Author's notes: I wrote this story for the lovely Drakonlily. She asked for a story inspired by the song 'Come down to me' by Saving Jane. The song was soft and light and so this story is too.

I think that the best moments in life are the little ones. Hence the story.

This one's for Drakon. Everyone else, enjoy.

Come Down to Me

She'd put her hair up and that alone shouldn't have been enough. But, looking at her a little bit crooked as she riffled through different mini-fridges behind the bar, Reno realized that it was, oddly enough, just enough.

The afternoon's warm sun was strangely dilute as it filtered through the windows of Tifa's bar. Reno sat at his stool as had become their custom, his ankles tucked against the its neck. The redhead's fingers were wrapped around a beer – some fancy costan beer that he only ever drank here – and he watched Tifa move efficiently around behind her bar's counter.

Sometimes they talked and sometimes they didn't. Secretly, they both liked having people around no matter what kind of people they were. Thus, Tifa didn't always lock her door in the afternoon when she thought that he'd be coming around and he'd slip out the back before the rush started.

The afternoon sun was soft and hitting her cheekbones. Reno eyed the long curve of her neck – artistically, anyone could appreciate a woman like Tifa Lockheart. She'd piled her hair up in an oblique bun and was wearing a black cut-off top. Her jeans were dirty and she had a bar rag tucked into the side of her pants. When she was concentrating too much, her dark eyebrows knitted together over her burgundy eyes. Reno's heels tapped the neck of his stool in an off-rhythm.

He didn't usually offer to help Tifa when she was working because he'd long ago realized that she enjoyed taking care of her bar. Typically, he just sat in his spot and listened to her talk. Sometimes he tried to make her laugh without always admitting to himself that he liked the sound.

Two years after Meteor and about nine months after Geostigma; it was a good time to be sitting around in a sunny bar on a Midgarian afternoon. To him, they'd always be Midgarian, no matter what name the new city came up with. Edge – New Midgar; it was all just Midgar to him.

"I was thinking about going away for a little while," Tifa said, rummaging around beneath her bar. Reno didn't react and took a sip from his beer.

"Where to?" he asked politely around the bottle's neck. She glanced up at him and brushed a stray piece of hair away from her face.

"I dunno. Maybe Junon for some shopping."

Reno snorted.

"Junon's too damn hot in the summer. And dusty. You'd hate it."

Tifa didn't really react to his comment. She frowned and fiddled at the plumping for one of her beer taps.

"Maybe Costa then. Get a tan."

Reno shook his head.

"Nah, Costa's all full of tourists around now. The locals jack up all the prices on stuff. It'd cost a fortune."

Tifa humphed and pulled up herself using the bar's edge. She eyed the counter critically before pulling out her bar rag to start rubbing down the counter. She didn't seem to mind the way Reno eyed her as she moved.

"…Maybe the Canyon then. It's supposed to be nice in the summer."

"But boring as Hell," Reno added, taking a judicial sip from his beer. Tifa paused on the counter and looked up at Reno, smiling slightly at him under her eyelashes.

"Well then, oh Wise and Well-Traveled Reno, where should I go?"

Reno snorted at her name for him and took a swing from his beer. He considered it a moment.

"… South district of Wutai. Not the Northern one close to Da Chao cuz that's where all the tourists go. The food's shitty and the locals over-charge you on everything. Find a nice inn in the South and avoid the hotspots. It's all sleepy pagodas and cherry blossoms; you'd like it."

Tifa's smile curved up and she looked down at the bar that she was rubbing down the counter.

"Yeah, that sounds nice…"

Tifa paused against the counter top and looked up to see Reno's green eyes watching her. A long time ago, they had frightened her. A some point that old fear had died and now she was almost used to those green eyes tracking her movements. Sometimes she welcomed them.

The brunette smiled quietly to herself and went back to rubbing down the counter. She didn't see Reno's small smile but she could feel it. It felt a little bit like the dilute summer light that was painting her empty bar. Little dust particles caught and shimmered in the light from the room, the red letters on Tifa's closed sign backwards and pale.

Reno took another sip from his beer, unabashedly watching the woman in front of him work. Tifa shook her head, laughing to herself.

"… maybe I'll just stay. Vacations alone are boring anyways."

"You can do whatever you want babe," Reno said. That made her look up and smile honestly.

"Yeah, I know."