(Untitled)

[omgwtfwrench]

Characters: Winry, Mifune, Dimo, Cloud, Anthy, AND ANYONE ELSE WHO WOULD LIKE TO MEET THEIR FIRST MATE. Or really not even just meet, anyone who wants to interact with Winry :3
Content: Winry takes it upon herself to go around and bug get to know some of the 'newer' members of the 4423
Setting: All around the 4423
Time: Throughout the entire day

Comments

[seventh_hero]

Enough is enough. I'm done for the day.

If anything could be said about Cloud, it was that the man was dedicated. Cloud was loyal to a fault, even, and there was no greater evidence present than the fact that he was still on board the 4423 and still trying to put the ship back in a better working condition.

There's no wonder why this ship didn't have a shipwright already. They probably couldn't stand it and quit.Cloud, climbing out of the deepest depths of the ship, out from the bare bones of the craft and beyond any point that most crew members would even dare to tread, dusted himself off, removing the outer layer of dirt-and-grease-coated clothing, then began to walk down the hall towards his workshop/quarters. He was tired, and it was visible; he had been working vigorously straight through the 'holiday' without a lot of rest. Still, the blonde carried himself well, walking straight and tall, even wearing a very gentle smile on his face

[omgwtfwrench]

Winry had always told herself that she would limit how often she visited her crew in their rooms. Pirates in general, and she knew a good bunch on the 4423 liked their privacy. Hell, she did too. She liked being able to escape to her private space or the engine room when she wanted alone time, and most people knew that whenever she was working they probably wouldn't get her attention anyway.

Her vow was that she would only do it if invited, or if there was cause for serious worry--only very important reasons. Being who she was though she typically had a very motherly, worrying, and bossy view over her crew so those visitations happened more than she'd like to think.

Several minutes after his collapse, Winry just missed him as he departed from where he'd been working. Cloud was one face she had been looking around for a while. She hadn't found him which meant he was either out in town, or in his room, so she'd have to make an exception.

The knock came softly; if he was asleep than she'd try another day.

[seventh_hero]

It was fortunate for Winry that Cloud, never one to rest on his laurels so easily, had decided that it wasn't time for a rest just yet. Despite the wear and tear on his body from working such long hours, he had hopped out of the hammock after only a moment or two, only to begin working his way into an exercise routine.

Winry's soft knock on the door was enough to push it open a tad more; it had never been fully closed, and inside was Cloud, on the floor, performing push-ups in a steady, marching rhythm with only one finger pressed against the floor. He made no noise, save for a soft, exerting grunt as he rose up. His upper body, exposed, revealed soft, fair skin coating a very slim, lean shape. He wasn't overtly muscular, but his conditioning and vitality was still perfectly evident.

Cloud didn't notice Winry at first, but after a moment, he suddenly paused in mid-'up', holding himself steady, and looked towards the doorway.

He blinked once, wide-eyed, then immediately shot up off of the floor and out of sight behind the doorway. "

[omgwtfwrench]

Winry was just as much surprised when the door gave in so easily, she had thought it had been closed. She was going to stay where she was and just call his name, but before her mouth opened she saw him doing his exercises. Her voice was lost to her for a moment, first due to being quite impressed. Push ups on a finger? Damn this guy was packing quite a bit of power.

The second thing that hit her was--well she wasn't entirely sure. Being someone who dealt with mana crystals on a regular basis, and someone who was a good magician (despite her reservations about magic) she could feel there was something strange in this room, but she couldn't pin it to Cloud. She figured he probably just had some crystals somewhere around.

The third thing, and the one that stuck most was his clothing. Or rather, the lack there of.

Oh Jeez.When they made eye contact she flushed and stepped back. Part of her wanted to leave but that would probably just make things more awkward in the future. In her line of work Winry saw a fair amount of naked people--

[seventh_hero]

Raising up his head, Cloud looked down at Winry with a gentle, yet icy stare, a look caused entirely by the stunningly blue shade to his eyes. He stood only slightly taller than her, likely due to age, and his agreed physique made him loom that much more over her, but his expressions showed no signs of overconfidence or superiority. They were humble instead, even evasive, a shy and quiet smile that said so much while truly saying nothing at all

[omgwtfwrench]

The embarrassment began to ease out of her and she gave a nod to affirm his conclusion. It had been a simple mistake, and he didn't seem all that bothered by it so no point in agonizing over it, right

[seventh_hero]

Cloud took his place in the chair he had set out, comfortably sliding into the strange, curved design. In fact, he had crafted and sculpted both chairs himself, using a softened metal surface that he had tempered into a shape not unlike a hollowed half-sphere. Beyond engineering, Cloud was incredibly skilled in metal-working; the greatest evidence of this was currently sitting down in the hangar

[omgwtfwrench]

Winry at last took a seat as well. They were different from any of the ones they had on board; he must have bought them, or made them himself. If it was the latter she was rather impressed, he really had gone out of his way to make them comfortable

[seventh_hero]

Should he, or shouldn't he?

Cloud did hesistate for a moment. Truth be told, Winry's gesture to come and meet him personally had already been surprising enough, but she was also willing now to let him voice complaints? What kind of pirate ship was this? The thought had caught him so badly off guard that he even opened his mouth for a moment to speak.

Then he stopped, not even uttering a single syllable. Or rather, something stopped him. Something he couldn't quite resist, let alone explain, a sense of propriety that forbid him from speaking any further out of turn. Whatever this feeling was, it practically had its grasp wrapped around his neck, effectively choking out anything he may have wanted to say. Cloud literally had to convince himself before speaking that he was not about to say anything about the captain before his throat actually opened up again

[omgwtfwrench]

Winry wasn't convinced in the slightest, but she decided to let it slide. She didn't know Cloud, so she couldn't figure out just yet if he was the kind to let things fester or not. Most people on the ship preferred to deal with their problems on their own, and were better and happier when others weren't involved. Hell, to a large degree that's how Winry was. There were a couple people who sometimes needed some prodding to get themselves off their feet, or accept needed help. Until she figured out where Cloud fell, however, she would mind her own business

[seventh_hero]

"...kinship, huh

[omgwtfwrench]

Winry nodded. The ship could be a really harsh place sometime--after all it was a pirate ship, but there were many people here she would trust with her life. Hell, half of them probably wouldn't be alive if they didn't come together like they did. They certainly wouldn't have survived the fight with the Victoria if they hadn't worked so well.

At the word 'gearhead' Winry visibly perked up and forgot all thoughts about the rest of the crew and what kind of people they were. She grinned widely. Now how could she say no to something like that?

"I'd love to see what you have!" It wasn't often that Winry got to meet people who were as passionate as she was about technology. Before coming on this ship the only person she had known was her grandmother. Then Souji had joined the ship, then later Heihachi, and now Cloud! The girl knew when to count her blessings, especially considering a lot of her life had been spent listening to Edward making snide remarks about her obsession.

[seventh_hero]

As soft a smile that could ever be seen formed on Cloud's lips. He'd hoped that his offer would appeal to her. If only the captain was as easy to please as she was

[omgwtfwrench]

Winry took the blueprint gingerly, almost reverently. It had been a long time since she had ever been able to see someone else's idea, or even just share potential inventions. The last time she had ever discussed project at length had been way back when her Grandmother was still alive. They would spend hours, sometimes deep into the night considering this or that, arguing when it would have to be done this way and not that way. Pinako had been a genius, so amazing. Her teachers and even some figures from the military had been hoping that Winry would live up to her name, but...

No. No point in wallowing in self-pity.Winry focus on the design, pulling herself away from the past and begin to study Cloud's sketches and notes. She was silent and thoughtful as she did so, but the more she saw the more obvious it was that her excitement was increasing by the second till her eyes almost seemed to gleam with absolute hearts. It was definitely something new, and the idea itself made her want to dance for joy. A motorized bike would be an

[seventh_hero]

Quietly satisfied, Cloud began to point out some of the "motor-cycle"'s finer points on the design's faintly-wrinkled pages, including (but not limited to) the vehicle's potential thrust output, wind and drag distribution, and its zero-point turn radius.

"Well...I wanted to feel the wind in my hair," he answered softly. "...without having to leave the ground."

The bike had been perfect for him, a solitary mode of transportation that carried him across the landscape at tremendous speeds. While it wasn't quite as fast as air travel, it cut out a lot of hassles; docking, for one, not to mention all the work involved in reloading and refueling a large ship. He could traverse the countryside at will, carrying with him all the necessary supplies of food and water, as well as a few provisions for camping out under the stars when the mood struck him (and it often did).

Once Winry was finished studying the pages over - or if she ever was - Cloud rolled them back up and stashed them among a few others in a satchel hanging on the wall. "If

[omgwtfwrench]

Winry could understand his sentiment perfectly. Many of her own inventions had been spurned on, simply by a desire to cater to some unfound desire. There were those that were simply out of practicality, like her boots, and those to help, like her magitech limbs but sometimes...

Sometimes you just wanted to experience something a little out of the ordinary.

Cloud certainly had a bit to wait before she handed them over, but she eventually remembered her manners and did.

"Of course I do!" He didn't even need to ask. If he was willing to share she was most certainly willing to see. She only hoped she wouldn't get too excited and make a fool out of herself.