Home

-Squirrel Tamer

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.

Chapter 4: Friend?

Squall Leonhart braced himself, knowing very well that what he and the others were attempting was very stupid of them. The borders were back and he knew that, but there was still a false sense of hope buried deep inside of him that gave him the strength to go through with the plan.

Squall looked at the loving couple in front of him. Cloud had been back less then a day and already Aerith was attached to his arm. Earlier Cloud had attempted to make Aerith stay back in Hollow Bastion while they tried to find Yuffie, but Aerith had gone into a rage. Screaming about not losing him again and how Yuffie was almost like a sister to Aerith. Cloud had obviously gotten the point and agreed to let Aerith come along with them.

Besides, Squall thought, Aerith will be a big help if we get wounded in battle. The flower girl knew a whole lot about medicines and healing spells. Aerith wasn't much of a fighter though. While Yuffie had gone off to fight with Squall, Aerith had stayed back in the hotel or the vacant house. It had been nice coming back to her though. It was a very comforting thing to feel all your exhaustion and worries lifted from your shoulders with a simple wave of green. For some time Squall had believed that he could be content living with Aerith as his wife, even though he never admitted it. He had felt bad though, knowing that Aerith was never going to love him. She loved Coud.

So Squall had given up on that love and focused more on his fighting. He became cold and isolated, at least for a little bit. Soon enough Aerith dumped the now ten-year-old Yuffie on Squall. Squall had protested at first, not willing to give up space in his large bed to share with some little brat. Aerith had argued that Yuffie would be safer with him and that she could not believe he could be so selfish when poor little Yuffie needed him.

Poor little Yuffie had grinned wickedly and spent the next six years doing everything in her power to annoy him. It was always 'Squall this' or 'Squall that'. Whenever he made her mad she would have the nerve to lock him out of his own room.

There was a period of time when Yuffie had not slept with him. Aerith had finally noticed that they were actually sharing a bed and not taking turns sleeping on the floor. She had begun to worry and had decided that it was time to give Yuffie 'the talk'. She had not been able to make eye contact with him without blushing for at least a month. She had refused to sleep in the bed with him even longer.

How she had managed to avoid him for as long as she had was a mystery to Squall. She'd never show up at the green room at night and the bags under her eyes grew as the days passed by. He could see the exhaustion buried deep within her, but she had refused to come back no matter what he said.

It was only two and a half months later when he walked into the red room to find her propped up against the wall that he had managed to convince her to come back. She had given in almost immediately, nodding and then falling against his chest with a yawn. He had carried her back to the bed, tucked her in and then crawled under the covers himself.

A slap on the back from Cid brought Squall out of his reverie. He scowled darkly and bent his head down to disguise the slight blush in his cheeks as he remembered how it had felt to sleep alone for those two months. He had been very cold and lonely while she was gone. The night she got back, Squall had lain close to her. He could smell her hair and he had shivered. She was thirteen and he was twenty-two. It had been embarrassing for him to feel like that about her. Soon enough he had dismissed the feelings, believing that they were only caused because he was not used to being alone.

Squall pulled himself back to the present again and focused his attention at the front of the cramped gummi ship. Cid sat at the controls, fiddling with the buttons. Cloud was brushing a gloved hand through Aerith's hair, which sent chills down the twenty three year olds back.

Their plan was simple enough. They were going to try and break through the world's barrier (if it really existed). Once out in space they would be able to search through the worlds to find Yuffie. Cloud had been against the plan since Cid had suggested it. He felt that they'd just end up crashing back down to Hollow Bastion. He called it suicide and a stupid idea.

But it was the only idea they had.

"You about done yet?" Cid teased Cloud and Aerith, he was turned around and given a full view of the full on lip lock that had once again resumed when Aerith's butt had gone numb on the floor. Both of them broke apart sheepishly and Aerith blushed. Cid shook his head and turned back to the front.

"Honestly. I knew ya'll back when you was just a bunch of kids. Disgusting. That's what it is," Cid continued to ramble on about 'kids these days'. Squall snorted and Cid whirled around again.

"You aren't really one to talk old man. I've seen some of the ladies you hung around with back in Traverse Town. You were all over each other. Made everyone sick. Yuffie had to excuse herself. I found her behind the boxes in the ally throwing her guts up." Squall pointed out. Cid turned a bright shade of red and turned back to the controls, seemingly oblivious to Cloud's snickers in the background. Squall himself had gone quiet, as if he were waiting for Yuffie to say something sarcastic to back him up.

"Err...What I mean is...Never mind! Let's just get this thing under way, all right?" With those words he pulled down a lever. The engine revved underneath. More buttons, levers and knobs were pushed, pulled and turned. Squall had absolutely no clue how the old man did it. It was hard to imagine that Sora's friends had been able to drive their own. Maybe it was easier than it looked.

With all of his daydreaming, Squall was completely unprepared as the gummi quickly thrust forward and shot off the balcony before the Rising Falls. He ended up on the floor with a very bloody lip, because he had bitten it as he had fallen.

He lifted himself up the ground and stared out the front window. They were still in the air, but how much longer would that last? They were approaching the edge of the world fast and none of them knew what would happen. Was there really a world barrier? And, if so, is it possible to break through it?

The Heartless had broken the barriers, but was that the only thing that could?

"Holy Hell!!!" Cid yelled; his voice filled with joy. The old man had always loved flying, "We might jus' make it!"

Squall could feel the hope welling up in his chest. He could see the end. They would make it. They had to.

The gummi ship put on a burst of speed. It hit the barrier with full force as a white light erupted around it.

~~~~

"Get the hell out of here!" Yuffie cried angrily and reached down for her ninja stars. She pulled one out and launched it angrily at the silver haired man's head. Sephiroth smiled and took a step to his left; the star flew right by him. Yuffie screamed out in rage and launched another star at him.

This one he caught between two fingers and let it drop to the ground. Yuffie cringed as it hit the floor.

"Come now Yuffie. I thought you could do better than that." Sephiroth said a smirk gracing his lips.

Yuffie screeched again and threw one star after another at the older man. He dodged from side to side. Not a single star came close enough to graze by his skin. Yuffie reached for another star and brought up an empty palm. She whimpered slightly and took a step backwards.

At this point she was cursing herself for not listening to Squall when he would demand that she train with him. She had called him stupid and paranoid. It wasn't like the Heartless were that tough. Every once in awhile you'd get one that was tougher than the others, but Yuffie knew that they could handle themselves just fine. Of course maybe Squall wasn't worried about the Heartless, maybe he was trying to prepare her for the return of Sephiroth.

Yuffie felt her knees beginning to tremble. She was trapped in a room with an insane ex-SOLDIER and she was completely unarmed. She took another step backwards and then whirled around, hoping to make a run for it.

She reached out for the doorknob to the Green Room, but was thrown back as Sephiroth appeared in front of her. She turned around and he popped up there too.

"Let me go!" She cried and attempted to shove past him.

"Stopga." Yuffie had nothing to block the spell with. She didn't even have a chance to scream. Her whole body seized up and she froze, still in mid-run. She heard his footsteps booming on the floor behind her. He was moving to the front of her. She moved her eyes around frantically (her eyes were the only thing unaffected by the spell), trying to avoid having to look at him. She felt something cold touch her cheek.

"Look at me, Yuffie." Sephiroth commanded the young ninja. Yuffie turned her eyes to him slowly and then quickly looked to the ground. He placed his other hand on her right cheek and held her face tightly. "I want you to look me in the eye, Yuffie Kisaragi."

She obeyed and stared straight into his bright green eyes. Unlike Aerith's there was no warmth, no hint of kindness within them. Yuffie wanted to scream, but the stop spell prevented any movement. She was completely in his power.

"Why are you so afraid of me? You think I am going to hurt you, right? Or that I am going to use you to hurt your friends?" Yuffie's mind whirled. She hadn't thought that he would use her to get to the others, but the more she thought about it the more likely it seemed. Death was a better option than being used to get to the others. He could even use her to hurt.... Squall...

"Sq-..." She attempted to scream through the spell. Sephiroth seemed taken by surprise before he smiled at her.

"You are stronger than I had thought. You have managed to retain the ability to move your eyes and you were almost able to speak and entire word. Magic does not work well against you obviously. Anyway, what I was trying to say earlier was that I am not going to do any of those things. I'm not allowed." Sephiroth scowled darkly and then continued, "You see, Cloud and I had a little rematch, as our first fight was interrupted as we were both swept away in a tide of darkness. We ended up worlds apart, but managed to find our way back to each other. He-...He won. I begged him to kill me, but his own kind nature would not allow it. Instead he gave me the worse punishment of life. He allowed me to live, but he also made me agree to never return to Hollow Bastion, or see Aerith again, unless...." Sephiroth trailed off and Yuffie could feel movement coming back to her body. She moved her jaw around a bit.

"Uwess wha?" She asked kind of awkwardly.

"It does not matter. It is about love and the only love I know is my beloved Aerith."

"Tha...Then," Yuffie could move her jaw completely, "What do you want with me? Why are so obsessed with not letting me leave? I don't trust you at all! You almost killed Squall!"

Sephiroth grinned.

"I see you feel much for Master Leonhart."

Yuffie felt her cheeks redden. She turned her eyes to the ground. She hated him for making her feel so strange. She had never enjoyed it when people would ask her about Squall and her feelings towards him. She had always figured that they were just friends.

Of course, she also knew that if it was up to her they would be much more than just friends. She didn't know why she cared for him the way that she did. She supposed it was just one of those things that are in no way, shape or form explainable.

Whatever the case was, Yuffie was not about to admit it to the man she hated more than anything--aside from Ansem.

"No way!" She muttered angrily.

"I could care less, you know? Deny it and I won't say a word. I just thought that you might want to be honest with me now that we'll be roommates."

"Roommates?" Yuffie could move her body all the way down to her ankles now. She bent over and touched her toes. She did not understand what Sephiroth was playing at. She still did not completely trust him. He had betrayed them all too long ago for her to believe a word that he said.

"I just figured you and I would be staying together. I know it would be awfully lonely all by yourself." Was he teasing her? It was strange, Sephiroth always seemed to be much more serious than that. What was he thinking? Was this just another plot of his?

Well, Yuffie thought, I am not going to be a part of it.

"I refuse to sleep in here with you. I'll take the Green Room if you don't mind. It's where I used to stay anyway so some of my junk is still there." Yuffie thought for a moment, "But we'll need food. Look's like I'll have to send you grocery shopping tomorrow. And you'll have to get a bunch of embarrassing personal items for me. And I guess I'm going to need some new outfits, since all mine were brought back with me to Hollow Bastion. And--"

As Yuffie droned on the color drained from Sephiroth's face.

Maybe life with a sixteen year old would be harder than he had originally thought.

~~~~

A/N: Awww.... Poor Sephy! ^-^ I feel kind of bad for him. He'll be running errands for Yuffie for eternity! I would love to see his face as he purchased those 'embarrassing personal items'. Teehee!

I know he probably seemed a bit OOC, but that's because he's got something up his sleeve. I wonder what it is?

And I had to update because it's my birthday...err...well by the time most of you read this it will be. I'm updating on the twenty-first so that it will show up on the twenty-second. Fifteen is me! So read and review!!!