BEHIND ENEMY LINES

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in Kingdom Hearts. Just a fan who wants to write fan fiction and indulge herself in her love triangles. :D

Captured by the enemy, Yuffie tries to stay alive by flying under the radar, but to no avail, she has perked the interest of the Bastion's General and Prince. Leon-Yuffie-Cloud

Chapter Six

The dim light of the gray sky began to peak over the horizon as the lingering smell of burnt material grazed the senses of the few working soldiers. The impetuous fire that had blazed earlier in the evening had now diminished into dust, the remnants of the chaos a distant memory. There were small murmurs of soldiers conversing, many rumors beginning to poison the conversation among the men. It seemed since the beginning of Yuffie's arrival to their unit, turmoil seemed to be associated with the young prisoner. Who knew that a girl who had barely entered adulthood could be an army's most burdensome adversary?

Lulling back into consciousness, Yuffie then felt a stinging pain erupt throughout her hands. The memory of the blistering hot chains flashed across her mind as she winced at the thought of touching them again. In the heat of the moment with panic enveloping her, the young girl had made a bad decision which may have scarred her hands for life. Her head began to throb as she realized that she was beyond the point of exhaustion and stained with the residue from the fire. It truly felt like she had hit rock bottom.

Sitting up, Yuffie adjusted herself carefully in silence. Staring down at her hands, she grimaced at the thought of what they looked like underneath the bandages.

"That is the least of your worries." Anxiety exploded throughout her body.

The monster had arrived.

Registering the voice, Yuffie begrudgingly lifted her eyes to meet the cross-armed figure standing in front of her staring her down with conquest in his eyes. In her defense, she narrowed her eyes back at him.

"Why is it that every time I leave you alone that something devastating always happen?" Even though Leon was standing several feet in front of her, his presence had finally intimidated her. Perhaps it was because she running out of steam.

Nevertheless, Godo's daughter would never let him know that.

"Seems to me like it's just a coincidence," she replied fighting the urge to let a smirk curl on her lips. Regardless of her situation, she never let the opportunity slip through her fingers to antagonize the man standing before her when she had the chance. And of course, the comment she retorted caused his lips to spring into a frown.

"You're on thin ice, Kisaragi."

"Yuffie."

It was then she felt him grasp her upper arms in frustration, an action that inwardly startled the young girl as he pulled his face closer to hers, his eyes burning with a desire to make Yuffie retract her sarcasm.

"Leon, please."

Then she realized where she was. After a brief moment of a silent standoff between Yuffie and Leon, the general let his hands slip away as he snapped his gaze elsewhere. As Leon moved away from the prisoner, the sight of a familiar face caught her eyes. The prince was sitting down in a chair as a soldier attended to the diminutive burns that had chafed his body. His once lustrous blonde hair was speckled with ash from the fire, the smoke painting his skin like an art piece. Small, nevertheless, noticeable burn marks grazed his face in lines; Cloud had seen better days.

Blinking, her brown eyes scanned the room. They were in the medical tent.

"Leon wasn't kidding when he said you were something to watch out for," the young prince stated as the soldier finished up his duties. Giving a nod of respect, the young man grabbed his supplies and made his way toward the entrance of the tent. Now she was officially alone with two of the most well-known men in the kingdom, which in her mind, was not a good thing. Yuffie shrugged at the comment refusing to give him any satisfaction.

"Who would have thought that a young girl like you could cause more damage to a unit respectfully more powerful than most in its path and still be alive after it all? You really are special, Yuffie." The hair underneath Godo's daughter's bandages began to stand up as she sucked her breath in. For the first time since she had met him, he had spoken her name unlike Leon who kept referring to her as 'Kisaragi'. The prince of the Bastion army knew her name; it was kind of an awe-filled moment. Nevertheless, it only lasted a moment as the memory of their debacle in Leon's tent saturated her thoughts.

Her mouth pursed into a frown as she exchanged glares between Leon and Cloud. "Oh trust me," she began, "I feel special."

"How old are you? Seventeen? Eighteen? Most people your age would not have lived through the first day of your journey. Why would Godo hide someone with your skill so far away from the front of the lines?" It was then Yuffie realized Cloud seemed to be questioning Godo's methods out loud to himself rather than directly inquiring an answer from her. Leon grunted a "hmph" in response to his question as his feeling was obviously not mutual. She then narrowed her eyes at him in response.

"Why are you so concerned with my ability to fight?" Lost in thought, the blonde-haired-prince remained silent.

"Why did my tent burn down? Apparently we'll never know the answers to the most wanted questions." She felt the sarcasm drip off Leon's tongue as he interjected a response in place of Cloud.

The young blonde spoke up once more as a sudden epiphany formed in his mind, "Godo was a renowned figure in our kingdom once upon a time. It would only make sense that you have inherited some of his ability to fight." Yuffie snapped her gaze over to Cloud. What did he mean Godo was a renowned figure in the kingdom once upon a time? Did he mean Godo's position as the rebellion leader?

"He still is a renowned figure," she hissed in response.

"She is the only heir," Leon noted in Cloud's direction completely ignoring Yuffie's comment. "It would only make sense that he would place his daughter in an area surrounded by uncharted territory. The enemy would be likely to route themselves elsewhere than be placed in an unwanted situation. A wise tactic." There went Leon again with his ungodly gift to analyze situations and predict an accurate standpoint. He wasn't the general of the Bastion army for no reason.

Cloud peered up at Leon in agreeance, both of them talking about her and her father as if she weren't even in the room.

"Who said I could fight?" Yuffie argued. "Have you seen me in combat? I'm not a soldier. Look at me now. Do I look like a soldier to you?" Even though she wasn't a soldier, her plan was to make them believe she was feebler than she really was. She wanted them to underestimate her.

"The twenty-two men you took out back home and Auron's scar say otherwise," Cloud commented back. Damn.

"I know now that you cannot leave my sight even for a second," the general added with stern sincerity. Yuffie had officially used up all her chances to easily manipulate her situation (not that her situations were easy to manipulate in the first place.) In fact, with Leon watching her like a hawk, she was left helpless and could only hold tight and try not to buckle under the pressure of her situation.

"Hmph." The pain was searing through her hands again, pulsating like a heartbeat and causing her eyes to sting with tears. Blinking them away, Yuffie bit her lip as a defense mechanism so she could focus on anything else beside her hands.

"So the question now," Leon spoke up, "Is what do we do with you?" Yuffie cocked her head slightly in caution as the statement rang through her ears. What were they going to do with her now?

"What do you mean?" She inquired cautious of the intent of the question. His eyes slid over toward her once again analyzing her condition.

"You are in terrible condition. I am unable to shackle your arms anymore due to possible infection. We can't afford to have you dead by the time we get there." Yuffie felt the last statement that had escaped Leon's mouth was more morbid than it was intended to be.

"She'll ride with me." With that statement, both Yuffie and Leon snapped their attention toward the young prince.

"What?!"

"The hell she will!"

Well that fixed her problem of focusing her attention on something else other than her hands.

Leon's eyes lit up in defiance at the prince's suggestion, as the mere thought of Yuffie alone with one of the most important men in the war, let alone the kingdom, caused a chill of anger to envelope him. Cloud's eyes became glazed with a stern stubbornness as he stood up to face the general.

"She will ride with me in my carriage so she can recover. Sitting on a horse in public sight could be burdensome once we enter the city and with no prisoner carriage, I don't see any other option." His eyes were glazed with the intent to let Leon know he had no say in the matter. "She has to be up to some par before she is presented to my father." Growling in response, the general stepped forward closing some of the range he had between Cloud and himself.

"I refuse to let this happen," he apprised vehemently. "Your father put his trust in me to ensure your safety-"

"-and he trusted you to trust my decisions as your superior. I may not be the king but I will be one day and I hope this isn't something I have to look forward to." At that statement, Leon cut his argument short and pursed his lips in response. Never in her life would she have imagined the kingdom's most distinguished general backing down from a fight with his tail between his legs.

It warmed Yuffie inside.

Closing his eyes, she could see Leon's body tremble as he tried to repress his indignant thoughts. A sigh escaped his mouth before he pulled his eyes up to meet the prince's stern cerulean gaze.

"The only way I would allow this is if my conditions are met. Prince or not, I answer to your father first." It was Leon's way of stating he would not be pushed around. The young girl was impressed at his ballsy attempt to hinder the prince's decree.

"And what conditions would those be?"

She could also see the smirk taint his lips as he replied with satisfaction.

"We drug her."

"Fuck no!" Yuffie interjected. Not the green stuff from before. She didn't want to be even more vulnerable than she already was. What made her body shake with even more anger was that Cloud seemed to be considering Leon's proposal.

"With no shackles, she has free reign to manipulate. Twenty-two men, a colonel left sightless in one eye, the prisoner carriage, and now my tent." His eyes took one swift glance at the choleric prisoner before meeting the eyes of his superior. "You see my concern." Well, if he had to spell it out for the prince. Impressed at the statement, Yuffie didn't realize just how much of an impact she had made until it was verbalized. Her father would be proud.

"If this will make you happy," Cloud began not looking away from the perturbed man standing only a few feet in front of him, "then I will accept your conditions."

"What makes you think I will let you?" Because of the statement, Yuffie had broken the stare down that the men had been exchanging to look at her.

"What makes you think you have any say?" Leon countered. And he was right. With her body literally fractured from all the abuse, the mahogany-eyed girl would be lying to herself if she thought she could resist any forced treatment; she sincerely just did not have the strength. "As I thought."

"Go to hell where you belong asshole." The remark washed off of Leon like water on wax paper. Her ability to belittle him just wasn't as adamant given the current situation they were in.

"Think of it as a blessing, Yuffie. You'll be out of pain at least for a little while." Cloud's positive outlook on the situation wanted to make her curl into a ball and forget everything that was happening to her.

"No," she replied lowly, "no one will touch me, no one will drug me. End of story."

"I guess we could always have you ride with Auron in the carriage," the general spoke up nonchalantly as a smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. "I'm sure he'd love to help you recover." Yuffie panicked inwardly at the thought of being with Auron for the next 24 hours.

"As if you'd really do that." He wouldn't...right?

"What makes you think I wouldn't?" Leon retorted in a similar fashion Yuffie had done moments before. With no immediate response coming to her mind, she bowed her head with a sigh. It must have pleased Leon to see her react the way she did.

Defeated, she held her hand out with her palm facing the ceiling of the tent while turning her face away and scrunching her eyes closed indicating that she was ready to take the green supplement. As if on cue, silence filled the air as the movement of feet echoed.

Suddenly, a strong pinching feeling stabbed her right arm as she winced at the discomfort.

"OW!" She yelped, her eyes snapping open to focus on the newly pained area. "What the-what did you do?" Bringing her eyes up to meet the figure standing before her, her body began to slowly feel weaker by the second.

"The supplement I gave you last time was not nearly strong enough to keep you down. For as skinny as you are, you sure have the resilience of an elephant. This time, I am going to make sure you are out."

Glaring at him, she noticed the needle in Leon's gloved hands. "Dammit." And within seconds, she found herself falling into darkness as a strong pair of arms wrapped themselves around her to make sure she was secure and safe.

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Colors swirled in the air swiftly colliding with one another. The smell of familiarity overtook Yuffie's senses as her thoughts twirled around slowly. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she felt as if she were...uplifted, at peace. Was she dead? Her mother always told her dying was supposed to be like sleeping but it was more serene than anyone could ever describe in their mortal life. Slowly, her vision began focus and the colors distributed themselves in the cabin around her. She wasn't dead. In fact, she was very much alive. Her senses were dulled, however. It must have been that drug that was numbing most of the feeling in her body.

Can't…get…a thought together. Dammit.

She just felt so tired. Why didn't she let herself rest? Her body was leaning against the side of the cabin as she sat on the elongated luxurious seat that rested beneath her. Yuffie sluggishly opened and closed her eyes to regain feeling. The last time she ever felt like this was when she was so ill, her maid had to help carry her to the bathroom.

Across the cabin sat a familiar authority figure, his cheek resting on his fist as his blue eyes gazed pensively outside the undersized cabin window. The light from the window kissed Cloud's face as it highlighted the best features about the young man. Even with Yuffie's groggy state, her mind was stimulated by the prince's physical features, however, when she was remembered his snobby-sour personality, the physical features became less thought-provoking and just more annoying. If there was light, she wondered how long they had been traveling. It couldn't have been more than ten or twelve hours as the sun was still prominent.

"You're really awake?" A surprised voice filled the cabin. It took her a moment, but Yuffie blinked her eyes upwards toward the young blonde to see his expression. "That drug is supposed to knock you out for at least 36 hours."

Yuffie remained silent. Not that she wanted to. She just wasn't fully capable of speaking clearly yet.

Perching himself up, he studied Godo's daughter.

"You must have the world's fastest metabolism. Your body knows how to regulate drugs and poisons at a significantly better rate than one would imagine for a girl who is only a few pounds over a hundred." He chuckled to himself allowing Yuffie to momentarily close her eyes as she tried to regain control over herself once more.

Swallowing, she spoke quietly, "I'm glad my supernatural abilities…can entertain your majesty." Even in her state, sarcasm dripped off her words showing that Yuffie would not be picked on.

"Ahh, that's right. You're quite the jaunty one, aren't you? It's truly unfortunate that you're on the side of the rebellion. You could have been useful to our cause." Her mahogany eyes opened and shot the prince a glare as she focused her energy on cursing his existence. Cloud flashed her a smile. "See, you're easy to provoke. You might want to control your temper. It really doesn't get you anywhere."

What a snobby brat.

Yuffie could feel her senses coming back to normal as a fiery rage began to fill her body. And then her memories from the previous night flooded her mind. The memory of what Cloud had done began to plague her mind. Whether it was because they needed her alive or he had decided to be the intrepid hero, the prince had saved her life without any thought of his own.

And then Yuffie did something completely against everything she believed in.

"Thank you," she uttered in her hazy state, "for saving me."

It must have been the drugs.

Apparently Cloud had not been ready for her response as his mouth dropped open in shock due to the words that escaped her mouth. The silence in the cabin echoed loudly as he shifted in his seat turning his gaze away in thought. Once again, her eyes began to burn from exhaustion which forced her to close them and focus on her breathing (and that was already difficult due to her injuries).

"You're…welcome."

Both of them sat in the quietness, each gathering their thought deciding how to proceed about further conversation. Keeping her eyes closed, Yuffie spoke more clearly.

"What is going to happen when we get to Bastion? What will happen to me?"

"You'll meet with my father, the king. As for your fate, it is in his hands as he has a plan for the future. I only assist in making it happen."

"So you'll do anything for your father? You'll live life the way he desires without any regards to what is really best for the people…or what you want for yourself?" Yuffie spoke up encouraging Cloud to respond to her question. Since she had him alone, now was the best time to collect information, information that could possibly be used to her benefit in the future.

"My father has a dream for the people of this land and I hope to make it a reality." Yuffie rolled her eyes inwardly. The young prince must have been brainwashed. There was no other explanation. A small frown painted Cloud's lips as he added, "Do you not do the same thing for your father by fighting this war?"

"No," Yuffie replied instantly. Quirking his eyebrow at the sudden response, the fatigued girl added, "I do it for the dreams of the innocent people who were shafted by their own ruling authority." This conversation started to sound like the one they had when they first met, which ended in Cloud slapping her for being too vocal about what she believed was the truth. Bringing her hand up to her face to touch her cheek, Cloud gave her a small laugh.

"I won't slap you again, I promise." Her eyes met his briefly before turning away in embarrassment. Sitting forward, he propped one hand under his chin while resting his elbow on his leg studying her. "Why not just come to our side?" Yuffie lifted her eyes to meet the curious prince once again.

"What?"

"Just surrender and defect. You'll stop the war and the massacre of your people. Is that not what you want?" Yuffie considered Cloud's words for no more than two seconds.

"No thanks. I'd rather not be stuck with a whole bunch of cold heartless bastards who do not understand why we fight in this war." And laughter escaped his mouth again almost undermining the serious nature of the situation. Was this war just a joke to the State? Or were they so egotistical about their position in the war that they didn't take the Rebellion's effort seriously? Yuffie's eyes filled with a bubbling rage.

"Even if I were to defect, there would be no true benefit." And no one would accept her. To defect would mean death and dishonor.

"I find it unfortunate that you brush me off. Perhaps I can change your mind one day. That is, if you're not dead by then." The words slid of his tongue causing a ping of fear to stroke the chest of the prisoner, however, she took a deep breath to gather herself and glared back in retaliation.

"You act as if you have no fears, no regrets, nothing you love more than this cause yet I know somewhere you have something you want, maybe even someone you love more than your father's dream. But your pompous attitude prevents you from even letting yourself acknowledge that maybe your father is controlling your life and driving your people to dust." Cloud, seemingly unaffected, just cracked a simple smile in response.

"Love can only exist within your own class, so why bother?" Yuffie's brow furrowed with annoyance. Love can only exist within your class? What the hell did he mean by that? And then Cloud's expression became serious as he sat up. "My duty to my country is my top priority. My needs, wants, and likes are not for me to decide even if I wish otherwise."

"Is that what life is like for all the authority figures of Bastion?" Yuffie inquired.

Cloud nodded.

"What a sad life."

His brow furrowed in response. Yuffie continued, "No wonder you don't understand your people. You don't know what life is yourself." Yuffie wasn't sure whether or not Cloud was taking her seriously, but she felt proud for standing up to him.

And then the prince sat back against the luxurious seat and gazing out the window once more. "We're not all monsters. Before this war came to its peak, many of us have been able to experience many things in which you say are necessary to understand life. Laughter, happiness, and even love as you so emphasize."

"Can you say that for yourself?" Would Cloud truly answer that?

"Hmm," he hummed out loud in thought. "I can't answer that right now to be honest." Figures.

Yuffie, feeling a little more energized, pushed herself away from the side of the cabin and sat straight up although it was a bit of a chore to do so. She wouldn't be surprised if she didn't break apart by the end of the trip to Bastion; her body was fighting for its right to live.

"Many people who you think are ruthless and don't care in all reality actually do. They understand human emotions. Because of the trouble they bring, they often shut them out. It gives them the edge in this war, therefore, it is a common act," Cloud explained further.

"Auron was once human?" Yuffie replied in curiosity outloud. The inquiry caused the blonde to blink for a moment before a hearty laugh escaped his chest, which caught the prisoner off-guard. Did he actually laugh at her joke?

"No, no," he started, "Auron was never born with a human heart."

Of course. Just what Yuffie thought.

"Leon, though," he trailed off before turning his cerulean gaze to her. It seemed Cloud realized what he was doing so he let his words disappear. Connecting with the prisoner in conversation on a human level didn't feel…proper, if that was the best way he could word it, however, Yuffie wondered if she was the concept of freedom in his world; communicating with her personally and disregarding his father's rule could have been his own way to assert his independence. Or maybe he was just curious about her. She probably wouldn't ever find out.

"Leon? The callous general who prioritizes his duties before himself? He's not human." Yuffie narrowed her eyes as the striking asinine man crossed her mind. Cloud paused for a moment, taking a breath before speaking.

"Even if it seems he had no regard for life and that he only focuses on the battlefield, Leon has had happiness. While it has been a long time since then, he has experienced life in his own way."

Pursing her lips, Yuffie couldn't believe she was going to ask. "What do you mean by that?" Cloud's expression ascended back into a somber state.

"Years ago before Leon became the general, he met a woman who had come to visit our country on important business. She was a beautiful girl, her hair as black as the feathers on a crow, her eyes bright with curiosity and a smile that seized the hearts of passing men; she was someone who melted the ice away from the cold heart of men like Leon." Eyes growing wide, Yuffie yearned for more information. Leon, the bastard that taunted, bullied, and belittled her, had been in love? It just seemed too impossible and improbable. He continued, "Her persistence to his resistance just made him sink further without knowing it."

"Okay if Leon truly loved this girl," Yuffie started as her mind swirled with questions, "…where is she now?"

Cloud made sure her gaze met his as he sighed to himself. "She fell into the arms of his nemesis." For a moment, the prisoner felt sorry for the man. It's as if she lost Zack to that damn red-head who is always pestering him for his attention. Damn her. Damn Leon. Damn everyone.

Yuffie let her gaze fall away from Cloud as she tried to imagine this woman he had described, what Leon was like with this woman, and his arch nemesis. But all the prisoner could come up with in her head was something similar to stick drawings; the lack of detail and thinking of Leon in such a state made it hard for her to even imagine.

"Trying to imagine it?" Cloud inquired. Yuffie snorted at his question narrowing her eyes back to him. "Don't worry, I couldn't believe it when I saw it either." And then Yuffie felt a small smile tug at her lips. As snobby as Cloud was, he could relate to her on a small aspect…although, their odd relationship wouldn't have existed in the first place if she were able to escape.

The medicine must have been fading as Yuffie's hands were throbbing once more. Her hands were slowly beginning to burn once more as the pins and needles sporadically jumped all over her palms.

"Does it hurt?"

No shit Sherlock.

Yuffie smiled inwardly at her mental response. She almost felt like herself again.

Cloud must have noticed her staring at her hands because then she felt something slowly, yet lightly grasp the underneath of the back side of her hands. A blush ran across her cheeks as she realized that the prince had made his way over to her side of the cabin to grab her hands so he could observe. Her body froze and she stared confused at his actions.

"How did this happen?" Shaking his head as he clucked his tongue, he looked down at her. "Well, I can guess what happened. Never mind." Meeting her gaze, he added, "I'm sorry you have to deal with this."

Wait, what?

"You're only here because of your relation to your father. If only things were different." The silence in the cabin was louder than it had ever been. Why did he suddenly change his tone with her? Why now?

"I-I…." Yuffie struggled to find the right words before grasping her thoughts. "Don't…don't hold it against me when I say I don't believe you." Pulling her hands away from his, she painfully crossed her arms and looked toward the undersized cabin window. It was difficult to see what was outside the cabin window, yet this was her option to avoid any further actions from the prince. If this had been any other girl, they would have died to have the sympathy of the prince of Bastion; however, Yuffie was no ordinary girl.

Suddenly, Yuffie flew forward as the cabin rocked violently. The prince tumbled backwards into the elongated seat as the prisoner made a new home on the floor.

"Fuck!" She cursed as the pain seared throughout her body specifically in her ribs area. It had been a while since the incident with Auron, yet Yuffie still felt like she was suffering. How long did it take ribs to heal?

Angrily he pulled himself up to peer outside the cabin window to find any indication of what happened before pausing. Gathering herself, she pulled her fatigued body into a sitting position on the floor as she brushed herself off.

"God damn assholes who can't steer worth shit," Yuffie muttered under her breath in frustration. Didn't they know to be gentle to her poor soul?

"Yuffie," Cloud spoke up precipitously. Bringing eyes up, she watched in slow motion as he turned toward her. His body stood tall and his facial expression became stern with conquest.

"We're here."

Her body filled with anxiety and fear as her eyes widened at his words. They were at Bastion? How? And then she realized her situation. It had been more than twenty-four hours since she was knocked out. She had already missed the whole trip.

By the god's, she was here.

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Author's Note: I know it's been too long. A few weeks obviously turned into a few months. Time flies away before you know it. I sincerely apologize to those who waited based on my words. I hope this chapter will suffice for now. We finally got to Bastion and now the real deal begins. The love-triangle also starts to begin next chapter as well. Hopefully you'll stick around long enough for that. Good information on both Leon's and Cloud's love life (if he's had one, you'll find out) become a little more exposed next chapter. Remember, no story is perfect and I hope if there were any inconsistencies, they weren't too great. I want to paint their personalities, character background, and struggles so it develops the relationship more. That way, it's easier to understand why things turn out the way they do. Thanks again! I'll work on the next chapter very soon!