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Description
Chapter Twelve
Development

At Vincent’s room…

Vincent set the bag on his dresser and immediately started digging through it to see what he’d gotten. As he read the labels to himself, Syren read them out loud.
“Two tails, four t-bones, three hearts, six rib racks, five loins and five flanks. Oh! Another heart! This is a good selection. Too bad you didn’t get any liver!” she said in cheerful disappointment.  Vincent could hardly contain his hunger as he reached for a package of flank and tore it open as he sat down cross-legged in front of the dresser across from his bed. The smell of blood nearly drove him mad, but he did his best to calmly bite into the meat. He swallowed, and then got ready for another mouthful before pausing…suddenly realizing that he was eating raw meat. He stared down it, stunned by what he just did.
“Don’t let it bother you.” said Syren, unwrapping one of the t-bones.
‘She was watching me?’
“You won’t get sick from it, if that’s what it is.” Vincent shook his head.
“It’s just…I didn’t even realize until I swallowed it…” he trailed of still staring at the meat in his hand.
“Oh, well! As long as you still have that virus running through your system, that’ll keep happening.  It’s part of your development as a werewolf. Get over it. Besides, it’s only raw meat. That doesn’t stop it from being food.” She calmly took a seat next to him and started taking small bites from her steak. Vincent watched her for a moment like she was insane, before turning his attention back to his own steak and taking another guilty bite out of it. Despite how crazy she sounded, he felt that she was right. Even though he couldn’t stand the smell or taste of blood before, right now the virus was causing him to crave it. He didn’t have to make it harder on himself by fighting it, so for the moment he would just have to accept it and eat quietly.
Syren was just about to take another bite when she looked up and spotted the book on his bed. She got up and picked it up, reading the title.
“What’s this?” she asked, fingering the golden-etched title.
“Hm?” Vincent looked up and stared at the book. “Oh, yeah. That’s the book that Nanaki gave me. He told me that it might help me understand what it is I’ll be dealing with.”
“It might.” She had begun flipping through the book and reading a few passages. She seemed satisfied at what she was reading, as though she was expecting flaws in the text, but finding none. She closed the book and nodded her approval.
“Yes, it should help a lot.” She went to get out another package of meat before sitting back down next to him.

Just as Vincent was about to start eating his last steak, a familiar scent caught his attention. Without thinking, he started sniffing the air. Syren, who had begun placing empty packages back in the paper bag, heard him and started scenting the air with him. Obviously, she was better at scenting than he was, because in a moment she said,
“Smells like your mate is here! And she has the red one with her.” Vincent suddenly panicked. What would Yuffie think if she saw him with a slab of raw heart in his hand and a small trace of blood on his lips? He jumped when he heard foot and paw steps coming up the stairs. He had no choice but to scarf the meat down as quickly as he could. He started tearing and swallowing, not even bothering to chew, and almost choking because of it. He finished the last piece just in time, as a knock came from the door followed by Yuffie’s voice.
“Vinnie? Vinnie, please.  Open the door.”  Vincent got up to open the door, but Syren beat him to it, bag in hand.
“Vinnie? Wait! Who..?” she looked in the room to see Vincent standing behind the woman in front of her. Syren held her hand out to shake and put on a friendly smile.
“I’m Syren, Vincent’s mentor. I’ll be teaching him how to control himself before he turns.”
“Mentor?” Yuffie reluctantly took her hand and shook.  ‘How does she know?!’
“Yes. But he’ll need you a lot more than he’ll need me, miss-?”
“My name is Yuffie.”
“Yuffie. That’s quite a pretty name.” Syren gave Yuffie a warm smile. She turned her attention to the crimson lion dog next to her.
“And you are?” she asked Nanaki, still smiling.
“My name is Nanaki, Miss Syren, although you can also call me Red XIII. Tell me, Miss Syren. Are you, by any chance, the one that attacked Vincent that night?” he asked calmly.
“No. That was my sister, Nerys. But trust me; she isn’t at all proud of what she did.” She said sincerely, turning to Vincent. “I meant to tell you earlier that she sends her deepest apologies and says to let her know if there is anything she can do to repay you.”  Vincent shook his head, signifying that he had no intention of making her pay. Syren nodded. “She’ll be a little disappointed, but if you’re sure.” Vincent nodded. “Alright.”
She turned back to Yuffie, catching something flickering in her gaze that seemed to her like jealousy. Then she leaned in, whispering, “Don’t worry. I’m not interested in him the way you are.” Yuffie jumped and blushed looking at her like she was mad.
“Wha-what?!”
“What are you waiting for? Go get him!” Syren said quietly, grinning encouragingly. She stepped aside to let Yuffie and Nanaki in before stepping out the door.
“I’ll be back tomorrow to take you to my place. It’ll be safer if you were there and not here, where you could easily attack someone.” She caught the confused look Vincent gave her and continued, “Even if you don’t change, moonlight will still affect you.” She looked at Yuffie and Nanaki. “You two are welcome to come, too, if you like. I’d actually prefer you come with us seeing as you’d both be able to help with his control. So, I’ll see you guys later, then?”
Vincent nodded.
“Yeah,” Yuffie replied.
“Of course,” said Nanaki.
“Alright!” Syren grinned again. “Bye, then!” and she closed the door and left.

After a moment of silence, Yuffie spoke.
“Vinnie…I…I’m really sorry about how I shouted at you earlier…I guess I can sorta understand why you’d shut people out like that…you just…don’t want to see anyone get hurt, right?” Yuffie looked up and met his gaze hopefully. When Vincent shook his head, her heart sunk and she felt like crying again until he spoke.
“No. I am the one who should apologize, Yuffie.” The young ninja looked up at him with wide eyes. “It wasn’t fair for me to be angry at you for worrying and wanting to help me. I understand what it’s like to have someone close to you to be hurt, and I understand what it’s like to worry about them.  I know what a terrible feeling it is. That was exactly why I wanted to hide it from you and the others. But also because I wanted to protect you from any dangers this could bring.”
“Vinnie…” Yuffie couldn’t exactly word how she felt at the moment.
“But now I see that isn’t exactly the way to go. So I’ll let you and Nanaki come with me if that’s what you want. But I don’t wan to tell the others about this. At least not, yet. Is that…okay with you..?” he asked her. Yuffie was on the verge of tears when she nodded and smiled, allowing a single tear to roll down her cheek. Vincent saw this and gently brought his hand up to wipe it away with his thumb.  Vincent brought her close to him and wrapped his arms around her warmly, resting his hand on her head. Yuffie rested her ear against his chest and listened contentedly. Her eyes were closed, but they immediately opened when she heard his racing heartbeat. She looked up, expecting to see him grimacing in pain, but instead she saw his eyes closed blissfully and he had a small smile on his handsome face. She smiled and rested her head back against his chest.
‘Does this mean..? Does this mean…he feels the same..?’
Vincent backed up a little until he was sitting on the bed with Yuffie cradled in his lap, resting his chin on her head.  Sitting there, he felt like there was nowhere else he’d rather be.
“Vincent?” asked Nanaki, breaking the silence.
“Hm?”
“Why does it smell like blood in here?”
‘Aw, crap. How could I forget about the smell?!’ “You two promise you won’t think anything of it if I tell you?”
“Of course.”
“Promise.”
“I-I was…eating…raw meat…”
“Raw?!” Yuffie cried. However, she didn’t move from her position on his lap.
“I couldn’t stop myself. I just tore open the package and started eating. I didn’t even realize what I was doing. But Syren told me not to bother resisting the urge to eat it. She said it was part of my development as a…” his voice trailed away, looking away at the word he couldn’t say.
“It’s okay, Vinnie. I…it doesn’t bother me...” Vincent sighed, tightening his grip on her slightly and resting his forehead against her neck. She brought her hands up to pet his hair in solace, then put one of her hands on his jaw-line just behind his ear and traced her fingers lightly over to the underside of his chin. She continued to stroke him like that until she felt an odd jittery movement underneath her. Still stroking him, she looked down to see his right leg moving up and down rapidly in response to her attentions. She couldn’t help but giggle as she continued to stroke and pet him, emitting more movement from the stoic gunman.
“Wow, Vinnie. I didn’t know you liked being petted like this.” Yuffie said quietly, trying to suppress another wave of giggles.
“I didn’t know that either. Maybe this comes with turning.” He didn’t move from his position, nor did he stop moving his leg until Yuffie stopped stroking his jaw-line. But she was still lacing her fingers through his silky black hair, which was suddenly very interesting to her.
“Hey, Vinnie?”
“Hm?”
“How do you keep your hair so nice?”
“What do you mean?”
“What kind of shampoo do you use? What kind of comb do you have? Do you do anything to it to make it so soft?”
“To tell the truth, it’s natural. I do absolutely nothing to it, except comb it out in the shower.”
“That’s it?  No special shampoo or conditioner or something?” she was looking at him in awe.
“None.”
“Vincent?” said Nanaki, getting his attention.
“What?”
“Has the book been any help?” Vincent suddenly remembered that he hadn’t even begun to read it.
“Sorry. I actually haven’t started reading it, yet.” He remembered Syren flipping through it, and telling him that it was the right book to be reading. He reached behind him for the leather-bound book and repositioned Yuffie in his lap so that her back was to him. He rested his chin on top of her head and opened the book up and started flipping through it until he found the first page of information.
“Well, I think I’ll be heading back, now.  It’s getting dark. Please let me know when Miss Syren comes, will you?”
Vincent nodded.
“Alright!”
“You’re staying?” He asked. They both looked at the young ninja.
“If it’s alright with Vinnie.” Vincent nodded.
“Alright. I’ll see you both later on, then.” Yuffie got up to open the door for him.  He nodded his thanks and left.
“Later, Red!” Yuffie waved. She came back inside and sat her self back between Vincent’s legs, getting comfortable and smiling at the fact that Vincent wasn’t pushing her away or trying to back off. In fact, he was actually trying to snuggle her closer to him and get them both comfortable. Finally, he reopened the book to the page he’d saved and started reading silently to himself.
Yuffie looked at the page, and then realized she couldn’t read it. She looked up at Vincent and before she could say anything, he seemed to read her thoughts and began reading the passage out loud.

“Being bitten by a Werewolf is the beginning of Hell’s worst torments possible. Those who have been bitten know well the nightmare one is forced into. I am no exception…
I was only seventeen when I was bitten…I was wandering the woods on a foolish dare. Those woods were supposed to be home to a local Werewolf, who had rarely been seen, yet was feared by all. My friends dared me to go into the woods on the full moon and spend the night there. I didn’t think much of it, since I grew up being told that Werewolves were simply myths and legends. But when I entered the line of trees, I felt a strange foreboding about the place. I ignored the feeling, unaware that I was turning away from my last chance to live a normal life. Then...in the middle of the night, in the heat of the full moon, it came. I had heard its howl, nearly an hour earlier, long and mournful. And when I did, the realization struck me like a punch to the throat: it was too late to flee. I knew there was no escape now. There was nothing left but to wait for it to come. And when it did, when it had me in its iron grasp, and its terrifying fangs around my neck…I knew there could be no going back to the life I used to know. And when it bit down, sinking its fangs into me, it seemed to me like an eternity, filled with pain, the taste of my own blood, and the sound of my own agonized screaming…
“I remember the fear and disorientation I felt at dawn when I came to. I could hardly move, and the pain coursing through my body was like my blood had become acid…
Yuffie gasped. “Is…that what you felt, Vinnie..?” When Vincent nodded gravely, Yuffie almost felt like crying for him and snuggled even closer. Vincent’s earlier question to her came back to him.
‘Why is she being so demonstrative, lately?’ he wondered. He’d wait until after he was done reading to ask her.
“I eventually had to force myself to move and find a stream where I could at least wash the blood away to make myself presentable in front of my friends… no…not my friends. It was because of them that I would have to endure an eternity of this nightmare. But I found myself thinking that if only I had not been so naïve, I could’ve refused and prevented the whole thing. I suppose, in a sense, everyone was to blame.
“I returned to the village, staggering and still very sore, looking for my family and friends. When I found them, they looked at me in fear as if I were some monster. My mother, I could tell wanted to embrace me. But she only turned away and wept. My heart wrenched at the sight. My earlier intention was to tell them what had happened…but it appeared as though no words were needed, now.
Yuffie gasped when he read it, and she brought her hands up to her mouth in shock. Vincent looked down at her, then turned the page and continued reading.
“I left that night, in search of a quiet place, away from people, taking nothing with me except for a journal, a pencil, and the only being who didn’t fear what I had become; my dog, Emmy. The journal, I used with the purpose of writing everything I experienced as a Werewolf in perfect detail and with the intention of donating it to a library, and hopefully made into copies, so that other newly turned Weres would not have to endure the same dread and confusion I did when I was turned. And I hope, dear reader, that, whether you are a young Were looking for some sort of comfort in the form of answered questions or simply curious as to the enigmatic life of Werewolves, you find what you are looking for within the passages of this journal.

~ Vincent Donnaham

Vincent ended the note and decided he’d read enough for the moment.  He closed the book and sighed.
‘Well, that was a cheerful prologue…’
“Wow. He’s got the same name as you, Vinnie!” Yuffie was looking up at him to see what his reaction was.
“It seems so. And he seems to be every bit as dark and brooding as I am…” Yuffie took the book out of his hand and opened it back up, shaking her head.
“No. The way he’s talking, it sounds like he’s trying to sympathize and make the best of his situation.  Besides, you’ll never know until you meet the guy.  Hey, there’re pictures of him back here!” She found a pocket attached to the back cover of the book. There were several pictures of a young man and a large black dog that he guessed were Vincent and his Emmy.
“Look, Vinnie! He even looks a bit like you. Except his hair looks a bit dirtier...” Yuffie was flipping through the pictures and placing them in a pile on the bed for Vincent to look at. Indeed, they looked very similar to each other. Only instead of having red eyes, this Vincent had emerald green eyes.
‘Green…Yuffie’s favorite color. Oh, the irony…’ he thought sarcastically, lying back on the bed when he finished looking at the pictures.
“I wonder if you two could be related.” Yuffie thought out loud.
“Not a chance. Last time I checked, I have no siblings and I have no cousins.”
“Hmm…” Yuffie turned over and laid herself right next to the silent gunslinger. His eyes were closed and she couldn’t help but steal a long, appreciative glance at his handsome face.
“You know…” he started, making her jump. He didn’t open his eyes, but he smirked.
“You never answered my question the other day…”
Yuffie was confused. “Huh? Question? What question?”
“Why have you been so much more affectionate than usual?” He didn’t have to open his eyes to know that she was blushing. He could practically feel the heat radiating off her cheeks.
“Oh, that! Um…w-well…I j-just…I-I kinda…oh, man…” she was so embarrassed that she couldn’t even finish her sentence.
‘Dammit, Vinnie! Why did you have to ask me that?! I always thought you were the perceptive guy who understood body language!!! Wait! Does he know that I like him? Is he just waiting to see if I can tell him myself? Maybe he’ll think I’m a coward if I don’t just tell him!!’
“Well?” he asked still awaiting her answer.
‘Here goes…’ “The reason is that…I really, really…like you…very much, Vinnie…I probably shouldn’t even be using the word ‘like’…” her voice trailed off, and his eyes shot open at her confession. He definitely had not been expecting that. He slowly sat up and propped himself up on his elbow to look at her. Yep. She was blushing. Furiously.
“You what..?” he asked, barely above a whisper.
“I love you!!!” Yuffie cried, eyes shut.  Her cheeks, if it was even possible, turned an even deeper shade of red. She turned away, obviously flustered by the fact that she had to repeat herself. Vincent was speechless for a moment, dumbstruck.  Her confession gave rise to other questions. Why did she love him? And more importantly, did he love her back? He mulled over the last thought, turning it over and over in his head. He realized that he did, but he’d refused to hope with the thought that if Yuffie didn’t feel the same for him, he wouldn’t feel hurt. But now, hearing her tell him that she did, he felt that he’d had the right to hope all along, and it made his heart leap. The picture steadily grew larger in his mind, making way for other possibilities. Nothing stood between them, like it had with Lucrecia. This time, nothing could make her turn away from him except himself.  He was finally allowed to love freely.
After a moment without any response, Yuffie felt that she shouldn’t have even said anything. Was he mad at her? Disgusted? Awkward? Probably all three.
‘He probably doesn’t even like me back. He doesn’t feel the same. Why the hell did I let myself think there was a chance?’ She felt a tear slide down her cheek.
“I’m sorry…I shouldn’t have said that…” Yuffie said quietly. Vincent couldn’t help but laugh at that. Did she think that he didn’t love her back?
“Why?” he asked her, a small smile playing at his lips.  Yuffie turned around; tears were streaming from her wide, stormy eyes.  Again, he reached his hand out to wipe the tears away, and then let his hand rest on her cheek, giving her a soft and amorous look.
“Did you…think that I don’t feel the same..?” Even though these words were true and calmly spoken, his heart couldn’t help but hammer nervously.
Yuffie could’ve sworn her heart nearly burst with joy. The intensity with which he was looking at her drew her in and made her believe that this was real. He slid his hand to cup to back of her neck and bring her in closer to him. He pushed himself up to meet her, closing his eyes slowly, their lips gently locking in a tender, passionate kiss. He lifted himself up in a sitting position and brought her closer, deepening the kiss, resting his claw on her exposed hip. Yuffie broke the kiss with a gasp, as a shiver was sent through her body; partially because of the area of contact, partially because the metal was cold. Vincent felt her shiver, growing slightly excited as he trailed soft kisses down her neck. Her hands traveled up from his waist to rest on his sculpted chest, and then traveled up again to caress his smooth jaw line, and wrapping her arms around him as he trailed more hungry kisses down the soft skin of her neck. He laid her back down on the bed, wedging his hips between her shapely thighs. She moaned slightly at the contact of his hardening length against her, causing him to groan, signifying his growing arousal. He brought his claw up to rest beside her head, trapping her in another heated kiss, his tongue begging for entry. She complied eagerly, each hungrily exploring the others mouth, enjoying the others taste. Vincent’s human hand traveled down her waist, tracing little patterns around her tight belly, causing her to moan several times into the kiss. He growled in a primal manner in response, deep from within his chest, exciting the young ninja beneath him, his hand eventually travelling lower to the button fly of her shorts.  He broke the kiss, leaving her gasping for breath, trailing even more kisses, and this time licks, down her neck. She entwined her thin fingers in his dark locks, her own arousal growing with every searing kiss. He loved the feel of the warm creamy skin, her taste, and he could feel her pulse just beneath it. He felt compelled to bite down on it, licking his lips at the thought. As he did this, he felt a small prick on the tip of his tongue. His eyes shot open and he froze at that, searching at the front of his mouth with his tongue. No, he hadn’t imagined it. There was a pair of fangs protruding farther down than the rest of his teeth. And he’d nearly bitten her.
“Vinnie?” Yuffie asked, her expectant voice laced with concern. “Why’d you stop?”
“I think we should stop this, before something goes wrong…” he said, hanging his head.
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“I almost bit you…”
“So what? I was about to do the same thing to you!”
“No, you don’t understand. Look…” He pulled his lips back to show her his new fangs. Yuffie’s eyes widened and then grew sympathetic as he looked away in frustration and self disgust.
‘Okay. Maybe there’s something that’ll get in the way…’ He growled at the thought, dragging his fingers and claws along the sheets and balling them into fists in frustration.
“It’s okay, Vinnie. We can do it when we change you back.” Vincent gave a humorless laugh at that. But he felt some of his confidence boost at her words. At least she had faith that they would find a way to turn him back. He looked back at her, his expression soft. Yuffie brought her hand up to his cheek, pushing herself up into a sitting position.
‘Well, at least it’s not coming all the way between us. I guess I don’t mind it all that much. Just being here, with her, like this…’ A small smile appeared on his face at the thought, as he was leaning forward to kiss the young ninja on the cheek and laying himself down, resting his head on her lap. Yuffie’s heart fluttered as he laid himself down on her lap, still not pushing her away as he would’ve done before after almost harming her.  She started lacing her fingers through his silky raven hair, emitting a sigh of contentment from the crimson-eyed gunner.

Little more than an hour or so passed by in the dark. By this time, Vincent was fast asleep in Yuffie’s arms, who had decided to lay herself next to him, caressing his head close to her chest. Sometime in the night, he’d brought his arm up to rest his claw on her side, his human hand buried under her to wrap around her waist.

Description
Chapter Twelve
Development

At Vincent’s room…

Vincent set the bag on his dresser and immediately started digging through it to see what he’d gotten. As he read the labels to himself, Syren read them out loud.
“Two tails, four t-bones, three hearts, six rib racks, five loins and five flanks. Oh! Another heart! This is a good selection. Too bad you didn’t get any liver!” she said in cheerful disappointment.  Vincent could hardly contain his hunger as he reached for a package of flank and tore it open as he sat down cross-legged in front of the dresser across from his bed. The smell of blood nearly drove him mad, but he did his best to calmly bite into the meat. He swallowed, and then got ready for another mouthful before pausing…suddenly realizing that he was eating raw meat. He stared down it, stunned by what he just did.
“Don’t let it bother you.” said Syren, unwrapping one of the t-bones.
‘She was watching me?’
“You won’t get sick from it, if that’s what it is.” Vincent shook his head.
“It’s just…I didn’t even realize until I swallowed it…” he trailed of still staring at the meat in his hand.
“Oh, well! As long as you still have that virus running through your system, that’ll keep happening.  It’s part of your development as a werewolf. Get over it. Besides, it’s only raw meat. That doesn’t stop it from being food.” She calmly took a seat next to him and started taking small bites from her steak. Vincent watched her for a moment like she was insane, before turning his attention back to his own steak and taking another guilty bite out of it. Despite how crazy she sounded, he felt that she was right. Even though he couldn’t stand the smell or taste of blood before, right now the virus was causing him to crave it. He didn’t have to make it harder on himself by fighting it, so for the moment he would just have to accept it and eat quietly.
Syren was just about to take another bite when she looked up and spotted the book on his bed. She got up and picked it up, reading the title.
“What’s this?” she asked, fingering the golden-etched title.
“Hm?” Vincent looked up and stared at the book. “Oh, yeah. That’s the book that Nanaki gave me. He told me that it might help me understand what it is I’ll be dealing with.”
“It might.” She had begun flipping through the book and reading a few passages. She seemed satisfied at what she was reading, as though she was expecting flaws in the text, but finding none. She closed the book and nodded her approval.
“Yes, it should help a lot.” She went to get out another package of meat before sitting back down next to him.

Just as Vincent was about to start eating his last steak, a familiar scent caught his attention. Without thinking, he started sniffing the air. Syren, who had begun placing empty packages back in the paper bag, heard him and started scenting the air with him. Obviously, she was better at scenting than he was, because in a moment she said,
“Smells like your mate is here! And she has the red one with her.” Vincent suddenly panicked. What would Yuffie think if she saw him with a slab of raw heart in his hand and a small trace of blood on his lips? He jumped when he heard foot and paw steps coming up the stairs. He had no choice but to scarf the meat down as quickly as he could. He started tearing and swallowing, not even bothering to chew, and almost choking because of it. He finished the last piece just in time, as a knock came from the door followed by Yuffie’s voice.
“Vinnie? Vinnie, please.  Open the door.”  Vincent got up to open the door, but Syren beat him to it, bag in hand.
“Vinnie? Wait! Who..?” she looked in the room to see Vincent standing behind the woman in front of her. Syren held her hand out to shake and put on a friendly smile.
“I’m Syren, Vincent’s mentor. I’ll be teaching him how to control himself before he turns.”
“Mentor?” Yuffie reluctantly took her hand and shook.  ‘How does she know?!’
“Yes. But he’ll need you a lot more than he’ll need me, miss-?”
“My name is Yuffie.”
“Yuffie. That’s quite a pretty name.” Syren gave Yuffie a warm smile. She turned her attention to the crimson lion dog next to her.
“And you are?” she asked Nanaki, still smiling.
“My name is Nanaki, Miss Syren, although you can also call me Red XIII. Tell me, Miss Syren. Are you, by any chance, the one that attacked Vincent that night?” he asked calmly.
“No. That was my sister, Nerys. But trust me; she isn’t at all proud of what she did.” She said sincerely, turning to Vincent. “I meant to tell you earlier that she sends her deepest apologies and says to let her know if there is anything she can do to repay you.”  Vincent shook his head, signifying that he had no intention of making her pay. Syren nodded. “She’ll be a little disappointed, but if you’re sure.” Vincent nodded. “Alright.”
She turned back to Yuffie, catching something flickering in her gaze that seemed to her like jealousy. Then she leaned in, whispering, “Don’t worry. I’m not interested in him the way you are.” Yuffie jumped and blushed looking at her like she was mad.
“Wha-what?!”
“What are you waiting for? Go get him!” Syren said quietly, grinning encouragingly. She stepped aside to let Yuffie and Nanaki in before stepping out the door.
“I’ll be back tomorrow to take you to my place. It’ll be safer if you were there and not here, where you could easily attack someone.” She caught the confused look Vincent gave her and continued, “Even if you don’t change, moonlight will still affect you.” She looked at Yuffie and Nanaki. “You two are welcome to come, too, if you like. I’d actually prefer you come with us seeing as you’d both be able to help with his control. So, I’ll see you guys later, then?”
Vincent nodded.
“Yeah,” Yuffie replied.
“Of course,” said Nanaki.
“Alright!” Syren grinned again. “Bye, then!” and she closed the door and left.

After a moment of silence, Yuffie spoke.
“Vinnie…I…I’m really sorry about how I shouted at you earlier…I guess I can sorta understand why you’d shut people out like that…you just…don’t want to see anyone get hurt, right?” Yuffie looked up and met his gaze hopefully. When Vincent shook his head, her heart sunk and she felt like crying again until he spoke.
“No. I am the one who should apologize, Yuffie.” The young ninja looked up at him with wide eyes. “It wasn’t fair for me to be angry at you for worrying and wanting to help me. I understand what it’s like to have someone close to you to be hurt, and I understand what it’s like to worry about them.  I know what a terrible feeling it is. That was exactly why I wanted to hide it from you and the others. But also because I wanted to protect you from any dangers this could bring.”
“Vinnie…” Yuffie couldn’t exactly word how she felt at the moment.
“But now I see that isn’t exactly the way to go. So I’ll let you and Nanaki come with me if that’s what you want. But I don’t wan to tell the others about this. At least not, yet. Is that…okay with you..?” he asked her. Yuffie was on the verge of tears when she nodded and smiled, allowing a single tear to roll down her cheek. Vincent saw this and gently brought his hand up to wipe it away with his thumb.  Vincent brought her close to him and wrapped his arms around her warmly, resting his hand on her head. Yuffie rested her ear against his chest and listened contentedly. Her eyes were closed, but they immediately opened when she heard his racing heartbeat. She looked up, expecting to see him grimacing in pain, but instead she saw his eyes closed blissfully and he had a small smile on his handsome face. She smiled and rested her head back against his chest.
‘Does this mean..? Does this mean…he feels the same..?’
Vincent backed up a little until he was sitting on the bed with Yuffie cradled in his lap, resting his chin on her head.  Sitting there, he felt like there was nowhere else he’d rather be.
“Vincent?” asked Nanaki, breaking the silence.
“Hm?”
“Why does it smell like blood in here?”
‘Aw, crap. How could I forget about the smell?!’ “You two promise you won’t think anything of it if I tell you?”
“Of course.”
“Promise.”
“I-I was…eating…raw meat…”
“Raw?!” Yuffie cried. However, she didn’t move from her position on his lap.
“I couldn’t stop myself. I just tore open the package and started eating. I didn’t even realize what I was doing. But Syren told me not to bother resisting the urge to eat it. She said it was part of my development as a…” his voice trailed away, looking away at the word he couldn’t say.
“It’s okay, Vinnie. I…it doesn’t bother me...” Vincent sighed, tightening his grip on her slightly and resting his forehead against her neck. She brought her hands up to pet his hair in solace, then put one of her hands on his jaw-line just behind his ear and traced her fingers lightly over to the underside of his chin. She continued to stroke him like that until she felt an odd jittery movement underneath her. Still stroking him, she looked down to see his right leg moving up and down rapidly in response to her attentions. She couldn’t help but giggle as she continued to stroke and pet him, emitting more movement from the stoic gunman.
“Wow, Vinnie. I didn’t know you liked being petted like this.” Yuffie said quietly, trying to suppress another wave of giggles.
“I didn’t know that either. Maybe this comes with turning.” He didn’t move from his position, nor did he stop moving his leg until Yuffie stopped stroking his jaw-line. But she was still lacing her fingers through his silky black hair, which was suddenly very interesting to her.
“Hey, Vinnie?”
“Hm?”
“How do you keep your hair so nice?”
“What do you mean?”
“What kind of shampoo do you use? What kind of comb do you have? Do you do anything to it to make it so soft?”
“To tell the truth, it’s natural. I do absolutely nothing to it, except comb it out in the shower.”
“That’s it?  No special shampoo or conditioner or something?” she was looking at him in awe.
“None.”
“Vincent?” said Nanaki, getting his attention.
“What?”
“Has the book been any help?” Vincent suddenly remembered that he hadn’t even begun to read it.
“Sorry. I actually haven’t started reading it, yet.” He remembered Syren flipping through it, and telling him that it was the right book to be reading. He reached behind him for the leather-bound book and repositioned Yuffie in his lap so that her back was to him. He rested his chin on top of her head and opened the book up and started flipping through it until he found the first page of information.
“Well, I think I’ll be heading back, now.  It’s getting dark. Please let me know when Miss Syren comes, will you?”
Vincent nodded.
“Alright!”
“You’re staying?” He asked. They both looked at the young ninja.
“If it’s alright with Vinnie.” Vincent nodded.
“Alright. I’ll see you both later on, then.” Yuffie got up to open the door for him.  He nodded his thanks and left.
“Later, Red!” Yuffie waved. She came back inside and sat her self back between Vincent’s legs, getting comfortable and smiling at the fact that Vincent wasn’t pushing her away or trying to back off. In fact, he was actually trying to snuggle her closer to him and get them both comfortable. Finally, he reopened the book to the page he’d saved and started reading silently to himself.
Yuffie looked at the page, and then realized she couldn’t read it. She looked up at Vincent and before she could say anything, he seemed to read her thoughts and began reading the passage out loud.

“Being bitten by a Werewolf is the beginning of Hell’s worst torments possible. Those who have been bitten know well the nightmare one is forced into. I am no exception…
I was only seventeen when I was bitten…I was wandering the woods on a foolish dare. Those woods were supposed to be home to a local Werewolf, who had rarely been seen, yet was feared by all. My friends dared me to go into the woods on the full moon and spend the night there. I didn’t think much of it, since I grew up being told that Werewolves were simply myths and legends. But when I entered the line of trees, I felt a strange foreboding about the place. I ignored the feeling, unaware that I was turning away from my last chance to live a normal life. Then...in the middle of the night, in the heat of the full moon, it came. I had heard its howl, nearly an hour earlier, long and mournful. And when I did, the realization struck me like a punch to the throat: it was too late to flee. I knew there was no escape now. There was nothing left but to wait for it to come. And when it did, when it had me in its iron grasp, and its terrifying fangs around my neck…I knew there could be no going back to the life I used to know. And when it bit down, sinking its fangs into me, it seemed to me like an eternity, filled with pain, the taste of my own blood, and the sound of my own agonized screaming…
“I remember the fear and disorientation I felt at dawn when I came to. I could hardly move, and the pain coursing through my body was like my blood had become acid…
Yuffie gasped. “Is…that what you felt, Vinnie..?” When Vincent nodded gravely, Yuffie almost felt like crying for him and snuggled even closer. Vincent’s earlier question to her came back to him.
‘Why is she being so demonstrative, lately?’ he wondered. He’d wait until after he was done reading to ask her.
“I eventually had to force myself to move and find a stream where I could at least wash the blood away to make myself presentable in front of my friends… no…not my friends. It was because of them that I would have to endure an eternity of this nightmare. But I found myself thinking that if only I had not been so naïve, I could’ve refused and prevented the whole thing. I suppose, in a sense, everyone was to blame.
“I returned to the village, staggering and still very sore, looking for my family and friends. When I found them, they looked at me in fear as if I were some monster. My mother, I could tell wanted to embrace me. But she only turned away and wept. My heart wrenched at the sight. My earlier intention was to tell them what had happened…but it appeared as though no words were needed, now.
Yuffie gasped when he read it, and she brought her hands up to her mouth in shock. Vincent looked down at her, then turned the page and continued reading.
“I left that night, in search of a quiet place, away from people, taking nothing with me except for a journal, a pencil, and the only being who didn’t fear what I had become; my dog, Emmy. The journal, I used with the purpose of writing everything I experienced as a Werewolf in perfect detail and with the intention of donating it to a library, and hopefully made into copies, so that other newly turned Weres would not have to endure the same dread and confusion I did when I was turned. And I hope, dear reader, that, whether you are a young Were looking for some sort of comfort in the form of answered questions or simply curious as to the enigmatic life of Werewolves, you find what you are looking for within the passages of this journal.

~ Vincent Donnaham

Vincent ended the note and decided he’d read enough for the moment.  He closed the book and sighed.
‘Well, that was a cheerful prologue…’
“Wow. He’s got the same name as you, Vinnie!” Yuffie was looking up at him to see what his reaction was.
“It seems so. And he seems to be every bit as dark and brooding as I am…” Yuffie took the book out of his hand and opened it back up, shaking her head.
“No. The way he’s talking, it sounds like he’s trying to sympathize and make the best of his situation.  Besides, you’ll never know until you meet the guy.  Hey, there’re pictures of him back here!” She found a pocket attached to the back cover of the book. There were several pictures of a young man and a large black dog that he guessed were Vincent and his Emmy.
“Look, Vinnie! He even looks a bit like you. Except his hair looks a bit dirtier...” Yuffie was flipping through the pictures and placing them in a pile on the bed for Vincent to look at. Indeed, they looked very similar to each other. Only instead of having red eyes, this Vincent had emerald green eyes.
‘Green…Yuffie’s favorite color. Oh, the irony…’ he thought sarcastically, lying back on the bed when he finished looking at the pictures.
“I wonder if you two could be related.” Yuffie thought out loud.
“Not a chance. Last time I checked, I have no siblings and I have no cousins.”
“Hmm…” Yuffie turned over and laid herself right next to the silent gunslinger. His eyes were closed and she couldn’t help but steal a long, appreciative glance at his handsome face.
“You know…” he started, making her jump. He didn’t open his eyes, but he smirked.
“You never answered my question the other day…”
Yuffie was confused. “Huh? Question? What question?”
“Why have you been so much more affectionate than usual?” He didn’t have to open his eyes to know that she was blushing. He could practically feel the heat radiating off her cheeks.
“Oh, that! Um…w-well…I j-just…I-I kinda…oh, man…” she was so embarrassed that she couldn’t even finish her sentence.
‘Dammit, Vinnie! Why did you have to ask me that?! I always thought you were the perceptive guy who understood body language!!! Wait! Does he know that I like him? Is he just waiting to see if I can tell him myself? Maybe he’ll think I’m a coward if I don’t just tell him!!’
“Well?” he asked still awaiting her answer.
‘Here goes…’ “The reason is that…I really, really…like you…very much, Vinnie…I probably shouldn’t even be using the word ‘like’…” her voice trailed off, and his eyes shot open at her confession. He definitely had not been expecting that. He slowly sat up and propped himself up on his elbow to look at her. Yep. She was blushing. Furiously.
“You what..?” he asked, barely above a whisper.
“I love you!!!” Yuffie cried, eyes shut.  Her cheeks, if it was even possible, turned an even deeper shade of red. She turned away, obviously flustered by the fact that she had to repeat herself. Vincent was speechless for a moment, dumbstruck.  Her confession gave rise to other questions. Why did she love him? And more importantly, did he love her back? He mulled over the last thought, turning it over and over in his head. He realized that he did, but he’d refused to hope with the thought that if Yuffie didn’t feel the same for him, he wouldn’t feel hurt. But now, hearing her tell him that she did, he felt that he’d had the right to hope all along, and it made his heart leap. The picture steadily grew larger in his mind, making way for other possibilities. Nothing stood between them, like it had with Lucrecia. This time, nothing could make her turn away from him except himself.  He was finally allowed to love freely.
After a moment without any response, Yuffie felt that she shouldn’t have even said anything. Was he mad at her? Disgusted? Awkward? Probably all three.
‘He probably doesn’t even like me back. He doesn’t feel the same. Why the hell did I let myself think there was a chance?’ She felt a tear slide down her cheek.
“I’m sorry…I shouldn’t have said that…” Yuffie said quietly. Vincent couldn’t help but laugh at that. Did she think that he didn’t love her back?
“Why?” he asked her, a small smile playing at his lips.  Yuffie turned around; tears were streaming from her wide, stormy eyes.  Again, he reached his hand out to wipe the tears away, and then let his hand rest on her cheek, giving her a soft and amorous look.
“Did you…think that I don’t feel the same..?” Even though these words were true and calmly spoken, his heart couldn’t help but hammer nervously.
Yuffie could’ve sworn her heart nearly burst with joy. The intensity with which he was looking at her drew her in and made her believe that this was real. He slid his hand to cup to back of her neck and bring her in closer to him. He pushed himself up to meet her, closing his eyes slowly, their lips gently locking in a tender, passionate kiss. He lifted himself up in a sitting position and brought her closer, deepening the kiss, resting his claw on her exposed hip. Yuffie broke the kiss with a gasp, as a shiver was sent through her body; partially because of the area of contact, partially because the metal was cold. Vincent felt her shiver, growing slightly excited as he trailed soft kisses down her neck. Her hands traveled up from his waist to rest on his sculpted chest, and then traveled up again to caress his smooth jaw line, and wrapping her arms around him as he trailed more hungry kisses down the soft skin of her neck. He laid her back down on the bed, wedging his hips between her shapely thighs. She moaned slightly at the contact of his hardening length against her, causing him to groan, signifying his growing arousal. He brought his claw up to rest beside her head, trapping her in another heated kiss, his tongue begging for entry. She complied eagerly, each hungrily exploring the others mouth, enjoying the others taste. Vincent’s human hand traveled down her waist, tracing little patterns around her tight belly, causing her to moan several times into the kiss. He growled in a primal manner in response, deep from within his chest, exciting the young ninja beneath him, his hand eventually travelling lower to the button fly of her shorts.  He broke the kiss, leaving her gasping for breath, trailing even more kisses, and this time licks, down her neck. She entwined her thin fingers in his dark locks, her own arousal growing with every searing kiss. He loved the feel of the warm creamy skin, her taste, and he could feel her pulse just beneath it. He felt compelled to bite down on it, licking his lips at the thought. As he did this, he felt a small prick on the tip of his tongue. His eyes shot open and he froze at that, searching at the front of his mouth with his tongue. No, he hadn’t imagined it. There was a pair of fangs protruding farther down than the rest of his teeth. And he’d nearly bitten her.
“Vinnie?” Yuffie asked, her expectant voice laced with concern. “Why’d you stop?”
“I think we should stop this, before something goes wrong…” he said, hanging his head.
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“I almost bit you…”
“So what? I was about to do the same thing to you!”
“No, you don’t understand. Look…” He pulled his lips back to show her his new fangs. Yuffie’s eyes widened and then grew sympathetic as he looked away in frustration and self disgust.
‘Okay. Maybe there’s something that’ll get in the way…’ He growled at the thought, dragging his fingers and claws along the sheets and balling them into fists in frustration.
“It’s okay, Vinnie. We can do it when we change you back.” Vincent gave a humorless laugh at that. But he felt some of his confidence boost at her words. At least she had faith that they would find a way to turn him back. He looked back at her, his expression soft. Yuffie brought her hand up to his cheek, pushing herself up into a sitting position.
‘Well, at least it’s not coming all the way between us. I guess I don’t mind it all that much. Just being here, with her, like this…’ A small smile appeared on his face at the thought, as he was leaning forward to kiss the young ninja on the cheek and laying himself down, resting his head on her lap. Yuffie’s heart fluttered as he laid himself down on her lap, still not pushing her away as he would’ve done before after almost harming her.  She started lacing her fingers through his silky raven hair, emitting a sigh of contentment from the crimson-eyed gunner.

Little more than an hour or so passed by in the dark. By this time, Vincent was fast asleep in Yuffie’s arms, who had decided to lay herself next to him, caressing his head close to her chest. Sometime in the night, he’d brought his arm up to rest his claw on her side, his human hand buried under her to wrap around her waist.