Disclaimer – I don't own FF7

The Big Brother Complex

By Crimson Skies

Yuffie was, to put it plainly, quite confused. Hers was quite the dilemma, and being the person she was, she felt to need to discuss it with someone.

Red VII was out of the question. Matters concerning human relationships were simply beyond him. Not being human probably had something to do with it. While Red was usually a good source of wisdom in general, going to him wasn't going to work.

Barret was married once. She supposed that could count as experience. However Yuffie just didn't feel comfortable talking to him. Especially not about something like this. He was too loud and often wore a…somewhat menacing expression.

Definitely not Cloud either. That man was oblivious. It was quite obvious that he had no idea how to handle his relationships. It had been five years since they met, and the man's memories were still somewhat scrambled. When asked, he couldn't even tell you if he had really loved Aeris, or if any feelings he had were a remnant of Zack's legacy.

Vincent, well, Vincent's last experience had ended rather tragically. It was not something Yuffie wanted to dredge memories of up. Tifa had been trying to pull him out of it, but…in this case Vincent was better left alone.

Tifa. Now there was a real possibility. Tifa would be just the person to talk to about this. It was too bad that she was on vacation at the Golden Saucer. She really could have used Tifa's help in this matter.

As for Cait, that was part of the problem, so she wouldn't be going there.

And that was how she found herself talking to Cid…after getting him somewhat drunk at a local bar of course. She could only hope that any advice he still had to offer was somewhat sound. The pilot had seen a lot of life after all.

"So what the hell's this about anyway?" the pilot inquired. "You said there was some shit you wanted to talk about?"

"Yeah. I've got a problem."

"I'm not a fucking councilor, girl," Cid groused.

"Aw, c'mon! I'll pay for the drinks!" she wheedled, giving her best puppy eyes. The pilot glared suspiciously, but finally grumbled an affirmative. "Thank you so much!" Yuffie said. She only refrained from glomping the man because of his persisting glare. "Well you see, it's like this. What I mean to say is…"

"Don't keep me here all damn day woman! Spit it out! What's your fucking problem?"

"Reeve and I screwed!" Yuffie blurted finally, a light blush tinting her cheeks.

"The fuck?" Cid exclaimed. Yuffie slapped a hand over his mouth as half the bar turned to look. He knocked it away, but his volume noticeably lowered. "How the hell did that happen?"

"Well, Reeve's Shinra's new president, right? And I'm Wutai's representative…"

"I know that shit already," Cid interrupted.

"…So we've spent a lot of time together. Eventually he asked me out."

"Damn. I never even noticed. Isn't he a bit old for you?" Cid asked.

"We've been seeing each other for several weeks now," Yuffie continued, ignoring him. "But last night we got drunk…" here the ninja trailed off, a defeated look on her face, eyes downcast. Cid huffed and eyed her with an uncharacteristically sympathetic look on his face. Yuffie was the baby of their little group, and like it or not, Cid was suddenly discovering his protective big brother complex. He couldn't believe he was doing this.

"So you fucked?"

Yuffie gave a quick nod. Cid sighed.

"But you don't feel you were ready? And now you don't know what the hell to say to him?"

Her head bobbed furiously.

"It…was your first time?" the pilot asked gently.

"Y-yeah."

Cid rubbed his face in frustration, not knowing what to say. He wasn't good at this kind of thing. "Why the hell didn't you ask Tifa for help?"

"She's at Golden Saucer and she doesn't get back until Wednesday."

"So?"

"I have a meeting with some of the Shinra executive tomorrow…including the president."

"And you fucking come to me for advice. Girl, you are screwed!" Cid said bluntly.

"Cid! I did not need to hear that!" Yuffie moaned.

"Alright, alright. Gaia! I really don't know what to say! I'm not good at this kind of crap," Cid warned.

"Fine. Just tell me what you think I should do. Please."

"Well, do you have to act any different?"

"What do you mean?" Yuffie said, blinking in surprise.

"He's, well, your friend right?"

"Um, yeah."

"So, hell, how do I say this?" Cid growled. "He still should be, right? Regardless of whether you fucked or not. Just…treat him however the hell you did before."

"But…it's awkward. And I don't know how I'll act at the meeting tomorrow. And I don't think I'm ready for a relationship on that level! What if he doesn't understand?" she protested.

"So go talk to him about all this shit tonight. If the bastard doesn't understand then you can be glad you found out now. Then I can beat the crap out of him," he offered, a slightly uncomfortable look on his face. The ninja paused to think about this. Then she glanced at her watch and exploded into action.

Draining the last of her margarita she leapt from her barstool, wrapped her arms around Cid's neck, pecked him on the cheek, and raced out the door all in rapid succession.

"Thanks Cid!" she called over her shoulder as she left.

"Damn it!" Cid grumbled. "She promised to pay for my fucking drinks."