Rhannion: Okay... so kids... welcome to the ride... there will be violence... and curse words... and... blood! Probably no sex or anything like that... remember violence good/sex bad...
Um... this was written because after I finished the game... it jumped into my head and annoyed the crap out of me. So yeah... I'll shut up now
Prologue—Radiant Garden
A young teen with cinnamon hair signed deeply from where he sat on his mother's porch swing. He leaned his head against the rail and looked out over the ocean. He breathed in the sea salt air and closed his crystalline eyes. What he wouldn't give for the days when he was younger. When things were easier and his only concern was if his picture was good enough for a place on the refrigerator. He was well into daydreams when a gloved hand reached out and grasped the swing. He looked up to see an older boy about seventeen with silvery hair down his back and narrow, intelligent green eyes.
"Dwelling's not going to do anything Sora." He told him firmly and reached out his hand and curled it around one of Sora's. "Nothing is going to change what has happened."
"Yeah… I know." He looked away from his friend, his best friend and closed his eyes.
Nothing could change it but who could forget? The gunshots and the screaming and—
"Torturing yourself over the outcome won't help either." He sat beside him and squeezed his hand.
"I'd like to see you do any better." He attempted to growl but it didn't quite work.
Riku let out a sardonic laugh. "I was never too good at coping. Kairi's waiting though… you know? And she'll be pissed if we stay here too long."
"Easy for her. My parents… they built this house themselves. Then my Dad… and now my… Mom." He let out a shuddery breath and Riku sighed looking away.
"And then my Dad kicked me out… Kairi just wants to help… We'll stay just for a little while all right? Just long enough to find jobs and an apartment. We'll start a whole new life." He spread his hands wide. "You trust me… don't you Sora?"
"Ofcourse… You're my best friend."
"Exactly." He gave him a small smile. "We knew we wouldn't stay in Destiny Islands forever."
"Hm." Sora shrugged noncommittally and Riku wrapped a firm hand around his wrist and tugged him back into the house to find Kairi standing in the hallway with her hands on her hips.
"I'm not getting any younger!" She pouted prettily.
"Not getting any smarter either." Riku joked with a smile.
"You wouldn't know a beautiful woman if she smacked you." She grinned. "You too busy being interested in men."
"And when you admit your lesbian tendencies… we'll talk." He wrapped an arm around Sora. "So… everything's packed. I found the wayward bum. What's next on the list?"
"How about we go get some dinner?" Sora asked from under his friend's arm.
"Sounds like a plan."
In a quiet room a ginger haired man sat leaning studiously over some papers grading carefully. His bag sat beside him leaned against his leg as he focused on the papers in front of him. He was a part time teacher's assistant or gloried gopher to earn some extra cash on the side—to the students he was well known as Leon "Ice Prince" Loire.
Leon rolled his eyes as he worked his way through the papers he was grading. He abso-fucking-lutely annoyed and tired of Professor Yeats and his whiny students. He didn't know why he put up with this shit. He slammed the stack of finished papers on the teacher's desk and shouldered his messenger bag. He sighed softly and walked towards the exit. He needed to pick up his sister and get home. He had a paper to write and a full shift at the café tomorrow.
He walked across the parking lot quietly and stretched his arms. A few students waved to him, most notably his not-quite-friend Vincent. He climbed into his old beat up car and headed for home with fond thoughts of not seeing the campus until next week.
Yuffie Kirasagi-Loire shouldered her backpack and stuck her tongue out at her best friend Yuna. The two were different from their looks, straight down to their personalities. Yuffie had ebony hair and amber eyes while Yuna had almost blond hair and blue eyes. Yuffie dressed in a skater style, much like her older brother's almost biker style while Yuna choice the… prepier side of style.
"I think that maybe you should reconsider that offer." A voice stated behind her and she turned and pouted at the man in front of her.
Said man was her brother half-brother Leon Loire carefully dressed in his usual white t-shirt, leather pants and jacket. She grinned at him and laughed.
"I don't remember making any offers that I can't fulfill." Yuna choked on laughter behind her and Leon shook his head a ghost of a smile hidden in his eyes.
"Come on kid." He pivoted and headed for the car. "Or I'll leave you."
"You wouldn't dare or—" She cut herself off before she could say Laguna… they both knew he'd do nothing to either of them. Not with how much he loved them. Not with how weak he was.
She sighed as she thought of their shared father. Laguna Loire had buried two wives. Leon's mother in childbirth and her own in a car accident. A man never really lucky in love, the last blow had weakened him substantially. She bit her lower lip sharply before she waved to Yuna and dashed down the steps after him.
A tall blond leaned on his elbows glaring at the woman across from him. The woman had long black hair that cascaded down her back almost to her waist. The blond's hair was spiky, almost like some kind of bird. Each dressed in black they glared at each other. They were family and actually i liked /i each other though it didn't seem like it at this point.
"I… absolutely refuse to take one step in Areith's direction. We broke up… It wasn't amicable and I am definitely not going to her birthday party."
"You are going to go. And you are going to be cordial and you are going to like it Cloud Strife."
"So you tell me Tifa Lockheart." He rolled his bright blue eyes and then cocked his head to the side. "I'll give you a weeks worth of chores. I'll clean the kitchen, take out the trash… the whole bit."
"Two weeks."
"Deal." He told her, anything to get out of going to see Areith.
"Fine… but you can't avoid her forever." She gave him an affectionate little smile and tugged on the tallest spike.
"I can try can't I? I can't believe she'll just be okay with the fact that I'm gay." He sat back in his seat and picked up his drink.
"Hey! I'm okay with it." Tifa pouted and crossed his arm.
"That's different. You're my best friend… she's…. my ex."
"Ah… I could kick her ass." She slammed her fists together.
Cloud shook his head and laughed. "My darling Tifa… you could beat up most grown men. I think I can fight my own Areith sized battle."
Radiant Gardens is a large sprawling city filled with beautiful gardens within every available spot. Sora is amazed at how beautiful it is as Kairi talked a mile a minute about… well he hadn't been paying attention for the last forty minutes so he wasn't quite sure. Riku apparently was because he still commented at all the right times… or maybe he was better at faking it. Kairi pulled into a driveway at a quaint little two story.
"Um… I thought you lived in an apartment." Riku stated and Sora had to agree.
"Oh… I forgot to tell you… I moved in… with my boyfriend!" She smiled at them as she cut the engine.
"Boy-friend?" Sora was sure his eye was twitching. Kairi apparently hadn't felt the need to tell them a lot of things in the past six months. At least he hoped it was six months.
"You'll love him! His name is Hayner and he's a bit of a… idiot… but trust me! You'll love him."
Riku rolled his eyes and climbed out and walked around back. "Pop the trunk."
"Move you lazy bum!" Kairi yelled at Sora and the young man jerked up.
"Jeez… I'm moving… I'm moving." He muttered as he climbed out of the car and headed towards the back to join Riku.
Kairi reached out a hand and stopped him. "You'll love it here Sora. I know you will."
Leon leaned against the counter resting his elbows on it. The Radiant Café wasn't the most popular place in Radiant Garden but it was clean and that had to count for something. He was waiting for an order from the regulars in the corner when the bell rang signaling more customers. He looked over with a sigh as he spotted three guys and a girl. The girl was hanging off the bond guy and the other two had their arms around each other. The taller of the two had silver hair that gleamed and the other had chestnut spikes. Dressed causally they got one of the other waiters to seat them out on the terrace… in Leon's territory.
"Hey Yuffie… catch the regulars order for me… I've got a table." He called to his younger sister as he walked out on to the terrace.
Yes, Radiant Café was one of the better 'unknown' restaurants of Radiant Garden but he, like his father would never let it go to waste… this was all either of them had left of his mother. She designed and built the place herself. He pushed open the door and breathed the cool autumn breeze before approaching the table.
"What can I get you to drink?" It was his most cordial tone of voice, Yuffie said told him it didn't sound very friendly.
"Um…" The girl looked around and they all nodded at her. "A round of cokes."
He nodded and pivoted on his heel. "It'll take but a moment."
Yuffie scrubbed a hand across her forehead and promptly glared at the head cook. "You better not be slacking off in there!"
"Shut up." The head cook called as he set the plates on the counter. "I'm doing perfectly fine."
"Sure… Uncle Cid… Sure." She grabbed the plates for the regulars that Leon had stuck her with. "Just hurry up with that plate for table thirteen! We don't want them waiting too long!"
"You act like I'm the only one back here." He shook his head with a little smile. "Get out of here."
Tifa sighed as she got off shift from working at the bar in downtown Radiant Garden. It was just shy of three in the morning and she knew that Cloud had probably waited up for her. Not that she needed his 'protection' or anything. She pulled on her coat and waved goodbye to Reno her fellow bartender and headed out the door. She wasn't sure if she wanted to go home to Cloud or crash at Barret's and work the early shift. A large yawn parted her lips and she decided that her best bet was just to head on home. She was almost to the car when a strange, frail looking creature appeared. It weaved on its two feet with it and stared at her with liquid yellow eyes.
"What are you?" She asked as she assumed a fighting stance.
It hissed and wiggled before it launched at her. She punched it and it dropped back sliding against the ground.
"I'm no pushover!" She yelled at it.
It charged her again and she turned and dropped her heel catching it in the head and it dissipated into even deeper shadows then those that already surrounded them. She looked around her slowly, still in battle stance waiting to see if anything else would attack. Finding nothing she cursed. Clenching her fists tightly she ran for her bike. Cloud was going to shit a brick.
