A/N: Slightly AU Noel/Serah one-shot in a domestic light. Some fluff and a hint of lime. Minors are warned.

Summary: A couple's quarrel over something a lot more intimate than cats and dogs… NoelxSerah fluff.

Of Cats & Dogs

"We need to talk." She said.

Her voice was stern and serious and her arms were folded across her chest. Her body language was telling him that this was no laughing matter and that the time for his jokes had long past.

She stood there, by the kitchen counter, her foot tapping impatiently against the tiled ground. Light pink brows were furrowed and her small, pink mouth was set in a frown. Her pink hair fell down in little waves past a single shoulder and tickled the tip of her breast. She wasn't wearing a bra underneath his t-shirt that she had hastily thrown on and so, he was greeted with a view of her lovely, firm breasts making their mark against the fabric.

The t-shirt was obviously too big on her slender body but he found her cute despite it all. He smiled at her, with both his eyes and his lips and this only seemed to further infuriate her. She stomped her feet as hard as she could while she wore slippers, and glowered at him.

"Noel Kreiss, this is not some joke! We need to talk and we need to talk now." She stated.

He raised his hands up defensively but his smile never left.

"Alright, I got you the first time. What's so urgent?" He asked nonchalantly.

She could pick up on his carelessness. She could see that he was simply using her anger as a form of entertainment. He knew that she couldn't stay mad at him, not for long. It never worked. She could try for as long as she wanted but the man simply had a way with her. He could win her over and make her forget about it by simply pestering her.

Not this time. This time, she would win. No cute looks or tickling or snuggling or kissing was going to let him get away with this. She would be strong. She would resist the charms of Noel Kreiss.

"You know what this is about, Noel."

The brunette shrugged in response and leaned against the kitchen counter in nothing but his pajama bottoms, his lean and tanned torso exposed for her eyes to devour.

No. No! She shook her head and forced herself to stare at his face. He picked up his coffee mug and took a sip.

When he put the mug down, he said, "Let me guess; Fenrir has upset you again."

She huffed up and took a step towards his taller frame, "That dog has to go! He's too much of a trouble maker, Noel! He ruins the furniture, eats our food, sleeps on my side of the bed and tries to bite me every chance he gets when you aren't around! I can't take it anymore!"

He watched her, blue eyes noting how frustrated she was getting. Her body shook and her hands clenched into small fists at her side. Her eyes were pleading with him and still he would not relent.

"He stopped eating the furniture a week ago and the only time he eats our food is when I give him something he's allowed to have. I can get him to stop sleeping on your side of the bed. You know that isn't even a problem. And maybe if you stopped treating him the way you do, he wouldn't nip at you so much. I could help teach you but you won't even listen!" Noel cried, growing frustrated himself.

He ran his hand through his messy brown hair and held it back from his face with his fingers, exposing his forehead. Under different circumstances, she may have found it cute but in this moment, she was too upset about things to really care.

"Do not make excuses for him! That dog has hated me since day one and nothing you or I could do will change that! He's violent! He even tried attacking the neighbor's daughter at one point!" She argued, her voice rising with her temper.

Noel's dark brows furrowed now and he let his hair fall loose. He glared back at her now and said in a menacing, low voice, "I know what this is about. This is about you wanting a damn cat, isn't it Serah?"

He cried out the last part, unable to contain his anger. Serah jumped to her own defense but he wasn't listening. Instead, he laughed cruelly over her voice and continued, "Admit it! You just want me to throw Fenrir out so you can bring home one of those boring, useless felines you love so damn much!"

"I never said that!" She argued back.

He glared right back and leaned in to her, "You didn't have to! I know you. You were against Fenrir from the minute I suggested we get a dog. It wouldn't have mattered if I had gotten any other dog; you'd have hated them all equally and this conversation would be happening regardless! I knew you were too selfish to let me have this one thing! I knew!"

She stood before him, wide-eyed and on the verge of tears. He felt a little bad for yelling at her. Maybe even a little guilty. But he was angry and she had brought up the subject. It needed to be said. He loved that dog and she was making him choose.

Her lip quivered and her voice was a lot quieter when she spoke, "I thought you loved me…"

He wanted to roll his eyes at the guilt trip but decided that was a bad idea when he noticed her eyes were now watery.

"Serah, I do love you!" He cried, his facial expression softening as he grabbed her by her small shoulders.

She wouldn't meet his eyes; she stared at the ground instead.

"So why is it you choose that stupid dog over me?" She asked.

He sighed, "I am not choosing a dog over you. I just…you know how much I love that animal. And you were okay when we made the decision. You said you'd let me have a dog, even though you wanted a cat. And I know you have an affinity for those creatures. But you gave me Fenrir anyways. I appreciated that, I really did. But if you hate dogs so much, why did you say yes?"

She finally looked up at him now, a stray tear running down her porcelain cheek, "I wanted you to be happy with me."

Her answer was so sincere that he was left speechless for a moment, caught unaware. The fight from her was gone now. Sadness took its place and it made his body tense up knowing it was his fault that she was upset.

"I am happy." He whispered with a small smile, the pads of his fingers stroking her soft bangs out of her eyes.

He kissed her forehead, "Perfectly happy."

He kissed her nose, "Perfectly, blissfully happy."

And then her mouth, soft beneath his lips. She moaned into him and moved closer towards him. Her fingers tangled in his hair and she deepened the kiss. His hands stroked her back, underneath the flimsy material of his shirt. They traveled up and down the smooth curve of her back and warm flesh. When he broke the kiss to trace his lips down the curve of her neck and throat, she moaned his name, "Oh Noel…"

He smiled. And then distanced himself from her a bit but did not remove his hands. He held her there, still so close he could feel her warm breath on his skin. She looked up at him, her cheeks flushed like they always did when they made love.

"Someone's a bit horny this morning." He teased, bending forward to nip at her ear.

"Well if your stupid mutt didn't always find a way of interrupting us, maybe I'd be a lot more satisfied in the mornings." Serah stated bitterly.

Noel pulled back and stared at her with a quirked eyebrow.

"Now wait just a minute." He said.

Serah gave him a puzzled look.

"What?" She asked.

He smiled, a sly smile, "Is that what this whole thing is about?"

"Is what?" She feinted ignorance.

He tsked and then threw back his head in laughter, "You're mad at Fenrir because he keeps interrupting us whenever you want to have sex. Isn't that right?"

She blushed and Noel knew his answer, even when she tried to deny it.

"N-no! No, that isn't it! That dog is a nuisance no matter what! A cat would never behave the way that wild creature behaves!" She argued.

But Noel had none of it. He simply laughed at her and she pulled away from his arms, feeling naked without them already. But she would stand her ground.

"I can't believe this." Noel said amidst the chuckles that left his throat.

"Noel! The dog attacked a child!" Serah tried again, desperate to get rid of the embarrassing notion Noel had accused her of.

He shook his head and, with a smile, said, "Because he was with you. All that bad energy gets him riled up. Whenever he's at my side, he's calm and happy and lets any kid come right up and pet him. If you'd let me teach you, he won't do that ever again. As for the sex…"

Noel couldn't help but laugh again as he remembered the real reason the woman he loved was always so upset and cranky as of late. Serah tried to be angry but she was blushing so much at his accusation that she didn't feel like her anger was effective anymore.

"I don't want to learn!" She shouted at him instead.

Noel just looked at her, his features still soft and lazy.

When he spoke, his voice was low and husky, "I've been neglecting you, haven't I?"

Mischief was evident in his eyes but he stepped closer and Serah backed away a little. She was suddenly nervous. But he continued to come closer and she was backed up against the kitchen counter with nowhere else to go. He placed his hands on either side of her, resting on the counter, and leaned in so that his nose almost touched hers.

"If that was all you really wanted…" He started, his hot breath tickling her skin when he leaned in towards her lips, hovering over them in painful anticipation.

"All you had to do…" He continued, licking his lips while Serah found herself focused on his mouth.

Her fingers stroked the muscles of his bare arms, tracing the curves and feeling the prominent veins underneath his warm and soft skin.

"Was ask…" He finished, pressing his body against hers, forcing her back into the ledge of the counter.

With a single, swift movement, his strong arms helped lift her up so that she could sit on the counter, looking down into his face with her bare legs on either side of his. Her fingers stroked his hair and his face as he smiled up at her.

"You want me to ask for sex?" She joked, her mood lightening up despite herself.

Noel smiled so that the white of his teeth shone against his tanned complexion, "No, silly. All you had to do was ask me to get rid of the dog for the night. Trust me, I wouldn't have objected."

Serah rolled her eyes but joined in laughing anyways.

"I don't know sometimes, Noel." She said, smiling slyly.

He quirked up an eyebrow, "Don't know what?"

"If you'd rather have the dog for company at night." She laughed, and then laughed some more when Noel looked completely disgusted and appalled by her accusation.

But then he laughed too and she realized that this was why she loved him so much; they could laugh at each other together. They were that comfortable, even when the topic was not something for children's ears. Her fingers continued to stroke his soft, thick, brown hair.

"You know, I think I'm gonna go take my shower instead. I was going to make love to you but if that's how you think it is, maybe I'll just leave you to tend to Fenrir's morning routine…" Noel started, moving away from her and shrugging his shoulders.

He stretched and yawned and then started making his exit while Serah stared at the curve of his back.

"W-wait!" She cried after him, eyes widening.

Hastily, she jumped off the counter and bounded after him.

"That isn't fair!" She shouted when she reached him, grabbing his arm.

He continued to move but betrayed a playful smile anyways. She then ran ahead of him and stretched out her arms, trying to block him from passing.

"I won't let you." She proclaimed.

Noel watched her with amusement; "You realize how easy it is for me to get past you, right?"

She paused, seemingly pondering what he had just said. Her arms then fell back to her sides and she said, "Fine. You're right."

And then, she took off his shirt and tossed it over the couch, leaving her in nothing but a pair of cute, frilly pink underwear. She discarded those too though while she had him still stunned. Noel just stared at her completely naked body and didn't know what else to expect.

"Now is it easy?" She quipped, smirking and gloating, knowing she had the victory.

After Noel recovered, he smiled back and said, "Made it even easier."

He stepped forward and she looked panicked but he grabbed her naked body easily and had her over his shoulder before she could even try to fight. She didn't though. She only giggled while he continued to trek towards the stairs leading up to the bedrooms with his one arm supporting her.

"Where's Fenrir?" She asked after most of the laughter left her.

"In our room, sleeping." Noel replied.

"But…" Serah started, voicing her concern aloud before she even realized it.

Noel grinned and said, "Oh, don't worry. He won't bother us."

He was up the stairs already and heading away from their bedroom. Serah could hear the jingling of Fenrir's collar but Noel continued to walk. The large, light brown dog came out of the room, watching Serah and Noel with tongue lolling out.

"We've been spotted." She informed Noel.

He didn't turn. He only continued to walk towards the bathroom. Once they were inside, he allowed a naked Serah to have freedom again and closed the door in Fenrir's face, "Sorry buddy but it's the doghouse for you tonight, not me."

And then he locked the door and turned to Serah, "And you wanted a cat."

She hopped into the shower stand and turned the hot water on.

"Cats wouldn't disturb their owners like that."

Noel just shook his head as he discarded his pajama bottoms and underwear, "Always have to have the last word, don't you?"

She smiled at him when she peeked out from behind the glass doors of the shower.

"Yup. Now get in here if you expect me to tolerate that dog."

Noel happily obliged. And more than once. Not even the dog's scratching against the door or his persistent whining would interrupt them.

Because here, no cats or dogs were allowed.

-Fin

A/N: Thanks for the read! Any type of feedback is appreciated. :)