open ✨ life can be harsh, it can be bitter.

[starshower]

Who: Tifa Lockhart feat. Cloud Strife & YOU
What: September catch-all. Tifa tries to find something else she enjoys outside of Heavenly Blanc, and drags Cloud along for the ride.
Where: Where the threads happen
When: When the threads happen
Content Warnings: N/A

𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦. 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘶𝘧𝘧, 𝘭𝘦𝘵 '𝘦𝘮 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘦. 𝚌𝚕𝚘𝚞𝚍 & 𝚝𝚒𝚏𝚊 ★ 𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚗 𝚌𝚘𝚘𝚙 ★ 𝚋𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚜𝚎 ★ 𝚠𝚒𝚕𝚍𝚌𝚊𝚛𝚍 ★ ♫

Comments

cloud & tifa ✨

[starshower]

★ SUSHI & BBQ IN WALL MARKET ★

[You may have seen them: hand-written posters plastered to the walls of Heavenly Blanc, Merlaut Apartments, and even Wall Market. The penmanship is neat and cursive, and the addition of drawings are meant to lure one's attention, with each poster having a different one than the next, but they all are printed with the same thing:]

𝒞𝑜𝓂𝑒 𝒷𝓎 𝒲𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝑀𝒶𝓇𝓀𝑒𝓉 𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝒶 𝓉𝒶𝓈𝓉𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝒮𝓉𝓇𝒾𝒻𝑒'𝓈 𝐵𝒾𝓉𝑒𝓈!
𝒜𝓁𝓁 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝒞𝒶𝓃 𝐸𝒶𝓉 𝒮𝓊𝓈𝒽𝒾 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝐵𝒶𝓇𝒷𝑒𝒸𝓊𝑒 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓁𝑜𝓌 𝓅𝓇𝒾𝒸𝑒 𝑜𝒻 𝓝𝓞𝓣𝓗𝓘𝓝𝓖!

[If one were to journey to Wall Market, the smell of meat will linger in the misplaced sector, and may even filter into the caves, but one thing is for sure: it smells damn good. Of course it does! This isn't Tifa's first rodeo with a barbecue, and she's passed down all her knowledge to Cloud, who will be manning the grill or the sushi rolling station while she takes orders and works the prep line.

While it does smell delicious, there is plenty to be desired about the final presentation of the food. The sushi is rolled crooked, and the rice is falling apart or squished into the fish, and the meat skewers are overcooked or overloaded with pieces (or both) and drizzled in way too much sauce, making them nearly impossible to eat without a mess. Tifa says nothing to Cloud, letting him sort that out himself, but when they hand one over to a hungry customer, she'll flash a sheepish smile.]

Still working out the kinks, but I promise it's tastier than it looks!

( ooc: please let us know if you are picking the sushi or the meat! )

★ THE LEMON CELLO CHURCH ★

[Alternatively, you could have seen the posters calling your attention to a different location, but still with the same precise handwriting. Tifa had promised Aerith not long ago (or a long time ago, time means nothing) that she would help her out with turning the church into a proper business—a flower and cake shop—and it just so happens that Cloud's interests had aligned with hers. So exciting!

So here they are, working at this makeshift bakery together where they've helped Aerith set up the tables and chairs in preparations for guests, each one decorated with a simple centerpiece: a vase with a single flower. Tifa has forced an apron she found inside Heavenly Blanc around Cloud's neck to make him look "more presentable and welcoming"—that SOLDIER uniform doesn't do him any good in either department, especially for a bakery, and she dons one too, although much more willingly.

As soon as anyone wanders into the church looking curious or hungry, she'll stuff the tray of samples into Cloud's hand and nudges him to the entrance with her.]

Welcome to Lemon Cello Church, a little taste of Aerith's home in Sector Five! [She calls out happily, waving. She thrives in this business stuff!] We've got some samples here if you'd like to try some! Take your pick.

[She nudges Cloud a little closer.

On the tray, there is a variety of different bite-sized cakes ranging from lemon, the house specialty, to vanilla, chocolate, and even cheesecake! This place really went all out when it imprinted, and just like the Wall Market supply, it seems to fill itself up again when no one's looking...

Anyway. Take one!]

( ooc: tag order will be you → cloud → tifa, unless other circumstances come up! )

BBQ

[bridge_princess]

[So, it wasn't actually a dig at Tifa and Cloud's efforts to diversify, but she hadn't seen the message at Heavenly Blanc. She'd caught the smell of cooking meat and seen a flier shortly after getting shunted out of the bathhouse for bringing a fish in and watching it dissolve.]

Fiiiine, kick me out. but I see your game...

[She'd learned something, though. Or more confirmed something. When the smell hit her nose, her mouth watered and she scrawled the observation on the back of the flier, between the musical notes that had just randomly appeared, and made her way over. Ok, she was starving. Coming over to the stall, she raised an eyebrow.]

So you were serious bout the second job, eh? Dare I ask what meat we're using for the barbeque?

[memorate]

[ Cloud, being so great at customer service, responds in the least reassuring way. ]

Do you really care? Just be grateful there is something.

[ Someone sure is grumpy about having to work for free. >:( ]

Sushi

[forwearemany]

(They're hungry a lot, now that they can feel hunger.

They don't know anything about "Strife's Bites", but the promise of food draws them.

When they get there, they're pleased to see familiar faces.)

Tifa.

(And then they look at the other. They know Cloud, but they don't know his name. They headtilt. It did say Strife's bites, so...)

Strife?

[memorate]

1,183 platforms.

[ Evidently, Cloud doesn't know their name either. Also it's programs, not platforms. ]

Uh...

[ Admittedly he wasn't expecting get a robot customer today, and he turns to Tifa quietly. ]

Do you think we're supposed to feed it?

let leo eat CAKE

[bachagain]

[ having wandered in here previously, the contents of the inside of the church isn't what catches him off-guard. well, kind of? maybe it's because he's been in here previously that he doesn't quite expect this... considering the atmosphere is a little more chill.

now, it's capitalism. not that it's a bad thing, when it comes from two faces he hasn't quite seen in a while. or, um, maybe a while? who the heck knows here. ]

Hmmmm... Wow, you're giving me a lot of options right off the bat! How the heck am I supposed to choose?! [ that's why there's samples, no, ] What would you recommend? What's your favorite? Both of ya!

[ yeah, that. now that it's all settled down, he can offer them both a smile in greeting as he looks them over.

... and yeah, he does linger a little on cloud's apron, but it's whatever. guess it's a sunny, awkward sky kind of day!! ]

[memorate]

If you get both of our opinions then you'll still be indecisive about which one to follow.

[ Assuming they give him different answers... because he's right, there are a lot of options. ]

Besides, cool guys can think for themselves.

[ That's free advice from the dork who actually thinks he's the leading expert on what's cool and what isn't. ]

sushi!

[forethinking]

(He had been on his way to the bathhouse when the smell invades his nose and without much thought, he follows it.

The scene is nothing short on endearing. It's nice to see Tifa branching out and dragging Cloud with her...

Ren shoots them a happy smile before he approaches, eyeing the food... That could definitely be better prepared, but they certainly tried! They get points.)

Hey, you two.

[memorate]

Hey yourself. You here for something from Lockhart's Snack Mart?

[ See, Tifa?!? Two can play at that game! ... Except her name idea was still better than his. ]

sushi

[anciently]

Well, it already looks pretty tasty.

[ They probably won't be surprised to see Aerith, who is looking expectantly (and hungrily!) at the pair, waiting for her food to be served. ]

...But I'll reserve judgment, if you want! [ It really does smell incredibly good, and her stomach rumbles a bit in protest of the wait. ] Shh, down there! You'll get yours! [ And then she'll turn back to Cloud and Tifa, smiling eagerly. ] So? Is it ready?

BBQ!

[rotomphone]

[ while eating much of anything satisfies hunger around this place, that doesn't mean that they can't appreciate things with finer tastes! that church cake had been delicious, and while grilled mushrooms are just fine and dandy, the idea of barbeque is making both his and Duraludon's mouths water. it's not much of a discussion - one look is all the agreement they need to make their way over to the Wall Market. ]

Yo! We're here for the food. [ he raises a hand in greeting to both Cloud and Tifa, with Duraludon trailing close behind. as much as he loves cake, meat is much more in line with his draconic tastes. ] You sure don't need the signage to tell people where you are. It smells great!

[ he'd taken a cursory look through the market with Turing when the lights had initially turned on, but things feel a little more lively now. with a little polish, this might actually turn out to be a pretty interesting place! ]

It sure looks fine to me! [ he'll have to be careful not to get sauce on his hoodie, but that's not going to stop him from paying compliments. the first skewer piece will go to Duraludon, who catches it in his mouth with a light toss. they've done this before. ] I dunno how I feel about having you guys do this for free, though. What can we can do to earn our keep?

cake!!!!

[laconism]

[The numerous posters for both establishments have caught Red's attention, however there's absolutely no debate to be had over which one he chooses to check out first. The posters advertising Lemon Cello Church have him at the word "cake," so he wastes no time in heading over there with his loyal Pikachu perched on his shoulder as always.

He'd heard from Blue that Tifa isn't working at Heavenly Blanc anymore, although he's surprised to find her at another business. Red offers her a smile as he returns her wave, Pikachu following suit with much more vigor.]

Pika pi~! [He's so happy to see the nice lady again!! Cloud gets a cheerful little wave from Pikachu too. Although this is their first actual meeting, Red recalls seeing this man around at the party at Heavenly Blanc a while back.

It doesn't take long at all for the two of them to decide which cake flavors they want. Pikachu eagerly points at a vanilla one, so Red takes one of those for his little friend and passes it up to him before taking a cheesecake one for himself.]

Thank you.

BBQ! hope I'm not too laaate

[halloflamer]

[Blue had eagerly encouraged Tifa to spread her wings and experience life outside the bar a little when he'd taken over for her, and that included a promise to come by and visit her in Wall Market sometime, where she'd decided to try her hand at other food related pursuits in the meantime.]

[And he's making good on that promise- on a shift where Ren's watching things at the bar, Blue finds himself hungry one day for something other than his own home-cooking at the bar, and that usually brings him wandering down to Mt. Silver's basement level, and to the Wall Market. An awfully strange place to be situated in the basement of a remote mountain he knew well, but it was colorful and lively, and he was pretty sure he appreciated its presence here more than Red did, that hermit.... Blue follows the delicious scent of grilling meat with Eevee practically salivating on his shoulder, and pokes his head into a tent where the smokey smell seems to be coming from, flashing Tifa a bright smile when he spots her.]

Yo, Tifa-chan! I heard you've been cooking up a storm down here! I'm hungrier than a Hippopotas, [Blue gushes, pulling himself up a stool and plopping down; Eevee hops off his shoulder and shakes his tail, preening himself at Tifa for attention.] Can't wait to try some of this great-smelling streetmeat of yours.

--Oh, speakin' of streetmeat, blondie's here, too! [Blue grins, a little toothy, and waves at Cloud manning the grilling. No complaints here.....]

chicken coop ✨

[starshower]

[Back on the road for Tifa's Grand Adventure to finding other jobs and hobbies she's passionate about! It was during a conversation with Lance when she decided that she would give her all into becoming the greatest Pokemon rancher in all of the Void... starting with the chickens, if one could even call them that (or Pokemon, but no one has told them otherwise).

She's conveniently found some useful items that have washed up on the beach that she thinks could help her in building the fence and coop that she promised to put together—pieces of lumber, metal scraps, bits and bolts, even some tools!—that she's carried all the way back to the forest surrounding Mortis Lake where the featherless birds are most commonly found.

Anyone within the vicinity will be able to hear a mix of banging and rattling, whether it's echoing through the trees... or in their own heads (sorry!) followed by an uttered string of curses when it doesn't sit quite right, not in the way she would like it to.]

Oh, come on! If I just will it to work, would that be enough!?

[At the source of the racket, Tifa will be standing with what appears to be a square of wooden planks nailed together, but it's crooked and looks like it will fall apart the moment she takes her hands off it. She's strong, but not the greatest at carpentry all on her own, so any help would be... nice...

Alternatively, she's had to wrestle with the chickens over the course of her project. She's barely started and they've already started climbing all over her supplies, and she's had to rush over and pick them up one by one to move them off so none of them hurt themselves on the pieces of sharp metal. It's like she's babysitting a group of toddlers: they're loud, fast, and don't understand a word she says.]

Now, you behave! [Her voice is stern as she waggles a finger at them, once again unaware that she may be overheard from a distance.] I'm trying to build you a home, you know!

[Has she been talking to the chickens? Yes. Yes, she has.]

bathhouse ✨

[starshower]

[After all that work cooking meat and building a fence, it's nice to have somewhere to go where she can relax and let go of all of the tension that's built up in her muscles... and to wash off the smell of beef. Tifa's been to the bathhouse before to shower, but hasn't been inside the baths yet, deciding to wait for the lights to start working again before giving them a try.

At the entrance, she reads the sign with some apprehension knitting into her brow: no towels in the bath? ... What is she supposed to do if someone else is in there?

Well, what's the harm, right? It's just a towel.

Anyone who's inside the bath already will receive a greeting when she strolls in, hair up and a towel wrapped securely around herself. When she dips her toes into the steaming water, she exhales in a relieved sigh. It feels nice... What she wouldn't have given for this back in Midgar, except this one is exceptionally cleaner than any of the bathhouses she would have expected to find in Wall Market.

When she recalls the rules written out in plain sight, Tifa presses a finger to her lips.]

Don't tell anyone.

[She then begins to lower herself slowly into the water with the towel still on. Please stop her... Please. For the love of god, stop her or watch her teleport away.

Or, you can find her outside, having just been kicked out in the blink of an eye. If you're passing through, a girl in a towel will magically appear directly in front of you, looking surprised and having no idea what the heck just happened. Her legs are dripping wet and she's cold, and it takes a moment for the realization to sink in that she's no longer inside the bathhouse.]

Huh—!?

wildcard ✨

[starshower]

[ For anything else you'd like to do with Tifa this month! You know the drill: feel free to slam a starter down, or contact me via PM or at crystariums if you'd like to plot something specific! ]

sparring

[realway]

[ there was a promise made at the welcoming party for a (friendly) fight, and ahsoka is ready to make good on her word. she checks in with tifa one day to make sure she's ready for a match, and takes them on the path to the shrine bridge.

pointedly, she does not actually mention that she had the idea for them to fight on the bridge until they get to the gate. her smile is bashful to say the least. ]

It's a little unconventional, but I like to think a narrow arena means more opportunity for our skill to shine. Hope you don't mind?

tdm threads ✨

[starshower]

noctis 🌙

[starshower]

( ⇄ )

[All she'd like to say is "you'll see", but he deserves a little more of an answer than that.]

Not sure how it happened, but... it's got different parts from both places. Like someone saw the ideas in a magazine, but couldn't decide what they liked more, you know?

[Ah, that just makes it sound even crazier.]

... That probably doesn't answer much, does it?

sephiroth 🔥

[starshower]

( ⇄ )

[His question seems to unwind Tifa's posture a little. If there's one thing this world is good at, it's putting them all at the same level, and as much anger as she feels for him right now, she's not going to withhold that kind of information. Guess she'll have to play nice, too.]

We don't know. Time doesn't work the same here as it does anywhere else. [She points to the sky, but her eyes never once leave his.] There's no sun, and no night. No way to tell the time but to count it yourself.

[And even then, unless someone's been keeping track of time right down to the second, there's no way of knowing for sure how long it's been. It feels like weeks, maybe months. Part of why she and Cloud thought this was their fault, or Sephiroth's...]

Pretty sure everyone's perception's skewed without sleep.

memory swaps ✨

[starshower]

ren ✨ a guy can change

[starshower]

"How sweet. When did you get so thoughtful?"
"A guy can change. Has been five years."

★☆★

[This particular new memory that Tifa's acquired isn't difficult to pin down. Some of them are and some aren't, but there was one tell that gave it all away. It wasn't the strange outfits that did, though she wonders about that, nor was it the memory of the hot heat under her soles or the harsh desert sun beating down on her head while a structure collapsed all around her while she made a daring escape. Nothing in Nibelheim or Midgar was like this, and she doesn't recognize the people or the place... no, this isn't supposed to be here.

What does give it away is the cat. Or rather, what she thinks is supposed to be a cat. A talking cat that's yeeted into the sky and transforms into a car on landing... Or is it a bus?

Not that a technicality like that matters too much at the end of the day, so to speak, when she's rapping on Ren's apartment door hoping that he's home.]

Ren? You in there?

[Yeah, she's figured it out and Tifa has a lot of questions for you!!!]

damien ✨ chopper's gonna chew you up

[starshower]

"Leading man sticks around until the credits roll!"

...

"Plate separation authorized. Awaiting confirmation."

★☆★

"You ever think about hitting that place?"

[Of course she has. With Shinra—no, Blume moving people in and out of the Merlaut so often, they'd be dumb not to... is what Tifa tells herself at first, when she recalls it. Talking to Aiden... wait, no. That's not right either. It should be Barret. And since when did Merlaut have anything to do with Shinra? Everything about this memory is wrong, and it takes Tifa playing it out in her head to remember where she'd heard those names before, or rather, from who.

Damien was the one who told her about Blume, and the Merlaut was a place local to his world, not hers.

This isn't the first time she's had to deal with a memory that didn't belong, and fortunately, many of them haven't been difficult to place. Hints from past conversations were there, almost like this was her subconscious trying to create something out of them, like a dream in a waking state. Maybe the lack of sleep is finally starting to get to them.

Maybe that's why she hasn't been able to recall some of her own memories.

There's a slow knock on the door of room 109.

Please be home...

And when Damien does open the door, Tifa's head tilts, hand pressed to her chest.]

Hey... I think I have something that belongs to you.

[There really is no good way of starting this conversation.]

zack ✨ total plate separation imminent

[starshower]

"Evacuate the area immediately."

★☆★

"Not quite... what I expected."
"Really? I think it's fine."

"Twenty... three?"
"Write them down, so I don't forget."

[These would be things Tifa would say to Aerith, without a doubt, but she can't ever recall a time where she had. More than that, Aerith looks... different. Younger than the one that she knows here and now. She looks lighter and happier, with less weight on her shoulders while she deliberates a newly built flower cart that they... built...?

No, this is another one of those lost memories, and while this one is a little harder to pick out, there are only three possibilities, and one of them wouldn't make any sense, so Sephiroth is out. That leaves Cloud and Zack as the only people left from their world who could know Aerith and... well, Tifa isn't blind to the way that Aerith and Zack look at each other, or how the former seems just a touch happier now that he's here.

But if this is anything like her memories with Ren, the possibility that he could have gained something of hers is there. She wonders what kind that is, if any... Tifa and Zack don't exactly share her most cherished memories as it is.

So it's with some trepidation that she approaches him, finding him outside of Merlaut Apartments.]

Hey... [Ah, here comes the awkward tension again. She thought she got over this.] Can we talk?

rinoa ✨ promises

[starshower]

"If I'm ever trapped or in trouble, promise you'll come and save me."

★☆★

[The only way Tifa could tell that one of her new memories belonged to Rinoa was because the man had said her name. The flowers, his face, all of it was so unfamiliar to her, and yet, it still roused a sense of familiarity and friendliness inside her whenever it played over in her head—the same kind she feels so strongly around Cloud that it makes her wonder who Squall is. All she knows is that they must be important to one another, especially if the two of them had shared a promise like that.

At some point during the whole mix up of memories, Tifa knocks on her neighbour's door, hoping that she's in there and not in the middle of something else, like another one of these conversations.]

Rinoa? I'd like to talk, if that's alright.

[Her voice on the other side of the door is gentle. Warm. She hopes that it will at least express to her that she isn't knocking on her door with bad news.]