001: watch for me by moonlight
[The road, if it can be called a road, is narrow. So narrow that it would be hard to walk along it facing forward instead of sideways. To both sides there's a drop off that seems to go down forever, layers of shadows and tendrils of mist that float disturbingly deep in that darkness. Mountains rise on either side, catching the moonlight and
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He's surprised by how strongly that thought effects him.
With a soft sound in his throat, he shakes that away and Fenrir picks up speed. He doesn't let it turn into a jerk that would jar her, instead building as they go until Fenrir's screaming along and the snow can't hope to keep up with them or keep a hold when it does land. His body is shelter enough to keep the icy whips of it's impact from most of Aerith and he coaxes just a bit more speed out of the giant bike as it slews up the now icy path. Monsters go by, white and grey shadows in the snow, but Fenir's far too fast for them and it's past before they even realize there was something coming. The mountain looms large and Cloud follows the familiar path around it and down into the valley the small, quaint village is located in.
He slows as he approaches though, reaching down to give Aerith's arm a light rub with his hand, feeling her cold skin and determined to get her a jacket first thing. It's late - or early - but the village is still it up, warm and golden and cheerful in the night. Cloud will simply made a low sound in his throat and let her enjoy their approach to it in silence.]
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Nothing "okay" about it; to her, everything is new and wonderful. The wind is cold, but the goggles and gloves help. Cloud's consideration makes more than up for it, too. He seems different from the person she's been traveling; not enough to be a new person ... but something's different.
Her eyes shift from a sidelong glance at him to the village ahead, the one her mother told her bits and pieces about. Though she's shivering now, she barely notices, green fixed on the gold light spilling onto white snow. ]
... So pretty ... Cloud, did you know? This is where I was born. [ She shivers again and then huffs. ] But gosh! You'd think I'd be better at handling the cold. You're still warm. [ She relaxes her hold on him now, though her hands still hover near -- just in case. ]
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Her house... her parents' house... he knows it's just that way...
Not yet though. Something tells him that house is full of sad things and he- he doesn't want to do that yet. This time feels impossibly rare and precious to him and he doesn't know why but he knows he doesn't want it to end.
He doesn't want to see her sad...
Instead, he turns Fenrir off and slides off the bike, dropping the stand as he does so. The engine ticks faintly as it cools, content with its run and he reaches around to lift Aerith off the bike, not coincidentally pulling her into the shelter of his body without actually pulling her against him.]
Mako.
[it's the one word explanation but it's really the only word that needs to be said. His body holds heat longer which is handy in situations like this - and sucks in the desert. And he'd never liked heat to start with.]
Come on.
[his hand wraps around hers without thinking about it and he draws her toward the inn's door. He's focused on getting her in front of the fire and something warm to drink. She's cold and it's his job to make sure she gets warm.
It's his job to take care of her.]
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Oh, Cloud -- I'm coming. You just always want to move fast! The inn's a good idea. We'll get warm inside. [ In fact, Aerith's thinking along the same line with drinks; when they get inside, she calls to the innkeeper and asks if they can have two hot chocolates before looking over to Cloud for confirmation.
... He's the one who has to pay for them, after all. ]
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Icicle Inn feels close to being the edge of the world.
At her glance, he hesitates, wondering what she's asking before it occurs to him and he nods to the inn keeper. It doesn't occur to him that she would ever have to ask him for anything. Of course he'd pay for it. In fact, it looked as if the pub owner was playing double shift today becasue he was the one behind the counter. Business must be slow. He knew Cloud though, he'd stayed here often enough, and so the round man gave a smile and trundled down the stairs to where the bar was to get the drinks. Cloud meanwhile led Aerith to the cast iron stove in the lobby.
Where he then stood awkwardly, hands at his sides, wondering what to do next.]
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I think there's just a little chill -- right here --
[ She rubs her hands over his, peeking at him mischievously from her downturned face. His hand is warm. But more than that, she's always liked playing with people, enjoyed seeing their reactions to something unexpected (though in reality, she wasn't "unpredictable" so much as forward), and Cloud was fun to play with. The worst she thought he'd do would be to yank his hand back if hers were still too cold for him, or if he was too embarrassed, and she might tease him if he did, but she'd bet they'd still drink cocoa together. ]
[ Safe to play with. It might have just been the resemblance to Zack at first, but Aerith really felt a lot more comfortable with Cloud than she did with most people. ... Which resulted in her making him squirm more often. Hard to say if it was fair. ]
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Something... Something warned him that her touch was precious...
I'm okay?
[he'd meant it as a statement. So why had it come out as a question?]
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What about you? Are you warm enough?
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We'll get you a jacket and some real gloves before we go back outside.
[and a scarf. Because she'll look cute in it but he'll say it's to keep her warm. The innkeep/barkeep comes over then with a tray. It's got two mugs of cocoa with cream on it and a plate of little chocolate topped cookies. Pleased with himself over the extra flourish, he'll give Cloud a wink and leave them on the small table there before asking:]
You folks going to want to rent a room for the night? It's colder than usual out there.
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Cookies? Surprised, Aerith looks up at the innkeep just in time to catch that sly little wink, even though it's not meant for her, and feels a small thrill of delight that makes her smile widen. They look like a couple. Though she meant to wait on their date just a little longer, it would be so nice if Cloud was thinking of this as one. Because it was just him and her ... Though a faint heat sprang to her own cheeks when the innkeep mentioned a room. AVALANCHE used inn rooms all the time, but they were never just two people. ]
If it's too cold it won't be any good for driving, right Cloud? [ She looked up at the innkeep again, hoping her embarrassment didn't show, but judging by his knowing smile ... oh, well, as long as Cloud didn't notice, it was fine! ] We'll take a room, thanks.
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200 gil!
[the innkeeper was pleased to announce it and Cloud just snorted at the tourist price and ignored it otherwise. Instead, he focused back on Aerith as the other man merrily plowed his way back to the desk. She looked... a little flushed. Was she still cold? Concerned, he picked up one of the mugs and passed it to her.]
I'm fine the way I am.
[because even oblivious, there's no way he would ever miss - a second time - the gleam of pure evil in Aerith's eyes at the thought of making him wear funny clothes.]
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He hadn't reacted to the innkeep's unexpected generosity or the wink or any of it. Not even a little bit! ]
You didn't notice, did you? [ But, wait, wasn't this his dream? Was he so bad at picking up signals that he missed them even from his own mind? ]
... That could explain a lot ...
[ She toyed with a cookie before dipping one end into the hot cocoa, considering him thoughtfully ... and with that gleam of pure evil returning. ]
No, no, you're missing something! [ She insisted on this as she leaned forward against the table. ] I know what it is. You need a hat.
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Not interested.
ooc. linky goodness
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OK, that really wasn't any better. ]
You don't need to get upset. . . so sulky. [ She smiled at him as she picked up her mug and took a sip from it, enjoying how its warmth felt between her hands. ] It'd look nice!
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