Skywalkers

19: This is Our Story

Eight Skywalkers.

There were eight Skywalkers in Leon's house. Eating his cooking.

Well, okay, he wasn't doing the cooking because he couldn't walk yet. Kairi did most of it with help from Loz, who it turned out could make a mean pot roast. And to be fair, Sephiroth wasn't eating much more than dry toast and chicken soup - Leon had stared quite rudely the first time he had seen the violent, intimidating man sipping soup daintily like some old woman. But still, it was the principle of the thing. Eight Skywalkers.

Eight.

"Leon? Are you warm enough?"

Leon snapped himself from his brooding and glanced up at Cloud who was leaning over the back of his chair.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure?" Cloud pressed, moving around to stand next to him. His hands automatically straightened the blanket around Leon's body and tucked it in some more. "Do you need anything else? A drink? Something to eat?"

"I'm fine," Leon repeated with a small smile. "Never pegged you as the mother-hen type, Cloud dear."

Across the room, Sephiroth glanced up from the novel in his hands - thankfully not one of Leon's. The removal of his wings had changed the silver-haired man drastically, but he still wasn't particularly pleasant. Apparently the real Sephiroth was more aloof and withdrawn than Leon and Cloud put together. And he still clearly desired Cloud, if the looks of dislike he sent Leon's way were any indication. However, the Sephiroth who was not being driven mad by some strange disease had seemingly accepted the fact that Cloud was taken for the present.

Laughing a bit at Leon's comment, Cloud replied, "Only for you, Leon darling. Everyone else can take care of their own damn selves."

Leon felt a slight twinge of satisfaction at the way Sephiroth's eyes narrowed in unhappiness at Cloud's pet name for him. He wasn't about to smear it in the other man's face that he had won the battle for the blond's affection, but it still felt good to know. Especially since Sephiroth had shown very little remorse for his actions, by which to say he had shown none at all.

Cloud had explained to him, once he was awake enough to understand, about his wings and the disease. How it had facilitated his transformation, at the cost of his sanity, and how it had settled entirely in his wings so that when Cloud had pulled them out, he had freed the other man from the parasite and restored the entirety of his mind to its rightful owner. Once Cloud had finished, Sephiroth had considered all of this information for a while and then said, very simply, "I'm not going to apologize."

Leon had been furious, but Cloud had just half-smiled and answered, "I don't expect you to." And that, as far as the two men were concerned, was that. Issue resolved and no longer to be discussed. Leon couldn't believe it, but, as Zack had reminded him quietly, it was Cloud's problem and Cloud's solution. And as long as it was over, what did it matter how the war had ended?

"Cloud?" Kadaj had appeared out of nowhere. The young man was extremely good at that, Leon had noted. "Can I talk to you a minute?"

"Sure," Cloud answered, turning to face him.

Kadaj attempted a little half-smile. Interestingly enough, while Loz had fallen into their small group as if he had always been there and Yazoo floated around it with much of his normal disinterest, Kadaj seemed rather nervous to be there and almost - if Leon dared to use the word for someone who had nearly killed him - shy. He spent most of his time tending to Sephiroth and avoiding Sora, who had decided the jumpy young man just needed someone friendly with whom to talk. Leon, who had spent most of his recuperation time in the same room with Sephiroth, had been quite amused by the way Kadaj would instantly disappear at just the sound of his little brother's voice and then reappear when the coast was clear.

"The others and I were talking," Kadaj told Cloud, "and it's going to be a very long time before Br-" He forcibly stopped himself. Shutting his eyes briefly, he pushed forward. "- before S-Sephiroth is well enough to get the transformation." He took a quick breath to calm himself after forcing out the foreign name and then continued, "We don't want to impose on you and Leon for that long, so we thought we'd do a side-by-side jump with … him … in the center."

Cloud was smiling, more in approval of Kadaj's attempts to accept the change in his life than anything else. "That sounds like a fine idea," he assured the young man. "And if Seph keeps recovering at the rate he is, you should be able to leave in a day or two."

"Right." Kadaj managed a full smile this time, but quickly turned away and moved to Sephiroth's side. He began to fuss and flutter about the older man much as Cloud had done to Leon.

Speaking of which …

"Are you sure you don't need anything?"

Leon glared good-naturedly up at his lover. "I said I'm fine," he replied. "What is with you all of a sudden?"

Cloud's smile turned a little sheepish, and his hands began smoothing out the exact same patch of blanket he had already straightened. "I just want to make sure," he explained, "because I'm thinking of leaving for a bit. Loz made some cookies this morning, and Riku wanted to take some over to Dr. Kadowaki's. I thought I'd go with him."

Leon understood. Riku wanted to go see Naminé. While Leon had been asleep and before Cloud and Zack had transferred him to the house, Riku thankfully had remembered their little blonde fugitive. He had stolen away from the gathered assembly to sneak her out the back door and over to the neighbor's. Sephiroth and the others were still friends of the Organization, after all, and could not be trusted with their secret.

According to Cloud, Riku had introduced Naminé as the blond's sister and asked if she could stay with the doctor for a few days while Cloud took care of a very sick Leon, inventing a weak constitution as an excuse for her removal from the house. To Riku's surprise and horror - although if he had checked with Cloud first, he would have known better - the little doctor immediately insisted upon coming over to the house to help with Leon's "illness". Naminé had somehow managed to talk her out of it.

"Well if that's the case," Leon conceded, "I'll take a couple of those cookies and a cup of tea."

"You got it," Cloud replied, leaning closer. He brushed his lips against Leon's in a soft kiss. "You should probably try to sleep while I'm gone," he commented after pulling back.

Leon rolled his eyes and resisted the urge to groan. "I feel like I've done nothing but sleep for the past two days," he complained.

His lover just chuckled at him. "Rest is good for you." Then, he leaned in again and whispered in Leon's ear so that Sephiroth and Kadaj could not hear, "Especially if you want to have any fun after everyone else leaves." His tongue slid out and quickly grazed the edge of Leon's ear.

If Leon had not thought it warm enough before, that problem had been remedied now. "You damn brat," he growled lowly.

"And yet you still love me." Smiling like the proverbial canary-eating cat, he turned and headed into the kitchen to fulfill Leon's request. Left alone, Leon shut his eyes and tried to will the extra blood in his lower regions back into less dangerous areas. He was so intent on keeping his breathing steady and his face normal that he very nearly missed the completely unexpected words that floated across the room to him.

"You two go well together."

Shocked, Leon opened his eyes and stared at Sephiroth. The silver-haired man was engrossed in his paperback, not paying Leon the slightest bit of attention. Yet, he knew he hadn't imagined those words. Kadaj had followed Cloud into the kitchen, so that left only one person from which they could have issued.

Grinning, Leon leaned his head back against the cushions of his chair and shut his eyes. Even with a couple of still-healing holes in him, victory felt so very good.

xXx

"You have to visit!" Kairi demanded, her voice coming from somewhere around Loz's middle. She had her arms wrapped around his torso tightly as she tried very hard not to cry.

"'Course I will," he answered cheerily, although signs of tears were beginning to shine in his eyes as well. "And when I do, I'll bring along my lasagna recipe." Kairi nodded into his chest and broke down in spite of herself.

Leon smirked at his almost-sister. "Who would have thought she'd grow so attached to a guy who tried to kill her?" he commented idly.

Next to him, Riku laughed. "Funny," he replied in a teasing voice. "I distinctly remember trying to kill a few people around here myself."

"This is true." He reached out and messed up the younger man's long hair.

Leon couldn't believe how good it felt just to stand again. To be well enough to walk around on his own without depending on someone to prop him up and help him along. He didn't even mind that he was currently standing in his destroyed front lawn. The deep gashes in the ground and the multiple scorch-marks could do nothing to ruin his good mood.

"Hey, Kadaj!" Sora called from his spot near Kairi. "You visit, too! I never got to teach you how to play bocce."

Kadaj gave Sora a rather fake half-smile and took a discreet step closer to Sephiroth. Standing on the other side of the tall man, Yazoo lifted an eyebrow and asked, "Am I invited to visit as well?" He kept his face neutral, but even so Leon could hear the smallest bit of longing in his voice.

"Of course," Sora answered him with a bright smile. "But you have a girlfriend, right? Go visit her first." Yazoo dipped his head and hid his blush - prominent due to his pale skin - behind his long hair. Closer to the house, Reno opened his mouth to make a comment, but Zack clapped a hand over his mouth and stopped him. The resulting fight over this kept the two of them occupied for several minutes.

Once Loz and Sora had pried Kairi from the big man, he walked over to the others and took his place behind Sephiroth. Leon had asked and Cloud had explained that regular people could participate in a walk if carried or otherwise held by the one doing the jump, like how Reno had brought Naminé. The three ex-brothers had decided that Kadaj and Yazoo would both guide Sephiroth by holding his arms and Loz would follow behind just to make sure nothing went wrong. No one had any doubts that Sephiroth would eventually undergo the proper transformation, but it would be several months before he would be well enough to do so without serious side-effects.

"Bye!" Sora cried, waving wildly over his head. Next to him, Kairi waved also but far more discreetly. Loz waved back, Yazoo inclined his head towards them, and even Kadaj managed a small wriggling of fingers in Sora's direction. Six black wings unfurled simultaneously.

"Wait."

Everyone looked to Sephiroth as the word fell from his lips. His green eyes were firmly fixed on blue ones owned by the man standing to Leon's left. And when he began to stride forward with purpose, Leon wasn't surprised. Both he and Cloud had expected something like this to happen.

What he hadn't expected, however, was for Sephiroth to stop before them and then turn his sharp gaze to him. Those green eyes bored into him, although this time they seemed less intent on drilling holes than they were on exploring Leon's mind and heart. After several tense silent minutes, the silver-haired man slipped a hand into the pocket of his coat and pulled out a small cloth bag. He held it out to Leon.

"For the lawn," he explained.

Stunned, Leon held out his hand and accepted the bag which, he assumed, contained some form of money. Sephiroth nodded once in satisfaction before turning his attention to Cloud. After staring at him for a moment, he lifted a hand and captured the blond's chin with long, pale fingers. Carefully, Sephiroth turned Cloud's face to one side and then the other, as if inspecting him. Leon understood though; he was memorizing him, the act of a heart that never expected to see the one it cared for ever again.

After burning both sides of Cloud's face into his mind, Sephiroth turned the blond to face him once more. And kissed him. Leon slowly drew his breath in and let it out again, refusing to let the action bother him. This was a good-bye kiss, in more ways than one. Cloud had closed his eyes, understanding this as well. A heartbeat later when Sephiroth pulled back, he opened his eyes again and gazed at the other man with calm patience.

"Good-bye, Cloud," Sephiroth said quietly.

"Good-bye, Seph," Cloud answered in a similar tone.

Sephiroth stepped back, gave Leon one more look, and then returned to his three loyal companions, taking his place between the two younger ones and hooking his arms around their elbows.

A moment later, all four had disappeared in an ear-shattering burst of blue and silver light.

Leon heard Cloud release a long breath. Without looking at him, he slipped an arm around the blond's waist. Cloud responded by leaning into Leon's body.

"Well, now that they're gone," Riku announced, "I'm going to go get Nami." When Sora sniggered at him, the young man spun on his best friend and demanded, "You have something you want to say, Sora?"

"Nope," Sora replied cheekily. "Not me." He slipped his arms around his sniffling girlfriend and began leading her into the house. Riku turned on his heel and, grumbling, set off for Dr. Kadowaki's house.

"We'll be next, of course," Zack said, walking up to Leon with Reno on his heels, "but if you don't mind, we'd like to hang out a few more days."

"I don't mind," Leon told him.

"What did that bastard give you anyway?" Reno asked, peering at the bag in Leon's hand. Not wanting to remove his arm from Cloud, Leon tossed the red-head the bag instead. When he had opened it, his eyes widened and he whistled. "That is a serious amount of gil."

"Gil?" Leon questioned. He received his answer when Reno pulled out a single gold coin. He showed it off to Leon, turning it this way and that to make it shine in the sun, and then dropped it back in the bag which clinked, telling of just how many more of the coins were in there.

Cloud chuckled a little. "Too bad there's no currency exchange from gil to dollars on this planet."

"Fuck that," Reno replied easily. "Just melt the stuff down." He grinned. "Of course, if you don't want it, I'll be happy to take it off your hands."

Zack sighed and snatched the bag from the other man. "You'll just throw it away on booze and women," he admonished.

"And there's something wrong with that?"

Zack turned and, tossing the bag idly up and down with one hand, began walking away. "Come on, Reno. Let's leave the lovebirds alone."

Reno snorted with amusement but followed anyway. As they left, Leon heard the red-head comment, "Spike's not a lovebird. He's a chocobo, man," and Zack erupt into peals of laughter. When he turned to Cloud in confusion, his lover just rolled his eyes.

"What's a chocobo?"

"I'll tell you some other time."

"Okay." He looked at those deep blue eyes and felt a wave of peace settle over him. Only half aware of his actions, he lifted his free hand and ran his fingers gently over Cloud's cheek and down to his jaw. Cloud's eyes closed at the soft sensation, and a small smile pulled at his lips. Leon leaned in and kissed them. They were still warm, but he didn't care. That part of Cloud's life was over, and from here on out, Leon would be the only one to touch those beautiful lips. They would now be able to write their own story together.

"Welcome to freedom, Cloud," Leon whispered, repeating the words the blond had said to Naminé. Finally, the promise of those words had become reality.

Cloud smiled against Leon's lips and replied, "Freedom. I like the sound of that."

xXx

Zack and Reno left three days later. They both promised to visit, although Cloud nearly took the invitation back once Zack started talking about Leon and Cloud naming their firstborn after him. "If it's a girl, you can call it Zackaline or something," he insisted, grinning from ear to ear and pointedly ignoring the annoyance on Cloud's face.

Riku left as well, although only to gather the few possessions he had left behind. He and Sora had decided that Riku and Naminé would live with Sora and Kairi while the latter two continued with college and the former two tried to figure out what to do with their displaced lives. Leon, while listening to the young men make plans over dinner one night, had wanted to ask a rather important question but had strictly held his tongue. Naminé ended up asking it for him.

"Sora? When were you going to tell us that there's only one guest room and it only has one bed?"

Riku had turned a rather impressive shade of burgundy before attempting to beat a giggling Sora to death with a serving spoon. Leon saved his brother's life by offering the air mattress.

"It's not like I need it anymore," he had commented. Cloud had just smirked.

The day Riku left, Sora and the girls piled into his car and left as well. Sora made a huge show of saying good-bye to his beloved brother and his equally beloved brother-in-law. Leon took it for a while, but when Sora began to warn him about the importance of safe sex, Leon picked his little brother up bodily and shoved him into the back seat of the car with Naminé.

"Go before I kill him," he told Kairi, who had moved over to the driver's seat when she saw them coming. She obeyed, driving away with a cheery wave and a promise to call when they got in.

Once his brother's car had disappeared down the long driveway and onto the main road, Leon turned to Cloud. "Do you hear that?" he asked.

"Hear what?" Cloud asked back, puzzled.

"Exactly."

Cloud chuckled at him and lifted his arms above his head in a long, lazy stretch. "So what now?" he asked when he was finished.

Leon had watched that stretch. Had watched muscles flex beneath the cotton of Cloud's shirt. Had seen the pleasure on Cloud's face as tight spots eased and aches faded. Had seen the sliver of exposed flesh at Cloud's waist. It had been far, far too long since he had touched that body.

"What now?" he echoed, closing the distance between them with deliberate steps. "I think now I'll start courting you properly."

"Courting me?" Cloud repeated, surprised. He blinked at Leon in confusion.

"Yes." Leon caught Cloud's hands in his own and used them to pull the blond closer to him. In a quiet, almost sing-song voice, he continued, "A nice dinner at a fancy restaurant. Then maybe a walk in the park together." The light tone left his voice as he leaned in closer and finished, "And then I'll bring you home and fuck your brains out."

Cloud threw back his head and laughed. "I see. That's how romance writers court people, is it?"

"Ex-romance writers," Leon reminded him with a smirk.

"Well," the other mused with an identical expression, "normally I'd suggest we skip the first two and just do the last one, but considering the fact you're still not completely healed, I vote for skipping the last two and just doing dinner." He patted Leon's cheek when his face fell a little. "Now, now, don't be so sad. You'll be well enough to walk in the park soon."

When Leon growled dangerously at him, Cloud just laughed some more, and soon Leon had joined him. He took his love and lover by the arm and guided him back into their house and home.