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

[pinwheels]

Mm, I was!

[ Rinoa sits down on the sofa next to Tifa, and even though the other seemed okay from when she entered the room in the first place, hearing the confirmation from her lips that everything is fine helps to put the younger woman at ease. If the other does have one of her memories, it's at least not something bad...

...a thought that is confirmed a moment later when Tifa's tone, friendly and curious, asks a question that has Rinoa's eyes widening. She's mentioned Squall to both Cloud and Aerith, but she already knows that's not why the other is asking. Her hands curl in her lap, a pink flush appearing over her cheeks. ]

Squall is... he's my boyfriend.

[starshower]

[Okay, colour her a little surprised, only because she hadn't and didn't want to assume that they were that close, but not so surprised that her expression shifts at all. If anything, it grows warmer, and even with a touch of sadness that she tries her best to conceal.

It must not be easy for her...]

I see...

[Tifa takes a seat right next to Rinoa.]

The memory I saw... he was there. It was in a field of flowers, just... you and him. [She's getting better at not inserting 'me' into that. It was an odd habit but an easy one to break.] Sound familiar?

[pinwheels]

[ Her eyes drift shut at Tifa's words, trying to let the images fall into place in her mind. The flower field is familiar, but she remembers that, doesn't she? She wanted to go where they promised, but he wasn't there, and—

Wait. Where they promised? But they never made a promise... not that she can remember, anyway.

Rinoa's eyes open again. ]

I know the place you're talking about. [ A fond smile finds her lips. She's been searching in vain for it since she showed up in this place. ] But... What happened? In the memory?

[ She still has to tell Tifa about the memory of hers she has too, but right now, she needs to understand what she's lost. ]

[starshower]

[It feels so personal for her to be walking her way through a memory that doesn't belong to her. It's a bit surreal, remembering standing in that flower field as if it were her instead, but she does anyway, after a whimsical sigh.]

You told him about a dream you had. You ran and ran looking for him, but couldn't find him.

[It was all just a dream though, like Squall had reassured Rinoa in the memory.

Tifa's eyes fall shut now, remembering the next part, and when she blinks them open, there's warmth as her eyes fix on Rinoa.]

He promised that if you visited that flower field, you'd find him there.

[pinwheels]

[ If you come here...

Tears well in the corners of her eyes as suddenly as the memory unfolds in her mind. Such an important moment, and this place just ripped it from her thoughts so easily... She shakes her head, silent for a moment or two. For who even knows how long after they arrived here, all she'd done was looked for that field of flowers...

Rinoa takes a deep breath. ]

I remember.

[ Is he there now? Back home? Waiting for her? It's a cold chill on her heart.

She doesn't want to think about that. ]

It's weird, you know... I have a memory of yours too. About a promise.

[ A pause, and then she looks up at Tifa, curiosity shining through the tears. ]

Wait. Is Cloud your boyfriend?

[starshower]

[Tifa sits silently, sympathy welling up in her own eyes when she sees the tears in Rinoa's. She wants to reach out and take her by the hands, to remind her that although Squall isn't here with her, she still isn't alone in the struggle. She doesn't, however, when she poses the question instead.

Her expression shifts immediately to a shy one, and with a shaky laugh, she tucks a hair behind her ear.]

Nothing like that, no. But why does everyone keep asking!!! He's just a close friend of mine.

[An old childhood friend.

Without realizing it, she breathes out a sigh.]

Which promise was that?

[pinwheels]

[ Her eyebrows raise. With a reaction like that, there's definitely something Tifa isn't telling her, right? She may as well have put it into words, with how obvious her body language is. Still, Rinoa doesn't say anything about that just yet, closing her eyes once more to focus in on the memory. ]

It was nighttime, and he asked to see you to talk. He said he was gonna leave home and become a... a soldier?

[ "The best of the best. Like Sephiroth." Rinoa can't help but wonder if it's the same one. Because somehow, she can't imagine Cloud wanting to be anything like... that guy. Another question she can't ask just yet, though... ]

Then you asked him to promise that if you were in trouble, he'd come and save you. [ She smiles. ] Because that's what heroes do. He promised, but...

[ Her smile broadens, something playful and teasing as she looks over at Tifa. ]

In typical Cloud fashion, it was kinda begrudging, y'know?

[starshower]

[Of course, there had only been one promise between them, but that feels so long ago now. Tifa wondered if she'd seen the first time they'd promised each other, or if it had been much later after they'd reunited. She remembers both just as clearly, as if it had happened only yesterday.

Rinoa's comment draws a laugh from Tifa, though.]

It kind of was, wasn't it? I remember having to be really convincing when I made the argument. But even after all those years, he still remembered it. Kept it, too.

[Even if it hadn't been what she imagined it would be like...]

Anytime I was in a pinch, he came to help.

[pinwheels]

[ As quickly as it broadened into something playful and teasing, Rinoa's smile softens. She understands all too easily the fondness in the other's words. ]

Even here. I'm glad you guys ended up here together. Besides, the way I see it? He needs you to get him out of trouble sometimes too!

[ After all, Cloud's not always exactly people material... Rinoa likes him a lot, but she's sure he annoys and frustrates many people here just by virtue of being how he is. In a lot of ways, he reminds her of Squall.

Speaking of which... She reaches out, her hand clasping over Tifa's, her eyes bright as she peers at the other woman. ]

I know you said he's not your boyfriend, but... you like him, right?

[starshower]

[Rinoa!?!?!?

Tifa's eyes widen when her hands are taken in Rinoa's, and even more so when she poses the question. What is with everyone here lately? First Ren, now her... asking questions and making a big deal out of something as small as them, especially when they have bigger things to worry about!

In spite of her surprise though, the warmth remains underneath all of her embarrassment, and she slides a hand out from under Rinoa's to place on top, patting the other girl's gently.]

Uh, so... you feeling any better about that memory?

[Answer: It's Complicated.]

[pinwheels]

[ It's an answer understood loud and clear, but Rinoa can't quite help the grin that won't leave her face regardless of anything else. Complicated or not, in her eyes, Tifa's feelings are pretty clear. But it's not the time or place to pry that out of her, and so she's willing to let the other shift the topic of conversation. ]

Yeah. I'm okay. [ Sort of. If she doesn't think about it too too hard, anyway. There's too many feelings wrapped up there that she's not sure she's ready to handle just yet. ]

...Thanks.