House
"... and I'm really glad I have a house as warm and comfortable as yours to come back to."
"Squall's a bitch," Yuffie sulked.
Aerith, who was wiping her hands off on a towel, turned slightly to chastise the young ninja. "Now Yuffie. You and I both know he prefers to be called Leon, and we ought to pay him that respect." She turned back to her job, carefully placing a stack of glass dishes with pristine, delicate precision that only the flower girl and Tifa seemed to have managed. Leon managed to shatter every single one of the plates last time he tried to do the dishes, Cid complained and cursed everyone to hell and back, Yuffie couldn't be bothered, and Merlin simply used magic. As Tifa was, once again, searching for Cloud - the two of them never seemed to be able to run into each other for more than five seconds - Aerith had volunteered for the task. Someone had to do it after all, lest Merlin's little house become a sty. Everyone else was out, so it gave her plenty of time to go at a leisurely pace that suited her; after all, she was much more accustomed to the patience of nursing and caring for flowers than to the quick way Tifa's deft fingers had always whipped through the dirty plates and cutlery.
Speaking of everyone being out…
"Yuffie, on the subject of Leon… aren't you supposed to be patrolling with him?"
The short brunette snorted in disdain. She was leaning back on a chair - almost precariously so - and her slightly mud stained boots were propped up on the table. "Uh-uh. I can patrol by myself" - an indignant squeak - "an' Squall prolly thinks he's better off without me anyways." The ninja paused, then added for the dramatic insulting effect, "Which he's not, 'cause he's a pansy-ass if I ever saw one."
"Language," Aerith replied softly - then, a moment afterwards, reckoned she probably shouldn't waste her breath; the reckless ninja's tongue was bound to slip again and again, despite the flower girl's protests - or perhaps, because of them. She shut one of the cupboard doors with a muffled snap and turned to face her moody friend, allowing herself a slight smile at the sight of her. Yuffie never seemed to realize just how adorable she could be; even in the midst of her pout, the childlike qualities of her pixie-like face made her look more like a puppy begging for attention than a young girl who was angry with the idiocies of men.
The flower girl lightly made her way over to the ninja before pulling out a chair and settling herself daintily in it. She glanced at Yuffie, and even with the kind smile still lingering, the tightness around her thoughtful green eyes betrayed a real worry for the state Yuffie was in. Even if whatever had happened to get the girl so riled up was next to nothing, Aerith couldn't help but worry for every one of her companions; they were her friends, after all, and she cared very deeply for them.
"So," she began, "why don't you start with telling me why you're angry with him?"
"Nuh," came Yuffie's negative grunt. She wasn't looking at Aerith, but was instead glaring at the ground. Eventually, she muttered, "I don't wanna talk about it."
The whining tone was normal, and as usual, Aerith still managed to find ways to get beyond the barriers of unwillingness to convey the true situation. The smile still in place - though perhaps a little softer now - she said thoughtfully, "You know I'm always open to listen." She allowed herself a quiet chuckle before adding, "I know the present company - both of us - enjoy hearing the ways men get themselves into trouble." The unspoken definition of trouble was one easily conveyed by the tone of her voice; she meant the way men make women angry. Her mind flitted to Cloud for a moment - and to a faceless man with black spiky hair, whom she couldn't quite name.
Those were the magic words; frustration came spilling out of the ninja's mouth, like a dam finally being unblocked. "He's just such an IDIOT!" she burst out, unable to contain it any longer. Her hands clenched into tight fists. Aerith frowned in worry. "It's like he never even notices me, dammit! All that's ever on his mind is this girl that he's seein' in his dreams, blah blah blah angel wings, blah blah blah! Bitch, whine, pout! 'Why do I think I know this girl, Yuffie?' 'Where have I seen her before, Yuffie?' Hello, there's another girl right in front of you, stupid, not just in yer hallucinations or whatever the hell she is! Damn, I never wanna know what he does before he goes to sleep!" She took a couple of gasping breaths, her chest heaving; Aerith could see her nails digging into the soft flesh of her hands from squeezing her fists so hard. Abruptly, she blurted out, "He's almost as bad as Vin -"
And the she stopped, her face suddenly confused, mouth agape in mid-word. She looked not only unwilling to finish the name of whomever she was speaking of, but unable to. Strangely enough, however, Aerith suddenly got the idea she knew exactly whom Yuffie was speaking of in comparison to Leon, and had the oddest thought that she'd compared this 'Vin' to Leon several times. The image of a swirling, moth-eaten, dark red cape flickered in minds' eye; she was so close to knowing… to… remembering…?
A sniffle broke her thoughts and the uncomfortable silence that had followed Yuffie's outburst.
The flower girl blinked, back to the earth again. Her mind wasn't as prone to wander as the young ninja's was, but when it was on a topic of mysterious proportions, she often only had to ponder the subject for a little while before arriving to an intuitive conclusion; sometimes she was convinced the earth whispered the answers to her. But a moment of pondering had been a moment too long, it seemed, as in the seconds of blank space a single tear had saw fit to trawl down Yuffie's cherubic cheeks.
The green-eyed brunette internally berated herself for becoming distracted and not focusing on the matter at hand. Yuffie was in pain, and her usually whiny and childish demeanor had completely masked the real emptiness she was feeling. Aerith should have listened to the internal instinct earlier that had told her that Yuffie was not simply being petty as usual. She reprimanded herself again; what made her ready to listen to everyone else was her grasp of her intuition, and she had ignored it when Cloud - and the faceless black-haired boy - interfered with her train of thought.
Yuffie sniffed again, wiping her nose with the back of one fist rather roughly. Aerith winced at the pain the young girl must have been feeling; for a split second, the soft brunette was sure she could feel an inkling of that pain too. Instead, she said timidly, "Are you an idiot, Yuffie?"
"N-no!" she wailed, burying her face in her hands. "Or m-maybe y-yeah, I am, f-for lettin' someone as s-stupid as h-him g-get t-to me…"
"I don't think you are," Aerith said firmly, and the ninja froze for a second, her palms still pressed against her face. "You're not invisible, either - Leon's just preoccupied," she added softly. "We all are - trying to remember our past selves."
That was it. Our past… why did we forget? Was it the Heartless?
"I dunno what you're on about, woman," Yuffie said glumly. "All this mumbo-jumbo 'bout findin' ourselves. All I wanna find is my shuriken."
"Yes, but Leon wishes to find himself," she replied gently, "and somewhere inside, I know you do too."
"Don't change the fact that he's ignoring me."
"No," Aerith mused, "you're right; that isn't very smart of him."
"Yeah, no kidding," the ninja said dully, her hands dropping to the table in her depression.
Spotting an opening, Aerith lightly touched one of Yuffie's open palms with a finger, before taking the girl's hand in hers and entwining their fingers. Yuffie didn't even glance up… but her grip did tighten around the flower girl's hand, seeking the comfort as a drowning sailor seeks a life raft.
"Just because he is looking for something," Aerith continued thoughtfully, "does not mean he should ignore what he already has." She paused, trying to find the words to elaborate on this thought. "… If everyone gave up their homes to seek a different shelter simply because they felt it calling their name, then their old house would grow dark and empty and become unfriendly should they ever turn back. Rather, when they can, they should look for the place that's calling their name; but in the meantime, they should learn to love the home they have, because it gives them food, comfort, and a warm place to sleep at night. And that way, whenever they grow weary of searching, they always have a place to come back to." She smiled then, her eyes growing warm and kind - more so than they usually were - and leaned in closer to Yuffie, murmuring, "You make a very wonderful house indeed, Yuffie… It's a shame Squall forgets the comfort you give him. I'm envious of what he has." The words struck true; it could be argued that she was Cloud's 'house,' but nowadays Tifa seemed to fill the part better than she.
It was, perhaps, Aerith's shift to using Leon's real name that made Yuffie sit up and wipe her face with her free hand, with much less force than before; perhaps, however, the young ninja had understood the entire analogy. Whatever the case, the dark expression in her eyes had ceased slightly, replaced by an internal argument. Aerith was simply content to hold the ninja's hand as the silence became increasingly lighter, no longer weighed down by Yuffie's uncharacteristic depression.
"So… what you're sayin' is…" From the bunched-up look in her face, Yuffie was taking a moment to configure the words in her head into a coherent statement. "… I'm Squally-boy's house?"
The flower girl chuckled delicately. "Something like that." She smiled, a soft one that seemed to radiate sunshine. "But you'd be a fine house for anyone."
"Yeah… I'd be an awesome condo." The spark that had been briefly absent in the ninja's soul ignited again; whether the cause was the flower girl's thoughtful words, comforting presence, or something else was unknown to her. "Or maybe a mansion. Of epic proportions."
Aerith managed to hide her giggle behind her free hand. Yuffie was unperturbed.
"Anyway…" The ninja gave a very meaningful look to Aerith, clutching the soft brunette's hand yet tighter. She raised their clasped fingers and stated importantly, "I think you're an awesome house too, Aerith. And I'd never take ya for granted."
Bemused, yet slightly flattered, Aerith replied with a gentle "why thank you, Yuffie."
She grinned. "Yeah, no problem." An impish sparkle gleamed in the ninja's eye, and then - before Aerith even had time to register the mischievous smirk - the seventeen-year-old girl's lips were planted firmly on her cheek for a split second.
And then the ninja was gone, dancing away from her, their hands no longer intertwined. Yuffie pumped her fist in the air - seemingly unaware of the pink tinge in Aerith's gentle features - and shouted out a triumphant battle cry of "I'm gonna go tell Squall to treat his house better or move out!" In a streak of dark hair, she was out the door, nearly running into a grumpy-looking Cid on her excited way. "Sorry, Gramps!" Aerith heard before the little ninja was gone.
"Shit," Cid swore, his hand digging into his pocket, no doubt reaching for a cigarette; then, with a furtive look at the flower girl, no doubt remembered the reprimanding she'd given him for smoking around Sora and other teenagers, chose a toothpick instead "The brat's gonna get herself into shitloads of trouble with that much unrestrained energy…" He sighed, grinding the toothpick between his teeth. "Goddammit…"
He made to go over to his computer, but glanced at Aerith again, who was still oddly sitting at the kitchen table, a slight flush still gracing her complexion, a vague half-smile on her face, her eyes distant. "What the hell're ya so happy about, eh?" he grunted, jolting her out of her reverie.
Her green eyes flitted up to meet his scowl, and a sweet smile played across her features. "Oh, nothing," she said cheerfully, standing up from the table, taking care to push her chair in behind her. Humming, the stepped lightly back over to the sink to finish up her previously forgotten job, a slight bounce almost - yet not quite - visible in her step.
As she wet the rag again, she distinctly heard Cid mutter behind her, "Enigmas. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em."
Aerith awakened quite suddenly.
It was not a jolt of fear, nor was it because something unpleasant had struck in her dream (though that was mildly debatable; she'd been dreaming about the faceless man with spiky hair again, only this time he had eyes, eyes that reminded her of Cloud's). She sat up, her brunette hair - out of its braid for once - cascading in sweeps around her shoulders. An expression of mild confusion caused her brow to furrow and lips to pucker; why did she have the feeling that something was misplaced or lost or gone…?
Her eyes glanced at her bedside bureau - and then her heart came to a staggering halt.
Her ribbon.
It was gone.
She couldn't remember where she'd gotten it, or why it was even important. All she knew was that it was one small relic she had of the past, the one buried beneath new memories that seemed more real; it had some association with the faceless man she'd been thinking of so often. Perhaps he'd given it to her, or perhaps she'd found it around the same time she'd met him…? Whatever the case was, it was the most important material object in her life, and the fact that it was suddenly gone was a cause for panic.
Aerith shifted out of bed, her bare feet wincing slightly as they met the chilly floor. Her flowery pink nightgown floated down her form as she stood, glancing around the immediate vicinity. When no pink ribbon revealed itself, she got on her hands and knees and scoured the room.
Minutes of searching were to no avail; she had a feeling the ribbon wasn't in her room, but she felt it the best course of action to check and make sure. Nonetheless, no such ribbon revealed itself, and it was with desperation Aerith pushed herself to her feet and yanked open the door -
- and found a single white rose on the floor. With her ribbon tied around it.
She knelt down to inspect it, relief flooding her body, and a breathy sigh escaped her lips. She picked up the rose daintily, in case there were any thorns - she needn't have worried - and stepped back into her room, shutting the door gently. She lowered herself onto her bed, turning on her bedside lamp… and in the light that flooded her room, she realized there was a note attached to the rose, via the ribbon.
Deft, graceful hands undid the ribbon and unfolded the paper, thoughtful green eyes meeting a messy scrawl, no doubt done by a hasty hand.
Heya Aerith! Sorry I broke into your room, but I couldn't help it - once a thief, always a thief. I mean ninja. And I knew that you'd look everywhere for your ribbon, and I really really wanted you to find this. Thanks for helping me out earlier. I think you're really awesome and Cloud doesn't deserve to have a house as cool as you. Or two houses, if you count Boobs. Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks… and that I'm really glad I have a house as warm and comfortable as you to come back to… and if you need a house, you know where to find me. Lotsa love,
The Great Ninja Yuffie!
P.S. I dunno why I picked a white rose - pink might be more your color - but it kinda reminded me of something. Maybe you and I have some finding of ourselves to do, huh? Tootles!
Aerith smiled. She wanted to say that any flower was fine by her, as she loved all kinds and thank you and a whole bunch of other sweet things. She tucked her brunette hair behind her ear, a light blush in her cheeks, and carefully folded the note back up before sticking it into her bedside bureau. She slid the ribbon once more across her fingers before tying it into a delicate bow back around the white rose. She left that in plain sight on her bedside table, and then shut off the light, snuggling back under the covers, and - the blush not entirely gone from her cheeks - shut her eyes, floating into a blissful sleep.
It wasn't the faceless man she dreamt of for the remainder of that night.
A/N: ... I have no idea where this came from. I really don't. As a personal rule, I don't read or write many yaoi or yuri fanfictions - no matter how light - because I don't want to get swept up into the tide of rabid fangirls. And mostly because I don't agree with the main pairings; for example, AkuRoku or SoRiku. Roxas (or Axel) belongs with Namine and Sora belongs with Kairi. But I can see Axel and Demyx being together... and other pairings... but it's just never held any interest for me before. So this random Aerith/Yuffie pairing is different for me. But... it came to me and... I decided I really, really wanted to write it. Maybe it's because I've realized that I'm bisexual myself (lol personal reason) but I've suddenly become a lot more open-minded about slash pairings. And sometimes, they can be really cute.
Okay, enough rant. Who here enjoyed the references to Zack and Vincent and even the slight one to Rinoa? I did (: I've always been a Yuffentine lover (and Reffie) and I personally believe Cloud and Tifa belong together and Zack and Aerith belong together (which was another reason why writing this was weird for me... weird, but good). So the references - for me - were part of the fun!
I tried uber hard to keep everyone in character, but I feel like they slipped out of character much more than other characters normally do in my writings. Maybe it's 'cause I haven't written fanfiction in the longest time; it's been like three months since my last thing, and that was only a oneshot (a Seifer/Olette one if anyone wants to check it out :D ). Anyways, I hope anyone who reads this likes it... even if it was a different experience for me, it was a very good one, very enjoyable indeed. I dunno if you'll see more of these two in the future together - I sorta wanna write this same oneshot from Yuffie's perspective as originally intended (though it'd be awesome if someone else wrote it from Yuffie's perspective!) - but then again I normally don't know the pairing I intend to write before I actually write it. Case and point.
To wrap up a ridiculously long author's note, I'll just say that I don't own any of the characters mentioned in this oneshot. At all. Ever.