Cloud sighed into his drink. It was late, probably too late for any sane person to be out and about, but as Cloud was fond of reminding himself, he was far from sane. At least there was no one left to worry about whether or not he kept his bedtime.

"You said it."

At first Cloud assumed it was a voice from inside his head, or maybe Aerith, though that would be the same thing. Then he saw a flash of blond in his peripheral vision that wasn't his own hair. He looked directly at the only other person in the bar, and even then it took him a few beats to recognize her.

"Elena?" he asked, still surprised. He had never seen her out of her Turk uniform, and when dressed in civilian clothes she looked downright normal. She could have been any young woman off the streets.

"I wondered if you would recognize me, Strife." She sipped at her own drink, smiling a little. "What are you doing all the way out here so late? I would have thought you'd prefer the Seventh Heaven and Tifa's company."

A frown passed over Cloud's face, and he had more of his drink to cover his discomfort. Tifa was a close friend, but…

"I'm sorry, it's none of my business, is it?" A pale blush settled over Elena's cheeks. "I'm just surprised to see you so far out of your way. And it is really late. I thought I'd be all alone here tonight."

"Not on the clock?" Cloud asked, just to clarify. He'd learned that Turks were less dangerous, to him at least, if they weren't being paid to carry their weapons.

"No, I have tomorrow off. That's why I'm here at … is it 2 already?" She blinked at her watch disbelievingly. "Time flies, doesn't it?"

"Yes," Cloud agreed quietly. He didn't comment as she moved to the seat next to him at the bar. If she liked someone around while she was drinking, he wouldn't deny it to her, but he wasn't good company at the best of times and knew it.

"Hmm," she sighed as she slid into her seat, gesturing for another drink.

Cloud happened to glance down and see what she was drinking. "I hope you don't have to drive home tonight," he muttered, sipping his own.

She chuckled and crossed her legs. "Trust me, I can handle it. If you go out drinking enough with Reno, you learn to handle anything."

"Hmm."

She let comfortable silence stretch for a good long time, her finger circling the rim of her glass. It made Cloud wonder, for a moment, what Turks actually did in their off time. He was used to thinking of them as Turks, 24/7, ready to attack at any time. If he hadn't known better, he would have thought so much of Elena. But unlike most other people, her presence didn't get on his nerves. It felt, almost, like spending time with Vincent, only more perfume-scented and less intimidating.

"I would never have thought we'd end up here, Strife," she said quietly, breaking the silence. "You and me, alone in a bar, sitting companionably over our drinks. You were my enemy, once."

"There was a time when I would have killed you sooner than share space," Cloud replied, realizing belatedly that he had probably spoken with too much honesty.

Elena was unfazed. "I would have killed you, too, given the chance." Her stormcloud eyes glittered in a smile. "Does that mean you won't try to kill me tonight?"

Cloud shook his head slightly and took another healthy swallow. "Not if you're off-duty, Turk."

"Glad to see we're maintaining a healthy relationship, Strife." Her voice was dry, cynical, and she gestured for another glass.

Cloud watched uncertainly. He was not at all inclined to be concerned about the safety of a Turk, but he knew Elena had to be getting pretty drunk. "Seriously. Do you have to drive home tonight?"

Elena looked at him, slightly surprised. "What, you're offering to drive me back if I'm incapacitated?"

Cloud shrugged uncomfortably. He hadn't meant to insinuate that, but … well, it would really rest on his conscience if she drove off and got in an accident because he hadn't offered. So he nodded.

Elena snorted and jabbed his arm with her elbow. "Thanks, but no thanks, Strife. You're sweet to offer, but I can take care of myself."

Cloud didn't doubt that one bit. He'd caught a flash of a shoulder holster beneath her coat, and he had fought Elena enough that he knew she was capable in that regard. The offer must have been camaraderie borne of drinking alone in a bar with her.

The silence stretched a little longer. The bartender was starting to stare pointedly at them, clearly wanting to close up shop and go home, and Cloud was starting to consider leaving. Unfortunately, he knew he would get no sleep that night. The memories had been particularly heavy lately.

"I never thought we would end up here either," he said at last. "I've had … a tumultuous relationship with ShinRa. I never expected to come to speaking terms with one of his Turks."

Elena chuckled, her bright hair sliding into her eyes. "We do have a fearsome reputation, don't we? But I'm not the scary Turk, you know."

"I know," Cloud replied, a smile twitching at his lips. "No, you certainly don't look scary. Though I think I know you better by now."

"Don't fool yourself, Strife," Elena said, her voice still laughing. "You know nothing about me."

"So tell me something," Cloud said, lulled by the late night and the semi-decent alcohol into actual curiosity.

Elena looked started, as though she hadn't expected the request. "What?"

"It's late, we're both getting drunk, we're alone in a bar. Tell me something about yourself. I really don't know much about you."

She thought for a moment, looking down at the drink cradled in her hands. They had both lost count of how many they'd consumed, though Elena was feeling the effects more strongly. "Well, I don't even know what to say…"

"Favorite color." Cloud watched her evenly, steadfastly ignoring the bartender.

Elena lifted a fingernail to her mouth, chewing a little. "Purple. Does that sound too girly? I guess it is, but I've always liked purple. Lavender."

"Hmm," Cloud supplied, turning over the information in his head.

"Now you."

"What?" Cloud sputtered.

"What's your favorite color?" Elena's eyes glittered a little more, and she leaned in close enough that Cloud caught a good whiff of her perfume. Lilies.

"Blue," he answered, looking away from her eyes. "I like blue."

At last, the bartender had had enough, and slapped his rag down between them. "Look. It's three in the morning. Why don't you two continue this conversation somewhere else and let me get to bed, huh?"

"Right," Cloud said, standing hastily and paying his tab. "Uh, right. I can give you a ride?"

Elena looked stubborn and likely to protest until she stood and her legs wobbled. "Maybe I should," she agreed quietly, laying down her own money. "I'll get my car tomorrow."

"Yeah," Cloud said, waiting until he heard her footsteps before starting for the door. His breath frosted in the cold winter air, and he saw her stick her hands in the pockets of her coat. His boots crunched on the gravel as he led the way to his motorcycle, nudging up the kickstand and climbing on. Her warm weight settled behind him, and he felt her fumble for a moment before deciding to put her hands around his waist and rest her cheek on his back. He started the engine and peeled out of the parking lot, following her mumbled directions to an apartment complex.

She climbed off the bike, still unsteady on her feet and patting down her coat for her keys. "You can come in!" she called as he watched from the safety of his bike. "Unless you have to go somewhere…"

His mouth wrenched bitterly. He thought of the cot he had set up at the church, lonely among the flowers. He thought of his dusty room above Seventh Heaven, a place he seldom visited anymore. So he followed her up. A glass of water would be nice, after all…

Cloud never actually got his glass of water. He followed Elena into her kitchen, even watched her pour it, but it sat forgotten on the counter.

They never could figure out who made the first move. Cloud just knew he was suddenly surrounded by the scent of lilies, feeling Elena's hot mouth open beneath his, teasing him inside. He held her slender shoulders, slid one hand up behind her head to pull her in closer, and felt her put her arms around his neck to do the same. The kiss was hot and wet and a little awkward, because Cloud couldn't quite remember what exactly to do with his tongue, but fortunately Elena noticed and took over.

Somehow, they managed to stumble down the short hallway to her bedroom and fell, almost like it was an accident, onto her bed. Cloud groaned and Elena gasped, the both of them fighting with their clothing and the urgent need to have it all off. She twisted her head out of the kiss, struggling with her jeans and yanking them down while Cloud pulled her shirt up and massaged her breasts through her bra. She wasn't huge like Tifa was, just a nice firm handful that made him gasp and ache.

Her hands scrambled at the buckle that held his sword on his back, but it was too heavy for her to remove by herself. He sat back on his knees and unbuckled the sword, letting it drop carefully by the bed before he peeled off his sweater.

While he was busy with that, she had pulled off her own shirt and unhooked her bra. She gazed up at him with her stormcloud eyes, smirking a little as she hooked her fingers at the waistband of her panties and pulled down. Cloud's mouth dropped open slightly, and he leaned down for another kiss. She pulled him in closer, sliding her hands appreciatively up and down his back and into his pants.

It took a little more maneuvering to get the heavy fabric of Cloud's pants off, mostly because they also had to remove his boots. At last, they were both naked and pressed close. Elena scratched her short nails over Cloud's shoulders and reached between them, stroking him a few times and putting her legs around his waist.

Cloud gasped and bowed his head, resting his cheek against hers and following her guidance. She made a small moaning noise that sounded a little like his name, and his hips jerked forward until he was enveloped in hot and wet. Unsure with what to do with his hands, he placed one on the bed and the other on her breast, massaging and twisting a little at her nipple. Fortunately, the rest of his movement seemed to be instinctually programmed or remembered.

She seemed to like it well enough, her breath hitching as he moved and moans starting in her throat. She kept scratching at his back, which felt oddly nice, and moved her hand down between them again. She touched herself, and Cloud felt her knees go tight around him and her moans go high-pitched and breathy.

He began to lose his rhythm and relocated one hand to her thigh, holding tightly to keep her in place. She got louder and her nails scratched harder, and all of a sudden she shouted and locked her thighs around him again. He thrust more, as much movement as he was allowed, and felt the tension in his stomach uncoil in a long, glorious wave. He might have moaned, felt Elena stroke down the spikes of his hair, kissed the salt sweat from her neck.

It took a few moments of recovery, but they eventually separated and pulled the blankets up. Cloud settled warmly against Elena's back, his nose buried in her blonde hair and smelling her perfume and making sure she stayed close with a hand around her waist. Like that, they fell asleep.