Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, its characters or storyline. These ditties are mine, as are Duke and McCallister. Enjoy!

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088 – Maintenance

Drawing a deep, bracing breath, Tifa depressed the nozzle on the hose, sending a jet of clear water over the rusted black hide of the motorcycle. Fenrir had been stewing in her own juices since being moved to the storage facility. It was shameful, really; Cloud would have killed Tifa if he knew…

She bit her lip hard as she hosed the bike down, blinking the tears back furiously as she soaked the sponge in the bucket of soapy water. She was armed with soap, wax, oil, and every kind of primer and shiner on the planet to make up for the neglect of the past several months.

Once upon a time, this machine had been Cloud's prized possession, his baby, his jewel. Now the mighty Fenrir was reduced to a keepsake, an ornament of emotional pain and memories. And now, with soap, Tifa was going to erase the last of his fingerprints from the dials and handlebars.

It almost made her sick to her stomach, but it was time. Today was the day she took that first step forward on her own. Steeling herself, she placed the sponge against the ebony hull and started scrubbing at the dust and the grime that had settled over it.

Three hours later, she hosed it off a final time, having taken a painstaking amount of time to make sure she cleaned it properly and thoroughly. The sunlight from the open door was dancing over the wet, black surface, and the polish made the wheel rims really pop. All of his fingerprints were gone and that was terrifying. She could never bring that evidence of his existence back…but the bike was still here.

And Fenrir really was a beautiful piece of machinery.

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089 – It Happens

"There were no cleaning supplies or substances lying around that she could have gotten into." Leon rambled. "Except the oil I use on my weapons, but she knows better than to get into that."

The veterinarian lifted a hand. "Sir, this could have been caused by any number of things. Is your animal up to date on all of her immunizations and vaccinations?"

"What? Yes, yes, of course." He answered impatiently.

"Has she had any contact with another animal that could have been infected with something?"

"No…Wait, you think she has some disease? Rabies?" He stammered.

"We're not jumping to conclusions, sir. Please—"

A bark from the back room snapped Leon's attention away. "What are you doing back there? Is she okay? What are you doing to her?"

"We are running a few standard tests, but it looks like she did this herself."

"My dog is not freaking bulimic." He rolled his eyes.

"No, actually dogs will eat things like grass to make themselves throw up. It's a natural process they use to get rid of something they've eaten before digestion or for some other reason." The vet exchanged a look with the lab assistant, who nodded.

"What does that mean?" He pointed to the assistant. "Is that code for terminal?"

"Your animal is fine, sir." The vet assured. "Just like people, sometimes dogs just get an upset stomach. You can take her home any time."

Nerves still lit, he collected Duke and found her in better spirits than an hour ago, when she'd gotten sick all over the sidewalk. Embarrassed at how relieved he was, he scratched behind her ear.

"You're gross, you know that?" He said.

Her ears perked at his voice and she licked his hand, looking eager to get out of the vet's office.

Leon shared that sentiment and walked her back to the apartment.

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090 - Wedding Part Three

"So…" Tifa started, feeling awkward.

"So…" Andrea mimicked. "Leon seems…nice."

"Oh," Tifa rubbed the back of her neck. "Yeah, he's…a piece of work."

"How long have you two been together?"

"Uh…about six months now." Technically sharing an apartment fit the broad definition of 'together'. She wasn't technically lying.

Tifa and Andrea stood apart from the main ballroom where the wedding reception was dancing and drinking and odd combinations of both. Tifa could barely see Leon, sitting where she'd left him and looking less than enthused about it. Just seeing him helped her relax a little.

"I'm glad you came." Andrea said. "I was afraid…The way we left things…"

"Right." Tifa fidgeted. "No way was I missing this. I'm glad you invited me."

"You're looking better."

"Thanks."

"It's almost been a whole year since…" Andrea trailed off.

"Since Cloud died, you can say it." Tifa said quietly.

"Well, yeah, but after last time…"

"Last time was a week after his death." Tifa tried to be gentle.

"You nearly jumped down my throat about it." Andrea looked defensive.

Oh, this was going downhill fast.

Tifa tried to recover the situation. "He was my best friend and he had just died—"

"You wanted a lot more than friendship from him."

Ah, there it was…the inevitable bitchiness was creeping back into Andrea's eyes.

"Andrea, that's not the point."

"That's exactly the point. You were too chicken to make a move on him, and when I did, you acted like I had betrayed you."

"You knew how I felt."

"But you never did anything about it. You must not have felt too strongly if—"

"If what?"

"If you moved on to another guy so quickly." Andrea said sharply. "Cloud died a year ago and six months later you're shacking up with Plan B?"

"I'm not 'shacking up'." Tifa shot back. "And Leon is not Plan B. You just got married to a man you barely know. You met Richard five months ago."

"With true love, you just know." Andrea said pompously.

"So what are you saying? Tell me to my face, Andrea." Tifa said, fists clenching at her sides.

"I'm just saying maybe there's a reason you have bad luck with love." Andrea spat.

Tifa's blood went cold. "What?"

"You loved Cloud. He wanted that Aerith chick. He dies, so you move on. Are you telling me this Leon guy doesn't have any unfinished romantic business?"

Tifa's hesitation was enough.

"You never knew how to pick your battles." Andrea said, "We all see it. Why can't you?"

And with that, Andrea left to return to her party, leaving Tifa stunned and confused in the empty hallway. So much for 'making nice'.

"No." Tifa took a step forward and grasped Andrea's arm just enough to make her stop. "You do not get to walk away in a self-righteous huff this time, Andrea."

(…to be continued…)

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A/N 90: Hm, a bit of a cliffhanger. Bwahaha-ack-cough, cough.