Author's Note: Oh, man....I've been getting some wicked ideas for this story. And it has become my current obsession. But, I'm going to take my time writing it so I can make it worth reading. So, expect updates only when they come.
[Disclaimer: I only own the characters I create. Anything else belongs to someone else, probably Disney and SquareEnix. I'm not even going to go into my Squall obsession....oops, I just did.]
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Chapter One
Once her sobs subsided, Yuffie slowly picked herself up off the floor and sat on the edge of the bed, pushing the wedding dress aside with one hand while still clutching the black leather jacket tightly in her other hand. As she felt the wetness on her cheeks, she picked up the belt of her terrycloth robe and used it to wipe away the tears. Memories of the past came fluttering through her mind defiantly, forcing her to remember what she wanted so desperately to forget.
Three years ago
"Squall, why do you have to be so mean?" a seventeen year old girl yelled as she jumped off the concrete and splashed into the waterway of the alley, a welcome escape from the humidity that had plagued Traverse Town lately.
"The name is Leon, Yuffie. How many times do I have to tell you?" a deep voice called from the cavern, echoing off of the stone walls. The sound of water sloshing could be heard as the twenty-six year old man possessing the voice stepped out of the cavern's entrance. "And if I am mean, it's for your own good."
Yuffie sighed in disgust and raised a hand to push her raven hair out of her face. "But, Squa-, er, Leon, we just got back to Traverse Town, and all you can think about is training? Why not let loose and have a little fun?"
Taking a deep breath and counting to ten, Leon managed to keep his temper in check. "Just because the Heartless are gone, doesn't mean something else can't happen. We have to be prepared," he explained slowly, as though he were talking to a child. In fact, as far as he was concerned, he was talking to a child.
"Okay, if you want to train, that's fine with me. But why do you have to drag me along with you?" she demanded, putting her hands on her hips determinedly.
The hell with keeping my temper, Leon thought blackly. "Fine! Don't train! Go back to the room and play tiddlywinks for all I care!" he shouted as he walked back into the depths of the dark cavern, throwing up his arms in anger.
Taken aback by his uncharacteristic show of rage, Yuffie stared at the red wings on the back of his black leather jacket as he quickly disappeared from her view. Well, at least he showed some emotion, she silently admitted as she raised her eyebrows. Shrugging, she climbed out of the cool water and walked towards the Dalmatian's house. There, at least, she would find some relief from the humid air as they had to keep that house cool for the dogs' sakes. Upon opening the door, she was immediately jumped on by half a dozen of the now half-grown puppies.
It had been six months since Sora had defeated Ansem and saved the worlds from being completely eclipsed by the Heartless. And for nearly six months, Yuffie had lived in her childhood home of Hollow Bastion with her companions: Aerith, Cid, Cloud, and Leon. However, they found themselves unable to cope with the memories that they had found there. Everything they saw there reminded them of someone who had been lost when the Heartless took over. Every room they walked into held the distant memory of something that was lost. Even Leon, the stoic rock of the small group, had found he could not handle the memories of the past.
As the dalmatian at her feet licked her hand in a plea for attention, Yuffie shook her head and came out of her reverie. She smiled despite the unpleasant memories of Hollow Bastion as she thought of the one good thing that came out of their return to that haunted world. Cloud. If they had not of gone back, the blonde would still be searching for Aerith, his light. And Aerith would still be spending her days and nights wondering if he was alive, worried for his safety.
Yuffie sat herself down on the floor of the dalmatian's den, allowing a few of the dogs to crawl into her lap and lick her face. "Calm down, girl," she said gently. The dog stopped licking her and gave her a reproachful look, backing away slightly. Immediately seeing why she had received the glare, Yuffie apologized. "Sorry, boy." She scratched him behind the ears in a hope for redemption for her mistake.
Sitting there and petting the dogs until the tingling numbness in her bottom proved more than she could bear, Yuffie stood up slowly, brushing the short black and white hairs from her shorts. "I gotta go, now, pups," she said softly. "But I'll be back tomorrow, I promise." A few of the dogs escorted her to the door leading to the Second District, whining as she closed it behind her.
Once outside, Yuffie realized that the humidity had lessened considerably, allowing her to enjoy the walk around the district. She made her way across the open expanse to the opposite ledge, jumping up and walking to the Gizmo Shop where she could be sure to find some enjoyment in watching the workers struggle to keep everything running smoothly. Remembering how angry the workers had become when Sora broke the clock inside, causing it to become stuck at 6:54 for ages, she laughed. "He sure was a funny kid," she said under her breath, missing his spunky attitude. "I hope he made it home. I really do."
The doors of the Gizmo Shop loomed in front of her as she stood there lost in her thoughts, most of them beginning to revolve around Squall, or Leon, as he insisted everyone call him. Even though she had known him her entire life, Yuffie had to admit he was still an enigma to her. She still didn't understand what had caused his emotional outburst earlier at the waterway. She had always assumed he would be glad to train without her, only allowing her to do so in the past because Aerith insisted.
Shaking her head, Yuffie tried to clear her mind as she finally pushed open the doors and walked into the Gizmo Shop. Unfortunately, there were no workers present today to watch, so she decided on the next best thing: people watching from the roof of the Gizmo Shop. She quickly ran across the room to the opposite door, throwing it open and jumping on the ladder against the wall.
Finally reaching the roof, she nearly gasped in shock when she saw who else had apparently had the same idea. On the edge, with his feet hanging over, sat Leon, leaning back on his palms and staring up at the sky. Fervently hoping her presence was still unknown, she started back down the ladder when his voice stopped her.
"What are you doing up here?" he asked quietly, never turning his gaze to her, but still watching the always dark sky with seemingly great interest.
Sighing and crossing her eyes momentarily in annoyance, Yuffie walked towards him. "I like to watch the people from up here," she admitted hesitantly, not sure what his reaction would be as she stood next to him. "You?"
Leon turned his head slightly to look up at her. "The stars, Yuffie. Don't you ever like to just sit down and watch the stars?"
"Since when did the great Leon ever stop training to stargaze?" she muttered sarcastically as she sat down beside him, hanging her legs over the edge as well.
"Yuffie, when the Heartless took over Hollow Bastion, no one was prepared and the world succumbed easily," he began, his eyes on the stars above once again. "Training is the only way to prepare ourselves for whatever demons the future may hold for us."
"I understand that, Squall. But what 'demons' are going to attack? Sora's defeated Ansem and all the Heartless along with him."
"Leon. And you never know what the Fates have planned for us." He stood up, dusting his black pants off and reaching a hand down to help Yuffie up. "Come on, it's getting late and we should be getting back to the hotel."
Eyeing his hand wonderingly, Yuffie took hold of it and let herself be pulled up, still confused by his apparent mood swing from earlier in the day. She silently followed him down the ladder and back to the hotel, where he surprised her even more when he held the door open for her, allowing her to enter before him.
After changing into her pajamas and brushing her teeth, Yuffie emerged from the bathroom to find Leon already asleep atop the covers in nothing but his pants. She crossed the room and carefully climbed over him, struggling to pull enough of the sheets out from under him so she could actually slide beneath them. This feat accomplished, she rolled over and gazed at the man beside her, wondering when she had stopped disliking him so much and started to actually like him.
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Yuffie awoke the next morning to the insistent tapping on the door connecting the Green Room to the Red Room, where Cloud and Aerith slept. Sitting up groggily, she briefly wondered why Leon had not answered the door yet as she looked around the room for him, finding that she was alone. She yawned and stretched before climbing out of the disheveled bed and made her way to the door.
Upon opening it, she caught sight of the light pink dress Aerith always wore and her friend's bright green eyes. "Aerith, why are you waking me up so early?" Yuffie mumbled as she yawned once again.
Aerith raised her eyebrows at her young friend. "Yuffie, it's ten o'clock. It's not really that early."
"Not to you, it ain't." The still sleepy teenager opened the door wider to allow her twenty-three year old friend entrance into the room. "What did you want, anyway?" she asked as she pulled her khaki shorts and green halter top out of the dresser.
Sighing in exasperation, the pink-clad lady stared at her. "You don't remember, do you?" Yuffie looked at her confusedly, shaking her head. "We're supposed to look for a bridesmaid gown for you, remember?"
The ebony-haired girl grimaced at the thought of shopping with Aerith, especially for this dress. "Aerith, why are you forcing me to do this?" she whined as she walked into the bathroom and shut the door.
Aerith walked over and leaned on the wall next to the bathroom door. "If I seem to remember correctly, a certain young ninja begged me to make her my bridesmaid just last month," she called through the door.
The door opened, revealing a fully-dressed Yuffie with a toothbrush in her mouth. "Yeah, well that was before I knew you picked pink and white to be your wedding colors," she retorted as she pulled the toothbrush out of her mouth and spit into the sink. "You know how much I hate the color pink," she continued.
"Well, there's no backing down now, Yuffie. We have to find the dress today so we will still have time for any alterations that may need to be made." She grabbed Yuffie by the arm and dragged her into the hallway where Cloud and Leon were both standing silently.
Aerith smiled as she saw her soon-to-be husband, releasing the arm she was still clenching, much to Yuffie's relief. "Geez, Aerith. You have a death grip there, ya know," she muttered as she leaned against the wall next to Leon and watched the two lovers kiss and whisper softly to each other. Rolling her eyes, Yuffie nudged Leon with her elbow. "Sickening, isn't it?" she said quietly, not wanting to be overheard.
"You have no idea," her neighbor grumbled, pushing himself off the wall and walking down hotel's hallway to get away from them.
Yuffie turned to watch him walk away, jumping in surprise when Aerith tapped her shoulder. "Ready?" the older woman asked.
"As ready as I'm gonna get." The ninja reluctantly followed her friend out of the air conditioned hotel and into the already humid air of Traverse Town, the sky just a shade lighter during the day than it was at night. "So, Aerith, where to?"
The bride-to-be wrinkled her brows as she quickly ran through the list of dress shops in her mind. "Um...how about 'Lilies and Lace?' They carry formal gowns," she suggested as she clutched her purse tightly in her hand and started in the general direction of the store, leaving Yuffie trailing behind.
Walking into the store, Aerith immediately headed towards the racks of bridesmaid gowns, pulling all the pink ones out and handing them to Yuffie, who was groaning inwardly at the sight of all this pink. "Please, Aerith, anything but pink," she pleaded.
"Oh, come on, Yuffie. There is nothing wrong with pink. I wear it all the time," Aerith said as she pushed her bridesmaid into the dressing room. "I want to see what each one looks like on you," she called through the door.
After trying on dress after dress, Yuffie began to wonder if her friend had lost her mind as each gown was proclaimed 'not special enough' for the wedding ceremony. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, the teenager struggled not to yell when she was brought more dresses to try on, still pink. "You know, Aerith, pink's not really my color," she declared as yet another gown was thrown into the reject pile. "Maybe we should try a different color. Blue, perhaps?"
"But the colors are pink and white," the pink-clad lady pouted.
"Is the best man wearing pink?"
Aerith snorted at the suggestion. "Do you really think Leon would be caught dead in pink? But, no, he's not wearing pink. He'll be wearing dark blue."
"See? I think I should match him, don't you think? To have a contrast to all the pink." Yuffie desperately hoped her plan would work as she was becoming sickened by the sight of all the pink in the dressing room.
There was a long pause outside the fitting room while the bride thought about the suggestion. "Okay, you win, Yuf. But only because pink is not your color," Aerith teased. "I do want my bridesmaid to actually look good in her dress."
Yuffie rushed out of the room and hugged her friend. "Thank you so much, Aerith. Now, let's go find some dresses."
A few hours later, the two girls were walking back to the hotel, satisfied with the gown that had finally been chosen for Yuffie. The seamstress at the store was consigned to have the alterations done by the time the wedding came around, pleasing Aerith as she was afraid there would not be ample time.
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Author's Note: Okay..chappie up. Um..most of the story will be in the past, so until I say so, just keep reading the story as set three years before the prologue, okay? I hope that's not too confusing, but if you do get confused, tell me and I'll try to make it less confusing. Anyways, read and review. You all know how much I love my reviews. It's an addiction with me. ^_^