The Final Fantasy Experience; intended as a limited time event for the series' fortieth anniversary, at current rate expected to carry on indefinitely. There was more than one; the one in England a pale comparison contrasted with Tokyo's – not to mention the one in Los Angeles. But although visiting either has always been one of your ambitions (preferably Tokyo's were the variable dubbing process is not a factor), you are more than happy with the one near London. Knowing and loving the series are far from essential, but all the staff seem well acquainted with the game series and it's varying spin-offs and the sheer level of enthusiasm is amazing.
Not everyone can agree on which game and surrounding media is best. The latest always has it's champions even if perception changes dramatically over time as with Final Fantasy XIII and it's sequels. The seventeenth main-line entry commands a hefty proportion of the exhibition space and the resulting cosplayers. Assuming the project remains successful enough, it is possible all will cycle out and diminish, replaced by whatever Final Fantasy XVIII entails – and already the rumours are circulating. Many customers ask what you've heard of it – precious more than what they've already learned, at least in concrete terms.
There are forever rumours, speculation and alleged leaks or theories derived from the smattering of released concept art and self-proclaimed insiders. The speculation is fun enough – and you might have unwisely written a few fics along those lines. Mostly as the oddly recurring notion of a focus on Squall and Rinoa's daughter is more intriguing than you might have expected. Most of the space focused on the bigger games, the ones that truly broke out from RPGs to detonate in the culture. XV only managed completion – for better or worse – last year with the release of a final collection. You're never sure if there are more cosplayers for this game than any other – it seems like that some days. Final Fantasy boasts less cosplayers – or at least cosplayers definitively from that game (and not simply fans of 8bit Theatre), but commands more attention than some of the perceived lesser games because of its nature as the first.
(Secretly you are always a little dismayed FFV is one of the least featured games. The section is smaller and less than complete. Little concept art, fewer new musical renditions or ports. Certainly, it feels unfair how favoured IV is)
Final Fantasy IX remains the game considered by a number the absolute best – and reasonably popular. Final Fantasy VIII has fared better now than before – helped at least in part by those rumours. But of all the series, one is more famed than any other. The first you played – less out of some jumping on the bandwagon (but honestly who cares?) and more because none of the others were available in this country legally. Final Fantasy VII. The game's section is a mix of old production artwork, unused materials, sculptures, video-screens playing out the old game – and the corresponding media relating to the hugely successful, if divisive, Remake. Divisive in terms of the fandom; critics were not about to get involved in the varying ship wars and heated arguments about canon.
Working at the Experience is varied; some days you're in the gift shop (shelves crowded with officially licensed stuff of all kinds. Copies of the game for a plethora of platforms, official books, keychains, magnets, plushies, posters, action figures), some days you count people onto the tour, announce the event, take up stations around the exhibits to impart other details not noted on any signs to curious attendees. And sometimes you wind up in the canteen a place causing the most strain on Square-Enix's imagination. Normal food mostly, but in addition there are the health and mana drinks; and some of the ice creams. Brought over from Tokyo are the signature dishes for Cloud and Aerith (privately you still can't not think of her as Aeris, but the rest of the world has long since moved on).
And today you are working the machine, assembling the sundaes into glasses. One of only four places they are available, but since the ingredients are clear, nothing would prevent replication elsewhere. Nothing but the branding – and ultimately that is of the greatest importance here. Hard to enthuse in the same way when doing food preparation. The people who pause here are cranky or want food, or dragged here because of a significant other who's way more into the series than they are. And you have to smile and nod and serve as fast as you can, and home will come in about three hours and tomorrow you should be in the gift shop and-
Something about the trio who are next in line tugs at a memory. They're headed by a woman with short brown hair, green eyes and an amused smile. The woman to her left keeps glancing around; she has black hair, grey eyes and a lot of her attention is on those sundae glasses. The third is a blond man with dark glasses. "Hi," the first woman says. "I'd like one of the Aeri-" She breaks off. "Aerith," she stresses. "Ice creams. And two of the Cloud's."
"Wait." The other woman turns around. "Make mine an Aerith too."
The first woman's smile widens. "So you'd rather eat-" Quick glance at you. "-that one," she finishes a little awkwardly. "Than Cloud's?"
There's some innuendo in her tone and the second woman flushes. The man finds the canteen interesting. "Stop it," the second woman hisses.
The first woman chuckles. "Two Aerith and one Cloud, please."
Fans. You make the ice creams with a fixed smile; a familiar joke and everyone who cracked it thought they were original. They paid in cash and retreat with desserts to a nearby table, parts of their conversation audible as you serve the customers behind them.
"Why didn't I get one of these?" The second woman prods at her ice cream with a long spoon.
"I'm not sure what fruit they'd pick for you." The first woman takes a huge mouthful of cream and ice cream.
"In that case, I don't see why you got strawberries. Only your jacket was red."
"True." The first woman holds up a strawberry. "But they're pink on the inside."
The second woman sighs. "Oh, so that's fine is it?"
"Blackcurrants?" The man tugs the chocolate Buster Sword from his own dessert and pauses.
"Blackcurrants could work." The second woman stares at the chocolate. "You had better not be thinking of doing anything with that."
"What?" The man was taken aback. "I was going to offer you both some."
"Oh how noble," the first woman replies. "Here have a bite of my huge chocolate weapon?"
The second woman shushed them as she giggles. "People will notice."
"Don't worry about that." The first woman scoops more ice cream from the glass. "I have our cover all figured out."
"Which is?"
"Cloud, Tifa and Aerith. In a parallel world. Twenty years older."
The second woman stares at her. "That's either genius or asking for trouble." The first woman shrugs; the second woman glances to the man. "No objections?"
"Best lies have an element of truth," the man replies.
"Yeah but that's not so much element of truth as-" The second woman shakes her head. "Nevermind."
The first woman drops her spoon into the glass and pushes it to the centre of the table. "That was good." She glanced around the canteen. "I kind of like this. Weird as it is."
Her companions sit up straighter. "The food?"
"All of it. I mean, it's weird to see people so fixated on it, but it seems to make them happy."
"So-" The second woman frowns. "You don't mind how you're presented?"
"Not really. I mean, it makes for better cover. I thought you'd be more concerned with people's perceptions." She glances at the man. "You too."
"The stuff here doesn't seem to have the really awful things I heard about." The second woman grimaces. "But, seriously: they've gotten both of you dead wrong."
The man chuckled. "I can live with it."
"Me too," the first woman says. "That's not me in the end. Well. Maybe it was at first. But her-" She gestures at the sundae. "That's like not speaking ill of the dead and deifying someone. I have a better reputation for being dead than-" She frowns and shrugs. "Not about to let it get to me. Shall we see the rest of it?"
"Sure." The second woman starts to rise and stops. "Did you decide yet?"
"Decide?" The first woman looks blank.
"Yeah. About the shipping?" The second woman raises one eyebrow.
"Oh that." The first woman chuckles. "While it's true I don't need any more excuses to kiss both of you… I'm not convinced anyone would take notice. Are people going to believe us if we told them? Especially as we don't look the same anymore."
The second woman looks relieved. "Fair point. Well; we'll enjoy the rest of this and leave them to it I suppose." She moves to rub her eyes and stops. "Going to be glad to get rid of these contacts..."
The three of them walk away. Fandom remains weird it seemed. Possibly more cosplay and roleplay dedication than you've seen in a long, long time.
The next day was a bit weird; that Aeris Gainsborough, Cloud Strife and Tifa Lockhart had signed the guestbook was nothing out of the ordinary – people did that all the time and few signatures matched any other. But these were carefully formed block capitals. And no one could explain the one gil coin left behind too – not a reproduction and unlike anything you'd seen before. Passed around the break room and speculated and forgotten. Fandom going the extra mile once again.