-1Riku shivered as he wrapped one of Leon's ridiculously fluffy towels around his hair. Pulling on the sweatpants and t-shirt that Leon had left him, Riku exited the bathroom.

Urgh… That had been such a cruel thing to do. Riku carefully limped into the living room, glaring hatefully at the cream carpet.

Throwing himself onto a flower-patterned sofa, Riku smirked. Leon had flowery furniture? THAT was definitely unexpected. Riku paused, glancing around at the nearly completed room. The place looked almost cozy, with warm, bright colors that didn't suit Leon at all. In fact, there didn't seem to be any "Leon" in this house at all. He had expected leather furniture at least…

It was like a room in a magazine. The colors matched perfectly and the designs were perfect, but there was no personality.

Riku looked over into the kitchen, spotting Leon nursing a cup of coffee. He had changed, and his hair was wet. The bastard probably saved all the WARM water for himself. Still, Riku didn't have enough energy left in his tired body to make a comment. It was probably why he was getting all philosophical about furniture and magazines.

"You have to admit, the cold water did help with the swelling," Leon informed him from his seat at the table.

"That's not why you did it YAWN bastard." Riku replied tiredly. Leon walked over to him, a fleece blanket in his hands.

"Sora's already asleep in the guestroom, so I guess you'll be taking the couch."

Riku glanced out the window, cringing at the heavy rain outside. To say it was raining cats and dogs would be an understatement. Riku smiled to himself. This was a Squall.

Riku lifted a hand to his mouth as he let out a noisy yawn. Geez, today had been tiring. Now he was ready to just curl up into a little ball and sleep forever.

"Kids these days. You have no endurance whatsoever." Even in his tired, muddled mind, Riku caught that comment. Was Leon flirting with him?

Thank you god! And here I thought you hated me because I'm gay, I skip church, I dyed the lab rats purple for a school prank, and several other things I'm sure you don't need me to remind you of! I swear, if I get in his pants I will go to church every Sunday for the rest of my life!

Ok… Maybe not every Sunday. Do Easter and Christmas sound good?

"Care to test that?" Riku asked in what he hoped was a sultry, seductive voice. He ruined the effect when he let out another gigantic yawn.

Leon's weight caused the couch to sink a bit, and Riku's eyes widened. Was he really going to do THAT? On this old, creaky couch? With Sora in the other room?

Well, Riku could be quiet…

Suddenly, Riku was most definitely awake.

Then Leon pulled out a small first aid kit, and Riku sagged back into his nearly comatose state.

God might have loved him, but Karma still hated him.

"We should wrap this."

Leon gestured to Riku's zombie leg. The swelling had gone down, but the evil bruises still hadn't disappeared. His foot still looked like something out of a nuclear reactor.

Yet another yawn escaped Riku's mouth as he leaned against the armrest of the couch. He barely felt Leon wrapping the smooth fabric around his ankle. All he could remember was that for someone so gruff, Leon could be oddly gentle.

He didn't jar Riku once throughout the entire process.

Riku remembered when he and Sora were little kids and sprained or broke things all the time. No one had ever been that gentle before, not even his mother, not that he wanted to travel down that path.

It was a nice feeling.

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Riku grinned as he sat inside his new car. The repairs had just been finished, and Leon had given it to him as a present. Smiling, he stroked the steering wheel.

"Is there any room for me in there?" Leon asked, climbing into the passenger's seat. Riku's smirk widened into a smile. He had his car, and his Leon. Nothing could go wrong.

The sun smiled down on Destiny Islands, smiling down upon its children. The songbirds chirped in the early morning, their sweet song welcoming in the day. They flitted around in the sky, free to fly wherever they pleased.

Riku groaned and turned over, ignoring the birds. Not being a morning person, they sounded to him like nails scraping across a chalkboard, or Sora singing in the shower.

All three were pure Hell.

Leon pulled away from the kiss, trailing hot kisses down Riku's neck. Riku moaned, gasping as Leon nibbled on the junction of the boy's neck and shoulder, an extremely sensitive spot.

"Squall!"

The birds hopped from branch to branch, singing their beautiful song. Slowly, the squirrels awakened, chirping as they gathered nuts from the trees.

Riku pulled the blanket over his head to try to block out the horrible noises. The sun was shining in his eyes, painfully forcing him to accept the evils of daytime.

Riku was a creature of the darkness, forever living in shadow. Direct sunlight burned him.

At least, that was his excuse for attempting to fall back asleep.

"Do we have enough room?" Riku asked mischievously, a challenging look in his eyes. Leon smirked.

"The best part of this car is its big back seat."

The birds' squawking ground into his sensitive ears, highlighted by the horrible cosmic rays doing their best to blind him. Throwing off the covers, Riku hobbled over to the window, throwing it open.

"Shut the Hell up!"

Ahhh… What a wonderful way to start the day.

Wait, where was he?

Riku glanced around the room, taking in the flowery sofa, the warm blanket, the fluffy towel lying on the ground, and the cream carpet. Was this an old lady's house or something?

Stretching slowly, Riku caught sight of his shirt. What? These weren't the Mickey Mouse Pajama's Sora had gotten him for his birthday!

So, why was he in an old lady's house with a hurt ankle and someone else's clothes?

Unless he did it with an old lady!

Riku cringed at the very thought, letting out a shuddery breath. Sitting back down, he cupped his face, trying to figure out exactly where he was and why he was here.

…

…

Ohhh! The storm, mutant zombie feet, cold baths, and the car!

Riku groaned. How could a nightstick and some water destroy a car that looked like that? It just didn't seem right.

Luckily, the mechanics could repair the car.

Limping around, Riku managed to find the guestroom. By the time he got there, his ankle had started to ache and he felt glad that Leon only had a one-story house. Still, his ankle felt much better, and Riku knew that he could walk on it.

Looking in, he saw a small amount of spiky brown hair sticking out of the sheets like a porcupine. Smiling gently, he walked up to Sora's bed, gently shaking the younger boy.

"Wake up Sora! You have school today!"

Sora grumbled something about skipping and rolled over, going back to sleep.

"Kairi will skin you alive if you fail finals," Riku informed him jokingly, though the threat was actually a realistic one. Kairi was terrifying when it came to schoolwork.

Sora's eyes widened at that, and Riku could see his fear.

"Finals… Grades… Summer school… Holy shit, I'm late!" And with that, Sora sat up abruptly, before sneezing… Right in Riku's face.

"Thanks for that Sora."

"That's what friends are for, Riku. Ahh--Achoo!"

This time, Sora had enough sense to cover his face, glancing apologetically at Riku. His face seemed even more rosy than usual, and a small amount of sweat had collected on his dirty shirt.

"Sora, are you okay?" Riku asked, concerned for his best friend.

"Yeah, I'm fine Riku."

Not believing the brunette for a second, Riku rested a hand on his forehead, pulling it away almost instantly when the heat nearly burnt his hand. Sora was so hot that Riku could cook those annoying songbirds on his forehead.

"You have a fever, Sora."

"Riku, today is the last day of school. I'll be fine."

Riku stared at his friend, willing him back into bed, but Sora was right. Sora had one last final to take today, and there would be no chance to make it up if he missed it.

"You sure?" Riku questioned.

"Abso-posi-lutely!" Sora answered, shooting his best friend a bright smile. In reality, the world was spinning around him, and everything was freezing cold, like Christmas in July. Still, if he admitted to being sick, Riku would do something silly like blame himself. Despite all of Sora's griping and complaining, he didn't want to see Riku depressed again.

All the crazy things he did were for Riku. So that he'd never have to see his friend cry again.

After all, Riku was the confident one, and Kairi was the smart one. Sora was just kind of there.

Riku grinned at him. A genuine, warm-hearted one that he and Kairi lived for.

"I'll just get changed and hitch a ride from Tidus." Sora continued. After all, Tidus was a good friend, but no one would ever claim that he was the brightest crayon in the box. He wouldn't know sickness if it came dancing up to him naked and nipped his nose. Of course, if sickness happened to look like Yuna he might pass out from a nosebleed first.

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"Thanks Tidus."

Sora hopped into his friend's sleek Cadillac, buckling his seat belt. Remember kids: Safety first!

"No prob," Tidus replied, looking over his shoulder to back out of Sora's driveway. Once they were on the main road, Tidus put the car in drive, heading down the two-lane road that leads towards the school.

"I haven't seen you or Riku for a while. It's nice to talk to you again."

Sora nodded. Usually, he was as energetic as talkative Tidus, but today he was feeling like shit.

"By the way, how's he, you know, doing?"

Sora cringed. He was afraid that Tidus might ask that. It was a small island. News traveled fast.

"OK I guess. He's doing his best to distract himself. I almost wished this had happened during the school year. Then, at least he could throw himself into his schoolwork… Or something."

"Yeah," Tidus responded, clicking on his right turn signal and stopping at the only four way stop light on the island.

"But that's depressing! Only one day of school left Sora! Then it's vacation and blitzball, blitzball, Blitzball!"

Sora tuned his friend out as the car pulled neatly into its allotted parking space. Pulling himself out, Sora struggled with a sudden dizzy wave. The blacktop spun around him, indistinguishable from the cement sidewalk and brick building.

"Sora, you okay?" Tidus asked, somewhere behind him. His voice seemed so far away, and it echoed. Closing his eyes and shaking his head, Sora willed everything back to normal.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Tidus."

His friend gave him an award-winning smile, patting him on the back before heading into school. Sora lifted a hand to his head, feeling the beginnings of a horrible headache.

Today was going to be a long day.

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Riku examined himself in the mirror. Today was the beginning of his summer art lessons. It was a beginner's course that Riku didn't really need, but the school required it for his scholarship, so Riku figured he might as well get it out of the way during the summer.

In honor of said Arts course, Riku was having a hard time deciding on his outfit. He wanted something that was attractive, but artsy. So, here he was in a pair of tight, paint stained pants, and a semi-tight black shirt with a Paopu fruit airbrushed across the front and the words 'Destiny Islands Art Fair, First Place' written in gold.

Riku pulled his hair back into a messy ponytail, his bangs framing his face. Instead of his usual makeup, Riku only wore a bit of watermelon lip-gloss.

Satisfied, Riku grabbed his art supplies bag, glancing back at his room to insure its cleanliness. Unlike what most people expected, Riku's room wasn't some sort of glamorous fairy kingdom. Artwork hung around the room, tacked to various boards (because Riku's dad would kill him if he ruined the walls.)

Some were black and white pencil sketches, while others were paintings, jewelry, or even ceramics. Riku liked realism. He drew real people, with mistakes and flaws, doing real things.

In one corner his small bed sat, covered in light blue sheets, and his bedside table was full of sketchbooks and old papers.

The second corner held a huge white dresser, filled to the brim with clothing. Beside it was his full-length mirror.

In the third corner was a giant easel, with a fresh canvas.

His room was cramped, but comfortably so. In addition, it was very neat. Obsessively compulsively neat, as Sora reminded him, repeatedly.

Satisfied that the evil dust bunnies weren't going to conquer his room anytime soon, Riku closed the door behind him, heading off to the Destiny Island's Public transportation system. He had never ridden the public bus before, but hey, it couldn't be that bad, could it?

10 minutes later, Riku realized that he really needed a car.

"Son, open your soul to the lord and allow him to save your soul from the devil's influence. He will deliver you from your homosexuality, and in heaven you shall dine, free from your bonds."

Riku leaned against the window, trying not to listen to the seventy year old, blabbing man trying to 'save him from sin.'

"Let Jesus into your heart-," His croaked, crusty voice resounded through Riku's poor eardrums.

"I CAN"T TAKE IT ANYMORE!" Pulling the cord to get the bus driver to stop, Riku grabbed the bible toting man, hauling him to the front of the bus and throwing him off.

"Look! I'm gay! I'm not going to change just because you say it's wrong!"

The man's mouth opened in obvious disgust, but before he could reply, the doors closed and Riku was sticking his tongue out at the man.

Heading back to his seat with a sigh, he found it already occupied- not with a hot guy, but with a blonde haired, blue-eyed girl.

"Hi, my name is like, Stephanie, and throwing that dude off the bus was, like, so awesome! His voice was totally annoying!"

Sitting down beside her, (the other seats were full); Riku prepared himself for the inevitable.

"So, would you like, want to go out sometime?"

Sighing, Riku turned to the girl, a falsely apologetic smile on his face.

"I'm gay."

"Really, so am I! In fact, it's such a gay day! The entire world is gay!"

Riku blinked. Okay…

"I'm a fag."

The girl blinked a few times.

"Sorry, I don't smoke."

Riku's jaw dropped. Who was this girl?

"I bat for the home team."

"Really, I love baseball. I didn't even know that this island had a team!"

What the…?

"My door swings the opposite way."

"Really, maybe you should call, like, a construction person to fix it."

"I take the path less traveled."

"Robert Frost! That's like, so romantic, quoting poetry!"

By now, Riku was getting really annoyed. How could this girl not know what he was saying? It was, like, so annoying! No! The stupidity is contagious!

"I like other boys in a romantic fashion."

Finally, the girl looked at him curiously.

"What do you, like, mean?"

Riku stared.

And stared.

And stared.

"I kiss other males! I sleep with other boys! I like to take it up the ass! I don't do girls!"

By now, the entire bus was staring at him. The girl blinked.

"Oh! You mean you're a homosexual. You should have just said so, silly."

Riku thought he might die. Finally, the bus pulled up to his stop.

"I have to go. Nice to meet you." Running off the bus, he almost missed the girl's cry of:

"but you never gave me your number! How am I, like, going to set up our date?"

Lugging his bag behind him, Riku stormed into the classroom (his anger sufficiently numbed his ankle into submission) and right into Leon. He fell to the floor, right on top of the older man.

"Squall?"

He asked, confused. For a second, Leon looked equally confused before a slight scowl covered the man's face as he put two and two together.

"That's Mr. Leonhart to you Riku."

"What?"

"Welcome to Intro to the Arts. I'm your professor, Squall Leonhart."

Riku paused for a second. Then slowly, his neurons sent a reaction to his brain, stimulating activity.

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Finally, Riku's brain caught up to the position they were in. Leon's arms were around his waist, steadying him. He was straddling the older man, both his arms keeping him from crashing into him.

Perhaps karma now favored him, or maybe god was a yaoi fan girl.

"Professor Leonhart, I have a confession to make. I've been a naughty boy. Could you punish me?"

"Get off me Riku. Now is not the time."

"Oh, so after class maybe?"

"How about the fifth of never?"

Climbing to his feet, Leon pushed Riku off. Leon knew that today was going to be a bad day. Karma hated him.

Riku smiled, plopping behind the easel closest to the teacher's desk. The songbirds hummed in the distance, chirping merrily. To Riku they sounded like a grand orchestra. Today was going to be a lovely day.

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Leon looked around at his class. What were the chances of having both Yuffie and Riku in the same class?

Looking around, he noted that there were only five students. Most freshmen wanted their summer and were off enjoying it.

Besides the unholy two, there was a blonde girl named Rikku, clinging onto a reluctant but softly smiling woman named Paine. Her hair was braided in a complicated pattern, held back by a bandana. The rest of it was pulled into a ponytail. She was wearing an orange bikini top with white bowtie sleeved and a khaki skirt over an orange thong. Paine was just as unusual with spiked silver hair, crimson eyes, and a completely leather ensemble. The only remaining student was Cloud, Aerith's spiky haired blonde boyfriend. He wasn't an art major or a freshman, but Aerith was forcing him to take the course to get his 'creative juices' flowing.

Glancing down at the schedule, Leon once again wondered if he needed glassed. Riku's name fell under a list of full scholarship students. Could the boy crazy ditz actually be good at art?

"Hello class. My name is Squall Leonhart, but you should all call me Leon."

"OK Squall!" Yuffie and Riku voiced together. Yuffie had pulled her easel next to Riku's, and the two looked insanely happy. They were already shaping up to be the next dynamic duo.

"Squall! That's such a cute name!" The giggly blond one squealed.

She sounded far too much like Yuffie…

"As you may or may not know, this is my first time teaching. I'm an artist from Radiant Gardens, and the university offered me a permanent job here. Needless to say I accepted."

He looked around, seeing Yuffie stifling a yawn, Rikku clinging to her girlfriend, and Cloud examining his nails, and he decided to speed things up. He would ignore Riku for as long as humanly possible.

"This class is focused on testing your knowledge in all fields of art. Therefor, our first project will introduce you all to something rather unusual: the art of toy making."

Cloud glared at him from the back of the room, his bright blue eyes promising death. Leon stifled a laugh. He wondered if Cloud even had a creative bone in his body. Somehow, the blonde male painting seemed… Wrong. Almost as wrong as Sephiroth frolicking with the small forest animals, in a pink speedo, with a flower halo.

"You all are to make a toy modeled after a current design, but unique to you personally."

Rikku let out a squeal of delight, Yuffie looked oddly thoughtful, Paine seemed disinterested, Cloud continued to glare, and Riku was staring right at him, a dangerous gleam to his bright green eyes.

Leon pointedly ignored him.

"Please open your books to page 5, and read the following exert about the history of toy making…"

Leon trailed off as the phone rang. Reaching over, he grabbed the old-fashioned black phone, holding it to his ear.

"Yes…"

"I see."

"I'll send him right away."

Turning, he met those gleaming green eyes with his own flat gray ones.

"Riku, your friend Kairi is here to pick you up. Apparently Sora collapsed in class today, and you're wanted at the hospital."

Leon's voice was emotionless, but a slight frown crossed his face as the gleam in Riku's eyes died and his skin paled significantly. He seemed, smaller, suddenly, in his clothing, like a little boy trying to play dress up in the grownup world. With none of the confident grace he usually possessed, Riku raced from the room, the door slamming shut behind him.

"He left his stuff behind…" Cloud calmly informed him, staring into Leon's eyes.

Leon sighed, sagging against his desk.

"Read pages 5 to 50 for Monday. Class dismissed."

His remaining students packed their bags, each looking slightly unsettled. Riku's bag remained beneath his easel.

Leon caught Yuffie's keys before they hit him in the head.

"You should really return his stuff." She informed him with a small smile, turning and badgering Cloud until he handed her his keys.

Leon stared at the keys in his hand and the bag at his feet. How could one, perverted, annoying teenage boy snake his way into Leon's heart so easily?

Those eyes.

Those green eyes that looked almost blue during the day. Those expressive eyes that never lied, no matter how often Riku's mouth did.

It looked like he was going to the hospital.