sephiroth, “tol alien boy”, SOLDIER first class. (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
supersoldier) wrote2020-02-01 01:17 am
supersoldier) wrote2020-02-01 01:17 am
( aefenglom inbox. )
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no subject
Lead the way.
[Not his usual role, to follow someone else’s lead, but neither is seeking lost cats for a minuscule amount of money that he doesn’t even care for. Today is a day of defying the norm, it would seem.
Cloud gets a running start to leap over the fencing, but Sephiroth doesn’t need quite that much. The jump is easy, effortless, and he lands on the other side with a surprising dearth of noise.
Beyond them, a glimpse of that same cat, back to them, moving away. Sephiroth straightens and calls out—
P...rincess. S...weetie-poo.
Okay, he actually doesn’t say anything, deferring to Cloud instead.]
Call for it.
no subject
...It's just one of those things. Besides, it's weird to call attention to it. Besides, he's looking for that damn cat. Using the traits of the other side of him isn't possible- He doesn't have the creature's scent. But he can see well enough in the dark. And he does- spying the thing tiptoeing around a corner.
He moves- bringing his hand to the hilt of the sword at his back, (...Not for the cat. More like for anyone that might be around said corner, armed, and inclined toward defending their property) and he starts to creep forward.]
...
[His gaze moves to him, at the order. Quickly.]
Not happening.
[Brisk? Yes. Rude? Probably. But no way. He exhales, turning the corner, and immediately dropping down to a crouch. There's a little alley. Tiny, actually. Filled to the brim with broken tools, shabby furniture as well as all manner of other trash, far too narrow to by any kind of back exit. But at the back of it, there is a cat. ....He can see the glint in its eyes as it stares at him.
And as for what he said:]
...We don't need to get on first-name terms with it. We just need to catch it, bring it back, and get paid.
[He inches forward. Slowly- extending a hand.]
...Here, cat.
[This is just as stupid.]
...Cat, cat, cat....
[A few more inches.]
Here...
[Suddenly the sound of clattering.]
Shit!
[The creature yowls, making a leap right at Cloud, clawing it's way up him and to his shoulder- then makes a jump for Sephiroth. It lands just shy of him, darting underneath his legs and toward the street again.]
no subject
What follows is a very good example of what not to do.
In the wake of cacophonous racket, the angry yowl of a feline and trash clattering to the ground, everything goes pear-shaped in a matter of seconds. Suddenly the cat is angrily clawing its way up and over Cloud’s shoulder, leaping at Sephiroth but landing at his boots. The animal slips between his legs, and he does little more than turn to watch it run and squeeze its way through the fence behind them.
Sephiroth glances behind him, raising a pale brow at Cloud.]
Because “cat” was much better.
[Sarcasm, Cloud has unearthed it. He is not impressed!
But to be fair, the failure is on both of them. He could have reacted fast enough to swoop down and pick the thing up, but missed that opportunity — surely if the whole of Shinra’s science department was gathered ‘round, they’d take note of this failure and wonder what it meant for his performance in any future cat-gathering expeditions. But such sardonic musings are best withheld for another time.
Right now, they have a cat to catch, and so Sephiroth wastes no time in running after it in a rush. This time, Cloud can do the following, because in a few more seconds he’s already making a second leap to clear the fence once more.]
no subject
...And even if the thought's a sardonic one, ...It's kind of right.
Regardless. He can only really narrow his eyes before Sephiroth is off, and, since time is something of the essence in this sort of situation, he's got to follow. Even if the damn thing clawed him pretty good while climbing him. He's up and over the fence again seconds after him, swivelling his head around the makeshift street until the clattering of something else tips him off.]
Over there!
[Rubble. Stored building material- concrete breezeblocks, lengths of timber, gigantic bags of cement mix and other assorted stone. There's a small opening inside of it where blocks have been arranged haphazardly- and he can make out the light distorting as something small glances it, interferes with it.
His hand moves to his sword again. This time, not to ready it. More to adjust it after that jump. And he moves forward.
...A swallow. Sephiroth's...
Probably far too tall, and far too broad of a man to get his shoulders through there. So.]
Think it'd be better if you stay here? That way, you can make a grab at it if it decides to bolt again.
no subject
No, he’s too tall to squeeze into that space, and probably too broad, too, even if he tried.]
That’s for the best, considering I won’t fit in there.
[If this were a dire situation — or a battle situation — Sephiroth wouldn’t be so easily deterred by something as mundane as building material. However, this is the simple retrieval of a cat, and there’s no need to rely on extreme measures; that would just be a show of incompetence.]
Go on, and I’ll stay here.
[Alert and waiting.]
no subject
It's leaned against the pile of breezeblocks. It's fine if it stays there. He's sure as hell not going to ask Sephiroth to hold it anyway. And. As he enters a gap that's probably wide enough...]
Here... [His voice lowers.] ...Princess.
[Sigh.]
Here... [This is so embarrassing.] ...Princess, Princess.
Good... Princess.
Sweetie- fuck this.
[If Sephiroth can suddenly hear hissing, he would be right. It's low- tinged toward the end with a long, low yowling sound. Suddenly, it increases in volume. It becomes loud, all at once, and it's accompanied by hissing from Cloud himself.
He's... got it. Or, more accurately, had it- it's wriggled free and is scrambling up the breezeblock tower from the inside.]
It's moving up!
[He can't get through there. But he can sure put his hand through, after it.]
no subject
For now, however, it’s all business. There’s a yowling sound, then a hissing from both (likely not promising), and then Cloud telling him that the feline is trying to climb up and escape. He can see his fingers peek through a crack between blocks as he tries to pursue it.
Sephiroth makes his move, rounding at the right angle to reach his own hands towards the shadow of a cat creeping up into daylight. Its head pokes out first, then part of its body, and he reaches for it, both hands at its sides just beneath the shoulder blades.
It hisses at him, ears pinned back, and swipes with a claw, which catches on the material of Sephiroth’s sleeve.]
Stop. [—he commands, as if the cat were a low-ranking officer, cold and stern.]
Cloud, I’ve got it. [But it seems rather… hm. Stuck around the middle.]
no subject
As the cat scrambles upward, he moves himself into a crouching position underneath the creature, shifting a block to the side to afford himself more of a grip.
It's... probably not a good idea to move more. But his torso can fit after it now, and as it gets stuck (and indeed proves that the long-accepted fact that cats were actually liquid is bullshit) he's rewarded for all of his effort by the creature's back legs kicking, and getting clawed in the face.]
Shit...
[Honestly, he should start a swear jar at this rate. He pulls back to avoid more flails of the cat's back legs, bringing his hand to his face. Then, he listens to Sephiroth's voice.]
Yank on it.
[Whether the thing got hurt or not, he's past caring.
But... actually...
His strength would probably split the thing in half. He sighs- adjusting himself and inching back toward the way he came.]
Actually... hang on. I'm coming back.
[Strangely, the sounds of the cat seem faint now. Was he desensitised to the sound of yowling cat, or... was it listening to him? Weird. That little thought's answered as he comes out of the opening- dusty, sure. Bleeding slightly? Why not. Sporting a few bumps on his elbows and knees that'd probably bruise? Sure, add that in too.
As he emerges, he claps the dust ff his gloves before he moves to the top of the pile (...He didn't have the luxury of Sephiroth's height to lean over the thing, after all) and he gazes at the cat. ...It seems scared of him? It's ears are pinned back, and it's sounds are a low, warbling hiss- eyes locked onto Sephiroth's... similar ones.
....Okay.]
I'm gonna try moving some blocks. You gonna keep hold of it, right? Thing'll probably try and run again as soon as it can.
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He looks worse for wear, to say the least. Like he’s just come back from battle — maybe that’s not too far off the mark, he thinks to himself wryly.]
...Your face.
[You’re bleeding, Cloud. Why are you always bleeding?
The cat hisses loudly again at the other man, and Sephiroth can feel the working of lithe muscles under the firm grip of his fingers.]
I think it likes you even less than me. [A beat.] Playing into the stereotype of “fighting like cats and dogs”, maybe.
[But yes, he’s not letting go.]
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[Just scratches. Probably going to be mostly healed by the morning, for certain gone by the morning after that, but ....he sounds pissed. Kind of childish too, actually- given the fact that little shot by said cat's hurt his pride far more than his body.
It's... really not Sephiroth's fault. But he's annoyed- and with lowered eyes and a faint sigh, he starts to move the blocks, picking, with little effort, what'd normally take a man both hands to push, up a block with a hand and tossing it to the side. Sullenly.
But his eyes move up at Sephiroth's next statement.
...Then they look away, to the side.]
It's weird. Cats're... cats. Don't like 'em. Don't hate 'em, either. They're just there. Normally.
[But.]
I think it's this place. Or the changes. Can't stand this thing, even before it decided it's an asshole.
[His hands clasp around the block underneath the one he removed.]
Anyway, this one'll do it. You good?
no subject
That’s to be expected. I told you about my preference to sleep in high places, and that being planted to the ground is less and less appealing by the day.
[The changes were subtle, but steady. Psychological more than physical. Which was more worrying, in the end?]
It makes sense that a cat would avoid a wolf, and a wolf would see a cat as—
[“Princess” hisses again, low and lengthy.]
—irritating prey.
[Nothing to be done, other than to make certain that he’s the one holding this angry animal the entire time. Sephiroth isn’t one for pets, but it’s still a task he can manage without complaint.]
I’m ready. Remove it.
no subject
I figured that was some kind of weird joke. At the time.
[Sephiroth's.... not exactly the best with them, so he figured it was either that or some flippant comment. The block is shifted easily enough, discarded over the edge of said pile with a flick of his wrist. And as said cat is freed, it growls in a manner that's far less than happy.
But, Sephiroth's got hold of it. So, he clambers down the pile.]
You think you're going to leave the city? There's highrises, sure. But it's not the same. Right?
no subject
It’s quite a sight, Sephiroth standing there, holding… a cat. But there’s nothing for it.
Despite himself, he chuckles a little at the question, amused at how it’s equal parts ridiculous and practical.]
If you’re asking whether or not I plan on nesting in a tree any time soon, the answer is no.
[But the amusement fades back into his usual detachment. Sephiroth brushes past Cloud, walking down the way they came, though he pauses just long enough to let him retrieve his sword.]
There has to be a balance between who we are and what this planet is trying to make us become. If I have to change, I won’t allow one to completely overtake the other.
no subject
The cat in particular hates him. It's pretty obvious from how it hisses and how it bristles when he gets close, the fact it calms immediately after he withdraws from the block pile, and goes right into staring at Sephiroth in, what he thinks is its own part-fascination, part-fear. When it's finished wriggling, that is.
No skin off his nose. He didn't think much of the creature either. And Sephiroth's holding it, so he didn't have to. So he keeps his distance, collecting said sword, and putting it on his back.
...And he looks over when he hears Sephiroth's faint laugh. Not so long ago, he'd have been surprised to hear it. His memories had been full of it. Either... unrestrained in his insanity, desperate too- or just unfathomably cruel.
But now? It's neither of those things. It's amused, sure. Bright- beholding of a genuine amusement. But it's small. Ending just as soon as it began. A hand moves to the back of his neck as he then averts his gaze, focusing on following.
And responding.]
I don't know.
[A pause.]
We're from another one. [Another.] Look, I know you don't believe it, but... every planet's a living thing. Everyone born on a planet, is from that planet. Part of it. So... something from another...
[He tries to think of an example.
...Jenova.
No. Better not.]
Look, forget it. What you're saying could be possible. Probably be best to find the people that've been here the longest, right? If it's possible to find any kind of balance, you'll know by talking to 'em. Seeing how far gone they are.
no subject
Still, he’s listening instead to the point that Cloud is trying to make. The planet, alive — more talk that reminds him of Avalanche, but it’s hard for him to spin Shinra’s rebuttal on the subject these days. His heart isn’t much in it; it hasn’t been for a while.]
Then what would that make us? Unneeded organisms in this planet’s ecosystem? And yet it tries to make us a part of it, regardless. Subsuming something alien.
[It still sounds far-fetched to his ears, but he’s more open to the notion now than he ever was. Skepticism crumbles under the weight of literally being supplanted to a new world, where the rules are very different.]
Still. Asking others for information is advice you should take for yourself, too.
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[If. It's... a notion that he's not 100% confident in. For their planet, to him, it's truth. An unshakable one. Bugenhagen had mentioned other planets were the same, too. But, from speaking to people from other worlds, they're either unaware of it, or... it's different.]
...I was told other planets're the same. But, the people from other planets here don't buy it either. Might be true, might not. Maybe it's more a case of what happens with reactors. Animals around 'em get changed by mako leaks, right? Maybe there's something here, that isn't on our world. Something changing us.
[But that's...
Well, who knew. But wait, there's the other theory. That this wasn't another planet. That it was some part of the lifestream, some delusion, and that they were all dead. Made sense. Given Aerith, Sephiroth, Nier. ...Maybe even him. The last thing he remembered could've killed him, just the same.
But it's not like he can tell Sephiroth about that, either. So.]
Maybe.
[He doesn't exactly sound that convincing. Normally, he'd leave it as that. End the conversation before it'd really begun, allow an uncomfortable silence to pervade the atmosphere. Probably make said atmosphere as awkward as hell too.
But.]
I don't do that well with stuff like that.
no subject
The last part, though. The bit latched on about how Cloud doesn’t do well with the idea of having changes impressed upon him, has Sephiroth questioning it.]
Your body changing?
[That’s obvious— anyone here would find issue with it. He does, as well. But he thinks that the other man might mean it in a different, more affecting way.]
Or the lack of agency it represents?
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[He regrets saying anything now. Not about the theories. Regardless of whether they were right or not, they didn't change anything. They were changing. That was all that was important. Using terminology similar to what he knew as fact, only allowed for coping better. Didn't change a damn thing though. There's no revelation to be had.
Regardless of whatever was causing it, Sephiroth's statement that he'd seek out a balance, and force this balance unto himself was... well, normally, he'd not put that much stock in it. But it's him. Someone of whom possessed a will strong enough to overtake a Lifestream. Even Jenova, eventually. ...So he can see it. If anyone could, it'd be him.
But regardless.
What he had problems with, was talking to other people about his changes. Asking about theirs. Asking for help, even anonymously, on a network, just adding his questions to a pile of other people's. The network, in general, was something he ignored. And he was content to ignore it.
It was difficult enough to go into things with people he knew. He's not transparent. Not even with them. Case in point: this. He'd only alluded to his lack of capacity with Sephiroth because of the shared experiences retrieving an asshole cat, and honestly, their relationship broadening beyond what Sephiroth eventually became. That caused him to let his guard down.
But it's not enough to make him explain. Not when opening his mouth already seems like a mistake.]
..Where're we supposed to take this cat, again?
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...The address on the note is nearby. A high rise a few blocks down from the posting. I remember because I thought that the building looked new.
[His reply is automatic. He’s still thinking.
Cloud, who travelled with others back on their planet. Cloud, who certainly has made friends on this one? Or does he assume too much? He realizes, then, that he does not really know him; that he rarely ever knows anyone deeply enough to really understand what makes them tick, even if he always has been able to assume through observation with relatively successful results.
Still, he’s spent ample enough of time around him — here and there. There are parts of his personality that are similar to his own, in a way. As though Cloud’s own reticence were a rougher version of Sephiroth’s aloof nature.
If that’s the case, he likely doesn’t want to linger on the subject. Probably wouldn’t do well with questions. But he has to clarify, for even Sephiroth finds it impractical to not rely on this world for workable information. On the people who might have answers where they do not.]
...It’ll be difficult to function on this planet through independence alone. It simply isn’t practical. Think of everyone else as representing... a resource, unused.
[And to avoid making himself sound like a hypocrite, an addendum—]
When I am admitting to something like that, you know you should take it into consideration.
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[Shit. The listing was in his pocket now, wasn't it? So much for a subject change. He retrieves it, and reads it, offering a faint nod at Sephiroth's (pretty astute) comment about the building. The guy had a good head for direction. But honestly, that ...made sense.
But as for the rest?]
Yeah, like bonds.
[This thinking is flawed. Highly so. But to him, it makes sense. This world forced connection in a way theirs didn't. Nothing about what Sephiroth is saying is wrong- people needed people. He's aware. He'd been aware of it since he was a child- (even if thinking of himself back then is still enough, even now, to make him want to think about anything else) but the deviation in his thinking lies with assuming such could be obtained through bonds alone.
He did travel with others, on his world. But even then, it'd been for a purpose. For a point. For him, the realization that they were friends too, that they cared about each other, isn't quite formed yet. At least, not entirely. Not before an event in his future, where given the opportunity to leave, to spend what time they could with their loved ones, instead they came back.
If he asked himself about it, he'd know he felt that way, sure. Friendship. Something more than just banding together for a purpose and then returning to their respective lives. He did see them as friends. He did care, and he did cherish them. Problem is, the feeling's only worth a damn if they thought the same.
Plus, there's another problem. He takes things too far. He knows he does- and this feeling could've easily been exactly the same one that's plagued him for years- the one that had him look through a little girl's window, even if she barely knew him. The same one that made him follow her- the one that got her hurt.
It's a belief that something's wrong with him. That he takes everything too far. Confirmed by her father's blame. Embraced with the act of hurting her friends afterward.
But.]
...Right.
[Nothing else is said. Whether it's apparent the advice has sunk in or not isn't clear. But.]
If there's a way out, and we get back, are you going to look for that Genesis guy?
[For him, it's a while ago. A ... very long time ago. His memory's pretty foggy, but there's one thing he knows for certain.]
He was supposed to be killed the same time as Angeal. But there were sightings.
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The question causes a silence to fill between them. Sephiroth continues walking at a steady pace, down the street, and they near the postings board where this all started. But finally-]
I already was. That had been one of the reasons why I accepted the assignment to Nibelheim. There had been rumors of activity linking him to the area.
[He supposes it’s only right that Cloud knows the underlying intent of the mission so unduly interrupted for him. To the other man, it had been years ago.]
If I were to return to that exact place and time, I would see it through to the end. What happens after that depends on the result.
[Perhaps more than Sephiroth realizes.]
...But I’ve been thinking that certain obligations with the company might be at an end.
no subject
...Right.
[Sephiroth, being bonded, might feel a faint amount of disappointment at that word. Because... yeah. Cloud does feel disappointed, somewhat. But if Sephiroth does feel anything, it's fleeting. Mostly because the source of this emotion knows, full well, that he doesn't have the luxury of them. Not any longer. He has to rein it in. ]
Makes sense.
[A few more steps, a turn around a corner, and:]
Almost there.
[Errant commentary. Solely intended to detract from the larger issue being discussed. A few more steps, another corner, one makeshift alleyway and:]
Shinra never were what they say in their publicity. But they've done things that're beyond terrible.
no subject
Insofar as he assumes, at least.
Down the alleyway they go. The cat in his arms wiggles, meows, wiggles a bit more, but Sephiroth's grip — while not painful — is tight and unerring.]
This doesn't surprise me as much as it should. Not any longer.
[Not after what happened to Genesis and Angeal, but if only Sephiroth actually knew how deeply Shinra's questionable, immoral business practices ran.]
But you're referring to more than just [apparently] draining the life out of the planet?
no subject
[Let's see. Five- no, seven years ago. That meant-]
In your time, the Corel reactor's being built. Probably early stages, right? The company just managed to convince the townspeople there to abandon their coal mines. Gonna take a few years to build it.
[He moves his gaze back to Sephiroth to ascertain that. It... should be right. It just about lines up. Maybe the company hadn't quite completed the negotiations. But they'd be close. ]
But they do it, same way they always do. The reactor's in the mountains, powers the town. Also, there's another reason for it.... I'll... get into that later. Anyway, something goes wrong, the thing blows.
[He's slowed to a stop now, because... honestly, this part's important. He... wants to see how Sephiroth reacts.]
They blamed the miners, and they killed 'em. Every one they could find, anyway. Then, they torched the town, with their families inside it.
...Years later, they built a theme park over it. What's left of the place is now some prison for people kicked out of the park. The point of time I'm from, the survivors moved to a new settlement, called North Corel. And it's worse than the slums.
[Slight pause.]
North Corel's not the only place. Fort Condor, by Junon's, going through something similar. Difference is, they got their loved ones out. ...Gongaga blew, too.
no subject
And it was easy to detach oneself from it, to not overthink the measures they would go to make the company look good, make it look corporate-clean and untouchable. A life entrenched in the army made that simple — follow orders from the top, knowing you were providing protection for those who could not manage it for themselves. Or that you were fighting back the potential onslaught of an enemy force, nipping a resistance in the bud before it could sprout its creeping vines across Midgar’s foundations.
But time passes and eats away at those certainties, just as it did with Sephiroth's. And that does that make him any better for keeping his loyalties entrenched, for a time, with Shinra? Because it was the purpose he was born for, raised for, told what to do and he did it well?
He is expressionless as they stop in front of a tall building, craning his gaze upwards to spot the floor they need to be on. A short climb, if anything. But Cloud will feel a discontent stirring in their bond, malignant and deep.]
Negligence is the least of Shinra’s crimes. You said they torched an entire town?
[He wonders if there’s any shred of honor to cling to, working for the company. Perhaps he’s already made his decision, knowing the answer to that.]
That’s unforgivable, and yet— Anything for the bottom line, anything to expand their influence. It’s easy to be blinded to all of that from the inside.
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