifting his weight as he gritted his teeth and glared at the many people pouring out of the vehicle. "Vincent, please!" I could feel honest tears trailing down my cheeks now. I could taste victory as a mere ten feet remained between us. I knew I had won.

And then the bus pulled away, and with a sick, knife-like pang in my gut, I watched crimson eyes meet mine from behind a blue pane, traveling away from me faster than I could run.

I hope you all liked it! The next chapter will have to do with Yuffie's trip and return to Wutai, and from there, she will resume her duties as the proper lady of Wutai. Now and then, we'll hear from Vince ;)

Even if it's not your thing, please leave a review and tell me what you did and didn't like, because the story only gets better, and the writer only improves if the critics tell her what she's doing wrong and right.