Um, yea…no comment.

Chapter Ten

It was nearly dawn when Aerith tip-toed up to the infirmary and joined Tifa in peeking around the door to spy on the two men sleeping inside, silently agreeing to leave them alone. She could feel her facial muscles straining as a large impulsive smile stretched her mouth, barely able to contain her laughter as she tugged on Tifa's shirt and gestured down the hall. They shared a gleeful look as they all but skipped down the stairs towards the kitchen where faint curses could be heard as a half-asleep Cid tried to make coffee with Yuffie demanding food from him.

--

When he woke up, something felt different. It wasn't the IV drip attached to him, and it wasn't the breathing apparatus either. Both of these he was quick to remove from his person, letting them fall to the floor with little care. It wasn't the odd way the bed dipped to the right either, though that was puzzling until he finally mustered up the strength to turn and look. Cloud was there, half sitting in the chair, half on the bed with his face buried in his arms as he snored quietly, his body warmth heating Leon's side.

…it might have been that. Partly.

He felt…lighter?

His brows furrowed curiously as he lifted his head from the pillow to look down; he was clad in his pyjamas, the blankets long since kicked off –or maybe he'd never been covered, he didn't know. A small smile flittered across his face, torn between awed relief and utter incredulity as he lifted a leg up experimentally and couldn't find a single dark tendril.

That was it.

His eyes fluttered shut as another thought came to him. He had grown to like the name Leon, but he'd missed Squall and he could be Squall again. The castle and city finally felt like home again. Opening his eyes again he looked up at the ceiling, wondering how Aerith and Yuffie would react when he told him he didn't mind being Squall again...

-

Cloud hadn't intended to fall asleep at his chair. He'd planned to get some sleep on one of the many beds littering the infirmary. But somehow he'd wound up resting his arms on the bed and then before he knew it, his head was resting on his arms and his eyes had closed. The next thing he knew was the sensation of the sun trying to bake through his eyelids. For a moment he blinked sleepily into the crook of his elbow, stubbornly trying to remain in his contented sleep . Then, as sleep relinquished its hold on him, he remembered where he was and chanced a look up, a small ghost smile flickering across his expression.

Leon was sleeping peacefully, a tiny smile upturning the corners of his mouth as he breathed quietly through his nose, his eyes slightly shadowed from the harsh morning sun by his hair. Cloud clucked his tongue softly and wrapped his hand around Leon's; intertwining their fingers before lifting it up to his mouth, pressing his lips gently to the wrist. He let go a second later, hearing a tell-tale giggle wafting up the corridor and stood; slipping out a side door before Yuffie arrived to cause mischief. He nodded to himself as he darted down the staircase and made his way to the kitchen to where two knowing women were waiting patiently for their doubtful blonde to arrive for his morning angst and coffee session.

-

Leon did not enjoy being woken up by Yuffie. Particularly since no one was there to stop her when she dropped a kitten on his face. "To keep you company when I can't, Squally!" was her explanation for doing so and Leon couldn't help but wince at the name, regretting that he told the girls that he was okay with being Squall…he really should've told only Aerith.

It was a cute kitten admittedly but the poor thing had panicked at the treatment and clawed his nose. He especially did not enjoy a giggly ninja slapping a band-aid over his abused nose and asking whether he and Cloud had 'talked' yet. Cid had apparently given her coffee that morning because she was speaking faster than usual and by the time Tifa had arrived to rescue him from her, he was ready to throw the ninja out the window (He might've tried to if he'd been able to open them). He watched thankfully as Tifa herded the girl out; his relief popping when Tifa told him to play nice with Cloud when the blonde returned. Feh. He knew he preferred men for a reason. Less teasing.

At noon Aerith had finally managed to get away from restoration matters to visit him.

"How are you feeling?"

Leon snorted quietly. "Like I want out of this bed. Seriously. I'm fine."

Aerith's eyes twinkled as she wagged a finger at him. "You, Squall Leonhart, will stay put until tomorrow. Heaven knows you could use the rest." When he frowned at her, she merely chuckled and shook her head. "You've been sleep deprived for months, you are staying in that bed or…" She smiled mischievously. "I'll lock you and Cloud in a room with Yuffie."

Leon gulped and pressed himself further into the mattress; wondering just when Aerith had become so evil as her smile sweetened and she began to talk about the restoration work.

Sunset saw Leon was reclining against his pillows, his hand almost absent-mindedly petting the small kitten as he faced the window with glassy eyes, having withdrawn into himself in order to think carefully about the blonde and…whatever the hell it was they had. With the darkness gone, his health wasn't in jeopardy anymore…he could resume his life again…maybe with Cloud? He sighed softly, his free hand rising to brush his bangs out of his eyes before falling back to his lap. He hadn't really talked to Cloud but…he was sure there was some sort of understanding between them…unless he was reading too deeply into Cloud's actions…his judgement had failed him before…but Cloud had said they'd talk later…there wasn't too much that could have meant…

His circling thoughts trailed off as he noticed that the kitten was no longer in his lap and that his hands had been stilled and were currently being pressed together. He blinked slowly for a long moment, looking down at his empty lap curiously before letting his eyes trail to the right where his hands hung in the air, held up by another set of hands. He stilled when he realised there was a pair of azure orbs staring at him searchingly from over their hands.

"Cloud…"

"Hey."

Silence fell over them for a long moment until Cloud cleared his throat, garnering Leon's attention again.

"Um…feel better?" He tried lamely, wincing slightly at the rather pathetic attempt.

"Yes…uh, you can, um, let go of my hands now."

"Oh." Cloud offered a sheepish smile as he set Leon's hands back down on the bed, wiping his own on his pants and watching Leon do the same. He sucked in a breath. "This…is awkward."

"To say the least." Leon murmured in response, feeling himself relax as he realised he wasn't the only one out of his depth. Cloud was just as unsure, just as clueless as to how to proceed.

"I don't…really know what to do." The blonde fumbled to explain. "I've…the darkness and searching for Sephiroth. This is…"

"Hard?" The brunet supplied, lips twitching upwards. "I never expected…to have this; to live." He added bluntly, ignoring the expression that flashed across the other's face. "I didn't think I'd have opportunities…"

"But you do." Cloud said quietly, reaching over to entwine a hand with Leon's.

Leon squeezed back, voice soft and hesitant. "Yes."

A smirk flicked across Cloud's face as he leant forward. "So," He whispered throatily, lips brushing across a smooth cheek. He leant back to enjoy the faint blush and shiver the action elicited in the brunet as he waited for a reaction.

Leon swallowed nervously as he reached out to lace their free hands together. He kept his eyes fixated on Cloud's face as he tugged the blond forward, worrying his lower lip as the blonde's hip pressed against the side of the bed. Eyes met and held each other, questions meeting answers until the blonde finally nodded faintly and climbed onto the bed; knees digging into the soft mattress as he moved to crawl on top of the brunet, his weight supported by his elbows as Leon directed their hands to rest on either side of his head. Their heads tilted just slightly as Cloud leant down, pausing as he felt Leon's breath lightly gusting over his mouth, simply to enjoy the sensation. At the flicker of uncertainty and impatience in Leon's eyes, he moved forward again, eyes sliding shut just as their mouths pressed together gently. For short moment they didn't dare move, almost certain it wasn't real and trying to freeze time at that moment, before Leon opened his mouth slightly, moving his lips in a shy, circular movement. He tugged a hand free gently, reaching up to curl his fingers at the base of Cloud's neck as he hummed a soft content sound. In response Cloud shifted slightly, reaching up to run his free hand through the long strands of brown hair before fisting it with a soft tug.

Simultaneously they pulled apart, panting softly as they stared at each other with awe. Then Cloud smirked and Leon offered a tiny smile before the blonde stopped supporting his weight on his elbows, letting his body blanket the one below him as he breathed in quietly and rested his face against the brunet's neck. Leon shifted slightly beneath him, making himself comfortable before loping an arm around Cloud's shoulders.

"So, Leon…" Cloud offered after a few minutes of contented silence.

"Squall." Leon corrected quietly. "Call me Squall."

"Squall." Cloud murmured, tasting the word. "So then, Squall, you up for it?"

"For…?"

"Us."

"Oh." Leon replied quietly, a smile breaking out across his face. "Yea, I am."

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Remember…

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His eyelids fluttered shut, long eyelashes brushing against pale cheeks as his hands fluttered across the ivory keys. The small music room in which he resided resonated with the soft, dreamy music floating from the piano. The light of the fading sun streamed through the open windows, the gentle evening breeze dancing with thick, velvet curtains as his body swayed lightly with the music. Somewhere inside himself Leon knew this scene, recalled the dread associated with it, yet he felt completely safe; it felt different…the hands he saw fluttering over the piano before his eyes shut weren't his small childish hands but the hands of his adult body; he wasn't sure what to think about the change in the dream. He couldn't tell if that difference was a good thing or not.

A knee dug into the red velvet of the piano seat, arms wrapped around his waist and a chin resting on his shoulder. He shifted in his seat awkwardly, the melody never faltering, as he moved to lean back, eliciting a soft murmur of content. A soft sigh drifted from parted lips as he opened his eyes slowly, his fingers slowing in their movements as the melody began to draw to a sleepy end. Quietly he noted the blond spikes just visible in his peripheral sight, feeling an odd sense of security at the sight.

"You play well."

The soft voice echoed through the peaceful atmosphere. The melody was brought to a slow halt as his hands slipped from the keys to clasp contently in his lap, eyes closed peacefully as the arms around his waist tightened comfortingly.

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Even in the deepest darkness, there is light.

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Fini.

Someone did ask for a bit of lime/lemon and honestly I did try to meet this request but…when you laugh yourself stupid over your own lemon attempts you know there's something wrong so I decided against it (Seriously, I laughed so hard my stomach hurt for a good while afterwards).

Me tired…please R&R while I go collapse in that corner over there, m'kay?