Ascending the Terraces

By Rhino7

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, its characters or storyline. This one-shot is mine. So after I wrote Dante's Tenth Circle I was all depressed, so I wrote this as a second part to it, to try and mend the bridges between Leon and Tifa. Writing friendship for them is way more entertaining than it should be for me. I love it. Anyway, here we are. I might write a third one-shot for this, but only if the muse permits. Happy 2010 everybody!

..:--X--:..

Of all the things on Tifa's to-do list for the day, bowing before the porcelain god was not one of them. Unfortunately, that is exactly what she found herself doing by mid-afternoon.

She had felt the illness coming on since the previous evening. She'd spent practically all night tossing and turning and trying to get comfortable before finally falling into restless sleep at around four in the morning. Three hours after she fell asleep, her alarm went off. If her limbs hadn't felt so sluggish, she would have thrown the damn thing against the wall.

As it was, she had settled for growling at it and dragging herself out of bed.

A hot shower had helped her clear her head a little, but it wasn't long after going into the office that a headache had set in. Then every little sound had caused her brain to pound against the walls of her skull. She managed to make it through the morning, but by the time two in the afternoon rolled around, the nausea reached a peak and she made a hasty stumble into the bathroom just in time for her stomach to empty itself.

'Hell' pretty much summed up her day.

Reaching a lull in the dry heaving, Tifa lifted her face out of the toilet bowl and propped her forearms on the rim of it, pushing her hair out of her eyes. She felt clammy and cold despite the fever that was making her vision swish from side to side. Closing her eyes, she held the back of her hand against her mouth to reinforce her resolve not to vomit again.

One week since the false alarm outbreak had left her locked in Merlin's house with Cloud and Leon for company, and now she was sicker than a dog? She'd never been hypochondriac before, but the recent bio-hazard scare on Radiant Garden had upped the paranoia as far as public health went. She understood the placebo effect…but thinking you might be sick and that train of thought actually making you sick? It sounded ridiculous to her.

Her stomach threatened to turn again and Tifa groaned, wiping the sweat from her forehead and sitting slowly back on her haunches. Half an hour of throwing up had nothing to do with mentality. One thing was certain though; her knees were killing her from kneeling in front of the toilet while her insides threatened to twist into knots.

The bathroom of the Allied Headquarter station was small but well kept. One thing the old Restoration Committee had enforced was that the Alliance not be too big for its britches. The whole building had a feeling of homeliness and modesty, however ill-received. The higher-ups of the Alliance's Council preferred refinement and the whole modern art angle to the structure. Leon and Cid, the co-designers of the place, had thrown grenades at that idea and done as they pleased.

Tifa was new to the whole Alliance thing. Since the downfall of Organization XIII, the Restoration Committee of Radiant Garden had grown in power and authority among the other systems such as Traverse Town, Twilight Town, and the others. Eventually, so many people and representatives had wanted in on the Committee that it had morphed into its own monster…more commonly called the Alliance of the Republic of Kingdom Hearts. The original Restoration Committee oversaw the rest of the Allies from a Head Council, mostly consisting of Leon, Cid, Yuffie, Aerith, Merlin, the Royal Court of Disney Castle, and the Keybearers from Destiny Islands.

Representatives from each Allied system convened every month with the Council for a general meeting…mostly political and whatnot…stuff Tifa generally didn't care about. Since the Heartless were still a looming threat, the Council had its hands full with attacks, massacres, and casualties. The war was still in full swing, whether Xemnas or Xehanort or whoever had been in charge of the rebellion was gone or not.

Hiccupping weakly, Tifa sat back on her haunches and drew a few measured breaths. At least she'd distracted herself from the nausea and shakiness. Bleh, politics. She didn't understand how she'd gotten mixed up in them.

That was a lie. She knew exactly how she'd gotten involved in the Alliance and their little Council or whatnot. It was because of stupid Leon. Grimacing, Tifa waited until the white walls of the bathroom stopped tilting and regained her balance, standing up slowly. Ever since she'd met the man, he'd been nothing if not a busybody for restoring Radiant Garden and the peace and banishing the Heartless once and for all. Tifa had to respect and support him for that motive.

Still, she had her own matters to attend to. First on that list had been Cloud: finding him and making sure he was okay. Well, apparently that facet of their friendship didn't work both ways because Cloud had deemed her unimportant enough to keep up with. She'd had to find out he was alive and where he was by chance through Sora and Leon. Then, when she finally hunted him down and confronted him, it was only because they were trapped in Merlin's house under lockdown because of a rumored outbreak of a deadly virus!

Life really liked its giggles sometimes.

Tifa leaned over the sink, splashing cold water on her overheated face and rinsing out her mouth. At least in that house, Cloud hadn't been able to just zoom off and leave her hanging. Being able to confront him had almost been worse than not finding him at all. He was less than disinterested in talking to her, dropping the occasional vague line or generic apology when she tried to get him to open up to her. He was like a different person from her best friend growing up. The whole Heartless War thing had changed him. Or Sephiroth had changed him.

Note to self, don't mention Sephiroth when trying not to get sick. Tifa grimaced and straightened, looking at herself in the sink mirror. Pale and clammy looking. Anybody with one working eye could tell she was sick. Not that people in the Alliance really bothered with face to face pleasantries. They were more about the action and the passing of motions and mobilizing armies to combat the Heartless than taking the time to—

The world shifted and Tifa gripped the sink counter, keeping herself upright.

Where had she been again? All this internal monologuing was distracting her from composing herself so she could get out of this forsaken bathroom and get back to work.

Stupid Leon.

It was his fault she'd gotten into the politics and power-struggles of the Alliance. She had been perfectly content to spend her days trying to find Cloud, her friend who chose to simply ignore her lately. Now she was focusing instead on making sure the representatives didn't spill the beans about the war to the public and on keeping humanoid Nobodies out of Radiant Garden. Griping wasn't going to help anything. Besides, Leon hadn't spoken to her since the faux outbreak anyway. Hardly even looked at her, to be honest. And that was her fault.

Tifa leaned against the wall and pushed the flushing lever on the toilet with her boot. Closing her eyes, she pressed the heels of her hands over her eyes and rubbed her fingers over her forehead, trying to ease away the pounding pressure behind her skull. She had known that Rinoa was a sore spot for Leon. She shouldn't have trespassed on that area, but she'd been upset and just trying to get some sort of emotional rise out of Cloud.

Well, she'd failed at that and managed to get Leon pissed at her, after she'd barely known the man for a few months!

Yuffie told her she had a way with people when she was mad.

Tifa lowered her hands from her face and steadied herself on the wall, opening her eyes. The bathroom was overly bright and the overhead lights launched an assault on her pupils. Wincing, she squinted her eyes against the attack and leaned forward, reaching for the sink counter. The world tipped crazily and she swayed on her feet, losing her balance in the dizzy spell.

Finding no stability, she grasped the sink counter, but it jumped out of her grip and she fell forward. To add insult to injury, as she fell, the side of her head collided with the corner of the counter. Seeing stars in tunneling vision, Tifa hit the floor and landed on her side. The nausea returned with a vengeance and Tifa curled her knees toward her.

It was juvenile, but she just didn't want to bother getting up right now. Her head hurt, her throat was burning, her stomach was twisted, and she felt hot and cold at the same time. She'd get up later when the yellow spots faded from her vision and she didn't feel like she was going to pass…

Cue black out.

The next time Tifa was aware, the cold tile of the bathroom floor had been replaced with cushions and a wet towel was draped over her eyes. As her wits slowly returned, she shifted her arms and legs, getting her bearings. Her knees were hooked over the armrests of a couch, and her upper half was flat on the seat of it. By the way the springs groaned as she moved, she was lying on the battered, patched-up couch in the break room.

Being horizontal seemed to have quelled the nausea and she didn't feel like the world was going to move with her if she sat up. Not that she wanted to sit up. But unless she had started sleep walking again, someone had helped her out while she was…passed out on the floor…How embarrassing.

She reached up and lifted the corner of the cloth from her eyes, peeking out from under the towel. All she could see was the coffee table and a pair of boots, crossed at the ankle and propped on the table. Blinking, she peeled the rest of the damp towel from her face, turning her head. The boots were connected to legs which were connected to the rest of Leon. He was sitting in the armchair beside the couch, poring over files, head tilted into his palm just so.

Tifa eased back into her former position, shoulders hunching. Leon!? Of all people to see her like this, it HAD to be Leon? Because he didn't know she was screwed up enough in the head as it was…Shifting, she propped her elbows under her and started to lever herself up.

A long-suffering sigh.

"Don't get up." Leon pulled his boots off the table, climbing out of the armchair and setting the files on the arm of it.

Tifa sank into the couch, blinking up at him as he moved around the couch and out of view.

"Wh-What—" She started.

"You passed out." Leon said flatly from the back of the break room amidst the sounds of opening doors. "That's my best guess anyway, since you were curled up on the floor with a knot on your head."

Oh good god…he was the one who'd FOUND her?!

Shit.

Tifa moved her arm over her eyes, wishing for nothing more than for the couch to open up and swallow her.

"Yeah, I guess I did." She mumbled.

Something cold brushed against her elbow. "Here." Leon said tonelessly.

Tifa moved her arm again and saw a bag of ice in Leon's hand hanging in front of her face. What was that for? She blinked and looked from the ice to Leon's face. After a moment, he rolled his eyes and leaned over, sliding the ice between the side of Tifa's head and the couch. His hand brushed against what was apparently a large, tender knot on her head and she winced, recoiling.

He just grunted and withdrew, back stepping and sinking into the armchair again.

"Thanks." Tifa muttered, reaching up and adjusting the ice.

"How long have you been sick?" He asked, not looking up at her as he skimmed the files in his lap.

"I'm…I'm not. I'm fine." Tifa said through her teeth, closing her eyes briefly as the headache returned with a vengeance…Leon had that effect on people.

"There's a stomach bug going around the station. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that you caught it." Leon said. "Did it start yesterday?"

Tifa sighed in defeat. "Yes, but I don't get sick."

Leon looked at her, "You threw up until you passed out, nearly concussing yourself on the sink counter. You are sick." He frowned, "And if you had been on patrol or without anybody around, you could have been on that floor for a while."

"Don't lecture me." Tifa closed her eyes against her headache.

"I'm not trying to." Leon sifted through his files. "I'm just asking you to be more responsible and take care of yourself on the job."

She frowned. "I'm fine."

He snorted at her answer and checked his watch. "Well, you're 'fine' just in time." When Tifa didn't say anything, he expounded. "New Year's in half an hour."

She turned her eyes to the clock on the wall. Sure enough, it was 11:30 and the window beside it was black with the night. Wait…that meant she had been unconscious for over six hours?!

Tifa blinked, "Wait—" She sat up quickly.

Bad idea.

The couch felt like it spun in a circle and Tifa held on for dear life, lifting a hand to her head as her brain pounded against the side of her skull. Her stomach churned and she swallowed hard, determined not to throw up again, with Leon sitting there and everything.

"Hey, cut that out. Lay down." Leon snapped.

Tifa's body obeyed faster than her mind could register his words and she flopped back onto the couch. An unstifled moan escaped and she couldn't bother to care anymore.

"Was I unconscious for SIX HOURS?" She groaned.

"You've been in and out." Leon replied.

"In and out." Tifa reiterated, pinching the skin between her eyes with her thumb and index finger.

"More on the out end though." He added. "General delirium, dizziness…you haven't been coherent until now. When your fever skyrocketed, I called Aerith in to check on you."

"Fever…you…you took my temperature?" Tifa turned her head to look at him.

Leon made a vague noise that suggested he had done more than that and Tifa sat up, more slowly this time. She flashed him as indignant a look as she could muster. Leon glanced at her and then rolled his eyes, lifting up the device.

"I checked your ear, sicko." He remarked flatly, setting the thermometer on the coffee table.

Tifa swallowed and pushed herself into a completely upright position. Her joints and muscles ached from lying on her back for so long. She maneuvered her legs over the edge of the couch and leaned against the back rest, holding the ice to her head and turning her eyes to Leon sourly.

"And you didn't pawn me off on Aerith. Why?" She asked blankly.

Leon turned the page on his latest report, not looking up. "She was busy."

"She wasn't too busy to come check on me. She would have stayed. Aerith's a stickler when it comes to—" Tifa started.

"I wanted to make sure you were okay." Leon interrupted. "There, happy?"

Tifa winced as he raised his voice slightly. "Ah, no, not really."

Making an exasperated noise, Leon tossed the file to the coffee table and stood up, walking out of her frame of vision again.

"Hey, wait, I'm sorry." Tifa started to stand, but her knees thought better of it and she settled for turning after him.

Leon stopped, his back to her, hands on his hips. Tifa shifted around so that her knees were in the seat of the couch and she was leaning her arms against the back, watching him. They both fell quiet and silence encompassed the break room. Tifa bit her lip, unsure how to proceed and watching Leon, who kept his back to her.

On her list of things to do that day, confronting Leon hadn't been there either.

At least when she was running her mouth at Cloud, she knew what buttons to push, which to ignore, and when to stop. He was familiar and he understood her undertones. Leon didn't. After just a few months, there was no way she felt close enough to him to gauge how far she should push him. They were barely friends…had been barely friends…when she definitely pushed the wrong button. She should have known better than to push the Rinoa Button. It was off limits. A better friend would have known that.

Now they were just…co-workers.

Finally, Leon turned around and faced her, hands still on his hips. Tifa didn't have to feel like his friend to know he was still very irritated with her. It was written clearly on his face. For a second, they just stared each other down and then tried to speak at the same time.

"We—"

"Um—"

They both stopped.

Tifa couldn't help herself. "Why didn't you pawn me off on Aerith? I know you how you feel about the whole 'tend to the invalid' bit."

Leon acknowledged the truth in the statement. "Aerith wanted to stay, but with the latest round of casualties coming in, she was needed elsewhere."

Fireworks exploded into view in the skyline window. Both Tifa and Leon averted their eyes to look at the sudden intrusion into their awkward conversation. Tifa nibbled on her lip and faced him again.

"I don't want to start the new year on bad terms." She blurted. "So I'm sorry about last week. I shouldn't have dragged you into mine and Cloud's argument and I had no right to say what I did. I'm sorry." She said.

He regarded her with a wary eye. "All right."

She paused. "All right? All right as in 'get out' or all right as in 'all is forgiven'?"

The corner of his mouth quirked. "All right as in fine."

"Well, that's better. I was worried you were going to be vague or something." Tifa rubbed the side of her head, careful around the knot that had formed.

Leon crossed his arms across his chest. "I appreciate the apology, but after the last six hours, it's really unnecessary."

Tifa hesitated again. "Oh, right…Thanks for…you know…"

"You're welcome…believe me." Leon almost grinned. "You know you talk when you're delirious?"

She stiffened, "I didn't…"

"Oh, you did." He said, looking smug.

Feeling her face heating up, she folded her arms. "What did I say?"

"I don't feel comfortable repeating it." Leon said lightly.

Tifa grimaced and sank back to her seat on the couch, "I think I'm gonna be sick."

He took pity on her and didn't taunt her further, foregoing the torture in lieu of the files on the coffee table. He dropped back into the armchair, glancing out the window at the fireworks display.

"Aspirin." He pointed to the bottle of pills next to the bottle of water on the table.

She swallowed two of the pills and a few sips of water before getting horizontal on the couch again to avoid further stomach attacks or pounding headaches.

"So I guess we're friends again?" She offered after a minute.

"You're worse than Yuffie." was all she got for an answer.

Staring up at the ceiling and feeling her eyelids drooping, Tifa settled her shoulders into the cushions of the battered couch and set the bag of ice on the coffee table. She'd take that as a yes. The sounds of the fireworks trailed away as the display reached a close, and silence resumed in the break room aside from Leon turning pages and writing on the papers.

A few minutes passed.

"Happy New Year." Tifa said, eyes closed while she massaged the sore side of her head.

Leon just offered a 'hmph' noise and propped his feet back up on the coffee table.