Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction / Kingdom Hearts Fan Fiction ❯ Jenova's Children ❯ Exodus ( Chapter 13 )

Jenova's Children

By Kawaii and Junsui

 

Chapter 13

Exodus

 

The aerate sunlight had never bore down on Riku's sensitive eyelids with such pounding, brutal force that it caused him to see throbbing scarlet even when his eyes were screwed tightly shut. His head pounded in tempo with the sun and Riku flopped over to bury his face in something soft and warm. There was a distinct mumble from above him and strong arms wrapped around him, pulling him near.

`Wait…' Riku thought slowly, `WHAT?!'

The silver-tressed teen shot up so suddenly that it caused his head to spin and he fell back down on Kadaj's chest. His elder brother grunted and jumped awake.

“Wuzgoinon?” Kadaj looked around sleepily, silver hair spilling messily over his cat-like eyes as he blinked and spotted Riku, whom looked like a deer caught in the headlights, “Oh, Otouto, you're awake.”

“What-?” Riku grasped his aching head, shying away from the sunlight that streamed in from the window, “What happened?”

“You got drunk and passed out on me.” Kadaj explained nonchalantly, shrugging Riku off of him before he climbed out of bed, attempting to smooth the wrinkles in his black t-shirt, “You probably got one bitch of a hangover there; I'll get you some water.” Riku buried his face into a soft pillow and nodded as Kadaj left the room, immersing himself in the silence as his headache slightly began to fade, and then-

“WAKIE WAKIE TIME, RIKU!” The bed suddenly shifted as the shrill voice floated into Riku's ears, his headache becoming a stabbing pain, “The sun is shining, the birds are singing, and we're starting our great migration to Nebelheim to find your Okaa-San!”

“Nee-san…” Riku growled, his eyes dark slits that glared out from behind silver tresses that shaded the upper half of his face dangerously, “I swear to God, I am going to kill you one of these days.”

“Awe, but don't you love me, Riku?” The short-tressed young woman quipped innocently, laying down on the bed beside Riku and cuddling up to him affectionately.

“No.” He grunted, and embedded his face in his pillow once more. The ninja huffed, climbed onto the floor and grabbed Riku's legs, yanking him off of the bed in one fluid motion. Riku fell onto the floor with a loud THUD, and his pounding head was suddenly forgotten as he snarled and pounced on Yuffie, pinning her to the floor, “Go fuck yourself.” He growled, put quite out of character by his pure anger.

“But that's Vinnie's job!” The dark-tressed girl beamed, and Riku blanched, opening his mouth to say `TMI', but he never got there, having been cut off by someone clearing their throat.

“I'm glad you still feel that way, Yuffie.” Vincent said calmly, though he obviously knew nothing was going on by the way his garnet orbs seemed to smirk at the two. Riku blinked and realized the suggestive position he had put the ninja in, sputtering loudly.

“I- she- we-!” He struggled to find words as the small woman slipped out from under him and plodded up to Vincent, throwing her arms around him.

“Awe, Vinnie! You know I love you!” She cooed, nuzzling into his cheek affectionately; Vincent nodded and directed his attention towards Riku.

“Are you feeling well?” He inquired, noting the teen's rumpled clothing from the night before.

Riku's head hit the hardwood floor as he curled up into the fetal position, “Make the sun go away…” He moaned childishly.

“I'll take that as a no.” Vincent sighed, raising his human hand to rub his temple.

“Riku has a H-A-N-G-O-V-E-R! Hangover, hangover!” Yuffie teased, leaping about the room merrily. The silver-tressed teen raised a middle finger in reply as Kadaj pushed past Vincent into the room with a glass of water and a handful of Vitamin B.

“Sit up.” He directed firmly, sitting down onto the floor next to his younger brother, promptly rolling him over, propping him up, and popping the vitamins into Riku's mouth before the younger teen could realize what was going on. “Drink.” Kadaj pressed the glass of water to Riku's mouth and he gratefully chugged several gulps, never realizing how thirsty he'd been before.

“Wow, you take orders well!” Yuffie commented, plopping down next to the two brothers, “Any girl whose pants you get into is gonna be luck-y!”

Riku spat water everywhere. Vincent chuckled and stalked off.

 

 

High in the rafters of the church in Midgar that lay in ruins, an ebony wing stretched out, trembled, and fell limp, folding neatly behind the dark figure it belonged to. Sephiroth smirked lightly, his cat-like orbs flitting about the area where the church had once stood tall and proud and coming to rest on the pink-clothed figure at the edge of the water.

Green irises slowly rose to meet his that were a cold sea of cobalt blue and green; she gave him a disapproving look, her brow knitting in anger.

“You're not welcome here.” She said firmly, entwining her fingers before her and placing them before her knees.

“I do as I please, little girl.” Sephiroth stated as he leapt from the rafters and landed gracefully on the floor, reaching out to caress the cheek of the spirit girl. Aerith pushed his hand away, disgusted.

“Leave this place.” She whispered coldly, her emerald orbs narrowed into slits, “You've done enough damage here already, can't you see that?”

“As I said, little girl, I do as I please.” The silver-tressed man leered at the brunette, “And I'm not finished here, I doubt I never shall be. You'll be hearing more from me, little girl. For my presence shall remain and this reprieve shall not be eternal.” And with that, he evanesced into dark smoke, a single obsidian feather fluttering slowly to the ground.

Aerith's emerald orbs misted slightly with worry as she chewed on her lower lip.

“Please, Riku…” She whispered to herself, “We're all counting on you…”
And with that, she became thousands of beautiful green beads of water, which soared gracefully into the nearby body of water, settling briefly.

 

 

“Are you sure you have everything you need?” Barret inquired, hoisting Yuffie up onto the back of Sabbath. The chocobo clicked softly and ruffed its wings, tossing its head as if to wake itself up. Yuffie cradled a cup of hot cocoa to her chest, pulling Vincent's cape tighter around her to protect her from the early morning chill, whilst Riku raised the collar of his brown trench coat, burying his pounding head into October's pale blue feathers, Cait Sith attempting to warm himself up, stored neatly in one of the coat's large pockets. Nearby, Kadaj sat upon his neon chocobo and shivered jealously.

“Yes.” Vincent nodded; looking oddly different without his cape, Riku would've wondered if he was cold if it wasn't for the heavy, black body amour that he wore underneath, “Cloud and Tifa expect you back in Edge shortly- they adore Marlene, but seeing as you are her father, and you have been promising to return shortly for the past several months-“

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” The dark man grumbled, waving away the worries with a silver hand, “As long as Marlene's happy, then I'm happy. Y'all enjoy your trip, hear that?”

“Thank you so much for your hospitality, Sir.” Riku said, his voice weak with a slight groan to it. He addressed Barret so formally, as he was still deathly frightened of him, “It means a lot to us.”

“You're all very welcome.” The man folded his arms over his chest, beaming at the small group- until his eyes came to rest on Kadaj, who had his arms wrapped tightly around him and was shivering violently, “Accept for you.” Barret scowled.

Kadaj muttered something along the lines of “Fuck You”, but his teeth were chattering too violently for him to be understood properly.

“I suppose we should be- Yuffie, what are you doing?” Vincent cut of in mid-sentence, turning gracefully towards his fiancé, whom was reaching around the neck of her chocobo, attempting to press the hot chocolate to its beak.

“What?” The dark-haired ninja blinked innocently, “It looked hungry!”

“You're not supposed to feed a chocobo hot chocolate, Yuffie…” Vincent grumbled, warming his temple with his human hand, “It could get sick.”

“But it was like those cute little eyes were saying: `Give me food, Yuffie! Don't you love me?'!” Yuffie cooed in a mock baby-voice. Riku caught Vincent's right eye briefly twitch.

“We should be going.” Riku interjected quickly, “Once again, thank you.”

“Ya'll be careful!” Barret cried after the quartet as they began their southern trek, “Accept for you, I hope you die!” He snarled, pointing a threatening silver finger towards Kadaj.

 

 

The day's journey was uneventful, consisting of Yuffie chattering about something-or-another she'd seen on TV, Kadaj complaining loudly about his lack of a coat, and Riku telling them all to shut up as he clutched desperately at his pounding head whilst Vincent lead the way.

And when the silver-tressed teen woke up the next morning, cocooned in a blue sleeping bag settled below a large tree, his head no longer pounding, crisp, scarlet leaves kissed with morning dew fluttering down onto him, he supposed that it would be a much better day.

That is, until he heard a horrified scream and Kadaj came sprinting back to their campsite, dressed in only a pair of jeans, wielding a toothbrush, “JESUS CHRIST!” He howled, dodging behind a tree. Riku sat up, discombobulated and slightly frustrated that he hadn't been able to enjoying the crisp fall air. He was about to yell at Kadaj for disturbing his peaceful awakening, but was interrupted by a strangled, slurred noise as a bizarre, black creature slightly reminiscent of a chocobo walked, pigeon-toed and waddle stepping towards them.

“What the hell is THAT?!” Riku yelled, summoning his Keyblade in a lucid streak as he scrambled from his sleeping bag.

“I. DON'T. KNOW.” Kadaj cried, looking absolutely horrified, “I was digging through my pack and I thought I heard Yuffie screaming, so I followed the noise and THIS thing, jumps out at me!”
“Do you think it hurt Yuffie?!” Riku gasped, his cat-like orbs going wide with fear, his pupils, freshly hit with sunlight, shrunk to dark slits, he braced the Keyblade, his eyes narrowed in anger. The strange creature started towards them, its dark eyes lolling around in its head, black feathers dropping from its body as a steady stream of foam coursed from its mouth.

“What's going on?” A dark voice inquired as Vincent walked through a small thicket towards them, adjusting the clips on the neck of his cloak.

“IT KILLED YUFFIE!” Kadaj screamed, pointing an accusatory toothbrush towards the creature as it twitched and writhed in place. Vincent glanced towards the creature, raising a suspicious eyebrow before he glided over towards it and studied it carefully.

“Yuffie!” He shouted softly as said ninja tripped through the thicket, hopping in place as she pulled on a boot.

“Geez, not everyone can get dressed at the speed of light, yanno!” The dark-tressed young woman grunted grumpily, running a single hand through her obsidian tresses in order to fix them, “Yea, what's up?”
“What did you do to Sabbath?” Vincent inquired, gesturing towards the creature.

“THAT'S SABBATH?!” Riku and Kadaj cried in unison, both looking perplexed by the fact that a creature so majestic and elegant not twelve hours prior was now a bizarre, twitchy… thing.

“I didn't do anything!” Yuffie cried defensively, placing a hand on her chest in anger, “I fed him, just like you told me to!”

Vincent narrowed his garnet orbs suspiciously, “What did you feed him, Yuffie?” He inquired. The ninja glanced away with shifty, brown irises and muttered something under her breath, “Yuffie.” The red-clothed man said impatiently. Yuffie huffed angrily and stomped her foot.

“Some Doritos, Corn Nuts, Snacky S'mores, Cheesy Poofs, Diet Coke, Mentos, Mountain Dew, an un-microwaved microwave bean burrito, trail mix, and whatever that stuff at the bottom of the duffle bag was.” She numbered off quickly. Vincent looked ready to run his head into a tree; the ninja sighed and walked over to the chocobo, throwing a single arm around it.

“KRAW!” The black beast cried, as opposed to the normal `Wark' a chocobo would say.

“But doesn't Steven look so much happier?” The dark-tressed girl inquired.

“You made it DISLEXIC, Yuffie.” Vincent placed his hand on his face, slowly pulling it down his pale features.

“Steven?” Kadaj inquired, raising a silver eyebrow.

“Yup, yup, yup!” Yuffie nodded with a sunny grin, “I think it's a lot better than `Sabbath', don't you think?”

“Well, it suits him a lot better.” Riku chuckled nervously as Steven the chocobo attempted to lick a stone laying on the ground.

“Wait.” Riku shook his head, turning to Yuffie, “If it didn't attack you, then why were you screaming?”

Some things are just better left unsaid.

 

 

“Hold still, Marlene.” Tifa instructed, pulling the ceramic flat iron through the young girl's brunette tresses, “I'm almost finished.”
Marlene squirmed in anticipation, fidgeting uncontrollably, “When do I get to see, Tifa?” She inquired impatiently.

“In a minute.' The woman smiled softly, lightly patting the girl on the head. She grasped the last piece of unstraightened hair and slid the iron over it, “You can look now.”

Marlene leapt from the seat, spinning around to marvel at her newly straightened tresses in the mirror that she'd had her back to. “Oh, wow!” She gasped breathlessly, “I look just like you, Tifa! You're the best mom ever!”

Tifa blushed sheepishly as she unplugged the iron, not used to being referred to as a mother by the younger girl, “Thanks.” She giggled nervously as the girl bounced in place and tore out of the bathroom, sprinting down the hall and descending the stairs in rapid leaps, “Be careful!” Tifa called after her, but Marlene ignored her, skidding to a stop in the bar, where Loz and Yazoo were attempting to haul a massive box into storage.

“LOZ-NII! YAZOO-NEE!” Marlene cried happily. Loz perked up at her voice, dropping the box onto Yazoo's foot. The man with the longer tresses yowled in pain, sliding his foot out from under the box and hopping in place as he cradled his crushed toes in his hands. Loz dropped down onto one knee, getting down to eye-level with the young girl. Marlene sprinted towards him, pirouetting to a stop before him, “Look at me, Loz-Nii!” The brunette flipped her hair, “This is how Tifa's going to do my hair when I go as her for Halloween!”

“That's awesome!” Loz beamed, patting her on the head, not wanting to muss her freshly straightened hair.

“Yeah, awesome.” Yazoo grunted sarcastically, glaring at his brother, “I think I fractured my… everything in my foot.”

“Marlene, when are you going to get over Halloween?” Denzel inquired from where he was sipping a can of soda at the bar, “You're such a dork.”

Marlene stomped her foot and pouted angrily, “I am NOT a dork. Take this: BEAT RUSH!” The girl promptly charged her surrogate elder brother

“Marlene, what are you- OW!” Denzel began, cut off by his sister with a violent series of punches, “Quit it- OW! Marlene- OW, OWWWW!” When the brunette girl didn't stop, Denzel seized a broom lying on the ground and held it out towards the girl.

“Fine then! You know what? BRAVER!” He raised the broom over his head, lightly bopping Marlene on the head.

“Hey, quit fighting!” Yazoo yelled at the two as he landed on a barstool, still cradling his injured foot.

“Yea! Left hook, Marlene! Rope-a-dope, kiddo!” Loz cheered on the girl, punching a fist into the air.

Meanwhile, Tifa watched from the stairway, turning her head when Cloud rested a gentle hand on her shoulder, “Hey.” She beamed gently, briefly pecking him on the cheek.

“Hey.” Cloud calmly said, wiping the sleep out of his eyes with the palm of his hand, “What's going on?”

Tifa gestured towards the quartet down in the bar, where Denzel was attempting to re-create Omni-Slash using the broom and Marlene was using a lemon as a `Thunder Materia', all while Loz cheered her on and Yazoo complained loudly. Cloud chuckled lightly at the scene, folding his arms and leaning against the wall.

“Cloud…” Tifa mused softly, bringing a single finger up to touch her chin, “Do you think it's a good idea to let the kids get close to them?”

The towhead shrugged as he watched Marlene hit Denzel in the head with the lemon, “I think if they meant any harm, we would know by now.”

“But is it wise to put our trust in them?” Tifa inquired, her brow knitting with worry.

“You never really trust someone until they prove their trust to you.” Cloud said sagely, his dewy blue eyes closed calmly, “But as long as its relatively peaceful here, I don't think we have a problem.”

“That's another thing.” Tifa said softly, tensing her body as her auburn orbs began to sparkle nervously, “This peace… it feels heavy… its almost unsettling how peaceful it is… like the calm before the storm.”

Cloud opened his eyes, a frown making its way onto his face as he narrowed his eyes, “I agree.” He nodded, “But for now, I guess we just shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.”

“I suppose your right.” Tifa sighed, starting, as there was a strangled cry from downstairs.

“YAY! Duh duh duh dun dut duh duh-duh-dunnnnnnnn!” Marlene cheered from downstairs as Tifa clambered down the stairs. Loz picked the girl up and placed her on his shoulders as he ran a victory lap around the bar.

“Denzel!” The young woman cried as she dropped to her surrogate son's side. The brunette was gasping for air, his knees squeezed tightly together. Tifa's brown orbs snapped to Marlene, “Marlene! Why did you kick Denzel there?!”
“Tifa, you said it yourself!” The brunette girl cried from atop Loz's shoulders, “It's the fastest way to take any man down!”

Tifa's palm met her face.

 

 

“It's a free country! I can carry the stupid cat if I want to!”

“Convicts don't get the same privileges as us good-doers!”

“What the fuck are you talking about?! From what I've heard, you're a dirty little thief!”

“LIES! ALL LIES I TELL YOU!” Riku's eye involuntarily twitched as he placed his pack on the back of October; the blue chocobo ruffled his feathers from its neck down and then lifted a single wing to groom at the soft plumage underneath. Yuffie and Kadaj had been at it ever since they had woken up. Since Yuffie had been carrying Cait Sith around for the past several days, Kadaj was beginning to get jealous, seeing as he was a secret animal lover, and from what Riku could tell, loved cats the most out of any animal.

“Fine then! We'll play Jan-Ken-Pon to decide who gets to carry him!” Yuffie cried, pointing a finger towards the black and white feline, whom was watching the fight from Vincent's shoulder, both of them displaying very amused expressions.

“What?!” Kadaj shook his head, silver hair flying around it wildly for several seconds, “That's Gay! I'm not playing some fucking game! I get to hold the cat and that's final.”

“Does that mean you're giving up?” Yuffie grinned like a Cheshire cat, her chocolate-colored orbs lighting up with mischief. Kadaj sputtered indignantly, growling in anger, “Oh, I knew you'd be afraid. Because not only am I a master ninja, I'm also a master at Jan-Ken-Pon! Not even you would be brave enough to stand up to me!” Yuffie placed her hands on her hips and threw back her head in an egotistical laugh.

“You wanna play, bitch?” Kadaj snarled, his eyes flashing with competition, “Then let's play!”
“Oh?” Yuffie turned around to face him, cocking an eyebrow, “Fine then. Ready? JAN!”

“KEN!” Yelled the silver-tressed teen.

“PON!” They screamed in unison, throwing their hands out at each other.

“Paper covers rock.” Riku commented from the sidelines as he hopped onto his chocobo.

“Kadaj wins.” Vincent said matter-of-factly, striding towards Steven, whom was running around in circles, screaming his reversed cry. He sighed sadly, and turned back to Kadaj, whom was holding a content Cait Sith to his chest, bragging loudly to Yuffie, who had her back turned to him, an obvious pout on her face.

“Pride is a sin, you know.” They dark-tressed man informed Kadaj calmly. The teen gave a single, bark-like laugh and turned to Vincent, his blue-green orbs still shining with victory.

“Heh. See if I care.” He shrugged. Vincent blinked his garnet orbs quietly and then turned to his chocobo. Steven was now running full-speed towards a tree, ramming his head into it.

“You said you wanted Sabbath.” The scarlet-clothed man said calmly, “You can have him now.”

“Keh!” Spat the teen, jumping up onto Floyd's back in a single, graceful movement, “I'd keep my pink chocobo any day over that poor excuse for a bird.”

Vincent sighed, running his clawed hand through his wild raven tresses and turned to Yuffie, the ninja was gnawing on a piece of beef jerky with her back teeth, in a way slightly reminiscent of a ravenous carnivore.

“I guess I'm walking.” He informed her softly, “Come here, I'll carry you.”

“Oh, Vinnie!” Yuffie dropped her food almost immediately, her brown orbs going misty and beginning to coruscate with emotion, “That's so romantic!”

She performed a flying leap into his arms whilst Kadaj mimed vomiting over the side of his chocobo. Riku had to burry his face into October's neck in order to stifle his laughter.

“Hey, at least I like an actual guy!” Yuffie called to Kadaj, “And I'm not into BEASTIALITY like YOU!”

“WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?!” Cried the silver-tressed teen, mashing Cait Sith's furry head to his chest defensively.

“Erm… would you mind not doing that?” The cat inquired in a voice that quite obviously did not have a Scottish accent. Kadaj yelped in surprise, holding the robot out at arm's length as the black and white feline adjusted his crown.

“Reeve.” Vincent said coolly as the robot squirmed out of Kadaj's grasp and landed elegantly on the ground.

“Good morning Vincent, Yuffie.” Reeve addressed them with a polite bow, to which Vincent replied with a slight not of his head and the ninja in his arms waved exuberantly, “Riku and Kadaj as well.” The droid turned and bowed to Riku and Kadaj in turn. Riku bowed his head whilst Kadaj expelled a loud “Keh!” and turned away, still embarrassed.

“How is everything going so far?” The cat inquired, facing Vincent and Yuffie once more.

“Good.” Nodded the red-clothed man, “We should be in Nebelheim by tonight if we make good time.”

“Good!” Reeve clapped his gloved hands together and nodded, “Have you heard anything from Cloud and the others lately?”

Vincent pulled his cell phone out from within the fold of his cloak and flipped it open, shaking his head, “No.”

“Well, I suppose you should try to get a hold of them within the near future.” Reeve instructed, stroking his chin thoughtfully, “In any case, don't overexert yourselves. Goodbye!”

The cat's form went rigid for several seconds before the cat hopped back onto Floyd, “Well, you heard the man!” Cait Sith cried, punching a tiny, gloved fist into the air, “Let's go!”

“Wait.” Vincent muttered, attempting to do something with his cell phone. He growled slightly when one of his clawed fingers mashed several of the buttons and glared daggers at the small screen.

“What are you trying to do?” Yuffie inquired, peeking at the screen with curious chocolate orbs.

“I'm trying to send a text message to Cloud.” He explained, his voice was as hard as stone as he obviously attempted to hold back his anger at the small device.

“Geebus Christ!” The ninja promptly snatched away the phone and finished the text, snapping it closed, “This is why they shouldn't give old people cell phones!” She growled, shoving said phone back into Vincent's hand.

The red-clothed man cleared his throat, his pale complexion a bit redder than it usually was, “We should get going now.”

 

 

His fingers brushed the soft material, kneading it under his thumb. It shone dully, dripping with malice. His eyes couldn't help but snap open just a little wider… disgusted, he threw it beneath the bar onto a low hidden shelf. There was a smart rapping on the countertop, and Yazoo pulled away, startled, nervously brushing back his long front pieces of hair behind his ear.

“H-Hello and - oh, Cloud.” He paused mid-greeting and suddenly felt a damp chill.

“Yazoo.” The blonde nodded indifferently. Still, it sounded almost as though there was a slight edge to his voice this time… strangled almost… suspicious.

“Anything for you today, Cloud?” the man behind the counter asked politely, pulling on his best smile. The towhead had been out half the morning already on delivery runs and he looked a bit haggard already. Yazoo wondered if he had been getting enough sleep recently. He winced respectively at the thin layer of dust that coated the other man. Well, that would be the next chore.

“Anything.” Cloud groaned. “Anything cold and on the rocks.” A tutting of disapproval sounded as Tifa made her way into the bar from the private family kitchen. The brunette arched an eyebrow at her love but felt around for the shaker anyways. She paused and frowned a moment, holding her hair away from her face so she could bend over and look under and upon the shelf without impeded vision. Yazoo felt the room drop yet another good sixty degrees and he did his best to look around curiously.

“Wouldn't happen to feel up to having an omlette today, would you?” he chuckled lightly, twirling the pan around between his hands.

“…Not in particular…” the blonde frowned, suspecting something was up.

“Hey…” Tifa quipped, her voice sounding distant. “What's this?” she asked, brow still furrowed. She pulled at the dark cloth slightly, and it pooled out over the tiled floor. Cloud glared over the bar as the other two looked on silently, all in a collective state of shock. Impulsively, Yazoo snatched the clothing off the floor, using his arms to hastily wrap it up.

“Yazoo.” Cloud growled warningly, his eyes narrowing dangerously. “Why do you have that old outfit out, and why is it under the bar? Plan to sneak out somewhere?” His accusations were met by silence.

“I was hoping it would help me remember.” The longhaired man whispered ashamedly. He looked down into his hands to find he was in the process of making bread. Typical.

“Remember?” the bartender asked gently. She placed a hand on Yazoo's shoulder, which he shrugged off uncomfortably.

“We've offered you a home and the firs-“ Cloud began to rant, getting up from his seat.

“Please. It's not like that!” the silver tressed man protested vehemently. “If I meant any of you harm, it would have been all too easy. Please! That isn't how I meant it.”

“There was something underneath it.” Tifa added, resurfacing from under the bar with a spiral bound pad of paper. “This. Is it-?”

“Yes, it's mine.” Yazoo nodded eagerly, taking from her not ungraciously.

“Out of curiosity, what…?” the blonde asked, absentmindedly swirling the residual ice cubes in his empty glass.

“Just some sketches.” The other replied quickly, trying to rid himself of the conversation. “Nothing much.” He threw in, afraid of appearing rude.

“I didn't know you drew.” Tifa said, surprised. “Those must have been done during your off hours here, but I never have seen you at it.”

“I… I've grown a bit particular to the situations in which I can draw.” Yazoo offered uncomfortably. “Things like… silence, particular music depending on the subject which I draw. Darkness, light. All depends and adds to the mood.” He continued, a hint of nostalgia tinting his words. With a cough, he straightened up, adjusting the collar of the dark wine colored turtleneck he was wearing, a slight tinge creeping up on his cheeks. “But it's just a few sketches.”

“You seem to be rather passionate about it.” Tifa smiled knowingly. “You'd have to in order to talk about it in that way.” This only deepened the other's blush. “So, what sort of things do you draw?” the barmaid persisted, keeping up a positive, upbeat attitude.

“Still life and portraits.” Yazoo replied after a brief moments hesitation. “But it would take quite a few years more to be of any quality. There's a lot of intricacy involved in both of those forms.”

“I'd say.” Cloud said, a smirk in his very voice. Startled, Yazoo jumped, finding his sketchbook laying open on it's spine, each page being leisurely turned by a gloved hand. Tifa immediately squealed and gathered on the other side of her fiancée so they could pour over the pieces together. Unsure of what else to do, Yazoo returned to kneading the dough on the counter, his complexion now near as matching the coloration of his sweater.

“What made you decide to hide this talent from us?” Cloud asked, bemused.

“Well, you think it's rather unusual and queer that I can cook!” the gunner replied, kneading the soft dough a little harder than was necessary.

“Are you not gay?” the blonde asked bluntly, a skeptical eyebrow raised. Tifa squawked indignantly.

“CLOUD!”

“W-Well, ya. A-And?!” Yazoo demanded, highly flustered. “What difference does that make?!”

“It's just not very uncommon, I suppose.” Cloud shrugged, a slight look of triumph in his intense blue eyes. “I take it you play a musical instrument too, or are interested in plays?”

“Yes, I play the violin.” His victim admitted much to his own chagrin. He glared evilly up at the blonde before adding in a rush, “I also mastered the piano, I can dance, I can speak fluent German, French, and Spanish, and I enjoy reading Shakespeare.” He glared with all his might, finishing with his dough. “Just because I'm sophisticated with good etiquette…”

“Guter Käse vier.” Cloud chuckled lightly.

“I believe you meant `Gut für Sie.'” Yazoo corrected. “You just told me you like `good four cheese'.” A ghost of a grin threatened to brake out upon his lips in a clear victory that he had won.

“Awe, Du Arschloch.” The blonde spat back, the only words in German he really knew. But that's what's bound to happen when Zack Fair is the one teaching the language.

“Ich wußte nicht, daß Sie so schwangen.” The other replied, now smiling broadly. Cloud stared back at him blankly. “I like your turtleneck, it's nice.” Yazoo invented, getting a right kick out of his win. The ex-SOLDIER glared at him suspiciously.

“Sieg heil mein Yazoo.” Loz boomed out, a cheerful smile plastered on his face. His friend stared at him, mortified.

“Never… do that again…” he blinked, hung up on the whole `my Yazoo' part. “Ich werde Alpträume für Wochen haben...” he mumbled under his breath.

“Uh…? Si senior?” Loz offered.

“That's Spanish Loz.” Yazoo commented dryly.

“What did he say before that?” Cloud asked, curiosity getting the better of him.

“Victory welfare, mine Yazoo.” The younger of the silver haired men translated. “Apparently it was a notorious cry in the East somewhere… though it never made all too much sense to myself to personally.”

“Huh… sounded kinda familiar.” Cloud mused aloud.

“So. Where did you learn all this from?” Tifa spoke up, running her fingers delicately over a surprisingly accurate sketch of Marlene.

“My sister.” Yazoo said casually. He froze a moment later, looking from Loz to the couple in shock. “That's right! I-I had a sister. Or have…” he looked wistfully passed the small party to the windows at the front of the bar. “Guess I'll never really know, huh?” he sighed dejectedly and heaved himself up on the bar top. He allowed his long, silvery hair to fall over his catlike eyes, feeling more depressed than ever.

“Although I can't recall much… I do know this. My family consisted of my parents, myself, and now, apparently, a sister. She…” he paused hesitantly, trying hard to reconnect the shattered scraps of memory. “She went to a college. An art college. We were very close, my sister and I. She taught me all of this stuff, got me interested in education. I had always been too into fighting and trying to beat Kadaj and Loz that I had, for I time, let more important things go.” He then shot a meaningful glance to the man beside him, as if miming a silent blame. “My parents ran a bakery. From there, I learned to cook. I think… I think I was popular at school.”

Loz shrugged beside him, no more certain than the rest of them. “I remember you had blue eyes.” He offered. “They were such a nice color. When we were little, I always tried to figure out what they reminded me of.” He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Remember when you broke your leg?”

Yazoo stared back at him vacantly. “Did I?” he asked. “I… I do remember having to stay in one place for a long time. And… people brought me flowers.”

“That's right!” Loz nodded happily. “I recall coming to visit you one afternoon, and seeing a bouquet of light blue roses next to your bed.”

“Kadaj brought them for me.” Yazoo said suddenly.

“Ya… well…in the end I decided that your eyes made me think of light blue roses after the rain, still encrusted with dew. Or aquamarine or something.” Loz finished lamely.

“Were you a poet?” Tifa guessed, leaning against the counter interestedly.

“Huh?” the bulky silver haired man said uncertainly. “Who, me?” at a nod from the brunette, he snorted appreciatively. “Hell naw. I sucked when it came to school. I know that `cuz I hated it so much. I was ALWAYS around my siblings. I mean, make no mistake, I loved the little brats.” He smiled jokingly. “Naw, they were good kids, we had some good times.”

“How many brothers and sisters did you have?” Cloud joined in.

“Five brothers, three sisters. Eight in all.” Loz grinned jovially. “I ended up taking care of most of `em, seeing as I was the oldest.” He threw in at a gasp of amazement from Tifa. “Ya, we'd do all sorts `a stuff. Some of `em would even play football with me.” He laughed slyly.

“Ah Loz! If there was ever one thing I remembered of you, it was your incessant love of that sport!” his best friend exclaimed melodramatically. “That and your dark hair.” He added thoughtfully. “Yes, I distinctly recall you as the same stature, only darker haired and draped ear to toe with small children. You were a few inches shorter than you are now too, you son of a bitch.” Yazoo said wryly. “You've grown.”

“Ah, Yazoo! You couldn't have possibly expected me to stay shorter than you forever. Look at these tugboats!” he exclaimed, pointing at his shoes. “I had to grow inta' `em sometime!”

“I suppose you did.” Yazoo chortled, sliding both Cloud and Loz a beer and a glass while he fluidly pored Tifa and himself a glass of scarlet chardonnay. He took a long sip of his appreciatively. With a sudden thought, he threw down the fresh loaf of bread on the counter in-between the other three. “Nothing goes better.” He stated.

“Except perhaps chocolate.” Loz argued, wiping away the amber liquid that clung to his upper lip.

“Yes Loz, except perhaps chocolate.” He paused suddenly. “Or jumbo marshmallows and cheese if I recall.”

“That's disgusting.” Cloud said admiringly, taking a long swig.

“It is with wine.” Yazoo concurred. “Sorry if the bread seems to be off, I might have forgotten to add enough yeast.” He warned, tentatively tearing off a small piece for himself.

“Oh, no it's quite good!” Tifa assured him, going in for another piece herself.

“See I seem to have this problem.” Yazoo said, now quite at ease. “I tend to cook with wine.” He shrugged. “Sometimes it even makes it into the food.” The group laughed at his joke, and for once in a long while, Yazoo felt like he was home.