Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, its characters or storyline. This collection is mine, as are McCallister and Jake. These prompts are awesome, guys. Please keep them coming! They seem to be getting more challenging, and I love it! Enjoy.
..:-X-:..
107 – Then Somebody Bends
For raiko. EXE
Leon had seen these identical construction plans more times than he cared for in the past few years. Ever since Radiant Garden had been restored, the Heartless had always targeted the Bailey, tearing it apart. The Restoration Committee would rebuild it. The Heartless would tear it down again.
Tifa was sitting on the floor of the Bailey, looking at the plans thoughtfully. The temperature had dropped into the almost-snowing range since they'd been sitting out here, but if her bare arms were cold, she gave no indication.
"Maybe if we reinforce these columns." She was saying, pointing at the blueprints. "Then maybe an attack from this side," She swept her fingers around the edge of the drawing, "would spread the damage across the wall instead of taking a direct hit."
"Tried it." Leon said, looking at the plans that Tifa had spread across the floor; to look at it all at once at the scene of the crime, she'd said.
"Well…What about adding more support to the ceiling? I think the weight might be weakening the walls." Tifa pointed to another section. "It might be sturdier if we tried—"
"Tried it." He said. "There's always a weak spot and the Heartless always find it."
"Well then why bother!" Tifa abruptly stood up, running her hands through her hair in frustration.
He understood her exasperation. After so many years of rebuilding only to watch the Heartless, and now Nobodies, damage the Bailey, he was numb to the anger…mostly. He was used to the flood of frustration at the vicious cycle. Tifa was not. She marched away from the scattered papers and walked to the wall of the Bailey, overlooking the Great Maw.
With a sigh, Leon straightened. "Because it's home."
She stood with her arms folded, back turned to him, and he couldn't see her face, but he could tell she was frowning. "I know. I just wish…" She hung her head.
This was usually the part in the movie where the guy said something reassuring, brushed the tears from the fair lady's eyes, and hugged her or something.
"Yeah." He grunted.
Your eloquence is astounding, dumbass. He frowned.
Okay…so the whole reassuring thing was…not happening. Plus, Tifa didn't cry, at least not over something like this…not that he would 'brush away the tears'. That was stupid. But surely even HE could manage a hug…surely.
"So I guess you've rebuilt this place enough times to do it with your eyes closed?" She was saying, sounding slightly bitter.
Considering her mood, he didn't take her seriously on that one. As if thinking the same thing, she sighed, "I'm sorry. I'm just—"
"Yeah." Again, master of words.
Giving his head a short shake, he walked over to stand just behind her, gazing out at the Great Maw. Crawling with Heartless and Nobodies held at bay by the Security System. Feeling awkward but not knowing how else to help her mood, he moved his arms around Tifa, hugging her from behind before he could talk himself out of it.
She immediately straightened up, arms still folded, if now covered by his sleeved ones. She had been shivering, he now noticed, though as soon as the hug started, she forced the trembles of cold to stop. Okay…great…he was hugging her…now what?
This felt…incredibly awkward…but not uncomfortable. Leon generally avoided physical contact with people. They tended to get clingy once that barrier was breached. This was…different. Her dark haired head was just a few inches from his face. He started to wonder what would happen if maybe he—
Tifa was shaking again…with laughter this time.
"What?" He found himself asking.
"I'm sorry." She cackled, "It's…you're hugging me."
"Oh forget it." He leaned away.
"No, no, no." She giggled, pulling his arms back around her. "I won't laugh anymore. I promise. I'm sorry." One of her hands patted his and lingered there after.
She seemed to have lightened up a little at least…even if it was at his expense.
"Thanks." She said through a stifled laugh, though not moving away.
Maybe he could do the whole reassurance thing after all.
"Yeah."
The eloquence thing, he'd have to work on.
..:-X-:..
108 – Battle of the Sexes
XxOoSolanaSkylarXxOo
"Man came first." Jake Alms, self described ladies' man, argued.
Tabaeus McCallister rolled her eyes, "Rough draft. Woman: masterpiece."
"How do you figure?" Jake looked at her lazily, sitting across from her in the break room of the Allied Headquarters in Radiant Garden.
Tabaeus sighed, "Look at the Brigadier General Lockhart."
"I do…as much as possible." Jake gave a shit-eating grin.
As if on cue, Tifa walked into the break room. She gave them the obligatory nod and went to the kitchen area to fix herself a coffee.
"She's a strong, willful, smart, beautiful woman...who could snap your neck like a chicken wing if she wanted." McCallister tutted.
Oblivious to their conversation, or more likely ignoring them, Tifa spared them a look as she started the coffee maker, stifling a yawn. "McCallister, did those potions come in?"
"Yes, ma'am." The private responded.
"Oh yeah?" Jake said complacently. "Well, look at Leon."
Tabaeus saw Tifa's eyebrow lift slightly. "What about him?" The private asked.
Tifa leaned against the counter, "He's NOT a beautiful woman."
Jake groaned, turning to look at her. "I know that!" When Tifa's other eyebrow went up, he continued. "I was just explaining to our dear little Tabby-cat here—"
"I will cut your fingers off." Tabaeus grumbled at the idiotic nickname.
"—how Leon is a headstrong, decision-making, authoritative guy who kicks some serious ass with that gunblade of his." Jake finished with a grin.
The coffee machine beeped and Tifa poured herself a mug. "So…you have a man-crush or something?"
"What? No!" Jake smacked the table top. "I'm just pointing out men's superiorities to women."
On another freakish cue, Leon slipped into the other door of the break room, tugging out another cup for his own coffee. Tifa shifted aside to let him at the coffee machine, nursing her own mug.
"Speak of the devil," Jake chortled, "Leon, what do you think?"
"Who let you in, Alms?" Leon said flatly, pouring a cup of coffee for himself.
Jake deflated slightly and Tabaeus stuck her tongue out at him.
"Men versus women. Who wins?" Jake bounced back.
Leon eyed Jake, then Tabaeus, to Tifa, and took a drink. "I don't understand the question."
Jake spun in his seat to face Leon completely. "Who's better?"
Leon's expression didn't change. "You really want to bark up that tree, Alms?"
Tifa snorted, "There is no 'better'."
Leon nodded in agreement. "Invalid argument."
Jake balked. "What?"
"Everybody has strengths and weaknesses." Tifa shrugged. "Women as well as men. You just have to show respect to the opposite sex. Maybe then, when your hide is on the line, a woman will remember how you held the door for her and save you, instead of remembering how you ogled her chest and leaves you out to dry."
Tabaeus looked smug. "It takes two to make babies."
She shrugged, "Well, there's that too."
Jake glared at her, "Oh shut it."
Tifa left the break room with her coffee. Tabaeus shook her head. "Did you ogle?"
Jake turned wide eyes at her. "It's out of my control, woman! God just blessed her with an amazing set of—"
Hot coffee splashed down Jake's neck as Leon 'accidentally' dropped it on his way out of the break room. Tabaeus snorted with laughter as Jake swore, the hot liquid seeping down his back.
..:-X-:..
109 – Sharp Dressed…Man?
For justagirl8225
Tifa poked her fingers against Leon's back. "Gimme your money, punk." She said, in the gruff, low voice that she'd been using for the past three hours. It was starting to hurt her throat.
Leon looked back, saw her, glanced past her, and back to Tifa. "Well?"
Tifa followed his gaze toward the club, shifting the uncomfortable layers that covered her. "Not here."
"Randy?" A blond girl waved. "Randy! It's me, Starla! Where'd you go?"
"Go, go, go!" Tifa pushed Leon ahead of her. "Get me outta here!" She hissed.
The heavy men's clothing was cumbersome as she followed Leon around the corner. For three hours, she had been undercover in the secret gentleman's club that had formed downtown. The scar on Leon's face was too recognizable and too difficult to cover up, so Tifa had finally just opted to go undercover…as a man named Randy…Because there was no way in Hell she was dressing like the women who worked there. She still couldn't figure out if Leon had been pretending to be disappointed or not.
As she turned the corner, she momentarily thought Leon had disappeared into thin air. But then his arm shot out, hooking around her middle and reeling her into the box against the alley wall. A photo booth of all things. He quickly pulled the curtain.
"Did they figure out who you were?" He asked.
Tifa had lost her balance and landed across his lap, the horn rimmed glasses on her face going skelter across her nose. "No, but—" She pulled the hat off her head, untucking her hair from the knot at her crown, "They sure got…clingy." She shuddered.
There was a flash and both of them blinked, looking at the front of the booth.
Leon shook his head, "What does that mean?" He squinted, "Is that lip stick on your neck?"
"Shut up." She pushed his hand away from her neck, climbing off of him and sitting beside him instead on the small bench. "The guy we were after wasn't there. I just spent three hours being mauled for no reason." She shuddered again.
Leon regarded her with a flat look. "Mauled?"
"Yes. Guh, loony women in there—" Tifa shrugged out of the blazer she'd been wearing, reaching up the bottom of her shirt and loosening the bandaging that had flattened her chest enough to pass as a man. "I felt like a piece of meat."
The camera flashed again.
"Did they know you were undercover?" He asked, helping her pull the jacket off in the close quarters.
"I almost wish. Then they would have at least left me alone." She huffed.
Leon's eyes widened ever so slightly. "They were…" He choked back a snort. "They were hitting on you?"
"Apparently I make a good sharp dressed man." Tifa said, scrubbing the make-up stubble off her jaw…and the lip stick as well. "But I got the names of a few other Heartless-empathizers, so at least it wasn't a total waste."
"And they…tried to…make out with you?" Leon gestured to the lip stick again.
Another camera flash.
Tifa glared, " 'Tried' being the operative word. I got OUT of there as soon as they offered lap dances."
And Leon's mind was gone.
Tifa groaned and snapped her fingers in front of his face. "Get your head out of the gutter. Nothing happened, you freak." She loosened the binding some more so she could breathe. "I tricked them into playing Hide and Seek so I could escape."
"So…Starla is one of your admirers now, huh, 'Randy'?" Leon smirked like he was enjoying this torture very much.
Tifa punched him in the chest as the camera flashed again. "I'm going home."
"I hope you at least tipped them well." He teased.
"Go to Hell." She growled, climbing out of the booth.
The camera flashed a final time and the little tape of photos printed out in the tray. Tifa snatched them up, absently glancing down the pictures as she stalked off. She heard Leon about to explode from laughter inside, and even as she started grinning despite it all, she pocketed the pictures.
"Yeah, well, if we ever have to sneak into a strip club, you're going in as a new up-and-comer named Candy!" She teased back.
And that effectively shut him up.
..:-X-:..
A/N 107: Title taken from the lyrics of Beauty and the Beast.
A/N 109: Title taken from the ZZ Top song, and play on words.