We must try to figure it out, figure it out
Characters: Firion and Cloud
Progress: Complete
Summary: Shortly after this, Firion and Cloud have a chat.
Location: Cloud's home in Lindblum
Date: March
Warnings: Fluff?
Firion sighed as he shut the Sky Phone closed, resting the still unfamiliar contraption on the side of his bed and raising his knees to rest his arms on them. Nine thousand gil. Where was he actually going to get that kind of money? Between Cloud and himself, they earned more than that on their short travel to the Black Mage Village, but alone, he only had about three-quarters of it. Perhaps on the way to Treno he could earn the money, but who could say?
The most important thing was that he managed to get the Orb of Minwu out of those heartless bastards hands. He hated that he had to bid money for it, it seemed so petty but… if that was what he had to do, then so be it.
But what disturbed him the most? Was that even after knowing why he wanted it, both did not care and still wanted it for whatever reason that he was sure was not good. They would disgrace Minwu’s name and for what? Firion didn’t want to know.
Cloud had been working on Fenrir, trying to clean her up and figure out another way to get fuel to her. It was difficult, when she ran on electricity and had her own fuel source at home, but here he had no idea what he'd use. Sighing as he set down his cloth and accidentally rubbing a smudge of grease across his cheek, Cloud gave up on mechanics for the day.
Turning to make his way upstairs to shower and get changed, Cloud checked his sky phone, seeing the auctions had been up for quite a while. Wrinkling his nose, the blonde walked by Firion's door, pausing as he saw how he was sat. "Hey..." He absently leaned in the doorway, sighing at his phone. "You know, those auctions are a waste of good gil. Spending so much on worthless junk..." He didn't even bother to see who'd bid on what, he just slipped his phone away and looked over at Firion.
"Are... you okay?" Cloud wasn't the best person to deal with emotions but he could clearly see something was wrong with Firion.
Firion sighed. “No… not really. Those auctions don’t always contain worthless junk, you know. Did you see the latest biddings?”
Cloud shook his head as he came into the room, nudging the door shut and sitting on the floor to keep from getting oil or grease on Firion's sheets. He had to sleep there after all. "I don't look to see who bids." Rubbing a greasy hand over his cheek again, he smudged more marks on his skin. "What's wrong, Firion?"
Firion was silent for a few moments, gathering his thoughts. “Did I ever tell you about the White Mage Minwu?”
"I... don't think you did, but I might have forgotten. I forget a lot without meaning to... probably how many times I've been mako poisoned..." he murmured, shaking his head and resting his arms on his knees, lowering his chin down.
“It’s alright,” Firion gave the man a small smile. “I have come to find out exactly how little people know of my world, even if deeds done go unnoticed. The White Mage Minwu is a well-known mage on my world. He… to get to the Emperor, he used all of his magic and ended up sacrificing himself in the process. He was another man in this war that died to help our cause.”
He paused, swallowing thickly to collect his thoughts.
“The auction was bidding something called the Orb of Minwu,” Firion continued. “Two other people wanted it. I was reckless but I began to bid anyway. I didn’t want anyone else to have it. I even explained my reasoning to the two who were also bidding, but they… didn’t care. One even said I had his sympathy before raising the bid yet again.”
He gave a somewhat mirthless laugh. “I won. But… I was reckless. I don’t have enough money and those bidders were persistent. I don’t know what they wanted the object for but even knowing that my friend’s soul is inside of it, they continued to bid! I am a fool.”
Cloud listened quietly, his stomach turning at the thought that people would actually keep outbidding him on something like that. It was sick and wrong... who would do such a thing? It made him so angry to know there were people that sick and twisted.
Shaking his head at Firion, Cloud reached out and gripped his arm lightly, forgetting that his hands were grimy. "You aren't a fool, Firion. I would've done it too. That's just... those people are sick, especially the one who gave you his sympathy. It's wrong and it's sick and..." Cloud took a deep breath in to stop himself from getting to angry. "I'll help you pay for it. If one of my friends had their soul inside an orb and people were bidding on it, I'd bid too and keep going until I won."
Keeping hold of Firion's arm, Cloud looked at him with that all-too-innocent look he never meant to give ever but seemed to have mastered anyway. "Cherish everything, Firion, even if it makes you do crazy things to protect it, because everything is important, even if other people don't think so."
Firion didn’t mind the greasy, if anything Cloud looked rather amusing all greased up like that. But it was Cloud’s words that kept him from laughing about it. “Cloud…”
He didn’t want to make Cloud give up his money. The bid was already ridiculously high! He looked away and murmured. “It’s nine thousand gil, Cloud. You would be giving up a fair portion of your own money for it. I can’t let you do that. Even for something I cherish.”
Cloud shook his head again, sighing at Firion. "I don't care how much it is, Firion. Okay, so nine hundred thousand is kind of... insane, but I would pay that if your soul was trapped in an orb, so it doesn't matter that I didn't know Minwu. He doesn't deserve some sicko having his soul."
Shifting onto his knees, he let go of Firion's arm and settled to sit on his heels. "I probably won't tell anyone about how much it is, because I don't want to be told off... but it's for you, so I'm okay with that, Firion."
“Nine hundred thousand is insane,” Firion agreed with a snort. “I honestly don’t understand why it was so precious to… whoever was bidding. They hid their identity so I can’t tell who it was. For all I know it could be one of the men from the State Meeting but… I can’t think of why any of them would want it.”
And it couldn’t have been any of his friends from his world. They would have revealed themselves to upon arrival had it been.
He sighed. Again, he was in Cloud’s debt. “Thank you.”
He only wished there was some way he could pay the man back. Other than the actual gil he now owed him.
Cloud sighed softly, rubbing lazily at the smudges on his cheek, looking at his fingers afterwards. "It wouldn't surprise me. If he was at the meeting, they'd probably still have something against us for being right and they'd have the money to keep bidding on it even if it doesn't really matter to them."
Frowning, he shook his head at his friend. "Don't thank me until you have the orb in your hands, okay?"
Firion nodded. It was true. Just because he bid the highest didn’t mean he automatically got it until he actually paid for it and retrieved it. And it was also true about the people at the meeting. They were political figures, money would have come easily to them. Though he wasn’t sure how that happened since they were brought here, like he was, with virtually nothing other than what they carried. But those with the right knowledge could, indeed, do a lot and gain power.
“You should go clean yourself up,” Firion finally replied with a small grin. “I can make the journey on my own. I can’t let you go with me this time.”
Standing up, Cloud smiled slightly, nodding just a little. "Your room will still be here when you come back. I want to see this orb for myself, too. I want to know why they'd do that and say those things..." He sighed and stretched, turning for the door and trying not to touch anything else, now he'd left a nice handprint on Firion's arm from earlier in their conversation.
"Let me know when you're leaving, so I can say goodbye..." His gaze fell at that, but Cloud simply left the room and headed for the bathroom to clean himself up.
“Of course,” Firion confirmed. “Though I doubt we will get our answers until we find out who wanted the orb in the first place.”
He saw Cloud’s face fall at the thought of goodbye but couldn’t come up with much of a response in time. Instead, in thought to himself, that he would make this journey as quick as possible.
Progress: Complete
Summary: Shortly after this, Firion and Cloud have a chat.
Location: Cloud's home in Lindblum
Date: March
Warnings: Fluff?
Firion sighed as he shut the Sky Phone closed, resting the still unfamiliar contraption on the side of his bed and raising his knees to rest his arms on them. Nine thousand gil. Where was he actually going to get that kind of money? Between Cloud and himself, they earned more than that on their short travel to the Black Mage Village, but alone, he only had about three-quarters of it. Perhaps on the way to Treno he could earn the money, but who could say?
The most important thing was that he managed to get the Orb of Minwu out of those heartless bastards hands. He hated that he had to bid money for it, it seemed so petty but… if that was what he had to do, then so be it.
But what disturbed him the most? Was that even after knowing why he wanted it, both did not care and still wanted it for whatever reason that he was sure was not good. They would disgrace Minwu’s name and for what? Firion didn’t want to know.
Cloud had been working on Fenrir, trying to clean her up and figure out another way to get fuel to her. It was difficult, when she ran on electricity and had her own fuel source at home, but here he had no idea what he'd use. Sighing as he set down his cloth and accidentally rubbing a smudge of grease across his cheek, Cloud gave up on mechanics for the day.
Turning to make his way upstairs to shower and get changed, Cloud checked his sky phone, seeing the auctions had been up for quite a while. Wrinkling his nose, the blonde walked by Firion's door, pausing as he saw how he was sat. "Hey..." He absently leaned in the doorway, sighing at his phone. "You know, those auctions are a waste of good gil. Spending so much on worthless junk..." He didn't even bother to see who'd bid on what, he just slipped his phone away and looked over at Firion.
"Are... you okay?" Cloud wasn't the best person to deal with emotions but he could clearly see something was wrong with Firion.
Firion sighed. “No… not really. Those auctions don’t always contain worthless junk, you know. Did you see the latest biddings?”
Cloud shook his head as he came into the room, nudging the door shut and sitting on the floor to keep from getting oil or grease on Firion's sheets. He had to sleep there after all. "I don't look to see who bids." Rubbing a greasy hand over his cheek again, he smudged more marks on his skin. "What's wrong, Firion?"
Firion was silent for a few moments, gathering his thoughts. “Did I ever tell you about the White Mage Minwu?”
"I... don't think you did, but I might have forgotten. I forget a lot without meaning to... probably how many times I've been mako poisoned..." he murmured, shaking his head and resting his arms on his knees, lowering his chin down.
“It’s alright,” Firion gave the man a small smile. “I have come to find out exactly how little people know of my world, even if deeds done go unnoticed. The White Mage Minwu is a well-known mage on my world. He… to get to the Emperor, he used all of his magic and ended up sacrificing himself in the process. He was another man in this war that died to help our cause.”
He paused, swallowing thickly to collect his thoughts.
“The auction was bidding something called the Orb of Minwu,” Firion continued. “Two other people wanted it. I was reckless but I began to bid anyway. I didn’t want anyone else to have it. I even explained my reasoning to the two who were also bidding, but they… didn’t care. One even said I had his sympathy before raising the bid yet again.”
He gave a somewhat mirthless laugh. “I won. But… I was reckless. I don’t have enough money and those bidders were persistent. I don’t know what they wanted the object for but even knowing that my friend’s soul is inside of it, they continued to bid! I am a fool.”
Cloud listened quietly, his stomach turning at the thought that people would actually keep outbidding him on something like that. It was sick and wrong... who would do such a thing? It made him so angry to know there were people that sick and twisted.
Shaking his head at Firion, Cloud reached out and gripped his arm lightly, forgetting that his hands were grimy. "You aren't a fool, Firion. I would've done it too. That's just... those people are sick, especially the one who gave you his sympathy. It's wrong and it's sick and..." Cloud took a deep breath in to stop himself from getting to angry. "I'll help you pay for it. If one of my friends had their soul inside an orb and people were bidding on it, I'd bid too and keep going until I won."
Keeping hold of Firion's arm, Cloud looked at him with that all-too-innocent look he never meant to give ever but seemed to have mastered anyway. "Cherish everything, Firion, even if it makes you do crazy things to protect it, because everything is important, even if other people don't think so."
Firion didn’t mind the greasy, if anything Cloud looked rather amusing all greased up like that. But it was Cloud’s words that kept him from laughing about it. “Cloud…”
He didn’t want to make Cloud give up his money. The bid was already ridiculously high! He looked away and murmured. “It’s nine thousand gil, Cloud. You would be giving up a fair portion of your own money for it. I can’t let you do that. Even for something I cherish.”
Cloud shook his head again, sighing at Firion. "I don't care how much it is, Firion. Okay, so nine hundred thousand is kind of... insane, but I would pay that if your soul was trapped in an orb, so it doesn't matter that I didn't know Minwu. He doesn't deserve some sicko having his soul."
Shifting onto his knees, he let go of Firion's arm and settled to sit on his heels. "I probably won't tell anyone about how much it is, because I don't want to be told off... but it's for you, so I'm okay with that, Firion."
“Nine hundred thousand is insane,” Firion agreed with a snort. “I honestly don’t understand why it was so precious to… whoever was bidding. They hid their identity so I can’t tell who it was. For all I know it could be one of the men from the State Meeting but… I can’t think of why any of them would want it.”
And it couldn’t have been any of his friends from his world. They would have revealed themselves to upon arrival had it been.
He sighed. Again, he was in Cloud’s debt. “Thank you.”
He only wished there was some way he could pay the man back. Other than the actual gil he now owed him.
Cloud sighed softly, rubbing lazily at the smudges on his cheek, looking at his fingers afterwards. "It wouldn't surprise me. If he was at the meeting, they'd probably still have something against us for being right and they'd have the money to keep bidding on it even if it doesn't really matter to them."
Frowning, he shook his head at his friend. "Don't thank me until you have the orb in your hands, okay?"
Firion nodded. It was true. Just because he bid the highest didn’t mean he automatically got it until he actually paid for it and retrieved it. And it was also true about the people at the meeting. They were political figures, money would have come easily to them. Though he wasn’t sure how that happened since they were brought here, like he was, with virtually nothing other than what they carried. But those with the right knowledge could, indeed, do a lot and gain power.
“You should go clean yourself up,” Firion finally replied with a small grin. “I can make the journey on my own. I can’t let you go with me this time.”
Standing up, Cloud smiled slightly, nodding just a little. "Your room will still be here when you come back. I want to see this orb for myself, too. I want to know why they'd do that and say those things..." He sighed and stretched, turning for the door and trying not to touch anything else, now he'd left a nice handprint on Firion's arm from earlier in their conversation.
"Let me know when you're leaving, so I can say goodbye..." His gaze fell at that, but Cloud simply left the room and headed for the bathroom to clean himself up.
“Of course,” Firion confirmed. “Though I doubt we will get our answers until we find out who wanted the orb in the first place.”
He saw Cloud’s face fall at the thought of goodbye but couldn’t come up with much of a response in time. Instead, in thought to himself, that he would make this journey as quick as possible.