A/N: Random plotbunny, a short gift for all you Cloud x Leon fans out there. It's a little change of pace from Cultivation.
Proximity
There are many different ways to love.
If you just looked at them, there would be nothing to see. They don't hold hands, steal glances at the other, or even smile when the other walks into the room. The two of them don't believe in silly things like that. They're grown men; grown men who spent much of their lives isolating themselves from the rest of the universe.
Whenever they run into each other, all that happens between them is a quick greeting, and it's business as usual. Yet, they always make a point to never forget this all-important ritual.
Everything comes alive in battle, as two normally passive men suddenly light themselves ablaze. A small glint can be seen in their eyes as they ready their blades for combat. On the surface, they banter and tease each other, but underneath it all, it's words of encouragement that they're too proud to just directly say. The two of them have this particularly amusing habit of making things overly complicated. Perhaps it was why they wanted to keep their relationship simple.
Behind closed doors, they are a bit more liberated, but only slightly so. They sit closer to each other, talk about deep, philosophical dilemmas, and share things they wouldn't dare tell the others. Sometimes, if they were feeling particularly frisky, there would be a chaste kiss before going their separate ways. Yuffie doesn't believe there's anything between them. She has often pondered how the two of them can simply just sit around, sometimes for hours on end, and do nothing. Aerith says it's because of love. Cid just says to let them do whatever the hell they want. Merlin has no thoughts on the subject.
There are many different ways to love; they just have their own strange, dysfunctional way of doing so.