oo4 ❄ An ancient puzzle piece

[anonfantry]

[ On the outset, there's nothing really sinister about the little mountain town. Cast in the dull, grey-green daylight filtering down through a summer-thinned cap of fog, it may seem eerie - especially mountainside, where the winding trails begin and the shadow of that grand, abandoned manor looms (if asked, of course, the locals will tell you it's haunted; about this, the children are quite serious, and the adults only moderately less so). But it is a safe haven away from the badly mutated monsters that roam the countryside freely and before the equally bloodthirsty spires of the nigh impassable range beyond.

There is a cozy inn, a well-stocked general store, and a small population of drably-garbed villagers bustling about. The shouts of the town's few children racing to and fro echo through the crisp, clear air; nearer to the center of the town's miniature main common, the steady flow of water in the towering well adds to the calm, almost sleepy atmosphere that pervades this simple, scenic little wide spot in the road.

On the surface, there's nothing wrong at all. Unless, that is, you happen to spot the lone resident here who seems the least bit out of place.

He looks just like a native: a pale, blue-eyed child with blond hair that stands up adamantly in messily arranged spikes - even at the ends, where it's been pulled back into a short ponytail. His clothes are a little big for him - a boy of no more than seven or nine, give or take a year or two if he's small for his age (and he is) - including the scuffed up, clunky brown boots on his feet. There are grass stains and ground in dirt in dark patches on his shirt and shorts, both a little threadbare. And he is insubstantial to the point of transparency, a shadow in the shadow of the well with his half-corporeal hands clasped around something obscured just enough to be of no shape at all, hidden in his grip where it hovers just before his chest.

He seems anxious, as children attempting to keep obvious secrets out in the open often are, but not bothered by the fact that no one else here appears able to see him. Whenever a villager drifts close, they always abruptly change course, or stop, as if remembering some other forgotten errand, and promptly trace their steps back. Nobody glances in his direction except to look past him to some other point in the distance. (If asked, of course, he'll say it's normal, and with all due sincerity, too.)

With one last furtive glance cast over the house across the dusty little plaza from him, he rolls the object over in his hands and comes to some crucial decision. Setting out determinedly from the safe spot beneath the water tower, Cloud skirts past his own home, giving it a wide berth, and forges determinedly on toward the twisting path that leads out of town - and up into the Nibel mountains. ]


[ ooc: no theme, just horrible!! childhood dreams. B[ i have no excuse. responses will come from justskinnedknees unless/until Cloud reverts to his usual self. ]

Comments

[waterfell]

[The lines between dream and reality can be blurred and hard to discern sometimes. There are days when she wakes up and it takes her several minutes to take stock of who she is and what life she really leads.

Then there are the times when reality blurs inside a dream, in the hazy impression of Cloud that somehow doesn't seem properly tangible. Mercury's head turns as he passes by at the water tower; her eyes follow him.

She catches him at the entrance of the town, arms folded across her chest. Her eyes narrow as she looks at him more closely. She speaks his name with unusual uncertainty.]

Cloud Strife?

[justskinnedknees]

[ Any doubtful quality in that tone is lost on him at the sound of his name; he hasn't gone out of his way to avoid notice, but he doesn't have to. Usually. Now, it seems, the glamour that keeps him dim to the rest of the world has slipped (if not fallen, entirely, as he remains slightly insubstantial, just the same), and there's an adult staring him down.

A stranger. A traveler? Somebody he doesn't know (despite that nagging sense of familiarity).

Cloud flinches back, caught, and quickly secrets away the prize clutched in his hands to relative safety behind his back. He doesn't run, isn't afraid - there's a difference between being afraid and knowing that the world is cruel. But he looks ready to, maybe, if it comes to that.

For now, he only nods - reluctantly - and regards her with the first vestiges of a defensive glower through messy bangs badly in need of a comb's attention. ]

[waterfell]

[It's all calculated to make her curious, and Mercury's eyes stray to Cloud's hands - or rather, where they would be as he hides them. They return to Cloud and she gestures to indicate it.]

What is it you're trying to hide there?

[She's unlikely to interfere unless whatever it is somehow affects her; but she wants to know.]

[justskinnedknees]

Nothing.

[ Vehement and unconvincing, it's not the innocent assertion of someone who thinks they've gotten away with concealing that nothing, but instead the passionately nonsensical outburst of the very young. He takes a wary step back, uncannily smooth in his wobbling, oversize boots. ]

It's mine.

[waterfell]

[Unfortunately, it only makes her even more curious and intrigued. Fortunately, she still has no intention of really meddling with him, and stays where she is instead of crowding him as he steps back.]

You're guarding that 'nothing' pretty closely. I want to see it.

[Just finding out if there's anything to meddle.]

[justskinnedknees]

[ For a moment, he seems unlikely to comply, glancing hastily back over his shoulder toward the town - and then up into the hills behind her. It's a useless gesture, for the most part: no one's looking at him (or her, for that matter), and they're unlikely to start. ]

Just stay away from me. [ he mutters, suddenly brandishing the thing in his hands like a weapon. What it looks like is nothing but a toy, a child's green glass marble - one too big to play with, in a fair game. ]

I found it, so it's mine.

[waterfell]

Don't worry! [Her voice is that light, almost facetious tone that would be a warning if she had any bad intentions; but here, it's closest to teasing him for the defensiveness.] I'm not planning to take it.

It seems important to you. Why is it?

[justskinnedknees]

[ Teasing is exactly what he takes it for, whatever she means in that deceptively airy tone of voice; there's no reason to think otherwise, and he digs in his heels, ready to demonstrate the worst form of that stubborn streak he'll have all his life.

He doesn't lower his arms, and the slightest tremor betrays his tough front. ]

I'm going to use it. I'll be stronger if I learn how.

[waterfell]

[That's different, and Mercury eyes the object with a new appreciation.]

Could it be... a materia?

[justskinnedknees]

[ He nods again, hesitantly, before lowering his weapon - only to clutch it back possessively, once more. ]

I found it. [ Cloud repeats persistently, thinking of the reactor, and other places he isn't supposed to go. ]

[waterfell]

[She smells a lie, or at least a half-truth or a rationalization; no one who believed they came by something honestly would be that defensive.

She doesn't particularly care. Mercury owns more than one thing dubiously acquired, and usually for the same reason: to become even more powerful. (Of course, she tells herself, some of those had been intended for Mercury.)]

And you have no intention of returning it to its owner. [It's an observation, with no particular disapproval.]

[justskinnedknees]

Nobody owned it.

[ Or if they did, they shouldn't have left it lying around in the dirt like that.

At any rate, no, he doesn't look like he's about to go stick it in the lost and found and wait for the rightful owner's return. (If they do exist; it isn't all faulty, childish logic to assume the easiest justification, when perfectly good materia does, in fact, just spring up out of the ground.) ]

[waterfell]

[Well, she's willing to believe it wouldn't be possible to find the owner, anyway.]

So you were running off with it to somewhere else?

Ahhh, tiny Cloud. I couldn't resist; when childhood dreams meet!

[pinnaculum]

[Sephiroth doesn't look like a native, but then, he doesn't look like a native of anywhere.

He stands studying the mansion. Then he turns to gaze down at the town. There's something familiar... Has he been here before? He isn't sure. It isn't anything like the lab, but he feels like the house and especially the landscape viewed from here remind him of something he saw a long time ago. Which, at his age, could be as little four or five years. Could it have anything to do with Professor Gast? He'd like to know what happened to the professor. He considers going inside. He could force his way in if the building is locked up, but he doesn't hurry, taking his time to assess the situation, as he was trained to do.

He's quietly exploring the area when he catches a flicker of movement and sees another child coming past on the nearby trail, headed toward the mountains.

Not one to be shy, Sephiroth doesn't hesitate to flicker through the space between them (though he remembers to approach the last distance at a normal pace), eyes bright with Mako and curiosity. He rarely gets to play with other children, especially without supervision. In contrast to Cloud's worn garb, Sephiroth is dressed in Shinra-issue clothing: neat, gray, and utilitarian, from his collared shirt to the tip of his boots. He has a sword, child-sized yet sharp, but it's sheathed now.]

Hello. Do you live here?

ahaha you are horrible, too

[justskinnedknees]

[ There aren't a lot of kids in town; Cloud knows all of them (has been in fights with most of them, and is wary enough of the rest for being close with the others). So when a total stranger approaches him - who can't be much older than he is, himself, might even be a couple years younger, in fact - he's understandably startled.

For the moment, his destination is set aside, and he's stopped in his tracks. The other kid looks strange, too, and there's a nagging sense of familiarity he isn't old enough to recognize for what it is somewhere beneath his immediate wariness. Optimism isn't his strong suit, and he doesn't have any reason to believe a stranger his age might be any less immature than the known quantities.

Cradling his clearly prized possession in closer to his chest, Cloud glowers as he nods. He doesn't return the greeting, or try for any other cursory pleasantries. It's a simple question with a simple answer, and if he's lucky, there won't be any follow up. ]

I am, it's true.

[pinnaculum]

[Sephiroth isn't about to back down, and he isn't in the least intimidated by any glowering on Cloud's part. But then, he is fairly difficult to intimidate, if just as difficult to antagonize. Fighting with other children is one thing that is very bad to do, he knows. They're weak, so he should be polite.]

I'm from Midgar.

[Sephiroth says this, but it doesn't sound right. Has he always lived in Midgar? No, Midgar isn't even finished, and the location of the lab has changed more than once. Maybe he doesn't know where he's from, but he lives in Midgar now.]

Were you born here?

[He's used to the researchers, to following them, peppering them with questions. When he was very small, he was quiet, but for the past two or three years he's been--not talkative exactly, but almost aggressively curious. The researchers usually answer his questions, unless the answer is classified.]

What is that?

[Sephiroth wasn't about to miss Cloud's small burden.]

it's okay, though. i think you get a pass on that, here.

[justskinnedknees]

[ ...Well, he's never been lucky, so that barrage of questions isn't anywhere near as surprising as Sephiroth's initial approach. Cloud doesn't plan on answering the rest - small talk isn't something he'll ever be good at, precisely, but it's practically a foreign language to him, now.

Or at least not until Sephiroth goes and points out the obvious, that treasure he's got pinned between his hands so hard it might crack (or would if there was any strength in them). ]

It's mine. That's what.

[ And clearly nobody else's business, at that, as he shrugs his hunched up shoulders away and turns into himself to better hide his prize. Let alone some snot-nosed kid (disregarding the fact that he is one, himself, and considerably snottier - in the metaphorical sense, anyway). ]

good, I like to get a pass!

[pinnaculum]

[Sephiroth is curious, but he doesn't press, not now. He is used to refusals, too. No, you can't go outside. No, it isn't time for training. No, you have to take this test.]

I thought it was yours. You're holding it. I wanted to know what it was.

[He moves forward again, peering at Cloud as he turns away, not sure what to make of his behavior. Isn't he being mannerly? That's good, isn't it?]

I have a sword, would you like to see?

[He unsheathes it before receiving confirmation: a bright, sharp-edged katana perfectly balanced for him. Larger than a sword one would give an ordinary child, but short compared to the blade he'll carry later. Its materia slots are full. It's not the actual practice weapon he was given in the lab, but the weapon he'd dreamed of having.]

well good because you do. and it comes with a free ride in this handbasket

[justskinnedknees]

[ Cloud, on the other hand, is not very used to strangers politely stating the obvious at him.

But he knows he doesn't like to be made fun of, and that that's probably what's going on, here. So he shuffles back hastily away at Sephiroth's curious advance, that stormy, preemptively hateful look coming back full force on the wake of his surprise. ]

Go away. [ he snaps, instinctively guarding his possession closer.

Especially once Sephiroth starts showing off; at that, an even uglier feeling sweeps in under his defensive attitude. It's embarrassing, suddenly, to think he was ever proud at all of what he found (not that he understands the why to this, exactly, but it doesn't change the way he feels it so acutely). ]

Leave me alone. I don't care what you have.

[pinnaculum]

[Sephiroth, for his part, was only being his usual poorly socialized, overly direct self, so he stares, then blinks. He still isn't sure what to make of Cloud's reactions. He is a little disappointed that his sword didn't make a better impression. He thought the other boy might like it. Who doesn't like swords? Obviously, everyone does! Except maybe researchers. If he were more emotive, he might look crestfallen.

He considers Cloud's command, but he doesn't have to follow Cloud's orders.]

I don't know where to go.

[He doesn't know the town, and he doesn't know the mountains. He doesn't want to admit that he's lost, because becoming lost isn't something responsible people do. He's never been lost, but he doesn't know where he is. He needs more information. He glances back toward the mansion, again feeling that odd echo of familiarity.]

Did you ever see any scientists here?

[justskinnedknees]

Go wherever. I don't care.

[ It's weird not to get any reaction at all - but Cloud's stock response to the things he doesn't understand is the same as the one reserved for everything else: his unhelpfully guarded attitude only ramps up further. He remembers that he had a plan, before this unwelcome interruption, and that it's important not to get sidetracked.

(Because if he does, he might have to admit to himself that he's a little afraid, or that there are better ways to go than back up the mountain. And he doesn't want that, if it means admitting on any level that he might not be as strong or brave as he thinks.)

Before turning his back completely on the stranger still watching him so expectantly, though, he does bother to shake his head once more. Scientists? He wouldn't know one if he saw one, but he's sure he hasn't, just the same. ]

[pinnaculum]

All right.

[Not having expected anything so definite as caring, Sephiroth isn't offended. He sheathes his sword.

As he's not sure where to go, Sephiroth doesn't go anywhere yet. He's not supposed to be outside the lab. He's especially not supposed to talk to unauthorized personnel. But since he's here and can't help it, it can't be wrong, can it? Part of him doesn't really care about proper procedure at a time like this, when he'd much rather explore and see new things. Still, maybe he should minimize his contact with others.

He doesn't give up. Cloud said he could go anywhere, so there's no reason for him not to follow. He moves closer again.]

Does anyone live there? Where are you going?

[justskinnedknees]

No.

[ Cloud's muttering, but still responding, for lack of anything better to do. He doesn't know how to get rid of somebody who doesn't respond to being told off, so the next best thing is to walk rapidly away - and when that doesn't seem to be working, what else is left? ]

S'posed to be haunted. [ Not that he really believes that, himself (or claims he doesn't, because that's baby stuff - ghosts). It's probably just full of cobwebs and bugs and moldy old junk, none of which he finds particularly intriguing.

It's up past the mansion, where he's headed, anyhow. He stops at the mouth of the trail that winds back around the empty house, not looking back - but speaking clearly enough, this time. ]

I'm going where the soldiers go. [ And just for good measure: ] You can't come.

[pinnaculum]

Haunted?

[Sephiroth turns toward the house again, skeptical. That's just superstition, clearly, but it makes him thoughtful.]

Probably not. Perhaps someone does not want people to go there.

[Which means that there might be something interesting there. He would be tempted to go inside and investigate--maybe there's equipment! papers! experiments!--but something else has attracted his attention. Telling Sephiroth not to go where the soldiers go is an incredibly unproductive move on Cloud's part.

Of course he can go anywhere! Especially where soldiers go.]

When I'm older, I'm going to be a SOLDIER.

[He should be in SOLDIER already!]

[justskinnedknees]

[ Whether or not the townsfolk's stories are made up for the explicit purpose of keeping people out of that old, moldy house on the hill or just the combination of abandoned property and probably monster infestations - Cloud doesn't particularly care.

He's written it off as unimportant, and so that's that.

The mountains, on the other hand, are explicitly forbidden. Not that that stops him from starting up the path that leads to their highest peak, and the ugly structure that looms just below. ]

I don't care. I'm going by myself.

[ Which obviously means Sephiroth can't come with him, his future career as a soldier (or a SOLDIER) notwithstanding. ]