Disclaimer: I still don't own anything, no matter how much I might want Leon and Cloud. Purely for educational purposes, of course.

A/N: Another Cloud/Squall story to add to the pairing and written just for fun for those who like light stories. Enjoy.

UPDATE: 12.10.2010. This story has been fixed, edited, and updated to correct grammar/spelling errors, missing words, and some continuity issues. I hope it reads smoother now.

Warnings: Language, yaoi, OOC, slight angst, mindless fluff, and anything else I decide to add along the way.

Prologue

It was a well-known fact that Yuffie couldn't cook. The girl was too hyperactive by far and never followed directions. She preferred to throw whatever was at hand into a bowl and nuke it in the microwave for whatever hellish concoction she thought up. That was why Aerith had banned Yuffie from the kitchen after the girl had set fire to it twice and somehow managed to weld the toaster to the ceiling. (Leon had not been happy about that.)

But Aerith had caved when the girl had pleaded to make a cake for her 'big brother' Leon for his birthday that she had somehow ferreted out the information from the stoic brunet. Her wish had been granted and everyone living in Aerith's house had been kicked out as Yuffie worked on her masterpiece. Aside from a couple explosions and a minor fire, everything had been quiet in the house. It was a little too quiet for Leon's tastes who was idly sparring with Cloud in the backyard. That did not bode well for anyone when the self-proclaimed ninja was involved.

So it was understandable that Leon was a bit apprehensive when Yuffie plopped down a monstrosity of a cake in front of him once she was done baking. It was decked out in colors of gold and red with swirling frosting designs that dripped off the sagging, ten layer cake. A manic grin stretched from ear to ear while she lit the gigantic green, number '18' candle in the middle of the cake, proclaiming in her upbeat tone, "Happy Birthday, Squally!"

"Uh," Leon said stunned. He eyed the tilting pile of cake and wondered how he was going to get rid of it without Yuffie noticing. There must have been at least three bags of sugar in there judging by the sugar sprinkled on top of the frosting. He could already feel his teeth screaming in pain. "Thanks…" he trailed off uncertainly.

"Aren't you gonna blow it out?" she asked, hands clasped behind her back and a pink party hat tipped to the side of her head. She bounced on the balls of her feet excitedly. She'd made the cake all by herself and she was so proud of it. Squall would love it.

No. No, Leon did not want to eat his cake, his very lopsided cake that was actually leaking around the edges. It pooled on the floral plate before running off the sides and onto the tablecloth in a thick sludge. Although he wasn't much of a baker himself, even he knew that a cake wasn't supposed to liquefy like that.

The brunet wanted to decline, he truly did, but one look at the puppy dog look from the girl and he could hear his will cracking underneath the assault. Yuffie had worked pretty hard on the cake, practically the entire morning and into the afternoon. And it couldn't be that bad…

"Of course," he muttered while trying to infuse some cheer into his voice. It fell flat when Cloud elbowed him in the side. He could feel the blond smirking beside him, the only other witness to Yuffie's birthday surprise, and his fingers twitched around the handle of the cake cutter. He ignored the urge to stab Cloud to slide the heavy cake towards himself. Oh gods, the cake was hissing when it came into contact with the silverware. What did she put in there?

He could feel his stomach shrivel up in fear while he hacked away to cut out a tiny piece. The cake connected with the china plate in a heavy thud and Squall was almost certain the plate had cracked. He cringed, hearing the blond snickering almost inaudibly behind him as he chipped off a tiny piece with his fork.

"Go on Squally," Yuffie encouraged while clapping her hands together. "It'll be great."

Leon sighed and smoothed out his expression into a blank mask as he opened his mouth to slip the food inside. His eyebrows shot up as he chewed; actually this cake wasn't that bad. It tasted vaguely of blueberries (odd flavor for a cake), but it was pretty good. Maybe Yuffie wasn't such a bad cook after all.

Of course just as he finished swallowing he lurched to the side as if someone was tugging him towards the ground. He felt dizzy, his skin taking on a prickling sensation as the world spun around. He closed his eyes and gripped the edge of the table to keep balance as he heard Yuffie and Cloud's shocked exclamation. The last thing he heard was Cloud shouting, "Leon!" before the world seemed to shrink and he passed out.