Cloud stood still in the center of the living room, utterly confounded by what had just happened. What was that about "catching him under the mistletoe"?

Then it dawned on him.

Of course. That tradition. He'd been so deep in thought worrying about Aerith's reaction that Yuffie's shenanigans had caught him completely off guard. Still... to him, it was just another dumb Christmas convention. He had never been one for holiday cheer, so none of it meant much of anything to him. Yuffie, on the other hand, seemed strangely upset about the whole thing. There had to be some underlying cause, he figured. She could be hotheaded sometimes, sure, but it wasn't like her to blow up like this for no reason.

Their little scene had made him the unwilling center of attention. As such, Cloud decided that he ought to check up on her and see what was the matter. He did his best to ignore the curious looks from the rest of the party as he headed outside to defuse the situation.

He stepped out into the bracing cold, determined to find out where Yuffie had disappeared off to. He quickly canvassed the streets outside the bar, but found no trace of her. He was about to wander off further down the road when he heard her voice coming from overhead.

"Up here."

Cloud looked up to see Yuffie sitting at the edge of the rooftop, wearing an unusually sullen expression on her face. He darted up the fire escape before she had a chance to vanish again. She sat facing away from him, idly kicking her feet while doing her best to ignore him. The cold didn't seem to bother her, though that might just be stubbornness on her part.

"Yuffie, what was that?" Cloud asked.

"I told you," Yuffie replied. "I was just trying to get a kiss underneath the mistletoe. And you pushed me away."

Cloud looked at her askance, crossing his arms. "You were trying for a little more than that, I'd say."

Yuffie shrugged. "Okay, so?"

"So you can't just do things like that out of the blue," Cloud said. "You know Aerith and I are..."

"I know. I know," Yuffie replied. "You're basically soulmates. Everyone can see that from a mile away." She paused, sighing. "I'm not trying to be a homewrecker."

"Then... wh-"

"It's just..." she interrupted him, then stopped, as if struggling to dredge up the right words. "Do you..."

She paused again, then shook her head, frowning. "No, this is stupid..."

Cloud sat down next to her, his expression shifting to one of concern for his friend. "What is it?" he asked in a gentler tone of voice.

Yuffie looked off into the distance again, avoiding his gaze, her usual, mischievous energy giving way to a strangely quiet, contemplative demeanor.

"Do you think you could ever fall for someone like me? If things were different? Like, in another lifetime, maybe?"

Cloud contemplated his response for a moment, then let out a slight chuckle, shaking his head. "Yuffie... you're such a brat. And an incurable kleptomaniac. And kind of a pain in the neck..."

Yuffie frowned. This was not exactly the pep talk she'd been hoping for.

"... and somehow, in spite of all that, you're still adorable as hell," he added, regarding her with a warm smile. "Of course I'd fall for you."

A smile crossed her features for a second, as well. She turned away again, doing her best to hide an oncoming blush. "You're just saying that."

"I'm not," Cloud said. "You're something else, Yuffie. If you'd been a few years older when we first met... who knows? It could've been you and me."

Yuffie looked back at Cloud, her eyes lighting up. "Really? You mean it?!"

He gave a quick nod before she tackled him to the ground, hugging him tightly and peppering his face with kisses. Cloud chuckled, gently pushing the excitable ninja girl away, breaking off the hug before it went on for too long. "Easy, easy..."

Yuffie giggled. "Yeah, sorry. Don't want Aerith getting the wrong idea."

"The wrong idea about what?" Aerith's voice came from below. Curious, she glanced up at the pair, the tiniest "Oh..." escaping her lips as she spotted them in their compromising position.