Title: 100 Steps To Somewhere
Fandom: Kingdom Hearts
Claim: Cloud/Riku
Theme: 038. Ice Cream
Word Count: 2,400
Rating: M
Summary: Cloud was on a mission for Christmas duty, and Riku can't help but ask why Leon calls Cloud, 'Strife.'
Disclaimer: I wish, okay? It's all lies. I don't own Kingdom Hearts, I don't know anyone who owns Kingdom Hearts, and I am not affiliated with anyone who is affiliated with anyone who owns Kingdom Hearts. I think that about covers it.
Step Thirty-Eight: Decoration
"So what's on today's agenda?" said Riku.
Cloud walked into the bedroom, towel-drying his hair. Riku was already dressed as he leaned across the mattress, straightening the blankets on the bed. He grabbed each pillow, readjusted the pillowcases, fluffed them up, and set them against the headboard. Cloud snickered and dropped his towel into the wash basket.
"What's so funny?"
"You, my happy little homemaker," said Cloud.
Riku frowned and sat on the bed.
"Well someone has to pick up around here, and I fear for your health if you try to do it. You're just as notorious for being hopeless as you are for being moody."
"You like me this way. Makes you feel useful."
Riku smiled.
"Maybe a little. So what are we doing today?"
Cloud shrugged and walked over to the closet, rifling through for an appropriate outfit.
"December's coming. Aerith mentioned something to me about getting Christmas decorations."
"Are you really on Christmas duty? Leon wasn't joking?"
Cloud shook his head.
"Nope. We do it every year, or at least we used to. This will be the first year since the Heartless. Aerith and I usually work on getting the decoration and putting them up inside. Cid, Leon, and Yuffie string the lights, because I'm notorious for falling off ladders—"
"Of course you are."
Cloud grinned.
"Yeah, and then we all go and pick out the Christmas tree together. We have to get started soon, though, because with the restoration and everything Aerith wants to decorate the town, too. Wants to put up a big tree in the market and everything. Should be fun. And of course you're invited to join in with the festivities. Help decorate the tree and stuff. There'll be mistletoe."
Cloud pulled a black turtleneck on and then wriggled his eyebrows. Riku laughed and rolled his eyes.
"Well as long as there's mistletoe, count me in."
"Yeah?"
Cloud closed the space between them, put his hands on either side of Riku's hips, and leaned forward. He pressed his nose against Riku's and licked his lips. Riku's breath hitched; he smirked and nodded.
"Yeah."
"You're hot."
"We have to go shopping, Cloud. Get off the minor."
Riku smiled, and Cloud pulled back to find Leon in the doorway, leaning against the jamb and smirking.
"Well, if you insist . . ."
Cloud grabbed for Riku's crotch. He squeaked and shifted back on the bed in fits of laughter. Leon rolled his eyes.
"Not like that. Pedophile."
"He's trying to molest me," said Riku.
"You know that what you just attempted to do is punishable by law in most worlds."
Cloud grinned.
"And I've done worse than that."
Riku nodded. Leon rolled his eyes.
"You two make me sick."
Riku scrambled farther back on the bed and rolled away from Cloud. He stood and moved to readjust the blankets.
"Look what you made him do after he went to all that trouble," said Leon.
Cloud shrugged and walked to the mirror, inspecting his hair.
"You're coming shopping with us?" said Riku.
"Cloud can't be trusted with munny."
Riku's eyes widened and he looked from Leon to Cloud.
"Can you do anything?"
"I'm not as bad as Tifa," said Cloud. "Besides, that isn't even true. He's just coming with because everyone else has plans for today and he doesn't want to sit around in the house all by himself. He just won't admit it."
Leon nodded.
"This is true. I won't admit it."
"But you just kind of did," said Riku.
"Shh . . ." said Cloud. "You aren't supposed to point that out."
"Yeah," said Leon. "That's not how this conversation goes."
"Leon hates us all and never really wants any of us for company. He's miserable, distant, cold, and uncaring."
"And Cloud's a stoic bitch who doesn't want to hear anything anyone ever has to say."
"That's right."
Riku stared.
"You both have severe psychological problems I don't even want to try to touch upon."
Leon laughed.
"I love this kid. He's such an asshole. Now where's the munny?"
"Aerith left it on the bulletin board. You know . . . where it belongs," said Cloud.
"I'm surprised at you."
"Why?"
"You actually know where the munny is supposed to go."
"Fuck off. Get your jacket."
"Already on it," said Leon, walking out of the room.
Riku looked from the empty doorway to Cloud.
"Does he really think I'm an asshole?"
Cloud laughed.
"I have no idea, but I do know that's Leon's way of saying he enjoys having you around."
----------0----------
"I'm really excited about Christmas this year," said Riku.
Leon, Cloud, and Riku were out looking at Christmas decorations and loading their cart full of tinsel, garland, bulbs, wreaths, and lights. Leon kept stringing garland through Cloud's hair, and Cloud reached around to bat Leon's hands away.
"But the spikes made such great hooks for the garland," said Leon.
"You're getting on my nerves," said Cloud.
"Why're you looking forward to Christmas so much?"
"Huh?" said Riku. "Oh. Well . . . I mean, yeah, it's going to be weird without my family, but . . ."
Riku smiled and looked away. Leon laughed.
"Oh, yeah. First Christmas for the happy couple."
"Yeah, there's that . . . and snow."
"Snow?" said Cloud.
"Yeah. It snows here, right?"
"Right."
"Well it didn't snow on Destiny Islands so I've never seen it before."
"Awe," said Leon. "That's so cute. Makes me want to vomit a little."
"Fuck off," said Cloud. "He's being sweet."
"Watch it, Strife, or we may have to spar here in the middle of the store."
"Those are fighting words, Leonheart. Watch yourself. You wouldn't want to cause a scene."
"You just don't want to cause a scene because you don't want any witnesses while I kick your ass."
"You wish you were capable of kicking my ass, and get that tinsel out of my hair."
"It's not tinsel; it's garland."
Riku laughed.
"I love when you guys argue," said Riku. "It's so amusing."
"Your boyfriend's a sadistic bastard."
"So are those your nicknames or something?"
"Are what our nicknames?" said Cloud.
"Strife and Leonheart."
Leon and Cloud stared. The garland in Cloud's hair fell to the floor. Leon looked to Cloud and snickered.
"What?" said Riku. "I get the feeling I've just said something very stupid with they way you're looking at me."
"No . . ." said Leon. He looked at Cloud and burst into laughter again. "He doesn't know?"
Cloud stared.
"Obviously not."
"What did I say?" said Riku. "Not nicknames?"
"Leonheart's my last name," said Leon.
"Your name is Leon Leonheart?"
Cloud snorted.
"See? It sounds retarded."
"No," said Leon. "I go by Leon."
"His name is Squall."
"You had to say it."
"Get over it. Your name is Squall."
"I go by Leon."
"It sounds retarded."
"Watch it, Strife."
Riku raised his eyebrows and frowned.
"So . . ." said Riku. "Then Strife . . .?"
Cloud snickered.
"Yeah. Cloud Strife."
"I can't believe you've been dating for so long now and claim to be so in love and everything and he didn't even know your last name," said Leon. "I mean, that's like not knowing your boyfriend's birthday . . . wait . . . that's right. You didn't."
Riku laughed and shrugged.
"I don't know Cloud's, either, and hey . . . it's appropriate."
"August nineteenth," said Cloud. "And what's appropriate?"
"Your name. I guess personalities do have something to do with our names."
Leon snickered.
"Yeah," said Leon. "You're just a big, miserable rain cloud full of strife."
Cloud smiled.
"So I guess it's not my fault I'm so moody. It was destined."
"Thanks, Riku. Now we've just given him an excuse."
"Well you're a Squall, so you're turbulent and hostile like a storm," said Riku.
Leon stared.
"Okay, fine," said Cloud. "We'll get you. Riku, what's your last name?"
Riku grinned.
"Asaki."
"Asaki?"
"Yeah."
Leon looked at Cloud and shook his head.
"Yeah, that's not funny," said Leon.
Cloud shook his head.
"Okay," said Leon. "Now you know each other's entire names and birthdays. Do I need to help you learn more of the basic stuff you should know about each other, or can you take it from here?"
Riku frowned.
"Wait . . . Did you say August nineteenth?"
"Yeah," said Cloud. He rummaged through Christmas tree bulbs, grabbed a pack, and threw them into the overflowing cart.
"We were together this year on August nineteenth."
Cloud's eyes widened. Leon snickered.
"You have so much in common," said Leon. "Hiding birthdays, identities . . . do you even know each other, or was that all a sham, too?"
"Eh . . ." said Cloud. He coughed and then smiled. "I didn't want to make a big deal out of it?"
Riku stared for a few seconds and then laughed.
"So you're twenty-three now?"
Cloud pursed his lips and scratched his chin. Leon snickered.
"Yes?"
"Damn. And I just started to feel like I was catching up a little. Oh, well. It's been too long for me to get upset about it. I'll get you next year."
Leon shook his head.
"I can't believe you didn't even know each other's last names or birthdays."
"I know the important stuff," said Cloud.
"Yeah," said Riku. "Well . . . most of it."
"Right. And now we learned more about each other. That's what a relationship is, Leon. You learn more about each other as you grow together."
"That was beautiful, Cloud," said Riku.
"Thanks."
"Oh, here we go," said Leon, pulling a strand of garland from the shelf. "Purple is your color, Cloud."
"Get that thing out of my hair."
----------0----------
"Do you think Aerith will like everything?" said Riku as they walked across the marketplace.
"We certainly bought enough," said Leon. "She better."
"Do we have much munny left?" said Cloud.
"Some. Why?"
"I'm kind of hungry."
"Does your stomach have a bottom?"
"I often wonder that myself," said Riku.
"I don't remember this shop being here," said Leon as they approached the borough.
"Scrooge McDuck's Ice Crème Shoppe," said Cloud, looking at the sign. "Did this just move in here?"
"Isn't it a little cold for ice cream?" said Riku.
"Customers, Uncle Scrooge," yelled one of the little duck boys from the item shop. Cloud didn't know which. He could never tell them apart anyway. "The ice cream's really bad," he added before he disappeared behind the counter.
A duck came out from the store (which was apparently just a large refrigerator). He wore a waistcoat and top hat. Cloud stared.
"Things just keep getting weirder and weirder, don't they?" said Riku.
Leon snorted.
"Hello, boys," said the duck. "I'm Scrooge McDuck. I just opened shop here and am still working on the flavors, but we are giving out free samples."
"Isn't a little cold for ice cream," Riku repeated. The duck glared.
"Take it back," said Cloud. "Free samples, everyone! Come on!"
Riku and Leon exchanged glances. Leon shrugged, and they each took an ice cream bar from the tray. Cloud turned it over in his hands. He'd never had brown-orange ice cream before, and was hesitant to try it at all, but the duck continued to stare. Leon looked between Cloud and Riku before touching his tongue to the sugary concoction.
"You're a brave soul," said Riku.
Leon grimaced and tried to smile.
"Wow. That's . . . that's really . . ."
Scrooge McDuck took an ice cream bar from the tray, licked it, and grimaced.
"Terrible. Ah. Back to the drawing board."
He disappeared back into the shop, tray in hand. Riku, Cloud, and Leon tossed the ice cream bars into the trash can. The little duck poked his head over the counter at the item shop.
"I told you so."
"Let's get some real food," said Cloud.
Leon nodded.
"I need that taste out of my mouth."
"Maybe we should drop off the decorations at the house first, though," said Riku.
"Sounds good to me," said Cloud.
Cloud transferred the shopping bags from his left hand to his right and put the free arm around Riku's waist. Riku smiled as he stepped closer to Cloud and glanced over to Leon.
"We aren't going to make you puke again, are we?" said Riku.
Leon shrugged.
"As disgusting as you two are, it's better than a moody, grumpy Cloud. At least you make him less annoying."
"And that," said Cloud, "is Leon's way of saying he's happy for us."
"I should have shoved that ice cream bar down your throat and made you choke on it," said Leon as they walked into the borough.
"Don't pretend you have homicidal tendencies, Leonheart. We know you're a big softy."
"Shh . . ." said Riku. "That's not how this conversation is supposed to go."
Leon snorted.
"That's right. You can't expose me. That ruins the fun of the game."
"Yeah. Way to go, Strife."
Cloud pulled back to look at Riku, his eyebrows raised. Riku smirked.
"Watch out," said Leon. "Asaki catches on quick. He'll be trash-talking circles around you before you know it."
"Not that it's hard. Cloud can barely get two sentences in without tripping over his own tongue. He's hopeless."
Cloud shook his head and mussed Riku's hair. Leon snickered.
"You play mean," said Cloud.
"Yeah, we can keep you around for awhile," said Leon. "Welcome to the club, kid."
"The club?" said Riku.
"Yep. It means that if you and Cloud were to ever break up, you can stay our friend and we'll throw Cloud to the sharks."
"Way to be a friend, Leon," said Cloud.
"Then I guess we better not break up," said Riku. "I'd feel bad if they fed you to the sharks, and I just can't have that on my conscience."
Cloud tightened his grip around Riku's waist and smiled.
"I love you," said Riku.
"Yeah, yeah. I love you, too."
They entered the house, and Riku took the shopping bags from Cloud and Leon.
"I'll go put these in the hall closet," said Riku. "Keep them all together for Aerith."
Cloud nodded, and as Riku disappeared down the hall, Leon's hand fell to Cloud's shoulder and squeezed. Cloud turned his head back to meet Leon's eyes. He smiled and nodded.
"He's a keeper?" said Cloud.
Leon nodded.
"Definitely."
Thank you so much for your patience in waiting for this chapter.
So Christmas is coming up for the boys, Riku will be getting taller with his long, luxurious hair, and then . . . well, I guess Deep Dive is coming up, too. Like really soon. (Okay, really soon conisdering there are 100 chapters.) I'd say to expect to hear from DiZ and meet Roxas within the next ten chapters. Deep Dive within the next fifteen.
Don't worry, though. I've got lots of fun goodies in mind to fill up the space between now and then including the story on Riku's KHII partyboy outfit.
::insert evil snicker here::
And for the reviews:
Lady Karai: Are you okay? I'm sorry I made you fall over from laughing about Yuffie on helium. ::smirk:: Yeah, I found that amusing, too, because I amuse myself. Anyway, there was lots more dialogue in this one, too. I'm a little worried that I'm using too much filler, but I feel it kind of needs to be done to give the couple more of a stability after being apart for so long with the events of KHII coming up without all hell breaking loose. Plus . . . you know . . . Riku needs time for his hair to grow. Heh. So, yeah. Hoped you liked this one, too, and thanks for the review.
Lapse-Raevn: Yes, I mean when he turns back from his Xehanort-lookalike-ness. I mean, he will see Sora and Kairi before then in glimpses, but they of course won't speak to him until he does in KHII 'cause I'm following the story very carefully. And . . . um . . . yes, they will continue dating while Riku isn't exactly Riku, though . . . hm . . . must not say too much . . . yes. They will continue to date. It will have it's complications, but yeah, they'll be together and Riku will not look like Riku.
koyuki-san: It's getting warm and fuzzy now that Christmas is approaching since you have to have that nice stuff before KHII when the shit hits the fan again. But that's life, isn't it? Things are going great and then everything falls apart. Or at least that's my life. That cake part cracked me up so much. It's kind of sad to laugh maniacally while typing your own story, but I do it, and I hope people comment on it, and you did so that made me happy.
Soul Writer of Dark Truth: You've been reading and reviewing a lot of my stories. Thanks very much. You're welcome for the Cloud/Riku stories. I know how sad it was to wander the fic-less world of Cloud/Riku. I did it for months before I said, "Damnit. Fine. If no one will write it, then I will." And this is what I have to show for it. Excuse me while I go and write my next short.
The Glass Slipper: It's okay if you're a brat, too. I also read your Christmas story with Sora/Leon and the side couple of Cloud/Riku like twenty times and I squee every time, especially at the Cloud/Riku parts. They're so funny with their food nicknames and all. Thank you for the compliments on characterization and grammar as I haven't played any of the Final Fantasy games and I feel like a little shit coming in and writing so much about both Cloud and Leon. As for the grammar, I like hearing that kind of thing considering I am going back to school to work in publishing so . . . yeah. I have worked very hard on honing my grammar. I'm glad you got to share your birthday with Riku, and a happy belated one to you!
-find.me.please-: I wasn't as reminiscent on my sixteenth, either, but then again I wasn't away from my family because I destroyed my home with Heartless. ::cough cough:: Poor Riku.
FrEaKyAoIFaN: Well Sora was supposed to be in that capsule for like a year so I'm taking advantage of it. Yes, I did turn Cloud into a big softy, but I think that's what real love can do to us, you know? Brings out the best and the worst. So now that Riku has brought out the best . . . hm . . . I actually didn't think of that. Maybe he brings out the worst in Cloud's laziness and inability to do anything for himself. I could incorporate something . . . hm . . . off to plot . . .
Chalice of Chelsea: You are back! Yay you! Welcome back, and yes . . . heh. Riku opens up to Leon and Leon goes out and makes a scene. These boys are all so mean to each other. I adore it.
prettykitty3000: I always have crazy fan-girl issues. I just went to see Taste of Chaos and cried four times when The Used were on. It was the craziest fan-girl moment of my life. Anyway. . . Thanks for the hyper-giddyness. And btw, you can use Internet speak on the Internet. Just thought I'd let you know.
Koji Inari: I'm a cat person, too. Heh. Now Cloud isn't less of a pedophile. Hah! Poor Cloud. Well, he is because Riku's older, but Cloud's older, too, so ha ha ha ha ha. Yes, Riku was sixteen when he met Cloud in your story. Yay for Dirge and yay for underage Riku! Yay all around!
Beatrisu: I came to give the reply to this review and went, "Oh! New reader! I don't recognize your name!" I felt very proud of myself for being so clever and then I saw the first line of your review said you just read the enitre thing in two days, and I went, "Hm. Heh. Duh." I'm sorry you were sick and I hope you're feeling better. Yeah, it is an unusual pairing, but . . . well, yes. I think they fit so well together and I couldn't find any stories so I just went with it. I'm so glad you didn't regret it. I always get really happy when I bypass stories, eventually read them, and then love them. It's like a little gift. Yes, I'm a writing machine when I get the time, only I don't get a lot of time recently (and I'm writing shorts out the ass) so the updates have been slower. I foresee them picking up sometime soon. Thanks for reading. I appreciate it.
rabid behemoth: Wow, that was a lot of reviews. I don't know if you caught up yet, but when you do get to read this, thank you for reading. I'm glad you loved it up until chapter 15 at least. No, I have never played FFVII. I've watched Advent Children and read little things about Cloud on FF fansites and that's about it. I do have my hands on a copy of FFVII now, though, so I just need to wait for the memory card to come in the mail and I'm good to go. I must say thought that now that you're nervous about the Sephiroth characterization, so am I. Oh, dear.
Thanks to everyone for reading and/or reviewing.
While you're waiting for more 100 Steps, check out my shorts, which are piling up as we speak. I do apologize for working on them when I could be working on this, but I get the ideas in my head and have to write them before I lose them. I'd be terribly disappointed if they didn't get out there, so . . . yeah. Can't have 100 Steps hindered while I'm thinking about something else, either. The sooner I write my little side ideas the sooner my head clears to come back to this story.
I have a busy weekend coming up again, but I should get some more of this out tomorrow or Sunday. There will also be a short coming in the next two days because it popped into my head while driving to Sheetz and won't leave me alone.
Long live Cloud/Riku.
Feel free to click the review button. It won't bite. Promise.