Tragedy and I aren't dead believe it or not. Lol, been ages hasn't it?! Well, i won't say anymore but I hope you enjoy the chapter.

Enjoy...


The Blade of Bittersweet Life

Soku hadn't left the dark prince's bedside since Everent had been treated. Cloud had become fairly used to seeing the little prince in the infirmary, holding the ivory skinned hand of the boy who had yet to show any signs of waking.

It had been about three days and the fear of there being some sort of attack from Sephiroth due to his missing son had died down seeing as none had been made. The dark king had yet to even make an appearance of any kind and all eyes were turning to Mickey and Riku to restart the war but seeing as Riku refused any part in this that involved starting anything he didn't want to do, all attention was turned to Mickey.

The prince of light was oblivious to everything but his beloved; he rarely slept and hated leaving the dark haired, young man's side. Sora had practically forced Soku to the showers every day. Cloud found it strangely endearing in a pitiful sort of way. The looks Soku would give Everent were evoked with so much love and hope, things that promised only darkness and sorrow should the taller boy not awaken. It was enough for Cloud to pray every day that Everent would wake up soon. His injuries had been severe but not to severe to induce unconsciousness for three days, by all accounts the prince should have been awake by now.

Sighing, the spiky blond pressed a reassuring hand on Soku's shoulder, trying to give strength to the silveret who looked so helpless. Cloud had done everything he could and now only time would tell. He felt Soku's hand gently overlap the one touching his shoulder in distress as Leon entered the tent. Spying Cloud and Soku in the usual and expected places Leon approached.

He brushed his lips against Cloud's cheek in greeting, the blond blushing furiously and ducking his head to hide it. Leon turned to Soku, "Can I speak with you?" Soku's eyes widened and he cast a desperate look at Everent's numb body, then at Cloud begging for a way for him to stay with the prince if only for a little longer. "I promise, just for a moment." He gave Soku a hopeful smile and the little prince acquiesced with a tired sigh, getting up from a chair which might as well have bore his name for all the time he spent on it.

"Only for a moment." Soku replied firmly.

Leon nodded brightly but something about his manner was forced and Cloud saw he was nervous about something, he gave the older brunet a questioning look but Leon just shook his head. "It's okay Cloud. I just need to speak to Soku; I'll be back in a moment." Cloud nodded and felt Leon's lips brush his cheek again but his mind was too preoccupied to blush as he watched Leon lead Soku out of the tent.

The older man was only ever agitated over something big and out of his control, something he would change if he could. Leon rarely ever did things he later regretted, Cloud had been around Leon long enough to know that, but whatever it was he hoped Leon would be okay. The blond looked down at the prone prince and sighed, his mind repeating the prayer he'd been saying over and over for three days now.


"Soku?" Leon asked softly, causing the little silveret to stop in his steps.

Soku turned to face the older man, "Yes?" He wasn't happy about being taken away from Everent even for a moment and he was suffering from sleep deprivation but he knew Leon was a friend so he kept he manners as in check as he could but they were still visibly strained, luckily Leon could appreciate that.

"I've been doing some thinking over the past few days…" Leon murmured. Soku saw in an instance, before he'd even heard the words properly, that this was going to take longer than a moment and he fought off the scowl that thought brought as best he could. "This war… I've seen many wars in my lifetime but none like this. The rules and acclaimed victories lie off the battlefield in things brute force and sheer numbers can't win. This is a completely uncontrollable war." Soku nodded his head fairly, calming slightly as he listened politely. Leon's words made sense. "If this war can not be won in a way we have the means sot achieve then I fear we will lose. And I find myself remembering everything in my life… all the mistakes I've made, all the perfect decisions I've made, all my victories and defeats… even random little things I though I'd forgotten, I can remember them so clearly now… and there is one thing in my life I have always regretted…."

Soku's eyes darted to the icy blue ones that watched him so mournfully, so sadly Soku wondered what could possibly render the man he'd come to know as a pillar of unbeatable strength so useless. "Leon…" He really didn't want the man to face demons he wasn't ready for but Leon's face told him the older male was determined.

"Please… let me finish…I have much to say that will probably make you either hate me or not but it will definitely make you change you're opinion of me." Leon said seriously, Soku nodded mutely as the elder continued. "I was very young and I fell in love…I used to live on Destiny Islands, where both you and you're parents were born and grew up." Soku's eyes brightened slightly at the mention of home and Leon's grew distant as he remembered. "I fell in love with a young girl but we were so young we could do nothing to be together. My parents wanted to move, hers hated me on sight so we could never really be together." The little prince felt as though he were privy to a sad romance story that weren't real and he found himself hoping for a happy ending but he knew it wouldn't end that way. "When I turned fifteen… we ran away to the mainland and hid so our families couldn't find us."

"F-fifteen…" Soku repeated softly, he couldn't imagine leaving his family and he was fifteen, to leap at independence and support another with only love and affection to hold you together… it was unimaginable.

"Yeah… we were so young and so naive." Leon sighed. "We had never considered it before but… something had happened…" Leon brushed his finger against his temples as he mulled over his thoughts, saying so softly Soku barely heard it. "She was pregnant." Soku was speechless; he honestly had nothing to say to that. He stared at Leon and could only imagine the depth of experience the man had in life he could never have and by the sounds of things, Leon was only half-way through his tale. "She couldn't let her family find out but she wouldn't give up the child so we left. We escaped everything and started a life purely for ourselves. She had a close friend on the mainland that was a few years older than both of us and had a son of about two. She grew quite close to my girlfriend… she helped her with everything I never could, preparing her for childbirth and what to expect and she did so much for us… I am and always will be eternally grateful to her because she was there when I wasn't."

"When you… weren't?" Soku frowned, there was something odd about this story, it rang something in his mind, some facts in it slotted into another story he'd heard but couldn't remember, it was like hearing the other side of the story but what was the story he'd heard before…?

Leon continued, "The Destiny Islands back then were relatively untouched by outsiders, we never really had visitors from other worlds, they weren't welcomed by the majority and only stayed for short periods but news came of a war… one like this one… one involving the fate of good and evil and needed every able body man to come to the aid of." The man sighed and sat began to pace, Soku's wide and innocent eyes following his every move. "Of course, by that time we'd moved and to be able to live by ourselves we had changed our identities. I went from Squall Leonheart to simply 'Leon' and I went from fifteen to eighteen. So… when the recruitment ships landed… they drafted me in." Soku gasped, instantly seeing the implications. "My girlfriend who never really had the chance to become my wife was left, alone and pregnant with the support of her only friend in my absence and she was forced to live her life without me as I went away to fight because I was never permitted to return. I was too valuable a fighter to lose so I had to stay, by the time I had earned my right to freedom and my abilities becoming less necessary… it had already been thirteen years…"

Soku reached out to Leon but the elder wouldn't let him touch him, pulling away and casting guilty eyes at the prince that the silveret didn't understand. "Leon…"

"Don't. Don't pity me until you know the full story." Leon stated and Soku nodded respectfully, taking a deep breath the swordsman started again, "Thirteen years of my life and my child's… I wanted to return so badly, but I knew I wouldn't be allowed to stay. I could very well die the next mission I went on. I had been forced into a life where I lived on the knife edge of life and death… my son had lived his life so far without me… what good would I be if I suddenly appeared only to die soon afterwards? I would only bring him pain should he care for me. I would be no good for him. I decided I would stay away. I wouldn't get involved and I would let him live his life without me. I couldn't ruin his life as mine had been ruined." Leon sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "But I couldn't stay away… as much harm as I knew I was doing, I kept seeing him after he came to me. Yes, he came to me first, unknowingly but he was the first one to make any move. It was his lover who befriended me and, after discovering my secret, convinced me to at least become some part of my son's life…" Something in the back of Soku's mind was screaming at him, his eyes grew wide as he felt the information he sought creeping to the front of his mind and something wasn't right. It felt like...ke knew this part of the story. It felt like...He had already heard it. But How?!

"I was convinced to stay by seeing the lovely, bluest eyes in the worlds on the face of my grandson for you see not long after I reappeared in my son's life, he had a son and that little boy's eyes… they were bluer than mine, my lover's and bluer than my son's and they convinced me to stay. I wanted to remove myself and save my son, grandchild and son-in-law but I couldn't leave…" Soku gasped as it slowly fell together in front of him. "Soku…? Do you know who my son was?" Soku only shook his head as he fought for denial, refusing to believe it as Leon ran roughshod over his efforts with three words: "It was Sora." Soku's mouth fell open and he a soft squeak left his suddenly useless throat. He staggered back and Leon reached for him shakily, "S-Soku…?"

"S-stop!" Soku cried suddenly, Leon halted immediately but the little prince didn't miss the shock and hurt that struck across the older face. "Y-you're… m-my…g-gra… g-grand… g-grandf-father?!"

Leon flinched and nodded slowly. "I-I'm sorry… I w-wanted to t-tell you… from the moment you were born…" Leon's resolve and strength crumpled in the face of the terrified and shocked teenager and he fell to his knees, the sodden ground soaking his trousers instantly but all he knew was his heart felt like it was breaking and it was reflected in the eyes he'd loved the moment he'd seen them. "I am so sorry…" His face fell into his hands and Soku could only stare as his newly found grandfather broke down, sobs racking the muscular body into a helpless state.

In the frozen moments Leon cried and Soku stared, the prince realized exactly who Leon was. Leon was… Leon. This knew information only meant the man was related to him, that was a good thing in itself. Leon had always been a close person to their family. All it meant was that Leon could be officially counted as the family member he was. That was it, Leon was still the man Soku had grown up knowing, he'd not changed because of the new information and Soku was damned if he would be so stupid as to say goodbye to Leon for a mistake that was out of his control from the very beginning. He stepped towards Leon but the man's face was still hidden so he didn't see. Slowly, Soku stood before the broken man whose height knelt down reached his stomach and he wrapped his arms securely around Leon's head and shoulders, pressing the man to him and holding onto him for dear life as he too began to cry.

Soku felt Leon grip him tightly and his shirt become wet but he couldn't care less as he held onto his grandfather lovingly. "Its okay, Leon… its okay…"


Cloud looked at his watch with an unguarded expression of worry upon his brow, Soku had been quite insistent that Leon's words only take a moment of his time and the young man seemed so dedicated to Everent's side he knew that Soku hadn't gotten distracted and was probably still with Leon.

Cloud wouldn't say he knew Leon as well as he would like to but he knew the brunet well enough to know the look upon the elder's face when he had been in the infirmary before meant it was important so the blond wanted to be respectful and give the two their space but he was indeed beginning to worry. He had taken up Soku's vacated space by Everent's side so when Soku returned Cloud could defiantly assure the silveret nothing had happened in his absence. Pulling a damp cloth from a bowl of water by the bedside he wrung it almost dry before dabbing it across the dark-haired man's brow and sighed.

"You have to wake up, little prince." Cloud murmured, caught between wishing Everent could hear him and being glad that the prince couldn't. "I know of you… I know what the king and the soldiers say anyway. But I do not know you… I think… I think I would like to. I have grown quite fond of the little prince of light and if you are good enough to make him as happy and loyal as he is to you then I believe you are worth knowing." Cloud wrung out the cloth again and began again as he spoke softly, hidden behind the curtains drawn around the bed and protected from the busy infirmary and prying eyes. "I would like you to get better and I would like you to come back healthy and happy so you can make Soku happy. You are a pair matched together much like Romeo and Juliet but I don't want it to end the same way, you deserve each other and if the map of abuse on your body and the horrors I know he goes through because of his appearance… if those things are anything to go by I believe you too truly deserve each other. I believe you complete and protect each other. Please don't disappoint me…"

"I-I'll… t-try… not-t… t-to…" A croaky voice replied, his sounds clearly indicating he hadn't spoken in a long time and was obviously in pain by speaking.

Cloud's blue eyes snapped down and he was so startled the cloth he held fell to the floor as his eyes met deep teal, watching him, eyes pained but mixed with gratitude and a firm defiance all teenagers had except he seemed to hold his for the simple reason fight for his survival. "P-Prince Everent!" Cloud cried, diving after the cloth and clutching it tightly as the dark prince gave him a strained but amused smile.

"I d-don't-t… d-deserve…th-that-t… t-title…" He began to cough, each break in the wracking spasms punctured with winces of agony.

Cloud leapt from his seat to elevate the prince so he could breathe better. "Please, prince… just rest. You are badly wounded and you need rest to heal properly." He fluffed up the pillows and let Everent fall back gently before tucking the young man in with plenty of blankets cocooning him and all Everent could do was smile gratefully as he settled down.

"Th-thank y-you…" He murmured before his eyes closed and Everent was once again lost to the world, typically and disappointingly just as Soku reentered to tent with Leon.

Cloud jumped as the two pulled back the curtains and stepped in, closing the crude method of privacy behind them. The blond put the cloth back in the bowl and smiled at Soku, "I am sorry to say he was just briefly awake, not moments before you returned." Soku's face went from one of resolved contentment to sheer horror and disappointment. "I apologize, although this means he won't be like this for much longer. He will be glad to see you, I know."

Soku raised an eyebrow, "Oh?"

"Yeah, he told me he wouldn't disappoint me." Cloud grinned and pulled Leon out from the enclosed area as Soku's indignant cries erupted from behind him as he darted into his office, firmly indicating Soku shouldn't follow and leaving the little silveret to his previous task of guarding Everent's bed.

Cloud looked at Leon for the first time and saw the tear tracks down the man's face that hadn't been removed as yet but he saw Leon firmly trying to scrub them away, thinking he wasn't already under the blonds' scrutiny.

"Leon? Are you alright? What's wrong?" Cloud approached the older man and placed a gentle hand on Leon's bicep, trying to both calm him and turn the bigger man to him. Leon tried to shy away but Cloud wasn't having any of it and his hand became forceful. "Leon… please don't shut me out…" He was wary of how Leon had reacted before when he had tried to pry but he needed to know. Not only did he want to help, if Leon wanted them to have a successful relationship they couldn't hide things.

Leon heaved a breath and moved away from Cloud, almost backing himself into a corner to get away from Cloud. When the littler man tried to approach, Leon held him away with a sharp gesture of his hand. "I-I… I have t-to tell you something…" Cloud froze instantly. He knew he wanted Leon to trust him and share things with him but it was still fairly early in their relationship and it obviously pained Leon to talk about it.

"Leon… please… you don't need to tell me. It's still early for us. You can talk to me about it later when you're ready-"

"I am ready! I j-just need t-to calm down… it's hard to talk about but… you have a right to know before we go any further at all." Leon said firmly and Cloud resigned himself to watching Leon suffer through this, he kept back and nodded his head softly. "O-okay… well… you see… let's just say… before you… there was someone else. A woman… more like a girl really. But it was years ago, when I was fifteen." Cloud nodded again, slowly and a slight frown on his face as he tried to keep Leon's words in order. He could tell the man was rambling. "We were in love, I guess. We were so young and so stupid but it doesn't matter now… all that matters is the here and now and you and I are here and now so… I n-need to tell you the truth."

Cloud tried to step away, his mind slowly coming to the conclusion that, whatever Leon had to say, it wouldn't be good. "Leon… please, you don't have to-"

"I do! I need for you to know everything!" Leon tried to reach out to him but neither were willing to bridge the distance between them and Leon's fingers curled on nothing as he choked a gasp, "I-I want this to work… I need this to work, what we have. I want to do this right and I want it to work. You're worth everything and I want you to be completely equal with me." Cloud nodded in agreement, he couldn't fault Leon's logic but he knew he wouldn't like what he was to hear. Taking a deep breath, the brunet began to speak softly, his eyes on the floor of the tent. "I… I made a stupid mistake when I was young… my girlfriend and I… we… we were so careless and stupid…" He raked his hands through his hair angrily, his frustration clear in his actions as he practically tore his hair out from the roots. "S-she… I-I… w-we… ugh! I can't say this nicely so I'll just… look, she got pregnant!"

Cloud's eyes widened to an amazing size as he staggered back, as though the words had hit him hard, his knee on his left side gave out and he grabbed onto the desk to steady himself as he tried to recover. "S-she w-what?!"

"We didn't do it on purpose!" Leon cried desperately, not at all comforted by Cloud's reaction. "We both thought nothing would happen! And it was all my fault!" Leon fisted his hair again, his grip on his sword's hilt almost at the point of snapping the metal in half. "There's no excuse I can give but we got separated when I got called for war and she gave birth to a healthy baby boy without me! In fact… I never saw her again. She died and I never went back. She brought up our son all by herself, even another's when their son was left after they died. But I never saw her or my son," Leon looked up guiltily and locked gazes with Cloud's frozen expression of shock, "Until fifteen years ago. When my son was fifteen, I met him for the first time. Not too long after that I met my grandson."

Cloud took another step back until he was arched back over his desk, "A s-son… and a g-grandson?!" He stared at Leon and shook his head. "Are you joking?!"

Leon looked up again, "Would I joke about something like this?"

Cloud was speechless. "Leon… w-who are they?" Leon looked away. "Leon… please tell me, you've told me everything this far… you have to tell me who they are."

The brunet nodded slowly, "You have to understand… it was my deepest secret until a few hours ago, this is hard for me. I also still want to be with you, it doesn't change any of my feelings for you, okay?"

"Who is it?!" Cloud practically screamed.

Flinching, the older male whispered softer than the wind, "Sora is my son." And fled the tent in a flurry of canvas.

There was barely a moment in which to recapture his breath before Cloud's office was invaded again by the one person he was trying to fit into the news Leon had just thrown at him. His lover's grandson stood before him, oblivious to what had transpired just then but Cloud held no doubt that was what the little prince and the brunet had discussed before. Soku stared at him with wild eyes, wide with fear.

"Something's wrong with Everent!" Soku screamed.

Cloud was hauled back into the infirmary, his state of numbed shock making him useless as he blankly stared at the bed Soku presented to him, the dark haired boy on the bed spasming and arching off the bed in a painful reaction to something and Cloud knew it needed addressing but his mind was gone. There was a moment's panicked screaming of fearful cries, the deafening thumping of Everent on the bed and the erratic beeping of the heart monitor when suddenly everything fell still and deadly silent as the heart monitor, the base line to the crescendo of chaos, fell flat and only the monotone of its lowest noise could be heard, bouncing off the canvas walls and bearing down upon them all.


Heres what i imagine you're all screaming... "ARGH?! ANOTHER EVIL CLIFFIE!?!! WHO THE HELL STOPS THERE?!! IF EVERNT'S DEAD I'M GONNA KILL AKAIBA!!"

Can i be the first to point out if we didn't give cliffies, you'd get bored quickly. Well, i hope you liked it!

Akaiba and TragedyInTheMaking