Cloud stares at Tifa, dumbfounded before his expression quickly shifts to annoyed. “You’re worried about speaking terms when you’re the one that started throwing hands?” He didn’t forget; she knocked the shit out of him. Worrying about speaking terms should’ve been better reserved for if he was going to retaliate. She clearly had little issue bringing violence into this.
The SOLDIER sneers, crossing his arms over his chest and briefly has to wonder why he’s even here. Tensions between himself and Tifa were at an all time high; harmful words have been exchanged and it may only be a matter of time before Cloud let’s go of every remnant of their shared past and treats her the same as anyone else who was in his way. Cloud isn’t there yet - in fact the opposite. He was slipping further and further away from Rufus and the company, not because of the harm done to the world they’d caused but purely because his own life was violated by them. The Devil you know is still better than the Devil you don’t - Cloud still can’t commit to walking away.
“Then I guess I shouldn’t ask you if you’ve met a SOLDIER named Genesis?”
He has no way of knowing if they’ve spoken or not. To keep Genesis at least somewhat protected from the President’s gaze, Cloud has sense abandoned contact since last they spoke. Cloud was not allowed companionship, or allies, or friends. Spending too much time especially off duty with any one person could put them in danger now that Cloud is questioning the hand that created him. Rufus may know him, but Cloud knew Rufus too.
she wanted to roll her eyes — ( waiting , waiting , waiting ) it never happened, much to her surprise. there was a silent understanding that the oncoming confrontation wouldn't be something to look forward to ... & the way her last, tangible fragment of childhood spat venom towards her confirmed every one of her worries ; but emotions came in halves since they last met : half anger, half annoyance ( a dual confliction : aimed towards him for pushing her too far & at herself for letting it happen ), & half remorse. none of which seemed to suffice — missing the mark of something else undefined. ❛ it's not like it was unprovoked , ❜ her voice was hardly small — defensive with a tightened fist. few seconds passed ... ( one , two , three ... ) & her temper had settled, setting it free with a strangled sigh. another argument wasn't worth wasting time on — he sought her out, despite ... ( second chances were near sacred from him . )
❛ ... if it means anything , it didn't really help . ❜ the strings of emotion didn't untangle themselves. she had been hurt by his actions & wondered if he had been hurt by hers. some sick, twisted part of her wanted him to be — so many reasons to hate him, manifesting itself into a single punch. all of that, however, seemed overpowered by the past. a casual victim of remembrance. she wanted to shrug it off but, once again, it doesn't happen. instead came a stiff nod. ❛ you just ... go too far sometimes . ❜ but so did i, the thought crossed her — sentiment dying before it could be written. it wouldn't happen again, she swore as much ... but there would be no apology — yet. anger is anger, ugly as it was, & she was not shielded from the ill effects it can bring. it felt childish, but apologies wouldn't grace her lips until they were uttered from his first. or perhaps, after some time, when the dust had settled. doing so prematurely would be a fatal blow to an already guarded ego. instead, she left it at that, shaking her head to throw out the words unsaid. ❛ ... we've met , yeah . ❜ ( eyelids expanded for a brief moment before giving in to that heavy feeling , a detailed recount of the meeting playing at the surface of her mind . ) ❛ gave me a bit of a fright ... he knew my name before i could tell him . ❜ she wanted to cringe at the sad attempt of a joking, yet pointed, commentary of the event.
genesis meant no harm to her, she had soon realized, recognizing he walked on eggshells. curiosity had piqued, wondering just what those private conversations entailed for him to behave such a way ( had cloud mentioned her combative skills ? would that have been enough to scare off a solider of his rank ? ). despite this, tifa knew well enough she was not in any position to ask. ❛ said you two had a few drinks together , but ... ❜ ( eyes gazed over to him , frustration & grief held in equal amounts ) ❛ not a friend , right ? ❜ friend : a filler word with scarce usage from him. knowing both men, she hardly suspected the terms of their relationship were all that pleasant — too unlikely of a pair to operate seamlessly as companions. cloud seemed to rather suffocate himself than address her with such familiarity ( a man of similar status was likely no different ). yet strangers, or even allies, was hardly appropriate. something in between would far better suit, but the word only seemed to exist in both their minds as a concept. hands found comfort by crossing her arms around herself, loosely holding the inner crevice of her elbows ; the entire situation was much too uncomfortable to be considered a casual chat between two people. speaking terms? yes ... terms & conditions may apply, however. ❛ so ... is that why you're here ? ... wanted to ask what happened ? ❜
