Disclaimer: Same as always! Nothing belongs to me!

A/N: Thanks guys! Sorry the wait has been so long, but I'm baaack! Enjoy the new chappie!

xxxxxxx

Reno wanted very badly just to hold Yuffie's hand. There was something in him that broke when he saw her so sad. It was unnatural for the girl to look so stricken. Her face was made for smiles and laughter; not sombre stares and despairing reflection. In a certain sense he felt like she was a child. Not that she was vulnerable or naive -- he knew mucn better than to believe that. He knew in her kisses and in her fighting that she was full of passion and full of fire. There was an unextinguishable flame of life burning in her. There was a youthful vivacity full of funny faces and smiles at sunsets and the taste of forbidden fruits fresh from the tree that seeped from her. To see that fire dulled into a spark made him feel depressed and guilty, knowing that he was part of the reason her light was so dim.

But even if Reno could articulate all these feelings in his head; even if he could feel a protective tenderness towards her, he was not the kind of person who could outwardly express what he had felt so eloquently inside. Siding up to her and grinning in a wolfish sort of way, he reached towards her as if to grab her hand, but instead firmly gripped a nice handful of her unsuspecting behind. Giving a loud yelp and slapping him quite forcefully, Yuffie whirled on him and started screaming.

"Just what the heck do ya think you're doing?! You can't just go around grabbin' anyone's ass ya feel like you know! Geez! Can't you keep your hands to yourself for even a lil bit of time?!"

Reno started laughing and threw an arm over her shoulders. She responded only by crossing her own arms over her chest and huffing loudly.

"Look Princess. You don't have to worry about me touchin' nobdy's ass but your own. Got that? Coz yours is the only one I wanna grab."

Getting even bolder by the second, he quickly set a small kiss in her hair and let her go and gave her a slight shove.

Turning back and looking at him, she couldn't help but grin at the mock look of innocence plastered on his face. Able to stifle her lightheartedness for a second, she looked at him with her lower lip jutted out, pouting like a petulant child.

"That hurt ya know!"

"Come on, I didn't grab you THAT hard. Wouldn't want to damage the goods just yet."

She could only feign indignation for a moment before returning to a state of cheeky flirtation, smacking Reno's butt firmly, but playfully, sticking her tongue out at the dumb-struck redhead, and running gleefully ahead, laughing wildly, like a little girl, as he snapped out of his state of surpise and gave chase.

When they finally got back to the coffee shop they were both out of breath and ridiculously tousled. Yuffie's hair was a windblown tangle, and there were leaves clinging to her top. Reno's hair was sticking up in awkward places and his clothes were crooked. Both had clumps of mud and grass stuck in the soles of their shoes. Despite the utter disshevelment of their hair and clothes, nothing was more noticeable than how happy they looked. As they walked back into the cafe where Reeve and Rude sat chattling idly about politics and/or day-to-day miscellany, both men could not help but notice the smiles that for once, in a very long while, reached the eyes of the couple before them.

But to call them a couple was undoubtedly premature.

Even the steady ringing of Reeve's PHS and the formal tone (indicating that the person on the other end was the Crown Prince) was not enough to break the glee from which Reno and Yuffie were still high off of. He had bought them enough time to sit and have a small conversation together before they would be expected back at the mansion to do something or other with Vincent.

"So, what have you decided to do?"

The question hung in the air unanswered. Despite all the silly banter and carefree laughter, they actually hadn't come to a conclusion about how to deal with the situation. Reno was the first to speak up.

"Go with the flow, yo. Whatever happens, happens. All I know is that I've resolved not to touch anyone's butt 'cept this gal over here's."

Winking in her direction, and recieving only a mortified blush and a glare, he laughed. He didn't feel as though there were anything else he could do.

Rude snorted into his drink as Reeve also shot the brash young man a look of disapproval. Looking to his young charge, this time he addressed her directly.

"Princess?"

"What he said."

"Sorry?"

"Just gotta see how things work out, right? I think I'm having a moment of clarity or somethin'. I'm thinkin' that things like this can't just be decided in an instant. As much as I would like to answer you guys and put this thing to rest, it's just not that simple, is it? It's not like before, on these stupid blind dates. Feelings are actually at stake for a change. And not just someone else's, but mine too. Sorry I can't quite say yet, but in the end I'm gonna do what will make me, and probably everyone else, happy."

Reno felt the slightest pang of jealousy and anger throb in him, but he realized she was right. She'd had a lot dumped on her in such a short period of time. She deserved some time to make the right decision. There was no point in telling him she loved him if she couldn't mean it the next day.

"That was pretty well-put. Didn't think you were capable of talkin' all pretty like that."

Idly tossing a strawberry at him, he deftly caught it in his mouth and munched at it while wondering vaguely if the fruit was so sweet because it was ripe, or if her touch alone had made it that much better.

"On that note, unfortunately, we must be going. I really hope from now on we can all be straightforward with one another. Please realize that this is a delicate situation, however, and should be handled as such. This would be a disasterous scandal if due care is not given. We'll talk more later, I am sure."

With a slight bow, and a strangely encouraging smile, Reeve motioned that Yuffie should get up to leave. All four rose and left the cafe together, Rude and Reeve walking a few paces ahead to the place where they must certainly part ways for a while. Yuffie shyly pecked Reno on the jaw and laid a gentle tap on his rear to remind him of the afternoon's events. He couldn't help but smile and return the gesture, watching her wistfully as she spun in lazy circles while walking towards the car that she and Reeve had arrived in.

"I take it things went well, partner?"

"As well as thing can be when you're stuck in a situation like this I guess."

"Hey, the fight's not over yet. You know better than to give up in the middle of a battle."

"You bet...but that look. Ya know...I just...I just don't wanna...I don't want her to get hurt. 'Specially not on my account. But at the same time, I wanna love her. I dunno what to do."

"Someone once told me 'There is no love which is not pain'. Meaning, if you really love someone, it's better to hurt than to not feel a thing at all towards them. Maybe that little spark just needs some agitation to become a full-blown fire. You get what I'm saying?"

"Huh...never thought of it that way."

"Well, either way, worrying about it is useless at this stage. We just gotta wait and see. Come on, let's head back to the inn. Maybe we can find something to do this afternoon."

With that, the two Turks headed off to their own car and headed back to Old Nibelheim; not so much parting ways with Reeve and Yuffie, but rather following the traces they left behind.

xxxxxx

"Princess? You're not mad at me, are you?"

"No...not really. I understand why you did what you did. It's just..."

"Yes?"

"Couldja just be straightforward with me from now on? I trust you and believe in you more than you probably know, so it would mean a lot to me if we could just be honest. Kay?"

Feeling both shamefaced and proud all at once, Reeve nodded his assent.

"I promise. From now on, honesty only."

Yuffie smiled, though he didn't see. Just one in a series that she hoped would only last.