"You want to borrow my earrings?" Tifa blinked at Aeris.

"For the dinner, yeah," Aeris replied. She toyed with the hem of her dress. "And... How do I get my ears pierced?" She had skipped this part of her teenage years unlike what had seemed like every other teen in the slums. The thought of putting a hole in any part of her body had not been exactly appealing until this week. Their first anniversary was coming up and the three of them had planned a big dinner; Aeris, Tifa and Cloud. Tifa brought home a new dress and some new earrings for the occasion sparking considerations about Aeris's own preparations. She had her dress, jewelry and some make-up picked out already. But nothing for her ears.

Tifa blinked at her again. "Well. Piercing your ears will be easy." She shot her a sympathetic smile. "But unfortunately you won't be able to make use of most of my earrings. I mean, you can borrow anything you like, but its not the best idea right after having it done." Aeris's disappointment must have shown on her face; Tifa quickly kept on talking. "But there are plenty of great choices even with just studs." She got up and hugged her wife. "We have a week for your recovery; at least you didn't ask this the day before or anything."

"Thanks," Aeris murmured, hugging her back. "I just wanted it to be special."

"It will be whether you have pierced ears or not," Tifa insisted. "And if we do get it sorted now, you'll be ready for the next anniversary. And any future fancy occasion." She stepped back. "Out of interest, are there any of my earrings you particularly wanted to borrow?"

Aeris's face warmed. "I always like those ones." She gestured to Tifa's ears.

"Oh, the teardrop ones?" Tifa's fingers tapped the jewelry in her left ear and sent it swinging. "Didn't know you liked them so much." Aeris nodded and Tifa laid her hand on her arm. "Well, I promise you can borrow them in future. For now, let's get you able to wear them."

"We're going to do it now?" Aeris glanced to the darkened window. "Isn't it a little late?"

Tifa shrugged. "Tattoo parlors tend to do this kind of thing until all hours. But we don't need to go out. Just a sterilized needle." She bit her lip. "And it is going to sting a bit."

"I think I'll be okay," Aeris said. She trailed after Tifa as she headed for the kitchen, the abruptness of this action suddenly scary. "Not sure I can believe it's been a year though."

Tifa rifled through a drawer. "Amazing isn't it? And near two years since you proposed." She held up a sewing needle in a triumphant gesture and Aeris's stomach clenched. "Glad you did though."

"Me too," Aeris smiled without quite feeling it. Tifa waved her onto a stool; Aeris perched unable to look away as Tifa sterilized the needle. She had to focus elsewhere as Tifa rubbed some alcohol on her ear lobe and warned Aeris again that it might sting. She tensed up; the moment the pin pushed into her skin was more bearable than expected but she was unable to stop another wince as Tifa moved to her other ear. At least her wife was talking with her the whole time and keeping her as distracted as possible.

Cloud noticed his wife's handiwork as soon as he got home, naturally curious about what precipitated the change. He wore earrings too. Maybe in future rather than simply borrowing Tifa's earrings - or getting some of her own - she could borrow one from each of her partners. The wolf-head from Cloud and the teardrop from Tifa. She might look ridiculous with mismatched jewelry, but it would be another bond between the three of them.