Hope you like this romantic chapter, I just HAD to give him his dues. Enjoy! — Sh34k4

Kisses Before Death – 12

Yoyo Irvine Zidane Rikku Cloud Kurumi Leon (Squall) Mystery Addition!

It had been a week since the iron scorpion battle, and though Yoyo's dense nature had her thinking everything was back to normal, the rest of the group knew otherwise.

An unspoken declaration of war had been issued between Irvine and Leon, Cloud and Zidane weren't ignoring Rikku and Kurumi anymore, but the two were careful not to anger them. While Yoyo ignorantly chattered about the upcoming trek through the mountains, the others were trying to balance out the mountainous emotional tension.

They'd left the desert three days ago and were now working their way into a long expanse of mountains that would lead them to their next destination.

Stretching her arms in front of her, Yoyo said, "Man, these things remind me of school."

Her school?

Leon's brow quirked. This was rare. While the subject was still fresh . . . "So, your school for assassins was in the mountains? What was that like?"

A cold expression took over her face, surprising in its swiftness. It was almost as though a chill breeze had swept her smile from her. "That school, it is not worthy of the beauty of its surroundings." She quickly returned to making her way up the path and the others looked after her in silence.

Leon felt like crap.

How could one question cause such a negative reaction? He was starting to move forward to go after her, when Irvine shoved him aside with a rude, "Nice going, yuppie," and left him behind.

Yoyo had already put a good distance between herself and the group when Irvine caught up to her. "Come on," he grabbed her hand and began pulling her farther ahead and off the path.

Confusion took precedence over past pains, "Where are we going?"

Anything was better than pain, "You'll see, now get that ass in gear."

So the swift strides became a run and soon she was just going with the flow and following wherever Irvine felt to pull her. Without a destination—because she knew him, she knew he didn't know where they were going. He was just trying to make her feel better and it was the trying that made warmth gather in her chest and a smile to her lips.

He was such a caring man.

They came to a pause, lungs straining but it was well worth the effort to get lost. Irvine claimed it was where he wanted to take her and she laughed because she knew he was making it up as he went along.

"That's much better." He gazed down into her eyes and she found herself wondering if he was going to kiss her.

Now where had that thought come from? A blush crept across her cheeks and she wondered if he could see it through her dark skin. "What is?"

A slow smile came to his lips and her eyes darted down to watch—only for a second! She was not thinking about kissing him—she quickly returned them to make eye contact and focused.

Do not think about kissing!

"You smiling is always better than your sad face." Grabbing her hand, he pulled her along a little further and se saw that they had come across one of those cliffs that overlooked a small mountain river below. Yoyo could barely manage to let her breath go.

It was simply too beautiful.

"There were places like this y'know. We weren't supposed to notice, but I always thought they were special," she looked around slowly and allowed her eyes to catch every detail.

"Yeah? Why'd you think that?" As soon as the question left his mouth, Irvine felt as though he could have kicked himself. How could he ask something so similar to what that yuppie had asked her?

Yoyo's hand tightened in his and Irvine prepared himself for her anger, but instead of lashing out, her grip loosened and she kept her eyes on the scenery as she replied, "Everything they ever taught us was how to kill. I learned the main killing spots of the body before I was seven and quickly graduated from the fighting arts level to the weapons level before I was thirteen. Excelling at killing was smiled upon and anything that left that strict dogma was quickly . . . squelched."

The sadness filled her voice again and this time, Irvine squeezed her hand. "Once I left, there was nothing for me in the world but killing. I don't know how to do anything but kill! I don't have any experience with other people. At school . . . they weren't other people. They were potential rivals, possibly even Hits." Irvine turned her around to face him and searched her gold eyes. He loved looking into her eyes whenever he could, that was where the true woman lied.

No matter what her exterior portrayed, you could always find the true Yoyo deep in her eyes. All her feelings were there, you just had to care enough to look for them. Irvine searched deep, and as he looked, he could see the fear. She may seem worldly and tough, but she truly was such a soft thing, her shell only half open, potential still unreached.

"Sit down. I want to tell you about my life growing up." He took a place on the grass and rocks that made their cliff and tugged her down beside him. She tried to pull away, but he countered her by putting his arm firmly about her shoulders and kept her close enough that his jacket opened a bit to include her and she could feel the heat of his body.

Yoyo's heart raced. This was very close by her standards, she was sure it isn't normal to sit like these by normal people's standards too. When she opened her mouth to tell Irvine so, she was interrupted. He has started talking and she never got to telling him what she thought.

"I grew up in an orphanage with Leon, you know." He looked down into her disbelieving face and smiled, "Yeah, you wouldn't have guessed it, but we practically grew up together. It wasn't a great big orphanage or anything. It was this little house on the seaside, owned by this couple that couldn't have children of their own, they were good substitutes to a bunch of kids whose parents had either died or abandoned them." His chin came to rest on her head and kept her from looking up into his face, so she just looked at the mountains and tried to imagine a tiny boy Irvine running and playing with an equally small Leon.

"We got accepted into training for SeeD pretty young and made it to official mercenary levels by the time we were seventeen or so. I always hated how easy that yuppie made everything look, excelling at his classes while I pushed and shoved my way through the class ranks, but you know what?" He moved his chin and she looked up into his eyes, soft from reminiscence. "It was always fun. He was a challenge I wanted to surpass so I exerted myself into my classes and soon learned techniques he couldn't hope to master. I took life by the horns and decided that I was going to be the one riding the bull. I want that for you. I want you to find what you want and take it by the horns. There is something for everyone, I'm sure you can find it. I'm always here to help you too," he winked his sly player wink and her heart pitter-pattered against her ribs.

No wonder Irvine was never lacking in attention from women! That wink must have stopped many a girl. The wind blew, and with it came a sudden realization. He was a player. One didn't simply involve themselves with that type of man unless they didn't care about their own feelings. She smiled at him and tried to push away so she could rise.

Irvine held her tighter. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing." She looked him directly in the eyes, "This wouldn't work out Irvine."

He waved that excuse away, "Yes, it would."

Shaking her head, Yoyo declined, "No, really, it wouldn't work. I know you like your freedom and all, you're such the player," a forced laugh left her lips and even to her, it sounded like a lie, "I know it wouldn't work. I'm not like that."

Irvine blinked, and then a smile spread across his face. Yoyo's brows furrowed. What the hell was so funny? She'd just rejected him, hadn't she? Pulling her closer, so that her nose almost touched the tip of hers and their eyes were on an equal level, Irvine looked into her eyes as he told her, "I know it will work. It will work because I want this to work. I didn't want the others, so they didn't work, but I want you." His lips touched hers and a sigh escaped.

Why did her mind go blank whenever he kissed her? He opened her mouth a bit more and she allowed him entrance, lost in the feelings that were welling up in her chest. Irvine kissed her with all the feelings he couldn't put into words yet, she wasn't ready for them. Being able to kiss her was enough for now, for now. Suddenly, she was unbuttoning his vest and Irvine's mind quickly jumped from 'for now' to 'right now.' Maybe she was ready for more than he had originally thought? His hands began to roam and his kisses got more ardent.

"Well, never thought I'd come across something like this."

Shock had Yoyo pushing away from Irvine in a flash to unsheathe her katana. The intruder chuckled, more of a snicker, as he told her, "Come now, is that really how you greet an old friend?"

Irvine looked at the guy before him in stunned silence. Who the hell was this guy? He was dressed in an outrageously sloppy black suit that looked like it was once tailored to fit but now looked as though he'd slept in it far too often. His stance said he was relaxed but the hands at his sides were loose and ready for action.

How the hell did he get here?

Yoyo snickered a bit herself, "I didn't know scum like you could dress so well."

The man tsked at her barb and proceeded to groom his spiking red hair with such an uncaring manner that Irvine wondered if he really knew who Yoyo was. "I didn't know they let slackers like you graduate! What are they thinking at that School of the Forbidden Arts nowadays?! His voice was full of mock scandal and Yoyo grit her teeth at his words.

School of Forbidden Arts? What the hell was going on here?

Irvine's confusion only grew.

"I don't remember asking you for you opinion . . ." a sneer spread across her lips as Yoyo spat out his name, "Reno."

END

Hope you enjoyed it, REMEMBER TO OFFICIALLY REVIEW! Tell me what you think. — Sh34k4