Title: Smoking Aces
Pairings: Cloud Strife/Miles Keehl
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Plot: Final Fantasy VII was a popular card game that Miles' little brother, Nate, played all the time. When her mom sends her to get rid of all Nate's playing cards something stops Miles from throwing away that last card.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Final Fantasy VII characters, but I do own my own characters Miles, Nate and Adelee and a couple of others.
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Italicized text - Flashbacks
Regular text - Present
"text" - Dialogue
'text' – Thoughts
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Chapter 1.
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Every so often she would take her eyes off the thick history textbook to peek at her younger brother in the kitchen. However he was so into his card game that both he and his friend would never notice the snap of her book shutting when she finished studying. Miles shrugged as she watched Nate slap a few cards down on the table that he had selected from the top of the deck, his shoulders hunched up; fingers flipping through the remaining cards. It seemed to be a real pointless game at 11: 06 at night, but the air around the kitchen table was concentrated with nerds so Miles didn't dare interfere.
Setting her school book on the low-set table in front of her, Miles started towards the kitchen and took a seat by her younger brother, rattling the table only slightly. But it earned her a couple of glares from the two younger boys who took the time to 'shhh' her. She had never actually understood why Nate was infactuated with this game. He could have been like every other teenage boy who'd play football and videogames, but he stuck to the card game he loved to playe ever since Uncle Reese had given him a packet of six cards.
Right now the deck was between the two boys and each had their own hands which they would every so often glance down at. Miles snorted and leaned back in her chair as Nate placed a card upside down on the field. Without looking up he replied in very a short manner "that wasn't very lady-like Miley..." She only replied by playfully sticking her tongue at him, trying to get a reaction out of her stiff brother, but she was certain that he paid no mind to her.
Her mother returned a few hours later, her breathe heavy with smoke and whiskey from the date. She was a mess. Her lipstick had been smeared and mascara trailed down her cheeks from tears of laughter or depression, she couldn't tell. Miles inherited a lot of her mother's looks even if she wasn't half as pretty as her mom, even when she had been crying for the past couple hours.
The alcohol in Adelee River's speech slurred as she stumbled into the room, her eyes bloodshot. "Nate honey, go t'yer bed…n'get rid of those stupid cards 'tha ya play wit." Her hot breathe was in Miles' face as her voice faltered and twitching fingers kept a stern hold on her shirt.
Miles steered her mother gently away from the indifferent boy as he continued to flip through his cards, his frown increasing as the two walked out of the room. Adelee turned to face Miles "n' I wan' ya t'go throw 'th'cards away, ya hear?" Her dead body weight was much heavier when she wasn't bothering to hold it up on her own.
But it wasn't long before her mother collapsed on the bed, shoes still on and everything. Miles stood in the doorway after wiping her mom's face clean and taking off her shoes and socks. She pulled the sheets over her mother's stiff body listening to Nate's said goodbyes to his friend and his timid footsteps to where she was. The small tug on her nightshirt gave follow and she picked him up only to set him on his bed just to the left of her own bedroom.
"Miley… I… I don't have to throw away my cards do I?" She ruffled his straw-colored hair and stacked his cards that he held onto tightly at his side in a neat pile on his nightstand. "Right now the only thing you need to worry about is your sleeping habit; it's not good to stay up this late Nate." He nodded slightly before snuggling deeper into the covers waiting patiently for his sister to turn the lights off.
The smile that stretched her face only stayed until he closed his eyes and drifted to sleep. But it was a tired and heavy frown that weighed her spirits down as she rubbed at her irritated eye and snatched his cards before returning to the kitchen table.
The house was fairly new and quite large thanks to frequent visits from her mother's many wealthy boyfriends. The floors were made of oak and were stained dark which matched the cabinets. The stairs spiraled upstairs to the second floor and that was where Miles spent most of her time alone. It was a beautiful house, but she didn't want any part of it. No one knew how much more her mother deserved than just store-bought presents.
They all looked the same, each card that Miles dealt out; but the variety would be humans, monsters, magic and no end to this game's imagination. The pictures were all very realistic, almost looking hand drawn, and a small description of its use was below and the name was above in bold print. Some were shiny and the names were engraved into the paper, they were obviously special in some way but Miles had never bothered to play the game or learn the rules.
Nate had probably offered once or twice.
She continued flipping through the cards until her eyes caught a singular card. It was almost too realistic in nature and the picture was incredibly human-like. It was the profile of a man, quite handsome, blonde and blue-eyed in the background of his motorcycle. But it wasn't the appearance of the man that frightened Miles. It was the look in his eyes that startled her.
They were blue ones for revenge, filled with a deep, twisted anger that only a human could possess. But he wasn't human, he was a card, and she had to face the card down on the table so she couldn't look at that man's miserable face a second longer. Miles gave small props to the person behind this character, the creator of the game who could have put such emotion into a card's face.
'Cloud Strife… Legendary Creature-Human…' These were the only words that crossed her mind as she twirled the thin card in her hand, resting her heavy head on her other arm staring blankly at the deck of cards on the table. She straightened the pile, pushing the edges sticking out in and glanced at the clock on the wall. '1:01 a.m., Final Fantasy VII…'
Sleep had begun to cloud her eyes and delude her thoughts as her eyelids became heavy with the thoughts of this Final Fantasy VII game that her brother had always played as a kid. He had bought many of them with his allowance money and on his birthdays so throwing them away was out of the question. And his collection of cards should have grown by now. Miles had always put it off as though it were some pokemon related silly card game. It was catching her now that she had given it some thought. She never gave it much credit.
"Maybe I'll ask Nate about it tomorrow. He'll know… a lot about it…"
And all night she dreamt at the kitchen table holding onto Nate's cards, back slouched, seeing this man in the card with the terrifying eyes and absolute mindset of inhuman revenge. Still through all of what had happened that night, she had completely forgotten she was supposed to throw those cards out.