Obligatory Disclaimer:

I don't own any characters (or anything else, for that matter) you recognize from Final Fantasy VII, they are all the property of Tetsuya Nomura and/or Square-Enix.

"Reno. Reno. Reno."

Reno continued snoring.

"Sweet Holy Mother, Reno, wake up!"

Reno blinked several times, his eyes finally opening, staring up into the night sky as something pushed on his shoulder. He was suddenly rolled over, having been pushed, and stopped flat on his face. Half awake, he groaned. "What was that for?" he said into the ground.

"You were on my face." Alcestis said, rubbing her nose. "You rolled over right onto my face." She put her other hand on her forehead. "You are an absolute menace."

Reno propped himself up on his elbows, rotating his shoulder back. "Sorry, Kess. You're just so damn comfortable, yo."

She sighed. "I'm sure my nose makes a great pillow for your neck."

With mischief glinting in his eye, he reached out with one arm and pulled her closer, trapping her under his torso.

"Gotcha." He said with a smirk.

"Oh, no, the terror. I am so terrified. I am trapped, someone help me." Alcestis deadpanned, yawning.

"You're funny. I like that." Reno said with a lazy smile. The dream he'd been having – the same dream he'd been having every night for the past three days – had left him feeling lecherous. He leaned over and kissed the side of her neck.

Just as he had anticipated, she shivered, the little movement going down her spine and back up. He smiled with deep satisfaction.

"You loooooooove me." He said playfully, inclining his head.

She smiled indulgently. "Yes, Reno, I'm afraid I do."

"It's nothing to be afraid of." He rubbed his nose against hers, and lowered his voice to a whisper. "I'll treat you gentle, I promise."

Alcestis stiffened at the innuendo, but remained silent, staring into his eyes without blinking.

Reno saw his face reflected in the dark jade of her irises in the starlight. "You are somethin' else, yo."

Still expressionless, she replied. "That's what people keep telling me."

"One o' these days," he said intently, all his senses on alert for her response, "I'm not just gonna tell you, yo. I'm gonna show you." He leaned down, kissed her chin, left a trail of kisses up her jawline, and lightly touched the tip of his tongue to her earlobe.

His body exploded in goosebumps. She must've liked that, right? I really hope I'm not fucking this up. Reno thought idly. "I knew you wanted me." He smirked at her with as much confidence as he could muster.

He certainly seemed self-assured to Alcestis, whose breath caught at the satisfaction evident on his face. She bit her lip out of nerves before replying. "Of course I do, Reno. Look at you. Your body is more magnificently sculpted than it has any right to be, and if anything in the world has ever aroused me, it's the way your wild, clever, conniving little mind works."

Reno felt his jaw drop a little. Did she just say she was aroused by him? And his mind?

"You're turned on by my brain?" He asked, dumbfounded.

She hesitated, wincing. "Yeah, sorry, I know that's probably not what you wanted to hear—"

"That's amazing, yo." Reno said. "You are the most awesome chick I have ever met." He grinned. "Now I really want to hear you moan my name."

"Reno!" She said, aghast. "You are the single most shameless—honestly, do you think I'm that kind of woman?"

"Oh, I think you're exactly that kind of woman, yo." He said, grinning unabated. "What else would you be doing falling in love with a scoundrel like me?"

"I get off on the danger." She said flatly, sarcasm coloring her tone. He burst out laughing.

"If you don't want me to seduce you, stop doing things like that."

"Reno, you are not going to seduce me."

"Of course I am! It was meant to be, yo. I bet the parts even fit together juuuuust right. Let me try."

Alcestis sighed. "You are truly incorrigible."

"Damn right I am, yo." He blinked slowly, his eyes focused on her face. "And maybe I wouldn't be if you weren't so mindblowingly hot."

"Have you felt this way the whole time?" She asked, honestly confused.

"Of course I have. I'd be insane not to want you. Look at you, Kess. The curves of your body flow in just the right way, yo. How could I not want you? What am I, gay?"

She chuckled. "Well, I certainly wouldn't know anything about that. I mean, you and Rude are pretty close—"

"Shut the fuck up, you did not—Holy, I need to kill myself. The one woman I have ever really loved actually just impliedthat I have slept with my best friend. My life is over! It's all ruined, yo."

"Oh come on, Reno, you know I don't mean it."

"Do I? Now every time I try to get into your pants, I'm going to worry about whether or not you think I'm gay, yo." Reno said sulkily.

"Hey, I'm sorry." Alcestis said sincerely. "I was just teasing you. I didn't mean anything by it."

"You completely ruined my mood." He said sourly. "I've been having these wild and passionate dreams, every night, and when I go to make a move, she tells me I'm gay, yo. How did I go from easy lays to this?"

"Woah, woah, what are you talking about?" Alcestis screwed up her face. "Dreams?"

"Yeah, lady. Dreams. About you and your cute ass." Reno said, disgruntled.

"Do these dreams happen to start out in our apartment back in Midgar?" She asked.

"Yeah, why?" He grunted.

"On the couch, and you tell me I'm not daring enough, and then I take off your shirt, and then—"

"Holy shit, yo." Reno said. "You've been having the same dream."

"Actually, Reno," she said with a sigh, resigned to the truth of the situation. "You've been having my dream. Welcome to the next stage of the mage-lover bond."

Reno grinned with delight. "Your dream! Hell yes! Damn, woman, I hope you are every bit that wild in the sack, because—"

"You're not going to find out until Ajax is gone, so try not to think about it." Alcestis said with a grumpy expression.

"Try not to think about it? I just found out these wild dreams I have are machinations of your mind and not mine, babe. What must you be thinking about, yo?" he chuckled.

"Reno, if you knew the things that had been occupying my thoughts lately, it would blow your mind." She said bluntly. "I would shock you."

"Kess, there is not a desire in the world you could have that I would not do everything to fulfill, yo. If you give me half a chance," Reno said, his hand entangling in her hair, "I think I'd blow your mind, yo."

"I believe it," she said honestly, putting a hand to his face, her thumb brushing his tattooed cheekbone. "You know, Reno, I've always wondered…"

"Eight inches."

"What?"

"Nothing. You've wondered what?" He prompted.

"Why did you get these tattoos?" she asked, her thumb drifting over his left cheekbone again.

"Oh, ha. Those."

Alcestis could sense he was not going to be forthcoming. "Yes, those. Why are they there?"

"Would you believe really, really drunk?"

"No."

He sighed. "How about born with them?"

"No." She said, frowning at him. "Well, maybe. I can't picture you without them."

He smiled. "Heh, well let's go with that, then, yo."

"Seriously, Reno."

"You're gonna think it's really stupid."

She rolled her eyes. "Aren't we past all that?"

"I got them when I was recruited into the Turks." He said. "I was pretty young when Tseng pulled me out of a street brawl in the slums. I started training, and when I became a full-fledged member a year later, I got these." He tapped his right cheekbone. "In another year, they were already sending me on the more difficult missions, and I was pretty well established, yo. I've got a reputation, you know. I'm very good at what I do," He said very seriously, his eyes boring into hers.

"You are. And that you've been with the Turks for so long… well, that certainly explains how you turned out the way you did." Alcestis said.

"Damn right. After a few years, I was second-in-command." He said with pride.

She tilted her head and kissed the tip of his nose. "Because you're quick, and strong, and brilliant."

"You really think that, yo?" He asked, his eyes slightly wider than normal, barely noticeable, carefully evaluating her features.

"Yes, I do. How not? I've only ever seen you excel at what you do."

He smiled sheepishly, and then tapped his cheekbone again. "So. Stupid?"

"Not stupid." She inclined her head a little, thinking a moment. "Meaningful."

Reno placed his hand behind her head, gently massaging the scalp. He leaned down and dragged his lips along her jawline, pausing with his cheek pressed against hers. She wrapped her arms around him.

"I love you, Reno."

He pulled back to smirk at her. "Love you too, Kess."

He leaned in again, intent—

"Reno, please." Her eyes darted to the side, where Rude was dead asleep not ten feet away, the others beyond him.

Reno's lips set in a grim line. "You know, one of these days, I am going to get you alone in a cushy little room, and you'll be all out of reasons to say no."

She smiled at him. "Sorry, I just didn't want to wake anyone with my raucous moaning."

He snorted. "Clever." He turned around and flopped on his back, feeling much abused. "I guess I'll catch some more z's. We're going to be at Nibelheim tomorrow, yo." Reno closed his eyes, waiting for slumber to take him.

Just as he was drifting off, he heard Alcestis speak.

"Not yet is not the same as no, Reno."

The corner of his mouth lifted a fraction as sleep claimed him.

Author's Note: Oh Reno. He's such a dork.

I should mention that I have unstinting support for the LGBT community; Reno is merely put out that Alcestis teased him about his relationship with Rude because she might think he's not genuine in his affection for her.