Rewrite Aug 1.

This follows immediately after Unaviodable Truth. I didn't change too much to this one, mostly tweaking.

Starting Down the Path

Leon had released Sora soon after leaving the clearing. Aerith had disappeared, whether she was that fast or had simply taken another route Sora could not tell. At the moment he did not really care; he was still trying to wrap his mind around Leon's earlier comment.

He glanced up and over at the man with curious eyes. He was a rather good looking man and Sora supposed it might feel nice to be pressed up against that solid looking chest but beyond that... "Hey, Leon?"

Leon flicked his eyes over but did not speak.

"Just what did you mean back there?"

He received a confused frown.

"You know, about me and learning 'bout…"

"Oh." Leon smirked at him. "Nothing, Sora. Don't worry about it."

"I'm not worried." The sixteen-year-old rushed out. "I just want to know what you meant."

Leon was quiet and Sora figured he was nt going to answer. They continued to walk together in silence through the woods. "Have you decided what you're doing with Kairi yet?"

"Huh? Oh." Sora rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, well, no. Riku thinks I should just try kissing her and see what happens cause that fixed the confusion with him but-"

"You kissed Riku?"

"Yeah," He laughed nervously. "The night Cloud left, which was probably horrible timing for something like that but I had to do something and figure out what I was feeling; otherwise I knew I wouldn't be able to help Riku like I wanted."

"And you didn't like it?" Leon asked casually.

"No, I liked it but… I don't know. It was like something was missing. It was nice, really nice, but it just wasn't right, you know?"

The older brunette nodded.

"I just wish I knew what I wanted." Sora nearly whined. "I know I act kinda childish and seem really naïve but I'm not that innocent. I mean, I want the same things most guys my age want."

"You just don't know from who."

"Yeah." Sora shook his head. "I like Kairi a lot but I don't think it's in that way."

"Why does it have to be Kairi?"

"Huh?"

Leon was watching ahead. "You're fixated on the idea that Kairi is the only girl for you. Aren't there other girls on that island of yours? Or for that matter, why does it have to be someone from the island at all? You've been to other worlds, maybe you'll find someone on one of those."

Sora thought over his words very carefully. "You don't have to answer this but have you ever been in love?"

"Yes." No further explanation.

"How old were you?"

"Seventeen." He glanced down. "And yes, it was a girl."

Sora nodded thoughtfully. "Have… have you ever even considered another guy?"

Leon seemed reluctant to answer but apparently decided he'd gone this far. "I have a couple of times. There was this friend of mine, Irvine. He was a huge flirt with the girls but for whatever reason, he really seemed to enjoy flirting with me. I never really understood why and I kind of liked the attention."

"What about Cloud?"

"What about him?" There was a slightly uncomfortable tone to his voice.

"You two are really close. Have you ever thought of Cloud that way?"

Leon was biting his lip and Sora gaped at him. "You have!"

"Well, have you ever really looked at him?" Leon weakly defended himself. "Even though he's definitely a man, he's got this almost delicate quality to him, not to mention those eyes. I know he's your best friend's guy and all but damn."

"Yeah, I kinda noticed that too." Sora chuckled. This was the most comfortable he had ever been talking about sex. Maybe it was because it was Leon. He was never judgmental and Sora trusted him than probably anyone outside Riku, Kairi and his mom. "Maybe I just like girls and guys."

"It's possible." Leon put his hands in his pockets. "Look, Sora. You're still just a teenager; experiment a little. It isn't as if you need to figure all this out know. When things are right, your heart will just know."

"That's what Riku said."

"Riku's a smart guy, not to mention damn lucky. Most go a life time before finding the one meant for them and others find them only to loose them." The Gunblader held a sad tone.

Sora felt terrible for Leon. It must be horribly lonely for him sometimes being the only apparent survivor of his world. The others had accepted him in easily but there had to be some lingering isolation. They had years together they could talk and joke about. Only Leon remembered himself as Squall.

Not really conscious of the movement, Sora threaded his arm through Leon's. The man spared a quick look but said nothing. They stayed like this until reaching the edge of town, then Leon removed his hands from his pockets.

"Hey, Leon?" Sora asked again a slight tremor to his voice. He sounded uncertain.

"What, Sora?"

"You aren't alone, you know. Everyone here cares about you." He bit his lip and very softly added. "I care about you."

Realizing what he just said, he looked up suddenly. "I- I don't mean that way! That is, well, I mean, yeah, you're a good looking guy and all that but…"

Leon stared at him a long moment as he babbled. He lightly snorted in amusement and started laughing. Ruffling Sora's spikes, he began walking again.

"Hey!" Sora leapt after him. "Don't you just dismiss me like that! I was being serious."

He lightly punched Leon's arm when he caught up and the man stopped suddenly. Turning on him, Leon gazed down and steel eyes met blue for just a moment. Sora got a strange shiver from it and quickly had to look away. "Ok, that was weird."

"No, it wasn't." Leon countered. There was a high curb nearby and Leon lead Sora over to it. Motioning for him to sit, the older man folded his arms before him. "That was attraction."

Sora picked at the crumbling brick beside him. "Oh."

Leon watched Sora as if debating something then sat down beside him. Sora glanced at him and found he could not turn away. It was like some spell had come over him. He still did not move when Leon moved closer.

His eyelids automatically fell shut as lips brushed against his, causing a tingling to run through his body. This was nothing like when he had kissed Riku. That had been shy, uncertain; this was solid, certain. This was a real kiss.

Leon pulled away before Sora wanted him to.

The man simply waited for Sora to reopen his eyes. When he finally did, all the youth was able to say was, "Whoa."

Sora smiled a little. "So that's what it's supposed to be like."

"Something like that."

"That was good."

"You'll have better." Leon stood. "But not from me."

Sora was a little disappointed but he understood what Leon was trying to prove. He did not have to decide now what he wanted. Part of the whole experience was just to learn what he liked and what he did not.

Leon held out his hand and Sora took it, getting to his feet. "You're a really good kisser."

"That's what Cloud said." The sable-haired man commented easily.

"So you have kissed Cloud?"

"I've done more than that with Cloud."

Sora's jaw dropped in shock. Leon and Cloud had… "Does Riku know?"

Leon shrugged. "It was before I knew about him and they were broken up. Just a one night stand."

"Oh." Sora still did not get the whole sex without love thing but he figured someday he would. Then again, he did not think he really wanted to. What was the point of it if you didn't care for the person? Feeling a bit daring and more than a little curious, he asked. "Was he good?"

"Amazing. That man's got a talent."

"Would," Sora only hesitated a little. He really was not sure why he wanted to know this but it seemed extremely important. "Would you ever consider doing, you know, with me?"

Leon raised an eyebrow. "You think I just go around kissing anyone?"

"Well, no."

"It would have to be under very specific circumstances," Leon spoke slowly but there was no reluctance to his words. "But I wouldn't be totally against the idea."

"Oh." Well, that was kind of nice to know. At least he knew now that not everyone saw him as some dumb kid. There were people who could see him as an adult worth dating...or at least sleeping with. "Thanks, Leon."

He casually draped an arm across Sora shoulders again as they continued down the street. "No problem, Sora. Just remember, you gotta sleep with me tonight."

Sora chuckled. "Child molester."

"Not now, not ever. If anything serious like that is ever going to happen between us, there's no way it'll be before you're eighteen. Unlike Cloud, I'm not a pervert."