onepassingnight | [007 ☿] Dream a little dream

[It's been a rainy dream, as Mizuno Ami (aged seven) walks home. Her backpack looks quite plump and full, probably due to the extra books she brings to have something to focus on during lunch.

Some things distract even her.

Ami hops across a few small puddles then, after a quick thought to decide it's alright, she hops across a much larger one. She sails through the air- and clears her target! All dry. She giggles in satisfaction.

The rain has stopped by now and there's a playground nearby, where the ground and equipment are somehow dry enough to use. Ami has a long time before Mama will be home, and she knows the people who live around here and play at this spot.

She can finish her homework after dinner (and she really will). Right now, she really wants to play. She climbs carefully into the seat of one of the swings, which turns out to be a touch too high for her and she pumps her legs but barely gets up momentum.

She might need a little help. She could also use a friend to play with.]

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[Guess who's forgetting her manners enough to step away from the table again? Ami hurries over to Cloud and she steps - lightly - onto his feet.]

[it's okay. Manners are important but they're pretty relaxed in the Strife household. So he'll smile at her willingness to join him and he'll stand patiently while she climbs onto his shoes. They're steel toed boots and she weighs about as much to him as the fluff from a thistle so he's not worried. Instead, he'll take her hands and wait until she's balanced. Her legs are small so he'll make sure he takes small steps as he begins to, slowly at first while they still get used to it, box step his way into the music.]

[She proves to have a sense of rhythm, at least, and if she can't precisely be called graceful, she's at least not unduly awkward. But the moves are wholly new to her, even of a simple dance like this, so it takes a moment before she feels comfortable with the motion. Her eyebrows draw together in fierce thought as she tries to feel her way through it.]

[it's not as if Cloud's the most suave of dancers himself but he can manage the box step with enough grace to make it seem like dancing, attentive enough to at least catch the beat of the music and come close to matching it. It's simple repetitive motions and he's content to just slowly move around the room with a little girl on his feet, 'dancing' just for the two of them.]

[Am keeps her hands in Cloud's, and her eyes riveted on their feet, until she gradually gets the hang of it, and looks up again.]

I'm dancing!

[her pure joy at the fact has his own smile turning into a grin and he'll, carefully to not throw her, spin - before going right back to the box step because that's what he's comfortable with.]

You are. Nicely too.

I'll get better when I practice more.

Then we'll have to keep practicing, for a little while longer at least.

[Cloud's 'advanced' enough in his dancing that he can rock a little as he moves, adding the slightest sway to the dance so it's just a bit more fluid. It's the full extend of his 'expertise' but it's enough to show he cares and to have fun with. Which is all he wants right now anyway.]

[Ami lets her weight pull down on Cloud's hands as she plays around a little herself.]

[her weight is light and so he simply keeps his hands and arms steady for her so that she can explore. She's smart enough to be creative and he doesn't doubt that if he finds her this age again, she's going to kick his ass when it comes to what dancing really is. That's not the point though. The point though is that he got to share this with her first and even if it is just a dream, it's still something precious they'll both have from now on. That - counts for a lot to him.]

[Her first dance. Alright, the circumstances aren't exactly romantic, and all she'll really be able to do when she thinks about it after she wakes up is shake her head and wonder what got into her mind.

But right now, within the dream, when she's young and free, it's fun.]

I'll teach you, too, sometime. I'll teach you something you don't know how to do yet. [Chess? Swimming? Who knows.]

[the offer's so open and generous that his smile quirks upward again and he'll nod]

All right. Next time I see you. Are you ready for the most complicated move yet?

[he'll wait for her assent but he expects her to give it. It's knowledge, even if it's fun, and he's never known her to turn away from that.]

It's called Twirl and Dip.

[She has no sense of it herself yet, but she is the soldier of Knowledge; she loves learning everything new. Especially this, something so everyday and fun.]

I want to learn it.

Good.

[he'll lift her gently off of his boots and set her on her own feet in front of him. Then he'll let go of one of her hands but keep a loose grip on the other.]

Follow my lead and trust me.

[and with that he'll use their linked hands to gently spin her, starting slow until she catches on]

[Her eyes stray to the floor again as Ami focuses on the movements too deeply to look up. This time, she's on her own. But slowly, she gathers more confidence.]

I'm really doing it myself this time. I learned how to dance.

[he lets her learn at her own speed, and she's fast enough to pick up the idea easily. Once she's got the hang of it, he gives her a good twirl that lets her really spin]

Dip.

[it's the only warning he gives but it's enough to tell her something's coming as he leans down and, one hand firmly on her for her to hang on to, curls his other hand around her back and tips her, just a little, over backward before pulling her upright and onto her feet again.]

[Ami dips smoothly - she has a certain innate sense of movement that must come from the abilities locked inside her still. She indulges herself by purposely leaning too heavily against Cloud's arm and laughs as she straightens.]

Is that the end of the dance?

[he can support her slight weight easily and he doesn't make any comment on her testing or trusting his support. The edges of his lips shift upward.]

Sometimes the last part has to go a couple rounds before everyone's ready to stop.

We had fun, didn't we?

[he can feel the tug of waking, knows how to recognize it now but it takes a moment more to smile down at her. With a soft sound and nod of his head, he agrees.]

We did. Next time I come back it can be your turn to teach me something.

I will! I'll think of something really special!

[She fumbles for words for a second.]

I won't forget!

[he nods again, the disappearing dream already starting to blur around the edges. Gentle, he'll rest a hand on top of her head and give her a small smile.]

I know you will, Ami. You never forget.

[007 ☿] Dream a little dream

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