HIDEAWAY:
He stares at her with blank eyes, his dark blue optics burning holes into her lean spine. Every step she took made him quiver, with her back flips and side steps and hand stands, her slender lips curved upwards into her trademark smirk, mocking every one of her enemies moves. Her self-confidence always manages to astound him, but her boastful antics make him flare, practically on the verge of yelling her to quit it before she ends up getting killed. He was waiting for something to hit her, to knock her off balance, anything that will make her stop being so damn sure of herself. His gaze remained on her even as heartless tried to claw at his ankles, to swipe at his torso—he simply sliced them away with a swing of his gunblade, darkness inked on his sword and dripping onto the cobblestone terrain to melt away. The suffocating blanket of darkness still lingered over him, even as he and Yuffie managed to lessen the hordes of heartless swarming around them. Leon felt himself slacken, his muscles relaxing and his teeth unclenching as he watched the girl in front of him swipe away everything that came within a few yards, her boots slapping against the cold ground and stars being flung from between skilled fingers. Her hair was damp from perspiration, bangs plastered against her forehead and russet eyes gleaming with pleasure, oh-so-mocking smirk still held in place.
Shit, he swore mentally, angry blue eyes narrowing and fingernails clenching against clammy hands, forming red crescent moons on his palms as he instantly tensed once again. Eventually this'll all cause her downfall.
Nothing happens. Just the sound of shadows melting into nothing as the slick hum of a kunai dices through sinister black, the echo of a triumphant "hell yes!" reverberating in the absolute silence of the third district. Leon sighed, watching as Yuffie pumped her fists and kicked up her legs. He doesn't understand why she's like this—cheerful and poised and assertive beyond recognition. He wonders why, how she can put up with it while he can't, and of fucking course. It's been ten years. Yuffie doesn't remember a thing.
Then again, she wasn't that young, Leon thinks again. Nothing like it. She was vivid and alive and cocky and a pain in Leon's leather-clad ass—just like she is now—but she was never too young to remember and she's never too old to forget. He knows she still remembers; the excruciating screams that rang throughout the taut air, the mantle of darkness perched above their heads as those monsters struck them with hunger. The monsters with dreadful neon eyes and tormenting claws that would scratch at them, instantly slaughtering them by digging in and clutching onto their heart. He knows neither of them will ever be able to forget their helplessness, their unable to lend a hand, leading them into dreadful shame. Everything tainted with darkness. They all were. Torn away from their haven and thrown into despair.
Then there was Yuffie. Looking like nothing happened to her.
She grinned, bringing Leon back to solid ground, motioning at him to follow her back to the second district. "C'mon, Squall! Let's kick some heartless ass!" she smiled, big, brown eyes sparkling with fervor, her green top torn on the side and khaki shorts worn out and riding up just a bit more than where they should be. Leon ran calloused fingers through his hair, trying to cool down and breathe, in, out. He frowned, because it was Leon, damn it.
He shook his head, brown blades of hair cascading down his face and hiding darkened blue eyes. "Not a good idea," he mumbled, swinging his weapon over his shoulder and walking towards the first district. If Yuffie knew what's best for her, than she'd follow, he told himself, not looking back as Yuffie called out to him. Yuffie can't forget. Only remember. If she were to go out there, then she'd be sure to end up Heartless fodder, just like everyone else in Radiant Garden. Hollow Bastion. Their used-to-be haven.
She didn't follow.
Leon exhaled noisily, blue eyes flickering gray with anger, a frustrated snarl set on his chiseled face. He restrained the low growl that threatened to escape from the back of his throat, instead turning around and gripping his gunblade hard enough to make his knuckles turn stark white against the color of ebony. For once he wished the ninja would listen to him, heed his words and refrain from being even a bit reckless for his sake, Aerith's sake, even Cid's if that's what she wanted. But of course, she was too full of herself, too sure and too ignorant but not at the same time, just Yuffie. Yuffie was everything and nothing and—
Dead. Full blown dead and lying there with not even a single heartbeat to her name.
And Leon hates it. His eyes narrow and his heart beat races and pumps against his rib cage and everything cracks open and spills out onto the cold cobblestone slicked with thick red. It's coated across the pavement, her carcass, empty and hollow and everything but vivid and alive and cocky and a pain in the ass. He stares for a while. The darkness is eating away at everything that was left, like little ants picking away at what they could get, so desperate and hungry and so damn pitiful and Leon stares. Doesn't stop until there's nothing left to stare at, only blood left to dry and crack and scare any passerby shitless.
Leon stares with blank eyes. Sighs. Shakes his head. Does everything he could do because once again, he's helpless.
He told her it wasn't a good idea.
···
for ana's broken faerytale challenge. word: haven.
standard disclaimer applies.