DISCLAIMER: I own nooooooone of this! None!
AUTHOR'S NOTES: "Oshougatsu" is the name of the Japanese New Year's celebration, and it's a much bigger deal for them than it is for the Western world. They spend nearly a week cooking, cleaning, visiting temples and shrines, throwing things out and sending post cards. It really is the biggest holiday they have. I took some of those traditions and combined them with a more "Western" idea of a New Year's celebration (a giant party), and came up with something for Traverse.
I wrote this a couple months ago, sometime near the beginning of October, and rereading it and posting it is almost nostalgic for me. A lot has happened since then, but I can see the seeds of it beginning in this story. This is oddly contemplative for a Squffie, and I hope you'll forgive me for that, but it was just something I needed to put down.
Happy New Year everyone, and I hope the new year is a wonderful year for you.
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It was the biggest celebration of the year, because it meant that one more year had gone by without the town succumbing to darkness. For the few days before, everyone would go mad cleaning out their homes, throwing away old possessions that weren't needed anymore, cooking enough food to supply a marauding army, once again making everything new for the new year. Joyful postcards were sent around as people celebrated the resiliency of the town right up to the big day itself. New Year's Eve always culminated with everyone gathering in the First District, all that food they had made spread out over the tables people hauled out of their houses, singing and drinking and just in general having a party because they were still alive, as was the town itself. It was as good a reason as any to have a party; usually the place couldn't hold on to its good moods long enough for one to even begin to form. The preparations, though, could make people go just a little bit crazy.
Take Aerith, for example. She always entered into the spirit of things at the earliest possible moment, which for the three people she lived with was a sign of impending doom. She'd run around the house like a whirlwind, cleaning everything that held still long enough for her to attack it with dust rag or furniture polish, and roped everyone she could into helping her. Cid had barricaded himself inside his workroom at the Accessory shop with enough to eat and drink to last him a good three days, flatly refusing to come out and be subjected to her sudden burst of insanity. Leon just made himself even more naturally scarce than usual. And Yuffie jumped out the window.
It had been a narrow escape for the ninja. She had returned – silently, she thought – to their apartment to pick up her shuriken cleaning kit, and when she had looked up from her dresser, there was Aerith, eyes lit up with the temporary insanity that only this holiday inspired. Without even thinking, Yuffie had launched herself out her open window, the same way she'd come in, to fall into a somersault and come up running for her life while Aerith called for her to come back and help.
That was too close, the ninja commented to herself later that night, as she sat atop the bell tower with her feet dangling over the edge. From her perch she could just see the usual amount of light spilling over the First District gates, and she could just barely hear the chatter of all the voices of Traverse as they all mingled together to make one great sound, like a constant hum. She could even hear the sporadic bursts of song and laughter, but none of that inspired her to join them.
And why not? Usually I'd be down in the thick of things. Yuffie had no answer as to why she was all of a sudden so solitary tonight; this night was one of her favorites of the year, right next to her birthday, and usually she reveled in the celebration. This year, however, she just didn't feel like it, for some reason. She'd put in just enough of an appearance to let a few people see her and give her story that yes, she had been there thank you, some validity, and to steal some food and a drink, both of which she had managed to carry up the ladder to the bell tower with her. But now the food lay half-eaten and forgotten beside her, and the drink abandoned, not even the champagne that she was allowed to have only this once a year holding much allure. If I didn't know myself better, I'd say I was getting depressed.
There was a scuffling noise to her left, and Yuffie was immediately on her feet with a shuriken in hand. She'd thought she'd taken care of all the Heartless up here, but if she'd missed one… She relaxed a little, however, when a familiar head came over the edge of the roof, followed by the rest of him, and in just a moment Squall "Leon" Leonheart was standing in front of her as she tucked her shuriken away once more.
"You were going to attack me?" he asked, voice calm as always. Sometimes that trait of his really got on her nerves, but tonight it was almost soothing.
"I didn't know whether you were a Heartless or not." He nodded at her explanation and came over to stand near her, looking out over the empty Second District much as she was doing – and giving no explanation for his presence. "Aerith didn't send you to look for me, did she?"
"No," he replied, shaking his head. "They asked me to ring the bell this year, so I left early. Too many people."
It was Yuffie's turn to nod as she settled down again. The bell ringing was a custom that was tied to the year change, when one person would be selected to climb the tower and ring the bell at midnight to signal the new year. Since the Heartless had come, she, Cid, and Aerith had all been selected – mostly, she thought, because they could defend themselves from any random Heartless attacks that had a chance of happening in the Second District – and so apparently it was his turn. He'd probably used the Heartless attack excuse to go off even earlier than he needed to, as well; Squall didn't much like crowds.
They waited in silence, another snatch of singing drifting to them from the far-off revelers on the wind. Yuffie shivered a little; she'd needed to do laundry for several days but hadn't, since doing it would mean facing Aerith the cleaning demon, and so she was relegated to her usual tank top and shorts that she wore for most of the year. The weather in Traverse was never cold enough to snow, but it still wasn't smart to go around in what she was wearing in December.
Something warm and slightly heavy dropped over her shoulders; she looked up to notice Squall had removed his jacket and draped it around her. Giving him a quizzical look, he simply shrugged. "You're cold."
"But you don't have to be cold," she replied, pushing the jacket back at him. He was standing there in that white t-shirt and undoubtedly had to be turning into a popsicle, but he shook his head and didn't take it back. Knowing the man's stubbornness, Yuffie just gave up and shrugged into it. It didn't provide much more protection, but it was already warm from his wearing it, and gradually her shivering stopped.
"Why are you wearing that, anyway?" he asked, still looking over the empty space below them, hair stirring slightly in the wind.
"Aerith. Cleaning frenzy. Figured freezing was better than that." He nodded, understanding perfectly; after all, he'd been avoiding their apartment during the daylight hours as well.
One again the silence settled over them, not uncomfortable, simply something that didn't need to be broken. The stars – the worlds – twinkled above them, drawing the ninja's attention as they winked brighter and dimmer, though none went out as had been happening sporadically in the past years. "Do you ever wonder what they're like?" she asked suddenly, still watching the far-off lights and not her companion.
He looked down at last, a bit perplexed by the question. "What?"
"Them." She gestured upward with her chin, pulling his jacket closer around her as the wind gusted a little. "The other worlds. I mean, we know they're out there. We could go there if we wanted, with Cid's ship. But we never do. Just…" She shrugged. "Sometimes I wouldn't mind getting outta here, ya know?"
Squall didn't answer, but a quick glance upward told Yuffie that he wasn't mad with her saying those things – he had this peculiar way of quirking his eyebrows when he was mad, which was rare but usually severe. No, Squall was thinking, watching the lights himself now, and she knew then that he'd had the exact same thoughts.
"We can't, though," he said, startling her a bit; she'd expected him to just skip to some other topic, if he spoke at all. "Traverse is a place where people know there are other worlds – from what Sora's said, either the other worlds don't know more exist, or they have no way of moving from world to world. We can't interfere just out of curiosity." No matter how much we want to, she knew he was thinking.
"I know," she responded with a sigh of regret. "But this town is small. It's always been small and it'll always be small, no matter how many stories we hear of other worlds from the refugees. It's…" She paused, shaking her head. "It just grates on me, and I know it shouldn't, but it does and I can't help it," she finished, nearly defiantly.
"I know. I've seen you in training." Lately, she'd been fighting with a much more focused frustration, going after each and every Heartless as thought she had a personal vendetta against that monster in particular out of all of the ones that violated the fragile peace they strove to create in Traverse Town.
"…And? You're not gonna lecture me?" she asked, asperity completely lacking in her voice.
It was his turn to shrug. "Why should I?"
That was as much confirmation as she was going to get about her guess that being here was as bad for him as for her, but that was enough for her. She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on them, feeling a small, brief flare of pride that she was flexible enough to do that without any help from her arms. "So what do we do, then?"
"We keep going as best we can."
There was a muted roar from the First District just after he spoke, and Yuffie pushed up her glove to glance at her watch. "It's about time, Squall."
"Leon," he reminded her, turning at last away from the plaza, but stopping before he moved more than a step away and looking down at her. "Aren't you coming?"
She glanced up at him with some surprise. "You want me to ring it, too? It's supposed to be your special thing this time."
"It doesn't matter that much to me. Come on." Shrugging one last time, Yuffie got to her feet and followed him back to the niche with the bell's rope in it, giving in to the wind and zipping up his jacket as she walked. Sora and his friends had destroyed the gate that had been in place to keep curious children away from the rope around the time they had sealed the Town's keyhole; no one had bothered to replace it, so it was an easy matter to just walk right in. The rope dangled before them, and if they concentrated they could just hear the amassed crowd in the First District start to count down from thirty, excitement growing as the numbers lowered.
Yuffie and Squall both reached for the rope at the same time, and ended up with a hold on the rope right on top of each other. They looked at each other in silence for a moment, and then Yuffie's eyebrows raised and she grabbed the rope with her other hand as well, so both her hands were surrounding his one almost in a friendly challenge. A moment later, he placed his left hand atop hers, completing the stack, and they both got ready to pull.
"For our New Year's resolutions, we're both getting out of here, all right?" the ninja half-asked, half-demanded, looking straight at the gunblade wielder.
This time, he didn't pause before nodding in agreement.
Ten… yelled the distant voices, nine… eight…
"Together."
And he nodded again.
Four… three… two… one…
On one, they pulled in sync, as hard as they could, and the long-awaited for ZERO! was completely drowned out for them by the loud clanging of the bell overhead, a sound that echoed down the drop to them, reverberating off the walls. Knowing the tradition very well, they both continued pulling, and pulling, counterbalancing each other for eleven more rings, signaling midnight and the new year at the same time.
Immediately after the twelfth ring, they both let themselves go limp, weighing down the rope and preventing it from swinging from side to side. The bell above them gradually settled and the ringing gongs echoed and faded away as the crowd went crazy in the First District. Yuffie and Squall regained their footing, still holding the rope, still watching each other, the resolution making the air around them oddly solemn. Their eyes were locked and neither looked away, as if fully realizing the weight of their decision.
It was impossible to tell who moved first; it could have been Squall leaning down, or Yuffie rising on tiptoe, but their lips met in a brief, chaste kiss. They pulled back just as fast, still watching each other, and neither said a word as they finally let go of the rope and left the alcove, to go rejoin the party – but only for a short time.