Author's Note: Haha...you just thought you could get rid of me, huh? ^_~ Okay...yeah...I've had just a few too many jelly beans today. Yep...pure sugar. Anyways, this chapter will still be in the past, the "three years ago" thing. Just wanted to make sure you guys remembered.

Oh...and if you haven't already, go check out some of Vulpes Lapis stories. All of them are great! Two thumbs way, way up for each and every one of them! Yeah...that's my advertisement of the day.

I've had a lot of people asking in reviews whether Squall will come back or not. See, I know the answer, but I'm not gonna tell. Mwuahahahahaha...yeah, way too many jelly beans today.

I'm really glad that this story has been so well-liked so far. It makes me very inspired to write more, faster.

And, on another note, (really, it's a note I should make in ALL my stories) I know nothing about the pasts from the Final Fantasy characters except what I've read in KH fanfics, so, if I get some info wrong, don't kill me...please.

Note to HamstaMasta: Actually, I have never played tiddlywinks...I've just heard that phrase all my life and it slipped out into the story.

Note to Annjirika: Wow! You really like the story that much? I'm flattered! Really, I am! And I have to admit that I've been having dreams about this story, too. It's been cutting into my sleep.

[Disclaimer: I do not nor will I ever own Kingdom Hearts. That includes all the characters from Kingdom Hearts. Unfortunately, among the characters I do not own, sits Squall. Nope, don't own him.]

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Chapter Two

As Cloud and Aerith's wedding day drew closer, Yuffie found out the duties behind being a Maid of Honor: she was, essentially, the 'go-for' for the bride. When Aerith decided to change her flower order from roses to lilies, Yuffie was the one sent to make sure the florist followed through. When the type of wedding cake was finally chosen, it was Yuffie who had to explain to the cake decorator why the bride insisted upon such a difficult design. When Aerith tried her wedding dress on, finding that she had lost some weight and the dress was too big, the Maid of Honor had to take it back to the seamstress and beg her to resize it.

The only good part about all of her errand running was the fact that Leon allowed her to escape training every day. However, she was so exhausted from all of her running around that when she got back to the Green Room, all she was good for was a hot shower and sleep. Her changing feelings for Leon went unnoticed, her mind too occupied with the upcoming wedding to think of anything else.

"Why do you do it?" Leon asked her when she dragged herself into the Green Room one night, especially tired.

She yawned before answering him. "Because, Aerith is my best friend. She's like a sister to me." Pulling her pajamas out of the dresser, she turned back to look at him. "Since when do you care, anyway?"

Her inquiry took him by surprise. Do I care? he questioned himself. While he was busy trying to sort things out, Yuffie took his silence as an answer and left him alone in the room as she took a shower. Confused with his emotions towards the girl, he stood up from the table where he had been sitting and walked out onto the balcony, jumping down to take a walk through Traverse Town so he could think without being disturbed.

Emerging from the bathroom after her shower, still towel drying her wet hair, Yuffie found herself alone in the room and the door to the balcony open. Sighing, she made her way to the door to close it, but the cool night air beckoned her out. As she leaned against the railing, she looked down at the alley below, not realizing that she was being watched from her perch.

In the dark shadows of the alley, Leon stood with his back against the wall and stared at the figure on the balcony as the full moon cast a soft light upon her features. There was something about her that made him not want to take his eyes off her. He felt like he could gaze upon her all night like this, in the shadows and unseen. Do I care? he asked himself again. Turning the matter over in his mind, he realized that, yes, he did care about her as a friend, but was there more to it than that?

Rubbing a thumb along the scar that cut a thin line between his eyes, he pondered the question even more as he looked down at the ground. Not coming to a satisfactory conclusion, he raised his eyes back up at the balcony to find that she had returned inside, the light from the window extinguished. Leon pushed himself off the cold concrete wall and walked across to the door to the Second District, deciding it might be better if he came back to the room through the hall door and not the balcony door as he didn't want her to know he had been out there the whole time she was.

Upon opening the door, Leon found the Green Room immersed in darkness and could hear Yuffie's soft rhythmic breathing cutting into the silence that engulfed the room. Stripping his shirt off, he threw it across the darkened room to where he hoped the chair still stood and gingerly sat on the edge of the bed, bending over to unlace and remove his boots. That being done, Leon carefully slid under the sheets, his back to Yuffie as he slowly drifted off to sleep and his thoughts still dwelling on his emotions towards the ninja.

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Accustomed to waking up alone in the bed each morning as Leon usually woke and left before her, Yuffie rolled over into something solid. Something warm and solid. Her indigo eyes flew open immediately in surprise to find herself against the still sleeping Leon, his long mahogany bangs hanging over his eyes. He's so handsome when he's sleeping, she thought, jerking her head in shock when she realized what had just run through her mind. Where did that come from? You do not like him, Yuffie, she told herself as she slowly pushed away from him until she had her back against the wall.

Leon began to stir and Yuffie quickly shut her eyes and slowed her breathing in the hopes he would think she was still asleep. Opening his eyes slowly, he rubbed the spot on his arm where Yuffie had rolled into, feeling the lingering warmth left by her. Confused, he turned to look at her, believing she was still asleep. He shook his head, muttering, "must've been a dream" under his breath as he arose from the bed and went into the bathroom.

Hearing the bathroom door shut, the ninja opened her eyes again and let out a sigh of relief before sitting up in the bed, drawing her knees up and wrapping her arms around them while she rested her chin upon them. She had never been so confused before in her life. Just a few weeks ago, she could hardly stand the man she was forced to share a room with. And now, well, she didn't know how she felt now, but it was definitely more than the mutual tolerance that had subsisted between them.

Leon came out of the bathroom fully dressed and found his roommate staring at him. "What?" he asked, irritated.

Shaking her head and rubbing her forehead, Yuffie looked away from him. "Nothing. I was just wondering why you're still here. You're usually training by now," she said softly as she climbed out of bed and began to rummage through the dresser drawers, pulling out her usual attire: the green halter-top and khaki shorts.

"There isn't enough time to train today." Yuffie gave him a bewildered look, urging him to explain. "The wedding rehearsal, Yuffie. Remember?"

Yuffie's dark eyes widened. "I can't believe I forgot," she mumbled as she slapped herself on the forehead. Looking at the clock quickly, she winced. "And Aerith's going to kill me. I was supposed to meet her at the café an hour ago." She ran into the bathroom, slamming the door in her rush to dress.

Moments later, Yuffie dashed across the room to the hall door, trying to put her shoes on in the process, only to find herself falling forward. Before she hit the ground, strong arms caught her and pulled her back up. The ninja lifted her head to find herself very close to Leon, who was still gripping her waist. Azure met indigo as he gazed into her eyes. "You might want to be a little more careful," he murmured as released her.

"Um... thanks Sq-Leon," she stammered as she took an instinctive step back from him and finished putting her shoes on. As she walked across the room and out the door, she could feel his eyes upon her back. "Okay... that was strange," she whispered to herself as she massaged her temples and exited the hotel.

At the café, Yuffie found Aerith sitting at a booth, drumming her fingers and glancing at her watch in annoyance every few seconds. The teenager sat down quickly, gasping out an apology. "I'm so sorry, Aerith! I forgot to set my alarm last night and--"

Aerith cut her off with a forgiving smile. "It's okay, Yuf. I'm just so excited about tomorrow, that I'm starting to let my impatience affect me."

The waiter came to the table to take their orders, then left them alone again. "Aerith, can I ask you something serious?" the ninja asked quietly. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to, but... well... I'm just curious."

"What?" the slightly older woman questioned confusedly as she furrowed her brows and looked at her younger friend.

Yuffie took a deep breath before posing her question. "How did you know Cloud was the one? I mean, when did you know you wanted to spend the rest of your life with him?"

A dreamy far-off look came into the pink-clad woman's clear emerald eyes as she smiled. "Don't laugh, Yuf, but it was love at first sight. At least, on my part it was. I knew the day that I saw him, that he was the one."

"But, you were, like, twelve or something when he moved to Hollow Bastion," Yuffie interjected. Aerith simply nodded. "Wow," the teenager muttered, raising her eyebrows. "You've known since then, huh?"

"Yes."

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At the wedding rehearsal that night, everything went smoothly except for one thing: the pacing when the Best Man escorted the Maid of Honor down the aisle behind the bride and groom at the end of the ceremony. Since Leon had much longer legs than Yuffie, he naturally took longer strides, dragging her along behind him and causing the wedding coordinator, a Mrs. Reese, to become exasperated.

"Mr. Leonheart, please, you must slow down. This is not a race," she exclaimed throwing her hands up in the air after the fourth time. "Now, let's try this one more time. From the beginning." She clapped her hands together and ushered everyone to the back of the church again, signaling for the wedding march to be played once again.

The processional was the easy part as Leon did not escort Yuffie; it was the recessional where the trouble lay. As they practiced this part for what everyone hoped would be the last time, Leon offered his arm to Yuffie and leaned down to whisper, "This would be easier if you grew a few inches."

"Or you could just shrink a few," she retorted as they managed to keep in step this time. Reaching the end of the aisle, Yuffie nearly laughed when she saw the tears in the wedding coordinator's eyes.

"Bravo, bravo," she cheered, clapping furiously. "Marvelous, simply marvelous. You two make such a cute couple." In the background, Cloud snorted and Aerith covered her mouth to hold the laughter in, causing Mrs. Reese to turn around and look at them. "What's so funny?"

"We're not a couple!" Yuffie and Leon both exclaimed at the same time, moving apart so she couldn't form any other ideas about them.

Tired from the rehearsal and wanting to rest up for the big day tomorrow, the four members of the wedding party returned to their respective rooms at the hotel. Before entering the Red Room, Aerith gave Yuffie the spare key to the room. "What's this for?" she asked curiously.

"While we're gone on our honeymoon, you can have our room. I know how much you want your own room," the bride explained. "And I'm sure Leon will appreciate it, as well."

Yuffie closed her hand around the key and smiled. "Thank you, Aerith," she said as she walked into the Green Room where Leon was already taking a shower. Sighing, she decided to forego the shower tonight and take one in the morning, wanting nothing more than to fall asleep immediately. She changed into an oversized t-shirt before crawling into the bed, falling asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Her last conscious thoughts dwelling on wedding coordinator's words.

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Author's Notes: Okay, this chapter isn't the best, but the next one will be better. I promise. This one was the kind of in between chapter that I had to have, otherwise it would seem like things were happening too fast. That's also the reason why this chapter is kinda short. But, anyways, read and review, as always.