Drops of Jupiter
Chapter 3 – Suburbia-Gumi, part 1
Ships: Leon / Yuffie . Aerith / Cloud and . Sora / Kairi later on
PG-13 – Language, innuendo later on
Summary of Chapter 3:
LY, AC – Some new characters, and Yuffie's first step.
Special Text:
"Blahblah".= Dialogue
'Blahblah' = Thoughts
Blahblah = Rinoa talking to Squall
[A/N: blah] = Author's notes that might just be around here and there.
Ages:
Aerith- 25
Cloud- 24
Squall- 26
Yuffie- 17
Cid- 35
Noodle- 18
Irvine- 25
Reno- 25
Oliver- 20
Disclaimer: Got nothing. I did see Harry Potter 3 though. Brilliant.
A/N: Well, Yuffie's going away. We get to see where she goes! For a little teaser, take a look at the ages. New characters! Whee! Yes, that IS Irvine from FF8, and that IS Reno from FF7. Noodle and Oliver are my OC's. Noodle is just her nickname, I can't think of a real name for her. She's Spanish. Can anyone help please? Thanks. Much appreciated.
Thanks so much to my reviewers:
Starling94, Snowri, DarkFlame666, sora-doragon, himaco, Anime-Master7, SetsuntaMew and of course, Deplora.
OH MY GOD! I HAVENT UPDATED IN AGES! IM SO SORRY! IM SO SORRY! cries and hugs everyone
You all get a Reno plushie! Whee! grabs my own Reno plushie
Alright, story time, kiddies.
Squall rolled over in bed, wondering what came over him. He didn't plan on holding her like that. He just wanted her to be with him. Alright, so he didn't really hate Yuffie. Maybe she grew on him. But it was not like him to do that. To his fighting partner who is almost a decade younger than him, none the less.
Yuffie, who was lying on the bed across from Squall failed to see that her fighting partner's eyes were still wide open from shock. She was too preoccupied, wondering what in heaven's name he was thinking.
Alright, she liked being held like that. He held her like she was fragile, but he still gave out that sense of protection. And his chest, oh, his broad, naked, muscular, hard, tanned chest. Yuffie groaned. Completely missing the point here, girly.
Squall's ears perked up at her groan. With the deafening silence, his ears were extra-sensitive. What was she groaning about? A bad dream? For a second, he felt like jumping off his bed and shaking her awake. No, bad idea.
The warrior shot up in bed and clutched his head in his hands, stifling a loud moan, and completely unaware that Yuffie was awake and watching his every move.
The next morning, Yuffie walked out of the bathroom in a black silk robe, combing her hair. She spun around and caught Squall's eye. He was sitting on his bed, head in his hands. His head shot up at the sound of her coming out, his eyes widened slightly, and then he looked away.
"Le-"
"Bye, Yuffie," Leon muttered quickly. He stormed out of their room, grabbing an oversized gray sweatshirt on the way.
Yuffie raised an eyebrow and shook her head. Typical Leon.
"Huh," She grunted. Deciding to dress more comfortably for the trip, she unzipped her suitcase and took out a pair of baggy black pants and a white tank with a black guitar on it. She finished up by grabbing a tight tan colored zip-up sweatshirt and her amazingly comfortable but worn out brown boots.
Less than half an hour later, Yuffie walked into the underground Gummi base where all of their Gummi ships were located. She was less than thrilled to be leaving. In fact, she was miserable. Miserable to leave an old life, that is. She was, however, excited to meet new faces, to forget all the terrible things that have happened to her in the Bastion. She smiled weakly at the small crowd awaiting her. Aerith, Cloud, Cid, and a few of the civilians. No Squall.
"Here, I made you this," Aerith said in a small voice, handing Yuffie a brown paper bag filled with food. Her voice wavered.
"Thanks, Aeris," Yuffie smiled and hugged her friend. Aerith looked surprised to hear a name so familiar from her past. "I'll see you again." She turned to Cid. His hands were in his pockets, and he was once again smoking a cigarette, a habit that Yuffie kicked out of him a long time ago.
"Cid, stop smoking! You're killing yourself," Yuffie snapped, grabbing the cigarette and snapping it in half. Cid nodded apologetically, a feat he has never done in his life.
"Alright, kid. Take care of yourself, okay?," Cid whispered the last part, so no one heard him. Yuffie nodded and replied the only response she knew, a hug.
Cloud stepped in between her and Cid. "Yufs... You sure you want to leave?"
Yuffie nodded.
"Alright then," Cloud sighed, and like Aerith, had a little waver in his voice, though hardly noticeable. "You take care of yourself."
"I really missed you, Cloud," Yuffie choked out. "I'm sorry I didn't get to spend much time with you."
"You will, though. Maybe not now, but you will." Cloud gathered her in an embrace again. "Take care of yourself. This might be the last time we see each other, if the walls of the worlds come back up again. But I'll find a way, if it does. We will see each other again."
High up in the watcher's balcony, Squall stood. He watched an old colleague say her goodbyes to some more of his old colleagues. He felt bad about Cloud's rage over him. Of course he did. He and Cloud have been friends in the Bastion long enough. Aerith wouldn't pick a side though. Sure, she's Cloud's main squeeze, but she wasn't one to take sides. Like now. Squall was aware that she was well aware that he was up on the balcony, but had enough sense not to say anything to Cloud. Because being the fool that he was, Cloud would pick another fight with Squall, and Yuffie would have left long before anyone noticed.
Cloud said something else to Yuffie, his eyes aflame. Squall wasn't really sure what he said. His voice had been too low. He did hear Yuffie's answer though.
"It's fine. We had our goodbyes. It really doesn't matter though..." And with that last thought, her eyes fell into Squall's. Noticing that she had noticed, Squall turned and left immediately. "Um, yes. It doesn't matter."
"Well, I guess you have to get going, then," Aerith said, breaking the long silence. Cloud stared at her incredulously. "I mean, I don't want you to go, but if you're leaving, might as well do it right, huh? You're getting behind schedule."
"Yeah, I guess I am behind. Hey, you guys, I'm not taking my Gummi," Yuffie said. Cid's head snapped up.
"What?! Hey, kid, I spent the whole night fixing that Gummi to make sure it's strong enough not to get sucked into a Black Hole. You ain't just gonna throw away my efforts like that! If-if you're not taking the ship I made ya, ya ain't going. At- at all!" Cid sputtered.
"I know, I'm sorry, Cid... if I had known that that's what you did all night I wouldn't have booked a ticket for today. I'm taking the tour ship," Yuffie replied sheepishly. "Sorry."
"Fine. Whatever. More ships for me. But why you takin' the tour ship?"
"Because, I don't know where I'm going. I'll travel around for a while, and settle in a world I've never been in. Then I'll come and visit."
Saying their final goodbyes, Yuffie and her friends shared one last moment together.
"Please keep all weapons with you, just in case of a Heartless comeback. Give your ticket to the Ticket Boy up front; he'll give you a pass in return. Find a seat in a cabin, please do not open your baggage while in flight, for this will cause commotion, you may bring a small bag or purse to your seat to hold toiletries and munny, a concession cart lady will come by for some snacks at a minimum price. We carry bottled water, sweets, and pastries. Thank you, Hollow Bastion citizen, for boarding the Inter-World Connection, brought to you by Glompage Industries," A thick necked old man in a sailor outfit grumbled in a bored tone. "Right this way, ma'am." The ninja walked inside and did a double take as she heard the man begin his little speech again for another passenger.
Yuffie raised an eyebrow at the creepy old man. The 'Ticket Boy up front' smiled at her expression. She noted that he was very good looking.
"Hi," Yuffie greeted, handing the boy her ticket. "Does he really repeat that to every passenger you have?"
"Yeah, he does. But he's paid well. I wish I had that much money. That old bloke is rich," The boy replied in an English accent, smirking. He tapped the number on her ticket with two fingers, muttered something, and conjured a passport. "Here you go, Miss Kisaragi. I see this is your first passport. Where you heading off to? Traverse Town? Bunch of our passengers are headed there. They could make a whole new district for them."
"I don't know, I lived in Traverse Town for a long time. I want to go somewhere I've never been in before."
"Ah, perfect, you've never been anywhere to the east of Bastion, have you? Our route is to the east," English Ticket Boy replied, clasping his hands together. "I myself live in Suburbia. I'm originally from England, but that Captain Hook... Oh my Lord..."
"No I haven't. I'll check Suburbia out, then maybe you could help me get settled," Yuffie nodded enthusiastically. "What's your name?"
"I'm Oliver. I'll find you in whatever cabin you're in on my break," Yuffie raised an eyebrow, wondering how he was going to find her. "I'm a Magick. I study advanced magics. Among them are locator spells. It's dumb to use it for a petty situation like this but, you know, it takes less time."
"Oh, cool. Alright, I'll get going now. See you soon."
Yuffie has always liked Gummi Ships. Maybe because she only rode it once and it was the gentle Aerith who maneuvered the ship. But now, there were turbulences by the minute. She was lucky enough to snag a cabin all to herself, but right now she wished she had some company. She decided that closing her eyes would be a good solution. Everything would go away. Then all of a sudden, her cabin door opened and Yuffie jumped out of her seat, screeching...
"FUCK WE'RE GONNA CRASH!"
The lady carrying the cart of food stared at Yuffie in bewilderment. "Would you like some peanuts or refreshments, dear?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, I was startled. Holy jebus, that was goddamned-" Yuffie rambled. The door opened noisily again. "MOTHER OF-"
"Hey, chill! Can I share the cabin with you? Everywhere else is full," A girl of about eighteen years asked Yuffie. She was pretty, with flippy chin length brown hair and green eyes. Yuffie nodded.
"Yeah, sure. Yes, we'd like some peanuts," The ninja told the lady. She tossed her two packets of peanuts. Yuffie turned back to the girl. "So, what's your name?"
"Noodle! Yours?"
"Noodle, huh. I'd like to meet your parents. I'm Yuffie," Yuffie said. 'Noodle' snickered.
"They're really not that insane. It's not my real name, just a nickname I grew up with. Besides, they're dead, soo, no chance of meeting them now," Noodle replied dryly. As if knowing what Yuffie was thinking, she uttered one word that made everyone understand. "Heartless."
"Yeah, same here. You from the Bastion? Never seen you before," Yuffie asked, striking a conversation. Noodle shook her head dreadfully.
"Oh! God no! I'd hate to live here. I'm just here because of my friend's volunteer work. He asked me to tour with him," Noodle answered. Right at that moment, Oliver opened the noisy door. Yuffie screamed.
"Hey, chill, Yuffie," Oliver laughed. He smiled at Noodle.
"Well speak of the devil. You two know each other?" Noodle asked Oliver. He nodded and ran a hand through his black hair.
"Yeah. We met at the entrance. So, Noodle. You enjoying yourself?" Noodle scoffed.
"Much," She muttered sarcastically. Oliver laughed.
"Come on, you're just sad because Irvine couldn't come," He said. Noodle blushed ferociously. She shook her head and pinned Oliver against the wall with one hand. Oliver was laughing really hard. Noodle sighed and sat down quietly. Oliver was still shaking in quiet laughter.
"Oh, play nice, Oli," Noodle grumbled, thumbs-a-fiddling. Oliver and Yuffie exchanged a high five and laughed at the defeated Noodle.
"Well, Yuffie, we've got an apartment in Suburbia. You said you were looking for a home, right? I share the apartment with Irvine and Reno. Oliver lives next door with his girlfriend. You can stay with us if you don't mind the small space. I'm tired of being the only woman in the house anyway. Those two guys, making a mess. It doesn't help that they're roomies, either. Oh, their room is a dump," Noodle exclaimed. Yuffie giggled.
"Of course I'd like to stay with you! That'd be great!" She said happily. Oliver snickered.
"Looks like Reno and Yuffie will be roomies," He laughed. "Oh I bet you'd get along with Reno perfectly." Yuffie looked at him, confused. Noodle snorted.
"Oh yeah, Reno. He's one tough cookie. Reno's first impression on you would be a bad one. But he'll grow on you in time. He's misunderstood, that's all."
"Yeah, I know a tough cookie myself from the Bastion," Yuffie said, fond memories of Squall entering her head. Then she remembered all the bad ones. She grunted. "Real tough bastard, that one."
Noodle's mouth formed a little 'o' and Oliver cocked an eyebrow.
"Really, and what pray tell, is this cookie's name?" Noodle asked, nudging Yuffie a bit. Yuffie rolled her eyes.
"He's got two. Squall Leonheart's his real name. He changed it to Leon, though," Yuffie mumbled. Noodle smirked.
"What, so now his name is Leon Leonheart? Real original," Noodle snickered.
Yuffie nodded, her eyes growing large. She began ruffling her hair, making it all flippy. Then she imitated Squall. "That's LEON." She said in an overly deep voice.
Oliver glared at the two laughing girls. "You know, this Leon probably won't like being talked about like this."
"Yeah, I guess not." Yuffie shrugged, and continued telling them about Squall for the rest of the ride, Oliver finally laughing at some points Yuffie made.
The Gummi will be landing shortly. Please make sure you have all your belongings at hand. Thank you.
Yuffie shook herself free of sleep, and pushed Noodle, who was snoring quietly, out of her seat and crashing into the floor. Oliver woke up in the racket.
"What the hell!" Noodle snapped at Yuffie.
"Dreaming of someone?" Yuffie teased. Oliver told her all about Irvine and Noodle's not-on-but-nearly-there relationship. Noodle blushed a deep crimson.
"No... Of course not. Who would I dream about...?" She mumbled. "Anyway, we're getting off soon. I see the Gummi Dock. Clean up a bit, Oliver's gonna get in deep shit if we leave the cabin like this..." She said this while wrinkling her nose at an empty cupcake package with the crumbs still there. Oliver stared at her in disbelief.
"Don't worry about it," Oliver said, and he pointed at all the crud and wrappers everywhere. One by one they disappeared in tiny 'pops.
"Oh yeah... I forgot you were a Magick. You need to come over to my apartment soon... Clean up a bit," Noodle suggested. Oliver just shrugged.
"Sure, why not. Hey Yufs, You and Noodle wait outside for me, k? By the parking lot. I'll pick up my car from the service area," He said. Yuffie cocked her head.
"Car...? Carr. Car." She asked, testing the word on her tongue. Noodle stared at her.
"Yeah. A car. You know. Moving object with wheels...? Used so we don't have to walk anymore?"
"Uh..." Yuffie mumbled. (A/N: She's come from a long line of ancient ninja. She doesn't know technology when it bites her in the butt. And that buggy from ff7? Doesn't count as a car. Wutai was very traditional.) "No ringing of any bells, sorry..."
Noodle just stared at her in disbelief. "Yuffie. Are you...okay?"
"I don't know. I come from Wutai, an ancient ninja village... we don't get much technology. My father would go on and on about it being the work of the devil."
"It's alright. We've got a lot to teach you, then. You gotta learn how to drive!" Oliver smiled at her genuinely. He jumped when his cell phone began ringing. He pressed a button and put it against his ear.
"Hello? Oh hi, Jackie!" He grinned at the two girls. "I missed you too, baby... Yes, we're coming soon. No it's alright. Yes. Yes. Yes, it was great. Oh, we met someone! Her name's Yuffie. She's got nowhere to stay, so she's staying with Noodle, Irvine and Reno for now. Yes. Oh, don't worry. Alright. I love you. No, I love you more," Oliver smiled and this continued for a while later. "Alright. Love you. Bye! No, you say bye. Alright. At the same time. Bye!"
Noodle gagged blatantly at Oliver. "It's disgusting. Plain gross."
Yuffie laughed, and lugged her huge luggage behind her, finally walking forward, away from everything she once knew.
A/N: That chapter was horrible. HORRIBLE. sigh I probably wouldn't do better though. Please review anyway...