Author's Note: Thanks to all the reviewers. I love you guys and I don't say it enough. I usually wait until the last chapter to do that, but I'm going to go ahead and say it. I love each and every one of you! You guys make my day so much better!
By the way, I meant "Go Fish" instead of "Gold fish" in my author's note last chapter.
[Disclaimer: Okay, if you haven't figured it out by now, I don't own anything recognizable in the story. However, I'm willing to make a bid on Squallie if he ever goes up for sale.]
Chapter Fifteen: Interrupted Bliss
Feeling the slight warmth of the sunlight fall across her face, Yuffie crinkled her nose and rolled over, shivering slightly as the covers slipped and revealed her bare shoulder to the cool air of the room. In response, she scooted over into the man lying next to her and snuggled against him, laying her cheek flat upon his bare chest. Her eyes opened slowly and a content smile came across her face as she moved her lips to gently kiss the bare chest beneath her face. The memories of the previous night's passion cascaded through her mind, filling her with a sense of amazement. She had never dared to hope that she would find someone who would actually want her, of all people. But, Squall had proved that thought wrong last night.
She spared a quick glance at the clock, seeing that it was still before seven in the morning and way too early to get up. So, closing her eyes, she allowed slumber to take her once more as she tenderly traced her fingers over his chest and abdomen, her fingers only stopping their movements when sleep had reclaimed her.
A few hours later, the young ninja awoke with a soft sigh and found herself lying atop her lover's chest, rising and falling with each slow breath he took. She pulled herself up his body so that her head rested just below his chin and began placing a few feather-soft kisses on his collarbone. Yuffie watched as a small frown was etched on his face and he incoherently mumbled a name she did not recognize, soon followed by a short 'I'm sorry.'
Shaking her head, she pushed the thoughts that had begun to form in her mind away, telling herself that he was only dreaming. "Squall?" she whispered softly, crossing her arms and resting her chin atop them so she could gaze upon his face while he awoke. "Squall?" She leaned forward to place a soft kiss upon his chin while she traced a lone finger down his jaw line.
Squall shuddered awake at the gentle touch of her hand upon his face and sleepily brought his arms up to rest atop her back. "Yuffie?" he murmured quietly, one hand lazily stroking her back while the other traced circles on her lower back.
"Hm?" she managed to get out, making it sound almost like a purr as his roaming hands sent pleasurable chills racing down her spine. She felt like she could stay there in his arms forever, never needing to leave for anything just as long as he was always there.
"Was last night for real or was it a dream?" Squall questioned slowly, his hands stilling their motions atop her back and simply resting on the lower portion.
Yuffie lowered her head slightly and bit her lip, trying to keep the giggle that was building up inside her from bubbling out. "If it was, then we're both having some really intense dreams." Raising her eyes, she pushed away the ebony bangs that had fallen into her line of sight and stared at the man beneath her. "Besides, I'm lying on you... naked... and you still want to know if it was a dream?!" she asked incredulously.
His arms tightening slightly around her, Squall gave her a languid smile. "Well, for all I know, this could be a dream, too." He sat himself up slightly, to where he was leaning against the headboard behind him and pulled Yuffie up with him, burying his lips in her hair.
"A good dream or a bad dream?" the ninja inquired softly, slipping her arms beneath his and wrapping them behind his back. Sighing, she pressed her head even further against his chest and tightened her grip around him.
Squall bent his head over her and gently began kissing down the side of her neck and across her shoulders. "A good dream," he murmured in between kisses, his voice slightly muffled against her skin. "A very good dream." His hands began trailing up her sides, just lightly brushing her skin and making her squirm as he unintentionally tickled her.
Yuffie pulled her arms out from around him and pressed her palms flat against his chest, leaning back as she did so that she was now sitting up straight and straddling his lap. "I'm glad to hear it, considering I thought it was an amazing dream," she said quietly, blushing slightly as she admitted it to him.
Grabbing her firmly by the waist, Squall quickly flipped her over, causing her to squeal in surprise. He lay on his side, facing her and lazily traced a hand from her navel up to her collarbone. "You're beautiful, you know," he murmured, leaning over and brushing his lips against her cheek.
"You're just saying that. You don't really mean it," Yuffie countered, turning her head away from him and looking out the window. "You can't see me and I know I'm not beautiful. No where near it, in fact," she mumbled, her voice taking on a resigned tone.
Squall cupped her chin and forced her to turn back to him, almost as if his eyes were boring holes through the bandages just to look at her. "Yuffie, I do not need eyes to see that you are beautiful. And I'm not just talking about appearances when I say you're beautiful. And," he paused dramatically, lowering his head to hers slightly, "I do remember what you looked like before I was blinded and what I remember was beautiful."
The ninja took him by surprise when she flung her arms tightly around him and buried her face in the crook of his neck, hot tears streaming down her face and falling onto his skin. Not knowing what else to do, Squall pulled her closer to him and gently stroked her back, trying to calm her. "I meant it, Yuffie. I meant every word," he whispered in reassurance, afraid she was crying because she didn't believe him.
Sniffling, Yuffie raised her head and hastily wiped away her tears with the back of one hand before resting her head against his chest once again. "I know you did. That's why I was crying," she murmured faintly, a few more tears coming to her eyes. "No one has ever told me that before. And... then, I got to thinking about how you might not ever be able to see again..."
"Yuffie, I will see again. I promise you that." He clumsily brushed a thumb across her cheek to wipe away her tears before laying her back down onto the mattress. Feeling Yuffie's arms pulling him down, he gladly gave in and brought his lips down hard upon hers while his hands began roaming her small frame.
His mouth soon left hers and traveled down her neck and across her shoulders, his lips steadily going lower. She knew what he wanted. "Squall," she hissed, "Aerith's room is right there. What if she hears?" Squall ignored her and continued his ministrations. "This is insane, you know." Her feeble protests went unheeded, and when his mouth reached an area of particular sensitivity, she gave in. "Insanity is a good thing."
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Laying tangled in the blankets and sheets, Yuffie sighed and rolled over to stare at the bathroom door, listening to the water run as Squall took his shower. He had offered to take one with her, but she had declined, knowing that if she were to join him, one thing would lead to another. So, closing her eyes, she decided to try and catch a few more minutes of sleep before it was her turn in the shower.
The sound of a doorknob turning caused her to open her eyes, expecting Squall to emerge from the bathroom to grab something that he had forgotten. However, it was not the bathroom door that opened, but the connecting door to the Red Room. Yuffie grimaced as she realized who was opening that door and tried to hide her head beneath the sheets.
But, it was too late. The flower girl had already seen her. The ninja listened as she heard Aerith angrily stomp across the floor, grab the edge of the blanket, and try to rip it off of her. But Yuffie held on tight, her knuckles turning white with the effort. "Yuffie, get out from under there," Aerith almost growled, pulling the covers harder.
"If you pull any harder, I could get arrested for indecent exposure," Yuffie retorted, watching as her friend's brilliant green eyes widened for a moment and then narrowed. Yuffie used Aerith's momentary shock to pull the blankets out of her grasp and get a better grip on them herself.
"What the hell is going on in here, Yuffie?!" Aerith demanded, glowering at the girl hiding beneath the sheets. Although she had a fairly good idea of what had happened, she had to ask. She had to be sure before she jumped to conclusions. One part of her mind said it could be something completely innocent, but the larger portion loudly denied that. And deep down, she knew it was the larger portion of her mind that was right.
Biting her lip, Yuffie struggled to come up with a feasible lie when she knew Aerith wouldn't buy anything. Everyone already knew how to tell when she was lying. So, knowing she was damned if she did and damned if she didn't, Yuffie said the first thing that came to her mind. "Afterglow."
The flower girl backed up slowly, bumping the backs of her legs into the high backed chair at the table before sitting down hard in it. "Afterglow from what, Yuffie?" Yes, she knew what had happened, she was just still in shock that her young friend had been so candid with her response.
"Well, Aerith, what do you think? I mean, come on. You're a nurse. You have medical books," Yuffie said sarcastically as she sat up in the bed, placing a hand over her chest to keep the covers from slipping down and revealing herself to Aerith.
Raising her hands to her head, Aerith massaged her temples and closed her eyes, silently counting to ten before she said anything she might regret. Her temper finally under control, she opened her eyes and glowered at the ninja. "Yuffie, you are only sixteen. You are just a child. You have no idea what you are doing," she hissed as calmly as she was able.
"That's right, Aerith. I am sixteen, but not a child. And if Squall can see that, why can't you?!" Yuffie angrily gathered the blankets to her, forming a nest around herself as she crossed her legs and sat indian style.
"Yuffie, this is not something that should be taken lightly!" She paused to find her words, knowing by the ninja's past reactions to her well-meaning lectures what might happen. Although, Yuffie was at the disadvantage this time. Even with her outgoing nature, she wouldn't jump out the window to escape while completely nude. "Yuffie, sex is something that should be shared between a man and woman that love each other," she slowly explained, letting her words sink in.
Rolling her eyes, the ninja let the words slid right past her. "Aerith, even if I admitted that I did love Squall, you would still be on my case. Simply because I'm sixteen. So, lay off!" Even in her anger, Yuffie managed to keep her voice under control, only letting her words out in a low, dangerous tone.
The sound of the bathroom door opening drew both of the girls eyes to the doorway where Squall stood with a towel wrapped around his waist, holding it closed in the front. "Squall, don't drop that towel! We have company..." Yuffie called drily from across the room, turning her face away from him to give Aerith an angry glare.
Squall, who had taken the bandages off his eyes so he could shower, clenched them shut and tightened his grip on the towel. "Aerith, what are you doing here?" he asked through gritted teeth as he slowly crossed the room and sat on the edge of the bed, making sure he kept himself decently covered and didn't flash the flower girl.
"If I seem to remember correctly, Leon, Yuffie left me a note asking me to take care of Yoshi while you guys were gone since you two just seemed to have skipped town!" With each word, Aerith's voice had risen until she was screaming at the two of them while she stood up and waved her arms around. "I just came in to feed the stupid bird this morning, and, lo and behold, there's Yuffie... in bed... completely naked!"
Yuffie rose from the bed, pulling the blanket with her and keeping it wrapped around herself as she walked across the room to her dresser. "Look, Aerith. I am going to take a shower and get dressed since it seems to be causing you a lot of problems." Digging around in her dresser drawer, she found her clothes and then slammed the drawer closed, making sure it made as loud of a noise as she could. "And, Aerith," she said in mock sweetness, "you might want to leave the room so Squall can get dressed. We wouldn't want you to have a conniption about that, now do we?" With that, she stalked to the bathroom door and slammed it shut.
The almost careless sound of running water in the bathroom nearly drove the flower girl even more mad than she already was. "I'll be back in five minutes. You better be dressed," she growled to Squall as she stomped out of the room and into her own room, slamming her door as well.
"Well, that went better than expected," Squall muttered as he stumbled towards his closet, nearly tripping over the clothing that had been strewn about the room the previous night. He briefly opened his un-bandaged eyes only to close them tightly once again as the little bit of sunlight in the room seemed to scorch them. Reaching into the closet, the Gunblade wielder pulled out his clothes and quickly dressed, knowing their pink clad friend would keep her word and would, indeed, return when she said.
A knock on the door let him know that she had returned and he was mildly surprised that she had finally seemed to learn how to knock before entering a room. "Come in," he called out gruffly, pulling his t-shirt over his head and pushing a hand through his hair.
"Squall, get on the bed," Aerith commanded, her tone cold and leaving no room for arguments. The flower girl watched him cross the room and do as he was told out of the corner of her eye as she fished around in her medical bag for his eye drops. Even though she was furious with both of her friends, she couldn't let his injury go unattended. She could only hope that Yuffie had thought to take care of his eyes while they were away.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Squall chanced to open his eyes once again to see if he could make out what Aerith was doing. All he saw aside from glaring white light were a few blurry areas, so he gave up and closed them. "Aerith, what are you doing?" he ventured as he heard her approach him.
"I'm going to bandage your eyes. Now hold still." Wrenching his eyelid open, she hastily put the drops in and repeated the process with the other eye. Then, grabbing the roll of gauze, she quickly wrapped it around his head, tightening it and ignoring his grimaces as she pulled it even tighter. "Now, tell me, Leon. Why did you have the sudden urge to sleep with Yuffie? Hm?" she asked with barely suppressed anger.
Squall sighed loudly and ran a hand through his hair, not knowing how to answer the woman's question. "Look, Aerith. You might think she's still a child, but she's not. She's been forced to grow up before her time--" He was cut off by the force of a hand slapping him.
"Squall Leonhart, I don't care about how old she may be mentally! The point of the matter is that she is still just sixteen goddamn years old!" The flower girl ignored the shocked expression his face from both being slapped and hearing her curse. Speaking of slapping him, Aerith noticed that her hand was throbbing slightly from the force of the blow.
Vibrating with suppressed rage, the Gunblade wielder clenched his fists and withheld the urge to hit something, anything. "Aerith," he seethed in a deadly hiss, "I don't care what you say. You can't change the fact that I love her." He was slightly taken aback when those words left his lips, never realizing until now that he did indeed love the lithe ninja. Taking a breath, he continued. "And I will kill myself before I hurt her."
"If you love her, Leon, then you can wait until she's older," Aerith retorted angrily, hearing the water from the bathroom shut off as Yuffie finished her shower. Striding across the room, the flower girl pulled out the dresser drawers and grabbed handfuls of Yuffie's clothing.
"Aerith, what are you doing?" Squall asked quietly as he heard her rummaging around in the dresser and could hear her dress swishing as she crossed the room to the connecting door.
"I'm moving Yuffie's stuff back into the Red Room. Apparently, it was a mistake letting her room with you," she replied rather calmly as she gathered more of the ninja's clothing in her arms and carried it across.
A few minutes later, the bathroom door opened, revealing a fully dressed and obviously enraged ninja as she saw her dresser drawers upturned with the flower girl carrying her wardrobe off. "Aerith, what the hell are you doing?" she yelled, quickly walking across the room to grab her clothing out of the woman's arms.
"You're moving back into the Red Room, Yuffie. End of story." Aerith carried another armload of clothing into the other room. "And I will be sleeping on a cot in here in case Leon needs anything during the night."
Yuffie stared at her so-called friend wryly, rolling her eyes as she did so. "Ironic that it was because you couldn't find a spare cot that Squall and I started sleeping together, no?" she spit out, crossing the room to on the edge of the bed next to her lover while she watched Aerith carry all of her belongings into the other room.
"Yes, it appears that was a grave mistake on my part. A mistake that will not be repeated," Aerith growled, turning to glare at the two lovers as Yuffie leaned into Squall, who in turn was kissing her neck.
Squall lifted his head from Yuffie's neck long enough to ask the flower girl a quick question. "Aren't you needed at the infirmary?"
"No, we are needed at the infirmary." With that, Aerith grabbed Yuffie's arm and dragged her towards the hall door. "Since I can't trust you two alone, she'll just have to go with me to work everyday."
Giving Squall a pleading look she knew he couldn't see, Yuffie reluctantly let herself be dragged out of the room, knowing it was useless to fight the flower girl any longer. The woman had a stubborn streak that, although rarely invoked, could rival any mule's so called stubbornness. So, with a last look into the Green Room, the ninja turned and followed her captor to the infirmary.
Author's Note: You know, it's really fun to make Aerith out to be the villain in this story. Anyways, here's the chapter. I hope you liked it. And, yes, I know. Aerith is out of character, but considering we never see her mad in either KH or FFVII, how do we really know how she acts when she's mad? I mean, come on. She has to get mad sometimes. Okay, I'm rambling. Just review for me, please?