#verse. remake.

[makoblue]

@marusomongrel-- 18 .   a  kiss  during  combat . [Blown kiss from Roche, lmao]

Cloud feels his eye twitch as he brings up his sword to ward away flying sparks. Too bad it doesn’t block out the manic sound of the other man’s laughter as he skids past on his fire-engine red monstrosity of a bike.

What the hell’s up with this guy? He’s...crazy...

Maybe that had been a miss. A kiss for the wrong target, given that there are clearly better ones around. He glances over at Jessie, but she just shrugs helplessly at him.

“Think he meant you, big boy.”

“Wasn’t asking.”

“Totally were.”

 Cloud makes an irritated ‘tsk’ sound by sucking on the back of his teeth. For once, he’d be perfectly content to carry on this argument if it meant he didn’t have to acknowledge Roche. The SOLDIER seems on the verge of wolf whistling at him to reacquire Cloud’s attention once more. That’s a scenario he wants to avoid.

Outright hostility typically sends the right message. The point of his sword swings outward, drawing a direct line of sight from where his arm extends out to the bottom of Roche’s chin. Finding his gaze met with a lazy grin, Cloud growls. “Not looking for a date. Buzz off.”

[makoblue]

@strywoven​ liked for a starter:

No criminal underworld is whole without a cast of puppet masters with which to pull the strings. Don Corneo, all bluster, opulence, and shockingly unsavvy, is merely a man playing at villainy. His underlings, men like Leslie, did not give their loyalty with such desperation to a man who in all respects was inferior.

That left the question of…whom? To whom did the reins of Midgar’s organized crime truly belong? Even if they could ignore this individual now, all deeds done have a tendency to come full circle. Best practices cry against leaving loose ends. To dig deeper and sink his teeth into this threat, Cloud chooses to leave behind his companions and confront this matter alone. Compared to the blaring alarm of his intuition, Don Corneo’s mansion is merely playtime. He won’t play the odds.

Behind battered screen doors, he manages to squeeze hints of someone other from Leslie. Their unnamed playwright, not far from Don Corneo’s gaudy manse. He can only imagine what he might find there, confronting the owner of one of Midgar’s bloodiest ledgers. 

But monsters are familiar, and his fear is instead marred by anticipation.

“Where is Verona?”

[makoblue]

Continued from here

@honorisen​:

Man, talk about a heavy hitting question – and if Cloud were really paying attention, he probably would’ve seen the former SOLDIER’s characteristic bright and confident smile falter at that, too. Zack had always been the one to step up and take charge. He’d done that in SOLDIER, he’d done that in Nibelheim, he even tried to do that now. Zack was just a natural guardian to those he considered his friends-

But who took care of the hero when he was the one needing help? That’d be the question that’d have Zack shaking his head back at Cloud with a light, carefree laugh.

“ I’m sure someone would if I needed it…but, hey! When you put it like that, you make it sound like I’m actually gonna need the help soon! But being on my own’s not been too rough on me so far! I mean, you’re liking the freedom, too, right? ” Cloud was just worrying too much…wasn’t he? At least, Zack could only hope so.

“ I’ll be alright. ”

He knows that Zack doesn’t necessarily think himself as any kind of Atlas... nor does he doubt that Zack would shirk the responsibility if ever the mantle is given. The blond purses his lips, unconvinced by the SOLDIER’s perky facade yet unwilling to provoke distress for calling out the charade.

“It’s not funny,” Cloud grumbles. His face softens as he looks through the smudged windowpane beside him and into the heart of Midgar’s slums. He can see people below, trudging out their slanted doorways with their cigarette plumes and steaming coffee. Gone to work, if they were lucky enough to earn a living. Four years later and everything about this damn city still looks the same. Why did they come back here? Escaping one terrible place and back into another...his dreams were no longer anchored here, but to Zack. Where his friend went, Cloud knew he would follow without question. Shinra and SOLDIER...those things meant nothing to him now.

Fully recovered from Zack’s outburst of laughter, Cloud turns around and plants himself in front of the other man with his arms folded. A convincing picture of stubbornness. “I mean it. It’s just...” He trails off, struggling to find the right words when Zack had already spent the better part of the year taking care of him. “You don’t have to always put in 110%. Sometimes 70% is okay too.”

You can rely on me, he wants to say, but the words catch in his throat. How can he say that when he doesn’t know if he believes it himself? “You don’t have to take care of me anymore so...at least take care of yourself.”

[makoblue]

@askaeristheflower--

Aeris sipped her own drink and pushed a trash can over to him. “Aww what’s wrong Cloud? Or should I say Lightweight?” She cackled a little before reaching behind the bar and grabbing him a unopened bottle of ginger ale.

“Alright tough guy- Sit down and put your head between your knees- I’ll find you a snack or something to soak up some of that” Aeris practically skipped behind the bar to the store room where Tifa kept the pretzels. While Aeris did feel a little guilty that her friend was now blasted beyond belief she couldn’t help the sense of pride that swelled in her chest at the thought of her being able to out drink a SOLDIER.

“If you need to puke its okay. It really is my fault- I thought you could handle it”

“Not gonna puke,” Cloud mumbles, his voice coming muffled from behind the hand pressed to his face. Most of his nausea eventually subsides enough that he can trust himself to take the few precious steps it would take to reach the nearest bar stool and drag himself onto it. Notably, he ignores Aeris’s recommendation to put his head between his knees. He’s drunk, not undignified. Only moderately undignified. “Pretty shure y’...spiked that drink or somethin’.”

Suddenly feeling as though his head is a lead weight, Cloud resists the urge to rest his chin directly on top of the counter and instead waits for Aeris to finish fishing out whatever she’s looking for at the bar. “SOLDIERs can drink almos’ any regular pershon under the table...” 

[makoblue]

@floralcetra​ liked for starter:

During those times when she thinks he's not paying attention, he can feel her looking at him. Looking at him like she's seeing someone else. They compensate for those things left unsaid in wildly differing ways. He doesn't bring it up and neither does she. 

Idle conversation has never been his strong suit. He grips the thin cotton sheets, faded from countless wash cycles. It was probably once a deep red, now the color of rust. The fabric wrinkles at the point his fingers curl in and he studies the abstract lines with some fascination. He imagines his fist to be Midgar, and the lines, people. This inn is just a stopping point through which travelers flow past on their way to Midgar. 

After roughing it for the past couple days, Kalm is a reprieve with real beds, hot water, and a fresh-cooked meal. Even someone like him can appreciate those simple things. 

He finally lifts his gaze to meet hers. She admitted from the start that it's his eyes. The mako-rimmed glow. Who does she think of? "How are you feeling? First time out of Midgar and all…"

[makoblue]

starter for @mezzomorendo--

Zack’s footsteps follow closely behind his own. He can hear the other man calling out for him to wait. Patience, however, is not on his mind. Reactor parts are expensive. Billets of mithril alloys dipped into super-heated oil and mako and rolled flat underneath a hydraulic press to create a corrosive-resistant layer of sheet metal that lines the inside of Mako reactors. With just ten kilos worth they could fence it in the slums in exchange for enough gil to pay all their living expenses for the next two months. 

He cares less about helping AVALANCHE and more about opportunity.  

Finally, the other man catches him by the wrist and Cloud has to come to a stop in order to avoid yanking his friend off his feet. “Zack…” he sighs. They have both fared through far worse before. 

It’s manageable. I’m fine. We don’t need to stop right now. Blunt words he thinks, but cannot say aloud. Not to Zack. Cloud can see the concern lining the ex-SOLDIER’s face and feel the hands already tugging gently at bloodied clothing, so he stands still with a sullen frown. 

Scarlet must have started working with Hojo recently. Biotech monsters are the perfect combination of ferocity and technological prowess. Hardened metal carapaces and claws that can shatter the average sword steel as if it were domestic glassware. One of them had managed to get close, rending into his flank three, angry red marks. It hurt like hell, but he had managed to kick the beast away before it could do more than superficial damage. 

“It just looks bad…” Cloud mutters, unable to keep from feeling like his desired treasure would soon be slipping through his fingers.

[makoblue]

@valhyr / @strywoven --

"oh, would you mind?" verona turns to set her back to him, ringed claws pulling those loose spools of gold to the front of her shoulder. "can you unzip me?" there's no provocation to her tone, not even the usual playful lilt that tends to swagger every syllable she utters. it is exactly what it seems: a ( not so ) simple request to undo the zipper of her dress.

Cloud has felt appallingly out of place the moment Verona linked her arm with his and walked him through the doorway of the grand ballroom where several of Midgar’s most prominent companies held their annual gala.

Swearing an oath of speak only when spoken to offsets most threats to his composure, to the point that other attendees could have mistaken him for a man of impeccable mien. He hopes. Verona, effortlessly as usual, mingles with the other guests and exercises her considerable business acumen in even the briefest of conversations.

All of it, to Cloud, seems incredibly boring. Wise enough to keep such thoughts to himself, he continues to play his part throughout the night. Smiling at the right compliments, nodding at the right comments, and providing neutrally agreeable comments when pressed for his personal opinions on any given subject matter. This seems to go on for an eternity before Verona finally announces a close to socializing for the evening.

Relief washes all too palpably over him when they’ve finally retired to a private room.

“Hm?” Still decompressing from the night’s trials, the blond looks up from where he sits at the end of a neatly made bed. “Oh...sure,” Cloud agrees, too numb to fully think through the request. He rises from the mattress to meet her, and his hand is halfway up to a small, golden zipper when it occurs to him that’s never seen this much of her before. The realization isn’t fully innocent, but what surprises him more by several degrees is how much she has come to trust him.

The room is quiet except for the shifting of fabric and the zip of a splitting zipper. He hesitates, but only for a moment. Both hands rest lightly on her shoulders-- letting her recognize the weight of them-- before he slowly begins to move his thumbs in wide, steady circles at the muscle between her shoulder blades.

[makoblue]

plops herself upon a bench. she pats the space next to her, “ here, cloud~ ” -- from @petalina​

That had very much been an order and not a request. Cloud frowns, stubbornly lingering on his feet before giving up with a small sigh. He sits down, leaving enough space for another person...or two...to sit between them. “What’s this all about, then?”