Canon AU Event Log

[lucetimods]

Who: You! And you! And you! But uh, not you.
What: Event shenanigans.
When: Today until the end of the event (April 8th)
Where: Anywhere and everywhere
Summary: It's all right in here
Rating: I want to see a nice clean game. Keep your naughty stuff in the penalty box!

Same deal as always. React to the event! Do things! Have fun! Be excellent to each other.

And remember to correctly tag your characters to the post.

Comments

[thestormishere]

[ Lightning is frozen though, her body stiff as she watches Aerith jump back into food preparation, pretending nothing is wrong- even though she just admitted there had to be an experiment going on!

Which means that she probably thinks Lightning is the affected one, doesn't it? At least in her eyes.

But as totally screwed up as her early life was, it's also not something Lightning's comfortable with getting dismissed, either. At all. The idea that anyone would think that there's something made up there fills her with irritation. She's who she is because she survived that mess, because she's gotten better after surviving that mess- half out of sheer willpower, but also because of the people she's gotten to know better here....

It's the Malnosso's and not Aerith's fault, of course, but she's still having a hard time thinking of it like that. She just stays still, staring intensely at the other woman with those vivid eyes, wondering if she should even dare asking what the hell her series of events was supposed to be like. ]

[gardeningaia]

[ And of course... since she's worried about Light, it doesn't take long for her to look over her shoulder and pause in her grating. ] Are...you mad at me? Hey, we're still friends, right? That's what I remember.

[thestormishere]

... You can ask Zack too if you don't believe me.

[ He'd said nothing that morning, after all, and Lightning stubbornly refuses to drop it just yet, even if she and Aerith are friends. Hopefully that's not too much of a question, because although Lightning doesn't answer the query, she also doesn't look surprised or deny it.

Now she's just concerned that Aerith might think Zack is from somewhere else wrong, too. She watches the brunette's face carefully, unmoving. ]

[gardeningaia]

[ It had not been too much of a question--one she wanted reassurance on, but Light not scoffing at it was a bit of reassurance in itself.

Ask Zack? Aerith looks confused, for a moment wondering--had Zack been any different? No... but that's just Light's point then. That she's the one who's wrong--but--

but it can't be-- ]

But no one gets mako treatments as a kid. Unless, you were... in the lab...

[ But she's already shaking her head strongly, her hands turning into fists at her side. She doesn't want that to be real, that Hojo hurt yet another of her friends.

Okay, now she's upset. ]

A-and, you've always thought Gaia was weird! When we talked about the plate or lifestream or space...

[thestormishere]

[ Uh... she's getting upset, isn't she? Lightning's not used to being the calm one when it comes to discussions about her past; she's not sure what to think here, as her friend struggles to wrap her head around an idea that she should have known for years and years now.

Her hands smooth against the front of her skirt, but then one lifts, pressing uneasily to her chest as further uncertainty threads through her. A familiar gesture, though of course now it has a totally different reason behind it. ]

Maybe you should sit down.

[ It's the first thing that comes to mind. ]

[gardeningaia]

What would I need to sit down for? Nothing's happened to me. [ THAT IS A SILLY SUGGESTION LIGHT. The gesture really is something she should note--except that it is very familiar by now, something she attributes to Light rather than the dormant brand usually beneath, and despite her protest she's still upset. ] We're making eggs! We sit down when we eat.

[ This cheese is getting absolutely murdered due to Aerith thinking of Professor Hojo. This is going to be an exceptionally cheesy omelet.

--Please remind her the skillet is already hot because she has probably forgotten all about that... ]

[thestormishere]

[ Lightning's stock-still as her eyes slowly drift from Aerith's face, down to her hands working furiously to create a small mountain of shredded cheese...

And then she just turns and steps away, reaching to snag her journal off the counter before dropping down into a chair at the kitchen table herself. Elbow on the table, chin in hand, she flips the journal open even though she has no intention of being distracted.

She's just not sure what to say... so she chooses to take her own suggestion instead, avoidant. Guess who's not really feeling that hungry any more anyway? ]

[gardeningaia]

[ On the plus side, Aerith furiously shredding cheese helps to work out her upset.

On the minus, she's... still pretty distracted by the thoughts about it. She wants to know what happened, but she knows at the same time, if it was her--she's never wanted to talk about it.

Zack's never really wanted to talk about it either... Vincent's the same, too.

She gazes at her cheese mountain a bit despondently before thinking of the one possible bright side to these bright eyes. ] So--hey, that means you were in SOLDIER, right? [ ...possibly tactless as Cloud, also bright-eyed, hadn't been, but it only occurs to her afterward. ]

[thestormishere]

Was.

[ Says Lightning, carefully, face turning away from her fingers' support just enough to look over at Aerith. It's a little easier now, after the surprise has worn off a bit, but... her guard's definitely still up. She doesn't tack on the "technically" or similar that would make her answer more accurate. ]

[gardeningaia]

...Oh. Mm...

[ She'd already been asking in past tense, so if Lightning's emphasizing that, it... probably means there's no going back to it. ...It's only a very momentary surprise, considering Aerith's circle of friends, and then she's wondering why things just can't turn out well for them. But they're going to turn things around! Once she gets back. And in the meantime she is turning this conversation around. Somehow. (Maybe not.) ]

So you traveled all over the world! What place do you like best? [ She mixes up the cheese and eggs and starts pouring the mixture into the skillet, holding the bowl low to prevent any splashing. A little too low. ] Is it Costa Del Sol? Because of the be... each? Oh--

[ --her skin should not be doing that. With an experience practicality borne of being the main cook in this household and a healer who can't feel heat she quickly lifts her hand OFF the skillet she'd accidentally touched and starts focusing on trying to healing that before the actual pain and itching can set in. While cooking eggs. And trying to figure this thing out with Lightning, who hopefully won't notice that little slip-up. Nala, give me patience... ]

[thestormishere]

Ah... I guess.

[ ^ Very stiff. Picking a favorite place? Not something Lightning's ever done, somehow; even living with Aerith that specific question's never come up. She tries to remember if any one place shone above the others, yet while her mind wanders to the beach as suggested pretty easily...

To be honest, it was always the air that had Lightning's heart- not any one place, but wherever she happened to be high up. Windy and more than a little dangerous was ideal. The thought of jumping straight out of an airship and falling forever may have crossed her mind more than once. The sort of thing that's so blatant even the person entertaining them recognizes they're the flight dreams of someone who wanted desperately to feel free, really.

In any case, she can tell Aerith is assuming that she was... you know, a "regular" SOLDIER, rather than the tightly-leashed exception she'd really been and all. This is more than enough to cause more brooding, though after a few seconds... she realizes the question's been hanging a few seconds longer than it shoulda been, and realizes a second after that that Aerith is... ]

-- Did you burn yourself?

[ >8( Caught. ]

[gardeningaia]

[ Ahhh she is not doing well with this conversation at all. B( She jumps at being called out. ]

Only a little! It's not even hurting. [ ...........probably going to be tender, but not hurting doesn't that count ]

[thestormishere]

Are you going to heal it?

[ Bored, in that tone that indicates she's probably sliiiightly more annoyed than actually bored. 8| The impression is likely helped by the look of quiet frustration on her face... and the soft drumming of her fingertips on the table. ]