Title: Drought

Category: Kingdom Hearts/Yaoi

Pairing: Cloud/Leon

Disclaimer: If I owned Kingdom Hearts, I wouldn't be here, therefore by the dictation of logic, one would come to realize that I do not, so I am here. For the rest of you, I DO NOT OWN KINGDOM HEARTS, please do not sue me, I have no money.

(AN: This is based in kingdom hearts 2 so Cloud is in AC clothes and some spoilers for the first game maybe included, sorry. Otherwise, enjoy.)

Chapter One

"Leon."

He tasted the name with earnest as it slowly left his tongue. Surely it matched the man he had become; no longer could such a weak name as Squall be used to address him. No, the brown haired beauty was certainly more now that he was faced with the same responsibilities as his father had been. It was only fair that his name reflect the strength he had gained from experience.

Cloud closed his eyes as an unwilling sigh left his lips. The air in the coliseum was thick with smoke. Hades was being rather more than his normal antagonistic self. The tremendous amount of monsters the god controlled would have laid waste Olympus easily, if he had been smart enough to do it. Instead he focused on the petty games he played with the demi-god that was his rival, and set them loose on Hercules daily.

With an irritated glance at the underworld coliseum, Cloud spun on his heel and left.

As he exited the heavy doors leading to the murky place Cloud's mind turned once again to the brown haired mercenary.

What was it, he wondered straddling his motorcycle in the process, that made the man so appealing? It was true that Leon was beautiful, but not so much that he should be set apart. In fact, he wasn't all that different from Sora if one was looking for attractiveness. He was an exceptional fighter to be sure, but again, there were many of those in the worlds riddled with Heartless. As for his personality…the Hydra was more tempting.

The ex-soldier shook his head and set a course for Hollow Bastion. The man was an enigma, but then Cloud Strife had always loved what he couldn't understand.

"CLOUD!"

As soon as he stepped off the bike, something hard and very solid collided with the back of his head. He spun around angrily, only to be assailed with another of the mysterious objects. Ducking to avoid contact, his buster sword was in his hand before he could ascertain the source of the missiles.

"Don't hurt it Cloud!" a familiar voice yelled into his ear. Confused, he lowered the sword slowly and turned to look at Aerith with his casual blank stare. As he began to ask what the hell was going on, something small and furry with a black heart on its chest barreled into the blond, knocking him off balance. Strong arms wrapped around his body from behind to steady him and a familiar scent intruded upon his senses. As a result, he fell heavily onto the brunette.

Yuffie giggled and leapt over the collapsed men in an effort to catch the small creature that had darted off making one hell of a lot of noise. After a curious glance at the pair of them, Aerith followed.

"What the hell are you people doing with a heartless that doesn't involve something sharp and heavy Leon?" The blond asked, turning away to hide a growing flush on his features as he attempted to disentangle himself from the other man.

"Yuffie fancies herself a scientist of sorts these days. The heartless in question is her business, not mine. But I do know Aerith is of the opinion that it's cute." Leon stood gracefully and brushed off his clothes before offering a hand to the fumbling Cloud with an amused look. He ignored it. As Cloud rose to his feet, he saw a brief look of annoyance pass over the taller man's features. What the hell did I do this time, he wondered, turning to his bike and stowing his sword safely.

"So what brings you here Strife?" Leon asked disinterestedly.

"Nothing in particular, just passing through to see Cid. I need a new gummi for my bike. And besides, the underworld is no place to spend the night." He replied. He made to walk away from the other man but something stopped him. For some reason he was reluctant to leave. "How interesting" he muttered. Shrugging off the feeling he moved to the inside of their headquarters as the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee. On the far end of the room was a computer at which Cid usually…did something. Today however, he was nowhere in sight. In fact, Merlin wasn't there either. The place that was normally brimming with activity was unusually empty.

"Cid and Merlin are in Disney castle. They're repairing the Astronomy Tower for the Queen." Leon replied to his unspoken question from behind him.

"Then I've wasted my time here." Cloud turned to leave. Instead he found himself closer than he thought he was, to the face that was intruding on his thoughts. Leon showed no intention of moving. Rather he was wearing an expression completely unreadable. This close Cloud could see that he was wrong; Leon was far more beautiful than the keyblade master, and everyone else for that matter. He could also see that Leonhart's eyes were not the modest brown everyone thought they were, but a delicate shade of azure.

Cloud swallowed, not daring to think his thoughts through. The pounding in his chest and the sudden twinge in his gut told him that he really didn't want to leave at all. Irritation grew in him.

"Get out of my way." He demurred. Damn, his voice was low and almost guttural betraying himself as surely as if it was written on his face. Leon shook his head softly. "No." he replied simply.

He opened his mouth resolutely, intending to speak in cold contrast to his thoughts, but as his lips parted, Leon leaned forward and caught them in his own. Shock surged through Cloud's awareness as the warm mouth proposed silent promises with every movement. To his own surprise Cloud responded to the kiss urgently, thrusting his tongue into the sinful mouth joined with his own. A low sound arose from Leon's throat, jolting the blonde's thoughts into incoherence. Unconsciously Cloud brought his hands up to touch the mercenary's neck and bury his fingers into the beautiful hair that made so many women weak. Leon lifted his own hands to the blonde's hip and pulled the ravenously sexy man closer.

Almost as soon as it had begun, their slow searching was over as Leon pulled back from the kiss to gaze at the shorter man. He looked into the lonely blue eyes with a silent plea. Cloud avoided his gaze uncomfortably. He was confused, what the hell had he done? He was just kissed by a man he thought he cared nothing for, and he enjoyed every bit of it. Why the hell was it so good, and what was it that made him long for more? With some embarrassment, he realized that his hands were still around Leon's neck. Without warning, an image of Zack flashed into his mind. He hastily removed them and glared back at the gorgeous face.

"I won't ask again, get out of my way Squall."

Leon's eyes widened slightly and a brief look of hurt and confusion passed over his features. His eyes lowered to the floor for an instant before leaping back up to the ex-soldier's face. Then Cloud could read nothing from him at all. After another moment Leon stepped aside and watched as Cloud walked away. Cloud loosened his clenched fists and reached for his shades as he approached the motorcycle. Anger flared in him at the very sight of the machine; it reminded him of whom he was. Resisting the urge to glance backwards, the engine roared to life and he sped onto the highway of his memories.