Chapter Text
Christmas dinner finally began, and everyone gathered around the table to enjoy their sumptuous feast. It didn't take long for a food fight to break out between Denzel and Marlene, and Yuffie had to restrain herself from joining in before Tifa and Barret finally put their culinary conflict to an end. After the meal, the group gathered around the Christmas tree to unwrap their gifts, enjoying their choice of coffee and libations while the kids tore through mounds of wrapping paper and whizzed around the 7th Heaven with their latest toys in hand.
The evening was slowly winding down, with everyone simply enjoying the opportunity to relax for a change, spending quality time with their partners, heading over to the dinner table for seconds, or amusing themselves with one of their presents. Barret and the kids had roped Cait, Reeve, and Nanaki into a six-way Queen's Blood tournament. Zack and Tifa were slow-dancing in the center of the room. Cloud and Aerith had retreated to the corner, curling up together on the couch near the fireplace. Cid and Sierra were perusing some of the tasty leftovers from the main course, and Cissnei and Vincent had disappeared off to somewhere, probably to "get better acquainted" with each other.
Yuffie, meanwhile, found herself back at the bar, head on counter, completely bored out of her skull. Even with Cloud and Aerith's earlier encouragement, it was still hard not to feel a little removed from the rest of the gang when they all got like this, like she was still seated at the kids' table of life.
She rolled an orb of materia back and forth, mulling Aerith's words over. "Be true to myself, huh?"
She smiled as she recalled the mistletoe incident from earlier that night.
"It was kinda funny when I smacked Cloud upside the head... maybe I could do more of that instead of just moping around?"
Yeah, screw all this romance crap, she thought. Maybe a good old-fashioned barroom brawl would help lift her spirits. Her smile widened as the idea took shape in her mind. She leapt up onto the bar counter to make her announcement.
"All right, listen up, everyone! New rule: The next time you catch someone underneath the mistletoe, you gotta fight'em!" she decreed.
Everyone looked at each other, perplexed.
"So if I see any of you dorks hanging around underneath that thing, you'd best be ready to catch these hands!" Yuffie added, emphasizing the new house rule with a quick one-two punch before hopping back down to the floor, looking quite pleased with herself.
"Uh, Yuffie, you sure about this?" Zack asked as he and Tifa slow danced their way past the bar.
Yuffie shrugged. "Eh, the old mistletoe rule was dumb, anyway. It's much more exciting like this."
Tifa giggled as she and her boyfriend wound their way back to the center of the dance floor. "If you say so."
Another hour went by with little to alleviate her boredom. Nobody was taking the bait. If anything, everyone was now giving the mistletoe in the center of the room a wide berth in case Yuffie decided to make good on her new rule. Just when she'd decided to pack it in for the night, however, an unexpected Christmas present dropped into her lap in the form of new visitors. The doors to the 7th Heaven swung open, and in walked none other than Rufus and the Turks.
"Oh, look. It's mister 'I forgive myself and choose to forget'. Like, that's not how redemption works, but whatever..." Yuffie muttered under her breath.
"Who the hell invited them?" Barret grumbled.
"Good question," Tifa said, narrowing her eyes.
"Looks like they just invited themselves," Zack said, equally suspicious of the new arrivals.
"Now, now," Rufus said, raising his hands in a placating gesture. "We're all friends here, aren't we?"
"Hmph. If you say so," Barret said, easing up. Even so, he glanced over at the storeroom behind the bar, making sure that his gun arm attachment wasn't too far out of reach.
"Your highness," Rufus greeted Yuffie as he walked past.
"Your jerkface-ness," Yuffie replied, sotto voce, annoyed by the air of smugness surrounding the former Shinra president. She wondered how on earth anyone on Shinra's side thought that cozying up with Avalanche seemed like a good idea. Considering all the bad blood between the two groups, and the fact that they'd tried their best to make her and her friends' lives miserable not too long ago, the best either camp could hope for was a modicum of tolerance, or so she thought. Whatever the Shinra people's stance might be, it was clear that most people on her side weren't quite ready to bury the hatchet just yet. Cloud, Tifa, and Barret, in particular, looked as though the only place they'd be interested in burying the proverbial hatchet was someone's face.
The Turks began to scatter around the 7th Heaven, making themselves at home. Most of the Avalanche crew were understandably reticent to mingle with the people who had caused them so much grief. Sensing an opportunity, however, Yuffie rushed over to the center of the room to meet their new guests. It wasn't long before she spotted her target. Reno, who somehow managed to appear unkempt and rakish even on Christmas Eve, with his shirt half-tucked and his figure slouched. "Hey babe," he greeted her as she approached, regarding her with a lecherous smile. He reeked of cheap cologne and cheaper whiskey.
"Hey, yourself," Yuffie replied, smiling back, seemingly not put off in the slightest by his unctuous manner.
"Well, well... would ya look at that?" Reno said, glancing upwards at the mistletoe hanging overhead. "You know the rule, princess."
The red-haired Turk leaned in towards her, eyes closed and lips puckered, in expectation of a big smooch.
Yuffie grinned widely as she pulled back her fist.
"Yes, I do."
THE END